Paki Tech Reviews: IBA Netbook

The institute of Business Administration has offered to its students a Netbook computer carrying the IBA logo. The Netbook is manufactured by a generic manufacturer out of China and the Netbook is available in two variants carrying different specs and somewhat different color choices. The price points for the entry level netbook with a 1.6GHz Intel Atom processor, 1GB DDRII RAM, 160GB HDD and a 10.1" LCD Display is PKR 17,000 and the price point for the upper end model with a 1.6GHz Intel Atom processor, 2GB DDRII RAM, 250GB HDD and a 10.1" LCD Display is 23,750. As per the interest of the IBA students, here is a quick video review of the IBA Netbook.

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Automobile Branded Phones…. The Lap of Luxury!!!

I’m sure you’ve all heard the phrase “boys and their toys”, this post is exactly about that. To most guys who grow up with a poster of a supercar on their bedroom wall, this post is relevant. And if you are a hyper-ultra-super-cool girl who can relate… this one’s for you too. 

See us boys grow up thinking primarily about two things in our heads, cars and gadgets (that is of course when we are not thinking about the fairer sex). And any and every opportunity in life that we get of purchasing either one is a day of joy for us, some much more so than others depending on the magnitude of the purchase. Ofcourse there is this fantasy list of cars that most of us (who have both our feet on the ground) only dream of acquiring. Us boys never miss out on an opportunity to praise and appreciate these marvelous pieces of machinery. 

But for those selected lucky few who have their fair share of ridiculous amounts of riches, these fantasy cars are items they can actually own. Keeping in mind these ultra-rich people and their lavish spending habits, certain companies came up with ideas to further temp their buying behaviors. In the pursuit for more cool toys for the super-rich, many different companies launched very expensive, limited edition Cell phones with “Automotive Branding”. Just like the super cool cars whose logos these phones carry, they tend to be super cool and highly desirable gadgets themselves. 

This post however is dedicated to the average guys. Guys who appreciate and admire the beauty and marvel associated with all the cool cars even though they do not own them. Here is for your viewing pleasure, these beautiful gadgets that have a little piece of the soul of the car they resemble stuck in them.  Enjoy!!!

TAG HEUER LAMBORGHINI MERIDIIST:

Adorned in metal and expensive leather, this beauty is a collaboration between the watch maker Tag Heuer and the Italian Supercar maker Lamborghini.

 

VERTU FERRARI:

Premium phone maker Vertu is renowned the world over for making some of the finest and most expensive cell phones in the world. This Ferrari branded cell phone is a remarkable piece of technology adorned with the same leather used on the seats of Ferrari's cars. 

 

MOBIADO ASTON MARTIN:

A luxury phone maker from Canada named Mobiado brings this beautiful piece of hardware adored in precious metal and carrying the endorsement of an equally classy automobile, the British Aston Martin.

SAGEM PORSCHE DESIGN:

Designed exclusively by Porsche itself, this phone is manufactured by a company called Sagem. The phone may lack some latest features present in smartphones, but surely does not lack the appeal.

ASUS MERCEDES BENZ:

In collaboration with the up and coming PC and tablet manufacturer ASUS, the German automaker Mercedes Benz brings a phone adorned with the Benz logo and Windows Mobile OS.

SHARP MERCEDES MCLAREN GX29:

In keeping the Formula 1 spirit alive, sharp has developed a phone that carries the West McLaren Mercedes Formula 1 racing team logo and the color scheme of the silver arrows.

FLY HUMMER HT2

The rugged American brand of Hummer is not to be left behind. Although not carrying such a premium image, the rugged phone called the HT2 is manufactured by a company called FLY and falls directly in line with the image of the Hummer H2 SUV.

Seagate GoFlex..... External HDD, WIRELESS!!!

If you follow the trends in technology even remotely, it would be very hard for you to miss one undeniable fact; Wireless is the new way to go. A majority of things that were only possible in the past through conventional wires are now shifting towards the new wireless realm of tangle free information sharing. Wireless internet, wireless music, wireless video all have become new parts of the modern home network. And why shouldn’t they be, going wireless brings with it the great advantage of expansion anywhere without having to worry about laying down wires and cables, and considering the rate at which “Over-the-air” medium is becoming mainstream, the quality and speed of the transferred data would be equally at par with conventional mediums.

