Windows Phone 7 handsets: spec comparison

Having trouble keeping track of all the new Windows Phone 7 handsets today? We don't blame you -- even we had trouble remembering all the minor differences between the similarly specced devices. To end our frustration, we've compiled a big chart that lists out the carriers and specs for all 10 devices (with a couple extra MIA) to make our lives a tad easier -- head on pass the break if you need the peace of mind.
7 Mozart: Orange (France and UK), Deutsche Telekom, Telstra (Australia)
7 Surround: AT&T
7 Pro: Sprint
7 Trophy: SFR (France), Vodafone (Australia, Germany, Spain and UK)
HD7: T-Mobile (US), O2 (UK and Germany), Movistar (Spain), SingTel (Singapore)

Optimus 7: Telus (Canada), América Móvil (Mexico), Movistar (Spain), Vodafone (Germany, Italy, Spain and UK), SingTel (Singapore)
Quantum / Optimus 7Q: AT&T (US), Telstra (Australia)



Focus: AT&T (US)
Omnia 7: Orange (France and UK), SFR (France), Movistar (Spain), Deutsch Telekom

Oh, and we haven't forgotten the elusive ASUS handset:



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Zune 4.7 in cahoots with Windows Phone 7, caught on camera

So, you can go and nab Zune 4.7 right this minute. Also, Microsoft is showing off Windows Phone 7 right now behind semi-closed doors (sorry, public). Can we bring these two beautiful stories together? Turns out we can, and we did. Now, if you've ever used a Zune before, this isn't going to be that revelatory of an experience, but there are enough minor tweaks and one major one (the Windows Phone 7 Marketplace) that we thought were worth a quick video walkthrough. Find it after the break. Don't be a square!

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Xbox Live Fall 2010 Dashboard Update preview: ESPN, Netflix search, Kinect, and more! (Update)

By Ross Miller posted Sep 29th 2010 10:04PM

Shortly before Kinect hits store shelves on November 4th, Microsoft plans on rolling out the Fall Update to Xbox Live -- even sooner for those who signed up for the preview program. That shouldn't come as much of a surprise, really: even without the numerous leaks, the fall update is a longstanding tradition for the almost five-year-old console, and the company devoted a large chunk of its E3 2010 presentation to talk about the biggest additions. That includes Netflix search (finally!), Zune music, and an entertainment hub for a certain worldwide sports broadcaster... ESPN. We've had a chance to spend some time at home with the Fall Update, follow us after the break for our full impressions!




Update: As both Joystiq and a number of tipsters have alerted us, Microsoft has pulled the large, wooden lever in its dark underground lair that allows for the Fall Update to trickle out and assimilate itself into the consoles of those smart enough to sign up for the preview program. If you receive a prompt upon signing in, rejoice! If not, well, have patience!



P.S. - Looking for more? Our BFFs at Joystiq have compiled a series of exhaustive videos chronicling the Fall Update. Check it out!

Xbox Live Fall 2010 Dashboard Update preview

Dashboard

The biggest change with the Xbox Dashboard, and arguably the biggest since the New Xbox Experience debuted in 2008, is with panel presentation -- which is a mixed bag if you ask us. No long do they cascade, providing what was an admittedly obstructed view of six selections; instead, we're shown three panels in their entirety, with just the subtlest of hints that there's more to the right or left. It's much cleaner and panels themselves more aesthetically-pleasing, sure, but to be honest, we thought it was functionally easier to have a hint of what's further down the menu. Again, though, we can't say we're disappointed -- after all, navigation feels much snappier. As we saw briefly on the Featured tab (with an advertisement, naturally), Microsoft allows for full-motion video presented even on non-highlighted panels.

Also getting a welcome UI overhaul is the Customize Avatar screen. Your virtual doppelganger now stands front and center as you go through the selection of wares and facial adjustments. There aren't any surprise features, but navigation does feel much less cumbersome.

