HTC's pre-IFA event was (as suspected) all about Windows Phone 7 Mango. HTC had a lot to say about the new version of the OS and what they've added to it, but also showcased two new phones - the 4.7" monster called HTC Titan and the smaller HTC Radar.
We'll get to retelling what HTC told us about Mango, but first we'll focus on the two stars of tonight's event - the first two WP7 phones with Mango to go official. Update, September 2nd: We added hands-on videos with the Titan and Radar, plus some more photos from the event.
The HTC Titan (formerly Eternity) is an informal successor to the HD7. It packs a 4.7" S-LCD screen with WVGA resolution. That's the biggest screen HTC have put on a phone yet and the Titan is the fastest WP7 phone (for now) with a 1.5GHz CPU. HTC Titan official photos
It's a unibody design and it's only 9.9mm thick making it one of the thinnest Windows Phone 7 devices yet (title is shared with Samsung Focus). The phone has some heft to it though, at 160g.
The second half of the duo is the HTC Radar (used to go by Omega). It's here to take over for the Mozart and the Trophy. The HTC Radar will be available in Metal Grey and Active White
The Radar has a 3.8" S-LCD screen with WVGA resolution and goes back to the WP7 standard 1GHz processor. It has a unibody design too, but it's slightly thicker than the Titan, measuring 10.9mm.
The Titan boasts an 8MP camera, while the Radar has a 5MP one. Both shoot 720p video and are accompanied by front-facing cameras. The Titan and Radar cameras are interesting because they have exclusive features, you wouldn’t find on other WP7 phones. HTC Titan and Radar side by side • HTC Titan, Sensation and Radar
Anyway, we'll go over HTC's improvements of Windows Phone 7 Mango and we'll follow that with hands-on impressions from the two phones.
Finaly the iphone 4s is out. The desine is very much the same of the iphone 4.But all the inside stuff is changed.
The new processor:
The new iphone 4s has the new Apple A5 chip.Its a dual core chip used in the ipad 2.
The apple had said that the new iphone 4s will have 2x more CPU speeds and 7x more grafics. The apple had also shown the demo of the infinity blade 2 which is said to lanch in dec 1st.
with all new A5 chip the i phone will be very fast.
The Siri:
This is the coolest feature in the iphone 4s.The siri is the personal assistant .It is a voice -voice replay feature in the iphone 4s.It is the beta version, apple says that they will add new features to it and new langauges.I hope the i pad may also have this feature because the ipad also runs the same A2 processor.The Siri's official vedio in at the last.
The camera:
The new iphone 4s has the new 8 megapicxal camera.That camera can shoot vedios at resulution
of 1080p. the apple has added the a extra lense to the camera for better quality. Air Play:
The iphone 4s has the capability to mirror all thats happning to apple tv.The apple 4s can also mirror games.I hope the apple has planned to improve the gamming in iphone. A Total Overview Of IPhone 4s:
From the above the iphone 4s has a superb processor and camera,but it has a 1ghz dual core processor which is a kind of less powerfull,because the samsung galaxy s2 epic 4g touch has 1.2 ghz processor and also perfoms well than ipad 2 so , I guess that iphone will be less fast than samsung galaxy s2 epic 4d touch. Actuly any thing can happen Iam not sure about that,the apple optimises their devices well so it can be faster than samsung galaxy s2 epic 4g touch.
Also the apple has made the 3gs free and launched iphone 4 8gb model at a price of 99$ and the other modles are of the same price.The iphone 4s is priced at 199$ for 16 gb, 32gb at 299$, 64gb at 399$ (all the above prices are on 2 years contract).
The iphone is said to be launched on oct 14th.While the ios is launched on 12th.
Any questions or comments please comment below || || \/
There’ve been reports for a while now stating that the iPhone 5 event would be held some time in October, but now it’s official. Apple has just sent out a round of invitations for an October 4th media event scheduled to begin at 10:00 AM at the company’s Town Hall auditorium in Cupertino.
The focus of the event, as many have speculated, is clearly the iPhone. As you can see, the invitation features the Calendar, Clock, Maps and Phone applications above the tagline “Let’s talk iPhone.”
There’s still no word on exactly what Tim Cook has up his sleeve for the event, but it’s widely believed that we willfinally get a glimpse at some new hardware. Now, whether this is the iPhone 4S or the iPhone 5 is yet to be seen, but my bet is for the iPhone 5.
Some other things rumored to be touched upon during the keynote include iOS 5, iCloud, new iPods, and maybe even Facebook (either integrated into iOS or the Facebook for iPad app).
I’m certainly excited. I, like many of you, have been unable to resist the insane amount of hype surrounding the next-gen device and I can’t wait to see what Apple has been working on for the past year or so.
What do you want to come from this event? Are you dying for the iPhone 5, or would you be happy just getting iOS 5 for your current iDevice? Let me know your hopes, expectations and any other thoughts you have down in the comments below
Xbox 360 console The Xbox 360 console with 4GB hard drive is an elegant, customisable gaming and entertainment system. It comes with everything you need enabling you to immerse yourself into a world of high quality video games and high definition movies, with whisper quiet operation. Stream HD movies and TV or download games from Xbox LIVE in 1080p and 5.1 surroundsound from anywhere in the house. Compatible with b/g/n networks. Xbox LIVE brings a world of entertainment to you, download game add-ons like new levels, characters, maps and songs. Easily jump right into online multi-player fun and play along with friends around the world. Get your favorite music from Last.fm, connect with friends on Facebook and post Tweets on Twitter. Kinect ready featuring a dedicated, specialised port, the Xbox 360 4GB is built to conect seamlessly with the Kinect sensor. Kinect brings games and entertainment to life in extra-ordinary new ways with no contoller required. Easy to use and instantly fun, Kinect gets everyone off the couch moving, laughing and cheering. Connect more accessories and storage solutions with added USB ports, now with a total of 5 (3 back/2 front) you'll find more places plug and play. In addition to the standard Ethernet port and HDMI output, an integrated audio out port for an easier connection to booming sound of your A/V reciever has been added. Includes Xbox 360 wireless controller - black, Xbox 360 composite A/V cable, one month of Xbox LIVE G
Average Customer Rating:
4.5 out of 5 My personal rating for this product any questions regarding this please coment below
An Internet browser is your window to the web, where you can find almost anything from the comfort of your own living room. Today, the Internet is widely used for media, research, communication, shopping and entertainment. The better your browser, the more you will see and experience.
