So Apple has launched the iPad 2 – another gimmiky shiny product that it hopes to sell by the truckload, but is it all it’s cracked up to be and were any of the rumours about it true?
We thought: iPad 2 would have front and back facing cameras (iPhone 5 & iPad 2 Rumours – Jan 14 2011)
Yup, the rumours that the iPad 2 would sport some FaceTime-inspired cameras are true. Buying a new iPad 2 will mean you can record HD Video and edit using iMovie from the device itself. It was the most logical step and one I think Apple needed to take to make the iPad 2 anything more than a slightly better version of the original!
Smart Covers is a feature no-one predicted. Magnetic clips hold a cover that cleans and protects the screen from being damaged. See the Apple video here.
Launch Date in the US is the 11th of March, retailing at $599. The UK release date is March 25th but no price has been announced by Apple at time of writing.
Is it different from the iPad 1? Personally, I don’t think so. It does boast a new A5 chip and the cameras, but that’s about it for genre-defining features. The original iPad sold around 300,000 units on the first day of sale and it wouldn’t surprise many people if Apple are gunning for the half million release mark on this latest gadget, in a long line of successful gadgets.
ICT Classes are the bain of any student’s life. Being patronised by the governing bodies assuming they can’t make text bold or even open Microsoft Word.
Nowadays, the students knowledge can far surpass the teachers and it can sometimes be a case of role-reversal, the students teaching the teachers what to teach (what a mouthful!)
Modern ICT classes have been branded “not fit for purpose” and the kids are “bored rigid”. Instead of the boring, slow progress which would bore any student, regardless of ability – how about showing students what really goes on in computers?
One could argue that taking a computer apart and showing the students how to put it back together, before asking them to do the same, would be much more beneficial and they’d understand HOW computers work, rather than learning how to make a new book on Excel.
It is still important that children learn how to use Microsoft Office, but most likely they know the basics and it doesn’t motivate them. Offering iPhone App Development, taking a computer apart or even just showing kids what pieces of hardware do what inside a computer or printer might just captivate them and give them a wider general interest in computing.
By leaving this uninteresting curriculum to stagnate in boring and unproductive classes, it is alienating students whose time might be more creatively displayed in a Java program knocked up in five minutes or creating something truly creative and wonderful on Microsoft Visual Basic.
I was asked recently what my opinion was on whether to buy a Netbook, Galaxy Tab or an iPad as a mobile computing device?
My answer was: Buy what you think best fits your needs. Don’t buy the iPad because it’s shiny. All of the devices have really good things and USPs (Unique Selling Points), and some terrible things and it’s a risk and a gamble as to which one to choose.
>> NETBOOK – Great for finishing that presentation on the train without hogging the table! I find mine (Compaq Mini 110 Series) so ideally sized, it fits in the inside pocket of my large jacket and it fits so nicely on my lap/desk/anywhere! Alas, it’s still on Windows XP but this is useful as I run my Desktop on 7 and I like to check cross-compatibility of programs.
> Pros
CHEAP! Around £200
Neat, Small, Easy to use (If you’ve used Windows before)
Customisable – you can even put Ubuntu Netbook on it!
Can run MS Office
Cheap to repair.
Battery life on newer models is almost up to eight hours!
> Cons
Smaller keys
Smaller screen (10-12 inches is around the standard)
>> GALAXY TAB - A great Android Tablet that’s a tiny bit cheaper than its iPad equivalent. Learning how to use Android takes a little getting used to, but it’s worth it. The “Android App Market” has more free apps and most mobile app developers are looking at Apples App Store and Android only.
>Pros
It can be a phone as well
Android boasts a huge market of Apps, mostly free
It feels so nice and high-tech!
Similar to the iPad, but more open-source
>Cons
It’s a tablet computer (touchscreens can be a PAIN sometimes!)
