08Dec

OhGizmo! Lightning Review: The Shure SE215 Earphones

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By David Ponce

The Shure SE215 earphones are not exactly a new product, but we were recently sent a pair for testing and would like to take a short bit of time to give our impressions for anyone considering them.

Shure is known for their quality products and some of their earphones can fetch up to $500+ (like the triple driver SE535). But the SE215 feature a single driver and a much more modest price of $100. And for that amount of money, they deliver a sound almost on par with competitors at $200… like the Beats by Dr. Dre Tour In-Ear Headphones, which we also recently acquired. To be clear, the sound quality is less bass heavy than the Beats and the highs and mids are more crisp. We’d describe it as well balanced and distortion free even at higher volumes. But the more impressive aspect of these earphones are twofold: the sound isolation and the snug fit.

To understand what we mean, hit the jump.

While they come with a variety of interchangeable nibs, it’s the larger memory-foam ones that got our attention. It’s a quality foam that takes quite some time to regain its shape. Once inserted, it expands to efficiently hug the inner walls of your ear and forms a tight seal. It’s this seal that does an impressive job at keeping outside noises out. We’d say it’s almost on par with that of the larger Dr.Dre Beats Studio, which feature active noise cancellation. It’s also this seal that does an even more impressive job at securing the earphones in place, no matter how vigorous the activity. In fact, removing them can be difficult and you end up worrying about the tip detaching and staying in your ear. This never happened, but it’s a small concern.

Also, the particular shape of the earphones conforms exactly to the shape of the part of the ear they’re intended to nestle into. This is an advantage as well as a disadvantage. When you do succeed in inserting them, it’s very comfortable. But getting there is another story. It takes some time to figure out which angle the earphone is supposed to go in at, and it will only fit at that specific angle. It’s a tradeoff between ease of insertion and comfort, but we believe it’s worthwhile. They don’t stick out of your ears as much as the Beats and don’t fall out at all (like when jogging), unlike the Beats.

The first two inches of the cord, after the drivers themselves, retains its shape somewhat. This is important because the SE215 are not meant to be worn like traditional earphones, with the cords dangling straight down towards your front. Instead, you’re supposed to wrap them behind your earlobes and down your back. It takes some time to get used to how the cord behaves once it’s like this, but it’s a minor inconvenience.

Conclusion
We like the SE215 from Shure. They don’t deliver an impressive bass, but it is adequate for someone looking for quality reproduction. The sound is crisp, deep and distortion free. The sound isolation dramatically adds to the enjoyability of the music while the snug fit make them easy on the ears for extended listening periods. For $100, it’s a very value conscious purchase and definitely worth it.

PROS
+ Snug fit
+ Good sound isolation
+ Impeccable sound quality

CONS
- Difficult to insert and remove
- Somewhat weak bass
- Takes time to adjust to proper wear style

[ The Shure SE215 at Earphone Solutions ]



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08Dec

OhGizmo! Lightning Review: The Shure SE215 Earphones

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By David Ponce

The Shure SE215 earphones are not exactly a new product, but we were recently sent a pair for testing and would like to take a short bit of time to give our impressions for anyone considering them.

Shure is known for their quality products and some of their earphones can fetch up to $500+ (like the triple driver SE535). But the SE215 feature a single driver and a much more modest price of $100. And for that amount of money, they deliver a sound almost on par with competitors at $200… like the Beats by Dr. Dre Tour In-Ear Headphones, which we also recently acquired. To be clear, the sound quality is less bass heavy than the Beats and the highs and mids are more crisp. We’d describe it as well balanced and distortion free even at higher volumes. But the more impressive aspect of these earphones are twofold: the sound isolation and the snug fit.

To understand what we mean, hit the jump.

While they come with a variety of interchangeable nibs, it’s the larger memory-foam ones that got our attention. It’s a quality foam that takes quite some time to regain its shape. Once inserted, it expands to efficiently hug the inner walls of your ear and forms a tight seal. It’s this seal that does an impressive job at keeping outside noises out. We’d say it’s almost on par with that of the larger Dr.Dre Beats Studio, which feature active noise cancellation. It’s also this seal that does an even more impressive job at securing the earphones in place, no matter how vigorous the activity. In fact, removing them can be difficult and you end up worrying about the tip detaching and staying in your ear. This never happened, but it’s a small concern.

