Phone, Tablet and Gizmo Thread #0x02

BhairavP · Post by **BhairavP** » 11 Dec 2013 09:54

Picked up 2 Dell Venue Pro 8 tablets from the MS Store for 210$ each,incl.shipping and tax. Great deal IMO, and perfect for travelling - I need Exchange and some custom x86 apps for work, and this beats lugging even my 13" Vaio around.

Raja Bose · Post by **Raja Bose** » 11 Dec 2013 10:18

Mort Walker wrote:^^^looks interesting, but no flash, but ok still.

Do you think it will ever see the light of day? Btw, LG 8.3 tablet is now being sold as GPE version on the Play Store. $350.

oh, didn't notice lack of flash - strange omission. This is not a OHA device so its basically a fork of the Android OS with GB's own stuff on top like what Takla does with Kindle Fire. GB while deciding between Mickey and Chacha had tried to negotiate putting its own LBS and music services on top of Chacha blessed Android but Chacha had refused.

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 11 Dec 2013 10:42

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6875561110
Connectivity
Wireless Radio
GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 MHz - SIM 1 & SIM 2

UMTS 850 / 1900 MHz
Compatible Carrier & Service
AT&T 2G/3G, T-Mobile 2G, Rogers, Fido
3G
AT&T 3G Only
Wi-Fi Support
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi hotspot
Data transfer
GPRS, EDGE, HSDPA, Wi-Fi

would this be a good buy for desh visits? just slam a sim and get on with it?

ArmenT · Post by **ArmenT** » 11 Dec 2013 12:27

Looks like Nokia owes the Government of India some tax money. Takeover by Microsoft may be delayed until this is resolved, because one of the assets that Microsoft gets is the India factory.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/12/ ... P920131210
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/12/0 ... -standoff/

hanumadu · Post by **hanumadu** » 11 Dec 2013 13:05

Nokia will exclude the Indian factory from the deal, thats all. The deal will go through.

Yogi_G · Post by **Yogi_G** » 11 Dec 2013 13:20

So far it has been an OK experience with chromecast. I use it mostly for youtube.

2 occassions I was p!ssed off though as below,

1. Bought the HD version of F&F6 on play store and tried streaming to chromecast but it wouldn't work. I ended up seeing it on my non-HD tablet even thought I bought the HD version of the movie. Was too lazy to connect my lappie to the HDMI of the tv.
2. Youtube was broadcasting live the Anand Vs Carlsen match, I tried streaming it to my chromecast but youtube wouldn't allow it for live events. What a bummer.

The apps are still very limited, its only a matter of time before google releases the chromecast API to the dev world. In fact google just released some new apps today. Some of them wont work in India like Hulu or netflix (you have to hack ur way around them though).

Overall worth the 35$ though. I ran out of my 20GB BSNL FUP quota last month and then had to struggle with the 512 KBPS speed post that. I will have to look towards some unlimited plan soon.

Vriksh · Post by **Vriksh** » 11 Dec 2013 14:54

I have a prepaid Huawei Airtel Dongle for Internet Connection. It does not allow me to access forums.bharat-rakshak.com. www.bharat-rakshak.com opens fine. the Broadband service I use is working as I type this message

Raja Bose · Post by **Raja Bose** » 12 Dec 2013 03:13

Interesting article on XBox and its Live gaming model

Vayutuvan · Post by **Vayutuvan** » 12 Dec 2013 04:59

All, thanks for the low down on chromecast.

BhairavP · Post by **BhairavP** » 12 Dec 2013 21:51

Marten wrote:
BhairavP wrote:Picked up 2 Dell Venue Pro 8 tablets from the MS Store for 210$ each,incl.shipping and tax. Great deal IMO, and perfect for travelling - I need Exchange and some custom x86 apps for work, and this beats lugging even my 13" Vaio around.
How is it? Wanted to suggest this for a family member. 210 sounds like a steal!

Aunt getting it here in January,will let you know saar.

Raja Bose · Post by **Raja Bose** » 12 Dec 2013 23:27

Back to the Start: imagining a better Windows

Raja Bose · Post by **Raja Bose** » 13 Dec 2013 22:07

Now Sammy suddenly realizes that cameras on smartphones is a lucrative segment for differentiation....

Samsung promises 'differentiated' smartphones based on its camera expertise

So now are we gonna see SView smartphones from Sammy?

Tanaji · Post by **Tanaji** » 14 Dec 2013 02:46

Have been using a Nokia Windows phone for more than a month as a regular phone but for testing purposes. The Lumia as a business phone is amazing: it beats hands down any Android or iOS equivalent in terms of convenience and ease of use. The tiled interface is quite modern and convenient, especially the live tiles: Android widgets just dont compare to it.

