HandsOn Archive

  • Samsung Windows Phone 7 prototype hands-on

    Samsung Windows Phone 7 prototype hands-on

    It's been a bit of a unicorn since making a quick appearance at MIX, but we just got the chance to go hands-on with Samsung's Omnia i8910-based Windows Phone 7 prototype phone. Interestingly, we were told that this hardware will never be released to market -- it's just for testing purposes right now. That testing is going quite well, as far as we can see -- Microsoft's people are starting to carry WP7 devices as their personal phones now, and while the software is still quite buggy, the build we saw in action was noticeably faster than before. We were also told that the hardware in the pipeline -- particularly from Samsung -- is apparently quite spectacular, and that this particular device doesn't represent the launch set of devices. We'll have to see -- we actually thought this prototype was quite handsome in person, although it's a little thicker than you might expect. Hit up the gallery for some more pics!

    Samsung Windows Phone 7 prototype hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Jun 2010 20:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Sony Ericsson’s 3-inch Xperia X8 made official, coming in Q3 2010 for €259

    Sony Ericsson’s 3-inch Xperia X8 made official, coming in Q3 2010 for €259

    While the real Shakira may be busy gallivanting over in South Africa, Sony Ericsson's handset that bore the same (code)name has today been unveiled as the latest member of the Xperia line. Bridging the gap between the fully formed X10 and its Mini siblings, the 3-inch Xperia X8 will run Android 1.6 somewhere deep underneath a comprehensively customized skin.That means you get Sony Ericsson's social (Timescape) and media (Mediascape) aggregators whether you like them or not, and by the looks of the early hands-on pictures, it seems like a straight port of the UI available on the X10 Mini. A 3.2 megapixel camera is available around back, with WiFi, a 600MHz CPU, 1,200mAh battery, and interchangeable covers completing the value proposition. The X8 will cost around €259 ($318) when it launches in the third quarter of this year. Hit the sources for more pictures.

    Continue reading Sony Ericsson's 3-inch Xperia X8 made official, coming in Q3 2010 for €259

    Sony Ericsson's 3-inch Xperia X8 made official, coming in Q3 2010 for €259 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Jun 2010 04:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • SlingPlayer Mobile for Android beta preview

    SlingPlayer Mobile for Android beta preview

    We can practically hear the collective sigh of relief among Slingbox owners now that Sling's finally just about ready to push out a version of SlingPlayer Mobile for Android -- by far the biggest hole in the company's lineup of mobile players ever since the iPhone version went live. This is no mere port, though; the company is boasting that it worked hard here to reduce load times, meaning the total wait you've got from app load to the time you're actually seeing General Hospital should be less than you're accustomed to, and that's a big win in our book. Check out our quick impressions (and video) after the break!

    Continue reading SlingPlayer Mobile for Android beta preview

    SlingPlayer Mobile for Android beta preview originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Fri, 28 May 2010 13:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • LG Fathom VS750 review

    LG Fathom VS750 review

    Falling somewhere between the flash of the Chocolate and no-frills, no surprises industrial design of the recently launched Ally, LG has outed the Fathom (aka VS750) with little fanfare. Featuring a mercifully unadorned WinMo 6.5.3 (save for wallpaper, pictured above, designed by a certain Vera Wang), a 1GHz CPU, quad band GSM, and a handful of AC adapters for charging all over Europe and the UK, this is a device clearly meant to go global. But will it capture people's hearts and minds? Read on to find out.

    Continue reading LG Fathom VS750 review

    LG Fathom VS750 review originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Mon, 24 May 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Sony Ericsson Xperia Pureness hands-on

    Sony Ericsson Xperia Pureness hands-on

    Occasionally, a phone exists simply because it can. Not because it's powerful; not because it offers amazing bang for the buck; not because the manufacturer negotiated some lucrative exclusivity agreement with a major carrier, and certainly not because it's introducing some groundbreaking new smartphone operating system. Yeah -- not even Sony Ericsson is attempting to frame or formulate a legitimate business case for the sinfully hedonistic Xperia Pureness, because they don't have to. One look at that wild transparent display and you'll either be smitten or confused and dismayed by the $1,000 sticker price. It's that simple.

    Anyhow, we've just taken delivery of a Pureness today and have had a few fleeting moments to check it out. If it weren't for the screen, you'd be looking at a $30 prepaid candybar here -- you don't have a camera, a high-res display, or any sexy metal or soft-touch bits to give the phone a premium feel. The UI is about the simplest possible incarnation of Sony Ericsson's typical dumbphone platform, owing largely to the fact that the display's just grayscale; you've got an FM radio (with a headset attached) and a basic music player and browser, but if you're in North America, don't expect any 3G.