ESPN3

As far as new features go, ESPN3 is top of that list. For the cost of Xbox Live Gold and having an affiliated ISP (here's a list, and not to worry NYCers, Microsoft assures us Time Warner Cable will soon be partnering up), you can watch live sporting events and replays of anything ESPN has the rights to stream -- and trust us, that's a lot. (Don't have an affiliated ISP? You'll miss out on the live events and full replays, but all other clips and highlights should still be available.) The initial screen features a crowd of avatars wandering on the bottom, while giant displays serve as the screens for the featured videos. Hovering over one selection for more than a few seconds and the video will autoplay; pressing X will make the video full screen, which you can do immediately at the cost of a brief bout of low-resolution footage as it buffers the HD stream.



More highlights can be found in a menu accessible via the leftmost panel. It's a setup familiar to Netflix owners: a textual list of categories and a horizontal smorgasbord of related videos. Here's where we come into some hiccups, however: when we last checked live event replays, there were 241 games in all -- not easy to navigate. Microsoft alleviates some of this by adding the My Sports tab, allowing you to select and quickly peruse your favorite ball game, but even then, expect some sifting. We've been promised more more integration with ESPN's online suite -- including being able to select specific "My Teams" to follow -- some time in the not-too-distant future.



All the video streams in HD using the same variable bitrate technology as Zune video. You're also given the same controls (pause, fast forward, rewind, etc.) and the portal will remember where you left off in a certain video if you want to jump in and out of a handful at a time. The best part is with live events, being able to rewind to parts you missed even if you tuned in late. Unfortunately there's no jumping to key moments à la the web browser stream, but like we were told with My Teams, it's on the proverbial roadmap. At any point during any video, you can press Y to bring up the scores for all current, recent, and upcoming games, sortable by sport, and if it's on at the moment, you can quickly jump to the game with a press of a button. Again, the repeated mantra here is that there's potential for more and it's in the works. That's not to downplay anything that's being offered out the gate; what we have hear is pretty impressive for sports fans, if for nothing else as a great way to stream matches from your living room set without having to invest in a cable TV.

Netflix

Netflix has been an enduring staple to the Xbox 360's entertainment side, and for a long time one of the biggest non-gaming reasons to pick up the console. The only problem was that you still needed another device altogether to explore the library, as the software limited you to a pre-selected array of films (organized by category) and what was already added to your Instant Watch queue. Thankfully that's all been changed with this update. In addition to eschewing cascading navigation in favor of something on the same plane of depth (notice a trend here?), search has now has been added. It works well, opting for a line of letters instead the classic Xbox 360 virtual keyboard, and the results update with each letter added. If a selection isn't available to watch instantly, it'll still show up on the list as "DVD Only" and offer suggestions to similar titles. Needless to say, this still remains one of the best Netflix experiences out there.

Zune music

Zune video got a handful of UI tweaks -- its selection menu for video is thankfully much more streamlined -- but newcomer here is music and Zune Pass. Unsurprisingly, it works similar to Zune video and most other entertainment panels, as far as navigation is concerned. Search presents you with multiple separate panels for results that updating with each additional letter: artist, song, album, playlist. The artist page sorts songs by album and individual popularity, and even provides bios with hotlinks to other artists, a nice little touch. All the Zune functionality you'd expect is here, including Smart DJ. Pick an artist as a jumping off point and adjust the playlist according to your likes. The program itself works great; whether or not you want to devote your TV to streaming music is entirely your call, but at least the option's there.

Kinect

Screen from E3 2010

We didn't get a chance to bring Kinect home to give it a spin (no beta for us, we're afraid), but Microsoft did invite us to its offices to try it in studio. By and large, though, it's what we saw back at E3 with some refinements -- and yes, it does work while sitting down. If you're calibrated to your profile, walking in front of the Kinect camera will automatically sign you in (if no one else is already). Waving your hand will engage the gestures, swiping from one side to the other will navigating through the special panels (so long as you connect the hand cursor to the proper arrow icon ahead of time), and you still have to hover on a panel for multiple seconds to select certain items. That part seemed quicker than before, but it's still a hassle compared to quickly moving through via a controller. Voice commands are again limited to select options, and it'll prompt you on what does and doesn't work. Using your hand to grab and fine-tune where in a video you are is still a nice touch, but really, this is just an alternate method for navigation. Great for novelty's sake or if you can't find the remote / are out of batteries, but we're still a ways off from Minority Report.

