STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Nokia, HTC expected to lead a busy field for new mobile device launches at Mobile World CongressSamsung’s Galaxy S III will remain under wraps as Korean manufacturer focuses on tabletsSony and Motorola’s plans remain a mystery ahead of Barcelona event

Editor’s note: Technology journalist Stuart Miles is CEO and founder of gadget review website Pocket-lint. He can be found tweeting at @stuartmiles

(CNN) — Mobile World Congress is the world’s largest mobile phone trade show, held every year in Barcelona. It is the venue for manufacturers like Nokia, HTC, LG, and Samsung to reveal the must-have mobile devices and services of the year.

This year is likely to be no different with huge launches expected from all the major players except Apple.

So what can we expect? Some phone makers have already announced their MWC line up, some have hinted, others have been rumored. Talking to sources, joining the dots, and getting the word on the street, this is what is expected at the show:

NokiaNokia is rumored to be launching a number of handsets at MWC this year. Some will focus on emerging markets (Brazil, Russia, India, and China), while the others, the developed ones. The phones you are most likely to be interested in will be a European version of the recently announced Nokia Lumia 900, and a low end Lumia; the Nokia Lumia 610. Both models will work with Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 operating system.

HTCWe are anticipating three handsets from the Taiwanese company; The HTC One X, The HTC One S, and the HTC One V. The top-of-the-range One X will feature the new Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core processor and run Android, while Pocket-lint has confirmed with sources that the One V will be a music-focused device aimed at men and similar to the more female friendly (if that is possible) HTC Rhyme that is already on the market.

SamsungAlthough Samsung was expected to launch the Samsung Galaxy S III at MWC this year, the company has now confirmed that it won’t. With a number of pre-MWC launches already detailed, Samsung is expected instead to focus on tablets at the show. If rumors are to be believed, it will launch a 10.1-inch version of the Samsung Galaxy Note announced in September 2011. The difference from all the other tablets it sells? It will have a built-in stylus.

LGFollowing Samsung’s lead with the Galaxy Note, LG has announced its LG Optimus Vu prior to the show. A cross between a phone and a tablet, it will measure 139.6mm x 90.mm, meaning it’s going to be one for those with huge hands and huge pockets. There are also rumors that the company will announce a follow up to the LG Optimus 2X called the 3X. Expect it to have a quad-core processor too.

Research In MotionBlackBerry maker RIM has stated that there will be no new hardware at the show this year, but that it will be showing off the new PlayBook 2.0 operating system and the software operating system, BB OS 10, that it hopes will power its new phones expected later in the year.

PanasonicHaving just announced a new waterproof and dustproof phone called the Eluga, Panasonic has also confirmed it has a second handset in the pipeline to launch at MWC. It will feature a dual-core processor, OLED screen and will run Android.

FujitsuJapanese brand Fujitsu has confirmed that it will be launching phones in Europe following its success in Japan. The company has yet to announce which models it will be bringing the continent, however the smart money is on the waterproof quad-core Tegra 3 powered Android smartphone it announced at CES in Las Vegas in January.

Sony (aka Sony Ericsson)Trying to pinpoint a Sony phone destined for Mobile World Congress is as hard as Sony Ericsson’s transitions to Sony. We are anticipating a European launch for the already announced (at CES) Sony Ericsson Xperia S though. Rumors and leaked world wide web pics suggest maybe a larger screen version too, as well as an array of other Android devices.

source : www.cnn.com

Date: February 22, 2012

We spend a lot of time covering MFPs/AIOs in this blog space, but we realize that sometimes you just need to print, and thats all. Among the printers announced back in September 2011, youll find the Officejet Pro 8100, a single function inkjet with ultra-fast printing. Maximum output speed on this device is 20 ISO ppm for black and 16 ISO ppm for color pages. It is about average size at 19.45 x 25.43 x 11.18 (WxDxH) and weighs under 25 lbs.

As part of HPs ePrint family of products, this Wi-Fi connected unit is compatible with Apples AirPrint. Users can simply email their print jobs from any mobile device, or use a mobile app to print. If you dont want to connect wirelessly, you can share it over a network via Ethernet, or use it as a standalone printer connected to your computer via USB 2.0. The Officejet Pro 8100 comes with a 250-sheet capacity input tray, as well as automatic, two-sided printing. The unit also features an intuitive graphic interface for working with the machines settings and the like.

