An advanced messaging experience; innovative people-centric calendar and contact apps; and improved office productivity tools are some of the features in the PlayBook OS 2.0 upgrade.
An advanced messaging experience with a powerful unified inbox.
Announced during CES 2012, and expected to be available in February 2012, the free upgrade will enable customers to be even more connected and productive with heaps of new features.
People-centric calendar and contact apps integrated with social networks.
For an advanced messaging experience, a powerful unified inbox integrates with built-in messaging and social networking sites (Twitter, LinkedIn etc), as well as ‘tabbed email’ for managing multiple accounts.
You can also compose and edit messages in rich text and manage you inbox with useful new tools (for setting out-of-office alerts, signatures etc).
There are innovative people-centric calendar and contact apps that connects and feeds from your social network to make organising your day and getting in touch with people easy and fast.
Enhnaced office productivity tools such as Word To Go & Print To Go.
Remote control your PlayBook using your BlackBerry smartphone, especially if your PlayBook is connected to a TV via the HDMI output – perfect for watching movies or typing out notes.
Revamped and improved productivity tools with new Documents To Go, and Print To Go application for wireless printing and enhanced browsing, plus much more.
LG Electronics showcased the 55-inch OLED TV at CES 2012 in Nevada, Las Vegas, USA. The TV will hit Singapore in Q4 of 2012.
LG's 55-inch OLED TV will hit Singapore towards the end of 2012.
By incorporating the company’s 4-Color Pixels and Color Refiner features with LG Display’s advanced OLED (organic light-emitting diode) panels, LG OLED TV promises the most natural colors of any TV set at a much lower price point than could have been achieved using the standard manufacturing process.
“We have a product which not only delivers on all the advantages of OLED over LCD but at a significantly lower cost than what could be achieved using existing OLED manufacturing technologies,” said Havis Kwon, President and CEO of LG Electronics Home Entertainment Company.The 4-Color Pixels and Color Refiner features work together to generate natural and accurate colors that are sharp and consistent.
The 4-Color Pixels feature allows for more accurate color depiction by using a set of four colors (red, green blue and white) – in comparison to the RGB setup used by other OLED TV manufacturers.
Color Refiner ensures consistency in colors from a wider viewing angle via an LG algorithm which improves and refines hues and tones. This is in contrast to other OLED TVs which often exhibit drastic changes in hues from different viewing angles and abnormal color gamut.
The 55-inch OLED TV is only 4mm thin and weighs 7.5kg.
Boasting an infinite contrast ratio, LG’s OLED TV promises vivid colors and the smallest details regardless of the overall luminance of the on-screen image.
Colors and details throughout an entire image are preserved with clarity and sharpness, even when displaying scenes with dark lighting.
At 1,000 times faster than LED/LCD displays, LG’s OLED TV shows crystal clear motion without any blurring or bleeding.
At only 4 mm thin and a 7.5 kg, the slim and narrow Bezel design LG’s OLED TV gives it a sleek, minimal look allowing it to blend into the wall.
World's largest 3D Ultra Definition TV: LG's 84-inch 3D UD TV
I had the chance to watch a few 3D movies on LG’s 47-inch 3D TV and was immensely impressed — so I can only imagine what an 84-inch screen size would be like.
LG's 3D TVs come with some very stylish looking 3D glasses.
The 84-inch 3D Ultra Definition (UD) TV combines the Korean maker’s advanced 3D technology and Smart TV function with UD display technology, to break new ground in immersive 3D home entertainment.
LG’s 3D UD TV boasts superb picture quality with 8 million pixels, four times the resolution clarity (3840×2160) of existing Full HD TV panels.
Combined with LG’s Slim and Narrow Bezel Design, the 3D UD TV provides the most convincing 3D viewing experience currently available outside of a movie theatre.
3D Depth Control allows users to customize their viewing experience by controlling the amount of 3D effect, while 3D Sound Zooming provides users with 3D sound that rivals the output of home theater systems.
