Review: HTC Desire X

You may have been mistaken for thinking that there wasn't really a gap between the HTC One V and the HTC Desire C, but you'd be wrong, as the HTC Desire X forces its way between the two handsets.

On paper there's very little to separate the Desire X from the One V, as this new smartphone appears to be an almost carbon copy of its One series brother.

You can pick up the Desire X for around £215 SIM-free, while it's also available for free on contracts starting from £20.50 per month.

This isn't too similar to the One V, which is actually available of cheaper monthly contracts (starting at £15.50), while SIM-free it's a little dearer at £230.

As well as the in-fighting with the One V, the HTC Desire X also has the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S Advance, Galaxy Ace 2, Sony Xperia P and Orange San Diego to contend with in the now crowded middle market of the smartphone world.

The main difference from the One V it seems is the design, with the HTC Desire X sporting a look and feel which owners of the flagship HTC One X will be familiar with, however the polycarbonate unibody is out, in favour of a rubberised plastic back which you can peel off.

On the front of the Desire X you find the 4-inch, Super LCD display with three touch buttons below it, back, home and multi-tasking, which tells you this handset is packing Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich – but you won't find a front-facing camera here.

The case slightly juts out below the capacitive buttons, and while not as obvious as the "chin" on the One V and the old school HTC Hero, the lip is noticeable when you run your finger down the phone.

The diminutive size of the Desire X - it measures 118.5 x 62.3 x 9.3 mm - means it fits comfortably in the hand, with the rubber coated rear providing a high level of grip, allowing you to keep hold of the phone.

Build quality appears solid, but the Desire X weighs just 114g, meaning it's deceptively light, which certainly isn't a bad thing and means you can slip it into a pocket without issue.

There's not many physical buttons on the Desire X, with a volume rocker switch located towards the top of the right side and a power/lock setting in a central position on top of the phone.

The centralised position of the lock button means reaching it with your thumb is out of the question - your index finger is the digit required to manipulate this key.

While easy to hit, those who may be switching from a Samsung device, which have the power/lock key located on the right side for easy thumbing (when held in the right hand), may find this new movement a little alien at first – but you'll quickly get used to it.

Also up top is a 3.5mm audio jack, while on the left hand side is a microUSB port for charging and connecting the Desire X to other devices.

On the back the 5MP camera and single LED flash are housed in their own oval zone, which evokes the Evo 3D language from a year ago, but fits more slickly into the architecture of the HTC Desire X.

Underneath the back cover there's a relatively average 1,650mAh battery, standard size SIM card slot and a microSD slot which supports cards up to 32GB in size, allowing you to build on the 4GB of internal storage.

Getting the rear cover off however is a little challenging, as there's no obvious indentation which encourages you to slip a finger nail in and peel it off.

Instead you're left trying to prise your nail between the front and back of the Desire X, and we found the best place is you work your way in at the top.

Once you're in you can pull the wafer thin cover off, be careful as it hugs the chin at the bottom of the Desire X, and you'll notice that it feels slightly flimsy.

The power/lock button and volume rocker are attached to the rear case and the construction doesn't fill you with confidence once you've taken the cover off, as the thin plastic feels like it could break very easily.

We'd advise against taking the back cover off the HTC Desire X too much, but apart from that it's a smart, if uninspired handset which should be able to stand up for itself in the middle of the mobile market.

Thanks to Unlocked-Mobiles.com for getting the HTC Desire X to us in super quick time!

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Review: Creative Sound Blaster Axx SBX20

Unique designTouch controls goodGreat microphoneFree app for iOS and AndroidUSB poweredDesign won't be to everyone's tastesSound quality isn't the bestAwkward placement of the Bluetooth button

The monolithic Creative Sound Blaster Axx SBX 20 certainly has a unique look. The idea behind it - apart from making it stand out in your living room - is that the two speakers inside the Creative Sound Blaster Axx SBX 20 are stacked on top of each other but pointing towards opposite sides in a bid to improve stereo coverage.

While the single tower does a good job of filling a medium-sized room with sound, it doesn't perform as well as two separate stereo speakers spaced apart.

