admin
The year 2013 is a fun filled year for tech enthusiasts. It is a year of better smart phones with better cameras, top notch picture quality and impressive battery saving improvements. Below are five best smart phones which wowed us and left our pockets thinner, with good reason too!
This has been referred to as the Bugatti Veyron of smartphones .. Samsung spared no effort to protect the Galaxy S III against any odds. The Koreans took their time with the new flagship. With most of the hardware made by Samsung themselves, the Galaxy S III is an endless list of mind-blowing numbers. The quad-core beast packs a 720p Super AMOLED screen and a massive battery, but keeps its slim waistline. When we pop the hood, we are even more impressed, this baby comes with
1.4 GHz quad-core Cortex-A9 CPU
Mali-400MP GPU
Exynos 4 Quad chipset
1GB of RAM
8 MP wide-angle lens autofocus camera with LED flash, face, smile and blink detection
1080p HD video recording at 30fps (full HD recording)
Dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11 b, g, n
GPS with A-GPS connectivity; GLONASS support, Digital compass
16/32/64GB internal storage, microSD slot
Accelerometer, gyroscope and proximity sensor
Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
microUSB port with USB host and TV-out (1080p) support, MHL, charging
Stereo Bluetooth v4.0
FM radio with RDS
Super slim at only 8.6mm
2MP secondary video-call camera
Full Flash for the web browser
NFC support
Document editor
File manager comes pre-installed
Extremely rich video and audio codec support
Impressively large 2100 mAh battery
But like all man made things, it is not perfect.
Here’s a list of things we do not like about the Samsung Galaxy SIII
All plastic body
No dedicated camera key
Micro SIM slot
S Voice is disappointing
SAMSUNG GALAXY NOTE II
Just like its smaller brother, the Galaxy S III, the Samsung Galaxy Note II is cut from the same cloth, but if the Galaxy SIII is XL , then the Samsung Galaxy Note II is XXL. The Samsung Galaxy Note II is the epitome of the “go big or go home” mantra. From the screen, processing power, through the software package and the revival of the stylus, everything has been pushed right to the very edge of current technology. The Koreans threw everything but the kitchen sink in. If you don’t believe us – just check out the following list.
5.5″ 16M-color Super AMOLED capacitive touch screen of HD (720 x 1280 pixel) resolution Corning Gorilla Glass 2
1.6 GHz quad-core Cortex-A9 CPU
Mali-400MP GPU
2GB of RAM
Exynos 4412 Quad chipset
S Pen active stylus with deep system integration
8 MP wide-angle lens autofocus camera with LED flash, face, smile and blink detection
1080p HD video recording at 30fps
16/32GB internal storage, microSD slot
Dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n support
GPS with A-GPS connectivity; GLONASS support, Digital compass
NFC support
Stereo Bluetooth v4.0
microUSB port with USB host and TV-out (1080p) support, MHL, charging
Accelerometer, gyroscope and proximity sensor
Slim at only 9.4mm
1.9MP secondary video-call camera
Document editor and file manager comes pre-installed
Extremely rich video and audio codec support
Huge 3100 mAh battery.
Downsides
Large size makes single-hand operation problematic
No dedicated camera key
All plastic construction (would have probably weighed a ton otherwise, though)
No FM radio (The Samsung Galaxy SIII has one)
IPHONE 5
This is the latest installment in the smartphone series that changed the mobile phone industry and we can understand people couldn’t wait for this one because it sold five million units over the course of a … weekend. Now, what is it they couldn’t wait for?
The Apple iPhone 5 brings the long anticipated larger screen and more capable internals that we already know are ready to trade blows with the most powerful phones out there.
The iPhone 5 comes with a new slender, slimmer body that no photos really do justice to and if all of Apple’s claims are true then the iPhone 5 is a real engineering masterpiece – double the performance in a more compact package without sacrificing anything in terms of battery life.
