Saturday, October 31, 2009

BlackBerry Storm 2



Let's be honest. Research In Motion's first foray in the world of the touchscreen smartphones wasn't exactly a smashing success. The RIM BlackBerry Storm was riddled with bugs and performance issues, which were resolved with subsequent software updates, but still, the damage had been done. However, there are high hopes that the RIM BlackBerry Storm 2 will wash away all those bad memories and start afresh, and in many ways it does, but we still have our reservations.

In all, the BlackBerry Storm 2 is, most definitely an improvement over its predecessor. The Storm 2 offers a revamped SurePress touchscreen that, coupled with the updated BlackBerry operating system, provides a better user experience. You also get Wi-Fi, double the memory, enhancements to the smartphone's core functions, and a more stable system. That said, RIM still falls behind in the areas of Web browsing and usability and will face stiff competition from other touchscreen phones, including the Samsung Omnia 2 and Motorola Droid. If you're a BlackBerry devotee and crave a touchscreen, the Storm 2 is a fine choice; otherwise we'd recommend waiting to see what the other devices have to offer.

Design

At first glance, the RIM BlackBerry Storm 2 doesn't look that much different from its predecessor. In fact, the Storm 2 even has the exact same dimensions as the original model, measuring 112.5 x 62.2 x 14mm and weighing 160g. However, on closer inspection, you'll notice some subtle changes. For example, the Storm 2 sports a tinted chrome ring around the edges rather than a silver one. Also, the side controls--a customizable convenience key on the left and a volume rocker and a second shortcut key on the right--feature a soft-touch finish, similar to the controls found on the RIM BlackBerry Curve 8520.

The biggest change to the BlackBerry Storm 2, however, isn't visible to the naked eye. RIM has revamped its SurePress technology, so instead of a mechanical suspension system, there are now electronic activators beneath the display that give off an impulse that simulates the feel of a click. It's pretty neat technology that provides several advantages over the previous SurePress screen. First, it provides a more uniform feel across the screen and as you press down on icons or use the keyboard, you'll notice that aside from some slight depression around the four corners, the display doesn't physically move like before. In addition, when the phone is completely off, the screen doesn't move at all.

The electronic SurePress technology also allows for key rollover and faster typing. This means you can now press two keys at once, so for example, if you want to capitalize a letter, you can now hold down the Shift key while pressing the letter key instead of having to do it one at a time like before. The Storm 2 also supports multitouch for copy/paste so you can place one finger at the beginning of the text and then the other at the end of the selection and then cut/copy/paste. Some other user interface enhancements include inertial scrolling with snap back and updated spin boxes for the clock, date, calendar, more animated transitions, and so forth. The navigation controls (Talk and End keys, back button, and BlackBerry menu key) are also integrated into SurePress so they're no longer separate buttons; holding down the BlackBerry menu button will also bring up the application switcher.

You do get a full QWERTY keyboard in both portrait and landscape mode. With the new technology, the keyboard did feel easier to use and more precise than the previous Storm's, but we still made multiple mistakes when typing messages. With practice, of course, it gets better, and the smartphone offers predictive text and autocorrection.

In all, we'd say the new SurePress interface is better than the previous version, but it still doesn't feel as precise as some of the other touchscreen smartphones. There were numerous times when we'd try to select something from a list menu, and it ended up picking the item below it. SurePress certainly sets the BlackBerry Storm apart from the crowd, and we understand the concept behind it, as it makes the transition for traditional QWERTY BlackBerry users to an all touchscreen phone easier. However, it takes some acclimation and similar to the SureType keyboards, we think it's something you'll either learn to like or hate.

The display itself measures 3.2 inches diagonally and has a half-VGA resolution (480 x 360). The glass capacitive touchscreen also features a built-in accelerometer and a proximity sensor (RIM calls it face detection) so the screen will turn off when you're on a phone call to prevent accidental mispresses. Along the top edge of the Storm 2 is a power/lock button and a mute button; there's a Micro-USB port along the left spine and a 3.5mm headphone jack on the right. Finally, the SIM card and microSD expansion slots are located behind the battery cover.

