Mobile Phone Reviews – Samsung M7600 Beat DJ

October 21st, 2010 | Mobile Phone Reviews, Samsung

Not one of the latest mobile phones, but certainly one of the more unique, is the Samsung Beat DJ, which is (as you might guess) a music phone. The Beat DJ primary market is the younger crowd – or those of us still between the ages of 16 and 25. To appeal to that demographic, the Beat DJ includes a “revolutionary” virtual turntable application. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been so revolutionary. Instead of the talk of the town, what was created was a gimmick that kept people interested for a day or two. But, all is not lost.

The Beat DJ is a good-looking phone. The shape is elliptical with a 2.8 inch AMOLED touch screen on front and 3 megapixel camera on back. And the phone comes with a great set of features – the music specs are excellent and the overall features include almost everything you could ask for. Unfortunately, what’s missing is the user experience to go with it.

What really lets this phone down is the touch screen. It’s an updated version of Samsung’s TouchWiz UI and one of those notorious Samsung special screens; ones that barely recognise it when you’re touching them? With no physical keys to take away the pain, every entry is agony inducing. And then there is that “revolutionary” turntable; which is rendered useless because it doesn’t respond to your touch in time.

The Samsung Beat DJ isn’t a great phone, but it does include some excellent features. So for this one, we’ll say “E for effort”.

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LG GM750 Review

October 18th, 2010 | LG, Mobile Phone Reviews, Touchscreen

The LG GM750 is one of LG’s first entries into the Windows Mobile platform market.  The GM750 is designed primarily around easy synchronisation with your existing Windows PC, as well as developing streamlined multitasking both on the device itself as well as in tandem with your existing windows computer.  Switching between multiple home windows and applications is a breeze, and works well despite limited processing power and capabilities on the device.

For users who have Microsoft Office on their computers, the LG GM750 is a real treat to work with, allowing easy reading and minor editing of word and excel documents on the fly.  While this is excellent, it’s unfortunate that such a modern device refuses to either support a full QWERTY keypad or Bluetooth keyboard to make larger changes or create entirely new documents.  Synchronizing your handset with your Windows PC is a snap, and is quite the useful feature for both home and business users.

While the GM750 can handle multiple instances of smaller applications such as Microsoft Word and Excel, it’s important to note that when handling multiple web browsers or multiple pieces of multimedia content, the system has a tendency to slow down and lock up.  The device can be slow to wake up from stand by, even if there is no application already running in the background.  All in all, the LG GM750 is a solid device, however much of its usefulness and credit goes to the Windows Mobile 6.1 operating system. Phones will become more powerful and this technology will be utilised better, but for now, the LG GM750 is for early adopters only.

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Samsung i8510 Innov8 Review

October 17th, 2010 | Camera Phones, Mobile Phone Reviews, Mobile Phones, Touchscreen

When you compare mobile phones, it is easy to see that the i8510 Innov8 is Samsung’s response to Nokia’s N95 – a do-everything phone that looks and acts its part.

Just like the N95, the i8510 uses the Symbian OS. There isn’t a touch screen, but the keypad is easy to use and great for texting. The large screen makes movies and videos a pleasant experience, and the phone supports DivX, which is excellent if you want to store large clips or films.

Also included is an 8 megapixel camera. Photos taken in daylight look amazing and an automatic panorama mode lets you put photos together to create a panoramic scene. There is also a slow-motion mode. This phone really has a bit of everything a user could want, from HSDPA to Wi-Fi and GPS, with 16 GB of on-board memory. And, if that isn’t enough, there is a MicroSD card for further memory expansion and for music lovers, there is a decent music system with a 3.5mm headphone jack.

There is little negative about this phone, the touch-sensitive navigation key was probably a bad idea, and the dual LED photo light lets the camera down. For users switching from Nokia, please note that not all of their (or DivX’s) apps are supported. By far one of the best of Samsung’s slider phone offerings, it’s a good-looking phone, well designed, with plenty of features.

For the latest mobile phone deals on the Samsung i850 Innov8, please see the provider’s website.

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HTC Touch 2 Review

October 15th, 2010 | HTC, Mobile Phone Reviews, Touchscreen

The HTC Touch 2 is a new smart phone offering from HTC, promising new functionality with the release of windows mobile 6.5. The Touch 2 promises to bring together new functionality and greater ease of use, all in one package.  The Internet Explorer web browser in the HTC Touch 2 is a very welcome addition, able to render full size web pages with an intuitive zoom feature.  Oddly enough, Internet Explorer is not the default option for web browsing, instead passing the honour onto Opera. In addition, the new access to My Phone allows users to wirelessly back up contacts, calendar dates, photos, music, and other files seamlessly with your online My Phone account. 

