Mobile Fun Blog

Which iPod have I got?

Wednesday, March 11th, 2009

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(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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and the best 8MP Camera phone is…

Monday, October 27th, 2008

Over the next few weeks, we’re going to see 3 more 8MP cameraphones make their appearance – The Sony Ericsson C905, LG Renoir and the Samsung Pixon.

The LG Renoir is a touchscreen device that builds on the style and popularity of the LG Viewty. As with all of the phones mentioned here, the spec is pretty impressive with high speed internet and a flashy touch based interface. The camera is good, but feature-wise, hasn’t got as much on it as some of its competitors. The interface is the same as was on the LG Viewty, but with the addition of a few new features and a Xenon Flash. One of its best features is the touchscreen focus. This allows you to focus on any object in your image, simply by touching the screen of the phone. The LG Renoir has smile and face detection, but unlike the i8510, its single face only, so group shots are a no go. It also features Blink Detection, but again, not in the same way as the others, rather than not allowing you to take a photo if the eyes are closed, the Renoir will warn you after you’ve taken the photo that someone blinked. I can’t really see the point of this though.

See the LG Renoir full specification.

The LG Renoir is expected to be released towards the end of October for around £360.

The Samsung Pixon is closer in specification to the Renoir than it is the i8510. From the back it looks more like a camera than a phone, but to be honest, although the camera is great, it’s not an all singing all dancing phone like you might expect. The user interface is the "le croix" menu system that is found on the Samsung Tocco and F490, so its pretty simple to use. Its not a high spec phone like the i8510, so if like me you’re a gadget lover who wants your phone to do everything, then this may not be the phone for you. The camera works really well. It has a similar focus system to the Renoir, where you just touch the screen to focus on the object you’re taking the photo of, and like the i8510 has face detection, smile detection, and blink detection. In addition, the Pixon also has a nifty little feature that most facebook users will be familiar with – the ability to tag people in the photos! By tagging the people in your photos to the names in your address book, you can text or call them while looking through your photos. Its different, and probably of limited appeal, but is an extra camera feature over its competitors.

See the Samsung Pixon full specification.

The Samsung Pixon is expected to be released towards the beginning of November for around £370.

The Sony Ericsson C905 for me is the best of the bunch. The joint venture between Sony and Ericsson is really starting to bring some major advantages to the Sony Ericsson Cyber-Shot range. The imaging censor in the C905 is the same as the one used in a Sony Digital SLR Camera, and you really can tell. The images are clearer and sharper than the other 8MP handsets, and some of the camera features can’t be beaten. For night time shots, the C905 excels as it is one of the few cameraphones on the market that features a Xenon Flash, this gives much better lighting at night, more accurate colours and allows photo’s to be taken at a greater distance than an LED flash. All cybershot phones feature Bestpic, where a series of 7 images are taken in quick succession, allowing you to save the best. The C905 now lets you use the flash when taking photo’s using BestPic. A new feature for the C905 is Smart Contrast, without getting too technical, this is where the camera will take an image, and combine with an under exposed and over exposed version of the same image to create the best possible photo. Another cool feature that the C905 has is support for DLNA which in simple terms allows you to playback your photos over a wireless network to any other DLNA enabled device such as TV’s or Laptops. The C905 has Face Detection, geo-tagging and supports panoramic photos.

See the Sony Ericsson C905 full specification.

The Sony Ericsson C905 is expected to be released towards the end of October for around £400.

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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New Walkman Handsets announced by Sony Ericcson

Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008

Sony Ericsson have today announced 3 new Walkman handsets.

The innovative W902 Walkman phone has the highest specifications of the 3, featuring a 5 megapixel camera with flash, image stabiliser and Auto Focus. The W902 includes an 8GB Memory Stick Micro which lets you store more than 8000 songs. The much improved camera allows for better video capture than on previous Walkman models and allows you to geo-tag your photo’s using information from your network provider. The W902 features the same clear audio technology as the W980 which gives exceptional audio quality when using the HPM-77 premium headphones which are included with the phone. The W902 measures 110 x 49 x 11.7 mm and has a 2.2" scratch proof screen. Other features include Bluetooth, FM Radio, Picture and Video Blogging, Email, Auto rotate and HSDPA.

The W595 Walkman phone is designed around sharing. It has a 2.2 inch screen, 3.2 megapixel camera and comes with a 2GB memory card that will hold around 2000 songs. The phone has an unusual "share jack" that lets two people listen to the same music using an additional headset. The phone also has the now familiar SensMe and Shake controls, that allow you to select music depending on your mood, skip tracks or adjust the volume simply by shaking the phone. The W595 is also a gaming handset, with four games included including Guitar Rock Tour in 3D.

