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Nokia Lumia Icon:The Best Windows Phone Ever Still Disappoints.
I’ve been a fan of Nokia’s Windows Phone-running Lumia line since it debuted with the Lumia 800 in 2011. The hardware quality and design are always superb, and the software platform continues to show promise. Still, while the Lumia Icon is arguably one of the best Windows Phone handsets to date, a handful of issues keep it from bridging the gap from “great” to “truly outstanding.”
Nokia may have ditched the numeric nomenclature of the Icon’s predecessors this time around, but the handset still retains a lot of what makes a Lumia a Lumia. On its glass-covered face sits a bright, oversaturated 5-inch AMOLED display. And with a 1920 x 1080 full HD screen and 440 pixels per inch, photos and videos are rendered with remarkable clarity and crispness.
The Icon also features the traditional polycarbonate rear casing, but this model adds a flat metal bezel. The resulting handset feels solid and hefty — it weighs 5.68 ounces, which is noticeably more than the Galaxy S 4′s 4.6 ounces or the iPhone 5s’s 3.95 ounces. I actually like a slightly heavier handset if only because you always know it’s in your pocket and not forgotten at home or on a restaurant dining table. It does however look a lot more generic — a black or white slate with rounded corners — compared to its bright, cyan-flavored Lumia predecessors.
Colors or no colors, the main attraction here is undoubtedly the 20-megapixel PureView camera. Indeed, the rear-facing f/2.4 shooter captures stills with incredible detail: On a picture of a pair of shoes, I just kept zooming in and in, and could see greater and greater intricacies in the stitching and canvas fabric with each outward pinch. This means you can do things like crop a portion of a photo into a stunning macro shot. It also had great low-light performance with very little noise compared to other leading smartphones I’ve used recently. Onscreen, shots are represented slightly cooler than in reality, but only slightly so. The built-in Nokia Pro Cam app offers a suite of basic editing and filtering tools to hone your shots, with easy sharing to other apps like Instagram or email.
Unfortunately, all that detail is sometimes wasted because of the camera’s slow shutter speed. First of all, it takes 3- 5 seconds to even open the camera, whether tapping a live tile on the home screen or the phone’s dedicated camera shutter button. Then, once you’ve tapped either the onscreen button or hardware button to take a shot, it takes another couple seconds before it actually snaps. That was long enough for me to miss out on several cool photos, including a sunset over trees and mountains while driving through California’s central valley, and a cat vertically scaling a tall fence.
As for video, the camera’s 1080p capture paired with optical image stabilization and four mics onboard (for stereo audio capture) certainly makes for a formidable video recording and playback machine. Video captured aboard the train were steady, despite my car’s constant bumping and rocking. Similarly, the droning sounds of train movement were effectively minimized with the mics instead picking up the conductor’s voice and snippets of a nearby conversation.
Inside, the Lumia Icon comes with 2.2 Ghz quad-core Snapdragon processor with 2 GB of RAM and 32 GB of storage. Multitasking, opening new apps, scrolling, and other smartphone routines are all swift and responsive. Some apps, like The Weather Channel’s, occasionally glitched to a black screen for a moment before fully loading, though. And the lower half of the phone gets noticeably warm during processor intensive activities like playing a game of Angry Birds Go! — not necessarily an anomaly when it comes to smartphones.
As far as the software experience goes, it’s still hindered by the limitations of the Windows Phone experience. Small things like the ability to only multitask between six of your most recently used apps (of which there can be multiple instances of), and the bugginess of some third-party apps wear on you after a while. The Windows Phone app ecosystem has filled out significantly, which is good, but some them definitely feel like an afterthought — a C- effort rather than the A they’d go for on iOS or Android.
That said, the apps that have been crafted specifically for the platform look and perform beautifully: Built-in Nokia and Bing apps are among the higher-quality offerings, but third-party apps like Rdio look like they just belong on the platform too.
The Nokia Lumia Icon is definitely a more grown-up Windows Phone, more austere than earlier Lumias in appearance but just as powerful. And that’s part of the problem. The Icon features almost all the same specs as the larger 6-inch Lumia 1520, but at a more palatable 5-inch screen size. Other than that size reduction and the gradual improvement to the Windows Phone app store, there’s really nothing extra that helps it live up to its name.
Nokia may have ditched the numeric nomenclature of the Icon’s predecessors this time around, but the handset still retains a lot of what makes a Lumia a Lumia. On its glass-covered face sits a bright, oversaturated 5-inch AMOLED display. And with a 1920 x 1080 full HD screen and 440 pixels per inch, photos and videos are rendered with remarkable clarity and crispness.
The Icon also features the traditional polycarbonate rear casing, but this model adds a flat metal bezel. The resulting handset feels solid and hefty — it weighs 5.68 ounces, which is noticeably more than the Galaxy S 4′s 4.6 ounces or the iPhone 5s’s 3.95 ounces. I actually like a slightly heavier handset if only because you always know it’s in your pocket and not forgotten at home or on a restaurant dining table. It does however look a lot more generic — a black or white slate with rounded corners — compared to its bright, cyan-flavored Lumia predecessors.
Colors or no colors, the main attraction here is undoubtedly the 20-megapixel PureView camera. Indeed, the rear-facing f/2.4 shooter captures stills with incredible detail: On a picture of a pair of shoes, I just kept zooming in and in, and could see greater and greater intricacies in the stitching and canvas fabric with each outward pinch. This means you can do things like crop a portion of a photo into a stunning macro shot. It also had great low-light performance with very little noise compared to other leading smartphones I’ve used recently. Onscreen, shots are represented slightly cooler than in reality, but only slightly so. The built-in Nokia Pro Cam app offers a suite of basic editing and filtering tools to hone your shots, with easy sharing to other apps like Instagram or email.
Unfortunately, all that detail is sometimes wasted because of the camera’s slow shutter speed. First of all, it takes 3- 5 seconds to even open the camera, whether tapping a live tile on the home screen or the phone’s dedicated camera shutter button. Then, once you’ve tapped either the onscreen button or hardware button to take a shot, it takes another couple seconds before it actually snaps. That was long enough for me to miss out on several cool photos, including a sunset over trees and mountains while driving through California’s central valley, and a cat vertically scaling a tall fence.
As for video, the camera’s 1080p capture paired with optical image stabilization and four mics onboard (for stereo audio capture) certainly makes for a formidable video recording and playback machine. Video captured aboard the train were steady, despite my car’s constant bumping and rocking. Similarly, the droning sounds of train movement were effectively minimized with the mics instead picking up the conductor’s voice and snippets of a nearby conversation.
Inside, the Lumia Icon comes with 2.2 Ghz quad-core Snapdragon processor with 2 GB of RAM and 32 GB of storage. Multitasking, opening new apps, scrolling, and other smartphone routines are all swift and responsive. Some apps, like The Weather Channel’s, occasionally glitched to a black screen for a moment before fully loading, though. And the lower half of the phone gets noticeably warm during processor intensive activities like playing a game of Angry Birds Go! — not necessarily an anomaly when it comes to smartphones.
As far as the software experience goes, it’s still hindered by the limitations of the Windows Phone experience. Small things like the ability to only multitask between six of your most recently used apps (of which there can be multiple instances of), and the bugginess of some third-party apps wear on you after a while. The Windows Phone app ecosystem has filled out significantly, which is good, but some them definitely feel like an afterthought — a C- effort rather than the A they’d go for on iOS or Android.
That said, the apps that have been crafted specifically for the platform look and perform beautifully: Built-in Nokia and Bing apps are among the higher-quality offerings, but third-party apps like Rdio look like they just belong on the platform too.
The Nokia Lumia Icon is definitely a more grown-up Windows Phone, more austere than earlier Lumias in appearance but just as powerful. And that’s part of the problem. The Icon features almost all the same specs as the larger 6-inch Lumia 1520, but at a more palatable 5-inch screen size. Other than that size reduction and the gradual improvement to the Windows Phone app store, there’s really nothing extra that helps it live up to its name.
Why Mark Zuckerberg’s social network is paying such a whopping sum for a messaging startup
THE rivalries among the tech industry’s giants have often resembled a “Game of Thrones”, in which companies such as Facebook, Google, Amazon and Apple constantly try to invade one another’s online kingdoms. On February 19th Facebook took a dramatic step to defend its turf, saying it would pay $19 billion for WhatsApp, a messaging service that had also attracted the attention of Google and almost certainly other suitors.
Even veterans of Silicon Valley goggled at the staggering sum of money changing hands, which comprises a mixture of cash and shares in Facebook. WhatsApp’s price tag is the most ever paid for a venture-capital-backed company and gives a startup founded in 2009 a valuation that is greater than that of household names such as Southwest Airlines and Sony.
The deal marks the coming-of-age of messaging apps, which let people send text messages and share photos and other stuff without incurring charges from telecoms firms. WhatsApp is free to use for 12 months and then costs a mere 99 cents a year. Plenty of other such apps have sprung up, including Viber, which Rakuten, a Japanese internet giant, recently bought for $900m, and the immensely popular WeChat, which belongs to Tencent, an innovative Chinese company.
All of them have benefited from two profound trends that are transforming the technology landscape. The first of these is the rapid growth of web-connected smartphones, which has allowed WhatsApp and its rivals to spread like wildfire. Announcing the deal Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s boss, said WhatsApp had reached 450m users much faster than any other web service (see chart). It has also made itself addictive: 72% of its users are active on it every day. And the viral nature of its appeal means it has achieved all this without spending a penny on marketing.
Casual-gaming apps are also spreading rapidly on mobile devices. King.com, which filed for an IPO in New York on February 18th, is a case in point. The company, which makes the hit game “Candy Crush Saga”, saw its monthly active users soar from 67m in the fourth quarter of 2012 to 408m in the same period last year. Its revenues soared too, hitting $1.9 billion last year compared with $164m in 2012.
The second trend behind WhatsApp’s success is the dramatic decline in the cost of building start-ups. Thanks to things such as cloud computing, which lets young firms buy vast amounts of cheap computing capacity, entrepreneurs can create globe-spanning businesses on shoestring budgets. WhatsApp has just 32 software engineers, which means that each one supports some 14m users. And the volume of messages it is handling is said to be the equivalent of all the SMS messages transmitted by the world’s telecoms companies.
Indeed, WhatsApp’s success in many ways mirrors that of Facebook itself, which came from nowhere to dominate social networking. Recently, however, Facebook has been losing some of its cool, especially among younger users. That may explain why the famously paranoid Mr Zuckerberg is willing to pay a king’s ransom for a company that might ultimately eclipse his own creation. He has spent lavishly before, paying around $1 billion for Instagram, a photo-sharing app, in 2012.
