Now
we're back to share the five most popular sites used by TechCyborg2012 readers
to dress up their monitors with fresh wallpaper. VladStudio Five
Best Wallpaper Sites Vlad Studio features the work of Russian wallpaper
artist Vlad Gerasimov. He cranks out hundreds of great wallpapers, ranging from
holiday themes to abstract art. Vlad Studio has wallpaper in a wide range of
sizes suited for everything from your mobile phone to a multi-monitor setup.
Mobile wallpaper and desktop resolutions at 1600x1200 and below are available
for free. Images larger than that are available only to registered users. If
you want access to the larger resolutions, now is a great time to pick up a
subscription. Vlad is running a Christmas-special where the $30 lifetime
membership is available for $20. 4Chan Wallpapers/General/ Five
Best Wallpaper Sites 4Chan is an image-based forum where anyone can
anonymously post and share images and comments. It's divided into sub-boards
devoted to all sorts of topics like Anime, video games, etc., but has gained
notoriety for some of its more unsavory sub-boards. The /Wallpaper/ board,
nonetheless, is bustling and updated nearly 24/7 with images from around the
web. Since the 4Chan boards are a bit kludgy to use if you're not trying to
comment and just looking for images, a variety of scrapers have sprung up to
help you pick through all the images in /Wallpaper/. You can visit 4Chan
directly at the link above or you can use services like Nik.Bot and 4Walled to
browse through the wallpapers available through 4Chan. Be strongly forewarned,
however: although the /Wallpaper/ forum is much tamer than other areas of
4Chan, you'll still find a large number of Maxim-level NSFW wallpaper images
and the occasional Playboy-level NSFW images when you're browsing. If you're
not prepared to explain some really awkward internet memes to your boss, you'd
better save 4Chan /Wallpaper/ for home. Social Wallpapering Five
Best Wallpaper Sites Social Wallpapering borrows the vote up/down model
used by many social aggregators (Reddit, Digg, etc.) and applies it to desktop
wallpaper. Users vote up their favorite, vote down their least favorites, and
upload their own images to be ranked by other users. You can browse by rank,
category, view random images, and sort by screen size to help you drill down
through the huge collection to find the wallpaper you want. Prefer to grab
everything and sort it out later? Social Wallpaper makes their entire wallpaper
collection available for download via BitTorrent. If you're looking for a site
where you can not only find fresh wallpaper but participate in helping your
fellow wallpaper lovers find the best images, Social Wallpapering is a solid
choice. Interfacelift Five Best Wallpaper Sites Interfacelift
is an enormous repository of wallpaper images. Thanks to the button-based
layout at the top of the screen, you can easily drill down through wallpapers
using factors like rating, number of comments, screen type, and so on. Once you
select your screen type—widescreen, full screen, dual monitors, etc.—you can
pick from available resolutions so you never end up clicking on an image and
finding out it's not available in the resolution you want. Every search result
gives you information about the image plus a drop down menu for size selection
and a quick download. Interfacelift has recently added a feature called
"The Loupe" which allows users to vote on incoming submissions to
accelerate the process of new materials being added to the database.
DeviantART Wallpaper Five Best Wallpaper Sites If you've
visited your fair share of wallpaper sites and gotten tired of the endless
stream of glowing line-art and video-game wallpapers, then you'll enjoy
browsing the wallpaper archives of DeviantART—a subdivision of the
artist-centric site. You'll find everything at DeviantART from the more common
glow-lines variety of abstract wallpaper to quirky paintings, photographs, and
computer-rendered images. Most of the users at DeviantART are prolific
contributors, so if you find a wallpaper you really like, make sure to check
out the user's gallery to see if they have any other gems to share. DeviantART
doesn't have the advanced wallpaper-oriented search features that many of the
other wallpaper sites have, but you can still search by image size and sort by
popularity. Now that you've had a chance to look over TechCyborg2012
readers' favorite wallpaper sites, it's time to cast a vote for your favorite:
There's something rather marvellous about Rymdkapsel: an addictive, accessible game that offers a twist on the real-time strategy genre. The emphasis is on building a space-base through Tetris-like block-placement, while fending off waves of enemies. It's simple in all the best ways.
EA's racing threequel was controversial due to being the first freemium game in the much-loved series – free to play, but you pay to speed up repairs and unlock new cars faster. The game sees you racing more than 45 cars over 900 events, upgrading as you go. The graphics are spiffing, the handling works beautifully, and updates have provided extra content since its release.
Another freemium game from EA, but this time one offering match-three puzzling based on the famous Bejeweled brand. This re-engineers the game as a series of 60-second rounds where you have to score as many points as possible, using power-ups to bump up your performance, and comparing your efforts to friends.
Tiny Thief was the latest game from Rovio Stars, a new publishing business that's part of Angry Birds-maker Rovio. No birds or pigs here, though: it's inspired by classic point'n'click adventure games, with the teeny-burglar hero exploring six quests to uncover delightful puzzles and surprises.
