Finally, A Wearable Generator

Finally, A Wearable Generator

As we barrel into the future, we’re going to need more electricity for all the gear we’ll be festooned with. And that’s a tricky prospect than it might at first seem; if you’re going to wear the technology in question, you shouldn’t have to take it off just to recharge it. And a team of researchers in South Korea might have finally solved this problem, with this wearable thermoelectric generator.

Heating Up
As you may have guessed from the name, this particular generator is powered by your body heat. It’s actually not a new idea; scientists have been studying thermoelectric concepts for decades. But until now, wearing one on your body was limited by the materials available; inorganic materials generated more power, but were too bulky and rigid, while organic materials didn’t generate enough power to be viable. So how to beat that? New materials!

Body Glass
They pulled it off by using glass fabric. It manages to solve two problems with one material; the fabric won’t let go of the heat it collects, and its flexibility makes it simple to use and to wear. With that in place, the researchers were able to create a highly efficient thermoelectric generator that could be glued to any place on your body.

Body Heat
This doesn’t mean you’ll be wearing Google Glass powered by your own body heat tomorrow. This is still a prototype and the team is still working on various issues surrounding, well, strapping something that leaches your body heat to you. But it’s undeniably a breakthrough that’s likely going to be developed into an actual product, since it has applications everywhere from outdoorsmanship to wearable computing. Don’t be surprised if, sooner rather than later, the wearable gear you buy doesn’t even have a USB port to charge it up, thanks to this research.

HTC One M7 vs HTC One M8: Which to Buy, What’s the Difference (comparison)

HTC One M7 vs HTC One M8: Which to Buy, What’s the Difference (comparison)

Back in March, HTC unveiled a better version of the last year’s flagship device, the HTC One M8. Since its launch, we’ve done a few comparisons to help users find out about the big differences between the HTC One M8 and flagship devices from other OEMs.

However, if you’re still hooked up with the last year’s HTC One M7, and want to know if its really worth upgrading to the latest and greatest offering from the Taiwanese OEM, read on.

Amazing Build Quality and Design

Before I proceed, let me tell you one thing: both devices are amazing — in terms of hardware, software, build quality etc. Coming over to the build and design, HTC One M8 looks strikingly similar to its predecessor, and features an all aluminum body, but it’s a bit more polished and better. They both look great in hand, and HTC revealed the latest HTC One M8 in a few new color options, including gray, gold and the traditional silver color.

HTC One M7 received a lot of recognition across the globe because of its beautiful design, and was also named as the best smartphone of 2013 at the Mobile World Congress 2014 in February.

HTC One M7 measures 137.4 x 68.2 x 9.3 mm and weighs 143g, while its successor is 146.4 x 70.6 x 9.4 mm and weighs 160g. The latest flagship device is a little heavier, but thinner, and the difference is minute when it comes to weight.

Bigger Display, But With The Same Resolution

HTC One M8 comes with a slightly bigger 5-inch display with a 441ppi pixel density compared to 4.7-inch in its predecessor with 468ppi pixel density, but it still boasts the same resolution.

The different in the screen size shouldn’t bother users, but they should get a some what similar screen area due to the inclusion of on-screen navigation buttons.

Comparatively Faster
This is one of those areas which received the biggest bump when it comes to technical specifications and performance of the device. HTC One M8 is powered by a quad-core Snapdragon 801 chipset clocked at 2.3GHz with 2GB of RAM, compared to the Snapdragon 600 on its predecessor with the same amount of RAM.

The new processor makes it a lot faster compared to HTC One M7, and offers a good user experience, no matter which app you to try to run or task you perform.

Storage
The all new HTC One M8 comes with 16GB of storage on board, compared to 32GB on its predecessor. But, there’s a major change here: the new HTC One M8 comes with microSD card support of up to 128GB, a feature which was missing in the One M7.

It’s not just the microSD card support, HTC One M8 comes with 65GB of free Google Drive storage as well which helps users save their data in the cloud so its accessible no matter which device they are on.

Duo Cameras

Image via HTC

This is another major change in the latest flagship device. HTC One M8 comes with an improved Duo Camera — although it’s still UltraPixel. The camera is accompanied by a depth sensor with UFocus which lets users focus on an element in a photo, while the remaining part is blurred out. It’s not just uFocus, the new camera comes with an array of editing features to improve the picture quality.

The new HTC One M7 also features a 5MP front-facing camera compared to a 2.1MP one found in the last year flagship.

