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Author: Beau

  • Smartphone Spotlight: Razor Phone

    Smartphone Spotlight: Razor Phone

    No no the the Motorola Razr phone you are thinking of, The Razor Phone.  Razor phone set the standard in mobile gaming with the Razer Phone: the world’s first 120Hz screen on a mobile phone. Powered by UltraMotion™ technologyand accurate touch response, you get zero lag or stutter—just fluid, buttery smooth motion for all your games.

    The Great

    • Dolby Atmos Surround Sound
    • Unique, handsome design
    • Display and Ultramotion are gorgeous
    • Top-notch performance
    • 24-bit DAC built into USB Type-C adapter
    • Loudspeaker is LOUD
    • 120 Hz Refresh Rate

    The Not

    • Terrible photography experience
    • Display could be brighter
    • Too big for one-handed use
    • No headphone jack
    • Battery life only average

    The Conclusion

    The question is, does it do anything another high-powered smartphone can’t? I’ve found the camera to be lackluster, but this is a phone that certainly has some standout features.

     

    This Is a big for with minimalist in mind. Lets start with the the LCD 5.7-inch screen size and resolution aren’t what make the Razer Phone’s screen special. Rather, it’s the first phone with a screen that offers a 120Hz refresh rate. This means it’s able to show you more frames on the screen per second. It’s especially helpful when gaming, as it makes playing games smoother and more visually impressive.

    This is a gamers phone, built with gamers in mind. It shows with the 120 hz rate. Now the differences in day-to-day use between 60Hz — the standard in smartphones — and 120Hz is like spotting the differences between 1080p and 1440p. They’re there, but only visible in some situations to the eagle-eyed. You can choose your preference of refresh rate (between 60, 90, or 120Hz) in the Razer Phone’s settings, and scrolling through your Twitter feed in 60Hz and 120Hz reveals only a small change in smoother scrolling.

    It’s the same when scrolling around the Android operating system. You’ve got to want to see differences to spot them, and we couldn’t find many differences between the experience on it and a Samsung s9

    Biggest Weakness is the Camera

    Speaking of being less than stellar, the camera isn’t great. Put lightly, it’s a bit of a mess. We already had our caution hats on after the hands-on over a month ago, when we saw that the dual camera set up was lacking features, or even a slider to show which lens you’re using. Despite all the time that’s passed since then, it’s a shame to see Razer hasn’t added much optimization, speed, or features. Dual 12 MP cameras provide either normal or telephoto zoom levels. The regular focal length lens pumps in light at f/1.8 aperture compared to the other’s f/2.6. And without OIS, the camera is already a bit behind its competition.

    Responsive Android Software

    This is due in part to the screen and the third-party Nova launcher software, but the Razer Phone has a really smooth and responsive user experience. Everything loads quickly thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chip and a limited amount of bloatware.

    Switching between apps or even using two at the same time in side-by-side mode is never a sluggish experience. Even my recent Samsung Galaxy S8+ started getting bogged down quickly after I got it, and that’s not something I’ve had to deal with on the Razer Phone.

     

    The Final Thought

    After using the Razer Phone for the last  month, I’m comfortable calling it an amazing smart device. It is available now for $700, and it easily competes with other high-end phones in that price range with one glaring exception. Do you want to trade your camera for a better refresh rate? Kinda, I like Netflix.

  • Xiaomi Rumors and Gossip

    Xiaomi Rumors and Gossip

    Xiaomi is getting ready to launch a gaming-oriented phone, similar to what we’ve seen with the Razer phone. The phone is slated for an official unveil next Friday, April 13, and a new teaser out  gives us a glimpse at the design language. So far not alot of details have been released, we all know what it will probably look like.

    Unlike previous Xiaomi phones, the upcoming device will feature the Black Shark branding and not the Mi label, suggesting this could be the first phone in a new gaming-focused sub-brand.

    While we don’t know much, my inside sources tell me it will host the Snapdragon 845, with 8gb of ram and a 256 gb hd.  The hd size gives good indication this will be aimed at the gaming market. The Razor supported a 120 Hz refresh rate, Its safe to expect the same.

