Sony announces Xperia SP and Xperia L

If Sony Xperia Z or ZL is too expensive for your consideration, why not take a look on the brand new mid range android Sony just announced?

Sony Xperia SP Key Specification :

• 4.6-inch with 720 x 1280 pixel
• 1.7GHz dual-core processor MSM8960T Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset
• Adreno 320
• 1GB RAM
• 8GB internal memory with microSD slot
• 8MP Exmor RS camera sensor with 1080p HDR video recording
• VGA front facing camera
• NFC
• PlayStation Certified
• 2370mAh
• Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean
• Black, Red and White Silver

Sony has confirmed that this “transparent element” has “customisable illuminations which you can personalise to alert you of incoming calls and text messages. And you can even set the illuminations to pulse to the beat of your favourite music.”

Sony Xperia L Key Specification :

• 4.3-inch FWVGA with 480 x 854 pixel
• 1GHz dual-core processor MSM8230 Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset
• Adreno 320
• 1GB RAM
• 8GB internal memory with microSD slot
• 8MP Exmor RS camera sensor with 720p video recording
• VGA front facing camera
• NFC
• PlayStation Certified
• 1750mAh
• Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean
• black, red and white

Xperia L has the notification light at the bottom instead of transparent bar like it's sibling, Xperia SP.

Pricing for both SP and L is about $545 (Converted RM1635) and $387 (Converted RM1161) respectively in Europe.

My Opinion : Well, early Q1 of 2013 we are flooded with a lot flagship phone. It is good Sony willing to release some mid range for consumers had a better choice. Nothing to shout on the spec but probably the only improvement I see is the EXMOR RS sensor compare to the last year product (Xperia V/T/TX). Shame that Xperia SP wasn't pack with 1080p display.

Nuffnang Youth Credit Card Design Contest #3 - Droid

Click here for part 1 and part 2 if you miss it. Anyway, here my third entries for the youth credit card contest. The design is something related with gadget again of course ;)

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Just look at it very obvious the design is inspired by Android Honeycomb! I name this card as Droid - simple, direct and easy to remember. The upper part of the card has Honeycomb UI where Google search bar, mic, apps drawer menu and also add widget. The bottom part got the on screen navigation button - back, home and multitasking and also the status bar. Both bottom and top design are refering to the actual UI of android Honeycomb. Meanwhile the background is directly extracted from Honeycomb wallpaper. A cute green robot Android is included and the body is seem to be replaced by the chip.

It is like a mini android in the card! Android user gonna like it ;)

Nuffnang Youth Credit Card Design Contest #2 - Slide & Pay

Here is my part 2 entry for the contest! Click here for part 1 if you miss it. Yup! I believe credit card deserve a great design. This time around, I would like to present Slide & Pay credit card for youth!

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Just look at it and you should easily spotted it is an iPhone design on a card. Holding the credit card will give user feeling like holding an iPhone. In other word it is premium. The design will be fun to play too where user might tend to slide the chip because it just exactly like iPhone lock screen. iPhone lover especially youth will totally love it.

So if you're iPhone user, will you like it? ;)

Nuffnang Youth Credit Card Design Contest #1 - Bokehlicious

Credit card has slowly become one of the life essential. It is small, portable and easy to slot in wherever your body. While there are alot types of credit card nowdays, design has slowly become a criteria especially for youth. Thus, I would like to design a card for youth credit card.

* Click the thumbnail for bigger size *

I name this as Bokehlicious! You see as a blog that running on gadget stuff, I am included camera in the design. Retro looking and black color camera (Fujifilm X Pro 1) easily make all photographer lover drool over it. The background and foreground is covered by bokeh. Bokeh shooter will definitely love this.

So camera lover, will you get this card? ;)

Samsung Galaxy S4 vs. HTC One vs. Sony Xperia Z

The war has come. Year 2013 is a year where most flagship phone went to 1080p display! Here are quick overview of Samsung x HTC x Sony flagship phone comparison.

Obviously we are comparing this based on hardware spec. User experience and features offer by the company would be individual preference. Seem like this gonna be tough competition and choices for consumers.

Thanks GSMArena for the chart!

Samsung Galaxy S4 goes official

Just finish watch Samsung Galaxy S IV unpacked! So are you ready for the next big thing from them?

Samsung Galaxy S IV Key Specification :

• 4.99" Super AMOLED screen with resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels
• Exynos 5 Octa chipset - four Cortex-A15 cores clocked at 1.6GHz, four Cortex-A7 cores clocked at 1.2GHz (International Version)
• PowerVR SGX 544MP3 GPU (International Version)
• 1.9Ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 chipset with 4 Krait 300 cores (US Version)
• Adreno 320 GPU (US Version)
• 2GB RAM
• 13MP back facing camera
• 2MP front facing camera
• 16GB/32GB/64GB internal memory with micro SD slot
• IR blaster
• LTE
• NFC
• 2600mAh
• Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean

There will be 2 difference processor for difference market (refer to the international and US version). The Samsung Galaxy S 4 will hit shelves in April in two colors - White Frost and Black Mist. Pricing is yet to be confirmed.

Other than spec improvement with design remain the same, well it actually more solid and thinner, with 7.9mm measurement and lighter, 130g, Samsung Galaxy S IV actually come with more software enchantment on it.