The keyboard is built in and takes up some of the screen
Easily broken
>> iPad - Last, but not least – Apple’s iPad. This is the ultimate “status” gadget and whilst boasting an impressive processing chip, a similar one is used in my 5-inch tabletphone – not so revolutionary anymore. As far as how it feels, it is amazing. It’s the easiest, most intuitive gadget out there and is definitely worth a look. Unfortunately, they’re not cheap!
>Pros
They look amazing
Large App Store
Universally recognisable
> Cons
EXPENSIVE to purchase, repair and replace
App Store can be expensive for iPad versions of usually free programs on the iPhone
Germany has been internationally recognised for its inventors and innovations over the past few centuries. From producing writers such as Goethe to rival England’s Shakespeare, artists, poets, philosophers and composers to inventors and scientists such as Hans Geiger, Rudolf Diesel, Johannes Gutenberg, Albert Einstein and Karl Benz, the Germans have been consistently leaving their mark on the ever-developing field of creations and technology. At German universities particular emphasis is placed on the sciences and research and development facilities.
This continues to the present day, with the country displaying its technological prowess in everyday situations like travelling on a high-speed intercity train, going to the supermarket and returning your bottles to machines for extra money or withdrawing money in a bank complete with television screens and 24 hour access to ATMs in a foyer. Germans are particularly fond of their high quality, environmentally friendly cars such as Audi, BMW and Mercedes. In Würzburg, the city in Bavaria where I’m staying for a year, there seems to be an unusually high number of phone shops selling tariffs and handsets. In a city of 130,000 I counted 12 phone shops in the very centre of town. They are all very hi-tech and futuristic-looking in order to entice the average consumer.
As a British student, living in Germany for a year as a casual observer brings to view just how important embracing technology is for the Germans. Take any German taxi and it will be a Mercedes. Land at any German airport and you will see sponsorship of technological innovations by companies such as BMW in Munich Airport. Even the German trains at the cheaper end of the scale are efficient and modern. Germans have been using bendy buses since the end of the 1970s.
They seem to have escaped the stereotype of still living in the 1980s, complete with awful perms, bad fashion sense and terrible music. German teenagers are very similar to British teenagers, both being influenced by American music and television. With new technologies being introduced to Germany, there is a call for new German verbs to also be created, but I doubt that the literary giant Goethe would approve of ‘facebooken’ (to Facebook) or ‘downloaden’ (to download). I’d like to sum this up by pointing out that I’m living in the richer South of Germany, but I have travelled quite extensively across the country and technology is more a part of daily life than can be said for Britain. Certainly, there is no central hub for the best services like the core region of South East England. A fairly even distribution of large towns and cities across Germany means that all regions are well connected and the spread of technology and the lifestyle it brings is all across Germany.
Technology influences the Germans’ culture as much as the British have allowed it to influence theirs, and as far as I can foresee, it will only continue as the dizzying heights of tomorrow’s technology become a normal day in the life of the 21st century consumer.
Laptops are a students passport to passing University, a social life, and keeping in touch with the family. It’s so entrenched into Student Life, that it must be safe, right? WRONG.
The dangers of misusing a laptop may not surface for many years, but can range from skin discolouration to cancer. We hope to educate about the truths and myths surrounding laptop and mobile phone usage and how to minimise damage.
Hazard: Laptops decrease sperm count – FACT
Whilst they don’t directly contribute to the detriment of sperm levels in men, the heat produced by laptops can bring the testes above the normal 20 degrees C and can damage sperm, reduce sperm levels and harm a man’s sexual health.
Women can also be affected, with reduced fertility suggested in recent studies, but these are not yet accepted as established fact.
How to reduce the risk: Use the laptop on a table or flat surface with plenty of ventilation, away from the downstairs department.
Hazard: Laptops cause skin discolouration – FACT
Laptops spew an incredible amount of heat out to cool the processor and graphics cards (even more so for gaming or high-end laptops). If exposed to bare skin, this can lead to a condition known as Erythema ab igne, better known as Toasted Skin Syndrome. Laptops can heat the skin to over 50 degrees Centigrade, very dangerous for prolonged periods of time!
