The Huawei B593 LTE Family

The Huawei B593 4G LTE CPE Router. There are many sub models such as the HUAWEI B593U-12, B593s-82, B593s-42, B593u-501, B593u-513, B593u-91. They are designed to meet the 4G LTE Band requirements for different markets. They incorporate similar configuration and even have the same functions.

Source: http://www.3g-solution.com/sdp/95544...ay_router.html

Confirmed sub-model listing *updated 29 April 2014*:

HUAWEI B593u-12: FDD DD800/900/1800/2100/2600MHz (Cat3)
HUAWEI B593s-22: FDD DD800/900/1800/2100/2600MHz & TDD 2600MHz (Cat4)
HUAWEI B593s-82: FDD DD800/1800/2600MHz & TDD 2300/2600MHz (Cat3)*
HUAWEI B593u-91: TDD 2300/2600MHz (Cat4?)
HUAWEI B593s-601: FDD 1800/2600MHz & TDD 2300MHz (Cat4?)

*This model does not support 3g

And maybe these models also exist:

HUAWEI B593s-58: TDD 1900/2300/2600MHz (End of Life Announcement)
HUAWEI B593s-58b: TDD 1900/2300MHz
HUAWEI B593s-42: TDD 3500MHz (End of Life Announcement)
HUAWEI B593s-850

EDIT: This document seems to list all/most possible B593 models:
B593u-12
B593s-12
B593s-22
B593s-31A
B593s-42 (End of Life Announcement)
B593s-82
B593u-91
B593u-501
B593u-513
B593s-516
B593s-601
B593s-931

Marketing blurb:

The HUAWEI B593 Router is the first LTE TDD wireless broadband router in the world, supporting LTE TDD/FDD 800/1800/2300/2600MHz up to 100Mbps download speed. Access for up to 32 WIFI devices marks as an ideal home entertainment and information exchange hub. It supports multiple devices and provides simultaneous high speed access, perfect for SOHO's and small businesses with its connectivity options.

FEATURES:

Ports:
* 4 x LAN
* 2 x USB

Transmission speed 4G (MAX)
* Download 100 Mbit/s
* upload 50 Mbit/s

Transmission Speed 3G (MAX)
* download 42.2 Mbit/s
* upload 5.76 Mbit/s

WI-FI: 802.11 b/g/n

Additional antenna location: two antenna ports

SIZE: 190 mm x 35 mm x 176 mm
WEIGHT: 500g

Operating systems it's compatible with:

* Windows 2000/ Windows XP/ Windows Vista/ Windows 7
* Mac OS 10.5/ Mac OS 10.6/ Mac OS 10.7
* Linux

The unit is a breeze to setup with all vital info provided on a large label on the port side of the unit. WiFi security and SSID are predefined and okay to use. For the sake of amusing your neighbours, might I suggest:  http://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/co...me_youve_seen/

While WPS is supported, it is turned off by default so a quick visit to the router's config page is required. Both WLAN and WPS have dedicated buttons on the one side of the unit - very handy indeed. The WLAN button activates/deactivates the wireless broadcast while the WPS button controls the WPS broadcast for devices that support it.

On that note, wireless on the unit is not particularly strong. I found in the config that the output power is set by default to 90%. Upping this to 100% hardly improved matters so I personally resorted to a repeating strategy. Hello WPS!

An absolute brilliant range of little devices are the Huawei WS3xx line-up. While other functions are supported, I picked up a few WS322 with the sole intention of repeating my wireless signal.

Key to a good repeating strategy is the central location of the base unit ie. the B593 LTE CPE. The repeaters are then placed at the peripheral of the WiFi range and configured to repeat the WiFi signal. This is quite a simple thing to do, of anyone needs help, just shout.

Since I have quite a large residence, I opted to deploy 3 * WS322 in Repeater Mode. This worked brilliantly but I did notice a few quirks I'm still unsure of. For instance, occasionally I'll get no traffic on the network. Through trial and error I found that by unplugging one or two repeaters, and later plugging them back in, solved the problem. It seems to me that too many WS322 units screws up routing in the network but this is only a hunch. I had an idea that my B593 LTE CPE may be faulty so it has actually been returned and I've got a new one now. I'll report back if this phenomenon persists.

Another oddity I've discovered is that speeds are bets when right up close, or directly connected, to the B593. For instance, my gaming PC is only 1.5 metres away and, while still on wireless, obtains much much better speeds than my phone or tablet. Speedtest have always maintained *not* to test speeds over wireless and I guess this is one of the reasons why.

One major gripe, and Huawei are not alone in this, is that there is no app for controlling the B593. Configuring the unit over a phone is a chore in microfiche efficiency.

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Pear OS Linux Panther v3.0 Mac OS X Look Alike

Pear OS Linux has announced the release of Pear OS 3.0, an Ubuntu-based desktop distribution with a Mac OS X-like look and feel (as well as slogan): "Pear OS 3.0 'Panther' available. 

From the desktop you see when you start up your PC to the applications you use every day, everything is designed to be simple and intuitive. Of course, making amazing things simple requires some seriously advanced technologies, and Pear OS is loaded with them. 

Working and playing on a PC is all about applications, so Pear OS makes it simple to find and open those applications fast. The Dock is a handy place on your desktop for storing and launching your favorite applications, and it makes switching between them a breeze."

Download links:
Pear-OS-Linux-Panther-v3.0-x32.iso (895MB, MD5)
Pear-OS-Linux-Panther-v3.0-x64.iso (964MB,MD5)

The release announcement doesn't offer any details, but the product page has some screenshots alongside much marketing talk.

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DLNA extension enables multi-screen delivery through Set-Top-Box

MSOs and other service providers will soon be able to deliver multi-screen content directly through set-top boxes, in addition to – or instead of – the broadband channel. The enabler will be the DLNA CVP-2 guidelines published today.

Service providers have long been able to securely distribute IP-based content through broadband networks and broadband routers and still maintain security for the content. Previously, secure multi-screen distribution of MPEG-based pay TV content delivered through the set-top was not possible.

While the prospect of creating a home network using a set-top/gateway is no doubt enticing, success will depend entirely on encouraging the participation of enough service providers and consumer electronics (CE) companies.

"DLNA’s new CVP-2 Guidelines provide the industry with a foundation to significantly enhance consumer enjoyment of premium content offerings from their service provider. Content providers' rights are preserved, devices will have greater functionality, and consumers will have greater viewing device options. This is a win for all stakeholders,” said Tom Lookabaugh, chief R&D officer, CableLabs. CableLabs is a contributing member in the DLNA group, contributing to the development of the technology.

As of now, few companies have publicly committed to using DLNA CVP-2 – even among the contributing members. In addition to CableLabs, they include Comcast, Cox Communications, and Time Warner Cable, Broadcom and Samsung.

That said, interest in the technology has begun to percolate. At the recent CES, companies that showed technology or demonstrated support for DLNA CVP-2 included ARM, Broadcom, Access, AwoX, JetHead, SiliconDust, Videon and ViXS Systems.

Joerg Eggink, product director at Access, said, “…we're already seeing very high levels of interest from our broadcast and CE device customers.”

Karthik Ranjan, ARM marketing director, operator relations, said, “The ARM ecosystem has invested heavily in HTML5 technology within the mobile market, which will in turn provide huge commercial gains for the Pay TV sector as it will have access to the constant and rapid innovation.”

David DeAndrade, a fellow in Comcast’s office of the CTO, is a spokesman for DLNA. He said in an interview with CED that there have also been some European satellite and telco service providers who have been involved, though they did not participate at the official “Contributor” level.

