Compiled by
CIARA O'BRIEN
Sony Xperia S
From free with contracts
The next generation of Sony smartphones is all about high resolution, if the Xperia S is anything to go by. Whether it’s the 4.3-inch HD screen that connects to your TV via HDMI or the 12MP still camera that also shoots in HD, Sony is going all-out with its new phones. Speed appears to be just as important, with the camera ready to take a photo from standby in 1.5 seconds and the entire unit powered by a 1.5GHZ dual core processor. It also has near-field communications, which may also allow you to use your phone as a digital wallet in future, or simply to share content. The phone comes with the Gingerbread OS, or Android 2.3, pre-installed – version 4.0 is being promised this spring.
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Megaphone
€480
Occasionally you come across a product that makes you wonder exactly how they came up with it. The Megaphone is one of those items.
Designed to boost your iPhone’s audio, it’s ceramic, shaped like an oversized horn, comes in a variety of colours and doesn’t require any complicated things like separate speakers or power supplies. It’s a passive amplifier, and like many of life’s simple things, it actually works.
Sure, it looks a bit out there in terms of design, but it could be a conversation-starter. It even comes with its own wooden stand.
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New iPad
from about €479
Expectations may have been laid for a brand new iPad, but the latest version is more of an upgrade to the existing iPad 2. Apple has given it a shiny new display – similar to the one on the iPhone 4S – and quad-core graphics. The camera has been bumped up too, to 5 megapixels for still, and it’s capable of capturing high- definition video, earning it the tag of iSight. The photographs are certainly an improvement over the iPad 2, and extra video technology reduces annoyances like shake in your video clips. Best of all, the new iPad comes with voice dictation, so now you don’t even have to type messages, emails or documents yourself. The device is due to go on sale here tomorrow.