What’s odd however is that for a phone named the HTC Touch 2, there are simply better touch screens not only available in the open market, but on other models of HTC phone.  The display is not nearly as sensitive as it should be, requiring the unnecessary pressure using the included stylus, rather than a quick sweep like other smart phones.  In addition, there is no accelerometer built into the unit, and therefore it does not work in a landscape fashion when turned sideways.

All in all, the HTC Touch 2 is a weak addition to HTC’s existing phones and does not add much notable value.  For a phone called the touch, it simply lacks the high precision touch screens and functionality already available on competing mobile phones, while delivering little else along the way.

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Broadband compatibility

October 14th, 2010 | Broadband

Nowadays going online is easier than before, with most PCs, Macs and laptops requiring little configuration to obtain internet access.

For PCs there is likely to be very little to configure if you are using cable or ADSL broadband. Unless your computer is really old (pre Windows 95) you can probably get ADSL or cable working on your machine.

Windows XP, Vista and 7 are all very easy to configure and often require only that you plug your USB modem into your computer or that you plug in a network cable between your computer and your ADSL modem. Occasionally you may need to install special software but this is no longer common.

If you have Windows 2000, 98 or 95, you may need to do a bit of legwork to find compatible software but all of these will support basic web browsing.

Linux and Apple Mac computers can be trickier but Linux is really the toughest. Very few broadband providers include Linux software with their modems and even if you just use a network cable to connect your Linux computer to your modem you may need to do some very tricky configuration, often without the assistance of wizards and easy menus. However once up and running you should be able to complete the majority of internet tasks on a Linux system.

Macs, especially the newer models, are much easier to configure but earlier machines can be trickier, especially those before Mac OS X.

Thankfully for the majority of internet users, compatibility is no longer an issue, making the broadband experience available to everyone.

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Nokia E52 Review

October 10th, 2010 | Mobile Phone Reviews, Mobile Phones, Nokia

The Nokia E52 is the successor to the much-loved Nokia E51 and it promises so much more.  It may not have a posh touchscreen but it feels and looks good, slim and covered by a metallic coloured casing.  The 12-key keypad is clear and typing is easy, as is reading messages on the large screen.

The battery life of this phone is exceptional; you can listen to music, download images and browse the net without constantly having to recharge your handset.  The talk time is up to eight hours and the standby time is up to 552 hours, more than enough to impress anyone.

The camera has 3.2 megapixels, a video camera and player plus an LED flash.  It sounds standard but pictures taken with the camera, both inside and out, were either okay or slightly fuzzy.

The E52 runs with Symbian that makes downloading some applications a little bit fiddly.  Applications that run well with the system are Skype, Spotify, Opera Mini and Google. 

GPS works great with Google maps and the phone does have HSDPA and Wi-Fi, which means that you can browse the net at home or on the move quickly.

The audio player has good quality and the addition of a 3.5 mm headphone jack is always good, so that you can listen to your tracks on your favourite headphones.

Orange is offering a great deal on the E52: an 18-month contract gives you 600 minutes and unlimited texts for £25.00, and the handset is free.

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Sony Ericsson Satio Overview

October 8th, 2010 | Mobile Phone Reviews, Mobile Phones, Sony Ericsson, Touchscreen

It may not fall into the category of cheap mobile phones, but as Sony Ericsson mobile phones go, the Satio (or Idou as it is alternatively called) is a peach. Appearing last Christmas, it’s hardly amongst the latest mobile phones on the market, but with its superb 12 megapixel camera, it remains one of the most appealing.

Sony Ericsson initially seemed hesitant to develop touch screen phones but, happily, they’re going at it with gusto now and the Satio is one of the fruits of their recent intensive labours. The phone has a full touch screen display and uses the Symbian operating system and, whilst it’s narrower than the iPhone 3GS, the display still manages a creditable 3.2 inches. Even though the screen is resistive rather than capacitative, it’s surprisingly responsive – but the star of the show is undoubtedly the outstanding 12 megapixel camera. It comes with a powerful Xenon flash, smile detection, touch autofocus and face autofocus. Due to the integration of the camera interface onto the touch screen, the Satio feels very similar to a Sony digital camera and it’s a sheer delight to use.

