Category Archives: Hardware

Cryptocurrency, Hardware

Ledger Launches the Stax, a New Hardware Wallet for Your NFT and Crypto Assets, In Collaboration with iPod Creator Tony Fadell

The Ledger Stax crypto wallet is a new and innovative product by Tony Fadell, the well-known entrepreneur and investor who is best known for co-founding Nest Labs and serving as the senior vice president of the iPod division at Apple.

The Ledger Stax wallet is designed to provide users with a secure and easy-to-use platform for storing and managing their cryptocurrencies and digital assets. It features a sleek and compact credit card-size design that makes it easy to carry around and it is compatible with a wide range of 500 types of cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin.

We need a ‘user-delightful’ tool to bring digital asset security to the rest of us, not just the geeks, said Fadell.

 

One of the standout features of the Ledger Stax wallet is its advanced security features. It uses a combination of hardware and software security measures to protect users’ cryptocurrencies from unauthorized access and theft. This includes a hardware-based secure element that stores users’ private keys, as well as advanced encryption algorithms that protect users’ transactions and data. That being said, users also  have the option of interacting with their phones over Bluetooth.

The Ledger Stax wallet also offers users an E-Ink display (like a mini Kindle) that covers the front and curves around the spine of the device, enabling the users to showcase their transactions and NFTs whether it is On or Off. In addition, it offers a range of convenient features that make it easy to manage their cryptocurrencies. It has a user-friendly interface that allows users to easily monitor their cryptocurrency balances, view their transaction history, and manage their assets. It also allows users to securely access their cryptocurrencies from multiple devices, including smartphones and laptops.

One of the key advantages of the Ledger Stax wallet is its compatibility with a wide range of devices and platforms. It can be used with both iOS and Android devices, and it can be easily integrated with popular cryptocurrency exchanges and networks. This allows users to easily transfer their cryptocurrencies between different platforms and devices, providing them with greater flexibility and control over their assets.

In addition to its advanced security and convenience features, the Ledger Stax wallet also offers users a range of other benefits. It is designed to be stacked over magnets, and uses low-power technology that minimizes its impact on  your phone and environment. It also has a long battery life, allowing users to use it for extended periods without needing to recharge it.

Overall, the Ledger Stax crypto wallet is a valuable tool for anyone looking to securely manage and store their cryptocurrencies. Its advanced security features, convenient features, and compatibility with a wide range of devices and platforms make it an ideal choice for both beginners and experienced cryptocurrency users.

The Ledger Stax is said to go live with a USB-C connection at the first quarter of 2023 with preorders available on Ledger.com, at a retail price of $279. For comparison, the Nano S Plus was listed for $79 and the Nano X wallet for $149.

Ledger Stax specs

  • Screen type: E-Ink up to 16 grays, with always-on lock screen and capacitive touch
  • Screen resolution: 672 × 400 pixels
  • Security: Ledger EAL 5+ certified secure element
  • Connectivity: USB C, Bluetooth 5.2
  • Qi wireless charging
  • Weight: 45g
  • Dimensions: 85mm × 54mm × 6mm
Hardware, software

Apple WWDC 2022 Announcements: Macbook Air, 13-Inch Macbook Pro With M2, iOS 16, WatchOS 9 And MacOS Ventura

CUPERTINO, Calif.– Apple held its 33rd annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on Monday morning Pacific time, unveiling updates to its iOS, WatchOS, MacOS, and iPadOS, alongside new hardware releases in the form of Macbook laptops. Apple kicked off its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) with a handful of new operating system announcements, as well as two new MacBook offerings, powered by the Cupertino-based tech giants latest internal silicon, M2. As usual, Apple’s WWDC 2022 was packed to the brim with a little bit of everything, from Apples flagship iPhone operating system, iOS 16, and its latest 5nm chip, the M2, to the new hardware putting all of it into your hands – in this case, the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro 13.

WWDC 2022 - June 6 | Apple

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Apple today unveiled the fully-redesigned MacBook Air and updated 13-inch MacBook Pro, both powered by a new M2 chip–one that takes M1s groundbreaking performance and capabilities further. With industry-leading energy efficiency, a unified memory architecture, and customized technologies, this new chip brings even more performance and capabilities to Apple’s most popular Mac laptops: the MacBook Air and the 13-inch MacBook Pro. While it was not quite the big reveal as the MacBook Air M2, Apple has refreshed the 13-inch MacBook Pro lineup to incorporate a new CPU, too.

The 13″ MacBook Pro which comes integrated with the latest M2, promising 20 hours of battery time, maxing out at 24GB RAM and 2TB of storage, coming this month starting at $1,299

The new 2022 Macbook Pro with M2 chip
Macbook Pro with M2 chip

The new MacBook Air comes equipped with an all-new M2 chip, Apple’s latest iteration of the silicon, which is an upgrade over the capabilities found in the M1 chip, boasts a thinner 11.3mm body, non-wedge design in four colors, silver, space grey, midnight and starlight, 13.6″ 13.6” Liquid Retina display, 500 nits with a notch, MagSafe and fast charging power, alongside a 1080p camera on the top. This one comes later this month starting at $1,199.

The new 2022 Macbook Air with M2 chip
Macbook Air with M2 chip

Apple also announced iPadOS 16, which features all of the updates that are coming with iOS 16, a new Weather app, and powerful multitasking capabilities for desktop. Like iOS 16 and iPadOS 15, all of iOS 16s new features are coming to iPads running WatchOS. Like iOS 16, watchOS 9 will bring with it a new Siri homescreen–a glowing sphere at the bottom–and notifications receive a sleek new revamp.

With the next watchOS update to macOS, you will get all sorts of new watch faces, such as a moon cycle, a religious calendar, and a new animated wallpaper. Key features in watchOS 9 are four new watch faces, new fitness features, more extensive sleep tracking, AFib history, and a new medicine app coming to both the iPhone and the Apple Watch.

Hardware, Mobile

Everything Apple Announced at The 2022 ‘Peak Performance’ Event

CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, Apple officially announced its 2022 new line of updated products including A new iPhone SE, an upgraded iPad Air, a super powerful M1 Ultra chip, and a crazy powerful line of Mac Studio alongside a new Studio Display  No new VR Goggles, M2 Macbook Pro, or a redesigned Mac Mini announced. Here are the highlights:

Apple Event — March 8

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iPhone SE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GByi_j-7Q2E

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Apple announces an updated iPhone SE with 6-core A15 chip (same as the iPhone 13), 5G connectivity, home button design, 12MP camera,IP67 water resistance, Smart HDR 4, and more, shipping March 18 for $429.

  • Retina HD display
  • 4.7-inch (diagonal) widescreen LCD Multi‑Touch display with IPS technology
  • 1334-by-750-pixel resolution at 326 ppi
  • 1400:1 contrast ratio (typical)
  • True Tone display
  • 625 nits max brightness (typical)
  • Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating
  • A15 Bionic chip

The most affordable iPhone features the powerful A15 Bionic, 5G, better battery life, improved durability, and a new camera system with advanced features like Smart HDR 4, Photographic Styles, and Deep Fusion

 

iPhoneSE-A15-5G

iPad Air

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-t2mwrYc6s

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Apple announces an updated iPad Air with M1 chip, 5G, 12MP ultra-wide front camera, and more, starting at $599 in 64GB or 256GB versions

  • Liquid Retina display
  • 10.9-inch (diagonal) LED‑backlit Multi‑Touch display with IPS technology
  • 2360-by-1640-pixel resolution at 264 pixels per inch (ppi)
  • 500 nits brightness
  • Supports Apple Pencil (2nd generation)
  • Apple M1 chip
  • 8-core CPU
  • 8-core graphics
  • 8GB RAM
  • 12MP Wide camera, ƒ/1.8 aperture
  • Digital zoom up to 5x
  • Five-element lens

Apple today introduced the new iPad Air with the Apple-designed M1 chip, delivering a massive leap in performance. Available in a new array of colors, iPad Air also features the new Ultra Wide front camera with Center Stage for a more natural video conferencing experience, a USB-C port with up to 2x faster transfer speeds, and blazing-fast 5G on cellular models — starting at the same affordable price. Advanced cameras and compatibility with the latest accessories enable users, including content creators, gamers, and students, to push the boundaries of creativity, productivity, and self expression. The new iPad Air is available to order beginning Friday, March 11, and will be in stores beginning Friday, March 18.

iPad-Air-M1

M1 Ultra Chip

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ku4hl6hzRPQ

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Apple unveils M1 Ultra, the world’s most powerful chip for a personal computer. The new M1 Ultra chip supports 128GB of unified memory, 20 core CPU: 16 high performance cores, 4 efficiency cores, 64 core GPU, 8x faster than M1. Available in the all-new Mac Studio, M1 Ultra brings unprecedented performance to the desktop

M1 Max

  • 10‑core CPU
  • Up to 32‑core GPU
  • Up to 64GB unified memory
  • 400GB/s memory bandwidth

M1 Ultra

  • 20‑core CPU
  • Up to 64‑core GPU
  • Up to 128GB unified memory
  • 800GB/s memory bandwidth

Apple today announced M1 Ultra, the next giant leap for Apple silicon and the Mac. Featuring UltraFusion — Apple’s innovative packaging architecture that interconnects the die of two M1 Max chips to create a system on a chip (SoC) with unprecedented levels of performance and capabilities — M1 Ultra delivers breathtaking computing power to the new Mac Studio while maintaining industry-leading performance per watt. The new SoC consists of 114 billion transistors, the most ever in a personal computer chip. M1 Ultra can be configured with up to 128GB of high-bandwidth, low-latency unified memory that can be accessed by the 20-core CPU, 64-core GPU, and 32-core Neural Engine, providing astonishing performance for developers compiling code, artists working in huge 3D environments that were previously impossible to render, and video professionals who can transcode video to ProRes up to 5.6x faster than with a 28-core Mac Pro with Afterburner.

