TechnologiesExpert Blog

Samsung Galaxy Tab tablet advantages over Apple iPad Tablet :

2010-11-15T08:05:00.000-08:00

More Portable – Samsung Galaxy Tab can be kept in pocket whereas Apple iPad can not be due to its large display size .
Multi-tasking – Samsung Galaxy Tab supports multi-tasking but iPad does not .
Dual Camera – Samsung Galaxy Tab sports Dual Camera (front & rear) , iPad does not have camera
Phone – Samsung Galaxy Tab can be used as a phone whereas iPad can not be .
Bluetooth – Samsung Galaxy Tab has latest Bluetooth v3 module , iPad supports v2.1 only
Weight – Samsung Galaxy Tab is lighter (380gm) , iPad is 1.26kg
Samsung Galaxy Tab is officially launched in India , iPad is not , you can only buy it from sites like ebay or from abroad .

Samsung Galaxy Tab tablet disadvantages over Apple iPad Tablet :

Smaller Display (view) size
Lesser display resolution
Android UI is not as tuned as the iOS UI
Android Market need more time to compete with the Apple App Store

Samsung Galaxy Tab tablet specifications :

Network :
- GSM/GPRS/EDGE
- 3G HSDPA,HSUPA
OS : Android 2.2 , upgradeable to next version of Android
Display : 7-inch WSVGA (1024×600) multi-touch screen
Weight : 385 gm
Apps : Android Market
Social Hub : Integrates SNS , email,IM and Calendar accounts,Integrated Calendar (Google/Facebook/Outlook)
Android Samsung UI : Multiple Homescreens
Hybrid Widgets
Processor : 1GHz Cortex A8 processor
Battery : 4000 mAh , 7 hours movie play
Camera : 3 mega-pixel auto-focus camera with LED flash , 1.3 MP front camera
Coonectivity : WiFi a/b/g/n , Bluetooth v3
GPS with A-GPS
Video :
- Full HD (1080p) Video Player
- Video recording @ 30fps (720×480)
Music
- 3.5mm Audio jack
- Speaker
- Music Player
Memory : 16GB/32GB + MicroSD (up to 32GB)
Android Browser : Flash Player 10.1 support,RSS reader
Integrated Email : GMail,MS Exchange Active Sync
Navigation :Google Maps,Latitude,Places,Google Maps Navigation
eReading : Newspaper,Book,magazine

Samsung Galaxy Tab Price in India – 7-inch Multi-touch Android Tablet

2010-11-15T08:04:00.001-08:00

Samsung Galaxy Tab Price

The new Samsung Galaxy Tab is a 7-inch Multi-touch display tablet running the latest Android OS v2.2 . It is a compact communication and entertainment device that can slip in to your pocket and is always connected, lightweight and smart.

It features high speed 3G connectivity,Wireless LAN Wi-Fi, and the latest Bluetooth v3.0 . The new Samsung Galaxy Tab sports a large 4000 mAh battery and is powered by a Cortex A8 1.0GHz application processor.You can do video calling with the 1.3 mega-pixel front camera and capture pictures with 3 mega-pixel rear Camera .

Samsung Galaxy Tab Vs Apple iPad

Samsung Galaxy Tab tablet has to compete with the 9.7-inch Apple iPad which is also in the same price range .Samsung Galaxy tab price in India is a bit higher side than the entry level Apple iPad .

[How to ]Keep your paypal account safe from all hacking

2010-07-07T08:47:00.000-07:00

PayPal Security Key (seen above) creates random temporary security code that help safeguard your PayPal account when you log in.
The security key token, which costs $5, is an electronic device or “token” designed that is carried on a key ring which creates a new security code for the user every 30 seconds. PayPal users with the security token must enter the temporary code along with their username and password in order log into their Paypal account.
How to order Security Key and Setting it Up:-
Setup of the Paypal Security key is very simple. To order or setup your security key, users just log on to their PayPal account. After logging in just click on “Edit Profile” to get to the “Account Information” screen. From their click on “Get the PayPal Security Key”.

After you receive your key, revisit the same screen but this time click on “Activate your PayPal or VIP (Verisign Identity Protection) token” to get to the following screen.
Follow the three steps shown below and click on activate. Once you have activated your security key, log out of Paypal.

This type of additional security is known as two levels of authentication and is used by leading financial institutions as an additional means to protect consumers and reduce losses from online fraud.

The next time you log in to PayPal, you’ll need to enter your user name, password, and the security code generated by by pressing the button on your token.

The cheap $5 is the recommended way to give your PayPal account an extra level of security.
If you decide that you don’t want this extra level of security, you can de-activate it by logging onto your PayPal account with your security key. Once logged on, simply click on “Deactivate” which can be found on the Profile tab of your PayPal Security Key page.

Iphone 4 gets sold 1.7 million pices till saturday

2010-07-07T08:39:00.000-07:00

With All the troubles with Antennae, you would have believed that people exercised caution in buying an iPhone 4. Well you are wrong. There were 1.7 million people who thought it was a minor problem or that Jobs could do no wrong.

