One's spare

 The SpareOne phone

 What's up everyone? All this tech running in the wild getting in on a collision course with our own very lives... Have you ever tried to teach someone how to use their smartphone or tablet when they don't have even the slightest ideea? If the answer's a "yes" with a capital Y then you know what I'm talking about, if not I can recommend this to improve one's anger management :) 

 Fast forward to today: How many times your smartphone got its battery drained when you need it the most? Guess the answer would be "countless". Sometimes you can blame it on the likes of "Angry Birds" or on streaming YouTube videos. However you can also get a backup dumbphone like the SpareOne phone.

 The SpareOne phone was featured at CES 2012 and it can last for 15 years (no typo) on a single AA battery and all you can do with it is make and receive phone calls. Emergency calls can be made with or without a SIM card installed. The 10 hour talk time is a significant drop from 15 years, but if you are going to use it for emergencies only then the talk time is more than acceptable. The SpareOne has no display at all and looks almost like a remote control, the volume button is on the left, standard keys to accept or deny calls, number keys, power button, and it also features a lock/unlock key.
 Alan Cymberknoh the designer of this device says it uses the SpareOne as a backup phone for when his iPhone runs out of juice: “I have pre-set my important numbers on it - home, office, family - so when people call me, I pick up on my SpareOne.” All this seems usefull, don't you think? See ya!

 Link: The SpareOne phone

Wirelessly charged

 Samsung Galaxy S3 wireless charging kit

 The S3 launched on May 3rd at the Samsung Mobile Unpacked 2012 event in London. I won’t get into much details cause tech specs and reviews about the S3 are widely spread.

 The Wireless Charging Kit is one of the accessories that will be launched sometime later this year for the Galaxy S3 and it would be able to provide charging from a distance of up to 2 meters. The delay could be related to Samsung’s recently formed “Alliance for Wireless Power” with Qualcomm.

 This tech is not exactly a breaktrough but it seems that Samsung is keen on succeeding where others have failed. What's next? Guess only time will tell.

 Link: Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III previewed

 

Gingerbread on Atom

 Xolo X900

 And here we are ladies and gents, we’ll be witnessing yet another milestone in the mobile industry. Lava (an Indian mobile phones company) is preparing to launch the Xolo smartphone which, hardware wise, runs on an Atom platform. As the OS is concerned the weapon of choice would be Android Gingerbread at launch with an update to ICS following up shortly.

 I know y’all geeks are eager for some specs so here they are: 1.6 GHz Intel Atom Z2460 processor, 1 GB of ram, 16GB of internal memory, screen size of 4.3”@1024x600 pixels resolution, 8MP main camera with Flash, a front camera of 1.3MP, micro HDMI out. The handset is also NFC (near field comm.) ready. All those goodies are packed in a form factor that measures a mere 123x63x10.99 mm.

 At first glance the specs are on par with the last year’s high end devices but do keep in mind that this is an Atom processor on which a PC version of Windows might work just fine. 

 From now on we should get used to see the “intel inside” logo on smartphones as well. But how soon is now and how’s that Xolo for a change? See ya!  

 Links: Xolo X900
            Lava Mobile Phones

Take your body to the next level

 SlimKicker

 Say wha? That's right folks that right there is an interesting and revolutionary app. So, grab your iOS device and give it a try. Not convinced yet? That's ok, I can't blame you given some low-quality apps laying around the app store.
 What's this about? Well this is the real deal if you wanna loose some weight - and look cool at the same time!

 This is a level-up game and point-based program. You start by tracking your diet, where whole foods are worth more points than processed foods. It's similar to Weight Watchers, but in reverse. The thing is most people regain weight because they never learn long-term habits and return back to bad habits after they're done with the diet. SlimKicker, on the other hand is all about learning proper nutrition, portion control, and acquiring important habits. In addition to challenges, SlimKicker also offers tools such as a calorie counter, a fitness tracker and resources.

 I'm glad to see that there are still people keen on innovation, congrats to all those who made SlimKicker the real deal!

 Link: SlimKicker

The (S)martphone

 Sony Xperia S

 Innovation is scarce and mere upgrades are paramount… The Xperia S is in between but has everything it takes to take on the top dogs.
 So, let’s see what the S has onboard: Snapdragon platform with a 1.5Ghz dual core processor, 1GB of ram, Adreno 220 GPU, 32GB of storage, 4.3 inch display of HD resolution @1280x720 pixels, 12MP camera with autofocus and Exmor R sensor for low light conditions along with 1080p video recording.

 Connectivity-wise there’s WiFi(b/g/n), Bluetooth, NFC(near field communication), DLNA, USB on the go, micro-USB and HDMI 2.0. All this in a slim form factor measuring only 10.6 mm in depth.

 The Xperia S is running on Android 2.3 with the ICS update coming up soon. Anyway the Sony’s Timescape user interface offers enough functionality and eye-candy for the average user :)  On the gaming side the “PlayStation Certified” feature allows for playing PlayStation Suite games.

 The device’s design mixes the classic form factor with a transparent strip which cuts through the base of the device in which the antenna is embedded - it also illuminates and indicates where the on-screen buttons are placed.

 Sony really nails it with this product, it really adds the “S” letter back into the “Smartphone” wor(l)d.

 Links: Sony Xperia S
            Where to buy

Switch cards – webOS style

 Cardswitcher 2.0 for iOS

 Well, webOS is no more but that doesn’t stops enthusiasts from innovating. Cardswitcher brings some of that webOS’s multitask interface style and functionality to iOS.
 The result is quite interesting to say the least, this jailbreak tweak is a true alternative for the default iOS app switcher. You have to have your iDevice jailbreaked in order to install this tweak. So, what are you waiting for? Give it a try!

 Here's a video, courtesy of iPadUp:

Excite 10

 Toshiba Excite AT200

 Thin supermodel physique or the thinnest and lightest tablet with a 10.1” LED backlit LCD capacitive touchscreen with 16M colors @1280 x 800 pixels - meet the AT200 tablet from Toshiba which is 7.7mm thin and weighs a mere 558g.

 Hardware wise this “excitement” is powered by a 1.2 Ghz dual core processor, 1GB of ram and a  PowerVR SGX540 Gpu. When it comes to storage it has 16 or 32 GB of internal memory with the possibility to upgraded it up to 32 GB more by using its microSD card slot.

 Wireless connectivity is assured by Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n), Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP and EDR(enhanced data rate) and GPS. It also features a micro USB port (data transfer and charging) and a micro hdmi out port.

 The main camera takes snapshots at 5MP with autofocus and is recording HD video @720p.

 Android 3.2 Honeycomb runs the show until the planned update to Android 4.0 ICS would be available later on to even better handle the AT200’s “excitement”.  The battery life extends up to 8hrs depending on usage. 

 The best contenders of AT200 are: Asus Transformer Prime, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and iPad(2012).

 If you haven’t made up your mind yet – choose what best suits you cause beauty is in the eye of the beholder :)

 Link: Toshiba Excite
           Where to buy