But does the whopping price tag for WhatsApp make sense? Assuming it keeps adding users at its current rate of 1m a day—and they end up paying for its service—it could generate hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue. Twitter, which reported $665m of revenue last year, has a market capitalisation of $30 billion. Much will depend on how well Mr Zuckerberg gets on with Jan Koum, the boss of WhatsApp, who is joining Facebook’s board and will run the app as an independent business. Mr Koum, who has a well-known aversion to collecting people’s data and plastering advertising over his app, seems an odd bedfellow for Facebook. But the deal was clearly one that he couldn’t refuse.
Even veterans of Silicon Valley goggled at the staggering sum of money changing hands, which comprises a mixture of cash and shares in Facebook. WhatsApp’s price tag is the most ever paid for a venture-capital-backed company and gives a startup founded in 2009 a valuation that is greater than that of household names such as Southwest Airlines and Sony.
The deal marks the coming-of-age of messaging apps, which let people send text messages and share photos and other stuff without incurring charges from telecoms firms. WhatsApp is free to use for 12 months and then costs a mere 99 cents a year. Plenty of other such apps have sprung up, including Viber, which Rakuten, a Japanese internet giant, recently bought for $900m, and the immensely popular WeChat, which belongs to Tencent, an innovative Chinese company.
All of them have benefited from two profound trends that are transforming the technology landscape. The first of these is the rapid growth of web-connected smartphones, which has allowed WhatsApp and its rivals to spread like wildfire. Announcing the deal Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s boss, said WhatsApp had reached 450m users much faster than any other web service (see chart). It has also made itself addictive: 72% of its users are active on it every day. And the viral nature of its appeal means it has achieved all this without spending a penny on marketing.
Casual-gaming apps are also spreading rapidly on mobile devices. King.com, which filed for an IPO in New York on February 18th, is a case in point. The company, which makes the hit game “Candy Crush Saga”, saw its monthly active users soar from 67m in the fourth quarter of 2012 to 408m in the same period last year. Its revenues soared too, hitting $1.9 billion last year compared with $164m in 2012.
The second trend behind WhatsApp’s success is the dramatic decline in the cost of building start-ups. Thanks to things such as cloud computing, which lets young firms buy vast amounts of cheap computing capacity, entrepreneurs can create globe-spanning businesses on shoestring budgets. WhatsApp has just 32 software engineers, which means that each one supports some 14m users. And the volume of messages it is handling is said to be the equivalent of all the SMS messages transmitted by the world’s telecoms companies.
Indeed, WhatsApp’s success in many ways mirrors that of Facebook itself, which came from nowhere to dominate social networking. Recently, however, Facebook has been losing some of its cool, especially among younger users. That may explain why the famously paranoid Mr Zuckerberg is willing to pay a king’s ransom for a company that might ultimately eclipse his own creation. He has spent lavishly before, paying around $1 billion for Instagram, a photo-sharing app, in 2012.
But does the whopping price tag for WhatsApp make sense? Assuming it keeps adding users at its current rate of 1m a day—and they end up paying for its service—it could generate hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue. Twitter, which reported $665m of revenue last year, has a market capitalisation of $30 billion. Much will depend on how well Mr Zuckerberg gets on with Jan Koum, the boss of WhatsApp, who is joining Facebook’s board and will run the app as an independent business. Mr Koum, who has a well-known aversion to collecting people’s data and plastering advertising over his app, seems an odd bedfellow for Facebook. But the deal was clearly one that he couldn’t refuse.
Someone hacked Paypal president David Marcus’ credit card.
David Marcus who is the President of Paypal, got his credit card hacked on Monday, The Leader of the online Payments’ company announced about his Hack through his twitter account.
The Tweet reads:
My card (with EMV chip) got skimmed while in the UK. Ton of fraudulent txns. Wouldn’t have happened if merchant accepted PayPal…
The magnetic strip is the main root of a credit card, which is mainly used in the US is the cause of this hack, according to the Marcus, he says ‘thieves probably skimmed the info from the magnetic stripe on his card,’ even though his card had an EMV chip, the technology which is in Europe and more secure than the ones commonly used in U.S.
The Tweet reads:
My card (with EMV chip) got skimmed while in the UK. Ton of fraudulent txns. Wouldn’t have happened if merchant accepted PayPal…
The magnetic strip is the main root of a credit card, which is mainly used in the US is the cause of this hack, according to the Marcus, he says ‘thieves probably skimmed the info from the magnetic stripe on his card,’ even though his card had an EMV chip, the technology which is in Europe and more secure than the ones commonly used in U.S.
iPhone 6 speculation goes bezel-less
Will the iPhone 6 finally ditch the bezel? Mock-ups like to think so. The real thing is less certain, though.
The latest speculation comes from the Korea Herald, which said that Apple may bring out a bezel-free iPhone 6 that supports fingerprint scanning.
The rumor was widely reported in blogs that follow Apple.
A bezel-free design -- which some publications depict as an edge-to-edge display -- would presumably require the fingerprint scanner to be incorporated into the display. On the iPhone 5S, fingerprint scanning is done via the home button. This is by no means a first for this rumor. Speculation about an iPhone with an edge-to-edge display has been around for years.The problem is, the real next-gen iPhone, aka iPhone 6, isn't due for a long time.
So, Apple could very well be testing a bezel-free design, but what the company ultimately decides is unknown.
And note that there have also been reports of a planned iPhone 6 with glass that is curved at the edges.
The Korea Herald also claims that Samsung's Galaxy S5 will come with the side bezels removed, citing new touch panel technology that would allow this.
The latest speculation comes from the Korea Herald, which said that Apple may bring out a bezel-free iPhone 6 that supports fingerprint scanning.
The rumor was widely reported in blogs that follow Apple.
A bezel-free design -- which some publications depict as an edge-to-edge display -- would presumably require the fingerprint scanner to be incorporated into the display. On the iPhone 5S, fingerprint scanning is done via the home button. This is by no means a first for this rumor. Speculation about an iPhone with an edge-to-edge display has been around for years.The problem is, the real next-gen iPhone, aka iPhone 6, isn't due for a long time.
So, Apple could very well be testing a bezel-free design, but what the company ultimately decides is unknown.
And note that there have also been reports of a planned iPhone 6 with glass that is curved at the edges.
The Korea Herald also claims that Samsung's Galaxy S5 will come with the side bezels removed, citing new touch panel technology that would allow this.
Facebook to allow edits to 'A Look Back' videos
Facebook A Look Back videos are everywhere on the social network right now. But users have found that they can't edit the videos. That will soon change.
Speaking to TechCrunch on Wednesday, Facebook said that users will soon be able to edit the videos to change moments included in the clips. The company's spokesperson said that Facebook doesn't yet "have exact timing" on the edit launch.
"This will enable people to remove a post from the movie that was pre-selected and change it to a different one," the spokesperson told Facebook.
Interestingly, Facebook's A Look Back help page says that users can edit videos. That feature, however, doesn't appear to be available to users as of this writing.
Speaking to TechCrunch on Wednesday, Facebook said that users will soon be able to edit the videos to change moments included in the clips. The company's spokesperson said that Facebook doesn't yet "have exact timing" on the edit launch.
"This will enable people to remove a post from the movie that was pre-selected and change it to a different one," the spokesperson told Facebook.
Interestingly, Facebook's A Look Back help page says that users can edit videos. That feature, however, doesn't appear to be available to users as of this writing.
Apple closer to mass producing sapphire displays, report says
Speculation has been running rampant about Apple's plans for mobile devices with a sapphire screen. Those plans finally appear to be firming up, with 9to5Mac reporting Thursday that the electronics giant is getting ready for massive production of sapphire displays.
9to5Mac, with the help of analyst Matt Margolis, unveiled that the iPhone maker recently placed a large order with GT Advanced Technologies for furnaces and chambers used in making sapphire displays. According to 9to5Mac, GT Advanced has already received 518 furnace and chamber systems, which would let it build 103 million to 116 million 5-inch displays per year. (Another 420 machines are still on order, which would nearly double that production output.) GT Advanced also has ordered Intego Sirius Sapphire Display Inspection Tool components, which would work to make sure that the displays meet high-quality standards, 9to5Mac reported.
Apple late last year signed a contract with GT Advanced to produce sapphire-based materials at Apple's new facility in Arizona. Apple has already used sapphire for the surface of the rear camera lens for the iPhone 5 and the ID fingerprint sensor in the iPhone 5S.
To be clear, when we're talking about displays made out of sapphire, we're referring to a manmade, synthetic version, not the actual gemstone. So what's all the fuss about? A future iPhone with a display made out of the material could render it scratch-resistant and nearly unbreakable. To put this in perspective, check out the video below that 9to5Mac posted earlier of a sapphire-coated iPhone display resisting scratches from a huge concrete block.
9to5Mac, with the help of analyst Matt Margolis, unveiled that the iPhone maker recently placed a large order with GT Advanced Technologies for furnaces and chambers used in making sapphire displays. According to 9to5Mac, GT Advanced has already received 518 furnace and chamber systems, which would let it build 103 million to 116 million 5-inch displays per year. (Another 420 machines are still on order, which would nearly double that production output.) GT Advanced also has ordered Intego Sirius Sapphire Display Inspection Tool components, which would work to make sure that the displays meet high-quality standards, 9to5Mac reported.
Apple late last year signed a contract with GT Advanced to produce sapphire-based materials at Apple's new facility in Arizona. Apple has already used sapphire for the surface of the rear camera lens for the iPhone 5 and the ID fingerprint sensor in the iPhone 5S.
To be clear, when we're talking about displays made out of sapphire, we're referring to a manmade, synthetic version, not the actual gemstone. So what's all the fuss about? A future iPhone with a display made out of the material could render it scratch-resistant and nearly unbreakable. To put this in perspective, check out the video below that 9to5Mac posted earlier of a sapphire-coated iPhone display resisting scratches from a huge concrete block.
The mystery of Google's sudden robotics splurge
So why is Google suddenly so interested in robots? That's the question everyone's asking after it emerged this month that the internet giant has quietly amassed a portfolio of eight advanced-robotics firms. Google is describing the venture as partly a long term "moonshot" project – the name given to its more outlandish or ambitious ideas, such as its self-driving car or broadband via high-altitude balloons. But it also says it aims to launch a raft of robotics products in the short term.
Based in the US and Japan, the new acquisitions make diverse products, ranging from walking humanoids, to many-legged, animal-like packhorses for the military, to assembly robots, machine-vision systems and robotic special-effects movie cameras. Are they creating a cloud-powered humanoid who uses Google Glass? A line of robot pets? Or just a more efficient warehouse robot?
