LG Lucky LG16C Review: 90% of a Smartphone at 10% of the Price

Posted on by Adama D. Brown

There are cheap smartphones, and then there are dirt cheap smartphones. With a street price of less than $10, the LG Lucky LG16C is a dirt cheap smartphone, and it has specs that outpace the original iPhone.

LG Lucky LG16C, the $10 Android smartphone.

LG Lucky LG16C, the $10 Android smartphone.

The LG Lucky LG16C is a prepaid smartphone sold under the Tracfone brand. Available from Walmart at a price of $9.82, or direct from Tracfone for $40, it includes a surprisingly robust set of features and internal specs, including a preinstalled 4 GB memory card, dual core processor, Android 4.4, and almost everything else you expect of a smartphone. With that kind of price tag, the LG16C is going to attract two kinds of people in droves. Those who don’t need a more serious smartphone, and those who want an extra gadget to mess with, whether it’s just for tinkering or some purpose like a dedicated car unit. It’s with those things in mind that we give the Lucky a spin.

Build & Design

The LG Lucky LG16C isn't much to look at.

The LG Lucky LG16C isn’t much to look at.

The Lucky itself is a fairly basic grey plastic rectangle, not looking like much of anything. It’s got a small footprint appropriate to its relatively small screen size, measuring just 2.5 inches wide and 4.4 inches long, but is fairly thick for a smartphone at roughly half an inch. The 3.8 inch screen’s resolution is a slightly odd one; 320 x 480 pixels, putting it on the far low end for Android devices. Oddly, this is actually the same resolution used by the original iPhone, albeit at a slightly larger screen size. The pixel density is 151 pixels per inch, which isn’t bad for the price, and is comparable in sharpness to a low-to-midrange tablet. The back is textured, and the microSD card slot is under the battery cover. Overall, it looks simple.

Things are more interesting under the hood. For starters, the Lucky packs a dual-core 1.2 GHz processor, which was cutting edge five years ago, but still provides as a respectable amount of speed and is suitable for almost any kind of day to day tasks. Of course this isn’t a powerhouse device, especially not with just 512 MB of RAM. But it’s more than enough for normal apps and even a few mid-range games, capable of matching a mid-range Android smartphone.

It can also run most apps, thanks to running Android 4.4. And it feels fast too, possibly aided by the fact that they didn’t shovel on too much in terms of excessive “carrier bloatware” apps. In fact, you even have to download the Tracfone pre-paid account status app, as it doesn’t come pre-loaded on the phone. This does however give you a nifty home screen widget that shows at a glance your available minutes, text messages, and data, so you’re kept up to speed on your exact usage. You’ll never be caught off guard that you suddenly don’t have any data remaining.

The post LG Lucky LG16C Review: 90% of a Smartphone at 10% of the Price appeared first on Brighthand.com.

Samsung Gear S Review: The Price of Portability

Posted on by Adama D. Brown

Samsung’s Gear S smartwatch promises greater autonomy from your smartphone, a colorful display, and a slew of other new features. Is it enough to sell you on the need for a smartwatch? Let’s take a look.

Build and Design

Samsung Gear S

Samsung Gear S

With a large rectangular screen, chromed edges, and prominent all glass front, the Gear S looks less like other smartwatches and more like an iPhone had a child with a rubber wristband. But if it looks a lot like a smartphone, that’s probably because it’s not too far off from being one. Unlike other smartwatches, the Gear S isn’t solely dependent on a Bluetooth link to another device; it has a complete set of hardware inside it, including an independent cellular radio that we’ll get to in a minute.

The band is 100% rubber, which seems a little cheap considering the device’s rather hefty price tag. But it is easy to take off and replace, so if you don’t like it, there will probably be alternatives available. The body features only a single button that doubles as both power and “home,” and only a single connector on the back, a series of spring loaded pins that connect it to the charger.

A big part of this design is to help keep it water-resistant. The Gear S is rated for complete immersion in water for up to 30 minutes, and its mix of rugged glass and plastic gives it a real feeling of durability from nicks and scratches. All other interaction with the Gear S is done either through the touchscreen or the Gear app of your paired smartphone. Otherwise, the aesthetic here isn’t exactly stunning to the eye. Still, it is a very solid little device.

