Google Translate (Android)

Google Translate is a simple mobile translation tool that supports more than 60 languages, offers an SMS translator, and even speaks some of your translations aloud. With its dead-simple interface and variety of input options, it's perfect for pumping out translations in a pinch.

To use Google Translate, select your input and output languages, then choose a method for entering your text. You can type text using your mobile device's keyboard or say the words aloud. If you're an Android user, you can also choose to handwrite on your touch screen or snap a photo and translate text using optical character recognition (OCR). The app is incredibly versatile when it comes to inputs, which is why it's such a useful tool.

To translate text from a photograph, hit the camera button within the app to take a photo. Next, use your finger to highlight the specific part of the photo that you want to translate, and watch as Google Goggles' OCR technology "reads" the text and translates it almost immediately. Unfortunately, you can't translate text from an existing shot from your library, as there is only an option to use a new photo. Also, be aware that this photo-translate feature only supports a handful of languages at the moment, though Google is promising to add more soon. Still, the OCR works surprisingly well, even with photos containing text of varying size and font style.

As for the handwriting option for Android, it's difficult to neatly write anything on a touch screen, so as expected the app had a hard time understanding my text. I actually got much better results writing on a piece of paper, then using the OCR technology to translate it.

While Google Translate certainly performs a solid job translating, what really makes it shine are the extra conveniences it offers. You can set Google Translate to automatically detect your input language (though not with the OCR feature) for quicker translations. There's a handy button to interchange your input and output languages. The app automatically keeps a history of your translations, and lets you star any of them for easy access later (even when offline). Text-to-speech output is available for select languages, and can be a huge help when you're dealing with unfamiliar phonetics. And finally, the SMS translation feature can pull in any of your text conversations for quick processing. Overall, there are a lot of extras, all of which come in handy.

Google Translate now comes with offline support. But if you want to use it, be sure you have enough storage space to download the necessary language packs.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jaymar Cabebe/CNET)

With the latest update to Google Translate for Android, users finally got offline support. To use it, all you have to do is download the language packs for the languages you wish to translate between. As you can imagine, these language packs are pretty hefty (from 150MB to 300MB, based on what I've seen), but the functionality they afford is worth it. One thing to note is that these language packs are not as comprehensive as the online databases are when you're fully connected to the Internet. However, they still appear to be good enough for basic translations that travelers might need. Offline translations are now available for 50 different languages.

Overall, Google Translate is easy to use, can translate more than 60 languages, and offers a variety of input options, making it one of the best translation tools out there. And now, with its newly added offline support, this app is even tougher to beat.

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Microsoft's first PC lives!

Reviewers complain about using Surface on their lap. I completely reject that. I use the Pro on my lap, sans kickstand, most of the time. No gripes here.

(Credit: Brooke Crothers)

Microsoft's first PC, the Surface Pro, has survived Round One.

A report this week said 400,000 Surface Pros were sold in about a month since its release. That's a decent start (contrary to the media's take).

Remember, this is an $899-$999 tablet (though I prefer to describe it as a full-blown Windows PC compacted and stuffed into a tablet's chassis), not a $199 Nexus 7 or $329 iPad Mini.

Also remember this is just the start. The Pro should evolve to the point where you can have a 1.5 or 2 pound tablet with all-day (at least) battery life -- and still get all of the performance of a mainstream Windows 8 laptop.

And that's the deal-closer for me. It's fast. Don't believe me? Check out these benchmarks.

"Surface Pro is easily the fastest tablet on the market today," Anandtech said.

The basic point being that Intel's Ivy Bridge silicon crushes Apple's A6X-based iPad and ARM-based Android tablets in most benchmarks.

And it's not just numbers -- you feel it. Everything pops and there's almost none of the lag you invariably run into with other tablets.

I know this because I've been using the Pro and its speed is addictive -- despite the comparative heft and shorter battery life compared with other tablets (though I wouldn't call 2 pounds "heavy" and battery life isn't as bad as reviewers make it out to be if you tweak Windows 8 settings).

Then there's the design. After the Pro, it's hard to go back to the old clamshell paradigm (which, in my case, is a Dell Adamo).

I've said this before, but relocating the electronics behind the screen changes everything. That includes relegating the keyboard -- something reviewers over the decades have spilled untold oceans of ink evaluating because of its importance -- to second fiddle. The touch display rules.

Which brings us to a sticky area for the Pro. I'm guessing that traditional consumers of PCs who are trying to make the leap from laptop to tablet will want more keyboard options directly from Microsoft. And bundled at lower prices.

I use the touch cover and it's fine, though it could use a larger touch pad. But, again, Microsoft should come up with another keyboard option (as a Surface-specific accessory) that makes the transition less painful for consumers who still demand a killer keyboard-touch pad.

But whatever happens, Microsoft is on to something. And I expect Surface will survive many more rounds.

Surface Pro in the standard laptop mode.

(Credit: Brooke Crothers)

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Sony Action Cam HDR-AS10

The action cam market is dominated by companies that don't have a history of making other types of cameras. There is no GoPro point-and-shoot or Contour digital SLR. So, when a manufacturer like Sony gets into the market, it's reasonable to think it might be able to make a great POV camcorder, at least in terms of video quality.

Its first efforts in the category, the Sony Action Cam HDR-AS10 and HDR-AS15 (the AS15 has built-in Wi-Fi, the AS-10 does not), make a good initial impression, too. That impression doesn't hold up after use, though.

Maybe Sony was trying to stay below a certain price or wanted the camera to be as small and light as possible. Whatever the reason, in design and usability the Action Cam falls shy of models both above and below its price level. That said, it does offer some nice features, especially if you opt for the Wi-Fi-enabled AS15, and video is on par with that of similarly priced models, though it's best suited for small-screen viewing.

In the box
Sony includes a shock-proof/waterproof housing and two adhesive mounts, one flat and one curved. The housing is waterproof down to 197 feet and has dirt- and dust-resistant seals. It's great that it's so sealed up out of the box, and the housing has a standard quarter-inch tripod mount in the bottom, so it can be used with a wide variety of available mounts.

However, since the housing is waterproof, the stereo mics on the front of the camera aren't exposed, so when it's sealed you'll get nothing but muffled audio. Sony sells a pack of two other doors -- one with a flat lens for underwater use and one with mic openings -- for about $50. They aren't available separately, and neither is the door that comes with the housing. If you scratch the lens covering on one of the doors, you're stuck buying another two-pack or an entire $40 housing.

Also, with the camera completely sealed, there's a good chance you might end up with some condensation inside that could fog the lens. Sony sells desiccant packs, but you can squeeze a small silica gel pack (like the kind you'd find in a shoebox) into the housing and accomplish the same thing.

The two included mounts are somewhat large and the adhesive is somewhat weak, so you might be better off finding alternatives that use the tripod mount or just getting better adhesive pads. Other mounts are available, including a head strap that doesn't require the housing. There's also a cradle with a 2.7-inch LCD screen that flips out so you can use the Action Cam like a traditional handheld camera, albeit a very small one.

Design and features
The size and weight of the Action Cam are impressive. The supercompact camcorder measures 2 inches high by 2.6 inches deep by 0.9 inch wide and only weighs about 3.2 ounces with its included NP-BX1 battery pack (a tray is included for use with Sony's NP-BG1 battery, too). That means there's less camera to strap to the side of your head or wherever else you plan to mount it. Because of its rounded bottom, though, it will almost always need to be in some sort of mount when being used, and although the included housing doesn't add a lot to its size and weight, it does add to it.

Ideally, there should be a tripod mount on the actual camera, but really there's no room for one. On the back are a big record button and a hold switch so you don't accidentally start and stop recordings. The whole back, though, is a sliding door that covers the battery compartment and a card slot supporting both microSD and Memory Stick Micro cards.

Pry open the door on the bottom and you'll find Micro-USB and Micro-HDMI ports, an expansion connector for use with the aforementioned camcorder cradle, and an external mic jack, which is a rarity on action cameras. Here's the thing, though: you can't use the external mic jack with the supplied housing or any of the other housings or mounts available from Sony. You're basically on your own if you want to mount the camera and use the mic jack.

Similarly, if you want to use the built-in stereo mics, you have to buy the appropriate door or another mount from Sony or find some other way to secure the camera inside the included case while the waterproof door is off. There is nothing keeping the camera from sliding out of the case without a door on it either, so if for some reason the lock should accidentally open when the door is on, the camera will pop right out.

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ZTE Director (U.S. Cellular)

I have nothing against entry-level devices. As long as they work well and are priced reasonably, there's nothing wrong with these handsets for people who don't need to be on the bleeding edge of technology.