Atmospheric puzzler The Room has been taxing brains on iOS and Android alike, getting you to explore a carefully-crafted 3D room solving puzzles. Everything's designed around touchscreen controls, and the puzzles themselves are genuinely brain-frazzling, providing a decent challenge.
Having made its name with Tiny Tower and Pocket Planes, Nimblebit's latest freemium game was more of an action title, blending Snake gameplay with RPG-style characters and upgrades. You swipe your party of heroes to guide them through levels of increasing difficulty. It's very one-more-go-even-though-it's-2am addictive.
Endless runner Temple Run has been a massive hit on smartphones of all stripes, and its sequel added new features without spoiling the basic premise: swiping to jump, slide and turn your way through scenery to escape an angry, giant monkey. A recent update added sprinter Usain Bolt as a playable character, too.
Sega's Crazy Taxi has thrilled as an arcade game, a console game and now a mobile title too. The game – a port of the Dreamcast console version – sees you speeding through San Francisco-esque streets collecting and delivering passengers in the most hair-raising way possible, with two modes and a bunch of mini-games to prolong the action.
Fishlabs' Galaxy on Fire space epics have always been reliable sources of mobile entertainment, and the latest installation is no different. It sees you shooting and trading your way across the galaxy, with more than 10 hours in its main campaign mode, and additional quests unlocked through in-app purchases.
This is now one of publisher EA's most successful game franchises on any device, putting you in charge of rebuilding Springfield after a nuclear meltdown. There are appearances from all the TV show's main characters, with in-app purchases used for virtual donuts to aid your progress.
Circular puzzle game Hundreds sees you tapping on circles in each level to make them (and the numbers inside them) bigger – adding at least 100 points overall without them touching. Which sounds slightly tortuous written down, but the game's genius is its stripped-down simplicity, wedded to stylish visuals and fearsome addictiveness-factor.
Disney had a big hit with its Where's My Water? and Where's My Perry physics-puzzle games, before applying the formula to Mickey Mouse. The game sees Mickey collecting water over more than 100 levels split into five episodes, with more available as in-app purchases.
Word game Spelltower involves swiping tiles of letters to make words as they rise from the bottom of the screen, a bit like Boggle meets reverse-Tetris (I said a bit). Five modes offer depth, and the gameplay is very moreish indeed.
Blip Blup is a hypnotically-addictive puzzle game from UK studio ustwo, which gets you tapping to fill a screen-full of tiles with colour. The complication being walls and obstacles that get in the way of your colour-pulse's path. There are more than 120 levels to work through, with an in-app purchase used to remove the game's advertisements.
The original Fieldrunners remains one of the best tower-defence games for mobile devices, and its sequel adds plenty of new features. If you're new to the genre, it involves placing towers to fend off increasingly tough hordes of enemies, building mazes to contain and destroy the marching troops before they reach your base.
Freemium drag-racing game CSR Racing was one of the biggest iOS hits of 2012, but its Android version has been justifiably popular this year. The game sees you buying, upgrading and racing a range of cars from Audi, BMW and other manufacturers, with an emphasis on customisation – and in-app purchases used to fund the action.
Cutesy monster Om Nom appeared in this, his third Cut the Rope game for Android. This time round, there's a time-travelling theme as he tries to feed sweets to his ancestors. The gameplay remains cutting ropes to solve physics-puzzles across six locations, although this time there are two on-screen monsters to feed, not one.
This visually-impressive shoot 'em up won bags of critical acclaim on console before its Android debut. It's a horizontally-scrolling game whose graphics would blow you away, if there weren't lots of enemies trying to do exactly that. It also does a good job of catering to more casual shmup players while a well-tuned scoring system gives experts a lasting challenge.
Gameloft's official endless-runner game for the Despicable Me movies has been (apologies for this) a runaway success. It puts you in the shoes of a scampering minion for this Temple Run-style game, leaping, sliding and dodging obstacles and enemies, while earning (or buying) power-ups and costumes to boost your chances.
I remain dreadful at Super Hexagon, spending most of my time with the game fighting the urge to throw my phone through the nearest window in frustration at my ineptitude. This is precisely why a fervent fanbase of hardcore gamers love it: a "minimal action" game that demands fast fingers and razor-sharp thinking.
Crescent Moon Games has won plenty of fans for its Ravensword RPG games, which are one of the franchises aiming to provide Skyrim-style open-world thrills on mobile devices. The latest sees you exploring a vast fantasy world, fighting and questing as you go.
The heyday of Guitar Hero and Rock Band may have faded on console, but mobile is seeing a resurgence in innovative music games. Dropchord is the work of Double Fine Productions (of Kickstarter fame) that sees you manipulating an on-screen laser beam while dodging scratches and collecting notes. Neon-tastic visuals and a 10-track electronica soundtrack add to the fun.