There are two options with the four-cartridge ink system featured in the Officejet Pro 8100. Depending on how much you print, you can select from either four standard capacity (though still impressive) cartridges which have capacities of 1,000 pages and 700 pages for black and color respectively; or if you print a lot, there are four high-capacity cartridges which have yields of 2300 pages and 1500 pages.

Overall, if you need a single-function inkjet with the speed and quality of a laser at the cost of an inkjet, this could well be your answer. With a maximum duty cycle of 25K pages a month, this printer should be able to handle nearly anything you can throw at it.

Need a new printer? We suggest Amazon.RATING: 3.5 stars DETAILS: Color Inkjet AIO COST: $99.99

BY ADAM HAIGH, Editor

source : www.castleink.com

As many people know or quickly find out, backing up a computer can be a painfully slow process. This week, I tested a computer-backup system that requires minimal effort and works in the background to automatically back up files: CrashPlan. This appropriately named program is made by Code 42 Software, a Minneapolis-based company.

CrashPlan works with all types of operating systems and lets users back up to remote servers in the cloud and/or other computers or hard drives, like another PC they own or one belonging to a good friend or family member (as long as they give permission). The system also sets no restrictions on file size.

On a typical home Internet connection, the back-up process to a CrashPlan remote server could take several days or even weeks for a first-time backup. (After that, backups are much faster and happen unnoticed.) The first-time back-up for one of my laptops with about 46 gigabytes of data had been running almost continuously for three days when I filed this column on Tuesday. After the initial backup, regular backups won’t take almost as long. CrashPlan has a mobile app that works on Apple’s iPad, iPhone and iPod touch, Android and Windows Phone 7, allowing remote access to backed-up files.

The free version of CrashPlan enables a daily back-up to other computers and hard drives but not to Code 42’s remote servers. The subscription-based CrashPlan+ will back up to the remote servers as well as other computers or hard drives. It can back up as often as once a minute and lets users select what data to back up where.

CrashPlan+ comes in three payment plans, each with its own tiered rates — from a month-to-month option to a four-year subscription. For each of the three plans, the four-year subscription is the least costly at $70, or about $1.50 a month per computer for up to 10 gigabytes of data; $140 or $3 monthly per computer for unlimited storage; and $288 or $6 monthly for up to 10 computers and unlimited storage. The company offers a free 30-day trial.

I got started by downloading the software to my MacBook, creating an account and starting the initial backup. A scan of my data took a few minutes before the actual back-up began. Using my Verizon DSL connection over Wi-Fi, the estimates of how long it would take changed dramatically by the second. I saw estimates of as much as 17.5 days and as tiny as 6.6 hours.

I also downloaded CrashPlan onto my office Windows PC, which has a fast, hard-wired Ethernet connection. I logged into my account and opted to back up a folder of pics that was roughly 16 gigabytes. The estimate for this back-up was a tiny over one day, though I didn’t adjust CrashPlan settings to get the fastest transfer on this PC. In a easy menu, I could opt to back up the Windows PC to my MacBook as well as to remote servers — or just to the MacBook alone. On my MacBook, I made sure to adjust the settings to get the fastest speed possible for my giant backup.

Code 42 CEO Matthew Dornquast stated the worst-case scenario speeds are initially displayed, but that these adjust down as time goes on. In my experience, the initial estimates didn’t change much.

CrashPlan backs up your newest files first on the assumption those mean the most to you, and it encrypts all files, so file names can’t be read on remote servers or back-up computers. I liked CrashPlan’s straightforward user interface because it clearly showed me what my data were doing and where it was being stored. A section labelled “Destinations” let me select where data was backed up and options included “CrashPlan Central” (remote servers), “Friend,” “Another Computer” or “Folder.” A section labelled “Files” showed exactly what was being stored; in my case, this meant 285,930 files. An “Inbound” section showed any computers that were using my computer for backup.

In settings, users can opt to be emailed or even sent direct messages via Twitter that tell them the latest back-up status. This is helpful if you’re only backing up to, say, one other PC in your house and that PC fails to back up.

