Phone, Tablet and Gizmo Thread #0x02

[Raja Bose]

Any YumBeeAye with his ear to the ground would also know that Sammy has been slowly but surely creating its own services and app store ecosystem for the past couple of years.

I can't speak for others, but had a samsung phone and have used their app store. Its a poor me too effort, pathetic to say the least. Some of the gaming apps that I downloaded wouldn't work on my phone!! (I9100g). This was their flagship when it was launched. Sammy smartly sneaked in a I9100g when I ordered a S2 (I9100 vs I9100g). I bet many people that use sammy androids don't even know that an app store exists even!

I think Sammy and almost all Android manufactures are hardware vendors at the end of day. They will come up with top notch hardware but expecting top notch software over-the-top experience is asking too much. They dont have it in their DNA

I never believe in this company DNA stuff. Its basically BS. Companies change based on evolving market otherwise they perish. ChipZ has probably remained the same but even they went from memory to processors. In the end its about clear management directives and political will. Sammy has no lack of expertise, resources or even will right up to the VP level. The top management (C level) unfortunately can't make up their minds and that is why you see half-hearted releases like all the S-crap. And add to that their very Korea centric mode of operation and rigid company culture, leading to even PR fiascos like those weird product launch events.

[vina]

That's a FDM machine if they are using ABS plastic filament. Impressive that they built it and demoed it but I hope you are not throwing big money at them. A few "ideal" demo prints don't cut it. In 3D printer land, you basically get what you pay for. If its cheap, its typically crap. And crap is not like its 80-90% as good as the best, its more like 20-30% as good as the best. That will obviously change as it gets commoditized but that's the reality now.

If you forget your YumBeeAye ppt-giri skills for a moment and go back to your injineering roots, you can build your own 3D printer. The principle of operation is quite simple and its doesn't require too many parts either.

Well, some of the samples they showed were pretty cool. An elephant with legs that moved and moving parts inside built in purely by printing (so not like elephant sliced halves printed and then assembled over moving parts), a working model of a V8 engine cylinder , piston and crankshaft assembly.

Anyways, check them out, Fracktal.

[vina]

Any YumBeeAye with his ear to the ground would also know that Sammy has been slowly but surely creating its own services and app store ecosystem for the past couple of years

Ah, but YumBeeYea will look at spread-e-sheet and see dollahs for revenue against Sammy services vs revenue from Sammy building dabbas with Cacha's Services and OS running and ask, WTF , wat is dat ? A roundin error? And you want to shoot relationship with Chacha in the foot and give up this large revenue now for a rounding error ?

Do you know what will happen to the stock-e-price right away (just after you bought it) if I even let you open your mouth on this ?

[Raja Bose]

^^^Very good effort but not clear how good it is. The specs are in line with low-end 3D printers so they must be making it quite cost effective. Couple of additional points to keep in mind even if one is deciding to buy such a machine:

1) Does it have its own processor and memory to store the entire model or does it need to get each slice from the host PC? This is a problem with cheap 3D printers and leads to destroyed models mainly due to latency.

2) 100 micron is not high resolution which means it will require a good amount post processing before painting can be done. They are claiming 75 micron on one page and 100 micron in another.

3) Does the head have collision sensors? Quite common for heads to knock off a half-built model during printing.

4) NVH of the build platform - how stable it is, how often does it need calibration.

5) How often does the machine need to be used or the nozzles purged before they clog up.

[KrishG]

Building an OS from grounds up means nothing. Otherwise Amazon wouldn't be so successful.

RBsaar,
I was just saying that getting people to adopt a forked OS is tough enough even though the ecosystem already exists, but to get people to migrate to a new ecosystem is even harder. Microsoft deserves some appreciation for this fact although it doesn't mean much.

And when was Chacha a saint and why should Chacha be a saint? Just becoz they got some airhead consumers to buy into their "Don't be evil" PR? They are a huge for-profit publicly traded corporation - no better or worse than FruitCo or Mickey. Any steps they take is to make money directly or indirectly, philanthropic sounding PR notwithstanding. And as one of their shareholders, I demand nothing less!

