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 hurray? 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.

Continue reading Nokia N9 review

Nokia N9 review originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 22 Oct 2011 09:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s getting increasingly difficult to pin down exactly how many Nokia Windows Phones we can expect to see this year, now that the French WinPho obsessives at Mon Windows Phone have added the Nokia Sun to that list. The site got its hands on the vague screengrab above, which shows this mystery phone joining Orange France’s ranks of forthcoming devices. With names like the SeaRay and Sabre already being bandied around, the Sun does fit in with Nokia’s naming trend for Mango handsets, although it could be another name for previously leaked hardware. The accompanying spec sheet, meanwhile, hints at a very N9-esque device with an AMOLED screen, eight megapixel camera, polycarbonate shell, and (perhaps) a Micro SIM slot — all centered around a slightly smaller display. Who knows, maybe this is the anonymous (and possibly fake) phone we saw last month? All bets are on the table at this point, but with Nokia World set to kick off in a few weeks, we shouldn’t have to wait long for an answer. We’ll be there to sniff out all the details on the Finnish colossus’ Windows Phone offerings — however many they decide to shower us with.

Another Windows Phone spotted, Nokia Sun on the horizon? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Oct 2011 08:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hoping your next smartphone will have more megapixels while being even thinner than the last? Us too, but we’re not known to skimp on image quality — an unfortunate conundrum of squishing more pixels into a tighter space. Enter Toshiba’s new CMOS sensor, advancing on both fronts, with 8 megapixels and what the firm reckons is the smallest pixel size in the industry at 1.12 micrometers. Also present is backside illumination, helping maximize photon accrual — which should make a certain Steve oh-so proud. Currently being sampled, the teensy gizmo plans to go into mass production later this year. Interested? Peep the full release after the break.

Continue reading Toshiba unveils new CMOS sensor, flaunts smaller pixels

Toshiba unveils new CMOS sensor, flaunts smaller pixels originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Jul 2011 05:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon and Motorola have kept a tighter lid on the Droid 3 than many recent smartphones we’ve seen, but a nice big leak just sprang from the bottom of the pot — startup gadget blog PhonePads obtained three tutorial videos of the five-row QWERTY slider strutting its stuff. While there’s no discussion of any dual-core silicon, there is indeed an 8 megapixel camera on board, which is apparently capable of 1080p HD video recordings. Other changes include what seem to be a pair of volume keys on the right edge (instead of the usual rocker), the apparent lack of a dedicated camera button, and both micro-USB and mini-HDMI on the left edge in the Droid X2 configuration. You’ll apparently still get your Swype virtual keyboard, but it’s hard to say what version of Android the handset will include — Verizon clearly states “Software Shown Not Final” on every single video. Find more footage after the break.

Continue reading Motorola Droid 3 leaks out in tutorial vids, confirms 8MP camera and 1080p recordings (video)

Motorola Droid 3 leaks out in tutorial vids, confirms 8MP camera and 1080p recordings (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 13:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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What the world needs now is more pixels up in your phone, and Samsung has a selection of new offerings that offer just that for stills and vids. It’s released details on two new sensors, one, the S5K3H2, clocking in at eight megapixels and the other, the S5K3L1, at 12. Both will record 1080p video, with the 12 megapixel offering doing it at up to 60 fps — the lesser model makes do with a mere 30. Both can capture full-res stills at 30fps and, naturally, both are really tiny for fitting into things like smartphones.

Continue reading Samsung releases 8 and 12 megapixel CMOS smartphone sensors, shoots 1080p on the go

Samsung releases 8 and 12 megapixel CMOS smartphone sensors, shoots 1080p on the go originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Feb 2011 09:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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