Solar Power Generation to Increase by 35 Times in Argentina

Solar Power Generation to Increase by 35 Times in Argentina

There is a good reason why Argentina’s flag sports a shining sun. At present, Argentina only produces about 10MW of solar power, but that figure is soon about to receive a giant boost as the country plans to increase its capacity by 35 times and the government begins to hand out incentives to private companies. International developers are looking to the western regions where projects are estimated to produce over twice the amount of energy coming from solar in Germany, the world’s current market leader. The plans would assist in the efforts of President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner to increase the amount of energy generated by renewables from 2 percent to 8 percent by 2013. In total, Argentina is hoping to produce 3,000 MW from clean energy, where 10 percent could come from solar. The country may have some trouble finding international capital as the nation defaulted on its debts in 2001 and so far has been relying on domestic funding for energy projects. The country also claims a rate of inflation of about 11.1 percent, but could in reality be as high as 26 percent.

However, regulation passed in 2011 allows developers to negotiate premium tariffs with the Argentine government and grid operators, and officials are working out long-term contracts with power plants on a case-by-case basis. The policy changes have attracted companies such as China’s Sky Solar Holdings Co. which has joined Enarsa to build a 20 MW complex in San Juan for $70 million. Spain’s Solaria Energia & Medio Ambiente SA and Argentine developer Aldar SA also have similar ambitions.

Four out of 11 projects have been approved, are funded, and waiting for a tariff to be granted before beginning construction. These include arrays by Sky Solar and Solaria. Many of these undertakings will be split into 5MW solar parks with tariffs of $200 to $400 per MWh. As the third largest economy in South America behind Brazil and Colombia, Argentina has enormous potential to create a thriving renewable energy industry.

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MyIDkey – The Most Secured USB Drive

MyIDkey – The Most Secured USB Drive

MyIDkey is a voice-activated, fingerprint secure Bluetooth / USB Drive that displays passwords and personal info online and on the go. Erases date itself if someone tries unauthenticated access.

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Ray – Recharge Naturally

Ray – Recharge Naturally

Never go powerless again! Ray is a solar powered charger for electronic gadgets. The powerful suction cup and a tilting kickstand support multiple positions to capture the maximum amount of sunlight. Now you’ll be able to charge up wherever you go. The energy is released through a USB port and also it has an internal battery that allows you to recharge your phone during the night. 

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Hands-on with the HP Slate 7

Hands-on with the HP Slate 7

How can a tablet that feels so good be so ... not good

What do you do if you've long since past being a laughingstock in the mobile business? You failed at Windows Mobile. You bought Palm and put webOS out to pasture. And now, if you're HP, your first real foray into Android is a tablet that's nice from afar, but far from nice.

Such is the HP Slate 7. Let's be perfectly clear about one thing: Pick up the Slate 7, and you're holding a tablet that feels like it could easily go toe to toe with the Nexus 7 or any of Samsung's 7-inch-ish tablets. It's nicely built. It's less than half a millimeter thicker than the Nexus 7. Priced at $169, it could sell. Hell, it probably will sell. Stick it in every brick-and-mortar store next to a Nexus 7, and chances are most normal consumers won't notice a difference, save for the price tag. But you, dear reader, are no normal consumer. You can do better than the 1024 x 600 display. And make no mistake, the Nexus 7's 1280 x 800 display is better. You can do better than the 1.6 GHz dual-core processor. You can do better than the 8GB of storage. And you won't have to break the bank to do so.

Oh, and hope you don't need NFC. Or GPS. 'Cause neither of those revolutionary new technologies is in the Slate 7.

But at least it has Beats Audio. So that licensing agreement isn't going to waste.

Software-wise, you're looking at stock Android 4.1.1. That's it. There's an HP-specific app for printing and what not that failed to load under the Wifi strain here, but that's hardly going to keep us from not buying this tablet.

Or maybe we were just expecting more from HP, a company that has the resources to do better than this. And there's a good chance that this is just a toe in the water. That this is a tablet to keep HP's name in the game, and that's all. As for us? We'll wait till Round 2, thank you. See the video here: http://youtu.be/4b9W0nde-gQ 

Read the original article: http://www.androidcentral.com/hands-hp-slate-7

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LG's 'VR Panorama' puts Photosphere on the Optimus G Pro

LG's 'VR Panorama' puts Photosphere on the Optimus G Pro

It's no secret that I'm a pretty big fan of the 360-degree Photospheres you can shoot with the Nexus 4. Fire up the camera app, spin around a few times and you get a really cool shot that can be panned and zoomed, and shared on Google+, or embedded with Google Maps. It's a novelty, yeah. But I'm enjoying the hell out of it, and there are some great Photospheres being published every day from remarkable locations.

But so far the only phones with that feature have been Google's Nexus 4 and Galaxy Nexus. Until now.

LG, which also manufactured the Nexus 4, has a new version of Photosphere built into the camera application on its Optimus G Pro, which the company is showing off here in Barcelona, Spain, at Mobile World Congress. (The phone actually is available already in Korea.) And we recently took it for a spin in Plaça de Catalunya to see how it works. Called "VR Panorama," LG's version is updated from that on Google's Nexus devices. LG says it's better, but it also seems to take a little practice to get the hang of it. Instead of a dot showing you where to maneuver the lens for the next frame, you get a square outline. And it's not as linear as before. You'll need to tilt the camera at different angles to complete the shot, whereas on the Nexus devices it's more about just pointing in the right direction. This slightly different system takes a little practice, but presumably it makes for better end results. We'll need more practice with it. The usual rules apply here -- large spaces work best. And try to keep objects still; folks walking through the frame might well lose half their body in the finished picture.

Once the image is stitched together, you can view it on the phone, or share it on Google+, same as with the Nexus.

You've got a couple options for viewing the panoramas. There's the usual pan-and-zoom. Or there's an option to use the phone's gyroscope so that the picture pans as the phone moves. It's a little dizzying, but still cool.