Be sure to read the reviews on Firefox, Google Chrome and Internet Explorer, the Internet browsers our reviewers ranked at the top.
Up–to–date web browsers are equipped with the latest features and technology to simplify, accelerate and enhance your Internet experience. The newest features include tabbed browsing, RSS feeds and voice interaction. Browsers are also more customizable and entertaining with skins, informative and fun widgets and additional add–ons.
Safety is a common concern among web surfers, and for good reasons. The number of hazards seems to grow every day. Viruses, spyware, phishing schemes and identity theft are some of the concerns. Other worries come from the threat of online predators and the appropriateness of material for children. Modern Internet browsers shield against all of these factors to keep you, your family and your PC safe.
In this site, you’ll find articles about the Internet, news stories and comprehensive reviews on Internet browser software that will help you make an informed decision on which browser is right for you. At TopTenREVIEWS We Do the Research So You Don’t Have To.™
What to Look for in Internet Browsers
Internet browsers should have three main objectives: simplicity, security and helping you get the most from the web. Because all of the browsers in this review are free, after reading the reviews you may want to download and consider a couple of browsers. You might even decide to use more than one browser—for example, one for fun and one for research.
Below are the criteria TopTenREVIEWS used to evaluate Internet browsers.
Feature Set
Top–ranked Internet browsers offer many practical features that make surfing the web faster, easier and more convenient. A few of these features are tabbed browsing, thumbnail previews and an integrated search engine.
Ease of Use
Internet browsers ought to be simple to use so anyone, regardless of their knowledge of computers or the Internet, will feel comfortable using the web.
Security
Security is one of the most important aspects of browsing the web. Internet browsers should protect against pop–ups, viruses and phishing frauds and allow you to clear personal information so you can feel confident while online.
Speed & Compatibility
Your internet browser should help you surf fast and efficiently. While the speed of your computer and internet connection account for most of the speed, not all browsers are created equal in regards to how fast they startup, process HTML and JavaScript. Likewise, not all internet browsers will open all pages correctly. The best browsers will open websites quickly and properly.
Help/Support
Although most internet browsers are free, quality customer support helps if you run into problems. Developers provide support through email, phone, FAQs, manuals and tutorials.
By taking above facts I have rated the browsers:
1.Firefox
2.google chrome
3.Microsoft internet explorer
4.opera
5.Safari
The famous search engine google celebrates its 13th birthday.
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program. The company was founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin, often dubbed the "Google Guys", while the two were attending Stanford University as PhD candidates. It was first incorporated as a privately held company on September 4, 1998, and its initial public offering followed on August 19, 2004. At that time Larry Page, Sergey Brin, and Eric Schmidt agreed to work together at Google for twenty years, until the year 2024. The company's mission statement from the outset was "to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful", and the company's unofficial slogan – coined by Google engineer Amit Patel and supported by Paul Buchheit – is "Don't be evil". In 2006, the company moved to its current headquarters in Mountain View, California.
It has been estimated that Google runs over one million servers in data centers around the world, and processes over one billion search requests and about twenty-four petabytes of user-generated data every day. Google's rapid growth since its incorporation has triggered a chain of products, acquisitions, and partnerships beyond the company's core web search engine. The company offers online productivity software, such as its Gmail email service, and social networking tools, including Orkut and, more recently, Google Buzz and Google+. Google's products extend to the desktop as well, with applications such as the web browser Google Chrome, the Picasa photo organization and editing software, and the Google Talkinstant messaging application. Notably, Google leads the development of the Android mobile operating system, used on a number of phones such as the Motorola Droid and the Samsung Galaxy smartphone series', as well as the new Google Chrome OS,[22] best known as the main operating system on the Cr-48 and also, since 15 June 2011, on commercial Chromebooks such as the Samsung Series 5 and Acer AC700Alexa lists the main U.S.-focused google.com site as the Internet's most visited website, and numerous international Google sites (google.co.in(14) is the most visited site in India, google.co.uk in the U.K, etc.) are in the top hundred, as are several other Google-owned sites such as YouTube (Alexa:3), Blogger (Alexa:6), and Orkut. Google also ranks number two in the BrandZ brand equity database. The dominant market position of Google's services has led to criticism of the company over issues including privacy, copyright, and censorship.
Assassin's Creed is an award-winning historical Science Fiction Video Game series by Ubisoft. It has a Facebook game, a short movie, two novels and comic books on its account too. The game is available on the Microsoft Windows PC, Mac OS X, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo DS, iOS, HP webOS, Android and Windows Phone 7 platforms.
Assassin’s Creed was the first game to immerse players in a believable and mature experience inspired by historical events, according to Ubisoft videogame producer Sebastien Puel.
Gameplay:
Assassin’s Creed 2 The second installment of the videogame introduced Auditore and combined the original title’s winning elements with more gorgeous cityscapes, animations, and 15th century historical settings.
Gameplay:
Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood the third video game in the series was released last year built on the Renaissance era treachery and intrigue of its predecessor, but with a first-ever online feature that allows players to divert from the storyline and hunt one another.
Today The “Assassin’s Creed” franchise has grown to include novels, comic books, and short films.
