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Fashion and tech go hand in hand with L’Oreal

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12 Jan 2012

Fashion and tech go hand in hand with L’Oreal

Gadgets Magazine may be more tech than fashion but there’s no denying that the beauties who grace our covers and pages every month are also worth checking out aside from the latest and trendiest gadgets we serve you up with. That’s why we also know to keep up with what’s going on in the wonderful world of fashion and beauty – and because we were there – here’s a little something from L’Oreal during last year’s Philippine Fashion Week’s Grand Allure Show Holiday 2011. Cop that fierce look with a makeup tutorial from Jigs Mayuga.

Source: Philippine Fashion Week Live

Akai introduces the MPC Studio

Archives

Gadgets Team

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12 Jan 2012

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Akai rolls out its second controller of the year, the slim and streamlined MPC Studio.

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Google introduces Search plus Your World

Apps

Gadgets Team

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11 Jan 2012

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Google introduces Search plus Your World

Today, Google is introducing Search plus Your World for searches on Google.com in English. This trio of new search features brings your world, rich with people and information, into search. Search plus Your World helps you find your own stuff on the web, the people you know and things they’ve shared with you, as well as the people you don’t know but might want to … all from one search box.

We’re transforming Google into a search engine that understands not only content, but also people and relationships. We began this transformation with Social Search, and today we’re taking another big step in this direction by introducing these three new features:

Personal Results, which enables you to find information just for you, such as Google+ photos and posts—both your own and those shared specifically with you, that only you will be able to see on your results page;
Profiles in Search, both in autocomplete and results, which enables you to immediately find people you’re close to or might be interested in following; and,
People and Pages, which helps you find people profiles and Google+ pages related to a specific topic or area of interest, and lets you follow them with just a few clicks.

Together, these features combine to create Search plus Your World, which will become available over the next few days to people who are signed in and searching on https://www.google.com in English.

Security, transparency and control
We set a high bar for security and privacy for Search plus Your World. Searches by signed-in users on Google.com are secured by SSL encryption by default. This means when you’re signed in to Google, your search results—including your private content—are protected by the same high standards of encryption as your messages in Gmail.

We also want to be transparent about how these features work and give you control over how to use them. With today’s changes, we provide visibility and control settings similar to those in Google+. For example, personal results are clearly marked as Public, Limited or Only you.

We’re also introducing a toggle button on the results page that lets you see search results without personal content. With a single click, you can see an unpersonalized view of search results — no results from your friends, no private information and no personalization of results based on your Web History.

This toggle button works for an individual search session, or you can make this the default in your Search Settings.

For more details about Search plus Your World, including a video demonstration and screenshots, visit the Official Google Blog.

Asus Transformer Prime (with ICS) first impressions, hands on

Gadgets Team

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11 Jan 2012

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Asus Transformer Prime (with ICS) first impressions, hands on

Asus dropped by our office today with a particularly nice surprise: their Transformer Prime tablet topped with the delicious cherry that is Ice Cream Sandwich. Though we only got a few minutes to play with the device (Asus wouldn’t let us have it for a proper review, no matter how much we begged them to) we went away with the sneaking suspicion that it’ll be getting high marks from us once we get it back for a proper review. The reasons?

It’s thinner and prettier than last year’s model

We’re not saying that the original Transformer was ugly. It’s just that the new Transformer Prime is just so, so much nicer to look at. Asus took the whole look of the Zenbook and applied it to the Transformer Prime and the results are fantastic. Build quality is top notch, and with an overall thickness of just 8.3mm (tablet only), it’s one of thinnest tablets out in the market today.

Faster than the competition

While the Transformer Prime won’t be the fastest Android tablet in the block in a few months time, it’s still currently the fastest Android device right now, thanks to its Tegra 3 processor. Don’t believe us? Take a gander at the benchmark we took of the device while it was in the office.

Ice Cream Sandwich looks better than Honeycomb

Coincidentally, the Asus Transformer Prime is our first taste of Ice Cream Sandwich, as we haven’t gotten hold of a Samsung Galaxy Nexus yet. Our verdict? It’s so, so pretttyyy. Seriously. The transitions are beautiful and the screen! Oh the screen. It’s simply glorious.

