CTIA 2013 seems to be dedicated to some of the lesser-known names in the US wireless industry, so it's fit that Chinese manufacturer Coolpad should take advantage of the situation to steal the show. Indeed, we were able to take a look at the phone maker's upcoming stateside model, the lower-end Quattro II 4G. In the past year, its predecessor cranked out roughly a million units on MetroPCS, and Coolpad is hoping to build upon that success to get a foothold in the US. This sequel, which offers stock Android 4.1.2 with a 4.5-inch qHD TFT display, 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm MSM8930 chip, 5MP rear camera and VGA front-facing cam, 1GB RAM, 4GB internal storage and a 1,800mAh battery, isn't going to satisfy the tastebuds of power users or high-end flagship seekers, but it's a quality option for those who aren't planning to spend a ton of money on a decent handset. Given the intended audience, the device is perfectly solid with reasonable performance; we appreciated the company's use of a textured back cover. One nitpick: despite our best efforts to get rid of fingerprints, smudges remained with no hope of removal in sight.

Coolpad wasn't able to give many details on pricing or availability, but reps confirmed that it should arrive on C Spire in late June / early July, with it likely hitting other regional prepaid carriers after. Given the original Quattro's $80 price point on MetroPCS last year, we wouldn't be surprised to see the next-gen version offered for around the same cost. The company's still working to expand its presence on some of the larger networks, but it hopes to make its debut in the postpaid world early next year.

Gallery: Coolpad Quattro II 4G hands-on

Gallery: Coolpad 8920 hands-on

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile

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It was just weeks ago that BLU Products' smartphones were largely dual-core models like the Vivo 4.65 HD. The company clearly wants to ramp things up, as it's kicking off the Quattro line based around Android 4.0 and the quad-core, 1.5GHz Tegra 3. At the entry level is the $250 Quattro 4.5, which includes a qHD display at its namesake size as well as a 5-megapixel camera, 4GB of built-in storage and a microSD slot. The next step is, unusually, the biggest: the $300 Quattro 5.7 HD (what you see above) keeps the same storage, but jumps to the extra-large category while upgrading to a 720p display and an 8-megapixel camera. BLU sees the $350 Quattro 4.5 HD as the real darling. It beats its non-HD cousin with a curved, 720p screen touting Gorilla Glass, and throws in a larger 16GB capacity as well as a more light-sensitive 8-megapixel camera. The two smaller models ship to the US early this month, to be followed by the 5.7-inch behemoth in late March. When they arrive, every one of them will carry unlocked HSPA+ 3G that supports both AT&T and T-Mobile.

Gallery: BLU Quattro 4.5, 4.5 HD and 5.7 HD

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Source: BLU Products

Audi and art? Those two worlds aren't ones we'd necessarily lump together. But the luxury car-maker's done just that, collaborating with Slot Mods USA to create the "quattro experience," an installation replete with remote controllable A4 replicas and a custom track. Let's be clear, though, this is no mere hobbyist recreation. As the accompanying mini-documentary shows, the team behind this project not only put great care into constructing the 20ft x 7ft custom track with the right bends, it also faithfully crafted the slot cars so as to mimic the Audi quattro's all wheel drive mechanic.

So, how'd they do that? Through a combo of 3D printing, a four-wheel drive chassis and, most importantly, a calculated arrangement of traction magnets, the crew was able to get the cars up and running, and even outfitted with in-dash cams. And, in an appropriate modernist twist, there's an app for all of that -- a custom one designed by Audi that runs on the iPad and lets "drivers" steer via a POV feed and onscreen controls. Unfortunately, the whole shebang's only on display in Toronto for the time being. So, unless you're planning a trip to the Great White North anytime soon, the mini-doc after the break's about as close as you're going to get to the real thing.

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Via: TechCrunch

Source: Audi

The annual Hong Kong Computer & Communications Festival is usually just flooded with discounted computer products and booth babes, so we were pleasantly surprised when we spotted a couple of unreleased Windows 8, dual-digitizer devices at the Fujitsu booth. Pictured above is the Stylistic Q702 "Quattro," an 11.6-inch tablet-cum-laptop that was announced last month. This particular unit sported an Intel Core i5-3427U chip (capped at 2.3GHz instead of 2.8GHz), a vibrant IPS panel, a fingerprint scanner, front and back cameras, 4GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD -- twice the announced capacity, for some reason. Much like the ASUS Transformers, undocking the tablet was only a matter of pulling the latch on the hinge, but we found the latch to be rather stiff to operate. Hopefully this is just a prototype issue. Other than that, we just wish the final keyboard dock will somehow get a slight weight reduction: for the screen size, 1.88 pounds isn't too bad for the tablet alone, but together with the heavy keyboard, the Q702 could become a nightmare for regular travelers.

The second prototype lurking at the back of the booth was the bulkier LifeBook T902 "Tercel," a 13.3-inch convertible laptop that was unveiled alongside the Q702 last month. According to its label, this swivel-hinged machine packed a Core i7-3520M, 8GB of RAM, 500GB 7,200rpm hard drive, Blu-ray burner, LTE radio and a 72Wh (6,700mAh) battery. Oh, and there's also a fingerprint scanner below the display. While the software failed to reverse the screen rotation after we flipped the screen back to laptop mode, it was in general just as responsive as the Q702, though the hardware felt more solid and ready. With this in mind plus the Windows 7 label and Wacom label below the keyboard, we wouldn't be surprised if the T902 comes out before the Q702. Until then, feel free to check out our impromptu hands-on video of the Q702 after the break.

Gallery: Fujitsu Stylistic Q702 hands-on

Gallery: Fujitsu LifeBook T902 hands-on

Filed under: Laptops

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It's Italian for the number four and also the name of a certain German auto, but Unnecto's latest device bearing that very moniker has little to do with either. In fact, the star feature of this low-end Android 2.3.5 handset, shown off on the CTIA 2012 show floor, is its ability to accommodate dual-SIMs. Yes, much like the touchscreen-only TAP that preceded it, this phone offers users with multiple lines the option to pack two SIMs -- full-sized and micro -- for easy account switching.

Spec-wise, the 4-inch handset's not much to get hot and bothered about, loaded up as it is with a middling 800 x 480 TFT display, VGA front-facing / rear 5 megapixel cameras, 4GB of storage (augmented by a pre-loaded 8GB microSD) and a 1,400mAh battery. There's no dual-core running under the hood either, just a lone 650MHz MediaTek 6573 processor and it shows given that our brief hands-on with the preliminary software was riddled with lags and stutters. Keep in mind the phone's still a work in progress and that mostly stock UI will eventually ship sometime this June with a customized overlay. An upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich is also purportedly on deck for Q4, but we're somewhat skeptical the single core handset could even support it. As for the price, well that all important bit is still up in the air, although we've been told it should retail between $150 to $200. If you're interested in buying what Unnecto's selling, check out the gallery below and hop on past the break for a brief video demo.

Gallery: Unnecto Quattro hands-on

Terrence O'Brien contributed to this report.

Filed under: Mobile

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