Subscribe to DailyOrble

Receive a daily e-mail of Orble's most popular posts

Gear Lover - by Craig Hill

Cellphones - Gear Lover

iPhone App Solves Rubik's Cube In 20 Moves Or Better

February 18th 2009 13:41

Now you can use this century's greatest gadget to do battle with last century's most-beloved geek toy.

A new iPhone app called CubeCheater helps you solve the classic Rubik's Cube puzzle toy using a mix of sophisticated algorithms and simple image-recognition technology. CubeCheater sells for $1 in the App Store.

Here's how it works. You take six pictures of your mixed up Rubik's Cube using the iPhone's camera — one photo per side. If you have an iPod Touch, you can also tap in the color combos manually. CubeCheater is able to recognize the placement of each colored square and generate a map of your cube. It then figures out the quickest path to solving the puzzle and gives you a set of easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions.

Using software to solve Rubik's Cube isn't new. Mathematicians have been bending their brains into virtual cubes since the toy's debut in the late 1970s, but the math behind the puzzle-solving continues to evolve.

The current guru of Rubik's computer algorithms is Herbet Kociemba, creator of the open source Cube Explorer software program. Kociemba's solver software is currently used by computer science students at universities to build cube-solving robots, some of which also use a camera and image-recognition tech to figure out the color patterns.

CubeCheater uses Kociemba's algorithm to solve scrambled cubes. The app can also be tweaked to solve cubes with nonstandard color variations. CubeCheater even works in reverse; create a virtual mixed up cube inside the app, and it will tell you how to twist a solved cube to match your creation. Could be useful in making pretty geometric patterns.

Vote

Comments (1)

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: KC Hill - Category: Cellphones, Toys

Email this Post to a Friend

Face Double iPhone Application Celebrity Lookalikes

February 18th 2009 12:48

Just about everyone is curious about which celebrity they look like. The website MyHeritage will show you who your famous look-alike is, but if you're not sitting at a computer then add the Face Double Application to your iPhone!

It makes more sense to have this free app on your iPhone, too, because you can snap anyone's face in the ideal orientation and find out who their celebrity twin is anywhere.

It could also be handy for those times when you're staring at someone, trying to figure out who they look like. Next time, just snap an iPhone picture and use this.

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: KC Hill - Category: Cellphones, Computers

Email this Post to a Friend

T-Mobile BlackBerry Curve 8900

January 29th 2009 12:56

After the BlackBerry Bold's epically delayed launch on AT&T and the Storm's epically borked launch everywhere, RIM needs 2009 to be better than 2008. The T-Mobile BlackBerry Curve 8900 is a good way to start.

The BlackBerry OS 4.6 has been around for several months and been on a few devices at this point, and the Curve 8900, so far, seems like the most stable and least buggy product RIM has shipped in a while. It's also notably hardware that's a return to what they're most comfortable making; a 2G device with Wi-Fi, the kind of phone they'd churn out in the old days (you know, two years ago) and it'd still work fine and deflect missiles and small children while maintaining two-day battery life. So, it does bode well.

Conceptually, the Curve 8900 is almost exactly what you want in a sequel; it ups the ante in a lot of the right ways, like sex quotient, but keeps the fundamentals in place. It's not a beautiful piece of hardware that will magnetically pull drool out of people's lips in a trickle, but it's black-and-chrome modern enough with just the right lines (borrowed from the Storm) that it will draw eyes, if only for a split second.

T-Mobile BlackBerry Curve 8900

Hardware

Three things make the hardware exceptional: The screen is delicious and not just because a video of John Mayer is preloaded on it, one thing RIM's been getting very right (the screen, not John Mayer, though that is also very right). Colors pop like John Mayer's lyrics, contrast is contrasty and the 480x360 resolution is fantastic, with a nice, wide viewing angle. The screen's still too small to watch anything longer than a music video—starring say, John Mayer—but it'll look pretty good while it's rolling.

