accessory

64 GB microSD cards are here–will we benefit?

May 29, 2011 | By Surur

4computex_mircroSDXC_c6_64gb-outline110419 Kingmax has announced their release of the first 64GB microSD cards. The SDXC cards are class 6 and are compatible with the SD 2.0 standard.

Of course Windows Phone has a complicated relationship with memory cards, with most handsets in fact sporting one, but nearly no handset allowing or recommending the user replace or upgrade them.

It does open the door however to the OEM shipping a selection of handsets with higher capacity approved and installed memory, but with 64 GB SD cards retailing between £100 and £300 I would make these devices pretty cost prohibitive.

Likely the main benefit would be for the 64 GB cards to push down the cost of 32 GB ones, and thereby hopefully increase the proportion of handsets shipping with more than the minimum of storage.

Are any of our readers planning to splurge on one of these cards and try it out on your phone? Let us know below.

via MobilityDigest.com

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Mozart TPU Case Review – (No Brand Name)

April 14, 2011 | By wwebob

This is not a very good case, but it’s the only case for Mozart I can find in Taiwan.

If you shop on Amazon, there are a few good cases on Amazon.
ps. Sorry I put Chinese Subtitle.

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Asus Blu-ray player supports Windows Phone 7 browser-based remote control

March 4, 2011 | By Surur

asus oplay bds-700 blu-ray player

Interesting news from CBIT in Germany is the new ASUS O!Play BDS-700 Blu-ray player, which features such goodies as DVD upscaling, Blu-ray 3D playback, 7.1-channel surround sound, 802.11n Wi-Fi with DLNA support and video playback from external hard drives.

For us Windows Phone users however more interesting would be that the Blu-ray player supports playback remote control and text entry using the browser in your smartphone, including specifically Windows Phone 7.

Read more about this gadget at CDRlabs.com here.

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Wrapsol: An invisible way to protect your Windows Phone!

January 7, 2011 | By andrewbares

Wrapsol is a clear protective film for your Windows Phone devices, similar to InvisibleShield. Watch our Video Review of the installation of Wrapsol to get an idea of how the product looks/works on a Windows Phone!

If you’re looking to protect your new Windows Phone but still want to let its style show through, a product like Wrapsol may be perfect for you. Wrapsol protects your device from scratches, damage, and other wear and tear. While it may not be as tough as a normal case, Wrapsol is a perfect product for keeping your phone looking pristine.

Applying the Wrapsol protective films to the phone takes some time (prepare to take 20 minutes on this), since you really want to do everything perfectly. They even make how-to-apply video for the HTC HD7 version here, which will really help you with the application process. Our video of the application process should also help give you some tips on applying the protective film. A really helpful tip is to stretch the film while applying it so that it fits around the volume and camera buttons; the product is made to stretch, so make sure you do that!

Once you have Wrapsol applied to your phone, it feels pretty good. The texture on the back actually gives you some extra grip on the phone, but it isn’t anything sticky so that taking the phone out of your pocket would be tricky like some cases can be. The front cover over the screen is still glossy and smooth to the touch, just like your phone’s screen used to be, which is great! You can order a Clean Screen Protector version which would remove the gloss and help avoid fingerprints, but if you like how the screen was stock, you will want to stay with the Ultra Protective or Original Scratch Protection versions.

In about a month, we will do a follow-up review on the Wrapsol product, going into depth about how the product actually stands up against scratches and other damage, so check back for that! If you want to try Wrapsol for yourself, visit their website, and your phone will probably be supported.

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Windows phone 7 gaining some accessory support–Klipsch making headphone remotes

December 29, 2010 | By Surur

klipsch One area one can judge how successful and ubiquitous a platform is by the amount of 3rd party accessories available for it.

Windows phone 7 is just getting started, and Microsoft has not exactly done much to standardize an accessory interface, but there is at least one area where 3rd parties have an easy in – the headphone socket, which allows some rudimentary control of music playback similar to the iPhone.

Via WPCentral we learn that Klipsch is working on a headphone which will be specifically designed for Windows Phone 7 devices, which is great news for Windows Phone 7 users looking to move away from the likely inadequate headphones bundled with their devices, but still want to retain some control capabilities.

We do not have a time scale for delivery of this accessory, but hopefully once we have a few million consumers looking to enhance their Windows Phone 7 devices we will see many more OEMs step up with gadgets which do just that.

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HTC’s Media Link works perfectly with the LG Optimus 7

November 24, 2010 | By Surur

htc_media_link_demo

htc_media_link_back_small

The::unwired have reviewed HTC’s Media Link, which allows music, pictures and video to be streamed via DLNA to any television with HDMI input.

The device, which will cost between £80 and £90, is intended by HTC to work with their Android handsets, but appears to work perfectly well with any DLNA-compatible device, including Windows 7 PC’s and the LG Optimus 7.

Arne notes:

The HTC Media Link offers a hassle-free setup and allows users to easily stream content from a PC or mobile device to a TV-set which might not feature DLNA support. The setup is easy and straight forward and doesn’t requires any special network or AV knowledge. Right after the Media Link was connected to the flat screen and tuned on, I immediately found the WiFi SSID, broadcasted by the box and from there I was able to stream MP3, photos and even HD videos to the TV set. And while the HTC Media Link was announced as an accessory for the DLNA-enabled HTC Desire HD and Desire Z, in the tests it worked with every DLNA enabled device. For instance it allows to stream content from any Windows 7 PC since DLNA is part of Windows 7 but it also worked fine with the LG Optimus 7, the first and so far only Windows Phone 7 smartphone which comes with DLNA.

Until DLNA-compatible televisions become wide spread it appears to be a pretty simple upgrade to your current set, and who knows, maybe at some point HTC will bring DLNA to their Windows Phone 7 handsets also. The device should hit the market some time before the end of the year.

Read the full review of the gadget at the::unwired.net here.

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Beats By Dr. Dre Review

November 7, 2010 | By WenWP

Have you ever wondered what great sounding headphones would be called? Well after two weeks of use, I have a name for you. The name I bring to you today is Beats by Dr.Dre SoloHD, and wow is it some serious high definition sound. For the time I have had this headphones, I have enjoyed my experience very much and everyone that noticed the biggish white headset’s I have on and they always ask if they were “those new headphones by Dr.Dre”. Regardless of what people think of this new product, this review is about what I think of it and if I would recommend it.

Continue reading →

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Proven–MicroSD cards in Windows phone 7 can be replaced

October 28, 2010 | By Surur

htc_hd_7_ replacement_sd_card_boot_screen

The::unwired have performed the experiment whose result we have all been waiting for.

They have managed to successfully replace the shipped class 2(!) microSD card in their HTC HD7 with a class 6 microSD card, and after a hard reset found the device full working.

There was a false alarm yesterday when it appeared that the new card was not in fact accepted, but it appears it was just not properly seated.

Unfortunately in the experiment above an 8 GB card was replaced with another of the same capacity, but at present there is no reason to believe a 16 GB card will not do the job either. We look forward to final confirmation of this of course.

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HTC offering memory cards for HTC 7 Trophy and HTC HD7 in own online store

October 19, 2010 | By Surur

HTC selling memory cards for Windows Phone 7 handsets

Adding more fuel to the Windows Phone 7 storage card issue, Levi Freeman in your comment section just noticed that HTC is selling microSD cards for the HTC Trophy.

Now it may just be an oversight, but interestingly they are only offering SD cards for the HTC 7 Trophy and HTC HD7 and not the HTC Mozart.

What do our readers think? Oversight or an inevitable response to low levels of storage in many Windows Phone 7 handsets? Let us know below.

edit:
Thank you Andrew for letting us know that HTC confirms the presence of a MicroSD slot in their documentation at Amazon Germany, as seen in this PDF here.

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Kingston MicroSDHC 32GB Class 4 now available for only $99

October 19, 2010 | By KennyB123

32GB cards now getting affordable

Ken tipped us off to a great deal for on a Kingston Class 4 MicroSDHC 32GB Class.

The card is now available at Adorama.com for only $99 dollars!

Ken notes that the dealer has a very good rating at resellerratings.com, so any purchases should run smoothly.