Maybe saint is not the right word. But Google hasn't learnt its lessons. Microsoft kept Office out of Android and iOS for a long time and as a result they lost a lot of market and allowed competitors (though still not close to MS Office in terms of use and popularity) to get a start. Ofcourse it is trying to rectify that mistake now. Google is doing the same mistake by not providing Google apps and services for Windows Phone. Google is just making way for Microsoft to emerge as a real alternative to all services which Google provides (Maps, Web Search, eMail, Cloud). And if Microsoft is really serious about it, as it seems to be, after a certain threshold things start picking up pretty fast.

[Raja Bose]

Any YumBeeAye with his ear to the ground would also know that Sammy has been slowly but surely creating its own services and app store ecosystem for the past couple of years

Ah, but YumBeeYea will look at spread-e-sheet and see dollahs for revenue against Sammy services vs revenue from Sammy building dabbas with Cacha's Services and OS running and ask, WTF , wat is dat ? A roundin error? And you want to shoot relationship with Chacha in the foot and give up this large revenue now for a rounding error ?

Do you know what will happen to the stock-e-price right away (just after you bought it) if I even let you open your mouth on this ?

Nobody is saying Sammy will shut out Chacha today but then one plans today for the future including even YumBeeAye ppt-giri jedi masters, no? Nothing happens overnight but then when it happens, half the YumBeeAye crowd is sleeping and gets woken up with their chaddis on phyrr thinking it happened overnight.

[vina]

1) Does it have its own processor and memory to store the entire model or does it need to get each slice from the host PC? This is a problem with cheap 3D printers and leads to destroyed models mainly due to latency.

2) 100 micron is not high resolution which means it will require a good amount post processing before painting can be done. They are claiming 75 micron on one page and 100 micron in another.

3) Does the head have collision sensors? Quite common for heads to knock off a half-built model during printing.

4) NVH of the build platform - how stable it is, how often does it need calibration.

5) How often does the machine need to be used or the nozzles purged before they clog up.

1) You can plug in an SD card with the file into it. So, does have memory and print controller
2) The 100micron elephant I saw and felt was pretty smooth and didn't seem to need any post processing. The 200micron vase they printed for me is pretty decent as well. Pretty good I think
3) Right now only one head. Those guys said something about multi headed ones and laser metal ones in the works. Wasn't paying too much attention then.
4) NVH , excellent. Whisper quiet. Could hardly hear it. Nothing like a dot matrix printer going kar..kar..karr.
Very easy to level and calibrate. No elaborate setup . Just pull out of the box and off it goes. iirc.they said no calibration needed.
5) Nozzles are a brit import. So whatever that spec is, I guess will be common with others.

[Raja Bose]

Maybe saint is not the right word. But Google hasn't learnt its lessons. Microsoft kept Office out of Android and iOS for a long time and as a result they lost a lot of market and allowed competitors (though still not close to MS Office in terms of use and popularity) to get a start. Ofcourse it is trying to rectify that mistake now. Google is doing the same mistake by not providing Google apps and services for Windows Phone. Google is just making way for Microsoft to emerge as a real alternative to all services which Google provides (Maps, Web Search, eMail, Cloud). And if Microsoft is really serious about it, as it seems to be, after a certain threshold things start picking up pretty fast.

Google will provide their apps once they see money making opportunity there. That is why they do apps for iOS. Till then they can thumb their nose at Mickey and kill 2 birds with one stone by denying some key apps to a rival platform. And Mickey can cry foul and threaten lawsuits onlee but do nothing more. The funny thing is in e-mail and cloud, Mickey already overtook Chacha in 2013 in terms of subscriber base. Heck, even their web based Office which came a good 2 years after Chacha's Google Docs, is already the largest online office suite in terms of subscribers (both free and paid). That is why I said this whole XYZ company can't do ABC becoz its not in its DNA is BS peddled by consultant/innovation workshop types. A company has to change with the times or perish. Mickey started out selling BASIC, went into OS, went into Office productivity then went into gaming (both HW and game studios) and now is in the services business. All its compatriots except Apple are no more and even Apple went thru a near death experience before the Mahdi retook the reigns and transformed it from a PC maker into what it is today.

