SYNAPSE CIRCUIT: THE HEX FILES. iPAD MINI... THE TRUTH IS HERE!

Apple just can't help advertising the competition...

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT: THE HEX FILES... THE TRUTH IS RIGHT HERE!

APPLE HAS SOLD OUT OF PRE-ORDERS FOR THE WHITE iPAD MINI… YEAH, RIGHT…
Uh-oh… Apple’s hype machine has been cranked up to the max – again! Apple, Apple, Apple… C’mon, your ‘Wizard of Odd’ curtains have fallen down already… Why bother with your media hype wizardry when people are looking at the jokers in your pack?

iPhone 5 didn’t sell as anticipated. Analysts are saying that for each iPhone sold Samsung sells two Galaxy SIIIs!

Despite “record” iPad 3 sales Windows still dominate computing and web browsing followed by Android!

As a result Apple has not met profit expectations.

THE TRUTH: APPLE IS PANICKING!
Apple isn’t winning the legal battles outright! When they win they lose! Nothing they do can stem the Android tsunami! The bitter truth for Apple is that when they have a “victory” against Samsung (usually in American courts and trading standards) they (Samsung) sell more of their phones! The SIII is a fantastic phone as is the Note II, which will sell millions too!

When Apple loses they aren’t gracious – far from it! They have been ordered to apologize to Samsung, retracting their undue claims that the Galaxy Tab is a copy of the iPad by publishing the apology on the British Apple site. They couldn’t do it! They made a mockery of it! They say that German, Australian and American courts found Samsung guilty of copying when anyone with good iSight can see that the design is very different! But good on the UK courts that ruled in favor of Samsung! That makes me feel proud to be British! Apple goes on to mention the $1 billion that Samsung has been ordered to pay! Many in the industry are saying that Samsung will overturn the decision and I think so too! Oddly enough the Galaxy Tab 10.1 wasn’t found guilty of infringements and was put back on the US market!

Again, if Apple is selling as much as they say they are then why bother going trying to sue the competition if they don’t exist? Why does Apple keep thrashing Android tablets ever time they have an iPad press event if they aren’t selling? Have you noticed that they aren’t criticizing Android phones as much?

Also Microsoft and partners – including arch nemesis Samsung – are going to hit them with Microsoft 8 desktops, laptops and tablets. The Apple misinformation media (media that claim to report tech but hype Apple no matter what) are saying that Windows 8 is flawed, etc. Don’t believe most of these mediums!

Are they serious? Coming to a Computer Exchange shop near you soon...

Nexus 7, $199. iPad Mini, $329 and it doesn’t even have NFC whereas the Nexus 7 does! Ok, so the Nexus 7 doesn’t have a back-facing camera but once you have a decent handset a camera on a tablet isn’t an issue! Take a picture with your SIII and transfer it to the Nexus and use any one of the decent photo editing / manipulation apps! In fact you can buy a decent digital camera with what you save on the Nexus 7!

The Chromebook! It's a really good concept! 

Hey, why not invest in a Chromebook which starts at an amazing price of £229? Check it out! 

Check out Armando Ferreira's thoughts on the iPad Mini!

Thank you so much for reading!

Please check out Synapse Circuit Magazine!

HAPPY CREATIVE COMPUTING!  

REALLUSION: CRAZYTALK OPTIMIZED FOR ULTRABOOK!

CrazyTalk Animator! The best computer animation software on the planet! What? Don't believe me? Just wait until you get your hands on it! If you have children you might wanna keep it a secret... Ssssh...

ULTRA ANIMATION TO THE TOUCH

STARRING: REALLUSION & INTEL
The computer animation doors is a revolving door on spin cycle where groundbreaking Reallusion, the people behind the superlative CrazyTalk and iClone 2D / 3D animation programs have been working with Intel to optimize CrazyTalk for the forthcoming Ultrabook that allows for remarkable touchscreen intereface! Take that, iPad!

Reallusion had early access to develop on the Ultrabook and the company was able to kick-off development of CrazyTalk Animator for the touch capabilities of Ultrabook. “After you’ve created your character from a photograph, you can now work on the emotion using touch. It’s a lot like digital puppeteering. You can animate everything based on touch.”
The Ultrabook allows for much faster processing as well. “The changes a user makes are rendered in real time,” said John Martin, vice president of product marketing for Reallusion.

“Because of the mobility, people can use motion capture anywhere with our iClone software and Microsoft Kinect.”

Well, I have been very fortunate to have been able to review both CrazyTalk & iClone! I can tell you that computer animation is child’s play! I can also tell you that together with the Ultrabook, computer animation is going to take off! What will blow your mind is the absolute simplicity of it all! It’s so easy that it will frighten you! But don’t be afraid! Get animated!

