There has been lots of hype over the last few months, especially since the release of HTC's acclaimed HD2, regarding the next evolution of Windows Mobile phones. With Apple not straying far from their proven OS with its latest iteration, and with Android hitting the market in a big way (and across multiple manufacturers), Windows Mobile users have had to be content with Microsoft's 6.5.x OS.
However with the latest round of leaks from the Redmond giant, perhaps there is cause for the rumour mill and the hype to be ramped up to a whole new level. Eldar Murtazin over at Unwired View states that not only does he know the requirements for a device to run Windows Mobile 7, but has a WM7 device and is currently testing it!
Some of the requirements he mentions are below:
* 1GHz processor
* 3.6 inch WVGA display
* G-sensor and compass
* 8GB of onboard memory
* 5MP camera
Link - UnwiredView
From these hardware requirements it seems Microsoft have set their sights on going after the power user market like never before. With the ever increasing hardware take-up of Qualcomm's speedy 1Ghz Snapdragon processor and the increasing size of touchscreens on devices however it remains to be seen what the battery life will be like after a Microsoft Windows Mobile OS layer is added to the mix.
Microsoft will however, be hoping that these requirements entice some of the Manufacturers which have been courted by Google's Android OS in recent months, back into the fold and make itself a stronger player and a more credible alternative to Apple & co.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Toshiba Satellite Pro U500 review
The Satellite Pro U500 is part of Toshiba's Performance Mobile range, which also includes Portégé and Tecra models (with screens sizes ranging from 12in. to 14in.). Prices for the Satellite Pro U500 start at £599, rising to £699 (ex. VAT). It's a slightly chunky 13.3in. notebook with a flashy aspect to the design that won't appeal to all.
Design
We generally expect a 13.3in. notebook to be a compact and lightweight system. However, the Satellite Pro U500, at 31.7cm wide by 23cm deep by 3.19-3.88cm thick and 2.2kg, is on the chunky and heavy side. On its web site Toshiba says the Satellite Pro U500 is a 'thin and light portable laptop', but we'd really rather not carry more than 2kg unless absolutely necessary.
The Satellite Pro U500 isn't the lightest or most compact 13.3in. notebook: it weighs 2.2kg and is nearly 4cm thick at the back.
There is some good news on the build front, as the casing is very solid. There is minimal flex in the lid section and the base seems very tough. The chassis has a mostly matte finish (unlike the shiny plastic of the recently reviewed Satellite Pro T130), but there are some telltale signs that this notebook also has a consumer alter ego (the Satellite U500).
Two speakers sit above the keyboard and deliver reasonable volume and fair quality. They lack the rich bass tones that music aficionados require, but should be fine for delivering multimedia presentations to small audiences.
Between the keyboard and the screen is a pair of speakers and a strip of touch-sensitive buttons.
A strip of touch-sensitive buttons provides media playback controls and access to the notebook's power-saving Eco mode. Several places on the keyboard section have bright white backlighting, including a strip atop the wrist rest and the strip of touch buttons. You can turn these off by hitting one of the touch buttons, and they're automatically turned off in Eco mode.
The touchpad incorporates vertical and horizontal scroll zones and supports pinch-to-zoom. You have to make very definite contact for the latter to work, and we never really got comfortable with it. An alternative zooming feature, involving the Fn key and spacebar, you accesses two full-screen zoom levels. A button sitting just below the spacebar disables the touchpad — a feature that more notebooks should adopt.
The touchpad supports pinch-to-zoom and can be disabled at the touch of a button.
The keyboard could be better. There is a fair amount of flex and the keys do not feel as solid under the fingers as we would like. Reaching normal touch-typing speed was not a problem but we are not fans of the design.
The 13.3in. screen has a native resolution of 1,280 by 800 pixels — an aspect ratio of 16:10, in contrast to the 16:9 1,366 by 768 display seen on the Satellite Pro T130. For professionals, those few extra pixels of height may be a help when it comes to document creation.
A TrueBrite coating on the screen boosts clarity and brightness for media viewing but is quite reflective. Whether or not you like this kind of screen finish will be a matter of personal taste.
There's a webcam above the screen, and a slide-out menu on the left edge of the screen gives access to its various features. These include face-recognition-based login. The camera shoots stills and video resolutions up to 1,280 by 800 pixels.
Sony Ericsson Aspen Pictures
The Aspen will be available in two color options Iconic Black and White Silver starting Q2, 2010. The price is yet to be announced.
Here are some images of the phone:
Here are some images of the phone:
Sony Ericsson Aspen runs latest Windows Mobile
Sony Ericsson announced the latest addition to its Green Heart series of eco-friendly phones, the Sony Ericsson Aspen. The Aspen is the first smartphone to run Windows Mobile 6.5.3.
The Aspen will be available in certain countries in the second quarter of 2010, in either black or silver.
This update to Microsoft's mobile operating system brings additional enhancements to the user interface, including more finger-friendly menus and touch controls, plus support for capacitive and multitouch gestures. In addition, Microsoft has made improvements to the web browser, which promise faster page-load times, smoother gestures for panning and flicking, and better memory management.
Nexus One Gets Multi-Touch
Don't get me wrong, it's great that at least one more Android phone is getting pinch-to-zoom gestures, and it's never been clear why certain phones don't include the feature. Rumor has it Apple requested that Google avoid multi-touch back when the companies were cozy, but Google may no longer want to comply now that the relationship has soured.
We don't know the terms of the arrangement -- or whether it actually exists – so it's unclear whether Google could ever add multi-touch to older phones. For all we know, there may be issues with the Droid and G1 that preclude Google from releasing a simple update, regardless of whether Apple's involved.
Whatever the reason may be, the Droid and the G1 lack multi-touch for core Android apps, even though the hardware in both phones supports multi-touch gestures. This doesn't seem like an issue of older vs. newer versions of Android, because HTC's Droid Eris, which runs Android 1.5, supports multi-touch, as does Motorola's Milestone, the European version of the Droid running Android 2.0.
Nonetheless, the Droid's and G1's missing multi-touch is a clear example of Android's fragmentation. Android phones aren't all on the same page, with different hardware, user interfaces and versions of the operating system. A similar issue came up with Google Maps Navigation, which at first was supported on Android versions 2.0 and higher. Droid Eris and G1 owners eventually got the update that makes navigation possible.
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