The huge popularity of Bejeweled Blitz persuaded EA to try the freemium formula for the most famous puzzle game of all: Tetris. The Blitz element means two-minute sessions to score as many points as possible, boosted by power-ups, while competing against Facebook friends' performances.
As someone with a long-term Triple Town habit who's also played an RPG or 17, I fell hard for Pixel Defenders Puzzle. It involves matching pixels and characters to make more-powerful characters, who then attack enemies at the top of the screen. Basically it's Triple Town (also amazing, but released before this year so not in this roundup) with extra fighting, and a fantasy-RPG theme.
Billed as "the world's #1 hit time management game", Diner Dash took its time to come to Android, but was worth the wait. The game involves seating, serving and saying tara to diners as efficiently as possible to collect tips. It's a freemium game, so in-app purchases are used for boosts and upgrades.
This excellent strategy game from publisher HandyGames is set on the eastern front of the second world war, letting you play as either the German or Russian forces. It's a turn-based wargame with infantry, tanks and bombers to command, with pass-the-device multiplayer supported as well as a campaign mode.
Ionage is a real-time strategy (RTS) game set in space "where you use giant floating space platforms to do battle in a steampunk themed story of galactic conquest". It's also exclusive to Android, and while it plays nicest on tablets, developer Twice Circled claims it's been "resourcefully optimised" for smartphones too.
Great boxing games are few and far between on console, let alone mobile. Real Boxing was a palpable hit, though, with its 30-fight career mode, 20 beefy boxers to duff up, and very impressive graphics – particularly if your device is packing a Tegra 3 processor.
The freemium bug is infecting the most famous of game characters, as shown by Namco Bandai's reboot of Pac-Man earlier this year. It mixes the original arcade game with a new Tournament mode with online leaderboards. In-app purchases are used to buy virtual tokens to play the weekly tournaments, but if you're not fussed about those, you can play for free.
If Angry Birds went 3D, with the birds replaced by Buzz Lightyear and the pigs replaced by aliens, it might look like Toy Story: Smash It. Disney's game makes for colourful knock'em down fun as you scoot around 60 levels chucking balls at the aliens' defences. In theory, it's for children. In reality, parents won't be able to resist sneaking a go.
Punch Quest is the first game (to my knowledge) that lists one of its key features as the ability to "punch an egg that turns you into a magical gnome". It's a quirky, creative action game with a stripped-down control system that works perfectly on touchscreens.
It's time to play the music... This game from Disney turns the Muppets into a free-to-play resource management game, with a musical twist. It involves recruiting a house band from more than 20 Muppets, then keeping them happy and levelling up their skills to make beautiful music. Optional in-app purchases of virtual diamonds help to keep things swinging.
And another freemium revamp for a much-loved brand, with beat 'em up franchise Tekken transforming into a card-battler game. You build a deck of moves, then battle virtual and real opponents – with a range of real-world collectible cards due to join the fun too.
This is an old favourite from Japanese developer Cave, with bullets flying all over the shop, a punishing-yet-rewarding difficulty curve, and three control systems to suit your playing style. As shoot 'em ups go, it's one of the toughest for casual players, but rewarding nonetheless.
If you're looking for time-sucking addictive games on Android, anything by Japanese developer Kairosoft is a good bet. This game sees you building a ninja clan and sending them into battle, while also building their village into a prosperous settlement.
This pixelly-retro action game was one of the launch titles on the Android-based Ouya console, and has also been making friends on iOS. The Android version is very fun indeed, getting you to plunge down dungeons fighting and looting in a touchscreen-friendly format.
Sega is certainly cashing in on its fleet-footed blue hedgehog: the original Sonic game follows two episodes of Sonic 4, Sonic CD and Sonic Jump onto Android. The famous Mega Drive game has been accurately ported across, with extra Tails & Knuckles, a remastered soundtrack and a new Time Attack mode.
There are lots of tower defence games on Android, but Kingdom Rush more than holds its own in the crowd though. The game has a fantasy setting, all orcs, elves and wizards. You'll be protecting your kingdom against more than 50 enemies, with all manner of upgrades and abilities to fuel your strategy.
Described as a "Victorian era head-to-head arcade battle for tablets", this two-player game sees your dapper duellists hurling knives, bombs and even homing pigeons at one another in a fight to the death. One of the best share-the-device multiplayer games on Android.
People are playing Candy Crush Saga (also out before 2013) in their tens of millions, and while this follow-up hasn't yet reached those heights, it's well worth a look. Synchronising with the existing Facebook version of the game, this offers 72 levels of block-puzzling action – with cutesy animals and social leaderboards thrown in.
Gameloft's dungeon-crawling adventure is back for its fourth iteration, and like the third instalment, this is freemium. Expect more fantasy-themed hacking and slashing, as you wander through sprawling underground environments laying waste to enemies.