Reallusion is looking forward to more innovation in partnership with Intel. “When you see the possibilities of digital photography and animation, it’s truly amazing.” said Martin.

I will bring you more info as soon as I get it!

As they say… Watch… this… space…

Thank you so much for reading!

Please check out Synapse Circuit Magazine!

HAPPY CREATIVE COMPUTING!

NEXUS 4: THE WORST KEPT SECRET!

CARPHONE WAREHOUSE OUTS THE LG NEXUS 4
Yep, the worst kept secret has been revealed by Carphone Warehouse: LG Nexus 4!

I was right about Android 4.2 being Jelly Bean and not Key Lime Pie! Also I was right about 360 degree camera feature!

I think this could be a big hit for LG! Not forgetting that they also have their 13MP Optimus G to come! The future of Android handsets has never looked greater!

Thank you so much for reading!

Please check out Synapse Circuit Magazine!

Best wishes!

GOOGLE: LET US PLAY!

GOOGLE 29 OCTOBER PREDICTIONS 2012

Before I make my predictions let me say this…

It’s an amazing time for technology! Apple has announced some very interesting products a few days ago… As usual Apple makes many great claims that are the equivalent of farting in the wind! You couldn’t smell that? They’ve done two very odd things as you know: iPad 4 within 6 months thus invalidating the 6 month old iPad 3 and released the much talked about iPad Mini. The iPad Mini spec has been taken out of the iPad 2 and the 7.9” screen isn’t their famous Retina and is also not HD. The price is also out of whack! $329! Is Apple so desperate to make money by touting the iPad Mini to the blind and ignorant? Honestly, if I were in the market for an iPad I would go for the best possible which is now the iPad 4 64GB! But by the time I have splashed out for an iPad 4 with all the trimmings I could have a decent PC desktop or laptop that will last me a couple of years as opposed to one year! I have stated before and I will state it again… Because of the iPad the price of a powerful laptop has come down considerably! I would rather have a laptop to be totally honest with you! I think “Apps” are the biggest red herring in the IT world at the moment! Why? Because you and I both know it is better to have Microsoft Office in all its glory on a decent laptop!

The grass is green as the Android… The other side… Well, look at the tablet market that they occupy: Internet on the go – including social networking, entertainment and moderate productivity with some decent apps with Office compatibility! All of this in a pocketable 7” tablet form. The price is right too! $199! The Nexus 7 is leading the way and will continue to do so! I don’t mind spending $199 for what the Nexus 7 brings! Amazon has got their strategy going too with their custom Android operating system on the Kindle Fire HD that is a direct line to their marketplace. Some people complain that the Android tablet apps are scaled up from the mobile ones and that the aesthetic isn’t pleasing. Personally, I don’t care! As long as I can access things like Facebook, Twitter, the Web, YouTube, etc I am happy! I find that it is a nice stop gap between when I’m on the road and when I get home to my PC! Then you look at the “phablet” market that Samsung is currently leading! I am planning to get the Galaxy Note II as I’m due for an upgrade soon! Then I ask myself, “Do I really need a tablet should I find myself with the Note II?”

Yes, Android has been trying to get into the tablet market as occupied by the iPad. As you know this is where the quality of the apps is duly noted! I think Samsung are doing their best and the Galaxy Note Tablet 10.1 seems to be hitting that sweet spot with much of the onboard applications! The Note Tablet 10.1 looks the closet to the iPad Asus are not too far behind with their tablets too! Their PadFone 2 certainly looks interesting…

MY PREDICTIONS
It’s funny, these days you can’t keep a secret before product press launches! I’m afraid that the Google Playground press event is going to be disappointing! Why are secrets being leaked? Mind you, going back to the recent Apple press event… that was disappointing all-round – even though I didn’t know anything about the iMac!




If that’s the LG Nexus 4 then I can tell you already that I am disappointed with the design which looks like stock Samsung! I keep looking for something radical but the Google Nexus has never been radical; it’s as though they wish to deliver a middle of the road handset with a 5MP camera when others are doing 8MP and above! Here’s the rumour regarding the LG Nexus 4 spec:

4.7-inch display 1280 x 720 HD resolution
1.5GHz quad-core processor
Android 4.2 Jelly Bean or Key Lime Pie?
2GB of memory
8MP back camera
1.3MP front facing camera
8GB or 16GB of storage
2,100mAh battery

Hmmm… The quad-core processor is good as is the 8MP camera. But doesn’t the Galaxy Note II look more attractive? Well, maybe the rental price will be good! Certainly the above spec is so much better than the iPhone 5!

