Monday, March 30, 2015

Dedicated Apps for Creating GIF in Mac


GifGrabber
GifGrabber – An Application for Mac – GIF Animation 

We normally see gestures and blows, in videos which deserve a GIF. GifGrabber is an application for Mac which enables the user to convert a video section into a GIF animation and is another type of app without the cloud sharing service CloudApp’s GIF feature on which it is built in order to make it simple to create GIFs on whatever is found on a Mac’s screen.

It is free software which enables the user to capture animated gifs from a video source on the screen and is very easy to use where anything on the screen could be turned into an animated gifs. GifGrabber seems useful in developing an animated image of cartoon clip which may be needed to turn into a funny GIF that can be sent to friends or for demonstrations for guidance on how to do troubleshoot on OS X problem besides the several reasons one would want to create a GIF.

Utilising the app is quite simple for those who are not well versed in computers and after the installation of the same from the Mac App Store, launch the app where a green box is displayed on the screen. The size of the box can be adjusted to capture a section only or the entire screen.

Program/Interface Simple & Easy 

On clicking the `Start Capture’ button, start the recording whenever needed. Prior to that, one should click on the red record button then on the app’s icon in the menu section where one will find the setting to adjust capture quality and toggle if you want your mouse pointer captured or not.

Once the recording is started, the green box tends to disappear and whatever takes place within the defined area is then captured.GifGrabber tends to capture 30 second clips of the content and some behind the scenes work to change the same into an animated image and once done, a box pops down your menu bar providing an option to select the GIF for viewing , editing as well as eventually, sharing.

The newly captured GIF can be saved, or edited within the app. The program is simple and efficient and the interface is very easy to use enabling users to learn on how to move around quickly making the most of its function in the shortest span of time.

Simple Shrinking/Trimming

Users need to make a note that the video format does not really matter since one can convert to GIF format fragments from anything one could possibly tend to imagine. Animated GIFs enables to get your point across without using a video, visually and one can make animated GIFs from an existing video though if one needs to capture the screen GifGrabber can do the needful.

It is like a previously featured Giffing Tool though for Mac and once the program is started, a box is drawn on the screen and the recording can be done on pressing the record button. The user has the option to start and stop the capture with hotkey to avoid getting the mouse in the way. The program does some simple shrinking and trimming of the file to have a GIF which can be shared as per their choice.

Thursday, March 26, 2015

iFusion – Integrated Communication Docking Station


iFusion
The iFusionis an integrated communication docking station for the Apple iPhone with capabilities of several top selling iPhone accessories in a single device. The iFusion uses built-in Bluetooth technology, a patented ergonomic design, a full duplex speaker phone to deliver superior voice quality which meets the needs of the present home as well as business consumer.

The patented iFusion is especially designed to fit the requirements of small office/home office users by assimilating useful features of a traditional telephone with the iPhone. The framework design of the iFusion supports iPhone 3G, 3GS and 4, providing capabilities of securely docking the phone while supplying power, data synchronization through an integrated USB cable and battery charging. With the A2DP Bluetooth streaming support, users can enjoy their favourite iPhone music from the internal speakerphone. It also has the following advantage:

  • It is appropriate for call when one needs to talk hands free with high quality speakerphone which has been designed for the iPhone.
  • It is ideal for use in a home office
  • Enjoy streaming music from iPhone
  • Capable of starting a video conference with apps like FaceTime or Skype
  • Integrated dock charges the phone faster than USB
.
The Key Features comprise of-

  • Integrated Bluetooth technology delivers rich audio quality
  • Comfortable, ergonomically designed telephone handset
  • Powerful full duplex speakerphone meant for hands free conversations
  • USB port enabling data synchronization with a PC or Mac
  • Embedded iPhone dock providing power as well as battery charging
  • Audio line out for connecting external stereo speakers.
Reduces the Need of Expensive Proprietary Desk-Phone

The iFusion when used with iPhone business PBX application tends to save money by reducing the need of an expensive proprietary desk-phone. Being a revolutionary communication docking station, it turns the iPhone into a business class speakerphone wherein the combination of the iFusion with an iPhone and a mobile Unified Communications application enables enterprise mobility.

