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Author: Ed

  • Samsung Gear S3 Frontier and Classic Review

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    Welcome to the 2016 Samsung Gear S3 review. After 2 years wearing the LG G Watch R it was always going to be replaced by the LG G Watch Urbane LTE, unfortunately it wasn't a world wide release and so we bought the new Gear S3 instead! As you see we've forgone the usual PR image and show you the comparison between the old LG watch and the Gear S3 so you can be assured that we'll post a comparison review after this one! The Samsung Gear S3 Frontier or Classic recommended retail pricing varies around the world so it ranges from $499-699 but sells for under $700 at release in November 2016 in Australia, where we bought it. It's not cheap but competitively priced. In terms of construction and design the Gear S3 is excellent. The case and engraved details are equal to a high end watch costing the same or more. There are 3 moving parts which makes it more complex than the Apple watch which only has 2. (Cynical remark but the equivalent of Apple PR.) The wrist band and body is rather thick as per any other smartwatch or wearable but it all works together. Both have metal frames but a black plastic back which hides its thickness. The Gear S3 Frontier initially looks more expensive then the Gear S4 Classic version and more like a 'regular sports watch'  but a longer look reveals the Classic design is just as good, something timeless about the design, hence was the version we chose. The side buttons and the rotating bezel feel high quality. Both models are IP68 weather resistance so will be fine in most types of environments. In terms of feel both Gear S3 models are surprisingly light, much less so than mechanical Swiss or Japanese watches. However the design is just about right for 2016 as it's the same size and other smart watch. The size in pictures may put you off but you really need to try them out in person and not be influenced by small wristed geeks on Youtube. Yes, video puts at least 10 kgs in weight and 10 cm in height that's why we don't do video. When worn on the wrist the black rear panel hides it's thickness well and shows the depth of design, as from most angles except directly side on cannot tell. It is no thicker and then any Casio G-Watch, Moto 360, Huawei Watch and Apple Watch. Any review that is negative towards its size should be ignored totally because clearly they don't get it which is a little sad in 2016. They have never aspired to own a genuine mechanical swiss watch, G-Shocks are too outrageous or more to the point they have an iPhone so they have absolutely no choice. The Gear S3 watches are not primarily targeted towards women so there is no need to waste an entire article masquerading as 'truth' and writing rubbish on this one issue just to meet the word count requirement. Remember the oversized gold watch a few years ago that was the height of fashion? - these writers complete missed it and the point... In terms of hardware features both Gears S3 has everything from barometer, GPS, WiFi, heart rate, speaker and microphone, AMOLED screen, NFC, 22mm watch band compatible and more! The best features are GPS and Wi-Fi but if you get the LTE version you should be mobile connectivity. The next best features are the speaker which sounds great and bright screen. Overall the CPU and memory are industry average but shows how efficient the software is compared to Android Wear and Apple OS. Wireless charging and fast charging is a great features to have as well. In terms of use the Gear S3 runs Tizen OS a custom version which works very well. The rotating bezel is an amazing interface to use and the menu navigation is smooth and fast at the same time. The notifications and any txt based information has been optimised for the round face so makes easier to read. Health functionality seems to be one of the few compelling reasons to buy a smart watch and its good - everything you could want for now... The Health functions can be tricky to setup properly would be only real sore point but its all there including GPS route tracking. All there key Apps are there as standard so there's really not that many other useful Apps. That comment applies for any smart watch regardless of brand at the moment. That said you have to download the calculator and voice memo separately for some reason - arguably to encourage users to access the Samsung store. To conclude the Samsung Gear S3 Frontier and Classic watch models are the best smart watches you can buy right now (2016). They look and work great have everything you'd want for the next 12 months or more. The interface is consistently smoother than the Apple watch or any other Android wear watch, the screen looks better, the design is timeless, you feel good wearing it which is the key point. If you are in the market for a new smart watch and can afford the Gear S3 then what are you waiting for? We love it. Samsung Gear S3 Vs LG G Watch R - Watch Urbane comparison Best Apps for the Samsung Gear S3 (2016) Calculator, Voice memo, ESPN, Bloomberg, HERE We Go Maps Specifications : Samsung Gear S3 Classic and Frontier
    • Design Stainless Steel Smartwatch
    • L46 x W46 x D12.7 mm Weight 60 gms
    • Display/s AMOLED 360 x 360 1.3 inch screen
    • Camera N/A
    • Connectivity Bluetooth V4 Wi-Fi 4G LTE
    • CPU 1.0 Ghz Exynos
    • Memory 4Gig
    • Ring tones Vibration only
    • Features IP68 Weather resistant, Speaker, Microphone, Barometer, Gyroscope, Heart rate, GPS, 4G LTE
    • Power 380 mha Up to 4 days Standby
    • Package contents Wireless cradle charger and smaller wrist band
    • Price history 2016 Approx Under $600 outright.

