In Part 1 of "Inside a $34 Smartphone" we poked at the software side of the dirt cheap Huami H3 smartphone.
We now know the phone is a Spreadtrum SC6825 passing off as a MediaTek. Using fake branding that combines Huawei and Xiaomi into Huami - something less than either.
(Speak Russian? Vlad translated this post!)
This Huami H3 smartphone cost me $34US (210RMB) in January. It's sold with a 5 inch screen, Bluetooth, WiFi, 4G cell connectivity, Android 4.4 and an 8 core processor.
I picked it up in the electronics capital of the world - Shenzhen, China. My …
This is a follow-up to the review I wrote last August of the Huawei Sonic U8650 $189AU Android smartphone.
Someone posted a comment last week:
How is this phone holding up since you bought it last August? Are you still happy with it?
Ten months on and I'm still using …
This post is about running Debian GNU/Linux on the Mesada/Flexiview FV-1 "AndroidTV" unit. This post has been a bit delayed, I got very sidetracked with other things this month!
By following these steps, you should be able to use the FV-1 a bit like a normal desktop Linux …
I'm calling this a "technical review" because I'm not going to spend much time talking about using Android on this device. The reason for that will become apparent.
I recently purchased two "Android TV" boxes from aliexpress, for investigation and general hackery.
You can buy these from various online vendors …
Last Monday I walked into a Big W store here in Canberra and paid $188AU ($196US) for an Android smartphone, no network lock and no contract. I've had it for nearly a week now. What do I think? I think, with minor qualifications, that it's almost unbelievably good.
The …
When I ditched my iPhone 11 months ago, I promised a follow-up post about the experience. So here it is.
Only one thing really surprised me about going back to a "dumbphone." The idle moments. The habit of pulling out my phone to fill them was deeply ingrained, even …
This letter is my plea and suggestion to Wondermedia, although the theme applies to similar tech companies as well.
(If any fluent speaker can translate this into Chinese for me, I'd very much appreciate it!)
Congratulations on your WM8505 system-on-a-chip. In 2005, a "$100 laptop" was a …
Update 25/11: Now supports M003 as well, and it appears the M002 may be able to boot from the M001 build.
Update 27/11: New build posted, now with better functioning Wifi!
Android 2.2 on dirt cheap WM8505 tablets. I said it may not be possible. Since then …
This post is about how I became a self-loathing iPhone owner, and decided to switch to a device that noone has ever described as "revolutionary", "amazing" or "magical".
I've replaced my iPhone 3GS with a Nokia 2323 Classic. A $70AU ($63US) phone based on eight year old technology.
First …