The Primer Wireless Stereo Headset uses 5.8GHz wireless technology to connect with the Xbox 360. In addition, the Primer includes precision balanced 40mm neodymium drivers and controls which allow gamers to separately adjust volume and in-game chat levels. The Primer is the third of four co-branded headsets to be released for the Xbox 360 and the first wireless product in the range. The Headset is comfortable and easy on the ears. The sound quality of the headset is incredible, crisp and clear and the range of the 5.8Ghz frequency is amazing and you can cover a great distance with this headset. It is priced at under $100. The Xbox 360 Primer headset, is a well crafted piece of work, what you have are two 40mm drivers on each ear cup to give you clean crisp sound. The right ear cup house the battery bay for two double a batteries, while the left ear cup you have controls for volume in-game chat volume, power /sync button, mic mute button and a line in jack to connect directly to your Xbox 360 controller. They unit also has a sync station which connects to your Xbox 360- via micro USB to USb and allows for wireless audio syncing. So how good doe sit sound and can we get the same rang e we got from the hands-on at CES 2012

Conclusion

The Tritton Xbox 360 Primer Headset show the value of great partnership, with a well crafted head set. That meets all expectations. On it is comfortable., though the ear cups look small. It actually fits very well, it is wireless and easy to set up, no rocket science degree needed.  Plus the wireless range on this thing is great, I maxed out at about 40- 45 feet. Which means for most people you can sit anywhere in your house and play or at least listen to audio on your Xbox 360. Over I love it and only wish the headset was recharge and didn’t use double A batteries. Definitely a worthy buy!!

MadCatz Tritton Primer Xbox 360 Gaming Headset VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

The Lenovo IdeaPad U400 is a stylish thin and light laptop. Though not quite and Ultrabook, the U400 exhibits a lot of those features. As Lenovo claims to have a 7hr battery life and a 30 day standby time on the unit. Least take a look at the design of the Lenovo U400. It is made from a single sheet of Aluminum  that is sandblasted to give it a warmer touch.  The U400 is designed to look like a actual note book, though we could agree it borrow a lot of it’s styling from the MacBook. The U400 is less than an inch thick (22.6mm) and weighs about 4.36lbs. Specs wise, the U400 ranges from a 2nd generation Intel core i3- i7, up to 8GB of ram, 1TB of HDD storage or 64GB SSD1 storage, video graphics are either Intel GMA HD 3000 Graphics or AMD Radeon HD6470M 1GB. Built-in DVD drive, 1 USB 3.0, 1 USB 2.0, HDMI out. Integrated 1.3M (720P)webcam.  An interesting part of the U400 is the fact that it has only one vent to keep the unit cool, it  is deigned with a breathable keyboard that allows air to flow through the keyboard into the unit and then two fan cool the system and flush air out the singular vent on the left side of the U400. Here are the specs for the system we tested

• Intel Core i5 processor 2.4Ghz
• 6GB of Ram
• HD6470M 1GB Graphics processor

Conclusion

The Lenovo IdeaPad U400 is a solid Laptop, on the issue and claim of 7hr battery life, I did get roughly 6hrs with Wi-fi , browser on energy efficient mode. Which is close to Lenovo’s stated battery life number. On performance the core i5 processor handled video processing very well and some other heavier task.  Another very useful feature is the Lenovo One Key recovery, which allows you to backup your system easily. Also if you have a failure in Windows you can use the One Key recovery Button on the left side of the U400 to restore your system.  The are some fault with the U400, the most important one is the TouchPad, though nice and smooth, can be finicky, key board feels shallow and no SD card reader slot, which I don’t understand why. Still the Lenovo IdeaPad U400 is a solid Laptop, with great battery life and performance.

