Google now considers itself a 'mobile first' company
Google is officially labeling itself a “mobile first” company, predicting that most of its users will access its products via smartphones and tablets in 2013.
This shift away from being a desktop search engine was revealed by Google executives at the 2012 Open Mobile Summit in San Francisco, and picked up by Business Insider.
A Google spokesperson told TechRadar that “the mobile first strategy was actually first laid out by Eric Schmidt years ago.”
It’s only now that the former Google CEO and current chairman’s strategy is coming to fruition on the users’ end.
In 2012, Google users’ mobile searches have increased 200 percent to-date, paving the way to a mobile majority by next year.
YouTube’s strong mobile growth
The Google executives’ belief that mobile will be the primary way people access the site by next year is only one interesting mobile-focused statistic publicized at the event.
YouTube was revealed to have received 25 percent of traffic and 40 percent of views from mobile devices in 2012. That’s a 300 percent increase for this year.
A Google executive also predicted that YouTube’s mobile traffic could surpass 50 percent soon, as it has already in Korea. Too much Gangnam Style?
Mobile software via Android hardware
Google’s mobile focus isn’t a surprise considering the company’s business model is heavily invested in its Android operating system.
A separate prediction for 2013, this one by Schmidt, pegged Android’s lifetime
activations surpassing 1 billion.
Google’s dominance is expected to continue according to technology research firm Gartner.
By 2016, Android smartphones are estimated to
account for 56 percent of the market in North America and Europe.
Having pre-loaded Google software in Android devices doesn’t hurt your “mobile first” strategy when you’re the market leader.
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Xbox 360 holds top console spot as industry sales drop 25 percent
Microsoft's
Xbox 360 holds the top selling console spot for the fifteenth month in a row according to the NPD Group's October sales numbers.
The console sold 250,000 units during the month of October and accounted for 56 percent of all game system sales, making Xbox 360 the most popular system.
However, overall sales in the industry are down 25 percent compared to 2011, with $755.55 million (UK£475.3 million, AU$727.3)spent on games and consoles combined.
Game sales are down 25 percent from last year $451.8 million (UK£284.2, AU$434.9)in sales while console sales fell by 37 percent to account for only $187.3 million (UK£117.8 million, AU$180.3 million).
Downloadable and mobile games reign
Throughout the year sales across the industry have lagged behind 2011's numbers, as gamers increasingly turn to downloadable and mobile games, neither of which are accounted for in NPD Group reports.
Sales have also slumped due to gamers awaiting the next generation of hardware. Nintendo's
Wii U will be the first new console out of the gate, arriving on Nov. 18.
Microsoft and Sony both have systems in development as well, which are rumored to launch in late 2013 or early 2014.
Gaming in decline
As for the games,
NBA 2K13 was October's top selling game, followed by
Resident Evil 6,
Pokemon Black Version 2,
Dishonored,
Pokemon White Version 2,
Madden NFL 13,
FIFA Soccer 13,
Medal of Honor: Warfighter,
Borderlands 2 and
Skylanders Giants.
NBA 2K13 was the only game in October to break 1 million sales, even with combined sales of the two Pokemon games reaching 867,000. In fact, the original
Pokemon Black and
White sold 2.5 million copies their first month last year.
Despite slumping sales, the NPD Group is optimistic when looking at the rest of the holiday season.
"While October was another month of steep declines in retail sales, we are looking forward to November 2012 with the results of
Assassin's Creed III, and
Halo 4, which were positively reviewed, as well as the results of
Call of Duty: Black Ops II.
"These software titles, along with the Wii U launch on November 18, will provide a much needed boost to retail sales," NPD analyst Liam Callahan said.
Consoles are also expected to see an improvement from holiday sales as Callahan observed, "While we saw declines in hardware unit sales across all platforms year-over-year, when looking at average sales per week versus September, several consoles realized higher sales: the 360,
PS3, NDS and
3DS.
"This is a sign of increasing momentum as we move into the holiday season."
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CES 2013: what to expect
The Consumer Electronics Show, or CES, is one of the largest showcases of new technology in the world. Hosted by the Consumer Electronics Association in Las Vegas, CES 2013 will open to press and exhibitors from every facet of the electronics industry, and TechRadar will be there. We'll descend upon the gambling capital of the world for four days of basking in the glow of the latest computers, televisions, cameras, phones and more.
With plenty of
winners and losers, last year's
CES 2012 was big news for many reasons. Firstly, the show floor opened on Jan. 9, a week later than usual.
LG and
Sony unveiled 55-inch Ultra High-Definition TVs, then the largest in the world.
Intel gave us a glimpse of the touch enabled Ultrabooks we've been seeing everywhere lately. Lastly, and most notably, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer gave the company's
last CES keynote, introducing the world to
Windows 8's Metro interface, and announcing
Xbox 360 apps for Fox, IGN and more.
To follow that, CES 2013 will be a mix of keynote razzle dazzle, sneak peeks at the latest tech, and introductions to products that will go from patently unaffordable to a given in every living room, a lot faster than you'd believe.
Before TechRadar hits the CES 2013 show floor from Jan. 8-11, we thought we'd put together a preview of the gadget glory you can expect from our on the ground coverage.
Samsung rebrands itself
Despite having the
best-selling smartphone in the world and running an operating system on clip to
eclipse all others, Samsung is
reportedly preparing quite the rebranding at CES 2013.
While we don't necessarily anticipate a radical image reimagining, we do expect Samsung will take advantage of the stage (and a keynote speech) to introduce a new facet to its business identity – a refresh, as it were.
One of CES's exhibit categories is "Digital Health and Fitness," so Samsung will likely tack onto that theme with the introduction of products (or the retooling of current devices) that fit into the health and wellness category.
Samsung has reportedly hired a design team that's worked with Nike on some of that company's branding initiatives, so we'll likely see some dynamic stuff from South Korea in Vegas.
As Samsung continues to grow from an Asian powerhouse to a global one, how it sells itself to a broad international audience will be key to its future.
We expect Stephen Woo, president of Samsung Electronics' device solutions division, to set the tone of the company's refreshed self during his keynote address Jan. 9.
The debut of Ultra High-Definition television
It took a while but CRT televisions have finally become the stuff of garage sales and trips to grandma's house, and 3D screens have just started to crack the home market. Now everyone's lovely flatscreen is about to become a little bit obsolete, thanks Ultra High-Definition.
After a brief flirtation with
4K high-definition, the CEA settled on the name Ultra HD. However, Sony, always one to buck a naming trend (remember Blu-Ray vs. HD-DVD?) has said it will
stick with numbered moniker, calling its pixel-dense displays 4K Ultra High-Definition (4K UHD).
Still, everyone seems to be in agreement over the spec requirements set by the CEA, defining what it takes to be called Ultra HD. According to the group, Ultra means at least 8 million pixels, with a minimum resolution of 3840 x 2160, and an aspect ratio of at least 16 x 9.
Now the question is how big will the screens at CES 2013 be? There's debate between engineers as to whether anyone can even tell the difference between UHD and regular HD on a display that's less than 100-inches. And when will these TVs become affordable? Right now they're around $20,000 (UK£12,515, AUD $19,210), keeping them firmly in Donald Trump and Richard Branson territory.
Intel introduces a new mobile processor, stakes its claim
Intel is probably one of the most recognizable names coming to CES 2013, though it's not the only chipmaker making a stand on the Vegas exhibit floor.
We expect Intel to show up big at the event, schooling the competition on how it's done, and very likely announcing a new mobile processor or two as well as some destined for PCs.
Intel is in an interesting position in terms of its mobile future: although it claims to have 20
Windows 8 tablets sporting its new
Z2760 processor coming to market soon, the firm's chips are currently only found in six smartphones.
ARM and its licensees (Nvidia and Qualcomm) are making a killing in the mobile space and all are heading down to Nevada for the show, creating a perfect storm for one-up-man ship on the Strip.
ARM-based chips, while found in major money makers like the iPad and various Android tablets, aren't terribly up to snuff when it comes to processing prowess.
Yet Intel hasn't even breached the realm of relevancy smartphone space, making CES the time where it needs to stake that claim.
There's been
talk that Apple may chuck Intel as its CPU provider in the coming years. Cupertino recently developed a poppy processor for its
iPad 4 – the A6X – a chip that's reportedly twice as fast as those found in older iPads.
For that reason alone, Intel has got to show why it's relevant in mobile and why it deserves to be considered the top chipmaker in the world now and for years to come.
We'd love to see Intel not only announce a new mobile processor, but unveil a new partnership. It's got to prove it can work well with others (and capture consumer imagination) if it hopes to move deeper into smartphones and tablets.
Nvidia trumps out Tegra 4
Nvidia's Tegra 3 has done quite for itself this year, jumping into phones like HTC's
One X+ and tablets such as Google's
Nexus 7 and Microsoft's
Surface.
That doesn't mean Nvidia doesn't have its eyes to the horizon, and we believe the company will introduce its Tegra 4 processor come CES.
Word of the T40 (the new Tegra's model number) got going in April, with a report pointing to early 2013 as the time the Tegra 3's successor would ascend the throne.
At the time, it sounded like the Tegra 4 would fit four new Cortex A15 ARM chips, taking it way past the A9 Cortex chip summit.
Speeds of 1.8GHz are probably going to be average for the new processor, while by the middle/end of the year, 2.0 should be its cruising GHz.
If we're lucky, we might even see an Android or Windows 8 tablet poke about with the Tegra 4 inside.
Microsoft's show no more
The Consumer Electronics Show has long been Microsoft's chance to shine. The software giant has always given flashy presentations, usually involving celebrities. Shaq, Conan O'Brien, Ryan Seacrest, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and more have all appeared to help co-founder Bill Gates and current CEO Steve Ballmer show of the company's latest tech.
Sadly, CES 2013 will be the first year where Microsoft won't be giving one of its signature keynote presentations. It gave the world plenty of notice, saying in December 2011 that
CES 2012 would be its last. Steve Ballmer's last presentation at the Las Vegas trade show focused on Metro, the new Live Tile-based interface for Windows 8.
Companies have moved quickly to fill the space left by Microsoft's exodus. Qualcomm has nabbed the open keynote slot. The telecommunications mogul will be giving its Born Mobile keynote on Monday, January 7th. Meanwhile, satellite provider Dish and appliance manufacturer Hisense snapped up Microsoft's booth space in under an hour.
