Alcatel One Touch Idol X Snap Review

The Alcatel One Touch Idol X+ is one of the big surprises so far at CES. Looking at the spec sheet it's a powerful smartphone keeping up with the flagships of 2013, but with a low cost that should see it go up against the Motorola Moto G in terms of price.

Alcatel One Touch Idol X Price at LowYat Plaza, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

It's coming to the UK in February, and Pocket-lint was treated to a behind closed doors briefing ahead of the official announcement at CES in Las Vegas to see what all the fuss is about.

The specs are these: the Idol X+runs a 2GHz Octa Core processor which, Alcatel claims, offering an 18 per cent power saving over a quad-core chip. But it doesn't stop at eight cores, there's also an impressive 5-inch 1080p IPS 441ppi display that is rich in colours, as you can see from our hands-on photos, and comes with an impressive 170-degree viewing angle. In the hand the screen certainly shines and it's promising to see such a nice screen on such an affordable device.

On the camera front the Idol X+ comes with a 13.1-megapixel camera on the rear and a 2-megapixel snapper in the front for video calling. The camera is also capable of 1080p Full HD video, making it ideal for Skype chatting and, of course, selfie Vine videos.

The Alcatel OneTouch Idol X+ is powered by a 2500mAh battery which it manages to cram into a 7.9mm thin body. Even the speakers are at the top level with SACD 24bit/192KHz playback support and a quick listen in a Vegas hotel room (Daft Punk Get Lucky, it's all they had) sounded remarkably good, considering.

In an attempt to differentiate itself from the vanilla Android crowd, Alcatel has added its own customised skin to the stock Android experience. It's unabashedly a cross between Apple's iOS 7 and Microsoft's Windows Phone operating systems. The Apple OS references are found in the bright colour (the Music logo looks virtually identical) and the folder design and animation, while the Windows Phone influence comes from a vertically scrolling widget page that we've not seen anywhere else on Android. The widgets - which run edge to edge to take advantage of the edge to edge screen - let you display calendar information among other things.

There's also a rather tasty looking photo gallery viewer that runs within the home pages and lets you flick through your photos without going into a dedicated gallery app to view your latest photos either one at a time or in a panel of three.

It's not going to be enough to single-handedly make you pick this phone over any other, but it's all helps. Certainly for older iPhone users looking to move to Android and into one that will cuddle them on the way.

The Idol X+ is expected in the UK in the first quarter with a price that is aggressive enough that it makes people stop and wonder why they are paying top dollar for the latest flagship handsets.

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Samsung Galaxy Ace Snap Review

With the Samsung Galaxy Ace, Samsung has set their sights on conquering the all important mid-range market. The Galaxy Ace isn’t for geeks, it is for people who are looking for a smartphone that just works well and aren’t interested or impressed in features they do not need.

With the Galaxy Ace, Samsung has designed a phone that is not only elegant, but also simple to use. There are two touch sensitive buttons on the front with a directional pad in between them. The buttons are backlit and disappear when not in use. This gives the Galaxy Ace a simple design. The reasonably sized screen is bright, sharp and is sensitive enough to detect any finger swipes. The device on a whole is solid and well built.

Two battery covers are included for some form of personalisation, one of which is black and rubbery and the other in glossy white. A 2GB microSD card for installing applications and any music and videos is included. Also included in the box is a USB cable, a wall charger and a stereo headset.

A 5 Megapixel autofocus camera with LED flash is on the back. While the camera will not replace a dedicated digital camera, images captured are printable, provided there is reasonable lighting. The camera interface is excellent and provides easy access to a number of features, including manual control for photography buffs. It also supports face and smile detection, macro feature for close-up shots and geotagging.

Samsung has customised the Google Android operating system with their own user interface. The homescreen has up to seven panels that users can populate with widgets like clock, news and weather and Google Search. As a now mature ecosystem, Android offers users plenty of features, including easy access to Google’s many online services.

Applications are easy to get to and if a user needs more, they can easily access the Android Market where thousands of free and paid-for applications are available. The Galaxy Ace is reasonably quick though it slows down a bit when running many applications concurrently.

As expected from a phone that runs on Android, the Galaxy Ace is an excellent messaging device. The default messaging application supports SMS and MMS, while there is also a generic email application that handles POP and IMAP email services. Threaded messaging is included as standard giving the user a conversational style interface.

The Android browser is one of the best available on a smartphone. The browser works like any modern smartphone browsers do – it’s pinch to zoom, as well as tap to zoom. Text reflow makes it easier to browse websites that are not mobile optimised. Because the Galaxy Ace is on Three’s fast 3G network, web browsing on the go has never been quicker.

All in all, I am surprised by how much I liked about the Samsung Galaxy Ace. Despite being light on high-end features, the Galaxy Ace is a great all rounder and easy to use smartphone that anybody can pick up and use right away.

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Qwerty : What Makes You Say Yes to Touch Screen?

Since the release of Apple’s first iPhone in 2007, touch screen phones have become increasingly popular with smartphone users. Many smartphone manufacturers—from Samsung to Nokia—were quick to copy the new touch screen technology and include it on their devices, but BlackBerry has traditionally remained loyal to physical keyboards. With the release of the Z10 earlier this year, BlackBerry has finally moved to a touch screen model, encouraging users to adapt the new technology for the first time.

The move from Qwerty to touch screen on the BlackBerry Z10 is undoubtedly a response to complaints that BlackBerry lags far behind its competitors in terms of technology and innovation. Yet BlackBerry’s full Qwerty keyboard has traditionally been adored by faithful BlackBerry users who claim that typing speed and accuracy is much better on a physical keyboard than a virtual one. The new Z10 attempts to offer a solution that will please both BlackBerry loyalists and BlackBerry critics: it features a new virtual keyboard that boasts better accuracy than any of its competition. CNET’s review of the Z10 applauds BlackBerry for its new virtual keyboard, stating that “texting quality [on the Z10] is better than the GS3 or iPhone because of the predictive keyboard.” Apple may have invented the touch screen phone, but BlackBerry just may have perfected it.

So how are BlackBerry users responding to the switch from Qwerty to touch screen? Recent stats from Q1 2013 suggest that BlackBerry is slowly regaining ground in the global smartphone market, with sales of BlackBerry phones in Canada, the UK, and the U.S. seeing jumps so far this year. The verdict? Getting accustomed to the Z10’s virtual keyboard may not be such a hard change for BlackBerry users after all.