On another side of technological things, as more and more media devices become a part of our daily life our tendency and desire to consume content continues to grow. What could previously only be watched on the family television is now available through your PC screen, your multimedia phone, your tablet PC, your netbook and a myriad of other gadgets. Plus as things advance, more and more importance is being directed towards the quality of digital media, where high definition audio and video are now the name of the game. One thing worth noting however is that high definition media digital media requires much more storage space than lower quality standard definition media. This brings us to our next point, in today’s times hard disk storage is something you can never have enough of!!!

So, on one hand you have so many wireless devices like your ipad, iphone and your netbooks that are great at playing digital media, but unluckily don’t come with huge amounts of onboard memory to store your large collection of digital media and files. On the other hand, you have hard disk space and external storage becoming more and more affordable every day, yet hardly anything is being done about bridging the gap between your portable media devices and your external hard drives. It is sad to see that so many of today’s external hard drives lack the flexibility of being plugged into a portable media device. Well, just like it always has, advancement in technology brings you yet another solution and another way to make your digital lives easier. Seagate just released its brand new, well thought-out and here to solve your digital storage conundrum, WIRELESS EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE called the Seagate GoFlex Satellite Mobile Wireless Storage!!!

The GoFlex Satellite Wireless houses a built-in wireless transmitter that broadcasts a signal that can be acquired by any device with wireless b/g/n capabilities. Once connected, the hard drive is able to transmit its stored data wirelessly to any connected device. For instance, if the GoFlex Satellite is linked up with an iPad, all the digital media stored on the hard disk can now be streamed directly on the iPad. So whereas the iPad initially could have had only up to 64GB of storage, now it can utilize the full 500GB of storage extended to it by the GoFlex Satellite HDD.

Since the GoFlex runs wirelessly without the luxury of drawing power from the USB port on a PC, it houses rechargeable batteries good for up to 5 hours of operation or 25 hours of stand-by time. Additionally, for those days when a 5 hour charge just won’t be enough, it also houses the regular USB connectivity supporting the ultra speedy USB 3.0 Interface. Because of the additional added hardware, the GoFlex Satellite HDD tends to be a little bit bulkier than the standard 2.5” portable HDD, but not so much that it may become a chore to carry. The portability of the GoFlex Satellite is still very manageable.  

The price may be on the higher end of things right now, but with the convenience and features this hard drive brings, it is worth the extra amounts of cash. Availability in Pakistan is not confirmed at the time of writing, but as this is a mainstream product, it should be available in Pakistan in the near future if not already available. The device nonetheless comes highly recommended for people with large libraries of digital media, on the go lifestyles and/or a lot of digital devices with Wifi connectivity.

Here is a quick video overview of the product done by Amazon.com:

Samsung Chromebook…. Clouded by Google!!!

Google just got done with Google I/O 2011, a summit that is all things Google. During the week Google decided to bombard its followers and the world with wave after wave of new announcements on all fronts. Major areas included new online services, android and it’s supporting hardware and new developments in along the lines of its Chrome OS!!! Yes, not only merely a browser now, Google has decided to bring the chrome browser experience into a full blown OS for PCs.

Google has been heavily invested into the trend of cloud computing where the idea is that your world will exist online and not locally. The idea is that any and everything that you may want to do be it looking at pictures, watching movies, listening to songs or maintaining your office work, online services should help you achieve that feat with no need for locally housed software or data. To sum it all up, your digital world will now exist in this online cloud of information.

After Google realized that the Chrome Browser was well received with its light footprint and fast performance, they reached out further to incorporate all these capabilities into an Operating system appropriately named Chrome OS. This OS is based on the idea of the same minimalistic approach and the light footprint. Basically, with this OS, not a lot is happening locally, the OS is highly dependent on the cloud we just mentioned. Data, Applications and most other stuff is stored remotely on Google servers. And to house this new OS, you obviously need some new hardware, so the two together can form a great combination of light weight agility and performance. Hence, with respect to the already strong partnership with Samsung in terms of Galaxy S and Android, and in light of the new Chrome OS, Google announced the brand new Samsung Series 5 Chromebook!!!

With a name like Chromebook, you can already tell what the new notebook is all about. This machine is based on Google's Chrome OS providing a very unique experience. There are a number of factors that differentiate it from all the other notebooks in the market. First time out of the box, the machine is up and running in less than 3 Minutes!!! And if you’re one of the active users of chrome, all your stuff will be automatically there through chrome sync… How instant turn-on is that? In addition, when you boot up, you boot right into the chrome browser and it takes just a quick eight (8) seconds every time you boot up your Chromebook. Yes 8 second startup time!!!