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The Samsung Series 830 SSD, is truly a remarkable piece of hardware, well designed to showcase as a light and easily placed piece of hardware. The Samsung Series 830 SSD comes with Norton’s Ghost and Batman: Akrham Asylum. Which is a very sweet deal if you ask me The Series 830 SSD is very light and weighs only .14LB, easy to install with  the provided cabled and crew in the packaging. Also included with all 830 Series SSDs is Samsung’s SSD Magician 3.0 software, which assures the same great performance throughout the life of your PC by making it easy for you to maintain your new drive at its peak condition. Samsung Magician software also provides a “SecureErase” function that lets users fully erase the contents of their SSD in less than a minute. Samsung SSDs’ performance also benefits from using double-data rate (DDR) toggle NAND flash memory. Our 20-nanometer-class toggle DDR NAND chips enable data transfer rates up to 133 megabits per second (Mbps)—more than two times faster than conventional (66 Mbps) single-data-rate (SDR) NANchips. For a first time SSD user, the Samsung Series 830 is a very practical choice, its easy to set up and drive speeds make using a regular hard drive seem very obsolete. Though priced at $449, you can find it only for around $390, which is well priced and worth the purchase Enjoy our video review for full details on the Samsung Series 830 SSD

Samsung 830 Series 256GB SSD Features and Specifications:

• Product Type:
  Solid State Drive with Notebook Upgrade Kit SATA – SATA III (6Gb/s)
• Design:
  2.5″ 7mm (Ultraslim) Form Factor
• Series:830
• Storage
• Capacity:
  256GB
• Features
• Sequential Read Speed:
  520MB/s
• Sequential Write Speed:
  400MB/s
• Random Read Speed:
  80K IOPS
• Random Write Speed:
  30K IOPS
• Power Consumption (W):
  .12W
• Voltage:
  5V ± 5%
• Operating SystemsCompatible:
  Windows 7 (32-bit and 64-bit), Vista, XP, MAC OSX, Linux
• Operating Temperature:
  32F to 140F
• WeightProduct:
  .14 lbs.
• Warranty Product:
  3 Years
• Product Contents
• Contents:
  Drive, USB to SATA Cable, Drive Spacer for 9.5mm drive bays, Norton Ghost 15, SSD Magician 3.0, Documentation

Samsung Series 830 SSD VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

The Verizon BlackBerry Curve 9370 was announced last week at CEs 2012 and is available in stores today. The Curve 9370 is the latest in the curve family Line on the Verizon Network. it sports a 2.44-inch display that isn’t touch screen, a 5- megapixel camera, and is a Global ready smartphone on the Verizon network, with a Vodaphone 3G sim-card. The Curve 9370 has a 2GB microSD that is expandable up to 32Gb . It also supports NFC and has Bluetooth 2.1 and Wi-Fi B/G/N & GPS.  The Unit itself is very light and I feel is one of the lightest Blackberries to date.

BlackBerry Travel is a nice little additive on the BlackBerry Curve 9370, giving the user full access to booking tickets, setting up travel plans, checking local weather and getting great deals on trips. This is a useful feature I can see been fully beneficial to the business class user that BlackBerry attracts and has as their core customer base

BlackBerry Traffic is a free voice navigation service from BlackBerry, that gives you turn by turn directions. Though not giving you a map view, does indicate and show you traffic congestion and toll routes. It is nice that BlackBerry has packaged something extra into their smartphone as a free feature with the device.

The New curve 9370 from BlackBerry on Verizon is a super light-weight device, feels much lighter and performs faster than the previous curves. the addition of BlackBerry, travel and traffic are a welcome plus to BlackBerry 7.1 OS. Though an NFC capable device, we have yet to see any functional use of NFC technology on the new BlackBerrys let a lone the Blackberry Curve 9370. But in the end it feels like more of the same, which could be a good or bad thing.

Verizon BlackBerry Curve 9370 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

The new tournament grade controller has been specifically designed for the competitive and professional gamer. Engineered to perform at the highest possible level, the MLG Pro Circuit Controller is available now for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft® and the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system from Sony®. What MadCatz has created here is what I call a gamer dream. Is this is designed to pro-gaming specs but the have achieved with the controllers customization and comfort is second to none.