Also, the particular shape of the earphones conforms exactly to the shape of the part of the ear they’re intended to nestle into. This is an advantage as well as a disadvantage. When you do succeed in inserting them, it’s very comfortable. But getting there is another story. It takes some time to figure out which angle the earphone is supposed to go in at, and it will only fit at that specific angle. It’s a tradeoff between ease of insertion and comfort, but we believe it’s worthwhile. They don’t stick out of your ears as much as the Beats and don’t fall out at all (like when jogging), unlike the Beats.

The first two inches of the cord, after the drivers themselves, retains its shape somewhat. This is important because the SE215 are not meant to be worn like traditional earphones, with the cords dangling straight down towards your front. Instead, you’re supposed to wrap them behind your earlobes and down your back. It takes some time to get used to how the cord behaves once it’s like this, but it’s a minor inconvenience.

Conclusion
We like the SE215 from Shure. They don’t deliver an impressive bass, but it is adequate for someone looking for quality reproduction. The sound is crisp, deep and distortion free. The sound isolation dramatically adds to the enjoyability of the music while the snug fit make them easy on the ears for extended listening periods. For $100, it’s a very value conscious purchase and definitely worth it.

PROS
+ Snug fit
+ Good sound isolation
+ Impeccable sound quality

CONS
- Difficult to insert and remove
- Somewhat weak bass
- Takes time to adjust to proper wear style

[ The Shure SE215 at Earphone Solutions ]



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16Oct

OhGizmo! Review: The FitBit Ultra

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By David Ponce

It goes without saying that getting fit and leading a healthy lifestyle is hard, not only physically but also psychologically. Staying motivated is probably the most difficult aspect of it, so every little bit of help counts. For us geeks, something like the Fitbit Ultra is great since it gives us an easy way to track and graph how we’re doing. It’s a tiny device that you attach to your clothing and which logs your every movement: how many steps you take, how many floors you climb, even how soundly you sleep. It then beams all this information to a server and packages the data in ways that make it fun and interesting and more importantly, useful.

I’ve been using the device for the past week or so and have come away fairly impressed. For all the details, hit the jump.

The Device
The Fitbit is appropriately small: about the size of an average thumb but flatter. It’s in the shape of a “U” so that it can clip onto your clothing but it also comes with a separate holster should your belt be too thick, etc. It is very light (11.34 grams) and it’s easy to forget you’re even wearing it. Battery life is excellent as it appears to be able to work for about 3 days without a charge. There is only one button on it, and the display dims when not in use. The one button is used for cycling through the various things it tracks, namely: number of steps taken that day, number of floors climbed, number of calories burned, distance traveled and overall activity level (displayed as a plant of varying length). It contains a precision 3-axis accelerometer and altimeter.

The base station connects to your computer via USB and consists of a hidden Bluetooth receptor and a small plastic tab that the Fitbit clips onto for charging. The uploading of data is done automatically, wirelessly, whenever you’re in range; it’s not necessary to dock the Fitbit for this purpose. If you are away from your computer for an extended period of time, it will store up to 7 days of data in its memory.


The Service
When you start using the Fitbit, you have to do an initial setup. It’s a straightforward process where you enter your gender, age and weight and create an account. Once this is done you will have access to a tremendous amount of things that you can do with the data the Fitbit gathers. For one, it will graph your activity daily and provide you with incredible granularity when manipulating the ways in which you view it. For instance you can pick any particular day and see a breakdown of calories burned, steps taken and floors climbed every 5 minutes! In the picture above you can see that I burned 37 calories between 5:00pm and 5:05pm on Friday October 14 (click to enlarge).

You are also awarded badges as a way to help you stay motivated. This is similar to what Foursquare and other services do, turning a mundane activity into a game of sorts. Badges I’ve earned so far include walking 20,000 steps in a day, climbing 25 floors in a day and walking 50 miles since tracking began. What’s more, you can compare your progress to your friend’s and that of the entire Fitbit community. This introduces a competitive aspect to staying fit and helps make the tedious a little more fun.

