Hasta La Gadget!

In each issue of Distro, editor-in-chief Tim Stevens publishes a wrap-up of the week in news.

Can you believe we’ve had the Xbox 360 since 2005? As a child of the two- or three-year console cycle, a system still going strong after eight seems inconceivable. Finally, it’s being put out to pasture — somewhat unceremoniously. The Xbox One is its successor and, with no backwards compatibility for disc-based or downloaded games, those looking to make the leap to the next generation in the fall will already want to start weaning themselves from Microsoft’s current wunderconsole. It’ll make it easier for both of you when it comes time to unplug it.

And you probably will want to unplug it and make the upgrade, though to be fair there’s plenty to be cynical about with the Xbox One. So, I’ll get that out of the way first, starting with the name. Microsoft is trying to send the message that the new Xbox is the only device you’ll need to control your living room. That may be, but One? HTC, of course, called its latest flagship the One, but that was a case of a company distancing itself from previous, complicated naming schemes and going with something simpler. Here, there have been only two previous generations of the Xbox. Calling the third one the “One” is simply confusing. Still, it beats “Xbox Foo,” which is what Microsoft’s initial press release mentioned. Someone, it seems, got the memo on the official name a little too late.

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[CES 2013] The long wait is over, after leaks and previous spy shots of the Huawei Ascend Mate hit the Internet, here we are with the official unveiling of this 6.1″ behemoth that will most probably be the most comfortable smartphone ever for Wreck-It Ralph. Unfortunately, we did spend some time with it and found it to be far too lightweight to be of the classy variety, and the overall plastic feel to the device does not exactly make this a premium smartphone. Still, the 4,050mAh battery should go some way in making sure it lasts the day, while the display itself is decent enough for its size.

Underneath the hood of the Huawei Ascend Mate lies a 1.5GHz Hi-Silicon quad-core processor and a 4050 mAh battery as mentioned. Huawei has included their proprietary Quick Power Control (QPC) and Automated Discontinuous Reception (ADRX) battery efficiency technology and fast sharing technology, to lend some credence to the truth, “bigger is better.”

It will run on the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean platform, carry an 8.0-megapixel AF rear-facing camera with HDR and a 1.0-megapixel HD camera up in front. Huawei has also thrown in dual mic noise reduction technology, Dolby sound system and stereo recording to the mix. No idea on pricing, but you can check out the Huawei Ascend Mate when it hits China this February in crystal black and pure white colors.

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By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Huawei Ascend D2 Touted As Most Powerful Smartphone Currently Available, Huawei Press Conference Live,

Neither LG’s nor AT&T’s pre-CES conferences had much to show off in the way of smartphone hardware, but Huawei has just changed all that here at its press event at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. The Chinese company finally put weeks of speculation (not to mention a slew of leaks) to rest with the official announcement of the Huawei Ascend Mate and Ascend D2 — a pair of Android phones with plus-sized displays.

Huawei pegs the Mate as its largest smartphone and the D2 as its most powerful, but the Ascend Mate is easily the more peculiar of the two, thanks in large part to its spacious 6.1-inch 720p display (the Droid DNA in my pocket suddenly feels so inadequate). Naturally, Huawei’s phone/tablet hybrid requires a fair bit of horsepower to push all those pixels, and the company leaned on a 1.4GHz quad-core chipset from its HiSilicon semiconductor division. The Mate also has 2GB of RAM under the hood, sports a ridiculous 4,050mAh battery, comes with 8GB of internal flash storage out of the gate, and runs Android Jelly Bean 4.1.2 (obscured partially because of Huawei’s custom Emotion UI. Curiously, earlier reports pegged the Mate has having a higher resolution 1080p display and a quicker processor — there’s no word yet on why this particular version is different.

But how does it feel? Well, it comes as no surprise that the Mate is a handful, but it’s surprisingly grippable thanks to its slim waistline. That said, one-handed operation is dicey to say the least, but it’s not downright impossible if you’ve got big enough mitts and enable a one-handed UI similar to the kind seen on the Galaxy Note. Speaking of mitts, Huawei’s Magic Touch screen tech also means the Mate will accept touch input from a gloved hand, though I didn’t have any on hand to try it out with. Putting the size aside though, flipping through the device was a largely seamless experience — there was no lag or visual stuttering to be found.

Meanwhile, the Ascend D2 is slightly less spacious with its 5-inch 1080p panel, but its spec sheet is just as strong. As expected, the D2 indeed sports a similar 1.5GHz quad-core processor (also from HiSilicon), a 13-megapixel rear camera, and a hefty 3,000 mAh battery. It’s a hair thicker than the Mate, but it makes up for it by being dust and water-resistant to boot — judging by the tank of water on stage here we’ll soon get a demonstration. The D2′s chassis is perhaps naturally a bit thinner than its big brother, but its rounded back actually makes it a very comfortable device to hang onto. The company’s very proud of this big little thing — they just said they used “more advanced manufacturing technology than the iPhone.” Seeing as how it’s Huawei’s most powerful phone, it should come as no surprise that it too didn’t display any lag while scrolling to homescreens and app lists, though it’s tough to get a good feel for performance in such a short period of time.

Huawei has been gearing up to make a splash in the U.S. any time now, but unfortunately there’s no word on if or when these two handsets will officially make their way to these parts. Then again, Huawei has recently taken to selling some of its hardware directly though Amazon, so there’s a chance that Huawei could bring these fabulous phablets Stateside one way or another.

Oh man, here we go. Phablets are no longer no longer constrained to limits of being under half a foot. Huawei’s new Ascend Mate is an unprecedented 6.1-inches. It’s been around before, but now it’s official, and has the largest screen of any smartphone in the world. To date anyway. Cower in fear beneath its all-encompassing shadow. More »

The rather massive 6.1” behemoth known as the Huawei Ascend Mate which was paraded recently has been spotted in even more photos, where one ought to be able to get a better and closer look at this massive phablet’s physical appearance. It is definitely a device that would take quite a lot to wrap a single hand around it, but with a larger display, one can only look forward to a more user-friendly experience on the go. Rumored specifications point toward a 1.8GHz quad-core processor, a 13-megapixel camera, 2GB RAM, and a 4000mAh battery, all crammed into a body that measures 9.9mm, or so it is being bandied about.

All we do know is, we cannot wait for CES 2013 to kick off in Las Vegas, Nevada, in slightly more than a week’s time, as that is when the 6.1” Full HD Huawei Ascend Mate will break its cover then, and we hope to bring you the latest and accurate list of hardware specifications so that you can make a calculated move as to whether to upgrade your smartphone to this or opt for something else.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: US ITC Judge Recommends Import And Sales Ban Of Samsung Products, Signal Strength Of The Nokia Wireless Charging Pad Put To The Test,