Samsung Unpacks the Galaxy S4

I just finished watching the livestream of the unveiling of Samsung's 2013 version of its flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S4.  All I can say is that the company really went all out in presenting its new gadget in a, ummm, big way at the Radio City Hall in New York City.

Let me give you the important details first - the specs of the new phone.   The key specs include a 5-inch Super AMOLED display with 1080p HD resolution, an Exynos 5 Octa eight-core processor in the international version and a quad-core Snapdragon chipset in the U.S. version, a 13-megapixel rear camera, up to 64GB of storage, 2GB of RAM, microSDXC support and Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, the latest available version of Google’s (GOOG) mobile platform. 

JK Shin, President and Head of IT & Mobile Communications Division at Samsung claims that  "All the innovative features of GALAXY S 4 were developed based on the insights and needs we found from our consumers all around the world."

So what are these innovative features? For one, the Galaxy 4S sports a new 13-megapixel rear-facing camera, and a 2-megapixel front camera.  It also has a dual camera mode, which allows you to use both cameras at the same time.  A dual video mode also allows you to speak with somebody in a video call while showing him or her what you are looking at.

When Samsung said that this new phone will connect people even more, they weren't only talking about the support for up to 6 different band sets which allows it to function in most LTE coverage areas as well as enabling global LTE roaming.  It also meant to say about the  'S Translator' which provides instant translation, using text or voice translation on applications including email, text message and ChatON. This instant translation is possible both from speech to text and text to speech and ensures that you can rely on the correct information whilst abroad.

Based on the presentation this morning, it appears that the best features of Samsung Galaxy 4S are not in the hardware but in the applications.  It still runs on Android, particularly 4.2.2,  but added some new features.

One is the Smart Pause which lets you control the screen by where you look.  The feature stops and starts video based on whether or not you’re looking at the screen.  Now before you jump and down thinking that you can control it with your eyes, it seemed that the phone detects the movement of your head; whether you are facing the camera or looking somewhere else.  Similarly, the Smart Scroll allows you to scroll the browser or emails up and down without touching the screen. It recognizes your face looking at the screen and movement of your wrist and then scroll the pages up or down accordingly.

Air View allows users to hover with their fingers to preview the content of an email, S Planner, image gallery or video without having to open it. You can even see a magnified view on the internet browser, or a phone number saved in the speed dial on the keypad. With 'Air Gesture', you can change the music track, scroll up and down a web page, or accept a call with a wave of your hand.

As I've said earlier, Samsung put on quite a show which included a tap dancing boy who took almost 20 minutes before showing off the new phone and a group of bridesmaids who danced to show the other features of the phone. But it seemed that they forgot to include some very important details: the price and the availability of the S4.  The online buzz is rife with speculation that it will come out in April in the US with the major telecom companies carrying it.

Well, I hope Pinoy Samsung fanboys won't have to wait longer to get your hands on this new gadget.

photos from online sources.

Sony Ericsson Introduces the Xperia Arc S

Sony unveiled its latest handset, the Sony Ericsson Xperia arc S., The latest addition to SE's smartphones, takes the sleek design of its predecessor and features upgrades to some of its features, including a 1.4GHz Qualcomm MSM8255 processor, which I think explains the suffix "S" for speed. The new device will come in 5 colors to suit your personality.

Xperia Arc S also sports the brilliant 4.2 Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA Engine and an 8.1-megapixel camera with an Exmor R sensor that includes a "3D sweep panorama" mode, which offers the ability to take 2D images and convert them into 3D.

You can instantly share your photos and videos online through the built-in Facebook application. With the latest Android operating system, you also have access to over 250,000 applications online.

Xperia Arc S is expected to hit the market by October this year. In the Philippines, expect it in our shores towards the middle of the Q4 of 2011.

Here are its specs at a glance:

Super fast 1.4 GHz processor
3D and 2D sweep panorama photography
8.1 MP camera with Exmor R™ for mobile image sensor
4.2“ Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA® Engine
Latest Android™ platform Gingerbread 2.3

New Look for Windows Explorer in Windows 8 is... cluttered

A friend offered me a link to a blog named "Developing Windows 8" which turns out to be the blog of the team developing Windows 8. It provides in detail what the new operating system will look and feel like when it comes out.

This edition of the blog features a detailed explanation of Windows Explorer. The team trumpets that it will improve the Windows experience of the user because it will offer a more streamlined user interface.

Now look at this picture from the same blog and tell if this is streamlined. No, you are not looking at the command bar of MS Office Word or Excel. That is how Windows Explorer will look like soon. I think it is a bit cluttered.  With all those menus and buttons, the average might end up pining for the old menu bar.  I think it's more simple and streamlined

My Apple Fanboy friend told me that he's surprised that Microsoft is releasing all of this information in advance. Could it be that the developers are testing the waters and want to know how their target (or captured as my friend calls us) clients will react to it? Perhaps they don't want to make a mishap of giving their clients what they don't actually want.

Watch the video here to listen to Alex Simons of the Windows management team explain what they've been doing with Windows Explorer.