However, Venturebeat has quoted CEA president Gary Shapiro as saying, "Microsoft will have something" at CES 2013. While it's unknown what that something will be, there are plenty of possibilities. More
Windows Phone 8 devices? A Microsoft Surface Pro running Windows 8? Its all in the realm of possibility.
LG unveils Smart TV platform underpinned by HP's webOS
While we expect LG to march out a bevvy of phones and TVs, including some we haven't seen before, what's really piquing our interest heading into the new year is word that it may launch a Smart TV service based on
webOS.
webOS, the open source system developed by HP, could take the reigns from LG's antiquated NetCast Smart TV interface during the show, a move that wouldn't leave our jaws dropped.
HP delivered on its promise to walk out webOS to the public by September, a vow it made in January, and now it needs a big product and solid partner to get its face out there.
The marriage between the two should be equal – reports have HP providing the OS while LG will plug in its dual-core L9-powered motherboards.
If our expectations pan out, we'll likely see the death of LG's small screen partnership with the struggling Google TV service,
a relationship LG championed at CES 2012 yet has since cooled.
Automotive electronics
The CEA estimates that factory-installed automotive technology will generate $8.7 billion dollars in 2013, so it's no wonder seven major car companies will be on the show floor.
Audi, Chrysler, Ford, General Motors, Hyundai, Kia and Subaru will be joined more than 100 auto tech companies displaying the latest in-car tech. This is a record setting presence for the automotive industry at CES.
Displays and presentations will include electric drive technology. GoElectricDrive TechZone will demonstrate electric vehicles paired with their respective charging stations, ones that can be used at homes and in public facilities. The Safe Driver presentation will show more than the typical hands-free devices, highlighting technologies that can help drivers park, watch their speed and avoid collisions.
However, not everything between automakers and car tech designers is completely sunny. With so much hardware being put into cars before they even leave the factory, will the aftermarket industry be facing an all-time low? A presentation titled "Are Automakers Running the Aftermarket Off the Road?" will address the issue.
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Possible Acer Iconia Tab A220 leaks in new benchmark
If new leaked benchmarks are to be believed, Acer may soon unveil the Iconia Tab A220.
The purported tablet will include a quad-core 1.3GHz Tegra 3 processor, and will reportedly run
Android 4.1: Jelly Bean.
Strangely enough, the leaked specs don't mention the size of the tablet, though the screen will boast a resolution of 1280 x 752.
There was also no mention of the possible storage space available on the tablet.
A200 successor?
Though the benchmark doesn't disclose the size of the potential Iconia Tab A220, Acer's previous tablets may give an indication as to the rumored device's size.
In October, Acer released the
Iconia Tab A110, which was a 7-inch tablet running Jelly Bean, and came packed with a quad-core Tegra 3 processor.
The A110 featured a 1024 x 600 screen resolution, and included 8GB of storage, with the option to upgrade to 32GB via a microSD expansion.
The A110 was the successor to the
Iconia Tab A100, which could mean the A220 is the follow-up to the
Iconia Tab A200.
The A200 was a 10-inch tablet, which included a Tegra 2 processor,
Android 4.0: Ice Cream Sandwich, a 1280 x 800 screen, and up to 16GB of storage.
Given how closely the statistics match up, and how Acer has already released an updated version of the A100, there's a chance this A220 will follow suit.
If these specs do pan out, Acer would certainly be able to compete with the
Nexus 10,
Surface, and
iPad 4 as long as the price is comparable.
Until Acer actually confirms the tablet's existence though, this benchmark can only be considered a rumor.
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VirnetX slaps Apple with another FaceTime lawsuit
VirnetX is looking to squeeze a little more juice from Apple, pressing the company with another round of patent infringement lawsuits.
In fact,
earlier this week a Texas court ordered Apple to pay the internet security software and technology company $368 million (UK£231, AUD$353) over patent violations involving FaceTime.
"We are extremely pleased with the outcome of our suit with Apple," VirnetX CEO Kendall Larsen said in a press release. "This victory further establishes the importance of our patent portfolio."
With this new round of infringement complaints coming, VirnetX is further testing the portfolio's worth.
Same suit, new products
The grievances are the same as its last suit, but now VirnetX is targeting the
iPhone 5,
iPad Mini,
iPad 4,
iPod Touch 5 and the latest desktop Macs. The company is looking to clean up the devices that were too new to be included in the first round.
VirnetX sought $708 million (UK£442, AUD$680) in damages, but had to settle for about half that amount after the court's ruling. The complaint included four networking patents filed between 2002 and 2011 that FaceTime allegedly infringed on.
Some of the patents cover: technology that creates a virtual private network between two computers, a protocol for securing communications using secure domain names, and a method that establishes a secure communications connection based on a domain name service request.
VirnetX's victories
VirnetX is known for aggressively protecting its patents, going after big tech companies that infringe on its properties. In 2010, it won a $200 million (UK£125, AUD$192) claim against Microsoft.
VirnetX is also currently slugging it out with Cisco, Avaya and Siemens in infringement courts.
The multimillion dollar settlement shouldn't put too big a dent in
Apple's billions in quarterly profits, though the suits could have other ramifications.
VirnetX's legal victories could back up claims filed with the U.S. International Trade Commission, leading to possible sales bans on some Apple products.
For now VirnetX is looking to take a victory lap in courts and skin a little bit more green off Apple.
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China's rumored Lumia 920T has faster processor than US version
Chinese carrier China Mobile reportedly released two new images of China's version of the Nokia
Lumia 920, the Lumia 920T, on Friday.
Along with the images came a host of new details on the Lumia 920T's specs, including a claim that the Lumia 920T will have a faster processor than the Lumia 920.
According to the report, the Lumia 920T runs on a Snapdragon S4 Pro MSM8960T with an Adreno 320.
In comparison, the standard MSM8960 (minus the "T") found in the Lumia 920 packs an Adreno 225, making the Chinese Lumia 920T superior, said mobile news site GSM Insider.
Lumia 920 vs. Lumia 920T
Everything else that's known about China's Lumia 920T suggests that, besides the processor, it's identical to the Lumia 920.
That includes a 4.5-inch display with a resolution of 1280x768, according to Friday's report.
The Nokia Lumia 920T launch is expected to take place at a
Windows Phone 8 event in China on Dec. 5.
On the other hand, Nokia's
Lumia 920 was released in the U.S. on Friday through AT&T for $99.99 with a two-year contract (and
in the U.K. on Nov. 2 for £129.99 up front).
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Judge to consider Samsung's juror misconduct claim in Apple suit
It all comes down to this (maybe): during a Dec. 6 hearing, Calif. Judge Lucy Koh will examine Samsung's claim that the jury foreman in the ongoing patent suit with Apple "concealed information."
After Apple's
$1.05 billion (UK£659 million, AUD$1.01 billion) victory in August, Samsung
appealed the decision with a slew of new arguments, chief among them one of jury misconduct.
Samsung alleged that Vel Hogan, the jury foreman in the case, failed to disclose that he was sued by Seagate, his former employer, and driven to bankruptcy in 1993.
Seagate and Samsung have a "substantial strategic relationship," according to Samsung, and it seems Samsung believes that could have swayed Hogan to influence the jury against it.
That's the idea at least
Samsung also claimed that Apple knew about Hogan's connection to Seagate, and failed to disclose it.
Judge Koh wrote, "At the December 6, 2012 hearing, the Court will consider the questions of whether the jury foreperson concealed information during voir dire, whether any concealed information was material, and whether any concealment constituted misconduct.
"An assessment of such issues is intertwined with the question of whether and when Apple had a duty to disclose the circumstances and timing of its discovery of information about the foreperson."
Here's the kicker
CNET reported on Thursday that "legal experts" maintain that it's difficult to get a trial thrown out based on jury misconduct alone.
Further (and here's the kicker): Hogan did disclose that he had been involved in litigation "with a former partner."
He did not disclose who that partner was, but as Hogan reportedly noted, he was not asked to.
Even if this juror misconduct claim won't stick, Samsung will surely have half a dozen more up its sleeves, so don't expect an end to this case any time soon (especially since
Apple still wants another $707 million (UK£444, AUD$680) from Samsung).
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First Patch Tuesday coming next week for Windows 8, RT
Microsoft has issued advance notification for the first round of patches for
Windows 8 and
Windows RT, which are scheduled to roll out next Tuesday.
The so-called "Patch Tuesday" will be an important event for early adopters of Microsoft's Windows 8 and Windows RT, judging from a Security Bulletin Advance Notification the company issued Thursday.
On November 13, 2012, Microsoft intends to release the initial set of security updates to its brand-new Windows 8 products - including the tablet-centric Windows RT - as well as older versions dating back to Windows XP.
Security detail
Tuesday's updates are comprised of six security patches: Four critical and one each in the "important" and "moderate" categories.
While Windows itself is the primary target for the upcoming fixes, one also covers a flaw discovered in
Internet Explorer 9, while another focuses on
Microsoft Office 2003, 2007 and 2010, including Office 2008 and 2011 for Mac editions.
The patches aren't all about Windows 8:
Windows 7,
Vista and XP will also receive the security updates, including Server releases from 2003, 2008 and 2012.
For Windows users who have flipped on automatic updates, the patches will install themselves magically come Tuesday, but can be triggered manually via Windows Update on the Start menu.
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Lexmark launches new workgroup printers and MFPs
Lexmark has announced 11 new smart workgroup laser printers and multifunction products (MFPs) with built-in process and content management apps from Lexmark's 2010 purchase of Perceptive Software.
Lexmark's new MFPs all include a touch screens with built-in workflow apps designed to reduce the time you spend in front of their devices and the time spent dealing with scanning and printing documents.
Built-in apps on the new devices include bookmarks to image-based forms for on-demand printing, a multi-send option to capture and route documents via email, folders, FTP sites and remote Lexmark Printers, scan to one of 30 pre-defined network folders, and scan to a Windows 7 PC.
New devices include;
CX510 colour laser MFP - Designed for mid-size workgroups and includes Lexmark's calibration technology for the PANTONE colour system and Lexmark Named Colour Replacement true colour matching. There's a 25.9cm colour touch screen and it's capable of 32 pages per minute with 1Gb of RAM as standard expandable to 3GB.