Gameplay:
Assassin's Creed: Revelations Release Date
Assassin's Creed: Revelations is currently in development set to be released in November 2011 as the next major Assassin's Creed game in series to previous episodes Assassin's Creed, Assassin's Creed II, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood. “Revelations” will be the fourth videogame in a series that has sold more than 28 million copies overall since the first title was released in 2007.
“Assassin's Creed: Revelations” will be released initially, with versions tailored for play on Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 consoles as well as personal computers running Microsoft Windows Operating Systems.
Assassin's Creed: Revelations Demo at E3 2011 Electronic Entertainment Expo
The French videogame powerhouse promised a glimpse to share more details of “Assassin’s Creed Revelations” at a E3 2011 Premier Electronic Entertainment Expo on June 06, 2011 at Los Angeles.
Gameplay:
The Above Gameplay shows Ezio disguised
as a doctor.
Assassin's Creed: Revelations Game Features Staring Ezio And Altair
Game Informer, which has broken the news of its release on May 5, 2011 revealed that Assassin's Creed: Revelations would feature three playable characters, Altair, Ezio and Desmond. The game would be Altair's first playable appearance in a major installment of the franchise (except for a brief moment in Assassin's Creed II) since the first game in the series, while the game would be Ezio's third and final appearance with Desmond returning once again as the modern day descendant of these Assassins.
Players will continue on as fictional master assassin Ezio Auditore, this time in the heart of the Ottoman Empire to foil enemies in Constantinople.
Ubisoft Montreal Creative Director Alexandre Amancio said:
Delivering the final chapter of the Ezio trilogy is an important milestone in the Assassin’s Creed franchise for us and for our fans. The game will deliver lots of new features and some significant surprises.
The multi-player feature was incorporated into “Revelations.” Players can opt for a storyline mode that puts them in the trademark hooded garb of Ezio, part of a bloodline of master assassins that used their deadly skills to thwart corruption and grand conspiracy
Following the redesign of its 17-inch gaming notebook flagship, Alienware went and gave the same extreme makeover to the M15x, its newest 15-inch notebook. Not only does this monster have the same intimidating looks as the M17x—a menacing grille and colored backlit keyboard—but, outfitted with an Intel Core i7 processor, it shattered a number of our benchmarks. Of course, like every Alienware machine, the M15x doesn’t come cheap (starting at $1,499, $2,574 as configured), but if you have the means you won’t be disappointed.
Design
Like the M17x, the front of the M15x has the angular looks of the redesigned Chevy Camaro. Our system had a Nebula Red finish, but it’s also available in Lunar Shadow (silver) and Cosmic Black. The red coloring only extends as far as the outer lid, sides, and chassis, so the inside and front of the system is black. The magnesium-alloy chassis is a departure from that of its predecessor, the Area-51 M15x, which experienced an issue with the plastic frame cracking due to overheating issues. Still, it adds to the size; this 14.9 x 12.2 x 1.9-inch heavyweight checks in at 9.0 pounds—and that’s without the AC adapter.
There aren’t any visible screws anywhere but on the customized aluminum name plate, which resides on the underbelly of the beast. Alienware managed to cram customizable color lights in several places, including the Alienware logo below the 15-inch (1920 x 1080-pixel resolution) display, along the touchpad, under the keyboard, on the Alienware head-shaped power button, and even on the back of the lid. The end result is that the M15x makes a very strong impression even before you fire up a single game.
Keyboard and Touchpad
The chunky keys on the M15x don’t have any flex to them, so it’s as if you’re typing on a legitimate desktop keyboard. Unlike the larger M17x, there’s no number pad, so you’ll have to use other keys to store all of your macros in games such as World of Warcraft. As mentioned, you can tweak all of the colored lights on the notebook, and Alienware even lets you adjust the keyboard by region. So, for example, you can have the far left of your keyboard glow blue, the middle-left glow red, the middle-right glow orange, and the far right glow green. It reminded us of a rainbow snow cone. Regardless of whether you stick with any particular pattern, it’s fun to experiment with all the possible combinations.
Above the keyboard are soft-touch buttons for ejecting Blu-ray discs, full media controls for skip and play/pause, volume controls, a wireless launch button, and quick-launch buttons for the system’s AlienFusion control panel (one for controlling lights and another for its power-tweaking Stealth mode).
The touchpad on the M15x is large and flush with the wrist rest, except for a small glowing border; its honeycomb texture allows for swift finger glides across the surface. The two touchpad buttons provided good feedback, but if you’re playing a first-person shooter you’ll want to use a gaming mouse for quicker button presses.
Display and Audio
The 15.6-inch, 1920 x 1080-pixel display on the M15x is nothing short of glorious. The edge-to-edge glass gives the system a sleek look, and while it kicked back some reflections, they weren’t much of a bother, even in nighttime scenes while playing games. The display was amazingly crisp and had great contrast; when watching a Blu-ray of Monsters, Inc., we could make out each individual strand of hair on Sulley (the monster voiced by John Goodman), and were impressed at how they waved when the character moved about.
Audio from the two front-mounted speakers was loud, but we were disappointed with their quality. When streaming music over Pandora (such as Eric Clapton’s “Five Long Years”), there was a lack of bass, and music had a tinny sound to it, even after adjusting the equalizer settings using the IDT Audio Control Panel. For this amount of money, we expected more. However, there was enough sound separation between the two speakers that we could hear and anticipate enemies coming toward us from either side when playing games such as Left 4 Dead.
Ports and Webcam
While the M15x has a good number of ports, we were surprised to see some omitted. On the left side of the unit are a DisplayPort for digital video, VGA, Ethernet, one USB, FireWire, and a 4-in-1 memory card reader. On the right is an ExpressCard/54 slot, two headphone, mic, USB, and a USB/eSATA combo port that can recharge devices even when the M15x is turned off. At this price point (and on this large of a chassis), we would have expected the more common HDMI as well. Unlike the M17x, the charging port is located on the left side of the M15x.
