When a vendor sends us a demo system, it typically take great care to ensure that we experience the system exactly as the maker intends us to. So when VESA, the trade group responsible for the DisplayPort standard, said that it was sending PCWorld a multiple-monitor demo system similar to the one it exhibited at CES in January, I expected it to arrive bundled with a detailed guide and all the software needed to present DisplayPort in its best light.
Imagine my surprise when an MSI GX60 gaming laptop, two 24-inch Dell U2413 displays, and a 21.5-inch HP Elite L2201x showed up in the PCWorld Labs without so much as a user manual for any of the four devices. “Wow,” I thought. “They must be pretty confident that setting all this up will be self-evident.”
Robert CardinThe Mini DisplayPort connector is located on the MSI GX60's rear panel, between the VGA and HDMI ports. As things turned out, setup was pretty much self-evident. The GX60 has HDMI and VGA video outputs, but obviously I was more interested in its Mini DisplayPort. Both of the Dell monitors have full complements of digital video inputs (HDMI, DVI, and full-size DisplayPort, along with ports labeled ‘DisplayPort In’ and ‘DisplayPort Out’), but the HP display has only a DisplayPort input.
The road to the semi-finals for the Samsung Galaxy Nexus is littered with the hulls of the HTC Titan II and the Pantech Burst, left beaten in its tracks. Its massive 4.65-inch screen wears Ice Cream Sandwich’s colors, which is still a rare trait for an Android smartphone. This smartphone is powered by a 1.2-GHz dual-core TI OMAP processor with 1GB of RAM. The Verizon Wireless 4G LTE data speeds works in its favor. Plus, the huge screen isn’t just good for visual real estate, it also packs a super sharp 1280 x 720-pixel high-resolution display. As a buzzer beater, the Galaxy Nexus also includes a 5-MP rear-facing camera that can capture 1080p video.
The Nokia Lumia 710 stuffed the LG Optimus 4X HD and the Samsung Galaxy Note in previous rounds. And will now put its $49.99 skills to work against another Samsung. It will pull out all the stops, including its snappy performance, intuitive interface and bright 3.7-inch display. We weren’t trilled with the stiff front buttons and the lack of a front-facing camera, or with the grainy photos we took in low light, but the Lumia 710 does offer free GPS navigation. Overall, though, the Nokia Lumia 710 is a great choice for consumers looking to make the leap from feature phones to smartphones, and is favored to win this competition.
We now know who three of our final four phones in Smartphone Madness 2012 will be. Today, it’s up to you to decide who the third phone will be, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus or the HTC Titan II. Click through to vote for your favorite.
In the first round, the HTC Titan II defeated the Sony Xperia Ion. As we noted, the Titan II is the first Windows Phone with a 16MP camera, and builds upon the legacy of its older brother, the Titan. As we noted in our hands-on with the Titan II at CES 2012, its 4.7-inch Super LCD 800 x 480-pixel display isn’t the highest resolution, but it comes with a fast 1.5-GHz Snapdragon S2 processor. Also, it will ride on AT&T’s high-speed 4G LTE network. The phone is scheduled to be released on AT&T Wireless later this year.
The Samsung Galaxy Nexus has a massive 4.7-inch smartphone, and was the first to wear Android 4.0's colors, which is still hard to find on other Android handsets. The Nexus is powered by a 1.2-GHz dual-core TI OMAP processor with 1GB of RAM. The Verizon Wireless 4G LTE data speeds will work in its favor. Plus, the huge screen isn’t just good for visual real estate, it also packs a super sharp 1280 x 720-pixel high-resolution display. As a buzzer beater, the Galaxy Nexus also includes a 5-MP rear-facing camera that can capture 1080p video.
Half of the games for the final four smartphones have been decided. Today, we determine who the third team will be, the Samsung Galaxy S II or the BlackBerry Bold 9900. 
Like a pesky mid-major, the BlackBerry 9900 is still hanging around in this tournament, having defeated the HTC One X in the first round. The Bold 9900 is well-designed, with a solid build, a great keyboard and fast performance. It has a 2.8-inch touchscreen with a resolution of 640 x 480 pixels, and runs BlackBerry OS 7.0. The phone’s chief failings, though, are its lack of 4G speeds and limited app selection.