Of course, the Creative Sound Blaster Axx SBX 20 is designed to be compact and attractive, so some compromises have had to be made regarding stereo coverage. The sound quality itself is good, though not great, and a lack of bass leaves some music feeling a little flat.

While it doesn't excel in the sound department - somewhat disappointing, considering it's a speaker, and considering Creative's pedigree - we can't fault it for the wealth of features it packs.

It features Bluetooth connectivity for phones, and the results were very good.

Our test iPhone 4S found and connected to the Creative Sound Blaster Axx SBX 20 quickly, though it required pressing and holding the small Bluetooth button that's located at the back of the speakers at the bottom.

This could prove a little fiddly, depending on where you position the speaker. The touch interface on the top of the speaker, on the other hand, is elegant and responsive.

The built-in microphone provides excellent sound quality, and with some fancy Creative technology it does a good job of eliminating background noise. So you can talk into the Creative Sound Blaster Axx SBX 20 in a busy room, and your contact will have no trouble hearing what you're saying.

The Creative Sound Blaster Axx SBX 20 is powered entirely via USB, which is hugely impressive in itself, so it can be used as a PC speaker and even an external sound card.

An adaptor is also included that enables you to plug it into a power socket as well, if you want to use it as a standalone speaker. A free app can be downloaded for smartphones and tablets to enable you to tweak the sound quality, which is a nice touch.

The Creative Sound Blaster Axx SBX 20 is a striking looking speaker that has a lot of features, though we'd have liked a bit more attention spent on sound quality as well.

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Our guide to the best new computing gear:

Plus

All Windows 8 coverageOS X 10.8 compatibilityWindows 8 vs Windows RTMore reviews

Updated A history of Microsoft's OS in card and plastic

In Depth Ditching expensive failures before they can reach the market

In Depth The alternatives to Outlook on Windows RT

In Depth Emerging trends that could kill the social network

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Review: iPod touch 5th Generation

Better screenFive colour optionsiOS 6 improvementsVery thin and lightBetter earphonesApple Maps!Lightning port is a resetYou still need iTunes

In an age where your phone can hold all the music you own you may be wondering why you might still need an iPod touch 5th Generation.

The answer is that the iPod touch is not just an iPod anymore. While Apple still sells the old fashioned iPod Classic and has just rebooted with the iPod nano 7th Generation, the iPod touch has taken over as the champion of the iPod brand – it's essentially a media player par excellence that has morphed into a handheld gaming console thanks to the sheer number of excellent, and very cheap, games available via the App Store.

It's this gaming and app angle that really gives the touch its raison d'être. If you can't afford the premium tariffs that the iPhone attracts and you still want to take advantage of the thousands apps that Apple's App Store holds then the iPod touch is your cheapest route to entry.

The latest iPod touch 5th Generation takes the best features of the iPhone 5, like the taller 640x1136 pixel, 4-inch screen and the iOS 6 software update with Siri, and adds a few little quirks of its own, like a choice of coloured backs (black, grey, pink, yellow, blue and a sixth Product Red) and a new strap called an 'iPod touch loop'.

Along the way the camera has been upgraded to an iSight camera with a built-in flash that's capable of 1080p video recording and the processor has been upped to a duel-core A5 chip, giving it twice the processing power of the previous single-core A4 chip. Both the screen size and the faster processor are important for gaming, but more of that later.

Memory configurations have been simplified. The new 5th gen is available only in 32GB and 64GB flavours.

Finally, the new iPod touch runs iOS 6, the latest version of Apple's mobile operating system in all its glory, which means that both Panorama – a new mode for taking panoramic photos, and Siri, Apple's intelligent voice-activated personal assistant, are available here.

Note: neither of these two features work on a iPod touch 4th Generation running iOS 6.

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Review: LG Optimus G (Sprint)

The good ship LG has long navigated the world of electronics, making everything from televisions to air conditioners. Its strategy on the smartphone battlefield mainly had it providing reasonably priced handsets or more niche devices.

