Oneplus One Review in some depth

I really don't know if this is a genuine Oneplus advert, I wouldn't put it past them

My OPO landed two days ago and in this short period has been scrutinised. I come into this review with a healthy insight into Android devices. I have enjoyed the stock Android experience with a Nexus 4 (no longer my N4) and Nexus 7. I've dabbled with the Nexus 5, played around with other Android devices and also tinkered with iPhones.

There will be sections of this review that most of you have read pretty much everywhere. They are the essential, but essentially dull observations that a review would be incomplete without. I shall mark them thusly, so you can skip them... In fact I'll get on with the review right now, starting with some dull remarks......

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dull dull dull dull dull dull dull dull dull dull dull dull dull dull dull

The OPO comes in beautiful packaging. I received a non-descript bag containing two boxes (charger and phone). The phone is contained inside a beautiful box which is stored inside a curious cardboard box. Beneath the phone in a secret compartment is a funky micro-usb and a cool looking SIM ejection tool that is contained inside a rubber keyring. Both these are still inside the box, although you will need the SIM ejection tool as the hole to punch the SIM tray open is deeper than the standard.

The phone has a plastic covering which is easy to remove. It all looks very pro and distinctly expensive.

It is a 64gb handset with 3gb of RAM, the CPU is a Snapdragon 801 and the GPU an Adreno 330, the ppi pixel density is 401 with a screen resolution of 1080x1920 pixels. And the punchline ..... it costs £274, delivered to your door (or £229 for the 16gb). The main problem has been getting hold of one, as you need an invite. I can explain more about that process another time.

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Why I won't be buying the Nexus 6

 

That title hurts. For two years I've been luxuriating in the power and simplicity of my glorious Nexus 4. So impressive is that device that my brother made the transition from iPhone to Android in order to pick up the Nexus 5 a year later. My daughter enjoys using her Nexus 7, another fantastic budget device with a big engine under the sleek black hood.

And now I'm turning my back on the Nexus line ...

The Nexus 6 Cometh!

The Nexus 6 is practically here! The timing couldn't be better for me; my lovely Nexus 4 has developed a hardware fault within warranty (which means I can replace the handset and give the replacement to my wife who hates her Sony Xperia J) and anyway ... i'm way overdue an upgrade. 

Dragon Ride 2013. Fondo recollections

Dragon Ride 2013. Welsh roads coated in pain.

“Where are you?”

“Five minutes away Neil, chill out.”

“Ok if you’re not here when it starts …. In five minutes … I’m leaving the safety pins under the start flag and going.”

“But Neil, wouldn’t you like to ride with me and Rob? We’ve just driven hundreds of miles and it only happens once a year…?”

Are cheap chinese carbon frames worth the gamble?

Just don't tell Darth about the bits Malone did

After four years and more than twenty thousand miles of cycling, I have decided to retire my trusty Trek 1.7. It has served me well, and will continue to trundle me through Warwickshire when the weather is sufficiently crap. But for sunnier and grander occasions, I want a bike that rides like it's just stolen something (lawsuit pending from Lance's soundbite department ... hopefully he's too busy).

£40 Bicycle Workstand Review

Continuing in this months assault on decadence, I scrape a few pennies together and buy a brand new workstand off EBay. Purchased with a view to future bike builds, there's plenty of product testing to be done cleaning up my Flyxii and reassembling the Trek.



"Pop outside for a long stand me old mukka"

Steve Malone's take on Cheap Chinese Carbon builds



Insane in the membrane

In this article, Steve Malone explains how he went from a Stig lookalike to a "skinny" road rider. He also describes his experiences with his first ever Cheap Chinese Carbon Frame bike build.