Apple prepares venue for iPhone 5 media event

Product announcements are an occasion to celebrate, and some of them are comparable to iconic music concerts that take place the world over. Every year, when Apple gets ready to showcase a product, the venue gets a lot of attention because titbits of information about the announcement are revealed during the venue preparations. Apple's announcements of iOS 5 last year and iOS 6 this year got confirmed from the banners at the venue indicating this. Another reason Apple venue preparations garner a lot of attention is that Apple is very secretive before an announcement. Though it is all but confirmed that this year Apple will launch the iPhone 5 at the September 12 media event, setting the stage for the event is still getting a lot of media attention. A colourful set up CNET has posted a range of images showcasing the preparations taking place at the Yerba Buena center in San Francisco, the venue where Apple is hosting its upcoming media event. From the looks of it, Apple appears to employ a very colourful theme. While this may be just the concept or colour scheme used for the event, it could also imply that Apple is planning to showcase a product that comes in a variety of colours.  The next iPhone is expected to take centre stage at the Apple event, but it is also widely rumoured that Apple will unveil its next generation iPods too. Apple has recently launched its iPod nano portable media players in a bunch of colours and this could indicate that this will be the case too.  There is also a slim possibility that the new iPhone could come in more than two colours, but it is highly unlikely as part leaks have shown the device in only black and white colours. Almost ready In the weeks that have led up to the Apple event, competitors such as Samsung, Motorola and Nokia have all launched high end handsets to compete with the Apple iPhone 5. Samsung have recently unveiled the Galaxy Note II, a smartphone with a 5.5-inch display, runs on Google’s latest Android operating system, a quad-core processor, and a range of other impressive technology that can easily compete with the best in the business.  Motorola took the wraps off a range of Razr handsets and Nokia unveiled two smartphones running on the Windows Phone 8 platform. Lumia 920, the flagship handset from Nokia, comes equipped with the brand's PureView technology that has some advancement such as optical image stabilisation. Another major smartphone brand, HTC is also set to host an event of its own. It is expected that HTC too will display handsets running on the Windows Phone 8 OS. There is also a possibility that it may launch the HTC One X+, the specifications of which have recently surfaced.  Let us know your thoughts on the recent smartphone launches, and if you think the launch by Apple will be able to overshadow them all.

Intel hiring software experts for new tablet team

Intel is hiring software experts for a new tablet-centric software team, as per a new job listingposted on LinkedIn. The listing details openings for several senior positions on the team, which will be responsible for technology architecture as well as marketing and dealing with suppliers and customers, Reuters reported. The company states that it is looking for people with experience in development and architecture of Windows, wireless and cameras. The job listing reads, “The Intel tablet SW team is in the early forming stages and presents an opportunity to play a key role in building the IA tablet platform SW foundation and creation of SW technologies to deliver exciting new experiences to consumers. Responsibilities include partnering with key Intel customers, independent technology suppliers, marketing, engineering management and senior architects from multiple Intel disciplines to negotiate, design, and lead implementation of a wide range of high complexity features and systems.” Intel keen on developing its own software for tablets Reuters quoted an Intel spokesperson as saying, “Intel is constantly hiring and the jobs advertised this week would expand Intel's existing bench of tablet software experts.” It seems Intel is giving greater importance to focusing in-house on software as optimised software makes sure its chips work efficiently. The company has been preparing for months for the launch of tablets running Microsoft's new Windows 8 platform. Due for launch in late October, Windows 8 offers touch-screen features and is central to Intel's tablet strategy. Device manufacturers are working on more than 20 potential Windows 8 tablets powered by Intel's Clover Trail mobile chip as well as others using recently launched PC processors, Chief Executive Paul Otellini told analysts on a conference call in July. The news of this job listing comes in the wake of Intel cutting its third-quarter revenue estimate more than expected due to a decline in demand for its chips as customers reduce inventories and businesses buy fewer personal computers. Intel might be looking to tap the growing smartphone and tablet markets where companies like ARM Holdings, Qualcomm and Samsung Electronics have the lead in supplying chips. Intel processors are used in 80 percent of the world's PCs, but the company has been slow to adapt its chips for smartphones and tablets. Intel also said it was scaling back capital spending as a result of the business slowdown. Intel's stock fell 3.6 percent, and shares of ASML and other companies that make chip-manufacturing equipment also lost ground. A revision of Intel targets had been anticipated by some analysts after PC makers Hewlett Packard and Dell Inc warned of slow demand last month, a development that has been compounded by a shaky global economy and consumers shifting toward tablets and smartphones.