  • HTC One X9 Review

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    Welcome to the HTC One X9 review. It has been awhile since we've looked at any phone made by HTC and that's largely due to the fatally flawed HTC One series and besides none of the lower end smartphones which we like were not up to the same level as the competition. With the release of the HTC One X9 retail pricing is around $700 AUD - which is quite expensive for what is essentially a mid range phone in 2016 we know the price will drop. In terms of construction and design the HTC X9 is very good. The metal feels cool and solid to touch and all the send fit perfectly and edges rounded. The cheapest looking part is the camera surround. In terms of design the most obvious thing is that it looks like an iPhone 6 - why HTC? The iPhone is not a pretty phone to look at. Overall it looks and feels good but is it worth the money - for us no? In terms of hardware the HTC One X9 has a number of features worth pointing out, the first is that it has stereo speakers with Dolby enhancements. It sounds good. It also includes NFC for contactless payments and third the first phone which claims 3Terabyte storage management! Apart from that the One X9 screen and image quality is good equal to the iPhone but no where near Galaxy S5 or S6 good. The specs say 2.2 Ghz processor but it's the value for money version which is perfectly Ok. The HTC One X9 should be cheaper purely because of the CPU. The camera is claimed to be better than prior HTC One models which is not difficult but stored images from other testers show that it's not good indoors with standard lighting or focusing for that matter. One X9 is equipped with a standard LCD display which at this price range is a but low grade. In terms of use the the HTC One X9 claws back some points. The interface is smooth and slick even with some live widgets on the screen. There are some HTC specific enhancements but the only one worth mentioning is the automatic customisations dependent on location - which theoretically useful if you only had one phone for both home and work apart from that nothing worth motioning. Overall the Pne X9 feels as good as any other 2.2 Ghz equipped CPU running Android. The conclusion is once again simple as with any comparison with new smartphone running Android. The HTC One X9 is a good phone but overpriced. There are other cheaper phones and those with less CPU power that work just as well as this one. Specifications
    • HTC One X9
    • Network Quad-band GSM Tri-band 3G Tri-band 4G
    • Design Touch screen
    • L154 x W76 x D8 mm Weight 170 grams
    • Display 5.5 inch 1080 x 1920 QHD LCD
    • Camera 13 MP auto-focus LED Flash 2nd forward facing video call camera 5MP
    • Video Camera 1080p 30FPS main video camera
    • Connectivity Wi-Fi Bluetooth V4 USB
    • CPU Octa Core 2.2 Ghz (Mediatek MT6795 Helio X10) Separate PowerVR G6200 Graphics CPU
    • Memory 3 Gig RAM Up to Approx 32 Gig for user MicroSD expansion
    • Features A-GPS, GLONASS BEIDO, Compass, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Ambient Light, Proximity Up to 370 hours Standby Up to 17 hours Talk Time
    • Power 3000 Li-Po mAh battery Up to 31 Days Standby Up to 15 hours Talk Time
    • Price history Approx $700 AUD September 2016 (Outright)