The Fitbit service is quite comprehensive and immensely useful. But it can also be time consuming. You are provided with the ability to enter all the foods you eat and track calorie intake. You can also track your weight, your mood, your heart rate, blood pressure, glucose levels, and keep a journal. Of course entering all this data is done manually as the only automatic entry is the one from the Fitbit device itself. This takes time and quite frankly, I never used it.

Finally, you can keep an eye on how well you sleep. There’s a soft wristband included with a pouch for the Fitbit. Put it into “sleep mode” and it will tell you how often you were awake and how long you slept.

Conclusion
There’s no question the Fitbit adds a geeky, and useful dimension to staying fit. To be able to get feedback on ones activity level in such a compelling and engaging way goes a long way towards keeping you moving. You might take the stairs instead of the elevator, or walk the three blocks to the convenience store instead of taking the car. It’s easy to become complacent and not notice how little you actually move. Fitbit however will gladly show you your activity flatline and push you to outdo yourself. It goes without saying that there needs to be a desire to get fit in the first place, but given that, this little gadget gives you a new array of tools to help you in that quest.

The Fitbit’s strength is that it’s completely automated: wear it and forget it. But the data entry in the dashboard, aside from that directly related to wearing the device, is not. This is a small weakness with the whole thing. I would have liked, for example, to see integration with the Withings scale which also automates the process of logging and tracking your weight.

But for $99, you get plenty of features and access to a great service that will undeniably make your efforts at staying fit a little bit more fun.

PROS
+ Small and lightweight
+ Good battery life
+ Wear it and forget it
+ Extensive activity and lifestyle tracking dashboard

CONS
- Data entry is time consuming
- Not integrated with other products

If you have questions, have at it in the comments.

[ Fitbit ]



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05Oct

OhGizmo! Review – Wi-Fli RC Helicopter

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Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)
By Andrew Liszewski

I’ve been watching the evolution of gadgets and gizmos since I was a kid growing up in the ’80s. And as impressed as I am with modern marvels like smartphones, GPS navigation devices, electronic paper, and even laptops as thin as a razor. I’m equally impressed that I can now walk into any toy store and buy an RC helicopter that can be flown around my living room. Particularly since I can remember thumbing through hobby magazines back in the day, gazing in awe at the complicated, large and expensive remote controlled choppers that appeared to be more difficult to fly than the real thing.

That was many moons ago, though. And while you can still buy incredibly expensive RC helicopters that can perform amazing feats of aerial prowess, I’m content to stick with the cheaper, electric variety that have become commonplace in toy stores today. Recently I had the opportunity to check out Interactive Toy Concepts’ (the company behind the flying Duck Hunter game) Wi-Fli RC helicopter, which, as the name implies, is controlled by a smartphone via a wifi connection. I’ve never been a big fan of using virtual controls for gaming on a touchscreen device, so I was skeptical as to how easy it would be to control an actual helicopter in flight. Dying in a game is one thing. Crashing a helicopter into your flat screen TV is another. So check out my full review after the jump to see if using your smartphone as a whirlybird wireless controller is a good idea or not.


Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

If I’ve noticed a single trend with all of the electric flying RC toys on the market, it’s that they tend to feel rather cheap and flimsy. But it’s not a cost-cutting or profit-driven thing. If you want a flying remote control toy to be able to carry its own weight, plus a battery, for longer than 10 seconds of flight time, you’re going to have to do everything you can to make it as light as possible. Including the use of thin plastics, foam housings and even tape to keep it together. But surprisingly, the Wi-Fli actually feels pretty solid. There’s a gratuitous use of real metal—in addition to plastic—that makes the helicopter’s $100 price tag a little easier to swallow. And as I discovered in my test flights, it helps make it considerably more endurable too.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

Being able to include wifi hardware and use real metal is made a little easier with the Wi-Fli since it’s quite a bit larger than the palm-sized helicopters that are more common in toy stores these days. Here you can see it sitting next to the iPhone 4, which also served as the wireless controller for my tests. You can easily hold it in the palm of your hand, but since the rotors are also larger to accommodate the helicopter’s added weight and size, you’ll want to be more careful actually launching it this way. Of course the downside to all of this is that it makes the helicopter a little more difficult to carry around with you.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

Another feature that pushes the Wi-Fli a little more towards the high-end of things—at least when compared to its $20 alternatives—are its hinged rotor blades. Here you can see them fully extended, but they can be folded back which not only makes the helicopter a bit easier to transport, but also helps to reduce the severity of a crash. Instead of taking a big chunk of drywall out of your living room walls, the blades will instead collapse at the hinge upon impact. But it’s not a perfect solution. While it does take the edge off inevitable crashes, it also means the helicopter is going to lose lift when it hits a wall. Leaving it at the mercy of gravity.

