Archives for March 2010

Contest Reminder: Win a Nokia X6 Unlocked Mobile Phone

This is just a quick reminder to let you know you have just a few days left to enter our contest to win an unlocked Nokia X6 mobile phone. The competition is open to all people around the world and requires just a few simple tasks to enter such as making a comment.

The competition page can be found over here with full details of how to enter. Please post comments on that post and not here as comments made here will not count as an entry in to the competition.

Good luck!

Apple iTunes Streaming Music and Video Could Arrive Q3

We could be seeing music streamed from the Apple iTunes store as early as July according to a report over on CNET. The report on CNET mentions that many were expecting the streaming content service to start this weekend with the launch of the Apple iPad [AAPL], but this is not going to be happening this weekend.

As well as streaming music, the potential of streaming video is also a possibility although Apple and various studios haven’t done too much in regards to this aspect.

In terms of the Apple iPad, it is expected that visuals will be the way forwards with this device. The larger screen is suited to viewing rather than using it as an oversized MP3 player and therefore, Apple needs to concentrate on getting video content on to the device. [Read more…]

Samsung Galaxy S Pro with QWERTY Keyboard to Arrive June

The Samsung Galaxy S is quite a decent phone for various reasons. First off it has a 4 inch Samsung Super AMOLED screen making it very bright and vibrant. It also has a powerful CPU and GPU that see it outperform competitors with three times the amount of triangles being shifted around per second (90 Million per second). The device it’s self runs Android 2.1.

We heard rumours about a new Samsung Galaxy S Pro being launched which will have a slide out QWERTY keyboard (as pictured above… note it’s a render and not the real thing). This device has all but been officially confirmed by Eldar Murtazin who is bang on with what he says in terms of what’s happening with new devices. From what his tweet said, the Samsung Galaxy S Pro will have a QWERTY and cost an extra ‚¬50 when launched in June. [Read more…]

Apple iPad will get Dropped – A Flow Chart Proves it

Gizmodo have created a funny flow chart showing that your brand new Apple iPad [AAPL] will one day get smashed. The process is simple in that it starts the flow chart off by asking “Did you buy an iPad?”. If you answer no it says you will do soon, if you answer yes it leads you on to dropping other gadgets and the likeliness of dropping the iPad.

Of course it’s all good fun but the chart always ends up at the point where you’ll get an iPad anyway and you will drop it one day.

A larger image is below for you to take a look through… so don’t say you weren’t warned when you eventually drop yours. [Read more…]

Amazon file a Patent that Captures Packaging on Camera

Amazon have filed an interesting patent that will see cameras setup in their warehouses capturing images of every product packaged. The patent number applied is 7,689,465 which details a camera system filming boxes as they get contents packed in them ready for shipping. It might sound like an odd patent but it has a number of benefits for the company and customer in that a visual record will be kept of what items were packed and what the condition of the packaging was. If something should go missing in transit then Amazon will have proof that it was boxed up correctly. Likewise, if Amazon miss adding something to a box then it will more easily aid Amazon in finding where the problem was if it was at their end.

Video clips captured also have the ability to be emailed to the customer so they can see their item being packed and what the box looks like etc… As well as showing this information to the customer, advertising companies might also be able to check out the video feeds to confirm if Amazon are indeed including their adverts within the packaging. [Read more…]

Apple iPhone OS 4.x might get Expose-like Interface for Multi-tasking

We have heard a few times before that Apple [AAPL] are intending on allowing multitasking on their iPhone 4.0 OS upgrade which will perhaps, show up with the Apple iPhone HD (aka iPhone 4G).

AppleInsider managed to get hold of details that indicate that the iPhone multitasking of 3rd part apps will function in a similar way to Expose on the Mac.

Those familiar with the design of iPhone 4.0 said that the user interface will resemble Apple’s desktop Expose feature, in that a key combination — reportedly hitting the Home button twice — will trigger an expose-like interface that brings up a series of icons representing the currently running apps, allowing users to quickly select the one they want to switch to directly. When a selection is made, the iPhone OS zooms out of the Expose task manager and transitions to that app.

