ATLChris.com » Hardware Reviews http://atlchris.com Sat, 03 Mar 2012 19:30:12 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 HTC Incredible Reviewed http://atlchris.com/1598/htc-incredible-reviewed/ http://atlchris.com/1598/htc-incredible-reviewed/#comments Fri, 04 Jun 2010 15:07:06 +0000 Chris Lentz http://atlchris.com/?p=1598 HTC Incredible - Android - Verizon WirelessThe HTC Incredible on the Verizon Wireless network is one of the newest and most fully featured handsets on the market. The Incredible features a Qualcomm® QSD8650, 1 GHz Snapdragon™ CPU, Android 2.1, 8 GB of internal flash memory, a 3.7″ AMOLED screen (480 x 800), and a 8 megapixel camera w/autofocus and flash. The device measures around 4.63 x 2.30 x 0.47 inches and features three physical buttons and five touch buttons. The physical buttons consist of a wake/sleep/off button on the top of the device, a volume rocker button on the left, and a general-use physical button on the front of the device (used for taking pictures and video). The touch buttons include the common Android buttons (home, menu, back, and search) plus one additional general-use button on the front. The general-use button on the front of the device is both a physical button and a touch sensitive button that allows you to scroll with out having to touch the screen. The touch part of the general-use buttons reminds me a lot of the Blackberry Pearl button, but touch sensitive, not rolling.

HTC Incredible - Android - Verizon WirelessIn general, I am very impressed with the hardware the HTC Incredible features. The front is almost completely flat, which makes for a very comfortable feeling when I hold the device to my ear. The back of the device has specially designed ridges that prevent the device from sitting flat on a table. This allows you to still hear the speaker at a reasonable volume even when the device is sitting flat on a table. One issue I have with the design of the phone, is the camera; it sticks out the furthest of everything on the back, which leaves it at a greater risk of being scratched, but I did not experience any scratching issues in the two weeks I had the device. The only other issue I had with this device is the call quality. I found the quality to be just OK. Voices sounded somewhat scratchy and I would occasionally hear minor popping noises.

One last thing I want to point out is the physical back button found on all Android devices, including the HTC Incredible. One of my biggest gripes with the iPhone OS is that every app has to take up valuable screen resolution for a back button, and it is never in the same place. I find it so incredibly useful to have a physical back button, plus it opens up the screen to the actual guts of the applications.

Android 2.1 and HTC’s Sense UI

The HTC Incredible comes loaded with Android 2.1 and HTC’s Sense UI. While this is not my first time using Android, it is my first time using HTC’s Sense UI, and I must say I am very impressed. The Sense UI has a very clean, simple, and polished user interface. It is just as easy to navigate as the iPhone OS, plus it offers some added goodies that take it beyond the now outdated iPhone UI. The Sense UI comes with some wonderful built-in widgets that really give the phone added functionality in a fresh and very polished manner. As for Android 2.1 they have really made some decent improvements over Android 2.0. Some of the new features found in Android 2.1 include live wallpaper, voice typing in all fields, updated home navigation, and a 3D view in the photo gallery, just to name a few.

The Applications

Applications have always been the low point of the Android OS. Well, I can say that this is not so much the case anymore. I was able to find Android versions of almost all of my favorite iPhone apps. The apps found in the Android Marketplace are really starting to take form and become very polished functionally. Some of the apps I tested include The Weather Channel, Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, Barcode Scanner, Mint.com, Google Voice, and Waze, just to name a few. The Google Voice app — in fact, all the Google apps — are amazing, offering high levels of integration that really allow you to take advantage of the Google Web Apps locally on your phone. I even found both The Weather Cannel and the Foursquare apps to triumph over their iPhone counterparts. Overall, I like how the Android Marketplace and the applications in it are starting to come of age. I believe the openness of the Android Marketplace is really going to allow it to outgrow the iTunes App Store, and soon.

Final Thoughts

The HTC Incredible, is a great phone. In fact, it is Incredible (Ha, ha. Sorry, I had to do that!). A lot of thought and advanced engineering went into the physical design of the device, and it shows. The only minor design flaw I could find, was the camera lens sticks out, leaving it open to possible scratching. Other areas I think HTC could improve on are the lack of a HD video camera and a possible front-facing camera. The Sense UI, which is found on all HTC devices, is incredibly beautiful. It adds a needed level of beauty and polish to the Android OS. The Android OS is improving greatly with every new release, and I see it as the definite winner when you compare Android to iPhone OS. Google might be a search company, but they sure do know what users want, and they deliver it. Last but not least, are the applications. Android applications have really come a long way in the last few months, and I found a decent number of the applications in the Android Marketplace to be as polished and functional as the same apps found in the iTunes App Store.

Will I be making the switch to Android from iPhone? Well, as of right now, the answer is yes no (see why: WWDC Keynote Wrap-Up), but that might change soon. For those of you that don’t know, on Minday, June 7, 2010, Steve Jobs is set introduce the new iPhone 4/HD at WWDC. There has been a bunch of information leaked about this new iPhone, most of which I am not very impressed by. If Steve announces only what has been leaked so far with no new surprises, than yes, I will switch to Android in June when my AT&T contract expires. If Steve comes out with a big new surprise about the new iPhone, then I might have to reconsider switching, but as it stands now, I do plan to go Android very soon.

One additional thing I want to add concerns Verizon Wireless service. Tons and tons of people complain about the horrible AT&T service, but I can honestly say that I experience far more low-signal areas on the HTC Incredible (Verizon) than I did on the iPhone (AT&T). While I do plan to switch to Android, I will be sticking with AT&T, as it seems to be a much better service provider.