The Chromebook comes with an Intel Atom Dual Core 1.66Ghz processor, so you can judge that the quick startup times are note due to extremely powerful hardware on board; the speed is remarkable because there is nothing stored locally on the Chromebook and all your data is backed up to the cloud. You can access a number of applications and games through the Chrome Web Store much like the so increasingly popular Android Marketplace. Google has also enabled a number of its applications that can be accessed offline too on the Chromebook like Gmail, Google calendar and Google Docs.

Another outstanding feature of this Chromebook is that the battery can last up to 8.5 Hours. Yes 8.5 hours!!! So you won’t need to carry your chargers with you all the time. The Samsung Chromebook is designed for always-on and always-connected computing experience with seamless connectivity 24/7. Also Google claims that the Chromebook will only get better and faster with time. Google stated that Just like with its updates on chrome browsers, Google will keep updating the chrome OS automatically every few weeks.

The Chromebook comes with a HD webcam and noise cancelling microphone to provide great video and call quality for online interactions. With a 12.1 inch display, this is a very thin and easy to carry around machine. Samsung even gives you a color choice between white and dark silver. The Chromebook houses two USB 2.0 ports, a 4-in-1 memory card slot, mini-VGA port, full-sized Chrome keyboard and an oversize fully clickable multi-touch pad with 2GB RAM. The pricing of the Chromebook is near to that of the basic iPad and some pretty capable Netbooks with more capability and flexibility. One limitation of this new machine could be the fact that the browser is limited to Chrome and the experience revolves around Chrome apps only as no real software is running on it.

The Chromebook on paper and in theory sounds like a sure shot winner. With fast boot-up times, everything automatically backed up on online servers and the versatility and support of the Big G, but reality might be a little bit different. Speculations have already been made by many experts that the Chromebook is destined for failure. The idea that consumers use their netbooks and laptops for much more than just online activities, demonstrates the categories in which the Chromebook is severely lacking. Considering the Pakistani consumer, a laptop or a netbook is often the only PC that one owns and unlike many more developed markets, constant wifi and unhindered internet access are luxuries not yet extended to the Pakistani masses in general. Taking this into account and pitting it up against the idea behind the development of the Chromebook raises serious doubts about the desirability of the Chromebook in Pakistan. Our serious advice is to wait and see how thing develop in the Pakistani region before getting too excited about the Chromebook. But as far as the western markets are concerned, Im sure Google must have thought about it extensively before making this move, how it pans out… only time will tell.

Samsung Series 9…. Macbook Air, BEWARE!!!

From recent developments, it seems like one of Samsung’s near future goals is to go after Apple and its products. To give credit where it is due, Samsung has so far done a better than expected job to say the least. Take into account the Samsung Galaxy S lineup of Smartphones that was launched as a worthy alternative to the iPhone. With a great features, hardware and software, the Galaxy S lineup outsold the iPhone in many regions of the world. Also consider the Galaxy S tablets that were pitted against the iPad, they didn’t pose as serious a threat to Apple as Samsung would have hoped. 

This time around, Samsung has decided to jump out of the Smartphone and Tablet arenas and go after the premium laptop lineup in which Apple is a highly regarded player. Samsung has always been a player in the laptop segment often churning out decent laptops and netbooks, but this time around they have targeted a specific niche in which Apple right now reigns supreme. This niche is of the ultrathin ultraportable laptops and the leader in this category right now is the Macbook Air. 

 

Ultrathin, ultraportable laptops are nowhere in the same category as regular netbooks. These devices have premium build quality, high performance processors and all the same high end specifications found in regular laptops all packed into super thin and very light bodies. Samsung very recently released two laptops that can be classified into this ultrathin ultraportable category and has decided to call the lineup “Series 9”.

Taking into account the new pattern by Samsung of going after Apple products, it was no surprise to see that the two laptop variants come in 13.3” and 11.6” sizes, which happen to be the exact same as the two variants offered for Macbook Air. Other similarities include an ultrathin design for the Series 9 laptops, which measure 0.64” compared to the Macbook Air’s 0.68” at the thickest point. The body of the Series 9 laptops is also made out entirely of aluminum just like the Macbook Air which gives it a premium look and feel. Samsung refers to the material used as “Duralumin” and claims that it is twice as strong as regular aluminum. It is however noteworthy that the Series 9 body is not a uni-body design like the Macbook Air which has a body carved out of a single block of aluminum. Finally another similarity is in the form of a Solid-State Hard Drive, of which Samsung can support a 64GB or a 128GB model. The Macbook Air in comparison has the option of a 256GB version for a decent chunk of extra cash. 

