We first saw LG’s 55-inch OLED 3D TV as CES and with the company’s promise of a down-to-earth price for the largest OLED TV yet, our interest peaked. We’ve been waiting for alternative technologies to really challenge LCD and Plasma TVs, and while OLED panels hold a lot of promise, we’ve only seen extremely expensive and small-screened OLED TVs.
The company wasn’t forthcoming on too many details on the set. We know that the 55-inch LG OLED TV uses 4-color pixel technology (RGBW) for more natural colors and that it’s super thin and light at just 4mm thick and weighing 7.5kg (16.5lbs). Initial information point to a fourth quarter release at a yet undetermined price.
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Sony introduced two new and very good looking Android smartphones at CES this month, namely the Xperia Ion and the Xperia S.
The Xperia S (as you can see below) features a transparent acrylic strip along the bottom half of the device, which houses three touch-sensitive buttons and is also part of the smartphone’s antenna design.
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There is huge war raging behind the scenes on which chip will power the next generation of mobile devices. We have increasing demands from our smartphones and tablets and system-on-a-chip (SoC) manufacturers have to find ways of multiplying processing power, pushing more pixels on higher resolution screens while staying as power-frugal as possible. Samsung SoCs are a force to be reckoned with and last year’s Exynos 4210, found in the Samsung Galaxy S II, Samsung Galaxy Note and Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7, literally crushed all other chips in benchmarks.
We heard of Samsung’s next generation Exynos 5250 SoC last November, and during its latest earnings call, Samsung said that it has already begun sampling to manufacturers and the 5250 will go into mass production in Q2 this year.
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We know that Apple has a love for magnets. First, you have the ingenious MagSafe adapter, which uses a magnet to attach the power connector to your MacBook — you get a quick and easy connection and if you trip on the cable the connector unlatches so that you don’t accidentally pull your laptop to the floor. Then, when Apple introduced the iPad 2, it was paired with the new Smart Cover, which uses a number of magnets to align the cover on the device, but also put the iPad to sleep. According to some new Apple patents, filed in July 2011 but only published yesterday, the Cupertino company is looking into even more advanced uses for magnets and even ferrofluids.
The patent filling contains a huge number of potential applications for correlated (or programmed) magnets. Correlated magnets consist patterns of magnets with alternating polarity and can be programmed to interact only with other magnets that have been coded to respond. Apple engineers explore the possibilities of physically securing a data connection by including a ‘magnetic key’ on data ports, using coded magnets.
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HTC launched so many devices during 2011 that we’ve lost count. Even trying to cover each and every release from a tech blog’s perspective has become an impossible task, so we can’t imagine how the average person can keep track. As an example, HTC had launched three different variations of the Sensation (Sensation, Sensation XE and Sensation XL) in a space of just a few months.
When we were tackling the company’s Q4 2011 results, we went to HTC’s defense, and we suggested that the company should focus on a limited number of devices, following the lead of the most successful smartphone manufacturer, Apple. We’re glad HTC is now coming on the same page.
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Embattled Olympus didn’t have such a bad year after all. The Japanese camera manufacturer has just claimed top position for the mirrorless camera category in the 2012 BCN Award.
The BCN Ranking pulls in point-of-sale data from a number of major Japanese electronic stores, including online stores like Amazon Japan, and once a year hands-out awards based on the number of actual sales. Olympus has moved ahead of both Sony and Panasonic, capturing more than a third of the market with sales numbering 36.6% of total. Panasonic has the number two spot with 29.3% of sales.
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NASA’s Suomi NPP (which stands for National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System Preparatory Project) Earth-observing satellite was launched into orbit in October 2011. As the name suggests, the satellite is tasked with onlooking upon humanity’s home planet. It’s part of a project with which NASA will be collecting data to increase our understanding on long-term climate change and improve weather forecasts.
A key instrument on the satellite it the Visible/Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite or VIIRS and it’s with that instrument that this amazing 64-megapixel (8,000 x 8,000 resolution) image of the Earth was taken.
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Though we admit we are not completely sold on 3D phones, we’re always interested to see what the next generation will bring. Last year was dominated by two 3D phones the HTC EVO 3D and the LG Optimus 3D. Following the leaked LG X3 quad-core monster-phone, the latest leaked handset for LG’s 2012 lineup is a new 3D smartphone codenamed CX2 or as we’ll be calling it, the Optimus 3D 2.
Similar to the original Optimus 3D it will have a stereoscopic glasses-free 4.3-inch display, however instead of only relying on 3D content, this new LG 3D Android smartphone will be able to do a 2D to 3D conversion on the fly. The device is rumored to be running on a new TI OMAP 1.2GHz dual-core processor. It will has dual 5-megapixel rear cameras capable of shooting in 3D and a 1.3-megapixels front camera.
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We first saw the Motorola Droid Razr Maxx during this year’s CES in Las Vegas. The updated version of the skinny Droid Rarz has a bumped up the battery of 3,300mAh battery from 1,780mAh, while staying just 8.9mm thick from the original’s 7.1mm.
You can check out our initial coverage here and here. To recap, it’s a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED qHD (960 x 540) screened device with a 1.2Ghz dual-core processor, 8-megapixel rear and 1.3-megapixel front cameras. It has some rugged credentials, bearing to a Kevlar back and splashproof coating.
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Where do you go when you have a still unannounced camera and some shiny big new lenses to try out? Apparently on an African safari. A Japanese Canon employee was spotted by photographer Stephen Oachs testing some new camera gear in Kenya Africa. Thankfully the spotter had his own DSLR with him and snapped a couple of pictures of the yet unidentified Canon camera body.
The spotted DSLR could be the new 5D Mark III or even a 7D Mark II. The captured camera has some of the looks of the 7D, with a more streamlined and modern button layout, however the lack of a pop-up flash points to the former as being more likely.
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If you’ve read our Galaxy Nexus review (and you should definitely read it here if you haven’t) then you know that using the smartphone without a case is an accident waiting to happen. In fact, my first Galaxy Nexus had suffered a deadly drop. Hence comes the dilemma, enjoy the beautiful and thin lines of your pricey and very fragile new smartphone by carrying it naked, risking its demise at any point, or sacrifice some of the thinness for the peace of mind a case brings.
Well if you are thinking of going with the latter then you might want to read on. OtterBox makes cases, and the company is known for some of the most solidly built cases you will find. We’ll be looking at the most rugged of the pair of OttorBox cases for the Galaxy Nexus, the Defender Series case. In fact this the most rugged case for the Galaxy Nexus that I know of, but correct me if I’m wrong.
For many this case will be overkill, and if size is a big issue then you might want to look elsewhere, because ruggedness comes at a cost. This is the case for the very active or very clumsy. If you are into sports, if your work puts high demands on you or if you want the ultimate protection for your smartphone, read on.
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Sony was the first to introduce a consumer-grade (i.e. cheap) back-illuminated CMOS sensor in 2009 and the technology has found its way in a number of devices demanding good low-light camera performance within very tight space requirements, namely in smartphones. iPhone owners can thank this technology for their awesome low-light camera performance.
Sony continues to develop the technology and the company has announced today its new generation of backside-illuminated CMOS sensors, which the company is calling ‘stacked CMOS image sensors’. Sony has created a new manufacturing process that allows it to move supporting circuitry to the back of the sensor, i.e. create a stacked structure. So what does this achieve? Well, Sony is claiming that the new sensor can achieve better image quality and lower power consumption in a smaller package. In addition Sony can build signal processing circuits on the back of the sensor, removing any requirement to have them externally.
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