Samsung Ativ S review

Introduction

Microsoft's campaign is underway across the board with Windows 8, RT and WP 8 and all eyes are now set on Redmond's allies for a demonstration of fire power. Following some early warning shots fromNokia and HTC, Samsung are now free to fire at will.

   
Samsung Ativ S official pictures

Their Ativ S was the first Windows Phone 8 flagship announced and, respectful of chronology, the first we're about to properly review. The Nokia Lumia 920, the HTC Windows Phone 8X and the Ativ S are often painted as allies - but that's mostly rhetoric. To a certain point, they have little choice but to unite against the Android and iPhone hordes. On the other hand, these fine smartphones will be sworn enemies fighting over every user drawn close enough by Microsoft's upgraded platform.

And by the way, Windows Phone 8's appeal is easy enough to understand. It is now a consistent cross-device platform that will get app developers interested. Multiple-core-chipset and screen resolution support will help Microsoft-powered devices stand next to their Android and iOS counterparts as equals.

OEMs on the other hand are also giving potential users a good enough reason to be excited. Just look at what the Ativ S is offering to those who are willing to go with Samsung.

Key features

• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support
• Quad-band 3G with 42 Mbps HSDPA and 5.7 Mbps HSUPA support
• 4.8" 16M-color Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen of 720 x 1280 pixel resolution
• Scratch resistant Gorilla Glass 2 display
• 8 megapixel autofocus camera with LED flash, 1080p@30fps video recording
• 1.9MP front camera
• Windows Phone 8 OS
• 1.5GHz dual-core Krait CPU, Adreno 225 GPU, Qualcomm MSM8960 chipset, 1GB of RAM
• Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, dual-band
• GPS receiver with A-GPS and GLONASS support
• Digital compass
• 16/32GB of on-board storage
• microSD slot
• Active noise cancellation with a dedicated mic
• Built-in accelerometer and proximity sensor
• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
• microUSB port
• Bluetooth v3.0 with A2DP and EDR, file transfers
• Impressively deep and coherent SNS integration throughout the interface
• Xbox Live integration and Xbox management
• Data Sense
• Class-leading JavaScript performance
• NFC support
• Samsung exclusive apps: Music hub, Chat on, Photo editor

Main disadvantages

• App catalog falls short of Android and iOS
• Competition has quad-core Krait CPUs already
• Costs more than the Galaxy S III SIM-free
• No FM radio
• No system-wide file manager
• No voice-guided navigation
• No music player equalizers
• No lockscreen shortcuts

So, there we are. The Ativ S is running an OS that has just had its potential unlocked by a major update. The hardware powering has been inspired by no other but Samsung's droid flagship, the Galaxy S III. OK, it's a different chipset, and a couple of CPU cores short, but most of the rest is there - from the HD Super AMOLED screen to the 8MP camera.

Windows Phone 8 has finally caught up with the industry leaders. There's a massive gap between Samsung's last generation of Windows Phone and the Ativ S. Goodbye, Omnia and, sorry to say, you won't be badly missed. They could've done better when naming the new lineup, that's for sure. But the fresh start most certainly called for a brand new name.

   
Samsung Ativ S live pictures

That's a minor point though - we can live with a name without a ring as long as the engine's got a hearty rumble. So, we're taking the Samsung Ativ S out for a spin and you're most welcome to join. Hit the jump to the design and build.

FULL REVIEW AT GSMARENA

Samsung Galaxy S III vs LG Optimus G

Together, the two handsets represent the quad-core Android phone elite, so we just had to pit them against each other to decide who's the best. We kick off with the most prominent advantages that each of the contenders holds over its opponent.

LG Optimus G over Samsung Galaxy S III

• Next generation chipset, with new CPU and GPU architectures
• Sharper screen
• 13MP camera on some models (others have 8MP cameras)
• More compact
• LTE and 2GB RAM on all models (international S III only has HSPA+ and 1GB RAM)

Samsung Galaxy S III over Optimus G

• Better sunlight legibility
• microSD card slot
• User-replaceable battery
• Already updating to Jelly Bean
• Better battery life
• Lower price

Having a next-generation chipset is a great advantage for the Optimus G, as it should give it both performance and power efficiency advantage over the Galaxy S III. On the flipside, the Galaxy S III and its Exynos 4 chipset have the optimizations of Jelly Bean on their side, so it might not be a walk in the park for the LG flagship.

