T3 June 2012

GADGETS APPS TECH

R E V I E WS G E A R I N N OVAT I O N S

JUNE 2012 ISSUE 203

P L AY S C H O O L

NEOGEO X GAMING’S

RETRO REVIVAL

The Gadget Magazine

MUSIC NON STOP

INFINITY ASUS BURSTS

IPAD’S BUBBLE

D I G ITA L M USI C S PECIA L

HTC ONE X

COMETH THE SUPERPHONE

R ATE D

Apple TV Laptops DSLRs Razors ISSUE 203 T 3.COM

BUYING MAKING LISTENING AND STEALING

FIRST REVIEW

T3.COM

M UST- BU Y M USIC TECH

Johnny Marr’s pedal + 71 more

P R I N T E D I N T HE U K

DIGITAL MUSIC SPECIAL I NEOGEO X I 72 MUST-BUY MUSIC GADGETS I HTC ONE X REVIEW

June 2012 / £4.35

TRANSFORMER

Contents June 2012 / Issue 203

ON THE COVER Digital music special

58

Must-buy music tech

22

Gaming’s retro revival

29

Asus Transformer Infinity

17

T3’s seminal album, with everything you need to make, buy and listen to music in the digital age. Plus, why you should be nervous if you’ve stolen it…

Be an electric Bonham, get speakers that look like jet engines and more Return to the eight-bit age d’or with NeoGeo, Atari and Commodore

Will the latest quadcore, full-HD Eee Pad transform the tablet market?

First review: HTC One X

Quadcore power + Ice Cream Sandwich OS = Android kickassery

101

JUNE 201 2 T3 9

Contents June 2012 / Issue 203

Editor’s letter

13

RADAR

Most Wanted: Asus Transformer Infinity 17

The iPad 3 didn’t have four cores, but this tab has – with full HD and a keyboard, too Need list

20

Canon, Sony, Acer and Sky unleash the tech specimens we’re coveting this month Cutting-edge audio

Four high-tech gadget essentials for the discerning modern muso Crazy golf

Make like Bubba Watson with our green-loving, game-enhancing gizmos Spend: Loewe Connect ID

A designer goggle box complete with its own iPad app? Colour us interested…

22

24

OPINION

Insight: Billy Bragg America calling: Mark Prigg Future: James Wallman Truth: Duncan Bell

47 48 49 49

29

Campaign: Boost Our Bandwidth

30

Fun titans of yore – NeoGeo, Atari and Commodore – return with new hardware

Why the divide between super-connected city and Wi-Fi black spot is getting wider Stats

32

Stuff

34

Tech stories rendered in a numerical stylee

88

Pulse

89

Obsession: the guitar

92

Home

93

Drive

96

RATED

101

The Android Army’s beefiest recruit, with a 4.7-inch screen and quadcore processor Review: Loewe AirSpeaker

106

Group test: High-end DSLRs

108

Supertest: Mid-price laptops

111

Smarter than your average cam, with features for the seasoned photographer Portable PCs, packed with the latest computing tech, starting at just £400 Group test: Headphones for all

120

From audiophile-grade cans to in-ears for sporty types, we have the full range Review: Apple TV

122

39

The iSet-top box with added HD

FEATURES

Planet of sound

58

Games

40

Creeping horror in Kid Icarus. Family fun with Silent Hill. Hang on, that’s not right…

How to listen to and make, buy and sell music now. Plus: why new laws could land YOU in a cell with a very bad man

Films

42

MTV unplugged

72

Music

42

Rock rebooted

75

Apps

44

How cutting-edge dudes and vintage loons make money from music in the digital age

Websites & ebooks

45

Shutdown

Tom Cruise to The Iron Lady via Hugo

My Bloody Valentine release bloody record!

Expanded with apps for all formats URLs and tomes to bookmark

Wet-shave razors given the once-over Quad bike for the under-tens!

Aquaman tech, plus T3’s 2012 festy guide

Incoming

“We call it Travis Bickle Max.” You talkin’ to Rockstar Games’ reboot, punk

86

Tech dad

122

The Essential: Max Payne 3

Upgrade

Polls, updates on tech stories, your missives and the world-famous T3 Windex

Review: Samsung Series 9

PLAY

84

Improve your swing; boost your BBQ

87

A laptop to take on ultrabooks and the Air?

36

How to…

Test

Watching you, us and tech’s mainframe 51

Impulse tech purchases, from the weird to the wonderful via the WTF?!

2012’s hottest tech, games, films and events

83

Leatherman Rebar: ultimate pocket toolbox

THE BUzz

Wireless streaming and peerless design

Trend: Retro gaming

Gadget of the month

Clothing and grooming get technical

360 review: HTC One X 26

TECH LIFE

Learn to spank plank like Jack White

Das ist ein sexy, Deutsche turntable, ja? Plus radical recycling and kompact kitchens Audi A1 Quattro, Porsche 918 Spyder: nice

THE GUIDE

Smartphones Tablets Pro cameras Compact cameras Computers Gaming Televisions Set-top boxes Home cinema Blu-ray players Home audio Headphones Apps Accessories Satnavs

128 130 132 134 136 138 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148

Why’s music television gone to the dogs?

