Archive for 2008

By January 20, 2008 Read More →

HTC Touch Cruise unboxed!

The HTC Touch Cruise is another one of those devices from HTC that everyone seems to be talking about and waiting for. It’s the latest in the line of devices from HTC to bear the Touch monica and to include the TouchFLO software and the extra-sensitive touchscreen.

We’ve known all about the device for several months but it was just launched last week. Initial stock arrived at Devicewire on Thursday and was sold out the same day. I guess this proves how popular the HTC Touch Cruise is!

Looking a lot like the HTC Artemis the similarity is only skin deep as under the hood you’ll find a 400MHz CPU, 256MB ROM and 128MB RAM – quite well specified then. So as usual we’re reviewing the HTC Touch Cruise and we’ll have that online soon so we leave you with the unbox video for now:

HTC Touch Cruise unboxed

HTC Touch Cruise specification:

  • Windows Mobile 6 Professional
  • 400Mhz Qualcomm MSM7200
  • 128MB RAM / 256MB ROM
  • 2.8″ TFT LCD Touchscreen 240 x 320
  • Tri-Band HSDPA/UMTS
  • Built-in GPS receiver
  • WiFi: 802.11b/g
  • 3.0 Megapixel main camera with Auto-Focus
  • Bluetooth version 2.0
  • 1350mAh Lithium Ion battery
  • TomTom Navigator 6
  • MicroSD card slot
  • FM Radio
  • 110mm x 58mm x 15.5mm
  • 135 grams
  • Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: Videos/Unboxings
    By January 19, 2008 Read More →

    HTC Touch Dual review

    Can the HTC Touch Dual improve of the massive selling Touch?

    HTC Touch Dual

    HTC Touch Dual

    INTRODUCTION

    The Touch range really made HTC a big name is phone manufacturers. Despite the original Touch being severely limited both in spec and usability, it sold by the bucket load. Now HTC have released a new group of PDAs using the Touch brand. Today we are looking at the 16 key HTC Touch Dual. This device has a normal phone keypad, which slides out from under the screen.

    HTC Touch Dual open

    HTC Touch Dual open

    What’s in the Box?

    Another great package from HTC, wrapped well, with the phone itself fitting snugly in some soft foam. Once again, it looks like you are buying an expensive phone, and the style and design of the box and packaging is all part of the deal. Take a look at Matt’s HTC Touch Dual unboxing video for more detail.

    HTC Touch Dual box

    HTC Touch Dual box

    Inside you’ll find:

  • The HTC Touch Dual Device
  • Mains Charger
  • Wired headset
  • Pouch/case
  • Manual and getting started guide
  • USB Cable
  • Spare Stylus
  • Battery
  • HTC Touch Dual specification:

  • Windows Mobile 6 Professional
  • Qualcomm® MSM 7200, 400MHz
  • ROM: 256MB ; RAM: 128MB SDRAM
  • 2.6″ TFT LCD Touchscreen 240 x 320
  • Tri-Band HSDPA/UMTS
  • 2.0 Megapixel main camera
  • Bluetooth version 2.0
  • 1150mAh Lithium Ion battery
  • MicroSD card slot
  • Slide-out 16-key keypad
  • 107 mm (L) X 55 mm (W) X 15.8 mm (T)
  • 120 grams
  • GENERAL

    The sliding aspect of the new HTC Touch Dual does not seen to have added much to the ‘thickness’ factor. It’s not exactly chunky then, but its other dimensions do, as you might expect, make it feel fairly cumbersome in your pocket.

    On the front we have a similar setup to the original touch, large touch screen, with a silver surround. To the bottom we have the Send and End keys placed either side of a direction pad, with middle action button.

    Sliding the phone open with a firm sounding click, the phone pad is visible. The keys aren’t exactly large, but the clear plastic keys looks and feel the part, and it’s very, very easy to type out a text quickly. The number keys are flanked on either side by 3 application shortcut buttons, and an extremely useful back button to the upper right.

