So you’re looking for an alternative to the new Apple iPad? Here’s an affordable tablet from Samsung, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 and 10.1. They are much cheaper than the current iPad but these tablets doesn’t feature a high resolution screen. These tablets just feature a decent specification for an android tablet like the dual core processor, Android Ice Cream Sandwich, dual cameras and a lotta more. Both tabs will get a Wi-Fi only or Wi-Fi + 3G variant and obviously, the one with 3G will be a lot more cheaper. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 is now available for P13,800 and P17,100. That’s Wi-Fi only and with 3G respectively while the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 is available for P19,500 and P22,500. That’s Wifi only and 3G respectively. If you want to get one, place your order at Widget City’s website right now!
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Hey I just met you and this is crazy!….oh wait, we already met during the Lumianation
Remember the Nokia 808 Pureview? Yeah, we already got a hands-on of the phone a month ago during the Nokia Lumianation launch. Then a few weeks ago, the media was given a chance to get a hands-on of the Nokia 808 Pureview. So here it is folks, the second round of the Nokia 808 Pureview hands-on! So what can we expect with the Nokia 808 Pureview? Well, the phone got a 4 inch clearblack AMOLED display which can be found on most Nokia smartphones these days like the Nokia Lumia 800 and of course, there’s a 41 megapixel camera inside the phone which is the most striking feature of this phone.
The Hardware
The Nokia 808 Pureview doesn’t feature a groundbreaking design just like the iPhone 4 when it was launched. The Nokia 808 Pureview’s construction reminds me of the first S60 touch screen phone, the Nokia 5800 Xpressmusic. The Pureview is thick especially the upper part on where the sensor and the camera was placed and yes, the bulge at the back is very noticeable but even though the phone is too thick for me, I didn’t experience any problems about handling it.
The body of the Nokia 808 was made of Polycarbonate but this one has a grainy polycarbonate body compared to the smooth polycarbonate body of the Nokia Lumia 800 and 900. No other surprising features on the body. Music lovers gotta love this phone because not only the camera is good but also the loudspeaker. The speaker is very loud and crystal clear.
The Samsung Galaxy S3 side by side with the Nokia 808 Pureview
The 4″ display is kinda disappointing because it is only at nHD 640×360 which is way behind the HD (1280×720) displays and WVGA (800×480) that can be found on most smartphones. Why is it disappointing? Well we can get a very large 38 megapixel picture but we can’t view the picture at a large resolution. Anyway, the good thing about the AMOLED Clearblack display is that its sunlight legibility is good.
Powering this device is a 1400 mAh battery which I think is too small especially when you always use its camera. Inside is a MicroSD card slot and a MicroSim slot. So yeah, you’ll have to cut your Sim Card if you have a regular size sim card. But hey, most smartphones that are available right now are requiring a micro sim like the Samsung Galaxy S3.
The Camera
One thing is for sure, the Nokia 808 Pureview can replace most of your point and shoot cameras but it can’t replace your Micro 4/3 and DSLR cameras. The 41 megapixel camera is the best thing I’ve used so far. When you’re on the Pureview mode which is maxed out at 8 megapixel, you can zoomed in at very very far distances without losing the quality. Yes I mean it, you can zoomed it at a VERY VERY FAR DISTANCE with FULL quality. I’m not a great photographer but hey, the Nokia 808 Pureview is really great! The Nokia 808 Pureview’s 41 megapixel camera is mind blowing!
Check out some pictures that I tooked using the Nokia 808 Pureview:
Oh and guys, check this out. Here’s a 38 megapixel picture taken using the Nokia 808 Pureview
And then here’s the picture at 100% zoom. Pretty impressive right?
The camera can capture images very swiftly. No lags at all. I also noticed that in full resolution, the noise are noticeable at 100% zoom but hey, the camera is still great for a phone. You can also customize most of the settings at image or video mode. Here’s a video that I took using the Nokia 808 Pureview. Check out how far can I zoom this baby.