MX812 monochrome laser MFP - A high-performance MFP for large workgroups, capable of print and copy speeds of up to 66 pages per minute, with first page delivery in four seconds. The MFP comes with pre-loaded business solutions, and a large (25.9cm) colour touch screen. The Unison toner cartridge also claims an extra high-yield of 45,000-pages.
MX611 monochrome laser MFP – The MX611 can print up to 47 pages per minute and can print or copy a first page in 6.5 seconds, and features an automatic inline stapler finishing option. It also features a 17.8 cm colour touch screen, and includes pre-installed workflow solutions.
MX410 monochrome laser MFP – The Lexmark MX410 is Lexmark's entry-level product, designed for print runs of up to 10,000 pages per month, with up to 38 pages per minute. Even though it's designed as an entry-level product it still features a 10.9 cm colour touch screen , and will still print or copy the first page in 6.5 seconds.
MS610 monochrome laser printer – The Lexmark MS610 is a compact, duplex, laser printer with built-in productivity solutions. The A4 monochrome laser prints up to 16,000 pages per month, at up to 47 pages per minute, with the first page appearing in as little as six-and-a-half seconds.
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Updated: 20 best mobile phones in the world today
Best mobile phone: Overview
What's the best mobile phone? Our verdict on the best smartphone/best phones - constantly updated
We've all got at least one mobile phone each, right? The trouble is, how do you decide which is the best one for you?
Well, this is where we make it easy. Because here we have our continually updated comparison of the top 20 best smartphones you can get in the UK.
The last update saw the
Samsung Galaxy S3 take the top spot most people thought it deserved... but with the
iPhone 5 now upon us, has the Korean brand held off ANOTHER onslaught from the Cupertino powerhouse? And what of the supercheap but ultra-powerful
Google Nexus 4 by LG? Does price matter over software?
But we probably shouldn't forget the Apple
iPhone 4S as a viable option, and while the
Nokia Lumia 900 used to be top dog in the Windows Phone 7 game, it's the
Nokia Lumia 920 that's flying the flag for
Windows Phone 8.
If that
still doesn't help, well, there's always our extensive
mobile phone reviews pages as well - or check out our personally crafted smartphone buyer's guide:
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And when you've decided which new phone to buy (and checked out the
best mobile phone deal), why not cash in your old one with our
phone recycling price comparison service?
Here are our rankings for the best mobile phones around, currently available in the UK.
Number 20: Sony Xperia U
20. Sony Xperia U
If you're not caught up in today's obsession with enormous display sizes, the Sony Xperia U is a great choice of smartphone.
It has all the speed, power and features of the larger Android models that cost two or three times as much - your only compromise here is seeing it all through a smaller display.
The only noticeable weaknesses here are the phone's video performance, which is terrible despite the 720p claim, and the lack of onboard storage space.
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But this phone does everything else just as well as the high-end Android flagship handsets. And the battery will last longer, too.
Quick verdict
The Sony Xperia U will do everything you want, albeit not at the full speed you may want. However, the price is right and the form is good - plus the little blinking notification light in the transparent sector pleases us.
Number 19: Huawei Ascend G300
18. Huawei Ascend G300
When you initially pull the
Huawei Ascend G300 out of its box, or out of your pocket, you'll be more than impressed at the quality, given that you only handed over 100 notes for the privilege.
A quirky skin atop Android 2.3 might not sound like much, and it's a little underpowered if truth be told, but for the price it serves the purpose of making the handset stand out a little in the Android cacaphony.
The budget market is a difficult one to crack, and the G300 has managed to put in enough tech, including a 4-inch WVGA screen, 1GHz processor and slim design to compete with the
Blackberry Curve 8520, the
Samsung Galaxy Y and the
HTC One V, all of which are more expensive.
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The budget handset has started to fall sharply in our rankings thanks to staying stuck on Gingerbread, but with the release of the Ice Cream Sandwich update now landing, check back to see if it can float back up the listings.
Quick verdict
Not every phone needs to cost thousands of pounds to use, and for those that want Android, a big screen for movies and the ability to buy another handset without breaking the bank, the Huawei Ascend G300 is the winner for us.
Number 18: BlackBerry Curve 9320
18. BlackBerry Bold 9900
The Curve 9320 is the new best BlackBerry on the block - which might not be much of a win right now, but at least it comes with a decently low price tag.
BB OS 7 might not be much of an upgrade, but it still works on a phone with a QWERTY keyboard/smaller screen combo - and you get the all important keys to tap away with.
The internet is faster (although not market leading), the camera has been improved and NFC capabilities help this phone provide a stronger weapon in the ailing brand's arsenal.
Quick verdict
If you're a BlackBerry fan, this is definitely still worth a look - but only if you want to save some cash, as BB10, set to take RIM into more powerful handset territory, is only around the corner.
Number 17: Motorola Razr Maxx
17. Motorola Razr Maxx
You're not caught in a time vortex - the Motorola Razr of old is back, but in a totally new form factor.
The Motorola Razr is one of those phones that, like the
Atrix, we instantly looked forward to when we saw it launched.
A super thin body, oodles of RAM, Kevlar casing and a top end processor are all things we want to see in a phone of this ilk, and it's good to see Moto attempting to compete with the likes of Samsung and Apple.
And now the Maxx comes in with an improved battery that's industry leading. While we're not smitten with the design, the chance to have a phone that won't die the second you play too much
New Star Soccer is worth recommending.
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Motorola needed a phone like the Razr Maxx in its arsenal, and now it has one to be proud of. It's got decent dual-core power, plus a quality screen; more importantly, it's jumped from a squat chassis to a sumptuous slimline affair that glides into the pocket.
Quick verdict
The Motorola Razr Maxx enters the market at the same time as the
Samsung Galaxy S3 and
HTC One X, which both overshadow Motorola's effort - perhaps a spec boost could have been included alongside that bigger battery.
The Motorola Razr Maxx does beat these next-generation handsets when it comes to battery life – its possible only saving grace when faced with the stiff competition.
If you're not too bothered about styling, slicker interfaces and extra features, and just want a phone that will see you through a few days, then the Motorola Razr Maxx is probably the one for you.
Number 16: Samsung Galaxy Nexus
16. Samsung Galaxy Nexus
The first 'Google phone' to come without the search giant's branding, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus is meant to be the device that preaches the power of
Ice Cream Sandwich to the awe-struck Android masses - and now it's now been updated to
Android 4.1Jelly Bean.
Of course, now we have the quad core power of the Google Nexus 4 to marvel over, complete with Android 4.2 (which is coming to the Galaxy Nexus soon) this is a phone that's not as interesting to us any more.
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The screen still looks fantastic though as it's 4.65-inches with a resolution of 720 x 1280, giving a ppi of 316. It really is super sharp. We would have expected nothing less, with Samsung's mobile displays among the best out there, but it's cracking for internet and video.
Quick verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Nexus is mostly buoyed by the presence of Jelly Bean, but the high-quality screen, slim chassis and fast processing speeds make it a top device in our eyes. It's not got the clout of the
Samsung Galaxy S3 - but it's a darn sight cheaper these days.
Number 15: Nokia Lumia 900
15. Nokia Lumia 900
Android could learn a thing from the nearly bloatware-free Windows Phone – the Nokia Lumia 900 brings a big screen and an excellent OS together.
We can't take our hands off the Lumia 900 – not since the iPhone was overhauled in 2010 have we enjoyed touching an inanimate object this much.
It's a shame the camera hardware doesn't live up to its software – there's so much more that can be done here.
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It's not as exciting as it once was, as we have the fancy
Nokia Lumia 920 on the market - plus that brings 4G and the next version of mobile software through Windows Phone 8, where the Lumia 900 will always be stuck on Windows Phone 7.8
Quick verdict
The Nokia Lumia 900 certainly isn't an
iPhone 4S or
Samsung Galaxy S2 beater - but it's the best Windows Phone device out there. If you're a fan of a simple interface with some quality add-ons, then you should definitely look at Nokia's new flagship.
Number 14: Orange San Diego
14. Orange San Diego
Orange has pedigree in own-brand handsets, with the
San Francisco offering up an excellent mobile experience, although the
San Francisco 2 did seem a little off the mark compared to its predecessor.
Thankfully Orange has managed to get back on the horse with its partnership with Intel, as the San Diego offers an impressive array of specs at its price point and challenges handsets that are £100 more expensive.
The San Diego is a serious contender for anyone looking for a decent mid-range smartphone who doesn't want to break the bank for some flagship features - although you won't get the full range of Android apps.
Quick verdict
With a £170 price tag the San Diego is also very reasonably priced, providing a well rounded smartphone experience with treats such as an 8MP camera and
NFC technology.
Number 13: iPhone 4S
13. iPhone 4S
When Apple announced the iPhone 4S, it's testament to the power of the rumour mill that people were angry it wasn't called the
iPhone 5, which is now a real device.
Predictably the iPhone 4S is no longer the iOS handset we recommend, but it's still a very worthy choice in the smartphone game thanks to some decent upgrades through
iOS 6 (although the less said about Maps, the better...).
Siri voice recognition has shown itself to be slightly more than a novelty and has been upgraded to actually become useful with the new OS, and the screen technology is still top notch..
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We were hoping for a larger display (which we now have with the iPhone 5), and things such as a lack of Bluetooth transfer, no Flash integration with the internet browser and an uninspiring contacts app still grate - but they're no match for the sheer ease of use and general operation of Apple's OS if you're talking to one of the fans.
Quick verdict
OK, so it doesn't feel different in the pocket, and the updates don't seem to be that groundbreaking - but that doesn't matter for Apple, and the amazing camera, slick
iOS 6 platform and superb display are still the things we look for.
It was one of the most expensive phones on the market but sadly hasn't dropped much in price (otherwise we would have kept it higher up the rankings) so think about whether you really want its high-end features, since the iPhone 4 is still a cheaper alternative.
Number 12: Sony Xperia S
12. Sony Xperia S
We used to love the Xperia Arc S - but we're a fickle bunch, and now Ericsson has been cast aside, we're all over the new brand like a cat on a fresh set of curtains.
The Xperia S almost has too many positive points to list, with a new HD screen, 12MP camera and dual-core processor all combining to make one of the finest smartphones of 2012.
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As you will gather from our review, the Sony Xperia S has both an amazing screen and a dual-core processor that never slows down - plus that 12MP camera is really one of the best out there.
