Posts by PaulR79
346 posts • joined Friday 21st August 2009 10:57 GMT
Android dithering?
How exactly is Android dithering? NFC, taking pictures while recording video, first with dual-core and quad-core CPUs, phones with HD screens from 3.2" up to 5.5" and that's just what I can recall quickly. I'm not saying these are unique to Android but they're being pushed by it a lot. Dithering is releasing a new 'magical' phone with a bigger screen, upgraded CPU (still behind others) and expecting the world to go nuts.
I'm all for putting forward a case that Duplo 8 has a chance but after seeing that bit in the heading I wasn't really interested in the rest of the article. I'm still surprised that they're being given such an easy ride after killing future updates to Duplo 7 / 7.5 beyond a few ported features to 7.8.
Missing Kindles and alternative options
I can see a few alternatives to this $15 charge but they revolve around rooting and then installing a vanilla ROM or just getting a Nexus 7. With that said the biggest question I have about the launch of these is why does the UK (and Europe I guess..) not get the Paperwhite Kindle or the 8.9" versions? I suspect it's because of them being ad supported to a degree and each country in Europe has different laws but if anyone has a better reason, or an official one, I'd love to hear it.
Musical chairs... but you don't lose a chair, you just swap
Fail at your current job role, wasting billions of pounds? Not a problem! Here, try health. That's far less important than broadband. Oh, what's this? Chris Gray-lying bastard and downright vile excuse of a human is now minister of justice? Proven liar, justice, those two should never be linked and yet there we are. I'm starting to think my neck ache problems come from continued head shaking at the state of governments both home and abroad screwing over the people.
Really?
This smells like a big load of FUD. Why would a phone owner rush to sell a phone based on the possibility that it might be withdrawn from sale due to a lawsuit? Is it not more likely that people are coming to the end of their contracts and selling so they can get the newest version, the Galaxy S3? Will we see a similar news story a few days after a new iPhone lands stating how they're dumping their precious Apple phones?
Communication company in poor communications shocker!
Why do companies in the communication business have such a hard time keeping people informed? Any new services they bring out are given massive press and announcments but when they have problems the quickest way (currently) to find out if it's just you seems to be to search Twitter for "<company name> down" and check how many are recent.
Re: 4G at 1800MHz? Pass..
Ah well it's a moot point for me anyway. I'm in a two year contract with my HTC One X so when I'm due for an upgrade it should all be sorted and working perfectly!*
*Yeah I don't believe that either.
4G at 1800MHz? Pass..
Is there any real point to deploying 4G in 1800MHz if the auction next year / decade / century (delete as applicable) gives wider availability at a different frequency? I wouldn't be jumping on a 4G bandwagon that means I have to buy a phone that only works on one network. Apart from the auction giving each network the chance to buy a chunk of spectrum surely it would also mean handsets will work on all networks.
This is just a big mess caused by years of petty bickering over who gets to bid on what and who has to give up / sell frequency. Ofcom you have failed spectacularly over and over and now in an effort to get ANY 4G out there you are screwing up all over again.
I keep wondering if there is any point to 4G at all when the main advantage seems to be speed. The current networks running HSPA+ should be capable of much higher speeds than they give but I've never seen over 3.7Mb/s on T-Mobile. I may be remembering incorrectly but I'm sure I read that to classify as 4G (true 4G, not the 4G USA networks get away with) it must be a minimum 100Mb/s. If that's right then it may be worth it.
Re: Pity if they're putting the squeeze on third party apps
This is part of what I said elsewhere when I read about it. Over the years the website and mobile app have grown to become almost usable but only after Twitter took some of the best bits from third-party apps. For a very long time the website was rather bland and the mobile app was awful at best. During that time it was third-party apps adding things that people wanted (longer than 140 char. tweets etc) that helped it grow and become more popular. Now that the job has been done for them they suddenly move to screw every third-party developer, the very people that helped them get to where they are.
The whole idea of cutting it down to a more Twitter-like (official I apps) experience was bad enough but this goes further than that. Make your app to our guidelines, stick to our limits or you're out of the club. Their site may be nicer and more usable now but the mobile app is still a mess that doesn't always remember position, doesn't always notify me as it should, loads image previews in a tiny box with no zoom options and worst for me is making every link you tap go through their http://t.co/ service even if it's already shortened / didn't need to be shortened. The only reason I use the official app is that it has push notifications for mentions and direct messages.
Summary of the trial
Before the summary I will note that I've read only what has been reported so it's based on those reports.
So far it seems Samsung have gone for "look at all this prior art! LOOK. AT. IT." with a mountain of prior art to the patents in question. Apple have only been repeating the same things, "it looks like our phone / tablet" and "it has rounded corners" etc.
This whole trial may as well not happen anyway because you know it will go to appeal regardless of who wins.
Re: Thank you Microsoft
Windows 8 - the biggest and most extravagant advert for Linux ever created. Very nice of Microsoft don't you think?
Re: Windows RT for me
A thorough and well planned response I see.
Here are just a few cons for me as a Windows 7 user -
Lose screen space to giant ass rectangles of two (three?) sizes.
Playing catch with the "Start" button
No choice to go straight to the Desktop by default means an extra step every boot / login
System tools etc listed along with applications in the same area and probably some renamed as MS like to do.
The biggest one so far - only IE as a browser for the foreseeable future and one which doesn't track tabs through Metrodern UI.
Next time you want to play MS shill try not to make such an ass of yourself. These are legitimate complaints from someone who's used Windows for a long time. Forcing a touchscreen interface onto non-touch users is the most ludicrous decision ever and until some people hack in the functionality I want I'm not interested.
Windows RT for me
As much as I despised the idea of having no previous Windows apps with an ARM tablet I can see a lot of benefits to it now. New apps means they'll be written or at least compiled with it in mind so I'd hope that a lot will be touch-friendly whereas older programs would have a similar effect to using WinMo phones with nice skins - it looks great until you use a system app or non-skinned app and see the ugly beneath.
Windows 8 on desktop is, for me at least, currently a maybe. I like the idea of faster startups but the 'cons' list is a little too high for me. I may go for an upgrade version and wait until someone can bring me WIndows 8 with a Windows 7 look.
MSDN, TechNet keys?
There seem to be at least a few here with those subscriptions that don't intend to use the Windows 8 keys. I'll happily take those off your hands :)
Partly serious, partly joking. I'd take Windows 8 for free, I wouldn't buy it.
Re: Wrong advice
The thing with security questions is that anyone who can find out about you will have a high chance of being able to answer questions like mother's maiden name, place of birth etc. To get around this I've started answering security questions with completely unrelated answers. The questions may be set in stone but that doesn't mean you have to answer them truthfully :)
Re: Lastpass ?
I do use Lastpass. There are a few sites you will never want to allow it remember though such as banking, credit card verification etc. I'm also a bit wary of trusting something completely when all passwords are stored in one place like Lastpass.
The Note 10.1 was already held back
I think this is probably a case of Samsung getting it out the door after a delay to change out Tegra 2 chips for Tegra 3. I can't remember when this happened but it was much earlier in the year so with that delay and various sales bans they probably just want to get this out the door as quickly as possible to see some return.
With regards to Google and Android they have asked (?) manufacturers to support devices for at least 18 months with updates and such. Whether those manufacturers are timely is another issue entirely but the new initiative they're doing where partners are involved far sooner than when the code drops for all should see delays drop from the current 3 - 6 months or more we get stuck with.
I like Nexus devices for their pure Google experience but aside from the Nexus 7 they haven't exactly been leading the way in tech. terms and things like this tablet from Samsung are a welcome change.
Lots of sites add to the problem
I have a random selection of passwords I use when joining sites and I sigh heavily when I enter a password only to be told that my password must "contain numbers and letter only". If you ignore that you then run into some stupidly short 'maximum' length at around 16 characters. Remembering different passwords over numerous sites is hard enough without having to shorten what you might use on some sites.
Re: LTE
If you look at LTE phones in use in the USA they tend to be massive battery hogs. It's 3G all over again...
Booth babes != cosplay
Booth babes, generally, use outfits they're given. Cosplayers make their own stuff for the most part and put a lot of time and effort into it. As a result they enjoy showing it off by wearing it to conventions and events. I'm sure most will be used to (note: used to, not accepting of) people staring at them.
