Samsung Dart SGH-T499 (T-Mobile)
07.07.11
The Dart is a quad-band EDGE (850/900/1800/1900 MHz) and dual-band HSDPA 7.2 (1700/2100 MHz) device with 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi. The Dart also works with T-Mobile's software-based Wi-Fi calling, which helps in areas with poor T-Mobile signal. Regardless, call quality was generally poor, with a choppy, harsh tone in the earpiece, and significant audio dropouts even when standing outside (where I usually have stronger T-Mobile coverage). Clearly something is up with this phone's reception. Callers said I sounded fine, though.
Source: PC Magazine
In Latest Start-Up Grab, JP Morgan Strikes Jawbone With $70M
22.02.11
The firm’s asset management unit, which runs the J.P. Morgan Digital Growth Fund, said it invested $70 million in Aliph Inc., best known for its Jawbone noise-canceling headsets . The check comes just four months after Aliph said it raised $49 million from Andreessen Horowitz, and gives the 11-year-old company nearly $170 million in total funding from investors that also include Khosla Ventures, Mayfield Fund and Sequoia Capital.
It’s not immediately clear if the capital is coming from that specific digital growth fund, but the move furthers J.P. Morgan’s push to get more deeply involved in pre-IPO tech companies. J.P. Morgan reportedly used its new digital growth fund to take a big stake in Twitter through the secondary market this year, and the firm also recently led a $30 million Series D round in TapJoy , which connects advertisers with mobile app developers.
Source: Wall Street Journal (blog)
Motorola Theory (Boost Mobile)
23.06.11
The real draw here is the QWERTY keyboard, and the Theory doesn't disappoint. The keys are nicely sized, raised, and well-separated. My fingers are less than nimble, yet I found it fast and easy to type long messages on the Theory. The spacebar on the keyboard lacks the same springy feeling as the rest of the keys, so that took some getting used to. But the selection keys are big enough, and I had no trouble navigating my way through the phone's simple UI.
The Theory is a single-band (1900 MHz) CDMA device with no Wi-Fi which runs on Sprint's nationwide 2G 1xRTT network. Reception was fine, and call quality was good overall. Calls sounded loud and clear through the phone's earpiece. Calls made with the phone were also goodvoices could sound a bit muted, but there was decent background noise reduction. Calls sounded clear over the speakerphone, though the volume is a touch too low to use outdoors. I was able to easily connect to my Aliph Jawbone Icon Bluetooth headset ($99, 4 stars) and call quality was good. Voice dialing worked fine and battery life was average at 5 hours and 31 minutes of talk time.
Source: PC Magazine