Andy Rubin isn't saying. He runs Google's new robotics division in Palo Alto, California, and pioneered Google's Android smartphone platform. He will only say that there will be a clutch of initial products but also that Google has a "10-year vision" of where the company is headed.
Robot armyThe eight robotics companies Google has acquired so far – and we can expect more, says Rubin – include industry mainstay Boston Dynamics, based in Waltham, Massachusetts,which has made a raft of robots for the US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency. These include the world's fastest four-legged robot, Cheetah, and Big Dog, a headless all-terrain mule that can carry heavy loads for troops. It also has what are widely regarded as two of the most agile humanoids: the Petman and Atlas droids.
Google's other acquisitions include Schaft, a Tokyo-based maker of life-sized, high-power humanoid robots, plus Meka and Redwood Robotics, both of San Francisco, which make smaller humanoid bots and industrial robot arms. Google has also bought Industrial Perception of Palo Alto, whose software lends robots precision vision, and another pair of companies in San Francisco: Bot & Dolly and Autofuss, which work together on automated camera movements to create movie motion–effects. Finally, there is robot-wheel-maker Holomni of Mountain View, California.
Google is not alone in its foray into robotics. Amazon last year bought Kiva Systems for $750 million, a maker of wheeled robots that will simplify product picking in its huge warehouses. And Apple is spending $10.5 billion on advanced manufacturing robots.
Based in the US and Japan, the new acquisitions make diverse products, ranging from walking humanoids, to many-legged, animal-like packhorses for the military, to assembly robots, machine-vision systems and robotic special-effects movie cameras. Are they creating a cloud-powered humanoid who uses Google Glass? A line of robot pets? Or just a more efficient warehouse robot?
Andy Rubin isn't saying. He runs Google's new robotics division in Palo Alto, California, and pioneered Google's Android smartphone platform. He will only say that there will be a clutch of initial products but also that Google has a "10-year vision" of where the company is headed.
Robot armyThe eight robotics companies Google has acquired so far – and we can expect more, says Rubin – include industry mainstay Boston Dynamics, based in Waltham, Massachusetts,which has made a raft of robots for the US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency. These include the world's fastest four-legged robot, Cheetah, and Big Dog, a headless all-terrain mule that can carry heavy loads for troops. It also has what are widely regarded as two of the most agile humanoids: the Petman and Atlas droids.
Google's other acquisitions include Schaft, a Tokyo-based maker of life-sized, high-power humanoid robots, plus Meka and Redwood Robotics, both of San Francisco, which make smaller humanoid bots and industrial robot arms. Google has also bought Industrial Perception of Palo Alto, whose software lends robots precision vision, and another pair of companies in San Francisco: Bot & Dolly and Autofuss, which work together on automated camera movements to create movie motion–effects. Finally, there is robot-wheel-maker Holomni of Mountain View, California.
Google is not alone in its foray into robotics. Amazon last year bought Kiva Systems for $750 million, a maker of wheeled robots that will simplify product picking in its huge warehouses. And Apple is spending $10.5 billion on advanced manufacturing robots.
A tutorial on how to jailbreak the PS4 posted online
A tutorial which makes use of Orbis OS to jailbreak the PS4 posted on PasteBin. Sony has started to give warnings.
A notorious hacker called Reckz0r published a simple link on how to make PS4 approachable to pirated games. Rowdy Reckz0r referred to a George Hotz’ case, the hacker whose name stands behind PlayStation 3 crack.
Till now no one has confirmed that the published tutorial lets to breach PS system.
Though, Reckz0r pledged never to hack one of the company’s products again. PlayStation corresponds to the aggressive tone:
No? We’re giving you one day, to delete that PasteBin link you have recently posted, alongside with the files if you have uploaded them somewhere.
It won’t take us long to get you arrested if you’re still going to proceed spreading the jailbreak. Take the Geohotz sceanario as an example, –
Reckz0r posted a screenshot of his conversation with Sony officials PlayStation Twitter account.
A notorious hacker called Reckz0r published a simple link on how to make PS4 approachable to pirated games. Rowdy Reckz0r referred to a George Hotz’ case, the hacker whose name stands behind PlayStation 3 crack.
Till now no one has confirmed that the published tutorial lets to breach PS system.
Though, Reckz0r pledged never to hack one of the company’s products again. PlayStation corresponds to the aggressive tone:
No? We’re giving you one day, to delete that PasteBin link you have recently posted, alongside with the files if you have uploaded them somewhere.
It won’t take us long to get you arrested if you’re still going to proceed spreading the jailbreak. Take the Geohotz sceanario as an example, –
Reckz0r posted a screenshot of his conversation with Sony officials PlayStation Twitter account.
Discless Xbox One would be amazing, but too radical a move for Microsoft
When a NeoGaf user started leaking xbox one related bomb shells wednesday night, alarms must have started going off in Redmond.
Microsoft has since come out and confirmed that yes, its first Xbox One dashboard update will indeed come in March, and yes, the company will be releasing its previously employee-only all-white console later this year. The rumors didn't stop there, and ranged from leaked photos of the purported Titanfall bundle to a concise roadmap for the Halo series.But what was most important to the future of Xbox hardware -- and the console market as a whole -- slipped in near the end of the rumor round-ups: that Microsoft was toying with the possibility of releasing an Xbox One with a 1TB hard drive and no optical disc drive for as little as $399.
It's a shocking revelation, which Microsoft has conceded contains an element of truth: the company is testing consoles without a Blu-ray drive, reported The Verge following the forum leaks.
A Microsoft spokesperson declined to expand further on its experimentation with Xbox Ones without Blu-ray drives, saying, "We do not comment on speculation or rumors."
Accelerating the inevitable
It's difficult to understate what a discless version of the Xbox One at such a price point -- one that would then reroute all game purchases through the Xbox Live marketplace -- would be for the industry. It's a rosy picture for consumers, meaning games accessible earlier and easier that also run faster on an included drive with twice as much space as the current model. From Microsoft's end, it would be emblematic of the console market's aspirations to transition to the neatly organized ecosystem of Steam.
But realistically, while all that sounds great if you happen to have a solid Internet connection, a discless console would effectively enrage the other end of a long-established power-sharing relationship, one between retailers and console makers that's inevitably heading in a direction the video game industry doesn't seem poised to be able to handle at the moment.
"This is something that will naturally happen. What's the point of accelerating it?" Michael Pachter, a game industry analyst and managing director at Wedbush Securities, said in an interview with CNET. He also pointed out that pushing digital downloads at the expense of what would essentially be a subsidized console would not provide financial benefits substantial enough to warrant the negative side effects. Furthermore, a discless Xbox One would almost certainly not be carried at stores trying to push the very products it's trying to make obsolete.
"I think that if Microsoft doesn't have GameStop pushing its content, it's gong to sell fewer consoles in the long run and it's going to lose a lot of money," Pachter added.
And not only would the discless Xbox One be incapable of competing with a more versatile, optical-drive carrying PlayStation 4 at the same price -- especially without the context offered by retailers' in-store sales reps -- it would also carry the potential of a now all-too-familiar PR disaster.
"It would demonstrate that Microsoft can afford to release a 1TB Xbox One at $399 with essentially the same production cost as the $499 model with a 500GB HDD and a Blu-ray drive," Pachter outlined in a Webush newsletter update Thursday morning. "That would likely cause gamers to believe that the model with a Blu-ray drive is overpriced, or would cause them to believe that Microsoft is greedy," he added.
Microsoft has since come out and confirmed that yes, its first Xbox One dashboard update will indeed come in March, and yes, the company will be releasing its previously employee-only all-white console later this year. The rumors didn't stop there, and ranged from leaked photos of the purported Titanfall bundle to a concise roadmap for the Halo series.But what was most important to the future of Xbox hardware -- and the console market as a whole -- slipped in near the end of the rumor round-ups: that Microsoft was toying with the possibility of releasing an Xbox One with a 1TB hard drive and no optical disc drive for as little as $399.
It's a shocking revelation, which Microsoft has conceded contains an element of truth: the company is testing consoles without a Blu-ray drive, reported The Verge following the forum leaks.
A Microsoft spokesperson declined to expand further on its experimentation with Xbox Ones without Blu-ray drives, saying, "We do not comment on speculation or rumors."
Accelerating the inevitable
It's difficult to understate what a discless version of the Xbox One at such a price point -- one that would then reroute all game purchases through the Xbox Live marketplace -- would be for the industry. It's a rosy picture for consumers, meaning games accessible earlier and easier that also run faster on an included drive with twice as much space as the current model. From Microsoft's end, it would be emblematic of the console market's aspirations to transition to the neatly organized ecosystem of Steam.
But realistically, while all that sounds great if you happen to have a solid Internet connection, a discless console would effectively enrage the other end of a long-established power-sharing relationship, one between retailers and console makers that's inevitably heading in a direction the video game industry doesn't seem poised to be able to handle at the moment.
"This is something that will naturally happen. What's the point of accelerating it?" Michael Pachter, a game industry analyst and managing director at Wedbush Securities, said in an interview with CNET. He also pointed out that pushing digital downloads at the expense of what would essentially be a subsidized console would not provide financial benefits substantial enough to warrant the negative side effects. Furthermore, a discless Xbox One would almost certainly not be carried at stores trying to push the very products it's trying to make obsolete.
"I think that if Microsoft doesn't have GameStop pushing its content, it's gong to sell fewer consoles in the long run and it's going to lose a lot of money," Pachter added.
And not only would the discless Xbox One be incapable of competing with a more versatile, optical-drive carrying PlayStation 4 at the same price -- especially without the context offered by retailers' in-store sales reps -- it would also carry the potential of a now all-too-familiar PR disaster.
"It would demonstrate that Microsoft can afford to release a 1TB Xbox One at $399 with essentially the same production cost as the $499 model with a 500GB HDD and a Blu-ray drive," Pachter outlined in a Webush newsletter update Thursday morning. "That would likely cause gamers to believe that the model with a Blu-ray drive is overpriced, or would cause them to believe that Microsoft is greedy," he added.