    As can be seen in the image, the Black Shark Phone looks set to take on the shape of an X with the top and bottom sides of the device being much more angular than traditional smartphones. In fact, a total of eight sides are featured on the device’s frame. Because of this, the company chose to include the antenna bands on both the top and bottom corners, meaning four antenna bands will be included – the Chinese OEM’s device is the first to feature this antenna layout. Beginning clockwise, the top-left corner will be dedicated to the GPS and Wi-Fi antennas, while the right side will be reserved for LTE. Moving on to the bottom, the right-sided antenna will be for Wi-Fi MIMO, and the left module will once again be dedicated to LTE. Now, although this is only a sketch, Black Shark itself later confirmed the accuracy of it, stating that the layout should help improve signal reception even when a user is gripping the device.

     

    The launch is set for next Friday the 13th, we should know all about Xiaomi’s upcoming Black Shark phone then. Until then we can fantasize about holographic screen projections and full VR experiences. See you next friday

     

  • Tech Throwback: The Newton

    Tech Throwback: The Newton

    I like to take a look at where I’ve been to evaluate where Im going. Technology is cyclical after all… wait no its not. That said I still like all the feels that come rushing back like a flood of nostalgia every time I get my hand on the tech I grew up with. Im going to go back periodically and take a looking at the stuff that used to blow our hair back and get our minds rolling. Some of these device blew up and changed the world, some where ahead of their time and some just fell flat and became colossal failures. Today I’m powering up the old Apple Newton..

     

    Give Me The Back Story

    The Newton is a series of personal digital assistants, PDAs as i like to call them, But that term wasent used and adopted till years after the Newton. It was developed and marketed by Apple Computer, Inc. An early device in the PDA category – the Newton originated the term “personal digital assistant” – it was the first to feature handwriting recognition. Apple started developing the platform in 1987 and shipped the first devices in 1993. Production officially ended on February 27, 1998. Newton devices run on a proprietary operating system, Newton OS; examples include Apple’s MessagePad series and the eMate 300, and other companies also released devices running on Newton OS. Most Newton devices were based on the ARM 610 RISC processor and all featured handwriting-based input.

    The Newton was considered innovative at its debut, but it suffered from its high price and problems with the handwriting recognition element, its most anticipated feature. The handwriting software was barely ready by 1993 and its tendency to misread characters was widely derided in the media. I my hands on one the first time when I was 12, almost 35 years later im ready to dive back in.

     

    Powering this up, shocked it still works. picked this working newton off eBay, with the flash card and assured it would turn on for $150. Yes its abit much for the actual functionality but that is not why I bought it. The Nice this is it runs off of AAA batteries, got to change them pretty frequently and you lose all your data each time they die but I’m able to pick them up at any store so the device will never die completely.

    Its pretty bulky I cant fathom how at the time they thought this was compact enough to carry around. its is a little over an inch thick and 7 inchs tall. Meanwhile I complain my phablet is to big.

    What’s This One Do

    It literally does nothing and I can barley see the green screen, its only functions are a contacts applications and a notepad,  a calendar,  calculator, currency converter and a timezone map. All the things I use on a daily bases, would be completely useless with out, and take for granted on a daily bases.  I do remember being able to get software application for it on a 3.5 floppy disk though.

    You can get up to a 4mb flash memory card for storage to prevent the battery erasing issue, a 4 mb card would store about 200 note, 250 contacts, 500 calendar events.  I do have to note that the flash memory seriously slowed down the processing power. So about 3 weeks worth of info for me.

    As much as I’ m laughing at this technological failure, it truly was ground breaking and revolutionary. We would see viable tech like it for almost 10 years and even still they hadn’t made much advancement on it. It really was ahead of its time and paved the way for the iPhone that would be released 20 years later. It was the first affordable device to compute handwriting, the first pocket touch screen, we still weren’t seeing full sized touch screen and wouldn’t for many years.  I think the commercial failure of this device dragged technology back a decade and had it been a corporate success who know where we would be today.

     

    The Final Thought

    Its magically revolutionary and fantastically simple. Its is the true prototype of our world today, it set the table for us and we ignored it. If Apple could have just crammed in a beeper, we could have had a primitive text messaging device. Im keeping it and will put a back up of info on it just in case of a tech apocalypse.

