After all those rumours and leaks (some more accurate than others, of course) since several weeks already, the successor of the Samsung Galaxy SII is finally here! This smartphone, which has got around 9 million pre-orders, was announced as the best smartphone of all times. 4.8 inches screen, 1.4 GHz quad core processor, 12 MP camera were mainly what we expected from it and it finally turned out that our leaks were quite accurate. Here are the actual specifications of the Samsung I9300 Galaxy S3 : -

Dimensions: 136.6 x 70.6 x 8.6 mm (133 g)
Screen: 720 x 1280 pixels, 4.8 inches (Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen)
Memory: 1GB RAM – 16/32/64 GB storage
Camera: 8 MP (Rear), 1.9 MP (Front)
CPU: Quad-core 1.4 GHz Cortex-A9
OS: Android  v4.0.4 (Ice Cream Sandwich)

You should agree that this is quite an impressive specs list despite the fact that some of you will be a bit deceived by the rear camera for which we expected an increase in resolution. From a design perspective, the Galaxy S3 has more in common with the Galaxy S than the Galaxy S2 with its curved edges and looks really beautiful. Many of us expected some voice control feature to compete with Siri. Samsung brought us S Voice. Sincerely we don’t believe that it will be as good as Siri but we sincerely expect it to be better than the voice control of the Galaxy S2. Another interesting feature brought about by Samsung is mirroring where you can send whatever is on the screen of your Galaxy S3 and have it show on a larger display and with this eventually your phone could be used as a game controller.

If we consider the specifications, this actually looks like the best Android phone which we ever had and I’m sure that you are as eager as me to hold one of these jewels in your hand. But we are a bit sceptic specially concerning the battery life. More processing power and improved GPU could suck power a little too dramatically and we still need to actually see if S Voice is worth it. So just keep in touch for a more detailed review.

The Xperia Ray is literally the smaller brother of the Neo, with a smaller screen size (3.3 versus 3.7 inches) and thickness (9.4mm versus 13mm). So the Ray is a downgrade version of the Neo? Absolutely not, because the display resolution is still of 480×854 pixels, the back and front video calling camera have respectively an image sensor of 8 MP and 0.3 MP. And of course, the rear one capture videos in 720P resolution at 30 frames per seconds while the front one just in 640×360 pixels at 30 frames per seconds too.

Concerning the OS, Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) is on board (bundled with Timescape UI) and the browser has full support for Flash. The native video player still doesn’t have support for divx and xvid. No need to mention that there’s tons of apps on Google Play to for reading these formats and not only these, but also all the usual document formats. The phone’s also got TrackID, an app that tries to recognize the name of that song you forgot. In coming weeks the phone should get an upgrade the version 4 of Android (Ice cream sandwich) and if you don’t want a reduced autonomy or see your favorite apps and games not running anymore, don’t install ICS.

The hardware of the Ray is exactly the same as the Neo; 1 GHz Scorpion CPU, 512 MB of RAM and the Adreno 205 GPU. In terms of connectivity there’s still a microUSB 2.0 port, Bluetooth technology, GPRS, EDGE, HSDPA network support.

The only real difference from the Neo is that the Ray lacks a microHDMI port, certainly due to slimness of the device.

Sony Ericsson stuff are pretty expensive in Mauritius and fortunately ebay exists. Get it for $ 290 (Rs 8500) including shipping on the e-commerce website.

Approximate Price: Rs 15000

Also known as Kyno and formerly as Hallon when the phone’s first images were leaked, the Xperia Neo is one of those Smartphones which have all rounder specs at an affordable price, at least on ebay. Powered by a 1 GHz Scorpion CPU, 512 MB of RAM and the Adreno 205 GPU, its not the best of configurations and has only 320 MB of internal storage space but its good enough for a fluid experience with Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) and for playing all the demanding games. The Xperia PLAY has almost same specs but is much larger and thicker while the Neo is small, thin, has no sliding keyboard/gamepad and is on par in terms of performance with the PLAY.

The touchscreen of 3.7 inches has a display resolution of 480×854 (that’s more than the Galaxy S II which sports a 480×800 display resolution) and the 8 MP rear camera makes the smartphone a real attention grabber, well at least on paper because the 8 MP performance isn’t as good as the iPhone 4S, even though it does have autofocus and LED Flash. The 720P video recording isn’t as clear as some other top smartphones but can still be categorized as good. The front facing camera records videos in 360P and can be used for video calling.

