Hasta La Gadget!

This week we’ve got our hands on the newest set of myTouch phones from T-Mobile, both of them having essentially the same specifications and being made by Huawei. While there are some LG devices out there that have essentially the same names as these two devices, rest assured: these are made by Huawei and will be popping up at T-Mobile very, very soon. Now that we’re clear on that, let’s have at it: both devices work with Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread with Huawei’s own unique user interface, both have a 4-inch display at 480 x 800 pixel resolution, and both work with 5 megapixel cameras on the back.

These devices are certainly both made for the lower end of the Android-toting universe as they’re both running a version of the software that’s a couple generations old and both have a single-core 1.4Ghz processor from Qualcomm inside. With such a processor and software you’re still certainly going to be able to do a whole lot, of course, as most of your everyday functions like web browsing, interacting with social networks, and emailing all work just great on a single-core processor as they should.

Note: T-Mobile is marketing this duo as a set because they are so extremely similar. The only real difference we can tell from what we’ve seen thus far between the two is the slide-out QWERTY keyboard – and the thickness, of course.

They’re also both rather small at 0.56 x 2.5 x 4.9 inches for the Q and 0.41 x 2.46 x 4.5 inches for the myTouch without the keyboard. They both have a lovely look, just as all myTouch devices have had over the past few years, regardless of manufacturer. Have a peek at our myTouch 4G review from 2010 and our myTouch 4G Slide review from 2011 as well. And if you’re really looking for a thrill, head back to our T-Mobile myTouch 3G unboxing from back in 2009!

Though they make look similar, these devices are not the myTouch phones of old. Their build is significantly lower quality than the past versions of the myTouch lineup – where HTC chose high quality hard plastic and a solid build, here we’ve got what feels like a slightly more flimsy set of details.

That said, we’re giving these devices the benefit of the doubt for now. We’ll give you the full scoop when our full review ramps up for both devices very, very soon. Meanwhile you can check out the rest of our [Phone Review Portal] to see all the other choices you’ve got on the market today – with more from T-Mobile on the way as well!

T-Mobile myTouch and myTouch Q hands-on and unboxing is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Here at Engadget HQ, we’re looking to take a bit of a breather after a long week of analyzing last quarter’s numbers. With that said, a road trip or weekend respite of some sort is definitely in order and this week’s edition of our e-magazine offers some insight into getting just a bit more out of that next excursion. Front and center, the globe trotting Darren Murph offers some tips for geotagging your shots from that next Blue Ridge Parkway trek and also takes Nokia Drive’s offline navigation for a spin on a Lumia 900. The super thin $1,400 Acer Aspire S5 and the sub-$100 Motorola Atrix HD each get in-depth reviews while “Hands-On” is overrun by some new shooters — including the much anticipated Canon EOS M. Fable: The Journey designer Ted Timmins takes his turn with Q&A, “Switched On” takes a look an Ouya, “Reaction Time” chats about pre-release secrecy and “IRL” has our personal gadget arsenals. That said, we’re taking some Friday solace in one of the download links below, where you can grab a brand spankin’ new issue of your very own.

Distro Issue 50 PDF
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Filed under: Announcements

Distro Issue 50: the travel edition packs geotagging and offline navigation originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 09:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As mentioned earlier, we’ve just gotten our hands on Qualcomm’s latest development platform to see how its first quad core chipset fares. And boy, that APQ8064 really doesn’t disappoint, but it should be no surprise — we’ve already seen how the top dual core S4 chipsets already beat their quad core competitors in certain aspects, so it’s only natural for the quad core S4 Pro to annihilate them. As you can see in our chart after the break, the APQ8064-based MDP easily beat the Tegra 3-based One X and Nexus 7, as well as the Exynos 4412-based Galaxy S III. And partly thanks to the Adreno 320 graphics core, the MDP even scored an astonishing 132fps in our GLBenchmark test, while the quad core Galaxy S III with Mali-400 graphics came second with 99fps, with the remaining devices lingering around 60fps only.

Obviously, the question remains how big of a trade-off there is on battery life in exchange for those two extra cores and the more powerful graphics chip. That said, we have a feeling that Snapdragon’s Krait architecture and asynchronously clocked cores will again prove that Tegra 3’s 4-PLUS-1 design isn’t the best solution for battery efficiency — as many of you might already know. We shall see when APQ8064-based products become available later this year. For now, take a gander at our numbers and photos.

Update: Hit the break for our hands-on video with the MDP. Also, we had a chance play with the 13-megapixel autofocus camera in the worst possible lighting conditions, and it acquitted itself rather well considering the circumstances. Check out the sample gallery below.

Myriam Joire contributed to this mind-blowing hands-on.

Continue reading Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro (APQ8064) MDP benchmarks blow away the competition (update: video)

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablet PCs

Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro (APQ8064) MDP benchmarks blow away the competition (update: video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Jul 2012 18:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There have been plenty of false alarms in recent months, but Canon’s first mirrorless interchangeable lens camera (ILC) is finally here — in fact, we’re holding it in our hands. The EOS M is clearly reminiscent of a point-and-shoot, such as the company’s high-end PowerShot S100. Sure, Canon could have added some of the dedicated controls that its professional user base would demand, but photojournalists aren’t the target here, for a few reasons. Canon’s primary motivation, at least from an official perspective, was to create a camera that serves to bridge the gap between pocketable compacts and full-size DSLRs with a simple user interface designed to educate, not intimidate. Also key, however, was avoiding cannibalization of the company’s low-end and mid-range Digital SLR models, which clearly still have a place in the lineup one tier above this ILC.

Consumers willing to sacrifice hardware controls for a touchscreen-driven UI won’t be missing out on much else — functionally, the EOS M is a near-clone of Rebel T4i with the same 18-megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor, DIGIC 5 processor and 3-inch touchscreen. Even the advanced two-stage focusing system has made its way from the T4i, which utilizes both phase-difference and contrast AF in order to achieve focus more efficiently when capturing video. The housing design and lens mount are unlike any other that Canon has produced, however, combining features from other models without completely eliminating the need for a DSLR, or a compact for that matter. If you can get by without granular controls, you’ll do just fine here — the design really is spectacular. With an $800 price tag, the EOS M falls within the upper tier of the mirrorless category, and it remains to be seen whether it will be an obvious pick when it finally hits stores in October, a month after competitors tease their own products at the massive Photokina expo in Germany. How does it fare today? You’ll find our impressions just past the break.

Continue reading Canon EOS M mirrorless camera hands-on (video)

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Canon EOS M mirrorless camera hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Jul 2012 15:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While Yahoo was busy hiring its new CEO away from Google, we were hard at work crankin’ out this week’s edition of Distro to help feed your slate reading desires. Let’s just say that if a C&C gantry router that implements a Wiimote piques your interest, you’re in for quite the treat this time around. We head north to Massachusetts to visit Artisan’s Asylum for a glimpse of the craftiness and general hackery that takes place in an old office supply warehouse. We throw down the review gauntlet for the Nintendo 3DS XL, LG Optimus 4X HD and Sony VAIO T13 and offer some detailed reactions on said trio. AllThingsD’s Mike Isaac has a go at the Q&A, “Switched On” discusses the next Office, Steam’s annual sale occupies “Reaction Time” and “IRL” returns. As you might expect, all of the requisite download links await your clicks below.

Distro Issue 49 PDF
Distro in the iTunes App Store
Distro in the Google Play Store
Distro APK (for sideloading)
Like Distro on Facebook
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Filed under: Announcements

Distro Issue 49: a visit to the craft and hackerspace at Artisan’s Asylum originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 20 Jul 2012 09:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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