HTC’s Nexus, the first one? That lid slid, that lid slid, baby, and right off the way God intended. Like buttah. The Taiwanese, hands down, are leading the lid race of mankind. Samsung? Not much of a removable phone lid race lead over Apple from where I’m sitting after seeing this bullcrap, gotta say.

But I could tell from other promising features of the Samsung Nexus S that they would manage to hang onto the Nexus torch for round three based on a few noteworthy things about the phone and their general array of tech stuff, and though there were some deficits, like the battery lid – yes, other things, but I’m talking about battery lids now buddy, I figured they’d polish those deficits out come round three. Like the lid for example.

I bought my Samsung Galaxy Nexus the other day (well my wife did but that’s besides the point, other than that I am a lucky man), and you’re not going to believe this but these deficits? Yeah, they fixed some of them but c’mon Samsung, apparently all at the expense of an *even worse* battery lid. Much worse! I unbox the phone, the grand unboxing, coworkers watching in a mixture of vicarious excitement and amusement, I spend minutes, several minutes maybe, possibly five – I don’t know man I lost count, trying to wedge this flimsy stupid battery lid and snap each little stupid lid tab into its slot, hoping I’m not breaking any of the little lid tabs, worried if I do will Newegg hook me up with a lid if I break it or if it’s already broken oh no I should have gotten the insurance … argh damnit!!!

Stupid lid.

Long story short, I got the lid on eventually and if I weren’t so distracted by the aye-holes who obviously made this lid just to pee me off I would maybe mention that the phone is pretty nice and toss around some superlative adjectives along those lines. But why would a company spend resources in designing a lid to piss me off more effectively than they did the last time? It’s plain cocky if you ask me, them thinking “Yeah, our Nexus is so awesome this time that this guy will love it no matter how excruciatingly impossible we make it to seal the lid, so let’s have some fun with this.“

No, wrong Samsung, making the next Nexus isn’t happy fun grab-ass mess-with-Simmons time. Make the damn phone right, head to toe, no funny business with the lids. Holding the Nexus torch is an honor, so act accordingly, including when it’s time to grind out a new lid. You’re on thin ice Samsung. Don’t push me, I will blog you so hard you’ll cry like little girly-men. You heard me.

Can’t say I’m a big fan of the name either, the Galaxy Nexus. Sounds a little expansive and grandiose, galaxies and quasars and supernovas, but I suppose it’s a small step up from the Nexus S. What’s that anyway, the S. I don’t know about the latest name being a step up or down step though, it could go either way… Yeah, the new name could go either way, but the lid? The lid could go to hell as far as I’m concerned.

Doug Simmons

Related posts:

1. Samsung Galaxy Nexus $189.99 on Wirefly
2. Samsung Galaxy Nexus released in Europe first Nov 17th
3. Daily Steal has the Samsung Galaxy Nexus $559.99

Author: Kristofer Brozio

Vendor: Phosphor

Price: $99.00

Overall Rating: 4/5

Specs/Features:

World Time Sport Black (WP001)

Swipe in style with a buttonless, touch lens operation.

The new World Time Sport with E INK display debuts a state-of-the-art buttonless touch lens operation, allowing for a sleek, ultra-modern look, and the ability to change modes with simple finger swipe across the case. The new World Time Sport offers the ability to select from 24 time zones for one display mode, while optionally displaying a second time zone simultaneously . The dual time zone display can also be configured to simply display the time of day or both the date and time in either over-sized or conventional-sized segments.

These unique capabilities are packaged in a sleek, ultra-thin, curved case only 9.3mm thick. Incredibly versatile, the new World Time Sport gives you an assortment of different functions and display modes.

Available in three colored versions – black, white and orange – the World Time Sport also includes a flexible silicone band and durable, water and sweat resistant plastic case.

Please note that the band is integrated with the World Time Sport watch case and is non-replaceable.

Features:
Case width: 38.0mm
Edge thickness: 5.0mm
Overall case thickness: 9.3mm
Water resistance: 3 ATM – 30m
Display: 12 hour large; 24 hour small

User Selectable Display Modes:
Time of Day + World Time
Time of Day + Calendar
Time of Day Large
Time of Day Small
World Time

What’s in the Box?

The Phosphor World Time Sport looks like it comes in a white box, but it doesn’t that just a slip cover for the black box underneath.

The black box opens to reveal the watch nestled in felt like padding.

The only thing included is a rather brief user manual.

The watch does have a little Phosphor identification tag attached to it.

On the bottom you’ll find the battery cover that is simple to remove thanks to the large slot, so replacing the battery is fairly easy when the time comes.

The watch band is adjustable and it’s made of rubber or silicone that’s durable and water and sweat resistant. The one I got for review is all black in color but you can get all white or black with an orange band. I should note here that the watch is not user replaceable sadly, so if you break the band you’re kind of stuck.

The display has two color modes, which you’ll see below, but it’s E-Ink as I mentioned and this makes it very crisp and clear and easy to read. The watch itself is fairly thin at only 9.3mm thick, but it’s a bit large for my tastes in terms of length top to bottom. That’s just my preference though..

Below the display you’ll see two symbols, one is a circle with a half-circle inside of it and the other is three dots. These are used for controlling the watch for settings and changing the modes and coincide with what’s in the user manual.

Impressions / Review:

So getting the watch set was the hardest part, the instructions are very basic but after reading though it a couple times and playing with the buttons I figured it out.

