Motorola Quench XT3 Smartphone

No-fuss smartphone?

Check out XT3

BY YEONG AH SENG

Motorola Quench XT3 Smartphone

SMARTPHONES are very popular these days but most of them can be quite expensive unless one subscribes to a major telco plan.

Motorola’s Quench XT3 is a budget smartphone launched under the aegis of M1.

It is an Android phone and has most, if not all, of the features found in more costly smartphones – big (3.2-inch) capacitative screen, 3.5G and WiFi Connectivity, GPS, stereo Bluetooth and 3MP camera with LED flash.

The Quench is a no-fuss smartphone. It is light (114g), fairly quick and responsive. Those who have little use for smartphones with social media and other fancy add-ons would be satisfied with the XT3. The version of Android used is 1.6 (Donut), not the speculated 2.1 (Eclair).

Hopefully, Motorola will provide an upgrade soon enough as this would make the XT3 an even more attractive buy.

How much: $468 or $148 with two-year M1 contract

http://myepaper.mypaper.sg/ebook/web_php/System/Zoom_In/Zoom_In_Page.html

3-Pack Motorola CLIQ XT/Quench MB501 Combo Screen Protector for Motorola CLIQ XT/Quench MB501

Black Silicone Skin Soft Skin Cover for Motorola Cliq XT / Quench T-Mobile Protector Case/BKPR

Read more...

HTC Wildfire

HTC Wildfire blazing your way
05:55 AM Jul 09, 2010

ANDROID fans in Singapore will have yet another smartphone option from tomorrow onwards - the HTC Wildfire ($498), available in black, red or white.

Wildfire was launched alongside the MeRadio app for Android that lets you stream content from all 13 MediaCorp radio stations, with album art and lyrics included. In an exclusivity agreement between MediaCorp and HTC, MeRadio on Android will be available only on HTC's phones (Wildfire, Desire, Legend and Hero) via a download from www.wemp.com.sg/htcmeradio. MeRadio will be available to all Android users from October.

Wildfire is armed with a 3.2-inch touchscreen, an FM radio, a microSD slot and a 5-megapixel camera with autofocus, geotagging and flash. According to HTC, it has full Flash support for web browsing, too.

The Android 2.1 phone also touts the Friend Stream app that displays the latest content from Facebook, Twitter and Flickr to a single stream. When you view a contact in the address book, you'll see a thread of recent text messages, emails and status updates. And when your friend calls, the phone will display his/her profile photo from Facebook, status update, as well as a birthday reminder.


http://www.todayonline.com/Tech/EDC100709-0000080/HTC-Wildfire-blazing-your-way

Read more...

Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini

Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini - Size Matters Not

Reviewed by Seow Tein Hee on Sat, 19 Jun 2010 

Overview & Design

Good Things, Small Packages

2010 seems to be the year of the Android, and Sony Ericsson is one of the many that's taking that route. Unveiled as an integral part of its Fabulous Five devices during this year's Mobile World Congress, the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini is an offshoot of its bigger sibling, the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10.

With the 'mini' term tagged to it, there's no doubt that you'll get a smaller and easier to handle device than the X10's larger 4-inch sized display. However, when we first noticed the X10 mini, we had the impression that Sony Ericsson took 'mini' to be too literal with its 2.55-inch screen and 83 x 50 x 16 mm dimensions. But thanks to that, the X10 mini is possibly one of the smallest Android phones on the market now.  In fact, if you have sufficiently large hands, you might even be able to hold the X10 mini, clench your fists and the X10 mini would stay out of sight. Similarly, taking a phone call could be a bit awkward if you aren't used to the phone stretching no further than your ears

Like its bigger comrade, the three staple buttons are present on the front - Menu, Home and Back, and a matte backing for a non-slip and easy gripping. Thankfully, the buttons are adequately raised for easy access, which also includes the volume and camera button. Oddly, Sony Ericsson chose to flush the power button at the top, which makes it hard to lock the phone with ease

