Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 11S review

The Lenovo Ideapad Yoga 11S is an ultra-flexible and powerful laptop with the option to convert into various different modes, making it a close to ideal hybrid laptop.

Pros:

High-end design, sturdy build quality, full version of Windows 8, supports full Microsoft Office suite, good flexibility

Cons:

Battery life could be better, no Intel Haswell support

Overall Rating:

Price: £700
Manufacturer: Lenovo

Specifications :

Model: Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 11S
Display: 11.6in 1080p (1366x768) touchscreen
Processor: Third-generation Intel Core i3
Memory: 4GB DDR3
Storage: 128GB SSD
Wireless connections: 802.11a/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth
Ports: 1x USB 3.0, 2x USB 2.0, HDMI-out, headset jack (Ethernet via USB adapter)
Dimensions: 298x204x17mm
Weight: 1.39kg

Atiz Scandock for iOS and Android review

The Yoga 11S is Lenovos first ever "mini ultrabook" and the latest addition to its IdeaPad Yoga lineup, giving the previous 11in Yoga model a performance boost with a choice of third-generation Intel Core processors running Windows 8, as opposed to an ARM chip with Windows RT.
The original Ideapad Yoga 11 didnt impress, with a major lack of apps and application programs available to download onto it, such as Spotify and Google Chrome, and running the more basic Windows RT. However, with the same design and featuring the full version of Windows 8, the Yoga 11S should move beyond the shortcomings of the original Yoga 11.

Display

As with its less-powerful sibling, the IdeaPad Yoga 11S has an 11.6in IPS HD graphics multitouch display with 1366x768 resolution. In the same way that we found with the Yoga 11, HD movies look brilliantly clear and vibrant.
We think the native resolution of 1366x768 is just about right for an 11in display, giving it plenty of screen real estate without making on-screen text appear too small. Pixels arent visible unless you look closely and viewing angles are good, with moving images appearing sharp.

Touchscreen commands are very fluid and the Yoga 11S responds to them rapidly. We enjoyed using the touchscreen to skip between tabs and apps, which is a rarity in Windows 8.
The brightness of the Yoga 11S is similar to that of the Yoga 11 and doesnt match the level of brightness of its 13in counterpart, the Yoga 13. Nevertheless, it is bright enough for general day-to-day use, with the picture quality at a good level in a wide range of lighting conditions, even bright sunlight.
We used the Yoga 11S in a garden with sun directly overhead and we were still able to read what was on the screen, although as suspected, movies did look washed out.

Best tablet 2013: Techradar top 10 ranking

Build quality

The Yoga 11S appears to have top-notch build quality. It has a smart look and thanks to the soft-textured material covering the outside of the chassis – also used on the Yoga 11 and the Yoga 13 – it feels luxurious as well. This not only allows for a better grip but also gives it a very comfortable feel.
We found that the silver-grey finish is stylish but also simple enough to complement other devices you might want to use alongside it.

The good build quality of the Yoga 11S makes it feel sturdy. Both the keyboard and the screen feel robust, despite the Yoga 11S having a slim construction, measuring 298x204x17mm. For example, we could twist the display in opposite directions at both sides with it suffering no apparent damage.
Weighing just short of 1.4kg, the Yoga 11S is slightly heavier than its predecessor, which weighed 1.2kg, but it makes up for this added weight with its more powerful internal components, running the full version of Windows 8. It also weighs about the same as most other ultrabooks on the market presently.

One thing worth noting is that although the Yoga feels relatively lightweight in notebook mode, it can feel a bit heavy when its folded 360 degrees to use as a tablet. On the other hand, there arent many 11in tablets out there, so perhaps its just the case that there are few models to compare it with, besides the more popular 7in and 10in tablets that dominate the market.

