The Technology of Today International: March 2013

Sunday, March 31, 2013

What Has Apple Done To Change The World, 37 Years Down The Road

This article is written to commemorate the 37 years since Apple was founded

So what exactly is Apple doing to change the world, here is my take on it. First up i'll give you a brief look up on the history of Apple. As you all know Apple.Inc was founded by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne in 1976. In the early stages of the formation, the company was producing personal computers, soon after that they named their line of computers macintosh which today is short formed to Mac.

After a few years the company started losing income and then that is the time where Steve Jobs was sacked from the company he made. Soon after that Apple purchase NeXT and in such a coincidence Steve Jobs was working there and he was back in Apple. Then in 1998 Apple announced the iMac which at that time was really a very bad ass looking CRT All in one PC. Fast forward to the early 21st century, Apple introduced the iPod which turned out to be the company's most successful device behind the iPhone and iPad, this also marks their return to profitability. After that in the years forafter their stocks and revenue increased. The main part as everybody remembers it is the introduction of the iPhone which at that time was really a revolutionary thing. After the introduction of the iPhone the mobile phone market seemed to have shifted to a different league by having touchscreens. The iPhone continued to rule the smartphone market until Samsung came up with their Galaxy S series of android powered smartphones which are directly competing with the iPhone. Continuing the timeline down the road in 2010, the iPad was introduced and it officially started the trend of tablets which at this time the crown is still at Apple's side for a more popular tablet. Over the years Apple has really done a lot to contribute to the digital world we live in right now. If it weren't for the iPhone we might still be using PDA's and QWERTY phones. Apple has not only made a very great impression on this world but their products have been deeply merged with our culture and become a house word. For example kids these days would say they want an iPhone or iPad (of course they would now also say they want a Galaxy S4 because of the popularity). Same with the fact that people still recognize the iPhone better than any phone in the face of this world. Sure you can fight to say that the iPhone is nothing compared to top tier smartphones like the S4 but it still holds that recognition and name from the company that built it. Apple products are also widely used these days especially Mac's which aren't so popular among normal users but to the folks doing video editing of professional services there is a high chance that they are using a Mac due to the simplicity of the ecosystem. Throughout the years Apple has also introduced a lineup of device which work together as a whole to make things easier for the user. Overall you could say that Apple is on its way to death valley but i see a bright future for Apple provided that they implement some new things into their products. I would like to take this opportunity to wish Apple a Happy 37th anniversary, without them who knows how the digital life we live in today would be like ?

Buy me a cup of coffee to keep me going by donating to us via Paypal. Subscribe to our blog for up to date tech content or you can follow us on Twitter, add us to your circles in Google+, & like our Facebook page to be updated with the latest tech content. Learn More About The Galaxy S4 Here. Tip us about something we are not aware of

Saturday, March 30, 2013

SWYPE Android Keyboard, Preinstalled Vs Beta

One thing which i really look up to android is the ability to customize basically everything you can see and touch. Talking about customizations, the keyboard is very important, that is why you must choose a suitable one to ease yourself when typing on your phone. On my previous phone which is an old Nokia symbian device i was using SWYPE which is really useful because of the small touchscreen on the phone and with a few swipes i was able to write a sentence rather than keying in every key which is pretty hard for such a small screen. Then when i moved up to the Galaxy Note, i first up started to use the stock Samsung keyboard which was not to my liking and is sometimes lagging. Then shortly after i tried out what was most popular on android which was swiftkey and i managed to use it for about a week or so then i got fed up about it, just did not like it. Then as i was scavenging inside my phone, i found out that SWYPE has been preinstalled and so i gave it a try and i pretty much loved it. Soon after that i installed the SWYPE beta which was even better as it unlock some features which was not bundled in the preinstalled keyboard. Until the last month when the Android 4.1.2 update for the Galaxy Note came then i installed it. After updating the device i gave the new Samsung keyboard which has swiping gesture a try, but after only a few days of using i did not like it a bit. In the same time Swiftkey 4 was released (i previously tried the beta version) and i decided to give it another try because in this new version swiping gestures are integrated and the autocorrect is the best among android third party keyboards. I like the way it feels but then as happened before i got tired of it because somehow swiping on that keyboard is still not perfected, but i have to give it to the swiftkey team as the themes on Swiftkey are the best. After that i started again using the preinstalled SWYPE which has been updated in the Android 4.1.2 update for my phone. The look and feel of the keyboard was pretty similar to the beta keyboard and in the 1 month since i updated the device i have been using this keyboard and i was pretty happy with it. Up until last week when i suddenly felt the urge to try out the Beta keyboard which at this moment at version 1.4. After installing the beta version immediately started using the keyboard to type out some messages. The result is that the beta keyboard is not only more responsive it is also not having that moment of stuterring i felt with the preinstalled version. Mind to note that the preinstalled one was at version 1.8. In this whole article my main point is to saying that the beta version is more superior than the preinstalled one. Try out the SWYPE keyboard here.

