The First Interesting Looking BlackBerry Isn’t Even Made by RIM

blackberry 
By Sam Biddle

When was the last time you cared about a piece of BlackBerry hardware? 2003? Never? Your last malarial fever dream? Maybe today, at the sight of Porsche's limited edition, $2000 P9981. It's kinda nice looking! And stupidly, prohibitively expensive.

So what do you get for two grand, besides spotty service and a seat on a hot new class action lawsuit? A 1.4 GHz processor, stainless steel face, leather back, a feeling of tenuous superiority, and an exclusive BBM PIN. If that last part appeals to you, die. Pick up your P9981 at the nearest Porsche Design Store, which I'm sure are plentiful around the world. Then, you can do all sorts of Exclusive Porsche BlackBerry things, like cutting giant coke lines and slicing poor people. [RIM via CrackBerry]

Read More

iPad 2 review

By Joshua Topolsky 

Review

To say Apple's iPad 2 is an easy tablet to review is somewhat of an understatement. The device, a follow up to last year's wildly successful (and currently market-defining) iPad, is nearly identical when it comes to software, and though improved, closely related on the hardware side as well. With a 9.7-inch, 1024 x 768 display, the general size and shape of the device has remained the same, and though inside there's a new dual core A5 CPU, more memory, and a pair of new cameras, most of the iPad 2's changes are cosmetic. Still, the previous tablet soared far above most of its competitors when it came to the quality of both the hardware (if not its raw specs) and its software selection -- something Apple still stands head and shoulders over its adversaries on. So this new model, a thinner, sleeker, faster variant of the original may not be breaking lots of new ground, but it's already at the front of the pack. But is the iPad 2 worth an upgrade for those that took the plunge on the first generation? More importantly, does the device have what it takes to bring new owners into the fold? Those questions -- and more -- are all about to be answered in the full Engadget review, so read on!

Read More

HP TouchPad review

By Tim Stevens 

Review

As things get older they tend to get bigger. It's the same for people, corporations, models of cars, budget deficits... and so it is for webOS. As Palm was in the process of being subsumed its great mobile operating system was being eyed for much broader things, far bigger than the little phones it had previously been flashed on. Things like printers and desktops and laptops, but for its first proper foray outside of a phone it has a tall task: compete in the brutally vicious tablet space.

Its weapon is the TouchPad, a 9.7-inch tablet from HP that got official back in February and will be available July 1st (if you don't manage to find it earlier) -- $499.99 for the 16GB model, $599.99 for 32GB. That's exactly on parity with the WiFi iPad 2 and Galaxy Tab 10.1, current kings of the tablet court. Does this plus-sized Palm progeny really have what it takes to hang at that price point, or is this just a chubby pretender that's outgrown its britches? Read on to find out.

Read More

MacBook Air review (mid 2011)

By Tim Stevens 

Review

There comes a time when that giant, corporate-issued laptop stops fitting into your lifestyle. When dragging around a Kensington roller case just won't do. When you start to hear the siren lilt of something thinner, lighter, and maybe a bit more alluring. For years the MacBook Air has been that svelte temptress hollering your name, but it's always been a bit too slow -- all show and no go. It didn't have the power and the longevity to make it a serious contender for your serious affections.

No more. With its latest refresh, Apple has taken what was once a manilla-clad curiosity and turned it into a legitimate machine, not just a sultry looker. Good thing, too, because the death of the plastic-clad MacBook means the Air is now Apple's entry-level portable. Weary traveler looking for a laptop that will lighten your load and, it must be said, your wallet too? This might just be it.

Read More

Sony VAIO S Series review (15-inch)

By Tim Stevens 

Review

It's sad to say, but most of you who are going back to school have probably already returned by now -- though if you're in class right this moment you should probably be paying attention. If you managed to get back to campus without bringing a new laptop along, you might just want to keep reading -- Sony's just released a 15.5-inch addition to its VAIO S Series that not only adds a crucial bit of extra display acreage, but also bumps things up to a full 1080p.

Yes, this is a laptop that can not only be configured with a Blu-ray drive but has enough pixels to do the resulting footage justice, meaning it could make a passable player for movie night. But, does it have the chops to do your workload justice? Is it worth the $1,000 minimum asking price, at least a $100 premium over Sony's 13-inch models? Join us as we find out.

Read More

HP Envy 14 review (2011)

By Dana Wollman

Review

The last time we reviewed the Envy 14, we concluded, by and large, that HP got it right. The company succeeded in delivering good performance and graphics punch, all while correcting a teensy overheating problem and adding an optical drive and backlit keyboard. Then there was that rock-solid, engraved metal chassis that made it one of the most attractive notebooks on the market -- a distinction it still holds to this day. So as you can imagine, when HP refreshed the Envy 14 this summer, there wasn't exactly a lot to improve. What we have here is a nearly identical machine, with the same stunning design -- not to mention, $1,000 starting price. Now, though, HP is selling it with Sandy Bridge processors and USB 3.0 -- the kind of tweaks laptop makers have been rolling out for the better part of this year.

