Technology-Headlines

by George Heymann

March 23, 2012 • 8:58 am 0

Keeping your information safe/private online.

By George Heymann | @techeadlines

technology-headlines.com

I wanted to share an interesting info graphic containing online security tips, and fun facts regarding security. The graphic was provided to us by Jim Borland of reversephonelookup.org.

As an example here is one of the tips, citing NASA guidelines, it is recommended that all passwords be at least eight characters, and contain a mix of four different types of characters. A safe password should include:

  1. UPPER CASE LETTERS
  2. lower case letters
  3. 1234567890 (numerals)
  4. !@#$%^* (special characters)

The info graphic in its entirety is available after the break.

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Filed under: General technology, Services, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

February 11, 2012 • 1:00 pm 2

Motorola Triumph Hacks including ICS and Gingerbread ROMs

by George Heymann|@techeadlines

technology-headlines.com

We recently reviewed the Motorola Triumph a CDMA pre-paid phone which is being offered by Virgin Mobile. We generally liked the Triumph but were disappointed that the phone is currently being delivered with Android 2.2 Froyo installed with no official upgrade path announced as of this date.

Well we’ve come across a great resource “Motorola Triumph Hacks” that addresses many of the Triumphs shortcomings. The site features downloads for several of the more popular third party ROMS that add additional features and bug fixes as well as instructional videos that include step-by-step instructions to help even novice users enhance their Motorola Triumph experience.

Following one of the featured guides I’ve now upgraded my Triumph to Android 2.3.7 Gingerbread which made the phone noticeably more responsive. The only feature not enabled on the third party build that I installed that is HDMI, which was not a critical feature for me. (Video after the break)

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Filed under: Android, Beta, General technology, Google, Hardware, Preview, Services, Software, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

January 31, 2012 • 6:00 am 0

Quick Look: RingDimmer listens to ambient sound to automatically calculate and set ring volume for you.

by George Heymann|@techeadlines

technology-headlines.com

RingDimmer is an Android ringer utility developed by Michael Pardo that listens to the ambient sound around you to calculate and automatically set the ring volume for you. This 99 cent utility immediately caught my attention as it would theoretically solve an issue with an inadvertently loud ringer in a quiet room that many of us have experienced.

I say theoretically because for me the program currently works better in theory than in practice. Although the program at times lowered the volume from the max volume setting to a more quiet volume. It’s still rings too loudly in most cases for my use. I would prefer to be able to set ring volume triggers for a given level of ambient noise rather than letting the program choosing the appropriate level.

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Filed under: Android, General technology, Quick look, Services, Software, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

January 5, 2012 • 8:45 am 0

Quick Look: Shush! Ringer Restorer for Android

by George Heymann|@techeadlines

technology-headlines.com

Shush! Ringer Restorer by Public Object does one thing and does it very well. Once its activated Shush restores the ringer at a preset time and volume once you turn off the ringer using the volume button on your smartphone.

There are many situations we need to silence the ringer on our phones, work meetings, church, class or movies are good examples. I seldom remember to turn my phone off, I frequently forget to turn the ringer back on. This application fills that need and it does that in a very unobtrusive way.

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Filed under: Android, Quick look, Services, Software, , , , , , , , , , , ,

January 2, 2012 • 11:48 am 0

App Lock : A simple, easy to use, feature rich app protector for Android

by George Heymann|@techeadlines

technology-headlines.com

App Lock is an app protector application developed by Creative Core that lets you selectively password protect apps and personal data stored on a Android smartphone.

There is allot to like about this free ad-supported app. App Lock is elegant in its simplicity, the intuitive UI makes working with this application a pleasure. The program opens to the enter passcode screen, you enter the provided initial passcode 8888 and then follow the prompts in the settings menu to customize the settings.

From the passcode settings you can:

  • Enable/disable App Lock
  • Edit your 4 digit passcode
  • Mask the passcode when editing
  • Email the passcode to yourself in case you forget it
  • Set a password hit for yourself
  • Set a password recovery challenge question
  • Set a lock delay of between 1 minute and 1 hour
  • Remote Control utilizing SMS messages
  • Set a lock policy

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Filed under: Android, General technology, Google, Quick look, Review, Services, Software, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

November 17, 2011 • 8:23 am 0

Photobooth for Android by ClarkLab lets you combine several photos into a single file for easy sharing

by George Heymann

Technology-Headlines

When we hear the words ‘photo booth’ we have been condition to expect a countdown 3…2..1, followed by a flurry of snapshots. Photobooth by ClarkLab is a conundrum in that it is simultaneously both more and less than what you expect.

