Videos/Unboxings

By December 16, 2013 Read More →

Google Glass unboxing video

Google Glass unboxing videoGoogle Glass has been around for a little while now with early ‘Explorer Edition’ versions being made available to a select few testers and developers at the beginning of 2013. Over the past few months the Explorer programme has been further extended and I’ve now been lucky enough to have been invited to join and have just now received my very own Google Glass. Excited is not the word…

Google Glass has been a little controversial of late and there have been some privacy concerns, in fact some shops and restaurants going so far as to ban their use. Part of my desire to use Glass is to consider these issues myself and I’ll be talking about this more as I get to use it more.

So as is always the way with any new tech I get my hands on, I’ve recorded a short unboxing video for your viewing pleasure. You’ll notice that I’m not in my normal studio environment recording this one, I’m in a hotel having just picked the Glass up. As a result, there is some noise for the first minute and 10 seconds, so I hope that doesn’t detract from the video too much.

Google Glass Unboxing video

Google Glass Specification:

  • Dual-core 1GHz OMAP CPU*
  • 1GB RAM (682MB available to developers)*
  • OS: Android 4.0.4
  • 3 axis gyroscope
  • 3 axis accelerometer
  • 3 axis magnetometer (compass)
  • Touchpad Control
  • Bone Conductor Speaker
  • 16GB Storage/ 12GB Free
  • 1 Day Battery Life
  • Voice Control
  • WiFi 802.11b/g
  • Bluetooth
  • Titanium Headband
  • 5MP Camera
  • 720P video recording
  • 640×360 display

* Specs for the CPU and RAM are not totally clear, has been a lot of contradictory information so we’re going with the consensus.

 

Other than the touchpad, Google Glass can be controlled using “voice actions”. To activate Glass, wearers tilt their heads 30° upward (which can be altered for preference) or tap the touchpad, and say “O.K., Glass.” Once Glass is activated, wearers can say an action, such as “Take a picture”, “Record a video”, “Hangout with [person/Google+ circle]”, “Google ‘What year was Wikipedia founded?'”, “Give me directions to the Eiffel Tower”, and “Send a message to John”

Posted in: Gadgets, News, Phones, Videos/Unboxings
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By December 2, 2013 Read More →

Sony Xperia Tablet Z unboxing video & hands-on

l_21313382Continuing our look at the Android tablets currently on offer we turn our attention to the Sony Xperia Tablet Z.

Whist the Sony Xperia Tablet Z has been around for a little while it still has a specification sheet that should impress, with a high-res display, IP57 rating for dust and water resistance and decent CPU and memory housed in a thin 6.9mm body it looks like it could do the business but being a Sony branded product there is, perhaps predictably, a premium price label.

The question we’ll be looking to answer when we get the the Sony Xperia Tablet Z review is whether or not this 10.1″ Android tablet deserves the circa £400 price point for the 16GB WiFi version, and whether or not it should be included on your Christmas list!

In the video below you’ll see me unboxing the Sony Xperia Tablet Z with a look at the included accessories and a tour around the hardware and software elements. I also run a quick benchmark, the results of which may surprise.

Posted in: Tablets, Videos/Unboxings
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By November 29, 2013 Read More →

Lenovo IdeaTab S6000 unboxing and demo

lenovo-tablet-ideatab-s6000-front-1Lenovo recently launched a new range of Android tablets, the Lenovo Yoga Tablet 8 and 10. But Lenovo have an existing range of Android tablets and we looked at the budget IdeaTab A3000 a while ago.

This week we got our hands on the Lenovo IdeaTab S6000. It’s the bigger brother of the A3000 and has a 10.1″ display. Both have been on the market for a while but heading in to the Xmas period, and as Android tablets are likely to feature quite high on Christmas lists this year, we thought it worthy of an unboxing and review as it promises to be one of the better options out there at the moment.

Lenovo call the S6000 an ‘Enhanced Multimedia Tablet’ and to this end the tablet has a couple of sizeable speakers on the rear for stereo audio playback. The widescreen display may not be the highest resolution but is still 1280×800 pixels and, being IPS, is of a decent quality.

You can pick up the S6000 for under £200 at the moment but there’s stiff competition out there so can it compete? We’ll have a full review soon but for now the unboxing and demo video below may help you make up your mind.

Posted in: News, Tablets, Videos/Unboxings
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By November 28, 2013 Read More →

Mobile Tech Addicts Podcast 214: Dan and the Mustache of Doom

Podcast-Logo_thumb.jpgGareth and Dan are here with another UK update on the mobile front, this week with Phil Lain.