Samsung may unveil a dual-SIM Galaxy Note II

Samsung has recently taken the wraps off its second generation phablet, the Galaxy Note II, and the dust around the announcement is yet to settle. Even though the brand has just announced its second generation Galaxy Note, it appears that it is preparing a variant of it with dual-SIM capabilities. 

This information comes via Unwired View, which sourced it from MyDrivers. Apparently this dual-SIM Galaxy Note II will be heading to China first. As per the report, the author Staska states, “After the unexpected success of the first Samsung Galaxy Note phablet, Samsung is getting even more serious about Galaxy Note II. Especially when it comes to what is fast becoming the world’s biggest smartphone market – China. Galaxy Note II for the rest of the world was announced a week ago in Berlin. But for China, Samsung has a special version of the second generation Note, with dual-SIM dual standby support.”

A variant of the Galaxy Note II in the works

From the leaked image we can see that there are three card slots at the back, one for a MicroSD card, one for a regular-sized SIM card, and one for a micro-SIM. It is believed that the rest of the device remains unchanged with all the other specifications being the same as those the Galaxy Note II.

Here is a quick look at the highlighted features of the Samsung Galaxy Note II:

• 5.5-inch Super AMOLED touchscreen with a 1280 x 720 pixel density
• 4G LTE, EDGE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n (2.4 and 5GHz), Wi-Fi HT40, NFC
• GPS with GLONASS and A-GPS support
• Bluetooth v4.0 with USB 2.0 Host
• 8 megapixel AF/ Touchfocus camera with full HD video recording and playback, 1.9MP VT Camera, BSI front facing camera
• 16GB, 32GB and 64GB versions, all with expandable support up to 64GB
• 2GB RAM
• MHL for AV out

Apart from the fact that the Samsung Galaxy Note II features Android v4.1 (Jelly Bean) out of the box, and is powered by a 1.6GHz quad-core processor, the major talking point about the Galaxy Note II is that it features an all-new Air View feature.

Samsung states that Air View allows users to hover with the S Pen over an email, S Planner, image gallery, or video to preview the content without having to open it. This feature enables users to quickly search and see more information in one view without screen transitions.

The brand has redesigned the S-Pen and Samsung states that the new S Pen is longer, thicker and ergonomically designed for the perfect grip. Therefore, it provides a more precise, comfortable, and natural writing and drawing experience.

