Category: Recommended Products

  • 5 Features to Expect from Smartphones of the Near Future

    5 Features to Expect from Smartphones of the Near Future

    The mobile industry is highly competitive and as a result, mobile manufacturers are pushed to be more creative, more innovative and fit more features in each and every year. This creates a fast moving industry that sees the huge change over short periods of time. As a result it can be hard to accurately predict what may be coming to the mobile industry next, but I can think of at least 5 features that smartphones either deserve or could be getting within the next few years.

    I’d like to talk a little about these features and why I think they could be making their way into smartphones of the near future.

    Foldable or Curved Displays

    This is an area that both LG and Samsung are dabbling in a little bit with some of their smartphones, but so far we haven’t seen too much of a productive reason to have a curved display. I strongly believe that a number of manufacturers are working behind the scenes to develop folding displays, and most importantly trying to find a way to make foldable or curved displays useful for consumers.

    A lot of features for smartphones are often seen gimmicky – manufacturers may try to be innovative and it ends up not working out for them. Take 3D smartphone displays for example.

    I do, however, think that foldable displays could open up opportunities for larger devices, making them more portable and easier to carry throughout the day.

    I couldn’t estimate when foldable displays may make it into the public domain, but as it stands right now, curved edged displays are already being used and Samsung has shown their interest in working on folding displays.

    galaxy s6 1

    10-Core Processors

    I personally think that 10 core processors could be a possibility for flagship devices. It isn’t just about putting as many numbers as possible into a smartphone to impress buyers, either. Whilst multi-core processing to this degree may not be as viable on a desktop PC, it works well on smartphones, and SoC’s with processors with eight or even ten cores could be beneficial for performance.

    The idea behind a multi-core setup is that it provides the smartphone plenty of ‘utility’ Using a big.LITTLE array, or something similar, would allow a smartphone to pick and choose between various levels of performance. A ten core processor could be split into one dual core and two quad cores. The dual core could be used for when idle, or for very low resource tasks, whilst the first quad core could be used for standard browsing through the operating system. The final quad core could be used for intensive work such as video processing or playing games. Being able to swap out between either of these processors can help reduce power consumption, therefore increasing a smartphone’s battery life, which brings me onto my next point…

    New Battery Technology

    Whilst batteries in smartphones have been increasing in capacity over the last few years, the increase in battery capacity is very slow, and it’s being overtaken by display size and display resolution improvements, negating any real benefit of having a large battery.

    Perhaps in five years time it may be standard to see 4,000mAh batteries in lithium-ion powered smartphones, but there are alternatives. There is currently plenty of research being done into alternative battery mediums.

    We’re looking at the potential for super fast charging aluminum graphite batteries in the near future, or potentially batteries that run on water or even a battery that can harness power from a human’s skin.

    There’s plenty of space for innovation in the battery department and I feel like smartphone manufacturers will soon have to look outside of the box instead of slowly improving battery capacity for the lithium-ion solution they’re currently relying on.

    Even Better Cameras

    This is one area that we’re likely to see improvements on in the very near future, and by that I’m talking within the next three years. Sony has already put a huge amount of effort into their smartphone camera sensors and a lot of their profit is coming in through sensor sales to other smartphone manufacturers. As the leading smartphone camera provider in the industry, Sony are looking to put more research into their work to improve smartphone cameras. As a result, this will directly improve the camera quality for any smartphones manufactured by companies buying from Samsung and will indirectly push other camera manufacturers to work harder to keep up with the competition.

    Branding and Design Improvements

    This is largely based around speculation on my part, but I think it’s a valuable insight that deserves a listen. Samsung took a brave approach this year by completely revamping their smartphone designs and it has paid off incredibly well for them. The new Galaxy lineup has been received positively by critics and consumers and it’s going to mark a new start for branding and design improvements in the mobile industry.

    As Samsung is setting the bar for high-quality smartphone design, other manufacturers are going to be pushed to reconsider their own designs. I doubt we’ll see a complete overhaul from Apple, but I would not be surprised at all if Apple reworks their next smartphone lineups to ensure the iPhone looks even sleeker and slimmer than the Galaxy S lineup.

    I think this will result in a wave of new work done towards smartphone design and branding that all manufacturers will take part in. Manufacturers want to hold onto their customers, but more importantly they don’t want their competitors taking their customers away from them.

    Creating a strong smartphone flagship lineup in years following 2015 could be more about the actual design, appearance and branding than it’s ever been before.

    What do you expect to see from smartphones in the near future?

    Image credit: Androidcentral; Yourmumhatesthis

  • Best Fitness Gadgets for Just Any Runner!

    Best Fitness Gadgets for Just Any Runner!

    Well, it’s not just all about celebrating a running day at the particular location! No matter where you are located, having the right kind of running gadgets can always offer you a great running experience. And when we are talking about running gadgets, how we can miss the best fours in the list? These are perfect running gadgets that you will love to have on just any running day. In order to get over the finish line quickly, and effortlessly, these gadgets can produce a great help for you.

    The New Shoe from Adidas

    adidas energy booster

    The very first gadget that appears on the list is the Energy Booster Shoes from Adidas. It’s the sole of the shoe that seems to be more attractive and effectual. These soles are made of high-quality materials. Experts have even mentioned that these soles are all set to revolutionize the running methods for people. It’s the foam assigned for the soles that can bounce back after your every step. It can come to the original shape quickly while eliminating the strain factor to a huge extent. Thus, your muscles and joints are not going to come across sheer strain during when you run. This is a super-lightweight shoe and its construction is can make your running better and smoother. 

    [Amazon]

    Cooling Towel

    cooling towel

    This is called as the magic towel by many. To make it, proprietary fabric is used that can cool effectively once soaked in the water and then wrung out as well as snapped. During the hot days, this towel does make a sense to use it first. When it’s the sweating time, you should have this towel on. Well, you are not really going to find the best use of such towel when you are living in Ireland. 

    [Amazon]

    Blue Buds from JayBird

    blue buds jaybird

    Blue Buds from JayBird is now listed as the official earbuds for USA Triathlon. These ear buds are designed to transform the whole way you use to listen to the phone calls, books, music, and podcasts while running. This gadget works on the basis of Bluetooth that can last for near about eight hours. Do you really think you can run for that much of time? But the fact is that these ear buds can keep up the charge for a really long time period. 

    [Amazon]

    Knuckle lights

    If you prefer to run during the evening or night time, then the Knuckle Lights appears to be the perfect gadget for you. You might be waiting for this since a long time and it has appeared! This device is capable to produce 45 lumens and that seems to be enough for you. Wall you need to wear it on your hand and it will start to illuminate your running path. 

  • BOX, The Bitdefender BOX! : A Security solution service for Home network!

    BOX, The Bitdefender BOX! : A Security solution service for Home network!

    Gone are the times when every newly developed technology is based on old devices that are already out on the market. It’s time for something new. Bitdefender came up with a smart security solution in the form of Bitdefender BOX, the one unified and independent solution for your home network security. The dependency of users upon antiviruses only is now obsolete since the BOX can handle it all.

    What is Bitdefender BOX?

    Imagine an antivirus software in physical form, where all your data is flowing in and out of the network is under constant supervision from the filters installed due to the hardware.

    the box bitdefender

    Adding a bit of intelligence to a small piece of networking hardware, Bitdefender Antivirus has now created a device for the security of all the devices under the Internet of Things, as a part of your home network. What’s more is that the BOX provides you, irrespective of your geolocation, BOX administration control and intrusion notifications on your Android and IOS devices through VPN.

    The device must be connected to the internet in order to provide uninterrupted protection. Every packet flowing in through the net ports is scanned and verified for signs of any malicious or fake phishing packets. One can either use the BOX itself as the router or simply connect it to the router. The service is provided only to those who are registered with Bitdefender, or will be after purchasing the device.

    Specifications

    It is a small, sleek, shiny and lightweight box with measurements 1.1″ x 3.5″ x 3.5″. Small enough to fit in a corner of the table, and adding to the scene too with its LEDs. Feel proud if you already own it, because every multinational company building has large security boxes with a quite similar purpose but with great maintenance cost.

    box specs

    Packed with 64 MB DDR2 RAM, 16 MB flash memory and a single core 0.4GHz MIPS processor, it is surprising how this small device can handle all these tasks with such efficiency. Technology has really gone to the limits, and if you think you are in enough awe, wait till you hear about its VPN service out of your home network. Hardware wise, the device has a reset button (backside), two 10/100 Ethernet ports, and a very shiny cover, plus the Alien-eye LED. Under the hood, the chipset holds all the configurations and management interfaces, plus the connection modules to the cloud, handling all traffic monitoring.