However the moment you try to use it for fun, it fails. The youtube experience is bad, and thats not MS fault, its Google shafting MS on that regardd, havent yet used Metrotube though. Lack of free decent games sucks. Also even the regular must have apps such as whatsapp and cricbuzz behave differently..

Dell Venue Pro is a good product, I just wish the screen was better.... On another note, why is so hard to get a 11-13" screen laptop with a good screen at a decent price? Any recommendations?

BhairavP · Post by **BhairavP** » 14 Dec 2013 06:08

Sony vaio pro 13:IPS, Lenovo X220 11:IPS, ityadi ityadi.

member_23651 · Post by **member_23651** » 14 Dec 2013 12:16

Vriksh wrote:I have a prepaid Huawei Airtel Dongle for Internet Connection. It does not allow me to access forums.bharat-rakshak.com. http://www.bharat-rakshak.com opens fine. the Broadband service I use is working as I type this message

Vriksh I face the same issue on Vodafone. Does not look like DOT directive as the forums open fine on BSNL and Reliance network

archan · Post by **archan** » 15 Dec 2013 07:52

Does anyone know of a good and reliable phone unlocking service? I got this iphone 4s from some guy who had a little chip under the sim card which makes it work for any network. It worked in India for a day, but now is continuously searching for signal. I feel it might be worth getting it carrier unlocked. He likely got it from AT&T in USA but was using a T-Mobile sim when he sold it to me.

negi · Post by **negi** » 15 Dec 2013 08:11

Tanaji people will pull my leg but what the heck best 13" laptop out there is MBP if you are particular about portability then Air is also a nice buy .

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 15 Dec 2013 09:18

a 4th gen i7 4700k is now at $330.. if i assemble a super duper box, it would atleast make me spend around $1200 for the box alone.. besides the monitor.
haswell mobo - 16gb 2200mhz ram (or 32gb for ramdisk ops)- 250gb ssd - 1-2tb hdd (7200rpm) - bluray writer - (not included any super duper game cards) - atx barebone with card readers.
but i could get it done with 1080p monitor for that amount if i choose a amd 8 core wala nearly equivalent config.

trying a config for a home grown 2M transaction per hour box.

member_20292 · Post by **member_20292** » 15 Dec 2013 11:50

What do you use 2M transactions per hour for? Some metereological data? Chess?

archan · Post by **archan** » 17 Dec 2013 18:21

Bosemullah!
Bismillah!! your fyoochar tablet is hiyar!

Raja Bose · Post by **Raja Bose** » 17 Dec 2013 21:08

^^^ yes, I noticed the announcement yesterday. For some reason Rohan Babu is smitten with the book metaphor.

Suraj · Post by **Suraj** » 17 Dec 2013 21:39

I'll let the doctor saabs have the last word, but oils themselves shouldn't be classified as one category. Their benefit depends on the unsaturated/polyunsaturated/saturated fat composition within them. The first two are the good fats, from what I recall, and olive oil as well as canola oil are good sources of them.

Raja Bose · Post by **Raja Bose** » 17 Dec 2013 23:12

^^^Fat composition of gizmos?

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Mortullah, for you: Samsung is reshaping its identity one note at a time

pgbhat · Post by **pgbhat** » 22 Dec 2013 20:04

EXCLUSIVE-Secret contract tied NSA and security industry pioneer

Documents leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden show that the NSA created and promulgated a flawed formula for generating random numbers to create a "back door" in encryption products, the New York Times reported in September. Reuters later reported that RSA became the most important distributor of that formula by rolling it into a software tool called Bsafe that is used to enhance security in personal computers and many other products.

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 23 Dec 2013 22:17

gyan q: which 3d glass type is good? active vs passive

Suraj · Post by **Suraj** » 24 Dec 2013 06:15

Raja Bose wrote:^^^Fat composition of gizmos?

And all this time I wondered why I couldn't see my post in the nutrition thread!

Tanaji · Post by **Tanaji** » 26 Dec 2013 02:23

negi wrote:Tanaji people will pull my leg but what the heck best 13" laptop out there is MBP if you are particular about portability then Air is also a nice buy .

BhairavP wrote:Sony vaio pro 13:IPS, Lenovo X220 11:IPS, ityadi ityadi.

You kuffars, if I had money to spend in that range.... I would have had Priyanka Chopra dancing at my wedding...

No, I am more looking at value for money. A display like the new Chrome book but at an affordable price point: around USD 400-500

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 26 Dec 2013 02:38

so when did PC became a gizmo doll?