Design

What makes the IdeaPad Yoga 11S stand out from many other Intel ultrabooks on the market is its 360-degree hinge. This flexibility makes it superior to many other 11in laptops out there, as the Yogas simple design enables it to be used in a number of ways. Users can rotate the display back from "notebook mode" into either "tent mode", which allows the Yoga to be stood on its two parts so it can be watched on uneven surfaces; "stand mode", which enables the screen to be viewed while being supported by the keyboard; or "tablet mode", where the bottom of the keyboard and lid meet so it can be used as a tablet.

BlackBerrys ripe for the picking as Apple falls far from the tree

For us, "stand mode" proved to be the best for viewing movies, as it meant the keyboard was tucked away and out of sight with the display propped up and tilted to a desirable viewing angle. We used the notebook mode the most, as this is the traditional laptop configuration.

Tablet mode proved great for watching movies on public transport, but those used to an Android tablet or iPad will probably find the Yoga 11S is a little thick in tablet mode due to its built-in keyboard. Tent mode proved to be the least useful of the four modes the Yoga 11S is capable of flexing into, as we found no real need for it.

Lenovo has built an accelerometer into the Yoga 11S so that the screen can detect what position its in, landscape or portrait, and rotate accordingly. When in tablet mode, the Yoga 11S can be controlled manually via physical volume keys on the side as well as a start button on the front, so you dont have to open it up and control it using the keyboard.

 Next: Keyboard, performance and operating system  V3

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Nexus 7 review

While everyone waited on an iPad mini 2 with retina, Google and Asus went ahead and did one better. Presenting the new Nexus 7, an affordable 7-inch tablet with beefy specs and more pixels per inch than you can shake a 1080p jpeg at.
Whether you call it the Nexus 7 2 or just the Nexus 7, it hurdles right over the iPad mini in both parts and price. For just a little more money, it offers a lot more functionality than a Kindle Fire HD. It so surpasses the original Nexus 7 that Google has swept last years tablet under the rug; it seems to be retired from the Play Store altogether.

Internally, the new Nexus 7 packs a 1.5Ghz quad core processor, 2GB of RAM and comes with either 16GB or 32GB of storage. Those models go for $229/£200 and $269/£240, and theres also an LTE version selling for $300, but its fate in European markets seems unclear, and weve yet to get word on Australian pricing.
While microSD slots now feel like a relic of a bygone era, since neither Nexus nor Apple devices offer them, we have to bemoan storage space a bit here. The Android 4.3: Jelly Bean OS found on the Nexus 7 takes up a whopping 6GB. Our 32GB tablet came out of the box with 26GB available. Those planning to go for the 16GB model need to brace for having only 10GB to play with.

Still, no matter how you slice it, the Nexus 7 is a lot of great tablet hardware for the money, all packed in unassuming, plastic package. That pockmarked white rubber backing from the first Nexus 7 has been ditched, replaced with an all plastic black backing. It doesnt feel as slick or look as premium as the metal backing of an iPad, but itll surely hold up against scratches better than Apples tablet.
Price separates the new Nexus 7 and the iPad mini, as do their different aspect ratios. Apples 7-inch tablet is 4:3, while the Nexus 7 is the more film friendly 16:9. So while the mini is wider, that extra screen space usually fills with black bars when watching movies or reading comics; not so with the new Nexus.

Not as wide as an iPad mini, the Nexus 7 is easier to hold in one hand. That, combined with its pixel dense 323 ppi display make it great for reading. Text is newspaper crisp, and so far weve seen it do an excellent job of regulating screen brightness, though were looking forward to testing it in direct sunlight.
The Nexus 7s skinny design and cinematic aspect ratio does leave it with a ton of bezel. On a small 7-inch display, that feels like wasted space, but at 16:9, the device would need to widen in order to accommodate a taller screen, so its a bit of an impasse.

Although it leaked weeks ago, this new Nexus 7 is the debut device for Android 4.3, the latest iteration of Jelly Bean. Its mostly minor tweaks, not the sort of major overhaul that comes with a new dessert name, like Key Lime Pie.
Among Android 4.3s few notable new features you have separate user accounts. At the tablets lock screen, youre able to choose from different profiles all with their own login pins. These accounts can be setup with restricted access, letting an admin user pick and choose which apps other accounts have access to. Its a nice feature is you plan to share the tablet with a child.