But while the ZTE Director is indeed priced inexpensively (without a contract, it's $99.99, but with one, the price drops to 1 cent), it's not a great performer. Its screen can be frustratingly unresponsive, its camera takes washed-out photos, and its processor is sluggish. Frankly put, the ZTE Director is more of a Tommy Wiseau than a Steven Spielberg.

Design
With its long chin, smooth matte back plate, and indented edges, the Director looks pretty much identical to all other entry-level ZTE devices, like the T-Mobile Concord and the ZTE Fury, save for the fact that it features three hot keys (back, home, and menu) instead of four.

The Director's right edge houses a shortcut hard key that launches the camera.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

Compact and comfortable to hold, the handset measures 4.65 inches tall, 2.46 inches wide, and 0.48 inch thick. Its left edge houses a Micro-USB port for charging and a volume rocker. Up top you'll find a 3.5mm headphone jack and a sleep/power button, and on the right is a launch button for the camera.

On the back, in the left corner, you'll find a camera lens, flash, and a small reflective square for framing self-portraits. Below that are two small slits for the audio speaker. Using a small indent at the bottom, you can pop off the plate to access the microSD card slot (which accepts cards of up to 32GB) and the removable battery.

The 3.5-inch HVGA touch screen has a 320x480-pixel resolution. Unfortunately, the display isn't very responsive, and oftentimes it took several taps for an action to register, whether it be launching an app or closing a window.

It also looked grainy or speckled, which is especially apparent when it displays a blank white image. Lastly, the screen is very difficult to view in sunlight. While taking photos outside, I had to shield the display with my hand in order to see feedback.

Features
The phone runs on Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich and features your standard complement of Google apps, such as Gmail, Google+, Chrome, Latitude, Local, Maps with Navigation, Messenger, several Google Play Store portals like Books, Magazines, Movies & TV, and Music, Search, Talk, and YouTube.

Other apps include several from Amazon (for its retail site, Appstore, Amazon MP3, Audible, and Zappos), the game Bubble Bash 2, City ID, Daily Perks (which notifies you of deals from U.S. Cellular), MiEasyAccess, Slacker Radio, apps for getting ringtones and games, Twitter, and a navigator app.

The ZTE Director runs Android Ice Cream Sandwich and comes with Slacker Radio.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

Basic task-managing apps include a clock with alarm and world time functions, a native browser, an e-mail client, a music app, a video player, a calculator, a calendar, a news and weather app, a notepad, a sound recorder, a timer, and a voice dialer.

Other features include Bluetooth 3.0, 4GB of onboard memory, and 512MB of RAM.

Camera and video
Understandably, the 3-megapixel camera has very few photo options. It has a flash, digital zoom, five white balances, three photo sizes, three shutter tones, a timer, compositional lines, an exposure meter, and geotagging. The video camera includes the same zooming, geotagging, and white-balancing options, and it has five video qualities (from QCIF to WVGA). Because the ZTE Director is slow, it takes several seconds for the camera to take a photo, and another several seconds after you press the shutter for it to ready itself for another shot.

Photo quality was obviously poor. Aside from needing to struggle to view the screen in sunlight as I mentioned before, brightly lit outdoor photos were often blown-out, colors appeared muted, and objects weren't quite in focus. Indoor photos fared even worse. You can see lots of digital noise, photos looked grainy, and colors, once again, weren't as vibrant as they were in real life.

In this well-lit indoor photo, you can see the graininess against the wall and the white chairs appear bluish.

(Credit: Lynn La/CNET)

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BlackBerry Q10

Say hello to the BlackBerry Q10, which offers a larger and more spacious QWERTY keyboard and a fresh infusion of the BlackBerry 10.1 operating system. It builds on the greatness of past BlackBerry messaging machines, yet blends this with modern smartphone software powerful enough to run multiple apps at once without skipping a beat. It also surfs Web sites like a champ and has a battery that goes the distance. Of course, the BlackBerry ecosystem lacks a wide app selection, but the Q10's hybrid approach should satisfy traditional BlackBerry addicts who crave a practical upgrade. Exact pricing and availability aren't locked down, but the Q10 will be sold by AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint, with a suggested price of $249.

Design
A deep and luscious all-black, the slablike Q10 has an appearance that's all buttoned up and ready for business. If you've used a BlackBerry Bold or even an ancient Curve handset, the BlackBerry Q10 will feel like an old and familiar friend. I know I felt waves of nostalgia flood over me when I scooped the machine up for the first time.

The Q10 is cut in the same classic flat shape with softly rounded edges that graced other BlackBerrys. Above the 3.1-inch screen sits a large circular notification light that flashes an angry red to compel you to check your messages. Below the display is the phone's large keyboard, right where you expect it.

BlackBerry says the Q10's edges are honed from specially treated aluminum, not plastic, which though black is designed to withstand scratches and scrapes. According to BlackBerry, it also strengthens the chassis and guards against bending and flexing. I can say that while this band helps the edges feel sturdy, they do give a little when pushed.

The BlackBerry Q10 is small enough to grip with one hand.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

On the left side you'll find a Micro-USB port plus a Micro-HDMI connection to output video to TVs. Running along the right edge is a thin combo volume rocker and Play/Pause key that doubles as a way to activate the Q10's voice command feature.

An elegant stainless-steel stripe divides the Q10's back. Above it is a small area which holds the phone's 8-megapixel camera and LED flash. Below the stripe is the Q10's battery door, which conceals a 2,100mAh removable battery, plus slots for microSD and SIM cards. I definitely like the phone's rubber soft-touch coating, which is easy to grip and repels fingerprints. BlackBerry also claims the Q10's thin battery cover is made from reinforced glass that's designed to flex, not crack. The cover though doesn't fit quite flush against the chassis, especially near the USB port, which is disconcerting.

A stainless steel stripe that runs along the back of the handset.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

Measuring 4.7 inches tall by 2.6 inches wide, the BlackBerry Q10 is shorter and more compact than many of today's big-screened phone monsters. At 0.4 inch thick, the Q10 isn't quite as svelte as competing handsets, such as the Samsung Galaxy S4 or HTC One, however. Still, in a gadget equipped with a full four rows of physical keys I can forgive this.

Keyboard
The BlackBerry Q10's keyboard is the star of this show. With a full four rows and 35 keys, the device's QWERTY layout is exceptionally comfortable. There isn't much spacing between keys, but the buttons themselves are large. In fact BlackBerry claims the keys are 30 percent bigger than those on previous models.

As on the BlackBerry Bold, the surfaces of the Q10's buttons are sculpted with ridges and concave depressions. The end result is that you can intuitively feel where the center of each key is, and more importantly, know when you stray. Key travel is deep as well, and key presses give a satisfying click.

The keyboard is comfortable, well designed, and the largest on a BlackBerry yet.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

Display
There's no confusing BlackBerry's tried and true design with that of any other phone maker. One big drawback to relying on physical keys, however, is there's less available room for the screen. Measuring 3.1 inches, the Q10's display is veritably lilliputian compared with the 4.7-inch, 5-inch, and, yes, 5.5-inch panels found on top-tier handsets.

At 720x720 pixels, the Q10's screen resolution is paltry, especially when viewed against phones with full HD resolutions (1,920x1,080 pixels). In fact whether reading Web pages or viewing photos and video, I found my eyes straining to discern detail in the device's cramped display area. The Q10's screen doesn't get very bright either, though thanks to its OLED technology it has wide viewing angles, high contrast, and deep black levels.

Software, UI, and features
As a BlackBerry 10 device, the Q10 runs BlackBerry's most advanced operating system. With it comes all the new features BlackBerry Z10 owners enjoy, including true multitasking (running multiple applications at once) and novel ways to stay on top of your messages, e-mail, and social-networking feeds.

The BlackBerry Hub channels all your messages and alerts into one handy inbox that displays not only the number of incoming missives but also their subject lines. It makes prioritizing and powering through communications either a breeze or difficult to avoid, depending on your perspective. I personally appreciate the Hub and wish Android phones had a similar capability.

You can check your Hub status by performing the Peek gesture, essentially drawing an inverted L, by dragging your finger up from the bottom of the screen and then to the right. With this gesture you can to roll up any app or home screen like a window shade and slide it to the right to reveal the Hub beneath. For more about BlackBerry 10's capabilities, check out our full review of the OS.

The Q10 can operate multiple applications at once.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

Just like the Z10, the BlackBerry Q10 has the power to access multiple e-mail accounts and social-networking services, and can fill your address book and calendar by tapping into these services. Unlike other phone software such as HTC's Sense user interface, BB10 didn't hunt down and suggest links between duplicate contacts with accounts on Facebook, Twitter, and Gmail.