Friday, March 29, 2013

Low End Handsets, What Are The Implications

We are all now in the 21st century and in this point in time mobile devices especially smartphones are very hot and popular. As each year passes by the number of smartphone users grow every so slightly and the price for a smartphone is on the run down. But the problem is that it is still not cheap enough to compete in the non smartphone category which has prices of phones at very low prices. Well when you talk about the low end handset market, Nokia is sure to be in the talk because when it comes to a low end non smartphone handset a Nokia phone is sure to be the recommendation. This is because the compelling features Nokia wrap with their pre smartphone device lineup called the asha are very compelling and plus the prices for the device will not exceed the price of a low end smartphone. With the Asha lineup of device Nokia is really wrapping a smartphone like experience to the user to get themselves ready for a smartphone. Some of these asha handsets are even having full touch screens and 3G data connectivity. So lets move down even lower to the phone section which are devices which are basically used as a spare phone in case your's fail at anytime. These device still have a recognition in the market because they still hold the crown of having the longest battery life which can last a few weeks on a single charge and even some device can last one month on standby. So the question is what implications does a phone still being to the table in the smartphone world. Well apparently the phone still hold a bigger market share than the smartphones (for now that is), so it is actually still a very compelling market. The market is basically dominated by nokia with their feature phones, to give an example to the importance of the market, Samsung the leader in the smartphone pack is preparing a new line up of device called the Samsung REX which are feature phones under Samsung's brand. Even Samsung is tackling this market which means that this market does have some implication. All in all the phone will always have a place in the market unless one day the smartphone will go so cheap until its price is comparable to the normal phone, but that is something which will not come forward in the forseen future, so no worries there.

Thursday, March 28, 2013

HTC One Drop Test, Premium Phone With Solid Construction

The HTC One has been out for quite sometime now and reviews of the device is now all around the web. So its finally time for a drop test. The folks over at Android Authority pitted the HTC One against the iPhone 5 in a drop test. They chose the iPhone 5 due to obvious reasons of the device having the same construction and use aluminum for their chassis. Overall the similarities are that the both device will dent when they hit on their sides. Watch the video to see more, the HTC One faired pretty well in this test.
Source: Android Authority

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Samsung Galaxy S4 Official Wallpapers Ready For Download, 1920 X 1080 Wallpapers

Well the S4 in these few days hasn't been quite the talk but it still exists. Today, Sammobile received the ROM dump from their insider and they are in the midst of extracting some items. One of the first things they extracted is the wallpapers, there are 8 in total. You can download them here at our facebook page where we uploaded all the wallpapers in its native resolution or hit the source link below to download it.

Source: Sammobile

Subscribe to this blog to get up to date tech content. Buy me a cup of coffee to keep me going by donating to me via paypal. Follow us on our social media accounts: Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and Google Plus.

Samsung Galaxy S4 Official Accessories Get Priced

The Galaxy S4 has been announced for more than a week now and today some pricings for not the device but the accessories have been revealed. The pricings include the whole range of accessories, overall the pricings seem to be quite justified.

S Band – $129,99 -
S View Cover – $69,99 – Week 14
Wireless Charging Pad / Cover – $49,99 – Week 17
Flip Cover – $34,99 – Week 14
Pouch – $59,99 – Week 15
Protective Cover+ – $19,99 – Week 14
Headset – $29,99 – Week 15
Extra Battery Kit – $29,99 – Week 15
HRM – $79,99 – Week 15
Body Scale – $129,99 – Week 15
Game Pad – $99,99 - July

Source: Sammobile

Monday, March 25, 2013

Windows Blue Update Hands On | Video

Yesterday we witnessed the first leak of the Windows Blue update which is bound for a year end release. But, knowing the internet people got their hands on the update and installed it. The Verge was kind enough to write and article about it and while they were at it they managed to make a video. Overall the new update (at this stage in time) brings some minor updates like a smaller live tile which is like an icon, better multitasking modes, more customization on the homescreen, deeper integration of SkyDrive, and etc. You can learn more about the update via the video below presented by TheVerge.
Source: TheVerge

