New Nexus 7 Review

Google is out with a new version of the Nexus 7 tablet, and it's a refresh in every sense of the word. The real focus is on the improved display. This is the highest-resolution seven-inch tablet on the market.

A major improvement over the last-gen model, the display on the sleeker tablet has a 1920 x 1200 resolution with a pixel density of 323 ppi. The 7-point touch IPS panel is supposed to be not just scratch-resistant, but also fingerprint smudge resistant. Up in the top left corner you'll find a 5-megapixel camera and a new, larger "Nexus" logo that runs vertically rather than horizontally when holding the tablet in portrait mode.

Nexus 7 is made by ASUS and packs a serious punch. With a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor clocked at 1.5 GHz and 2 GB of RAM, everything runs faster. Plus, high-performance rendering ensures 3D graphics are smooth and dynamic. It is packed with a latest version of android Jelly bean 4.3 and comes in 16 GB and 32 GB variants. It also has surround sound powered by Fraunhofer (the MP3 inventors).

The new Nexus 7 also feels more comfortable in hands. It's 17 per cent thinner and 5 per cent narrower when held like a portrait. The display is sharper and the sound is richer than the old model. Overall the new Nexus 7 is a well built, well-spec'd machine.

Samsung doubles the GPU power of current silicon

The chips are getting better year after year and Moore's Law and common sense tell us that product specification will continue to rise, even if we no longer need them to be more powerful. On the graphics front, Samsung has moved to Imagination Technologies for the Exynos 5410.

Samsung’s new Exynos 5 Octa 5420, based on ARM Mali™-T628 MP6 cores, boosts 3D graphic processing capabilities that are over two times greater than the Exynos 5 Octa predecessor. The newest member of the Exynos family is able to perform General Purpose computing on Graphics Processing Units (GPGPU) accelerating complex and computationally intensive algorithms or operations, traditionally processed by the CPU.

In addition, the multiple image compression (MIC) IP block inside this System-on-Chip successfully lowers the total system power when bringing pictures or multimedia from memory to display panel. This feature results in maximizing the usage hours of mobile devices with a high-resolution display such as WQXGA (2500x1600).

Samsung claims optimizations in the 5420 have allowed for a 20% increase in CPU performance over the old chip. The new family of Exynos 5 Octa is currently sampling to customers and is scheduled for mass-production in August.

Xperia Z Ultra: A Stunner from Sony

One of world’s largest Android smartphone with a 6.4” Full HD Display. The Sony Xperia Z Ultra has a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels paired with a pixel density of 342 pixels per inch, you get pictures that are razor sharp and superiorly bright. It's also extremely slim, at just 6.5 mm thick. Sony says it has managed to make the Ultra so slim that the 3.5 mm headphone jack is now the limiting factor, and that to make it even slimmer would require a redesigned audio output.

It has an 8 megapixel rear-camera with Exmor RS for mobile image sensor, which is claimed to be the first image sensor with HDR (High Dynamic Range) for videos and photos. The device has a two megapixel front camera. Essentially, you can use the phone to take full-HD videos underwater.

The Ultra is extremely fast. It has a 2.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor, which is one of the highest speed in an Android device and is powered by Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. It has 2 GB RAM, 16 GB of onboard storage, and a micro SD card slot for expandability. A large embedded 3,000 mAh battery will give you an outstanding standby time, allowing you to go longer between charges. It also packs Bluetooth, NFC, Wi-Fi and screen mirroring.

As a true phablet, you'll be able to use a stylus with the Z Ultra. While it doesn't come with pen-style input device, the smartphone’s display is capable of taking notes using the built-in handwriting recognition tool. Interestingly, besides the standard capacitive stylus, the Z Ultra also lets you use a pencil or a metal pen to write on the screen.

The Z Ultra is Waterproof, dust resistant and with tough tempered glass coated with an anti-shatter film, this Android smartphone is much tougher than it looks.

HTC One Mini Review

HTC has announced the HTC One mini, a compact version of its flagship smartphone, the HTC One. HTC One Mini runs Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean and HTC Sense 5, and the software experience is the same as on the HTC One.

The HTC One mini sports a 4.3-inch display with a resolution of 1280x720 pixels and pixel density of 341 ppi. It’s a great-looking screen, with rich colors, a high maximum brightness level and wide viewing angles. The Mini is powered by a Snapdragon 400 dual-core CPU, clocked at 1.4 GHz, and backed up by 1 GB of RAM. The One Mini also packs 16 GB of internal storage, of which around 12 is available for your own stuff.

The rear camera is a 4-megapixel “Ultra pixel” shooter — the same unit used in other HTC phones, including the full-sized One. The phone's front and sides are made of poly-carbonate, while its back is made of aluminum, unlike the HTC One which is made entirely from aluminum barring the glass display.