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Asus FonePad

As its name alludes, the FonePad is one of those tablet/smartphone -- or phablet -- doohickeys. Like the Samsung Galaxy Note 2, it features a large screen and you can make calls on it. However, with a 7-inch screen size, Asus has taken the FonePad to a whole new level of ridiculousness.

Holding the tablet to your head to make calls is awkward and looks (and feels) genuinely comical. Those whose first inclination at a concert is to whip out their iPads and start taking pictures have already shown us that some people have no shame when using their tech devices. I do and would not be caught in public holding the FonePad to my face.

The Asus FonePad is a good tablet. It's no Nexus 7 in the performance, price, or always-having-the-latest-version-of-Android department, but it performs well, has a sharp screen, and a comfortable and durable build.

And if you're willing to face the embarrassment and physical awkwardness of holding a Nexus 7-size slate to your head when making calls -- sure, you could use a headset, but a 7-inch tablet isn't nearly as portable as a phone -- its £178 (or $275 if imported) price isn't a bad deal for an all-inclusive device. However, if you’re strictly looking only for a tablet, skip this and buy the Nexus 7.

The Asus FonePad is available now in U.K., but Asus has no plans to release it in the U.S; however, it will work as a phone here in the states. I used an AT&T SIM to test it without any technical complications.

Design and features
Like the Asus Memo ME172V, the Asus FonePad is essentially a slightly redesigned Asus-made Nexus 7. It's roughly the same size and has the same silver trim around its edge, but instead of a grippy leathery backside like the Nexus 7's, it instead features a silver aluminum back. The Nexus 7 is still more comfortable to hold, but the FonePad's slightly lighter metal body feels more durable.

Weight in pounds	0.70	0.74	0.68	0.76
Width in inches (landscape)	7.7	7.8	7.87	8.2
Height in inches	4.7	4.7	5.3	5.3
Depth in inches	0.4	0.4	0.28	0.31
Side bezel width in inches (landscape)	0.9	0.8	0.25	0.7

The power and volume buttons sit along the tablet's left edge, which feels awkward and weird to me, like it did on the Memo. On the bottom edge is a Micro-USB port, headphone jack, and a microphone pinhole. The front-facing camera sits on the top of the bezel toward the right, directly left of the phone speaker. On the back, there's a rear-facing 3-megapixel camera located in the top center with a small speaker grill several inches below it. The microSD card slot and SIM card slot are both hidden under a removable panel near the top, above the rear camera. While I appreciate the extra storage option, the panel is a bit difficult to remove; a more ergonomic solution would have been preferred.

The FonePad's durable aluminum back isn't quite as comfortable as the Nexus 7's leathery one, but it's probably more durable.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

The FonePad ships with Android 4.1.2 (Jelly Bean) and its interface follows the same style as the Nexus 7's, with a toolbar of apps at the bottom or right side of the screen, depending on the tablet’s orientation. It also includes several useful Asus customizations. Chief among them is Asus Splendid, which allows you to adjust the hue, color saturation, and color temperature of the tablet's screen. There's also a "Vivid Mode" option that appears to boost the contrast. While making adjustments, you're given the option to see in real time how your changes affect your choice of three different images: color bars, the current background image, or a colorful picture of fruit.

We've see screen options before on tablets, but never have we been allowed to get as deep with color customizations that truly affect the display's presentation. I just hope that Asus continues to offer and build on this feature.

The Asus Splendid app provides the deepest level of screen customization I've yet seen on a tablet.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

The Power Saver option acts a bit differently than it does on other Asus tablets. Instead of throttling the CPU's speed depending on the power profile you've selected, the three profiles -- Ultra-saving, Optimized, and Customized -- will only affect the brightness of the display and whether Wi-Fi is turned on. You can also customize the screen's brightness for different tasks like reading books, watching videos, browsing the Web, etc.

The FonePad includes several built-in mini-app widgets: a browser, video player, calculator, and battery meter, among others. The widgets can all run concurrently, and unlike on the Memo 172V, performance remained smooth while doing so.

The microSD and SIM card secret compartment.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

And it's a phone
It may not surprise given its name -- despite the spelling -- that the FonePad is not only a tablet, but also a full-fledged, honest-to-goodness smartphone. Yes, you can make and receive calls on the FonePad just as easily as you would on a Galaxy S4, but the device is still much larger than even 5-inch "phablets" like the Note 2 and Optimus G Pro. If you thought those were cumbersome, inconvenient, unwieldy, or a bit weird-looking, you ain't seen nothing yet. Once you catch yourself in the mirror holding a 7-inch tablet to your head and talking into it, you'll understand the true meaning of silly-looking.

Off-camera, hundreds are pointing and laughing. I'm doing my best to hide my tears.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

And beyond any embarrassment you may feel using it in public, it's just unwieldy when attempting adjust in one hand, especially if you have small hands. The FonePad doesn't include a headset unfortunately, which would be the ideal way to use it.

I used an AT&T SIM card to test the call quality here in San Francisco. Voices came in fuzzy and a bit "breathy" on both ends when calling a landline. Speaking into the FonePad, I definitely had to make sure I spoke loudly and clearly in order for the other party to hear me. Also, with the speaker enabled, it was difficult for the person on the other end to clearly hear my voice unless I put the mic right up to my mouth. I experienced no dropped calls nor any problems connecting using AT&T's GSM network in San Francisco.

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Samsung Galaxy S4

With the Galaxy S4, Samsung clinches its goal of global smartphone domination. The supercharged Android 4.2 Jelly Bean device may look like a toy compared with the stunning HTC One and the dapper iPhone 5. But taken together, its blazing quad-core processor, colorful 5-inch HD screen, sharp-shooting 13-megapixel camera, and mile-high stack of software extras make the Galaxy S4 the most powerful superphone anywhere in the world.

What does the Galaxy S4 have? A better question is: what doesn't it have? There's the 1080p screen, zippy processing speeds that are ideal for gaming, and an IR blaster that can control your TV. Then there's the parade of camera tricks that cram action shots into one scene, use both front and back cameras, and film a video in slow-mo. The GS4 can harness your eyeballs to pause video, and it can answer a phone call with the wave of your hand. Unlike the HTC One and the iPhone 5, it also piles on expandable storage space and a removable battery.

It's true: most of the GS4's featurettes aren't essential -- and some aren't even very useful, like the camera's Eraser mode, which I never got to work, a sub-par optical reader, and a translation tool that just duplicates what Google Translate already does. While none stands out as a must-have, cannot-possibly-live-without extra, these features do add up to a compelling testament that the Galaxy S4 is more than a step ahead of the pack.

So, if you want a lovingly crafted statement phone that barely strays from Android's core offering, then buy the HTC One, which also has double the internal storage for about the same price. But if you're looking for a superphone that surpasses all other handsets on the features front, then you'll find in this deserving all-around flagship a strong mix of extremely competent hardware and aspirational software with very few major drawbacks.

Editors' note: This Samsung Galaxy S4 review reflects a week of in-depth testing. I'll continue expanding the review in the upcoming weeks and months as I spend even more time with the device across U.S. carriers.

Design and build

Throughout the lifetime of Samsung's Galaxy S line, one of the biggest complaints levied against the manufacturer was -- and is -- how its plastic construction and flimsier-looking industrial design fall short compared with premium rivals from Apple and HTC.

No, Samsung sticks by plastic, and points to only a handful of Android enthusiasts who really care about vaunted materials like aluminum and glass. Yet the phone maker has also made an effort to add more "refined" touches to the Galaxy S4.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 is made of more modest material than the HTC One, left, and iPhone 5.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

Indeed, when you compare the S3 and S4 side by side, you note a more rectangular home button, and metallic accents around the rim. The S4's 5-inch screen is taller and the bezel surrounding the display slimmer. Its volume and power/lock buttons are metallic-looking polycarbonate, and tooled to have slanted sides and a flat top. Look closely, and you'll see that the gaps around these controls are narrower, too.

The GS4's metallic spines are also reworked to be steeper and less curved than the Galaxy S3. In fact, while Samsung boasted its GS3 was inspired by nature, the GS4's straight sides seem to be inspired by the iPhone 5 or HTC One.

Samsung's Galaxy S4, left, looks a lot like its predecessor, the Galaxy S3.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

At 5.4 inches tall by 2.8 inches by 0.3 inch thick, the Galaxy S4 is actually 0.7 millimeter thinner than GS3, and at 4.6 ounces, it's 0.7 ounce lighter as well. Yet, the S3 and S4 generations still look so similar, you might not know the difference if you're not looking closely. When in doubt, flip the S4 over to see the new tiny black-and-silver diamond design on the black mist model, or a similar pinprick design on the white frost edition. As with the Galaxy S3's brushed-plastic backing, the newer generation is so reflective, you could use it as a makeshift mirror.

