Huawei Ascend P1 Specs

Screen 4.3in/11cm, 960x540 pixels
OS Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
Storage 4GB (+32GB microSD)
Camera 8MP w/dual-LED flash (rear), 1.3MP (front)
Video capture 1080p@30fps
Connectivity 3G, microUSB, Wi-Fi, 3.5mm headphone socket, A-GPS, Bluetooth 3.0, compass, accelerometer
Battery 8 hours talk-time, 450 hours standby

In the arms race that is smartphone manufacture, HTC has unveiled the equivalent of the BFG from Doom: a quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor, running at 1.5GHz per core; a 720p hi-def screen; Beats-bolstered audio; an 8MP camera with an aperture of f2.0 for noise-free images and an impressive bag of tricks, including HDR stills and 1080p video. As with all Tegra 3 devices, this NFC-toting, Ice Cream Sandwich-flavored Android boasts a Battery Saver Core that portions out power depending on the apps and components that need it, which is just as well; you're going to be spending a lot of milliwatts showing it off.

Screening calls

The One X's 720p screen is a bright, 4.7in 'Super LCD2', fronted by Gorilla Glass, naturally. Perched just above it you'll find a 1.3MP camera for video calls.

Double team

The One X's 8MP camera is a true multi-tasker. While shooting a move, you can also capture a still; or take a full-res screengrab while watching the video back.

Skinny love

At half a whisker over 9mm thick, the One X just gets into the Skinny Club; not bad for a phone with as much processing power as an Eee Pad Transformer Prime.

 Over capacity

The HTC has a one-size capacity of 32GB. Prety generous, but if you're after more it also comes with 25GB free cloud-based storage courtesy of Dropbox.

Stop making Sense?

This is the first HTC we've seen with Android 4.0 from the get-go; given the great job HTC's Sense interface has done skinning previous Androids, we have high hopes for it.

Samsung is out for Apple's blood, and with the Galaxy Nexus it might just get it. Not just because it's the first handset to carry Google's Ice Cream Sandwich OS, either - it's also down to it being both monumental in stature and massively powerful.
A thanks to its slimness and the fact that very little space on the front is devoted to anything other than screen, the Nexus doesn't feel as big as the specs tell us it is. It's nice but lacks the premium feel of the iPhone and we're not entirely enamored with the textured panel on the back.

Battery life
With that huge, bright screen it was expected the Nexus to really struggle to make its battery last, but it actually holds up pretty well. It won't outlast the iPhone or Lumia, so you'll still probably want to factor in a little charge time as part of our daily regime, but it's no more thirsty, either.

In use
Even with so many pixels to push, the 1.2GHz dual-core chip creates a totally satisfying Android performance. Transitions are stutter-free, web browsing is fluid, and embedded videos load near-instantly and play smoothly. Hap-tic feedback adds an extra layer of control to every prod.

The screen
At 4.64 inches across and with a 316 pixel-per-inch, 720p resolution (just shy of the iPhone's), the screen is a movie fan's delight. It's terrifically bright and colorful, too, but it still produces deep, dark blacks. If you're planning on buying a phone for web browsing, this is your guy.

The camera
First things first: the 13MP lens on front is used not only for video calling but also face recognition for unlocking the phone. That's cool. The 5MP snapper on the back is a bit less cool - in everyday situations it tends to be too bright or too dark. Fortunately, video is crisp and smooth.




The combo of nuanced sound, a foldable design and a mic and controls makes these Bluetooth Sennheisers the perfect Nexus accoutrement.







iPhone docks are ten a penny, but Android ones are seriously rare. This Fidelio side steps the thorny issue of dock connectors, using Bluetooth instead.







Tough plastic with grippable rubber sides: check. A choice of three fetching colors: check. This is a fine option for preventing the elements getting at your Galaxy Nexus.

Google maps is fine, but the Tom Tom app and car kit (which boosts satellite signals) is hard to beat, especially when you add the jam-busting HD Trar.







Bose MIE2i 

Headphone in-ears that come with the 4S are rubbish. These are not. Comfy and secure with a lovely all-round sound and a three-button remote and mic, they're worth every penny.

Nokia's back, and in style, too. With looks that could maim, a vibrant AMOLED screen and beautiful build quality, the Lumia represents the first fruits of the Finnish handset-wranglers unholy union with Microsoft. Windows Phone 7 has met its perfect match.

Build and styling

Machined from a block of tough polycarbonate, the 800 feels great in the hand. There's no speaker panel to ruin the lines, just tiny holes milled into the side, and the screen melts into the body. Only a slight rattle from the buttons stops it having the soothing tactile solidity of a Zen worry stone.

Battery life
Daily recharges are a fact of smartphone life, and this one's no exception. Nokia is usually strong on battery, but the Lumia 800 can begin to flag as the day goes on - especially if you're using it a lot and taking advantage of key features such as instant email delivery.

In use
The Lumia's processor is tuned to 1.4GHz, but it's just a single-core. Despite that the user experience is breezy, with swipes being greeted with slick page transitions. The virtual keyboard is responsive and offers clever auto fill options, but like the iPhone's feels a touch cramped.

The screen
It's a 3.7inch AMOLED, to which Nokia's added its own Clear Black display tech. The result is just as vividly colorful as the best AMOLEDs, though others are a touch crisper. The screen's glass is slightly curved, making it feel good on the face, and still photos and videos look superb.

The camera
True to Nokia's rep for making great cam-phones, the 8MP stills this Zeiss-lensed snapper produces are sharp and detailed with a realistic color palette. It also provides neat effects and control options. Max video res is 720p and you can't zoom while shooting, but footage is silky smooth.



This is tiny Boombox fits into your hand out sounds much bigger. It last for 10 hours between charges, and connects to the Lumia via Bluetooth.






As style-conscious as the phone, the Icon HD has noise cancellation and great sound quality. Chatting aside, it can be used for listening to podcasts and music (in mono, obviously).


Beef up the Lumia's audio talents by upgrading to these light weight buds, which packs superior noise-isolation and built-in mic controls.

If you'd pulled out a phone like this in 2004 you'd be burned for being a time-travelling witch. While Moto's RAZR reboot might share a vowel-challenged name with the mid-naughties clamshell classic, this Android-powered reboot comes with a dual-core 1.2GHz processor, 1GB of RAM and a 4.3inch Super AMOLED screen, which makes the original look like a couple of cream crackers with an aerial attached.

But it's the wrong shape. True-but nobody wants to see a clamshell comeback. If you have a hankering for obsolete form factors you could try to fold the RAZR in half yourself. But with the bulletproof Kevlar on the back and a hard-as-diamond-coated-nails Gorilla Glass screen you won't have much luck - even if its 7.1mm-thin chassis does look so slight that a cough might be enough to crack it.

All form and no function, then. Not at all. The RAZR picks up where the flawed-but-brilliant Atrix left off, meaning it'll play nicely with Moto's webtop-enabled accessories, including the new full size QWERTY-packing Lapdock 5000 Pro, which turns the phone into a fully functioning 14inch laptop. Plus, with an 8MP camera that can also shoot 1080p HD video, the only thing this RAZR has in common with the original is its name.