The new "Atomic" trackball seems noticeably sturdier than the one that's been on BlackBerrys for years. It's more solidly implanted in the device, with less room for nasty junk to squeeze inside, but still plenty of spin in the wheel.

The keyboard is better than the original Curve's, with a more pronounced sloped to the keys, a la BlackBerry Bold. I prefer the Bold's keyboard, since it's way roomier and has perfectly squishy keys, as opposed to the super-punchy ones found on the Curve 8900. That said, the Curve 8900 keyboard is still one of the best smartphone keyboards you'll ever tap on. RIM knows how to make QWERTY keyboards with their Canadian eyes closed, even if they're still working out the whole touchscreen clicky thing.

The build quality is another strong point. It's a solid device that you know won't go down without a fight, like all RIM hardware. It feels more sturdy than the original Curve, which was excessively plastic. It definitely feels nicer than the Curve—more high end, and its smoother lines make for a better handfeel too. The weight's similar to the iPhone 3G, not a feather, but not a monster like the G1 or BlackBerry Bold. The flimsiest part of the phone is the cheapo battery cover, which pops off and on mercifully easy.

A few things muddle the hardware's excellence: The lack of 3G (sorry, once you're used to it, you can't go back) and the Wi-Fi's persnicketiness; it just didn't want to play nice with a few of the secured Wi-Fi networks and constantly drops out. Open Wi-Fi points seemed just fine though. Also, when I talked to my mommy, the call quality wasn't bad—it was very clear—but it also had a weird kind of hollowness to it.

Software

Software-wise, the Curve 8900 has every strength and weakness that every BlackBerry phone has when compared to other smartphones: If you're not familiar with BlackBerry email, BlackBerrys are all about it, with features like real push, server-side search, Exchange support, serious security, a million keyboard shortcuts and other power perks. It's not the sexiest looking email client around, but it does everything you'd ever want a smartphone to do in terms of email. There's a reason it's a corporate warrior's mandatory piece of kit.

The OS is fairly easy to use (some particulars aside)—it's an icon-based layout where what you see is what you get. Settings can be a bit of a listicle labyrinth, but for the most part, everything's presented right up front and easy to get to.

Even though the iPhone and though Android get all the press for apps, BlackBerry also has the backing of a pretty solid developer community for applications, so there are tons of applications to download and install, even if they aren't quite as shiny as what's on the iPhone or Android or available from a convenient storefront (yet). The Curve 8900 comes loaded with a solid starter suite though, with instant messenger apps from everybody that matters, like AIM and GTalk; BlackBerry Maps (which is alright, though I prefer Google Maps); and Office to Go, which lets you edit Word, Excel and PowerPoint files...on the go. The media apps work fine, with a fairly generic UI.

The software is hampered mostly by its message-oriented roots, so while it does email better than anyone and does have a ton of apps from the developer community, the whole web thing the iPhone, Android and Palm Pre get, and its attempt to scale to that kind of complexity, is clearly a struggle within the BlackBerry OS paradigm. The Curve 8900's browser, though ridiculously more usable and accurate at rendering than the original Curve's, is slow even over Wi-Fi. Its application approach is still browser-oriented while we wait for the BlackBerry app store and it's pokey and annoying, even from RIM's own central app hub. The apps are there and many are good—Kevin from CrackBerry highly recommends the Bolt browser for a much faster browsing experience—you just have to find 'em.

Oh, one other sore point for BlackBerry is trying to sync one to a Mac. It's not a fun experience, with PocketMac providing nowhere near the kind of complete functionality of the PC BlackBerry Desktop Software, which handles all of your syncing, app and media management, and the total inability to have more one sync program installed on a Mac at once. If you install BlackBerry Media Sync to sync iTunes to your BlackBerry on a Mac, it borks your other syncing programs. =(

Conclusion

Based on our time so far, if you have a BlackBerry Curve, the Curve 8900 is the same thing, but better in a lot of little ways that add up to a markedly better experience overall, thanks to a gorgeous display, slicker OS and well-designed hardware.

