WEEK 25, JUNE 20 - 26, 2013
AN AL ROYA PRESENTATION
OMAN’S FAVOURITE MAGAZINE, NOW A TABLOID
TECH@DEEN ARMEDIA .COM
Apps, essential, Tech Selection, Tech Radar and more...
Svelte dock
Bose Mini boasts premium sound
tough Love
Asus zenbook infinity is robust and sublime
the All-new Corolla
Is this how good-looking the new Toyota is?
The big apple
We tell you everything you need to know about the unveiling of apple’s new products
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Issue
49
H om e S cree n
Console battle Produced by
Microsoft and Sony have finally shown their hands and revealed the next generation games consoles within. As the dust begins to settle and these two tech heavyweights go head-to-head in the run up to Christmas, we take a look at who’s winning the battles and who might win the war.
Deenar Press and Publishing LLC PO Box 139, PC 102, Al Qurm, Sultanate of Oman Tel: + 968 24696868, Fax: +968 24693569 E-mail: info@deenarmedia.com
Printed at Ruwi Modern Printers 2013 © All rights reserved. This publication may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form in whole or in part without the written permission of the publishers; while every care has been taken in the preparation of the magazine, the publishers cannot be held responsible if factual errors in product and pricing occur. MSRP (Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price) listed only as a suggestion. Actual prices are set by dealers and are subject to change at any time. The publishers regret they cannot accept liability for errors or omissions contained in this issue. Please check any quoted hardware specifications and pricing with your supplier before purchase.
With regard to their build, The Sony PlayStation 4 (PS4) looks like a black box and so does the Xbox One. The Xbox One will not stand up vertically. This machine is designed to nestle underneath your telly, rather than fit alongside it like the PS4. So if you’re planning a new living room set-up for Christmas, take heed. On the release date front, Sony has confirmed that the PS4 will arrive before the year’s end, in time for the run up to Christmas. Our money is on a November release date to coincide with the Xbox One and take
advantage of that all-important price differential. As announced by Microsoft during their E3 press conference, the Xbox One will be in November this year. And pre-orders are selling out fast, so you’d best get yours in quick. From a price point of view, the PS 4 will cost roughly USD550 (RO211) a very reasonable price point given what’s on offer. And we hear that pre-orders are already selling out among certain retailers, so you might want to get yours in quick. The Xbox One will cost approximately USD675 (RO260), a little more than the PS4. But prospective buyers should bear in mind that the Xbox One cost includes the mandatory Xbox Kinect unit, whilst the PS4 equivalent comes separately. If you would like us to feature a comparative review of the two consoles, do email us at tech@ deenarmedia.com or give us your views on facebook.com/TECHOMAN.
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4
NEWS WEEK 25, june 20 - 26, 2013
PS4 hardware revealed Sony has finally taken the wraps off the look and design of its next-generation PlayStation. At its E3 press conference on Monday, June 10 the console-maker provided a quick reveal of the PS4 box, which looks a tad bit larger than the current PS3 design. Sony gave people a teaser of the console’s design near the end of May, on the eve of Microsoft’s Xbox One reveal and had previously shown off pieces of hardware like the controller and new Eye accessory at the original PS4 reveal back in February.
Not only will the PlayStation 4 go for USD100 cheaper than Xbox One, the Japanese firm announced at the E3 trade show, at USD399 in the US, it’ll also have zero restrictions on used games. Sony sought to distinguish its games machine by announcing it would not introduce any new restrictions on pre-owned disc-based games bought from friends or retailers, nor would it require users to regularly authenticate their machines via the Internet to allow games to continue being played.
Facebook adds clickable hashtags Facebook is adding support for hashtags to help its members keep track of popular topics being discussed on the social network. Adding the ‘#’ sign to a word will turn it into a clickable link which brings up a feed of what other people are saying about the same topic. Using hashtags to identify a theme was popularised on the Internet by Twitter. Facebook said it offers a “larger view of what’s happening.” Experts said it might also aid ad sales. Other services that support hashtags include Pinterest, Tumblr, Google+, Sina Weibo, LinkedIn and
Instagram (owned by Facebook.) The news was announced on the California-based firm’s news page. It said clicking a hashtag would bring up a chronologically ordered list of comments using the same term, including posts from people and pages they were not friends with and had not liked. “Hashtags are just the first step to help people more easily discover what others are saying about a specific topic and participate in public conversations,” it added. “We’ll continue to roll out more features in the coming weeks
Google Internet balloons lift off Google is launching balloons into near space to provide Internet access to buildings below on the ground. About 30 of the super pressure balloons are being launched from New Zealand from where they will drift around the world on a controlled path. Attached equipment will offer
3G-like speeds to 50 testers in the country. Access will be intermittent, but in time the firm hopes to build a big enough fleet to offer reliable links to people living in remote areas. It says that balloons could one day be diverted to disaster-hit areas to aid rescue efforts in situations where ground communication equipment has been damaged. But one expert warns that trying to simultaneously navigate thousands of the high-altitude balloons around the globe’s wind patterns will prove a difficult task to get right. Each balloon is 15m in diameter, the length of a small plane and filled with lifting gases. Electronic equipment hangs underneath including radio antennae, a flight computer, an altitude control system and solar panels to power the gear.
and months, including trending hashtags and deeper insights, that help people discover more of the world’s conversations.” Users can still limit who can view their hashtagged posts. Facebook does not currently allow advertisers to target people posting a specific hashtag or to sponsor a hashtag as is the case with Twitter. But one industry watcher suggested that might change if it wanted to target growing ‘real-time marketing’ budgets, money spent on adverts whose timing is determined by live trackable consumer behaviour.
Facial password patent to boost Android security Users could soon be asked to pull a series of faces to unlock their Android phones or tablets. Google has filed a patent suggesting users stick out their tongue or wrinkle their nose in place of a password. It says requiring specific gestures could prevent the existing Face Unlock facility being fooled by photos. The Jelly Bean version of Android introduced the need for users to blink their eyes as a check but users soon demonstrated it could be fooled. A spokesman for Google was unable to comment on when the suggested technology might be implemented.
First pictures of SG S4 released The Samsung Galaxy (SG) S4 Zoom is here. Notice how it looks like a phone on one side and a camera on the other. The S4 Zoom is a camera-focused spinoff of the smash hit SG S4, starting with the Android smart phone and adding a whacking great optical zoom lens on the front. The 10x zoom lens adds some bulk to the S4 Zoom, but it’s still more phonesized than Samsung’s first Android snapper, the SG Camera. The S4 Zoom is a 16-megapixel snapper with optical image stabilisation and xenon Flash, with a 4.3-inch screen and Android 4.2 Jelly Bean software. It packs a dualcore 1.5GHz processor and connects to the Internet via 4G, which is handy when you’re sending big files. It seems Samsung has put a bit of thought into the Zoom, rather than just bolting on
a giant lens. The lens ring adds a selection of controls for the camera, even if you’re using it as a phone: for instance, if you’re in the middle of a phone call and you see something you want to share, you can take a picture and send it to the person on the other end of the line with a twist of the zoom ring. Price and availability is yet to be announced.
Vaccinations delivered via patch A skin patch that can deliver vaccines cheaply and effectively has been shown off at the TEDGlobal conference in Edinburgh. Using a patch rather than a needle could transform disease prevention around the world, said its inventor. Prof Mark Kendall said the new method offered hope of usable vaccines for diseases such as malaria. Other medical experts welcomed the news, but warned it might be unsuitable for some patients.
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It was fitting that Prof Kendall delivered his talk in Edinburgh where, 160 years previously, Alexander Wood had lodged the first patent for the needle and syringe. “The patent looked almost identical to the needles we use today. This is a 160-year-old technology,” he said. It is also one that, alongside clean water and sanitation, has played a key role in ensuring longer lifespans around the world. But he said the technology could be overdue for an update. The
nanopatch overcomes some of the more obvious disadvantages of syringe-given vaccines such as needle phobia and the possibility of contamination caused by dirty needles. But there are other reasons why the method could be transformative, said the professor. Thousands of tiny projections in the patch release the vaccine, which is applied in dry form, into the skin. Prof Kendall has set up a company to
commercialise the nanopatch. “The projections on the nanopatch work with the skin’s immune system. We target these cells that reside just a hair’s breadth from the surface of the skin,” said Prof Kendall.
6/15/13 4:35 PM
nuovotech TECH@DEENARMEDIA.COM
5
Add these unique and wacky gadgets to your collection Huey the colour copying Chameleon Lamp
MP3 player and covert camera sunglasses
Huey is an electronic glowing chameleon lamp that dynamically matches the colour of whatever he sits on. How does Huey do it? Well, he lights the surface underneath him with two hidden white LEDs then uses a sophisticated optical sensor to determine the correct colour. He then matches this colour by adjusting the shade of numerous multi-colour LED’s imbedded in his body.
These polarized sunglasses look cool, play your favourite tunes and have the ability to record whatever you are looking at. There are micro switch controls on the side of the glasses for volume, track selection and recording. The pinhole camera is discreetly located on the bridge of the frame and captures AVI video in 640x480 resolution and photos in 1280x1024.
Price: USD90 (RO46 + S&H)
Price: USD30 (RO15 + S&H)
USB rocket launcher Command the deadliest artillery in the entire cubicle block when you equip your workstation with the USB rocket launcher. It connects to your Windows or Mac via USB. Install the included software, plug in the Rocket Launcher and with 360 degree horizontal rotation and 45 degree vertical rotation, the USB rocket launcher can fire over six meters, giving you coverage for over 113 square meters of your workspace.
Price: USD30 (RO15 + S&H)
Secret agent alarm clock Feel like a secret agent with this unique secret agent projection alarm clock gun! All you need to do is roll over in bed, take aim and fire to project the time onto any surface. This great clock features a time function, LED projector and snooze button. Just fire the time at the ceiling and the digital time will be displayed, so keep it under your pillow at all times to be buzzed awake every morning.
Price: USD30 (RO15 + S&H)
To order, email techtoys@deenarmedia.com
tech radar
Start pinching every penny for these technical delights
iLuv MobiAria Bluetooth speaker
20″ Panasonic tablet This gigantic tab, aimed at the pro market - which doesn’t have an official name or price point as yet - packs in a 3840x2560pixel resolution across its 20-inch LED-backlit surface. But it doesn’t add on the pounds, weighing in at around 2.2kgs, it is really light considering its sheer scale. Tucked in to the trim body is an Intel Core i5 1.8Ghz processor with Nvidia GeForce graphics and 16GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD for storage.
iLuv added a new addition to their range of speakers this week, in the form of the newly launched bluetooth speaker. The speaker has been designed to stream audio via Bluetooth and can easily be paired via NFC-assist when required with supporting devices. It is also fitted with a 1A USB-A charging port which is capable of charging most smartphones and features a 2-driver system and passive radiators to deliver powerful bass.
Price: USD200 (RO77) order at iluv.com
Price: TBA
BlackBerry Q5
The Goji smart lock takes pictures of who is at your door and automatically sends you picture alerts to your mobile phone, providing you with real-time information about who is accessing your home. You can also choose to receive real-time app and text notifications about all the activity around the lock to your mobile phone. All activity is recorded and logged by the system and it is available for review at any time via the app or from your online account.
BlackBerry recently announced their second QWERTY BlackBerry 10 smartphone and now the SIM free version of the handset is available to pre-order. The phone is powered by BlackBerry 10 and it features a 3.1 inch touchscreen display with a resolution of 720x720 pixels, plus a full QWERTY keyboard. On the front of the BlackBerry Q5 we have a 2 megapixel camera for video chat, on the back there is a 5 megapixel camera with an LED flash; the handset also comes with 2GB of RAM and 8GB of built in storage, plus a 2,180 mAh battery.
Price: USD278 (RO107), pre-order at gojiaccess.com
Price: USD350 (RO135), pre-order at global.blackberry.com
Goji Smart Lock
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cover story
6
WEEK 25, june 20 - 26, 2013
Pro future
iPhone facelift with iOS 7
It was a busy week for Apple at WWDC 2013, with the unveiling of their next generation products
The Pro desktop
W
ith next generation Xeon processors, dual workstation-class GPUs, Thunderbolt 2, PCIe-based flash storage and ultra-fast ECC memory, the new 9.9-inch tall Mac Pro packs an amazing amount of power into an incredibly small package.
A
Thermal core
pple unveiled iOS 7, the most significant iOS update since the original iPhone, featuring a stunning new user interface. iOS 7 is completely redesigned with subtle motion, an elegant colour palette and distinct, functional layers that make it feel more alive. The typography has been refined for a cleaner, simpler look, and the use of translucency and motion makes even simple tasks more engaging. iOS 7 has hundreds of great new features, including Control Centre, Notification Centre, improved Multitasking, AirDrop, enhanced Photos, Safari, Siri and introduces iTunes Radio, a free Internet radio service based on the music you listen to on iTunes.
The next generation Mac Pro is architected around an ingenious unified thermal core that allows the desktop to efficiently share its entire thermal capacity across all the processors. The result is a pro desktop with breakthrough performance packed into a design that is one-eighth the volume of the current Mac Pro.
Processor Next generation Intel Xeon E5 processors with up to 12 core configurations deliver double the floating-point
Redesign performance. With two AMD FirePro workstationclass GPUs, the all-new Mac Pro is up to 2.5 times faster than the current Mac Pro and delivers up to an amazing 7 teraflops of compute power.
Storage The new Mac Pro also features PCIe-based flash storage that is up to 10 times faster than conventional desktop hard drives and includes the latest fourchannel ECC DDR3 memory running at 1866 MHz to deliver up to 60GBps of memory bandwidth.
Thunderbolt 2 The next generation Mac Pro is the most expandable Mac yet. With six Thunderbolt 2 ports that can deliver up to 20Gbps of bandwidth to each external device, Mac Pro is great for connecting to external storage, multiple PCI expansion chassis, audio and video breakout boxes, and the latest external displays, including 4K desktop displays. The next generation Mac Pro will be available later this year.
Up to 40GB/s PCI Express bandwidth
Up to 2.5 times faster than SATA solid-state drive
12 cores processing power
Two times higher bandwidth than current Mac Pro
Up to 60GB/s memory bandwidth
iOS 7 is completely redesigned with an entirely new user interface, but will be instantly familiar to the hundreds of millions of iPhone, iPad and iPod touch users around the world. The new interface actually makes your phone appear bigger because everything is designed to take advantage of the entire screen. The redesigned fonts look amazing on the Retina display, creating even sharper text.
Control Centre Access quickly with one convenient place; with just one swipe from the bottom of your screen, you have access to controls for Airplane Mode, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or Do Not Disturb, and the ability to adjust screen brightness, pause or play a song, jump to the next track and stream your music with AirPlay.
Get notified With iOS 7, Notification Centre is now available from the Lock screen so you can see all your notifications with a simple swipe, and the new Today feature in Notification Centre gives you an at-a-glance view of your day with a summary of the important details such as weather, traffic, meetings and events. These are just a few features of the new iOS. iOS 7 will be available as a free software update for iPhone 4 and later, iPad 2 and later, iPad mini and iPod touch (fifth generation) this fall.
Unified thermal core
Mac Pro
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cover story TECH@DEENARMEDIA.COM
The self independent OS
7
OS X Mavericks
W
ith more than 200 new features, OS X Mavericks brings Maps and iBooks to the Mac, introduces Finder Tags and Tabs, enhances multi-display support for power users, delivers new core technologies for breakthrough power efficiency and performance and includes a new version of Safari. Maps bring advanced mapping technologies from iOS to the Mac, including crisp vector graphics, stunning 3D view and interactive Flyover. With Maps you can plan a trip from your Mac, then send it to your iPhone for voice navigation on the road. Maps integration throughout Mavericks gives users helpful maps from within Mail, Contacts and Calendar, and developers can integrate the same powerful mapping features into their apps through the Map Kit API. With iBooks you have instant access to your existing iBooks library. iBooks also works seamlessly across your devices, so you can read a book on your Mac, make notes or highlights, and then pick up exactly where you left off on your iPad. Mavericks also makes using multiple displays even easier and more powerful. The menu bar and dock are available on any display, and users can now easily run windowed or full-screen apps on whichever display they choose, with no configuration required. With Mavericks you can also use your HDTV as a second display using Apple TV and AirPlay. New core technologies in OS X Mavericks improve the energy efficiency and responsiveness of your Mac. Timer coalescing intelligently groups together lowlevel operations so that the CPU can spend more time in a low-power state, saving energy without affecting performance or responsiveness.
The new version of Safari delivers blazing performance, innovative features and breakthrough technologies. Safari outperforms other browsers in energy efficiency, memory efficiency and JavaScript performance. Safari’s new process-per-tab architecture makes the browser more responsive,
stable and secure. Safari also introduces innovations like Shared Links, which make it easy to discover, read and share interesting new content from Twitter and LinkedIn, all in one place. Mac users will be able to download Mavericks from the Mac App Store this fall.
timezone
Simplistic moonphase This reasonably priced timepiece is minimalistic in design but features excellent mechanical movements
S
ince it’s founding in 1988, Frédérique Constant has developed a well-earned reputation as a ‘value brand’ among watch aficionados for its accessibly priced timepieces with in-house mechanical movements. This year, the brand added a manufacture moon-phase movement to its collection, making its debut in the new Slimline Moonphase Manufacture.
and date are both placed at 6 o’clock on the clean, simple dial. The three-part case is 42 millimetres in diameter and has a convex sapphire crystal in front and sapphire window in the back, through which you can view the new movement, Caliber FC-705. The movement has a 42-hour power reserve and features 26 jewels as well as perlage and côtes de Genève decoration.
The watch, with a starting price of only USD3,550 (RO1,366), it offers a single-crown adjustment system for setting the time, date and moon-phase. In its first position, ‘Position zero,’ the crown winds the watch. The second position, ‘Position one,’ is for setting the date (by turning the crown clockwise) and the moon-phase (turning it counter-clockwise), and the third position, ‘Position two’ is for adjusting the time on the hour and minute hands.
The Slimline Moonphase is available in five distinct versions: two in stainless steel cases, one with silver dial and black alligator strap and the other with a navy blue dial and matching alligator strap, each with hand-applied nickel indices and polished nickel hands; one in a rose-gold-plated case with silver dial, rose-gold plated hands and indices, and brown alligator strap; and another two in solid 18k rose gold cases. The latter models include one with silver dial and one with a chocolate brown dial, each with rose-gold plated hands and indices and a dark brown alligator strap. Each watch comes in a specially designed wooden gift box.
The moon-phase indication that uses a detailed, precise image of the moon created by a new technology called laser ablation
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Frédérique Constant Slimline Moonphase Manufacture Price: USD3,550 (RO1,366)
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SELECTION
This section showcases our selection of electronics in the market today. Let us know if you have any favourites on tech@deenarmedia.com
Smartphones
RO248
RO80
RO200
RO57
RO272
Blackberry Z10
LG L5 E612
Nokia Lumia 920
Sony Xperia tipo
Samsung Galaxy S4
Blackberry 10 OS, Dual Core 1.5GHz, 2G/3G/4G, 8MP primary and 2MP secondary camera, 16GB storage, available in black and white
Android V4.0.3 OS, 800MHz, Qualcomm MSM7225A Snapdragon, 4GB storage, 3G, WiFi, 5MP camera, GPS
MS Windows 8 OS, Dual Core 1.5GHz Krait, 8MP camera, Dual LED flash, 32GB storage, 3G, WiFi, A-GPS, NFC
Android V4.0 OS, 800 MHz Qualcomm Snapdragon, 512MB RAM, 3.2MP camera, 2.9GB storage up to 32GB, 3G, WiFi
Android V4.2.2 Jelly Bean OS, Quad Core 1.6GHz Cortex-A15 & Quad Core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A7, 13MP camera, 16GB storage up to 64GB, 2GB RAM, 3G, WiFi, A-GPS
Tablets
RO100 RO285
RO250
Surface – Microsoft Windows
Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1
10.6-inch screen, MS Windows 8 OS, Quad Core 1.3GHz, Intel Core i5, 2GB RAM, 32GB HDD, NvidiaTegra 3, WiFi, Bluetooth, 8MP camera
10.1-inch 1280x800 screen, Android 4.0.4 OS, Samsung Exynos 4 Quad Core 1.4GHz, 2GB RAM, 5MP camera, Bluetooth, WiFi, 3G, A-GPS
RO200 Asus TF-101 10.1-inch 1280x800 screen, Android honeycomb OS, NvidiaTegra 2, Dual Core, 1GB RAM, 16GB Storage, Bluetooth, 5MP camera
RO90 Amazon Kindle Fire HD 7-inch 1280x800 screen, Android 4.0 OS, 1.2GHz Dual Core, 16GB storage, WiFi, Dual Speaker Dolby, HD camera
HCL G1 9.7-inch screen, Android 4.0.4 Cortex A9 OS, 1.2GHz Dual Core, 1GB RAM, 3G, Bluetooth, 16GB storage, 2MP camera
Computers
RO560 Sony Vaio SVD11215CAB 11.6-inch, Windows 8, Intel HD Graphics 4000, Intel Core i53317 1.70 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 2.60 GHz, 128GB Storage, 4GB RAM
RO330 HP 11-g0003 11.6-inch display, Windows 8, 1.8 GHz Intel Atom Z2760, 2GB SDRAM, 64GB SSD Hard drive, WiFi, 8MP Camera, 1080p HD Webcam
RO300
RO315
RO240
Samsung XE500T1C-A01
Dell Inspiron 5523 0395
Acer Aspire V3 571G 5324G
11.6-inch LED HD, Windows 8, Intel Atom Z2760, shared graphics, 2GB RAM, 64GB SSD, WiFi, Bluetooth
15.6-inch TN glossy LED, Windows 8 Pro, Intel Core i5-3317u 1.8GHz, 6144MB DDR3SDRAM, 128GB Hard disk, 1.3MP webcam, WiFi, Bluetooth
15.6-inch HD LED screen, Windows 7, Intel Core i5-3210M 2.3GHz, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD, Webcam, WiFi, Bluetooth, Nvidia GeForce GT 640M Graphics
Compact cameras
RO80
RO290
Sony WX80
Sony RX-100
16.2MP, 10FPS, 8x optical zoom, 16x clear image zoom, 2.7-inch LCD, Full HD movie, CMOS Sensor, Wifi
20.2MP, 10FPS, 3.6x Optical zoom, Exmor CMOS sensor, 3-inch ‘White Magic’ LCD touch screen, Full HD movie
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RO170
RO120
Samsung Galaxy camera GC100
Canon PowerShot SX240
16MP, 21x optical zoom, 4.8-inch LCD touch screen, Full HD movie, Android, WiFi
12.1MP, 20x optical zoom, 1/2.3 CMOS, 3-inch screen, Full HD movie, image stabilizer
RO180 Olympus TG 810 14MP, 5x Optical Zoom, 5-25mm lens, 3-inch LCD touch screen, Full HD movie, GPS, 10m Water Proof
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N New
Disclaimer: Prices quoted in this tabloid may be subject to change. Please check with your local dealer for the current costs. Lists are not in any particular order. Prices as of June 5, 2013.
Updated
Pro cameras
RO822
RO560
RO500
RO640
RO550
Canon 7D
Fujifilm X-E1
Canon 650D
Nikon D7100
Sony Alpha NEX7
18MP, 8FPS, APS-C CMOS sensor, 3-inch LCD screen, Full HD movie, 19-point AF system, Eye-level Pentaprism viewfinder, 63-zone SPC TTL metering exposure, 30 seconds to 1/8000 shutter speed, 18-135mm lens
16.3MP, 6FPS, 2.8-inch LCD screen, Full HD movie, 1920x1080p, ISO 200-6400 and 100-25600 expanded, Ultra Sonic Vibration, Single AF / Continuous AF / MF Distance Indicator, 1855mm lens
18MP, 5FPS, 22.3x14.9mm Hybrid CMOS sensor, 3.2-inch LCD screen, Full HD movie, 9 cross-type AF points, Pentamirror viewfinder, 30-1/4000 seconds shutter speed, 8 Custom Functions, 18-135mm lens
24.1MP, 6FPS, 23.5mmx15.6mm CMOS sensor, 3.2-inch LCD screen, Full HD movie, 51 auto AF-S/AF-C selection, ISO 100-6400, Eye-level Pentaprism viewfinder, 1/8000 to 30 seconds shutter speed, 18-105mm lens
24.3 MP, 10FPS, 23.5x15.6 mm Exmor APS HD CMOS Sensor, 3-inch LCD screen, Full HD movie, ISO 100-16000, WiFi, 25 point contrast AF, 30 to 1/4000 seconds shutter speed, 18-55mm lens
Televisions
RO350
RO370
RO300
RO575
RO1,400
LG 47LM5800
Samsung UA40F6400
Sony KDL40EX650
Sharp LC-60LE630
Samsung UA55ES8000
47-inch LED 3D, 2MP Full HD, 3HDMI PC in/AV in, USB port, DIVX HD, 200Hz True Motion, Intelligent sensor, Energy Saving
40-inch LED 3D, 1920x1080 Resolution, 2MP Full HD, 4 HDMI, 400Hz clear motion rate, 3 USB Ports, Voice Controle, 3D Sound Dolby Digital sound
40-inch Edge LED TV, Motion Flow XR 100, X-reality Picture Engine, Wifi, Dolby Digital Plus, 3D combo filter
60-inch LED TV, 2MP, full HD, USB movie playback, 3 HDMI, XGEN Panel with UC2A Technology, Low power consumption
55-inch 3D LED Smart TV, 2MP, Full HD, Smart interaction (face, voice, motion), Smart evolution and content, micro dimming ultimate, built-in camera, 800Hz, Dual Core processor
apple
Courtesy: Gadgets, Muscat Grand Mall
RO128
RO259
RO119
RO65
RO499 iPad Mini WiFi
iPhone 5
iMac MD093
iPod Touch
iPod Nano
32GB, 7.9-inch LED-backlit, multi-touch with IPS technology, 1,024x768p, Dual-core A5, Bluetooth, built-in 16.3-watt-hour rechargeable lithium-polymer battery
16GB, 4-inch, 1,136x640p, Retina display, 8MP iSight, 1.2MP Facetime, Built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery, Bluetooth, WiFi
21.5-inch screen, Intel Core i5 2.7GHz Quad Core, 8GB DDR3 RAM. 1TB HDD 7200RPM, GeForce GT 640M 512MB GDDR5 Graphics, one Thunderbolt, one Fire wire 800 port, SDXC Card Slot, OS X Lion
4-inch widescreen Retina display, Multi touch IPS, 32GB, 5MP iSight camera, LED flash, HD video recording (1080p) up to 30 frames per second with audio, with Apple EarPods
2.5-inch display, 16GB, VoiceOver gesture-based screen reader, accelerometer, Nike+ support, Bluetooth 4.0
TECH RECOMMENDS Pinell explorer
RO40 Philips HTS 2511 Bring the power of the cinema into your home with this power punch Philips home theatre because the compact speakers with Dolby Digital surround sound can pump up any home entertainment experience. Dolby Digital makes use of the way the human ear naturally processes sound so you experience superb quality surround sound audio with realistic spatial cues. The 300W RMS power delivers great sound for movies and music and the DivX Ultra certification lets you enjoy DivX encoded videos and movies from the Internet.
The Explorer provides the excellent Pinell characteristics, regardless of power supply. The radio can be used with a normal 220V power supply or run on ordinary rechargeable AA batteries, which may be charged in the radio itself. Mobility is also enhanced as the radio can be operated via remote control. In addition to FM, DAB and the Internet, the Explorer can also transfer audio from your PC or MP3 player. The radio connects to an online web portal, giving the opportunity to create our own playlists of radio stations.
RO103
Seen at Emax, Muscat City Centre
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10
ESSENTIAL WEEK 25, june 20 - 26, 2013
Take your pick
MUSIC
The JT experience
We crunch up the best app, music album and releases of the week app in-depth
Pulse
R
Platform: iOS, Android
Pulse on the other hand is Google Reader enhanced a thousand times. It’s an app that begs you to cheat on Google, offering a quick way to import of Google Reader RSS feeds.
Rating:
eading RSS feeds on your phone has become a whole lot easier recently, with the introduction of the official Google Reader app for Android. But it doesn’t have a great appeal.
It teases you into submission by showing off your favourite websites in such a coherent way. Once you import your feeds, they appear in rows. In each row is a thumbnail story that you can click and get a nicely reformatted page of the article.