Display

By modern smartphone standards, the Gear S’s screen is tiny, at just 2.0 inches diagonal. But it certainly doesn’t skimp on quality for the size. At a resolution of 360 x 480, it boasts a pixel density of 300 ppi, which is more than solid for a screen this size. It’s also an OLED display, just like the panels on most of Samsung’s other devices. Per usual with those screens, this gives it an excellent contrast ratio, vibrant colors, and high energy efficiency, since it doesn’t need to light up when displaying blacks. This makes it just as great for battery life as it is for overall quality. Samsung’s built up a bit of a reputation for producing great smart device displays as of late, and the Gear S continues that trend.

Performance

Samsung Gear S

Samsung Gear S

It’s once you actually start to use the Gear S that you can start to see why someone would buy the thing. Under the hood, the Gear S basically has the specifications of a low-end smartphone from not that long ago: a 1 GHz processor, 512 MB of RAM, 4 GB of storage, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS. What stands out, though, is that it has more sensors than you can shake a stick at, including a digital compass, pedometer, gyroscope, heart rate monitor, visible light, and UV light, among others. These all combine for a huge number of uses — many are the same things you can do with a smartphone, of course, along with a few tricks more suited to traditional fitness trackers, like health and exercise tracking and UV index alerts.

The Gear S can also operate autonomously even if you don’t carry your phone everywhere. While other smartwatches sync over Bluetooth, and have to stay within 30 feet of a phone, the Gear S comes equipped with its own 3G radio and data connection, allowing it to sync to your phone over the Internet instead. Thus, even when you leave your phone behind, you still effectively have it with you, allowing for sent or received calls and texts under your own number. When you get back to your phone, it will automatically reconnect over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi.

The post Samsung Gear S Review: The Price of Portability appeared first on Brighthand.com.

Samsung Gear S Review: The Price of Portability

Posted on by Adama D. Brown

Samsung’s Gear S smartwatch promises greater autonomy from your smartphone, a colorful display, and a slew of other new features. Is it enough to sell you on the need for a smartwatch? Let’s take a look.

Build and Design

Samsung Gear S

Samsung Gear S

With a large rectangular screen, chromed edges, and prominent all glass front, the Gear S looks less like other smartwatches and more like an iPhone had a child with a rubber wristband. But if it looks a lot like a smartphone, that’s probably because it’s not too far off from being one. Unlike other smartwatches, the Gear S isn’t solely dependent on a Bluetooth link to another device; it has a complete set of hardware inside it, including an independent cellular radio that we’ll get to in a minute.

The band is 100% rubber, which seems a little cheap considering the device’s rather hefty price tag. But it is easy to take off and replace, so if you don’t like it, there will probably be alternatives available. The body features only a single button that doubles as both power and “home,” and only a single connector on the back, a series of spring loaded pins that connect it to the charger.

A big part of this design is to help keep it water-resistant. The Gear S is rated for complete immersion in water for up to 30 minutes, and its mix of rugged glass and plastic gives it a real feeling of durability from nicks and scratches. All other interaction with the Gear S is done either through the touchscreen or the Gear app of your paired smartphone. Otherwise, the aesthetic here isn’t exactly stunning to the eye. Still, it is a very solid little device.

Display

By modern smartphone standards, the Gear S’s screen is tiny, at just 2.0 inches diagonal. But it certainly doesn’t skimp on quality for the size. At a resolution of 360 x 480, it boasts a pixel density of 300 ppi, which is more than solid for a screen this size. It’s also an OLED display, just like the panels on most of Samsung’s other devices. Per usual with those screens, this gives it an excellent contrast ratio, vibrant colors, and high energy efficiency, since it doesn’t need to light up when displaying blacks. This makes it just as great for battery life as it is for overall quality. Samsung’s built up a bit of a reputation for producing great smart device displays as of late, and the Gear S continues that trend.

Performance

Samsung Gear S

Samsung Gear S

It’s once you actually start to use the Gear S that you can start to see why someone would buy the thing. Under the hood, the Gear S basically has the specifications of a low-end smartphone from not that long ago: a 1 GHz processor, 512 MB of RAM, 4 GB of storage, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS. What stands out, though, is that it has more sensors than you can shake a stick at, including a digital compass, pedometer, gyroscope, heart rate monitor, visible light, and UV light, among others. These all combine for a huge number of uses — many are the same things you can do with a smartphone, of course, along with a few tricks more suited to traditional fitness trackers, like health and exercise tracking and UV index alerts.