    HTC Touch Dual keypad

    HTC Touch Dual keypad

    On the left hand side, there is a volume control rocker, and rather oddly, the mini-USB port for data and charging. I’ve no idea why it’s been moved here as it was on the bottom of the original Touch.

    HTC Touch Dual left side

    HTC Touch Dual left side

    The right hand side is home to just the camera button.

    HTC Touch Dual right side

    HTC Touch Dual right side

    The bottom of the phone is completely empty of anything interesting – no buttons, connections or anything.

    HTC Touch Dual bottom

    HTC Touch Dual bottom

    The top is home to the power button… and not a lot else.

    HTC Touch Dual top

    HTC Touch Dual top

    On the back of the phone we see the camera and mirror combo, and a speaker grill.

    HTC Touch Dual back/camera

    HTC Touch Dual back/camera

    Highlights:

  • Slim slider design. A very rare thing, especially in the Windows Mobile world. Looks the part, and despite being Windows Mobile – is actually ‘cool’
  • Massive software improvements. As detailed above – HTC have thrown everything at this device, and its all been stuck together very well indeed.
  • Decent battery life. Unusual in a PDA. Its not exceptional, but its above average for a windows mobile PDA.
  • Lowlights:

  • No Wifi. What they give in one hand… they take with another.
  • No GPS. Not quite as upsetting as the lack of Wifi… but more and more people are requiring and expecting GPS now.
  • Odd xT9. Maybe its me, maybe the phone needed a hard reset, but Xt9 was a little bit bugged in places. It also didn’t seem to want me to add words to the dictionary at times either. Hopefully fixed for production.
  • REVIEW

    This is the area HTC are really pushing at the moment. In terms of software bundles, HTC have never really bothered. This has started to change recently, especially with the Touch range, and as you might expect the headline software is of course TouchFlo.

    I’m in two minds really about whether TouchFlo is any good or not. The cube is good to show off with, but is it really that useful? I’d say not – especially now the boys from PointUi have released their flashy menu system as well.

    However, the lesser known features of TouchFlo are genuinely quite useful. The scrolling with touch is miles easier than trying to find the scroll bar, or using the stylus. The contacts system is also improved with TouchFlo, and the device is a lot easier to use without a stylus now. Finally, a feature I’m not sure is part of TouchFlo, or just a nice HTC add-on – tapping the small title bar (for example to select the volume control), launches a larger version of the taskbar icons, to make it easier to select the correct item! This is something which has been a pain in the bum for many PDA owners, and it is a truly great add-on.

    HTC Touch Dual miniUSB socket

    HTC Touch Dual miniUSB socket

    Obviously the big improvement over the original Touch is the sliding keypad. It comes in 20 or 16 key versions, but we’ve got the 16 key here – with a standard phonepad. Interestingly HTC have decided not to bring the 20 key version of the Dual to these shores, instead you’ll have to import one. Our review Touch Dual, therefore, has an xT9 system on it. In the past these xT9 input methods have been poorly implemented on Professional version of Windows Mobile. HTC’s version isn’t perfect – and still does odd things which don’t happen on the Standard version of the O/S. It’s a good effort though, and very usable. Type in a word, and the options appear horizontally along the bottom of the screen.

    As well as the nice hardware keyboard, you also get a choice of touchscreen keypads as well. I’ve also found these really hard to use, and much prefer the feel of a true button. However, if you like on screen SIP keypads then you’ll be happy with both the phone pad and a 20 key pad version.

    The HTC home application is here, as you might expect, and you can show up to 5 different tabs. It’s not changed much from previous HTC PDAs, but its still another of those features you’d assume is part of the O/S.

    However surely the nicest and most impressive “new” feature is the slide detection. On opening the slide, a lovely skinned menu appears, with common activities associated with keypad use. For example, you can select to write an email, or SMS. Maybe add a contact or a new note. It really works well and looks even better. It also closes again after a few seconds if no selection is made. Great stuff from HTC.