Our review unit came packaged with an AC adapter, a USB cable, a stereo headset, and a 16GB microSD card. Contents of Verizon's final sale package might vary, but RIM did say that a number of carriers have signed on to include a 16GB memory card in the box.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

latest handphone: Samsung pPixon 12

Samsung didn't only slap on a 12-megapixel camera on the Pixon12. Along with the higher-resolution image sensor, the touchscreen handset has also been fitted with a Xenon flash and Wi-Fi connectivity, which weren't available on the earlier Pixon.

Feature:

Samsung Pixon12 vs. Sony Ericsson Satio: See how these two 12-megapixel camera-phones stack up in a shootout.

Design

The Pixon12 and Pixon may be a close match in design, but they're hardly two peas in a pod. The onboard speakers have shifted to the faux-leather lip at the back and a polished chrome strip now runs along the sides. There's also a Xenon flash in addition to LED, plus a clear plastic layer to protect the camera lens shutter.

We love the clearly defined zoom/volume bar which has excellent tactility. There's a marked difference between half-pressing the shutter and pushing it down fully. The camera button nestled between is a nice touch, but not entirely necessary since Samsung could have enabled the option to activate the camera by holding down the shutter. We suspect the reason could be to mimic the power switch on dedicated digicams.

The Pixon12 and Sony Ericsson Satio may both have 12-megapixel cameras, but they bring very different experiences to the table. That was what we felt when we held the two devices in hand. The Pixon12 has a smooth pebble-like feel, while the Satio resembles a polished, elegant brick.

Oddly, the Pixon12 comes with a leather cover with cut-outs for the camera, but no way to view what you're shooting. So you'd still need to fish out the handset to take a picture. A 3.5mm adapter is bundled, unlike the Satio, so even though the Pixon12 does not have a built-in 3.5mm port, you can still plug in your personal earbuds using the accessory. A 2GB microSD card is included.

Features

The highlight here is obviously the camera, but we'll come to that later on. The device runs on the proprietary TouchWiz software. If you've seen the Omnia II or Jet, you'd be familiar with the Pixon12's user interface. There are three home screens where you can drag widgets from the sidebar to. The same mini application can reside on all three displays, but there's no reason anyone would do that. Most of the widgets are not worth mentioning, besides taking up too much screen estate. So while the concept is viable, it's barely functional. You can arrange the icons on the main menu by tapping the grid on the top right corner. Swiping right brings you to the different menu pages. The good thing about this layout is that you get to see all the applications directly from the main menu without having to scroll or dive into the sub-menus.

The Pixon12 uses a resistive touchscreen, but there's no stylus. We're not fond of the haptic feedback on Samsung touchscreen devices as the pulse-like vibration feels unnatural, but that's just us. Fortunately, scrolling was smooth throughout the software and the OLED screen displayed deep and vibrant colors. Typing on the onscreen numeric and QWERTY keypads was also pleasant and accurate. However, the tiny dropdown selection of alternative words with T9 enabled left much to be desired.

Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync is supported on the Pixon12, so that's good news for business users who want to receive their work email, as well as synchronize with their office Exchange server. Ours worked without a hitch and we had all our data downloaded onto our review unit within minutes. Setting up public email accounts such as Gmail requires you to key in the server addresses. Admittedly, this isn't rocket science and the required information is readily available on the Web. But it's still a hassle. Comparatively, Nokia has made this action simple by requiring only the username and password.

The Webkit-based browser on the Pixon12 is decent, though scrolling can be a tad "bumpy" on occasion. Double-tapping automatically zooms in on a particular area, as well as launches Web links. The latter is a little counterintuitive as it's repetitive actions. On the bright side, you can have several windows open at the same time and Flash is supported, so that's great. A few times the browser crashed and promptly restarted our review unit for no apparent reason. We hope that's just our device.