The Gear S can also operate autonomously even if you don’t carry your phone everywhere. While other smartwatches sync over Bluetooth, and have to stay within 30 feet of a phone, the Gear S comes equipped with its own 3G radio and data connection, allowing it to sync to your phone over the Internet instead. Thus, even when you leave your phone behind, you still effectively have it with you, allowing for sent or received calls and texts under your own number. When you get back to your phone, it will automatically reconnect over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi.

The post Samsung Gear S Review: The Price of Portability appeared first on Brighthand.com.

Samsung Gear S Review: The Price of Portability

Posted on by Adama D. Brown

Samsung’s Gear S smartwatch promises greater autonomy from your smartphone, a colorful display, and a slew of other new features. Is it enough to sell you on the need for a smartwatch? Let’s take a look.

Build and Design

Samsung Gear S

Samsung Gear S

With a large rectangular screen, chromed edges, and prominent all glass front, the Gear S looks less like other smartwatches and more like an iPhone had a child with a rubber wristband. But if it looks a lot like a smartphone, that’s probably because it’s not too far off from being one. Unlike other smartwatches, the Gear S isn’t solely dependent on a Bluetooth link to another device; it has a complete set of hardware inside it, including an independent cellular radio that we’ll get to in a minute.

The band is 100% rubber, which seems a little cheap considering the device’s rather hefty price tag. But it is easy to take off and replace, so if you don’t like it, there will probably be alternatives available. The body features only a single button that doubles as both power and “home,” and only a single connector on the back, a series of spring loaded pins that connect it to the charger.

A big part of this design is to help keep it water-resistant. The Gear S is rated for complete immersion in water for up to 30 minutes, and its mix of rugged glass and plastic gives it a real feeling of durability from nicks and scratches. All other interaction with the Gear S is done either through the touchscreen or the Gear app of your paired smartphone. Otherwise, the aesthetic here isn’t exactly stunning to the eye. Still, it is a very solid little device.

Display

By modern smartphone standards, the Gear S’s screen is tiny, at just 2.0 inches diagonal. But it certainly doesn’t skimp on quality for the size. At a resolution of 360 x 480, it boasts a pixel density of 300 ppi, which is more than solid for a screen this size. It’s also an OLED display, just like the panels on most of Samsung’s other devices. Per usual with those screens, this gives it an excellent contrast ratio, vibrant colors, and high energy efficiency, since it doesn’t need to light up when displaying blacks. This makes it just as great for battery life as it is for overall quality. Samsung’s built up a bit of a reputation for producing great smart device displays as of late, and the Gear S continues that trend.

Performance

Samsung Gear S

Samsung Gear S

It’s once you actually start to use the Gear S that you can start to see why someone would buy the thing. Under the hood, the Gear S basically has the specifications of a low-end smartphone from not that long ago: a 1 GHz processor, 512 MB of RAM, 4 GB of storage, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS. What stands out, though, is that it has more sensors than you can shake a stick at, including a digital compass, pedometer, gyroscope, heart rate monitor, visible light, and UV light, among others. These all combine for a huge number of uses — many are the same things you can do with a smartphone, of course, along with a few tricks more suited to traditional fitness trackers, like health and exercise tracking and UV index alerts.

The Gear S can also operate autonomously even if you don’t carry your phone everywhere. While other smartwatches sync over Bluetooth, and have to stay within 30 feet of a phone, the Gear S comes equipped with its own 3G radio and data connection, allowing it to sync to your phone over the Internet instead. Thus, even when you leave your phone behind, you still effectively have it with you, allowing for sent or received calls and texts under your own number. When you get back to your phone, it will automatically reconnect over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi.

The post Samsung Gear S Review: The Price of Portability appeared first on Brighthand.com.

6 Overlooked Mobile Games for Your Holiday Travels

Posted on by Adama D. Brown

Trendy mobile games are easy to find these days, but with the top charts of most app stores being little more than a popularity contest, “trendy” doesn’t always equal worthwhile. So where do you start if you want to find some quality playtime off the beaten path? Well, with the holiday season in full swing, we’ve compiled six of our favorite mobile gems, some old, some new, that weren’t heavily publicized but will keep you engaged during your travels.

Auralux, by War Drum Studios (Free)

Auralux

Auralux

Auralux is either the simplest strategy game you’ve ever encountered, or the most complex. It strips away everything you knew about traditional real-time strategy games – managing resources, units, terrain — and replaces them with pure tactics — and tiny little motes of light.

These motes, pumped out at a steady rate by the “suns” you control, serve as both units and resources; they can be used to destroy enemy motes, capture enemy suns, and defend your own. Your enemies (two or three of them, depending on the scenario) are equally equipped, meaning that winning takes true tactical skill, and a little bit of luck.

Admittedly, Auralux’s AI isn’t brilliant, but that can work against you as much as for you: Its suicidal attacks might leave them open to a mutual enemy while crippling your defenses at the same time. It all can turn your battle into a languid slow burn, while you build up your strength and choose where and when to move to take full advantage of your enemies fighting each other.

But even for a skilled strategy gamer, there’s never one tactic that guarantees a win, giving Auralux tremendous replay value. Combine that with a pleasingly subtle yet upbeat soundtrack, and the strangely melodic tones made when motes eliminate each other, and you have a game that’s as pleasing to behold as it is to play.

Auralux comes with a fair number of scenarios to start, and more can be bought for a very reasonable sum. So does the game’s “speed mode,” which streamlines most encounters from 12-20 minutes down to five or less.

Google Play
App Store

Waking Mars, by Tiger Style ($4.99)

Waking Mars

Waking Mars

A combination of platform action game and puzzler, Waking Mars boasts impressively high production values even by today’s growing mobile standards. With beautiful art, an immersive storyline, and full voice acting for its varied cast of characters, it’s an engrossing experience in almost every way.

Playing as an astronaut exploring subsurface caves on Mars, you accidentally discover life, along with an increasingly complex ecosystem. From there, you need to help encourage floral growth in order to advance to the next section — even when some of the flora is somewhat less than thrilled to see you. —Add in some bonus replay value in the form of three possible endings and you’ve got yourself a compelling genre hybrid that should appeal to both puzzle fans and those who’d like a little action.

Google Play
App Store

Atomic Bomber, by Luke Allen (Free/$0.99)

Atomic Bomber

Atomic Bomber

The equivalent of a classic arcade game translated to your smartphone, Atomic Bomber brings crude looks but an absorbing challenge. You take control of a NATO attack pilot in an imaginary 1970s war with the Soviet Union. Equipped with an unlimited supply of dumb bombs and a limited number of nukes, you need to destroy your targets while dodging anti-aircraft fire, missiles, and enemy planes. The graphics are rudimentary at best, but that only adds to the arcade style feel, along with its primitive sound effects.

The free version is fully playable, but the $1 “full” version removes ad support and throws in several worthwhile features, like allowing you to keep all your power-ups after being shot down, as well as an alternate game mode in which you fly a different aircraft.

The only negative is that this can all get wearisome if it’s not taken in small doses; each level is made up of the same basic units, just more of them, faster, and with greater firepower. Still, its simple challenge and eminent playability make Atomic Bomber a great casual time waster.

Google Play
App Store

Virtual Pool Mobile, by Celeris ($1.99/2.99)

Virtual Pool Mobile

Virtual Pool Mobile

The marketing for the original PC version of Virtual Pool boasted that you would get your money back if its eerily accurate physics couldn’t improve your real billiards game. Almost 20 years and half a dozen incarnations later, the mobile version is still making the same promise, which should tell you a lot about how few complaints they’ve had.

Virtual Pool Mobile offers six different pool variants and both bar and championship size tables — but most importantly, it offers 128 different levels of opponent skill, ranging from the best of the best to complete novices, letting you evolve your talents at your own pace. It tops all this off with beautifully lush looks, with detailed, intimate environments, dynamic lighting, and support for full 1080P screens. (The high resolution version for Apple devices costs a dollar more, however.)

There’s no more definitive or accurate pool game on the market, so whether you ’re a pool enthusiast or someone who just wants to mess around, Virtual Pool will work for you.