I’ve been using the watch for a couple weeks, but I just took a bunch of pictures today so it’s today’s date of course.

The Phosphor World Time watch has five basic modes. The first is a display of the time and date and day. The time in this mode can only be 24 hour style and it’s small in the middle of the date.

The second mode can be 12 or 24 hour and it’s just the time in large numbers.

Next is the time again, but just small.

Then you have one of the world time modes you’ve selected.

The next mode is dual time, it’s your world time you chose and the local time. I just thought of it but New York and my time are the the same so I guess that’s a bad example to show you but you get he idea I hope.

There is a sixth mode sort of, it allows you to switch between different time zones so you can know what time it is wherever in the world. Here’s a few samples:

In the manual you’ll find all of the times listed for you wit their abbreviations and GMT differences.

You can easily set the home time zone and then easily just switch it to another home time zone if you’re traveling. The ability to see dual time zones is cool for people that need to know that type of thing.

What I’ve shown you so far is the black numbers/letters with white background but you can also switch to white letters/numbers on a black background if you like.

So the Phosphor World Time has no buttons it’s all done by touch and I was very much surprised by just how sensitive it is. It’s recommended that you don’t swipe fast but I found no problems swiping just like I would on my phone really. I think it’s actually a bit overly sensitive honestly. There were times I’d cross my arms and just the skin of my arm brushing against it would change the mode and/or colors.

Here’s a quick video demonstration for you. Yes there’s no sound, but it’s not really needed.

As you can see I’m swiping fairly fast and the watch responds fine to my movements.

Overall I like this watch but it’s not perfect and two things really stand out for me.

1. There is no 12 hour mode for the main display with the date.

2. There is no backlight at all so using it in the dark can be virtually impossible.

The others I mentioned like the band not being replaceable and that it’s a big large and that it can be overly sensitive.

One other small gripe that’s specific to the watch I got for review is that, you can’t see it in the pictures, but there’s apparently a piece of black lint stuck under the glass and it can be annoying at times seeing it there. I’m sure not all are like that though.

Conclusion:

So that’s that, that’s the Phosphor World Time Sport watch for you. It’s not a bad watch at all even though it has a few quirks that need some attention. The fact that it’s E-Ink is nice, the display is crisp and clear and very easy to read. This is the type of watch that’s great for travelers as you can change the time zones easily to what you want to see or need to know. The World Time Sport is also great for just regular use and I’m sure it will get a lot of attention as it’s very distinctive looking.

I think the price at $99 is about right on, it’s what you’d expect to pay for a relatively new technology and it’s a decent watch overall.

Pros:
+ Get time from all over the world
+ Nice looking watch
+Touch only, no buttons
+Water resistant
+Fairly easy to use

Cons:
-No backlight
-No 12 hour time for main mode with calendar
-A bit overly sensitive
-A bit big for my tastes
-Can’t change band if needed
-End of strap keeps coming out and hangs loose

Related posts:

1. Phosphor Debuts World Time Sport E Ink Digital Watch
2. Mobility Digest Review: GTMax Black Rubberized Hard Cover Case for AT&T HTC Surround T8788
3. Mobility Digest Review: Pad&Quill The Little Black Book for iPhone4, Vol. 3

Author: Kristofer Brozio

Vendor: Arctic

Price: $27.99

Overall Rating: 5/5

Specs/Features:

Arctic MB201

Store your notebook and belongings in the MB series messenger bag for unsurpassed protection and convenient mobility! The MB series is designed with a velcro flap which ensures extra protection and easy access. Available in three standard sizes, the MB series messenger bag would absolutely be an essential part of your daily routine.

Durable and Lightweight
Made with scratch-free nylon and polyester, and water-resistant lining as exterior material, the ARCTIC MB series is lightweight and highly durable. Such material is ideal for storing your notebook for everyday commuting. The padded compartment shields your notebook and provides protection for frequent travellers.

Versatility
Available in three standard sizes, 12", 15" and 17", the ARCTIC MB series fits most notebook sizes. With multiple organizational compartments, there is plenty of storage space for miscellaneous items such as adapters, mouse, and documents – basically all your daily life devices.

Comfortable
The adjustable shoulder strap is padded for comfort and great for carrying heavy loads on just one shoulder. The pad is made with gripping material that prevents slippage.

Limited Warranty: 2 years
Exterior Dimensions: MB201 : 35 (W) x 27 (D) x 10.5 (H) cm
Exterior Material: Nylon and polyester

What’s in the Box?

There’s no box, the Arctic MB210 just comes in a plastic bag and there’s a cardboard insert attached to the bag with specs and features listed on it.

Impressions / Review:

I like black, it goes with anything! Seriously though I like the color black for my things, don’t know why really I just do. The MB201 is mostly black with gray accents on it. Here’s the front of the bag, there’s no picture of the back as it’s just plain black and I didn’t think it was really needed. The bag is a nylon and polyester and when empty it’s very lightweight. It’s does feel quality made and you’ll notice rather thick thread is used for the stitching. Overall it’s a nicely made bag especially if you consider the price of only $27.99. I’ve reviewed bags that cost twice as much and they were made similarly in terms of material and build quality. You can’t seem them but on each side of the bag are metal rings that are to be used with the included strap which you’ll see a bit later.

The part with the Arctic logo on it is actually a large flap held down by velcro. Lifting the flap you’ll find one small zippered compartment and a larger compartment with dual zippers on it.

