Gadget Reviews

It may look a lot like the General Mobile DSTL1, but SciPhone’s N21 still has its very own soul. Our BFFs over at Engadget Chinese were able to wrangle one in, and naturally they took the opportunity to score a photo shoot and host it for the world to see. There aren’t too many surprises to be found, but if you’re looking for a pinch of KIRF, twin SIM slots, a 5 megapixel camera and the not-exactly-newest version of Google’s mobile operating system, you know where to look.

Filed under: Cellphones

Sciphone’s Android-toting N21 unboxed, dual SIM slots caught rockin’ the suburbs originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve finally had a chance to play around at length with a very late pre-production version of Nokia’s N900 (retail units are already shipping, but not to our neck of the woods just yet) and we wanted to scribble out a few notes for you before taking delivery of a final build for a full review hopefully in the next week or two. Here are some highlights we’ve noticed so far:

• Processor, processor, processor. Oh, and did we mention the processor? The N900’s Cortex A8-based core yields significant improvements in day-to-day usability over the N810’s ARM11 unit.
• Though it’s still quite raw and feature-incomplete, Maemo 5 is by far the most user-friendly version of the platform to date, if for no other reason than the fact that it’s very pretty. Screen transitions are smooth and look great, the home screen is as attractive and versatile as any widget-based home screen on the market today, and the Expose-style task switcher is a welcome addition.
• The N900 may very well offer the best browsing experience of any smartphone on the market today (yes, including the iPhone). What little ground it gives up in user friendliness is more than countered by the fact that you have the closest thing you can get to a desktop-class browser in a device of this size and form factor; it’s straight-up Mozilla, after all, and everything renders faithfully. Flash doesn’t blaze, but at least the Cortex A8 makes it usable.

Follow the break for more impressions and a quick rundown on video!

Continue reading Nokia N900 quick hands-on

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Nokia N900 quick hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’re really into the new influx of inexpensive CULV-based laptops that’s arrived with Windows 7, and just like the ASUS UL80Vt, we knew we had to check out the starts-at-$599 HP dm3t the second we saw the first leak. In many ways, it’s the perfect throw-it-in-a-bag-and-go portable on paper, with a sleek and rigid case design, a 1.3GHz Intel SU7300 Core 2 Duo processor, and a 13.3-inch screen, but there’s a big difference between loving a machine’s spec sheets and reviews and loving it in real life, so we spent a couple days playing with a spec’d-up $819 model — read on for our impressions.

Continue reading HP dm3t review

Filed under: Laptops

HP dm3t review originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 17:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dubbing itself the “multimedia powerhouse” for T-Mobile’s expansive Android lineup, the Samsung Behold II has just been confirmed for that rumored November 18th launch on T-Mobile (still no word on price, though we’re hearing a predictable $200). The slate-style touchscreen handset has a 3.2-inch AMOLED display, and puts it to good use with a hearty skinning job on the part of Samsung, porting in most (but not all) of its TouchWiz UI — unfortunately for us, that silly cube menu made the cut. Underneath is Android 1.5, and what seems to be a pretty standard processor.

Hardware-wise there’s really nothing to complain about on this phone. It’s heavy, relatively thin (not iPhone-thin, but just fine), with solid materials and wonderfully tactile face buttons. The screen is everything you’d expect out of an AMOLED display, though high-resolution phones like the Droid dampen that enthusiasm somewhat. One wonderful Samsung addition to the traditional Android experience is a “real” camera button on the side, which can even register half-presses for focus. For someone who doesn’t want a physical keyboard, but doesn’t want their handset to feel like a toy (sorry, myTouch) there’s plenty to love. However, we’re more concerned about the software side of things. We’re not morally opposed to Samsung adding in TouchWiz, but we are afraid of anything that has the potential to slow down the OS, and on first glance we’d say it’s notably less responsive than stock Android. We’ll of course be going further in-depth to see just how usable this iteration is, but let us just put this out on the table: a virtual 3D cube to launch media apps is no way “intuitive,” “helpful” or “cool.” OK, maybe it’s kind of cool, but seriously Samsung, stop it. Check out our unboxing below.

