4 Most Powerful People in 2012

In a world that looks up to the magnitude of power and possessions as a mark of achievement, it can also intimidate or influence the mass, depending on how it’s negotiated. Here are the top ten extraordinary men and women who possess the element of supremacy to be most powerful people in the world, as listed by Forbes.

1 Barack Obama

Barack Obama is in the second running as the U.S. President this year, which allows him another four years to shower his power in and around the world. However, he is up against many challenges which include the unsettled budget crisis, the unfortunate high unemployment rate in U.S. and adding to this is the rekindled turbulence in Middle East. Obama still remains the Commander in Chief of the greatest military in the world and the head of the only economic and cultural superpower, which makes him the most powerful person in the world. 

2 Angela Merkel

Angela Merkel is the second person and first women on the power list. She is the appointed Chancellor of Germany and leader of the Christian Democratic Union party. She forms the foundation of the 27 member European Union. In the recent past she undertook the challenge with severe steps to ease the European debt crisis, while pitted against the hard hit southern countries and the wealthy north. Yet she stands tall. She has held her post as chancellor since 2005. The challenges that lie ahead for her is the 2013 German elections where she needs to boost the sagging popularity of her government.
3 Vladimir Putin

Vladimir Putin is the President of Russia since May 2012. He has juggled between the position of Prime Minister and President of Russia over the years. Putin has earned the credit for establishing political stability and economic progress in Russia, which ended the crisis of the 1990s. During his first Presidency in 1999 to 2008, his dynamic leadership showed a high economic growth. In his term the real wages have tripled, unemployment and poverty reduced by half. In 2010 when the wildfires wrecked the Ryazan region, instead of appearing in front of the camera, speaking of the situation, Putin chose to handle the situation and took the captain’s seat in the Beriev BE-200 amphibious aircraft prepared to save the day.

4 Bill Gates

Bill Gates, the present chairman of Microsoft is the fourth most powerful person in the world. He is also the second richest man in the world with $65 billion net worth. Gates has given away over $28 billion in charity to fight and eliminate many infectious and fatal diseases. Gates has superseded all levels of generosity when he persuaded his friends and colleagues to join the ‘Giving Pledge.’ They vowed to give away half their riches or maybe more to the world’s needy. The total number of Richie Riches’ who signed the Giving Pledge is 92 as of 2012.

iPhone 5 Release Date in 2012: Top 10 New Features

Apple Inc. proved analysts and most tech sites wrong when it didn't unveil an iPhone 5 this year.  New CEO Tim Cook last week unveiled an iPhone 4S that has a 3.5-inch screen; an 8-megapixel, 1080p high-definition camera; an A5 chip processor that is seven times faster than the processor in the iPhone 4; two antennae to transmit and receive data; CDMA and GSM connectivity; and new applications like Siri and Find My Friends.

iPhone 5

iPhone 5: 3 months after iPhone 4S? 6 Months? 9 Months? 12 Months? The waiting continues.

It's an iPhone 4 with an "S" -- meaning it has the same design as the predecessor, and "S" stands for the late Steve Jobs or software (same aesthetics but new operating system).  As Apple has not released a new phone model in the past 15 months and with the outpouring of emotion for its creative genius, the iPhone 4S is expected to rake in record sales.

For fans frustrated with failure's to announce the iPhone 5 last at the "Let's Talk iPhone" event week, the 15-month wait for the fifth generation iPhone will get longer, by four to twelve months.

There have been reports that Apple will be releasing an iPhone 5 this January.  Unless the iPhone 4S doesn't sell, Apple will likely unveil the iPhone 5 beyond January. 

If the iPhone 5 is ready to go by January, why not put the device in the market in December holiday season when consumer spending is at its highest point?  A December or January release date is just too soon. 

Customers who lined up for the iPhone 4S will find their three-month phones obsolete.  And for those not mad at this rip-off, who would want to pay termination fees three months after taking a two-year contract?

A March release date would also be possible although unlikely.  The first and second generation iPads were released in March in the past two years, and the third one will be available in March next year.  Having two new pricey devices simultaneously would cannibalize sales of one of the devices -- who would want to pay for a $649 (contract-free) iPhone 5 and a $499 iPad 3 at the same time?