He acknowledged that the adoption of DLNA CVP-2 will have a chicken-and-egg element to it. The technology will require a critical mass of both service providers and CE companies. Given that, it’s notable that Apple has not participated in the effort so far.

“Success will invite more service providers in, and more CE companies in. If we get a good launch this could very well become a success,” DeAndrade said.

DLNA CVP-2 is implemented using open source technologies including linux platforms, HTML5, MPEG-DASH, and DTCP-IP, the digital rights management (DRM) software that authorizes and enables sharing within a home network.

Support for DLNA CVP-2 is also built into the RDK software stack, DeAndrade noted.

Products will have to be certified before being marketed. Certification is expected to begin in September. There will be five or six organizations that will perform certification testing around the world. In the U.S., the University of New Hampshire will be one.

DLNA expects certified products to hit the market at the end of this year.

DLNA CVP-2 provides several advantages, but the topline benefit is the ability to deliver video in a home network through a set-top or gateway, as opposed to an Ethernet/Wi-Fi router, no other equipment required.

Display devices can include PCs, Blu-ray players, game consoles, laptops and other mobile devices. Every device that would connect in a DLNA CVP-2 would need to be enabled with the technology. In many cases, that might require a simple app download for CE devices.

It is up to the CE companies to create those apps for their products. The way the technology is set up, the CE device will go out and discover the gateway, and access the remote user interface (RUI).

Because the RUI is HTML5-based, it can be consistent across all devices.

Once connected, the viewer can then go through the menu of content available. If Comcast were to adopt this technology, for instance, that would all go through the X1 platform.

The number of devices that could be supported would depend on the number of tuners in the set-top/gateway; gateways typically have 4 or 6.

It would be up to service providers to provide support pages that explain what the service is, what devices will be supported, and where to download apps for devices that can be used but didn’t come with the necessary software already installed.

Service providers would need to install a DLNA server.

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D-Link DIR-510L Wi-Fi AC750 Travel Router Review

The DIR-510L is a marvelous device that's capable of running on AC power using the provided adapter, or it can run on its own internal 4000mAh battery. And it has three USB ports, so it can share files stored on a USB hard drive and run on AC power at the same time. The router must be put into charging mode to charge anything (the USB port delivers up to one amp of power to an attached device).

The DIR-510L is the first 802.11ac travel router.

Most travel routers trail the market, supporting older standards and offering limited features. Few would say that about D-Link’s DIR-510L (or the Wi-Fi AC750, depending on which name you find easier to remember). This is the first travel router to support the 802.11ac standard, and it’s loaded with features.

In case you’re wondering what AC750 means, it’s the industry’s fuzzy-math marketing speak for informing buyers that a router supports two 150Mbps spatial streams using the 802.11n standard, and one 433Mbps spatial stream using the 802.11ac standard (never mind that 150 + 150 + 433 add up to only 733).

The DIR-510L is a dual-band router capable of running on the 2.4GHz frequency band in 802.11b/g/n mode, or on the 5GHz frequency band in 802.11a or 802.11ac mode. It has only one Ethernet port, so it can’t support a wired network, but it can operate as a wireless router connected to either a wired broadband connection, or as a wireless hotspot connected to a wireless broadband connection. Alternatively, you can share a 3G, 4G, or LTE wireless broadband connection with a wireless USB adapter and whichever cellular service you subscribe to.

It has a Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) button, which makes connecting clients super-easy (there’s no need to write down the SSID or WPA password). You should be aware, however, that the DIR-510L doesn’t come with any preset security. Don’t get in a hurry and forget to set that up, or anyone will be able to jump on your network. The DIR-510L supports guest networks on both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequency bands, enabling you to share Internet access with others without granting them access to the computers on your network.

While feature-rich, the DIR-510L was not the fastest travel router I tested—at least not when I tested it with a Mac server and a Mac client. Netgear's 2.4GHz 802.11n router was faster than the D-Link both when the D-Link was operating as a 2.4GHz 802.11n router and when it was operating in 802.11ac mode on the 5GHz frequency band.

When operating as an 802.11ac router, the D-Link DIR-510L delivered throughput of 59.8Mbps when the client was in the same room as the router, nine feet away. Throughput dropped marginally to 48.5Mbps when I moved the router into my kitchen, 20 feet from the router with one insulated wall in between. The D-Link couldn't connect to the MacBook Pro at all when I moved it to my home office, 65 feet away and separated by several insulated walls. Distance typically isn't a big problem with travel routers, unless you're trying to support several colleagues in adjacent hotel rooms.

As you can see from the benchmark chart, the client had no problem connecting to the DIR-510L's 2.4GHz 802.11n network when the client was in my home office. I measured TCP throughput of 29.5Mbps in that scenario. At closer range, the D-Link delivered throughput of 42.3- and 43.1Mbps when the client was in the bedroom and kitchen respectively. But that's a far cry from the Netgear Trek's performance of 87.7-, 89.2-, and 76.3Mbps in the bedroom, kitchen, and home office respectively.

The DIR-510L has an onboard DLNA media server for streaming music, photos, and video from an attached USB hard drive. D-Link’s SharePort app supports most of the typical file formats: bmp, jpg, and png for photos; mp3, wav, and m4a for audio; mp4, mov, and m4v for video; as well as PDF and Microsoft Office document formats. Sadly, however, it does not support flac audio files. If you’re using a Mac, you can use D-Link’s SharePort Web Access to view directories of files on an attached drive. D-Link also offers SharePort apps for iOS and Android devices.

The D-Link DIR-510L has nearly all the features you could want in a compact router, but it's not the top performer—at least not when paired with a MacBook. That title belongs to Negear's Trek PR2000. When I tested these routers with a Windows laptop, the results were just the opposite.

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Apple iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, debuted September 19

At a Glance

Apple recently introduced the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus. Both devices launched on September 19 in the first wave of countries. The first reviews describe the units as "thin and sexy", "bigger and better", with impressive battery life.

Specs

• 4.7-inch iPhone 6 features a 1334 x 750 display
• 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus features a 1920 x 1080 display
• 16 GB, 64 GB, and 128 GB
• $199, $299, and $399 / $299, $399, and $499

Apple has launched two new iPhones, the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus. Along with larger screens and a completely new iPad-style design with an ultra thin body and rounded corners, the two new phones offer faster processors, better cameras, and Apple's new Apple Pay payment system.

Apple's new iPhones are available in Gold, Silver, and Space Gray, and are available in 16, 64, and 128 GB capacities. The iPhone 6 pricing starts at $199 on contract, while the iPhone 6 Plus pricing starts at $299.

While both models include the same 64-bit A8 chip and the same general design, there are several differences between the two phones. The iPhone 6 measures in at 6.9mm, while the iPhone 6 Plus is slightly thicker at 7.1mm. Apple's iPhone 6 Plus also has three major differentiating factors: optical image stabilization for the camera, and a longer battery life, and an iPad-style landscape mode that displays more content on the screen.

Though the iPhone 6 Plus has optical image stabilization, both phones got some major camera improvements in form of sensor upgrades, improved tone mapping, better noise reduction, and new "Focus Pixel" technology, which improves the phone's ability to select autofocus points. For videos, there's a new 240fps slo-mo option, along with support for shooting in 1080p at 60fps. The front-facing camera was also upgraded, with an f/2.2 aperture that lets in more light and new burst mode capabilities.