The free Android utility allows you to combine gallery photos or capture new images directly from the camera to create a custom photo strip ready to share quickly and easily. You can choose from vertical or horizontal layouts, arrange your photos in ascending, descending, or random order on your strips, than export your strips in various sizes S,M, L (XL coming soon) ready to share with your selected social network.

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Filed under: Android, General technology, Quick look, Software, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

November 9, 2011 • 2:20 pm 3

Republic Wireless launches unlimited talk, text and web plan for $19 a month

by George Heymann

Technology-Headlines

A couple of days ago I read about Republic Wireless, a company which is a division of Bandwith.com that was planning to offer customers an unlimited talk, text and web plan for $19 a month without a contract, roaming or early termination fees. My first reaction to the news, What’s the catch?

According to Republic Wireless, the catch is you! Let me explain, The Republic Wireless service relies heavily on WiFi as the backbone of its phone service. Republics research shows that most people are around WiFi networks 60% of the time and the trend is growing.

Whenever possible the Android based LG Optimus phone uses WiFi to send and receive calls, surf the web or send text messages. The phone uses technology called Voice over IP (VOIP) to route calls over the internet instead of the cellular network. Similar technology is being employed by home phone service providers Vonage and Xfinity to route calls over the internet, except the Republic Wireless service is mobile.

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Filed under: Android, General technology, Google, Hardware, Media, Preview, Services, Software, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

October 27, 2011 • 10:01 am 0

WidgetLocker: Customize your lock screen!

by George Heymann

Technology-Headlines

I love customizing the look of my Android phone, it’s one of the many Android features that I’ve come to appreciate. I’m constantly tinkering with it, whether it is changing its wallpaper, adding widgets or experimenting with different launchers or lock screens. The look of my phone doesn’t stay the same for long.

WidgetLocker is a lock screen replacement that puts you in control of the look, feel and layout of your lock screen. You can customize the placement of sliders, as well as adding applications, widgets and app shortcuts to the lock screen.

I’ve used WidgetLocker for some time, until I picked up a Sensation 4G with Sense. I preferred the Sense lock screen to those available on WidgetLocker, until its most recent update. TeslaCoil software upgraded WidgetLocker to v2.21 and now includes customized sliders that mimic Ice Cream Sandwich, Gingerbread, Sense and Sense 3, Motorola, iPhone, and Rotary as well as customized user-themes.

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Filed under: Android, General technology, Google, Services, Software, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

October 20, 2011 • 10:36 am 4

Lytro’s revolutionary light field camera captures ‘living pictures’

by George Heymann

Technology-Headlines

Lytro’s new light field camera may revolutionize the way photos are taken and shared. Unlike conventional cameras, light field cameras are able to capture light traveling in every direction through every point in space simultaneously.

The ability to capture the entire light field enables you to focus and re-focus anywhere in the picture. You can refocus your pictures at anytime, after the picture is taken, go to Lytro’s ‘living pictures’ gallery and try it for yourself.

The Lytro blog offers an explanation of the science behind the light field cameras “Recording light fields requires an innovative, entirely new kind of sensor called a light field sensor. The light field sensor captures the color, intensity and vector direction of the rays of light. This directional information is completely lost with traditional camera sensors, which simply add up all the light rays and record them as a single amount of light.

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Filed under: General technology, Hardware, Preview, Services, Software, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

October 19, 2011 • 11:31 am 1

Google and Samsung officially announce the Galaxy Nexus with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich

by George Heymann

Technology-Headlines

Google and Samsung officially announced the Galaxy Nexus with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) at its press event in Hong Kong last night and there is a lot to report.

Let’s begin with Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS), the latest version of the Android OS by Google, it looks fantastic. The user interface (UI) appears to be heavily influenced by Matias Duarte the Director of Android user experience at Google. Matias was formerly the VP of User experience at Palm and led the interface design teams at both Helio and Danger.

The ICS user interface is elegant in its simplicity, its emphasis on typography starting with ICS Roboto font and layout stands out as a divergent path in Android development. ICS unified gestures throughout the UI and applications should make navigation simpler for new and experienced users alike.

The capacitive buttons are gone, ICS uses full touch screen controls that automatically orient themselves to match the orientation of the phone. The buttons can also be adapted for specific functions that are context sensitive within application sub-menus.

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Filed under: Android, General technology, Google, Hardware, Media, Services, Software, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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