Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Samsung to Announce Android-Powered Galaxy S Camera This Week [REPORT]
8:27:00 AM
valgeo
While Apple gets ready to ban Samsung’s Galaxy S II smartphone, rumor has it the company plans to launch a new member of the Galaxy line this week: a digital camera.
Samsung will be debuting its new Android-powered smart camera at IFA, an electronics trade show in Berlin, according to website GSM Arena
The camera is rumored to come with a 16-megapixel sensor, and run on Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). It’s also expected to sport a 4.8-inch screen, borrowing from another popular member of the Galaxy line of devices: the Galaxy S III.
The camera is also tapped to have an integrated cellular connection for uploading pictures to networks like Facebook and Instagram while you’re on the go, but won’t likely be voice-capable.
Samsung isn’t the only company to launch a smart camera. Nikon rrecently announced its own Android-powered camera: the Coolpix S800c. While it runs the much older Android 2.3., Nikon’s camera has full access to the Google Play marketplace, so you can run any apps that are compatible with the older OS. It will be available in September.
Polaroid also unveiled an Android-powered camera at the Consumer Electronics Show in January; but it has yet to get an official release date.
What do you think of smart cameras?
Source : mashable.com
Monday, August 27, 2012
9 Android Products That Are Just Plain Weird
9:58:00 PM
Unknown
Let's face it: the Nikon Coolpix S800c is just plain weird. Why should a 16-megapixel CMOS shooter allow you to surf the Web, access Twitter, and upload photos to Facebook? OK, so the last option makes some sense.
Still, not every embedded or mobile OS allows for the freedoms provided by Android. Apple has always been the elegant fashionista: prim, proper, dressed to the nines, and blazing a trail that other designers instinctively follow. There are rules, darling. Google, on the other hand, has always projected an air of stoner chic: "Dude, you want to put Android onto a microwave? Dude, that's going to be AWESOME. Epic. How do I help?" Apple would simply look aghast.
It helps, of course, that Android is based on the Linux architecture, with its own freewheeling legacy. Delaval, for example, makes its own remotely operated, Linux-powered milking machine. (Sorry, it doesn't yet offer an Android mobile app – we checked.)
Granted, that means that you can find dozens of Android phones from a variety of manufacturers on each carrier: over 40 Android handsets available on Verizon Wireless alone. (We've rounded up the best Android phones here.)
But when we set out to create this roundup of the oddest, weirdest Android gadgets, we tried to embody what makes Android interesting: with just a few apps or a change to the user interface, Android can be used for all sorts of products. Our one disappointment? We couldn't find an Android-powered toilet, although 11mark reported in January that 87 percent of Android users admitted to using their mobile phones while on the throne. So there's that.
Hit the slideshow for more bizarre Android-powered devices.
Source: pcmag.com
The Latest iPhone 5 Leak Shows You May Soon Be Making Credit Card Payments With Your Phone
5:28:00 PM
Unknown
At first glance, the latest part leak for Apple's next iPhone doesn't appear to show much more than what we've already seen several times over the last few months.
But some closer inspection by the Japanese blog Macotakara shows that the device may include a special chip that will let you make payments with the phone.
The leaked photo first came to us on Apple.pro via MacRumors and shows an assembled front display of the next iPhone. Macotakara speculates that the square portion at the top of the display could house a Near Field Communication (NFC) chip.
NFC chips are used in several Android phones like Samsung's Galaxy S III and Galaxy Nexus to swap content between devices or make secure mobile payments using apps like Google Wallet.
It has long been speculated that Apple would add NFC capabilities to the iPhone, but those rumors have always turned out to be false.
However, Apple is introducing a new app called Passbook in its next operating system for iPhone and iPads that will act as a digital wallet for your gift cards, boarding passes, and tickets. Many have speculated Passbook could be Apple's first step into making credit card payments with your phone.
In June, 9to5Mac discovered references in the hardware code for the next iPhone that could mean the device will have an NFC chip.
Source: businessinsider.com
Samsung executive says $1 billion verdict was the worst case scenario, Google says it was more Samsung than Android
2:48:00 PM
valgeo
In the matter of Apple's $1 billion verdict over Samsung, we've already had two separate, yet equally important PR statements. Since then, a Samsung executive has said it's their worst case scenario, and Google, not surprisingly, has tried to keep Android well away from the fallout.
