News of Mobiles

HTC Windows Phone 8 roadmap leaks out

2012-06-23T22:55:00.000+05:00

HTC is now probably the second-most important Windows Phone 8 manufacturer as Samsung is now mostly focused on Android, and Nokia is Microsoft’s sidekick, and good news is that HTC Windows Phone 8 roadmap has just leaked out.

Starting from the most affordable of the bunch, the HTC Rio will feature a 4-inch WVGA screen and come with a 5-megapixel camera shooting 720p video. The Qualcomm MSM8227, part of the Snapdragon S4 family, is what powers the devices and it works along with 512MB of RAM. Connectivity-wise, the upcoming HTC Rio is expected to come with 14.4Mbps HSPA.

Next up, right in the mid-range is the HTC Accord. The Accord comes with a 4.3-inch 720p Super LCD2 display and an 8-megapixel rear snapper capturing 1080p video. The exact silicon is not yet known, but it will be a more capable dual-core processor of the Snapdragon S4 breed with 1GB of RAM. Additionally, you get NFC and 42Mbps HSPA+.

The most exciting device that HTC is bringing to Windows Phone 8 world is the HTC Zenith. The Zenith is said to feature a massive 4.7-inch 720p Super LCD 2 display, also with an 8-megapixel camera and 42Mbps HSPA+.

Source : PhoneArena

Europeans giving up their mobile phones

2012-06-23T22:49:00.000+05:00

Smart phones have become extremely popular to the point that talk around the water cooler is not about Lebron but is about the specs on the Samsung Galaxy S III. But over in Europe, there has been a change as mobile subscribers have started to drop their lines in droves. For example, in April alone 380,000 mobile lines were dropped in Spain. And in France, the number of handsets expected to be purchased this year will be lower than the total from 2011.

Some Spanish carriers like Telefonica and Vodafone are testing out a new business plan and are removing subsidies from new phone prices which has to hurt in this economy. In France, analysts believe part of the decline in handset sales has to do with the upstart carrier Free which sends voice traffic over Wi-Fi when possible, similar to Republic Wireless in the States. Free is signing up customers coming to the carrier with unlocked smartphones, purchasing SIM cards but not new phones.

Many European countries had more phones in use than people living in the country to use them. This better than 100% penetration has finally come home to hurt the carriers as users seem to be able to squeeze more life out of older phones. Now that is something that U.S.smartphone users would laugh at as many upgrade their handset as soon as the Next Big Thing comes along. The penetration numbers might have come back to earth a bit, they are still high and once the economy turns around, Europeans might just decide that they cannot live without their mobile handset.

Source : PhoneArena

HTC working on a Siri-esque app?

2012-06-23T22:43:00.001+05:00

A tweet sent out by Taiwan based manufacturer HTC included what appeared to be a dog having a conversation with a Siri-type app. Of course, most canine's are limited in speech to answering who wore number 3 on the New York Yankees, and what part of the house you see when you look up. HTC jokingly reminded dog fans that the back and forth between Rover, Lassie or whatever the dog's name is and the virtual personal assistant is not real.

So what is the point here? Is HTC working on a Dr. Doolittle app? Seriously, though, is there an underlying reason for this tweet or is HTC really working on a virtual personal assistant of its own? It might just be that HTC has thrown us a bone here, so to speak, but we would rather not have to guess at what the manufacturer's intentions are.

Source : PhoneArena

LG Optimus 4X HD Review

2012-06-23T22:38:00.000+05:00

LG Optimus 4X HD phone announced with a quad-core chipset, although the HTC One X beat it as first to market. LG has loaded the full monty with it - a quad-core processor, large “True HD” display fit in a fairly compact for it body, and the latest Android version out of the box.

As if top of the line specs were not enough, it also addresses some complaints we have with some new flagships, namely their closed nature. LG's finest has a removable battery, microSD card slot and a plain regular SIM card slot - that combination you can’t find in any of this season’s flagships.

Design:

The LG Optimus 4X HD lies pretty well in the hand for a slab with a 4.7” screen, thanks to the very narrow side bezel, and the compact chassis. In fact, it is as thin and light as the polycarbonate HTC One X with the same size screen, but is shorter and less wide, making it more suited for one-hand operation. The same goes if we size the Optimus 4X HD with the Galaxy S III, which is only marginally thinner, but much taller and wider.