Xtouch Wave Android Smartwatch released
- Processor:MTK Dual Core 1.2 GHz Cortex A7Operating system: Android 4.2 DETAILMemory:512MStorage:4GExternal Storage:Support 32GB Micro TF CardDISPLAYLG Screen1.54 inch, 240x240 pixel WIRELESSBluetooth 4.0CAMERA3.0MPSENSORSG-SensorBATTERY600mAh Lithium-ion polymer batteryLANGUAGESArabic\English\PersianWATER RESISTANCE IP65 water resistanceCleaning: wipe with a soft, moistened clothSIMSingle SIMGSM 900/1800MHZWCDMA 2100MHZFUNCTIONSCall/Photo/Video/Picture browsingPedometer/Sports Energy TestGPS/Voice MemosSupport SIM card , can make phone calls ,view messages and send/receive mailsYou can browse the internet through GPRS. To buy- http://uae.souq.com/ae-en/xtouch-wave-android-smartwatch-with-bluetooth-headset-black-6543766/i/
Limited editon qualcomm Toq now Available!
Does the Qualcomm toq smartwatch not suit you due to its color? For a limited time, that should no longer be an issue. The highly expensive smartwatch now has a limited edition in white. As you can see above, it is the same exact Toq, but in a different color.
If you decide to order through the official Qualcomm Toq Store, the company is offering free two-day shipping through February 10. At $349.99, it is the least Qualcomm could do. All you have to do is select “UPS-Second Day Air” during the checkout process. Amazon, too, has the limited edition white Toq smartwatch; however, it says the device will ship within one to two months.
If you decide to order through the official Qualcomm Toq Store, the company is offering free two-day shipping through February 10. At $349.99, it is the least Qualcomm could do. All you have to do is select “UPS-Second Day Air” during the checkout process. Amazon, too, has the limited edition white Toq smartwatch; however, it says the device will ship within one to two months.
Google sells Motorola unit to Lenovo for $2.9B
Google is unloading Motorola Mobility onto Chinese PC maker Lenovo.
Google confirmed on site that it has sold Motorola for $2.91 billion, consisting of $660 million in cash and $750 million in Lenovo shares, with the remaining $1.5 billion paid in the form of a three-year promissory note.earlier reported on the deal.
Lenovo gets the Motorola brand, as well as its portfolio of devices, including the Moto X and Moto G. In addition, it will also receive more than 2,000 patent assets, while Google will retain control of a majority of the patents it originally obtained when it acquired Motorola several years ago.
A deal instantly gives Lenovo, which has a thriving smartphone business in China but few other places, an established global brand. Google, meanwhile, will shed a business that has continually dragged down its profits.The deal marks one of the worst investments in Google's history. In 2012, Google completed its acquisition of Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion. At the time, it was thought that the primary reason for the acquisition was the treasure trove of Motorola patents that would help Google defend it and its partners against Apple.The patents, however, have proven to be less than effective in warding off lawsuits, and much of the legal fighting as gone on between Apple and Samsung, with Google only tangentially related.
Google confirmed on site that it has sold Motorola for $2.91 billion, consisting of $660 million in cash and $750 million in Lenovo shares, with the remaining $1.5 billion paid in the form of a three-year promissory note.earlier reported on the deal.
Lenovo gets the Motorola brand, as well as its portfolio of devices, including the Moto X and Moto G. In addition, it will also receive more than 2,000 patent assets, while Google will retain control of a majority of the patents it originally obtained when it acquired Motorola several years ago.
A deal instantly gives Lenovo, which has a thriving smartphone business in China but few other places, an established global brand. Google, meanwhile, will shed a business that has continually dragged down its profits.The deal marks one of the worst investments in Google's history. In 2012, Google completed its acquisition of Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion. At the time, it was thought that the primary reason for the acquisition was the treasure trove of Motorola patents that would help Google defend it and its partners against Apple.The patents, however, have proven to be less than effective in warding off lawsuits, and much of the legal fighting as gone on between Apple and Samsung, with Google only tangentially related.
CNN Social Media accounts were hacked
CNN’s social media accounts were apparently hacked by the notorious media accounts hacker group Syrian Electronic Army.
On Thursday, some of the CNN’s social media accounts were hacked, which includes:
Illegally posted posts were deleted within minutes and accounts now secured, according to CNN.
One of the status posted by SEA on CNN account:
“Syrian Electronic Army Was Here…Stop lying… All your reports are fake!”
SEA itself claimed on Twitter, that they are responsible for this hack, they tweeted:
“Tonight, the #SEA decided to retaliate against #CNN’s viciously lying reporting aimed at prolonging the suffering in #Syria.”
- See more at: http://hackersnewsbulletin.com/2014/01/cnn-social-media-accounts-hacked.html#sthash.nsH1ON4E.dpuf
On Thursday, some of the CNN’s social media accounts were hacked, which includes:
- CNN main Facebook account
- CNN Politics Facebook account
- Twitter Page of CNN an d Security Clearance.
Illegally posted posts were deleted within minutes and accounts now secured, according to CNN.
One of the status posted by SEA on CNN account:
“Syrian Electronic Army Was Here…Stop lying… All your reports are fake!”
SEA itself claimed on Twitter, that they are responsible for this hack, they tweeted:
“Tonight, the #SEA decided to retaliate against #CNN’s viciously lying reporting aimed at prolonging the suffering in #Syria.”
- See more at: http://hackersnewsbulletin.com/2014/01/cnn-social-media-accounts-hacked.html#sthash.nsH1ON4E.dpuf
iOS in car ..........
it 's been over half a year since Apple announced iOS in the Car integration with over a dozen automakers, and we’ve not heard much from Cupertino about this feature since then. Today, a video leaked that shows off exactly what the interface currently looks like, and it’s quite promising. It’s still just an emulation running in OS X, but it does give us a solid idea of what we can expect from 2014′s in-dash user experience.
In this YouTube video, a developer named Steven Troughton-Smith walks us through the “iOS in the Car” interface with a build designed for iOS 7.0.3. While the build shown here is limited in scope, it does showcase some very valuable information. For example, it does support touchscreens and multiple resolutions, but it doesn’t support third-party apps ormultitasking. Interestingly, it doesn’t seem to have a virtual keyboard interface either. Instead, voice recognition will serve as the main form of input. Dictation is still handled in the cloud, so hopefully Siri won’t collapse under the pressure.Of course, these are still early days for Apple’s in-car integration. The software shown in this demonstration is unfinished, and automakers still need to ship iOS-ready models. Even so, The Verge points to a very interesting screenshot provided by an iOS developer by the name of Denis Stas. In this screenshot, he shows the emulator running with the iOS 7.1 beta, and it looks substantially different. The user interface has been thoroughly polished, and the aesthetic better matches the look of Apple’s current UI motifs. If the rest of the software has seen as much work as the user interface, a public release might be in the cards in the next couple of months.
In this YouTube video, a developer named Steven Troughton-Smith walks us through the “iOS in the Car” interface with a build designed for iOS 7.0.3. While the build shown here is limited in scope, it does showcase some very valuable information. For example, it does support touchscreens and multiple resolutions, but it doesn’t support third-party apps ormultitasking. Interestingly, it doesn’t seem to have a virtual keyboard interface either. Instead, voice recognition will serve as the main form of input. Dictation is still handled in the cloud, so hopefully Siri won’t collapse under the pressure.Of course, these are still early days for Apple’s in-car integration. The software shown in this demonstration is unfinished, and automakers still need to ship iOS-ready models. Even so, The Verge points to a very interesting screenshot provided by an iOS developer by the name of Denis Stas. In this screenshot, he shows the emulator running with the iOS 7.1 beta, and it looks substantially different. The user interface has been thoroughly polished, and the aesthetic better matches the look of Apple’s current UI motifs. If the rest of the software has seen as much work as the user interface, a public release might be in the cards in the next couple of months.
Samsung note 3 (ANDROID)
SAMSUNG GALAXY NOTE 3 SCREEN
We've seem some huge phone/tablet hybrids, such as the Asus FonePad with its 7in screen, but the Galaxy Note 3 doesn’t look like it’s going to be such a monster.
A source speaking to the Korea Times claimed that the Note 3 will instead have a smaller 5.9in screen, which puts it firmly in phablet rather than tablet territory. However, this is still significantly larger than the 5.5in display on the Galaxy Note 2.
Yet, more recent information from SamMobile points to the Galaxy Note 3 have a 5.99in screen with a Full HD (1,920x1,080) resolution. According to the report, the Note 3 will have a thinner bezel, so it will be the same size as the Galaxy Note 2, only with a larger screen.
That makes sense in a way, as the Galaxy S4 is the same size as the Galaxy S3, but the thinner bezel means that there's room for a larger screen. We'd also agree that the Full HD resolution has to be correct, as Samsung will want the best for its high-end phablet.
SAMSUNG GALAXY NOTE 3 CHASSIS
Some people were unsure about the Galaxy S4's plastic chassis which, while lightweight and tough, doesn't look or feel quite as classy as the toughened glass of phones such as the Sony Xperia Z or the metal body of the HTC One.
This is apparently giving Samsung cause for concern, so according to news site SamMobile, the Note 3 could break with tradition and ship with a metal rather than polycarbonate chassis.
SAMSUNG GALAXY NOTE 3 S ORB
The Note 3 is rumoured to be the first Samsung phone to have the S Orbpanoramic photo feature. This is Samsung's version of Google's new Photo Sphere feature, which lets you take multiple photos in a 360-degree arc around you, and stitch the results up into a Google Street View-style collage to upload to Google+.
The key difference between S Orb and Photo Sphere is that Samsung's version will integrate with Facebook - a far more popular social network than Google+.
SAMSUNG GALAXY NOTE 3 PROCESSOR
Samsung has unveiled its octa-core Exynos 5 chip, with eight processor cores. Designed as a replacement for the Eyxnos 4 quad-core chip powering the Samsung Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note 2 devices, and an upgrade to the Exynos 5 Dual found in the Samsung-manufactured but Google-branded Nexus 10 tablet, the Exynos 5 Octa promises significant gains in performance and power usage.
The Exynos 5 Octa combines a quad-core next-generation 28nm 1.8GHz ARM Cortex-A15 processor - an upgrade to the 1.6GHz Cortex-A9 chip found in the Galaxy S3 and the 1.7GHz dual-core Cortex-A15 chip in the Nexus 10 - with a secondary quad-core Cortex-A9 processor running at 1.2GHz.
The idea, Samsung explains, is that when the phone or tablet is doing lightweight work such as playing music, making a phone call or browsing the internet, the more powerful Cortex-A15 cores can be completely disabled and the Cortex-A9 cores used instead. The result, Samsung claims, is an improvement in power efficiency of around 70 per cent compared to the Exynos 4 Quad in the Galaxy S3.
Even if the Galaxy Note 3 were to be available with the eight-core chip, that doesn't mean that this processor will be available world-wide. While the Exynos 5 CPU was launched with the Galaxy S4, the UK instead got a standard quad-core processor instead. The reasons for this aren't exactly clear, but it may be that Samsung follows a similar pattern with the Galaxy Note 3, rolling out the octa-core version in some countries, while others will get a fast quad-core chip instead.
