Nokia Enters netBook Market with Booklet 3G mini-laptop

Nokia on Monday announced that it plans to move into the PC market with the introduction of its first netbook, the Nokia Booklet 3G.

The Windows-based device will be powered by an Intel Atom processor, and Nokia promises up to 12 hours of battery life. It features a 10-inch glass HD ready display, weighs about 2.75 pounds and is about 2 centimeters thick. The Booklet 3G will include 3G/HSPA and Wi-Fi connectivity options, an HDMI port for HD video out, a front facing camera for video calling, integrated Bluetooth, and an SD card reader.

The new netbook will also include integrated A-GPS, which will pinpoint a user's location using the Nokia Ovi Maps gadget for a "truly personal maps experience," Nokia said.

Nokia will incorporate other Ovi offerings into the Booklet 3G, including music through the Nokia Music Store, and the ability to sync your Nokia smartphone with your netbook via the Ovi Suite. Additional details about pricing and availability with be unveiled at Nokia World on September 2, the company said.

"A growing number of people want the computing power of a PC with the full benefits of mobility," Kai Oistamo, Nokia's executive vice president for devices, said in a statment. "We are in the business of connecting people and the Nokia Booklet 3G is a natural evolution for us. We will make the personal computer more social, more helpful and more personal."

Earlier this month, Microsoft and Nokia on Wednesday announced an alliance that will bring Microsoft mobile software to Nokia devices at some point next year. (story Link)

A hands-on review of the HTC Hero

A couple of months ago HTC announced a new handset called the Hero. Even though it was powered by Android, it was much different than other Android-powered phones such as the G1 and the HTC Magic in the sense that it wasn't Google-branded and also brought along a new user-experience dubbed as the HTC Sense UI.

Looking at the preview of this beauty, I was much appealed by what it had to offer and also because I got quite bored of using my iPhone, so I went ahead and purchased the HTC Hero. So here comes a detailed review:

The body of the phone is what makes it feel like it has come from heaven. It has a fully teflon-coated back which takes it to the next level of smoothness and gives the bearer a great pleasure in holding this little beauty.

Other noticeable features of the phone include, a 3.2-inch touchscreen, a trackball, GPS, Bluetooth 2.0, Wi-Fi, a 5-megapixel camera, an SD slot and a 1350mAh Lithium-ion battery.

Now there might have been some debate over whether the 528Mhz processor on the back-end makes the Hero an underpowered phone but in my say, it does not. The processor is as good, and even better than many other smartphones out in the market so it all comes down to how many apps you plan to run simultaneously. As in case of the iPhone, its only one app at a time so comparing Hero to the iPhone does not do full justice.

The OS on the phone is an up-lifted version of the Android cupcake with new icons, better navigation and the HTC Sense UI which provides up to 7 workspace screens with custom widgets and addons.

Battery-timing of the phone was what impressed me the most. It managed to survive through a complete day with EDGE turned on 24/7 on the backend and trust me on this one, no one uses EDGE like I do.

Notes to Follow

For those planning to buy this phone, here are some notes to follow:

1. Its Android, so make sure you get a preview of it before going out to purchase an Android phone for the first time.
2. Don't compare it to the iPhone since both have different classes, one has full multitasking features while the other doesn't.
3. Speed is not an issue on this phone as the rumors say, its all about how many apps you want to run in the background.

Good news is that HTC will soon be rolling out an update for the Hero that will make its UI even more fast and snappy. I would definitely recommend this phone to anyone who is tired of the iPhone and wants a change, and also to those who want to experience Android for the first time. (story with Thanks)

Samsung's Dual-LCD Cameras

Samsung on Thursday unveiled two cameras that feature the world's first dual LCD screens, one in the front and one in the back.

Samsung also unveiled cameras that feature three built-in radios: GPS, Bluetooth 2.0 and Wi-Fi. Most smartphones already come with these features, but this is the first standalone point-and-shoot camera to feature all three.

First up is the 12.2 megapixel Samsung TL 225. It features a 3.5-inch touch LCD screen in the back and a 1.5-inch LCD in front. Users simply tap the front LCD to turn it on and off.