You’ll also notice the spinning centrifugal bar atop the rotors which is pretty much the secret to how these tiny helicopters can be easily flown. It remains perfectly horizontal at all times, so when the helicopter is pitched forward, as this bar adjusts back to the horizontal it changes the angle of attack on the rotors. Which in turn produces forward thrust. It’s brilliantly clever and simple, and you’ll find this system used on pretty much every single flying toy that has some level of basic control.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

Charging is accomplished via an included AC adapter that connects to this very small port on the right side of the Wi-Fli. On average I found that charge times took just over half an hour. And a blinking LED on the underside of the helicopter lets you know when the charging cycle is complete.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

On the other side of the Wi-Fli is a simple on/off switch. Nothing else to see here. Please move along.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

A 5 or 6-inch antenna is suspended below the helicopter’s tail boom, and I found its wireless range to be pretty decent. Most of my testing was done inside a large gymnasium, and I was able to control the Wi-Fli from pretty much clear across the space. I’m not sure exactly what its range limitations are, but I’m assuming it’s going to be less than the range of your typical consumer-level wifi router.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

On the end of the tail boom you’ll find a smaller propeller that serves to steer the Wi-Fli around a room during flight. Its blades don’t fold like the primary rotors do, so the kit includes a backup should it get damaged during a rough flight. But I found it to be pretty durable during my tests.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

Now the Wi-Fli’s most notable feature is that it can be wireless controlled from a wifi-equipped smartphone using its iOS and Android app. But how well does that actually work? So far I’ve yet to embrace any iOS game that uses on-screen virtual controls and buttons. So I was skeptical as to how well this would work when controlling a helicopter.

But surprisingly, it works pretty well. When you turn on the Wi-Fli it creates its own wifi network which you connect your device to. So it doesn’t require an existing wireless network to be in place. Once connected you start the app, which then requires another connection to be established between the Wi-Fli and said app, before it brings up the on-screen controls. Occasionally I found it would take a couple of tries for the app to actually connect. But it was never a big issue.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

When it comes to controlling the Wi-Fli with your wireless device you have two options. You can either use the aforementioned on-screen controls, which include a simple throttle slider and directional pad. Or you can use a combination of the throttle slider and your device’s built-in gyro. The controls also let you adjust the trim, so you can correct for any natural spin the helicopter might have after takeoff. But otherwise it’s pretty much as easy as giving it some throttle and then keeping it from crashing.

Before I move on to how it handles, I want to also point out the battery meter in the upper right corner of the app which lets you know how much flight time you have left. I found the Wi-Fli would stay aloft for around 5-8 minutes before the battery was depleted. But since you’re keeping your eyes on the helicopter, it’s easy to forget that the battery might be getting low.

Unfortunately when the battery meter hit 1% on my maiden test flight, the Wi-Fli kept flying even though the wireless connection kicked out. And since I happened to be flying the the craft towards the ceiling of the gym when this happened, the helicopter just kept climbing once I lost control. Until it hit the rafters with a loud bang. At this point gravity took over and the Wi-Fli came crashing two stories down to the gym floor, at which point it managed to right itself and recover, skittering along the floor until the battery finally completely died. Needless to say it was a little scary and unexpected, but surprisingly the helicopter wasn’t damaged at all.