LG also brought the best that its display divisions had to offer - the Optimus G is betting on a True HD-IPS+ LCD. The Samsung Galaxy S III on the other hand didn't stay in the R&D lab long enough to get a three-subpixel-per-pixel AMOLED like the Galaxy Note II, so it has to settle for a PenTile matrix. However, the AMOLED technology has some key advantages over LCD, so again we'll have to do some testing before we find out who comes on top.

The camera sensors on both smartphone beasts are Sony-made, but while LG thought ahead and secured 13MP unit, Samsung used 8MP sensor. And while LG does have a theoretical advantage here, lens and image processing might make a big difference, too.

   
The LG Optimus G and Samsung Galaxy S III just before they go into the ring

In theory, the LG Optimus G should walk away with the win here. Having spend a few extra months in development and managing to snag newer components, the LG flagship is the clear favorite in this fight. However, the Galaxy S III won't give up the crown without a fight. After all, there's a reason why Samsung is the world's largest smartphone manufacturer with a near two-fold advantage over the second-placed Apple.

Strap on your seat belts, as it might get rough...

FULL REVIEW AT GSMARENA

The LG Optimus G and the Samsung Galaxy S III are the best Android can currently offer. Picking between a smartphone that came to the market five months ago and one that is just arriving might have seemed easy at first, but after the somewhat surprising finding in this review, things are less clear cut.

The LG Opttimus G chipset is so vastly powerful that we expected it to swim laps around the Galaxy S III Exynos, but the smartphone was obviously let down by its software support. The LG flagship managed to win on many occasions, but the differences were pretty minor.

The only place where the Optimus G was able to give its competitor a real trashing was GPU performance at 1080p resolution. On the other hand, the LG Optimus G lost the web browsing performance battle, which is one of the most common applications of smartphones these days.

The 13 megapixel camera came as another disappointment to us. LG made quite a big deal about it, but as we found out it's not able to offering any real life advantage over the Samsung Galaxy S III 8MP shooter. Even worse - the Optimus G video recording comes seriously short of the Galaxy S III footage. Don't get us wrong - the LG Optimus G does some pretty good photos and decent videos, but if we had to pick one of these two for its overall camera performance it would probably be the Galaxy S III.

Where the LG Optimus G comes out on top is design. It's all subjective, of course, and it might be that the Galaxy S III has been around longer so we are getting a bit bored with it, but we find the LG smartphone to be better looking than it. The extra gig of RAM is also a nice thing to have and makes the Optimus G more future-proof than its competitor.

So on which of those two should you spend your hard-earned cash? It depends what you are looking to get from the deal really.

If you are going SIM-free and it's value for money you are after, then by all means go for the Galaxy S III. Judging by the current pre-order prices the Optimus G will cost notably more than its competitor when it launches. The Galaxy S III will let you save about 150 euro and still give you impressively solid smartphone experience and even treat you to a newer Android release. Not to mention that the microSD card slot allows for extremely cheap memory expansion.

Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III

On the other hand, if money is no object for you (which is usually the case with those looking for high-en smartphones) or your carrier has helped even the field with its subsidies things are looking far more favorable for the LG flagship. It might not be able to assert its dominance over its competitor now, but once LG releases its Jelly Bean update, it should become a real beast.

LG Optimus G E973

There's just no way the Galaxy S III can fend off the attacks of the newer chipset forever. The LG Optimus G has a sharper screen of slightly higher resolution too, which while lacking the wow factor of the Galaxy S III AMOLED, is far better for productivity and can really help put those four Krait cores to good use.

So it seems we are one software update away from the moment when the Galaxy S III finally gives up its throne and the LG Optimus G succeeds it. It up to LG to deliver that quickly and make its flagship the power user's dream device before the holiday shopping spree begins.

FULL REVIEW AT GSMARENA

Aakash Tablet India's $35 Android tablet Review, Specification and Launching date in India

Hands on with the Aakash

Jugaad is an Indian word which means "to make-do." The Aakash tablet is a Jugaad in a very high tech way. The components inside the Aakash tablet are cheap, and easily sourced. For example, the Aakash tablet has a headphone jack and an audio-in jack, but no external speakers -- an obvious cost-savings measure. However, with the addition of a cheap headphones, and an equally cheap microphone, the owner can make calls on Skype, and has the potential to communicate with people around the world.