Blame Ozzy, Timberlake and YouTube

Ten tech things that get us too excited

154

ON THE COVER

NICOlE MEyER @ OUTlaws PHOTOgRaPHED by RICHaRD gRassIE MaKE-UP aND HaIR by KHaNDIz TOwIll @ sIxlOvE sTylINg by MICHEllE KElly @ NaKED aRTIsTs MaNy THaNKs TO gavIN sCHNEIDER PRODUCTIONs

JUNE 201 2 T3 1 1

FACE THE MUSIC

NO.39 WHEN TECH GOES BAD

MTV unplugged “Ladies and gentlemen… rock ’n’ roll” may have been MTV’s first words on August 1, 1981, yet things have got steadily less iconic since. But just why has music telly run downhill faster than Ozzy Osbourne’s critical faculties? T3 has some culprits…

1/ The day the music stopped

Matters became a tad confused when music channels stopped playing, y’know, music. At the turn of the millennium, videos featured for up to eight hours a day of MTV’s schedule.

By 2008 it was three hours, and by 2020 it’ll be down to about three videos, if you’re lucky.

Justin Timberlake challenged MTV to “play more damn videos!” at its own 2007 Video Music Awards but to no avail. MTV ignored him, and Timberlake was so furious, he bought MySpace for $35 million. Well, that’s the only logical explanation for that purchase that we can come up with, anyway…

2/ Reality bites

Busted (students get drunk, then arrested), 17 and Pregnant and Teen Mom (both self explanatory), The Buried Life (idiots travel around in bus doing cool stuff ), My Super Sweet 16 (spoilt bastards enjoy parties costing only slightly less than the gross domestic product of Portugal), I Just Want My Pants Back. No, not Paul Gadd’s DVD collection, but a handful of MTV’s reality shows. Execs are obsessed with real young people doing real young peoples’ things. The Real World invented this pestilence in 1992, and today we have Jersey Shore, which has done more to make Italian Americans look terrible than the Mafia and John Travolta put together.

3/ Creativity crisis

There’s actually a reason why music channels no longer play videos: they’re rubbish. Gone are the days of besuited men leaping through

wedding cakes to escape the rain while Slash rocks out a solo in the middle of the desert.

With the big-budget bubble seemingly burst, these days we have blokes dressed like they’ve been doused in glue and pushed through All Saints, poncing around in front of a white background. Hey, who are you calling “old bastards”? Get off our lawn, kids.

4/ Controversy, etc

Timberlake again. MTV produced the half-time show at the 2001 Super Bowl. It went without a hitch, so MTV was hired again for the 2004 show, only for star turn JT to go and rip open Janet Jackson’s dress – the man really is full of rage – revealing a bit of a boob. The concept of the “wardrobe malfunction” was born and America duly went mad: huge fines were handed out and people called for the immediate arrest of all musicians more edgy than DJ Sven and Miker G. Repercussions are still felt today, with Lord Coe said to be debating the wisdom of going ahead with a similar stunt involving Boris Johnson’s penis for the Olympics opening ceremony.

5/ Off the charts

Finding out on a daily basis what tops the “100 Best Tuesday Afternoon Downloads” chart (spoiler alert: it’s probably Don’t Stop Believing) on one of today’s music channels will never offer the same thrill you had as a young gun, waiting to see if the Pearl Jam Spin The Black Circle CD single you held in your hand would be number one, only to find it had ended up at number 10, beaten by

WO R D S R O B T E m P l E I L LUSTRATION mORT EN mOR lAND @ D E Bu T ART

Jimmy Nail’s Crocodile Shoes at number eight and Pato Banton’s Baby Come Back at number two, as happened in 1994. Ah, they don’t make tunes – or charts – like that anymore. Oi, we thought we told you kids to get off our lawns?

And seriously, stop calling us “granddad”.

6/ Animation undone

Daria, Beavis and Butthead, The Head, Celebrity Deathmatch and more, interspersed between endless plays of Smells Like Teen Spirit and Nothing Else Matters all helped to give prime-period MTV its grungy edge, but soon these started to give way to Ozzy Osbourne shuffling around his mansion clearing up poodle poo, Ashton Kutcher “punking” his Hollywood chums – what japes! – and endless “rides” being “pimped”. Our youth had died and been shovelled into the same bin as all of MTV’s crayons and Plasticine.

7/ Quantity beats quality

In the 80s, there was one. Today, there are 26 dedicated music channels. The likes of Vault, Flava, Channel AKA, Scuzz, Dance Nation TV, 4 Music, NME TV and Lava lie in the murky depths of your EPG and feel even less essential than, say, Movies 4 Men 2 +1 or BBC3. Some of them even still let you request videos by phone, something all normal people now use something else for…

8/ All hail the internet

Of course, the main reason why music channels are now defunct. The web, or more specifically YouTube, means we’re now able to get all the childish things we loved from early music channels – the animations, the controversies, the music, even clips of Ray Cokes – in an instant. The internet also makes things private, allowing us to watch Dirrty and I’m A Slave 4 U, to pick two random videos, without our “tastes” being judged, and made every version and spoof of every song available wherever we went.

