Review: Windows Phone 7 “NoDo” Update
Windows Phone devices have been on the market for six months now in the UK, and over the past week or two, the first major update to the OS has been being pushed out to phones.
I never really reviewed WP7 when it was released as really, its felt too much of a Beta preview than a ready for market OS. There were some pretty big glitches floating around the system, for instance, frequent Marketplace crashes that would then make some of the hubs unusable, forcing you to restart to get access again, and I found receiving text messages would very often crash the phone completely. Another annoying bug was screen tearing when the display would start flickering. Again, the only fix was to restart.
Much of this sounds like a Windows trait, think about how many times Windows on the desktop crashes or stalls or just gives up! But for a phone OS, it’s unforgivable, receiving text messages is a basic feature of a phone, it shouldn’t force a restart or as on one occasion, clear my entire message history. Restarting got them back just without a couple of new messages I hadn’t had chance to read yet!
So what is this NoDo update? Well it add’s one important missing feature, Copy And Paste. This for some reason is one of the most wanted features along side multitasking, which I’ve always thought was strange as no really ever uses copy and paste on their phones much, I mean how many times do you actually copy part of a webpage to email? Or actually edit documents in Word on your phone? But it is a welcome addition and Microsoft has it pretty much nailed on. Tap on text, drag two bars to highlight the section of text you want to copy and tap copy. Go to where ever you want to paste the text and tap the paste icon at the top of the keyboard. Simple, easy. There’s room for improvement still though, like only text can be copied, images are left behind, which is a shame as iOS does this perfectly.
Load times have also been sped up, one of the big disappointments with WP7 was how slow apps load, over a minute just to load Bejewelled is just silly. Micorsoft has made some massive improvements here, shaving quite a bit off the load time of apps. A massive welcome addition.
In addition to the new bits, it looks like a lot of work has gone into ironing out bugs. Marketplace no longer crashes, loads the app lists a lot faster and is a lot more stable when installing apps. Plus there’s been improvements to searching for apps too, although the future Mango update due out later this year looks like it has this nailed on. The whole OS now feels alot more solid and reliable. And probably is the OS that should have been launched 6 months ago. Maybe it was Microsoft getting a bit eager to launch as soon as possible, maybe it wasn’t enough testing but WP7 is now the OS it should have been and I can look forward to some of the great new feature planned for later in the year.
Rumour: Samsung to have Dual-Core 2 ghz Phone
Rumours are abound that Samsung is planning on launching a phone with a dual-core 2 ghz cpu. This would put Sammy’s new phone’s spec above what a lot of people’s own PC’s are capable of.
The question will be, is it really needed? How much more power does a device with a 4 inch screen need. There’s only so far you can go with gaming and only so fast you can check your Facebook site or Twitter messages.
Of course this is just a rumour from ,apparently, a highly ranked member of staff from Samsung, according to South Korean search engine Daum…
If this rumour is true, and let’s be honest, even if Samsung aren’t launching such a phone, someone somewhere probably is thinking about it, then let’s hope they also find a new battery technology to support it, it would be nice to have a phone that doesn’t need charging every few hours!
I can’t help but think all this raw horsepower now being employed in phones (check out the phones running 1.2ghz dual core cpu’s), it’s just a cover up for shoddy OS programming. Look at Windows Phone 7 as an example of what can be achieved on 2-year-old tech with proper development work.
Andry Birds Seasons Update for Easter
Rovio, developers of the much-loved Angry Birds has updated its seasons app with 15 new levels and a theme based around the Easter break. The update applies to both Angry Birds Seasons on the iPhone and Angry Birds Seasons HD on the iPad. So get to the App Store and get updating!
Trailer below:
Two Weeks With the iPad 2
Well I’ve now had my iPad 2 for two weeks (how time flies?), so here’s an update with how I’m getting on.
First off, one of the biggest questions I’ve been asked when showing people my new toy is it looks great but what do you use it for? This seems to be a common question, and I think it’s a way of people trying to work out how it fits into their lifes. However, I think a people need to stop and look at the way they use their computers, let me explain.
Away from the office, the majority of the stuff I do on my PC is play games, watch films, browse the net etc. Pretty much the same as the majority of users out there. So to answer peoples question, I always ask what they use their PC’s for. An iPad is more than capable of handling your internet browsing, video watching and even game playing (Although, not quite at the same level as a full on PC would), So for me, the iPad allows me to do everything I would normally but laying on the couch or out in the garden, it even allows me to carry on what I’m doing on the train and when I get to work.
If you’re someone who spends their entire life infront of spreadsheets or programming then no and iPad isn’t for you (or any other tablet), Apple has its own office apps you can purchase for the iPad and they show that the best you can really get out of the device is simple spreadsheets or basic documents. Though of course that doesn’t stop you drafting documents on the iPad, infact thats where most of my posts on the site have been from.
So the question answered, What do you use it for? I use it for all the things I want to, it does what I need most of the time, so it’s therefore perfect for me!
One thing that has become aparrant over the last couple of weeks though is what a let down iOS actually is now. As a phone OS it still makes sense, although lacks the fun aspect of Windows Phone, or the depth of Android, but as a tablet OS, it’s horrible.