Google Maps is preinstalled, but Samsung is also providing the Route66 software for turn-by-turn navigation. We had to go into the menus to activate this for our review unit, though Samsung says this is switched on by default for the commercial sets. The application is a complete end-to-end GPS software with 3D landmarks and real-time navigation for six months after which expect to pay a fee.

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

acer liquid

Acer is new in the smartphone business, launching its first Windows Mobile handset only this year after its acquisition of E-Ten. The company's moving fast though, and has just announced its first Android mobile phone called the Liquid. It comes with a few features available on only high-end Windows Mobile devices--let's see what they are.

Upside

Most Android phones on the market come with HVGA (480 x 320-pixel) displays. When Google released version 1.6 of its mobile operating system (OS), improved support for screen resolutions was added. Taking full advantage of that, Acer put a large WVGA (800 x 480-pixel) screen on the Liquid. This is similar to what you find on devices like the company's own M900 and the HTC Touch HD. With more than twice the number of pixels compared with HVGA, you can expect sharper graphics and videos and be able to view more text in one page without scrolling, making documents easier to read.
Another important specification in the Liquid is the 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor. This is currently found in the Toshiba TG01 and is one of the fastest chips available for smartphones at this point. We've found most Android phones to be pretty responsive, but the most commonly used 528MHz processor stutters sometimes when running third-party apps--an issue we hope the 1GHz Snapdragon will address.
According to Acer, the address book of the Liquid will be tweaked from its default Android version to integrate online services such as Facebook and Twitter. While we haven't seen how well this will work, it's something HTC has done with the Sense UI and Motorola with its Motoblur interface.
Detailed specifications are scant at the moment, but based on an Italian blog which has some hands-on images, the device comes with a 5-megapixel camera, a dedicated 3.5mm audio connector and measures about 12.4mm in thickness.

Downside

Though having a high-resolution screen is good, developers will have to tweak their applications to work with it. Currently, all the apps run on HVGA screens, and logically, software creators will want their programs to work on the most popular resolutions. Is WVGA going to be the standard? Well, we don't know yet and it'll take a few more announcements from other manufacturers before we find out.

Outlook

We spoke to Acer and it said we will see the Liquid in Asia at the end of Q4. That's good news, but it's all we've got at the moment. Further details are unavailable and no price has been announced. The company just launched a series of new Windows Mobile phones and having an Android one is a good addition to its portfolio. We look forward to trying the Liquid out and will bring you more information as that becomes available.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

sony ericsson satio

When Sony Ericsson unveiled the concept multimedia phone Idou (renamed Satio) at the Barcelona-based Mobile World Congress in February, the focus wasn't entirely on the hardware. The Japanese-Swedish outfit also headlined a new Entertainment Unlimited strategy that aims to facilitate the sharing of multimedia content across multiple platforms, from phones to PCs and TVs. Part of this will be delivered with Media Go, debuting on the Satio and the Aino, which lets users transfer or sync media. However, compared with the Aino which we previewed some time back, the Satio doesn't seem as interesting other than its 12-megapixel camera and generous 3.5-inch touchscreen.

Design

Big screens are in and that's evident from the Satio which has a larger display as well as a footprint comparable with the Xperia X1 and the upcoming X2. The panel measures 3.5-inch diagonally and has a resolution of 640 x 360 pixels. This is similar to the Nokia N97, but is 0.2 inches smaller than the one on the Samsung i8910 HD. The touchscreen runs edge-to-edge and is a resistive-type display. This means you can use a stylus to doodle, but you'll need to apply pressure on the display to register an input unlike capacitive displays where a light tap would suffice. On the Satio, a slight press is just fine, and although it isn't as sensitive as capacitive displays, we find the panel responsive enough. Colors displayed on the screen are vibrant and our pictures taken using the camera look brilliant.