Apple-M1-Ultra-Chip

Mac Studio/ Studio Display

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvX1WkFFtQI

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Apple unveils all-new Mac Studio and Studio Display

Mac Studio with M1 Max and the new M1 Ultra delivers unprecedented performance and extensive connectivity in an incredibly compact design

Studio Display features an expansive 27-inch 5K Retina screen, an advanced camera with Center Stage, and amazing high-fidelity audio

Support for up to four Pro Display XDRs (6K resolution at 60Hz and over a billion colors) over USB-C and one 4K display (4K resolution at 60Hz and over a billion colors) over HDMI

  • Thunderbolt 4 (up to 40Gb/s)
  • DisplayPort
  • USB 4 (up to 40Gb/s)
  • USB 3.1 Gen 2 (up to 10Gb/s)
  • Two USB-A ports (up to 5Gb/s)
  • HDMI port
  • 10Gb Ethernet
  • 3.5 mm headphone jack

  • Wi-Fi

    • 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 wireless networking
    • IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac compatible

    Bluetooth

    • Bluetooth 5.0 wireless technology

    Ethernet

    • 10Gb Ethernet (Nbase-T Ethernet with support for 1Gb, 2.5Gb, 5Gb, and 10Gb Ethernet using RJ-45 connector)
Apple today introduced Mac Studio and Studio Display, an entirely new Mac desktop and display designed to give users everything they need to build the studio of their dreams. A breakthrough in personal computing, Mac Studio is powered by M1 Max and the new M1 Ultra, the world’s most powerful chip for a personal computer. It is the first computer to deliver an unprecedented level of performance, an extensive array of connectivity, and completely new capabilities in an unbelievably compact design that sits within arm’s reach on the desk. With Mac Studio, users can do things that are not possible on any other desktop, such as rendering massive 3D environments and playing back 18 streams of ProRes video.1 Studio Display, the perfect complement to Mac Studio, also pairs beautifully with any Mac. It features an expansive 27-inch 5K Retina display, a 12MP Ultra Wide camera with Center Stage, and a high-fidelity six-speaker sound system with spatial audio. Together, Mac Studio and Studio Display transform any workspace into a creative powerhouse. They join Apple’s strongest, most powerful Mac lineup ever, and are available to order today, arriving to customers beginning Friday, March 18.
Apple-Mac Studio
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Apple-Studio-Display

 

Events, Hardware, Mobile

Everything Apple Announced at The Virtual 2021 iPhone 13 Event

CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, Apple officially announced its 2021 new line of updated products including A new iPad and iPad Mini, a new line of the 7th-gen Apple Watch, a bunch of new iPhones with a few interesting updates – iPhone 13, 13 Mini, 13 Pro and 13 Max.  No new Airpods announced. Here are the highlights:

 

Apple Event — September 14

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iPhone 13 Highlights:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m43rh-pI0P0

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Apple announces iPhone 13 and 13 mini with a pretty similar look and design to iPhone 12, with a smaller notch, A15 chipset, diagonal dual-camera system, larger battery life, and five new colors. Apple iPhone 13 mini starts at $699 and iPhone 13 starts at $799, the same as the iPhone 12, now starts with 128GB base storage  and a 512GB option. More here:

  • – Super Retina XDR display
  • – A15 Bionic chip
  • – Improved power efficiency
  • – 6-core CPU, 4-core GPU

Apple today introduced iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini, the next generation of the world’s best smartphone, featuring a beautiful design with sleek flat edges in five gorgeous new colors. Both models feature major innovations, including the most advanced dual-camera system ever on iPhone — with a new Wide camera with bigger pixels and sensor-shift optical image stabilization (OIS) offering improvements in low-light photos and videos, a new way to personalize the camera with Photographic Styles, and Cinematic mode, which brings a new dimension to video storytelling. iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini also boast super-fast performance and power efficiency with A15 Bionic, longer battery life, a brighter Super Retina XDR display that brings content to life, incredible durability with the Ceramic Shield front cover, double the entry-level storage at 128GB, an industry-leading IP68 rating for water resistance, and an advanced 5G experience.

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iPhone 13 Pro Highlights:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKfgdkcIUxw

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Apple unveils iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max with the new ProMotion update for 10Hz-120Hz refresh rates, A15 Bionic chip, new camera system with 3x optical zoom, and more advanced updates. Apple iPhone 13 Pro starts at $999 and 13 Pro Max starts at $1,099, same as the iPhone 12 Pros, now with up to 1TB option; pre-order on Sept. 17, shipping Sept. 24. More here:

  • – Ceramic Shield glass on front
  • – IP68 water resistance
  • – Redesigned interior to support the new camera system and the bigger battery
  • – A15 Bionic chip
  • – New 5-core GPU
  • – Super Retina XDR display
  • – ProMotion

Apple today introduced iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in a smartphone. Redesigned inside and out, both models introduce an all-new Super Retina XDR display with ProMotion featuring an adaptive refresh rate up to 120Hz, making the touch experience faster and more responsive. The pro camera system gets its biggest advancement ever with new Ultra Wide, Wide, and Telephoto cameras that capture stunning photos and video, powered by the unmatched performance of A15 Bionic, more powerful than the leading competition. These technologies enable impressive new photo capabilities never before possible on iPhone, like macro photography on the new Ultra Wide camera and up to 2.2x improved low-light performance on the new Wide camera. New computational photography features like Photographic Styles personalize the look of images in the Camera app, and both models now include Night mode on all cameras. Video takes a huge leap forward with Cinematic mode for beautiful depth-of-field transitions, macro video, Time-lapse and Slo-mo, and even better low-light performance. Both models also offer end-to-end pro workflows in Dolby Vision, and for the first time, ProRes, only available on iPhone. iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max also include 5G with more bands for better coverage, big improvements to battery life for the best battery life ever on iPhone with iPhone 13 Pro Max, new storage capacity of 1TB, and the Ceramic Shield front cover, tougher than any smartphone glass.

iPhone 13 Pro Camera Updates:

Apple’s iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max will feature a macro photography mode for close-up shots, a Cinematic mode for more advanced “rack focus” techniques, more

  • – Telephoto (3x optical)
  • – Ultra wide, with a larger sensor to improve low light capabilities
  • – Wide camera with f.15 aperture
  • – Night mode now available on all cameras
  • – Macro mode
  • – New filters dubbed ‘Photographic Styles’ for real time photo edits while rendering

With new sensors and lenses for all three rear cameras, optimized to work seamlessly with iOS 15 and powered by the new image signal processor (ISP) in A15 Bionic for improved noise reduction and tone mapping, the iPhone 13 Pro lineup features the best camera system ever on iPhone. The all-new Wide camera has a larger sensor with 1.9 µm pixels, the largest ever on iPhone, for less noise and faster shutter speeds needed across lighting conditions, producing even more detailed photos. Coupled with the larger ƒ/1.5 aperture, the Wide camera on iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max offers a massive improvement in low-light situations, up to 2.2x when compared to iPhone 12 Pro, and nearly 1.5x when compared to iPhone 12 Pro Max. Sensor-shift optical image stabilization (OIS) — unique to iPhone — is available on both models, stabilizing the sensor instead of the lens, so images are smooth and video is steady, even when the user is not.

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iPad Mini 6 Product Update Highlights:

Introducing the all-new iPad mini | Apple

Apple refreshes its  iPad mini lineup with a larger 8.3″ display and rounded edges, Touch ID power button, USB C port, 5G connectivity, second-gen Pencil support; coming next week for $499.

  • – Four color options
  • – Beautiful 8.3” display
  • – TouchID
  • – USB C port
  • – 40% faster CPU, 80% GPU improvement
  • – 12MP camera
  • – Starting at $499, orders start today with shipping next week

Apple today introduced the powerful new iPad mini — with a larger 8.3-inch Liquid Retina display — in four gorgeous finishes. Featuring the brand new A15 Bionic chip, the new iPad mini delivers up to 80 percent faster performance than the previous generation, making it the most capable iPad mini ever. A new USB-C port allows faster connectivity, and cellular models with 5G bring more flexible mobile workflows. New advanced cameras, Center Stage, and support for Apple Pencil (2nd generation) enable new ways for users to capture photos and videos, communicate with loved ones, and jot down their ideas when creativity strikes. The new iPad mini is available to order beginning today, and will be in stores beginning Friday, September 24.

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New iPad Product Update

Apple announces an updated entry-level iPad model with A13 chip, 12MP ultrawide front-facing camera, iPadOS 15, basic 64GB minimum storage; available next week starting at $329

Apple today introduced the new iPad (9th generation), featuring the powerful A13 Bionic chip that packs even more performance and capability into the most popular iPad, all while retaining its all-day battery life.1 Starting at just $329, the new iPad features a 10.2-inch Retina display with True Tone, a 12MP Ultra Wide front camera with Center Stage, support for Apple Pencil (1st generation) and Smart Keyboard, the intuitive iPadOS 15, and twice the storage of the previous generation. The new iPad is available to order beginning today on apple.com, and in stores beginning Friday, September 24.

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Apple Watch Series 7 Highlights:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMdQ-gWBNZE

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Apple unveils Watch Series 7 in 41mm and 45mm sizes, with five colors, thinner borders, 20% larger displays, and IPX6, starting at $399 this fall. More here:

Apple today announced Apple Watch Series 7, featuring a reengineered Always-On Retina display with significantly more screen area and thinner borders, making it the largest and most advanced display ever. The narrower borders allow the display to maximize screen area, while minimally changing the dimensions of the watch itself. The design of Apple Watch Series 7 is refined with softer, more rounded corners, and the display has a unique refractive edge that makes full-screen watch faces and apps appear to seamlessly connect with the curvature of the case. Apple Watch Series 7 also features a user interface optimized for the larger display, offering greater readability and ease of use, plus two unique watch faces — Contour and Modular Duo — designed specifically for the new device. With the improvements to the display, users benefit from the same all-day 18-hour battery life,1 now complemented by 33 percent faster charging.

 

 

 

General, Hardware, software

Apple’s Fascinating 43-Year Journey From Small Project To $1 Trillion in Valuation

Is there any more fascinating success story in the world of tech than that of Apple Inc.? What began as a small project in the back of Steve Jobs’ parents’ garage has turned into the first trillion dollar company in the world.

It all started with Apple I, the first Apple product released by Jobs and Apple’s co-founder Steve Wozniak in 1976. Following the success of Apple’s first two personal computers – Apple I and Apple II – the company went public in 1980, and its founders became multi-millionaires overnight.

The 1980s saw the debut of the first personal computer with a graphical user interface (GUI), named Lisa, as well as the release of the Macintosh computer.

What followed, however, was a series of setbacks for Apple, including Jobs’ resignation in 1985. If you want to know what happened next on Apple’s journey to $1 trillion, take a look at the comprehensive infographic below by The Watchstrap.co detailing the success story of the biggest tech company in the world.

 

Hardware

Augmented Reality Becoming a Focus in Maintenance Technology

Augmented Reality, “an enhanced version of reality where live direct or indirect views of physical real-world environments are augmented with superimposed computer-generated images over a user’s view of the real world.”

The fourth industrial revolution is upon us and industries like manufacturing are taking advantage of AR technology to enhance employee experience, keep employees safer, and also close the knowledge gap.

Maintenance plays a vital role in industries like manufacturing. It has a direct influence on performance, productivity, and product quality; maintenance is a craft that is always being improved upon and now with the innovation of augmented reality, it can take maintenance to a whole other level.

Augmented Reality in Maintenance

Augmented Reality allows users to enhance their field of view with real-time super imposed digital information. This allows users to gain any/all information on an asset or step by step instructions on how to repair an asset, for example.

But before we dig into practical applications, let’s discuss the proven advantages of augmented reality maintenance.