The iPad has a gorgeous 9.7 inch screen, but when you switch it on you are presented with 20 icons with about and inch spacing round them. What a waste! With the size of the screen and now the power of the device, this should really be much closer to the desktop experience. That’s not to say we should be seeing OSX or similar just something a bit more along the lines of Android Honeycomb, a kind of touch based desktop. Lets see some widgets etc as well, make the most of the space.
The issue I can see hitting soon is the Apps, there are some incredible games and magazines already available for the iPad, but as with the App Store in general, the majority you simple will never need or are so poor you wouldn’t touch. There needs to be alot more invention from developers now, we need to seem to some new fresh apps, not just another upadate to Angry Birds! It was one of the reasons I dumped my iPhone for WP7 last year, the top app lists never changed, the must have apps seemed to dry up and it hasn’t changed yet.
Of course thats not to say there aren’t some great apps out there, there are, I probably have 60 or so of them installed already. Magazines like Project and Wired really show what the future of publication could bring and games like Death Rally etc are simple a joy to behold, but I just think we need more of them!
So am I pleased with my purchase? Hell yeah, it really is a great piece of kit and despite my rant above, I feel I really have to reccommend it to anyone that just wants a device to do stuff with in comfort. Anyone looking for a laptop to send emails, browse Facebook etc just stop and get yourself and iPad, if you can find one!
New site feature: iPad theme
For those with an iPad, you’ll now get a whole new theme when you few this site. You can now browse the site by swiping through pages like a magazine, and an extra feature, if you add the site to your home screen, the website launches fullscreen.
Let us know what you think!
Review: Apple Smart Cover for iPad 2
On launching the new iPad 2, Apple also announced it’s new case, the smart cover.
The Smart Cover is less a case and more an advanced screen cover, only your screen is covered leaving the back open to scratches and scuffs. It comes in 10 different colours, 5 in polyurethane and five in leather. Weighing in at £35 and £59 respectively, they aren’t the cheapest cases on the Market.
So what makes them smart? The cover uses magnets to attaché itself to the side of the iPad, automatically aligning itself perfectly, additional magnets secure it close over your screen. In practice the connection is solid enough that the cover doesn’t come off in your bag.
The cover is design in four separate panels which allow it to be folded round into a stand for typing and video watching. The two angles are both perfect for their tasks and actually makes typing on the iPad very easy.
The cover automatically puts your iPad to sleep and wakes it up when its opened and closed.
Finally, the underside of the cover is a micro-fibre cloth designed to clean your screen of finger prints when closed. This is the only part of the cover that doesn’t work. As the cover is designed in fur panels with a gap in-between, the gap leaves three lines dirt on the screen. Tis is very disappointing as I’m someone who hates having a dirty screen on any of my devices and I can’t believe Apple didn’t spot this when the cover was designed.
In conclusion, for £35 / £59 the cover does everything you could want barring protecting the back, the only feature that doesn’t seem to be that great is keeping screen clean. Fore that reason and because of the bare back I can’t actually recommend the Smart Cover which is a shame, but I think for the price there are probably more suitable covers out there.
Review: Death Rally for the iPad
My first iPad app review!
Death Rally is a top down racer similar to the old days of Grand Theft Auto, just with amazing 3D graphics. The story behind the game is very simple and to those who have seen the film Death Race, very similar. You race round short tracks in various locations in beefed up cars with missile launchers and guns etc tagged on. The aim is to win the race and kill as many opponents as possible, for which you are rewarded with points to upgrade and repair you car and weapons. Races are short but hectic with pickups like nitro, and extra ammo.
Controls are basic, with a virtual analoge stick on the left and a button on the right to fire your weapon, things are kept simple. At first it took a bit of getting used to and I have found holding the iPad up slightly easier than having it resting on a surface. Once you’ve mastered the controls then the game becomes alot of fun, very addictive and very simple to pickup and play.
There really is a lot to like about this game. From simple controls to fantastic graphics, and on the iPad 2 has a very smooth frame rates. Currently £3.99 in the App Store, it’s a little on the expensive side for an App, and is really the only negative I can find. Is it worth the £4 price tag? I think so!
Review: Apple iPad 2
After waiting a year, I’ve finally bitten the built and bought myself an iPad. For me, last year was just a bit too early to consider the purchase as I wanted to see what developers made of the device. A year on and 65,000 apps later, iPad has well and truly taken the world by storm. So here’s my review of the new iPad 2.
On the face of it, the iPad 2 looks very similar to the original iPad. However the it’s be wen on a major diet in the last year and is now just 8.9 mm think, making it thinner than most phones on the Market. There’s also been some wait loss, now down to 613g for the 3G and wifi model, 691g for the wifi only edition. I personally went all out and plumper forward the 64 GB 3G and wifi version. You get three different storage sizes, 16, 32, 64 GB which is a bit of a let down d it would have been nice to see a 128 GB version at least, and for the first time you also get a choice of black or White ( and yes, unlike the iPhone 4, apple did actually launch the White version this time!).
