HTC FLYER -- A Tablet Like No Other video

HTC EVO 3D - First look video

Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9

   Samsung was at the International CTIA Wireless and revealed the new Galaxy Tabs with the same technical specification except for the displays and the battery mainly. These are the first tablets with Google`s Android Honeycomb and with customized user interface. All tablets with Android 3.0 so far did not have any custom UI. The main technical specifications for Tab 8.9 are below:

-- DISPLAY:  TFT capacitive, multi-touch screen, WXGA 1280 x 800 pixels, 8.9  inches.

-- CPU:  1 GHz dual-core processor.

-- MEMORY:  no official details.

-- STORAGE:  16/32/64 GB for internal, microSD card slot up to 32GB.

-- CAMERA:  Primary - 3.15 MP, 2048х1536 pixels, autofocus, LED flash, HD video recording (720p),

Secondary - 2 MP, video chat.

-- CONNECTIVITY: 3G HSPA+ and/or Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, USB 2.0, A-GPS, 3.5 mm headphone jack.

-- SENSORS:  Gyroscope, Accelerometer, Compass, Proximity.

-- BATTERY:  6000 mAh.

-- OS:  Android Honeycomb 3.0, Adobe Flash 10.2, TouchWiz UX 4.

-- APPLICATIONS:  Google Apps, Social Hub, Music Hub, Reader Hub, Quickoffice HD editor.

   The new Tabs with TouchWiz UI have a customizable Live Panel, a task manager, calendar and music player. If you remember from the Galaxy S II phone, the Entertainment Hub applications are installed on these devices also and besides that have a Quickoffice HD editor. In terms of design the tablets are thiner and lighter than the new iPad - if you remember Samsung lunched a 10.1 tab at the Mobile Congress in Barcelona which is not that thin but has a better rear camera (8 MP). Going back to the two new devices there are a few differences. The new 10.1 has an improved battery (6800), Bluetooth 2.1, surround sound support and of course a larger screen than the 8.9. It`s good to see new competitors for the iPad 2 but the price will be one of the main advantages as is about the same. I can not believe they made these thiner and lighter than the new Apple tablet.

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HTC EVO 3D

   Sprint has announced Today at the International CTIA Wireless event the new HTC EVO 3D. Now I can finally see HTC`s innovation at work after a series of devices lunched recently with the same technical specifications as about one year ago. This is a direct competitor for the LG Optimus 3D as you will see from the below details:

-- DISPLAY: 4.3-inch 3D LCD capacitive touch QHD 960 x 540 pixels screen

-- CPU:  Dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 1.2 GHz processor.

-- MEMORY:  1GB RAM.

-- STORAGE:  4GB for internal, microSD card slot up to 32GB.

-- CAMERA:  Primary - 5MP dual-lens camera for 3D photo taking, video recording, 2D (up to 1080 in 2D, up to 720p in 3D, MPEG-4/H.264) and 3D (up to 720p, H.264 SEI).

Secondary - 1.3 MP, video chat, video calling.

-- CONNECTIVITY:  3G/4G WiMax, HSDPA, HSUPA, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, DLNA, Bluetooth 3.0 with A2DP, MHL port (micro-USB & HDMI), 3.5 mm headphone jack, A-GPS.

-- SENSORS:  Accelerometer, Proximity

-- BATTERY:  Li-Po 1730 mAh

-- MULTIMEDIA:  touch sensitive buttons, dedicated camera key, 2D to 3D switch.

-- OS:  Android 2.3 Gingerbread, HTC Sense 3.0 UI, Adobe Flash 10.2 support.

-- APPLICATIONS:  Google Apps, social networking, YouTube 3D, Blockbuster On Demand.

   The same as LG Optimus 3D, this device has a 3D glasses-free display. It is good to see a HTC model with 1GB of RAM, decent internal storage and with a processor which has a higher frequency than 1 GHz. It appears that this processor has  asynchronous processing. This system makes each core to work independently and thus improving the battery life. The battery is a very strong one by the way, probably the largest one seen in a smartphone. There are no details for any graphic module but since this has the new Snapdragon generation inside I believe is a strong one. HTC Evo 3D arrives with some integrated applications from Sprint. One is the integrated Google Voice with Sprin`s services and the other is Blockbuster On Demand. This last one is an application which offers access to a more than 100,000 movies catalog. 