The primary use for the front LCD is for users who like to take pictures of themselves with friends by holding the camera out in front of them. In this scenario, the LCD screen helps users frame the shot, and face detection boxes pop up so you know if you're in focus.

Samsung added two other functions to the front LCD. When the timer is active, the front LCD displays numbers that count down so subjects can anticipate when the camera will fire. A cartoon animation of clowns can also be played on the LCD in order to get babies to smile for the camera.

The 3.5-inch touch LCD screen on the back of the TL 225 is also unique since it is very high-resolution and offers haptic feedback. When you touch a virtual button on the camera's rear LCD, it gently shakes to confirm you pressed it. LCD screens on most compact cameras contain 230,000 dots - the more dots, the more detail. The TL 225's back LCD screen contains 1,152,000 dots so images should look very sharp.

The Samsung TL 225 will retail for $349. A less expensive model, the Samsung TL 220 will also be available for $299. It will have the 1.5-inch front LCD, but the back LCD will be a smaller, 3-inch haptic touch LCD with 230,000 dots. Both will be available in September.

Last up is the Samsung CL 65, which will contain three different radios: Bluetooth 2.0, Wi-Fi and GPS. The GPS radio will be used to "geotag" photos so they have city, state, and country information attached to them. The Bluetooth radio can be used to send photos from the camera to other Bluetooth-equipped devices like cell phones, printers, and computers.

The Wi-Fi radio will let the camera jump onto any Wi-Fi network to transfer photos to devices on the network. The camera's Wi-Fi also supports the new-ish DLNA networking protocol, which attempts to simplify network sharing of pictures, video and music. (story Link)

NVE-M300 GPS Navigation Drive from Alpine

Alpine introduces the new NVE-M300 GPS Navigation Drive, a high-performance black box navigation module that enhances the functionality of Alpine's in-dash AV head units:  The Alpine iXA-W404 and IVA-W505.  Putting the navigation drive makes your regular Alpine car stereo into an extraordinary audio-video-and-navigation solution.

The NVE-M300 measures only 4 3/8 in. by 4 1/8 in. by 1 in. and is designed to be mounted in an inconspicuous location, like behind the dashboard.  Connect it to your Alpine AV head unit and the GPS Navigation Drive adds a fully-integrated routing experience.

The little black box features an innovative OnPoint Advanced GPS Positioning, which ensures that the vehicle's icon stays accurately positioned on the map, even where it is difficult to receive GPS reception like tunnels, around tall buildings, or under forested areas.  This is achieved by satellite-linked GPS data, solid-state gyro sensor, and accelerometer technologies to deliver improved performance.

The Alpine NVE-M300 is also easy-to-use with its graphical user interface combined with voice-guided driving directions.  Drivers can easily identify landmarks such as one-way streets, junctions, buildings, and other landmarks with big and bright icons, while large buttons provide easy identification of commands or maneuvers.  The text-to-speech technology gives drivers turn-by-turn driving instructions, including street names, freeway numbers, and even exit names. (full Story)

LG Launches New Sprint Phone

LG has unveiled the LX290, a low-end slider with a 1.3-megapixel camera, a GPS radio with optional voice-enabled turn-by-turn directional capability, and Sprint Mobile E-mail for Web and work e-mail access.
It also includes a music player and a (sadly, non-standard) 2.5mm headphone jack. It supports Sprint's NFL Mobile Live audio and video broadcasts, and lets you send a voice message to up to 25 friends at once without making a call.
The LX290 measures 4.1 by1.9 by 0.6 inches and weighs 3.6 ounces. It features a 2.2-inch QVGA LCD with 240-by-320-pixel resolution. LG claims the handset offers up to 6 hours of continuous talk time on a single charge. The LX290 is now available from Sprint as of July 12th (Sunday) for $29.99 with a two-year contract and after a $50 mail-in. (story Link)

Axiotron Modbook Tablet - Modbook Tablet Is a Designer's BFF

One look at Axiotron's slate Modbook tablet and it's clear the company has given Apple's 13-inch entry-level laptop the full Steve Austin treatment. Well, minus the 20:1 bionic eye with infrared capabilities. Nevertheless, the end result is a better, (slightly) faster, and, yes, even stronger Mac tablet. Sure, it's theonly Mac tablet for now, but this baby is certain to give anyone who dabbles in the dark graphical arts exquisitely rendered heart palpitations.

