Friday, November 30, 2012

Maxis offers new iPad on SurfMore 75 from RM799

 
If you’re looking for the 3rd gen new ipad, Maxis is offering it as a bundle with SurfMore 75 plan from as low as RM799. The SurfMore 75 is a postpaid plan which comes with 5GB of data. 2 models are offered – 16GB WiFi + Cellular at RM799 and 32GB WiFi + Cellular at RM999. Both bundling are tied with 24 months contract.
During sign up, Maxis requires RM1,000 advance upfront payment which will be rebated back to your bill across 5 months period.
For more information, head over to Maxis iPad promo page

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

BIGBANG & PSY & 2NE1 - I AM FANTASTIC GANGNAM STYLE BABY

BIGBANG & PSY & 2NE1 - I AM FANTASTIC GANGNAM STYLE BABY

PSY - RIGHT NOW @ Seoul Plaza Live Concert

PSY - RIGHT NOW @ Seoul Plaza Live Concert

PSY - GANGNAM STYLE @ KYONGGI UNIVERSITY

PSY - GANGNAM STYLE @ KYONGGI UNIVERSITY

PSY - GANGNAM STYLE @ YEOSU EXPO

PSY - GANGNAM STYLE @ YEOSU EXPO

Monday, November 26, 2012

Samsung Galaxy Camera official walkthrough


The Samsung Galaxy Camera will be launched in Malaysia tomorrow which is their first Android powered compact camera running with Galaxy S III-like internals. To get to know the device better, Samsung has released a rather detailed walk-through video which is available after the break.
To recap on the specs, the Galaxy Camera features a 16MP BSI CMOS sensor mated with a wide angle 21X optical zoom. Powering the device is a quad-core Exynos processor which is juiced up with a 1,650mAh battery. Internally there’s a 3.87GB memory which is expandable with microSD up to 64GB. The back comes with a 4.8″ Super Clear LCD multi-touch screen which is one of the biggest displays for a camera. As it is pushed as an always connected device, the Galaxy Camera comes with WiFi and 3G data support which uses micro SIM.
Being a connected device, the ability to share instantly to Dropbox is a pleasant touch especially if you fear of losing your photos or have the sudden need to clear your memory card without any computers nearby. There are several smart imaging features as well and it is capable of shooting 4FPS (20 photos in 5 seconds) photos and videos up to 120fps in its slow motion mode. The Galaxy Camera also offers a variety of on-screen filter and editing tools. Since it is an Android device, the application possibilities are endless but obviously running such apps would be a battery killer, something which you would want to avoid during a long outdoor trip.
In terms of pricing, launches globally are showing under RM2,000 range which is rather decent for its “smart phone” features bolted on. Full details will be out tomorrow and we will be sharing more as soon as we find out. Head after the break to watch the videos.

Sunday, November 25, 2012

PSY (With Special Guest MC Hammer) - Gangnam Style (Live 2012 American Music Awards)

PSY (With Special Guest MC Hammer) - Gangnam Style (Live 2012 American Music Awards) http://youtu.be/WOyo7JD7hjo

Monday, November 19, 2012

Rooney, Van Persie and Ferdinand among big names rested for Manchester United against Galatasaray

With qualification to the knockout phase already secured, Sir Alex Ferguson has named a host of youngsters, while Giggs, Scholes, De Gea and Valencia all miss out.

Wayne Rooney of Manchester United
Getty Images
Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has opted to rest Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie and Rio Ferdinand for the Red Devils' Champions League trip to Galatasaray.

United has already secured its place in the knockout phase of the competition, as a 3-1 win in Braga almost a fortnight ago made it four wins out of four so far.

With his side looking to maintain its place at the top of the Premier League table, Ferguson has opted to rest a number of senior names - including Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Antonio Valencia and David De Gea - in favour of some of the club's younger players.