NEWS / POINT AND SHOOT Fujifilm announces X-E1 camera in India for Rs. 70,000

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After announcing the highly acclaimed X-Pro1, Fujifilm has launched the X-E1, the brand’s second interchangeable lens camera. The major highlighted features of the X-E1 are that it comes in a portable form factor and has a fast auto focus speed. The Fujifilm X-E1 comes loaded with a 16 megapixel APS-C X-Trans CMOS Sensor with an OLED electronic viewfinder, a smaller body with built-in flash and the X mount for the Fujinon XF lens range. In addition, Fujifilm expanded the lens line-up for its interchangeable cameras from three single focal length lenses in the first series to five with an addition of two lenses – a bright F2.8 super wide 14mm (21mm in 35mm equivalent) single focal length lens and a bright F2.8-4 zoom lens that covers the shooting range of 18mm to 55mm (27-83mm in 35mm equivalent). The brand states that another line of five unique lenses will be added to the XF lens series in early 2013, giving them a total of 10 lenses. Classic styling Unlike the X-Pro1, with its hybrid multi viewfinder, the X-E1 camera features an OLED electronic viewfinder (EVF) with a resolution of 2.36 million dots, making it one of the highest resolution digital cameras with EVFs.  “The response we received for X-Pro 1 is overwhelming and it was the true inspiration behind X-E1. The X-E1 features the fast, high-precision “EXR Processor Pro” for quick responses whatever you’re shooting. The EXR Processor Pro receives image signals from the complex X-Trans CMOS Sensor and processes the information swiftly ensuring you can move on to your next shot without delay,” said, Mr. K Tanaka, Managing Director, Fujifilm India.  The Fujifilm X-E1 is available in two colour variations, Silver and Black, and features a unique classical design. The brand claims that With the X-E1, a user can achieve new heights of photography thanks to Fujifilm’s creative “Film Simulation Modes” to simulate the distinctive textures of conventional photo film. One can use the high saturation "Velvia" for landscape shots with primary colours, "ASTIA" for faithful smooth skin tone reproduction and the more versatile "PROVIA" for its natural look, as well as two additional settings based on professional colour negative films.  X-E1, the successor to the X – Pro 1, has advanced digital processing which enables "multiple exposure". With this option, the user can superimpose two exposures to create a single image.  It also offers full HD movie recording at 24fps. In addition, the user can use Monochrome or Film Simulation modes while video recording and even make use of the X-E1’s large sensor and bright XF lenses to capture movies with the defocused bokeh effect. To record audio with enhanced clarity, X-E1 allows the user to connect a microphone.  According to Rohit Pandit, Executive Vice President, FUJIFILM India, “The option of ‘multiple exposure’ will be a take the photographers to a new level. After selecting the Multiple Exposure mode, take the first shot, and display the image on either the EVF or LCD monitor as reference when taking the second shot. This system facilitates more accurate positioning and focusing.  The ability to take two shots while visually checking the finished image allows users to produce unique photographic expressions.” The body of the Fujifilm X-E1 is priced in India at Rs. 70,000 while the entire kit is sold for Rs. 90,000. Fujifilm has priced the 14mm lens in India at Rs. 60,000 and the 18-55mm lens at Rs. 48,000. For more information on this camera, click here.

NEWS / HDTVS Samsung's advanced TVs go missing en route to Berlin

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Two of Samsung Electronics' advanced OLED television sets have gone missing while on their way to the IFA consumer electronics fair in Berlin, the company said on Tuesday. The organic-light-emitting diodes (OLED) TVs disappeared between August 21 and 28, a company spokesman said, adding there was no threat to its presence at the show as there were more such sets at Samsung's booth in Berlin. An official complaint has been lodged with local police, a spokesman confirmed, but he added they didn't know where the TVs went missing or even if it was in Germany. Samsung OLED TVs go missing Samsung declined to comment on whether it believed the disappearance could be a case of industrial espionage, or on potential financial damages it could suffer from the loss of the technology. Media reports had said it may have been a theft aimed at stealing the advanced TV technology, whose loss could cost the firm billions of dollars. OLED systems are widely touted successors to liquid crystal displays (LCDs). They are used in smartphones such as Samsung's Galaxy Note because the displays are lighter, thinner and tougher than alternatives. However, in larger applications such as TVs, they are currently too expensive for mass-market sale. At a rumoured price tag of $10,000, the 55-inch models from Samsung and LG would be 10 times the price of an equivalent LCD TV. Reuters

