Acer Liquid Metal: two weeks with an engineering sample
On September 9, I was the first in the world to get and publish on Habré characteristics and photos of the future smartphone Acer Liquid Metal . Thanks to one of the readers, the post was noticed on Engadget, translated, and it was, it seems, the first time that this resource quoted Habr. And here is the continuation of the story - on the day of the official announcement of Liquid Metal, I can finally admit that I have been using the engineering sample of this smartphone for two weeks already, and I have something to tell about it.
To begin, I note that all the characteristics of the first post were confirmed. Probably not a sin to publish them again.
')
Android OS Froyo with Acer Shell 4.0
Qualcomm MSM7230, 800 MHz processor
Memory ROM: 512MB Flash ROM, RAM: 512MB DDR RAM
Screen 3.61 "WVGA, 16M colors TFT-LCD touch panel (Resolution: 800 x 480)
Touch Technology: Capacitive multi touch
Bluetooth 3.0
Dolby mobile
Flash camera
So, the most important thing: Liquid Metal, unlike Liquid E, is not a regular work on the bugs, but a completely new smartphone. They have the same amount of RAM / ROM, they are 512 megabytes. Yes, I almost forgot - the resolution of the camera remains the same. Everything else is faster, prettier or simply better.
From left to right: Liquid E, Stream, Liquid Metal
Great news: now on Liquid you can forget about the squeaks of the plastic case. Metal is not entirely aluminum - only the back cover and sidewalls are made of it. Nevertheless, you understand this only by very careful consideration, because everything is collected very soundly, no backlash, creaking and other signs of budget. Extremely well done. Unlike all the smartphones I encountered, the screen of Liquid Metal is not flat, but slightly convex. As far as I can tell, such a design decision does not carry any functionality - they were made just for beauty. And really - it looks cool.
By the way, a team of designers from Packard Bell worked on the exterior of Liquid Metal. Give it to yourself, but I can only be surprised at the following fact: in the photos Liquid Metal is very similar to its predecessor, while alive, well, there’s no resemblance at all. Perhaps the matter is in similar contours, but it is difficult to catch the volume of the chamber. However, believe me, it is impossible to confuse them even by touch.
In the comments to the first post, some were sad about the frequency of the processor - they say, why 800 megahertz, not gigahertz? I inform you: Qualcomm MSM7230 is considerably improved compared to the old generation, and even makes it according to a more subtle, 45-nanometer process technology. In different tests, it is ahead of the gigahertz 8250 by 10-100 (!) Percent, and the power consumption is lower than at the old 768 megahertz.
At the same time, the battery capacity is 1500 mAh, and this is more than that of Liquid / Liquid E and even the flagship Stream. Therefore, the day - from call to call - Liquid Metal is guaranteed to work, but in general it can be enough for a half or two. Very, very fond of such improvements.
The guys have not forgotten about the envelope!
I can’t say anything about the camera - in the prototype it is clearly unfinished, the photos came out quite large (3 megabytes), but some were blurry. And on the screen, everything is in order. It seems that with the image processing algorithms have not yet screwed. But the flash is already working. Of course, studio quality when shooting in the night is difficult to achieve, but it breathes thoroughly, and I can distinguish Grandma from Murzik's cat without problems. Also from the camera Stream in the menu moved the item "Stabilization".
Liquid supports Dolby Mobile, and in decent headphones the difference is very audible. There is an equalizer with automatic and manual modes. But the radio could not be found. I don’t need it, but many worry.
Interestingly, the memory is the same, but its real volume is noticeably different (on the left Liquid Metal)
The diagonal of the screen is 3.6 inches, 0.1 inches larger than that of Liquid / Liquid E. This is not noticeable at all, but the fact is pleasant. Also used TFT-matrix, the quality of the picture did not notice any special differences. The shades are slightly more juicy, but this is probably due to the backlight - it is bright, and as a result, black looks more like dark and dark gray.
The device works on Android 2.2, and the core there is exactly the same as in the fresh firmware leaks for Liquid / Liquid E. There are no complaints about work at all: quickly, without glitches, beautifully. Holy cause, installed Acer Shell shell shell, which today should be called Breeze. She tosses very cheerfully, but personally, Launcher Pro is somehow somehow nicer to me. I didn’t manage to rotate the device with Universal Androot and other folk tools, and SuperOneClick, which is subjected to Aurov Stream with firmware 2.2, got into my hands too late. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that after the release “everything will be”.
On this, I, perhaps, stop. A more detailed text is written for 3DNews , if interested - look.
