It is becoming more and more difficult for current manufacturers to put a unique mobile phone into the market. Many cell phones are equal when it comes to their functionality, and there are only minor differences between current models and their successors. Unlike a few years ago, when mobile phones were gradually taking on more functionalities of other devices. These new models definitely made a difference at the time. The Nokia N95 brought fame to Nokia, which eventually resulted in the N95 8GB version. The same cell phone, in fact, only featuring a larger internal memory of 8GB, as the name already gives away, as well as a slightly bigger monitor and a different color than its predecessor. About the functions; the Nokia N95 already had excellent specifications, and the successor more and more often turns out to be approximately the same phone albeit with a different look. Up to now, Nokia did not introduce many mobile phones with a touch screen and perhaps the focus will be on these in the future.
One vital thing with any mobile phone is connectivity. This is a dual-band 3G phone with HSDPA support, quad-band GSM with GPRS and EDGE plus WiFi. The Nokia N96 supports stereo Bluetooth and high-speed USB 2.0. Sadly, the N96 lacks an FM transmitter, but the inclusion of a standard jack plug should help for in-car connectivity.
Design and Ergonomics
The company have been following a very monotonous design template as far as their multimedia smartphones are concerned, yet it can’t be called an unsuccessful one. The closest thing in appearance to the N96 is a N81, while N85 looks more elegant due to the rounded angles, a different plastic of a better quality. The overall size of the handset is rather modest, only making 103x55x18 mm, but the handset doesn’t give the hand a comfortable feel because of the width and the thickness, N85 openly wins the contest. On the other hand, it isn’t even nearly as bulky as Samsung i8510, the Korean flagship handset is really huge in an open state, the size being its chief weakest point.
Screen
The screen of Nokia N96 is identical to the screen N96 8GB, featuring the largest diagonal among all Nokias – 2.8’’, TFT, some of the best screen quality around. Compare this one to the screen of Nokia N85, powered by the AM-OLED technology. N85 is notable for much more vivid colors, yet the palette is more natural with N96, also the latter seems to display a better behavior in direct sunlight, bringing about less annoying glare. We can’t really say that the screen of N96 is worse than the N85 screen, it’s just in a way different.
Controls and Keyboard
The block of controls is remarkable for the use of dedicated media buttons, unlike N85 those are operable outside the player mode. You can use them to switch tracks or start/stop playback at any moment in any menu, which is immensely handy. The buttons aren’t of the touch kind, they are mechanical and very responsive, bringing no trouble at all.
A Navi Wheel is traditionally available, remaining active in all menus and lists. The sensitive area of the wheel is limited to a thin limbo running along the perimeter of the navigation element. Moving your finger clockwise or counter-clockwise allows for rapid playlist browsing in a corresponding direction. The light indicator sits right in the center of the Navi Wheel and can be easily turned off. It doesn’t carry out any special functions like a message or a call reminder, a feature still available on some older Nokia models.
Battery
Nokia N96 is equipped with a relatively old battery, the same with the original Nokia N95. It’s a BL-5F unit sporting a 950 mAh power output capacity. The choice is easily explainable: no higher capacity batteries were available when the development of N96 started, save for a few samples too big to fit into the battery bay. The existing battery is on a comparable size scale with the newer BL-5K battery (1200 mAh, used by Nokia N85), but is a bit smaller. Neither BL-5K nor BL-6F can fit into the battery bay of N96. Nevertheless, the smartphone can keep running for a long time regardless of the relatively low battery capacity, it can run longer than N95, and makes world records in media recording or playback modes. Not only Feature Pack 2 contributes to this, but mainly the power-saving STMicroelectronics chipset.
Connectivity
The availability of Wi-Fi also means the availability of the WLAN Wizard application, which essentially is a simple program intended to help the user to arrange network connections in a semi-automatic mode. There are but a few options, once a network is detected the user is prompted to submit a number of settings. Network filtering is available, the security standards include WEP, WPA and WPA2. The scanning period during which WLAN networks are searched and detected is also adjustable in the options.
Memory
Once the device has booted, the remaining amount of free memory available to the user is 90 Mb; the total RAM size equals to 128 Mb, which is quite an adequate score for a modern smartphone. Heap Size and Jar Size for Java applications are unlimited.
