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. 

Source

MicroUSB - standard charger plug in EU

   The European Union announced on 22-DEC that the project implementation of a standard mobile devices charger will become real in 2011. Several mobile devices industry companies have agreed to help EU users to simplify their life and provide a micro-USB charger plug as standard.

   The list of companies includes: Alcatel, Apple, Atmel, Emblaze, Huawei, LG, Motorola, NEC, Nokia, Qualcomm, RIM, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and Texas Instruments. Of course there are already smartphones which already are on market and have micro-USB as charger but starting with 2011 this will be an Europe standard for all producers.

   This is great for users, especially for those who have more than one mobile phone or have other mobile devices which use this type of charger plug, like tablet, music players, camera etc. They will no longer need to carry several charges for each of these devices.

Happy New Year 2011!

Source

X-MINI v1.1 - A sound system in a capsule

   Have you noticed the X-MINI? This is a small capsule speaker designed and created to work with mobile devices like phones, portable media players, portable game station, tablet, laptop... you name it.

   What is interesting about this little speaker is that the size does not matter. This is as loud as a normal PC stereo speaker but has an amazing sound quality. 

The technical specifications are:

- Dimensions: 65.2mm x 50.1mm (Closed BXS)

- Net Weight: 57.4g

- Speaker: Magnetically Shielded 36mm (4Ω)

- Frequency Response: 120Hz - 20kHz

- Signal-to-Noise: ≥89dB

- Distortion: ≤0.3%

- Playback Time: up to 6 hours

- Battery Charge Time: 1 hour

   In the package you will find:
- X-mini v1.1 capsule speaker
- USB cable
- product manual

   That`s right! - it has it`s own rechargeable battery and a good power performance also.You can charge it on your computer through the USB cable. You will probably not believe this but one of the smallest speakers in the world has a bass management system. The capsule can be extended just like an accordion which makes it to vibrate and act like a sub-woofer.

   When is not extended the speaker has a lid that protects it from dust and other particles that might damage it. But the lid can work as a sound reflector and can direct the music to you. What I like the most is that you can connect this to any device using the 3.5" plug. I bought 2 of these and connected both to my HTC Desire.

   How did I managed to connect both? Well the speakers can connect to each other through the 'buddy-jack' system as the producer has named it. Each capsule has a 3.5" jack so you can plug one in another. There is also a record for this - they connected 1000 speakers.

   I really like this and I can tell you that I now have with me a portable media station, and if there is one required for a small on the spur of the moment party, my Desire and the 2 speakers will create the proper environment.

   There are also other small speakers which you can check on the producer`s website - www.x-mini.com. I bought these from www.fungadgets.ro (by the way - great service) and I plan to buy in the future another 3... just so I can hear every instrument in a song :).