Mobile Phone Reviews and News

Mobile Phone Reviews and News :Samsung Galaxy S II v Sony Xperia S: A Combined Comparison

admin — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:52:11 +0000

We’ve been asked to do more comparisons than we have of late, and we’re happy to comply. Today, we bring you a match-up between the Samsung Galaxy S II and the Sony Xperia S. Take a look and decide which you prefer – if you can choose from between these great mobile

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We’ve been asked to do more comparisons than we have of late, and we’re happy to comply. Today, we bring you a match-up between the Samsung Galaxy S II and the Sony Xperia S. Take a look and decide which you prefer – if you can choose from between these great mobile phones!

Overview

The Samsung Galaxy S II was the blockbuster hit of 2011. This smartphone set sales records from the start and has hardly slowed with the change of year.

With all that this mobile phone brings, what will its sibling, the Samsung Galaxy S III offer this year? It boggles the mind.

Specifications

MobilePhones.org.uk staff try our best to find accurate information on your behalf, but the information provided may not be current or accurate. Whenever possible, we mention if its based on rumours or unofficial information.

Samsung Galaxy S II

Dimensions (inches): 4.96 x 2.60 x 0.35 / 4.13 ounces.
Display: 4.3 inches, touchscreen; WVGA 480 x 800 pixels
Operating System: Android 2.3 Gingerbread
Speed: 1.2 GHz, dual core.
Memory: Internal 16 GB, expandable to 32 GB.
Battery: 3.7 V, Lithium Ion. Talk time: up to 8 hours; stand-by: up to 16 days.
Camera: Rear: 8 MP, autofocus. 4X zoom. / Video: HD 1080p @ 30 frames per second (fps). / Front: 2 MP.
Connectivity: 2G: GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900 / 3G: UMTS: HSDPA 850, 1900, 2100. / 4G: HSPA+.

Additional features or capabilities include TTY/TTD compatibility, Hearing Aid (HAC) rating of H3, Bluetooth compatibility and voice-and-data simultaneously.

Sony Xperia S

Overview

If you will recall from a recent post, the Xperia S is a fully integrated model with NFC technology. The actual SmartTags that pair your device information with your environment – home, personal, etc. – are due out soon.

The Sony Xperia S has also been called the Sony Ericsson Nozomi and the Sony Ericsson Arc HD.

Dimensions: 128 x 64 x 10.6 mm / 144 g
Display: 4.3 inches / LED-backlit LCD, capacitive touchscreen / 720 x 1280 pixels at 342 ppi.
Operating System: Android 2.3 Gingerbread; planned upgrade to 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
Speed:
Memory: 1 GB RAM / 32 GB internal only.
Battery: 1750 mAh/ 2G: Talk: up to 7.5 hours; standby: up to 450 hours. / 3G: Talk: up to 8.5 hours; standby: up to 420 hours. / Music play: up to 25 hours.
Camera: Rear: 12 MP / autofocus / LED flash / Video: 1080p at 30 fps. / Front: 1.3 MP, video at 720p and 30 fps.
Connectivity: 2G: GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900 / 3G: HSDPA 900, 2100 – LT26i -or- HSDPA 850, 1900, 2100 – LT26a / Data: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot / HSDPA / HSUPA / GPRS / EDGE

Features: Video recording sports continuous autofocus, touch focus, 3D sweep panorama and more. FM Stereo with RDS. MP3 / eAAC+ / WMA / WAV audio player; MP4 / H.263 / H.264 / WMV video player. Google Search, Maps, Gmail, YouTube, Talk. Document viewer. SNS integration.

There you have the basic information and a few of the frills with the Samsung Galaxy S II and the Sony Xperia S. Which do you like better?

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Mobile Phone Review :Galaxy S II v Galaxy S Advance: Samsung Shoot-Out

admin — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:52:10 +0000

Let’s look at one more combined review comparison today, this time pitting the Samsung Galaxy S II against Samsung Galaxy I9070 S Advance. Let’s see how these Galaxy siblings compare, shall we? Overview Specifications MobilePhones.org.uk staff try our best to find accurate

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Let’s look at one more combined review comparison today, this time pitting the Samsung Galaxy S II against Samsung Galaxy I9070 S Advance. Let’s see how these Galaxy siblings compare, shall we?