Normally, that kind of speed bump wouldn't warrant us re-reviewing a laptop. In fact, we probably wouldn't be revisiting the Envy 14 if it weren't for two things. For starters, we've received an unusual number of emails, tweets and comments from readers, imploring us to weigh in on the Sandy Bridge version before they pull the trigger. Secondly, in addition to that processor swap, HP has fine-tuned the touchpad drivers, and assures us the trackpad isn't the flaky mess it was the last two times around. So how much better is the Envy 14 in the year two thousand and eleven? Let's find out.

Read More

Acer Aspire S3 Ultrabook review

By Dana Wollman  

Review

Until now, Windows fans have had precious few alternatives to the MacBook Air. Sure, there's Samsung's Series 9, but just like the original Air, it's far from cheap. Since then, of course, Apple has cut the Air's starting price to $999, while the Windows options -- now marketed as Ultrabooks -- are about to mushroom in number. And so far, they're all starting in the (more reasonable) neighborhood of a thousand bucks, making these pinch-thin, long-lasting laptops accessible to the budget-conscious masses.

Acer's Aspire S3 was the first to hit the market here in the States, and with an entry price of $899, it's currently the least expensive. That it's skinny (just 13mm thick, to be exact), should be a given, but it also claims to wake from sleep in two seconds flat and reconnect to known networks in two and a half. But, as the least pricey Ultrabook on the shelf, it also forgoes some specs you might have liked to see -- namely, all-flash storage and USB 3.0. But does that matter much when you're potentially saving hundreds of dollars? Let's find out.

Read More

ASUS Zenbook UX31 review

By Dana Wollman

Review

It was just last week that we got to take home the Acer Aspire S3, the first Ultrabook to go on sale here in the States. Unfortunately, it doesn't live up to the pillars laid out by Intel: its performance trails similar machines, its battery craps out early and the design, while portable, is too chintzy to make it a bellwether for skinny Windows laptops. Our verdict, in a sentence, was that you'd be better off getting a MacBook Air, or at least considering other Ultrabooks -- namely, ASUS' line of Zenbooks.

As it turns out, one showed up on our doorstep just a few days later. In many ways, the UX31 is everything the S3 is not: it has a gorgeous all-metal design and comes standard with an SSD and 1600 x 900 display (not to mention, a case and two bundled adapters). And with a starting price of $1,099, it undercuts the entry-level (and similarly configured) MacBook Air by two hundred bucks. So is this the Ultrabook we've all been waiting for? We suggest pouring yourself a large beverage, settling into a comfy chair and meeting us past the break. We've got a lot to say on the subject.

Read More

Dell XPS 14z review

By Dana Wollman 

Review

As far as product launches go, Dell didn't exactly rip the Band-Aid off the XPS 14z. After teasing it back in September, the company let all the specs out of the bag, but stopped short of naming a price and ship date for the United States. Well, now we know: this 14-incher will be available in the US and Canada November 1, and will start at $1,000 -- a price that puts it in direct competition with the likes of the HP Envy 14 and Sony VAIO SA series.

Like these other laptops, the 14z commands a premium over cheaper models, with beefier specs and a (supposedly) more luxurious design. With Core i5 and i7 processor options, discrete graphics, USB 3.0 and an optional solid-state drive, it offers a lot of the same specs as its peers, though it manages to stand out in a couple key ways. One, it sports an LG Shuriken display, which crams a 14-inch screen into a chassis normally reserved for 13-inch systems (translation: its bezels are super narrow). And with a starting weight of 4.36 pounds, it's lighter than a lot of the other laptops you're probably considering. But are these bullet points enough to make it a smart buy? Read on to find out.

Read More

HTC Radar review

By Zachary Lutz  

Review

It took life as the Omega, but it didn't take long for HTC's Mango handset for the masses to be christened the Radar. Alongside the higher-end Titan (with its gigantic 4.7-inch screen and souped-up 1.5GHz CPU), it holds the potential to replace numerous devices in the company's Windows Phone lineup -- the Trophy, Mozart and HD7 all come to mind. Yes, we may see additional options down the road, but for the moment, it comes down to these two. While the Radar's aging chipset, sealed battery and limited 8GB headroom will undoubtedly discourage some buyers, it's managed to find a soft spot in our jaded hearts. Just how'd it do that? Read on, as we count the reasons why.

