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Recent Reviews
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Sony Xperia S Review
Posted:
April 10, 2012
By: soyacincau
32 comments
In the past 2 years, the Android smart phone players are getting obsessed with having the biggest screen, the most core processor and the thinnest dimensions. We are seeing more brands jumping onto the dual-core bandwagon with screens being upsized beyond the standard 4.3”, which was considered huge back then.
Sony which is formerly known as Sony Ericsson in particular hasn’t been keeping up with such trend with the former flagship the Xperia arc S running on a single core 1.4 Ghz processor and still having a moderate sized 4.2” display. Despite that, there’s still one thing that stands out from Sony, and it is the design of their phones.
Early this year, Sony has revealed its new Sony Xperia NXT series of handsets with the Xperia S. It was also the first Android smart phone under the new Sony Mobile branding, after Sony has acquired full ownership over Sony Ericsson. It is interesting to note that Sony retains its familiar “s & e” slimeball logo with the new brand.
After our early preview in Shanghai, we had the privilege of using the Sony Xperia S for a long term review. Read on to discover our findings.
Huawei Honor Review
Posted:
March 3, 2012
By: soyacincau
10 comments
Huawei doesn’t really come top of mind when it comes to Android smart phones as they have better known for its entry level models. Of course Huawei has got bigger plans and they won’t want to stay in the value segment for long. At CES, Huawei surprised the industry with its ultra slim Ascend P1 S and at MWC, they have revealed their quad core smart phone, the Ascend D Quad.
Recently we we’re given the opportunity to try out their mid-tier device, the Huawei Honor. Read on to find out how does the Huawei Honor perform and if it is any good.
LG Optimus 3D Review
Posted:
September 23, 2011
By: soyacincau
No comments
Everything is going 3D these days. We have the latest movies available in 3D and TVs from most brands are having 3D on their flagship models. Now 3D comes to smart phones and they have finally arrived in Malaysia.
How does 3D work on a smart phone? Is it just a mere gimmick? We’ve given the opportunity to review the latest 3D smart phone from LG – the LG Optimus 3D. Read on to learn our findings.
LG Optimus Black Review
Posted:
July 25, 2011
By: soyacincau
5 comments
Android smart phones today are getting slicker and powerful but it is often limited to manufacturer’s flagship models. While there are more cheap and cheerful Androids today, they tend to sacrifice in terms of design and aesthetics. What if there’s something sleek without burning a hole in your pocket? That’s where LG aims to offer with its Optimus Black. Read on for the full review.
HTC Incredible S Usability Review
Posted:
June 5, 2011
By: soyacincau
18 comments
The HTC Incredible S was launched in Malaysia just few months ago, about the same time as the Nexus S. Priced just slightly below the RM2000 mark, the Incredible S looks rather attractive considering it looks like a smaller sibling to its larger Desire HD.
Apart from the screen size which differentiates the Desire HD’s 4.3″ from the Incredible S’s 4.0″, the difference lies with the internals. First up, the Incredible S has a larger 1450mAh battery compared to the Desire HD’s 1230mAh which on paper should provide longer battery life. The screen on the Incredible S is a better S-LCD variant and it is also said to be using toughen Gorilla Glass. There’s also a front facing 1.3MP camera but video calls are not supported on the Incredible S.
The rest of the hardware features are rather similar as it also runs on 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8255 single core processor and a generous 768MB of RAM. Internally, the Incredible S has 1.1GB of storage which is 400MB less than the Desire HD. At time of review, the Incredible S runs on Android 2.2 Froyo but its upcoming Android 2.3 Gingerbread update should be available by now.
Android Mini Collectibles Series 2
Posted:
May 18, 2011
By: soyacincau
7 comments
As previewed several months back, the Android Mini Collectibles Series 2 is finally here in Malaysia. The TakenShop is an authorised online retailer in Malaysia where you can order these collectibles locally without incurring expensive international freight charges.
For the collectibles, you are able to purchase random individual pieces at RM32/each while a complete box set is sold at RM465. The individual pieces are completely random and you won’t know know which design you’ll get. For serious collectors, you are guaranteed to get 11 of the base designs in the complete box set with some of them repeated like the Greeneon, Bluebot, Hexcode and IceBerg. The fun however doesn’t stop there as there’s a mystery design in every box set. We are told that there are 3 mystery designs in total. Read on for the full unboxing.
LG Optimus 2X review
Posted:
May 12, 2011
By: soyacincau
15 comments
The LG Optimus 2X, which also happens to be the first dual-core Android device was recently launched in Malaysia. Offered as low as RM878 via Celcom, the Optimus 2X is an attractive Android smart phone our market being the first with a dual-core processor. Just recently, we were given the opportunity to test out the Optimus 2X for a short period of time and here’s our findings.