The screen is pressure sensitive (also called resistive touch) and responds somewhat slowly to gestures. It's definitely not as dazzling as the high-end tablets familiar to Western audiences, such as the capacitive touchscreen iPad, or even the HP Touchpad.

The Aakash is running Android 2.2, Froyo, with the UniSurfer browser installed. Made by DataWind, UniSurfer is supposed to make webpages process faster, probably to compensate for the slower processor and connection speeds. However, while browsing the Internet and testing out apps, we couldn't help but notice that the reaction time seemed very slow. Scrolling, for example, is a swipe-and-wait affair. However, the speed is going to be quite sufficient for someone who has never in his or her life had a smartphone or computer. It's all relative after all. Compared with the iPhone 4s, the iPhone 3G is a "slow" smartphone, only because speedier alternatives are available. Even in a context where the market is full of smart devices, like in the U.S., speed helps us make decisions incrementally faster, but rarely are these issues of genuine consequence.

And given how slow navigating the user interface is, watching videos on the device was incredibly impressive. We used YouTube to watch a clip from a Bollywood film, and the video came through fast and clear, with no hiccups.

The Aakash has both GPRS and Wi-Fi capabilities. Its battery power is limited to 180 minutes of use on a full charge, but it comes with an AC adapter. What's important isn't that the tablet can run off of the battery for long periods of time, but that it will still be able to work and surf the net when the power goes out.

Weighing in at less than double a handheld smart phone (350 grams), the device itself feels a bit like a toy. A goofy plastic cover protects the screen, slowing down the touch response considerably. It might remind you of the conference call controller in a corporate boardroom. Though its design is minimalistic, absent are any Apple-like design flourishes that might evoke the word "magic."

Unlike the XO, the low-cost laptop produced by One Laptop Per Child for the world's poorest children, with help from Frog Design, The Aakash tablet is not going to win any beauty pageants. This is certainly one of its strengths. A big problem with the XO is it was seen as relatively arcane technologically by the time it was actually available.

What makes the Aakash tablet different is that its creators didn't strive for perfection. Instead, the emphasis was on getting the product into the market quickly so it could be adopted, tinkered with, and improved over time. As Wadhwa said, "to get the cost down, you have to make some compromises"

The unmistakable impression we all got from using the Aakash tablet was that it is built for performance. Every design choice that might seem like a negative reveals three, four, five -- or more -- net benefits.

Why does it have two USB ports? So you can plug in a keyboard, of course, and still have a free slot for an external hard drive, or some other device. What about that screen cover that seems like it's made from laminating material? If the tablet is meant for educational use, it's probably going to have to contend with some pretty rough handling, dirt, dust and moisture. Better that it should withstand damage, than look the extra bit nicer.

Seeing the tablet's potential

The Aakash Tablet is an example of a "leapfrog technology," a concept where the latest innovations jump directly into areas where legacy technologies never penetrated. Tens of millions of people throughout India who never had access to a land line phone now walk around with cell phones in their pocket. Many of those likely to use or own the the Aakash Tablet will never have used a desktop computer, and it's possible they never will.

Now imagine the educational potential of the world's lowest-cost tablet being unleashed to hundreds of millions Indians eager to join the world economy. At the heart of the Aakash tablet is an HD video co-processor that will connect viewers to one of the largest educational libraries ever assembled: YouTube. When the Aakash tablet reaches villages across India, an entire generation will have instant access to rich educational content such as the Khan Academy, and anything else their hearts desire.

And with the Aakash tablet in hand, students across India will be free to do what their global counterparts do -- or should do -- with their computers. There are the educational basics such as creating documents and spreadsheets, and browsing the web for research materials. But as with anything, young people will probably spend a fair amount of time playing games online and chatting with their friends.

India's history with affordable tech

India, which has a population of nearly 1.2 billion and houses 40 percent of the world's poor people, has experience parring down high-end technology and making it affordable and accessible.

A similarly transformative Indian-created product is the Tata Nano car, a revolution in automobile design built to give mobility to millions of low-t0-mid-income Indians. When it came out in 2009, the Tata Nano was heralded as the world's cheapest car. But while the Tata Nano is ultimately a destructive force -- adding drivers to the congested roads and vehicle exhaust into the air -- the Aakash tablet will be used to educate hundreds millions of children.

