Phones

By January 7, 2014 Read More →

Sony introduces Xperia Z1 Compact announced

Xperia Z1 Compact Yesterday Sony announced a new little brother to the huge Xperia Z1. Featuring their handy and now somewhat standard waterproof design in a range of four colours – white, black, pink and lime

Unlike some companies that launch mini versions of their phone Sony are not cutting the corners right off. The Compact includes their award-winning “G Lens”, 20.7 MP “Exmor RS for mobile” CMOS image sensor and “BIONZ for mobile” image processing engine. This compact version actually features a very agreeable 4.3” HD Display.

“With the addition of Xperia Z1 Compact our global range of premium products is now broader than ever and offers our customers a wider choice.” said Kunimasa Suzuki, President and CEO, Sony Mobile Communications. “Xperia Z1 is a no-compromise feature-packed smartphone with a beautiful yet durable design. With Xperia Z1 Compact, we bring all of these premium features and performance, into a smaller size to give you the ultimate compact smartphone.”

 

Xperia Z1 Compact - back

Here is the rest of the Xperia Z1 Compact press release:

The world’s best camera in a compact smartphone

Xperia Z1 Compact sets a new standard in premium smartphones. It featuresSony’s proven camera technologies to deliver the same level of performance and quality that you would find in a conventional compact digital camera – all in a beautifully crafted compact smartphone. The 20.7 megapixel camera phone is matched with 1/2.3-type CMOS image sensor Exmor RS for mobile, Sony’s award-winning G Lens and intelligent BIONZ™ for mobile image processing engineresulting in superb photo quality.

 

Thanks to this unique combination of technologies, you can capture beautifully sharp and bright images even in lowlight conditions when a flash won’t do. High shutter speeds and 3x clear image zoom prevent shots from being blurred while allowing you to capture from a distance, so that you never miss the moment. Superior Auto helps you shoot perfectly, with intelligent scene recognition technology to capture incredible images in an instant with no complicated settings. And because it’s both waterproof and dust-resistant, this durable and versatile smartphone fits neatly into your life, so you can use it anytime, anywhere.

 

Unique social camera apps to enhance your camera experience

The Xperia Z1 Compact comes pre-loaded with a suite of innovative XperiaCamera Apps to take your photography experience to a new level:

  • Timeshift burst: Captures an impressive 61 frames in just two seconds so you get the perfect shot first time, every time.
  • Info-eye™: An innovative visual search using your camera to provide information on landmarks, books and wine amongst others.
  • Social live: Broadcast your videos live via Facebook and get your friends’comments right on your screen for the ultimate interactive sharing experience.
  • AR effect: Have some creative fun with your pictures with SmartARTMaugmented reality animations

 

In addition to these great pre-installed social camera apps, there’s a whole range of extra apps for you to enjoy including Wikitude Places, Evernote, VI Sports and more.  Simply go into your camera viewfinder, turn on Superior Auto and then click on ‘+Apps’ to see all the latest apps to enhance your smartphone experience. 

 

Beautiful and durable design

Xperia Z1 Compact includes all of the features of the acclaimed Xperia Z1, but offered in perfectly palm-sized proportions. Featuring Sony’s stunning OmniBalance design, this dust-resistant and waterproof (IP55 & IP58) beauty is both sleek and durable from every angle. And with the dedicated camera button, you can even take photos or videos underwater. The Xperia Z1 Compact takes the style stakes a step further offering a choice of vibrant colour finishes including white, black, lime and pink to suit your individual taste.  A clever design refinement is the new Glove Mode4 that lets you use your Xperia Z1 Compact even while wearing gloves, making it even easier to use your phone, no matter what the weather.

 

World’s best battery performance in a premium compact smartphone5

Xperia Z1 Compact offers ultra-fast performance and breathtaking graphics, thanks to the latest Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 800 processor with 2.2 GHz quad-core CPU and 4G LTE for amazing speed. The Xperia Z1 Compact also includes a 2300 mAh battery which provides outstanding, class-leading battery performance, despite its compact size.

