[Sponsored Video Inside] Samsung GALAXY Note upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich with Premium Suite

 Technology  No Responses »
Apr 252012
 

The Samsung GALAXY Note is getting an update to the new Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, and it’s quite a huge update with lots of improvements to the Samsung GALAXY Note calling it the “Premium Suite”.

Here’s a run through of the improvements:

  • S Note – Create your own notebook through various productivity tools
    • 7 templates – Note, Meeting Note, Idea Note, Magazine, Travel, Diary, Recipe
    • Record and play back step-by-step details of your drawings
    • Quick access to productivity tools with the floating tool bar
    • Automatic shape correction
    • Predefined shapes with editable size and colour
    • Find answers to complicated formulas using Wolfram Alpha
    • Knowledge Search with Wolfram Alpha by writing
    • Various notebook covers, and paper backgrounds
    • Quickly scan through contents of notebooks
    • Annotate and save PDF documents
  • S Memo Upgrade – Capturing ideas from anywhere
    • Instantly capture any idea directly from the homescreen
  • My Story – Express emotions to family members and loved ones
    • Write a letter or card and make multimedia albums to share
  • Ice Cream Sandwich Upgrade -  a more intuitive user interface, faster performance, Face Unlock, Snapshot, Photo Editor and other features
    • Multi-task and visually manage tasks with simple swipe gestures
    • Visualize data usage and easily manage data consumption
    •  Improved Hangouts experience
  • Exclusive Samsung GALAXY Note level in Angry Birds Space, the newest Angry Birds game from Rovio Entertainment, along with a special package of 30 challenging levels in “Danger Zone”

The Samsung GALAXY Note upgrade will be made available any time between March 22nd to June 21st (2Q 2012), depending on markets. No idea when Singapore’s going to get the upgrade. Fingers crossed!

“Sponsored by Samsung”

ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime with NVIDIA Tegra 3 Quad-Core Processor and Google Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich available in Singapore now (pricing included)

 Technology  6 Responses »
Jan 132012
 

ASUS Eee Pad Transformer Prime is the world’s first tablet featuring the NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core mobile processor and to be unveiled with Google Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, which will be available through an over-the-air update on 12 January 2012.

RRP:

  • Eee Pad Transformer Prime + Docking station: SGD$899 (GST Included) [UP: SGD$1098]
  • Eee Pad Transformer Prime (Tablet only): SGD$759 (GST Included) [UP: SGD$899]
  • Docking station: SGD$199 (GST Included)

First Thoughts:

  • I love how amazingly light (586g), slim (8.3mm), and extremely responsive the device is.
  • Up to 12 hours of battery life, with 18 hours when coupled with the docking station.
  • Super IPS+ screen with 600 nits of brightness – in comparison with the ~400 nits on the iPhone and iPad.
  • 8 MP (f/2.4) rear camera + 1.3 MP front camera – coupled with ICS new camera features like panorama, the camera actually is useable.
  • The sound (SonicMaster technology) is clear and loud, however the speakers are behind so you’ll still have to cup the speakers to hear the audio properly.
  • The NVIDIA Tegra 3 comes with 4-core CPU + 12 core GPU + 1 extra CPU core for low-power processing. This essentially allows the battery life to last up to 12 hours.
  • It is 3D capable. Plug in your Transformer Prime into a 3D capable monitor or TV and you can display your games in 3D (with those 3D glasses) while the games are playing in normal 3D (think 3D flattened to 2D) on your Transformer Prime.
  • My verdict? This is the best buy EVER Android ICS tablet for now (yes, even better than Motorola XOOM 2).

Specifications after the break.

Continue reading »

Samsung and Google’s Ice Cream Sandwich Event Starting Soon (Live Streaming Available)

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Oct 192011
 

Hey guys, for those who don’t know yet, the launch of the first and newest Ice Cream Sandwich is going to be announced soon. Go to http://youtube.com/android to watch the launch streamed live. It will start at 10am October 19th 2011 Singapore Time.

Here are the various global timing:

04:00PM - Hawaii (October 18th)
07:00PM - Pacific (October 18th)
08:00PM - Mountain (October 18th)
09:00PM - Central (October 18th)
10:00PM - Eastern (October 18th)
03:00AM - London (October 19th)
04:00AM - Paris (October 19th)
06:00AM - Moscow (October 19th)
10:00AM - Singapore (October 19th)
11:00AM - Tokyo (October 19th)

New Teaser Video from Samsung – Nexus Prime?

