[46480]

Hey everybody.

Given the rapid growth of the smartphones market I figure it would be good to have a thread talking about the latest gadgets and the establishment of the tablet market and it's upcoming offerings.

Anyways I'll start with some nice news.

This is the LG Optimus 2X.

Some other key specifications of the Optimus 2X:

1Ghz Dual-core Processor (NVIDIA Tegra 2)
4-inch WVGA screen
8GB memory (up to 32GB via microSD)
1,500 mAh battery
8 megapixel rear camera and 1.3 megapixel front camera
HDMI mirroring
DLNA compatibility
1080p MPEG-4/H.264 playback and recording
Android 2.2 "Froyo" out of the box, with upgradeability to 2.3 "Gingerbread"

The first dual core smartphone.

Although I'm not sure if apps would benefit right away from dual cores, at least it's 1GHZ on each core so it should not be slow.

I'm never an early adopter but it's great to see mobile tech grow.

 

[SCHUMI_4EVER]

The first dual core smartphone.

HTC are likely to disagree with this.

 

[46480]

Please expand on this.

 

[SCHUMI_4EVER]

Nevermind, I'd mistaken the HTCs for already launched.

 

[runawayprisoner]

LG Star preview -- Engadget

Preview.

Parts that matter to me:

The unfinished software does chug down quite often, seemingly entranced in an existential contemplation as to where it's going and what it's doing with its life

I think it's like having a Core i7 running Windows 7 in Safe Mode. Sadly, that's what most Android phones seem to be like. I have no beef with the hardwares, but the software is just urg... Google may write awesome softwares, but when it comes to manufacturers, I don't think you can quite say the same.

Case in point, I think the Google Nexus One still outperforms a number of devices even by today's standards. Second only to the Google Nexus S.

 

[46480]

What I like about Android is that it's always evolving and at a fast pace.

With Honeycomb 3.0 I expect much better performance.

 

[Cheesus]

On paper it seems like a beast of a phone... But personally, I think it looks hideous. Personally I'm not a fan of non-physical buttons, and the general appearance of the device just looks plasticky and cheap.

Little bit like a Corvette.

I think it's like having a Core i7 running Windows 7 in Safe Mode. Sadly, that's what most Android phones seem to be like. I have no beef with the hardwares, but the software is just urg... Google may write awesome softwares, but when it comes to manufacturers, I don't think you can quite say the same.

Care to clarify the statement a little? Was about to bring on the hate, but I'm not sure I understood you well.

Case in point, I think the Google Nexus One still outperforms a number of devices even by today's standards. Second only to the Google Nexus S.

It outperforms them because it was released as a top of the line device, not more than a year ago. It'd be somewhat alarming if it still didn't hold its own today.

Vodafone are still marketing the HTC Desire (internally its almost identical to the N1) as their highest end Android device over here.

Spoiler

I bought one like 3 months ago.

 

[46480]

Another good thing of the nexus one is that Google itself committed to provide great performance on it.

Would be a shame for your software not to be optimized for your own hardware.

(I know it was a partnership with HTC).

The nexus S was a partnership with Samsung.

 

[runawayprisoner]

Care to clarify the statement a little? Was about to bring on the hate, but I'm not sure I understood you well.

Well, if you've tried the Dell Streak, the Xperia X10, the HTC Incredible... I don't think I need to "clarify" anything.

You can bring all of the hate you want. I think that's only natural. Though the fact remains that Google wrote an awesome OS, but if it's not a phone they officially endorse (Nexus One, Nexus S), you're left at the mercy of your carrier/manufacturer. It's the same Windows Mobile game again.

It outperforms them because it was released as a top of the line device, not more than a year ago. It'd be somewhat alarming if it still didn't hold its own today.

No, it outperforms them because it has proper software configuration. Most of the other Android phones don't have that. You can compare a Droid X and Google Nexus One side by side. Same CPU performance. Nexus One still loads faster and smoother. Nexus One also takes less of a penalty enabling Live Wallpaper than a lot of other Android phones by default.

After a bit of tweaking, you can probably reach the level of optimization done to the Nexus with other phones, but... I always think that you should be able to get that experience from stock, and not after rooting and some hundreds of hours poured into the phone.

 

[46480]

And in other news.

Yes this was unveiled months ago but worth mentioning.

This is the PlayBook by RIM.

*7-inch LCD, 1024 x 600, WSVGA, capacitive touch screen with full multi-touch and gesture support
*BlackBerry Tablet OS with support for symmetric multiprocessing
*1 GHz dual-core processor
*1 GB RAM
*Dual HD cameras (3 MP front facing, 5 MP rear facing), supports 1080p HD *video recording
*Video playback: 1080p HD Video, H.264, MPEG, DivX, WMV
*Audio playback: MP3, AAC, WMA
*HDMI video output
*Wi-Fi - 802.11 a/b/g/n
*Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
*Connectors: microHDMI, microUSB, charging contacts
*Open, flexible application platform with support for WebKit/HTML-5, Adobe Flash Player 10.1, Adobe Mobile AIR, Adobe Reader, POSIX, OpenGL, Java
*Ultra thin and portable:
*Measures 5.1"x7.6"x0.4" (130mm x 193mm x 10mm)
*Weighs less than a pound (approximately 0.9 lb or 400g)
*RIM intends to also offer 3G and 4G models in the future.

