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Electricpig Opinions: iPhone 4 signal issues, Google Me, Froyo and Windows Phone 7
Video of the week: Nokia’s next-gen OS demoed!
Tech week in photos: iPhone 4, Sony Ericsson Aspen, Xperia X10 Mini Pro and more!

Electricpig Opinions: iPhone 4 signal issues, Google Me, Froyo and Windows Phone 7

Posted: 04 Jul 2010 05:00 AM PDT

Wonder what the tech scribes at Electricpig really think about the tech issues affecting gadgetdom? You’ve come to the right place. Join us as we round up the opinions of our very own writers on the biggest tech talking points this week. Will you find yourself bobbing in agreement, or looking for the nearest pitchfork store in anger? Read on to find out.

iPhone 4 and its signal woes

There’s been lots to natter about over the past seven days. You might have heard that Apple recently outed a new mobile phone. It’s called the Apple iPhone 4. It hasn’t had the most pleasant of welcomes. Poor lefties can’t even make calls with it without pulling of finger gymnastics. Apparently holding the iPhone 4 in your left hand blocks the antenna, causing calls to drop unexpectedly. But is it a load of hot air?

Electricpig editor James Holland reckons it could well be. “No matter how I grab it the signal bar just refuses to go down” he said in his recent opinion piece. “I've been using mine since Thursday without a single issue. Sure, I've had less than full signal a few times, but I've also had no dropped calls. Not a single one.”

Is he one of the lucky ones? Apple’s even placed an ad looking for an antenna specialist. Have you had any such iPhone 4 signal issues? Let us know!

Electricpig writers share their opinion on the iPhone 4

Elsewhere other Electricpig writers waded in with their own iPhone 4 thoughts. Reviews editor Ben Sillis wishes Apple was more open with its rules on app censorship. “Until this changes I probably won't be buying the iPhone 4 either.” Though he might be tempted by its Retina Display. “If anything can make me overturn my principles, it's the iPhone 4's screen. One word sums it up better than reams of text: Damn.”

Google Me taking on Facebook

Mic Wright was a little more concerned with the possibility of Google attempting to play Facebook at its own game. Google might have floundered with Google Buzz but Mic says things could be different this time around.

“I think Google will take the challenge more seriously,” he wrote. “If Google can create a service with Google Me that allows users to better control all the information about them online, they could start to chip away at Facebook's seemingly unassailable lead”

Don’t count your Froyos before they hatch

Or something like that. Ben Sillis reckons purchasing a Google phone on the promises of what it can do in future, rather than what it can do now isn’t such a good idea. “Google's rapid rollout shows just how little attention the company pays to consumer experience with Android, and just how much it places on engineering prowess above all else.”

Has Microsoft shot its own app store in the foot with Windows Phone 7

Our reporter Jennifer Allan thinks so. You see, if you’re going to have an application store, you’re gonna need somewhere convenient to put your apps, ideally allowing for instant access to them.

“The average iPhone has 37 apps on it. Have them all on your home screen, and that amounts to almost five pages of scrolling on the Windows Phone 7 home page. Aside from this, for things not on your home page, you're essentially faced with a long list to scroll through. It's not functional. It means access is slower, and less user friendly, but maybe that's less important, because those dinky blue tiles look cool.

Video of the week: Nokia’s next-gen OS demoed!

Posted: 04 Jul 2010 01:00 AM PDT

Found yourself shooing away Symbian in favour of the Apple iPhone’s iOS 4 and Android operating systems? Nokia’s out to change all that with its new MeeGo OS, which will be arriving in a flurry on Nokia devices later this year. It’s the future of Nokia devices. Step this way a glimpse of its first iteration in video action.

What you see isn’t the finished version of the new MeeGo OS. So don’t go sharpening the pickaxe just yet. The video might not show too much but it’s clear there’s plenty of potential for Nokia to really stir things up with its own answer to Android and the Apple’s own OS.

The video below shows off the pictures application with rotating animation, slideshows, the ability to effortlessly multitask and reassures Nokia fans that they’ll be able to sync the device with a hefty chunk of online services. OK, it’s all basic stuff, but put into perspective that MeeGo could be on all high-end Nokia smartphones one day and it’s massive news.

Have a look at it in action below:

Learn more about the MeeGo OS here:
MeeGo: Get a first look at Nokia’s next-gen OS

Tech week in photos: iPhone 4, Sony Ericsson Aspen, Xperia X10 Mini Pro and more!

Posted: 03 Jul 2010 05:00 AM PDT

Happy weekend Electricpiggys. As usual it’s been a busy week packed to the brim and spilling over with juicy tech stories. To help you catch up with what’s what we’ve rounded up some of the best photos to grace Electricpig this week. From hands-ons, to unboxings to heartfelt reviews, it’s all here.

If a picture paints a thousand words we’ve got a library full of the week’s technology in close hands and eyes on detail right here. We’ve cosied up with the iPhone 4, filled our ears and eyes with media with the Archos 3cam Vision, played with the Sony Ericsson Aspen, Nokia C3, lots of Android devices and more. Take a look at the gallery above for an at a glance recap of the last seven days.

See more photos!

Klipsch x10i reviewed!

Archos 3cam Vision pawed!

iPhone 4 reviewed!

Sony Ericsson Aspen

Nokia C3 reviewed!

LG GT540 budget Android phone unbowed!

Smart fourtwo electric car test driven!

Electricpig meets James Dyson

Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro unboxed

Vodafone 845 reviewed!