  • Google Nexus 5X review

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    Welcome to the Nexus 5X review. It's becoming more common that the top range phone from the last year or two or even three become the mid range models purely due to age but not so the 5X. Made by LG the 5X is the smaller version of the Nexus 6P but updated from the Nexus 5 so its interesting... We're putting this review up now because it has finally become even more interesting due to the price drop, yes the Nexus now has a general retail price under $400AUD from a number of retailers. In terms of construction the Nexus 5X is very good. It has a glass screen and a plastic back and it feels as good as any other 2 piece smart phone. Plastic has the stigma of being cheap but the quality of this one is pretty good. There aren't any panel you can open so it is a solid phone in the hand and very anonymous to look at, unless you have a fancy case of course. In terms of hardware the Nexus 5X has the all the feature of a mid range phone and more including a Hexa-core CPU which we think is pointless as no apps can use it to it's full potential and means that standard Apps like face book are no different in performance to any other phone higher of lower end. However for the price you get a good camera, with laser auto focus and 4K resolution but no expandable memory so 16G of 32G means that you can't actually use it. We have no idea or can justify purchasing a phone with 4K without expandable memory let alone in 2016! In terms of use the the Nexus 5X is pure Android so it is very basic to start with but you can easily customise it with additional interface mods of function beyond that of the iPhone for example, However it is hampered by the lack of standard memory. They say use the cloud! we say who wants to upload and download everything all time especially if you are traveling? Roaming charges will send you broke quickly. The interface is smooth and lag free so no complaints but that requirement to have internet data for everything slows the interface on occasion. The conclusion is once again simple. The Nexus 5X is a great phone with the critical flaw of not having enough memory for the basics of pictures,music and games.  There are a number of better phones selling for the same price from LG and Samsung just to name a few brands, just see the prior reviews. Specifications
    • Google Nexus 5X
    • Network Quad-band GSM Tri-band 3G Tri-band 4G
    • Design Touch screen
    • L147 x W72.6 x D7.9 mm Weight 136 grams
    • Display 5.2 inch 1080 x 1920 QHD IPS
    • Camera 12MP auto-focus LED Flash 2nd forward facing video call camera 5MP
    • Video Camera 4K 30FPS main video camera
    • Connectivity Wi-Fi Bluetooth V4 USB C
    • CPU Hexa core - 1.4Ghz and 1.8 Ghz Separate Andreno 418 Graphics CPU
    • Memory 2 Gig RAM Up to Approx 32 Gig for user
    • Features A-GPS, GLONASS BEIDO, Compass, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Ambient Light Up to 370 hours Standby Up to 17 hours Talk Time
    • Price history Approx $400 AUD September 2016 (Outright)

  • Samsung Galaxy Core Prime review

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    Welcome to the 2016 Samsung Core Prime mobile phone review. With the introduction of the Galaxy S7 series Samsung is refreshing the entire smartphone line up but have left the unchanged Samsung Galaxy Core Prime as one of the oldest models still available.  Yes, the J1 and the A series have been updated! So what is using the Galaxy Core Prime like? We decide to put up this review. When released the Galaxy Core Prime in late 2014 it was essentially a gap model, between the superseded Galaxy S4 and the top range Galaxy S5 model in the line up so its price was around the $390 mark in 2014 but in 2016 it has dropped to a recommend retail price of  $269. There is nothing wrong with the pricing at the time of posting this review. In terms of construction the Samsung Galaxy Core Prime is the same as the Galaxy S4 so its pretty good.  It also looks like a Galaxy S4. There is literally nothing complain about as it feels great for a relatively inexpensive phone in 2016. In terms of specifications (see below) the Galaxy Core Prime is a perfect example of the Snapdragon platform everything is there for wireless connectivity. The screen resolution is on the low side for a 2016 smartphone but average for the price, like wise the camera quality. There is nothing exceptional of the specifications bar the surprise inclusion of NFC for wireless payments and sync. Strangely the Galaxy Core Prime it is missing an FM radio.  We'd love to be about to write up more but there is anything else to point out. In terms of use the Samsung Galaxy Core Prime is surprising quick. The only lag you may experience is if you have data heavy live widgets but nothing to complain about either. The screen quality and size is more than acceptable and so is the brightness despite the relatively low resolution once again nothing to complain about. The only issue is that not every app can be transferred to the expansion SD card that said all your music and photos can be transferred. Overall the Samsung Galaxy Core Prime is a good phone for the price.  It does everything well and reasonably quick with the only problem with the Galaxy Core Prime is it's tiny standard memory, although expandable. Apart from that it is really it's competitors that make life difficult, the price being a key factor since for a mere $100 more you can get an Oppo R7s with much better specifications and currently our favourite budget smartphone in mid 2016. Specifications
    • Samsung Galaxy Core Prime
    • Network Quad-band GSM Dual-band 3G Dual Band 4G LTE
    • Design Touch screen
    • L131.3 x W68.4 x D8.8 mm Weight 130 grams
    • Display/s External 4.5 Inch TFT 480 x 800
    • Camera 5MP LED Flash Video Camera HD 720p @ 30fps 2MP front camera
    • Connectivity Wi-Fi Bluetooth V4
    • CPU Quad-core 1.2 Mhz with 1 Gig RAM
    • Memory Up to 8 Gig available to user MicroSD up to 64Gig
    • Ring tones MIDI, MP3, Video, vibration and others
    • Features NFC A-GPS Proximity, Accelerometer
    • Power 2000 Li-Po mAh battery Up to 12 Days Standby Up to 13 hours Talk Time
    • Price history Under $329 AUD 2016

