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  • Apple Adds Magazines, Buys Texture

    Apple Adds Magazines, Buys Texture

    Just Today Apple has announced that it signed an agreement to acquire the digital magazine service Texture, which serves articles from more than 200 magazines digitally on iOS, Windows, Amazon, and Android devices for a flat monthly fee.

    Apple has acquired the entire company, including staff, and has assured users that the Android version of the app will still be supported. The price of the acquisition was not disclosed.

    What is Texture

    Texture is an app that gives you instant access to both new, and legacy issues of some of the most popular publications. Formerly known as Next Issue, it was one of the very first subscription apps avilable on the app store. Currently you can try Texture free for 7 days when downloading the app. Texture would be boring and unmentionable if it were not for its surprisingly great readability. The digital reading experience is always a headache waiting to happen, but not with Texture. It is smooth, even more please than an actually magazine.

    Navigation is easy, with the actual magazine taking up the largest portion of your display, and only an ellipsis in the bottom left corner to bring up the controls. Individual pages/images can be zoomed in on with an outward pinch, something you clearly can’t do in the print edition.

     

    Texture  CEO John Loughlin  Says “I’m thrilled that Next Issue Media and its award-winning Texture app are being acquired by Apple. The Texture team and its current owners, Condé Nast, Hearst, Meredith, Rogers Media, and KKR, could not be more pleased or excited with this development. We could not imagine a better home or future for the service.” IM sure there was a nice percentage buy in to apple that will make him an insanely rich man.

     

    While we don’t know much about the acquisition some of the details where revealed In a statement from apple ” We’re excited Texture will join Apple, along with an impressive catalog of magazines from many of the world’s leading publishers. We are committed to quality journalism from trusted sources and allowing magazines to keep producing beautifully designed and engaging stories for users.”

     

    The Final Though

    Apple has shocked and bewildered us before with acquisitions, like beats. Whats a head for Texture? no idea. leave it to apple to blow our minds with a medium we all thought went the way of the Bloackbuster.

  • Laptop Lookout: Microsoft Surface Pro LTE

    Laptop Lookout: Microsoft Surface Pro LTE

    Its almost here! The New Microsoft Surface Pro is coming. Better than ever, the new Surface Pro gives you a best-in-class laptop, plus the versatility of a studio and tablet. The stunning PixelSense Display supports Surface Pen and touch, while up to 13.5 hours of battery life gives you plenty of juice to work all day and play all night.

    The Great

    • Top Tablet, PC Notebook
    • Better performance and battery life from its CPU update
    • Flexable keyboard
    • LTE antenna

    The Not

    • Keyboard cover and Surface Pen are still sold separately.
    • No USB-C and Thunderbolt options

    The Conclusion

    I truly love this thing,  it’s a beast.  For such a small package it really is amazing. It powers 3 monitors for me through the dock, bunch of USB devices, do Photoshop, web dev, emails, everything. Make sure to not go cheap on the processor or ram or you’re stuck with a brick. Microsoft says it, The ultimate laptop with versatility of a studio and tablet.

     

    What To Do..

    So here is my problem, I need to solve for the following. I need to replace a laptop, with a powerful desktop, and a tablet. It has to run Lightroom, Photoshop, Visual Studio, Office stuff and Age of Empires all at once. I need a  pressure-sensitive pen for drawing and to convert it to a workstation . I want a decent and equally powerful tablet form factor for reading, games, and video watching with decent tablet battery life

     

    What to do, what to do.. And there is an easy, elegant answer.. the Surface Pro with Advanced LTE. Surface Pro delivers even more speed and performance thanks to a powerful Intel Core processor that runs full desktop apps with ease plus 50% more battery life than Surface Pro 4 and 2.5x more performance than Surface Pro 3. With brilliant color on the high-resolution PixelSense Display with a stunning screen that responds to your touch, its heaven. The Surface has been great, whats the new one do?

     

    Whats New?