[Raja Bose]

I am skeptical about a 100 micron build feeling smooth out of the printer (200 is out of question). Even 15 micron from a top-end Connex doesn't feel smooth for contours and requires a wee bit of sanding and filling depending on how model is aligned on the print bed. Anyhow would be interesting to see their stuff if they come to Make Faire here.

There is another bunch of guys from Anna University trying to do their own VR headset. Met them at the Augmented World Expo. Good to see young grads trying to do CE/HW startups instead of trying to be the next Murthy robber barron.

[vina]

I am skeptical about a 100 micron build feeling smooth out of the printer (200 is out of question).

I have the 200 micron vase with me in my hand as I am typing. Even the top edge feels smooth ,no burrs, nothing hurting. Same with sides, which is not rounded , but has hard chines , basically a hexagonal cylinder twisted about it's axis, so with spines curling around it and multiple spines running across. All very smooth and no hard edges. Only thing that needs de burring is the base that sits on the hot bottom plate and which was scooped out.

[Raja Bose]

I am skeptical about a 100 micron build feeling smooth out of the printer (200 is out of question).

I have the 200 micron vase with me in my hand as I am typing. Even the top edge feels smooth ,no burrs, nothing hurting. Same with sides, which is not rounded , but has hard chines , basically a hexagonal cylinder twisted about it's axis, so with spines curling around it. Only that that needs deburring is the base that sits on the hot bottom plate and which was scooped out.

Post pics if you can. Would be interesting to see the structure. Is the interior hollow or filled with supports? Nice thing about FDM is it doesn't require support material. The bad thing about FDM is, that makes it difficult to do some complex shapes unless printer is super fast. But then models made of ABS are way more robust and thermally stable as compared to high resolution ones made of corn starch.

[Raja Bose]

https://www.hellonod.com/

a engr from my previous grp is one of the founders of this product co. do you think this bluetooth ring tech has a future or will be superceded by the oncoming wave of android and ios wearable watches?

Hmm, the founder is a good friend of mine and classmate It got pretty good press, not sure how many they sold it so far.

Its in pre-order right now. One of our running coaches (& team physio) is part of this company so I will see if I can get one thru friends & family discount They are well funded by VCs including Sequoia.

[Raja Bose]

Android Auto hands-on

Chacha should just go with MirrorLink instead of re-inventing the wheel here for echandee purposes. That way they can also get into more cars faster.

[SaiK]

What the auto guys are not doing is the car is much more mobile than the mobile devices.. and further they are a platform themselves. It is easier to slam a huge PC inside a car dashboard with display systems, that could interface with mobile devices. The computerized car could interface various car components via its CAN interface, and mobile devices either via WiFi or USB etc. Car could also be a wifi hotspot.

why no vision?

[Raja Bose]

er...SaiKollah, you have that already but it doesn't solve 3 fundamental problems:
1) WTH is going to develop quality apps for a fragmented ecosystem? Cars don't sell on the same scale as mobile devices.
2) WTH is going to maintain the software and app framework running on that car PC for 15 years? And who will ensure updates/upgrades/compatibility? Its version control & maintenance nightmare.
3) The production cycles in the auto industry are long. So by the time an in-built automotive infotainment system gets to you, the HW is outdated, the SW is outdated, the apps are limited & crappy and you are stuck with it for 8-10 years typically. After you paid a big chunk of cash for it. So, what's the value proposition?

The use of mobile devices as automotive app platforms is the solution to the above. For details (or if you have trouble sleeping), read one of my boring ol' papers in IEEE Computer.

[Prasad]

For cars, best thing imo would be to interface with a phone and have a big-ass screen. The phone is far more powerful and versatile than whatever dinky little computer they shove into the car.

[SaiK]

would not that be a distraction to the driver then?

I would still think about a larger tablet kind of device just plugs in and acts like a display and a mobile device.. so that, car guys don't need to bother about the hw/sw upgrades other than how it wants to interface with it.

- CAN interface, data on the display - car safety check, when is it due, sensor data etc.
- wi fi connectivity
- usb connectivity
- satellite connectivity

still some things can be interfaced and integrated with, and takes care of all that rbullah's concerns listed

[Raja Bose]

SaiKollah, they have those solutions including at high end (Ferrari) - consumers don't like it. Prasad mullah summed up the solution quite nicely. Your phone becomes the app platform and car provides the UI hardware. In terms of a desktop, the phone is the tower and car is all the I/O peripherals + some other sensors (GPS, other relevant ECUs).