If video killed the radio star, YouTube killed the music TV star. Oh-ah-ooaawww!

JUNE 201 2 T3 73

Concert for one

You’ve got Your cutting edge gear for plaYing digital tunes. now pluck some cans from this classic quintet

01 jET-SETTER’S COMPANION

DRIvEN by THE zEITgEIsTy lIKEs Of DRE’s beats, headphones are selling better than ever. without wanting to sound like a broken record, a decent pair of cans can turn tinny sounding tunes from your mobile device into orchestral masterpieces. Or thereabouts. Here are five that look and sound suitably spectacular.

01 jET-SETTER’S COMPANION

AudIO-TECHNICA ANC9

£280, audio-technica.com

with active noisecancelling and comfortable, memory foam ear cups, the aNC9 drown out the disturbing sounds of the daily commute, and offer peace and quiet when you crave shut-eye on the red-eye.

The sound is pleasingly clear, although the bass isn’t quite as punchy as you’d hope for at 280 quid. a 6.3mm av jack is provided, along

with a plane adaptor, a hard case and an alternative cable with an inline mic and control for using with your phone.

The required aaa battery means noise-cancelling won’t last forever, but you can still listen in passive mode after that.

T3 SAyS Good if basslight audio, with deft noise-cancelling skills

02 FAR OUT SOUNDS

03 SONIC THE WEDGE-HOG

02 FAR OUT SOUNDS

MR2 ROCk HYbRId

£150, mr2audio.com

Emblazoned with the name of pro basketballer Mitch Redmond – you know Mitch, right? – these comfy cans incorporate an earcup-mounted screen, displaying basic information like the source, and an sD card slot, for wire-free listening of MP3 and wMa files.

They’re not ideal for long journeys as they have to be charged and

1 20 T3 JUNE 201 2

only offer around five hours of playback but the audio is surprisingly good and they’re very comfy, helped by a durable, bendy headband. They can also be folded to fit into your manbag. you do feel a bit of a tit wearing them, though.

T3 SAyS Audio quality makes these odd-jobs more than a gimmick

wORDs LIBBy PLUMMER PHOTOgRaPHy BARRy MAkARIOU

Headphones R A T E D 03 SONIC THE WEDGE-HOG

SENNHEISER IE 80 £270, SennheiSer.co.uK

The IE 80 earphones are angular, compact, ear-pleasingly engineered and eye-wateringly pricey.

The design won’t be for everyone, but it does mean they anchor in your ears better, and over-ear clips reduce the risk of slipping out to near zero. a range of ear buds fits everything from “petite” to “Prince Charles”.

The audio is excellent

TEST WINNER

– you’d expect nothing less at this price – and another pro feature is that their bass response can actually be adjusted manually, using the tiny tool provided. It’s hard to recommend in-ears at this price, but the results are undeniably top drawer.

T3 SAyS Superb sound quality and reliable fit at a very high price

04 MUSO’S DELIGHT

PHILIPS FIdELIO L1

£230, PhiLiPS.co.uK

04 MUSO’S DELIGHT

Rocking a subtly retro design with vinyl-style grooves around the earcups and steel ruler-style measurements on the adjustable headband, the l1 are Philips’ first fideliobranded headphones.

The drivers are mounted at a tilt within the earcup, so they line up with the natural angle of the ear canal, and results are impressively

clear and transparent, with meaty bass. The steep price also buys you memory foam comfort on the earpads, an excellent, anti-tangle, detachable, fabric cable plus an alternative one with a 6.3mm jack for hooking up at home.

T3 SAyS Super comfort and audio quality justify the high price

05 SPORTY IN-EARS

SOuNdMAGIC EH11

£50, hiFiheadPhoneS.co.uK

aimed at masochists who like to jog around in a desperate bid to live forever, the EH11 sports a solid metal construction, with over-ear clips that are both comfy, hold the buds solidly in place and, unlike many other sporty models, malleable so that you can bend them to fit snugly around your ears. a rarity in this category. some users may find the 1.2m cable a little

short, especially if you stash your player in your pocket, but the audio quality on offer is good for the price – the most reasonable on test – even if it does lose a little clarity as you crank up the volume. well worth considering for sports.

T3 SAyS Quality, sportfriendly earphones offering decent sound

{CONTENT}

awareness! app

05 SPORTY IN-EARS

This monitors the sound around you and, when it reaches a certain level, starts passing the mic input through to your headphones. As a result, you’ll hear important sounds such as traffic, sirens, ad travel announcements – a potential life-saver. £4.99, ioS

WWW fOR MORE HEaDPHONE REvIEws gO TO P145

JUNE 201 2 T3 1 21

R A T E D Reviews

APPLE TV

£99, aPPLe.com/uK

SAMSuNG SERIES 9 £1,299, SamSunG.com/uK

Staunch your tears: the Samsung Series 9 is not an official ultrabook. It does however have a wafer-ish chassis, fantastic build quality and a weight of just 1.2kg, less than the MacBook Air.

