Hasta La Gadget!

Kogan has released a budget-friendly netbook (back when netbooks existed), laptop and tablet, and now its got a new product to show us here at CES — the Agora smartphone. It’s verging on phablet territory with a 5-inch screen (800 x 480 resolution), and running the whole show is a dual-core 1GHz Cortex-A9 processor and half a gig of RAM. A 5-megapixel shooter with flash is found top-center on the back, and a 0.3-megapixel camera off to the right of the speaker grille on the front. Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich is the OS of choice here, kept alive by a 2,000 mAh battery nestled under the textured back panel. Right next to that power source is space for two SIMs, and a microSD slot to boost the 4GB of on-board storage (up to 64GB cards supported).

Those specs should tell you that the 3G-only Agora phone isn’t aimed at the high end, but despite that, the build quality is solid. The square handset looks alright, too. We liked the dimpled back panel and prominent metal Kogan logo, as well as the shiny dark grey rim holding it all together. It’s not exactly a Retina display, but it’s not notably terrible, and performance-wise, it ranged from slick to jittery depending on how much we were telling it to do in how short a time. We’ll save the Note II comparisons, as there’s only stat you really need to know — the Agora smartphone costs $149 (£119 in the UK). Pre-orders are live on Kogan’s website now, and units should be hitting hands mid-February, or earlier. We’re assured the launch will go ahead without a hitch (various difficulties prevented a previous attempt from reaching market). Check out the gallery and hands-on video below for more info.

Kevin Wong contributed to this report.

Continue reading Kogan Agora phablet hands-on (video)

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

Comments

Source: Kogan (1), (2)

Razer’s Onza Xbox 360 controller is very, very nice. Sure, it’s got an unbelievably long, non-detachable wire sticking out of it, but its build quality is top notch and its ultra-clicky face buttons are a pleasure to use. In the company’s second Xbox 360 controller — the Sabertooth — Razer’s focusing on the tournament gaming crowd rather than simply outfitting its Onza with “Tournament Edition” specs. That aside, the Sabertooth retains the quality we’ve come to expect from Razer products. Oh, and that crazy long wire is thankfully detachable!

It’s apparent from first glance that the Sabertooth is intended as such, given the six extra (programmable) buttons found on the shoulders and back of the controller, and the tiny OLED screen found along the bottom (allowing for the programming of said buttons). Considering that a regular Xbox 360 controller comprises 12 (!!) buttons not counting the d-pad, adding another six and an OLED screen is … intense, to say the least. While we didn’t have occasion to test the programmability, we can definitively say that the Sabertooth’s other functions are just as solid as with the Onza. The analog sticks are as good or better than a standard Xbox 360 controller, the d-pad is an improvement over the Onza (which was already an improvement over the dismal d-pad included on most Xbox 360 controllers), and the triggers / shoulder buttons are appropriately springy and responsive. There’s even a silly backlight for several face buttons, should you be playing video games in a cave (you can opt to turn off the backlight, too — we certainly did).

Continue reading Razer Sabertooth Xbox 360 controller ups the ante on tourney gaming, we go hands-on

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, HD, Microsoft

Comments

Last time we checked in with the 3D printing upstarts over at Formlabs, their Kickstarter was doing splendidly, having over doubled its initial funding target. Well, less than a month later, and with the money still rolling in, the current total stands (at time of writing) at a somewhat impressive $2,182,031 — over 20 times its initial goal. When we heard that the team behind it, along with some all important working printers, rolled into town, how could we resist taking the opportunity to catch up? The venue? London’s 3D print show. Where, amongst all the printed bracelets and figurines, the FORM 1 stood out like a sore thumb. A wonderfully orange, and geometrically formed one at that. We elbowed our way through the permanent four-deep crowd at their booth to take a closer look, and as the show is running for another two days, you can too if you’re in town. Or you could just click past the break for more.

Continue reading Formlabs FORM 1 high-resolution 3D printer spotted in the wild, we go eyes on (video)

Filed under: Misc

Formlabs FORM 1 high-resolution 3D printer spotted in the wild, we go eyes on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 19 Oct 2012 15:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Formlabs (Kickstarter)  | Email this | Comments

Well, we’re finally getting a look at the US edition of LG’s Optimus G and surprise, surprise, it’s not that terribly different from the version we got to play with in both Korea and NYC last month. We’re still looking at that stunning 4.7-inch 1280×768 True HD IPS PLUS display, a speedy Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core processor, 2GB RAM, a hefty 2,100mAh battery and 16GB storage — on this model, at least. But what, if anything, has changed on this Android 4.0 handset now that it’s here in the US cruising along on AT&T’s LTE network? Keep reading after the break to find out.

Continue reading LG Optimus G for AT&T hands-on (video)

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, AT&T, LG

LG Optimus G for AT&T hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Oct 2012 19:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Samsung’s Android-powered Galaxy Camera is a bit of a wild card, marrying Google’s Android Jelly Bean OS with a 16-megapixel camera — heck, it’s even got a 4.8-inch 1,280 x 720-pixel (308 ppi) touchscreen display. Yup, rather than offering a digital viewfinder out back like a normal digital point-and-shoot, the Samsung Galaxy Camera offers a multitouch panel; the entire back consists of that 4.8-inch screen, edge-to-edge. It’s not all touchscreen, though — several buttons (controlling a pop-up flash, power, zoom toggle, and shutter release) are also part of the somewhat bulky build. Beyond the WiFi radio built in, the Galaxy Camera also comes with 3G/4G support via micro-SIM — which we now know at least one carrier will support: AT&T.

During an event with the cellular data carrier this evening, we got our hands-on the Galaxy Camera once more (albeit now with an AT&T micro-SIM on board). That speedy 1.4GHz quad-core processor helped us along, speedily swiping through Jelly Bean’s panes and launching its photo app promptly. Apps like Instagram were also on display, allowing for even nicer photos to be defiled by software filters (we kid!). The AT&T connectivity allowed us to upload photos directly to the cloud while snapping, utilizing its Auto Cloud Backup feature; image quality isn’t quite professional-grade, but its no slouch either.

The Galaxy Camera is, for all intents and purposes, a full-on Android smartphone … minus that whole “phone” thing. Its heft is perhaps more than we’d like in a point-and-shoot, but that gigantic — and gorgeous — viewfinder out back certainly helps assuage our space concerns. The device arrives at both carriers and camera retailers this October for an unknown price.

Update: We’ve added a second gallery with a few shots we snapped with the Samsung Galaxy Camera at the event — forgive them if they’re not spectacular. The heat of the moment!

Update 2: We’ve added even more photos shot with the Galaxy Camera in to the second gallery below, and a quick hands-on video just after the break.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy Camera marries Android and photography on AT&T, we go hands-on (update: video!)

Filed under: Cameras, Mobile, Samsung

Samsung Galaxy Camera marries Android and photography on AT&T, we go hands-on (update: video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Oct 2012 17:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments