New features in Android - Lollipop Update

Google is giving Android a major facelift with its Lollipop update, but there are a bunch of other new features that make Android more useful and secure than ever. While many manufacturers add their own skins to Android that let you do more with your phone, Google is starting to incorporate its functionality in its stock Android software.

Here's a quick look at all the best features to expect in Android 5.0 :-

• Multiple User's Profiles - With Android 5.0 Lollipop, you will be able to create multiple profiles on your phone or tablet. Si, if you share tablet with members of your family, you will be able to create a separate private account for each family member. This means you can choose which apps you want to include in your specific profile.
• Google Fit - Android 5.0 Lollipop is the first version of Android to come with Google's new health platform called Google Fit. Similar to Apple's Healthkit in iOS 8, Google Fit allows you to view all sorts of stats from various health and fitness apps in one central location.
• Enhanced Face Unlock - Android phones have supported facial recognition since Android 4.0 launched in 2012. But with Lollipop, Google has taken its Face Unlock feature to a new level. The software will now be able to unlock your phone as you are reading notifications in your lock screen. In the past, Face Unlock was a separate step, just like typing in a passcode or holding your thumb over a fingerprint sensor.
• Smart Lock - It allows you to unlock your phone with an accessory instead of a password. For example, if you're wearing an Android Wear smartwatch, your phone will automatically unlock as long as you're in range. This means an intruder wouldn't be able to unlock your device unless he or she has that specific watch.
• Better Battery Life - Google promises that the power savings mode in Android 5.0 Lollipop will extend your phone's battery life by up to 90 minutes. This is part of a new package of features aimed at preserving your phone's battery Google calls Project Volta. It is unclear exactly how well it works, but it is found that Android Lollipop boosted battery life by more than 30% during its testing.
• Encryption by Default - With Android Lollipop, Google automatically encrypts your information on your phone by default. Previously, you had to go into the settings and turn this feature on. Encryption essentially turns data into an unintelligible string of code when it's transferred between your phone and its destination, meaning hackers won't be able to read your sensitive information if it happens to get intercepted.
• Material Design - Material Design is Google's new user interface for Android. It brings brighter colours, subtle animations, and a flatter look to the software. All of Google's apps have also been
  
  redesigned to be consistent with this new Material Design. Notice how the app icons in Android Lollipop's app drawer look flatter as if they were drawn on paper.

Mercury mTAB Star Tablet with Voice Calling launched in India

New Tablet by Kobian (Mercury mTAB Star) launched in Indian Market last days. It features a 7-inch display with a resolution of 1024x600 pixels. The tablet is powered by a 1GHz dual core Cortex A9 processor and is based on the MediaTek chipset. It comes with 512 MB of RAM and 4 GB of internal storage that can be expanded upto 32 GB with the help of a microSD card. It runs on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. This tablet is encased in a metal body and weighs only 300 grams.

The tablet comes with SIM card support complete with voice calling functionality. The mTAB Star sports a 2-Megapixel rear camera with LED flash and a VGA front-facing camera. Connectivity options on the tablet include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Micro-USB, HDMI and 3G. Other features include a 3.5mm audio jack, built-in speakers, Flash 11 support and SGX531 3D graphics engine. The tablet includes a 3000mAh battery.

Commenting on the launch, Country Manager - India at Kobian Pvt. Ltd. said, "mTAB Star will compete and stand strong as the ultimate choice of purchase this festive season across the consumers for its light weight and advanced features at attractive cost. It has all the required latest features to enjoy work and play. It has been well designed and developed to address the increasing demand for stylish products in the market."

The company has not yet announced the price of the tablet, but is expected to be available in the first week of September.

Mercury mTAB Star key specifications -

• SIM Support
• VGA fron camera
• 512 MB RAM
• 1 GHz dual core Cortex A9 processor
• 7-inch display with a resolution of 1024x600 pixels
• 4 GB of internal storage
• expandable storage via 32 GB microSD card
• Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
• 3000mAh Battery
• 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth

Acer Liquid C1

Acer's first Android running on Intel.

     After leaving the mobile processor scene previously, Intel is back with its Atom processor crammed into an Android Smartphone. The Acer Liquid C1 is the phone bestowed with this honour. How does this single core stack up? Let's have a look see.

A BIT OF THE HISTORY

   

     Back in the late nineties ans early 2000's Intel owned ARM, the Mobile processor company that today makes processors of the majority of Android phones, and which were in then seen in Compaq's Ipaq series of PDAs were a hallmark of geekiness then bur as interest waned, Intel saw it befitting to see sell off its ARM business.

     On to 202, after much has happend in the smartphone space, Intel announced that it was getting back into the smartphone segement. At CES 2013, Intel finally showed the world the new low powered Atom processor as promised.

     Today, we have with us the Acer liquid C1, aimed at the value for money Android powered Android device has been much awaited - it is a very intresting proposition if a single core processor can hold its own against the matured quad - cores and dual - cores seen in the majority of newer Android Devices.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

     In terms of first impressions, the Acer Liquid C1 looks decent enough befitting the value market or entry level segment it is targeted for. The patterned back cover does tend to feel rather plasticky but the overall build is quite good. Acer is being honest and unpretentious with the design of the C1.

     even in terms of the Android version used, there is no wow-factor: the C1 uses pretty much the stock version of the older Android 4.0.4 Ice cream Sandwich operating system. It should have used the newer Jelly Bean Version so that we can find out if the newer operating system.

     The C1 weighs a hefty 140 grams; which is somewhat surprising aluminium uni-body models out there weighing less. As mentioned before, the C1 does not give off a premium to feel it. However that doesn't mean that it is an inferior quality product. The back cover is textured and I personally like it as it helps reduce slips-ups especially when one has the case of  sweaty palms.

     On the back, there is of course the 8 megapixel lens (there is also a O.3 megapixel front camera) and LED flash. the back cover opened up to reveal something which gives a bit of hope: the 2,000 mAh rated battery.

     The C1 does have decent connectivity options like, GPS, Bluetooth 2.1, and microUSB. In terms pf phone usage, there's nothing really spectacular to mention about C1, save that it performs and is clear enough for normal phone calls.

SCREEN TIME

     In all phones that I review, I always put the screen as first priority - then the processing speed. For the most part, a mobile device will be used to access information, to read article on-the-go and maybe do a bit of casual gaming - all that rewuires a good screen, pleasing to the eyes.

     I must personally say that even if this is not an AMOLED based screen, it is certainly still a good one. An IPS screen for that matter, is comparable to the iPhone's Retina Display - of which version, I am not sure.

     Battery life however is significantly shortened if you put the brightness on high - which is a pity because you need to keep its shadow lower to stretch the battery life. This of course downplays the screen true capability.

SNAPPY

     The C1 responds quite well and shows promise that the Atom processor can indeed come into the market and compete with the multi-cored models out there. It is able it to run highly intensive games with the same prowess of game-optimized processors with built-in graphics processor. Safe to say Angry Birds Space would run great and so will most great games out there. In most cases, there wasn't noticeable lagging.

MUSIC TIME

     Music plays decently well but personally, I did not like the preset equaliser settings. In some cases they seemed too flat or did not bring out the detail in the instruments played on the tracks. The audio capabilities are not the strongest point for the C1, which is expected.

CAMERA TIME

     The camera software is again rather stock and doesn't offer anything new. It has he same panoramic view option for still shots as most Android 4 devices out there. Pictures came out decent but needed good lighting. As in most cases, outdoor shots in daylight were the best. Shots taken indoors did not seem to produce the right colour - in some cases they looked too blue in hue. The pictures are still printalbe of courses and the 8 megapixel shooter's performance was decent. Videos came out quite similarly and playback is pretty smooth.

POWER PLAY

     With a bigger battery than some others in the same range, one would expect better battery life. Gicen the Single core as well, there was hope that C1 might actually be outstanding in at least one department. As it turns out however, the C1 does not stack up with some other nodels out there which are equipped with a lesser rated battery, but with more cores. It all boils down to power management.

     Even when the C1 did last on average,, more than a working day, it is far from impressive. It could definitely be better with some power management built into the stock Android operating system it shipped out with.

ALL IN ALL

     The C1 is actually a decent entry level device with an alternative processor from a major manufacturer. For less than RM 1,000 it is defiantly worthy considering 

LG Optimus Me P350

THE LG ME P350 is medicore in just about every way. It's more expensive than the Huawei Ascend y100, and frankly, it's nowhere near as quick, as nice looking, or as functional. The P350 has 2.8-inch, 240 * 320- pixel screen, with deep, rich colours, especially blues and reds. However, the low resolution of the screen combined with the complete lack of text smoothing make it difficult to use for reading. It's also pretty difficult to write on - sending a text on a screen this small is not easy - but the device is an improvement on the Y100 in this area, because when in portrait mode a numeric key board appears, so you can text by tapping several times on one button like you would on an old feature - phone.

     The P350 did not benchmark well. In, fact, it achieved less than half of the overall score that the Y100 did. Given that it coasts an extra $20, that's not good. It also underperformed during everyday tasks like switching between and loading apps. It has a 600MHz processor, which isn't remarkably slow for a phone in the price range, but only 140MB of RAM. It's also running an older, slower version of Android, 2.2 (Froyo).

     The LG Me P350 is thoroughly bested by other phones in its price range. However, if you text a lot and need a phone that makes it a bit easier for you, the ability to use a classic  numeric phone keyboard may be helpful. Just don't try to play Angry birds.

Android 4.0 tablets Coming for under $250

     TABLETS WITH SCREEN sizes of up to 10 inches and Google's Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich OS)will soon become available at prices ranging from $100 to $250. Some of them run on phone processors and may lack the power of Apple's iPad 2. But with cameras, high-def video functions, and HDMI ports, they could offer good value to budget buyers.

     ViewSonic's $170 ViewPad E70, which is set to ship this spring, will have a 7-inch, 800-by-480-pixel capacitive touchscreen, a MicroSD slot for expanding storage to up to 32GB, and Micro HDMI port to connect to HDTVs.

     Other inexpensive Android 4.0 tablets include the 9.7 inch Nextbook Elite 10 from E Fun (due in spring for about $229 ), and Velocity Micro's 7inch Cruz tablet T507 ($150) and 10-inch Cruz Tablet T510 (about $250), both scheduled to ship in late February on early March 2012. Also in the first quarter, Coby was to launch a range of models,starting at $179 for a 7-inch version. 

Harmony Link Turns Mobile Devices Into Remotes

    WITH THE HARMONY LINK, a $100 base station that works with free iOS and Android apps as well as a Wi-Fi network, Logitech allows your mobile device to do everything a conventional highend remote can do and some. But for the link to be a truly satisfactory alternative to a hardware remote, its  software needs improvement.

    Black, shiny and shaped like a compact , 6- inch flying saucer, the Harmony Link hardware takes about half an hour or more to set up, depending on how many devices it will control. For setup, Logitech provides a small printed booklet with pretty good instructions. After set up, I installed the Harmony software for my iPhone and iPad, logged in to My Harmony, and synced he app with my account. With that, the Link was ready.But the link's handling of some remote-control functions was problematic: I had issues with navigation, and some behavior I saw ( such as confusion between my home theater components) was puzzling or frustrating.

     The Harmony Link has the potential to turn iOS and Android devices into great universal remotes; however, until it can better match low users interact with the components of their system, it's not a good substitute for hardware remotes that let you exercise finer control.

For more details - http://www.logitech.com/en-us/1225/8439

Samsung Galaxy S II

All new, slim, Crystal clear, Vivid Style, Fast Speed and classic SAMSUNG GALAXY S II is here from past two-three months. Here comes its versatility in some lines and its technical specifications, features, and reviews....

Features:

Super AMOLED Screen of 4.3" - It has a super display for a perfect smartphone, lesser consumption of battery and better display quality on large Amoled Display Screen.

Dual Processor - It has a dual core application processor for fastest application results including browsing internet and snappy streaming and better efficiency in gaming. Also it has a feature of encoding/ decoding ability that supports recording and video display. Quick multi-tasking is an added advantage.

Slim in Size- It has an ultra thin edge of 8.49 mm form factor with easy grip and luxurious design. It boasts 3D Touch Whiz UX added a futuristic User Interface.

Specifications:

Network

 

HSPA+ 21Mbps/ HSUPA 5.76Mbps EDGE/ GPRS Class 12 Quad band GSM 850/900/1800/1900 Quad band UMTS 850/900/1900/2100

 

Application Processor

Dual Core Application Processor

 

Dimensions

125.3X66.1X8.49mm

 

Display

4.3" WVGA SUPER AMOLED Plus *

 

Memory

16GB/32GB MicroSD (up to 32GB)

 

Camera

8MP AF with LED Flash + 2MP Front

 

Connectivity

Wi-Fi a/b/g/n BT v3.0+HS USB v2.0

 

Connectors

MicroUSB, 3.5mm Ear Jack

* Display: "4.27" in actual measurement

Battery

1650mAh

 

OS

Android Platform 2.3

 

Message

SMS/MMS (OMA v1.2) Email (POP3/IMAP/SMTP, SSL/TLS) Exchange ActiveSync Email

 

Audio

MP3, OGG, AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, AMR-NB AMR-WB, WMA, WAV, MID, AC3, IMY, FLAC, XMF

 

Video

MPEG4, H.264, H.263, WMV, DivX, Xvid, VC-1 Recording & Playback 1080@30fps

 

Image

JPEG, PNG, GIF, WBMP, BMP, AGIF

 

GPS

A-GPS

 

Convergence

Easy Set-up (WPS PIN/PBC, Wi-Fi Direct) AllShare (DLNA1.5) Samsung Kies 2.0, Samsung Kies air

4 Hubs

Social Hub / Readers Hub / Music Hub / Game Hub

 

Others

TouchWiz Google Mobile Services

 It is equipped with Android 2.3 Platform with lots of inbuilt applications.

Mintpass’ tablet - Android and Windows 7

Korean firm Mintpass is planning a dual-touchscreen tablet for release in the first half of 2011, which would dual-boot between Android and Windows 7. The tablet, so far unnamed, will use a homegrown touchscreen technology that Mintpass is calling “Space Touch”, and allow for book-orientation and notebook-orientation use (with one of the screens displaying a virtual keyboard).


“The Tablet Wars”: Sounds pretty exciting doesn’t it? Well it might have had it not been preceded by years of the smart phone wars. But it’s more than that. The smart phone wars were predicated on fundamental differences in philosophy as to what kind of functionality should be emphasized in a smart phone. Should it be the power business features of a BlackBerry, the ultra hip user experience of an iPhone or the universality and integration of an Android device?
The answer to these questions ultimately led to truly unique and original directional designs by each respective company, both in terms of hardware and software. BlackBerry is staunch about having a full physical keypad, even on their new touch model Torch. iPhone is notorious for the closed and controlling nature with which Apple governs the extent people can customize them. Even Apple’s app store is under constant criticism for the draconian way they run things there. And Google of course, designs everything they do with browsing and search integration in mind.

The end result of all this is an extremely diverse ecosystem of hardware and software from which the greater market can pick and choose what best speaks to their individual needs and wants. In short, a good war is healthy… and quite frankly, far more fun to write and read about too.

On the other hand, the tablet market and the war brewing there, in-spite of its incredible potential to make the US State Department’s list of places too dangerous for developers to visit – is getting off to a pretty boring start. This is due in large part to the initial attempts by the iPad’s competition. I lamented the lack of design originality of the post Apple newcomers to the tablet market. Jon Evans expressed similar misgivings; specifically with regard to RIM’s PlayBook and how they may have dropped the ball before they even got started.

When expressing my sentiments about the lack of tablet ingenuity to some friends and colleagues, I was dismayed to find them take a conciliatory approach by defensively asking what kind of original designs could Samsung and RIM have brought to the table anyway?

What original designs!?

To my knowledge, Samsung and RIM are not strapped for cash startups; it’s their job to be original. Hire top notch designers (you can afford it) and start to throw around some ideas!

Well thank the nerd angels for Mintpass. According to an Endgadget article, the Korean company will be releasing a dual touch screen, dual operating system tablet sometime in 2011. It will run both Windows 7 as well as Android and will feature something they call “Space Touch”. I have no idea what that is but it sounds pretty Fancy Schmancy.

The dual display can either function as two separate units running individual apps simultaneously, or it can be folded laptop style with a touch keyboard on the bottom controlling your apps on top.

MintPass wasn’t the first one to come up with such an innovative idea –Toshiba’s Libretto W100 has a similar design.

Now, have you ever heard of Mintpass before this announcement? Me neither. And that’s just the point. Why are the undiscovered coming up with the original ideas? Past success is not a free pass to sit on your laurels, Samsung and RIM. Next time I will be expecting more.

So far there’s no word on what version of Android the Mintpass tablet might use, what processor(s) it will adopt, or any of the other specifications.