A massive amount of phone and tablet news to churn through this week. Most major manufacturers pull out some sort of new device, with a massive screen.

Gareth goes to Finland and doesn’t look at Angry Birds or Nokia products and young Phil drinks a glass of water.

Featuring Gareth, Dan and Phil

Direct Download

iTunes

Download the iPhone App

Download the Android App

RSS Feed

Watch the video on Youtube

Posted in: News, Podcast, Videos/Unboxings
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By November 26, 2013 Read More →

Sony Xperia Z Ultra unboxing and hands-on

sony-xperia-z-ultra-1Hot on the heels of our Sony Xperia Z1 review we have its big brother, the Sony Xperia Z Ultra.

With its 6.4″ screen, the Sony Xperia Z Ultra is the largest of the ‘Phablet’ form devices to hit the market and just tops Samsung’s Galaxy Mega 6.3.

However, unlike many of the other phablet devices on the market, the Z Ultra follows other devices in the range and is IP58 rated making it both dust and waterproof and able to submerge in water to a depth of 1 meter for up to 30 minutes. Making it possibly an ideal device for using in or around the pool when you’re on your holidays.

At just 6.5mm thick, the Sony Xperia Z Ultra packs quite a lot in to its slim chassis. Inside we get a 2.2GHz Quad-core CPU, 16GB internal storage, 2GB RAM, 8MP camera and all of the usual bells and whistles in terms of GPS, WiFi, etc.

As always, we’re kicking off with an unboxing and hands on video. Here you’ll see the hardware in more detail and I’ll show you what the OS/UI is like before running that ever controversial benchmark test.

Posted in: News, Phones, Tablets, Videos/Unboxings
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By November 23, 2013 Read More →

Kindle Fire HDX 8.9″ unbox & hands-on

Kindle Fire HDX 8.9Back in October of this year, Amazon announced that the Kindle Fire HDX 8.9″ would be available here in the UK in time for Christmas and just a few days ago, in a further announcement we learned that the HDX had commenced shipping.

With the HDX Amazon not only do we get an amazing hi-res IPS display with a staggering 2560 x 1600 resolution but there’s also a 2.2GHz Quad-core CPU, 2GB RAM and 16, 32 or 64GB storage.

Dispite the heavyweight specification the Fire HDX is still able to boast its “lightest large-screen tablet” status, the Kindle Fire HDX 8.9” is astonishingly light at 374 grams.

In another innovation, the HDX also has a “Mayday button” a revolutionary on-device tech support system which is free, 24/7, 365 days a year.

In the video below I get hands-on and set up my new Kindle Fire HDX 8.9″ and have a look around that new Fire OS 3.0 Mojito UI.

Posted in: News, Tablets, Videos/Unboxings
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By November 20, 2013 Read More →

HTC Desire 500 hands-on in White

htc-desire-500-white-blueBack in September of this year, HTC launched a new Android smartphone under the much-used Desire name, the HTC Desire 500.

This new phone featured much of the software improvements from the popular HTC One but in a somewhat more affordable package.

When the Desire 500 first went on sale the all-black version was the first to land and we had an early hands-on with that model. Since then two further versions have become available; White with blue-trim and white with red-trim.

These are essentially the same hardware spec but it’s surprising just how different the phone can appear from a simple colour change. We wouldn’t normally return to a device just because of a colour change but as the Desire 500 has just had an Android update and has been so popular on PAYG tariffs we thought it was worth another look.

In the video below, Gareth takes a brief break from his painting-by-numbers to have a closer look at the HTC Desire 500 in white clothing. The phone, not Gareth in white clothing…

Posted in: Phones, Videos/Unboxings
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By November 16, 2013 Read More →

Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 review and unboxing

Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 reviewLenovo have several Android tablets on the market at the moment and we recently looked at the IdeaTab A3000.

A couple of weeks ago Lenovo announced two new Android tablets to join their lineup, the Lenovo Yoga Tablet 8 and Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10. The two tablets are identical aside from the size with 8 and 10-inch displays respectively. Ours will be a Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 review.

These new Yoga tablets are a little different to the normal slab-style device that everyone else is bringing out at the moment and clearly some thought has gone in to the design. The most striking thing about them is the large bulge on the bottom of an otherwise slim form tablet. That bulge houses a large 9000mAh battery and also neatly hides a kick-stand that allows the tablet to either stand virtually upright or, if you lay it down, angle the screen towards the user at a convenient desk-viewing angle.