In basic performance, the Nexus 7 is extremely snappy. Moving across home screens is like butter, and switching between apps is nearly instantaneous. The only hiccup weve seen is stuttering while scrolling in Chrome, something Android has never been able to iterate away.

Early verdict ---> Read the rest of this post --->

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Sony Xperia Z Review

Smartphone screens have become increasingly larger, for a good reason. You can now do a lot more things with the smartphone: surf the web, interact with your social network, play games, watch high-definition videos, listen to music. Sonys latest Android smartphone, the Xperia Z, can do all these and more: it is also water and dust resistant.

Xpera Z Specs:

• 1.5 GHz Qualcomm APQ8064+MDM9215M
• 2GB RAM, 16GB Internal Memory
• MicroSD card slot
• 5" TFT Full HD 1080x1920
• 13MP rear camera, 2MP front camera
• 2330mAh non-removable battery
• 139 x 71 x 7.9 mm
• 146g
• Android Jellybean 4.1.2
• LTE, HSPA+, GPRS/EDGE
• Bluetooth 4.0, DLNA, NFC, aGPS, GLONASS, MHL, USB-OTG
• Uses MicroSIM card

Sony has promoted the Xperia Z as "the best of Sony in a smartphone", and in general I believe it is so. The Xperia Z is certainly one of the better smartphones that offers a good list of features that benefits the end-users. The Quadrant benchmark hits an impressively high 7451 points.

Design First

The Sony Xperia Z is obviously built to look good, not feel good. Its squarish design is in stark contrast with the numerous competitive models out there with smooth curves. Glass panels cover most of the phone while the corners and edges are fused with matt rubber material to add ruggedness and durability, which I feel would ensure the phone can withstand a few drops.

All the connector ports are well-concealed with caps that are blended into the design, you wouldnt even notice it. The covers are a necessity to provide the Xperia Z its much-needed water-proofing. This might prove to be inconvenient if you use the ports regularly, like plugging in your headphones or charging the phone.

The most prominent feature of the Xperia Z must be the power button, placed almost midway along the sides of the phone. This placement provides greater accessibility to the button, and its physical prominence means I will be able to find the button just by feeling it. The volume rocker buttons, located just below the power button, is another well-thought design, for its length is long enough to prevent any mis-presses.

Features That I Like
Connectivity - With MHL, USB-OTG, micro SD card slot, and various other Sony-branded wireless sharing features, the Xperia Z has no problems sharing content by means of file transfer or display mirroring. Plug the phone via USB to your PC and you can access the internal memory for ease of data transfer.

Walkman-inside - Xperia Z is now more music-friendly. Its Walkman app offers some audio enhancement features which I feel works well and does not give a distorted audio experience like many other players. I can also control my player from the lockscreen and dropdown notification screen. The Xperia Z comes bundled with the earphones MH-EX300AP which delivers rather decent audio quality: flat response with slight treble bias, moderate mid-range, faithful bass. It is lightweight and does not exhibit cable rub noise when moving.

Sadly, I cannot say the same for the phone speakers, which produces uninspiring quality and lacks volume. Nevertheless, credit has to be given to Sony design team for placing the speakers at the side instead of the rear, so the phone remains audible even when placed on flat surfaces.

Mini Apps - Sony is not the first to support apps that run as a floating window, but Sony allows you to download these Mini Apps from the Google Play store and expand the app list. With Mini Apps, I can run apps like Calculator, Voice Recorder, Unit Converter, Notes, and even Camera, as a floating window. But only one Mini App can be run at one time.

Preinstalled Sony Apps - In general, the preinstalled apps in the Xperia Z is are functional and good-looking, and somewhat reminds me of Microsoft Windows 8 look. The Album app allows you to change the thumbnail size just by swiping left or right, and has a globe view of your images tagged with location data. The Sony Car app provides large icons for you to press when behind the wheels. The Socialife app brings all your social feeds into a single app. The TrackID helps you find the songs that are played over the air.