Left is a photo of a 12-year old boy after using a laptop for several hours a day. This will fade after the exposure to heat has gone, but this may be a few weeks until it returns to normal. If you are concerned, contact your GP or local Health Practitioner.
How to reduce the risk: Wear trousers to prevent severe cases or ideally, place a book or tray on your lap.
Hazard: Mobile phones cause brain cancer – PLAUSIBLE
Whilst some reports will suggest being on your phone for 30 minutes a day triples your chance of getting brain cancer, there’s little scientific evidence to back it up. It’s interesting at most but certainly not definitive. In 5 to 10 years time when there is more research available, we’ll know, but until then it’s just conjecture.
How to reduce the risk: Handsfree and Bluetooth eliminate the need for a phone to be placed near the brain. Although then, it’s sitting in your pocket more and some would suggest this would increase testicular/ovarian cancer.
Hazard: Laptop Keyboards cause RSI – FACT
Laptop keyboards are usually flat and users are normally encourage to rest their wrists in an ‘ergonomic’ position. Sometimes this can actually fuel RSI, instead of preventing it. If you are concerned, please see the Health and Safety Executive on the matter.
How to reduce the risk: Don’t bend your wrists or glued to the wrist rest, keep your hands flat, to reduce the nerve sheaths contracting.
Make sure you’re looking after yourself by keeping laptops on trays and make sure you’re not uncomfortable.
If you’re concerned about any health aspect of a laptop, please e-mail us or for general health queries, get in touch with your local GP or Doctor.
Deter Thieves From Stealing Your Computer and How to Get Your Laptop Back
There’s no worse feeling in the world: You come back to your room to find the window broken and your laptop is missing. The feeling of your stomach dropping and thought of the financial loss glazes in comparison to the four months of coursework that was saved on there, with no backup.
In a world dominated by mobile technology, it is hardly surprising that 90% of students arrived at universities with a laptop or netbook in September 2010. It’s so important to protect your laptop from being stolen and there is a wealth of free programs to help you do just that.
Thieves will be looking to capitalize on new laptops brought back by students as Christmas presents. It is very important to make sure everything’s locked, but sometimes that isn’t enough. Installing a program that could report back where your stolen laptop is and what programs its running could be vital clue between it being recovered or not.
In the UK, a laptop is stolen every 53 seconds and only 3% are ever recovered without tracking software. Make sure you’re protected with the award-winning (and FREE!) anti-theft software called Prey. It’s free to set up an account and you simply download it, install it and leave it.
Every twenty minutes, the Prey program will check with the Prey Website to see whether it’s marked as stolen. If it isn’t ‘missing’, then it will go to sleep until the next check-up. If you log into the website and mark the device as stolen, when your laptop next connects to the internet it will start to silently gather data, such as websites visited, its physical location and if the laptop has a built-in camera it’ll attempt to take a snap of the bandit.
To physically protect your laptop, you can buy a Kensington Lock. This is similar to a bike lock and you simply wrap it around a table leg or immovable object and lock in into the hole marked with a K on the laptop (usually on the side)
So to keep your laptop safe: Lock your doors and windows, Download Prey software tracking and Lock your laptop to your desk!
Apple are notorious for not letting anything out of the bag until it’s almost ready to hit the shelves. The recent deaths of factory workers in China producing iPhones shows the level of secrecy and pressure to keep it all low-key, despite being the number one seller in tablets (iPad) and smartphone (iPhone).
As I’m sure you’ll know, Apple love to release a product, then a year later release another one that was kind of the same, but had a few nifty changes to it.
The rumours have already started flying that the iPad 2 will come with front and back facing cameras (Great for the new Skype that can use the cameras!) and that the iPhone 5 will be launching with pico-projectors. We aim to provide a little insight into what we think might happen and whether the rumors are spot on, iffy or downright lies!
1. iPhone + iPad to lose home button – We think: Unlikely
The home button is the only button on the front of both devices, located underneath the screen. It’s an integral part of the device and any Apple product is instantly recognizable by the Apple logo on the back and this solitary button.
