Motorola Atrix 4G

   Now this device has the features I was expecting to see and to have this year on a smartphone. This is the most powerful phone ever and has a great design also. Is definitely not a tablet but acts like a computer especially when you are using it with the 'webtop' application and if is connected to 'Motorola Laptop Dock' or to a HD TV through the HDMI port.

   What I like about this smartphone is not necessarily that arrives with a NVIDIA Tegra 2 1GHz dual core processor, but the fact that has 1 GB of RAM. Enough memory for all mobile applications you want. Internal storage is not so bad either - 16 GB, and you can add a microSD card to that up to 32 GB. The display is a 4 inches touch capacitive with Gorilla Glass and is the world`s first qHD (Quarter High Definition) with 24-bit color feature. In terms of connectivity - there is no 'world`s first' here - just a normal Bluetooth 2.1, Wi-Fi with DLNA, HSDPA, HSUPA, 3.5 mm audio jack and micro USB. Camera is a 5MP with Led flash and records video in 720p@30 fps and the 2nd VGA front one is for chat or video conference.

   Other 2 important things that I like at this phone are: the active noise cancellation and biometric fingerprint reader (I would love to see how that works) as great security protection. Regarding the software, Atrix 4G runs Froyo upgradeable to Gingerbread (and other future versions with that 1GB of RAM) included with the MOTOBLUR user interface (has live widgets) and HTML5 capability.

   In conclusion this is a great device. Is just that I see 2 things missing. One is the 8MP back camera, but the most important is the NFC (Near Field Communications) capability which can allow users to exchange contact data (like a poken device) or to pay with the phone. So this Motorola does not have it all as you perhaps thought. But I really would like to see this in my hands :).

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LG Optimus Black

   Honestly, I am really impressed of LG`s latest smartphones. I believe they are a serious competitor now for Samsung or HTC and are getting close to Apple. LG has just announced the Optimus Black - the smartphone with 'dramatically brighter 4-inch NOVA display' as they said. It appears that this display has great viewing angles indoor and outdoor, even in the sun light, and should be the world`s brightest screen. The NOVA display consumes 50% less battery (comes with 1500 mAh) than the LCDs or AMOLEDs

   Also this is the slimmest mobile device (only 9.2 mm) which comes with Android Froyo (upgradeable to Gingerbread) and with the new Optimus 2.0 User Interface, offering improved access experience to messages, emails and missed calls right from the locked screen with a single finger tap. Now I am not sure if the Optimus is making a major competition to HTC`s Sense but seems to have intuitive commands, lifting, shaking, tapping. Another premiere is the 'Wi-Fi Direct' for fast and high-quality data transfer between mobile devices and the last one is the 2MP front-facing camera.

   In conclusion - a lot of world`s-first features, but most important ones: brightest screen and slimmest mobile phone. I wonder how much this will cost as should appear until June. Anyway the CES is just starting and I believe I will not have enough time to talk about all releases :). I am looking forward to touch this phone in reality as looks great in pictures.

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HTC EVO Shift 4G

   CES has not started yet in Las Vegas but we already have a big announcement from Sprint. They just made public the news that HTC EVO Shift 4G will be available in USA starting with January 9th. The smartphone has some cool features but not above of what we have seen so far.

   As they say, this is a feature-rich 4G phone with QWERTY slide-out keyboard, which has inside a Scorpion (Qualcomm 800 MHz) processor and memory like 512 RAM plus 2GB ROM. The screen is a 3.6 inches (480 x 800) multi-touch capacitive one, then we have a 5 MP camera, Wi-Fi (and WiMAX), GPS, Bluetooth, micro SD card slot (up to 32 GB) and a 1500 mAh battery.

   But enough about the hardware. In terms of OS this arrives with Froyo (Google Android 2.2) & HTC SENSE with Google Mobile Services, Market (access to more than 100,000 applications), visual voicemail, social networking integration (Facebook, Twitter, Flikr). The camera records at 720p HD resolution, the browser supports Adobe Flash 10+ and of course there is the GPS navigation.

   If you ask me, the first main disadvantage is the battery which appears to be very low on performance and the design is... different. But is made for Sprint. As I already mentioned this does not bring any new impressive features, except 4G capability, but it`s new and is a HTC. 

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