 

Sony’s Battery STAMINA Mode helps you stay connected for longer, as itautomatically turns off functions to save power when you don’t need them and restarts them when you do. So now you can leave the charger at home and never have to worry running out of power when you need it most – the Z1 Compact takes everyday demands in its stride.

 

Enjoy the best colour and sharpness 
Built with Sony’s latest BRAVIA® TV technologies optimized for mobile, the Xperia Z1 Compact incorporates a 4.3” TRILUMINOS™ HD Display for mobile, for a wider palette of rich, natural colours. Sony’s exclusive X-Reality™ for mobile is an intelligent super resolution technology that finds and reproduces any lacking pixels, so you’ll always be able to enjoy the clearest and sharpest videos.

 

Sony’s media applications

Xperia Z1 Compact offers seamless access to both online and offline entertainment with these integrated Sony’s media apps:

  • PlayMemories Online6 – a cloud-based image and video service that is integrated into the Album application. A new ‘All Sync’ feature enables users to instantly auto-upload all of their photos without storage limitation7.
  • “WALKMAN” and Movies applications provide access to more than 22 million songs on the “WALKMAN” app through Music Unlimited8 and more than 150K movies and TV series on the Movies app through Video Unlimited8 from Sony Entertainment Network.
  • TrackIDTM TV9 – enhances your TV-viewing experience as it lets you search, share and explore information from broadcasted TV shows such as cast & crew, biographies, filmography or show related Tweets.

Switching to Xperia has never been easier
Xperia™ Transfer Mobile makes it easier than ever to switch from your existing Android or iOS handset to Xperia. It’s the simple and easy way to seamlessly transfer your contacts, photos, bookmarks, apps, messages and much more from your old smartphone, swiftly and securely. And better still, no PC is required – simply transfer directly from phone-to-phone using NFC or the supplied cable10.

 

Unrivalled ecosystem of companion products and smart accessories

Sony offers the most comprehensive range of innovative companion products and accessories to give you new ways to use and enjoy your smartphone. With 132 NFC enabled one-touch connected products – including TVs, headphones, audio speakers, tablets, and more – it has never been easier to connect and enjoy your content across multiple devices.

 

Key smartphone accessories to enhance your Xperia Z1 Compact experience include:

  • QX100: High-performance ‘lens-style’ cameras designed for mounting on smartphones and operated through the smartphone screen.
  • SmartWatch 2: Use as a second screen for Xperia Z1 Compact. Read messages, handle calls, easily access notifications – all from your wrist. Trigger the Xperia Z1 Compact camera shutter.
  • DK32: Magnet charging cradle that offers a perfect viewing angle as you talk, watch and listen whilst charging your smartphone.
    • SBH-80: Stereo Bluetooth Headset in a unique neckband-style design crafted from premium materials and supporting NFC, HD Voice and aptX.

 

 

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By January 6, 2014 Read More →

An all metal Huawei Ascend W3

Huawei-Ascend-W22Huawei is rumoured to be launching their aluminium Windows Phone at CES this week. The Huawei Ascend W3 due to be the successor of Huawei Ascend W2, a mid-range Windows Phone smartphone. The specifications of Ascend W3 are to be in keeping with a budget device and may come with a slightly bigger and better display (rumoured to be 720×1280 pixels).

Huawei have been working on upping the build quality of the Ascend W3. It is believed the W3 will sport a thin all aluminium build, is expected to follow a design language close to the Huawei Ascend P6 and run GDR3 version of Windows Phone 8 OS.

Posted in: News, Phones
By January 3, 2014 Read More →

What to expect from Archos at CES 2014

archos-smartwatch,C-K-416468-22Earlier this week, we mentioned Archos was planning launch a smartwatch this year and show the wearable off next week during CES 2014. Keep with Archos’ cheap and cheerful approach the watch is likely to retail for $85 Stateside and looks to use some form of e-paper technology.