  • Why a pre-paid mobile phone plan is a great idea in 2016

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    Which type of mobile phone plan or network plan is an important decision you have to make at some point or other. In 2016 the range of plans have become very different from a mere 2 years ago so if your phone plan has come to an end it's a great time to look at your options. You can continue to use the plan you initially signed up for but it will probably be out of date hence no longer value for money. We believe the pre-paid plan phone option is the best 'plan' to get for many people. Having a Pre-paid plan means that you have to pay in advance periodically, usually 28 days. Paying or recharging within the time period usually means that any unused credit will 'roll-over' or accumulate. Most pre-paid plans in 2016 will have this feature but some still don't for some reason. Pre-paid packages like any other plan have a set amount to call time, txt amount and data allocation. For example: if you purchased a $30 prepaid value and you don't use that amount it will roll-over or accumulate to the next period, so you'll have $60 in your prepaid balance and what ever is left on your call time, txt or data! Since your calls, txt and data are usually not included in this amount the $30 can be used for other things like music subscription of more data or even txt. If you use up your allocation you can always use your credit to purchase more call time, txt or data. Just be careful which pre-paid package you get as some may not be a complete roll over eg. only call time or data but not the most valuable roll over credits e.g. your recharge amounts! After a year or 12 recharges you may end up with $360 in credit and what whatever unused call time, txt or data accumulated over the year. The $360 can be used for other things like Apps on the Google Play store or Apple App Store, music subscriptions where available and even overseas data allowance if you're travelling to a different country. Pre-Paid Best features of Pre-Paid Plans You can buy a SIM only OR get one with a entry level mobile phone. You can purchase a mid-range phone outright and still cost less overall and get more benefits. Unused credit is rolled over every time you recharge for most plans in 2016. Unused credit can be used to pay for Apps and other subscriptions like music or movies. Plans on offer go from 28 days to 365 days before a recharge is due. Worst features of Pre-paid plans The phone handset you are getting is usually very basic to no phone at all. You will need to purchase a decent mobile phone. You need to remember to purchase re-charges every month. You loose everything if you don't recharge each month so can't be late.  