Via the display panel or LG’s new Magic Remote, users can access and navigate LG’s Smart TV ecosystem, which comprises over 1,200 apps and gives users access to a growing range of content services such as the 3D Zone where viewers can select from a wealth of 3D movies.
Here is a round-up of Sony’s electronic gadgets for 2012, as released during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2012 in Nevada, Las Vegas, USA.
Sony's line-up for 2012 as announced during CES 2012.
The CES is a chance for consumers to get a glimpse of the gadgets lining up to hit the market in the near to mid-term future.
Sony’s line-up for 2012 includes the new Handycam range; the Cyber-shot W-Series and S-Series; the NWZ-Z1000 series (Sony’s first ever Walkman powered by Android); and a new line-up of BRAVIA televisions.
Here’s a list of these new products.
Handycam
Sony HDR-PJ760VE Full HD Flash Memory camcorder
HDR-TD20VE Double Full HD 3D Flash Memory camcorder
HDR-PJ760VE Full HD Flash Memory camcorder
New camcorder accessories
RDP-CA1 Portable Speaker
HVL-LE1 Battery Video Light
VCT-MP1 ‘Multipod’
22MB/s SDHC Class 10 media cards
World’s first Balanced Optical SteadyShot for even more stable images while walking/zooming (HDR-PJ760VE)
Increased built-in projector models led by the HDR-PJ760VE capable of displaying 100-inch screen size (diagonal)
The world’s smallest and lightest 3D Handycam® (HDR-TD20VE)
Clearer dialogue with Auto Wind Noise Reduction and Closer Voice (both models)
By Pixel Super Resolution processing for high-resolution still images and Extended Zoom (both models
Cyber-shot
Cyber-shot compact digital cameras
1. W-Series
W670
W650
W630
W620
W610
2. S-Series
S5000
All-round images with new 360 Sweep Panorama
SteadyShot image stabilisation for clearer handheld shots
Intelligent Auto mode recognises up to 33 scene settings for great results automatically
Picture Effect modes for easy in-camera effects
Walkman
Sony Walkman NWZ-Z1000 series
NWZ-Z1000 series
First ever Walkman® powered by Android™
Unique ergonomic body design
Features the new S-Master MX digital amplifier which greatly reduces noise and distortion level in your music
A new distinctive W.BUTTON allows one to launch the unique W.Control app; allowing one to explore their music collection in an intuitive manner
Available in 8GB, 16GB and 32GB capacities
BRAVIA
SonyBRAVIA EX650-series LED LCD HDTV
HX855-series LED LCD HDTV with 3D
HX750-series LED LCD HDTV with 3D
EX650-series LED LCD HDTV
Two distinct series –the flagship HX and the mid-level EX
Brilliant Full HD (1080p) picture quality with Dynamic Edge LED backlight
Picture qualities further enhanced with Sony’s X-Reality PRO and X-Reality digital video processors
They are Skype™ embedded, where users can enjoy free widescreen Skype-to-Skype video calls. Users can also make voice calls while simultaneously watching TV.
Sony’s HX855 carries forward Sony’s distinctive Monolithic design incorporating Gorilla® Glass by Corning®, allowing for thinner, lighter and stronger screen material.
Complete with X-Reality PRO and Motionflow XR 960, the HX850 is a fully Internet-connected television with built-in 3D, delivering a premium viewing experience when on, and a stunning addition to home décor even when off.
Google has extended its search results by tapping into the data, photos, information and relationships in your Google+ and Picasa account — as long as you’re logged onto your Google account.
Google launched this extension to its existing search engine earlier this week. This opt-out integration will be gradually rolled out over the coming days for users using Google Search in English.
Prior to this extension, Google returned results based on its indexing engine of the public information available on the Internet and listed them in order of relevancy based on its Page Rank algorithm.
