A Review of Samsung Galaxy Mini – a budget smartphone

A Review of Samsung Galaxy Mini – a budget smartphone

It has been a while since I have written a review about an entry-level smartphone.Budget smartphones are particularly one of the subjects that caught my interest because they are affordable and still deliver some of the features shared with its big brothers, the expensive, high-end smartphones. My subject on interest in this post is theSamsung Galaxy Mini GT-S5570. (Also known as T-Mobile Move and Samsung Galaxy Pop for India market) This model is released in February 2011.

Design:

It is a full touch bar design, compact with flashy colour stripe along the side. It is a “mini” so it has to be small, although with its compact size still appeals to both sexes. It also great for an entry-level smartphone especially for teenagers or adults that don’t really want a bulky phone. It is also perfect for a second phone. The dimension is 110.6 X 60.6 X 12.1mm and weigh only about 106.6g.

Performance and Display:

The display is slightly larger than its cousin –the Galaxy Young. It has a 3.14-inch TFT capacitive touch screen with 256K colours and 240X320 pixels  (~127 ppi pixel density) PPI  stands for “pixel per inch”. The Mini is powered by a Qualcomm MSM7227 CPU clocked at 600 MHz which is a little slower than the Galaxy Young’s 832MHz.

It runs on Android OS Froyo V2.2  and upgradable to V2.3 . It is also equipped witj Samsung’s own TouchWiz v3.0 UI.

Applications:

I think the highlight for this phone is its Predictive text input or SWYPE functionality. With this function, a user can write a message quickly by connecting the dots instead of pushing the virtual buttons. Apart from that, the phone also features the following:

• Sensors: Accelerometer, proximity, compass
• Messaging: SMS(threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Email, IM
• Browser: HTML
• Radio: Stereo FM radio with RDS
• GPS: Yes, with A-GPS support
• Java: Yes, via Java MIDP emulator
• Colors: Black
  • SNS integration
  • MP4/H.264/H.263 player
  • MP3/WAV/eAAC+ player
  • Organizer
  • Document viewer/editor
  • Image/video editor
  • Google Search, Maps, Gmail,
  • YouTube, Calendar, Google Talk, Picasa integration
  • Voice memo/dial

Connectivity:

You can connect to the internet either through Wi-Fi or 3G networks. Full data specifications are as follow:

• GPRS: Class 12 (4+1/3+2/2+3/1+4 slots), 32 – 48 kbps
• EDGE: Yes
• Speed: HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps
• WLAN: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi hotspot
• Bluetooth: Yes, v2.1 with A2DP
• USB: Yes, microUSB v2.0

Battery:

The battery is a standard battery, Li-Ion 1200 mAh with a stand-by time up to 570 hours and talk time up to 9 hours 30 minutes. The battery life is quite efficient for normal operation but running multitasking and graphics intensive programmes would decrease the talk time estimates.

Audio:

The audio is fine as long as you don’t expect too much from it. It has sound alert types of – vibration, MP3 and WAV ringtones. It is also equipped with a decent loudspeaker and as well as a DNSe sound enhancement, that may improve music quality compared to ordinary phones. It also has a 3.5MM jack that you can use to plug in your favourite earphones, headphones or even portable speakers.

Camera:

The camera is 3.15 MP (2048 X 1536 pixels) which is better than the Galaxy Young’s 2.0 MP. It is able to record videos at QVGA@15fps and fitted with Geo-tagging functionality. Picture quality is decent enough if taken in daylight conditions. Do not try to compare it with its big brother – the Galaxy S II’s 8MP camera! However, pictures are good enough for posting on Social network sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

Ergonomics:

The compact design will suit both sexes, easy to carry around and can slip comfortably in your pocket.  Those with larger fingers might find it a bit difficult to touch on the virtual keyboard but with enough practice, you might get used to it and eventually love it.

Price:

Advertised price (AP) is around RM520 (US$167) to RM535 (US$174) but if you shop around you might be able to get it at a much lower prices. A quick check on local stores gave me a range of price from RM450 (US$147) to RM530 (US$173).

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How to become a LinkedIn power user in five easy steps

LinkedIn is the most popular business network on the planet, boasting more than 200 million users. You’re probably one of them. Also highly probable: You’re not taking full advantage of this business and career networking service.

Here’s the good news: LinkedIn can be an excellent resource without becoming a time sink. Don’t neglect your profile or the service in general just because you’re not actively looking for a job at this very moment. Hiring managers, clients, colleagues, and potential customers and business partners are constantly browsing LinkedIn. A killer profile and savvy search skills will give you a competitive edge. It might also remind your current boss—who is probably doing the same thing—just why you’re so valuable (and potentially poachable).

Our five-step guide will make you a LinkedIn power user, so you can land your next job opportunity, promotion, or business deal.

Step 1: Polish your profile

Your professional profile is the most important—and often the most neglected—element of LinkedIn. This is where you display your work experience, skills, and education. More important, it’s the best place to inject some personality into what can otherwise be a dull laundry list of a résumé.