  • Alcatel Pop 5 Review

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    Welcome to the 2016 Alcatel Pop 5 review. It is not to be confused with the POP 3 (5) which is a different model but shares the same chassis. We've had passing glances at the Alcatel phones before but never in-depth due to the models being cheap and not so good. The story of this brand is interesting so do check it out on the internet and you'll understand why these phones are so cheap. We believe the Pop 5 is the first truly competitive Android entry smart phone for entry level users made by the Alcatel the brand. The Alcatel Pop 5 is priced at $119 as a prepaid package. In terms of construction the Pop 5 is very good. The seal between the front and rear panels are perfect, materials used feel more expensive than the asking price. It's the glass front panel and soft finish used by the Lumia phones and the weight that basically make it feel good. There are only touch screen buttons except for the on/off and volume switches  which cleans up the design. The Pop 5 feels great for the price better than our current favourite the Galaxy J1. In terms of hardware the Alacatel Pop 5 has a few tricks for a very cheap smart phone. The screen size is 5 inches and the resolution is 720P IPS which is a stand out and looks very good. There are only 3G and 4G bands which is interesting choice along with the 8MP rear cans 5MP front camera. The numerically low 1.1 Ghz CPU is an interesting choice but we didn't notice any real performance issues. The only missing feature seems to be a dedicated GPU for games but expected at this price level. It is also interesting to note that the Pop 5 appears to be network exclusive at this point in time to the Optus network. The only flaw is the tiny standard memory at less than 4Gig so you will need a separate memory card even before you start using it. Remembering that this is the cheapest smartphone we've ever tested with these specs, the Pop 5 doesn't look like a cheap phone. In terms of use Alcatel Pop 5 has the latest Android 6.0 operating system with minimal changes to the stock experience and as a result works smoothly and relatively quickly. We won't try and over analyse the usage experience due to price ... but officially the Pop 5 works great for such a cheap phone. It is easily better than the Galaxy J1 2015 version we tested at twice the price. Smooth and fast enough for most use, even heavy duty web pages work OK on it. TXT talking and Facebook and other social media sites work perfectly. We have no complaints due its price tag. The conclusion is easy, the Alcatel Pop 5 is an impressive entry level smart phone due to it's RRP price tag of $119 as a pre-paid package. We can't think of another phone to date that is this impressive. It is just about perfect for new smart phone purchasers to start with will be happy but it's not for gamers! Mind you long term reliability could be the only issue you need to consider but at this price we don't think it is an major issue. Definitely try the Pop 5 before making any decision. Specifications
    • Alcatel Pop 5
    • Network Dual-band 3G Quad-band 4G
    • Design Touch screen L141 x W72 x D7.9 mm
    • Weight  160 grams
    • Display 5 inch - 1280 x 720 pixels
    • Camera 8MP auto-focus LED Flash 2nd forward facing video call camera 5MP
    • Video Camera 720p 30FPS main video camera
    • Connectivity Wi-Fi, Bluetooth V4
    • CPU Quad-core 1.1 Ghz
    • Memory 1Gig RAM Up to 4 Gig for user Up to 32Gig micro-SD expansion
    • Features FM Radio with RDS Li-Po 2500 mAh battery Up to 16 Days Standby Up to 8 hours Talk Time
    • Price history Approx under $119 August 2016 (Pre-paid)

  • Microsoft Lumia 650 Review

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    Welcome to the 2016 Microsoft Lumia 650 review. The newest entry in the new four model Lumia range is the 650 and it is arguably the best looking of the range too. The main reason is the high end styling and materials that sets it apart from the any other phone in the Lumia range. The Lumia 650 is essentially the mid range model priced under $300 AUD outright and as a result probably the best value in the range. We like the Lumia phones as they usually have the latest hardware on the inside and a solid operating system and reasonably priced. They are also the most secure, since few would target a essentially unique and a relatively small number of phones. The only problem with the Lumia is that there are not very many main stream Apps in the store. In terms of construction the Lumia 650 is just as good as any other phone in price and and beyond which is great selling point. The removable panel fits perfectly and the screen glossy and hard. There are no complaints about how its built. In terms of hardware the Lumia 650 doesn't have any standout features bellying its mid-range positioning. Unfortunately the world has moved one and what was mid-range is no longer. So the Lumia 650 is mid-range in basically the Lumia range rather than the competition. In the real world the 650 goes up against Android OS phones above entry level. In this context there are a few surprises in the specification that includes the option of dual SIM, expandably memory up to 256Gig, 5 inch OLED display withe Gorilla glass 3 and an FM radio. If you take into account the sub $300 price tag the 650 packs a lot of hardware for the price, bettering most Android OS based phones in the category. In terms of use the Lumia 650 is standard Windows 10, so everything is there and easy to use. Performance is good although apps do take longer to load if you've used a faster phone. Despite the relatively low powered CPU it works very well and smoother than like specified Android phones and the iPhone 5s. The Microsoft Lumia 650 is a very good phone just missing 3rd party Apps. That said if you are into the Microsoft Office, Skype, Onedrive, Minecraft, XBOX  and so forth but can't afford the top end Lumia 950 than the 650 is for you. The best model to get is the Dual SIM version especially if you travel so you can still use you normal number and a local SIM for data and call savings. great phone for those who don't want to get distracted by Pokemon GO! Specifications
    • Microsoft Lumia 650
    • Network Quad-band GSM - All Tri-band 3G - All Tri-band 4G - All
    • Design Touch screen L142 x W70.9 x D6.9 mm
    • Weight  122 grams
    • Display 5 inch 720 x 1280
    • Camera 8MP auto-focus LED Flash 2nd forward facing video call camera 2MP
    • Video Camera 720p 30FPS main video camera
    • Connectivity Wi-Fi, Bluetooth V4
    • CPU Quad-core 1.3 Ghz Snapdragon 212 Separate Andreno 304 Graphics CPU
    • Memory 1Gig RAM Up to 16 Gig for user Up to 256Gig micro-SD expansion
    • Features FM Radio with RDS Li-Po 2000 mAh battery Up to 26 Days Standby Up to 16 hours Talk Time
    • Price history Approx under $300 July 2016 (Outright)