So the moral of that story is that I wish the app had some kind of 5-10% battery life warning that let the pilot know they needed to land the Wi-Fli as soon as possible. Before things get literally out of control.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

As I’ve already mentioned, my biggest fear was that the Wi-Fli would be impossible to control with a touchscreen interface. But surprisingly that wasn’t the case. I would still have preferred an actual throttle slider and a physical directional pad, but flying the Wi-Fli without those wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be. The craft is very, very stable in the air. And moves slowly enough that it’s difficult to suddenly lose control of. It does take a bit of practise to learn how to finesse the controls to convince onlookers that you know what you’re doing. But after just 5 minutes I felt I could get the helicopter to easily go where I wanted.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

The gyroscope based controls are a different story. Keeping the helicopter stable and steering it in a specific direction wasn’t impossible. But the fact that you have to keep your thumb on the throttle slider the whole time, constantly adjusting it up and down to keep the Wi-Fli under control, makes it harder to control this way. It might make the experience seem more like actually piloting a real helicopter, but I think most users will happily stick with the touchscreen controls.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

The Wi-Fli is positioned as being able to be flown indoors and out. But I think both situations come with a stipulation. Given its size, at no point was I comfortable with the idea of flying the helicopter in my apartment. Even in the living room. While it’s not massive by any stretch of the imagination, I still think it’s large enough to do some serious damage if it banged into more delicate electronics like a flat screen TV. My flight testing was actually done in a gymnasium large enough to hold a full-sized basketball court. And I still experienced plenty of crashes where my lack of flying prowess sent the Wi-Fli careening into a wall, or crashing to the floor. So I can’t say I recommend it for use in even a moderately sized home.

As for outside. Controlling the Wi-Fli works just as well, at least in terms of the wireless connection. But it was very susceptible to even the slightest breeze. I found myself having to constantly launch the helicopter upwind, only to have it quickly carried away giving me barely any time to do any actual flying before I had to land it again. In perfect weather conditions flying it in a large park could be quite enjoyable. But otherwise I think you’re going to spend most of your time flying it indoors.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

I also want to mention that the Wi-Fli is far more durable than I thought it would be. During my testing it was subjected to some pretty wince-inducing crashes, including the aforementioned two-story fall which I was pretty sure had destroyed it. But after a half-hour charge it was back flying again without so much as a bruised ego. Most people who buy an RC helicopter in this price range are going to have no previous flying experience. So knowing that the inevitable crashes aren’t going to be an immediate end to your fun, and your investment, provides some peace of mind.

Wi-Fli RC Helicopter (Image property OhGizmo!)

I’m usually excited at any opportunity to play with a new gadget. Particularly when it comes to something that walks the line between being high-tech and a straight-up toy. But I did have misgivings about the Wi-Fli. To say I am not a fan of iPhone gaming using on-screen controls is an understatement. I hate it. So I was skeptical that the Wi-Fli would even be remotely flyable given it relied on this control method. But I was pleasantly surprised. I’m not going to say using your smartphone is the best way to control an RC helicopter, but I can’t say it’s the worst either.

There’s always the gyro control option of course, but I feel those should be limited to RC toys that stay on a 2-dimensional plane like cars. Crashing into a wall after making a wrong turn isn’t going to be too catastrophic. But falling out of the sky after you’ve crashed into a high ceiling could easily put an end to your fun. Thankfully the Wi-Fli I tested appears to still have about 8 lives left, so the horrific crash experienced during its maiden test flight wasn’t immediately game over.

The company could definitely use to put some love into the app though. Spelling mistakes aside, there really needs to be more of a warning when the Wi-Fli’s battery is about to die. Whether it’s an audible alarm, a vibration, or anything. It’s certainly nice that the battery power is transmitted to the app so you have some way to monitor it. But when you’re concentrated on flying you’re going to be too distracted to keep an eye on it. And the fact that I lost wireless connectivity before the helicopter completely lost power was a little concerning. Thankfully my concerns are just a software issue. And improving the flying experience is hopefully just an app update away.

Pros:
+ Well built with plenty of metal making it feel less like just a toy.
+ Incredibly durable, will easily survive your inevitable crashes.
+ Hinged propellers absorb most of the force at impact, reducing damage during a crash.
+ Can be wirelessly controlled using just your smartphone.
+ Charging times of around 30+ minutes for roughly 5-8 minutes of flight.
+ Very stable during takeoff and flight, easy to land.
+ Minimal learning curve when it comes to flying.

Cons:
- Battery meter definitely needs a warning when it reaches a critical level so you can safely land.
- Touchscreen controls are not the easiest way to pilot an RC helicopter.
- Wireless connectivity cuts off before the Wi-Fli’s battery is completely depleted, resulting in times of uncontrolled flight.
- Not as compact or easy to carry as small, palm-sized RC helicopters.
- Very susceptible to slight breezes making it difficult to fly outside.
- Better suited to large, indoor spaces. Not the easiest thing to fly in a living room filled with easily breakable stuff.
- A bit on the expensive side.