   In the end I can see a good news from HTC and I hope they will release an European version of this model.

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ActionComplete

   For a while I was looking for an application to organize my projects and business tasks on the Android Market. Recently I have discovered the ActionComplete, a productivity software based on David Allen`s Getting Things Done (GTD) methodology. This program has four modules: Actions, Waits, Projects and Ideas.

   Actions can be assigned to different projects, but you will need to define these projects first. All actions are shown in this tab and also there are the projects details in the description. I have to say that this is a great to-do list for short and long term, for personal and for business as you can set these tasks with a deadline and a reminder.

   In the Projects tab there is information related to these including how many tasks (actions) are assigned to each. Also the Ideas tab is great to note all your thoughts regarding any pending projects or tasks. What`s great on actions is the possibility to assign one to a contact from your smartphone agenda with the tag feature.

   The ActionComplete also has voice commands options and places (like Facebook places or Foursquare) just you can tag or assign a project or task to a certain place. There is the ActionComplete Pro (the paid version) which has assorted shortcuts, Due Today live folder and integration with the system wide-search - but I for me the free version is doing the job just great.

   In conclusion this is a very nice and useful application to organize your tasks and projects. The only thing I do not like is if I close the ActionComplete from the Android task manager the reminder will no longer work. But I hope they will fix this in the future versions or perhaps will work better with Gingerbread. There is the ActionComplete for web and you can use this from the computer. This will synchronize the information with the smartphone.

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HTC Incredible S - First look video

Nokia X1-00

   It has been a while since Nokia announced a new phone. I believe this is due to the recent changes adopted by the company - like making future smartphone with Windows Phone 7 and not Android. In my opinion Nokia made a good decision for buying Symbian but then they did not invest enough for a fast development of this OS. Then they were too afraid to adopt new and more efficient operating systems like Android. Now customers are waiting for their new smartphones generation with Windows Phone 7.

   But until that time Nokia has announced a few days ago a low cost device which has a minimum set of hardware features. This is a phone only for voice, messages and music as the screen is only about 1.8 inches TFT. The device has a loud speaker on the back, a 3.5 mm audio jack, FM radio and mp3 player to listen music as you wish. Also has a microSD card slot which can take up to 16 GB, dedicated music keys, a flashlight and is running the Symbian Series 30. The only data connection is GPRS. 

   There are two most important things I like on this phone. One is the battery life - about 61 days stand-by performance - that I believe will make you forget you have a charger. The other is the price which will be below 35 Euros.

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Norton Mobile Utilities

   For some time I was looking for a utilities application for my Android phone. Symantec has released a beta version of Norton Mobile Utilities for Android about two months ago. I decided to use this as a replacement for a task manager but I got more. This application has 4 modules integrated - Apps, Usage, Device, Installer.

   The Apps module shows information regarding installed applications on your device and the location (if are stored in phone memory or SD card), size, battery percentage these use and program version. Also this is working as a task manager providing details on how many programs are running, which are system apps and which are external. Most of these can be closed using the 'X' button but will not work for too long or not all will be terminated. I believe this is because Android does not have a good task manager, at least not for the Froyo version. But I hope this will be solved as soon as I receive upgrade to Gingerbread for my HTC Desire. More than that there is the option to uninstall applications - even the system ones - but have not tried this yet.

   Next Norton Mobile Utilities module is Usage working as a monitor for how many minutes and SMS were used or internet traffic data from your monthly subscription package. There is the option for an alarm notification when the limits will exceed. The third module is Device which shows battery usage, phone`s temperature, CPU, memory, network and internal storage under live charts. Also if you click the 'System Information' button you will be able to check your phone`s model and product information, CPU minimum and maximum clock, OS version and sub-version, operator with service status and signal strength, phone`s IMEI, IMSI and IP address. 