    That said, seriously, look at that shot we took up there: the display is insane. We can't quite get over it -- it's the ultimate conversation piece. Motorola Aura owners looking for a fresh way to draw a crowd might look at this as their next purchase, but if you're looking to do anything but talk (and occasionally browse an eerily translucent version of Engadget), make no mistake, this isn't your phone. Did we mention we want one really, really badly?

    Sony Ericsson Xperia Pureness hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Dec 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Nokia N900 quick hands-on

    Nokia N900 quick hands-on

    Filed under: , , , , , , ,

    We've finally had a chance to play around at length with a very late pre-production version of Nokia's N900 (retail units are already shipping, but not to our neck of the woods just yet) and we wanted to scribble out a few notes for you before taking delivery of a final build for a full review hopefully in the next week or two. Here are some highlights we've noticed so far:
    • Processor, processor, processor. Oh, and did we mention the processor? The N900's Cortex A8-based core yields significant improvements in day-to-day usability over the N810's ARM11 unit.
    • Though it's still quite raw and feature-incomplete, Maemo 5 is by far the most user-friendly version of the platform to date, if for no other reason than the fact that it's very pretty. Screen transitions are smooth and look great, the home screen is as attractive and versatile as any widget-based home screen on the market today, and the Expose-style task switcher is a welcome addition.
    • The N900 may very well offer the best browsing experience of any smartphone on the market today (yes, including the iPhone). What little ground it gives up in user friendliness is more than countered by the fact that you have the closest thing you can get to a desktop-class browser in a device of this size and form factor; it's straight-up Mozilla, after all, and everything renders faithfully. Flash doesn't blaze, but at least the Cortex A8 makes it usable.
    Follow the break for more impressions and a quick rundown on video!

    Continue reading Nokia N900 quick hands-on

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

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • HTC’s HD2 has landed at Engadget (hands-on)

    HTC’s HD2 has landed at Engadget (hands-on)

    Filed under:

    That's right... the HD2 has landed. Actually, we took the phone over to Late Night with Jimmy Fallon the other day, but didn't get a chance to show it off, so here we are. Sure, you've seen this guy in action in earlier videos... but it's still nice to get a look at this monster up close. We're still blown away by the fact that this is a Windows Mobile 6.5 device -- the skinning job that HTC has done here is nothing short of a miracle. So far we've found the phone to be snappy and responsive, but we're currently putting it through its paces. We'll have a full review shortly, but for now, feast your eyes on the photos below -- and start saving for that imminent US launch.

    HTC's HD2 has landed at Engadget (hands-on) originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Samsung Moment review

    Samsung Moment review

    Filed under: , , , , ,

    In the world of Android, it's not yet clear who's going to come out victorious -- QWERTY sliders or their keyboardless brethren -- but does there really need to be a winner? We say there's room for just about everyone in this open-source party, and Sprint is starting to round out its Android offerings by introducing the keyboard-equipped Samsung Moment to saddle up alongside the the HTC Hero that was released a few weeks ago. In the scheme of things, the platform is still extraordinarily young which means that virtually every new handset that's announced brings "firsts" to the table; in the Moment's case, it's both the first Android device with an 800MHz ARM11 core and the first Android QWERTY phone with an AMOLED display (you'd have to go back to another Sammy, the Galaxy, to find the first AMOLED Android phone regardless of input method).

    Being able to stuff Android, AMOLED, QWERTY, and 800MHz all into one sentence certainly sounds like a winning combination, but does the Moment deliver? Let's find out.

    Continue reading Samsung Moment review

    Samsung Moment review originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • BlackBerry Bold 9700 gets handled, appreciated for its nuances

    BlackBerry Bold 9700 gets handled, appreciated for its nuances

    Filed under: , , , , , , , , ,

    Our dear colleagues over at Engadget German have had a chance to play with RIM's just-announced BlackBerry Bold 9700 today, and every indication we've gotten is that this thing is a perfect -- if not extremely conservative -- successor to the first-generation Bold. Interface and network speed are both praised (both the 9700 and the Bold before it feature a 624MHz core, so there's some magic going on here) and the microSD card is now hot-swappable, meaning that you've got a theoretically limitless supply of storage space if you happen to be carrying around a pocketful of 16GB cards. Check out the full gallery below, and naturally, stay tuned for a review of this bad boy just as soon as is humanly possible.