But that’s not to say that BlackBerry has abandoned physical Qwerty keyboards altogether. The new Q10, the second of BlackBerry’s phones to run on the new BB10 OS, features a full Qwerty keyboard, as does its mid-range successor, the Q5. Interestingly, the retail price of BlackBerry’s new touch screen model is higher than both of its new Qwerty phones; while the BlackBerry Z10 price for 29,990 PHP, the Q10 retails for 24,990 PHP and the new Q5 for just 18,900 PHP.

That’s quite a big price difference between the Z10 and the Q5, but smartphone users who want the latest technology—including BlackBerry’s new virtual keyboard—will likely spend the extra cash without much thought. While there’s little difference in terms of physical specs between the Z10 and the Q10, there’s just no denying that the Z10 looks and feels more like the type of smartphone users are accustomed to in 2013, with its sleeker build, larger screen, and yes, even its virtual keyboard. All of these features will make the Z10 the undisputed go-to choice for modern BlackBerry users who not only want to use their phone for business and productivity purposes, but also for reading, gaming, and streaming video content.

Simply put, users pay more for touch screen phones because they’ve come to associate these models with having newer, more innovative technology than their Qwerty counterparts. While some Qwerty phones do come with excellent hardware and impressive features, there’s no denying that touch screen phones dominate the global smartphone market—and will probably continue to do so in the foreseeable future.

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Lenovo A850 Snap Review

Lenovo has strengthening its position on smartphone market and the A850 model is not an exception. Providing middle quality of 5.5 inch IPS LCD screen resolution with 200 ppi, the device is advanced in capacity.

Battery of 2250mAh allow to have up to 28 hours of talks in 2G while the quad-core Cortex-A7 processor is responsible for convenient performance. Additionally, the smartphone is equipped with dual SIM option that make it more even more attractive for people wondering to divide private and work life.

The Lenovo A850: A Smartphone To Reckon With

Lenovo, a long time Asian tech market favorite has done it again. The stylish and functional Lenovo A850 smartphone features an incredible 5.5-inch widescreen display for seamless surfing, video viewing or gaming.

Lenovo, consistent in offering superior performance - just like fellow Chinese brand ASUS, has complemented its latest phablet with an able 1.3GHz CPU, plenty of memory with 4GB of internal storage (including expandable memory to ensure additional data can be stored for photos, videos and gaming downloads so that you never miss a moment), and as a bonus, Lenovo has provided you with the industry favorite, Android 4.2 JellyBean. Even with major competition from other leading smartphone brands, the A850 has managed to stand out from the crowd with a savvy savings price. Packed with performance and sleek design, we adore the all new A850 for its powerful specifications, coupled with its economical price.

Specification and Features

• Processor: Mediatek MT6582M
• RAM Memory: 1GB
• Storage: 4GB
• Rear Camera: 5 mega-pixels
• Front Camera: VGA
• Operating System: Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean)

Bringing your multimedia to life, Lenovo has endowed their latest flagship with a huge 5.5-inch display. Complete with IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen, with a vibrant screen resolution of 540x940 (200PPI). This wide angle 5.5-inch smartphone allows for a better performance whilst viewing videos, images, web browsing and even gaming. If you're looking for more options when it comes to gaming on your phone check out our great range of Sony Smartphones. Running on your favorite operating system, Android OS JellyBean, it is agile, which guarantees optimal performance. The A850's 1.3GHz quad-core Cortex-A7 processor ensures lightning fast speeds for intense multi-tasking, and a smoother experience for your graphics, which is beefed up by the impressive Mali-400MP2 graphics processing unit. The overall result is clear-cut, sharp and fast images throughout your multimedia endeavors. Including 4GB of internal memory and 1 GB of RAM with additional expandable memory of up to 32GB via microSD card, the A850 phablet is pure perfection.

New Improvements

Weighing in at a comfortable 184 grams, the A850 has impressed us all with a robust battery life, which lasts up to 28 hours of talk time on 2G and 14 hours of talk time on 3G, powered by the Li-Po 2250 mAh replacable battery. It's BlueTooth compatible, and outfitted with the ever popular Dual-SIM, which allows you to mix two worlds into one! Other A850 specs include being the CA satellite controlled GPS will help you find your way around town whether driving or on foot. This feature works in offline mode or when connected to the net. So never fear losing your way again! The primary camera is an autofocus 5 megapixel with 2592x1944 pixels and LED flash, with top notch features like geo-tagging and touch focus. It also comes equipped with a front 0.3 megapixel camera, perfect for video chatting. Take great high resolution HD pictures and videos that will help you remember your most treasured moments.

Worth buying

A true work-of-art, this amazing low/budget phone is top quality and out performs its price class. Lenovo phones along with LG Smartphones truly outshine their class. For those looking for power, speed and versatility, this sleek and sophisticated phablet is the answer. It comes with either 2G or 3G connectivity, depending on network availability. For those looking for an even cheaper option, but less powerful, Lenovo Mobile offers a great range of other smartphones including the Lenovo K900.

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Alcatel One Touch Magic : Specs Price and Snap Review

After Chinese New Year spending my time at Pulau Penang, went back  home to KL on Sunday noon and arrived at 11pm after several stop at R&R eating, drinking and resting due to heavy jam. On Monday just visited my favorite IT Supermarket the LowYat Plaza and here's what I have snap on. The Alcatel One Touch Magic is on sale for only RM330 with freebies!

The One Touch Magic is equipped with a 4-inch touchscreen display with 480x800 resolution, 512MB of RAM, 4GB of internal storage, 3.2MP camera, 1300mAh battery and runs on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) OS. More details after the jump.

The Alcatel One Touch Magic also uses a low-power dual-core SOC 3G/HSPA+ for entry-level smartphones called MediaTek MT6572 which integrates WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, FM Radio and GPS. The One Touch Magic comes in black, silver and cherry red colors.

Alcatel One Touch Magic Specifications

• Dual SIM / Dual Standby
• 4-inch WVGA (480x800) capacitive display, 233ppi
• 1.3GHz dual-core Mediatek MT6572 processor
• ARM Mali-400MP GPU (to be confirmed)
• Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean)
• 512MB of RAM
• 4GB of internal storage
• microSD support up to 32GB
• 3.2MP fixed-focus camera (No LED flash)
• VGA (0.3MP) front-facing camera
• WiFi 802.11 b/g/n / WiFi Hotspot
• FM Radio with 3.5mm audio jack
• microUSB 2.0 / Bluetooth 4.0
• GPS with A-GPS support
• 3G/HSPA+ 21Mbps
• Li-Ion 1,300mAh battery
• Color: Black, Cherry Red and Silver

Availability/ Release Date: Out now!