Almost every control layout is customizable except for the button, XYBA, LR, LB, RB, RR. The faceplate and palm rest are changeable, allowing you to give your controller a customized look. Its got a 6 feet cord that is detachable at the point of the controller for easy packaging in the carrying pouch that comes with the controller, it is also detachable close to the USB console connector in case some on trips over your wires, you controller doesn’t’ go flying.  But the unique aspect of the controller is the customization of the analog sticks and d-pad. yes you can pop them out and place them an where on your controller. Going for an Xbox 360 style setup to a PS3 style setup on you Xbox 360  MLG controller. Or you could come up with you very own custom setup

Conclusion

I have been impressed by the MadCatz MLG Controller for the Xbox 360, we got our first glimpse at CES 2012 and I can say after spending some quality time with this controller, this is the definitely controller to have at home on the road as a gamer.  Everything from the weight of the controller is adjustable to the style of controller you like and you control layout, giving you the best possible advantage in gaming you could ask for. Which is what every gamer wants and is looking for when playing their favorite game. The the controller have faults or issue, nothing serious to note, though I wished the lock and unlock mechanism for the d-pad/analog stick was a little looser. But I can live with that.  In all at the price Point of 4999 and the value will will get the controller,, “yes its price 440 more than a normal controller” but it isn’t a normal controller. I say the MLG PRO Circuit Xbox 360 controller is worth every penny and a solid, solid buy.

MadCatz MLG Xbox 360 Pro Circuit Controller VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

I could not have received my Black Powerbag Deluxe at a more opportune time.  It was the start of kickoff for CES, and things were closing up for the night when I received this wonderful gift.  Having just gotten off a long flight, being jetlagged from a long trip west I broke off from the group to call it a night early and rest up for what was assured to be a busy week – and in the mean time, get my Powerbag set up for the following day – which ended up being a much needed Powerbag. The first thing I noticed was the ease of the power chord.  From its small tuck away beside the battery, it is easily confined, and hidden from view when not in use, and when needed, is as accessible as one might hope – a person can get it plugged in and charging in about 15 seconds.  I then started to pack the bag – and Panic set it.  How would it all fit?  A laptop, 3 cameras, pencils, pens, monopod… it seemed too daunting a task to possibly work.  However, within 10 Min I had everything packed away with room to spare – the notebooks, pens and a few business cards fit easily up in the space above the battery/charger; all cameras, monopod, a large box of cards, and all associated cables, chargers and such fit into the largest opening of the bag with room to spare.

The most valuable parts were the small pockets we used on the sides to charge our iPods, phones, WIFI port, and Camera.   Never throughout the time we had the bag with us did we suffer through a dead camera or Cell, and with them being in the small side pockets, they were of quick access to us; with the need to film and catch pictures of video at a moments notice,  this was of extreme value.  The pockets that do not have power (the side pocket on its own, and the small front pocket) were perfect for holding small items that we might need frequently, like a tin of mints, aspirin, and 5 hour energy drinks. With 3 of our group of 5 utilizing FUL bags of one type or another, it was of a need to have the backpack for 3 of us to share; at one point or another throughout the week each and every one of us used this bag to keep our electronic equipment alive while away from our rooms for long periods.  The spaciousness and padded back gave me comfort even while carrying heavy amounts, and the long last battery offered us quick charges for our small sized electronic devices.  Plus, with a price point around $170, it is in line with some of the top bags around.

The Pantech Burst is the latest addition to AT&T’s 4G LTE smartphone arsenal on the budget range. This  smartphone is equipped with a 4-inch Super AMOLED screen with an 800 x 480-pixel resolution, a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, a 5-megapixel camera capable of recording 720p HD video, a 2-megapixel front-facing camera for video chats and 16GB of storage.  The Pantech Burst doesn’t have any physical with four touch sensitive buttons for menu, home, back and search. The device is very snappy wit its dual-core processor, and comes with a custom skin UI over Android 2.3.5.

The Pantech Burst is heavily skinned across the whole UI, but not to worry Pantech has done a good job in creating a custom overlay that adds a lot to the overall Android experience. From the lock screen that provides you options in unlocking to different applications on the phone. Also the notification bar allows for quick access to easy settings on the device, which provides the user with setting controls for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, Alarm, App management, tethering and sound control.  A lot of the additives to the OS have been well though out and well placed.  The Pantech Burst is also a 4G LTE device on the AT&T network and bow doe sit provide some eye-popping speeds in our tests, we got Maximum download speeds of 40Mbps and upload speeds of 20Mbps, which is fantastic and does help accentuate the values of this budget Android device.