It works brilliantly and makes reading on your Android device that little bit sweeter. If you don’t have Google Reader RSS feeds, you can also Bump to get other feeds across or choose from the plentiful feeds on offer through the app. Be warned: most of what is on offer is US based so this may put you off taking from this archive. Lucky then there is a decent search option to find the websites you want to add. Pulse is one of the best looking and easiest news reading apps to use on the Android Market – you’ll wonder how you lived without it for so long.
The 20/20 Experience is the third studio album by American recording artist Justin Timberlake. It was released on March 15, this year, by RCA Records, as the follow-up to his commercial successful second studio album in 2006.
The 20/20 Experience Its music incorporates neo soul styles with elements of older soul music; its lyrics discuss themes of romance. As executive producer, Timberlake enlisted previous collaborator Timbaland to work alongside Jerome ‘J-Roc’ Harmon and Rob Knox. According to Timberlake, the album “goes a lot of different directions. I think there’s probably a little bit of what was reminiscent on the first album and then a little bit of what’s reminiscent of the second album, and then some new stuff.” The song Mirrors from the album the most popular of the album and is currently at number two on the Billboard singles chart.
eBOOKS Inferno Dan Brown USD20
DVD RELEASES
GAME RELEASES
American Idiots (2013)
The Last of Us
Comedy
Action
PS3
While working on the album “If Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin can do 10-minute songs and Queen can do 10-minute songs then why can’t we? We’ll figure out the radio edits later.”
Justin Timberlake Get the album: The 20/20 Experience by Justin Timberlake Borderlands 2: Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keep
Summoned (2013)
Life of Pi
Horror, thriller
Yann Martel
PC, PS3, Xbox360
USD11
Action RPG
A Quick Start Guide to Social Media Marketing
Company of Heroes 2
Neil Richardson; Ruth M Gosnay
Delhi Safari (2012)
PC
USD1
Animation
Strategy
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USD11 (RO4), iTunes, justintimberlake.com
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dashboard TECH@DEENARMEDIA.COM
People’s Car
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The new Corolla is bigger than the car it replaces, making it roomier inside. Though less than an inch wider and taller, it is nearly four inches longer. The front and rear wheels have been stretched apart to give the car a more aggressive stance. The corners of the Corolla have also been tapered to help make the car look leaner and meaner than before.
stand out: LED headlights, and a new CVT that mimics a sevenspeed. You can expect the local marketing to promote the Corolla as if it is a ‘seven-speed transmission’ with a severe downplay of the word CVT. Toyota’s new twist is that it has baked in seven fixed ratios so the transmission will always feel like it’s shifting gears, just like a conventional automatic does. This is opposed to just winding up seamlessly as the car accelerates with no sense of gear changes, which Toyota says some drivers find annoying or disconcerting. The new transmission has an Eco mode to enhance fuel economy and a Sport mode for better acceleration and throttle response.
The 2014 Toyota Corolla will have one of the two possible features
In less expensive vehicles, LEDs are usually only used in daytime running
he Japanese automaker listened to consumer feedback when rethinking the design of its 2014 Toyota Corolla. The intent is to attract younger buyers, who put a high priority on style, as well as efficiency and function.
lights, turn signals and taillights. The 2014 Corolla is the first compact car in its segment to use them for the low beams in the headlights too. Although we find it very unlikely that this option will be available in Oman.
11
The most sought after car of the mainstream population is out in its latest avatar. We look at the new Toyota Corolla
Like the exterior, the interior gets a whole new look that is sportier and feels premium in its design and materials. The rear-seat comfort is improved by expanding legroom, beefing up seat cushions and making the floor flatter by rerouting the exhaust pipes. More sound insulation throughout the cabin also makes the interior quieter. The base engine on the new Corolla carries over from the 2013 model. It is a 1.8-liter four-cylinder that produces 132hp and 128 lbs. ft of torque. It now uses lighter, high-strength steel to save weight, and added reinforcements to make the body stiffer for a better ride. Toyota paid particular attention to the steering and suspension to make the car feel sportier. One of the knocks against the current Corolla is that it’s as boring to drive, as it is to look at. The 2014 Corolla promises be a different story, with sharper reflexes and better steering feel.
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COMPUTING WEEK 25, june 20 - 26, 2013
The indestructible
ASUS Zenbook Infinity
This robust, yet sleek ultrabook can literally take anything you throw at it
Graphics: Intel HD 5000
CPU: Intel Core 4thGen (Haswell)
Operating system: Windows 8
Asus made good at its promise to officially reveal the Zenbook Infinity, its super thin but power-intensive touchscreen ultrabook, at Computex recently.
Display Size: 13.3inch, 2,560x1,440p Screen Type: LED backlit LCD
Design
Touch Technology: Multi-touch
If Tony Stark was an Asus guy then the Infinity is Iron Man’s ultrabook. It’s the world’s first laptop to have a lid made from corning Gorilla Glass 3, which might make it the most robust computer around right now. Think you can scratch it? Asus laughs in your face. The Native Damage Resistance means it should be able to withstand some decent sized drops. At just 15.5mm at its thickest point, it is 14 per cent thinner than the previous generation Zenbooks. Unfortunately, the Infinity enjoys a good fingerprint or two. Luckily it isn’t quite so magnetic to prints on the touchscreen display, but chances are you’ll find that gorgeous exterior getting smudged a fair bit. The backlit keyboard and all-inone trackpad are similar to other Zenbooks and very reminiscent
Price: TBA
of the Macbook Air in both look and quality feel. Surrounding the keyboard and covering the trackpad is also Gorilla Glass 3 but with a matte finish.
Intel 28W Haswell dual-core Core i7 processor with Iris 5100 graphics power the way, which makes it the only fourth-gen ultrabook processor to use Iris.
Turn it around and on either side of the notebook is a USB 3.0 port, while a Micro HDMI, Mini Display port and SD card slot are also squeezed into the side of the body.
