2/16/2010 08:51:00 PM
kenmouse
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Cherrie Ying
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E-Asian
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Jordan Chan
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Yesterday on the big Chinese New Year and Valentine's Day, the first happy event happened in the entertainment circle where Jordan Chan and his rumored to be pregnant girlfriend Cherrie Ying held their wedding in the United States. The wedding was very impressive as the groom Jordan praised his new wife in English, but it was not understandable. The hilarious scene stirred up huge laughter among the audience, even the bride did not know if she should cry or laugh.
Currently 42, Jordan and his girlfriend of 3 years, 26 year old Cherrie Ying (Ding Ding) held their marriage at Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas at 12:30pm on Valentine's Day February 14th. Around 10 close friends and family attended the wedding, including Ding Ding's 90+ year old and on a wheel chair grandmother; from the entertainment circle there were Eric Tsang and his son, Michael Tse and his wife, Louis Yuen, Yumiko Cheng and Charles Heung and his wife.
Forget everything you know about Windows Mobile. Seriously, throw the whole OS concept in a garbage bin or incinerator or something. Microsoft has done what would have been unthinkable for the company just a few years ago: started from scratch. At least, that's how things look (and feel) with Windows Phone 7 Series. This really is a completely new OS -- and not just Microsoft's new OS, it's a new smartphone OS, like webOS new, like iPhone OS new. You haven't used an interface like this before (well, okay, if you've used a Zune HD then you've kind of used an interface like this). Still, 7 Series goes wider and deeper than the Zune by a longshot, and it's got some pretty intense ideas about how you're supposed to be interacting with a mobile device. We had a chance to go hands-on with the dev phone before today's announcement, and hear from some of the people behind the devices, and here's our takeaway. (And don't worry, we've got loads of pictures and video coming, so keep checking this post for the freshest updates).
First the look and feel. The phones are really secondary here, and we want to focus on the interface. The design and layout of 7 Series' UI (internally called Metro) is really quite original, utilizing what one of the designers (Albert Shum, formerly of Nike) calls an "authentically digital" and "chromeless" experience. What does that mean? Well we can tell you what it doesn't mean -- no shaded icons, no faux 3D or drop shadows, no busy backgrounds (no backgrounds at all), and very little visual flair besides clean typography and transition animations. The whole look is strangely reminiscent of a terminal display (maybe Microsoft is recalling its DOS roots here) -- almost Tron-like in its primary color simplicity. To us, it's rather exciting. This OS looks nothing like anything else on the market, and we think that's to its advantage. Admittedly, we could stand for a little more information available within single views, and we have yet to see how the phone will handle things like notifications, but the design of the interface is definitely in a class of its own. Here's a few takeaways on what it's like to use (and some video)...
2/16/2010 08:50:00 PM
kenmouse
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Mobile News
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Motorola Quench
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We had a quick tour today of Motorola's new Quench -- or CLIQ XT as it'll be called on T-Mobile USA when it launches next month -- and for an eighth outing in the Android world, it's pretty slick. Sure it lacks keyboard, but the touchscreen is pretty responsive and now includes Swype input on the virtual keyboard -- and we've found with a bit of practice and patience, Swype can be really fast. The soft touch plastic rear of the set can be removed to slip on over covers and shows off the 5 megapixel camera with auto focus and dual LED flash. Follow on for a quick video tour of the Blur-powered beast and some pics.
2/16/2010 08:50:00 PM
kenmouse
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HTC Desire
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Mobile News
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Well, we just got a little up close and personal with HTC's "superphone," the Desire. What you're looking at is basically the Nexus One, sans trackball (though plus an optical touch area). Certainly the specs are the same, though you've got the new Sense UI on board for good measure. At a glance the phone actually doesn't seem as snappy as we were expecting, and there are obviously a few kinks to work out with some of the new Sense concepts (Leap for instance -- the pinch-to-card view -- was giving our demo person some trouble). Still, the Desire is definitely high on our gadget lust list right now. We're obviously reserving final judgment for a later date, but until we get some more time with this guy, feast your eyes on the gallery below.
Added a quick video after the break showing the Sense UI... not behaving.
We've been told by an HTC rep that the Sense build on the Desire unit we played with is actually quite early, so it's probably not indicative of the actual performance of the pinch-to-card view. We played with a Legend that had a later, nearly final build of the UI and it was definitely snappier and more responsive.
2/16/2010 08:48:00 PM
kenmouse
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Microsoft
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Mobile News
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Windows Phone 7
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Microsoft's Joe Belfiore did a really thorough job yesterday of walking us through the key hubs on the shiny new Windows Phone 7 OS, but one area that was conspicuously missed out in the overview was the Marketplace. Well, let us fill in that gap of knowledge right quick with the above image of the interface. As you can see, the first thing visible when you enter the hub is a full-screen feature for individual games or applications -- this could either work as with the music hub, wherein you see the last bit of content you accessed or, less awesomely, could function as a promotional (read: advertising) spot before you get into the market proper. The Marketplace is then fragmented into its constituent elements, with apps, games, music and podcasts leading you into their respective subsections. We've grabbed an image of how the Applications section will look as well, which you can see for yourself after the break.
While Andrew Garcia, Lilly Scott and other early favorites battle it out on American Idol, a trio of season eight finalists took to the stage Friday night and reminded this group how far they still have to go.
Kris Allen, Adam Lambert and Allison Iraheta all took part in Ryan Seacrest's "Rock My Town" show at Manhattan's Highline Ballroom.
The singers played individual sets, much to the delight of those in attendance, and then closed the show with a three-part rendition of Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy." It's an absolute must-watch for fans of these artists...
2/16/2010 08:41:00 PM
kenmouse
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Mobile News
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Toshiba TG02
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0 Comments
We were all over Toshiba's drop dead thin and gorgeous TG01 last year, so naturally a chance to peek at the rumored TG02 first hand was something we couldn't pass up. Very little is new here, the touchscreen technology has seen resistive swapped with capacitive, the device has become a wee bit smaller while retaining the monster 4.1-inch display, and some 3D touches have been added to the SPB Mobile Shell-skinned Windows Mobile 6.5 OS. Like its older sibling, the handset is still a thing of beauty and the 1GHz Snapdragon does make it all purr along very nicely -- and while the UI isn't really a custom one -- we like the ability to flip between pages kinda like iPhone and Android do now. All in, this is a pretty decent effort, and removing some of the pain that was the resistive display can only make the TG02 better. Follow on for a tour and a gallery of shots.
2/16/2010 08:40:00 PM
kenmouse
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Mobile News
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Toshiba K01
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0 Comments
Toshiba's K01 is exactly what we would've liked to have seen as a complementary set to the TG01. Happily, Toshiba's given us a QWERTY option with the new model, added capacitive touch, and swapped out the earlier display for a swanky new AMOLED version. Key feel is a bit rough on the outside keys -- shift, delete, enter -- but this device still isn't final, and with all that real estate, the layout feels just great. In fact, the devices being shown on the floor are just looping a demo video and not really showing off the UI as seen above; we couldn't get any film of it, so the pics we got will have to suffice. We like what they've done here -- in fact, this could make an excellent day to day set if battery life proves good enough. We also can't help but notice the three buttons (soft touch) across the bottom that could quite easily be skinned for Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 Series, could they not? A bunch of pics are just below.
2/16/2010 08:40:00 PM
kenmouse
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Dell Mini 5
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Technology
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0 Comments
We've been able to confirm in a chat with Dell spokesfolks this evening that the lovely Mini 5 won't ship with the Android 1.6 build (also known as Donut) that we've seen so far -- instead, it'll be running "something newer." They wouldn't say what that newer version would be -- and to be fair, we're not sure they even knew since Android is always a moving target on account of Google's breakneck development pace -- but it was specifically mentioned that Flash compatibility was something they had on their radar, suggesting that something really, really fresh might be needed. Then again, they also mentioned that the giant phone / MID / thingamajig is going to be totally upgradeable, something that fellow Android skinners HTC and Motorola have both had to reassure the Android-buying public over. How this all shakes out remains to be seen, but let's put it this way: Eclair, at minimum, seems to be a lock by the time the Mini 5 is on a shelf near you.