    From a hardware perspective, the Surface Pro with LTE Advanced is almost indistinguishable from its non-LTE sibling, the surface pro (2017) which in turn is remarkably similar to the 2015-vintage surface pro 4.

    A close inspection of the exterior reveals one difference. Behind the kickstand, the Surface Pro with LTE Advanced includes an expansion slot that’s about 5/8 of an inch wider than its non-LTE cousin. That’s just enough room to squeeze a nano SIM tray alongside the familiar MicroSD memory card slot. Surface Pro’s LTE connectivity makes it the first “true mobile computer.

    A Cat 9 modem supports cellular connections up to 450 Mbps in speed, and an embedded SIM allows connections to pay-as-you-go data services without the need for an external SIM card. GPS support is also included, making this a useful option for any application that requires precise location information and navigation.

     

    The Final Thought

    The Surface has everything thing I need to truly replace my PC, laptop and tablets. It works, its great and im not stuck only get mobile versions of apps and websites. While the upgrades since 2015 are minimal, they are useful and necessary with out any gimmicks and features I don’t need and wont use.

     

     

     

  • Laptop Lookout: HP ZBook X2

    Laptop Lookout: HP ZBook X2

    Its not a Notebook, barely a laptop but it a great PC solution. Hp is Introducing the world’s most powerful detachable PC with remarkable performance and versatility to push your favorite Adobe applications to the limit. Yes it’s a full-performance workstation-class laptop experience with full-sized keyboard and integrated stand. With HP Quick Keys, keep working in your Adobe® apps without the use of a keyboard. The full-sized Bluetooth® keyboard stays active when detached, so you can keep working.

     

    The Good

    • Adobe featured
    • great stylus
    • Great shortcut OS features
    • Good Keyboard

     

    The Not

    • Battery-life not great
    • Lacks graphic performance
    • Overpriced

     

    The Conclusion

    I cant call it a 2 in 1, its barley a laptop but much more then a notebook or tablet. Really its everything and does it all pretty well but is a master of none.

     

     

    This is no notebook. This is  a specialized tool designed to serve as a complete solution for digital artists, photographers and other creatives. It’s massive, but designed to provide easy access to shortcuts. It also has a professional-grade stylus and a matte 4k display that feels as if you’re drawing on paper.

     

    The Design

    You’ve never seen a laptop like this before. The ZBook is industrial in a way that looks powerful. It’s a large octagon of metal. The back is a very plain gunmetal gray with a reflective Z logo and a whole bunch of vents for cooling. The pull-out kickstand could use a little more to put you fingers in the small notches on the side, but it pulls out almost flat, up to 165 degrees.

     

     

    With a 4k Display and only a 14 inch bezel surrounding it makes it very attractive to look at. Windows Hello is in place with an infrared camera and webcam stuffed in the top. The best part of the design is the 12 programmable shortcut buttons built down the sides. Down the right side you will find  a fingerprint reader, an SD card slot, a USB 3.0 port, an HDMI output, a pair of Thunderbolt ports and a barrel-shaped charging jack.Its a big heaver then the others in its class at 4.9lbs but it feels much more rugged and sturdy. The metal body helps this.

     

    The Power

    It has the power,  it has all the specs of a workstation PC: a quad-core i7 processor (from Intel’s Kaby Lake-R line), an Nvidia Quadro M620 graphics card, and up to 32GB of RAM and a 2TB SSD in a versatile desgin. These are the top line specs so you are gonna have to pay more to get the juice. It also rocks a  Wacom EMR-enabled and battery-free stylus with 4,096 levels of pressure, comparable to many of Wacom’s gaphics tablets. Then there’s the four modes that the detachable 2-in-1 can be used in. That includes a docked mode where the device can connect to two external 4K displays simultaneously and a “detached” mode where the keyboard functions as a Bluetooth keyboard.