Now of course at this point we do not know for sure if storage will be expandable on Windows phone 7, but at least one handset, the Samsung Focus on AT&T appears to promise this explicitly, so there is certainly some hope there.

Any of our readers used this dealer or have tried out this card already? Let us known your experience below.

Thanks Ken for letting us know of this great deal.

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Clingo adhesive phone car cradle reviewed

September 5, 2010 | By Surur

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Zepiii, from www.HTC-DEV.com has tipped us off on this interesting new type of universal car mount that relies adhesives rather than brackets to keep the phone in place.

In the above video he tests it on the HTC HD2 and is seems to do a pretty good job holding it securely.

While the video above shows the cradle mounted on the screen, the package also comes with an adhesive disc which allows mounting on a the dashboard also.

Read the full review here (french) and more about Clingo here.

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Dash Genie – a new type of car cradle reviewed

July 7, 2010 | By Surur

Dash Genie car cradle Dash Genie is a new type of car cradle that uses a special adhesive rather than brackets to adhere both the cradle and phone to your dashboard.

Available through MobileFun.co.uk for £14.99, Zepiii have given the cradle a good going over and published the above video showing the device holding the rather heavy HTC HD2 rather steadily over pretty rough terrain.

The adhesive does not damage the fascia and can be easily removed and moved from one car to another.

Review of the Freedom Pro Bluetooth keyboard with the HTC HD2

June 24, 2010 | By Surur

Windows Mobile has supported Bluetooth keyboards for ages now, and Windows Mobile 5 introduced a standard Bluetooth HID profile, making it easier than ever to connect.

With Windows Mobile devices moving ever further from built-in keyboards the gadget has however become increasingly desirable. We have been given the opportunity to try the Freedom Pro Bluetooth keyboard with our HTC HD2, and are using this opportunity to report on our experience.

The Freedom Pro keyboard is powered by 2 AAA batteries (included) and also ships with a nice leather slipcase which appears rather sturdy. Unfortunately even when folded and stored in the case the combination is pretty large, certainly not trouser pocketable, but would fit in a large coat pocket or purse.

The keyboard, as can be seen from the picture above, is a full 5 row keyboard with clicky, responsive keys, and the keyboard appears to be about 90% size. Non-touch typers may however be annoyed by the split spacebar, which is really the only factor which gives away the split keyboard when lying on a flat surface. Another annoyance is the non-standard position of the delete key, which moves to the lower left rather than top right of the keyboard.

Included in a small hidden slot is a pretty nice stand, which will keep an HTC HD2 steady in both portrait and landscape mode, which given the HTC HD2’s aversion to landscape mode is a useful ability.

The keyboard has a more than generous collection of special function keys, such as to launch the web browser or e-mail. It even has keys to start and end a telephone call.

Unfortunately the problems start when this keyboard is paired with a HTC HD2. Due to using the Broadcom Bluetooth stack the drivers (which can be installed over the air directly to the device) do not work, meaning while the device pairs easily using the HID profile, most of the special keys do not do anything.

That is unfortunately not the end of the problems with the keyboard. The latch which keeps the keyboard stably unfolded is unfortunately itself not stable, and the whole device still flaps when unsupported.

The biggest issue however is with the HTC HD2 and Windows Mobile 6.5. The OS has been redesigned to primarily support touch, meaning in normal use, even with the keyboard, one ends up needing to constantly touch the screen to select menu its and so forth, an issue accentuated by the inability to install the drivers.

The keyboard paired easily with my laptop and PS3, and in fact now find main duty in the PS3 where its about 1000% better than using the controller to enter text in Playstation Home.

In the pro column, battery life is great (up to 60 hours of use), pairing is very easy to initiate, and the connection never dropped. The device however appears able to only maintain one pairing at a time, so users can forget easily sharing it between a number of devices without constantly having to re-pair.

Summary

They Freedom Pro Bluetooth keyboard is a good device, but its size, lack of great OS support and difficulty with drivers on modern HTC devices unfortunately does not make it suitable for regular use with the HTC HD2. A smaller keyboard that confines itself to only the actual supported keys (basically no function keys of any kind) would be a better buy.

Thank you to WirelessGround.com, who have a great selection of HTC HD2 accessories, for the opportunity to review this product.

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