kwade79 on eBay

Apr 27, 2010

Google Nexus One Smartphone

See Update at bottom! Is there really any such thing as an iphone killer? Probably not, but the Nexus One built for Google by HTC definitely qualifies as iphone competition! First of all, I bought this phone after concluding that my primary online presence was going to be as a Google affiliate. That helped a lot because while the phone can integrate with any website via apps, it is designed to integrate with Google primarily. I invested the time needed to fully update my Google calendar, gmail contacts, etc before activating the phone. When I inserted my SIM card and linked it to my Google account, all the contact data, appointments, etc were synchronized to the phone within 60 seconds. In the 48 hours since I've been having a marvelous time with it. Standout features include: voice recognition - I can start the "voice search" app, say a phrase and have a Google style web search completed while most iphone owners are still typing. It also works with texting; just tap the microphone on the virtual keyboard and speak in brief sentences instead of typing. The accuracy is excellent; the punctuation less so, but for texting who cares? noise cancellation - I was having a conversation with my brother and stepped outside just as a large vehicle was passing. I apologized for the noise, and he replied "what noise?" The truck was deafeningly loud, but he said all he heard was a minor distortion in my voice! camera - it takes pictures more like a camera than a phone. Resolution and focus are excellent. screen - the high resolution OLED screen is beautiful, with adjustable brightness and superb colors. Also, the active wallpapers are a fascinating addition. My favorite is the Zen pool. apps - I am just starting to download apps, but the variety is excellent if not Apple-esque in quantity. I can say a phrase in English and seconds later have my phone say (yes, it talks) the same phrase in Chinese - or any of dozens of other languages. And yes, that process is reversible as well. haptic feedback - it takes a while to get used to, but I am already starting to appreciate it, and it can be easily turned off if you don't like it. For those who don't know, this is a feature that uses the vibration motor in the phone to let the user know when the touchscreen has registered certain levels of contact. Add in the GPS capability, magnetic compass, WiFi, etc and you have a product that can perform any task any other smartphone can perform, and probably better. I fully intend to enjoy the process of learning what this phone can do for me! Update: A year later, and I STILL LOVE THIS PHONE!! Three Google upgrades later, and it just keeps getting better. Voice recognition started great, and improved with use. I can now tether my phone to my computer (with or without wires) and surf the web on my computer at 3G speeds using only the phone as a source. My calendar always lets me know when it's time to be somewhere, and my wife has taken to asking me random questions as they occur to her because she knows I can find the answers in seconds. I watch movies on airplanes (on the phone) and listen to music or FM radio through the Bluetooth 2.0 link. It READS MY TEXT MESSAGES TO ME ALOUD AFTER ANNOUNCING WHO SENT THEM! Is there nothing this device cannot do?!! Okay, I need a mirror to video conference over Skype with the phone because it only has a single camera. But good grief, what a device!

11 of 11 found this helpful

Mar 16, 2010

Sciphone Model IP-323

First, the good. It looks good. I was able to charge it and start it up with no problems. I was able to make and receive phone calls with it (once I had inserted my sim card. Battery life is good, lasting over 12 hours playing MP3 files (best test I could think of). The headphones worked well during calls and played satisfactory music, and the camera took usable photos (but not at the advertised resolution). FM radio, voice recorder, alarm, clock, picture viewer, all work as advertised. Now, the bad. The phone would charge, but would not connect to the computer until I had inserted a microSD card. When I connected it to my computer, my anti-virus program identified 2 trojans in the phone (it stopped them without difficulty, and it's possible they were simply there to configure the microSD card). Playing videos is nearly impossible, even though the phone claims to be able to play mp4 files. The processor is simply too weak to do a good job on anything with fair or better resolution. The headphones use a proprietary connection, so replacements could be hard to come by. My conclusion is that this phone will be quite satisfactory as a phone. If you want it for taking photos, videos (either taking or playing), surfing the web, you may be happier with something else.

2 of 2 found this helpful

Apr 27, 2010

Google Nexus One Smartphone

See Update at bottom! Is there really any such thing as an iphone killer? Probably not, but the Nexus One built for Google by HTC definitely qualifies as iphone competition! First of all, I bought this phone after concluding that my primary online presence was going to be as a Google affiliate. That helped a lot because while the phone can integrate with any website via apps, it is designed to integrate with Google primarily. I invested the time needed to fully update my Google calendar, gmail contacts, etc before activating the phone. When I inserted my SIM card and linked it to my Google account, all the contact data, appointments, etc were synchronized to the phone within 60 seconds. In the 48 hours since I've been having a marvelous time with it. Standout features include: voice recognition - I can start the "voice search" app, say a phrase and have a Google style web search completed while most iphone owners are still typing. It also works with texting; just tap the microphone on the virtual keyboard and speak in brief sentences instead of typing. The accuracy is excellent; the punctuation less so, but for texting who cares? noise cancellation - I was having a conversation with my brother and stepped outside just as a large vehicle was passing. I apologized for the noise, and he replied "what noise?" The truck was deafeningly loud, but he said all he heard was a minor distortion in my voice! camera - it takes pictures more like a camera than a phone. Resolution and focus are excellent. screen - the high resolution OLED screen is beautiful, with adjustable brightness and superb colors. Also, the active wallpapers are a fascinating addition. My favorite is the Zen pool. apps - I am just starting to download apps, but the variety is excellent if not Apple-esque in quantity. I can say a phrase in English and seconds later have my phone say (yes, it talks) the same phrase in Chinese - or any of dozens of other languages. And yes, that process is reversible as well. haptic feedback - it takes a while to get used to, but I am already starting to appreciate it, and it can be easily turned off if you don't like it. For those who don't know, this is a feature that uses the vibration motor in the phone to let the user know when the touchscreen has registered certain levels of contact. Add in the GPS capability, magnetic compass, WiFi, etc and you have a product that can perform any task any other smartphone can perform, and probably better. I fully intend to enjoy the process of learning what this phone can do for me! Update: A year later, and I STILL LOVE THIS PHONE!! Three Google upgrades later, and it just keeps getting better. Voice recognition started great, and improved with use. I can now tether my phone to my computer (with or without wires) and surf the web on my computer at 3G speeds using only the phone as a source. My calendar always lets me know when it's time to be somewhere, and my wife has taken to asking me random questions as they occur to her because she knows I can find the answers in seconds. I watch movies on airplanes (on the phone) and listen to music or FM radio through the Bluetooth 2.0 link. It READS MY TEXT MESSAGES TO ME ALOUD AFTER ANNOUNCING WHO SENT THEM! Is there nothing this device cannot do?!! Okay, I need a mirror to video conference over Skype with the phone because it only has a single camera. But good grief, what a device!

18 of 18 found this helpful

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