ARM partners up to change banking and shopping online
British chip giant ARM has signed up for a joint venture that it believes will vastly improve the way in which consumers bank, shop and do business through their tablets, TVs and phones.
Joining forces with Gemalto and Giesecke & Devrient, ARM is looking to make our connected devices more secure for our everyday use.
"The joint venture, which is subject to regulatory approval, will provide a secure environment for a new wave of advanced services to flourish, based on easy to use, accessible and consistent device security," stated ARM's release.
East: "This will be of significant step in terms of improved consumer trust in secure transactions on connected devices."
TEE off
The venture will do this by developing a trusted execution environment (TEE) that will be used by ARM's manufacturing partners.So what does a nice cup of TEE bring to us consumers? Well, apparently it will allow for a more secure, user-friendly experience that will speed up our interaction with the digital world and simplify it too.
"This will enable them to use their smart, connected devices more frequently to access an increasing range of applications and services in a secure way," adds ARM.
"This includes mobile payment, enterprise productivity and mobile banking applications, as well as online commerce and premium content services."
About TEE time
Warren East, the CEO of ARM believes that a joint venture and the adoption of a common security standard is long overdue."The integration of the hardware, software and services necessary for system-wide security has been slow," said East.
"I am confident that this new joint venture will accelerate the adoption of a common security standard, enabling a vibrant ecosystem of secure service providers to emerge.
"This will be of significant step in terms of improved consumer trust in secure transactions on connected devices."
 |  |
Read More ...
Creating a social media marketing campaign
Small businesses can act like big businesses with social media marketing. It isn't just the latest, greatest fad, it's a powerful mechanism to cultivate customer relationships and outclass big businesses without having to spend a fortune on infrastructure.
Get your website built first
The first rule of social media marketing is to create a website for your business, preferably with the same name as the business. This will be the main face of your organisation, and will give you a core platform to project the key messages about your business, brand, products and services. It will be one of the main points of contact between you and your customers, and the site that they will find through a web search for your business.Make the website easy to navigate, attractive and clear to read, and make sure that it communicates the culture of your business. It's important to get your branding right, so that you can replicate it across different social media platforms, and be instantly recognisable for customers.
Creating a Facebook page for your business
Second, make sure that you utilise free social media platforms such as Facebook, which will give you the ability to engage with customers. There are many other social networks apart from Facebook, however, and some of these might suit your target audience better, being aimed at business professionals, teenagers, females, or particular market sectors.However, having a page for your business on Facebook can help you to start dialogues with a broad range of customers, understand their likes and dislikes, showcase your products and services, and let them know about new initiatives and offers. Another great benefit is viral marketing - the fact that your business customers will tell other people about your site through their own Facebook pages.
This is the way to build up brand awareness and an audience, but professional marketing specialists advise businesses to be active on their Facebook business pages, updating them frequently with comments, news, images and videos. This is because people check social networking sites at different times of the day, and with differing levels of frequency, so posts can easily get missed.
Tweet little and often
It is a good idea to keep posts short, some say 80 characters or less. When it comes to Twitter, the length of Twitter feeds is limited to 140 characters, but studies have shown that posts with 80 characters or fewer received significantly higher engagement rates. Another important factor is that many people will be viewing social media sites using their smart phones or mobile devices, and may have smaller screen sizes, and be travelling, in other words have other distractions. This is where short and sweet postings can be more effective than long ones.Consistency in posting is also important, because marketing is often an activity that spans the months, and even years before getting results. Don't over-post, in other words, little and often is better than posting ten times a day. Posts should be thoughtful, engaging, and encourage conversation, feedback or sharing, and if it contains some form of media, such as a photo or video, it will most likely garner further attention.
Tracking and analysing your social media profile
Facebook and Google offer sophisticated tracking and analysis tools, and these are worth investigating, as are adverts that can be targeted to your customers. Although there may be some cost involved, the results can be good. These tools can tell you about other links to your business or your social media marketing activity from other peoples' sites.You can share good reports and blog posts about your business with your own audience, and bad feedback can also be useful, as it can enable you to engage with individuals who may have an insight into your business or products and services that can help you to improve.
There is a whole host of cross-referencing and linking tools and buttons that are worth using in your social media marketing, such as the Facebook 'Like' button, and social bookmarking tools such as Del.icio.us, DiggIt and ReddIt. By linking both outwards from your social media sites, and inwards from other blogs and websites, you are effectively build awareness of your company, and build up a loyal army of supporters.
Ideally with a network like Facebook it's advisable to incorporate some element of interaction whenever you can, and include a call to action in your posts. So, for example, words like click, comment, share and like will increase engagement.
Social media usage is still on the rise, as more people adopt mobile working, and ubiquitous web access, and the great thing is that social media marketing platforms are free. If you want to take it to the next level, you can choose to spend money on hiring a consultant or social media manager, and invest in ads and partnership deals. Saying that, it's well worth trying the free options first.
| |
Read More ...
Fixing your work-life balance
It's hard to balance the demands of work with your private life, especially if you have a 24/7 internet business. But it can be done, all you need is some faith in technology and a smartphone full of applications.
There are a huge range of mobile and web-based tools to help the mobile and home worker achieve a better working life balance, and stay productive while on the move.
Staying in touch
The primary function of a smartphone is to help its owner stay in touch – by voice, text or even video. Consequently, social networking applications, status and commentary tools such as Twitter, phone-based e-mail, and instant messaging (IM) have all become vital tools for the mobile worker.When it comes to IM and social networking , there are many different platforms to choose from, including Windows Live, AOL/AIM, ICQ, Yahoo, Sametime, LinkedIn, Facebook, Google Talk, and Twitter, and each have their own merits. Monitoring them all can be complicated, which is where aggregation tools come into their own. With an IM aggregator like Meebo or HootSuite, you can chat with people across all of the major IM and social media networks, through just one application.
Keeping up to date with your voicemail can also add extra time to your day, and if you are like most people it's often too easy to listen and delete a voicemail and then forget to get back in touch.
HulloMail is an Android/iPhone/BlackBerry voicemail and voice messaging app, which is free to download and use, and works with phones on the Three, Orange, Vodafone, O2, T-Mobile, BT and Talk mobile networks.
With HulloMail you can access your voicemails either from the app, or you can get it to forward your voicemail to your email or the Web, wherever you are in the World.
Creating a mobile office
Most phones – particularly smartphones – will allow you to read attached files. But if you want to make changes to those files you're forced to wait until you can get back to the office, or you have to wait for an opportunity to fire up your laptop, and that all eats into your precious day.To solve this problem there are now sophisticated office and productivity applications available either on your phone via an app, or they exist as browser-based services.
These apps and cloud service offer the ability to create and share documents and presentations, organise and share calendars, manipulate images and access databases. In fact, if you can think of an office application that you use on the desktop, there is likely to be a mobile or online app equivalent.
If your preference is for apps, then Data Viz Documents to Go iPhone and Android app let you create and edit Microsoft Office documents on your phone and gives you all the functionality you've come to expect from the full version. If you prefer web then online web service Zoho gives you the ability to create and edit Office docs, and adds contact management software, invoicing, online planners and project managers along with many more applications.
Google Docs also has a collection of online tools. Its range includes Google Docs, which allows you to create and access Word/Excel and PowerPoint files online, collaborate on them with others, and share changes in real time. There's also Google Calendar, an online calendar service, that fast catching up with Outlook in the number of features it supports.
Moving your files onto online storage
Online storage is another must-have for the mobile worker. There's nothing worse than having to say to a customer "sorry the files are on the computer at work, I'll send you it when I get back to the office. "Services such as Dropbox, Box.com, and Windows Live Skydrive allow you to use the cloud as your storage system. For example with Dropbox you just copy all your files to the Dropbox cloud, via a simple drag and drop application from your Mac or PC. You can then get full access to the files via your laptop, tablet, or your smartphone.
Remote control of your office PC or Mac
Just having the files isn't always the answer. There are certain things that you can only do on the computer in the office, which is where remote control software comes in. With tools such as GoToMyPC or LogMeIn you can get full access to your PC or Mac at work via the internet, from any device be it mobile phone, laptop or tablet.With apps like Dropbox, LogMeIn and using Google Docs there's no need to be in the office ever again and that has to be a great way of improving your work-life balance.
| |
Read More ...
10 Must-have small business iPhone apps
In no particular order here are our top ten business apps for iPhone.
1/ TripIt
The TripIt app helps road warriors manage their trip itineraries all from one handy console, from flight e-tickets to car reservations. TripIt can even read PDF e-tickets to pull out the necessary flight information you need to travel on time.Other travel information such as maps and directions are also available on the app. If your flight gets cancelled or delayed, TripIt can even help with alternatives from other airlines to accommodate your change in plans.
Also available: TripIt Pro, which is like having your own personal travel assistant for £34.49/year. Especially helpful for frequent travellers, TripIt Pro monitors your flights for potential airfare savings, and sends you status alerts and other helpful reminders while you're travelling.
Free (The Pro version is available for £34.49)
Download from iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/tripit-travel-organizer-free/id311035142?mt=8
2/ Cisco WebEx Meetings
With Cisco's WebEx Meetings you can take your Web meetings anywhere in the world. The app allows you to join and participate in WebEx conferences directly from your iPhone.WebEx Meetings allows you to view a presentation, document or application shared from another computer, and if you are a host of the meeting, you can start your meeting from the iPhone and then assign presenter privileges to one of the attendees who joined on a computer.
Free
Download from iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/cisco-webex-meetings/id298844386?mt=8
3/ LinkedIn
Find and connect with more than 150 Million members worldwide, read the latest industry news, keep up-to-date with your groups, and share content with your network from anywhere.The LinkedIn app gives you all the advantages of the worldwide business social network on your favourite portable device.
LinkedIn for iPhone lets you view your entire network, and you can send and receive LinkedIn updates to let your network know what you are working on and where you are.
Free
Download from iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/linkedin/id288429040?mt=8
4/ Documents To Go – Office Suite
While the iPhone allows you to read and view Microsoft Office documents, it doesn't allow you to create or edit them. However with the help of Documents To Go you can do everything from creating a Word document while you're on the road, to tweaking your sales forecast in Excel.With Documents To Go you have two options; Documents To Go – Office Suite, and Documents To Go - Premium – Office Suite. The Premium package also allows you to add creation and editing of PowerPoint files in Office 2007/2008/2010 versions. Additionally you can view and edit files stored in Google Docs, Dropbox, Box.net, iDisk and SugarSync as well as enabling opening and editing files within Documents To Go from any 3rd party app that supports the iOS 4 "Open In" feature.
£6.99 (Documents To Go - Premium - Office Suite £11.99)
Download from iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/documents-to-go-office-suite/id317117961?mt=8
5/ Instapaper
If you are like us, then there are tens of articles that catch your eye every day, but most of the time, you just don't have time to read them, there and then. With Instapaper you can make a note of the article and then read it at your leisure in your own personalised Instapaper newspaper.What's even better is Instapaper doesn't need a connection to the web for you to read the articles, all the articles are stored offline, so even when you're 30,000 feet up you can still read those interesting articles.
Instapaper is very simple to use, just click on the "Read Later" button at the top of your browser's navigation bar, and then open up the app. If you want reading suggestions, Instapaper also has a list of the community's most-read stories.
£2.99
Download from iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/instapaper/id288545208?mt=8
6/ Evernote
Evernote is an easy-to-use, free app that helps you remember everything across all of the devices you use. Stay organised, save your ideas, and improve productivity. Evernote lets you take notes, capture photos, create to-do lists, record voice reminders--and makes these notes completely searchable, whether you are at work, or on the go.Evernote Premium extends the functionality of Evernote and offers additional features including, additional bandwidth, offline editing, editing by multiple users and a PIN lock on the Evernote app.
Free (Premium is available for £2.99 a month to £31.99 for a year)
Download from iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/evernote/id281796108?mt=8
7/ Dropbox
With the Dropbox app, you can take everything that matters with you, wherever you go. Dropbox is a free service that gives you 2Gb of cloud-storage to save any documents you want, from PowerPoint presentations through to spread sheets, photographs and videos.After you install Dropbox on your computer, any file you save to your Dropbox will automatically save to all your computers, your iPhone and even the Dropbox website. You can then read your documents when you're out and about. Save photos or videos to your Dropbox and share them with colleagues in just a couple taps.
And because everything is saved in the cloud rather than on your iPhone or on your PC if you accidentally leave your iPhone in a taxi, your stuff remains safe and secure.
Free (for first 2Gb of storage, additional storage can be bought starting at 50Gb £69.99)
Download from iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/dropbox/id327630330?mt=8
8/ Skype
The Skype application for iPhone brings you all the power of Skype in a mobile-friendly format. The main advantage with Skype is there are already so many people on the network that it's a virtual business no-brainer.By using Skype over your phone's Wi-Fi data connection you can make voice and video calls for free with other Skype users, and as long as you don't eat too much into your phones data allowance, you can also make free voice and video calls over your phones 3G network.
Price: Free
Download from iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/skype/id304878510?mt=8
9/ Dragon Dictation
Nuance's Dragon Dictation, is a fast, simple to use speech-to-text dictation package. In a nutshell, you talk, it types.Fire up the application, start talking and your words magically appear as text, which you can then cut and paste into any application you want.
Powered by Dragon's award-winning NaturallySpeaking speech-recognition software the app claims it's five times faster than typing on the keyboard. However as the speech recognition is handled via Nuance's servers rather than the iPhone you do need to be connected via 3G or Wi-Fi for the app to work.
As well as cutting and pasting text you create in Dragon Dictation, there are also quick links to more common apps, so you can update your Facebook status, email notes and reminders to yourself, or Tweet to the world with just your voice and two clicks.
Free
Download from iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/dragon-dictation/id341446764?mt=8
10/ LogMeIn
Smartphones can do a lot, but there's no substitute for a proper PC or a Mac. LogMeIn allows you to remotely control your PCs and Macs over Wi-Fi/3G so you get all of your desktop applications running on your iPhone.To make it work, you need to install LogMeIn on your broadband connected Mac or PC - there's a free version - and then download the app on your iPhone. It's a ten minute pain-free process and after that you can remotely access your files, run your applications and control your desktops from anywhere.
Free
Download from iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/logmein/id479229407?mt=8
| |
Read More ...
Getting to grips with Microsoft Office 365
The trend for businesses to move away from high-cost software in a box in favour of applications hosted online and paid for according to use continues to grow, and this is not a trend that Microsoft has been able to ignore, and so in Summer 2011 launched Microsoft Office 365.
Naming the service Microsoft Office 365 gives the instant impression that what's being offered is no more or less than an Internet version of the popular Office suite. But that's misleading, as there's a great deal more to Office 365 than its conventionally licensed cousin.
It's more than Office online
The Office 365 service gives you cloud-based versions of Microsoft's best known business apps – Word, Excel and PowerPoint as well as the newer OneNote information gathering and collaboration tool - and in addition to these you get a hosted version of the Exchange email platform, the Sharepoint document sharing platform and Lync, a service that gives you Skype-like functionality in the form of Instant Messaging (IM), video conferencing, and Internet telephony. Users can access these capabilities through presence indicators and contact cards that appear in the applications. All of this can be leased for a fee starting from £4 per user per month under one or other of a choice of available plans.Flexibility with offline and online versions
Larger businesses than run Windows networks can transfer Active Directory and domain information into Office 365. For businesses with a critical mass of employees, Office 365 offers an important variant on other online application models. You can if desired split users between the full-on cloud version of the applications and downloading and installing them on local hard disks.This flexibility is one of the strengths of Office 365, and means you really can have your cake and eat it if there are good reasons for you to keep some of your software functionality on-premise.
In recognition that different organisations have different employees with different work profiles and software requirements, Microsoft have shaped Office 365 so there are a variety of service plans and individual applications that can be chosen. So you can have online and offline versions of the service if you want. And let's face it, cloud-based services are all well and good until your Internet connection crashes, when it becomes quite handy to have some locally installed tools to fall back on.
People contemplating Office 365 will naturally weigh up its differences and similarities with whatever version of the regular licensed Office suite they already deploy. But a better comparison is arguably with other online hosted applications offers. Google Apps is the market leader here. But Google Apps doesn't give you anything like Exchange, Lync or SharePoint. Nor does it give quite the same level of control to IT admin staff.
Most companies still have Windows as their backbone operating system, so there's some logic to migrating to a Microsoft hosted app if you're taking the step of moving away from licenced software – even if it's an intermediate step. It's less of a leap than Google, and with the attraction of some features Google Apps doesn't yet offer.
Getting support for Office 365
So much for what you get with Office 365, and how you acquire it. Another consideration you'll want to weigh up front is support.With an earlier forerunner of Office 365 Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS), support was in the main delivered by off-shore IT services third parties, and by all accounts this often fell a bit short. Anecdotes abound about support staff with insufficient experience, or little appreciation of the issues that users might be facing. If Microsoft wants to play catch-up in the cloud world and deliver a better outcome to users and compete with Google and Amazon Web Services, then it will have to be held to its promise to do better with Office 365 support. If you are making the major strategic leap of shifting applications off the desktop and into the ether, you've a right to ask searching questions up front about who will be supporting you in this move, no matter how small your business is.
Let's not forget though that along with the psychological leap of a shift to the cloud, and all its attendant novelty and anxiety, come certain benefits that are hard to resist.
You'll be handing a lot of your IT headaches to Microsoft, with its specialised resources and data centres equipped to deal with them. You won't need to ask in-house staff to carry out the duller daily tasks, like server maintenance and antivirus updates. You also don't need to bother about the effort and cost associated with moving to future versions of Office, Exchange, Lync and SharePoint. You'll always have up-to-date versions of everything delivered to employees.
| |
Read More ...
Top tips for cutting costs
Technology brings the dual promise of new business efficiencies, and the ability to cut costs. Although some technologies require a significant investment in infrastructure, there are many that can be introduced to the business quickly and relatively easily, with the returns coming swiftly, and continuing over the long-term.
Cost savings through cloud-based applications
Firstly, you might be aware of terms such as cloud computing, software as a service, or IT managed services. These all describe technology that's available over a network. Using these services is a major way of saving money, and all sorts of software applications and IT services are now available over the web. The benefit is that other people have the responsibility of looking after the hardware and software, operating it, backing it all up, and fixing it when necessary.You can now get office productivity software over the web, sales force automation tools, customer relationship management (CRM), accounting and finance software, storage services, helpdesk and IT management, and communication and collaboration tools - all available over the Internet and with all the applications and data in the cloud.
For the business user, the primary cost saving comes from not having to invest in the IT hardware and software and skills to manage and operate it.
Only pay for what you use
The second cost saving comes from having a set monthly fee based on your usage level, or the number of employees using the software. The benefits here are that this figure is predictable, there are no upfront costs, and with cloud (web-based) computing, the cost of the service is generally low because there will be other customers using the same IT infrastructure, and sharing computing resources.By using cloud-based applications you can also save money by removing or slimming down departments, such as accounts, human resources, or even the IT department itself. Leaving you more to spend on doing what you do best.
Cost-savings through reduced travel
Another cost-saving technology is video conferencing. Many businesses, large and small, have significantly reduced their travel budgets by deploying it.For companies that frequently have a lot of meetings, bringing personnel from different parts of the country or world together, video conferencing can be a cost efficient way of saving on the travel and venue costs of these meetings.
It can also be a low-cost way of meeting your business partners and customers, and can help sales people and executives to use their time more efficiently by fitting more meetings into their day, providing cost savings over the long term.
Video conferencing is available across the range of price points, from cheap or free like Skype and ooVoo to more expensive systems like Cisco Webex and up if you want a state-of-the-art system with high-resolution images and high-quality sound.
