Paul • Author at Gadget Gestures

Moto Z2 Play, Thinner but with Less Battery Life

May 7, 2017 By Paul Leave a Comment

Moto Z2 Play, Thinner but with Less Battery Life

The Moto Z lineup is anything but thick. Actually, Motorola’s first ever generation of modular smartphones are maybe the slimmest available on the market right now. Still, it seems like the company is still not happy and will reduce the thickness of the new Moto Z2 Play device. However, there is a price Motorola will pay and that is battery life. Its predecessor had a very praised 3510mAh battery. It seems like this one will only have about a 3000mAh battery. This will also reduce the running time of the device from 50 hours to only 30. The new Moto Z2 Play is powered by the Android 7.1.1 system.

Slimmer, but with a cost

The original Z Play model, which was actually the most affordable one out of the three available, was the thickest one of them. It was a little under 7 millimeters thick and weighted 165 grams. Reduced in weight and size, the new Z2 Play is getting closer to the original Moto Z device. That one was 5.19 millimeters thick.

It is worth noting that all the components of the new Moto Z2 Play are going to receive updates. From the chipset which will be a Snapdragon 626 this time, to the memory and storage departments. The new Moto Z2 Play will have a 4GB of RAM and 64GB storage capacity. The Super AMOLED display is one of the only things which will remain the same. It will stay at 5.5-inch diagonal with a 1080 x 1920 resolution. Maybe Motorola wants to make sure that all of their MotoMods will be compatible with all the devices form the Z series.

Motorola is back in business

As for the camera, the selfie one will remain the same at 5-megapixels. However, the company wants to reduce the main camera’s resolution while making its imaging quality better. So, the Z2 Play will have a 12-megapixel, f/1.7 component with dual autofocus pixels, instead of the previous 16-megapixel camera. It will come in two colors, Lunar Gray and Fine Gold. The Moto Z2 Play is the first of a series of smartphones from Motorola which will be released during this year. It remains to be seen how will the fans receive them.

Image source: gsmarena

New Emails Surface in Hillary Clinton Server Case

October 28, 2016 By Paul Leave a Comment

hillary clinton server case - new emails surface

FBI reopens investigation in Hillary Clinton server case after new “pertinent” material surfaces.

In an unexpected twist to the U.S. presidential campaign the FBI uncovered potentially significant material in the Hillary Clinton server case.

New emails sent through Hillary Clinton’s private server surfaced after the Federal Bureau of Investigation seized devices belonging to Huma Abedin and her husband, Anthony Weiner, in an unrelated case. The shocking revelation was announced through a letter sent to Congress members.

“In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation.”

The initial investigation into Hillary Clinton’s unauthorized use of a private email server concluded in July with a recommendation of no criminal charges against the Democratic presidential candidate. However, in light of recent events, the FBI has decided to take investigative steps to determine if the newly discovered emails contain any classified information.

“Although the FBI cannot yet assess whether or not this material may be significant and I cannot predict how long it will take to complete this additional work, I believe it is important to update your Committees about our efforts in light of my previous testimony” declared James Comey, FBI’s director, who previously criticized Hillary Clinton as being careless.

With less than 11 days before the US presidential election, the FBI’s decision to reopen the investigation shows how serios the discovery is. Several lawmakers questioned the timing of the letter, seeing as there is currently no evidence that Mrs Clinton or the State Department withheld information.

“Why would FBI reopen Hillary investigation unless there is evidence of more than extreme carelessness in handling classified information?” tweeted John Cornyn, second-ranking Republican in the Senate

A senior law enforcement official declared that Comey’s letter was sent out of extra caution. Although FBI’s director provided no details about the nature of the mails, the politically explosive development raises serious questions about the Democratic presidential candidate. The shocking revelation seems to have caught the Clinton campaign by surprise. Tim Kaine, Clinton’s VP running mate, said he has to “read a little more” about the situation before giving an official statement.

GOP nominee Donald J. Trump, realizing that the new development in the Hillary Clinton server case may represent a turning point in the race, was quick to add fuel to the fire. Despite the fact that he has repeatedly called the FBI corrupt and inept, during a campaign event in New Hampshire, he went on to praise the law enforcement agency.

“I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the DOJ are now willing to right the horrible mistake that they made. This is a grave miscarriage of justice that the American people fully understand.” Donald J. Trump declared.

Comey, who is also a Republican, endured severe criticism in July after he decided not to charge Clinton. The language used by the FBI in the letter made it clear that agents will be going through the newly discovered emails to determine any intent to violate the law. Only time will tell how the Hillary Clinton server case will unfold.

Google Chrome Beta For Android Lets You Play YouTube In The Background

September 20, 2016 By Paul Leave a Comment

Google has numerous updates in this version of Google Chrome Beta, but the most useful and desired updates are the new tab page design and the background YouTube video playback.

The newest feature of the Google Chrome is that you can play You Tube videos in the background while using other applications. This new update was released a few days ago for Windows, Linux, and Mac. For Android users, this is the version 54 of the Google Chrome Beta.

Google has numerous updates in this version of Chrome Beta, but the most useful and desired updates are the new tab page design and the background YouTube video playback.

This means that soon Android users will be able to listen to YouTube while searching on the internet and switching applications. This was impossible until now because if you wanted to switch apps while listening to music on You Tube, the music stopped and so did the video.

This feature used to be a paid service called You Tube Red, and it allowed the user to play the music in the background and use other apps at the same time.

After this version of the Google Chrome is released the users won’t need to pay for the service, they will just get it for free once they update their Google application as well.

With this update once the users switch the application while playing a video in the background, they will get a notification with the pause and play controls for the audio. This is how the users will control the basic feature although they are using a totally different application at the same time.

Another interesting update made by Google is the redesigned tab page that now has several changes. This redesigned tab page unfolds a different menu for the Bookmarks and Recent Tabs. It also has a recommendation section. The interesting fact is that the recommendation section has different articles than Google Now recommends which means that they also draw data from a different source.

This improved Google Chrome Beta also has Tabs that can communicate with each other with JavaScript, but for security matter, they can only work with tabs that are from the same site.

The APK Download is another update made by Google. The APK updates the existing app and guarantees that the file is safe and can be installed without any problems and bugs.

What is your opinion about these new Google Chrome Beta updates?

Image Source: Wikipedia

Microsoft continues to attack Apple. What are they going to do?

August 30, 2016 By Paul Leave a Comment

Microsoft continues to attack Apple. What are they going to do?

There is no surprise that it has always been a competition between Apple and Microsoft. However, it seems that Microsoft continues to attack Apple. They said that the new MacBook Air is like a hat for your cat. Microsoft wanted to show, in their latest ad, that their Surface Pro 4 is better than Apple’s laptop and it has more features.
Even though they try to turn the whole ad in something funny, Microsoft is fighting against Mac computers. They presented features such as touchscreen, pen support and Windows Hello. Moreover, Microsoft said that MacBbook Air is slower and heavier. This is not the first time when they are using this tactic. Two years ago, they did the same thing for iPad and Siri.
It seems that they continue to attack Apple even though many people are expecting the new Surface Pro 5 in October. The Surface Pro 4 was launched in October last year,so it makes sense that new model will be released one year after. The school is coming and there will be a lot of students who want to buy new devices. Apple and Microsoft will do their best to get more customers and it seems that the fight has begun. The new Surface Pro should have better hardware and keyboard and also a new pen.
There are people who will always use Microsoft computers, while others love Apple. It will always be your choice which one you like more. Compared to a Windows computer, Mac is less vulnerable to viruses. This happens because they are a lot of people who use older versions of Windows. On the other hand, Apple’s laptops are more expensive and this does not mean that they are better.
If you want the best operating system, Mac seems to have a cleaner and faster system than Microsoft. However, you can choose from more software if you use a Windows computer.If you are gamers, you must have a Microsoft device. Most games are released on Windows and you will be able to play them on Apple’s computers. Every brand has its advantages and disadvantages.
What do you think? Will Microsoft manage to get more users than Apple? Are their computers better? We are waiting to see what Apple is going to do and if there will be any comment regarding this matter.

