Samsung Galaxy Grand

Samsung Galaxy Grand review. Grand Indeed!

The able Samsung Galaxy Grand was launched about two weeks back, accepting been appear at the CES aftermost month. Admitting it's not accessible to acquisition a high-end, dual-sim, buzz from a acceptable manufacturer, but aback I did see the Grand, I begin it about too acceptable to be true! The buzz follows the architecture philosphy of the Note II, while application the body affection of the SIII. Now, this buzz has created a lot of activity in the market, and you will acquisition out today if this buzz is account the ruckus!

Design

The buzz is about a hardly abate Note II, in agreement of design. The finish, abnormally the aback artificial looks added akin to the Galaxy SIII, admitting the chrome accoutrement on the ancillary looks bright now, it tends to abrasion off with approved use. The array awning has a accomplished dot arrangement that resists dust clearing on it and additionally manages to beard best of the feel print. And like the SIII, all of this will blemish easily. So all in all Samsung has managed to accord the buzz a exceptional attending that makes bodies aberration it for the SIII, or alike the Note II, nevermind the 'Duos' accounting on the top.

Built

The buzz is hardly on the added ancillary 162g, but it doesn't feel so what with the ample size. The ambit are 76.8 x 143.5 x 9.6 mm, so it is a little thick. But these specs alone add to the exceptional feel, and the backbone of the phone. On the front, best of the amplitude is active by the 5-inch ample screen, and there are the accepted sensors lined up on the top with a 2MP camera.

User Interface

The buzz appearance TouchWiz 4 interface active on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean. The buzz is conspicuously bland in operation attributable to the 1.2GHz dual-core processor. The alteration can be attributed to the Cortex A9 SoC. All the new appearance alien on the SIII and Note II, are present, like Multi-Window, Smart Stay, Pop-up play, S Voice, and a huge fleet of Motion based gestures. The Broadcom Video Core IV GPU pumps out achievement like no added buzz in the ambit I've seen! About agnate to Note II, I may add, attributable to the low resolution screen. Alike the awful ambitious amateur like NFS : Best capital and Temple Run 2 ran calmly after any lag whatsoever.
 
Entertainment

The media acquaintance is actually flawless. The Audio affection is acceptable from the provided headphones, as able-bodied as from the speaker. The video playback is actual acceptable attributable to the ample screen, and it can comedy abounding HD 1080p videos after lag. It supports best accepted formats like the mp4 and mkv. Added to that are appearance such as screenshots and tagging. The aggregate levels are additionally up to mark. All this will accomplish for a actual acceptable acquaintance for the media buffs.
 
Under the Hood

The buzz has a Cortex-A9 MPcore SoC beneath the hood, which includes the 1.2GHz dual-core Broadcom forth with a 1GB RAM. It additionally has abutment for NEON video adaptation extensions and ARM TrustZone technology. The GPU is a Broadcom Video Core IV and on the NenaMark 2 criterion it recorded a 58FPS. Actual abutting to the Note II indeed.

Camera

The 8MP camera takes actual acceptable alfresco photos with authentic colours and acceptable resolution. Indoor photos additionally are actual acceptable accepting acceptable abyss of acreage and detail. Video recording can be done at 1080p and you accept the advantage of abacus filters as well. The advanced adverse camera seems appealing acceptable too at 480p.

Battery Life

The array is a 2,100 mAh one which is able abundant to accumulate the buzz active about 15-16 hrs with abstinent usage. The buzz stood up for 8 hrs on the video cesspool test. Although the array activity will be bottom with the dual-sim mode, there's the ability extenuative approach that you can about-face on should you feel the charge for added juice.

The Verdict

You've now apparent all the appearance of the buzz and apprehend about them. In my opinion, you are the best adjudicator of the adequacy of the buzz for your blazon of usage. I feel that, the buzz is an all rounder. Are you a agent that needs to break affiliated to the internet all the time? Are you a apprentice that brand to accept to music a lot? All in all, it has a acceptable array life, acceptable body quality, acceptable camera, abounding HD recording, dual-sim all of which, accomplish it a best buy!

Samsung Galaxy Fame

Samsung Galaxy Fame – Mid-Range 3G Smartphone
The Samsung Galaxy Fame is a mid-range smartphone which aims to ambition consumers who are absorbed in a able-bodied defined mid-range handset. However, the antagonism is angry as the gap amid both high-end and mid-range and mid-range and account handsets shrinks nearer together.

As a result, both aerial end smartphones like the new Sony Xperia Z and account handsets like the new Nokia 510 will be in absolute antagonism with the Galaxy Fame, but we apprehend the Fame to accomplish able-bodied - abnormally as its allotment of the Samsung Galaxy range.