Reducing your costs through Unified Communications
Still on the subject of communications, Unified Communications (UC) can add new cost-saving options to the progressive business. UC is a technology platform that combines different types of communication onto one system, including desk phones and smart mobiles, instant messaging, video conferencing, faxes and e-mails, and web-based collaboration. It gives employee a universal inbox in which to receive and store all of their different types of communication.UC offers cost savings on phones calls because it uses the Internet to route calls and data, which means businesses can benefit from lower call charges. This is known as Voice over IP (VoIP), with IP being the Internet-based technology over which the data is rooted. Secondly, it can save on the number of phone calls that employees make to each other because they have the option of using instant messaging or web-based collaboration instead. Additionally all calls within the business, no matter how far those parts of the business are geographically, are free
UC also helps businesses to consolidate their vendors, with IT/telephony service providers delivering the UC software, and the telephony and data network, as well as the 'IP-phones', to the office, and this means having fewer contracts with different people.
Moving from licensed software to open source
Businesses have also found they can lower their IT costs in the short and long term by using free or low-cost open source software instead of applications from more expensive software suppliers. These days, you can get office productivity suites like OpenOffice, Web Content management systems like Wordpress and Drupal, databases like MySQL, web design tools like WebMatrix , business applications like Sugar CRM, and in fact whole operating systems, for free.Companies often make big cost savings on the server-side, by installing open source server operating systems based on UNIX or Linux. These tend to require knowledge and expertise in running and operating them, but compared with the high licenses associated with other server operating systems and tools, they can yield significant cost savings.
Finally, companies can make huge savings on their electricity bills by using power management technologies for cooling their systems; putting them to sleep when not used; and investing in more energy-efficient hardware.
From using open source and web-based software, to introducing new communications tools and ways of working, technology can provide a whole range of cost saving options.
| |
Read More ...
Getting the most out of a web conference
We all know how to handle ourselves in a face-to-face meeting or on the phone, but chairing a videoconference requires a whole different set of skills.
The preparation
Firstly, preparation is important, and can make the difference between a successful video conferencing session or presentation, and an awkward one. It's important to dress appropriately for the video conference, just as you would for a physical meeting. The main difference is that you will be viewed onscreen, so dressing in dark, solid colours or neutral shades will most likely come out better on screen when it comes to the videoconferencing presentation.You should try to avoid wearing horizontal stripes and patterns, reflective clothing and very bright colours and make up, which may not render well on a laptop or desktop screen.
It's also important to prepare what you want to say, and if you need to, script everything. This will help you stay on message, and remember the main points you want to make. If you are delivering a presentation, it's also worth practising it beforehand, and if possible, even video yourself doing it so you'll know what other people are going to see and hear.
Another part of the preparation is to make sure you know how to use the videoconferencing technology, and any controls you will need as the presenter. This is particularly important if you are using a sophisticated system, in which case, it might be worth doing a test run before the meeting commences, to make sure the lighting is right, and the chair and microphone placements are optimised for you.
The conference itself
Just like an audio conference, it is worth logging into the session before the meeting actually starts, so you can begin it on time, and welcome participants as they join. If you are chairing the meeting, you can remind people to do likewise in order to minimise the chance of people arriving during the event, which can be disruptive.Just as you would in a physical meeting, make sure you speak clearly and slowly during the video conference itself, and repeat questions where necessary. You might like to use humour to engage people, if you're comfortable doing that, and if it's appropriate. Also, try to relax and breathe normally, as this will get the best out of both yourself and the participants.
Although you will be looking at a camera, try to maintain eye contact with it, because this will mean other people will be able to feel they have eye contact with you. This is important in videoconferencing, which is emulating a physical meeting. However, unlike a physical conference, small movements can be picked up and exaggerated, so try to stay still and gesture as normal. For the sake of politeness, try to avoid doing other things, like checking your smart phone, typing into the computer, turning away or walking around.
People are going to be concentrating on your face, particularly if you are the presenter, so make sure your facial expressions are appropriate, and that you are engaged and interested in the presentation and what other people are saying. Also, remember to smile and relax.
To facilitate conversation, and moderate debate and interactions, try to allow people to finish what they are saying without interrupting them, or letting other people interrupt them prematurely. You may also be required to moderate multiple conversations by explaining the ground rules, and encouraging people to participate.
Again, it is worth speaking clearly and carefully, enunciating your words and using inflection to vary your tone. Also remember short words and simple sentences are better, as there may be a brief time delay in the audio transmission.
Tips and tricks
There are several things you can do to make sure you present well, and these include practising with the equipment beforehand so you're comfortable when it comes to the meeting. Knowing your material is also important, as is having a glass of water at hand in case you dry up, and setting time aside for relaxation before the presentation.If you are doing a presentation, or leading discussion using an interactive whiteboard or an online poll, then clarity, brevity and confidence are all important qualities to demonstrate, because they will help you to lead well and be decisive.
In addition, using the interactive tools that are available, such as instant messaging, shared whiteboards, and online polls, can help to keep people engaged in the presentation, encourage participation, and they can make the presentation more interesting.
Finally, in terms of timing, this may vary depending on whether you are incorporating multiple countries and time zones, but if you want people at their most alert, then morning conferences are the best option, and it may be better to avoid the after lunch slot.
| |
Read More ...
How to get your business Liked on Facebook
The Facebook 'Like' button lets users share pages from your site back to their profile with one click. It's a very simple device, but it's also an incredibly powerful way of promoting your business to an audience of hundreds of millions.
The 'Like' function is a social plug-in, which allows people to link to your page, and show their friends they want to be affiliated with your brand. As such, it has the potential to be a very useful viral marketing tool.
The Like Button
The first step to be liked is to set up a Facebook business page for your company, brand, product or service. The next challenge is to grow your fan base, so the very first thing to do is to incorporate a Like Button on your company website, which enables people to click on it, and add a Like to their Facebook profile.You can add the Like button by pasting in some HTML code that Facebook generates from the Like page, and this enables the visitor to your business website to become a fan without even leaving your site.
Alternatively, you can add an icon that links to your Facebook page, something that is increasingly being adopted by businesses that have a Facebook presence. The icon is a square blue button with a lowercase, white letter 'F' on it, representing Facebook. The main thing is to think of your website as a connecting hub for other online vehicles, such as Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and YouTube. By linking inwards and outwards from your website, you are more likely to be found on Internet searches.
Spreading the like message
The next step is to ask your fans to let other people know about your Facebook page, and for this, Facebook gives you a list of the members: people who have explicitly said they Like your page.You can incorporate the Facebook icon into your e-mail newsletter template, which everybody will see when you send out your e-mails. As a result, you will constantly publicise the fact that you have a Facebook presence of your business, and give people the opportunity to join the page.
Some e-mail newsletter platforms incorporate a social networking link facility, but it is relatively straightforward to incorporate such a link in your template, using rich text or HTML, and once again there's some help with this on the Facebook plugins page
As well as adding a link to your Facebook page in your e-mail newsletter template, you can also add one to your e-mail signature, and this can act as a subtle, yet effective reminder.
You can ask your employees to do the same, or set them up with a signature that has a link to your Facebook page. All you need is a message that asks the recipient to "Like us on Facebook" and perhaps incorporate a logo.
Using Facebook advertising
Consider targeting your potential customers using Facebook Ads, which are highly targeted adverts that appear in Facebook, and can appeal to a particular demographic. They will point to your page and can be a good way to draw widespread attention. One technique is to target your ads at the friends of people who like your page, so that they will see the names of their friends, and this can be a big draw.We're often amazed to see how often Facebook page owners have yet to Like the page themselves. Failing to do so means you can miss out on opportunities to encourage others to do the same.
How to spread the Word
Introduce incentives for fans to spread the message to their friends. Although some of them will do it automatically, because they believe in the message of your brand, many will do so if they expect a return for themselves.You can use competition prizes, contests and giveaways as incentives to reward people for spreading your message, and magazines and businesses do this all the time. Facebook marketing is no different, and you will help your cause if you offer incentives for people to help you to extend your reach.
Attract an audience through 'Fangating' and interactivity
Linked to this idea, is the 'Fangating' technique, which has proven popular with a lot of businesses. This rewards Facebook users by providing a special offer for people who Like the page. So in other words, people who are not fans of the page get to see a tab on their Facebook pages that contain the special offer, and this attracts them to your page.Another technique is to be interactive with your Facebook fans, talk to them and help to create comments and user-generated content. By building a community, you will encourage people to stay with your site, and bring other people in. Engagement with fans can stimulate new interest on their own newsfeeds, which their friends will see. And an active fan base can lead to organic growth.
With this in mind, try to find out what makes your fans tick, become interested in their lives and views, and encourage people to talk about themselves. By directly engaging with people, and making them feel valued and important, you will gain their loyalty.
On Facebook content is king
One way to keep content fresh and interesting on your Facebook page is to post content from your website. This might include product updates, blog posts or press releases, and it will mean you are regularly bringing something of interest and value to your fans.Tools are available that can automatically syndicate your content to your Facebook page, such as dlvr.it , Ping.fm and SocialOomph, although major blog tools also have this facility.
On the subject of content, it's a good idea to try a mixture of text, videos, photos and audio. This can keep things interesting, and videos and images have the greatest chance of going viral.
Lastly, publicise your Facebook page on all the relevant documents and brochures, including business cards, direct mail, outdoor advertising and television advertising campaigns. Fans can come from everywhere, so make sure that you utilise every channel that's available to you.
| |
Read More ...
PC Rescue – Help I just dropped my laptop
IT is at the heart of most businesses, and your laptop, tablet and smartphone are full of invaluable data, and although we all secretly know that we should backup that data, very few people do. If the worst thing happens and you drop your laptop, or you spill coffee over the keyboard would your business be able to recover?
Laptops are not indestructible
Unless you have deep pockets and can run to something like a Panasonic Toughbook, the first thing you should take on board is that laptops are, generally speaking, not particularly rugged.They should not be dropped or allowed to come in to contact with water. If they do, bad things can happen to the most valuable part of your laptop – your data. Remember: you can always buy a new laptop what you can't buy is one with your old data on.
And it's inevitable that something that is designated as a portable device is going to get dropped at some point in its working life. So avoid at least some potential future pain by sorting out a good backup plan in the present.
What to do if there's no backup
OK so you have dropped your laptop and you haven't got a backup – what's the first thing you should do? Unless the drop was particularly hard (and hopefully your laptop wasn't switched on at the time) it's a fair assumption that your data is actually still OK and recoverable. This may still be true even if the laptop fails to boot.So how do you retrieve your precious data? The first thing to do is to extract the drive from the laptop – normally a pair of tiny crosshead screws can be removed, allowing you to slide the drive caddy out.
Once it's out you need to invest in a USB hard disk dock, which will set you back about £20. These typically take both 3.5in and 2.5in SATA drives. Simply slide your drive in to the pocket on the top of the dock, power up and plug the USB in to another PC. No driver software is required and within a matter of seconds a new drive will have been added to your My Computer window. You can now retrieve your precious data off the old drive and copy it across to the other PC. Remember to log on as Administrator in order to access your user files on the new drive.
If the laptop has sustained other physical damage, unless it's relatively new it may be uneconomic to repair it. As unlikely as it may seem, laptops are not that difficult to repair yourself – trust me, there is an ocean of useful instructional 'how-to' videos on YouTube to hold your hand during dismantling.
Generally all you need is small cross-head screw-driver, a little common sense and patience. As for spare parts, without doubt the place to obtain them is eBay. Again, you'll be surprised what is available for your particular laptop.
Mobile repairs
Smart phones are expensive and it's essential to have insurance cover as accidental damage won't be covered by your warranty. Monthly insurance premiums on smartphones, which don't forget can cost in excess of £500 if sold contract-free, can be comprise a significant portion of your monthly bill. But the more premium you pay the lower the voluntary excess – just £60 for an iPhone on O2, for example. So it's almost always worth making a claim for accidental damage.To get it fixed you can take your phone back to your service provider's shop or to one of a multitude of tiny repair shops on our high streets and markets. Or if you're feeling adventurous, you could try a spot of DIY – as with laptops, spare parts for most phones are available on eBay and YouTube is littered with innumerable 'tear-down' videos showing you how to do it in great detail. They may have the world's tiniest screws but smartphones don't have many components and so are relatively easy to fix
Getting a smartphone wet is almost certainly fatal, but it's worth having a go at resurrecting one. Do not try turning the phone on and immediately remove the battery (tough luck iPhone owners). Remove the SIM too. If it fell in salty water, rinse the phone in fresh water – you don't want any salt crystallizing inside your dry phone. After wiping it down you now need to dry the phone's innards – you could use compressed air or you might try very mild heat, placing it in an airing cupboard perhaps or close to a radiator. Some even advocate putting the phone in a sealable plastic bag full of uncooked rice for a couple of days as an aid to desiccation. Silica gel is also suitable. All this may not in the end save your phone but at least you tried.
The final fix
If you've tried to fix your phone or your laptop and failed, or you don't feel brave enough to attempt a fix, then there's one last option, and it's an expensive option, but it's the option that's most likely to get your data back. There are many businesses that specialise in retrieving data from drives, but the largest and oldest is Kroll Ontrack.Kroll Ontrack are a business that specialises in getting data back from even the most desperately mangled and destroyed drives. If your laptop hard disk, or smartphone have been dropped, burnt, soaked or even attacked by ants (yes ants), or you've run over your USB memory stick, or dropped your iPhone in the loo, then they're the people who can guarantee to get your data back.
| |
Read More ...
Beginners guide to viral marketing
Viral marketing is all about encouraging people to spread information on a product by voluntarily sharing that information with people they know.
In the old days this would have been called 'word of mouth', and would have been a useful if undramatic complement to regular marketing. If you can get kids talking about your fizzy drink in the playground, lots will go and buy it.
Viral marketing on social media
What makes viral marketing such an exciting modern marketing phenomenon is that the 'people we know' no longer just means our immediate social circle, but everybody in our social media universe, and then multiples of people in multiple universes beyond that.A viral campaign, if it comes off, can achieve dramatic results in days, even in hours, thanks to the exponential growth potential offered by exposure on the likes of Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
Learning from the big business successes
The most successful viral campaign ever was for men's aftershave Old Spice, which until two years ago was the very embodiment of a moribund and unhip brand.Its manufacturer Procter & Gamble asked ad agency Weiden+Kennedy to give the brand new life. The results changed the rules of social network marketing.
The campaign began with a televised ad shown during the 2010 Super Bowl, introducing a 'brand character' called Old Spice Man played by former American footballer Isaiah Mustafa. With a humorous twinkle in his eye, Old Spice Man promised women he was 'the man your man could smell like'.
The simple but crucial next step was to put the ad up on YouTube where its cheesy but accessible humour attracted over 13 million views in a matter of days. To date it has been seen over 40 million times and has spawned hundreds of copy-cat videos that have extended the viral effect even further.
Weiden+Kennedy bided its time for a few weeks and then posted a message on Old Spice's Facebook page, and on Twitter, inviting people to fire questions at Old Spice Man. A team stood by to post back near immediate video responses, all in keeping with the original character and its by now trademark tongue in cheek 'manliness'.
Over 180 of these videos were knocked out in a two day blitz, as a furore of enthusiastic participants jockeyed to get their question answered by the character, and then chat with each other online about the results.
A host of celebrities got sucked up in the frenzy, feeding the fire by involving their own legions of social media friends and followers. This was no accident. Celebrities known for their huge social media following were specifically targeted.
What are the lessons for small business?
At first sight, this does not seem like a trick that could be repeated by just any business and brand. Not everybody has the marketing power of P&G, and that kind of lightening doesn't strike every day in any case, does it?But if one drills down into the essentials of the campaign, there are important elements that could be used by any small business wanting to get its brand in front of tens of thousands of potential buyers.
The most important lesson of the Old Spice campaign is that basic viral marketing does not have to cost a lot of money because you are harnessing people power to voluntarily promote your brand.
Building the idea for the viral
You need to start by coming up with a personality or persona that in some way represents your brand positioning. This could be a real person on video, or perhaps some kind of animation. The main thing is that it needs to be a character that people – the kind of people who buy your products - warm to and want to interact with. Is there a big personality on your staff? Or a local stand up comedian who could do with a few extra bob?The campaign can be based around humour, like Old Spice, but don't feel pressured to make it funny. It can be a character that conveys other qualities instead, like empathy, honesty or trustworthiness. It really just needs to be a likeable character that can be sustained.
Use YouTube to host and promote your campaign
You can start the campaign with a video of some sort on YouTube. Remember, this is the most democratic form of marketing there is, and it lends itself to a bit of DIY amateurism too with no need for a major Madison Avenue agency coming up with the creatives. Film it yourself, and have a bit of fun doing it.Creating the initial buzz to kick off the campaign
You'll next need to spend some time going around social networks inviting people to interact, perhaps in the form of a contest, or by offering some free advice, or just asking people to talk to you.This is where the magic kicks in, if you're lucky. If you ask enough people to join in, many will ignore you but some, inevitably, will take you up. It's human nature. They tell their friends, and then – well, who knows? Maybe people will end up competing to get on board with their own witty contribution. The unpredictability of what happens next is part of the joy.
It will of course help if you theme your campaign around the interests of your target market, perhaps offering them the chance to contribute their opinions on a topic relevant to that community. You can use your chosen persona to answer with your own opinions, and interest and intrigue will build further.
Getting the right subject for your campaign
The trickiest bit for a smaller business to pull off is involving a celebrity of some sort in the campaign, one who perhaps has a big Twitter following. We're not necessarily talking Stephen Fry, but is there perhaps someone local to you of minor notoriety, and of some relevance to what you do? Or can you get a well known blogger to talk about you? This would spread links to your website, which over time will increase your ranking with search engines.But really you're just after anyone with a following you can leverage – for free. And that doesn't have to be a real-life person. One website created a promotional video for its site with an interactive Angry Birds birthday cake, the video attracted 8.5 million views.
Remember, you don't need to reach the millions that Old Spice did to be a success - just reaching a few thousand people, a hundred of whom might go and buy your product, could make it all worthwhile.
| |
Read More ...
Review: Iiyama T2451MTS
Is touch the final input frontier for the desktop PC? Time to fire up the new Iiyama T2451MTS, a 24-inch, Full-HD touch-enabled widescreen monitor and find out.
It's certainly easy to understand why you might want to add touch functionality to a conventional PC. Whether it's smartphones, tablets or tablet-laptop transformers, touch is where all the exciting stuff is happening when it comes to interfaces and user input.
Even Microsoft is finally taking touch seriously. Windows 8, due out later this year, is the first mainstream Microsoft operating for desktops to include a fully developed and truly usable touch interface.
Of course, touch input on a 24-inch PC monitor is never going to be quite the same experience as a 10-inch tablet or a pocketable smartphone. For starters, instead of familiar resistive or capacitive touchscreen tech, the Iiyama T2451MTS uses optical touch technology.
In simple terms, that involves a ring of infrared emitters and sensors located in the screen bezel. In fact, thanks to optical technology, you don't actually have to touch the screen surface. Making swish, swipe and poke gestures near the screen surface is good enough.
If that sounds like the touch response is a bit vague, think again. The Iiyama T2451MTS is an extremely accurate and responsive touchscreen. That includes multi-touch gestures such as manipulating photos or zooming in and out of web pages.
It's very close in feel and response to a capacitive screen - assuming you make contact with the screen surface that is. It's also extremely simple to set up. No drivers are required. Just plug it in via video and USB links to any Windows 7 or, indeed, Windows 8 machine and you're good to go.
