All companies examine ways to increase productivity, and many find ways to do that while easing the pressure on their employees at the same time. While that may seem oxymoronic in the current economic environment, companies that are not afraid to think outside the box have some very unusual ideas to achieve such goals.

Not surprisingly, the smartphone is part of that equation. The “always-on” environment we live in does not always result in an increase of productivity. That is why Atos, an information technology company, will be phasing out all emails amongst employees by the end of 2013. Daimler, the quintessential automaker, will enable employees to have all incoming emails automatically deleted while they are on vacation at the beginning of the New Year. The sender will get an auto-reply instructing them where to redirect the message.

Sam Chapman is the CEO of Empower Public Relations in Chicago, after becoming so hooked on his BlackBerry that he was checking his device when no notifications were coming in, began to instruct his company of 20 employees to start turning off their devices from 6pm to 6am during the week, and altogether during the weekend for all work-related uses. The policy applies even while traveling.

The stress levels are rising for employees. The Pew Research Center conducted a study covering 2,254 adults with cell phones and found the 44% slept with the device at their bedside. 67% experienced “phantom rings,” thinking their device provided some type of notification when nothing happened. 37% of those studied said they could live without their devices entirely, which is up from 29% in 2006.

Chapman contends that productivity within his company has increased since adopting the new policy. However, such a solution is clearly easier said than done for many companies. Start-up firms trying to work with new clients are an example of such circumstances.

As companies determine what the best course is for them, as the technology continues to evolve and we continue to demand more from it, the best course of action, regardless of whoaddicted we may be to our “CrackBerry” or “iDevice,” will be what each person chooses. It is pretty obvious we are not going to be giving up on the technology.

source: The New York Times

Work life personal life and the smartphone

The way it was, December 24th

So what caused that outage of Netflix on Chrismas Eve, just as you were set to watch  “It’s a Wonderful Life” streamed to your mobile device? Well, as it turned out, the problem was caused by an accidental deletion of data on Amazon Web Service. Amazon posted a summary of the events that led up to the outage which started at 3:24pm EST. Amazon says that the number of its subscribers that were affected were limited to those on the East Coast using a service that counted on the Amazon Elastic Load Balancing Service. Even then, only a small portion of those using ELB service were affected.

The data deletion was done inadvertently by a maintenance process run accidentally by one of the few developers with access to this area and the mistake was not noted at first. When the problem started, Netflix started focusing on the API errors, but it took some deep digging to find the root of the problem.

“It was when the ELB technical team started digging deeply into these degraded load balancers that the team identified the missing ELB state data as the root cause of the service disruption. At this point, the focus shifted to preventing additional service impact and recovering the missing ELB state data.”-Netflix

It wasn’t until 3:05pm EST the next day, which was Christmas, that Netflix reported that the service was up and running. To make sure something like this doesn’t happen again in the future, changes have been made to prevent accidental modification without approval. Additionally, Netflix says it has learned how to get the service up significantly faster in the unlikely event that the same events happen again.

source: AmazonWebServices via Electronista

Deleted data caused last weeks Netflix outage

The gang at WebOS Ports has been very busy. When Open webOS v1.0 was released, we got to see Open webOS running on a Samsung Galaxy Nexus the very next day. Since then, we have seen Open webOS run on a variety of devices. The pace of development is pretty impressive for the three months that have gone by since the official release of the open source platform.

Now, we get to see it in action again, this time on a Google Nexus 7. There are two things that stand out about this particular port, the first is that it only took Simon Busch with WebOS Ports a week to translate the build from the Galaxy Nexus to the Nexus 7, the second is that Open webOS is able to run without being connected to a PC. Boot-up still requires a tether, but after that, the tablet can be unplugged from the desktop.

read more about

Open webOS progress

Port to Galaxy NexusPort to Nook Color and Samsung Series 7Early alpha ports to other devices

Being that the Nexus 7 is a pure Android tablet, it was a natural step to take for the WebOS Ports crew. The video below says it all. Remember, this is an early alpha build. Despite that, it is pretty impressive to see how smoothly things are operating on the Nexus 7. This is pretty much the work of guys in their spare time which makes the progress made over the past three months even more notable.

via: webOS Nation

Video Open webOS is running pretty smoothly on a Google Nexus 7

Huawei Ascend Mate Huawei Ascend W1 and Huawei Ascend D2 caught on film before CES 2013

A new leaked press render shows off the Huawei Ascend Mate before the 6.1 inch Android flavored device heads to Las Vegas for CES 2013. Last week, Huawei Chairman Richard Yu surprised a whole Huawei Store full of shoppers by showing off the device, which he just happened to have with him. There is some disturbing news about the phone, which is the speculation that the screen will have 720p resolution. Consider that a 1080p resolution on a 5 inch screen like the HTC DROID DNA works out to a spectacular 441ppi pixel density. The 720p screen on the Samsung Galaxy S III results in a 306ppi pixel density, but that is for a 4.8 inch screen. Perhaps a higher resolution screen would have sent the price of the phone skyrocketing, but if this is true, it cannot be good news for those who are getting spoiled by the new wave of smartphones with a pixel density well above Retina display territory. One piece of potentially good news is the rumor that the battery on the phone weighs in at 3800mAh.. For those who like to compare, the cell on the Samsung GALAXY Note II is 3100mAh.

Another Android phone that the Chinese based manufacturer has packed for the trip to Vegas is the Huawei Ascend D2. With a 5inch, 1080p screen, this device has the resolution that the Ascend Mate should have had. A quad-core 1.5GHz processor is under the hood and there is a 13MP camera on back. Android 4.1 should be installed out of the box, and ready to go.

Lastly, there is the Huawei Ascend W1, a Windows Phone 8 model with a 4 inch display, a dual-core 1.2GHz processor, and a 2000mAh battery. The device will be available in four colors.

source: @evileaks via UnwiredView

Huawei Ascend Mate Huawei Ascend W1 and Huawei Ascend D2 caught on film before CES 2013

Happy New Year

As 2012 draws to a close, we at PhoneArena would like to say “Thank you” to everyone that turned to us for your phone news, info, and reviews this past year.

Remember that CES 2013 is just a week away, so stay with us as we’ll have all the latest coverage on the hottest phones and accessories from Vegas!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year

Apple patents the Active Stylus for iOS

Apple’s “Active Stylus” courtesy of Patently Apple

If you remember the very first introduction of the Apple iPhone, you might recall Steve Jobs putting down the stylus, saying that the Apple iPhone uses the best pointing device in the world, your finger. From that moment on, Apple has never come close to embracing the stylus. That is, until now when the Cupertino based tech giant received a patent for the “Active Stylus”.

The “Active Stylus” is a stylus that does more than just help you input a touch on a screen. Your regular everyday stylus works by blocking electric lines. Instead of being passive, like the current stylus, Apple’s tool would have the capability to create its own electronic field and couple signals with the main device. This could increase the speed and accuracy of the stylus and eliminate the lag that some S Pen users have complained about. Despite the lag, the S Pen has become extremely popular, so much so that speculation has Samsung including it with the Samsung Galaxy S IV. And we would say that the popularity of the S Pen comes from its ability to be more like a marker or a crayon rather than a touch input like Steve Jobs was thinking about when he dissed the stylus in 2007.

While Apple listed the Apple iPhone and Apple iPad as a couple of devices that could benefit from the “Active Stylus,” there is no guarantee that the device will soon be produced. But the guys in Cupertino could feel a lot of pressure to make the “Active Stylus” a reality if the Samsung Galaxy S IV supports the S Pen.

source: PatentlyApple via RedmondPie

Apple patents the Active Stylus for iOS

kingston hyperx 3k solid state drive

Following the HyperX MAX 3.0 and HyperX SSD, Kingston launches the new Hyperx 3K solid state drive intended to deliver high-performance at a lower price. As the company said, the series is ideal for budget-minded gamers, enthusiasts, multitaskers, overclockers and system builders. The new HyperX 3K utilizes 2nd generation SandForce SF-2281 processor and uses SATA III 6Gbps interface.

Based on MLC NAND flash, Kingston’s new 2.5-inch HyperX SSD comes in 90GB, 120GB, 240GB and 380GB capacities. It offers up to 555MB/s read and 510MB/s write speeds and a 4KB Random Read/Write performance of 85,000/74,000 IOPS. It supports S.M.A.R.T., TRIM command and Garbage Collection as well as SandForce DuraClass for maximized life span and durability. The SSD has a aluminum case and comes in sleek black.

Kingston’s HyperX 3K is available as either a stand-alone drive with 3.5-inch bracket or in an upgrade kit that will include a 2.5-inch USB enclosure, a 3.5-inch bracket, SATA data cable, hard drive cloning software and a multi-bit screwdriver. Get one from Amazon.com.

Models and pricing:

Kingston HyperX 3K Solid-State Drives
Part Number	Capacity and Features	E-tail Price*
SH103S3/90G	90GB Stand-alone SSD	$ 139.99
SH103S3/120G	120GB Stand-alone SSD	$ 169.99
SH103S3/240G	240GB Stand-alone SSD	$ 319.99
SH103S3/480G	480GB Stand-alone SSD	$ 699.99
SH103S3B/90G	90GB HyperX Upgrade Bundle Kit	$ 149.99
SH103S3B/120G	120GB HyperX Upgrade Bundle Kit	$ 179.99
SH103S3B/240G	240GB HyperX Upgrade Bundle Kit	$ 329.99
SH103S3B/480G	480GB HyperX Upgrade Bundle Kit	$ 709.99

kingston hyperx 3k solid state drive

Is Ubuntu for Android launching on January 2nd

Canonical has announced that an “all-new Ubuntu product” will be released on January 2nd, which is just a couple days away, but there has been no word on what the product will be. Of course, we can make an educated guess based on the known products in development, and since Ubuntu is all open-source, it’s kind of hard for there to be a complete surprise release. Our best guess is that this could be the release of Ubuntu for Android. 

It is possible that it could be an announcement of an Ubuntu phone or tablet, but that seems highly unlikely given that work has just started on optimizing Ubuntu for mobile devices, and Canonical founder Mark Shuttleworth said specifically that the OS wouldn’t be ready for use on phones or tablets until 2014. Given all that, it seems far more likely that this will be the official release party for Ubuntu for Android, which is something of a stop-gap product until the OS is fully mobile ready. 

We’ve seen Ubuntu for Android demoed before and it looks pretty amazing. The basic idea is that your phone or tablet runs Android as usual, but when docked, it will switch to a full Ubuntu instance shown on an external monitor, and it will bring over whatever you’re doing in Android from continuing the same music, to opening the same browser tabs. 

We’ll find out soon enough, but we’re keeping our fingers crossed for Ubuntu for Android (and that it will support the newest Nexus devices).

source: Ubuntu via OMGUbuntu

Is Ubuntu for Android launching on January 2nd

LG bends the rules and says the LG Optimus Vu sold 1 million units in South Korea

LG Intuition, U.S. version of the LG Optimus Vu

Earlier on Monday,we told you that the Samsung GALAXY Note II had sold 1 million units in South Korea over 90 days. But Samsung isn’t the only South Korean manufacturer to sell 1 million units of a phablet in its own back yard. LG has announced that it has has sold 1 million units of the LG Optimus Vu in South Korea. With a 5 inch screen (as opposed to the 5.5 inch panel on the Samsung GALAXY Note II), what really makes LG’s offering different is the 4:3 aspect ratio which makes the screen somewhat boxy and and the device hard to hold.

We should add that while both the Samsung GALAXY Note II and the LG Optimus Vu both sold 1 million units in South Korea, Samsung accomplished the feat in 90 days while it took LG three times as long. And it would seem that LG is combining sales of both its LG Optimus Vu and LG Optimus Vu II units to reach the 1 million mark. That would seem to muddy the comparison with Samsung’s model.

source: MK (translate), Yonhap via UnwiredView

LG bends the rules and says the LG Optimus Vu sold 1 million units in South Korea

Spigen iPhone 5 Genuine Leather Grip Case hands on

So yesterday, we managed to check out the affordable Slim Armor Series Cases from Spigen. No doubt, we dig that they maintain the iPhone 5’s iconic industrial design, but if you fancy something that employs materials that are deemed as luxurious, then maybe you should steer into the direction of Spigen’s Genuine Leather Grip Case for the iPhone 5. Available in three distinct colors (Black, Vintage Brown, and White), they obviously exude that old school premium mentality.

Compared to the Slim Armor Series Cases, Spigen’s Genuine Leather Grip Case doesn’t have the same profound and eye-catching design, but then again, if you’re looking for something that’s donning a classic look, this is surely it. Hugging the handset very tightly from all sides, we like that both the top and bottom edges are left mainly exposed – allowing various headphones to connect snugly to the 3.5mm jack. Additionally, the vintage leather look of the case also gives us a good enough grip to hold onto the handset without making it feel slippery. And finally, even though it’s not deemed as rugged style case, it’ll at least protect it from all the typical bumps and bruises that occur along the way – albeit, direct plunges to the floor would more than likely result in some kind of damage.

Indeed it’s rather pricey at $31.99, but it also comes packaged with a Steinheil LCD screen protector and a set of home button stickers to give the iPhone 5 some customization. Of course, the genuine leather material it’s sporting mainly contributes to its higher price point. All in all, it’s not the most stylish case we’ve seen, but some will appreciate its vintage aura.

read more about

More Spigen iPhone 5 accessories

Spigen iPhone 5 Slim Armor Cases hands-onSpigen iPhone 5 Neo Hyrid EX Snow Series Case hands-onSpigen Apple iPhone 5 accessories hands-on

Spigen iPhone 5 Genuine Leather Grip Case hands on

Teen finds Apple iPhone 5 under the tree along with rules and conditions from his mom

All year 13 year-old Greg Hoffman told his mom what he wanted for Christmas. And on Christmas morning he received the one gift he wanted more than anything else, an Apple iPhone 5. At first, there was incredible joy and excitement for the teen. But the happiness quickly disappeared when he spotted the 18 point set of terms and conditions that his mother had him agree to before allowing him to have the phone. Janet Hoffman, Greg’s mom, said,  “What I wanted to do and show him how you could be a responsible user of technology without abusing it, without becoming addicted,” while Greg’s reaction was, “Oh my God. My first reaction was, why? Why did she really have to do this?“

The Apple iPhone 5

The list contains many conditions that you would expect such as a ban on porn and sexting. Several rules are based on good manners. Greg cannot use the phone during meals or at the movies or when talking to another person. He cannot take it to school and must turn it over to one of his parents at 7:30pm each weekday and 9:00pm on weekends. He gets the phone back 7:30am each morning. Calls from his mom or dad cannot be ignored and he cannot text something to his friends that he couldn’t tell them in person with their parents in the room.

Some of the rules are designed to prevent Greg’s new Apple iPhone from taking over his life. For example, one rule tells him not to take “a zillion pictures or videos” as not everything needs to be documented. On the other hand, the teen is advised to download as much music as he can as long as it is a different style than what his peers listen to, and he should play a puzzle game or a brain teaser every now and then. If the iPhone is broken or damaged, young Greg is on the hook to replace it using his own money.

Ironically, Janet Hoffman herself is a blogger which might make her more knowledgeable about the pitfalls of always being connected than the average parent. And while the kids might not like the rules so much, teen behavior expert Josh Shipp says that rules are a must for teen use of an Apple iPhone. Shipp, who hosts Lifetime’s  Teen Trouble  said, “You wouldn’t’ give your kid a car without making sure they had insurance. And so giving them a cell phone or a computer without teaching them how to use it responsibly is irresponsible on the part of the parent.”

So what do you think? Is this a great idea that will teach  a teen how to responsibly use a cell phone, or is it a ticket to humiliation from his peers?

Dear Gregory

Merry Christmas! You are now the proud owner of an iPhone. Hot Damn! You are a good & responsible 13 year old boy and you deserve this gift. But with the acceptance of this present comes rules and regulations. Please read through the following contract. I hope that you understand it is my job to raise you into a well rounded, healthy young man that can function in the world and coexist with technology, not be ruled by it. Failure to comply with the following list will result in termination of your iPhone ownership.

I love you madly & look forward to sharing several million text messages with you in the days to come.

1. It is my phone. I bought it. I pay for it. I am loaning it to you. Aren’t I the greatest?

2. I will always know the password.

3. If it rings, answer it. It is a phone. Say hello, use your manners. Do not ever ignore a phone call if the screen reads “Mom” or “Dad”. Not ever.

4. Hand the phone to one of your parents promptly at 7:30pm every school night & every weekend night at 9:00pm. It will be shut off for the night and turned on again at 7:30am. If you would not make a call to someone’s land line, wherein their parents may answer first, then do not call or text. Listen to those instincts and respect other families like we would like to be respected.

5. It does not go to school with you. Have a conversation with the people you text in person. It’s a life skill. *Half days, field trips and after school activities will require special consideration.

6. If it falls into the toilet, smashes on the ground, or vanishes into thin air, you are responsible for the replacement costs or repairs. Mow a lawn, babysit, stash some birthday money. It will happen, you should be prepared.

7. Do not use this technology to lie, fool, or deceive another human being. Do not involve yourself in conversations that are hurtful to others. Be a good friend first or stay the hell out of the crossfire.

8. Do not text, email, or say anything through this device you would not say in person.

9. Do not text, email, or say anything to someone that you would not say out loud with their parents in the room. Censor yourself.

10. No porn. Search the web for information you would openly share with me. If you have a question about anything, ask a person ? preferably me or your father.

11. Turn it off, silence it, put it away in public. Especially in a restaurant, at the movies, or while speaking with another human being. You are not a rude person; do not allow the iPhone to change that.

12. Do not send or receive pictures of your private parts or anyone else’s private parts. Don’t laugh. Someday you will be tempted to do this despite your high intelligence. It is risky and could ruin your teenage/college/adult life. It is always a bad idea. Cyberspace is vast and more powerful than you. And it is hard to make anything of this magnitude disappear — including a bad reputation.

13. Don’t take a zillion pictures and videos. There is no need to document everything. Live your experiences. They will be stored in your memory for eternity.

14. Leave your phone home sometimes and feel safe and secure in that decision. It is not alive or an extension of you. Learn to live without it. Be bigger and more powerful than FOMO — fear of missing out.

15. Download music that is new or classic or different than the millions of your peers that listen to the same exact stuff. Your generation has access to music like never before in history. Take advantage of that gift. Expand your horizons.

16. Play a game with words or puzzles or brain teasers every now and then.

17. Keep your eyes up. See the world happening around you. Stare out a window. Listen to the birds. Take a walk. Talk to a stranger. Wonder without googling.

18. You will mess up. I will take away your phone. We will sit down and talk about it. We will start over again. You & I, we are always learning. I am on your team. We are in this together.

It is my hope that you can agree to these terms. Most of the lessons listed here do not just apply to the iPhone, but to life. You are growing up in a fast and ever changing world. It is exciting and enticing. Keep it simple every chance you get. Trust your powerful mind and giant heart above any machine. I love you. I hope you enjoy your awesome new iPhone. Merry Christmas!

xoxoxo

Mom

source: GoodMorningAmerica

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Teen finds Apple iPhone 5 under the tree along with rules and conditions from his mom

Foxconn and Flexium to keep some Apple assembly lines running during the Chinese New Year

Some of Foxconn’s assembly lines will remain open during the Chinese New Year

The Chinese New Year is the most important festival in China. During the 15 days, factories are usually shut down and it takes something terribly important to keep the assembly lines humming. This year, the strong demand globally for the Apple iPhone 5 and the Apple iPad mini means that both Foxconn and Flexium Interconnect will keep some of their production facilities open during the Chinese New Year period. Foxconn assembles the devices while Flexium produces printed circuit boards. Not only won’t the plants completely shut down for the festival that starts February 10th, Flexium has hired a large number of students to maintain production.

This could be considered to be a sign of strong demand for the Apple iPhone 5 and the Apple iPad mini. Recently, Apple has been able to catch up with the demand for its iconic smartphone and not only can the handset be found in stores, those ordering online can also find it in stock from the online Apple Store.

The Apple iPad mini is a little different story. A recent report showed that those assembling the unit are putting together fewer tablets than the number that would be expected from the amount of components shipped. This could be a sign of a poor yield rate although the latest word is that the yield rate on the iPad mini assembly line is picking up. Currently, those ordering the Apple iPad mini from the online Apple Store have to wait a week from the time they place the order to the time that it is shipped.

source: UnitedDailyNews (translated), BrightWire via Forbes                                      

Foxconn and Flexium to keep some Apple assembly lines running during the Chinese New Year

Foxconn and Flexium to keep some Apple assemby lines running during the Chinese New Year

Some of Foxconn’s assembly lines will remain open during the Chinese New Year

The Chinese New Year is the most important festival in China. During the 15 days, factories are usually shut down and it takes something terribly important to keep the assembly lines humming. This year, the strong demand globally for the Apple iPhone 5 and the Apple iPad mini means that both Foxconn and Flexium Interconnect will keep some of their production facilities open during the Chinese New Year period. Foxconn assembles the devices while Flexium produces printed circuit boards. Not only won’t the plants completely shut down for the festival that starts February 10th, Flexium has hired a large number of students to maintain production.

This could be considered to be a sign of strong demand for the Apple iPhone 5 and the Apple iPad mini. Recently, Apple has been able to catch up with the demand for its iconic smartphone and not only can the handset be found in stores, those ordering online can also find it in stock from the online Apple Store.

The Apple iPad mini is a little different story. A recent report showed that those assembling the unit are putting together fewer tablets than the number that would be expected from the amount of components shipped. This could be a sign of a poor yield rate although the latest word is that the yield rate on the iPad mini assembly line is picking up. Currently, those ordering the Apple iPad mini from the online Apple Store have to wait a week from the time they place the order to the time that it is shipped.

source: UnitedDailyNews (translated), BrightWire via Forbes                                      

Foxconn and Flexium to keep some Apple assemby lines running during the Chinese New Year

kingston hyperx ssd based on sandforce controller

Kingston announced its first HyperX SSD, its first solid state drive based on SandForce’s controller. Equipped with SandForce’s SF-2281 controllers featuring SATA Rev 3.0 (6Gb/s), the HyperX uses Intel 25nm compute NAND flash memory and is available in 120GB and 240GB capacities. You can expect up to 525MB/s read and 480MB/s write speeds and 4KB random read/write speeds of up to 95,000/70,000 IOPS.

With the SF-2281 processor, Kingston HyperX features DuraClass Technology to “deliver world-class SSD reliability, performance, and power efficiency”, and Advanced Wear-Leveling Technology that ensures individual flash memory blocks are consumed at a very balanced rate enabling maximum endurance while maintaining optimal performance. It employs user configurable over provisioning, which allows the user to tweak the SSD’s performance per their specific performance needs.

Kingston’s HyperX 2.5-inch SSD supports S.M.A.R.T and TRIM commands. It is available standalone or as an upgrade kit that includes 2.5-inch desktop mounting plate, HyperX USB External Drive Bay, Acronis True Image HD migration software, HyperX Multi-Head Screwdriver and HyperX SATA Data Cable.

Models:

Kingston HyperX SSD
Part number	Capacity and features
SH100S3/120G	120GB Stand-alone SSD
SH100S3/240G	240GB Stand-alone SSD
SH100S3B/120G	120GB HyperX Bundle Kit
SH100S3B/240G	240GB HyperX Bundle Kit

[Kingston]

kingston hyperx ssd based on sandforce controller

kingston hyperx max 3 0 external usb 3 0 ssd drive

Kingston announced its new HyperX MAX 3.0 external USB 3.0 SuperSpeed solid state storage drive. Available in 64GB, 128GB and 256GB capacities, the pocket-sized HyperX MAX 3.0 uses the USB 3.0 interface high-speed interface and is backward compatible with USB 2.0. The drive offers up to 195MB/s read and up to 160MB/s write speeds.

Kingston’s USB 3.0 external drive has a sleek, stylish design and a rugged aluminum casing. During Kingston’s internal testing, a 10GB movie file was transferred in only 1 minute, 12 seconds to the HyperX MAX 3.0 from a USB 3.0 system. The transfer time increased to 5 minutes, 52 seconds using a USB 2.0 port with the same test bed.

Pricing and availability have not been announced.

Models:

Kingston HyperX MAX 3.0 USB 3.0 External Drive
Part Number	Capacity and Features	MSRP
SHX100U3/64G	64GB HyperX MAX External USB 3.0 Drive	$ TBA
SHX100U3/128G	128GB HyperX MAX External USB 3.0 Drive	$ TBA
SHX100U3/256G	256GB HyperX MAX External USB 3.0 Drive	$ TBA

Kingston HyperX MAX 3.0 Features and Specifications:

• Performance — USB-IF SuperSpeed-Certified


• Standardized — complies with USB 3.0 specification standards, compatible with USB 2.0


• Sequential Speed — Read — up to 195MB/sec., Write — up to 160MB/sec


• Shock-resistant — built with Flash components so no moving parts


• Portable — Aluminum design is sleek, stylish and rugged


• Silent — runs silently with no moving parts


• Easy — plug & play with no driver required; utilizes USB bus power with no additional bus power required


• Guaranteed — three-year warranty


• Capacities — 64GB, 128GB and 256GB


• Dimensions — 2.89″ x 4.67″ x 0.47″ (73.49mm x 118.60mm x 12.00mm)


• Vibration Operating — 20G Peak, 10-2000Hz, (20min/Axis) x 3 Axis


• Vibration Non-operating — 20G Peak, 10-2000Hz, (12 Cycle/Axis) x 3 Axis, x 20min.


• Operating Shock — 1500G


• Operating Temperature — 0° to 60°C / 32° to 140°F


• Storage Temperature — -20° to 85°C / -4° to 185°F


• Power Consumption — 4.5W


• Dual LED — blue for USB 3.0, green for USB 2.0

[kingston]

kingston hyperx max 3 0 external usb 3 0 ssd drive

Samsung GALAXY Note II pictured in Ruby Wine and Amber Brown

The Samsung GALAXY Note II in Ruby Wine and Amber Brown

During the weekend, a picture of the Samsung GALAXY Note II in black raised the hopes of those who have been dying to see the 5.5 inch phablet in classic black. Unfortunately, on Sunday out came the word that the picture was a mock-up created by a fan. But as we pointed out, that didn’t mean that the Samsung GALAXY Note II wouldn’t be coming out in the three other colors leaked earlier in the year. Those colors, Ruby Wine, Amber Brown and Topaz Blue, were supposed to be in addition to the original colors of Titanium Grey and Marble White.

Thanks to a magazine in South Korea, we finally have a chance to see the phablet wearing Amber Brown and Ruby Wine. Considering the origin of the publication, and the fact that Samsung is headquartered in South Korea, it certainly would make sense to see the new colors offered there first. There is no guarantee that the new color options will ever make their way to the U.S., although they could be displayed in Las Vegas during CES 2013 beginning January 8th.

Speaking of new color options, the Samsung GALAXY Note 10.1 tablet, Samsung GALAXY Tab 2 10.1 and the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 are all expected to be available in Garnet Red soon, based on leaked press renders. The red color will be available only on the Wi-Fi/cellular variant of the three tablets.

source: UnwiredView

Samsung GALAXY Note II pictured in Ruby Wine and Amber Brown

Samsung GALAXY Note II pictured in red and brown

The Samsung GALAXY Note II in Ruby Wine and Amber Brown

During the weekend, a picture of the Samsung GALAXY Note II in black raised the hopes of those who have been dying to see the 5.5 inch phablet in classic black. Unfortunately, on Sunday out came the word that the picture was a mock-up created by a fan. But as we pointed out, that didn’t mean that the Samsung GALAXY Note II wouldn’t be coming out in the three other colors leaked earlier in the year. Those colors, Ruby Wine, Amber Brown and Topaz Blue, were supposed to be in addition to the original colors of Titanium Grey and Marble White.

Thanks to a magazine in South Korea, we finally have a chance to see the phablet wearing Amber Brown and Ruby Wine. Considering the origin of the publication, and the fact that Samsung is headquartered in South Korea, it certainly would make sense to see the new colors offered there first. There is no guarantee that the new color options will ever make their way to the U.S., although they could be displayed in Las Vegas during CES 2013 beginning January 8th.

Speaking of new color options, the Samsung GALAXY Note 10.1 tablet, Samsung GALAXY Tab 2 10.1 and the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 are all expected to be available in Garnet Red soon, based on leaked press renders. The red color will be available only on the Wi-Fi/cellular variant of the three tablets.

source: UnwiredView

Samsung GALAXY Note II pictured in red and brown

One million units of the Samsung GALAXY Note II sold in Samsungs backyard in 90 days

Selling more than twice as fast as its predecessor, the Samsung GALAXY Note II has sold 1 million units in Samsung’s backyard in the first 90 days after launch. Globally, 5 million units were sold near the end of last month and the 5.5 inch phablet is on pace to sell 10 million units in its first 4 to 5 months on the market. That would put the newer model at a sales pace about twice as fast as the original Samsung GALAXY Note which amassed 10 million in sales in its first 10 months on the market. Samsung Mobile’s top executive, J.K. Shin, predicted back in September that the Samsung GALAXY Note II would sell 20 million units in a year.

The Samsung GALAXY Note II

It is hard enough for a manufacturer to build one hot device, but Samsung keeps rolling out flagship Android models that are in heavy demand. You might recall that early last month, Samsung celebrated the sale of 30 million units of the Samsung Galaxy S III. Consider that the original Samsung Galaxy S sold 10 million units in 2011 and the Samsung Galaxy S II sold 20 million by earlier this year, and you can see a pattern of increasing sales.