ANDROID 4.2
I think it is fair to say that Android rules the world in terms of its omnipresence!

Somehow I don’t think 4.2 will be Key Lime Pie… I am sure that the next major Android release will be version 5! Perhaps Android 5 won’t come in time for November 5 to commemorate Android’s fifth birthday!

I think there will be better notifications – similar to that of the Galaxy SIII where you put the handset to your head to dial a person who just sent a text, a richer set of camera features such as panoramic photo capabilities and a stronger Google Voice Search and Now! I am hoping that the card results will look better! I want to see more of an effort in the design!

NEXUS 7 32GB 3G?
At the time of writing I have just looked at Google Play to see what’s shaking with regards to the current pricing of the Nexus 7 16GB model and it hasn’t changed. It’s still £199!

Could it be that a 32GB version is on its way and that will either make the 8GB version obsolete or cheaper still! More choice for the user! Reducing the price of the 8GB version will give people more choice and it would be very attractive to non-demanding users at £99!

I predict that the 32GB Nexus 7 will feature a microHDMI output and USB port. It’ll probably go for £250 or thereabouts!

NEXUS 10 by SAMSUNG
Could this rumour be true? I think so! Why would Samsung step aside for LG to take up the Nexus handset mantle if they weren’t going to do something that will keep up their momentum as a leading force in Android device manufacturers? Expect a 10” Nexus from Samsung! I do think that they are going to come up with a screen resolution that will be higher than that of the latest iPad (4); the Nexus 10 is said to feature a 2560 x 1600 resolution, 16:10 aspect ratio and 300 pixel per inch (PPI) density.

I am predicting that this will be a major tablet that will feature a range of in-built applications created by Samsung and Adobe i.e. Photoshop Touch! Like the Galaxy Note 10.1 Tablet the Nexus 10 is going to be aimed at creativity and the creative industries! I am quite sure that the price will just undercut the iPad 4! I am almost certain that this is the reason why Apple rushed iPad 4 and Mini! iPad 4 attempts to hit the Nexus 7 and Mini is aiming at the Nexus 10 – if it really exists! But I am certain that it does!

I can see a quad-core 1.6 or 1.7 processor, 2GB RAM, 16, 32 and 64GB storage with further expansion via a microSD slot. I think this one could be a real iPad killer in terms of spec! This could be the reason why developers will flock to Android!

NEXUS Q
This one stalled earlier this year, but I think we are going to see another preview of the work in progress enhancements. I would imagine that it would be a gaming device as well as a cloud storage / playback device. I am curious if I am right! I can see Google demonstrating some games with it!

NEXUS 2 PLUS
This could be the Samsung GT-I9260, Galaxy Nexus 2+! It could be that Google will be showing this off with the Nexus 10! If LG is doing the Nexus 4 then logic dictates that there must be a 2 and 3! I think the third one will come from HTC!

NEXUS PHABLETS
Now could it be that there will be Nexus phablets to come? I get the feeling that we might see one from HTC.

I reckon more devices will come to mark Android’s birthday!

I wonder how many of my predictions will come true! We’ll see… Monday 29 October can’t come soon enough! Lol!

FLOODING THE MARKET?
That’s a tough one to call… Do you see Google flooding the market to their disadvantage? Personally, I think having a widest choice as possible is a good thing! Not everyone is due for an upgrade at the same time; therefore there will be opportunity to get one of the latest Android handsets! I believe that Google are taking advantage of the fact that there are those who stick with their brands… There are those who are loyal to Samsung, HTC, Sony, etc. LG is very much hot on the heels of Samsung! If LG can wow the Android purists with their Nexus model I think they stand a good chance of being able to gain more of a reputation!

The good thing about flooding the market is that today’s expensive handset will come down considerably in price! A perfect opportunity for those to yet experience the smartphone phenomena and those who require a second handset!

Roll on…

Thank you so much for reading!

Please check out Synapse Circuit Magazine!

Best wishes! 

DON'T WANT TO PAY THE TV LICENSE?

It doesn't work! It's a Big Brother is watching you myth! 

USING TECHNOLOGY TO AVOID PAYING THE BBC TV LICENSE LEGALLY
Yes, this BBC Jimmy Savile Paedophile Ring has really ticked off a lot of people in the UK! They say that it is a breach of their license trust. In other words, UK TV license payers have been funding seriously lewd conduct and they are not, understandably, happy about it! Many TV license payers want to opt out of paying the outdated TV license scheme. I don’t blame them!

