Quick Look at the Motorola Charm

The latest Android phone from Motorola has He-man written all over it!! “Charm” is just as manly and intimidating as “Droid”, right?!

The TELUS Motorola Charm is going to be a phone you either love or hate. It’s cute in an ET kinda way and very pocketable. Whether you love it or not, you have to love the price; $249 off contract makes it almost an impulse buy (as smartphones go) and it comes with Android 2.1, full QWERTY keyboard and more.

Here is my quick look at the Motorola Charm. Full specs are in the link below the video

Full specs (and I DO mean “full”!!) here

Otterbox Tandem Case for Palm Pre / Pre Plus

I’ve had the chance to try out the Otterbox Tandem case on my Palm Pre and really liked it.

For those that don’t know, Otterbox makes protective cases for most popular models of cellphones. For those that have gone through the trauma of a broken phone, this is the way to save having to go to all the support group meetings; just put an Otterbox case on.  Its also very handy for those times you need to hang pictures but can’t find a hammer. (do NOT try that at home, I’m a trained professional)

The case for the Palm Pre comes in two pieces to accommodate the sliding keyboard. Also included is a screen protector that just doesn’t cut it.  More on that in a sec.

The plastic case snapped on very nicely and felt quite secure. In fact, it was actually hard to get the crazy thing off the first  couple times but it does get easier.  Once in place, the two halves allow the keyboard to open and close with just a bit extra resistance. There is a slight lip on the part around the screen to keep the screen away from direct contact to any surface.

While there was no way I was going to test the case by driving over it with my Hummer (if I had one) you can tell that there is a lot more protection there. The case feels good on the hand and although it added bulk it wasn’t bad considering the protection enhancement.

The screen protector that is included just does not work for the Pre. It does seem to be a very nice quality but on the bottom it ends at the bottom of the screen.  As anyone who uses a Pre can attest, we spend half our time swiping up from below the screen.  The edge of the screen protector was far to pronounced to make this comfortable.  The protector should have covered the whole screen.

Overall, I liked the case quite a bit. It did crowd the top row of the keyboard a bit too much, but I got used to that.  Highly recommended for keeping your Palm Pre (or any other smartphone) protected; $29.95 well spent!

Impressions: Bell Samsung Vibrant (Galaxy S)

A very nice phone with all the bells and whistles but just a little bit uninspiring.

For the last week I have been using the Samsung Vibrant from Bell and am liking it.  I can’t say I love it, but it really is quite nice.

The Samsung Vibrant is part of the Galaxy S line with a design that looks very much like the iPhone.  Certainly, its meant to compete with the iPhone and it does a nice job at doing so.  This is really the part of this phone that is a let-down for me.  I stay away from the iPhone simply because everyone else on the planet seems to have one.  I don’t really want a phone that is a carbon copy.

Don’t tell Mike I stole one of his pictures!!

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The Telus HTC Desire in the Flesh

As Mike reported on Friday, Telus released the HTC Desire. It is their latest Android device, and it is running OS 2.1. It has a 1Ghz processor, with a 3.7″ Super LCD screen. The following video walks you through my thoughts on the first full day of use.

iPhone 4 FaceTime on AT&T 3G Works Great

The iPhone 4 was officially released yesterday, and one of its highly touted new features is the front-facing camera and the inclusion of Apple FaceTime. The only serious drawback to the new FaceTime feature is that both parties must be connected to a WiFi network. Is this an Apple imposed limitation, or is this an AT&T limitation? Being a mobile technology junkie, I had to find out for myself if the AT&T network was capable of handling a high-quality FaceTime call.

Being the MacGyver of mobile computing that I am, here’s what I did to test it out. I took my Google Nexus One running Android 2.2 FroYo on the AT&T network and enabled the WiFi HotSpot feature as seen below:

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First Look at the Acer Liquid E

Thanks go to Darren and Mike, and the good folks at Rogers for putting this phone in my hands for a few days to review it.

In place of doing a long review of this phone I’m going to do a few posts documenting not just the device, but what it is like to switch from Windows Mobile to Android. Hopefully this will be an interactive exchange, where I explain what I’m doing to make the change, and for those of you who actually know what you’re doing, you can point me in the right direction when you see me floundering. I have been a diehard Windows Mobile guy since the first iPaq hit the shelves a decade ago. My smartphone use has been pretty much entirely with Windows Mobile so this could be fun.

First off the specs on the Acer Liquid E are as follows:

• Android 2.1
• WVGA 3.5 Screen
• Snapdragon processor running at 768MHz
• 5 megapixels camera
• GSM/HSPA
• Wifi b/g
• A-GPS
• Bluetooth 2.0
• 3.5mm headphone jack
• Micro SD expansion
• Dimensions: H 115mm x W 64mm x D 12.75mm
• Weight: 135g

The styling of the Liquid E seems a bit old. The face has considerable space from the sides of the screen to the edge of the device which is uncommon on most cutting edge phones these days. Coming from a Touch Pro 2 which has a keyboard, the Liquid E feels rather light and slim though. It does have a bit of a plastic feel to it. All this combined with the specs point to the fact that it isn’t a high-end device. That’s ok, we don’t all drive Porsches either. Most of us find something in the middle that works for us, and our wallets. It’s no different for phones. If you are someone looking to get into a Smartphone, you keep your phones for quite awhile, and don’t want to lay out a pile of cash, the Liquid E could very well be what you are looking for. For 50 bucks you’re in the game…..well in the game. Rogers have it on for $49.99 on a 3 year contract or $424.99 with no contract. Not Bad!

