Xperia Z1 Compact, the First True High-end Small Form-factor Android Phone.

When talking about screen sizes, five inches can be quite a hassle to fit in normal size pockets. Nor comfortable for single handed use for most users. Sadly enough, that's the size class that most Android flagship devices such as the Samsung Galaxy S4, and the HTC One only come in.

Samsung saw this issue and has addressed this issue with their Galaxy S3 Mini and their recent Galaxy S4 Mini. Now you would believe that with the same S3 or S4 branding, you'll be getting the same power found in Samsung's flagship devices but in a smaller form factor. However, under closer inspection you'll reveal that the S4 Mini is half of what its larger S4 cousin in every possible way: screen size, battery, processor speed, number of cores, camera quality, and RAM. The same issue also plagues the HTC One Mini. Which begs the question, is there really such thing as a small form factor flagship?

 

Xperia Z1 (Left) compared to Compact brother (Right

The answer, yes.

Just recently at CES 2014, Sony has released the new Xperia Z1 Compact. In a nutshell, the Z1 compact has everything that the bigger brother Z1 had. Still boasting the zippy Snapdragon 800 Quad Core CPU running at 2.2 GHz, 2GB of RAM, Adreno 330 GPU, the same 20.7 MP Camera with Sony's Exmor RS® for mobile image sensor, as well as the same waterproof features with Sony's OmniBalance design language. Still running the same identical Sony interface as the original Z1 with the Sony ecosystem including Walkman, Albums, Movies, Sony Select and much more.

Unfortunately however, due to the smaller form factor, the display has been downgraded to 720p Triluminos display retaining a 342 ppi rather than the 1080p variety on the original Z1.Though you'll still have the Bravia Engine hard at work behind the scenes so image quality will still be extremely clear and life like.

Xperia Z1 Compact (Left) compared to iPhone 5S (Right)

Expect availability to come later this year and the price relatively close to the Original Z1. Don't expect the device to be priced much lower than it's larger counterpart as this is still packing the best hardware available. This device is mainly for the people who have small hands and want a high-end smartphone but don't want to deal with the bulkiness of a 5 inch or larger display. It's about time a device like this has come to the Android market as it was in dire need of one for a long time. iPhone users have loved the performance mated with the comfort of the 4 and 5, now the android side has something that is compelling for their user base.

Earlier this week, Bill Gates gave us his thoughts of which type of aid is more important. Full article through this link: http://venturebeat.com/2013/11/03/bill-gates-internet-connectivity-doesnt-mean-much-of-youre-dying-of-starvation/

For the most part, I agree with Gates completely. I think that there should be a balance between the two. One of the biggest problems in places like Africa, is the lack of education in those areas. So even though I don't believe we should go heading towards the idea of providing every child in Africa a computer and internet access, something like a community internet hub would be a tremendous solution. So overall, when giving aid, there has to be a balance between the the most basic necessity of life and a relatively new human right.

Share with us your thoughts in the comment section below!

Apple Patent Wars Strike Again

Could this be the return of physical keyboards?

Are you kidding me? Just when they released something that I was totally excited about, they do something that completely turns me away from the company yet again. Apple has filed another patent case; but this time, the patent is on touch typing and multi-touch. Now that this case has been upheld, this means that there is a possibility of a BAN of most Android handsets on the market. Now several OEMs like Microsoft and Nokia are fine because of the way Microsoft and Apple has cross-licensed patents all the time. However, that being said, this is a complete disaster for not only OEMs like Samsung, Sony, Lenovo, and .etc, but for the entire mobile device industry has a whole. The reason I say that is because competition drives innovation. Competition is what drives technology forward. If Apple were to ban upright over a half of their competition, then we could see the progression of mobile devices slow down dramatically. And from a consumer stand-point, this is scary business since we love choices and options. Apple is basically ripping that out of our hands.

To be honest, I find that what Apple is doing is completely ridiculous. What I wanted to see from Apple was a company that innovates, not a company that throws punches left and right. How the technology industry works is by companies leapfrogging each other. In fact, this practice is shown in almost every industry. For example, Auto manufactures. Car manufacturers like Mercedes Benz, Mazda, and many others, have made their own variation of BMW's iDrive System. A simple and easy controller to navigate through a car's entertainment system. So what does BMW do in response? They continue to improve upon it, nothing more. Not the kind of response Apple is currently putting together.

There are solutions for Android OEMs. One of which is to go back to the physical keyboard. Whether that would be the solution everyone follows is unknown. However, what is clear is what Apple's current motive is.

Let us know how you feel about this verdict in the comment section!

Kill the start button in your windows 8.1

Start button is back, yeah! How about........No. People kept complaining about the Windows button is gone, to me it's the best thing ever. I used Windows XP and 7 and I hate it all the time, it's just useless to me, I barely touched that button, all I do with it was Start->cmd. That's it, and this thing occupied an icon space in my task bar, what a waste of space.

When Windows 8 deleted the button for Windows 8, it's such a good news to me. But people started to complain it's disappearance and in Windows 8.1, it's back.....again. Seems like I'm not the only one who doesn't like the Windows 8.1 start button. Because people finally get used to it's disappearance or because the button was even useless than the one before with a terrible look.

Lots of people complain about it's limits. All you can do with this new one is the list in this picture. No access to recent programs or direct search or links to folders.