Software
Nokia N96 bases off the S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2 platform. A comprehensive review of the base functionality provided by the said platform is already available in a separate article on our site, so there’s no sense in duplicating the sentences in this one. The preinstalled service clients include an online music store, Share on OVI and so on – nothing overly surprising at all.
Multimedia
The player interface looks quite standard, exposing almost no difference from Nokia N85 or N78; the same interface is used by all latest devices basing off S60v3 Feature Pack 3. The extra controls come in handy, both the buttons around the navigation button and the extra buttons on the upper half of the slider are used for rewinding, playing and pausing. Here we have a huge advantage over Samsung i8510 which isn't equipped with any extra player buttons, a flaw which is hardly compensated by the unmatched audio quality provided by this model.
e hënë, 15 dhjetor 2008
Nokia N96 Review
e diel, 6 korrik 2008
Motorola W755
Exclusive Motorola cell phone gives Verizon Wireless customers a slim design with hot multimedia features. The Motorola Moto W755 cell phone is a slim, new clamshell that supports all of the features and capabilities that Verizon Wireless customers have come to expect in their wireless phones. The Motorola W755 mobile phone advances the design standard for affordable handsets with its premium soft touch and polished vacuum metal finishes. The 0.68-inch thick mobile phone is available in two distinct color options - Black Slate and Purple.
Motorola Moto W755
The Motorola W755 cell phone has easy access to Verizon Wireless' V CAST Music service with external touch-sensitive controls on the phone to allow customers to quickly search for song tracks by artist, album, track title and genre. These external controls also let cell phone users activate Bluetooth and adjust ring volume or mute calls without ever opening the phone. VCast Music offers more than 3 million songs from both well-known and independent artists and uses the most advanced technology to give customers their music over-the-air and direct to their wireless phones.
Motorola W755 music features
• Music player for formats AAC, AMR NB, MIDI, MP3 and WMA V9
• Create and manage playlists with Windows Media Player 11
• Stereo Bluetooth wireless technology
• 2.5 mm headset jack
Motorola Digital Camera
Keeping consumers entertained in more ways than one, the Motorola Moto W755 features a 1.3 megapixel digital camera with 4x digital zoom that enables users to easily capture digital photos and video shots, including self-portraits. Recorded videos and photos can then be shown on the crisp, 1.9-inch internal display.
Additional phone features and capabilities
• V-Cast Video (download or stream video)
• VZ Navigator (audible maps, turn-by-turn, and location info)
• Text, picture and video messaging
• Mobile IM and chat capabilities
• Mobile Web-capable (customizable, enhanced wireless access)
• Media Center-capable (download games, ringtones, wallpapers)
• MicroSD memory card slot
• 4GB memory support with an optional memory card
• Phonebook with up to 1,000 contacts
Nokia 7610 Supernova
Recognizing that no one style fits all, Nokia unveiled a new range of products to let consumers express their personal styles on a number of levels ranging from stylish designs, to personalization through vibrantly hued exchangeable covers, one of these new devices is the Nokia 7610 Supernova mobile phone. The Nokia 7610 Supernova is part of the new Nokia Supernova range, featuring a mix of bold colors and an of-the-moment design, evoking the allure of the latest statement handbags or must-have sunglasses. Aimed at style conscious men and women who want to stay connected, the new range delivers exceptional mobile functionality alongside a variety of music and internet experiences.
Nokia 7610 mobile phone design
"As we rely more heavily on mobile phones to stay connected, they increasingly know everything about us and have become a window into our worlds," said Jo Harlow, vice president, LIVE category, Nokia. "With the new Nokia 7610 Supernova, we set out to give people the ability to set themselves apart in the same way that they would with a traditional statement accessory."
e mërkurë, 2 korrik 2008
Gateway T-6828 Review
The T-6828 isn’t embarrassing to take out in public, and it doesn’t have a drab design like that of the Acer TravelMate 4720-6727 or the Fujitsu LifeBook A6120. Yet coating the exterior and palm rests with red paint is an old concept; the paint should have been applied with more imagination to have any real impact, given the interesting things that are happening in laptop design. Laptops like the HP Pavilion dv6500t and the Toshiba U405-S2830 are experimenting with decorative laminates, while the Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 impresses consumers with a textured surface. Another problem is weight. This 14-inch laptop weighs 5.7 pounds, as much as the 15.4-inch HP dv6500t. Gateway would have been better off going with a 13-inch form factor, as many manufacturers are currently doing.
