Archive for the ‘Opinion’ Category
Friday, January 21st, 2022
What’s the home printer of choice for my #WorkFromHome setup? It’s the ApeosPrint C325 dw colour laser printer from FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp.
The compact ApeosPrint C325 dw single-function duplex and wireless colour laser printer from FUJIFILM Innovation Corp makes a suitable printer for a #WorkFromHome workspace and at front-facing counter-tops of businesses.
First off, FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp is actually the new name for the former Fuji Xerox after the joint venture company (between FUJIFILM and Xerox) came under FUJIFILM.
As you may know, Fuji Xerox was a global leader in laser printers, especially for enterprises and business users.
My Take
The ApeosPrint C325 dw single-function laser printer is a suitable printer for #WorkFromHome and small businesses.
Its print quality and speed, ink economy, ease of use, as well as compactness, duplex and wireless capability make it a versatile printer for the home and at customer-facing counters.
The ApeosPrint C325 dw single-function printer is the smallest and lightest printer model in their lineup and is targeted towards counter services, clinics and small businesses.
I have been using the printer for the past few months and find it a suitable printer for the #WFH workspace considering its performance, economy, ease-of-use, reliability and compact footprint.
The key requirements I have for a home printer (for work) is print quality and compactness, as well as the ability to print colour, double-sided, and from a wireless network.
Naturally, factors like print speed, ink/toner economy, and maintainability also weigh in.
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Tags:#t4tWFH, #t4tWorkFromHome, ApeosPrint, Fuji Xerox, Fujifilm, laser, printers, reviews, tech4WHF, tech4WorkFromHome, WFH, WorkFromHome
Posted in Accessories, Business IT, Fuji Xerox, Fujifilm, Gadgets, gadgets, Laserjet, Opinion, Printers, printers, Review, reviews, Specifications, TUCU | No Comments »
Wednesday, January 19th, 2022
In today’s electronics applications, batteries power nearly all of our portable electronic devices. Batteries also serve as emergency power backup systems on large premises. And all-electric vehicles use large cascading battery packs to meet the expected power for the required performance.
In this guest commentary, Bernard Ang from Keysight Technologies shares his insights on specialised battery testing.
Batteries are the key to our portable/mobile electronic gadgets in this digital era.
Battery packs need the required specific power (W/kg) to be able to dispense enough current to achieve the electric vehicle speed performance.
They also need the required specific energy (Wh/kg) to achieve longer runtime or travel range.
Why is it important to monitor battery temperature?
Most rechargeable batteries today are lithium ion and have an operating range between 15 °C and 35 °C at which their full performance and capacity kicks in.
- If the battery and its ambient temperature is below 15 °C, you may experience sluggish electrochemical reactions within the battery and as a result, lower battery performance and reduced charge capacity.
- If the battery or battery pack operates above 35 °C in ambient temperature, battery degradation can accelerate over time. As a result, you may notice shorter battery life, non-uniform aging due to thermal gradients, greater exposure to safety issues, and higher life cycle costs. At extremely hot temperatures, batteries can break down and cause leakage, smoke, fire, and even explosions.
The power map chart below shows the power limits of your lithium-ion battery or battery packs across the temperature range.
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Tags:insights, Keysight, opinions, Tech Focus, technology, vehTech
Posted in Accessories, battery, Business IT, Enterprise IT, Keysight, Opinion, Tech Focus, Technology | No Comments »
Tuesday, January 11th, 2022
Following the announcement of The Freestyle at CES 2022 less than a week ago, Samsung Electronics shipped a unit of The Freestyle to Singapore for a sneak preview for Singapore media.
The Freestyle is a 100-inch smart TV in disguise and includes a projector, speaker and ambient light rolled into one.
Samsung describes The Freestyle a portable projector, smart speaker and lighting device all rolled into one.
To me, it’s essentially a 100-inch smart-TV rolled into a lightweight (830g) and portable “canister” that you can carry around to a BBQ or a hotel staycation.
Driven by Samsung’s Tizen OS and controlled by a remote control, it doesn’t have an in-built battery so you’ll either need access to a wall outlet, or a USB-PD battery bank that can put out 20V and 50W.
So without having to lug a 100-inch TV around, you can just fish out The Freestyle, plug it (USB-C port) into a power source – in front of a flat surface (which can be a wall or the ceiling) – and you’re in business … you have effectively a 100-inch smart TV in front of you to stream content from the Web.
There is an in-built 360-degree speaker included.
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Tags:CES, CES 2022, lights, previews, projectors, Samsung, Singapore, speakers, Tizen, TVs
Posted in Accessories, Audio, audioVisual, Entertainment, Events, events, Exhibition, Gadgets, gadgets, Home, newArrivals, Opinion, Projectors, Review, reviews, Samsung, speakers, Specifications, Tizen | No Comments »
Friday, December 24th, 2021
The second-generation Google Nest Hub (S$139) goes beyond being a speaker and display to monitoring your sleep with Sleep Sensing to help you get a better night’s sleep.
The Google Nest Hub (2nd gen) is available online for S$139 on Google Store, as well as Courts, Challenger, and Shopee.