Recent rumours also point to the Note 3 having a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor. The MK News piece also states that the phone will have 3GB of RAM.
PRICE
When the Note 2 launched last year, it cemented itself as a device for technophiles, with its £550 price.
We would usually expect the next iteration to cost around the same amount (and the Note 2 getting a price drop after the Note 3 lands). A larger screen could mean that the new phone ends up being more expensive, which could push the price up beyond £600, though.
"World's fastest" docking station charges six devices at once
When someone claims to have produced the "world's fastest" docking station, it's hard not to take notice. That's exactly what Dittrich California Inc. is claiming with its new All-Dock, which comes in four- and six-port options.Its creators claim the All-Dock will charge a smartphone to 80 percent capacity in under an hour thanks to the 2,400 mA supplied by each USB port. The unit doesn't have dedicated ports to fit specific devices, but a series of slats designed to accommodate just about any mobile device. Tucked within the dock is the USB hub into which the charging cables for the respective devices can be plugged. From there, the user can feed the cables through the dock and plug their devices into them.
The dock itself comes in three sizes, the smallest of which measures 8.7 in long, 4.4 in deep, and 2.4 in tall (220 x 113 x 61 mm) and comes with four USB ports. The medium option, which also comes with four USB ports, is the same as its little brother in length and width, but is 5.6 in (142 mm) deep. The last and largest option charges six devices at once and measures 12.4 in wide, 6.8 in deep and 2.5 in tall (315 x 173 x 64 mm). All three models have 0.53 inches (13.5 mm) of space between each slot.
The dock itself comes in three sizes, the smallest of which measures 8.7 in long, 4.4 in deep, and 2.4 in tall (220 x 113 x 61 mm) and comes with four USB ports. The medium option, which also comes with four USB ports, is the same as its little brother in length and width, but is 5.6 in (142 mm) deep. The last and largest option charges six devices at once and measures 12.4 in wide, 6.8 in deep and 2.5 in tall (315 x 173 x 64 mm). All three models have 0.53 inches (13.5 mm) of space between each slot.
Bad news from BlackBerry: 4,500 jobs to be cut, expected Q2 net operating loss of over $950 million
Things haven't been going well at BlackBerry for awhile, what with lackluster adoption of BB10 and the hardware running it, and rumors that massive layofs are coming before the end of the year. Today, the company confirmed the latter rumor, announcing that it will lay off around 4,500 employees as a part of a plan to reduce its operating expenditures by half over the next year. The plan's necessitated by an expected Q2 2014 net operating loss of almost one billion (955-995 million) dollars, driven primarily by the lackluster sale of its BB10 phones -- the company will take a pre-tax charge of $930-960 million which can be attributed mostly to the failure of the z10 to sell. BlackBerry expects revenue for Q2 to be $1.6 billion, which is roughly half of the $3.1 billion it pulled in last quarter.
Needless to say, the financial outlook for the company isn't good, and some changes are in order. In the near term, the Z10 will be priced " to make it available to a broader, entry-level audience," leaving the Z30 as BlackBerry's all-touch flagship.To try to turn things around in the long term, the company's going to refocus on its enterprise offerings and will reduce its device portfolio from six devices to four, with two high end and two entry level phones. And, don't get it twisted, the days of BlackBerry courting mainstream consumers is all but over -- its future phones will be aimed at the "enterprise and prosumers."
Needless to say, the financial outlook for the company isn't good, and some changes are in order. In the near term, the Z10 will be priced " to make it available to a broader, entry-level audience," leaving the Z30 as BlackBerry's all-touch flagship.To try to turn things around in the long term, the company's going to refocus on its enterprise offerings and will reduce its device portfolio from six devices to four, with two high end and two entry level phones. And, don't get it twisted, the days of BlackBerry courting mainstream consumers is all but over -- its future phones will be aimed at the "enterprise and prosumers."
Hackers claim to have defeated Apple's Touch ID print sensor
A day after the iPhone 5S hit the streets, a group of hackers say they have successfully bypassed the biometric security on the Apple's Touch ID fingerprint sensor by using "easy everyday means."
The Chaos Computer Club in Germany announced late Saturday that it defeated the security device by photographing an iPhone user's fingerprint from a glass surface and using that captured image to verify the user's login credentials. The sensor, which resides under the home button, replaces the four-digit passcode to unlock the handset and authorize iTunes Store purchases.
The Chaos Computer Club in Germany announced late Saturday that it defeated the security device by photographing an iPhone user's fingerprint from a glass surface and using that captured image to verify the user's login credentials. The sensor, which resides under the home button, replaces the four-digit passcode to unlock the handset and authorize iTunes Store purchases.
BBM CAME to android and IOS
BBM will be available for Android smart phones running Ice Cream Sandwich and Jelly Bean beginning at 4.30pm on September 21. BBM for iPhones running iOS 6 and iOS 7 will become available for each market on the App Store schedule of 12:01am local time on September 22.
A lot of fake apps are currently on Google Play Store fooling thousands of consumers. One such app was called ‘Blackberry Messenger BBM" and was downloaded by over 100,000 users until it was removed from the store. However, the official BBM app is only available in New Zealand for iPhone customers. Global roll out is underway. The official Android version will show up here when it is released.-
Initially, when Blackberry made the announcement of making BBM available to all, a lot of users and non-users reacted to the big move with mixed opinions.
BBM has more than 60 million monthly active customers on BlackBerry alone and this figure is expected to multiply with the popular messaging app becoming available on the two most popular mobile platforms.
Sunil Lalvani, the company’s India managing director, spoke on how BBM will be more secure than any other instant messenger tools and how this will help the company on its way forward.
A lot of fake apps are currently on Google Play Store fooling thousands of consumers. One such app was called ‘Blackberry Messenger BBM" and was downloaded by over 100,000 users until it was removed from the store. However, the official BBM app is only available in New Zealand for iPhone customers. Global roll out is underway. The official Android version will show up here when it is released.-
Initially, when Blackberry made the announcement of making BBM available to all, a lot of users and non-users reacted to the big move with mixed opinions.
BBM has more than 60 million monthly active customers on BlackBerry alone and this figure is expected to multiply with the popular messaging app becoming available on the two most popular mobile platforms.
Sunil Lalvani, the company’s India managing director, spoke on how BBM will be more secure than any other instant messenger tools and how this will help the company on its way forward.
Nexus 7 (2013)
The second generation Nexus 7 is a tablet computer developed by Google in conjunction with Asus. It is the third tablet in the Google Nexusseries, a family of consumer devices that use the Android operating system and are built by an original equipment manufacturer partner. Following the success of the original Nexus 7, a second generation of the device was released on July 26, 2013, four days earlier than the originally scheduled date due to early releases from various retailers.[3][4][5][6] The tablet was the first device to ship with version 4.3 of Android.[7] Asus confirmed the tablet will launch on August 28 in the United Kingdom.[8]
The second iteration of the 7" tablet, code named "Razor",[9] has various upgrades from the previous generation, including a 1.5 GHz quad-coreSnapdragon S4 Pro processor, 2 GB of memory, a 1920×1200 pixel display (323 pixels per inch), dual cameras (1.2 MP front, 5 MP rear), stereo speakers, built-in inductive Qi wireless charging, and a SlimPort (via micro USB connector) capable of full high-definition video output to an external display.
The second iteration of the 7" tablet, code named "Razor",[9] has various upgrades from the previous generation, including a 1.5 GHz quad-coreSnapdragon S4 Pro processor, 2 GB of memory, a 1920×1200 pixel display (323 pixels per inch), dual cameras (1.2 MP front, 5 MP rear), stereo speakers, built-in inductive Qi wireless charging, and a SlimPort (via micro USB connector) capable of full high-definition video output to an external display.
LG g2
The LG G2 is an Android smartphone developed by LG Electronics. Serving as a successor to the Optimus G and the Optimus G Pro, the G2 was unveiled at a press event in New York City on August 7, 2013, and first released in September 2013.
The G2 is primarily distinguished by software features that LG billed would "learn" from users, a high fidelity sound system designed to produce higher quality audio, a 5.2 in (130 mm) screen with technology that the company claimed would improve energy efficiency, along with the unique placement of its power and volume keys—eschewing their typical location on the bezel of a smartphone by placing them on the rear below the camera lens.
The G2 is primarily distinguished by software features that LG billed would "learn" from users, a high fidelity sound system designed to produce higher quality audio, a 5.2 in (130 mm) screen with technology that the company claimed would improve energy efficiency, along with the unique placement of its power and volume keys—eschewing their typical location on the bezel of a smartphone by placing them on the rear below the camera lens.
iPhone 5
iPhone 5 Information .......................
iPhone has received nine straight J.D. Power and Associates awards for customer satisfactionApparently love can be measured. In nine straight studies by J.D. Power and Associates, iPhone has been ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction" in the US.1.
Only iPhone has the Retina displayThe pixel density on the Retina display is so high, your eye can't distinguish individual pixels. Words are crisp. Images are bright and beautiful. Once you see the Retina display, you're never satisfied with anything less.
Ultra-fast wirelessiPhone 5 connects to more networks all over the world, including HSPA, HSPA+ and DC-HSDPA.2 And dual-band 802.11n accellerates your Wi-Fi experience. So you can browse, download and stream content remarkably fast, no matter where you are.
The world's most popular cameraThe iSight camera on iPhone takes such high-quality photos, it may be the only camera you ever need. The advanced optics capture great photo data, and then the hardware and software work together to make behind-the-scenes image and colour adjustments.
Great battery lifeIt's impressive that iPhone 5 gives you long battery life so you can easily make it through the day.3 But it's extraordinary that such a powerful battery fits into such a small and light design.
Powerful A6 chipJust about everything you do on iPhone 5 is noticably faster.4 And with faster graphics, gameplay is amazingly realistic. Best of all, the A6 chip is designed to work with iOS 6 to be extremely power efficient.
iTunes Store + App StoreTogether, they offer millions of ways to be entertained from one trusted source: Apple. The iTunes Store is the world's largest entertainment store. And the App Store has over 800,000 apps - all reviewed by Apple to guard against malware.5
iOS 6iPhone is so easy thanks to iOS 6 - the world's most advanced mobile operating system - and all its innovative features. Updates download straight to iPhone, so the latest iOS version is just a tap away.
