Hasta La Gadget!

NVIDIA really has a technical wonder in the Tegra APX 2600 chipset, and is more than happy to show it off, with a myriad of tech demos on display here at MWC. Some of this they showed off back in June of last year, but it’s no less impressive — there aren’t really any mobile devices out there capable of this stuff right now. Still, we’re here for the new, and NIVIDA showed up with Android running on one of its proof-of-concept units, and with another unit pumping out 1080p video, with a claimed 10 hours of battery life at that task. NVIDIA says it took them just a few weeks to port Android to the system, and we found it already quite snappy and even usable on the capacitive touchscreen-ed device. We also saw the forthcoming Android-running Yulong N8 and IAC S2 Tegra APX phones, along with an untitled CompalCom set — they were all in non-working prototype form, but it’s clear this chipset isn’t just for MIDs. Check it all out in the videos after the break and the gallery below!

Continue reading NVIDIA’s Tegra in the flesh, booting to Android and pumping out 1080p video

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

NVIDIA’s Tegra in the flesh, booting to Android and pumping out 1080p video originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Feb 2009 10:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In light of its fresh tie-up with Microsoft, we can understand how any LG smartphone not running WinMo might be perceived as a black sheep this week. Still, it bums us that the the company has launched its latest S60-powered handset — the KT770 slider — at MWC this week with little more than a brief mention on LG’s official MWC site and a couple of forlorn demo models stuffed in the corner of the company’s booth. The good news is we decided to make good on LG’s oversight and give this little beauty the love it deserves with a mention, a gallery, and a quick video of its tweaked S60 3.2-based UI in action.

The faux carbon fiber back is a little cheesy — particularly for a device that otherwise looks fairly businesslike — but with 7.2Mbps HSDPA, GPS, a WQVGA display, and a 5 megapixel camera on board, it’s hard to argue that this device can’t be competitive (put this up against the far bulkier, uglier N95, for example). The UI seemed reasonably responsive, and though we weren’t able to test the browser without a connection, we imagine the stock S60 apps work every bit as well as they do on Nokia fare. Check out the video after the break!

Continue reading LG doesn’t rock the WinMo boat, launches S60-powered KT770 on the downlow

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

LG doesn’t rock the WinMo boat, launches S60-powered KT770 on the downlow originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Feb 2009 09:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Same story, different company: yet another Windows Mobile ODM has broken down, taken the plunge, and invested some cash engineering its own unique skin for the platform. This time around it’s Gigabyte’s GSmart division with its “Smart Zone” UI, and to kick it off on the right foot, they’re grafting it onto the all-new S1200. We spent some time fiddling with the S1200 at MWC today, and we’re actually pretty impressed; it’s sleek, a wacky thin 11.4mm, narrow enough to comfortably fit in the smallest hands, and feels pretty well-built — and with full HSPA and a 3.1-inch WVGA display, it’s spec’d with the best of ’em. Gone are Gigabyte’s days of chunky plastic, thank goodness.

We talked to Gigabyte about its announcements, and it turns out they’ve designed both Smart Zone and the S1200 with aspirational feature phone users in mind — these are people who might not otherwise consider a smartphone because they’re worried about sacrificing style and ease of use in the process. To that end, the skin definitely seems to get the job done. The transition animations got choppy in places, but we felt immediately at ease with the swipe gestures for getting to different screens, and the graphics look particularly superb at these resolutions.

The S1200 launches this quarter in a variety of colors (it’s fashion-friendly, after all) with WiFi, a 528MHz Qualcomm core, 3 megapixel autofocus cam, a microSD slot to bump up the storage to something more usable than the 256MB built-in, and — perhaps most importantly — upgradeability to Windows Mobile 6.5. Follow the break to see it in action!

Continue reading Gigabyte’s S1200 and Smart Zone user interface on video

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Gigabyte’s S1200 and Smart Zone user interface on video originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Feb 2009 07:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember that mysterious dual-boot QiGi i6 from a few months back? If you dream of Windows Mobile / Android dual-boot devices at night, then odds are you do, and we’ve been able to spend a little time with one humming along in Android mode today. It turns out that the i6’s manufacturer is none other than TechFaith Wireless, an ODM more closely associated with WinMo devices — but like so many other manufacturers these days, TechFaith is apparently looking to branch out by adding another platform into the mix.

Anyhow, let’s just be straight about this: odds are you don’t really want this phone, even if you think you do. The physical design feels one or two iterations behind, but the real problem stems from the fact that you’re rocking QVGA resolution here; yes, granted, Android runs — but in its default layout, it’s clearly designed for a few more pixels both horizontally and vertically. Furthermore, we’re told that end users can’t swap ROMs themselves (in other words, distributors would choose one platform or the other and be done with it) — the hardware is designed to run both Android and Windows Mobile, but it’s not like you get some fancy Boot Camp-style setup for booting into either environment. Also, since the i6 features no physical keyboard and Cupcake was little more than a twinkle in Google’s eye by the time the phone was released, you’re dealing with a pretty poorly-designed soft keyboard that’s been grafted onto the build; individual keys are small enough so that you need a stylus to press them, and when you call up the keyboard, it takes up the full screen so you can’t see whatever app you were in while you’re typing. Check it all out (for the hilarious power-on splash screen, if nothing else) in our video after the break!

Continue reading Hands-on with TechFaith’s QiGi i6 in Android mode

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Hands-on with TechFaith’s QiGi i6 in Android mode originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Feb 2009 06:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While we weren’t originally cheering fans of the Toshiba TG01‘s somewhat odd “stripey” interface, checking it out in person tells a different tale. It actually makes sense and works surprisingly well, and really, there is a reason why we’ve seen so many Windows Mobile skinning efforts, the shipped interface needs it. Most functions you need can be found in Toshiba‘s homescreen UI or can be added — the video demos some of the options for making changes and panel color choices if the default isn’t tickling your fancy. This handset is thin and light and makes the iPhone we used for some scale pics look positively chubby — it’s like having a PSP-sized display in your pocket. The 4.1-inch Regza-inspired screen is clear, the resistive touchscreen is typical hit and miss with fingertips, video and gaming are fast on the 1GHz Snapdragon processor and look gorgeous. You know, if Toshiba sees fit to add some 3G bands other than the 2100MHz included in the first effort, we could easily see this living — almost unnoticed — in our pockets. We’re still pretty far out from the rumored summer launch of the TG01 so we’re expecting to see some changes between now and then, and we also have some concerns about battery life while driving a screen like this, but for now, wow. Video walkthrough, some gaming action, and a big gallery are just past the break.

Continue reading Toshiba TG01 hands-on and video walkthrough

Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Video

Toshiba TG01 hands-on and video walkthrough originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Feb 2009 05:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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