The W302 Walkman phone is more of a budget Walkman phone, although the specification of the phone is far from budget. At jsut 10.5 mm thin, this slim handset is the perfect way of keeping your music photos and contacts all in one place. The phone includes a 512 MB memory stick micro to store upto 480 songs, has an FM Radio and features Track ID, a music recognition services that allows you to identify music. Its built in 2 megapixel camera lets you capture the moment and post it straight to your blog, send via MMS or email to friends.

All three handsets are due for release in quarter 4 2008.

(No Ratings Yet)

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Sony Ericsson W890i review

Monday, April 7th, 2008

After previous good experiences from other Sony Ericsson phones, the Sony Ericsson W890i didn’t disappoint.

Firstly I have to say that the design is very nice with a brushed aluminium finish. It feels well built and solid. The design is very different from it’s predecessor, the W880i, and seems to be better in most ways, in terms of design and build quality. Also the keypad buttons are larger than the tiny ones that existed on the W880i, but still may be a little on the small side for some people, you now get a 3.2 megapixel camera and HSDPA for faster Internet browsing, plus an improved Walkman player and user interface.

I was impressed with the usability of the W890i, it is very simple to use and the menus are easy to understand. The buttons have a nice feel and are positioned well, with Walkman and camera buttons on the sides of the phone also.

Although the camera does not have auto-focus, the images taken with the camera are of a good quality. Sony Ericsson’s latest Walkman player is probably the best music player on a phone to date, in terms of functionality and ease of use. The 2" screen is clear and a good size for browsing the Internet and reading emails.I didn’t have any problems with reading the screen in direct sunlight.

To remove the aluminium battery cover, two clips must be released, then the cover can be removed to reveal the memory card slot. It’s a shame that it’s no longer "hot-swappable" like in most current handsets, but the W890i comes with a 2GB M2 memory card which should allow you to store a plenty of music, photo’s and videos.

Sony Ericsson have taken all the best bits of the extremely popular W880, added a better camera and faster internet and the result is the W890i. A great handset, that will no doubt be as popular as its predecessor.

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My weekend with the KF600

Monday, April 7th, 2008

This weekend I decided to take a break from my Nokia N82 and spend a little time with the LG KF600.

The KF600 is the latest handset from the Korean manufacturer and is trying to change the way that we use our phones with the introduction of its “InteractPad”.

The phone looks stylish, is a decent size and weight and feels well built. The one thing you notice immediately is the lack of keys on the front of the phone. The KF600 is a touch phone, but with a twist. Rather than having a large touch screen display that drains battery power, the screen has been split into two parts, the display and the InteractPad.

The InteractPad is a unique way of using your phone, from the standby screen you have 6 touch sensitive keys, and as you move through the different screens of the phone, these buttons move and adapt to suit the application you’re using. In some cases I found the InteractPad to be a bit awkward, but in other applications it works really well.

I tend to use my phone mainly for photo’s, music, email, internet and texting rather than making calls. The camera on the KF600 is a 3 megapixel and has an LED flash. Photo’s come out clear and pretty sharp, and if you print them out they will be of a decent quality at 6″ x 4″ size. The flash is ok for taking photo’s in low light close up, but if what you’re taking photo’s of is more than a metre away, it probably won’t be much use.

The KF600 works really well as an MP3 player. There’s a dedicated shortcut key on the side of the phone for quick access and I found it easy to transfer tracks to the phone using Bluetooth or the data cable and software that came with it. The music interface is probably the best use of the InteractPad, you have the usual play/pause, forward and rewind, as well as a track progress bar. Normally these just scroll along with no purpose, but with the interact pad you can simply drag the slider to get to the part of the track you want – great if you want to skip sections of podcasts.

Email and texting works well too. Predictive text meant writing messages is quick and easy, and setting up POP3 email was very straight forward. The only thing I found to be not so great here was the handwriting recognition. In theory it sounds great, but in reality, writing with the end of your finger just isn’t accurate enough, and for hardcore texters, you’ll be able to text using the keypad a lot faster.

Internet access on the KF600 is pretty standard, it runs off a GPRS connection, so a fairly slow connection, but if you just want to check the odd train time or find out what’s on at the cinema then it does the job with no problem at all.