Full HD Screen
2013 is the year of full-HD screen. Sony Xperia Z is one of the first smartphones to do that and more will follow.

Looking at the images, there is no doubt that with the higher pixels per inch (ppi), you will enjoy smoother images, sharper text. The fact is that it really doesnt make a lot of difference to casual users.

While Sony Xperia Zs full HD resolution offers remarkably smoother image quality, it suffers from contrast distortion when changing viewing angles. Also, its Mobile Bravia Engine 2 is not recommended if you do not like over-saturated images. Another annoying fact is that the glass screen is a dust and fingerprint magnet, plus with its gloss surface, perhaps you might want to invest in a screen protector.

Camera: 13 Megapixels
Another norm for smartphones of 2013 is higher camera pixel count. Upon close comparative scrutiny with the Samsung Galaxy S3, I find that the Sony Xperia Z loses slightly in the area of shadow details and sharpness. Under harsh lighting, the camera exhibits colour aberration (i.e. purple fringing). But as long as you do not scrutinise the images under high amplification, the images are highly usable with rather accurate colour capture.

The app is also thwarted with slow startup that made me miss some important shooting moments, and shutter lag caused by re-focusing during every shot.

But I like the ability to shoot either still image or video from the same screen, without having to change modes. The camera also displays previously shot images in small thumbnails which you can either collapse or long-press to manage the images.


Its a Sony
Sony Xperia Z is an engineering feat. You will never imagine it to be water resistant of up to 1 metre, and yet still look so gorgeous. You could never tell its display is a full HD 1920x1080 resolution, with every image appearing sharp and natural. Its skinned UI is sleek and beautifully animated and designed. There are plenty of Sony-proprietary features to improve user experience, like integration with PlayStation, content mirroring, downloadable Small Apps that runs as floating windows. Indeed, the Xperia Z has the Sony DNA imprinted in every inch of the device, and I think that is a very good thing. There are areas that make me like the Xperia Z less, but on the whole it is a beautiful smartphone to use. Based on market sentiments, Sony has delivered a desirable Android smartphone that will find its way into the hands - and the hearts - of the masses.


This review is also published on XINMSN and StarHub Community.

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Samsung might unveil its rumored 10 1 Amoled tablet next month

If a new report from South Korean ETNews is to be believed, Samsung may be close to releasing a new
10.5-inch tablet as early as January next year.

Unlike the plethora of currently available tablets from the electronics giant, the new slate is expected to make a return to AMOLED panels after a long hiatus that started with the release of the 2011 Galaxy Tab 7.7. The report actually rung quite a few bells, as weve been hot on the heels of as many as four Samsung tablets, all of which are supposedly to be unleashed on the market in the upcoming year. These will range from 7 all the way up to a whopping 13.3convertible, and all but the smallest one are expected to ship packing the typical for Samsung AMOLED screens. Unfortunately, if this turns out to be true, it actually rules out the possibility for one of those sweet, super-crisp 4K (3840x2160) panels, courtesy of Japan Display.

Whether Samsungs new crop of tablets turn out to match the above description or not is actually of no difference, as its more than likely that the company will continue its surge in the space, especially now that tablets are truly starting to take over.PhoneArena

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Install Adobe Flash Player in Samsung Galaxy Ace

Want to enjoy Adobe Flash Player on your Samsung Galaxy Ace ? Now i will show a simple tutorial so you can install it right now in a few steps.

Despite having more than two years in the market, the Galaxy Ace is still a very popular device. As you all know, even though new versions are coming out, Adobe has stopped supporting Flash Player for Android. However, this application is still required to run a lot of games and applications.

So today i will show how to install Adobe Flash Player in Galaxy Ace .

How to Install Adobe Flash Player in Samsung Galaxy Ace

It is clear that for this process need to be root.