On November 2 the LG Optimus G will arrive on American shores. A 4G capable phone, it has a 1.5GHz quad-core processor, Android 4.0: Ice Cream Sandwich, 32GB of storage, a high-resolution display and enough memory to choke a mid-range handset (a whopping 2GB, to be exact). Additionally, a prompt upgrade to Android 4.1: Jelly Bean awaits it in December.

Sprint version on the left, ATT on the right

While the essential specs will remain the same, the two U.S. carriers for the LG Optimus G are getting slightly different models. AT&T's version has removable SIM and microSD support, and a slew of carrier apps, while Sprint's has a completely sealed design (no swapping SIMs or storage here) and a grandiose 13-megapixel camera. A tweaked bezel gives the two phones a marginally different appearance.

This review will focus on the Optimus G for Sprint. We've tested both phones, for information on the other version, read our LG Optimus G (AT&T) review.

Past LG phones have undercut the competition on price, devices like the 4G-ready LG Spectrum, the stylish LG Prada world phone, or the the LG Intuition, one of the lamentably named "phablets." However, it was always the Optimus line that had the power. The Optimus 4X HD was the company's first quad-core phone, but it lacked 4G network speed.

With the Optimus G, LG has truly entered the 4G competition. Beefy hardware and a large, sharp display make it a real showpiece, but as a carrier Sprint's stable is growing crowded with impressive devices. At $200 with two-year contract, the Optimus G is racing alongside some of the best phones out there, the iPhone 5, Samsung Galaxy S3 and HTC Evo 4G LTE.

On paper, Sprint and LG seem like perfect allies. Both companies are looking to grow in the U.S. smartphone market, but have the two come up with a compelling deal for consumers? Is it even the right time to buy a 4G phone with Sprint, whose 4G network is still "coming soon" in most US cities, including our own San Francisco Bay area?

And is the Optimus G really the best LG has to offer? How long will we be waiting for the Nexus 4 by LG? The device is rumored to be a collaboration between LG and Google that may bring about the next version of the Android OS, Key Lime Pie. Should buyers just be waiting for that? These are the questions to be asked as we review the LG Optimus G for Sprint.

The LG Optimus G for Sprint (model number LG-LS970) is big and rectangular, to the point where it feels like a tablet that was shrunk down to fit in your pocket. Other than the fact that it doesn't come in white, it bears a heavy resemblance to the LG Optimus 4X HD. It's a slab of black plastic with rounded edges and a spacious 4.7-inch screen, measuring 5.19" x 2.71" x 0.33" (131.9 x 68.9 x 8.5 mm) in total.

The overall body of the LG Optimus G may be Gorilla Glass but it sure feels like plastic. Smooth, durable, seamless plastic, but plastic nonetheless. Running a finger across the screen to the the edge of the bezel, you can hardly feel any gap between the two. It has a slick feel in the hand that helps to offset the inherent awkwardness of a such a large handset. The Sprint version has a thinner bezel, with a line of metal running around the side, making it a look a bit like an overgrown iPhone 4.

The phone is big, but surprisingly skinny. Being only 0.33 inches thick adds to the overall slickness of the handset. The relatively thin body is owed to a completely sealed design. While neither carrier's Optimus G has a removeable battery, the AT&T version has a removable SIM card and microSD slot. The Sprint version does not, so the onboard 32GB of storage is all you're getting. This is one of only a few major discrepancies between the two versions, in addition to the different bezel and higher megapixel camera on the Sprint handset.

The sides of the Optimus G are rounded, but the backside is flat, unlike the Samsung Galaxy S3 or HTC One X, which have slightly bubbled rears. This makes the G feel even more like a slab of technology. The lense for the 13-megapixel camera is pronounced, preventing it from having completely flat clearance, like the AT&T model.

Holding the phone, it feels slick but not slippery. Thankfully, the polycarbonate body is just grippy enough that it won't fly out of your palm. While we generally prefer phones with aluminum bodies, like the Droid Razr M or the iPhone 5, the Optimus G is not unappealing to the touch. It's a nice combination of smooth but easy to hold on to.

The LG Optimus G's power button is located on the upper right side, with the volume rocker set slightly lower on the left side. On the AT&T version of the phone, the power button glows, serving as a notification light. The Sprint handset lacks this feature, and simply shows alerts on the lock screen.