Now lets see what this baby has under the hood
4″ 16M-color LED-backlit IPS TFT capacitive touchscreen of 640 x 1136px resolution
Scratch-resistant screen glass, fingerprint-resistant coating
1.2GHz dual-core custom-designed CPU, PowerVR SGX543MP3 GPU, 1GB of RAM, Apple A6 SoC
iOS 6 and iCloud integration
8 MP autofocus camera with LED flash and touch focus
1080p video recording at 30fps
1.2MP secondary front-facing camera
Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Wi-Fi hotspot
GPS with A-GPS connectivity; digital compass
16/32/64GB storage options
Accelerometer, proximity sensor and a three-axis gyro sensor
Active noise cancellation with a dedicated secondary microphone
Bluetooth v4.0
Excellent audio output quality (though worse than 4S)
Voice recognition, Siri virtual assistant
Supports HD Voice (needs carrier support too)
FaceTime video calls over Wi-Fi and cellular
Impressively slim and light
Great battery life
On the other hand, its aluminum body looks cool but is easy to scratch
Proprietary connector, incompatible with previous-gen accessories (needs adapter)
The new display is not proportionally bigger, but only taller
Unadapted apps run letterboxed due to the unusual resolution
nano-SIM support only
Apple Maps app not up to scratch
No USB Mass Storage mode
No FM radio
No stereo speakers
No micro-SD card slot
No NFC connectivity (though that may be nitpicking)
Stuck with iTunes for loading content
Mono audio recording in videos
Audio worse than the iphone 4S
NOKIA LUMIA 920
Everybody agrees that the Windows Phone 8 is the biggest thing to happen to smartphones this year. And one of the biggest things to happen to the WP8 is the Nokia Lumia 920.
This Nokia flagship has a great screen, excellent design and impressive build quality. It’s also a smooth performer and, thanks to the updated WP8, looks fresh and distinct. And while Microsoft doesn’t allow much room for UI customizations, the Nokia exclusive apps make a huge difference and keep the Lumia 920 on top of the WP food chain.
Here a look at what this phone offers
4.5″ 16M-color PureMotionHD+ IPS display with a resolution of 1280 x 768 pixels
8 megapixel autofocus camera with LED flash, 1080p@30fps video recording
Optical Image stabilization with floating lens technology
1.3MP front-facing camera
Windows Phone 8 OS
1.5GHz dual-core Krait CPU, Adreno 225 GPU, Qualcomm MSM8960 chipset, 1GB of RAM
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, dual-band
GPS receiver with A-GPS and GLONASS support
Free lifetime voice-guided navigation
32GB of inbuilt storage
Active noise cancellation with a dedicated mic
Wireless charging with optional accessories
Built-in accelerometer, gyroscope and proximity sensor
Micro-USB port
Bluetooth v3.0 with A2DP and EDR, file transfers
SNS integration
Xbox Live integration and Xbox management
NFC support
Digital compass
Nokia Music
Things we don’t like about the phone
App catalog falls short of Android and iOS
No micro-SD card
No FM radio
No system-wide file manager
No lock screen shortcuts
Size and weight something to definitely consider before you buy
Audio output not worthy of a flagship
Non user-replaceable battery
GOOGLE NEXUS 4
It’s the next-generation Nexus and this time LG has the privilege.
Top of the line chipset, an excellent screen and the latest Android version – does it get better than this? Well, if you are Google, it actually does. The Nexus 4 is a proper flagship smartphone, but with a mid-market price tag, it costs about the same with the Galaxy S II, which is long past its prime.
This has turned the Nexus 4 into an offer that’s near impossible to beat and a fast-track pass to future Android updates only comes to sweeten up an already great deal. So if you are after an Android smartphone, it’s hard to find reasons not to buy a Nexus 4.
Here are it’s key features
Flagship specs at a bargain
4.7″ 16M-color WXGA True HD IPS Plus (768 x 1280 pixels) capacitive touch screen, Gorilla Glass 2
Stock Android OS v4.2 Jelly Bean, fast updates
Quad-core 1.5 GHz Krait CPU, 2 GB RAM, Adreno 320 GPU, Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro chipset
8 MP Autofocus camera with LED flash and geotagging, face detection, Photo Spheres
1080p video recording @ 30fps with continuous autofocus and stereo sound
1.3 MP front-facing camera, 720p video recording
Wi-Fi a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct and DLNA
GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS
8/16GB of built-in storage
microUSB port with TV-out support
Bluetooth v4.0
Accelerometer and proximity sensor
Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic
2100mAh battery
Wireless charging (works with any Qi-compatible wireless charger)
Of course, the Google Nexus 4 is not without its limitations either
No microSD card slot, no versions with more storage
Mediocre display sunlight legibility
Non user-replaceable battery
Camera is less than stellar, no shutter key either
And there you have it. However, for those seeking more thrills in ‘gadget heaven’ there are other smart phones and gadgets set to be launched into the technological market in 2013 such as the google ‘Project Glass’ a spec that overlays information over the web and also has a camera that can take pictures and record videos on the go.
2013 seems to be a more promising and exciting year for ye lovers of all things tech, ready yourselves and your wallets!.
COMPILED BY: CHIAZOR BELINDA. O.
GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings