|
|
from www.wired.com
Helio Ocean
The Ocean does so much slipping 'n' sliding, you'd think it was madeby Wham-O. Slide the front panel up to reveal a numerical keypad, orsideways to access the QWERTY. It also packs a 2-megapixel camera, a2.4-inch screen, and some of the best email and instant-messaging toolsthis side of your PC. Plus, Helio's Sprint-powered EV-DO network iszippy enough to keep up with the social lives of teens andtwentysomethings — clearly the intended audience.
WIRED: GPS for navigation, tagging photos, andlocating friends. Instant messaging via AIM, MSN, and Yahoo. Supportfor AOL, Gmail, Windows Live, Yahoo, and other POP/IMAP email accounts.
TIRED: Bulky and heavy (5.6 ounces). Top rowof keyboard crowds phone's body. So-so antenna. No Wi-Fi. Screen nearlyunreadable outdoors.
$295 with two-year contract, helio.com
Motorola Q 9h
A pretender to the BlackBerry throne, the new Q rocks at messagingand editing, thanks to its tactile keyboard and superior Documents ToGo software, which syncs desktop files and lets you create new ones.You can give Internet Explorer the heave-ho in favor of the worthierOpera browser. Alas, these efforts can't rescue the phone from theclumsy, touchscreen-less version of Windows Mobile 6; it turnselementary tasks into aggravating affairs.
WIRED: Lean half-inch-thick bod. Speedier than mostWindows Mobile phones. Support for GPS nav and stereo Bluetooth.Streaming music and video applets keep you entertained. Feels a bitfaster than other WinMo phones.
TIRED: Large-boned in other directions (4.6 x 2.6 inches). Choppy video. No Wi-Fi. Nonstandard USB port.
$300 with two-year contract, motorola.com
LG enV
Some phones just feel right in your hand. The enV is one of them.And with its long, narrow body (4.6 x 2.1 inches), it's also a pleasureto hold alongside your head. The keyboard, accessed by flipping openthe phone, approaches perfection: It's wide, spacious, and equippedwith a dedicated number row. Now, if only more of the phone's functionswere available via the external screen: You'll often find yourselfflipping when you don't want to.
WIRED: Navigable menu system. Loud, clear speakerphone. Flash-equipped camera snaps sharp photos. V Cast music and video support.
TIRED: Video playback is rough. Internal2.2-inch screen seems disproportionately small. No Wi-Fi. IM softwaretreats each message as SMS, which could lead to huge bills. GPS and POPemail services cost extra.
$150 with two-year contract, lgusa.com
Nokia E61i
Howdy, big boy! At 4.6 x 2.8 x 0.6 inches, the E61i dwarfs mosthandsets. Luckily, you won't care: Its roomy 2.8-inch screen and comfykeyboard make excellent companions to the fast Symbian OS, which putsWindows Mobile to shame by loading apps almost instantly. The browserstomps others in usability, too, and feels speedy even when tethered tothe plodding EDGE network. And since the E61i also has Wi-Fi, you canalways find a hot spot instead.
WIRED: Handy thumbnail-driven history viewerin browser. Streams Flash and other videos. Nice collection of businessand media apps, including a project team manager and RealPlayer. Almost11 hours of talk time.
TIRED: So wide it barely feels like a phone.Accessing the microSD slot requires removing backplate. No stereoBluetooth. Proprietary headphone jack.
$456, nokiausa.com
Palm Treo 755p
Palm's latest Treo improves upon its predecessor, the 700p, byslimming down, ditching the antenna nub, and adding instant messagingand push email. Granted, you can almost see the mold on the ancientPalm OS, which remains a multimedia and multitasking weakling, but itswell-oiled design affords snappy operation and arguably the simplestinterface of any smartphone. At 0.8 inch, the 755p is a little thickaround the middle, but otherwise it's a stunner in blue or burgundy.
WIRED: Dedicated ring/vibrate switch. BundledDocuments to Go software excels at creating and syncing Office files.Huge third-party software library.
TIRED: Still no Wi-Fi. Weak video, mediocre music apps. IM doesn't support Gtalk, Jabber, or ICQ. Lacks stereo Bluetooth.
$300 with two-year contract, palm.com
RIM BlackBerry 8830
All work and no play makes a phone a BlackBerry. At least the 8830adds video and music (but no camera) to RIM's robust communicationsmix. Unfortunately, messaging suffers from a crowded, shallow keyboard,which we found too easy to fat-finger and too hard to read in dimconference rooms. It's just as well you can't edit Office documents onit.
WIRED: Powers up in a flash. Solidspeakerphone. Backlight levels adjust automatically to ambient light.Still-unrivaled mobile email. It's a world phone: Budapest, here wecome!
TIRED: Wide 2.6-inch body. No Wi-Fi orBluetooth stereo. Music player doesn't do DRM. New trackball, whichmight come as a shock to BlackBerry diehards, can be imprecise.
$300 with two-year contract, blackberry.com
Sprint Mogul
The successor to last year's wildly popular PPC-6700 sports asimilarly splendid slide-out keyboard, three flavors of wireless(Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and EV-DO), a 2-megapixel camera, and the WindowsMobile 6 touchscreen version. But like most WinMo phones, the Mogulfeels a bit sluggish. At least the 4.3 x 2.3 x 0.7-inch body houses abig battery: We managed nearly six hours of talk time.
WIRED: Mobile Office apps let you create and edit docs. Phone doubles as wireless modem. 512-MB microSD card included in box.
TIRED: Frequently turns itself on for noapparent reason. Scattered controls result in accidental presses(especially when using camera). Speaker phone sounds crummy on otherend. Camera snaps
$400 with two-year contract, sprint.com
T-Mobile Sidekick iD
It's easy to see why MySpace moppets love the Sidekick: It's cute,uncomplicated, and cheap. It's also an IM addict's dream: The wide,tactile keyboard lets thumbs fly with precision, and the chat clientoffers simultaneous access to AIM, Microsoft Messenger, and Yahoo. Addpush email, swappable color plates, and that nifty myFaves thing foreasy BFF dialing, and OMG, it's just so kewl! Too bad it doesn't domuch of anything else.
WIRED: Trackball and icon-based interface make for blissful navigation. Decent gameplay with D-pad. Nearly eight hours of talk time.
TIRED: No camera, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, memory cardslot, or audio player. Stuck in slow gear on GPRS network. Just had itscool factor stolen by iPhone.
$100 with two-year contract, t-mobile.com
|
|
发表于 2007-11-2 13:00:33
/4 