Demo Video

Below are 2 demo video’s showing the quality to the HTC Incredible video camera. I would recommend you watch them on YouTube and bump the quality to 480p to see it in its true quality.

Watch on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ljSLdmdOx8

Watch on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrMs-DLXhO8

What are your thoughts on the HTC handsets and the Android vs. iPhone showdown? Who do you side with?

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]]> http://atlchris.com/1598/htc-incredible-reviewed/feed/ 5 HP Mini 311 Netbook Reviewed http://atlchris.com/1514/hp-mini-311-netbook-reviewed/ http://atlchris.com/1514/hp-mini-311-netbook-reviewed/#comments Fri, 05 Mar 2010 12:00:04 +0000 Chris Lentz http://atlchris.com/?p=1514 Recently, I was able to get my hands on an HP Mini 311 netbook. This is the first time I have ever had a chance to work with a netbook, and I will say right up front, it was not the best experience I have had. The HP Mini 311 was loaned to me by Verizon Wireless for review purposes. During my review, I ran into multiple problems and concerns, which I will describe in detail below.

The Hardware

The HP Mini 311 features an 11.6″ LED HD BrightView widescreen display, Nvidia’s ION gfx chip, a 160GB HHD, 2GB of DDR3 RAM, an HP Broadband Wireless (3G) modem, and 802.11a-n WLAN. The specs on this little machine are impressive, for such a small package. The device, which measures in around 11.5″ x 8″ x 1.25″, features a stylish design with a wide range of ports on both sides. For me, the best thing about the HP Mini 311, is the beautiful high-definition screen, which is paired with the Nvidia ION. The screen on this device is great for watching movies through iTunes, via DVD, or through many of the HD video (non-Flash; more info in the Software section) sites that are on the net today.

The ports on this device are another strong point. On the right side of the device, you have an Ethernet port, VGA, audio out, two USB 2.0 ports and a media card reader. On the left side, you have the security lock, power connector, one USB 2.0 port, and one HDMI out. Yes, you read it right: This netbook features HDMI out, which is an impressive feature for a device in this genre. I tested the HDMI output and was very impressed with the quality.

The Nvidia ION gfx chip and the 11.6″ HD screen are impressive, but there are a few hardware aspects that affected my review in a negative way. First, the touchpad on this device is made of the same material as the rest of the body with no texture difference. I found this very annoying, and I much prefer the textured style touchpad that comes on the unibody MacBook Pro. The second negative I came across with the HP Mini 311 was the keyboard. I found the keys to be to be very cheap feeling, and they wiggle a bit when you touch them.

The Software

The HP Mini 311 comes with Windows 7 Home Premium and all kinds of HP software pre-installed. The software that comes pre-installed on the device is what turned me off from this device completely. First is the HP software products. I don’t know why hardware developers feel the need to fill their machines with horrible clunky software that ruins the usability of the device. When you start up the device, you are prompted with five — yes, five — popups asking you to activate and pay for something, register something, or run something in the background. The HP assistant software that tells you if your computer is “healthy” or not pops up and scans for a few minutes every time you wake the device.

The Verizon Wireless VZAccess Manager, which is the software you use to connect to the Verizon Wireless 3G network, is very bulky and slow-moving. When you open the software, it takes 45 seconds to a minute before you can do anything; then there is another 15 to 30 second wait while it “detects devices”??? While the software does what it is supposed to, it also takes over control of your WiFi connection. My contact described this as a convenient feature, but I found it more annoying and somewhat inconvenient. I would much rather just use Windows 7′s built-in WiFi controller.

Flash performance on the device was not great either. I found Flash video playback from sites like Hulu and HBO GO to be very choppy and unwatchable. I did some research and found that this occurs partly because Flash did a hack job at integrating with the NVIDIA ION chipset. I also think the bulky, memory-hogging HP software played a part in the poor Flash performance.

The Verizon Network

This section is where I have to cut my review short. Halfway through my review of the device, the Verizon 3G network started giving me authentication errors, which hindered my ability to fully review the 3G performance and run speed tests. I reached out to my contact at Verizon, who was unable to assist me with this issue.

Final Thoughts

The HP Mini 311 features a very impressive set of hardware specs for a netbook device. The HD BrightView screen is one of the best I have seen on a laptop computer, and the addition of HDMI is a very welcome component. The software is where this device takes a turn for the worse. The HP pre-installed software is annoying and bogs down the performance of the computer. The VZAccess Manager from Verizon Wireless, is very slow-moving and not the most user-friendly mobile connect software package I have worked with. My final verdict for the HP Mini 311, is SKIP IT!

Have you ever used a Netbook? Which one did you use, and was it a favorable experience?

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]]> http://atlchris.com/1514/hp-mini-311-netbook-reviewed/feed/ 7 Pogoplug (2nd Generation) Reviewed http://atlchris.com/1473/pogoplug-2nd-generation-reviewed/ http://atlchris.com/1473/pogoplug-2nd-generation-reviewed/#comments Mon, 15 Feb 2010 15:56:38 +0000 Chris Lentz http://atlchris.com/?p=1473 Essentially, the Pogoplug is a device that allows you to attach any external USB hard drive to the cloud with out any fancy router configurations. The first time I heard about the Pogoplug, I was really excited to get my hands on one and see if it was as great at it sounded. Well, the first generation came and went, and to tell you the truth, I had forgot all about it. In November 2009, Pogoplug announced they would drop a new version of the Pogoplug with a new optimized web interface. When I heard about the new generation of the device, I decided I was not going to let it slip my mind again. Now that I have one, and have been using it for a few weeks, I wanted to do a full write up on the device and share my thoughts and experience.