Without further ado, here is the press release;
iPhone 4 Sales Top 1.7 Million

CUPERTINO, California-June 28, 2010-Apple® today announced that it has sold over 1.7 million of its
iPhone® 4 through Saturday, June 26, just three days after its launch on June 24. The new iPhone 4 features FaceTime®, which makes video calling as easy as one tap, and Apple's new Retina display, the highest resolution display ever built into a phone, resulting in stunning text, images and video.

"This is the most successful product launch in Apple's history," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "Even so, we apologize to those customers who were turned away because we did not have enough supply."

iPhone 4 also features a 5 megapixel camera with LED flash, HD 720p video recording, Apple's A4 processor, a 3-axis gyro and up to 40 percent longer talk time-in a beautiful all-new design of glass and stainless steel that is the thinnest smartphone in the world.

iPhone 4 comes with iOS 4, the newest version of the world's most advanced mobile operating system, which features Multitasking, Folders, enhanced Mail, deeper Enterprise support and Apple's new iAd mobile advertising platform.

Pricing & Availability
iPhone 4 is available in the US for a suggested retail price of $199 (US)* for the 16GB model and $299 (US) for the 32GB model in both Apple and AT&T's retail and online stores, Best Buy, Radio Shack and Wal-Mart stores. iPhone 4 is also available in the UK, France, Germany and Japan and will be available in an additional 18 countries by the end of July-Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

*Qualified customers only. Requires a new two year AT&T rate plan, sold separately.

Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OSX, iLife, iWork, and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and has recently introduced its magical iPad which is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices.

Chicago Injury Lawyer

2010-06-28T09:10:00.000-07:00

Top Chicago Personal Injury Attorneys

Passen Law Group is Chicago's preeminent law firm for cases involving catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death. We are a boutique law firm that handles a small number of carefully selected cases involving permanent injury or death caused by the carelessness or recklessness of another. Our personal injury attorneys have over 30 years experience representing individuals and families in the Chicagoland area and nationwide.

To speak with a Chicago injury attorney regarding a potential personal injury case, call us at (312) 527-4500 for a free consultation.

The unfortunate reality is that thousands of lives are destroyed each year due to catastrophic, tragic injuries caused by the negligence of other individuals or businesses. Passen Law Group has been trusted for over three decades by hundreds of clients in need of skilled and dedicated representation from experienced personal injury lawyers. Chicago is where our office is located, but we practice nationwide. We pride ourselves on our commitment to personalized legal representation from each Chicago injury lawyer at Passen Law Group with tireless preparation and excellence, both in the courtroom and at the negotiating table.

Our Chicago injury lawyers are extremely selective in the personal injury cases we accept; this allows us to devote our full energy and resources to each case and every client. Because of this, Passen Law Group has an outstanding reputation in the Chicago legal community, and we have achieved record verdicts and settlements for our clients, as reflected in Our Results.

Professional and Personal Approach to Your Personal Injury Case

Our goal with each case and client is twofold: (1) deliver the highest quality representation to secure the highest possible recovery; and (2) ensure that our clients are treated with the respect they deserve, and are kept informed and involved in the progression of their case. The professional, yet personal approach of our Chicago injury lawyer to your case truly sets us apart from other firms.

We have had the privilege and honor to represent hundreds of clients securing substantial awards for them and their families. Because of the personal approach of each Chicago injury lawyer at Passen Law Group, our clients continually refer their family, friends, and co-workers. Our aggressive approach to your case is geared to help our clients recover the compensation they are entitled and the justice they deserve.

We Are Trial Lawyers

Once we accept a personal injury case, we devote our full attention and resources to each stage of every case. This allows our clients and their families to focus their attention on getting the emotional and physical care necessary to aid with their recovery from an accident.

Each Chicago injury lawyer prepares every case the same way: we prepare your case for trial. As evidenced by Stephen Passen's recent $19 million jury verdict on behalf of a 9-year-old boy who sustained a traumatic brain injury in his elementary school, a record in Illinois, we are experienced and seasoned trial lawyers. And we will not hesitate to take your case to trial, if that is the only way for you to receive fair compensation for your injuries.

Still, our reputation as accomplished trial lawyers gives us leverage at the negotiating table, which often results in our clients being able to settle their cases for substantial compensation.
Contact a Top Chicago Injury Lawyer

Passen Law Group is committed to providing personal injury victims and their families with the aggressive advocacy and knowledgeable support they need to get results. Our Chicago personal injury attorneys and staff can provide you with the immediate attention you need to secure the justice you are entitled.

car insurance images

2010-06-28T09:01:00.000-07:00

Forex Tester - Professional Forex Training Software for Traders

2010-06-28T08:37:00.000-07:00

Forex Tester is a professional software simulator of the Foreign Exchange Market. It allows you to gain and improve trading skills without risking your money. You do not need to train in real time, waiting for days and weeks to test your trading ideas and strategies, Forex Tester will pack this time in hours and minutes.