The Cutting Edge - A comparison of Ultrabooks

Netbooks offered cheap and affordable computing for the masses, which is why they were wildly popular just a few years ago. However, one of the recurring complaints about netbooks was their sub-par performance in multimedia tasks and the small screen which wasn’t really apt for being productive on the go. Apple’s MacBook Air changed this, but again, came at a premium and not many Windows loyalists were willing to make the transition to OSX. Intel saw an opportunity here to meet the increasing demand for a Windows-based notebook that offered the portability and performance of a MacBook Air, but with a more familiar working environment.  Enter the Ultrabook – a notebook with enough power to run resource-hungry multimedia applications, yet slim enough to easily slip into your briefcase.  The first wave of Ultrabooks that started hitting retail outlets towards the tail end of 2011 were simply too expensive for most consumers to afford. The reasons behind this were the aluminium chassis and SSDs used by OEMs; it wasn’t really their fault since they had to stick to strict guidelines set by Intel for a notebook to be classified as an Ultrabook.  After the launch of Ivy Bridge CPUs and witnessing the dwindling sales of its brainchild, Intel decided to relax some of its guidelines so that OEMs could make a few compromises to bring the prices down. This led to some chunky notebooks being passed off as Ultrabooks, even though that went against the whole concept; the new Dell XPS 14 is a perfect example of just that.  With SSD prices stabilising, we’ve seen larger storage capacities in the second wave of Ultrabooks, and even some that use a combination of a standard hard drive and a small SSD for caching. This allows OEMs to lower the price of an Ultrabook while offering more storage to the user, so everyone wins.  We also have some Ultrabooks with higher resolution screens to stand out from the competition. Nevertheless, since all the major OEMs have their offerings in the market, we decided to put together a little roundup of some of the hottest Ultrabooks trending right now. These fall into various price brackets, feature sets and configurations. Read on to find out which one trumped our benchmark charts and which one offers the best value for your money.   Dell XPS 13 – Rs. 90,467 There’s no getting away from the fact that Dell has created an incredible-looking notebook. It doesn’t matter which angle you look at it from, the XPS 13 is definitely a headturner. This is mainly due to the choice of materials used to build the chassis. The lid and most of the base is crafted from machined aluminium, and the rest of the base is carbon fibre. This makes it extremely sturdy and durable while maintaining a very slim profile. The notebook measures about 18 mm at its thickest and weighs around 1.36 kg. The fit and finish is impeccable and Dell has paid a lot of attention to detail.  The XPS 13 gives you great, fast performance topped with a killer design Connectivity isn’t the best when it comes to Ultrabooks. While it’s nice to see USB 3.0, there are just two ports where we normally have three. DisplayPort is a nice addition, but it would have been better if we had HDMI, as the cables are easier to find and are cheaper. Other ports include a headphone jack and a battery status indicator. The XPS 13 has a 13.3-inch display with Corning’s Gorilla Glass for protection. This ensures your display remains free of unwanted scratches over time. The edge-to-edge glass gives the screen a seamless look and also allows Dell to fit a larger screen into a smaller chassis. Along with the 1.3 megapixel webcam, there’s an ambient light sensor that automatically dims and brightens the display based on the amount of light in the room. The keyboard area has a very nice rubber finish to it and the rubber finish extends to the trackpad as well. Overall, the build and finish of the notebook is very good and amongst the best you’ll find in the market today.  With a Core i7 CPU and a super-fast SSD under the hood, the XPS 13 is super quick at any task you throw at it. The XPS 13 managed to clock in some of the highest scores we've seen among the Ultrabooks. Typing is relatively stress-free and the keys offer good tactile response, so it doesn’t cause fatigue even after long hours of typing. At Rs. 90,467, it’s quite expensive, but you do get best-in-class performance. So, if it’s speed you’re looking for, the Dell XPS 13 is one of the best Ultrabooks money can buy.  Sony Vaio T – Rs. 49,990 Sony always comes up with designs very different from the rest. The Vaio T is Sony's attempt to offer a stylish Ultrabook at a competitive price. The SVT11113FGS is an 11.6-inch variant of the Vaio T series. Weighing just 1.4 kg, it’s more convenient to carry than Ultrabooks with larger screens. With the lid closed, the brushed aluminium finish, a chrome coloured Vaio logo at the centre and a chrome strip across the rear looks great.  Sony has paid attention to the finer details: you have two tiny rubber stubs on either side of the keyboard and a long rubber strip above the screen frame to protect the screen from rubbing against the keyboard. What we liked most were the two plastic bits at the back of the laptop which slightly elevate the keyboard when you open the lid. The USB, VGA, HDMI and Gigabit Ethernet ports, card reader and an audio jack are placed on the sides. The Vaio T SVT11113FGS has an Intel Core i5-3317U CPU, HD 3000 GPU, 4GB of RAM and a 500GB hard disk.  The Sony Vaio T has a sleek design and a great feature set for a very good price. The suffix ‘U’ in the processor model number suggests it’s an ultra-low voltage (ULV) processor. It’s skewed towards good battery life with minimal compromise on performance. The hard disk is complemented by a 32GB SSD. It caches frequently-used data for speedily booting the OS and launching applications. The 11.6-inch LED-backlit display looks crisper than most of its larger counterparts because it has the same resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels, resulting in a higher pixel density. The keyboard is chiclet type and the keys are flat, not beveled. The touchpad is nice and wide. In terms of performance, the Vaio T SVT11113FGS is almost at par with the Dell XPS 14, HP Envy 4 and Toshiba Satellite U840-X4310, all of which use the same combination of CPU, memory and hard drive.  The scores indicate the configuration is as capable as an entry level desktop PC—very good considering you’re also getting good battery life. Under medium to light load, the battery should easily last between four to seven hours. The Sony Vaio T SVT11113FGS is one of the most affordable Ultrabooks in the market. It’s great bang for your buck, hands down!