Note: If you own this phone, please share some of your experiences and opinions about this phone, so that others may be aware of it. Thanks!

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Micromax Canvas Magnus A117 Snap Review

The Micromax Canvas Magnus A117 has been released in India in the mid-range phablet category and it will set you back by about U$238. The product page of the phone is yet to go live on the official company website, but that has not deterred Snapdeal to sell it on its shopping portal.

This smartphone is best suited for people who are on the lookout for a huge, wallet-friendly phablet. Its front panel is fitted with a 5-inch IPS touchscreen that is accompanied by multiple sensors and a 2MP webcam that facilitates video conferencing over the internet. On flipping the phone over, interested customers will find a 12MP camera with flash and of course, the ability to capture decent-quality videos.

Within the confines of the stylish exterior, resides a quad core processer that can clock in a maximum speed of 1.5GHz. It seeks assistance from 1GB of RAM to ensure smooth multitasking at all times. There’s 4GB of onboard memory which can easily be expanded by up to 32GB with the little assistance from a microSD card.

Furthermore, the Micromax handset operates with the assistance of the Android Jelly Bean 4.2 OS and should offer access to the Google Play store. The 3G-enabled device draws power from a 2000mAh battery that should keep it charged up for usage time of at least an entire day. Communication options like Wi-Fi and Bluetooth have also been thrown into the mix.

Potential buyers can purchase the Micromax Canvas Magnus from Snapdeal for a price of U$238.

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Apple iPhone 6 vs Huawei Honor 6 Plus Camera Review

The Huawei Honor 6 Plus made the headlines a few days back with its variable aperture dual rear camera setup. We have already added a few samples from the phone in our previous article and today, we have some more camera samples which are compared with Apple iPhone 6 camera samples. 

Variable aperture is made possible with the help of the advanced algorithms inside the Honor 6 Plus. Using the feed from both the 8MP rear cameras, the phone lets the user control aperture ranges from f/0.96 to f/16. In the camera menu, there is a slider which changes these aperture levels, even after the image has been captured. The two 8MP symmetrical cameras at the back along with the powerful 3IE algorithm make this all possible. The primary 8MP camera in the setup features auto-focus with f/2.0 aperture and the secondary 8MP has a fixed focus with f/2.4. 

The primary camera focuses on nearby objects and the secondary fixed-focus camera captures a flat image. With a combination of the two sensors, the Honor 6 Plus offers features such as variable aperture, depth of field and faster HDR. This also helps in better low light performance, which you'll clearly see in the pictures given below.

Huawei Honor 6 Plus

Apple iPhone 6

Huawei Honor 6 Plus

Apple iPhone 6

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Huawei E589 4G LTE Router Snap Review

The Huawei E589 basically takes an ordinary SIM card connected to a service provider with either 3G, or 4G where available and shares it. The idea isn’t that advanced, and neither is the design of the device. It looks like a smartphone with slightly rounded corners, and a bit of plumpness to the look.

Once the SIM card has been inserted you can power up the device. As there is no input you have to enter the bios settings using a Mac or PC. This has to be done to enter the pin code; otherwise you won’t have much use for it. Once the pin code is inserted the device is live. Simply connect it by choosing it as your WiFi source, and enter the number of the device. It is really easy to get it all going, and I managed to hook up an iMac, MacBook Pro, Macbook, 2 iPads, 3 iPhones and a PC to it at the same time.

Sure it still had to share only a 3G connection, but for checking email and surfing the web it worked with this setup. Streaming on YouTube, or downloading large games on iTunes isn’t what this is ideally for. I forgot to try out the PS Vita, and that is perhaps the device benefiting the most from this kind of solution. When only one device is connected I didn’t see any difference in speed compared to my blazing hot cable. That was when looking at page searches, and loading of news and the TouchGen website.

The design is kind of dull in my opinion since it looks like a generic Android phone. More could have been done to make it easy to understand that it is not a phone. A cube, round or even star shape would have been cool.

Another thing that I found to be missing is a case, or pouch to protect it. It comes with nothing, and I used the Bose Mobile Headset zipped pouch when riding my bike to work. In the box you only get a charger, and a quick start guide.

The Huawei E589 combines quick speeds in a small portable format. It is a great solution for a company, or the private person with multiple devices but not wanting to have multiple 3G accounts. For those with the WiFi model of the PS Vita it gives that extra portability, and you can still use your WiFi iPad to surf the web that the Vita handles so poorly. I found this to be a really exciting device, and now I want one for my summer holidays.

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Apple iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, debuted September 19

At a Glance

Apple recently introduced the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus. Both devices launched on September 19 in the first wave of countries. The first reviews describe the units as "thin and sexy", "bigger and better", with impressive battery life.

Specs

• 4.7-inch iPhone 6 features a 1334 x 750 display
• 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus features a 1920 x 1080 display
• 16 GB, 64 GB, and 128 GB
• $199, $299, and $399 / $299, $399, and $499

Apple has launched two new iPhones, the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus. Along with larger screens and a completely new iPad-style design with an ultra thin body and rounded corners, the two new phones offer faster processors, better cameras, and Apple's new Apple Pay payment system.

Apple's new iPhones are available in Gold, Silver, and Space Gray, and are available in 16, 64, and 128 GB capacities. The iPhone 6 pricing starts at $199 on contract, while the iPhone 6 Plus pricing starts at $299.

While both models include the same 64-bit A8 chip and the same general design, there are several differences between the two phones. The iPhone 6 measures in at 6.9mm, while the iPhone 6 Plus is slightly thicker at 7.1mm. Apple's iPhone 6 Plus also has three major differentiating factors: optical image stabilization for the camera, and a longer battery life, and an iPad-style landscape mode that displays more content on the screen.

Though the iPhone 6 Plus has optical image stabilization, both phones got some major camera improvements in form of sensor upgrades, improved tone mapping, better noise reduction, and new "Focus Pixel" technology, which improves the phone's ability to select autofocus points. For videos, there's a new 240fps slo-mo option, along with support for shooting in 1080p at 60fps. The front-facing camera was also upgraded, with an f/2.2 aperture that lets in more light and new burst mode capabilities.