With Search Plus Your World – if you’re logged into your Google account – henever you do a search, Google Search will add three types of information to the search process and results listings:
Personal Results. Photos and posts, related to your search term, from Google+ and Picasa — both your own and those shared specifically with you, that only you will be able to see on your results page;
Profiles in Search. Helps you find people within your Google+ network or circles — both in autocomplete (as you type in the search term) and results listings;
People and Pages. Helps you find people’s profiles and Google+ pages related to a specific topic or area of interest — not just in your social circles, and enables you to follow them with just a few clicks. This is available even if you’re not logged into Google.
To me, this feature is an enhancement. Information is drawn from my own account, to which I have permission to access anyway. The information is not available to anyone else doing a similar search on Google as long as he is not logged into my account.
Screenshot from Google showing addition of personal results, photos and switch to turn off the feature.
It makes my search more relevant and it’s easier to do a comprehensive search that includes my Google+ and Picasa accounts (and perhaps other assets in the future).
The only problem is that it is now much easier for an intruder too, should my account ever be compromised or if I forget to log out of my account.
Note to self: Log out even if you’re stepping away for a coffee. What would have taken hours to consolidate across your different accounts can now be searched in one fell swoop while you’re raiding the fridge.
My wish? A truly interoperable search landscape which is non-exclusive will be the best case for users in the street.
Is it too unrealistic to hope that one day, my data in my Facebook, Twitter and Google+ (and any of the other mushrooming social networks out there) will be available to me only and those I’ve specifically allowed access and available when I do a search in ANY search engine?
I hope not.
I share many people’s laments that this extension of search into my own social networks is limited to my Google+ account and Google assets — and not my Twitter and Facebook accounts.
Both Twitter and Facebook have disallowed Google from crawling their content.
Facebook is keeping mum for the moment, but Twitter is crying foul — claiming that Google is leveraging unfair advantage by using its predominant Search presence to help its nascent Google+ network against other social networks. Two thirds of search in the US goes through Google Search.
Twitter used to allow Google to tap its data until recently, when it stopped the arrangement with Google but continued the partnership with Microsoft’s Bing search engine.
Search Plus Your World can be toggled on and off but it is default on at the start of every session. You need to go to Settings to permanently turn it off.
It’s beyond the man in the street to know if it was Twitter deliberately keeping Google out or whether it’s Google who preferred to be kept out so it’s Search Plus Your World is now “unfortunately” constrained to only Google+.
Only an investigation by the FTC can ascertain the posturing and vested interests involved, and organisations like the Electronic Privacy Information Center are already considering filing a anti-competitive complaint to the FTC regarding this.
The Huawei Ascend P1 S is the slimmest smartphone in the world in the 4.3” smartphone class, measuring just 6.68mm at its slimmest point; while the Huawei Ascend P1 measures at 7.69mm thin.
The Huawei Ascend P1 and Huawei Ascend P1 S was announced during CES 2012.
Huawei announced the Huawei Ascend P1 and Huawei Ascend P1 S at CES 2012.
With the Ascend series of smartphones, Huawei promises fast multi-tasking, video replay and gaming experience for consumers
Ascend P1 S, the world's slimmest smartphone from Huawei, measuring just 6.68mm at the slimmest.
The smartphones in the series will boast SUPER AMOLED screen with Corning Gorilla Glass and will ship with Android 4.0 upon availability.
They will be powered with a dual core 1.5GHz Texas Instrument OMAP 4460 Cortext-A9 processor, 1GB RAM and 4GB ROM.
Both will be equipped with an 8-megapixel BSI rear-facing and a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera, with the ability to capture 1080p HD videos.
The camera comes with dual flash LED and HDR effect optimization.
The Huaweil Ascend P1 and Ascend P1 S have the same tech specs except for the thickness and battery rating.
The Huawei Ascend P1 has a 1670mAh battery while the Huawei Ascend P1 S features a whopping 1800mAh battery.