The 2-megapixel webcam on the M15x returned excellent images; over Skype, a caller could clearly make out our beard stubble and the shininess of our hair.
Gaming Perfomance
The folowing vedio shows the laptop playing a high grafic game gta4
So at last Alienware M15 is a awsome gaming laptop-Hari Prakash
The iPhone 5 is coming. Maybe it’ll land in September, maybe October, maybe some time after that, but sooner or later Apple is going to release a sequel to the wildly successful iPhone 4. That successor might have a larger screen, NFC, a slimmer design, or any number of other features… if the rumors are to be believed. Before every launch we hear all sorts of rumors/leaks and some of them inevitably end up being true, so while we take everything we hear with a healthy dose of skepticism, it’s still worthing pay attention.
With that in mind, and anticipation of the iPhone 5 building, let’s review the rumors we’ve heard over the past months. New Design vs. Old design
Though most tech pundits believe the iPhone 5 will feature an updated design, there are still some who believe the phone will keep the same body as the iPhone 4. Prior to each iPhone launch, we’ve seen a slew of third-party case leaks showing the new, revolutionary design. Either Apple has done an exceptional job at making sure the third-party case manufacturers don’t spill the beans, or the phone will actually keep the same design as the current model. New Design: Tapered, bezel-free, metal back, and/or curved back
Suppose the iPhone 5 does have a new design–what will it feature? Some reports say that the iPhone will revert back to the a design similar to that of the iPhone 3G with a curved, ergonomic back that would eliminate the Death Grip that plagued the iPhone 4.
Other rumors suggest that the iPhone 5 will feature a tapered design, where the bottom would be thinner than the top part of the phone, angling the device when sits on a flat surface. This would be good for watching video, cut down on size, and give it an ID that matches the acclaimed MacBook Air.
The phone may have a metallic back, and not a black or white glass one like the iPhone 4. That noted, we ‘ve read rumors that Apple had also bought 300 glass cutting machines which suggests a curved glass panel for the iPhone 5. Screen
An update that’s been talked about since early in the rumor spree is a larger screen. The current 3.5-inch screen is said to grow to 4 inches and also become edge-to-edge, eliminating the bezel. Some say the Retina Display’s resolution will stay the same and some say the resolution will be increased, but you can bet the iPhone will retain its high dpi count. It’ll be interesting to see if a larger display can maintain the same dpi levels though.
If an edge-to-edge display happens, it’s rumored that the Home button will be removed. And while that’s seems unlikely, there’s still a chance that we could see the physical Home button disappear. The Components
The iPhone 5 is rumored to be getting a dual-LED flash and could accompany the also-rumored 8-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera. The iPhone 4 took a big step forward with its cameras and it’s possible Apple saw the significance and is following up on those changes.
Talk about the A5 chip going from the iPad 2 to the iPhone is old news–it’s one of the rumors that is most likely to be true. Still, it is a rumor, so we won’t accept it was fact until the iPhone 5 ships with that sweet dual-core SoC. Sprint and T-Mobile?
Although we have yet to hear any talk about a T-Mobile iPhone, Sprint seems to be in the running as the next carrier after AT&T and Verizon to get an iPhone. It may not be the iPhone 5 though. Reports of an iPhone 4 being tested on Sprint were circling around in June which means maybe Sprint could be getting an iPhone… maybe the “S” in the rumored iPhone 4S stands for Sprint! One Phone to Rule All
When Apple first released the Verizon version of the iPhone, it launched on the Verizon CDMA network as AT&T’s version works on a GSM network. Verizon’s Chief Financial Officer Francis Shammo said at the Reuters Tech Summit that when Apple does release the iPhone 5, there will only be one version. Shammo said Apple will be producing one world phone that will function on both networks. NFC, 4G, and Bluetooth 4.0
The debate about whether Apple will include NFC technology is an ongoing one. So far, it’s not looking likely, as Apple may need more time to perfect the technology before releasing it in an Apple product. However, according to one Apple employee, the phone will have NFC.
As we mentioned back in April, Apple’s Tim Cook also made it clear that the iPhone 5 won’t be 4G since the LTE chipsets require a number of design compromises which Apple is apparently not willing to make since it would affect the guts of the iPhone too much.
As for Bluetooth 4.0, the iPhone 5 may be using that to completely bypass the need for an NFC chip. Bluetooth 4.0 would split Bluetooth communication in two Bluetooth high-speed and Bluetooth low energy. The high-speed version relies on Wi-Fi for its high data transfer rate, but more power. Apple obviously has an interest in using Bluetooth technology, which is an established and cheap secure communication solution that’s already installed in a lot of other devices. iPhone 4S
It’s been rumored that Apple may be waiting a bit longer to release the iPhone 5 and in the meantime will release an iPhone 4S in September. It will have the same body as the iPhone 4, but with a few upgrades, such as an A5 processor and better cameras. But don’t get too upset… There’s also talk that the iPhone 4S would be released in additon to the iPhone 5 and will be marketed as the budget iPhone. Release Date
If they were to put money on it, most people would say the iPhone release date will be sometime in September 2011. However, if you asked us to pick a day, most would be shooting blind. The crew over at CNET UK apparently spent 16 hours crunching numbers in order to determine what they think the exact date will be, and they think it will be September 7. Apple has generally chosen Wednesdays to make its product announcements and the 7th is indeed a Wednesday.
We’ve heard rumors that the phone could be announced in August. Reports sprung up back in July that Apple was looking to hire iPhone Sales Specialists for an “exciting project” to start August 16 and work through October 29. Knowing that Apple’s retail training is a five-day process, this gave some people cause to believe that the iPhones may be released on August 22. However, August 22 is not that far from September, so it’s possible that Apple was just looking for some time to get the new employees up to “Genius” status before launching in September. Some outlets have reported an October release date as well, which is looking more likely than August at this point.
So, those are the rumors so far. Have you heard of any others?