Update: We added some video after the break. Behold the cube!

Continue reading Samsung Behold II hits T-Mobile on November 18th, unboxed today (now with video!)

Filed under: Cellphones

Samsung Behold II hits T-Mobile on November 18th, unboxed today (now with video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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For a company with the most starched, buttoned-up roots of any major wireless manufacturer, RIM’s venture out of its enterprise comfort zone to the consumer space went amazingly smoothly thanks to the introduction of the original Pearl, a phone that’s still sold in a variety of colors, configurations, and carriers to this day. At some point, though, it became clear that the industry was moving toward touch — a space RIM had never dabbled in — and the trend gave birth to the Storm, a product that had obviously been rushed to market with countless software bugs and a dodgy SurePress concept that caused more problems than it solved. With prototypes floating around in the wild mere months after its predecessor’s release, RIM’s message was loud and clear earlier this year: “we need to fix the Storm, and we need to do it quickly.” Ultimately, it’s ended up taking the company just about a year to get the Storm2 to market, a product that attempts to tweak Waterloo’s touchscreen strategy just enough to undo a few mistakes and send it down the right path. Mission accomplished? Read on.

Continue reading BlackBerry Storm2 hands-on and impressions

Filed under: Cellphones

BlackBerry Storm2 hands-on and impressions originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Want to see that new Saygus VPhone in action? Can’t get enough QWERTY in your Android? Enjoy videos shot amongst a crowd of screaming trade show attendees? Boy are you in luck. Check out our video hands-on of the handset after the break, and please excuse the noise.

Continue reading Saygus VPhone video hands-on

Filed under: Cellphones

Saygus VPhone video hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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After our mixed feelings on the HP Envy 13, we were excited but also a little bit scared to see the 13’s big brother, the Envy 15. It’s running a Core i7 processor clocked at 1.6GHz, and has 1GB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4830 discrete graphics fronted by a 1920 x 1080 15.6-inch display despite the fact that it doesn’t have a built-in disc drive. Luckily there’s an external Blu-ray packed into the box (that’s a $225 option on top of the $1,800 base price), but most games and apps these days are available via download anyway, so it’s not that big of knock on your power-user cred. The unboxing experience is actually identical to that of the Envy 13 (quite elegant), and we were happy to see that when we fired up the laptop the trackpad seemed better configured than that of the pre-update Envy 13 we reviewed. We were less enthused to see that the IE comes pre-installed with HP and Norton toolbars — pretty janky for a premium machine — but luckily we rarely have to see the ugly sight of IE more than once on a new machine. For the most part this is just an Envy 13 bigged up, and that’s nothing to complain about.

Filed under: Laptops

HP Envy 15 unboxing and hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dell’s finally run its finger along the edge and unhinged the last bit of details for its enigmatic, 0.4-inch-thin Adamo XPS. As it turns out those leaked specs weren’t entirely off. We’re looking at a LED-backlit 13.4-inch, 720p widescreen display, 1.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo ultra-low voltage processor, GS45 integrated graphics, 4GB of DDR3 RAM, a 128GB thin-micro SSD, and Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit. In terms of connectivity, there’s 802.11a/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1, location awareness, DisplayPort, two USB 2.0 ports (one on each side). The 20WHr Li-Ion battery can last up to 2 hours and 36 minutes, or you can get the optional 40WHr version instead for 5 hours and 17 minutes of claimed, lab-tested use. Other packaged goods include dongles for ethernet and VGA / HDMI, and for an added fee you can nab a DVD+/-RW drive, a Blu-ray drive, or an external hard drive measured at 250GB or 500GB in capacity.