The small compartment could be used for your phone or whatever else you that can fit.

The dual zippered compartment is for all of your stuff, or at least most of it. From left to right there’s a phone sized pocket with a flap secured with velcro, then above it is a very small pocket with an elastic band on it. Then there’s four smaller stacked pockets, you could fit like USB drives and things of that size in them. Next to those is another pocket with a nylon strap over it and it has an elastic band as well. Finally off to the right is four pencil/pen or stylus pockets. just hanging around is a nylon strap with a detachable key fob on it.

Opening up the main compartment you’ll see three sections and you’ll find the shoulder strap in the middle section. This section is has a stiff board in it and I would think it could be used for folder and papers and such.

The shoulder strap is adjustable and has a pad on it for comfort. The pad can slide along the strap so you can find the perfect position for your needs. I should note the clips and swivels are metal and not plastic like you’ll find on many bags out there today. The strap itself is made of thick nylon so I wouldn’t worry about it breaking no matter how much stuff you’ve got in the bag.

Inside of the main compartment you’ll find more pockets, three of which are netting or mesh and the fourth is expandable with a velcro closure. In other bags I’ve found the mesh pockets are great for things like AC adapters and cables.

The main part of the MB201 is the fact that it’s made to carry your laptop, netbook or tablet. The MB201 is made for up to 12” in size so it’s for smaller devices obviously. This compartment is secured closed by an elastic band with velcro. The section is padded on both the front and back sections to protect your device. The inside of the compartment is soft and made from scratch free material so you won’t have to worry about your devices while they’re in there even something like a tablet where the screen is exposed.

I don’t own a 12” laptop, mine is 17” so it’s not going to fit. I do have a 10.1” netbook that fits perfectly fine inside.

I also have a 10” Android tablet which measures 9.5” in width, so it too fits fine inside the 12” compartment and it stays in places thanks to the strap on top.

Conclusion:

For the price I think the Arctic MB201 is a great deal, it’s a well made bag and one that will not only protect your gadgets but thanks to all of the pockets, you’ll be able to carry most everything you need with you on your travels.

So, the MB201 is nicely made and being nylon it should be durable and last quite a while. As you can see from the pictures there’s plenty of pockets inside.  The MB201 is one that you could use for your daily travels or take with you on a longer journey and have enough room for what you need and more.

I really couldn’t find anything wrong with this bag, it’s everything most would want in a messenger bag I think.

Pros:
+Lightweight
+Well made
+Lots of pockets
+Comfortable strap
+Inexpensive

Cons:
-None really

Related posts:

1. Mobility Digest Review: Arctic P31X PACK Stereo Bluetooth Headset with USB Adapter
2. Mobility Digest Review: eggshell for iPod touch 4G
3. Mobility Digest Review: Pad&Quill The Little Black Book for iPhone4, Vol. 3

Today for review I’ve got the Griffin Helo TC which is a remote control helicopter with which you use your iPhone or iPod Touch to control it. Yes it’s novelty, but it is fun. You can control the Helo TC with touchscreen controls or just by moving your iPhone/iPod. The actual helicopter is very sturdy , I’ve crashed it plenty of times and it’s still going strong. Sturdy is a good thing as it can be difficult to control at times because of the lag between the iPod and the helicopter.

Author:  Kristofer Brozio

Vendor: Griffin

Price:  $49.95

Overall Rating: 4/5

Specs/Features:

Helo TC

Rule the office airspace with HELO TC, the touch-controlled RC helicopter you control with your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad.

HELO TC comes complete with a precision twin-rotor remote-controlled helicopter and Flight Deck. The Flight Deck plugs into your iOS device’s headphone jack and translates your commands into infrared signals that beam to the helicopter.

HELO TC’s intuitive, easy-to-learn controls and twin-rotor design make for stable, controlled flight. And the HELO TC app provides features not available with other RC helicopters, such as Auto Land so you can bring HELO TC down for a safe landing with just a tap of the Multi-Touch display.

HELO TC requires full volume output from your iOS device, and will not work properly with devices purchased in the EU, the UK, or any other region with volume limitations that cannot be turned off.

HELO TC delivers an aerial assault on the mundane.
Easy-to-fly indoor RC helicopter you control with your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.

HELO TC comes complete with twin-rotor remote-controlled helicopter and Flight Deck.
The Flight Deck plugs into your iOS device’s headphone jack and beams infrared commands to the chopper.

Use the app to record and store up to three Flight Plans so you, or another pilot, can easily repeat a favorite flight pattern. Make up routes among the furniture, missions to fly, obstacles to avoid, goals to achieve, and replay them later with your friends.

App
Download the free HELO TC app and take RC flying to a whole new level with unique features like Auto Land and right-handed vs. left-handed flying.

Flight Modes
Use a virtual joystick on your Multi-Touch display to maneuver the chopper, or tilt your iOS device to move the chopper forward, backward, and side to side.

Flight Plans
Record and store up to three Flight Plans. Make up routes among the furniture, missions to fly, obstacles to avoid, goals to achieve, and replay them later with your friends.

3 Channels
Fly up to three HELO TC copters at one time, in one place, by simply changing channels from within the HELO TC app.

What’s in the Box?

So here’s the box, inside you’ll find a plastic tray with the helicopter, a small white box and the user manual.

Inside the plastic tray is the helicopter and a smaller plastic bag.