Such a compact design is a commendable achievement on LG’s part, especially considering that the 4X HD has a slot that will take your existing regular SIM card, and you can easily expand its memory viamicroSD, or swap the battery with a recharged one if needed.

Display:

LG makes some of the best mobile screens around, and the 4.7-incher on the Optimus 4X HD is no exception. It is an IPS-LCD HD display with 1280x720 pixels of resolution, good viewing angles and eye-pleasing colors. Outside visibility is above average, too, if you rev up brightness to the max when battling direct sunlight.

Unfortunately automatic brightness only works from the percentage you’ve put it on in Settings up/down a preset range, so if you start from 0% it won’t go all the way up under direct sunlight, or if you set it at 50%, the screen will still be too bright when it’s dark around - hopefully LG will fix that with an update.

It is also a “True HD” display, as LG categorizes its high-def screens with a regular RGB pixel matrix arrangement, to set them apart from the PenTile AMOLED displays Samsung uses. With 313ppi pixel density, text appears crisp and HD media is a joy to watch.

Source : PhoneArena

Pantech Swift Review

2012-06-19T22:08:00.001+05:00

Pantech Swif is a QWERTY sliding messaging phone that aims to appease those who can live without the complexities of a smartphone.

Design:

Hardly flaunting anything spectacular, the design of the Pantech Swift is all too predictable amongst the trove of QWERTY messaging phones on the market. Compact and light enough to comfortably hold in the hand, its build quality is decent enough to warrant peace of mind when it comes to normal wear and tear. Still, as much as we like the subtle soft touch feel of its rear cover, there's nothing particularly exciting about this conventional looking phone.

Exposing the physical landscape keyboard is accomplished by pushing the display up when held in landscape, which snaps firmly into place without much force. With its 4-row keyboard layout, buttons are nearly flush to the surface – thus, making it difficult to feel them out. Although we’re accepting of its reasonable response, we would’ve preferred seeing numbers incorporated into the top row of buttons.

Display:

We know there isn’t going to be much love found with the Swift’s keyboard, and rightfully so, our suspicions are confirmed after checking out its 2.8” QVGA (240 x 320) capacitive display. Obviously, it’s lacking detail, but even worse, it washes out very easily under the gaze of the sun. It’s difficult to say if it’s the touchscreen, software, processor, or a combination of the three, but it feels very lax and unresponsive when it comes to tracking our finger.

Source : Phone Arena

Toshiba Excite 10 Review

2012-06-19T22:02:00.000+05:00

Toshiba Thrive doesn’t surprise us in any way that it was left in the dust by the competition, especially when it sported one of the ugliest designs amongst the first-generation Honeycomb tablets. Lucky for all of us, theToshiba Excite 10 is undoubtedly pushing forward as being a more compelling and exciting device thanks to an updated design and its top-notch specs. No doubt it’s brushing up against some other competitive offerings with its starting price point of $449.99, let’s cross our fingers and hope that Toshiba has learned from its old ways.

Design:

First and foremost, we have to give some kudos to Toshiba for giving the Excite 10 a very contemporary design – whereas before, the Toshiba Thrive was simply too monolithic with it chunky laptop-like appearance. Specifically, it employs some the favorable design qualities we expect out of tablets nowadays, like a streamlined profile, sturdy construction, and premium choice materials. Thanks to its aluminum casing, it does add a hint of solidness to its overall build quality, and at the same time, its patterned design allows us to grip it with ease. Frankly, it sticks to the safe approach of utilizing a conventional design, which means that it’s not as attractive as something like an Asus Transformer Prime or new iPad.

Display:

For the very first time, we’re enchanted by its 10.1” WXGA (1280 x 800) IPS LCD display – though, it’s the rich and deep color production that attracts us the most. Naturally, its resolution is standard amongst its size, but nevertheless, it’s sufficient enough for us to make out fine text with relative ease. However, take it outdoors with the sun’s presence, it washes out and becomes nearly unusable unless it’s shaded. Strangely, we notice some bleeding going on around the edges of the display that’s only recognizable when it’s displaying the color black. For the most part, it’s still an alluring display from afar, but doesn’t quite have breathtaking aura of something like the new iPad.