The camera and gallery apps represent another important pillar of the HTC Sense experience, and they've made the transition across to the HTC One Mini.

HTC One Mini vs. the HTC One

Both the phones run on the same versions of software and HTC sense. The usability features, like connectivity, sensors and camera specifications and options are almost identical.

But there are three major omissions — first, there's no OIS (Optical image stabilization), which means photos will be more vulnerable to shaking. Next, there's no IR blaster, meaning you can't control your TV using the phone. Finally, there's no NFC support.

The internal hardware of the Mini is a step down from the full HTC One — a dual-core Snapdragon 400 at 1.4 GHz versus a quad-core Snapdragon 600 at 1.7 GHz. There's half the RAM, at 1 GB versus two, and half the base storage, at 16 GB versus 32. Despite this, performance in day-to-day tasks is virtually identical on the Mini.

For casual users the HTC One Mini is a well built and great performing phone but for power users the big brother HTC One wins the game.

Beats Solo HD Headphones

Beats Solo HD on-ear headphones features the original Beats by Dr. Dre in a smaller, sleeker, more colorful package. You get crystal clear highs and deep, rumbling lows in a lightweight headphone perfect for long listening sessions.

What might attract you though is the bass reproduction. These are some of the good sounding headphones providing incredible bass without much distortion.

The headphones are made of super-durable flexible material, reinforced with a metal strip to make sure it never comes apart. It has a built in mic for calls and can fold down into a compact form for storage which includes a case for this purpose.

From the ear cups to the headband, the Beats Solo headphones have a nice, quality feel to them.

Driverless Cars

Driverless car or autonomous car is a self-driving car used for human transportation. The car is capable of sensing its environment and navigate without human input. It maintains a safe distance from the vehicle in front at a set speed without deviating from its lane - all without the driver's input. Driver-less cars are guided by a system of sensors and cameras and are seen as potentially safer and more efficient than regular vehicles. These vehicles sense their surroundings with techniques such as radar, lidar, GPS, and computer vision.

Driverless cars will have many benefits over human driven cars. It will reduce traffic collisions, alleviate parking scarcity, improve fuel efficiency, increase roadway capacity and will have the ability to manage traffic flow.

Numerous major companies and research organizations have developed working prototype driver-less vehicles including Mercedes-Benz, Google, Continental Automotive Systems, Bosch, Nissan, Toyota, Audi and Oxford University.

Google has already tested driver-less cars on 1, 60,934 kilometers of roads in San Francisco. Google co-founder Sergey Brin said he believed the self-driving car would "dramatically improve the quality of life for everyone", and that it would be commercially available within the decade.

UK has also decided to test driver-less cars on public roads before 2013. 

Lernstift – A pen that vibrates to a spelling mistake

As children we all needed feedback from our teachers to correct our spelling mistakes but now a pen can do it for you. A pair of German inventors have developed Lernstift, a learning pen that'll help you improving your spelling and handwriting with the power of vibration. Packing a stripped-down Linux system with a non-optical motion sensor, it'll work out what you're writing and buzz you if it thinks you've made a mistake.

The pen has two modes – Calligraphy mode and Orthography mode. In Calligraphy Mode the pen vibrates once if a letter is written wrong or illegibly. In Orthography Mode the pen vibrates once for a misspelled word and twice to point out grammatical errors in a sentence.

Lernstift works differently. The pen recognizes words, gestures and symbols, even if you only "draw them in the air". This opens up all new possibilities for whiteboarding applications.

With its exchangeable writing system the pen can be easily turned into a pencil, fountain pen or ballpoint.

3D Printing

3D printing or Additive manufacturing is a process of making a three-dimensional solid object of any shape from a digital model. It is done using additive process, where successive layers of material are laid down in different shapes. The primary advantage of this technique is its ability to create almost any shape or geometric feature. Today there has been a large growth in the sales of these machines, and their price has dropped substantially.

The technology is used in the fields of jewelry, footwear, industrial design, architecture, engineering and construction (AEC), automotive, dental and medical industries, geographic information systems, civil engineering and many others.

To perform a print, the machine reads the design from a .stl file and lays down successive layers of liquid, powder, paper or sheet material to build the model from a series of cross sections. These layers which correspond to the virtual cross sections from the CAD (computer aided design) model are joined to create the final shape.

Recently researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a new technique that can be used to print metal in 3D. One of the world's first 3D printing shops opened in London. Customers would soon be able to walk into a shop and have their own jewelry, artworks or machine parts printed.

Nokia Lumia 1020 Review

Nokia finally revealed its secret phone Lumia 1020 which has a Jaw-dropping 41 megapixel Camera that separates it from other phones in the market. The phone has image-stabilizing Pure View technology and a new feature called dual capture, which simultaneously snaps a 38-megapixel image and a more shareable 5-megapixel one. It is lighter compared to Lumia 920.