In addition to over-the-air backups, CrashPlan users with a lot of data, very tiny patience or both may want to try an alternate option. For $125 (including shipping both ways) and a monthly fee for remote storage, the company will send a one-terabyte hard drive that can be loaded with data and mailed back. Once that massive block of data is initially stored on remote servers, regular backups won’t take almost as long.

To get data back, a “Restore to Your Door” feature will send you a hard drive filled with your data so you can load it onto a new computer. This also costs $125 (with shipping both ways) and the monthly cost of remote storage.

Compared with competitors, CrashPlan fares well. For example, CrashPlan doesn’t limit upload or download speeds, while Carbonite limits upload speeds for massive amounts of data after a certain amount has been backed up, further slowing the process. Mozy supports external drives, but this back-up is deleted if the drive is disconnected or turned off for more than 30 days. CrashPlan keeps the back-up indefinitely, waiting for the drive to be reconnected.

source : allthingsd.com

PlayStation games will soon be coming to HTC handsets, according to a new report.

Gadget review site Pocket-lint.com claims that an announcement on the collaboration could be made at the forthcoming Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona.

It would make HTC one of the first companies to get certification from Sony, which the manufacturer stated “will offer necessary support, including development support and logo licensing, to ensure the delivery of quality PlayStation experiences across various devices”.

For HTC owners, PlayStation certification would give them the opportunity to play classic PSOne games, including Crash Bandicoot, on their smartphone.

When Pocket-lint.com spoke to HTC it said: “[We] can’t comment on rumours or speculation.”

The MWC is taking place at the Fira Montjuic in Barcelona between Monday February 27th and Thursday March 1st 2012.

Industry reports suggest that the ‘Windows 8 Consumer Preview’ will also be launched at the event. 

source : www.bcs.org

R. Arranz | 13 febrero 2012 | 14:00

Todos los smartphones actuales integran grandes pantallas. Pero todo tiene su lado negativo, la cantidad de grasa y marcas de dedos que se quedan sobre su superficie. La empresa WipeCoin ha encontrado una curiosa solución para el iPhone 4 y 4S.

La empresa WipeCoin ha diseñado y fabricado (íntegramente en Alemania) un par de carcasas para el iPhone 4 y el iPhone 4S que, además de proteger la estructura externa, llevan un singular apéndice en la parte inferior izquierda. Gracias a la página web Gadget Review sabemos de la existencia de este accesorios que, como carcasa, protege los bordes y la parte posterior del smartphone de Apple, dejando libre el logotipo de la manzana mordida en la parte trasera, y todos los botones y entradas físicas que tiene el iPhone en sus laterales. Lo curioso de este invento está en la esquina inferior izquierda, una especie de apéndice circular que en un principio es difícil imaginar cuál es su función, así que os dejamos el vídeo para que toméis nota.

Tal y como muestras las imágenes, con un dedo podemos extraer una especie de pieza de plástico en forma de moneda. En la parte inferior, la que que toca la superficie de la pantalla, lleva un paño de microfibra antibacteriana (sin productos químicos) que permite la limpieza de toda la zona frontal, incluyendo las esquinas, para dejar el terminal sin una sola huella dactilar y sin restos de grasa de nuestros dedos. Cuando hemos realizado la operación de limpieza, volvemos a llevar la pieza a su sitio donde queda perfectamente encajada. La parte de microfibra que toca con la superficie de la pantalla se puede lavar –en la página del fabricante recomiendan a mano con agua y jabón– y también hay posibilidad de adquirir repuestos (de manera individual o en paquetes de 3 o 9 piezas) cuando ya tiene mucho uso y está desgastada.

Esta peculiar carcasa con el accesorio de limpieza de WipeCoin está disponible en blanco o negro para que haga juego con los colores de los iPhone y se puede adquirir por Internet en Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk y Amazon.de. El precio ronda las 20 libras, unos 24 euros.

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source : www.movilzona.es

Date: February 11, 2012

If you are looking for a new printer for your home office or your small office, the Epson WorkForce 845 definitely warrants consideration. It is a fully-featured, sub-$200 4-in-1 device with the capability to print, scan, copy, and fax. With up to 15.0 ISO ppm print speed, it is also among the fastest inkjets available at this price point, rivaling even laser printers for speed and quality. It measures 17.6″ x 22.3″ x 12.3″ (W x D x H) and weighs 22lbs.