Image source: Wikipedia

What should we expect from Xiaomi Redmi 4

August 10, 2016 By Paul Leave a Comment

What should we expect from Xiaomi Redmi 4

Xiaomi does seem to be on the rise this year as they have already launched a few gadgets, such as Redmi 3, Redmi 3s and Redmi Pro. And they do not want to stop there. The company is ready to release Redmi4, which has been leaking out in the past few weeks. According to a new leak, this smartphone could be released on August 25^th so we do not have so much time to wait.

Redmi 4 seems to be similar to Redmi 3, as its direct successor. It will have a metal design, its speaker will be located at the bottom and the fingerprint scanner will be placed below the main camera sensor.

Moreover, according to the Geekbench listing, Redmi 4 will have 64-bit octa-core processor running and 3GB of RAM on the inside. It will come with Android Marshmallow pre-installed on it. Xioami is expected this phone to be a huge success,as they have sold over 110 million Redmi smartphones so far. We will see if the customers will be as pleased about this smartphone as they were about the others.

If you have not heard by now, Xiaomi is a privately owned Chinese electronics company, located in Beijing. It is the world’s 5^th largest phone makers, with almost five percent of the smartphone global market share. Xiaomi designs not only smartphones but also laptops, mobile-apps, and related consumer electronics.

What is really impressive about this company is that they managed to take over Samsung in China, where they were the largest smartphone vendor in 2014. With more than 8, 000 employees situated in China, India, and Singapore, the company wants to expand in countries like Brazil or Indonesia too. It seems that Samsung and Apple Inc. have competition and it will not be easy for them to rule the market, especially in Asia.

Xiaomi became the most valuable technology start-up of the world. Moreover, they succeeded to enter the Indian Market and started their first factory in that country. According to the MIT Technology Review, Xiaomi was no. 2 on the list of 50 smartest companies in 2015.The fast-growing smartphone vendor has been maturing beyond its original model with ideas that will change the world. We can’t wait to see how Redmi4 will be and what other gadgets Xiaomi has prepared for us. Would you a buy a smartphone from Xiaomi? What do you think about their gadgets?

Image source: Wikipedia

Instagram Stories – the new Snapchat?

August 10, 2016 By Paul Leave a Comment

Instagram Stories – the new Snapchat?

Social media networks are more powerful than they have ever been before. There are billions of people using them daily to communicate with their loved ones, to upload photos or just to have fun in their free time. Besides Facebook or Twitter, there are two apps which seem to be more and more popular: Instagram and Snapchat. We should not be surprised by the latest announcement Instagram did: they will launch Instagram Stories. There was always a competition between those two as they to try to reach as many customers as possible.

This new app that will be available on Android and iOS is similar to Snapchat. If the application manages to be a success, this could mean the end of Snapchat. We do not know if Instagram will kill its competitor, but it will slow Snapchat’s growth.

Snapcha in an image messaging and multimedia mobile application created by three students from Stanford University. Their idea was brilliant: sharing daily life photos and videos that disappear after 24 hours. The app grows to 150 million users every day as its creators added more features. You can use animated selfie lenses, speed effects or screenshot alerts. It is a fun app to play and it is also very easy to use.

On the other hand, Instagram has 300 million daily activities. It is an online mobile photo and video sharing and a social network. Users can upload photos on it and also share them on a variety of other social platforms such as Facebook or Twitter. It was bought by Facebook in 2012 for almost 1 billion dollars. Now they are launching Instagram Stories which could be called a Snapchat for adults. Kevin Systrom, the Instagram CEO, admitted that Snapchat deserved all the credit. However, he said that this was not about who invented something. It was about a format and how they could manage to do it work.