Awesome. I almost fell to the ground on that video.
The Software
So there’s Symbian Belle inside the Nokia 808 Pureview. Some of you might be disappointed for not having the latest Windows Phone but hey I think that’s a good decision because current Windows Phone 7 users won’t get the Windows Phone 8 update which is lame and Symbian Belle is kinda fast on this phone and I didn’t experience any crashes and lags at all on this phone.
Anyway the phone’s great, I didn’t experience lags at the gallery even when opening large images. Pinching when zooming isn’t that laggy too. Pretty amazing. Nokia really polished the laggines and crashes at Symbian Belle. I was pretty amazed with the Nokia Big Screen which was demoed by Mr. Mike Smith of Nokia Philippines. The phone has just a single core 1.3 Ghz processor but it was able to display full HD and play pictures and videos at full resolution. Too bad, I can’t zoomed in to the images that are displayed on the screen.
Mr. Mike Smith playing with Nokia Big screen
The Controls on the Nokia Big screen
The Verdict and the others
So if you are really into mobile photography and some playing media stuffs then you might want this phone. There’s a Nokia store on where you can download apps and games if you’re getting bored. But hey, this phone is made for mobile photography. You can shoot images and videos at a far distance without losing the quality. The 41 megapixel camera is really the big thing here, it can replaced your point and shoot cameras oh and there are available accessories for the Nokia 808 Pureview like the case and the clip for the tripod.
A decent case for the Nokia 808 Pureview with a cover for the camera
The clip for the tripod
All in all the Nokia 808 Pureview is great. It’s like carrying a professional point and shoot camera but can do cellular functions on it. This device is pretty amazing. Check out my second hands-on video of the Nokia 808 Pureview here:
So here’s the tablet that you guys have been all waiting for, the Google Nexus 7. Yes, that’s the tablet that was made by Asus and then branded as the Google Nexus. So what’s amazing about this device?, well it is powered by a quad core processor (YOU READ THAT RIGHT!) and you know what? this tablet will be very very affordable! For $199 (that’s below P10,000). Oh and Nexus 7 is the very first tablet that’ll get the latest Android 4.1 Jelly Bean that includes a lot of features including the Project Butter which will make the Android Jelly Bean devices to have a very silky-smooth transition and it will just squash those device lags. It means that in Project butter, you’ll have a faster Android device just like the iOS and the Windows phone. Just check out the specifications after the break.
Google Nexus 7 Specifications
198.5 x 120 x 10.45mm, 340g
7” IPS display w/ 1280×800 resolution
Quad Core Tegra 3 Processor
8/16GB Storage
1GB RAM
Wi-Fi
Bluetooth
NFC
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
Google Nexus 7 Price in the Philippines The Google Nexus 7 is only available at the United States, Canada, UK and some other selected countries. Unfortunately, Philippines isn’t one of them but luckily, there are online stores like Widget City who’ll be offering this device soon. No word on the price yet.
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Smartphones are getting cheaper and cheaper these days but until this day, feature phones are still popular and being bought by most Filipinos especially those who are budget-conscious. Nokia, who is aiming to bring the internet devices to the next billion brings us the affordable S40 phone, the Nokia Asha 302. The phone doesn’t pack an eye popping feature or some mind blowing apps but this phone packs an affordable price with some features that most of us always use.
Hardware and construction
I love Nokia when it comes to design and construction and no, I’m not being biased here but the Nokia Asha 302 is just another proof that the Nokia produces decent phones with sturdy and solid construction. The Nokia Asha 302 is a combination of a plastic and metal body. The phone feels a bit heavy because of the metal back cover and. The metal back cover and the chrome sides also adds the premium feel to the device.