Overview

Specifications

MobilePhones.org.uk staff try our best to find accurate information on your behalf, but the information provided may not be current or accurate. Whenever possible, we mention if its based on rumours or unofficial information.

Samsung I9070 Galaxy S Advance

Dimensions: 123.2 x 63 x 9.7 mm / 120 g
Display: 4.0 inches / Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen / 480 x 800 pixels at 233 ppi.
Operating System: Android 2.3 Gingerbread
Speed: 1 GHz, dual core, ARM Cortex A9 CPU
Memory: 768 RAM / either 8 or 16 GB internal with expandable to 32 GB via microSD card.
Battery: 1500 mAh
Camera: Rear: 5 MP / 2592 x 1944 pixels / autofocus /LED flash / Video: 720p at 30 fps. / Front: 1.3 MP, video calling.
Connectivity: 2G: GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900 / 3G: HSDPA 850, 900, 1900, 2100 / Data: Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot / GPRS / EDGE / HSDPA / HSUPA

Features: Rear camera offers touch focus as well as autofocus. A-GPS. Stereo FM with RDS. MP3 / WAV / eAAC+ / AC3 / FLAC audio player; MP4 / DivX / WMV / H.264 / H.263 video player. SNS integration. TV-out. Document editor. Google Search, Maps, Gmail, Talk, Picasa, YouTube. Swype predictive text. Image/video editor.

Samsung Galaxy S II

Dimensions (inches): 4.96 x 2.60 x 0.35 / 4.13 ounces.
Display: 4.3 inches, touchscreen; WVGA 480 x 800 pixels
Operating System: Android 2.3 Gingerbread
Speed: 1.2 GHz, dual core.
Memory: Internal 16 GB, expandable to 32 GB.
Battery: 3.7 V, Lithium Ion. Talk time: up to 8 hours; stand-by: up to 16 days.
Camera: Rear: 8 MP, autofocus. 4X zoom. / Video: HD 1080p @ 30 frames per second (fps). / Front: 2 MP.
Connectivity: 2G: GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900 / 3G: UMTS: HSDPA 850, 1900, 2100. / 4G: HSPA+.

Additional features or capabilities include TTY/TTD compatibility, Hearing Aid (HAC) rating of H3, Bluetooth compatibility and voice-and-data simultaneously.

Additional comments: Additional features for the Galaxy S II not listed.

What do you think? Do you like the S II or the S Advanced better?

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Mobile Phone Reviews :Opera Browser Updates for MWC and a Patent Wars Loss

admin — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:52:10 +0000

We wanted to pass along some information on the Opera Mobile and Opera Mini browser that will be subject of an announcement in the forthcoming Mobile World Congress 2012 that starts in a few days. The Opera Mobile and Opera Mini browsers were announced in 2010 and has become the number

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We wanted to pass along some information on the Opera Mobile and Opera Mini browser that will be subject of an announcement in the forthcoming Mobile World Congress 2012 that starts in a few days.

The Opera Mobile and Opera Mini browsers were announced in 2010 and has become the number one mobile browser in use today. It’s only fitting that a major update is announced during the MWC 2012.

Many users think that the Opera Mobile browser and the Opera Mini browser are one and the same. After all, they both work on the mobile phone or tablet, don’t they? Alas, there are differences, but the Big Red O is still the same.

Opera Mini sends a website through the Opera servers first. There, the website is compressed for viewing on your smartphone. The compression speeds loading time by two to three times, bringing faster surfing and navigation. Users also use less data than with a stock browser, which could ultimately save them considerable money in bandwidth use.

Opera Mobile uses the mobile phone’s own technology and hardware to display compressed web pages, which give total bandwidth reductions by as much as 80 percent.

Opera is expected to detail the major update more specifically during MWC.

HTC Loses Patent Ruling
Just a quick note here to update you on an Apple patent battle.

Last year, HTC filed a patents counter-suit against Apple in 2010, stemming from HTC’s purchase of the small company, S3. HTC bought the company to gain control of some of its patents – not an unusual step at all in the mobile industry.