Unboxing

The Hardware

The Pogoplug in all its pink glory is a pretty slick looking device. One of the complaints people had with the first generation was that it was pretty ugly, and only offered 1 USB port. Well, both of these worries are no more in the second generation of the device. The Pogoplug features 3 x USB 2.0 ports, 1 gigabit ethernet port, and a 100-240v power port on the rear of the device. On the front of the device, you will find 1 additional USB 2.0 port and a status light that will let you know if your Pogoplug is online. It is hard to explain how the device looks just in words, so be sure to checkout the pictures throughout this article. Essentially, the device itself floats on a pink plastic stand, that doubles as a cable management system. While this device looks odd hovering like it does, you will find, that this hover design allows for 360 degree airflow, which keeps the device nice and cool.

my.Pogoplug.com

Maintaining your Pogoplug is easy and is all done from a web interface at http://my.pogoplug.com. When you first login, the website will detect a Pogoplug on your network, and will automatically sync it to your account. If it doesn’t automatically detect it, it will ask you for the unique ID located on the bottom of the device. Once the device is setup, you will see it appear on the website and its contents will appear in a very typical folder thumbnail style. You can browse your files, view them right there on the web, and share them.

My.Pogoplug.com also analyzes your content and organizes it into a series of media folders: i.e. Movies, Photos, Music, Slideshows. As it analyzes your content for the media folders, it also zero’s out any video files and transcodes them for over the website viewing. I found this to be an awesome feature. When I host my entire home media server on my Pogoplug, this functionality will allow me to view all my movies and TV shows from my home media server via the internet when I am away from my home network. The video that is seen through my.Pogoplug.com is the degraded transcoded video, but when you watch video via the Desktop software, you will see the original quality. The transcoded video just makes it website friendly and is show in a typical flash player. I would love to see my.Pogoplug.com take advantage of HTML 5 instead of Flash, but that is just a minor concern.

Desktop Software

The Pogoplug also offers desktop software for Mac OS X, Windows, and Linux. Essentially what this software does, is allow you to display your Pogoplug drive as a typical attached USB hard drive. You just load the application, login with your my.Pogoplug.com credentials, and up pops your Pogoplug wireless drive in Finder and/or My Computer. The application features a few options: Remember me on this computer, Automatically start Pogoplug drive on login, and enable multi-drive support. Along with those few setup options, you have the option to setup Active Copy which is essentially, a way for you to sync directories on your computer to a directory on your Pogoplug. I found this really handy by sharing my pictures directory, so when I add new pictures, they are automatically available on my Pogoplug for sharing.

One problem I had with the desktop software (Mac Version), is there is no running in the background. You have to have the Pogoplug application fully running and in your dock. I don’t want something that has to be open up all the time sitting on my dock. That is what the status bar is for, and yes there is a status bar icon, but there is no way to close the application and keep it running in the background with just a status bar icon.

Content Sharing

Another great feature of the Pogoplug is the ability to share hosted content. You can select to share any folder on your Pogoplug connect hard drive. Sharing is done through my.Pogoplug.com. They offer a ton of ways to share your content, ranging from emailing a private link, to opening it to the public all together. They also allow you to share content via all the major social networks and via an RSS feed. This is great, because now I can share my entire pictures directory with all my relatives. I can even set it up to notify people when I add new images to the folder.

Final Thoughts

Overall, I am very happy with the Pogoplug and the my.Pogoplug.com website. The ability to connect multiple USB 2.0 hard drives to the device at one time, the transcoding of videos for easy online viewing, and the ability to share content really makes this device a winner in my eye. My only issue with the device is the desktop application. They need to address the running in the background issue and I would like a few more options to control the desktop software and the Pogoplug attached drives, but those are just minor issues compared to all the positives the device offers.

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]]> http://atlchris.com/1473/pogoplug-2nd-generation-reviewed/feed/ 8 Kodak Zi8 Reviewed http://atlchris.com/1364/kodak-zi8-reviewed/ http://atlchris.com/1364/kodak-zi8-reviewed/#comments Sun, 10 Jan 2010 21:54:07 +0000 Chris Lentz http://atlchris.com/?p=1364 First off, I have received a couple of request from some people to keep my reviews short, so this one will be my test short review. I will provide links to more detailed reviews below if you would like to explore it further. Also, please leave comments to let me know if you like the new short style or prefer the old long reviews.

I recently had a chance to review the Kodak Zi8 ($179.00 on Amazon) high definition pocket video camera. This camera falls in the same category as the Flip Ultra and Mino HD cameras, which is what I currently own. I was particularly excited to review this camera as it is something I have been in the wall about buying for some time. I currently own a SD Flip Mino, and am ready to upgrade to HD!

Features

The Zi8 boast a wide range of features, some of them are very common in other pocket cameras, and some of them aren’t! The Zi8 offers 5 different capture modes, 1080p, 720p at 60 f/s, 720p at 30 f/s, WVGA, Still Image. All video is shot in a 16:9 widescreen HD format and still images are taken in a 5 MP format. The Zi8 features a 2.5 color LCD, swivel out USB arm, SD/SDHC slot, and external microphone jack, HDMI output, built-in image stabilization and a micro/macro view switch.