Source : Phone Arena

4% of people use their iPhone during sexy time

2012-06-19T21:50:00.000+05:00

The folks at Gazelle – the same ones who exchange used electronics for cash, have conducted an interesting research studying how smartphone owners use their handsets. In particular, they were curious to know how attached iPhone owners were to their handsets. And so they polled a 1000 people, and the results are out for the world to see.

Surprisingly, 15% of respondents admit that they would rather give up sex for a weekend than not use their iPhone for the same period of time. This lines up well with the results from a similar survey about the habits of tablet users. According to the latter, a quarter of women who own tablets prefer their slates to the intimacy with their partners. Another interesting thing that the Gazelle study reveals is that about 4% of iPhone owners have used their devices while having sexy time.

Source : Phone Arena

Samsung Metro 2600 Slider Phone

2012-06-19T21:43:00.000+05:00

Samsung Metro 2600 is a GSM slider phone from Samsung. It operates on Samsung Propiertary OS. It sports 2.4 inch display with a slider keypad. It has pre-installed social networking widgets and it features Samsung’s latest Chat on service. People who like to devote much time on social networking sites will love it. It comes with 2 MP camera and has solid anti-scratch back cover. It comes with standard 800 mAh battery. It supports Bluetooth with A2DP, USB 2.0 & GPRS connectivity features. Multimedia features available with the mobile are Music player, Video Player and FM Radio.

Features and specification:

GSM mobile handset

Slider form factor

Quad band GSM network

Internal antenna

Alpha-numeric keypad

2.4 inch TFT display screen

2.0 megapixel camera

1600 x 1200 pixels camera resolution

Music & video player

FM radio

Bluetooth v3.0

USB interface

Samsung ChatOn Instant Messenger

Web browser with GPRS

Facebook & Twitter integration

40MB internal memory

Micro SD memory card slot

800mAh rechargeable battery

Up to 710 minutes of talk time

Up to 720 hours of stand-by time

Dimension : 97 x 50 x 15 mm

Weight : 90.5 grams

Huawei Honor U8860 Review

2012-06-19T01:35:00.003+05:00

Design and Build

The Honor U8860 is a perfectly presentable phone, something you won’t be ashamed of flaunting among your friends. From the front, it’s reminiscent of the iPhone 4 with an all black bezel and rounded edges. Up top, we have the earpiece and the front-facing VGA camera. Down at the bottom are the usual set of capacitive buttons. There’s no mention of any anti-scratch glass or coating on the screen, but it does manage to hold up well with everyday use. Fingerprints are a big problem and since the brightness levels of the LCD aren’t great, using it in direct sunlight is a real challenge. The Honor measures 11mm in depth and weighs around 140g, so it’s not the slimmest, but it’s far from bulky. The reason for this extra heft is the chunky battery in the phone.

For connectivity, we have a microUSB port at the bottom, besides the microphone, while the volume rocker and power/sleep buttons take up their usual spots. Around the back, we have a textured rear panel with the Huawei logo and speaker grill. The memory card slot does not support hot-swap, though. The camera is an 8MP sensor and you also get an LED flash. In the box, you get a charger, data cable and a headset. Overall, the Honor doesn’t really come across as a phone that costs 20K, as it feels more like a 15K and below phone. Having said that, the build quality is pretty good and we didn’t find any creaking parts or weak spots - it feels rugged and durable.

Features

Interface
The Huawei Honor U8860 comes with Gingerbread, along with their own skin. They say that it is possible to upgrade it to ICS, although nothing has happened yet, so don’t hold your breath. The phone is quite popular on XDA forums, however, so I’m sure you’ll find a nice custom ROM for it. The skin is a mash up between a bunch of other skins and has the look and feel of LG’s UI, along with similar icons from Samsung’s TouchWiz and topped off with a sprinkle of iOS. I like what they’ve done with the lock screen, which gives you quick access to phone features or to unlock the phone. The interface is pretty quick overall, thanks to the 1.4GHz Qualcomm MSM8255T SoC, along with the Adreno 205 GPU. This is the same chipset used in the Lumia 800 as well

The pixel density of the screen is quite good and at 854 x 480 on a 4-inch LCD screen, images and text appear decently sharp and crisp. The black levels and colours are also rich and vibrant. The screen does not have the best sensitivity though, and many times it would not register light touches. Huawei have also included toggle switches in the drop down notification bar, which is handy. The icons have a very TouchWiz feel to them and are big and colourful. In the main menu, there’s a little cog like button, which when pressed, causes all the icons to wiggle (like iOS) and you can delete an app directly from there. Also, holding the home button on the homescreen brings up the task manager.