Wayne Breitbarth, author of The Power Formula for LinkedIn Success, points out that the LinkedIn profile is designed to be much more than a simple CV. “Hiring reps love LinkedIn,” Breitbarth says, “because it has defined spaces and it offers a lot more information than a traditional two-page résumé, such as recommendations and links to projects or published works.”

The more information you provide in your profile, the more likely your name will appear in searches. LinkedIn has a number of widgets that you can add to your profile to highlight honors and awards you’ve received, coursework you’ve completed, patents you’ve been awarded, languages you speak, certifications you’ve earned, and even causes you’ve volunteered for. To add widgets, go to Profile > Edit Profile, and choose widgets from the right side of the screen.

Be sure to include a well-lit, professional-looking photo on your profile too. “The biggest mistake people make is not having a photo,” says Breitbarth. "That’s an automatic disqualifier for many job seekers and hiring managers alike.”

A complete profile is the most important factor in having an effective LinkedIn presence.

LinkedIn will automatically fill many of the fields in your profile, but there’s no reason to accept what it comes up with. For instance, typically it populates the profile headline (the words displayed beneath your name) with your current job title. But you can edit the headline to say anything: Just click Profile > Edit Profile, and then click the pencil symbol next to that headline. If you’re an independent contractor, for instance, you might prefer to write something that encapsulates your philosophy or describes your unique take on your craft.

You might also want to edit your peer-endorsed Skills & Expertise section. While you're in Edit Profile mode, scroll down to that section, click the pencil icon, and add or remove areas of expertise and manage your endorsements. If you’re on the market for a new job, this is a great place to add skills that hiring managers will be seeking.

Don't underestimate the value of cataloging your skills and expertise.

Your profile is a living résumé, so keeping it up-to-date is critical. Add a reminder to your online calendar prompting you to review your profile every month. You should also update your profile every time you undergo a major work shift, whether it’s earning a promotion, moving to a new job, or changing careers. Tout your new work experience, revise your summary (which is one of the first things people see), and don’t forget to update your contact information. In fact, if you're logged in to your account, click that button now—it’s in the right corner of the first profile box, beneath your number of connections—just to make sure the information displayed there is current. To edit your contact information, go toProfile > Edit Profile > Edit Contact Info.

A job move or a promotion is one of the best times to tap current and former bosses, clients, coworkers, and other people you know—and who know your track record—for endorsements and recommendations, according to Jessica Bedford, a recruiter and account manager at Artisan Creative. “Make sure you really know the person, and be specific about what you want them to share,” she advises.

Step 2: Get connected—and stay connected

LinkedIn’s most valuable feature is its ability to connect you with other professionals. Whether they’re people you work with now or worked with years ago, met at a trade show, collaborated with, or did business with, your relationships can be highly and mutually beneficial—but only if you stay in touch with each other.

LinkedIn has a service that will scour your email contacts to find potential connections. To use it, go to Contacts > Add Connections. Select your email provider and enter your email address in the designated field. Once the service finds all of your contacts who have LinkedIn accounts, it will ask which ones you want to connect to. This can be a lot of people, especially if your email service is like Gmail and adds every person to whom you’ve ever sent an email to your contact database. Don’t just hit Select All—you probably don’t need to add your tech-savvy grandmother or the guy who bought the couch you advertised on Craigslist. Spend a little quality time choosing the people who will form your network.

Make careful use of the LinkedIn Contact Finder tool. Simply dumping your entire contact database into your network could prove counterproductive. 

Aside from that first “contact dump” of LinkedIn invitations, you should add a personalized message each time you invite someone to connect. The only exception to this rule is if you’ve known the person forever, and you’re positive they’ll recognize you. If you’ve just met the person, you should always include a note reminding them of who you are and how you know each other. If you’ve never met the person, a friendly and inviting approach is all the more important.

A small, well-maintained network is more valuable than a large network of people you’re never in contact with. Make an effort to stay in touch with people in your network, whether it’s within or outside of LinkedIn. The easiest way to do this is to send brief messages to people in your network every so often. Your best opportunities arise when they earn a promotion or change jobs, but you can also comment on their status updates, which appear on the main page in your LinkedIn feed. You can also offer endorsements and recommendations, which can prompt them to get back in touch with you—possibly to return the favor.

Speaking of endorsements, this is a recent feature that LinkedIn added to the Skills & Expertise section of user profiles. The tool lets users quickly vouch for other people’s skills. LinkedIn is clearly trying to drum up user involvement: Whenever you visit a connection’s profile, a large blue box will pop up, encouraging you to endorse that person’s skills.

Peer-corroborated skills look good in your profile. Returning the favor when appropriate is a good way to stay in touch with your contacts.

Here’s what you need to know: You don’t need to endorse all (or any) of those skills. If you’d rather not endorse that person, simply click Skip. If you feel comfortable endorsing only some of the listed skills, delete the ones you don’t want to endorse by clicking the X next to them. If you want to endorse the person for a skill that isn’t listed, type one in next to the preselected skills.