A June unveiling at Apple's developers' conference would be a more plausible schedule.  Prior to this year, Apple has been launching new iPhone models in June.  Analyst Keith Bachman of BMO Capital Markets had said a few months ago that the all-new iPhone 5 would arrive only in 2012.  "We believe the iPhone 5 will launch in mid-2012," Bachman had written in a note.

An October 2012 release date for the iPhone 5 also makes sense.  Releasing a new iPhone 24 long months after the flagship iPhone 4 was made available -- and 12 months after the "interim" iPhone 4S -- would allow Android phones and Windows-based Nokia phones to gain ground.
With no iPhone 5, it's rumor-time once again.  

HERE ARE THE TOP 10 RUMORED FEATURES OF THE IPHONE 5:

10. 4G LTE Connectivity.  "Apple is saving the iPhone 5 brand for the LTE version, and the new model won't arrive until the 4G LTE technology is ready to be used in smartphones, which won't be out until next spring," Will Strauss, president of market research firm Forward Concepts told CNET.  There have been reports that Apple was testing LTE but was unhappy with the first generation LTE chipsets from Qualcomm, which chipsets would make phones bulkier.

9. Quad-core processors and bigger RAM.  The iPhone 4 has a single core A4 processor, while the iPhone 4S has a dual core A5 processor.  Samsung Electronics and other Android device-makers are preparing to launch phones with quad-core processors with Nvidia's quad-core Kal-El chips. 
iPhone 6 would have quad-core processors, Ars technica reported, after discovering that the Cupertino, California-based company has embedded support for quad-core chips in source code revealed in its Xcode developer tool.  But Ars technica's report was based on the assumption that the iPhone 5 would be released this October. 

With the iPhone 5 still due 2012, it would be more likely that the quad-core processors, which will give phones with desktop-like performance, will be in the iPhone 5.  Linley Gwennap, founder and principal analyst at The Linley Group told PCWorld, told PCWorld that she expects the iPad 3 will have a quad-core A6 processor. 

The iPhone 5, which will be released after the iPad 3, will likely have the same processor.  As to the RAM, the iPhone 4S has the same amount of RAM as its predecessor, persisting at 512 MB.  "Don't be deceived because inside it is all new", Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, said about the iPhone 4S.  The iPhone 5 will be a full-version upgrade over the iPhone 4.  It will have a faster processor and a bigger amount of RAM.

8. Curved screen.  Digitimes, citing sources in the glass industry, Apple's design team is working on a new iOS device with a curved glass screen.  There were rumors earlier that Apple has been purchasing glass-cutting machines that specialize in curve screens.  The iPhone 5 will have the external design changes fans have been looking for in this year's new iPhone.

7. NCF Chips.  Apple will include near field communication (NFC) in the iPhone 5.  Google has just announced that it has signed deals with Visa, Mastercard and others for NCF readers at stores. More people will flock to Android devices for Google Wallet if the iPhone 5 can't be a virtual wallet.

6. Operating system.  Each new iPhone launched in the market comes with new software.  Aside from the radical new design, the iPhone 5 needs the 200 new features from a new OS in order to entice Apple users to upgrade or Android users to switch. By the time iPhone 5 is available, Microsoft Corp. will already have Windows 8, a new operating system designed to work not only for personal computers but also for smartphones and tablets. 
The Mac OS X Lion launched together with the new MacBook Air laptops in August incorporated many developments made in Apple's iOS.  This indicates that Apple could go Microsoft way and possibly merge the platforms for its mobile devices and PCs.  Apple's iCloud infrastructure would function perfectly with a common platform.

5. Teardrop design and no home buttons.  Boy Genius Report months before had a report that the iPhone 5 that will be released this year will have a teardrop design.  Although BGR and others never predicted the release date, BGR's "iPhone 5 will have radical changes" has not been proved wrong after Apple only unveiled the iPhone 4S this month. 

The iPhone 5 is expected to come with an aluminum plate casing rather than the current glass backing.  As to the home-button, Jobs removed the keyboard, so it's not surprising that the iPhone 5 won't have the home-button.

4. Display at 4 inches.  It is expected that iPhone 5 will have a larger edge-to-edge display possibly with 3.7-inch to 4.3-inch screen.  Samsung, HTC, and Motorola have launched new smartphones with 4.3-inch screens.  If CEO Tim Cook keeps the iPhone's 3.5-inch screen, he'll be hearing "too small" criticisms everyday.  Apple knows how to challenge boundaries, so a massive display on an iPhone is not impossible.