Google Play
App Store

SimpleRockets, by Jundroo ($0.99/1.99)

SimpleRockets

SimpleRockets

An unabashed mobile take-off on the popular PC game Kerbal Space Program, SimpleRockets tasks you with taking various components and assembling them together into a working rocket ship. Then, using realistic physics (albeit limited to two dimensions to keep things simple), you can try to make it back to your home planet — or crash and burn if you didn’t do things right. Its setup is the ultimate form of feast-or-famine: Build a good enough rocket and you can visit the rest of the solar system, land on the moon, and deploy rovers across the universe. Miscalculate, and you can either get blown up or stuck in space forever.

Open-ended through and through, SimpleRockets has little structure, but —plenty of challenges to meet. If you ever wanted to have your own private space program, SimpleRockets provides the perfect chance. It’s a wonderful balance of depth and approachability.

Google Play
App Store
Windows Phone Store

Aralon: Sword and Shadow, by Crescent Moon Games ($4.99)

Aralon: Sword and Shadow

Aralon: Sword and Shadow

Aralon: Sword and Shadow could be mistaken at first glance as another one of shiny but ultimately derivative action-RPGs that have flooded the mobile games market. But the pretty 3D environment in its recently-released HD update only improves upon a game that was originally built on depth and proven, old-school western RPG goodness rather than hollow flashiness and sword swinging.

Although its combat can become repetitive by the end of its roughly 30 hours of quests, Aralon saves itself by basking in things more combat-oriented mobile RPGs don’t: item crafting, guilds, character reputation, and dozens of other classic hallmarks of the beloved genre. It’s much more Elder Scrolls than Mass Effect. And if you really want a break from dungeon crawling, Aralon’s big 3D world is a pleasure to exist in, giving you a palpable sense of freedom by letting you go off and build a campfire, go fishing, or even pickpocket local townsfolk, if that’s more your speed.

Google Play
App Store

The post 6 Overlooked Mobile Games for Your Holiday Travels appeared first on Brighthand.com.

Kyocera Brigadier Review: Heavy Duty

Posted on by Adama D. Brown

Now sporting a $100 price tag with a two-year contract (or a $400 one without) and the ability to shrug off almost anything — including being dunked in water, dropped on concrete, and smeared with mud – the Kyocera Brigadier offers a highly durable smartphone with respectable specs to boot. Should you consider going rugged? Let’s take a look.

Build and Design

Kyocera Brigadier

Kyocera Brigadier

There’s no getting around the fact Brigadier isn’t tiny. Its footprint is comparable to a Samsung Galaxy S4, which has a half inch larger screen than what Kyocera offers here. At just over half an inch thick (0.52″), it’s also heftier than most other smartphones, regardless of screen size. But it has good reason to add a little bit of bulk — whereas most handsets aim to be sports cars, the Brigadier is an armored vehicle.

“Rugged” smartphones don’t get a lot of love either from average customers or the press; they’re typically considered a niche market for those with industrial or outdoors jobs. While they have value there, most people really don’t think of them as viable products. The question, then, is why not?

Ever accidentally dropped your phone into the sink or a mud puddle? The Brigadier is guaranteed waterproof for up to 30 minutes, even protecting against water jets and blowing rain. Dropped it on the pavement? That’s practically inevitable. The Brigadier has been tested against drops from four feet up onto concrete, 26 times, and it brushes off the impact each and every time. It’s dustproof, vibration proof, resistant against salt spray, extreme temperatures (from to 140 degrees down to -4 degrees Fahrenheit), and even high altitudes. (It can last in areas up to 15,000 feet above sea level, which is roughly the altitude at which the human brain needs supplemental oxygen to stay conscious.)

If you’ve ever been in a situation where breaking your phone would be a serious problem, you might start to see the appeal of one that’s protected against almost anything you could do to it. This isn’t to say that the Brigadier can’t be damaged, of course. But most of the things that could put it truly out of commission could also kill you, so you’d probably have worse problems at that point. The Brigadier’s heavy duty construction might keep it off the fashion runway, but it’ll also keep it out of the trash can, and then some.

All that said, the Brigadier’s design language is industrial yet workable. There’s a great deal of heavy rubberized plastic with ridges for gripping, complete with nice heavy duty screws. The USB port, SIM card, headphone jack, and microSD slot are all covered by watertight rubber doors to protect them. The side of the device has a large red “programmable key” that allows you to have a custom shortcut to any of your apps or a few standard actions. That includes turning the phone on and off, which is helpful given how small the actual power button is. It’s generally unremarkable and far from pretty, but that’s the case with most rugged phones, and the Brigadier well-made for what it is.

