At the heart of Qualcomm’s popularity among consumers is the Snapdragon line of processors (or SoC). The chip company has developed the Snapdragon to be among the most advanced and efficient chip for mobile phones and tablets today.
So it’s a rare opportunity to be able to see the Snapdragon S4 in the flesh (unless of course you pry open your Google Nexus 4 and extract the chip from the board).
This little chip contains the application processor, the graphics processor, the DSP (digital signal processor), WiFi, GPS (GLONASS), Bluetooth and 3G/4G.
From memory, the S4 seems to be in the same size as an Intel Atom. The main difference is that the Atom chip does not have other functions like the DSP, Bluetooth, GPS and 3G/4G embedded into the chip.
The ability to shrink the size of the processor allows OEMs to make really thin and really light smartphones and tablets. Where Qualcomm focuses more effort is in making these chips very efficient allowing for longer battery life, minimal heat dissipation and over-all better performance.
Despite the optimization and integration done with the chipset, the biggest problems in smartphones remains to be the battery life. The more power the chipset manages to conserve, the OEMs will only offset that benefit by adding more power-hungry components (like bigger screens, etcs).
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Been trying to order the Google Nexus 4 since I arrived here in San Diego, CA yesterday but to no avail. The waiting time is now between 6 to 7 weeks for the 8GB and already sold out again for the 16GB.
Fortunately, during our tour of San Diego City today, one of the delegates from Vietnam (yeah, the guys who made those iPhone leaks) has one which I borrowed for a short while.
The handset feels really good on the hands, has that very solid feel and some heft that gives the impression it’s the same build quality as the iPhone 4/4s with the sandwiched glass body. Android 4.2 Jellybean is very smooth on this device.
The back panel has that glossy finish, feels like glass or some very hard transparent polycarbonate material that laminates the glittery design. Despite having a 4.7-inch panel, the Nexus 4 feels a little short (because it’s wider than your usual handset like the One X, Optimus 4X HD or S3).
All in all, it’s a pretty neat Nexus handset.
We tried the rear camera on the device and the shots are impressive. Here are a few photos we took from it.
We’ll add some more info about it later after we’ve download Antutu and Quadrant for some benchmarks.
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In the past, phones with TV functionality was a hit for some of our fellow Pinoys. Star Mobile looks to bring that fad back with the Astra. Catch the full review after the break.
Star Mobile has been making its mark on the local scene with their affordable products. But not only do their products are inexpensive; it also has a pretty decent build and performance which makes it a choice for most budget-conscious consumers. From the looks of it, the Astra seems to be just that: affordable and feature-packed.
Design and Construction
At first sight, the phone actually looks like an HTC Desire/Sensation with its curved edges painted in metallic brown with a small silver accent on the earpiece part. So if you’re a fan of Sensation’s design, you’re most likely to dig the Astra too.
The phone has a pretty straightforward layout. It has the Power button at the top in between the micro-USB and audio port and a pair of volume rocker on the right side.
Over the back is where the 8MP camera is located along with a pair of LED lights for flash. Still on the back side, towards the bottom part of the handset is a vent for the speaker and phones retractable antenna for the TV functionality.
Lift its plastic back plate and you’ll be greeted with its 1500mAh battery, two SIM card slots and a micro-SD card slot.
Multimedia
As mentioned on our first impression, the Star Mobile Astra has a 4.3-inch IPS display with WVGA resolution. It should be enough to give users a pleasant viewing experience and wide viewing angle thanks to its IPS display.
The sound output was also pretty good. It’s a tad hissy for the most part, but still good enough to get your basic aural needs covered. Its loudspeaker is loud enough for the sound to be audible even when you’re 3-4 feet away from the phone.
There’s no denying that this phone’s main selling point is its Mobile TV app which lets user watch local channels using the handset. As mentioned on our first impression, the TV Tuner is only analog which explains the sub-standard quality, but it should be watchable especially if you have a good reception in your area.
Performance and Usability
Knowing your way around the phone’s settings and options will just be a breeze as the Star Mobile Astra makes use of a stock Android ICS. The same can be said for the default keyboard which also stock Android.
The keys are well-spaced and provides good feedback when pressed but it’s too laggy for my liking which makes it a little bit difficult (and irritating at times) to compose messages.
The phone doesn’t break any new grounds in terms of speed, but its dual-core processor should deliver a decent enough performance to handle your basic smartphone needs without breaking a sweat. I did, however, encounter a number of apps crashing, random restarts and lags that we didn’t experience with the recent dual-SIM, dual-core smartphones we’ve reviewed. In short, the performance was OK, but is a bit lagging when pitted against other smartphones of the same category.
We’ve also experienced a handful of dropped calls and reception-related issues while using the Astra. Of course, network coverage can factor in on the dropped calls, but since we’re using the handset on the same location and using the same network as the other units in the past, we’re inclined to think that it’s the phone that’s causing this.