This is an excellent forex training software that will help you to:

Study trading on the FOREX market in a fast and convenient way.
Develop and test your own trading strategies without being a programmer.
Test your trading strategies on years of historical data.
Save your money and time.

The program has extended drawing tools that allow you to test trading strategies based on technical analysis. It provides some of the most popular technical studies such as: Fibonacci Retracement, Fibonacci Fan, Fibonacci Arcs, Andrews' Pitchfork and others.

Also, we added some of the most popular indicators and oscillators to Forex Tester and continue to increase their number.

For the advanced users and programmers we designed open interfaces with detalied documentation to help you create your own indicators and strategies. Thus, if you have your own ideas, you can implement them using Forex Tester API and significantly expand the program functionality.

We continue working on the forex training program and hope that you enjoy our software. Stay with us!

How to measure a website's IQ?

2010-06-28T08:27:00.000-07:00

The creator of the world wide web, Tim Berners-Lee, has made an odd request: for a kind of rating system to help people distinguish sites that can be trusted to tell the truth, and those that can't.

Berners-Lee was speaking at the launch of the World Wide Web Foundation, which aims to ensure that everyone in the world benefits as the web evolves.

In his speech he referred to the way fears that the LHC could destroy the world spread like wildfire online. As the BBC puts it, he explained that "there needed to be new systems that would give websites a label for trustworthiness once they had been proved reliable sources."

He went on to say that he didn't think "a simple number like an IQ rating" is a good idea: "I'd be interested in different organisations labelling websites in different ways". Whatever process is used to hand out the labels, it sounds like a bad idea to me.

Berners-Lee himself directed us towards some of the its biggest problems:

"On the web the thinking of cults can spread very rapidly and suddenly a cult which was 12 people who had some deep personal issues suddenly find a formula which is very believable...A sort of conspiracy theory of sorts and which you can imagine spreading to thousands of people and being deeply damaging."

There are plenty of arguments online already about whether Scientology is a cult. I find it unlikely anyone will be keen to step in and label sites on either side as not to be trusted. Others might reasonably argue that all religions - whether established or not - should come with a warning message.

As for wading in to put a stop to conspiracy theories, I can't image anything their proponents could benefit from more.

Berners-Lee also mentioned the system would help people find out the real science behind, for example, the LHC's risks. You might think handing out rating for sites about science would be easier, with publishers of peer-reviewed science, for example, receiving a top rating without problems.

But there will be papers in the archives of any journal that have been entirely superseded. And a whole lot more that present results that are valid, but can be misleading to some readers. Web licences to ensure that people only read sites they can handle are the next logical step.

Fortunately it's much more likely that the whole idea will quietly be forgotten, which will at least prevent Berners-Lee receiving one of the first "potentially misleading" badges for thinking it up in the first place.

Let's hope the World Wide Web Foundation and its laudable goals have a rosier future.

Adding SATA 6 Gb/s and two more USB 2.0 ports, AMD’s flagship northbridge has evolved into the 890FX. Just as important are the evolutionary steps sev

2010-06-17T09:40:00.000-07:00

AMD’s highest-performance chipset is as much an indictment of its competitor’s behavior as it is an example of how AMD serves the gaming community. With 42 lanes of PCI Express (PCIe) 2.0 connectivity, the mainstream-priced AMD 890FX already bests Intel’s high-priced X58 (with 36 lanes), and that’s before we even think of adding the SB850 southbridge and its SATA 6Gb/s controller, a feature Intel doesn’t even offer. Comparisons to Intel’s 16-lane LGA 1156 platform are even more brutal.

It's a good thing Intel has CrossFire and SLI support on its side, otherwise we might question the company's dedication to gamers on a budget. AMD, on the other hand, is only able to extend CrossFire compatibility.

One might argue that AMD is using chipset features to win over CPU customers, but even that argument results in a win for gamers. Many of our tests have shown that AMD processors are “only” capable of matching Intel’s in certain applications—applications that include most games.

It appears that anyone who wants the best high-end gaming experience must look to AMD for platform value, but which firm makes the best high-end AMD platform? Let’s take a closer look.

Here comes portable 3D gaming, as Nintendo 3DS unveiled at E3

2010-06-17T09:36:00.000-07:00

First, the rant: if this is anything like Virtual Boy, it will fail. Fortunately, the Nintendo 3DS, introduced at E3 on Tuesday, does not appear to be anything like that old 3D gaming system.

The 3DS looks like an ordinary Nintendo DS handheld gaming system, but it comes with a 3.5" special 3D top display screen. By using a slider, gamers can adjust the screen so that their eyes can see the images properly, even without stereoscopic glasses (like those used to view the 3D version of "Avatar," for example).

Huddle CollaborationThe Nintendo 3DS also has a motion-sensor, wi-fi, and a gyroscope. It's compatible with the DSi, with one camera on the inside, and two cameras on the outside (for 3D imagery and videos).

