Archive for August, 2010

Dell Streak

August 28th, 2010

Description

dell streak reviewDell’s tablet phone is well supplied with high-end features, starting with its 5-inch, WVGA (800 x 480 pixel) capacitive touchscreen.

The Streak runs Google’s mobile operating system on a 1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor. It has a custom user interface overlaid over the standard one.

In addition to support for AT&T’s 3G service, this model sports Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.1. plus a GPS receiver.

It comes with 16 GB of storage in the form of a removable microSD memory card, a 5-megapixel auto-focus camera on its back, and a front-facing one for video conferencing.

» Read more: Dell Streak

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Dell Aero Android OS Smartphone

August 28th, 2010

Dell‘s first smartphone has just been introduced in the U.S. The Dell Aero is an inexpensive, consumer-oriented model running Google’s Android OS. It sports 3G, Wi-Fi, and a 5 megapixel camera.

It has a tablet shape with a 3.5-inch, 360 x 640 (nHD) pixel touchscreen. At 3.7 ounces. it is one of the lightest smartphones running the Android OS.

Dell Aero Android OS Smartphone ReviewLike a good number of models running Google’s operating system, the Aero has an alternate user interface created by its manufacturer. Nevertheless, it comes with the standard suite of software, including Gmail, Google Maps, Google Search, YouTube, Google Talk and the Android Market.

As a consumer-oriented smartphone, it also has a range of social-networking software, like Facebook. Images taken with the 5 megapixel camera can be uploaded directly to Facebook as well as Flickr, Picasa and TwitPic, while movies can be sent to YouTube.

The Aero is able to connect to AT&T’s 3G mobile broadband network, and it also has Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and a GPS receiver.

In addition, this model has a 5 megapixel camera and a microSD memory card slot, with a 2 GB card pre-installed

Aero Pricing and Availability
The Dell Aero sells for $100 with an AT&T contract, or $300 without.

Dell and Smartphones
Dell was once a important part of the PDA market offering devices running Microsoft’s Windows Mobile operating system. But the company stopped offering its Axim Line when consumer interest moved to smartphones. But it is returning to this market with a pair of Android OS devices.

In addition to the Aero, this company recently launched the Dell Streak, which has some similarities but quite a few differences. Like today’s release, it is based on Google’s operating system and offered with AT&T service, but is a very high-end model a 5-inch, WVGA Touchscreen and a 1 GHz processor.

Neither one of these models is listed on AT&T’s website, and are instead being sold by Dell directly to the public.

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Samsung Restore

August 26th, 2010

After releasing two entry-level QWERTY feature phones, the Samsung Seek and the LG Remarq, Sprint has released a heavier hitter, the Samsung Restore. Though under the eco-friendly phone banner with the limeade version looking like spring grass, the Samsung Restore is actually a strong mid-tier feature phone that has an excellent QWERTY keyboard, fast 3G EV-DO, good Sprint TV and YouTube performance and a nice music player. Throw in a built-in GPS that works well with Sprint Navigation, full messaging, the Netfront web browser and Sprint’s One Click UI for easy access to social networking, Google and Yahoo! Services, and you’ve got a very nice feature phone at an affordable price (currently $50 with a contract).  The Samsung Restore comes in two colors, Limeade and Midnight.

Samsung Restore Review » Read more: Samsung Restore

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Samsung Intercept

August 26th, 2010

When we reviewed the Samsung Moment on Sprint in November 2009, there weren’t a lot of Android handsets on the market. Things have certainly changed in a little more than a half year, and Samsung’s replacement, the Intercept, has a lot of competition. The Intercept is a starter Android smartphone, and though its features pale in comparison to the HTC EVO 4G and upcoming Samsung Epic 4G (a Galaxy S phone with slider keyboard), it costs half the price. Not everyone wants to jump into a large and expensive smartphone, and the kinda cute Intercept targets those who want to start with something affordable and pocketable.

Samsung Intercept Review » Read more: Samsung Intercept

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Sharp FX

August 26th, 2010

Now that Microsoft has officially canned the Kin devices, Sharp is looking for new partners to OEM phones. And for Sharp, QWERTY phones are their forte. The Sharp FX looks similar to the Sidekick devices (also made by Sharp) from T-Mobile (sans the trackball), and it’s a good fit in AT&T’s messaging line up. QuickFire fans who loved the form but found the hardware lacking will find the Sharp FX a very capable replacement and then some. And most of all, the Sharp FX is a stable phone.

Sharp FX ReviewThe Sharp FX has a 2 megapixel camera, a resistive touch screen, built-in Bluetooth and a GPS that works with AT&T Navigator. It also has broadcast mobile Flo TV, AT&T’s streaming mobile video, a music player with Napster music store support, full messaging and an HTML web browser. The Sharp FX is a quad band GSM phone with 3G support on AT&T’s UMTS/HSDPA bands. » Read more: Sharp FX

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AT&T Plans 5 Android Smartphones in 2010

August 25th, 2010

AT&T Android SmartphonesAT&T plans to launch five Android-based devices from a range of handset makers including Dell, HTC and Motorola by first half of 2010. Three of these — the Motorola smartphone, Dell’s first Android smartphone currently available only in China and Brazil, and a new HTC smartphone — will be exclusive to the AT&T network. The company made the announcement at the ongoing Consumer Electronics Show.