    Also new to the HTC Touch Dual is the HTC replacement photos app. Gone is the slightly clunky, and extremely boring Photos and Videos, and instead we have a TouchFlo enabled ‘Camera Album’. It’s a great application which, on launch, shows a tile set of all your photos. Touching a photo gently will zoom in slightly, and another tap will make the selected image go full screen with an awesomely smooth fade. In full screen mode ‘gestures’ become available, allowing quick zooms, rotations and navigation options. Again – it works well.

    The HTC Audio Manager has been mentioned before, but just as a recap, it’s a nice app which you can use instead or as well as Windows Media Player. Audio Manager appears to support more codecs – both audio and video, and includes an equalizer, and many more options than Windows Media.

    The camera application has pretty much the same functionality, but has been given a facelift and now looks similar to the many other TouchFlo/HTC applications with a cool black skin too. The camera itself is a bog standard 2mp sensor, which takes acceptable photos, but nothing special or awe-inspiring.

    The HTC Touch Dual also has some 3rd party software in the form of Flash Lite Player. Downloaded YouTube videos work well, which is pretty neat, and you also get Office Mobile and Adobe PDF Reader thrown in if you fancy using it as a work phone. There are also little extras like Bluetooth Explorer to further expand usability. Finally Messenger is also present (and should apparently remain free on Windows Mobile devices for the foreseeable future).

    HTC Touch Dual vs HTC S730

    HTC Touch Dual vs HTC S730

    The device seems pretty quick really, despite not exactly being high spec. The processor manages well though, and with HSDPA onboard as well, the interweb fires up and navigators very swiftly, depending on your coverage.

    CONCLUSION

    As usual for an HTC device nowadays, the HTC Touch Dual is a very polished device, but unlike the original Touch – this phone is actually useful. The new bits and peices of software and utilities that HTC keep adding and improving set this apart from both its older brothers, and other manufacturers.

    An excellent phone in its own right, and a massive and welcome improvement over the original HTC Touch.

    Review by: Mark

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    Posted in: Reviews
    By January 18, 2008 Read More →

    Panasonic announce 32GB SDHC memory card

    Recently I’ve posted a number of news items about the ever increasing capacities of memory cards. Panasonic are the latest in line to announce high capacity cards, their’s is 32GB!!

    Panasonic 32GB SDHC

    Panasonic 32GB SDHC

    Panasonic announce the development of the world’s first 32 Gigabyte (GB) SD High Capacity (SDHC)Memory Card with Class 6 speed specification, perfect for recording High Definition video. With the ability to store up to eight hours of High Definition video.

    The newly developed card, featuring a massive 32GB of capacity is introduced in line with the huge growth in High Definition SD Camcorders and AVCHD High Definition video recording. With double the storage capacity of the current 16GB card, the 32GB card is able to record approximately eight hours of 1440 x 1080i High Definition video and approximately five hours and 20 minutes of 1920 x 1080i full High Definition video. Hours and hours of High definition recording time ensures that you never miss out on a moment. Fly on the wall documentary at work sound interesting? You will have no problems in capturing your whole day with the ability to record around eight hours worth of high definition footage. With the Class 6 speed specification and maximum data transfer speeds up to an impressive 20MB/s, the 32GB card is the industries fastest of its size, allowing users to enjoy superb performance and high-quality recording.

    The card is also equipped with a new user-friendly labeling feature, which allows users to write titles or comments directly onto labels on the front and back of the card. Archiving all those holiday snaps has never become so easy. Panasonic is planning to introduce the new labeling feature in its other SD Memory Card models, with a running changeover from the current card designs in spring 2008.

    The arrival of Panasonic’s 32GB model further strengthens its Pro High Speed line-up which currently has five models available: 1GB, 2GB, 4GB, 8GB and 16GB card sizes with the Class 6 speed specification. The 32GB SDHC memory card will be available from March 2008.

    This seems like the ideal memory card for my Asus Eee PC. I’ll should be getting one for review soon and will be back with my review asap.

    Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: Storage Devices
    By January 17, 2008 Read More →

    HTC Touch Cruise in stock

    For those of you that have been waiting for the HTC Touch Cruise I have good news – The Touch Cruise has just landed in stock over at Devicewire.