Other Changes, Software, Nano-SIM and more

HTC One M8 comes with the latest Android 4.4.2 KitKat with Sense 6.0. The HTC One M7 is also running the latest KitKat update, but it features Sense 5.5 UI, but worry no more as HTC has promised to deliver the latest Sense 6.0 to the device in the coming months.

The new flagship comes with support for a nano-SIM card, while the HTC One M7 came with micro-SIM support. But, that’s not a pretty big issue as it can be handled easily, or you could just get a nanoSIM from your carrier.

Additionally, the HTC One M8 comes with other software improvements which are not present in its predecessor, with the most interesting one being Motion Launch. It lets you turn on the screen and perform a few tasks without pressing any button, unlock device, and more. The HTC One M7 will not get the Motion launch due to hardware limitations.

As far as the battery is concerned, the HTC One M8 rocks a 2,600 mAh battery which is 40 percent more efficient than the 2,300 mAh found inside the HTC One M7. In addition, it comes with an Extreme Battery Saving mode that can extend the battery life of the smartphone to 14 days on a full charge — impressive isn’t it?

The new HTC One M8 is available for $199 with a two-year contract in the US, while T-Mobile is selling it for $0 down with 24 monthly payments of $26.50.

Wrap Up
There you go. The new HTC One M8 comes with several improvements and new features when compared with its predecessor. But, if you’re thinking whether it’s worth upgrading, well, if you ask me, I’d say, Yes. The device looks beautiful, and the internal upgrades will make you notice the difference in first use. Rest is up to you. The handset is available from various retailers and carriers in different regions.

PICS of the month

Pic of the month....

Waiting for Steam Spring Sale? Arkham Origins for $8, Tomb Raider GOTY at $6

Waiting for Steam Spring Sale? Arkham Origins for $8, Tomb Raider GOTY at $6

Today the UK based digital retailer Green Man Gaming launched a 7 Days of Deals PC Gaming sale. Every 24 hours a new wave of gaming deals will appear up to 75% off instantly. On top of that there’s a 20% off coupon code to discount the games further.

Use coupon code: O3H7FE-D4NFO0-F0LIGK

Batman: Arkham Origins
Batman Arkham Origins — $8 (normally $40)
Batman Arkham Origins Blackgate – Deluxe Edition — $8 (normally $20)
Batman Arkham Origins: Season Pass — $4 (normally $20)
Recent Releases
Thief — $20 (normally $38)
Injustice: Gods Among Us – Ultimate Edition — $10 (normally $50)
Tomb Raider Game of the Year Edition — $6 (normally $30)
Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure — $6 (normally $30)
Final Fantasy VII — $4.80 (normally $12)
Final Fantasy VIII — $4.80 (normally $12)
Other Hot Deals
F.E.A.R Pack — $9 (normally $45)
Mortal Komb(PC Download) — $6 at Green Man Gaming (normally $30)
LEGO Lord of the Rings — $6 (normally $20)
Hitman: Absolution Professional Edition — $6 (normally $30)
Eve Online 30 Day Starter Pack — $4 (normally $20)
Guardians of Middle Earth — $4 (normally $20)
F.E.A.R. 3 — $4 (normally $20)
Sleeping Dogs Digital Edition — $4 (normally $20)
Scribblenauts Unlimited — $4 (normally $30)
Bastion — $3 (normally $15)
How To Survive — $3 (normally $15)
F.E.A.R 2: Project Origin — $3 (normally $15)
Just Cause 2 — $3 (normally $15)
Worms Armageddon — $3 (normally $15)
Mortal Kombat: Arcade Kollection — $2 (normally $10)
F.E.A.R. — $2 (normally $10)
Worms — $1.80 (normally $8)
Worms Blast — $1.60 (normally $8)
While the sale will go until April 22nd, the Above “Day 1″ deals will only last for 48 hours, ending Wednesday, April 16th at 11am Eastern. The 20% off coupon code will last through April 22nd.

Reminder: Google Glass Is Available Tomorrow…Sort Of

Reminder: Google Glass Is Available Tomorrow…Sort Of

Google Glass is arguably one of the more controversial items of technology out there, and if nothing else, it’s definitely exclusive. And you might just be able to get your crack at one tomorrow, provided you’re quick on the draw.

Glass Menagerie
Google Glass is, of course, Google’s attempt to expand the Bluetooth headset to your eyes, and they’ve spent the better part of a year testing out glass with “Glass Explorers.” While a commercial release of Glass is still a ways out, Google is opening up their “Explorer” program with a limited number of slots starting tomorrow at 9am EDT. But the number of people who can “explore” is actually rather limited.