Both phones have an impressive new "Retina HD Display," with the iPhone 6 featuring a resolution of 1334 x 750 (326 ppi) and the iPhone 6 Plus featuring a resolution of 1920 x 1080 (401 ppi).

Design wise, the phones more closely resemble the iPad and the iPod touch than the iPhone 5s. Both models have soft, rounded corners and a curved glass screen that melds smoothly into the thin metal body of the device. The volume buttons on the left side of the device are now pill-shaped, and the power button is located on the right side of the device for easier one-handed use.

How to Buy

The iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus launched on September 19 in the U.S., U.K., Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Puerto Rico, and Singapore, following pre-orders that began on Friday, September 12. On Friday, September 26, Apple expanded iPhone 6 and 6 Plus availability to more than 20 additional countries, including New Zealand, Italy, Denmark, and Taiwan, and on October 17, the two devices became available in China, India and Monaco. Later in the month of October, Apple expanded availability to 33 additional countries.

Apple is selling the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus both online and in its retail stores. Though supplies were initially constrained, stock of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus appears to be improving in the United States and other countries around the world. In the U.S., new orders of both devices ship in just 1 business day for 16 and 64GB models and 3 to 5 business days for 128GB models.

In store supply of both devices is also improving, with retail stores receiving shipments on a near-daily basis. The iStockNow tracking tool can be used to see which models of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are currently in stock at a variety of stores, including Apple's retail stores.>

According to an Apple representative, response to the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus was "incredible," setting a new record for pre-orders, and sales topped 10 million during the phone's launch weekend. While it remains uncertain whether consumers preferred the smaller iPhone 6 or the larger iPhone 6 Plus, early analysis suggests buyers favored the iPhone 6 3:1 over the iPhone 6 Plus.

Apple's iPhone 6 is available in 16, 64, and 128 GB capacities, priced at $199, $299, and $399, respectively, with a two-year contract. The iPhone 6 Plus is available in 16, 64, and 128 GB capacities and will be priced $100 higher at $299, $399, and $499, respectively. Both the iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus are available in Space Gray, Gold, and Silver.

Issues

"Bendgate"

Shortly after the iPhone 6 Plus was released on September 19, reports of the device bending when placed in a pocket began to surface. One user, for example, reported slight bending after the iPhone was in a pocket for approximately 18 hours, and after that, several other reports trickled in.

Inspired by the reports of bending, a YouTuber created a video depicting him bending the iPhone 6 Plus with his hands, causing significant damage to the device. The video went viral, and began people worrying about bending the iPhone 6 Plus in their pockets.

It is important to note when watching the video above that the amount of pressure placed on the device is unlikely to be replicated in daily usage. While images have depicted slight bending, there has been no extreme warpage in the casing due to carrying the device in a pocket.

Affected users have reported that Apple has replaced devices that have bent. As shown in another video, the iPhone 6 Plus is less vulnerable to bending when placed in a rigid case, and users can also avoid bending the iPhone by removing it from a pocket before sitting down.

A followup bending video featuring the iPhone 6 demonstrated that the smaller-screened device is much harder to bend and therefore likely less vulnerable to bending when placed inside of a pocket.

In response to all of the media attention that the iPhone 6 Plus bending issues garnered, Apple released a statement to several different sites saying that with normal use, bending in the iPhone is "extremely rare." The company said that only nine customers had complained about a bent iPhone 6 Plus.

In addition to releasing a statement, Apple also invited several reporters to visit its the facility where the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are subjected to several different tests to ensure strength and durability. As described in reports, the iPhones go through five different tests, including pressure point cycling, three-point bend tests, torsion testing, sit tests, and real-life testing scenarios where Apple employees use the devices.

According to Apple's head engineer Dan Riccio, the iPhone 6 was "the most tested product" Apple's ever created. The company reportedly conducted 15,000 tests on the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus. Apple's head of marketing Phil Schiller said that bending was extremely rare, and that the company had "designed the product to be incredibly reliable throughout all your real world use."

Consumer reports went on to test the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus after reports of bending, and found that the two devices are not quite as bendable as the media has suggested. In a three-point flexural test, the iPhone 6 Plus withstood 90 pounds of force before bending, while the iPhone 6 withstood 70 pounds of force, which is more force than the two devices are likely to be subjected to during daily use.

According to Consumer Reports, though the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are not indestructible, they "should stand up to typical use."

Crashing Issues

Some 128GB iPhone 6 and 6 Plus units have reportedly been having crashing and boot loop issues, which could potentially be a hardware issue related to the NAND flash in the devices.

Reviews

Initial impressions on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are gathered below to highlight the general release reactions to the two new devices.

Apple's two new devices are essentially identical in design aside from the difference in screen size and the battery life/optical image stabilization in the iPhone 6 Plus. One notable improvement in both devices is the longer battery life afforded by the larger batteries. The iPhone 6 Plus is said to last up to 2 days, while the iPhone 6 may last a day and a half.

Brad Molen, Engadget:

Both iPhones are thinner than their predecessor. Whereas the 5s was 7.6mm thick, the 6 comes in at 6.9mm, with the 6 Plus measuring a hair thicker at 7.1mm. I don't always subscribe to the "thinner is better" mantra, but it's a benefit in this case because larger iPhones wouldn't feel as comfortable if they had the same shape as the 5s. If I had to choose based on in-hand feel alone, I'd pick the 6 over the Plus. I can still wrap my fingers around the 6 just as easily as I could with the 5s (and its curved sides don't cut as sharply as the edges on the 5s), but the large-screened 6 Plus is... well, it's manageable.

David Pierce/Nilay Patel (iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus), The Verge:

Huge phones get to have huge batteries, and the iPhone 6 Plus is a huge phone with a huge battery: I consistently got about two days of battery life from the 6 Plus in regular daily use -- slightly more than the day and half we got from the iPhone 6, and basically the same as the Note 3.

Walt Mossberg/Lauren Goode (iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus), Re/code:

In my tests, I found the iPhone 6's Wi-Fi speeds -- both downstream and upstream -- were roughly double those of the 5s, and about 25 percent faster than those of the Samsung Galaxy S5. But I saw little difference in LTE speeds, either on Verizon or AT&T.

Jim Dalrymple, The Loop:

The 6 Plus was awkward for me to use at first--it was kind of like using a smaller version of the iPad mini, but it was a phone. I had a hard time wrapping my head around the idea of using it on an ongoing basis, but the larger screen eventually won me over.