A lot of people were excited about the external microphone jack, but I was unable to reviews this feature as I do not own an external microphone. If you would like a review of the external microphone feature, browse over to my buddy, Paul Stamatiou, review of the Zi8. One feature in particular, that I liked is the landscape/macro switch which allows you to focus in on close items if you need to.

Review

The Zi8 is a great camera for the price. The video quality is great, but I did find that the Zi8 has pretty significant issues adapting to low light situations. It performs well in low light, but has a issue switching between non-low light and low light situations as you will see in the example video I embed below. The lack of any internal memory was kind of a let down, but SD memory is getting super cheap these days so I didn’t find this to be a real issue. I do wish though, that at least a 1GB or 2Gb SD card was included in the box. If I bought this retails, it would be a big let down to get home and realize I can’t use it because I have to go back and pick up memory for it. The extra features like the built-in image stabilization, landscape/macro mode, HDMI output, and the external microphone jack are all welcomed features to the pocket camera family, and I found they all to perform well, except the external microphone jack which I didn’t test.

Test Footage


Test Footage courtesy of Paul Stamatiou. Read his review of the Zi8 at his blog: PaulStamatiuo.com.

Final Thoughts

The unit I reviewed was a 2-week loaner which I had to return, so, will I buy the Kodak Zi8? Yes, it is a great pocket video camera that boast a wide arrange of features, so of which are not available on other pocket camera’s. I love my Flip Mino, but it is not high defination. Do I recommend it to you? Yes, if you are on the wall about purchasing the Kodak Zi8, I say go for it, it wont let you down, just remember to pick up a SD/SDHC memory card along with it.

Other Resources

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]]> http://atlchris.com/1364/kodak-zi8-reviewed/feed/ 5 Motorola Droid Review: Summary http://atlchris.com/1285/motorola-droid-review-summary/ http://atlchris.com/1285/motorola-droid-review-summary/#comments Tue, 01 Dec 2009 19:16:35 +0000 Chris Lentz http://atlchris.com/?p=1285 The 4th and final post in my series of the Motorola Droid, I wanted to write up a short and quick summary of the phone’s hardware and software. If you would like more details, please look back at the other posts in my series: Android Market vs. iTunes App Store | The Droid Hardware | The Droid Software

The Motorola Droid, is a beautiful phone, it has some great features that I love, but it also has a handful of negatives. The first great feature I love, is the integration of first-party apps with the phone itself, and the ability to run apps in the background. Ones of the worst parts of the iPhone is the limitations on applications. I wish I could accept a phone call while my GPS application keeps running in the background. Another great feature to the Motorola Droid, is the Google Navigation application. This GPS app works great, it lacks some of the common features found in other GPS applications, but the positives defiantly outweigh the negatives. If this app is released on the iPhone, it will instantly become my main GPS navigation application. I also very much enjoyed the ability to mount the device as a mass storage device on my Mac. This allows me to drag over all kinds of content on to the phone. The combination of third party players and the ability to mount the device allows me to view tons of different types of video content, and not be limited to what Google or Motorola says is ok. The final positive to the device, is the screen, this screen on the Motorola Droid is beautiful, it put all other mobile screens to shame (Yes, even the iPhone!) The combination of brightness and high resolution, really makes for a pleasant experience when using the phone.

The negatives of the device are both hardware and software related. First, is the quality of the Android Market and the third-party apps that are available. Yes, I know it is newer than the iPhone and the iTunes app store, I am just saying, developers don’t need to port apps over to Android, they need to focus on developing for Android. I ultimately think the limitations of the iTunes App Store are what will eventually lead to the end of the iPhones reign over the entire mobile phone industry. The second major negative is the physical keyboard. The physical keyboard on this device was not designed well at all, the keys are to flat and are not comfortable on your fingers. I found my typing to be more accurate on the virtual keyboard than the physical keyboard. The final negative I want to touch on, is the Verizon Network. Yes, Verizon has a ton of 3G coverage, but did you also know, that you can’t use the data connection if you are on a phone call, or vice-vers-a. That is a horrible limitation. CDMA (Verizons Network) is an older technology than GSM (AT&T,) and it has a bunch of nasty limitations. Did you also know, that a Verizon (CDMA) phone will not work internationally? With GSM networks, all you have to do is change out your SIM card and you can be up and running on another network internationally.

Overall, the Motorola Droid is a nice phone, it has some great positives but also has a bunch of negatives. For now, I will be staying with the iPhone. If the Droid fixed the keyboard and the third-party-apps became a bit more advanced, I would highly consider switching, but for now I am happy. If you need to be on the Verizon Network, the Droid is defiantly the phone to go with, but if you have network freedom, I still recommend the iPhone 3GS as the phone to get.

This article is Part 4 of my full series of reviews of the Motorola Droid. Below are links to the other parts of the Motorola Droid Review:

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]]> http://atlchris.com/1285/motorola-droid-review-summary/feed/ 9 Motorola Droid Review: The Hardware http://atlchris.com/1206/motorola-droid-review-the-hardware/ http://atlchris.com/1206/motorola-droid-review-the-hardware/#comments Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:40:42 +0000 Chris Lentz http://atlchris.com/?p=1206 Motorola Droid on Verizon Wireless

In part two of my Motorola Droid review, I am going to take a look at the hardware of this highly anticipated phone. The Motorola Droid, is a new touch screen phone from Verizon Wireless. It is the first phone to come out with Google’s Android 2.0 OS. People have been excited for the Droid because it seems to be the phone that answers everyones requests. The phone features a 3.7″ 16:9 widescreen touch display, a 3.5mm headset jack, a 5 MP camera, a battery that claims 7 hour of continuous use, a micro SD card slot, and a full slide out QWERTY keyboard. The device weighs in at 6oz and measures 2.4 x 4.6 x .5 (H x W x D) in size. When comparing it to an iPhone 3G, it is just about the same size but is slightly thick.