Siri - the intelligent assistantSiri lets you use your voice to send messages, schedule meetings, make calls, check scores and more. It understands what you say, knows what you mean and helps you do the things you do every day. All you have to do is ask.
iCloudiCloud stores your content - your music, photos, apps, mail, contacts, calendars, documents and more - and wirelessly pushes it to all your devices. It's seamlessly integrated into your apps, so you're up to date everywhere you go.
iPhone 4SiPhone 4S has the amazing 8-megapixel iSight camera with panorama. It also comes with the A5 chip, iOS 6, iCloud and Siri - the intelligent assistant that lets you use your voice to get things done.
iPhone 4iPhone 4 features a high-resolution Retina display, a 5-megapixel iSight camera, FaceTime video calling and long battery life. And with iOS 6 and iCloud, it does more than ever.
- 1 Apple received the highest numerical score among consumer smartphone manufacturers in the proprietary J.D. Power and Associates 2009-2012 (Vol. 1 and 2) and 2013 (Vol. 1) U.S. Wireless Smartphone Customer Satisfaction Studies™. Study based on 9,767 consumer responses measuring seven manufacturers, and measures satisfaction performance of current wireless mobile ownership of smartphones within two years or less. Proprietary study results are based on experiences and perceptions of customers surveyed July-December 2012. Your experiences may vary. Visit jdpower.com.
- 2 Compared with iPhone 4S. Data plans sold separately. See www.apple.com/uk/batteries for more information.
- 3 Compared with the A5 chip.
- 4 Refers to the total number worldwide. Not all content is available in all countries.
- ™ and © 2013 Apple inc. All rights reserved.
Samsung galaxy s4
The Samsung Galaxy S4 is a high-end smartphone manufactured by Samsung Electronics. It was announced in New York City on March 14, 2013[5][6] as the successor to the Samsung Galaxy S III. The phone's software has many proprietary software features such as Air Gesture, Smart Stay, and Smart Scroll. Hardware features include a 13-megapixel back camera, and a 5-inch (130 mm) 1080p display.[5][6]It is the first TCO certified smartphone.[8] The S4 has two major variants, one featuring a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 and the other featuring a Samsung Exynos 5 Octa. The Exynos 5 Octa version features the first Big.little architecture central processing unit (CPU). The CPU has eight cores, four of which (one from each big.LITTLE set of two) can be active at one time to emulate a quad-core processor.[9]
The S4 was made available in late April 2013 on 327 networks worldwide and in 155 countries.[10] Upon its release, it became the fastest selling smartphone in Samsung's history. Samsung sold 20 million Galaxy S4 units worldwide in the two months following the device's launch.[11] Google released a version of the U.S. Galaxy S4 running stock Android with Samsung-provided updates. Samsung has announced that they will be releasing a "mini" variant of the S4, a "Zoom" variant,[12] and an "Active" variant. On June 17, 2013, JK Shin, vice president of Samsung Mobile announced that the Samsung Galaxy S4 is to have a variant with LTE-Advanced connection, which is twice the speed of 4G LTE.[13]t is manufactured by Samsung. Samsung announced that considering the growing smartphone market in India, it would add to the current Korean manufacturing by additionally manufacturing the Galaxy S4 On 26 June 2013 the Galaxy S4 LTE-A was released. This variant of the S4 is the world's first phone optimized to work on South Korea's LTE-A network.[16].iThe camera app implements numerous new features (some of which were first seen on the Galaxy Camera), including an updated interface, and new modes such as "Drama" (which composes a moving element from multiple shots into a single photo), "Eraser" (which takes multiple shots and allows the user to remove unnecessary elements from a picture), "Dual Shot" (which uses the front-facing camera for apicture-in-picture effect), "Sound and Shot" (which allows the user to record a voice clip alongside a photo), "Animated Photo", and "Story Album" among others. Other new pre-loaded apps include WatchOn (an electronic program guide that can utilize an infrared transmitter on the top of the phone as a TV remote), S Translator, the workout tracker S Health, S Voice Drive, S Memo, Tripadvisor, and an optical character recognition app. A new enterprise-oriented feature known as Samsung KNOX allows the phone to be separated into modes for personal use and business use, and gives the business mode high security.[17] It supports the aptX codec which improves Bluetooth-headset connectivity.
The ChatON app has basic features which are auto friends registration, text chat, and multimedia deliver, and put new features which are My Page, voice/video chat, and translate. The main function of ChatON is divided into Multimedia, Group Chat, Trunk, and Animation Message.ChatON can send text, picture, video, and audio as multimedia. Users use the personal profile into My Page. They can create group chat rooms just by selecting more than 2 buddies. All the contents that have been shared in each chat is saved into each trunk. Animation Message turns some simple drawing and stamping into short moving videos.
Back of the Black Mist S4
HardwareThe screen features a 5-inch (130 mm) (sometimes stated as 4.99-inch)[18] PenTile RGBG Full HD Super AMOLED screen with 441 pixels per inch; it is made of Gorilla Glass 3.[19]
The S4 comes with either 16 GB, 32 GB or 64 GB of internal storage, which can be supplemented with up to an additional 64 GB with the microSD card slot.[20]
The S4 GT-I9505 includes a multiband LTE transceiver and both models feature an infrared LED that can serve as a universal remote control.[5]
Built into the 2600 mAh battery is near field communication (NFC) connectivity, which allows users to perform non-touch payments at shops that employ specially equipped NFC cash registers. The SC-04E model has aFeliCa secure element, unlike other models which contain an NFC-A secure element. The NFC-A secure element on the SC-04E is provided on the SIM card. The battery can be wirelessly charged using a Qi standard special charging pad (sold separately) that utilizes magnetic resonance to produce a magnetic field through which power can be transferred.
The Galaxy S4 supports the High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) video format.[5][6][21]
In addition to the touchscreen, the S4 has several physical user inputs including a home button located near the bottom of the screen, at the bottom of the S4 is the primary microphone and the microUSB port for both data connections and charging; it also supports USB host and MHL 2.0. There are volume keys on the left side and a power/lock key on the right. At the top there is a 0.14-inch (3.6 mm) headphone jack, the secondary microphone, and infrared blaster. The backside of the S4 has the 13-megapixel camera lens and LED flash, and at the bottom left edge has the loudspeaker.[22]
Samsung's official accessory for the S4, the S-View Cover, utilizes a hall effect sensor in the phone which detects when the cover is closed and displays battery status, time, and other phone statuses in an area of the screen visible through a window on the cover.[23]
Notably, the S4 does not include an FM radio receiver, as previous models did. [24]
HTC One
The HTC One is a high-end Android smartphone produced by the Taiwanese company HTC. The One was unveiled on February 19, 2013 in New York City, as HTC's 2013 flagship smartphone, and is the successor to HTC's 2012 flagship smartphone, the One X—a device that was critically acclaimed, but commercially unsuccessful due in part to insufficient marketing efforts. The HTC One was developed with a major emphasis on unique hardware and software features such as a unibody aluminum frame, front-facing dual stereo speakers, an UltraPixel image sensorimplementation for its camera, and new proprietary software features such as an updated version of HTC's Sense UI, the BlinkFeed content feed interface, and the Zoe camera feature. The One was universally praised for its hardware design and well received for its software features.[2]
Beginning in March 2013, the HTC One was made available to 185 mobile operators and major retailers in more than 80 regions and countries. Manufacturing delays led to a staggered release beginning in late March, with its release date in certain markets (such as Asia and North America) pushed as far back as April. Despite the delays, the One sold around 5 million units during its first two months of worldwide availability,[3] and by mid-2013, the HTC One was described by the president of HTC's North American division as the most successful launch in the company's history.[4]Details of this rumored new HTC device, codenamed the M7, leaked from various sources in the weeks prior to its official debut. HTC's CEO Peter Chou officially confirmed and briefly revealed a prototype for the new device during a company event on February 1, 2013. Leaked information speculated that the M7 would run Android 4.1.2 and HTC Sense 5.0, include a 4.7-inch 1080p display, 2 GB of RAM, a quad-core processor, a 13-megapixel camera, and 32 GB of internal storage. It was also indicated that the M7 carried design traits from the Butterfly.[7][8]
The M7 was officially unveiled as the HTC One at a special launch event on February 19, 2013, in New York City and London. HTC originally announced that the One would be released in March 2013 through 185 carriers and retailers in 80 countries, being the largest global launch in the company's history. Launch carriers would include AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile in the United States, EE, O2 and Vodafone UK in the United Kingdom, and Bell, Rogers and Telus in Canada.[7][9] The HTC one uses aluminiumframe body Internally, the One is powered by a 1.7 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 600 processor with 2 GB of RAM, and supports LTE networks where they are available.[23] Most models of the HTC One come with either 32 or 64 GB of internal, non-expandable storage—unlike the international model, the Chinese and Japanese models include a microSD slot.[24] The One uses a 4.7 inch, 1080p Super LCD 3 display with a pixel density of 468 ppi.[25] The One's internal components are arranged in a pyramid-like layout similar to the Butterfly and 8X; with larger components (such as the screen and battery) positioned towards the front and smaller components (such as the motherboard) positioned towards the back. This internal layout also allows the One to have a curved backing.[26] The HTC One's audio system incorporates front-facing BoomSound stereo speakers, Beats Audio, and HDR audio recording.[23]he HTC One is equipped with a 4-megapixel rear-facing camera module that contains a custom UltraPixel image sensor, which contains pixels that are 2.0 µm in size. While most high-end smartphones used 8- or 13-megapixel cameras at the time of the One's release, the size of the pixels in their sensors have ranged from 1.4 to 1.0 µm, both of which are considerably smaller in size. Although using these smaller pixel sizes was necessary to ensure that the camera sensor did not compromise the design of the phone itself, there were some concerns that this could result in a loss of dynamic range and sensitivity, and poor performance in low-light environments. As such, HTC claimed that its camera design could increase overall image quality, especially in low-light environments.[27][28] The camera also includes optical image stabilization (OIS), and is further enhanced by improvements to the Sense camera software and the ImageChip 2 image processor.[29][23] Tdenser The camera app includes a new shooting mode known as Zoe (alluding to the zoetrope), which captures a short video alongside each photo taken. Individual frames can be saved from the clip, while the frames can also be used with other editing features such as Sequence Shot (which superimposes multiple frames into a composite image). Photos taken in Zoe mode are displayed with animated thumbnails in the gallery, while the Highlights feature automatically compiles all of the photos and videos taken at an event into a short multimedia presentation that can be exported or shared online through the HTC Share service.[27][29] The One also includes a TV app, which incorporates an electronic program guide powered by Peel, show recommendations and notifications, and can act as a remote control via an infrared emitter hidden in its power button.[23][30][27] An updated music app now includes a visualizer and support for on-screen lyrics.[30] An updated version of the Get Started feature (as introduced by the One X+) allows users to perform initial setup for their One via a web-based service, while a new Sync Manager allows data to be migrated from iOS device backups or HTC devices with Android 4.0 and higher.[30]
