Daily Tech Digest

You can now watch FIFA World Cup 2010 Live on your mobile completely free of charge ( data allowance package maybe required from operator but would be free if accessing through Wi-fi) on almost any mobile. There are many different ways in which you can enjoy the FIFA World Cup on the move on your mobile. If you are in UK then you can directly go onto BBC iPlayer or TV Catchup and enjoy the World Cup but what happens if your phone cant install BBC iPlayer or access TV Catchup as both of them are in flash – we all know that still flash is not available on all phones. Don’t worry there are many alternatives to it as given below.

For iPhone and iPad:

BBC iPlayer and TV Catcup (iPhone) and (iPad) can be accessed directly. (Help for playback on Mobile Phones)

For Symbian Phones:

Install Skyfire which can run almost any website on the planet without requiring you to install any plug-in and then access TV Catchup.

Skyfire for Symbian Phones download here.

For Windows Mobile (incl. HTC):

Install Skyfire and then access TV Catchup website to enjoy the FIFA World Cup 2010.

Skyfire for Windows Mobile download here.

For Android Phones (incl. HTC):

Install Skyfire and then access TV Catchup website.

Skyfire for Android Phones download here.

Note:- On some mobiles you might comes across an issue where TV Catchup or BBC iPlayer site might not work. In that case goto this mobile version of TV Catchup (no “www.” in the front) on your Skyfire / Opera Mobile Browser and it will work as i have tested it.

If you face anymore issues with it please do email me back and i will do my best to help you in resolving them. And also feel free to leave ur comments about this article.

At the Apple Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC, 2010) iPhone 4 was showcased by Steve Jobs and also confirmed the UK launch date of 24th June. Mobile phone operators which include O2, Orange and Vodafone will launch this new version of iPhone in the coming two weeks. The tariffs are yet to be made public but O2 are giving options wherein if the contract is due for an upgrade in June or July can get iPhone for free or if you want an early upgrade can pay a cost towards the phone and get it as soon as its released.

There are many new features integrated into the new iPhone 4 that includes a great display called by Apple as “Retina Display” with a resolution of 960×640 pixels as compared to the previous version of iPhone which had only 480×320 pixels resolution. It has also got front-facing camera that can be used for video calling named by Apple as “Face time”, the good thing about it is that it has got two camera’s which can be swapped while on-the-call.

The iPhone 4 has got a faster A4 processor which is used by its new counterpart iPad. It has also got two microphones which has the feature of noise cancellation and a 5 Mega Pixel camera with HD recording and also includes video editing software built-in into the phone. As far as the connectivity is concerned it has got 802.11n Wi-Fi connectivity coupled with a quad-band HSPA with 7.2 Mbps and 5.8  Mbps download and upload link.

iPhone uses for the first time the new OS called IOS (former name Apple OS) which is being used on both iPhone and iPad.

iPhone will also feature a  iBooks e-reader app which was initially developed for iPad.

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The burning question – Does iPad fill the GAP between laptop and a smart phone? Many views are that it doesn’t as it does not include many of the common connections of a PC like USB connectors, media card reader or a camera for the regular Skype users. Its a great device for reading books as it has got a big 9.7″ inch screen coupled with the App store wherein you can buy your favorite books and carry it with you virtually everywhere. But would that be sufficient for it to become the next slate computer and takeover laptops or at-least netbooks in the coming years? Well lets analyze it with the pros and cons it has got and predict the future.

First lets go with the Pros of iPad as it has got 9.7″ LED screen with multitouch and IPS technology for brilliant viewing experience. It comes with A4 processor with 1Ghz speed high performance, low-power system-on-a-chip coupled with an built-in lithium battery which gives around 10-hour backup (it depends what applications you are using). Great device if you want to browse internet as it has got a facility of connecting to a 3G or a 4G (is compatible with 4G connection when it comes out) network and a great display to watch your favourite movies or Youtube videos. Great device for storing pictures as it has got a vivid LED clear display that makes it much more personal than ever and browsing through them by using various gestures like tapping and swiping is simply awesome. Nice device for navigation when you use application like Google Maps to pinch and zoom through locations quiet easily.

Now the Cons would be that first of all there is no option for connecting USB devices, no media card reader although there is an option for connecting one through an extra connector (sold separately). No support for Flash sites which i think is a very big disadvantage as most of the websites nowadays are flash based. There is no built-in camera for voice chat or skype as most of the users would liked it more if it would had one and also because it has got a big screen which would have made taking and viewing pictures more pleasurable. I have come across many people saying that its just a very huge device to carry around, you can feel the weight after a while holding the unit with one hand and operating with the other. There is a virtual keyboard which is good when you use it in the landscape mode but there is still a need for a physical keyboard as you cannot type 500 word essay or a 2-3 page letter with one hand and holding the device with another unless you keep it on flat surface.

Would i dump my laptop for an iPad? What do i think about it now and what can we expect from it in future?