3. AMOLED screen technology.  Apple is Samsung's number one customer.  Samsung already manufactures the processor, the RAM and screens for Apple devices.  It will make more money if it manufactures and provides the AMOLED screen technology for the iPhone 5.  But the two have been at odds this year. 

Apple has sought a ban of the Galaxy S2 and the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in its lawsuits against Samsung in three continents.  Samsung has responded with a lawsuit seeking a ban of the iPhone 4S on account of Apple's infringement of Samsung's wireless technology.

2. Dual-LED flash camera.  People were expecting an iPhone 5 that would have an advanced 8-megapixel this year.  Apple only launched iPhone 4S and it came with an 8-megapixel LED flash camera and a secondary VGA one for video chat. 
The iPhone 5 should have an upgraded camera, possibly at least a 12-megapixel.  The iPhone 5 is expected to have a dual-LED flash and the flash unit will be separated from the camera sensor.  The front-facing camera should At least have 2-megapixels rather than the archaic VGA. 

1. 3D Experience.  Toshiba has already unveiled the world's first glasses-free 3D laptop, which uses a lenticular screen and integrated webcam.  And LG Electronics has already released the LG Optimus 3D, which claims to offer "the world's first 3D experience on a smartphone.  Steve Jobs doesn't like to incorporate half-baked features on Apple devices. 

3D technology on mobile devices is certainly in its infancy, making it unlikely that Apple engineers will add 3D features on the iPhone 5.  But Apple filed a patent application related to 3D picture taking to the US Patent and Trademark Office later in March, according to an AppleInsider report.
The filing described a system that would be capable of capturing, processing and rendering 3D images with the additional dual-camera hardware.  Apple will continue to lead the industry in innovation if its 3D feature works better than rivals. 

The iPhone 5 will be awesome if the new virtual assistant, Siri, will be available in 3D.  The sky's the limit for Apple if it has apps and cameras that provide 3D experience.
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http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/227648/20111009/iphone-5-release-2012-top-features.htm

Best Business Oriented Tablets for 2012

Tablets comes in all ranges, with different forms, operating system, price and purposes. After the happening of this year’s CES and the recently happened MWC a whole new breed of tablets are to be seen in the market in the coming few months. If you are one among those who depends a lot on their gadgets while you work, these new buddies are the best ones in the market.

1. Toshiba Excite X10

Toshiba Excite X10

Toshiba announced the world’s thinnest tablet Excite X10, at MWC 2012. Excite LE is a 10.1-inch tablet which is unbelievably thin measuring only 0.3 inches and weighs just 535 grams which makes it the best one to carry around. It has a 1.2GHz dual-core OMAP 4430 processor, runs on Android 2.3 which will be upgraded to Android 4.0 in this spring, features Micro-USB, HDMI, Micro SD ports and front and rear-facing cameras.  This tablet will cost you Rs.28240.

2. Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7:

Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7

Galaxy Tab 7.7 wows us with its 1280x800 Super AMOLED Plus display. It comes with two more special features, its 4G LTE connectivity and smartphone functionality by which you can attend calls on the device either through headset or external speakers. It is powered by Dual-core 1.4GHz ARM Cortex-A9 processor and runs on Android OS, v3.2 (Honeycomb). The device comes in 16 / 32 / 64 GB memory variants with 3.15 MP Camera with autofocus and LED flash, GPRS, EDGE, 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and USB. The cost of this device is around Rs.36000.

3. ViewSonic 10pi:

ViewSonic 10pi

ViewSonic 10pi is a dual operating system tablet which runs both Android 2.3 & Window 7 OS. This dual nature of the tablets is a boon when it comes to manage you works with Windows and fun with Android. This is a good looking tablet powered by Intel Atom 2670 CPU at the rate of 1.5 GHz and has a 10-inch 1280 x 800 IPS display, ultra-high 64 GB built-in storage, 3.2 MP rear camera and  1.3 MP front camera. It supports Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and USB. This business friendly tablet will make you shed around Rs.44000.

4. Asus Eee Transformer Prime TF700T:

Asus Eee Transformer Prime TF700T

This speedy multifunctional Transformer Prime is powered by a 1.3 GHz Quad core Cortex A9 processor and runs on Android Ice Cream Sandwich 4.01 OS. It has detachable keyboard dock which gives an extra utility of acting as laptop when you need to work with large documents and presentations. Other features are; a 10.1-inch HD Super IPS+ display with 1920 x 1200 pixels screen resolution, 8 MP primary camera and a secondary 2 MP front camera for video calls, internal memory of 16GB / 32GB Onbaord and 1GB RAM up to 32GB External memory. It support supports Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB, GPS data connectivity and will be available in Indian soon with a price tag of around Rs. 30000.