So LG's the first bring Photosphere-type pictures to a non-Nexus device. Not a huge surprise, given that it had access to the code before other manufacturers. We're going to need some more practice with this phone (and scenes with fewer people walking through it) before rendering a final verdict. But resolution of the finished image is much higher what you've got on the Nexus 4. We have a feeling our VR Panoramas will get better as we take more of them.

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MasterCard announces MasterPass digital banking service, gives Australia and Canada first dibs

MasterCard announces MasterPass digital banking service, gives Australia and Canada first dibs

MasterCard's been working on new-era payment systems for some time, but now the credit corporation looks set to move past its PayPass project and roll out a service that's properly ready for the masses. By way of MasterPass, MasterCard will look to build upon what it gathered from previous efforts and use those learnings in its quest for success, with the firm being quite confident that by securing the right merchants and technology partners, it can turn the "promise of a digital future" into a reality. Furthermore, MasterCard says the MasterPass experience will be a seamless and secure one, making it easy for consumers to initiate transactions "from wherever they are" and with "any device." -- and that includes support for a variety of check-out methods, such as QR codes and, of course, NFC. Those in Australia and Canada can expect MasterPass to debut in their area next month, while US and UK folks will have to wait until later this spring and summer, respectively. See the video here: http://youtu.be/ehkYyVuWMYI

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Looks Like Google Is Working On A UDP Replacement Called QUIC

Looks Like Google Is Working On A UDP Replacement Called QUIC

Francois Beaufort had a very good day yesterday. Not only did the leaked video of the Chromebook Pixel he discovered earlier this month turn out to be real, he also noticed that Google started work on a new web protocol in Chrome called QUIC. This protocol, it seems, aims to update the User Datagram Protocol (UDP), a core part of the Internet protocol suite that also includes TCP, for example.

UDP is often used for applications that need real-time connectivity (video conferencing, games etc.). It opens up a direct connection between two machines, which makes it perfect for real-time applications and streaming data where low latency is very important. In return, however, it lacks some of the reliability controls of other Internet protocols like the TCP protocol.

QUIC also focuses on data streams, it seems, but with the extra benefit of adding a built-in encryption layer and some basic reliability controls.

It looks like the project was merged into Chrome just a few days ago, but work on the project seems to have started late last year. And while some people noticed it at the time, the project has mostly gone unnoticed. Now, however, it looks like it is becoming a core part of the Chromium project – the open source initiative behind Google’s Chrome browser.

We contacted Google for a comment about this, but all we got from a spokesperson was the company’s usual non-denial that “the team is continuously testing new features. At this time, we have nothing new to announce.”

With SPDY, of course, Google is currently working on a similar initiative for HTTP, and it looks like a lot of the work on SPDY may flow into the HTTP 2.0 standard. Google probably hopes to achieve something similar for UDP with QUIC. As it aims to make the web faster, more reliable and more secure, the company is clearly not content with just making its applications faster, but it has a vested interest in also pushing forward some of the low-level technologies that make today’s Internet work in the first place.

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Tactile mobile phone for the blind by peter lau

Tactile mobile phone for the blind by peter lau

Designer peter lau has sent designboom images of a concept mobile phone for blind users. unlike typical cell

phones which rely on claw grip or finger tip action, 'touching' utilizes palms for an ergonomic user experience.

equipped with fourteen functioning buttons and one functionless button - the device's button configuration

is positioned in a grid for fast thumb navigation. the layout provides a concave faceted surface for tactile

interaction, alongside an operating scroll wheel for ending calls for intuitive functionality.

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Photoshop Touch comes to iPhone & Android!

Photoshop Touch comes to iPhone & Android!

I’m delighted to see that following up on the very popular tablet version, Photoshop Touch for phone is available on the Apple App Store and Google Play for $4.99. PM Stephen Nielson writes,

Much like the tablet version, Photoshop Touch on the phone has core Photoshop features like layers, advanced selections tools, adjustments and filters. We also packed in features exclusive to Photoshop Touch, like Scribble Selection for high-precision selections using only your finger, and Camera fill for real-time creative blending of your camera feed with layers. This app features the same creative filters as the tablet version, like Color Drops and Acrylic Paint, and also a new Ripple filter.

With Photoshop Touch and the Adobe Creative Cloud, I can start a project on my phone, continue it on my tablet, and polish it off at my desk in Photoshop CS6. Photoshop Touch will automatically keep my projects in sync on each device, at the full resolution and with all the layers intact. This capability is available to every customer with a free Creative Cloud account. There is no paid subscription requirement for syncing.

Give it a whirl & please let us know what you think.

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Heart Rate for Windows Phone 8 can see your heart go beep, beep...beep, beep

Heart Rate for Windows Phone 8 can see your heart go beep, beep...beep, beep

It's no secret that your heart is an essential element of not only staying fit but also staying alive. Heart Rate is a Windows Phone 8 app designed to measure your heart rate while offering a history of these readings.

Heart Rate is similar to the other heart monitoring apps we've seen over the years. The app uses your Windows Phone camera to record tiny pulses in your finger tip caused by your heart pumping. The pulse or color change is recorded and translated into beats per minute. It may not be the most accurate heart rate monitor but it gets you in the ballpark.

The main pages of Heart Rate cover the measurement page that displays your current reading, a history page that displays your previous readings and a help page.

Measuring your heart rate is simple. Gently press your index finger over the camera lens of your Windows Phone and tap the start button on the Measure Page. Heart Rate will measure your heart rate and while it's figuring things out you'll see the progress bar advance and an EKG like display be generated. After a few seconds, your beats per minute will be calculated, displayed, and added to your History Page. If you tap on the reading on the History Page a free-form text block will appear where you can jot down notes about the measurement. If it was taken after exercise, while resting, after a stressful meeting, etc.