The tablet race continues to heat up. The iPad set the stage for this generation's tablet race, and although things have definitely tightened up, Apple's wunderkind, like it or not, remains the industry standard by which all others are judged. Seasoned technology buffs will likely recall that tablets had another go a decade or so ago, as a number of largely Windows-based, bulky devices hit store shelves. Unfortunately, those products weren't very well thought out -- they were hardly thin, battery life was terrible, and they ran a full desktop OS that wasn't designed for touch input.
But, a lot has changed in ten years. Mobile processors have gotten faster and more power efficient. Storage is cheaper. It's easier than ever to pack suitable power into a small frame. And in all of that, Apple has also managed to grab a scary amount of mind and market share, particularly in the tablet space -- a market where they didn't even compete just a few years ago. What does all of this Apple talk have to do with Samsung? A lot, actually.
The Galaxy Tab 10.1 is the first consumer tablet to ship and be thinner (even though it's only thinner by the smallest of margins) than the iPad 2. Samsung actually went out of their way to make a tablet that was slimmer than their primary competitor's tablet, nixing the original Tab 10.1 (actually, renaming it the Tab 10.1v) and forging ahead with a new plan. The new plan has resulted in this: one of the first tablets to ship (as in, not be upgraded after unboxing) with Android 3.1.
Software :
- Android 3.1
- Music Beta
- Google Maps
- Android Market
- Gmail
- Pulse
Battery:9 hours; 7000mAh Battery
Dimensions: 10.1" (h) x 6.81" (w) x 0.34" (d) Weight:595g/1.31lbs.
Is this ultra-thin Honeycomb tablet up to the task of taking on Apple's iPad 2? Does it have the app support necessary to rival the iOS' impressive catalog? Is there really a compelling reason to select this $499 tablet over Apple's already-proven $499 tablet? I'll investigate these questions in the pages to come, so join us for our full review...
Sprint’s new high-end smartphone is called Epic 4G Touch and it is one of the variants of the tip of Samsung’s spear: the Galaxy S2. At its core, the Epic 4G Touch is powered by a Samsung Exynos dual-core processor (soc) that runs at 1.2GHz. This gives the Epic 4G Touch very high performance when crunching numbers, and its co-processors have enough muscles to power the most demanding games and multimedia apps out there.
On the outside, the Epic 4G Touch Galaxy S2 phone is a little bigger than the original Galaxy S2. At 4.52” (display diagonal) and 130g, it feels a bit bulkier than its cousin, but don’t let the size fool you: the 130g weight is still lighter than the 3.5” iPhone 4.
Finally, this version comes with Sprint’s 4G WiMax network (read more about 4G networks), so, on paper it looks pretty awesome. How does it live up to the expectations in a real-world usage? Read this review and tell us what you think.
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Specifications Highlights
Android 2.3.4
4.52″ AMOLED Plus display (800×480)
1.2Ghz Samsung Exynos Dual-Core application processor (SoC)
16GB of internal storage. Optional (32GB) microSD
8 Megapixel (back) + 2 Megapixel (front) cameras
WiFi A/B/G/N
Size: 2.8 inches x 5.1 inches x 0.38 inches
Weight: 130g
Battery: 1800 mAh
What’s new (vs. original Galaxy S)
Dual-core system on a chip: The Galaxy S2 is powered by a Samsung Exynos dual-core system on a chip (or SoC) running at 1.2Ghz. Although Samsung doesn’t communicate about sub-components, the graphics processor is a Mali-400MP, which is a very capable GPU, one of the best -if not the best- on the market. This new hardware platform should lift the Epic 4G Touch to the top of the performance charts, but we will get back to this later on.
4G WiMax: Keep in mind that while it is better than 3G, it is not as fast as 4G LTE (as deployed by Verizon in the US). That said, WiMax phones don’t usually use as much power as today’s LTE phones when transmitting data, although things are slowly getting better for LTE. For more information, read my post about the different 4G networks.
1080p video recording: the Galaxy S2 is the first smartphone platform that records in 1080p – with very good results. It’s surprising because usually I dismiss even 720p recording in real-world usage as many phones don’t do a good job with it and video are choppy. Strangely, I found 1080p to be the most usable video recording mode on this phone… I’ll get back to that later.
Low-light photography: Samsung didn’t make much noise about this, but they should. The Galaxy S2 platform has much better low-light photography capabilities than the original Galaxy S Series. That’s because of a combination of sensor and software, and I like what I’m seeing.
Context
We all use our smartphones differently, that’s why I should tell you what I do with them: I check my email (with Microsoft Exchange), and I reply very moderately because virtual keyboards are slow to type with. I browse the web several times a day to check on news and stocks (mainly on mobile sites), but I rarely watch movies or play music. I don’t call much – maybe 10mn a day, if at all. On the “apps” side, I use a couple of social networks, and I rarely play games on the go. In the evenings, I may use my phone as a TV remote from time to time. This usage pattern will affect battery life and the perception of what features are useful.
The Epic 4G Touch is a slightly different beast than the international Galaxy S2 and the AT&T Galaxy S2 versions of the handset. Obviously, it runs on Sprint’s 4G “WiMax” network (read more about 4G networks here), but it also has a 4.52” display (versus 4.3”), a larger battery (1800 mAh vs. 1650 mAh) and weighs a bit more (130g vs. 116g). We will cover all the differences in the review.
Left: AT&T Galaxy S2, right Epic 4G Touch
Chassis: the chassis design closely resembles the original Galaxy S2 and keeps the original frame design, but there are small differences. The camera Flash is underneath the lens, and the loud-speaker is on the left side at the bottom.
Although the Epic 4G Touch is a huge phone, it weighs only 130g, which still a bit lighter than the 137g of the iPhone 4. Of course, the light weight comes from using plastic instead of glass/metal in many places.