The unnamed Samsung executive was quoted by the Korea Times' Kim Yoo-chul:
``It’s absolutely the worst scenario for us,’’ a senior Samsung executive said as he rushed into the company’s compound in southern Seoul. Inside the building, Choi Gee-sung, former Samsung Electronics CEO and now the head of Samsung Group’s corporate strategy division, was holding an emergency meeting attended by Shin Jong-kyun, the company’s mobile devices chief, and Lee Dong-joo, lead marketing official.
Google's comments come by way of The Verge's Bryan Bishop:
The court of appeals will review both infringement and the validity of the patent claims. Most of these don't relate to the core Android operating system, and several are being re-examined by the US Patent Office. The mobile industry is moving fast and all players — including newcomers — are building upon ideas that have been around for decades. We work with our partners to give consumers innovative and affordable products, and we don't want anything to limit that.
Normally I say the "it's not over, but if it is, it wasn't us it was them, but it it's not over" vibe feels remarkably close to Samsung's trial strategy of "we didn't copy, but if we did copy, Apple copied first, and who cares about copying anyway?" which gained zero traction, or dollars, from the jury. But what else can Google say at this point? Even if they indemnified Android, TouchWiz and the hardware are all Samsung's.
Google's relationship with Apple is probably still sub-optimal at the moment, but before the verdict sticks, doing everything they can to help lubricate a settlement wouldn't be a terrible idea.
Source : imore.com
Samsung's Apple patent loss: The financial hit is manageable
2:42:00 PM
valgeo
Summary: Should the Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note---two products that Apple will ask a judge to ban from the U.S.--- elude an injunction, the fallout from Samsung's patent lawsuit defeat is likely to be minimal.
Samsung has been hit with a stinging patent lawsuit defeat at the hands of Apple, but assuming the electronics giant can keep its Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note away from an injunction the financial hit is minimal.
In other words, the fact a jury ruled that Samsung must pay at least $1.05 billion in damages to Apple for infringing on three design patents isn't the hit it's portrayed to be. Even if Apple's gets three times that amount in damages---something that is possible---Samsung has a few things going for it. A hearing Sept. 20 on whether Samsung's 25 models should be banned from the U.S. is the next key item in this patent scrum.
Among analysts, the Apple-Samsung outcome broke down predictably based on what side of the planet they were on. For instance, Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty gushed about Apple's competitive position and potential market share gains. Analysts in Asia noted that Samsung can weather the storm handily.
It's all about the Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note. An injunction on Samsung's 25 models highlighted in the Apple lawsuit really wouldn't matter much. Why? The products aren't on the market and certainly don't have significant volume. Apple will try and get an injunction on the Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note. However, that move isn't a slam dunk given that Samsung's S3 is different than the S2. Should Apple get an S3 injunction it'll effectively freeze most Android handsets in the U.S.
Should the S3 elude an injunction, Samsung is in good financial shape. Deutsche Bank analyst Seunghoon Han said:
We note that the smart phones subject to the court ruling are older models and not the flagship models (Galaxy S3/Galaxy Note) that Samsung is currently selling in the U.S. market, and as a result may only have limited impact on Samsung smartphones sales in the US in 2H12. We believe the longer-term impact may be limited as Samsung has already been re-designing smartphones since Apple filed its patent claims in April 2011.
The U.S. is big, but not everything to Samsung's profit power. The U.S. accounts for 20 percent of Samsung's smartphone shipments. If all Samsung devices were kicked out of the U.S.---unlikely---the worst case is 20 percent market share evaporates. That hit would hurt, but losing to Apple in Europe and China would be far worse. Barclays analyst SC Bae said in a research note:
If Samsung were to lose its EU and China markets, the impact would be critical. We believe that the U.S. verdict may impact negatively on the ongoing lawsuits in other regions to some degree; however, the magnitude of the impact won't be significant given the conflict of the interests. For example, China, Japan and Taiwan have a number of smartphone manufacturers that could be directly affected by the result of the lawsuit. Other regions, including the EU, might have more neutral positions than Asian countries. However, we believe they might also consider the point that Apple's win would result in the inflation of smartphone prices. We believe the preliminary results from the Japanese court, which will be delivered on 31 August, will give an early indicator for the rest of the lawsuits.