There are some differences between those two apps. For example, Instagram Stories will appear in a row at the top of main feed instead of on a separate screen like Snapchat. Moreover, they will be sorted by who you interact the most, not in a chronological order. Furthermore, if you allow a person to follow you on Instagram, he/she will be able to see your Instagram Stories too.

What do you think? Will Instagram Stories take over Snapchat? Which one do you prefer better?

Image source: Flickr.com

What do You Get if You Hack a Toy Company’s App?

November 28, 2015 By Paul Leave a Comment

You would think it rather “normal” if people wanted to hack bank accounts credit cards or any other source that would give you accurate information and, above all, money. But what do you get if you hack a toy company’s app?

You would think it rather “normal” if people wanted to hack bank accounts credit cards or any other source that would give you accurate information and, above all, money. But what do you get if you hack a toy company’s app? It is one of the questions that parents had to ask themselves after VTech’s Learning Lodge has been hacked. Above all else, this looks like it is one of the greatest hacks to have ever been pulled off.

The stakes are rather high because, according to information released by IT specialists, this hack has exposed not only 5 million parents who were using it, but around 200, 000 children as well. The information that has been exposed does not involve any financial issues, but what is worrying is that all the details are rather personal and would not be shared by parents with just anybody.

We are only talking about customer full names, passwords, both home and email addresses. Hackers could also see these people’s children’s gender, name and birthdays. What is also important is that all children can be linked to their parents, so in case there is any foul interest in knowing who is who, the hackers will have no issue in putting all the pieces back together.

Awkwardly enough, the site known as Have I Been Pwned, a rather trustworthy site that deals with security information breeches and statistics, has declared that this hack is the fourth greatest hack that has ever been recorded in IT history.

What is also suspicious is that the one who hacked the application reached out to Motherboard and provided some of the files, just to make himself understood that there is no joke and that the deed is done. Motherboard then approached VTech and explained the situation.

When asked for the purpose of the hack, the hacker simply said “nothing”. Authorities, however, suspect that he might have sold the information to another customer. Nonetheless, the breach has left many parents no only wondering what do you get if you hack a toy company’s app, but fearing for the safety of their children. It is good to know that your money is safe and sound, but knowing that your child’ information is somewhere out there in who knows’ hands is not a comforting feeling at all.

Photo Credits: Flickr

“Master not Available. Only Us Robots in here.”

November 3, 2015 By Paul Leave a Comment

Google Inbox will feature a new AI system capable of automatically respond to some of your emails.

What if someone tried to contact you and the only response he will get will be “master not available. Only us robots in here.”?

Who of us can’t remember those sci-fi movies or books where machines were employed to take over menial human tasks? The Jetsons had their own robotic maid and Doctor Bowman from “2001: A space odyssey” had HAL to help him in his space journey. How about, instead of responding to your own emails all the time, a robot would do it for you?

Well, as of today, Google is planning on designing your own virtual secretary capable of responding to your emails while you are away.

This brand new and rather promising piece of technology will be part of an update Google has been working on. The whole point of the update is to enhance user experience when it comes to inbox and outbox procedures. As a little incentive for all those who spend a great deal of time working with the email service, once the update will be fully optimized, Google plans to make it available to both free and premium versions of Inbox.

So, how does the whole “master not available. Only us robots in here.” thing actually works? Have you seen Autocorrect in action? That both annoying and useful application refined by Apple, in which the phone provides you with words suggestions while you write a text message. Basically, Google’s new Inbox update works on the same principle.

Programmers will feed an artificial intelligence with a couple of key words needed to formulate an answer. These key words are then combined by the machine in order to form intelligible answers. Then the machine takes in all your emails and prioritizes them. After the machine draws the hierarchy he will start responding to emails.