One thing that did strike me as weird, is the Droid doesn’t include any headphones in the box. While this wont bug most people, including me, I did find it strange. Most phones now days come with some sort of headset in the box wether it is a high quality hands free kit, or just a crappy set of $.99 head phones. The Droid also features a very large speaker on the back of the device, which is very loud and sounds great when making calls and listing to audio.

The Body

The Motorola Droid feels like it is very well built. It is very solid, and the back features a very nice slightly rubbery coating. The phone fits into my hand very comfortable and all buttons are easily accessible with my thumb when I am holding the phone. The Droid features 4 buttons (a back button, an options button, a home button, and a search button) along the bottom of the screen, which provide haptic feedback, in the form of a slight vibration, when pushed. The Droid also features a removable battery, which hides behind a slide off panel. This slide off panel is where my first problem with this device lies. I have had the phone for a week now, and I have had the battery door slide off mistakenly on 3 different occasions. What I discovered is because the back of the Droid has a rubber coating, it grips stuff very easily so if I have the phone sitting on something and I pick it up, if I slide it along what it was sitting on, I can very easily slide the battery door off. If I owned this device, I would probably put a piece of tape over the battery door so I don’t lose the little door. Another minor issues I had with the hardware of the device, was the charging port, I founds its location on the side of the phone to be very inconvenient. I would have much rather seen it on the bottom of the device.

The power/sleep/wake button which is located at the top of the device, was another cause for concern. I found this button to be very small and hard to find. One of the habits i have gotten into with the iPhone is waking the phone up as I pull it out of my pocket. With the iPhone this involves pushing a nice large button found on the front of the device. The button on the Droid is about the size of a grain of rice and it sits flush with a lip on the case causing it to not be easily found by feeling with your finger.

The Screen

The screen on the Motorola Droid is incredibly beautiful. It is slightly large .2″ then the iPhone screen, it features a much higher resolution then the iPhone. The iPhone 3G features a 480 x 320 resolution scree, and the Droid features a 480 x 854 resolution screen. Those numbers might not mean much to you, but that difference in resolutions results in a 300,000 pixel difference between the iPhone and the Droid. Where I really noticed the difference was when reading text. With the iPhone, when you look at ATLChris.com full version on the iPhone, you can’t read the text until you zoom in, this is because there are not enough pixels to clearly display the detail of small text. With the Motorola Droid, you can clearly read the text and see in detail the individual letters. When viewing video, the phones are pretty equal I found that both devices show video beautifully, but did not notice an increase in video clearity when viewing on the Droid vs the iPhone. I will say though that the video I test was not optimized for the Droid, so my test might not be the best to determine video quality differences.

The Keyboard

One of the features that many people were excited about with the Motorola Droid, was the inclusion of a full physical QWERTY keyboard. Before the iPhone, I was a Blackberry Curve user and loved my physical keyboard. I was excited to use the Droid to see if I still favored the physical keyboard over a touch screen keyboard. My findings surprised me. I types almost 10 times faster on a touch keyboard then a physical keyboard. The physical keyboard on the Droid slides out from under the device. I am going to just come straight out and say it, the physical keyboard on the Droid sucks. It is horribly designed which is surprising consider how well the phone is designed over all. The keys are super flat and very small, I would it very difficult to see determine what key I was pushing. I also found that my thumbs were to big, and sometimes pushed multiple keys at one time. After trying to use the physical keyboard for a day, I gave up and just started using the touch screen keyboard again.

The Camera

The Motorola Droid features a 5MP camera with a LED flash. The camera is capable of taking both still and video images. Motorola claims that the video is near DVD quality and the stills are equal to a standalone 5MP digital camera. I can confirm first hand that these 2 claims are incredibly over stated. I have attached a couple of examples of the photo quality below and a YouTube of the video quality. When taking stills, the slightest bit of movement results in a blurred image and the LED flash is to over powering. The video is good considering it is a camera on a phone, but when you look at other small cameras on the market, they could have easily achieved better quality in the smaller form factor.

Motorola Droid Sample Picture 8 Motorola Droid Sample Picture 7 Motorola Droid Sample Picture 6 Motorola Droid Sample Picture 5 Motorola Droid Sample Picture 4 Motorola Droid Sample Picture 3 Motorola Droid Sample Picture 2 Motorola Droid Sample Picture 1

Final Thoughts

The Motorola Droid is a very well built phone. You can tell the Motorola design team really put a lot of thought into the overall design of the phone. The screen is what really makes this device stand out. It is super high resolution for a mobile device, and you can really tell a difference when comparing it to the iPhone 3G. The keyboard is probably the biggest issue I had with the phone. It is nice having a slide out keyboard, but because of the super flat design, I found it incredibly unusable, and I returned to the on screen touch keyboard after just one day.

Overall, the device feels great in your hand and the rubber coating on the back really allows you to grip the phone securely but still be able to touch the screen and the haptic feedback buttons on the front of the device. I am a big fan of the micro SD removable memory and the removable battery even know the battery door is a bit of a issue. From a hardware stand point, I would say the device is pretty equal with the iPhone 3G. If this device was available as a GSM AT&T phone, it would be a toss up between it and the iPhone 3G.