   Last module is the Installer - working as an application installer manager. This will help you install applications from outside the Android Market but also to uninstall or delete these. What I like at Norton Mobile Utilities is - first that is a system manager integrating several useful applications, thus avoiding the installation of four up to five or more independent applications on my phone which could affect the performance. Then I like that is very efficient for battery life and I was somehow surprised as I was not expecting this given the fact that is a Norton application. The application is available as beta version for now but is working good and hope they will release the full version soon and also that will remain free. So if you were looking for a system manager for your Android phone I recommend this one.

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Apple iPad 2 - video

Apple iPad 2

   Today Apple has announced the new version of the iPad which is thinner, lighter and faster than the old one. It appears that with the new features of this product Apple will maintain its lead in the tablets market. What I always liked at the Apple products is the design - simple, easy to handle and elegant. And the new iPad makes no difference even with the new features as you will see in the below specifications:

-- DISPLAY:  LED-backlit IPS, multi-touch screen, 1024 x 768 pixels, 9.7  inches, fingerprint & scratch resistant surface.

-- CPU: Apple A5 1GHz dual-core processor.

-- GPU:  no details so far.

-- MEMORY:  no details so far.

-- STORAGE:  16/32/64 GB for internal, micro SD up to 32 GB.

-- CAMERA:  Primary - HD video recording (720p),

Secondary - VGA, video calls.

-- CONNECTIVITY: 3G and/or Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1, micro-USB, A-GPS, 3.5 mm headphone jack.

-- SENSORS:  Gyroscope (three-axis), Accelerometer, Ambient light, Compass.

-- BATTERY:  10 hours.

-- MULTIMEDIA: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround sound system.

-- OS:  iOS 4.3 .

-- APPLICATIONS:  iBooks, Google Maps, FaceTime, AirPlay, AirPrint, PhotoBooth.

   With the new version of iOS the iPad can work as personal hotspot device. Movies. music and photos can be shared  on a HDTV with the AirPlay application through Wi-Fi and with AirPrint you can print wireless documents. The front camera, which is so elegant integrated, is a FaceTime video calling capable. The sound is great also and the same with all features. Although there are no technical details regarding the GPU Apple mentioned that is nine times faster.

   What I always did not like about Apple products was the price (even if sometimes is justified) or at least the prices from Romania. Now the price of the new iPad seems a fair one -starts from 499 USD - given the fact that Motorola XOOM starts from 799 USD - but these are the US figures. Many were expecting for the new version to have a better display resolution, just like the iPhone has, but it appears Apple has preferred not to change it.

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ZTE Skate

   ZTE is known as a leading global provider of telecommunications equipment and network solutions but also as a low-cost mobile phone maker, just as Huawei - their main competitor. The same as Huawei and Mobiwire (Sagem if you remember), ZTE is making phone mainly for operators and under their brands (Orange, Vodafone etc.) Now ZTE has announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona the Skate, a smartphone which raises the company (in the phones market). This looks like a premium smartphone with large screen and reasonable specifications as you will see below:

-- DISPLAY: 4.3 inch capacitive touch WVGA 480 x 800 pixels screen, 16M colors.

-- CPU:  800 MHz processor.

-- GPU:  Adreno 200

-- MEMORY:  no detail so far.

-- STORAGE:  no details so far for ROM, microSD card slot up to 32GB.

-- CAMERA:  Primary - 5MP camera, LED flash.

-- CONNECTIVITY:  3G HSPA+, HSUPA, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, micro-USB port v 2.0, 3.5 mm headphone jack, A-GPS.

-- SENSORS:  Accelerometer, Proximity, Compass.

-- BATTERY:  no details so far.

-- MULTIMEDIA:  Touch sensitive controls.

-- OS:  Android 2.3 Gingerbread, Adobe Flash 10.1 support.

-- APPLICATIONS:  Google Apps, social networking.

   So the hardware is not the highest but as I mentioned at the beginning this is a low-cost phone maker so I say is decent. I believe the price will make it very attractive and the design is great too.

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