From what I have read so far the I Phone 3GS is the standard I Phone 3G with new firmware installed and has the following added functionality:
Slightly faster – Allows multi tasking
Can record video – Albeit on a third rate camera
Has voice control features – In my opinion a total waste of time.
Improved battery life.
Includes a compass – Just in case you were stuck in the middle of the Gobi desert!
If Apple believes that these features are enough to compete against the likes of Samsung’s Omnia HD and Nokia’s N97 they have another thing coming. I was really expecting at least and OLED screen, Bluetooth support, A memory card slot and DIVX, XVid support. I really believe that Apple have really missed a great chance here.
Wednesday 10 June 2009
Samsung Omnia HD user manual
Whilst surfing the interweb I stumbled upon the Samsung Omnia HD user manual, it’s a good read and I thought I'd share it with you.
Friday 29 May 2009
How to get a Samsung Omnia HD
Just thought I'd let you know that I have been waiting for weeks to hear whether the Vodafone will be stocking the Samsung Omnia HD. I have phoned the customer services a few days ago all they said that they could not tell me if they will be stocking it or not, and for me to check their website for any updates. Although when searching for this phone on Google, the Vodafone sponsored link is the first on the list (clicking on the link takes you to an error page), I seriously think that they will not be stocking this handset. As I cannot afforded to buy the phone SIM free the cheapest price I found was £499.99 from King of Gadgets , it’s time I moved providers it seems.
Orange seems to be the only provider who is stocking the Samsung Omnia HD. However I found if you buy the phone directly from Orange on an 18 month contract it will cost you £35 per month plus an additional £99.50 for the phone. However if you buy the phone via Phones 4U the same Orange contract costs you £35 per month but the phone is free. God alone knows how this works!
Orange seems to be the only provider who is stocking the Samsung Omnia HD. However I found if you buy the phone directly from Orange on an 18 month contract it will cost you £35 per month plus an additional £99.50 for the phone. However if you buy the phone via Phones 4U the same Orange contract costs you £35 per month but the phone is free. God alone knows how this works!
Thursday 21 May 2009
Samsung on the adroid bandwagon
Samsung's i7500, the company's first mobile phone to use the Android operating system, will be launched on O2's German network in June, the operator announced on Monday.
Meanwhile, also on Monday, Vodafone Spain made a surprise announcement that it is launching HTC's Magic handset, the second Android phone to reach the market after the T-Mobile G1 (also made by HTC).
Samsung's Android handset combines the Google-led mobile platform with a five-megapixel camera, GPS and a 320x480-pixel, 3.2-inch Active Matrix OLED (AMOLED) touchscreen. At 11.9mm thick, it uses a 1500 mAh battery and includes a 3.5mm headphone socket. The HTC Magic has a 320x480 3.2-inch LCD screen, a 3.2 megapixel camera, is 13.6mm thick and has a 1340 mAh battery. It has no 3.5mm headphone socket.
Based on current information from manufacturers, the i7500 will be the first non-HTC manufactured Android phone on sale. The device uses a 528MHz Qualcomm chipset and has 8GB of internal memory, with a micro-SD slot for up to 32GB of add-on memory.
The browser included in the i7500 will, according to O2's statement, be "Chrome-Lite". Android's browser has never been explicitly named, but is based on the same WebKit framework as Google's desktop browser, Chrome.
The pricing for O2 Germany's release of the i7500 has not yet been confirmed officially. Contacted on Monday, neither O2 UK nor Samsung itself had any details available on UK release dates or pricing. Vodafone Spain's pricing for the HTC Magic is from €19 (£17) to €199 (£17 to £180) on monthly tariffs from €62 to €21.
Other manufacturers scheduled to bring out Android handsets include Sony Ericsson, Motorola and Acer.
Meanwhile, also on Monday, Vodafone Spain made a surprise announcement that it is launching HTC's Magic handset, the second Android phone to reach the market after the T-Mobile G1 (also made by HTC).
Samsung's Android handset combines the Google-led mobile platform with a five-megapixel camera, GPS and a 320x480-pixel, 3.2-inch Active Matrix OLED (AMOLED) touchscreen. At 11.9mm thick, it uses a 1500 mAh battery and includes a 3.5mm headphone socket. The HTC Magic has a 320x480 3.2-inch LCD screen, a 3.2 megapixel camera, is 13.6mm thick and has a 1340 mAh battery. It has no 3.5mm headphone socket.
Based on current information from manufacturers, the i7500 will be the first non-HTC manufactured Android phone on sale. The device uses a 528MHz Qualcomm chipset and has 8GB of internal memory, with a micro-SD slot for up to 32GB of add-on memory.