Nokia Lumia 920 sample images are fake: Report

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After Nokia recently announced its flagship smartphone, the Lumia 920, the brand released a trailer portraying the advancements in their PureView technology used in the smartphone. This video was found to be fake and misleading as it appears that makers of the clip used aprofessional camera to shoot the video and not a Lumia 920. Nokia later apologised for the same and have said that it was done only to show the optical image stabilisation (OIS) features of the camera, and that they should have put up a disclaimer stating that it was for representational purposes only. Nokia got busted once more regarding the camera technology. Blogger Youssef Sarhan has posted a report which states that the sample images of the camera on the Lumia 920 could be fake as well and that they too may have been shot with a professional camera. Possibly shot with a DSLR Sarhan who states that he has lived in Helsinki says that he understands the lighting on the roads and that it is ambient diffused and not spot lighting. Sarhan states, “Going by these still images it’s hard to tell what device really took the photos. We don’t have the EXIF data because these are part of a video, and there’s no cheeky reflections we can zoom in and enhance. However, there is one thing, that once seen can’t be unseen. Diffractions. Diffractions are the sparkle affect generated around the bright lights in the background.” He goes on to note where Nokia got it wrong by stating, “It’s impossible for a camera with a fixed aperture of f/2 to generate so many spikes from a light source. These kind of diffractions are typical of a DLSR camera with a smaller aperture like f/22. So, it makes perfect sense that if Nokia were to fake the video, they would also fake the stills; which they almost certainly have.” Evidence in the lights In what comes as sure proof evidence that these images were captured by a professional camera and not the Lumia 920 is that Sarhan has posted a photo which shows the photoshoot for this trailer. The picture was leaked online by a user of Hacker News, who has shot the photoshoot taking place and from the image we can see the whole lighting set up to display how Nokia managed to achieve such amazing ‘low-light’ shots.  The evidence that possibly closes the case (DSLR circled in red) In what comes as an icing on the cake is that in the extreme left side of the image we can clearly see the lens of a DSLR being used to capture a photograph of the model. This should be enough evidence to prove that Nokia may have misled the audience regarding the camera capabilities of the Lumia 920. Here is a quick glance at the main features of the Lumia 920: 4.5 inch PureMotion HD+ LCD touchscreen with a resolution of 1280 x 768 pixels 3G, EDGE, Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct, NFC Bluetooth v 3.1 with A2DP GPS with A-GPS and Nokia Maps Suite 8.7 megapixel camera with  1080p HD video recording and a 1.2 megapixel front facing camera with 720p video recording 32GB internal memory

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