Display

Kyocera Brigadier

Kyocera Brigadier

With a 4.5 inch, 720p display, the Brigadier isn’t close to having the sharpest panel out there, but it’s still no slouch, staying right in line with the screens of most other modern midrange devices. It’s not the pixel density that makes this screen noteworthy, though — it’s the build of the display itself. It’s protected against scratching and other forms of damage not by the hardened glass that dominates most smartphones, but by a layer of synthetic sapphire, a material whose hardness pales only in comparison to solid diamond.

This effectively puts the Brigadier’s panel in a league of its own in today’s market. Sapphire crystal is not only virtually impossible to scratch, it’s also roughly 10 times harder than steel, giving it truly top-notch protection against sharp impacts. Simply put, you will not scuff up this display. The catch is that it’s expensive to manufacture — hence why you don’t see it everywhere — but Kyocera has still managed to pump it out here.

Furthermore, the Brigadier’s touchscreen is designed with increased water tolerance. If you’ve ever seen your smartphone’s screen go wonky after a little bit of rain or sweat got on it, you know that moisture can freeze your touchscreen by making it think you’re tapping somewhere else until you dry it off. The Brigadier, however, is can tolerate more than a little bit of moisture on its screen and still function. It only works to a certain extent, though; too much water will still render it insensitive until things are dried up. It’s also capable of being used with thin gloves (only up to about a tenth of an inch thick) if you’re out in the cold, which is nice, but is becoming increasingly common with many phones these days.

The post Kyocera Brigadier Review: Heavy Duty appeared first on Brighthand.com.

The New Moto X is Bigger and Aggressively Priced: Readers React

Posted on by Adama D. Brown

The debut of the new Motorola Moto X, with its wide array of upgrades and relatively friendly price, sparked plenty of discussion among Brighthand readers. Overall reaction was quite positive. Reader Mitlov compared it to firsthand experience with the original Moto X.

New Moto XThe processor, screen size and resolution, and case materials are all big upgrades over the 2013 Moto X my wife has. And that price is fantastic — it’s no longer trying to compete at same price as the two eight-hundred-pound gorillas in the room (Samsung and Apple). My only reservation is camera quality.

There was also some skepticism about the size of the new version, citing the original Moto X as one of the few decent “small” smartphones left on the market. User weegie had somewhat mixed feelings:

It’s A LOT bigger than … the compact dimensions of the original Moto X, and it’s more single hand friendly screen size was something constantly mentioned in reviews and by users as desirable. I’m not convinced the lower than flagship specs hurt anything as far as the average user went, especially if they tried it and saw it didn’t make a scrap of difference to how smoothly it runs.

Then again, others applauded the availability of a more reasonably priced option with a large screen. LandSurveyor regarded it as a potential purchase, even though he didn’t find all its features compelling.

For my next phone, I’m hoping to go to something bigger if only for the sake of my aging eyes. And it’s good to see that a “good enough” phone is available for a reasonable price. As for Moto Voice, Siri, Cortana, and the like…while I think they are useful, I would only feel comfortable issuing voice commands in complete privacy. Can’t see speaking all of my personal business out loud for anyone nearby to hear.

As always, these are just a few of the many discussions going on in our forums. Got a tech problem you need help with? Want to share an opinion on the latest news? Or just have something you’re curious about and want an answer to? Sign up for our forums and join the conversation today.

The post The New Moto X is Bigger and Aggressively Priced: Readers React appeared first on Brighthand.com.

The iPhone is All Grown Up: Readers React

Posted on by Adama D. Brown

With the release of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, Brighthand readers had plenty to say about Apple’s latest and greatest.

Apple iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus slantedReactions were generally positive, especially to the smaller iPhone 6, with reader lelisa13p putting her opinion in starkly simple terms.

I watched. Wow. Just wow. On all counts.

r0k echoed the interest, paying special attention to the available memory capacities.

I can see myself getting the 6 but not the 6+. I guess I could cough up more for the 64 GB model. I have a 32 GB iPhone 5 and I’ve been working to trim memory use so I could go back to a base model. But 64 GB… Tempting…

The iPhone 6 Plus faced a little more skepticism, with readers wondering if it really offered enough differences to distinguish itself from the iPhone 6. Mitlov specifically questioned the battery power relative to other large “phablet” type smartphones.