In More Detail

Design

Measuring in at 4.7 and 5.5-inches, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus dwarf previous iPhone models, but at the same time, the two phones are Apple's thinnest yet, measuring in at 6.9 and 7.1mm, respectively. For comparison's sake, the iPhone 5s was 7.6mm thick.

According to Apple, the thinner profile was made possible by the company's "thinnest display yet," which is made of slightly curved glass designed to flow seamlessly into the body of the device to highlight the "Retina HD" screen of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

Both devices include prominent antenna bands on the back enclosure, along with a protruding rear lens. The volume buttons are pill-shaped, much like the buttons on the iPad Air, and the power button has been relocated to the right side of the device.

The iPhone 6 measures in at 5.44 inches long and 2.64 inches wide, and weighs 4.55 ounces. The iPhone 6 measures in at 6.22 inches long and 3.06 wide, weighing 6.07 ounces. In comparison, the iPhone 5s is 4.87 inches long, 2.31 inches wide, and it weighs 3.95 ounces.

Retina HD Display

iPhone 6 rumors largely suggested Apple would use a sapphire display cover in the device, but that turned out to be false. Instead, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus use "ion-strengthened" glass with an improved polarizer (for better outdoor viewing), a photo aligned IPS liquid crystal display, and a fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating.

The iPhone 6 has a 4.7-inch display with a "2x" resolution of 1334 x 740 (326 ppi) while the iPhone 6 Plus has a 5.5-inch "3x" resolution of 1920 x 1080 (401 ppi). Both phones are said to offer higher contrast, better brightness, and improved white balance.

According to a test conducted by DisplayMate, the iPhone 6 Plus display is the "best smartphone LCD ever tested." The iPhone 6 display also received high marks.

Apple has implemented several "Reachability" features to improve the viewing experience on its larger devices, including Display Zoom and landscape view (iPhone 6 Plus only). Display Zoom lets users zoom in to get a closer view at their apps, while standard zoom displays more content on the screen.

Landscape view on the iPhone 6 Plus is designed to make the most of the 5.5-inch screen and to help users be more productive. When in landscape mode, the device will display apps like Mail, Calendar, and Stocks in a wider view similar to the way they're displayed on the iPad.

The iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus take advantage of dual domain pixels, which improves viewing angles. AnandTech has given an in-depth overview of dual domain pixels, explaining that the technology alludes to the fact that the electrodes in the pixels are not all aligned. Instead, the pixels are "skewed when viewed from the perspective of the lines defined by the rectangular edges of the display," allowing them to compensate for uneven lighting.

Battery Life

The iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus both offer improved battery life, but due to the larger size of iPhone 6 Plus, it is able to accommodate a larger battery. The iPhone 6 has an 1,810 mAh battery, while the iPhone 6 Plus has a battery capacity of 2,915 mAh.

Because it has a bigger battery, the iPhone 6 Plus has a longer battery life than the smaller iPhone 6. 3G talk time for the iPhone 6 Plus is at 24 hours, compared to just 14 hours in the iPhone 6, for example, while HD video playback is at 14 hours for the iPhone 6 Plus and 11 hours for the iPhone 6.

Reviews of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus have suggested that the iPhone 6 can last up to a day and a half on average, while the iPhone 6 Plus can last up to two days on a single charge. A battery life test conducted by AnandTech showed the iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus beat out many competing Android devices, lasting longer than the Samsung Galaxy S5 and the HTC One M8. The iPhone 6 Plus had the second longest battery life of any device tested, coming in behind the Huawei Ascend Mate 2.

Despite shipping with a 1A/5W battery, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are capable of drawing up to 2.1A/12W of power, which means that iPhone users can likely obtain a faster charging time using an iPad adapter. According to early testing, charging with a 12W iPad adapter charges the iPhone 6 Plus in approximately two hours.

A8 Chip and M8 Motion Coprocessor

Both the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus have a new 64-bit A8 processor built on an advanced 20-nanometer process by TSMC. Not only is the chip smaller than the A7 in the iPhone 5s, it's also able to deliver 25 percent faster CPU performance while being 50 percent more energy efficient.

The A8 takes full advantage of Metal, Apple's gaming technology that lets developers create console-style games on the iPhone. According to Apple, Metal is designed to let the GPU and CPU work together to provide detailed graphics and complex visual effects, which means gaming on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus is going to be better than ever.

Alongside the A8, there's also a new M8 motion coprocessor, which is the successor to the M7 motion coprocessor introduced in the iPhone 5s. The M8 measures data from the accelerometer, compass, and gyroscope, along with a barometer, which is new to the iPhone 6.

With the addition of the barometer, the M8 motion coprocessor can measure elevation in addition to steps taken and distance traveled.

AnandTech has published an analysis of the A8 processor that points towards significant GPU enhancements and an enhanced Cyclone CPU at 1.4Ghz.

The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus have topped CPU benchmarking tests (compared to competing Android devices and the iPhone 5s), but the iPhone 6 Plus lags slightly in graphics performance due to the device's larger screen.

Camera Improvements

The iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus continue to sport an 8-megapixel f/2.2 rear camera, but the addition of several new features will result in vastly improved picture quality. Continuing to offer improved camera capabilities has always been a priority for Apple, with the company even opting to include a protruding lens design to avoid making image quality sacrifices for the sake of the thin design of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.

The first major new feature, "Focus Pixels," are designed to speed up autofocusing by providing the sensor with more information about an image, while improved auto image stabilization will compensate for slight amounts of motion blur and hand shakiness. Focus Pixels will vastly speed up autofocusing times and improve autofocusing in low light situations, as demonstrated in a review of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus cameras.

Both phones also have improved face detection capabilities and more control over exposure, and the Panorama feature now supports high-resolution panoramic photos of up to 43 megapixels.

Video options have been improved in the two devices, and it's now possible to capture 1080p HD video at 60fps. There's also a new 240fps slo-mo mode, and time-lapse video, which was introduced with iOS 8.

The iPhone 6 Plus has one slight advantage when it comes to the camera, however, as it takes advantage of the M8 motion coprocessor to offer optical image stabilization. Optical image stabilization better compensates for hand shake and slight movements in low light than standard auto image stabilization techniques. As a result, it's likely the iPhone 6 Plus will be able to deliver higher quality low-light photos than the iPhone 6.