Apple Releases iTunes Match on Beta for Developers

Apple released today a developer beta version of its upcoming iTunes Match.  Steve Jobs already announced this service during his introduction of the iCloud at the WWDC in June.

As explained by Apple, the system "stores your complete music library in iCloud, allowing you to enjoy your collection anywhere, anytime, on any iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch or computer."

from apple.com

iTunes Match will scan your iTunes music library and checks which of these songs are available in the iTunes Store.  It will include music you bought from the store, ripped from your CD collection, and even those obtained from other sources.

The company boasts of more than 18 million song titles in its catalog so most likely, the songs you have in your collection are already available.  Otherwise, you will have to unload those unavailable to iCloud.  You can then listen to your music anytime, anywhere at 256 kbps iTunes Plus quality,  as long as you are connected to the Internet.

At US$25 per year, the service will allow you to free a lot of space on your devices since you won't need to store your music on your iPad, iPod Touch, or MacBook to enjoy them.

Steve Jobs resigns as Apple CEO

from apple.com

The biggest news of the day in the techworld is the resignation of Steve Jobs as Chief Executive Officer of Apple.  Tim Cook who has heretofore served as Chief Operating Officer has been elected as Jobs's replacement.  Don't be sad though, Apple fans. Steve will stay on with the company as its "Chairman of the Board, director and Apple employee."

In his resignation letter addressed to the Apple Board of Directors and Apple Community, Jobs wrote "I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come."  

The online community believes that it has something to do with his health.  Jobs filed a medical leave of absence in January this year but has made an appearance at the WWDC in June to introduce the upcoming iCloud service.  He was also present during the event to introduce the iPad2 earlier this year.  In 2004, he took a 6-month leave of absence and underwent a liver transplant.

Although the shares of the company dived by as much as 7 percent after the announcement, industry analysts believe that the company will continue to dominate the IT industry under the helm of Tim Cook who has been considered heir apparent as Apple's top man.

Under Jobs stewardship, Apple released some of the most innovative products in the industry.  These include the iconic iPod and its companion application, iTunes which revolutionize the way we listen to and buy our music; the iPhone which raised the bar on what a smartphone should be; and of course the iPad, which still in unrivaled in the tablet industry.

Many IT experts also believe that the company will go ahead with Steve's plans for the company's hardware and software projects.  The iPhone 5 is scheduled to be released next month and the next generation iPad is expected to come out in 2012.  The iCloud service and the next iteration of the iOS is also due to debut this fall.

Steve's resignation letter is available here.

LYTRO: The Future of Photography?

An exciting revolution is about to happen in the way we take pictures.  A start up company in Silicon Valley called LYTRO is set to release a new kind of camera to the consumer market.

They call it the light field camera and what it does is it uses the power light to help you capture life's precious moments.  The secret is in the sensor which captures all the light rays in the scene.  Unlike conventional cameras, this new sensor records the color, intensity, and direction of the ray of light.  A special software inside the camera will process all these information to allow the viewer to switch focus points.  

Thia means there is no need to worry about focusing your shot anymore or whether the auto-focus function in your camera actually focused on your intended area.  In fact, the company's slogan is "Shoot now, focus later."

You can give it a try with the photo below.  Click on Elvis and see what happens.

Want to try more of this? Then head off to the company's website and have fun with their Picture Gallery.

The New Nikon D5100

Nikon recently announced the Nikon D5100, a Nikon DX-format digital-SLR camera equipped with a vari-angle monitor, and a 16.2 megapixels CMOS image sensor and the EXPEED 2 image-processing engine that enable high-resolution rendering.  

It is also equipped with the D-Movie function that supports recording of full-HD (1920 X 1080p, 30p) movies.  Along with this, are the in-camera movie editing functions that allow users to delete unnecessary portions from the beginning and/or end of movie files. There is also an HDMI output so that the users can show off their full-HD videos to their family and friends.

What I am excited about the Nikon D5100 is the Special Effects mode.  This is the first Nikon DSLR to offer this feature and the user can choose from seven special effects, including selective color where the entire photo is in black and white except for the elements chosen by the user.  There is also the night vision which  allows the user to capture images even in extremely dark places.  The special effects can be viewed through the lens before shooting, allowing users to see and confirm the results.  Complementing these features is the new High Dynamic Range (HDR) function which captures two shots at different exposures and combine these to create a single image that has little or no loss of highlights.

Another neat feature of this camera is the vari-angle monitor. The vari-angle monitor opens from 0 to 180° to the side, and can be rotated up to 90° clockwise and up to 180° counter-clockwise when it is open.  This will come in handy when shooting in a crowded place and the standard monitor won't do the job.  The 3-inch monitor is also bigger than the one in Nikon D5000 and since the hinge is now on the side, it will not hit the tripod when the camera is mounted.


The Nikon D5100 allows continuous shooting at up to approximately 4fps.  It also has a quiet shutter release mode for shooting in places and situations that needs quieter shutter operations.

The Nikon D5100 comes with an AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR kit lens. It is not yet available in the Philippines but it has as estimated selling price of $899.95 in the United States.