{SPECIFICATIONS} ProceSSor/ram Core i5 dualcore 1.6GHz/4GB StoraGe 128GB SSD Screen 13.3-inch, 1,600x900, matt finish GraPhicS Integrated Intel HD 3000 oS Windows 7 Home Premium connectiVitY 2x USB, Micro HDMI, N Wi-Fi, microSD Bluetooth 3.0, 3.5mm jack Quoted BatterY LiFe 7 hours SiZe/WeiGht 312x222x14mm/1.2kg

The matt, 1600x900-pixel, 13-inch screen is one of the best of its kind, while the powerful Intel Core i5 chip makes light work of multitasking apps. The graphics are less impressive, but there’s enough juice on board to keep HD movie consumers happy, if not gamers.

Perhaps not surprisingly, this highly svelte laptop didn’t do amazingly well in our battery tests, but it’ll give you about five hours of basic use which isn’t actively terrible, but we’d hoped for more.

Rising over such mundane matters as performance and longevity, the series 9 packs in desirability and quality engineering to a degree that few manufacturers can match. It’s literally lighter than air, looks like a dream and works effectively enough. for those with a bit of spare cash, who don’t spend their lives gaming or editing CgI for Pixar, that should more than suffice.

LOVE super thin and similarly stylish. superb screen HATE Poor-ish battery life. fiddly trackpad. Relatively weak graphical performance. Not cheap by a long chalk T3 SAyS The Samsung 9 is a triumph of style over substance, some might – unfairly – say. But oh, such style…

1 22 T3 JUNE 201 2

Updated to offer 1080p HD, Apple TV remains a well-crafted square that’ll fit into the tightest of AV corners. As usual with Apple, it’s exceedingly simple with connections to HDMI, optical audio out and your choice of ethernet or N Wi-Fi.

{SPECIFICATIONS} ProceSSor Dualcore A5 StoraGe None connectiVitY N Wi-Fi, HDMI, optical audio out, 10/100 ethernet SuPPorted codecS H.264, MPEG-4, M-JPEG, HE-AAC, AAC, MP3, Apple Lossless, AIFF, WAV, Dolby Digital 5.1, JPEG, GIF, TIFF SiZe/WeiGht 98x98x23mm/272g

The colourful and inviting new interface is arguably the biggest improvement, offering even easier access to Netflix and youTube, though no lovefilm, iPlayer or, come to that, much else at all. apple airPlay means you can easily play back movies, photos and more from your iPhone or iPad or via iTunes from Mac or PC. The quality of streaming is dependent on your internet connection, but we didn’t have any problems with stutter, even with full-HD gubbins over a middling, 8Mbps london connection. you’ve gotta love the neat design and Os on the apple Tv, and the film selection is as good as anything out there. However, that selection is not cheap, and unlike some boxes, almost no content comes for free here. apple Tv has always felt more like a cool thing than an essential. Now it’s a full-HD cool thing… but it’s still by no means essential.

LOVE sparkling 1080p video. smooth streaming.airPlay music and movie streaming. iPad/iPhone control HATE No lovefilm, iPlayer or much in the way of free content beyond youTube T3 SAyS A nice enough device that’ll attract the iFaithful, but could do with catch-up services

wORDs JAMES STABLES aND DAVID PHELAN

1

Two-wheeled tech essentials

want to ride your bicycle? want to ride it where you like? we’ve got great gear, tips from a record breaker and fat-bottomed girls who’ll be ridin’ today*

THE KIT 1/ Sidi Ergo3

The cream of the road-cycling footwear crop, sidi’s carbon soles provide a stiff base for more efficient power distribution through the pedal, giving greater speeds and keeping lactic acid attacks at bay. In the Ergo3 a vented cross section can be opened to allow airflow, or closed if it gets parky. £310, SidiSPort.com

2/ Endura CoolMax England flag jersey

It’s not designed by stella McCartney, but this saint george’s flag-adorned CoolMax will wick sweat away from the body of any proud Englishman. a rear, three-compartment pocket provides storage for MP3 players and energy snacks. £39, endura.co.uK

3/ Specialized S-Works Team Prevail

Putting you on track for global glory, and protecting your noggin in the process, this Kevlar-reinforced helmet is ultra-lightweight, with a tri-fix web splitter for head support and comfort, and a Mega Mouthport that channels air to stop you becoming too hot-headed. It also has authentic Team Prevail advertising logos on it, which may lead fellow cycle commuters to assume you are a Tour de france contender as they breeze past you on a boris bike while you sweat and pant your way to work. £160, SPeciaLiZed.com/GB

4/ Ghost Race Lector Red 2012

like the golfer’s driver or the footballer’s boot, there is one bit of cycling kit that is essential to a winning performance: that’s right; the little bell on the front. No, alright, it’s the actual bicycle. Thanks to a carbon race frame and fork set the ghost

weighs just 6.4kg, meaning you need to expend less energy powering it along. with 20-speed gearing and a tapered headtube, this steed converts all your muscle into race-winning speed. £5,000, GhoSt-BiKeS.com

5/ Oakley Transitions X

7

Nice though the wraparound frame from sports eyewear maestros Oakley is, the lenses are the real stars here. Photosensitive molecules within the Transitions lenses are activated by differing levels of Uv light to provide the perfect amount of glare-protecting tint at all times. They’re ideal for the UK’s swiftly changing weather conditions, fit your prescription, and look can be made to fit decidedly stylish, we must say…

From £230, tranSitionS.com

6/ CycleOps PowerTap G3-C

Officially the world’s lightest power metre, the g3-C delivers wireless real-time performance measurements accurate to 1.5 per cent that can be viewed on the go for instant training feedback.