No Windows
There is, however, a snag. The use of optical tech requires a raised screen bezel which in turn makes it difficult to reach the very edges of the screen with your finger tips. Unfortunately, much of the new Windows 8 Metro touch interfaces relies on the use of sweeping gestures from the screen edge to reveal various functions and menus. And this simply doesn't work well on the Iiyama T2451MTS.In mitigation, Iiyama does provide a stylus which makes the Metro menus a lot more accessible, even if that rather defeats the object of a touchscreen. Moreover, Iiyama does not market the T2451MTS as Windows 8 screen. It's described as optimised for Windows 7.
Problem is, the Windows 7 touch interface is uniformly awful. Exactly what, therefore, you should use this screen for isn't entirely clear. That's a shame because along with the accurate touch response, it's not half bad as a conventional monitor.
OK, the panel use TN technology, so it's not as accurate nor offers the viewing angles of the latest and greatest IPS screens. The backlight could do with a bit more oomph, too.
But as TN panels go, the colours are rich and vibrant, the blacks reasonably deep and inky. It also performs surprising well in our suite of test images. Both black and white scales reveal plenty of detail, for instance. Like pretty much any TN screen, pixel response is speedy, too.
All of which makes the Iiyama T2451MTS an interesting and mostly quite capable screen that's struggling to justify its existence. Windows 7 is a poor touch experience. The optical touch technology is a poor match for Windows 8. And if you're not going to use the touch functionality, you can buy much nicer IPS screens for the same price.
| |
Read More ...
Phase One launch $60,000 aerial camera
Phase One has created the iXA, a new medium format aerial camera system manufactured to streamline image capture and process workflow.
Users have a choice of 80 or 60 megapixel models in either RGB or NIR versions, allowing it to be used with existing or new systems.
The 80MP version has a resolution of 10320 x 7752 pixels and the 60MP has a resolution of 8984 x 6732. The body has secured I/O communication connectors and a mini USB connector.
Phase One claims that its new range of Schneider-Kreuznach electronically controlled leaf shutter lenses provide sharp images with in-depth colour. SDK software promises users complete control over ISO, aperture and shutter speed during flight.
Hefty
The iXA certainly swings its weight about, comprising of a 6061 aluminium alloy body for tough aerial conditions and a weighty price tag of $60,000 for the 80MP version and $53,000 for the 60MP. Dov says that this is an extremely high performance system with a cost-effective price.The camera has been designed for its scalability and flexibility, capturing synchronised images within 100 microseconds.
Dov Kalinski general manager of Phase One Industrial said, "Phase One has spared no effort in developing a truly integrated aerial camera system."
Phase One manufacture open-platform based medium format cameras, digital backs and lenses which are aimed at pro photographers.
Shipping of the iXA will commence in May 2012.
| |
Read More ...
Updated: 50 best free iPhone games on the planet
Best free iPhone and iPod touch games: 1-25
It's safe to say that Apple's given the gaming industry a square kick in the tender regions.Despite their bluster, dismissing Apple in every way possible, Sony and Nintendo are both clearly concerned by the meteoric rise of iPod touch and iPhone as handheld gaming devices.
Although great games are the driving force behind the success of Apple gaming, low prices have also helped. Most 'premium' titles cost six quid or less, and many developers end up in a race to 59p, thereby providing games that'd cost 20 quid on a rival platform for the price of a Kit-Kat.
But what if you've spent your last penny on your shiny Apple object of desire? Can you get great games for nothing at all, or is the 'free' section of the App Store full of the kind of games that would make a ZX81 blush?
The answer is, of course, both, and the trick is finding the gems amongst the dross. What follows is our pick of the bunch - our top 40 free iPod touch and iPhone games.
1. Dropship
This wonderful ngmoco title used to cost a few quid, but Dropship is now free and is one of the App Store's biggest bargains. The game is a modern take on Gravitar or Thrust, with your ship battling gravity and shooting gun emplacements while searching complex vector-based cave formations for marooned allies.
The 'touch anywhere' dual-thumb controls take some getting used to, but the game feels fluid and exciting once they're mastered.
2. Dr. Awesome Plus
Another ngmoco game, Dr. Awesome uses a hateful forced Plus+ account sign-up, but get past that and you find a compulsive title that smashes together ancient arcade classic Qix and surgery game Trauma Centre. Dr. Awesome's gameplay centres around removing viruses by tilting your device to 'cut out' infections.
Gameplay is fast and furious and, oddly, your Address Book contacts are used for patient names, so you can always choose to sacrifice your high score and off your boss in the virtual world.
3. Flood-It! 2
Flood-It! 2 meets the rules of great puzzlers: keep things simple, but make the game so challenging that your brains start to dribble out of your ears. In Flood-It!, you tap colours to 'flood' the board from the top-left, aiming to make the entire board one colour using a limited number of taps.
This release offers additional modes over the original Flood-It! (timers, obstacles, finishing with a defined colour), and offers schemes for colour-blind players.
4. Sol Free Solitaire
Although it's essentially a chunk of Solebon Solitaire (£1.19), Sol Free Solitaire is nonetheless a stunning example of a standalone solitaire game.
From the moment you first launch the game, the level of polish and attention to detail is obvious. In all of the six included games, the graphics are clean and clear, the controls are intuitive and responsive, and the built-in help is informative.
5. Cube Runner
The accelerometers in Apple handhelds have driven development of myriad tilt-based racing games, but tilt controls can be finicky. Cube Runner, however, feels just right as you pilot your craft left and right through cube-littered landscapes, aiming to survive for as long as possible.
The game doesn't look like much, but it plays well, and longevity is extended by Cube Runner enabling you to create and download new levels.
6. Spider: Hornet Smash
Tiger Style's Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor is an App Store classic, combining arcade adventuring and platforming action, with you playing the role of a roaming arachnid.
Hornet Smash includes a level from that game, but its main draw is the frenetic arcade minigame. Still controlling our eight-legged hero, the aim is to fend off attacks by swarms of angry hornets, while weaving webs and munching tasty lacewings for health boosts. Three environments are included in this compelling and innovative title.
7. Real Racing GTi
Firemint's Real Racing is one of the best racing games for Apple handhelds, but it's also demanding, requiring a lot of time investment. Real Racing GTi dispenses with much of the depth, but retains its parent's fun gameplay, user-friendly controls and great graphics.
Three modes are on offer - time trial, quick race, and a cup championship over three tracks—ensuring this game is the best free arcade racer on the App Store.
8. MazeFinger Plus
Again, the forced Plus+ account sign-up is hateful, but it's worth persevering to get to this addictive game, where you "unleash the awesome power of your finger," according to the App Store blurb.
The aim is to drag your finger from the start to the finish of each simple maze. The problem is you're against the clock and obstacles litter your path. Great graphics and 200 levels of compelling gameplay ensure you'll be glued to your screen.
9. Dactyl
Almost entirely lacking in depth, Dactyl is nonetheless one of the most furiously addictive games on the App Store. A gloriously demented Whack-A-Mole-style effort, Dactyl merely tasks you with tapping red bombs to stop them exploding.
Almost immediately, though, red bombs arrive thick and fast, forcing you to keep track and tap them in order, to avoid the inevitable 'game over'.
10. Trace
Trace is a sweet, inventive platform game which has you navigating hand-drawn obstacles to reach the star-shaped exit. The twist is that you can draw and erase your own platforms, to assist your progress.
With an emphasis on time-based scores rather than lives and the ability to skip levels, Trace is very much a 'casual' platform game, but it's none the worse because of it.
11. Solomon's Keep
Reminiscent of a twin-stick shooter mashed into an RPG with a really big wand, Solomon's Keep has your wizard battle endless hordes of supernatural foes, with the help of your thumbs and some in-game spells. It's a bit like an overhead Diablo, or, if you're getting on a bit, a powered-up Gauntlet.
12. Buganoids
Buganoids resembles a NES game where the author decided to mash together random bits from various arcade classics. You patrol tiny planets, blasting 'across' them to kill nasty bugs. The gameplay's reminiscent of Gyruss and Tempest, and although the controls sometimes feel a little off, the game's always fun for a quick blast.
13. You Cruise by Mazda MX-5
This game has no right to be any good. You Cruise is essentially an advert for Mazda, and ad-oriented games are usually rubbish and play it safe. But here you get to hurtle round eight courses in a sports car, with the gameplay resembling a mini Sega Rally. It also helps that the controls—auto-acceleration, steering at each edge, and a brake pedal at each corner - are some of the best of any iOS racer.
14. Bankshot
One for pool sharks, Bankshot tasks you with sending your orb to a goal by bouncing it off of at least one wall. A few different modes are on offer in this attractive neon-style game, but the best is Blitz, a high-octane time-attack affair.
15. 10 Pin Shuffle (Bowling) Lite
A curious mix of ten-pin bowling, shuffleboard and poker, 10 Pin Shuffle proves surprisingly addictive. You get two cards for each strike and one for each spare, and whoever has the best hand at the end of the tenth frame wins.
16. Lux Touch
Quickfire Risk clone Lux Touch isn't exactly a champion in the smarts department - the AI's pretty easy to outfox - but it's perfect ten-minute fodder for Risk fanatics. The graphics are clear, the board is responsive, and the game's also universal, for if you want to install it on your iPad.
17. iCopter Classic
There are loads of one-thumb copter games on the App Store, and while this isn't the best (Super Turbo Action Pig and Pudge fight for that honour), iCopter Classic is without doubt the finest free variant. It's also fast and responsive as you go about helping your helicopter (or—in the unlockable themes—bee, submarine, spaceship or football) survive for as long as possible without smashing into something.
18. Cell Splat
So you think you're observant? Cell Splat will test that claim to the limit. The game distills 'match' games to their purest form. You get a target shape or colour, and, against the clock, must tap all matching items in the well. Quite why this frantic, great-looking, fun, addictive game is free, we don't know; we just suggest you download it immediately.