5. Samsung Galaxy Note

Samsung Galaxy Note

It is a tablet, it is a smartphone! Don’t get confused because of its hybrid nature, it gives you the functionality of two high-end devices and comes alone with a highly functional stylus to make you jot and note down stuffs easily. The device features a 5.3 inch, 285 ppi HD Super AMOLED display at 1280 x 800 pixels resolution, 16GB of built-in memory, an SD card slot, a 1.5 GHz dual-core processor and runs on Android OS v2.3 (Gingerbread). It has Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, HSPA, GPS and NFC for connectivity and comes with an 8 MP camera on back and a front-facing 2 MP camera for video chat. This smartphone-tablet hybrid will cost you Rs. 34990.

6. Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1:

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1

Galaxy Note 10.1 was launched in MWC 2012 and proves to be a true tablet in all sense. It has a 10.1 inch touchscreen with 1280x800 pixels of resolution and a new S-Pen stylus. It is powered by 1 GHz dual-core processor, 1 GB of RAM and runs on Android 4.0 operating system. It has an 3 MP camera on the back and a VGA on the front, supports Bluetooth 3.0, micro USB 2.0 and Wi-Fi for connectivity  and comes in three memory models-8GB, 16GB and 32GB. Its new improved S-Pen stylus is very responsive and gives the device an extra credit in the work domain. This device will be available soon in Indian and will cost about Rs.35000.

7. Lenovo Ideapad S2110

Lenovo Ideapad S2110

Ideapad S2110 has an appreciable docking mechanism; the Think-pad style keyboard is the real hero which comes with a fast, responsive double battery life upto 18 hours. The dock makes the whole device feel like a sealed-unit than other hybrid tablets. Other features are; 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdrago CPU, 1280 x 800 display, HDMI and USB 2.0 ports, and Android’s 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS and is expected to be available in the store by the end of this quarter, no details about its price in Indian market.

8. Asus Padfone:

Asus Padfone

This device is a different kind of fusion between the tablet and smartphone. It’s a tablet with smartphone; the smartphone resides in the tablet’s dock and gives the tablet a boost of battery life of about five folds and the smartphone get charged while it is docked with the tablet, this gives you a lot of options to channelize the power consumption of the devices which is a blessing when you are on the go. Some of its peculiar functionalities are; tablet has no camera because the smartphone will be used for capturing images and videos at docked position through a small slot to expose the Smartphone’s camera in the compartment lid. If a call comes to your smartphone you can attend it with your tablet using Bluetooth connectivity and with a single SIM card you can access 3G connectivity on both tablet and smartphone. Other specifications are; 1.2 GHz Quad-Core processor with NVIDIA Tegra 3, runs of Android 4.0., have a 10.1-inch 1280 × 800 pixels display with LED backlight, 8 MP camera with 1080p video recording, 1.2 MP front camera, 16 GB memory and1 GB RAM. The availability and cost of this device for Indian market is not revealed yet.

5 Smartphone Trends at Mobile Show 2012

Smartphone makers are defining new trends in the smartphone realm by introducing Quad-core processors and huge, high definition screens at the Mobile World Congress. Here are the five major technological trends showcased in this year’s show.

1. Quad-Core Processors:

Qued-Core Processors

By this year smartphones are going to be much faster and efficient than your PCs. Major Smartphone manufacturers have launched products which comes with powerful Quad-core chips. LG Optimus 4X HD, HTC One X and ZTE’s Era are the attention grabbers in this category, all these smartphones comes with an Nvidia Tegra 3 Quad-core processor. Huawei has taken a bold step forward by developing an in-house Quad-core chip ‘K3V2’ which is used in its new phones named Ascend D Quad and Ascend D Quad XL phones.