2. iPad 2 to have front and back cameras – We think: Very likely
Kevin Rose, the founder of social networking site Digg, has said he has it “on good authority” that the new iPad will be shipping soon, hinting its arrival date on Feb 1st! He also went on, to reveal the iPad 2 would have a higher resolution screen (similar to the retina display on the iPhone 4.)
3. iPhone 5 to get radial (circular) pop up menus -We think: 50/50
The idea Apple would give up it’s trademark in simplicity and elegance to prat around with cirular menus puts us off a little about this one, but the fact Apple has applied for a patent to cover iOS5 gives this one some real clout. Image from the patent:
4. iPhone 5 will get FM Radio Receiver – We think: Likely
As Apple has taken a patent out for radio mapping, we’re pretty sure it’s going to used somehow. It would make a feature upgrade from the iPhone 4, although many accessories are out there that plug into the bottom of an iPhone and use a seperate FM receiver to listen to radio on your Apple Smartphone.
5. iPhone 5 will launch with Pico-Projector – We think: Impossible, I’ll eat my hat if it happens
There have been a few wild ideas that you’d be able to use the iPhone 5 as a pico projector (pico meaning very tiny), which could mean projecting films, photos and desktops onto walls, ceilings, floors or people. There’s not much substance to this one. Pico projectors are still in the £300 range, which is as much as the iPhone will be going for on contract.
But whilst we’re talking about new and innovate phones, check what Mozilla thinks about the future of phones:
And that’s all for now. As soon as we get wind of anything else, we’ll let you know. But for now, know that in 6 months time – I may have to eat my hat.
This will hopefully complement our Tuesday Tech Tips and we’ll be discussing some food for thought, with a bit of technology.
“The Politics of the Internet”, “Who owns the internet?” and “When we die, what happens to our data?” are a few of many upcoming interesting reads. Sometimes we may choose a controversial topic (such as privacy) and on these articles, we’ll encourage people to comment and discuss!
If you have any ideas, suggestions or you simply want to get in touch, my e-mail is jon@evernet.co.uk
So Apple has launched the iPad 2 – another gimmiky shiny product that it hopes to sell by the truckload, but is it all it’s cracked up to be and were any of the rumours about it true?
ICT Classes are the bain of any student’s life. Being patronised by the governing bodies assuming they can’t make text bold or even open Microsoft Word.
Germany has been internationally recognised for its inventors and innovations over the past few centuries. From producing writers such as Goethe to rival England’s Shakespeare, artists, poets, philosophers and composers to inventors and scientists such as Hans Geiger, Rudolf Diesel, Johannes Gutenberg, Albert Einstein and Karl Benz, the Germans have been consistently leaving their mark on the ever-developing field of creations and technology. At German universities particular emphasis is placed on the sciences and research and development facilities.
They seem to have escaped the stereotype of still living in the 1980s, complete with awful perms, bad fashion sense and terrible music. German teenagers are very similar to British teenagers, both being influenced by American music and television. With new technologies being introduced to Germany, there is a call for new German verbs to also be created, but I doubt that the literary giant Goethe would approve of ‘facebooken’ (to Facebook) or ‘downloaden’ (to download). I’d like to sum this up by pointing out that I’m living in the richer South of Germany, but I have travelled quite extensively across the country and technology is more a part of daily life than can be said for Britain. Certainly, there is no central hub for the best services like the core region of South East England. A fairly even distribution of large towns and cities across Germany means that all regions are well connected and the spread of technology and the lifestyle it brings is all across Germany.
Hazard: Laptops decrease sperm count – FACT
Hazard: Laptops cause skin discolouration – FACT
Hazard: Mobile phones cause brain cancer – PLAUSIBLE
Hazard: Laptop Keyboards cause RSI – FACT
We’ll be making an appearance at the Re-Freshers Fayre at Swansea University, which is on Mon 31st January 2011.
