Looking back, I realize product reviews often struggle to capture real-world experiences.  I suppose given the limited time, it is hard to prove that a device is trustworthy, reliable and meets the high standards expected. The HTC ChaCha has received generally positive reviews.

This isn’t one of them.  I did not expect fireworks. This is a middle market device built for a specific and fairly limited audience.

The QWERTY keyboard is a dream. Within seconds of using the device I was typing quicker than I do on my own mobile phone. The screen is bright and sharp. The Gorilla Glass has a nice coated finish making it smooth and elegant. The screen is a little small (as expected) but definitely readable and nothing that would put me off buying it.

The 800MHz processor is surprisingly snappy and handles browsing better than predicted. The user interface is intuitive and the default theme is excellent. Unfortunately for HTC, that is where the praise ends.

As with most branded Android devices, the ChaCha is packed full of unnecessary System apps that you cannot remove. My personal favourite is the Mirror app, which hilariously enables the 0.3mp front-facing camera. The shared Internal storage is criminally small making it awkward to install certain apps from the Google Market. Including the bloat-ware simply exacerbated the problem. Apps2SD provides little benefit as most user installed apps keep data on the Internal storage. Synchronise Facebook, Twitter and G-Mail and the ChaCha will start displaying error messages claiming ‘Storage full’.

The problems don’t end there; the ChaCha is littered with bad design choices.

When you start the ChaCha for the first time, there isn’t much of a set-up process so you expect a fairly primed default settings. Yet, with default ‘Accounts & Sync’ settings, the ChaCha downloaded approximately 450Mb of data in one week synchronising Stocks, News & Weather and G-Mail. This is a huge amount of data. Many price plans cap Internet allowance at 500Mb. A typical user is better suited with Auto-Sync disabled as this reduces unnecessary Internet usage and preserves battery life. All of the apps can be synchronised on-demand which is why there is little need for Auto-Sync to be enabled, especially with such aggressive synchronisation. Regardless, the default synchronisation policy is far too data hungry.

The Social Network integration should be stand-out considering the marketing campaign behind the ChaCha. It’s not. Peep (HTC’s Twitter app) is very hit and miss and often refuses to synchronise for days. The Facebook button is somewhat useful, but nothing revolutionary. The ChaCha comes with two Facebook apps. The official app available on the Market and ‘Fb Chat’. What someone failed to consider is the official Facebook app already has a chat function. This introduces the inconvenience of having to set your status ‘offline’ in two different apps. This is another bad design choice.

To summarize, the ChaCha shows flashes of brilliance in a sea of disappointment.

Originally written October 2011.

Update Jan 2012:

HTC have now unlocked the bootloader which means rooting the device is possible. I am going to experiment and see what I can achieve. With a bit of luck, I can achieve a good configuration.

The new Samsung Galaxy Note has been attracting a lot of attention since he came out. Criticized by some, applauded by others for his huge 5.3″ Super AMOLED HD display (800x1280), this phone also have some impressive specs like his 1.4 GHz dual-core Exynos CPU, his 8 Mpixel Camera and the 2 Mpixel front-camera or the great 2.500 mAh battery. The truth is that no one seems to be indifferent to it. Now phonedog has made an extensive review of this phone that might help you to make your own decision, so check it out after the break.

Part 1 - Overview, browser and UI

Part 2 - Benchmark tests, pen usage and Apps

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The Asus Transformer Prime has just received the Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0) a couple of days ago and you can now watch how it looks after the update. The guys at SlashGear have made a video review, so check it out after the break.

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The Nokia Lumia 800 featuring WP7 Mango goes versus the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, the first Android phone featuring Ice Cream Sandwich! Who do you think is best? Check out the videos after the break and share your conclusions at our Forum.

Hardware, Camera and Browser tests

Browser UI, Keyboards and Conclusion

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When it comes to comprehensive reviews, most websites do go anywhere near as detailed as Tom’s Hardware does.  If you want to know everything about Nokia’s “starter” Windows Phone, look no further.

With plenty of pictures, benchmark tests and comparisons, you’ll find the info you’re looking for. Overall, the reviewer likes the phone especially because of the value owners will get for their money.  Some highlights from the review say,

 We think that this phone’s attractive price tag will help compel mainstream buyers into Windows Phone 7, despite the fact that it’s bolstered by fewer apps. The Lumia 710 is budget-friendly, but it doesn’t sacrifice build quality in any way.