Both phones have an impressive new "Retina HD Display," with the iPhone 6 featuring a resolution of 1334 x 750 (326 ppi) and the iPhone 6 Plus featuring a resolution of 1920 x 1080 (401 ppi).

Design wise, the phones more closely resemble the iPad and the iPod touch than the iPhone 5s. Both models have soft, rounded corners and a curved glass screen that melds smoothly into the thin metal body of the device. The volume buttons on the left side of the device are now pill-shaped, and the power button is located on the right side of the device for easier one-handed use.

How to Buy

The iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus launched on September 19 in the U.S., U.K., Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Puerto Rico, and Singapore, following pre-orders that began on Friday, September 12. On Friday, September 26, Apple expanded iPhone 6 and 6 Plus availability to more than 20 additional countries, including New Zealand, Italy, Denmark, and Taiwan, and on October 17, the two devices became available in China, India and Monaco. Later in the month of October, Apple expanded availability to 33 additional countries.

Apple is selling the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus both online and in its retail stores. Though supplies were initially constrained, stock of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus appears to be improving in the United States and other countries around the world. In the U.S., new orders of both devices ship in just 1 business day for 16 and 64GB models and 3 to 5 business days for 128GB models.

In store supply of both devices is also improving, with retail stores receiving shipments on a near-daily basis. The iStockNow tracking tool can be used to see which models of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are currently in stock at a variety of stores, including Apple's retail stores.>

According to an Apple representative, response to the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus was "incredible," setting a new record for pre-orders, and sales topped 10 million during the phone's launch weekend. While it remains uncertain whether consumers preferred the smaller iPhone 6 or the larger iPhone 6 Plus, early analysis suggests buyers favored the iPhone 6 3:1 over the iPhone 6 Plus.

Apple's iPhone 6 is available in 16, 64, and 128 GB capacities, priced at $199, $299, and $399, respectively, with a two-year contract. The iPhone 6 Plus is available in 16, 64, and 128 GB capacities and will be priced $100 higher at $299, $399, and $499, respectively. Both the iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus are available in Space Gray, Gold, and Silver.

Issues

"Bendgate"

Shortly after the iPhone 6 Plus was released on September 19, reports of the device bending when placed in a pocket began to surface. One user, for example, reported slight bending after the iPhone was in a pocket for approximately 18 hours, and after that, several other reports trickled in.

Inspired by the reports of bending, a YouTuber created a video depicting him bending the iPhone 6 Plus with his hands, causing significant damage to the device. The video went viral, and began people worrying about bending the iPhone 6 Plus in their pockets.

It is important to note when watching the video above that the amount of pressure placed on the device is unlikely to be replicated in daily usage. While images have depicted slight bending, there has been no extreme warpage in the casing due to carrying the device in a pocket.

Affected users have reported that Apple has replaced devices that have bent. As shown in another video, the iPhone 6 Plus is less vulnerable to bending when placed in a rigid case, and users can also avoid bending the iPhone by removing it from a pocket before sitting down.

A followup bending video featuring the iPhone 6 demonstrated that the smaller-screened device is much harder to bend and therefore likely less vulnerable to bending when placed inside of a pocket.

In response to all of the media attention that the iPhone 6 Plus bending issues garnered, Apple released a statement to several different sites saying that with normal use, bending in the iPhone is "extremely rare." The company said that only nine customers had complained about a bent iPhone 6 Plus.

In addition to releasing a statement, Apple also invited several reporters to visit its the facility where the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are subjected to several different tests to ensure strength and durability. As described in reports, the iPhones go through five different tests, including pressure point cycling, three-point bend tests, torsion testing, sit tests, and real-life testing scenarios where Apple employees use the devices.

According to Apple's head engineer Dan Riccio, the iPhone 6 was "the most tested product" Apple's ever created. The company reportedly conducted 15,000 tests on the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus. Apple's head of marketing Phil Schiller said that bending was extremely rare, and that the company had "designed the product to be incredibly reliable throughout all your real world use."

Consumer reports went on to test the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus after reports of bending, and found that the two devices are not quite as bendable as the media has suggested. In a three-point flexural test, the iPhone 6 Plus withstood 90 pounds of force before bending, while the iPhone 6 withstood 70 pounds of force, which is more force than the two devices are likely to be subjected to during daily use.

According to Consumer Reports, though the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are not indestructible, they "should stand up to typical use."

Crashing Issues

Some 128GB iPhone 6 and 6 Plus units have reportedly been having crashing and boot loop issues, which could potentially be a hardware issue related to the NAND flash in the devices.

Reviews

Initial impressions on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are gathered below to highlight the general release reactions to the two new devices.

Apple's two new devices are essentially identical in design aside from the difference in screen size and the battery life/optical image stabilization in the iPhone 6 Plus. One notable improvement in both devices is the longer battery life afforded by the larger batteries. The iPhone 6 Plus is said to last up to 2 days, while the iPhone 6 may last a day and a half.

Brad Molen, Engadget:

Both iPhones are thinner than their predecessor. Whereas the 5s was 7.6mm thick, the 6 comes in at 6.9mm, with the 6 Plus measuring a hair thicker at 7.1mm. I don't always subscribe to the "thinner is better" mantra, but it's a benefit in this case because larger iPhones wouldn't feel as comfortable if they had the same shape as the 5s. If I had to choose based on in-hand feel alone, I'd pick the 6 over the Plus. I can still wrap my fingers around the 6 just as easily as I could with the 5s (and its curved sides don't cut as sharply as the edges on the 5s), but the large-screened 6 Plus is... well, it's manageable.

David Pierce/Nilay Patel (iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus), The Verge:

Huge phones get to have huge batteries, and the iPhone 6 Plus is a huge phone with a huge battery: I consistently got about two days of battery life from the 6 Plus in regular daily use -- slightly more than the day and half we got from the iPhone 6, and basically the same as the Note 3.

Walt Mossberg/Lauren Goode (iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus), Re/code:

In my tests, I found the iPhone 6's Wi-Fi speeds -- both downstream and upstream -- were roughly double those of the 5s, and about 25 percent faster than those of the Samsung Galaxy S5. But I saw little difference in LTE speeds, either on Verizon or AT&T.

Jim Dalrymple, The Loop:

The 6 Plus was awkward for me to use at first--it was kind of like using a smaller version of the iPad mini, but it was a phone. I had a hard time wrapping my head around the idea of using it on an ongoing basis, but the larger screen eventually won me over.

In More Detail

Design

Measuring in at 4.7 and 5.5-inches, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus dwarf previous iPhone models, but at the same time, the two phones are Apple's thinnest yet, measuring in at 6.9 and 7.1mm, respectively. For comparison's sake, the iPhone 5s was 7.6mm thick.

According to Apple, the thinner profile was made possible by the company's "thinnest display yet," which is made of slightly curved glass designed to flow seamlessly into the body of the device to highlight the "Retina HD" screen of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

Both devices include prominent antenna bands on the back enclosure, along with a protruding rear lens. The volume buttons are pill-shaped, much like the buttons on the iPad Air, and the power button has been relocated to the right side of the device.

The iPhone 6 measures in at 5.44 inches long and 2.64 inches wide, and weighs 4.55 ounces. The iPhone 6 measures in at 6.22 inches long and 3.06 wide, weighing 6.07 ounces. In comparison, the iPhone 5s is 4.87 inches long, 2.31 inches wide, and it weighs 3.95 ounces.