All similarities apart, there are quite a few differences in the Series 9 models that set it apart as well. This time around, Samsung doesn’t want to play catch-up to Apple; rather it wants to beat Apple and hence has decided to take some considerable steps to raise the desirability of the Series 9. First and foremost, the most notable feature is that Series 9 laptops house the new and faster Intel i3 and i5 series processors compared to the Macbook Air’s Core 2 Duo processors. Additionally, the Series 9 laptops have the latest USB 3.0 ports available whereas the Macbook Air is still carrying the older USB 2.0 ports. This does not seem to be a major concern at the moment as USB 3.0 has only recently started rolling out, but may become an issue when more and more devices with USB 3.0 support come out. Another noteworthy feature is in terms of mobility, since these are ultraportable devices after all. Samsung has included a WiMax 4G option that may enable wireless data support on the go. This feature may seem useless right now in Pakistan as 4G support is not available but would be a feature to help future-proof your significant investment. 

Some other noteworthy features include the ability to expand the RAM to a maximum of 8GB compared to Macbook Air’s 4GB. The battery life tends to last a little longer than the Macbook Air’s, but this difference is negligible at times. The Series 9 laptops come with a built-in Ethernet port whereas you have to use a USB to Ethernet adapter for the Macbook Air. Also out of the box the Series 9 laptops have a faster startup time compared to the Macbook Air, but shutdown and standby recovery time for the Series 9 laptops are much longer. The Series 9 laptops come with Windows 7 preloaded and the OS comparison with OS X is a story for another day completely. The Series 9 laptops have a LED backlit keyboard whereas the Macbook Air does not.

All in all, if you are a hardcore PC enthusiast and scoff at Apple products, this would be a sure shot winner. In contrast, the same could be said about Apple fan boys who would consider this a knockoff without the Apple soul.  But for those in the middle, this should be taken exactly at face value: A worthy competitor to the Macbook Air. With pricing being more or less along the same lines, it becomes a matter of requirements, preference and perception. I would have to state that when it comes to OS choice, the Macbook Air has an advantage, as it is capable of running both the Mac OS and Windows 7 natively.  Also one thing that makes more consumers lean towards Apple products is because their brand resonates more strongly amongst consumers compared to Samsung’s brand.

Official Website: www.Samsung.com
Image Courtesy: www.LaptopMag.com

Top 5 Gadgets... For SOCCER Fans!!!

Even though the Pakistani team does not do really well in the international rankings, soccer is still a highly regarded sport in Pakistan with an ever increasing number of fans. Be it International games, the English Premier League or the Champions League, fans stay glued to television sets and cheer for their respective teams with a whole lot of passion.

Now I may not be an avid follower of the game but I know quite a few people who are. Also some of these avid soccer fans happen to be techies at the same time. I saw a swarm of status updates, tweets and text messages being sent after the recent Manchester United game. This is where the idea also came in. I think this would be an appropriate time to show off some cool gadgets that may cater to your tech needs while clearly displaying your love for the game. Mind you that if you go overboard with this, people may just plainly find you weird so choose selectively if you have to. There is no word on availability in Pakistan of some of the products, but if you are a hardcore fan, I’m sure you can figure out ways to get your hands on the stuff by alternate means. Here are some interesting ones nonetheless:

High Definition LCD Television

 

iPod / iPhone Dock and Speakers

USB Mouse

USB Flash Storage

Web Cam

Custom Laptop / Netbook Skins

This last one was particularly interesting to me because it is not really a gadget per se but it offers unlimited ways of customizing your laptop or netbook with your favorite team's logo or high resolution pictures. You can have your favorite images printed through www.dexpel.com. This Pakistani based company offers this service at very affordable rates and should be checked out. I would like to however mention that I have not personally tried  this service and am not in any way shape or form sponsored by them.

Get Noticed... USB Drives That Stand Out!!!

Are you riding the tide of mediocrity when it comes to your gadgets or do you prefer to make a statement? When it comes to portable data storage three things come to mind, capacity, price and speed. However, what most of us do not take into consideration is the aesthetics and form factor of our USB drives.

Sure we use these little devices to carry around and transfer our important files everyday, but this is all we take these devices to be; just regular storage gadgets. Well with this post I bring to you a different perspective where even your USB drive can make a statement and help you display your true tech colors. After all there is hardly any point in being mainstream!!!