Compare Galaxy S4 specs with the HTC One, iPhone 5, and BlackBerry Z10.

All about the screen
Let's head back to the screen for a minute. The 5-inch 1080p HD display yields a pixel density of 441ppi, which is higher than Apple's 321ppi screen and lower than the HTC One's 468ppi screen. In the end, I'm not sure how much these pixel density wars matter. The naked eye doesn't calibrate numbers, but it does understand if an image looks rich and sharp and detailed, versus dull and blurred.

Carrying on its fine tradition, the Galaxy S4's HD AMOLED display nails it with color saturation and contrast, sharply defined edges and details. Articles are easy to read, gameplay looks good, and photos and videos look terrific.

The Galaxy S4 is a little large for more snugly-fitting pockets.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

In a new display setting, Samsung attempts to correct an old complaint about certain colors, like green, looking too saturated. In the screen mode settings, you can choose to let the GS4 auto-adjust the color tone depending on what you're looking at. As on the Galaxy Note 2, you can also manually select from dynamic, professional photo, and movie presets, the latter of which CNET display guru David Katzmaier says yields the most accurate colors.

There are a few other important things to note about the Galaxy S4's display besides color and sharpness. As with the GS3, this year's model is highly reflective indoors and out, and even at its full brightness, it can seem dim outside when fighting bright light.

Outdoor readability in strong sunlight is really tough; when taking photos, I very often couldn't tell that my finger covered the lens until I got back inside, a plight that ruined several pictures. Now would have been the time for Samsung to follow Nokia's lead with its excellent polarized screen filter on phones like the Nokia Lumia 920.

A look at the Galaxy S4's B-side.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

At least Samsung did mimic another terrific Nokia implementation, giving the S4 a sensitive screen you can navigate with a gloved hand in addition to the naked finger.

On top of possessing a sensitive screen, the Galaxy S4 is also the first commercially available device to feature the thinner, stronger Gorilla Glass 3 cover glass.

Features layout
The phone's screen is a big deal, no doubt, but in my opinion, the other most interesting new real estate lies north of its display.

A 2-megapixel front-facing camera lens sits in the upper right corner, neighbored to the left by ambient light and proximity sensors. To the left of the speaker grill is the phone's IR, or infrared, sensor. There's also an LED indicator at the top left corner. This will glow or blink green, red, or blue to indicate certain activities.

An infrared blaster turns your Galaxy S4 into a universal TV and DVR remote.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

Sharing the top edge with the phone's 3.5-millimeter headset jack is the Galaxy S4's brand-new IR blaster, which you'll use in conjunction with the Watch On app as a TV remote (it works!) All things being equal, I prefer how HTC integrated its IR blaster in the One's power button.

Below the screen, the home button takes you home (press), launches Samsung's S Voice app (double press), and loads up recently opened apps (hold). Press and hold the menu button to launch the Google Search app with Google Now. The back button is self-explanatory.

You'll adjust volume on the left spine, charge the phone from the bottom, and turn the phone on and off from the right spine. On the back, you'll see the 13-megapixel camera lens and LED flash just below. Pry off the back cover to get to the microSD card slot, SIM card slot, and battery.

Samsung worked on making the GS4's volume and power buttons look more high-end.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

So do I like the new design? I do. Its sharper edges do make it look like a more premium device than its predecessor, but it won't ever be as eye-popping as the gorgeous HTC One or as understatedly elegant as the iPhone 5. Still, it's pleasant to look at and, in my opinion, more comfortable to hold than the other two.

The only thing I don't like is how Samsung's power/lock screen seems to easily light up the phone while it's tossed around in my purse. Over the years, this has been a constant personal annoyance, not only to find a phone turned on that I had clearly turned off, but more importantly, to see my handset's battery level low because I hadn't realized the screen was sucking it down. I'd probably prefer this button up top.

OS and interface

The Galaxy S4 proudly runs Android 4.2.2 beneath its very highly customized Touch Wiz interface. Argue the pluses and minuses of stock Android versus overlay all you want -- Touch Wiz has long looked outdated and stale (especially compared with HTC's fresh new UI,) but Samsung's pile of software lets the GS4 go places that a stock Android phone can't even dream about without rooting and mods.

Take my favorite new interface addition, for example. Samsung has bulked up its one-touch system icons in the notifications shade. Tap a new button in the upper right corner to expand the list to 15 icons you'll no longer have to dig through settings menus to find. If you press the edit button, you'll be able to drag and drop icons to reorder them. This is very cool and extremely useful for finding and toggling settings.

The new notifications shade on the Galaxy S4 adds a heap of new one-touch settings options; you can reorder their positions in the edit menu.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Menus play a huge role in the Touch Wiz ecosystem, so new users shouldn't neglect them. This is where a tremendous range of editing and advanced settings options live for apps as diverse as the home screen, the browser, the keyboard, and so on.

In an attempt to simplify the settings menu, the GS4's gets a makeover that breaks up topics into separate screens for connections, device items like the lock screen, gestures, and keyboard settings, an accounts pane, and the More category for battery, storage, and security concerns.

Keyboard options
I have a love-hate relationship with every virtual keyboard I meet. I demand grammatical and spelling accuracy, but am also apparently a sloppy typist. Punctuation always takes too long to insert and autocorrect rarely seems smart enough.

Swype and the default Samsung keyboard are two options. You can also input voice and handwriting besides.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

The Galaxy S4 gives you a few options. There's the standard Samsung keyboard, which lets you turn on SwiftKey Flow for tracing out words. There's also a separate Swype keyboard you can use instead.

I still became aggravated with mistakes and a slower typing flow than I wanted, but I did like the multiple Samsung keyboard options to introduce handwriting or insert images from the clipboard -- not that I can see myself using either.

Lock screen
In the Galaxy S4, the lock screen has become a more customizable place. You'll still choose if you swipe to unlock or use a passcode or face scan, and you can still add and order lock screen icons that serve as shortcuts to the camera, search, and your contacts.

Now, however, there are lock screen widget options, similar in concept to what you can get on Windows Phone, but different in execution. For example, you choose if you'd like to see the clock or a personal message on the screen, and if you'd like to swipe to open a list of favorite apps or launch the camera (I chose the camera and clock).

You can choose from a couple of widgets on the lock screen, but better swipe on top to unlock to the app.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET')

Getting the camera to open from the lock screen isn't all that intuitive. The trick is to swipe right to left near the top of the widget. If you swipe on the bottom half of the page, you'll go straight into the home screen.

There's also a nice new lock screen effect: Light. With Air View enabled, a point of light follows your fingertip as you hover over the display.

Easy mode
If the full Touch Wiz experience feels too confusing, Samsung is trying what others, such as Korean competitor Pantech, have done to simplify its take on Android with an easy mode.

Around in Samsung products since the Galaxy Note 2, easy mode, which you can start during the setup process or find later in the settings, replaces your home screens and reskins some critical apps (calendar, browser, contact list, and so on) to pare down the quantity of confusing options.

Easy Mode vastly simplifies the Android experience on the home screens and within certain key apps.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

You'll still get access to core apps and features, even some extra camera modes. The icons and fonts enlarge across the easy-mode apps, and the browser includes a plus/minus icon for further increasing the phone's font size. The settings menu, however, remains the same, and it's easy to toggle back and forth from the "light" interface to full-on Touch Wiz.

Apps and features

Before diving into the GS4's feature list, let's just run through one of its key inner workings: how it communicates wirelessly. It goes without saying (but I'll say it anyway) that the Galaxy S4 is up-to-date in all its radios and communications. The phone supports 4G LTE here in the U.S. and in other regions.

There's support for NFC and Samsung's S Beam version of Android Beam, which can send files like photo and video as well as documents and URLs. You'll also find Bluetooth 4.0, and although Samsung doesn't advertise it, there's sometimes wireless charging support as well, if you swap in a different back cover, which isn't available for the U.S. at the moment.

Wi-Fi is 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (5GHz), and the handset can serve as a mobile hot spot for up to 10 devices. Wi-Fi Direct and DLNA support are a go, and a renamed feature that used to be known as AllShare Cast, can mirror the contents of your phone's screen with another device. Samsung's Kies app connects you with your computer over Wi-Fi.

Preinstalled apps
Between Samsung and T-Mobile, there are plenty of apps to get you started, beyond essentials like a calculator, calendar, and music player, and Google services like turn-by-turn navigation and Gmail.