Retina HD Display

iPhone 6 rumors largely suggested Apple would use a sapphire display cover in the device, but that turned out to be false. Instead, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus use "ion-strengthened" glass with an improved polarizer (for better outdoor viewing), a photo aligned IPS liquid crystal display, and a fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating.

The iPhone 6 has a 4.7-inch display with a "2x" resolution of 1334 x 740 (326 ppi) while the iPhone 6 Plus has a 5.5-inch "3x" resolution of 1920 x 1080 (401 ppi). Both phones are said to offer higher contrast, better brightness, and improved white balance.

According to a test conducted by DisplayMate, the iPhone 6 Plus display is the "best smartphone LCD ever tested." The iPhone 6 display also received high marks.

Apple has implemented several "Reachability" features to improve the viewing experience on its larger devices, including Display Zoom and landscape view (iPhone 6 Plus only). Display Zoom lets users zoom in to get a closer view at their apps, while standard zoom displays more content on the screen.

Landscape view on the iPhone 6 Plus is designed to make the most of the 5.5-inch screen and to help users be more productive. When in landscape mode, the device will display apps like Mail, Calendar, and Stocks in a wider view similar to the way they're displayed on the iPad.

The iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus take advantage of dual domain pixels, which improves viewing angles. AnandTech has given an in-depth overview of dual domain pixels, explaining that the technology alludes to the fact that the electrodes in the pixels are not all aligned. Instead, the pixels are "skewed when viewed from the perspective of the lines defined by the rectangular edges of the display," allowing them to compensate for uneven lighting.

Battery Life

The iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus both offer improved battery life, but due to the larger size of iPhone 6 Plus, it is able to accommodate a larger battery. The iPhone 6 has an 1,810 mAh battery, while the iPhone 6 Plus has a battery capacity of 2,915 mAh.

Because it has a bigger battery, the iPhone 6 Plus has a longer battery life than the smaller iPhone 6. 3G talk time for the iPhone 6 Plus is at 24 hours, compared to just 14 hours in the iPhone 6, for example, while HD video playback is at 14 hours for the iPhone 6 Plus and 11 hours for the iPhone 6.

Reviews of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus have suggested that the iPhone 6 can last up to a day and a half on average, while the iPhone 6 Plus can last up to two days on a single charge. A battery life test conducted by AnandTech showed the iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus beat out many competing Android devices, lasting longer than the Samsung Galaxy S5 and the HTC One M8. The iPhone 6 Plus had the second longest battery life of any device tested, coming in behind the Huawei Ascend Mate 2.

Despite shipping with a 1A/5W battery, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are capable of drawing up to 2.1A/12W of power, which means that iPhone users can likely obtain a faster charging time using an iPad adapter. According to early testing, charging with a 12W iPad adapter charges the iPhone 6 Plus in approximately two hours.

A8 Chip and M8 Motion Coprocessor

Both the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus have a new 64-bit A8 processor built on an advanced 20-nanometer process by TSMC. Not only is the chip smaller than the A7 in the iPhone 5s, it's also able to deliver 25 percent faster CPU performance while being 50 percent more energy efficient.

The A8 takes full advantage of Metal, Apple's gaming technology that lets developers create console-style games on the iPhone. According to Apple, Metal is designed to let the GPU and CPU work together to provide detailed graphics and complex visual effects, which means gaming on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus is going to be better than ever.

Alongside the A8, there's also a new M8 motion coprocessor, which is the successor to the M7 motion coprocessor introduced in the iPhone 5s. The M8 measures data from the accelerometer, compass, and gyroscope, along with a barometer, which is new to the iPhone 6.

With the addition of the barometer, the M8 motion coprocessor can measure elevation in addition to steps taken and distance traveled.

AnandTech has published an analysis of the A8 processor that points towards significant GPU enhancements and an enhanced Cyclone CPU at 1.4Ghz.

The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus have topped CPU benchmarking tests (compared to competing Android devices and the iPhone 5s), but the iPhone 6 Plus lags slightly in graphics performance due to the device's larger screen.

Camera Improvements

The iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus continue to sport an 8-megapixel f/2.2 rear camera, but the addition of several new features will result in vastly improved picture quality. Continuing to offer improved camera capabilities has always been a priority for Apple, with the company even opting to include a protruding lens design to avoid making image quality sacrifices for the sake of the thin design of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.

The first major new feature, "Focus Pixels," are designed to speed up autofocusing by providing the sensor with more information about an image, while improved auto image stabilization will compensate for slight amounts of motion blur and hand shakiness. Focus Pixels will vastly speed up autofocusing times and improve autofocusing in low light situations, as demonstrated in a review of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus cameras.

Both phones also have improved face detection capabilities and more control over exposure, and the Panorama feature now supports high-resolution panoramic photos of up to 43 megapixels.

Video options have been improved in the two devices, and it's now possible to capture 1080p HD video at 60fps. There's also a new 240fps slo-mo mode, and time-lapse video, which was introduced with iOS 8.

The iPhone 6 Plus has one slight advantage when it comes to the camera, however, as it takes advantage of the M8 motion coprocessor to offer optical image stabilization. Optical image stabilization better compensates for hand shake and slight movements in low light than standard auto image stabilization techniques. As a result, it's likely the iPhone 6 Plus will be able to deliver higher quality low-light photos than the iPhone 6.

Along with rear camera improvements, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus have improved front-facing FaceTime HD cameras with a new sensor and an f/2.2 aperture. With these improvements, Apple says the front-facing camera can capture 81 percent more light, resulting in much better low-light photos. There's also a new burst mode for the front-facing camera, which will let users take burst mode selfies for the first time.

In the DxOMark tests from reputable camera testers DxO Labs, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus both scored an 82, overtaking the Samsung Galaxy S5 and the Sony Xperia Z2 as the best smartphone cameras in both the photo and video categories.

According to the testing, both the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus performed similarly, with the site noting that both had "very good, generally reliable auto-exposure" in a range of lighting conditions and fast, accurate autofocus.

The optical image stabilization in the iPhone 6 Plus, which is the differentiating factor between the two devices, resulted in better noise performance and less ghosting on HDR images, but it did create a video stabilization artifact that ultimately led to a better score for the iPhone 6 in the video category.

Connectivity Improvements

Apple's iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus both offer faster LTE with support for LTE Advanced networks, reaching speeds of up to 150 Mbps, and they offer 20 LTE bands for better connectivity when traveling. A real world speed test has shown some impressive speed gains between the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 5s when LTE Advanced is available.

The devices also include support for Voice over LTE (VoLTE) which allows users to make higher-quality phone calls over LTE. VoLTE will also allow users on CDMA networks like Verizon to use voice and data simultaneously for the first time. VoLTE requires support from both Apple and carriers, and several carriers have pledged to roll out support for the service.

In addition to cellular improvements, the iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus are the first of Apple's iOS devices to offer support for 802.11ac Wi-Fi. 802.11ac Wi-Fi is able to offer connection speeds that are up to 3 times faster than existing 802.11n networks. The speed improvements possible going from the iPhone 5s to the iPhone 6 Plus can be seen in the video below.

Finally, the iPhone 6 supports calls over Wi-Fi, which can result in higher-quality calls, especially in situations where a cellular connection is low. Calling over Wi-Fi is another feature that requires carrier support, but again, some carriers, like T-Mobile, have already pledged support.

Memory

iPhone 6 and 6 Plus teardowns have revealed that both devices continue to offer the same 1GB of RAM found in the iPhone 5s.