The browser included in the i7500 will, according to O2's statement, be "Chrome-Lite". Android's browser has never been explicitly named, but is based on the same WebKit framework as Google's desktop browser, Chrome.
The pricing for O2 Germany's release of the i7500 has not yet been confirmed officially. Contacted on Monday, neither O2 UK nor Samsung itself had any details available on UK release dates or pricing. Vodafone Spain's pricing for the HTC Magic is from €19 (£17) to €199 (£17 to £180) on monthly tariffs from €62 to €21.
Other manufacturers scheduled to bring out Android handsets include Sony Ericsson, Motorola and Acer.
Monday 18 May 2009
What mobile phone should I get?
What mobile phone should I get?
I am about to get a new mobile phone and have done a lot of research and thought I'd share what I have found with you!
After sifting through the internet, I came up with 3 main contenders:
• Samsung Omnia HD (i8910)
• Nokia N97
• Sony Ericsson Idou
Samsung pros:
-600 MHz processor
-8 Mega pixel camera
-XVid and DivX support
-AMOLED HD Captive touch screen 360X640
-HSDPA 7.2 Mbps (faster surfing)
-24 fps HD(1280 x 720p) Video recording
-HDMI out (via dongle)
-3.5 mm headphone jack
-Great battery life
-5.1 surround sound
-Supports HSDPA downloads of up to 7.2 Mbps, and HSUPA uploads at up to 5.76 Mbp
-
Samsung Cons:
-No TV out
-Call quality not that good
-Single LED flash
-Available in 8GB and 16 GB
------------------------------------------------------
Nokia N97 pros
-Full Qwerty Keyboard
-TV out cable
-TFT Resistive touch screen 360X480
-Great call quality
-3.5 mm headphone jack
-Great battery life
-Dual LED Flash
-32 GB memory as standard
Nokia N97 cons
-Only 5 Mpeg Camera
-Touch screen not responsive
-Only 400mhz Processor
-No XVid or DivX support
-
-----------------------------------------
Sony Ericsson Idou Pros.
-12 Mpeg Camera
-Xenon flash
-rumoured to have 800mhz or maybe even 1ghz processor speed.
Sony Ericsson Idou Cons.
-No XVid and DivX support
-No 3.5 mm headphone jack
-Poor battery life
Summary
As far as I am concerned, apart from the 12 Mega Pixel camera and the Xenon flash, the Sony Ericsson is a very poor phone and is out of the running. I cannot believe that they have not included a standard headphone jack. This leaves the Nokia N97 and the Samsung Omnia HD.
The Nokia is a good device; before I saw the Samsung Omnia HD I had my heart set on getting one. However, compared to the Samsung Omnia HD it looks rather cheap and plasticy and form the You Tube demo videos that I have seen, the Operating System (OS) is very sluggish (I believe this is due to the 400 MHz processor). The camera on the Nokia N97 is the same as that was used on the N95 don’t get me wrong it’s a good camera which is capable of recording DVD quality video, but I was expecting more. The slide out full Qwerty keyboard is a good touch, but with a screen of this size, it’d be easier to include a soft keyboard. And finally the touch screen is resistive rather then captive which takes a lot of getting used to.
This leaves the Samsung Omnia HD which I have decided is the phone for me for the following reasons:
- AMOLED HD Captive touch screen 360X640
- Very Responsive OS
- DivX and XVid support
- 5.1 surround sound
- 8 Mega pixel camera
- 24 fps HD(1280 x 720p) Video recording
- 3.5 mm headphone jack
- Great battery life
This is a hugely impressive device, Samsung have successfully challenged Nokia, Sonny Erickson and Apple (I Phone) on their own turf with an exceptional smart phone (pity about the call quality). The Samsung Omnia HD should be available in the UK by the end of June, there is no release date the US or Europe as yet.
I am about to get a new mobile phone and have done a lot of research and thought I'd share what I have found with you!
After sifting through the internet, I came up with 3 main contenders:
• Samsung Omnia HD (i8910)
• Nokia N97
• Sony Ericsson Idou
Samsung pros:
-600 MHz processor
-8 Mega pixel camera
-XVid and DivX support
-AMOLED HD Captive touch screen 360X640
-HSDPA 7.2 Mbps (faster surfing)
-24 fps HD(1280 x 720p) Video recording
-HDMI out (via dongle)
-3.5 mm headphone jack
-Great battery life
-5.1 surround sound
-Supports HSDPA downloads of up to 7.2 Mbps, and HSUPA uploads at up to 5.76 Mbp
-
Samsung Cons:
-No TV out
-Call quality not that good
-Single LED flash
-Available in 8GB and 16 GB
------------------------------------------------------
Nokia N97 pros
-Full Qwerty Keyboard
-TV out cable
-TFT Resistive touch screen 360X480
-Great call quality
-3.5 mm headphone jack
-Great battery life
-Dual LED Flash
-32 GB memory as standard
Nokia N97 cons
-Only 5 Mpeg Camera
-Touch screen not responsive
-Only 400mhz Processor
-No XVid or DivX support
-
-----------------------------------------
Sony Ericsson Idou Pros.