It's not a phone to switch to T-Mobile for—especially since it's obviously coming to AT&T, and most probably Verizon and Sprint too—but this is the BlackBerry that most people will be rocking in the next year as it inevitably spreads from carrier to carrier, and for good reason. If you're on T-Mobile, you really have two (good) choices for a smartphone now: This or the G1. If you do serious business, well, the choice is made for you.

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: KC Hill - Category: Cellphones

Email this Post to a Friend

AT&T Offers First 3G Femtocell

January 28th 2009 12:09

We heard a lot about femtocells last year. A femtocell is a device that allows your cellular phone to connect to the Internet for calls to provide better coverage indoors. So far there have been a few of these femtocells launched.

AT&T has offered details on its first 3G femtocell it is calling the AT&T 3G MicroCell. The MicroCell requires a broadband Internet connection and will support up to 10 3G cell phones in a home or small office. Up to four simultaneous voice or data users are supported at once.

For times when there isn’t available space to support more users or you walk out of range of the MicroCell the handset will automatically switch to the standard AT&T 3G network. Calls started on the MicroCell will automatically change to the normal network without interruption. A couple important details like pricing and availability are missing.

AT&T 3G Femtocell

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: KC Hill - Category: Cellphones

Email this Post to a Friend

Samsung Projector-Phone

January 28th 2009 09:36

The Samsung W7900, aka the Show, certainly lives up to its name. In fact, if it had just the gorgeous 3.2-inch OLED screen, the digital TV tuner or the five-megapixel camera, it would be a winner. But the Show combines all those features with the current Holy Grail of handhelds; a digital projector that displays sharp, bright images up to 50 inches. Texas Instruments makes the DLP projector inside the Show.

As with most great gadgets, the Show premiers in Asia. That may make it the first projector phone to hit the market, depending on when rival Logic Wireless gets its Logic Bolt out. It is not known exactly when it comes out, but it looks like lucky Koreans will be the first to watch movies and display photos on the big screen, courtesy of any flat or semi-flat surface they find. They will also get to tune in and possibly record digital TV broadcasts, plus make video calls. It remains to be seen if and when the Show, or something like it, will cross over to these shores.

The Specs:

SAMSUNG SHOW W7900

Projector: 10 lumens, 480 by 320 pixels, up to 50 in. diagonal

Screen: 240-by-400-pixel, 3.2-in. OLED

Wireless: 3G HSDPA up to 7.2Mbps, global roaming (900/1800/1900 MHz)

Cameras: 5-megapixel main, VGA front-facing model for video calls

Size: 4.4 by 2.2 by 0.7 in.

Price: TBD

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: KC Hill - Category: Cellphones

Email this Post to a Friend

DSTL1 Android Smartphone

January 28th 2009 09:27

The Android-based, 3-inch Sharp touchscreen, General Mobile DSTL1 is everything the T-Mobile isn't. It has a stunning design and features combination that may convince regular consumers to choose the Android platform over iPhone.

It's similar to the iPhone design, with angled corners added to it, but keeping the same black glass, chrome accents, black plastic, circular home button, ear speaker grill, and volume controls. The result is a design which looks extremely familiar to the public, yet adds enough changes to appeal to people who want something cool looking, but different.