From the front, the Satio gives the impression that the entire black panel is the display and that it's a very sleek device. But once you turn to the sides, the unsightly bulge at the back comes to view. This is the lens cover that slides to one side to reveal the camera--a mechanism that has been used in several Cyber-shot models, including the C905 Cyber-shot. To be fair, Sony Ericsson has kept the side profile of the Satio to a minimum with a tapered edge. The slider is very smooth and closes with a reassuring snap.
Although we don't particularly favor the combination of curves and straight edges on the device, in the hands, the Satio feels like it can withstand a few scuffles and knocks without giving way despite its plastic chassis. Our review unit came in silver, but we prefer the striking red prototype model that we had before this.
There is a physical keylock switch on the left edge which is more convenient than pressing the Power button and selecting the option to lock the screen. The downside is that it takes an average of 2 seconds to activate the display before we can start using it. The Call/End and menu buttons below the panel are narrow but functional with a nice clicky feedback. On the other side, you have the volume controls which double as the zoom function for the camera. There are also dedicated keys for previewing pictures, switching between still image and video capture modes, as well as a camera shutter that lights up in blue when activated.

Features

Sony Ericsson currently supports two key smartphone operating systems: Windows Mobile and Symbian S60. The Satio runs on the S60 5th edition software similar to the Nokia N97 and Samsung i8910 HD.
The Korean chaebol has adopted a vertical approach to its devices by putting TouchWiz in nearly every one of its devices. Likewise, LG did the same. Nokia made some headway with its widget standby screen on the N97, but that is only skin-deep. That was our exact sentiment with the Satio. On the Sony Ericsson, the custom-tabbed home screen lets you get to your favorite contacts, Web sites, picture gallery and application shortcuts via an onscreen bar. These are useful, but not remarkable.
Once you get into the main menu, you'll inevitably face quirks and inconsistencies in the software. We've lambasted the scrolling, single and double taps before, and, unfortunately, this is the same on the Satio. To be fair, most parts of the software are finger-friendly. The icons are large and it's easy to type on the onscreen keypad/QWERTY keyboard.

The Satio uses the same media control interface found on Sony Ericsson feature phones, but the company has kept this relative simple here. From the main menu, you can pick Photo, Music and Video. These are self-explanatory and browsing within these functions is a breeze. Tapping on a picture activates the full-screen mode in landscape orientation and sweeping our fingers across the screen lets us browse through our photos. The images snap nicely into position when you're scrolling, so you won't be caught in between pictures. Further options including setting a picture as a wallpaper, caller picture, tagging and editing when you tap on an image.
The Walkman player is something most Sony Ericsson users are familiar with. It's attractive and functional. The player can also be controlled directly from the home screen. Strangely, there's no equalizer or alternative visualization with the player. Also missing is support for the DivX and Xvid video formats, which are common on LG and Samsung feature phones. The lack of a 3.5mm audio jack may be excusable if Sony Ericsson had provided an adapter with the unit. Unfortunately, that's not the case.
The Web browser supports full Flash video so you can browse and play videos directly on the browser. In our tests, pages were rendered correctly and the user interface was friendly without being over the top. Zooming is via an onscreen slider, so there's none of the finger pinching and stretching a la the iPhone.
Where Nokia has Mail for Exchange for synchronizing with Microsoft Exchange servers, Sony Ericsson has RoadSync. This works exactly as expected, and as long as you have the necessary information to set up your Exchange account on the application, the step-by-step guide to get your Outlook calendar, contacts, emails and tasks on the Satio would be a breeze. The preinstalled QuickOffice program is a read-only version, so you'll have to pay for an upgrade if you want to create new Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents on the device. A PDF reader is also standard with the S60 software.
Like some of the current Sony Ericsson feature phones, the Satio also supports threaded messaging. But it's absurd that the function isn't integrated in Messaging. Instead, it's nestled under Chat in Entertainment. Why Sony Ericsson would do that is beyond our understanding and there's no way to move the threaded messaging feature to where it should be--in Messaging. There is, however, an alternative. You could place Conversations as one of the shortcuts on the home screen panel.
The Satio doesn't come with a software installation CD. Instead, the PC Suite and Media Go software are preloaded on the bundled 8GB microSDHC card. Media Go helps you manage music, videos, photos and podcasts between the device and PC, while the PC Suite lets you synchronize and backup content, etc.