     

    The Final Thought

    Its got some neat, unique features and functions. The short-cut keys, the kickstand. Its got the versatility being a tablet, 2-1, and powerful PC. Yes its the most powerful detachable pc tablet laptop but at what cost?  It’s a good fit for for artists, 4K videographers, and anyone who needs massive power in a versatile form…

     

  • IOT Credit Card is the Solution

    IOT Credit Card is the Solution

     

    The Dynamics company introduced new functionalities for its Wallet Card, an Internet of Things (IoT) connected credit card at the WMC 2018. Two-way communication between banks and cardholders is a highlight, as faster connections could mean safer cards and quicker account changes. Now consumers will be able to communicate with their bank via a connected credit card. I know you are thinking, what does this mean and why would I want this. First off it means safer cards and quicker account changes.

     

    Dynamics CEO Jeffrey Mullen said in the release “We had promised that we would unveil new features with incredible strategic and financial value for both banks and consumers,”. “Today, we start to deliver on that promise by unveiling that the connected Wallet Card has the ability to wirelessly send consumer requests to a bank through the card’s telecommunications connection. For the first time, a bank can ask a customer a question on the card’s display and get an immediate response. With these new consumer insights, the bank can provide better and more informed services.”

    The size and shape of a standard credit card, the Wallet Card contains a cell phone chip and antenna for data transfers, along with a magnetic stripe, programmable EMV chip, and a programmable contactless chip, the release said. All of the communication with the bank appears on a 65,000 pixel display on the front of the card.

    Whats this one do?

    There are 3 big features that creates new opportunities for communication and value this will bring to the end card user. one it will let the bank verify purchases. Lets say if an FI suspects a fraudulent purchase using an existing card, the bank can ask a consumer to verify on their card that they made a particular purchase and the consumer can quickly respond. It will allow the banks to offer on-the-spot credit limit increase . Instead of the  declining a transaction, the FI can ask a consumer if they would like to increase the credit limit on their card.

     

    It will also give the financial institutions the benefit of adding cards. If the FI believes a consumer might benefit from a new card offering, the bank can ask if the cardholder would like to download the new card immediately. Or if you need to Upgrade cards ,  the bank can ask a consumer if they would like to upgrade their card to one that has additional features or value.

     

    The Final Thought.

    Seems cool. Sign me up. Makes clearing all those subscription services easy to cancel if I can just tap my card and get a new card number.

     

     

     

  • The Best Preorder Deals for the S9

    The Best Preorder Deals for the S9

    Finally, the wait to preorder the new Samsung Galaxy S9 is over! Starting this week, customers can preorder the innovative Samsung Galaxy S9 or S9+ through Samsung and other leading cellular retailers. I have personally scoured the web and contacted all my insiders at every vendor I know to find the best preorder Deals for the Samsung S9.

    1. Samsung Direct

    With a direct order from Samsung, you can take advantage of direct pricing of $719 for the galaxy s9. With a $300 trade-in offer for my Galaxy s7, and samsungs no interest financing option I can purchase the phone for just $18 a month. They are also offering a 12 month upgrade option. Basically, after 12 months, you’ll be eligible to upgrade your phone. Just return the phone in good condition, and they apply a credit to your account for up to 50% of the initial financed amount.

    In Short for a little more then the cost of a Netflix subscription I can get the newest Galaxy, every year, on release day for $18 a months.

    Net Cost $216 per year

    2. Verizon

    The big red machine is offering the same $300 off for my galaxy S7, dropping the price from $33 a month to $21 a month. By switching to Verizon they will give me an additional $150 prepaid visa card. The down side to this deal is that Im stuck on Verizon service for 24 months.

    Total Net cost : $149 a year for 2 years

    3. Xfinity Mobile

    This came as a bit of a surprise but The Samsung Galaxy S9 can be purchased for $719 from Xfinity Mobile, and the S9+ can be bought for $839. Two-year monthly installment plans with $30 payments are available. Xfinity Mobile is also offering up to $350 savings on Samsung’s new phones when trading in eligible smartphones, but only $300 for my S7. There is also a promotion to give you a $200 prepaid card for purchasing a Samsung device.