Sense 5.0 will not be exclusive to the One; on February 28, 2013, HTC announced that it would provide updates to Sense 5.0 for the Butterfly and One X/X+ in the coming months. However, due to hardware differences, it will not include all of the features implemented by Sense 5 on the HTC One.[31]
Beginning in March 2013, the HTC One was made available to 185 mobile operators and major retailers in more than 80 regions and countries. Manufacturing delays led to a staggered release beginning in late March, with its release date in certain markets (such as Asia and North America) pushed as far back as April. Despite the delays, the One sold around 5 million units during its first two months of worldwide availability,[3] and by mid-2013, the HTC One was described by the president of HTC's North American division as the most successful launch in the company's history.[4]Details of this rumored new HTC device, codenamed the M7, leaked from various sources in the weeks prior to its official debut. HTC's CEO Peter Chou officially confirmed and briefly revealed a prototype for the new device during a company event on February 1, 2013. Leaked information speculated that the M7 would run Android 4.1.2 and HTC Sense 5.0, include a 4.7-inch 1080p display, 2 GB of RAM, a quad-core processor, a 13-megapixel camera, and 32 GB of internal storage. It was also indicated that the M7 carried design traits from the Butterfly.[7][8]
The M7 was officially unveiled as the HTC One at a special launch event on February 19, 2013, in New York City and London. HTC originally announced that the One would be released in March 2013 through 185 carriers and retailers in 80 countries, being the largest global launch in the company's history. Launch carriers would include AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile in the United States, EE, O2 and Vodafone UK in the United Kingdom, and Bell, Rogers and Telus in Canada.[7][9] The HTC one uses aluminiumframe body Internally, the One is powered by a 1.7 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 600 processor with 2 GB of RAM, and supports LTE networks where they are available.[23] Most models of the HTC One come with either 32 or 64 GB of internal, non-expandable storage—unlike the international model, the Chinese and Japanese models include a microSD slot.[24] The One uses a 4.7 inch, 1080p Super LCD 3 display with a pixel density of 468 ppi.[25] The One's internal components are arranged in a pyramid-like layout similar to the Butterfly and 8X; with larger components (such as the screen and battery) positioned towards the front and smaller components (such as the motherboard) positioned towards the back. This internal layout also allows the One to have a curved backing.[26] The HTC One's audio system incorporates front-facing BoomSound stereo speakers, Beats Audio, and HDR audio recording.[23]he HTC One is equipped with a 4-megapixel rear-facing camera module that contains a custom UltraPixel image sensor, which contains pixels that are 2.0 µm in size. While most high-end smartphones used 8- or 13-megapixel cameras at the time of the One's release, the size of the pixels in their sensors have ranged from 1.4 to 1.0 µm, both of which are considerably smaller in size. Although using these smaller pixel sizes was necessary to ensure that the camera sensor did not compromise the design of the phone itself, there were some concerns that this could result in a loss of dynamic range and sensitivity, and poor performance in low-light environments. As such, HTC claimed that its camera design could increase overall image quality, especially in low-light environments.[27][28] The camera also includes optical image stabilization (OIS), and is further enhanced by improvements to the Sense camera software and the ImageChip 2 image processor.[29][23] Tdenser The camera app includes a new shooting mode known as Zoe (alluding to the zoetrope), which captures a short video alongside each photo taken. Individual frames can be saved from the clip, while the frames can also be used with other editing features such as Sequence Shot (which superimposes multiple frames into a composite image). Photos taken in Zoe mode are displayed with animated thumbnails in the gallery, while the Highlights feature automatically compiles all of the photos and videos taken at an event into a short multimedia presentation that can be exported or shared online through the HTC Share service.[27][29] The One also includes a TV app, which incorporates an electronic program guide powered by Peel, show recommendations and notifications, and can act as a remote control via an infrared emitter hidden in its power button.[23][30][27] An updated music app now includes a visualizer and support for on-screen lyrics.[30] An updated version of the Get Started feature (as introduced by the One X+) allows users to perform initial setup for their One via a web-based service, while a new Sync Manager allows data to be migrated from iOS device backups or HTC devices with Android 4.0 and higher.[30]
Sense 5.0 will not be exclusive to the One; on February 28, 2013, HTC announced that it would provide updates to Sense 5.0 for the Butterfly and One X/X+ in the coming months. However, due to hardware differences, it will not include all of the features implemented by Sense 5 on the HTC One.[31]
Hp pavilion sleek book 15
HP Pavilion TouchSmart Sleekbook.
A better kind of touch.Our experience in touch means a
better experience for you.Know you’re getting a notebook you can rely on from HP, one of the world’s leaders in touch technology.
Fast. Fluid.
Full-sized touchscreen.Go beyond keyboard and mouse and experience Windows 8 on a full-sized touchscreen. Swipe, scroll, tap, and zoom using multi-touch gestures on the 15.6-inch diagonal HD2display. Get more done and have more fun with the new fast and fluid Windows 8. Designed to fit in and stand out.All the essential ports
and then some.Packed with the ports you need, so you can be confident that connecting to displays and other devices with be hassle-free.Comfortable keyboard. Plus a keypad.Get a complete numeric keypad that makes it easy to plan budgets and pay bills.
Carry on.With a thin, easy-to-carry design, the HP Pavilion Sleekbook goes wherever you do.
A better kind of touch.Our experience in touch means a
better experience for you.Know you’re getting a notebook you can rely on from HP, one of the world’s leaders in touch technology.
Fast. Fluid.
Full-sized touchscreen.Go beyond keyboard and mouse and experience Windows 8 on a full-sized touchscreen. Swipe, scroll, tap, and zoom using multi-touch gestures on the 15.6-inch diagonal HD2display. Get more done and have more fun with the new fast and fluid Windows 8. Designed to fit in and stand out.All the essential ports
and then some.Packed with the ports you need, so you can be confident that connecting to displays and other devices with be hassle-free.Comfortable keyboard. Plus a keypad.Get a complete numeric keypad that makes it easy to plan budgets and pay bills.
Carry on.With a thin, easy-to-carry design, the HP Pavilion Sleekbook goes wherever you do.
Samsung Galaxy Note 12.2 tablet's first purported image leaks
The first image of the long-rumoured Samsung Galaxy Note tablet featuring a 12.2-inch display has surfaced online.Korean website, Moveplayer, has published what it claims to be an image of the yet to be announced Samsung tablet's front panel. As per the site, the leaked tablet is expected to be the Galaxy Note 12.2 which was formerly dubbed as SM-P900. The site also notes that the alleged Samsung Galaxy Note 12.2 tablet will be sold under the Samsung 9x series.
While the leaked render does not offer any details about the innards of the device, it does reveal the overall design language of the tablet. The tablet's front panel that appears in the leaked image includes a physical Home button accompanied by Back and Settings button, similar to the Galaxy tablet range. The alleged images of the tablet also reveal that it will not feature rounded corners and instead, will be rectangular. There is Samsung branding on top of the front panel alongside the sensors.
While the leaked render does not offer any details about the innards of the device, it does reveal the overall design language of the tablet. The tablet's front panel that appears in the leaked image includes a physical Home button accompanied by Back and Settings button, similar to the Galaxy tablet range. The alleged images of the tablet also reveal that it will not feature rounded corners and instead, will be rectangular. There is Samsung branding on top of the front panel alongside the sensors.
Apple's new software ios7
At Apple’s WWDC 2013 conference there was no new iPhone or iPad. Damn. But there were several other announcements including a new update to OS X, a seriously beefy new Mac Pro, updated Macbook Airs, and a new version of iOS 7 sporting a slick new design and user interface. But the question is—was all of this enough to really wow?
OS X Mavericks
Other than visual tweaks in OS X Mavericks (yes, plural), the improvements announced were more around usability features and performance gains. A quick look:
- Under the hood tweaks: These will work with new generation processors to run more efficiently and deliver extended battery life on Macbooks. This includes smartly queuing instructions so the processor crunches through applications more efficiently, and memory compression to make room for apps that really need them without slowing down others.
- A whole new Safari: Apple’s new browser now has a sidebar containing bookmarks, reading lists, and shared links from people you’re following. There is also smoother scrolling through long and heavy web pages, iCloud Keychain that manages passwords, credit card numbers and other such sensitive stuff. A neat feature called App Nap smartly checks to see whether the program you’re running is actually visible before deciding how much processing power to give it – great for power-hungry background programs (like a constantly updating Facebook home page or an open YouTube video) that might drain your battery.
- Better multiple monitor support: Besides the usual luxuries associate with spreading your desktop across two screen, OS X Mavericks introduces a few new usability tweaks like separate full screen apps on individual monitors, tweaks in calling up the dock across the desktops and more.
- A spattering of other improvements like the ability to reply to emails directly from the notifications bar, automatic updating of programs in the background and other such.
Macbook Air
Love the sliver that is the Macbook Air? Well now you’ll lust. These new laptops are based on the new Intel Haswell processor architecture. The result? Significantly enhanced battery life: the 11-inch device will now power along for 9 hours while the 13-inch should be good for 12 hours of computing on the road. Also, they have the new 802.11ac wireless networking standard that offers a 3x speed boost from the current.
Mac Pro
Apple’s senior vice president Phil Schiller pretty much said it all with his, “Can’t innovate any more, my ass!” affirmation. Hyperbole aside, this actually does describe the new Mac Pro quite aptly. Let’s geek out a bit here and run through what makes this surprisingly tiny box of dynamite tick: this new workstation is based on a new-generation Intel Xeon processor that has up to 12 cores, it is based on the fastest RAM available to date, has a blazingly quick solid state drive, the new Thunderbolt 2 connectors (way speedier than your old USB ports), dual AMD FirePro graphics that deliver up to 7 Teraflops of graphic horsepower, and support for up to three 4K displays. If you’re into anything remotely graphic related, you should be sufficiently turned on by now. And all of this shoehorned into a polished black cylinder that’s 1/8th the volume of the previous Mac Pro. Another neat touch is the way the ports on the back light up when the box is lifted and swivelled for access. Oh, and they made it a point to say that these boxes will only be built in the US of A.
iOS 7
Now here’s the bit that caused the most flutter. Sure there was no new phone or tablet announcement, but the collective orgasms arising from the room full of Apple worshippers was overtly apparent when the new iOS 7 was unveiled. This new mobile operating system has, first and foremost, has completely ditched those glossy icons that have come to exemplify the OS. Pastel colours abound, design elements are flat and clean... wait just a second, doesn’t this look Windows Phone? Or is it Android Jellybean? Confusion aside, the new iOS 7 seems to have taken numerous design cues from its two strongest mobile competitors. Here’s what your next iOS update will offer:
- Plenty of luscious translucencies, parallax icons that track movement (hard to describe but you’ll see this in action in the video below), redesigned icons and screen elements.