Links:
Interactive Toy Concepts Wi-Fli RC Helicopter – $80-100

If you have any questions about the Wi-Fli RC Helicopter you’d like answered, please feel free to leave them in the comments, and I’ll try to respond to them as best I can.



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16Sep

OhGizmo! Review – Sony Tablet S

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Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)
By Andrew Liszewski

Since the original iPad was released a few years ago, there have been a steady stream of new tablets coming from Apple’s competitors. Blackberry, Samsung, Motorola and a host of others have all released follow-up products to compete with Apple. But one of the biggest names in consumer electronics, Sony, has only recently unveiled their tablet offerings. And in true Sony fashion, they certainly stand out from the crowd.

The first to hit the market, the Tablet S, went on sale just days ago and Sony is hoping that their somewhat unorthodox design has what it takes to allure consumers away from Apple’s juggernaut. Or at the least, lure Android fans away from other Android-based tablets. We had the chance to spend a couple of weeks with the Tablet S, sans finalized firmware, and walked away with some distinct impressions of the latest tablet to cannonball into a market that’s getting more and more crowded every week. More after the jump.


Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

At a quick glance, it’s hard to distinguish the competitors that have challenged Apple’s throne so far. The iPad is easy to spot in a crowd of hipsters, but RIM’s Playbook, the Samsung Galaxy Tab and even the Motorola Xoom are hard to distinguish from afar. So leave it to Sony to come up with a fairly original design that has its own list of pros and cons.

The general idea of the Tablet S’s form factor and design is that it’s supposed to look and feel like a thin book, or magazine, with the cover folded back on itself. From the side you can certainly see the effect, but it’s even more obvious when flipped over.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

It does look a little unorthodox, but I have to admit I really did like the feel of it in hand. The tablet’s weight is shifted towards the thicker side (0.8 inches) which I felt made it easier and more comfortable to hold with one hand. The design also results in the display being angled, which made it slightly easier to view and type on with it sitting on a flat surface in front of you. Watching movies would still require a way to prop it up to a higher angle though. And bonus points for the tablet’s flat back and set of small rubber feet that keep it from sliding around too much.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

On one side of the tablet you’ll find a power button and volume controls. Hitting this button quickly actually serves to lock and unlock the tablet, while holding it down for slightly longer, about 3 seconds, powers it on and off. It’s fairly straightforward and works well enough, and after a short while you’ll get used to blindly finding it.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

On the opposite side of the tablet is a headphone jack, and an access panel covered by a removable door. I can’t say I’m a fan of this approach on any gadget, whether it’s a camera or a tablet, and I’d have much preferred to see the Tablet S’s SD card slot and miniUSB port left exposed. Thankfully the door is held on by a plastic tether so it won’t go missing, but it makes the tablet feel kind of cheap.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

The USB port is used for transferring files directly to the tablet’s internal memory, in this case 16GB. And copying photos and music over worked just fine. However, when I tried to copy some Divx-encoded AVI files, the copy simply wouldn’t happen. I was given a warning that these types of files weren’t compatible with the tablet, and it wouldn’t copy them over. So as a portable movie player for the tech-savvy who don’t get their content directly from Sony, the Tablet S is probably not your best option.

And if you have a clever plan to get the smaller, and cheaper, 16GB version of this tablet and augment its storage with a hefty SD card, don’t bother. Content has to be copied to the tablet’s internal storage first before it can be enjoyed. Handy if you want to back up photos from your camera while on vacation, but again, not great if you wanted to use this thing as a well-stocked portable media player.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

External sound is provided by a couple of thin speaker slits on either side of the tablet, but admittedly they weren’t impressively loud. I mean the sound levels were more than adequate for watching a movie or listening to music while surfing in a quiet bedroom, but at a noisy press event where I first got to play with the tablet, they weren’t that impressive.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

While tablets certainly aren’t a great alternative to carrying a digital camera, particularly compared to smartphones, the Tablet S still comes with a set of digital cameras on the front and back. The primary 5MP camera on the back is quite decent at snapping stills when there’s adequate light, and it’s of course able to geotag photos thanks to the tablet’s built-in GPS hardware. The front facing camera, however, is limited to just 0.3MP, pretty much relegating it to low-quality web-camming or video chatting use.