The Specs:

Technology

Double SIM, Linux 2.6 Kernel

Platform

Marvell PXA 310 (624MHz) NXP 5209

Bands

900 / 1800 / 1900 MHz

Screen

TFT/ WQVGA/ 260K Colors/ 3.0" Sharp Brand Touchscreen Display/ 240 x 400 pixels

Wi-fi

802.11 b/g

GPRS

Yes

EDGE

Yes

WAP

Yes, HTTP/WAP2.0 support

MMS

Yes

E-mail

Yes

Bluetooth

Yes / BT 2.0 EDR, SPP, A2DP, AVRCP, OPP, HFP

FM Radio

Yes

TV

Yes

Java

Yes ( MIDP 2.0, CLDC 1.1 )

MP3/MPEG4

Yes/Yes

Face to Face videoconferencing

Yes

Weight

135gr

Dimensions

112 x 54 x 16 mm

Memory

4GB internal memory, 256MB flash 128MB SDRAM ,"Up to 8GB T-flash Card Support"

Camera

5MP Auto Focus with Flash Sharp Brand Camera

Voice Recorder

Yes

Talk Time

240 minutes

Standby Time

150 hours

Battery

1200 mAh

Accessories

Extra Battery, USB Cable, Earphone, AC Charge Adaptor

Others

Word, Excel, Powerpoint and PDF document view MP3/ WAV/ MIDI/ AMR support 3GP, MPEG4, AVI (DIVX),QVGA recording 30fps, decoding 30 fps JPG/GIF/BMP/PNG Business card reader support Anti theft support Video chat support.

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: KC Hill - Category: Cellphones

Email this Post to a Friend

New In 2009: 4G Networks

January 2nd 2009 11:26

3G is alright but we're looking forward to even faster 4G wireless networks soon. Intel-backed WiMax launched in a few locales by carriers Sprint and ClearWire. The wide-area network currently promises peaks of 10 megabits per second but on paper it's capable of over 70. We will likely see slow but steady expansion of the service through 2009. Meanwhile, in America, AT&T and Verizon (and eventually T-Mobile) are gearing up LTE technology. The Nokia-driven GSM-based "Long Term Evolution" may actually whomp WiMax with download speeds of over 300Mbps, though its presence probably won't be felt in the US before 2010.

In October 2007, Marvell announced the availability of the LG-KC1 smartphone with the Marvell PXA 320 application processor on Korea Telecom's high speed WiBro 4G network.

The Marvell PXA 320 application processor (Internally code named Monahans) with XScale technology, enables high-end graphics, gaming and multimedia capabilities for the LG-KCI as well as delivering optimal business applications while consuming ultra-low levels of power.

LG-KC1 4G Phone

"The new LG-KC1 is designed to offer the advanced functions of a smartphone, high-bandwidth wireless connectivity, and outstanding multimedia capabilities with an attractive slim design," said Mr. JJ Lee, DMP Lab Vice President & PC Division General Manager, Digital Media Company, for LG Electronics. "Marvell's PXA 320 application processor is designed to allow superb gaming and multimedia functions such as movies and 4G mobile internet while enabling users to synchronize their email and calendars with their PC over the high speed WiBro 4G network."

The LG-KC1 boasts wireless internet capabilities using the WiBro 4G network, terrestrial digital multimedia broadcasting (DMB) for mobile television, two-megapixel camera and Bluetooth functions. "The new LG-KC1 is an exciting product that will provide a seamless mobile experience for both business functionality as well as unparalleled gaming and multimedia performance for consumers," said Sam Arditi, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Marvell's Cellular and Handheld Business Group.

"We are excited that LG Electronics has chosen our new PXA 320 application processor to provide optimal performance, power savings, for unrivaled multimedia experience for their customers." The Marvell PXA 320 application processor family is designed for a balance of high performance and low-power efficiency and offers a broad roadmap that is architecturally consistent for maximum software reuse. Marvell silicon provides headroom for advanced applications with intelligent power management allowing manufacturers to differentiate current and future offerings. All PXA 320 products feature frequency scalability to allow advanced power and performance. Marvell's diverse product portfolio includes switching, transceiver, communications controller, wireless and storage solutions that power the entire communications infrastructure including enterprise, metro, home and storage networking.

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: KC Hill - Category: Cellphones

Email this Post to a Friend

New In 2009: Another New iPhone

January 2nd 2009 10:59

Whether it's the iPhone 3G Part II or the rumored iPhone nano, it's not hard to imagine Apple releasing another new iPhone this year, maintaining their trend of releasing an iPhone per year to stay competitive in the everchanging post-RAZR cellphone market. There are also rumors of a new Mac mini and iPod Touch XL as well.