Future royalties may be minimal. Bae noted that Samsung is likely to run around most Apple patents except for Apple's pinch to zoom patent. Samsung would have to pay royalties on that one.
Samsung could screw up Apple's supply chain. The Apple-Samsung relationship is very complex. Apple is Samsung's largest customers. Here's the supply chain moving parts via Bae:
Apple's component purchases from Samsung don't amount to more than 5 percent of the Korean giant's operating profit.
Apple, however, depends on Samsung for memory and screens.
Should Samsung tell Apple to take a hike, Apple's negotiating power won't be as strong.
Samsung's brand can recover and may improve outside the U.S. To the rest of the world, Apple clearly had home-field advantage in the U.S. lawsuit. Samsung may look better outside the U.S. Travel abroad and you notice that Samsung devices are everywhere.
Appeals will delay any profit hit. Apple was awarded less than the $2.5 billion it wanted. There are already arguments brewing that the jury was off.
Source : zdnet.com
Dropbox Enables Two-Step Verification
2:35:00 PM
valgeo
Dropbox has begun to add a two-step verification for all its accounts, the file-hosting service announced on its forums.
The process, which is optional but recommended by Dropbox, “adds an extra layer of protection” to accounts by requiring users to submit a six-digit security code in addition to their passwords whenever they sign in, or link a new computer, phone or tablet, the company says.
The security code is sent to users’ phones via text message, or generated using a mobile authenticator app.
Dropbox first unveiled the new feature to its forum users, asking them to report their experiences.
The announcement comes just after Dropbox found that usernames and passwords stolen from other websites were used to sign in to a number of Dropbox accounts. In a blog entry posted late July, the cloud-based service said it would take steps to improve users’ security by unrolling “two-factor authentication,” which requires two proofs of identity when signing in.
To enable two-step verification, sign into the Dropbox website, and click the “Security” tab in the drop-down menu under your name. Under the “Account sign in” section, next to “Two-step verification,” toggle “change.” You’ll then be asked to re-enter your password to confirm your decision to enable two-step verification; once this is done, you can choose to get your security code either by text or from a mobile app. Dropbox details the steps in its Help Center.
What do you think of these new security measures? Tell us in the comments below.
Source : mashable.com
Sunday, August 26, 2012
RIP, Neil Armstrong: Experience the Apollo 11 Moon landing for yourself with this site
11:28:00 AM
Unknown
We found out today that the world has lost one of our most important heroes: Neil Armstrong. On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong was the first human being to ever step foot on the moon.
It’s something that not many people can fathom or process, because of its magnitude. As we think about how far technology has come since 1969, it’s still amazing to me that we were sophisticated enough to pull off such an amazing feat.
At 82, Neil Armstrong passed on, but will never be forgotten. Nor will Apollo 11, and its mission, for that matter. For the 40th anniversary of this magnificent flight, there was a site built called “We Chose The Moon” and it lets you “re-live” the entire mission step by step, word by word:
As you go through the event, you’ll be able to watch gorgeous interactive videos and see amazing photography.
Neil Armstrong, as well as NASA as an organization, stands for innovation and both are a reminder to dream big, because nothing is impossible.
Here’s a statement from Armstrong’s family that sums up our feelings perfectly:
For those who may ask what they can do to honor Neil, we have a simple request. Honor his example of service, accomplishment and modesty, and the next time you walk outside on a clear night and see the moon smiling down at you, think of Neil Armstrong and give him a wink.➤ We Chose the Moon
Source: thenextweb.com
iPad mini release date: October, claim sources
1:59:00 AM
Unknown
Apple will launch the iPad mini in October, a month after the expected iPhone 5 launch but still in time for Christmas. So say sources talking to the tech blog of the Wall Street Journal, All Things Digital.
"Apple's next generation iPhone and its so-called 'iPad mini' will debut at two separate events this fall, rather than a single one as has been widely speculated, according to several sources," reports the site.
According to All Things D, Apple will announce the smaller iPad, which is expected to have a 7-inch screen, after it has got its new iPhone launch out of the way in September.
It's worth noting that All Things Digital also broke the news, correctly, about the iPad 3 launch earlier this year in March.
