SAMSUNG gear 360 REVIEw

                    First look

Lenovo Moto Z and Phab2 Pro hands-on 

  

At its annual Tech World event, Lenovo revealed the next step in its mobile strategy. The new Lenovo Moto Z flagship shows Lenovo's own take on modular smartphones, something the search giant has been trying to get off the ground for a few years. Then there's the Project Tango pioneering smartphone Phab2 Pro, which is Google brains running on Lenovo brawn. 

The Moto Z holds the most interest - not only for the MotoMods modules but also for continuing the legacy of the well-liked Moto X in spirit if not in name.

MotoModding

By the sound of it, Lenovo thinks modularity is the more practical way to customize a phone. The Moto X became known for the level of customization it gave users with Motomaker, but the need for fast shipping kept this option grounded in a limited number of markets and the phone never flew as high as its competition.

What the Moto Z offers is the option to purchase extra modules, which just snap on the back of the handset held by two strong magnets. These modules are called MotoMods.

The simplest modules, dubbed StyleMods, let you add leather, wood or other premium materials to the back - they don't add any new functionality. These are made in cooperation with popular case maker Incipio.

Then there are the more advanced MotoMods, which do more than just look good - they add extra functionality a la LG G5. You get just one module, but the advantage over LG's solution is that modules are external and you don't remove parts of the phone. You don't even have to reboot it when installing a new module.

The Moto Z measures just 5.2mm in thickness, so even after adding a few millimeters with a module, it remains reasonably thin. That said, probably the first module you might want to snap on there is a battery pack, as the Moto Z itself only has a 2600mAh battery.

Moto Z

But even without any modules, the phone is quite capable on its own. We're looking at a 13MP/2160p camera, a Snapdragon 820 with 4GB of RAM and a 5.5" QHD AMOLED screen.

Lenovo Phab2 Pro

As for the Lenovo Phab2 Pro, it's a 6.4" powerhouse with a metal unibody and an impressive array of cameras at the back helping Tango do its magic.

Screen: 6.4" IPS LCD, 1,440 x 2,560px resolution (459ppi)

Chipset: Snapdragon 652, octa-core CPU (4x Cortex-A72 at 1.8GHz + 4x Cortex-A53 at 1.4GHz), 4GB of RAM, Adreno 510 GPU

Battery: 4,050mAh

Camera: 16MP main sensor (2160p @ 30fps video) and additional depth-sensing and wide-angle cameras

Misc: Stereo speakers

                                   Samsung Gear S

Samsung is knees deep in the latest trend of gearing up your wrist with an extension of your smartphone. The Gear S however walks the extra mile of offering independent 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity along with full telephony support.

A culmination of several smartwatch iterations, the Gear S packs better hardware and a lot more of it. Samsung is breaking new ground here as the Gear S is actually more of an independent smartphone for your wrist, than an accessory for your smartphone.

The device is equipped with its own SIM card and has all the needed hardware and software to function as an independent phone that just happens to be attached to a strap and be able to sync with your Samsung smartphone.

The ambiguity in nature is a very bold move by the Korean giant, but has a multitude of drawbacks, most prominently - the need to buy a separate monthly data plan just to use the rudimentary smart features of your watch without it being paired to a handset. But more on that later.

 
Samsung Gear S official photos

Unlike it's cousins - the Moto 360 and the LG G Watch R - who would try anything to pass as regular wrist watches on quick glance, the Gear S is definitely not subtle in its appearance and seems utterly uninterested in pretending to be a watch. The device is futuristic, with a wide wrist band and curved glass finish, but most importantly, it's huge compared to the competition.

A 2-inch Super AMOLED screen and the rectangular shape instantly paint the picture of a high-tech gadget that can coincidentally tell time, rather than a watch in the traditional since. The bold choice of colors and materials only underline this general feeling.

The lack of a watch crown and the rectangular physical "home button" below the screen represent a decisive step away from the wrist watches of old.

The Gear S definitely deserves credit in the hardware and features department, as Samsung has jammed it with pretty much everything they could fit.

Key features

• 2-inch curved Super AMOLED multi-touch screen with a resolution of 360 x 480 pixels (300 ppi pixel density)
• Plastic 67 g body, permanently mounted on a proprietary wrist band, available in black or white
• Dual-core 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset with 512MB RAM and 4GB ROM
• 300mAh battery (24h battery life) plus a 350mAh battery pack in the charging dock
• IP67 certified - it's dust and water resistant up to 1 meter of depth for up to 30 minutes
• Accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, heart rate, barometer, UV light sensors
• Bluetooth v4.1, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, 3G, A-GPS with GLONASS

Main disadvantages

• Way to big and clunky for most wrists
• No standard band-replacement options available, and you can only get a black or white one from Samsung

  
The Samsung Gear S in action

After taking a quick tour around Samsung's interesting new take on redefining the wearable scene lets dive deeper into what the Gear S has to offer in terms of hardware.

                     Samsung Gear VR                  

The Samsung Gear VR is a Note 4 exclusive accessory based on Oculus Rift's hardware. Gear VR is meant to be a peripheral device that works with your phone. Your Note 4 is actually the screen on your Gear VR, as you need to put it in front of the goggle-like accessory.

   

Samsung Gear VR

The Gear VR has various controls including a touchpad, a back key, forward and backward keys. The Gear VR also incorporates an accelerometer, gyro and compass sensors. There is a proximity sensor as well, so the device will know when you remove it from your head and will pause automatically whatever you were playing.

 

   

Gear VR controls

The Gear VR works only with the dedicated VR player in your Galaxy Note 4 and nothing else. The content is very limited for now, but we've played a 360-degree 3D video, and a game flying a plane and shooting with the side key. You need to move your head around all the time, but it's cool. There is no lag between moving your head and moving the picture, the latency is excellent indeed.

While the technology works great, even the Note 4 display isn't always sharp enough. The QHD resolution is halved for the 3D conversion and given that you will be looking at it from just a couple of centimeters away you can spot some pixelization.

By the way, you can look outside too, courtesy of the Note 4's camera.

   

Gear VR

The Gear VR is made of plastic and is really light, there is even soft foam around the goggle-like front. The rear and top straps though are definitely hairstyle destroyers, so you should have that in mind too.

We've yet to see how cool the Gear VR will turn out as the Gear VR-enabled content starts appearing. For now you will enjoy the available demos, but that's it. And we doubt there will be many 360-degree movies in the upcoming months either.

Samsung Gear VR will launch alongside the Galaxy Note 4.