The start of 2012 was absolutely dominated by the new iPad. Rumours, leaks, announcements, reviews – the iPad 3 fed and watered tech and mainstream media writers and readers alike for months.
But since then, it’s been the Samsung Galaxy S3 that’s been getting all the attention – it’s probably the most hotly-anticipated Android smartphone ever, and we’ve been testing it all week. That’s not all, either…
With the latest version of Android, a whopping 4.8-inch Super AMOLED HD screen and a whole suite of Apple-beating features, is the new Samsung Galaxy SIII the greatest phone ever? Samsung has made a big deal about this new phone, not only choosing to launch it at a big and glitzy standalone event in London but also claiming nearly 10 million pre-orders before it’s even launched.
The price is pretty palatable for a top-end phone – the likes of Three are already offering it for just £34 a month with oodles of minutes and data, which is already much, much cheaper than any iPhone would ever launch for. But let’s get down to the main question – is this the phone you should be spending your hard-earned cash on before it’s even launched?
Panasonic’s most concerted attempt to show that it gets LCD TV just as much as it gets plasma TV is, overall, a major success. For starters, the brand has gone back to the design drawing board and made the Panasonic TX-L42WT50 easily the most attractive TV it’s ever produced. The feature count is high too, thanks to the inclusion of 3D, online functionality and all manner of picture tweaks.
Plus Panasonic has also done a kitchen sink job where the TV’s picture quality is concerned, integrating dual core processing and Panasonic’s most advanced picture processing engine to date. The overall result is a slick, flexible and mostly high-performance TV, only let down by some minor backlight issues and one or two operational flaws.
Beneath the stylish exterior of the five-star Asus N56V, there lies a sleeping beast; a beast with a roar loader than any others that have come before it. That beast is a brand new Intel Core i7-3720QM 2.6GHz processor, one of the chip giant’s third generation Ivy Bridge CPUs. Codenamed Ivy Bridge, Intel’s latest offering uses 22nm technology, resulting in around 20 per cent more processor performance, while at the same time using 20 per cent less average power than its Sandy Bridge (the second-generation) equivalent. Intel has described the generation jump as its "fastest ramp ever". And, after living with the Asus N56V, we’re not going to disagree.
The Toshiba 32DL933B is a fine idea, poorly executed. Toshiba’s Blu-ray players are on sale for less than £80 (around $125), with 3D-ness only garnering a £40 (around $60)-or-so premium, so we don’t think it’s too unreasonable to expect something along those lines in place of what we have: a bog-standard DVD player.
Of course, the presence of Blu-ray would highlight the Toshiba 32DL933B’s other misfire – its HD-ready screen – although even that ought to be enough to host Freeview HD programmes.
As you might expect at the price, the Leica X2 looks and feels like a lovely piece of kit. The faster autofocusing means it is more responsive and suited for use out and about.
If Leica has managed to maintain, if not better, the image quality standard of the Leica X1, then it could be a very rewarding purchase.
Amplifiers
Audio systems
Altec Lansing inAir 5000 review
Blu-ray players
Cameras
Hands on: Leica M Monochrom review
Gaming accessories
Laptops
Hands on: Sony Vaio T13 review
Mobile phones
NAS drives
Western Digital MyBook Live Duo 4TB review
Routers
Asus EA-N66 Ethernet Adaptor review
Software
Storage
Western Digital My Book Thunderbolt Duo 4TB review
Tablets
Asus Transformer Pad 300 review
Televisions
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Sony made a decision to cancel their plans to upgrade their Xperia Play gaming smartphone to Android 4.0: Ice Cream Sandwich.
The reason: all the negative feedback from carriers, developers and owners of the Android 4.0 test build.
According to a Sony statement, the decision was made "after extensive in house testing with developer teams" and "working with partners."
"We have concluded that a consistent and stable experience, particularly with gaming, cannot be guaranteed for this smartphone on Ice Cream Sandwich."
No Ice Cream Sandwich delivery
Sony initially planned on pushing out the upgrade between late May and the beginning of June.
ICS beta ROMs for unlocked Xperia PLAY devices were given the opportunity to test the OS prior to its official upgrade launch.
This, however, resulted in some serious issues among owners.
The most notable problem Sony took issue with was that the gaming stability of the device was compromised, which just won’t due for the electronics company.
"We look to ensure a quality gaming experience with games optimized and developed for Xperia PLAY," continued the statement.
Sony went on to explain:
"In regards to Xperia PLAY, after extensive in house testing with our developer teams and working with our partners, we have concluded that a consistent and stable experience, particularly with gaming, cannot be guaranteed for this smartphone on Ice Cream Sandwich – therefore, we will not make the Android 4.0 upgrade available for Xperia PLAY.
"This decision was also verified when we received similar feedback from the developer community; both experienced developers and advanced users, along with game content providers following our ICS beta ROM for unlocked Xperia PLAY smartphones.
"Our priority has and always will be, to provide the best possible user experience on Xperia smartphones. In this instance the ICS upgrade would have compromised stability, where we look to ensure a quality gaming experience with games optimized and developed for Xperia PLAY"
On the brightside, the following Sony devices will receive the Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade:
- Xperia Arc S
- Xperia Ray
- Xperia Neo V
- Xperia Arc
- Xperia Neo
- Xperia Mini
- Xperia Mini Pro
- Xperia Pro
- Xperia Active
- Sony Ericsson Live with Walkman
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