I am pleased to answer questions about the device. IMHO, it turned out very clever. If they really sell it at the price of “just Liquid”, it’s really a bomb. Just do not ask about the timing of the start of sales - this is a great mystery, and so far I have not been able to reveal it. The sample looks quite finished, other smarts are much more buggy on the counters. But here in Acer, they will decide themselves.
To begin, I note that all the characteristics of the first post were confirmed. Probably not a sin to publish them again.
')
Android OS Froyo with Acer Shell 4.0
Qualcomm MSM7230, 800 MHz processor
Memory ROM: 512MB Flash ROM, RAM: 512MB DDR RAM
Screen 3.61 "WVGA, 16M colors TFT-LCD touch panel (Resolution: 800 x 480)
Touch Technology: Capacitive multi touch
Bluetooth 3.0
Dolby mobile
Flash camera
So, the most important thing: Liquid Metal, unlike Liquid E, is not a regular work on the bugs, but a completely new smartphone. They have the same amount of RAM / ROM, they are 512 megabytes. Yes, I almost forgot - the resolution of the camera remains the same. Everything else is faster, prettier or simply better.
From left to right: Liquid E, Stream, Liquid Metal
Great news: now on Liquid you can forget about the squeaks of the plastic case. Metal is not entirely aluminum - only the back cover and sidewalls are made of it. Nevertheless, you understand this only by very careful consideration, because everything is collected very soundly, no backlash, creaking and other signs of budget. Extremely well done. Unlike all the smartphones I encountered, the screen of Liquid Metal is not flat, but slightly convex. As far as I can tell, such a design decision does not carry any functionality - they were made just for beauty. And really - it looks cool.
By the way, a team of designers from Packard Bell worked on the exterior of Liquid Metal. Give it to yourself, but I can only be surprised at the following fact: in the photos Liquid Metal is very similar to its predecessor, while alive, well, there’s no resemblance at all. Perhaps the matter is in similar contours, but it is difficult to catch the volume of the chamber. However, believe me, it is impossible to confuse them even by touch.
In the comments to the first post, some were sad about the frequency of the processor - they say, why 800 megahertz, not gigahertz? I inform you: Qualcomm MSM7230 is considerably improved compared to the old generation, and even makes it according to a more subtle, 45-nanometer process technology. In different tests, it is ahead of the gigahertz 8250 by 10-100 (!) Percent, and the power consumption is lower than at the old 768 megahertz.
At the same time, the battery capacity is 1500 mAh, and this is more than that of Liquid / Liquid E and even the flagship Stream. Therefore, the day - from call to call - Liquid Metal is guaranteed to work, but in general it can be enough for a half or two. Very, very fond of such improvements.
The guys have not forgotten about the envelope!
I can’t say anything about the camera - in the prototype it is clearly unfinished, the photos came out quite large (3 megabytes), but some were blurry. And on the screen, everything is in order. It seems that with the image processing algorithms have not yet screwed. But the flash is already working. Of course, studio quality when shooting in the night is difficult to achieve, but it breathes thoroughly, and I can distinguish Grandma from Murzik's cat without problems. Also from the camera Stream in the menu moved the item "Stabilization".
Liquid supports Dolby Mobile, and in decent headphones the difference is very audible. There is an equalizer with automatic and manual modes. But the radio could not be found. I don’t need it, but many worry.
Interestingly, the memory is the same, but its real volume is noticeably different (on the left Liquid Metal)
The diagonal of the screen is 3.6 inches, 0.1 inches larger than that of Liquid / Liquid E. This is not noticeable at all, but the fact is pleasant. Also used TFT-matrix, the quality of the picture did not notice any special differences. The shades are slightly more juicy, but this is probably due to the backlight - it is bright, and as a result, black looks more like dark and dark gray.
The device works on Android 2.2, and the core there is exactly the same as in the fresh firmware leaks for Liquid / Liquid E. There are no complaints about work at all: quickly, without glitches, beautifully. Holy cause, installed Acer Shell shell shell, which today should be called Breeze. She tosses very cheerfully, but personally, Launcher Pro is somehow somehow nicer to me. I didn’t manage to rotate the device with Universal Androot and other folk tools, and SuperOneClick, which is subjected to Aurov Stream with firmware 2.2, got into my hands too late. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that after the release “everything will be”.
On this, I, perhaps, stop. A more detailed text is written for 3DNews , if interested - look.
I am pleased to answer questions about the device. IMHO, it turned out very clever. If they really sell it at the price of “just Liquid”, it’s really a bomb. Just do not ask about the timing of the start of sales - this is a great mystery, and so far I have not been able to reveal it. The sample looks quite finished, other smarts are much more buggy on the counters. But here in Acer, they will decide themselves.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/107136/
All Articles