     

  • SmartPhone Spotlight: OnePlus 5T

    SmartPhone Spotlight: OnePlus 5T

    OnePlus’s deal has always been offering flagship-level internals coupled with minimalist software, all for significantly less than similarly-specced devices. The OnePlus 5T has all the right stuff you’d expect for late 2017: a Qualcom Snapdragon 835 processor, SoC, a 6-inch, 18:9 screen, and a dual-camera. Is the the smartphone you deserve?

    The Great

    • Beautiful Screen
    • Blistering performance
    • Great battery life
    • Flagship-caliber cameras
    • Very fast charging:
    • Amazing value

    The Not

    • No wireless charging or microSD slot
    • Lacks optical zoom
    • Not water resistant

    The Conclusion

    If you’re willing to put up with a few small compromises then you could argue the OnePlus 5T could be even further up this list. One thing is for sure though: in terms of value for money it won’t disappoint.

     

     

     

    If it’s an affordable flagship you’re after, well, see what theThe OnePlus 5T has to offer. It’s bringing facial recognition, a 6-inch 18:9 display, dual rear cameras, a premium metal body and the latest power under the hood, all for a price that comfortably undercuts Apple, Samsung and friends.

     

    Screen:

    The 6-inch AMOLED display on the OnePlus 5T is fantastic, especially given the low price tag. It’s the best screen ever seen in a OnePlus handset and features the same 18:9 aspect ratio seen on the other Android flagship phones.

     

    Battery life:

    Solid all-day battery life is what you’ll get out of this phone. So it fits nicely in with the competition then – not as good as the LG V30 but comfortably as good as the Galaxy S9 and the rest.

     

    Camera:

    The camera, again, is decent without being standout. You won’t have any problems with it and you’ll be able to take some amazing photos with it. It’s not as good as the Pixel 2 but the far cheaper price tag will explain why.

     

    Quick Spec Look

    • Release date: November 2017
    • Weight: 162g
    •  Dimensions: 156.1 x 75 x 7.3mm
    •  OS: Android 7.1
    • Screen size: 6-inch
    • Resolution: 1080 x 2160
    •  CPU: Snapdragon 835
    •  RAM: 6/8GB
    • Storage: 64GB/128GB
    • Battery: 3,300mAh
    •  Rear camera: 20MP + 16MP
    • Front camera: 16MP

     

    The Final Thought

    If you are seriously looking at this phone, you shouldn’t be. This is the phone you get when your parents got a buy one get one free deal at their local cell phone shop. IF you are looking for a quality android, this has the specks but there are better options, go grab the LG V30.

  • Apple to Make Their Own Processors for All Products

    Apple to Make Their Own Processors for All Products

    Good news everybody, apple is planning to use its own chips in Mac computers beginning as early as 2020, replacing processors from Intel , according to people familiar with the plans.

    Code Name Kalamata

    The initiative, code named Kalamata, is still in the early developmental stages, but comes as part of a larger strategy to make all of Apple’s devices — including Macs, iPhones, and iPads — work more similarly and seamlessly together, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private information. The project, which executives have approved, will likely result in a multi-step transition.

    The shift would be a blow to Intel, whose partnership helped revive Apple’s Mac success and linked the chipmaker to one of the leading brands in electronics. Apple provides Intel with about 5 percent of its annual revenue. That’s not an unnoticeable hit. Intel’s stock dropped sharply on Monday after Bloomberg reported that Apple would ditch Intel chips for an in-house model on Mac computers.

     

    “The market is over reacting to Apple’s announcement for using an internally developed CPU for its Mac systems as early as 2020,” analyst Kevin Cassidy wrote in a note to clients entitled “Potential Apple Move Not a Major Threat to Intel” on Monday. “According to IDC, Apple had 7.3% traditional PC unit market share in 4Q17.

     

     

     

    “We think that Apple is looking at ways to further integrate their hardware and software platforms, and they’ve clearly made some moves in this space, trying to integrate iOS and macOS,” said Shannon Cross an analyst at Cross Research. “It makes sense that they’re going in this direction. If you look at incremental R&D spend, it’s gone into ways to try to vertically integrate their components so they can add more functionality for competitive differentiation.”