    Total Net Cost: $110 a year for 2 years.  

     

     

  • 3 Cool Updates From Samsungs Television

    3 Cool Updates From Samsungs Television

    1. Translucent Ambient Televisions

    For years, Samsung has been trying to make TVs look pretty even when you’re not watching TV. The company just announced the latest lineup of its flagship QLED TVs with an all-new feature called Ambient Mode. Basically, thanks to some hardware trickery, Ambient Mode can replicate the texture on the wall behind your TV and almost make it disappear. It’s sort of like an invisibility cloak for your TV.

     

    The demo of this new feature worked well, blending it perfectly with the brick wall behind it. I am super excited to blend a TV in to my living room wall. It would be perfect, until you see a bunch of wires hanging from some random bricks in my fireplace.  that leads us to number 2

     

    2.A New Single Translucent Cable Wire

    If i have a tv the can be translucent mounted to my wall but the tangle of cords jutting out of the back of the TV, pushing it away from the wall and then dangling down to wherever the cable box, PS4, and Wii U reside, is ugly and pointless. So Samsung did something that strikes you, innately, as both backward and forward thing—it moved all the ports of the TV.

     

    On the 2017 Q9 TV from Samsung they have managed to pack 6 input ports in to a minuscule cord. The Cord is translucent, making it less visible against a bare wall. It will connect to a unit like Samsung’s current One Connect Box, which includes USB 3.0, coax, and multiple HDMI ports. THis seems like the answer to the translucent TV cord issue..

     

    3. The Wall, Summer

     

    MicroLED is a technology that shrinks traditional LEDs to a smaller size, and gives them the ability to produce their own light. Think OLED, but take out the organic part. MicroLED doesn’t require a discrete backlight, and there’s no need for LCD shutters. In turn, this creates a brighter, more contrast-rich television that can turn pixels off individually. This has brought us the next level of cool from Samsung… The Wall.

     

    Yes, yes we have all seen from the unveiling at the CES 2018 in Jan.. so tell me something I don’t know. Samsung’s the Wall is the next big thing. It seemed to be just a concept with actual production and availability in the distant future. Even Samsung said “we are still years away, their next step is a 2-5 year plan for a 75 inch MicroLED set”. With a big announcement today, we have an answer.. August.

    We will see the Wall available to consumers August 2018. Given the customization nature of The Wall and the technology it uses, chances are it won’t be cheap when it does come out this summer. I am still guessing 10k.

  • Jurrasic Park Alive is the AR Game We Deserve

    Jurrasic Park Alive is the AR Game We Deserve

    In the key of Pokemon Go, Jurassic World Alive is the AR game we have been waiting for. This game is set to explode in the same way Pokemon Go took over the summer of 2016. Alive is the latest  franchise to try their hand on the Pokémon Go formula. Yes, we finally we get dinosaurs unleashed around our local neighborhood.

    The Dinosaur Hunt

    Jurassic World Alive puts players in the role of a new recruit in the Dinosaur Protection Group (DPG). Players are tasked with saving dinosaurs from another extinction by tracking them, collecting DNA samples and creating new hybrid species in a lab. Those man-made dinosaurs can be assembled into a team and fight in player-versus-player arena battles, which kind of seems counterproductive to the whole dinosaur protection thing.

    “Players discover dinosaurs by locating them on a map and deploying an in-game drone to collect DNA samples,” developer Ludia explains. You’ll also be able to snap a photo with your favorite dinosaurs, level up the beasts you capture, and, unlike in Pokémon Go, you’ll be able to battle them with other players. The game’s map screen, as shown in the debut trailer, even looks a lot like Niantic’s Pokémon AR game. Ludia previously developed a pair of park management-style Jurassic Park games for mobile.

    When Can We Play?

     

    Alive is expected to come to both Android and iOS in the spring, putting its release very close to the new film Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, which debuts on June 22nd.