2. Huge, High-definition Screens:

Huge Screens

2012 will see more of Phablets than Phones or Tablets; this new breed of smartphones comes with big high-definition screens and gives you the functionality of both smartphones and tablets. Till now Samsung was ruling this territory with its Galaxy note, but now it has some powerful competitors like LG Optimus 4X HD, HTC One X, these phones has a 4.7-inch screen with a resolution of 1280 by 720 pixels.  LG has also unveiled a new smartphone which comes with a 5-inch screen in the 4:3 format. Huawei is keeping its screen a bit smaller in Ascend D Quad and Ascend D Quad XL with its 4.5inch screens, but they have a resolution of 1280 X 720 pixels.

3. Near Field Communication (NFC):

NFC

NFC technology is getting popular in smartphones as people a getting more knowledgeable about this new payment method. Customers will have a wide range of phones available in the market to choose now as all major manufactures like Acer, Huawei, LG, Nokia, Orange, Samsung, Sony and ZTE have launched smartphones with NFC. According to Sandy Shen, research director at Gartner, the biggest hurdle to NFC payments is to change user behavior, which takes much longer than deploying the infrastructure or devices.

4. Cheap Smartphones:

Cheap Smartphones

These new affordable smartphones are meant for those who care more about functionality and price than Quad-core processors and big screens. Nokia Lumia 610 is such a Window Phones which will cost around Rs.12000 and will hit the stores by the second quarter. ZTE has also introduced its ZTE Orbit at the show which is a cheap Window Phone based.

5. Long Term Evolution (LTE):

LTE

LTE is part of the GSM evolution strategy beyond 3G and is becoming a hit is developed market. New smartphones which are coming with LTE are, LG Optimus Vu, LG Optimus LTE Tag, ZTE N910 and ZTE PF200. Smartphones having Quad-core processors doesn’t have an LTE option, that’s the reason for why U.S. market will see a dual-core version of HTC One X. But Quad-core chip maker Nvidia has announced partnerships with chip makers GCT Semiconductor and Renesas Mobile to make the LTE available for Quad-core processors too.

Google Serving Android 5.0 'Jelly Bean' in 2012

Google is planning to introduce its new Android 5.0 operating system codenamed as ‘Jelly Bean’ in second quarter of this year. The company is rushing Android 5.0 Jelly Bean to hit market in the second quarter, reports DigiTimes.

Jelly Bean

Android 4.0 is roughly available on 1 percent of total smartphone and tablets in the market, this states that the adoption of Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) has fallen short by mobile manufacturers. Meanwhile Microsoft is also going launch its full functional ‘Windows 8’ operating system in the third quarter of 2012. These might be the reasons for Google to rush Android 5.0.

Android 5.0 is optimized for tablets and netbooks. Google has also integrated its chrome dual boot system functions where you can shift to other operating system without rebooting your machine. This will make the tablet manufacturers decide whether to adopt only Android 5.0 or to add Android 5.0 OS to their Windows 8 devices.

Android 4.0 didn’t achieve the expected results and now Google is trying to earn another chance to hold the tablet and netbook operating system market again with this new dessert.

10 Promising Products of CES 2012

Consumer Electronic Show, the world’s largest electronic at Las Vegas showcases a whole new range of products every year. All the products revealed in CES didn’t succeed in market or sometimes didn’t even enter the market. As CES 2012 came to an end with lots of innovative products let’s have a look at the most promising products of this year.

1. Lumia 900

Lumia 900

Nokia Lumia 900 tops the rank in the field of smartphones at CES 2012. This new Windows Phone is a combine effort of Nokia and Microsoft and is surely going to be one of best in the smartphone market.  Lumia 900 has an admirable design which resembles the fetching polycarbonate design of the Nokia N9. The device sports 4.3 inch touchscreen AMOLED ClearBlack display at 800×480 pixels of resolution, 1.4 GHz processor, 512 MB RAM, 8 MP rear camera with Carl Zeiss optics, LED flash and a front facing camera. Nokia Lumia 900 will be launched in India in March 2012 and is supposed to cost Rs. 30,000.

2. Droid Razr Maxx

Droid Razr Maxx

Motorola’s Droid Razr Maxx with its 3300 mAh battery claiming 21 hours of continuous talk time and an apt smartphone to use 4G made it unique product at CES 2012. This new device also sports 1.2-GHz dual-core processor, a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED screen with 540-by-960 resolution, an 8-megapixel camera with flash, a front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera for video chat and 1080p HD video recording. This device runs on Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread and will cost you around Rs. 28,000.