Software-wise, Android 2.3 OS comes with Timescape UI, has no native support out of the box for playing divx/xvid/mkv or videos larger than 1280×720, but these minor problems can easily be fixed by downloading a better video player on Google Play (formerly known as Android market).

One of the bonus that the phone possesses but that many others do not is the micro HDMI port, which can be used for displaying the image and sound from the phone to a compatible projector or LCD TV, provided you have a microHDMI to HDMI cable because it doesn’t come inside the smartphone’s box.

The Xperia phones will soon get an upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich, but its not recommended that you take the jump or else you will end up with a lower battery life and limited apps compatibility.

The Xperia Neo is expensive in Mauritius, but is available on ebay for about $ 310 (about Rs 9000) including shipping.

The Sony Ericsson brand is no more since Sony acquired Ericsson stakes and now the future portable devices names of the Japanese firm will simply start with Sony.

View more specs the smartphone has, such as what type of audio jack it has, network supported and pre-loaded applications in the link below.

Thanks for reading.

The only thing that’s really great with this smartphone is the keyboard; bulging and spacious keys makes typing really enjoyable, but at the expense of having a small touchscreen, making the device looking like a calculator. The touchscreen in question has a landscape display resolution of 480×320 and unfortunately this horizontal orientation will cause some apps to not run properly.

The 800 MHz CPU is sufficient for everything except gaming (don’t expect playing GTA III fluidly on this phone, not sure if the game will even start) and the 512 of RAM has less than 200 MB available for the user, therefore you’ll need to to go in “Manage Apps” and force stop useless running apps from time to time to avoid running out of memory. The device runs on Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) and comes with HTC Sense UI. The browser has a narrow flash compatibility and to remedy to all these software related problems is to root the phone, which won’t be an easy task for some people.

The smartphone has two cameras, at the back a 5 MP captor capable of recording videos in 720×480 @ 30 FPS and at the front a 0.3 MP captor with video recording at 640×480. The device also as a 3.5mm jack, all the needed network support for fast browsing (incl. Wi-Fi hotspot), FM Radio, a microUSB 2.0 port, Bluetooth 3.0 and microSD card slot support of up to 32 GB.

The HTC ChaCha is very expensive in Mauritius but can be obtained at nearly six thousand rupees ($ 210, incl. shipping) on ebay.

Considering the prestige QWERTY Nokia E6 has a 2.46 inches screen size and that this one has a 2.8 inches screen, its safe to say the LG Optimus Pro C660 has a large display size… but with a low resolution of 240×320 pixels. The 800 MHz CPU + 256 MB of RAM are a bit average for a fluid experience with Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) and for running demanding games, but in terms of network support, connectivity and autonomy, its more than average; GPRS, EDGE, HSDPA(3G+), Wi-Fi b/g/n, Wi-Fi hotspot, Bluetooth 3.0, microUSB 2.0 port, 3.5mm audio jack and a 1500mAH battery which can last up to 852 hours in stand-by. If you were to choose between this LG and the Nokia E5, which is within the same price range, go for the LG because of its touchscreen capabilities, much more apps and games with Android, even though it has only 150 MB of internal storage space (can be extended with a microSD card of maximum 32 GB) and takes photos in a lower resolution (3 MP) than the 5 MP of the E5, it records videos at a better framerate (24 FPS for the LG, E5 records at 15 FPS) in a VGA resolution (640×480), the LG is still better overall.

A leaked shot of the Samsung Galaxy S3, posted on Reddit, shows a super-slim phone with chrome accenting and a home button. The smartphone is going to support a new type of Super Amoled screen measuring 4.8 inches with a 720p resolution. (There are also rumours of a 3D screen which however don’t look very convincing but who knows?) Internally the device will be powered by a 1.4GHz quad-core processor which will be Samsung’s Exynos 4 Quad (as Samsung confirmed that the Exynos 4 Quad would be used in its next Galaxy device). Other rumours claim that the Galaxy S3 is going to pack a 12MP camera at the back which would be much better than the 8MP for the Galaxy S2. That would be really fantastic but this one does not coincide with some other rumours which state that the rear camera will stay the same i.e. an 8MP. For this one we’ll have to wait and see.

