IntoMobile » Reviews

Video: Hands-on the Samsung Behold II

Will Park — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:00:52 +0000

This holiday shopping season is dominated by Android. Smartphones running Google (NSDQ: GOOG)’s mobile operating system are flooding the market, and we really couldn’t be happier. The latest Android smartphone to find its way into our eager hands is the Samsung Behold II. Just in time for the holidays, T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) is offering the Samsung Behold II for $229.99 when purchased with new 2-year contract. It’s slightly pricier than the iPhone and the Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid, but with a sleek design and a quirky new 3D Cube UI, you might not mind shelling out the extra bucks for the Behold 2.

Unlike the original Samsung Behold, the Behold II sports Android 1.5 OS. It sports an impressive 5-megapixel camera (with LED-flash), 3G data, WiFi, GPS and microSD card slot. But, the one feature that outshines them all is the Behold 2’s 3.2-inch capacitive AMOLED touchscreen. The display doesn’t need a backlight, so it draws less power than traditional LCD displays, but manages to deliver a brighter, crisper, more color-rich picture.

The camera is a bit laggy, but serves up some impressively crisp and well-balanced pictures. The 3D Cube UI is quirky, to say the least. We’re sure some people will find it useful, but we just don’t see ourselves using it for more than just showing off to our friends. But, with a speedy browser and an incredible OLED display, the Behold II will more than make up for its confusing UI.

Enjoy the hands-on/unboxing gallery and video!

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Sony Ericsson Kurara/U5 Reviewed

Simon Sage — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:15:33 +0000

The upcoming Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) Kurara, which got a brief glimpse of last week, just got an extensive review. This is clearly Sony Ericsson’s competitor to Samsung’s OmniaHD i8910, and meets the challenge on a few levels, such as processor (Cortex A8) and camera (8 megapixels), but the display loses a few points for not being AMOLED. The Symbian-based OS is similar to the Satio, complete with Facebook and Twitter integration, but the reviewer’s final conclusion is that this handset’s success will depend entirely on the price point – there’s not a lot of innovation going on, but a 300 Euro price point would likely be enough to win over a few folks. Even with the pricetag taken into account, I’m not sure why anyone would pick up the U5 over the X10…

[via Mobile-Review]

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Beyzacases Slimline Vertical Case: does exactly what it says on the tin!

Ben Robinson — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:40:39 +0000

I’m always looking for good accessories to make sure my iPhone is protected – and I’ve lost track of the amount I’ve been through including:

Rubber surround cases
Leather flip-out cases
Screen protectors
Two-piece clip together plastic cases

However, it was largely a poorly-performing area of accessories as far as I was concerned, until I came across what I thought was the ideal type of cases – the Vertical Leather slip case. This genre of case works ideally for me, since I need the iPhone out of it’s case (say to dock in the official Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) charger mount) as much as in it. Now, most leather slip cases don’t afford any protection for the top of the phone (since that is where it ejects), but, overall a good compromise.

Fortunately, I think I’ve found a good performer in this genre of case, in the Beyzacases ‘Slimline Vertical Leather Case’, being retailed by MobileFun.

There actually isn’t that much to say on the case, other than to summarise that it does what it says on the tin – but, I’ll try and give you the highlights:

Made from real leather
Snug fit for iPhone 3G/3GS so it won’t fall out
Cut-out at bottom so charger can still be plugged in, and, phone can be ejected with finger
Refined styling
Good protection for all but top of phone!

Actually MobileFun do a range of Beyzacases that you can see here. However, the case I am using is this one here.

In summary, great quality, and a reasonable price – you can get one here.

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Orbit USB is a powerful little laptop speaker

Ben Robinson — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:09:34 +0000

Anyone that reads IntoMobile regularly will know that I’m a real accessories freak – I love to test the latest innovations and products in the accessories arena – partly because it’s a hotbed of activity (certainly around smartphones at the moment anyway), and also because a good accessory can really enhance the value of the device you own.

Case in point: Altec Lansing’s Orbit range of speakers – currently there are two, the Orbit-M, and Orbit USB. Both are entirely portable, and hence mobile, but are targeted at slightly different audiences. The Orbit-M (which I’ve reviewed, see here) has a 3.5mm jack, and connects to (ideally) your Mobile (though it can connect to other stuff, obviously). The Orbit USB has (surprisingly enough) a USB connector, and hence is for you Laptop – but again a portable accessory you might use when out and about.