It works effortlessly with several popular Bluetooth enabled mobile UC apps for iPhone which include – Cisco Mobile 8 x for iPhone, Avaya one X® for iPhone, CounterPath Bria iPhone edition and Microsoft Lync 2013 for iPhone. It supports a unique Bluetooth pairing mode which permits audio to be sent through the iPhone to the iFusion when it is docked and releases the audio back to the iPhone whenever it is undocked. This capability of seamlessly sending and retrieving calls between the iFusion and the iPhone supports true unified mobile convergence.

Soft Phone App Running on iPhone

To consolidate the desk phone and iPhone in a single device for communications needs, use the ergonomic handset or hands free with the full duplex speakerphone, keep the iPhone adequately charged and plug and play in less the five minutes. It is essential to note that the iFusion is not a phone but strictly a docking station device and the phone used with the iFusion is the soft phone app running on the iPhone.

An accompanying VoIP softphone application known as Altigen MaxMobile is offered by Altigen which can be downloaded for free on the App Store though it may require AltiGen’s MaxCS server v6.5 update 1 installed as local gateway of IP PBX. The iFusion would be made available in April and will be offered in black and white at $169 and the company will be accepting pre-orders at its site with a $20 discount.

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

All About Power Bank Devices



Power_Bank
In our digital world of today, individuals are too dependent on their devices which are in constant use by them and there could be instances when the device could be low or even empty on battery. Those who are too dependent on their device could face the problem of being disconnected when they may encounter an insufficient battery life at any point of time. This could be a major issue since connection is the main criteria among individual with several apps improving the system of communication.

A momentary failure of connection creates much problem in the present scenario and to resolve this issue a portable power bank for the device is essential to ease out situations like these, with longer hours of using the device such as mobile or tablet, for texting, phone calls, clicking photos, playing music through the phone’s media player, web browsing and much more.Power Bank Devices with various options are availablethat are economical and advantageous to the user intending to purchase it for their devices which are displayed in online portals with the much needed details for the benefit of the consumer. Power bank options under 1000 are offered for Rs 300 off on Rs 500 and Rs 500 off on Rs 1000 andare available for only a limited period of time.

Works with Various Brands of Smartphone

Power bank are useful especially while on the go which solves the problem of low battery life especially when away from home and can be used in times of an emergency. With the aid of portable powerbank, one can have the batteries charged till they can use the phone once again. Besides this it tends to work well with various brands of smartphones together with MP3 and MP4 players, iPads and digital cameras. One could opt from the different capacity levels for travel chargers like A-5 2600mAH, Samsung 2699mAH, Canvas 2600mAH, Universal Power Bank 2600mAH and much more and the need to purchase battery pack which could be expensive or bulky for regular use, need not arise. These portable battery packs are appropriate to provide the much needed energy when one runs out of power.

 It is compact and light which is easy to carry and helps to remain connected anytime and anywhere.These kind of products are available in online stores for a nominal price. The process of taking the opportunity of these kind of product is a simple and quick one wherein the user could visit the those portals which offer these product, login or register and add the required product to their cart, applying the relevant coupon code if any. The need to update details should be done such as shipping details together with other desired information and then proceed to the buy option and opt for the desired mode of payment. With all the benefits, features together with the attractive offers, users could not ask for more on these essential products that could bring about a change on purchase of these high quality products which could suit their requirements at any point of time when it comes to recharging your device when faced with the situation of low or empty battery life.

Airlines Embrace Apple Watch with Upcoming Apps


apps
Apple Watch with Upcoming Apps

Apple had highlighted several apps which would be available on the Apple Watch including the app from American Airlines at its Apple Watch event recently, which would enable users to receive flight information, check in for their flight and much more. American Airlines, an Apple partner at the Watch’s launch is the focus of attention for building a Watch app which will be helpful at the airport, according to Sullivan. He states that there are other Watch apps from other airlines too. Several others have also announced the upcoming apps for the Apple Watch with a hint at some for the ways in which the Apple Watch would be used in making life easy.