Into the Dead is yet another zombie apocalypse game – Android is flush with these – but one with plenty of creativity and originality at work as you fend off the shambling undead. A cross between an endless runner and a first-person shooter, with plenty of charm.
The Sandbox is one of a clutch of pixel-art creation-games to have appeared this year, inspired by Minecraft but with an emphasis on 2D worlds rather than 3D. The game offers 71 levels to work through, as you trigger chemical reactions, generate lifeforms and try to build the Pyramids.
This colourful action-RPG sees you putting together a team of heroes, carefully balancing their skills and devising tactics to fend off foes, levelling up as you go. Released by Korean firm Com2uS, it's got plenty to love for Western gamers as well as players in its home country.
If you like a real challenge with your games, then Frozen Synapse is £2.50 well spent this week. It's a turn-based strategy game originally released for computers, as you guide your squad through a succession of levels. 55 missions to play by yourself plus five multiplayer modes make this a treat.
Angry Birds Friends isn't a new game, as such: it's been available to play on Facebook for some time. Both that and the mobile game give Angry Birds a social refit so that you're competing in weekly tournaments against your Facebook friends. Bragging and gifting is built in, as are in-app purchases.
This game may come from a well-established RPG game franchise, but its Clash of Heroes incarnation is a more modern beast: a puzzle-RPG. That means you'll be battling monsters and looting dungeons, but with the battles built around match-three puzzling. Publisher Ubisoft promises more than 20 hours in its campaign mode, plus multiplayer modes to challenge friends.
Chuck's Challenge comes from the same brains that invented popular puzzler Chip's Challenge. That means 125 levels to find your way through, overcoming obstacles and solving puzzles as you go. The game also includes a level creator to make your own and share them with other players – or just browse and play what the community has been creating.
Trading card game Magic: The Gathering continues to have a large and devoted fanbase. They'll be the people excited about this latest digital version, updated for 2014 with new cards, opponents and campaign levels to test your skills. As a free download, the game comes with three decks with five unlockable cards each, but more decks, cards and content can be bought via in-app purchase.
Finally, another engrossing game from South Korea, this time from publisher Gamevil. It's a game based around plants defending their forest home from invading beasts. Which might sound a bit like Plants vs Zombies, but instead this is a meaty real-time strategy game with depth in (again, sorry) spades.
Now it's your turn: Cross at your favourite games being left out, or want to explain why one or more of the ones included are essential downloads? Please do pitch in with a comment.
The latest to do the rounds of rumours surrounding Apple's newest flagship product iPhone5S is its launch date, which is speculated to be September 6.
According to Huffington Post, the iPhone5S may be just over a month away as estimated by a German blog iFun and if true it wouldmean that the latest iPhone will hit the market earlier than previous versions.
It was speculated that the reason for delay in the launch of iPhone was the manufacturer's decision to shift to bigger screen sizes as compared to the current 4-inch display .
Although, there hasn't been any confirmation regarding the matter from the company's side, the German blog stated that 'two new device types' are expected, referring to the varied screen sizes, the report added.
When it comes to technology, we've been trained to expect more for less. Devices get more powerful each year, as prices stay the same or drop. With the new Nexus 7 tablet, Google hopes we're willing to pay more for more.
The new tablet comes with a $30 price increase over lastyear's model. At $229 for the base model, it is still a bargain - and 30 percent cheaper than Apple's $329 iPad Mini. The display is sharper and the sound is richer than the old model. There's now a rear camera for taking snapshots. The new Nexus 7 is the first device to ship with Android 4.3, which lets you create profiles to limit what your curious and nosy kids can do on your tablet when you're not around.
Amazon.com Inc.'s $199 Kindle Fire HD is cheaper, but it doesn't give you full access to the growing library of Android apps for playing games, checking the weather, tracking flights, reading the news, getting coupons from your favorite stores and more. The Nexus 7 does.
The new Nexus 7 tablet, left, works in conjuction with the Chromecast device to control a television during a Google event on Wednesday in San Francisco. Photo: AP/Marcio Jose Sanchez
It's a fine complement to your smartphone if it's running Google's Android, the dominant operating system on phones these days - even as Apple commands the market for tablet computers with its full-size iPad and iPad Mini. Unless you tell it not to, apps you use on the phone will automatically appear on the Nexus 7, so you can switch from device to device seamlessly. When you are signed in, bookmarks will also transfer over Google's Chrome Web browser, as will favorite places on Google Maps.
If you were already eyeing last year's Nexus 7 model, then go ahead and pay $30 more for the latest.
Although screen dimensions are identical, the new Nexus 7 has a higher pixel density, at 323 pixels per inch compared with 216 on the old model. Trees and other objects in the movie "Life of Pi" look sharper, as do the movie title and credits on the screen.