Benefits

  • Reduced human errors
  • Reduced execution time
  • Reduced breakdowns
  • Reduced downtime
  • Reduced cost
  • Increased productivity
  • Increased operation speed
  • Increased fix rates
  • Increased compliance
  • Increased profit

These benefits prove true for the companies below that have already implemented augmented reality technology in their facility.

GE Aviation – Experiences an average of 8-12% in efficiency

GE Renewable Energy – Wiring technicians are yielding a 34% increase in productivity

These are just two examples of how AR is impacting the industry, but much has changed since the origins of the industrial revolution. From physical documentation, moving to the desktop, to the progression of mobile, to now wearable devices/technology.

AR powered solutions for maintenance and repair operations include:

  • Preventive Maintenance
  • Operator assembly instructions
  • Service inspection instructions
  • Detailed instructions for unfamiliar procedures
  • Compliance checklist
  • Corrective Maintenance
  • Service manual instructions
  • Remote assistance
  • Predictive Maintenance
  • Performance Panels
  • Real-time access to data: monitoring, control actions, disruptions, analytics

All the above have their own unique value, but let’s take a deeper look into the workforce and how AR is impacting engineers.

Technology in the Workforce

Facility managers are constantly looking at ways to increase productivity, decrease costs, and keep engineers safe on the job. These technologies below integrated with an EAM CMMS system can help achieve all those goals.

Infrared thermography allows engineers and mechanics to see electrical systems, mechanical equipment, building applications, and fluid systems through the use of thermovision. Engineers can spot faulty connections, abnormal motors, pipe temperatures and tank levels through this equipment showing different colors without having to touch the equipment. This reduces the risk of engineers getting hurt on the job.

A company called DAQRI is focused on AR technology and developed a wearable AR tech smart helmet for industrial use. Engineers can see 4D images above assets in their facilities that prompt them with instructions and also give them a mapping of all asset functionality. This wearable technology allows engineers to discover asset information faster and closes the knowledge gap for new hires.

Another company called UpSkill connects the workforce through augmented reality in its wearable technology guiding technicians in real-time to complete tasks, checklists, work orders, and send media to managers.

Finally, a company called Worklink has made it possible for the user to create their own smart instructions for assets to allow for less human error, increase safety, and also walk engineers step-by-step on repair processes. This can increase the time it takes to complete work by also complying with facility procedures.

This equipment is becoming more prevalent and as more machines becomes connected to the internet, approximately 50 billion machines will be connected on the internet by 2020 it becomes imperative facilities and industries adopt these devices and make them apart of their facility operations.

A CMMS has the capability to provide maintenance management and staff with an automated tool capable of scheduling inspections, preventive maintenance, managing inventory, work orders, and retrieval of recorded asset history.

Technicians can perform actual work with instructions on handhelds, enter how long it takes to complete work orders, filter through past work orders, and close out of the system. All the information is recorded in real-time, so managers can access the information instantaneously.

The ability to track your work, document it, and send it to managers could be paired with wearable technology, like the companies above, to get engineers an elevated view of assets through thermal technology or the ability to see instructions on assets and use that data to train new hires and not have to worry about on-boarding.

A CMMS could also benefit from machine learning using algorithms to monitor assets like meter readings and the ability to calculate readings by the second which would be humanly impossible to do; this will cut down on extraneous labor costs and allow facilities to allocate dollars elsewhere.

The possibilities are becoming endless when it comes to how IoT, AR, VR, and Machine learning can help facilities with energy savings, labor savings, employee safety, and more. The future is a scary and exciting thing but ultimately inevitable for change.

 

Hardware

Five Major Differences Between Cobots and Robots

Birthed in 1995, the concept of collaborative robots was part of a research project led by the General Motors Foundation. The foundation’s main aim was to create robots that were so safe they could work in collaboration with human beings. Now, about twenty three years later, cobots have not only found a place on the floors of numerous factories but are also a major trend in the world of robotics and technological developments of today. They are changing methods of operation especially in our automation, manufacturing and processing industries.

Out with the heavy and imposing traditional robots that stay locked in cages for our safety. It is time to pave way for collaborative robots. Cobots, unlike traditional robots are designed to work alongside humans, with them and not for them. However, even with their recent popularity, most people still don’t fully understand the difference between cobots and robots. Here are some of them.

Cobots have a partnership with human beings

Unlike traditional robots, cobots are designed to work collaboratively with humans just as the name suggests. With this new generation of robots you can say goodbye to cages or fences and hello to proper interaction.

Collaborative robots acts as assistants to human operators and are involved in targeted tasks that are sensitive and complex in nature and can’t be automated. In addition, cobots are well capable of learning. These robots have the ability to pick up objects and hand them over to humans in a more cooperative environment that is different from that of other industrial robots.

Cobots are teachable and flexible

Collaborative robots are quite easy to program. Some models of cobots are able to learn independently unlike traditional robot which need programming skills that are specialized. For instance, a technician can perform a movement with the arm of the robot thereafter, the robot can imitate and begin to reproduce automatically.

There are also other systems that can be given work instruction without the use of coding since they can simply take work instructions by the use of a graphic user interface. Therefore, employees can now flexibly program and reprogram collaborative robots and use them for a plethora of different tasks.

Cobots allow humans to concentrate on the core task of their business

Collaborative robots are tasked with the responsibility of safe handling tough, awkward or hot workpieces as well as low-added jobs in the workplace. For this reason, the human staff have all the time they need to focus on creating more added value to the business. This enables human intelligence to be refocused on other crucial aspect of the business and the chain of production.

Cobots are safe and they offer relief from risky tasks

Since collaborative robots can safely transfer dangerous bolting works, hot work pieces sharp or pointed objects, they get to fulfill tasks that would be naturally dangerous for humans. For this reason, there are far less accidents involved as compared to when the traditional industrial robots are involved.

Cobots are equipped with features that allow seamless collaboration between them and the human staff. Some models are equipped with detection sensor. This enable them to know where a human operator is at any given time. Some are also programmed to immediately stop working if the tasks they are performing poses any potential danger to a person near them. This eliminates the need for fences and cages.

Cobots can be used anywhere

Unlike traditional robots, collaborative robots can not only easy to program but they can also be moved and utilized at different points of the production chain. Most of them can be mounted on any surface either vertical, horizontal or on the ceiling. They are also light in terms of weight and can be moved from one place to another by just one person. This is not usually the case with traditional robots.

When deciding whether an industrial or collaborative robot is best suited for your business, there are many questions you need to ask yourself.

Hardware, Mobile, Wearables

What is the future of augmented reality (infographic)

Augmented reality might be fun for now, but the technology has a serious future.

Virtual and augmented reality are growing technologies, and not just in the video game industry, where they are projected to make an annual revenue of $11.6 billion. From healthcare and real estate to live events and education, AR and VR are changing the way we live, work, and learn.

As Forbes journalist Charles Fink says “We’re still 5 to 10 years from everyone walking around with AR/VR devices, but the technology is accelerating at a huge pace.”

VR allows potential home buyers to tour properties through a headset before the property is even finished being built, while AR allows those building homes to look at what a certain type of cabinets would look like in their new homes before they are ever installed. The “Street Peak” realtor app lets users point their smartphone at a home and access all MLS information, a breakthrough in property data accessibility.

AR and VR are entering the retail space, giving brick-and-mortar shopping a run for its money with open-air pop-up stores where users can view products. Clothes shopping is less of a headache with the FX Mirror and Memory Mirror, AR mirrors that simulate what you would look like in an outfit. There are even nail polish manufacturers using AR to allow people to try on a shade before buying.

Healthcare is also being revolutionized by AR. With the help of products like Accuvein, doctors and nurses will be able to find veins and insert IVs on the first try, a task that medical professionals only get right 60% of the time.

Travel and leisure are also seeing surges of innovation with the rise of augmented reality technology. Google Expeditions bridges the gap between education and travel with virtual field trips to anywhere in the world without leaving the classroom. Travel apps like Wikitude are the future of vacation optimization, recommending the best spots to eat and stay.

Learn more about how augmented reality is reshaping industries with the infographic below, provided by Lumus.

Augmented Reality Trends
Source: Lumus

Hardware, Internet

Amazon Echo Vs. Google Home: Which Is Best?

Many of you will be thinking about buying a smart speaker. You may have read articles and looked at prices, but you’re left a bit confused when one person says they prefer the Amazon Echo and says Google Home is superior. This infographic from Half Price takes you through how the two compare in different areas.

Let’s look at the voice assistant feature and according to the infographic the Echo wins because of an extremely comprehensive skills category. Skills are essentially smartphone apps and can help you do things like learn a new word.

However, for music and movie playback, it looks as if the Home is the clear winner. It allows you to listen to audio from Google Play Music and of course YouTube. You can also stream music and movies to the speaker or even connect to other speakers in the house if you’re using a Chromecast.

The reality is that both devices are always improving, and it will be interesting to see how they develop over the next few years. Find out more in the infographic.

Hardware

What Comes Next After Solid State Drives?

Could Experimental Oxide Memory Send SSDs the Way of the Dinosaurs?

Losing access to data on a laptop hard drive can be especially stressful, given that most laptop computers hold a mixture of both business and personal information. In fact, many business people aren’t just lost without their laptop computers, but don’t have the data they need stored or backed up anywhere else.

No matter how uninterested you are in the technical nuances of digital storage media, it’s hard to deny the appeal of knowing what lies ahead. Although magnetic hard drives were the cream of the crop for decades, their time eventually passed. Now, their flash memory successors appear to be on the road to a similar fate.

Solid state devices have clear technical advantages. Their nonmoving components, rugged construction and compact sizes are appealing, but do these devices have sufficient staying power? Researchers are hard at work cooking up potential usurpers to the throne. Here’s a quick preview of memory technology’s next exciting manifestation.

RRAM: Moving on From Flash (SSD)

As we’ve explained in some of our previous blogs, flash is a type of non-volatile memory that functions by using electrical signals to change and detect the electrostatic state of a circuit component, such as a transistor gate. Resistive random-access memory, or RRAM, employs a totally different strategy.

RRAM cells modify the resistance of a dielectric, or substance that reacts to electric fields by becoming polarized. This arrangement, known as a memristor from the combined terms memory and resistor,changes its resistance in response to stimuli, which gives it the power to record information. Instead of simply modifying a semiconductor’s charge state by accumulating electrons or holes, however, RRAM creates defects in layers of oxides attached to the memristor’s dielectric material. These oxygen ions and the vacancies left in their absence can be guided and modified through the application of electric fields.

What Drives the Interest in RRAM?

Compared to typical flash memory, why is RRAM so appealing? Analysts say that it can perform operations at greater speeds and use less energy in the process. The other potential advantage lies in its size: One company created a prototype RRAM chip that was able to store a terabyte of data in around 200 square millimeters’ worth of space. Thanks to a significantly smaller cell size, RRAM may even beat out novel forms of stacked 3-D flash memory in terms of storage density.