Source I Tech2.in

Sony Xperia U review

2012-06-18T23:40:00.001+05:00

The Xperia S has all the spotlight to itself in the NXT series, but history has taught us that Sony (and previously Sony Ericsson) can do wonders in the compact class. In two generations of minis and the Xperia ray, the Japanese have delivered packages that no one in the same price range can beat.

Quad-band GSM /GPRS/EDGE support
3.5" 16M-color capacitive touchscreen of Full WVGA resolution (854 x 480 pixels) with Sony Mobile BRAVIA engine
Android OS v2.3.7 Gingerbread, planned Android 4.0 ICS update
Dual-core 1 GHz Cortex-A9 CPU, 512 MB RAM, NovaThor U8500 chipset
5 MP autofocus camera with LED flash and geotagging, Multi Angle shot
720p video recording @ 30fps with continuous autofocus and stereo sound
Wi-Fi b/g/n and DLNA
GPS with A-GPS
8 GB built-in storage (6 GB user-accessible)
microUSB port (charging) and stereo Bluetooth v2.1
Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
Stereo FM radio with RDS
Voice dialing
Adobe Flash 11 support
Deep Facebook integration
Accelerometer and proximity sensor
Transparent stripe changes color depending on screen content
Replaceable cap at the bottom allows easy customization

Main disadvantages

Limited storage with no expansion options
No Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich out of box
Some competitors are slimmer

Source I GSMArena

Apple iOS 6 preview

2012-06-18T23:35:00.001+05:00

Apple used the keynote of its annual WWDC event in San Francisco to announce the latest version of their iOS mobile platform. The sixth major build of the OS aims to bring the user experience to the next level with no less than 200 new features, services and UI tweaks.

The number is certainly huge, but then again so were the expectations of the millions of Apple fans around the globe. The fact that iOS 6 will only go official in three months' time heaps even more pressure on the latest release of the platform. By that point Android will probably have Jelly Bean to chew on, while Windows Phone will have released the multi-core friendly Apollo.

The iOS 6 key features include a Siri upgrade, system-wide Facebook integration and brand new Maps with turn-by-turn voice navigation. There're plenty of lesser new goodies such as achievements in the Game Center, new App store UI and the Music app, improved Safari with full-screen mode, better Mail, etc.

The complete changelog is coming up, but first we'll get the issue of compatibility out of the way. iOS 6 is compatible with the three latest iPhone generations (3GS, 4 and 4S), iPad 2 and 3 and the fourth-gen iPod Touch. The first iPad is not on the list, so if you are still holding on to the original Apple slate, you might finally want to consider an upgrade.

A few other restrictions apply, too: the iPhone 4S has finally lost its Siri exclusivity, but it's only going to share it with the iPad 3. The turn-by-turn navigation and the Flyover mode in Maps can be used only on dual-core iDevices - iPhone 4S, iPad 2 and iPad 3.

Source I GSMArena

LG Optimus L5 to launch in Europe this month

2012-06-18T23:19:00.000+05:00

LG is still trying to grab mind share in the congested world of manufacturers who offer Android handsets. The Korean based OEM will be releasing another phone this month in Europe, which includes the UK, Germany, and France. This latest device will be called the Optimus L5. The L5 will carry low-end specs – like an 800 MHz CPU, 4 GB of internal storage memory (which can be expanded up to 32 GB by way of an Micro SD card), and a 5-megapixel camera. Yea, it’s not very impressive.

Besides the mediocre specs, the phone carries a decent sized screen at 4-inches and has a 9.5mm thick body. LG still has a long ways to go when it comes to being a dominant player in the Android market.

Sony Water Proof Android Handsets Xperia Acro S and Go

2012-06-10T01:14:00.000+05:00

Sony water proof android handsets now outside of japan with Xperia acro S and Xperia Advance. it is gradually revealing more and more about those models.