Here’s how you can legally avoid paying the TV license…


WHAT YOU NEED…
You just need a computer and preferably with an HD monitor! And here is a list of online TV channels that are completely free! It’s only the BBC that stipulates a licensing fee and the way to get around that is to watch BBC programs through its iPlayer! It’s only when you watch the BBC live i.e. their program schedule in real time is where you are required to pay the licensing fee!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/

http://www.itv.com/itvplayer/

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/4od

http://www.televisionplayer.com/download.htm

KNOCK KNOCK
There’s a knock on the door (day or very early evening) and it’s a man (usually) from the TV licensing department looking to find out why you haven’t paid the license. You can tell them that you don’t have a TV and he might want to come in and verify this! You’re not obligated to let him in as he has no power over you whatsoever. But if you have your computer set-up as an entertainment centre then you could let him in!

If you don’t let him in the consequence is that he’ll keep coming to your door and dropping a card notifying that he has been and will come back. Furthermore, you will get letters from them – especially one that threatens to take you to court and charge you with a hefty fee!

Do you remember those days when you’d watch TV adverts claiming that there are detector vans scanning to see if you watch TV illegally? Lol! Those were the days!

Thank you so much for reading!

Please check out Synapse Circuit Magazine!

Best wishes!

On the left, BBC Paedophile Sir Jimmy Savile. On the right (true Labour voters would say he's on the right), a guy that took  the UK to war illegally! Together in perfect harmony! 

4GEE: EXPENSIVE EXTORTIONATE?

EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE = EXPENSIVE EXTORTIONATE?
The mobile network, Everything Everywhere have released their price plans for their LTE service and I can’t say that I am too happy about it! The pricing plan reminds me of when 3G was first introduced and considering we’re one of the last countries to receive LTE I think it’s a bit of a rip off!

Handset	500MB  £36	1GB £41	3GB £46	5GB £51	8GB £56
HTC One XL 4G LTE Ready	£149.99	£49.99	£29.99	£29.99	£29.99
Samsung Galaxy S3 4G	£149.99	£49.99	£29.99	£29.99	£29.99
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 4G	£179.99	£139.99	£89.99	£39.99	£29.99
Huawei Ascend P1 4G	£19.99	FREE	FREE	FREE	FREE
Apple iPhone 5 16GB	£179.99	£109.99	£49.99	£29.99	£19.99
Apple iPhone 5 32GB	£269.99	£219.99	£149.99	£99.99	£29.99
Apple iPhone 5 64GB	£379.99	£269.99	£219.99	£189.99	£139.99

Here you can see that the 64GB iPhone 5 looks like a less attractive prospect. I'm glad that Android smartphones have a microSD card slot to expand the storage capacity! 

STILL FEELING THE NEED FOR SPEED?
I have to tell you that at those prices I am definitely not! Well, just a little bit… I think when I am being asked to pay over £50 for a data plan it should be unlimited!

If you take a look at the pricing plan of T-Mobile’s 3G ‘Full Monty’ with the SIII LTE handset at £41 for unlimited data, text and calling you’d find it more appealing – I’m sure! I know I do!

Or take a look at Three’s ‘The One’ offers the 3G version of the SIII with an upfront cost of £29 and for £36 a month you get unlimited data, 2K minutes and 5K minutes for Three to Three calls!

HOW FAST IS 4G LTE COMPARED TO 3G?
Some tests have shown that 4G LTE isn’t that much faster. And here in the UK it’s just beginning with the Everything Everywhere network! Knowing how the UK operates with new technology, I reckon that 4G won’t get going properly before an estimated 18 months! Other networks have yet to throw their hats in the ring! It’s early days for 4G – very much so!

Another thing you have to ask is: How important is 4G when you’re out and about? If you are at home or at work I am pretty much certain that you’d be taking advantage of WiFi! How long do we spend on the move to warrant paying such high costs in this double dip (with sprinkles on top) recession?

It’s sometimes good to be first with new tech, but I might sit this one out!

Thank you so much for reading!

Please check out Synapse Circuit Magazine!

Best wishes!

APPLE: iPAD MAXIMUM DAMAGE

APPLE: CORED

Oh dear… What has Apple done????

A SLAP IN THE FACE FOR iPAD 3 USERS?
Today Apple has announced what seems like a myriad of hardware notably the fourth generation iPad and the much anticipated and leaked iPad Mini!

It has only been 6 months since the third generation iPad was announced. It turns out that it is the biggest selling tablet in the world! Cue more PC bashing! Add some Android bashing to boot – we’ll get to that in a bit! iThink that Apple haven’t learned anything regarding their approach to the competitors… It’s full on pedal to the mettle with their arrogance that is trying so desperately to hide their fear!