The Samsung Galaxy Fame is a accepted 3G smartphone – acceptation it won’t assignment at faster 3G speeds on Three’s “Ultrafast” network. It's aces to agenda that it comes with a college blueprint than its stablemate – the Samsung Galaxy Young - so abounding will adopt the Fame over the Galaxy Young.

The Galaxy Fame ( pictured aloft ) looks a abundantly defined Android smartphone accessible in either Metallic Blue or Pearl White. The operating arrangement weighs in at Android 4.1 Jelly Bean whilst it powered by a 1.0 GHz dual-core processor accurate by 512MB RAM and 4GB of on-board memory.

The blueprint continues with a 3.5” HVGA touchscreen display, a 5 mega-pixel camera with auto-focus, Samsung motion appearance ( agitate and about-face functions ) and NFC with S Beam sharing.

The absolute advice that’s missing is absolutely back the Samsung Galaxy Fame will be accessible to buy and at what price. Of course, 3G will be aiming to complete our Samsung Galaxy Fame Review at the ancient opportunity.

Samsung Galaxy Express

Samsung Galaxy Express

Samsung's Galaxy Express is a mid-range accessory aimed at first-time smartphone buyers -- it doesn't action annihilation exceptional. The abutment of accouterments and software lacks broad flaws, but it's adamantine to get aflame about such a thoroughly safe device.

The Express is a "Galaxy Lite," but you can't acquaint aloof from attractive at it: it has the admonition Samsung architecture -- a arced ellipsoidal slab fabricated of glossy, fingerprint-attracting plastic. The concrete home button is placed at the aforementioned area as the Galaxy S3, but the Express is acutely thicker than its higher-end counterpart. It's failing and looks accessible to hold, but it additionally absolutely embodies the chat "generic." (Continue below...)

• Network: GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 / WCDMA 850 / 1900 / 2100 / LTE 700 / 850 / 1700 / 1900
• Form Factor: Block / Google Android OS v4.0
• Dimensions: 133 x 69 x 9 mm
• Weight: 136 g
• Navigation: Touch Screen
• Battery: 2000 mAh Li-Ion
• Talk Time: Unknown
• Standby Time: Unknown
• Processor: 1.5 GHz (Qualcomm MSM8960)
• Memory: 5.0 GB
• Expandable Slot: microSD

IMAGING

• Main Screen: 4.5-inches, 480 x 800 px, 16,700,000 colors
• Super AMOLED Additional (Accelerometer / Proximity Sensor / Ambient Light Sensor)
• Camera: 5.0 MP / LED Beam / Zoom / Auto-Focus / 720p Video Recorder / 1.3 MP / Video Chat
• Multimedia: DivX / MPEG-4 / H.263 / WMV3 / YouTube

AUDIO

• Music Player: MP3 / AAC / AAC+ / eAAC+ / WMA
• FM Radio: No
• Push-To-Talk: No

CONNECTIVITY

• Data: LTE
• Wi-Fi: 802.11 a/b/g/n / DLNA
• Bluetooth: 4.0
• PC Sync: USB 2.0

SAFETY

• Radiation (SAR): Unknown

The 4.5-inch Super AMOLED Additional awning is beautiful, bearing sharp, abundant images with ablaze blush production. The 800-by-480 pixel resolution isn't superb, back the pixel body is absolutely low at aloof over 200 pixels-per-inch -- compared to the iPhone's 326 pixels-per-inch, for archetype -- but you'll still have a acceptable timeattractive at the display, and it is actual responsive. The Express boasts advanced examination angles, so you'll be able to beck a video or annal through a website no amount how you're captivation it, which is consistently a additional for commuters on a awash train.

The 5-megapixel auto-focus camera has a nice flash, but the photo software isn't as all-encompassing as it is on the S3. Picture affection is annihilation to detect at, and the 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera is acceptable for video chatting. But you won't booty pictures as abundant and ablaze as you would with high-end devices. In addition, you're accepting mid-tier alteration and ambience options to accompany your mid-tier accessory -- the camera is about identical to the one on the Relay 4G, in fact, addition mid-level phone, appropriate bottomward to the 720p video capture.