I also found that the rear facing camera on the Tablet S was positioned in the middle of its thicker edge, so when holding it in a portrait orientation you’re inevitably going to touch the lens and leave fingerprints on it. I guess there’s a strategic reason why other tablets push the camera lens to the corners.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

Size-wise Sony’s first tablet is roughly the exact same dimensions as the original iPad, though just slightly narrower. It’s also a bit heavier than the second generation iPad, but like I already said, with the weight being shifted to the thicker side it actually feels better balanced in one hand. Personally I’ve come to prefer tablets a little on the smaller side, somewhere between a smartphone and the Tablet S, but different strokes for different strokes I guess. Obviously given the success of the iPads, taking inspiration from their form factor and size isn’t a terrible idea.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

If I had to name my biggest concern with the Tablet S, at least in terms of the hardware, it would be the charging port. Recognize it? Probably not since Sony has once again decided to do their own thing. Instead of sticking with miniUSB or even microUSB for that matter, you get this wider, larger alternative.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

As a result you’re going to have to carry the included charging cables if you intend to use the tablet longer than a few days, which is a bit of a pain in the butt. I’m sure the port is designed to also provide interfaces for additional third party hardware down the road, not unlike Apple’s dock connector. But I’m still going to complain about it!

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

Alternately, Sony was showing off a dock that makes charging the Tablet S considerably more convenient. It also serves to prop the tablet up so that it can be used on a table, or even as a pretty pricey digital photo frame. But it’s not included.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

On the flip side, one of the Tablet S’s highlights would easily be its beautiful 9.4 inch display which has a resolution of 1280×800, or basically 720P. (With enough extra pixels for a menu bar.) It also uses the same LCD technology that Sony uses in their much lauded Bravia TVs, which not only produces very dark blacks, but also has a fantastic viewing angle. While the tablet’s plastic housing sometimes feels a little on the cheap side, it’s obvious Sony decided not to skimp on the display.

Unfortunately it’s not protected by Gorilla Glass, or any of the seemingly indestructible display materials that have popped up over the past few years. It’s actually very prone to fingerprints and even scratches. And since they’d run out of protective cases before we were provided with a review unit, we tended to really baby the tablet for a couple of weeks so as not to return it looking like it went through a rock tumbler. Moral of the story? Factor in the cost of a good case if you’re seriously considering one.

Now onto the software. I’m pretty sure many of you reading this review will be wondering if they should just stick with Apple’s offerings, or give Sony’s new toy a shot. And I have to say it’s all going to come down to the operating system. If you’re an iPhone junkie and are in love with iOS, then I think your decision has already been made. But if you’re willing to give another OS a shot, the Tablet S is worth considering. Like Sony’s smartphones the Tabet S runs Android, Honeycomb 3.1 in this instance. And the company has customized it to a degree, including Sony-only functionality that wasn’t in place, or completely ready, while we tested our pre-release review unit. But needless to say, if you’re a big fan of Android, you’ll find plenty to like here.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

Some of the highlights and eye candy I particularly enjoyed included the Gallery app which lets you browse the photos taken with the device or imported. Complete with a mini version of Google Maps just below the image that uses their geo-tagged data to show exactly where on Earth the photo was taken.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

And the music player app which provided a simulated stack of CDs in their jewel cases that you can drag around and open with just a few taps. It was clever and amusing for a few minutes, but if you had your tablet filled with hundreds and hundreds of CDs, I’m sure you’d be inclined to switch this off.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

Particularly exciting is the fact that the Tablet S is PlayStation certified, and is capable of playing downloaded PlayStation and PSP titles via an included emulator. The iPhone and iPad have already been established as viable contenders to the portable gaming throne currently ruled by Nintendo, but the Tablet S could be a great competitor if a decent enough library of back PS titles is made available.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

Included on our demo unit were a pinball game and a copy of Crash Bandicoot. (Rrrrrrrrrrridge Racer was no where in sight.) But here’s another area where the Tablet S could be improved. We learned years ago that touchscreen devices are a poor solution when it comes to playing games designed for use with buttons and control sticks. Having to instead use on-screen ‘virtual’ controls is just plain difficult, and unfortunately Crash Bandicoot was a good title to demonstrate this.