There’s aNT+ technology to relay data to a variety of compatible devices, from smartphones to watches, meaning you needn’t splash out on a whole new setup – handy as the pro-quality g3-C is not exactly coming free with cornflakes. £1,350, cYcLeoPS.com/en

7/ Exposure Six Pack

although the clocks have gone forward and summer’s nearly here, lengthy cycling sessions may still take you into the hours of darkness. Pumping out 2,000 lumens of light for up to ten hours on the medium power setting, the six Pack’s sextet of Cree xPg R5 lEDs will ensure you’re completely visible when night falls. The smart Port lets you power your other bike-based tech from it, too. £450, eXPoSureLiGhtS.com

*so look out for those beauties, oh yeah.

6

T3 PROMOTION

PRO TIPS 2

Laura Trott The world record holding Team GB cyclist puts her foot down…

Join a club Coaches can help you improve your cycling and a club can even help you get spotted. Find your local club at britishcycling.org.uk

3

Maintain your steed Nobody likes cleaning their bike but it needs to be done – let it drip dry, like I do, to save time.

Go long not fast Rides don’t need to be particularly fast, just nice and long. After all, with cycling you burn calories quickly.

4

Work to targets Little targets help you achieve overall goals – in my case that goal is success this summer.

Recommends… for cyclists

5

Garmin Edge 200

affordable, portable and accurate, the gPs-enabled Edge 200 tracks time, distance, speed, location and calories burned. It’s ideal for both intensive training and “competitive commuting”. £130, Garmin.com/uK

TheGuide

{THE BEST OF EVERYTHING}

Smartphones

{FOCUS}

Defend your blower against…

1

3

Keeps phones safe in up to 5m of water, with a rip cord to prevent it floating away.

a retractable, solid screen protector defends your iPhone from gritty business.

£20, aQuaPac.net

£45, caSe-mate.co.uK

2

4

designed by the hard nuts behind black box recorder tech, this case protects iPhones from 2m drops.

able to dive to 10m and survive up to a ton of weight. Kind of ugly, mind.

WATER: AQUAPAC CASE

FALLS: LIFEPROOF CASE

£60, FireBoX.com

APPLE IPHONE 4S

01

From £499, aPPLe.com/uK, teSted chriStmaS 2011

06

RY

NT

03

SPeciFicationS

07

NOkIA LuMIA 800

£400, noKia.co.uK, teSted JanuarY 2012

LoVe Really strong, thoughtful design. Very solid build.

Immaculate display. Speedy and slick hate Big screen might make it too bulky for some users t3 SaYS Stunning design, great feel, amazing screen and strong battery life. a new android overlord

LoVe Clear screen and a bright, hard-wearing case. Windows Phone 7.5, Mango, is a massive improvement over Symbian hate Media is a pain to transfer t3 SaYS our favourite Windows Phone yet and the best nokia phone for quite a long time

ProceSSor 1.5GHz quadcore Screen 4.7-inch, 1280x720 camera 8 megapixels/1080p StoraGe 32GB

ProceSSor 1.4GHz Screen 3.7-inch, 800x480 camera 8 megapixels/720p StoraGe 16GB

SPeciFicationS

SONY XPERIA S

£450, SonYmoBiLe.com/uK, teSted maY 2012

SPeciFicationS

08

SAMSuNG GALAXY NOTE

£470, SamSunG.com/uK, teSted march 2012

LoVe Dualcore fast. Superb screen. Good camera. A set of decent Sony hubs built in, plus Google Play app store hate PlayStation bits disappoint. No Ice Cream Sandwich t3 SaYS unexciting design can’t detract from what is a very powerful android handset with a superb screen

LoVe Massive 5.3-inch AMOLED display, a powerful dualcore processor and a battery that lasts past the first day hate People will snigger at your oversized phone t3 SaYS Large in terms of dimensions and potential, the note is a powerful device of somewhat niche appeal

ProceSSor 1.5GHz dualcore Screen 4.3-inch, 1280x720 camera 12 megapixels/1080p StoraGe 32GB

ProceSSor 1.4GHz dualcore Screen 5.3-inch, 1280x800 AMOLED camera 8 megapixels/1080p StoraGe 16GB, 32GB

