Feb 16

LG Mini GD880 hands-on

Posted in: hands-on, LG, Mini, mwc, mwc 2010, Mwc2010, smartphone, Today's Chili
Not to be outdone, LG chose MWC to show off its Mini GD880, a svelte piece built from brushed aluminum in both black and silver. Build quality is striking here — jaw-droppingly so — with fit and finish on all corners, seams, and around the various ports looking spot on. This device also has heft for its diminutive size — sure, it’s only 99g, but that feels like so much for a device of this size — but it only adds character and, well, it feels like money for lack of a better word. Running LG’s S-Class UI, the touchscreen sadly isn’t really up to snuff, we had to really poke at the screen to get it to register a touch, and there was lag and delay between key press and action. Of course, this isn’t shipping today, but rather launches in Europe in March — for some unknown price — and then on to other markets. So here’s hoping there is still a tweak or two in the GD880’s future, it’d be a shame to let something as glorious as it looks not deliver an experience to match. Short video and gallery are right below the break.

Gallery: LG Mini GD880 hands-on

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LG Mini GD880 hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 08:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 16

Nokia N900 gets new firmware, new games coming too (video)

Posted in: firmware, maemo, mwc, mwc 2010, Mwc2010, nokia, Today's Chili
Nokia N900 gets new firmware, new games coming too (video)

If your N900 is in need of a little more excitement, this post is for you. First up is word of a new firmware release (3.2010.02-8 (PR 1.1.1)), 16.2MB worth of apparently minor changes along with a slew of new regions, the inclusion of which may mean good things for those who haven’t been granted to this smartphone yet. If that’s not enough for you, at MWC Nokia is showing off some new apps for the handset, the most notable being a couple of 3D games that look a wee bit simplistic in terms of gameplay but don’t disappoint in terms of graphics. No word on when exactly these will be hitting Ovi Store — well, nothing more specific than “soon.” Video after the break (of the games, not the firmware update).

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Continue reading Nokia N900 gets new firmware, new games coming too (video)

Nokia N900 gets new firmware, new games coming too (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 07:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 16

HTC HD mini hands-on

Posted in: hands-on, HTC, mwc, mwc 2010, Mwc2010, sense, Today's Chili, Windows Mobile, WindowsMobile
HTC’s launch today also gives us the HD mini, and, as a result, we’re starting to have a problem sticking with a favorite with each post we put up — really, they’re all that nice. Unfortunately for us we didn’t have an HD2 to throw down and do a real side by side comparison, but just looking at the pic above and comparing it to any other we’ve posted and you’ll see the difference right away. The display is bright and crisp and the OS was responsive enough — and with the device set to ship in April, things are looking pretty positive to meet that date — and while the display doesn’t wow like the HTC HD2, it doesn’t seem too cramped to be usable. We’re digging this mini trend, and hope we catch some more of these at the show. Gallery after the break and a video as soon as we can get one.

Gallery: HTC HD mini hands-on

HTC HD mini hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 07:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 16

LG Mini GD880 finally gets a full on announcement at MWC

Posted in: cellphones, LG, mwc, mwc 2010, Mwc2010, Today's Chili

Hey there, Mini GD880 — we’ve seen plenty of you around here lately — but we were beginning to wonder if you’d ever get totally, completely, 100 percent official. Well, here we are, day two of MWC, and it was definitely worth the wait. LG’s latest featurephone packs a 5 megapixel cam, WiFi, 7.2Mbps HSDPA, and integrated FM radio into a frame that’s just 10.6mm in depth and weighs just 99 grams — about as thin and light as it gets. It also boasts continual over-the-air syncing via LG‘s new Air Sync service, making it a pretty smart phone — for a featurephone. The Mini GD880 will be available throughout Europe beginning in March, for an as yet undetermined amount of cash money. The full press release is after the break, but if your heart is filled with desire for this beast, you can hit up the hands-on and impressions in the more coverage link for more photos.

Continue reading LG Mini GD880 finally gets a full on announcement at MWC

LG Mini GD880 finally gets a full on announcement at MWC originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 07:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 16

HTC Legend hands-on (updated with video)

Posted in: hands-on, HTC, mwc, mwc 2010, Mwc2010, sense, smartphone, Today's Chili, video
OK, we admit it — we’re complete HTC fanboys here today at MWC. But c’mon, can you really blame us? Today’s HTC launch — including the HD mini, Legend, and Desire — while not surprisingly lacking a Windows Phone 7 announcement, was still full of some very, very fine hardware. The Legend is an all-metal set — the housing is the frame of the handset — and like the other launches, this one features the updated version of Sense, a new optical trackpad (which seemed to behave quite well) and a stunning 3.2-inch AMOLED display. The Legend also seems pretty sturdy, as demonstrated by HTC’s CEO Peter Chou when he smacked it against the wall during the press conference. The take away here is this phone is pure beauty and class, and an absolutely huge upgrade (as far as aesthetics go anyway, we’ll hold judgment til we can really test it out) from the HTC Hero it replaces. Follow on for a gallery of photos and check back soon, as we’re definitely going to get some video once we can get it into some better light.

Update: Full Legend and Sense UI walkthrough after the break!