The two speakers do have other subtle differences too – the Orbit-M is grey in colour and uses batteries (since no power comes over the 3.5mm connector), whereas the Orbit USB is black in colour, takes its power from the USB port, and also has a nifty little kickstand which can angle the sound trajectory. But, clearly the biggest difference between them is that the Orbit-M takes an analogue signal and then boots it out the speaker, whereas the Orbit USB takes a digital signal, and converts to analogue inside the speaker.

I’m happy to report that both ways round, the sounds is really excellent from such diminutive little speakers! The Orbit USB might just possibly edge it in sound quality, but it’s minimal – much more important is the quality of the source (be it a mobile or laptop) and also the quality of the source files you are playing back.

Personally though, I think that the Orbit speakers, and in this case the Orbit USB, are well priced (£39.99 in the UK), and do the job of providing music on the move, a lot better than a lot of other speakers that I have heard of a similar size.

I think, in conclusion, the Orbit USB continues the great run that Altec Lansing is having with producing quality audio accessories, at great prices!

For more information on the complete autumn 2009 audio collection from Altec Lansing, you can visit www.alteclansing.com

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Brief: Nokia N900 in da house!

Ben Robinson — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:40:41 +0000

I wrote a piece yesterday about first impressions the N900, which really seemed to upset some people – chief amongst the objections were the fact that not everyone believed I have the N900 – well it’s picture-time, check it out:

Other objections included black-and-white statements that resistive screens don’t support multi-touch – with a couple of minutes Googling, I think you’ll find that multi-touch on a resistive screen is entirely possible – it just happens not to be on the N900 – shame …

Others were of the opinion that I must be an Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) Fanboi – something I strenuously deny. Oh, BTW, the pictures above were taken using an iPhone 3GS

Ben

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Hands-on Review: ‘Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs’ for iPhone

Ben Robinson — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 23:59:18 +0000

Sometimes you know when you are going to get a quality iPhone gaming experience, and Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs was no exception – developed by and Two Tribes (and distributed by Chillingo) for Fox Mobile Entertainment, this game oozes quality! In case you were wondering what the game is about:

In Scrat’s new iPhone adventure, life is not looking any easier, but at least this time he has you to lend him a helping hand. Set across four perilous and puzzle-filled zones — including ice caves, snow, mist-filled caves, and jungle — Scrat pursues delicious acorns as players use a revolutionary on-screen control system to direct him to his goal.

So on to the important thing – how did the developers fare in converting a platformer/puzzle game to iphone controls (touchscreen)? Well, pretty good actually – the game employs a point-and-direct system, where Scrat will move to the location you point to. It’s actually surprisingly easy on the fingers, since you don’t need to change direction constantly with button presses, merely tap near the end-goal for that given movement. Animation is also well done, and I have to say the music is amongst the best I’ve come across for any iPhone game recently – very atmospheric!

The first few levels are spent teaching you the ‘Way of the Scrat’, which involves jumping on things, pushing/pulling things, and overall all a lot about collecting nuts! Simple you might think, but this platform-puzzler has devious ways of making you work for those nuts – and as the levels go on, things get more and more difficult.

Overall it’s an enjoyable yomp through levels that combine great graphics and design, with a control system that does work well on the iPhone – if you have had some stinkers recently when downloading games, give this one a spin – it’s well worth a go!

Search for ‘ice age’ in the App Store – cost £2.99 (UK)

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Hands-on: Big Buck Hunter Pro for iPhone

Ben Robinson — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 20:18:07 +0000

Not so very long I posted up that ‘Big Buck Hunter Pro’ for iPhone had got a release – well now I’ve got to play it!

There’s not a great deal to explain as regards the central concept – you are deer hunting, and you’ve got take down as many of the little suckers as possible – interspersed with that are some fairground-like games, including flipping frogs, and whacking moles. I’ve got to say though, even at this point, it’s all done with a great deal of style and panache – even down to the authentic voiceover from a ‘hunter’

The scenery is actually done really well in this game – they’ve used the graphical capabilities of the iPhone to generate some sweet-looking backgrounds. On top of that, the movement of the various deer are animated extremely well. So all’s good on that front!