    HTC Touch Cruise

    HTC Touch Cruise

    The HTC Touch Cruise™ uses the intuitive TouchFlo™ user interface for simple and easy navigation through emails, web pages, images and music. Fingertip gestures and movements allow you to quickly browse through all your documents and data.

    The HTC Home™ screen shows the current weather along with a large clock display, whilst the control centre provides easy access to device alerts and ring tone settings. An application launcher makes starting your favourite applications or programs a breeze. Contacts and names are shown inside the HTC 3D Touch Cube interface making selection fast and painless.

    The HTC Touch Cruise™ includes a satellite location GPS system and comes supplied with software to find the fastest and most direct way to your desired location, offering to find restaurants and other services en-route. The TomTom™ navigation software (Single-City “Taster” Version) provides turn-by-turn navigation and can be set to guide you directly, or route you via points of interest and local attractions.

    I don’t expect that the Cruise will remain in-stock for long so if you want one then get yourself over to the product page on Devicewire.com soon!

    HTC Touch Cruise specification:

  • Windows Mobile 6 Professional
  • 400Mhz Qualcomm MSM7200
  • 128MB RAM / 256MB ROM
  • 2.8″ TFT LCD Touchscreen 240 x 320
  • Tri-Band HSDPA/UMTS
  • Built-in GPS receiver
  • WiFi: 802.11b/g
  • 3.0 Megapixel main camera with Auto-Focus
  • Bluetooth version 2.0
  • 1350mAh Lithium Ion battery
  • TomTom Navigator 6
  • MicroSD card slot
  • FM Radio
  • 110mm x 58mm x 15.5mm
  • 135 grams
  • Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: Phones
    By January 16, 2008 Read More →

    HTCmail is here!

    You may recall that we spoke about HTCmail, HTC’s own hosted email service, back in August last year.

    Well HTC have at last launced the new HTCmail service and are offering a 2 month free trial if you sign up!

    Take control of your communications with HTCmail™, the fastest and simplest way to access critical business information on your phone.

    No need to worry about different accounts or server settings, with HTCmail™ all your emails, appointments, contacts, files and more are collected into one central location that can be accessed whenever you want, wherever you want. From your phone, your office PC, or any computer connected to the internet – the choice is yours.

    Using your existing email accounts, HTCmail™ gives you the flexibility to mange your work/life balance on your terms, and remain relaxed in the knowledge that all your information is automatically backed-up daily and secured against identity theft, spam or virus attacks.

    I have to say though, I think that around £10 per month is too much for a 2GB account.

    More about HTCmail

  • Business-critical information is always backed-up, up to date and protected
  • Users can sign up and manage their account online and have the added support of a 24-hour customer service centre
  • 2GB Mail Storage
  • 20MB mail send size limit
  • Anti-virus and anti-spam capabilities
  • Variety of subscriptions packages, 3, 6 or 12 months
  • Compatible with all Windows Mobile 5.0 and Windows Mobile 6 devices
  • 2 month no obligation trial
  • Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: Phones
    By January 15, 2008 Read More →

    Apple annouces ultra-thin laptop – MacBook Air

    In his keynote speech at the MacWorld Expo in San Francisco, Steve Jobs has unveiled the world’s thinnest laptop, called the MacBook Air. The computer will be just 0.76 inches (1.93cm) at its thickest point.

    MacBook Air

    MacBook Air

    The Apple head also launched online film rentals for iTunes users in the US from almost every major film studio, including Disney and Fox.

    Mr Jobs admitted that Apple’s first attempt to put online video in the living room had failed.

    Of the laptop, Mr Jobs said: “It’s an amazing feat of engineering.”

    It does not have a CD or DVD drive in order to save space.

    “It was built to be a wireless machine,” he added.

    The laptop will compete with a range of portable devices, from companies such as Sony, Dell and Asus, which are building so-called sub-notebooks, designed to be lighter and more mobile.

