Nevertheless, the rear has a textured coating, so it’s quite grippy to hold and the phone feels solid overall. This battery cover is removable and once you prise it off you’ll find the standard sized SIM and microSD card slots hiding beneath, along with the removable battery. 

Huawei has placed the microUSB port on the right hand side and the headphone jack is positioned at the top of the phone. On the left you’ll find the power/lock switch as well as the volume rocker buttons. Beneath the screen there are touch buttons for the usual Android home, back and menu keys, but unlike some Android handsets it lacks a dedicated search button. Still we can’t say it’s something that we particularly miss.

The phone uses a 4.3inch Super AMOLED screen that has a resolution of 540×960 pixels. This doesn’t compare all that favourably with the HTC One XL or Samsung S3 LTE, as both have larger 4.8inch screens with higher resolutions. Nevertheless, not everyone likes those larger sized handsets and certainly the P1 LTE is a bit more pocket friendly and feels less like you’re performing hand stretching exercises when you’re using it.

The AMOLED technology helps the screen to produce very deep black levels, but as with most AMOLED screens colours can look a little bit over saturated compared to the TFT displays used on the likes of the iPhone 5. Also, the screen’s use of pentile matrix means that it does look as sharp as its pixel count would suggest, something that’s quite noticeable when reading text on websites.

Read more Cellphone reviews here.

Fast forward twelve months or so and the V2 picks up where the V1 left off and although it comes with a similar feature set the body has been completely redesigned. Has Nikon seen fit to address the most common complaints with the V1 and does the V2 improve on the impressive, yet ultimately flawed V1? Let’s take a closer look and find out.

While the V2’s sensor size remains the same, resolution has been boosted to 14.2MP – a fairly sizeable increase over the 10.1MP offered by the V1. In keeping with its predecessor the V2 is able to record both lossless Raw and JPEG still images, and can also be used to capture 1080p Full HD video at 60fps. The V2 is only able to record still images in the camera’s native 3:2 aspect, although it is possible to reduce effective resolution, which could be handy if you’re shooting non-critical snapshots destined purely for the web. Sensitivity ranges between ISO 160 and 6400 – in contrast to the standard ISO 100-3200 range offered by the V1 (though it should be noted that the V1 also offers an extended ‘Hi1’ setting that equates to ISO 6400).

The V2 features the full range of Program, Aperture-priority, Shutter-priority and Manual shooting controls allowing more advanced users to take as much control over the camera as they want to. Better still, these exposure modes can now be accessed directly from the main mode dial located on the top-plate rather than having to trawl through the in-camera menu as was the case with the V1.

For less advanced users the V2 also offers a range of fully automatic exposure modes, including an Advanced Auto mode. Taking advantage of the V2’s speedy shooting abilities there are also a number of ‘Best Moment Capture’ options, including a ‘Smart Photo Selector’ feature that takes up to 20 high-resolution images and then recommends what the camera deems to be five of the best for you to keep.

One criticism we had of the V1 was that it only offered an automatic video capture mode – thankfully the V2 now features full PASM control when shooting video. The advanced video modes found in the V1 remain, with options to shoot high-speed video (that plays back in slow motion) at either 400fps or 1200fps, the trade-off being that these play back at a reduced resolution of 640 x 240 and 320 x 120 pixels respectively.

Another area where the V2 improves on its predecessor is with the addition of a built-in, pop-up flash. The lack of one in the V1 was something that attracted some criticism – especially given how the Nikon SB-N5 flash that’s specifically designed to slot in to the V1’s proprietary ‘accessory port’ hot shoe cost in excess of £100. The V2 comes with the same hot shoe design, so owners can choose to attach the SB-N5 should they require a bit more flash power, however for less intensive requirements the V2’s built-in flash offers a good range of modes.

Elsewhere, the V2’s LCD display and viewfinder both retain the same specifications as the V1, with the 3in TFT LCD display on the back offering a useful 921k-dots for pin-sharp viewing. Above the display sits an impressive 0.47in, 1,440k-dot TFT LCD viewfinder, complete with brightness adjustment and dioptre control.

View more Digital Cameras review here.

No sooner has LG finally managed to get its debut OLED TV available to buy than it’s presenting us with two more models at this year’s CES. One curved model, the 55EA9800, we’ve already mentioned in passing in our hands on with Samsung’s debut curved OLED model. The other – more straightforward in that it’s flat! -  is the LG 55EA8800 under scrutiny here.