ATT left, Sprint right

Physically, the two carrier versions of the LG Optimus G are just different enough to be worth noting. As we mentioned, the LG Optimus G for Sprint measures 5.19" x 2.71" x 0.33" (131.9 x 68.9 x 8.5 mm). The AT&T version (model number LG-E970) is 5.15" x 2.82" x 0.33" (130.8 x 71.6 x 8.4 mm). The essential specs like processor and memory are the same, though. The primary differences are the lack of removable storage and SIM on Sprint and discrepancies between the cameras. We'll address differences between data service and carrier apps later in this review.

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Review: Sony Vaio Duo 11

The release of Windows 8 has heralded a host of new stylish tablets that make a pleasant change from the bland anonymous slates which have come to represent the Android market.

Almost daily there's a new innovative tablet-laptop hybrid device, designed to suit every user need and bag size, and this strange looking Sony Vaio Duo 11 offers more than meets the eye.

The 11.6-inch Sony Vaio Duo 11 embodies a sliding tablet design not unlike the Asus Eee Pad Slider of 2011.

It's a departure from the majority of manufacturers who have opted for docking 'transformer' style devices, such as the Samsung Ativ Smart PC and Asus Vivo Tab. Both of these have detachable keyboards so you can choose whether you want to travel light with a tablet, or increase the bulk (traditionally around 1.3kg/2.9lbs) to have the keyboard as well.

The Sony Vaio Duo 11 is different. Instead of the ARM-based processors you'll find in the iPad, Android tablets such as the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 or Windows RT tablets such as the Microsoft Surface, this runs a full Intel Core processor.

This means you can run full Windows programs as well as apps such as Angry Birds and TV catchup apps from the Windows Store.

It's not just the processor that's different. Instead of being a bland black slate, the screen lifts and slides back to reveal a keyboard. It's held together by a weighty hinge, meaning that wherever you go, the keyboard comes with it.

The lack of detachability indicates that Sony is aiming at the more professional end of the market. Being able to lose the keyboard means that people are more likely to use their device for playing games and browsing the web.

The Sony Vaio Duo 11, on the other hand, is built for 'doing', and the inclusion of a stylus pen puts creative types and business users in its sights. But, with a full price of £999/AU$1,499/US$1,199.99, how does it rate?

The main difference between the Sony Vaio Duo 11 and the rest of the tablet market is that x86 processor. It's an Intel Core i5 3317U chip clocked at 1.7GHz - the same low power variety found in Ultrabooks. While 1.7GHz may seem low, it can Turbo Boost itself to a whopping 2.7GHz under heavy strain, which means it's no slouch.

The Sony Vaio Duo 11 packs the power of a leading laptop into the body of a tablet. This means that advanced photo and video editing are more than within its capabilities, and you can multitask apps to your heart's content.

Windows 8 positively flies, and you can zip around the operating system using swipe gestures that never leave you waiting.

Unfortunately, all that power comes at a cost, and the Sony Vaio Duo 11's pay off is a noticeable increase in bulk and weight. The super svelte iPad or Samsung Ativ Smart PC it is not, and the Sony weighs a muscle-testing 1.3kg (2.9lbs), the same as a modern ultra-portable laptop.

To make it easier to hold and use away from a flat surface, Sony has tapered the edges, which does make a difference, but we still feel that the Sony Vaio Duo 11 is destined for use at a desk or on the sofa.

While it may lack the portability and sleekness of its rivals, it's not just power that makes the Sony unique.

The Sony Vaio Duo 11 packs an 11.6-inch 1920 x 1080 IPS panel, which looks glorious. Not only is Windows 8's new interface sumptuously represented, but also apps, games and movies too.

And it's touchscreen, which negates any need for a mouse. That's a good job, since there's no trackpad included, so you have the option of using Windows 8's touchscreen interface, the awful optical 'nipple' on the keypad that harks back to a 1990s ThinkPad, or a USB rodent.

The screen is an IPS panel that provides generous viewing angles, should you have people congregating around your screen.

The only downside is the extremely reflective coating, and like all tablets, the Duo is a magnet for fingerprints. This combination meant we were regularly reaching for a cleaning cloth.