Goalkeeper Sam Johnstone and defender Tom Thorpe are both yet to make a senior appearance for the Old Trafford outfit, have featured at Under-21 level for the club and are capped at England Under-19 level.

Manchester United squad in full:

Goalkeepers: Sam Johnstone, Anders Lindegaard.

Defenders: Rafael, Alexander Buttner, Phil Jones, Tom Thorpe, Marnick Vermijl, Scott Wootton.

Midfielders: Michael Carrick, Davide Petrucci, Larnell Cole, Tom Cleverley, Darren Fletcher, Anderson, Nick Powell, Ashley Young, Ryan Tunnicliffe.

Strikers: Javier Hernandez, Joshua King, Danny Welbeck, Federico Macheda.

2013 Honda Civic 2013-US market minor facelift unveiled

2013 Honda Civic 2013-US market minor facelift unveiled
 
op: 2013 Civic USDM facelift, bottom left: Honda Civic USDM pre-facelift, bottom right: Malaysian Civic
This is one of the quickest facelifts in history, coming in at only 1.5 years after the current 9th generation Honda Civic sedan was unveiled in the US. This is the US market car which looks different than our Asian market model to begin with, and the US car’s facelift was designed to correct criticism from the US market, so the Asian Civic that’s in our market might not get any update.
It will make its debut at the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show on November 29. The Civic features a new open-mouth lower bumper with a horizontal chrome accent and a sportier, black honeycomb mesh grille, anchored by new integrated fog lights on upper trims. The grille is flanked by new clear-lens corner lights. There’s also a new more deeply faceted hood and a collection of new wheel designs.

Kia Rio teased in Malaysia


The Kia Rio hatchback was teased by Kia Malaysia at an exhibition hall next to Asia Klasika 2012 last weekend. Dressed in psychedelic colours which pretty much hid a lot of the car’s lines, it took the centre stage of their floor space beside the rest of the current line-up.
We hear that the Rio hatchback is set to be launched in the first half of 2013, probably with a 1.4 litre engine and an automatic transmission. We’ve seen the Kia Rio hatchback being tested with a trade plate back in March this year.

 

Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 Roadster

Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 Roadster
Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 Roadster


Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 Roadster

Honda 1.5 litre i-VTEC direct-injection engine and G-Design Shift CVT sampled, along with CR-Z facelift


The Sport Hybrid systems, including the all-new single-motor Intelligent Dual-Clutch Drive, weren’t the only highlights at the 2012 Honda Meeting – Earth Dreams Technology showcase held in Japan. Honda also previewed its new direct-injection mills, in both 2.4 litre and 1.5 litre guise. The two Earth Dreams inline-four units wear fresh CVTs as well.
The 1.5 litre twin-cam DI unit, which offers 127 hp and 154 Nm, has both VTEC and VTC as well as auto stop-start in the inventory. The 11:0 compression NA unit features a new lightweight block construction, with active measures to reduce friction.
Key tech employed includes low-tension piston rings, a two-stage relief oil pump, high-tumble port, mass EGR and patterned piston coating. In terms of improvement, torque is up by 6%, and efficiency by 5% over a similar existing powertrain.
As for the CVT, the transmission wears a G-Design Shift badge, and for this one the company states that a “new cooperative control achieves ‘the joy of operating’ the car.” Such imagery aside, the new 6.2 ratio unit is claimed to have a quicker response, better efficiency and wider range.

Reduced friction is on the cards, as well as the employment of a new CVT transmission fluid. Elsewhere, the design incorporates a new high-precision pulley pressure control, high-efficiency oil pump and a new high-strength belt.
The new power and drivetrain was on a Fit at Tochigi, and there was a chance to try it out on the high-speed banked oval – the upper lane was closed off at the banked sections, but there was still ample acreage to stretch the car’s legs as part of what the company tagged the ‘Acceleration Fun’ part of the event.
Tuned towards offering economy without sacrificing drivability, the unit isn’t a veritable powerhouse, but it’s energetic enough. It’s also impressively smooth, especially the CVT. There’s none of the rubber-banding characteristics associated with the type, and what was coming off the unit was rather direct, almost auto transmission-like in feel.
The engine itself is quite willing, lively as it climbs up the rev range, and the smoothness carries through to higher band operation. A simple round across Tochigi won’t reveal what it’s like in the real world, so things will have to wait until it – presumably – debuts on the new Fit to show what it can really achieve, especially with regards to fuel consumption.