It’s also worth considering that it might be possible to manufacture some variants at room temperature with low forming voltages, which could be equally advantages for cost-conscious memory makers and consumers. Even more promising, manufacturers can use a wide range of dielectric materials to form memristors, which increases the probability that some unknown avenue of investigation might produce a workable implementation.Moving From Solid State Drive

Technical Hurdles

The physics ideas behind memristors and RRAM have been around for decades. So why aren’t these kinds of memory already the standard?

The answer lies in the fact that being able to form a memristor and connect it to memory cell circuitry is only one part of the equation. For instance, researchers have long struggled with critical tasks like getting RRAM cells to switch states reliably, and only recently did NIST scientists discover a way to make switching operations more consistent by maintaining tighter control of the signal energy used to induce transitions. Nevertheless, RRAM still faces problems regarding its instability and other factors.

When Will a New Flash Memory Killer Arrive?

It’s hard to say when people might be freed from the yoke of flash memory, but the prospects look good. Considering that RRAM and other alternative types of storage have so many potential benefits, it seems like a mere matter of time before companies introduce a product that works.

More than a few private concerns have invested significant resources and brainpower into the pursuit of alternative memory technologies. Firms like Panasonic have produced evaluation kits for their RRAM prototypes, and Rambus acquired Unity Semiconductor for $35 million to gain the company’s oxide memory portfolio.

 

Numerous companies have also filed patent applications, and as with many technologies, IP protection generally begets forward progress. Regardless whether RRAM becomes the next big thing after flash or simply paves the way for a similar alternative, it’s highly likely that we’re on the verge of something new and exciting. The real question is what kinds of technical challenges users will encounter and what novel practices might data recovery professionals have to develop to keep pace.

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TTR Data Recovery is a team of  Flash media data recovery specialists who don’t just have the tools and expertise needed to pull data from damaged and inaccessible Solid State Drives, but also an understanding of how these configurations work, and the best ways to get your data recovered.

Computers, Hardware

By Rethinking One Button Huawei MateBook Disrupts the Entire Laptop Market

 

In today’s computer market, it’s hard to disrupt an entire industry. Laptops may get faster, the visuals will get sharper, but at its core, the product is the same.

That was until two days ago, when Huawei shook up the laptop market. On Tuesday, the Chinese tech company launched their new MateBook series and changed everything. Huawei did it with one simple design change- the power button!

For years, the industry viewed the power button as serving one function. Within the limited real estate of a laptop, why is there one button for power and another for finger scanner?

Ever think of that? Me either.

Well, that’s what Huawei was thinking when they launched their MateBook.

A post shared by Huawei Mobile (@huaweimobile) on

A few years ago, I would have expected that Apple might have attempted such a bold redesign. With their eyes laser focused on beating Apple and Microsoft, Huawei simply disrupted the laptop market. They merged two functions and upgraded the power button.

Simple and convenient.

Clearly, this new power button/ finger scanner isn’t where Huawei stopped. All of the other aspects of MateBook X’s hardware are similarly impressive.

In their product launch, Huawei boldly showed who their competition in the laptop market is. Apple. In fact, the MateBook X and MacBook are so similar that Endgaget could barely distinguish between the two.
Huawei took them to task and clearly stated their position.

The MateBook X comes in rose gold.

Sound familiar?

In typical Huawei fashion, they focused on the user. What do all laptops users want? A powerful device, that’s simple and has a long lasting battery.

So, that’s exactly what Huawei created in the MateBook.

The MateBook X is a 13-inch Windows 10 ultra-portable is designed as a  traditional aluminum clamshell, instead of the original MateBook 2-in-1 configuration. Customers can choose from either an Intel “Kaby Lake” Core i5 or i7 processors instead of the less powerful Core m series. The MateBook visuals are super strong too by offering a 3:2 aspect ratio at 2K resolution with a 4.4mm bezel, which is pushing the bezel to the max.

Storage

The Huawei MateBook comes in either 256GB or 512GB SSD options. Sure, the RAM could be a point of contention since the laptop will only come in either 4GB or 8GB options.  I’m rather certain that most laptop users will be forgiving considering that the device is so light, thin, and portable. Honestly, to the average user, 8GB will suffice.

Battery

At the launch event, Huawei claimed that the MateBook can run 1080p video for 10 hours on a single charge. That’s serious.

It’s also not surprising.

Huawei has been improving battery life on all of their devices, like their Mate 9. In my review of this AI infused device,  the phone lasts almost an entire day.

Once again, like their phones, the Huawei MateBook X has a unibody aluminum design, which is optimal design for making the laptop super thin and super light.
At its thickest point, the Huawei MateBook X measures 0.49 inches- thinner than the MacBook (0.52 inches) and the MBP (0.59 inches). In terms of weight, once again, Huawei out-designed the competition by scaling down the MateBook X to only weighs 2.31 pounds compared to the MacBook Pro’s 3.02 pounds.

Photo Credit: Huawei

Untouchable?

With all of these impressive improvements and features, there’s some talk about the MateBook X not coming with a touchscreen. Personally, I don’t think it will deter users. When asked, Huawei responded that “they wanted to put their best foot forward…” I think that most users are still acclimating to the touch screen feature on a laptop. Keep the laptop simple. Don’t confuse the user.

Fanless?

Under the hood, the Huawei MateBook X is going fanless. That should insure that customers won’t worry about their device overheating.

Sound

In their ongoing focus on outperforming their competition, Huawei announced their partnership with Dolby. The MateBook comes with Dolby Atmos Sound inside. While many devices have Dolby Atmos software, Huawei is the first to integrate both software and hardware solutions. By placing the speakers above the keyboard and including software that optimizes the quality of the sound for movies and music, the MateBook will give users a true listening experience that offers quality both via headphones and speakers.

A post shared by Huawei Mobile (@huaweimobile) on

Ports

The MateBook went minimal on the ports. With only two USB C slots, one for power one for everything else, this may be an issue. Hopefully, most users will appreciate the dock offering HDMI, USB A, USB C and VGA that comes with the MateBook. A microSD card reader could have been a valuable addition.

Huawei’s first real attempt in launching a sleek, powerful, practical laptop seems to be a solid competitor in the market. With the MateBook series, Huawei is clearly boasting their ambitions to play with the big boys in the laptop market.

Hardware

The War of the Processors: Where AMD Went Wrong

2 Comments

 

The microprocessor has undoubtedly come a long way. The leap from four to sixty-four-bit chips has been a tremendous feat. And as expected, this remarkable advancement has brought to life fierce rivalry between industry players.

Although the recent influx of praiseworthy Chromebooks has popularised ARM chips, nearly all computers are powered by what are known as x86-based processors. Technicalities aside, these CPUs are primarily based on the Intel 8086 – a 16-bit microprocessor that was introduced in 1978 – and are a result of the gradual additions and extensions made to the 8086 over the years.

As leading manufacturers of x86-based CPUs, Intel and AMD have steadily achieved global domination in the world of computer processing. Each company has been kept on its toes by the other, and we’ve all benefited greatly from this rivalry.

In the recent years, however, AMD seems to have dialed down quite significantly. Simply going through the laptops in your college class, or the PCs around the office will give you a good picture of the dwindling competition. Intel processors are in far wider use than AMDs.

Some might argue that Intel has always been ahead. Albeit only by one year, it is the older of the two companies.  Moreover, it is only as a consequence of the conditions made by IBM for its first PC in 1981 that AMD became a second-source manufacturer of the already patented Intel 8086.

So, Intel may have made AMD into the company it is now, but that doesn’t mean the latter has always been in the former’s shadow. For instance, it was AMD that designed the highly successful Am2505 in 1971, the fastest multiplier of its time.

Today, however, no one can deny that Intel has cast a gloomy shadow onto AMD. But where did a company that freely benefited from the other’s technology go wrong?

Performance

With its FX-8350’s glass-shattering 8794.33MHz, AMD is the Guinness World Record holder of the highest frequency ever achieved by a computer processor. But we have all come to the realization that more clock speed doesn’t necessarily mean better performance.

AMD has historically taken pride in its emphasis on the number of cores and clock speeds, and on paper, this would make its chips faster than Intel’s. In reality, however, it is the issue of efficiency that negatively impacts AMD processors.

For illustration’s sake, let’s take the best of Intel’s Skylake architecture, the Core i7-6700K. The chip triumphs over the AMD FX 9590, despite having lower maximum clock speed and only half the number of cores.

What Intel does better is, instead of adding cores, it uses hyperthreading to keep the existing ones active at all times. When performing tasks that require the same processing power, therefore, Intel chips have always offered better performance over similarly classed AMD CPUs.

Pricing

A while back, PC enthusiasts marveled at AMD for offering reliable processors at fair prices. However, because competition has so far heated up, this is no longer the case.

Of course, you could buy the entry-level Athlon X4 860K – a 3.7GHz quad-core processor – for around $70, which is not bad, but the performance you’ll get will be way too low to justify the money saved if you chose it instead of something like the Intel Core i3-6100.

What makes the situation even worse is the high rate of CPU pricing fluctuation. Customers are opting for older Intel processors which still perform better than AMD chips, but having been in the market for a while are now almost as cheap.

You can, therefore, be duped into thinking you’re getting better value for the money, but instead end up with a processor that throttles with even the simple tasks. Many AMD chips are cheap, but it is because pricing them higher wouldn’t make any sense. This is why Intel largely dominates the exorbitant $200 and above price range.

Too much emphasis on dedicated graphics

There was a time when the graphics processing capabilities of AMD-based computers were far superior to anything offered by Intel.

Fast-forward to today, and Intel’s integrated graphics have all but closed the gap. The 6th generation Intel chips have largely been accepted in a market that is increasingly showing its flexibility to compromise on graphics power for more portable devices.

While not built for graphics-intensive tasks such as heavy gaming, the latest Intel HD, and Intel Iris Pro GPUs have proven capable of handling some demanding titles comfortably.

Admittedly, AMD has gone back to the drawing board, and the integrated graphics on its new A-series APU processors are currently giving Intel GPUs a run for their money. But the company has evidently taken its time to realize that not everyone shopping for a computer needs it to run The Witcher 3 or Mortal Kombat X at maximum settings.

Availability and support

AMD enthusiasts might have something to say regarding all the points we’ve made so far, but they will agree that their processors of choice are simply not compatible with as many components as Intel chips.

Take motherboards for example. You can find several options for your AMD chip, but the choices are not nearly as many as with Intel. Moreover, Intel boards make a little more sense, design-wise.

AMD has their metal connector pins on the chip, rather than on the board, as it is with Intel motherboards.

AMD’s design choice is great because you can rule out the board’s faulty pins as the cause of any processor issues. However, replacing a high-end chip is usually a lot more expensive than getting a new motherboard.

Wrap Up

Despite Intel’s unwavering command over the CPU market, AMD is finally gearing up a notch. The future, therefore, looks brighter for a company that has seemingly grown tired of being known only as second-best. 2017 is particularly an exciting year for the decades-old rivalry.