In the plastic bag you’ll find extra main blades, tail rotors and a USB plug with a power connection on it to charge the helicopter.

Remember that small white box, in that is what Griffin calls the Flight Deck. It’s actually a dock for your iPhone or iPod with an audio cable coming from it. On the front of it you’ll see the infrared LEDs that are used to control the helicopter. Yes it’s infrared controlled. The dock is rubberized and there are to flexible ‘clips’ that hold the iPod or iPhone in place. The Flight Deck uses four AAA batteries that fit in the back via two little doors.

The actual helicopter is very nicely made, I really like the looks of it.

The cockpit is black and it gives it an ominous look.

The rest of the helicopter is metal, so I think it’s rather sturdy. On the right side of the helicopter is the on/off switch and the charging port. The helicopter has several LEDs all around it, and on the front, you’ll see them all lit up shortly.

Something I’ve never seen before in an RC helicopter is that the tail rotor is facing up and not on the side like most others. The tail is on the bottom and there’s a small wing on the tail support as well.

Impressions / Review:

When you’re charging the helicopter, the USB connection lights up red.

Once you get it the helicopter charged, the next thing you’ll need to do is download the app. I used my iPod Touch 4th gen, then you can put it in the Flight deck. The deck holds it very well in place, but I found the small clips get in the way at times.

So you can control the helicopter via the touchscreen or you can use the gyro inside the iPod Touch to control is via movement. I found that controlling it movement is very hard and it’s more novelty than anything. It’s much easier to control with the actual controls.

The main control part of the interface consists or a slider on the left side for controlling the throttle and then the joystick on the right. In the middle are three buttons for Flight Plans, Settings and Auto Land. Above the joystick you’ll see the trim control and below that is the on/off for the helicopter’s LEDs. The Flight Plan actually let’s you record up to 20 seconds of you using the Helo TC and then play it back.

On the settings page you’ll see channels for A,B, and C along with choices for Motion or Joystick, below that are selections for Invert Pitch Control, switching the throttle control right or left and then turning Expert mode on or off. The top right is a question mark for accessing the help files and then a checkmark to confirm your settings changes.

When you first set it up you’ll need to turn the volume all the way up. The remote works by sending audio signals in the form of high pitched pulses to the Fight Deck that in turn changes those to signals to the infrared LEDs to control the helicopter.

Here’s a sample of the help section, with a few things I mentioned expanded more for you to read.

Once the batteries are in, the helicopter is charged and the app is installed you can fly. When you first start out flying the app has expert mode off by default, which just means you get put the throttle to 100%. After a bit of flying the app will tell you you’re doing pretty good and you should be ready for expert mode.

Flying can be tricky, I’m very much accustomed to flying R/C helicopters , one of the my favorite things to do, and I found it rather tricky to fly the Helo TC.

It’s infrared so I expected lag, but this seems to have more lag than the average infrared helicopter does, and it’s takes a lot of flying to get used to the lag. You’ll crash a lot that’s for sure, you basically have to think ahead and use the controls before you want the helicopter to do it. It’s hard to do any kind of  precision flying really because of the lag.

It took me a good hour of flying to get any good at it and I’m still not that great, but I don’t crash as much but I still crash.

Speaking of crashes, the Helo TC does seem to be sturdy and durable as I’ve crashed it into walls, chairs, floors and the ceiling many times and have3not had to change the blades yet and the helicopter isn’t any worse for wear.

Here’s a few views of the Helo TC with the LED lights on, they’re very bright especially the front headlight which is white.

Battery life is about 8-10 minutes of flight time. I found that if you turn the LEDs off you can easily hit that higher end and maybe a minute or so more. Still I think that’s short flight time.

Conclusion:

The Griffin Helo TC is fun to fly and it’s certainly a unique experience using the iPod as the controller.

The helicopter is sturdy, which is good as you’ll crash it quite often I’m sure.

The lag is annoying, but it’s manageable once you get accustomed to the time delay.

Honestly the Helo TC isn’t something for kids, they’ll get frustrated very quickly and most likely have it broken shortly after starting to play with it.

Personally I’d rather just get a regular R/C helicopter to fly than this. Yes the controls are interesting but it’s more novelty than anything and the lag makes it not exactly fun to fly sadly.

Pros:
+Nicely made helicopter
+Dock is handy
+Quick charge time

Cons:
-Lag between time to push button and something to happen
-Can be difficult to control for beginners because of lag
-Rather short battery time

Related posts:

1. Griffin Launches HELO TC Helicopter, Remote-Controlled by iPhone, iPod touch or iPad
2. Griffin HELO TC Touch-Controlled Heli for iPhone in stock
3. iPhone Controlled Heli by Griffin to land this Christmas

Author:  Kristofer Brozio

Vendor:  Mobile Fun

Price: £19.95 / $31.50

Overall Rating: 4.5/5

Android Bluetooth Sound Box with Hands-Free

Wirelessly stream your tunes through this funky Android, who will also let control your phone and handle your calls with the built-in handsfree.

Stream your music wirelessly via Bluetooth 3.0 for crystal clarity
With the Android Sound Box, you can keep your phone in your pocket while you chill out to your favorite tunes. Utilizing Bluetooth 3.0 for maximum compatibility and the best quality signal, this speaker sounds as good as, if not better than, similar quality wired alternatives.