The bigger displacement unit, the 2.4, has pretty much the same bag of tech tricks seen on the 1.5 DI, with the inclusion of a double-arm chain system into the list. Output torque has been increased by 10%, and efficiency is up by 4% over the current unit. As for power output, the new 2.4 DI offers 184 hp at 6,400 rpm (188 hp in Sport trim) and 243 Nm at 4,000 rpm.
Aside from the two DI units, there were other engines on static display – the new 1.6 litre Earth Dreams i-DTEC turbodiesel, which will make its market debut in the new Civic hatchback in Europe in January, as well as a research three-cylinder petrol turbo mill.
No details were available for the three-cylinder turbo, and none were again forthcoming from the Honda engineers despite some serious prodding, but the unit does look rather 1.0 EcoBoost-esque in intent and form. It does look like Honda is viewing the downsizing card and at alternatives quite intently – might be that something like this would bridge the gap from its 1.5 DI to its 660 cc mills quite nicely.
Speaking of 660 cc mills, we had the chance to take out the recently-launched N-One kei car, in both normally-aspirated and turbo forms. The NA version offers 57 hp at 7,300 rpm and 65 Nm at 3,500 rpm, while the turbo delivers 63 hp at 6,000 rpm and 104 Nm at 2,600 rpm. The N-One only comes with a CVT, and from what was gathered at the event, that also wears a G-Design Shift badge.

The car looks cute, in a kitschy way – I quite like the front end, actually. The interior is rather neat too, if spartan. The front bench looks novel and there’s a decent number of cubbyholes for storage, and a push-button ignition and auto AC keeps it all tidy.
Around the track, belting it seemed a poor idea, especially with the NA, given that it’s really meant as a city car, but aside from a wooly steering at speed and some wind noise, the N-One gave a decent account of itself. Its behaviour is clean and the overall spirit is definitely perky. The turbo went around much easier, naturally, but performance isn’t the be all and end all – in Japan, it’s the cheaper NA that sells far better.
Such is the case too with the gangly N Box, which was at Tochigi in its turbocharged form, complete with Custom dress-up kit – the engine is the same unit as that on the N-One, and has identical figures.
Like the N-One, the normally-aspirated N Box does much better than its turbo sibling in terms of sales, but Japanese consumers do opt to dress it up with the Custom kit – it’s 50-50 basic and Custom as far as sales go, I was told.

Inspired by what the N-One achieved, I decided to let rip with the N Box, and at 130 km/h going into the middle lane of the bank, images of the vehicle tottering over flashed in my mind, but aside from a complete drop in steering weight, it chugged along happily.
As far as drive character goes, think of it as a bigger N-One. It’s not the prettiest thing, the N Box, but it is eminently practical (plenty of space at the back with the rear seats folded down), and sales reflect its popularity in Japan.
Last, but not least, the facelifted CR-Z. The example at Tochigi was an auto mule, but the additional juice incorporated into the revision helps add zip – you should temper your expectations, because it’s not jaw dropping, but there’s a definite improvement, notably going into the midband.

I finally figured out how the S+ button operates. Press it, and you get all the available power the car can muster, but the battery has to be at least four bars full; any lower and the system is unavailable. When available, a ‘S+ Ready’ indicator lights up on top of the battery meter display.
Operation is accelerator pedal dependent. The moment you ease off on it, the system disengages and goes back to normal output. Things are also good for a moderate time only, but it’s long enough for something like overtaking.
No word on when the car will arrive on our shores, but given that production of the pre-facelift model is all but over, you can work the math as to when it’ll tentatively arrive here. Oh, and apologies for not grabbing any pix of the CR-Z’s interior – there was simply too many things going on, and by the time I remembered we had left for the next section!