We are all eager to see how AMD’s highly-anticipated Ryzen processors will compete with the latest and most powerful 7th generation Intel chips.

 

Hardware, Video

5 Reasons Why Businesses need Security Camera Systems

2 Comments

 

Don’t have any security cameras installed at your office or places related to business? If yes, think again! From strengthening safety, cross checking the stock, deterring criminals to increasing productivity –a complete surveillance system is good for real! And moreover, a business owner needs to have eyes at each and every corner of his place.

To further convince you with the benefits of an HD security system, we have listed down 5 reasons as to why businesses need to install them.

1)  Discourage Internal & External Theft

Every business whether big or small, is always under a risk of burglary and crime. And, this threat is augmented when you have employees that could add up to the list.

It would first appear shocking to hear that approximately 50 billion dollars are lost each year just because of employee theft. Such crime incapacitates small businesses. In fact, employee theft becomes the sole reason for almost 33% of the businesses to go bankrupt.

This is where you can make a huge difference to your bottom line. Install an HD security camera to curb employee theft today. A professional product like an Ultra HD system will eliminate all the blind spots, deter criminals and burglars and stamp out employee theft.

2)  Boost Productivity and Profits

When you hadn’t established your business (and probably was working for someone else) you must have come across the phrase “It’s time to play, when the boss is away”. And if you try to remember more vividly, no one ever dared to take unnecessary breaks from their work when the boss was watching over. Today, your employees might be doing the same to you!!!

If you require a set of extra eyes, an HD IP security camera can really prove its worth. You can remotely view all the nooks and corners of your office with the help of free mobile apps and software provided with such systems. All you need to have is a smart phone, tablet, or computer with working internet connection.

cctv-1144366_640

3)  Protect Private and Sensitive Areas

Every business has some “restricted-access areas”. To prevent illegal entry to these off –limit areas, getting help from sleepless eyes of a night vision security camera is a wise decision. The discrete look of an IP security camera is good to trick would-be burglars and force them to think twice before committing any crime.

There are many unscrupulous individuals who leak out trade secrets or even worse, sale them for their own benefits. Every business owner should take a proactive action to protect his/her business against this trade secret theft. For that, they might get help from a professional surveillance firm to evaluate their premises and take necessary actions to protect it. 

4)  Increase Customer Satisfaction

If your customers are satisfied with your services and products, they’ll come back over and over again. Thus, they should be catered exclusively. But, you can’t be there all the times to welcome them. What you can do is, keep an eye on your employees to know how they are behaving with your customers. This will obviously help in increasing the customer retention.

Video surveillance can also help you find out the products that you sell the most and then, accordingly you can develop your marketing strategies.

5)  Protect Yourself from False Liability Law Suits

Best systems, such as Ultra HD surveillance systems, can even help solve legal/official issues to an extent. Property management firms could be the ones that can be benefited because they have to handle piles and piles of claims. Now, to curb false claims out of the pile, firm may install a cctv camera and be ready with a video proof for any and every ambiguous event.

Storage space is the next thing to be kept in mind. A crafty lawyer is well aware of the fact that after a certain period of time, data gets overwritten thereby eliminating proofs, if any. But, a system with unlimited data storage allows you to revisit the frames of any time in the past. This will surely give you the much required mental peace.

Conclusion
Clearly, there are many benefits of installing a complete system for your business. You can sleep easy when you know there are prying eyes to take care of your hard earned assets and establishments.

So, what are you waiting for? Go and get your system today!

 

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Author Bio:  Rohan Sharma is a gadget wizard, an active blogger, and an eminent speaker. With more than 10 years of experience to his credit, Rohan has always been a pertinent contributor to the security industry. He is closely associated with Revo America, a well renowned security products manufacturer and retailer. Needless to say, Rohan boasts for paramount and credible products only, with Revo’s being his favorite.

General, Hardware

5 Battery Myths Debunked

1 Comment

 

Your Smartphone, Tablet and Laptop all have one thing in common, a battery. Without it, you wouldn’t even be able to use your device. Because of this, taking care of your gadget’s battery should definitely be a priority. Here we debunk all those myths surrounding batteries and we’ll teach you the proper way to keep your gadget’s battery in tiptop shape.

Myth #1

You shouldn’t keep your gadget charging overnight 

False. I’m sure we’ve all heard about batteries expanding, overheating or even exploding but with the latest technology, this shouldn’t happen anymore. According to Popular Mechanics, “Something that’s not an issue is overcharging. Contrary to what you might think (or have been told), leaving your phone or laptop plugged in all the time is not bad for its battery. That’s because your gadgets, the batteries in them, and the chargers you attach them to are actually pretty smart about the way they do business.”

That means your device is now smart enough to determine when its battery is at capacity that even if you leave it plugged in, it will stop charging once it’s full.

Myth #2

You shouldn’t use your device while it’s charging 

False. People believe that using your phone while it’s charging will make the phone explode or even electrocute the user. An instance of this occurrence happened back in 2013 when a Chinese flight attendant died while using her mobile phone. According to The South China Morning Post, Ma Ailun died of electrocution when she answered her iPhone 5 while it was charging. Although, upon further investigation, they discovered that she was using a knock-off charger. So if you’re using the manufacturer-approved charger and battery then it should be safe to use even while it’s charging.

Myth #3

Heat will destroy your battery 

True. Actually, different temperatures can affect your battery’s health. Leaving your gadget in a warm place can overheat your battery especially when it’s charging since Lithium-ion batteries heat up when they charge. Meanwhile, storing your gadget in a cold place can also affect battery life. A cold battery can die faster than in low temperatures. The best practice is to keep your device stored within its recommended temperatures.

Myth #4

It’s best to turn your gadget off once in a while 

True. Your phone or laptop, like a machine, needs to rest once in a while. According to an article from CNET, the best way to prolong a smartphone’s battery is to turn off the device from time to time. With Apple phones, a weekly shutdown is optimal for your gadget to get its much-needed rest while Android phones can do a simple reboot to restore battery life.

Myth #5

Always do full charge before using it

False. People think that when they get a brand new smartphone, the first thing to do is to immediately charge it until it’s full. Actually, the optimal performance of any smartphone is when the battery is between 40%-80%. So the next time you buy a brand new phone or tablet, you’re usually good to go from there. Also, don’t believe it when they say that you should drain your battery before charging it. There’s no truth in that. Again, like my response to Myth #1, our batteries have now become smarter and more efficient to use.

There you have it! Now you’re more knowledgeable about your device’s battery. The next time someone tells you it’s bad to charge your phone overnight, you can definitely teach him or her a thing or two about battery life.

How about you? Any battery myths you’d like to debunk? Share your thoughts in the comments section below! To avoid battery problems, why not invest in gadget insurance? Guarantees repair or replacement for your smartphone, tablet, etc. in case of battery malfunctions. Invest in gadget insurance today!

 

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Joel Ekstein

Author’s Bio: Joel Ekstein is an eCommerce retail expert with over 12 years experience in the industry. He has had experience in buyer and inventory forecasting, marketing, and expanding customer base in new markets. Instead of the notion that offering 100% customer satisfaction hurts 20% of profit, Joel has proved that 100% customer satisfaction increases customer engagement and customer base which leads to 25% profit increase. http://protect-o.com/| twitter.com/Protect_O

 

 

Hardware, Video

REVIEW: SpotCam HD 720P WiFi Security Camera With Free Cloud Storage

 

Home monitoring solutions have helped to curb crime levels by a significant amount. However, a lot still remains to be done before the battle against criminal activities can won completely. There are many home monitoring solutions that are available on the market thereby making it hard for customers to choose their preferred surveillance system easily. Today, a good number of householders and business setups are currently using Wi-Fi cameras to monitor the happenings at their premises of residence. However, the use of Wi-Fi cameras based on physical servers is common today. Based on this, it is a good idea to switch to cloud based Wi-Fi cameras. There are numerous features that make such systems worth going for.

Stay connected anytime on any device. Smart phone, tablet, laptop, or PC. Receive alerts by email or mobile APP, and watch real-time video whenever you are connected to the internet.

Smart phone, tablet, laptop, or PC. Receive alerts by email or mobile app, and watch real-time video whenever you are connected to the internet.

Easily setup in a matter of seconds. Setup SpotCam is as easy as setup your mobile phone, yes, there is no setup.

Connect your SpotCam to WiFi and apply an account on MySpotCam.com, then you are ready to go!

Setup can be done easily with PC/Laptop/Mobile/Tablet.

View it now and save for later.

Choose our NVR plan to store video and review video footage as long as 30 days after it happens. Server is no longer required when you are using SpotCam.

Easily setup in a matter of seconds. Setting up SpotCam easy. Connect your SpotCam to WiFi, apply an account on MySpotCam.com, then you are ready to go!

Setup can be done easily with PC/Laptop/Mobile/Tablet…

View it now and save for later. Choose a cloud NVR plan to store video and review video footage as long as 30 days after it happens. A server is no longer required when you are using SpotCam.

Camera Spec

Dimensions: Bracket Ф 7.5cm

Body Ф 4.8cm × 14.8cm

Weight: 198g

Power Input: 12V,1A

Video: Up to 720P HD (1280×720) at 30 frame/sec

Streaming: H.264 encoding

Field of View: 110 degrees (diagonal)

Audio: Speaker and microphone

Night Vision: 12 High-power IR LEDs

Warranty: One-year

Operating Temperature: 0°C – 50°C, designed for indoor use

unnamed

Live video streaming

If you want to enjoy unlimited access to the videos that are being captured by your surveillance camera, you can take advantage of cloud based Wi-Fi cameras. You can say bye to restricted access to surveillance videos. Enjoy live streaming of videos in HD. You can use any online systems to do this provided it is compatible with the camera. The system requires any internet connection that is sound enough to facilitate the live streaming of surveillance videos. This feature can enable you to monitor your home while you are out engaging in other important life activities.

Gain access to the footage from anywhere in the world

If you want to gain access to the camera videos from anywhere in the world, you can do well to upgrade to the cloud based systems. Thanks to these systems, home monitoring has never been easier. You can enjoy unlimited access to camera footage from anywhere in the world. This feature can enable you to easily monitor the security status of your home as often as the need arises.

Cameras compatible with almost any device

In order to access camera footage, you will need to use any compatible device. With this surveillance camera, you will be free to use any device provided it has a live streaming feature. You can use devices such as smartphones, tablets, PCs and any other compatible device. Today, there are also smart watches which have a live streaming feature. Such watches can also be synchronised with the camera and used to view security footage.

Use of electric cables not appropriate

If you are using the cloud based Wi-Fi camera, you will be free to enjoy wireless connections from the camera to the audio-visual system of your choice.  You simply need to setup the Wi-Fi connections to be in a position to interface between the camera and the audio-visual system of your choice.