Along with rear camera improvements, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus have improved front-facing FaceTime HD cameras with a new sensor and an f/2.2 aperture. With these improvements, Apple says the front-facing camera can capture 81 percent more light, resulting in much better low-light photos. There's also a new burst mode for the front-facing camera, which will let users take burst mode selfies for the first time.

In the DxOMark tests from reputable camera testers DxO Labs, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus both scored an 82, overtaking the Samsung Galaxy S5 and the Sony Xperia Z2 as the best smartphone cameras in both the photo and video categories.

According to the testing, both the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus performed similarly, with the site noting that both had "very good, generally reliable auto-exposure" in a range of lighting conditions and fast, accurate autofocus.

The optical image stabilization in the iPhone 6 Plus, which is the differentiating factor between the two devices, resulted in better noise performance and less ghosting on HDR images, but it did create a video stabilization artifact that ultimately led to a better score for the iPhone 6 in the video category.

Connectivity Improvements

Apple's iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus both offer faster LTE with support for LTE Advanced networks, reaching speeds of up to 150 Mbps, and they offer 20 LTE bands for better connectivity when traveling. A real world speed test has shown some impressive speed gains between the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 5s when LTE Advanced is available.

The devices also include support for Voice over LTE (VoLTE) which allows users to make higher-quality phone calls over LTE. VoLTE will also allow users on CDMA networks like Verizon to use voice and data simultaneously for the first time. VoLTE requires support from both Apple and carriers, and several carriers have pledged to roll out support for the service.

In addition to cellular improvements, the iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus are the first of Apple's iOS devices to offer support for 802.11ac Wi-Fi. 802.11ac Wi-Fi is able to offer connection speeds that are up to 3 times faster than existing 802.11n networks. The speed improvements possible going from the iPhone 5s to the iPhone 6 Plus can be seen in the video below.

Finally, the iPhone 6 supports calls over Wi-Fi, which can result in higher-quality calls, especially in situations where a cellular connection is low. Calling over Wi-Fi is another feature that requires carrier support, but again, some carriers, like T-Mobile, have already pledged support.

Memory

iPhone 6 and 6 Plus teardowns have revealed that both devices continue to offer the same 1GB of RAM found in the iPhone 5s.

Other Features

Like the iPhone 5s, the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus continue to offer Touch ID, Apple's fingerprint-based security system. With iOS 8, which ships on the iPhone 6/6 Plus, Touch ID will become even more powerful, thanks to third-party Touch ID integration.

Touch ID is also an integral part of Apple's new Apple Pay mobile payments initiative, as is the Near Field Communication (NFC) antenna built into every iPhone 6. Apple Pay is designed to allow users to pay for purchases at thousands of retail stores with just a fingerprint.

Operating System

The iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus ship with iOS 8, Apple's newest mobile operating system. iOS 8's main goal is to improve integration between Apple devices, both mobile and desktop, through the use of "Continuity."

This article "Apple iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, debuted September 19" is originally posted at macrumors.com and was posted by guest blogger.

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Yuilop: Free to Mobile Calling and SMS

Yuilop is a peer-to-peer VoIP service that runs on your smartphone's data plan. Yuilop gives you a cloud-based, non-SIM telephone number that's dialable from the public switched telephone system; you can then make Yuilop-to-landline and mobile calls across the world. Your caller doesn't need the app. No money changes hands.

Yuilop is available for free in the Google Play Store.

I know, from correspondence that I receive, that readers of this column are pretty global, spread all over the world and in some pretty distant places. That's why I was intrigued when I came across VoIP Android app Yuilop.

Here's an app that promises to provide the hitherto unknown Holy Grail of international voice and text calling: free calls to overseas cellphones, or "mobiles" as they are called where some of you are.

Yuilop VoIP Android app

We all know about free peer-to-peer Skype-to-Skype calling, where friends and family install apps and make voice calls over a proprietary network system. We know about Google Voice, the U.S.-offered service with free U.S. domestic calls paired with its brother, the GrooveIP Android app, for full functionality on a mobile device.

We also know about permutations of the services, where it's possible to buy Skype-to-landline, or to-mobile minutes; and Google Voice international telco calling. Both are a couple of cents to a landline, and 20 or so cents to overseas mobiles.

That, in turn, is the rub. A couple of cents to a landline, who cares; for some countries, though, the 25 cents a minute at Skype and even 10 cents at Google Voice adds up.

It's not the days of the dollar-a-minute calls we saw just a few years ago, but it isn't free. And free is what Yuilop promises.

What Is It?

Yuilop is a peer-to-peer VoIP service that runs on your smartphone's data plan. Yuilop gives you a cloud-based, non-SIM telephone number that's dialable from the public switched telephone system; you can then make Yuilop-to-landline and mobile calls across the world. Your caller doesn't need the app. No money changes hands.

Topping Up

The service uses "credits" rather than cash. Credits are obtained by inviting friends to join and getting them to sign up; chatting; "top-up offers," which include downloading, installing and launching other apps; and participating in offers, which usually require you to enter personal details, like emails. Credits-gaining examples, which Yuilop calls "Energy," include 42 credits for the chance to win a free McDonald's lunch for a year -- in exchange for your email.

For perspective, mobile calls tend to vary widely, costing three credits a minute for some European countries, like France; one credit for China; and 10 credits for relatively expensive Philippines. A call to an Azerbaijan mobile via Skype would cost you US$0.30, or 22 credits with Yuilop.

Testing It Out

First up, I have to say that the call quality was excellent. I heard no static, white noise or other indications of cheapskate-ery on the calls. I was also able to successfully send a text to an overseas mobile.

Unfortunately, I have to advise of huge problems in the sign-up process, including a widely reported (by Google Play store reviewers) lack of activation code. Despite numerous e-mails to Customer Service, it took days to receive, and I still don't know where to enter the code within the app -- I am able to make calls though.

Or perhaps I should say, I'm able to make one call. I've already used up my app installing included 10 credits on a couple-of-minutes call to a European mobile and on the text I sent, which used up three credits. Additional credit for downloading and opening eBay's solid RedLaser shopping app never appeared in my account, and I don't want to eat McDonald's every lunchtime for a year, so I'm passing on the 42 additional credits, however kind, in exchange for more Yuilop calls.

The Conclusion

For U.S. mobile phone-terminating calls and texts in the U.S., free Google Voice, along with Android app GrooveIP, is the way to go.

