Hardware

The first thing you will notice with the Xperia S aside from its nice scree is the LED lit bar which seems to divide the cellphone into two parts. Some might not like it but it is actually cool with the navigation buttons etched on it. It comes with a price though, although the lit plastic bar looks good, it makes the phone look longer.

The design is nothing that would swoon gadget lovers plus using plastic meeting plastic design lines might not be a good idea. The phone has seams everywhere – rear cover, around the screen, port covers, and the plastic bar in front. The gaps is a problem in the long run as dust will get stuck in them which makes the device to appear cheap. The battery of this smart phone cannot be removed plus you cannot use a microSD to expand the 16 or 3 GB storage available. There can also be mishits when you try to press the navigation buttons at the start plus they can be quite unresponsive. Virtual buttons might have been better.

On the plus side, the LCD screen with a pixel density renders images smoothly and with excellent stability.

The camera has a resolution of 12MP and is a lot better than the older Xperias. You also have better controls for the ISO, Focus, Exposure Metering, and preset or manual white balance. You can shoot faster, better, and capture great images.

Software

The Xperia S runs on Android 2.3.7 and one thing defines this, old. The skin which is atop the OS also looks very familiar so are the pre-loaded applications. There are bloatware but there are also good stuff like the music app and the good integration with the SmartWatch.

Conclusion

Sony Xperia S is a good device after the Ericsson era. The good points like the display, battery life, speaker, and processor are promises of more things to come as Sony improves on their technology. The the non-expandable storage and its build quality might be issues might complicate your decision process though.

Hardware

The HTC Sensation XE screams it is the the Beat Audio version with the red accents used for its design. The phone looks informal and cool with the red Beats Audio logo, red buttons, and camera ring. The brains of the phone is a third gen dual core chipset called Qualcomm Snapdragon that is a bit faster at 1.5G Hz.

Its 4.3-inch LCD screen with a resolution of 540X960 is bright enough even when you are outdoors. This phone has an 8 megapixel camera which is the same as the one found on its older sibling. The interface for the camera is also very easy to use and clean. It may not have the panorama function but makes up with a host of nice effects.

Software

Let us focus on the Beats Audio which is after all the reason for the release of this version. According to the manufacturer the collaboration with Beats by Dr Dre aims to give consumers a better experience when they listen to music using their phones. In short, they want us to hear real music as the artists wanted us to hear their beats, harmonies, and melodies.

Our impression is that the Beats Audio is really about lifting or depressing some frequencies to alter the experience or how the music will sound. Use the Beats headphones and you will definitely hear a better quality of music. So Beats Audio boils down to setting the Equalizer.

Conclusion

The HTC Sensation XE is a good phone no doubt but we cannot say that it is better or any less that the original release. There are minor tweaks plus the Beats Audio tips the scale to a marketing gimmick since you can achieve what it wants to achieve (or even do better) with third party apps which come a lot cheaper.

At 116 grams, the Samsung Conquer 4G is very light and this is attributed to the plastic build, lack of a keyboard, and the smaller screen at 3.5 inch. It comes small at 116x0x12 mm. The back comes with some texture which avoids fingerprints and also gives some friction when you place it in your pocket.

At the side of the phone, you will find the volume rocker on the left side, camera key on the right, and headphone port on the top. At the bottom of the Conquer 4G are the mic and the micro USB port for charging.

In front, you have the 1.3 MP camera, the standard Android nav buttons just below the screen. The Conquer also comes with a 3.2 MP camera that can be at par or better with the Nokia N8′s performance. The camera comes with more settings that most brands in the market.

The Conquer 4G comes standard with a vanilla appearance and by default with the Gingerbread/ Android 2.3.4 . The service provider might put in some customization and some ringtones, wallpapers, widgets, and apps.
The battery life is pegged at six hours.

The Conquer 4G by Samsung is not a high end phone but it makes most of the components that it has.

The Blackberry 8830 World Edition look pretty much the same as any other Blackberry; however the metallic silver body does give it a bit of a more upscale look. It includes all of the features that people have come to expect from a Blackberry, the trackball and the QWERTY keyboard. This makes navigating through the menus a breeze. The size is also perfect since it is small enough that you can easily put it into the pocket on your shirt.