    The machine goes on sale in two weeks and costs from $1,799 in the US and comes with either a hard disc drive or solid state drive.

    So the MacBook Air will go head to head with the Asus Eee PC probably!? And it doubles are a Frisbee apparently?

    Posted By: Matt

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    Posted in: News
    By January 14, 2008 Read More →

    Pre order i-mate Ultimate 8502 and 9502

    As you know, we’ve recently been talking a bit about the new range of devices released by i-mate. There are two more devices from i-mate just around the corner – namely the Ultimate 8502 and 9502.

    Devicewire have just made the two new devices available to pre-order so you can head over to the Devicewire site and register your interest.

    i-mate Ultimate 8502

    i-mate Ultimate 8502

    The i-mate Ultimate 8502 is a 2.6″ QVGA touch screen device powered by Windows Mobile 6 professional.

    Using the included cable for video and audio out, the 320×240 display will be able to connect to a projector or display enabling you to use PowerPoint as well as additional applications from your PDA. Picture and video viewers, RTSP video streaming, MSN Microsoft Live/Hotmail Messenger, Voice Notes, SIM and File Managers, GPRS and wireless managers, plus the ClearVue PDF document viewer are also included.

    The 400MHz Qualcomm processor allows applications such as Microsoft Mobile Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Internet Explorer to be used with ease.

    i-mate Ultimate 8502 Specification:

  • Tri-Band GPRS, EDGE, HSDPA & HSUPA Support
  • Quad-Band GSM/GPRS EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
  • 400MHz Qualcomm processor
  • 128MB RAM/256MB ROM
  • Integrated GPS
  • 37 key QWERTY keyboard
  • Windows Mobile® 6 Professional
  • Bluetooth
  • WiFi: 802.11b/g/e/i
  • 2.6inch 320×240 Touch-screen
  • 2.0 Megapixel digital camera/video with flash and auto focus and 4X digital zoom
  • Supports microSD expansion cards
  • 118.5mm(L) x 60.5mm(W) x 15.5mm(T)
  • i-mate Ultimate 9502

    i-mate Ultimate 9502

    The i-mate Ultimate 9502 is a 2.8″ VGA touch screen device powered by Windows Mobile 6 professional.

    The 400MHz Qualcomm processors allows applications such as Microsoft Mobile Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Internet Explorer to be used with ease. Picture and video viewers, RTSP video streaming, MSN Microsoft Live/Hotmail Messenger, Voice Notes, SIM and File Managers, GPRS and wireless managers, plus the ClearVue PDF document viewer are also included.

    Using the included cable for video and audio out, the 640×480 display will be able to connect to a projector or display enabling you to use PowerPoint as well as additional applications from your PDA.

    i-mate Ultimate 9502 Specification:

  • Tri-Band GPRS, EDGE, HSDPA & HSUPA Support
  • Quad-Band GSM/GPRS EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
  • 400MHz Qualcomm processor
  • 128MB RAM/256MB ROM
  • Integrated GPS
  • Slide Out QWERTY Keyboard
  • Windows Mobile® 6 Professional
  • Bluetooth
  • WiFi: 802.11b/g/e/i
  • 2.8inch VGA Touch-screen
  • 3.0 Megapixel digital camera/video with flash and auto focus and 4X digital zoom
  • Supports microSD expansion cards
  • 118.5mm(L) x 60.5mm(W) x 15.5mm(T)
  • Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: Phones
    By January 13, 2008 Read More →

    E-TEN announces the Glofiish X650

    E-TEN first introduced the option for a VGA display in May and since then has added several more models to its product lineup aimed at different customer needs. The latest X650 is designed to appeal to those seeking a compact, full-featured device that is also affordable.

    Eten Glofiish X650

    Eten Glofiish X650

    A VGA display offers several significant benefits to the user. The greater resolution (four times higher than that of a typical Pocket PC Phone) enables a larger proportion of a document, calendar, map, or web page etc. to be displayed on screen at once, increasing productivity. Additionally, the higher pixel density means that text appears sharper and easier to read while pictures and video appear more detailed. VGA is set to become one of the key specifications for Pocket PC Phones in the coming year.

