An hour for Mother Earth: Turn off Technology

An hour for Mother Earth: Turn off Technology for Earth hour event where around 15 million Filipinos are expected to be part of some one billion people worldwide who will switch off their lights for one hour for the environment Saturday evening.

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said the switch-off at 8:30 p.m. of March 27 will be the highlight of Earth Hour, which has been observed in the last three years.

“The switch-off signifies the start of a very personal and lasting lifestyle change to minimize our ecological impacts and to do our bit for a more sustainable planet. Personal pledges can take many forms, from upgrading to energy-efficient appliances to planting and stewarding a small grove of native trees," WWF said in its website.

WWF reminded the public that Earth Hour does not end when the lights are switched back on. Earth Hour was crafted to take a stand against climate change, and became a worldwide phenomenon in 2008 and 2009. The Philippines placed first in this event globally in terms of town and city participation.

Since the observance of Earth Hour in 2009, each of the Earth Hour allies has advocated for the adoption of renewable energy technologies and energy-efficient practices.

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Enter the WePad?

The WePad, you know because "we" is plural of "I"? Compared to the iPad with its 11.6-inch (1366 x 768) display, a 1.66GHz Intel Atom N450 processor, GMA 3150 graphics, webcam, two USB ports, flash card reader, UMTS modem, and a mooted six hours of battery life, I could see picking one up -- provided the price point is decent.

A German company the manufacturer Neofonie, also has designs on a WePad app store and, if all goes according to plan, this thing'll sport genuine Google Android and the Android Market. The company also mentions something called the "WeMagazine publishing ecosystem," the basis of a turn-key operation for getting your own branded device out on the e-reader market.

So far, here's a comparison:

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Smartphone Battery Tricks

Here are some Smartphone Battery Tricks for first time users of and a recent convert to smartphones. Naturally they don't have such a long battery life when in use due to obviously so many applications or programs one can do with it, in short: the more you do, the shorter your phone's battery lasts.

1. Dim It - The brighter your screen, the more juice you're using. If you're in a dimly lit room, turn down your LCD screen's brightness. If your device has an autodimming feature that detects the light in a room, use it. Similarly, if you use your smartphone or laptop to play music, lower the volume.

2. Turn off applications - It is great that you can use Bluetooth technology to connect your smartphone to a headset, or use Wi–Fi to speed up the downloading of e–mail messages. But when you're not using that headset or not near a Wi–Fi hot spot, turn off those features on the phone or laptop.

3. Signal Search - Smartphones also continually looks for network signals. If you're in a weak signal area, your phone must work even harder to find one, decreasing battery life. If your G.S.M. 3G network is not available or the signal is weak, the battery will drain faster looking for one.

4. Check Mail Manually - Simply put, auto-notifications (of some phone apps) drains power. You don't need to check your email every minute now do you?
Turn Off Everything

5. Disable the Animations/fancy effects (graphics or sounds included) - The hotter your laptop feels, the more battery power it is using. And one of the biggest users of power is Flash animation, the technology behind many online videos and animated ads. To improve battery life, disable Flash when not using wall power.

6. Get an App to Aid You - There are a number of applications that can help monitor battery life and shut off various functions that cut down on a mobile device's effective power.

7. Realize the End Will Come - Lithium–ion batteries cannot be overcharged; a device's circuitry cuts off the power when they are full. However, manufacturers still recommend that a laptop not be continually connected to power once the battery is at its capacity. If a laptop won't be used for several months, it should be stored with the battery in a 50 percent charge state.

No matter how well you care for your battery, there comes a time when you'll need to send your battery to its final resting place though.

I hope these Smartphone Battery Tricks can help you enhance your smartphone experience.

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Fujitsu LifeBook UH900 pops up

Fujitsu LifeBook UH900 pops up as Fujitsu’s very own version of a pocket computer. So if its not a netbook or smartbook, its a lifebook? It has a 5.6-inch touch screen and weighs only half a kilo. See below for Fujitsu LifeBook UH900 specs:

5.6-inch screen @ 1280×800 pixels
Intel Atom Processor Z530 1.6GHz
Intel GMA 500
2GB DDR2 RAM
62GB SSD
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth 2.1 w/ A2DP
0.78 MP webcam
SD/SDHC Slot

The built-in battery is also good for u to 3 hours (same as the one with the Vaio P). Runs Windows 7 Home Premium. They say it also has an optional 3G/HSDPA modem.

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Asus shows 9″ DR-900 e-Reader

When kindle came I was interested but didn’t had the cash and didn’t know anybody who had one, but for ASUS DR-900, I was even more excited. It is almost similar to the size of of the Kindle DX, the Asus DR-900 eReader boasts of very long battery life — up to 10,000 page turns on a single charge.

The 9-inch screen has a resolution of 1024×768 pixels and support for PDF, ePub and HTML files. The device comes with WiFi connectivity with an optional 3G/HSDPA slot as well. There’s a 2GB and 4GB built-in storage with SD card slot for expansion as well as a USB port and 3.5mm jack.

I’ve been a fan w/ ASUS for a while now and this really makes me want to buy it even more, but then again I have to finish all these other books I have at home before switching to e-reading though.

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Smartbro Surf TV = Internet + TV?

It’s not Smartbro Smart TV, but Smartbro Surf TV. It’s a new product from Smart Communications which was just recently launched. This product allows subscribers to surf the web directly from the TV. So would that make it like Smartbro Surf TV = Internet + TV? or vice versa? Who knows, it would be best to get some feedback from users and of course if I can try it myself.

The kit is worth roughly Php4,500.00 and is available at Smart Wireless centers. Same as the usual Smart internet cost, every internet access using Smartbro Surf TV will cost you Php10.00 per 30 minutes. Before buying this device, you need to make sure that you have 3G or HSPA coverage in your location.

“Over the last few years we have been steadily advancing our Internet for All advocacy and investing our energies to make wireless Internet more affordable and widely available – whether via mobile phone, the PC, or laptop – anytime, anywhere, so that Filipinos may benefit from it. Offering Smart Bro SurfTV is a natural progression of that strategy, this is a service that will put the Internet right in the homes of Filipino families,” said Orlando B. Vea, Chief Wireless Advisor of SMART.

It's basically a device that connects to a television set through a quick and easy procedure, to provide Internet access using Smart Bro’s nationwide coverage. When plugged into the RCA port of a color TV set, Smart Bro SurfTV provides users a ready-to-run Internet experience, and users can surf, chat, and email –- through a multi-tasking TV — at home.

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Enter the Smartbooks: HP Compaq Airlife 100

HP’s first smartbook, the Compaq Airlife 100 resembles the slim and small netbook, although there are some significant differences. The OS is Android 1.6 Cupcake, complete with a resistive touch screen, and the keyboard has been reworked to suit Google’s platform. Keeping the whole thing moving is Qualcomm’s 1GHz Snapdragon processor, a large keyboard (92% of full size), 16GB solid state drive, SD card slot, VGA webcam, and WiFi connectivity.

Basically a smartbook is supposed to be the hybrid of a netbook and a smartphones, one thing I like about this is that the icons are larger than you’d find on a regular Android smartphone, and HP have taken the standard webkit-based browser and thrown in tabbed browsing. As far as resume time, with the Airlife 100 it’s ready to use as soon as the lid is opened.

One of the advantages of using a smartphone platform is battery life, and even though people are still more comfortable with the Windows environment, it’s proven that there are plenty of users out there who use alternative OS (Linux, Mac, and Android). The battery life has been cited to last for 12 hours and boasts a standby time of 10 days. The European market can expect the HP smartbook this spring and details on pricing and worldwide release were not mentioned yet. Will HP finally intensify their Compaq brand with the Airlife 100?

The AirLife will probably have access to the Android app store with applications optimized for a small screen. Another is the instant startup time and comprehensive connectivity suite (from Wi-Fi to HSDPA and even WiMAX) which keeps this device always online.

I expected the smartbook OS to be updated to be like Android 2.1 but maybe they have not optimized it yet for smartbooks. Android came from linux in which I believe will be easy to get used to and has some unique features not in windows (and vice versa).



Having been exposed to Android OS from HTC smartphones, I find the Android OS to be more fancy and quite easy to learn. I will be expecting as well to have “extended screens or desktop” similar to that in smartphones which I like.

Will you get this smartbook? I just bought a netbook in which is useful for my blogging but I want to get my hands on this smartbook (What possibly can I use this for?)

Gimme some ideas!!

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The Gadget that Blogging got me

Because of blogging I have gained not only friends offline and online as well. Blogging basically opened the doors to the Techy World as well. Learned a lot about the internet, technology and many more!

It basically sparked my interest in lots of areas about technology and at the same time through my 1st venture in the techy world, I was able to get a gadget which is the Asus Eee PC 1005HA!

I chose a netbook over a laptop since I wanted something light and can be used not only for my blogging but also for future endeavors in which I would have to use my mini-laptop on the go ^_^

It feels good that I didn’t have to spend much on this gadget since I use a combination of various incomes which came from Google Adsense, Sponsored posts, paypal and some add-on cash. Hopefully, next time around I will be able to use this other sources of income for investments.

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Samsung Corby S3653 from Sun Cellular!

Samsung Corby S3653 from Sun Cellular is now available! It’s a cheap alternative touch screen phone for you to buy and use at an affordable price! It may be not a smart phone but not totally a normal phone as well. I would say that the Samsung Corby is like somewhere or something in between.

I saw one here in cebu and I think it was around 7k++ which is for my taste very affordable since I'm a cheapskate!

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Google Phone: Nexus One from HTC

I had a chance to only play with the Nexus One since it's partial support is of course "Outsourced" here and with that I got to handle and experience it's features first hand. The Nexus One phone is pretty fast — you can really feel that processing power kicking from inside. Android OS is quite intimidating at first but the more you explore and use it, it's pretty simple. And as far as specs are concerned, see below:

Cellular & Wireless

UMTS Band 1/4/8 (2100/AWS/900)
HSDPA 7.2Mbps
HSUPA 2Mbps
GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)
Wi-Fi (802.11b/g)
Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
A2DP stereo Bluetooth

Power and battery
Removable 1400 mAH battery
Charges at 480mA from USB, at 980mA from supplied charger

Talk time
Up to 10 hours on 2G
Up to 7 hours on 3G

Standby time
Up to 290 hours on 2G Up to 250 hours on 3G
Internet use
Up to 5 hours on 3G
Up to 6.5 hours on Wi-Fi

Video playback
Up to 7 hours

Audio playback
Up to 20 hours

Processor
Qualcomm QSD 8250 1 GHz

Operating system
Android Mobile Technology Platform 2.1 (Eclair)

Capacity
512MB Flash
512MB RAM
4GB Micro SD Card (Expandable to 32 GB)

Location
Assisted global positioning system (AGPS) receiver
Cell tower and Wi-Fi positioning
Digital compass
Accelerometer

Size and weight:

Height
119mm
Width
59.8mm

Depth
11.5mm

Weight
130 grams w/battery
100g w/o battery

Display
3.7-inch (diagonal) widescreen WVGA AMOLED touchscreen
800 x 480 pixels
100,000:1 typical contrast ratio
1ms typical response rate

Camera & Flash
5 megapixels
Autofocus from 6cm to infinity
2X digital zoom
LED flash
User can include location of photos from phone’s AGPS receiver
Video captured at 720x480 pixels at 20 frames per second or higher, depending on lighting conditions

The good: The Nexus One has a gorgeous display, a lightning-fast processor, and a loaded feature set. The enhanced voice capabilities worked flawlessly, and the phone delivers solid performance.

The bad: Like other Android phones, the Nexus One forces you to store apps on the internal memory. The media player remains average, and it’s missing some wanted features like multi-touch support, dual-mode capability for GSM and CDMA networks.

In Conclusion: It doesn’t have all the features we’d like, but the Nexus One greatly enhances the Google Android family with a fast processor, good call quality, and improved voice control features.

For more info. visit HERE

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The HTC Hero

The HTC Hero has been out of the market for awhile but as far as Philippines is concerned it is still new since Technology turn over hear is moves like the turtle. I have handled this as well since its partial support is once again "Outsourced."

The Hero is HTC’s 3rd handset to run Google Android OS (after Dream and Magic). Here are its specifications:

Qualcomm MSM7200A 528 MHz
Android 1.5
512 ROM, 288 RAM
3.2 inch screen @ 320×480 pixels
3G/HSDPA 7.2Mbps
WiFi 802.11 b/g
Bluetooth 2.1
Internal GPS
5MP camera
3.5mm audio jack

The HTC Hero’s form factor is a little odd with the bottom part bent crooked inward. In a way, it make sense when you make a phone call since the mic is placed closer to your mouth. The handset’s build and construction is pretty solid with a combination of brushed metal finish and a smooth rubbery surface (feels like Teflon coating but earlier reports say only the white model has it). Not thin but not too thick (14.4mm) as well — fits snugly with one hand and not that heavy for its size.

The Hero has version 1.5 pre-installed and got more improvements from the previous version. This one has 7 desktop/panels you can easily switch with a flick of the screen or roll of the trackball — customize each panel to hold shortcuts, widgets and folders (mine has the Calendar, Weather, Home, Twitter and Contacts).

The phone is very responsive and can run multiple applications all at the same time. However, I sometimes notice the handset to slow down when a lot of apps are open or running so the Task Killer widget come in very handy when that happens. The Hero has a 528 MHz (Qualcomm MSM7200A ARM11) processor and 288MB RAM that performs quite well with multi-tasking.

The touch screen is very good and responsive as well; the oleophobic coating of the screen makes it immune to oily finger fingerprints. Video playback is smooth and clear with very wide viewable angle (around 130-150 degrees IMO). The speakers at the back are a bit small and not loud enough for open playback.

While the phone has multi-touch functionality, it is not available on all applications — works on web browsing but not on Google Maps. The 5-megapixel camera has a nice autofucos feature but does not take photos very well especially on low light or non-stationary subjects. There’s no dedicated camera button and relies on the trackball for that function.

Although the Android on it is already quite "old" dream on if you can get your hands on the latest Android 2.1 to have a test in the difference between 1.5 and 2.1, but then again dreaming is free since we are in the Philippines and it will take some time, lots of time to be up to date with the latest gadgetry to arrive here.

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Apple's new iPad

Apple's just-announced iPad looks like an iPhone on steroids, and it boasts a price tag that's a lot lower than people feared. But many of the enticing rumors about Apple's new tablet—such as chatter about a built-in camera, monthly TV subscriptions, and support for Verizon's 3G network—turned out to be dead wrong. Also: no iPhone for Verizon, at least not yet.

Apple's new tablet is still one sexy piece of gadgetry. But ... is it a category-changer, like the iPod and the iPhone before it? That'll be hard to judge right away though. To make the long story short, it has no new UI, no built in camera despite being tagged as a bigger iphone, no removable battery, and no flash support.

The iPad has a 9.7-inch touch screen, is a half-inch thick, weighs 1.5 pounds and comes with 16, 32 or 64 gigabytes of flash memory storage. It comes with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity built in. Jobs said the device has a battery that lasts 10 hours and can sit for a month on standby without needing a charge.

Like iPods and the iPhone, the iPad can sync with Apple's Macintosh and Microsoft's Windows computers. Jobs said the iPad will also be better for playing games and watching video than either a laptop or a smart phone. Software coming with the iPad includes a calendar, maps, a video player and iPod software for playing music. All seem to have been slightly redesigned to take advantage of the iPad's bigger screen.
Applications designed for the iPhone can run on the iPad. Apple is also releasing updated tools for software developers to help them build iPhone and iPad programs.

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Ninoy-Cory Cellphone

I saw this on the news ('Ninoy-Cory' cellphone), as well as in SM City Cebu and I got interested in the 'Ninoy-Cory' cellphone. As I was researching, I came across the Solid Group, makers of the only Filipino mobile phone brand My Phone, has come up with the “NinoyCory phone,” the first series in the company’s My Heroes line of collector phones with the thrust of “keeping the memory of the two icons of democracy alive”.

The phone which debuts Myphone’s Myhero phone series comes in three variants all colored yellow, bearing an insignia of Ninoy’s signature pair of eyeglasses on the front and images of Ninoy and Cory at the back. This gadget was made in collaboration with the Ninoy Aquino Foundation, headed by Rafael Lopa.

Among its unique features include the following:

* Prayers like the Rosary, Station of the Cross and other novenas;
* Cory’s personal prayers
* Inspirational messages from Ninoy and Cory
* Aquino autobiography
* Ninoy’s poem and letters
* Speeches
* And some trivia

The children of the late Aquino couple were very happy to share their family’s treasured memories which could serve as an inspiration for the Filipinos most especially the youth, according to Pinky Aquino-Abellada.

One look at the phone and one will immediately realize that it is not just for Cory or Ninoy followers. Even the faithful will find the phone handy as it contains audio files of the Rosary, Stations of the Cross, various novenas (Lady of Manaoag, Perpetual Help, Sto. Nino, Black Nazarene, Lady of Antipolo, Lady Mediatrix, Lady of Guadalupe, St. Clare and St. Jude), common prayers (morning offering, Angelus, three o’clock prayer, evening prayer, Our Father, Hail Mary), intercession prayers, as well as ebooks of the entire Bible, to name a few.

The Solid Group just released the Pinoy phone which contains the rosary as well as 132 other prayers, and this gave Lim the idea of giving the Aquino family a memorabilia of Ninoy and Cory. The Solid Group top executive said a large number of the NinoyCory phone’s content came from the Foundation and that the company immediately put up a team to work on it.

The number of NinoyCory phones that will be made available to the market will depend on how the public accepts it. “It is very exciting. People, including those in our office, are grabbing the phones and want not just one, but two, even 20 at a time. After all, it is the first prayer phone ever made,” Lim added. The phone sells for P4,990 and is the first Qwerty phone to be released under the MyPhone brand.

He said because Solid Group believes in the projects of the Benigno Aquino Foundation, including education and feeding programs, the company will be donating a certain amount to the foundation, which did not charge anything when it shared some of the contents of the phone.

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