Other Features

Like the iPhone 5s, the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus continue to offer Touch ID, Apple's fingerprint-based security system. With iOS 8, which ships on the iPhone 6/6 Plus, Touch ID will become even more powerful, thanks to third-party Touch ID integration.

Touch ID is also an integral part of Apple's new Apple Pay mobile payments initiative, as is the Near Field Communication (NFC) antenna built into every iPhone 6. Apple Pay is designed to allow users to pay for purchases at thousands of retail stores with just a fingerprint.

Operating System

The iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus ship with iOS 8, Apple's newest mobile operating system. iOS 8's main goal is to improve integration between Apple devices, both mobile and desktop, through the use of "Continuity."

This article "Apple iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, debuted September 19" is originally posted at macrumors.com and was posted by guest blogger.

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Cherry Mobile Launched Cosmos Z2 a Full HD Octa-Core Smartphone

Now that Octa-core is now the latest and faster processor for mobile devices, Cherry Mobile is the first to released such product. The Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 is powered by 1.7 GHz MediaTek 6592 octa-core processor.

Following its predecessor, the Cosmos Z, the Z2 is part of the Cosmos series launched last July 2013. However, what makes it different from the rest of the Cosmos series, and the rest of Cherry Mobile’s smartphones for that matter, it’s octa-core processor.

The Cosmos series is one of our most promising lines yet – looking back, we became the first and we remain to be the only local brand with phones with Super AMOLED Technology. Looking back, we became the first and we remain to be the only local brand with phones with Super AMOLED Technology. And being our first octa-core smartphone, the Cosmos Z2 deserves to lead this line of products,” said Cherry Mobile’s Marketing Head, Poch Zenarosa

Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 Key Features:

• Android OS 4.2 Jelly Bean (upgradable to Kitkat 4.4 when available)
• 1.7 GHz MediaTek 6592 Octa-core processor.
• Mali 450-MP
• 5-inch FHD IPS OG Display, Full HD 16.7M Colors Resolution
• 16GB ROM, 2GB RAM
• Dual-SIM
• 18MP Back Camera with Back Illumination Technology (BSI)
• 8MP Front Camera
• 2000 mAh Battery
• WiFi Dual-Band 2.4GHz / 5GHz
• Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, G-Sensor
• OTG Ready

Suggested Retail Price 12,999Php

With its “true octa-core” – eight cores ready to work simultaneously, this smartphone can handle apps that are graphics intensive and can so multitasking without lag.

The Cherry Mobile Z2 is one Sleek smartphone only at 7.59 mm, it's comfortable to hold and use. The main camera is 18MP with Back Illumination Technology (BSI) so the picture quality taken with the camera are great. But with only 2000mAh battery this device will definitely need a powerbank as it's companion.

Cosmos Z2 brings octa-core technology to our consumers without straying too far from the actual Filipino lifestyle,” explained Cherry Mobile’s Product Manager, Lonson Alejandrino.

For the price of Php 12,999 for an Octa-core smartphone, I would say that Cosmos Z2 is a nice choice if you want to experience that Octa-core processing power. The Cosmos Z2 is now available at Cherry Mobile SM City North Edsa.

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Wibiya Alternative : AdMedia Launches Social Browser Toolbar FooterRoll

AdMedia invites Wibiya publishers to try FooterRoll, a social browser toolbar designed to engage website visitors, increase social interaction, and generate revenue.

AdMedia, a performance-based advertising network, today announced that it will be offering its FooterRoll social browser toolbar to Wibiya publishers who are looking for alternatives. Following the news that Wibiya will be putting an end to its services, AdMedia is inviting Wibiya’s more than 150,000 users to sign up for FooterRoll, so they can continue to engage visitors and earn revenue from their site.

“With the news that Wibiya is discontinuing its services, we understand that publishers are likely feeling confused about what to do next,” said AdMedia COO Avi N, Bibi. “That’s why we’re more than happy to step up and provide publishers with an alternative as well as a smooth transition process.”

Bibi added that the AdMedia support staff is ready to assist Wibiya users in setting up FooterRoll on their websites and they’re inviting all publishers to look into the service.

AdMedia is inviting Wibiya’s more than 150,000 users to sign up for FooterRoll, so they can continue to engage visitors and earn revenue from their site

What FooterRoll Does

Similar to Wibiya, FooterRoll is a toolbar that sits at the bottom of a publisher’s website. It contains various social engagement buttons to make it easy for visitors to check out the publisher’s social media pages, as well as share content via Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and more.

FooterRoll also contains a built-in search box to enable users to conduct searches without leaving the website. This provides visitors with the convenience of quick and easy web searches, which keeps users on the site and lowers the publisher’s bounce rates at the same time.

In addition, the FooterRoll toolbar is fully customizable, and gives publishers full control over how it looks and behaves, as well as the buttons and features to be included on their website.

No coding is required to get FooterRoll up and running. Enabling the toolbar can be done simply by pasting a snippet of JavaScript onto the website.

“The toolbar was designed with publishers and regular users in mind. It’s incredibly user-friendly and easy to set-up. Should publishers have any trouble whatsoever, they can simply contact AdMedia and our reps will address any questions or concerns that they may have,” mentioned Bibi.

Monetization Opportunities

Publishers can also use FooterRoll to earn more revenue. At the left-most part of the bar is an expandable area that shows sponsored messages, and publishers get to decide whether ads are displayed automatically or if they require users to mouse-over the toolbar. Furthermore, FooterRoll operates at a CPM model which guarantees revenue every time an ad is seen.

“The CPM model along with the fact that publishers have full control over how ads are displayed, make FooterRoll a great tool for site owners. Publishers love the fact that the tool has a ton of features that let them monetize their traffic more effectively,” mentioned Bibi.

Publishers can get started with FooterRoll by visiting http://www.footerroll.com

About AdMedia

A performance based advertising network, AdMedia has been providing Advertisers and Affiliates with marketing solutions since 2007. AdMedia connects advertisers to consumers across many channels, including industry leading email, domain, social and search networks. More than 60,000 advertisers utilize the AdMedia network to advance their offers. A privately held company headquartered in Burbank, AdMedia has domestic offices throughout the state of California. Connect with AdMedia on the web at http://www.admedia.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/AdMediaCommunity and on Twitter at Twitter.com/Ad_Media.

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MIPS-based eCosCentric Developer's Kit Now Available!

MIPS Technologies, Inc., a leading provider of industry-standard processor architectures and cores for digital home, networking and mobile applications, and eCosCentric Limited, the eCos and RedBoot experts, today announced that eCosCentric has ported its eCosPro® open source real-time operating system (RTOS) to the microMIPS™ instruction set architecture (ISA).

eCosCentric has also made available its eCosPro Developer’s Kit for the MIPS32® M14K™ and M14Kc™ cores, which are based on the microMIPS ISA. This builds on support for other MIPS cores already offered by eCosCentric.

With the robust, feature-rich and fully-supported eCosPro RTOS for the M14K and M14Kc cores, users can choose from a rich set of supported peripherals, network stacks and file systems. They can become productive quickly with the full Eclipse-based development environment that packages the RTOS. Since the eCosPro Developer’s Kits for MIPS cores were built and tested using standard MIPS reference designs, engineers can start building applications within a few minutes.

“The ecosystem of third party support for our microMIPS ISA and M14K cores continues to grow, and we are excited to offer our licensees who are designing products around these technologies access to the highly popular eCosPro RTOS. We are seeing interest in the combination of eCosPro and microMIPS among our customers for a range of cost-, speed- and resource-constrained applications,” said Art Swift, vice president of marketing and business development, MIPS Technologies.