March 23rd, 2012 by Michael A. Prospero, LAPTOP Reviews Editor 
Smartphone Madness 2012 continues today with the Nokia Lumia 710 versus the LG Optimus 4X HD. Which phone will continue to the final four in our contest? It’s up to you to decide! Click through to vote for your favorite.
In the first round, the Lumia 710 defeated the Samsung Galaxy Note. When we reviewed the Nokia Lumia 710, we praised its affordable $49.99 price, snappy performance, intuitive interface and bright 3.7-inch display. We weren’t trilled with the stiff front buttons and the lack of a front-facing camera, or with the grainy photos we took in low light, but the Lumia 710 does offer free GPS navigation. Overall, though, the Nokia Lumia 710 is a great choice for consumers looking to make the leap from feature phones to smartphones, and is favored to win this competition.
The first phone to feature Nvidia’s quad-core Tegra 3 CPU, the Optimus 4X HD has a brilliant 1280 x 720-pixel IPS display, and is just 0.35 inches thick. However, the company hasn’t used thinness as an excuse to skimp on battery life as it has included a 2,150 mAH battery on board. Running on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, the LG Optimus 4X HD also sports 16MB of internal memory, 1GB of RAM, an 8-MP back-facing camera and a 1.3-MP front facer. There’s no word yet on availability, but we believe it will come with 4G LTE coverage.
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Welcome to the second round of Smartphone Madness 2012! Today, the Huawei Ascend D Quad faces off against the Nokia Lumia 900. Who will move on to the final four? That’s up to you! Click through to vote for your favorite.
Like Norfolk State, the Huawei Ascend D Quad came out of nowhere to take down the highly seeded Apple iPhone 4S in the first round. First seen at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, this device has a quad-core, 64-bit CPU (the K3V2) and also packs 16 GPU cores, giving it that extra oomph needed to handle today’s demanding 3D games.
In the first round, the Nokia Lumia 900 defeated the Motorola Droid Razr Maxx. For those who don’t recall, the Lumia 900, Nokia’s new flagship Windows Phone, is expected to arrive on AT&T’s 4G LTE network. We like it so much we named it the best smartphone of CES 2012. It has a large 4.3-inch scree, and around back of this solid unibody design (available in cyan and black) is an 8-MP camera with Carl Zeiss optics, which fired shots quickly. Its secret weapon might just be the bundled free Nokia Drive GPS app.
Like Duke’s Plumlee brothers–when they were still playing in the tournament–HTC has a pair of phones that should have a deep impact this year. Along with the HTC One S, the HTC One X, unveiled at this year’s Mobile World Congress, is literally a quick shot. When we tried it out, it snapped a photo in less than a second after we pressed the shutter. It’ll also take up a lot of space in the lane, too, as it has a massive 4.7-inch Super LCD display with a resolution of 1280 x 720. 
Going up against the HTC One X is the BlackBerry Bold 9900. RIM is the UCLA of the smartphone world: Really successful about five years ago, but now in complete disarray. Still, the company shows flashes of what once made it great. The Bold 9900 is a perfect example: It’s a well-designed phone with a great keyboard and fast performance, but it lacks 4G and has limited app selection. 
Your your favorite basketball team may be out of the running, and that bracket might be ruined. But, this bracket is one you actually have a say in. Saturday morning the Motorola Droid RAZR Maxx went down hard against the Nokia Lumia 900. Today game pits the Motorola Droid 4 against the LG Optimus 4X HD. Which will win is totally up to your votes in the poll below. Let’s meet the competitors.
The Editors’ Choice-winning Motorola Droid 4 offers a best-in-class physical keyboard. It also boasts smooth overall performance and fast 4G LTE speeds on Verizon Wireless’ network. Devotees to this 4th generation Droid will be rooting for its loud speaker, smooth video calling abilities and innovative trick-shot software such as Smart Actions, which runs scheduled tasks or changes system settings based on conditions you set; and Motocast, a service that lets you stream or copy files from your PC as long as its connected to the Web.
By contrast, the rookie LG Optimus 4X HD is largely unknown. We got our scouting report on this smartphone at Mobile World Congress earlier this year. Its announcement marked the first unveiling of a handset powered by Nvidia’s quad-core Tegra 3 CPU. We know it will offer a brilliant 1280 x 720-pixel IPS display. At 8.9mm it’s incredibly slim. However, the company hasn’t used thinness as an excuse to skimp on battery life as it has included a 2,150 mAH battery on board. Running on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, the LG Optimus 4X HD also sports 16MB of internal memory, 1GB of RAM, an 8-MP back-facing camera and a 1.3-MP front facer. There’s no word yet on availability, but we believe it offers 4G LTE coverage.
