Friday, August 22, 2008
Toshiba G810 Mini Product Review
Toshiba isn’t a big name for mobiles. However, its experience in producing PDA and its cooperation with Spb Software House have given me the confidence in giving it a try.
The package includes a Toshiba G810 phone, a battery, a charger, a stereo hand-free, a USB cable, a CD-ROM and a user’s guide.
G810 comes with a very elegant design. The front has a gloss black finish, but it does not collect fingerprints like other glossy-surface phones. The screen is 2.8” with QVGA resolution. It performs as good when it’s outdoors. The SPB flush screen design is very finger-friendly, which call 'thumb touch' icons, the desktop icons is big enough to push accurately with your big, fat thumbs even without the stylus. It is 14mm thin and weighs only 120g. That makes it very portable.
The blue illuminated D-pad and six function buttons (the home button, the Windows Start menu button, two softkeys and the phone send and end buttons) are all flush. They look cool but not very practical. You will easily miss-press when you finger moves a little too quickly or when you are not looking at it cause you can’t “feel” the button.
The camera at the back comes is 3.0 mega-pixel with AF and LED Flash. Picture quality is generally good except in photo conditions, which need a pair of steady hands like low-lit environment. A self-portrait mirror is placed beside the lens, which is perfect for self-shooters.
The back is covered with a rubbery plastic material, which offers a good grip but looks a little cheap. On the left side, we have a volume up/down button, on/off switch, a soft-reset hole, and a microSD slot while on the right side we have the stylus doubles as the trim.
G810 has 256 megs of flash ROM and 128 megs of ROM, with the help of microSD, you can upgrade the storage to 4G. The microSD slot is exposed, so I feels like I am forced to have an SD card there!
G810 on a Qualcomm MSM7200 CPU clocked at 400MHz, which is pretty powerful.
G810 supports HSDPA connection and similar to most of its HSDPA counterparts, it has A-GPS function.
G810 runs on the latest Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional. It means that you can get a few new features like the full page zooming and the cleaner home screen in the Internet Explorer. To me, the improvements are not really that significant.
To conclude, G810 has got everything has got all the hip features that a PDA phone should have, A-GPS, HSDPA connection, Windows Mobile 6.1 OS, WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, FM radio, but it’s not perfect. (Have we got a perfect one yet?) QVGA resolution is bit low. Battery life is short. Camera’s capture time and video quality is yet to improve. But all in all, it can still gain Toshiba a pretty good foothold in the market I think!
The pictures in the reviews are taken by Ricoh GX200 12MP Digital Camera.
The package includes a Toshiba G810 phone, a battery, a charger, a stereo hand-free, a USB cable, a CD-ROM and a user’s guide.
G810 comes with a very elegant design. The front has a gloss black finish, but it does not collect fingerprints like other glossy-surface phones. The screen is 2.8” with QVGA resolution. It performs as good when it’s outdoors. The SPB flush screen design is very finger-friendly, which call 'thumb touch' icons, the desktop icons is big enough to push accurately with your big, fat thumbs even without the stylus. It is 14mm thin and weighs only 120g. That makes it very portable.
The blue illuminated D-pad and six function buttons (the home button, the Windows Start menu button, two softkeys and the phone send and end buttons) are all flush. They look cool but not very practical. You will easily miss-press when you finger moves a little too quickly or when you are not looking at it cause you can’t “feel” the button.
The camera at the back comes is 3.0 mega-pixel with AF and LED Flash. Picture quality is generally good except in photo conditions, which need a pair of steady hands like low-lit environment. A self-portrait mirror is placed beside the lens, which is perfect for self-shooters.
The back is covered with a rubbery plastic material, which offers a good grip but looks a little cheap. On the left side, we have a volume up/down button, on/off switch, a soft-reset hole, and a microSD slot while on the right side we have the stylus doubles as the trim.
G810 has 256 megs of flash ROM and 128 megs of ROM, with the help of microSD, you can upgrade the storage to 4G. The microSD slot is exposed, so I feels like I am forced to have an SD card there!
G810 on a Qualcomm MSM7200 CPU clocked at 400MHz, which is pretty powerful.
G810 supports HSDPA connection and similar to most of its HSDPA counterparts, it has A-GPS function.
G810 runs on the latest Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional. It means that you can get a few new features like the full page zooming and the cleaner home screen in the Internet Explorer. To me, the improvements are not really that significant.
To conclude, G810 has got everything has got all the hip features that a PDA phone should have, A-GPS, HSDPA connection, Windows Mobile 6.1 OS, WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, FM radio, but it’s not perfect. (Have we got a perfect one yet?) QVGA resolution is bit low. Battery life is short. Camera’s capture time and video quality is yet to improve. But all in all, it can still gain Toshiba a pretty good foothold in the market I think!