Wrap-up

We hate to use the revolution vs. evolution analogy here, but that's exactly what the new dashboard is: an evolution of the New Xbox Experience. Aesthetic revisions and impending Kinect integration notwithstanding, the big takeaway from this update is a vastly improved Netflix and a strong debut for ESPN, which really is going to make some people rethink their cable TV subscription. Sure, it's mandatory, but don't worry, it's pretty much an improvement in every way imaginable -- unless, of course, you like cascading panels.

My Samsung Omnia i900 Review

I finally have my Samsung Omnia i900 last november 2008 however have my downtimes at times, it is a very cool phone and I would say one of the best phones of 2008. It is very innovative however just like any other smart phones it is far from perfect.... It runs on windows Mobile 6.1 and as to say it really fits this new phone and added more mobile and personal computing technology to the handheld.

The Phone Features of the Omnia are just perfect

*Avaialble in both 8gb and 16gb
*A full touch Display
*A Nav Key
*Phone Button
*An accelerometer ( What it does? well if you are fond of using the phone like a htc or other pda phones just flip it sideways and the screen will immediately shift to a landscape view )
*The display are huge enough for our fingers to tap the screen for the numbers and letters we type
* A Phone Organizer
* A Video Player ( what's cool? the video player uses the divx codec which means it can play high res avi movies and that is just perfect )
* MP3 Player
* Radio
*Since it is a windows mobile phone, the package comes with Office mobile Edition, an Acrobat reader for pdf files and of course the Windows media Player ( But I prefer to use the omnia's touch player for my multimedia files)
* The Camera Comes with 5 megapixel image capture
* A GPS system which is easy to use and uses the latest updates from google maps

In sense so far this the samsung omnia is the best phone that I ever had, till this time samsung omnia is still the best phone in the market

Mobile Phones to Watch For

Mobile phones coming soon

By Damian Koh, CNET Asia
Feb 08, 2008

Whenever you're shopping for a cell phone--or any high-tech item, for that matter--it's good to know what products are on the horizon. That way, you won't end up wishing that you'd waited a few weeks for that next-generation model the salesperson conveniently forgot to mention. Thus, we've come up with our handy list of release dates for mobile phones, complete with some of the key specifications and photos.

Bear in mind that manufacturers and service providers usually don't set firm dates for when new models will hit the market, and dates have a tendency to slip. You should also be aware that a handful of other new phones are due to be released over the next few months.

Read Full Article Mobile Phones To Launch

Beware of Bank ATM Card Theft

Bank ATM's Converted to Steal IDs of Bank Customers
A team of organized criminals are installing equipment on legitimate bank ATM's in at least 2 regions to steal both the ATM card number and the PIN. The team sits nearby in a car receiving the information transmitted wirelessly over weekends and evenings from equipment they install on the front of the ATM (see photos). If you see an attachment like this, do not use the ATM and report it immediately to the bank using the 800 numb! er or phone on the front of the ATM.
The equipment used to capture your ATM card number and PIN are cleverly disguised to look like normal ATM equipment. A "skimmer" is mounted to the front of the normal ATM card slot that reads the ATM card number and transmits it to the criminals sitting in a nearby car.
At the same time, a wireless camera is disguised to look like a leaflet holder and is mounted in a position to view ATM PIN entries.
The thieves copy the cards and use the PIN numbers to withdraw thousands from many accounts in a very short time directly from the bank ATM।
















Equipment being installed on front of existing bank card slot
















The equipment as it appears installed over the normal ATM bank slot.

The camera shown installed and ready to capture PIN's by looking down on the keypad as you enter your PIN
Tell more people>>>>>>