The QWERTY keyboard. Yummy
The QWERTY keyboard is almost the same with the other E series devices. Remember the Nokia E6 that we reviewed last year? Yeah, the Nokia Asha 302 has the same feel and moving from touch to this one was pretty hard. I already got used to touchscreen QWERTY. At the top of the QWERTY keyboard are some buttons that you are very very familiar with and I think I don’t need to elaborate on that one except the two buttons, the shortcut for the contacts and messaging button. Well, you can program it and change the shortcut.
The Nokia Asha 302 has a 2.4″ display and you can’t find a capacitive or resistive touch screen in here. Just a normal TFT LCD with just 256k colors. It’s good to see that the touchscreen isn’t present because of the small screen oh and a touch screen would just add to the battery consumption and to the cost of production of the phone. Oh and did you know that this phone packs a 1 GHz processor. Yes! it isn’t a smartphone but Nokia decided to put a 1 GHz processor on that phone so most apps load here quick but can barely see smooth transitions in here.
At the back of the phone is the 3.2 megapixel camera (no flash and autofocus here! sorry!) and the Nokia Asha 302 can record VGA videos at 15 fps. Just a simple camera for people who are not into photograhy. Inside the back cover is the battery that can last up to 2-3 days on me and when you remove the battery, you can see the regular sim card slot (No Micro-Sim here!. Oh and the memory card?, you can remove it easily on the side of the phone if you feel that you’re phone needs more space from the internal 140MB Storage.
The Sim Card Slot
At the top of the phone is the 3.5mm jack, MicroUSB and the round socket for charger. Too bad you can’t use the Micro USB for charging the phone. The speaker? Well it’s good. It is very loud and clear and I commend the Asha 302 for that. Too bad there’s no speaker control at the side. Anyway, if you want to get connected anytime there’s HSDPA and Wi-Fi on the phone (OH And I can’t connected to our PLDT MyDSL for some unknown reason)
The Micro USB, 3.5mm jack and the charger port
Camera
The 3.2 megapixel camera at the back
I really didn’t expect that much on the camera performance of the Nokia Asha 302 because it is just an affordable phone but the camera of the phone did well. The 3.2 megapixel camera without flash and autofocus isn’t great but it does its job well. Check out the pictures taken using the Nokia Asha 302 below:
Oh and here’s a video of using the phone’s camera:
Not bad for a phone like this but too bad it is limited at 15 fps. Nokia should’ve made it to 30 fps, 15fps is too crappy. We already have 1 GHz processor on the phone and yet, it can’t provide us a decent video framerate
The software
The device is just running the S40 OS. Yep, no S60/Symbian here but the phone is still equip with the good ol S40. But hey, eventhough the phone’s running the S40 OS, it still have some cool apps like Social in which you can connect your facebook, twitter, flickr and orkut accounts. Yep, there’s a built-in social networking app on the Nokia Asha 302.
For people who loves to check out apps, there is a built-in Nokia store. Yep, you can buy and download apps and games compatible for the Nokia Asha 302. There are a lot cool apps and games that you can find there. Don’t worry about games on the Nokia Asha 302 because there are pre-loaded games and some demo games that you can play in it.
The built-in browser on the Nokia Asha 302 is the Nokia browser. The browser acts like the Opera mini and looks like the Opera Mini. It also compress the images and webpages so that it will consumer less data (Great for those people who are on a limited data plan). There’s nothing special about it aside from the Opera Mini-like browsing. Other useful apps that are included are Music player and mail. It does their job well. No problems at all.
The Feel
Honestly, I’m not a fan of phones with QWERTY keyboards. I already got used to phones with on-screen pads ever since I switched to Samsung Omnia. Yes, the original Omnia powered by Windows Mobile 6.x. Like what I’ve said before, I really the design and construction of the Nokia Asha 302. Even though the phone is a bit heavy for its size, the back cover and the chrome-y sides looks good and premium. Too bad there’s no S60 or Symbian Belle in here (And yes, the Symbian Belle was doing good and there are less crashes).