SAMSuNG GALAXY S II

£420, SamSunG.com/uK, teSted maY 2011

SPeciFicationS

09

APPLE IPHONE 4

£455, aPPLe.com/uK, teSted JuLY 2011

LoVe Dualcore speed. AMOLED screen. Very good camera hate Slightly plasticky build, showing its age a little t3 SaYS this corking android phone combines a fast dualcore processor and a pixel-perfect amoLed screen in a stylish package, although the S iii is incoming

LoVe Upgrade to iOS 5. Fast operation. Same sexy design hate Now only available as an 8GB model, hence the loss of a star. Camera has been superseded. Not as fast as the 4S t3 SaYS You can pick up what is still a top-notch phone, with ioS 5, for a much reduced price on contract

ProceSSor 1.2GHz dualcore Screen 4.3-inch, 800x480 camera 8 megapixels/1080p StoraGe 16GB, microSD

ProceSSor 1.2GHz Screen 3.5-inch, 960x640 camera 5 megapixels/720p StoraGe 8GB

SPeciFicationS

SPeciFicationS

05

£365, motoroLa.com/GB, teSted JanuarY 2012

ProceSSor 1.2GHz dualcore Screen 4.3-inch, 960x540 camera 8 megapixels/1080p StoraGe 16GB

SPeciFicationS

04

MOTOROLA RAZR

ProceSSor 800Hz dualcore Screen 3.5-inch, 960x640 camera 8 megapixels/1080p StoraGe 16GB/32GB/64GB

£480, htc.com/uK, teSted June 2012

NEW

£tBc, caSioGZone.com

LoVe Very thin chassis with Kevlar protection. Sharp AMOLED screen. Excellent media functions hate Disappointing battery life. No Ice Cream Sandwich. Only five screens. Slimness makes it feel incredibly wide t3 SaYS a classy android and the reinvention of an icon

HTC ONE X

E

EVERYTHING: CASIO G SHOCK

LoVe iOS 5 and a dualcore processor combine for fast, slick operation. Eight-meg camera, 1080p video and Siri hate Pricing is on the premium side t3 SaYS the king of the smartphone hill: quick, slick durable, with a ui and app store that can’t be beat SPeciFicationS

02

DUST: CASE MATE TANK

SAMSuNG GALAXY NEXuS

£430, SamSunG.com/uK, teSted march 2012

10

NOkIA LuMIA 710

£280, noKia.co.uK, teSted aPriL 2012

LoVe A dualcore processor, Android’s new Ice Cream Sandwich OS, a 4.6-inch AMOLED screen all in a sexy, lightweight body hate Considerable girth as a result of the big screen t3 SaYS the first android phone to arrive with ice cream Sandwich built in is a powerful and slick mothertrucker

LoVe Same 1.4GHz processor as the Lumia 800 (#6).

Lightweight body and bright screen – not AMOLED, though hate Limited number of apps. Limited amount of storage (8GB) t3 SaYS a powerful blower for its price and a good introduction to the joys of Windows Phone 7

ProceSSor 1.2GHz dualcore Screen 4.65-inch, 1280x720 AMOLED camera 5 megapixels/1080p StoraGe 32GB

ProceSSor 1.4GHz Screen 3.7-inch, 800x480 camera 5 megapixels/720p StoraGe 8GB

SPeciFicationS

SPeciFicationS

avaIlablE ONlINE @ T3.COM THE UlTIMaTE bUyER’s gUIDE

1 28 T3 JUNE 201 2

TheGuide

{THE BEST OF EVERYTHING}

Tablets

{BUYING TIPS}

T3’s top four ebook readers 1

3

the cheaper, lighter Kindle is the best yet, although it could use a 3G option…

a top quality e-ink screen with added touch control, plus access to one million free ebooks and libraries.

AMAZON KINDLE

£89, amaZon.co.uK

£110, WhSmith.co.uK

2

AMAZON KINDLE KEYBOARD 3G

not the latest model, but with Wi-Fi and 3G you can download ebooks any time. £149, amaZon.co.uK

01

“NEW” APPLE IPAd

From £399, aPPLe.com/uK, teSted maY 2012

06

LoVe Stunning,“higher-than-hi-def” screen. The best app and AV stores. Superb interface. Impressive graphical chops hate Screen apart, no huge leap on from the iPad 2 (below) t3 SaYS the best tablet, now a little bit better – make sure you get enough storage for all that retina-ready gear…

SPeciFicationS

APPLE IPAd 2

From £329, aPPLe.com/uK, teSted chriStmaS 2011

07

£149, SonY.co.uK

SONY TAbLET S

£440, SonY.co.uK, teSted chriStmaS 2011

SONY TAbLET P

£499, SonY.co.uK, teSted FeBruarY 2012

LoVe Decent power and graphical oomph. Thin, light and now even cheaper, with iOS 5 and apps galore hate Rear camera is poor. New iPad is better t3 SaYS Slimmer and cheaper than the new iPad, this is still a mighty alluring tablet in its own right