If your calling is more global in nature and includes mobiles, you might want to spend a bit of time figuring out and configuring Yuilop. The developer claims 5 million users, so it should be doable. Free-to-mobile calling is a compelling proposition.

Want to Suggest an Android App for Review?

Is there an Android app you'd like to suggest for review? Something you think other Android users would love to know about? Something you find intriguing but aren't sure it's worth your time or money?

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TP-Link TL-PA511 KIT Review

Today I’m doing a review of the TP-Link AV500 Gigabit Powerline Adapter starter kit. For those of you that aren’t aware of the powerline/homeplug standard it basically allows for internet (and LAN) access through your electrical circuitry within your home.

I’m also going to see how it stands up to a Gigabit connection and an older set of 85mbps powerline/homeplug adapters. I have been using Solwise 85mbps homeplugs for a few years now (they were one of the early models on the market) and one of the things that really bothered me about them was the very slow transfer rate of files from my NAS to my PC, download speed from the NAS was around 700kb/s and upload roughly the same. Considering I Get around 9mb/s on WiFi when I am back in the other side of the house (where WiFi reaches) this was quite a poor result for me. I have recently purchased a couple of TP-Link TL-WA901ND access points in order to upgrade the WiFi in both sides of the house and the homeplugs were the only thing holding me back in this half of the house where I have my ‘Zone 2′ AP running.

TP-Link offer 200mbps, 500mbps and wireless versions of their powerlines. I am reviewing their top of the range 500mbps gigabit adapter today. The product comes in their familiar green-coloured packaging with TP-Link’s 3 year warranty clearly stamped on the top of the packaging.

The TP-Link TL-PA511 KIT comes with the following:

• 2x AV500 Gigabit Powerline Adapters
• 2x CAT5 cables (ethernet)
• Resource CD
• 2x Purchasing Guides
• Quick Installation Guide

One thing I did notice was that CAT5 cables were supplied instead of CAT5e, this does mean that despite the adapters being equipped with Gigabit ports the max transfer rate we could see with the provided cables would be 100mbps (0.1gbps). I assume the reason is that, as with every other homeplug/powerline on the market, you will never see a full 500mbps because of varying quality in the electrical circuitry in your home, distance, intereference etc etc. All of that should be revealed with testing!

Now that we have the box contents out of the way, let’s get into the adapters themselves and testing.

The adapters themselvs come in white, with ventilation holes on either side of the units. When in use they get warm, but nothing to be concerned about. Each adapter has three LEDs, starting from the top and working our way down to the bottom we have the power LED, the powerline LED (green = data rate is more than or equal to 80mbps, orange = data rate is between 48mbps and 80mbps, red = data rate is less than or equal to 48mbps) and the ethernet LED which flashes when data is being transferred.

Pair button located next to the Gigabit ethernet port

TP-Link states that the maximum range for their homeplugs is 300 metres within your home. As previously mentioned, each unit comes equipped with a Gigabit ethernet port. The link between the two units is encrypted with 128-bit AES encryption. Simply plug one unit near your modem/router/switch and make sure the power is switched on, then press the pair button (located next to the Gigabit port) for 1 second. Next head over to wherever you intend to plug in your second homeplug unit, plug it in, ensure it is powered, connect an ethernet cable up to the device(s) that require internet and press the pair button on the second unit (for 1 second).

Pair button located next to the Gigabit ethernet port

Allow 60 seconds for the devices to pair together. Note: You do not need to connect ethernet cables up at this point, it may just be easier to do so incase you intend on placing one or both of the devices behind furniture etc. The units are rather energy efficient, they conserve up to 85% power when inactive (no data transfer) – this is particularly useful at night when very little data is likely to be travelling through your powerline/homeplug adapters. In my case, no data whatsoever will travel down the units at night as my phone (and any other device that receives e-mail, updates, notifications etc) are always in the WiFi Zone 1 during the night and not in the extended Zone 2.

Methodology:

All runs were repeated 3 times with the average result used (providing no erroneous data was collected)

All runs were recorded using LAN Speed Test by Totusoft (http://www.totusoft.com)

Both powerline/homeplug adapters were reading/writing data to a Gigabit NAS (Synology DS210J) however in order to avoid a bottleneck when performing the Gigabit CAT6 cable test I ALSO opted to run a LAN Speed Test between two computers as my NAS will not read/write much faster than 30mb/s and 20mb/s respectively. (240mbps and 160mbps) but a Gigabit CAT5 cable should be able to read/write much faster than this.

For the 500mbps TP-Link adapters: One test (3 runs) with both adapters side by side, one test with both adapters approx. 25 metres away from each other, one test with both adapters approx. 40 metres away from each other.

For the 85mbps Solwise adapters: One test (3 runs)with both adapters side by side, one test with both adapters approx. 25 metres away from each other, one test with both adapters approx. 40 metres away from each other.

For the direct Gigabit connection: One test (3 runs) with one 15m CAT6 cable running from one computer to the Gigabit switch and then to the NAS (both the computer and the NAS have a Gigabit NIC).

For the direct Gigabit connection between two computers: One test (3 runs) with one 15m CAT6 cable running from one computer to the other (both computers have a Gigabit NIC).

TP-Link adapter located in loft for 40m testing

Testing:

Hardware used: Belkin CAT6 cable (15m), 1x Synology DS210j, Linksys Gigabit Switch, 3x PC’s (i7 930, ASUS R3E // Xeon E5-2630, EVGA SR-X // i3 2120, MSI P67A-GD53).

Immediate Observations: It appears that the Gigabit CAT6 cable was able to read/write faster than what most are reporting with their Synology DS210j NAS, still the figures aren’t too far out and I reckon that most of the examples of max read/write that I found online were from users installing green/eco 5400rpm drives whereas I am using a 7200rpm drive in my NAS. There could still be a SATA controller limitation with regards to read/write speeds on my NAS though.

Without further ado, here’s the results:

Please bear in mind that all results are averages of 3 runs, however each LAN Speed Test run comprised of a MINIMUM of 10 packets (for the large byte count runs) and a MAXIMUM of 1000 packets (for the small byte count runs), this means that the actual average is the number of runs multiplied by the number of packets. I decided to do it this way to ensure that discrepencies/erroneous data was kept to a bare minimum as powerline/homeplug networking can be adversely affected by as little as appliances being switched on/off around the home.