The Pantech Burst is great for its price point, providing values as well as a solid user experience with the thrills of AT&T’s 4G LTE. The phone is now available for just $49.99 with a new two-year AT&T contract; plus AT&T has a sweet bundle deal that’s available for the Pantech Burst & Pantech Element tablet . Rather than paying $50 for the Burst and another $300 for the Element, if you purchase them simultaneously, you can grab the two for a deal at $249.99 on-contract — a savings of $100.

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The Droid Razr Maxx is the latest extension in the Droid Razr family by Motorola, what makes the Droid Razr Maxx different is the addition of a 3330mAh battery that only bumps the thickness of the device to 8.99mm. Which is truly astounding feat. Spec wise the Droid Razr Maxx is similar to is older brother the Droid Razr sport a 4.3 inch Super AMOLED qHD display that is coated with Gorilla glass. Powered by a dual-core processor and running Android 2.3.5 with 1GB of ram for some smooth operations all running by Android™ 2.3.5, Gingerbread

So we know the Droid Razr Maxx is pretty much a Droid Razr with a beefier battery. At 3330mAh Motorola Has stuffed an extended battery into a slim profile. So to see if the companies claims of 21hr talk time and 8 hrs of movie viewing was correct, we decided to carry out our own test.First we did a movie viewing test to see how long the battery will last with on a single charge watching 3 movies. Then we did a call time test. Actually we did two test, First was a call test with the LCD on and second was a Call test with the LCD off and here are the result.

Watching 3 Movies on the Droid Razr Maxx
Motorola Claim- 8 hrs
Actual-                    6hrs 7mins

Call time test
Motorola claim-            21hrs
Actual with LCD off-      22hrs 10mins
Actual with LCD on-     9hrs 16mins

Conclusion

Motorola Set the bar pretty high with the original Droid Razr released last year with its ultra thin profile and sleekness, it also feature some innovative software additives like Motoro cast which allows you to stream content back and fort to your home server or PC from anywhere in the world via Verizon’ Wireless 4G LTE. The Droid Razr Maxx has all these and a little extra with its 3330mAh battery, which lives up to Motorola’s Battery claims; with 22hrs of talk time in our test and 6hrs of video watching. The Droid Razr maxx can be deemed the best and most reliable Android smartphone dare I say Smartphone on the market.

Specs

1GB RAM for a fast user interface and multi-tasking
8-megapixel rear camera with 1080p HD video capture and image stabilization technology for crisp and clear videos
Front-facing HD camera for video chat over 4G LTE, 3G or Wi-Fi
4G LTE Mobile Hotspot capable so customers can share 4G LTE speed with up to eight Wi-Fi enabled devices
Water repellent nanocoating protects the phone, and even the inside components, against everyday spills
Remote wipe, pin lock and government-grade encryption for email, calendar and contacts as well as voice and video chat conferencing
Use Quickoffice® to view, create and edit Microsoft® Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents on yourmobile device from anywhere at anytime
Bluetooth 4.0 low energy
32 GB memory: 16 GB on board and 16 GB microSD™ card pre-installed (actual formatted capacity is less)
Powerful 3300 mAh battery

Droid Razr Maxx VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

The Motorola Droid XYBOARD 8.2 is the sequel to the ill launched Motorola Xoom, and the first Motorola Tablet to take the Droid name. This tablet packs the regular features you will find in an standard Android 3.2 tablet. it sports a 1.2Ghz dual-core processor, 1.3 megapixel front facing camera, a 5 megapixel rear camera with LED flash 7 a mini HDMI-out. It also sports a high definition IPS display. the XYBAORD 8.2 is a 4G LTE device and is capable of creating a hot sport for up to 8 devices.

The Droid XYBOARD is a very slim device, taking design cues from the Droid Razr, it is sleek and slim, with corner edges matching the Razr . there are no buttons on the front of the device, with the the power and Vol. toggle are at the back of the XYBOARD 8.2. The XYBOARD  8.2 is splash resistant, to protect from water damage, its has also got a soft rubberized coating around the edge of the device.