Does it give the wrong impression? I can't say for sure but I'd lean towards no. Teens will always drool over scantily clad women but I'd put that down to hormones more than anything else. Kids will see about the same on a beach on a hot day, perhaps less. Do people go to beaches to protest bikinis or demand people put more clothes on?*
I honestly don't care what anyone thinks of me and I make up my own mind. I know it's a radical idea to think I should be allowed to make up my own mind, I live life on the edge!
*Some should perhaps avoid bikinis on the beach but protesting that would be called a hate crime despite the pain it causes my eyes being dismissed.
Posted in Slim debut sales for fatter Nintendo 3DS
Nintendo in low sales of another DS rehash shocker!
"underlining the decline handheld consoles have experienced over the years"
There may well be a decline in handheld consoles but I'd put a fair amount of money on betting that is in large part down to Nintendo and their continuous stream of slight rehashes which are sold at full price, more or less, a year after the original. DS, DS Lite, DSi, DSi XL, 3DS, 3DS XL and lets not forget "now available in <different colour>!"...... The only real differing hardware in those models comes down to size, a camera and 3D. If you ignore the 3D then even the original DS can still play new games so you're essentially seeing re-releases that somehow still sell millions to the same crowd.
At least the Sony is attempting new things and the really sad thing is that they're ignored in favour of a new DS colour. I really do hope this is a sign that people are waking up to the same old tactic of new colour / bigger screen / tiny hardware addition that Nintendo have profited from for over a decade.
Re: Serious question here....
I think it's the fact that the Desktop is the option and Metro the default along with making it completely unfamiliar where things are compared to previous versions of Windows. It took me a few minutes to find out how to shut it down even after I knew it was on the right side menu slide out thing. The things like start up time may tempt me and possibly others to suffer through it but it's very much like one step forward and two back.
Something I saw coming pretty fast after the stupid decision to force Metro on every user has been produced by Stardock. I'm not sure how I feel about it since they're not going to be doing this out of the goodness of their heart but I've yet to see what they get out of it as it's a free download.
http://www.stardock.com/products/start8/
Gonna list versions and features here for anyone interested. The main one that appeals to me is having it load the Desktop by default followed closely by adding a "Run..." to the right-click menu.
Features
- Adds a “Start” menu to the Windows 8 taskbar
- Enables quick access and searching of your installed applications
- Adds Run... option via right-click menu
- Adds Shutdown... option via right-click menu
- Choose a custom Start button image
New in v0.87, July 2012
- Automatically load your Windows desktop on login (vs the start screen)
New in v0.86, March 2012
- Adds control over the "Start" menu size on the Explorer desktop
- Adds option for the "WinKey" to show fullscreen "Metro" desktop
How can I get in on this?
"Amdocs Software Systems is paying Microsoft to license undisclosed Redmond patents in a deal that "provides mutual access to each company’s patent portfolio"."
I see I'm not alone in wondering how they can do this.
"Hey, you're using our patented...... things...... we can't ... I mean we won't say what but if you don't pay us we're gonna sue you!"
I want them to try it with someone large enough to say "No, sue us." so everyone can see if they are indeed trivial or essential things. I'm betting firmly on trivial or unimportant things. Out of curiosity, if the patents were made known and were not being infringed could all the companies paying protection money then sue MS?
Posted in Android 4.1 Jelly Bean review
What's natural about Scottish accents or northern / north east accents? :>
Re: Peter2 Doesn't Know Very Much About Asperger's
Unfortunately I think this is a case of the goverment purposely picking someone they know will get it wrong like AtoSsers for all WCA medicals. Sure they *could* use an expert with relevant knowledge but that would leave them in the position of having a report showing the risk and then deporting him knowing of that risk. Of course this is just my opinion but I dare say that others will think along similar lines. Fuck this government.....
Re: Why does it take so long to get here?
Like most villains* it likes to take its time, giving you ample time to prepare for its nefarious schemes.
*I'm a ginger, it burns me all the time so it's a villain to me, ok?