Camera and Video
Having an 8MP camera w/ flash is a rare feature for dual-SIM handsets in the market. In fact, we only know two devices which are equipped with such snapper; the Star Mobile Astra and the MyPhone A919 Duo. But after taking a handful of pictures using the Astra, I have to say the slight bump in the megapixel count didn’t have a significant difference from those dual-SIM handsets with 5MP camera.
The videos recorded using the Astra are usable for the most part, but don’t expect stunning quality out of it. The highest quality that this handset can go is 720p, but you’d have to manually set it on the camera settings because the default is 640 x 480.
Battery
Having two SIM cards is too much to handle for the Astra’s 1500mAh battery pack as it struggles to even last a day with light-to-moderate usage which includes SNS running on the background with feeds set to every 5 minutes, an hour’s worth of browsing over cellular data, 15-20 SMS, 10-15 minutes of calls, and an hour’s worth of playing Fruit Ninja.
Note that we didn’t even touch the Mobile TV functionality on that test. When we did use it, the phone only lasted 5 hours which includes two documentaries (Reel Time and Reporter’s Notebook), SNS running on the background with feeds set to every 5 minutes, an hour’s worth of browsing over cellular data and an hour’s worth of gaming.
Conclusion
The Star Mobile Astra has a desirable design, decent camera and of course Mobile TV. However, you’d have to live with the fact that the battery isn’t at par with its competition and is a bit laggy at times. But after using it as my main handset for a little over two weeks, I have to say that you won’t be disappointed shelling out PhP6,990 for this smartphone.
StarMobile Astra specs:
4.3-inch IPS display @ 800×480 pixels, 240ppi
MediaTek MT6577 1.0GHz dual-core Cortex-A9
PowerVR SGX 531
512MB RAM
4GB internal storage
up to 32GB via microSD (8GB included)
3G/HSPA, dual-SIM, dual standby
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth 2.0
GPS w/ aGPS support
8MP rear camera w/ dual-LED flash
VGA front-facing camera
TV Tuner (analog)
Li-Ion 1500mAh battery
Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich
Dimension: 130.5 x 66.5 x 10.9mm
Weight: 132g
What we liked about the StarMobile Astra:
Decent hardware specs
Really affordable price
Built-in OTA TV tuner
IPS Display
Dual-SIM Android ICS phone
What we did not like about it:
Can be a battery hog
Can be a bit laggy at times
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Ever since the first Galaxy Note, 5 inch devices were coming out in all corners — but it’s very seldom that we see someone experiment with the smartphone form factor. In this case, LG tries to recreate the phablet by making the device with an aspect ratio of 4:3. Check out our full review of the LG Optimus Vu after the break.
The device feels like a direct reply to the Samsung Galaxy Note as it even features a stylus and an app for it. Can this device grab attention away from other 5-inch phones?
Design and Construction
The LG Optimus Vu, disregarding the aspect ratio of the screen, is just a beautiful device. We currently have the white version and it feels classy and high-end at all times. The chrome edges are somewhat prone to scratches, but other than that, the glass front and the material used on the back feels solid, premium and wonderful.
The device uses capacative buttons instead of on-screen buttons. For some reason, LG kept the menu button; that may be a good thing, but four capacative buttons (Multitasking, Home, Menu and Back) make the experience very cramped.
The left side of the device is clean while on the right side, you can find the volume rocker. On the top side, you can find place for the audio jack, the noise cancellation microphone, the power button, the micro USB port and a button to launch LG’s note taking app. The bottom side is clean as well; only the main microphone is there.
The power button lights up on the lock screen, while charging or during some instances. The micro USB port has a sliding cover, which is a nice addition as it maintains the flawless feel of the device.
On the back, you will see the 8 megapixel camera, LG’s logo, the speakers, the micro SIM tray and some fine print. The back features texture similar to the ones found on some other LG phones. It feels nice all-in-all, but the SIM tray might feel easy to remove at times.
Display
The LG Optimus Vu features a 5 inch IPS LCD display with a resolution of 768×1024. Size aside, the display is breathtaking. It’s one of the best displays in terms of quality. Viewing angles were beyond acceptable, colors looked vibrant, text was extremely sharp and the screen was nothing less than responsive.
There’s one small problem however; there are black lines the surround the display (similar to the 4X HD) which makes the display feel like it’s pushed down.
The thing that differentiates this device from everything else out there is the 4:3 aspect ratio. We could not emphasize this hard enough, but the display’s size makes the device really cumbersome to hold.
I, myself, have really large hands and I still can’t operate the device with one hand.
OS, Apps and UI
Long before this review, there was a very strong hate for LG’s custom UI. Today, I can safely say that LG did a pretty good job with their skin for Android 4.0.4. Every element feels polished and smooth.
