Saturday 15 June 2013
HTC One Mini Headed to Retail
The HTC M4, which has been referred to as theHTC One Mini for a number of weeks now, is apparently going to be keeping its nickname at retail thanks to confirmation from a noted HTC leakster, a claim that has been backed by a user agent profile found at HTC’s website.
For weeks now, the HTC M4 has been dubbed the HTC One Mini thanks to its looks. The device resembles a smaller version of the flagship HTC One, thus, the miniature nickname. However, it appears that the HTC One Mini name is going to be more than just a nickname with HTC thought to be using that name at retail.
The HTC One Mini will be a smaller version of the HTC One .
Noted HTC leakster @LLabTooFeR says that the device has been “confirmed” to have the HTC One Mini name at launch. And while we could certainly take him at his word, a user agent profile from HTC’s website, first discovered by TechKiddy, suggests that he isn’t bluffing as the name “HTC One Mini’ is certainly visible in plain view.
The HTC One Mini lurking on HTC’s website.
At this point, while unconfirmed by HTC, it’s clear that the HTC One Mini name is going to be the retail name for this device as it looks to compete with the similarly named Samsung Galaxy S4 this summer.
The HTC One Mini is now thought to be arriving sometime during the month of August to compliment the larger HTC One and compete against Samsung’s already official mini Galaxy S4.
HTC is thought to be keeping the metal design of the HTC One while shrinking the display to 4.3-inches and tacking on 720p resolution. That feature is seemingly confirmed by the user agent profile. It’s also thought to have a lesser dual-core processor, down from the quad-core processor of the larger HTC One.
Thus far, no specific release dates have been mentioned and carries also remain out of the picture. The Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini on the other hand appears set for an arrival on AT&T sometime in the near future, possibly as soon as July.
Samsung is hosting an event in late June where the the company figures to make all of its Galaxy S4 plans known.
iOS 7 for iPad & iPad Mini Teased
Apple hasn’t released iOS 7 or iOS 7 beta for the iPad or iPad mini quite yet but the company has at least teased what the update will look like when it arrives for the 9.7-inch iPad and the 7.9-inch iPad mini.
Earlier this week, Apple showcased its brand new operating system in iOS 7, a piece of software that not only brings a new look to iPhone and iPad owners but new features as well. The final iOS 7 update won’t be made available until sometime this fall, date unknown, but Apple has given iPhone owners the chance to get their hands on the software early.
Apple has teased iOS 7 for the iPad and iPad mini.
On launch day, Apple released the iOS 7 beta for the iPhone and iPod touch fifth-generation, allowing developers a chance to tinker with the software ahead of time. The tinkering will also help Apple to discover any bugs that are residing inside the software before it rolls it out to the public. And while it’s available for those devices, the iOS 7 beta for iPad and iPad mini is still unavailable.
Apple says that the beta for the iPad 2, iPad 3, iPad 4 and iPad mini will be arriving sometime this fall though the company has yet to issue any type of date. The company has issued a bit of a consolation prize though as the iOS 7 features page depicts what iOS 7 will look like on the iPad and iPad mini when it arrives.
The look is a little different from that of the iPhone thanks to the size of the display. We also see the new wallpaper which is just one of a few that Apple has loaded on board with iOS 7. The original iOS backgrounds remain on board as well.
This is as close to iOS 7 that iPad and iPad mini owners will get until the iOS 7 beta arrives later on this year. It’s unclear if the iPad updates will have any unique features on board when they do arrive but we do know that some of them won’t have the full iOS 7 update.
The iPad 4, iPad 2, iPad 3 and iPad mini will be missing Filters in Camera and the iPad 2 and iPad 3 won’t have the new AirDrop feature on board.
The Division Brings Online RPGs To New York City
At the end of its E3 press conference Ubisoft debuted one of the biggest surprises of the conference: an MMORPG in the Tom Clancy universe called The Division.