    The Glofiish X650 features E-TEN’s all-in-one connectivity solution comprising of worldwide GSM, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS. The device all comes preloaded with E-TENs exclusive software suite including Mobile Shell, Namecard Manager and Backup Utility as well as Microsoft Office Mobile, Windows Live and other utilities.

    Specifications of the X650 include a Samsung SC3 processor at 500Mz, 256MB ROM, 2-megapixel auto-focus camera, FM Tuner, and FM Transmitter (subject to region). Dimensions of the handset are an ultra-compact 107 x 58 x 14.7mm with a weight of just 139g.

    The Glofiish X650 is offered in two color choices, black and purple, and should be available worldwide in two to three weeks.

    Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: News
    By January 13, 2008 Read More →

    Weird eBay sales

    Ok, I know that I am going way off topic with this post but I found this on eBay and just had to ask the question: WHY?!

    So I was looking through eBay the other day and browsing through a sellers shop, looking at their other items etc. when I came across a weird item for sale. This seller is selling an EMPTY jar of Marmite! If that’s not weird enough in itself there are actually some bids on it!

    Who actually buys something like this? Is there really any value in an empty jar, albeit a limited edition pot?

    Leads me on to my next question – what’s the weirdest thing you have bought/sold/seen on ebay?

    Take a look at the Empty Marmite Jar auction and see what you think!

    I promise to go back on-topic with my next post! 😛

    Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: Editorial
    By January 12, 2008 Read More →

    i-mate ULTIMATE 8150 unboxed

    Last week we unboxed the i-mate ULTIMATE 6150 so this week I thought I would follow that up with our i-mate ULTIMATE 8150 unboxing video.

    The i-mate ULTIMATE 8150 is very similar to the 6150, same size and design with the exception of the screen and keypad – the screen is a little smaller to accomodate the keypad.

    I hape to have the review of the I-Mate ULTIMATE 8150 and the I-Mate ULTIMATE 6150 later in the week but for now here’s the video:

    i-mate ULTIMATE 8150 unboxed

    The i-mate Ultimate 8150 is a 640×480 touch screen device powered by Windows Mobile 6. Complete with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 3G and XGA Video output support.

    The bright, sharp focus 2.6″ VGA screen supports ClearType enabling its use in multiple locations and light conditions with ease. The i-mate Ultimate 8150 has a 520Mhz XScale processor with the Nvidia GeForce 5500 graphics accelerator ensuring a quick response and video playback, scrolling, document search and Internet browsing is fast.

    The Nvidia GeForce 5500 graphics accelerator also enables the i-mate Ultimate 8150 to offer an expansion port. Using the included cable that provides a 15 pin D-SUB and audio out, the 640×480 display will be able to fill a 1024×786 pixel screen or Projector for mobile presentations using PowerPoint from your PDA. In this mode the screen turns off and allows the touch pad to control the pointer on the projector or monitor giving full access to all the i-mate Ultimate 8150s programs and functions.

    i-mate ULTIMATE 8150 Specification:

  • Tri-Band UMTS/HSDPA 850/1900/2100
  • Quad-Band GSM/GPRS EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
  • Video Out: XGA (1024×768)
  • Xscale® PXA 270 520MHz
  • Nvidia GoForce 5500 graphics accelerator
  • 128MB RAM/256MB ROM
  • FM Radio
  • Built-in numeric phone keyboard, 18 keys
  • Windows Mobile® 6 Professional
  • Bluetooth
  • WiFi: 802.11b/g/e/i
  • 2.6inch VGA Touch-screen
  • 2.0 Megapixel digital camera/video with flash and auto focus and 4X digital zoom
  • Supports microSD expansion cards
  • 118.5mm(L) x 60.5mm(W) x 15.5mm(T)
  • You can see our full I-mate ULTIMATE review online HERE.

    Posted by: Matt

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    Posted in: Videos/Unboxings
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