The GS4, in white frost and black mist colors.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

T-Mobile's app posse includes titles like the T-Mobile hot spot, account manager, visual voice mail, and T-Mobile TV. (I had to uninstall and disable one management app whose unwanted alerts kept popping up in my notifications tray.)

Meanwhile, Samsung piles on with its chat app and the S Memo app, which I keep trying to like and which keeps disappointing me with overcomplication.

There are also hubs for Samsung's featured programs, and the commercial music and video Hub that's run by 7 Digital. Samsung Link looks new, but really isn't. It's the GS3's All Share Play, renamed, and it, too, shares content across "smart" devices.

Samsung also includes branded versions of its own translator, a calories and exercise app, and Watch On, its TV remote-plus-video-rental app (more on all these later). A special version of Flipboard is installed; this build takes advantage of Samsung's Air View functionality to preview content when you hover over it.

Samsung's Hub lets you download, rent, and buy music and movies.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

The Story Album app is new as well. You can use it to create narrative albums with photos and text, and print (buy) a photo book through the service Blurb. I'm generally a fan of Blurb and of anything that makes it easy to put those camera photos to practical use. However, I didn't appreciate the app popping up notifications to "suggest" albums for me to create and books to buy.

I'm about to dive a little deeper into the heaps of Samsung apps and software features, so keep reading for more, or skip ahead for details on call quality, processor performance, and battery life.

Eye-tracking and gestures
Eye-tracking software sounds like a cool, futuristic power for controlling your phone with your peepers, but that's really only partway true. It isn't so much that the cursor or text follows the movement of your eyes, which you probably wouldn't want anyhow, if you think about it. More generally, the software knows when you're paying attention and when you avert your gaze.

Smart Pause and Smart Scroll are two features that build off the Galaxy S3's optional Smart Stay feature, which kept the screen from dimming when you looked at it. In the GS4, tilting the screen up or down while looking at it scrolls you up or down, say if you're reading a CNET story, of course. As a daily commuter with one hand on the phone and one on a hand strap, I think this could be a more convenient way to catch up with news while on the train or bus.

With Smart Pause turned on, videos pause when you look away and start up again when you focus back on the screen.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

I really like the idea of Smart Pause, which halts a video you're watching when your eyes dart away, then resumes when you start paying attention again. Smart Pause was more responsive and easier to control than the scrolling, which experienced some abrupt motions and a short lag time.

While you can make googly eyes at the GS4, most gestures are still reserved for your fingertips. Hovering features known as Air View make their way from the stylus-centric Galaxy Note 2 and Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet to the Galaxy S4, but replace the stylus with your digit.

Hover your finger and you can preview a video clip or image from the photo gallery, glance at browser tab thumbnails, find your place on a video timeline, and check out an e-mail. You'll also be able to magnify calendar events and get a closer look in speed dial. As I mentioned above, Flipboard has built a customized app to work with Air View that lets you hover over a tile to see which articles lie beneath.

You can control the Galaxy S4 by waving your hand in front of the camera sensor.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

In addition to hovering with a fingertip, you can wave or wipe your whole hand in front of the screen (and sensor near the Samsung logo) to navigate around. For example, enable this gesture and you can agitate your palm to pick up the phone or switch songs in a playlist. Steadily sliding your hand back and forth can advance photos in a gallery, or browser tabs. You can also scroll up and down in a list.

The feature was a little jerky and jumpy when I tried it, but it did work. As with eye-tracking, you'll have to wait a half-second to see results. Luckily, air gestures are sensitive up to 3 or 4 inches off the top of the phone, so you have a little latitude...or altitude, as it were.

Samsung really envisioned using these gestures in specific scenarios, mostly when your hands are already full with something else. For instance, you'll probably never wave your hand over the phone to answer it unless you're in a car, but when you do, it'll automatically pick up in speakerphone mode. If you have Bluetooth pairing, it'll kick into the car's Bluetooth if you answer that way.

Likewise, passing your hand over the sensor to advance music titles works best when your phone is docked on your desk.

Your phone, the TV remote
Like HTC's One, you can program the Galaxy S4 to command your TV, DVR, Blu-ray player, home theater setup, and streaming set-top box. Although I set it up with a Samsung TV, it should work with pretty much any TV on the planet.

To use it, fire up the Watch On app -- which, also like the HTC One's app, is powered by Peel behind the scenes -- and go through the reasonable setup process. Once you're good to go, you'll be able to pull up remotes for your TV and DVR, plus a universal remote. There's a Netflix tie-in as well, but I was also able to use my usual Netflix setup through the TV's extra tools.

I found Watch On easy to use, and within a few minutes I was flipping through live TV listings, playing shows through Netflix, and setting up new DVR recordings using my phone.

You can channel up or down, or use the TV listings or search results to change stations.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

If there's one area of the controller that could use some work, it's the visual cue that you can scroll down the remote's interface for even more button options. The remote did hang once, and I had to close the app and reboot it to get things going again. However, I blame the TV, which sometimes does that, more than the remote.

In addition to browsing, Watch On bundles a recommendation engine that churns up suggestions as you use it. Filter by categories like new, comedy, or drama, or pull up the context menu for a universal search -- this includes live listings and Samsung/Peel's premium video library. You can also switch over to the On Demand tab to access show rentals.

If you're feeling social, you can give on-demand shows a thumbs-up or thumbs-down and recommend listings on Facebook and Peel.

Samsung's Watch On app has a universal remote, as well as separate controls for your TV and DVR.

(Credit: Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

I'm not as big a fan of the interface for the universal search results. I'd love icons on the results page to display at a glance what kind of content it is without first having to click on the result for more details. This would be a natural fit for hovering with Air View.

If you have the right kind of Samsung TV from 2012 or 2013, you can also use DLNA sharing features to swap content between your phone and TV. One scenario is watching a video you caught on your phone's camera on the big screen. Another is wanting to continue watching your show even when you leave the room to do something else. Warning: you have to be within the IR range.

Oodles of extras
If you thought Samsung couldn't add more software features, think again. Here are a few more:

Multi window: Turn it on to create a split-screen view with two apps, say the browser and S Memo note app. This neat feature first came onboard with the Galaxy Note 2 and available on the Galaxy S3 as a premium suite add-on. I like it, but a small number of vetted apps limits its functionality.

Setting up a Group Play session is pretty painless; the lead person can control aspects of the share, like volume and surround sound.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

Group Play: A bulked-up and reenvisioned version of the GS3's Group Cast, Group Play can share music, video, documents, and games across close-range, ad hoc network of connected phones. Music and games-sharing works with GS4 phones for now, but you can broadcast the other content to Galaxy S3s. A much more streamlined setup process makes it worth trying out for multiplayer gaming and surround sound through the phones' speakers. Here's a closer look.

Samsung took its maligned S Voice assistant and broke out S Voice Drive, a mode specifically meant for use behind the wheel. Come back soon, we'll have a deeper review of that feature shortly.

A bunch of people can play games over Group Play, like poker, while sitting in the same room.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

S Translator: Speak or type into this extremely handy translation tool to get verbal or written assistance in one of 10 languages. It worked mostly well in my tests, though translation wasn't perfect. It's a cool app that absolutely mimics Google Translate with no additional benefit I can immediately see, apart from not having to download Google Translate.

Optical reader: Optical character recognition readers (OCR) have been in the works on mobile for years, and while they're getting better, most are still pretty bad. It's nice that Samsung's built-in OCR tool reads business cards and adds them to your contact book, includes a QR code scanner, and uses S Translator's back-end to read signs and menus in other languages. This one didn't work as well as I wanted. For instance, it'll capture an e-mail address to add, but doesn't seem to be able to also fill in the person's name, address, and title.

With Google Translate, S Translator doesn't seem strictly necessary, but it worked well enough during tests.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt/CNET)

S Health: Once again, Samsung attempts to take a slice of the pie that others have baked first. S Health is a pretty app that logs your exercise and calories. Since it's preloaded, weight-watchers might be more inclined to use it than to download something new. More dedicated fitness buffs can pair it with Samsung's new S Band wrist accessory, heart rate monitor, and body scale to sync data. Stay tuned for full reviews of the app and electronics.

The S Health app tracks calories in and out, and can sync with compatible accessories like a fitness band and heart rate monitor.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

Samsung Hub: The redesigned marketplace for music, video, and games incorporates Air View to pop up contextual info, like rental price. The Hub, served by 7 Digital, ties into your Samsung account, so you can also access purchases from Samsung's TVs and tablets. Now, all your purchases show up in your media gallery alongside all your other content, a significant improvement.