The company outed two videos that detail the specs and waterproofing of the phones, and will be answering questions about them at the Sony Blog at 10am ET today, so you can head over to the source link and ask what bothers you about any of these two.

For all it's worth, the sony Xperia acro S seems to be a waterproof Xperia S in terms of specs, and the Xperia go is pretty appealing in its flashy color combinations, shown in the video below.

Source | Phonearena

Nokia Lumia 610 Review

2012-06-09T22:30:00.000+05:00

Nokia Lumia 610 Review

Nokia used its press conference to expand its Lumia range of Windows Phone 7 handsets, with the brand new budget Lumia 610 and release of the big Lumia 900 outside of the US. It’s the first handset that is of more interest though, as it takes advantage of an upcoming Windows Phone 7 update that will make the OS run smoothly on more modest devices.

Using a fairly modest Qualcomm 7-series chipset, and with just 256MB of RAM, the Nokia Lumia 610 will be the cheapest Windows Phone 7 handset yet, allowing the OS to compete with budget Android offerings. A recommended price of 189EUR isn’t quite in the 100GBP territory of some Android handsets, but it should bring the OS to many who previously were priced out.

Just how well Windows Phone 7 runs on a handset with half the RAM remains to be seen. It also has a Qualcomm S1 800MHz chipset, which though far from cutting edge, isn't exactly sluggish on Android. A 3.7in with the usual 800x480 Windows Phone resolution certainly doesn't look budget.

We tried the handset out on the stand and it felt OK, maybe a little sluggish to load some apps, how it stands up in proper use when it’s packed full of apps all running in the background remains to be seen.

In terms of look and feel, the Nokia Lumia 610 stands up well comared to the more expensive Lumia 710. However, we were sad not to see the 710’s replaceable fascias on this model. Instead it comes in pink, cyan, black and white – with a metallic strip around the screen that complements the main colour.

Nokia is placing this model as an introductory handset to Windows Phone 7 for a younger audience. As such, we should see it widely sold as a pay-as-you-go model, something the current line up is sorely missing. We look forward to testing it fully, and seeing just what apps do and don’t work the handset.

Nokia Asha 203 Review

2012-06-09T22:28:00.000+05:00

The Nokia Asha 203 is similar to Asha 202 sharing almost all the same specs. The actual difference is that the 203 doesn't support dual SIMs so it lacks the extra SIM slot on the side.

Design

The 203 has the same candybar form as the 202, with a shiny black plastic face, edged in metal trim. There's a choice of three basic handset colours -- red, white or grey.

The keypad on the 203 is alpha numeric so you need to multi-press each key to form words when typing texts and emails.

The display is a 2.4-inch touchscreen, but it's the resistive type, rather than the capacitive screens found on most smart phones.

On the back there's a 2-megapixel camera, which isn't going to win you any photography awards, but it's a welcome addition to a device at this price.

Software

Like all of its fellow Ashas, the 203 runs Nokia's Series 40 OS, so it sits squarely in the budget blower category.

Nokia has tweaked the S4 interface to fit its diminutive screen dimensions. The emphasis is on getting to stuff quickly and easily with minimal presses. For example, contacts shortcuts can be added to the home screen and swiping left or right will take you to your favourite contacts or to games and apps.

As with the other Ashas in the range, the 203 can be hooked into your Facebook account so you can post and view updates from the home screen with only minimal key presses.

To encourage app downloading, Nokia is making a gift of 40 EA games that can be installed onto the 203 for free in the first two months of use. That's one reason why you will certainly need to expand the internal 10MB of memory via the microSD card slot that supports up to 32GB of extra capacity.

Outlook

The Asha 203 won't appeal to gadget fiends. But it's very cheap so it could make a good basic or first phone for kids wanting calling, texting, light social networking and games on tap.

Nokia Asha 306 Review

2012-06-08T22:37:00.002+05:00

Nokia is proud to introduce Nokia Asha 306 touchscreen phone. At the moment there are ten Nokia Asha phones available in more than 130 countries worldwide, providing young consumers budget friendly cell phones with smartphone-like features. The Nokia Asha 306 is a fun and entertaining single SIM phone, and becomes Nokia's most affordable Wi-Fi handset to date. The Nokia Asha phone has been made to provide a rich mobile experience to users who want to be set free from excessive data costs and short battery life.