A new record – MINI Cooper SD fits 28 people


Last year, we saw 14 people squeeze into a MINI Countryman in Penang and snapped a video of it. But that’s nothing compared to this latest feat, which saw a total of 28 people cram themselves into a 2012 MINI Cooper SD.
28 flexible ladies from a gym in East Sussex crammed their way into the MINI Hatch at Potters Fields Park, London as part of the eighth annual Guinness World Records day. The team broke their own previous record of 27 people, which they set in Eastbourne last year. People were stuffed in every inch including the dashboard, the footwells, and four people even fit themselves into the boot.
After that, they repeated their feat with a classic Mini, managing to stuff a staggering 23 ladies into it, beating the previous record by two people.

Mitsubishi Mirage Malaysia-More photos

Mitsubishi Mirage Malaysia-More photos

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New Mitsubishi MIRAGE TVC (official)

New Mitsubishi MIRAGE TVC (official)

Mitsubishi Mirage officially launched – RM55k to 63k


After months of teasing and pre-launch announcements, Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia (MMM) launched the new Mitsubishi Mirage in KL this morning. Osamu Masuko, president of Mitsubishi Motors Corporation Japan, officiated the launch of the Thai-made compact car.
The Mirage is powered by a new 3A92 1.2 litre three-cylinder engine with MIVEC. The DOHC three-pot unit makes 78 PS (at 6,000 rpm) and 100 Nm of torque (at 4,000 rpm), and MMM is keen to highlight the lightweight hatchback’s 21 km/l fuel consumption measured in the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC). That’s impressively close to what some compact hybrids can do.

By the way, the lean and trim Mirage weighs just 825 kg, or 850 kg for the CVT, enabling Mitsu to get away with a smaller capacity engine for the Mirage, which is classified as an eco-car in Thailand. MMM says that there’s no direct competitor with a similar concept in Malaysia, but price point rivals include the Perodua Myvi and Suzuki Swift.
The base GL model comes with a five-speed manual transmission. The self-shifting Mirage uses an INVECS-III CVT gearbox, and this can be had in GL spec or top-of-the-range GS with all the bells and whistles. The manual GL is priced at RM55,583, the CVT GL RM60,453 and the top-spec CVT GS costs RM63,375. These prices are on-the-road excluding insurance.

The rest of the hardware are as expected of a car in this segment. The suspension consists of front MacPherson struts and a rear torsion beam, the front brakes are vented discs and the rears are drums, while the steering is of the electric EPS variety. Speaking of steering, the Mirage boasts a turning circle of 4.4 metres, which is best in class. All trim levels wear 14-inch alloys with 165/65 rubber.
Features wise, the top-spec Mirage comes with quite a bit of goodies usually associated with bigger cars. The GS gets Smart Key keyless entry with push start button, digital automatic air-con and leather wrapped steering wheel/gear knob.

All variants get a two-DIN Kenwood audio system with USB, iPod and AUX interface and Bright View instrument cluster. Outside, only the GS gets a spoiler and fog lamps. Across the board, safety features include two airbags, ABS, EBD, ISOFIX child seat mounts and front seatbelts with pre-tensioner.
The Mirage can be had in five colours – Lemonade Yellow Metallic, Eisen Grey Mica, Red Metallic, White Pearl and Cool Silver Metallic. A live example of every colour is in the gallery below.
MMM is also offering optional equipment that can be fitted at the dealership. Buyers can add on an Aero Package (front/rear corner extension, side sill extension, side window deflectors RM1,999), Chrome Package (fog lamp garnish, front bumper plating garnish, tailgate garnish, scuff plates, RM750), Ralliart fuel lid cover (RM150) and “smart fit” leather seats (RM1,500). The green car you see here wears all the exterior add-ons.