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Oct 052011
 

The Nexus Prime, building on the success of Nexus S, is rumored to have a 4.6-inch Super AMOLED HD screen with a pixel density of 320ppi, a 1.5 GHz dual-core processor, with no hardware buttons. This will be the first Android phone running Android 4, Ice-cream Sandwich.

Samsung will unveil this new device on 11th October at the Samsung Mobile Unpacked 2011 event in US, “Something BIG is coming”.

LG Optimus 3D Available in Singapore at the end of August 2011

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Aug 122011
 

The LG Optimus 3D takes the smartphone experience into new territory with its Tri-Dual configuration – dual-core, dual-channel and dual-memory – which allows for improved performance when multi-tasking, viewing graphics-intensive websites, enjoying a movie or playing graphics-intensive games. The LG Optimus 3D is also a major step forward in the utilization of full 3D functionality in everyday life – users can record and immediately view content in 3D without the need for special glasses.

The LG Optimus 3D will be available in Singapore at the end August (estimate 26th August) at a recommended retail price of S$938.00 inclusive of GST.

My take? Here are the pros:

  • Best overall smartphone catered for creating 3D content, viewing 3D content, and sharing 3D content.
  • Covers all areas including conversion from 2D content to 3D content.
  • Bundles 3 games and 7 more free games playable in 3D.
  • Automatic realigning algorithm should your stereoscopic cameras mis-align due to drops.
  • Best flicker-free and glasses-free stereoscopic LCD screen, however you need to position the phone and your eyes properly.
And cons:
  • Still running Android 2.2 Froyo, upgradable to Android 2.3 Gingerbread in Q4. But by then, wouldn’t Ice-cream Sandwich be almost out?
  • It’s still a little laggy, but it should be fixed on the final firmware and further upgrades to newer versions.
  • The 3D camera drains a lot of battery, and yes, the battery life is still not that great.
Will you buy the LG Optimus 3D?

Best of Android Super Phones in 1st Half of 2011

 Technology  No Responses »
Jun 132011
 

Half of 2011 is gone, and we take a look at the best of the best Android super phones out there in the market for the 1st half of 2011. All these phones (with the exception of LG Optimus 2X and Motorola Atrix) are running the latest and greatest Android 2.3 Gingerbread with their own unique customizations. There is a reason why these phones will only hold their place as the best in the 1st half of 2011, because in the 2nd half of 2011 before the year ends, we will see more powerful Android phones scheduled to be released using quad-cores, and running the new version of Android 4.0 Ice-cream Sandwich, providing a completely new super phone experience. And now, we have the best top 5 phones from the 5 Android super phones manufacturers (in no particular order):

Here’s a table of comparison between the 5 devices:

LG Optimus 2X Samsung GALAXY S II HTC Sensation Sony Ericsson Xperia arc Motorola Atrix
Android OS 2.2 Froyo (Upgradable to 2.3 Gingerbread) 2.3.x Gingerbread 2.3.x Gingerbread 2.3.x Gingerbread 2.2 Froyo (Upgradable to 2.3 Gingerbread)
CPU 1GHz Dual-core ARM Cortex-A9, Nvidia Tegra 2 1.2GHz Cortex A9 Dual-core Qualcomm 1.2GHz Dual-Core Scorpion, Adreno 220 GPU Qualcomm 1GHz Scorpion, Adreno 205 GPU 1GHz Dual-core ARM Cortex-A9, Nvidia Tegra 2 chipset
Display 4” 480 x 800 IPS LCD 4.27” 480 x 800 Super AMOLED Plus 4.3” 540 x 960 qHD 4.2” 480 x 854 LCD 4” 540 x 960 qHD
Custom UI Optimus UI 2.0 TouchWiz 4.0 Sense UI 3.0 Rachael UI Motoblur UI
Internal Storage 8GB 16GB 1GB 512MB 16GB
Battery 1500 mAh 1650 mAh 1520 mAh 1500 mAh 1930 mAh
Camera 8 MP rear camera with auto focus and LED Flash
1.3 MP front camera		 8 MP rear camera with auto focus and LED Flash
2 MP front camera		 8 MP rear camera with auto focus and dual LED flash
VGA front camera		 8 MP rear camera with auto focus and LED flash
(No front camera)		 5 MP rear camera with auto focus and LED flash
VGA front camera
Retail Price SGD$888 SGD$998 SGD$838 SGD$888 SGD$988 (with HD Multimedia Dock)

I’m always asked which phone I’ll recommend to people, and which phone I’ll buy if I had the money. Well, if I’m looking for the best of the best of all Android phones, I’ll get the Samsung GALAXY S II which will be out in Singapore by the end of June 2011.

I highly recommend the Samsung GALAXY S II because it has the best all rounded specifications, together with the Super AMOLED Plus screen (which dramatically reduces battery usage) and large battery capacity of 1650 mAh, you’ll be able to use this phone the whole day without charging up (the biggest complaint against Android phones).

My only complaint about the Samsung GALAXY S II is that it’s way too thin for my hands (which isn’t such a bad thing for many people), and TouchWiz UI. In terms of customized UI, HTC Sensation has got the best so far with the new Sense UI 3.0 bringing “Active Lockscreen” into the picture, enabling the possibility of music controller on the lockscreen, one of the biggest requests from everyone who wants to use (or has used) Android. But hey, that’s software and it will eventually be on every Android phone soon (I hope).

What do you guys think of the Best Android Super Phones in 1H 2011? Which do you like?

Best Android Super Phones of 1H 2011

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Google I/O 2011 Keynote Day 1

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May 112011
 

Summary of Google I/O 2011 Keynote Day 1:

  • Android 3.1 Honeycomb
    • Scroll through all your recent apps – may or may not be running
    • Stretchable (horizontal and vertical) widgets – only a few lines XML for developers
    • USB host
      • importing photos directly from camera to tablet
      • Supports keyboards, mice, trackpads, joysticks, game controllers, and more
    • Coming to Google TV this summer – automatic update over the air
    • Google TV will be getting the Android Market
  • Android Ice-cream Sandwich
    • Q4 launch
    • Give app developers the tools they need to create great experiences
    • One OS Everywhere
      • State of the Art UI
      • Advanced App Framework (scale UI to various form factors)
    • Head and face tracking
    • Virtual Camera operator
      • Back and forth camera focus and transition between people
  • Android Cloud Services
    • Movie Rentals
      • Bringing the same purchase and access everywhere of Android Apps, Books, to movie rentals
      • Movies where you want them, when you want them. Instantly.
      • Thousands of movies to rent starting at $1.99
      • 30 day rental period
      • 24 hours to complete viewing after started watching
      • Able to download movies for offline viewing (Pinning)
      • Rent and play movies directly from website, tablet, phone
      • market.android.com
      • Movies App will be available to tablets with 3.1 update, Android 2.2 and above phones can download from market in a couple of weeks
    • Music Beta by Google
      • Listen on the web, or any compatible wires
      • Stored in the cloud
      • Music Manager
        • On Windows and Mac
        • Upload to Music Beta
      • Instant Mix
        • Build a playlist automatically based on any song
      • Android Music App (new)
        • Connects to Music service in the cloud
        • Show all local music and cloud music
        • Playlists available instantly to all devices
        • Recently played music will be available online
        • Able to cache offline, same as Movies app (Pinning)
        • Android 2.2 or higher available for download in market now
      • Add up to 20,000 songs
      • Free while in beta
      • music.google.com/about to get started
  • Android Guidelines
    • Create new guidelines for how quickly devices will get updated after new Android platform releases
    • For how long devices will continue to get updated after that
    • Verizon, HTC, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, LG, T-Mobile, Vodafone, Motorola, AT&T
    • New devices from these partners will receive the latest Android platform updates for 18 months after launch if the hardware allows
  • Future of Computing and Applications
    • Android Open Accessory (developer.android.com/guide/topics/usb/adk.html)
      • Platform support for hardware accessories and new APIs to talk to them
      • Build a wide range of accessories and will work with any Android device going forward
      • Available for Android Honeycomb 3.1 and Android Gingerbread 2.3.4
      • Releasing the hardware and software for Android Open Accessory reference design
      • ADK for Android Accessory Development Kit
      • Based on Arduino, and a USB host for circuits
      • Completely open, no NDAs, no fees, no approval process to build a hardware accessory or write the software that goes with it
    • Android @ Home
      • Allow android Apps to discover, connect, communicate with appliances and devices in the home
      • For appliances that cannot connect to WiFi, a new open wireless protocol for Android devices to talk to them
      • Lights, alarm clocks, thermostats, dishwashers, etc.
      • Project Tungsten
        • Runs the Android OS and Android @ Home software
        • Connect to speakers or home stereo system
        • Same music beta service played in living room
        • Direct music to 1 or more tungsten devices