Sony has also very kindly bundled lots of software with the Xperia S out of the box, which saves you having to dash to Google Play as soon as you turn on to grab vital apps.
Battery life is the only slight wobble (if you don't mind a plastic casing), but it will generally last a day under normal conditions, and that's a solid enough benchmark for us.
Quick verdict
There are still some niggles with the Xperia S but we think it says a lot that when deciding on the pros and cons for the device, we really struggled with the cons section.
This handset may not be the cheapest (although it still costs less than the likes of the
iPhone 4S and
Samsung Galaxy S2 when it launched) but we are really impressed with what Sony has done for its first solo foray.
That's now been improved with the announcement of the
Sony Xperia T, with faster innnards and a better screen - but that means the Xperia S will become a budget winner hopefully, so don't worry about the first Sony phone just yet.
Number 11: Motorola Razr i
11. Motorola Razr i
Motorola's done a good job with the Razr i. It's taken a line that refuses to die quietly, injected it with a little bit of pizzaz and thrown it right out there for all and sundry.
The fact that you can expand the storage by up to 64GB makes this an attractive option. And it's an easy phone to use without too much customisation to confuse Android newbies. Plus, it works well as a phone, with good signal, and provides you with a top notch, fast internet service.
And let's not forget about that screen: with the edge to edge display, it really pops and fizzes in the palm, with the Super AMOLED display impressing.
Quick verdict
Would we recommend the Motorola Razr i to friends and family? Yes, without a second's hesitation. Because not everyone wants a phone that will drop the kids off at school, bake you a cake and give you a massage in the evening.
Some want a device with little pocket imprint, with fantastic specs at a reasonable - rather than stupid - price. And that's what you're getting here. It's got a lovely small footprint and a gorgeous display, so if you're not bothered by reams of high-end specs, then you're onto a winner with the Razr i - it's only the higher price bracket that keeps it out the top ten.
Number 10: Samsung Galaxy S2
10. Samsung Galaxy S2
The king is dead - and the former number one phone in the world continues to slide down the rankings. That's not to take anything away from a cracking phone that is getting to a really low price these days, but it's nothing compared to its successor.
Make no mistake - this is still a great phone, thanks to the
Ice Cream Sandwich update, and the design has moved from cool to iconic pretty quickly. However, we're still not sure when or even if the S2 will get an update to Jelly Bean, while those below it have all been confirmed (well, apart from the iPhone 5, obviously).
What we love about the
Samsung Galaxy S II is the sheer amount of stuff that's packed in under the chassis - but more important is the way Samsung has used all that tech to create a phone that just works near-flawlessly.
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The dual-core 1.2GHz processor, the Super AMOLED plus screen and the excellent sonic performance of the media player all combine to make a real doozy of a mobile phone.
Recording in 1080p is a nice touch (given that it actually works most of the time) and the camera is more than enough to take great shots in a short space of time - although we suggest you check out the phones lower in this list for more powerful snappers.
In short, be it internet browsing, navigation, media, or social networking- the Samsung Galaxy S2 is still more than good enough for all those functions in one phone.
Quick verdict
The Samsung Galaxy S2 has sold over many millions of units worldwide - and it's showing no sign of slowing down in the popularity stakes, so it stays in the top ten for now.
It's a cracking media mobile, still next generation in web browsing thanks to slick Flash integration, a very good replacement for a pocket camcorder and, goshdarnit, it makes calls pretty well too.
The
Samsung Galaxy S II not only set a new bar for smartphones in 2011; it smashed the bar, recreated it in its own image and even managed to see off the competition of an Apple smartphone that doesn't drop signal all over the place - but now it's been usurped by a more powerful device.
Number 9: Sony Xperia T
9. Sony Xperia T
The Sony Xperia T takes over from the
Sony Xperia S as the Japanese company's new flagship device, but borrows the design found on the popular, but now aging
Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc and
Arc S.
It runs
Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and is powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, with a 4.6-inch display boasting Sony's Bravia TV technology and on the back of the handset you'll find the 13MP camera – one of this phone's best features.
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Sony has produced another impressive smartphone that offers the functionality and performance we're looking for in a top-level handset.
That being said, when compared with the earlier
Sony Xperia S, or some of the other flagship Android handsets, the difference is negligible.
Quick verdict
The Sony Xperia T is a very, very good phone. Everything about it is slick and well-executed and the performance is certainly what we expect from a £400 device.
However, the Xperia S was a very, very good phone. When a new model comes out, we look for it to improve upon the previous one and unfortunately, hand on heart; this doesn't improve on the last generation of smartphones as much as it should - so that's why it just pips the S, but doesn't challenge the leading pack in our top 20.
Number 8: Nokia Lumia 920
8. Nokia Lumia 920
What's better than a top Windows Phone 7 handset? A Windows Phone 8 one, and we've got no qualms about telling you this is the best Windows Phone out there.
Simplicity is the key here, the Lumia 920 does the basics well, from contact integration and calling, to web browsing and messaging.
The 8MP camera on the back of the Lumia 920 is one of the best we've used and for anyone looking to get a top end cameraphone you need to seriously consider this Nokia.
The 4.5-inch display is also a good'un, crisp and clear it makes watching movies, surfing the web or Facebook stalking an enjoyable experience, thanks to the PureMotion HD technology on offer.
And you can even use it with gloves on... what more could you want? You're right: holograms. But they don't exist yet.
Quick verdict
The Nokia Lumia 920 is a worthy ambassador for Windows Phone 8 and if the Finnish firm continue to build and improve on this handset, it could well make a glorious return to the mobile market.
It's not got the clout to take on the likes of the Galaxy S3 just yet, but there's not doubt in our minds that the once-great brand is slowly getting closer to the summit.
Number 7: LG Optimus 4X HD
7. LG Optimus 4X HD
If we didn't live in a world where we have the
Galaxy S3 and the
HTC One X, there is no doubt about it – the LG Optimus 4X HD would be one of the best phones out there. Its specs are fantastic.
The trouble is, LG has released this handset six months too late, which means it doesn't offer anything mind-blowing or really that alternative.
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However, it's a media powerhouse, has sleek lines and has power in spades - plus a better battery than the One X, with the same chipset.
In summary, we do recommend it – it's a cracking piece of kit. And if you can get it on a good deal, we say 'go for it', but there's no real reason to pick this over a Samsung Galaxy SIII, an HTC One X or even a
One S, with the last option impressing hugely on the design front.
Quick verdict
A fantastic phone that really joins the benchmark level set a few months ago, rather than breaking new ground. It's been usurped by the much-cheaper Google Nexus 4, so unless you're a massive fan of the user interface (which is still pretty good) you'll probably enjoy the stock Android experience more.
Number 6: HTC One S
6. HTC One S
There are few phones we play with where we think that we have the complete package and would happily give five stars. The HTC One S would have had five stars had it not been for the 16GB memory cap and non-HD screen.
The phone actually climbs a place in today's rankings, thanks to a promised upgrade to Jelly Bean and a continuing drop in price... plus the more we fondle it, the more we realise this is the best-designed phone on the planet.
We'd have even settled for 32GB in the absence of an expansion card slot. If you're a music lover, you're much better off with the
Samsung Galaxy S3.
Or check out the
HTC One X if you're after a little bit more bang for your buck... although you'll need to spend more bucks to actually get the HD screen and quad-core processor in your pocket.
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But let's not get caught up with negativity here: if you're not bothered about a massive memory (which most people aren't), you probably can't do much better now. The HTC One S is a beautiful handset blessed with beautiful capabilities and is already available at very palatable price points.
Quick verdict
HTC could have launched the One S and not bothered with the One X in many ways - it's a beautiful handset blessed with a nice skin and the latest version of Android in the shape of
Ice Cream Sandwich.
It's more of an evolution of the HTC Sensation range: slimmed down, nicer finish and far more feature-rich - and you will struggle to put it down once you've popped it in your hand.
Number 5: Samsung Galaxy Note 2
5. Samsung Galaxy Note 2
It hasn't even been a year since the original
Samsung Galaxy Note launched. Many (including us, we admit) were not convinced. Who on earth would want something so big to make their calls and surf the internet, even with a glorified stylus? Cue awkward silence.
Millions of you, it would appear. The Galaxy Note sold by the bucketload, so how do you follow that up? With something better, of course - the Samsung Galaxy Note 2.
Faster, stronger, better looking, and more functional, the Galaxy Note 2 is better connected than ever, and thanks to that increased screen size (up to an eye-bulging 5.5-inches), now takes the crown in our eyes as the perfect media player.
Samsung has achieved something special here, because it has made the Galaxy Note 2 bigger than the original, but pulls it off so that you don't notice it too much and the fact that it launches running
Android Jelly Bean and has such grunt with that quad-core processor makes this a class-leading phone.
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Quick verdict
As a phone, it's big, but once you get over that, if you can, it's great. As a PMP, it really does excel, and as a web communicator, it is almost second to none (though we can't fully get the taste of Flash absence out of our mouth).
Ultimately, there's no getting away from the fact that the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 is a niche device. But it does almost everything it sets out to do perfectly, with grace, class and maximum functionality. And if you're in the market for a larger smartphone or a small tablet, there really is no better device.
Number 4: Google Nexus 4
4. Google Nexus 4
Google and LG have worked together to bring to market a fantastic offering. We showed it to two friends who are both Apple fans. The kind of people who shower in holy water if they're exposed to Android. Both of them were smitten.
The fact of the matter is that this is a handset with world class specs – yet it's at a price you'd expect to get a budget phone for. Sure, there are a few things that could have been done better, but the positives definitely outweigh the negatives.
The Nexus 4 is beautifully designed with a stunning display and rocking the latest version of Android. It has more connectivity than a BT Telephone Exchange and even excels in the simple matter of making telephone calls.
We're not fans of the lower memory allowance, and it's not got the best screen on the market, and there will be a few that see
Android 4.2 as too stripped-down to consider it a valid phone OS choice, more a platform for the big hitters to build on.
But that doesn't mean it's not a fantastic handset - it would have competed even without the stupidly low price tag.
Quick verdict
Make no mistake – this is the best Nexus handset so far by a long shot. We love it and can't recommend it highly enough. It is seriously a contender for our best smartphone of 2012, although it's fallen just short ahead of intense competition. If you're due a new phone, you should check the Google Nexus 4 out without delay.