According to Alex Schuilenburg, managing director/CEO at eCosCentric, “We are pleased to add to our existing support for MIPS cores by porting eCosPro to the microMIPS ISA. Existing eCos users will be able to migrate quickly to eCosPro on the new microMIPS architecture, leveraging their existing application and system design knowledge. They also have the assurance of guaranteed commercial support direct from the original designers of the RTOS.”

Availability

The eCosPro Developer’s Kit for the M14K and M14Kc cores and microMIPS on the SEAD™-3 reference board is available directly from eCosCentric, with packages of support to suit teams of varying sizes. eCosCentric can also tailor-build a run-time to meet customer requirements. Visit www.ecoscentric.com/ecospro.shtml, contact info@ecoscentric.com or visit stand #2319 at the Embedded Systems Conference – Silicon Valley 2011 for more information.

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Miccrosoft 1 Million Xbox-One Sales in Less Than 24 Hours

Microsoft Corporation has announced that it has sold more than 1 million of new Xbox One units within 24 hours. The new console has set a record for first day Xbox sale. Xbox One has been launched in 13 countries world-wide. Microsoft calls it the biggest launch in Xbox history.

Company said that Xbox One has already been sold out at more of the retailers. Company also promised to replenish stock as fast as possible.

“We are humbled and grateful for the excitement of Xbox fans around the world,” said Yusuf Mehdi, Corporate Vice President of Marketing and Strategy, Xbox. “Seeing thousands of excited fans lined up to get their Xbox One and their love for gaming was truly a special moment for everyone on the Xbox team. We are working hard to create more Xbox One consoles and look forward to fulfilling holiday gift wishes this season.”

At the time of launch, 22 titles are available for Xbox One including 10 exclusive games. Microsoft has also revealed some stats about the games played on Xbox one so far. According to company, Xbox One users have:

• Killed more than 60 million zombies in Dead Rising 3
• Driven more than 3.6 million miles in Forza Motorsport 5
• Completed more than 7.1 million combos in Killer Instinct
• Defeated more than 8.5 million enemies in Ryse: Son of Rome
• Earned more than 43.3 million Fit Points in Xbox Fitness

Xbox One comes with better gaming experience, TV, Skype, Sports, Fitness, Music and much more in one gaming device in you living room. You can also control it by giving voice command.

Few days back, Sony has also claimed to sell 1 million PS 4 in 24 hours. It seems that gaming console market is going to have tough competition.

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Snapchat Deletes $3B Facebook Bid

Snapchat's whole premise is "now you see it, now you don't," and that might be true of the $3 billion in cold cash Facebook is said to have dangled in front of Evan Spiegel, its 23-year-old CEO. "I'm amazed at the amount that Facebook offered for Snapchat," said Asymmetric Insights analyst Alan Webber. "To me, that's absolutely incredible. Whether they're actually worth more or not, I don't know."

The furor around popular technology startups shows no sign of letting up. The latest big-money rumor centers on Snapchat, the company behind the eponymous 2-year-old smartphone messaging app that has yet to earn a cent. Its would-be suitor, Facebook, reportedly made an all-cash US$3 billion offer in recent weeks. However, Snapchat turned it down.

The offer and subsequent snub came as Snapchat reportedly was considering a potentially more lucrative deal: a $200 million round led by Chinese Internet firm Tencent Holdings that would value it at $4 billion.

Price Wasn't Right

Snapchat cofounder and CEO Evan Spiegel seems to believes the company is worth more than the $3 billion Facebook was willing to part with, and won't seriously consider a buyout or investment until early next year at the earliest, according to The Wall Street Journal , which cited sources close to the matter.

However, investor Benchmark Capital played a role in the decision to reject Facebook's offer, according to a New York Times report. Benchmark was an early investor in Instagram and apparently was disappointed when the company behind the popular photo-sharing app agreed to be acquired by Facebook for $1 billion last year.

Instagram could have found success by itself or found higher offers, in Benchmark's view. Around eight months after the Instagram sale, Benchmark made a $13 million investment in Snapchat.

Ephemeral Messages

Snapchat allows users to send ephemeral messages to each other that expire for good, typically within 10 seconds after recipients view them. In September, Snapchat users sent 350 million such messages daily -- up from 200 million in June -- according to the company.

Spiegel apparently believes there's plenty of room for growth, although Snapchat has not revealed its number of users.

"Facebook is great as a platform, but there's not a lot of real instant interactivity going on in the context of the engagement or what's taking place there," Alan Webber, technology industry analyst at Asymmetric Insights, told the E-Commerce Times. "I think Facebook is looking for other opportunities for people to engage faster and quicker. Not quite Twitter-level, but something more like instant messaging, which is what Snapchat is."

Social Media Boom

The commotion around Snapchat comes at a time when social media and smartphone messaging services are enjoying a boom in the marketplace. Twitter held its initial public offering last week and saw its stock soar 70 percent above the $26 price the company established, carrying it to a $25 billion valuation, despite its lack of profits.

Pinterest, meanwhile, last month raised $225 million for a $3.8 billion value, though it has not yet monetized its popular website.

Instagram's lack of profitability -- though it recently has started displaying ads -- didn't dissuade Facebook from snapping it up. Borrowing a page from Snapchat's playbook, Instagram last year launched Poke, an app that mimics Snapchat's key vanishing-act functionality.

The Young Crowd

Facebook may be particularly keen on Snapchat due to its popularity among young audiences, who are increasingly aware of the risks of public-facing social media to their future prospects should they post unflattering information about themselves or others.

More of Facebook's users are accessing the service through smartphones, which increases mobile ad revenue, but fewer young teens are visiting the site on a daily basis.

"As moms and dads and grandparents continue to start getting on Facebook, the kids are worried their activities are going to be seen by their parents," Gordon Owens, digital marketing professional at GO Digital WSI, told the E-Commerce Times.

"The kids in my life -- their parents have required them to be friends with them on Facebook as a caveat of them being on Facebook. I'm sure the kids are quick to adopt anything the parents haven't heard of, especially Snapchat. The whole premise is that everything you do goes away and it's not a permanent record," he noted.

"I'm amazed at the amount that Facebook offered for Snapchat," Asymmetric Insights' Webber said. "To me, that's absolutely incredible. Whether they're actually worth more or not, I don't know. It's one of these shots at a younger audience, which is what Snapchat has."

The Third Man

Snapchat is not without its controversies. The company's founders, Spiegel and CTO Bobby Murphy, as well as its investors, are being sued by Reggie Brown IV, who claims he was the third cofounder of Snapchat and was kicked out of the company by Spiegel and Murphy.

The two tried to cover up his ouster, Brown alleges.

Meanwhile, it's up for debate whether Snapchat has a real shot as a successful, independent entity in the long term.

"Facebook would be a logical move -- but the same time, when you look at some of the new technologies that are out there, Facebook is starting to get a little long in the tooth," Webber noted. It's a fairly old technology. I think [Snapchat] has to start monetizing, or they're going to have to look for a really great platform to integrate into."

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World's Fastest USB 3.0 IP

Here you will see demonstrated the fastest USB 3.0 IP in the Universe*. Or at least the fastest published numbers that isn’t marketing hype.

This demo shows SuperSpeed USB 3.0 effective throughput:

1. SuperSpeed USB 3.0 can really move data.
2. Synopsys USB 3.0 IP can really move data.

The demonstration includes our USB 3.0 xHCI Host Controller, USB 3.0 Device Controller, and USB 3.0 PHYs.

