The W1 has better hardware than the 520&620 but are 4GB enough?


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The Ascend W1 is sold at the same price of a 520 (200? taxed) but it seems to be superior to both the 520 and 620 in every way: it has a gorilla glass screen rather than plastic, a faster CPU (1.2ghz), a much bigger battery (1300mA/1470mA vs 1920mA), a front camera (the 520 doesn't have one), a LED flash (the 520 doesn't) and the arguably useless NFC. The only huge disadvantage it seems to have are the meager 4GB of internal memory of which only 2GB available for use. Will that be a problem like on the cheap android phones where the memory constantly runs out and since you can't often move apps to the SD you're forced to constantly delete everything or format the phone to free some space, or does WP8 allow storing messages, emails and apps on the SD? Also is Huawei a reliable phone brand? Anybody have experience with them?

I don't know anything about Huawei phones. However, I have an HTC Trophy, and it does not have a micro SDCard slot. Not being satisfied with the available storage I opened it up and replaced the internal memory (a micro SDCard) with a higher capacity card (32gb). If you can open up the phone it's highly probable that you could do the same, but you probably won't want to buy the phone with that intention without knowing if it's possible first.

I have the HTC 8S which is a WP8 device with only 4 GB of internal storage.

So far, I have the following apps installed with exactly 612.11 MB left:

I'm not a huge app person but I have decent amount. The total app storage taken is 220.49 MB. The rest is taken up as follows: 12.97 MB for pictures, 1.83 GB for system, and 978.41 MB for other. The other storage issue is well-known and supposedly, there's a fix for it. If you're like me, then 4 GB will be enough for you. Also, you can only use an SD card for multimedia storage (e.g. music, pictures and video).

If you don't plan on using a lot of apps, then go for the Ascend W1. The specs are better and I haven't read anything bad about Huawei. The battery alone is a no-brainer for me. You don't want to use a device that won't even last you a day. Fortunately, I can easily get a day out of my HTC 8S with moderate-to-heavy usage.

I'm not a huge app person but I have decent amount. The total app storage taken is 220.49 MB. The rest is taken up as follows: 12.97 MB for pictures, 1.83 GB for system, and 978.41 MB for other. The other storage issue is well-known and supposedly, there's a fix for it. If you're like me, then 4 GB will be enough for you. Also, you can only use an SD card for multimedia storage (e.g. music, pictures and video).

I didn't know WP8 had such an annoying space wasting problem, it really sounds like the one 4Gb android phones have where messages, emails and internet cache leave no space for anything else. On my lumia the reserved partition is more than 2gb so that doesn't sound good at all. I wonder what the heck HTC and Huawei were thinking when they decided to save those couple of bucks on the internal memory.

If you don't plan on using a lot of apps, then go for the Ascend W1. The specs are better and I haven't read anything bad about Huawei. The battery alone is a no-brainer for me. You don't want to use a device that won't even last you a day. Fortunately, I can easily get a day out of my HTC 8S with moderate-to-heavy usage.

I think I'll just wait for other phones, the lumia 620 battery life is already horrible, the 520 is even worse. With Whatsapp and bluetooth enabled it'll probably have to always be kept on charge when I'm at home.

BTW: How the heck does the iPhone 5 manage to get more than twice the browsing hours of the 620 despite much higher specs and a smaller battery? Does the iPhone steals power from nearby devices or what? :wacko:

BTW: How the heck does the iPhone 5 manage to get more than twice the browsing hours of the 620 despite much higher specs and a smaller battery? Does the iPhone steals power from nearby devices or what? :wacko:

The 620 is rated for 9.9 hours of 3G talk time, the iPhone 5 at 8.

Likewise, audio playback is 61 hours for the Nokia, 40 for the iPhone. I can't find any info for web browsing, but unless you can back up your claim I would assume the 620 is about the same or better than the iPhone 5.

I didn't know WP8 had such an annoying space wasting problem, it really sounds like the one 4Gb android phones have where messages, emails and internet cache leave no space for anything else. On my lumia the reserved partition is more than 2gb so that doesn't sound good at all. I wonder what the heck HTC and Huawei were thinking when they decided to save those couple of bucks on the internal memory.

I think I'll just wait for other phones, the lumia 620 battery life is already horrible, the 520 is even worse. With Whatsapp and bluetooth enabled it'll probably have to always be kept on charge when I'm at home.

BTW: How the heck does the iPhone 5 manage to get more than twice the browsing hours of the 620 despite much higher specs and a smaller battery? Does the iPhone steals power from nearby devices or what? :wacko:

The space issue is caused by auto-upload to skydrive. If you don't enable it, it's not an issue. There is apparently a fix for it, but I've not run into it on my 920.