There they are.... I've got the drop on them!

I have to say, and maybe I’m becoming rubbish at gaming in my old age, that the difficulty level is right up there – much like clay pigeon shooting simulation games, you’ve got to aim ahead of the target, to account for bullet-travel time. But hey, that’s part of the challenge right!

... but I'm a rubbish shot and now they've got away.

As I said, overall the game is very well put together, and I think for £1.79 it’s a good spend of money – if of course, you’re in to shooting animals

You can get ‘Big Buck Hunter Pro’ from the App Store on iTunes by searching for ‘Big Buck’

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Video Preview: Need For Speed Shift shows what OpenGL ES graphics can do on a BlackBerry Storm2

Will Park — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:07:39 +0000

RIM today announced at their BlackBerry Developers Conference in San Francisco that the BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) OS will soon support OpenGL ES for 3D graphics acceleration. The arrival of 3D graphics support should finally bring the BlackBerry platform out of the dark ages, where BrickBreaker and other 2D games reigned supreme. RIM and EA Mobile took to the BBDC keynote stage to show off the still-in-development “Need For Speed: Shift” 3D game, giving the world a glimpse of what’s to come. The game looked impressive, to say the least, so we figured a hands-on video was in order.

We sat down with EA Mobile and gave the game a solid once-over. Before we continue, we should mention again that Need For Speed: Shift is still in early stage development, and what you see below is actually the first ever playable version of the game. As such, there weren’t too many cars to pick from, and the game had only a single playable track. Still, the accelerometer-based controls were easy to use – they were responsive but not twitchy (like a lot of racing games on the iPhone). In-game audio was impressive and really gave the game a more polished feel than the two weeks worth of development time would have suggested.

EA Mobile promises to have Need for Speed: Shift polished off by the time it hits the BlackBerry App World. By that time the game should support more computer rivals (AI enemies), a drift-turn feature to slide around corners and player-points to upgrade your ride. Check out the video below!

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The Unboxing: Verizon’s HTC Droid Eris

Will Park — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 05:32:15 +0000

We’ve already had a chance to play with the HTC Droid Eris from Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Wireless, but there’s nothing like a retail package unboxing ceremony to really get up close and personal with a new handset. As the “ying” to the Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid’s “yang,” the HTC Droid Eris offers Verizon customers a fully capable Android smartphone at half the price of Moto’s headlining Droid, and it deserves some of our undivided attention.

The HTC Droid Eris is a lot like the HTC Hero from Sprint. Just like the Hero, the Droid Eris packs a 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen, 5-megapixel auto-focusing camera, 3G data, WiFi, GPS and a microSD card slot. It also runs the Sense UI, HTC’s custom Android homescreen skin, which gives the Droid Eris a bunch of extra HTC widgets to play with – and it doesn’t hurt that Sense UI looks way prettier than the vanilla Android homescreen.

Surprisingly, the HTC Droid Eris isn’t much thinner than the Motorola Droid, which sports a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. That’s not to say that the Droid Eris is a brick, it actually sits really comfortably in the hand. Still, the Eris could stand to lose a couple millimeters around its waist.

The Droid Eris’s 5-megapixel camera is faster and less laggy than the Motorola Droid. It also supports touch-focusing, which gives it a another small but significant leg-up on the Droid. The 3.2-inch display is smaller than would be ideal, but it’s plenty big for day-to-day use. Above all, there’s no sliding mechanism on the Droid Eris, so build quality is top-notch – no jiggling or creaking here.

The Droid Eris is available from Verizon Wireless for $99.99 with new 2-year contract. Or, you might be able to find a better deal here.

Unfortunately, the Eris runs Android 1.5 OS. The Motorola Droid features Android 2.0 OS, which has the Google (NSDQ: GOOG) Maps Navigation app pre-installed. Android 1.5 isn’t bad, especially with HTC’s Sense UI riding on top, but it’s no Android 2.0.

Anyway, acquaint yourself with the Droid Eris below!

