What's after Apple’s September 10 event?

64-bit Mobile Computing 
Apple looks set to spearhead 64-bit mobile computing now that it is using the 64-bit A7 processor in its flagship phone (and here I was getting worried how Apple will compete with all those quad and not so octa-core processors). There is no doubt that the new iPad and iPad Mini will follow suit. However, 64-bit mobile computing will not be exploding into the scene sometime soon because there are plenty of legacy 16-bit devices out there… even Apple’s own iPhone 5C is still “yesterday’s technology” so it’d be obvious not many developers will go that direction anytime soon. Perhaps when the iPhone 6 comes out next year end then… At the same time, I’m worried that app prices will be increasing due to the efforts required to make higher quality apps to match the iPhone’s hardware…

Mobile Photography and Video to the Next Level 

I’ve always been mighty impress with HTC for coming out with its larger but less megapixels sensor for its flagship HTC One and here I am, highly impressed with Apple for making its sensor larger while maintaining the pixels. Hopefully, together with better and faster optics, image quality will improve. There’s also burst mode and Apple’s adding in an extra “warmer” LED for better coloured flash photography. Video is further enhanced with 120fps capture with ability to select later which part of it you’d want to go slow motion.

The Serious Smartphone
Apple's doing the right thing to give new buyers the whole iWork suite. But I'm saddened that at the time of writing, existing iOS owners are left out. I hope I misinterpreted it all... Anyway, new iOS device owners at least get to do more office productivity stuff (and further stress out) with their iOS devices. Luckily, there's also iPhoto and iMovie to balance things a bit.

False Sense of Security? 

I don’t know about you but despite the new fingerprint sensor I can’t help feeling that hackers will be able to crack through the phone’s security in no time… or maybe not.

All New Experience
iOS 7 will bring a whole new and fresh experience to the stale iOS of yesterday. I can’t wait to try it out and I hope it improves battery life for the current crop of iPhone 5.

Still Managed to Surprise
Just when I thought every possible news were leaked, Apple proved that it could still surprise and I hope when Tim Cook promised us an exciting season this fall, he really meant it.

Concept - The Phone That Never Goes Obsolete

What if your phone come in blocks and that every part of it can be upgraded? Change to a better camera, a more powerful battery, faster processor at your convenience. Replace a broken screen like a LEGO block. Sounds too good to be true? Yes, for now. But everything starts with a concept, right?

via Engadget.

Reminder for Writers

I like this. It's so contemporary!

“Keep a small can of WD-40 on your desk to remind yourself that if you don’t write daily, you will get rusty.” 

– George Singelton

 via Go Into The Story.

One of our favourite drinks, Ribena, to change ownership

Suntory Beverage & Food Ltd., Japan's second largest drinks maker known for its beer and whiskey  is about to buy our favourite sweet, but nourishing blackcurrant drink Ribena from GlaxoSmithKline Plc. for a whopping sum of £1.53 billion. The transaction will also include energy drink Lucozade.

While GSK felt that the two drinks lack global presence, they will help the Japanese company expand its presence into Britain, Nigeria, Malaysia and other countries. Subject to regulatory approvals, the transaction is expected to be completed by end of this year.

via Reuters.

Ironically, referring to the photo below, digital camera sales are not mushrooming...

I can understand how digital camera sales are declining the world over. I wouldn't be lugging around my digital camera, be it compact or DSLR or even mirrorless when I am at work. Now that there are phones that take reasonable photos, I seldom carry any cameras, unless I'm on holiday, I suppose. For work, I'd use my phone to snap away. Below is a photo of... ummm... mushrooms that I took with my phone during a late working night.

However, I do not deny that the current crop of compact cameras offer better photo qualities than even the best phones. Needless to say, DSLR are almost the best of the crop. It's just that, people are lazy to carry something that is difficult to fit into a jeans pocket, for instance. I do still lust for digital cameras and my current wish is to own a mirrorless Sony NEX. Well, I don't mind Sony's latest innovation, the QX10 and QX100 "lens cameras" either!

XD

New Robocop Trailer

Next year's Robocop reboot sees a much more mobile and agile cop than the previous movies, ages ago.

Mars Solar Eclipse!

This is perhaps something we don't see everyday... Of Mars' larger moon Phobos passing in front of the sun. At first glance, it's really not as spectacular as the ones we often see on Earth but remember, this is taken from Mars! Wow!

via PetaPixel.

What of Nokia's Future?

With the focus mainly on Microsoft’s purchase of Nokia’s devices and services division, not many have looked at what remains of Nokia’s future. Engadget has it here.

Nokia will continue to focus on its Here Maps (which I’ve used on the iPhone when it first launched but was not very impressed so I decided to stick withWaze and Google Maps. Now with more time, perhaps the company could make it stand out from the more established apps.

Next up, Nokia will stick to developing and building network infrastructure, now being LTE networks as the primary focal point. Besides this, Nokia will also concentrate on advance technologies, looking for business opportunities.

All da best, Nokia!

Riddick Review

I’ve never seen the previous two Riddick movies so this is going to be based on what I watched so here goes: Vin Diesel’s titular character Riddick was reluctantly crowned as the new leader of the Necromongers (or something like that) and he decided to visit his home world. He was tricked and brought to a different world, attacked and left for dead by evil Karl Urban’s minions whom I guess wanted to take over the throne.