LoVe Highly portable Android tablet with a neat clamshell design. Sharp, bright screens hate A little pricey. Not great battery life t3 SaYS the price tag seems rather excessive, but at least we can see the point of this flexibly portable tab

oS iOS 5 ProceSSor 1GHz dualcore Screen 9.7-inch, 1024x768 StoraGe 16GB, 32GB or 64GB

oS Android 3.2 ProceSSor 1GHz dualcore ScreenS 2x5.5-inch, 1024x480 StoraGe 4GB, microSD

ASuS TRANSFORMER PRIME £500, aSuS.co.uK, teSted march 2012

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08

MOTOROLA XOOM 2 MEdIA EdITION

LoVe Quadcore processor. Great screen with wide viewing angles. Handy, battery-boosting keyboard dock hate Heavier than the iPad 2 and Galaxy Tab 10.1 t3 SaYS the best tablet/laptop hybrid we’ve seen, and comfortably the best iPad alternative to date

LoVe Zippy 1.2GHz dualcore processor and a vibrant screen hate Screen is sluggish to rotate t3 SaYS one of the best of the smaller android tabs

oS Android 3.1 ProceSSor 1.3GHz quadcore Screen 10.1-inch, 1280x800 StoraGe 32GB, SD card

oS Android 3.2 ProceSSor 1.2GHz dualcore Screen 8.2-inch, 1280x800 StoraGe 16GB

£330, motoroLa.co.uK, teSted aPriL 2012

SAMSuNG GALAXY TAb 10.1

From £395, SamSunG.com/uK, teSted auGuSt 2011

SPeciFicationS

09

ASuS EEE PAd TRANSFORMER From £400, uK.aSuS.com, teSted maY 2011

LoVe Great looks. Very light. Powerful processor gives slick, fast operation and gaming. Stunning HD screen hate Lacks tablet-optimised apps. A bit “me too” t3 SaYS a top android tab, but it’s no iPad 2 beater and it lacks the raw power of the transformer Prime

LoVe Great screen. Good battery. Slightly lower prices hate Wi-Fi connectivity only. Doesn’t charge via USB. Few optimised apps, as with all Android tablets t3 SaYS a very good android tablet, made even better with the equally excellent keyboard dock (£55)

oS Android 3.1 ProceSSor 1GHz single core Screen 10.1-inch, 1280x800 StoraGe 16GB, 32GB or 64GB

oS Android 3.0 ProceSSor 1GHz dualcore Screen 10.1-inch, 1280x800 StoraGe 16GB or 32GB

SPeciFicationS

05

Kindle-quality e-ink with added touchscreenability.

oS Android 3.2 ProceSSor 1GHz dualcore Screen 9.4-inch, 1280x800 StoraGe 16GB

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04

SONY READER POCKET EDITION PRS 350

SPeciFicationS

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03

4

LoVe Unique wedge-shaped design makes it easy to type on.

9.4-inch screen is highly crisp. Some PSOne games available hate Average battery. PSOne games not suited to touchscreen t3 SaYS the tablet S isn’t another identikit iPad-alike. innovative and powerful, it’s a stand-out android offering

oS iOS 5 ProceSSor 1GHz dualcore Screen 9.7-inch, 2048x1536 StoraGe 16GB, 32GB or 64GB

02

KOBO EREADER TOUCH

VIEWSONIC VIEWPAd 7X

£300, VieWSonic.co.uK, teSted chriStmaS 2011

LoVe Compact, seven-inch slate that packs an Nvidia Tegra 2 processor, giving cracking gaming hate Three home pages can’t be customised. Not much storage t3 SaYS a surprisingly powerful and refreshingly compact tablet at a very tasty price

SPeciFicationS

oS Android 3.2 ProceSSor 1GHz dualcore Screen 7-inch, 1024x600 StoraGe 8GB

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10

ASuS EEE SLIdER

£479, uK.aSuS.com, teSted octoBer 2011

LoVe Look, a slide-out QWERTY! You also get Polaris software included for Office on the go, and a powerful Tegra 2 processor hate At almost 1kg, it’s a rather hefty proposition t3 SaYS the Slider is made for the office, but it’s not all work, work, work, with games and hd fi lms handled well films

SPeciFicationS

oS Android 3.2 ProceSSor 1GHz dualcore Screen 10.1-inch, 1280x800 StoraGe 32GB avaIlablE ONlINE @ T3.COM THE UlTIMaTE bUyER’s gUIDE

130 T3 JUNE 201 2

TVs

{CONTENT}

Films with the 3D wow-factor 1 3 CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS

Werner herzog makes 3d respectable, with exclusive access to ancient paintings in the chauvet caves. £22, hmV.com

2

CORALINE

delicate, animated 3d plays beautifully with depth. £10, PLaY.com

01

PANASONIC VIERA P50GT30 £999, PanaSonic.co.uK, teSted march 2012

06

£5, amaZon.co.uK

SONY bRAVIA kdL-22EX320 £230, SonY.co.uK, teSted octoBer 2011

Screen 22-inch, 1366x768 connectionS 2x HDMI, scart, component, composite, PC, Wi-Fi, ethernet