 GUITAR SHAPED USB DRIVE

KEY SHAPED SLIM USB DRIVE

LIGHTER & USB DRIVE

SWISS ARMY KNIFE USB DRIVE

HUMAN THUMB SHAPED USB DRIVE

TRANSFORMER USB DRIVE

REVOLVER SHAPED USB DRIVE

 

And last but not the least, made out of gold and encrusted diamonds, one of the

MOST EXPENSIVE USB DRIVE 

Sharp Aquos 3D Phone… Japan Still TOP DOG!!!

It was sad to see Japan go through all the recent devastation caused by the earthquakes and the tsunamis. Speculations were made that Japan had taken severe blows in every sector and that it would fall back on industrial production and tech development as well. An interesting news article stated that due the events, microchip production had taken a hit and due to the shortage, the prices and growth in the sector would be affected. Well I guess those speculations were laid to rest, because as it seems, Japan is still the hub of all the latest and greatest consumer electronics and the Japanese masses have the luxury of buying products that haven’t been released elsewhere in the world.

One such gadget that was brought to my attention was a new, very powerful and feature packed Smartphone made by Sharp. Yes Sharp!! Believe it or not, Sharp has been making phones for the longest and has an extensive lineup. The phones made by Sharp have not really made a significant impact in the world of mobile phones. Well that is to change come the 20^th of May in Japan.

 

Since 3D has been the craze in the world of tech these days, every manufacturer is racing to join the category. Since Sharp makes pretty decent televisions under the Aquos lineup, they decided to integrate that same technology into making a Smarphone as well. Hence the Sharp Aquos SH-12C has been scheduled to be released (exclusively in Japan for now) on the 20^th of May. 

What makes this phone so much more special is not the fact that it can display 3D images on its 4.2” screen, that feature already exists in the LG Optimus 3D, but the fact that it will be the first Smartphone by any manufacturer in the world capable of recording 3D video in HD. The Sharp Aquos phone includes 2 8MP cameras on the back which allow it to record 3D video at 720p resolution. The only other device allowing 3D video recording right now is the LG G-Slate Tablet (Click here for Review), but that is a tablet and not a Smartphone. 

Other noteworthy features include a 1.4GHz processor that is powerful enough to support the 3D video recording and the latest version of Android OS (2.3 Gingerbread). What is most interesting is the fact that Sharp has made the claim that consumers will be able to view 3D images on the phone’s display without the need for 3D glasses. That in itself is a first for any 3D mobile phone and definitely worth a pat on the back. 

Finally, what it means for Pakistan is that even though the phone will not be available to the rest of the world just yet, the prospects of 3D enabled devices becoming readily available and affordable are just around the corner. Ofcourse it is only a matter of time before Sharp releases this beast onto the rest of the world, so stay tuned…

Spy Gadgets…. You, A Secret Agent!!!

There are an infinite number of ways in which technology affects our lives. While some parts of technology are integrated into our daily lifestyles and we simply take them for granted, others are far-fetched ideas and uber cool gadgets that simply leave us fascinated and fantasizing.

I am sure we’ve all watched our fair share of spy and secret agent movies where savvy government agents use state-of-the-art gadgets to outsmart, outmaneuver and outperform their foes. These ultra high tech gadgets leave us thinking, what if we could get our hands on them? How would we create havoc with super cool spy gadgets?

Well, I’ve got some good news on two fronts!!! Firstly, because of the rate at which tech progresses in today’s world, some variants of these futuristic spy gadgets are now available to the average consumer. This fact, combined with our fascination with stalking people has brought us a range of readily available spy gadgets. How creative you get with them and how you use them is absolutely a matter of choice, but here is a list of some interesting gadgets that could make you your very own Bond!!!

HIDDEN CAMERAS

For times you just cant afford to miss out on that priceless moment without being noticed !!!

  CAP CAMERA

 

BELT CLIP CAMERA

 

KEY CHAIN CAMERA

 

LIGHTER CAMERA

HIDDEN VOICE RECORDERS

For times when you want to remember everything you and others said !!!

WRIST WATCH VOICE RECORDER

 

 PEN VOICE RECORDER

SOFT DRINK CAN VOICE RECORDER

HARDWARE PC KEY LOGGERS

These little devices can be connected to a PC's Keyboard wire to record every single keystroke!!!

STANDARD PS2 KEY LOGGER

 

KEY LOGGER WITH WIFI TRANSMISSION

 

BUG DETECTORS

 

 These devices are for the counter-spies who want to locate devices being used against them!!!

NIGHT VISION EQUIPMENT

This technology is becoming more and more affordable everyday and is super cool to use!!!