Samsung Galaxy Y Duos

    

At one point an almost exclusive Nokia territory, the low-end market is now fair game for cheap smartphones and the Galaxy Y Duos doesn't have to try hard to make itself comfortable.

The Galaxy Y Duos builds on the single-SIM Galaxy Y with a slightly larger screen, a higher-resolution camera, larger capacity battery and, most importantly, an extra SIM slot. The latter will, of course, be its key selling point in emerging markets, but here's what else is on offer.

Pros:

• Dual-SIM (dual stand-by)
• Quad-Band GSM and dual-band 3G support
• 7.2 Mbps HSDPA
• SIM switch in notification area
• 3.14" 256K-color QVGA TFT touchscreen
• 832MHz ARMv6 processor, 290MB of RAM
• Android OS v2.3.5 (Gingerbread) with TouchWiz UI
• 160MB of internal storage, hot-swappable MicroSD slot, 2GB card included
• 3.15 MP fixed-focus camera with geotagging
• GPS receiver with A-GPS
• Stereo FM radio with RDS
• 3.5mm audio jack
• Document viewer
• Accelerometer and proximity sensor
• Swype text input
• MicroUSB port (charging) and stereo Bluetooth 3.0
• Social network integration

Cons:

• Low screen resolution limits choice of apps
• Fixed focus camera
• No secondary camera
• No camera flash, no dedicated camera key
• QVGA video recording @24fps is pretty low
• No Adobe Flash support

The Galaxy Y Duos is aimed at entry level smartphone enthusiasts who want to make the best out of a limited budget. This dual-SIM droid is based on the original Galaxy Y - which in turn was a cut above the usual dumbphone.

Sony Xperia sola

Pros:

• Quad-band GSM /GPRS/EDGE support
• 3.7" 16M-color capacitive touchscreen of Full WVGA resolution (854 x 480 pixels) with Sony Mobile BRAVIA engine; Floating touch display
• 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 geo-tagging, 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 (5 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
• NFC connectivity and included NFC tags

Cons:

• No front-facing camera
• No Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich out of box
• Display has poor viewing angles
• Stiff and unresponsive shutter key
• Non user-replaceable battery

The Sony Xperia sola strives to give you a feature-rich experience to set itself apart from the crowd of midrange droids. The Smart tags are definitely a step in the right direction, with NFC continuing to pick up steam. Overall, the Xperia sola has a competitive set of features for its price range and the Floating Touch technology adds a measure of exclusivity. The display can react to not only taps but hovering fingers.

Samsung Galaxy Ace 2 I8160

   
The Galaxy Ace 2 has grown up a bit on the outside, with the most notable change being the screen - it's now a 3.8" PLS LCD unit of WVGA resolution (480 x 800) with a density of 246ppi. Samsung decided to keep the camera resolution on the new Galaxy Ace at 5MP, but they enabled 720p recording and added a front-facing camera.

The internals held a pleasant surprise too - the dual-core processor runs at 800MHz and is well endowed with 768MB of RAM (quite a few dual-cores come with just 512MB). The GPU is Mali-400MP, so as far as 3D performance is concerned, the Ace 2 should match the Galaxy S II.

Features:

• General: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, UMTS 900/2100 MHz, HSDPA 14.4 Mbps
• Form factor: Touchscreen bar
• Dimensions: 118.3 x 62.2 x 10.5 mm, 122 g
• Display: 3.8" 16M-color WVGA (480 x 800 pixels) PLS TFT capacitive touchscreen
• Chipset: 800MHz dual-core processor, Mali-400MP GPU, 768MB RAM
• OS: Android 2.3.6 (Gingerbread)
• Memory: 4 GB of inbuilt storage, microSD card slot (up to 32 GB)
• Camera: 5 megapixel auto-focus, face and smile detection; 720p (1280 x 720) video recording at 30fps
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi b/g/n, Wi-Fi hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, stereo Bluetooth 3.0, standard microUSB port, GPS receiver with A-GPS and GLONASS, 3.5mm audio jack, stereo FM radio with RDS
• Misc: TouchWiz 4.0 UI, built-in accelerometer, multi-touch input, proximity sensor, Swype text input, 1500mAh battery

The Galaxy Ace 2 is higher up on the totem pole than the Ace Plus, very close actually to the Galaxy S Advance. This is potentially one of the best phones in terms of bang for buck.

