Category Archives: Tech News

Former Blackberry CEO dumps his shares

RIM, Tech News

Jim Balsillie, the former co-CEO of BlackBerry has ditched his shares.
According to a new regulatory, filing Balsillie late last year dumped his stake in BlackBerry, unloading about 26.8 million shares or a roughly 5 percent of the company. Balsillie hasn’t responded to a request for comment on the sale and BlackBerry declined to provide one saying it doesn’t comment on holdings of individual shareholders.

In pre-market trading Thursday, RIM’s shares tanked more than 6 percent, tumbling to about $13.00.

Looks like he exited with some liquid assets while he could.

Hype & Rumours – Samsung S4, iPhone 5S, HTC One, iWatch

Tech News

It’s a crazy time of year with rumours and releases flying all over the place.

First up we have talk of the next iPhone 5S and a large screen iPhone. Maybe a cheap iPhone. All we are going to get is the iPhone 5 as the 5S with an internal spec upgrade. Now talk of a cheaper iPhone made of plastic is nonsense as Apple are still selling the 4 and 4S. Maybe they will combine these 2 models as 1, switch to plastic and add the lightning connector. That’s more realistic. A large screen iPhone is not happening this year in my view.

Next the Samsung S4 is rumoured. They were wild speculations about this having all sorts of wonderful specs including a S Pen. Really! It will just be an upgraded S3 like Apple does with the iPhone.

HTC One is being officially announced soon. Next item. It’s so not exciting. It’s just another spec improvement.

And then there is the May announcement of the Google X phone which is meant to be revolutionary. I hope so because at the moment all we are really seeing is slight spec increases on the hardware.

The only device that offers something different in the user experience is the Samsung Note 2. But you need to tow a trailer to carry this around. It’s not that bad, but its size is not convenient for everyone.

And in the news at the moment , Apple is making a watch. Really! Some of the news items at the moment are so far fetched. Reality needs to added to some of these stories.

Siri Quick Tips

Apple, Tech News

Quick tip.

Ask Siri to remind you to pick up the letter. Siri will add this with a time action. However, ask Siri to remember to pick up the letter, Siri adds this with no time action.

Ask Siri to navigate home. It opens Apple Maps. Ask Siri to navigate home by transit, this will open Google maps app (or whatever third party sat nav software installed).

Window Store App Growth

Tech News, Windows

What makes an operating system the best. One word. Apps. Decent apps and volume of apps. If you have an iPhone you have access to so many apps its incredible.

Microsoft’s Windows store actually proceeded to grow at a decent pace once it hit the streets pumping nearly 500 apps into the market each and every day, pushing the global total to 20,000 apps in less than a month. However, per country this is a lot less.

The next 15,000 came at a slightly reduced speed, but it was nothing to worry about. When the Windows Store hit the 35,000 mark on December 27, the apps were flying in at a rate of 415 per day, according to The Next Web. However, the rate of apps has declined per day per week. Just look at the graph below from metroscore. It shows the apps are plateauing. In real terms this means there are now only 137 new apps per day and that nyumber is declining. At this rate t will take over a year to hit 100,000 apps and not 3 months as stated by Microsoft.

Maybe with the Surface Pro and new and multiple Window handsets being released this number will flourish. Or perhaps Microsoft need to look at what Blackberry did to create 70,000 apps at launch of its new Z10 phone.

Whatever happens, Microsoft has a big war chest if needed to fight back.

20130210-090532.jpg

Which Brand is bigger Samsung Galaxy or Google Android

Android, Tech News

Amazon have set off on their own path with their Kindle tablets and no doubt smartphones later this year and next, leaving Google to catch up and launch their own hardware. Problem is one of the manufacturing partners Samsung has been making decent hardware under the Samsung Galaxy banner for several years and has established itself as a market leader with its Galaxy S and Note range.

Samsung, like amazon is pouring resources into developing its app stores, thereby negating the need for Google Play. If you ask the average consumer on the street, Samsung will probably be more widely recognised than android. So, the burning question is does Samsung need Google?

At the moment yes, but with Samsung having its hands in many pies, I doubt it will in the future, say in 3 years time.

Do you have any different ideas?

iTunes top 30 classical albums

Apple, Tech News

Apple has produced a top 30 mastered for iTunes classical album list. I have started to wade through the options and must say I am impressed by their selection. Below is a list of their top 30.

1. Hildegard von Bingen, The Origin of Fire
Anonymous 4 (Harmonia Mundi)

2. Allegri, Miserere and Palestrina, Missa Papae Marcelli
Tallis Scholars, Peter Philips

3. Vivaldi, The Four Seasons
Janine Jansen (Decca)

4. Bach, The Brandenburg Concertos
Rinato Alessandrini (Naive)

5. Bach, The Goldberg Variations
Glenn Gould (Sony)

6. Handel, Messiah
Harry Christophers, The Sixteen (Coro)

7. Mozart, Piano Concertos 20 and 21
Friedrich Gulda, Abbado, Wiener Philharmoniker (DG)

8. Mozart, Late Symphonies 38-41
Sir Charles Mackerras, Scottish Chamber Orchestra (Linn)

9. Mozart, Requiem
Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Concentus Musicus Wien (Sony)

10. Beethoven, Symphony No. 5
Kleiber, Wiener Philharmoniker (DG)

11. Beethoven, Symphony No. 9
Karajan, Berliner Philharmoniker (DG)

12. Helene Grimaud of Beethoven Piano Works including the “Emperor” Concerto

13. Chopin, Nocturnes
Arthur Rubinstein (Sony)

14. Mendelssohn & Bruch Violin Concertos
Heifetz (Sony)

15. Verdi, La Traviata
Netrebko, Villazon, Rizzi, Wiener Philharmoniker (DG)

16. Wagner, The Ring of the Niebelungs
Solti, Wiener Philharmoniker (Decca)

17. Bizet, Carmen
Domingo, Abbado, LSO (DG)

18. Tchaikovsky, Swan Lake
Previn, LSO (EMI)

19. Dvorak, Symphony No. 9 “From the New World”
Kubelik, Berliner Philharmoniker (DG)

20. Puccini, La Boheme
Pavarotti, Karajan, Berliner Philharmoniker (Decca)

21. Rachmaninov, Piano Concerto No. 2
Ashkenazy, Previn, LSO (Decca)

22. Holst, The Planets
Rattle, Berliner Philharmoniker (EMI)

23. Elgar, Cello Concerto
Du Pre, Barbirolli, LSO (EMI)

24. Ravel, Bolero + Other Masterworks
Boulez, Berliner Philharmoniker (DG)

25. Stravinsky, Rite of Spring + Mussorgsky Night on Bare Mountain + Bartok Miraculous Mandarin
Salonen, LA Philharmonic (DG)

26. Gershwin, Rhapsody in Blue, American in Paris; Bernstein, West Side Story Symphonic Dances
Bernstein, Columbia Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic (Sony)

27. Prokofiev, Romeo and Juliet
Gergiev, LSO (LSO Live)

28. Barber, Adagio for Strings + Copland, Appalachian Spring etc.
Bernstein, New York Philharmonic (Sony)

29. Glass: Various Concertos (Orange Mountain)

30. Elgar, Enigma Variations / LSO Live / Sir Colin Davis

Update. I bought numbers 16, 17, 20 and 29. All really good. 16 and 29 were my favourites.