For starters, the WorkForce 845 comes with a very large, 7.8 touch panel which intelligently only illuminates the buttons you need for the mode you are in. In the middle of the touch panel is a 3.5 LCD which grants you to preview pics before printing them among other things. It also is compatible with Epson Connect which enables users to print via the cloud from a variety of mobile devices. There are several memory card slots as well as a USB port for printing direct from memory cards to uploading files to your PC.

One of the ideal features about the WorkForce 845 is its paper handling. It comes with two, 250-sheet capacity trays and can hold up to 10 envelopes. It can automatically do two-sided printing to help save you or your business money on paper. There is also a 30-sheet capacity ADF which can do double-sided scanning, copying, or faxing.

Because it is designed more for business than for the home, the WorkForce 845 does not have any standard yield cartridges, so to speak. Instead, it offers its owners the high-capacity as a standard cartridge, and then an extra high-capacity for even bigger capacity. Arguably with yields of 385 for black and 420 pages for color in the high-capacity, they are among the lower end of what we think about high-capacity. The extra high-capacity cartridges offer black yields of 945 pages and 755 pages for color which is above average for printers at this price point, and where you get the most value.

Overall, the WorkForce 845 should provide solid value to your home office or small office. In their coverage, noted that the unit does indeed have impressive speed as well as high-quality output on all counts (text, graphics, images) with the text especially comparable to that of a laser.

Need a new printer? We suggest Amazon.RATING: 3.75 stars DETAILS: Color Inkjet AIO COST: $177.00

BY ADAM HAIGH, Editor

source : www.castleink.com

Last week, Unrabble released a new free version of its unique hiring software that is aimed at making the hiring process easier, faster and less expensive.  ”Unrabble is the first solution of its kind to put hiring in the hands of the decision maker and unchain hiring from the traditional paper resume,” stated Kevin Watson, CEO and co-founder of Unrabble, a cloud-computing startup that simplifies and redefines the hiring process by moving away from the one-dimensional paper resume process into a multi-dimensional on-line process.  Their on-line process provides greater insight into a candidate’s skills, work history, accomplishments, work preferences and, well… life.  After all, you are hiring a person and not a piece of paper, so doesn’t it make sense that you would want to know more about your candidates than what they put on an 8-1/2” x 11” piece of paper?!

So, how does it work?  I watched the demo and, having been the person who has had to make their way through hundreds of resumes when looking to hire, I was pretty impressed.  The most unique feature of this software is the easy fact that it moves you away from the standard resume process and into the new generation of on-line profiles.  Candidates create interactive profiles that not only detail their career history but also grant them to provide connections to their social media profiles, integrate video, explain job transitions, rank their skills and brag about their accomplishments.   And just in case you are wondering how valid these candidate ‘brags’ are, Unrabble uses a unique feature called Micro-references that grants candidates to have very specific accomplishments verified by their professional network, which adds even more weight and validity to their profile.

As candidates apply to positions that you have created (all positions you create through Unrabble broadcast instantly to social networks and job sites like Indeed, StartUpHire and SimplyHired.com), Unrabble sorts and rates them for you based on the criteria you select for the position, quickly identifying candidates that qualify and those who don’t.  Once identified, you can look at each qualified candidates profile; use the private interactive messaging system to ask specific questions to a group of candidates versus doing individual phone interviews and invite colleagues into the process to review the candidates you’ve chosen so they can leave feedback.  Through this private messaging system you can also quickly and professionally notify any rejected candidates to let them know that they are not being considered for the position…a consideration that is typically ignored due to a lack of time and overabundance of candidates.  For a closer look at the features available in Unrabble’s software, check out their demo video.

The free version of the software grants employers to post one open position at a time and does not include all of the enhanced functions, such as colleague collaboration, but does include the base features of the program.  For employers looking to post more than one position or who would like the enhanced features, additional plans are available starting at $29/month.