Small but powerful 2W speaker provides a room-filling sound
Utilizing the latest in mobile speaker technology, the Android Sound Box packs a powerful 2W speaker into it’s small frame. This lets you enjoy your music wherever you are, and if you’re using the hands-free capabilities you’ll be able to hear whoever’s calling perfectly. The speaker comes with a desk stand to elevate it and thus help expand the sound even more.

Robot’s head acts as a control for your phone, letting you change tracks with a twist or pause with a push
The top of the robot can be moved to let you control your tracks, play/pause music, or activate voice-dialing with a simple motion. The head rotates left and right for track changes, while it acts as a button for the other features.

Integrated microphone lets you handle your calls completely hands-free
Built-in to the top of the unit is also a handy microphone. This is perfect for hands-free calls so you don’t have to reach for your phone when a call comes in, and can also be used for voice dialing or voice commands.

Built-in battery for use on the go
Don’t worry about having to be tethered to a power source – with the Android Sound Box you can pick up and play wherever you want. The integrated battery will keep pumping out your tunes for up to 10 hours. The speaker comes with a mini USB cable for charging via a PC or USB mains adapter.

mobile phone speakers

What’s in the Box?

The Android Bluetooth Sound Box with Hands-Free comes in a nice looking box.

In the box you’ll find the speaker, user manual, USB cable and a small metal stand.

The speaker looks like the Android mascot, and I like it.  It’s plastic of course, most things are these days but it’s lightweight and feels well made with nice attention to detail. One of the eyes is a microphone and there’s a translucent part beneath the head that holds an LED.

The arms can be positioned as well to pose him how you want.

The head is actually a button to push down, and it turns left and right to control volume.

On the back you’ll find the USB port for charging and the on/off switch.

On the bottom you’ll find rubber feet and you’ll see the main speaker.

Here’s the little stand included to elevate the speaker to help produce better sound.

Impressions / Review:

When charging the Android will light up red.

I tested it with two Android devices, my Samsung Galaxy S Captivate and my Le Pan TC 970 tablet. In the second picture below you can see the robot lighting up blue, it blinks while it’s on every once in a while.

I found that it did work, at least for streaming music anyway. The controls didn’t work on either device sadly. On the tablet the controls didn’t do anything. The same thing with the Captivate, the controls don’t do anything either.

I also tried it with my HTC Surround, WP7 phone and streaming music did work.

Here the controls didn’t work either except for when I pushed down on the head, it activated voice commands.

I’m not sure why the controls don’t work on any of my devices, it says it’s Bluetooth 3.0, and my devices aren’t so I could guess that might be the problem, but somehow I don’t think so.

Regarding the stand, I found that it really does work to expand the sound coming from the speaker.  The little stand makes it louder and more clear it seems.

The sound from the speaker is decent, but at loud levels it can get distorted. It is only a single speaker so don’t expect stereo sound, but still it works well.

Conclusion:

The Android Bluetooth Sound Box with Hands-Free from Mobile Fun is a neat little gadget for sure. I like it and it sounds very good. If you want  your own little Android that does much more than sit there and look cute, then you might want to think about getting one of these.

It is the holiday shopping season after all, and I think any Android fan would appreciate one of these in their stocking or under the tree!

The problems I encountered  were odd, I’ve not come across any Bluetooth devices that don’t work the way they should. As I speculated earlier, it might be because of the fact that it runs on Bluetooth 3.0, or not. It still works though as a speaker.

Pros:
+Long battery life
+Can get very loud
+Decent sound overall
+Can be used as speakerphone
+Nicely made
+It’s a cool little accessory

Cons:
-Controls don’t work with many devices
-Sound can get distorted at high levels

Related posts:

1. Mobility Digest Review: Clingo Parabolic Sound Sphere
2. Mobility Digest Review: BeeWi Mini Cooper S Bluetooth Controlled Car
3. Mobility Digest Review: Motorola H17txt with MotoSpeak Bluetooth Headset

With all the major media sources weighing in with their verdict, which so far is mixed at best, we remain skeptical of the device, and think it should have included more memory and a few other whistles and bells to compliment what we thought was a good idea wrapping it up with the Amazon services. Because what we are really talking about here is a device that is only $100.00 less expensive that a superior iPad (original) tablet which you can just as easily match services. With all that said, let’s leave it up to the consumers to decide.

• CNET: 3.5 out of 5.0
• Gizmodo: 4 .0 out of 5.0
• The Verge: 7.5 out of  10.0
• PC Magazine: 4.0 out of  5.0
• Engadget: It isn’t a perfect experience
• Mashable: Minor gripes, but is a winner.

So there’s a pretty good round up of all the “bigs” in the Media summing it all up. Let us know what you think, drop a comment and start our week off with some discussion.

[roundup source]

Related posts:

1. Amazon’s Kindle Fire Tablet profitable at $200
2. Amazon Kindle Fire : Whom did it Fire?
3. Kindle Fire Sales Reach an Estimated 95,000 Units During First Day of Sales

So for those who haven’t seen me around, I’m more of a slightly-above-average user: I don’t work in tech, I no longer have the passion to do so, but I still have the interest. I’m a female who loves shiny gadgets. (And football. Yes, my husband is a lucky man.) I’m not as technically savvy as most of the guys here, but hey. So here’s my first 24-hour thoughts of Mango.

It’s still nice and fast and responsive. I don’t know that I notice any faster speed – it was already nice and fast. At least I don’t notice any slowing, so that’s good.

