By Alfred Siew

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HTC Radar

HTC is shipping its first smartphone with Microsoft's much-awaited "Mango" version of Windows Phone come October, and the price of S$569 — well below the usual S$800 to S$900 for top-end models — is likely to make rivals sit up.

The HTC Radar will come in the Taiwanese phone maker's usual unibody design seen in other popular makes like the Sensation and sport a number of mid-range features. These include a 3.8-inch screen and a 5-meg camera, capable of a useful f2.2 feature for shots with low depth of field, which will complement Microsoft's standard features such as Xbox Live games offerings.

The highlight is obviously Microsoft's latest Windows Phone OS installed on the phone. Version 7.5, or simply "Mango", offers much-needed updates, like true multi-tasking, to the otherwise well-made and easy-to-use version 7.0 we had tested late last year.

The "tile" system is retained so it'd be a no-brainer for folks using touch-screen phones the first time, plus this time,

Former MM Lee Kuan Yew shared his projections and advice for Singapore with undergraduates at NTU. (Yahoo! photo/Jeanette Tan)

Singapore must prevent its political divide from turning into a national divide, as the latter situation will mar the country's performance and growth, says former minister mentor Lee Kuan Yew.

Addressing some 1,800 undergraduates at the Nanyang Technological University ministerial forum on Monday evening, Lee said that since Singapore's independence in 1965, it was the country's solid backing of a meritocratic system that had pushed its standards of education and growth to unprecedented heights.

"A political divide... has already happened," he said. "But if a political divide remains one and not a national divide where national issues are concerned, then the impact on our growth will not be very much."

Lee went on to cite the "constant bickering" that he observed in countries with two-party systems such as the US, UK, France and Germany, saying that should Singapore experience a national divide, it will become "just another ordinary country, with the same problems".

"So my worry

Woodlands is the most-value-month for district in August. (Image courtesy of Slivester)

By Sheena Chua

As we begin the month of September, iproperty.com.sg takes a look at the previous month to see what the most value-for-money and most expensive districts of August 2011 are.

Source: StreetSine’s Property Analytics

Among all towns in Singapore, Woodlands is the most value-for-money district in the last month at the lowest average price per sq ft (psf) of $350, according to property information website StreetSine.

A significant $72 psf lower than the nation average ($422 psf), Woodlands is far from the town and central business district areas. But it is flanked by the Woodlands Regional Library, Woodlands MRT station, the Causeway Point shopping centre currently under renovation, and the Causeway.

Not surprisingly, the western and northwestern districts of Choa Chu Kang ($353 avg psf), Bukit Panjang ($380 avg psf), Jurong West ($382 avg psf) and Jurong East ($397 avg psf) have easily made it to the top ten. These towns are located further from the town area and commuters, especially those relying on public

Decisions made with regard to terminally-ill patients are often made collectively by their families, reveals a study done here. (Photo courtesy Lien Foundation)

Doctors in Singapore often find it difficult to involve dying patients in healthcare decisions because of interference from the patients' families, according to a study on local end-of-life care.

The principle of patient autonomy -- respecting an individual's right to self-determination, privacy and bodily integrity -- is hard to apply in Singaporean family culture, the study "What Doctors Say About Care of the Dying" commissioned by the Lien Foundation found.

Conducted by researchers from the National University of Singapore's Centre for Biomedical Ethics, the study said doctors reported facing significant pressure from  families regarding how much the terminally-ill patient is told about his or her condition.

The study surveyed the views and attitudes of 78 doctors from the private and public sectors, including general practitioners and specialists from a wide range of practices.

"The Singapore family favors collective decision making, and this can interfere in the doctors' duty of

The A-Listers had to create their own Singapore in the Citröen City Experience challenge.

Webisode 3: Citröen City Experience

You've seen them tap dance their way to a room upgrade and wrestle with a dinghy in the water. This week, the August Man A-Listers took to the streets of Singapore for the Citröen City Experience challenge. Equipped with a cameraman and a stylish Citröen DS3, each team of three were tasked to produce a two-minute video clip that presented a cool and fresh city guide to some of Singapore's most off-beat locations.

As much as they enjoyed zipping around in the three-time "Car of the Year 2010" winner, they had to race to their respective locations as quickly as possible to beat the clock. Each team had to come up with their own video concept and had less than two hours to complete filming armed with just a cameraman and the Citröen DS3. Adding to the pressure, they also had to record voice overs and edit the video clip in  three hours the next morning during the retreat. Steven Spielberg, eat your heart out.

Vote for your favourite clip and win!

The two boys called the police after they realised Zhang was unconscious. (AP photo)

A runaway teenager was found dead along a Geylang back lane on Sunday morning after a dispute with two other teens.

Zhang Zekai, who had been missing since 12 August, was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.

According to The New Paper, the 13-year-old was playing computer games at a 24-hour Internet cafe when two boys, both 16, accused Zhang of stealing one of their wallets.

Wanting to settle the conflict, the trio went to an alleyway at the back lane between Geylang Lorong 29 and Lorong 31, where Zhang was allegedly kicked and punched many times by the two boys.

After Zhang lost balance and hit his head on the ground, the attackers realised he was not moving and they called the police.

Police took the two suspects, who had on wrist and ankle restraints, back to the scene on Sunday afternoon to answer questions.

According to The New Paper, that was Zhang's third time running away from home, and for the past two times, he was also at an Internet cafe playing computer games.

A New Zealander passed away one and a half hours into a Jetstar flight from Singapore to Auckland last Monday. (Photo: AFP)

A Singapore-based expatriate died on a flight between Singapore and New Zealand on Monday evening last week, after apparently choking on an in-flight meal.

31-year-old New Zealander Robert Rippingale was tucking into his food when his girlfriend, who was seated beside him, noticed that he was shaking violently.

"I thought he was laughing because he was watching a movie, and I asked him what was so funny," Vanessa Preechakul, 27, an architect, was quoted by The Straits Times as saying.

"There was no answer and he was still shaking, and it just didn't feel right," she added.

The Thai national then alerted flight attendants. "I had no idea what was happening but I told them they had to help him now," she said.

An air steward cut off a necklace that Rippingale was wearing around his neck, but it did not help.

A doctor and two nurses who happened to be on the same flight rushed to Rippingale's aid as the crew moved his body into the galley of the plane. They tried to revive him with

Political rivals in Joo Chiat are behaving in a gentlemanly manner. (Yahoo! photo)When new Member of Parliament (MP) of the Workers' Party (WP), Mr Chen Show Mao, revealed that invitations to him to attend some grassroots events in his constituency had been rescinded by the organisers, it raised an uproar.

Mr Chen, who is MP for Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (GRC), had posted on his Facebook page: "The organisers as in previous years had planned to hold the festivities on a hard court in the HDB estate, but this year were told by the Paya Lebar CCC (Citizens' Consultative Committee under the People's Association) that, as a condition for receiving CCC approval to use the venue, they may no longer invite their MP to the event."

What followed was an exchange of words between the People's Association (PA) and the WP, with members of the public taking the PA to task for allowing itself to be used in what was seen as a political tussle.

Singaporeans were dismayed and urged the PA to play fair. The PA, however, stood its ground and has refused to budge. It