Nokia Asha 306 phone features

The Nokia Asha 306 is a fun and entertaining mobile phone. The Nokia Asha phone features a bright and colorful 3-inch WQVGA touchscreen along with Bluetooth and Dual Band connectivity. The Nokia Asha comes with 40 mobile games, a 2 Megapixel digital camera, Nokia Maps and the revolutionary Nokia Browser which helps significantly lower data costs. Along with all these great features, the Nokia Asha 306 phone also provides WLAN, enabling users to stay connected while on the move. The Nokia Asha 306 mobile handset also supports video streaming through both GPRS and WLAN, meaning this Nokia phone truly is a fun way to stay in touch.

Nokia Asha 305 Review and Specs

2012-06-08T22:32:00.001+05:00

Nokia Asha 305 Review

Nokia has announced three new members of the family of Asha version of the Touch handset the first time. They are the Nokia Asha 305.

Nokia Asha 305 Features

Nokia Asha 305 dual-SIM. I ni-sized handset 110.3 mm x 53.8 mm x 12.8 mm and weighs 98.3 grams. This handset has a resistive touch screen 3 “WQVGA resolution, a 2MP camera, microSD card slot, dual-band GSM with EDGE connectivity and 1110mAh battery. Asha also provided 305 Bluetooth 2.1, microUSB 2.0 port, 3.5 mm audio jack and an accelerometer. Together with Nokia Asha 311, Nokia Asha 305 also provides 40 free game from EA Games and Nokia Browser.

Nokia Asha 305 Specifications

Network: GSM
Internal storage: 10 MB, 64 MB
Card slot: microSD 2 GB inbox (Support up to 32 GB)
Memory: 32 MB

Type: TFT Resistive TouchScreen, Multi Touch
Size: 3.0 inch
Resolution: 240 x 400 pixels

Camera
- Back: 2 Megapixel
- Video Recording: 176×144 (10fps)
Data Connectivity

GPRS
EDGE
Bluetooth v2.1 with EDR
microUSB microUSB v2.0
3.5 mm Audio jack

Size
- 110.3 x 53.8 x 12.8 mm (HxWxD)
- 98 grams
Battery

Type: Li-Ion 1110 mAh
Talktime 2G: 14 hours
Music play: 40 hours
Stand-by 2G: 22 days

Source : Free Smartphone

Samsung Galaxy Pocket S5300 Review

2012-06-08T22:19:00.002+05:00

The Galaxy Pocket makes the Galaxy Mini look like it's on steroids and the Y series like a bunch of semi pros.

Life at the bottom of the food chain is far from enjoyable but it can be pretty exciting, and some creatures have figured out how to adapt. They're usually small, fast and good at mimicry. The Galaxy Pocket meets the size requirement, but we'll have to check about the speed. And no, no one will mistake it for a trimmed down S III but some feature phones may be fooled into getting too close.

Some Specs

Quad-Band GSM and dual-band 3G support
2.8" 256K-color QVGA TFT touchscreen
832MHz ARMv6 processor, 289MB of RAM
Android OS v2.3.6 (Gingerbread) with TouchWiz UI
3 GB of internal storage, hot-swappable MicroSD slot (up to 32 GB)
2 MP fixed-focus camera with geotagging
GPS receiver with A-GPS
Stereo FM radio with RDS
3.5mm audio jack
Accelerometer and proximity sensor
Swype text input
MicroUSB port (charging) and stereo Bluetooth 3.0
Social network integration

Disadvantages

Low screen resolution limits choice of apps
Fixed focus camera
No secondary camera
No camera flash, no dedicated camera key
QVGA video recording @15fps
No Adobe Flash support

This is obviously as basic as a smartphone package gets, but the Galaxy Pocket is still a true droid. It gives users quad-band GSM connectivity and dual-band 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS, and a capacitive, multi-touch enabled screen. It can be a basic music player and a basic camera - and the expandable memory is one of the key features that make the Galaxy Pocket a smart buy.

There're lots of blank spots on its spec sheet, which make it vulnerable to older midrange droids in the same price range, but the Samsung Galaxy Pocket is for learners, not knowers. Convenience and affordability were top priorities, in what Samsung would like to see as the first step towards a long-term commitment.