The company noted that a fair number of developers will support the 3DS, including Activision Blizzard, Square Enix, THQ, Electronic Arts, Capcom, WB Games, Ubisoft, Namco Bandai, and Konami. Nintendo itself is working on a 3D version of the popular (and cute) Nintendogs, dubbed Nintendogs + Cats.

Speaking of "Avatar," the 3DS will also be able to play movies (if you care to watch a 3D movie on such a small screen). Pricing and availability were not announced.

iPhone manufacturer to relocate workers to cheaper parts of China

2010-06-17T09:34:00.000-07:00

Foxconn has decided that China is too expensive. We knew it had to happen someday. Seriously, Foxconn has decided its Shenzhen factory, which recently saw raises in the wake of a wave of suicides, is too expensive, except for iPhone manufacturing.

The Shenzhen plant, has comprises 11 business groups and employs 300,000 employees will merge with the Guanlan plant, which employs 100,000 workers, according to a source who works at an R&D department at the Shenzhen plant said.

Interestingly, the Foxconn group will continue building iPhones (and one would presume, iPads) in Shenzhen. Foxconn produces goods for several companies, including Apple, Dell, Nokia, and more.

Furniture ShowroomFoxconn announced on June 1st that wages for workers in Shenzhen would increase to 1,200 yuan ($176) from 900 yuan ($132). The company followed that just a few days later, on June 6th, with a raise to 2,000 yuan ($293) for workers who pass a three-month assessment.

It's true that other locations besides Shenzhen, even outside of Foxconn's own plant, are cheaper. The entire city of Shenzhen plans to raise its minimum monthly wage by 15.8 percent to 1,100 yuan ($161) beginning in July. Meanwhile, the minimum wage in Tianjin and Yantai is 920 yuan ($135), and 900 yuan ($132) in Wuhan.

Aside from the Apple-centric business groups, Foxconn will move workers to the less-expensive Tianjin, Yantai or Wuhan, reported the source. The relocation is planned to be complete within two months.

AT&T's iPhone 4 pre-order systems blink; the world panics

2010-06-17T09:24:00.000-07:00

Oh, the joy of being an AT&T customer. Today, the first day that iPhone 4 pre-ordering was available, the system flamed out, but it wasn't Apple, it was AT&T.

Order straight from AT&T's website, and you'd end up, in some cases, getting into someone else's account. According to an unnamed source speaking to Gizmodo, the problems appear to be from an untested update to AT&T's customer database systems over the weekend.

Why anyone would a) push an update to such a critical system the weekend before such a huge launch, and b) not test it is beyond us. It is, in fact, just another AT&T SNAFU, and coupled with last week's iPad fiasco surely has turned them into the laughing stock of wireless. And these are the guys who have iPhone exclusivity?

That security breach aside (it appears to now be fixed), logging into your AT&T account to check anything can be an exercise in frustration. Whether or not you want to order an iPhone 4, the results you get are usually something like "We apologize for the inconvenience, but we are unable to support this request online. Please call our Customer Care representatives ... for personal assistance."

This also affected iPhone 4 pre-ordering via Apple's site. Why? Because Apple had to connect with AT&T to complete the transaction.

The big panic, of course, is because folks are afraid that pre-orders will run out. Rightly so, too, as by the mid-afternoon, AT&T announced it had already (despite the issues with its servers) run through its iPhone 4 pre-order allotment.

"Because of the incredible interest in iPhone 4, today was the busiest online sales day in AT&T history. As of Tuesday afternoon, customers who preorder iPhone 4 moving forward will receive their device on June 25 or later, depending on when the order is placed. We'll email customers with confirmation once their order is placed, and again when it ships. In addition, we will have devices available on a first-come, first-serve basis in our stores beginning on June 24."

Things were so bad that AT&T brick-and-mortar stores resulted in pen-and-paper to take orders. We kid you not.

Additionally, in case you wanted to try it, the new Apple Store app that Apple emphasized would make a new iPhone 4 pre-order just a few clicks failed as well, obviously because it had to communicate with AT&T's overwhelmed systems.

Those still needing to order can only hope AT&T's systems can handle things from here on in. As noted above, Apple still needs to communicate with them to complete orders.

The next question is: how will Verizon handle things in the future when, not if, that carrier gets the iPhone? It should make for an interesting comparison.

Text faster: Swype's beta for its OSK opens to all (for a limited time)

2010-06-17T09:22:00.001-07:00

On Wednesday, Swype released its slide keyboard to open beta. Until this point, the software keyboard, which allows users to slide from key to key to "draw" a word, was limited to a closed beta, or to a few WM devices, such as the Samsung Omnia 2 and the HTC HD2. It's also pre-loaded on a few Android devices like the Cliq XT.

The beta page is here. You'll have to sign up, and be given a link via email to download the Swype beta. Nope, the beta form of the app is not in the Android Market, as Swype apparently wants to keep better control on the beta. Additionally, they will leave the beta open only for a few days.