Of course, the added bulk makes way for plenty of storage space. While a tablet may come with 16GB space and in the case of the iPad no room for expansion, the Sony is a completely different beast.

There's a 128GB SSD drive supplied as standard, as well as an SD card slot, which can offer up to 64GB more. On top of this you'll find two USB 3.0 slots, which can be used for portable hard drives that could offer 10x the capacity - and at lightning speeds, too.

While on the subject of connectivity, there's also Ethernet, HDMI and VGA ports. This gives the Sony Vaio Duo 11 an advantage over the likes of the Samsung Series 9 and the MacBook Air, where the decision to relegate Ethernet to a USB or Thunderbolt dongle has frustrated thousands of people who have had the displeasure of walking into a meeting only to find a wired connection.

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Hands-on review: Nikon 1 V2

Those expecting the Nikon V2 to be a light refresh of the Nikon 1 V1 in the same way that the Nikon 1 J2 is a minor upgrade of the Nikon J1 will be surprised to learn that there's quite a lot different about Nikon's latest compact system camera (CSC).

Whereas the J2 uses the same 10.1-million-pixel sensor as the J1 and V1, for example, the V2 has a new 14.2MP CX format (1-inch or 13.2x8.8mm) CMOS device. This is accompanied by a new processing engine dubbed EXPEED 3A.

This sensor and processor combination has allowed Nikon to push the sensitivity range of the V2 a stop higher than before, extending from ISO 160 to ISO 6400 instead of ISO 100-3200, which should prove useful in low light.

Nikon has further extended the V2's low-light capability by giving it a pop-up flash unit as well as a hotshoe (compatible with the new Speedlight SB-N7 and existing SB-N5 flashguns). In comparison, the V1 only has a hotshoe, whereas the J1 and J2, which are below it in the line-up, both have a pop-up flash but no hotshoe.

As before, this hotshoe is an accessory port and can accept devices such as the GP-N100 GPS unit for tagging images with location data as they are captured.

Thanks to the Expeed 3a engine the V2 can shoot continuously for up to 45 full-resolution images at up to 15fps in continuous autofocus mode and for 40 images at 60fps when the focus mode is set to single AF and the focus point and exposure are fixed from the first frame onwards. Good news for those wanting to capture brief bursts of action.

In many other respects the specification of the V2 is the same as that of the V1, and the new camera has the same fixed 3-inch 921,000-dot LCD and 0.47-inch 1,440,000-dot electronic viewfinder (EVF) for composing and reviewing images. The EVF is a key distinguishing feature between the V2 and the J1 and J2 below it in the range and it makes it considerably easier to compose images in bright sunlight.

The hybrid AF system is also unchanged, with the camera switching between using the 73 phase-detection points and the 135 contrast detection points as it deems necessary.

One of the biggest differences between the Nikon 1 V2 and the V1 is the addition of a mode dial on the top of the new camera. This allows quick changes between the cameras various exposure modes and is preferable to having to use on screen controls. It's a distinct signal to enthusiasts that the V2 is of more interest to them than the V1 or the J1 or J2.

The dial feels well made and turns with just enough resistance before clicking into place. In addition to the program, aperture priority, shutter priority and manual mode loved by experienced photographers there's the novice-friendly Auto Scene Selection mode that identifies the appropriate settings to use to capture the scene and a couple of innovative shooting modes including Best Moment Capture and Motion Snapshot.

When the dial is set to Best Moment Capture pressing the Fn button allows a choice between two options, Smart Photo Selector and the new Slow View.

Slow View is particularly interesting and although it takes a minute or two to get your head around it, it could prove very useful in a range of situations. In essence, the camera records 40 full-resolution images at 15fps from the moment that the shutter release is half pressed. While the release remains half-pressed the camera plays back these 40 images in slow succession so that you can decide which is the one you want to keep. When you reach that image, pressing the shutter fully-home records it to the SD card.

It's a fun feature and one that could prove very handy for capturing holiday activities or school sports days, but it might take a bit of practice to get the results you want. It's no good starting to shoot before the action has started for instance, because the shoots will be taken before the subject has got going.