In Tom Clancy’s The Division a pandemic has hit New York City following Black Friday, grinding the city to a halt. The streets are empty, stores unoccupied and the power is out in most of the city thanks to the crippling virus. Players play an elite Division agent as they try to restore order to the city along with their friends.
The first gameplay demo of the game shows a group of three friends in the DUMBO area of Brooklyn responding to an alert from a police station. The players make their way to the station to take on the thugs who took over the station and locked up the police.
During the ensuing firefight another friend joins from their iPad, or other tablet, to help the fight. The tablet player controls a drone that’s able to provide some air support and mark enemies on the battlefield. In the example show the drone highlights an enemy that’s hiding behind a billboard so the players on the ground know his exact movements.
After freeing the police officers the players get access to the station’s armory, which holds some new guns for them to take. After leaving the station they encounter another group of agents in what’s called a Dark Zone. Dark Zones are where player vs player and some player vs environment events will happen, giving the game more of an MMORPG feeling.
While the gameplay looks incredibly fun, one of the most interesting ideas the developer (Massive Games) will implement in the game is all about player matching. When they first play The Division players can tell the game what kind of gamer they are and the game will match them to other players in similar situations. For example, the game can group together gamers with small children so their group partners will understand when they have to step away for a few minutes to tend to a crying baby.
The Division will come out for next-generation consoles (presumably both the PlayStation 4 andXbox One) sometime in 2014.
Waze CEO says the value for Google is in real-time mapping and better mobile ads
Google has agreed to acquire Waze for over $1 billion, so we already knew that the social mapping service was seen as very valuable for the Mountain View company. But, now we're hearing from the Waze CEO about what he thinks is the value that his company will be able to add to Google, and most of his guesses are about what you'd expect.
The interview with Waze CEO Noam Bardin comes from Forbes, and was originally done back in January. At that time, Bardin hinted that he thought Google was the best fit of the potential suitors the company had, and he got his wish. He also said that a big part of the value of Waze for Google would be in its ability to maintain maps in real time. Bardin said that Google had invested somewhere around $15 billion to maintain its maps, whereas Waze simply relies on the crowd-sourced data from its users.
Of course, there is the value added to advertising and offers. Bardin said about Waze that, "General navigation and maps, are really the ‘search’ for mobile." And, he added that the best way to monetize ads with a mapping app is to not have monetization as the focus. The focus of Waze is to save people time, and from there: "Now that I know where you drive, I can begin offering you deals, I can begin enhancing the experience… If the goal is monetization, it doesn’t work."
There is a lot more interesting stuff in the interview if you want to check it out at the source. Bardin definitely knew where his company was going, and it paid off in a big way.
source: Forbes
Kingston MobileLite Wireless hands-on
Space these days with our mechanisms is a prime concern, particularly when we pick one that is furnished with a miniscule measure of memory, so why we're more cognizant about what we put on and keep. Actually, a few devices offer space expandability by means of microsd card spaces, however as we've come to see, its a practice that is not seen excessively by a hefty portion of today's leader gadgets. That being said, provided that you're searching for a basic result, the Kingston Mobilelite Wireless onlooker & media streamer appears as though an incredible result – considerably more when its minimized, voyage well disposed, and permits clients to offer sight and sound content on the go.
Comparable in practicality to the Kingston Wi-Drive that we checked on a year ago, the Kingston Mobilelite Wireless really doesn't have its own particular implicit space, however rather, it brags a full-measured Usb port and Sd card slotto empower us to impart content remotely to up to 3 gadgets. Superficially, we incline toward the look and style of the Wi-Drive, seeing that the Mobilelite Wireless is a little plain and dragging with its rectangular looks – and that is regardless of utilizing a metallic front board consolidated with a generally plastic figure. Pondering its size, we're amazed to discover that its lightweight and empty. Notwithstanding being a media streamer, its additionally a convenient electric storage device pack excessively, seeing that its pressing along a 1,800 mah electric storage device.
