One of the great things about technology is that most high end features end up filtering down to more affordable price points. Sometimes it happens quicker than you think.

Just over 18 or so month ago the fastest processor you could find on most Android phones were 2nd gen Qualcomm Snapdragon chips with Scorpion cores running at 1Ghz. Their screen resolutions topped out at 800x480, came with around 512MB of RAM and most of them sported 5 megapixel cameras.

Things move pretty quickly in the Android space! All that technology has filtered down and now we have the HTC One V.
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Here’s the Huawei Ascend P1 (U9200). Hua-what you say? Look at the logo. No, WordIRC, it’s not an NBC phone. Cue the NBC chime “Hu-wa-wei”.



If you’ve never heard of Huawei they’re actually a huge player on the network infrastructure side. However, on the handset side they’re mostly known for making cheap entry level phones. Given Huawei’s size and ambition it’s only natural that they're ready to move up the ladder starting with the $400 Huawei Ascend P1.

Huawei is splitting their offerings into 4 different lines. Diamond, Platinum, Gold (let’s hope they don’t sponsor the Olympics) and Youth. The P1 represents their platinum line so it’s aimed at the upper end of the market but not the very top. I’m thinking phones like the HTC One S, Motorola RAZR and Sony Xperia S.
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With the exception of the Xperia x10, Sony hasn’t really released any phones in the past 2 years that were really aimed at the high end of the market. The Arc and Xperia S were both upper-midrange phones while the rest of Sony’s portfolio (Ray, Pro, Play) where aimed at the middle of the market.

The Sony Xperia ION marks Sony’s return to the higher end of the market. Probably the best thing about the ION is it’s metal unibody. It’s a huge step up from everything else Sony has released in the past 2 years. It’s very solid plus it looks and feels great. ...

If you’re looking for an mid-range, entry level Android phone there is no shortage of choices. HTC has the aluminum bodied One V, Sony has the dual core Xperia U, Motorola has MOTOLUX and now we have the LG Optimus L7. What sets the L7 apart is its large 4.3” display and it’s larger-than-average 1700mAh battery.

When I first saw the L7 I was surprised because it doesn’t look like an entry level phone. Last year’s Optimus LTE was a very high-spec phone that didn’t look very special. The L7 has a very detailed power button plus there’s a nice metallic finish around the camera. The back has an interesting dimpled pattern while the sides has a stylish chromed look. ...

Now Windows Phone has been around for about 2 years now but in that time it hasn’t done very well. One of reasons why it hasn’t been successful is because Microsoft’s hardware specifications don’t allow for entry level phones.

Recently, Microsoft made some changes to Windows Phone code named Tango and relaxed their specifications. Now we have the Nokia 610.

The first thing that struck me about the 610 is that it’s kind of thick and heavy. In my hand it’s a pretty solid phone. ...

While Android tablets have been around for 2 years now, none has really been able to capture consumer’s interest. The Galaxy Tab 10.1 gets a lot of media coverage but it’s usually for the wrong reasons. The Asus Transformer Prime was an anticipated device but it was priced too high to generate much interest outside of early adopters. Really, while people are buying Android tablets, it often feels like the platform has no momentum. It feels like the only reason a regular person would buy an Android tablet is because it’s cheaper than an iPad.

It’s quite different from the phone side where Samsung’s Galaxy line has become a poster child for Android’s success.

What Android really needs is tablet to help it stand out. Android needs a hero device that’s cheap, and has wide appeal, to help give the Android tablet ecosystem a much needed, kick-in-the-pants.

The most interesting thing about the Nexus 7 is that the 8GB model is $199 (the 16GB model is $259 CAN) which includes a $25 credit to the Google Play store. While $199 tablets are nothing new (Blackberry Playbook, Kindle Fire, etc) what makes the Nexus 7 special is its hardware. It’s a substantial step-up. Not only does it ship with a quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor, but it also has a higher resolution 7” 1280x800 IPS display, 1GB of RAM, 4325mAh battery and either 8 or 16GB of storage. Aside from the lack of a rear facing camera, missing microSDHC slot, and maybe an IR blaster, on paper, the Nexus 7 doesn’t make any hardware compromises. ...

Just got back from BestBuy with my new Nexus 7. I got there about 5 minutes after the store opened. They said they had 20 when they opened and there were 11 left when I was done. I actually work up earlier today, ordered it online for in-store pickup. ...

Just got a Sony Xperia ION so I'll be updating this post. The Sony ION is now available from Rogers for $49.99 on a 3 year. It's got a really bright 500nit 4.6" 1280x720 LCD display, dual core 1.5Ghz processor, 1GB RAM, 16GB built-in storage which can be expanded with MicroSD cards and a 1900mAh non-removable battery.



The main body of the phone is a metal unibody which feels much more solid than Galaxy S III and One X's plastic bodies. In-person it also looks a lot nicer than the S III's sometimes vulgar looking metal finish. It also comes with 6 months of Sony Entertainment Network. ...

Here’s our review of the Sony Xperia U written by HC - NO "i".

While the high end of the market gets all the attention Sony’s been doing a pretty good job of going after the entry level to mid range. Last year’s Xperia Ray, Xperia Pro and Pro Mini where all affordable yet solid yet offerings.

Now we have the Xperia U (ST-25a). An entry level phone with a new dual core processor.
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