[Read more…]

Canon EOS T2i Review Roundup

We are finally seeing some Canon EOS T2i reviews in full depth rather than a few comparisons between two cameras etc….

Photography Blog are the first site we came across who have given the camera a “Highly Recommended” award with 4.5 out of 5 stars for rating. They say it is built well (but not quite as well built as the Canon EOS 7D) and sum it up by saying “As far as we are concerned, we have found the Canon EOS 550D / Rebel T2i to be a convincing, well-put-together product that easily earns a Highly Recommended rating.” [Read more…]

Google Docs for iPad Coming Soon through Memeo Connect Reader

Memeo have created an app for the Apple iPad called Memeo Connect Reader that allows you to browse your Google Docs on your iPad. The application is going to be free when launched this Saturday along side the launch of the iPad.

The software allows users to download and natively use their docs stored on Googles [GOOG] Docs service. Documents are all viewed through the default iPad document viewer that has been integrated with the Connect Reader app.

As mentioned above, the application downloads the most recent docs to your iPad. To get started you install the application and when installed, load it up. You’ll then be presented with a login box where you enter your Google Docs username and password. Once logged in, the Apple [AAPL] device will start getting documents downloaded on to it. If you loose connection whilst out and about you can still view documents while on the move and when a connection is restored the docs are then resynced from Google Docs so you always have the latest documents with you. [Read more…]

Cisco Linksys E-Series Wireless N Router Unveiled

Cisco have announced their new Linksys E-Series wireless N router built for home usage.

Cisco have designed the new router with a quick and easy setup whereby the WPA security key and SSID are automatically assigned. Connection to the router is also easy where you use the Cisco Connect function to configure the router where you can achieve the following tasks…

* Adding multiple Internet-capable devices to the network
* Setting parental controls for each computer or device
* Giving visitors password-protected Internet access on a separate guest network
* Customizing advanced settings and changing the network SSID and password [Read more…]

XBox 360 Slim – Leaked Pics?

A couple of pictures were emailed to Game Kings recently that supposedly show off an XBox 360 slim. The XBox 360 pictures certainly looks a little smaller. It drops a vent from the top panel as well as has a little less bulk on the side panel along with it being smaller all around.

However, the shots only show the top panel of the device making it difficult to asses if the pictures are the real deal or not.

It does show a glimpse of what we might be in for and if the pictures are real, it actually looks like quite a decent smaller version of the console. [Read more…]

Apple iTunes 9.1 Jailbreak iPhone Syncing Problems

If you have a Jailbreak’d Apple iPhone and are thinking about downloading iTunes 9.1 which was launched yesterday then take a quick read of this first. Rather than saying there is definitely a problem, we have just heard that some users are having problems with syncing their iPhone to iTunes 9.1.

First impressions on this seemed to indicate Apple [AAPL] had made changes to iTunes 9.1 where they could detect an iPhone that had been jailbreaked, however, it seems like a simple solution to the problem is to just reboot.

Although we can’t be sure yet if Apple are trying to block phones that have been tampered with it might be worth leaving the update for now unless you are planning on getting an Apple iPad this weekend where the new update will be needed [Read more…]

Self Published Authors can now get Books in to iBook Store

With the launch of the Apple iPad being just a few days away, we now hear of some information that will allow authors to get their work in to the iBook store. The normal process for a book writer would be to get their book accepted in to one of the six or so publishers who Apple [AAPL] is working which can take time and cost a bit of money too.

A couple of new services have launched that aim to take that hassle away from the publisher whereby they publish the book for you and act as a middle man in the process. The two companies offering this service are Smashwords and Lulu who appear to have both signed deals with Apple to provide books for it’s store.

Smashwords is a simple system whereby you upload your eBook in Word format along with a cover image. Smashwords then do what they need to do with an automated system to make it compatible and send the book to be included in the store. In terms of payment, they take a percentage of each sale as their commission. [Read more…]