I’ve updated the local weather page for Princetown, Dartmoor on my blog. Click here for a view link to the page https://gavinsgadgets.wordpress.com/weather/ or use the index above.
It now shows actual readings for the last 4 days across a 24 hour period as well as a 6 day forecast.
When Google announced the new version of android v4.4 kitkat, I was a little excited to learn that the Google Hangouts app had incorporated SMS. I thought Google had an iMessage equivalent.
Apple’s iMessage app sends a message to another iDevice and if there is no internet it changes it automatically to an SMS. It a simple solution and allows Apple users to send messages from their iPhones, iPods, iPads and Macs. And it all works without thinking.
Google’s solution is just to lump both options in one app. It doesn’t combine them to revert to a hangout message automatically. So whats the next option. Well Samsung is starting to roll out an updated version of its messaging app ChatOn that will include SMS too. I haven’t seen it working, so at the time of writing unsure as to how well it is integrated. Of course, there is the issue of how many people actually use ChatOn!
So sadly it looks like there isn’t currently an iMessage alternative on android. Maybe Google will update the hangouts app to combine these services?
Are you aware of an android equivalent?
iFazz has launched its new compact telescope for the iPhone 5/5S.
Weighing 785g it is some heavy weight and not really practical as such but may be a way of getting a decent photo of the moon. If you want an easier way to get a shot of the moon with your phone or camera follow these easy steps by Steve Litchfield over at All About Windows Phone .
A few nights ago, BBC’s Panorama featured undercover recording of Amazon’s warehouse in Swansea.
Graduate Adam Littler, 23, said he walked up to 11 miles as he worked 10-and-a-half hour night shifts inside the online retailer’s giant distribution centre in Swansea. He was expected to collect a customer order every 33 seconds and said he was subjected to ‘unbelievable’ pressure to meet efficiency targets.
He carried a scanning machine that tracked his position in the vast warehouse and bleeped every time he scanned the wrong item, and also had a count down timer after each scan providing remaining time to the next item.
Amazon’s practises all seemed legal, but they did seem to employ a huge amount of agency workers(temps) that don’t have any statutory rights like a full time employee.
Leading experts commented that this type of pressure from both a physical and mental point of view was horrific. Amazon received millions in grants and even had roads built for its warehouses.
So, lets some this up. With one click you receive goods that are low priced and from a company you trust. This same company then uses humans as robots, disposes of them once they are mentally and physical expired and at the same time destroys small and large companies. The small and large companies haven’t received millions in grants, and more than likely have paid a fair amount of corporation tax, something Amazon seems very shy about.
But would all this insight stop you buying from Amazon?
Here’s a thought I was thinking about the other day.
Rumours seem to indicated that Apple is building a larger iPad, at a 12.9 inch screen. This is rumoured to be called the iPad Pro. But then I got thinking, why would you need a Macbook Air, why not merge both products into one.
How would this be done? Well simply. Create the large iPad Pro at 12.9 inch and have a keyboard that clicks on with magnets that also acts as the screen cover.
So do you think this is science fiction, or a future reality. My view is Apple will move towards this form factor, but not instantly. Maybe in 1-2 years. Apple have been known to bring out a new product which destroys another of theirs, so I do not think this setup is unrealistic.
If you buy Nokia Lumia 1020, Nokia Lumia 925, Nokia Lumia 625 or Nokia Lumia 1520 and Nokia will throw in a free Windows Phone Store voucher worth £20. The offer only applies to original purchases of the specified Nokia Lumia smartphone models from authorised retailers in The United Kingdom made between 15 November 2013 and 15 January 2014.
How to get your free app voucher:
1) Buy a new Nokia Lumia 925, 1020, 625 or 1520.
2) Head over to http://www.nokia.com/gb-en/apps-voucher/redemption/ and get your free £20 credit.
Full details on offer available at http://www.nokia.com/gb-en/apps-voucher/
Be-Bound for Android is a new way to get your data and it works in more places and it costs less!
Be-Bound ensures that you get your data when you need it – without costing you a fortune on data and roaming charges. It gets your data in data dead zones!
Be-Bound is the first hybrid solution that allows you to stay connected to the Internet on your Smartphone even when there is limited or no data access.
It’s easy to:
– Add your Email and Twitter accounts
– Get your News, Weather, Sports
– Find local points of interest
– And access most of your favorite apps: real-time stock exchange, currency converter, translator, flight tracker, GPS navigation…all built in.
This is an ideal application for those that want data access in dead zones and hate spending big bucks on roaming charges while abroad. Using our proprietary compression technology, Be-Bound allows you to get your data while only paying text message charges (in many cases free) and inexpensive Be-Miles. We are offering you free Be-Miles to get you started.
Have you ever noticed that you can sometimes send a text when you appear to be out of cell data coverage? Be-Bound allows you to stay connected to the Internet when you have limited or no data access (3G, Wi-Fi, EDGE) at a very low cost.
As long as you can still give a call or send a text message, Be-Bound will switch to its proprietary data mode to send requests to our servers to get the information you need. Each request will cost you standard text message rates and Be-Miles (prepaid credits), which are inexpensive and controllable. You can view your Be-Miles current balance anytime.