The 620 is rated for 9.9 hours of 3G talk time, the iPhone 5 at 8.

Likewise, audio playback is 61 hours for the Nokia, 40 for the iPhone. I can't find any info for web browsing, but unless you can back up your claim I would assume the 620 is about the same or better than the iPhone 5.

This. As far as I am aware, it has comparable battery life. Where'd you find otherwise?

I didn't know WP8 had such an annoying space wasting problem, it really sounds like the one 4Gb android phones have where messages, emails and internet cache leave no space for anything else. On my lumia the reserved partition is more than 2gb so that doesn't sound good at all. I wonder what the heck HTC and Huawei were thinking when they decided to save those couple of bucks on the internal memory.

It's an annoying issue that should be fixed in future updates. And it seems to be even worse on higher-capacity devices like the Lumia 920 (32 GB).

I think I'll just wait for other phones, the lumia 620 battery life is already horrible, the 520 is even worse. With Whatsapp and bluetooth enabled it'll probably have to always be kept on charge when I'm at home.

BTW: How the heck does the iPhone 5 manage to get more than twice the browsing hours of the 620 despite much higher specs and a smaller battery? Does the iPhone steals power from nearby devices or what? :wacko:

If battery life is a concern, then you should consider the Lumia 720. It has the best battery life out of all the Lumia devices: 23.4/13.4h talk time (2G/3G), 520h standby time, 79h music playback. Compare that to the iPhone 5: 8h talk time (3G), 225h standby time, 40h music playback. I couldn't find a number for browsing time for the Lumia 720. The Lumia 920, however, has ~6h which is in line with other smartphones except for the iPhone 5. I don't know how Apple does it but you can squeeze out 10 hours of browsing time (on WiFi).

the other storage problem is a bug. Its for temp files that don't get emptied properly. Theres an app in the marketplace that will free up some space. Its called shrink storage. It works by filling up your device with a file,i guess it goes in the temp folder,then releases the allocated space for the file. This in turn frees up a bunch of space. I used it,and my other folder was 4GB,it went down to 1.5GB.

The space issue is caused by auto-upload to skydrive. If you don't enable it, it's not an issue. There is apparently a fix for it, but I've not run into it on my 920.

This. As far as I am aware, it has comparable battery life. Where'd you find otherwise?

On this GSM arena test here: http://blog.gsmarena...-rather-poorly/

If battery life is a concern, then you should consider the Lumia 720. It has the best battery life out of all the Lumia devices: 23.4/13.4h talk time (2G/3G), 520h standby time, 79h music playback. Compare that to the iPhone 5: 8h talk time (3G), 225h standby time, 40h music playback. I couldn't find a number for browsing time for the Lumia 720. The Lumia 920, however, has ~6h which is in line with other smartphones except for the iPhone 5. I don't know how Apple does it but you can squeeze out 10 hours of browsing time (on WiFi).

The Lumia 720 is twice the price of the 520 though :(, if I had to spend 400? on a phone I could simply get a contract and have an included iPhone with it :o (those two phones are treated on the same league due to the price).