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Video: Hands-on with Verizon’s HTC Droid Eris

Will Park — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:52:55 +0000

If you’ve had your eye on the Android-powered HTC Hero and its customized Sense UI, but just couldn’t bear to leave Verizon (NYSE: VZ)’s warm embrace for Sprint (NYSE: S)’s network, you’re in luck! Verizon went official this morning with the Hero-esque HTC Droid Eris. The Eris is a lot like the Hero, just for the Verizon Wireless network. And, at just $99, the Droid Eris is the more affordable alternative to both the upcoming Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid and the Sprint HTC Hero. The Eris even sports the same Sense UI that we’ve come to love on the HTC Hero.

The Motorola Droid might be hogging all the hype this week, but the Eris deserves some time in the limelight. So, without further ado, here’s a hands-on look at HTC Droid Eris for Verizon Wireless.

Here’s a quick spec-sheet rundown on the HTC Droid Eris:

3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen (320×480)
5-megapixel camera (with autofocus)
Android 1.5 OS
3G data
WiFi
GPS
3.5mm headphone jack

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Video: We take T-Mobile’s BlackBerry Bold 9700 for a spin

Will Park — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:25:16 +0000

The T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) (NYSE: DT) BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) (NSDQ: RIMM) Bold 9700 isn’t quite launched just yet, but we’ve already gotten friendly with RIM’s newest hardware. The Bold 9700 looks and feels a lot like the original BlackBerry Bold 9000, with some significant under-the-hood upgrades. Cosmetically, the biggest difference is the missing trackball; in it’s place is a new optical trackpad. It’s a subtle design update that makes a lot of sense – the Bold 9000 was a big hit for RIM, of course they’re going to stick with a recipe that everyone loves.

The Bold 9700 is fitted with the same class-leading QWERTY keyboard that debuted on the Bold 9000. It’s slimmer than the original Bold, but packs an upgraded 3.2-megapixel camera and double the application memory (256MB) – all the while shipping on a fully-charged battery for days on end. The entire backside of the Bold 9700 is covered in a rubberized “soft touch” finish that highlights the faux-leather backing.

What about the new trackpad? Is it just as easy to use as the iconic BlackBerry trackball? Is it responsive and accurate enough to satisfy die-hard BlackBerry fans? In a word, “yes.” The optical trackpad samples your finger input hundreds of times a second, translating the direction and speed of your finger into smooth cursor movements. It works well. In fact, it might just be better than the trackball.

To beat the issue to death (again), the Bold 9700’s browser isn’t the best. The browser is said to be improved, but it still lags. It’ll get the job done, but you need to be patient with it. Check out the hands-on video below to see for yourself. It might help to distract yourself away from the browser and just focus on the Bold 9700’s improved camera and rock solid push email features.

Basically, if you liked the Bold 9000, you can’t really ask for any better than the Bold 9700. The official launch window is “sometime before November 27,” but all signs are pointing to a Nov. 18 launch for $199.99 with new 2-year contract.

Enjoy our hands-on video and photo gallery!

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Business Card Reader for iPhone is way better than the alternative

Will Park — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 04:30:30 +0000

Collecting business cards can be a good thing – expanding your professional network usually is. It can also suck. If you ever have the chance to wade through a stack of business cards and add those contacts by hand, give it a try, you’ll see what we mean. For those of you that share our pain, check out SHAPE Services’ Business Card Reader for iPhone. With a simple snap of your iPhone 3GS’s auto-focus camera, Business Card Reader injects contact information directly into your iPhone’s address book. It’s not free, but at $5.99, it’ll easily pay for itself after your next new business card.

The new app basically scans your business cards and analyzes the text using character recognition technology. But, the really nifty thing is the way Business Card Reader integrates with LinkedIn and your iPhone. It’ll automatically distinguish between home and mobile phone numbers, office address, website URL, job title, company and, of course, the first and last name. Once scanned, you’ll have the option of automatically adding a new contact, merging the data with an existing contact, or look up the information on LinkedIn.

Of course, the app is bound to make some mistakes. After testing five business cards, we had to specify one company name and break up a couple long first names into their respective first and last names. You’re also going to want to use this app on an iPhone 3GS. The auto-focus camera makes all the difference. The app isn’t perfect, but it’s way (way) better than the alternative.

Wanna see the app in action? Check out our demo video!