Tanaji · Post by **Tanaji** » 26 Dec 2013 02:52

SaiK wrote:so when did PC became a gizmo doll?

Rumour is that PC charges one crore for a 10 min dance routine at a wedding. Kuffars buying MBP can well afford that money

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 26 Dec 2013 03:05

even if i get that money, i'd rather keep her at movie screen only. whatever that costs for it also need evaluations.

Prasad · Post by **Prasad** » 26 Dec 2013 03:37

She got 6 crores for a 7 minutes performance in madras

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 26 Dec 2013 03:46

who paid her?

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http://www.bestbuy.com/site/at-t-gophon ... /1558441.p
nokia lumia 520 4g. again thinking about some unlocked phone for desh purposes /travel use onlee

Service Provider AT&T (Also referred to as the carrier.) Company that provides the cell phone service. Unlocked cell phones can be used with any provider that offers compatible service.

any comments?

ArmenT · Post by **ArmenT** » 29 Dec 2013 10:09

The results are in. #1 and #2 sold computers on Amazon this holiday season were both Chromebook models from Samsung and Acer. Report also says that 21% of laptops sold this year are Chromebook models, huge improvement from < 0.5% last year.
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/ ... in_the_gut

vishvak · Post by **vishvak** » 29 Dec 2013 20:26

pgbhat wrote:EXCLUSIVE-Secret contract tied NSA and security industry pioneer
Documents leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden show that the NSA created and promulgated a flawed formula for generating random numbers to create a "back door" in encryption products, the New York Times reported in September. Reuters later reported that RSA became the most important distributor of that formula by rolling it into a software tool called Bsafe that is used to enhance security in personal computers and many other products.

Is it worth notice that hacking random number generator would reduce available set of functionality- from promised by brand label to the new hacked one NSA style!

This "you get what you see" fire sale model - is why Indian government making its own O.S. makes a lot more sense.

sampat · Post by **sampat** » 30 Dec 2013 03:58

vishvak wrote:
pgbhat wrote: This "you get what you see" fire sale model - is why Indian government making its own O.S. makes a lot more sense.

New OS is not going to help. NSA has hooks in all major Harddrives,Networking equipment and even some USB cables! Certain type of monitor cables let NSA see what is typed on screen. They have covered the whole landscape.

Shopping for Spy Gear: Catalog Advertises NSA Toolbox

vishvak · Post by **vishvak** » 30 Dec 2013 15:06

Collecting data through Backdoor is something I read post 12 th standard. See Sub-7 or back orifice Trojans. Check on wiki pages but don't go about finding details around internet dark corners. Sure to get noticed there.

These Trojans allow controller hackers to view details in windows presentation views and allow to change configuration (including screen colors and screen inversion etc) in drag and select interfaces.

Point is these were long time ago I read and haven't read that in decade now but NSA/US-intel and others must have used much more sophisticated tools of no names even a decade ago. So this is altogether sophisticated level of hacks as hacks have legit cover and come bundled on as is basis.

saip · Post by **saip** » 31 Dec 2013 02:18

archan wrote:Does anyone know of a good and reliable phone unlocking service? I got this iphone 4s from some guy who had a little chip under the sim card which makes it work for any network. It worked in India for a day, but now is continuously searching for signal. I feel it might be worth getting it carrier unlocked. He likely got it from AT&T in USA but was using a T-Mobile sim when he sold it to me.

I have the same 4s and they told me it will work in India. It did not work when the bozo at airtel cut the Sim to make it mini sim. But once I put the original mini sim it worked fine though I had to fight to get the original mini sim as they said they don't give it to new customers. I had no problem so far and never had to get it unlocked. I have it on Verizon in US and airtel in India.

Check if you have the original sim or a cut sim. It could be the Sim.

saip · Post by **saip** » 31 Dec 2013 02:38

The touch pen that came with the MS Surface did not work with my Iphone. Anyway, I lost it in India. MS did not provide a storage place for the pen. It used the same charge point to stick to the tablet and when you want to charge you have to remove the pen and attach the charger. Also Pen did not stick to the tablet that well and kept falling off in my bag. On line it costs something like $30.

Today I saw a $3 pen at Target and surprise! This pen works with both Iphone, Ipad and Surface.

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 31 Dec 2013 02:39

call att and and ask them to unlock it. it should be done by the original owner, and should have no contract on it.

it is as simple as att providing the unlock code. use the code, and give that to the new carrier. [not done it.. so take it from that]

saip · Post by **saip** » 31 Dec 2013 02:45

But it is a universal phone. It is Supposed to work in India too Mine did. I am using my $3 Pen to post this. Surface recognizes my handwriting