I won’t dump my laptop now or atleast for the next year or so or till the next generation iPad is released. I would say that  it is a great portable device for reading books and viewing pictures and movies and browsing internet with exceptions but lacks many basic connections and options which can be integrated into the device to make make the whole experience worthwhile. Definitely not a replacement for a laptop nor a bridge between laptop and smartphone as of now but may become one in future if Apple integrates the basic connections and features expressed above.

So would you dump your laptop or smartphone for an iPad? Feel free to leave any comments on the above article. All opinions expressed above are personal and does not reflect any authority whatsoever.

In the past we have seen many big companies that came in to change the way we think,communicate, search and analyze the data we receive. No matter whether it’s related to something as simple as making our journeys pleasurable to navigating for information to using machines with the least of knowledge about it. The list of companies goes on from the likes of Ford, IBM, Yahoo, Apple, eBay, Microsoft, Toyota, GM Motors to the latest MySpace, Twitter, Facebook and the last but not the least Google which brought a virtual revolution in the 21st century and forced me to further investigate and discuss the ideas given below.

Earlier to Google there were many search companies like Alta Vista and Lycos who offered good enough service of extracting information from data but it was not sufficient and accurate enough to meet the demands of the ever growing demand for information. Google came in and devised it’s very own ranking system called as “Page Rank” which filtered out the relevant information from load of data on the internet. The main idea behind it was that it judges the relevance of a web page by the links its getting from other sites on the web which indirectly worked as a ranking system and then giving the importance on the no. of links its getting. It worked wonders for Google and soon they became the leaders in the search engine industry on the internet. This was the turning point for Google as they knew how to gather and distribute the information across the internet and by which they came to know the likes and dislikes of the users. After this enormous success they were struggling to make some money out of their own invention and after the brainstorm they came up with an idea of stepping into advertising sector which again transformed the way in which goods and services are sold which was named Google Adwords and Adsense. It changed the traditional “Push Strategy” to “Pull Strategy” in the advertising world.

The third biggest service they launched was Gmail – an email service which has a very easy to use interface which has a similar design to their search engine ( i would refer the similarity to the search engine by colors they use ie. white background and blue or black font color which is very simple yet appealing). It has got all the perks you can ask for like chatting within email that too with the facility of video chat as well and it also has got the facility of adding plug-ins to enhance the overall experience.

Then came the most used navigation software in the world called Google Earth (earlier called BBS Keyhole) which revolutionised the way we find our way around work & home. They further polished it with the introduction of Street view in almost 15 countries raising concerns over privacy but at the end it was Google who won and still leads in the best online navigation systems. The whole list goes of products released after goes on and on and on and from which the latest being Google Android OS for mobile phones which is also gaining very quickly over the rivals. It is one of the best open source operation system for a mobile device in the market as of now. Many operators have opted to go for it on their devices which include the likes of Sony, Samsung and HTC as of now and many manufacturers would follow the same in future. Google is also ready to release their Operating System called Google Chrome for netbooks this year but would move into Laptop & Desktop PC’s in future. The forecast about Google making wave in the OS market is very thin as people are very used to Windows and MAC  as they have been in the market for more than 35 years and its not that easy to overtake them so quickly.

As you see the growth of Google in the recent years, there have been one common trend in Googleplex and that is acquisition of budding companies who they think will overtake them or give them a run for their money. The list starts with one of the most successful companies bought by Google known as YouTube which streams over 2 Billion Videos per day. It has become so famous that many of the celebrities have their own homepage and many channels can now be watched free of cost in HD quality from comfort of your home. Recently it also hosted LIVE Twenty20 WorldCup for users worldwide. They are one of the best companies in forecasting the future of their rivals with some of them described below.

-> Google Picasa – Product born from Idealab acquisition.

-> Google Earth – Product born from BBS keyhole acquisition.

-> Google Youtube – Product born from Youtube acquisition.

-> Google Android – Product born from Android Inc.

What is my Opinion about Google?

Well my personal experience tells me that no matter how many companies they might have acquired to gain an upper hand in the competition, they are still the best The best thing about them is that they know how to polish an unfinished product and then release it with all the required options that meets the end user requirements.

So Do I THink that they are becoming the sole authority on the (Pla) Net?

I         WOULD              SAY                  YES…….

All the opinions expressed above are my personal and does not reflect any authority whatsoever. Feel free to leave your comments on my article.

Good news for all the Microsoft Surface fans, you can now experience Surface at a store near to you in london at New Malden. The new revamped Currys Megastore at New Malden has got a demo table so that you can experience it whenever you want. The whole store is in itself a unique concept as to the whole layout of the store has changed and there is loads of varied products to have a first hand experience.

I had a chance to experience surface and believe me it was a once in a lifetime experience when i least expected it. The applications included in it were Google Maps, Paint and there were apps. related to news, photography and there was the most famous application which many of us seenon Youtube or anyother site that whenever a mobile phone is placed on the surface, pictures and music pop out on the screen with which you can play. Wel let me tell you that it needs a Winodws Mobile or atleast J2me installed on it and a mobile application which allows communication between the devices.

So go ahead and have a first hand experience on Microsoft Surface at the address given below.

Currys Megastore
New Malden
Burlington Rd
GB – New Malden KT3 4PA
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