Okay, we’re done gussying up to the Transformer Prime. With that out of the way, here’s some of the things we didn’t like about it:

It’s going to be a bit expensive

Asus’ rep today told me that unlike the original Transformer, the local version of the Transformer Prime will only be available with the dock, meaning you won’t be able to buy just the tablet itself. With taxes and all we estimate the Transformer Prime to retail at around 31-33K by the time it gets released, which should be next month.

It has GPS issues

Early adopters are reporting that the Transformer Prime has GPS issues, mainly stemming from the metal design of the device. Asus has already acknowledged the problem and are working on a redesigned device for better GPS performance, though it’s still up in the air when that new version will come out (or if that’s the version of the device coming here).

That’s it. We’re expecting the unit to come back next week, so watch out for our review. Until then, enjoy some of the pictures of the device below.

[album: https://gadgetsmagazine.com.ph/wp-content/plugins/dm-albums/dm-albums.php?currdir=/wp-content/uploads/dm-albums/[email protected]/Asus Transformer Prime/]

Samsung’s WB850F Wi-Fi camera lets you upload images without using your PC

Gadgets Team

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11 Jan 2012

1

Samsung’s WB850F Wi-Fi camera lets you upload images without using your PC

Since most of the pictures we take today end up in Facebook and other social networks we own, it kind of makes sense for a camera to come with Wi-Fi built-in, right? Meet Samsung’s WB850F, their newest Wi-Fi enabled camera that’ll allow you to take photos and upload them immediately without the use of a PC. Aside from near instantaneous sharing, the WB850F is armed with a 21x super zoom lens and a large 16 Megapixel BSI CMOS sensor for reduced image noise and distortion. There’s a 3-inch VGA AMOLED screen at the back, as well as GPS functionality. No word on local pricing and availability yet.

Razer Naga Hex announced, optimized for DoTA, LoL

Gadgets Team

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11 Jan 2012

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Razer Naga Hex announced, optimized for DoTA, LoL

With the popularity of action-RPG games like DoTA and LoL, Razer has made a mice specifically for the sub-genre. Meet the Naga Hex, a mouse made in the spirit of the original Razer Naga. But now instead of 12 buttons arranged in a grid, the Naga Hex has six large mechanical thumb buttons that are optimized for the interfaces of MOBA and action-RPG games such as DoTA and LoL. The buttons on the Naga Hex are made with performance in mind, and can take up to 250 clicks per minute without issues, with the switches being rated for about 10 million clicks. The Naga Hex will retail for $79.99.

Product features:

6 MOBA/action-RPG optimized mechanical thumb buttons
11 total programmable buttons
Special switches in buttons for up to 250 clicks per minute
10 million click life cycle
Ergonomic curved design
Razer Synapse 2.0
5600dpi Razer Precision 3.5G Laser Sensor
1000Hz Ultrapolling/1ms response time

[album: https://gadgetsmagazine.com.ph/wp-content/plugins/dm-albums/dm-albums.php?currdir=/wp-content/uploads/dm-albums/[email protected]/Razer Naga Hex/]

Razer outs Project Fiona gaming tablet

Gadgets Team

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11 Jan 2012

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Seems like Razer has their own CES bomb to drop. The peripheral firm has just released unleashed the Project Fiona gaming tablet for gamers who absolutely need to take their PC games on the road. The tablet runs on an Intel’s third generation Core i7 processors (which we assume will be Ivy Bridge) and Razer says that it’s fully capable of running PC games on the go. To get around the problem of, you know, not having a mouse or keyboard, Razer has integrated dual game controllers with ultra-precise analog sticks and accelerometers, and a highly sensitive multi-touch screen into the device for positive control. No word on what GPU this bad boy uses (or if it’ll use a separate GPU at all) or how much it’ll eventually retail for though Razer says it’ll retail for less than $1000. You can expect the Project Fiona to arrive in Q4 of 2012.

[album: https://gadgetsmagazine.com.ph/wp-content/plugins/dm-albums/dm-albums.php?currdir=/wp-content/uploads/dm-albums/[email protected]/Project Fiona/]

Intel officially enters smartphone and tablet game, enters into strategic relationship with Motorola

Gadgets Team

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11 Jan 2012

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Intel officially enters smartphone and tablet game, enters into strategic relationship with Motorola

We’ve seen a sneak peek of Intel’s possible tablet offerings last year in COMPUTEX, and now it seems that the firm has a processor ready to go to market. The processor of choice for mobile devices? Their Atom Z2460 platform, formerly known as Medfield. To highlight the capabilities of the processor on mobile devices, Intel brought a fully functional smartphone to CES which was built for them by Lenovo. The device sports a 4.5-inch high-resolution LCD touch screen for crisp text and vibrant images, two cameras for imaging and support for HSPA+ with the Intel XMM 6260 Platform. The device was running on Android 4.0 during the event.