One of the affidavit the camera software isn't as acceptable as it is on added cutting-edge Samsung accessories is because the Express runs Android 4.0, so you won't get any of the Jelly Bean innovations. But ICS runs smoothly, aided by the appalling dual-core 1.5-gigahertz processor. Samsung aggrandized Android with its TouchWiz interface, so you can use Swype if you'd like. Swiping through the seven home screens is pleasant, admitting there's some pre-installed AT&T bloatware. You won't be able to get rid of it all, which will booty up some of the 8-gigabytes of centralized storage. But there is a microSD aperture to up your anamnesis quotient, and you'll be able to download the apps you demand quickly. The Express connects with AT&T's LTE arrangement and it has admission to the Google Play store.

The Express wins credibility with its acceptable disposable battery, which will accumulate the buzz answerable for a continued time. Overall, it's a acceptable best if you're attractive for a amateur smartphone and you're absorbed in the Galaxy band but don't demand to carapace out for one of the exceptional Galaxy phones, but it's not a abundant buzz to accept if you demand to aggregation some 18-carat activity for any of the features, back annihilation stands out.

Wristband Computing iWatch

Wristband Computing: iWatch an Accent or the Next Big Thing?

Well, at atomic that's what a lot of bodies are currently calling it. It's accounted that Apple has 100 engineers alive on the product, so therefore, it charge exist, right?

My aide Adrian Kingsley-Hughes wrote an accomplished column bygone about what Apple charge do to accumulate an iWatch "real" and not a fantasy. I'm not activity to brainstorm on aback this iWatch is activity to be released, nor will I try to amount out what the affair adeptness amount or alike attending like.

However, I anticipate it is reasonable to accept that such a accent is beneath development, and that there are assertive appearance and architecture attempt in an "iWatch" or a Wrist Computer that are inherently adorable and accomplish the best sense.

Wearable accretion is not a new concept. Aside from articulation acceptance and AI, it's been arrangement of the angelic beaker of the change of animal alternation with accretion devices, activity aback at atomic aback the backward 1980s. Up until recently, wearables accept been actual abundant vertical bazaar and awful specialized products, acclimated by the aggressive for things like aircraft maintenance, action acquaintance and additionally to some admeasurement in the medical industry.

Companies such as Xybernaut attempted to commercially bazaar wearable computers aback in the backward 1990's, accumulation wrist army ascribe accessories forth with head-mounted eye displays and external, carriageable CPUs.

These aboriginal wearable computer configurations were acutely beefy and acutely actual big-ticket for the time, and the aggregation eventually filed for Chapter 11.

However, with the advancements on Systems on a Dent (SoCs) acclimated in avant-garde smartphones and tablets, which accept accustomed for ample minuaturization and amount abridgement of adaptable devices, wearable accretion is afresh accepting renewed interest.

The aboriginal artefact that has gotten absorption is Google's Project Glass, which is an augmented-reality affectation assemblage that is beat like eyeglasses and contains assorted sensors and runs on the company's Android OS. 

At the moment, Project Glass is a "Developer" belvedere and will activate aircraft in 2013 in acutely bound amounts, at $1500 per device. A customer adaptation is accepted in 2014, although no amount has been set.

Augmented Reality glasses acutely would accept a lot of abeyant applications, but it charcoal to be apparent whether or not they would be adopted broadly due to amusing constraints/objections and additionally antecedent appraisement issues.

I anticipate it is astute to accept that application economies of scale, article like a Project Glass could be bargain to $1000 or $500 per unit, but that would still be out of the ambit of best consumers and apparently would be acclimated initially for vertical types of stuff, although in abundant beyond deployments of wearable computers that we accept apparent previously.

Now, a wristband computer, that's addition amount entirely.

Personally, I see the wristband accent as an accent to an absolute adaptable accretion device, such as a smartphone or a phablet. Because of its size, there would be a lot of constraints on what you could do with it, about there would still be a advanced arrangement of abeyant applications and there would be beneath amusing boundaries to application them as against to an Augmented Reality accent like Glass.

First, I don't see this as a standalone accent in and of itself. It's too baby to accept abundant accumulator for applications and data, and you couldn't put a actual able SoC or a high-resolution blush affectation on it, because it wouldn't be actual battery-efficient.

This is the affectionate of accent area array activity would accept to be abstinent in canicule to be practical, and I would additionally accept that the charging apparatus for this blazon of artefact would be wireless as well, through alluring consecration such as the 5W Qi standard.

I see article like this active on a low-power microcontroller (such as a dent that uses an ARM Cortex-M advertence design) agnate to what runs bargain E Ink based book clairvoyant accessories like the Kindle and the NOOK, with a actual simple, baby touchscreen display.

The wristband could possibly alike accept an E Ink-based affectation itself so that it could be beheld in ablaze ablaze outdoors and use a low-power, short-range accomplishing of Bluetooth as its primary communications link, with actual bound anamnesis and storage.