Talk now has moved to what we might see on the Samsung Galaxy S IV and the Samsung GALAXY Note III. The latter is rumored to have a 6.3 inch screen, two-tenths of an inch larger than the screen on the Huawei Ascend Mate that will be introduced next month at CES 2013. The Samsung Galaxy S IV is expected to launch in April with a 5 inch AMOLED screen offering 1080p resolution and a 441ppi pixel density. Other specs include a quad-core Exynos 5440 processor, and a 13MP rear-facing camera all in a slightly thicker 9.2mm body. This time around, Samsung will supposedly toss the S Pen in with the phone.

source: SammyHub

One million units of the Samsung GALAXY Note II sold in Samsungs backyard in 90 days

VMK elikia smartphone and Way C tablet designed in Africa hit the market

Entrepreneur Verone Mankou is putting the Republic of Congo on the map of technology nations. The first editions of the entry level Android smartphone and tablet are rather nicely designed.

The tablet, called the Way-C, which means, “the light of the stars,” is a 7-inch tablet running Android 2.3 Gingerbread, powered by a 1.2GHz processor, has 512MB of RAM along with 4GB of storage and an 800×480 display. There is also microSD storage support up to 32GB. Wi-Fi is on board too, 802.11b/g. Providing the power is a 4200mAh battery which VMK says will give you about 6 hours of use. Indeed, by current cutting edge standards, it does not get the heart beating, but the design is not unpleasant to look at.

The smartphone, called the elikia, which means “hope,” is also pleasing to the eye. Its appearance does not exude entry level, but that is what it is. The phone is built around a 3.5-inch, 320×480 display, running Android 2.3 Gingerbread, powered by a 650MHz processor, has 512MB of RAM with 126MB of storage. Thankfully, there is microSD support for the elikia as well. Wi-Fi is on board (802.11b/g/n) as is the devices ability to be a hot-spot. The 1300mAh battery should be good for up to 9 hours of talk time.

The Way-C tablet will run $300 and the elikia costs $170 without a contract. In addition to the Republic of Congo, these two devices are available in 10 other African nations as well as France, India and Belgium.

via: Mashable

VMK elikia smartphone and Way C tablet designed in Africa hit the market

Jumbled text messages could be the sign of a stroke

Very often, it is easy to attribute partially garbled text messages to a tragic failure of your smartphone’s spelling correction feature. It happens enough that there are sites dedicated to the funny things that can happen when it goes really bad. 

Leave it to technology to being able to provide a gauge of activity without any dedicated apps, like your health. A man who lives in the Boston area received two confusing texts from his pregnant wife. The first one said, “every where thinging days nighing” and the second one said, “Some is where!” Is that possible to create with autocorrect or word prediction? Maybe, but the man’s 25 year old wife had her autocorrect turned off. He rushed her to the emergency room and doctors were able to determine, in conjunction with other symptoms of confusion and poor motor coordination, that she was having a stroke. An MRI confirmed the diagnosis, the woman was treated and made a full recovery.

Three Harvard Medical School doctors have coined a word for the condition: “dystextia.” The case of the pregnant stroke victim was published in the Archives of Neurology, citing that “the growing digital record will likely become an increasingly important means of identifying neurologic disease, particularly in patient populations that rely more heavily on written rather than spoken communication.”

Now, before you start dialing 911, 999, 112 or whatever the emergency numbers are in your locale, the medical community obviously wants to point out that using “dystextia” alone as a means for detecting a stroke would produce a monumental amount of “false positives.” Of course other factors must be considered. Disorientation and inability to communicate on multiple levels, not just texting, need to be taken into account along with other symptoms, by a doctor.

source: Time Magazine

Jumbled text messages could be the sign of a stroke

Nokia Lumia 920 coming to KPN in the Netherlands during the first week of 2013

The Nokia Lumia 920 is beginning its next phase to take over the world. Nokia’s Windows Phone 8 flavored flagship phone recently had a very successful release in the Chinese market where not once, but twice long lines of buyers waited outside and inside the Nokia Store in Shanghai to purchase the phone. The first time, the stock was sold out in 2 hours. The second time, the yellow model was snatched up in 20 minutes. And even online, where the special variant of the phone, the Nokia Lumia 920T was offered for customers’ of China Mobile, Amazon was wiped out of inventory in 30 minutes.

The Nokia Lumia 920 will soon ship via KPN

On Sunday, we told you that an 11 second television commercial in India was telling those watching to get ready to switch to the Nokia Lumia 920. Also expecting to launch the device soon are carriers in the Netherlands. There, the operators have been taking pre-orders for the phone, expecting to ship them sometime next month. One carrier in particular, KPN, has a more precise launch date. On its website, KPN says it will have the phone available in the first week of January 2013. The carrier is giving you the phone free with your signature on a two-year pact for 25 EUR a month ($32.98 USD). That plan, though, is pretty light with only 1000MB (slightly less than 1GB) of data at 7.2Mbps, 250 minutes of SMS and unlimited KPN to KPN calls.

Vodafone Netherlands and T-Mobile Netherlands are both among the carriers taking pre-orders with the former selling the device for 119.98 EUR ($158.27 USD) with their recommended plan. That price requires you to get locked up with the carrier for two-years. So which country is next to release the Nokia Lumia 920?

source: T-MobileNetherlands (translated), VodafoneNetherlands (translated) via WMPoweruser

Nokia Lumia 920 coming to KPN in the Netherlands during the first week of 2013

Jolla provides a video tour of its upcoming Sailfish OS

There is a lot of excitement building for Jolla’s MeeGo based Sailfish operating system. Last month we got to see a promotional video of what Sailfish would have in store for us. Now we get to see things running in real time.