Check out the detailed review here.

PhoneArena have just got their hands on the ICONIA Tab A200 from Acer and made some pretty cool videos and tests . This Android Tablet feature a 10.1″ display with Tegra 2 and 1 Gb of RAM and comes with Android 3.2 Honeycomb. Check the videos after the break.

Unboxing and Hands-On Video

UI and Benchmark Tests

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The guys at GsmArena has just released a great video demo of Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus. Check it out after the break.

You can read the full review of this tablet at the GsmArena site.

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Nokia Lumia 710 and HTC Radar are the 2 new entry-level phones featuring WP7 Mango and are already available at the market. If you are thinking on buying a new WP7, you are probably undecided. Well, the next video might you help to make up your mind.

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I like to protect my gadgets in as many ways as possible, but I don’t like adding extra bulk and I especially don’t like to loose the look of my iDevices. The iPad 2 is a great looking device, I love its shiny aluminum back, but the back is prone to scratches. I keep my iPad 2 in a pouch case, but I use it every day (my kids too) and it travels around the house a lot and the back needs protection. The best way to protect the back and keep the beautiful look of the device is a clear protective skin. There are a lot of manufacturers that sell skins for the iPad 2, but which one to choose? Here is a review of the Best Skins Ever protective skin for the iPad 2 with hope that this review will help you choose the right skin for your device.

The first thing that got my attention was the company’s attitude, I will quote Best Skins Ever president:

A few years ago before my company was around, I bought a skin for my iPod from another manufacturer. As soon as it came in the mail, I knew I’d paid too much. Sure, the packaging was nice, but all I really wanted was the skin inside. And that packaging, along with all the marketing around it, was costing me more money – and it ended up right in the trash.

I completely agree with him, customers don’t pay only for the product, they also pay for the package, but it’s what’s inside that counts – the quality of the product.

The product

The Best Skins Ever skin arrived in a hard paper envelope. Inside there was only the skin without the squeegee and installation application solution. It’s a wet application skin and you will need application solution to apply the skin, but everything you need to make it you have at home: baby soap and water, and to squeegee the remainder of water and bubbles you can use a credit card, ID card or something similar.

Installing the back skin on the iPad 2 is always a little bit of a challenge because of the curved edges, but the template that the Best Skins Ever used is the best I used. It covers the whole back (edge to edge, not like the skins from some companies that leave the edges exposed), all cutouts (camera, speaker, sleep/wake button, volume rocker, 3.5mm jack port) are cut precisely what makes the installation process very easy.

How to get it perfect

Before you start with the application process you need to turn off your device. Wash your hands and clean any fingerprints from your device. Next, in a spray bottle, mix about 1/4 teaspoon of mild liquid soap with about 10 oz. (around 300 ml) water to make the application solution. Baby shampoo or liquid dish soap work best. Stay away from soaps with additives such as creamy hand soaps. Spray your fingers with the solution and peel the skin from the liner. Keeping your finger tips wet with solution will prevent your fingers from sticking to the adhesive and leaving finger prints on the under side of the skin. Spray the adhesive side thoroughly as you peel it from the liner. Lightly shake excess water from the skin. It doesn’t need to be dripping wet, a thin film of solution works the best. Slowly lay the skin onto the device and slide it into position. The skin should slide freely on the surface of your device. If it doesn’t, try adding a little more soap to your water and re-wetting the film.Begin by pressing some of the water out from under the film with your fingers being careful not to move the skin from it’s place. Use a credit card (or something similar) to squeegee the remainder of water and bubbles out from under the film.

If the skin won’t stick on the corners, give the skin about 15-30 minutes for the solution to evaporate. Then wrap the area over and press it down with your thumb or palm of your hand for about 30 seconds. After pressing down the last area, let the skin set up for 24 hours before turning on the device. After the application the skin will maybe look cloudy but the look of the Best Skins Ever skin will improve over the next 24-48 hours, the adhesive will set up and the water and small bubbles will disappear.

Application Instructions by Best Skins Ever

[Thanks Pece for the review]

Galaxy Nexus has claimed on his launch to be the fast capture camera on the market with zero shutter delay. Now Sony claims that Xperia Ion is the fastest phone camera to take a picture from the lock state. So who is really the fastest to capture the first photo? Clear all your doubts on the video after the break.

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