A few observations on measuring your heart rate... if you press too hard or too lightly, it effects the measurement. It's a gently press that needs to cover the entire lens. Similar to holding an egg shell in place against a wall. Press to hard and it shatters, too loose and it falls. Well lit areas seem to work the best but if you're in a dimly lit room, the camera light kicks in and brightens things up. Oh... and if you tap the lens while the app tries to get a reading, it elevates your heart rate.

I wouldn't consider getting rid of my medically certified blood pressure monitor for Heart Rate but it does get you in the ballpark as far as your heart rate is concerned. All in all, Heart Rate is a decent fitness app for your Windows Phone 8 device. It would have been nice to see an option to export the history for off-device review though.

Heart Rate is a free, ad-support app for your Windows Phone 8 device and you can find it here in the Windows Phone Store.

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Chrome Delivers Voice Recognition Capability To The Internet

Chrome Delivers Voice Recognition Capability To The Internet

If you deal with web applications, or are currently looking into such an endeavor, I think you would be stoked to hear that today’s Chrome stable release will introduce support for the Web Speech API that was originally discussed in January, where it will allow developers to take advantage of speech recognition capabilities into their web apps. Just in case you want to get a better idea on how integrated voice recognition in a web app would work and look like, there is this particular demonstration that should pique your attention.

The demonstration would show just how you can speak to the web app in order to compose an email from scratch, now how about that? Apart from that, today’s release will also do away with the silent extension installs in Chrome for Windows. There is one very good reason for doing to – this ensures that Chrome will remain fast and safe to use, making sure that your consent is required for every extension that is about to be installed on your computer. The auto-update feature would mean you need not actively seek out the update, as these enhancements will arrive as the release rolls out. Bear in mind that you need Chrome version 25 or later for this voice recognition API to work.

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How Samsung’s Galaxy Note 8.0 compares with Apple’s iPad mini??

How Samsung’s Galaxy Note 8.0 compares with Apple’s iPad mini??

Samsung’s announcement of its latest device — the Galaxy Note 8.0 has been widely seen as a direct competitor to Apple’s iPad mini.

Here is a quick look at how they compare across various parameters:

The screen:

The Galaxy Note 8.0 screen comes with a resolution of 1280×800 pixels which comes to 189 pixels per inch (ppi) since it an eight-inch device. It is powered by a 1.6 Ghz A9 quad-core processor. In terms of screen resolution, the Note 8.0 is kicking the iPad mini hard. The iPad mini in contrast has a screen resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels with a screen resolution of 163 ppi, powered by a dual-core A5 processor. According to tech experts, the iPad mini’s screen has resolution has been a bit of a deal-breaker.

Camera:

The Note has a 5-megapixel back camera (plus a 1.3-megapixel one on the front for video calls).

The iPad mini has very similar camera capabilities. Its back camera is also 5 megapixel, while the front camera is slightly less powerful at 1.2 MP.

S Pen: Hover is the new touch!

Samsung is clearly counting on the S Pen to steal consumers away from the iPad mini, and has upgraded it to work better on tablet devices.

According to TechCrunch, the S Pen stylus has been upgraded to work both on the touchscreen of the Note 8.0 as well as with the physical navigation buttons, and Samsung is also extending the functionality of the pen in other ways. And the Air View feature, where users can initiate previews by hovering their pen over something without touching the screen, is now getting expanded to third party apps.

It seems that Flipboard has also got a serious upgrade for Galaxy Note 8.0 and users can now select and expand a tile by hovering the pen over a selection.

Other S Pen optimised features include Popup Note, Popup Video, Shape Match, Formula Match and Idea Sketch. Clearly with Galaxy Note 8.0, Samsung isn’t just competing at the level of raw specs but also offering some new features that Apple’s iPad mini clearly doesn’t.

Connectivity

The Note 8.0 supports Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, and USB 2.0. Oh and users can make calls with the Galaxy Note 8.0 which is obviously a big plus. So its not just a mini-tablet but, also a pretty big smartphone. The device also comes with 2GB RAM. It will come in two variants — 16GB and 32GB. Its memory is expandable up to 64 GB using a microSD card.

The Note 8.0 has a 4600 mAH which battery which comes to around 17 watt-hour and so is slightly bigger than the iPad mini which has a 16.3-watt-hour lithium-polymer battery. In terms of connectivity the iPad mini has WiFi, Bluetooth, data and LTE. It comes in three variants — 16 GB, 32 GB and 64 GB.

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P&P Office Waste Paper Processor

P&P Office Waste Paper Processor

P&P Office Waste Paper Processor help to convert paper to pencil, works on the principle of printer which takes blank paper as input and prints the desired output. Similarly, this one takes any paper of prescribed size and produces pencils on the other side. As you can see from the pictures, there is input slot which takes paper and the pencil exit slot which generates pencils. Like in printers you should refill with lead powder or graphite powder to generate lead pencils. There is a slot for pencil sharpening where you can sharpen the pencils directly. It is provided with various modes like Manual and Auto to choose from as per your convenience.

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Solar Window

Solar Window

Solar Window is quite a clever design especially if appropriately placed. A transparent solar panel glazes the window and helps in harnessing the sun’s energy. Conveniently located plug-sockets and multi-tap, help hook up appliances and gadgets. A simple concept that can have very positive implications. Awesome!

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Mobile communication hub !! It provides multiple communication media options

Mobile communication hub !! It provides multiple communication media options

This provides multiple communication media options 

including long-hop radio, WiFi or WIMAX radios, GPRS/3G fiber 

optics or satellite communication. 