This article is Part 2 of my full series of reviews of the Motorola Droid. Below are links to the other parts of the Motorola Droid Review:

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]]> http://atlchris.com/1206/motorola-droid-review-the-hardware/feed/ 1 VUDU XL Set-Top Box Reviewed http://atlchris.com/1067/vudu-xl-set-top-box-reviewed/ http://atlchris.com/1067/vudu-xl-set-top-box-reviewed/#comments Tue, 27 Oct 2009 14:00:03 +0000 Chris Lentz http://atlchris.com/?p=1067 VUDU XL Box

As most of you know, I am huge movie fan. With that being said, when I got the chance to review the VUDU XL, a set top box that allows you to purchase and rent high definition and standard definition movies, I was super excited. The VUDU XL delivers instant access to over 16,000 Hollywood movies and TV shows with super high quality audio and video to meet the needs of the most demanding home theater enthusiast. You can view my unboxing video here: VUDU XL Unboxing

The Hardware

My first impression of the VUDU XL box is that it seems to be built with very high quality standards. The VUDU XL weighs in at 4.7 lbs which is a pretty significant weight for a device of this manner. Most TV set top boxes weight in at about a pound, the VUDU XL differs because it has an internal 1TB hard drive that can hold around 500 SD. The device comes in at 8.9″ Wide x 2.4″ Tall x 7.3″ Deep, and features a rubber outer finish on the sides with a piano black glossy top finish. The device itself is very beautiful and will fit in nicely with almost any entertainment system. The back of the device features component out, composite out, s-video out, analog audio out, digital coax audio out, optical audio out, HDMI, and a ethernet port. I hooked the device into my home entertainment system using HDMI video and Optical audio out. Video output is available in 480i, 480p, 720i, 720p, 1080i, and 1080p. The device does not feature built in WiFi, which surprised me, but I am guessing you would want to have a wired connection with this type of device because of the massive amounts data you will be downloading.

The remote control for the VUDU XL is very unique, it features a very exotic design that is surprisingly comfortable in the hand. The remote control features 5 buttons and a scroll wheel. The buttons include a power button, return button, play/pause button, a “more” button, and a VUDU button. The VUDU button works like the Tivo button on the Tivo remote control, you can push it at anytime, and be returned to the main home screen. The scroll wheel works surprisingly well when navigating through the VUDU software interface, which I will go into next. The VUDU remote control also works off of a RF (radio frequency) signal which means the device can be hidden behind a cabinet, because no line of site is needed.

VUDU Box Top VUDU Box Logo VUDU Box Side VUDU Box RF Antenna VUDU Box Ports VUDU Box Bottom VUDU Box Front VUDU Box

The Software

The VUDU XL features a custom VUDU UI that allows you to browse movies in categories, by director or actor, or search for individual titles. The software is supported with beautiful cover art and trailers for most titles. I was very pleased with the VUDU software finding a specific movie is super easy, but what I really liked, is how you can browse different titles visually. When it comes to picking a movie to watch, people are set in their Blockbuster ways. By this, I mean that they like to just browse a wall of covers and see what strikes them as interesting. VUDU does this well by providing lots of nice categories like “New on VUDU” or “Now Playing” and putting focus on the beautiful cover art.

The Content

VUDU features its content in SD, HD, or HDX. The thing that really sets this box apart from other downloadable content providers is that the SD and HD versions of movies and TV shows will begin playing immediately, depending on your connection of course. Other internet to TV content providers require you to download the film in its entirety before you can watch it. While the SD and HD can be streamed, the HDX which is the top of the line quality for VUDU does require a download. I was super impressed with the quality of the VUDU video formats. From the SD up through the HDX. The HDX particularly surprised me. It is by far the best quality film I have ever seen from the internet. The audio and video format with the HDX was on par with Blu-Ray which really surprised me. The HDX download time was approximately 4 hours, but it was well worth it when I was wanting to watch an action packed film like “X-Men Origins: Wolverine.”

The rental terms and prices on all content are the norm with all the other services out there. Rentals are available for 24-hours after you begin playing the film or 30 days before you begin to play the film. The prices range from $3.99 up to $5.99 for rentals with purchases going as high as $25.99. Rentals also offer a $1.99 7-day extension after your 24-hour viewing period expires.

VUDU has also recently added some new content to the device through VUDU Labs. In the VUDU labs section, you can browse YouTube, Pandora, Flickr, Picasa, and TV On Demand. This really opens the device to a lot of great new content. Having Pandora on my large speaker home theater system was especially helpful when I was entertaining some friends.

What I Did Not Like

While I am very please with the VUDU XL, there were a couple of things that I didn’t like about the device. First is the level of noise the device puts off. The hard drives inside the device are always spinning (constantly downloading new catalog info) even when the device is off. I have about 10 electrical devices in my living room, and I was able to hear the VUDU XL over all off them. It is not loud enough to interfere when watching content, but you will defiantly notice it when you first enter the quiet room.

The second gripe I have with the device is the content. The content that they offer is great, but it is limited. Some restrictions I noticed really turned me off from the service. For instance the movie “Drag Me To Hell” came out when I was reviewing the device. I was excited to see this movie, so I added it to my wish list. When I finally sat down to watch it, I saw that they had only released it to own, not to rent. It was not available to rent until a month later. I am sure this is the content providers, but it is something VUDU should really try to prevent. Holding users back is not a smart idea, considering they are paying for the device and the content. They should be able to get it on their terms. What I also was hoping to see, was some integration with Hulu and/or Netflix Watch Instantly, but neither of these are offered. The only way a internet to TV device will work, is if it is open to the massive amounts of content that are available. As most companies have learned, closed format software does not work this day in age.