This may sound bad, but I haven’t noticed any differences in rigidity while I was using it. It’s not as rigid as the iPhone 4, but it’s solid enough. I’m not sure how it would resist if you were to drop it on a solid surface, but I’m pretty sure that it is less likely to shatter than an iPhone 4. There is simply less glass to break (the iPhone 4 has glass on the front and the back). Of course, the front glass is still a sensitive part, but unlike the iPhone 4, if the phone lands on a corner, the glass is not in direct contact with the landing surface.
Now, I really love the “feel” of touching glass and aluminum, and in an ideal world, I would surely want such a design in a lightweight and less fragile form. But in reality, that is not possible, at least, not today. Yes, it’s about making compromises (again). As a user, you will have to choose between a very light phone that may have a “plastic” feel, or a glass/metal phone that is much heavier for its size.
I have also heard from a number of people (especially HTC users) that the light weight makes them feel like this phone is not solid. I wish that we could crash-test the phones, but this sounds to me like a matter of personal preferences more than a matter of sturdiness. When in doubt, get one in your hands before you pull that credit card out of your pocket.
Display
There’s no question that the Super AMOLED display used in the Epic 4G Touch has an amazing contrast and saturation. Colors literally “pop” – sometime a bit too much. AMOLED displays are not really known for their color accuracy, so images tend to be more “colorful” than usual. Ironically, most users will perceive this as a “positive”, so it really depends on your taste. If you care about color accuracy, then IPS LCD or TFT LCD displays would be better – at the expense of the contrast ratio (black level). I find the over-saturation to be fine, and it is even enjoyable when watching movies and photos.
This shows how big the Epic 4G Touch is next to the AT&T GS2
Notification LED: A lot of people have asked me, so I can confirm: yes, the Epic 4G Touch does have a notification LED.
Indoors, the Super AMOLED Plus screen does very well, and watching movies or viewing photos are a real treat. Contrast and brightness are great. I can’t wait to see the 7.7″ version of the Galaxy Tab with an AMOLED display. Even better: I can’t wait to have a 55″ AMOLED TV…
Outdoors, on a sunny day, it’s a different story. The screen can be very difficult to read in direct sunlight, especially if you are using a dark wall paper and lock screen. For best readability in direct sunlight, I always recommend using a light (if not white!) background on your home page or applications. You can also crank the brightness to the maximum, but beware of the battery life repercussions.
There’s a catch in using bright background images: AMOLED displays tend to use more power when displaying bright images, so a good chunk of the Android user interface and application interfaces on Samsung AMOLED devices is usually dark, and there is often no way to change that.
In terms of sheer display resolution, the Epic 4G Touch is still using a 800×480 resolution, which is inferior to today’s qHD 960×540 resolution that many high-end Android phones are using. Obviously, this won’t cripple the user experience, but the display does matter a lot, and it would have been nice to get a resolution upgrade at some point. For example, the Samsung Galaxy Note has a 5.3” 1280×800 display (!). The upcoming Samsung Droid Prime is also rumored to have a superior screen.
Basic functions
Call Audio Quality (good): The audio quality is good, although I tend to think that the Nexus S is still has the best audio quality. That said, I’m under the impression that the Epic 4G Touch has a slighty better sound quality than the AT&T Galaxy S2 that I have on hand. I would not make this a decision factor, and I only wish that I could scientifically measure the difference.
Dialing: no problem there, dialing a number directly from the numeric pad, or doing so from one of the contact is easy. If there are a couple of numbers that you call on a regular basis, I recommend creating a “direct shortcut” on the home screen. That makes it a one-tap call. You can’t get any faster than that.
Contacts (syncs with Outlook over USB): Contacts can be synchronized from many sources. Google of course, but also Facebook, Exchange and more. Those who use Outlook without using Microsoft Exchange will be happy as Samsung Kies utility can synchronize contacts, calendar todo lists and memos from Outlook. More on that below.
Web Browsing: web browsing is very good, although a number of devices actually have better displays, which implies better readability and/or more information visible at once on the web page. That said, The Galaxy S2 will handle web browsing without any problems.
Some Flash games work very decently, but they tend to require a mouse and keyboard
Obviously Flash (10.3) is supported and it will let you access many websites from small business and restaurants. You can also play with select casual games, which opens a new realm of games to your android device. But, don’t expect any miracles: only games that use light computing power can be played. Also, there is no decent “fullscreen” mode, which is annoying. Finally, most Flash content is still designed for a mouse and keyboard.
Software
Android 2.3.4: this Galaxy S2 is powered by Android 2.3.4, which is the latest (and probably the final) 2.x version in existence today. If you are really curious, you can go to the official Android developer website to look for all the changes from one version to the next:
Samsung software: As it is the case with almost all the Android handset makers, there is a level of customization that comes with Samsung products, sometime for the sake of being different, sometime that turns out to be really useful. I’ll skip the pure “differentiation” part, but here are a few functionalities that you may be interested in:
Live panels: What Samsung calls “live panels” are really widgets. They are little applications that you can drop on your home screen, and they will show some sort of quick-access information, like email notification, battery life or weather information.
I don’t use them much because some tend to consume power to stay updated, but I really like the Task Manager Widget as it lets me know how many applications are currently running. If I feel like there are too many, I can quickly go into the task manager app and shut them all off (except the ones that Samsung deems as “part of the system”).
Kies is Samsung's iTunes... kind of
Kies 2.0: To put it simply, Kies is Samsung’s equivalent of Apple’s iTunes. It lets users synchronize with a PC over WIFI, sync contacts with Outlook, Yahoo and Google, manage songs and playlists, backup photos and files.
For Outlook users, the synchronization over USB is undoubtedly the biggest value. This is an option that few Android phones have, as Android has been designed to be synchronized over the air.
Kies is also handy if you have a larger number of media files (music, movies) to manage. Kies can also take care of converting videos to make sure that they are compatible, or optimized for the Galaxy S2.