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Sunday, October 11, 2009

HTC HERO

The HTC Hero is the third Android device from the company and shares many of the features already found on the earlier HTC Magic. It is available in Asia and sells for S$898 before operator subsidies. Read on to find out how big a difference its custom user interface (UI), called HTC Sense, makes to the underlying Google Android operating system (OS).

Design

From a materials viewpoint, the Hero is one of our favorite HTC devices to date. The area around its LCD has a matte metallic finish, while the rest of it has a soft-touch feel. Our review unit is the white version which has been coated with a Teflon material supposed to repel fingerprints. This felt very good in the hands and did remain quite clean in our one week with it. The Hero measures 112 x 56.2 x 14.4mm and weighs 135g. It's not as slim as some other smartphones, but still very compact.
When photos of the Hero first emerged, we were skeptical about the tilted portion below the screen. Though HTC has employed this "chin" on its first two Android devices, the Dream and Magic, neither was as pronounced as the Hero's. While it may not be to everyone's liking, the tilt did not bother us. It wasn't uncomfortable in the pocket and we felt that it gave the smartphone character since most other devices are flat.
Six shortcuts adorn the front of the Hero under the screen. These are your standard Android buttons including the Call and Hang up keys, menu and back shortcuts. A trackball is also found there which lights up when you have notifications. This worked well, though we much preferred the larger version found on the Magic. Volume controls are found on the left side--this has been made to blend with the side profile, which makes the entire design uncluttered.
Like many other HTC phones, syncing and charging are done through a mini-USB connector. With quite a number of HTC phones, you need to purchase an optional adapter to connect a standard set of headphones, but not with the Hero. On its top edge is a standard 3.5mm audio jack, good news for those who use their handsets as music players and like plugging in their favorite pair of headphones.
The screen on the Hero is a 3.2-inch HVGA (320 x 480) capacitive LCD. This is the same as what's found on the Magic but has an added smudge-resistant feature. Now, this doesn't make it magically clean all the time. In fact, we found it as likely to get fingerprint stains as any other phone. What sets the Hero apart is how easy the smudges con be removed, similar to what you find on the iPhone 3GS.

Features

With technical specifications almost identical to the HTC Magic, talking about the Hero's connectivity features feels almost like repeating the Magic review. You get the same HSPA speeds (7.2Mbps uplink/2Mbps downlink), quad-band GSM, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and built-in GPS for navigation. What really sets this iteration apart is the custom software called HTC Sense UI.
This UI is turned on by default and totally replaces the Google Android Home screen. Instead of just spanning three pages, you can scroll between seven, giving you lots of real estate for putting shortcuts. Instead of a single button at the bottom of the interface to bring up your list of applications, there are three, the largest of which sends you to the phone app for making calls. The entire interface looks very different from a vanilla Android and is fully customizable to the user's needs.


The Hero's Home screen is not quite like the vanilla Android one.
(Click for larger image)