Watch the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=H3GERYRN2aY

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Speed up your Internet with public DNS servers

Speed up your Internet with public DNS servers

Speed up your Internet with public DNS servers

TOP 10 DNS SERVERS 

Level3: 

Preferred DNS server - 209.244.0.3 

Alternate DNS server - 209.244.0.4

Google: 

Preferred DNS server - 8.8.8.8 

Alternate DNS server - 8.8.4.4

ScrubIT3: 

Preferred DNS server - 67.138.54.120 

Alternate DNS server - 207.225.209.77

OpenNIC4: 

Preferred DNS server - 69.164.208.50 

Alternate DNS server - 216.87.84.211

Public-Root5: 

Preferred DNS server - 199.5.157.131 

Alternate DNS server - 208.71.35.137

Comodo DNS: 

Preferred DNS server - 8.26.56.26 

Alternate DNS server - 8.20.247.20

OpenDNS: 

Preferred DNS server - 208.67.222.222 

Alternate DNS server - 208.67.220.220

DNS Advantage: 

Preferred DNS server - 156.154.70.1 

Alternate DNS server - 156.154.71.1

Norton DNS: 

Preferred DNS server - 198.153.192.1 

Alternate DNS server - 198.153.194.1

SmartViper: 

Preferred DNS server - 208.76.50.50 

Alternate DNS server - 208.76.51.51

How to Speedup Internet connection with Top 10 High Speed Public DNS Servers?

Go to Control Panel

Then go to Network and Sharing Center

Click on Local Area Connection 

Then click on Properties After that, Select Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) and click on Properties 

OR

Double Click on Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) Now click on Use the following DNS addresses and change it as follows. Use any of above mentioned public DNS servers.

Then click on OK,

That's all you have done successfully !!

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LG launches LTE-equipped Tab-Book Ultra and U460 laptop in Korea

LG launches LTE-equipped Tab-Book Ultra and U460 laptop in Korea

We weren't convinced LG's Z160 convertible was skinny enough for Ultrabook status when we went hands-on at CES, but the Korean company has run with the title and launched the Tab-Book Ultra in its homeland. The 11.6-inch slider runs full-fat Windows 8 on an Intel Core i5 CPU in the top-end configuration (GH5WK), and much to the joy of data-hungry users, packs an LTE radio in addition to standard WiFi. Those who want a more traditional laptop experience but also need 4G for the road can now purchase an LTE refresh of the U460 notebook, which has been launched in tandem. LG will be showing off the LTE-equipped Tab-Book Ultra at MWC later this month, although its 'new series' of smartphones is sure to steal all the attention. We're still in the dark about when the Z160 will be available elsewhere, but Korean e-tailers are listing it at circa 1,400,000 won (around $1,300), so we can probably expect a similar price when it starts touring.

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New HTC One revealed with Sense 5.0

New HTC One revealed with Sense 5.0

HTC announced a new Android smartphone, the "new HTC One," at a press event Tuesday in New York City. The phone runs a new version of HTC's UI overlay, Sense 5.0.

Sense 5.0, the skin that HTC applies to its Android smartphones, "delivers improvements on cameras and sound," said Jason Mackenzie, president of HTC. The new version includes a feature called "BlinkFeed" that threads updates from services of the user's choosing together into one interface. The feed is highly visual, presenting stories as a series of photos augmented by tiny captions.

The phone's body design includes two front-facing Beats Audio-certified stereo speakers, one above the phone's screen and one below. The microphone inside the phone features HDR recording. Sense 5.0 also includes Sense TV, which allows users to control TVs from their smartphone (HTC did not further specify in the presentation how this is accomplished).

The HTC One uses an “UltraPixel camera,” which HTC says captures 300 percent more light than normal smartphone cameras. HTC emphasized how the new design will help in low-light situations, stating that it helps prevent graininess in low-light photos.

Another camera feature, HTC Zoe, captures HD video and images simultaneously to help users capture images in fast-moving situations. HTC did not specify the resolution at which this feature captures images. Zoe can also automatically edit videos into a set of highlights and set the videos to music, as well as compose multiple shots into one photo.

The name of the phone builds on HTC's previous series of flagship phones, including the HTC One X and One S. The phone will come in both black and white, and has a “zero-gap” seamless aluminum body, wherein the antenna is integrated into the shell of the phone.

In HTC's "largest rollout ever," the phone will launch in 80 countries and with 185 mobile operators and partners around the world in "late March," according to Mike Woodward, HTC's Americas president. In the US, the phone will launch with Sprint, AT&T, and T-Mobile.

HTC's event is currently in progress. We will update this article as more details become available.

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Logic3 Scuderia Ferrari R300 headphones debut

Logic3 Scuderia Ferrari R300 headphones debut

Ferrari is one of the most famous sports car makers in the world and has one of the most popular F1 racing teams as well. Fans of Ferrari now have a new set of headphones made by Logic3 to wrap around their ears to celebrate the prancing horse. The new headphones are the R300 and fit into the Scuderia Ferrari Collection. As you can probably guess, anything that has the Ferrari logo on it won’t be cheap, and these headphones are no exception with a price of $349. The headphones have active noise cancellation technology and aerodynamic air vents and other styling cues reminiscent of Ferrari GT cars. The metal arms allowing for adjustment of the ear cups are made from machined metal.

The headphones also promise soft and comfortable ear cups. The case included with the headphones is covered in a carbon fiber look material. The headphones do have a three-button microphone remote for working with Apple devices including the iPhone that is detachable. The headphones will also fold for storage.

The drivers are 40 mm and the headphones offer frequency response of 20-20,000 Hz. The company ships the headphones with both a standard 3.5 mm cable and the cable for use with Apple devices featuring a mic and remote. Other accessories include a 6.3 mm adapter and an airplane adapter. The headphones are available for purchase right now.

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PoolPOD – Wireless Floating Waterproof Speaker

PoolPOD – Wireless Floating Waterproof Speaker

Audio Unlimited poolPOD Wireless Floating Waterproof Speaker allows you to enjoy your music while relaxing in a hot tub, pool or any other water environment. This fully waterproof speaker is powered by 900MHz Phase Loop Lock circuitry, which guarantees a strong, clear signal up to 150 feet away, with no line of sight limitations. The transmitter delivers a powerful signal through walls or any other obstacles in your yard.