Gallery: HTC Legend hands-on

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HTC Legend hands-on (updated with video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 06:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 16

HTC enhances Sense with Leap and Friend Stream (updated with video)

Posted in: Android, AndroidOs, hero, HTC, htc sense, HtcSense, mobile os, MobileOs, mwc, mwc 2010, Mwc2010, sense, Smartphones, Today's Chili, ui

Our recent chance encounter with a multitouch-friendly iteration of HTC’s Sense UI turns out to have been a preview of the company’s latest version of the software. Announcing that it has “enhanced” the already quite delectable skin, HTC has noted it’ll be available preloaded on the brand new Desire and Legend handsets, and as a free download for the venerable Hero. So what’s new? The press event this morning told us about Leap, the new pinching function that allows you to view all your home screens at once (see above), and Friend Stream, which aims to be your social media aggregator du jour with its one stream combining Facebook, Twitter and Flickr updates. There’s also a new newsreader application and widget, along with additional improvements to the browser and web client. You’ll find the full PR after the break and early impressions of the new interface in our hands-on with the new phones.

Update: See a full walkthrough of the new UI in a video after the break.

Continue reading HTC enhances Sense with Leap and Friend Stream (updated with video)

HTC enhances Sense with Leap and Friend Stream (updated with video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 06:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 16

HTC Desire first hands-on (updated with video)

Posted in: hands-on, HTC, mwc, mwc 2010, Mwc2010, smartphone, snapdragon, Today's Chili

Well, we just got a little up close and personal with HTC‘s “superphone,” the Desire. What you’re looking at is basically the Nexus One, sans trackball (though plus an optical touch area). Certainly the specs are the same, though you’ve got the new Sense UI on board for good measure. At a glance the phone actually doesn’t seem as snappy as we were expecting, and there are obviously a few kinks to work out with some of the new Sense concepts (Leap for instance — the pinch-to-card view — was giving our demo person some trouble). Still, the Desire is definitely high on our gadget lust list right now. We’re obviously reserving final judgment for a later date, but until we get some more time with this guy, feast your eyes on the gallery below.

Update: Added a quick video after the break showing the Sense UI… not behaving.

Update 2: We’ve been told by an HTC rep that the Sense build on the Desire unit we played with is actually quite early, so it’s probably not indicative of the actual performance of the pinch-to-card view. We played with a Legend that had a later, nearly final build of the UI and it was definitely snappier and more responsive.

Gallery: HTC Desire first hands-on

Continue reading HTC Desire first hands-on (updated with video)

HTC Desire first hands-on (updated with video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 06:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 16

HTC HD mini launched at MWC

Posted in: breaking news, BreakingNews, HTC, mwc, mwc 2010, Mwc2010, Today's Chili, Windows Mobile, WindowsMobile, winmo
It seems mini versions of larger and pricier sets that still deliver the goods have become de rigeur amongst hardware manufacturers at MWC in 2010. Enter HTC’s HD mini, a scaled down version of the beefy HTC HD2 with a 3.2-inch HVGA display for customers who want all the joys that device delivers without the need to actually use the beast itself — or find somewhere to store it. The housing design is typical HTC beautiful, but in a very unique departure, the fasteners used to hold the device together are exposed and become part of its style. In a similar vein, popping open the back of the phone reveals that the internal mount for the hardware is bright yellow — not that you’ll ever see it, but let’s be honest, just knowing it’s there is kinda fun. Running WinMo 6.5.3 and Sense, the mini is headed for a European and Asian release in April with 7.2Mbps 900 / 2100 HSPA. No carrier deals or specs were mentioned — but with Mobile World Congress running all week, we may just hear something soon.

Update: Promo video is now live after the break!

Gallery: HTC HD mini

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HTC HD mini launched at MWC originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 05:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 16

Samsung Wave shows what’s Super about its AMOLED display by going outdoors (video)

Posted in: mwc, mwc 2010, Mwc2010, OLED, samsung, screen, smartphone, Today's Chili, video

Direct sunlight — is there anything more terrifying for an OLED screen? Up until now, you had to sacrifice some outdoor performance from your phone’s display in order to get the spectacular contrast and viewing angles on offer from OLEDs. Up until now. Samsung’s Wave has been taken for a quick spin by Dutch publication portablegear and while we’ve no idea what their feedback on the phone was, the moving pictures speak for themselves. The phone remains entirely readable and usable in spite of the bright environment around it — if you question how much light is hitting it, just take a look at the hand of the person holding it — and color saturation is maintained throughout. Samsung promised us a great media experience on the handset, but this quick demo places its Super AMOLED tech a clear step above… well, every other display out there. The wildly impressive video awaits after the break, and you can find more imagery and our hands-on impressions here.

Continue reading Samsung Wave shows what’s Super about its AMOLED display by going outdoors (video)

Samsung Wave shows what’s Super about its AMOLED display by going outdoors (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 05:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 16

Live from HTC’s MWC 2010 press event

Posted in: HTC, LiveBlog, mwc, mwc 2010, Mwc2010, Today's Chili
We’ve just gotten into our seats and things are about to get underway. Blow-by-blow coverage will be commencing momentarily.

Continue reading Live from HTC’s MWC 2010 press event

Live from HTC’s MWC 2010 press event originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 04:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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