[SaiK]

aah! out of my reach!.. that reminds me of scarface (al pacino) says two things men like, is to ride a ferrari and have a ch!ck on it. so for those who can't, have no d!cks.

[Javee]

javeeji does he come from the land of the meenakshi temple?

Yes Sir, small world indeed. I know he used work in Netz bay area and then moved on to some startup and back to Gorilla. I still do know couple more from his team that are still at netz, used to hang out with them, when I was in the bay area working at Marissa's shop.

[Javee]

If you forget your YumBeeAye ppt-giri skills for a moment and go back to your injineering roots, you can build your own 3D printer. The principle of operation is quite simple and its doesn't require too many parts either.

There is couple on instructibles and there was one easy enought to follow using a old printer and other components, really tempted to make one.

[vina]

If you forget your YumBeeAye ppt-giri skills for a moment and go back to your injineering roots, you can build your own 3D printer. The principle of operation is quite simple and its doesn't require too many parts either.

Pah. The whole idea of YumBeeYea giri is to give a lot of strat-e-jee and make the other guy do the work (including the thinking). Heard any YumbeeYea change a light bulb ? Change a car tyre? And you want us to do YinJinEarRing ?

[Raja Bose]

If you forget your YumBeeAye ppt-giri skills for a moment and go back to your injineering roots, you can build your own 3D printer. The principle of operation is quite simple and its doesn't require too many parts either.

Pah. The whole idea of YumBeeYea giri is to give a lot of strat-e-jee and make the other guy do the work (including the thinking). Heard any YumbeeYea change a light bulb ? Change a car tyre? And you want us to do YinJinEarRing ?

Don't forget...and take the lion's share of the credit and bonus

[Raja Bose]

The Android One initiative is a smart move from Chacha if it can execute well. It taps into the biggest growth area in smartphones (the low-end and lower middle tier), gets Chacha partners who have no ambitions of moving up the food chain and are limited in their scope to remain loyal HW vendors onlee (unlike Sammy) and ensures good UX by doing what Mickey did with WP (except Mickey did it across all price points).

[Mort Walker]

M$FT should be on high alert

[Raja Bose]

Why? They have been doing the same thru GB for quite a while now and Chacha's move is not unexpected. This is basically leveraging the Nexus model for low end. in Android you have Nexus vs the rest model. All others -iPhone, WP everything is Nexus model from day 1. Chacha couldn't do that otherwise none of the giants would have joined OHA and make Android what it is today.

[Mort Walker]

It was interesting in desh. I flew domestic and took trains from NCR to Mumbai and back 2nd AC. On trains out of 10 phones on average 1 WP, 1 iPhone, 2 feature phones, 6 android phones. Of the 6 android, 2 were higher end like HTC One or Sammy S4/S5. The rest of the android were mostly low end Sammy and or local phone. My driver in Aurangabad, MH had a Nokia Asha. A Muslim fellow who said he voted for Shiv Sena, but that's another story.

On domestic flight, I saw 1 WP, 3 iPhones, and the remaining high end androids. In the malls, I watched the women, that is their phones, when shopping in high end clothes or shoe stores and saw mostly high end androids with a spattering of an iPhone or WP. Usually I could make out they had a high end phone by looking at their purses. The better the purse usually corresponded to a better phone.

I did see on the trains more iPads than iPhones, but only saw one Scurface, but couldn't make out which model.

[Raja Bose]

Not surprised. That is in line with marketshare estimates.

[SRoy]

Regarding the WP app ecosystem MS themselves are to blame.
The tool requirements can be fulfilled only by those that have wherewithal to have latest H/W and OS as they arrive in the market.

Most corporate ITs have just moved to Windows 7 in last of couple of years or so. MS knows this very well. All will skip Win 8 upgrade, for which MS's UX fiasco is to be blamed. So, it will be few years before a migration to 8.1 begins.

