Panasonic shows off a ToughPad for POS, runs Windows 8.1
Panasonic is known for its rugged notebook computers and, more recently, tablets. The devices have become essential for folks in certain fields of work. While folks in the construction industry can benefit from this technology, what about those who have a need to process payments while on the go? Panasonic now has that covered as well, unveiling the Toughpad FZ-R1 mobile point-of-sale tablet.
This is a seven inch tablet that runs Windows 8.1 and is powered by an Intel Celeron processor. It also comes with a PIN pad to make accepting payments simpler.
Qualcomm's Snapdragon 810 packs hardware kill-switch -- Android, Windows Phone users rejoice!
Mobile devices equipped with a kill switch are starting to become fairly common, in no small part thanks to Apple and Google, which have added this nifty security feature to their respective operating systems, iOS and Android. Now, US chip maker Qualcomm is also joining the party, albeit using a different approach, which, on paper at least, appears to be superior.
That's because Qualcomm has decided to go for a hardware kill-switch, which will first ship in its flagship mobile processor, Snapdragon 810. The main selling points? Users will be able to take advantage of it no matter which operating system runs on their Snapdragon 810-powered device, or whether the operating system offers such a feature or not.
Audi's in-car tablet is a thing of beauty
Audi has become the first automotive firm to launch its own brand in-car tablet computer, as revealed at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show.
The German company will offer the device alongside its new Q7 car, in the hope that it will provide a more fulfilling rear seat entertainment service.
Microsoft takes the restrictions off Office for Android tablets preview
Microsoft has offered its Office suite to other mobile platforms for sometime now, but Android tablet support is fairly recent. It was in Preview form and there were hoops to be jumped through in order to get access. No matter, the response was still overwhelming, or at least the company claims that is the case.
Now things are opening up as the Redmond-based company announces the expansion of this program to all users. This update to the "testing" allows all users to get access -- no more requests, or begging, through the Google Plus account.
Leef iBRIDGE boosts iPhone storage by a colossal 256GB
Jump on the iDevice bandwagon and one of the first decisions you'll need to make is choosing capacity. This may be determined largely by budget, but what if you run out of space further down the line? Not many people are in a position to just invest in the same device with more space, but Leef iBRIDGE is a neat plug-in solution.
Just as you can expand the storage space of your computer or laptop with a USB drive, Leef iBRIDGE works in much the same way for your Apple device. Available in 16GB, 32GB, 64GB, 128GB and 256GB capacities, the little plug-in modules give you a little breathing room for more music and photos.
Tablet sales set to stay slow in 2015
The tablet market experienced something of a slump in 2014 and things don't look like being much better this year according to a new report by research specialists Gartner.
It estimates that tablet sales will reach 233 million units in 2015, an increase of only eight percent over last year's figure. Worldwide combined shipments of devices (PCs, tablets, ultramobiles and mobile phones) for 2015 are estimated to reach 2.5 billion units, an increase of 3.9 percent over 2014.
Sorry Google Chrome, you are too bloated -- I am leaving you for Firefox
Google Chrome and I had a really great thing going. It is available for most operating systems (not Windows Phone, sadly) and allows me to easily sync my activity across systems. Whenever I install Windows or a new Linux distribution, the first thing I would do is install Chrome. True, Chrome is not entirely open source, and using it is a major faux pas for many Linux users, but I didn't care -- open source be damned, I wanted the ease of use. Not to mention, Google Chrome is technically the only way to get a modern version of Adobe flash working on Linux, thanks to its pepper flash implementation (damn you Adobe, for ending Linux development).
Unfortunately, Google's browser has been putting on some weight lately; hey, I'm a fat guy, I didn't mind too much at first, but things have gotten out of hand. Chrome eats through RAM like a termite at a lumber factory. Sure, RAM is relatively cheap, but not everyone wants to upgrade so a web browser can perform better. Hell, Chrome OS even runs like ass with less than 4GB of memory, and that is unacceptable. System resources are not the only way it is bloated, though. Instead, I am going back to my old girlfriend, Firefox. Mozilla's browser isn't perfect, but it better meets my needs right now.
That iPhone 6 storage lawsuit is so bogus I just laugh
Oh the irony! I got up yesterday morning planning to write a version of the post you read now, choosing instead to look back at readers' life-changing tech. The trigger: Motorola starting the New Year with a 64GB Moto X model and my previous day's personal tech devices wrap-up, which got me to thinking abut smartphone differentiation. Processing power, graphics chips, and the like are passé. Who really cares but a minority of gadget geeks? But storage matters to everyone, and Apple gets it—as iPhone 6 and 6 Plus capacities demonstrate.
My feeds are full of reports this morning about a lawsuit filed against Apple alleging that iOS 8 consumes too much storage and, as such, the company misrepresents the amount available. I would have looked so smart writing yesterday about how much Apple gives that competitors don't. That's okay, now my analysis has a news hook. The point, for people reading no more than two paragraphs of any story: iPhone 6 capacities outclass competitors, and the problem of operating systems consuming much of available storage isn't new or exclusive to the fruit-logo company. Just look to Google and Microsoft, for example.
My favorite tech products of 2014 [Brian]
Well folks, 2014 is almost in the books, and we will soon be in 2015. Outside of tech, the world has been rather crazy; there have been tragic deaths, natural disasters and further division among US citizens. Sadly, the tech world got pulled into the major news with various hacking scandals -- Home Depot customer information was breached, Sony Pictures was brought to its knees and Hollywood celebrities had their naked photos leaked. In other words, there have been many negative things in both tech and non-tech news.
Luckily, not all is bad; the tech community has seen many great devices and software released too. As is customary for late-December, many tech-writers, such as yours truly, begin compiling lists of the best tech of the year. Well, "best" is subjective, I realize that, so instead, I am offering my favorite tech of 2014. Maybe your list is different; my colleague's lists are. Variety is the spice of life however, so please tell me if you agree or disagree with my choices.
Santa brought you a Surface Pro 3? Here's what to do first
Merry Christmas y'all! Today is all about celebrating Jesus' birth, but since he isn't here, we will give and get gifts in his honor. Santa Claus keeps us all saturated in gifts galore, ranging from socks and underwear, to new computers.
Speaking of computers, there is one that I find to be the best, and that is the Surface Pro 3. Did you get one under the tree today? If so, congratulations! You must have been really friggin' good this year. By all means, power it on, and have fun -- get your grimy fingerprints all over the screen. But please know that owning a Surface Pro 3 is a lifestyle -- a special club, if you will -- and there are some things you should consider.
Santa boards a flight to hand out Windows tablets to all
It's that time of the year when our thoughts turn towards a large man in a red suit. Despite his jolly nature, he still manages to sometimes terrify small children, as he did mine. However, the prospect of gifts generally gets them over the hump, and perhaps it's what worked on a recent flight between London and Boston.
The people who boarded the recent Virgin Atlantic flight were treated to a visit from the jolly old man, but more importantly, he had gifts in hand.
Xiaomi infringes Ericsson patents in India, local court bans sales until February 2015
Xiaomi has enjoyed great success in its home market of China, becoming the largest vendor in the country in Q2 2014, beating Samsung for the title. The company also was the third-largest smartphone maker worldwide in Q3 2014. And things appear to only be looking up for Xiaomi, with shipments expected to grow at a still rapid pace.
One of the reasons why Xiaomi has managed to reach the top spot in its home country is the permissive local legal system, in relation to patents. The company hasn't really been challenged locally by any of the big non-Chinese players, as quite likely any suits filed against it for patent infringement would be lost by the plaintiffs. Western companies have been dealing with this problem for (too) many years. However, as Xiaomi expands into India, it has to deal with a different legal system, one which just sided with Ericsson in a case of patent infringement. The outcome?
Nokia brings HERE to Google Play, will launch iOS version early next year
For Nokia to get any real traction with HERE outside of Windows Phone and its former brands, the Finnish company must make its app available to as many potential new users as possible. And that means offering it on the biggest mobile app stores around today -- Apple App Store and Google Play.
Today, Nokia is taking a step in the right direction by making HERE for Android available on Google Play. The app's availability on the largest Android app store comes more than three months after the initial launch, for Galaxy smartphones. HERE still sports the beta label, but continues to offer the same lovely features we have come to expect from it.
2015 to be the year of biometrics, wearables, cryptocurrency and streaming
Coming to the end of 2014, it's time to start looking to what the year ahead may have to offer. After gazing into its crystal ball, Juniper Research has compiled a list of what it expects to be the biggest technology trends of 2015. Topping the list is a focus on security. Juniper Research predicts that there will be greater interest in encryption and tokenization, as cloud storage providers battle to regain customer trust.
The launch of Apple Pay will help to drive an increased interest in biometrics to help with security, but 2015 is also predicted to be the year that wearables really take off. Now that Apple has entered the arena, there should be a greater focus on aesthetics and smaller players will increase in popularity. Tied in with both security and wearables is a predicted jump in the use of NFC -- for payments, authentication, health and more.
Android 5.0.1 Lollipop now available, here's how you can install it
Just like any other first iteration of a major operating system release, Android 5.0 Lollipop is not without its fair share of problems. The main issues that users are reporting are related to battery life, responsiveness and Wi-Fi. Like other 2013 Nexus 7 users, I also have problems every so often with video playback on YouTube, something which did not crop up back in the Android 4.4 KitKat days.
Naturally, most issues will go away with the first or second update. Google is actively working on squashing the reported bugs, proof being that the company just pushed Android 5.0.1 Lollipop to AOSP (Android Open Source Project) and released the accompanying factory images for a number of its devices.