On the front is an eye-catching 4.5-inch AMOLED HD+ screen with 1,280 x 768 pixel display, which nicely compliments Windows 8's bright UI. It is powered by 1.5 GHz Dual core processor, 2 GB RAM and 32 GB of internal storage. The Lumia 1020 stunningly enormous image resolution is the smartphone's single killer feature. There is a new camera app, called Nokia Pro Camera. It gives you easier access to manual settings, like manual focus, exposure, ISO, shutter speed, and other controls.

An additional accessory that can make it look like a camera. The Nokia camera grip which makes it easier to get the shot you want .The phone slides in from the top and locks in with a micro-USB connector at the bottom of the grip.

Nokia has taken every opportunity to stress that the sensor hardware and design of the Lumia 1020 is brand new. The Nokia Lumia 1020 is a phone that makes you want to go out there and start snapping as many things as you can find. It's a move in the right direction for Nokia and it needs all the help it can get in growing its brand back to the high times of before.

Google Glass

Google Glass is the next big thing in portable technology. It is a wearable Device developed by Google that can interact with the Internet via voice commands. The Glass has embedded camera which is recording your first-person perspective, allowing you to take snaps or footage of what you are actually seeing.

The Glass can do a plethora of things which don’t require any taps or navigation. It responds instead to voice commands, taking pictures with a wink, search, share content, video recording, detect objects in front of you and look up related information like directions or maps etc.

It has a microphone and touchpad on one arm of the frame which can select what you want to do with a brief gesture or by talking to the device, and Google Glass will interpret your commands. To activate Glass, wearers tilt their heads upward or tap the touchpad, and say "O.K., Glass” followed by a command. The sound will be produced through bone conduction transfer - vibrating your skull to transmit to your ears.

The device features includes 640 x 360 display, built in 5MP camera that can film at 720p and a battery that can handle one full day of typical use. There's 16GB of flash memory built into the device, although only 12GB will be available for user storage. Bluetooth and WiFi will be built in, but no GPS chip - so the Glass will probably work best when you pair with any Bluetooth enabled phone.

According to Google the display is "the equivalent of a 25-inch high definition screen from eight feet away". The device has the ability to sync to your Google Drive in the cloud.

Google is also working on designer versions which will include prescription lenses.

Skullcandy Mix Master Headphones

The hottest looking Headphones on the market that people will notice. These headset comes packed with attacking base, natural vocals and precision highs. A pure audio experience worth of any genre.

It comes in variants like Mix master Celtics, Heat, Knicks, Yankees, Black and Blue and offers amazing quality.

The headphone has interchangeable coil cable with 90 degrees L-plug., volume control, track control, play/pause buttons and can take calls.

Flexible screens

Flexible screen or Flexible Display is a screen which is flexible in nature. It is easily bendable and is very different from glass. It can be made from Plastics or some organic materials.

The flexible screens are said to incorporate OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) technology, the same technology companies already use in their television sets and smartphones. OLED must be protected from air and moisture. It can be sandwiched between layers of glass, but for a flexible display it will need to be layered inside plastic, so an impermeable coating must be developed to protect the display.

Flexible screens has many advantages than glass: better durability, lighter weight, thinner dimensions, and can be perfectly curved and used into any devices. These also happen to be much more impact resistant.

LG will start mass production of flexible displays by the fourth quarter of this year. LG wants to get an edge on the market and become the first company to mass produce the display panels for mobile devices.

Samsung had showcased its flexible display technology at CES 2013 with its OLED Youm Display. The company had also shown a functional prototype of a flexible display smartphone. So clearly, flexible displays happen to be underway from Samsung as well.

Apple also seems to be working on bendable or flexible screens. Speculation over the iWatch seems to be fueling the use of flexible screens. It seems that Flexible screens technology will soon make a consumer application.

Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom Review

The Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom is one of the Galaxy S4 family. The S4 Zoom offers a blend of smartphone and camera, and is targeted at the people who now use their phones as their main camera too.

It’s powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, has a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED display with resolution of 960 x 540, 1GB of RAM, and 8GB of internal memory that’s expandable via micro SD.

It also has a 2130 mAh battery, and runs Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean skinned with Samsung’s TouchWiz UI. The camera includes a 16-megapixel rear camera with optical image stabilization (OIS), optical 10X Zoom, Xenon flash, HDR, panorama, and 24mm wide-angle lens. It offers full HD video capture, and there’s also a 1.9-megapixel front-facing camera.

Because of its camera capabilities the Zoom is noted to be rather bulky but with such a camera quality and Design it will be a pretty good phone. The phone will be a greater step towards the combining power of a Phone and a Camera.

Digital Wallets – Is it safe?