     

    The Final Thought

    I hope this is the game that can reach the success in the AR platform. We have all been waiting for the true AR gaming standard and would love to hunt dinosaurs in real simulation.  I am overly excited to play this game, more then any grown man should be. I wont be as embarrassed to be walking around playing this as I was Pokemon Go and I know My 4 year old nephew and myself will have hours of fun with this. Lets hope they as John Hammond would say “spared no expense” in the development of this monster and it lives up to the hype.

  • What has Vivo Done Now, The Apex

    What has Vivo Done Now, The Apex

     

     

    The Vivo Apex is nothing more than a concept phone right now, but it’s tremendously impressive. Not only are the bezels practically non-existant — 1.8mm on the top and sides, 4.3mm on the chin — but there is no notch at all. It begins with a massive 6-inch screen that has eliminated the bezels to an impossible 1.8mm on three sides and 4.3mm on the bottom.

    The Vivo Apex is almost completely bezelless. The frame around the face is so slim, there is no  room for the front-facing camera.Flip over the front-facing camera and in 0.8 seconds an 8-megapixel lens rises up from the phone’s top edge. then wham, there is your selfie camera. The lens rises fairly slowly in the prototype. Im worried about a movable or mechanical piece on my smartphone. It will break somehow.

    To produce in-call sound, the company has developed what it calls Screen SoundCasting Technology. A vibration motor under the display vibrates to produce sound through the screen. Yes you read that correctly,  the Apex OLED panels that vibrate to create the sound for your videos, calls and gaming.  the speakerphone demo  on the prototype sounded loud and rich.

    Vivo showed us at the CES in January an in screen fingerprint reader. Now Vivo has expanded the in-screen fingerprint reader. On the Apex, the target takes up almost half the bottom of the phone, instead of just a small circle. That opens all sorts of doors to simultaneously scan two fingerprints for added security, or place your finger down at any odd angle, instead of hitting it perfectly dead center.

    The last truly impressive thing to take from this is the Vivo Apex  software seems to be a complete copy of iOS, down to the graphics assets on the homescreen and in menus. It would be nice to see another iOS inspired software option. especially in a truly cutting edge phone.

    Quick Specs Look

     

    • 6-inch edge-to-edge OLED display with 1.8mm bezel on top and sides and 4.3 mm on the bottom.
    • Screen resolution: 2,160×1,080 pixels
    • 8-megapixel front-facing camera
    • In-screen fingerprint reader supports dual fingerprint recognition
    • Dual rear camera
    • Hi-Fi audio chip creates more room for the battery by consolidating the DAC and three amplifiers into one

    The Final Thought

    it’s an incredibly baller phone, but it’s just a concept. That screen shows remarkable engineering and the pop-up camera isn’t as strange as you might think. I’d be happy to spend more time with the device if Vivo ever decides it’s ready for the show. I am anxious to see if the Chinese manufacturer continues innovating to fruition.

     

  • 5 Things We Found Out About the Galaxy S9

    5 Things We Found Out About the Galaxy S9

    Think you know everything about the Samsung Galaxy S9 and Samsung Galaxy S9+?  We have been posting, researching, speculating on the next big thing in the android world for a year now. Finally it has be unveiled, and we were mostly correct but here are 5 unsuspected things we were surprised to learn about the S9

    1.The bezels are thinner then the S8, but the phone is more durable

    The top bezel lands at 8.21mm with a 0.39mm reduction, while the bottom bezel measures in at 6.99mm. Impressively, that’s a reduction of 1.01mm. In both cases, the reduction in bezels actually brings the size of the device down by 1.2mm and 1.4mm on the S9 and S9+ respectively. Samsung has made the S9 more durable compared to its predecessor. In short, this comes as the result of using a different type of aluminum.

    2. The camera is quieter and does much better in low light

    I was blown away by how well the S9+ performed in dim conditions, because the variable aperture on the Galaxy S9 and S9+ goes as wide as f/1.5. Samsung says that its new flagships let in 28 percent more light. With the support of a  wider aperture, f/1.7,  that kicks in when the ambient light is 100 Lux or below.  100 Lux is the light you’ll see on overcast day or in most office settings.  At the same time, Samsung added dedicated memory to its camera in order to reduce noise.