We've seen Smart Photo Selector before and it works pretty well, but it's now possible to specify whether the 20 images should be captured immediately before or after the shutter button is pressed home. The camera then identifies the best five images from which you can choose your preferred shot.

Nikon has also improved its Motion Snapshot mode for the V2. This captures video for one second at a high frame rate for slow motion replay ending on a still. The video can now be saved as a Mov file so that it can be shared more widely than before.

Another significant change brought by the V2 is the addition of a relatively large grip that has a well-textured coating. This is extremely comfortable in the hand and because the camera is very light it is easy to hold and use one-handed.

Nikon has rearranged the buttons on the back of the V2 in comparison with the V1, making some of them a little larger and making them easier to operate. All fall conveniently within reach of your right thumb or left index finger as the camera is held.

Although we only had access to a pre-production sample of the V2 for an hour or so we found it very easy to get to grips with the basic settings and controls. The menu is sensibly arranged and the mode dial makes it easy for novices and enthusiasts to pick up the camera and start shooting straight away.

The more fun and exotic modes take a few more minutes to understand, but there's no need to spend ages hunting around in the menu, the options are easy to find and adjust.

As yet we haven't been able to examine any images that we've shot on the Nikon V2 as there are only pre-production samples available at the moment. But we know Nikon's pedigree and the company leads the way when it comes to noise control, so we have high expectations of the camera.

However, we found that the V1's JPEG images tend to have fairly sharp edges with softer detail between so we will be examining the results from the higher-resolution V2 very closely when we get a final sample.

The AF system hasn't changed since the V1 so its no surprise to find that our experience of the V2's autofocus system is largely positive. It manages to lock onto its target even in fairly low contrast situations and only seems to struggle when light-levels drop to 'atmospheric' indoor conditions - candle light and the like.

Face detection focusing can be very useful for photographing social events and the V2 highlights faces within a scene very quickly. A V2 is a much more discreet camera to carry around to get candid portraits at parties, so this is a very useful feature.

We found that the J2's Matrix metering system does a good job in most situations and we anticipate that the same will be true of the V2. It certain performed satisfactorily when we were testing the early samples at Nikon's press event.

While the Nikon 1 J1 sold in large numbers, the V1 has not featured so prominently in the sales league tables. We suspect that its comparatively high price meant it failed to find favour with novices while enthusiasts were put off by the simplified handling, lack of direct access to the exposure modes and the smaller (1-inch) sensor size.

While the V2 doesn't address any concerns about the size of the sensor, a pixel count of 14.2 million is relatively conservative by today's standards - especially for Nikon with its 36MP D800 and 24.2MP D3200 - and this should bode well from image quality from the new compact system camera.

Keeping the sensor size down also enables Nikon to keep the size of the V2's body down and despite the addition of a chunky grip, it doesn't take up much room in your bag. It's also light enough to carry around all day without experiencing any discomfort.

We think the V2's controls are much more enthusiast-friendly than the V1's. This plus the fact that there are now six compatible 1 Nikkor lenses with three more in the pipeline is likely to make the camera much more attractive to keen photographers looking for a smaller, lighter alternative to an SLR.

We will be review a full-production sample of the Nikon 1 V2 in the near future, so make sure you keep an on TechRadar.com/cameras.

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Review: TomTom for Android review

For several years you had a choice when it came to in-car navigation. Factory-fit or dedicated device.

But now there's a third option: Full-function, turn-by-turn sat nav apps for smartphones. TomTom's just added to the party with its somewhat belated app for Android.

In theory you get all the advantages of a dedicated nav device, but without the need to buy an extra device or pay for an additional data plan and all that jazz that comes with a high end sat nav device. It's got to be a win, surely?

The proposition only gets stronger when you consider that TomTom is one of the very best nav specialists and Android the most popular smartphone platform. And with the app you get free map updates... for life. What's not to like?

For one thing, there are plenty of alternative navigation apps for the Android platform. Oh, yeah, and lest you have forgotten, Google Maps for Android does the turn-by-turn thing for free. So TomTom for Android needs to be a bit special.