2/16/2010 08:39:00 PM
kenmouse
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Mobile News
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Nokia
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Symbian S^3
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0 Comments
The time has finally come for us to see Symbian's milestone shift toward finger-friendly operation in motion. Firstly, to allay any fears that it'd lack all the modern amenities, we'll note that kinetic scrolling, swiping, and pinch-to-zoom are all present and accounted for, while a "visual multi-tasking" option allows you to see the open applications in an interface not a million miles away from the Pre's card implementation. Customization is also a big deal in the S^3 UI, with multiple Home Screen pages available, accompanied by a litany of widgets you can add and manage. The media player application looks like a homage (read: copy) of Apple's Cover Flow UI, right down to the album covers flipping around to reveal the track listing. We're not complaining, we consider that a very intelligent and pleasing way to browse through music. Go check out the moving picture show after the break.
2/16/2010 08:36:00 PM
kenmouse
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Mobile News
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Motorola MOTOROI
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0 Comments
The Motorola MOTOROI is definitely a stunner, but the looks are almost surpassed by just how amazing it feels, it glows with quality -- think Milestone, but somehow nicer. The display and UI on this Android 2.0 set are right on, with no lag to speak of -- in our really limited hanging-from-a-tether-being-jostled take on it -- while flipping about the OS. Sadly, like most other sets on display, the internet wasn't going anywhere for us to really take it for a spin. But, hey, the MOTOROI is apparently headed to the US in March, and we're without a doubt going to get a little more in-depth with this phone just as soon as we're able.
2/16/2010 08:32:00 PM
kenmouse
, Posted in
Mobile News
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Sony Ericsson Vivaz
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0 Comments
It kinda got buried beneath the X10 mini and mini pro, but Sony Ericsson went ahead and threw us a Symbian-flavored bone this evening with the Vivaz pro. The phone's nearly a dead ringer for its non-pro doppelganger -- the original Vivaz -- but it adds a claimed 2 millimeters of thickness, which we found to be nearly imperceptible when you're holding it or gazing in its direction. We'll admit this is a better looking phone (along with the Vivaz) in person than we'd figured from the press shots, but we're still not sure we'd buy in -- the UI feels a little bit like a warmed-over S60 5th Edition, unlike the X10's thorough reworking of Android. If anything, this could very well be an N97 mini killer, especially considering the keyboard's decency -- just check out that centered spacebar! Enjoy a few more shots of the phone in Sony Ericsson's ridiculously under-lit venue (it's a nightclub, in case you couldn't tell) below.
Jay-Z wasn't a big fan of the "We Are the World" remake, which debuted at the Olympic opening ceremonies Friday to benefit Haiti earthquake relief.
Heidi Montag stepped out on the red carpet this weekend at PURE nightclub in Las Vegas, debuting her enhanced new body. After undergoing 10 procedures in one day, Montag is thrilled with her new look, saying Saturday that it was "the best decision I've ever made," according to PEOPLE.
While Samsung is desperate for us and the world to focus on its very first Bada device -- the Wave S8500 -- we found something a bit more interesting for Google fans. Tucked away in the depths of a spec sheet is Samsung's unannounced i8520 phone running Android 2.1. After quizzing a team of perplexed executives of increasing rank, a VP from Samsung's mobile division finally told us that it'll be revealed as the "Halo" tomorrow when the show floor opens. Looking at the spec sheet then, the i8520 Halo packs a 3.7-inch WVGA Super AMOLED display (bigger than the Wave's 3.3-incher), 8 megapixel autofocus camera with flash (VGA on the front), 720p / 30fps video encoding / decoding, DivX and Xvid playback support, Bluetooth 2.1, standard 3.5mm headphone jack, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, A-GPS, 16GB of internal storage and microSD expansion, stereo speakers, DLNA support, and -- get this -- a DLP pico projector integrated. The spec-sheet also lists a "Specialized Projector UI" as one of the features, suggesting it'll look a little different when you toss it up onto the big screen. This quad-band GSM / EDGE phone with tri-band UMTS 900 / 1900 / 2100 will ship in Q3 to Europe and Asia with a chance for a US version at some point later. We'll bring you more tomorrow just as soon as we get through all this paella.