BC Reader [iTunes link]

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Tunemaker – hands-on review

Ben Robinson — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 23:15:20 +0000

It seems a plethora of music-creation Apps have crashed on to the iPhone of late – and I’ve had the opportunity to play with quite a few of them! My stand-out favourite to-date has been Groovemaker, which I think is a genius bit of coding.

So it was with great interest that I received an emailing suggesting I try out Tunemaker, from Makayama. I’ve already posted up some info on its release, so it is nice to get a hands-on and see how the App performs!

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Sygic Mobile Maps – hands-on review

Ben Robinson — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 21:24:38 +0000

Whilst TomTom is often considered to be the leading brand for standalone Sat Nav systems, the situation on Mobile devices is quite radically different.

TomTom actually missed a beat when it came to mobile devices (specifically the iPhone), because their software wasn’t first-to-market, and in fact the other contenders have produced some pretty good solutions! Case in point: the Mobile Maps application, from Sygic.

More after the jump!

Cost

The software from Sygic weighs in at 29.99 GBP, which is actually a few pounds dearer than their main competitor, CoPilot Live (for a review of that, see here). So I was wondering would we get the same level of performance as the CoPilot?

The UI of the software is perfectly acceptable – and to be honest, is pretty much standard – likewise the menu screens are built from large icons, to make it easier to hit the right keys whilst navigating (or rather, just before you navigate, since you shouldn’t be using the application whilst driving). Once you have plumbed in a postcode or address, you then get the obligatory “calculating route” that all Sat Navs perform, and you are ready to go!

Maps render nicely, and are vector-based – I’d say they are pretty accurate, apart from one instance where the spoken directions didn’t match the map (come to that in a minute). A very mild criticism is that sometimes the maps can look a bit sparse.

Usage

I tested Mobile Maps out whilst navigating on a real journey – so the use-case was real, and any issues would become apparent. As mentioned before, at one point I was directed for a certain turn, yet the map directions showed ‘straight on’ as the right way to go. But apart from that, both the spoken directions, mapping, and screen updates performed admirably.

I should note that I was running the app on an iPhone 3GS, in a powered dashboard mount – so I can’t speak about the battery usage of the app – in my mind, all Sat Nav apps kill batteries on mobiles, so you might want to think about a cigarette lighter charger to your accessories if you are going to start using Sat Nav apps

One other nice feature I should mention is a nice map zoom feature, that works not unlike many of the most popular web-based services – you have a slider which you can use to push in / pull out from the maps:

Summary

The apps that I have used thus far as very much ‘does what it says on the tin’ – you plug in an address, and what you should get back are directions to get there – which is exactly what you get!

I wonder about the extra 4.00 GBP over the CoPilot Live software, because I can’t see anything that justifies it – but then again, both come in well below the price of TomTom, which is up in the 55 GBP range!

In summary, then I’d recommend Sygic Mobile Maps as one of the pieces of Sat Nav software you can get for your iPhone – or in fact Android, Symbian, or Windows Mobile devices too!

You can get Sygic Mobile Maps from iTunes / App store by searching for Sygic.

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Usage review: Groovemaker Drum ‘n’ Bass for iPhone/iPod Touch

Ben Robinson — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 01:43:44 +0000

Groovemaker isn’t the smallest of apps, but then again it’s got an fair amount of file-weight since it includes lots of really high-quality apps. I used iTunes on the Mac and then synced the iPhone as the fastest route to getting Apps installed. The App loads quickly once installed, and then the first time you open any of the included tracks, the App needs to unpack them. This takes a couple of minutes, but only happens once – then you are good to go!

UI and toggle buttons

The Groovemaker UI uses it’s own UI – that is, it doesn’t rely on any Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) standard buttons, shunning them instead for a set of very specific and functional buttons on screen. Many of the buttons are toggle buttons, which flip parts of the screen to allow you to see a greater screen estate than what you have. I’d imagine if this was a PC/Mac app, it would fill a screen, but with the iPhone 320×480 screen estate, you have to optimise space! No matter, it all works very well, once you know what is where. Sensibly, the buttons that you need whilst you are ‘in the mix’ are a decent size!

Mode of Operation

Within the UI you can kick off an auto-assembled track just using the ‘Groove’ button, and then start changing elements from there – this is my preferred method of using the app, because you can jump in to using it just with one button – brilliant for the moments when you might have 10 mins spare.