• Sound and Shot : captures 9 second clips with sound (similar to the HTC Zoe)
• Drama Shot : captures a burst of photos and combines them into a single image (similar to the HTC Zoe sequence shot)
• Cinema Photo : shoot a video and then select which part to be animated and which static, resulting in a GIF image (similar to Nokia's Cinemagraph)
• You can erase objects from a picture and record video simultaneously from the front and back camera (1080p)
• S Translator : can translate all major languages at launch with further ones coming later on (works with email and ChatON)
• Smart Pause : pauses the video you're watching if it detects that your eyes are away from the screen
• Smart Scroll : can scroll a web page if you tilt the device while looking at it
• S Health : measure steps, calories and even the confort of your surroundings - temperature, humidity, etc. These features require the S Band and Heart Rate monitor accessories

So are those software improvement convince you enough that Samsung Galaxy S IV is the next big thing you should get? Tell us about it ;)

My Opinion : Havent seen how great is Octa chipset yet, not gonna comment on it. In addition, Samsung finally is joining 5" family, almost crossing the Note family line. For my personally, those addition features are not important to me. More interested on S Translator only which I believe there are 3rd party apps can do it. Pretty disappointed at the design since it similar with S3/Note II. As conclusion, I will get HTC One instead :P

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Nikon launches 16MP DX-format Coolpix A and P330

Small camera size but with big sensor seem like a trend now. Nikon just launches their latest addition, Coolpix A, a DX format compact camera and also a P330.

Nikon Coolpix A Key Specification :

• 16.2 megapixels
• APS-C (23.6 x 15.7 mm) CMOS Sensor
• ISO 100 - 6400 (12800, 25600 with boost)
• 28 mm f2.8
• 3″ fixed LCD
• 1920 x 1080 (30, 25, 24fps) video recording
• Nikon EN-EL20 Lithium-Ion battery
• $1100 (Converted RM3,300)

Nikon Coolpix P330 Key Specification :

• 12.2 megapixels
• 1/1.7" (7.44 x 5.58 mm) BSI-CMOS
• ISO 100 - 12800
• 24–120 mm F1.8 - F5.6
• 3″ fixed LCD
• 1920 x 1080 (60, 50, 30, 25, 24 fps) video recording
• Nikon EN-EL12 Lithium-Ion battery
• $380 (Converted RM1,140)

Both will be available on March 2013.

My Opinion : Let's start with Coolpix P330. Look's like Nikon introduce another line with 1/1.7" sensor beside P7XXX series. Good alternative and pocketable and this could be a rival for Canon S110 series. Nothing much to wow on the spec sheet and the price pretty close to Canon S110. So guys, you have more option now to choose ;)

Now, Coolpix A seem interesting. The design is definitely compact size and the large sensor easily tackle down Sony RX100. Unfortunately the lens just 28mm (equivalent to 35mm format) and aperture speed f2.8. How would this camera rival with the awesome retro looking Fujifilm X100s that has X Trans Sensor, hybrid viewfinder and also faster aperture beside Coolpux has the advantage for being smaller size? I felt the price tag for Coolpix A is too high. Personally I will go for Fujifilm X100s anytime unless, Coolpix A can be sell in between RM2.4-2.7k which is a price of current high end micro four third camera.

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Alcatel unveils One Touch Snap and One Touch Snap LTE

Seem like Alcatel is not done yet with MWC. Say hello to One Touch Snap and One Touch Snap LTE!

Alcatel One Touch Snap Key Specification :

• 4.5” display with qHD resolution
• 1.2GHz quad-core processor
• 1GB RAM
• 4GB Internal memory with microSD slot
• 8MP back camera with 720p video recording
• 1.3MP front camera with 720p video recording
• 1800mAh
• Android 4.2 Jelly Bean

Alcatel One Touch Snap LTE Key Specification :

• 4.65” with FWVGA 480 x 854 pixels resolution.
• 1.4GHz dual-core Snapdragon CPU
• 1GB RAM
• 4GB Internal memory with microSD slot
• 8MP back camera with 1080p video recording
• 2MP front camera with 720p video recording
• 2200mAh
• Android 4.1 Jelly Bean

No price reveal yet but Alcatel said the Snap and Snap LTE will arrive in April and July 2013, respectively.

My Opinion : Pretty disappointed with the spec sheet for the LTE version but if the price is justifiable, why not? Personally I still prefer One Touch Idol X.

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The affordable quad-core UMI X2 is here!

Never heard of UMI? Don't worry I also just know them recently. It is china based company and in MWC 2013, they debut a competitive smartphone that easily blow away other competitors with the cheap price tag.

UMI X2 Key Specification :

• 5-inch with 1080p resolution
• 1.2 GHz MTK6589 quad-core processor MediaTek
• PowerVR SGX544 GPU
• 2GB RAM
• 32GB internal memory with microSD slot
• 13 Mega Pixels back camera
• 3 Mega Pixels front camera
• 2,500mAh
• Android 4.1 Jelly Bean

Too good to be true right? The UMI X2 will cost around $260 (Converted RM780). If you're interested, you can purchase it here.

My Opinion : Cheap! High spec and cheap! However dislike the physical design that inspired from Samsung Galaxy series. I seriously hope china would at least think of their own design rather than just copy. Nevertheless, UMI X2 is one of the cheapest Android phone that par with other competitors. Will you give a chance to try it out? I will anytime for sure!

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