Number 3: iPhone 5
3. iPhone 5
Did you see this one coming? The iPhone 5 in at third place in our rankings? Some thought higher, some thought lower - it depends on your level of Apple bias.
Never has a company polarised opinion in the smartphone world like Apple - and with the iPhone 5, so many are quick to decry it while others know it to be the smartphone they've been waiting for.
And let's make no bones about it: this is a stunning phone, with a gorgeous two-tone finish, a superbly high-res screen that's been extended to four inches and an efficient yet powerful core.
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The iOS 6 update is a good one, and while some feel it to be ageing slightly, many see it as doing exactly what they want... and given Apple has built it smartphone reputation on simplicity, this makes sense.
However, it's not all cookies and cream for Apple, as it's ditched the Google Maps app for something that's not as slick or well-stocked in its own Maps app.
Sure, you've got turn by turn directions, but given some places are listed incorrectly or missing, combined with some of the laughable 3D modelling in the flyover mode, it's not Apple's finest hour.
Plus the iPhone 5 is very expensive... we're not sure how such sky high prices can be charged when equivalent smartphones are available on the market.
Quick verdict
Let's not beat around the bush here: the iPhone 5 is one of the best smartphones in the world thanks to a great package of technology, design and UI intuition.
iOS definitely needs an update, and we'll always hope for a price decrease soon... and if it wasn't for that and the Maps issue, the iPhone 5 might have been higher in our rankings.
Number 2: HTC One X+
2. HTC One X+
The HTC One X was an odd handset - not in the design (lovely) or the features (top-end) - but that it's seen as a 'renaissance' phone for the firm, despite its success in such a short time.
And now it's taken that design, thrown out the bits that don't work and had another go... while adding a '+' on the end to show it's all new and shiny.
It's addressed storage concerns and improved web browser efficiency and the always reliable HTC keyboard – although the battery is still a bit of a sore point.
The design may not be any different, but we like that as the One X+ was already a handsome looking handset, with the unibody design exuding a premium air of superiority which can only really be toppled by the
iPhone 5.
The beefed up processor along with the
Android 4.1 and Sense 4+ UI updates makes the One X+ an even slicker, smoother and more powerful customer than its older brother.
The already excellent HTC keyboard has once again been given further improvements making it even better and for the first time we didn't feel the need to download an alternative from
Google Play – kudos HTC - and LOOK! It's now red and black with 64GB of storage.
Quick verdict
There are so many things to love about the One X+ and it really is a great smartphone. We urge you to give it a whirl in store, and while it may not have the fancy tricks of the
Galaxy S3, or the cult following of the iPhone 5, it's happily rubbing shoulders with the big boys.
It still didn't have enough to impress us enough to push it ahead of the S3, namely the fact battery life is still not improved to an acceptable level in our eyes, but the gap between them is so close that you won't be sad with either handset.
Number 1: Samsung Galaxy S3
1. Samsung Galaxy S3
Make no mistake: the Samsung Galaxy S3 is the best smartphone on the market. It's got every kind of feature we could ask for and more, and raises the bar once again in terms of what consumers should be expecting in terms of battery life, processor speed and media management.
Would we recommend you buy one? Yes, without hesitation. If you're torn between this and an
HTC One X+, it's a very difficult one to call – the design of the the One X+ is better and the overall feel of the Sense 4+ user interface will appeal. But in terms of pure usability and power, we really like what Samsung has put on the table.
And we're sure some of you are wondering how the Samsung Galaxy S3 bests the iPhone 5 - well, for starters, Google Maps works properly. And it's nearly £130 cheaper. And it has a bigger screen, which we think is winning.
That's not the only reason the Samsung Galaxy S3 is at the top of our best phone rankings. Smart Stay, Super AMOLED HD screen, up to 128GB storage, Music Hub, removable battery, blisteringly quick camera... we're getting tired listing all the great things it does.
The design isn't as impressive as when we first laid eyes on the S2, but to us that's the only big issue we can find - and that's enough to recommend the Galaxy S3 without question.
Quick verdict
If you waited feverishly for the Samsung Galaxy S3, you won't be disappointed. It's fast, it's sleek and it packs the latest technology that will get your pulse racing.
Samsung faced an almost impossible task in trying to create a worthy sequel to the Galaxy S2, but the Galaxy S3 should definitely be one of, if not
the phone you should consider on your next trip to your local handset emporium.
You might also like...
If a phone isn't in the top 20 best phones in the world list, that doesn't mean it's not worth giving two hoots about.
Here's a few handsets you might want to think about should none of the above tickle your fancy... although you're clearly VERY hard to please:
HTC Desire C
The HTC Desire C is better than the handsets it's come in to replace, but not by much.
The intuitive interface, attractive design and competitive price tag means the Desire C certainly has the opportunity to do well at the low end of the market – especially against the likes of the
Samsung Galaxy Y and
LG Optimus L3.
But for those who need a little more bang for their buck, you might want to see what the
Ascend G300 or
BlackBerry Curve 9320 have to offer.
HTC Desire C review
Samsung Galaxy Ace 2
A warning signal to its handset competitors, Samsung's reign of power is quickly moving away from the one-off flagship Galaxy S devices, with the Ace 2 firmly rooting itself as a mid-market challenger with a near budget price point that will appeal to many.
Not the most media savvy of devices on the market, the Ace 2 makes up for small niggles and limited features by mastering what it offers. Exceeding expectation on multiple fronts, the second-generation would be a wise buy for any first time or returning smartphone owner.
Samsung Galaxy Ace 2 review
HTC Explorer
In true budget handset fashion, the compact HTC Explorer sees a selection of strong price-point pushing features depleted by an equally numerous selection of bugs and niggles that detract from the good points.
Appeasing the wallet at less than £100/$140 on a PAYG basis, there is only so much that can be forgiven with a low price, and the HTC Explorer repeatedly plays fast and loose with this boundary, only just managing to come out with an overall positive appeal.
HTC Explorer review
BlackBerry Curve 9320
What we like about the BlackBerry Curve 9320 is that it's honest. It's not trying to be better than it is and is quite happy to portray itself as a budget smartphone with a few little extras.
And for the people it's aimed at - those who want a phone that makes calls, sends texts/emails and has a good battery - it comes up trumps. Web browsers and cameras are nice to have, but won't swing a sale here. So on that basis, it gets a thumbs up.
The only problem we had when it came out was value for money, since it was fairly expensive for what it offered. The BlackBerry Curve 9320 has now come down to a much more reasonable price of around £99/$215.
BlackBerry Curve 9320 review
New mobile phones 2012 - what's coming up?
Of course, there's always a chance you don't give two hoots about the phones we've listed here, and want to know what shining lights are set to glimmer into focus in 2012.
With
MWC 2012 well out of the way, we've got a pretty clear picture of how the mobile landscape is shaping up, and with many of you months away from your contract upgrade, here's a selection of new phones to whet your appetite:
Nokia Lumia 820
Playing second fiddle to the Lumia 920, the Nokia Lumia 820 comes with some alternative design features to its big brother, moving away from the hard corners of the
Lumia 800/
900 and offering a more rounded experience.
The Lumia 820 will live or die by its price; get this under £200 and there could be a seriously good phone here, but we can't help feeling like the Nokia Lumia 820 should feel a little more premium.
The Nokia Lumia 820 release date is set for early November.
Read our hands on:
Nokia Lumia 820 review
HTC Windows Phone 8S
Another WP8 device is the HTC Windows Phone 8S, which will arrive alongside the larger, more powerful 8X.
Design wise we reckon the Taiwanese firm is on to a winner with the HTC Windows Phone 8S, with it's smooth colourful chassis and as long as Windows Phone 8 doesn't turn out to be awful, this should be a really decent handset.
The Windows Phone 8S release date is set for early November.
Read our hands on:
HTC Windows Phone 8S review
Sony Xperia J
Sony is pitching the Xperia J as a smartphone which offers "a stand-out screen size for consumers looking to combine great style with affordability".
The Xperia J is certainly a good looking handset, but we can't help but feel it's going to be outclassed by the Orange San Diego in the price bracket we expect Sony to put it in.
The Sony Xperia J release date is currently unconfirmed, but we've been told it will arrive during the final quarter of 2012.
Read our hands on:
Sony Xperia J review
Samsung Ativ S
For anyone wondering what Samsung's answer to the
Windows Phone 8 question will be, we've got the answer. It's the Samsung Ativ S, an aluminum beauty with a 1.5GHz processor that's ready to rock with Microsoft's new smartphone OS.
We like the eye catching and grippy construction of HTC's 8X and 8S, and the colorful, swappable backplates of the Nokia
Lumia 820, but the Ativ S really looks great. It's plenty thin and you can't argue with its specs.
Read ours hands on:
Samsung Ativ S review
Asus Padfone 2
Is it a phone? Is it tablet? Is it a netbook? No, it's all three, and its got a stylus! The original
Asus Padfone passed us by here in the UK, but we're told the Padfone 2 will make it to our fair shores early next year.
Asus is covering every base imaginable with the Padfone in the hope to gain a big win in three markets at the same time. Will it pay off? Who knows, but it's certainly an interesting concept.
Read more: hands on
Asus Padfone 2 review
Read More ...
Little brother escapes: get the Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini today
The
Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini has finally turned up at stores and the handset is being shipped from today.
Announced at the beginning of October, the Galaxy S3 Mini brings the styling of its older, larger brother the
Galaxy S3, but don't expect to find the same power and performace.
Online retailer
Unlocked-Mobiles has confirmed it is now shipping the Galaxy S3 Mini, which can be yours for the rather princely sum of £294.98 SIM-free, while elsewhere on contract you can pick it up free starting at £25 per month.
Sure you want this?
Why do we reckon the Galaxy S3 Mini price is a little on the steep side? Well thanks to Google and LG, there's a more powerful alternative on the market.
That handset is the
Google Nexus 4 – which is £55 less, although you'll have to wait until November 13 to get your grubby little mitts on it.
If you're still interested the Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini sports a 4-inch Super AMOLED display, 1GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 5MP rear camera,
NFC and comes running
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.
On paper it doesn't sound like a bad phone, but it's got the almost impossible task of trying to match the excellent Nexus 4.
You will be able to find out how well it does in our Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini review, which we'll have up soon.
Read More ...