Software-wise the smarphone will run Android 4.0 ICS which is not much of a surprise. Samsung has been building the hype around the device by way of a Galaxy S3 teaser video (which you can watch below) and according to those leaks, we can say that so far they have been up to our expectations. Let’s just wait now to see what the real product looks like.

Instagram was firstly released on iOS (where it has about 30 million users) and has today become one of the most popular photo processing and sharing app on the market. The app provides you with a fast, beautiful and fun way to share your photos with your friends and family. It allows you to add filtering effects and edit your photos and then to share them on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr etc. at no cost! Yes! Instagram is completely free!

Instagram for Android main strength will be its robust photo community and it’s pretty sure that many Android users will rapidly get addicted to it. Technically, the app will be supported by Android 2.2 and above and has a size of 13MB. Instagram is certainly going to provide you with the best photo-sharing experience on Android.

Approximate Price: Rs 10,000

The ViewSonic ViewPhone 3 is ViewSonic’s newest Android-powered smartphone and actually runs Android 2.3 (Gingerbread). The phone comes with a 3.5″ capacitive touch display (320 x 480 pixels resolution). ViewSonic has added a couple of extra features with the customised skin which are quite interesting. For example, each screen can have a different animation and you can also have a 3D view where you can drag and drop the different panels. Of course if you wish you can revert back to the original Android interface.

The phone is powered by a single core 800MHz processor and 512MB of RAM and runs smoothly for most applications. It also comes with other features such as Wi-Fi, GPS, 3G, FM Radio and not to forget the 5MP camera at the back.

However, the most differentiating feature of the ViewPhone 3 is that it has a dual-SIM card slot at the back where you can insert two different SIM cards. It allows you in a way to have two identities where you can for example have a personal and a business identity with one single phone. You can also receive SMS from both SIMs simultaneously.

As a whole, the ViewSonic ViewPhone 3 can be categorised as a budget-friendly smartphone which allows you to use two SIM cards simultaneously and provides you with the Android experience at the same time. It is solid,well-built and values its price.

A little bit more pricey than the previously reviewed tablets, featuring 16 GB (only!) of internal storage space, equipped with a (low quality) 0.3 MP front camera,
but the worst (or best if you like smaller devices) part it has to offer is the smaller screen than most of its competitors; 9.4 inches. Rest assured that the resolution is fortunately like most 10.1 inches, that is 1280×800 pixels. Obviously, Sony didn’t manufacture this tablet with the intention to make it have all-rounder specs, but it was clearly a to make it be compatible with the Playstation Suite and make money off the buyable games. The Playstation Suite is a software support that enables Playstation Certified devices (in this case the Sony S tablet and also the PS Vita) to download PSone games from its store. And how much games are currently available right now? Less fingers that can be found on two human hands. The rest of the specs found on the tablet are pretty same as the usual ones found on the market today; Dual-core 1 GHz Cortex-A9 based on the Nvidia Tegra 2 ARM architecture, 1GB of RAM, rear 5 MP camera that can also record videos in 720p at 30 FPS, and it runs on Android 3.1 Honeycomb.

Approximate Price: Rs 7,000

The first thing we can say about the Alcatel OT-990 is that it is a nice looking and solid phone with no hint of creakiness when you hold it tightly in your palm. It doesn’t at all feel cheap and plasticky as its predecessors. The smartphone comes with a 3.5 inches display having a resolution of 320×480 pixels but despite it possesses a TFT capacitive touchscreen (one of the most expensive capacitive type), it doesn’t respond as well as we might have expected. The reason for this might be its processor as the Alcatel OT-900 does not possess one of the most powerful processors (which is quite logical considering its price). In fact, the phone is supported by a 600 MHz processor but actually that doesn’t affect the running of applications in a major way except for some hitches here and there (specially at boot time).

The phone also possesses a 5MP (2592 x 1944 pixels) camera with a LED flash which is quite useful in low light. But here again, feedback from users said that the camera’s quality is quite disappointing for a 5MP.

The Alcatel OT-990 comes with Android 2.2 Froyo (which might seem a little worn out). The Wi-fi is good and surfing the web is a quite fluid experience but with one major disappointment. Owing to the Android 2.2 Froyo, Adobe Flash is not supported in the web browser!

As a whole, the Alcatel OT-990 offers value for money specially for those who are looking for both a cheap and solid Android smartphone. Moreover, the phone can certainly be upgraded to Android 2.3 Gingerbread. But for those who are only considering the price, there might be other better alternatives.