To fill up the seven pages, HTC provided a ton of new widgets. The ability to add new widgets was available only from Android 1.5, and it looks like the Taiwan firm's R&D department went on overdrive with its HTC Widgets. For example, just for displaying the time, it offers 12 different widgets. These are in different styles and some of them even integrate weather information below the time. Other interesting examples include some for toggling Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS. Social networking has also not been left out with a Twitter widget that displays your timeline and lets you update your status. This widget ties in with the Peep application, another HTC app which is a fully featured Twitter client. Though we found it a little slow, it was usable and we conveniently used it instead of installing our favorite third-party Twitter app, Twidroid, on Android.
Like TouchFlo on its Windows Mobile devices, HTC greatly modified the contacts feature through Sense UI. Apart from seeing information like phone number and address, all communication with each contact is displayed in one place. So, tapping on someone's name will not only let him call him, but show his text messages, emails and even Facebook, Twitter and Flickr updates on different tabs in the same page.
Even though most Android phones use capacitive touchscreens like the Apple iPhone, the OS doesn't provide support for multitouch. HTC has gone one step ahead by introducing pinch to zoom for the Webkit-based browser. This worked fine for all the pages that we tried but didn't extend to the rest of the applications like Google Maps.
While the Hero's browser has no advantage over the iPhone's Safari browser when it comes to speed and rendering of pages, one feature that stood out is the way it displays text. Chunks of text fit within the width of the screen so you never have to scroll left or right to read them. Even when you zoom in or out, the text reflows to fit the width exactly. Furthermore, Flash is supported so you can watch videos or play Flash games. We wouldn't recommend trying anything too graphically intensive though, as the set tends to slow down in those cases. This feature is nice to have, but on a device like this, it is not practical in many cases.
As with all Android phones, you get the requisite set of features available on Google's mobile operating system. This includes over-the-air Gmail, calendar and contacts syncing, a good YouTube app and access to the Android Market for downloading apps, to name a few.


Good image quality from the Hero's camera, just watch out for the slow shutter speed.
(Click for original image)

The 5-megapixel camera on the back of the Hero has an autofocus lens. It takes good pictures and we were generally pleased with the results. One thing you have to take note is that by default, the shutter speed is quite slow, especially in shady areas, so you have to keep very still or risk having a blurred image.
The Hero has 512MB of memory for storage which can be expanded using a microSDHC card. The media slot is found behind the battery cover, which may be inconvenient for those who swap cards frequently

Samsung Omnia II (I8000)

 

 

When Samsung ann ounced the "smarter than a smartphone" Jet, it took less than a week for the product to reach the market. This is a good way of handling product launches because if too much time lapses between announcement and availability, potential customers lose interest. This strategy is famously employed by Apple and Samsung is now doing it, too. Just one month after its unveiling at the Singapore-based CommunicAsia tradeshow, we now have a full retail set of the Omnia II (or I8000), the manufacturer's latest Windows Mobile smartphone which has just gone on sale in Asia.

Design

If you have seen the Samsung Jet, you'll know exactly how the Omnia II looks. Aside from being larger and heavier, this smartphone is almost identical to the Jet. The front is taken up mainly by a large touchscreen display, while the rest of it has a glossy black plastic finish. In general, we did not like how the device felt in the hands. Though it is well-built, the plasticky exterior and smudge-prone surface didn't sit well with us.
The chunkier 118 x 60 x 11.9mm dimensions also mean there's more space for the screen. The large 3.7-inch WVGA (800 x 480) AMOLED display on the Omnia II makes it among the largest in this class of Windows Mobile products without keypads. For comparison, the HTC Touch HD comes with a marginally larger 3.8-inch TFT LCD of the same resolution. Like many other Samsung phones, this screen is top-notch and displays details and colors vividly.
The Omnia II's touchscreen is of the resistive variety, not the more fingertip-friendly capacitive kind. This means it requires a pinpoint touch using a stylus, which is provided in the package as a separate lanyard. While we understand that the lack of a stylus slot on the device makes the design cleaner, the alternative of having a mascara-like pointer hanging from the phone can be annoying for many.
Below the screen, you'll find a hexagonal button which resembles a 3D cube from certain angles. Other keys on the sides include volume controls on the left and keylock, back and camera shortcuts on the right. The top is where you'll see a 3.5mm audio jack and a micro-USB port.