As of now, the Kingston Mobilelite Wireless is perfect to function with ios and Android units – with no saying at the minute about different stages. Utilized within conjunction with the free Mobilelite application, we basically stack the greater part of our substance (music, films, and pictures) to a Sd card or Usb streak drive, which is then pushed into the proper port in the Mobilelite Wireless unit. From that point, we can design it to function with our existing remote arrange at home, so we can begin streaming substance to our apparatuses. Seeing that it depends on 802.11 g/n Wi-Fi standard, streaming is rapidly fulfilled with scarcely any slack or postpone with its operation. Indeed, the playback nature of a 1080p film on an iphone 5 performed precisely as it does in the event that it were saved mainly.
Thinking seriously about that media survey is all completed remotely, the Mobilelite Wireless turns out to be a significant thing for those who are pressed for nearby space on their gadget. Moreover, its a slick thing to have the ability to charge our units on the go also, since it goes about as an electric cell pack as well. Favored with a $59.99price focus, it positively is well worth the venture!
source: Kingston
Comparable in practicality to the Kingston Wi-Drive that we checked on a year ago, the Kingston Mobilelite Wireless really doesn't have its own particular implicit space, however rather, it brags a full-measured Usb port and Sd card slotto empower us to impart content remotely to up to 3 gadgets. Superficially, we incline toward the look and style of the Wi-Drive, seeing that the Mobilelite Wireless is a little plain and dragging with its rectangular looks – and that is regardless of utilizing a metallic front board consolidated with a generally plastic figure. Pondering its size, we're amazed to discover that its lightweight and empty. Notwithstanding being a media streamer, its additionally a convenient electric storage device pack excessively, seeing that its pressing along a 1,800 mah electric storage device.
As of now, the Kingston Mobilelite Wireless is perfect to function with ios and Android units – with no saying at the minute about different stages. Utilized within conjunction with the free Mobilelite application, we basically stack the greater part of our substance (music, films, and pictures) to a Sd card or Usb streak drive, which is then pushed into the proper port in the Mobilelite Wireless unit. From that point, we can design it to function with our existing remote arrange at home, so we can begin streaming substance to our apparatuses. Seeing that it depends on 802.11 g/n Wi-Fi standard, streaming is rapidly fulfilled with scarcely any slack or postpone with its operation. Indeed, the playback nature of a 1080p film on an iphone 5 performed precisely as it does in the event that it were saved mainly.
Thinking seriously about that media survey is all completed remotely, the Mobilelite Wireless turns out to be a significant thing for those who are pressed for nearby space on their gadget. Moreover, its a slick thing to have the ability to charge our units on the go also, since it goes about as an electric cell pack as well. Favored with a $59.99price focus, it positively is well worth the venture!
source: Kingston
If Nokia goes with Android, they'd be a force to be reckoned with
At Computex, Acer implied that they may be discharging a Windows Phone 8 model in the first 50% of one year from now. Acer's Vp for the Emea area, Allen Burnes, hence said that raising an Acer marked Windows Phone 8 model is not likely to work out at this time. The official said that deals and volume are essential to Acer, and Android gives the comes about that the association needs. Burnes essentially said that Windows Phone should develop and that it is dependent upon Microsoft, not Acer, to get the stage through the developing torments it is sure to experience.
What the Acer official said about Finnish handset producer Nokia is truly fascinating, however. As per Burnes, Nokia is being expected again by needing to remember manufacture their own particular mark and in addition Windows Phone. He goes onto add that if Nokia chose to drop Windows Phone for Android, the Oem might be "risky" in the Android business.
Moving again to Acer's choice to stay with Android for the time being, Burnes says that Acer is not comfortable with the thought of having clients pay for applications on Windows Phone that they can get free of charge on Android. In any case an Acer marked Windows Phone model will finally come. "We're anticipating that Microsoft will do some more customer identified promoting about its Os, I suppose as the draw comes, we'll send with the handsets since the Os is exceptional," said Burnes.