A Google employee demonstrates playing a video on a phone and transferring it to a television using the new Google Chromecast SDK during a Google special event at Dogpatch Studios. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images/AFP
Sound is much better with speakers on the left and the right side of the tablet, held horizontally. Although they are technically back facing, the speakers are placed along a curved edge in such a way that sound seems to project outward and not away from you. On the old Nexus 7, I can't even tell where the speakers are.
The new Nexus 7 also feels more comfortable in my hands. It's 17 percent thinner and 5 percent narrower when held like a portrait. The old model was a tad too wide to grip comfortably in the palm of my hands. The new device is also 15 percent lighter, at 10.2 ounces. And the rubbery back feels smoother on the new tablet.
A video is displayed on the new Google Nexus 7 tablet made by Asus during a Google special event at Dogpatch Studios. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images/AFP
The new Nexus ships with a camera app, something last year's model didn't really need because it had only a front-facing camera, for videoconferencing. With the new rear, 5-megapixel camera, you can take photos and video of what's in front of you. Expect to be ridiculed, though, if I see you doing that. Still, it's not as bad as blocking someone's view with a full-size tablet.
As for the restricted profiles that come with Android 4.3, it's a good idea, though it still has kinks. When you set up a profile for your kid, you pick which apps to enable. Don't want your kid to be surfing the Web unrestricted? Then keep the Chrome browser disabled. Don't want him or her on Facebook? Keep that app disabled, too. The app store is also disabled, so Junior can't go on a download spree. If you do allow access to a particular app, though, then it's full access. There's no filtering to block porn and other questionable material, for instance.
The new Nexus 7 tablet is displayed during a Google event at Dogpatch Studio in San Francisco. Photo: Reuters/Beck Diefenbach
I found that some apps won't work with restricted profiles at all, including those for Gmail and other email accounts. If you want your kids to have access to email, then you have to give them full access or enable the browser to check email over the Web. You can't turn on just the email app.
And although the new tablet is the first to ship with Android 4.3, it's available to download on other devices, including last year's Nexus 7.
What the new tablet does offer is the promise of a longer battery life - up to 10 hours for Web surfing and nine hours for video streaming. Last year's model was rated at eight hours.
There's no question the new model is better and worth the price increase.
Michael Sundermeyer, of Google, demonstrates Google's new Chromecast device synching between a television and the new Nexus 7 tablet during a Google event at Dogpatch Studio in San Francisco. Reuters/Beck Diefenbach
Choosing between the new Nexus 7 and the iPad Mini is tougher.
If you already have an iPhone, the iPad Mini will be a nice complement. You won't have to buy music, video and apps twice, for instance. You might want to wait until this fall, though, to see whether Apple comes out with a new model.
It's a tougher call if you have an Android phone.
The new Nexus 7 tablet is demonstrated during a Google event at Dogpatch Studio in San Francisco. Reuters/Beck Diefenbach
By volume, the two systems have a comparable number of apps. But I've found that many larger app developers have made versions only for the iPhone and the iPad. The American Museum of Natural History in New York has six that work on iPads but only one on Android devices. An app to watch full episodes of CBS television shows is for Apple and Windows devices only, not Android. Meanwhile, the iDonatedIt app for tracking tax deductions has more features for Apple devices, while features that are supposed to work on Android often don't.
Android is good in that many apps designed for a phone's smaller screen are automatically adapted to take advantage of a tablet's larger screen. On the iPad, apps that aren't optimized for it are squeezed into a smaller window the size of an iPhone. Blow it up to full screen, and it looks distorted. But that's not as glaring on the Mini as it is on the full-size iPad. And having apps automatically change their layout isn't the same as designing them for the tablet from scratch, as is the case with the hundreds of thousands of apps optimized for the iPad.
Hugo Barra, vice president Android product management at Google, uses the new Nexus 7 tablet in San Francisco. Photo: AP/Marcio Jose Sanchez
The Nexus 7's screen is much sharper than that on the iPad Mini, which has the non-HD display technology of the iPad 2 from 2011 - ancient in the world of mobile gadgets. The Nexus 7 is also a tad lighter, by 6 percent.
That said, the iPad Mini has a larger screen, measuring 7.9 inches diagonally compared with 7 inches on the Nexus. And the iPad Mini has had a rear camera from the start. The iPad Mini also has Siri, a voice assistant that is feistier than Google Now on the Nexus. If you prefer Google Now for its ability to give you information you need to know without even asking, you can download it on the Mini. You can't get Siri on the Nexus.
If you do get the Nexus 7, it supports wireless charging, so you can get rid of the messy wiring. The device comes only with a standard microUSB charger to plug in, so you'll have to buy a Qi-compatible wireless charger yourself.
