A Guide to Cellphone Technobabble
The cellphone industry generates more and more obscure jargon that makes it harder to decide what to buy. Walt delivers a basic glossary of wireless jargon, for mere mortals who speak only English.
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The cellphone industry generates more and more obscure jargon that makes it harder to decide what to buy. Walt delivers a basic glossary of wireless jargon, for mere mortals who speak only English.
Two of the latest Microsoft-based, would-be Treo killers boast larger screens and roomier slide-out keyboards, but neither of the devices offers the form and functionality of the Treo 650.
The Gremlin represents a fresh approach to denting the iPod hegemony. The portable music player, for $299, has built-in Wi-Fi, so it can download songs without a personal computer. Still, the device has a few rough edges.
T-Mobile’s Sidekick 3 might be worth buying in social circles where it’s considered cool, but its poor phone, low-resolution screen and covered keyboard design left our reviewers unimpressed.
Motorola’s ROKR E8 is a head-turning phone with many built-in advances that give it a smarter interface than basic cellphones. Its standout feature is its keyboard, which dynamically changes to accommodate whatever you’re doing.
It’s exciting to think about iPhone competitors giving better software a real try. But HTC’s Touch Diamond doesn’t hide the outdated Windows Mobile well enough or often enough for a user to want to buy a whole new device.
Smartphones are masters of multitasking. They email, browse the Web, instant message, take pictures, run applications or play videos and music. So it’s easy to forget how uncomfortable they are to use as phones.
Today, people interested in seeing the first Google-branded consumer-hardware product will get to satisfy their curiosity as the company, joining with T-Mobile, unveils its $179 G1 handheld computer. This touch-screen device will compete with Apple’s iPhone, and it includes a key feature missing in the iPhone: a physical keyboard.
In two weeks, the latest version of the BlackBerry, the Curve 8900, arrives. This device doesn’t have a sleek touch screen or completely overhauled operating system, nor is it meant to compete with the likes of Apple’s iPhone. But it has a physical keyboard and still manages to look stylish — and that’s no small feat.
My grandmother, a college graduate and former reference librarian, recently walked out of an electronics store in frustration. She compared the techie conversations that were going on around her with people speaking in a different language. And she isn’t alone.
Katie looks at solutions from T-Mobile, AT&T, Sprint and Verizon for backing up and syncing your cellphone’s contacts.
The new Sidekick LX has a camera, 3G-connection and social-networking apps, but the absence of a touch screen is glaring for this expensive device.
RealPlayer SP grabs videos from the Web and converts and transfers them to over a dozen portable devices. While other software programs perform two or just one of these tasks, RealPlayer’s trio of talent make it like a digital Swiss army knife.
A review of T-Mobile myTouch 3G with Google, the second “Google phone” to be released.
A new BlackBerry costs less than any other BlackBerry did at launch—that is, if you buy it at the right place.
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Walt's main column, written since 1991, in which he reviews hardware, software and web sites, and comments on technology issues.
Walt's weekly column in which he answers readers' questions.
Edited by Walt and written by Katie Boehret, this is a guide to gadgets, web services and other consumer technologies.
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