Highly resistant to extreme weather conditions

The Wi-Fi cloud based surveillance cameras are designed to withstand any kind of harsh weather conditions. You can still enjoy unlimited home security surveillance irrespective of the prevailing weather conditions. The cameras are designed to withstand water, strong winds and any form of precipitation.

Computers, Hardware

Raspberry Pi 2 Receives a Huge Hardware Boost, Windows 10, Still Costs $35

For those who have never heard the name before, the Raspberry Pi is a small sized computer that runs Linux and sells for only $35. Over the last couple of years the device has been a great success and exceeded all expectations, with a whopping 4.5 million Pi boards units sold to date. And despite a relatively short existence the Raspberry Pi has already come a long way. One of the most obvious uses of the Raspberry Pi is as a super tiny portable computer, but the practical and effective uses of the Raspberry Pi know no bounds.

Earlier today Raspberry pi announced their new model the “Raspberry Pi 2”. They have improved the hardware / specs substantially (from the Model B+ ) and optimized the platform to work better with a wide variety of open-source apps, including WebKit, LibreOffice, Scratch, Pixman, XBMC/Kodi, libav and PyPy.

Looking at the board and the inside of the new P2, the CPU is now a Broadcom 900MHz quad-core ARM Cortex-A7, while the RAM has been doubled to a full 1GB LPDDR2 courtesy of the guys over at Micron. And while the overall look is more or less the same, the Foundation says the new model is roughly six times more powerful than previous Rasp Pi hardware.

In some other great news, we hear that the Raspberry P2 will run Windows 10 out of the box – FREE of charge. According to the Raspberry Pi Foundation, the group has been working closely with Microsoft for the last six months to bring Windows 10 to the new Pi2 model.

The Raspberry Pi 2 is now available at the same competitive, low price $35 dollars from Element 14 and RS Components.

[Raspberry Pi]

Events, Hardware, tablets

CONFIRMED: Apple to Hold an Event on October 16

1 Comment

 

Apple has started sending out invites for a media event on October 16, which will be held at the company’s Cupertino headquarters, and is widely thought to be the launch of the next-gen iPad Air as well as a new line of Macs. The invites suggest a colorful teaser with some cropped lines of the Apple Logo and the upper leaf alongside a simple line that vaguely says:  “It’s been way too long.”

What does it mean? It is yet to be determined, but besides the new hardware, the company is also expected to be launching its latest Mac OS X update, dubbed OS X Yosemite, and may also debut Apple Pay, its mobile payment solution for users.

As always, we will continue to update as much as it takes.

Computers, Hardware

Android 4.0 MK802 PC on a Stick Can Fit in Your Pocket

Size isn’t everything when it comes to portable computers. On the contrary, the smaller the merrier. In the past decade, we have all seen technology shrink down dramatically, from room sized computers to pocket sized devices. One such product is the all-new MK802, a Chinese-made computer-on-a-stick that crams inside a 1.5-GHz Allwinner A10 CPU, alongside 512MB of RAM and 4GB of storage. The 7-ounce magic runs the latest and greatest Android 4.0 OS on board, while ports include HDMI, two USB 2.0 (Full and Mini) and a microSD card slot. This tiny little thing will also offer 802.11 b/g WiFi connectivity out-of-the-box and a full 1080p HD native resolution support. It is already offered online by Aliexpress for exactly $74 and dealextreme for $78 and will ship for FREE to most regions around the world. Nice, isn’t it?

[via Netbooknews]

Hardware, tablets

Apple iPad 2 Gets Dissected by iFixit

Well, looks like it didn’t take the good fellows over at iFixit a long time to get their hands on a brand new iPad 2, and then tear it apart into several small bite-sized pieces. To put things in a nutshell, their findings suggest (at least when it comes to the WiFi-only version) that Apple’s second-gen iPad device (model number A1395) includes pretty much the same size battery as the iPad 1 – a 3.8V, 25 watt-hour unit, alongside a 1GHz A5 CPU, 512MB of RAM, 16GB of Toshiba TH58NVG7D2FLA89 NAND Flash, and a Broadcom: BCM43291HKUBC WiFi controller. Furthermore, there’s also a clear evidence for the existence of a S6T2MLC N33C50V Power Management IC, tucked with a tiny biny gyroscope (AGD8 2103), and a small pair of integrated speakers. And if you’re seriously interested in this fascinating topic, head on past the break to watch iFixit’s full-fledged explanatory coverage.

 

[iFixit]

Continue reading Apple iPad 2 Gets Dissected by iFixit →

Hardware, Mobile, News, Phones

iPhone 4G Chassis and Body Spotted in the Wild Streets of Portugal

Another day, another iPhone 4G update, this time coming from Portugal (yes, Portugal), as the techie guys from iPhone Portgual have managed to obtain some iPhone 4G parts, which apparently include an aluminum chassis mold and a silver body case – both said to be acquired from china for a non-disclosure price. Unfortunately, there’s no way for us to authenticate this leak at the moment, and the possibility of it being a fake job is still there. For the meantime, you’ll have to settle with the pair of videos after the break – watch them and judge for yourself

[via iPhone Portugal]

Continue reading iPhone 4G Chassis and Body Spotted in the Wild Streets of Portugal →

Hardware, Mobile, News, Phones

Another iPhone 4G Prototype Pops Up In Vietnam, Gets Dissected and Filmed On Video

2 Comments

Another day, another Apple’s fourth-gen iPhone spotted in the wild, this time by the Vietnamese guys from Taoviet.com who’ve managed to purchase a prototype of Cupertino’s future device on the black market for a whopping $4,000. And while Gizmodo’s acquired phone had no capacity numbers behind its back, besides the “XXX” caption, this one, on the other hand, indicates a 16GB of internal storage, housing the usual “Bonfire” testing interface, instead of Apple’s coming OS 4 platform – what a pity. Other than that, it apparently packs the same line of hardware (minus the two external screws) we’ve already seen before with a micro SIM slot stuffed to the right side of the box and these dual silver volume buttons placed to the left, while rear and front-face cameras adorn this “magical” bad boy as well, providing a clear evidence to support future arguments about authentication. Hands-on video after the break.

Update1: The guys at Chipworks claim that the “339S0084” serial number etched on top of the big chip (the one with Apple’s logo) found in Cupertino’s next-gen iPhone during last teardown session, is actually THE Apple A4 chip, fabricated by Samsung as a result of Apple’s design acquisitions of PA Semi and Intrinsity. And if that allegation should be taken seriously, it means that Apple’s fourth generation iPhone will share the same micro-processing capabilities you can find inside the iPad – huzzah!

Update2: We’ve just added two more videos of Apple’s alleged iPhone 4G, posted by the same group of the Vietnamese guys. Check them out after the break.

[via Tinhte]

Continue reading Another iPhone 4G Prototype Pops Up In Vietnam, Gets Dissected and Filmed On Video →

Computers, Hardware, News

Sony Vaio P Lineup Resurfaces With an Optical Touchpad and Accelerometer

2 Comments

Does anyone remember Sony’s revolutionary Vaio P series? It seems to be a forgotten word until lately for some reason. Only now, it finally gets the update it needed but it doesn’t hold a candle to the tablet’s eclectic experience, does it?  Thankfully, the 8-inch netbook (or mini laptop for that matter) we’ve come to know and love, is back with an optical touchpad built to both sides of the screen bezel – pad to the right and mouse buttons to the left – and an integrated accelerometer, to ease your internet surfing mission, as tilt means back and forward in pages while vertical mode makes it a lot more convenient to read your docs. Besides that it’s also expected to include a faster Intel Atom Z560 processor to boost things up, and make it out sometime this June with five new colorful flavors. Prices, regretfully, are yet to be determined while specs and Full PR announcement are just after the break. Stay tuned.

Update1: Turns out that VAIO P entry-level units will run for $799 in the US with Intel’s 1.6GHz Atom Z530 processor inside. Still no clue about other optional packages, but the price is definitely more attractive than expected.

Update2: The guys at ITMedia have already managed to take Sony’s Vaio P next-gen laptops to a comprehensive teardown session that unveiled the existence of Intel’s Silverthorne CPU inside, offered either in Z530 (1.6 GHz), Z550 (2Ghz) or Z560 (2.133 GHz) version, paired with one of three optional SSD capacities (64, 128 and 256GB), and most common connectivity modules, including Bluetooth, WiFi, 3G WWAN and even Wimax. Netbook news has published a lot of inside images, taken from close range, so click through and take a look.

Update3: Engadget’s Joanna Stern has tackled with Sony’s Vaio P second-gen laptop as well and you can watch her quick walkthrough video after the break.

Update4: According to Sony Japan Sony’s Vaio P second-gen can also be used as a wireless “Remote Keyboard” to your PS3 gaming console – neat, isn’t it? Of course it would drain your battery life quickly, but that’s one compromise against so many benefits.

Update5: And looks like Sony’s second-gen VAIO P is finally available for pre-order on the SonyStyle website, starting at $899.99 for the Atom Z530 processor, paired with 2GB of RAM, and a larger 128GB SSD. Shipping is slated to June 25th.

Continue reading Sony Vaio P Lineup Resurfaces With an Optical Touchpad and Accelerometer →

Hardware, Mobile, Phones

iPhone 4G Gets Dissected For The Masses

1 Comment

Apple has officially filed a claim to receive its lost/stolen gem – and apparently, got it back. But before retaking possession, it looks like Gizmodo guys have managed to put the fourth-gen iPhone through a non-intrusive dismantling process in order to make us believe the gorgeous piece of craft they were holding in their hands is not just another Cupertino knock-off, but the real thing. And judging by their findings, they were probably right on spot. In general, there’s not much info to share at this point (no one wanted to cause further damage to the phone), still we find it fascinating to have a very early opportunity to take a closer look at what we may be seeing take center stage this summer – the iPhone 4G. Regretfully, the juicy parts of Apple’s next phone were hidden well behind a tight metal plate, so for the time being, there is no detailed information about the work of those sections, and it can hardly be expected that significant components will soon be available across the blogsphere (it would be for iFixit guys to unveil them). Still, without a concrete info, one might assume it would probably include this A4 processor (like the iPad’s), paired with the double sized 5.25 WHr at 3.7V battery which we’ve already had a chance to learn about before. One thing’s for sure, it took Giz ages, and between 40 to 50 screws to be able to open this crank, so pay them a courtesy visit to see more of this brat.