In November 2011, a patents court ruled that Apple did not violate one of the HTC-held patents, but HTC appealed that decision – also not uncommon.

HTC has lost the appeal regarding the graphics control programme that Apple uses in some of its mobile devices.

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Mobile Phone Reviews :Is Panasonic Releasing Another Eluga-ish Model?

admin — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:52:10 +0000

Yesterday, we brought you news of a new mobile phone from Panasonic, called the Eluga. We didn’t have much information on this smartphone beyond its dust- and water-proof status, and we promised to update you on this benchmark smartphone when updates came to the fore. Instead

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Yesterday, we brought you news of a new mobile phone from Panasonic, called the Eluga. We didn’t have much information on this smartphone beyond its dust- and water-proof status, and we promised to update you on this benchmark smartphone when updates came to the fore. Instead of releasing more about the Eluga itself, we got wind of a step-up model that Panasonic will present next week during the Mobile World Congress 2012, starting on 27 February.

For the sake of this discussion, we’re referring to this anonymous model as the Panasonic Eluga Plus, but please remember that’s just our temporary name for it.

Overview

As noted on the Panasonic’s Eluga mobile phone, the ‘Eluga Plus’ mystery model carries a dust-proof and water-proof rating. We’re still amazed at that capability. But it brings respectable speed as well as a decent-sized screen and resolution in addition to that impressive notation.

The mobile is expected to debut in the European markets some time in March, but might be early in the second quarter, with additional distribution to follow.

We know little of the user features within this device, so forgive the skimpy information in that area. Let’s get on with what we do know, however.

Specifications

MobilePhones.org.uk staff try our best to find accurate information on your behalf, but the information provided may not be current or accurate. Whenever possible, we mention if its based on rumours or unofficial information.

Dimensions: thickness: 7.8 mm; weight: 103 g.
Display: 4.3 inches / OLED capacitive touchscreen with qHD / 960 x 540 pixels.
Operating System: Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread, upgradeable this summer.
Speed: 1 GHz / dual core.
Memory: 1 GB RAM / 8 GB internal. External expansion unknown.
Battery: 1150 mAh / Talk: 4 hours / Standby: 300 hours.
Camera: Sorry; no info available on the camera specifications.
Connectivity: sorry; beyond WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, we have no idea – yet.

Features: IP57 ratings in both dust and water categories – excellent! No performance degradation noted in underwater operations, although duration of dunking is unknown. (We don’t recommend testing at home; depth limits are approximate to 3 metres at IP57 and duration is short.)

Integrated NFC technology.

Additional comments: We were disappointed to learn the smartphone wouldn’t have ICS right out of box, but it’s some consolation that the upgrade to the OS should be available this summer, according to Panasonic. Lighter than the Galaxy S II, but its technology doesn’t quite meet those same standards.

Overall opinion: From what little we know, including the mobile phone’s actual name, it looks like a pretty respectable smartphone worth consideration.

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Mobile Phone Reviews and News :Huawei to Introduce 10-Inch Media Pad at MWC?

admin — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:52:10 +0000

With the Mobile World Congress 2012 right around the corner, it’s not unusual for mobile device manufacturers to tease interest in models that will be presented during the world event. It’s often frustrating, but it’s understandable and typical. Information on a

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With the Mobile World Congress 2012 right around the corner, it’s not unusual for mobile device manufacturers to tease interest in models that will be presented during the world event. It’s often frustrating, but it’s understandable and typical. Information on a new Android tablet from Huawei follows this pattern: Just a little information has been leaked, but not enough information was given to satisfy cravings for information.

The new mobile tablet is reported to have a 10-inch screen with an aluminium backing. Rumours of a 10-inch Huawei Media Pad have floated for weeks, but without any kind of semi-official indication, we can only guess that this might be that model.

This mystery tablet by Huawei allegedly sports Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, which is an advance over many tablet models. The aluminium case brings lighter weight with a fair degree of durability, while trading an increase susceptibility to scratches. We think that’s a fair trade-off, however. After all, what good is a sleek plastic case that’s shattered or cracked if you bump it accidentally against a table or tumbles to the floor?

We know that the mystery tablet seems to have a rear camera with eight megapixels with auto-focus and a single LED flash. It probably has a front camera with 1.3 MP, but that’s a guess, based on others in the category.