19. InvaderR
Like Cell Splat, InvaderR streamlines and hones a popular game, but this time it's Space Invaders. Like Taito's original, aliens are out to get you, but in InvaderR you have it tough. While the invaders are content to stay out of reach, it's 'game over' the second you're hit by a projectile. This turns InvaderR into a compelling and exciting score-attack game.
20. Whacksy Taxi
Although it looks like a 1980s racer, Whacksy Taxi also has much in common with platform games. You belt along absurdly straight highways, avoiding traffic by dodging or leaping it. Variety's added by power-ups, new background graphics when you reach a stage's end, and several bonus zones that also provide extra challenge.
21. Volkswagen Think Blue Challenge
Most racing games are about tearing round corners at high speed, your only concern being to not smash into things. Think Blue turns the genre on its head, providing you with limited fuel. The game becomes a unique and intriguing survival-based challenge as you try to eke out an extra few metres each go.
22. Hoggy
Hoggy resembles VVVVVV smashed into Nintendo's Kirby, combining platforming and puzzles. The game tasks you with grabbing fruit within jars that are peppered around a maze. Complete a jar and you get a key; with a certain number of keys, new maze areas open up. Although occasionally a mite frustrating, Hoggy's a great-looking, fun and innovative freebie.
23. Bam Bam Dash
Imagine Monster Dash with the cast of The Flintstones and you've got Bam Bam Dash. Your auto-running caveman has to avoid plummeting to his death and being eaten by things with sharp teeth. Nice graphics and helpful dinosaurs you can ride add extra flavour to the game.
24. Alice in the Secret Castle
If brutally difficult old-school games are your thing, Alice in the Secret Castle will appeal. The game boasts 64 rooms of NES-style hell, with a curious game mechanic that hides walls when you hold the 'A' button. Progression therefore becomes a case of mastering taxing and relentless (but rewarding) puzzle-oriented platforming.
25. Minimalist Shooter
Tilt to Live took the twin-stick format pioneered by Robotron: 2084 and subverted it, removing your weapon and having you rely on colliding with contact-based explosives to destroy lethal foes. Minimalist Shooter is along the same lines, but it's free and resembles a pyrotechnic abstract art display.
Best free iPhone and iPod touch games: 26-50
26. PicoPicoGames
It's clear you'll never see Nintendo games on iOS, but PicoPicoGames is the next best thing: a collection of tiny, addictive NES-like minigames. Frankly, we'd happily pay for scrolling shooter GunDiver and the Denki Blocks-like Puzzle; that they're free and joined by several other great games is astonishing.
27. Escape from NOM
Another entry in the physics game genre, Escape from NOM differentiates itself by lacking a price-tag but nonetheless rolling in nice graphics and gameplay. The aim is to drop 'Alan' and use obstacles and bumpers to get him safely into coloured goo at the bottom of the screen. However, he must be the same colour as said goo when he reaches it and avoid hungry NOMs.
28. Need For Cheese
This tilt-based avoid 'em up has you steering clear of cats (especially red ones that home in on you), munching cheese and grabbing power-ups to smash evil cats off the screen. Need For Cheese is simple, but a first-rate quickfire highscore game that rivals Bit Pilot for best-in-class.
29. Froggy Jump
At first, Froggy Jump seems like Doodle Jump, starring a frog. That's probably because Froggy Jump pretty much is Doodle Jump, starring a frog. However, its character, unique items, themes and lack of price-tag makes it worth a download, especially if you're a fan of vertically scrolling platform games.
30. StarDunk
Another game showing that simplicity often works wonders on mobile titles, SlamDunk is a straightforward side-on basketball game. The time-attack nature of the title gives it oomph, though, and there's also the option for online competition against players worldwide.
31. Trainyard Express
Developer Matt Rix is bonkers. That's the only explanation for Trainyard Express, which isn't so much a demo version of the wonderful Trainyard as an entirely separate edition.
The mechanics are great: draw tracks to lead trains to like-coloured stations, combining or crossing them on the way, as necessary. It starts out easy, but soon hurts your brain, and the 60 puzzles aren't repeated in the paid-for version. Bargain.
32. Putt Golf
Anyone can whack a ball with a stick - real skill comes from putting. (Cue: enraged golfers attacking TechRadar Towers with pimped-out golf carts.) In Putt Golf, you get an oscillating targeting system, prod to putt, and then use tilting to amend the ball's path with digital Jedi-mind skills as it trundles towards the hole. Three game modes; hugely addictive.
33. Top Trumps Collection
If you spent a good part of your childhood wondering if the length of a Triceratops was enough to defeat your opponent's hidden dinosaur card, Top Trumps Collection will inject nostalgia directly into your brain. The AI can be a tad suspect, but this is nonetheless a decent reworking of the classic card game, with multiple modes of play and additional packs available via IAP.
34. Drop7
What do you get if you cross Drop7 with Zynga? A free version of Drop7! Luckily, the game's far more entertaining than that attempt at a joke: drop numbered discs into a grid and watch them explode when the number of discs in a column or row matches numbers on the discs. Drive yourself mad trying to boost your score by chaining! Forget to eat! (Also: ignore the bugs!)
35. Galaga 30th Collection
In the old days, invaders from space were strange, remaining in a holding pattern and slowly descending, enabling you to shoot them. By the time of Galaxian, the aliens realised they could swoop down and get you, and Galaga 30th Collection is the game you get here, with minor updates that improve its graphics and pace, albeit for a weighty 135 MB footprint on your device. Galaga fanatics can unlock other remakes in the series via IAP.
36. Candy Train
The cute little train is out of Control! Eek! Rotate pieces of track in Candy Train to help the chuffing hero collide with gigantic sweets, which results in points rather than a candy-based derailing disaster on the 6 o' clock news.
37. X-Baseball
It's a little-known fact that baseball mostly involves trying to hit colourful birds flying overhead and bananas lobbed in your direction by a mischievous fan. But X-Baseball provides a perfect, accurate one-thumb iOS recreation of America's favourite banana-thwacking pastime. (What?)
38. Rogue Runner
Rogue Runner is another one of those endless games, where you leap over gaps and shoot things until you fall down a chasm and ponder why your in-game avatar doesn't learn to stop once in a while. Rogue Runner stands out by offering a ton of skins and a smart overhead dodge-and-shoot variation, which is a bit like Spy Hunter if someone knocked the original arcade cabinet on its side - the vandal.
39. Road Hog
It's another one of those endless games, but this one has you… moving into the screen. Actually, Road Hog's a bit more than that, because you can move left and right, jump, use power-ups and grab stars to boost your score. Therefore, the game's a bit closer to a 3D Mario, if he was in a car that he drove recklessly along an endless road. Which we're pretty sure is what he does on his day off.
40. Chuck's Challenge
Chuck's Challenge is a sweet puzzle game that challenges you to solve a few dozen overhead levels, which are essentially tightly designed logic puzzles. Mooch about, find keys, open doors, and try very hard not to get killed. If your spiky-haired character manages to survive, more level packs are available via IAP.
41. Draw Something Free
"No drawing skills required!," boasts the App Store description for Draw Something Free. You might argue otherwise when this app demands you draw something suitably tricky for your friends to guess, but can merely manage a red blob. Still, Pictionary plus iPhone plus social gaming equals 'must have' in gaming maths.
42. Temple Run
Top tip for any budding Indiana Jones types reading this: do not steal shiny things from temples guarded by demon monkeys, otherwise you will die. Still, if you're too stubborn to take our advice, use Temple Run for training, swiping and tilting your device until your on screen hero meets his inevitable demise.
43. ElectroMaster
We've no idea what's going on in ElectroMaster, beyond a bored girl trying to avoid responsibility by killing everything in sight with electro-blasts. The game's sort of like a twin-stick shooter but you tap-hold to charge and then release to let rip, dragging your finger about to fry your foes. Games are short, but this is one of the most thrilling blasters on the system, despite it costing nothing at all.
44. Grim Joggers Freestyle
The original Grim Joggers was odd enough: 15 joggers jog for their lives in oddball environments, including a warzone, the Arctic, and an alien world. In the free Grim Joggers Freestyle, you get just one world, but it mashes up everything from the paid game into a surreal (but thoroughly enjoyable) endless survival game.
45. Frisbee Forever
Flinging a plastic disc can be dull in the real world, but in this whimsical game the classic toy gets to soar over desert canyons, through Ferris wheels and alongside pirate ships moored in sandy bays. Frisbee Forever is a flying disc game as Nintendo might have crafted it, with vibrant graphics, jolly music and simple but engaging gameplay.
46. Wind-Up Knight
Kings in fairytale lands have a screw lose, or perhaps just an odd desire to create the conditions for a tough videogame. In Wind-Up Knight, a princess has been kidnapped. Horrors! But rather than send an army, the king tasks a knight with rescuing her. Only he's fragile. And clockwork. And can't turn around. Really, it's an excuse for puzzle-oriented swipe-based thrills, which demand near-perfect timing as the quest nears its end.
47. Hero Academy
Most developers create games from code, but we're pretty sure Hero Academy's composed of the most addictive substances known to man all smushed together and shoved on to the App Store. The game's sort-of chess with fantasy characters, but the flexibility within the rule-set provides limitless scope for asynchronous one-on-one encounters. For free, you have to put up with ads and only get the 'human' team, but that'll be more than enough to get you hooked.
48. Greedy Bankers: Bailout!
A nod to our current financial woes, Greedy Bankers: Bailout! is all about greed. You swipe coloured gems together, to make bigger gems; tap and they explode in a shower of gold coins. Avoid the thief and beat the time limit to succeed. Extra modes are available via IAP, but the original—Arcade—should keep dollar signs in your eyes for a long while.
49. Tiny Tower
Social management games are big business, but are often stuffed full of cynical wallet-grabbing mechanics. While Tiny Tower does have the whiff of IAP to speed things along a bit, its tower-building and management remains enjoyable even if you pay nothing at all, and the pixel graphics are lovely.
