Weekly Roundup: Apple iMac review, BlackBerry Z30 review, Samsung's Galaxy Round and more!
You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
BlackBerry Z30 review
BlackBerry has been headed in the wrong direction for a while now, and the Z30 is the company's latest attempt at turning itself around. With a 5-inch Super AMOLED display this is BlackBerry's biggest BB10 device to date. The phone has a 2,880mAh battery which we found to be perfectly adequate, plus a 1.7GHz Snapdragon S4 processor alongside 2GB of RAM. The Z30 is comfortable to hold, and its large screen suits BB10, but buggy software, an expensive price tag and poor call quality add up to a frustrating experience. Read on for more.
Apple iMac review (2013)
There wasn't much that we didn't like about last year's iMac desktop computer, and the 2013 version only improves on its predecessor. The latest iMac features updated Haswell processors, more powerful GPUs, faster 802.11ac WiFi and speedier PCIe SSDs. Pricing starts at $1,299 for the 21.5-inch model moving up to $1,799 for the 27-inch one. This has been an incremental year for Apple across the board -- but despite minor changes the iMac still remains our favorite all-in-one desktop. Click the link above for more details and our full review of the computer.
HP Chromebook 11 review
Sure Chromebooks are getting cheaper and cheaper, but the most commonly asked question remains the same: will the laptops cut it in the real world? Google's latest addition to the Chrome OS line -- the Chromebook 11 -- is an 11.6-inch notebook that costs $279. The price may sound cheap, but the laptop's impressive design certainly doesn't feel that way. At 2.3 pounds, or 1.04kg, the Chromebook was light and insubstantial in our hands, but its magnesium frame went a long way in helping the machine's sturdiness. HP's latest offering is one of the best Chromebooks we've yet to see, but Chrome OS itself is still limiting in what you can do. Head up for more.
Samsung announces its curved smartphone: the Galaxy Round
Samsung unveiled its first concave smartphone this week, which launched in Korea just a few days ago. The appropriately named Galaxy Round will come with a gently curved 1080p 5.7-inch OLED screen, a 2,800mAh battery and the necessary LTE radios. Curiously, the device looks pretty different to the curved prototypes we saw back at CES earlier this year. Interested parties can purchase the Round for just over 1 million won, or about $1,000, through the Korean mobile carrier SK Telecom. Click up for more details and pictures.