The new Nexus 7 tablet is demonstrated during a Google event at Dogpatch Studio in San Francisco. Photo: Reuters/Beck Diefenbach
The $229 base model comes with 16 gigabytes of storage. For $40 more, or $269, you get twice the storage. Both will go on sale in the U.S. next Tuesday. A 32-gigabyte model with 4G cellular capability will cost $349. By contrast, the iPad Mini starts at $329. A 32-gigabyte version with 4G costs $559.
Even with the price increase, Google has Apple beaten on price. The Nexus 7 may lack the cachet and many of the apps that the iPad Mini has, but you'll be able to do a lot with it. I hope technology companies won't make price hikes a habit, but this one is made palatable by the device's richer display, sound and camera.
About the Nexus 7:
The updated Nexus 7 sports a sharper, 7-inch screen and better sound through dual speakers. It now has a rear, 5-megapixel camera to complement a 1.2-megapixel front-facing camera. It comes with an Android update that features the ability to create restricted accounts for kids.
The new Nexus 7 tablet is shown next to an older version during a Google event in San Francisco. Photo: AP/Marcio Jose Sanchez
It also comes with a higher price tag. The base model with 16 gigabytes costs $229, or $30 more than last year's model. A 32-gigabyte model costs $269, or $20 more. A 32-gigabyte model with 4G cellular capability will cost $349, $50 more than before.
The Wi-Fi-only models go on sale in the U.S. on Tuesday, with other countries to come. Google says it will be available at its online Play store and the following retailers: Best Buy, GameStop, Walmart, Staples, Office Max, Office Depot, Amazon, Home Shopping Network, Radio Shack, J&R and B&H Photo. Google hasn't announced a release date for the cellular version.
The device is made by AsusTek Computer Inc., working from Google's design.
In order to prove that social media giant Facebook has a security flaw that can allow people to post on someone's wall without being in their friends' list, a security researcher went a step ahead to prove his point and posted about the bug on the CEO's wall. Khalil Shreateh fromPalestine initially tried to report the bug to Facebook's security team before posting something to Sarah Goodin's wall, a friend of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg but he was not taken seriously till then.
Shreateh then used the bug and posted a message on Zuckerberg's wall and explained about the flaw which prompted immediate action and within minutes the site's security engineer contacted him and asked for the details.
Facebook has a bounty program where it pays people to report bugs instead of using them maliciously but it did not pay the $US500+ fee amount to Shreateh because they cited him violating the site's terms of service, although, they asked him to continue to help them find bugs.
The site's security team then later confirmed that the bug had been fixed and added that bounty was denied because Shreateh did not include enough technical info when he tried to report the bug, the report added.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg today announced Facebook Home at an even which was scheduled in California, USA. As the name suggest, the Facebook Home is specifically released as home replacement app for Android users. In simple words, Facebook Home will act as a home launcher such as Apex Launcher, Nova Launcher or Go Launcher and will carry the sweet layout of Facebook stories.
Mark in his presentation stressed on point of releasing an app which would be people-centric and not application-centric. He also said that Facebook is not at all interested in releasing a FBOS which may or may not run on some phones. Instead, they are interested in giving pleasant experience on already existing open platform called Android. Facebook Home will initially be available for limited number of Android smartphones which include Samsung Galaxy Note 2, HTC One X, Samsung Galaxy S3 and HTC One X+. The recently released HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S4 will soon be followed while other Android smartphone will also be able to run this in coming months.
Also, Facebook Home won’t be available on Android tablets and it might take couple of month to get it on tablets.
Facebook Home Features
Cover Feed – Facebook has completely replaced Android lockscreen with cover feed. It is aimed at giving photo centric updates from your friends and their feeds.
Chat Heads – This are tiny notification bubbles which appear on your screen once you receive any text message or Facebook message. They can be moved anywhere onto the screen.
Notification – This includes notifications from your Facebook account as well as those which are directly meant for you.
Apps – All your apps are residing under this icon. Hold your finger on your profile icon at the bottom and swipe up to open your favorite icons.
Gmail launched nine years ago on April 1st, 2004. Since then you've been able to use hundreds of new features that push the boundaries of what email can do and make it easier to get things done.
Starting today, you'll get to experience the next big step for Gmail, Gmail Blue. Watch the video to learn more:
The Samsung Galaxy S4 brings a huge Full HD screen, an improved camera and faster innards, and fits it all in a chassis the same size as the Galaxy S3.
However, many will struggle to tell the difference between the S4 and its predecessor, as the polycarbonate chassis is still in use, although the metallic banding around the side, while still plastic, is much sturdier and feels more premium.
We've already seen a lot of the Samsung Galaxy S4, as it's been snapped multiple times in leaks – some more accurate than others, it has to be said – and the specs mooted have turned out to be pretty bang on.
But that doesn't matter – megapixels and gigabytes don't mean anything if they're not wrapped up in a decent package, so how much of an improvement is the Samsung Galaxy S4 over the S3, and more importantly, the competition?
Design
The Samsung Galaxy S4 is built on four foundations: an improved camera, better connections with others, health and wellbeing improvements and simply making life easier.
