Chris Ziegler at Engadget:
Well, that’s where the HD7S comes into play: the “S” in the name presumably stands for Super LCD, the newer type of display that HTC’s been using on recent 4.3-inch models like the Thunderbolt. It’s quite pretty, but otherwise, it’s the same HD7 as usual — and really, considering how nice this hardware is, that’s just alright by us.
Vlad Savov reviewed the non-Super HD7 back in October and noted narrow viewing angles and poor color reproduction. My response back then:
Big display and you’d think HTC would have focused on that display a bit.
I guess HTC has with the new HD7S.
CrunchGear: The LG G-Slate is an 8.9-inch Honeycomb tablet that is 3D capable, meaning you can record in 3D and view in 3D. The G-Slate connects to T-Mobile’s 4G network with a US$529.99 price after a $100 mail-in-rebate. You’re also chained to a two-year agreement. If you’re going after the iPad 2 might as well go all the way. My recommendation? Reduce the price to $499.99 out the door without a mail-in-rebate and get rid of the two-year leash.
RIM:
The BlackBerry PlayBook with Wi-Fi will be available in three models and will feature a Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) starting at $499 in the United States and Canada.
The BlackBerry PlayBook matches the $499 price of the iPad 2 and will be available at AT&T, Best Buy, RadioShack, Sprint, Verizon, you name it. Unfortunately the 7-inch LCD is limited to just 1024×600 pixels, though resolution wise it is a better-than-iPad 2 169.6 ppi. Available on April 19th.
Toshiba: The DisplayLink-powered Toshiba 14-inch USB Mobile LCD Monitor sports a 16:9 aspect ratio and a 1366×768 pixel format. Although Toshiba thinks this portable monitor is lightweight I think it is rather portly at 2.8 lbs. But you don’t have to carry an AC power adapter since power is sent via the USB connection. Other specs include: 16ms response time, 400:1 contrast ratio, up to 220 nits (when using the optional AC adapter), and 256K colors. What these specs tell me is that the Toshiba 14-inch USB Mobile LCD Monitor is at best mediocre. Price: US$199.99
What I would like to see is a really thin and light 9.7-inch USB mobile LCD monitor with IPS and 1024×768. To connect it to my iPhone 4.
Samsung announced its Galaxy Tab 8.9 and the slightly larger 10.1. Both are very thin at just 8.6 mm, which is amazingly thinner than the iPad 2 (8.8 mm). If you’ve been reading reviews of the iPad 2 one of the features most talked about is how thin it is. Well Samsung beat Apple at its own game when it comes to making tablets thin.
Not only that these two are lighter, too. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 is 470 grams. The larger 10.1 weighs 595 grams. The iPad 2? 601 grams.
The iPad 2 is stuck at 3G. Both the Galaxy Tab 8.9 and 10.1 are moving on and connects to 4G networks, great for data-hungry users that want things to download and upload faster. Recent speed test results show Verizon’s LTE to be fast, faster than most people’s home DSL connection.
The cameras are better, too. There is a three megapixel on the back and a two megapixel on the front. Much better than what the iPad 2 has: single megapixel on the back and a 640×480 up front.
But there are some bumps. First, these second-generation tablets from Samsung continue with wide aspect ratio displays: 16:10. Not exactly 16:9, which would be perfect for HD content, but better for watching HD content than an iPad or iPad 2. So how would watching HD on these Galaxy Tabs be? If you’re an Adobe Flash Player fan, then you’d be disappointed. The most recent version is 10.2 and “fairly jerky” and “series of images” is how Sean Hollister describes his experience using the Motorola Xoom. On the other hand if you’re the type to rip your DVDs and encode them into lean video files the movie watching experience on these Samsung PLS LCDs should be pretty cool. PLS stands for Plane to Line Switching and Samsung claims PLS is brighter, cheaper, and sports better viewing angles than IPS. If this turns out to be true, these Galaxy Tabs even have better displays than the iPad 2.
Then there’s the price. The 16GB WiFi-only Galaxy Tab 8.9 is US$469 and $499 for the 10.1. The Galaxy Tab 10.1 will be available June 8th while the smaller 8.9 is expected in early summer. The iPad 2 has got some competition.
The iPad 2 is the same iPad. It’s just better in every conceivable way.
That sums it up nicely.
Everyday is an iPhone app that creates self-portrait time-lapse videos. You could take hundreds per day if you can’t wait or you can wait to see how you’ve changed over hundreds of days. Very cool.
The screen was a major highlight for us. Its vivid, punchy colors remain faithful even at oblique viewing angles and the pixel density of 800 x 480 dots within a 4-inch diagonal feels just sumptuous. In day-to-day use, you’ll struggle mightily to tell a difference between this and Apple’s Retina Display or Samsung’s Super AMOLED stuff, the pair of whom represent the supreme panel technologies of our day.
I don’t think I’ll be struggling much at all to tell the 40% difference in resolution between the 233-ppi 4-inch HTC Incredible S and the 326-ppi 3.5-inch iPhone 4 Retina Display. The Super AMOLED stuff, on the other hand, could be a struggle.
According to two people with knowledge of the inner workings of a coming iteration of the Apple iPhone — although not necessarily the next one — a chip made by Qualcomm for the phone’s processor will also include near-field communication technology, known as N.F.C. This technology enables short-range wireless communications between the phone and an N.F.C reader, and can be used to make mobile payments. It is unclear which version of an iPhone this technology would be built into.
One person familiar with the new Apple feature said the phone’s credit card information would be tied to information currently used on iTunes, which would make it simple for customers to set up the new mobile payment method on the iPhone.
This will be most convenient but the thought of losing my iPhone…
So, to get the maximum effect you have to hold the 3DS perfectly still, hold it close, and make sure the 3D dial isn’t cranked too high. A pain? Yes, it is, but it quickly becomes second nature and, once you perfect it, it actually is worthwhile. The screen provides a very compelling effect and, while 3D adds absolutely nothing to the gameplay itself (you won’t be peeking around corners or better-judging throws) it genuinely improves the perceived quality of the graphics in the system’s games. Plus, it’s pretty neat.
Neat at the expense of your vision neat?
DisplayBlog is written and produced by Jin Kim. Subscribe via RSS.