Who needs college basketball when there are smartphones to root (for)? Yesterday we watched the Pantech Burst go down against the Editors’ Choice-winning Samsung Galaxy Nexus. Today we settle in for an epic battle between Windows Phone and Android as the Nokia Lumia 900 goes up against the Motorola Droid RAZR Maxx. Determining the winner is up to you, and your votes (see the poll below).
The Nokia Lumia 900 is a wildcard, in that its an unknown. Expected to arrive on AT&T’s 4G LTE network, we have high hopes for Nokia’s new flagship Windows Phone. We like it so much we named it the best smartphone of CES 2012. Although the 4.3-inch screen is somewhat large, it’s more than manageable. Around back of this solid unibody design(available in cyan and black) is an 8-MP camera with Carl Zeiss optics, which fired shots quickly. Its secret weapon might just be the bundled free Nokia Drive GPS app.
On the other end of the court is the longest-lasting smartphone around. The Motorola Droid RAZR Maxx certainly has the endurance to go the distance, but does it have the support of the crowd? Verizon Wireless’s huge user base and its blazing-fast 4G LTE network doesn’t hurt. Neither does the Super AMOLED display, dual-core processor and 8-MP camera. But this Android handset’s real strength is in the endurance. On our tests, thanks to its 3,300 mAh battery, the Maxx lasted an epic 8 hours and 25 minutes, which is a couple hours longer than even its nearest competitor.
The Samsung Galaxy Nexus could take this one folks. This massive 4.7-inch smartphone was the first to wear Android 4.0's colors, which, we remind you, is an operating system that’s still hard to find on other handsets. The Nexus is powered by a 1.2-GHz dual-core TI OMAP processor with 1GB of RAM. The Verizon Wireless 4G LTE data speeds will work in its favor. Plus, the huge screen isn’t just good for visual real estate, it also packs a super sharp 1280 x 720-pixel high-resolution display. As a buzzer beater, the Galaxy Nexus also includes a 5-MP rear-facing camera that can capture 1080p video.
If you love a good Cinderella story in your March Madness action, you may be placing a vote for the Pantech Burst. This affordable handset features low-profile specs when compared to massive super-phones (such as the Galaxy Nexus) but it still earned a spot in our Top 10 Smartphones list. That’s because for $50 bucks, Pantech adds in a 4-inch display that may be small on pixels (800 x 480) but boasts 500 lux of shine. The Burst’s 1.2-GHz dual-core processor and AT&T 4G LTE speeds mean this player has much to commend it.
The Madness continues as we tip off Game 3 of the 2012 tournament, even as the “other” tournament has yet to really get underway. Already we’ve seen the iPhone 4S taken down by the Huawei Ascend D Quad, and the Windows Phone-powered Nokia Lumia 710 breeze past the Samsung Galaxy Note with nearly 87% of the vote.
The Android 4.0 PadFone, like the Galaxy Note, is a hybrid displaying both smartphone and tablet strengths. It’s powered by a 1.5-Ghz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor and 1GB of RAM. That kind of power is certainly needed, because the PadFone docks into an optional 10.1-inch PadFone Station, tablet-style dock. But at 1.6 pounds, the tablet is a tad heavier than we would prefer. While we haven’t fully reviewed this rookie as yet, we were very impressed with the 4.5-inch Super AMOLEDqHD display on the handset during our hands-on time. Also, proving its a triple threat, ASUS will also offer a keyboard dock for the PadFone, turning the device into a netbook. But has this untested multitasker spread itself too thin?
The Samsung Galaxy S II is a triple threat of a different kind, as it is available on AT&T (known as the Skyrocket with 4G LTE speeds), Sprint (known as the Epic 4G Touch) and T-Mobile. This 4G smartphone is Samsung’s flagship, and it features a fast 1.5-GHz dual-core Snapdragon S3 CPU, a brilliant 4.52-inch Super AMOLED Plus display–plus a powerful 8-megapixel camera. For each carrier, this phone earned itself an Editors’ Choice award from our Editors, but that same fact didn’t save the iPhone 4S from being beaten in Game 1. That’s because you, dear readers, make the call here. You decide which phone is better so get to it.