I’ve been using the first generation Google Nest Hub at home for years, and it’s brought hours of entertainment to the family.
The second-generation Google Nest Hub reprises many of these same functionalities.
Unboxing the Google Nest Hub (2nd Gen).
It is a speaker/display to stream music/videos from music services such as Spotify and YouTube Music, and shows from Netflix and Disney+ etc; or to cast music/videos from the smartphone.
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Tags:Google, hub, Nest, reviews, speakers displays, tech4xmas, tech4xmas 2021
Posted in Accessories, Android, Audio, audioVisual, Gadgets, gadgets, Google, Home, Monitors, newArrivals, Opinion, Prices, Review, reviews, speakers, Specifications, Unbox | 3 Comments »
Sunday, December 19th, 2021
tech4xmas: Beautifully crafted aromatherapy diffusers for the home, with a wide selection of relaxing and fragrant essential oils for Christmas. S$218 with free delivery.
The essential oil nebulising diffuser is waterless and heatless, works silently, powerful enough to spread the scent up to 800 sqft within the first two minutes.
My own diffuser at home.
It is suitable for medium-sized areas such as the living room and bedroom.
There is an LED light with changing colours to serve as mood lighting.
I like how the knob allows me to control how strong a nebulising effect.
This is a fantastic Christmas for the home.
The FLO e-shop offers a wide selection of oils and nebulisers with some in the form of Christmas trees and angels.
Tags:accessories, aromatherapy, Christmas, Christmas 2021, diffusers, Flo, gadgets, Home, nebulisers, reviews, tech4xmas, tech4xmas 2021, Xmas
Posted in Accessories, Appliances, Decor, Gadgets, gadgets, Home, Lifestyle, Opinion, Prices, Review | No Comments »
Friday, December 17th, 2021
In this two-part guest commentary, Carrie Browen and Kevin Kershner from Keysight Technologies share their insights into the future of high speed in-vehicle display and sensor connections. You may find Part 1 here.
For this second half of our commentary, we begin with an introduction of SerDes.
In today’s infotainment systems, it is common for in-vehicle cameras and displays to be connected to the image-processing electronic control unit (ECU) via a SerDes (serializer/deserializer) connection.
Future Prediction
More cameras, more connections, and more sensors with greater accuracy, less weight, and increased safety.
Undoubtedly, there will be a need for an in-vehicle network to seamlessly handle these challenges.
Those in-vehicle networks will need to be tested, they will need to be interoperable, and they will need to be secure.
Today, they are delivered by individual vendors using closed, proprietary standards.
Extending the reach of feature-rich SerDes links can require operating at lower Baud rates and higher order modulations (e.g. PAM-4).
In addition, it will require higher bandwidth Ethernet links as primary interconnects between zones, perhaps with 802.3ch support up to 10 Gbps throughput.
Emerging SerDes standards like mobile industry processor interface (MIPI) A-PHY (MIPI A-PHY is a physical layer specification targeted for ADAS/ADS surround sensor applications and Infotainment display applications in automotive) and Automotive SerDes Alliance (ASA) will be implemented by multiple silicon vendors.
This will create a competitive market that acts to drive down the cost while delivering application specific features.
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Tags:insights, Keysight, opinions, SerDes, Tech Focus, technology, testing, vehTech
Posted in Automobile, Brief, Internet of Things, Interview, IoT, Keysight, Motoring, Opinion, Tech Focus | No Comments »
Thursday, December 16th, 2021
In this two-part guest commentary, Carrie Browen and Kevin Kershner from Keysight Technologies share their insights into the future of high speed in-vehicle display and sensor connections.
A conceptual diagram of a zone-based in vehicle network architecture. Image: Keysight Technologies.
It is no secret the pace of innovation in the automotive industry is exploding.
If the last 20 years have been linear in the development of electrification, the last two to three years have been exponential.
Bandwidth Requirements
To get a better understanding of the bandwidth requirements, remember that the approximate bit rate of a video stream can be calculated as follows.
- Frame Size = Resolution x Color Depth
- Bit Rate = Frame Size x Frame rate
So, for an ADAS camera capturing a 1080p image, with a color depth of 24-bits and transmitting at 30fps, the bit rate to be supported equals:
- Frame Size = 1920 x 1080 x 24 = 49,766,400
- Bit Rate = 49,766,400 x 30 = 1,493 Mbps
It used to be that a car was a means of getting from A to B.
Now, we can safely say that is not true for the vehicles of today and certainly not for the new vehicles of tomorrow.
Just about every new car on the market has a backup camera, park assist, and blind spot monitoring.
Some offer a 360-degree view.
Other features offer real-time traffic updates, cellular connection to potential hazards, other road users, vehicles, or pedestrians.
There are features that can detect if a driver is distracted or tired.
Meanwhile, the people in the car are often unaware of driving conditions, while they enjoy infotainment systems.
These features are delivered through a mixture of sensors, cameras, and networks.
As demands go up, next-generation advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) require camera and radar systems with increasingly high resolution.