The visiting Masuko told us that the Mirage has been very well received in Thailand, with over 45,000 orders collected since March this year. The Thai-made Mirage was launched in Japan in August, and close to 12,000 orders have came in. In Malaysia, MMM has over 500 bookings on hand, 90% of which are for the top-spec GS CVT.

Pepsi Commercial-Strongest basketballer in the world!

Pepsi Commercial-Strongest basketballer in the world!

Sunday, November 18, 2012

AV queen in my mind

Some AV star in Japan are now turning into Movie star lately, some now in Taiwan, some in Hong Kong and China.





SP女探员-美之祭品 SP WOMAN 2012/ A Movie by my AV Queen Akiho


译  名 SP女探员-美之祭品
◎片  名 SP WOMAN / SPウーマン·美しき生贄9 C* W( @( V( L0 o4 {3 A* L
◎年  代 2012
◎国  家 日本
◎类  别 剧情
◎语  言 日文公仔箱論壇: A. R9 u. h& t; f; P# \6 K
◎字  幕 中文tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb,tv series,tv drama,movie,bt,download% t( o; N- {) \: x& [6 m
◎文件格式 高清720P版HD-RMVB
◎视频尺寸 1280 X 720tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb,tv series,tv drama,movie,bt,download3 Q8 \3 a- Y% G+ V" ]! I
◎文件大小 1CD 885MBwww.tvboxnow.com: \' k1 I, q/ i3 I% A* g1 q2 r1 o! ~
◎片  长 85mins公仔箱論壇) L; N* h2 _9 h! u
◎导  演 遊法仁
◎主  演 吉沢明歩/星野あかり/中野剛/高尾慎也TVBNOW 含有熱門話題,最新最快電視,軟體,遊戲,電影,動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。' V$ f2 G# V% \% m

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警視庁からの秘密任務を請け負う“SPウーマン”高園レイ。彼女の仕事は、ひとりの女として身も心も捧げ、VIPを護ることだった―。絶大な人気を誇る美人AV女優·吉沢明歩、星野あかりの競演でおくる、セクシー·サスペンス·アクションの決定版!# V# E! G$ s$ t" L$ A* W! h' S
はだけた胸元でオトコの目を釘付けにする美人SPウーマン·高園レイを演じるのは、アイドル以上の美貌でAV界の頂点に君臨する超人気女優·吉沢明歩。い まや、その人気は日本国内にとどまらずアジア全域にも広がり、香港映画『蜜桃成熟時 33D(原題)』にも出演。加藤鷹との共演も大きな話題を呼んだ。共演する星野あかりもまた、売れっ子AV嬢でありながら、TVドラマや『寄生獣医?鈴 音』『スマグラーお前の未来を運べ』といった映画への出演も重ね、活躍の場を広げている。本作ではマルタイ(=護衛対象者)を狙う変質的ストーカーを熱 演。吉沢明歩演じるレイとの対決も見所のひとつだ。本編中でも妖艶な官能シーンを見せてくれる2人だが、さらに特典映像として、吉沢明歩·星野あかりの魅 力が満載の“監督が選んだベストショット”を収録。ファン必携のDVD作品となっている。
監督は、時代劇エロスOVの人気作『くノ一忍法伝』シリーズで知られる遊法仁。SPというハードな職業をテーマにしつつ、エロスとユーモアに満ちた演出 で、痛快なエンタテインメント作品に仕上げた手腕はベテランならでは。『龍馬伝』『葵』など大河ドラマへの出演も多い中野剛や、期待の若手俳優·高尾慎也 らの好演も、作品に厚みを加えている。公仔箱論壇7 Q; w7 m: k( A' X$ Y+ ~
TVBNOW 含有熱門話題,最新最快電視,軟體,遊戲,電影,動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。0 \# i1 M- y! @- H0 Z
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TVBNOW 含有熱門話題,最新最快電視,軟體,遊戲,電影,動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。; b7 \# t2 S0 P8 }1 D, W