Overall the KF600 is a good all round handset. It will take a little getting used to with the InteractPad, and for the first few days I can guarantee you’ll be touching the top half of the screen and wondering why nothing is happening, but give it a week and you’ll be flying through the menus, but once you’ve got used to the interact pad, you may struggle to go back to a conventional phone.

(No Ratings Yet)

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Top Ten Accessories for your Nintendo Wii

Monday, February 18th, 2008

Got the latest must have games console? Then you’ll need the latest must have accessories to go with it!

Here are Mobile Fun’s top ten accessories for your Nintendo Wii:

	Nintendo Wii Component Cable A must for anyone with a High Definition TV. Experience ultra-realistic images to the fullest on your HDTV. Immerse yourself in a world of digital entertainment with superior quality sound and graphics enhanced by a premium quality component connection.
	Dual Charging Station for Wii Remotes Fed up with constantly replacing the batteries in your Wii Remotes? This Dual Charging station connects to a spare USB port on the back of your Wii and will charge your Wii Remotes when not in use.
	Official Nintendo Wii Remote Controller To really get into the spirit of the Wii you need to be able to play multi player games. Adding an additional controller will open up a whole new level of fun. Connect up to 4 Wii remotes to your Wii console.
	Official Nintendo Wii Nunchuck The Nunchuck adds more control and interaction to your Wii gaming. Make the most of your Wii by adding a nunchuck to each of your Wii Remotes.
	Sandisk 2GB SD Memory Card Increase the storage capacity on your Wii to 2GB and you will never need to worry about running out of space for your saved game data. Transfer photos to the memory card and enjoy watching them back as a slide show on your TV.
	Silicon Case Nintendo Controller Make sure your Wii Remote and Nunchuck don’t slip out of your hands with the Silicon Cases. The non-slip design means your fingers won’t slip off the controls at the wrong moment!
	Nintendo 13-in-1 Sports Pack Add more realism to playing Wii sports with this accessory pack! These clip on accessories turn your standard Wii remote into a Tennis Racket, Golf Club, Steering wheel, Baseball bat and more!
	Nintendo Wii Carry Bag Don’t want to damage your console when you take it round to your friends house for a party? The Nintendo Wii Carry Bag is designed to hold your Wii safely and securely and has space for games and extra controllers.
	Nintendo Wii Remote Extension Cable Never get tangled up during a game again! This extension cable gives you more freedom of movement while using your Nunchuck connected to your Wii Remote.
	Wireless Sensor Bar Don’t want wires trailing from your TV? Want to be able to position your Wii a bit further away from your TV than the cables will let you? This wireless sensor bar can be positioned anywhere, and can increase the distance you can play from. No installation is needed, just a few batteries!

(No Ratings Yet)

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Top Five Accessories for your Apple iPhone

Monday, February 18th, 2008

Got the latest must have phone? Then you’ll need the latest must have accessories to go with it!

Here are Mobile Fun’s top five accessories for your Apple iPhone:

	InvisibleSHIELD Full Body Protector – Apple iPhone The last thing you’ll want to do to your new phone is scratch it. Not only does it look bad, but can spoil your enjoyment while looking at photo’s, movies and coverflow. InvisibleShield full Body Protectors provide exceptionally clear protection that helps prevent impact damage from keys, coins & pens to both the front and back of your iPhone.
	Jawbone 2 Bluetooth Headset If you have used Bluetooth Headsets in the past, I’m sure you will have experienced times where people can’t hear a word you’re saying because of what’s going on around you, whether you’re in a Pub or Club, cruising down the motorway or in a noisy environment at work. Jawbone Bluetooth headsets incorporate the latest technology in noise cancellation meaning you will be heard no matter what is going on around you.
	i-Power iPhone Mains Charger Charging your phone through the USB cable connected to your PC or Mac isn’t always possible – especially if you’re away on holiday, or frequently away with work. This Mains Charger allows you to charge your iPhone without the need to dock it.
	Apple iPhone Krusell Orbit Premium Leather Case The Apple iPhone is a stylish phone, it needs a stylish case to go with it. The Krusell Leather case is extremely stylish and practical. Krusell have a range of connectors available too, so you can mount it on your belt, in the car or even on your bike, without having to remove it from its case. The Orbit Premium Leather Case features a built in stand to make reading your emails and accessing the Internet even easier.
	Apple iPhone Stereo Handsfree Adapter Listen to your MP3 music in full stereo with your own headphones on your iPhone. This adapter allows you to connect any headset with a 3.5 mm jack plug fitting to your iPhone. Built in controls also let you answer and end calls, as well as adjust volume levels and play/pause your music.