I love the integration of Facebook, Live, and Twitter in the People interface. I’ll still keep Birdsong on my tile page, but it’s moved down from the first 4 rows.

When I got my Surround, I put in all my emails, but quickly deleted all but the 2 most active. I didn’t need a work email at all (I was hourly and wasn’t paid to watch my email all day, so screw ‘em), and I really still prefer (out of habit?) to manage my emails on the desktop.
Now I’m a stay-at-home mom, but I have a primary carrier email, a secondary (read Facebook-linked) carrier email, a primary gmail, a junk gmail, and a hobbyist domain. (Plug: Have family or friends who do counted cross stitch? Send them to (http://www.bwbearproductions.) While most of the time I’m at the desktop, it might be nice to check my email on the phone, so I figured I’ll put them all on again. I’m thinking that I will stay with this because of the Linked Inbox feature. This is GREAT. No more tones of tiles just for email: 1 for personal, 1 for the hobby business. Loving this!

The Calendar. HOLIDAYS put in for you! I’m liking the Facebook integration too. I’d still like to be able to color-code things that I enter (1 color for husband, 1 for son, etc) but okay.

SMS. Well, sorry, I can’t speak to that. Unfortunately, because I’m not working at the moment, we’ve had to cancel SMS service. Which means we’ll pay more for less when we go back to it. Ouch.

IE. Having the URL box on the bottom might take some getting used to, but you know, putting on the bottom with the other commands has made more room for the browser, hasn’t it? So I’m okay with it.

And that’s pretty much what I’ve looked at in the first 24 hours. What do I need as a technophile news junkie stay at home wife and mom? I need to be connected (integration – check+) to various outlets (FB, Twitter, news applications, audio – check+), a good calendar (face it, modern moms have to be really good with time management – check) and I need all that FAST (check+). Aside from a little color customization in the calendar, Windows Phone 7.5 has this in spades. And Pandas v. Ninjas. Because you can’t have enough pandas. And Everybody Needs a Ninja.

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After the launch of the iPad 2, as you might have expected, the floodgates opened and the cases poured through the pearly gates to the retail heaven that is Apple consumers. OtterBox finally released the Defender series and life is good. Well, or so I thought. It is a huge case and it is pretty heavy. There as got to be something that takes the innovativeness of the Apple Smartcover and the strength of the OtterBox polycarbonate shell. Well, there actually is.

Griffin Technologies has a massive assortment of mobile accessories and the stuff is pretty good quality to boot. As it happens to be, they also have a case for the iPad 2 that takes the shortcomings of the Apple Smartcover and gives it a healthy shot of Device OCD Prozac which is a polycarbonate back cover. Cleverly attaching them both together, the Griffin IntelliCase offers incredibly thin and lightweight full protection for you iPad 2. Let’s check it out!

What comes in the box?

No assembly required, the Griffin IntelliCase only needs to have protect film of plastic that is for some reason on the inside of the polycarbonate back cover.From the retail friendly front and rear side of the box that is peg hook-able for all you mobile gadget and accessory entrepreneurs.

The Front Cover

Not unlike the Apple Smartcover, the Griffin IntelliCase also has the same magnets to wake and put the device to sleep when you open and close the lid. Unlike the Apple Smartcover, the IntelliCase does not feel like the same quality and has a more plastic feel to it and the feeling that it will inevitably start to wear prematurely. The IntelliCase front cover does look like the Smartcover and bends in much the same way. However the one thing it does not do is fold up to display the iPad 2 in landscape standing up. There is another way to do this that I will show you later in the review. All in all, the front cover did put the iPad 2 to sleep and wake it every time I used it. It does suffer from the problem of coming open unwantedly which  could lead to some battery drain.

The Back Cover

The back cover is almost perfect in my review having only a small area of coverage that exposes the iPad 2 to scratches and potential damage. Not really sure why they did not complete or add more material here. But the good news is the back cover fits like a glove. So thin that you could swear that it is not even there! The polycarbonate shell, while not the same gauge or thickness of the OtterBox Defender, seems to be the same quality of plastic and has an excellent feel to it.

The Griffin IntelliCase does an excellent job displaying your device in variety angles. The first and most popular for view content would be landscape orientation.  As I mentioned above, the IntelliCase does things a little different than the Smartcover by Apple. Instead of folding the front cover into a triangle pattern to display the iPad 2 in landscape, you actually have to fold the front cover around and hug the back side of the case and insert it into the slotted area. Shown here:

This is the same design that is used for typing on the iPad 2. Simply rotate the device around and the screen will re-orientate itself to that angle and allow you a very nice angle and staple platform to do your typing. I found that it worked well and had no issues.

Conclusion

I really like this case and thought Griffin did a really nice job taking successful elements from other cases and incorporating them into their IntelliCase. There are a few problems that I would have liked to have seen done a little different. One is the cheaper feel to the front cover. This thinner cheaper material stops the IntelliCase from being able to bend like the Smartcover and display the iPad 2 in landscape mode. the second issue is the openness in some areas of the back cover. I felt that they could have been minimized a little more to add more protective covering and avoid scratching. The last issue I had with the Griffin IntelliCase is the price. At $59.99 advertised on their website I think is too high for the design and material content. At the end of the day, there is nothing new here that we have not seen in other cases, but it is the fact that they brought then together that makes the case unique. So the good news?