 For instance, British Airways announced a British Airways app for the Apple Watch that would be available by April 24. With the help of a glance option, that can be accessed on swiping right on the watch face, the British Airways app would be displaying a summary of the customer’s next flight with details like flight number, the flight status, the countdown to departure time as well as the weather at the destination. These details would be made available at a single glance reducing the need to check the emails and open app to access the flight details.

Supports Wrist Check-Ins for Flights

Moreover, the app also supports on wrist check-ins for flights as well as convey notifications to direct users to their appropriate entries and at specific airport terminals, like Heathrow’s Terminal5, users would also be receiving welcome messages which are powered by iBeacon. VentureBeat had asked several airlines on their plans for Apple Watch apps, earlier this week which provided information on two upcoming apps from United and Delta.

The Delta app which is in the development stage will be delivering notification on flights to the user well in advance of their flights which would give them access to the boarding pass stored on their iPhones. Besides this, it would also offer flight numbers, flight time, gate number as well as other information and if the flight tends to get changed, user would also receive notification on their Apple Watch. They would also be receiving notification whenever a flight approaches a destination city together with information with regards to luggage pickup. Though United Airlines has not shared app screenshots of its upcoming Apple Watch app, it has divulged some details regarding the same.

At-A-Glance Information 

The app would be offering at-a-glance information on its upcoming flights, which comprises of gate number with status, as well as enable users to view their flight reservations within the United Airline Apple Watch app. It will also be capable of alerting users if the flight time or gate numbers tend to change and also pull a traveller’s boarding pass from the Passbook app. VentureBeat has been informed by Southwest and Virgin America that presently, they have not been working on Apple Watch app, though the two airlines together with the others are likely in creating apps as competition developing apps for the device. It is said that the Apple Watch would be made available on April 24 when pre order starts by April 19. Developers have been working hard on the finishing touches of the apps prior to its launch with several even undertaking flights to Cupertino for guidance from Apple for third party apps availability to consumers from the launch day.

Monday, March 23, 2015

How the iPad is Changing the Way We Learn


iPad
iPad – Learning more Personalized 

With the iPad, classroom contents could go way beyond the classroom with the provision of over 80,000 app appropriate for education, virtual tours, and videos from experts and institution from across the world, interactive books on any given topic and speeches and much more. In this digital world the progress in updated technology is on the rise and every function faced with problems comes up with innovative ideas which are increasing by leaps and bound.

Learning has been enhanced with iPad making learning more personalized wherein with a few taps, one can customize with materials which could fit with their level and as well as learning style. With various options now made available one could choose from the available app to suit the need of the individual for instance for those keen on learning by listening, they could download a podcast from iTunes U on Newton’s laws of motion or for those who tend to learn through concrete interaction, could choose an app which will enable the student with an appropriate choice. One will find various contents on different subjects as well as grades making it easy for students at different levels of learning. With the use of iPad one could make teaching all students the same lesion in various ways.

iPad – Device with Free Apps

Learning tends to become interesting now with the iPad since it gives student the opportunity to create and every iOS device has immense features which activate the mind of young individuals who are keen in exploring and learning the various features that are equipped in the devices. Every iOS device has iPhoto, iMovie, Pages, Numbers and Keynote, GarageBand which can change a given assignment into something big and special. This enables them to `speculate and explore’ which makes their assignment all the more interesting and appealing.

The device which they love to use have amazing free apps which helps them to write, analyse data as well as present their work in a very attractive manner. In Pages, they could make term papers something appealing with photos, videos as well as graphic which could enhance the presentation. In the case of data-rich projects, Numbers could prove to be beneficial in expressing ideas in tables, charts and graphs which could be more than a spread-sheet while in Keynote; they could create presentations with striking alterations and effects.

Compatible with Microsoft Office 

Most of these apps have been designed for iOS devices and Mac and are compatible with Microsoft Office to enable the students on a Mac or PC to share documents. With iCloud, students can also access their work from any device they could be using such as the Mac, iPad, iPhone or iPod touch.Further options in enhancing the creativity are through creative apps such as iPhoto, iMovie and GarageBand which helps in transforming a typical term paper or research project wherein students could use their creativity in shooting and editing their own HD video with iMovie, create visual journal with iPhoto or even record, edit as well as mix music for any project with GarageBand. The iPad technology has given way to extraordinary implication for education with its design, functionality together with its capabilities thus enhancing the possibility of a technology based classroom.