Tool and SDK for WP 8.1 requires Win 8 and above (i.e. Win 8.1). So that leaves us with initiative from indie developers or smaller companies.

In comparison a five year old laptop running Win 7 or Vista is sufficient for Android app development. MS have better tools, but they have created unnecessary barrier for entry.

Just one of the many reasons.

PS: MS need to stay put with Win 8.1, VS 2013 & SDKs for some years while cutting the price drastically.

[archan]

The twitter app, for example on windows phone is less feature filled than Android one. I like the iOS app best. Similarly whatsapp looks weird with black or blue background. Very basic looking, like 70s and 80s monitors used to display.

[sampat]

Regarding the WP app ecosystem MS themselves are to blame.
The tool requirements can be fulfilled only by those that have wherewithal to have latest H/W and OS as they arrive in the market.
.

Also, you need to have pro version of windows 8/8.1 to develop for windows phone. IDE doesn't work on home version that comes pre-installed with many pcs. At least, this was the case around 1-2 year back.

[archan]

The twitter app, for example on windows phone is less feature filled than Android one. I like the iOS app best. Similarly whatsapp looks weird with black or blue background. Very basic looking, like 70s and 80s monitors used to display.

Having said that, I wouldn't go on a vacation without my Nokia 1520 just because of the pictures it takes and battery life it has. I have posted some pics in the camera and photography thread today.

[SaiK]

should I wait continuing on iPhone 4 or this is the right time to change for another 2 year agreement?

[Singha]

Wait a month fr iphone6 with choice of 4.7 and 5 screens.

[Mort Walker]

The twitter app, for example on windows phone is less feature filled than Android one. I like the iOS app best. Similarly whatsapp looks weird with black or blue background. Very basic looking, like 70s and 80s monitors used to display.

Having said that, I wouldn't go on a vacation without my Nokia 1520 just because of the pictures it takes and battery life it has. I have posted some pics in the camera and photography thread today.

X POST:

^^^2, 3 & 4 are from the Lumia 1520, but your image sizes are too small, if I saw an equivalent of an 8x10 or a large crop, chances of guessing would improve. Not to mention you had good light and fixed subject to shoot with.

[Neshant]

I need to buy a low cost and reasonable quality 3D printer soon to prototype my invention. Its in small parts.

The ideal printer for me would be the "The Micro 3D" which got funded on kickstarter. The price and size looks right.

http://printm3d.com/themicro/

But the darn thing will only be available for sale in Feb 2015. I need something within the next couple of months however.

Any suggestions br0thas?

[vina]

I need to buy a low cost and reasonable quality 3D printer soon to prototype my invention. Its in small parts.

The ideal printer for me would be the "The Micro 3D" which got funded on kickstarter. The price and size looks right.

http://printm3d.com/themicro/

But the darn thing will only be available for sale in Feb 2015. I need something within the next couple of months however.

Any suggestions br0thas?

Try this one Fractal. It is available right away!

[Raja Bose]

Try it before you buy. Fractal also has a design studio so submit some samples you want them to print (typically they will do this free of cost) and take a look at those to check whether they meet your needs or not. Don't buy blind as quality varies widely and one size does not fit all. For small parts (depending on how small & complexity/details), low resolution (100 microns or more) FDM printers may not be a good solution.

[archan]

Show off! Missed the post where you talked about getting this one over the other options. How much did it cost you finally?

hehehe... 400 bucks. I couldnt get the LG G2 for 300
Decided to stick with the Skyrocket for now, until I find a sub 5inch premium android baby. Lumia I got mainly for reading articles at home and taking pictures.
Mort you are right about lighting and subjects but I am not saying it is as good as DSLR. I am just saying how well it can do. In low light of course all phones (and P&S's for the matter) begin to crap out.

[VenkataS]

I have a Lumia 520 that I bought in the US for $50 off-contract at a Microsoft retail store (they even gave a case for the phone for free). I am using this as a stop gap until my two year contract ends in Jan 2015 (the previous phone that I had fell and went kaput, I had the phone in the pocket while playing Badminton
Lumia 520 is decent and I can do most things with it that I use a phone for (which is email, GPS, browsing, taking pictures on a few occasions). What is the equivalent Android phone to a Lumia 520.