    Cost

    Bitdefender is going to provide a free one-year subscription included in the $199 purchase for the device. After another $99 per year for the subscription update, once again you are free to live under its protection for one more year. Along with the BOX, if you really are a security guy, then there goes another $69.95 well spent.

    bitdefender box price

    Setup

    bitdefender box on table

    The device seems simple enough, but as we know, some simple devices tend to confuse people more than complicated ones. How are you going to connect the device to your home network connection without disrupting your network service? Bitdefender thought of that too. Detailed Quick setup and User-brief instructions are provided with the device and are also present online to make installation easier.

    setup bitdefender box

    You might think that this makes it more complex, but you are wrong. Decide whether you want to use the BOX as the default router or add it as an overhead protection to the router. After that make the connections, and setup a few usernames and password, an optional change in DHCP settings of the router, and if you are special, then maybe a bridge mode conversion of your default router, to connect to the box , and that’s it!

    But remember, In order to complete the setup, you will require an interface. How were you thinking of configuring it? The download of the Bitdefender iOS or Android app is required to complete the setup. After this setup only, you can monitor the security of your home network, even when you are out of your home network range.

    android and ios app bitdefender box

    Bitdefender Box is also special because it provides the feature of VPN connectivity service to its users. All data streaming out of your mobile phone will be tunneled to the BOX at your home, which will forward it to cloud and thus providing your device with a constant link to the Home network security issue and configurations. Finally, Network Security solutions right in your hand, isn’t that cool?

    Look out for this device wherever you can get your hands on it. Seriously

    Source: Bitdefender

  • This super thin solar panel mobile charger is trending on kickstarter

    This super thin solar panel mobile charger is trending on kickstarter

    Keeping your smartphone alive can be a little tricky when you are away from home. It gets worse when charging sockets are unavailable and even worse when you don’t possess a charger itself. Thanks to this new solar panel chargers, you can charge your smartphones and other gadgets without relying on the power outlets.

    A new Solar charger by Yolk — called Solar Paper is exactly what the name suggests. It is thin as paper, and can charge any device which requires power up to 10 watts.

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    The 7.5-inches long, 3.5 wide and 1.5 thin – Solar Paper is real easy to carry around and can prove to be a lifesaver (for your smartphone obviously) when you need it the most. The one-the-go companion has 0.45-inch thick USB charging port at the top, which is connected to the solar panel, and acts as a gateway for power juice for your gadgets.

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    A nifty feature is Solar Panel’s auto restart. With similar gadgets, a passing cloud or sudden shadow shuts the charger down, forcing the manual reboot. But Solar Panel resets that automatically. You can use it to charge anything that connects with USB: GoPro, external batteries, Bluetooth speakers, digital cameras, and so on.

    Each solar paper is capable of producing 2.5W, which is sufficient for charging an external battery or low energy devices like GoPro. To charge an iPhone you should have at least 2 solar paper connected to each other (using the magnetic connector on the paper which offers easy attachment/detachment), which is combined to produce 5W. You can connect up to 4 solar papers together to produce total of 10W of power.

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    There are a couple of other advantages of using magnets in Solar Paper, too. First, there’s no wear and tear when you fold or unfold the panels, greatly extending Solar Paper’s life. The magnets are also quite strong, so you can use them to mount Solar Paper to metal objects, as shown in the picture.

    At the time of writing this article, this project has already raised more than $400,000 from 2,749 backers on Kickstarter. It still has 33 days to go before this campaign ends, by which this number is expected to be multiplied by 10.

    Have a look at the official video, and a message from Sen Change, CEO, Yolk:

     

  • Commodore launches a new smartphone; who are they actually?

    Commodore launches a new smartphone; who are they actually?

    A new smartphone is launched in the market with pretty mediocre specs, which is Meh! for most of us. The company that launched this new device — Commodore is unknown to me, as well as most of the people who wasn’t born in the 80s.

    Commodore may seem like an unknown name in the industry, it is a Guinness World record holder. The company was included in Guinness Book of world Records for being a pioneer in selling single Computer model of all time, which was the only success they could achieve.

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    The company went bankrupt almost 20 years  ago, forcing them to back away from the Industry. Nobody ever expected that the company will be able to make a comeback, that too after more than 20 years.