Check out all the latest iPad mini news
The news comes after some Apple bloggers theorised that Apple could struggle to launch two products at the same event.
That makes logical sense, not because Apple wouldn't want reviews of the new iPhone 5 and the new iPad mini appearing at the same time, as some have suggested, but because it won't want to be in a situation that means people will have to choose which Apple product to buy.
The last thing Apple would want would be for potential customers to have to choose and perhaps not buy both devices.
A staggered two event approach over two months would mean that people would be able to upgrade to the iPhone 5 in September (if that is to be the launch date) and then a month later have had the chance to find the additional cash to buy an iPad mini.
Apple has declined to comment on the rumours.
Source: pocket-lint.com
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Email Smackdown: Outlook.com vs. Gmail
7:19:00 PM
Unknown
Let’s be honest: For a long time, it was a little embarrassing to use a Hotmail address. I should know — I’ve been using Hotmail as my primary email since I first got an account in 1999.
I wish I could say that I never looked back, but when I saw all of my friends and professional colleagues touting their Gmail addresses in the mid-2000s, I considered switching. Certainly, I created and maintained a Gmail account, but I decided all those years ago that I wanted an email that wouldn’t change, so I stuck with Microsoft’s Hotmail, despite its poor storage capacity and the torrents of spam.
To anyone without that interest in email permanence, Gmail was an easy choice. Its clean layout, easy archiving and seemingly endless storage wooed many digital influencers and their followers. Although Hotmail always bragged more overall users, everybody in the know had figured out that Gmail simply outclassed Hotmail in pretty much every way that mattered.
As time went on, Microsoft added new features to Hotmail and caught up with Gmail in many respects. But the damage was done. Even after Hotmail offered nearly unlimited storage, much improved spam filtering and useful inbox-cleanup features, the stigma remained. If you saw the @hotmail.com domain in someone’s reply-to field, it necessitated a tsk-tsk — or at least a roll of the eyes. You have to wonder how many resumes were thrown in the trash at tech companies because the applicant had put a Hotmail address in their contact info. Gmail won.
Then: Boom. Last month, Microsoft changed the game, re-launching Hotmail as Outlook.com, casting aside its tarnished brand and giving the service a major makeover, along with some game-changing new features.
Is it as good as Gmail, though? Where does each service excel, or fall down? And will the switch to Outlook for web mail finally enable Microsoft to cast off the stigma of Hotmail? Let’s look closer.
Messages
The absolute basic basics of the two programs — composing messages — is actually fairly different between the two services. Gmail opens up a clean message but retains the Gmail template, with your labels and chat contacts on the side. Outlook, on the other hand, brings you to a compose page where it’s just you and your email.
The Gmail approach is more versatile. While you’re writing your message, you can click away at any time and Gmail will automatically save a draft. Outlook instead simply gives you a warning that you haven’t yet saved your draft if you try to leave before hitting send. That makes saving drafts a two-step process — slightly more inconvenient.
The idea of getting shunted to a dedicated composition page has some merit. When replying to long email chains, for example, you’ll inherently see more of the message on your screen.
Outlook doesn’t offer as powerful editing tools as Gmail does, though. While both programs will let you compose messages in rich or plain text, Gmail has a Clear Formatting button, which I’ve found extremely useful whenever I need to copy-and-paste some text into an email. Outlook.com lacks this feature, although it can do something else Gmail can’t: setting message priority (although I’ve always found it more effective to simply put “URGENT” in a subject).
Outlook, however, adds a very nice aesthetic touch to the act of sending an email. When you hit Send, the message shrinks within the window for a second, then moves upward slightly (sucked into the “tubes” of the Internet) right before the app tosses you back to your Inbox.
Winner: Gmail
Social Integration
Google is doing its best to become a heavyweight among social networks, and it shows. Gmail is hard-wired into Google+, showing you notifications and your G+ profile pic in the top right at all times. It’s always been a one-click experience to start IMing with someone via GChat, or a voice call via GTalk, on the left rail. Finally, Gmail just integrated Google+ hangouts into Gmail in lieu of the old video chats.
Still, that’s about as far as it goes. Given the areas they compete in, Google has fairly icy relations with Twitter and Facebook, so you won’t see them here. But Outlook.com ties into both of those services in a fairly novel way.