One of the bigger features of the smartwatches is an Activity Tracker that monitors daily footsteps, calories burned, and automatically displays time when the device is synchronized with a smartphone. The Activity Tracker will be equipped with a battery life of up to 7 days, and recharged via a hidden microUSB port.

Also scheduled to make an appearance is a new Helium 4G range of unlocked smartphones, the company’s first LTE smartphones powered by Android 4.3 “Jelly Bean”. Two phones featuring Android 4.3 “Jelly Bean” out of the box, and upgradable to Android 4.4.2 “KitKat” soon after.

Posted in: Gadgets, News, Phones
By January 2, 2014 Read More →

More on the HTC One successor

HTC-One-BackWe spoke about the rumoured HTC One replacement a while ago and now more details of the new flagship phone from HTC, codenamed the HTC M8, have been tweeted by the ever-accurate @evleaks. It would seem that the specs that we hoped for last year could well come to fruition…

Preliminary HTC M8 specs: Snapdragon MSM8974, 5″ 1080p display, 2GB RAM, UltraPixel rear / 2.1MP front cams, 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, KK, Sense 6.0

As yet there’s no news on the final name of the new smartphone but we’re expecting to hear more about it at or just before MWC this year.

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By January 2, 2014 Read More →

LG G2 unboxing and hands on video

LG G2 unboxingA few months ago LG released the LG G2 and shortly after the LG Google Nexus 5 also went on sale. It seems that the Nexus 5 all but stole the headlines from the LG G2 which, underneath, is virtually the same as its Google-branded stable mate.

The LG G2 has also been massively popular though and particularly when the Nexus 5 was in short supply, saw strong sales figures to the later part of 2013.

It’s taken a while for us to get our hands on one to review but finally we have one here and I’m putting it up against the Nexus 5 that I’ve loved using ever since I getting that a few months ago now.

As mentioned above, the G2 and the Nexus 5 have very similar specs. The same CPU and Memory, 2.3GHz Snapdragon 800 and 2GB RAM respectively. The G2 has a 13MP camera versus the 8MP shooter on the Nexus 5 and the G2 also has a slightly larger 5.2″ HD IPS screen.

Perhaps the most notable difference is with the OS and user interface, though, with the LG G2 sat on Android 4.2.2 with the omipresent LG overlay whereas the Nexus 5 has Android 4.4 KitKat and a very thin skinning.

In the video below you can see the LG G2 unboxed and in a little more detail and some comparisons to the Nexus 5. And for those of you that are all about the numbers, there’s a benchmark test too..

 

Posted in: Phones, Videos/Unboxings
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By December 29, 2013 Read More →

HTC KitKat update status

HTC KitKat updateFollowing the launch of Android 4.4 KitKat, HTC were one of the first manufacturers to come out and say that they were going to make 4.4 available on several of their current flagship devices, most notably the HTC One.

HTC have now gone a step further and in a bid to be as transparent as possible when it comes to firmware updates, have added a couple of pages to their US site, dedicated to sharing news and the status of firmare updates.

Currently we can see that Android 4.4 KitKat is complete for the HTC One Unlocked, Developer and Google editions with AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile and Sprint versions still going through the integration process.

HTC have gone further still and have provided an infographic to explain the processes that must be completed to in order to deploy an Android OS update.

So far there’s no update for my unlocked, UK HTC One and there’s not the same level of information for US here in the UK, which is a shame. I hope that HTC UK will follow suit sometime soon.

For more on this and to monitor the update status of the HTC One Max, HTC One Mini, HTC One X/X+ and HTC One S, head over to the HTC Software updates page.

Posted in: News, Phones
By December 26, 2013 Read More →

Bargains galore from Phones 4u on Boxing Day

image003Christmas Day is over again for another year and Boxing Day 2013 is already upon us! With Phones4u you can be the among first in-line to get your hands on a contract price drop, which includes a number of stand-out ‘free from’ handsets. One of the hottest smartphones of the year – the HTC One will be reducing to free from £29 (was free from £33), whilst the Nokia 1020 will be reducing to free from £42 (was £47), and the Sony Xperia Z will also be reducing to free from £25 (was £29).