They keep going on about the millions of iPads sold; ok fair enough, that’s an achievement! But is it really taking over the PC? The answer is a resounding NO!!!! Why? Because Windows still dominate the computer world, followed by Android! That’s a fact!

Watching and listening to an Apple press event is an exercise in tedium! But getting past the tedium and “Apple-speak” it has become obvious that Apple has run out of steam! What I have just stated comes across a controversial but take a good look at what they’ve done…

In essence they have trashed the third generation iPad; those who have bought it must be livid! I know I would be!

I guess the price of iPad 3 will come down! So, that’s kind of good news… …if you’re in the market for one!

NEXUS 7 vs. iPAD MINI
Apple compared the Nexus 7 to the iPad Mini and pointing out why the Nexus isn’t desirable. Well, the only thing Apple has a point with is the apps available for the iPad. That’s about it!

Again, like the iPhone 5, the iPad Mini is an awkward size 7.9” 1024 × 768. As a result the mini is not much of a departure from the 10” version. So, what is the point?

The Nexus 7 is a quad-core tablet with a, sharper screen resolution of 1280 × 800 and a better operating system, Jelly Bean! And then there’s the price, $199 for the Nexus 7 and $329 for the iPad Mini.

The iPad Mini doesn’t make sense because if you wanted the best from technology and you are a Apple fan then the iPad 4 would be the one to go for. The price margin isn’t too much of a stretch! The reason why Apple didn’t put out a 7” tablet is because the app developers would have faced a task to create apps specifically for a 7” screen! I can’t see a mass market for the iPad Mini beyond educational sector. Maybe the impoverished???? In my opinion the iPad Mini could cause Apple stocks to drop significantly!

Apple does not seem to understand that the Android tablet market is different to that of the iPad. Android tablet users, as I have pointed out before, tend to want to access the Net and social network on the go. Many Android tablet owners will use their mobile phone as a modem. Therefore, $199 is an absolute steal! In my opinion it’s a sad day for Apple to compare a $329 device to a $199 one!



ANDROID vs. APPLE
It appears that Apple has come out with all guns blazing because they know they have lost the smartphone war. C’mon, the iPhone 5 is crap - admit it! There are so many serious tablet competitors making small but significant gains in the 7” tablet market. Apple thought it would be a good idea to hit first, hard and fast!

29 October, Google will have their own media event announcing new devices and Android 4.2. It is rumoured that there’ll be 32GB version of the Nexus 7; LG is slated to be behind the next Nexus handset, Nexus 4 and the biggest rumour of all is that Samsung will be announcing a 10” Nexus tablet! Well, I think I predicted that would happen so, we will see…

I think Apple won’t know what’s hit them!

Thank you so much for reading!

Please check out Synapse Circuit Magazine!

Best wishes!

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT ISSUE #3 PREVIEW!

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT ISSUE 3 PREVIEW

Hi, Synapse Circuit Readers! 

It’s great to see you! It’s been a while since I have posted up a blog! That’s because I am busy putting together the next issue, 3!

I think that I have pretty much leaked all the information regarding smartphones, Android, etc! It seems to me that the leading tech media are just about catching me up! Lol!

Let me preview a little of what’s to come…

VIDEO EDITING
We’re gonna be looking at Magix Movie Edit Pro 2013 Premium! You’ll have the chance to win Movie Edit Pro 2013 Plus!

We have 5 copies to give away!

We’ll also be looking at adding even more professionalism with the ProDAD Heroglyph V4 plugin that allows you to create superb titles, slideshows, animations and more! Yes, it’s just like you see on the television!



Heroglyph 4 is compatible with most video editing software:

Adobe Premiere Elements

Corel VideoStudio Pro X5

Avid Studio 1

Pinnacle Studio

I think that you’ll be pleasantly surprised at what Heroglyph can do!

Review coming very, very soon…

MUSIC / AUDIO
Yes, it’s Magix leading the way again!

We have some fantastic Magix programs for Digital DeeJaying, audio editing / mastering and music making! That’s…

Digital DJ 2
Audio Cleaning Lab MX
& Music Maker 2013 Premium
It’s going to be a great journey into audio / visual and a whole lot more…
PHOTO EDITING
If you want more power to edit your videos than the average smartphone app then you will enjoy the forthcoming tutorial on making the most of your photos! I am going to show you what I think is the most easiest photo editing software to use whether you want to correct exposure, add effects or digitize the fading photos in your family album! Don’t let those precious memories fade away completely!

Thank you so much for reading!

Please check out Synapse Circuit Magazine!

Best wishes!