Don’t endorse people for skills you don’t think they possess—doing this will reduce the tool’s results to useless noise. A good rule of thumb is to treat endorsements as quicker, easier recommendations: If you wouldn’t write a two-sentence recommendation about that person’s skills, don’t endorse them.

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U.S. trade deficit narrows in February as crude oil imports drop

(Reuters) - The U.S. trade gap narrowed unexpectedly in February as crude oil imports fell to their lowest level since March 1996 and overall exports increased slightly, a Commerce Department report on Friday showed.

The deficit narrowed to $43.0 billion, from an unrevised $44.5 billion in January. The consensus estimate of Wall Street analysts surveyed before the report was for the trade gap to widen slightly to $44.6 billion.

 

The lower-than-expected deficit could prompt analysts to raise their estimates of first-quarter U.S. economic growth.

The United States imported 205 million barrels of crude in February, down sharply from 261 million the previous month. The 17-year low came as monthly crude oil import prices rose nearly $2 a barrel from January to $95.96.

Higher imports of autos, consumer goods, capital goods and food offset the reduced imports of oil and other industrial supplies and material, leaving overall imports unchanged from January at $228.9 billion.

U.S. imports from China fell in February to their lowest level in nearly a year. The bilateral U.S. trade gap with China narrowed to $23.4 billion, also the lowest since March 2012.

Overall U.S. exports grew 0.8 percent in February to $186.0 billion, just shy of the record level.

Increased exports of industrial supplies and materials, other goods andautos were partly offset by lower exports of capital goods, consumer goods and food.

(Reporting by Doug Palmer)

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Weak job gains cast shadow on U.S. economic outlook

(Reuters) - American employers hired at the slowest pace in nine months in March, a sign that Washington's austerity drive could be stealing momentum from the economy.

The economy added just 88,000 nonfarm jobs last month, the Labor Department said on Friday, well below market expectations for a 200,000 increase. The jobless rate ticked a tenth of a point lower to 7.6 percent largely due to people dropping out of the work force.

Analysts suspected some of the weakness was due to tax hikes enacted in January. While retail sales data had not shown a big impact earlier in the year, retailers cut staff in March by 24,100.

"The U.S. economy just hit a major speed bump," said Marcus Bullus, trading director at MB Capital in London.

It was unclear whether across-the-board federal budget cuts that began in March played a significant role in the weak pace of hiring, although nervousness over the cuts might have made businesses shy about taking on more staff.

 

Some economists cautioned against reading too much into the report.

"We don't think there is enough signal here to conclude the U.S. economy is wobbling. Rather, it appears that the underlying trend has not improved as much as the January-February data suggested," said Julia Coronado, chief North America economist at BNP Paribas in New York.

U.S. stocks fell more than 1 percent at open on the data, while prices for Treasury debt rallied. The dollar fell against a basket of currencies.

AMMUNITION FOR THE FED

The slowdown in job growth could make policymakers at the Federal Reserve more confident about continuing a bond-buying stimulus program. Prior advances in the labor market recovery had fueled discussion at the central bank over whether to dial back the purchases, perhaps as soon as this summer.

"The recent discussions about the Fed backing off from its quantitative easing has been premature," said Russell Price, senior economist at Ameriprise Financial Services in Troy, Michigan.

The report did have some positive news for the economy. The Labor Department revised readings for January and February to show 61,000 more jobs added than previously estimated. The average workweek rose to its highest level in a year.

"Companies ramped up working hours instead of hiring additional people. The fact that labor demand kept rising should bode well for future job gains," said Harm Bandholz, chief U.S. economist at UniCredit Research in New York.

The construction sector added 18,000 jobs despite cold weather in parts of the country, reinforcing the view that a recovery in the housing sector has become entrenched.

But analysts have noted that the federal spending cuts have only just begun and will be a more substantial drag on the economy between April and June, when many government workers begin taking days off work without pay.

Government payrolls fell only 7,000 in March, partly reversing the 14,000-job gain from February.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, who has said the labor market must show sustained improvement before monetary stimulus is eased, has voiced concern about the spending cuts.

The jobless rate fell to its lowest since December 2008, but the report showed that much of the drop was due to the labor force shrinking by 496,000 people.

That pushed the labor force participation rate -- the percentage of working-age Americans either with a job or looking for one -- to 63.3 percent, its lowest since 1979.

The unemployment rate is derived from a survey of households which is separate from the survey of employer payrolls. That survey actually showed employment fell by 206,000 in March.

Some of the people dropping out of the labor force are retiring or going back to school, but others have given up the job hunt out of discouragement.

Separately, Commerce Department data showed the U.S. trade gap narrowed unexpectedly in February as crude oil imports fell to their lowest level since March 1996 and overall exports increased slightly.

The deficit narrowed to $43.0 billion. The consensus estimate of analysts surveyed before the report was for the trade gap to widen slightly to $44.6 billion.

(Additional reporting by Doug Palmer and Lucia Mutikani in Washington and Herb Lash in New York; Editing by Andrea Ricci)

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