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Universal Tablet Holder

Universal Tablet Holder

onanoff’s new product, the Dock Minimal, is a universal dock for tablets that is compatible with all iPads and will be one of the first to fit the iPad mini and iPad 5.

On the pictures above the Dock Minimal is being used with the Google Nexus Tablet.

The Dock Minimal is now being funded on Indiegogo, www.indiegogo.com/dockminimal

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Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 coming March end for 359 euros: Report

Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 coming March end for 359 euros: Report

Samsung is all set to launch its Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet at the Mobile World Congress (MWC). The tablet has been leaked extensively in the past. Now Phonearena.com via Tablet.bg is reporting that Galaxy Note 8.0 will start retailing in Bulgaria from end of March.

The website also claims that Wi-Fi only model of Galaxy Note 8.0 will be priced at 699 Bulgarian leva, which translates to roughly 359 euros. While the 3G+WiFi version will carry a price tag of 869 Bulgarian leva that is approximately 449 euros. Earlier rumours had suggested that Wi-Fi only version of Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 will be priced between 186.49€ to 223.94€

It is being touted that the Galaxy Note 8.0 will compete head on with Apple's iPad mini. As per the past rumours, Galaxy Note 8.0 will come with an 8-inch screen with 1280x800 resolution display. Apple iPad mini on the other hand has a 7.9-inch screen with a display of 1024x768 pixels. However, 16GB Wi-Fi iPad mini cost 349 euros, which is slightly cheaper than the rumoured price for Galaxy Note 8.0.

The other expected specs for Galaxy Note 8.0 include 1.6GHz quad-core Exynos processor, 2GB of RAM, options of 16/32GB as internal storage, 5-megapixel rear and 1.3-megapixel front cameras, HSPA+ and LTE support and the famed S-Pen.

It is likely to run on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) and connectivity options may include Bluetooth 4.0, USB 2.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n and A-GPS. It is expected to come with a 4,600mAh battery. The dimensions of the tablet will be 211.3X136.3X7.95 mm and it will weigh around 330g.

Apart from Galaxy Note 8.0, Samsung is also expected to unveil P3200 Galaxy Tab 3 at the MWC 2013. As of now, there is no clarity on what will be the screen size for this tablet but it is expected to be either 7-inch or 8-inch tablet.

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Your Child- The Best Internet Filter

Your Child- The Best Internet Filter

The internet can be a dangerous place for kids. Instead of providing a wealth of only positive information, it's a place where you can also easily access adult content and violence, come across predators and more. Cell phones for kids and other electronic devices can become a harbor for problems.

Even if your kids aren't looking for trouble on the internet, they may inadvertently find it. For this reason, it's important to take an inventory of all the electronic devices in your home and identify ways to make them child friendly. One way to do this is by installing internet filters. You may even consider adding cell phone monitoring software to the phones you supply your kids.

While this can help to protect them, it is unfortunately not always enough to keep them from harm. Technology evolves quickly, and oftentimes, all you have to do is search online to find instructions on how to work around a filter or establish a proxy connection in order to bypass these safety nets. Even if the applications you install are extremely good at blocking and filtering, it doesn't mean your child can't access inappropriate content at the library, on other kids' phones at school or at a friend's house. How Can You Protect Them?

When you think of all the things that could go wrong, and all the ways your kids can access information online, it's likely you'll come to the conclusion that there's just no way to absolutely keep them away from these things. The only true defense your child has is her or himself. While it's still essential to avoid unnecessary exposure to inappropriate content through tools such as filters, it's paramount to teach your children about online dangers and arm them with the knowledge they need to make choices that can keep them safe.

Teach Your Kids about the Dangers

Discuss the consequences of certain online activities with your child. Teach your children that it's very easy to share data online and difficult to get rid of it once it's gone digital. This includes online posts and text messages. For instance, a 2008 study called Sex and Tech conducted by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy and CosmoGirl.com showed that 40 percent of the teens involved in the study said that they had seen an inappropriate message that was meant to be private but had been shown to them. Help your children understand that what they post online can affect their future job opportunities. Explain how online predators create relationships of trust and then exploit their victims. Teach them that people can lie about what they look like and who they are.

You don't have to be an expert on internet safety to teach your children how to avoid dangerous situations. In addition to this, you can teach your children about dangers that exist online in age-appropriate ways. It's never too young to start because children learn how to navigate electronic devices at younger and younger ages. If you're not sure how to teach internet safety for kids, you can find resources for talking to your kids at sites such as Saferinternet.org.uk and Enough.org.

Set Clear Boundaries WITH Your Kids

Once you teach your kids about the dangers online, set clear boundaries with them. Discuss ways you can work together to create a safe environment online. Discuss what appropriate internet use is and what it is not. Remember in your discussion that cell phone safety is just as important as being safe on a computer or other electronic device.

Together, sign an internet safety pledge that you can post next to the computer. The website for Family Online Safety Institute, fosi.org, provides an internet safety pledge, as does The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, Netsmartz.org. You can also find others online.

In the study listed above, 57 percent of the teens surveyed said a reason they may decide not to send an inappropriate pictures of themselves is that they don't want to disappoint their family. This doesn't mean that you should guilt-trip your child into making wise online choices, but it does show that at least in the group studied, teens and young adults care about what their families think about their online choices. When you set rules with your kids and explain why those rules are important, they'll be much more likely to follow them.

Continually Communicate

Just as performing parental duties isn't a one-time thing, communicating with your kids about online safety is also something you can't do just once. It's important that you have an open and honest relationship with your kids because if they do come across something online, they'll be more likely to come to you about it instead of dealing with it on their own. Even if your kids are older, you can still work on creating an open line of communication. If you need some help with communication, Therapist Jeff Ford teaches about talking to kids in five short videos on the WomenforDecency.org website.