- Control Centre: Quick access to key settings by swiping from the base of the screen. Right. Did this feature really take that long to arrive?
- Multitasking: Finally, for all apps. The system also tracks apps that require more attention and regulates power to them accordingly. Also, app updates are coalesced so that each time the radios are turned on, updates are delivered across the board in a single go.
- Safari on iOS 7: A significantly revamped new mobile browsing experience with cascaded tabs windows, a unified search field, menu bars that fade away when you scroll a web page. Neat.
- AirDrop: Instantly share files with other iOS devices near you over peer-to-peer WiFi. Once again, in the broader ecosystem this really isn’t new.
- Photos: All photos on the device are automatically organized into ‘Moments’ based on information like date, location and other such image data. Zoom is intuitive all the way from day level up to year level. Plus, you can share your photo streams with other iOS users.
- Integration with cars: Also announced were a slew of car manufacturers who have pledged fealty to Cupertino for truly integrating the iOS 7 experience into their vehicles, complete with eyes-free control of key activities.
- iOS updates: These now happen automatically; no more poking around applications and updating each individually.
- iTunes Radio: a new streaming service on the lines of Spotify, Pandora et al, but for the time being available only in the US.
iOS 7 can be downloaded in the Fall and requires iPhone 4 and later, iPad 2 and later, iPad Mini, and iPod Touch 5th gen and later. But if you happened to have an Apple developer account you can snag it right now.
Check out the official walkthrough for the new iOS 7. Warning: certified Apple fans might be prone to uncontrollable drooling.
OS X Mavericks
Other than visual tweaks in OS X Mavericks (yes, plural), the improvements announced were more around usability features and performance gains. A quick look:
- Under the hood tweaks: These will work with new generation processors to run more efficiently and deliver extended battery life on Macbooks. This includes smartly queuing instructions so the processor crunches through applications more efficiently, and memory compression to make room for apps that really need them without slowing down others.
- A whole new Safari: Apple’s new browser now has a sidebar containing bookmarks, reading lists, and shared links from people you’re following. There is also smoother scrolling through long and heavy web pages, iCloud Keychain that manages passwords, credit card numbers and other such sensitive stuff. A neat feature called App Nap smartly checks to see whether the program you’re running is actually visible before deciding how much processing power to give it – great for power-hungry background programs (like a constantly updating Facebook home page or an open YouTube video) that might drain your battery.
- Better multiple monitor support: Besides the usual luxuries associate with spreading your desktop across two screen, OS X Mavericks introduces a few new usability tweaks like separate full screen apps on individual monitors, tweaks in calling up the dock across the desktops and more.
- A spattering of other improvements like the ability to reply to emails directly from the notifications bar, automatic updating of programs in the background and other such.
Macbook Air
Love the sliver that is the Macbook Air? Well now you’ll lust. These new laptops are based on the new Intel Haswell processor architecture. The result? Significantly enhanced battery life: the 11-inch device will now power along for 9 hours while the 13-inch should be good for 12 hours of computing on the road. Also, they have the new 802.11ac wireless networking standard that offers a 3x speed boost from the current.
Mac Pro
Apple’s senior vice president Phil Schiller pretty much said it all with his, “Can’t innovate any more, my ass!” affirmation. Hyperbole aside, this actually does describe the new Mac Pro quite aptly. Let’s geek out a bit here and run through what makes this surprisingly tiny box of dynamite tick: this new workstation is based on a new-generation Intel Xeon processor that has up to 12 cores, it is based on the fastest RAM available to date, has a blazingly quick solid state drive, the new Thunderbolt 2 connectors (way speedier than your old USB ports), dual AMD FirePro graphics that deliver up to 7 Teraflops of graphic horsepower, and support for up to three 4K displays. If you’re into anything remotely graphic related, you should be sufficiently turned on by now. And all of this shoehorned into a polished black cylinder that’s 1/8th the volume of the previous Mac Pro. Another neat touch is the way the ports on the back light up when the box is lifted and swivelled for access. Oh, and they made it a point to say that these boxes will only be built in the US of A.
iOS 7
Now here’s the bit that caused the most flutter. Sure there was no new phone or tablet announcement, but the collective orgasms arising from the room full of Apple worshippers was overtly apparent when the new iOS 7 was unveiled. This new mobile operating system has, first and foremost, has completely ditched those glossy icons that have come to exemplify the OS. Pastel colours abound, design elements are flat and clean... wait just a second, doesn’t this look Windows Phone? Or is it Android Jellybean? Confusion aside, the new iOS 7 seems to have taken numerous design cues from its two strongest mobile competitors. Here’s what your next iOS update will offer:
- Plenty of luscious translucencies, parallax icons that track movement (hard to describe but you’ll see this in action in the video below), redesigned icons and screen elements.
- Control Centre: Quick access to key settings by swiping from the base of the screen. Right. Did this feature really take that long to arrive?
- Multitasking: Finally, for all apps. The system also tracks apps that require more attention and regulates power to them accordingly. Also, app updates are coalesced so that each time the radios are turned on, updates are delivered across the board in a single go.
- Safari on iOS 7: A significantly revamped new mobile browsing experience with cascaded tabs windows, a unified search field, menu bars that fade away when you scroll a web page. Neat.
- AirDrop: Instantly share files with other iOS devices near you over peer-to-peer WiFi. Once again, in the broader ecosystem this really isn’t new.
- Photos: All photos on the device are automatically organized into ‘Moments’ based on information like date, location and other such image data. Zoom is intuitive all the way from day level up to year level. Plus, you can share your photo streams with other iOS users.
- Integration with cars: Also announced were a slew of car manufacturers who have pledged fealty to Cupertino for truly integrating the iOS 7 experience into their vehicles, complete with eyes-free control of key activities.
- iOS updates: These now happen automatically; no more poking around applications and updating each individually.
- iTunes Radio: a new streaming service on the lines of Spotify, Pandora et al, but for the time being available only in the US.
iOS 7 can be downloaded in the Fall and requires iPhone 4 and later, iPad 2 and later, iPad Mini, and iPod Touch 5th gen and later. But if you happened to have an Apple developer account you can snag it right now.
Check out the official walkthrough for the new iOS 7. Warning: certified Apple fans might be prone to uncontrollable drooling.
Apple signing iPhone 5c deal with china mobile
When Apple sent out separate invites for a special event on September 11, it was highly speculated that the phone maker plans to announce a new partnership with China Mobile. Now adding fuel to it is the new WSJ report that further confirms the deal, as reveled to it by people familiar with the matter.
The new partnership is likely to give it access to an estimated 744 million potential China Mobile subscribers, which is seven times the size of US's largest carrier Verizon Wireless. Greater China is reportedly Apple's third biggest market after the US and Europe in terms of sales.
Reportedly, the sources even confirm the company plans to unveil high-end as well as cheaper iPhone models at the event to be held in China. Apple has supposedly directed its manufacturing partner Foxconn to add China Mobile to the list of carriers which will be receiving the low-cost iPhone.
With this move, Apple is preparing to take on the stiff competition that it is facing from other manufacturers such as Samsung. According to the report, the company’s sales in Greater China dropped by 14 percent compared to the previous year during its fiscal third quarter ended June 29. In the June quarter, Apple's China market share fell to 5 percent, and is now ranked seventh putting it behind manufactures such as Samsung, Lenovo and Huawei.
On the other hand, overall smartphone shipments in China are estimated to have risen by 84 percent to 352 million units this year, which is more than double than that of the U.S., according to research firm Canalys. China overtook U.S. as the world's biggest smartphone market last year.
Reportedly, Apple was initially reluctant to bring its iPhone to China Mobile’s unreliable third-generation network but China Mobile bristled at Apple's insistence on sales volume guarantees. Another issue that Apple faces in the Chinese market is the price, which is expensive for most consumers compared to what other brands are offering. Looks like, Apple is hoping the cheaper iPhone will help it bounce back in the Chinese market.
Nokia closes window ;) opening android
Nokia from windows to android
Ever thought how a Nokia-branded Android phone would be? Nokia fans who wanted the company to embrace Android would find this piece of news interesting. The Finnish company’s former Asia-Pacific CEO Thomas Zilliacus has founded a company called Newkia, and hopes to built Android phones that Nokia wouldn’t. Yes, that's what they plan to call the company.
Zilliacus plans to hire ex-Nokia employees, who wanted to build Android-run Nokia phones. In fact, he was a Nokia employee for over 15 years. Reportedly, he also wanted to buy Nokia's phone business a year ago, with the hope to start crafting Android phones. While that didn’t happen and now Microsoft has bought Nokia’s device and services unit, so forming Newkia seemed like the next best option to him.
Reportedly, Newkia is a Singapore-based company with a few ex-Nokia staff already on its payroll. But Zilliacus plans to maintain the R&D team located in Finland. Now, you can expect the first Newkia phone within a year and the company is targeting the Asian market. However, this doesn’t mean it has completely ruled out the possibility of introducing its phones in the US. However, lets see if the company can bring back the Nokia experience with a touch of Android.
Ever thought how a Nokia-branded Android phone would be? Nokia fans who wanted the company to embrace Android would find this piece of news interesting. The Finnish company’s former Asia-Pacific CEO Thomas Zilliacus has founded a company called Newkia, and hopes to built Android phones that Nokia wouldn’t. Yes, that's what they plan to call the company.
Zilliacus plans to hire ex-Nokia employees, who wanted to build Android-run Nokia phones. In fact, he was a Nokia employee for over 15 years. Reportedly, he also wanted to buy Nokia's phone business a year ago, with the hope to start crafting Android phones. While that didn’t happen and now Microsoft has bought Nokia’s device and services unit, so forming Newkia seemed like the next best option to him.
Reportedly, Newkia is a Singapore-based company with a few ex-Nokia staff already on its payroll. But Zilliacus plans to maintain the R&D team located in Finland. Now, you can expect the first Newkia phone within a year and the company is targeting the Asian market. However, this doesn’t mean it has completely ruled out the possibility of introducing its phones in the US. However, lets see if the company can bring back the Nokia experience with a touch of Android.
Bluetooth sticker which can be used to trace