The IntelliCase fits and works great. I really liked this case and felt my device was well protected from accidental damage and scratches. The IntelliCase displayed the iPad 2 in excellent angles that made watching video content wonderful. Typing on the IntelliCase was stable and very solid feeling. I even have some more good news that was actually a complaint from above. Some quick shopping in the internet turned up several $29.99 price tags on sites like Amazon where quantities were very good. At $30 dollars the IntelliCase by Griffin is an excellent value and a product I can easily recommend for all iPad 2 owners.

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Used in combination these two items gives the user a diverse palate for creativity using one’s iPad. As an added bonus since its digital ink there is no mess to clean up after the kids use it. As a parent that makes this a worthwhile investment in of itself.

Author: Tom Ratas

Vendor: Griffin

Price: $29.99

Overall Rating: 4.5/5

Specs/Features:

Crayola ColorStudio HD

Your iPad becomes a living coloring book.

There are dozens of coloring and painting Apps for iPad. But only one’s amazing enough to be called "Crayola." Crayola ColorStudio HD helps young artists unlock limitless discovery and play on an iPad, complete with pictures, color, animation, sound and music.

The iMarker digital stylus is the key.

Like a marker, crayon, colored pencil and paintbrush in one, iMarker lets you create with your favorite Crayola colors within the ColorStudio HD App. iMarker safely interacts with iPad’s MultiTouch display, allowing the ColorStudio HD app to differentiate between the child’s input (finger taps, swipes, etc.) and the input from iMarker automatically. This allows intuitive, creative play that brings the accuracy and ease of a stylus but, for the first time, allows the user to manipulate both creative space and color, without having to toggle the app between modes

Make and share your own custom coloring pages.

With pictures, animations, sound effects and music, ColorStudio HD always has something new to discover and color. And new pictures are available through ongoing updates automatically when you sync your iPad. Parents can even share the work their children have created by printing it (requires iOS 4.2 or later) or through email and Facebook.

Put it all together and you get the most amazing coloring book ever and all your favorite Crayola crayons, paints, pencils, markers and more all in a convenient no-ink, no-mess, kid-safe package. With Crayola ColorStudio HD, Griffin and Crayola are creating new ways for children to color, draw, and discover in the digital age.

What’s in the Box?

The Crayola ColorStudio HD comes in a white box with the iMarker interacing with the Crayola ColorStudio HD on the front. Flipping this front cover up reveals the digital stylus in a clear plastic window. On the back of the package we find a list of features.

Inside the packaging is the iMarker, a quick start card, cap and AA battery.

The iMarker is a stylus that is shaped like a Crayola marker and is colored black and silver. It has the Crayola logo in the front 1/3 of the stylus and a silver power switch on the back. A detachable silver cap protects the stylus tip.

Here is a size comparison of the iMarker versus a standard Crayola marker with the digital version being slightly larger.

The backside of the iMarker has a small Phillips screw that opens this section for battery placement.

The stylus tip is composed of a black rubbery material, which gives it a magic marker appearance.

One neat feature about the iMarker that my kids especially enjoyed was the Crayola logo’s background would change colors when the device was powered up.

Impressions / Review:

To get started the user needs to install Crayola ColorStudio HD from the App store which is a free download. By itself the app can be used in a limited fashion. Once used in conjunction with the iMarker then all of the app’s features and capabilities are unlocked.

Turning on the iMarker then tracing the onscreen pattern from the unlock section of the app allows the user to access the full potential of the app.

The main screen offers three coloring choices – Make a Coloring Page, Coloring Pages and Free Draw. From any of these three the user can start coloring and creating digital images.

On the right side of the iPad we find buttons for Gallery, Profile, Options, Help and More Crayola.

Thankfully for the new user Crayola provides on screen tutorials found in the Help section.

The Coloring Pages are broken down into six categories – Monsters, Jungle, Seasons, Sports, Underwater and My Pages. The five premade sections have six coloring pages for that specific topic. My Pages comes from the user created coloring pages.

What differentiates “coloring” on the iPad versus paper is that Crayola ColorStudio HD adds animation, sound effects and music making to the color experience; these color pages are interactive.

The Gallery page on the home screen allows viewing of saved creations. In addition these pictures can be printed, email or even posted to Facebook.

For today’s review of the Crayola ColorStudio HD I recruited my six and nine year old to field test the iMarker and app. Since both my kids enjoy coloring and being creative they immediately became absorb with the experience. They tested the app before the arrival of the iMarker and afterwards. Prior to the marker they played with Crayola ColorStudio HD but eventually got bored with the limited amount of coloring pages and features.

Once the iMarker fully unlocked Crayola ColorStudio HD they renewed their interest in the Crayola app. Overall they enjoyed using it and found it fun and entertaining. They enjoyed the large palette of markers, paintbrushes and crayons. The ability to switch between using just the iMarker stylus and fingers was a feature they also liked. Besides coloring the app allows the user to fill the space using a “bucket fill” option like those found on other painting programs.

One thing all three of us noticed was that the iMarker required a moderate amount of pressure to be detected by the iPad. Both of the iPads in my home have Invisible Shields in place, which may have an impact on the stylus’ functioning. The lack of touch sensitivity does take away from mimicking the feel of coloring on paper.

The iMarker is designed to shut down after ten minutes of inactivity to prevent battery drain.