While there are many other options to help you track and organize resumes, such as recruiterbox and Zoho, these programs seem to only do that…track and organize resumes.  If you are looking for a solution that goes beyond the time consuming standard practice we are all used to and integrates an entirely new way of going at the process, you may want to take a closer look at the new program from Unrabble™.

source : www.businessinsider.com

When we were at CES, CyberLink was showing a beta version of PowerDVD 12. There were some advancements in the product versus its predecessor, PowerDVD 11 – most notably automatic refresh rate switching, but the ideal part was that they gave me a copy to bring back and test on a variety of systems to provide a preview of what PowerDVD 12 has to offer. As much as I would have liked to publish this earlier, they asked that we not until today. This turned out to be a good thing though, because there was time to create a few videos and take a much more thorough look at the product than would have been possible otherwise; just keep in mind that the copy that was tested was not the final revision so some of the issues may not be present in the real release and I was not able to get the APK for their DLNA application for my Kindle Fire so that aspect will only be covered briefly… MissingRemote

source : benchmarkreviews.com

Portrait Professional works by targeting specific areas of the face – such as the eyes, mouth, nose, chin, and forehead, and uses those points as reference for making adjustments. From there, its engine – which has been trained with hundreds of examples of beauty portraits, generates a base rendering from which you can refine from. Once you get to this point, you can stop, or you can use a wide variety of controls and sliders to further work your portrait.

How does Portrait Professional work?

The first thing you do is choose the picture that you want to edit. This is just a matter of navigating to image and selecting it. This can be one that has been preprocessed, or Portrait Professional has some basic overall image editing abilities such as exposure, cropping etc. When you open your image you will be presented with a selection of is the face of male or female and you make your selection.

Then you click on the next button and you are presented with the task of first clicking on the left corner of the left eye and then the right corner of the right eye. You are then prompted to click on the tip of the nose, the left corner of the mouth and finally the right corner of the mouth.

Clicking on the next button takes you to step four which will adjust the outlines of the face. Here you will adjust various elements of each eye, the eyebrows, the mouth, the nose, the chin, the forehead, the temple, and the cheeks.

When you click on the next button for step five, Portrait Professional will start its automatic photographic enhancement where it performs its processing of the image based on internal guidelines. When it is done you will see the original portrait on the left and the new and improved on the right. If you are happy with the results, you can save it and move on or you can refine it with the many controls that Portrait Professional offers.

source : blogcritics.org

Date: January 27, 2012

Home users who want an all-in-one inkjet, but are on a low budget may want to think about the PIXMA MG2120. It was released back in October 2011 alongside two other new PIXMA models, the MG3120 and 4120. As the number (and the price) implies, this is the most basic of the three models.

The MG2120 is a 3-in-1 with the capability to print, scan, and copy your documents and photos. It about average in terms of print speed, topping out at 8.4 ISO ppm for plain black text only. Unfortunately the only connection option you get on this model is USB 2.0, so if you really want a wireless printer, youll need to look elsewhere. A Bluetooth adapter is available for an additional $50. It is relatively compact in size, measuring 17.7″ x 12.0″ x 6.0″ (WxDxH) and it weighs under 12 lbs. Like many of the newer Canon PIXMA models, it is compatible with both Easy-WebPrint EX for printing web content in a manner you lay out and Full HD Movie Print which grants you to print still images of movies taken with many Canon digital cameras and camcorders.

Paper handling on the PIXMA MG2120 is about what youd anticipate for a machine in this price range, albeit with a somewhat higher capacity (100 sheets). It does not come with the capability to print, scan, or copy double-sided pages.

The ink for this model comes from a two-cartridge bay with one standard black and one standard tri-color cartridge. If you need more ink than that, there are a few choices: a high-capacity black, a high-capacity tri-color, and an ultra high-capacity black. The differences in page yields were not listed on the manufacturers website.

If youre looking for a printer you can easily plug in and go, this may fit your needs. If you need any other features like wireless printing, an auto-sheet feeder, or individual ink, you could try the PIXMA MG4120, though that is nearly twice as costly at $129.99.

Need a new printer? We suggest Amazon.RATING: 3 stars DETAILS: Color Inkjet AIO COST: $69.99

See Reviews of Similar Printers:

BY ADAM HAIGH, Editor

source : www.castleink.com