On screen as you begin are also the eight ‘pads’, which are buttons that you can assign sounds to – the aforementioned ‘groove’ button might generate a tune using sample on say six of these pads, and then you can either choose to re-assign the sample that’s playing out, or mute/solo out either single or multiple pads – sounds complex? Nope, not at all, five minutes will see you sussing most of this app out.

Synergy of music

For me this is probably the winning part of the app – there must be 60 or so sample loops within the application, sub-divided in to categories. Most people understand that for the average piece of music, you need beats, bass, rhythm, FX, and maybe a touch of vocals – and groovemaker makes it incredibly easy to cut these soundbanks in and out.

Moreover, the app is designed so you can pick any sound, without needing to pre-listen, and cut it in –knowing you won’t get clashes – because each sample is checked to sit nicely with others – as I said, synergy.

I should make a specific note here about the DnB soundbanks – they really are superbly composed, and definitely sit well at the right bpm, instrument sets, and variety of things you might expect to hear in a Trance choon – a great version of the Groovemaker app!

Other stuff

There’s much more to do than just going ‘in the mix’ and changing sample loops though – you can adjust the volume, pan, and speed of the track, jump between a series of auto-grooves (all auto-mixed for you!), and adjust all the usual options you might expect. You can even save your efforts!

Conclusion

Groovemaker DnB continues the ‘awesomeness’ of the Groovemaker series of applications – if you want to do something more productive than spending some time spare time playing a game, and you like music, this is the place to come. Download the app, find a track you like, and then make your own mix – fantastic fun, and highly recommended!

You can get Groovemaker Trance from Apple iTunes / App Store – search for ‘groovemak

Anyone that regularly reads IntoMobile will know that I think the Groovemaker range of Apps are awesome – sitting in a perfect niche between recreational music, and professional music production – they are kinda like the guitar hero of mobile music production, but there’s real productivity in here too – it’s no game!

So just the other day, IK Multimedia, the creators of Groovemaker, released two new versions of the application – Electro and Drum n Bass (here). In this post, I’m writing down my thoughts on the Drum ‘n’ Bass (DnB) App, having used it quite extensively! More after the jump….

Download, loading, and opening tracks

Groovemaker has a great UI

UI and toggle buttons

The Groovemaker UI uses it’s own UI – that is, it doesn’t rely on any Apple standard buttons, shunning them instead for a set of very specific and functional buttons on screen. Many of the buttons are toggle buttons, which flip parts of the screen to allow you to see a greater screen estate than what you have. I’d imagine if this was a PC/Mac app, it would fill a screen, but with the iPhone 320×480 screen estate, you have to optimise space! No matter, it all works very well, once you know what is where. Sensibly, the buttons that you need whilst you are ‘in the mix’ are a decent size!

Mode of Operation

Synergy of music

Soundbanks are available to scroll through

Other stuff

Adjust features of your track, like volume, pan, and tempo

Conclusion

You can get Groovemaker Trance from Apple iTunes / App Store – search for ‘groovemaker’

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Usage review: Groovemaker Electro for iPhone/iPod Touch

Ben Robinson — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 00:17:00 +0000

So just the other day, IK Multimedia, the creators of Groovemaker, released two new versions of the application – Electro and Drum n Bass (here). In this post, I’m writing down my thoughts on the Electro App, having used it quite extensively! More after the jump….

Download, loading, and opening tracks

UI and toggle buttons

Mode of Operation

Synergy of music

I should make a specific note here about the Electro soundbanks – they really are superbly composed, and definitely sit well at the right bpm, instrument sets, and variety of things you might expect to hear in a Trance choon – a great version of the Groovemaker app!

Other stuff

Conclusion

Groovemaker Electro continues the ‘awesomeness’ of the Groovemaker series of applications – if you want to do something more productive than spending some time spare time playing a game, and you like music, this is the place to come. Download the app, find a track you like, and then make your own mix – fantastic fun, and highly recommended!

You can get Groovemaker Trance from Apple iTunes / App Store – search for ‘groovemaker’

So just the other day, IK Multimedia, the creators of Groovemaker, released two new versions of the application – Electro and Drum n Bass (here). In this post, I’m writing down my thoughts on the Electro App, having used it quite extensively! More after the jump….