This accent would accept conceivably as little as 256MB-1GB of centralized storage, 64MB-128MB of memory, and a CPU clocking as apathetic as 100Mhz if not appreciably less. And as Adrian said in his piece, it has to amount $200 or beneath for boundless adoption.

There are things that I anticipate are accustomed for a wristband accent to have. First, a pedometer/accelerometer and additionally the adeptness to booty the beating of the wearer, as able-bodied as a gyroscopic sensor, so that any cardinal of fettle and bloom applications could be developed.

A accent like this would booty the abode of committed articles like the Fitbit, and be able of much, abundant more.

Rather than actuality an actuality an free computer in and of itself, I see the Wristband as actuality a alien affectation and alternation assemblage for applications active on a smartphone. These would not be active scaled bottomward smartphone apps per se, but added forth the curve of a alien "telemetry" display, and Wristband-optimized alien ascendancy UIs.

These "telemetry" apps would be presenting the aforementioned affectionate of advice body that say, Windows 8's and Windows Phone's Live Tiles do today. Or alike article like the widgets in Android.

Pebble, a startup aggregation is alms "Smart Watches" for pre-order at $150.00 anniversary that run these aforementioned affectionate of simple advisory apps. The Bluetooth-enabled acute watch that can interface with Android and iOS accessories is avaliable for commitment in April/May of this year.

Like the Pebble, the Wristband would be a Thin Client of sorts, application assorted API's to allocution to the smartphone apps over a Bluetooth connection. This could accommodate things like the notification system, an email reader, banal tickers, or a music playlist and alike things like maps and directions, or "local awareness" arrangement of things for restaurants and shopping.

Certainly I anticipate the use cases are actuality for a Wristband or alike a Project Glass-sort of thing, decidedly amid the fettle and active/outdoor affairs folks. But whether it will accretion the arrangement of absorption that smartphones or alike tablets accept gotten is a big catechism mark, because that abounding bodies accept alone their watches in favor of artlessly accustomed a smartphone to acquaint the time.

BI Excel 2013 Masses

Can Microsoft accompany BI to the masses if the Excel 2013 masses can't get BI?

Microsoft's carrot-and-stick admission advised to move users to Microsoft-preferred Office SKUs is continuing. The latest accumulation to ascertain new and added akin Office 2013 licensing changes is the Excel data-analytics crowd.

Excel has become a cornerstone of Microsoft's business-intelligence strategy. With Excel 2010, Microsoft fabricated PowerPivot -- one of its prime data-analytics technologies -- accessible for use by anyone with any copy of Excel 2010 by installing the PowerPivot for Excel add-in.

But with Excel 2013, the latest adaptation of Microsoft's spreadsheet program, alone those with the Office Professional Plus adaptation of the new Office will accept abounding admission to Excel 2013's BI capabilities.

The Excel/Microsoft BI association is none too blessed about Microsoft's accommodation to bind abounding PowerPivot functionality, as is axiomatic in the comments from assorted blog posts on the topic. 

A few best ones from posts on PowerPivotPro.com and DataPigTechnologies.com:

• "So again if you demand PowerPivot, you stick with 2010 and get it free! Hrrrmmmm that doesn’t assume like a acceptable way to advertise 2013."
• 
  
• "So abundant for BI for the masses, I guess. Large association accept BI solutions anyway, but baby companies aback had admission to a abundant BI solution, and after sharepoint, you had to await on everybody haviing the newest adaptation of Office."
• 
  
• They are accomplishing aggregate in their ability to accomplish the non-subscription artefact unappealing. I’m afraid they don’t accommodate a chargeless accumulation of dog applesauce in every box."

Ouch.

Update: What's Microsoft adage about this latest licensing revelation? I asked and an Office aggregation agent and got this revised (as of February 19) statement:

"People can get PowerPivot and Ability View with one of the afterward options:

• Office Professional Plus 2013 via Open, Select or Enterprise Agreement;
• Excel 2013 standalone via Open or Select;
• Office 365 ProPlus via Office 365 back it becomes accessible 2/27/13.

"After introducing these capabilities broadly in our 2010 releases, we begin that businesses were the primary users of these avant-garde business intelligence appearance in Excel, so we’ve fabricated them accessible via the licensing programs businesses already use. Businesses can get these capabilities with a minimum of 5 Office licenses via best licensing programs or with an alone Office 365 ProPlus subscription."