The 14-inch screen is very pleasant to look at, but it has the modest 1,280-by-800 resolution found in many inexpensive laptops. By contrast, the Dell Inspiron 1420 gives you the option of a 1,440-by-900 resolution. The mouse buttons, like those of the Gateway M-152XL, make a noise that’s noticeable in a quiet setting, but I really enjoyed typing on the keyboard. Above the keyboard, the river of multimedia buttons is another example of how Gateway is falling behind in terms of design. Touch-sensitive buttons would have been a better choice, as they are much easier to press.
These days a company—especially one that’s not at the top of market—needs to throw in more in the way of features than people would normally expect. Yet with the T-6828, Gateway gives you just enough to get by. For instance, it omitted an HDMI port to cut down on costs. The T-6828 also lacks a FireWire port and an S-Video-out. The three USB ports and dual-layer DVD burner are no better than average for a 14-inch laptop. The T-6828 gives you 250GB worth of storage, but I can’t really applaud Gateway for this, because adding storage capacity is cheap these days. Lenovo, by contrast, went the extra mile with its Y510 by offering a five-speaker system with a subwoofer. (The T-6828’s speakers are decent, but ordinary.) The only thing that makes the T-6828 stand out is its two-year warranty, since the extra year alone is typically worth over $100.
e mërkurë, 7 maj 2008
Hug A-998 with Game Emulator!
Don’t you just love these China phones? Manufactured in HK but with their offices in Manila, HUG is a rather innovative mobile phone manufacturing company with peculiar models like this A-998: it resembles much of the Nokia N-Gage but delivers so much more with TV-Out and game emulation software.
Touch Screen 16M TFT True Colors LCD
Camera (1.2MP 1280×960)
Bluetooth
TV-Out Capabilities
Mobile Webcam
Vibrating Function
MP3/MP4 Player
USB Connectivity for PC Synchronization
Expandable Memory (MicroSD Card)
Loud 3D Stereo Audio Speakers
Unlimited Video & Audio Recording
FREE CD with hundreds of games
FREE Extra Battery
FREE 256mb MicroSD Card
1 Year Warranty –> w00t!
Anyone own this phone? We’d surely love to hear feedback on what exactly you can emulate on the phone’s platform. The mock up shows Super Mario 3 so that means the “hundreds of games” would mean 8-bit NES titles. Again, the concept isn’t new but given the right price and nostalgia factor, sure, I’d buy one.
ASUS P527 Smartphone
Depending on where you’re from you may or may not have heard of ASUSTEK’s P527. Although ASUS doesn’t come out with phones as often as the big players do, they seem to have some sort of cult following, not as zealous as Mac users pray tell, but zealous nonetheless. The P527 is jam packed with features — although it doesn’t have next gen HSDPA technology built in, it still makes up with 802.11g wireless Internet, 2MP camera, MP3 and multimedia functions, and an office suite solution for only USD $420.00.
HTC Diamond: Not in the rough?
HTC, formerly just another one of those OEM’s have gone a long way. After releasing such devices as the HTC Touch a mere hours before the iPhone, HTC is back with a new winner - the HTC Diamond.
From a technical perspective, the HTC Diamond offers an ultra bright high definition glass touch screen and a fluid user interface. Yes, it looks like the dawn of the iPhone competitors has reached its peak ladies and gentlemen. The smartphone is meant first and foremost for browsing the Internet and HTC did a good job of overlaying their own UI platform above Windows Mobile. This is a similar “hack” which they did with the Touch and since I’ve played with one, I am confident that HTC will make UI navigation much simpler and less “corporatey” with the traditional Windows Start screen.
In a nutshell: the HTC Diamond combines several great technologies to come up with one kick ass product. High definition screen, 3.2MP camera, WiFi, click wheel navigation ala iPod and “deck o’ cards” form factor are all in. The only con? Well it doesn’t seem to run on Google’s Android platform yet.