Critical Apps
Virtual keyboard and Swype: although smartphones are mostly touch-screen focused, most people still spend a lot of time on text-based applications like email, chats or social networks, so the keyboard quality is paramount. Unlike the original Samsung Galaxy S2, the Epic 4G Touch does not feature the stock Android virtual keyboard. Fortunately, the “Samsung keyboard” is almost identical, so it’s not a problem.
The keyboard itself is fairly responsive, and it is comparable with other Android phones or the iPhone 4. That said, the Windows Phone 7 (WP7) keyboard firmly remains the king of responsiveness. Even if you don’t plan on moving to WP7, try it when you can.
Swype is truly different. Instead of “tapping” on virtual keys, you can swipe your finger from one letter to the next to form complete words. Instead of going into a long description, here’s a video that shows how Swype works.
Exchange Email (OK, can be slow): Unfortunately, the email experience is a bit different from the AT&T Galaxy S2. For one, the background color is black (and cannot be changed), which makes email difficult to read outdoors. I’ve complained about this with pretty much every Samsung Touchwiz device until the Galaxy S2 featured a white background. Note that the black background comes from the fact that AMOLED screens use more power to display a white image (see the “display” section)…
The AT&T Galaxy S2 can also show a 2-line preview of the email, which the Epic 4G Touch does not have. It’s not a big deal for me, but it is something that you may want to think about.
Finally, I have experienced many moments during which the Email app was slow and unresponsive. The phone was running on the same WIFI network, and no amount of “reboot” or “kill apps” would change that. I don’t see a logical reason for this, so at this point, I’m not implying that this happens on every Sprint Epic 4G Touch, but this is definitely something that I will look at again if I can get my hands on a similar handset (I may try to hard reset it too). The downside of this is that the Email app can make the whole system unresponsive, and use more battery.
The GMail app doesn’t suffer from this problem at all, so the responsiveness issue seems to be contained within the Email app at the moment.
Facebook (very good): You have a few ways to connect with Facebook. The Android app is the logical one: it works well, and it is updated regularly and it provides you with notifications, which is important if you have an active social life. You can also go to m.facebook.com, which is the mobile site. It’s not as nice, but it won’t pull data in the background, so this may be the most battery-efficient way of using Facebook.
Finally you can use Samsung’s Social Hub, which is a content aggregator. Unfortunately for me, Social Hub was not able to use my Facebook credentials. I’m not sure if this a common problem, but it did not work with my FB account.
Google Maps (awesome): As of late, I found the mapping experience to be much better on Android devices, and that certainly has to do with the fact that Google has been improving its mapping application on its own platform (surprise surprise…), while leaving other mobile OSes (mostly) in the cold. It’s not a bad tactic to gain an edge, and the net result is that Android users have been getting steady improvements, while others have mostly stagnated.
First, Android users get free turn-by-turn navigation. This is a big deal as this feature can cost quite a bit of money on other platforms. Secondly, new features like “download map area” are introduced on a regular basis. This one is supposed to let you preload an area the size of a city, this is really cool. Here’s how to enable it:
1/ in Google Map, do Menu>More>Labs>enable pre-cache map area
2/ go to the map, select a place, expand the place’s options and choose “pre-chace map area”
In my case, Google Maps has pre-cached the city of San Francisco, and it is going to boost Google Map’s speed.
Skype (very good): chat, calls and video calls work very well. For calls, I really like how it is integrated to the phone’s dialer as well. When I’m traveling abroad, I always have the option to call via SkypeOut and that saves me real dollars. [skype for Android]
This phone also supports video calls, and just like other Android devices, the video is transmitted in 16-bit colors (65k), which is frankly good enough, although we can hope that 24-bit (16M) colors will be eventually an option over WIFI.
If you plan on leaving Skype “on” at all times, be aware that it can be a voracious battery life user.
Photo and Video capture (excellent)
First of all, I have uploaded photo and video samples to the Ubergizmo Flickr account, so that gives you a change to download the original images, and see for yourself.
A photo taken with the Epic 4G Touch with widely different brightness levels in the image
As a Samsung Galaxy S2 variant, the Epic 4G Touch is just as good at video capture than the European and AT&T models that I have played with. Overall, I think that this is one of the best camera phone on the market today. In terms of absolute photo quality, the Epic 4G Touch is better than the iPhone 4 because the images are less noisy.
The panorama mode works well, but can be blurry at the stitching threshold
The Galaxy S2 has also a Panorama mode that is effective. Although it is quickly becoming a common feature, the Panorama was first introduced to us on Android by the LG Optimus 2X, and has seen a steady adoption since.
This is a very challenging image for any phone because the place is dark, but there's a strong light in the background
Low-light photography: Even in low-light photography the Epic 4G Touch does very well, and I mostly don’t have to use the flash, which makes photos more natural and warm. The iPhone 4 may sometime get an edge in low-light because it is tuned with a higher ISO (I think), so it really accepts “more noise” in exchange for “extra light sensitivity”.
Video recording: the video recording reflects the photographic qualities of the phone. It works great in broad daylight and 1080p movies are very good. I recommend using the 1080p mode when you can, as it is worth it. Low light video capture is also very good (for a phone). I can use it in parties without a problem.
Entertainment / Play (excellent)
Gaming (excellent): the Epic 4G Touch can run games very well. Thanks to its Mali-400 graphics processors, game like Raging Thunder 2 Lite run at very high framerate (I suspect 60fps). I’m pretty sure that it can run the most demanding games available today. I promise, I’m going to start looking for more challenging games to illustrate upcoming reviews.
Video Playback (excellent): video playback is not an issue, at least on the internal screen. I have been able to download a couple of 720p and 1080p game trailers designed for desktop PCs, and the Epic 4G Touch has been able to play them without breaking a sweat. I couldn’t even feel the warmth in the back of the phone.