[via Gizmodo]

Hardware, Mobile, Phones

iPhone 3G S Gets Ripped And Dissected Into Pieces, Unveiling ARM Cortex A8 CPU At 600 MHz

1 Comment

With only hours before iPhone’s 3G S version officially goes up on sale across the world, Rapid Repair gang have managed to get their hands on one of Apple’s few available copies around, and dissected it into pieces,  letting us closely look into the main components assembled inside, including chips, amps, processors and involved manufacturing companies, who helped Cupertino building this powerful machine. From their tear-down, we learn that South Korean giant, Samsung provides the SoC S5PC100 chipset, while main processor confirmed to be ARM Cortex A8, running at 600 MHz, with 720p high-def support. PowerVR SGX graphics also integrated within the iPhone 3G S, with 256MB of RAM, instead of 128MB on previous models.  In addition, we can see the NAND Flash memory, provided by Toshiba and Infenion is there as well, providing myriad parts of the phone. Hit the jump to checkout the comparison chart of iPhone’s hardware and Palm’s Pre, as more pictures available at their website. Also, feel free to start sharing your personal reviews, once getting a brand new iPhone 3G S in the following days.

Update: iSuppli says the estimated cost of Apple’s new iPhone 3GS for the 16GB configuration, stands at $178.96 to manufacture. Mind you, this price valuation, refers to direct materials cost, with no inclusion of other essential operational expenses, such as shipping, distribution, royalty fees etc, which add some value to the overall price.Check out their components and cost drivers table, after the break.

iphone-3g-s-dissected

[via RapidRepair]

Continue reading iPhone 3G S Gets Ripped And Dissected Into Pieces, Unveiling ARM Cortex A8 CPU At 600 MHz →

Computers, Hardware, News

Microsoft To Release Recommended Windows 7 Specs For Netbooks

2 Comments

Already got yourself a new portable netbook device? Having  some thoughts about installing Windows 7 on it? Maybe you should hear  Redmond’s supportive opinion first, before replacing your already-existing XP version. According to Microsoft,  “small notebook” owners (netbook s) should be able to maximize their Windows 7 usability, once having a 10.2-inch display, together with 1GB of RAM, 250GB hard drive or 64GB SSD configuration inside their netbooks. Additionally, max specs should also include a single-core processor under 2GHz clock with no limitation at the “Touch” and “Graphics” spectrum . Mind you, these are maximum stats , so no one should really bother too much,  as most machines support those requirements out-of-the -box.  Nevertheless, working with Windows 7 for quite some time has brought us into the conclusion it’d be best getting at least 64GB hard drive before begining this new adventure.

microsoft-win7-max-stats

[Via ZDNet]

Computers, Hardware, Video

Dell's Mini 9 Netbook Gets a 128GB SSD Modding

1 Comment

We all wish for bigger and faster hard drives inside our laptops (particularly in Dell’s Mini 9 netbook) and the guys at Jkkmobile have proved us again it’s “easy” and possible to get better ones, specially if you have any electronic affinity or DIY passion. Although this modding process might intimidate many of you, there’s nothing sensational to be done besides the unscrewing and replacing actions, which are considered to be the facile part, while putting things back together is the “more difficult” stage in the process, but those who read these lines probably won’t mind watching the video after the break.

[via jkkmobile]

Continue reading Dell's Mini 9 Netbook Gets a 128GB SSD Modding →

Computers, Hardware

Asus Eee PC 1000HE Gets a Touchscreen Modding Tutorial

Plenty of netbook fanboys refuse to settle with their regular out-of-the-box devices, even if it’s the new Asus Eee PC 1000HE, which comes with a nice chiclet keyboard  and 9 hours battery inside. Instead, they tweak and mod the 10-inch display, turning it into a very useful touchscreen machine, that can easily compete with the upcoming T91 models from Asus itself.

If you consider yourself a tech geek who can handle those cool screen-upgrades, you should take a look at this three-parts tutorial video, featuring a 1000HE display modding, as the original screen turns into a Hoda Technology touchscreen, with all the necessary steps involved. This kit can be found on eBay for $99, so it won’t be that expensive to take this revamping adventure. Hit the jump to watch the videos.

[via Slashgear]

Continue reading Asus Eee PC 1000HE Gets a Touchscreen Modding Tutorial →

Accessories, Applications, Audio, Events, Games, Hardware, Media Players, Mobile, Music, News, Operating Systems, Phones, Video

Apple's iPhone OS 3.0 To Have MMS Messaging, Copy And Paste, P2P Connectivity And a Lot More (Now: Jailbreak)

Apple’s OS 3.0 preview event in Cupertino, California was just ended with some interesting announcements concerning hardware accessories, firmware tweaks, App Store business model improvements and some new games/software developments – answering most of our long lasting expectations. Although it was more of a conference, targeting third party developers, some of the news are all about iPhone’s consumers usability. That includes:

  • Copy & Paste capabilities.
  • MMS messaging support.
  • Forward and delete for multiple messages.
  • Peer-to-peer connectivity over Bluetooth for gaming and info exchange.
  • A2DP stereo Bluetooth add-on
  • Voice Memos.
  • A new home screen page with Spotlight feature, allowing universal search on the phone (like Palm’s Pre).
  • Shake To Shuffle function.
  • Landscape keyboard, available in Mail, Notes and SMS.

First event without Steve Jobs around, and everyone in Apple talks about a complete return to CEO position somewhere around June 2009. But illness matters aside, we’ve learned that the company craves for extra revenues, specially from third-party applications. That is why developers will be able to include subscription fee inside paid apps, together with optional paid content that can be purchased directly from the app itself (like T-shirts and other stuff). Developers will also be able to build apps combined with Google Maps or connect with hardware accessories, such as computer speakers, keyboard and even a blood pressure monitor, through their applications. The new package will include 1,000 new APIs, allowing push notifications (at last), in-game voice use and built-in tethering functionality, that will hopefully work in the future. Other than that, users will get auto WiFi login around hotspots, full parental controls over TV shows/App Store apps and even Bluetooth functionality, in case you’re a 2G iPod touch owners.

OS 3.0 Beta version for developers is now available in here. The other 3.0 firmware update for consumers will be launched in the summer, free of charge. Those who hold iPod Touch devices in their hands will have to pay the usual annoying fee (which stands at $9.95), to get the new version.

Update1: checkout the video after the break.

Update2: iPhone OS 3.0 beta 2 was just released (for developers) and looks like we’re about to get the opportunity to use up to 11 home screens instead of the 9 screens limit on the current one. Additionally, Apple will finally add the push notifications feature in the upcoming version, so here’s a good reason to look forward for something.

Update3: You’ve guessed it right, the guys at QuickPwn have just kicked in with their latest release, which jailbreaks Apple’s OS 3.0 for free use. As always – at your risk – just to the following link, as download is available in here.

Update4: Looks like you’ll also get Voice Control (which stands for voice dialing), together with some other goodies like video recording, auto-focus camera, a compass and a digital battery indicator.

[Apple]

Continue reading Apple's iPhone OS 3.0 To Have MMS Messaging, Copy And Paste, P2P Connectivity And a Lot More (Now: Jailbreak) →

Computers, Hardware, News

Samsung's NC20 Netbook Will Officially Include VIA Nano Platform

while eagerly waiting for the NC20 to be released, Via has confirmed that Samsung’s 12.1-inch netbook will be using its latest Nano platform inside. This announcement comes after various rumors which already stated the same news, but this one gives us the official seal that we’ve all been waiting for. According to Via, the new Samsung NC20 will pack a 12.1? LED WXGA display (1280 x 800), together with a 1.3GHz VIA Nano ULV U2250 processor (800MHz FSB), 1GB of RAM, and a 160GB hard-drive. Additionally, the NC20 will offer a 1.3 Mega pixels webcam, 10/100 ethernet LAN port, a 3-in-1 memory card reader, WiFi/Bluetooth 2.0+EDR connectivities and a 6-cell battery, providing up to 6.5hrs of continuous work. Still, no word on price or availability, although we do know that a white version is already up for a pre-order in the UK, priced at $565. Checkout the full PR release after the break.

Update1: Checkout the first preview from LaptopMag in here.

Update2: April 3rd 2009 – Looks like Samsung’s NC20 is up and available for purchase at NewEgg, with the aforementioned Via Nano U2250 1.3GHz processor and the Chrome9 integrated graphics – all priced at $549.99.

Update3: It is now available on Samsung’s official page.

[VIA]

Continue reading Samsung's NC20 Netbook Will Officially Include VIA Nano Platform →

Computers, Hardware

Samsung's NC10 Netbook Gets a Touchscreen Modding

Although it’s not the most responsive one we’ve ever seen, the guys at Netbook Mag were generous to share a cool step-by-step tutorial that explains how to install a touchscreen kit inside a Samsung NC10 netbook. The results are pretty neat and useful, but you can notice some minor problem within the clicking actions. Nevertheless, this detailed guide might be helpful to all of you – DIY afficionados – who seek for a top-notch touchscreen netbook on their disposal. Checkout the video and jump to the link to read the full process.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMh91GMjTLY[/youtube]

[via NetbookMag]

Hardware

Seagate FreeAgent Go Drives Get Colorful Meaning

Seagate is about to add some new colorful flavors to its FreeAgent Go portable drives lineup. This move should attract those who look for a chic storage box to seat next to their laptop and shed some vivid look on their working vicinity. The new series includes light blue, pink, gold, orange, light green and dark green hues (in addition to the regular blue, black, red and silver colors) with the same 250GB ($120), 320GB ($150), and 500GB ($200) capacities. Also, there’s a nice freebie inside – if you register your new purchase between November 28th and New Year’s day, you will fix yourself a nice multimedia pack, granting 50 free songs to download from eMusic.

[via slashgear]

Hardware, Media Players, Mobile

iGPS360 Brings GPS To Your iPod Touch Player

From personal knowledge, I know there’s a great demand for third party GPS system that will be able to upgrade the iPhone and the iPod touch devices with full navigation capabilities. Regretfully, since Cebit 2008, we haven’t seen anything tangible, making its way to the market, until today, as Orange 360 has decided to change the game by announcing a state of the art iGPS360 module, that will be able to hook up to your iPod touch players or your First Gen. iPhone handheld, in order to bring a GPS hardware system and answer the very basic needs of navigating. Despite the fact it’s still in production, the iGPS360 will be available only for the first 1000 buyers, for a reasonable price of $75, so If youcan’t wait anymore, it’s up for pre-order at the company’s website.

[Orange360]

Computers, General, Hardware, News

AMD To Announce a Break Up

1 Comment

AMD is expected to announce a break up tomorrow morning, due to growing demand for independent, leading-edge foundry production capabilities and increasing R&D costs. According to sources, the giant chipmaker will be splitting up into two companies, as the first one will be responsible for chips designing and the second, for the manufacturing. Additionally, the company has issued a PR release, saying:

“AMD and Advanced Technology Investment Company of Abu Dhabi to Create New Leading-Edge Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. Mubadala increases investment in financially-stronger AMD, which is simultaneously unlocking the value of its manufacturing assets”

The meaning is that Advanced Technology Investment Company will strengthen AMD’s financial position by purchasing 55.6 percent of The Foundry (manufacturing company), for $5.1 billion dollar, and both sides will cooperate together, in order to create a clear stand alone leader in global semiconductor manufacturing, that will be able to equally confront Intel. Stay tuned.