     

     

     

    The Final Thought

    Many of us remember when Apple made their own chips previously. There G line chips where far superior to intel’s and created the Mac resurgence in the early part of the century. Apples A series chip far out perform anything snapdragon cant slap out, so this is a welcome hurrah.

  • SmartPhone Spotlight: Sony Xperia XZ

    SmartPhone Spotlight: Sony Xperia XZ

    The Xperia XZ Premium features the new Motion Eye a camera so advanced it captures motion that the human eye can’t see. And with its unified design, astonishing 4K HDR display, and intelligent features, it’s Sony’s most groundbreaking smartphone to date.

     

    The Great

    • Nice HDR Screen
    • Good Power

     

    The Not

    • No 4k Content
    • Lot of Bezels
    • Poor design

     

     

     

    The Conclusion

    The square corners won’t appeal to everyone but if you want to watch 4K video and review your photos in as much detail as possible, this is a great phone.

     

     

     

    Sony’s 4K-screened phone sounds like a gimmick, but the display is packed with so much technology that it impresses despite that. The color reproduction and pixel quality is superb, and the camera really rewards those that make an effort to get the best out of it.

     

    Battery life

    The XZ Premium does pretty well given how many pixels it’s driving on that 4K screen. It’ll last you a full day with a little more to spare on moderate use, thanks to some dynamic screen technology that actively alters how much is being used.

     

    Camera

    Sony’s got this new camera gimmick called the Motion Eye. The Motion Eye™ camera with Super slow motion records video at 960 frames per second, for playback four times slower than any other smartphone. Predictive Capture stays one step ahead of the action, as it starts buffering images even before you press the button. I will say the pictures are impressive

     

    Screen

    This is the only phone out there with a full-blown 4K screen, and it also comes with HDR tech. The amount of HDR content for mobiles is increasing all the time, but even without that this screen makes even the most mundane image look brighter and more colorful, and the rest of the phone is impressively powerful.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Quick Spec Look

    •  Weight: 195g |
    • Dimensions: 156 x 77 x 7.9mm
    • OS: Android 7
    • Screen size: 5.5-inch
    • Resolution: 3840 x 2160
    •  CPU: Snapdragon 835
    • RAM: 4GB
    • Storage: 64GB
    •  Battery: 3,230mAh
    • Rear camera: 19MP
    • Front camera: 13MP

     

     

     

    The Final Thought

    This is one of the top 20 smartphones on the market for 2018. It has its moments of wow, it also falls short in every category next to an iPhone or even top tier android. If a deal and a steal comes your way, Sony’s new phone won’t disappoint and will take you through the next year and half but upgrading will always be on your mind.

  • 3 Reasons to Update your iPad and 3 Reason to Not

    3 Reasons to Update your iPad and 3 Reason to Not

    So we have all heard and see the reviews of the new iPad. its great, its a new ipad, we get it.  The real question is should you update yours, its it the viable option for anyone looking for a good tablet at a reasonable price? Here are the 3 reason you want the new iPad and the 3 reason you don’t really need it.

     

         

    1. The Processor, A11

    Apple has updated teh processor in its new 9.7 inch ipad. The  A10 Fusion chip inside the new iPad provides a lot of horsepower for multitasking, playing games and running augmented-reality apps. Power for the slew of Augmented reality games and apps coming out is a necessity. This will be big and an ipad or mobile phone with out the power will be a liability. This reason alone makes this iPad a need. If you’re going to be editing video with the iPad, you’ll be glad to know it can churn through clips with ease. It transcoded a 4K clip in just 57 seconds. need

         2. Apple Pencil makes a big difference

    The Apple Pencil is a worthwhile accessory for taking notes, drawing or marking up documents. It provides remarkable precision without lag, as well as both tilt sensitivity and pressure sensitivity. All of Apple’s iWork apps have been updated to support the Apple Pencil, including Pages, which has a handy new Smart Annotation feature. Its only $99 for schools.