Knox security: The Galaxy S4 is the first phone to ship with Knox, the company's newest security layer. In a nutshell, Knox gives you easy access to your personal and corporate profiles so you can use your own phone in a business capacity.

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Confessions of a technology pack rat

Yes, it still turns on!

(Credit: Amanda Kooser/CNET)

I'm taking spring cleaning seriously this year. I've already Craigslisted a good chunk of my furniture and hosted a massive yard sale. Now, I'm breaching the depths of uncharted waters in my closets and desk drawer. I'm going after all those old gadgets I've been hanging onto for years. What wonders will I discover?

I have old cell phones. I have old computers. I have sickening piles of cords tangled about each other in knots that may never be unraveled. Why do I do this to myself? Do I really think I'm going to need to make a call on that 2002 LG VX-10 with the extended battery pack? It's time for it to go, along with all the other dusty old tech that hasn't felt a surge of electricity in years.

Before these lumbering old beasts are sent on their way, I'm holding an unofficial awards ceremony to mark their passing into the realms of recycling.

Winner, "Battlestar Galactica" division: TA-954/TT Why on earth do I have a Digital Non-secure Voice Terminal model No. TA-954/TT in the back of my closet? Because, for a time, I was obsessed with the props used in "Battlestar Galactica." I don't even remember how I came by this military surplus device from the 1980s, but I do know these phones were modified and used in the "Battlestar Galactica" reboot series. Perhaps I was hopeful Adama would answer if I picked up the handset.

Winner, Still-functioning kitchen gadget category: Dazey Ice Crusher Likely dating to the 1940s or 1950s, the Dazy Ice Crusher is a lovely example of space-age design. The metal top part destroys ice cubes, chewing them up into little chunks. Those bits are captured in a plastic container shaped like a rocket ship. Best of all, it still works like a champ.

Winner, Most useless cell phone: LG VX-10 This little dumbphone hails from the year 2002 and it's easily been 10 years since it was the least bit relevant. Excavated from the darkest depths of my office desk drawer, this little phone was once a plucky low-end contender on the Verizon network. It still sports an extended-life battery. It's most entertaining feature is a the word "Web" in red ink printed just below the "0" key.

Winner, Overall: Apple Macintosh Plus This beige beauty from 1986 is a genuine part of Apple history. Best of all, it still powers up. The built-in handle and tiny screen really take me back to my early childhood days of playing Scarab of Ra and marveling at the existence of home computers. I promise this little bundle of joy won't end up in the scrap heap. I'll try to find a good home for it.

I'm mulling over my propensity for hanging onto outdated gadgets. Most of them are not beautiful to look at, they're just tools I used at one point that were replaced by devices that are faster or better (or just simply functioning). I'm going to have to turn these creatures from the darkest depths of my closet out into the light and stake them through the heart like the space-sucking vampires they are.

I bet I'm not alone in hoarding my gadgets. Are you a tech pack rat, too? Confess in the comments and we can all commiserate. And if you have some really old, odd stuff hanging around, send a photo(s) and blurb(s) to crave at cnet dot com with "oldest tech" in the subject line. If we get enough submissions, we'll put together a gallery and see who among us is clinging to the oldest gear. Then, let's pledge to get rid of all that old tech junk.

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TackForm C-Fit Multi-Surface mount (red)

Editors' note: Portions of this review were taken from our evaluation of the Bracketron Mi-T Grip, since that device and the TackForm C-Fit are almost identical.

The TackForm C-Fit is a deceptively simple, universal suction-cup mount for smartphones that holds onto almost any smooth surface with its sticky suction cup.

The C-Fit has only one point of articulation at the ball joint, where the gripping claw meets the mounting arm. So, care must be taken to properly orient the base when placing the C-Fit. This can make getting the C-Fit into the perfect position a bit tricky but not impossible in most cases. On the other hand, with only one articulation point and a relatively short arm, the C-Fit is quite stable, exhibiting none of the shakiness and vibration that longer, more flexible mounts do. However, the C-Fit perhaps performs best when it's not stuck to your windshield.

The C-Fit's gripping claw is able to hold a wide range of smartphones for easy viewing and access.

(Credit: Antuan Goodwin/CNET)

The suction cup at the base of the TackForm C-Fit is made of tacky, semi-adhesive material that sticks to most solid surfaces under its own power. This stickiness, combined with the suction generated by locking the C-Fit's suction cup in place with a lever, results in a remarkably tenacious grip on whatever surface I mounted it to. This strong grip is a boon for keeping a smartphone device secured and stable while driving, but it can also be a tad difficult (but not impossible) to remove between trips. Additionally, the tacky material has a tendency to pick up lint and dirt when stored or transported without a cover, so the C-Fit is probably best left, semipermanently, in place in your vehicle between trips, rather than repeatedly placed and removed as a conventional suction cup mount would be. If the grip does get dirty and lose its stickiness, it can be cleaned with a wet cloth. When the cup dries, it will be sticky again.

The tackiness of the C-Fit's suction cup means that it can be attached to leather, leatherette, wood, and that oddly-rubberized "soft touch" dashboard material. I particularly enjoy the dashboard-mounting ability, because it allows me to mount the phone low and near the radio controls, where it can be easily reached for destination input or changing songs while the windshield remains unobstructed.

The TackForm C-Fit's sticky suction cup lets it hold firmly to a car's dashboard.

(Credit: Antuan Goodwin/CNET)

The C-Fit's mounting arm features a wide, glossy plastic cover that is available in red or black. Aside from being a fingerprint magnet, the cover makes it difficult to get at the suction cup when it's time to remove the C-Fit mount from whatever surface you have tacked it to. I much prefer the nearly identical Bracketron Mi-T Grip (which uses the same gripping claw and tacky suction cup, but with a shorter, simpler mounting arm). When cast in its red color, the C-Fit is eye-catching. However, I'm not a fan of leaving eye-catching objects out in view, which could be a problem for cars parked in high-theft areas, thus I prefer the all-black color scheme. (Trust me, I've had cars broken into for less.)

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WeVideo - Video Editor (Android)

With the WeVideo app for Android, you can quickly edit and publish video clips while on the go. The app even syncs to your WeVideo account in the cloud, so you can continue your work from a browser on your desktop computer.

If you don't already have a WeVideo account, the app will create one for you when you first log in. By default, you get a free Lite account, which comes with 5GB of storage and 15 minutes of export time per month. It also caps your export resolution at 480p, but you can pay a small fee to upgrade this on an ad hoc basis. And if you want higher capacities and resolution for all of your videos, you can always upgrade to a paid account at any time.

WeVideo is a quick and dirty editor that lets you chop up, stylize, and publish your video to the Web.

(Credit: Screenshot by Jaymar Cabebe/CNET)

Perhaps the best thing about WeVideo for Android is the app's interface. It's as simple as it gets and should be easy to pick up even for those without any video editing experience at all. Conveniently, the app opens up to your Media Library, which shows off all of the videos, images, and audio files stored on your device, so there's no need to import anything into the app before editing. The bad thing here is that your Media Library will not show you any media that you have uploaded directly to your cloud account from a desktop, so in your mobile video projects, you'll only be able to use what's stored locally.

To get started editing, all you have to do is tap and drag any item to the timeline at the bottom. You can drag a series of videos or still images or a combination of both. And if you need to, you can easily reorder the items with a simple tap-and-drag gesture as well. From there, you can tap any item on your timeline to perform your micro-edits. You'll be able to trim clips to an appropriate length, adjust their volume, and even add captions. The last step here is to add an audio track to play over your footage. Unfortunately, though, the WeVideo app doesn't let you edit or trim your audio in any way, which makes it almost impossible to try to sync your video to a soundtrack. So, if that's what you're looking to do, you'll have to hit the desktop.

Once you're done putting your video together, you can stylize your footage with one of WeVideo's included themes. In all there are 24, each of which adds different color filters, borders, and even transitions to your video. The available themes don't offer much in the way of customization, but it's still nice to have at least these two dozen templates available. And ultimately, if you want to get more granular with your effects and edits, you can always upload your project from your mobile device to your cloud account and edit from the full Web version of WeVideo.

Finally, there's the Publish screen, where you'll find options to save your video as well as share on YouTube or Facebook. In my tests, I was able to share to YouTube, but for some reason the Facebook share didn't work, even after multiple attempts. Hopefully, this little bug gets fixed in an update. By default, the app will always save to your WeVideo account in the cloud when you publish, and you can check the option to save a copy locally as well.

Overall, WeVideo provides a dead simple platform for making quick-and-dirty edits on videos, photos, and audio files on your mobile device.