Shop at LogitechThe app makes text entry so much easier than using a standard on-screen keyboard. Unfortunately for iPhone fans, it can't work well on that platform? Why, you might ask? Android allows the on-screen keyboard on the device to be replaced, system-wide. iOS, due to its closed nature, does not.

There are other Swype-type keyboards in the Android, such as SlideIT and Shapewriter. Shapewriter exists on iOS as well, in a crippled form (due to the above). We've tried them all, and Swype beats them all.

This app, as things stand, will never exist on iOS4, integrated into the platform, unless they do it themselves (or buy Swype). This gives Android a clear advantage over iOS, particularly with texters who want to text as quickly as possible. You hear us Google? Buy the company before Apple does, and locks you out.

While still in beta, we'd love it if Swype were released to the Android Market, and we'd even pay for it. There are some rather non-intuitive shortcuts to the usage of Swype, so make sure you visit this page if you want to try it.

First day iPhone 4 pre-orders 10x those of iPhone 3GS: AT&T

2010-06-17T09:16:00.000-07:00

Apple announced on Wednesday that despite all the issues with AT&T's servers, they and their carrier partners managed to accept 600,000 pre-orders on the first day of iPhone 4 pre-ordering. That's without any white iPhone 4s, too!

Apple announcement is on top of AT&T's announcement, in which the carrier stated that the first day iPhone 4 pre-orders were 10x last years iPhone 3GS orders:

Click here for the Best Buy Weekly SpecialsiPhone 4 pre-order sales yesterday were 10-times higher than the first day of pre-ordering for the iPhone 3G S last year. Consumers are clearly excited about iPhone 4, AT&T's more affordable data plans and our early upgrade pricing.

Given this unprecedented demand and our current expectations for our iPhone 4 inventory levels when the device is available June 24, we're suspending pre-ordering today in order to fulfill the orders we've already received.

The availability of additional inventory will determine if we can resume taking pre-orders.

It's apparent why AT&T's servers melted down, although this does not excuse the data breaches occuring on Tuesday, when customers could login to their AT&T account, only to wind up looking at someone else's.

From their statement, it's possible that AT&T will have more stock and begin taking pre-orders. Assuming that the white iPhone 4 becomes available soon, that could be where the stock would be coming from. There's still no official announcement regarding why the white iPhone 4 was never put up for sale.

It's also arguable whether or not people are clamoring for AT&T's new tiered data plans, in which there is no unlimited option, merely 200MB for $15 or 2GB for $25, with overage charges.

Some analysts have predicted that Apple may sell as many as 2 million iPhone 4s in the first weekend, including walk-up sales as well as pre-orders. Based on these numbers, it's not out of the question.

In iPhone 4's wake, micro-SIM adapter retailers see interest

2010-06-17T09:13:00.000-07:00

It was annoying enough when it was announced that the iPad 3G would use a micro-SIM, not a regular SIM, as other GSM devices do. In the wake of the announcement that the iPhone 4 will follow suit, micro-SIM adapters and SIM-to-micro-SIM conversions are springing up on the Web.

A quick Google search brings up this site, which sells an adapter for the low price £5.99 (or $8.88 in U.S. dollars). Shipping is free.

If, rather than starting with a micro-SIM, you have a SIM you want to cut down to micro-SIM size, there are kits for that as well. This one, for $25, provides a method to cut a SIM down to micro-SIM size, along with an adapter if you need to "go back" for some reason.

Realistically, these will both probably start springing up on eBay (and they already are). The lifespan of these things may not be that long, as new devices will eventually all move the to micro-SIM format. For the short term, most carriers will follow AT&T's example and perforate a SIM so that it can easily be converted to a micro-SIM.

It's sort of a niche product, anyway, as most folks don't SIMs between devices, despite what HBO's The Wire might want you to believe. There is still a definite need for these adapters, at least for now, anyway.

iPhone 4s show up on eBay, for the bargain price of $5,000

2010-06-17T09:05:00.000-07:00

As the availability of the iPhone 4 continues to slide out (at the time of this writing, a quick look at the Apple website shows ship date to now be July 14th), those who cannot wait for an extra three weeks or so are looking to eBay. There, a customer can find plenty of iPhone 4's, for a premium.

The highest priced such deal right now appears to be a BuyItNow deal of $5,000. The deal includes the seller flying to any location in the world to hand-deliver the iPhone 4 on June 27th, three days after it is first available.

This appears to be a similar to an earlier deal for the iPad when it was not available internationally. In that case, however, the seller was generous to U.S. buyers: he would cut $2,000 off the price if they were in the U.S., and he also said he would deliver on "launch day." The iPhone 4 seller appears to be from Las Lunas, NM, yet offers no such "promotion" opr guarantee of "launch day" delivery.

It will be interesting to see how anyone outside AT&T's coverage area will use the iPhone 4 as hackers will have to create an jailbreak and unlock for the new device and iOS4.

This is, of course, the high end of the spectrum, and there have been no takers, so far. Meanwhile, there are plenty of completed listings in the $700 - $900 range, for both 16GB and 32GB models.