Asus is yet to confirm RAM or storage sizes. Price and release date are also unknown at current, but we understand the Infinity is expected to land in Q3 of this year and you’ll have a choice of either Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 when it does.
Specs
The Infinity’s slightness doesn’t mean it’s skimped on the specs. An
Apps this week 1
Fast, indestructible and almost painfully sleek, the Zenbook Infinity discreetly slips into the Haswell era with a lot going for it. It might be our favourite thing unveiled at this year’s Computex and is the new standard for ultrabooks to aspire to, we’ve got nothing to complain about.
Your new treat of fun and useful apps
2
3
Yearly
ZumoCast
Forever Drive
A brilliant way to keep track of birthdays, while you can also text, phone or email contacts from within the app
As long as your computer’s switched on, you can stream any audio or video from it directly to your smartphone with this app
The game takes place in a futuristic neon world where you drive endless neon tracks, endlessly overtaking neon cars
USD2
FREE
Platforms: iOS
4
Verdict
CoinKeeper: Budget and expense tracking
Platforms: iOS, Android
5
Chronolite
Platforms: iOS, Android
An insight into areas over the world you might not otherwise have seen
Platforms: iOS
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Big Lens USD1
Edit shots after they have been taken, enabling different focus points to be manually selected post-capture
Platforms: iOS, Android
8 USD3
6
Cook all your ingredients to perfection with these timers
A budgeting app that takes a unique and very visual route to achieving financial control
Live Cams HD
Platforms: iOS, Android
FREE
USD6
7
FREE
Platforms: iOS
9
Hummingbird Bakery Cake Days USD3
Find inspiration from step-by-step tutorials, a selection of videos and a feature that adds the ingredients to an in-app shopping list Platforms: iOS
Gum Drop USD1
Sweet and simple, gum drop is a game that tests your ability to read and then to hunt and peck Platforms: iOS, Android, Windows Phone
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TABLETS TECH@DEENARMEDIA.COM
13
Artful android HP’s first Android has created a lot of buzz in the technology world; we take a look at its features
H
P has announced the arrival of its first Android tablet, HP Slate7 in the Middle East. HP Slate7 is affordable Android Jelly Bean consumer tablet that provides customers with easy access to Google Mobile services. With a 17.78cm diagonal screen and weighing 368 grams, the HP Slate7 is an ideal trusted personal companion, featuring a stainless-steel frame and soft black paint in grey or red on the back. It also is the industry’s first tablet to offer embedded Beats Audio, for the best-sounding, richest audio experience available on a tablet. The HP Slate7 delivers the Google experience with services like Google Now, Google Search, Gmail, YouTube, Google Drive and Google+ Hangouts for multiperson video chat as well as access to apps and digital content through Google Play. It joins the recently introduced HP Chromebook as part of HP’s push to offer access to the Google experience. HP’s tablet offerings reside in the company’s newly formed Mobility Global Business Unit, established in September 2012 with the hiring of Torres. Torres joined HP from Nokia, where he was executive vice president and oversaw the MeeGo products and platform. Powered by an ARM Dual Core Cortex-A9 1.6
GHz processor, the HP Slate7 is fast and responsive. Integrated wireless allows customers to access email, the internet and key applications, while the High-aperture-ratio Field Fringe Switching (HFFS) panel offers wide viewing angles that provide easy viewing of documents, games, photos and videos, even in outdoor lighting conditions. Slate7 includes a 3-megapixel camera on the back and a VGA camera on the front for chatting, videos and photos. With the HP ePrint application, customers can easily print while at home or on the go, and an exclusive native printing capability enables customers to print directly from most applications. A micro USB port allows customers to easily transfer files, and a suite of applications from HP spans exclusive games to productivity tools. It will provide simple and easy-toaccess support tools and resources to help customers take full advantage of all of the features the of HP Slate7.
HP Slate7 AED599 (RO63) In addition to extensive phone and online support offerings included with the HP Slate7, HP is offering customers the opportunity to expand and extend the standard product limited warranty with its HP Care Pack services.
Moviezone
World War Z
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he story revolves around United Nations employee Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt), who traverses the world in a race against time to stop a pandemic that is toppling armies and governments and threatening to decimate humanity itself. ‘Movement is life’ is a chief bit of advice offered forth in and heeded by ‘World War Z.’ Fidelity to Max Brooks’ best-selling novel seems to be scant at best but neither that nor countless post-production woes prevent Paramount’s costly adaptation from ultimately serving as an efficient and effectively exciting globe-spanning zombie thriller.
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Gerry Lane may be new to the whole stay-at-home-dad thing but his old ties to the United Nations come in handy when his family and he are forced to flee Philadelphia in the wake of a chaotic outbreak. It turns out that zombies have infected the populations of America and countless other countries and if Lane can hope to keep his family safe on a naval carrier far from the infected, then he must venture back into the world to assist the government in finding an origin for the disease and hopefully, a cure. Director Marc Forster (Quantum of Solace) smartly surrounds
An efficient and effectively exciting globe-spanning zombie thriller one of the world’s most famous faces with relative unknowns to then sell the notion that his hero is but one man up against universally dire odds and for the most part, the supporting ranks manage to still stake their claim opposite the superstar; whether it’s Mireille Enos as wife Karen, James Badge Dale as a gruffly pragmatic soldier, Elyes Gabel as a cocky virologist, David Morse as a rogue CIA agent or Daniella Kertesz as a particularly devoted bodyguard. On the flipside, Matthew Fox fleetingly appears in a blink-and-miss-it military role.
