Go ahead, abuse me

We all have a sneaking suspicion that nothing is built to last these days. Gadgets not only have a limited lifespan in practice but are also fragile as a Middle East truce. Not so the Mju 720 SW seven-megapixel camera from Olympus.

The 720 SW lives up to its billing as shockproof (for drops of up to 1.5m) and waterproof (up to 3m), plus it's a fine camera in its own right. Read the full Mju 720 SW review in today's paper.

In games, Monster House (PS2, etc) fails to disgrace itself as a decent kids movie tie-in. If this reversal of a once-predictable trend (big movie = crap game) continues, reviewers will have to find some other easy target.

Gangs of London brings the gangster theme of The Getaway to the PSP, but not nearly as effectively as GTA. And the ways to mock Let's Make a Soccer Team! (PS2) begin with that excruciating title.

Lightweight in a good way

At worst 3G phones are unwieldy beasts and at best they tend to be at least heavy mothers. Sony Ericsson's V630i doesn't fit the stereotype, coming in as the lightest 3G handset this column has ever seen. It's got plenty of goodies on board, though the much-touted Radio DJ (streaming songs according to your preference over 3G) simply doesn't work (Vodafone or SE to blame? Who knows?). It's allegedly going on sale with Voda in the next few weeks.

Read the full V630i review in today's paper.

There's also a quick look at the new Remote Record for Sky+ boxes, which enables you to send a text message to Sky and they will trigger your machine to record programmes while you're away from home.

In games, Cars (PS2/Xbox) won't hold much appeal for older gamers but the nippers will delight in this slickly produced movie tie-in which doesn't insult the intelligence. Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror brings the stealth/3P shooter to the PSP with almost unqualified success and Singstar Anthems is another expansion pack to the karaoke series, short on innovation and long on cheesy hits.

E's are good

The big guns in phones were blindsided by the rampant success of the BlackBerry e-mail handsets. Only now are they beginning to get to grips with properly handling mail on the go. Nokia badges its BlackBerry-alikes as the E-series and top of the range is the new E61. There's a lot to like (the comprehensive range of applications in addition to a good e-mail client) and some things to hate (Nokia's piss-poor implementation of WiFi software and Vodafone's refusal to support the built-in VoIP client).

Read the full E61 review in today's paper.

It's a portable bonanza in games this week. First up is Field Commander, a PSP clone of Nintendo's Advance Wars but a pretty good one taking advantage of the Sony's undoubted assets. Miami Vice is a PSP exclusive tied to the new movie, a bit flawed but good fun. And Puyo Pop Fever brings the Tetris-alike to the DS with some fresh moves but mostly just sheer playability.

Send in the clone

LG's U890 is a fairly brazen attempt to grab some of the action generated by Motorola's Razr range. Slimline and light, this 3G moby, available with Three, isn't a bad effort. Marketing it as a music phone, though, is a bit rich. Read the full U890 review in today's paper.

In games, Formula One 06 (PS2/PSP) probably won't win over any new fans to the series but the hardcore will respect its (fairly) up to date drivers, etc, and bulked-up sim features. Capcom Classics Collection Remixed mysteriously guts the best bits of the superb PS2 coin-op anthology for this PSP port: the results ain't always too pretty. And Ant Bully conforms to the kids movie=shit game equation.

See in the dark

Pro photographers might disagree but digital cameras are now taking us places that film never could. Fuji's new F30 camera is an example, offering extremely sensitive performance in low light. Read the full F30 review in today's paper.

In games, Forbidden Siren 2 (PS2) plunges back into the nightmarish zombiefied world of the first game and while it rectifies some of the gameplay problems, it's not perfect. But the chilling atmosphere is superb. Street Fighter Alpha Collection (PS2) gathers some of the great 2D beat-em-ups of the 90s in one low-priced bundle. Untold Legends 2: Warrior's Code (PSP) is another dungeon-raiding, treasure-grabbing RPG which is too repetitive for its own good. Chromehounds (Xbox 360) does the MechWarriors schtick but is far better in online multiplayer than the rather tedious solo play.