Intel CEO Paul Otelleni also announced during the show a including a multi-year, multi-device strategic relationship with Motorola Mobility, Inc. “The best of Intel computing is coming to smartphones,” said Intel President and CEO Paul Otellini. “Our efforts with Lenovo and Motorola Mobility will help to establish Intel processors in smartphones and provide a solid foundation from which to build in 2012 and into the future.”

Additionally, the firm has promised that devices running on their chips will be able to run a vast swath of Android software, including those compiled for other architectures. Furthermore, Intel powered tablets will raise the bar on tablet experiences by offering compatibility with the millions of existing applications and devices; an instant-on, software and apps experience; and support of the Metro* user interface. Onstage during Intel’s keynote for CES was the world’s first public demonstration of the forthcoming 32nm Intel Atom SoC for tablets and hybrids running on Microsoft Windows 8, codenamed “Clover Trail.

*We apologize for the low res pictures, we’ll get higher-res versions up as soon as we can

PressReader updates to v3.0, introduces SmartFlow

Technology

Gadgets Team

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11 Jan 2012

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PressReader updates to v3.0, introduces SmartFlow

PressReader has been updated to version 3.0 with a new flagship feature called SmartFlow, which promises to provide an even smoother browsing experience.

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Break that fast quick and easy with the Retro Series 3-in1

Archives

Gadgets Team

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10 Jan 2012

1

Break that fast quick and easy with the Retro Series 3-in1

They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day but seriously, who has the foresight (or the willpower) to wake up earlier than necessary to make themselves the proverbial “breakfast of champions” type meal (and then have the time to clean up before heading off to work)?

Nostalgia Electrics gives you a reason not to skip breakfast with the Retro Series 3-in-1 Breakfast Station. Now you need not worry about rushing out of the house with just a fruit or a sachet of oatmeal in your hand. This ultimate breakfast maker comes with a mini oven-toaster, coffeemaker, and built-in grill which you can use all at once. Sure, this isn’t the first breakfast maker we’ve come across but what makes this one so special is it’s vintage design, giving you that suzy-homemaker feel without having to look like a 50s housewife.

Alcatel releases Blaze Glory 918N, dual-sim Android 2.3 smartphone for only Php 5,999

Gadgets Team

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10 Jan 2012

1

Alcatel releases Blaze Glory 918N, dual-sim Android 2.3 smartphone for only Php 5,999

Android devices are just getting cheaper and cheaper, as Alcatel has just launched their Blaze Glory 918N Android 2.3 device at an event earlier today. Alcatel is positioning the Blaze Glory 918N as an entry level smartphone which is apparent from its affordable Php 5,999 price tag. For that money you get a 615MHz processor, a 3.2-inch screen, dual-sim capability and Android 2.3 on-board.

It’s obvious from the pricing of the device that it’s aimed to go after the same market that Samsung’s Galaxy Y swims in, though there isn’t a clear winner between the two specs-wise – the Blaze Glory 918N has a better looking screen and has dual-sim capabilities, but only has a clockspeed of 615MHz, while the Galaxy Y has a faster processor 830 MHz ARMv6 at the cost of a smaller screen (3-inches, 240 x 320 pixels).

RIM outs 5 BlackBerry devices for the Philippines: Bold 9790, Curve 9380, Torch 9810, Torch 9860 and Bold 9900 (white)

Gadgets Team

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10 Jan 2012

0

RIM outs 5 BlackBerry devices for the Philippines: Bold 9790, Curve 9380, Torch 9810, Torch 9860 and Bold 9900 (white)

We’re fresh from RIM’s new BlackBerry unveil earlier today, and the company is dead set on starting the new year right with 5 new product offerings. The 5 new products all run BlackBerry’s new BlackBerry 7 operating system and encompass a large swath of market segments, from entry level to the premium, hi-end market.