What the Acer official said about Finnish handset producer Nokia is truly fascinating, however. As per Burnes, Nokia is being expected again by needing to remember manufacture their own particular mark and in addition Windows Phone. He goes onto add that if Nokia chose to drop Windows Phone for Android, the Oem might be "risky" in the Android business.
Moving again to Acer's choice to stay with Android for the time being, Burnes says that Acer is not comfortable with the thought of having clients pay for applications on Windows Phone that they can get free of charge on Android. In any case an Acer marked Windows Phone model will finally come. "We're anticipating that Microsoft will do some more customer identified promoting about its Os, I suppose as the draw comes, we'll send with the handsets since the Os is exceptional," said Burnes.
Medical Reference app UpToDate now in the Windows Phone Store
Around two months ago we reported that medical reference app UpToDate was in development for Windows Phone.
Now, I am sure to the joy of many clinicians, the app has reached the Windows Phone Store.
UpToDate is an app for clinicians to help support their decision making with evidence gathered from the latest clinical knowledge.
The app features:
The app is already in the Windows Store, and is likely the result of Microsoft’s efforts of cross-pollination the two platforms.
The app is free to download but does require a subscription to the service.
Windows Phone has a real dearth of medical apps, which makes it difficult to enter this vertical market dominated by the iPhone, making the arrival of this app very welcome.
Office for iPhone video
Microsoft has announced Office for the iPhone. The app, as demoed in the video above, seems about on par with the windows phone version, though it does appear somewhat more cloud integrated, allowing users for example to see documents they recently viewed on the desktop on their phone, ideal for continuing work you started in the office on the move, and also allowing keeping track of the position you last read a document so you can seamlessly switch from one device to another.
The app is only available to those who subscribe to Office365, which costs about $8 per month and has a bit more than 1 million users. It therefore seems a rather good move for Microsoft to serve the diversity of their paying users.
Read more about the app at Microsoft-news.com here.
Are our readers worried the move will hurt Windows Phone adoption? Let us know below.
Acer Aspire R7 Review
The Acer machine you're going to see is noticeably interesting – its got what the gathering calls an "Ezel" pivot, made to extend the units capacities past that of the normal note pad or desktop. Here we're utilizing Windows 8 within consolidation with Acer's fittings to add a different section to the informal List of Touchscreen Computer Configurations, this time with a presentation that climbs, overlap back, and comes to be practically level, lifts up and sits vertical or flat, and in one specific setup looks strikingly comparable to the U.s.s. Endeavor from Star Trek.
Hardware
Like the past several waves of Acer hardware we’ve reviewed, this PC is solid. It’s ready to be a home computer, work computer, or student computer for presentations, touchscreen games, and everything in-between. What it’s best at is looking and feeling unique: this computer really is like no other.
That doesn’t mean it’s going to be the ideal choice for any random user. The Acer Aspire R7 is a unique computer looking for a unique individual. If you’re looking for a high-powered hero machine that’s thin and ready to travel, Acer has an Aspire S7 Ultrabook you might want to take a peek at. The Aspire R7, on the other hand, is made for larger jobs.
This unit works with a 1920 x 1080 pixel resolution 15-inch display (that’s 141 PPI) with some lovely viewing angles that allow us to see clearly from whatever side we’re on. Again, this device would suit someone who often gives presentations quite well. The version we’ve got works with a 3rd generation Intel Core i5 processor, and you’ve got the option of working with an i7 if you want to ramp up a bit.
It’s the hinge that really makes this machine stand out, of course, but not just because it allows the display to flip backward. Acer employs some rather bafflingly strong hinge hardware here, allowing the display to sit at any angle in-between full back or full forward. Have a peek at our hands-on presentation of this bit here to see what it means to work with this device:
As this device was made with Windows 8 in mind, Acer has made a rather interesting bet with the configuration of the lower half of the computer as well. While normally you’d have your touchpad below the keyboard, this amalgamation has the two flipped. Because when you pull your display down close to the keyboard, you’ve got the whole display to touch, this notebook does away with the necessity for said touchpad.