Features

Samsung doesn't hold anything back when it comes to hardware features, so you can expect the kitchen sink thrown in with the I8000. Wireless features include HSPA connectivity with theoretical maximum download and upload speeds of 7.2Mbps and 5.76Mbps respectively. It also comes with Wi-Fi for use at hotspots, Bluetooth and A-GPS for navigation.
For storage, 8GB of memory reside on the device with the option to expand that using a microSDHC slot which supports up to 32GB cards. This is good news for those who use their mobile phones as media players, even better when you consider the standard audio jack which lets you plug in your favorite third-party headphones.
To hide the dated Windows Mobile interface, Samsung employed its TouchWiz 2.0 UI. The Home screen is a blank slate on which you can customize by adding widgets. These include items such as a clock, calendar and onscreen shortcuts to items like Wi-Fi toggle. Many of these widgets are shortcuts to social-networking sites and perform the task of only launching the browser and pointing it to the intended page. As mentioned in other Samsung mobile phone reviews, the selection of widgets is limited to what's released by the company. There is limited third-party support for this, so don't expect to see a flood of useful widgets from developers anytime soon.
The TouchWiz UI has also been applied throughout the interface including the main menu and settings. Instead of the standard Programs page, you get a four-page menu, each of which can display 12 icons. Each page has its own title such as Productivity and Multimedia. These pages and their corresponding titles can be customized to your liking. New applications installed are filed under Others, which will be where your icons sit if you fill up the 48 spaces in the main menu. (Update: As pointed out by user baracuda89, it is possible to increase the number of main menu pages to accomodate up to 120 icons. New installations will still sit in the Others page, which acts as a holding area for apps yet to be categorized.)The settings pages have also been completely re-skinned to resemble a standard Samsung mobile phone. Most of the common settings can be configured without defaulting to the standard Windows Mobile interface, but there are still a few advanced settings such as the Connections page which bring you back to the Windows Mobile 6.1 UI.
One function we found particularly useful was the Task Switcher. This page can be brought up from anywhere by pressing and holding the Cube button. It lists the applications that are active and lets you move between them or close them completely. This is displayed in either a fancy rotating interface or a simple grid format. We preferred the latter as it was more responsive.
The TouchWiz interface doesn't feel overdone, but it can slow down in certain areas. Turning on the screen, for example, brings up a large clock and vital information such as time, network quality, notifications and instructions on how to unlock the device. This takes about 2 seconds to appear upon pressing the keylock button. It may seem like a short time, but can be annoying when the phone is used as your main time-telling device.

One thing we didn't like was the loss of threaded SMS. Yes, Samsung actually stripped out a useful, standard Windows Mobile 6.1 feature in trying to make things consistent with its TouchWiz UI. So, even though the messaging app has large icons and things are laid out clearly, you don't get to see your interactions with specific users in a conversation format. This is a big oversight on the chaebol's part and hopefully it can be fixed in a future firmware update.

The HTC Touch HD is a device with very similar features, though that model makes use of the TouchFlo 3D interface. Overall, HTC's UI feels more polished and responsive. That's not to say Samsung's is poor. It's, in fact, quite usable, but the Taiwan company has the advantage of experience given that the TouchFlo interface has undergone a few generations of tweaking.

A 5-megapixel camera with autofocus and LED is found on the back of the Omnia II. Its accompanying application is responsive and comes with many settings that will appeal to those who depend on their phones as main cameras. There is very little shutter lag and photo quality is reasonable, though images turned out a little soft.

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Samsung Jet

Here’s the review from CNET

By Damian Koh, CNET Asia
Jun 30, 2009

When Samsung says it has a feature phone that's even smarter than a smartphone, that only goads us to put that to the test. After all, that's a pretty bold claim to make. The touchscreen handset packs an 800MHz processor, Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync support (this is a first for a Samsung non-smartphone device) and a raft of wireless connectivity features. Our review uncovers if the Jet is really that smart beneath the hype.