Results:

Graphical Representations (Click to Enlarge):

First of all we can see that there is next to no difference between the two adapters when it comes to reading and writing very small files (1000 byte test performed). All of the results obtained are well within the margins of error. Things get more interesting when we start to test read/write speeds of 10,000,000, 100,000,000 and 300,000,000 byte file sizes. We can see that in each test the TP-Link adapters outperformed the older 85mbps Solwise adapters even when the TP-Link adapters were positioned 40 metres apart and teh Solwise adapters were positioned next to each other.

It is only at this point that we start to realise just how far the technology has progressed and I expect to see further improvements in longer distances with the release of the AV2 standard back in January 2012. It shouldn’t be long before we see some AV2 devices out there on the market! Writing speeds (to the NAS) on the TP-Link was consistently slower, which is to be expected as that is upstream. Interesting to note was that the Solwise adapters had a faster upstream than downstream when positioned next to each other, although by only 2-4mbps with all 4 packet sizes testes and this is still well within the margins of error.

In this test, I wanted to try and show the limitations of the NAS. We can see that writing a test packet from one computer to another computer (both running standard 7200rpm drives) the results strongly outperform those obtained from writing a test packet to the NAS. This is a limitation of the controller within the NAS.

One interesting thing to note was that the NAS caught up with the computer to computer transfer speed when performing the read test, which is rather odd because the computer it was uploading the test packet to was running the same hard drive, and a 6 core CPU instead of a dual core i3. Nonetheless it’s interesting to note that the NAS performs better at pushing data to your computer than receiving data from it. Both of the result sets shown in the two graphs above were collected using a standard 15 metre CAT6 cable. 

I didn’t use the Home Plug adapters for this, I just wanted to put these results out there to demonstrate that the Home Plug / Powerline standard still has a long way to go before being a viable replacement for CAT5e/CAT6 within your home IF this option is available to you. Obviously if you can’t run ethernet cables in your home’s walls (like is the case for me) then the Home Plug standard is the ideal solution for you and with the new AV2 standard already released to developers earlier this year, we should see another boost in performance, however we still do have to bear in mind that this will likely still be very much dependant on the quality of your internal electrical circuitry throughout your home.

Additional Testing:

These tests are very good at giving us a broad overview of how a particular device works however I wanted to show you just a couple of screenshots of downstream and upstream speeds to and from my NAS through these TP-Link adapters (40m apart).

For comparison, the older Solwise 85mbps adapters had an upstream/downstream of around 600-750kb/s, and transferring data wirelessly from within Zone 1 of the house (wireless AP connected directly to Gigabit switch) gives me an upstream/downstream of around 9.5-11mb/s.

This makes the TP-Link kit roughly 6x faster when performing an upstream operation, and 10x faster in downstream.

Just out of curiosity I also tried the TP Link utility software provided with the unit, it also states an expected throughput of around 80mbps between the two units, the same reading as is displayed by the green powerline LED on the unit itself.

Concluding Thoughts:

This kit provides a very stable connection (tested for over a week now with no loss of connection) for a very affordable price tag, (http://www.amazon.co.uk – £52.70). I was particularly impressed by its ability to maintain a strong connection and upstream/downstream speed when connected roughly 40 metres apart especially considering that our internal electrical wiring isn’t the most modern around.

One thing that did have me scratching my head were the data rates than the powerline LED claims to be getting. I am getting a solid green even when the adapters are plugged 40 metres apart yet my LAN speed tests show me getting 23-37mbps which would indicate that I should be getting a red LED on my powerline (Red = data rate less than or equal to 48mbps). I realize that it could also be the wireless between my TP-Link WA901ND access point and my USB dongle but this adapter and access point has shown to be able to push and pull as much as 9.5-11mb/s across so I very much doubt that.

The AP is connected to the second TP-Link adapter with a CAT5e cable. At the end of the day it doesn’t really bother me as i’m really pleased with teh speeds I’m able to get already, and I realise that LAN Speed Test isn’t the be all end all of network speed test software out there, having said that I wouldn’t pay too much attention to the LED’s although it does make the unit look nice! I also liked the idea of the 128bit AES encrption on the units.

One thing that I mentioned at the start is that I’d consider changing is the inclusion of CAT5 cables, they can only transfer 100mbps max whereas CAT5e/6 can transfer up to 1000mbps and despite the units not actually able to surpass the 100mbps limit of those CAT5 cables, the unit itself has a gigabit switch, from a marketing point of view I’d include CAT5e cables, especially considering that the price difference between the two is a matter of pennies even for a customer only buying one cable so I’d imagine that bulk buying cat5e over cat5 really wouldn’t set you back by much more.

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Alcatel One Touch Inspire 2 Snap Review

I was able to get a hands on with the Alcatel One Touch Inspire 2, an affordable Android smartphone from Alcatel. Just a little trivia, Alcatel is a mobile phone brand co-owned by TCL Communication (makers of TCL LCD TVs) and Alcatel-Lucent of France. The OT Inspire 2 looks a lot like the OT Soleil even on the specs. One difference is the Inspire 2 has single core 1GHz processor while the OT Soleil has a dual core 1GHz processor.

Alcatel One Touch Inspire 2 specifications:

• 1GHz Single Core MediaTek MT6575 processor
• 512MB RAM
• 4GB internal memory expandable via MicroSD up to 32GB
• 4 inch WVGA LCD display (480 x 800 pixels)
• 5 megapixel rear facing camera
• VGA front facing camera
• 3G, WiFi, WiFi hotspot, Bluetooth
• GPS, A-GPS
• 1,400 mAh battery
• Android 4.1 Jellybean
• P4,990 SRP
• Free on Smart Postpaid All-In Plan 500

Likes:

• Design – This is one nice looking device. It has a premium and solid feel when holding it.
• Affordable – Its below P5,000 mark
• Android 4.1 Jellybean – Its surprising to know that this device only has a single core processor. Good thing because the device is running Android Jellybean, lags are minimal.

Dislikes

• Limited RAM- it only has 512 RAM. You cannot play games even those medium sized ones like Candy Crush.
• Single Core processor – There are even more limitations with because of its single core processor. Many apps in Google Play Store works best with at least a dual core processor. Facebook, Twitter, or any social networking and chat apps will work fine here.
• Small screen – a 4-inch screen is already small in today’s standards.
• Camera – The rear facing camera lacks flash and autofocus which is already a standard for a smartphone at this price point. Pictures taken from the 5 megapixel camera looks good on decent lighting but it could be better if it only has autofocus and flash.

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