Both smartphones utilise a PPVD back cover coating that evenly distributes heat, and sport a strong metallic, three-dimensional design with a delicate texture.
Huawei Ascend series: three colours to choose from.
The Ascend P1/P1 S is available in metallic black, ceramic white and cherry-blossom pink with more colors to come.
The Huawei Ascend P1/P1 S will be available in Europe, Asia-Pacific, North America, Australia, Middle East, and China from April 2012.
The 10.1-inch tablet sports the latest Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and the newest NVIDIA Tegra 3 Quad-core mobile processor. Prices within.
Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime TF201, world's first tablet with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and NVIDIA Tegra 3 Quad-core mobile processor.
The Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime is housed in an ultra slim 8.3mm metallic spun finish chassis that weighs only 586g.
Super IPS+ screen for vivid wide-angle viewing.
The Eee Pad Transformer already boasts a wide 178° viewing angle IPS display, with scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass.
Now the Transformer Prime goes further, upgraded with a brighter Super IPS+ screen that enhances the brightness of the screen for a better outdoor reading experience.
It has a 1.2 megapixel front camera for video conferencing and an 8 megapixel rear auto-focus camera with LED flash.
Asus Transformer Prime in Amethyst Gray colour.
The rear-camera boasts a large aperture of F/2.4 and a back-illuminated CMOS sensor, touch-to-focus depth of field and low light noise reduction.
A first for any tablet, the 8 megapixel camera also has the ability to take full 1080p HD video.
Battery life of the pad alone is 12 hours, with an additional six hours when combined with the mobile dock.
The tablet itself has a micro SD card slot, 3.5mm combo audio jack and micro HDMI port for sharing.
The docking station comes with keyboard and touchpad, additional ports and 6 more hours of battery life.
The S$199 mobile dock contains a keyboard and touchpad, as well as a USB port and SD card slot.
The other available colour is Champagne Gold.
The preinstalled SuperNote application is able to take, draw or record notes.
Polaris Office gives users the ability to read and edit Word, Excel and PowerPoint (MS Office 97-2007 version compatible) files.
In addition, ASUS is offering 8GB of free cloud storage for life via ASUS WebStorage, so users have access to their files via the cloud no matter where they are.
The Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime was launched yesterday evening and goes on sale today.
The usual prices for the tablet with and without the dock is S$1,098 and S$899 respectively; although the introductory prices are S$899 and S$759 respectively.
All prices include GST.
The main technical specifications for the Transformer Prime is tabulated below.
The latest version of the TomTom App (V1.10) integrates TomTom navigation with Facebook and Twitter allowing users to navigate to friends, places and events more easily.
The new TomTom App will be available within Q1 2012. Customers who already have the App (V1.9) will be able to download the new features for free.
TomTom App for iPhone/iPad integrates with Twitter and Facebook.
The TomTom app uses social networks as a source for turn-by-turn navigation.
The TomTom App for iPhone and iPad will be the first to use social networks as a source for turn-by-turn navigation.
It can automatically plan routes based on information from Facebook events, places and friends.
Drivers can also use the App to share their destination and arrival time on Twitter, Facebook, by email and SMS text.
The current TomTom App for iPhone/iPad (V1.9) already offers drivers:
The updated and accurate maps with no need for a mobile signal or data plan.
Free daily map changes from the TomTom community through Map Share.
Reliable arrival times at all times of day with IQ Routes.
Real-time camera alerts via TomTom Speed Cameras.
A powerful search with Google and Facebook.
Clear turn-by-turn guidance while on the phone thanks to iOS Multitasking support.
Seamless integration with contacts, photos, music, email and calendar.
The world’s first Android 4.0 tablet has been launched in Singapore. The 10.1-inch slate is also the first in the world to sport the new NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core mobile processor.
The Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime was launched in Singapore on 11 January 2012.
The Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime comes in Amethyst Gray or Champagne Gold and the 32GB version will be available from tomorrow at introductory prices at S$899 (with dock) and S$759 (without dock). All prices include GST.