Unfortunately, we found no information on available RAM, processor speed or internal memory, but it does have an external microSD slot, so that’s good news!

Lending credibility to the possibility of a 10-inch Media Pad tablet, the original Media Pad has a seven-inch screen with the tapered aluminium back plate. Huawei has hinted since the Media Pad’s 2011 release that they weren’t finished with the series.

We will review the Media Pad and the Media Pad S-701w for general reference later today.

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Mobile Phone Reviews and News :Mobile News for 21 February: Microsoft Word Play and LG’s L Quiz Answer

admin — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:52:10 +0000

In today’s Mobile News, we examine a disclaimed rumour by Microsoft and the answer to LG’s L quiz. Keep reading to find out more. Errant Image Denial Not long ago, an image of a Microsoft Office logo on an iPad was leaked. Since Microsoft had just released the OneNote

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In today’s Mobile News, we examine a disclaimed rumour by Microsoft and the answer to LG’s L quiz. Keep reading to find out more.

Errant Image Denial
Not long ago, an image of a Microsoft Office logo on an iPad was leaked. Since Microsoft had just released the OneNote app for iPad, the mobile industry blogosphere went crazy with speculation.

Today, a Microsoft spokesperson denied that the image was real, saying,

“The … story is based on inaccurate [rumours] and speculation.”

Microsoft followed up that statement made to ZNET that the image was, indeed, fake.

However, if you carefully examine the actual words, Microsoft never denied that the Microsoft Office package would not be on the new iPad – merely that the image was not real.

Microsoft has yet to confirm or deny the appearance of the Office package on an Apple iPad.

However, Win7 tablets using a beta version of Windows 8 OS have Microsoft Office included, so Microsoft does already have the popular PC package programmed for tablet use.

We’ll see if our guess of

“Yes, it will be included or a downloadable option”

…is correct in a few months, if not sooner.

LG Announces Its MWC Line-Up
Well, earlier today, LG gave the answer to yesterday’s L tease: LG will be presenting three Optimus L-series models at the Mobile World Congress 2012 in Barclelona in a few days.

The L series currently comprises the Optimus L3, the Optimus L5 and the Optimus L7. All three models will sport a metallic design with a back panel that looks like leather. (It’s not; it just looks like leather.) They will also present what LG calls its

“floating mass display”

…that is closer to the glass and appears as if it is floating.

All three models present a squared-corner appearance and are thin smartphones. The Optimus L3 sports a 3.2-inch display and has the Android 2.3 Gingerbread operating system. The Optimus L5 and L7 both have Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich onboard, but the screen sizes differ. The L5 has a 4.0-inch display, while the Optimus L7 has a 4.3-inch screen.

Sounds exciting, doesn’t it?

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Mobile Phones News :BlackBerry News: PlayBook 2.0 OS and a Hong Kong Release

admin — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:52:10 +0000

The Canada-based Research In Motion announced today, just ahead of the Mobile World Congress 2012, that their long-awaited BlackBerry PlayBook 2.0 operating system is available for free download for BlackBerry PlayBook owners. The updated OS resolves a few issues with previously-missing

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The Canada-based Research In Motion announced today, just ahead of the Mobile World Congress 2012, that their long-awaited BlackBerry PlayBook 2.0 operating system is available for free download for BlackBerry PlayBook owners.

The updated OS resolves a few issues with previously-missing elements and includes a long list of enhancements and additional features that include

– An integrated email Inbox that supports multiple personal or business email messages in a central location. The feature also includes SN messages from such sites as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.
– Social Integration with your Contacts and Calendar apps. Each contact entry is automatically updated with new information posted on the contacts’ social network sites.
– An updated BlackBerry Bridge app that connects your BlackBerry PlayBook with your core apps on your BlackBerry smartphone, including your Contacts, BlackBerry Messenger, Email, Browser and Calendar. The Bridge app provides a larger tablet view of those entries that make you squint on your smartphone. The app provides all the app functions incorporated into your smartphone, which includes document and image viewing and editing, reading emails, profiles, web pages and more.
– The new Print To Go app and an improved BlackBerry Balance that optimises your business data.
– More apps and content, including a new BlackBerry Video Store that opens today, as well as elevated web browsing experiences.