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Tags:insights, Keysight, opinions, SerDes, Tech Focus, technology, vehTech
Posted in audioVisual, Brief, Cameras, Internet of Things, IoT, Keysight, Motoring, Opinion, Tech Focus | No Comments »
Monday, December 13th, 2021
Tech-U-Can-Use (TUCU): Need a wireless charging stand to charge your iPhone 13 or iPhone 12 so you can continue using the phone while it’s still charging? Guest reviewer Jennifer Lee checks out the 7.5W BoostCharge magnetic wireless charger stand from Belkin for her iPhone 13 Pro Max.
#tech4xmas: This BoostCharge wireless charger stand from Belkin makes a suitable Christmas present for iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 owners. Photo credit: Jennifer Lee.
The magnetic wireless charger stand is MagSafe compatible for iPhone 13 and iPhone 12.
The wireless charger stand is available in black or white.
With MagSafe, it was easy to place my iPhone 13 Pro Max onto the stand – it snaps into place and there is no worries that the placement is misaligned.
There is an LED safety indicator that comes on when the charging commences.
The magnetic attachment is strong enough to hold the iPhone securely.
The stand is great for zoom calls or FaceTime – it holds the phone upright either in portrait or landscape mode.
A 20W USB-C Power Delivery 3.0 power adapter is included in the box.
In addition, the charge pad is protected by a Belkin Connected Equipment Warranty.
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Tags:accessories, Apple, Belkin, BoostCharge, chargers, iPhone, reviews, tech4xmas, tech4xmas 2021, TUCU, wireless
Posted in Accessories, battery, Belkin, Gadgets, gadgets, Opinion, Prices, Review, reviews, Specifications, TUCU | 2 Comments »
Saturday, December 11th, 2021
The new Huawei Watch GT 3 is the company’s latest smartwatch and offers a staggering 14 days battery life as well as more accurate measurements of vital statistics to monitor health and fitness, and to instrument sports performance for in-depth analysis and more effective training.
The new Huawei Watch GT 3 – freshly unboxed. Included is the wireless charger.
The Huawei Watch GT 3 is the successor to 2019’s Huawei Watch GT 2 and last year’s Watch GT 2e.
Unboxing the Huawei Watch GT 3 health/fitness/sports smartwatch.
It offers improvements which includes features that had debuted with the flagship Huawei Watch 3 and Watch 3 Pro which was released for APAC in July this year.
The new Huawei Watch GT 3
First unveiled last month in October and launched for Singapore less than two weeks ago, the Huawei Watch GT 3 series will hit the shelves on 18 December, with pre-orders beginning today (until 17 December).
#tech4xmas: This will make an ideal Christmas gift for those keen on fitness and good health.
Major improvements over its predecessor in the sporty GT (Gran Turismo or Grand Tourer) line include an upgrade of the operating system from the Lite OS to HarmonyOS 2.1.0, an Apps grid replacing a scrolling menu, additional sensors, more accuracy in measurements and a rotatable crown.
Compared to the muscular flagship Watch 3 Pro, the new Huawei Watch GT 3 feels lighter and is slightly smaller though both watch faces measure 46mm.
The Watch GT 3 does not have the eSIM & Wi-Fi capabilities of the Watch 3 Pro, but has a much longer 14 days battery life.
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Tags:availability, fitness, Health Tech, Huawei, launch, new arrivals, pre-orders, prices, reviews, Singapore, smartwatches, sports, tech4xmas, tech4xmas 2021, wearables
Posted in Accessories, Availability, Gadgets, gadgets, HarmonyOS, Healthcare, Huawei, Launch, newArrivals, Opinion, Prices, Promotions, Review, reviews, smartwatches, Specifications, Sports, TUCU, Unbox, Watches | 5 Comments »
Wednesday, December 8th, 2021
Tech-U-Can-Use (TUCU): Need to continue using the iPhone while it’s still charging – without interrupting the charging? Guest reviewer Jennifer Lee checks out the 7.5W BoostCharge magnetic wireless charger pad from Belkin for her iPhone 13 Pro Max.
#tech4xmas: This BoostCharge wireless charger pad from Belkin makes a suitable Christmas present for iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 owners. Photo credit: Jennifer Lee.
The portable wireless charger pad is MagSafe compatible for iPhone 13 and iPhone 12.
It comprises the magnetic disc pad that attaches to the iPhone, and a 2m cable that plugs into the power supply.
Slim and portable, the wireless charger pad is small enough to tuck in the handbag and perfect on the go.
The pad is 60mm in diameter and 11.5mm thick.
The 2m long cable provides added ease to move around while charging and especially if there are only limited wall sockets in the room.
The magnetic attachment is strong and clips onto the phone right away, no worries about misalignment or loose contacts etc.
I was able to continue using the phone (eg. scrolling, pinching the screen and talking on the phone) without worrying about the charger pad coming loose or misaligned if I accidentally jostle it or the phone vibrates on an incoming call.
Hassle-free charging.
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Tags:accessories, Apple, Belkin, BoostCharge, chargers, iPhone, reviews, tech4xmas, tech4xmas 2021, TUCU, wireless
Posted in Accessories, Belkin, Gadgets, gadgets, Opinion, Prices, Review, reviews, Specifications | 2 Comments »