The artificial intelligence will then compute answering possibilities for each email and formulate the response accordingly.

This awesome feature was announced by Google this Tuesday and as they point out, this is the first step in their endeavor to allow machines to take over some tasks without a human supervision.

What will it be next? Flying cars, vacation to the moon, business affairs on Saturn? Who can say? Maybe we are hopeless romantics when it comes to imagining how the future will look like, but one thing is for sure. We are taking the right steps in the rights direction.

Image source: www.wikimedia.org

Altworking with the Computer

October 29, 2015 By Paul Leave a Comment

Altwork announced that they will release a new workstation setup.

When it comes to working with a computer, at work, what are the first thing that pop into your mind? The most common aspects we tend to think about are the computer’s technical specifications, how wide and colorful is the LED, or what kind of applications you can run on in. Ever paused to think about the desk? Now anyone can be capable of altworking with the computer.

So, what has the desk got to do with working on the computer? Well, imagine how a day at work goes, when you have a lot of stuff to do on the computer and you can’t find a comfortable position on your chair. Or when all the things lying around tend to take flight and disappear from the desk.

Well, it seems that the American Company Altwork, came up with an ingenious gizmo capable of making those long and tedious hours spend sitting on a chair much more comfortable. Altwork unveiled their new project for a brand new desk, which you can adjust according to your preference.

Users can adjust it so that they can sit, stand or even recline the device, all these operations being done by using a remote control mounted on the desk. Altworking with the computer seems to be the first choice for those who tend to spend many hours in front of the computer.

The markers of this desk declared that the chair was designed to make you more productive, and to assure a healthy posture for the spinal cord.

Well, it’s all fine and dandy, but what will you do if you, someday recline the desk too much? Will the objects now drop from it? The producers come forth to answer this question. Apparently anticipating this question from the general public, they declared that all desks are equipped with powerful magnets that hold all the objects safe into place.

There is another perk in ordering this kind of workstation. Altwork announced that their product is ready for pre-sale and you can order it online for just $3.900. The price could be a bit spicy to everyone, but Altwork announced that the prices will rise when they will begin shipping the product in 2016.

So, if you want an Altwork workstations and you didn’t preorder it, you could pay up to $5900 for one.

Whether you are a work freak or you just want to stay around and play computer games all day, why opt for a simple desk, when you can have you own captain’s chair?

Image source: flickr.com

Curious About Other People’s Salaries? Try the New WageSpot App!

October 8, 2015 By Paul Leave a Comment

Users must know they have the possibility to choose between being private or public. The mandatory information are those related to job title, salary and location, but users can also add a picture of themselves, name and any other information they wish.

Everyone wanting to get a new job seeks to find one which is decently paid. In this case, it is advisable to make a research and see how much the others doing the exact work get, so as you make sure you receive the correct salary.

“People will share an office for a decade and have no idea what the person at the next desk makes, even though they do basically the same job,” declared Raphael Morozov, WageSpot co-founder.

On the market, there are some services such as Glassdoor offering this information, but a new company has launched an application called WageSpot meant to improve the service of offering such information.

The application is available for both iOS and Android. WageSpot uses especially the location in order to detect the salary data. Thus, the user will be able to see what other people occupying the same position are doing and can go as far as the individual level, giving users the opportunity of finding out how much money others near them receive.

WageSpot appears as a map filled with many dots, each of them representing an individual who used the app in order to write down his salary and other information regarding the job he performs.

After signing up, each user is encouraged to provide these kind of information, because only by forming a community will the application be useful.

The more information about themselves people give, the better the app will work, as users will have the possibility of sorting out information using such criteria as gender, age etc.

However, the application doesn’t contain too much information, as it has recently been launched. At least for the moment, WageSpot contains general information, such as CEO or athletes’ salaries.

Image Source: Pixabay

Slimmer, but with a cost

Motorola is back in business

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