Using Be-Bound in your data plan on 3G or Wi-Fi is free. Using Be-Bound on 2G networks internationally could generate international SMS costs. Check your plan for SMS and International SMS costs.
Purchasing Be-Miles will give you access to multiple Be-Bound services. The number of Be-Miles charged depends on the service. For example, consulting the weather or stock service will cost 1 Be-Mile but reading an email may cost several Be-Miles, depending on its size. Be-Bound is compatible with most Android handsets.
If you have an Apple device and are using the iCloud Photostream, it is no longer restricted to 1,000 photos. See below for new information.
1) iCloud: My Photo Stream and iCloud Photo Sharing limits –
There is no limit to the number of photos you can upload to My Photo Stream over time, but iCloud limits the number of photos that can be uploaded within a given hour, day, or month to prevent unintended or excessive use.
2) My Photo Stream upload limits –
The My Photo Stream limits below are established based on anticipated upload patterns. Currently, My Photo Stream upload limits are as follows:
Uploads to My Photo Stream per hour: 1000 photos
Uploads to My Photo Stream per day: 10,000 photos
Uploads to My Photo Stream per month: 25,000 photos
If you exceed one of these limits, your uploads to My Photo Stream will be paused temporarily and you may see a notification message on your device. Your uploads will resume automatically after you no longer exceed one of the limits, such as in the following hour or on the following day.
3) iCloud Photo Sharing limits –
The current iCloud Photo Sharing hourly and daily limits are as follows:
Maximum combined number of photos and videos to share per hour: 1000
Maximum combined number of photos and videos to share per day: 10,000
These sharing limits are separate from the upload limits above. For example, in the same day you could upload 10,000 photos to My Photo Stream and then share those 10,000 photos or 10,000 other photos.
Some additional limits for shared photo stream usage:
Maximum shared streams an owner can share: 100
Maximum shared streams a user can subscribe to: 100
Maximum subscribers per shared stream: 100 (the number of subscribers on each shared stream)
Maximum number of photos per shared stream: 5000
Maximum number of comments per shared stream photo: 200 (a comment can be either a Like or a text entry)
Maximum characters per comment: 200
Maximum number of invites a shared stream owner may send per day: 200
Notes
There is no limit to the amount of photos you can upload to My Photo Stream over longer periods (such as several months or years). Photos uploaded to My Photo Stream or shared photo streams are not counted against your iCloud Storage. The photos that you upload to My Photo Stream are stored in iCloud for 30 days to give your devices plenty of time to connect to iCloud and download them.
The following image file types are supported for Photo Stream: JPEG, TIFF, PNG, and RAW.
The following video file types and file formats are supported for iCloud Photo Sharing: MP4 and QuickTime file types, and H.264 and MPEG-4 Video file formats. Videos can be up to 5 minutes in length.
When importing photos to an iPad using the Camera Connection Kit, photos are saved directly to Camera Roll. If Photo Stream is enabled and you are connected to a wireless network, you could potentially reach any of the limits listed above. To avoid this, disable Photo Stream when importing photos to iPad when using the Camera Connection Kit.
When importing large numbers of photos to either iPhoto or Aperture, you could potentially reach any of the limits listed above if you have selected Automatic Upload in the Photo Stream preferences. Both iPhoto and Aperture will pause uploading to Photo Stream when the maximum has been reached. Uploading will automatically restart at the next hour, day, or month, depending on which limit was reached.
A patent has been granted to Apple for a Light Field camera – a camera with zero shutter delay and where the focus point can be changed after taking the photo – covers the precise technology Steve Jobs told biographer Walter Isaacson he wanted to use to reinvent photography.
The patent refers to a “refocusable imaging mode adaptor,” and the abstract perfectly describes a Light Field camera:
A digital camera system configurable to operate in a low-resolution refocusable mode and a high-resolution non-refocusable mode comprising: a camera body; an image sensor mounted in the camera body having a plurality of sensor pixels for capturing a digital image; an imaging lens for forming an image of a scene onto an image plane, the imaging lens having an aperture; and an adaptor that can be inserted between the imaging lens and the image sensor to provide the low-resolution refocusable mode and can be removed to provide the high-resolution non-refocusable mode, the adaptor including a microlens array with a plurality of microlenses; wherein when the adaptor is inserted to provide the low-resolution refocusable mode, the microlens array is positioned between the imaging lens and the image sensor.
Looks like cameras on phones are going to get better and better.
I’ve had the Nokia Lumia 1020 for around 2 weeks courtesy of Nokia.
I really enjoyed the Lumia 1020. I preferred it over the Lumia 925 as I preferred the polycarbonate build over the Lumia 925 aluminium frame. I also loved having the top notch 41mp camera. I took some fabulous photos and having the immense detail has proven invaluable.
If I was being extremely nit picky I wished the phone camera software had a HDR mode. In fact, talking about modes for novices I think have some preset shooting modes eg waterfall, fireworks, action etc would be great. Once again in a relatively short space of time window phone apps have improved. Couple that with the new processors and upgrades to the operating system, and you have an alternative to android.
I don’t know why, but I actually prefer windows phone to android. As I mentioned yesterday, I’m looking forward to the Lumia 1520.
Gavin's Gadgets & Photography 