While this is all a little hyperbolic, the S4 at least brings an integrated feel to things while improving nearly every spec on offer. The outside is still plastic, but harks back to the mesh design, if not feel of the Galaxy S2.
Colour wise you've got a choice of 'White Frost' and 'Black Mist', which adorn the large device, which runs in with dimensions of 136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9mm, despite still having to pack in a 5-inch Full HD Super AMOLED screen.
That means it will have a larger screen, but smaller chassis than the Galaxy S3, which is a superbly impressive feat of engineering, especially when you consider the specs.
But like its predecessor, the plastic feeling of the Galaxy S3 won't appeal to all. It feels very lightweight (tipping the scales at 130g) in the hand, and while people have been conditioned against this feeling cheap, compare it to the HTC One and you'll see that it's a long way from premium feeling.
However, it's exactly the same sensation as we found on the Galaxy S3, and given the record numbers of sales that had Samsung is sticking with a winning formula, plus there's more than a market for a phone that you'll barely notice in your pocket most of the time.
Compared to rest of the Galaxy line, the S4 continues in the same vein as the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 and the S3, (as well as myriad other devices) showing the Koreans are keen on creating a design heritage here.
The home button is roughly the same size and the same menu and back buttons remain from the prequel.
Overall, the effect is a much more well put together Galaxy S3 – so this means that when you take it out down the pub people won't notice you've got the latest phone, which is a bit of a shame.
The Samsung Galaxy S4 feels like much more of an iterative update than new design, and while it will probably sell well there's very little to wow you when it comes to the overall shape. Specs are important, but if there was such as thing as a Samsung Galaxy S3S, this would be it.
But away from all that negativity! We have a new phone to check over, so let's take a minute and talk about the screen: it's even more beautiful than before.
Display
We almost feel sad that this isn't the first Full HD screen we've seen on a mobile phone, as it's kind of lost its lustre since the likes of the HTC One and Sony Xperia Z have all managed the same trick – but it improves the sharpness a lot, even though you're not getting that much different from the S3.
Side by side you can see the difference close up, and the brightness and efficiency have been tweaked to make this a more compelling screen in a phone. Talk all you want about the benefits and colour saturation of LCD – the Samsung Galaxy S4 is leagues ahead when it comes to jaw-dropping screens.
The 441ppi pixel density doesn't match the HTC One, but is more than good enough for the average user.
We'll be mightily surprised if the combined popularity of the HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S4 don't prompt Apple into a re-tooling of the screen with the iPhone 5S or iPhone 6, as the sharpness will definitely wow users on the shelves.
Aside from the initial impression of the design, in the hand the Samsung Galaxy S3 feels just dandy. The design contours well against the palm, and while the screen size may be a little big for some (you'll need a bit of shuffling to reach the upper section of the screen) it's definitely useable in the hand.
So in short: if you don't mind plastic and you like cutting-edge HD screens in your pocket, this is a phone definitely worth checking out.
Interface
Samsung hasn't really re-tooled the Touchwiz overlay for the Galaxy S4, but has added some clever upgrades that will have some users talking about innovation.
For instance, the lock screen doesn't have the water rippling any more, but does register your finger from up to two centimetres away, so a little beam of light will follow your digit as you unlock. It's something you'll definitely play with for ages.
It's clear with the Galaxy S4 that Samsung has worked out there's only so much it can do on the hardware side these days – not to say that we're pretty impressed with the spec list - and as such has tried to bring the unique flavour through the interface instead.
As before with Touchwiz, there's a definite sense the whole process has been simplified, as the phone has got a much easier feel to it when swiping around. That's not to say there aren't loads of widgets to be played with, but there is less clutter on the larger screen.
The dock at the bottom of the display pervades, and there are more widgets to play with. Thanks to the Galaxy S4 running Android Jelly Bean 4.2.2 you've now got an addition in the notifications bar of a toggle in the top-right hand corner where you can turn on and off pretty much anything, from NFC to Group Cast to eye-tracking.
Swiping around the display was easy as pie – it's not exactly taxing on the processor, but we did note that there was a slight pause as we swiped through the menu screen on this pre-production model.
However, there is a worry that the octo-core (yes, you read that right) 1.6 GHz Exynos 5 CPU, with 2GB of RAM as well, could suck power a little too dramatically – but we've yet to hear the full details of how the CPU will work before we can pass any judgement on that.
Smart Stay, which tracks your eyes to tell if you're looking at the screen, has stablemates now. Smart Pause will note if your gaze leaves the screen and will pause the video, and Smart Scroll will check when you're reading a web page and scroll up and down as you tilt the device.
It's a novel idea for replacing things you do already but in practice we didn't find either that useful. Smart Pause takes a second to register your gaze has gone, which means you'll still miss part of the video, and Smart Scroll (again, pre-production model) was far from accurate when we tilted the phone.