  • iPhone SE Review

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    Welcome to the Apple iPhone SE review. As usual we start with the same phrase, we love the iPhone and loathe it at the same time. It's a great phone platform because there are plenty of Apps to extend the phone's functionality beyond what Apple even imagined. The support is great at an Apple store and online. However on the flip side hardware specifications are not top of the range and most importantly security problems are hidden until the hackers s[read your personal data over the internet! Anyway the newsiest iPhone is their budget or entry level model now simply called the iPhone SE. The iPhone SE is priced $679 AUD for the entry level 16 Gig model so it is not  exactly bargain priced. Apple fans tend to blame parts manufacturers for short falls in performance but of course anyone with a bit of common sense knows that Apple doesn't use the latest hardware because it costs more. It's purely financial decision. Adding the latest tech and gloss over catchup functionality with very good PR. Since the majority of iPhone users are not usually tech inclined the power of the PR and Brand stands. In terms of construction and design the iPhone SE the description is easy! The iPhone SE is exactly the same as the 4 year old iPhone 5 and iPhone 5S on the outside. It is a good design that's modern and relatively sleek but it does look a little cheap in 2016. Apple calls it timeless we call it by its true name - lost design Mojo. The 1000-ish Apple designers are on holidays and the temps are the accountants which is exactly what the you get...  Regardless in the hand the build quality is excellent and the size is very good if you don't have large hands and good eye sight as the screen is a little small. The image or screen quality is very good too but again it is washed out but it does show that the odd sized 1136 X 640 screen is good enough if the pixel density is at least 326ppi. The iPhone 5S design looks OK in isolation and can only be compared with other iPhones and in that sense it's better looking than the iPhone 6 but not as nice as the iPhone 4s. In terms of hardware the iPhone SE is a mix of iPhone 5S on the outside and iPhone 6S  on the inside. Sure not all 6S hardware is on the inside but the key features are so you get 4K video (with Ok quality) but the new camera hardware exceeds the vast majority of regular 'point and shoot' cameras. A faster CPU helps smooths out the iPhone 5S sluggish performance running the latest version of iOS. No improvement on the call quality side as the microphones and speakers of the iPhone SE are really below the standard set by the Samsung Galaxy series and especially the forgotten Microsoft Lumia phones in this price range. You can easily tell the caller has an iPhone by the muffled call quality. Overall though there is nothing exceptional or truly bad apart from the tiny screen and the biggest problem and flaw with the iPhone SE and the entire range is a measly 16G memory as standard which means less than 8G available for phones, music etc.. In terms of use and features we like Apple PR with 3D touch - holding your finger on the icon to see an extra menu has been around for years only Apple has finally caught up. However developing hardware solution is not a financially sound way of doing things. The iOS interface is really good but it is quite complex these days with lots of things to turn and off but still lags behind Microsoft's Windows 10 for phones. Online storage is expensive but the inclusion of NFC is good and the faster processor does help the growing operating system bloat. Apps are now offering the ability to transfer your Apps via logins so you can move from the iPhone without paying for it again so the lock to Apple is slowly disappearing. Is the iPhone still simple to use? Yes. How can you sell a recycled design and a claimed 1000+ designers employed and have PR say that your company is innovative? The answer is No - yet Apple continues to advertise. Nonetheless the iPhone SE is a great little phone with the right specifications in a compact size. The iPhone SE biggest problem is that it is overpriced especially with so little memory to use, especially when trying to take 4K video or the vast majority of 'essential' Apps as the entry level model. In that sense the iPhone SE is a pricing rip off - it is a great time to try another brand to see if you like it.
    • Apple iPhone SE
    • Network Quad-band GSM 850/900/1800/1900 Tri-band 3G 850/900/1900/2100 4G LTE All
    • Design Touch screen
    • L123.8 x W58.6 x D7.6mm Weight 113 grams
    • Display/s External TFT 640 x 1136
    • Camera 12MP LED Flash
    • Video Camera 4K 30 fps
    • Connectivity Wi-Fi Bluetooth V4
    • CPU A9 Dual Core 1.84 Ghz Graphics: PowerVR GT7600
    • Memory From 16 - 64 Gig Less than 8 Gig for the user.
    • Ring tones Purchase or iStudio only and vibration
    • Features 4K video Battery 1624 mAh Up to 240 hours Standby Up to 14 hours Talk Time
    • Price history From $679 AUS 2012 (Outright 16Gig)