You have to actually watch the video to get see the effective throughput.

First, I have to say that that is about the most awesome thumbnail picture of me yet. Thank you YouTube!

Second, we optimized the PC systems as follows:

• RAM Drive on the Mass Storage Device side – This is a lot faster than a flash drive, an HDD, or an SSD. There’s no SATA or PCIe for the data to pass through, so there is zero latency from an additional protocol. The RAM is right next to the USB controller so there is basically zero read/write latency.
• Windows 7 with an MCCI USB 3.0 xHCI Host Stack – Somehow MCCI engineered this so it’s faster than stacks we’ve seen packed with off-the-shelf Host cards.
• Nothing else is running on the USB bus or PCIe bus on the PC. Very little is running on the PC.
• Standard PCs built with standard parts with SSDs (which aren’t really necessary but we wanted to make sure)
• Our IP – Our USB 3.0 PHY IP, Our USB 3.0 Host IP, and Our USB 3.0 Device IP.

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Understanding the difference between AMOLED vs LCD

Display technology is often a key battleground when it comes to top of the line handsets. But it’s not just display resolution and screen size that you’ll find on a spec sheet, manufactures also list different display types to choose between as well. Often you’ll find that manufactures stick to a particular display type, such as Samsung with its AMOLED technology or HTC opting for LCD, citing certain benefits over the competitions’ technology.

So let’s find out if really there’s a noticeable difference between these two displays technologies, if there is what sort of differences we can expect, and if the company marketing hype is to be believed.

The technology

First things first, let’s quickly go over the technological differences between the two display types before we delve into how this affects the consumer experience.

We’ll start with LCD, which stands for Liquid Crystal Display. The properties of this liquid crystal are a little complicated, but the important thing to know is that liquid crystals untwist when an electric charge is applied to them, which affects the frequency of the light transmitted through it. Combine this will two polarized panels and you can control the flow of light by twisting and untwisting the crystal molecules.

However, these liquid crystal materials don’t emit any light of their own, so a backlight is used behind the filter layer in order to generate light. A grid of integrated circuits is then used to control each pixel, by sending a charge down into a specific row or column. Colors are created by the use of red, green, and blue filters, known as sub pixels, which are then blended by varying degrees to produce different colors.

The construction of a red LCD pixel

AMOLED, on the other hand, uses lots of tiny colored light emitting diodes (LEDs) to produce light and different colors, which sounds quite a bit simpler. By adjusting the voltage, and therefore the brightness, of each of these red, green, and blue LEDs you can create a wide range of colors, or lack of colors (blacks).

The showdown

The most noticeable difference between these two screen types is the range of colors that can be displayed. The available colors that can be displayed are known as the color gamut, which is a portion of all colors that can be seen by the human eye.

Most types of media fit into the standard RBG color gamut, which most LCD screens aim to match. This is often why LCD screens are considered to be the most natural, but that’s simply because it most closely matches the color range used by other sorts of media. AMOLED displays offer a much larger gamut than LCDs, which can cause images to look much more vibrant.

The reason for the large differences lies in the way that these technologies work. Because LEDs can be individually controlled to a much greater extent, and development isn’t so concerned with the quality of filters as is the case with LCD, it allows the display to produce a wider gamut due to superior blending of primary colors. Another benefit of AMOLED is the greater control over blacks, which is achieved by dimming or turning off individual LEDs.

A gamut comparison between the Galaxy S4′s AMOLED display and the HTC One’s LCD display. The curved shape represents the visible spectrum, the black triangle is the sRGB gamut, and the white line is each display’s gamut. Notice the additional greens and blues with the S4.

However, a wider range of colours isn’t always better, as it can lead to images look oversaturated and can cause pictures to end up looking a tad distorted in extreme cases.

The strange thing here though is that LCD manufactures often aren’t satisfied with the look of their displays. In an attempt to make their displays look more vibrant, possibly just to keep up with the marketing of AMOLED displays, some LCD device manufactures often mess around with the levels of saturation, which can also end up ruining the color balance. If you’re looking for vibrant colors, then you’re probably better off with an AMOLED display with a decent colour balance, rather than an oversaturated LCD display. If you’re interested in a closer look at AMOLED/LCD saturation, then I highly recommend this video by Erica Griffin.

But it’s not all bad news for AMOLED displays, the technology does have some advantages over LCD. For a start the viewing angle tends to be a bit wider, as light can only travel through the LCDs crystal molecules and polarized panels at a limited angle, although this does vary from handset to handset. LEDs also react faster to changes in voltage than crystal molecules, which means that response times are often faster on AMOLED displays too.

One final point to consider is power consumption. As LCD displays are constantly powered by a backlight they tend to draw more power than OLED based displays, which can turn off LEDs when displaying darker images. However, different colored LEDs have different levels of power consumption, so energy draw is more consistent and predictable when used LCD technology.

This chart shows the lifespan of different colored PHOLEDs. Although the technology is a little different to AMOLED, the difference in colour lifespans is typical of all LED based displays.

The different LED energy levels can also shorten the lifespan of the displays. The blue pixels in LED displays require the most energy to power, but that also means that they can burn out faster. After a long time this can result in a slight tinting over part or all of an AMOLED display.

So which display wins

I know it’s a cop out, and you might here this a lot, but in the end it really is down to personal preference. Even within the same display types there are varying levels of saturation, gamut, and differences in calibration, so picking the best display type for yourself isn’t really an exact science. You could like HTC’s LCD displays but absolutely hate the look of LG’s. Typically, those looking for more vibrant displays will be better off with AMOLED, but well built and properly calibrated LCDs may provide a more realistic look.

On top of that, each technology has its own advantages and disadvantages that are also worth considering. If you’re looking for a long lasting display then you might be better off with LCD to avoid pixel degradation, whilst consumers looking for a better battery life and a wide range of colors could be better off with AMOLED. - source

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This Controversial Invention Promises to Banish All Web Ads

The unassuming rectangular box that you’re seeing can, in some ways, be thought of as a time machine.

Its inventors, Chad Russell and Charles Butkus, conceived of the device as a way for users to surf web pages without being inundated by the proliferation of advertisements, reminiscent of how people experienced it in the good old early days of the internet. “The idea started as a casual conversation with a friend about how cluttered the internet had become,” says Russell. “These days not only do you have banner ads, but also video commercials and advertising embedded into you mobile apps. They’re everywhere.”

After testing several hacked “Linux boxes” as prototypes, the duo came up with AdTrap, a mini-computer that connects to both your router and modem, and functions as an advertising firewall. The final product was designed to be entirely hardware-based so that it automatically removes all ads without the need for installed software or configuration. Simply plug it in and the low-powered machine instantly blocks out display ads, app-based ads and even the type of video ads commonly programmed into your favorite YouTube videos. And, it enables users to do this on every one of their devices.

“The unique thing about AdTrap is that it is run on a full web server, so it has better ad blocking abilities than just software,” Russell says. “And the ability to prevent video commercials from rolling is a new innovation, which I believe makes it interesting.”

Only a month after launching a funding campaign in November on the crowdsourcing site Kickstarter, Russell and his development team at the Palo Alto-based security software startup Bluepoint Security well exceeded their fundraising goal, finishing with $213,392 worth of seed money.

Since the simple days of text, photos and links, online advertising has become big business, essentially subsidizing much of what exists on the web. Data from the Interactive Advertising Bureau reveals that a record $20 billion was spent on advertising in the first half of this year alone, doubling the amount spent in 2007.