    3. Dedicated Fingerprint

    This is a new feature for this year’s flagship phones and is for the Secure Folder element. This folder is a compartment for files and apps that you want to keep separate from the rest of the phone. It uses your Samsung account and you can access it using the same security protocol, fingerprint, passcode, iris recognition etc as you do to unlock your phone. Once you’ve moved files to the Secure Folder, nobody can see them without your passcode, fingerprint or whatever.

    4. We Get to Keep the Headphone Jack

    The S9 and S9 Plus have retained their headphone jacks, unlike other phones in the class, including the iPhone X, 8, and 8 Plus, Pixel 2 XL, or the Huawei Mate 10 Pro. That’s a blessing for audiophiles who just aren’t satisfied with the current state of wireless audio and for people who even have a designated pouch for their dongles but still lose them. Admit it dongles are tiny and easy to misplace.

    5. That Sound Really Bumps

    Dual stereo speakers to the device for the first time . The S9 finally  have Dolby’s surround-sound Atmos technology built-in.  Samsung created a device that offers premium sound experiences with stereo speakers tuned by AKG. Whether users are watching their favorite movie or streaming their favorite artist’s latest album, sounds are clear, crisp and rich in quality.


  • SmartPhone Spotlight: Nokia 8 Sirocco

    SmartPhone Spotlight: Nokia 8 Sirocco

    Nokia has officially launched the Nokia 8 Sirocco  at the MWC 2018, which will be available from April 2018 . In fact, this is the most powerful phone that will support  Android One.

    The Great

    • Premium Line
    • Solid Stainless steel build
    • Qi wireless charging

    The Not

    • No headphone jack
    • Poor battery performance
    • Snap dragon 835 not 845 processor

    The Conclusion

    a Snapdragon 835 chipset, 6GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, dual rear facing camera, a fingerprint sensor, face unlock and Android 8 Oreo onboard – ensuring the Nokia’s 8 Sirocco has a sizable spec sheet to justify a lofty price tag. With a slew of new  android flagship phones launching from every direction, the Sirocco will have its work cut out to steal some of the market share.

     

    The smartphone is constructed from a single block of stainless steel  a lot like the Apple iPhone X. This makes the Nokia 8 Sirocco a very durable smartphone with stainless steel being much stronger than the Aluminium. It will be  IP67 water and dust resistance. As for size  it measures just 7.5 mm at its thickest point and 2 mm at it thinnest. This will be the first Nokia Android smartphone to support wireless charging as  well.

     

    Quick Spec Look

    The Nokia 8 Sirocco has a 5.5 inch pOLED QHD+ 2560 x 1440 px display with 18:9 aspect ratio. The display offers a dual curved design with the vacuum moulding technology with Gorilla Glass 5. The device is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset with 4GB RAM and 128GB storage.

    The Nokia 8 Sirocco comes with dual primary camera setup, powered by Zeiss. The primary 12 MP sensor has an f/1.75 aperture with 1.4-micron pixel size and the secondary 13 MP telephoto lens has an f/2.6 aperture. The device has a 5 MP front-facing camera with f/2.0 aperture and 1.micron pixel size. In fact, the primary camera setup found on the smartphone is exactly similar to the Nokia 7 Plus’s camera specifications.

    The device does offer additional features like NFC, 4G VoLte, Bluetooth 5.0, and a rear-facing fingerprint scanner. However, this is the first Nokia smartphone to remove the 3.5 mm headphone jack.

     

    The Final Thought

    Underneath that glossy exterior sits a Snapdragon 835 which enables VR goodness, but is still yesterday’s news compared with the brand new Snap Dragon 845.  This gives one big reason to pass on Nokia’s new bad boy, but nothing stands out as a good selling reason to grab one.