-12 Mpeg Camera
-Xenon flash
-rumoured to have 800mhz or maybe even 1ghz processor speed.
Sony Ericsson Idou Cons.
-No XVid and DivX support
-No 3.5 mm headphone jack
-Poor battery life
Summary
As far as I am concerned, apart from the 12 Mega Pixel camera and the Xenon flash, the Sony Ericsson is a very poor phone and is out of the running. I cannot believe that they have not included a standard headphone jack. This leaves the Nokia N97 and the Samsung Omnia HD.
The Nokia is a good device; before I saw the Samsung Omnia HD I had my heart set on getting one. However, compared to the Samsung Omnia HD it looks rather cheap and plasticy and form the You Tube demo videos that I have seen, the Operating System (OS) is very sluggish (I believe this is due to the 400 MHz processor). The camera on the Nokia N97 is the same as that was used on the N95 don’t get me wrong it’s a good camera which is capable of recording DVD quality video, but I was expecting more. The slide out full Qwerty keyboard is a good touch, but with a screen of this size, it’d be easier to include a soft keyboard. And finally the touch screen is resistive rather then captive which takes a lot of getting used to.
This leaves the Samsung Omnia HD which I have decided is the phone for me for the following reasons:
- AMOLED HD Captive touch screen 360X640
- Very Responsive OS
- DivX and XVid support
- 5.1 surround sound
- 8 Mega pixel camera
- 24 fps HD(1280 x 720p) Video recording
- 3.5 mm headphone jack
- Great battery life
This is a hugely impressive device, Samsung have successfully challenged Nokia, Sonny Erickson and Apple (I Phone) on their own turf with an exceptional smart phone (pity about the call quality). The Samsung Omnia HD should be available in the UK by the end of June, there is no release date the US or Europe as yet.
Tuesday 17 February 2009
New Nokia N97
The Nokia N97 combines a large 3.5" touch display with a full QWERTY keyboard, Satellite Navigation and a 5 mega pixel camera.
Although it has touchscreen functionality, the user experience is not as fluid as the i-Phone. (Come on Nokia, you have been in the mobile business longer than Apple) However it has been reported to work well; incorporating an accelerometer (which basically means that the image on the screen tilts as you tilt the phone) and a very larger screen it makes the job of mobile surfing a lot easier.
Although it has touchscreen functionality, the user experience is not as fluid as the i-Phone. (Come on Nokia, you have been in the mobile business longer than Apple) However it has been reported to work well; incorporating an accelerometer (which basically means that the image on the screen tilts as you tilt the phone) and a very larger screen it makes the job of mobile surfing a lot easier.
The full QWERTY keyboard looks easy to use, neat and tidy. It makes the phone look like a miniature laptop. In fact the phone is so full of features, Nokia are marketing the phone as a personal computer. I personally think that it’s not yet there. The downside of the slide out keyboard is that it makes the phone rather chunky, especially in comparison to the slim and sexy i-Phone.
It has a 5 mega pixel camera (the same as the N95 and N96) considering that this is a mobile phone the picture and video quality is very good, but there are already mobile phones out there with 8.1 mega pixel cameras (Samsung i8510). I was really expecting HD capabilities.
The handset comes preinstalled with Nokia maps and a host of other widgets. The big seller for me is that the phone is shipped with 32GB of internal memory and expandable via a SD memory slot by 16 GB. Excellent!
I think that this is a better handset than the i-Phone as you do not have to upload all your music to i-Tunes then download it to your phone before you can listen to it. ( What a silly idea, Apple sort your life out) With the N97 If the battery dies on you – you can replace it yourself. With the i-Phone you have to send it to Timbuktu to get a new battery. God alone knows how they expect you to make phone calls; this gets worse especially in the future when we are meant to be paying for items via your mobile phones) The Nokia N97 has Bluetooth which enables you can send your favourite pictures, videos, music etc to you mates. You can connect to wireless headphones, hands free car kits, car stereos and the list go on and on. The i-Phone does not have bluetooth. The Nokia allows you to stream all Active X media to your phone. This allows you to access Tube 8 (for all you naughty folk, it’s what the internet is for, apparently!), Meta Café, BBC I player etc and not only you tube which is the case with the i-Phone.
If you are interested in getting your hands on one the Nokia n97, it is out at the end of May 2009. If you cannot wait that long, then buy yourself a ticket and fly to Barcelona where the N97 is Nokia’s star attraction at the Mobile tech conference.
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