The Droid XYBOARD 8.2 is a better refresh from the Motorola Xoom, design wise the 8.2-inch Android tablet feels more comfortable and easier to handle; that being said the Droid XYBOARD 8.2 does experience some slow downs, and though 4G LTE was great on the device, using it as a hopspot  present some issues with lost data connections. The Droid XYBOARD is a a reliable tablet and does a decent number on battery life at about 8hrs. Still there is a lot more Motorola could have done with this tablet to make it more than adequate

As is typical with Lelo, the Nea was very elegantly boxed, with a small plastic covering over the Nea to keep it in place. The very first thing I noticed was the purple flower print that starts on the very tip; when I flipped is, I found a larger, adorable purple flower that is very cute stretching across three quarters of the Nea – It is really cute and compact. I turned it over to find more patterns on the back, which makes it feel a little bit more personalized. Similar to a computer-mouse, the curved shape of the massager has a built-in rechargeable battery that is not only functional, but convenient, as you don’t have to keep on buying batteries for it.

Although I find that it is somewhat hard – as it is not cloaked with silicone like the Lyla – it packs an exceptional pulse with multiple settings in a petite, discreet package. Nea also has a feature that allows it to be lockable; therefore, you can travel with it without fear of it accidently activating, or lock it on a particular setting without worrying about hitting a button. With it being so small and made out of molded plastic, It is extremely easy to clean – but be careful, as it is not waterproof due to the recharge socket, and moisture can seep in if you do not take care.

As I said, it is a very compact and discreet personal massager, but with it being so small, the small buttons and settings do need some getting used to. Nea is known for its long battery life – up to 7 hours – which makes it exceptional for personal use or use with your partner. It has 5 different vibration settings, and with several different strengths of vibrations to choose from, you can find multiple settings that work best for you, or your significant other.

With all this being said, the Nea personal massager is absolutely outstanding for its compact size; its very powerful and you don’t even need to buy batteries for it. It not only look cute and pretty; it also delivers results from an adorable little package.

The Asus Transformer Prime is the Latest Android tablet and we were blessed with an Android 4.0 update during the Unboxing. The Transformer Prime is a 8.3mm thick table and weighs only 566g that house the Tegra 3 ka-el chip, a Quad-core processor, great for gaming on the go and will provide smooth operations to the system. It uses a Super IPS display with a 178 degree viewing angle with Gorilla glass .

An 8 Megapixel camera in the rear and a 1.2 megapixel camera in the front  for video chat. 1080p recording with the rear camera and a back illuminated CMOS sensor for taking photos in low light and better video recording. 32/64GB of inbuilt storage plus cloud storage in from Asus.

The Hardware of the Asus transformer primes is sleek, polish and well refined. The power button is located at the top of the device, with the volume toggles on the left of the device, the 10-inch Asus Transformer prime has a thick bezel and is very finger print happy. There is also a microSD slot, giving you the ability to expand your storage options beyond the capacity listed for the device.  overall I think the hardware is solid, its light  and easy to use, though it has a thick bezel and is not finger print friendly. It is still a well crafted device

Prime Camera Test

The Asus Transformer Primes has an 8 megapixel camera with an LED flash,  making it the highest megapixel camera found on a tablet to date. So we give the camera a test run to see how will it functions, In taking video and stills. It should be noted the camera has the ability to record in time-lapse as it is standard on all Android 4.0 devices, as we saw on the Galaxy Nexus . Enjoy this  1080p camera test.

ASUS Transformer Prime Camera Shots VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Conclusion

The Asus Transformer Prime is a power machine, the fact Asus was able to cram in the Tegra 3(Kal-el) chip  into such a thin profile and form factor is something to take note, the device runs like a dream, of course during our review we were running Android 4.0 on the tablet.  Operations were smooth and efficient, the device is built for mobile gaming handling different games with ease. Battery life is impeccable, considering you have a quad-core processor in the Asus Transformer prime, I still got up to 1hrs of battery life. It also helps that the Asus UI overlay on Android 4.0 gives you options to toggle your CPU usage, as well as the brightness on the Super IPS display. Which might I add is fantastic outdoors.  Overall the Asus Transformer Prime has set the Gold standard in 2012 for android based tablets, with power, efficiency and overall design. Lets see how the competition responds

From the first moment I opened the box, I didn’t expect what I found inside. Within an elegant black box, just like I was receiving high-end jewelry, there was my new Lyla; it was extremely well laid out with the grace and elegance that you rarely find in a personal massager. I found two items before me; a round diskette controller and an oval shaped wireless massager with a removable silver tip for charging.