The 55EA8800 hits you right between the eyes as soon as you arrive inside LG’s main stand (once you’ve battled past the huge but actually rather dated-feeling 3D demo area), thanks to its startling new design.

For starters, its 55in screen looks for all the world like it’s just hanging there in space, on account of one of the most ridiculously small bezels we’ve ever seen on a TV. The bezel looks barely half a centimeter across, while the set’s rear doesn’t look much wider.

Then there’s the new pedestal mount the screen sits on. Dubbed the ‘Flamingo’ stand by the people at LG whose job it is to come up with such things, this striking device zig-zags to and fro very elegantly, while also retaining a strikingly minimalist presence. Its smallness also reminds us in no uncertain terms of just how light OLED screens tend to be compared with traditional flat TVs.

Delving deeper into the 55EA8800 with various qualified folk on LG’s stand, though, uncovers a rather unpleasant surprise: namely that the 55EA8800 doesn’t differ in any significant technical way from the already-available 55LM960V. Or at least, its OLED picture system hasn’t been changed in any significant way. It thus arguably seems a bit cheeky for LG to be calling the 55EA8800 a second-generation OLED product.

That said, even delivering ‘only’ the same picture quality as its original OLED is no bad thing given the extraordinary amounts of contrast, colour, sharpness and motion-clarity the original tellie displayed (albeit only in showroom conditions – we haven’t yet been able to review one, of course).

As noted when we previewed the 55LM960V at last year’s CES, it remains the case that passive 3D images look slightly ‘old school’ when placed in the context of an OLED panel, but in every other way the 55EA8800‘s pictures look set to be the dog’s danglies.

Also, while the 55EA8800 might not differ much in picture quality terms from the 55LM960V, it does differ considerably when it comes to other key features. In particular, when it launches in the final quarter of the year, it will add to the OLED experience LG’s latest and clearly greatest Smart operating system.

This includes a gorgeously designed new interface, greatly enhanced support (including NFC) for communicating with second devices like phones and tablets, a newly designed magic remote system complete with extra, even more intuitive functionality, and a much more logical focus on helping users find content that even extends to what appears at this stage to be a surprisingly accomplished voice recognition system.

The other hope has to be, of course, that by the time the 55EA8800 comes out, LG might have got better at making OLED TVs more efficiently, resulting in a big drop in price. Though pessimists that we still tend to be where OLED is concerned, we’re not exactly expecting the 55EA8800 to be cheap enough to pop on our Santa list come next Christmas.

View more TV reviews here.

There is one glaring issue, though, which is the slot cut into the screen where the earpiece speaker sits. It’s absolutely enormous with straight-cut sides (rather than sloping) so picks up dust and other detritus really easily. It even has multiple smaller holes deeper within it to really make sure that lint can’t escape. Although this shouldn’t affect the function of the phone, when full of muck it does look a bit crummy.
As for build quality, although largely plastic – aside from the glass screen – this phone still feels well made, and in fact puts the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S3 to shame for managing to make plastic feel premium. Little details like micro-drilled holes for the speaker really help create the sense that this phone is carefully crafted rather than thrown together on the cheap.

The form factor is also very nice. With a 4.3in screen this phone isn’t overly large, and thanks to rounded corners and a gently curved back, it fits nice and snugly in the hand. Also, when using it one handed, most of the screen and the buttons fall within reach of your thumb, making it comfortable to use. The only slipup here being that HTC has put the power button on the top edge where it requires a bit of a hand-shuffle to reach.

Potentially of concern also is that HTC hasn’t followed Google’s latest guidelines for Android which stipulate that the main navigation buttons (Back, Home, Multi-tasking) should be on-screen as part of the interface (like on the Google Nexus 4) rather than separate buttons. Instead HTC has, like on the HTC One X, added three touch sensitive buttons below the screen. These are easy to reach and activate but we certainly don’t feel they’re any better than the standard Google method.

Overall, though, while the slightly quirky nature of the HTC One SV may not be to everyone’s taste, for a relatively low-cost phone, it’s off to a good start.

Elsewhere this phone has on its bottom edge a microUSB socket for charging and data transfer as well as the main microphone. Then on the right is the volume rocker while up top is the power button, headphone jack and second microphone which is for noise cancelling purposes.

You’ll also notice Beats Audio branding on the back of this phone. As ever with most of HTC’s Beats Audio handsets, this doesn’t mean anything other than there’s a Beats Audio EQ setting that you can enable, which pumps up the bass, treble and overall volume for a more in your face sound.  It can add a bit of life to some more sedately mixed tracks but generally we preferred having it turned off.

Read more Cellphone reviews here.