Artist's impression of a possible new Mac iPhone, with (l-r): slide-out keyboard, viewable screen, touch-screen and camera

The idea for a new iPhone is something that all existing iPhone users would greatly welcome. The main problems people face is lack of a physical keyboard, lack of a good camera, and not enough storage.

The ideal phone (for starters) would have 60GB of storage, true 16:9 aspect ratio, slide-out keyboard, one megapixel front camera for iChat, and a high quality camera, with good lenses, optical zoom, and video capability.

Maybe not this year, from Apple, but a strong possibility of something similar in the future.

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: KC Hill - Category: Cellphones

Email this Post to a Friend

Carbon-Fibre Cover For the Apple Iphone

October 3rd 2008 00:01

I don't have an iPhone but it's one sexy and sleek gadget that I admire a lot. If I had one, I reckon I'd be one of those paranoid types, you know, one that's always worried about dropping and damaging such an awesome looking device. I'm not saying the iPhone isn't well made or sturdy, but given its rather large screen area and a back cover made from plastic, dropping it could do some damage, I reckon.

And you can't just put the iPhone in some el cheapo case/cover because you'd just ruin its good looks which is one of the phone's biggest draw cards in the first place. Surely there has to be some sort of compromise.

And there is in the form of a 100% aerospace grade carbon fibre. Anyone that knows anything about carbon fibre will have heard of its ultra lightweight and super strong properties. This particular case is no different - weighing in at just 7g, it features cut-outs for the screen, docking and headphones ports, side controls, camera, and home button which means the iPhone should never have to be removed from its protective sheath.

Thinly constructed yet ultra durable, the case measures just 119 x 64 x 15mm to ensure that only a few additional millimetres are added to the dimensions of the iPhone itself!

Buy it here.

Vote

Comments (2)

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Arnold - Category: Cellphones, Gadgets

Email this Post to a Friend

Samsung x Emporio Armani Mobile

September 25th 2008 05:15

Samsung M7500 Emporio Armani Night Effect

Samsung has teamed up once again with renowned fashion designer Giorgio Armani to deliver a new "Night Effect" mobile targetted at the young consumers with active and fashionable lifestyles.

Cool or tacky, depending on your point of view, the minimalistic looking phone is transformed at night when a LED light on the side lights up in red, green or blue colour every time the user is called, or makes a call - thus its "Night Effect" name.

The signature illuminating LED around the edge was inspired by the famed designer's trips to Tokyo, Japan to open a new ten-storey Armani concept store which is lit-up on the outside with decorative neon lights in the shape of bamboo leaves.

The Armani Night Effect supports quad-band GSM and HSDPA in a design that features a slim waistline and brushed metal front with a 2.2" OLED display. Other features include a 3.2 megapixel camera (autofocus only), Bluetooth, FM radio and expandable memory via a microSD card slot.

Armani branding is all over the new handset with "Emporio Armani" just underneath the screen, illuminated on the side and the famous eagle "GA" logo on the back - great if you're a brand fan or just simply over the top if you're not.

Vote

Comments (1)

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Arnold - Category: Cellphones

Email this Post to a Friend

Google Android powered phone to be unveiled Sept 23

September 17th 2008 07:15

The first mobile / cellphone powered by search giants Google's Android software system is due to be unveiled at a news conference on September 23 by US mobile carrier T-Mobile. A phone made by Taiwanese firm HTC will be powered by the Android software which Google says will make it much easier and appealing to surf the internet with.

It is expected that a handful of T-Mobile and Google execs will be on hand to showcase the new smartphone for reporters, analysts and some lucky tech bloggers invited to the New York event where the highlight will undoubtedly be the hands-on time with the smartphone that is more internet-friendly than any other.