To recap on the key specs, the Optimus 2X is powered by Nvidia’s Tegra 2 processor which runs on dual-core at 1GHz and 512MB of RAM. At the front, it has a modest 4” TFT LCD capacitive screen which does 800×480 pixels. The moment we picked this phone, we noticed a familiar feel with the Galaxy S which isn’t surprising as both are very identical in dimensions with the LG Optimus 2X being 123.9mm (H) x 63.2mm (W) x 10.9mm (D) and Samsung Galaxy S with 122.4mm (H), 64.2mm (W) x 9.9mm (D).
Samsung Galaxy Tab Usability Review
Posted:
March 22, 2011
By: soyacincau
20 comments
This year the tablet wars are heating up with entrants from RIM (BlackBerry Playbook), Android (in the shape of the very capable Motorola Xoom) and of course, who can ignore the iPad 2.
A while back, one of the earliest Android tablets to hit the market comes from Samsung in the form of the Galaxy Tab which was launched in Malaysia together with Maxis. Earlier on, we had a brief hands-on experience with the Galaxy Tab at the launch roadshow but recently Samsung had given us the opportunity to test the device out more extensively.
After having the device for an extended period, we are able to share with you our findings on how is it like living with a Galaxy Tab on a day-to-day basis.
First Impressions: Nokia E7
Posted:
March 20, 2011
By: ccsoya
7 comments
Apart from the Nokia N8, the other most anticipated Nokia device to come into the market in recent months is the business oriented Nokia E7. Having seen an early rendition of the device way back even before the iPhone 4 was launched, we noted that the prospect of having a device that has all the capabilities of the N8 with the added useful utility of a physical keyboard is something to look forward too.
But the scenario is decidedly different now. In a last ditch effort to remain relevant, Nokia jumped off the platform and right into bed with Microsoft at the expense of many die-hard Symbian fans who, for the lack of a better word, feel like they were cheated out of a long standing relationship.
So now that we know Nokia will be focusing its effort on churning primarily Windows Phone devices what is the outlook for the E7 — what can be considered as a last of its kind device? Dubbed as the spiritual successor of Nokia’s last rendition of its communicator series, the E90, can the E7 establish itself as a formidable business oriented machine in a sea of business-centric devices coming from Android, BlackBerry and iPhone?
This is our first impression of the Nokia E7.
Yes 4G: Ipoh and Penang Road Test
Posted:
December 13, 2010
By: soyacincau
64 comments
Yes says they deliver a mobile 4G experience. With this notion in mind, took our Yes Go on a road test in KL and we’ve taken it on a road test in PJ.
From our findings, both tests produced consistent results. The Yes network is indeed capable of delivering mobile data services but there are several gaps in its coverage that we hope Yes can cover quickly to deliver true seamless mobility broadband. Having said that and considering the fact that Yes is a new network, we were mightily impressed by the extent of the network coverage so far as well as the speeds that we were able to achieve during the previous two road tests.
So things are looking peachy for this new network but we’ll have to keep reminding you this is still a new network with a relatively smaller load on it compared to the more established players. We’ve heard so many times before that Malaysians don’t mind paying for their Internet so long as it is consistent and reliable. This looks to be an opportunity in which YTL can capitalise on. There is no secret formula to being a successful Internet service provider, all they need to deliver is consistency.
As we’ve been enjoying very good speeds on the Yes network, we hope Yes is able to keep this speed consistent even as the network gets loaded up with subscribers. If they can, then there’s really nothing to hold Yes back in winning the hearts and wallets of Malaysians.
So back to our topic of discussion. We’ve shared with you our findings on the performance — both in terms of mobility and speed — of the Yes network in certain areas in the Klang Valley, the question now is how does Yes perform outside Klang Valley?
It’s common sense for telcos to focus the bulk of their network resource towards market centres and high densitiy areas. This means more that often than not, outlying rural areas are not as well covered as it should be. At launch Yes boasts a population coverage of 65% deploying over 1,000 base stations throughout the country. This is more than its current 4G competitor P1 which currently claim around 40% population coverage with under 900 base stations currently being deployed.
All this is fine and dandy but right now what we want to know is where exactly in the populated areas is the 65% coverage focused on. Can Yes deliver consistent connectivity outside city centres? How is the network performance in areas outside of KL?
To find out, we took our trusty Yes Go along with USB modems and SIMs from DiGi, Maxis and U Mobile and hit the road up north to Penang for a mega road test shootout. On the way, we also wanted to find out if the Yes network has indeed got most of the North-South expressway covered.
Initially their map showed coverage blanketing most parts of the highway however a day before our trip, we found out that the map has been “updated” revealing a completely different coverage map with much less areas covered. This got us contemplating if we should carry on with the test as it looks like there is no coverage on our route, but with the understanding that sometimes coverage maps can be inaccurate, we continued with the test anyway.