Immediately, you will see elements that are familiar with MeeGo when it made its sole appearance with the Nokia N9. Sailfish builds on MeeGo quite effectively, and from the looks of what we get to see in the video below, there will be a lot of appeal.  The user experience is very gesture centric, and many native apps respond to gesture commands even when those apps are represented as a card on the home screen. Unlike the N9, the screens are accessed vertically, rather than horizontally. The horizontal gestures allow you to exit an app (from left to right) or place it in the background (right to left).

One neat feature is accessing menu options within an app. To do that, instead of pushing a menu button on the screen, simply swipe a gesture downward and the available menu options are presented. Another feature that is reminiscent of what we have seen with BlackBerry 10, is the ability to “peek” at notifications by partially swiping in from the right side of the screen. Then there is a “depth indicator” which gives you a way to quickly see how deep into an application you are.

The apps we see in action are fairly representative of what we will see on the final build of the OS. Of course, we do not get to see much except for part of the contacts app, photos and home screens. It is enough however to get a little more excited about Sailfish’s debut hopefully sometime in the first quarter 2013.

source: Engadget

Jolla provides a video tour of its upcoming Sailfish OS

Report Tizen flavored handsets from Samsung and DoCoMo to launch in 2013

A rendering of a Tizen powered device from last January

Japanese mobile operator DoCoMo is the largest carrier in the country, but is also the lone major Japanese carrier to not offer the Apple iPhone. In hopes of cutting into the 90% market share that iOS and Android enjoy in Japan, DoCoMo has teamed up with Korean manufacturer Samsung to develop open source OS Tizen. The plan is to offer Tizen flavored smartphones by next year.

Earlier this year, there was speculation that Samsung would produce the first Tizen powered handset by this coming Febraury. That would fit perfectly with current talk that Sammy will have a Tizen based model on display during February’s MWC 2013 in Barcelona. The rumor has Samsung releasing its first Tizen phone world-wide at the same time.

Some see a bigger commitment to the platform by Samsung as making sense since Google is competing with Samsung by helping to produce the current Nexus smartphone and by working on the new “X” phone with wholly owned Motorola Mobility. Tizen, which is based on Linux, was originally developed by Samsung, with help from Intel, to replace MeeGo. The Nokia-Intel OS was shut down in September 2011.

Last January, renderings appeared of a Tizen powered Samsung device, the GT-i9500. Recently, that model number, along with the GT-i9505, leaked in conjunction with the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S IV.

source: TheNextWeb via TechCrunch

Report Tizen flavored handsets from Samsung and DoCoMo to launch in 2013

Huawei party to a deal to sell prohibited HP equipment to Iranian carrier

Huawei’s private partner in Hong Kong, Skycom Tech Co. Ltd., and with operations in Iran, offered a proposal which contained about €1.3 million worth of Hewlitt-Packard equipment to be sold to Mobile Telecommunication Company of Iran (also known as MCI, not be confused with the former US long distance company).

The deal was part of a larger proposal presented to MCI by Skycom, in what Huawei called a “bidding document,” to aid MCI in the expansion of its subscriber billing system. Huawei issued a statement that its business in Iran is compliant with UN, US and EU sanctions and that it requires the same compliance with its partner companies. In the end, no HP gear was provided to MCI.

Unfortunately, it does not help Huawei’s image in the eyes of regulators and policy makers in other countries, particularly the US, where investigations revealed that Huawei may be involved in espionage on behalf of the Chinese government and has resulted in strong admonitions from the US government to encourage companies not to do business with Huawei or its Chinese-based competitor, ZTE. Huawei was implicated in a similar deal related to the proposed sale of antenna equipment manufactured by a US company, CommScope, Inc. Along with other concerns about the company’s practices, this only reinforces the notion that China is the back-end-conduit for forbidden US computer equipment.

Huawei’s agreement with CommScope is such that CommScope’s products get integrated into gear that Huawei manufactures, so proposals involving those components could be simple mistakes. Huawei is the world’s second largest telecom gear maker. However, the contract between HP and Huawei is a distributor agreement and HP prohibits the sale of its gear by partners and distributors to any entities in Iran.

The proposal to MCI prominently showed HP equipment to be the backbone of the design presented. Based on the documents viewed by Reuters, all marked “Huawei Confidential,” the €1.3 million in HP equipment included a server, 20 disk arrays and 22 switches, plus software. The whole proposal came to about €19.9 million.

As to Huawei’s relationship with Skycom, there appears to not be much, if any daylight between the two companies. Sources say that Skycom employees in Tehran wear Huawei ID badges, and that the two companies basically share a headquarters China.

sources: Reuters via AllThingsD

Huawei party to a deal to sell prohibited HP equipment to Iranian carrier

AT T upgrades its network in Miami for two bowl games

AT&T has upgraded its network inside and outside Miami’s Sun Life Stadium

Sun Life Stadium in Miami is home to the NFL’s Miami Dolphins, but is also hosting a couple of upcoming big time college football bowl games. The Discover Orange Bowl will be played on January 1st between Northern Illinios and Florida State University. Six days later, the Discover BCS National Championship Game between Notre Dame and Alabama will be played at the same venue. With around 150,000 fans attending both gridiron battles, AT&T has upgraded its network by the stadium to make sure that its customers attending the games have no problem using their handsets.

According to AT&T, the changes will triple the voice and data capacity of its network around the stadium, while widening coverage and increasing data speed. 4G LTE technology has been added to the coverage and antennas outside of the stadium will increase coverage in the parking lot.

“We know football fans at the stadium will want to use their smartphones to share photos, videos and texts during the big games with friends back home. The investment we’ve made in the upgrades at the stadium will help make that possible.”-Marshall Criser, AT&T Florida President

source: AT&T

AT T upgrades its network in Miami for two bowl games

pioneers 61ch receiver with digital music support

Pioneer shows its latest surround-sound receivers, the VSX-516, which can play digital audio files such as MP3, ACC, WMA9 Pro via a USB port. It also supports latest Dolby standards. The new AMP is priced at just ¥49,500 ($440).

pioneers 61ch receiver with digital music support

speakal icrystal ipod speaker system

Speakal launches the iCrystal iPod speaker docking station. Made for iPad, the iCrystal plays and charges all iPod players with dock connector. It also provides 3.5mm AUX-in jack for connecting other audio sources.