     

         3. Camera And Battery

    The 8-megapixel camera on the back of the 9.7-inch iPad captures sharper-looking photos and smooth 1080p video, which makes it a valuable tool for anyone working on multimedia projects. The Battery has been vastly improves to  lasted just over 10 hours.

     

     

    So why would I pass on this less expensive iPad? There are some things you should consider, its not all gravy with the new iPad.

    1. The Design

    its the same old, same old looking iPad. No real physical improvements in 3 years now. its not thinner, lighter or more elegant. They even stuck with the home button instead on making the iPhone X jump in design. pass.

     

    2. All the New Accessories

    Toys, gadgets, features and functions all come with a hefty price. The pencil alone is $99, add in the keyboard and iPad Smart Cover you are adding another $150. The $299 price has us all excited but here they come with the add-ons. You’re gonna get add-ons. Oh yeah and the Keyboard wont even work with the new iPad… pass

    3 The Display

    Another big miss on the new iPad is the display. We are stuck with the same LED, it would have made all the sense to go to an OLED like the iPhone X. Instead they just left it alone, no enhancement to the screen at all.  pass..

     

    The Final Thought

    I love the power, I probably wont use the pen.. I mean its cheap enough but Im not rushing to pick one up. I’m just not moved and I need to be moved.

  • RED the Smartphone

    RED the Smartphone

    In 2017, the cinema camera making company RED announced it was working a smarthphone with a holographic screen Consumers were unsure what this meant until September 2017. Essentially, the phone would provide a 3D viewing experience on screen, projecting things like buildings and landscapes in an interactive map. A user could essentially take a virtual tour via the phone screen, looking around, above, behind, or in-between various objects.

    The RED smart phone is currently available for pre-order, for the fairly hefty price tag of $1,195. No official release date has been announced, but the company says its Hydrogen One smartphone will ship this summer.  Jim Jannard, RED’s CEO and founder, gave the update in January.  RED says that the Hydrogen One phone is still months away from being released. But it does at least have a timeline: the phone is supposed to enter mass production and then ship sometime this summer.

    What Is It?

    There have been a few basic details about the phone around since last July, and Jannard has now revealed a few more: it’ll run a Snapdragon 835 processor (Jannard writes that it’s an “835x,” which doesn’t currently exist, so it’s unclear if that’s a typo or some upcoming variant), have a dual SIM slot, and include a 4,500mAh battery, which is relatively huge. (The Note 8, for comparison, has a 3,300mAh battery.) The downside to this phone being released a full year after it was announced is that, while the 835 is a top-of-the-line chip, it’ll be succeeded by the Snapdragon 845 by the time the Hydrogen One actually makes it to market. That’s not necessarily a huge deal, but for a phone this expensive, it’s not great, either.

     

     

    This 4V — or ‘four view’ — tech is what makes the Hydrogen One exciting on paper. With it, the phone can handle normal 2D media, stereo 3D, augmented reality, virtual reality and augmented reality, without additional glasses or headsets. The company hasn’t been forthcoming in explaining how this will work, although it did offer a slightly bemusing description in its update: “The 4V files match the pixel resolution of a traditional 2D file, which is great for downloading. The resolution perception is just different. The horizontal resolution of 2D is now split into depth layers. It gives a completely different feeling. All the pixels are there… but instead of ‘looking at’ a pic, you are immersed in the image. It is quite spectacular.” RED is best known for its high-spec camera,  so if it pulls this off, it certainly will be quite spectacular. At least both skeptics and supporters will only have to wait a few months to find out.

     

    The Final Thought

    Alot of anticipation, hesitation, and skepticism are surrounding the. good be peaches, could be lunch meat we wont know till this summer. Ill with hold any true judgement until then, stay tuned.

  • Hands On the New iPad

    Hands On the New iPad

    If the computer were invented today, what would it look like? It would be powerful enough for any task. So mobile you could take it everywhere. And so intuitive you could use it any way you wanted — with touch, a keyboard, or even a pencil.1 In other words, it wouldn’t really be a “computer.” It would be the new iPad.