Re: "Buttery smooth"
Ugh! You don't need to tell me about the stupid 'battery saving' feature that is SmartSync turning off all data at night, I brought it up with them and was told that's a feature. Yup.. even when I said not everyone works at the same time, some work nights, but that means nothing I guess. They're only interested in those day workers! I'm trying to stay with t hem because I like Sense and appreciate it more in its trim Sense 4 form but such ludicrous decisions and choices like these make me wonder. Two colour LED notification that turns off after 5 minutes (that's not mentioned anywhere.....) took me weeks of back and forth with support trying to troubleshoot before they mentioned the limit. All stupid little things in the name of battery saving.
The ImageSense chip nonsense makes me laugh too. I saw some photos that were linked to as examples from the HTC community manager (blog person) and the thumbnails looked great but the full size images were awful! Full of noise, massive amounts of detail missing and the usual HTC camera failures. When a lot of people pointed out that these were awful examples and that if these are the best it can do then it's somehow worse than older phones they removed the full size images and said better examples would be uploaded. That never happened and now owning the One X I can see that those awful images are pretty accurate unless you have near perfect lighting.
I swore off Motorola for life after owning a Milestone so it seems like I'm left with Samsung or Sony. I may reconsider Motorola at a later date with them now being Google owned depending on reviews but I doubt it.
"Buttery smooth"
I may be alone here but even as much as I like Android I'm getting a little irked at how each release is going to be "buttery smooth". Even my One X (UK Tegra 3 version) can have its moments and that was the first Sense 4 phone HTC made. I'm waiting for a stable version of CM9 before I give that a try but will these changes to the code listed really impact the experience to a buttery smooth level? I know nothing of coding but I do know what I experience.
Awww poor ATossers
As someone else already pointed out these are part of a multi-million pound contract (£300m?) company that are paid to do tick box 'medical assessments' which affect hundreds of thousands of people by robbing them of benefits. Far worse is that as a result of these McMedicals people are pushed and forced into the increasingly ludicrous jobcentre schemes, workface for example, and these 'people' are bitching about not getting a good enough pay rise? They get less than zero sympathy from me whatsoever and the idea of them sponsoring the paralympics is disgusting. I don't know why LinkOfHyrule got a downvote, perhaps it was someone that works for ATossers or believes all the lies the media like to spread.
@Ironfrost
Fair enough, I hadn't read anything beyond this article at the time. As you mention the permissions thing that is something that I think Android could do with clearing up. They already implemented an idea I had long ago about allowing automatic updates but making it manual if app permissions change, perhaps they'll take up a new idea of encouraging app makers to specify why their app needs certain permissions. I know I'd like to see why some permissions are requested even if it's short information like a camera app needing internet permission saying "Internet permission to share online" or something similar.
How many app markets?!
"The malware has already been placed in nine different third party Android app markets in China"
I know that the Play Store (hate that name....) used to have country restrictions where it wasn't available but do you really need nine in 1 country?!
With regards to the article are there any mentions of what this trojan is advertising that gets so many foo... erm.. users to download it? Free apps that cost on markets elsewhere? Porn? Those are the usual sucker-type apps. It's unfortunate but if you expect to get paid stuff for free without a catch then that's your problem.
Re: But
All are signed and locked, some manufacturers now allow you to unlock them for free. Encrypting them as well is what started a lot of people rising up against it since prior to that it was just a case of finding an exploit. It still isn't ideal unless you own a Nexus device but it shows that enough of a backlash can make them think about stupid choices. Will it affect Microshaft? I doubt it but I'm pretty confident that a way to install what you want on the ARM tablets will be found.
Posted in Panasonic Eluga DL1 waterproof Android
Re: Why is battery life not a desirable feature anymore?
In a word, Apple. Like a lot of things they do with their flashy advertising they push how thin something is like that's a feature. Sadly this leads to other manufacturers following suit and they all get stuck on this endless fashion of producing thin phones where you can do so much but doing so will kill your battery in less than a day. I know for a fact that at least HTC view this as a market trend so it's safe to assume others do too. Software optimisations can only take you so far and with higher resolution screens, multi-core CPUs and other tech. inside batteries just haven't improved as much as the rest in order to keep up.
I own an HTC One X and the battery at 1800mAh is an improvement over my Desire HD's pathetic 1230mAh but it's software tweaks (some annoying ones) that apparently help battery more than increasing the size. I'd prefer to see a combination of battery and performance tweaks because if you just keep increasing the battery you'll end up where we do with Windows requirements - they just go up and up for the same performance as last year.