The one negative I found with the iMarker was the cap does not attach to the stylus when not in use. This led to my co-reviewers to misplacing the cap some time during their field-testing.

As an app Crayola ColorStudio HD has plenty of room for expansion as they currently are limited in the amount of premade coloring pages, the amount of backgrounds and additions to the “make your own coloring” page but this can be easily addressed with future app upgrades.

Conclusion:

If your kids love playing with you iPad or you are a kid at heart then the Crayola ColorStudio HD plus the iMarker are a terrific combination. With Crayola’s virtual coloring book and marker kids can express their creative sides while not making a huge mess.

Currently the iOS app is well designed with plenty of room for growth. Future app updates will hopefully add additional coloring pages and elements to keep the app from becoming less interesting. Hopefully the iMarker itself will work with future Crayola apps making it not just tied to the Crayola ColorStudio HD.

As an adult I give the Crayola ColorStudio HD a 4/5 while my kids go with 5/5 for an average of 4.5/5.

Pros:

+Well-designed app
+Stylus has ten-minute inactivity auto shut off
+Crayola ColorStudio HD has plenty of upgrade potential
+Can use stylus or fingers for coloring
+No mess
+Nothing to clean up after using Crayola ColorStudio HD

Cons:

-Cap can get lost easily
-iMarker requires moderate amount of pressure to be detected
-Does not quite replace the coloring on paper experience

No related posts.

Let’s start with the good. First off, the interface is actually really nice and multitasking through the cards is great. Swipe from the bezel and go up with one finger and it brings you to the running apps. Do that with two fingers and you go straight to the app launcher. It’s actually pretty phenomenal how quickly and easily you can swap between apps. The Twitter app Spaz HD is great and you can adjust columns and the like. Email is also pretty good overall and you can easily change the way you view the screen (number of columns, etc) but it’s harder to hide folders and the syncing is off for some reason (it doesn’t have past emails – only going forward whereas most mobile devices have 2 weeks of email or so).  And the web browser is surprisingly good. The Flash implementation is actually really good. It loads Flash content last on the page so it doesn’t bog it down and I tried a few games that required screen taps and it worked (whereas some mobile Flash attempts result in taps panning around the screen and not with the Flash content). Overall I was surprised at how good the browser is overall.

Let’s talk about some faults and there’s no way to not start with the keyboard. Typing on this thing is a chore. I would sooner use a Windows Mobile 5.0 resistive screen device without a stylus than use this and I’m serious about that. The autocorrect is somewhere between frustrating and awful and overall the keyboard is too sensitive at times with plenty of rogue taps and yet the spacebar almost never clicks. It’s bad, so much so that instead of writing a two sentence email I got up, got my phone and just hammered it out. But part of this is the overall screen and sensitivity of the device. It’s hard to tell if it’s hardware or software but you can press the same spot 3 times before the device reacts to it. No rhyme or reason as to when it does this but poking continually at the same point is just bad. This also ties into some general slow downs in the OS. If you’re reading an email and hit ‘reply’ you need to wait for the reply screen to materialize which is about 2 seconds but on any mobile device it’s instantaneous so it really stands out.

Also the wifi is wonky. It doesn’t keep a consistent connection and I’ve seen this on two devices in two locations, and in fact I’ve made at least a dozen attempts at downloading the 38m OS upgrade and it has yet to be able to keep a connection long enough to get it. And this router has no issues streaming HD Netflix to my Xbox. Also, the range is poor – it almost feels like bluetooth at times it’s so short range.

It also feels like the heaviest tablet I could imagine which is really odd since it’s the same weight as an iPad but feels like it’s twice the weight. Something about the dimension must play into this. It has a slightly curved back which is actually surprisingly nice to hold (since it gives a little natural grip).

And yeah, no surprise that the apps and games are meh. That’s not really news and truthfully most of what a tablet is good for is simple email, Facebook, Twitter and web browsing and on those points it’s more than acceptable (well if you have a connection and can tolerate typing on it). On YouTube it’s actually not an app – just a shortcut to the website so to go full screen you need to hit that little icon and then adjust the resolution each time which is annoying. Oh and no Netflix app or in the browser…for realz.

I haven’t dived too deep into it so far. No extensive business work or anything. Just the usual playing around. It’s a reminder to me that this tablet (and any tablet) is not a PC and you have to remember that in 10” you can only do so much. With that said, it’s solidly worth the $100. Now remember, that’s 1/5 the price of an iPad to keep it in perspective. Yeah very different devices but that also serves as a reminder that it’s so freaking cheap (and the iPad is overpriced but you suckers keep paying it). If the 16gb model was $200 would I buy it knowing what I know now? Unlikely. My Focus does 90% of what I need to do and there’s just a small gap between that and using my PC (you know with that whole large screen and Office and the like). And for me at least that gap is mostly casual web surfing and looking at email attachments on a larger screen. So it’s not a game changer for me – more like a toy or a convenience. I was thinking of getting my parents one but I really think the keyboard is a killer, even at this price. If it had Android that would at least change the software limitations and at $100 for these specs it should fly and really make the whole thing a bargain but there’s no port yet…just a ROM dump.

Anyway,if you’re a TouchPad owner (newly or long time) share your thoughts with the crowd. And of course, good luck with the fire sale cause I have a feeling it’s going to be another frenzy that will last about as long as lunch.

And while we’re here, here’s a link to 6 apps that HP is throwing in for TouchPad owners that total $31 normally.

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