The Hole in the Wall initiative is another example. It put a computer kiosk in several rural villages throughout India, giving thousands of children and adults their first access to a computer and the Internet. The organizers compared it to the village well, where the community could come together to exchange knowledge and learn from each other. In this case, however, the well was connected to the world's deepest reservoir of knowledge, the Internet.

And next month, the first Aakash tablets will go on sale throughout India, and millions of children will be able to join the tablet revolution that is transforming education, communication and entertainment across the world.

Source:The Washington post

Article: 

This piece originally appeared in VentureBeat.

The Indian government thinks the $35 Aakash Android tablet has the power to change the world. After testing one out, we'd tend to agree.

An Aakash tablet was brought to the VentureBeat office on Tuesday by Vivek Wadhwa, a visiting professor at the University of California at Berkley and Duke. Wadhwa, who is researching the Indian education system, was given the tablet by Kapil Sabil, the Indian minister of human resources and development, who has been the driving force behind the tablet project. The device (whose name means "Sky" in Hindi) was produced entirely in India — a point of pride for the Indian government.

The 7-inch Android-based device will be distributed at a government subsidized price of $35, making it the world's cheapest Android device. The general retail price will be $60, which is still remarkably cheap for such a powerful device. A contract between the Indian government and Canadian development partner DataWind, should put between 10 and 12 million devices in the hands of students across India by the end of 2012, according to Computer World.

We tested the Aakash, surfing the web, using apps, typing text documents, plugging in peripherals and playing Bollywood videos. Here's our exclusive first look at what a $35 tablet can really do. 

Launching date: November 2o11 (Launched)Updated*


Order your Aakash Tablet now.. (Click here)

Tag:

Aakash tablet, aakash android tablet, cheapest android phone, indian gov. launched android tablet, india's 1st cheapest android mobile aakash tablet.

HTC HD2 Specifications

Also known as HTC HD2 T8585; HTC Leo 100

GENERAL	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
	3G Network	HSDPA 900 / 2100
		HSDPA 850 / 2100 - Australian Version
	Announced	2009, October
	Status	Available. Released 2009, November

SIZE	Dimensions	120.5 x 67 x 11 mm
	Weight	157 g

DISPLAY	Type	TFT capacitive touchscreen, 65K colors
	Size	480 x 800 pixels, 4.3 inches (~217 ppi pixel density)
		- Sense UI - Multi-touch input method - Accelerometer sensor for UI auto-rotate - Proximity sensor for auto turn-off - Pick-to-mute

SOUND	Alert types	Vibration, MP3, WAV ringtones
	Loudspeaker	Yes
	3.5mm jack	Yes

MEMORY	Phonebook	Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
	Call records	Practically unlimited
	Internal	448 MB RAM, 512 MB ROM
	Card slot	microSD, up to 32 GB, buy memory

DATA	GPRS	Class 12 (4+1/3+2/2+3/1+4 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
	EDGE	Class 12
	3G	HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA, 2 Mbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, Wi-Fi router
	Bluetooth	Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
	Infrared port	No
	USB	Yes, microUSB

CAMERA	Primary	5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus, dual LED flash,check quality
	Features	Geo-tagging
	Video	Yes, VGA@30fps
	Secondary	No

FEATURES	OS	Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional
	CPU	1 GHz Scorpion processor, Adreno 200 GPU, Qualcomm QSD8250 Snapdragon chipset
	Messaging	SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, IM
	Browser	WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML
	Radio	Stereo FM radio with RDS
	Games	Yes
	Colors	Black
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support; NaviPanel
	Java	Yes, MIDP 2.0
		- Digital compass - MP3/WAV/WMA/eAAC+ player - MP4/WMV/H.264/H.263 player - Facebook and Twitter integration - YouTube client - Pocket Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, PDF viewer) - HTC Peep, HTC Footprints - Voice memo - Predictive text input

BATTERY		Standard battery, Li-Ion 1230 mAh
	Stand-by	Up to 490 h (2G) / Up to 390 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 6 h 20 min (2G) / Up to 5 h 40 min (3G)
	Music play	Up to 12 h

MISC	SAR US	0.63 W/kg (head)     0.73 W/kg (body)
	Price group

Source:GSMARENA