At $1,799, the price isn’t as bad as originally thought, but it’s still far from great if performance takes any precedence for you over style. Earlier this week, we got to spend some time with the ultra-thin chez Dell’s PR firm — not enough to really get a feel for how it performs, but enough to admire the hardware and enjoy unboxing what we’re told is the final retail packaging. We saw an expected launch date listed for this month, but a rep was quick to note the current line is officially “in time for the holidays” — just in case the company misses Black Friday, of course. Read on for some more impressions and video unboxing / hands-on!

Continue reading Dell Adamo XPS coming ‘in time for the holidays’ for $1799 (unboxing and hands-on video!)

Filed under: Laptops

Dell Adamo XPS coming ‘in time for the holidays’ for $1799 (unboxing and hands-on video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What we have here today isn’t just another pair of ordinary headphones: Sony Ericsson’s MH907s are button-free, minimalistic headphones that activate upon the magical touch of your skin. Well, your ears to be precise. You must bear in mind that the MH907s are exclusive to Fast port-equipped Sony Ericsson phones thus excluding the forthcoming XPERIA X10 — so chances are you’re already not interested. That said, we shall see if Sony Ericsson is really going to change things forever with these gleaming buds featuring SE’s SensMe Control technology, or by just stopping everyone from using their 3.5mm headphone jacks. Read on to find out how these €39 ($57) headphones fared.

Gallery: Ears-on with Sony Ericsson MH907 Motion Activated Headphones

Continue reading Ears-on with Sony Ericsson MH907 Motion Activated Headphones

Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Audio, Wearables

Ears-on with Sony Ericsson MH907 Motion Activated Headphones originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The wait’s killing us for a proper hands-on with this thing, but we just had a chance to very briefly touch — yes, touch — the CLIQ as we wandered the show (and ran into tnkgrl in the process). Here’s what we can tell you:

• Despite the MSM7201a core, the UI is definitely faster than any factory ROM we’ve used before on any Android device. A good test of this is to quickly swipe open the app drawer — the action’s smooth on the CLIQ, whereas most Magic ROMs would stutter.
• The screen is glass capacitive, and it feels that way. There’s no “give” like you’ve got on a G1 or Magic, for example.
• Expanding on the glass screen, the device feels absolutely fantastic overall. Through Motorola’s thick and thin, you’ve got to admit that the company has a reputation for building ridiculously rock-solid phones, and we’re pleased to say that the trend is continuing with the CLIQ. Pictures don’t do it justice — the white model looks particularly cheap at a glance — but in the hand, it feels like it’s fashioned from a solid block of metal.
• The camera button has a focus detent, which makes it a heck of a lot easier to properly harness the power of your 5 megapixel autofocus optics. The jury’s still out on photo quality, but it seems promising and focusing is relatively quick (though our disappointment in QVGA 24fps video still runs pretty deep).
• This probably blew Google’s mind, but MOTOBLUR has five home screen panels along with a small indicator similar to the iPhone’s to show you which one you’re currently on. Who knew that someone might want more than three? [Yes, we know HTC's bringing additional panels to the table in Sense as well -- thing is, stock Android doesn't, which a majority of Android phones in circulation still run. It'd be nice to see Google take something like this into the trunk in Donut or Eclair. -Ed.]
• The keyboard feels great. Truly stellar, actually — and we don’t think there’s much room for complaints about layout, unless you’re really into the dedicated horizontal number row.

We’ll have more thoughts this evening once we’ve spent more quality time… you know, “clicking” with the CLIQ. Sorry.

Update: More screenshots of CLIQ and MOTOBLUR UI, including the back panel designs and some comparison shots. Interesting to note that the keyboard aspect of the device is just slightly thinner than the iPhone 3GS.

Update 2: Now with more video!

Continue reading Motorola CLIQ: first hands-on impressions (update: with video)

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Motorola CLIQ: first hands-on impressions (update: with video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 Sep 2009 23:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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