Speakal’s iCrystal features humanized touch volume control and music control and comes with a remote control. It can be powered by four AA batteries. The system is available in White, Red and Black and is now available at Amazon for $79.99.

[speakal]

speakal icrystal ipod speaker system

brookstone idesign flip speaker dock for iphoneipod

Brookstone launches the iDesign Flip speaker dock for iPod and iPhone products. The Flip can dock your iPhone/iPod in two ways: vertically for music and horizontally for widescreen video. Other than audio/video playback, the speaker dock also charges iPod/iPhone. It can be powered by either AC power adapter or 4 AAA batteries, which means you can use it at home or on-the-go.

The Brookstone iDesign Flip works with the latest iPhone 3GS, iPod touch 3G, iPod nano 4G and other iPhone/iPod products. It is priced at $79.95.

[brookstone]

brookstone idesign flip speaker dock for iphoneipod

Samsung Galaxy S III mini now ships with Android 4.1.2 in Asia

In some Asian countries, Android 4.1.2 comes out of the box on the Samsung Galaxy S III mini

Over in Asia, Indonesia and Vietnam to be precise, it would appear that Samsung has quietly started to pre-install Android 4.1.2 on the Samsung Galaxy S III mini. As recently as last month, the device was coming to market with Android 4.1.1 on board. But that little difference in build version could mean a lot because most updates to Android 4.1.2 made by Samsung to its Galaxy line have included its Premium Suite. That is a fancy name for a bundle of new features. Premium Suite updates add Page Buddy, Multi Window, Paper Artist, Group Cast, Smart Rotation, a new customizable notification panel, a new gallery app and more.

The Samsung Galaxy S III mini recently made the news when Apple agreed to drop it from its patent infringement lawsuit against Samsung in the U.S. (which won’t go to trial until 2014) as long as the device isn’t sold in the states by Samsung. Apple did say that it was able to make multiple purchases through Amazon and have the phone shipped to the U.S., but for now, the device is excluded from the suit.

Now, the Samsung Galaxy S III mini might be excluded from the suit, but let’s hope it is not excluded from the Suite (see how we did that?). If you own the unit and it is driven by Android 4.1.2, let us know if any of the Premium Suite features are included. 

source: UnwiredView

Samsung Galaxy S III mini now ships with Android 4.1.2 in Asia

philips fidelio ds8550 ipad speaker dock

Philips introduces at the IFA 2010 the Fidelio DS8550 speaker dock that is large enough to acommodate an Apple iPad. The speaker is also compatible with all iPhone models and most iPod models. It also supports Bluetooth for wireless music streaming.

The Fidelio DS8550 features a Bass Reflex Speaker system with 15Wx2 output power. The speaker has the SoundCurve design, which means its walls are shaped to randomize the movements of sound waves and reflect them within the acoustic chamber. Philips has also developed the Fidelio app that allows for easy browsing and playing of your music collection, control of your 5-band equalizer, and a quick-check of your docking speaker’s battery life from your Apple device.

[philips]

philips fidelio ds8550 ipad speaker dock

panasonic sc zt2 fully wireless home theater audio system

Panasonic announced the SC-ZT2, a fully wireless home theater audio system made for use with Full HD 3D home theater system. It is capable of producing sound with the life-like ambience of a 7.1-channel system, while using only two speakers.

The Panasonic SC-ZT2 is compatible with Audio Return Channel (ARC), which allows receiving audio signal from the TV through a single HDMI cable and supports Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD 7.1-channel surround sound. The system includes two ultra slim pole speakers, each houses four 1-inch tweeters and an integrated long-stoke woofer, and a wireless receiver.

The Panasonic SC-ZT2 is now available at Amazon for $849.95.

[prnewswire]

panasonic sc zt2 fully wireless home theater audio system

sherwood rd 705i network av receiver

Sherwood announced the RD-705i, a network-capable AV receiver with WiFi 802.11n for streaming internet radio. With WiFi, the RD-705i lets users to enjoy internet radio from Pandora, Aupeo, Reciva, Shoutcast and other online music streaming services. It supports MP3, AAC, WMA and WAV formats.

The Sherwood RD-705i features 192 kHz/24 bit D to A converters, support for DTS 96/24, DTS ES, DTS Neo6, Dolby Digital, and Dolby Pro Logic IIz digital audio codecs, 100 watts RMS at 8 ohms for each of the seven channels, and USB port for adding Bluetooth adapter and iPod dock. The receiver has HDMI 1.4 port, making it fully 3D ready; and comes with Dual Zone capability for playback in second room. It also packs a 4 Gang Quartz PLL Synthesized FM Tuner and AM receiver, with 30 presets.

Sherwood RD-705i will be released in November for $499.95.

[ecoustics]

sherwood rd 705i network av receiver

wd elements play hd media player

WD introduces an all-new HD media player with built-in hard drive, the Elements Play with 1TB or 2TB internal storage for storing media collection. Unlike WD’s TV Live Plus, the new Element Play lacks internet connectivity and media streaming capability.

The WD Elements Play offers Full HD 1080p output via HDMI as well as composite AV, component video and optical audio outputs. Other than internal hard drive, the player also offers USB 2.0 for external storage. It is available in PAL and NTSC versions and supports a wide range of media formats, including the following:

• Video – AAVI (Xvid, AVC, MPEG1/2/4), MPG/MPEG, VOB/ISO, MP4/MOV (MPEG4, h.264),


• MKV (h.264, x.264, AVC, MPEG1/2/4), TS/TP/M2TS (MPEG 1/2/4, AVC), FLV (D1 resolution only), RM or RMVB 8/9/10


• Photo – JPEG, GIF, TIF/TIFF, BMP, PNG


• Audio – MP3, WAV/PCM/LPCM, WMA, AAC, FLAC, MKA, AIF/AIFF, OGG, Dolby Digital, DTS


• Playlist – PLS, M3U, WPL


• Subtitle – SRT, ASS, SSA, SUB, SMI

[wdc]

wd elements play hd media player

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