One of the power saving tweaks that bothers me most is also not something you can change using the default Sense skin. When it goes past midnight all data connections are disabled until around 8am. In fairness when I wake the phone up and unlock it the data connection is usually enabled before I can launch any apps but it also means any notifications are missed. I happen to be awake a lot past midnight and I could see it being a problem for others. Some manufacturers seem to be realising that people who own a smartphone would like to be able to use it and the RAZR MAXX was the first but hopefully not the last. After all, what's the point in owning a phone that can do so much if you have to disable everything to make it last a day?
Re: You would be wrong
Ahhh fuq! Google, why?? Now I'm lighter in the .... wait no, now I'm deeper in debt. Need it? Nope, got an iPhad 3. Want it? Yes.
Sad but true..
I've run into many sites that refuse to accept a password as valid while you have special characters in it. It wouldn't be so bad but then they limit the password field to something like 12 characters so you can't even make it all that complex.
Apple ploy, iPad proximity destruct code
As the owner mentions owning an iPad I have to wonder if this is some supah sekrit, Apple patented, short range pulse wave bomb. It scans the near area pretending to look for wifi signals but if it detects iPhone beating tech. the bomb goes off.
Re: On upgrades: Well I have to give it to Apple
The Galaxy S3 will most certainly get the next version of Android. To think otherwise is just looking for reasons to bash Android and Samsung. Yes, Apple may do better with updating their products but it isn't like they have a large product line to support. Most Android manufacturers are now supporting devices for 18 months which is a step up from what it used to be but if they don't you can usually fall back to the community produced ROMs. It isn't an ideal option but it's still an option you won't get with Apple or MS.
Re: excellent for devs....
I'm guessing you don't know that this is to prevent programs breaking that rely on OS version numbers. I don't understand it fully but it's something along the lines of programs only working on version 6.x and if they released Windows 7 as version 7.x it would break a lot of them for no good reason.
No WinPho 8 on existing hardware? Thanks for that.
I don't know where to begin. Nokia and MS made a big deal out of getting the Lumia line out there after other manufacturers struggled to make a dent in the market and as a 'thank you' for buying into the Windows Phone market MS now says existing customers won't be getting the new version. Nice way to build your customer base MS!
Isn't this like saying they knew WinPho7 wasn't good enough but they wanted something in the market that wasn't Windows Mobile until they could decide on a better strategy? Regardless, what's to say next year they won't do the same with Windows Phone 9? They can offer all the promises they want but the chances are, at least in the US, that most who did buy into it will be stuck using a dead end OS and at upgrade time (or before!) will be going elsewhere. You can say what you like about Android but almost any mid-range handset released in the last few months will get the next update. Can you say the same about Nokia's? No. In fact all current Windows Phone handsets are now boned the same way Symbian was with the Nokia announcement.
This next bit I'm talking about something I don't know so this is questionable and open to correction. Doesn't having the same kernel on a phone and your main OS make it easier for malware and viruses to spread to / via phones? That was the first thing I thought when I saw they'll be using the same kernel. If so doesn't that just scream of more bad decisions? As stated, I'm clueless about this so open to correction.
Strange to think Nokia killed Symbian and other projects to concentrate on Windows Phone 7 handsets for MS and now MS have effectively killed Windows Phone 7 handsets and all of Nokia's current lineup when it seemed to be gaining traction. No wonder MS were so quiet over updating to 8 on current handsets, they've likely been dreading this information coming out.
@Fibbles
Actually he asked where he could share photos to a strict set of people, I gave a suggestion that allows that. I make no claims to know what Google plan if it ever becomes more widespread than it is currently and I rarely use it myself.
Re: The figures are real - Mark told us
I believe you mean "they're" :>
Google+ will allow that. It's such a shame they launched so late in the game that people are too attached to Farcebook to change or are against it for not being Facebore / another social network / Google.
Galaxy S Advance vs One V? Fair? No.
Forewarning I prefer HTC handsets but I also know an unfair comparison when I see one.