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Sony Xperia ion Review

Sony Xperia ion Review Malaysia
Sony has started 2012 with a bang with its line up of Sony NXT series. The Sony Xperia S which was first announced in January broke new grounds with its 4.3” display that pushes a high 1280×720 resolution. That’s a massive 342 ppi (pixels per inch) which was the highest pixel density at that time. It also marks Sony’s foray into dual-core processors and its refreshed mobile brand that dropped the “Ericsson” name.
When the Xperia S was launched, its other cousin the Xperia ion which is Sony’s first LTE device was only available at selected markets. Fast forward 8 months later, the Xperia ion is finally available for Malaysia that now comes in international HSPA+ variant. Read on to find out more of this Xperia S’s bigger brother.

Hardware

To recap on the specs, the Xperia ion shares a lot of similarities with its Xperia S. It is powered with the same dual-core 1.5GHz Qualcomm MSM8260 S3 processor, 1GB of RAM and a 12MP camera. What sets it apart is its larger 4.6” display (4.55” to be exact) that also does a 1280×720 pixels resolution. Obviously the pixel density is lower than the Xperia S at 323 ppi but in reality, it is rather hard to tell the difference as text and images appear just as sharp.
Internally, it comes with 16GB of storage but thankfully it comes with an expandable slot which accepts up to 32GB of microSD. Battery is slightly generous too at 1,900mAh, which is 150mAh more than the Xperia S. When we got our review unit, the Xperia ion is already running on Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich.
Design

On first glance, the Xperia ion looks more like a serious business phone compared to the trendy looking Xperia S. There’s no fancy transparent belt and it features an all black front where the display panel is unnoticeable when the screen is off. Over at the top, there’s a prominent Sony logo with the front facing 1.3MP camera on the right and at the bottom you get the 4 capacitive buttons along with the Xperia branding. If we have to pick a similar model, the Xperia ion looks very much like a grown up version of the Xperia ray due to its clean square-ish looks.

We are happy to report that the Xperia ion side button placement is a big improvement over the Xperia S. With a larger device in the hand, the power button is now moved towards the right side while the volume rocker is now placed at a higher position which is more natural to reach. Towards the bottom, there’s also a dedicated camera button with Fast Capture that lets you take a picture from sleep to snap under 2 seconds. For better clarity, you can check out our comparison of Fast Capture and other various burst modes.

Looking at the left side, there’s a HDMI and micro USB port which is covered by a single flush cover flap. On the Xperia S, many would find the flush covers to be annoying and unfortunately on the Xperia ion, this is a bigger annoyance. While the cover keeps the design clean, it tends to get in the way while charging. The rubber that holds the cover doesn’t offer much room for flexibility which in the long run you might risk breaking and losing it. At least on the Xperia S, the micro USB cover is rotatable.

The back is where the Xperia ion sets itself apart from the Xperia S. While the Xperia S comes with a nice matte finish, the removable cover is quite a dust trap. On the Xperia ion it comes with a nice metal finish that gives it a touch of elegance. The 12MP camera, assisted LED flash and loud speaker is placed right smacked in the middle like the Xperia S. The top cover is removable and it houses the micro-SIM and micro SD slot, which is a better design. Both top and bottom are made with rubberised texture plastic which is a nice touch. The headphone jack is placed at the top, right in the middle with a slight protrusion.
Usability

Being an early 2012 model, the hardware specs looks dated compared to its latest quad core rivals. Having said that, it is still a decent device and the large 4.55” screen offers great visuals thanks to its high pixel density. Sony does a great job with the new Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich enhancements and the new photo gallery is a nice improvement over the previous Android 2.3.7.