It's still a week before June 24th, and as the ship date on Apple's site continues to push out, and out, it wouldn't be surprising to see the "average" price of these auctions to surpass $1,000, for those with way too much disposable income, and way too little patience.

Tips & tricks for your new T-Mobile HD2; increase Opera tabs, Zune music, & more

2010-05-30T05:52:00.000-07:00

I picked up my T-Mobile HD2 the other day and believe there are thousands of others that did the same based on my in-store experience and reports that the device is sold out across the country. Since I had the chance to use the Euro model and now this one while also being very familiar with Windows Mobile devices I thought I would put together a post of some key tips and tricks to help out new HD2 owners. This should also lighten my inbox load as I continually get questions from readers about these new devices and ways to optimize them for their usage.
Enable more tabs in the Opera browser

I personally find the Opera browser on the HD2 to be superior even to the iPhone (just compare the way that text is reflowed to fit on the screen) so when you do this comparison you will find that Opera only allows you to have 3 tabs/windows of the browser open at once. Don’t worry, you can customize how many tabs you like and I personally have mine set to 6. Follow these steps to increase the number of allowed tabs for a better browsing experience:

1. Enter opera:config as the URL
2. Scroll down to User Prefs and tap on it to open the submenus
3. Scroll down to Maximum Allowed Tabs and change it to what you like. As I stated, I changed mine to 6 since I highly doubt I would ever need more than that. I can always go back and change it later too.
4. Scroll down and tap on Save.
5. Restart the browser to see the changes.

Use Swype for fast one-handed text entry:-

I mentioned and showed this off a bit in my 24-minutes video, but wanted to list the steps for you to enable the Swype input keyboard. Follow these steps to enable Swype:

1. Enter an area where there is a text input field (browser URL, new appointment, new message).
2. Tap the text input open space.
3. Tap the small arrow to the right of the center icon on the bottom of your display.
4. Select/tap on Swype from the list of text input options (you can see there are other options here too).
5. Trace a path through the letters of a word and lift your finger.
6. For more than one word, just start your next word and Swype will enter a space between them.
7. You will see a pop-up box appear at times when Swype can’t quite figure out what you are tracing and you can then tap one of the suggested options to enter it. The one at the top in green is most likely and if you do nothing or tap the space bar then that will be entered.
8. If you see the small “i” above the bottom left Swype icon you can tap it for other word choices.
9. When the “i” is not blinking, you can tap the bottom left Swype icon for other tips and help.

More email settings:-

Some of the more advanced settings I am used to entering in Windows Mobile are hidden pretty deep on the HD2 since the device is designed for standad setup and optimized for the user experience. However, I personally like a bit more control over my email so follow these steps to get access to these advanced settings:

1. On the email tab, tap the left Inbox word at the bottom of the display.
2. Tap Menu in the bottom right, then slide your finger up the display a bit to reveal Tools.
3. Tap Tools, then slide your finger up the display a bit to reveal Options.
4. You can now manage signatures, uncheck the “Warn when deleting” notice, have email attachments stored on your microSD card and more through the four tabs in this area.
5. You can also tap the name of an individual account to setup how many days of email you will see on the device, how often emails are downloaded, size of downloads, and much more.

Exiting the volume screen:-

Volume on the HD2 is controlled by pressing and holding up or down on the volume rocker. When you do this the volume utility screen will appear so you can quickly jump to Vibrate or Silent mode. If you do not want to wait the few seconds for the display to disappear, simply tap outside the vertical volume bar to close the utility.
Find, download and listen to podcasts

I am sure you all listen to our weekly MobileTechRoundup podcast and you may be like me and spend a LOT of time listening to other great shows like TiPB, The Cell Phone Junkie, TWIT, PalmCast, GDGT, and more. Did you know that the RSS Hub application (branded version of Ilium Software’s Newsbreak) is preloaded onto your new HD2 and can be used as both a RSS aggregator and a podcatcher? You can subscribe to all your favorite podcasts and even setup to have them downloaded automatically so they are ready for you to enjoy.
Using Zune Pass on your HD2

I am a big fan of the Slacker Radio client/service on my HD2, but am also a Zune Pass subscriber. As I mentioned a few months ago you can use your Zune Pass subscription music with your HD2 through Windows Media Player on your Windows PC.

The White iPhone 4G HD

2010-05-29T05:17:00.000-07:00

You have probably heard the rumors about the leaked white front panel of the next generation iPhone which have had people talking about the fact that Apple might be going to offer the 4th generation iPhone in both black and white color models. These will be full around to the front panel. Well to help give you a better idea of what this will mean I want to show you the real thing.These stunning renderings of the iPhone 4G/HD in full white color have surfaced recently and they will give you a great idea of what the real version of this color variant will look like if Apple really are going to release it as an option. What do you think?

There is a big controversy over the appearance of the iPhone with most people either loving or hating the new all flat design for the iPhone compared to the rounded corners that come with the iPhone 3G/3GS. After taking a look at these pictures though I am sure you will agree that this new design really is pretty amazing.