Summary

While it's still vital to put up internet safety nets such as filters, nothing replaces teaching your children what is appropriate and what is not. Set clear boundaries with your kids, and maintain positive, open communication with them. Your children are the best internet filter available when they commit to safe practices online. Contributed by: By Kimberly Bowen. You may read the full article here: http://cell-phone-monitoring-software-review.toptenreviews.com/your-child-the-best-internet-filter.html

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Scientists develop computer that never crashes

Scientists develop computer that never crashes

Depending on what you are doing, a computer crash can be classified as anything from a minor annoyance to a complete disaster. I’ve been experiencing some BSODs lately of unknown origin and let me be the first to tell you, it’s pretty darn annoying when you are right in the middle of something important – like work – and everything shuts down before you get a chance to save.

Fortunately, researchers and scientists at the University College London have come up with a solution they say will end computer crashes forever.

Today’s computers typically work procedurally by pulling data from memory, working on the data then sending it back to memory. This usually happens in a fixed order and until something goes wrong, all is well. When a process fails or crashes for whatever reason, however, everything hits the fan and the computer will often times lock up. The computer that UCL has developed is different in the fact that data and instructions are essentially mirrored across several different systems. The systems work simultaneously although independent of each other – the only thing they share is a section of memory for context-sensitive data.

In the event that one system crashes or data becomes corrupted, the computer is able to rebuild that set of data from another system and start fresh again. The systems are said to execute in a random order using a pseudorandom number generator that acts as a task scheduler.

At this point, performance isn’t all that great but there’s certainly room to improve upon. If you’re interested in learning more about this developing technology, the developers will present their findings at the IEEE International Conference on Evolvable Systems in April.

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Skype now beta testing video messaging service with some mobile users

Skype now beta testing video messaging service with some mobile users

Skype is actively testing a new video messaging service with a "group of mobile and mac users" according to its official Twitter account today. The new feature, which doesn't require a new update to the mobile app, enables users to send video messages back and forth up to 3 minutes in length. If you've been selected to be part of this initial test, the option will be found under a contact's name in the "More" category, which now holds options to do video messages and send files. You get a basic video interface where you can press the record button to start, and when you're done hit the record button again to save and send the message.

The menu item clearly says "20 free video messages remaining", so we're going to assume that sending video messages is going to be a premium feature costing Skype credits going forward. Are you seeing the feature show up in the Skype app on your devices? Let us know in the comments.

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Brando Power Jacket for Nokia Lumia 920

Brando Power Jacket for Nokia Lumia 920

Packing a lot of power, the Brando Power Jacket is a nice solution for those who don't mind the extra bulk

Back a few weeks ago we reported on Brando bringing their seemingly high quality Power Jacket to market for the Lumia 920. The $37 item features a massive 2200mAh battery that “wraps around” your precious Nokia phone, allowing you go all day and night all at the price of extra size.

Our ‘Jacket showed up yesterday and we’ve been toying around with it. Verdict? For $37 we think it’s a good deal. There’s no doubt that it makes the Lumia 920 even huger but let’s be clear, this is for specific moments where you need extra power—traveling, long hikes, camping, power outages, etc. For that reason, it’s quite a nice addition. The stats on the Brando Power Bank includes 5V input voltage, 1000mA output current, 81.5g in weight and a charging time of 5 hours. For those curious, you can certainly have the sleeve on and charge both it and the Lumia 920 at the same (Lumia 920 takes precedent). Likewise, you can just charge the jacket with the Lumia 920 connected or when it’s separate. The kickstand is nice but definitely flimsy, in fact it feels like it can snap off. It does work well though and it’s better there and cheap then not there, we suppose. Build quality over all is high—though it’s a light plastic, the sliding-lock mechanism feels solid and we like how it complements the Lumia 920 design. It will protect against drops but you have to be careful as the top corners are prone to cracks (yes, we accidently dropped ours about 3 feet up onto concrete—the Brando did not break but there is a hairline fracture).

Coming in black or glossy white, for $37 we feel we got our money’s worth. We don’t expect to be using it every day due to the size but for those rare situations, we’re actually kind of glad we have it.

You can order from Brando here with a 7-10 day delivery schedule. Be sure to watch our hands on video above to see it in action. Pros: 

Lots of power, fair price, decent build quality, nice look

Cons: 

Bulky, cheap kickstand

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Nokia Lumia 620 Review - Affordability never looked so good

Nokia Lumia 620 Review - Affordability never looked so good

Nokia’s Lumia 620 could be Palm Centro of 2013

The Nokia Lumia 620, a modestly priced entry-level Windows Phones, represents one of the best value devices we’ve encountered yet on the platform. The 620 replaces the Lumia 610, a device that went on sale last year and now runs Windows Phone 7.8. But in our opinion, the value impact of the 620 is leaps and bounds higher than its predecessor.

Make no mistake, this is an entry-level device that is not meant to rival the 800/900 series of Lumia Windows Phones. But also know this: it is one cool device and we’re having a hard time putting it down. The Good: Bold, eye catching phone with fantastic features and excellent quality all for less than $300. The Bad: May be too small for some. Needs to be on more carriers. Conclusion: Nokia has a winner on hand with the Lumia 620. It has some high-end features in a compact, exciting and nimble body. Although it's an entry-level phone, it raises the bar for quality and could give Nokia a much needed boost. An excellent choice for teens, adults who want no fuss but quality or enthusiasts who want a 'weekend phone'. 

Read the full review at: http://www.wpcentral.com/nokia-lumia-620-review-windows-phone

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Card Reader With Lightning Connector – 9.62€

Card Reader With Lightning Connector – 9.62€

Through the 3 in 1 iPad Connection Kit, it’s incredibly easy to download photos from your digital camera to your iPad. It gives you two ways to import photos and videos. One is using USB cable, another one is reading from SD/Micro SD card directly. The Connection Kit supports standard photo formats, such as JPEG and RAW etc. Besides, it supports external keyboards input as well as import photos from USB flash disk to iPad. The 3 in 1 iPad Connection Kit includes two connectors, each with a different interface. Buy here: http://amzn.to/UKfSF7 

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Spotflux Mobile for Apple IOS

Spotflux Mobile for Apple IOS

Spotflux Mobile for Apple IOS will be live tomorrow in Turkey and the Philippines with many more countries coming online next week! Happy safe surfing!