Upon picking them up, they were light and smooth to hold; the soft silicone-like material that covers the massagers are extremely soft. I charged the oval massager and put two AAA batteries (included) into the controller. While waiting, I began to read the manual to familiarize myself with my new Lyla. Once charged, `I began to experiment with Lyla; syncing can be tricky, but once you get the hang of it, its not too bad and can be activated with relative ease.

The sense motion on Lyla allows the one holding the controller to understand what the other party is feeling and experiencing. Furthermore, the one in charge of the controller can control the strength of the vibrations by tilting the disc; they can also shake it for intense pulse. The range of the Lyla is fantastic; enough for you to be in the opposite side of the room, yet still share the experience. Although it can be slightly loud at times (especially with the disc), the vibrations on it are magnificent, both in strength and intensity. There are multiple settings you can experiment with to find your preference. The toy is also a heaven to clean, due to its smooth surface. Overall, our experience was absolutely marvelous and every time I use it I find something else new about it.

This is the perfect gift for your partner for every occasion and situation, especially with Valentines Day quickly approaching. Although it does not sparkle like jewelry, but just as stylish and elegant, it certainly brings its own sense of grace and personality; unlike jewelry, it is something both you and your partner can enjoy everyday.

LELO Lyla VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

The Nokia Lumia 710 is the first Windows Phone by Nokia on the T-Mobile network. This device is geared at the first time smartphone users and is priced competitively and accordingly at $49.99. The Lumia 710 sports a Clear black 3.7-inch display, powered by  a 1.4Ghz Qualcomm MSM8255 Snapdragon processor, with 8GB of storage a 5 megapixel camera that records at 720p and a front facing VGA camera for video chat. The Lumia 710 also comes packed with ESPN app, Nokia Drive(navigation), Netflix and a few other applications. Also the Lumia 710 uses a micro-sim. The hardware feels solid, though a bit plasticy with the replaceable back cover. The Lumia 710 is light weight and feels comfortable. though I will say the physical button bar can be a tad hard to press at times. The device doesn’t have a front facing camera for video chat

In this video we shall see how well Nokia first official reentry into the US market fairs, and is it the true budget smartphone it is dubbed to be.

5MP Camera

The camera test of the Nokia Lumia 710 is a set  recording at 720p, This video also includes shots in low light as well as some still attached. The Lumia 710 does a good job with its 5megapixel camera in taking stills as well as recording at 720p. It is also one of the few windows phone camera that allows photos to be taken widescreen.  Enjoy the camera test footage below.

Conclusions

The Nokia Lumia 710 is a very solid entry back into the US market, at an entry price point of $49.99 and at some places free, the Nokia Lumia 710 is a very attractive offering to the first time smartphone user, plus the addition of Nokia drive goes a long way in giving smartphone user a free turn-by-turn navigation system that can be used in over 140 countries world wide.  The are things I wished Nokia had done with the device, the lack of a front facing camera Is not acceptable in this day and age, though the excuse may be it’s a budget device and Skype has not been integrated into windows phone. But we know its coming and I don’t want to upgrade to use it, the use of plastic on the build is a choice I didn’t expect Nokia to take, which makes the device feel cheap in some areas. Overall the Lumia 710 is still very solid, pplus the battery life on the device puts other devices on the network to shame.

Nokia Lumia 710 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

The Samsung Q10, is a light weight dual-handed camcorder that records at 1080p,. What it means is the Q10 allows for both right handed and left handed use with its 180 degree rotation option. The Q10 doesn’t come with internal memory but support SD cards and micro-SD cards.The Q10, with its advanced BSI CMOS technology, sheds new light to your videos. The 1/4″ 5M (1/5.8″ 2.07M effective) Pixel BSI CMOS delivers double the sensitivity of conventional CMOS sensors. By dramatically reducing image noise and distortion, and enhancing recording quality during low light conditions,  The Samsung Q10 has a very simple and easy to use menus structure, that lets you get in and out of the menus and back to recording. The one feature I like is the OIS, which helps eliminate shaky cam syndrome. The Q10 also can charge via USB, So no need to logo around a charger for your camera.