The pictures in the reviews are taken by Ricoh GX200 12MP Digital Camera.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Panasonic LX3 Product Review
In this summer, carrying a DSLR is certainly a lot of toil (literally!) Hmm, the 10.1 mega-pixel LX3 feels sturdy and has a DSLR-like operation, can it help shed a few hundred grams from my bag? I am just as eager to find out as you are.
The package comes with a battery and a charger, a cap and a strap for it, 1 AV cable and a USB cable, a manual and CD-ROM. More heart-touching is the battery carrying case and a shoulder strap. Except a camera case, the package has all the accessories you will ever need.
The small hand grip is a trade-off of comfort for portability. I had to use both of my hands to get a stable shot.
It has a Leica lens! Highlight include: super wide 24mm end, 2.5X zoom to 60mm, large aperture across the range and the well-acclaimed VARIO-SUMMICRON design. Vignetting and distortion is kept to a minimum with a lot of sharpness. Two thumbs up for the lens!
Ouch! The pop-up flash hurt my finger several times because of the proximity between the flash and the button. If the built-in flash is not powerful enough, the camera has a hot shoe for an external TTL flash (optional). Panasonic has two models of external flash for purchase, both of them have the cool LUMIX label to match the LX3 design. The dial has C1 and C2 positions for saving your most common settings. The joystick is a brilliant design which allows users to change the exposure settings in P, A, S or M mode just by flipping the joystick. On top of the lens barrel is the switch for changing the aspect ratios of images without diving into the menus.
The zoom rocker feels a bit flimsy, but it doesn’t hinder operation one bit. Pressing the focus button allows you to control the focus point by moving the joystick.
This camera has a professional look and the moving parts (lens, flash) do not wobble easily. There is an extremely handy AF-Marco AF-MF switch on the left side of the barrel.
The camera produces a magnification in the centre of the image to make manual focus a lot easier.
In the menu, you may select one of the 7 modes of Auto Focus including Face Detection, Multi-area, 1-Area High-speed, 1-area AF, Spot AF, and Continuous AF. The menu is well-organized and all the common settings (white balance, ISO, Metering and AF…) are consolidated in one tab.
For image stabilization, LX3 uses Panasonic-brewed Mega O.I.S. This is the lens-shift type stabilization, not the more common CCD-Shift type developed by Minolta. Despite the drastic difference in how the two anti-shake technology works, the actual results are similar and both are great.
The multi-exposure mode allows you to “stack” up to 3 images onto the same frame. This task normally requires software like Photoshop to produce with an ordinary camera. The LX3 simplifies the process (considerably, I must say) by guiding the user step-by-step and optimizing the exposure.
We put a few unmodified (except resizing) sample shots to demonstrate the prowess of the LX3. This shot is taken in the multi-exposure mode, note how beautiful the effect is.
This marco shot is razor-sharp and is most noticeable in the eyes of the yellow toy.
Another marco shot, the texture is again very clear, but there is not much blurring effect in the out-of-focus area due to the physical length of the lens.
It is a great camera with DSLR-like operation and photo quality. The only regret is the very short tele-end of 60mm, which seriously limit the LX3’s application to landscape photography and perhaps some occasional portraits. However, the impeccable photo quality will fight back all your misgivings. Isn’t it?
Another Sample Pictures of Panasonic LX3 Marco
Full Size
Full Size
The package comes with a battery and a charger, a cap and a strap for it, 1 AV cable and a USB cable, a manual and CD-ROM. More heart-touching is the battery carrying case and a shoulder strap. Except a camera case, the package has all the accessories you will ever need.
The small hand grip is a trade-off of comfort for portability. I had to use both of my hands to get a stable shot.
It has a Leica lens! Highlight include: super wide 24mm end, 2.5X zoom to 60mm, large aperture across the range and the well-acclaimed VARIO-SUMMICRON design. Vignetting and distortion is kept to a minimum with a lot of sharpness. Two thumbs up for the lens!
Ouch! The pop-up flash hurt my finger several times because of the proximity between the flash and the button. If the built-in flash is not powerful enough, the camera has a hot shoe for an external TTL flash (optional). Panasonic has two models of external flash for purchase, both of them have the cool LUMIX label to match the LX3 design. The dial has C1 and C2 positions for saving your most common settings. The joystick is a brilliant design which allows users to change the exposure settings in P, A, S or M mode just by flipping the joystick. On top of the lens barrel is the switch for changing the aspect ratios of images without diving into the menus.
The zoom rocker feels a bit flimsy, but it doesn’t hinder operation one bit. Pressing the focus button allows you to control the focus point by moving the joystick.
This camera has a professional look and the moving parts (lens, flash) do not wobble easily. There is an extremely handy AF-Marco AF-MF switch on the left side of the barrel.