The 6 seems like a very good phone for iOS fans. I like the size and the hardware design (except for the protruding camera; I don’t like it when Samsung does that and I wish Apple hadn’t done it either).

The 6 Plus is a puzzle to me. Why have a 5.5″ phablet that emphasizes thinness over battery size? Don’t most phablet buyers care more about the latter? And it doesn’t have any unique phablet-oriented software features (like the windowed apps on the Note 4). Plus, unless you’re happy with 16 GB onboard, you’re going to be paying $400 plus contract, and who knows how much off-contract.

Apple iPhone 6 PlusWith the iPhone 6 Plus being closer in size to the iPad Mini than any of Apple’s previous smartphones, the idea of the company cannibalizing its own products also came up. User jigwashere:

I wonder how the larger screen size might affect iPad sales. I’ve stayed away from tablets in part because of the larger smartphone screen.

Not everyone was impressed, with an infographic making the rounds that noted many of the iPhone 6′s key features were similar to those on the Google Nexus 4 released in November 2012 — although it was also mentioned that that older device didn’t include the iPhone’s fingerprint scanner or Apple-specific high-end processor.

As always, these are just a few of the many discussions going on in our forums. Got a tech problem you need help with? Want to share an opinion on the latest news? Or just have something you’re curious about and want an answer to? Sign up for the Brighthand forums and join the conversation today.

The post The iPhone is All Grown Up: Readers React appeared first on Brighthand.com.

Is the LG G3 Really an Android Superphone? Readers React

Posted on by Adama D. Brown

Brighthand recently reviewed the LG G3 smartphone, with generally good things to say about the Android “superphone.” Brighthand readers also had a lot to say about it in the discussion forum.

LG G3 featuredReader reactions were a bit mixed, though, citing concerns about performance and whether the ultra-high resolution screen was really worth it. Reader Mitlov commented on the review’s mention of small delays using certain apps and features.

This kills me. No flagship device with a Snapdragon 801 should be doing this. I don’t know whether it’s poor software optimization, or the QHD display, but this should NOT be happening with this price point and this processor. I know it doesn’t impair functionality from an objective standpoint, but it really ruins the premium feel that a device like this should have. Keyboards and app drawers shouldn’t tax flagship smartphones in 2014. Period.

But a lot more comments were focused on the device’s 1440 x 2560 “Quadruple HD” or simply QHD screen, packing 3.6 million pixels into a 5.5-inch display. Skepticism ranked pretty highly, echoing some comments in the review, with user EdmundDantes adding this:

I think I’d agree with the reviewer that the screen is probably overkill, and that’s from someone who has been a proponent of bigger screens. Overall, I think 5.5-inches is too big for me to use as my main phone too. About 5-inches diagonal is my limit I think. Nice phone though.

Others had a much more critical opinion of the bleeding edge display, offering criticism mainly targeted at how much battery power was drained to drive pixels that the user couldn’t appreciate. Forum member weegie in particular saw it as a critical flaw:

[P]ity they ruined a nice device chasing useless screen specs that basically only offers negatives instead of pros. In person I find the G3 screen quite dim, I guess someone was going to try higher than 1080… I’ve still never hankered for more resolution than 720[P] on a 5 inch-ish phone screen.

This led into a broader discussion of the use of OLED screens and the maturity of OLED technology, especially with regard to saving battery power.

These are just a few of the many discussions going on in the Brighthand forums. Got a tech problem you need help with? An opinion on the latest news? Or just something you’re curious about and want an answer to? Sign up for the Brighthand forums and join the conversation today.

The post Is the LG G3 Really an Android Superphone? Readers React appeared first on Brighthand.com.

Samsung Gear Live and Smartwatch Growing Pains: Readers React

Posted on by Adama D. Brown

Samsung’s new Gear Live smartwatch is now available to the public, and our review prompted mixed reactions to the new device from all around. Here’s what you folks had to say about it.

Gear Live wristLike the review, much of the reader criticism of the Gear Live centered around the watch’s display, which can be difficult or impossible to read in direct sunlight. You pulled no punches on this count, with user Hook putting it thus:

Seems to me that a display that is clearly visible in sunlight is a minimum requirement for this class of device. Even that doesn’t guarantee that it is useful or that people will adopt it, but without an always visible screen there doesn’t seem to be a point.