[AMD]

Computers, Hardware

Space Cube Computer Is Smaller Than Ever, Only 2-Inch Square

2 Comments

Minuscule computerization is considerded to be one of the hottest things around the world nowadays, with all the MIDs and UMPCs trend that takes over. Still, it seems there’s plenty of room for more developements to hit the streets, specially when we get the chance to see the Space Cube tiny PC that apparently was first introduced in Japan and making a debut in Europe, thanks to the guys at PC Pro magazine. The Space Cube features a 2-inch square computer, coming with a 300MHz NEC VR5701 processor and runs a Red Hat Linux OS. In addition, it houses 64MB of RAM, a Space Wire port, which is the standard connection in NASA and the European Space Agency, a 1GB Compact Flash card, and a series of USB/VGA-out/Ethernet ports, surrounding the cube. Regretfully, it is not going to be cheap, as the estimated $325 pricetag jumped to $2,740, which are around 1500 quids. Nevertheless, we do hope the official rate will be more reasonable.

[Via Slashdot]

Hardware

LG To Introduce The New XD1 Portable HD Series

LG unveils new portable HDD lineup, coming up in Korea with 2.5 inch drives, SATA II interface and a USB 2.0 port. The new XD1series presents 3 different capacities, including 120GB, 160GB, 250GB to be released first, and a 320GB version to make a debut later on. All versions come with black pearl or red wine flavors at your choice, for a non disclosure price tag. Stay tuned for more information to come.

[via i4u]

Hardware, Mobile, Phones

Meet Your New iPhone 3G From The Scratch

1 Comment

If you wanted to learn more about the main components that assemble your new iPhone 3G, the chips, the amps, the processors and the involved manufacturing companies, this is your chance to take a look at one the most detailed inside-views, as the guys from research firm Semiconductor Insights dissected the stellar handset into pieces, showing us who has done what. From the picture below, we understand that Infineon provides many of the components, including the GPS chip, the baseband chip, UMTS transceiver and the power management chip. In addition, we can see the  application processor, provided by Samsung and the power amplifiers, provided by Triquint and Skyworks, as Marvell brings the Bluetooth and the WIFI components while Toshiba is responsible for the internal flash memory of your phone. The rest stays the same as the first generation, with Samsung to supply the ARM11processor architecture, Wolfson the audio decoder chip, Broadcom the touchscreen controller, National Semiconductor’s MPL the display interface, etc. Hit the jump to checkout more pictures and to see the videos. To get a bigger view just click in here.

[via Semiconductor Insights]

Continue reading Meet Your New iPhone 3G From The Scratch →

Computers, Hardware

Asus Eee PC 900A 30GB Version Shows Up In Asia

2 Comments

Asus Eee PC 900 has a new 30GB storage capacity version, replacing some of the previous 12GB and 20GB models. All three versions include 1GB RAM, WLAN 802.11 B/G connectivity, MMC/SD/SDHC Card Reader, black or white colors at your choice and the usual 8.9 inch screen display. In addition, two of the models will run a Linux OS, as the third one will have the XP flavor. Mind you, these are not Atom based mini laptops, so it looks a little pricey to pay over $500 when you have the 901series.

[via jkkmobile]

Hardware, News, Phones

iPhone 3G Gets Unlocked With a Special Sim Card

4 Comments

Well, it’s not a software unlock, but it looks pretty much the same as the first generation unlock SIM card, as it misleads the handset to think it is actually using your local carrier. Still, no word on price or availability but there’s a video to prove it actually works. Stay tuned for more info to come.

[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/S1lQWH24hv4" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]

______________________________________

[via gizmodo]

Hardware, Mobile, Phones

iPhone 3G Gets an Inside Look – Already

Early kiwi buyers (New Zealand) already rubbing their new shiny iphone 3G devices, as the entire world is waiting for tomorrow 8:00 AM to grab one or two handsets. Meanwhile, the guys at iFixit have decided to tear the new iphone apart and share it with the entire world. Hit the link to see the entire dissection.

iphone3g-inside-look

[via iFixit]

Continue reading iPhone 3G Gets an Inside Look – Already →

Computers, Hardware

Asus Eee PC 1000H Gets a Serious Dissection

Only 3 weeks after the official introduction of the new Asus Eee PC 1000H, the guys at tweaktown has decided to meticulously disassemble it into pieces in order to expose its bowels. From first impression, it is equipped with a 5,400rpm Seagate HDD, an ASint DDR2 1GB 667MHz RAM, Azure WiFi b/g/n connection and an Intel ATOM processor, all for $649. To learn more and see the detailed pictures, hit the link below.

ASUS-Eee-1000H-inside [TweakTown via engadget]

Computers, Hardware

Troll Touch Brings The Touchscreen To Your iMac

Do you love your iMac ? Do you want to control it with your fingers? Turns out there’s a pretty neat solution that will turn it into a touchscreen unit, thanks to a company named Troll Touch who’ve created a DIY SlipCOVER kit that adds a finger-sensitive layer to the screen’s front panel, turning it into a nice useful user interface machine that can be used in kiosks, exhibitions, clinics or even in school. The user-installable kit comes in two configurations, matching both 20-inch or 24-inch aluminum iMacs. Once you buy it you have to install the touchscreen drivers and calibrate the screen for maximum accuracy. Regretfully, it doesn’t support MultiTouch gestures due to OS restrictions, but it’s still very usable, as you can see in the video after the break. Priced at $699 (20?) and $899 (24?), the SlipCOVER is not a cheap solution but definitely an efficient one.

Troll-Touch-touchscreen-iMac

[via TUAW]

Continue reading Troll Touch Brings The Touchscreen To Your iMac →

Computers, Hardware

Apple iMacs Get Boosting Upgrades

Though It’s Monday (and not super Tuesday), new things are coming from Cupertino’s direction, as Apple has updated its online store, coming up with a more powerful iMac lineup, including a 20-inch model, equipped with a mighty Penryn CPU, ranged from 2.4GHz up to 2.66GHz with 250GB or 320GB storage capacities, 1GB of RAM, and ATI Radeon HD 2400 XT graphics. The 24-inch model sports the same mighty Penryn proccessor ranged from 2.8GHz up to 3.06GHz with 320GB – 500GB storage capacities, 2GB of RAM, and strong NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GS graphics. Both versions feature a built-in iSight cam, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, WiFi 802.11n connectivity and more. The rest pretty much stay the same, including the starting price that stands on $1,199 and soars up to $2,199, respectively.

apple-iMac

[via Apple]

Computers, Hardware

Asus Eee PC 900 Gets an Inside Look

Asus Eee PC 900 is one of the most talkative objects you can hear about on recent weeks, along with the rumored iphone 3G. Today we have a chance to take a glance into the bowels of the great Eee 900 (which was officially released today in Taiwan), thanks to the guys at bit-tech who disassembled the laptop into pieces. Surprisingly, it pretty much looks the same as the Eee PC 700, except the mobile PCI-Express socket, coming with a 16GB SSD module, expanding the drive space, and a new location for the speakers at the base of the chassis. To see more, press the link below.

asus-eee-pc-900-inside

[via bit-tech]

General, Hardware, News, software

Is Microsoft Planning To Open Unique Retail Stores?

Headstrong rumors claiming that Microsoft considers the opening of unique retail stores that will conspicuously market its own products. There is no doubt that Microsoft managers jealously squint at Apple’s success, thinking they can do the same, if not better. The only problem is that Apple has more hardware products to sell rather than Microsoft’s dominant software-based assortment. I mean, it’s not that Microsoft doesn’t have tangible things to offer, after all it does sell some great products like the Xbox 360 console, the Zune player, or complementary goods like video games and the accessories involved, not to mention the other peripherals such as webcam, keyboard or mouse. In addition, Microsoft sell retail software like Windows Vista and Microsoft Office, via affiliate partners and retailers. However, I’m not so sure it is the same variety as Apple’s products, including Mac, iPod and iPhone, with all the assorted accessories. Still, these are just rumors and I haven’t seen some major steps, coming from Microsoft direction, to carry out this project, but I am more than sure it crossed some Redmond minds. True or false, great or wrong, only time would tell.

microsoft-retail-store

[via macobserver]

Hardware

Western Digital My Passport Essential Drives Get New Colors

Western Digital has officially released a new My Passport Essential lineup, coming with 10 stunning glossy colors that join the already exist dull black portable drive. The new series features a luxurious soft-touch finish and shiny vivid colors, including brilliant orange, super sunny yellow, raindrop blue, arctic white, deep viola, cherry red, ultra mint, real red, intense blue, and vibrant pink. Sized at 15 x 126.15 x 79.5mm, each of the drives is available in 120GB, 160GB, 250GB or 320GB capacities, so you can pickup your favorite color with prices ranged from $119.99 to $179.99, respectively.

WD-MyPassport-Essential-Colors

[WesternDigital via I4U]

Computers, Hardware

Asus Eee PC 8.9" Will Have a Touchscreen After all

2 Comments

Remember the rumors about a touchscreen in the Eee PC? Turns out they were very accurate, as Kevin Lin, ASUS VP of Sales, says Asus will officially start selling the 8.9-inch model with a touchscreen, somewhere around June, for $500. The next Eee PC generation will also include 1GB of RAM, 8GB to 12GB SSD storage capacity and possibly, a GPS system. In addition, we here that the next version (aka Eee 900) might have a “multi-finger gesture input”, as the ultra mini laptop hits the FCC. This means it would include a trackpad, similar to the one in the MacBook Air, with zoom in, zoom out and two-finger scrolling capabilities. We can’t wait anymore…

Asus-eee-pc-touch

[via engadget]

Another picture after the break.

Continue reading Asus Eee PC 8.9" Will Have a Touchscreen After all →

Hardware, Media Players

Microsoft Zune 2 Is Getting Stripped

Here’s your chance to get an inside look at the Microsoft Zune 2 80GB model. Just to remind you, the player sports a 3.2″ screen, a 4-way touch pad, a built in FM radio and WiFi capabilities. Once removing the outside shell, you discover the control chip along with the Wolfson’s WM8350G DAC chip and the WiFi antenna, running in a WYSBCVSX2 70AN module.

zune2-80gb-inside1

[via imp3]

More pictures and full observation after the break.

Continue reading Microsoft Zune 2 Is Getting Stripped →

Games, Hardware

CeBIT 2008: Albatron's Nvidia GeForce 9800 GX2 Shows Off

We’re kind of expecting Nvidia to blow away with some new striking cards after AMD-ATI had released the ATI Radeon HD 3870 X2 graphic card. Although nothing is official yet, Albatron was kind enough to present the new GeForce 9800 GX2 at CeBIT 2008, so you can get a glimpse without the specs, price or availability, but don’t hold your breath to long, as we hear the launch date is somewhere later this month.

albatron-geforce-9800-gx2

[via engadget]