VERDICT
After using the phone for some time. I think the phone’s great when you’re looking for a phone with a QWERTY keyboard and just use it for texting, messaging & social networking. I really like the premium feel of the phone and I think it’ll be also a great secondary phone (If you already have a cool smartphone around). If you want to get a Nokia Asha 302 then check out the nearest Nokia stores around. The phone will be available in Dark Grey, White, Plum Red and Mid Blue colors. The SRP of the phone is P5,290.
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Mirrorless cameras are getting popular these days and Sony is one of the know manufacturers of the mirrorless cameras. So what’s up with these mirrorless cameras? Basically, they’re thinner and more portable than the current DSLRs that we have in the market BUT that doesn’t mean that the mirrorless cameras suck big time. Actually, the mirrorless cameras are waaaaay better than the point and shoots and sometimes mirrorless cameras are on par with the current DSLRs. So what’s the downside of the Mirrorless cameras? Well, sometimes they don’t have EVFs (That’s where you peek in) and DSLRs are still more customizable and has less noises in some pictures. Check out the Sony NEX-F3 after the break
Anyway, the Sony NEX-F3 is the successor of the Sony NEX-C3. Well, the new Sony NEX-F3 got a 180° tiltable display so you can shoot yourself (Vain shots!). It also have a pop-up flash but this camera doesn’t have an electronic viewfinder compared to its big brother, the Sony NEX-7. Aside from those new features, the Sony NEX-F3 has a longer battery life. An 18% (approx.) improvement on the NEX-C3. That’approximately 470 shots from a single charge. Well, Sony NEX-F3 is probably one of the stylish mirrorless cameras out there
Sony NEX-F3 Specifications 117.3 mm × 66.6 mm × 41.3 mm, 314g 16.1 Megapixel APS-C type (23.5 x15.6 mm) Exmor™ APS HD CMOS sensor E-Mount lens system Video recording up to Full HD AVCHD 1920 x 1080 50i*/25p or MP4 1440 x 1080 @ 25fps 3″ wide type 180° tiltable TFT Xtra Fine LCD with 921k dot resolution
Battery life up to 470 shots
Burst shooting up to 5.5 frames per second in Speed Priority mode
ISO 200 – 16000
3D Sweep Panorama
Sony NEX-F3 Price in the Philippines
The NEX-F3 is available in black and white for P27,999.00. Package includes 18-55mm zoom lens, 8GB Memory stick and carrying case.
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The Nokia 808 Pureview during the Lumianation event
Finally, the Nokia 808 Pureview has arrived in the Phillipines! FYI, this phone is equipped with a 41 megapixel camera (Oh and no, there’s no typo in here). The Nokia 808 Pureview has a large sensor than most point and shoot cameras out there and yeah, those images captured by the Nokia 808 Pureview are good. Oh, sorry the images from the Nokia 808 Pureview are not good, they’re great! If you can still remember, I got a chance to have a hands-on of the Nokia 808 Pureview a month ago (Oh and there will be a Round 2 hands-on of the Nokia 808 Pureview soon!) Anyway, the Nokia 808 Pureview is powered by a 1.3 Ghz processor which is already enough to run Symbian Belle without too much hitch. The 41 Megapixel camera can capture some freakin large pictures oh and it can record 1080p videos at 30fps. Too bad, it only has nHD resolution but the AMOLED clearblack display produces a vibrant colors. If you want to get one now, better wait for the next batch because the demand of the Nokia 808 Pureview is too high and some Nokia stores are still clamoring for more stocks of the Nokia 808 Pureview. The Nokia 808 Pureview is available at selected Nokia stores in white, black and red colors for P26,550.