After Christmas we can all be a little strapped for cash, so Phones4u is also offering up to £200 instant cash back on a range of handsets, including the Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini, Moto G and Sony Xperia SP.

The goodwill gestures don’t stop there, with some cracking SIM Only deals, and up to 25% off all Vodafone12M3G SIMO plans, as well as a range of amazing deals on pay as you go smartphone purchases. Phones4u is offering up to half price on the Nokia Lumia 625, now from £139.95 on selected networks (previously £299.95), PAYG from £2.95 when you upgrade, and up to 45% off the Sony Xperia SP, now from £179.95 on selected networks (previously priced £329.95).

A range of handsets free from £18.99 on 4G EE – the lowest ever 4G free from, offering you a saving of up to £120. This tariff has 1000 minutes, unlimited texts and 500MB data. Handsets available on this great deal include the new Samsung Galaxy Ace 3, Sony Xperia SP – exclusively in Red, Nokia 625 and HTC One SV.

Last but certainly not least, Phones4u be offering you a free wireless speaker worth £120 with every Samsung Galaxy on both 3G and 4G.

Posted in: News, Phones
By December 24, 2013 Read More →

Paick plan super-slim ½-inch thick 6000mAh portable battery

unnamedPaick is set to show off at CES a new super-slim ½-inch thick 6000mAh portable battery. This ultra-thin wallet-sized is designed for the back pocket or to be thrown in a bag with a dust-proof dual USB/Micro USB slot for Smartphone Charging. The battery is tipped to be compatablie with iPhone 5, 5C, 5S, Samsung Galaxy, HTC, Android Phones, tablets and most USB devices.

Paick www.paick.com,  the company creating new digital fashion ideas for life, launched today Noble, the ultra-thin ½ inch portable 6000mAh power bank for business professionals.  Fashionably styled with a streamlined wallet-sized aluminium alloy high performance casing, Noble is much thinner than other power banks, which are usually over 1 inch thick.  Noble easily fits in a back pocket or bag for easy portability and is low cost with a promotional pricing of only $49.99 from now until March 23, 2013 (normally priced at $64.99).  Noble features an intelligentdustproof pop-up interface with two USB slots and 1 Micro USB slot that lets you pop-up for access to the USB charging slots or pop-down to keep it extra slim and free of dust.

Charges iPhone Three Times, Galaxy Twice and iPad Once – One Touch Screen Activation

A Li-polymer battery charger, Noble is more stable and safer than Li-ion batteries.  Noble charges iPhone 5, 5C, 5S, Samsung Galaxy, HTC, Android phones, tablets & most USB devices, fully charging an iPhone three times, a Galaxy phone twice, or an iPad once.  Noble also features an Advanced Odin Circuit System with efficient synchronous rectifier output, an intelligent on/off touch sensor with one-touch screen activation, Smart Safety Protection and LEDs that show remaining power: 1 LED indicates less than 25%, 2 LEDs: 25%-50%, 3 LEDs: 50%-75%, 4 LEDs: 75%-100%.

Noble to be Introduced at CES 2014 in Las Vegas

Paick will introduce the new Noble super-thin low-cost 6000mAh power bank at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), held Jan. 7-10, 2014 in Las Vegas, at the Noble Booth #70902 – Venetian Ballroom.  To schedule press meetings at CES, contact: Karen Thomas/Eva Yutani/Bill Kouwenhoven[email protected], [email protected] [email protected].

Noble Features:
• 6000mAh portable charger.
• Charges iPhone 5, 5C, 5S, Samsung Galaxy, HTC, Android phones, tablets & most USB devices.
• Unique pop-up interface provides the best dustproofing and a slim design.
• LED lighting design displays remaining battery life.
• Intelligent on/off touch sensor with one-touch screen activation.
• Dual USB ports:  One 5V-2.1A and one 5V-1A USB output.
• 1 Micro USB port.
• Odin Circuit System: Synchronous Rectifier Output.
• Intelligent fast charging.
• Smart Safety Protection ensures safe charging.
• Dimensions: 4.6” length x 2.8” wide x ½” thick (118.2 x 2.2 x 13.6mm).
• Low-cost.

