Verizon’s XPERIA Play, the CDMA version of Sony Ericsson’s gaming smartphone, has just dropped onto the SlashGear test bench, which means it’s time to see whether physical game controls are enough to win a slice of the Android market. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen the Play, of course; we reviewed the original GSM version, on sale in Europe for a couple of months now, back in March. Question is, has Sony Ericsson’s gaming ecosystem caught up with the XPERIA Play’s promise?
Verizon is building up a small collection of LTE smartphones on its new 4G network, and the LG Revolution is third to the party. Following the HTC ThunderBolt and Samsung DROID Charge, the Revolution ironically sticks to the theme of a single-core processor and a 4.3 display. Read on for our first impressions.
It must be the day for 4.3-inch qHD Android smartphones: first the HTC Sensation, and now Verizon’s DROID X2 by Motorola. The second-gen handset sticks closely to what made its predecessor a success, but will that undermine enthusiasm for upgraders? Check out our first impressions after the cut.
How big is too big? It’s an important question when you’re looking at the Samsung Infuse 4G, AT&T’s latest HSPA+ smartphone and a device that’s as sizable face-on as it is slender from the side. A close relative of the much-loved Galaxy S II, it also uses Samsung’s Super AMOLED Plus display technology, only now stretched to a whopping 4.5-inches. More to love, or too much to handle? Check out the full SlashGear review after the cut.
Samsung helped lead the Android tablet charge last year, with the original Galaxy Tab, a 7-inch slate which even Google admitted may have been released before the OS was ready. Now, with Android 3.0 Honeycomb tablets like the XOOM, G-Slate and Eee Pad Transformer on the market, Samsung is back with its second attempt, the larger Galaxy Tab 10.1. Heavily reworked – even after its first official appearance – in order to better compete with the iPad 2, Samsung has high hopes that this is the slender slate to knock Apple off its pedestal. SlashGear brought back the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Limited Edition white version from Google I/O 2011 this week; check out the full review after the cut.
It’s been less than a year since Apple’s last iMac refresh, but thanks to Intel’s 2011 Sandy Bridge update the aluminum all-in-ones had been looking a little last-gen. That all changed this past week, with a quad-core refresh across the board and a new set of AMD Radeon graphics chips to match. Still, no aesthetic change – bar the addition of a Thunderbolt port on the back – and no Blu-ray or touchscreen. Has the iMac kept pace with the rest of the market? Check out the full SlashGear review after the cut.
We’ve known Samsung’s Infuse 4G was coming to AT&T since CES 2011 back in January, but the vast 4.5-inch Android smartphone still has the power to surprise in the hand. Fresh from its official debut in New York today, the Infuse 4G has the biggest Super AMOLED Plus screen we’ve seen to-date, but still manages to be the carrier’s thinnest handset. Read on for our first impressions.
Verizon Wireless’ first 4G LTE smartphone, the HTC ThunderBolt, paved the way for ultra high-speed handsets, which could double as useful mobile hotspots. Unfortunately it had a heavy thirst, too, giving us a few hours of LTE glee before expiring. The second 4G phone to the network, the Verizon DROID Charge by Samsung, has several challenges then: deliver the same blistering speed but with all-day battery life. This is no ThunderBolt facsimile, though, with the same 4.3-inch Super AMOLED Plus display that we fell in love with from the Samsung Galaxy S II. So, second-time the charm, or 4Get about it? Check out the full SlashGear review after the cut.
Apple’s 2011 iMac refresh brought not only the Intel Sandy Bridge Core i5 and i7 processors we were expecting, but a pair of Thunderbolt ports (on the 27-inch model, at least; the 21.5-inch iMac gets a single Thunderbolt), bringing the all-in-one in line with the most recent MacBook Pro update. Inside the familiar aluminum chassis is the fastest iMac around; read on for our first-impressions.
RIM may have only brought one new smartphone along to BlackBerry World 2011 this week, but the new Bold 9900/9930 promises to slot neatly into the flagship position in the company’s range. Offering the much-requested double hit of touchscreen and physical keyboard, in a candybar form-factor, the BlackBerry Bold 9900/9930 also marks the debut of BlackBerry 7 OS. Check out our hands-on report after the cut.
BlackBerry World 2011 is kicking off today in Orlando, and RIM has officially unveiled its latest smartphones, the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and Bold 9930. The thinnest BlackBerry smartphones to-date, at 10.5mm thick, the two handsets have 2.8-inch capacitive 640 x 480 287dpi touchscreens, full QWERTY keyboards and an optical trackpad, and run BlackBerry 7 OS on a 1.2GHz processor with 768MB of memory.
Ever since CES back in January, we’ve been hearing that 2011 will be “the year of 3D.” Happily, Samsung isn’t focusing entirely on the third-dimension with its new D8000 Series HDTVs: the 55-inch UN55D8000 also promises superlative 2D performance and Smart TV functionality including network streaming, all wrapped up in a wafer-thin bezel. Still, with a list price of $3,599.99, the D8000 will have to deliver in spades to justify the cost. Check out how this 3D behemoth copes in the full SlashGear review.