Saturday, March 21, 2015

A Tool to Saving Precious Storage on Your Phone


F2SD
Force2SD – Storage of Precious Application

With many applications being updated, users tend to make the utmost use of them which have made great progress in the present world. Storage is an ability to manage and store the necessary or important data which takes up some space with no impact on the performance. With many sophisticated smartphones and gadgets available in the market, the pace of downloading that takes place with plenty of content being stored on the device is on the increase and it tends to get difficult in making space for everything to fit into the internal memory of the phone.

Hence the external memory or the SD card is the solution to resolve this issue and for a smooth operation of the SD card the need of an app called Force2SD is the choice. At times one may need to use force to get things done ensuring that no obstacles come their way in the daily functions. For storage of precious application, the option of storing important content can be done with the help of Force2SD which helps to force several apps and move to SD card external storage when the system does not allow you to move them, thus saving space in the app area of storage.

Moves Apps to SD Card External Storage

Android 2.2 versions had introduced the feature enabling to move apps to SD card external storage and usually enable the movement of application marked by the developer as movable while Force2SD tends to move the application not marked as movable. It also moves the application back and sorts it alphabetically or by apk size The internal memory of the phone could get loaded with too much content in the form of videos, images audio with less space and hence the need for external memory or the SD card. At the time of using Force2SD one needs to adhere to a few things such as –

• Applications which have been moved to SD card or external storage do not get an on-boot signal whenever the device is booted. In such cases, the application should not be moved to perform some operations on boot though one should always move these application back if facing any problems. If the application is not needed to start up on the boot, Force2SD could be used to move it.

• It may take some time after a reboot probably a couple of minutes for the OS to show the icons of app that could have been moved which is normal since that is how the OS’s apps on SD feature operates.

• Some apps which are protected do not move

• A slow scan of application is done when the app is started for the first time

Excellent App for Storage

This is an excellent app for those who tend to constantly struggle with their space on the smartphones though they should ensure that the android device is rooted to enjoy plenty of space with Force2SD. By default, Force2SD could also scan for orphan app files when it has started, on the SD card though at times the system may fail to delete the app file on the SD card when the app has been uninstalled. If any orphan file is located, it will prompt if it needs to be deleted and this could help with some reboot issues.

Apple Plans Web TV Service in Fall


Apple TV
Apple’s - Internet Based TV Service

Apple, it has been revealed, is in talks with several leading television groups for an Internet based TV service for its iPhone, iPad as well as Apple TV set-top box. It has been reported that the technology company is working out in offering slimmed down bundle of TV networks this coming fall and the service would be having around twenty-five channels which would be anchored by broadcasters like ABC, CBS and Fox that would be made available on Apple devices like the Apple TV.

An anonymous source has informed that the service which would be announced later this year offers a bundle of channels and would be smaller and cheaper than the overstuffed catalog offered in a cable subscription. Apple’s plans for a web TV series was followed by an announcement that it had formed an exclusive partnership with HBO offering the premium cable network’s new digital TV service, known as HBO Now.According to sources familiar with the matter, at present, the talks does not involve NBCUniversal, the owner of the NBC broadcast network and USA and Bravo cable channels due to a fall-out between Apple and NBCUniversal parent company – Comcast Corp.

New Service – June, Launch – September 

Till last year, Comcast and Apple had been in talks and were working together on a streaming television platform which would be combining Apple’s expertise in user interfaces along with Comcast’s strength in the delivery of broadband. According to source, Apple was of the belief that Comcast was easing it along while the cable giant had its focus on its own XI Web enabled set-top box. Another media executive had stated that it would be difficult to launch a service without NBCUniversal channels, for Apple.

Apple in the meantime was in talks with Walt Disney Co; CBS Corp. and 21st Century Fox Inc.; besides other media companies to offer the well-known channels while leaving the several smaller networks in the standard cable TV package. News Corp and 21st Century Fox, the owner of The Wall Street Journal were part of the same company till mid-2013. Some sources have also revealed that the company would announce its new service in June and its launch would be in September while media executive has stated that they believed that Apple is planning to price the service at $30 to $40 per month.

Live TV Streaming Service 

For years now, Apple had been on and off talks with media companies with a hope of creating a subscription TV service which could be delivered over the internet and several of its proposals turned out to be essential but failed to succeed. Apple’s TV services would now be entering the market amidst strong competition in Internet TV services and most of the companies are looking for means of targeting those who would not want to pay the nominal $90 price for a TV cable package with hundreds of channels and intend to enjoy online video.

Apple is continuing with its proposal in creating a live TV streaming service in its recent talks, with a huge on-demand library which would be stored in the `cloud’ and it could be difficult for Apple to get rights to all the programming intending to offer, including full seasons of shows. Several of the media companies tend to have deals to license contents like these to outlets such as Hulu and Netflix.

Friday, March 20, 2015

What you can do with Digital Touch on the Apple Watch


iwatch
Apple Watch – New Feature of Taps & Drawings

Apple has recently included a new feature in the Apple Watch which enables two users to communicate through taps and drawings as well as by sharing their heart rates. The new feature known as Digital Touch enables two Apple Watch users to communicate with one another without the need of texting or calling.

Last fall when the company had unveiled its watch it had only provided demo models of the new device – polished prototypes of the hardware running on non-working loops of the software. The company has disclosed that the device would be priced at $350. Instead of making any attempts in writing the text message on the small screen, the Digital Touch feature enables two Apple Watch owners to communicate via taps and doodles and once the two users are connected they can start communicating.

The method which is used first in order to contact a colleague is by tapping the screen on the Apple Watch which is similar to the Poke feature on Facebook. The user can tap a certain patter on the watch face where the friend will be able to feel it on their wrist through mild vibrations.

Digital Touch – Sharing Heart Rate 

The next method is sketching an animated message which can be done on dragging the finger across the screen to draw a coloured sketch quickly which could be sent across to their friend. Sharing heart rate with others could also be done with the Digital Touch and when one presses two fingers on the screen the built-in heart rate sensor automatically tends to record sending the beats per minute reading to the friend.

 According to Apple this is `an intimate way to inform someone about their feelings.’ The watch is an interesting creation with its stainless steel middle tier together with the steel mesh Milanese loop wristband and besides being beautiful it is also one of the best looking computers one could have on their wrist.

Earlier the company had made a show of the rotating crown on the side of the device, what most of us would call a watch dial and held the crown as the next great interface something as the mouse, the iPods’ click-wheel or the touch screen on the iPhone. It has two main functions. When it is pressed, one gets to the watch’s main screen of apps or if the user is already on that screen, it switches displaying the clock. One could consider the crown as a home button.

Watch – Computer for Wrist

Moreover, it could also be used for scrolling as well as zooming while in the music app, one could turn it to scroll through the artists. If the user is in the photos app, they could turn the crown to zoom from the various set of photos and focus on an individual one. Scrolling could also be done with the finger on the screen and this method seems to be much faster than the crown where touching and tapping is much easier than turning the dial.

Besides the standard taps the screen has another tap mode known as force touch that functions just as it sounds which is press the screen harder. With force touch it provides an extra level of settings in the apps where in the case of force touch an email, one would have the options of deleting, replying or marking them as unread.

Yet it is difficult to forget that the watch is a computer for your wrist and in its top end versions it misses the understated elegance of old fashioned high end analog watches and Apple is working on something unusual in trying to develop an electronic device which would match the timeless appeal of a piece of jewellery.

Microsoft Plans To Bring Siri Competitor Cortana To iOS Devices


Cortana
Microsoft to put Cortana on Machine

Microsoft is now making its way towards advanced version of its competitor, Apple’s Siri researching from an artificial intelligence project known as `Einstein’. The company is running its personal assistant – Cortana on its Windows phone for around a year and would be putting the new version on the desktop with the forthcoming Window 10 somewhere this autumn which would be available as a stand-alone app that could be used on phones and tablets and powered by Apple’s Inc.’s – AAPL.O, iOS and Google Inc.’s GOOG.O Android, according to users familiar with the project.

Eric Horvitz, managing director of Microsoft Research and part of the Einstein project, in an interview at the company’s Redmond, Washington headquarters, stated that `this kind of technology that can read and understand email will play a central role in the next roll out of Cortana which they are working on for the fall time frame’. Microsoft and Horvitz refrained from disclosing any plans to take Cortana beyond Windows. The idea of putting Cortana on machine with software from rivals like Google and Apple together with the Einstein project is not reported. The name Cortana is an artificial intelligence character in a video game series known as `Halo’.

`Artificial Intelligence’ Concept 

The `artificial intelligence’ concept is broad and computers and mobile phones for instance have already shown skill with spoken language scrutinizing through emails for data. Microsoft is of the belief that its work on search, speech recognition and machine learning will enable it to transform its digital assistant into the first intelligent agent which would be what user would require.

Siri by comparison is advertised as responding to request. Google’s mobile app that does not have Siri or Cortana has been offering limited predictive information cards depending on what the user intends to know. Earlier, Microsoft had made attempts in creating digital assistants without much success and Microsoft Bob which was released in 1995 which was intended to make the use of the computer easy did not come up with the desired results. Similarly the Office Assistant which was nicknamed `Clippy’ met with the same fate, a few years thereafter.

Cortana - Supportive Service

Horvitz had commented that `they are defining the competitive landscape, of who could provide the most supportive service that make life easier, keep track of things, that complement human memory in a way that could help them get things done. A monitor which stands outside his door known as `The Assistant’, showing a woman’s face which can converse with visitors has access to Horvitz’s calendar and can also book meetings.

`Lifebrowser’ runs on his desktop, which is a program that has the potential of storing everything from appointments to photos and utilises machine learning in order to identify important moments while a keyword search for his university professor could instantly provide photos as well as video from their last meeting. Cortana has the capability of telling a mobile phone user when he ought to leave for the airport several days after it has read the email and the user’s intention of planning a flight. Moreover it can automatically check the status of flights and determine where the phone is located using GPS as well as check the condition of the traffic.

Friday, March 13, 2015

Apple's 'Taptic Engine' and 'Force Touch


Force_Touch
Apple’s MacBook – `Force Touch/Taptic Engine’

Apple has recently unveiled a new MacBook with `Force Touch’ track-pad and `Taptic Engine’. The updated track-pad features Force Touch pressure sensitive with Taptic Engine for vibration/haptic feedback. Repair experts from iFexit who had taken the new computer apart, found the close-up it provided on the new track-pad’s design, quite interesting.

Rumours are also circulating that they would also be making their way to the latest iPhone. Apple’s 13 inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display has come up with some updates together with the big Apple Watch and the new MacBook announcement. The details of the latest track-pad were partly disclosed on stage wherein Apple showed the part as a key feature in its new MacBook design video as well as the presentation.

In the case of the 13 inch Retina MBP, it is slightly different due to the fact that there is space to support a physical button style track-pad, similar to the one that ships in all other prevailing Mac laptops though it has the same combination of sound as well as haptics producing 100% accurate illusion of physical click when there is no actual click.

Track-Pad Controlled Through software

Matthew Panzarino had explained in his post that the new track-pad design does not actually move or tends to move on a microscopic sale but it feels like the existing clicky design though with a user-customizable amount of clickiness which is controlled through software.

iFixit’s ripping down of the computer indicated that the track-pad is supported by four spring mounts together with a panel on the underside which is not present on the latest version of MacBook though it does have the same Force Touch engine that is a series of wire coil covered around a ferromagnetic core, creating the vibrations which the finder translates as clicks.

iFexitpresumes that to vary the strength, Apple would selectively activate some or all four of the ferromagnetic cores inside the track-pad’s taptic engine and also notes that keeping in mind Apple’s assurance of no real movement going on here, the construction has no linear oscillators in the mechanism, similar to the traditional vibration feedback found on phone which is generally used. The updated sensors has the capabilities of detecting more than one kind of click wherein a light click could perform a single action while a harder click another and the threshold of how hard is a `hard’, the press could be adapted.

Touchpads – New User Interface Functions

To speed up the fast forward of video, one could press harder or `force click’ in order to pull up a definition of certain word. The force gestures are an addition to the standard multi-touch track-pad taps and swipes as well as intuitive which bodes well and according to Wall Street Journal, Apple is trying to integrate the force sensing in its iPhone and iPad next year after the introduction of the technology in its company’s smartwatch.

With regards to detection of pressure, iFixit presumes that they probably come through very small strain gauges which are mounted on flexible metal supports which read how much flex is experienced, translating the same into a read on how much pressure is applied. Before touchpads had emerged, individuals using the laptops had been using tiny joysticks which were serviceable after much practice and the first touchpads were great though they had to use separate mouse buttons since they could not register clicks.

Apple’s latest entry is an attempt to make touchpads less awkward and while laptops can register taps as well as detect multiple fingers at once, they have learned to measure how hard you press enabling some new user interface functions.

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Outdoor Tech Chips Helmet Headphone


Outdoor
Outdoor Tech Chips Headphones – Reliable & Durable/Easy Controlling

An updated version of a well-designed simple solution in is the offering for enhanced wireless connectivity to your helmet, which could be helpful for snowboarders and skiers interested in listening to music and stay connected during their expedition on the mountain. The new invention has been designed for winter mountain sports wherein the Outdoor Tech Chips are compatible on any helmet which features an audio enabled liner while the headset are compatible with Siri.

 It features an integrated microphone for the purpose of dictating commands as well as making calls. Both the left as well as the right earpieces of the Chips headphones are essentially giant buttons and one cannot miss them while pressing on them even if one is warmed up with ski gloves. This season, the Outdoor Tech Chips had been tested by AppleInsider on a ski trip to Utah which was very impressive. Though a bit higher on the cost, the headphones tend to be reliable and durable with an easy of controlling the iPhone without the need of taking it out of the pocket or even exposing the hands in the cold mountain air.

Simple Design – Two Earpieces/Flat Cord – Giro Helmet

It features a simple design comprising of two ear pieces having a flat cord which connects the two and fits perfectly in a Giro helmet. It also has additional cord to provide free space ensuring that the ear pieces are located in a proper position. Once the same is dropped in the helmet and placed on the head, the button on the left has the capabilities of controlling the volume while the button of the right earpiece could be used to play or pause the music or answer call and hang up.

It is easy to press on the ear to activate these if the helmet tends to have soft ear-pads with space for headphones. The two buttons come with a little bit of learning curve, typical for Bluetooth headphones and on the left ear, it could press the button once to increase the volume while a double press could decrease the volume. This system works well when the need to lower the volume is to be done quickly since multiple presses could reduce the volume.

Best of Both – Personal Audio Choices

With regards to the right ear, on holding down the button it turns on the unit and a one press will start the music while another tends to pause it. If a call comes in, one press can answer the call and another will hang up. The use of both buttons is essential for activating Siri by pressing and holding the left button and then pressing the right button for Apple’s voice driven personal assistant. The Chips also tend to feature a headphone jack in particularly welcome inclusion in order that they could be used as wired to iPhone or otherwise according to one’s choice.

Thus the Chips provide the best of both for personal audio choices. Moreover the 3.5 mm headphone jack also serves as the charging port; where for recharging the Chips, it needs a unique headphone to USB cable.With regard to the sounds, the Chips are quite audible and can be heard even while flying down the mountain, though users are cautioned to listen to the music at reasonable level keeping in mind the surrounding on the mountain which is a matter of importance with regards to safety.

Friday, March 6, 2015

Apple Researching Device Waterproofing


Apple
Waterproofing – Future iDevices 

It was revealed that Apple has been researching on various ways to successfully waterproof the future iDevices somewhere in March 2012 where a silicon rubber seal was discovered. In 2013 the company revealed another creation related to waterproofing, using nano coatings.

Apple was granted the patent for waterproofing in 2014 which covered the use of glass filled nylon and today a new waterproof patent application from Apple was published by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office covering the use of a hydrophobic conformal coating designed to increase moisture resistance of electrical components, a feature which at times is attributed to active smartphone models that are marketed by competing manufacturers of smartphones.

Apple’s filing, as published by U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for `Methods for shielding electronic components from moisture indicates a process for covering sensitive device components with the use of advanced vapour deposition technology together with protecting solder leads with silicone seals.

Devices not adequately Sealed/Mitigating Water Entry

In the present scenario, electronic devices have been taking priorities in the daily performances with the majority of the people relying on these devices for every function and carrying them along to locations where there could be instances of damages one of which could be damage through excess moisture especially during the monsoon season.

Most of these devices are not adequately sealed and could have chances of mitigating water entry through the openings which do not have a protective case to protect the device. The focus of Apple is in improving the moisture resistance of an assembled printed circuit board wherein in one embodiment, a system is set for applying a hydrophobic conformal coating to a printed circuit board or PCB.

This could include a way of depositing a hydrophobic conformal coating over an exterior surface of the electromagnetic interference –EMO shield together with the PCB by chemical vapour deposition – CVD operation. The EMI shield could also have openings on top of an electrical component over the PCB and thus the hydrophobic conformal coating could move through the openings to be received by the electrical component.

Hydrophobic Seal Around Electrical Connector 

Apple has come up with a method in creating a hydrophobic seal around an electrical connector on PCB which includes a way of configuring a silicone seal over the PCB in order to frame the electrical connector on the PCB so that the silicone seals shields a soldered part of the electrical connector. Besides this, the silicone seal also has an opening for the electrical connection placed inside.

As per the application it states that the layer could be in the thickness of one and ten microns, an advantage for small form factor portable devices with less internal space. It is yet unclear whether Apple would be employing a more aggressive moisture protection for future iDevices though as the company moves in the direction of wearable devices with the Apple Watch, users would be expecting some amount of waterproofing from the devices.

As CEO Tim has revealed recently that the Apple Watch has been designed with the least minimal level of splash resistance, it could be worn even at the time of taking a shower.

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

How to Transfer Any Media File to Your iOS Device



iOS
Waltr – New Mac App - Softorino

More progress and headway in technology has given rise to the use of Mac app Waltr wherein the user can now transfer any form of video or music file to an iOS device without the use of another iOS app. Waltr is a new Mac app from Softorino whichhas been designed for easy upload and conversion of any music or video file to an iPad or an iPhone format for the purpose of native playback that supports a large options of media file forms.

 This includes MP3, MP4, AVI, WMA, CUE, M4R, M4V, AAC, FLAC, ALAC, KUV and much more. It also lends support to file type which is not usually compatible with iOS4 and includes AVI, MKV, FLAC and CUE and these could be played in native Movie as well as Music apps on iOS. Operating Waltr is easy and simple.

On closing iTunes the user could plug on to the iPhone or iPad in a Mac and then open the Waltr app where the iOS device along with its storage space which is available is portrayed at the top of the app wherein files could be dragged over to the blank space in the app to be transferred to the iOS device. As soon as the file is dragged and placed in the Waltr app, the upload gets started most of which is very quick, probably a few seconds.

App - Possibility of Transferring any Form of Video/Audio File

When the file has been transferred to the iPad or the iPhone, it can be accessed in the native Music or Movies app on the device. The overall Waltr process is quite simpler than converting through a separate app and then again uploading through iTunes.

Waltr is an amazing app with the possibility of transferring any form of video or audio file irrespective of its format to an iOS device having playback of the file in Apple’s Video and Music apps when compared to similar apps which may need the installation of a companion iOS app on a device, it has limitation to access of files within the app – and limiting access to features in some cases like AirPlay.

Result of Technique Used – No Quality Loss

On completing the download of the app, the user is then asked to disable iTunes’ automatic sync feature and once done the only thing needed is to get connected to the iOS device to Mac through USB. Thereafter, the drag and drop approach is taken by Waltr in order to transfer the content to the iPhone of iPad and on dropping a file, irrespective of its format, the Waltr app makes the file compatible with iOS and then uploads the same to the device.

Assurance has been provided by the marketing manager, Josh Brown, that the results of the technique used by the company, is no quality loss. Waltr is now made available as an online download for OA X 10.9 or new with a free trial of 14 days and thereafter it will prompt the user to purchase a license for an amount of $29.99. Users of Windows could sign up for an opportunity to take part in the beta of Waltr for Windows.