Read More

HTC Sensation XE with Beats Audio review

By Sharif Sakr  

Review

We had some hands-on time with HTC's new European Android flagship a short while back, but it wasn't nearly enough to answer all our questions about how the 4.3-inch, 1.5GHz dual-core XE compares to the original 1.2GHz Sensation, or whether the implementation of Beats Audio was anything more than a cunning scheme cooked up between the manufacturer's marketeers and Dr. Dre's agent. Now, though, this phone has been our closest companion for long enough to reveal its true colors. They're red, primarily, but there's a whole rainbow of detail right after the break.

Read More

HTC Amaze 4G review

By Joseph Volpe 

Review

What do you do when you've already created a Sensation? If you're HTC, you repackage that lightning in a slightly different chassis, turn the volume (read: speed) up to 11 and borrow a bit of optical wizardry to add that new smartphone smell. All key elements that can be found in the DNA of the company's latest imperatively named product offering -- the Amaze 4G. Clearly, HTC's throwing caution to the fickle consumer winds here, raising the bar for Android users' expectations and mixing in just enough razzle dazzle to win over those hard earned geek dollars. So, what's the hook this time 'round? No, not Beats -- that's for its Euro stepcousin, the Sensation XE. Here, the main attraction is this handset's ability to surf along T-Mobile's HSPA+ 42Mbps network. That's right, Magenta's tiptoeing into LTE speed territory and you've got Sense 3.0 to help pilot that wireless ride. Join us after the break as we peel back the layers of this unibodied mobile onion.

Read More

HTC Titan review

By Sharif Sakr 

Review

We knew as soon as we first clapped eyes on this hulk of a phone that it'd make a brave purchase. It's not just the 4.7-inch screen that requires a leap of faith, but also the Windows Phone operating system, which is presented here in all its Mangofied glory but is still very much an early adopter's ecosystem. After all, if you love the Titan's hardware but prefer a more established OS, you can always wait for the Sensation XL, which is essentially the same phone running good ol' Android and which should have a similar £480 ($750 converted) SIM-free price tag. The question is, do you have the guts to make that jump to something more exotic? Yes? Maybe? Then read on before you begin your run-up.

Read More

Nokia N9 review

By Myriam Joire 

Review

It's taken a long time for Nokia's MeeGo-packing N9 to make its way into our top secret labs (the N9 moniker was first applied to early E7 prototypes), but it's here in our dirty little hands, at last, and it's glorious -- well, as glorious as a stillborn product can be, anyway. The N9 is the latest and greatest in a long line of quirky, interesting, yet ultimately flawed touchscreen experiments from Nokia that includes the Hildon-sporting 7710, a series of Maemo-based "internet tablets" (770, N800, N810, N900) and most recently, the N950 MeeGo handset for developers. What makes the N9 special is that it represents Nokia's last flagship phone as an independent player. MeeGo is already dead, and future high-end devices from the manufacturer will run Windows Phone and use Microsoft's services. So, is this the company's final bittersweet hurrah? Did MeeGo ever stand a chance against Android, iOS and Mango? In its attempt to stay relevant, is Nokia throwing out the baby with the bathwater? Most importantly, how does the N9 fare in today's merciless dual-core world? Find out after the break.

Read More

BlackBerry Bold 9930 review

By Tim Stevens 

Review

It's been something of a long time coming, this emboldened Bold. We got our first glimpse of the thing in February, spent some quality time with it back in June, and since then have sat around eagerly awaiting its release. Now, here it is. From a distance, or at a quick glance, it looks little changed from 2008's Bold 9000. But get closer, pick it up, and the difference is astonishing.

RIM has gone to great pains to talk up this device's high-end design, its luxurious stylings, its sophisticated aesthetic. We're far from Vertu territory here, but the first time this phone hits your palm you know a lot of people spent a lot of time making it feel just right -- even if it still looks just the same. Of course, it's what's inside that counts, so join us as we find out whether the soft and hard bits beneath the surface can do the business too.

Read More

iPhone 4s Review

By Tim Stevens 

Review

This isn't the iPhone 5. No matter how badly you wanted something slim, sleek and wedge-shaped, this isn't it. If you went ahead and got your hopes up ahead of Apple's "Let's Talk iPhone" event, hopefully you've gotten over the pangs of discontent by now, because this device pictured front and center is the iPhone 4S. It's a new spin on an old phone that will shock none, but give it half a chance, and it will still impress.

The iPhone 4S comes with a faster processor, a better camera, a smarter virtual assistant and twice the storage of its predecessor -- if you don't mind paying for it. Like the iPhone 3GS did before to the 3G, the 4S bumps the iPhone 4 down to second-class status, leaving those Apple fans who must have the best aspiring to own its decidedly familiar exterior. Apple says this is the most amazing iPhone ever. Is it? Yes, of course it is, but read on to see whether it's really worth an upgrade.

Read More