There’s an excellent music player on the phone as well as an FM radio, but infuriatingly, there’s no 3.5 mm jack (this is a bad habit of Sony Ericsson’s). Another weakness, which becomes evident when you compare mobile phones like the Satio with its closest rivals, is the piddling storage capacity – it’s a meagre 128 MB, which looks positively Scrooge-like against other phones which are now commonly featuring memory in the gigabytes.

Even so, the Sony Ericsson Satio is still the best camera phone yet released, and it comes with plenty of positives, like HSDPA and Wi-Fi for fast data downloads, aGPS with Google Maps, and Bluetooth.

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Business broadband packages

October 2nd, 2010 | Broadband

If you think broadband comes in only the one flavour, such as Marmite, then think again.  There is a vast range of broadband packages and broadband providers to choose from; and it depends on your needs as to which you end up opting for.  The spectrum between broadband packages adequate for the average user, and those more suited to the heavy user, is very wide.  At the one end, there are those many users who just want to use the internet for an hour or so each day to check emails and visit a few websites, and at the other corporate entities that rely on their connection to support their business.

The services offered by business broadband packages are many and varied, and outside the range of the average user’s requirements.  Security and support are cases in point.  If your domestic connection runs into problems you will normally have to find an engineer to fix it.  For a business, time is money, and a service level agreement signed when the contract is taken out will ensure that a dedicated engineer will be on call at all times to either come in and fix the problem or else do so remotely.

On the security side, this is a major concern of all businesses.  They can hold the personal information of millions of customers on their databases and any leaks can cause untold damage to customers and business alike.  Innovative security software is typically deployed to combat viruses and hackers, although it will not of course protect data left accidentally on CDs in taxis or trains.  Compare broadband package features before committing to a service agreement.

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Motorola EM30 Review

October 1st, 2010 | Mobile Phone Reviews, Motorola Mobile Phones

Older Motorola phones can make excellent cheap mobile phones in comparison with the latest mobile phone models that tend to cost so much money. A look on sites where you can compare mobile phones will soon reveal some excellent deals.

The Motorola EM30 looks good with its sleek shape and bright red edging; the body of the handset is black. This particular mobile phone concentrates on ease and quality of making calls and music playback.  The whole thing measures just 10.6 mm deep and has a width of 53 mm and a height of 113 mm. The total weight including the battery is just a hundred grams, so it fits comfortably into the hand.

The screen has a resolution of 320 pixels by 240 pixels which is adequate. Underneath the screen there is a silver coloured navigation button with a selection of short cut keys. Below there is the keypad which Motorola calls a Modeshift keypad. What this means, put simply, is that the same keys do different things according to the mode the phone is in.  The music keys light up in red and the numerals in blue.

The built in radio supports RDS so that it can put details of the radio station being listened to on the screen. The music player supports all common formats available and there is a 3.5 mm stereo jack plug for a headset which is something that is often missing in newer mobile phones. A fully charged up battery gives six hours of continuous talk time or thirteen hours of music playback time.

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Motorola Milestone 2 Review

September 28th, 2010 | Mobile Phone Reviews, Mobile Phones, Motorola Mobile Phones, Touchscreen

The Motorola Milestone 2 is the latest in Motorola mobile phones and the direct follow up to last year’s phenomenally successful original Motorola Milestone.

Like the original, the Motorola Milestone 2 is relatively large in comparison to many other new mobile phones, with dimensions of 116.3 x 60.5 x 13.7 millimetres; it weighs about 169 grams which means, also like the original, it isn’t exactly a phone that you can forget you are carrying around with you in your pocket.  Fortunately, the reasons for the size are fairly obvious, given the massive (for a mobile phone, anyway) full slide out QWERTY keyboard and a 3.7 inch touch-screen.  Even better, while the original also came with a QWERTY keyboard, this one is slightly different, with keys that are both slightly larger and a touch more raised, which will certainly make it easier on the fingers.

Not yet on the market, the Motorola Milestone 2 is expected to be on the pricier side, so those looking for cheap mobile phones can look away right now.  Even with many mobile phone deals around, this is still going to be a distinctly pricier alternative. Fortunately, it is jam packed with features to keep tech lovers buzzing for hours, including its own flash player, an 8 GB microSD card, its own music player, 512 MB of RAM, a video camera capable of recording in high definition, and a screen pixel resolution of 854 x 480.

If you can afford it – when the price is finally announced – the Motorola Milestone 2 certainly has all the elements of a must buy.

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