(No Ratings Yet)

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Mobile World Congress: Sony Ericsson Announcements

Monday, February 18th, 2008

Sony Ericsson has announced a range of new handsets at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week. Seven handsets were announced in total, each unique in their own way. Sony Ericsson has introduced a more rugged and durable handset, a sleek new Walkman handset and a premium touch screen device running Windows Mobile.

Xperia X1:
The handset getting the most attention on the Sony Ericsson stand is without doubt the Xperia X1. A Windows Mobile device, with a slide out QWERTY keyboard and a 3″ WVGA (800×480) screen in landscape mode. Using the device could not be simpler with its full touch screen interface and a 4 way joystick to help with navigation.

The X1 has an FM radio, 3.5mm audio jack, built in GPS, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP. The Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 also has a 3.2 megapixel camera and has 400MB of internal storage. You can increase the storage using the micro SD card slot. The X1 supports HSDPA and HSUPA giving data speeds of up to 7.2Mbps (network dependant).

G700 and G900

The G700 and G900 are two new touch screen devices running Symbian UIQ software normally found on higher tier devices such as the P1. Both handsets are aimed at business users that need more handset functionality and give one touch access to calendars, notes and web pages.

They have 160MB internal memory that can be expanded using a Micro M2 Memory Stick. The G700 features a 3.2 megapixel camera, with image and video stabiliser. The G900 supports Wi-Fi and has a 5 mega pixel camera with the ability to select the focus point just by touching the screen.

C702
The C702 is a new phone to the Cyber-Shot family, designed for those with a more active lifestyle. It is dust and splash proof and comes with GPS built in for navigation and guidance.

The 3.2 Mega pixel camera has face detection and red eye reduction as well as the option to “geo tag” your photos using the GPS receiver. Once uploaded to an online photo album such as flickr, you can see exactly where your photographs were taken. The phone will support fast internet over HSDPA and stereo Bluetooth with A2DP profile.

C902
The slim C902 also belongs to the Cyber-Shot family. It has a 5 megapixel camera concealed in a unique sliding design. It also has an advanced flash that can be used when taking photos using Sony Ericsson’s “BestPic” feature. This allows you to take up to 9 photos with flash in quick succession and select the ones you want to save.

The camera controls have been improved and are now operated through the phones touch screen. The C902 has 160 MB of internal memory, a Memory Stick Micro memory card slot and has full Walkman like media playback.

W980
The W980 is another in Sony Ericsson’s range of Walkman Music phones. It has a 3.2 megapixel camera and 8 gigabytes of internal memory. The W980 also has an in-built FM transmitter, so you can now listen to your music on any radio with in 2-3 metres.

When closed the phone looks like a portable MP3 Player, and its touch sensitive buttons give you full control over your music.The W980 provides clear stereo and bass and lets you control your music with shake control, SensMe and TrackID. The music can be listened to through a Bluetooth Stereo headset as it supports the A2DP profile. You can also download music direct to the phone using Sony Ericsson’s “Play Now” service over a HSDPA connection.

Z770
The Z770 is a clamshell design, aimed at professionals and business users that need email and high speed data – without the desire for a smartphone or PDA. The Z770 has a 2.2″ display and a 2 megapixel camera. Internet connection is fast over HSDPA and it has Bluetooth with A2DP support. The internal memory is 32MB, which can be expanded using a Memory Stick Micro memory card.

(No Ratings Yet)

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Mobile World Congress: Nokia Announcements

Thursday, February 14th, 2008

Nokia have started the Mobile World Congress with the announcement of 4 new handsets. Two more handsets will join their N-Series range: the N96, successor to their flagship N95 and the N78, replacement for the N73. Nokia have also announced the Nokia 6120 as the replacement for the 6110 Navigator and a new 6220 Classic, a high spec non N-Series Multimedia device.

