Hasta La Gadget!

The HTC Rhyme is one of the newest additions to the Verizon wireless line-up, setting itself apart from the rest of the family since it’s specifically for women — or hipsters who like purple. This time around, the company decided to focus on the accessories, leading its marketing campaign with a glowing purse charm to avoid missing calls — a fate all too familiar for gals whose phone is oftentimes buried at the bottom of a Louis Vuitton.

Unfortunately, we’ve been skipped over when it comes to some of the features popular with higher-end, more macho phones like the Droid RAZR or the Galaxy Nexus. Sorry, ladies, no 4- or 4.3-inch touchscreen, no 4G LTE and certainly no dual-core processor. Instead, this phone is pretty run-of-the-mill, with a 3.7-inch capacitive touchscreen, single-core, 1GHz processor, a WVGA display, a 5MP rear-facing and VGA front-facing camera, as well as an 8GB microSD card. Running the newest Sense 3.5 UI atop Gingerbread, the Rhyme offers a unique user experience for those who like HTC’s custom UI and, of course, the color purple. But is this phone powerful enough to keep up with the multitasking mayhem that is a day in the life of a modern woman? Jump past the break to find out.

Continue reading HTC Rhyme review

Filed under: Cellphones

HTC Rhyme review originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 10:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As far as product launches go, Dell didn’t exactly rip the Band-Aid off the XPS 14z. After teasing it back in September, the company let all the specs out of the bag, but stopped short of naming a price and ship date for the United States. Well, now we know: this 14-incher will be available in the US and Canada November 1, and will start at $1,000 — a price that puts it in direct competition with the likes of the HP Envy 14 and Sony VAIO SA series.

Like these other laptops, the 14z commands a premium over cheaper models, with beefier specs and a (supposedly) more luxurious design. With Core i5 and i7 processor options, discrete graphics, USB 3.0 and an optional solid-state drive, it offers a lot of the same specs as its peers, though it manages to stand out in a couple key ways. One, it sports an LG Shuriken display, which crams a 14-inch screen into a chassis normally reserved for 13-inch systems (translation: its bezels are super narrow). And with a starting weight of 4.36 pounds, it’s lighter than a lot of the other laptops you’re probably considering. But are these bullet points enough to make it a smart buy? Read on to find out.

Continue reading Dell XPS 14z review

Dell XPS 14z review originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 24 Oct 2011 09:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It was just last week that we got to take home the Acer Aspire S3, the first Ultrabook to go on sale here in the States. Unfortunately, it doesn’t live up to the pillars laid out by Intel: its performance trails similar machines, its battery craps out early and the design, while portable, is too chintzy to make it a bellwether for skinny Windows laptops. Our verdict, in a sentence, was that you’d be better off getting a MacBook Air, or at least considering other Ultrabooks — namely, ASUS’ line of Zenbooks.

As it turns out, one showed up on our doorstep just a few days later. In many ways, the UX31 is everything the S3 is not: it has a gorgeous all-metal design and comes standard with an SSD and 1600 x 900 display (not to mention, a case and two bundled adapters). And with a starting price of $1,099, it undercuts the entry-level (and similarly configured) MacBook Air by two hundred bucks. So is this the Ultrabook we’ve all been waiting for? We suggest pouring yourself a large beverage, settling into a comfy chair and meeting us past the break. We’ve got a lot to say on the subject.

Continue reading ASUS Zenbook UX31 review

ASUS Zenbook UX31 review originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 21 Oct 2011 16:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We knew as soon as we first clapped eyes on this hulk of a phone that it’d make a brave purchase. It’s not just the 4.7-inch screen that requires a leap of faith, but also the Windows Phone operating system, which is presented here in all its Mangofied glory but is still very much an early adopter’s ecosystem. After all, if you love the Titan’s hardware but prefer a more established OS, you can always wait for the Sensation XL, which is essentially the same phone running good ol’ Android and which should have a similar £480 ($750 converted) SIM-free price tag. The question is, do you have the guts to make that jump to something more exotic? Yes? Maybe? Then read on before you begin your run-up.

Continue reading HTC Titan review

HTC Titan review originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Oct 2011 14:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This isn’t the iPhone 5. No matter how badly you wanted something slim, sleek and wedge-shaped, this isn’t it. If you went ahead and got your hopes up ahead of Apple’s “Let’s Talk iPhone” event, hopefully you’ve gotten over the pangs of discontent by now, because this device pictured front and center is the iPhone 4S. It’s a new spin on an old phone that will shock none, but give it half a chance, and it will still impress.

The iPhone 4S comes with a faster processor, a better camera, a smarter virtual assistant and twice the storage of its predecessor — if you don’t mind paying for it. Like the iPhone 3GS did before to the 3G, the 4S bumps the iPhone 4 down to second-class status, leaving those Apple fans who must have the best aspiring to own its decidedly familiar exterior. Apple says this is the most amazing iPhone ever. Is it? Yes, of course it is, but read on to see whether it’s really worth an upgrade.

Continue reading iPhone 4S review

iPhone 4S review originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 14 Oct 2011 16:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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