One minor nit before we start examining the goods. Some reviews have described the Modbook as a touchscreen device. While, technically, this is true, it's important to note we're not talking capacitive touching here. In fact, you can only use the provided Wacom digitizer pen and its 11 nibs as an input device. While that lack of skin on screen action, coupled with its high price, probably keeps the Modbook from being a truly mainstream device, it is by no means a deal breaker.

The tablet touts both Bluetooth and the standard two USB ports should you want to use it with a full-size keyboard and mouse. Hell, you can even mount it on your wall or hook it up to an external monitor via the standard mini-DVI port (like we did), if you prefer a slightly larger screen to show off your squiggly Garfield drawings.

In fact, given that the Modbook is essentially a niche device, it's still impressively versatile. It comes pre-loaded with Apple's Leopard, including the OS's surprisingly accurate built-in Inkwell handwriting recognition software. Using their formidable engineering kung fu, the folks at Axiotron also crammed a GPS unit into the Modbook, which -- ahem -- lets you geo-locate to your heart's content.

As far as looks go, Modbook stays true to Apple's overriding aesthetic sensibilities. It's clear Axiotron has done some Frankensteining here and there (the bottom portion of the tablet is identical to the MacBook while the top half is basically a Wacom Penabled Digitizer), but the Modbook still looks like something Steve Jobs could potentially unveil from an envelope. Both the shell and interior display frame are built from aircraft-quality magnesium alloy -- not that anodized crap. Axiotron also went for the trifecta of metal plating -- that's nickel humping copper and topped off with a little chrome for good measure. While that combination certainly attracts smudges, it's also extremely scratch-resistant.

WIRED: Built-in GPS. Badass handwriting recognition software accurately renders chicken scratch into coherent words. Durable screen and shell makes porting this pricey device a relatively worry-free ordeal.

TIRED: Did we mention this is a pricey ($2,290) device? Stylus pen occasionally loses connectivity or freezes and requires reset. Heavy; weighs as much as a 15-inch Macbook Pro (5.5 lbs). $2,290, axiotron.com (Story Link)

K850i 5 MP Sony Ericsson Camera Phone Shoots And Scores

Image isn’t everything. Beyond a solid Cyber-shot-branded cam, this tidy 118 gram candy bar comes chock full of sweet, easy-to-master programs that let you edit, remix and publish sharp pics and vid clips on the fly. In minutes, we whipped up a 45-second, 1.7 MB video slideshow that looked surprisingly decent online at 240x320. But despite Bluetooth, adequate web browsing and RSS feeds, this pin-striped, 3G beauty isn’t picture perfect. Switching between the somewhat finicky partial touch screen and quasi-D-pad really took some getting used to. And the keypad’s tiny nubs could aggravate even the daintiest netizens of Thumb Tribe, USA. —Steven Leckart

WIRED Truly pocket-size; accelerometer allows quick-flips between landscape and portrait. Swift and seamless, on-the-go publishing to Blogger. Always-on headlight option for dim video shoots. BestPic takes rapid sequence of nine images — bonus: “best” recommendation is mostly right on. Super accessible microSD slot can hold up to 4GBs (perfect for those Cloverfield moments)

TIRED No optical zoom. Sluggish Auto Fix takes 30-45 seconds per pic. Snapping shots silences FM radio. No Wi-Fi, no GPS, no geocoded vaca pics. Neither a 3.5 mm nor a 2.5mm headhpone jack (better RFID that Sony FastPort set of earbuds!)

$500, sonystyle.com (story Link)

Nokia E90 Communicator Acts Like a Laptop, Makes Calls Like a Phone

Many moons ago, a laptop, a cell phone, and a cinder block got together for a hot three-way love fest. The product of this freaky, sweaty, and possibly illegal union? The Nokia E90 communicator — a device with some serious identity issues, but also one with some serious talent too.