Download, loading, and opening tracks

Groovemaker has a great UI

UI and toggle buttons

Mode of Operation

Synergy of music

Soundbanks are available to scroll through

Other stuff

Adjust features of your track, like volume, pan, and tempo

Conclusion

You can get Groovemaker Trance from Apple iTunes / App Store – search for ‘groovemaker’

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Quick hands-on: Jamie Oliver 20-minute meals App (iPhone/iPod Touch)

Ben Robinson — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 23:25:08 +0000

For those of you that don’t know him (and there might be a lot, since he’s a UK chef) Jamie Oliver is a celebrity chef, in the same sort of mould as the likes of Gordon Ramsay – and by that, I mean he’s an export that has filmed his TV shows in the US, and a number of other countries I’m sure!

Anyhoo, the point of this quick hands-on is to find out if his new cooking App is any good (hint/spoiler: yes)!

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Hands-on with the HTC Tattoo hardware…

Ben Robinson — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 22:12:29 +0000

HTC were kind enough to loan me their newest model, the Tattoo, the other day – and very nice it was too!

Like has been the case recently a few times, I am talking a look at the final “release candidate” – for those of your unfamiliar with the handset development process, there are typically a small series of ‘release candidate’ handsets, which are taken out for field testing, used as demo handsets etc – in other words, they are very close to the retail-quality device. My unit felt so polished, I’m pretty sure it was good to go in to shops!

Read on to see what I made of the device….

Form factor

Nothing to do with the American series ‘Fear Factor’, or the UK series ‘X Factor’ – by this I am referring to the shape and design of the hardware! One thing that is noticeably different from the Hero (the Tattoo’s bigger brother) is the lack of ‘chin’ (the Hero had a pronounced bend in it, not unlike a chin). Also new is the use of the ‘joypad’ rather than the ‘trackball’ that the Hero offered. Whilst the joypad can only offer digital (0 or 1), it doesn’t impinge on the use of it at all – and the nice big action button in the centre definitely went down well!

Display

Two things to say here: first of all, the display is very nice and clear – the Sense-designed UI needs a decent screen to show it off properly, and the Tattoo doesn’t disappoint. We are talking about a QVGA display here, coming in at 2.8 inches – so relatively compact – but then so is the rest of the handset. The other thing to say is it’s a resistive screen – now, I don’t like resistive screens, but, I know a lot of people that do – so I think it’s one of things where you need to be aware of it, but it doesn’t necessarily add or detract from the handset itself.

Other hardware features

So what else is there to say about the Tattoo hardware? Well, plenty. First of all, there’s the headphone jack – and praise be, it’s 3.5mm, located squarely on top of the device:

At the other end, things aren’t so standard – the proprietary HTC connector (their version of USB) still is appearing on devices – the sooner this does fold in to standardised Mini- or Micro-USB, the better:

On the back of the device, there’s a cover (surprisingly enough), which hides both the SIM slot, and a really rather long battery! There’s also a MicroSD slot for those of you that are expandable memory fans! A further note about the cover itself – whilst the default cover has the Android robot poking out, you can actually get new covers via a customisation service that HTC are running – check that out here.

Overall, this does feel a very well put-together device – showing HTCs maturity now in bringing devices to market that challenge the quality that the likes of Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) brings to the table. The Tattoo fits neatly in the mid-range of Smartphone devices, and I think will do good trade quietly. It’s not a showstopper, but then it was never designed to be – however, it’s got enough in the way of design kudos, and a good O/S inside, to ensure it’s longevity.

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Video – Toshiba TG01 unboxing

Ben Robinson — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 20:24:56 +0000

Ben gets his hands on the Toshiba (OTCPK: TOSBF) TG01, in it’s Orange UK livery, and unboxes it:

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Video: Hands-on the Plantronics Discovery 975 Bluetooth Headset

Ben Robinson — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 19:07:28 +0000

A little while back, I got my hands on the Plantronics Discovery 975 Bluetooth Headset – packing some innovative features like dual-mics, 20-band equaliser, and also a case that doubles as a charger! Schweet! Check out my video here:

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