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    • Sihoo Doro C300 Pro V2 Ergonomic Office Chair review: The Ikea of chairs by Steven Parker I've reviewed a few gaming chairs over the past three years or so and generally found them to score well in our reviews. SIHOO reached out asking if I was interested in taking a look at their flagship chair, the Doro C300 Pro V2. I never got the chance to check out its predecessor, but the V2 is described as an "Adaptive Ergonomic Chair." It became available to buy in April of this year. Let's get things rolling with a closer look at the specifications and features. Specifications Doro C300 Pro V2 Model Ergonomic Materials Mesh Back and Seat; Soft PU Coated Armrests Height adjustability 45.5 - 53 cm / 17.5" - 20.9" Seat (w+d) 52 x 43 - 47 cm / 20.5" x 16.9" - 18.5" (adjustable) Backrest 52 – 60 cm / 20.5" - 23.6" (adjustable) Lumbar support Mesh built-in (adjustable) Armrest adjustability 8D Bionic Armrests Rocking angle 105°, 120°, 135° (fixed) Neck support Mesh built-in (adjustable) Net weight 27.3 kg / 59.64 lbs Weight support 150 kg / 330 lbs Colors Black, White Warranty 5 years (upon registering) Price $499.99, $539.99 Introduction At first glance, it looks like a chair that in another life wants to be a Herman Miller; It certainly looks like my Aeron Remastered, but the Doro C300 Pro V2 has quite a few more features and costs quite a bit less. SIHOO says that it is made up of a "DynaCore" system that tracks your movement and synchronizes the headrest, backrest, lumbar support, and armrests as you shift, twist, or recline. They also say that the "SyncroFlex Backrest" molds to your spine, which kind of describes how the mesh fabric works in most ergonomic chairs, but anyway. Below are the meat and potatoes measurements for the chair. Here is the same tech sheet, but in inches. Durability I would be remiss to not talk about the various durability testing this chair underwent before coming to market, as this is claimed on the product page. First of all, the chair is BIFMA-, SGS-, and TÜV-certified. As for durability, the tests undergone were: 100,000 Castor cycles tested 120,000 Armrest cycles tested 120,000 Recline cycles tested 120,000 Gas lift cycles tested 60,000 Armrest durability cycles tested 120,000 Rotation cycles tested Nothing about weights testing, though. Now that's all disclosed, now onto my own personal findings. Assembly The Doro C300 Pro V2 came in two large boxes (1) (2), and everything was packed very well, protecting the different parts of the chair. In the box, there is a folded sheet that explains the 12 steps to assemble it; they are: Remove the bottom cover on the aluminum base; Insert the five legs into the aluminum base and use ten screws to fasten them; Insert the castors into the legs; Replace the bottom cover on the bottom of the aluminum base; Place the Class 4 Hydraulics gas cylinder into the aluminum base; Screw the bottom part of the arm rests, taking care of the orientation using two screws on each side; Use three torx screws to fasten the footrest to the bottom of the seat; Fasten the backrest to the seat using four torx bolts; Fasten the armrests to the backrest using four Torx bolts (two on each side), taking care to note the orientation; Place the chair onto the Class 4 Hydraulics gas cylinder; Insert the headrest into the top of the backrest; Use two torx screws to fasten the headrest to the backrest. There's also an online guide you can refer to. Carefully unpacking the two boxes took around 15 minutes because almost everything is wrapped in plastic and protective foam; the chair assembly itself took around an hour. I say in the above assembly steps to take note of the orientation, because it's not obvious which way around the bottom portion of the armrests go, and although there is an L and R on the bottom of the armrests, it also wasn't clear from the instructions which was actually left or right, facing the chair, or in the seated down orientation? Anyway, I ended up putting the bottom portions on the wrong sides, and after securing one of the armrests, I discovered that although it was on the correct side, the armrest base could rotate a full 360°, but not when bolted to the chair, so I had to remove it, rotate it, and then bolt it back on. Truly an Ikea experience! Also, to complicate things further, although all the parts are labeled from A to X (yes, that's 24 parts) unhelpfully, these letters do not appear on the parts themselves or the package with the bolts, screws, and washers. There's also a pair of protective gloves in the box, but I think they were made for much smaller hands than I have. Even my friend, who is 5.1, had difficulty putting them on. Once assembled, I needed to sit down. Anyway, as I said, it looks quite similar to my Herman Miller. And here is the back of it. If you look at the product page and on Amazon, it seems like a lot of thought has gone into the chair itself and what it's capable of, but there is no mention at all about the castors, and this is an area where I think the chair trips up quite quickly. I found it difficult to move the chair in any direction. I asked a friend who came to visit me earlier this week to test my findings, and she said that the wheels were "no good," so it definitely isn't just me. I am 6'2 myself and a big guy, I work from home and gained a few pounds from mostly staying in and the hell away from other people. However, the Doro C300 Pro V2 is rated for up to 150kg (330lbs), which in my case is used well within its max rating. Ergonomics The number of adjustments you can make, right up to setting it in nap mode — which I haven't fully tested yet — is what you'd expect from a premium chair. Yes, you can go up and down (max 7.5 cm adjustment), rock back and forth (with tilt adjustment), and lock the chair between three stages of 105°, 120°, 135°, which is not quite as flat as the AndaSeat I tested at 160°. Some thought has also gone into the "8D" armrests, too, which are cushioned but quite firm; you'll only know it if you press hard into the PU-covered tops, which give about half a centimeter, but it's enough to ensure your skin won't get awkwardly stuck to it in warmer (or sweatier) conditions. It almost feels like plastic and is very easy to keep clean. However, the armrest positions move far too easily, and I am not sure what that "elbow" function is. Maybe it is good for a