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Here’s another Sony Xperia phone that is expected to hit the stores soon. The Sony Xperia Miro is just another affordable Xperia phone just like the Sony Xperia Tipo but this one will have a slightly better specs than its brother, the Sony Xperia Tipo. And yeah, the phone actually has resemblance with the other Sony Xperia phones like the Xperia P. Like what I’ve said earlier when it comes to specifications, it will just have a slightly better specifications than the smaller Xperia Tipo. This phone doesn’t have an eye popping or any mind blowing feature but just a decent entry level specifications for an ICS phone. I expect that this phone will be placed at one of the affordable Android smartphones out there but of course, this one will be more expensive than the Sony Xperia Tipo
Sony Xperia Miro Specifications
113 x 59.4 x 9.9 mm, 110g 3.5″ 320 x 480 pixels capacitive screen MicroSD up to 32GB / 2.2gb internal memory HSDPA Wi-Fi Bluetooth 5MP camera w/ VGA video recording VGA front camera Qualcomm 800 MHz Snapdragon processor Illumination Alert Bravia Engine Android 4.0
Sony Xperia Miro Price in the Philippines No word regarding the price but it will be available this August-September. I also expect that this phone will have a very affordable price
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Most of the very affordable tablets that we see are 7″ and admit it, there are only a few 8″ and up tablets that are very affordable. But here is a 9.7″ tablet that won’t hurt your pocket that much, the Bmorn V99. Just like the iPad 2, this tablet will have a 9.7″ 1024 x 768 but this one will be powered by Android (Obviously). Too bad, it is only equipped with Android 2.3 or the Android Gingerbread but hey, this tablet doesn’t crossed the 15,000 pesos mark. It is also powered by a Allwinner A10 1.2 GHz processor which can be found on most tablets that came from China. So yeah, this tablet is really affordable. Check out the specifications after the break.
Bmorn V99 Specifications 9.7″ LCD screen 1024 x 768 All Winner A10 1.2GHz with Mali 400 GPU 512mb RAM 16 GB memory 2MP rear and back camera Wifi Bluetooth Mini HDMI port Mini USB port Android 2.3
So you think that Sony won’t release an affordable and an entry level android phone? think again. Sony just announced the newest member of the Xperia family — the Sony Xperia Tipo. Like what I’ve said earlier, the phone will be affordable than its older brothers. Since the phone will be affordable it is also expected that the phone will sport a not-so-high end specifications. It has a 3.2″ screen and yes folks, that’s 0.2″ bigger than the very popular Samsung Galaxy Y and the Xperia Tipo will have a larger 320 x 480 HVGA resolution. Not bad Sony. It’s very nice to see that Sony is now competing with the low-end market phones. Check out the specifications after the break
Sony Xperia Tipo Specifications 103 x 57 x 13 mm, 99g 3.2″ 320 x 480 pixels capacitive screen MicroSD up to 32GB 2/ 2.5gb internal memory HSDPA Wi-Fi Bluetooth 3.2MP camera w/ VGA recording Qualcomm 800 MHz Snapdragon processor Android 4.0
Sony Xperia Tipo Price in the Philippines There are no SRPs yet. It will be available this August-September
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The family of Nokia Asha phones are one the most affordable phones out there and Nokia recently announced three new Asha phones that will be arriving soon in the Philippines and one of them is this — the Nokia Asha 311. It isn’t powered by Symbian or any other fancy OS, just S40. yes, it’s a feature phone not a Smartphone BUT the thing that I like about the Nokia Asha 311 is that it is already equipped with Nokia Maps, a lot of free EA Games and of course, Angry birds. Oh and this phone is also powered with a 1 GHz processor, so don’t worry about slowdowns and lags.
Nokia Asha 311 Specifications 106 x 52 x 12.9 mm, 95g 3 inch capacitive screen w/ 240 x 400 resolution Corning Gorilla Glass HSDPA Wi-Fi Bluetooth 3.2 Megapixel rear camera w/ VGA recording 1 Ghz processor
Nokia Asha 311 Price in the Philippines The Nokia Asha 311 is priced at EUR 92. That translates to P4,977 or just simply P5,000. Not bad Nokia
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