Review: Asus VivoBook S200
Asus VivoBook S200E review
For a long time it was hard to get excited about laptops. They all had the same features, they all ran the same software and they all looked exactly the same as the ones we all had five years previously.
But the arrival of
Windows 8 has changed all that, and no device showcases this fact better than the Asus VivoBook S200.
It's a fantastic little 11.6-inch touchscreen laptop that offers pretty much everything you could want from a portable device, and what's more, it costs a thoroughly reasonable £449.99.
The brain of this laptop comes in the form of an Intel Core i3-3217U CPU, which means it provides more than enough grunt to power Windows 8 through any day-to-day tasks while keeping power consumption to an absolute minimum.
You don't get any fancy graphics – if playing 3D games is on your to-do list, look elsewhere – but again, the integrated Intel HM70 EXPRESS chip is good enough to keep everything on the 11.6-inch screen running creamy smooth without pulling too much juice out of the battery.
The Li-Polymer 38 WH battery itself consists of two cells and is good for two weeks on standby and a maximum of five hours' constant use.
In our test, it lasted fractionally over three hours when looping video, which makes it about average for a device of this size. A bigger battery would only add to the weight, which would negate the main benefit of going for a device this size – portability.
As it is, it already weighs in at a distinctly normal 1.3Kg which we think is about right if a little weighty.
We're talking about premium materials here too, none of that faux-metal plastic rubbish. The S200 is graced by a lovely brushed-metal finish with aluminium base – you can thank Apple for pushing industry standards this high.
The screen is standard TN fare, so if you're looking for an IPS panel you're going to have to spend a bit more money. But it's decent enough, and for most people we imagine it would be absolutely adequate.
Viewing angles are what always suffer from this display technology but actually this screen does pretty well. Colours are accurate enough and under normal circumstances you shouldn't be bothered by its limitations.
On the touch side of things, it can handle 10 inputs at once, which puts it up there with the best and it works flawlessly in this regard.
Touch inputs are registered without delay - there's no lag when exploring Windows 8 or swiping between menus. It's a joy to use, a real computing pleasure.
Of course, while a machine of this size and spec could never be described as a media machine, the fact that it's so portable means you may wish to load it up with music and movies. If that's you, you'll be pleased to find that the supplied 500GB internal hard drive should be more than enough for all your programs and content.
There's no SSD on this model; it's not an ultrabook after all, and so the SSD option is reserved for the much more expensive Core i7 version, which also comes with a full HD IPS display and a price tag more than three times as high. Gulp.
Sound is provided by Asus' SonicMaster brand which is really just a fancy way of saying, "It's got a sound card and some speakers".
The speakers really aren't that bad, either. Many laptops like this can sound quite nasty, but the S200 does a pretty good job of putting out sound that at least sounds nicely rounded instead of shrill and piercing.
Who needs Beats tech, eh?
Ports
All your standard inputs and outputs are ready and waiting for you here, with full HDMI socket included, as well as 2 USB 2.0 ports, 1 USB 3.0 port, VGA-out, SD card reader and Ethernet.
The only thing you might find missing is an optical disk drive but if you want one of those you're going to need to choose a different class of device.
To finish off the specs, you've also got Wireless N for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 5MP front-facing camera for video chats and 4GB RAM which is practically enough memory to run
Windows 8 twice.
The keyboard is also faultless.
We're writing this review on it now and simply can't find anything wrong with it at all, which is often not the case with laptops of this size and price.
And we've been careful not to use the word cheap there, because, honestly, the only thing cheap about this thing is the price.
Even the trackpad is nice and responsive, and responds well to Windows 8 touch gestures.
So there you have it. The Asus VivoBook S200 is a brilliant little laptop which offers supreme good looks, slick performance and excellent portability, and all for a highly agreeable price.
Read More ...
Why greening your business makes sense
Creating a green and environmentally friendly business might not save your bottom-line directly, but turning your business green might help your business grow.
Years ago – quite a lot of years in fact – someone thought computerisation would allow people to work in a paperless office. There would be no need for any of this clutter and we'd all end up a lot greener. Let's cut to the chase: this was baloney from the beginning, computers have if anything increased the amount of paperwork we all face and it's probably worse because people think they don't have to file any more.
By all means cut down on printing, it's a good idea – but don't expect to save a lot. Some people find this surprising. If you use less paper, it will cost you less. If you print less then the ink cartridges will need replacing less frequently too. Add the time and trouble spent ordering the replacements, probably online, and the time your staff spend reloading them and you'll realize you can save…pennies, frankly. Unless you're a huge corporation spending thousands on print, this isn't going to be an area of massive savings.
However, it's still worth doing. This is because there are a number of customers, corporates and in particular the public sector, who now insist on finding out a bit more about their suppliers.
On the one hand the Government is encouraging them to use a wide range of business suppliers to encourage the private sector to grow; on the other, the public sector are being forced to put up barriers because of green legislation – and if a small organisation knows the system these are barriers of which they can take advantage.
The idea started off because the UK came into line with Europe's Green Public Procurement initiative. This explicitly said, in 2008 when it came out, that by 2010 50% of all public procurement tenders should be green – and it's gone up since.
You will need a statement of your green intent
If your business intends to do any substantial amount of work in the public sector, or if it would benefit from selling to those organisations, you will need some sort of statement on where you are with environmental policies.
So, what do you need to know – what are they going to ask your business?
A lot of this is going to depend on the sector you're in, and Defra has published guidance on what you need to do. Mostly it involves cutting down the amount of raw materials you use, redesigning the packaging, rethinking the amount of power you use and how. It really will be tailored – and yes, recycling bins for your paperwork is certainly among the things you should do.
Think about manufacturing processes, travel and cutting down on it (which is where you can actually save quite a bit) and office processes. Lighting can use a lot of power when people aren't in the office – one business a few years ago discovered it could save a lot of cash by reminding the cleaner to switch the lights off when he'd finished in an evening.
The Defra guidelines on being green
The Carbon Trust points out that you can gain competitive advantage by publicizing your green credentials once they're established. Defra has published guidelines (
Quick guide to making an environmental claim) on how to avoid looking as though you're green-washing your old business, aimed at people who are making environmental claims about their business, considering how to market themselves on this or who receives queries from customers on the green-ness of their business.
There is also an accreditation for which you can apply, the
Environment Management Systems (EMS) accreditation. It has both BS and ISO numbers attached and will add credibility:
The carbon trust offers a few specific tips to people looking to sell on their green credentials (and there's no cynicism, the Trust thinks it's a good idea). Develop an elevator pitch in which you can summarise your ecological credentials in under a minute, train staff in it and use it, the organization says. Put about three PowerPoint slides on the subject into every presentation you make on behalf of your business.
Even consider putting something on your invoices – a statement about how much carbon you've saved, perhaps. It will all reinforce the image of a company that's doing something.
Shout loud about being green
Green operations, whether through a solid recycling scheme or quizzing your own suppliers, are going to grow. Legally they're going to have to, some organisations are going to have to ask about ecological credentials, others will do to impress their clients in turn.
Take the Lowry Hotel in Manchester; according to research from the Carbon Trust, it reduced its carbon emissions by 11% - then shouted about it a bit and found business increased as a result. The Trust also found that 65% of consumers think it's important to buy from someone who is considering their environmental impact.
The only question for a business, realistically, is whether you're in or out. And with the economy as it is, slamming as few doors as possible in your own face has to be a good idea.
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Get your wallet ready: iPad mini LTE release date is days away
Anyone with the patience, and the spare cash, to hold out for a 3G/4G enabled
iPad mini should be rewarded in the coming days.
Apparently Apple has started sending emails to customers who pre-ordered the iPad mini LTE, notifying them that the pint-sized tablet will start shipping in five days.
The iPad mini is the latest tablet offering from the Cupertino-based firm, sporting a 7.9-inch display, dual-core A5 processor, 5MP rear camera, 1.2MP front snapper and the latest Apple operating system,
iOS 6.
Mid-November
Apple is yet to release an official shipping date for the cellular iPad mini, with the only hint from the company so far being the middle of November.
Even the Apple website is still saying stock will arrive in two weeks time, so we're not taking this five day news as gospel until the fruity firm confirms it.
While the iPad mini is considerably cheaper than its 9.7-inch big brother, the
iPad 4, there's still quite a gulf between it and the rest of the budget tablet competition – most notably the
Amazon Kindle Fire HD and
Google Nexus 7.
If you fancy a 4G LTE connected iPad mini be prepared to shell out £369 ($459/AU$509) for the 16GB version, while the top model will set you back an eye-watering £529 ($US659/$AU729).
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Review: Samsung Series 3 Chromebook
Introduction
This is technically the fifth iteration of the
Google Chromebook – so long as you count Google's own CR-48 prototype.
Despite being the fifth Chromebook, the snappily-named Series 3 XE303C12 shouldn't be confused with the previous model, the Samsung
Series 5 XE550C22 or even the second Chromebook, the Samsung Series 5 XE500C21.
If you know about
Chrome OS already, you'll know that this laptop isn't like mainstream Windows laptops or even machines such as the
Apple MacBook Air or the new 13-inch
MacBook Pro with Retina Display.
It doesn't run a conventional operating system such as
Windows 8,
Mac OS X Mountain Lion or even a straight Linux distro such as
Ubuntu.
Instead, it is essentially a computer that does one thing: run a web browser.
In this case, of course, the web browser in question is Google Chrome.
Deciding whether or not the new Chromebook is right for you is actually really easy. The first thing you have to know is that it's cheap. Really cheap.
At a launch price of £229/USD$330/AU$319, it undercuts most conventional laptops, and is cheaper even than the new
iPad mini – though it's more expensive than the low-end Android tablets such as the
Google Nexus 7 and
Amazon Kindle Fire HD.
That's only part of the decision, however.
The other – indeed, main – thing you have to consider is whether you can live with a laptop that only runs everything in a browser, and therefore, with some caveats, depends on being connected to the web at all times over Wi-Fi.
It's not hard to decide if this is something you can live with; take a moment, close your eyes, and think whether what you mostly do on a computer is done through a browser – or could be.
Because while you can install apps from the
Chrome Web Store they're not really applications or programs as most of us would recognise them.
In fact, they're little more than links that sit in your launcher and point to URLs on the web. (Actually, it's a little more complex than that; web apps can, if their developers implement it, add extra features such as using local storage on your Chromebook, rather than solely depending on storage on the servers of the companies whose services you're using.)