I’ll get a bit more in depth with the Liquid E in the next few days and learn what it is capable of, as well as what it is like to switch to the Android platform. Next up, I think, will be GPS. Coming soon.

Apple Facing More Antitrust Investigations

Apple is having more and more problems with the Federal Trade Commission these days. It wasn’t that long ago when Apple and Antitrust were two words you never expected to hear in the same discussion. As Apple has climbed to the top of various markets, they’ve been gathering more attention from the FTC.

According to the latest word on the street, the FTC is going to be probing Apple to determine if their tactics are restrictive to competitors in the new iAds mobile advertising space. Current policies at Apple have prevented several companies from running or advertisments on iPhones and other mobile devices powered by Apple.

The FTC is already looking into Apple’s ban on Adobe’s Flash, and Apple’s marketing practices when it comes to iTunes. And then of course, there’s the whole human rights issue around the manufacturing facilities in China. Oh, and let’s not forget the security concerns circling around the iPhone. Given that Apple is no longer a small computer company with 3% of the market, they need to start acting like a responsible enterprise and taking a serious look at these issues. It’s always better if you address them before the government forces you to change your ways – just ask Microsoft.

Apple’s New iPhone 4: Canada Bound

Yesterday, Apple’s CEO, Steve Jobs introduced the world to their newest iPhone: the iPhone 4.

The good news for Canadians is that the iPhone 4 is coming sometime soon.  Rogers will be announcing the launch on their network “within weeks”.  We’ll post pricing and availability when we know.  Most likely pricing will mirror the US – except for that little 3-years-instead-of-2-years part – and should be $199 on contract.

I made notes during the launch announcement and am including them below…just in case you didn’t want to read a long article about all the new features:

iOS4 – the name of the new OS rather than iPhone OS.  It makes sense given that it’s on the iPad as well.
iBooks – iPad and iPhone – download to both, saves your place on either and no extra cost for book.  Added PDF support.
Lots of HTML5 mentions.
$5billion in App store sales, $1billion to developers – Apple emphasize the later but my thought was “Holy Shnikies!  Apple made $4 billion just from Apps!!!”
iPhone – New design, super slim 9.3mm, glass on front and back, metal band around outside is also antennas
Front-facing camera for video conferencing called FaceTime, but only over WiFi
Rear facing cam is 5megapixel, but loaded with geeky tech goodness for great shots
SUPER high res screen, 960×640, 4x times current, called Retina display, 326 pixels per inch, 70% of iPad res – All that to say, “WOW!”  That is going to be a gorgeous screen!
Apple’s own A4 processor, the same as is in the iPad.  Should be blistering fast.
Larger battery for 40% longer life – 3g talk – 7hrs, browsing 3g – 6hrs, wifi browsing – 10hrs
Three axis Gyroscope – for better 3d gaming
HD Video capture – 720p, 30fps video
Built-in video editing (with optional iMovie) – Looks like it will be a very capable video editor, indeed!
Unified inbox with multiple exchange accounts support
Bing search added
iAds – because Apple isn’t making enough money yet.
By September will roll out to 88 countries – very fast rollout
June 21st, free upgrade too all iPhone, iPad and iPod users but won’t have all features on 3G iPhone and 2G touch

Sounds pretty darn impressive.  Are you getting one?

The End of a Mobile Marriage

As of 1PM EDT yesterday, my iPhone 3GS has officially been retired. Me and old whitey (my white iPhone 3GS) had an amicable divorce performed by a Best Buy Wireless associate. There was a lot of love in that relationship over the last two years. Old whitey got a minor facelift, dropped a few pounds, and got a whole lot faster from summer of 2008 to summer of 2009 to call herself the 3GS instead of the 3G.

I never much cared for my mother-in-law in that relationship. Ol’ Ma Bell, more formally known to outsiders as AT&T, always caused troubles in our relationship. She was always trying to get in my business. If she thought I had talked enough, she’d just drop the call. Being old-timey in her ways she thought I spent too much time Twittering and playing on “the Facebook” so she would see to it all too frequently that my Internet connection would be non-existent. Now she wants to limit everybody’s access and limit them to a fixed amount of bandwidth before being penalized monetarily.

Don’t feel too sad for me. I’m happy to report that I’m in the early courting stages with another who is very sexy. Oh is she beautiful. She’s larger than any others I’ve been with, but big girls need love, too. I call her EVO. Her figure is gorgeous. Slim, beautiful, vibrant, fast, engaging. She’s got more radios than you’d find at a NASCAR race. Wi-fi Wireless N, CDMA 3G, WiMax 4G, bluetooth, and even FM radio.

EVO is a much more social creature than old whitey. I can go to one place and see what’s happening on Twitter, Facebook, and Flickr. My contacts are vibrant with photos imported from my Facebook friends. My calendar is unified with my Exchange, GMail, and Facebook accounts. Not only does she dig the long ball with the MLB at Bat app, she likes robots, too. I may have found the one.

New myTouch 3G Slide Reviewed at Mobile Burn

“The new T-Mobile myTouch 3G Slide is the second HTC-developed Android smartphone to wear the T-Mobile myTouch badge. This time around myTouch gets to brag about a hardware keyboard and a pretty current Android 2.1 operating system with HTC Sense user interface extensions. That’s not too shabby.”

T-Mobile has released their latest Android handset and it looks like to be a pretty decent device. The myTouch 3G slide offers a side-slideoffset keyboard with a 5MP camera and powered by a pretty current Android 2.1.

Michael Oryl over at Mobile Burn has posted a indepth review of the myTouch 3G Slide. Check out the review to see all the good and bad this new HTC device has to offer.

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