     

    The Great

    • Fast A10 Fusion performance
    • Works with Apple Pencil
    • Fun augmented-reality apps
    • Good battery life

    The Not

    • Thick bezels
    • Apple Pencil
    • keyboard and cover at additional cost

    The Conclusion

    The new 9.7-inch iPad provides plenty of power, long battery life and Apple Pencil support, all for a really great price. What are you waiting for..? Go update.

     

    The iPad still packs a sharp, 9.7-inch display into a compact and lightweight aluminum package. But the overall aesthetic is a bit tired in an age of shrinking bezels on phones; the thick black border around the screen feels somewhat antiquated even for the iPad’s relatively low price. The budget iPad from 2017 has been updated – Apple says it’s an iPad for education, but it’s actually a really impressive tablet for the general user who wants to get a great experience – and having the Apple Pencil support on there as well is great

     

    The Design

    The  design feels solid, and I didn’t feel that much strain when holding the device up to browse the web, check my email and play with AR apps for long stretches. The iPad weighs a very manageable 1.03 pounds for the Wi-Fi version (the LTE model weighs 1.05 pounds), and it measures just 0.29 inches thick.

    The trusty old Home button sits beneath the screen to handle Touch ID for logging in, and there’s a Lightning connector on the bottom for charging and a headphone jack up top

    The 9.7-inch display on the iPad packs 2048 x 1536 pixels, so it’s plenty sharp for watching movies, playing games and working on reports. It’s also bright and colorful; as I watched the trailer for Avengers: Infinity War on this panel, I could make out individual wisps of the Scarlet Witch’s red hair dappled in sunlight, and the details of her leather jacket didn’t get lost in the shadows.

     

    The Pencil

    The main feature of the new iPad is the fact that it’s Apple Pencil-compatible, something that’s not been seen since the launch of the iPad Pro range. Apple’s entry-level iPad now supports Apple Pencil, which means you can use the $99 accessory to draw, take notes and interact with a growing number of Pencil-enabled apps. This is the first ‘normal’ tablet from Apple to take advantage of the accessory, and it’s designed to give students a chance to ditch the notepad and use only the iPad for class.

    A tool so precise that Disney animators use it, the Apple Pencil felt completely natural to use in my testing. Writing with it will be hard to actually input though, and that’s partly down to the fact that most people have forgotten how to actually write words down, and partly because the feel of the screen under the Apple Pencil still feels too slippery to write properly.

    If you slow down it’s not too bad, but you can’t note-take as fast as with a pen and notepad.

     

    The Final Thought

    With a power upgrade and the support for the pencil all at a cheaper price whats not to like. The ipad is already best in class, there are tablets then there is the iPad. Speaking as someone who worked the front retail lines in the mobile universe, you cant give tablets away but everyone wants an iPad.

     

  • Space Grey Accessories are Available Now From Apple

    Space Grey Accessories are Available Now From Apple

    Previously Apple issues its black out accessories options only with the top of the line iMac Pro. As stunning as they are the space gray Magic Keyboard, Magic Trackpad, and Magic Mouse that debuted alongside the iMac Pro couldn’t be purchased separately. Well for all of us bored with the elegant white the day has finally come.

    The added charge for the darker color of each device is $20, putting both the Magic Keyboard and Trackpad at $149 compared to their usual $129 price. The Magic Mouse is $99 (regularly $79 in white). All of the space gray products are shipping this week and will likely arrive in your local Apple store in standalone form very soon, as well.

    This may seem trivial but options are options and us mac boys take what we can get for our small slivers of customization. Apple has likely just made its aesthetic-obsessed Mac fans very, very happy, with the wireless Magic Mouse 2, Magic Keyboard and Magic Trackpad 2 in its Space Gray color going up for sale on their own. Although I would bet big that they will sell out fairly quickly

    Im sure you remember the sales posting on eBay, with this space grey set going to for up to $1000 in some bids. Id like to think that all those people that purchased those aftermarket are kicking them selves now, but we all know money isnt that much a thing to some of them.

    On a down note the company’s wireless keyboard is still silver-only. Come on Apple, really? I guess Apples attitude is best reflected in an old Rolling Stones song. You cant always get what you want, but if you try some times you can get the space grey Trackpad you need.