Acer may be a bit late in bringing the Stream S110 to Australia, but this phone offers a lot to those willing to take the plunge.
 Click to enlarge |
On paper, the Stream S110 seems to have it all. This smartphone runs on a 1Ghz Snapdragon processor, comes with 512 of RAM, uses an AMOLED display, has HDMI out, Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth, and can even shoot videos in 720p using its 5-megapixel camera.
Up front, users can find the 3.7-inch AMOLED screen, four touch buttons (Home, Search, Back, and Menu), and three buttons for media control (Previous, Play, Next). The power button and volume keys are located on the left, while the camera button, micro-USB and mini-HDMI port (both under a rubber cover) are located on the opposite side. Acer also included a 3.5mm headphone jack, allowing users to use their favourite pair of headphones.
In an effort to offer something unique, Acer has placed a proprietary skin on top of the Android operating system. The interface is a bit confusing – instead of the widgets being on different home screens, it is accessed and displayed on the ‘lock’ screen.
To add widgets, users would have to press and hold the home button while on the home screen, press the plus icon, and decide which will be added to the lock screen. This process was just a bit confusing for us and it could have better if Acer just placed the widgets on the home screen.
 Click to enlarge |
The home screen displays the time and date, eight application shortcuts, as well as a notification bar that is strangely located in the middle of the screen (this is usually located on top). Users can change the shortcuts to programs that they tend to use more by simply dragging and dropping the icon. The wallpaper can be changed by tapping and holding on the main screen.
There are two ‘hidden’ tabs on the home screen which can be accessed by sliding your finger to the left or right. The left tab displays all the recently used programs and can be cleared by pressing the ‘clear history’ button. The right tab reveals a multimedia window that allows a user see photos, listen to audio tracks, and watch video stored on the phone or memory card instantly.
Browsing through the main menu, launching applications, and even watching HD movies was a breeze, thanks to its 1Ghz Snapdragon processor and 512MB RAM. The virtual QWERTY keyboard was responsive although there were times when we accidentally pressed the language input key (it is located right beside the spacebar). The unit runs on Android 2.1, but the company said in a press conference that it was planning to upgrade it to 2.2.
 Click to enlarge |
The photos taken by the onboard 5-megapixel camera were washed-out and lacked detail. Videos taken at the highest resolution (1280 x 720) were not as crisp as we wanted, with panning footage suffering from judder.
Movies and photos displayed on the AMOLED screen were clear and crisp. The pre-installed nemoPlayer was able to consolidate our photos, videos, and audio files, allowing us to play them without having to switch programs.
Acer has included a couple of accessories with the Stream including a HDMI cable, USB for charging/synchronising data, AC adapter, and a phone case.
Despite its confusing home screen and widget implementation, the Acer Stream S110 is still a good phone worth looking at. Its noteworthy hardware specifications, good AMOLED screen, and multimedia functions (including HDMI out) sets its apart from its competition, although it can only be bought outright for $799.