Source : GSMArena

Google Upgrades iPhone Search App

2012-06-06T00:20:00.000+05:00

Google has updated the search app that it developed for Apple's iPhone and says that it now offers a way to access all of a users Google apps in one place.

The autocompletion of search suggestions is significantly faster in this latest version of the app, bringing search predictions instantly with each letter typed.

The upgraded app also helps pages load faster, and checking out multiple pages is easier with the slide-in panel. Quickly swipe back and forth between webpages and search results, and swap between search modes like Images and Places with a swipeable menu.

Motorola Xoom gets Android 4.0 update

2012-06-06T00:13:00.001+05:00

It was reported that two Verizon products, the Motorola Xoom and the HTC Rezound would soon be slated for an Android 4.0 update.

New features include the Roboto system font, panoramic shooting, email search, the ability to save web pages for offline reading, and a photo editor integrated in the Gallery app.Customers on the Big Red are now able to update their tablets to the Ice Cream Sandwich OS.

In addition, improvements have been made to quicken the response time for screen rotations, there are more video editing effects, and and you can now launch the camera from the lock screen.

Parents Better Control over their Kid's Mobile Phone

2012-06-05T00:31:00.000+05:00

Vodafone UK has launched a new service that provides parents better control over their kid's mobile phone, preventing their child from mis-using their handsets.

The service is being provided by Bemilo, a mobile phone company, through Vodafone's network. With this service, Parents can get full control over their kid's mobile phone and can control things like messaging, internet usage, outgoing calls and even put a time limit on their kid's cellphone usage during certain hours of the day.

To get the service, parents need to buy a 'service pack' which will have a SIM card inside. The SIM, however, is like any other SIM card.

The parents certainly will be controlling their basic right to communicate but will be preventing their children form misuse of cellphones. One of the major problems with mobile phone and children is sexting and this system is expected to put an end to that.

Unlike any other application that can be turned off or even uninstalled form the device, the benefits of having Bemilo service on this not even know he/she is being monitored and secondly there is no way to bypass this system.

Opera's New Mobile Browser for Social Network

2012-06-05T00:20:00.000+05:00

Opera has launched a new version of its mobile browser. The new Opera Mini 7 browser comes with a new feature, called the Smart Page, for the social network buffs.

The Smart Page brings a one-page summary of all the news from users' Facebook and Twitter feeds. Using the data-crunching and money-saving technology behind Opera Mini, Smart Page keeps you updated on your social life quickly, without breaking the bank.

Opera has launched a new version of its mobile browser. The new Opera Mini 7 browser comes with a new feature, called the Smart Page, for the social network buffs.

Opera Mini 7's Smart Page provides super-fast access to all your favorite web content. It is a must-check out if you have never experienced Opera Mini before,"

Opera Mini 7 is available as a free download for Java-compatible (J2ME), S60 and Blackberry feature phones on the market from Mobile Opera. :-) Have fun Opera Users !

KloudPad Tablet For Indian Students

2012-06-05T00:12:00.000+05:00

KloudPad, a UK based company, has announced its entry into the Indian tablet market with the launch of its first ever 3G Android 4.0 based tablet for India. This low cost tablet, called KloudPad, comes with 3G calling functionality as well as preloaded educational content for allowing students to read and learn as well.

KloudPad is powered by an ARM Cortex-A8 based processor with a processing speed of GHz, supported by 512 MB RAM. It has a 7 inch display screen with 800 x 480 pixels resolution. Its 4 GB internal memory can be expanded up to 32 GB using micro SD card. Users can also enjoy capturing their favorite shots with a rear Camera and can have video chat as well with the front camera. However, the exact nature of the cameras (in terms of megapixels) has not been revealed yet.

On the connectivity side it features WiFi, USB and HDMI options. The KloudPad is powered with Android Ice Cream Sandwich operating system and has a 4000 mAh battery, which can give 6 hours of battery life.

This new tablet comes in black colour option only. KloudPad Android 4 tablet can be purchased for Rs 9,999 only from slatestore.in as of now, more stores are expected to sell this tab in the days to come.

QMobile E850 Review

2012-06-03T22:27:00.000+05:00

Q Mobile E850 is another low end mobile which focuses on the mass market. E850 boasts a touch screen, FM Radio, Dual SIM, a decent design and supports two active SIMs at once. It is an affordable device with attractive features which youngsters would love to have in their pockets.