Like all Blackberry’s the thing that the 8830 does best is handle email. You can set up an account very easily using the built in wizard. It was easy to type on the 8830 as the keys are nice size and they are well spaced. You can view most file types fairly easily whether they are Word, Excel or PDF. Blackberry Messenger is also included with the phone. The biggest downside is that there is no GPS like there is on other models. One of the best features that we found on the 8830 was that the battery life was outstanding. Far better than any other smart phone that we have tried.

There is a feature for voice dialing on the 8830 which works quite well, better than on most phones. It had little trouble with any of the names that I tried to dial. Using Bluetooth with a wireless headset worked well for hands free calling. However one area that was a little bit disappointing was that you can’t use Bluetooth stereo headsets with the 8830.

The 8830 includes Roxio Media Manager which works quite well. It is very easy to move your media files from your notebook to your handset; all you have to do is drag and drop them using the split screen feature. Pictures look really good as the color of the screen is excellent. The video plays well and the speakers are loud, although the audio quality isn’t as good as it could be. Unfortunately the memory is way too small so you will likely fill it up pretty fast.

All in all the Blackberry 8830 World Edition is a very good phone, there are a couple of areas where it could be improved, but by and large it is quite good. It would be nice if there was GPS or if you could use Bluetooth Stereo headsets. Perhaps the biggest issue though is that there is no camera, a strange oversight in a world where you would normally expect to see one.

The market will be kinder to the Xperia Arc as we already know that they can produce top notch gadgets but they have to improve on the delivery of updates.

The Xperia Arc has the following features:

• 125 x 63.0 x 8/7 to 10mm in Dimension
• Weight: 117 grams
• Display 16M color 4.2” capacitive touch screen with 854×480 pixels
• Brain: 1GHz Qualcom MSM8255 Snapdragon platform
• OS: Android 2.3
• Camera: 8 MP with LED flash, touch focus, and face detection
• WiFI, Bluetooth
• Proximity sensor, Bravia engine, accelerometer, multitouch input

As seen on the features list above, the XPERIA Arc makes up for the lack of RAM and multitouch input of its older sibling the X10. It also gives you a bigger screen that has a better image quality because of the Bravia technology. This powerful monster also has a micro HDMI port to add to its connectivity answers

Design

In terms of the design lines, the X10 will look like an ancient when placed side by side the slimmer and sleeker Arc. Sony Ericsson has done it well with the glossier plastics and gradient design for the back plate.

Display

The most interesting part of the screen will be the use of the Sony Bravia technology which increases the contrast and sharpness of what you see. The screen of the Arc can be considered as among the best in the market today.

User Interface

You will get the Gingerbread or Android 2.3 with the XPERIA Arc. They axed the Mediascape which had issues with sending out updates.

Overall, the SE EXPERIA Arc has strong potentials but the overcrowded high end market will still be very crowded.

The changing times in the last decade can be best examined with the coming in of the Cell Phone Phenomenon which has indeed taken on gigantic proportions, transforming from a utility good to a luxury good and now, to a status symbol. To be without a mobile phone in this day and age might as well be the same as committing social suicide, given the importance that is attached with these gadgets. From housewives to college students, senior citizens to children as young as 9 and 10, cell phones have become a necessity as well as a status symbol. Flaunting the latest cell-phone models has become the easiest and most effective way of informing other people about your class, wealth, style and stature.

The far-reaching influence of cell phones as the ultimate accessory to have can be seen with the example of media advertising. All advertisements portraying “cool”, “trendy” and “stylish” people make use of expensive and attractive cell phones to indicate these attributes to the audiences. And since the media has a significant effect on the mindsets of the people, the masses have invariably picked up the understanding that having a phone that can be showed-off is just as important as dressing well.

Teenagers and even pre-teens insist on having their own phones and not just any phone will do. Parents are inevitably forced to buy the latest, most in-style, and thus invariably expensive model to appease their children. A cell phone no longer serves the simple function of allowing you to contact other people even when you are on the move. It is now a style statement and a status symbol, and keeping in tune with these transformations, the phone must be worthy of being “taken out” in public and flaunted in front of one’s peers.