Internally the iPads been bumped to a dual core A5 CPU, which is probably a dual core version of the CPU in last years gadget, and there’s also a reported nine times bump in graphics performance. Of course you’ll only see these improvements in apps that have been designed for the extra horsepower. Additionally there’s also 2 cameras, one 720p camera on the rear and s VGA camera on the front for FaceTime calls. Neither camera are spectacular, but do there jobs.
Rounding of the spec list is the battery which still maintains last years ten hour video play back game, which is impressive given the iPads bump in power. Although I’ve not timed it, in my usage I’ve noticed that the battery does last a very long time, even with wifi on and playing a lot of games.
The iPad runs the latest interation of iOS, 4.3.1. This added a few extras like improved AirPlay support etc, but really the OS is near identical to that of the iPhone and iPod Touch, just a bit bigger. A couple of the apps have been changed though, the Mail app now has a nice landscape mode where you get a list of emails down the left and the message on the right and the iPod app now looks alot more like iTunes than the iPod touch, something I do really like, gives a real feel of the iPad is an actually laptop replacement rather than just a blown up iPod. Theres a new FaceTime app as well, although I am yet to be able to test it and another addition is the Photobooth app. Basically, this uses the front facing FaceTime camera to take a photo of you and add some different weird effects, completely pointless but utterly addictive!
Make or break for a device like, though, comes down to it’s third party apps. With Windows tablets, their shortfall is the severe lack of decent touch based apps. The iPad wins here as it’s all developers can design there apps for, and in the last year an incredible 65,000 iPad apps have been created. Of course, 64,000 you’d probably never even consider looking at, but there are some real gem’s in there that are must haves. A couple of examples are the likes of Trainz, the first mobile version of the long established Trainz Railroad Simulator on the PC. It sounds boring but allows anyone to build there own little railway and run it, kind of like a virtual train set, and lets be honest, we all wanted one when were younger! Graphics are great and the enhancements for the touch interface make it a joy to use. Another app made famous on the PC is SimCity, now this is actually a great game to play on a tablet PC as it works perfectly with touch screens. The iPad edition is relatively cut down and simplistic but still easy and fund to use. It also includes a number scenarios which add an extra element of challenge not available in the PC versions.
One of the most impressive things for me though has to be the magazines, specifically, Project. Whilst us Brits are the to get access to Rupert Murdoch’s “The Daily” magazine (should be coming soon, hopefully), Project is one of the only iPad only apps already available too us. But it is impressive, with scrollable image galleries, videos, and interactive ad’s, it really shows what the future of news consumption could be. More of the same please!
Conclusion
There’s no denying, the iPad is a great device, the 64GB allows you to carry a ton of apps, movies and music with you and have enough battery to make the most of them. There’s still a little thought that Apple are holding back, the device still has the same resolution and the cameras are pretty poor, so there’s room for improvement, are they missed? No, definitely not, and it’s really hard not to recommend the iPad to people. It’s a must buy, if you can afford it. But keep in mind, it’s still not the greatest production device, it’s still lacking the killer office apps etc. Yes there are some official office apps but they are not yet at the level or what you’d find on a Windows based netbook or laptop. I did however manage to write most of the review up from the WordPress App on the iPad, pretty impressive hah? Starting at £400 and for basic editing tasks, this really is the only device you should be looking at.
(Pre)Review: Chicks ‘n’ Vixens
Angry Birds is due to launch on Windows Phone 7 in the coming weeks, but the delay has allowed some indie developers to have a crack at their own version. Chicks n Vixens is by far the most polished attempt so far and here’s my take on the currently free beta game.
Beta? Yeap, the game still isn’t actually finished. It’s a rather unique step in the mobile app world, that the developer (JabberWorx) has decided to release beta versions of the game to Windows Phone Marketplace for free. It’s actually been a great view into the world of game development, from the early buggy stages to the current, near release candidate quality.
Of course I have to start by comparing this game to Angry Birds, something that’s become a world phenomenon since launching on the iPhone a couple of years ago. Chicks n Vixens is essentially the same game (just with chickens and foxes) but the developer has added their own twist with different worlds, for example a snowy world where the ground is slippery.
Controls are identical to that of Angry Birds, your chicken sits in a cannon which you aim with an arrow and the chickens have added abilities when touching the screen. Game play is already very smooth, and I specially like the camera movement which automatically zooms to where the chickens will land.
Sadly Microsoft rejected applications for the game to become part of the Xbox Live range citing it’s similarities to Angry Birds, which is a real shame, but with reports that a lot of negotiating between Microsoft and Rovio (Angry Birds Developer) behind the scenes, I guess it’s no surprise they don’t the game having too much competition. One things for sure, if EA come knocking with FIFA 12 (or whatever the next FIFA game is called), Microsoft won’t be rejecting on the grounds of being similar to Pro Evolution Soccer (launching this week).
As a currently free download, Chicks n Vixens is worth a go, just remember this is a beta and is yet to have things like al levels added or even the ability to unlock levels yet. So expect some glitches.
You can get the game here.
Microsoft shows off Asus Eee Slate
Microsoft has posted some videos of the Asus EEE Slate in action showing off the advantages of having a full Windows desktop as well as a stylus. Videos below:
