HP Stream 11-d023tu Review: Low-Cost Laptop With a Bold Sense of Style

Entry-level laptops usually have just the bare minimum specifications, but they're powerful enough to handle most everyday tasks. Sometimes, compromises are made in order to accommodate otherwise expensive features such as a touchscreen, and sometimes style is more important than performance. Today, we also have an emerging category of tablets that run Windows and come with external keyboards so that they can be used productively when that's needed. In all this, it can be hard to decide which tradeoffs to accept and where the right balance lies.
HP has come up with a device that gives us another option - the new Stream 11-d023tu. It's part of a series of devices that emphasise portability and connectivity, and so it breaks from the usual common standards that we take for granted when it comes to laptop specifications. The Stream lineup also includes a laptop with a 13-inch screen and a tablet with an 8-inch screen, but what we have today is the smaller clamshell model, the Stream 11.

While it doesn't have any powerful hardware to boast of, it does have an integrated 3G modem. You can just pop a SIM card into a slot on the side and you'll be online without a Wi-Fi hotspot. That's a pretty unique feature, and is a lot more convenient than using a 3G dongle.
Look and feel
There's no getting around it: The HP Stream 11 is an eye-catching device, and not everyone will think this is a good thing, or that it's been done for the right reasons. HP has experimented withcolourful pastels before, but the Stream 11 takes unusual design to a whole new level. The entire exterior is a bright blue, except for a mirror-finished HP logo in the centre of the lid. The texture feels good, but it in our time with the device it picked up smudges, sweat and oil from our fingers very easily, and even got scuffed when being put into or pulled out of bags.
However, the real shock comes when you open the lid - the keyboard deck has a bright blue gradient running from the back to the front and because that obviously wasn't unique enough, someone in HP's design studio decided to throw in a white polka-dot pattern as well. The keyboard keys are also white, and so there really is a lot going on when you look down at the lower half of this device.
Sure, it stands out, but that really isn't always a good thing. HP says it was clearly meant to make the Stream 11 stand out in a crowd of black and grey laptops and that's certainly true. As with any design so distinct, there will be people who buy the Stream 11 for its looks alone and an equal (or greater) number who don't buy it even if they think it's a good product.
There is no variant with a sober colour scheme. In fact there is a bright pink option in some markets, and HP is currently undecided whether or not to introduce it in India - so this is the company's idea of safe and neutral!
For more information visit herehttp://gadgets.ndtv.com/laptops/reviews/hp-stream-11-d023tu-review-low-cost-laptop-with-a-bold-sense-of-style-675161?pfrom=home-gadgetsreviews
comments are as always welcomed....

HTC Desire 820s Review: New Brains in the Same Body

Nearly a year ago, HTC launched the Desire 816. This phone had a serious impact on the market, because it offered solid specifications and quality at a mid-range price. This was followed by the HTC Desire 820, another successful device with an impressive feature list. The Desire 820 was also one of the first smartphones to feature Qualcomm's 64-bit octa-core Snapdragon 615 SoC, and showed HTC's intent to win over the mid-range market.
Just a few short months after the HTC Desire 820 (Review | Pictures), we have the HTC Desire 820s. Not a lot has changed between then and now; the 820s is in almost every way the same phone as the 820. There are only a few changes, and we find out exactly how much of an impact those make.

Specifications and software
It isn't just the physical appearance of the HTC Desire 820s that matches its predecessor; the spec list is nearly identical as well. The device features the same 13-megapixel rear and 8-megapixel front cameras as the 820. The screen, as mentioned, is the same 5.5-inch 720p affair. Internal storage is still 16GB, and RAM remains at 2GB as well. There's also 4G compatibility, Bluetooth 4.0 and Android Kit Kat 4.4.4 overlaid with HTC Sense 6.
The only major differences are that expandable storage support is now capped at 32GB, and the SoC used is the MediaTek MT6752. The new MT6752 SoC is one of the Chinese semiconductor specialist's newest offerings. It means serious business, with 64-bit support and eight cores of processing power.
Camera
With a 13-megapixel sensor at the rear an 8-megapixel one at the front, the Desire 820s offers a camera combination that rivals those of many flagship devices. Just like the Desire 820, it works very well in good light and satisfactorily in low light, while the front sensor does an above-average job with selfies. Low light and video shooting are as would be expected from a mid-range smartphone.
The camera app itself remains clean and functional, but doesn't offer as many features as the one on higher-end HTC phones. It still has a large set of options such as burst mode, slow motion video and GPS geotagging. We expected the MT6752 processor to make a difference to the camera's processing abilities and speed, but it appeared to be doing the same as the Snapdragon 615 SoC on the Desire 820.

Performance
This is where the HTC Desire 820s feels different from the Desire 820, and our impressions are wholly positive. The new SoC is an improvement over MediaTek's earlier ones, and is fully capable of giving the more established Qualcomm's offerings a run for their money.
Verdict
The HTC Desire 820 was a great device with solid all-round performance, and the Desire 820s manages to improve upon that in a small but significant way. It's a good phone with great performance which should help HTC stay on par with its competitors.
The HTC Desire 820s may not necessarily be the best smartphone in this price bracket, but it's still an impressive device that looks good, feels nice and performs great. We would recommend it to anyone looking for a mid-range smartphone, especially those who don't want to deal with the headaches of flash sales and invite-only purchase systems. It's a solid device that you can buy without any worries right now, and one that will serve you well.

For more info reach us @technologynewsone.blogspot.com..

source:http://gadgets.ndtv.com/mobiles/reviews/htc-desire-820s-dual-sim-review-new-brains-in-the-same-body-674964?pfrom=home-gadgetstop

LG Spirit With Android 5.0 Lollipop Launched at Rs. 14,250

LG has launched one of its new curved mid-range smartphones in India, the LG Spirit, listing it on its country-specific website at Rs. 14,250. The company has not yet announced availability details for the smartphone.
The LG Spirit was globally unveiled in February along with three other smartphones LG Magna, LG Leon and the LG Joy. The firm had showcased all the smartphones during MWC 2015 this month.
(Also see: LG Magna, LG Spirit, LG Leon, and LG Joy First Impressions)
As per specifications, the dual-SIM (Micro-SIM) LG Spirit (LG H-422) runs Android 5.0 Lollipop and includes 4.7-inch HD (720x1280 pixels) resolution display with pixel density of 312ppi. The display is curved slightly, with a 3000mm radius curvature. In India, the smartphone packs a 1.3GHz quad-core processor coupled with 1GB of RAM.
The LG Spirit features an 8-megapixel rear camera, and a 1-megapixel front facing camera. The 8GB of inbuilt storage is expandable via microSD card (up to 32GB). Connectivity options on the LG Spirit include 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS/ A-GPS, and Micro-USB. The handset measures 133.25x66.12x9.95mm and is backed by a 2100mAh battery.
So far, there is no word on when the firm will launch the 4G-enabled variant of the smartphone, the LG Spirit LTE, in India. Notably, LG has on Monday also announced the start of the global rollout of its four new mid-range smartphones, the Joy, Leon, Magna, and Spirit, starting with South America followed closely by Europe, Asia, Middle East Africa and North America.
See full LG Spirit specifications@http://gadgets.ndtv.com/lg-spirit-2412
So....what are your views about this budget smartphone??????? Keep us updated with your thoughts @technologynewsone.blogspot.com.....comments and feedback welcomed.....

iPhone 6S, iPhone 6S Plus, iPhone 6C to Launch This Year: Report

Apple is expected to launch three new iPhone models this year - the iPhone 6S, iPhone 6S Plus, and iPhone 6C - claims a report citing industry sources.
While the report suggests that the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus will be the incremental updates from last year's iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, it adds the iPhone 6C will be cheaper variant of the handset that the Cupertino-based giant will launch to tap the emerging markets, which also includes India. All three are due in the second half of 2015.
No reasoning was given as to why the 'S' in the model names will be upper-case. Digitimes suggests that the new iPhone models will pack LTPS panels supplied by various companies including Japan Display, Sharp and LG Display, and will also feature Corning Gorilla Glass protection. The report adds that the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus will use the A9 chips while the iPhone 6C will be backed by A8 chips. Other highlight features such as NFC and fingerprint scanner will be present on all three iPhone expected to launch later this year.
The rumoured 4-inch iPhone has been in news for some time and was claimed to be targeted at "female users". The handset, tentatively called iPhone 6C, is said to replace the iPhone 5c, which was priced in an entry-level to mid-range smartphone segment for Apple, according to sources in Taiwan's handset supply chain. The report stresses that Apple will work on the iPhone 6C's design, pricing and timing of the launch.
One of the sources pointed out, "The adoption of a plastic case for the 5C, which made the iPhone look cheaper than its family products, contributed to lower-than-expected sales of the model." Another sources however added that Apple might still prefer plastic cases for the iPhone 6C as it helps check the production costs.
Further commenting about the pricing of the iPhone 6C, a source added that it should be priced around $400-500 (roughly Rs. 25,000-31,000) in the US. "Shipment performance of iPhone devices in emerging markets, including India, Africa and Latin America, has been flat, as consumers in these markets are more concerned about pricing," notes the report.
The 4-inch iPhone could also tie-in with a recent Wall Street Journal report that claimed Apple is working on a Pink variant of the handset as the successor the iPhone 5c. The report had added the Cupertino giant was looking to use its new pressure-sensitive Force Touch technology introduced in the new 12-inch MacBook to its next iPhone models as well.
In another report Digitimes claims that the rumoured iPhone 6C will be manufactured by Wistron while the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus will be assembled by Foxconn and Pegatron. It adds that Wistron and Compal Electronics joined Apple as manufacturing partners recently and that while the former handles older generation iPhone models; the latter assembles iPads.

How to Activate WhatsApp Calling

WhatsApp is rolling out the voice calling feature to all Android users. WhatsApp, the most popular messaging app in the world with over 700 million monthly active users, recently introduced this feature and initially it was available to only a handful of users. However, since then WhatsApp is making free voice calling available to all Android users.
If you are not on Android you'll have to wait a while to get this feature. But if you use Android, and haven't yet activated voice calling on WhatsApp, you can follow this procedure. If these steps don't work, it's possible WhatsApp has temporarily paused the rollout, and you should try again after some time.
If you are ready to activate WhatsApp free voice calling, remember the process isn't as simple as updating WhatsApp to start using these features. It involves a couple more steps that you need to follow. We've described these below, so take a look to enable voice calling on WhatsApp for Android.

1. Download the latest version of WhatsApp for Android from here
   
   
   . The latest version on WhatsApp's website is 2.12.14, but if you're downloading from Google Play, ensure that your device has version 2.11.561. Older versions don't support this feature for all users.
2. Once you have the latest version of WhatsApp installed on your Android phone, ask someone who has WhatsApp calling enabled to make a WhatsApp call to your number.
3. Multiple users have reported that giving a missed call doesn't work. You'll have to receive the call and wait for a few seconds before disconnecting to activate WhatsApp voice calling.
4. When the feature is enabled on your smartphone, you'll see a new three-tab layout on WhatsApp, one each for Calls, Chats and Contacts.

40 years of gadgets come out to play

Technology, even equipment that's long outdated and shunted aside, can still strike an emotional chord.
Just ask Kimon Keramidas, curator of "The Interface Experience," an exhibit that rounds up tech milestones from 40 years of personal computing for visitors to see and touch. He said almost everyone has a favorite item they make a beeline to and greet like an old friend.
"It's either 'Oh my God, it was so great!' or 'Oh my God, that was so hard to use,'" Keramidas said. "It's an emotional thing. People are connecting at more than just an intellectual level."
The show, which opens Friday at the Focus Gallery of the Bard Graduate Center in New York City, offers visitors a trip through history with what is essentially a gadgety greatest hits. On display are more than 25 different devices, as well as a wall of more than a hundred mobile phones (what Keramidas calls his cell phone "petting zoo") -- all of which can be touched and, in some cases, played with.

Twitter Launches Live Streaming Video

Now Twitter, which just days ago acted to prevent Meerkat tapping into its own users quite so easily, has launched a rival service called Periscope. Battle has been joined and there's unlikely to be more than one winner.
Both apps provide an extremely simple way of going live from your mobile phone with just a couple of taps - and letting the world see what you see. This is not particularly new - services like Qik, Bambuser and Livestream have allowed you to go live from your phone for some years. But Meerkat and Periscope have come along just as many mobile users have easier and cheaper access to the necessary data connection and they also make it far easier to connect with an audience.

To start a Meerkast (as they're known) you just fill in a subject box describing what you are about to show and press "stream". Then those who follow you on the app get an alert telling them that you are live, and they can choose to watch and send you messages which pop up at the bottom of the screen. I've used the app to stream a speaker at a conference, a Raspberry Pi contest at the Science Museum and even a tech event hosted by the Duke of York inside a royal palace.
You quickly see how many people are watching - I think my highest audience has been 47, and apparently a Meerkast with the White House press secretary attracted several hundred viewers. Not exactly the world coming together, but then this is a very new app. Once you stop streaming, anyone who arrives too late has no way of retrieving your Meerkast. As I've often found, it can be frustrating to get a message saying someone is streaming, only to find it's over by the time you tune in.
One really annoying aspect is that you can only film in portrait mode, so although you can save the video you shoot onto your phone, you wouldn't want to show it on a standard 16:9 screen.
Periscope works in a similar way, but I found it performed just slightly better - perhaps because until today it's only had a few test users. I did not get the connection issues that occasionally saw my Meerkasts switch to audio-only mode. But what really impressed here was some of the content. I downloaded the beta version of the app just as the astronaut Chris Hadfield was starting a broadcast on an apparently mundane subject - packing his suitcase

Google will now tell you if your plane has Wi-Fi

If you're on a long-haul flight to somewhere in the world then amenities like Wi-Fi and power sockets can make a big difference to the experience -- and finding out about those options ahead of time is about to get much easier on Google's Flight search portal.

The tech giant has signed a deal with Routehappy to pipe data on Wi-Fi, seat type, legroom, power sockets and more into its search engine, so the next time you're choosing a flight you'll have a lot more data to go on.

Wi-Fi is perhaps the most important detail of the lot, though airlines have been slow to roll out a decent standard of connectivity. If you need to get some work done while you're up in the air then Google's flight search engine now has you covered.

Because I'm happy
Routehappy calls these details "Happiness Factors" and is on a mission to give passengers more information beyond price and schedule when picking flights. It already partners with several firms including Expedia and Virgin Atlantic.

"We know people are looking for more information about the flights they're taking before they buy, so integrating Routehappy Happiness Factors is a great addition to Google Flights," says Google's Gianni Marostica. "Now even more people have access to comprehensive flight amenity data and useful flight search information."

The next time you run a flight search on Google you should notice small icons denoting Wi-Fi, power and other amenities pop up next to your results, although the data available depends on destinations and airlines.

Google execs head to Cuba as Cold War ice thaws

 Cuba may have one of the lowest rates of internet access in the world, but that hasn't dissuaded Google from sending over some of its leading lights.

Executives from its in-house think tank Google Ideas are on a visit to the communist island — which is in the throes of trying to normalize relations with the United States — to tour universities and meet computer science students, news portal Cubadebate said on Friday.

They include the deputy director of Google Ideas, Scott Carpenter, and Brett Perlmutter, a top Google figure who went to Cuba last June with executive chairman Eric Schmidt.

The latest visitors met students at the University of Information Science (UCI) in Havana, a technological institute and several public computer centers known as 'Youth Clubs.'

Just 3.4% of households in Cuba are connected to the internet and the government keeps tight control over the web, though it vowed last month to "put the internet at the service of all" to stimulate economic growth.

Next Windows 10 build gets improved Wi-Fi and Task View

Windows 10 users get excited. Your next technical preview build is finally on the way and a couple of new features have leaked out that will have PC users giddy with excitement.

First reported by Neowin, the screenshots of Windows 10 build 10036 show two new features in particular that relate to how users connect to Wi-Fi and the Task View within in the operating system.

The new Wi-Fi selection window makes it easier to select a Wi-Fi network. In previous builds when you clicked on the Wi-Fi option in the Windows Action center it opened up the entire settings tab. Now there is a smaller window available that pops up and allows you to select a network.

Secondly the Task View has been given a small tweak that sees the open new desktop icon in the bottom right-hand corner and the ability to drag windows or tasks into other desktops with little fuss.

Thought For The Day

The real problem is not whether machines think but whether men do

Samsung Electronics raises production target for new Galaxy phones - Electronic Times

(Reuters) - South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) has raised its production target for the new flagship Galaxy smartphones following positive market reception, the Electronic Times newspaper reported on Wednesday.
The South Korean paper, citing an unnamed source, said Samsung increased its total production target for the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge devices to 8 million units for April from 7 million previously. The company's production target for March remained unchanged at 5 million units, according to the paper.
A Samsung spokeswoman said the company did not comment on rumours or speculation.
Designed from scratch in an operation dubbed "Project Zero", the Galaxy S6 and its curved-edges variant are critical for Samsung's plans to reverse plunging smartphone revenues that led to its first annual earnings fall in three years in 2014.

EU plans new team to tackle cyber-terrorism

The Internet Referral Unit would be part of law enforcement agency Europol and would seek to remove jihadist content from the internet.
EU policy makers want to pool member states' resources to deal with the "sheer volume" of such material.
The Paris terror attacks had pushed the item up the EU's agenda, said a senior official.
"The internet is a major facilitator for radicalisation to terrorism. Addressing this matter poses a number of different challenges," a briefing document detailing the plans says.
It adds: "The sheer volume of internet content promoting terrorism and extremism requires pooling of resources and a close cooperation with the industry."

Cheap 'Apple Watch' copies on sale via Alibaba site

Alibaba's Taobao site lists devices branded the AW08 and the iWatch.
They both feature "digital crown" dials on their sides, similar-styled straps and identical user interface graphics to Apple's forthcoming wearable.
However, their listings reveal they run on Google's Android platform rather than Apple's Watch OS.

Nokia provides free mapping app to Apple users

Nokia says it has started providing mapping services for free download in Apple's App Store, after a successful launch of the service on Android devices.

The HERE offline maps, with navigation and search features covering more than 150 countries, is immediately available for devices using the iOS operating system, such as iPhones and iPads.