Promotional Pricing until March 20, 2013

Noble includes the power bank, USB/Micro USB cable, and skid-resistance rubber belt.  Normally priced at $64.99, with promotional pricing of $49.99 from now until March 20, 2013, Noble is available immediately from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GRSD37G.

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Posted in: Gadgets, News, Phones, Tablets
By December 20, 2013 Read More →

How to get faster charging on a Nexus 5?

faster charging on a Nexus 5Sometimes you can stumble on a feature in your smartphone that seems so simple but can completely change the ways that you can use it.

Something that I learned this week was that the Nexus 5 and many other Android smartphones have two different (and in the case of the Note 3 a third) charging modes. I have verified that this is true of the Xperia Z1 and Z Ultra

I have been finding that my car stereo was struggling to put enough power out through its USB port to even maintain the battery level, let alone charge it whilst I was using it to play music over bluetooth. This seemed strange as it had no problems providing plenty of power to charge my older iPhones even whilst I was using them for navigation and music playback.

A little investigation revealed that when plugged into a standard USB port with a standard cable, a slow charging mode is enabled and that when the same cable is used with the wall charging plug that came with the phone, the Nexus charges much faster. This is known as AC mode.

Proof of this can be seen in the battery status section of the settings App.

Screenshot_2013-12-15-21-45-43

So how can we speed things up when in the car or elsewhere I hear you ask?

The options that I have come up with are:

  • Use the original charger that came with the phone or another high output 2.0A third party adapter.
  • Get a dedicated charging cable (this will not provide the ability to sync if connected to a computer).
  • Find a dedicated 12v car charger that has the correct functions.

As my particular issue was in the car, I decided to pursue the second two options and a quick trip to a popular online store highlighted a couple of viable options.

PortaPow Specialised Fast Charging Micro USB Cable and PortaPow 2.5A Universal Dual USB Car Charger. As I have a car stereo which should have a pretty decent output from the on-board USB port I decided to give the cable only solution a go.

And the results are….

Screenshot_2013-12-15-21-44-43

A 10 minute car journey using GPS and bluetooth streaming of music and navigation instructions adds around 5% to the battery! The added benefit is that it frees up another normal sync cable to stay in one of the areas where I will normally need them or a spare for a bag or pocket. For the low cost of either of the options above and the benefit of having what is essentially a dedicated charging point for the car it seems almost an essential piece of kit for anyone who ever travels in a car

Post script – A further option is available with a software only solution for users who have rooted (jailbroken) their devices but I am not going to suggest this unless you absolutely understand what you are doing. Those that understand the rooting process and risks that are associated with it will probably already be aware the fast charging options and what is required

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By December 19, 2013 Read More →

Amazon Kindle phone from HTC coming soon?

HTC-Amazon-Kindle-SmartphoneAn unnamed sources from Taiwan has reported that Primax Electronics has received an order from Amazon for compact camera modules (CCM.) Rumour has it these will be for smartphones hitting the market in the first half of 2014. These smartphones could feature floating point technology, and each phone will be equipped with six CCMs for sensing.

This bit of detail backs up previous rumours that a Kindle smartphone will have multiple front-facing cameras that will determine where the user’s face is located, and render the 3D on screen accordingly. However, the mention of “floating point” technology would indicate that the phone may have some form of motion sensing feature, allowing a user to control the phone without having to touch the screen.

Recently sources have reported Amazon has been working with HTC on three smartphones, and that one of these devices was in an advanced stage of development yet would not be ready to ship until 2014, if at all. Based on previous rumours, the phone will likely have four cameras on the front for the motion sensing/3D aspect, another camera on the front for video calling, and one on the back for taking pictures.

Posted in: News, Phones, Rumours
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