So, why waste a space in the task bar to put a ugly and useless button there. Let's kill it. =]

Here's how you do it.
Step 1: Click HERE to download StartIsGone
Step 2: Run the x86 ver if you have a 32bit Windows 8.1 or x64 ver if you have a 64bit Windows 8.1
Step 3: Run it at start up
Step 4: Enjoy Windows 8.1 without the Start button every time you boot your computer

Source:
http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/
http://winaero.com/

Everything you Need to Know About Slowdowns Caused by RAM

Have you ever heard to expression "download some more RAM"? Many tech savvy would tell you that this is a joke and could potentially harm your computer should you follow that statement.

RAM, is short form for "Random Access Memory". In short, RAM is how much usable memory that your computer has at its disposal. There are two parts in choosing memory kits. One of course is the capacity of the module. The other is the speed the module runs at. In short, the speed of the module would not matter to the average end user. The reason being is that the difference in performance wouldn't be noticeable in daily applications like editing documents and browsing the internet. However, capacity size is where things really start to matter. It's no big deal when you have a surplus of memory for the daily tasks you do. However, once you start running out of memory, what ends up happening is that your computer will now use allocated space in the Hard Drive as memory. And since the speeds of which hard drives run at in terms or reads and writes is no where near the blazing speeds of a memory module, you can anticipate dramatic system slow downs once you hit and go over that barrier.

So you way be wondering how you can see if you have enough RAM or not. A simple way to find out is by going into your Task Manager (CTR + ALT + DELETE). Under "Performance" you can see a graph of how much free memory you have left at your disposal.

If you find that your system is running slowly and you are running short on memory, there are a few tricks you can do to free up some of that memory. One of which is see how many tabs you have open in your Internet browser. Internet browsers are one of the biggest memory hogs in a system and the more tabs you have open, the more memory it's going to take up since all that information has to be stored for quick access.

If you can't change your internet habits, then looking into a RAM upgrade could be a solution for your computer slow down problems. That being said, make sure that your system has support for higher memory capacities. Most modern computers (even about 3 or so years old) don't have a problem with higher RAM capacity support. However, many older systems do have a limit of how much RAM they can handle or account for. And make sure you are getting the right kind of modules for your specific system. Most modern systems nowadays use memory called DDR3 SDRAM. DDR stands for Double Data Rate and SDRAM stands for Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory. Older systems could be running on DDR2 SDRAM or DDR1 SDRAM, older standards of DDR SDRAM. So make sure you find the right kit for your system. (DDR1 and DDR2 are already phased out standards, meaning finding these parts could be both pricey and hard to come by. In this case, a completely new system with a more modern platform could be the better route to follow.)

If you are still facing slow downs, then the problem might be elsewhere. These could include viruses or ad-ware infections, software problems or just plain old aging hardware. If that's the case, you may want to consider re-installing your OS or an entire platform upgrade.

Mac OSX Mavericks, Finally Something From Apple I Got Excited For

Ever since the first addition of Mac OSX, it has been named after some feline of some sort. Now however, Apple is ditching that naming scheme and has released Mavericks during their live press conference today.

Now the user interface may look unchanged. In fact, it looks the same as the OS that was shipped out for several years. Most of the improvements done on the OS was to the workings under the hood. Mavericks is promising higher battery efficiency and the usual bunch. But an interesting feature Apple has come up with is the ability to compress memory for inactive RAM. Which means you could have up to 6 GBs of data on 4 GBs of RAM. Pretty cool stuff. Other changes are higher allocated system RAM as a GPU frame buffer so the GPU can grab more memory on demand. The average user might wonder how it would apply to them. Well the answer is that Mavericks now supports Open GL which is claimed to show up to 1.8x faster performance with supported workloads. 

Other additions include iBooks and Maps Apps, better multi-display support as well as the ability to view notifications on the side so they don't become a big distraction. 

And here's the kicker, the update is FREE for users who have bought an Apple computer in the last few years. Even iMacs dating back to 2007 are eligible for the upgrade.

Link to Apple's Upgrade Page

Changes like these are actually pretty exciting. For the longest time, OSX seemed very dull to me. Nothing about the OS really seemed to appeal to me in any way shape or form. With Mavericks, I can see a larger reason why I would consider adding Mac in my toolkit. 

ThinkPad Yoga - The Newest Addition to Lenovo's Convertible Ultrabook Series

When Lenovo first released its first IdeaPad Yoga Ultrabook, there was nothing else on the market like it. Instead of having a detachable or wireless keyboard accessory if you wanted a notebook typing experience, you just flip the screen over.

A year later, Lenovo brings this revolutionary technology to their ThinkPad line of Business oriented mobile PCs. From day one, the biggest complaint with the original Yoga was that the user was still mashing keys on the keyboard while in tablet mode. Lenovo has addressed this uncomfortable issue with not the best solution, but still one that does the job well. What they had done is that they motorized the frame around the keys. Meaning, when the screen is flipped around, frame will rise up and sit flush, aligned with the keys. Then, a lock clamps the keys in place so you can't press them even if you tried. Lastly, little feet pop out between the keyboard and the surface you're placing the device on for extra grip so that the device does not slide all over the place.

As expected from the ThinkPad line of products, the fit and finish of the device is exceptionally high. Because of the new keyboard design, Lenovo has had to fit a stronger hinge, and a larger chassis, meaning that unfortunately, this feature will not make its way into the Yoga 2 Pro. That being said, the Yoga 2 Pro will still get its set of new upgrades.


The device is still loaded with the usual ThinkPad bells and whistles in terms of specs and features. A 1920x1080 display for that Full HD experience, up to an Intel Core i7 Processor to drive productivity levels, high security connectivity options, and optional touch pen accessory, the ThinkPad Yoga is a seriously flexible convertible Ultrabook for the business professional on the go.