One final thing that turned me away from the device is the price. $499.00 for a home theater device is a lot. The price of 1 TB hard drive is down to close to $100.00 even for the premium drives, so why is this box so expensive? If your device is specific to 1 service, you should try to have it priced as low as possible. I could get a Tivo HD AND PS3 which both offer streaming movies services on top of the main services those devices offer, for way cheaper then this device.

Conclusion

The VUDU XL is a great device, but it doesn’t stand out from the competition. If they added something none of the other streaming devices did, like Hulu support, or even Netflix Watch Instantly, I would be running out to buy it, but for now, my Tivo HD with Amazon On Demand and Netflix Watch Instantly fills the streaming content spot in my home entertainment center. The quality is defiantly the best out of any streaming service, but what the other guys offer works good enough for me.

I will say VUDU is moving in the right direction with their recent decision to offer their software on LG and Mitsubishi devices. I would love to see it on the Tivo HD or the Playstation 3. If they offered it on a device I already have, I would easily use VUDU over the other option (Amazon On Demand or PS3 Store) because it is the best as far as quality, and it is competitive in content pricing.

Disclaimer: By law, I am required to disclose that the product I reviewed above (VUDU XL Box) was issued to me as a review unit. While I am required to disclose any donated or gifted items, I can promise you, that donated or gifted products do not effect the quality of the review I give. All reviews are presented truthfully and ethically from my personal opinion of said product.

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]]> http://atlchris.com/1067/vudu-xl-set-top-box-reviewed/feed/ 7 The Flip Mino HD http://atlchris.com/567/the-flip-mino-hd/ http://atlchris.com/567/the-flip-mino-hd/#comments Thu, 13 Nov 2008 15:08:49 +0000 Chris Lentz http://atlchris.com/?p=567

Some of you know how much of a fan I am of my Flip Mino. I purchased my first Flip Mino video camera back in July. Check out my unboxing and review post of the original Flip Mino. Unfortunately I have not gotten a chance to explore the new Flip Mino HD in person, but I have been reading many rave reviews.

The new Flip Mino HD has a couple of new feature but overall is not that different from the original Flip Mino. It is the same size as the Flip Mino, the same design, the same size LCD display and button layout. All of the new features in the camera are directly related to the addition of HD capabilities. The sounds quality on the HD is pretty much the same as the original Mino, which is great. That is one of the things I really like about the Mino series, is the wonderful audio quality.

The Video

A new resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels which is 720 pixel HD quality. Now, keep in mind that HD from this little camera is not going to be like watching a Blu Ray. Yes, it is HD but it is very highly compressed to allow for maximum recording length on the built in 4GB of memory. It is compressed with H.264 video compression and AAC audio compression which results in a MP4 file format.

I want to make sure it is clear, that this video is HD, but not high quality HD. Yes, I am sure it looks good, but many people don’t understand the concept of being true uncompressed HD and highly compressed HD.

I have watched multiple videos shot on the HD Mino, and it is very good quality for the size of the camera. If I was not so strapped for cash (See Why Here) I would defiantly be purchasing one.

Amazon is known for offering great deals on the Flip cameras, so make sure you keep and eye on the Amazon page for this product. I bought my original Mino on Amazon for $50 less then anywhere else. Here is the product page: Flip Video MinoHD Camcorder, 60 Minutes (Black)

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]]> http://atlchris.com/567/the-flip-mino-hd/feed/ 16 5 Things to Love and Hate about the New Apple Laptops http://atlchris.com/491/5-things-to-love-and-hate-about-the-new-apple-laptops/ http://atlchris.com/491/5-things-to-love-and-hate-about-the-new-apple-laptops/#comments Wed, 22 Oct 2008 01:57:35 +0000 Chris Lentz http://atlchris.com/?p=491

Being the new owner of a solid aluminum body Macbook Pro, I wanted to give a first hand opinion of what to love about the new Apple laptops, and what to hate about them. I will start with the bad news first.

What to Hate About the New Apple Laptops

  1. Leading off my list is how the glossy only option is available on both the Macbook and the Macbook Pro. Many people prefer a matte screen option, especially on the Pro models. Matte screens offer truer colors. This is very important to designers and photographers as they need to see true shades of colors for their work. I came from a matte screen model to a glossy screen model expecting to have issues, but I am really surprised at how much it is not a factor for me.
  2. Number 2 on my list is one that has not been talked about much. I have noticed that the new Macbook Pro sound quality on the built-in speakers is not near the quality it was on the previous model. What I believe is the problem is that the holes in the speaker greats on the new model are much smaller then the last model. This is causing flat sounding audio.
  3. Next on my list of the top 5 things to hate about the new Apple laptops is the lack of firewire 400 on the Pro and the lack of Firewire 400/800 on the Macbook. Firewire is a great technology that allows high speed transfers from video cameras and external hard drives. Having the firewire 800 on the Pro line is great, but many devices only offer 400, so this causes people to buy yet another adapter from Apple.
  4. The 4th item on my list is the weight issues. From the time you pick up the box on either the Macbook or Macbook Pro, you will realize that the device gained some weight during its upgrade. During the Apple keynote, Steve jobs discussed how the new “Brick” manufacturing process saved weight from the base of the computer. This is 100% true, the aluminum sections of the new laptops are much lighter then the previous model. The overall increase in weight comes from the large piece of glass that apple installed over the back lit LCD displays. This is a large and sturdy (thick) piece of glass, which probably accounts for close to 50% of the overall weight of the computer.
  5. The final item on my list of reasons to hate the new Apple laptops is how apple has sealed the glass, the LCD, and the aluminum backing that makes up the screen. On past models, if you broke the LCD, all you had to do was replace the LCD with the new model, you will have to replace the entire lid, glass, aluminum, and LCD. This could get a bit pricey for some. I guess I will just have to take extra special care of my new Macbook Pro.