Director: Marc Foster Genre: Action and adventure, Horror Cast: Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos, James Badge Dale
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GAMING WEEK 25, june 20 - 26, 2013
Publisher: Codemasters Genre: Racing Developer: Codemasters Platforms: PS3, Xbox 360, PC ESRB Rating: Mature
Catapult your way to the top of a new world of motorsport Score Plot Gameplay Visuals Overall
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8/10 8/10 9/10 8
he first few moments of Grid 2 should be a disaster. You’re strapped into a bruising muscle car and immediately asked to negotiate the corners of downtown Chicago amid a cavalcade of roaring V8s. But rather than serving as a messy reminder of why so many driving games ease you in with something a bit more sensible, this opening race is a perfect example of what makes Grid 2 such a
blast. This is a game that takes every opportunity to remove the barriers between you and the thrill of all-out street racing. With an exciting career mode and handling that strikes a great balance between arcade and simulation, it succeeds brilliantly at that task. It’s only fitting that with such an empowering driving model, Grid 2 treats you as an ambassador to the
sport rather than a no-name upand-comer. You’re the poster child of the newly formed World Series of Racing, an organization designed to bring together drivers from all corners of the globe. Your job is to win over these international stars and convince them to join the cause. You do this by travelling the world and competing against everything from muscle cars in Miami to hot hatches in Barcelona to luxury sedans in Dubai. You’ll even find yourself driving in supercars on real-world circuits, whether it’s the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway or the relatively new Algarve Circuit in Portugal. All the while you’re earning new fans to bolster the WSR, a sort
of currency that propels you from one event to the next. Whether you’re drifting through the hills of rural Japan or careening along California’s Pacific Coast Highway, Grid 2 gives you the tools to perform some truly spectacular automotive feats. This is all thanks to a driving model that borrows equally from the forgiving handling of an arcade racer and the demanding physics of a driving simulator. Cars are nimble and highly responsive, but there’s a very real relationship between your tires and the surface beneath them. There’s this delicate balance between the flashy and the grounded, but it’s a balance that Grid 2 pulls off extremely well.
WEBZONE www.cheezburger.com
Cheesy bits
Find all your funny in one place
C
heezburger is a Seattle based company founded in 2007 and is home to sites like I Can Has Cheezburger, FAIL Blog, Know Your Meme and Memebase. They are one of the largest social humour sites on the Internet where millions of people come every day to laugh out loud and have others laugh with them. Their visitors can view, create or remix themes and share their favourite funny pictures. A weblog featuring lolcats, which are pictures of cats or other animals with captions, paired for humour value is perhaps the most popular thing on the site. The content is submitted by the site’s readers and hosts ‘the LOL Builder’, a lolcat builder that allows users to even create their own lolcats. The site attempts to maintain a community feel, encouraging interactivity with readers via a voting system where users can rate an image from one to five ‘cheezburgers’ and through themes.
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audiozone TECH@DEENARMEDIA.COM
Musical link
15
Bose SoundLink Bluetooth mobile speaker II
It is small, light, good-looking, fits into any satchel and has the sound quality of the best in the business
USD200 (RO77), pre order at bose.com
F
ollowing on the success of last year’s SoundLink Bluetooth Mobile Speaker II, Bose did the next logical thing, go small. At a recent event in the Vanderbilt Hall of New York’s Grand Central Station, the Bostonbased audio giant announced two ground breaking products: one of which was the SoundLink Mini Bluetooth speaker. Coming in at a svelte 670g, the SoundLink Mini, while small, manages to belt out some of the best sounding audio we’ve ever heard. And not just for a product this diminutive. Bose built a tiny room in the middle of Grand Central Station to show off the SoundLink Mini’s prowess and we were truly impressed.
Height: 5.1x18x5.8 cm Weight: 670g Connector type: Audio line-in (Mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm), USB
While the music Bose chose to show off what this tiny speaker is capable of its highlighted abilities. You can easily pair SoundLink Mini to your devices. The SoundLink Mini is designed to remember connections to up to six devices, so once you pair a device, you should be good to go for the duration.
Bluetooth devices. While the lows in the more bass-heavy music are perfectly deep and solid, the highs in the acoustic selections are very crisp. And this device can get plenty loud without losing any clarity.
According to Bose, the speaker boasts a range of about 30 feet as well an auxiliary port that lets you connect non-
Bose claims the speaker can be fully charged in three hours.If there’s one thing Bose is known for it’s quality audio
products. And to that end the SoundLink Mini Bluetooth speaker upholds that tradition.
Audio amplifier: Integrated
Sure the Bluetooth portable speaker scene is crowded with the likes of Jambox, Monster and Beats, but anyone who’s interested in portable audio would be remiss to not give the SoundLink Mini Bluetooth a listen.
Transmission range: 30ft
Connectivity technology: Wired, Bluetooth,wireless Controls: Mute, volume, power Run time: 8 hours
Enter to win two Panasonic portable chargers. Please send in your entries by July 1
TW49
Fax: 24693569 / Email: quiz@deenarmedia.com
1 What is copying large amounts of data from a website called?
internet called?
A
Phishing
A
Interhacking
B
Pharming
B
Cybercrime
C
Scraping
C
Netabuse
3 What is business done over the internet TW47 Winners:
2 What is criminal activity done using the
called?
4 What type of data do MP3 files contain?
1. Archana P K
A
Web-business
A
Audio
2. Balassoupramanian D
B
E-commerce
B
Bitmap Image
Last week’s quiz answers: 1 – B, 2 – A, 3 – A, 4 – C
C
Cyberbuying
C
Video
NOTE: Employees and family members of Deenar Press and Publishing cannot participate in the quiz. Judge’s decision is final. Please email the answers to tech@deenarmedia.com or fax this page to 24693569 by the deadline. Correspondence after the deadline will not be entertained. PLEASE WRITE CLEARLY. Incomplete or illegible entries will be disqualified. Winner must provide valid ID to claim the prize. Allow up to two weeks to process.
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Full Name _________________________________________ Age ______ Mobile __________________ Email ______________________________________Occupation _________________________________ Company ______________________________________________________________________________
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Musafir TechWeekly 22x31 E.indd 1
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