Over the last year, people are starting to pay for stuff by waving, sliding, or tapping their smart phones. More and more apps are offering different ways to pay—they’re referred to as digital wallets.  A digital wallet is an electronic device that allows an individual to make electronic commerce transactions.

An individual’s bank account can also be linked to the digital wallet. The credentials can be passed to a merchant wirelessly via near field communication (NFC). The digital wallet consists of software and information. Once the user downloads a digital wallet app, their personal information must be added. In most cases, the wallet is tied to an existing credit card or bank account.

Digital wallet is offered by companies like Google, Samsung and many others. The system has already gained popularity in Japan, where digital wallets are known as Osaifu-Keitai or “wallet mobiles”.

This new technology does not necessarily guarantee that it will be able to prevent fraud. Identity theft is a real possibility with a digital wallet. Like any personal information stored on your phone, you should play it smart and install security software to protect this sensitive data. At this point, no one knows if any protection will be embedded in the software to prevent hackers from picking up your information over an open network or to keep anyone from stealing it after they steal your phone. Depending on how the store's system retains the information, could also present security concern.

But whatever be the ups and downs this technology will Change how we pay. One day these smartphone “digital wallets” will eventually replace physical wallets.

Google’s Project Loon

We all know Children get excited for balloons but now there is some excitement for the adults too as google introduces project loon. It is a balloon with internet. Project Loon is a network of balloons traveling in space which is designed to connect people in rural and remote areas.

Project Loon balloons travel at about 20 km above the Earth’s surface in the stratosphere. It cannot be seen with a naked eye. Winds in the stratosphere are generally steady and slow-moving at between 5 and 20 mph, and each layer of wind varies in direction and magnitude. Project Loon uses software algorithms to determine where its balloons need to go, then moves each one into a layer of wind blowing in the right direction. By moving with the wind, the balloons can be arranged to form a large communications network.

Project Loon’s balloon are made from sheets of polyethylene plastic. They are specially constructed for use in superpressure balloons which are longer-lasting than weather balloons because they can withstand higher pressure from the air inside when the balloons reach float altitude. These balloons can provide internet at speeds comparable to 3G or possibly greater.

According to Google, for 2 out of every 3 people on Earth, "a fast, affordable Internet connection is still out of reach." Project Loon is an early, inspiring attempt to deliver reliable connectivity to those areas where it does not exist or is prohibitively expensive.

Dell Exploring Wearable Technology Market

Considering the continuously shrinking PC market Dell is eyeing the wearable technology. In an interview this week, global vice president of personal computing Sam Burd says that “There are challenges in cost, and how to make it a really good experience.” However, he believes that “The piece that’s interesting is that computers are getting smaller. Having a watch on your wrist – that’s pretty interesting, pretty appealing.” Though Dell has not yet announced anything but ‘we are looking at the technology in that space’, Burd added.

The company isn’t bowing out of the desktop business any time soon, but Dell admits it failed to capitalize on the rapid growth of the smartphone and tablet markets, and hopes to find a new revenue stream in wearable technology.

Wearable technology, though still largely theoretical, is quickly becoming a crowded market as companies rush to release new devices. Google Glass developer kits are already being tested by thousands of early adopters.

We have lately seen brands like Apple, Google, Samsung, LG, Sony and others working on the wearable technology. Though it is Sony who has made the first move ahead and launched another smartwatch at the recently held Mobile Asia Expo, Apple has also revealed its plans by registering iWatch trademark for its watch, followed by Samsung which was recently in news for filing Gear as a trademark, most likely for its wearable devices.

Samsung is expected to reveal its smartwatch alongside the Galaxy Note III launch on September 4 at IFA 2013.

Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is the next stage in internet revolutions. Cloud computing involves a large no of computers that are connected to a network (internet).It means the ability to run a program on many connected computers at the same time.

Cloud computing means "a type of Internet-based computing," where different services such as 
servers, storage and applications are delivered to an organization's computers and devices through the Internet.

Cloud computing can eliminate many of the complex constraints from the traditional computing environment, including space, time, power and cost.

In a cloud computing system, there's a significant workload shift. Local computers no longer have to do all the heavy lifting when it comes to running applications. The network of computers that make up the cloud handles them instead. Hardware and software demands on the user's side decrease. The only thing the user's computer needs to be able to run is the cloud computing system's interface software, which can be as simple as a Web browser, and the cloud's network takes care of the rest.

The Goal of cloud computing is to perform tens of trillions of computations per second, in consumer applications such as finance portfolios, to deliver personalized information to provide data storage or power large computer games.

Cloud computing allows enterprises to get their applications up and running faster, with improved manageability and less maintenance, and enables IT to more rapidly adjust resources to meet business demand.

Cloud computing systems offered by companies, like IBM’s "Blue Cloud" technologies, Cisco, Microsoft, Oracle, Dell etc.