Third party solutions designed to combat this intrusive trend isn’t anything new. Popular browser plug-ins like AdBlock Plus have been widely available for a a few years now, and fundamentally, AdTrap employs many of the same strategies. But the mere fact that users can put in place such comprehensive ad filtering, and do it with such ease, can, in the long run, pose a substantial threat to the main source of revenue for a vast percentage of major publications (not to mention Silicon Valley stalwarts such as Facebook and Google).

As the project has rolled ahead (shipment began in August), Russell has yet to receive a single legal challenge or even stir up any complaints. He isn’t at all surprised since he sees the device as neatly falling into the same category as other widely-accepted means of filtering internet content, such as firewall security systems and parental control software like NetNanny. He also doesn’t think of the project as a means of waging war on advertising.

“We are not against ads,” says Russell. “The main problem with the way a lot of advertisements work nowadays is that they encroach upon people’s privacy by collecting data on their online activity, which many prefer outside parties not to have. Basically, internet users are paying for content by trading in their private information.”

Russell is hardly alone in working towards developing alternatives that would help users protect their privacy. Recently, a team of former Google employees figured out a way to buck their former employers by releasing Disconnect search, a free browser plug-in that prevents search engines such Google, Bing and Yahoo from keeping tabs on your search habits. The uprising against the long arm of marketing has reached a level where Russell says that even advertisers are fearing broader ramifications on the industry as a whole.

In fact, he mentioned that the company has begun negotiating with a small number of prominent firms to formulate a model that just might work better for all parties involved. For example, a few of the discussions have revolved around a potential opt-in system that gives users the choice to allow for ads from certain parties in exchange for a small payment. The advantage for sellers, he explains, is the potential to receive more individual attention from audiences without having them become annoyed by the sheer barrage of flashing click bait.

Even so, there are still other pressing concerns. Like, for instance, what if the technology eventually takes off? Would the internet, as a whole, suffer? Will it lead to sites cutting back on content, or might cash-strapped outlets resort to producing cheaper, lower-quality content?

Russell argues that online publishers need to continue evolving as they’ve always been. He points out that other media entities, like Pandora, have shifted to giving users a choice between having to listen to ads and the option of a commercial-free paid subscription.

“Listen, I wouldn’t like to see every site put up a paywall either,” says Russell. “But when you rely solely on advertising, it’s almost like you’re saying content isn’t worth anything. People should be allowed other means to subsidize content. If you’re against that, it makes me wonder what the value of that content is in the first place.” - source

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Chat App Battle Heats Up as KakaoTalk Enters the Philippines

Chat apps are not only big in Asia in general, they’re becoming widely used in the Philippines, too. Filipinos have been using Wechat, Line, Whatsapp, and Viber for a time now. But today, an additional option is available as KakaoTalk launches officially in the Philippines.

KakaoTalk stars on TV

It’s not that Korea-made KakaoTalk was not available for download in the Philippines for Android and iOS before. It already is. But since KakaoTalk has not yet formally introduced itself to the market by means of advertisements in different media, it may be safe to say that hasn’t yet gained traction in the country.

We’ve already seen China-made WeChat making itself known in the Philippines by getting local stars for its TV ads. Line also followed suit with its own set of TV ads and free stickers in the country. Today, KakaoTalk also launches its TV ad in the nation featuring Philippine singer Sarah Geronimo, together with Korean boy band Big Bang. Incidentally, K-pop has a huge following in the Philippines, so featuring a K-pop group in its advertisement might give a boost to KakaoTalk in the Philippines.

Planning for localized features

KakaoTalk’s move today is a lot like its aggressive promotion elsewhere in the region. The Korean app has TV ads in Indonesia, and is being promoted in Malaysia through a partnership with Friendster.

Last June, KakaoTalk reached 100 million registered users. But it’s still lagging behind Line which already has more than 200 million users. According to Kakao Corp, its biggest markets to date are Korea, Japan, and Indonesia. To start gaining ground in the Philippines, Kakao Corp will first focus on making Filipinos familiar with the app via ads and marketing, and then listening to users’ feedback. After which, it plans to provide timely localized features for the messaging apps users.

Banking on a recent ComScore study which revealed that the internet audience in the Philippines is the fastest-growing in Southeast Asia, Tim Jang, director of Kakao Philippines, believes that Kakao Philippines “will be able to provide the right product at the right time to satisfy the needs of the local consumers.” He adds:

The country has been especially robust in the past years and we are confident that KakaoTalk will do well in such a promising environment.

Among Asia-made messaging app, Line is perhaps the leader in the Philippines on both Android and iOS, according to App Annie’s rankings. But KakaoTalk’s eventual growth in the Philippines is something we will watch out for.

KakaoTalk is available for download for Android and iOS.

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Samsung Mass Producing High-Performance 128-Gigabit 3-Bit Multi-Level-Cell NAND Flash Memory

SEOUL, South Korea--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, announced today that it has begun mass producing a 128-gigabit (Gb), 3-bit multi-level-cell (MLC) NAND memory chip using 10 nanometer (nm)-class* process technology this month. The highly advanced chip will enable high-density memory solutions such as embedded NAND storage and solid state drives (SSDs).

“By introducing next-generation memory storage products like the 128Gb NAND chip, Samsung is extremely well situated to meet growing global customer needs”

“By introducing next-generation memory storage products like the 128Gb NAND chip, Samsung is extremely well situated to meet growing global customer needs,” said Young-Hyun Jun, executive vice president, memory sales & marketing, Device Solutions Division, Samsung Electronics. “The new chip is a critical product in the evolution of NAND flash, one whose timely production will enable us to increase our competitiveness in the high density memory storage market.”

Samsung’s 128Gb NAND flash is based on a 3-bit multi-level-cell design and 10nm-class process technology. It boasts the industry’s highest density as well as the highest performance level of 400 megabits-per-second (mbps) data transfer rate based on the toggle DDR 2.0 interface.

Utilizing 128Gb NAND flash memory, Samsung will expand its supply of 128-gigabyte (GB) memory cards, which can store as many as sixteen 8GB full HD video files. Samsung now will also increase its production volume of SSDs with densities over 500GBs for wider adoption of SSDs in computer systems, while leading the transition of main storage drives in the notebook market from hard disk drives (HDDs) to SSDs.

Demand for high-performance 3-bit MLC NAND flash and 128Gb high storage capacities has been rapidly increasing, driving the adoption of SSDs with more than 250GB data storage, led by the Samsung SSD 840 Series.

Samsung started production of 10nm-class 64Gb MLC NAND flash memory in November last year, and in less than five months, has added the new 128Gb NAND flash to its wide range of high-density memory storage offerings. The new 128Gb chip also extends Samsung’s 3-bit NAND memory line-up along with the 20nm-class* 64Gb 3-bit NAND flash chip that Samsung introduced in 2010. Further, the new 128Gb 3-bit MLC NAND chip offers more than twice the productivity of a 20nm-class 64Gb MLC NAND chip.

Samsung plans to keep introducing leading-edge SSDs and embedded memory storage solutions with high-quality features, in accelerating the growth of the premium memory market.

About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in technology, opening new possibilities for people everywhere. Through relentless innovation and discovery, we are transforming the worlds of televisions, smartphones, personal computers, printers, cameras, home appliances, LTE systems, medical devices, semiconductors and LED solutions. We employ 236,000 people across 79 countries with annual sales exceeding US$187.8 billion. To discover more, please visit www.samsung.com.

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