A cardinal of commenters on above blogs acclaimed that unless every Excel user has abounding admission to all the PowerPivot functionality, Microsoft's BI technology has beneath of a adventitious for abounding acceptance. Baby business users may not be accommodating or able to acquirement Office Professional Plus, which is accessible to aggregate licensees and will be allotment of the Office 365 Baby Business Premium Service (but not the cheaper Office 365 Baby Business one). And acceptance are awful absurd to accept admission to the Professional Plus SKU, either, some accept noted, which could absolute the basin of entering the workforce who are already abreast with Microsoft's BI technology.

Microsoft is set to barrage the business versions of its latest Office 365/new Office offerings on February 27. The aggregation is webcasting the basic barrage (registration is required).

Microsoft admiral accustomed backward aftermost anniversary that users purchasing all standalone Office 2013 artefact are accountant to use it on one PC only. (In added words, the authorization is non-transferrable.) Microsoft is alms users who demand the new Office the appropriate to install Office 2013 on assorted computers, but alone if they acquirement Office 365 Home Premium, a cable version, rather than the one-time, perpetually accountant Office 2013 product.

Update: Microsoft Best Valuable Professional Chris Webb says it best in his attack to anatomize the PowerPivot  licensing shift: "My arch hurts! All these editions and licences… it would be nice if it was beneath complicated."

Microsoft to activate Skype and Lync In June 2013

Microsoft to activate abutting Skype and Lync by June 2013

Microsoft provided an adapted roadmap for its Lync unified-communications belvedere on February 19, the aperture day of the company's aboriginal Lync Conference in San Diego.

biglynclogo

The better allotment of new account is that Lync-Skype connectivity/federation is advancing afterwards than abounding expected. The aboriginal allotment of that connectivity --- administration of presence, burning messaging (IM) and articulation beyond the two casework -- will be accessible to all Lync users as of June 2013. Video connectivity amid Skype and Lync isn't advancing until some time in the abutting 18 months, admiral accepted today.

Customers who were testing Microsoft's Lync 2013 aftermost year acclaimed that Skype alliance was one of the appearance of Lync 2013. Microsoft admiral additionally accepted Skype alliance was advised to be allotment of the Lync 2013 release. But aback Lync Server 2013 RTM'd in October 2012, forth with the blow of the new Office client/server products, Skype alliance acutely wasn't allotment of the final product, afterwards all.

Lync is Microsoft's unified communications belvedere for business users. It includes accumulated IM, VOIP and conferencing capabilities. Skype is Micrsosoft's unified communications belvedere for consumers. As of three months ago, Microsoft confused the Lync aggregation beneath the Skype team, so that Lync letters up to Tony Bates, the President of Skype. (That said, Lync will abide to address its banking after-effects as allotment of the Microsoft Business Division, not the Entertainment & Accessories unit, which is area the Skype analysis reports.)

Microsoft admiral additionally apparent as allotment of today's adapted Lync roadmap:

•  Lync 2013 adaptable apps for Windows Phone and iOS will be accessible in aboriginal March, with Android advancing about a ages later. The new versions of these apps all get VOIP and video over IP. iPad users additionally get the adeptness to appearance aggregate desktop and appliance agreeable in a Lync meeting.
• The abutting adaptation of Lync Server is advancing in Q2 2014. That's about 18 months afterwards the Lync Server 2013 artefact was appear to accomplishment -- instead of two to three years later, as has been the accent for new Office Server deliveries.
• Lync Online, the Microsoft-hosted adaptation of Lync Server, is on a annual amend schedule. This is the aforementioned agenda that Office 365 and its added elements -- Exchange Online and SharePoint Online -- currently follow. So no change there. The aggregation hasn't yet absitively how generally it will accommodate affection updates to Lync on-premises, admiral said, acquainted that on-premises users don't necessarily demand the latest updates added generally than annually, at best.
• Action articulation abutment for Lync Online is on the account of appearance due some time in the abutting 18 months. (Microsoft accustomed aback in 2011 action articulation was advancing for Lync Online but has beneath to accommodate a date until now.)
• Structured affair abutment for Lync Online and Lync Server additionally are on the account of functionality advancing some time in the abutting 18 months. THis will accredit those still application Live Affair to move over to Lync, according to Microsoft.

Microsoft admiral additionally appear at the Lync Conference that a scattering of the company's accouterments ally are embedding Lync into their next-generation conferencing systems. These new chip accessories will be alleged "Lync allowance system" products. Ally who appear antecedent abutment accommodate Crestron, Lifesize, Polycom, and SMART.

Microsoft admiral said 90 out of the Fortune 100 companies are Lync customers. About 90 percent of Lync deployments are on-premises, not in the cloud, admiral said.