I don’t know if these rendered images which are based on the iPhone 4G will actually represent the next iPhone that Apple will launch or not but I’m sure you will agree that whether they do or not it looks pretty good anyway.

Apple is expected to unveil the next generation iPhone at the annual WWDC 2010 conference which will be held on the 7th of June and they will then be made available for general public. The new iPhone OS 4 is also expected to be released at this annual event too.

There is not that long left to wait and in another week we will all know exactly what Apple have planned and exactly what they are launching. Until then all we can do is speculate. I have to admit, I really do like the idea of a white iPhone and I’m sure there are many people out there who think the same. If you were given the option which color would you choose for your iPhone 4G HD?

Are You Ready For The Apple iWatch?

2010-05-29T05:15:00.001-07:00

There has been talk about Apple introducing an iWatch for quite some time now so I wanted to update you on this. The Apple iWatch concept has been designed by an Italian design house by the name of ADR Studio. When the information about this concept was released there was a tremendous amount of interest in the not only the concept but the actual Apple iWatch itself. It seems that people haven’t forgotten about watches afterall.Since the introduction of mobile phones watches have kind of become irrelevant. When people ask you for the time it is an automatic reaction to take out your phone and look. Do people still wear watches?

Well obviously they do and after the tremendous response that ADR Studio received for their iWatch concept the designer actually went and created a brand new video so that he could show off his vision of what the next best thing from Apple could be like. I have to admit, it looks pretty amazing but you can be the judge of this yourself.

Before you jump ahead and watch the video here is a brief explanation from the designer himself about his amazing concept:

The Apple iWatch concept is a wrist device that features an aluminum body, WiFi and Bluetooth, integrated RSS reader, 16GB of storage for music and pictures, a weather forecast system, connectivity with iPhone and iPad and an LCD projector so that users can beam their photos and videos onto a wall or something similar in order to watch them.

It sounds amazing doesn’t it so take a look at the video below which has been inspired by the official iPhone and iPad ads that have been created by Apple.

Unlocking Nokia,LG,Samsung,Motorola & All Mobile.

2010-05-28T05:30:00.001-07:00

Unlocking Nokia,LG,Samsung,Motorola & All Mobile.

A utility for unlocking Nokia, Siemens, Vitel, Maxel, Panasonic, LG, AEG,Samsung, and Motorola mobile phones

WorldUnlock Codes Calculator is a free utility for Nokia, Siemens, Vitel, Maxel, Panasonic, LG, AEG, Samsung, and Motorola unlock.

Includes MasterCode calculator that can reset your Nokia security code if you have lost it.

Easy guide to free Nokia unlocking:

(Please read the whole guide before starting)

Select phone model from list.
· 2. Enter IMEI number of your phone (Press *#06# on phone)
· Select country and service provider where the phone was bought.
· Hit the button: Calculate!
· The software generate some Nokia unlock codes.
· If 7 codes are displayed, use the code ending with +7 first.
· If it does not work, then try +1, and finaly +5.
· When phone displays "Sim restriction off" it is unlocked.
· If only two codes are displayed (+1 and +2) enter both of them!

Codes will be shown on the form: #pw+CODE+n#
To get p, w or +, pres the * button several times.

You enter the codes correctly by removing any simcard from the phone, turning the phone on and then enter the code.

Here are some key features of "WorldUnlock Codes Calculator":

· Unlock Nokia
· Unlock LG
· Unlock Panasonic
· Unlock Maxon
· Unlock Samsung
· Unlock AEG/Telital
· Unlock Alcatel
· Unlock Siemens
· Unlock Sony

New iPhone to have 960 x 640 screen, 512 MB memory

2010-05-26T05:05:00.000-07:00

Apple's iPhone manufacturer Foxconn is set to ship 24 million units of the latest iPhone, rumored to be called the iPhone HD, with shipments starting in June, according to Digitimes, which cited sources from Taiwan-based component makers.

Apple's fourth-generation iPhone is expected to be unveiled at WWDC in early June, with first shipments expected later that month. While details about the device are still sketchy, Digitimes report stated that the new iPhone will run on the Arm Cortex A8 processor, have 512MB memory (as opposed to storage, the better to be able to multitask), and 960x640 screen resolution.

Additionally, as another move toward supporting multitasking, the new iPhone has a 33 percent thinner panel than in previous iPhones to allow larger battery modules. Digitimes states that Foxconn will ship 4.5 million units in the first half of 2010 and 19.5 million units for the rest of the year.

Don't blame AT&T for the 3G iPad's video streaming failings

2010-05-26T05:03:00.000-07:00

Customers began receiving their 3G iPads on Friday, as expected. The hardware was purportedly the same as a wi-fi only iPad. You might expect, with the exceptions for applications we know don't work on 3G on the iPhone (like Skype), that everything should work the same, 3G vs. wi-fi. You'd be wrong, but honestly, should you have expected any less?