Need Not Apply
First of all, you need to have a United States address: Sorry, overseas tech fans. Oddly, you’ll also have to be a US resident, so that rules out a few college students and other people who might otherwise get a shot at it. The slots open up at 9am EDT and once they’re gone, they’re gone.

And, of course, you’ll need to be able to pay for them. Google has made it clear that the $1500 asking price isn’t dropping any time soon, so if you were hoping Glass will come at a discount, well, better hope you’ve got some cash saved up.

Beyond The Glass

Then, of course, there’s the question of what you’ll do with them: Glass’ biggest problem has been that it’s full of potential, and most of that potential has seemingly been wasted on goofy stuff you can do with a smartphone. Or, well, creepy apps that are best not discussed here. It’s a family blog.

Either way, though, they’re still fairly fascinating, and you might finally have the app that breaks through and makes Glass a necessity for everyone. So, get on your marks for tomorrow morning.

New Contact Lenses Will Give You Infrared Vision

New Contact Lenses Will Give You Infrared Vision

Admit it: You want superpowers. It’s human to look at Spider-Man swinging between buildings or Superman soaring through the air and think “Man, I want to do that.” Alas, we are not quite there just yet. But we are getting closer and closer to giving human beings the ability to see in infrared with just their contacts.

Hot, Hot Heat
You might be wondering how your flimsy contact might ever contact the necessary bits and pieces to detect invisible light spectra, and the answer is “graphene.”

What, you might ask, is graphene? It’s a carbon allotrope that’s essentially a honeycomb lattice of carbon atoms. Everything built from carbon, from carbon nanotubes to diamonds, is built on graphene. And it turns out the stuff is highly useful.

Carbon Copy
Graphene happens to react to infrared light; we’ve known that for years. But the response wasn’t great, so the team at the University of Michigan that developed the sensor took another approach and measured how the light affecting the graphene affected a current running through it. Essentially, there are two sheets of graphene with an insulating layer between them. As the infrared light hits the first layer, it releases electrons, which head towards the second layer, which has a current running through it. Measuring the response there gives the data needed to create an infrared camera effect.

Seeing In The Dark

It’s always reasonable to ask about the real-world applications of academic work, and in this particular case, there are a lot of them. For example, fitting your camera with an infrared attachment would be a matter of clipping on a lens filter, and doctors can use this technology to monitor your circulation. And, yes, there are “commercial applications.” Basically, sooner rather than later, you’re going to have contacts that let you see formerly invisible light

How to safely run Windows XP in the post-XPocalyptic world

How to safely run Windows XP in the post-XPocalyptic world

A lot of people are having trouble saying goodbye to Windows XP even after Microsoft has cut off support for the ancient operating system. For those hardy souls, The Guardian has put together a handy guide for XP stragglers who still can’t let go but who also don’t want to be open to the barrage of malware that will now run completely rampant on their machines without Microsoft’s support.

The most obvious way to keep your XP computer safe from malware is, of course, to disconnect it completely from the Internet. But in all likelihood you’re probably the sort of person who wants to go online at least some of the time, so let’s cross that strategy off our list right from the start.

The Guardian’s suggestion for people who do use their XP machines online is to not use them with your administrator account but to instead use them through more limited accounts. This means that you won’t be able to do everything that you typically could while being logged in as an administrator but it will also limit the damage that hackers can potentially do to your machine as well because it means that no new software can be installed onto your machine.

The Guardian also recommends doing your browsing with Firefox or Chrome instead of the unsecured older Internet Explorer editions that are compatible with XP. You’ll also want to make sure you add the HTTPS Everywhere browser extension to whatever browser you choose to make sure any information you send over any webpage is encrypted.

And finally, The Guardian recommends staying away from all shady websites, particularly sites that offer pirated music and videos.

While it’s certainly possible to keep using XP even after support has ended, however, we have to wonder if it’s really worth jumping through all of these hoops instead of simply upgrading to Windows 7 or Windows 8.1. Change can be scary but it can’t be nearly as annoying as all of the security precautions you’ll have to take just to keep using Windows XP

HTC One M8 vs Samsung Galaxy S5 (comparison)

HTC One M8 vs Samsung Galaxy S5 (comparison)

Several OEMs have released their flagship devices in the past few months. Back at the Mobile World Congress in February, Samsung, the world’s largest smartphone manufacturer, released their flagship Galaxy S5.

Month after its unveiling, HTC also took the stage, and unveiled their primary flagship device for the year dubbed as the HTC One (M8). It’s an amazing device, not just by the specifications, but from all aspects.