Regardless of the technical caveats, however, it remains true that you can't install, say,
Microsoft Office or
Adobe Photoshop Elements on a Chromebook. That's not what the Chromebook is about.
It's a slim, light, cheap, long-lasting little laptop that, partly because really the only thing it does is run a web browser and isn't based on Windows, is very secure, and if you live your life in web apps such as facebook.com and Google Docs (or think you could), or especially if you are already immersed in the Google ecosystem of Docs, Gmail, Calendars and more, it's worth considering.
Specifications
While previous Chromebooks have been powered by various flavours of Intel chips (from a 1.66 GHz single-core Intel Atom N455 in the original to a 1.3GHz dual-core Intel Celeron 867 in the model this latest Chromebook supersedes), this one has an ARM processor – specifically, the 1.7GHz dual-core Samsung Exynos 5 Dual.
That it has an ARM processor at all is notable in itself, but it's especially interesting that this is a Cortex-A15 core, 40% faster than the Cortex-A9 core (all other things being equal); the A9 is a chip that takes various forms, notably the Tegra 3 series and A5 and A5X systems-on-a-chip that power the Apple
iPad 3 and Apple
iPhone 4S.
What all this translates to in real life is that the new Chromebook really does feel nippy – something we'll cover more in the next section – and is totally silent when you're using it.
Of course, part of the reason for the smooth performance is that the Chromebook only has SSD rather than a slower, mechanical hard disk.
But don't get too excited; there's only 16GB of space here, and it's really only for cacheing stuff.
You could expand that storage by connecting a hard disk (there's a USB 3.0 as well as the more normal USB 2.0 port on the back), but it's worth remembering that in order to be able to open files, you need a compatible app; while the built-in player will happily display H.264 MP4s, for example, most other videos, such as .divx and .mkv files, won't play without being uploaded to a transcoding service.
There's only 2GB of RAM in the new Chromebook, but in general usage, when you're writing documents, browsing the web and so on, it never feels underpowered.
Sure, 2GB of RAM would be practically insufficient in a traditional Windows or Mac laptop, where you could be running a dozen or more apps at the same time, but here, presumably in part because it's only running a single app, Chrome, it seems sufficient.
You get an HDMI port for connecting to an external monitor, an SD card slot, a combined headphone/mic port and a basic webcam.
Essentially, you get pretty much all the I/O most people will need, and though you can't install drivers in the traditional sense, lots of USB peripherals will work at a basic level just by plugging them in. (Printing is a little odd; you either have to connect over the web to a Google Cloud Print-enabled printer, or you have to go via the Cloud Print system on a middle-man computer with the Chrome browser installed which has a printer connected to it somehow.)
Unsurprisingly, there's no optical drive.
The screen size and resolution – 11.6-inches, 1366x768 pixels – are perfectly good, though the quality is distinctly lacklustre.
The Chromebook, though, does well in portability and reasonably in longevity.
At only a little over a kilogram, it's eminently toteable (and 400g lighter than its predecessor, which makes a difference), and the battery usually lasts somewhere a little over six hours – not enough to make it through most people's working day, but certainly enough that you don't have a constant background anxiety about being away from the mains.
One fairly major caveat, though: while there appears to be a slot for a SIM card in the back, it's bunged with a rubber gromit, and while Google (via Amazon) offers the option to pre-order a 3G model in the States ($330 rather than $249 for the Wi-Fi-only model), it's not currently available in the UK.
It might seem stupid to make a computer that essentially wants to be connected to the internet at all times and that doesn't have a SIM slot to allow mobile broadband, but, as we'll see in the next section, it's not quite the handicap that it might seem.
Performance
The important point here is that for most of what you'll probably be doing on a Chromebook – browsing, emailing, writing, watching YouTube and the like – the performance is so good as to be unremarkable.
Even though we find it interesting that this model proves you don't need the grunt of an Intel processor (albeit a low-power one), few people who buy one should know or care.
Essentially, the only times you notice delays are when it's pulling information from the internet; on one hand, this issue is exacerbated by the fact that the Chromebook's whole schtick is 'pulling information from the internet', but on the other, even the meatiest Core i7 monster would have basically the same delays if you were using a suite of online services.
You do begin to notice delays in the auto-saving to the cloud when you're working on big documents, but it's not unacceptable, and it doesn't slow you down when working.
It's not perfect, though.
While it had no problems playing standard-definition streaming video from BBC iPlayer, say, once we tried HD streams, it struggled.
It always gave it a damn good try, and always made it through to the end, but there was sporadic flickering and slight audio glitches. It was almost there, but not enough.
At least now we do have the option of watching films and TV shows online through services such as Netflix.
Gaming, of course, is poor, even when those games are simple HTML5 ones such as
Angry Birds and
Bejeweled; there just isn't the horsepower here to behave well.
Stability was curious. Most of the time, it proved to be rock solid, but occasionally – and when doing apparently innocuous things such as trying to watch a live iPlayer stream or plugging in an external monitor – it would hard reboot with no warning.
It wasn't disastrous, though, especially if you're using Google's web apps such as Docs or Gmail; changes are continuously saved to the cloud or locally if you have enabled Offline Mode, and as soon as the Chromebook has rebooted (something that only takes 10 seconds), it can restore your open tabs.
We had a few crashes but lost no work, which makes it an odd thing to judge; ultimately, of course, any crashes are bad.
That offline mode is important, especially since this is a model that only has Wi-Fi; it's why you can keep using the Chromebook in a cafe, say, without having a connection to the internet.
Not all web apps have it, but Gmail, documents, Google Calendar and a few others do; see the list that Google maintains
here.
You'd be forgiven for being suspicious of how well and reliably this offline mode works, but in truth, it has proven to be both since it was formally launched a year ago; in the process of writing this review, for example, we switched from being connected to being away from Wi-Fi frequently, and we had zero problems. To steal a phrase from Apple, it just works.
Again, though, we have to temper our enthusiasm.
There are some limitations and problems, and not just those that come from the whole idea of Chrome OS. For one thing, we tried a few different displays plugged into the HDMI port, but some weren't recognised, and some had trouble finding a good resolution.
And while we appreciate that this is a cheap laptop, it's nevertheless true that you can see and feel where costs have been cut in the manufacture: that ugly hump of a screen hinge; the flex in the display; the use of silver plastic which, no matter how you squint, doesn't quite convince you that you're using a MacBook Air; the basic black power brick with a fiddly little connector; the screen which is terribly washed out, has poor viewing angles, and which looks like it has a layer of sugar sandwiched between the pixels and the outer surface – some will like that it's reflection-suppressing matt, at least.
And then there's the fact that, on ours at least, the foot at the left of the wrist rest hovers a fraction of a millimeter above the table, producing an infinitesimally irritating little 'clunk' if you tap it.
The keyboard at least is good. It's a little too flat and unresponsive to be called 'superb', but it's certainly eminently usable for long periods at a stretch – and we also like that there are dedicated keys for page forward/back, refresh, window toggle and more.
We occasionally hit the power key at the top right, but it cleverly gives you a tiny hint, by bouncing the window, that you need to hold the power button down to shut down the system.
There's also, controversially, no caps lock key. Instead, there's a universal search button in its place, which pops up the list of installed 'apps' and lets you perform searches online without first opening a tab in Chrome.
It took a while for us to train our muscle memory to remember to use it, but it proved a boon – and at least without caps lock, YouTube comments should be a bit more civil.
(The boring real answer is: you can reassign it as caps lock in Settings, just like you can enable/disable tap-to-click and reverse trackpad scrolling direction.)
Verdict
We've always liked the promise of the Chromebook idea.
Traditional computer users will sneer at it, despite its low price. They'll use phrases like 'full-fat operating system', 'no local storage', 'just an ARM processor'. They'll ask what use it is when it's not connected to the internet.
They miss the point.
Google say this is a computer 'for everyone' in big blue letters on the Chromebook homepage. This is hubris. It's not the computer for everyone, not by a long shot.
However, it is a very good little machine that should appeal to a few distinct groups.
First, if you're on a budget, here's a brand new computer for £229.
Second, if you already heavily use Google's online services (including if you use Google Apps to manage your business's domains, email and so on), signing into your Chromebook will feel like home, instantly.
Third, if most of your life is done through a web browser anyway, and there's nothing stopping you doing the rest of it online too, then you could argue that paying even £399 for a cheap Windows laptop that has more storage, more power and can run normal apps is a waste of money.
And perhaps more importantly, if you think you could be the sort of person who could do all their computing using web apps, you could well benefit from the good battery life, silent operation, light weight and portability, simplicity and implicit security of the Chromebook, not to mention its price.
We liked
It always takes a few days for you to really 'get' the Chromebook – though that period is shorter if you're a card-carrying Google aficionado who uses Gmail, Docs, Calendar and so on all the time anyway.
But once you get it, it gets under your skin. The simplicity and security of it – a nice compromise between the one-app-at-a-time mode of the iPad, say, and the potential complexity of a traditional computer – is refreshing and welcome.
It's also cheap, light, easy to use, silent, reasonably well built, innovative and, broadly, a pleasure to use.
We disliked
Though the offline mode supported by some apps mitigates against the problem, we would nevertheless have preferred a model that had 3G as well as Wi-Fi; the Chromebook needs to access the internet in order to be able to do meaningful work, and even if you're in range of Wi-Fi most of the time, or carry a smartphone to which you can tether, it could still prove frustrating.
The sporadic crashes irked, and the build quality issues niggled – that grainy, washed-out screen being the worst offender.
What's more, media playback is sketchy, and while it would technically be possible to edit video using YouTube, we'd strongly counsel against it.
This is a laptop for browsing, writing, Facebooking and the like, and if you buy it without carefully thinking through what you use a computer for and deciding that one that only runs a web browser would suffice, you could be in for nasty surprises; even if there's just one tiny app that you use on a traditional computer that can't be comfortably replicated online, never mind if you rely on something like Adobe InDesign or want to play Medal of Honor, the Chromebook's not for you.
There are no niceties such as a back-lit keyboard or Apple's clever MagSafe connector.
Final verdict
Traditionally, we'd have said that a Chromebook isn't good enough to be your primary computer, and in too crowded a market with smartphones and even tablets, to consider as a second computer.