The predecessor of the Transformer Prime in Germany and the Czech Republic.
Attending the launch event for the Transformer Prime brought back pleasant memories of our family holiday in Germany last year, when we had the opportunity to bring along the newly-launched Transformer.
The predecessor to the Transformer Prime was already a powerful performer and proved really useful for the parents and entertaining for the kids during our two-week drive down the castle route from Frankfurt in Germany to Prague in the Czech Republic.
Singapore is the third destination after Taiwan and Hong Kong to launch the Eee Pad Transformer Prime, which has been nominated as a CES 2012 Innovations Honoree.
The new tablet boasts the latest operating system, an extremely powerful processor, highly spec-ed camera and quality music.
The 10.1" tablet comes with a mobile dock with keyboad and touch pad, additional ports and 6 more hours of battery life.
100 units of the tablet were put up for pre-order on Facebook last week and all were snapped up within two hours on 4 January.
The Transformer Prime is the world's first Android 4.0 tablet.
Another 200 units will be put up for sale on-the-spot today after the launch.
These pre-launch units come with Android 3.2 Honeycomb but will be upgraded over the air to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich tomorrow.
NVIDIA claims that the new Tegra 3 processor is up to five times as fast as its predecessor, the Tegra 2.
Although the Tegra 3 is named a quad-core processor, NVIDIA says there are actually five processors.
The pad is 8.3mm thin while the mobile dock is 10.4mm thin.
A companion processor handles most of the work until additional processing power is needed, at which time the remaining four processors begin kicking in one at a time.
The Transformer Prime is the world's first tablet to run on Tegra 3 Quad-core mobile processor.
A demo showed how the increased processing power of the Tegra 3 and its 12-core GeForce GPU rendered a smoother and better quality output when playing videos and graphics intensive games, when compared with competing tablets.
The Transformer Prime also boasts enhanced audio performance that is powered by ASUS SonicMaster technology, which is known for its crisp and acoustically accurate audio reproduction.
Nokia and AT&T announced the Nokia Lumia 900 at the 2012 International Consumer Electronic’s Show (CES) – the first Windows Phone 7 smartphone from Nokia to feature high speed LTE connectivity.
Large screen, large bandwidth and “large” camera – Lumia 900 will be larger than life.
Nokia Lumia 900 unveiled during CES 2012 on 9 January.
With Nokia’s largest display, the Nokia Lumia 900 delivers a rich content experience from a phone that still fits easily in your hand.
The Nokia Lumia 900 has a 4.3-inch AMOLED ClearBlack Display, for rich, bright images both indoors and out in the sun.
The Nokia Lumia 900 has a large 4.3-inch AMOLED ClearBlack Display.
However, resolution is only 800×480 pixels.
Cutting edge 4G LTE technology enables faster connection speeds of up to 50Mbps on AT&T’s 4G LTE network.
The Lumia 900 is powered by a 1.4GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon APQ8055 + MDM9200 processor, with a long- lasting battery with 1830mAH for 7 hrs talk-time and up to 300 hrs on standby.
Nokia’s third Lumia smartphone (after the Lumia 800 and Lumia 710), the Nokia Lumia 900 builds on Lumia’s head-turning design on the outside and a rich social and Internet experience on the inside.
People Hub is the quickest way to connect with friends using Live Tiles for real-time updates and a fast Web browsing experience with Internet Explorer Mobile.
The Nokia Lumia 900 is designed for the US and comes with 4G LTE.
The camera will put greater pressure on compact cameras. The 8-megapixel camera comes with a large aperture of f/2.2 and wide angle at 28mm. Add to this a Carl Zeiss lens and dual LED flash, it will the owner greater impetus to leave the compact camera at home.
Video is so-so, with hi-res video capture at 720p/30fps. A second, front-facing 1-megapixel camera for video calls has an f/2.4 lens and 30fps capture.