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Sony Xperia ZL

A less sophisticated cousin to Sony's current flagship phone, the Xperia Z, the Xperia ZL has plenty to offer, including the same powerful components and impressive 13-megapixel imaging system. Priced at an exorbitant $759.99, though, this Android handset is no impulse buy. That said, as it's running Jelly Bean out of the box, boasting a big 5-inch screen, and with support for 4G LTE, it's nicely appointed. If you're going to spend this much on a phone, however, there are other similarly impressive unlocked options, such as the HTC One Developer Edition.

Design Sony certainly used its current design language to craft the dark and thin black slab that is the Xperia ZL. The ZL's clean lines, sleek rectangular shape, and glossy edges would fit right in if set next to the company's HDTVs and home theater equipment.

Meet the big-screened Xperia ZL.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

If you're expecting a luxurious build quality equal to that of Sony's flagship Xperia Z, you won't find it in the ZL. Unlike the Z, the Xperia ZL doesn't have a water- and dust-resistant chassis. The phone also uses a more mundane plastic back and not the premium glass material the Xperia Z sports. Still, the ZL's textured back cover is pleasing to the touch, repels fingerprints, and offers a sure grip.

The Xperia ZL is thin and relatively stylish.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

Measuring just 0.39 inch thick, the device is also svelte and easy to slide into tight pockets. With a large 5-inch screen and at 5.18 inches tall by 2.7 inches wide, placing the ZL alongside other items is a squeeze. The phone has some heft, too, tipping the scales at 5.33 ounces.

Physical controls on the Xperia ZL are sparse, and the phone's right edge holds only a thin volume rocker, power key, and dedicated shutter button. In a unique design twist, Sony has placed the circular power key at the center of the handset's right side. I found it to be within short reach of my thumb, but honestly I'd rather have it positioned slightly higher along the spine for extra comfort.

On the left side is the Micro-USB port, while up top is a standard 3.5mm headphone jack. Another interesting design choice is the placement of the 2-megapixel front camera. It sits below the screen in the bottom right corner, not the traditional spot above the phone's display. I do like the Xperia ZL's thin, sliverlike notification light, also underneath the display, which pulses in various colors when alerts roll in.

On the back is the 13-megapixel main camera.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

You will find a 13-megapixel main camera on the back of the ZL, along with an LED flash. Also here is a small speaker and a door that provides access to both SIM card and microSD card slots. The phone's 2,370 mAh battery is embedded, however, so it's officially hands-off.

Watching video and viewing photos on the Sony Xperia ZL are very enjoyable.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

Screen Packing a full HD resolution of 1,920x1,080 pixels, the Sony Xperia ZL's 5-inch screen certainly has plenty of visual impact. Colors were vibrant and details were sharp, whether I was viewing photos or reading e-books and Web pages. That said, the screen isn't the most impressive I've seen. For instance, I noticed that viewing angles were very shallow.

Both color quality and brightness deteriorated quickly if I gazed at the ZL's display in any direction other than straight on. Additionally, though the Xperia ZL's screen is actually brighter than the HTC One's (1,920x1,880-pixel, 4.7-inch), the One's viewing angles are much wider, which translates into more stunning images and video. By contrast, besides merely killing brightness, tilting the Xperia's display off angle resulted in a distracting greenish cast to whites.

Software, UI, and features Past Sony phones like the Xperia Ion and Xperia P were well behind the curve, In fact the Xperia TL was the first Sony handset to have features and components on par with its smartphone piers. The company has definitely upped its game with the Xperia ZL. The handset runs Google's Android Jelly Bean operating system (version 4.1.2), which supports all your modern mobile needs. Sure, it may not be the freshest iteration of Android that Google has cooked up (version 4.2) but very few devices, save the LG Nexus 4 and upcoming Samsung Galaxy S4, have those bragging rights.

Unlock the Xperia ZL by flicking your finger upward or by swiping the camera and music icons to the center.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

Regardless, the Xperia ZL offers all the power and flexibility of modern Android plus has native support for Google services including the enhanced search capabilities of Google Now. The phone doesn't run pure Android but instead has Sony's UI skin grafted over it. Besides a custom lock screen, the Xperia ZL features the company's own special sauce.

Highlights are a handy weather widget, and a nice remote control app to use the phone as a second clicker for TVs and AV receivers. With the Remote software I was able to control Samsung and Panasonic HDTV test units easily, powering them up, switching inputs, and so on. You do have to use the app in landscape mode, which I think is an awkward way to hold a remote.

Check the weather with the ZL's handy app.

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

You can download and play small selection of exclusive Xperia-branded games on the ZL as well. Don't get too excited, though; these titles aren't true PlayStation Vita or PSP games. They are merely beefed-up smartphone-style fare or third-party titles tweaked to run on Xperia handsets.

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Magellan Smart GPS

The Magellan SmartGPS is a portable navigation device, but it's also part of a larger system that, at the time of publication, has parts that give users multiple ways to navigate, search for destination, and manage their favorite places. At the core of this system is the SmartGPS hardware, which can be used as a standalone navigation device. However, the hardware works best when used in tandem with Magellan's smartphone apps for iPhone and Android devices and a cloud syncing service called MiCloud that is accessible via any Web browser.

Design
The SmartGPS hardware looks about like you'd expect a portable navigation device to look. It's a plastic slab with a touch screen on one side that gets suction cupped to your windshield.

The device measures about 6.75 inches from corner to corner, but has a diagonal screen size of only 5 inches. There's a lot of glossy black bezel around that screen, which seems like a lot of wasted space -- particularly on the horizontal -- for those of us used to seeing smartphones, tablets, and even other portable navigation devices push their screens closer and closer to being edgeless. Imagine a device that's about the size of a small tablet with a screen the size of an average Android phone and you'll have an idea of the potential for extra display real estate. To be fair, 5 inches is a respectable screen size for a navigator, but when you consider the amount of information that Magellan tries to cram onto the SmartGPS' screen, this seem like a missed opportunity to go bigger or wider.

The 5-inch screen isn't substantially larger than my Samsung Galaxy Nexus', despite the SmartGPS' larger footprint.

(Credit: Antuan Goodwin/CNET)

The screen is glass and features capacitive sensitivity, enabling swiping, pinching, and tapping gestures. The glossy black bezel is home to a capacitive home button located near the upper-left corner and a pinhole microphone for hands-free calling.

Flip it over and you'll find a speaker on the SmartGPS unit's back side and a power button on top edge.

The bottom edge is home to all of the ports and connections supported by the SmartGPS. There's a microSD card slot for updates and increasing available memory for maps, a 3.5mm analog output for connecting headphones or plugging into your vehicle's auxiliary input, and a micro USB port that connects to the 12-volt-to-USB charging cable that embeds in the suction cup mount for one-handed connection and disconnection. The included suction cup mount is a sturdy one, once mounted properly to a glass windshield. The mount only has one point of articulation -- a ball joint with a locking ring at the base of the cradle -- so there's not a lot of flopping around once you've got the SmartGPS locked in.

All of the physical connections can be found on the bottom edge.

(Credit: Antuan Goodwin/CNET)

Finally, there's an 3.5mm AV input that makes the SmartGPS compatible with Magellan's rear-view camera add-on.

The SmartGPS also hosts invisible connections for Bluetooth and Wi-Fi for data synchronization and, for the former, hands-free calling.

Standalone navigation
The SmartGPS mixes up Magellan's familiar interface by adding smart "Squares," which are live-updating tiles that occupy part of the map screen and provide auxiliary data at a glance and quick shortcuts to destinations. On the default home screen, four of these squares are displayed, showing shortcuts to nearby destinations pulled from Yelp and Foursquare, nearby gas stations and live fuel prices, and nearby traffic events. When navigating, the map (which normally only occupies half of the screen) expands from to occupy three-quarters, pushing two of the smart squares off of the right edge of the display.

Along the bottom edge of the home screen are shortcuts for settings, Bluetooth calling and messaging, destination search, an address book of stored destinations, and Magellan's OneTouch menu of quick shortcuts to searches and destinations.

Expanding the smart squares reveals live updating tiles for nearby destinations, fuel prices, weather forecasts, and more.

(Credit: Antuan Goodwin/CNET)

Along the top of the screen is a status bar that is very reminiscent of a smartphone's interface with icons for wireless connection and sync status, battery level, GPS connection strength, and the current time. There's also sort of virtual scroll wheel that can be swiped to the left to reveal more smart squares -- for total of eight squares -- adding weather, safety alerts, current position, and a shortcut to a browser. Swiping to the left hides the squares and expands the map to full screen.