In Outlook, whenever you click on a message from an actual person (as opposed to a newsletter or notification) you’ll see the latest updates from that person’s Twitter and Facebook feeds on the side. You can even Like and retweet posts without ever leaving Outlook.com.
Sure, Gmail will show you Google+ profile information of the person you’re emailing, but that’s about it. Seemingly, Outlook wins here except it so far has no integrated way to start a video or voice chat with someone (regular IMing has always been integrated with Windows Live Messenger). Microsoft says Skype will fill this gap, but the feature has yet to appear.
Winner: Draw
Ads
Ads are annoying — unless of course the ad is advertising something you actually want. To my recollection, I’ve never once clicked on an email ad (whether text or display), so that either says those ads do a bad job of doing that, or they’re simply not noticeable enough for it to matter.
In its Outlook metamorphosis, Hotmail ditched display ads in favor of text ads along the right side. This made it more like Gmail, although there are a few differences. For one, the Outlook ads are visible even when you’re just looking at your Inbox; on Gmail, they only appear when you have a message open.
More importantly, the ads disappear on Outlook when you select one of those messages from an actual person, replaced by the social-network info mentioned above. Gmail shows you ads on all messages.
The third difference is in how you actually interact with the ads. If you mouseover one on Outlook, an image appears over it. That could be of interest to advertisers, since it seems to be designed to increase engagement, although it’s too early to say whether it’s effective.
Finally, although few will take advantage of it, Outlook.com still offers the old Hotmail Plus service of doing away with the ads entirely for a yearly fee. You’ll need to switch back to the old Hotmail to sign up, but once you do you can switch back to Outlook and never see an ad again. Gmail has no such option.
Winner: Outlook
Security
This one is really no contest. Gmail offers two-factor authentication, and Outlook.com doesn’t. The word “security” doesn’t even appear on Outlook’s options page.
When I asked Microsoft why it didn’t offer two-factor authentication for Outlook, a company spokesperson reminded me the service was technically still in preview, and that it required strong passwords and had “good server-side detection.”
The rep also said Microsoft was researching security issues while in preview so it could find a “strong solution that everyone could use” as opposed to “just the 1% of users that figure out how to navigate a bunch of additional setup options.” (More info in this story.)
So perhaps Outlook’s security will get better in the near future, but for now, if you want a secure, free web email service, that’s Gmail.
Winner: Gmail
Organizing
For most of Hotmail’s history, superior organizing tools are what it held highest over Gmail. For anyone thrown by Gmail’s use of “labels,” Hotmail’s more-familiar folders and its ability to rearrange your inbox (or any folder) by date, sender, subject or size with a single click were beacons of normality.
That still holds true with Outlook. Folders remain the primary way to organize your email, and it also retains Categories, which automatically classify your incoming messages as “social updates” or “newsletters,” for example.
Outlook’s tools aren’t just there to satisfy left-brainers, however. The service also arms you with a few tools that help you keep overloaded inboxes under control. First it offers a quick way to “Sweep” up all messages from a sender or senders, deleting (or moving) each and every one of them.
It also provides an easy way to schedule cleanups — say, deleting all notifications from Twitter or Facebook every few days, negating the need to even remember to Sweep. Although Gmail offers a Priority Inbox feature that comes in handy for putting important messages front and center, it doesn’t have anything comparable to a scheduled cleanup.
Finally, there’s the simple Preview Pane, a standard feature on Outlook that you have to enable through the “Labs” tab in your Gmail settings to enable. While Hotmail/Outlook has borrowed the best features from Gmail over the years — such as free integration with mobile email clients and conversation view — I don’t understand why Gmail hasn’t implemented this feature, which I view as fundamental to any email client.
Winner: Outlook
Wrapping Up
And so the final score is two points per side — a tie. While Outlook.com has a lot going for it, and it’s a huge leap forward for Microsoft just in terms of brand, Gmail is still superior in some key ways (security being the biggie). But Outlook.com represents a rebirth of Microsoft’s web mail service, and the company appears to be investing much more into it with the launch. Perhaps a rematch will yield different results in a few months.In any case, the rebranding of Hotmail as Outlook.com has given users of Gmail and Yahoo Mail a reason to try something new. Even better, it’s given them an email address they don’t have to be embarrassed about.
Source: mashable.com