And so Riddick had to survive by fending off the planet’s indigenous species and got to tame a crossover between a zebra and hyena as his pet “dog”. Later, he came across a bounty hunter station and activated the emergency beacon so that bounty hunters would come for him… and he could hijack their ship and get off the country. Two groups of bounty hunters came, one for his head as bounty while another to find out the truth about what happened to his son in the first movie, Pitch Black.

The movie proceed to become a mix between The Thing and Aliens as the bounty hunters hunt for Riddick and Riddick tries to get a ship while fending off scorpion-like aliens.

Vin Diesel is his usual tough self while the bounty hunters are a mixture of cool and arrogance bordering on stupidity. There is really nothing new in the plot that we’ve not seen but I suppose Vin Diesel fans and followers of the series would rejoice.

Vin Diesel fans? Not his best but passable, I guess. 3/5
Riddick fans? I can’t say because I’ve not watched the previous two but there’s plenty of that character.
Action? 2/5
Story? 2/5
Effects? Aliens ok but the part with them riding bikes in the rain is not. 2/5
I’d summarise this as only an average movie for fans. 2/5

Smart Watches - What I hope from Apple

There were Pebble and others. Then, Sony came before Samsung and the latest from both are compared here (I'm mighty impressed with Sony making their watches compatible with any Android 4.0 phones, a learning from a company that used to make Memory Sticks). Now even Qualcomm's announced one. But the rumour that started all these was of the Apple version and there's still no sign of it.

Whatever it is, I can't help hoping it will take the queue from the previous iPod Nano - detachable little thing that can work as a music device (and hopefully more) with plenty of straps to choose from - WITHOUT its shortcomings, of course. It was unfortunate that was discontinued and replaced with the current larger version. Or perhaps that's Apple's plan all along so that they can announce a smart watch (I think there will be an official word for "smartwatch" eventually) that is like that? Wishful thinking again, I know, but hope is a driver.

Tech Slangs Updated to Online Oxford Dictionary

The online edition of the Oxford English Dictionary updated its vocabulary list including some words that've been widely used to describe the current technology world and some of the fun words are:

• Digital detox (noun – informal) - A period of time during which a person refrains from using electronic devices such as smartphones or computers, regarded as an opportunity to reduce stress or focus on social interaction in the physical world.
• Emoji (noun – plural same or emojis) - A small digital image or icon used to express an idea or emotion in electronic communication
• Geek chic (noun informal) - The dress, appearance, and culture associated with computing and technology enthusiasts, regarded as stylish or fashionable.
• Hackerspace (noun) - A place in which people with an interest in computing or technology can gather to work on projects while sharing ideas, equipment, and knowledge.
• Internet of things (noun) - A proposed development of the Internet in which everyday objects have network connectivity, allowing them to send and receive data.
• Phablet (noun) - A smartphone having a screen which is intermediate in size between that of a typical smartphone and a tablet computer.
• Selfie (noun – plural selfies – informal) - A photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website.

 via TechnologyTell.

Pandas’ Snack Time

Let's start the weekend watching pandas during their snack time:

Have a nice weekend!

Elysium Review

Believe it or not. There will be a time when Earth will be diseased and polluted to the point where the rich will pay to live in an utopia outpost sort of place (with machines that can cure all illness and extend life up to 3 times of the typical lifespan) that orbits the planet while the majority poor ones continue to live and suffer here. Such is the setting of Elysium.

The movie stars Matt Damon as a high tech criminal but still poor that decided to go straight and work his way up in a factory manufacturing droids to police Elysium and control Earth citizens. However, one work day turned out badly with him getting exposed to radiation and had only 5 days to live. Of course, only those miracle machines in Elysium can save him and so the movie really kicks off from there. He made a deal with the bad guys to steal the memory out of his evil boss' mind because he didn’t give a damn when he got exposed to radiation. He gets physically fitted into an exoskeleton with lots of drilling and hacking and become kind of super. In return he gets sent to Elysium.

Off he went to steal but of course things went bad, lost his best buddy and got hunted but he did manage to steal a, coincidentally, program that could reset the whole Elysium that will turn the tide of things. Along the way, he met his childhood sweetheart (whose daughter is dying of leukaemia and also needs the miracle machine). His original journey to save himself became one that could save the world! Oh yeah, it’s that kind of movie!

Effects are ok and there is nothing much to really act out. This is the first time I see an evil Jodie Foster, the controlling figure in Elysium. Interesting but there’s really not much acting skills required in this movie. Action sequences are not over the hill. All in, good for an entertainment but I doubt it’ll become a classic.

Story - extreme setting of what the world is becoming now. 3/5
Looking for lots of action? 3/5
Effects? 3/5
Acting? There’s really not much and not necessary. There’re lots of desperation, though. 3/5
Overall, an above average movie that’s not great. 3/5

And the trailer:

Fahrenheit in Malaysia!?

I don't have the slightest idea why this particular air-conditioning remote control in the hotel I'm staying in is in Fahrenheit! We use Celsius here in Malaysia!!! Thankfully there is Google to help translate it to 24 degrees Celsius for me! Otherwise I would be freezing or perspiring without knowing why. XD

The Star Wars Misquote

Darth Vader NEVER said "Luke, I am your father!" or similar iterations in the same sentence. Gasp!

via Blastr.