What to Love About the New Apple Laptops

  1. First on my list of what to love about the new Apple laptops is the addition of the easy swap hard drive. With laptops taking over as most peoples main computers, extra storage is a must for most. I personally have over 100GB of music and growing, so it is very important that I have the ability to expand my hard disk space as needed.
  2. Next on my list is the new much quieter optical super drive. Apple has changed the brand and style of the optical superdrive in both the Macbook and Macbook Pro. The model offers a much quieter superdrive with no loud clicks like the previous model. For most, this doesn’t matter, but on my previous model Macbook Pro, I was always concerned that the super drive was breaking because of the loud clicking noises.
  3. Third on my list is one some people will notice and other might not. The new elevated position pf the ambient light sensor that controls the the backlit keyboard and the auto dim function for the LCD. This is one minor improvement that I am very much liking. I use to have the problem of my hands covering the sensor which was located under the speaker grills. With it located up high, I find that it work much better in the elevated position where is can more accurately detect the lighting in the room.
  4. The 4th item on my list is the most obvious. It is the much sturdier and sexy new uni body aluminum design. The new “brick” style of manufacturing the aluminum bodies for the Macbooks has really helped to provide what feels like a much sturdier design. The palm wrist don’t sag like they use to, and you don’t have to worry about denting it as easy as on the pas Macbook Pro.  Oh, and as I already said, these things just look sexy!
  5. The final item on my list is the black backlit keyboard. Alot of previous MBP owners were dreading the day that the Macbook Air black chicklet keyboard would come to the Macbook Pro. I for one, love the new keyboard. The main thing I enjoy, is how much easier it is to see the letters and symbols on the keyboard when the backlight is NOT on. The white lettering on the silver keys just didn’t work for me. I also prefer the feel of the chicklet keys when typing.

Well, that does it for my list, what would your list consist of? Are you a fan of the new aluminum uni body Macbooks and Macbook Pros?

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]]> http://atlchris.com/491/5-things-to-love-and-hate-about-the-new-apple-laptops/feed/ 6 REVIEW: Mini Stack v3 – 750GB External Hard Drive http://atlchris.com/348/review-mini-stack-v3-750gb-external-hard-drive/ http://atlchris.com/348/review-mini-stack-v3-750gb-external-hard-drive/#comments Sun, 05 Oct 2008 22:57:01 +0000 Chris Lentz http://atlchris.com/?p=348

After a long search, I have found the perfect external hard drive for a laptop only owner. With that being said, I would like to introduce you to the Newer Technology Mini Stack v3 External hard drive. This little external hard drive offers plenty of additional features beyond just being an external hard drive.

Specifications

Hard Drive: 750GB Bootable, 7200 RPM, 32MB Cache
Dimensions: 6.5″ x 6.5″ x 1.5″
Bridge Chipset: Oxford OXUF924DSb
Interface Ports: 1 x eSATA, 2 x Firewire 800, 1 x Firewire 400, 3 x USB 2.0/1.0

Thoughts

The Mini Stack v3 is an external hard drive with a built in powered USB/Firewire hub. It offers 3 USB 2.0/1.0, 1 Firewire 400, 2 Firewire 800, and 1 eSATA ports. I searched on google for over a week looking for a external hard drive solution that has a built in powered hub. When I stumbled upon this bad boy, I was so happy to see that not only did it have a USB hub built in, but it also had firewire and eSATA ports built in.

The Mini Stack v3 is offered in many different configurations, I opted to go with the 750GB/32MB/7200RPM model. They are offered up to 1TB but I choose to go with the 750GB model for financial reasons. One of the added bonuses about the Mini Stack is that it can be upgraded to a 1TB drive down the line. I am using the drive for Time Machine Backups and Aperture 2.0 vaults storage. With the built in eSATA port, I always have the option to use it with my Tivo HD as a expansion drive, which is a nice bonus

OK, so why was it so important for me to have a powered USB hub built in? Well, on my home desk, I have a USB wireless mouse, a Apple USB keyboard, a iPhone Dock, and an additional 250GB external hard drive. That is a total of 4 USB cords I have running behind my desk. Well, my Macbook Pro only has 2 USB ports on it, so I needed a USB hub. The way I have this all setup at my desk allows me to just plug in one single USB cord (the Mini Stack) and all my devices will automatically attach to my machine. This makes the whole process of plugging everything in a breeze. Also, it keeps my desk clean looking by hiding all but 1 USB cord behind the desk.

Verdict

Overall, I am very happy with the product. It accomplishes exactly what I need it to do. The price is a little high, but when you understand what all it does, it is worth the price.

Side note: I also wanted to add, that in the photos above, I have a white piece of paper over the blue front status light. This is purely because the light is on the bright side, and the device is located in my bedroom.

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