  • Telstra Signature Premium review

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    Welcome to the 2016 Telstra Signature Premium smartphone review. The Signature Premium is as it name implies is not an entry level phone or a mid range but aiming its this model at the top range models. The Signature Premium is an Android OS based, rebranded HTC One A9 with Telstra's  own user interface which looks like the minimal Nexus presentation. The Telstra Signature Premium has a recommend retail price at $648 outright and a small handset fee if you bundle it with a plan. In terms of construction the Telstra Signature Premium is very well built. The body is very slick feeling metal and not gaps or creaks to speak off. It's a good looking phone with refined minimalist design theme that makes it look anonymous in the sea of smart phones in 2016. To be completely honest it does closely resemble an iPhone 6.  The most obvious design choice is to recess the fingerprint scanner which we initially though was broken! Top of the range build quality for the price. In terms of hardware the Telstra Signature Premium has good specifications for a Telstra branded smart phone but it not the complete package. The most obvious issues being the small capacity battery and only 1080p display. The Signature Premium packs in a Octa-core CPU topping out at 1.5 Ghz and a decent GPU. It also features a Dolby Audio hardware which means it should sound good and. Back to the AMOLED display, the screen quality is very good but not top end but it makes the iPhone 6 next to it look washed out. The hardware specifications are good but definitely mid-range+. In terms of use the The Telstra Signature Premium very good too. No lag with the navigation, Apps worked pretty fast, response times feeling good. Since it is an Android phone there are so many more ways to customise and use your phone, it plays any video, image or music file format you want, it's fully integrated with the Gmail ecosystem and most of all you can manage your files on your phone not needing to temporary download from the 'cloud'. The biggest complaint is that the graphics and standard backgrounds images are pretty 'cheap' looking. To sum up, the Telstra Signature Premium works really well. It does feel and work like a top range phone but it's not. Definitely better than the iPhone 6S and a better phone than the cheaper Oppo R7S too but not as good as real top range phones like the Galaxy S7 or Nexus 6P. Nonetheless we can recommend the Signature Premium as a phone choice however the price is a concern, priced at $648 outright it is on the high side for an essentially mid-range phone. If free on any of the phone plans and it becomes the recommended choice. The Signature Premium is the best Telstra branded smartphone to date (mid-2016). Specifications
    • Telstra Signature Premium
    • Network Quad-band GSM 3G - Tri-band 4G - Quad-band
    • Design Touch screen L145.75 W70.8 x D7.3 mm Weight 143 grams
    • Display 5 inch 1080 x 1920 AMOLED
    • Camera 13MP auto-focus LED Flash 2nd forward facing video call camera 8MP Video Camera 4K 30FPS main video camera
    • Connectivity Wi-Fi, NFC, Bluetooth V4, USB
    • CPU Snapdragon Octo-core 1.5 GHz Andreno 405 Graphics CPU
    • Memory 3Gig RAM Up to 32 Gig for user MicroSD expansion
    • Features Dolby Audio, A-GPS, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Gorilla Glass, Proximity, Ambient Light, Barometer, Fingerprint
    • Battery Li-Po 2150 mAh battery Up to 18 Days Standby Up to 16 hours Talk Time
    • Price history Approx $648 AUD (outright May 2016) or Phone plan