Let’s be up front about it: this monstrous device at 7.4 ounces and 5.2 x 2.24 x 0.79 inches is not attractive in the slightest. In fact, the unappealing shell and sheer physical size make it a colossal pain in the ass to lug around in public. Clearly, the E90 is made to fit in briefcases—not skinny hipster jeans. Business folks and texting junkies, though, will love the full QWERTY keyboard, a feature that makes composing legalese missives, or elaborate IMs a relatively painless process. (Ever try tapping out a Google doc on the iPhone’s touch screen? Yeesh.) But even more appealing is the impressive palette of functions Nokia manages to cram into the beast: a 3.2 megapixel camera with flash and autofocus, 640 x 480 video resolution at 30fps, 3G compatibility, Wi-Fi, infrared, and Bluetooth connectivity, a voice recorder, GPS Navigation, push-to-talk, both Flash and (scoff) Real Player.

No, it’s not going to tuck you into bed at night, and we’re guessing it won’t get you chicks either (really though, what gadget does?) but the E90 is definitely a good choice for those who want laptop functionality dressed up in the guise of a cell phone. —Nate Ralph

WIRED Great for creating and editing text docs. Can be easily set up as a wireless modem. Integrated GPS means you’ll probably never ask for directions again. Functions perfectly as a cell — the voice quality is on par with the iPhone. Reads PDFs.  Robust keyboard means you can work on that novella while waiting for the bus. No more procrastinating!

TIRED Finding applications in the endlessly layered menu system is consistently confusing. Flat keypad makes typing often feel ambiguous. Screen is hard to see in direct sunlight. Pricey, ungainly, and, worst of all, fugly. $1100, nokia.com (story Link)

Microsoft Testing New Internet Search Service

Microsoft Corp is internally testing a new version of its online search service under the name of Kumo.com, a spokesman for the software company said on Monday.
The service is not yet available outside the company, but may eventually form part of Microsoft’s attempt to catch up with Internet search leaders Google Inc and Yahoo Inc.
The new search service was unveiled in an internal memo sent by the head of research at the company’s online services division on Monday, but it did not go into details about features on the new service. (chipbit)

TomTom Go 740 Live: Their Connected GPS

TomTom's Go 740 Live GPS is their first to have a cellular connection built-in, used to download traffic weather and friend finder information.

Old TomTom's had cellular data capabilities with very limited models, over bluetooth, through your cellular handset, but model support, but having this service built in, free for a year. The unit also records map data corrections, and in Wikipedia style. And I really have been liking TomTom's advanced lane guidance, which draws a pretty nice illustration of complicated turn offs.

This TomTom also uses "IQ Route" tech to measure arrival times, based on time of day and weekend vs weekday traffic patterns, gathered from users who dock and sync their navs with software. But, unlike Dash and Telenav Shotgun, it can't upload in real time, so you're not getting real time data for traffic jams from other users. (You get it from other providers.)

The device works on a GPRS network, leading me to believe its on AT&T, since they've been very into providing service for devices lately. (full Story)

CES 2009: HTC and T-Mobile announce new Shadow with UMA support

While I think the T-Mobile Shadow appealed to a number of people moving from a feature phone (at least that is the type of demographic I saw every time I went into the T-Mobile stores) I don’t think it struck a strong chord with mobile phone enthusiasts. I personally found the T-Mobile Shadow to be one of my favorite non-touch screen smartphones (see my review andfollow up thoughts). Today, HTC and T-Mobile announced the next generation Shadow that will be available in January or February.

The new T-Mobile Shadow will be available in black/burgundy and white with a few improvements over the original T-Mobile Shadow (now available for a measly US$29.99). The improvements include Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard (was 6.0), 260 MHz processor (was 201 MHz) and UMA support for functionality with the T-Mobile HotSpot @Home service. I personally found the first Shadow more than adequate and think these improvements are all that was really needed, with the exception of a GPS receiver. I would be happy just to get 6.1 on my existing Shadow and wish T-Mobile would provide that upgrade. (story Link)

CES 2009: Nokia announces E63 QWERTY Device for the US for only $279 unlocked

The Nokia E71 is a fantastic device (see my review) and I keep on going back to using it because it has a killer form factor and is solid as a rock. Nokia announced the E63back in November for Europe and other countries. Today at CES 2009, Nokia announced that the E63 will becoming to the USA with support for 3G (on AT&T) for a low MSRP of US$279 as a SIM-unlocked device.