Based on experiences with the iPhone and 3G vs. wi-fi on applications, there were certainly suspicions that quite a few things might not work on the iPad. For example, the "ABC Player for iPad" won't work on 3G. Instead, users receive the message, “Please connect to a Wi-Fi network to use this application. Cellular networks are not supported at this time.”

Additionally, the iPad's built-in YouTube application "strips both standard and HD videos to a dramatically lower resolution over the cellular data connection." Meanwhile, it appears that iTunes Store video previews are just fine (wonder why that is? ... insert sarcasm here).

Netflix, however, appears to be working normally. The question is, why the differences between applications?

This is the same sort of thing that's still happening on the iPhone, where Skype still has no 3G capable application, but Fring does. Once again, why the difference?

While the first finger to be pointed would obviously be targeted right at AT&T, whose 3G network has struggled under the weight of the iPhone, much less the iPad (AT&T supplies the 3G service for the iPad in the U.S.), an AT&T spokesperson replied: "It’s just a question for Apple."

Hmm. Finger pointing from AT&T toward Apple. Meanwhile, Business Week's Dan Frommer tweeted:

ABC is wifi only on purpose. I believe rights play a role. (they're different on wifi vs 3G) sounds dumb but true.

Bottom line: AT&T is a popular whipping boy in issues like this, and we would be remiss if we did not point out that indeed, their 3G network leaves a lot to be desired, but the answer here is fragmented and probably specific to each "failed" app.

Official iPhone Twitter app arrives in the App Store

2010-05-26T05:02:00.001-07:00

The official Twitter app for the iPhone has arrived in the App Store. As we know it's the Tweetie app, rebranded by Twitter after they acquired developer Atebits.

The app first appeared in New Zealand's App Store and worked its way globally to the other App Stores. Additiuonally, Twitter for iPhone is now, as promised, free of charge. Formerly, Tweetie was priced at $2.99 in the U.S. App Store. In addition to re-branding the app, however, several changes were made, and the version upped to 3.0.

Tweetie is now Twitter! We didn’t just do a name change, we’ve added a bunch of new stuff.

Search has been reorganized, now you can search all tweets and find users in the same spot, view Top Tweets and Browse Suggested users.

Search results now include Top Tweets, try it with Trends...winner combo!

You can now use Twitter without an account! Search, Browse uses, view trends and top tweets.

Sign-up is now availabile within the application as well, complete with Suggested user list.

More tab has been re-organized to accomplish all this. Users with one account can add a second account under the Accounts and Settings button here.

Actions we’ve found people use most, like Retweet have been moved to the main actions bar.

Minor tweaks were made to tweet rendering so they match Twitter.com tweets

iPad passes one million in sales, all domestic

2010-05-26T04:52:00.000-07:00

Apple announced on Monday it had passed the magic milestone of one million in terms of iPad sales. According to the company, the one millionth iPad was sold last Friday, which is (not coincidentally) when the iPad 3G first hit retail.

Box Shot : Panda Antivirus Pro 2010Apple's million iPad mark was reached with domestic sales only. Earlier Apple announced it was delaying the international launch of the device, based on unexpected demand. Pre-orders will begin Monday, May 10th, with both the wi-fi and 3G models expected to launch at the end of May, in the U.K., Canada, France, Germany, Australia, Italy, Japan, Span and Switzerland.

In addition to the device, apps and iBooks are hot sellers as well. The press release noted that iPad users have already downloaded over 12 million apps from the App Store and over 1.5 million iBooks.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs also emphasized that the iPad hit the one million mark in 28 days, and compared it to sales of the original iPhone, which needed 74 days to reach the milestone. Of course, that's really comparing apples (no pun intended) to oranges, as it's only since the iPhone 3G that iDevice-mania has become truly crazy.

Why overheard cell phone calls bug us so much

2010-05-26T04:49:00.001-07:00

A new study to be published in an upcoming issue of the journal Psychological Science purports to reveal just why overhearing cell phones calls, on the bus, on the subway, or wherever, apparently bother us so much.

The study, by Cornell University, suggests it's not because, as many have noted, many people on cell phones shout into their handsets as their is no sidetone. Rather, the study suggests that human brains simply don't like one-sided conversations.

The study tested 41 college students to see how their results on a series of cognitive tests on a computer were affected by either silence, a monologue, a conversation between two people, and half a conversation (called a "halfalogue," such as overhearing a cell phone call). It was the "halfalogue" which lowered participant's scores on the tests.

The study showed that a one-sided conversation draws more attention and drains concentration from listeners. Researchers believe that we are unable to tune out a "halfalogue" because unlike a monologue to a two-sided conversation, listeners try to make sense out of the half they hear and predict what speakers will say next.

Lauren Emberson is a co-author of the study, along with Michael Goldstein. "When you hear half of a conversation, you get less information and you can't predict as well," she said. "It requires more attention."

The researchers noted that while talking on a cell phone is already known to distract drivers, listening to a passenger's cell phone conversation may also be distraction. Further study should be done, they indicated.