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“Multitouch,” the iPhone-style interface that lets users manipulate lists or objects without a mouse or keyboard, is catching on. Rival companies are scrambling to add multitouch features to laptops and other digital gadgets.
New services using voice-recognition technology aim to eliminate checking voice messages by transcribing them into text. To see how efficient they are at transcription, Sarmad Ali tested two such applications.
Walt Mossberg tests out the new smart phone from Helio. He finds the Ocean has an elegant solution to the common design problem of how to optimize smart phones both for making voice calls and for email and Web surfing.
LG’s new combo player can handle both new formats vying to replace DVDs — Blu-ray and HD-DVD. At $1,200, it’s only for videophiles with deep pockets, but Walt hopes it’s the start of a trend that will end the DVD format war.
The Samsung BlackJack smart phone has a slimmer design and longer battery life than the Treo 750. But if you can afford $499, you might want to wait for the Apple iPhone, Walt says.
Two new wireless headsets aim to correct problems seen in previous products, filtering out background noise in cellphone conversations and bringing great sound quality for iPod use. The devices work well, but each one has drawbacks.
Palm’s Treo is being challenged by new rivals that are thinner, lighter and less expensive. So it is striking back with a cheaper model of its own. Walt tests the Treo 680 and T-Mobile’s Dash and finds that neither is as good as it could be. (Video)
BlackBerry’s new Pearl is aimed squarely at consumers who need powerful email capabilities, but also want style and bells and whistles. And it’s a beautiful piece of work, Walt Mossberg says. (Video)
Nokia’s E62 smart phone is a little computer that is meant to be a serious email device as well as a phone. And it may well be the best bargain in its category, Walt Mossberg says.
Samsung’s Q1, an Ultra Mobile PC that’s smaller than the smallest mainstream laptop, goes on sale next week, but the machine is so deeply flawed in key respects that it amounts to little more than a toy for techies.
Palm’s new Treo 700w uses Microsoft’s Windows Mobile software, but despite some nice features, it’s neither as easy to use nor as powerful as the Palm-based 650.
The new Samsung i730 surfs the Web and sends and receives email at broadband speeds, but Walt says the short battery life and two-handed navigation can be aggravating.
Edited by Walt and written by Katie Boehret, this is a guide to gadgets, web services and other consumer technologies.
Ethics Statement
Here is a statement of my ethics and coverage policies. It is more than most of you want to know, but, in the age of suspicion of the media, I am laying it all out.