This led into a wider discussion centered on the effect of the screen’s brightness on battery life for such a tiny device. Mitlov compared it to one of Samsung’s other high profile models.

Agreed on the brightness issue. That’s a baffling omission. Though the auto brightness adjustment on my [Samsung Galaxy] S3 absolutely kills the battery life (I keep auto-brightness off as a result), so I wonder if Samsung’s software for it is less efficient than it could be, and they left it off to improve the watch’s battery life.

EdmundDantes also chimed in on this note.

This seems to be a Catch-22: the OLED display is bad in bright outdoor light; but good for battery life. A more conventional display (which I prefer) might not be possible until battery tech gets better.

This prompted a longer discussion of the perils of battery capacity on mobile devices, as well as questions about what future technologies there might be to increase battery capacity without significantly increasing the bulk of a device. I lent my own insights into the matter:

The best chance may still be lithium ion batteries using silicon nanowire anodes. These are supposed to allow for storing 2 to 10 times the power of conventional graphite anodes. But commercialization has kept getting pushed back; they were supposed to start manufacturing in 2012, then 2014, now they’re aiming at 2015.

These are just a few of the many discussions going on in the Brighthand forums. Got a tech problem you need help with? An opinion on the latest news? Or just something you’re curious about and want an answer to? Sign up for our forums and join the conversation today.

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Microsoft Lays off Thousands, Ditches Android: Readers React

Posted on by Adama D. Brown

With the recent announcement that Microsoft is laying off 18,000 employees, coupled its Nokia division abandoning its entry-level Android handset efforts, both opinions and epitaphs are swirling. Is Nokia close to anything resembling an independent company? Brighthand‘s forum had its share to say.

Nokia X2Contributor Mi An had both a brief lament for Nokia and skepticism for the decisions that led to the apparent downsizing.

I always admired certain Nokia hardware from a distance, before they got into generic slab production. It was a brave company. I commented often in the early days on the then-former MS exec’s decisions that always, (not so) shockingly, put MS’s well-being above Nokia’s. That the now returned MS Executive VP [Stephen] Elop [Former CEO of Nokia prior to the buyout by Microsoft] is the one to lower the final boom surprises me not at all. “Hello there” indeed. Hook’s wolf in grandma’s clothing analogy is very apt.

Some have argued that Nokia never could have managed a multiplatform strategy and it wasn’t worth trying Android at all given Samsung’s dominance, but 1) Samsung wasn’t overwhelmingly dominant in 2010 or 2011, and the lead position was changing hands rapidly, with HTC dominating in Android 1.x and Moto surging in 2.x. It was a dynamic environment. 2) Samsung ultimately achieved dominance with the sort of broad approach that Nokia excelled at before Elop (the approach HTC took before the blogosphere taunted them into One-size-fits-all).

Forum moderator CLeonard saw parallels to the experimental mess–and awkward dilemma, as both the creator of the platform and a major licensee–that Google got itself into by buying Motorola, and foresaw a similar end.

Seems very similar to Google’s acquisition of Motorola. Buy a struggling company for their assets and intellectual property. Fail to utilize this in a profitable way. Have to wonder if MS will look to spin Nokia off. If so, who would even be potential buyers?

Then again, there were the more pragmatic attitudes. Hook noted that Microsoft couldn’t toss away Nokia the way Google did Motorola:

Not quite equivalent. They need [Nokia] to produce hardware for WP [Windows Phone] because, honestly, no one else seems to want to. They just don’t need that many Nokia people to do it.

Some others viewed it as a necessary housecleaning after an era of Microsoft mismanagement. mtidmarsh put it very simply:

From what I’ve read, this is a move that resembles [Current Microsoft CEO Satya] Nadella cleaning up [Former Microsoft CEO] Steve Ballmer’s mess. I think [Nadella] fully believes that the Nokia acquisition was a huge mistake and as [CLeonard] mentioned, I wouldn’t be surprised if Microsoft decided to spin Nokia off.

These are just a few of the many discussions going on in the Brighthand forums. Got a tech problem you need help with? An opinion on the latest news? Or just something you’re curious about and want an answer to? Sign up for the Brighthand forums and join the conversation today.

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