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The MiniScanEYE Digitizes Text For On-the-Go Reading Pleasure

The MiniScanEYE Digitizes Text For On-the-Go Reading Pleasure

Being able to scan text is a convenience that can be easily achieved with the MiniScanEYE that allows for wirelessly converting books into computer documents. Designed to look like a simple pen, the MiniScanEye can be dragged across a page to quickly copy the text to a nearby device.

The MiniScanEYE is a fantastic tool for students who are constantly writing essays and need to be able to take quotations a rapid rate. Although small and simplistic in design, the MiniScanEYE runs over $260, which means that it might be a luxury not everyone can justify.

With that said, the MiniScanEYE is fantastic innovation for those who want to quickly copy bits and pieces of text or large quantities in a snap for easy augmentation.

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Pocket Projector for iPhone 4

Pocket Projector for iPhone 4

Pocket Projector for iPhone 4 Devices. Easy to usejust dock your iPhone 4 device and project on any surface. Our Pocket Projector for iPhone 4 is perfect for on-the-go travel entertainment. Its super-bright 15-lumen LED projector lamp ensures clearer, more brilliant images than other pico projectors. 640×360 native display resolution projects up to 50″ images. Focus adjustment lets you control image clarity while the integrated 0.5W speaker delivers the audio. Great for keeping kids entertained with their favorite videos on the road! Rechargeablepowers your device, too! The Pocket Projectors built-in 2100mAh battery charges via USB connection with the included cord. When fully charged, the projector may also be used as a back-up battery for your iPhone 4 device. Take your video to go with our Pocket Projector for iPhone 4. Buy here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005Y6DROG/ref=as_li_ss_til?tag=inspiratio0b1-20&camp=0&creative=0&linkCode=as4&creativeASIN=B005Y6DROG&adid=0VRB3D4HP5Y2M39ZA2CB

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Apple and Samsung sold half of all smartphones in 2012, Huawei third

Apple and Samsung sold half of all smartphones in 2012, Huawei third

The latest mobile phone report from Gartner shows that for the first time since 2009, overall handset sales dropped due to weak demand for low-cost feature phones. But where feature phones faltered in 2012, smartphones had a very strong year lead by handsets from Apple and Samsung.

Sales to end users totaled 1.75 billion for 2012 which was a 1.7 percent decline from the year before. In the fourth quarter alone, feature phone sales were down 19.3 percent year over year. Smartphones sales, on the other hand, were up 38.3 percent over the same period in 2011 but it still wasn’t enough to make up the overall deficit. We are told that tough economic conditions, shifting consumer preferences and intense market competition weakened the worldwide market last year. The research firm expects feature phone sales to continue to fall through 2013 with overall sales to reach an estimated 1.9 billion units.

Together, the top two handset makers were responsible for 52 percent of the global smartphone sales. Gartner says Samsung finished on top which isn’t a huge surprise. What was a surprise, however, is the fact that Huawei had a solid fourth quarter that helped catapult them to the third overall position among smartphone vendors.

For 2012, the company managed to sell 27.2 million smartphones – up 73.8 percent from 2011. That growth is likely to continue through this year as Huawei announced two smartphones at CES last month that are already gaining a lot of attention, the Ascend D2 and Mate.

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How to Recover Data When Your Hard Drive Goes Belly Up!!

How to Recover Data When Your Hard Drive Goes Belly Up!!

Recover Your Data with Software

When dealing with a software data loss, the first and most important thing to keep in mind is not to work with the drive in question. Every second that the drive is connected to a running system is a second that you lose your chances at recovery. Your operating system is reading and writing to your drive constantly, whether you're actively doing something or not. Now that your system is seeing the deleted data as ‘free space' it will happily overwrite this area—along with your chances of recovery.

Shutdown the machine connected to the drive you've deleted data from. Now that your drive is ‘safe' you can make a clone of the drive and attempt the recovery from the clone. There are a number of ways to clone the drive, some easier and quicker than others.

Scan the clone with a few different recovery programs. There are numerous options here, both free and paid-for packages are available. Recuva is a good free option, while Zero Assumption Recovery works well if you want to splash out a few dollars. Recover Your Data with Hardware

Having covered the ‘deleted data' section of data recovery is all good and well, but what happens if your drive is not even being detected by your machine? Or your machine can see the drive, but just hangs when you try to access it? What about if the drive is completely dead and won't even spin up? Let's briefly cover the main components of a drive, see which components can fail, and what symptoms each failure might exhibit.

PCB: This is the (often green) circuit board attached to the bottom of your drive. It houses the main controller (the equivalent of your computer's CPU) along with many other electronic controllers. This is the interface that turns your 0s and 1s from the platter into usable data that your computer can understand.

Platters: Your drive contains one or more thin, circular platters. These spin around at anywhere between 5,900rpm to 7,200rpm on consumer drives and are the media that actually store your data. Made of glass or some form of alloy and coated with a magnetic layer, they can store anything up to 4TB of data.

Head assembly: Data from your drives' platters is read by means of a series of read and write heads. While in operation, these heads are not actually in contact with the surface of the platters. In fact, they ‘fly' nanometers above the surface of the disk, reading and writing data. Typically a drive will have 2 heads per platter, so a large capacity drive with 3 platters will be paired up with 6 heads, one for each side of each platter. If these heads fail physically or the drive is dropped or knocked over, the drive can experience a ‘head crash' where the heads no longer fly over the platters, but instead make contact with the surface and destroy your data at a few thousand revolutions per minute.