In practice, this is difficult to get used to. When you purchase a machine like this, you go in expecting a brand new experience, and you do get one – that said, it’s not long before the flip becomes less of a chore and more of a point of pride – the flip also keeps your wrists away from the computer: they shouldn’t be there anyway.
The keyboard is standard, comparable to what Acer has offered with their entire 2013 range, here working and feeling like best-in-class architecture for the fingers. The touchpad itself is also quite nice – easily one of the best the company has put forth, both inside and out of Windows 8.
System - Acer Aspire R7-571
| Manufacturer | Acer | Product Type | Laptop |
| Operating System | Microsoft Windows 8 (64-bit) | ||
| Motherboard | Acer Ezel_CX | ||
| Processor | Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-3337U CPU @ 1.80GHz | ||
| Processor ID | GenuineIntel Family 6 Model 58 Stepping 9 | ||
| Processor Frequency | 1.80 GHz | Processors | 1 |
| Threads | 4 | Cores | 2 |
| L1 Instruction Cache | 32.0 KB | L1 Data Cache | 32.0 KB |
| L2 Cache | 256 KB | L3 Cache | 3.00 MB |
| Memory | 5.82 GB DDR3 SDRAM 799MHz | FSB | 99.8 MHz |
| BIOS | Insyde Corp. V2.04 | ||
Along the edges you’ve got two USB 3.0, one USB 2.0, full-size HDMI out, combo headphone/mic jack, and a secure digital memory slot. The Acer Aspire R7 as we’ve got it configured here starts in stores at around $999 USD, and the Core i7 iteration will cost just a bit more.
Software
The Windows 8 build you’re working with inside this computer works with essentially the same software we’ve seen several times this year from Acer, that being all the basic build from Microsoft along with several Acer security and cloud-based applications. See our Acer Aspire S7 Review for a software experience that’s essentially the same app-for-app you’re getting here.
Everything does run smoothly, and as far as an i5-toting machine goes, Acer’s constructed one of the finest on the market here. Acer continues to solidify itself as one of the most reliable hardware manufacturers on the market with their Windows-toting machines, and an oddity like this serves to make that notion solid.
Below you’re seeing our standard Geekbench-based benchmark showing the Acer Aspire R7 to kick out a total score of 7116. This device’s cousin, the Acer Aspire S7 (with Intel Core i7 processor from the same 3rd generation Ivy Bridge line as this machine’s i5 core) came in with a score of 8100. In the end, these benchmark scores do no tell the whole story, of course.
Benchmark Score - Acer Aspire R7-571
| Section | Description | Score | Total Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windows x86 (64-bit) - Microsoft Windows 8 (64-bit) | |||
| Integer | Processor integer performance | 5019 | 7116 |
| Floating Point | Processor floating point performance | 9517 | |
| Memory | Memory performance | 6778 | |
| Stream | Memory bandwidth performance | 6729 | |
Both machines have proven themselves to be more than up to the task of everyday work and the playing of music and movies with ease. They’re also very, very different machines when you consider the ways their displays flip every which way.
As a bit of a bonus, it seems, Acer has also included a quick link to a built-in video which lets you know each of the many different ways this computer’s display can turn. Just so you’re aware, and can make it happen with ease.
Battery Life
At the moment, battery life on the Acer Aspire R7 isn’t especially fantastic. The size of this machine and perhaps the necessities in the neck make keeping battery life high a bit lower on the priority list for Acer – especially since this notebook is meant to be, at least in part, a desktop computer. If you’re streaming video and/or processing anything large, the Acer Aspire R7 will bring the user right around 5 hours of battery life. Expect to bring the wall charger with when you travel.
Wrap-up
The Acer Aspire R7 is a standout amongst the most extraordinary machines available today. Acer substantiates themselves as being not just a reputable accepted manufacturer of note pads with this unit, yet one that is strong enough to make peculiarities like this moreover. For that, Acer should be complimented.