    Fast forward to 2015, Commodore launched PET based on their 1977 PET computer in hope to get back into the game once again. 

    z 00161

    PET is powered by 1.7GHz Mediatek 64-bit Octa core processor with ARM Mali T760 GPU for graphics. It is packed with 3,000 mAh battery, 13-MP read camera with Sony sensor and 8MP front camera with an 80-degree wide angle lens.

    The smartphone has dual Sim card slot and support 4G connectivity. On the software side, it runs Android Lollipop 5.0. The phone will be available in two variants – 16GB storage/2GB RAM and 32GB/3GB RAM. The former costs around $300 while the latter will cost $65 more.The phone will be available in a variety of colours, such as white, black and classic biscuit-beige.

    Commodore will release PET  in Italy, France, Germany, and Poland later this week. The company is planning on expanding to international markets soon.

  • How Does the ZTE Axon Compare to Other 2015 Flagships?

    How Does the ZTE Axon Compare to Other 2015 Flagships?

    When people think of ZTE, they don’t consider them a top competitor, but surprisingly the company is the fourth highest-selling smartphone manufacturer in North America. ZTE has managed to create a large range of devices that are selling in truckloads, despite a much smaller marketing presence than a company like Samsung or Apple.

    The ZTE Axon is another device by ZTE that has the potential to sell in large quantities. Whilst the device may not be getting a lot of buzzes, it definitely deserves a good, hard look. I’ll be comparing the ZTE Axon with other devices in a few different categories below.

    Hardware

    zte axon 2

    Besides the Galaxy S6, which uses the incredibly powerful Exynos 7420 SoC, this year’s 2015 Android flagship lineup relies heavily on the Snapdragon 810. Unfortunately for LG, the G4 has the less powerful Snapdragon 808.

    All flagships this year have 3GB of RAM, however, the ZTE Axon will have 4GB – this is obviously going to allow us to see an improvement in multitasking performance, although the scale of this improvement is currently unknown. As it stands, the jump to 4GB is a decent improvement for ZTE, but it should end up being the standard for high-end devices in half 2. For example, both the Note 5 and the OnePlus Two should come with 4GB of RAM.

    The ZTE Axon has no microSD card and 32GB of internal storage and a decently sized 3,000mAh battery. Finally, the Axon has a 5.5-inch LCD 2560 x 1440 display. The 13-megapixel camera on the ZTE Axon seems to be able to produce on par results for a flagship smartphone as well.

    In the hardware department, the ZTE Axon easily competes with all other devices, and will even be a relevant choice when paired up against any more upcoming devices later this year.

    Software

    zte axon 3

    So far we haven’t really had the chance to see if ZTE have any cool software features up their sleeves for the Axon. First hands-on impressions suggest that the Axon will have a very Material Design themed interface, and, for the most part, the ZTE Axon will run and feel like stock Android 5.1.1 Lollipop, albeit with some preinstalled applications.

    If you’re looking for some big software functionality, ZTE isn’t going to deliver, unfortunately. With that being said, the close-to-stock interface and high-end hardware should lead to a buttery smooth user experience.

    Price

    zte axon 4

    The ZTE Axon has been announced as a smartphone that will go for $450 SIM free. Contract deals will be revealed once the device has been released. The $450 price point is a bit on the fence between “a really good bargain” and “not so much of a bargain.”

    On one side of the fence, you’ll find the $700 SIM free Galaxy S6, the $650 One M9, and the $650 Xperia Z3+. Even LG, who are known to offer lower prices on their flagships, offers the LG G4 for around $550 SIM free.

    Without delving deeper into it, this makes the ZTE Axon look like an absolute bargain, but there is another side to the fence.

    For example, the OnePlus Two has been confirmed to cost under $450, so whilst pricing is still unknown, that’s going to immediately be less than the ZTE Axon and it is expected to include a Snapdragon 810, 4GB of RAM and decent features all-around. Another interesting 2015 device is the $300 ASUS Zen one – once again, this device will have a decent set of specs, including 4GB of RAM and a 64-bit Intel ATOM processor.

    What do we think?

    At first look, the ZTE Axon seems like a bargain. Closer research reveals that this isn’t entirely true. For now, it’s hard to compare the ZTE Axon with other similar priced smartphones until we hear more about them.

    So there we have it. The ZTE Axon will run smoothly, it will have high-end hardware, a great camera, good display, a great camera and the latest version of Android. The price tag is also a great talking point, even if it won’t be the best deal on the market.

    Image credit: Androidblizzard; Ubergizmo; AndroidAuthority; Compregadget.