To get there, solid experience is needed right out of the box and the Ace 2 seems to fit the bill. The processing power is backed by decent storage internal storage and a rich software package (an Office document editor, video player that handles 720p MKVs, social networking, etc).

Sony Xperia P

Pros:

• Aluminum unibody
• Quad-band GSM /GPRS/EDGE support
• 3G with 14.4 Mbps HSDPA and 5.76 Mbps HSUPA
• Bright 4" 16M-color capacitive LED-backlit LCD touchscreen of qHD resolution (540 x 960 pixels) with Sony Mobile BRAVIA engine and WhiteMagic (fourth white subpixel); Scratch-resistant glass
• Android OS v2.3.7 Gingerbread, planned Android 4.0 ICS update
• Dual-core 1 GHz Cortex-A9 CPU, 1 GB RAM, Mali-400 GPU, NovaThor U8500 chipset
• 8 MP autofocus camera with LED flash and geotagging, Multi Angle shot
• 1080p video recording @ 30fps with continuous autofocus and stereo sound
• VGA front-facing camera
• Wi-Fi b/g/n and DLNA
• Built-in GPS receiver with A-GPS
• NFC connectivity
• 16GB built-in storage (13GB user accessible)
• microHDMI port, dedicated TV launcher
• 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

Cons:

• No Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich out of the box
• Display has poor blacks, high brightness levels result in poor color rendering and loss of contrast
• No memory card slot
• microSIM only
• Modest battery capacity of only 1305mAh results in mediocre battery life

Sony Xperia U

Pros:

• 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

Cons:

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

The Sony Xperia U specs sheet reads like a high-end device for the most part and the design of the smartphone easily manages to keep pace. Sure it's not the slim sweetness of the Xpera ray, but the Xperia U is still nicely compact and the transparent strip, which changes its color to match the screen contents, is a cool accent.

First BlackBerry 10

The Washington Post is reporting on a curious decision by RIM - the first BlackBerry 10 device to launch will be touchscreen-only. RIM isn't abandoning their trademark - the full hardware QWERTY keyboard - as such devices will still come later on.

While it's true that touch-only devices running iOS or Android are taking BlackBerry's lunch money, the solid typing experience is one of the main reasons people still buy a BlackBerry.

In fact, with most droids forsaking the physical keyboard (and iPhones which never had one), a BlackBerry is one of the few options for people who hate typing on virtual keyboards.

RIM already have a touch-only design for a BlackBerry 10 phone, the developer alpha unit they unveiled in May. One analyst from Jeffries says that BB 10 is all about catching up with Apple in terms of touch and multimedia experience.

He goes on to add "They are going to build a BlackBerry device with a keyboard, but it’s just going to take longer. Maybe it will come a month or two after, but frankly it might be already too late."

Any way you cut it, starting with a touch-only BlackBerry is a gamble. And while the company is not in a good position to lose a bet, if it pays off RIM might start reclaiming some of that lost marketshare.

Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III

The Koreans took their time with the new flagship, giving the predecessor a full year at the helm. But they were taking no chances and they've got the spec sheet to prove it. With most of the hardware made by Samsung themselves, the Galaxy S III is an endless list of mind-blowing numbers. The quad-core beast packs a 720p Super AMOLED screen and a massive battery, but keeps its slim waistline.

   

Pros:

• Quad-band GSM and quad-band 3G support
• 21 Mbps HSDPA and 5.76 Mbps HSUPA support
• 4.8" 16M-color Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen of HD (720 x 1280 pixel) resolution; Corning Gorilla Glass 2
• Android OS v4.0.4 with TouchWiz launcher
• 1.4 GHz quad-core Cortex-A9 CPU, Mali-400MP GPU, Exynos 4 Quad chipset, 1GB of RAM
• 8 MP wide-angle lens autofocus camera with LED flash, face, smile and blink detection
• 1080p HD video recording at 30fps
• Dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11 b, g, n
• GPS with A-GPS connectivity; GLONASS support, Digital compass
• 16/32/64GB internal storage, microSD slot
• Accelerometer, gyroscope and proximity sensor
• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
• microUSB port with USB host and TV-out (1080p) support, MHL, charging
• Stereo Bluetooth v4.0
• FM radio with RDS
• Great audio quality
• Super slim at only 8.6mm
• 2MP secondary video-call camera
• Full Flash for the web browser
• NFC support
• Document editor
• File manager comes preinstalled
• Extremely rich video and audio codec support
• Impressively large 2100 mAh battery