SPeciFicationS

PANASONIC VIERA P50VT30 £1,375, PanaSonic.co.uK, teSted JuLY 2011

07

LG 55LW-650T

£1,399, LG.com/uK, teSted march 2012

LoVe Super-smooth 3D and 2D. DLNA connectivity and an included Wi-Fi adaptor. Freeview and Freesat tuners hate Audio output could be improved t3 SaYS the second-best plasma tV you can buy comes with hd Freeview and Freesat, as well as Wi-Fi

LoVe Affordable for a 55-inch TV. Passive 3D helps keep costs down and makes sense for large families with cheap specs hate Limited contrast. Media Link can be a trial to set up t3 SaYS the LG may not be top of the pack for picture quality, but its value for money is inarguable

Screen 50-inch, 1920x1080 connectionS 4x HDMI, 2x scart, component, composite 3x USB, ethernet, Wi-Fi, SD slot

Screen 55-inch, 1920x1080 connectionS 4x HDMI, PC, scart, component, 2x USB, ethernet, Wi-Fi (dongle)

SAMSuNG uE55d8000

£1,899, SamSunG.com/uK, teSted march 2012

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08

PHILIPS 42PFL7666

£800, PhiLiPS.co.uK, teSted maY 2012

LoVe Slimline design. Well-stocked internet TV portal.

Blistering hi-def performance hate Some 3D crosstalk issues. Streaming is unpredictable t3 SaYS crowd-pleasing design and stonking hd performance make this a net-connected tV to show off

LoVe A very high-quality smart TV for the price, with Freeview HD, good networked/web features and passive 3D thrown in hate LED backlighting can be intrusive in dark scenes t3 SaYS Philips’ first “easy 3d” telly gets an easy a for picture quality and features, and a solid B+ for value

Screen 55-inch, 1920x1080 connectionS 4x HDMI, scart and component (adaptor), PC, 3x USB, ethernet, Wi-Fi

Screen 42-inch, 1920x1080 connectionS 4x HDMI, 2x USB, scart, component, Wi-Fi, ethernet

SPeciFicationS

LG 42LW550T

£629, LG.com/uK, teSted auGuSt 2011

09

LoVe Excellent 2D image quality. Low-cost, no-fuss 3D. Excellent media streaming. Easily tweakable picture hate 3D is not full HD. Setup could be more straightforward t3 SaYS a brilliant choice if you want to watch 3d footie with your mates, and a very strong telly all round

£1,341, PhiLiPS.co.uK, teSted noVemBer 2010

LoVe Superb 2D and 3D picture. Very good sonics, too.

Decent online extras and hypnotic “Ambilight” backing hate 3D costs extra. No HD tuner. Web browser a bit lacking t3 SaYS a very strong package, offering audiovisual excellence, built-in Wi-Fi and nettV online extras

SPeciFicationS

Screen 46-inch, 1920x1080 connectionS 4x HDMI, 2x scart, component, composite, USB, Wi-Fi, SD slot

£1,699, SonY.co.uK, teSted march 2012

SPeciFicationS

Screen 42-inch, 1920x1080 connectionS 4x HDMI, PC, phono, 2x USB, ethernet. Scart, component (adaptor)

PHILIPS 46PFL9705H

SONY bRAVIA kdL-46HX923 LoVe Content-rich internet portal. Detailed hi-def picture quality and slimline design hate Some 3D crosstalk t3 SaYS excellent picture and one of the most wellstocked content portals, but the price is too high

SPeciFicationS

05

THE FINAL DESTINATION

Filmed using cameron’s method, but with the bonus of copious gore.

Screen 50-inch, 1920x1080 connectionS 4x HDMI, scart and component (adaptor), 3x USB, ethernet, Wi-Fi (dongle)

SPeciFicationS

04

4

LoVe A 720p, 22-inch screen with web TV widgets and built-in Wi-Fi for a ridiculously reasonable price tag hate Freeview tuner is standard-def t3 SaYS the finest and most affordable, feature-packed small screen tV you’ll find

SPeciFicationS

03

£tBc, out aPriL

LoVe Stunning image quality across 2D and 3D. Comprehensive media streaming and web content hate Wi-Fi requires a dongle. No bundled 3D specs t3 SaYS Best-in-class picture quality and a wealth of content. add a better ePG and it’d be perfect…

SPeciFicationS

02

AVATAR

James cameron’s fusion camera system filmed in 3d. the effect is better than digitally upscaling.

Screen 46-inch, 1920x1080 connectionS 4x HDMI, PC, scart, component, 3x USB, ethernet, Wi-Fi

10

SONY kdL-40EX524

£600, SonY.co.uK, teSted maY 2012

LoVe Excellent IPTV extras and a dedicated video on-demand service. Hi-def images are tight and sharp at a good price hate Doesn’t play MKV files t3 SaYS an affordable 40-inch set that’s still packed with all of Sony’s entertainment network goodness

SPeciFicationS

Screen 40-inch, 1920x1080 connectionS 4x HDMI, scart, PC, 2x USB, composite, component, ethernet avaIlablE ONlINE @ T3.COM THE UlTIMaTE bUyER’s gUIDE

14 0 T3 JUNE 201 2