Speaker quality (fair): the speaker quality is decent, but it is not the best out there. Even though the Epic 4G Touch is a bit bigger than the original Galaxy S2, the sound properties of the speaker are comparable. No change there. To me, the iPhone 4, the LG Optimus 2X and the Motorola Atrix have a more powerful speaker system.
System Performance (very good)
When talking about the performance of a consumer electronics device, I always try to separate the “measured” and “perceived” performance. Measured metrics are obtained by running synthetic (not always life-like) benchmarks to stress specific parts of the system.
On the other hand, “perceived” performance is the user observation and perception of performance. Although they should correlate, I would always place perceived performance as being the most important thing. After all, what is performance good for if you can’t tell?
BrowserMark, SunSpider: BrowserMark and SunSpider are two tests that measure the speed of Javascript, a key component for interactivity in websites. To be clear, this does not measure “how fast” pages are loading. Instead this look at how fast scripting code can execute. Javascript is used in modern websites for user interface or even complete applications/games.
The Sprint Epic 4G Touch (Galaxy S2) score right at the top of the list and leaves everyone else in the dust. During the process I have noticed that our AT&T Galaxy S2 numbers were off in the previous review. As you may expect, both Galaxy S2 phones have similar performance.
GUIMark 2 Flash graph test [link]: This test measures the Adobe Flash performance. Flash is a widely used multimedia platform and you can find it virtually everywhere as advertisement, video or other forms of interactive web page module.
This is the only benchmark that the Epic 4G Touch does not win. It does OK, but if you consider that other phones handle more pixels, there is quite a margin. I suspect that this has mostly to do with software optimizations.
The CPU Benchmark also shows a relatively average score for a dual-core SoC. That explains why the Javascript benchmarks also showed average scores. It’s not the Javascript runtime, it’s the CPU. Note that we are still struggling to find a benchmark that provide a truly accurate performance profile, however, they are still good indicators.
I have ditched Neocore in favor of Nenamark 2 because it is clear that Neocore has become too old and has been pretty much maxed out. Sequences can run at 57-60FPS without any problem and the phone is pretty much waiting on the display at that point.
Nenamark2 is more challenging and the Optimus 2X with a Tegra 2 chip scores just above 25FPS. The Mali 400 graphics processor of the Epic 4G Touch impresses with a whooping 47FPS. That explain what we saw earlier with games. The downside of this benchmark is that it crashes on many of the older phones that we have in the lab.
Perceived Performance
Perceptually, the Epic 4G Touch is a very fast phone. Its user interface is responsive and I have not experienced any hiccups. The only thing that I bumped into is the Email application. That is the only one that has experienced regular periods of slugishness. I will have to reset the phone and try again because I don’t see a reason for this behavior.
Battery Life (very good)
Overall, the battery life is very good. With my usage pattern, the phone can easily survive for the day, and I actually charge it only every other day so far. Of course, if you start using games and watch HD videos, the battery will deplete much faster, but the baseline is very good in my opinion. While it may be better than the AT&T Galaxy S2 because the battery is bigger (1800 mAh vs 1650 mAh), don’t forget that 4G WiMax and a slightly bigger screen may be more taxing as well.
The depletion rate can vary quickly depending on usage.
As you can see in the photos, when you use intense applications, the battery life can be drained very quickly. I don’t expect gamers to be shocked by the battery drain, but many people are surprised by background network activity as apps that pull data in the background are less obvious battery offenders.
I have run a couple more apps during 30mn to see their immediate impact on the battery life. Here are the results so far:
Raging Thunder Lite 2: 13% of battery Youtube (WiFi) : 6% of battery
I have been surprised by these numbers, as they are relatively low if you consider that Raging Thunder runs close (or at) 60fps. The Youtube number is also relatively low in comparison to other Android devices that I have tried in recent month. I don’t recommend extrapolating this too far (can you really play Raging Thunder for 3.86 hours or watch Youtube for 8.3 hours?), but this is an interesting experiment.
The easiest way to save on battery life is to shut down stuff that you don’t need, and quit apps that you don’t use. The Android Power widget is a convenient way to toggle a number of things, including Wifi, GPS, display brightness. The Samsung task manager is an easy way to watch and exit user apps that are running. Both are the low-hanging fruit in battery conservation. For more tips, head to our Android battery life page.
4G Network: I have noticed that the 4G Network shuts down automatically when WIFI is on. This is a really good idea because there is no point in leaving the 4G radio ON if WIFI is available. And because it is automatic, you don’t even have to remember. Nice touch.
Overall, I find the battery life to be very good. If I just use my phone as I described in the Context the phone can last for two days. In practice, it may last only 24hrs + 1 work day (8hrs+) depending on my usage. The bottom-line is that I usually don’t need to worry about charging it every day.
Conclusion (excellent)
The level of performance of the Epic 4G Touch is very high and its size makes it very comfortable to use. It feels and performs like the original Galaxy S2, in a slightly different form factor that keeps all the properties of the Galaxy S2. This is by far the best Sprint smartphone today and one of the Android phones out there.
And yes, I’m taking into account the whole “plastic” feel of the phone - there’s no denying that, it’s there. Samsung’s detractors have been quick to point this out, and I don’t expect things to change. Put simply, this seems to be the price to pay for the light weight and thinness. This huge 4.52” phone is lighter than the 3.5” iPhone 4…
I’m a bit worried about the email app that seems to experience difficulties to fetch data from the network, and uses more CPU than anticipated. I don’t see a logical reason for it, and I’ll run more tests to see if this is due to my Exchange server.
I hope that this review has given you a good overview of the Samsung Epic 4G Touch (Galaxy S2) from Sprint. I tried to cover most of the areas that one may want to know, but if there is something else that you would like to ask, or if you simply want to provide some feedback, please leave a comment below. I’ll try to reply as soon as I can.
;)
BrowserMark, SunSpider: 