	Nokia N96 The N96 carries over all the features from the current N95 8GB, but has more of a look and feel of the Nokia N81. Additions to the already impressive list of specifications on the N95 8GB are, more memory – up from 8GB to 16GB of internal storage, as well as the capability to take up to 16GB Micro SDHC memory cards – Giving it potentially 32GB of storage. Nokia are also adding a digital TV tuner, so now not only can you watch video files, but live television too, but not in the UK as you need a DVB-H signal. DVB-H isn’t due to start broadcasting in the UK for a few years.
	Nokia N78 The N78 is similar in spec to that of the current Nokia N82. Having 3.2 Megapixel camera with xenon flash, built in GPS with the capability to Geo-tag your photo’s and Wi-Fi. New features introduced to the N78 are a touch sensitive D-pad, meaning you can scroll through photos and menu’s by sliding your thumb along one edge of the square silver D-pad. Nokia have also built in an FM transmitter, normally available as an add on accessory, this enables the N78 to play music from your phone on any FM radio.
	Nokia 6120 Navigator The 6120 is an update to the current 6110 navigator. Offering built in GPS, this is designed to be a personal navigation system, with more focus on pedestrian use. The built in compass and accelerometer work together to keep the map facing in the correct direction. The camera has been increased from 2 mp to 3.2 and it now supports mobile broadband data speeds (HSDPA) for faster searches and map downloads.
	Nokia 6220 Classic The 6220 classic is essentially a non N-Series version of the Nokia N82 having the same 5 Megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss lens and xenon flash. Support for Micro SDHC Memory cards up to 8GB is also included.

All of these handsets will ship with Nokia Maps pre-installed. Nokia Maps 2.0 is an upgrade over the current Maps application, offering improved usability, as well as faster satellite locks and enhanced local searching. For more information on Nokia Maps, check out our Nokia Maps 2.0 review.

(No Ratings Yet)

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Top Ten Accessories for your Nokia N82

Tuesday, February 12th, 2008

Got the latest must have phone? Then you’ll need the latest must have accessories to go with it! Here are Mobile Fun’s top ten accessories for your Nokia N82:

	Martin Fields Screen Protector The last thing you’ll want to do to your new phone is scratch the screen. Not only does it look bad, but can spoil your enjoyment while watching back your photo’s and movies. Martin Fields Screen Protectors provide exceptionally clear protection that helps prevent impact damage from keys, coins & pens.
	Jawbone 2 Bluetooth Headset If you have used Bluetooth Headsets in the past, I’m sure you will have experienced times where people can’t hear a word you’re saying because of what’s going on around you, whether you’re in a Pub or Club, cruising down the motorway or in a noisy environment at work. Jawbone Bluetooth headsets incorporate the latest technology in noise cancellation meaning you’ll be heard no matter what is going on around you.
	Genuine Nokia In-Car Charger DC-4 One of the Nokia N82’s best features is with out a doubt the in-built GPS receiver, with the Genuine Nokia In-Car Charger you can be sure you’ll get from A-Z with no risk of getting lost when the battery runs out.
	Genuine Nokia Easy Mount Holder HH-12U Navigating your way around town is really simple with the Nokia N82’s GPS, but only if you can see the phone! The HH-12U is the best way of mounting the phone in a clear visible way. The suction fitting to your windscreen makes it easy to remove, and can be fitted in minutes.
	Sandisk 8GB Micro SDHC Memory Card Increase the storage capacity up to 8GB and you can leave your I-pod at home. An 8GB memory card will let you store up to 2000 Songs or 3500 Photo’s so you can be confident you can take as many photo’s as you want with little risk of running out of space!
	Parrot MK6100 Car Kit The Nokia N82 is a full Multimedia Handset, so make the most of it with the Parrot MK6100 Bluetooth Car kit. Not only does it give you high quality sound during calls, but this clever bit of kit allows you to stream music through bluetooth to your car stereo. No need to listen to the same CD over and over and no more hassle of cables getting tangled around the gear stick. Just start the car and press play on the MK6100 – you don’t even have to touch your phone!
	Boombasstic Bluetooth Speaker System With all your music on your phone, you can have a party wherever and whenever you want. These speakers from Boombasstic are great for getting the party started. You don’t need any cables or adapters for your phone, just stream your music via bluetooth from your phone to the speakers and turn up the volume!
	Nokia N82 Krussel Premium Leather Case The Nokia N82 is a stylish phone, so it needs a stylish case to go with it. The range of Krusell Leather cases are extremely stylish and practical. They have a range of connectors available too so you can mount it on your belt, in the car or even on your bike, without having to remove it from its case.
	Nokia Bluetooth Stereo Headset BH-501 The Nokia BH-501 Stereo Headset is a great way of enjoying your music while out jogging, cycling or just sitting relaxing at home, without disturbing those around you. They give you full control of your music without having to touch the phone.
	Venturi Bluetooth Simple Car kit For those that don’t want a fully fitted car kit, or that share cars this has got to be top of your wish list! Combining the latest FM transmitter and Bluetooth Technology, the Venturi Kit allows you to make phone calls and listen to your music through your car stereo by simply plugging into your cars cigarette lighter socket. Caller ID and song information is also sent to your radio display so you can see who’s calling and what you’re listening to!

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