3. Makerbot Replicator

Makerbot Replicator

This ultimate personal 3D printer will give you a 3D version of whatever you want to print with its couple of spools of plastic line on the back which feeds into a jig that melts the plastic and layers it onto the surface of the object you’re making, one tiny slice at a time. The complexity involved in making in working of this printer is not at visible in its simple design which is compact enough to sit on your desktop. This 3D printer comes with a price tag of $1749; there is no information about its availability and cost in India.

4. Fujifilm X-Pro1

Fujifilm X-Prol

Fujifilm’s X-Pro1 is truly amazing in terms of both capability and style. This camera is for advanced amateur photographers and is the first one to have mirror less camera with interchangeable lens option. It also features new CMOS sensor called X-TransTM CMOSTM, hybrid multi viewfinder, optical viewfinder and 3 inch LCD display. This camera has a capacity of recording Full HD videos with stereo sound and also has dedicated button to switch between the viewfinders. Fujifilm  X-Pro1 willcosts $1,667. No details about is reach and price in India.

5. Samsung Ultimate TV and LG 55-inch OLED TV

Samsung OLED TV

OLEDs are the next big thing in the HDTV industry. LG and Samsung revealed their new eye catchy large screen OLEDs at CES 2012. Even though there is no information about these next generation TVs actually hitting the market, but they are so dazzling and sleek that whenever they come you will be ready to shed a lot of currency for them. OLED TVs doesn’t need a backlight therefore they are impossibly thin, they’re also capable of richer color palette, features fast response times and extremely wide viewing angles.

   

6. Dell XPS 13 Ultrabook

Dell Ultrabook

Dell XPS 13 has a 13.3-inch screen with Gorilla Glass for durability, weighs 2.99 pounds and is only 6 millimeters thick at its thinnest and 18 millimeters at its thickest. The carbon fiber used in the laptop makes its more light, makes the palm rest warm & comfortable and an always shinning look. It has a battery life of about nine hours, ports 128 to 256 gigabytes of flash memory and uses Intel processors & integrated Intel graphics. The company will stats it’s shipping in February with a price tag of about Rs. 60,000.

7. OLPC XO 3.0 tablet

OLPC XO 3.0

This device is an example to show how tech-friendly our next generation will be or should be. OLPC XO 3.0 is designed for children in developing countries and comes up with its own Linux operating system (also supports Android), Sugar user interface adapted for touchscreen use, can be charged with wall outlet, a solar panel, or a hand crank and runs on Marvell's ARMADA PXA618 processor and includes Avastar Wi-Fi. It also has an eight-inch display that works inside or outside in bright sunlight and come with a dust and waterproof cover.  India has already seen Aakash tablet, OLPC XO 3.0 is just a much better version of Aakash with a better price tag of Rs. 5000.

8. HP Envy 14 Spectre Ultrabook

HP Envy

The damage-resistant black Gorilla Glass used in the screen of HP Envy 14 Spectre Ultrabook made the device special. HP Envy Spectre sports a 14 inch Radiance LED backlit display with 1,600x900 pixels of resolution. It is powered by Intel i5 processor, Intel HD 3000 graphic cards, 4 GB of RAM and 128 GB of SSD and runs on Windows 7 OS. HP Envy 14 Spectre will be available from February 8 and will cost Rs. 99,000.

9. Gear4 Sleep Clock

Gear4 Sleep Clock

Gear4 Sleep Clock analyses your sleep patterns and wakes you up in the lightest point in your sleep so that you didn’t feel drained all say. The device uses an iPhone app, a dock and a Doppler radar to sense your sleep patterns. The radar senses your movements during sleep, detects your breathing and records everything so that you can see your sleep patterns every day. The device also gives averages and recommendations to get a good sleep. This Gear4 device will cost $199, its availability and price in India not revealed yet.

10. Samsung Galaxy Note

Samsung Galaxy Note

Samsung Galaxy Note comes with a stylus and some note-taking and handwriting recognition software to the Android OS which made this device stand out in between smartphones and tablets. Samsung Galaxy Note is larger than a smartphone and smaller than a tablet and will cost around Rs. 32900.

Best Gamming Accessories of CES 2012

CES 2012 came up with lots of good news for gamers with a wide range of mice, keyboards, headsets and console controllers. Here comes a guide to decide which one is the best among them.

Razer Naga Hex:

Razer Naga Hex

 

The Razer Naga Hex MOBA/action-RPG gaming mouse has six large thumb buttons for optimized user interface. It is designed for multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) games like the Defense of the Ancients. This mouse sports 6 MOBA/action-RPG optimized mechanical thumb buttons, Special switches in buttons for up to 250 clicks per minute, Razer Synapse 2.0, 5600dpi Razer Precision 3.5G Laser Sensor. The product will reach the stores by this March and will cost you Rs. 4,999.

   

Mad Catz Street Fighter X Tekken FightStick VS

FightStick

The Street Fighter X Tekken FightStick VS has a rock-solid metal chassis and arcade-perfect Sanwa Denshi buttons and stick. It comes with an extra connection kit that allows you to attach two units together in a side-by-side configuration. The device also sports a modular front panel which can be detached and slides custom images to personalize the stick. Mad Catz will star the shipment of the device by July and will cost $200. Its availability and price in India is not revealed yet.

SteelSeries Flux Headsets

Headsets

This is an easily foldable headset with detachable mic that works with PCs, iOS & Android devices and is well suited for gaming, listening to music, or watching movies. The headset has two input jacks which can be inserted to any port or can the utilized to connect another headset also. The price details of SteelSeries Flux Headset is not disclosed yet, but the device is supposed to be shipped by the second quarter of this year.

   

Hyperkin Supaboy Game Console

Game Console

Hyperkin Supaboy is a portable SNES console which comes with a full-size SNES and Super Famicom cartridge, and gives a familiar controller layout with its 3.5-inch screen. It weights around 11.5 ounces and has a battery life of 2.5 hours. The device also has two SNES controller ports and a TV-out port. This console is available with a price tag of Rs. 4,110.

Roccat Isku Gaming Keyboard and Kone[+] Mouse

Keyboard

Roccat Isku Gaming Keyboard comes has high-end keyboard features like remappable media keys and robust macro recording along with a 36 macro keys – 8 dedicated – 3 of which are located below the space bar for quick access during gameplay. Isku Kone[+] mouse includes a 6000dpi Pro-Aim laser sensor to achieve a 10.5 megapixel resolution and 1000Hz polling rate.  Kone[+] mouse can activate shared features like EasyAim feature which temporarily switches you to a lower DPI. Roccat Isku gaming keyboard and Kone[+] Mouse will cost  Rs. 3,000 to  Rs. 4,000 and will be available in the market after February.

Linux emerges as a reliable option in 2012

Linux has been into the market since the late 1990s and is open to anyone who wants to use it. Linux is free and moreover there is no paying for a cd or a product key. Yet many consumers are very skeptical to switch operating systems or download another. Because of various reasons, windows popularity could be one of them and adding to it is the extra work and time needed to install a new operating system.  

Linux

Here are ten good reasons to justify as to why Linux could be a possible reliable option in 2012.

Cost:  It’s free what could one ask for? Unless you choose a commercial option with paid support, while Microsoft sell out their products at a hefty amount and sometimes recurring fee. Linux distributions can be installed in as many computers one wishes without spending from your pocket whereas Microsoft licenses are restricted to be installed on a single computer.

Hardware: Gone are the days when hardware manufacturing companies did not offer many options of drivers or support for Linux operating system, today Linux supports most hardware devices. Linux is also the perfect choice for those old computers with barely any processing power or memory and computers with minimum RAM capacity run Linux without any issue.

Security: Linux makes sure that there is no compromising when it comes to security. Viruses, spyware and adware are major coause cause of concern for consumers these days and Linux has managed to stay secure all these years whereas windows is the most targeted OS for viruses and other malware.

Compatibility: On terms of compatibility Linux is the most preferred operating system because it offers much better interoperability and is compatible with users' needs, that is if you ever collaborate or intend to do so with people in other companies or parts of the world, your best bet would be Linux.

Open Source: Open source model of Linux variants and Linux programs enable the consumers to customize or modify the code as per their needs on the otherhand majority of Windows programs are not open source.

Reliability: The frequency of rebooting is very less comparatively as most of the Linux variants and versions and can often run for months and years without the need to be rebooted and hence Linux is found to be reliable although few version of Windows have been improved by Microsoft lately but still does not match up with Linux in terms of reliability.

Speed Matters: Yes it does, very much when it comes to operating systems. Linux is really fast even on older hardware the reason being least requirement of hardware resources when compared with other operating systems.

Service Support: Consumers using Linux are well supported through the active community of users and developers that surrounds most distributions and there are options of paid support aswel for Linux users.

Choice:  Linux has one great advantage that is it provides consumers with the choice and power to control just about every aspect of the operating system. Desktop look and feel and the kernel are the two major features that the users have control on.

Remarkable Improvement: Linux in the past few years has shown remarkable improvement infact its always improving, as per an article by PCWorld "the communities that tend to surround Linux distributions also tend to keep improving them continuously, both with new features and by zapping any vulnerabilities quickly. No more waiting months for patches to come your way".

Now that the advantages of Linux have been listed out its time to experiment and switch to a new operating system. Windows can be a great tool but when it comes to giving users control of their computing environments, Linux would be the best option.

Top 10 Anticipated Video Games of 2012

The year 2011 was great for gamers with lots of games released like F1 2011, Uncharted 3, Battlefield 3, The Elder Scroll V Skyrim and many more. 2012 is shaping up to be an incredible year for gaming. Here are the anticipated video games of 2012.

1. Halo 4

Halo 4 is an upcoming video game which is developed for Xbox 360. The game is developed by 343 Industries, an American video game developer at Washington, whereas the previous Halo games were developed by Bungie.

The game will mark the return of the Master Chief as the main character in the game to tackle his own destiny and face an ancient evil, Cortana, a character which also appeared in the previous series of Halo. The game is less focused on traditional first person shooter kind as Halo series did, instead relying more on mystery, exploration and discovery. The game is set for release in 2012.

2. Grand Theft Auto 5

The Grand Theft Auto 5 is an upcoming open world action and adventure video game which is being developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games for Xbox 360, Windows PS3 platform. This is the fifth version of Grand Theft Auto series.

The debut trailer for Grand Theft Auto V was unveiled on 2 November 2011 and it will be the biggest release of 2012.

3. Mass Effect 3

Mass Effect 3 is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts for Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 platform. The game is scheduled to release in March 2012.

The interesting part is that the saved files form Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2 can be imported into Mass Effect 3. If a saved file is imported, over 1,000 variables will be pulled that will help shape how the final chapter is experienced. If there are no saved files available, there will be no origin-story comic for new players to help them make quick decisions like there was in Mass Effect 2.

4. BioShock: Infinite

The BioShock Infinite is a first person shooter video game developed by Irrational Games for Windows, PS3 and Xbox 360 platform. This is the third game in the BioShock series and is set to release in 2012.

This game is not a direct follow up of its previous versions of BioShock games though it features similar gameplay concept and themes. This player is in an attempt to rescue a woman named Elizabeth trapped in the collapsing air-city Columbia in 1912.

5. Diablo III

Diablo III is an upcoming horror themed role playing action game, being developed by Blizzard for Windows and Mac OS. It’s the third installment in the Diablo series. The game is set to release in first quarter of 2012.

Diablo III is similar in style to its previous Diablo II game. As the other Diablo series the game takes place in Sanctuary which is the dark fantasy world of the Diablo series.

6. Borderlands 2

The Borderlands 2 is based on first person shooter with role playing game. It is under development by Gearbox Software for Windows, PS3 and Xbox 360 platform. This game is expected to release in July 2012.

The gameplay of the Borderlands 2 is similar to its previous game Borderland includes character building elements. At the start of the game, players has to select one from four new characters, each character is unique with special skill with weapons.

7. Max Payne 3

Max Payne 3 is third person shooter video game, which is under development by Rockstar Vancouver with Toronto Studio for Windows, PS3 and Xbox 360 platforms. It is expected to be released in March 2012.

8. Tomb Raider

Tomb Raider is an action and adventure video game published by Square Enix and currently under the development with Crystal Dynamics for Windows, PS 3 and Xbox 360. This game is the ninth installment of the Tomb Raider Series and it is expected to release in the third quarter of 2012. The developers are said to not provide any connection with the previous Tomb Raider series.

9. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is a single-player video game and being developed by 38 Studios and Big Huge Games for Windows, PS 3 and Xbox 3. The lead designer of The Elder Scroll III: Morrowind and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is the executive designer of this game.

The game will be released on February 2012 in North America and Europe.

10. Guild Wars 2

The Guild Wars 2 is a multiplayer online role playing game. It’s under the development by ArenaNet and expected to be released in 2012.

This game uses a heavily modified version of the proprietary game engine which was developed for the previous version by ArenaNet. The recent modification includes real time 3D environments, improved graphics and animations.