We live in a world of tech convergence. But the tech-tonic plates that tablets, PCs and phones live on are colliding. It’s sometimes hard to know where each type fits into our lives. The Asus Transformer AiO P1801 could prove to be a solution. A 18.4-inch tablet that becomes a full Windows 8 computer when docked into a desktop base, it’s not your average all in one computer. It was originally unveiled in mid-2012, but got its second outing at CES 2013 this month.

On its own, the 18.4-inch display is a Tegra 3-powered Android tablet. It runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, has 32GB of internal storage and a 1080p resolution display. The Asus Transformer AiO P1801 is not a tablet you can simply slip into a handbag though. The thing is gigantic.

From Windows 8 to Android with the press of a button…

It’s also quite heavy. At around 2.5kg for the tab alone, this is a homebound tablet. However, for web browsing while on the sofa, it should prove a pro. Like any good tablet, it uses a responsive capacitive touchscreen, capable of 10-point multi-touch. Its 1080p resolution may not seem all that pixel-packed when stretched across 18.4-inches (it has far fewer pixels than an iPad 4), but in person it nevertheless looks pretty impressive thanks to its IPS display.

The tablet has its own kick-stand

There are a few connections on the tablet itself too. There’s a microSD memory card, headphone jack, Kensington lock and miniUSB port. However, most of the connections are on the desktop base.

As a computer that runs both Windows 8 and Android, you might assume the Asus Transformer AiO P1801 will automatically switch between the two operating systems when plugged into the dock. However, a button on the side of the desktop dock does this, letting you use Android while docked too if you wish.

This seems a recipe for bug-heaven, as neither Android nor Windows 8 will like having its core spec suddenly shifted from Tegra 3 to an Intel chip (and Android won’t simply work with x86 chips anyway), but in our hands-on we saw no catastrophic crashes when removing from the dock or switching operating systems. Asus has clearly put some work into making everything run smoothly.

The Transformer AiO P1801 on its own…

The dock part features some much higher-end internals than the tablet as well as a bunch of extra connectors – including four USB 3.0 ports and a full-size memory card slot.  Multiple configs of the Asus Transformer AiO P1801 are planned, based around the third-generation Intel Core i3, Core i5 and Core i7 processors. With 8GB of RAM, a dedicated graphics chip (as-yet unnamed), 1/2TB SATA hard drive and DVD multi-writer, there’s no mistaking it for anything other than a fully-featured PC.  

We tried out the setup with a wireless Bluetooth keyboard and mouse combo, using a dongle plugged-into the dock part. Used like this, using the Asus Transformer AiO P1801 feels just like using any Windows 8 PC – one with a particularly good screen too (one with a highly reflective surface, mind.)

For all its flexibility, and relative space economy, the Asus Transformer AiO P1801 doesn’t entirely dispel a sense of clumsiness. The click-clunk physical mechanism that joins tablet to dock feels secure, but leaves the device looking a lot less slick than many AiO PCs. And there’s a significant bedding-in process before using a 18.4-inch tablet feels anything other than bizarre.

However, we doubt Asus thinks the Asus Transformer AiO P1801 is going to be anywhere near as popular accessible as its smaller Transformer tablet hybrids, such as the excellent Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime. Like the Asus Padfone, it’s a gadget that pushes at the boundaries of tech convention, and in doing so repels and attracts in more-or-less equal measure. It may not be heading for grand success, but we’re glad Asus has the stones to make bring such an idea to fruition.

The Asus Transformer AiO P1801 will go on sale later in Q1 in the US, from $1,299. We’ll be back with UK release details and prices as they appear.

View more Desktop PC reviews here.

Having said all that, it’s impossible to ignore the fact that even this relatively sleek plasma screen looks rather dated compared with the latest LCD models in town. It’s sad to say, but this apparent inability to shrink the frame of plasma TVs is hardly going to be helping the technology’s losing battle against its LCD rival.
Connectivity is mostly strong. Multimedia use is particularly well catered for, via three USBs, a LAN port and built-in Wi-Fi. There is one disappointment, though, in that as with all of Samsung’s high-end TVs this year, for some reason you only get three HDMIs when the vast majority of other high-end – and mid-range, actually – TVs carry four.

As you would expect of a relatively high-rent Samsung TV, the PS64E8000 carries active 3D playback with two pairs of active shutter glasses included, as well as Samsung’s Smart TV platform. This elegantly presented system cunningly presents all sorts of different source types (from USB devices and networked DLNA PCs through to broadcasts and online video apps) on a more or less equal footing.
You also get Samsung’s intriguing but currently rather lightweight Fitness, Family and Kids zones, featuring apps designed respectively to aid health, build family photo/message networks, and entertain children.