RIM introduces PlayBook -- the BlackBerry tablet -- Engadget

I particularly don't like Blackberry phones, they feel so ancient, although some people love the keyboard and BB messenger. And RIM's market share is dropping against IOS and Android. There is no mention of a new blackberry phone using this OS, so I don't think my feelings for them are going to change in the near future.

 

[runawayprisoner]

Regarding the PlayBook, it seems the thing has Flash and AIR integrated natively as part of the system.

The bezel is actually touch-sensitive as well, and it's used for swipe gestures that can reveal the launcher (swipe up from the bottom bezel), or reveal the notification area (swipe down from the top bezel), or quickly switch applications (swipe left and right from the side bezels).

I've also seen special events fired when the app is minimized or in the process of switching and stuffs, so I suspect each "card" can be transformed into a large live icon/widget instead of being just a snapshot of whatever is currently running. I still have to try everything to see what it's all about, though.

RIM doesn't mention restrictions regarding what types of emulators are allowed, so hopefully, we'll see...

Frankly speaking, I'm impressed with what it can do with regard to Flash and AIR. Running Flash natively instead of as a plugin or extension may actually help with performance quite a lot. We'll see, but I think if they can pull it off, I don't doubt it'll be a hit.

 

[Beatrix]

Are android tablets any good? As in the galaxy series? Some look nice, but 6-$700 is a bit much

 

[StriderVM]

Well, if you're treating them as primarily tablets, you might be disappointed. However, if you will consider that it's also a cellphone (On the models that do have the feature) , it ain't so bad....

 

[46480]

Thanks for the info RAP.

Sounds very good.

Let's see battery life and apps.

@M.i.a. Actually there are not many Android tablets to choose from atm. Although the Galaxy is nice, I recommend to wait till next year. iPad 2, HP WebOS, Win 7 or 8 and RIM's Playbook, will surely push Android Tablets to innovate and get better.

Next year looks very promising.

Also I'm never an early adopter unless I can sell it to get the second gen.

 

[LensLarque]

RandomRant:

There are tons of cheap and crappy android tablets popping out from nowhere.
I would advise people to stay away from these...

This Xmas it looks like the Desire HD will sell a lot, iStuff too of course, then Galaxy Tab and Dell Streak, Milestone2/Droid2...

Mid-range smartphones like the Acer Liquid Metal seem to get some love too.

Win Phone 7 powered smartphones... I don't know, maybe it's a bit too early with a marketplace that's not very stuffy yet.

Also there's that rumor of Gingerbread coming to the Galaxy S.

Too bad that these hi-tech gadgets all have crappy battery life.

 

[n_w95482]

I tried out a Viewsonic G Tablet at Staples earlier today and I wasn't very impressed. Like the Anandtech article mentions, TN panels don't work well on tablets, and the UI was very slow to respond (1-5 second delay on button presses). A better LCD and a clean Android build would work wonders with it.

 

[Bill_gates]

This is the LG Optimus 2X.

Some other key specifications of the Optimus 2X:

1Ghz Dual-core Processor (NVIDIA Tegra 2)
4-inch WVGA screen
8GB memory (up to 32GB via microSD)
1,500 mAh battery
8 megapixel rear camera and 1.3 megapixel front camera
HDMI mirroring
DLNA compatibility
1080p MPEG-4/H.264 playback and recording
Android 2.2 "Froyo" out of the box, with upgradeability to 2.3 "Gingerbread"

The first dual core smartphone.

Although I'm not sure if apps would benefit right away from dual cores, at least it's 1GHZ on each core so it should not be slow.

I'm never an early adopter but it's great to see mobile tech grow.

Way to cheap out on the front cam LG...
That aside, the specs look nice, but it's too early for dual core cellphones.
The smartphone industry needs.
1. Better operating systems
2. Advancements in Battery Technology
3. More developers willing to code multi-threaded apps/games

 

[46480]

I don't think it's too early and a lot of manufacturers are betting on that too.

Remember these are not normal cellphones.

Google has made Tegra the reference design for Honeycomb, aka Android 3.0

Samsung nabs Tegra 2 for Galaxy Tab 2, Google makes Tegra the Honeycomb reference platform? -- Engadget

I remember when people said that we didn't need dual core processors.

 

[Lasnap]

 

[snickothemule]

Notion Ink Adam

Sold out in 2 hours apparantly, and who can blame them with their incredible stats and pricing.

Hardware/B]
NVIDIA Tegra 250
Dual Core Cortex A-9
ULP GPU
1gb DDR2 ram
3.2mp camera

Size
Thickness: ~14 mm
Width: 191 mm
Length: 269 mm
Weight: ~1.6 pounds

Secren
10.1" WSVGA (1024 x 600)
Optional Pixel Qi display:
Transmissive, transflective,
and reflective modes
Multi-touch
Matte finish
Anti glare coating
Scratch resistant
Finger print resistant

I really want one of these things, to think all of this to come in a $499US WiFi enabled machine is just incredible.

Works out in the sun too, thanks to that Pixel Qi screen, with some 50 hours running time (up to 160) in the ebook mode, just amazing technology, from India.