If you want to compare similarly priced phones a better comparison would probably have been the Galaxy S Advance and the HTC Sensation XE. The One V is the budget handset of the One series whereas the Galaxy S Advance is an updated former flagship phone so comparing them, despite both being new and costing similar amounts per month, is hardly a fair comparison. The Sensation XE is a dual-core phone, it has a qHD resolution and has a larger capacity battery. I have nothing against the Galaxy S Advance but come on, be fair.
Posted in Apple's Retina Macs: A little too elite?
Re: Windows 8 does
I would hope Windows 8 can scale up. I mean scaling tiles up shouldn't be that difficult.
Posted in Google to axe Meebo apps on 11 July
Re: Toolbars? We don't need no stinkin' toolbars!
It isn't a toolbar you install, it's one of those "oh hey you're on our site, here's a toolbar to help you get spammed with ads!" toolbars. The clearest way to see it, should you wish to, is to go to either justin.tv or twitch.tv where it's at the bottom of the screen. A combination of NoScript and Adblock Plus has always kept it at bay.
@ukgnome Real names, real people!
I find it hard to believe for one crystal clear reason. I have an account with the name of the famous East European poet Goan Fuqurselv. I was tempted to go with the German Hanz Up but it wasn't the mood I was going for at the time.
S3 didn't impress me
I'm an owner of the HTC One X and at the time I got it one of the thoughts I had was along the lines of, "I wonder if I should wait for the S3." I've owned three HTC phones, that includes the One X, and I'm a fan of the Sense overlay they use in general but if a rival handset came out that was unbeatable I would likely jump at the chance to own it. Compared to a stock Android experience Sense adds quite a bit although prior to Sense 4 the home screen wasted a lot of space on three, non-customisable buttons.
Unfortunately for Samsung their big S3 launch spectacle was just that, a spectacle. Nothing on their new phone made me go, "Wow! That's going to sell millions." I can still see it being a popular phone just as the S2 and original Galaxy S were but it isn't going to tempt me from a phone I'm very fond of now. The biggest stand out feature to me is one that I can easily see being somewhat widespread in a year and that's the one that keeps the screen on while you're looking at it.
I don't see non-Samsung Android owners looking at it and being all that impressed. It feels very much like the iPhone 4S in terms of slight updates in specs compared to the previous release. One thing I don't see mentioned anywhere is what happens if Apple lose their cases. Are they made to compensate HTC, Samsung etc for lost revenue, missed sales targets and share price loss?
Metro for servers too..
I read the other day that Windows Server 8 / 2012 is going to have the Metro UI too with it being the only option for a graphical interface. The same article also mentioned MS removed legacy parts so the old, familiar desktop can't be put back in by users.
Just how stupid do you have to be to force not only desktop users but also server admins. to use a touch driven interface? I can just see it now..... network and server admins. flocking to the new version and loving the interface. Flocking to the new version of Linux or UNIX I mean.
Posted in Amazon's Lovefilm HD shuns Sony fanboys
"And we don't currently have studio rights to stream HD on iPad®."
"And we don't currently have studio rights to stream HD on iPad®."
And the movie industry wonder why people pirate stuff... why the hell do you need a separate set of rights to stream on a different device? Is this just an excuse from LoveFilm or are the studios really that greedy?
@Ben Naylor
*WHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSSHHHHHH!!!!*
Posted in Apple's Ping has fatal pong, says CEO
*coughsplutter* Hahahhaha! Good one..
Wait... you're serious?! In your opinion a big grid of small icons is dated but a small grid of big icons, sorry 'live' tiles, isn't? Ignoring the laughable excuse for notifications of "30 minutes background updates or nothing!" I know Windows Phone is relatively slick but background tasks, app switching etc is far from fluid. The lack of customisation is jarring too and I just can't get used to it. iPhone is what it is and that's pretty simple to use but again that comes at the price of customisation. Relatively recent features like having different wallpapers and the copie.... I mean innovative new notifications, add to it but it still lags far behind what Android offers.
To clarify my opinion I prefer Android and own several Android phones with the latest being the One X, a budget Android tablet with ICS hacked onto it (Advent Vega), a Samsung Omnia 7 with Mango on it, a 1st gen. iPod Touch and the 'new' iPad. No single device is perfect and I can say that even with my preference for Android.