Smart Voice hasn't been upgraded beyond improving the accuracy of the voice recognition and Driving Mode, which will give you more voice-related feedback when you're in your motor.
Smart Alert has been upgraded: now it's joined by Air Gestures, which allow you to swipe the phone without touching the screen. So this means you can flip through pictures or music tracks ("good if you have messy fingers" says Samsung) flick to the top of a list by wiping upwards on the screen and Air Call Accept starts the camera… no, we're joking. It accepts a call without touching the screen.
On top of that there's Hover mode, which is the same as Air View on the Note 2 which used the S Pen and tracked when it was near the screen to give previews of emails, video scrolling without disturbing the action, and seeing who is on speed dial.
A quick test with this saw the preview being activated a little too easily, but it's definitely a neat feature and something we could get used to.
But overall the good news is the large screen looks great, the improved CPU might not be needed but is welcomed and the little touches like the shining lock screen do actually feel like a real step forward.
Media
The Samsung Galaxy S4 follows in the footsteps of its predecessors in that it's designed for media – which is what you'd expect from a phone that's the sequel to the phone we dubbed the best out there for media on the go.
The video player is obviously taking centre stage here on the Galaxy S4, and combined with the improved Full HD Super AMOLED screen is just magnificent for watching movies.
The video hub now contains both personal and downloaded content in one place, and it looks really, really nice when viewing it on the 5-inch screen.
It's an understandably excellent experience, with the screen veritably shining with quality contrast ratios and decent colour reproduction.
The navigation experience is easy as well, and slipping up and down the timeline to move through a video seems very intuitive.
AllShare Cast is included as well, powering up the ability to stream to and from other devices. In addition to being able to send content from the phone to a TV and receive from a PC in your home network, you can also do this remotely now, as long as the device is turned on obviously.
Another feature is mirroring, where you can send whatever is on the screen of your Galaxy S4 and have it show on a larger display. We've seen this on a number of devices, and while it's not going to allow big screen gaming on the go, as we've often noted that there's a lag between input and its realisation on the screen, it could be good for movies if it's less jumpy than found on the S3.
Samsung has managed to stay ahead of the pack when it comes to internal storage too – it will be available in 16GB, 32GB and 64GB flavours plus up to 64GB through a microSD card as well. That's more storage than most will ever need on it's own, right?
This will be a killer feature for a lot of smartphone users, as while the internal storage is generally good enough for most things, many love the idea of having the choice to expand if they so wish – so combining this with an expandable battery is a great idea from Samsung once again.
Camera
The Samsung Galaxy S4 camera is a step up from its predecessor, with a 13MP sensor on the back, which now has to bulge slightly from the chassis.
Samsung promises excellent low-light snaps from the S4 as well, but we doubt it can take on the might of the HTC One when it comes to low light conditions, as the Galaxy S3 was decimated by the might of HTC's Ultrapixels - and that's before we even get onto the Nokia Lumia 920.
From a blindingly bright flash to a backside illuminated sensor, our quick snaps came out crisply and clearly – and when we say quick, we mean it.
The UI has changed a bit to mimic that found on the Samsung Galaxy Camera, with a special mode wheel to move between items like the Macro, Beauty shot and smile setting, and while it's a little slow it's definitely an easier to use interface.
Burst mode is predictably back, but it now comes with a 'Drama' setting, so you can take one shot and see all the pictures merge into one. It works really well as long as you don't have something that's just too close to the camera or too large – in our tests it showed you need a lot of space between each movement.
Eraser mode and Cinema mode also come straight from the Nokia Lumia phones we've seen recently – the former works extremely well though, noting an unwanted object moving in the background and erasing it by drawing a pink outline around the thing and letting you delete.
However, you have to have the mode enabled, which takes multiple pics, rather than the standard shot, so you probably won't be able to make good use of it most of the time.
Cinema mode lets you shoot a short video and choose the part to keep static – this means you can have a background moving while the person stays the same, and is created in a GIF to make things properly early noughties.
You also get a 2MP camera on the front of the phone for some decent personal snaps – plus you can also get HD video recording too.
This has been updated to allow you to record video and pictures with the front and back cameras simultaneously, which doesn't really make much sense in the grand scheme of things, but at least you can put some clever frames around your face to make it more relevant.
Battery
Samsung has managed to lower the thickness of the Galaxy S4 compared to the S3 but upgraded the battery from 2,100mAh to 2,600mAh, promising a much larger capacity and therefore longer life.
However, with all those extra pixels (1080 x 1920) to drive and more cores – we're not sure whether this will actually translate to better battery life or not. Samsung has promised that the power management will be more intelligent than ever before, but we're yet to play a good half hour of HD gaming and then watch a monster movie marathon on the S4 to really test it out.
It was excellent on the S3 for the most part, so here's hoping that that Octo-core will inspire even better battery life.