I had a chance to play with Rafe’s Nokia E63 for a bit and it actually has a slighter better keyboard than the E71 and is a great device. The differences between the E71 (can be found between US$300 and US$400 online) and the E63 is that the E63 has a colored plastic case (red or blue) compared to the metal casing on the E71, the E63 has a 3.5mm headset jack (bonus), no GPS is provided in the E63, and the E63 has a 2 megapixel camera (compared to the rather anemic 3.2 camera on the E71). The E63 still has WiFi, Bluetooth, S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 1, large 1500 mAh battery, and all the other great applications (such as QuickOffice). (full Story)

Nokia N96 Review

Aesthetically, the N96 looks and feels more polished and smoother than the N95 8GB. The screen remains the same size at 2.8-inches and is non-touch sensitive. Though this is a tad smaller than the iPhone’s 3.5-inch multitouch screen, both basic text and multimedia content were displayed with good clarity and enough brightness. Employing the dual-slider design here again, sliding up reveals the keypad, while sliding down reveals four multimedia keys which morph depending on the application being used. The keys in both instances are flat and glossy, but they provide reasonable tactility and are comfortable to use. We liked the keypad lock slider at the top of the unit; and the handset also boasts an accelerometer.

The N96 has a largely plastic build and the phone doesn’t feel as solid as we would have liked. The slider is an improvement over its predecessor, but this just doesn’t feel like a Rs. 35khandset should. In addition, the rear battery cover feels flimsy, especially when removed. Apart from all this, Nokia has upgraded the internal flash memory to a whopping 16GB plus a microSD card support of up to 8GB. Meaning a total memory of upto 24GB! Though its symbian s60 interface may not be as sleek as the apple iPhone’s Os, using the handset is generally a hassle-free experience.

The phone does lag at times, but this will most likely be improved by future software updates. And its built-in GPs chip with a-GPs support is completed by the Nokia Maps application that has support for three coutries (India, Singapore and UAE). It comes with three months free trial turnby- turn navigation for 8 Indian cities. This is superior to the maps found on the iPhone 3G. Conveniently, an in-car charger is also included in the package.a 5-MP camera with Carl Zeiss optics is once again present, but its dual LED flash instead of Xenon flash is a letdown. Regardless, photos are reasonable. It’s not without its issues — including color reproduction, image noise and a general lack of sharpness; photos taken at night are passable, however. The multimedia capabilities of the N96 are excellent.

The external speakers produce reasonable sound, and a 3.5mm headphone jack lets you connect any set of headphones. There is also an FM radio. a particularly clever feature is the built-in kickstand: flip it out and the N96 can be rested upright on a desk or table, making it ideal for watching video content. The handset is DVB-h capable, meaning it is theoretically capable of receiving live television broadcasts but only Delhi Doordarshan has this service currently. Nokia also bundled a full length Bollywood super blockbuster Om shanti Om, 50 music videos, a mix of evergreen hindi and english soundtracks. We liked the Indis Ms that features messaging in 8 different Indian languages, we are expecting to see more applications like this in the future. and for security concern, there is a very useful Wavsecure program. Users can secure everything on the device wirelessly over the internet incase the phone is lost or stolen. Or it will let them wipe every personal data from the device.

Connectivity is excellent, with the N96 boasting Wi-Fi 802.11g/b, Bluetooth with a2DP, USB with a standard micro-USB interface and HSDPA capabilities. Call quality is excellent and the hands-free speakerphone is also loud And clear, though the handset’s battery life is questionable. We found ourselves charging the handset every night to ensure a full day’s use The Nokia N96 did not bring anything revolutionary over the N95 8GB apart from the upgraded memory and a TV tuner function. And for its price tag of Rs 35k against the Rs 25k for N95 8GB, we don’t really see why we should go for it. (story Link)