Beneath the device lies the 3.5mm audio jack and the microUSB port. The latter is hidden by a plastic cover, which became more of a hindrance when it comes to charging and connecting the X10 mini to a PC. We spent more time trying to pry the cover away to reveal the microUSB slot, and it wasn't made any easier if you don't have nails to get a better grip of the plastic cover. Fortunately, removing the battery casing was easier than expected, with a slight grip to the side and pulling the casing away. Once done, you'll notice that the X10 mini's battery is integrated within, hence you won't have the option to insert a backup battery should you be running dry. Other than that, the battery casing should stay closed unless there's a need to swap your SIM card or microSD card
http://www.hardwarezone.com/product-guide/view/6315/review/43998

Read more...

The Sony Ericsson Xperia gets yet another sibling

Online Only - The Sony Ericsson Xperia gets yet another sibling

by May Chua

09:40 PM Jun 16, 2010

Those who have been eyeing the Xperia phone series can consider the new X8, which will be available in the third quarter of the year.

Positioned at what Sony Ericsson calls "a more accessible price point", the Xperia X8 touts a three-inch capacitive touchscreen and a 3.2-megapixel camera. This smartphone is powered by a 600MHz processor and runs on Android 1.6. It comes with the Timescape function, which integrates all communications from each contact, and a user interface that lets you add shortcuts to your favourite applications on the four corners of the screen to facilitate single-handed operation. The X8 will be bundled with a 2GB microSD card (the slot supports up to 16GB).

And here's a piece of good news for existing Xperia users - from the third quarter onwards, Sony Ericsson will be upgrading the software for its Xperia X10, X10 mini and X10 mini pro smartphones from Android 1.6 to 2.1. The X10 will receive some additional feature upgrades - high-definition video recording, the ability to display content on a television, as well as enhanced Timescape and Mediascape applications.

http://www.todayonline.com/Tech/EDC100616-0000278/Online-Only---The-Sony-Ericsson-Xperia-gets-yet-another-sibling

Read more...

Mobile app of the week

by Hedirman Supian

Updated 03:30 PM Jun 11, 2010

Available on Windows, Android and BlackBerry phones, free mobile app Lookout could very well be a lifesaver. This all-in-one app takes care of security, backups, and protects your smartphone against viruses.

Apart from your contacts, it can backup pictures, documents, call history, text messages, audio and video files.

If you misplace your phone, you can log in on the web and locate it. You can even choose to wipe out the data on the phone or make it emit a very loud siren (it's quite attention-grabbing) remotely.

You'll need to download the app from the web (at www.mylookout.com) and install it on your device but registration and setup is easy-peasy.

Lookout is highly recommended and a must-have. Hedirman Supian

http://www.todayonline.com/Tech/EDC100611-0000063/Mobile-app-of-the-week

Read more...

HTC Desire smartphone

A feature-packed phone named Desire

BY YEONG AH SENG

HTC Desire smartphone FROYO, the latest version (2.2) of the Android operating system for mobile phones, was in the news last week.

Its many new features fuelled talk that the iPhone was finally on the ropes. But we all know that an OS is only as good as the phone running it: If the superior features of the OS are clearly evident on a good phone, there will be no shortage of adopters.

In HTC, Android may have found a perfect match. HTC made the first commercially
available Android phone, the Dream.

It has also come up with a number of successors – the Magic, Hero and Legend.

The latest, Desire, is a better version of the Google Nexus One Android phone, with optical tracking instead of a trackball.

Although it is loaded with Version 2.1 (Eclair) of the Android OS, it nonetheless demonstrates the best of what the system has to offer.

The fast (1GHz) Snapdragon CPU, the crisp and sharp 3.7- inch Amoled screen, HTC’s
Sense (a proprietary user interface) and the 5-megapixel camera all add up to a very fast and feature-filled phone that is in many ways superior to the iPhone.

One wonders what an HTC Desire, when loaded with Froyo, would be like. For Apple, it is perhaps time to perform a reality check. How much: $898, without plan

Source: www.mypaper.com.sg

Read more...