The move is a big win for the Google-designed open source Android operating system that made its debut in October 2008. Android launched on the HTC-designed T-Mobile G1 phone. Since then, at least 10 Android phones have hit the market including devices from handset makers such as Samsung and LG. Even Google has launched its own Android phone. The Google Nexus One phone designed by HTC arrived Tuesday. » Read more: AT&T Plans 5 Android Smartphones in 2010

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HTC Droid Incredible

August 25th, 2010

HTC Droid IncredibleWe live in a world where time does not slow down. As a busy person you need something to help you keep pace with your fast-paced life, and the HTC Droid Incredible does just that. With a simple design, amazing screen and a good camera, the Droid Incredible is giving other Smartphones, such as the Nexus One and the Apple iPhone, a run for their money. It places near the top when considering a new smartphone. For a side-by-side comparison and objective reviews, visit the smartphone page. » Read more: HTC Droid Incredible

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HTC Schubert to be first Windows 7 phone

August 24th, 2010

HTC Schubert to be first Windows 7 phoneHTC is prepping yet another new smartphone, but this time it will be running the new Windows Phone 7 OS instead of Android. This will be one of the first phones to feature Windows Phone 7 and it will be interesting to see what consumers think about it. Here are some pics. » Read more: HTC Schubert to be first Windows 7 phone

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Nokia N900 review

August 18th, 2010

NOKIA N900

Nokia N900 ReviewNokia is unwise to keep their Eseries design team separate from their Nseries design team. While the business Eseries devices are sleek and lean, Nokia’s Nseries phones, including the Nokia N900, are chunky, heavy blocks. Though the Nokia N900 feels like a solid device, with rich materials and a smooth, professional finish, it isn’t especially attractive, and the design disappoints when you start using the device. There are no buttons on the face of the phone. It lacks Send and End buttons, a Back button or a Menu key, and all of these would have been an improvement. There is a lock switch and a power button, which seems redundant, but few shortcuts for onboard features besides the shallow, 2-stage camera shutter button. Because the phone uses a resistive touchscreen, Nokia has bundled a stylus, and it’s one of the cheapest plastic styli we’ve seen on a phone.

You won’t necessarily need to break out the stylus with this phone, as Nokia has created their most touch-friendly user interface to date in the new Maemo operating system. The screen is very responsive to the touch, and quite forgiving if you’re just a little bit off pressing the tiny onscreen buttons. The interface has a very smooth and polished look. Nokia fans will recognize the familiar onscreen fonts and application icons, but the phone also uses plenty of blur effects and animated screen transitions to give the OS a modern look and feel.

It’s not very intuitive, unfortunately. To move back and forth between menus, sometimes you press a back button onscreen, and sometimes you simply tap off-window. The design is also inconsistent among the apps, especially the Web browser and Ovi Maps apps. Frankly, the multiple desktop homescreen with active widgets and hidden application menu has already been done much better on modern Android devices, like the Motorola Droid, so even Nokia’s most advanced effort feels a step behind the curve. But compared to the aging Symbian OS on every other Nokia smartphone, the Maemo interface is a dramatic step forward. It would have been a welcome addition to Nokia’s N97.

Calling and Contacts– Good

Nokia N900 ReviewWhile previous Linux-based Internet Tablets from Nokia, like the Nokia N810, skipped built-in cellular network support and just stuck with Wi-Fi for online access, the Nokia N900 uses GSM radios for voice and data. In an unusual move, Nokia has opted to support T-Mobile’s 3G HSDPA network instead of the larger, more popular AT&T radio bands, though the phone can also connect to European 3G data networks. You can use the Nokia N900 with AT&T’s voice and slower EDGE network, but you won’t get 3G speeds. We tested the phone on T-Mobile’s network.

The phone app on the Nokia N900 can place normal voice calls, but it also integrates Skype and even Google Talk directly into the dialer. You just click on a menu in the phone app to change the type of outgoing call you’re making. This was a bit confusing at first, as Skype calls require a “+1″ country code for U.S. calls, but once we learned the protocols it was a breeze.

Voice calls sounded good with the Nokia N900. Call quality was similar whether we were using Skype for VoIP on the T-Mobile data network, or GSM for normal cellular voice calls. On both systems our callers heard a slightly distant sound and background hiss during calls, but this didn’t interfere much with our conversations. On our end, calls sounded very clean and clear.

For calling features, the Nokia N900 comes up far short of what we expect from a modern smartphone. Battery life was abysmal. We never managed to break the 4 hour mark for talk time, which is a few hours shy of what we expect from a very good smartphone, like the Motorola Droid or BlackBerry Bold 9700. Reception was very good, though, and we always saw 4-5 bars of service on T-Mobile’s 3G network.

The address book on the Nokia N900 is also quite simple compared to the best smartphones on the market. We had no trouble synchronizing with our corporate Exchange account thanks to Nokia’s Mail for Exchange sync app, but other online address books are not yet supported. You can use the Nokia PC Suite on a Windows machine to sync with your favorite PIM, but don’t expect the sort of social networking integration you’ll find on the Palm Pre’s WebOS or a good Android device. The phone can’t gather information from Facebook, LinkedIn or other social networks.

For other calling features, the Nokia N900 is a surprising letdown. There’s no voice dialing on the device, which is a necessary feature that we use often while driving. There’s no visual voicemail support, though this feature usually requires carrier backing, so it’s no surprise here. Conference calling was difficult to manage, as the drop down menu to activate the feature was small and somewhat hidden during calls, and the language Nokia uses to describe the feature is unclear. The phone does have a high quality speakerphone, thanks to the dual speakers on the side of the device, and the kickstand helps keep the speakers from getting muffled, but we’d still like the volume to be much louder. » Read more: Nokia N900 review

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