50. Triple Town
Three bushes make a tree! Three gravestones make a church! OK, so logic might not be Triple Town's strong suit, but the match-three gameplay is addictive. Match to build things and trap bears, rapidly run out of space, gaze in wonder at your town and start all over again. The free-to-play version has limited moves that are gradually replenished, but you can unlock unlimited moves via IAP.
| |
Read More ...
Exclusive: Fuji: CSCs haven't impacted upon bridge camera sales
Fuji has said that compact system cameras haven't had an impact on bridge camera sales, with sales in fact increasing across the sector.
Speaking to TechRadar, Adrian Clarke, senior vice president for Fujifilm Imaging said, "We did expect the popularity of compact system cameras to dent bridge sales, but last year it was one of the better categories and increased across the world."
Fuji is a very strong player in the bridge camera market, currently holding around 40-50% global market share. "This is our strong card," Clarke said.
Sales
"We had a very good year last year because bridge sales increased, in the UK and in all the major countries. There is still a very good market for bridge cameras," he continued.Review
Fuji X-S1 Review
"A lot of the retailers like bridge [cameras] because they're equally attractive to men and women, it's a good step up camera, it's something we feel is very much our own area."Fuji X-S1 Review Fuji introduced its first compact system camera earlier in the year in the shape of the X Pro1, which has gone on to receive rave reviews. It marked the company's first interchangeable lens announcement since 2006.
It currently has a wide range of bridge cameras in its market, led by the flagship X-S1 , which retails for around £700, making it more expensive than many entry-level DSLRs.
| |
Read More ...
News In Brief: One More Thing: Tom Cruise should have been Steve Jobs
One More Thing: Tom Cruise should've been Jobs
There's no Monday worst for a journalist than one after April Fools Day, where the internet is a veritable minefield of misinformation and utterly dreadful joke news. Lucky, we at TechRadar managed to tread carefully to find enough dreadful news that's actually not a joke but real. Like the fact Ashton Kutcher is to become Steve Jobs…Would you Adam and Steve it? – Ashton Kutcher, he of er (sorry for this quick break while we check Wikipedia to see what he has done other than date Demi Moore) That '70s Show fame is set to star as Steve Jobs in an upcoming biopic of the late Apple CEO.
How, was he cast? Well, we secretly know it was done by Google Instant. Pop 'Steve Jobs looks like' in to Google's wonder machine and Steve Jobs looks like Ashton Kutcher gets second billing.
We're guessing Tom Cruise was unavailable, as was John Lennon and Ghandi… [Total Film]
Electric Dreams – Star of Back To The Future and failed real-life car the Delorean is making a comeback as an electric vehicle. The DMC-EV has been resurrected by the original creator's son and there will be a limited launch of the vehicles.
Unfortunately, it doesn't come with Doc Brown, but you should be able to get 100 miles to the charge out of it which is plenty to get away from those pesky Libyans. [BBC]
Has everybody heard about the bird? – Angry Birds is to take flight from its original concept as a handheld game and will become a cartoon series set for launch later in the year, according to makers Rovio. This news comes after the fact that Angry Birds will get its own theme park as well.
According to the cartoon's maker it will be less about the slingshot and more about the birds. Which is a shame as we always wanted to know about the history of the slingshot. [Telegraph]
Saving Face – That little known but soon to be popular social network (you heard it here first) Facebook is nearing the end of one of its biggest legal disputes, where Paul Ceglia, the creator of StreetFax is claiming 50 per cent ownership of the site. Want to know more, then watch the David Fincher movie about it. No, not the one which features rape and mutilation, or the one with Meat Loaf fighting, nor the one with the head in the box or the one where the old man gets younger and turns out to be Brad Pitt. The one with lots of keys tappity tapping. [MacWorld]
Quick on the draw – The creator of DrawSomething, the game which is far enough from Pictionary to stop the courts getting shifty, has announced that the one person who didn't make the move with the company to Zynga is in fact a 'failure'. The strange rant on Twitter has soured what should be a good time for Omgpop – a company that Zynga saw fit to purchase for more money than you or I will ever see in our lives ever. [Wired]
Apple stewed – An iTunes scammer has been sent to jail after his swindling the site through the stealing of hundreds of credit cards was found out. This all happened ages ago, but because of court orders, only now will the scammer have to do his four year jail sentence. Well, that's the courts excuse – we reckon it took that long for him to figure out how to scratch the foil off the back of the cards to redeem the vouchers. Idiot. [Huffington Post]
Total Recall recalled – The new trailer for the Total Recall reboot has landed and, shock-horror, it's actually very good. Although, we reckon it could do with more three-boobed ladies. That and a Schwarzenegger audio commentary. [Total Film]
More fool you – Yes, even the might of TechRadar can't resist a few April Fools now and again. You may have seen over the weekend that we reported on new 'retro film' SD cards and a Photoshop feature that can turn a baby into an old man. Well they were made up, fake, ridiculous and us having a laugh. Yes, we laugh sometimes and then cry a little bit afterwards to balance things out.
Cross-town traffic – Google is looking to change the way we use sat nav, by taking the data from drivers on the roads who have opted in to have their GPS information tracked. This real-time update actually sounds like it could be useful – if a little scary for those who don't know their phone is being used for this purpose. [PsyOrg]
Thanks for the cat – The creator of Adblock made Catblock as an April Fools' joke and there was so much demand for it, he may actually release it properly. That's if he doesn't pussy out first. [Reddit]
Bonus video of the day - Here's the wonderful HTC One X and how it compares with the Samsung Galaxy S2 in our tests...
| |
Read More ...
Xbox 720 'as powerful' as two PCs - to ship in 2013
New information has come to light with regards to the Xbox 720, which hints that the console will be a power beast when it is released.
According to VG247, which has quoted sources close to the matter, the Xbox 720 is indeed a reality and it will be with us by Christmas 2013.
These multiple sources have gotten together and confirmed to the gaming site that the new console like two PCs taped together, with its graphics cards said to be the equivalent of AMD's 7000 series GPUs.
If this is the case, then AMD have managed to pull of a gaming double whammy as the PlayStation Orbis / PS4 is also said to have AMD architecture inside.
You've been Durango'd
The next-generation Xbox will also have Kinect built-in, according to reports, and it will also be forever connected to the web – which is thought to be an anti-piracy measure.
As for a nickname – it has to have one, given the PS4 is now Orbis – there is a Durango summit in London for devs in February 2012 and it is thought that this is the nickname for the new Xbox.
As with other reports, we are not expected to hear anything about the Xbox 720 this year – so don't go thinking that Microsoft will show off things at the upcoming E3 gaming expo.
It also smacks down the rumour that there's a Lite version of the Xbox 720 coming out in 2013 with a more powerful one to follow. Unless these specs are for the Lite version - if that turns out to be the case, colour us impressed.
It is also expected for the Xbox 720 to have a Blu-ray drive which will come to relief to those who had to deal with multiple DVDs for content-heavy games.
| |
Read More ...
Opinion: Now Game is safe, it needs to start being fun
The announcement that Game has been saved from the fiery pits of administration hell is great news for the UK's high streets and gamers respectively but things need to change.
Even if you, like many, have migrated online to get your gaming kit, the thought that there's one less shop to browse in and one more charity shop / coffee shop / bland restaurant ready to take their place is something that should have filled you with dread.
The UK's high streets are pock-marked enough with closed shops that seeing a company like Game and Gamestation wobble is no fun at all.
But now that they are here to stay, they really need to bring the fun.
Bring gaming to Game
Browsing is all well and good, but these stores are based around gaming and playing games should be at the forefront of the shops.
What Game needs to do is embrace the gaming massive and give them a reason to leave their consoles and PCs and head to the shops.
Current games are all about community – whether that's on Modern Warfare or a friend down the street on Fifa – and Game needs to tap into this and bring Lan parties in-store and stop being afraid to embrace the true gaming geeks.
For far too long, Game has made its money – or lost it – through second-hand game sales. This isn't a way to run a business. It annoys the games publishers for a start. Second hand takes away their chance of long-term selling of new games within a shop, and it is something they are actively trying to stop.
The rumours that the PS4 won't accept second hand games sounds far-fetched but if videogames companies have anything to say about the future of gaming, then this will almost certainly happen.
If Game offered competitions within store, where you have to purchase a new game from its shop to join, then it would not only tap into the gaming community it would get the publishers off its back. Milk as much as you can out of first-hand games and they will thank you - in short, stop looking for making a buck out of the past and make money from the present.
The more people that come to the shop to hang around, the more their loyalty will be to the brand and the more they will spend - you just have to make it easy for them.
Gaming is the biggest thing in the entertainment industry at the moment – the launch of a new Call of Duty or Halo proves this.
The gaming community is as loyal as any Apple fan and as excitable as your average movie geek. Tap into this and stop looking for ways to make a profit out of pre-owned games and you'll do just fine, Game – focus on pushing your sales digitally and make your shops hubs for gamers to hang out.
It worked for HMV back in the day with the listening posts, now we need it to work for gaming.
If it doesn't then it's definitely game over whether we like it or not.
| |
Read More ...
Facebook to go after Google with revamped search functions?
Facebook is set to bolster the search functionality on its site with a hope that users will ditch Google in favour of the social network.
This is according to unnamed sources, which cite that Facebook has a number of people working on the new search functionality – one of which is an ex Google employee.
Facebook is well known for keeping the amount of people working on its new features to a bare minimum. When it came to revamping its photo service, there were only a handful of people working on the project – and it is this type of working atmosphere which Facebook likes to feedback to other developers with its Facebook Garage events.
So it is interesting that there's said to be 24 people working on the new rumoured search functionality, and these are lead by former Google employee Lars Rasmussen.
Social search
This is all according to Business Week, which reckons Facebook wants to utilise its mountains of information with better search controls.Although it is unlikely Facebook will reach the heady heights of Google's search traffic, Facebook has slowly but surely started feeding the web Inception-like into its network.
There are myriad apps out there that allow you to read content from papers within the site and this goes to listening to music as well.
