Archive for September 28th, 2011

New smartphone: Samsung Omnia W

Wednesday, September 28th, 2011

Samsung’s first Mango-based smartphone features a vivid Super AMOLED display as well as People Hub – which provides enriched content and social communication experience.

The Omnia W will be available in Singapore by the end of the year for S$498 (incl 7% GST), without line contract.

Samsung Omnia W, based on Windows Phone 7.5 Mango.

Samsung Omnia W, based on Windows Phone 7.5 Mango.

Based on the latest release of Microsoft’s Windows Phone, code-named Mango, the phone sports a 3.7” Super AMOLED display, a 1.4 GHz processor and 14.4 Mbps HASPA connectivity.

The design thrust of the Omnia W is to put people at the centre of everything, with emphasis placed on social networking and sharing. Internet Explorer 9 and Bing are integrated into the entire experience.

Windows Phone 7.5

Mango’s unique and intuitive user interface lays out applications in mosaic ‘Live Tiles’ which flow and move in response to users’ touch on the screen. Six specialized Microsoft applications provide an engaging content and communication experience.

Samsung Electronics Co LtdWindows Phone People Hub is integrated with built-in social networking services like Windows Live, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, for users to stay connected with their social community constantly.

Office Hub provides enhanced productivity on-the-go and includes access to Windows Live Sky Drive, which provides 25GB of free storage and allows documents and media files to be easily stored and accessed. Users can also create and edit documents through mobile versions of Microsoft Office Excel, Word and PowerPoint, as well as utilize One Note, a note-taking platform that allows easy sharing and storage of voice memos, images and text-based notes.

Stylish, slim metal finish for the Samsung Omnia W

Stylish, slim metal finish for the Samsung Omnia W

Seamless access to entertainment is enhanced by the integration of a Picture Hub, Music & Video Hub – powered by Microsoft Zune – and Game Hub, which provides the latest in social gaming experiences through Xbox live, for friends to chat with each other while gaming. Windows Phone Marketplace provides access to over 30,000 apps to meet customer needs across entertainment or productivity.

Samsung differentiation

The overall Windows Phone experience is significantly enhanced with the inclusion of Samsung-exclusive productivity apps. This includes Samsung AllShare, which provides seamless content transfer between the smartphone and other DLNA-enabled devices such as HDTV’s, monitors and digital cameras.

The Samsung Omnia W tries to put people and social networking at the centre of its experience.

The Samsung Omnia W tries to put people and social networking at the centre of its experience.

Video Call is an easy-to-use app which allows ultra-fast vivid 3G video conversations with friends and family. Additionally, Mini Diary enables users to capture their experiences in multimedia formats and create their own personalized digital journal while on the go. An upgraded Samsung eBook client is also available from Samsung Zone.

Users can stay up-to-date with the latest news and events with Now 2.0 app, which provides up-to-the minute current affairs, stock market and weather information. RSS Time allows RSS feeds for newspapers, magazines and blogs to be downloaded onto the device and read in an easily digestible format, while eye-catching articles can be instantly shared via email or Facebook.

The device features enhanced social network integration, with Twitter and LinkedIn weaved throughout the Omnia W in addition to Facebook, for photos and videos to be instantly shared across a variety of social networking sites hassle-free.

Detailed specifications of the Omnia W are tabulated below:

(more…)

Hands-on with the Wacom Cintiq 24HD

Wednesday, September 28th, 2011

Wacom’s newest flagship Cintiq 24HD tablet-cum-display was launched on 13 September 2011. The only piece available in Southeast Asia was brought in for yesterday’s launch event for the Bamboo graphics tablet.

Priced at S$4269 (incl 7% GST), it will be available in mid-October.

Wacom Cintiq 24 HD in an "hangover" position.

Wacom Cintiq 24 HD in an "hangover" position.

The Cintiq line of graphics tablet is Wacom’s highest end range for creative professionals. Used with a pen stylus, artists work directly on the surface of an LCD screen for an intuitive and direct feel. The tablet-cum-display is plugged into a computer with the necessary graphics software.

The tablet cum display flush with the table top.

The tablet cum display flush with the table top.

The Cintiq 24HD is the newest flagship product for Wacom, featuring a 24-inch HD widescreen display (1920 x 1200 pixels).

The display has a much improved colour gamut compared to its 21-inch and 12-inch siblings, promising 92% of the Adobe RGB colour space – an improvement almost 50%. Users of the Cintiq 21UX and 12 WX frequently set up a separate colour monitor to check for colour accuracy Wiith the 24HD, this is not necessary anymore because of the improved colour accuracy.

Elevated position, with space for keyboard.

Elevated position, with space for keyboard.

I did find the display not as pin-sharp as expected but my guess is that this particular display unit has been toted around more often than it’s been designed for – it’s not meant to be a portable device after all. Yet, physically, the screen was built to withstand the hard with the pen tip – the person giving the brief punched it many times with his knuckles to illustrate this point.

The touch-and-feel of drawing on the tablet was fantastic, as can be expected from a high-end product targeted at the professional market. I did not detect any lag between physical pen movement and the line on the screen below the pen-tip. It painted exactly where I wanted it to, and the 2048 pressure levels made a indelible difference when painting strokes of varying pressure.

Customisable buttons and control ring on both sides.

Customisable buttons and control ring on both sides.

The frame around the screen is deliberately designed to be thick to serve as arm rests. Customisable control rings and buttons can be found on both sides of the frame. They can be set to control brush sizes etc.

The cantilever holder behind the screen is a new design. The tablet can be put in a number of positions: vertical or horizontal, or slanted with one edge resting ON the table, JUST ABOVE a keyboard, or HANGING OVER the table’s edge – whatever position the artist is comfortable with.

For stability, the tablet and the base counterweight weighs some 40 kg. But changing between the positions was simple and fast, and did not require a lot of strength.