The browser should probably not be used when driving, but when parked (or outside of the vehicle) and connected to Wi-Fi, users can load Web pages. Addresses and phone numbers that appear during your browsing can be tapped to initiate a trip or a hands-free call. From the looks of the browser interface and settings screen, it appears that the SmartGPS is built on a heavily modified 2.x version of the Android operating system.

The Web browser is probably the least useful feature, but it does hint that the SmartGPS hardware is powered by Android.

(Credit: Antuan Goodwin/CNET)

Each of the smart squares has a sort of Rolodex-like appearance and cycles through its available data. For example, the fuel square will cycle through the nearest gas stations and their respective fuel prices, or the Yelp square will show the nearest restaurants with their average Yelp rating. Each square can be swiped up and down to quickly scroll through the available data and tapped to display more information or instantly navigate to the destination displayed.

The data for these smart squares is synced from the Web. After connecting the SmartGPS to a nearby Wi-Fi hotspot, the portable navigation device will connect to the Web and download the newest data for fuel prices in the area, highly rated Yelp and Foursquare destinations for your chosen categories, traffic prediction data, safety alerts, speed and red light cameras, and favorites and recent destinations stored to Magellan's cloud service. Once this data is synced, the SmartGPS doesn't need to maintain an Internet connection to access it; you can just hop in your car and drive around.

Clicking a Yelp or Foursquare tile reveals more information -- including deals or tips -- and buttons to start navigation.

(Credit: Antuan Goodwin/CNET)

When you return to your garage or bring the SmartGPS inside at the end of a trip, it quietly reconnects to the Internet to once again sync data.

SmartGPS app integration
Owners of of iPhones can download the free SmartGPS app from the App Store to link their portable navigation to the Web via the handset's Bluetooth and data connections. While connected, the SmartGPS will have access the absolute most recent fuel prices, road hazards, traffic data, and points of interest. Magellan tells us that it has optimized the SmartGPS' data use so that it doesn't gobble up your entire data plan, only pulling relevant bits of data as necessary.

Since many users will already be Bluetooth connected for hands-free calling, there likely won't be much setup required to get this bit of connectivity working properly.

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2013 Subaru BRZ

The 2013 Subaru BRZ is a gorgeous car. For all intents and purposes, it's identical to the Scion FR-S that we tested last year, but with a few superficial styling differences. It's got different badges, a reshaped lower grille, different wheels, and a different cap on the cosmetic fender vents, but in the broad strokes of the sports coupe's design it's so similar to the Scion model (and the Toyota model that both of them are based on) that you'd have a hard time telling the difference if you passed one in traffic.

One easy way to distinguish our Subaru from its Scion-badged cousins is the signature WR Blue Pearl paint, which is unique to the BRZ and is a stunning color in person.

Cheap dashboard, poor cabin tech
Let's go ahead and get this out of the way, so that I can get on to gushing over how much I loved driving the BRZ: the entire dashboard experience is crap. The build quality is low and the best thing about the audio and navigation system is that it looks easy to remove and replace.

The dashboard itself is an eyesore, made of cheap, hard plastic that felt hollow when rapped with a fingertip. The buttons and knobs for climate control felt toylike and the silver plastic that covered much of the upper dashboard and center console buttons looked like it'd be fairly easily scratched off.

One could argue that a hollow plastic dashboard keeps the sports car's weight down, but it also makes the car feel flimsy. At one point, when removing a music-filled USB drive from the dashboard port, I pulled an entire panel loose -- the USB drive, on the other hand, was still firmly connected to the port. That the panel clips weren't stronger than the USB's grip is just ridiculous.

I gave the USB drive a tug and the dashboard panel just popped out.

(Credit: Antuan Goodwin/CNET)

The navigation receiver has all the features I like to see in a modern vehicle. It's got a 6.1-inch LCD touch screen that displays maps for navigation that are stored on an SD card. When routing a destination, the BRZ's navigation system can even give you fuel use, trip cost, and emissions estimates on the trip summary screen. However, these numbers are estimated based on preset values for the car and fuel prices that are input in a menu, not populated live from the vehicle's ECU or the Web.

At the base of the center stack are USB and 3.5mm analog auxiliary inputs. The USB port will allow the system to read and control an iPod. You get Bluetooth wireless connectivity for hands-free calling and audio streaming, AM/FM with HD Radio decoding, and SiriusXM Satellite Radio, which also provides NavTraffic data for the navigation system. And there's a single-disc CD player with MP3 capability. This is a respectable list of audio sources. Unfortunately, the interface design of this receiver is severely lacking.

There are no steering-wheel controls for volume or skip, which means that you'll be reaching all the way over to the receiver quite a bit. The only physical controls are a volume knob and three buttons for audio, voice command, and map. Simple functions, such as skipping tracks, can take multiple screen or button taps depending on where in the interface you are when you decide to change songs. Also, the system isn't very responsive to input and lags noticeably between a tap and its result.

The infotainment system features small physical and virtual buttons and a display that's susceptible to glare.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

The onscreen buttons and the few physical controls are tiny and quite difficult to hit precisely when the stiffly sprung vehicle is bouncing around -- the most heinous offenders are the onscreen audio source buttons, which are arranged in a narrow strip along the left edge of the screen and need to be scrolled through to go from, for example, satellite radio to Bluetooth audio streaming.

Voice control is standard and should help, but you'll still have to reach all the way over to the receiver to tap a tiny button to activate the prompt. Even then, the system is slow and lacks integration with the navigation system. Oddly, the voice command system recognizes the command "Navigation" but doesn't offer any functionality beneath that heading, so either the system is incomplete or a more comprehensive list of voice commands is coming soon.

Perhaps most annoying is the audio coming out of the eight-speaker, 196-watt stereo system -- it was, frankly, not good. There was overwhelming bad distortion in the lower range output at high volume levels and there was a noticeable bass buzz coming from one of the A-pillar speakers at moderate volumes that would be filtered out on a better stereo with some sort of crossover. Even at lower volumes, there seemed to be an odd tonal dead spot between the midrange and bass where the volume just dropped off; the midrange frequencies were a bit muddy, and the highs were harsh. You can make minor fixes with the seven-band EQ, but there's only so much that you can do. Either the speakers or the panels to which they are mounted are just not up to the job.

I don't think I've heard a stereo this bad in years. Just for kicks, I tossed in a Skrillex CD and cranked the volume to see what would happen. The resulting audio sounded more like controlled flatulence than listenable audio -- though some would call this an improvement. It would almost be funny, if I didn't want to actually listen to a song now and then.

Excellent driver's seat ergonomics
It's not all bad in the cabin, however. Fortunately, the 2013 Subaru BRZ's ergonomics are fantastic. The steering wheel and shifter fall perfectly into hand, and the seat offers a good amount of manual adjustment to make sure of that. Deep bolstering on the seats helps keep the driver in place during hard cornering, so I didn't have to brace myself with my knees like I often do. Pedals are perfectly placed for heel and toe downshifting. Drop a water bottle in the door panel cup holders and you'll be able to grab a swig without stretching -- I don't think I've ever actually used a door panel cup holder before, but I was impressed by the Subaru's. Toyota and Subaru's designers have clearly done a good job of wrapping the cockpit around the driver.

Forward visibility is also quite good. The raised arches over the front wheels makes it easy to spot the vehicle's corners despite the low hood.

The BRZ's sport seats grip the driver and passenger during high-speed cornering.

(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)

If I have one complaint about the ergonomics, it's rear visibility. The high rear deck makes reversing a tricky affair. Meaty C-pillars make reversing out of a perpendicular spot or changing lanes a matter of double and triple takes. Of course, the BRZ's track- and enthusiast-focused design is probably to blame here -- you don't do much rear-mirror checking on an autocross or road course -- but owners will need to live with the coupe off-course, as well. That a rear camera isn't available on the BRZ must be noted.

Subaru Boxer engine
Underneath the BRZ's hood is the same 2.0-liter, horizontally opposed (aka Boxer), four-cylinder engine that you'll find powering the Scion FR-S. There are no tuning differences or surprises here. Power is given as 200 horsepower and the crank is twisted with a mere 151 pound-feet of torque. That torque is multiplied by a standard six-speed manual transmission before reaching the rear axle, where it is split between the 17-inch wheels shod with 215-width tires via a Torsen limited-slip differential.

The Boxer engine's exhaust note has a nice burble at wide-open throttle that, while not as guttural as the Subaru Impreza WRX's note or as loud as the WRX STI's, has a nice deepness when compared with the buzzy in-line four-cylinder engines that it competes with. More importantly, the engine feels responsive. Blips of the throttle for downshifts are immediate and there is little rev-float when upshifting.

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