Before I leave the links of the tools you need: Flash Player and any file manager for root users, here are two of the most popular but you can use whatever you like.

• Download Flash Player (APK)

• Download Root Explorer (Google Play)

• Download Root Browser (Google Play)

Once you have downloaded Flash Player and the file manager can begin.

1 - The first thing to do is install Flash Player as any APK (remember to have enabled Unknown Sources option to install apps that are not from Google Play).

2 - Then copy the 4 files that have been installed: libflashplayer.so; libstagefright_froyo.so; libstagefright_honeycomb.so; libisshared.so. beam Once copied, you must go to the root folder of the phone and follow this path: Data -> data -> com.adobe.flashplayer -> lib . Once there, copy the four files.

3 - Then, you must enable the permissions as shown in the video below (minute 1:50) in each of the four.

4 - Ready! Now you can enjoy your Flash Player in Galaxy Ace !

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10 biggest tech gambles ever made the winners and losers

In Depth The highest highs and lowest lows ever seen in technology

 

Without risk-takers, we wouldnt have the technologies we love today: the history of technology is littered with great leaps forward that could all too easily have been massive disasters.
Theres a flipside to that, of course: the history of technology is also littered with massive disasters that could all too easily have been great leaps forward.

So which were the smartest bets, and the stupidest? Whose leaps of faith ended in applause while others ended in ignominy? Lets discover the tech firms that bet the farm - not just the big winners, but the ones that lost more than their shirts.

Those that beat the house

Apple iPad

When Apple unveiled the iPad nobody was entirely sure what it was for. "Like 800 people are going to buy the iPad," CNet predicted. "It was [just] a bigger iPod touch," said Nintendo president Satoru Iwata. "Apple may have lost its mojo," said FoxNews.com. "No Flash," pointed out the Huffington Post. Somehow the iPad managed to overcome such major flaws and define a new category of computing, destroying netbooks and seriously denting the PC market too.

Microsoft Xbox

Microsofts 2001 console was a money pit - according to Venturebeat, Microsoft lost $3.7 billion on the original Xbox by 2005 - but Microsoft continued to chuck cash at the gaming division until it finally started making a profit. Microsofts entertainment and devices division is now a multi-billion dollar business.
 
Nokia embracing Windows Phone

In 2011, Nokia bet the farm on Windows Phone. Get it right and Nokia would be a player again; get it wrong and it would be night-night Nokia. Did it work? Nokia accounts for four-fifths of Windows Phone sales, and Blackberrys ongoing decline means that Windows Mobile is indeed the third mobile ecosystem Nokia promised it would be - so the gamble to save the company seems to have paid off.
 
Heavy Rain

It isnt the most expensive game ever made - thats GTA V, which cost an estimated $137 million - but Heavy Rain wasnt a guaranteed blockbuster like GTA. It cost $16.7 million to make, rising to more than $40 million once marketing and distribution costs were included, and you can be sure that the games release was squeaky-bum time for Sony. Heavy Rain made over $100 million.
 
Apple Stores

Apple? Shops? Hahahaha! TheStreet.com said it was "desperation time in Cupertino... Apple products are not getting the retailers attention... because they are not selling well." BusinessWeeks take was typical: "Jobs thinks he can do a better job than experienced retailers". But Jobs was right, and by 2012 Apple Stores were making more money per square foot than any other US retailer.

Read the rest of this post -----> See the losers!

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Apple Offers Trade In Program for Third Party iPhone iPad Adapters

Apple on Monday detailed a new program where owners of third-party iPhone, iPod and iPad adapters can trade their products in for an Apple charger for $10 — roughly half the typical price of a new Apple charger.

“Recent reports have suggested that some counterfeit and third party adapters may not be designed properly and could result in safety issues,” Apple said on a website announcing the program. “While not all third party adapters have an issue, we are announcing a USB Power Adapter Takeback Program to enable customers to acquire properly designed adapters.”

 Read the rest of this post ----->

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