Indeed, this app could be important as the nav industry is in a critical transitional phase. Dedicated devices, otherwise known as personal navigation devices or PNDs look like an endangered species. So it's quality of mapping and associated services that really matter.

TomTom knows this and is very progressive. But partnership with Apple with iOS has hardly started how they hoped. Anyway, interesting times. let's have a look at what tomtom's new app for android actually delivers. First the theoreticals.

Available to buy now from Google Play (Android App Store on devices with older versions of Android), a wide range of map packs are available. We tested the pan-European map pack.

Yours for £30.99 it's a big old download, clocking in over 3GB, so you'll need plenty of available storage on your device. Note also we couldn't find any options for choosing the storage location, which could be a problem if you've maxed out your internal memory and we're hoping to stick TomTom onto a storage card.

That said, the download is a one-time hit and critically means you have those maps stored locally. You're not dependent on an internet connection for basic navigation, in other words, though you'll need one for some of the live services, including HD Traffic.

Also, for the record the UK-only map is under 400MB in size, so if you're not planning on a Euro tour, storage needs are far from excessive, and it's cheaper to buy that option compared to the full UK & Europe version.

As it happens, it's at this installation stage that the TomTom app's biggest problem appears. At launch it only works with 800 x 480 and 854 x 540 screen resolutions. So the latest generation of 720p HD handsets with 1,280 x 720 screens are totally incompatible.

That rules out pretty much all of the hot handsets out there at the moment. Hmmm.

Anyway, beyond simple mapping, the app delivers TomTom's funky connected features. For starters, this means HD Traffic that's miles better than the RDS-TMC data that most built-in navigation devices rely on.

Then there's TomTom IQ routes, which takes into account things like historical data for traffic flows to work out the best possible routes, rather than just relying of theoretical information like posted speed limits and simple distances.

Rounding the feature set out are usual TomTom suspects like Google-powered Local Search, an offline POI database and of course seven-digit postcode support. The latter is something you may be surprised to learn still isn't supported by some factory-fit navigation systems.

First up, the TomTom app benefits from smartphone installation straight away thanks to the capacitive touch screens and responsive interfaces on Android devices. It makes for a much slicker, less frustrating experience than the resistive screens users of TomTom's own devices know all too well.

As for the actual graphics and mapping quality, that's never been a TomTom strength if you're looking for Hollywood style 3D visuals. But what matters here is clarity and legibility and just like TomTom's dedicated devices, the app absolutely delivers.

It's not absolutely identical to TomTom's own devices. But where it differs, it's usually better, with a drop shadow here or a transparency there giving the app a slightly more contemporary feel.

Critically, however, the stuff you really need, things like time to destination, distance to destination, your speed and the local speed limit remain available to be overlaid on the map.

TomTom's familiar prompts and cues for upcoming exits and junctions, too. They're probably the best in the business. Certainly, you're much less likely to misinterpret and TomTom guidance cue than that of most built-in navigation solutions.

As with TomTom devices, the POI and Local Search setup is a bit confusing. It's not immediately obvious to new users why you'd use one over the other and can be tricky to use to find things that ought to be easy, like train stations and major airports.

We'd like to see all this unified in a much cleverer single context-aware search function. Elsewhere, extras like the speed camera database and HD Traffic work just like they do on TomTom devices, which is to say pretty well.

Problem is, you have to pay extra for both. HD Traffic is £3.99 a month or £26.99. The numbers for the camera database are £1.49 and £16.99 respectively.

That said, we're happy to report it runs pretty smoothly on a rather stately, two-year old Samsung Galaxy S. In fact, even on such an ancient handset it calculate routes pretty niftily.

Exactly how it runs on the latest HD uber phones, we'll have to wait and see. As we mentioned, that's because the app is not currently compatible with 720p HD screens. When it is, it'll be a much more popular option and we'll take another look at it.

We can imagine the route calculation tearing along at quite a lick on the latest dual and quad-core CPUs. Still, it's a very odd oversight from TomTom to launch without HD handset support.

Oh, and don't forget you'll need some kind of cradle and charger to use the app properly, which will add to the cost. But assuming your handset is compatible, you can now have the full TomTom experience without a standalone device.

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