I have 2x New Trent 5000mAh battery chargers and 2x Philips SCE4430/05 battery chargers.

The New Trent 5000mAh will give me about 40% extra power on my iPad (which already enjoys a massive 10 hours battery power), or I can get around 3x full charges of my iPhone 4.

The Philips SCE4430/05 which I have previously mentioned here and here, will give me around 1x full charge of an iPhone 4. I actually do have 3x of these and not 2, although one requires a reverse adapter (which I conveniently forget) so I tend to not use this one so much.

So in essence if I take all 4x battery chargers out I can get a massive 8x full charges of an iPhone. For the most part I never usually have to charge up my iPad as I’m never away for more than 10 hours from an electrical plug socket, but it’s nice to know I have some power on tap if I need it.

For the most part if I’m only out and about for a few hours then I’ll take my Philips SCE4430/05 with me, or if I’m out for 5+ hours then I’ll carry around the New Trent 5000mAh charger. I usually keep at least one in the car, so if I need to I can run back to the car to get additional juice.

The great thing I like about both of these battery chargers is they have a standard USB socket on them, so pretty much any USB cable you have for a phone or gadget will connect into these devices. So no real need for these attachment bits that some chargers come with (and that you always happen to lose).

The Philips SCE4430/05 is great for putting into your shirt pocket with ease, the New Trent will fit into your shirt pocket and it’s the same dimensions of the iPhone 4, but a little heavier, so although you could put your iPhone 4 and New Trent charger into the same shirt pocket, it does look a bit on the bulky side.

I always pack at least one of the New Trent 5000mAh battery chargers into a bag I carry whether it’s an iPad bag, gadget bag or even my Messenger (over the shoulder) Laptop bag or rucksack. That way I always have something available fully charged and ready to go just in case I ever need it. You’d be surprised the amount of times you think, I’m running low on battery or I need a quick top-up. Whether it’s in meetings where you might have plug sockets but no charger plug lead to being out in the street, out on location photographing something or at a friends house.

That said, there are still some things that Microsoft have kept on the device, e.g. a home screen, a Windows key, an Back key. Steve Jobs says there’s absolutely no reason for a back button on a device and most people using Apple iPhones would also tend to agree the way Apple have designed the OS. However on Google phones, you’ll notice there is a back button. Microsoft have always had ‘back’ heavily invested into the operating system because they feel that you might want to go back to the previous screen or previous app. I used to be of the same thought pattern that a back key is a requirement until I used the iPhone. Using Android more recently the back key has been instrumental in my daily use because again how the OS is designed. So Steve Jobs is right, if everything runs up quickly and saves its state then there’s absolutely no need for a back key. Microsoft may have added the back key more from a better user experience to keep in with what they know on an Android phone vs what they would know on a Windows Mobile Phone.

The Windows key is basically the same as the HOME button on an Android device and the HOME button on an Apple iPhone. It doesn’t matter what you put on the home button. I’m still very surprised that Apple have never put an Apple logo on the button, maybe that will change over time.

One thing Microsoft have tried to show is how the home screen works, and I like the marketing idea they came up with to show a continual ticker-tape type display showing the phone moving along the tape to see more information. It’s both a good way and a bad way to detail how the User Interface works, because this also shows that you can’t fit everything on-screen and you have to scroll. Having to scroll is the ultimate sin in Apples book, but if you have to then you swipe.

I have to say I don’t think the marketing approach is really a bad way of showing the phone off, I think it’s a way to show more than just one screen without showing multiple devices.

Ultimately it’s going to be interesting to see which OS wins off the most. Apple have a head start on their competitors but don’t allow for heavy customisation. Google are winning the new user front because you can customise your device and make it look nice and sexy with the widgets, clocks and live wallpapers. Microsoft are hedging their bets somewhere in-between and giving you a home screen that has more information than Apples but likewise allow customisation but they don’t go the full way of allowing you to do wallpapers. That in itself is kind of strange if you think how Windows 7 (PC) version is setup and all previous versions of Windows where you also have background images you can set.

Apple squarely setup their device more for the consumer, apps and games icons everywhere. Google setup their device more for the people that want more in life and Microsoft appear to be going down the road of a more business orientated look at a device.

There’s currently room for all three platforms in the market but it will be interesting to see which is the most favourite in a years time and which one sells the most. I would still hedge my bets that Apple is probably the most favourite but Google will be coming up fast from behind, but ultimately Google will be what sells more leaving Microsoft still in third place.

HTC’s Sense-UI is grown in strength, it’s a very clean interface that HTC usually put on top of an operating system like Windows Mobile or Android, and makes the interface look a whole lot richer. How much of this we’re going to see on Windows Phone 7 is unsure at this point. This is currently what HTC’s Sense-UI looks like.

Microsoft are likely to not want manufacturers to cover up and hide the main features of the OS including the new style home screen with flip out tiles, so it will be interesting to see what kind of changes HTC make on top of the core Windows Phone 7 UI and whether they will be subtle or massive stand-out changes like they’re used to making to have all of their devices look very similar in terms of UI and functionality.

What’s certain is with HTC’s announcement of their new HD3 does look pretty good.

The real problem for Windows Phone 7 is still going to be the infancy in the Windows Marketplace. There’s still a lot of restrictions for developers along with the concerns about piracy and the lack of applications and games available in the Windows Marketplace. Like with Apple and Google, Microsoft have to start somewhere and it will take time for Microsoft to build-up the store to come close to anything Google are offering with Android, let alone what Apple are offering with iOS devices like iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. Microsoft were the market leader in this area but fell back and decided to not do anything radical to their OS platform as it seemed to still be working and selling devices, but unfortunately because of this were taken by surprise when both Apple and Google came along and redesigned not only how mobile phones should be used, but how useful they could be with the connected internet.

The Noosy Micro SIM cutter by Lupo is a very good cutter, it comes in what resembles a mini single hole punch with 2x SIM card adapters. It’s a no fuss cutter, simply insert the SIM card (right side up) into the cutter end, then press down hard, and it cuts out a Micro SIM card for you that works really well in every device I have tried it in so far.

When cutting it does a very sharp precise cut so if you didn’t want to use the two supplied SIM adapters you can simply place the Micro SIM card that’s been cut out of the full size SIM card and place it back in the hole that remains in the main SIM card, and put a piece of sticky tape over it and still use it in a full SIM card device.

I purchased my SIM cutter from Amazon for around £12 + postage, some people might think that’s a lot to pay for a SIM cutter, but if you want precise cutting, the ability to still use the outer part of the SIM card as an adapter and a no hassle 2 second cutting action, then this is a great device and well worth the money. So far it hasn’t ruined a single SIM card!

The only gripe I would say is the two adapters provided are made out of a rubber like substance, so they bend quite a bit and I found the Micro SIM cards that were cut didn’t quite fit inside these as well as they should, but seriously you don’t need them. Just keep the outer part of the new Micro SIM card as an adapter.