Since the tablet comes Bluetooth-equipped it would be brilliant if Sony made it compatible with the PlayStation wireless controllers. The Wiimote has already been made to work with the iPad if you’re cool with jailbreaking. But if Sony allowed their controllers to be officially used with the Tablet S and its PlayStation emulator, I think a lot of gamers would take notice.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

Now Apple has already made big strides when it comes to incorporating their devices into your home theater via Apple TV and AirPlay, so it’s no surprise that Sony has followed suit. The company is well known for their presence in many home theaters, and the Tablet S makes a great addition if your gear is DLNA certified. Videos and songs can be streamed to your living room TV or stereo, though again it seems optimized for content purchased directly from Sony when it comes to video content. The demos I saw with a full Sony setup were pretty simple to use. However, at this point you can’t mirror the tablet’s display on your big screen TV for surfing or browsing YouTube. So here’s to hoping that’s just a future update away.

And this brings me to one of my favorite features of the Tablet S. It’s got a built-in IR receiver/transmitter which means it can double as a wireless remote for your AV gear. And a pretty great one at that. A stylish universal remote app is included, with a built-in, easy to navigate database of TVs, stereos, DVD players and other home theater gear from pretty much every manufacturer on the planet. Even setting it up for the off-brand TV in my bedroom was dead easy, and in the event you can’t find your device, it’s also learning capable. I’m a little ashamed to admit that this was the feature I probably used most during my testing, and I seriously think IR capabilities should be standard on every smartphone and tablet sold these days.

Sony Tablet S (Image property OhGizmo!)

For better or for worse, Sony has often decided to play by their own rules when it comes to their hardware. Creating their own proprietary memory card format for their digital cameras and even minidiscs are evidence of that. But this is one of those times when it’s turned out to be a good thing. The design of tablets has already become stagnated and they’ve only been available for a couple of years now. And I’m not saying their ‘bookish’ design is perfect, but it certainly brings something unique to the table that nicely blends form and function.

As to whether or not the Tablet S is a great alternative to the iPad, and other options already on the market, that’s not so easy. First and foremost, if you’re not an Android fan then it’s probably not the tablet for you. Honeycomb 3.1 is pretty much a big-screen friendly version of the varying flavors of the Android smartphone OS, and works just as well/just as frustrating as you may already find it.

As an iPhone and iPad user I certainly respect the flexibility and customizability of the OS, but I still think it could benefit from a bit of polish all around. The Tablet S’s automatic screen rotation was a little sluggish at times, and even though it’s powered by an NVIDIA Tegra 2 SoC processor, you never really get the impression that it’s particularly snappy. Mind you it’s never sluggish either, but when handling the newest version of a product to enter the market, it should give you the impression that it’s definitely the latest and greatest. On the outside I feel the Tablet S certainly delivers in that respect, but I’m afraid that feeling just doesn’t carry over to the software and UI.

Pros:
+ A truly unique ‘folded book’ design that makes the Tablet S stand out from everything else on the market.
+ Beautiful 1280×800 LCD display with deep blacks and a fantastic viewing angle.
+ Built-in universal remote functionality is the greatest thing since slided bread as far as I’m concerned.
+ PlayStation certified means you’ll have access to a library of PS and PSP games.
+ DLNA support lets you push audio and video content to a compatible home stereo or theater setup.
+ Front and rear-facing cameras let you take awkward photos in a pinch.

Cons:
- Proprietary charging port is, quite simply, a pain the butt.
- Current models are wi-fi only.
- Plastic silver housing feels a little cheap and is prone to scratches, even on the display. You’ll certainly want to get a case right away.
- Honeycomb OS tends to feel a little pokey at times, particularly when it comes to automatically rotating the display.
- Wouldn’t let me load Divx-encoded AVI files.
- DLNA support doesn’t allow you to mirror the display on a large TV.
- PlayStation support could definitely use some hardware controllers.
- SD card slot can’t be used to expand the tablet’s built-in memory.

Links:
Sony Tablet S – 32GB: $599.99 16GB: $499.99

If you have any questions about the Sony Tablet S you’d like answered, please feel free to leave them in the comments, and I’ll try to respond to them as best I can.



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