short person with short arms, anyway, I never used it and kept it flat at all times. There are eight levels of adjustment for the armrests, they are: backwards, forwards, swing left/right, height up and down, tilt, and 360° rotation, which can be handy for desk clearance. As I said, the armrest pads shift far too easily, which could give off an ergonomic vibe, but who wants the armrest sliding when you are shifting weight? The height adjustability does lock into place when lifting and adjusting. Comfort This is ultimately what it boils down to at the end of the day, right? Quite a lot of reviews praise the comfort of this chair, and I don't disagree that the mesh seating is quite comfortable. I am used to the material from my daily Herman Miller. However, the backrest cannot be locked into place, and this is actually a feature; as you shift or recline yourself on the chair, the backrest moves with your body. It took some getting used to. The lumbar gives ample support, but I would have preferred an adjustable one built into the seat base, as this causes the backrest to move up and down at will. Again, as with my previous chair review, this chair is also rated for tall people, but nowhere in the product documentation does it say how tall. Being 6'2 myself, I'm happy to say that the backrest is tall and wide enough, and thought has been given to being able to adjust the neck rest, but as others have mentioned in their reviews, people as tall as 6.2ft is about the limit for the neckrest. Conclusion What I didn't like The footrest is rated for 15kg (33 lbs), which to me seems a bit light, and after looking online, it seems like a chair footrest for adults must be at least twice that rating. In all honesty, they are just hollow metal tubes, so it is not recommended to let a kid sit on them. I also feel like it doesn't really go out far enough for my height, so that kind of puts the dampener on me being able to use it regularly. I'll just have to continue to use my subwoofer as a footrest! I do not like the armrests being able to shift around as easily as they can, and they are a little too forward-positioned in the chair to comfortably sit close to my desk, because even in the lowest height position, they don't allow me to go under the desk like is possible with my Herman Miller. I also feel like this chair could have been delivered partially constructed, especially the armrests on the seat, and why the aluminum base wasn't already pre-constructed (without the castors) is baffling, considering it would have fit in one of the two boxes that way. The instructions also need to be clearer. On the pamphlet, there's an A to X listing (which is also used in the steps), but none of the physical parts use this lettering system! What I did like I'll be honest, I haven't used it for very long, just one week, and seating comfort is subjective after all! Any spills wiped straight off it, the stitching, and the lines look great, not a fray to be seen or stitch out of place. It looks kind of cool, too. My favorite feature of these seats is the nap mode. While you're not lying completely flat, it leans far back enough to make you easily doze off after a heavy gaming or working session. Overall, this chair offers plenty of comfort features. The MSRP does vary quite a bit depending on the region, at £549.99 in the UK, and €580 in Europe, and $599 before tax in the U.S. However, shipping is free, which is a bonus for such a heavy item. Is it worth it, though? At three years' warranty, I think it's a decent deal. Another firm out of Germany sent me a free replacement hydraulic gas spring for a chair that failed after almost four years, so it was well outside its two-year warranty. My advice is to always try, as you might have the same luck I did. If I could fault it at all, it would be the constant shifting of the armrests and backrest. Where to buy Although the footrest variant normally costs $539.99, it has been discounted to $469.99 on the official website in Black or White. In fact, the non-footrest variant is only $40 cheaper. On Amazon, it currently costs more at $499.99 links below. Sihoo Doro C300 Pro V2 for $469.99 (official website) Sihoo Doro C300 Pro V2 for $499.99 at Amazon US SIHOO provided a free sample without any review or pre-approval. Good to know This Amazon link is U.S. specific, and not available in other regions unless specified. We only use first-party seller links (at the time of article publishing); ensure that you purchase from a first-party seller link only. Check out Today's Deals on Amazon | or our recent tech deals. Become a Prime member (for Students or SNAP) via Neowin Get Prime Access - Prime for half price (for qualifying Medicaid, EBT, SNAP) Subscribe to Prime Video, Audible Plus, Music Unlimited or Kindle Unlimited via Neowin As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
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    • The only reason I want to know where you from is because if you are not from the U.K, then why should you care what we in the U.K do or don't do? Racist I am not, I am fed up with the amount coming over here and feel they can come over here and think we need to support them. Do you know how much it costs this country to support these people coming over here? Even when we give them a place to live it is not good enough. We had a barge that was being used to house immigrants, oh but that was not good enough. A mate said to me at the time, when he was homeless, he would have been happy to live on the barge, instead of ending up sleeping on a bench on the beach. I am not scared to say what my family heritage is, unlike you who is scared to say where they are from or where they live. Father side U.S, mother side Wales, still have family living in the U.S. A mate who sadly died a few years ago, had a load of people from different races recording in his studio, I got on with all of them. Skin colour don't bother me, where they are from don't bother me. Religion don't bother me as long as they don't push it onto me and it is not crazy stuff. I am not religious. But if you are not living in the U.K, then why should you care if we are in the E.U or not? This the problem, too many people poking their noses into where it don't belong. But you believe what you believe, if you think I am racist, then be it, I really do not care. Just grow a pair
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