Samsung Launches Samsung Wave and Galaxy S Mobile Phones
Samsung India Electronics Pvt. Ltd., a leading mobile phone provider, today announced the expansion of its mobile phones portfolio with the launch of two iconic, ‘future beyond’ , next generation Smartphones – Samsung Wave and Samsung Galaxy S. Samsung Wave is the first mobile handset to be released on Samsung’s proprietary, ‘open’ mobile platform ‘bada’. Together, the Samsung Wave and the Android-powered Galaxy S Smartphones promise to deliver a more intuitive, immersive and integrative experience for consumers.
Samsung Wave is the 1st Smartphone with Samsung’s own proprietary operating system – bada.
Samsung’s bada platform allows mobile users to simply and easily download an abundance of applications from Samsung Apps, an integrated application store accessible from the device and online. Featuring a wealth of games, social networking, health and lifestyle applications, Samsung Apps gives users instant access to a huge choice of mobile experiences.
The Samsung Wave features the world’s first Super AMOLED display; delivering an unrivalled screen experience on a smartphone. The Super AMOLED 3.3” display offers much brighter, clearer, and less reflective AMOLED OnCell display and features a high resolution WVGA (800×480 pixels) screen that ensures superb image quality for viewing both videos and photos. The Wave’s high-speed CPU ensures swift, smooth application,Gaming, HD Video experiences and multi-tasking, making the device an always-on mobile multimedia companion.
Further the dolphin browser supports flash video play, multiple windows support and background downloading. The Wave provides upto 15 hours talktime, a 2GB internal memory , expandable upto 32GB and a 5 megapixel camera with Flash LED. Samsung Wave is priced at Rs. 19,100.
Galaxy S
The Android-powered Samsung Galaxy S has the power to enrich people’s lives through its best-in-class services and technologies. It will introduce people to the concept of the “Smart Life” – a Smartphone experience that is simple, organized and integrated; one that enriches the lives of users. It features a dazzlingly bright 4-inch Super AMOLED screen , a 1 GHz application processor and Samsung’s latest intuitive TouchWiz 3.0 user-interface (UI), giving users instant access to their mobile lives. Smart Life is further enabled through intuitive, integrative features, including the Swype text input service, the rich augmented reality browser, Layar, Social Hub Integrated Phonebook, Downloadable EBook, Think Free Office, Wireless Tethering and the powerful Android 2.1 operating System. More than 50,000 applications from Android Market and Samsung Apps will allow users to extend the benefits and excitement of the smartphone experience even more. Users have access to Google mobile services, such as Google Search, Gmail, and Google Maps. The Samsung Galaxy S is priced at Rs. 31,500.
New iPod Touch May Get 2 Cameras FaceTime
With the third generation iPod Touch on the market since September 2009, and iOS 4.0 out the door merely weeks ago, talk of the fourth-generation device has heated up in anticipation of its annual iPod Touch September refresh. Although hardware specifics are naturally unconfirmed (although recent hardware leaks tend to make rumors more credible), the new information stems from a Xmas in July event recently held in London.
While we’ve already seen a prototype of the new iPod Touch with a built-in camera, the new “leaked” specs changes the previous specs. According to a previous report, the device sported a built-in Jabil/Mflex OV2665-6S 2-megapixel camera, however suppliers attending the London event now say that the device will have a 5-megapixel camera–along with a built-n flash–capable of shooting HD video (720p like the iPhone 4). Users will also have the ability to upload videos directly to YouTube from the device.
As for other new features, the new iPod Touch may feature a front-facing camera as well, as it’s said to ship with support for FaceTime, a one-tap video calling service that connects users over a Wi-Fi connection. The new iPod Touch will also supposedly offer a gyroscope–in addition to the current accelerometer–to better enhance its gaming capabilities.
Suppliers indicated that the new device is expected to make an appearance during the annual iPod refresh slated for September.
Any USB Peripheral is a Potential Security Threat
The USB ports on a computer present a security risk. Not only are storage devices able to plug in and interface with the hardware, but also coffee cup warmers, fans, and even mini-vacuums.
A team of computer engineers from Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario exploited a weakness in the USB plug-and-play functionality. What the team did was create a fake USB device that reported itself as something that computer already recognized.
For example, if the computer already paired itself with a USB camera, a hacker could spoof the same identity on another device.
As a proof of concept, the team designed a USB keyboard that contained a circuit that stole data from the hard drive and transmitted it by flashing an LED in a morse code-like fashion, as well as through sounds output by the sound card. While such methods are hugely inefficient and likely ineffective, it was just a proof of concept of the vulnerability.
Even though virus scanning software may check USB storage for malware, secretly planted trojans inside USB peripherals will likely be missed.
3D Displays May Be Hazardous to Young Children
3D is all the rage right now, with cinemas and home theatre equipment both beefing up with glasses-mandatory viewing. Even gaming on-the-go is heading that way too with Nintendo’s upcoming 3DS handheld.
While 3D gives us a neat effect while watching Toy Story 3, taking the kids to see that one over and over again, and eventually when it’s on Blu-ray Disc, isn’t a good idea at all.
According researchers who have been examining 3D video for years, the exposing children under the age of seven could affect their vision in a bad way. You see, our 3D human vision relies on our two eyes sending an image to our brains, which then makes stereoscopic sense out of it. This gives us depth perception – something that our brains only fully develop by the time we hit six years old.
Some of us aren’t able to fully develop stereoscopic vision due to malaise in children called strabismus, sometimes known as lazy eye. This condition is treatable by training the nervous system to ‘learn’ stereopsis.
More than 15 years ago, Sega was toying with a VR headset that would give the wearer 3D images near the eye; but following a test by the Stanford Research Institute (SRI) at Palo Alto California, Sega was warned that the peripheral should not be given to kids – a tough order given that the video game market at the time was catered to a younger audience. The project was ditched, and 3D VR headsets slowly disappeared from the market.
Now that 3D is back, bigger than ever, the risk is even greater for young viewers. Adults are believed to be mostly safe from 3D effects, though most will likely find that they reach a point of fatigue before long anyway.
ViewSonic Launches 27 Inch HD Monitor with 1MS Response Time
ViewSonic Corp. today announced the launch of its VX2739wm – a 27” Full HD monitor with a 1ms response time.
The VX2739wm packages a 1080p Full HD panel and 100,000:1 contrast ratio into a sleek and sexy design. It has a 1ms response time and built-in speakers with SRS Premium Sound.
The device also has HDMI, DVI and VGA for video connectivity and a 4-port USB hub, the VX2739wm. The VX2739wm has a VESA compliant design, and can be hooked up to a DVD player or cable/satellite box. Teamed with an ECO mode feature for energy savings of up to 35%, the VX2739wm.
The VX2739wm comes with a three-year limited warranty. It will be offered at a MRP of Rs. 24,999.