Samsung Q10 handycam VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Overall: stunning hardware, fresh software

The design of the N9 was a major hit with reviewers, offering a sleek unibody exterior with no joins or seams to be found anywhere. The screen is slightly convex, providing improved viewing angles, and the Clear Back Display displays colours brilliantly even in direct sunlight.

The N9 is slightly more striking than the Lumia 800 because it lacks any buttons on the front at all, whereas the Lumia has the obligatory three Windows Phone buttons, albeit capacitive: back, home and search. The N9 also boasts a front facing camera and a charging light, both of which would be welcome on the Lumia 800.

Both devices could be heralded as the devices Nokia fans have long been wanting. The N9’s MeeGo is completely new and fresh, but still has hints of the N900’s Maemo 5. Boot-up time for the Lumia is mere seconds, and miles faster than the N9. Both Windows Phone and MeeGo are departures from Symbian, with streamlined and easy to understand menus and a noticeable lack of lag. In day-to-day usage, though, the Lumia 800 has the edge: in my time with it there has been no lag whatsoever, despite a populated home screen and lots of installed applications. In contrast, the N9 is prone to stutter when scrolling the list of apps even without having anything new installed. It’s still a very quick device, especially when playing games, but it isn’t the faultlessly smooth scrolling experience that is offered on iOS and Windows Phone.

SMS inbox now a communication hub

With Maemo 5, Nokia introduced a true communication hub by having online conversations (such as MSN Messenger and Facebook Chat) stored in the inbox alongside SMS conversations. The N9 continues this as does Windows Phone, but the latter takes it a step further by storing all communication with a particular contact in one thread. This means you can be talking to your friend Joe on Facebook and when he goes offline you can continue the conversation through text messaging, and it all shows up seamlessly in one thread.

It’s a simple touch, but it’s one that makes us wonder why it hasn’t been implemented before. As phones are communication devices, it’s a touch of brilliance to offer such a simple and obvious improvement over the competition.

Nokia N9 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Browsing and email

. The N9 isn’t quite so advanced, but it’s easily on par with others. It is quick, both to render and for navigation, streamlined and tapping the address bar will bring a list of your most-visited sites as well as letting you enter an address or search the web.

The Windows Phone keyboard is a joy to use, and the Lumia 800 is probably the first phone without a hardware keyboard that I enjoy typing on. As with the browser, credit for this must go to Microsoft and not Nokia. The keyboard is uniquely designed in that it predicts what letter you will type next and slightly enlarge it, making typing more accurate than it can be on other devices. It has an excellent auto-correct that is only rarely wrong, and unlike the iPhone it offers more than word when it makes suggestions – the bolded one is what it will correct to, while the others can be selected manually.

The N9 keyboard is comparatively weak. Oddly, it takes up a minor amount of screen estate, which is good for composing long messages in a text field but can make typing difficult. It has auto-correct off by default, and when first used out of the box is cumbersome and difficult. After a few seconds in the settings menu and a few tweaks, though, it becomes much more manageable and it becomes easier to type quickly. The main drawback, however, is that the space key is narrow, meaning the full-stop button is often pressed instead.

Conclusion

At the end of my time with it, my opinion is the N9 is the experience that all phones should have, as it is so intuitive. It’s not until using it that it can be realised how obvious it is that a swipe to exit an application is a better option than adjusting your hand position to hit a button. Similarly, swiping to see the open applications and even closing them by swiping from top to bottom of the screen. Swiping from bottom to top will show a dock similar to iOS, with phone, messaging, camera and web; in other words, the most commonly used applications so the user can access them quickly without swiping to the homescreen then swiping to find them. The N9 is unlocked by double tapping the screen, and having got used to this I found myself repeatedly tapping on the Lumia’s screen to unlock it – which isn’t implemented, but hopefully will be in the future.