HTC One (M8) is already available in the market in most regions, while Samsung Galaxy S5 will hit retail in over 150 countries on April 11th. If you’re confused about which handset to go for, we’ll do a detailed comparison for you to help you make your decision. Before we go through the differences, take a look at this table below.

Which One is Faster — Processor, RAM?
Samsung Galaxy S5 comes with a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 chipset clocked at 2.5GHz, while the HTC One (M8) is powered by the same processor but its clocked a little lower at 2.3GHz. Both handsets are equipped with 2GB of RAM on board.

In real life, normal users won’t be able to spot the difference in speed when it comes to processor. Obviously, many will call TouchWiz to be too bloated, affecting its performance, but HTC doesn’t provide stock Android experience either — although there is a Google Play edition of the HTC One (M8) available in the Google Play Store. It comes with Sense 6.0 which is HTC’s custom skin.

So, for a normal user, the 0.2GHz higher processor shouldn’t make a big difference when it comes to performance.

Display
Samsung Galaxy S5 comes with a AMOLED 5.1-inch display sporting a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels with almost 441 ppi pixel density, while the HTC One (M8) features a slightly smaller 5-inch Super LCD3 display with 1080p resolution and a pixel density of 432 ppi. Both devices feature different display technology, but you should get a little bit better display in terms of colors on the Galaxy S5 due to its AMOLED display

On the other hand, the minor difference between the pixel density is pretty hard to spot, but users may get a little bit smaller room on the display due to the on-screen buttons compared to the Samsung Galaxy S5.

Can they last a day on a full charge?
This is a pretty important feature, which makes sure how much time you battery can last on a single charge. Due to the inclusion of latest technology, most flagship devices come with massive batteries with capacity over 3,000 – Xperia Z2 and Note 3 both feature 3,200 mAh battery.

Samsung Galaxy S5 comes with a 2,800 mAh battery, while HTC One (M8) features a smaller 2,600 mAh one. During the HTC One (M8) launch event, HTC announced the new 2,600 mAh battery is 40 percent more efficient than its predecessor, and can provide a pretty decent battery time. In addition, the company introduced an extreme power saving mode which can make the device last up to 14 days on a single charge when enabled.

On the other hand, Samsung Galaxy S5′s battery can also last at least a day with normal usage, and comes with an improved power saving mode to match HTC One (M8). But, there’s a major difference here: Samsung Galaxy S5 comes with a removable battery, meaning users can just carry an additional battery and swap it when they run out of juice. However, HTC One (M8) comes with a non-removable battery so users either have to stick on with the extreme battery saving mode, or carry a portable battery pack for charging on the go which may cost a few bucks.

Camera
Samsung Galaxy S5 features a 16MP camera, while HTC One (M8) boasts a 4MP Duo cameras with a depth sensor. Galaxy S5′s 16MP camera is also capable of recording 4K videos, while the HTC One (M8) can only do so at 1080p. Personally, I do like the depth sensor on the HTC One (M8), but the overall results might be a little better on the Galaxy S5.

HTC has introduced a number of editing features to its camera app, but the camera on the Samsung Galaxy S5 is easy to use, and offers great shots.

Both devices come with a 2MP front-facing camera for video conferencing and selfies.

Plastic Vs Metal
This is an area where we have to go with the HTC One (M8) without thinking too much. HTC’s flagship comes with a beautiful metal design and finish, and feels great in hand. We’ve personally tested the handset for a brief period of time, and its build and finish looks simply amazing.

On the other hand, Samsung Galaxy S5 comes with a somewhat similar plastic exterior. The company did change its design a little bit, with a dimply back cover, but it may not attract every user out in the wild. Samsung Galaxy S5 is also IP67 certified making it dust and water-resistant up to a certain level.

But, if looks is the major thing you care about, HTC One (M8) offers an amazing feel, and looks beautiful compared to the Galaxy S5.

Other features — Storage, Sensors, OS, etc.
Samsung Galaxy S5 comes with 16/32GB storage space with a microSD card slot that supports up to 128GB of storage. In addition, it comes with 50GB of free Dropbox storage for 2 years which is a plus.

HTC One (M8) features also features 16GB storage along with microSD card support of up to 128GB with 65GB of free Google Drive storage for two years.

So basically, it’s a tie, but the inclusion of a memory card slot on the HTC One (M8) is good since its predecessor lacked one.

Additionally, Samsung Galaxy S5 comes with a swipe fingerprint sensor under the home button, as well as a heart rate monitor beneath the camera flash, while HTC One M8 doesn’t come with a fingerprint scanner.