The latest Smart interfaces we’ve just seen at the CES have made it clear that for all its prettiness and its content equalisation approach, Samsung’s current Smart TV system still doesn’t make it as easy to find content as it probably should. We still maintain, too, that Samsung needs to introduce much more quality control to the apps it populates its Smart TV platform with, and we still don’t feel comfortable using either the gesture or voice controls supported by the PS64E8000.

Despite all the niggles, though, Samsung’s Smart TV platform still impresses overall thanks to the impressive amount of video streaming services it carries – these being by far the most useful things on any Smart TV platform.

View more TV reviews here.

Apart from offering touch, the Toshiba Satellite P845T is a traditional laptop in pretty much every way, though it mixes in a few premium… erm… touches with its generally budget feature set. It offers a patterned aluminium lid, a 14-inch TN touch screen with that classic 1,366 x 768 resolution, a backlit keyboard, Harman/kardon speakers, and full connectivity along with an optical drive.

On the specs side of things you get a choice of Core i3 or i5 processors, 4GB or 6GB of RAM, and a 500GB or 640GB regular old hard drive.  All this will set you back around £630, which is affordable compared to most of the convertibles out there. Of course, those tend to offer more flexibility and better-quality IPS screens.

Oddly enough, despite sporting an etched metal lid and keyboard surround along with attractively textured plastics on its lower sides and base, the Satellite P845T doesn’t make a distinctly premium impression. Maybe it’s because, even on relatively affordable machines, we have become too used to the (usually) ultra-slim lines of Ultrabooks such as the budget-oriented Acer S3. Maybe it’s because that aluminium looks like plastic. Still, as regular laptops go this Toshiba is far from unattractive.

On the inside it sports a glossy black bezel, which transitions seamlessly into the display thanks to the single sheet of glass that covers both. Unfortunately, the webcam and dual array mics are seated in a glossy plastic strip of their own, but the overall effect is still easy on the eyes.

The Toshiba Satellite P845T’s keyboard surround and palm area is finished in the same textured metal as the lid, which feels great – if a bit chilly after you’ve lugged the machine around outside on a winter’s day. The glossy black keyboard matches the screen’s bezel nicely, though as expected fingerprints make an unsightly addition after typing a while.

Only the touchpad sticks out like a sore thumb, being a matt grey colour that doesn’t really match any other part of the Satellite P845T and not helped by how it’s made more prominent with a chrome surrounding strip. Quite why Toshiba didn’t go for black here too is beyond us.

Build quality wasn’t anything to write home about either. The plastics used aren’t particularly thick, and even in the metal panels there’s a little more give than we like to see. The keyboard displayed some flex. Most worrying of all, however, was that flexing the lid even slightly made a corner of the glass panel come free. While this was easy to push back in and stayed in place unless we repeated the procedure, on a retail unit it’s hardly ideal.

Thanks to its ‘fat’ chassis, the Satellite P845T doesn’t skimp on the connections. On the right you’ll find a Gigabit Ethernet port, twin SUB 3.0 ports, and a neatly integrated tray-loading 8x DVD writer.

An SDXC card reader resides at the front, while the left houses 3.5mm microphone and headphone jacks, a third USB 3.0 port, and video outputs for HDMI and VGA. Wireless connections are catered for by Wi-Fi N and Bluetooth 4.0.

View more Laptop reviews here.

Next, the TV doesn’t support playback of multimedia files from networked DLNA PCs; the LAN port carried by the TV is there purely to support the set’s built-in Freeview HD tuner.

However, the Freeview HD tuner is itself arguably something you might not have expected to find for so small a price. And now we’re in a more positive frame of mind, let’s add to the ‘unexpected goodies’ list playback of multimedia content from USB devices, a Full HD native pixel count, a strikingly high claimed contrast ratio of 3,000,000:1, a surprisingly slim design – in both bezel width and rear depth terms – and 600Hz sub-field driving for enhanced motion clarity and fluidity.

The 50PA650T’s connections are fair too within the limitation that, as already noted, there’s no online or DLNA network support. There are three HDMIs, the inevitable component video port, a D-Sub PC port, an RS-232 control port, and a single USB slot.

Also impressive is how good the 50PA650T’s presets are. The Cinema one, in particular, is a great ‘out of the box’ option for people not willing to explore the set’s calibration features.
Some of the plasmas from Samsung and Panasonic this year have reminded us of just what an AV force plasma continues to be, at least in performance terms. And in its own way, the 50PA650T follows the trend.