    BlackBerry Bold 9700 gets handled, appreciated for its nuances originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Pantech Reveal and Impact revealed with impact

    Pantech Reveal and Impact revealed with impact

    Filed under: , , , , , , ,

    We've just checked out Pantech's new pair of messaging-friendly phones for AT&T, the Reveal and Impact; one of them left an "impact" on us, and we'll let you guess which one (hint: it's the one that would result in a pun occurring). Yeah, the Reveal was a pretty cheap-looking set -- and we're not sure we understand the value of eating of screen real estate with a dedicated numeric pad just so you don't have to slide the phone open to dial -- but the Impact (pictured above) was a genuinely intriguing phone. Up front you've got a glossy black surface that lights up to reveal a basic monochrome display and a numeric pad; pressing buttons on the pad triggers haptics so you can sorta feel your way around. Opening the phone up produces a full QWERTY keyboard with dedicated buttons for key functions (messaging, for example) and a color display with stereo speakers on either side. It's not a huge widescreen like you might find on something like an enV Touch, but it's still pretty big, plenty vibrant, and serviceable for the full HTML browser that AT&T's touting in these new devices. Pantech tells us that the Impact will go for "under $80" when it ships next month, so we'd argue that makes it a heck of a bargain in light of the unusual, slick design and the dual displays.

    Pantech Reveal and Impact revealed with impact originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 08:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Samsung Omnia II for Verizon in the flesh, Windows Mobile 6.1 on board

    Samsung Omnia II for Verizon in the flesh, Windows Mobile 6.1 on board

    Filed under: , , , , , ,

    We finally got a good, hard look at the Verizon-customized version of Samsung's Omnia II, and we've got good news and bad news: the good news is that the phone's a darker, more reasonable shade in person than it was in that press shot we'd seen before, but the bad news is that we've confirmed it's running 6.1. Anyone daring to release a 6.1 phone at this point is at serious risk of getting laughed out of the room unless they offer an upgrade path mere minutes afterwards, so we're hoping that by the time this is on shelves, it'll either be running 6.5 out of the box or there'll be an update program announced in conjunction with the release. Otherwise, the display's absolutely phenomenal (indoors, anyhow) and TouchWiz seems to work as well as it did on the original model, though scrolling through menus got a bit laggy at times -- isn't it kinda weird that a years-old platform can practically max out a circa-2009 device? Check out a quick gallery below.

    Samsung Omnia II for Verizon in the flesh, Windows Mobile 6.1 on board originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 18:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Kempler & Strauss’ Billionair B6 and B7 pose alongside the W watchphone

    Kempler & Strauss’ Billionair B6 and B7 pose alongside the W watchphone

    Filed under: , , , , , , ,

    Kempler & Strauss -- which pretty much came out of nowhere this week to announce a pair of 3G WinMo devices and a watchphone -- is pulling out all the stops here at CTIA to get its new products noticed, so everything they've got is on display and ready to use (or in some cases, wear). First up are the Billionair B6 and B7, full touch and portrait QWERTY WinMo devices respectively that currently run 6.1 -- but we're told that 6.5 upgrades will be available by the end of the year. Neither phone looks that awesome and feel generally cheap; the B6 borrows styling cues from the original HTC Touch, to boot, so there's an overal KIRFy feel to the thing. The skin they've dropped atop the operating system is pretty uninspiring, too -- though many WinMo skins look uninspiring when they're up against something thoroughly modern like a recent build of TouchFLO 3D. The phones' saving grace might be the fact that they're cheap -- sub-$300 -- and in the case of the B7, the combo portrait keyboard / QVGA touchscreen is still a nice, sadly too-rare combo.

    Turning our attention to the more interesting device of the trio, the W is a watchphone that employs a pretty standard GUI we've seen on similar models, but this one employs perhaps the most livable styling that we've seen this side of an LG GD910, and it all comes at a small fraction of the price. The touchscreen doesn't come with a traditional stylus, per se, but instead you get a "communicator" accessory that functions as a combination stylus / Bluetooth handsfree / remote control -- pretty cool, although we'd feel pretty silly (and sad) if we misplaced it. At $200, we could almost justify buying one of these just for the sheer novelty of it -- just don't expect desktop-class browsing on that display, and you should be a happy camper.

    Kempler & Strauss' Billionair B6 and B7 pose alongside the W watchphone originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 14:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story