In addition to the BlackBerry 2.0 OS, RIM has made available a first-run release of BlackBerry Mobile Fusion that enable joint management of your BlackBerry PlayBook tablet and your BlackBerry mobile phone. The initial run does have limited capabilities, but the full version with maximized features and capabilities is expected out in late March 2012.

In additional BlackBerry news today, RIM released the BlackBerry Bold 9790 in Hong Kong. The Bold 9790 utilizes the BlackBerry 7 browser that provides a smoother surfing experience and HTML5 smoothness for brilliant video and gaming enjoyment.

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Mobile Phone Reviews :Instagram Backend

admin — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:52:10 +0000

The most amazing thing about Instagram (some might say the only amazing thing) is that they have achived 30 million users. While many people will be trying to work out how to be the ‘next Instagram’, the more techy of us will be wondering how Instagram manages to support

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The most amazing thing about Instagram (some might say the only amazing thing) is that they have achived 30 million users. While many people will be trying to work out how to be the ‘next Instagram’, the more techy of us will be wondering how Instagram manages to support so many users.

As with Evernote, Instagram have also explained their backend. A key learning for startups is to not re-invent the wheel. Interestingly, they found that "Amazon’s network disk system (EBS) doesn’t support enough disk seeks per second", something I wrote about in early 2010. Just because a service is in the cloud it doesn’t mean it automatically scales. They are still real computers and you usually need to partition (shard) your data somehow.

Related Articles:

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Mobile Phone Reviews and News :Thoughts on a Google Branded Tablet

admin — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:52:10 +0000

During yesterday’s earning’s call, Larry Page singled out low end Android tablets as important and an area Google is focussing on. Amazon’s success with the Kindle Fire is probably the main reason as it’s a forked non-Google experience device that Google has

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During yesterday’s earning’s call, Larry Page singled out low end Android tablets as important and an area Google is focussing on. Amazon’s success with the Kindle Fire is probably the main reason as it’s a forked non-Google experience device that Google has limited control over. With rumours that Google is involved with an own brand tablet for release later this year, probably in July, what might we expect from such a tablet?

As it happens, last month I evaluated this class of device for a client project. The latest tablets coming out of China right now probably represent what’s possible at low cost. That is a 7", 1024 x 600 pixel, 0 to 0 ICS tablet with WiFi but no cellular connection. The price might go up to 0 to 0 if it has an IPS screen. Expect one 2MP or 3MP camera, 1Gb of memory and 8Gb or 16Gb of storage.

I liked this class of tablet so much I now use a 0 Onda vi10 Elite in addition to the XOOM 2. It’s great for times when you don’t want to carry a large heavier tablet or when you want to carry something less valuable in case it’s damaged, lost or stolen. I think it would also make a great child’s device. My original evaluation was within the context of using these devices as single-use type devices for the enterprise. The low cost makes them ideal for distributing to very large numbers of people.

What are the chances of a new low cost Google tablet igniting the stagnant Android tablet market? ICS runs very well on these low end tablets. Games and Flash also work well. There’s a growing number of tablet specific apps (see my list) but I still think Google needs to do something to stimulate tablet specific development. I think the success of the Google tablet might come down how it’s sold. If it’s just via some Google web site then there will be modest sales. If Google can somehow (via the ODM partner?) get it into major retail stores and market it well (via a content partner?), it could gain significant traction.

Related Articles:

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Mobile Phone Review :App Analytics

admin — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:52:10 +0000

Something that’s often forgotten by companies/people developing their first app is analytics. It’s something I usually recommend if it’s not already in the app requirements or specification. It’s always easier to add this as you go rather than add at the end

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Something that’s often forgotten by companies/people developing their first app is analytics. It’s something I usually recommend if it’s not already in the app requirements or specification. It’s always easier to add this as you go rather than add at the end or after the app has been released. Why add analytics?

I have also found that deeper analytics can also sometimes be used to aid support and resolve device or network specific problems. In these cases it’s best to have some kind of ’switch’ so you can turn deeper analytics on and off. However, you might need to balance the need for data against app information privacy.

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