The advance of cell phones as a must have accessory can also be understood in the terms of the variety of accessories and cell phone-related paraphernalia that is available in the market. From hanging key chains to bodysuits to phone accessories, stickers and holsters, cell phones have a vast range of associated gear that is used to enhance the appeal of the handset.

Currently the most popular smart phone on the market is the Android. The Android is the smart phone operating system created by Google so it should come as no surprise that it eventually found it’s way to the top spot. The Android has been a late entry into the smartphone market but it has quickly caught and passed it’s competitors. The reason for the popularity of the Android is all of the apps available. Not surprisingly a phone that has an operating system created by Google can do a lot more than most of it’s competitors.

The second most popular smartphone today is the Blackberry. This is the offering from Research in Motion, they pretty much created the smart phone and have remained near the forefront as their competitors have started to offer their own versions. The Blackberry is still one of the best smartphones on the market and it’s popularity means that there are a lot of apps available. Google’s Android is going to be a tough competitor but there is no reason to expect that the Blackberry will not remain near the top of it’s class.

In position number three of the most popular smartphones is Apples Iphone. Given all the hype that surrounds the release of a new Iphone and all the people who line up to buy them when they become available you would think that the Iphone would be the clear number one most popular. In fact this isn’t the case it is firmly planted in the number three spot. The Iphone is certainly a good phone and Apple really know how to market it, but it still can’t match the Android or Blackberry in terms of popularity. Part of the problem is that the way the phone is marketed is aimed at younger users rather than business people like other phones. This has helped the Iphone to attract a lot of attention but has left a large segment of the market untapped by Apple.

Obviously there’s many more popular phones out there. Click here for more information on the coolest phones today!

Design

BlackBerry gives this smartphone a totally different look from its older sibling. It does not look so masculine and fulfills the company’s goal of attracting male and female consumers. The Bold 9700 is pretty slim at 4.29×2.36×0.56 inches and tips the scale at 4.3 ounces. It is really lighter and can be considered more “pocketable” than the Tour.

The backside of the phone has a leatherette finish to give it a luxurious look in addition to the chrome details and lines. The screen is a bit smaller at 2.44 inches but the 245pixels/inch keeps everything clear without having to squint.

The interface is practically unchanged with only minor changes brought about by the BlackBerry OS 5.0.

One of the big changes on the controls will be the optical trackpad taking the place of the usual trackball. This feature makes scrolling and browsing a lot smoother.

Performance

The BlackBerry Bold 9700 promises to have excellent audio quality without having to worry about background noise. The keypads are a bit hard to press but typing will be a lot easier when you get used to the device. Pairing the device with other gadgets is also hassle free.

We can say that the 624Mhz brain of this smartphone performs well but some delays are encountered when you use the camera. Talk time is expected to hit around 6 hours with standby time stretching to 17 days.

This smartphone walks its talks for an entry level gadget, and sports connectivity features that you can possibly imagine. It has a quick processor for its brain with a nice smart OS to keep things flowing smoothly.

Checking out the specs sheet of the i5500, we say it is pretty impressive. It comes with a fast 600MHz processor, 2.8 inches QVGA touchscreen, accelerometer sensor, 100 MB internal storage, microSD slot, and a 2MP camera.

The connectivity comes complete with 36, Wi-Fi, GPS, a port for microUSB, and an audijack.

The system of the Samsung i5500 depends on the Éclair version of the Android v2.1. We cannot find anything about the RAM and ROM but it will be safe to say that they are at least 256 megabytes each.

Battery life will also not be a problem as Samsung fitted it with a 1200mAh pack.

It will available in Europe by next week starting at 199 Euros. It will come to Italy first via Wind and TIM.

Take the awesome Garmin-Asus M10 for example!  This is a phone that is going to be released in India and I have to say that there are a ton of benefits in this phone.  For example, the 3.5-inch 480 x 800 touchscreen display, a Qualcomm 7227 600MHz processor, a 5MP autofocus camera, a 512MB RAM, a 512MB ROM, a 4GB of internal memory, a microSD card slot (up to 32GB), GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth, a 3.5mm headphone jack, a 1500 mAh battery and runs on Windows Mobile 6.5.3 OS.

You want technology?  This is a phone that has it all!