The camera produces a magnification in the centre of the image to make manual focus a lot easier.
In the menu, you may select one of the 7 modes of Auto Focus including Face Detection, Multi-area, 1-Area High-speed, 1-area AF, Spot AF, and Continuous AF. The menu is well-organized and all the common settings (white balance, ISO, Metering and AF…) are consolidated in one tab.
For image stabilization, LX3 uses Panasonic-brewed Mega O.I.S. This is the lens-shift type stabilization, not the more common CCD-Shift type developed by Minolta. Despite the drastic difference in how the two anti-shake technology works, the actual results are similar and both are great.
The multi-exposure mode allows you to “stack” up to 3 images onto the same frame. This task normally requires software like Photoshop to produce with an ordinary camera. The LX3 simplifies the process (considerably, I must say) by guiding the user step-by-step and optimizing the exposure.
We put a few unmodified (except resizing) sample shots to demonstrate the prowess of the LX3. This shot is taken in the multi-exposure mode, note how beautiful the effect is.
This marco shot is razor-sharp and is most noticeable in the eyes of the yellow toy.
Another marco shot, the texture is again very clear, but there is not much blurring effect in the out-of-focus area due to the physical length of the lens.
It is a great camera with DSLR-like operation and photo quality. The only regret is the very short tele-end of 60mm, which seriously limit the LX3’s application to landscape photography and perhaps some occasional portraits. However, the impeccable photo quality will fight back all your misgivings. Isn’t it?
Another Sample Pictures of Panasonic LX3 Marco
Full Size
Full Size
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Samsung U800 Soul b Mini Product Review
Dreaming to own a phone with elegant simplicity? This time I have grabbed Samsung U800 Soul b for the user review, doubtless it makes your dream come true. This slim solid bar style handset comes with choices of 5 colors and 3G HSDPA technology. You may find that it’s similar to U900, where we look at the hairline texture and the interface. Don’t miss it, check it out!
The package comes with a Battery, a Charger, a USB cable, a Handsfree, a strap, a CD and Manual.
Soul b is in the sophisticated stainless steel casing, feel tough. A soft name with a strong outlook just like iron fist in a velvet glove. However, it weighs 89 grams, that’s great for carrying purpose.
3 mega-pixel auto focus with LED flash, which allows you to enjoy snapping everywhere. However, the quality of pictures may not satisfy you with the 3 mega-pixel camera if you’re photo taking lovers.
5 compact navigation keys are well placed and they’re very responsive when you press on them. The layout of keypad is nice, stylish and clear with light of white. Doesn’t it amazing?
It is equipped with built-in 1GB memory and microSDHC extended memory up to 8GB for support your memory needs. Here’s the MicroSD card slot.
It’s only in 9.9 mm thick. And there’s no buttons on the top or at the bottom that fits the simplicity of Samsung U800’s appearance and functions.
The menu’s clear, colorful and user-friendly.
What’s more? You can surf on the web via the built in WAP browser and transfer attachments to other devices through Bluetooth or USB cable. Although the phone just works on a triband network, it allows you to enjoy high speed connectivity with 3.6 Mbps indeed. In short, U800 Soul b’s definitely a fair choice for you, if you’ve made up your mind to buy a handset.
The pictures in the reviews are taken by Nikon D700 12MP DSLR Camera.
The package comes with a Battery, a Charger, a USB cable, a Handsfree, a strap, a CD and Manual.
Soul b is in the sophisticated stainless steel casing, feel tough. A soft name with a strong outlook just like iron fist in a velvet glove. However, it weighs 89 grams, that’s great for carrying purpose.
3 mega-pixel auto focus with LED flash, which allows you to enjoy snapping everywhere. However, the quality of pictures may not satisfy you with the 3 mega-pixel camera if you’re photo taking lovers.
5 compact navigation keys are well placed and they’re very responsive when you press on them. The layout of keypad is nice, stylish and clear with light of white. Doesn’t it amazing?
It is equipped with built-in 1GB memory and microSDHC extended memory up to 8GB for support your memory needs. Here’s the MicroSD card slot.
It’s only in 9.9 mm thick. And there’s no buttons on the top or at the bottom that fits the simplicity of Samsung U800’s appearance and functions.
The menu’s clear, colorful and user-friendly.
What’s more? You can surf on the web via the built in WAP browser and transfer attachments to other devices through Bluetooth or USB cable. Although the phone just works on a triband network, it allows you to enjoy high speed connectivity with 3.6 Mbps indeed. In short, U800 Soul b’s definitely a fair choice for you, if you’ve made up your mind to buy a handset.
The pictures in the reviews are taken by Nikon D700 12MP DSLR Camera.
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