Firmware: Your drive runs its own mini operating system in order to deal with all of the data and operations required to access it. Most of this firmware is stored on the platters. A small portion is stored on the PCB, which is required when the drive starts up. Firmware can go wrong, leading to inaccessibility of your data. Unfortunately hard drive firmware is not similar to your mobile phone or tablet—you cannot just update or reflash it. Each drive has its own unique modules and parameters and is highly complex in nature.

Now that we understand the basic components of a hard drive let's look at some common failures and symptoms you might experience, determine which component could be causing the problem, and see if we can tackle some of these problems DIY style.

If Your Drive Isn't Spinning Up At All

This is the one instance where you have a relatively good chance of resurrecting your drive if you're prepared to put in some time and effort. If the drive does absolutely nothing when you apply power to it (no noises at all), it is 99% a PCB problem. With older drives, you could sometimes find a matching PCB from another matching drive, swap it over, and voila. However, on new drives, technology and architecture have changed and each drive contains microcode unique to the drive it's attached to. Simply swapping the PCB with a matching, working equivalent has almost no chance of working and can be outright dangerous to your data.

There are two main causes of failure here, either a TVS diode (fuse) has shorted due to overvoltage, or a vital component on the PCB has failed. Hard drive PCBs often have two TVS diodes which act as fuses to protect your drive in the event of a power spike. There will most likely be two of these: one for the 5v and one for the 12v rail. If you accidentally plugged in the wrong power adapter to your external drive, or you experienced a power surge, a TVS diode might have sacrificed itself. If the shorted TVS diode is the only casualty and the rest of the PCB components are OK, then simply removing the shorted diode is enough to bring the drive back to life.

You can test this with a multimeter—if the diode reads zero ohms, or close to it, then it has indeed shortened. When shorted these diodes often have a noticeable burnt smell and might have visible burn damage. Note that when a TVS diode is removed the drive is no longer protected, so ensure that the power supply you connect to the drive is correct and healthy. If the TVS diodes don't smell burnt and show the correct digits when measuring them, then the problem is the PCB itself. A replacement PCB is required, but not just a straight swap. There is an 8 pin ROM chip on most PCBs that contains unique firmware info that is required to start up the drive. This needs to be moved from the old PCB to the new in order for the replacement to work. Some hard drives, especially Western Digitals, do not have this 8 pin chip—the firmware is stored in the main controller which is virtually impossible to move.

If you want to replace the PCB then you'll need to fine a matching replacement and have the ROM chip moved. There are many online providers that will sell you a matching PCB. Some of them even offer to move the ROM chip for you, saving you the hassle of soldering and possibly damaging the chip. If the PCB was the only damaged component and the drive's internals are OK, then after the replacement and ROM swap, your drive should be up and running again. Another PCB-related item to check are the head contacts. Sometimes they corrode with time, but are easily cleaned with a rubber eraser. If Your Drive Is Spinning Up and Making Clicking Noises

This is a serious failure and indicates a failed head or heads. It could also mean that your drive has suffered from platter damage if a head crash has occurred. Either way, this is a job for the pros. The drive will need to be opened in a clean room environment in a lab and a replacement head assembly fitted in order to try and recover your data. If your drive is clicking, it's best power it off and leave it in this state until you can send it to a professional recovery company. Powering it up in this state could degrade the disk further, to the extent that it's no longer recoverable.If Your Drives Spins Ups and Is Detected by Your Computer, But Hangs When You Try to Access It

This usually means that the magnetic media is degraded. Basically, there are a large amount of bad sectors that the drive is trying to read, failing to do so, and hanging. This is a common problem that occurs over time and can be worked around, but only with professional data recovery equipment, more specifically a hard imager. If you look at the SMART values of the drive you'll notice and large amount of reallocated sectors to confirm your suspicions. If the data is important then send it off to the pros.

If you want to have a crack at it yourself (and risk making the problem worse or losing your data altogether) then you can try a software imager that can work around bad areas. Seeing that software commands ultimately goes through the BIOS, the effectiveness is limited. The best option if you want to go this route is a free Linux application called dd_rescue. It can skip bad areas and image in reverse.

If Your Drive Makes a Beeping Sound When You Power it Up

The beeping sounds you are hearing is the motor trying to spin the drive up and failing to do so. This is caused by one of two things, both serious mechanical failures. The most common is what's known as stiction. The heads of your drive park either in the center or on a ramp at the edge of the drive when not in use. Remember, the heads don't make contact with the data area of the platters, they fly just above. Sometimes, the heads can fail to park properly and the platters stop spinning with the heads still over the data area. Because of the extremely smooth surfaces of both the platters and heads, they literally stick to each other, hence the name stiction. The drive needs to be opened up in the lab, heads carefully removed and most likely replaced, definitely not a DIY job. The other cause could be seizure of the motor spindle. This is the spindle around which the platters rotate. It can become seized if the drive suffers a hard knock or drop. It's not a particularly common fault, except for Seagate drives as they have a particularly fragile spindle. There are two ways for this problem to be resolved, both of which require pro intervention. Either the spindle can be replaced or the platters are moved to a new hard drive casing along with heads, PCB, the works.

If Your Drive Sounds Normal but is Not Detected, or is Detected as the Wrong Capacity

This normally indicates a problem with some area of the firmware. Either it's not being read properly which could actually be head problem, or there is some corruption that needs to be resolved. A few years back there was a well-known bug with Seagate 7200.11 drives with firmware version SD15 known was the BSY bug. Googling this provide a wealth of info of the huge amount of failures were caused by this firmware glitch. There was a DIY solution for this particular problem, but with today's drives there is nothing that the end user can do but to send your drive in for professional help.

So, there are a few instances where you can attempt to recover your own data. If you've accidentally deleted your data then you might be in luck. If the drive is completely dead and won't even power up then you could go the DIY PCB route if you wish to tinker. Other than that, if your drive is making unusual noises or acting in a peculiar manner, you'll need to hand it over—together with some hard earned cash—to a data recovery professional. Remember, ANY attempts at data recovery are risky. If the data is important, take it directly to the professionals.

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