LG added their own apps such as Notebook and some other media-centric apps. Some other apps feel like bloatware when actually they’re not; you’ll just not find yourself using them. Thankfully, LG added a feature that enables you to organize your app drawer through folders.
The skin feels more like an asset than a liability. However, we can’t help but feel at times that LG took some pages from Samsung’s own UI, TouchWiz – especially with all the cartoon-like elements and functionality.
The widgets, wallpapers and all will surely make you feel at home. Not once did we think of using a home replacement app during our testing. Love it or hate it, it’s a very good skin.
Multimedia and Camera
The phone is a multimedia beast, but not without its flaws. Speakers were very loud and sound quality was above average.
The display’s aspect ratio, 4:3, can be used to several advantages and disadvantages. For example, viewing images & PowerPoint presentations along with web browsing was absolutely fulfilling. The thing feels like it can replace your tablet when it came to those.
On the other hand, video playback was quite a mess. The 5 inch display wasn’t utilized as black bars appeared everywhere while watching video.
The 8 megapixel camera on the back is quite nice. It may not rival the best cameraphones out there, but we ended up using it when we had chances.It performs very well with ample light and it generates few noise in low light conditions.
Focusing was very well too as we didn’t experience much hassle while taking shots.
Video recording was very pleasant as well. It recorded things very smoothly along with the audio. When lighting condition rapidly changes, it didn’t take much time for the camera to handle the exposure.
Performance and Benchmarks
The LG Optimus Vu raged through the benchmarks with an 11,005 for Antutu, a 4,723 for Quadrant and 47.9 for Nenamark 2. The device is powered by a Tegra 3 quad-core processor and everything went smoothly.
1 GB of RAM was sufficient for the phone, and we ended up doing a lot of tasks on this device – tasks that even high-end tablets would do.
The Stylus
The 5 inch phone includes a button on the top of the device to launch the quick memo feature. The button’s functionality is very much welcome and we ended up liking its convenience.
The stylus, on the other hand, is barely comfortable to hold, but it can definitely do its job. There is no other functionality offered with this device – maybe that is where the Galaxy Note can swoop in for the kill.
Another downside is that, we barely use the stylus for the main reason that the device doesn’t have a placement for the stylus. We fear that we may lose it or some sort. Without a place for the stylus, would you keep it on your pocket or your bag? That’s very inconvenient.
Connectivity and Battery
The device utilizes a micro SIM card and it never failed in connectivity as it managed to stay connected to whatever network that we connected it in. We received strong signals and it was able to connect easily too.
Battery life was quite tricky. There were times where battery could stay up for the whole day, but at instances, battery just drained so easily without even using it much.
We noticed that the probable cause for this could be the management of running applications. Every time we check the task manager, some apps happen to be left open even when you think you’ve closed it already.
The display also drains the battery most, along with heavy gaming. Battery life will greatly depend on how you use your device; it’s definitely not the best out there.
Conclusion
The Optimus Vu has its fair share of shortcomings, the 4:3 aspect ratio is among them. Also, the stylus was supposed to make the device unique and special — but it didn’t really turn out that way (we’re really hoping it will add value when you need to use it for sketching/drawing).
It’s a great phone with great hardware –the CPU, memory, the camera and everything else, including the design, makes the device a very strong and capable phone. However, the battery life and the odd form factor is a bit of a letdown.
Taking the Optimus Vu could be a hit or a miss, depending on the case use. The handset is available in stores for a suggested retail price of Php27,990.
LG Optimus Vu specs:
5-inch IPS display @ 768×1024, 4:3 aspect ratio
Nvidia Tegra 3 1.5GHz quad-core processor
1GB RAM
32GB internal storage
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, dual-band
Bluetooth 3.0 A2DP
MHL
FM radio tuner
GPS with aGPS support
8MP rear camera, LED flash
1080p video recording
1.3MP front-facing camera
2,080mAh battery (non-removable)
Android 4.0.4 ICS
90.4 x 139.6 x 8.5 mm
168 g
What we liked about it:
Great camera and speakers
Fast performance
Wonderful Display
Classy and premium construction
Clean and functional UI
What we didn’t like about it:
The awkward dimensions
Not-so-functional stylus
So-so battery life
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Cherry Mobile just posted a very intriguing photo on their Facebook page, featuring the Cherry Mobile Skyfire, Flame and Omega.
Earlier this week, the company teased us by posting a photo with “CherryBeans!” as its caption. Surely that is an indication that they will be offering Android phones running Jellybean.
After that, Cherry Mobile changed their cover photo; it featured the Skyfire and two other Android phones, namely Flame and Omega. The specs were pixelated to further our excitement, but if you inspect closely, you can make out with what the text conveys.
The Flame is expected to have a 4.5 inch IPS display with a qHD resolution of 960×540 pixels. On the other hand, the Omega might come with a 5.3 inch display and Android 4.1 Jellybean.
No other details were given but we’d expect it to come with very affordable prices and powerful specs.
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