Things change, though. It's not the technologies that change – broadband speeds and processor power haven't changed all that much since the Chromebook was announced late in 2010 – but what is beginning to change are our habits and priorities.
Where five years ago lots of people would have preferred desktop email clients to webmail, for example, these days millions of us access Gmail in browsers without giving it a second thought.
With that in mind, we think we might just be at a tipping point for the Chromebook concept.
This latest model is good, and for lots of people would be perfectly sufficient as a primary computer.
It's a great cheap machine for students (so long as your campus has Wi-Fi), and not in a patronising way; younger folks are more likely to be happy using web apps rather than traditional programs anyway.
And actually, it could be a useful second machine, especially if your primary computer is a desktop tower or all-in-one, or even just a bulky, heavy laptop. It's a good chuck-it-in-a-bag-and-head-to-Starbucks-to-get-some-work-done machine.
It is, ultimately, good at doing the thing it's designed to do. All you have to do is decide if that thing is right for you.
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EE admits cheaper 4G deals delay
EE, the UK's first
4G network has confirmed that it will be delaying its SIM-only plans "by a few weeks".
The network
tweeted the news earlier today, with the message on the social networking site reading: "Sorry folks – there's been a date change for our SIM-only plans.
"We expect to bring them in the next 2 weeks. Stay tuned for the new date."
We contacted EE to find out how the delay came about, with the network citing overrunning testing for the longer wait time.
Superfast, but you'll have to wait
An EE spokesperson told TechRadar: "The launch of SIM only plans (due Nov 9) will be delayed by a few days as a result of our comprehensive testing process over-running slightly.
"We know many customers are anticipating these plans and apologise for this short hold up. However they will be reassured that we are determined to offer the very best service possible."
EE hasn't fully announced the pricing structure for its SIM-only plans, but we do know that they will all have unlimited calls and texts, with the cheapest costing you £21 per month.
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Review: Altigen iFusion AP300 SmartStation
The Altigen iFusion AP300 SmartStation is intended to turn your iPhone into a fully functioning desktop phone that looks stylish and fun.
The first thing you notice about the SmartStation is its size. It's actually quite large 200x224x56mm, so if you're working on a cramped desk then it may not be the best solution for you. Additionally the bright white plastic casing - there's a black version available - seems to make the SmartStation look twice as big as it actually is, and it dwarfs the iPhone when it's seated on the unit.
But lets' ignore the styling issues and get down to the nitty-gritty.
At the back of the device, hidden under a neat white removable panel are sockets for; the power supply (it powers the SmartStation and will recharge your iPhone), the handset connection, an 3.5mm audio out port to connect external speakers, and a micro USB for docking to a PC or Mac.
On the front there are five control buttons, two to adjust the volume, a speaker button to switch to hands-free mode, a microphone mute button, and a Bluetooth connection button.
Setting up is simple. Just plug in the power and then pair the phone and the device. To pair, switch on Bluetooth on the iPhone, press the Bluetooth button on the SmartStation and when the device appears on the iPhones' list of Bluetooth devices, select pairing and a second later it's paired and working.
Clear handset sound
The external handset was well designed and felt comfortable in the hand and even when grasped under the chin - the handset is a must for those long calls. The handset sound quality was clear and seemed to be as good as, and probably a little louder than the iPhone.
Once paired the iPhone and SmartStation work together. So when a call comes in the iPhone and the SmartStation both ring - the iPhone doesn't need to be on the dock for the SmartStation to ring just near enough for Bluetooth to connect. When a call comes in you have two options, you can choose to answer the call by touching the iPhone and the audio goes directly to the units' speaker, or you pick up the handset in which case it goes directly to the handset.
Sound quality on hands-free mode was good, and at a pinch the SmartStation could be used as a replacement for a conference system. However the audio quality when playing from your iTunes library was very tinny, if you want to play music then a set of external speakers would be recommended.
A nice touch was the auto mute for the external speakers on incoming calls, as the last thing you want' is to be listening to music and then to broadcast your incoming call to the rest of the office.
Once a call has been accepted it's possible to switch a call between the iPhone and the device, although it's not that straightforward to do. If the iPhone is docked, you need to remove it from the cradle, tap the iPhone
audio source button and then select
iPhone. To switch to the SmartStation while the IPhone is undocked, you need to tap the IPhone
audio source button and select
iFusion. You can then dock the phone or leave it undocked.
As well as just taking and making calls with the standard iPhone Phone app the iFusion will also work with Skype and FaceTime and most of the other major internet call services and is compatible with the iPhone 3G, 3GS, 4, and 4S.
Verdict
The SmartStation worked well, and did everything that was expected of it. The only minor nags were the internal speaker quality when playing music from your phone, and the Bluetooth connection LED is quite bright and can be quite distracting.
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Nokia Lumia 830 leaks - let's be honest, it's just a Chinese variant
The Nokia Lumia 830 has appeared in leaked pictures online, but reports it'll be a budget WIndows Phone 8 handset are rather unlikely.
Images appeared on Chinese website WPDang showing the Lumia 830 in five different hues, but precious little information accompanied them (and WPDang has a hit and miss reputation with leaks).
Some have suggested the Lumia 830 could be the
Windows Phone 8 successor to the
Nokia Lumia 710, however that seems pretty unlikely – our money is on a region specific version of the 820.
The evidence? Nokia has already said it's naming process would be more transparent: lower numbers at the start would mean cheaper handsets, so beginning with an '8' wouldn't make it any lower-priced than the current 820.
Is that an HTC?
If the handsets in the photos are Lumia 830, then it looks like Nokia will be moving slightly away from the design is used for the
Lumia 820, as it looks more like the
HTC 8X for the Chinese market.
There hasn't been any word from Nokia about its future Windows Phone 8 devices, but we can be pretty sure more models will be entering the market early next year.
TechRadar will be in attendance at CES and MWC in the first couple of months of 2013 to bring you all the latest mobile news live as it happens.
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Review: Sapphire Pure Platinum A85XT
Our first taste of AMD's new Trinity platform came in the shape of the
Asus F2A85-V Pro. Sapphire must hope we're sticking to the playground rule of metrics though, making this second one the best, and whatever ASRock board is sitting in the wings the one with the hairy chest.
There are the standard four DIMM slots supporting DDR3 up to 1,600MHz at standard settings and faster speeds via overclocking, five PCIe slots of varying speeds, four display outputs, seven SATA 6Gbps ports, a smattering of USB 3.0 ports and a dual BIOS setup, which is accessible via a two-way switch on the board.
Also sitting between the two PCIe 2.0 slots is a mini PCIe slot, which can be used to house an mSATA SSD drive. However, while it's fine with a single graphics card in place, with a second card in the lower slot it may be a bit tight.
Four play
The Trinity platform supports up to four HD displays, so it's no surprise to find all four port types on the rear I/O panel. Triple view is supported by using the VGA and DVI ports with either HDMI or DisplayPort.
There's also that pair of PCIe 2.0 slots. The primary slot runs at full x16 speed with a single card installed; however dropping a second card into the other slot in a CrossFire setup drops the speed of both slots down to x8 speed.
You also get a pair of x1 PCIe ports, which sit between the two larger slots, while an x4 slot sits above them. And if you have any old PCI cards to use, the board also comes with a pair of standard PCI slots.
Under a modest passive heatsink are the components for the 6+2 power design. The heatsink is low enough in profile that it shouldn't get in the way of most third-party CPU coolers. The A85XT (Hudson-D4 FCH) chipset is also passively cooled, with a modestly sized heatsink.
On the bottom edge of the board are the CMOS reset, reset and power buttons. On the Pure Platinum A85XT these are joined by the two-way switch for the dual BIOS.
Technical analysis
We used a retail boxed version of AMD's latest
A10-5800K CPU with the standard cooler. It stood up to the challenge, but if you want to push the A10-5800K as far as it will go, a third-party cooler is a must.
Memory bandwidth performance
SiSoft Sandra: Gigabytes per second: Higher is better
Sapphire Pure Platinum A85XT: 12.9
Asus F2A85-V Pro with A10 5800K: 10.5
Asus Sabertooth Z77 with i3-3225: 17
CPU rendering performance
Cinebench R11.5: Index: Higher is better
Sapphire Pure Platinum A85XT: 3.21
Asus F2A85-V Pro with A10 5800K: 3.16
Asus Sabertooth Z77 with i3-3225: 3.28
Encoding performance
X264 3.0 HD: Frames per second: Higher is better
Sapphire Pure Platinum A85XT: 20
Asus F2A85-V Pro with A10 5800K: 21
Asus Sabertooth Z77 with i3-3225: 19
Performance-wise, the Sapphire board keeps close company with the Asus. In fact it delivers a little extra in the standard CPU tests, and seems to have an edge in the memory bandwidth test.
The main comparison with an IvB i3-3225, using its top-end HD 4000 graphics, works out pretty favourably for AMD. The bandwidth of the high-end
Asus Sabertooth is huge, but doesn't help push the i3 ahead of the quad-core Piledriver APU in the CPU tests.
Compared with the pricier Asus board, the £100 price tag makes more sense. Trinity won't be used as the base for a high-end rig, so such feature-packed motherboards aren't vital, but having a solid board like this Sapphire mobo will help get the most out of your APU chip.
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LG's UltraWide Monitor arriving...sometime soon
The
EA93 UltraWide Monitor, a 21:9-inch monster made by LG, will soon be available to consumers around the world.
When will that be exactly?
Well, the best LG can offer is that the EA93, which boasts a resolution of 2560 X 1080 and movie-quality imagery, will be available in Korea sometime this month followed by a global rollout in "the weeks following."
The 29-inch screen doesn't yet have a price, though its features are pretty princely.
Watch me now
21:9 is, according to LG, close to the dimensions found on cinema screens, giving it a cinematic quality that plays films as meant to be watched.
We
tinkered with it at IFA 2012 and found the ratio to be totally legit - no gimmicks for attention here.
While movie buffs and gamers will likely eat up the image quality, LG maintained the monitor works for graphic designers and other professionals who need a screen they can sink their teeth into.
What's particularly cool about the EA93 for artists is its capacity to hookup to two external devices via Dual Link-Up, providing consistent color throughout the screen.
Its IPS panel, 100 percent color gamut, USB 3.0 and HDMI linkup all make the EA93 worth a look, whenever it hits store shelves.
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