BlackBerry Bold 9790

The BlackBerry Bold 9790 is a compact device aimed at users who don’t want their gadgets weighing them down. It’s equipped with a 2.45-inch touch display (480 x 360 pixels), QWERTY keyboard and is powered by a 1GHz processor. This particular device is more compact than a typical BlackBerry device without sacrificing performance and usability. The BlackBerry Bold 9790 will retail for Php 22,890.

BlackBerry Curve 9380

The BlackBerry Curve 9380 is the company’s first touchscreen device in the Curve family. It was officially announced a few months ago back in Jakarta, Indonesia (along with the 9790 above), and it seems that the device has finally made it onto our shores. As a recap, the Curve 9380 is equipped with a 3.2-inch touchscreen display, 5 megapixel camera and a 806 MHz CPU. The BlackBerry Curve 9380 will retail for Php 16,990.

BlackBerry Torch 9810

The Torch 9810 is a re-issue of sorts of the Torch 9800. Building on the iconic look and feel of the previous device, RIM has managed to make the Torch 9810 better by stuffing a better display (3.2-inch 16M-color TFT touchscreen, 480 x 640 pixels) and processor (single-core 1.2GHz processor) in it while retaining the form factor of the device. The BlackBerry Torch 9810 will retail for Php 28,590.

All-Touch BlackBerry Torch 9860

We actually detailed the launch and reviewed the BlackBerry Torch 9860 a few months ago and it seems that RIM has only gotten around to releasing it now. Nevertheless, it’s here, and will be made available to the general public with a suggested retail price of Php 24,690.

BlackBerry Bold 9900 in Pure White

The Bold 9900 was officially announced a few months ago, along with the BlackBerry Torch 9860. RIM has now made the white version of the Bold 9900 available to the general public, carrying a Php 31,690 price tag.

All five devices will be available to buy once January 13 rolls around.

Fujifilm X-Pro1 officially announced

Archives

Gadgets Team

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10 Jan 2012

0

It’s been a good start of the year for the world of photography, with multiple cameras being unveiled to the public. Not wanting to be left out of the fray, Fujifilm has a revelation of their own, in the form of the X-Pro1.

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Lenovo unveils IdeaPad YOGA – the ultrabook that doubles as a tablet

Gadgets Team

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10 Jan 2012

1

Lenovo unveils IdeaPad YOGA – the ultrabook that doubles as a tablet

A bit of variety today for Lenovo – the company has just announced their IdeaPad YOGA, which the company says is the first multi-mode notebook with a 360 degree flip-and-fold design. Apparently, you can use the YOGA as a regular notebook, and thanks to its 13.3-inch (1600 x 900 resolution) touchscreen display and double hinged design, you can flip it around and use it as a Windows 8 tablet. Ingenious. The whole device has an overall thickness of just 16.9mm, and weighs about a kilo and a half. Unfortunately, there’s no clear word on what kind of processor this thing will use, aside from the usual Intel Processor family verbiage that you see on CES devices. But since it’s set to launch with Windows 8, there’s a big chance that this particular device will be running Intel’s next generation of processors, codenamed Ivy Bridge.

[album: https://gadgetsmagazine.com.ph/wp-content/plugins/dm-albums/dm-albums.php?currdir=/wp-content/uploads/dm-albums/[email protected]/Lenovo YOGA/]

Source: Lenovo

Asus new Eee Pad MeMO 171 takes a swipe at the 7-inch form factor

Gadgets Team

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10 Jan 2012

4

Asus new Eee Pad MeMO 171 takes a swipe at the 7-inch form factor

Possibly buoyed by its success in the 10-inch tablet segment, Asus is jumping in the 7-inch tablet market with their Eee Pad MeMO 171 . Aside from an ungainly name, the new 7-inch tablet from Asus features a 7-inch 1280 x 800 IPS display, 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm processor with about 1GB RAM and will come in two storage flavors: 16GB and 32GB. The device will come out of the gate with Android 4. The device also comes with a Bluetooth MeMIC headset that lets users search for contacts, send and receive text messages, and place calls. Plug in some earphones and it serves as an audio device that streams music from the MeMO via a Bluetooth connection. Oddly enough, the device comes with a stylus – even though it sports a capacitive screen – which is stored at the bottom of the device.

EDIT: Sorry for the confusion, we have edited the article with updated specs and model name. Thanks Chuchi!