Cons:

• All-plastic body of dubious aesthetics
• No dedicated camera key
• microSIM slot
• S Voice is hardly as functional as ads might make you believe

A long list of assets and a rather short list of cons speak volumes about the amount of effort that went into building the Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III. Were they just trying to improve each and every aspect of the user experience over the Galaxy S II, or was creating the ultimate droid their goal all along? The more we think about it, the more it looks the same.

Nokia 808 PureView

Pros:

• 38 megapixel autofocus camera with xenon flash and 1080p@30fps video recording
• Two capture modes: 38MP/34MP full-res and 3MP/5MP/8MP PureView
• Camera features: giant 1/1.2" camera sensor, mechanical shutter, ND filter, geotagging, face detection, up to 4x lossless digital zoom
• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support
• Penta-band 3G with 14.4 Mbps HSDPA and 5.76 Mbps HSUPA support
• 4" 16M-color AMOLED capacitive touchscreen of 640 x 360 pixel resolution
• Nokia Belle OS with Feature Pack 1
• Single-core 1.3 GHz ARM 11 CPU and 512 MB RAM
• Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n with DLNA and UPnP
• microHDMI port for HD TV-out functionality
• GPS receiver with A-GPS support and free voice-guided navigation
• Digital compass
• 16GB on-board storage, expandable up to 32GB through the microSD card slot
• Active noise cancellation with a dedicated mic
• DivX and XviD video support
• Built-in accelerometer and proximity sensor
• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
• Stereo FM Radio with RDS, FM transmitter
• microUSB port with USB On-the-go support
• Stereo Bluetooth 3.0 with A2DP
• NFC support
• Smart and voice dialing
• Scratch resistant Gorilla glass display

Cons:

• Symbian ecosystem lags behind Android and iOS
• nHD resolution wears thin on the 4" screen
• The phone is quite bulky and heavy
• Relatively limited 3rd party software availability
• microSIM support

The 808 PureView has no business with cameraphones as we know them. It can look down at any of the smartphone flagships of the competition and make fun of their so-called advanced camera tricks. But guess what - it doesn't. It's so much better than that.

And of course the flipside is that the smartphone is not of the same order as the cameraphone. The Symbian-powered Nokia 808 PureView knows darn well it cannot match the quad-cores, HD screens and the app stores of the competition.

iPhone 4 goes into 'self combustion' mode

One of the iPhone 4 decided to go rogue yesterday while on board a flight to Sydney. Just as the flight was about to land the device was said to produce 'a significant amounts of dense smoke, accompanied by a red glow', according to the Australian airline Regional Express.

No one knows what could have triggered the incident but looking at the marks on the back of the phone, it was likely caused due to a faulty battery.

Fortunately, other than creating a bit of panic no one was harmed due to the occurrence of this incident. Whether it was caused due to the phone being on-board a flight is yet to be determined.

As of now the device has been detained by Australian Transport Safety Bureau for analysis.

Samsung wins patent battle against Apple

The Dutch supreme court in the Hague has ruled that Apple provide compensation to Samsung for infringement of various 3G patents. The infringing devices include previous generation Apple phones and tablets, namely the iPad 2 and iPhone 4, but not the new iPad or iPhone 4S.

These later models were excluded because Apple switched to a new chipset provided by Qualcomm, who in turn have licenses for the patents from Samsung. As a Qualcomm customer, it was ruled that that the licensing covered Apple as well.

Samsung wasn't able to block the devices' sales altogether, but the Koreans claim they will now use the ruling to seek compensation.

"Samsung welcomes the decision of the court in The Hague, which again confirms that Apple makes free use of our technological innovations…In accordance with this statement, we will recover adequate damages that Apple and its products have caused."

This is the most recent blow struck between the two tech giants, who have been trading copyright infringement lawsuits across numerous courts around the globe.