Just like other Sony Xperia devices, the skinned UI is rather nice and aesthetically pleasing with a variety of sleek looking widgets. For average casual use, it is still smooth and does its job rather snappy. One thing we’ve noticed is that Sony has removed the live “Cosmic Flow” wallpaper from its default themes. When switching themes, it uses a static image instead which could be done in the name of performance and power conservation. If you do want that Cosmic Flow, you could still enable it under Live Wallpapers manually.
When being pushed to the limit juggling between several apps extensively, the Xperia ion starts to show its performance shortfalls. There are some occasions when returning to the home screen; it took some time for the icons and widgets to appear. When that happens, even the apps listing arrangement tends to get reset from alphabetical order to custom.

In terms of one handed usage, the Xperia ion is really pushing it. It is usable in one hand albeit some stretching needed. We find 4.3” is the comfortable size where one handed use is concern but despite its larger 4.55” dimensions, it is only slightly wider at 4mm than the Xperia S. It is also interesting to point out that the Xperia ion also weighs the same 144grams as the Xperia S despite having a bigger screen and battery capacity.

Now let’s talk more on the usability downsides of the Xperia ion. The biggest gripe that we had is the 4 capacitive buttons on the front which doesn’t light up when pressed. Yes, you read that right. In total darkness, the only guiding light is the ultra-thin lines that illuminate about 5mm below each icon. We simply can’t comprehend why Sony doesn’t stick to the tried and tested illuminated icon approach. The previous Xperia ray too doesn’t come with back-lit icons but it wasn’t an issue since there’s only 3 buttons and the home button is nicely designed with a notification light surrounding it.

To make matters worse, the Xperia ion too suffers the hit and miss capacitive button sensor like the Xperia S. Initially, we have a hard time getting our presses detected as the sweet spot is actually between the icon and the screen. Combine that with a dimly lit guiding light placed way below, you would be fumbling in the dark with frustration especially for first time users. Naturally one would expect the icons and even the lighted lines as the button sweet spot. In the long run, it should be fine after getting used to it. Since the ion is introduced at the same time as the Xperia S, it is no wonder it inherited the same capacitive sensor issue but we would have expected Sony to rework this for its HSPA+ version.
Sample Photos & Video

Just like the Xperia S, the Xperia ion works rather well with excellent pictures even in low light visibility. There’s no fancy fast burst mode feature but the Xperia ion is able to take a picture from sleep instantly by press and holding the dedicated camera button in 1.5 seconds. For those enjoying taking self shots, there’s the usual smile detection mode which automatically snaps a picture according to the intensity of your smile.
Sample photos (click for original photo)





Performance & Battery Life

In terms of benchmark numbers, the Xperia ion scores a moderate 3183 on Quadrant Standard benchmark and 6819 points on AnTuTu. As expected, it is a notch lower than the HTC One S which runs on a similar Qualcomm S3 processor that’s clocked at a higher 1.7GHz. In our daily average usage, the 1,900mAh managed to deliver about 13-14 hours of usage which is somewhat similar to the Xperia S.
Conclusion

The Xperia ion is a nice addition for those wanting a larger screen phone without a mammoth screen dimensions. At 4.55”, it is just a notch lower than the HTC One X and Galaxy S III in terms of screen size but in return delivers a much higher pixel density.
For power users, the Xperia ion is starting to show its age but for the average user on the street, it should be sufficient for those that crave a bigger screen with decent looks and performance. While it offers improvement over the Xperia S in terms of design, button placements and materials, the only show stopper is the iffy front capacitive buttons.
The Xperia ion still offers something that many other don’t. It’s 12MP camera is still one of best cameras out there and the dedicated camera button is a deal breaker for those want quicker access to take photo instead of taking multiple photos fast. Initially priced at RM1,788, the Xperia ion is available in both black and red colours. Currently, it can be found selling at RM1400-RM1600 range.

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