The extent that how well this machine will serve the general population in genuine utilize: that is somewhat more challenging to tell. This journal is unquestionably one you'll need to head into a showroom carpet to have a run with before you buy, that much is sure. It might end up being excessively abnormal for you to need to upset: however it could great astound you as a spot of equipment that is just what you require.
Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare coming spring 2014
Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare was unveiled during E3 2013 this week, but unlike the first Plants vs. Zombies and the sequel coming July 18, Garden Warfare will be a third-person shooter themed after the series, which makes sense, seeing how the title of the game is a play on the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare series.
The game will be headed exclusively to the Xbox One and the Xbox 360 at launch sometime in the spring next year. However, it’ll be making its way to the PC and other platforms afterward. This will be the first time that the series will depart from its tower defense roots in favor of a third-person shooter approach.
The game will feature up to 4-player co-op, as well as 24-player competitive modes. There will also be new characters, and it looks like you’ll be able to compete on both the plant side and the zombie side and play as practically any plant you want. There are even flying onions that mimic helicopters, although we’re not sure what they do yet.
Both plants and zombies can be customized with hundreds of unique items and customizations. Details on what kind of upgrades and items that you’ll have at your disposal isn’t said, but hopefully there will be different weapons and armor of sorts, as well as different perks just like in the Call of Duty games, but we’ll have to wait and see.
We already know that Plants vs. Zombies 2 will be coming July 18 exclusively on iOS at first (with more platforms to come). That game will essentially be the same genre as the first title, but it will come with more plants and new zombies to try and kill off before they reach your house. Needless to say, Plants vs. Zombies 2 should be enough to hold us over until next spring.
VIA: Toon Zone
Galaxy S 4 Gold and Platinum-plated editions suggest Goldgenie’s faith in Samsung
The Samsung Galaxy S 4 has seen its fair share of editions since its launch earlier this year, but none come close to the extravagance of the Gold, Platinum, and Rose Gold versions appearing customized by Goldgenie. This company is known for their hyping-up of devices of many types, making it clear with each choice of pre-customized model that they’ve got enough faith in its popularity that they’ll make their mark on a broad scale. With the Samsung Galaxy S 4, the first non-Apple, non-BlackBerry device comes to the goldsmith.
This isn't, then again, the first run through the association has gold or platinum-plated an apparatus outside of Blackberry or Apple. They've additionally made with the plating on the definitive Nintendo Wii, the definitive Nintendo Ds, and the Xbox 360. They've not endeavored with any Playstation models or the Wii U thusly.
In a deliberation to be as novel as would be prudent, no doubt, this group has made some iphones plated in gold and additionally a "strong gold" iphone passing by the name Solid Gold Superstar or Superstar Ice iphone 5. This unit works with either 200 grams of strong 18ct. gold on its own or – if the client chooses they have to go more distant than this – the gold in addition to 364 jewels, equalling out to be 5.5 carats in sum. The precious stones can additionally be exchanged out for "any valuable stone you require", as its been said.
The Samsung Galaxy S 4 will run right around seventeen hundred British pounds, otherwise known as two thousand, six hundred dollars here in the Usa. That is the expense of the telephone without the gold plating numerous times over: in the mean time those brilliant and precious stone encrusted iphones will run in the six-digit extent.
This isn't the first we've become aware of deceiving out cell phones as being what is indicated – Goldgenie is additionally absolutely not the main association that makes peculiarities, for example this. Fruit allegedly spoke with the association Vertu quite recently about how conceivable it would've been to function with Sapphire Crystal Display glass on the iphone (its not, as you may have guessed).
The crew at Vertu carries machines, for example jewel encrusted iphones moreover – that one taking a toll a cool 15 million bucks.
Resemble a sensible kind of scenario to you? Do you suppose it an exceptional thought to make your cell phone (or tablet, or whatever available gadget) worth much more than its weight in gold, so to talk? There's just no close to the plausible outcomes regarding the matter of applying fine metals to the metals we utilize each day – that is for sure.
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