Both devices are shipped with Android 4.4.2 KitKat out of the box, but HTC One (M8) comes with Sense 6.0 while Samsung Galaxy S5 features TouchWiz UI. HTC One (M8) is also available as a Google Play Edition device, but it’s software is not the pure stock Android as other Google Play devices, but it’s tweaked a little bit to make use of the Duo Cameras on the device.

Wrap up
Both devices are available for sale at the time of writing this. If looks is the main thing you’re looking for, think no further and get your hands on the HTC One (M8). As I said before, we’ve personally seen HTC One (M8), and it’s simply beautiful. Both devices are available with a some what similar price tag, so its totally up to you to decide. If you ask me, I’d go for the HTC One (M8). However, that doesn’t mean Galaxy S5 is not a good device, it offers excellent features as well, and is a future proof device.

SLIMMY Wallet Original with RFID Shielding Review

SLIMMY Wallet Original with RFID Shielding Review

There’s lessons learned if you lived in New York, as I did in the 80’s and 90′s, that dealt with how you entered and exited an ATM. Being vigilant required keeping your eyes open and having fast reflexes. These “analog” preventative measures ensured that no one followed you into an ATM or was waiting to accost you just as you exited. Today’s digital world has changed all that — a miscreant can steal your identity over the Internet easier than can be imaged. But one of the worst problems comes from our reliance on plastic: these credit cards and other identify data cards now fill our pockets daily. They’re a great convenience when it comes time to use them, but thanks to RFID (radio frequency identification) technology have become even more vulnerable to theft — especially as a thief doesn’t have to actually take hold of the card. So what can one do short of giving up using these RFID-enabled cards? Get a wallet that shields against RFID, is what. But to keep from looking like you’re pocketing duct-tape made wallets, make that choice a SLIMMY Wallet Original with RFID shielding.

The SLIMMY (pronounced slim-ee) wallet at first glance appears to just be a half-sized men’s wallet that is, well, slim like the name implies. And due to its compact construction and property values, the handcrafted leather wallet easily conforms to a front hip pocket as the body moves it about during the day. There’s three compartments, but it’s the center one that is going to hold a RFID-enabled card(s). That’s because the center compartment, unlike the ones on either side, is shielded against radio waves, blocking any transmission from the card out. To cancel this, just move the card to one of the other two pockets (or remove it for use and then put it back).

Now here’s what RFID is all about: a passive radio transmitter built into a chip is embedded into a card, for example, one that says “PayPass” on it like MasterCard has. Such a card doesn’t have to be slid through a slot on a card reader to be used; just touching it to a RFID-enabled card reader does the trick (usually a momentary rub is needed). The chip in the card transfers the needed information for the transaction (such as the card #, person’s name, expiration date, etc.) and so makes for little effort. The RFID also works at extremely short range (although there has been some disputes as to this being true in all cases), so safety would seem assured, since it could be used from within a wallet or purse held up to the reader. That is, unless someone has a card reader designed to “capture” this information from a RFID-enabled card that has come within reach. Since such readers are inexpensive and easily assembled from kits, it sounds appealing to those looking for scamming counterfeit cards or other nefarious uses, After all, there’s 35 million+ RFID cards out there and counting. And even if the odds against it happening are in your favor — if there’s that one time someone with a card reader is standing behind you as you wait in line, that’s one time too many in my book.

So since I’m all for making things harder for those looking to get a free ride off my back, I emptied my wallet and transferred some of the contents to the SLIMMY (since there’s only three compartments, I separated them out for holding some paper money in one, credit cards and IDs like my driver’s license in the middle and others in the last). Testing the SLIMMY’s RFID protection was as simple as going to a merchant whose RFID reader I’ve used many times before. First I held a RFID-enabled card a few inches from the reader and saw it was being picked up. I then placed the card in the SLIMMY’s compartment that held my cash and held up the wallet and again the card was registered. The final test had me moving the card to the center pocket, where I then held the wallet right up against the reader and gyrated it all around to no avail. For all practical purposes the card was effectively invisible to the card reader. Nada. Inert. And while it’s a stiff fit for the center compartment, the wallet itself is supple and lightweight.  You have to take the extremes of what Koyono says can be put in it — 15 Bills, 8 Plastic Cards, 5 Receipts, 2 Business Cards — with a grain of salt because YMMV (your mileage may vary) and probably will.

Bottom line: The SLIMMY Wallet Original with RFID shielding won’t take the place of  common sense when it comes to protecting oneself against data/identity theft, but it will stop RFID stealing dead in its tracks. Plus it looks a whole lot better when pulled out of a pocket than an aluminum foil wallet made from duct-tape. $42.00 gets you security and style.