Unboxing

QMobile E850 has a compact box in which the accessories and other goodies are packed nicely. Here are its contents:

QMobile E850 Handset
Manuals
MicroUSB Cable
Charger (to be used with cable)
Hands free

Design

The QMobile 850 features a resistive 2.8” TFT QVGA touch screen, there are only three buttons on the front side of the phone. The overall build of the phone is quite reasonable for its price tag but the back cover seems to be a bit low on quality. Coming back to the description, a speaker is present on the top of the front which sits just over the 2.8” touch screen. QMobile logo is printed in silver color just under the screen. Three buttons lie under the logo in horizontal alignment; the central button takes the UI to menu and helps navigate while the buttons at right and left are for hanging up/ turning phone on/ off and calling respectively. A thin slit for mic is the only other item on the front.

The back is pretty clean with VGA Camera on top right, speaker grill on top left and QMobile logo in white color on the right side of the grill. The right, left and bottom of E850 are completely empty while 3.5 mm audio jack port and microUSB port are on the top of the phone along with a slit to insert a band on the top right.

There is a big round key located just below the screen which works well as a track pad and can be pressed to return to home as well. On bottom of the front screen there is an ear piece and pinhole equipped with the mic.

QMobile E850 can be a bit difficult to handle as the plastic material used is pretty slippery, however, after using the phone for a couple of days you will get used to it. The back cover of the phone as well as the touch screen is prone to finger prints and a lot of effort is needed to clean these. It is recommended that you install a screen protector as soon as you take the phone out of the box.

The back cover can be slid downwards and then pulled up to open. Battery needs to be removed to insert microSD card and SIMs, the cover can be removed pretty easily. On removing the battery, you will see a QMobile sticker with IMEI number, model number and barcode on it. Two SIM card slots are aligned vertically on the left; the mcroSD card slot is present on the right.

Multimedia

QMobile E850 has a VGA camera at the back which captures pretty reasonable photos for its specifications. Conditions with lesser light have a great effect on the camera. The snaps taken can easily be transferred to desktop or can be sent as an MMS or transferred through Bluetooth. The camera is unfortunately opened by default in Camcorder mode whenever it is opened, it can be switched to Camera mode by simply pressing the on-screen shortcut for the purpose. There is no dedicated camera button; hence snaps are taken by pressing the central part of the navigation pad. An image can be shared as soon as it is shot by choosing “Send To: option which allows the image to be shared via Bluetooth.

E850 has a basic image viewer, but there is no option to share an image while it is opened, an image can be shared via Bluetooth when it is closed by going into options. Unfortunately, only one snap at a time can be shared via BT, batch sending is not allowed. We listened to some songs on our E850 and were impressed with performance of the speaker; however listening to songs with the handsfree makes a positive difference. The sound quality of E850 is surprisingly better than that of E950.

PROS

2.8” QVGA touch screen
Good build quality
Intuitive UI
Nice Design
Preloaded internet apps including Twitter, Facebook etc.
3.5 mm jack
Bluetooth
FM Radio

LG Optimus L7 Review

2012-06-01T22:13:00.000+05:00

LG Optimus L7 is the top shelf representative of the company's new line of affordable handsets with supposedly more appealing L-Style design.

Top shelf in the L line doesn't mean much in terms of specs, as the Optimus L7 still rocks single-core processor, WVGA screen resolution and 5 MP camera, but it won't break the bank either.

Design:

Despite LG's ruminations on the new L-Style design for the handsets of this series, the chassis of the Optimus L7 seems like your regular rectangular slab of black plastic.

Display:

The “Floating Mass” technology for the 4.3” IPS-LCD “NOVA” display that LG utilizes in the Optimus L7, means that the screen is closer to the protective glass, allowing for a slimmer device and a brighter display. Still, it comes with 480x800 pixels of resolution, and 217ppi pixel density is about the bare minimum we expect from this screen size now.

The display sports decent viewing angles and vivid colors, plus its brightness is above average at 450 nits, so outside visibility is decent. Of notable absence is an ambient light sensor to adjust the brightness automatically, so you'll have to make do with the handy toggle in the notification bar.