To be clear, we’re not implying that the 50PA650T is as good as Samsung and Panasonic’s star models. It isn’t. What it certainly is, though, is exceptionally – almost stupidly – good for a 50in TV that can be yours for under £450.

For instance, while the 50PA650T’s black levels don’t get close to those of the best Samsung and Panasonic TVs, looking much greyer, they’re still deeper than those of most if not all similarly affordable LCD TVs. Furthermore, dark scenes also look evenly lit from corner to corner, with no patchy light clouding of the sort seen with many edge LED TVs.

View more TV reviews here.

While Panasonic’s new flagship consumer camcorder the Panasonic HC-X920 looks like a solid upgrade to last year’s 10/10 model, it’s the Panasonic HC-V720 that will probably be the more realistic purchase for those not looking to become the next kathryn bigelow.

Adding Wi-Fi, NFC, an inbuilt level gauge, 5.1 surround sound recording and external an microphone input the V720 packs in plenty of upgrades over its predecessor the HC-V700, which should mean it’s a very desirable camera assuming Panasonic keeps the price right.

Panasonic HC-V720 – Design
Like with the X920, the V720 has little that immediately leaps out about its design. Its exterior is largely plastic but despite this, and its surprisingly low weight, it feels sturdy and easy to handle. It does sport a few cosmetic differences compared to its predecessor – which we think make it look a bit smarter – but essentially it’s a typical camcorder shape and size, with a good control layout.

At 277g and with dimensions of 60.1 x 69.3 x 124.4mm it’s a light and compact camera that although not quite pocketable will easily go relatively unnoticed in a day bag or when slung over a shoulder. It’s actually 7g heavier and a bit shorter and fatter than the V700 but essentially offers the same kind of ergonomics. Meanwhile, for comparison, the X920 is 417g and 67 x 72 x 150mm.

Panasonic HC-V720 – Features
So the V720 isn’t exactly a revolution in video camera design, but it does pack in a host of features that coupled with what should be excellent image quality, should make this a top-pick for its price.

Starting with the most headline grabbing features, the V720 has both inbuilt Wi-Fi and NFC. The latter is used for quickly setting up the former with the user able to tap an NFC enabled phone or tablet against the camcorder’s NFC tag to quickly share connection settings. Once paired mobile devices can then be used to view what the camera is seeing as well as control functions such as zoom and record.

We gave this new feature a go and sure enough it works quickly and easily, with remote control being surprisingly lag-free.

Perhaps the two biggest boons for those torn between a feature-cut mid-range camcorder (like the previous V700) and an enthusiast-grade model (like the previous X900), the V720 includes both built in 5.1 surround sound and an external microphone input. There isn’t a headphone socket too, for real time audio monitoring, but visual mic level feedback is given onscreen. The mic input in particular greatly increases the versatility of this camera, making it easy to use lapel or handheld mics for interviews, or high-grade mics for recording gigs.

another enthuiast feature is the hot shot mount which can be used for lights, external mics and such like.

Also newly added is an electronic level guage which when filming shows a line onscreen to indicate whether you’re holding the camera level.


The Panasonic V720 has a pretty decent zoom range.

All these features are added to what should be a solid image-capturing set of components. Inside this camcorder is a single 1/2.3in CMOS sensor, which is larger than that of your average camcorder and now uses back-side illumination technology for a 20% boost in light sensitivity. It houses 17.52megapixels which means it can shoot up to 20megapixel stills (by using interpolation) and uses a huge amount of pixel oversampling to ensure high-quality footage – after all, Full HD recording only requires 2 megapixels.

Alternatively, all those extra pixels can be used to zoom into the sensor without loosing overall resolution. By using this so called ‘intelligent zoom’ the camera’s 21x optical zoom range can be extended to 50x without loss of resolution. With a maximum aperture range of f/1.8-3.5 this camera also has a reasonably fast lens, which also incorporates Panasonic’s excellent Hybrid OIS optical stabilisation technology for wobble free shooting.

Initial thoughts
Ultimately the proof of the pudding will be in how the V720 actually performs but given the excellent foundation it’s building upon, namely the Panasonic V700, we’ve high hopes for its core picture quality. Plus, the extra features on offer here mean even owners of the V700 may have a few excuses to upgrade. All that remains to be seen is just how much this model will cost – if it’s a similar price to the V700, Panasonic’s surely onto a winner.

View more Camcorders review here.