Design

The Jet is compact, pocket-friendly and the buttons are well-defined with good travel. Disappointingly, it invites fingerprint smudges too easily. From the side, the front and back of the chassis taper to a point on the bottom edge. The side profile resembles a flattened speeding bullet, possibly a fitting appearance for the speedy 800MHz processor inside.
The real gem, however, lies in the details, starting with the hexagonal button below the screen, which resembles a 3D cube instead of a regular flat key. It has a clear plastic layer on top with a reflective mirror acting as the base--a very elegant design we must say.
Around the back is a hologram of red "railings", visible only when the phone is tilted at certain angles. It's gimmicky, but we like the little touches Samsung has added on the Jet. The micro-USB port and 3.5mm audio jack sit along the top, while the keylock, Media Gate (more on that later) and camera shutter are on the right. On the opposite side is the volume button.

Features

The Jet runs on TouchWiz 2.0, an updated version of the touchscreen user interface seen on earlier phones like the F480. There are three home screens, similar to the Android operating system, and you can drag widgets onto these "pages". Each page operates independently. This means it's possible to have the same app on all three screens, even though we reckon no one would do that. One thing to note is that it's not possible to scroll vertically on the home screens, so you're limited to the 3.1-inch, 800 x 480-pixel AMOLED display. Larger widgets take up more space and you may end up being able to fit only one app on a page.
There are two types of widgets on the Jet: The offline ones and those that require an Internet connection. The latter group comprises news, weather and search apps. The Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, Photobucket, Flicker, Picasa and Friendster widgets are merely Web links, so these are considered offline apps. Admittedly, the variety of widgets is still limited at this moment (34 are preinstalled). And while the widget platform is interesting, other smartphone operating systems have been around for a long time and third-party programs are readily available on the Web. The one thing we'd like to see is a software development kit (SDK) for the platform as this may dramatically increase the potential of the system if developers catch on.
A few other novelties come with TouchWiz 2.0. These include the Media Gate 3D user interface and Motion Gate. The former is reminiscent of LG's 3D S-Class cube interface and HTC's TouchFlo 3D. There's a shortcut button on the side of the phone to access Media Gate which is simply an onscreen cube suspended in midair. You can swipe and rotate it to get to six multimedia programs such as music player and the Web browser. The irony is that Samsung also provides a row of onscreen shortcuts at the bottom of the display. We find the latter more useful (and faster) in getting to the apps. When you swipe to the browser on the cube, you flick up or down to cycle through your bookmarks. Likewise in Album where you can quickly scroll through photo snaps like a pack of cards.
The motion recognition engine Motion Gate is more interactive. We can shake the device to end applications and double-tap to play music and take pictures, but our experience with it fell short. This is because Motion Gate is accessible only via a separate menu by holding down the Media Gate button to get to the two assigned shortcuts. This means that if you use the standard music player from the phone's main menu, you can't snap/tilt to switch tracks. Or if you activate the camera by holding down the shutter key, the double-tap feature wouldn't work. We think these are innovative features, but it's really a showcase of what Samsung can do with the built-in accelerometer rather than being useful and intuitive apps. Still, it's a good attempt even if we find the implementation lacking.
We like the Etiquette pause and Speaker call accelerometer-based functions on the Jet. The former is common enough these days and lets you mute the phone when you face it down. The Speaker call function is a little more unique and smart. Moving the phone away from the face during a call and placing it on a flat surface automatically activates the speakerphone. This worked without a hitch during our review.
There's also a new tap-and-slide zooming feature which Samsung has introduced on the phone. This isn't as intuitive as pinching and stretching on the iPhone, but it works (even though it takes a few moments to get used to it) and that's good. Smart Unlock, which we saw earlier on the Samsung Star, is also implemented here. This lets you unlock the phone by writing a predetermined letter onscreen.
Like the home screen, the main menu is now spread over three pages as well. This is similar to the iPhone interface except that you don't have an option to rearrange the icons. The good thing about this layout is you no longer need to have sub-menus. For example, you may need to go into Organizer to access certain apps on some devices. With this interface, you can get to the programs directly. The Jet doesn't have a physical keypad, so text input is via the onscreen alphanumeric pad or a QWERTY keyboard when you rotate the device sideways.