Both the Lenovo Yoga Tablet 8 and Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 have a premium aluminium construction that makes then feel far more sturdy than many of the all-plastic alternatives out there and Lenovo have managed to achieve this without the tablet looking or feeling too industrial.

Check out the unboxing video below to see the design and that unique stand in a little more detail.

Her’s just a short Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 review for now. I wanted to get my initial impressions up alongside the video before I go in to a lot more detail later.

Lenovo say that the Yoga 10 is capable of up to 18 hours of web browsing on just one charge. While I’m not about to sit here and browse the web for 18 hours straight, I can tell you that the battery life seems to be really very good. Out of the box the Yoga had around 40% charge and I’ve been using it all day for the video and putting the review together and it’s still going strong.

Another good thing with the Yoga 10 is that there’s a pair of speakers for stereo audio playback. The speakers are sensibly placed to face forward when you are in landscape mode, ideal for watching video. The speakers may not be that large and certainly there’s not much low-end but in terms of sheer volume it does rather well. There’s also Dolby Digital Plus built in to help the audio along a bit.

Screen-wise the Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 is OK. It’s not going to win any prizes but there are worse screens out there. 1280 x 800 pixels isn’t exactly watch you’d call dense these days but that said it’s a bright IPS display that’s pretty clear.

My final word for now is going to be on performance. Once again the 1.2GHz quad-core A7 chip isn’t exactly going to break any speed records but as you may be able to gather from the benchmark in the video, the Yoga 10 doesn’t disgrace itself either. In real-world use it’s fairly responsive and for the tasks I’d be performing regularly, such as web browsing, Hangouts and the like it does just fine and in terms of the few games I play on Android, it runs those without a hitch.

Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 review image gallery

 Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 review specification:

  • 2G Network: GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900
  • 3G Network: HSDPA 900 / 2100
  • Micro-SIM
  • Dimensions: 261 x 180 x 8.1 mm (10.28 x 7.09 x 0.32 in)
  • Weight: 605 g (Wi-Fi) / 610 g (3G) (1.34 lb)
  • Built-in 3-stage kickstand
  • Display: IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen, 16M colours, 1280 x 800 pixels, 10.1 inches (~149 ppi pixel density)
  • Sound Alert types Vibration, Polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
  • Built-in stereo speakers
  • 3.5mm jack
  • Dolby Digital Plus sound enhancement
  • Memory Card slot microSD, up to 64 GB
  • Internal 16/32 GB
  • 1 GB RAM
  • Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n
  • Bluetooth  v4.0
  • microUSB v2.0, USB On-the-go
  • Primary Camera: 5 MP, 2592х1936 pixels
  • Secondary Camera: 1.6 MP
  • OS: Android OS, v4.2.2 (Jelly Bean)
  • CPU: Quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A7
  • Accelerometer
  • Compass
  • GPS with A-GPS support
  • Battery Non-removable Li-Ion 9000 mAh battery
Posted in: Reviews, Tablets, Videos/Unboxings
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By November 14, 2013 Read More →

Humax HB-1000S Freesat HD unboxing video

Humax HB-1000s freesat HDThe Freesat service has been around for a while and has found it’s way in to TV’s and set top boxes alike.

This Humax HB-1000s model that we are looking includes new on-demand features from BBC iPlayer and ITV Player. While this model may lack the built-in hard drive of some of the higher-end models, it will allow you to add external USB hard drives if you want to use it for recording. You can also add a USB WiFi adapter if you want to connect wirelessly.

In the video below it’s just a quick look at the hardware and what’s supplied with the unit before we crack on with the full review.

Posted in: TV & Home Cinema, Videos/Unboxings
By November 13, 2013 Read More →

ZTE Blade V unboxing and hands-on

ZTE Blade VZTE have had a lot of success with their Blade range of devices and they generally offer good value for money, particularly for the PAYG market.

With the launch of the ZTE Blade V, ZTE are hoping to continue that trend and our review unit, which comes from Virgin Mobile, can be snapped up on PAYG for just £99.99 or if you are a Virgin Media customer, £81.99. That’s great value for a phone with Quad-core 1.2GHz CPU and 4″ 480×800 pixel display.

We’ve always been impressed with ZTE’s build quality and value so can the Blade V impress us again?

In the unboxing video below you can see the ZTE Blade V in more detail. I’ll run though the setup and run a quick benchmark too.

Posted in: Phones, Videos/Unboxings
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