The dream for Facebook would be to free its social data with better search. This is something Google is trying at the moment with integrating its search with Google+. This is proving difficult, though, because Google+ isn't embedded into people's lives as much as Facebook is at the moment.
The problem Facebook has, however, is the privacy controls on users' accounts – which means that a revamped search function would only really be able to show results which a member of the social network has set to public.
A Google-like search on Facebook would tap into the still young social search market. At the moment, the global search market is worth billions and Facebook will definitely want to tap into this revenue stream.
If Business Week is correct and Facebook is looking to make everyone change their homepage from Google to the social network, then this could well be something that shakes up a search market that's currently a one-horse race.
| |
Read More ...
Former Apple CEO: Samsung only rival for iPad
Former Apple CEO John Sculley has insisted that only Samsung's Galaxy Tabs provide any serious competition to the new iPad 3.
Sculley, who was brought into Apple from Pepsi by Steve Jobs after masterminding the beverage company's rise on Coca Cola's coat tails, left Apple in 1993 under something of a cloud.
However, the man behind the famed Pepsi Challenge remains an Apple fan, and he has only found a single company worth considering a rival for the tablet market.
Sculley: "The only serious tablet competitor in sight to the iPad at this time is Samsung's Galaxy.
"I predict many good years ahead for Apple," Sculley told the Economic Times. "The only serious tablet competitor in sight to the iPad at this time is Samsung's Galaxy. "We know the landscape can change quickly but Apple has an extraordinary executive team.
"Companies like Sony are trying to deal with the challenges of the legacy businesses (like the money losing television unit) while Apple is riding a wave and can focus all its talent on the future."
Jobs relationship with Sculley was an interesting facet of the former being pushed out of Apple, before his triumphant return years later.
Sculley famously licensed Apple's user interface to Microsoft for Windows 1.0, before wading into a legal battle around Windows 2.0 that ended up in the courts.
| |
Read More ...
Explained: WiGig: what it is and why you need to know
WiGig: what it is and why you need to know
Good news! ZTE has thrown its weight behind WiGig! If you recognise the name of the Chinese telecoms giant but haven't a clue what WiGig is, you're not alone.It's one of several new and potentially confusing new wireless standards. So what is it, and what will it do for your gadgets?
WiGig is a kind of wireless HDMI
WiGig's range is much shorter than Wi-Fi's - it'll run out of puff at about ten metres and doesn't really do walls - and it's designed to work alongside, not instead of, existing wireless networks. The idea is to have Wi-Fi for your broadband connection and WiGig to wirelessly interconnect home entertainment devices, PCs, tablets and so on. You could also use WiGig to connect tablets and other devices to in-car entertainment systems and headrest-mounted video screens. If you're thinking wireless HDMI, you're on the right lines.
WiGig is fast
WiGig uses the relatively uncluttered 60GHz frequency band to deliver speeds of up to 7Gbps, although like Wi-Fi you'll need hardware with multiple aerials to get the maximum possible throughput. Connection speeds drop rapidly when you put any distance between your devices: so far peak speeds occur when they're within three metres of one another and tail off dramatically after that.
WiGig wants to work with everything
WiGig can act as a connection layer for devices that expect to connect via USB, DisplayPort, PCIe and HDMI. Provided devices have the correct radios installed, it can be backwards compatible with 802.11 Wi-Fi connections in the 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequency bands.
WiGig is efficient
WiGig has been designed as a low power technology, and claims to be five times more energy efficient than Wi-Fi. It uses a technology called "beamforming" to target its radio beams for best performance, reducing congestion and effectively pointing the radio signal where it needs to go. The WiGig Alliance says that beamforming will also enable robust connections beyond the ten-metre mark, but there's a big difference between "robust" and "speedy".
WiGig wants to connect everything
WiGig isn't just about connecting home entertainment kit to HDTVs: it wants to embrace tablets, mobile phones and PCs too. If implemented well, it could mean automatic, instant wireless docking - so for example when you flop onto the sofa with your smartphone, it could automatically connect to and stream its display to your telly.
WiGig isn't a proprietary standard
WiGig comes from the Wireless Gigabit Alliance. Alliance members include Broadcom, Cisco, Intel, Microsoft, Dell, Nokia, Toshiba, Qualcomm, NEC, Panasonic and several other big hitters. That means it should attract widespread support. Unfortunately some of those members also support other, competing standards such as Wireless HD. Speaking of standards...
WiGig is one of several competing standards
There are several standards hoping to become the wireless equivalent of HDMI: WiGig, WHDI, WiDi and Wireless HD.
WiGig is going to be the official 60GHz wireless standard
The official IEEE standard for 60GHz wireless communications is 802.11ad, and while it was originally separate from WiGig the WiGig Alliance has been working with the IEEE on standardisation. Ultimately we're likely to use WiGig to mean 802.11ad and vice-versa.
The WiGig release date is some way off
We're unlikely to see WiGig-compliant hardware in big numbers until late 2012 or early 2013, and as with any new technology it's probably a good idea to see if WiGig takes off before splashing any cash - not least because the cost of wireless hardware always plummets as it starts to become more popular.
| |
Read More ...
Samsung Galaxy S3 may have 10 million pre-orders
The latest rumblings from the Samsung Galaxy S3 rumour mill suggest that the highly-anticipated device has already racked up 10 million pre-orders.
The new comes via well-known industry insider Eldar Murtazin, who tweeted: "10 mln preorders for sgs3".
There were no other details provided, so we're not sure who has placed the order which Murtazin is referring to, but it's expected to be from operators who are looking to stock their stores in time for the Samsung Galaxy S3 launch.
Still no word, about the bird
In terms of a Samsung Galaxy S3 release date we're still in the dark. We've seen numerous suggested dates come and go – but everyone is still hopeful about seeing the Galaxy S3 arrive in April or May.The Galaxy S3 is expected to be one of the biggest phones of 2012, with it going head to head with the iPhone 5, which is expected to arrive around July.
We expect the Galaxy S3 to join the likes of the HTC One X and pack a quad-core processor, taking the mobile experience to the next level.
| |
Read More ...
Qualcomm prepares quad-core S4 chips
Qualcomm is readying a new quad-core version of its Snapdragon S4 chip destined for Windows 8 laptops which will go head-to-head with Intel's slim ultrabooks.
Qualcomm's vice president, Rob Chandok, claims that the new S4 chips will feature in laptops that will make even the MacBook Air and ultrabooks self-conscious about their weight.
"We think [they will be] much lighter than what Intel calls an ultrabook," Chandhok said.
The quad-core S4 will use a 28-nanometer process which promises to improve performance while increasing battery life.
It signals the blurring of boundaries between chips for mobile devices and chips for computers, with the quad-core S4 promising smaller laptops with longer battery life.
System-on-a-chip design
Using ARM-based cores, the system-on-a-chip design also houses a modem and 3D-capable graphics core.The company has already sent prototype Windows 8 PCs with Snapdragon chips to developers.
As well as Intel, Qualcomm is in competition with other ARM-based chip manufacturers Nvidia and Texas Instruments who are also busy making chips destined for Windows 8 tablets.
Don't forget to take a look at Tech Radar's Hands on: Windows 8 review
| |
Read More ...
Samsung becomes world's biggest LCD maker with Samsung Display
Samsung has announced that it has completely spun-off its LCD business into a separate company called Samsung Display and in the process it has created the world's biggest display manufacturer.
There's been a mountain of rumours surrounding Samsung mulling a spin-off of its display manufacturing arm, with the company hinting back in February that it may do this to "improve synergy within the company".
Which in non-business speak is "make a lot more money" by improving its chances of getting big contracts from the likes of Apple.
Buying Guide
Best TV 2012: what TV should you buy this year?
Best TV 2012: what TV should you buy this year?Screen-age kicks
Now this has been made official, with Samsung holding an inauguration ceremony for Samsung Display at the weekend and is set to register the company officially on April 3.Speaking about the news, Donggun Park, executive vice president and head of the former Samsung Electronics' LCD Business and now CEO of Samsung Display, said: We will make Samsung Display a well-respected company through continuous efforts to supply a wide variety of customised products that provide great value to our customers.
"By continually staying one step ahead of our competitors, we can make our company the very best in the display market."
The move comes after Samsung cut ties with Sony in the panel market and Sharp announced a deal with Foxconn.
With consumers embracing small-screened devices – tablets and smartphones – like never before, the manufacturing of LCD technology is something of a money spinner.
Last year, Samsung's LCD division made 22.7 trillion KRW revenue – the equivalent to £12.5 billion ($20 billion).
| |
Read More ...
Game Group saved by OpCapita
Private investment firm OpCapita has bought the 333 branches of the Game and Gamestation shops that are still open.
The high street video game retailer went into administration last Monday, immediately closing 277 shops.
OpCapita has set up a company called Baker Acquisitions to manage the sale which is hoped will turn around the retailers fortunes.
Baker says it will supply Game with "the capital it needs to trade on a normalised basis" and that 3200 Game employees are being kept on.
Some head office staff who have already been made redundant could also be re-employed by the new owners.
Sold for £1
Reports indicate that Game was snapped up for a nominal fee of just £1, though when you add to that the chain's eye-watering £85 million debt it doesn't sound quite so cheap.Commenting on the sale, OpCapita managing partner Henry Jackson said: "We are pleased to have reached agreement with the Administrator. We strongly believe there is a place on the high street for a video gaming specialist and GAME is the leading brand in a £2.8 billion market in the UK.
"We have assembled a strong team of experienced industry operators to implement the programme of operational change that is needed. There is a huge amount to do but we look forward to the challenge of restoring GAME's fortunes in partnership with its employees and suppliers."
We reported last week that Game was no longer offering refunds and exchanges or redeeming reward points and gift cards. We hope that this new deal will put that right.
| |
Read More ...
Available Tags:iPhone , Microsoft , Facebook , Xbox , Google , Apple , Samsung , iPad , Galaxy ,
No comments:
Post a Comment