While T-Mobile is yet to confirm a price for the Google-powered phone, a release date for October has already been hotly tipped on cyberspace with the carrier expected to subsidise part of the phone's cost for buyers who agree to subscribe to the carrier's mobile service - much like the Apple iPhone over in the US.

It seems Google can do no wrong at the moment and everything they touch seems to turn into gold - well, at least for heavily marketed products such as the Android - so one would expect this upcoming smartphone will be the first of many to run on the Android system.

Vote

Comments (1)

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Arnold - Category: Cellphones

Email this Post to a Friend

The 8 megapixel LG KC910 mobile phone

September 8th 2008 06:30

LG Electronics has unleashed some juicy info. on its upcoming all-in-one touchscreen phone KC910 which packs a mammoth 8 megapixel camera (with auto focus) and Wi-Fi connectivity for the first time.

Jam-packed with a bucket load of multimedia capabilities, one of the phone's highlights is without a doubt the 8 megapixel camera which uses a Schneider-Kreuznach lens with protective cover. VGA videos can be captured at 30 fps plus the added capability of slow motion 120 fps QVGA videos are also there. There's also auto focus and a bright xenon flash to facilitate photography in low-light conditions.

The quad-band KC910 has a 3" 262K colour screen with 240 x 400 pixels resolution and is only 14 mm thick - amazing for a phone that features a stack of functions including a microSD card slot, TV-out support, Xvid and DivX video playback and Dolby sound for the music.

No word yet on price but the release date is set for sometime in October. The KC910 is a great phone and definitely one that's worth waiting for so until October, enjoy the pics! [gsmarena.com]

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Arnold - Category: Cellphones

Email this Post to a Friend

Lenovo Ideapad U8 Mobile Internet Device

August 19th 2008 23:59

China's largest PC manufacturer, Lenovo, has launched their latest gadget at the Beijing 2008 Olympics. The IdeaPad U8 is a Mobile Internet Device (MID) or effectively, a cross between a laptop and a mobile 'smart' phone with specifications that are obviously much more powerful than your regular phone but much smaller in size than your average laptop at a shade over 300g.

It's no wonder the launch of this device has coincided with the Olympics - it is authorised by the Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee because it works with the CMMB (China Multimedia Mobile Broadcasting) via a USB dongle (pictured above) to offer free, live coverage of the Olympic games in addition to other broadcast signals.

Technical specifications:

- approx. 300g
- Intel 800MHz Atom Z500 processor
- 1GB RAM (max. of 2GB)
- 4.8-inch LCD touchscreen
- 6GB SSD
- Dual cameras
- 5-hour battery life
- Support for mobile TV
- GPS support

Check out the following video of the Ideapad U8 in action.

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Arnold - Category: Cellphones, Computers

Email this Post to a Friend

Dynolicious: Auto performance meter for Apple iPhone

August 2nd 2008 00:25

The new Apple iPhone 3G has been out for a couple of weeks now but the hype surrounding the brilliant smartphone shows no signs of abating with some fantastic third party apps further increasing its popularity.

Rev-heads will absolutely love this 'Dynolicious' third party app - an automotive performance meter for the iPhone and/or iPod Touch. This is how it works. The app uses the hardware built-in to your iPhone to measure the performance characteristics of your vehicle without the need for any external wires or equipment.

By simply having your iPhone or iPod Touch with you in your car, the Dynolicious will be able to measure key performance characteristics such as 0-60mph acceleration times, 1/4 mile elapsed time, horsepower and even lateral G-Forces!

Not only will the app show details of your current test run, it also helps you maintain a history of test runs, including averages and trends for reference purposes. By maintaining this history, Dynolicious will allow you to compare before-and-after results if modifications are made to your vehicle including gains or losses from a performance (times, horsepower) standpoint.

Dynolicious is available from the Apple app store. [dynolicious.com]

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Arnold - Category: Cellphones, Gadgets

Email this Post to a Friend