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Can The HTC One Cope Against The Competition

Ever since Samsung announced the Galaxy S4 last week the HTC One seemed to be obsolete but that only lasted for a few days. Since the launch of the device quite a number of reviews of the device have been released and all of the reviews noted the same thing. Currently the One is only available in a few regions and is still not ready to be launched in major regions like the US due to the slow production of the device which is due to the camera module. In this article i will talk about the HTC One's features and how will it stand up against the strong competition. The first thing which HTC has done right this time on the One is the premium aluminum body which according to reviews feel just like the iPhone 5. The construction of the device is full aluminum and glass in which the points they join have chamfered edges which is precision cut using diamond cutters, sound's familiar right because that is exactly like the iPhone 5. But that's a good thing because in the android ecosystem the HTC One is by far the most premium feeling phone period. Then we go down to the total dimension of the One which is not too wide and not too tall which is suitable for most people and although the thickness is around 9mm reviewers note that it feels thinner in the hand because of the edges which are very thin and the bulk comes in in the middle. Following the same cue, HTC has placed to forward blasting speakers which they call Boom Sound and according to the reviews published, the speaker present on the device is the loudest among any smartphone out there today. The amount of detail they put into the device is just too much even the speaker grills are micro cut.

Talking about hardware, the HTC One doesn't fail to excite us because it has the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 chip clocked in at 1.6GHz paired up with 2GB of RAM and the screen is full HD and measures in at 4.7" making it the most densest smartphone screen period. This again helps HTC in competing the competition as other manufacturers like Sony and Samsung have FHD resolutions on their smartphones but they are all based on a 5" panel. On the same page, HTC in this version of their flagship android phone managed to squeeze in a 4MP camera, HTC is calling this hte Ultrapixel camera. But do not be fooled by the small MP count as it has a very big aperture which allows more light and that translates into better low light shots. Reviews have noted that the camera on the One is better than expected but it still falls short because of the MP count which leaves a lot of noise in the image during low light. But overall it is noted in good lighting the One's camera shines with very vivid and beautiful colors produced. Alongside the very advanced camera, HTC also bundled in a new feature called HTC Zoe which is already trademarked by them. Basically HTC Zoe takes 3 second videos alongside your photos so when you view your gallery it will look more alive with moving pictures and it will also tell a part of the story in the picture. The camera and features however in the near future will be overpowered by the 13MP cameras on most flagship smartphones and sooner or later other manufacturers will give better camera features than the one present on the HTC One.

Additionally, HTC is also putting in some attention to the software this time around. They are introducing something called BlinkFeed which will be the homescreen for your HTC One, to cut things short BlinkFeed is a way for you to consume content from different sources all from your homescreen without jumping in the app itself. But reviewers did note that currently the supported apps are still limited and does no feature much customization settings. Overall the whole package of the HTC one is very well planned and the device is really the most premium android experience you will get period. But it does not weigh in much compared to the S4 in terms of software and hardware. Still the S4 has an edge over it having never before seen features like airview with your hands, a temperature and humidity sensor, etc. So the only way that HTC could somehow compete against other manufacturers is learn what Samsung does year after year, do more advertising so the world will know more.

Google Introduces Google Keep, A Simple Note Taking App

I know i am a bit late in writing this, because i was busy and somehow it slipped off my mind. But however, the day before yesterday Google released their latest creation called google keep and it is basically a note taking app. The app is currently only available on android and you can access you notes via your Google Drive or any other android device. I've tried the app and its really the most simplest note taking app ever and you basically have to just launch the app and you can start taking notes. Stay tuned for a follow up article in which i will say out my thoughts on this app. You should try it too [https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.keep].

Source: Google Blog

Friday, March 22, 2013

Samsung Galaxy S4 mini Leaked, Looks Like A Miniature Galaxy S4

Its been a week since Samsung showed off the Galaxy S4 and we've pretty much seen everything about it. Today, Sammobile has received some images which look to be the Galaxy S4 mini. At first when i saw the image on the front page i thought it was the Galaxy S4 but the title said S4 mini. So there are some resemblances there. The device is said to have a qHD (960 X 540) Super AMOLED screen, a 1.6GHz dual core CPU, and Android 4.2.2. It is expected to launch in 2 months time and will go on sale in early Q3. More follow up content on this coming soon, you can see the size comparison between the two devices below.