Are Google and Apple fleecing customers with tablet storage?

I was shopping for a micro SD card the other day and found at Popular Bookstore, Kota Kinabalu that a 32GB (Class 10) card is selling for RM99 (less than £19).

Read on to find out why you should be feeling like you're being hard done by, when choosing a tablet with storage size of between 16GB and 32GB or higher.

What's the big deal about upgrading your tablet's storage size? Image: CWM

Gadget makers accused of fleecing customers

Gadget makers including Apple and Google have been accused of ripping off customers with overpriced tablet storage upgrades.

Choosing between tablet models typically means deciding whether you want mobile data or not, and how much internal storage you want. However, Which? reports that consumers are getting a rough deal when it comes to paying more for higher storage capacities.

For example, the entry-level iPad Air costs £399 for 16GB (RM1,599 in Malaysia) and you'll have to pay an extra £80 to double this to 32GB. The 32GB iPad Air with WiFi is selling at RM1,929 in Malaysia. There's no memory card slot for adding more, like many other tablets, so picking the right one is important.

Which? claims that the memory upgrade only costs Apple £6 making the upgrade a mark-up of 1,267 percent.

"16GB of Flash memory is mind-numbingly cheap now. As a general rule, for manufacturers like ourselves, Flash costs less than 40p per GB, so for companies to charge so much for an extra 16GB seems scandalous." -
Ben Miles from PC maker Chillblast.

Google and Amazon charge £70 and £40 for the same upgrade for their Nexus 10 and Kindle Fire HDX 8.9 respectively. The mark-ups aren't as bad when compared to Apple but still represent a big jump compared to the market price for memory.

"With tablets in demand this Christmas, buyers will be shocked to discover what a raw deal they're getting on built-in memory. If you want the best value storage, then buy a tablet with a SD or microSD slot and add a memory card for a fraction of the cost." - Richard Headland, editor at Which?

The other issue with storage is the fact that users don't get the advertised amount. This blew up significantly with the Samsung Galaxy S4 which touted 16GB of storage but less than half was available to the user due to the space taken up by the operating system and pre-loaded apps and software features.

Source: Computerworld Malaysia



TheGreenMechanics: I feel like I am being hard done by! Really.

The new Dell Chromebook 11 will not rely on Google's cloud

Chromebooks are low-cost laptops for those who do most of their computing on the Web.

While most Chromebooks on the market rely on Google for online services, Dell's new Chromebook 11 adds another cloud option to extend file sharing across desktops, laptops and mobile devices.

The Dell laptop, announced last week, will integrate Wyse PocketCloud, which allows files to be accessed, edited and shared across PCs, Macs and Android and iOS smartphones and tablets.

Features and specifications

Name: Dell Chromebook 11

Screen: 11.6-inch screen

Display: 1366 x 768-pixel resolution

Processor: Intel dual-core Celeron, based on Haswell micro-architecture

Operating system: Chrome OS

Internal storage: 16GB

Ports: USB 3.0 and HDMI

Weight: 1.31 kg

Battery life: 10 hours

Availability: starts shipping in January 2014

Price: below $300 (RM1,000)

What's pencil about the Dell's Chromebook 11

The PocketCloud application will also turn the Chromebook into a remote desktop. Users will be able to access Microsoft Outlook software on PCs or edit Word, Excel or PowerPoint documents. The application will be available for download in January. 

Most schools are likely to add Chromebooks to their existing Windows-based PCs, Macs and iPads, so having a tool like PocketCloud that can share files across multiple devices and multiple platforms is an advantage over those that can only use Google's services.

The addition of Wyse PocketCloud heightens the value of the Chromebook 11 over alternatives from Hewlett-Packard, Acer and Samsung that have "run-of-the-mill" Google services.

This feature will be helpful for students who want to remotely access Chromebook data from their tablets or smartphones, King said.

In October this year, Chromebooks running an updated version of Chrome OS hit the market. Here are some of them:

• 11.6-inch screen:

Acer Chromebook C720 - $199
Acer Chromebook C720P - $299 (touchscreen)
HP Chromebook 11 - $279
Samsung Chromebook - $249. 

• 14-inch screen:

HP Chromebook 14 - $299

Are you using one of these? If yes, what are the major drawbacks or advantages from your experience?

More info at Dell's press release

HTC One Max launched in Malaysia, retailed at RM2,499

HTC South Asia senior executives with SKWong (2nd right) Country Manager of HTC Malaysia at the launch. Photo - Computerworld Malaysia


HTC Malaysia has launched HTC One Max, a supersized version of its flagship smartphone that includes a new fingerprint scan feature, which delivers an enhanced smartphone experience, said the Taiwan-headquartered mobile devices manufacturer.

HTC phones are regarded as expensive alternative to Samsung's and the build quality is said to better with good luxury feel, although I've never bought one for myself to have the kind of experience.

HTC claimed that the upgrade to HTC Sense 5.5 (that's HTC's Android skin to you and me) will provide our most amazing mobile experience yet, with the HTC One max delivering the size and power required to do "everything you want, and more, without compromise."


HTC One Max specifications

Display           : 5.9" full HD1080p
Processor       : Quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 600
CPU speed     : 1.7 GHz
Memory         : 16GB or 32GB (news has it that the 32GB version may not be offered here)
Card slot        : micro SD
Battery           : 3300 mAh
Android skin  : HTC Sense 5.5
Price              : RM2,499 (expected retail price)

Additional 50GB of additional free Google Drive online storage is offered to HTC One max owners.

The built-in fingerprint scan feature, which is located on the back of the device, allows users to lock and unlock the screen and launch up to three favourite applications by assigning an individual finger to each, he said.

The HTC One max is available in Malaysia at all HTC retailers and selected mobile operators.


TheGreenMechanics: This is a phablet capable of giving Samsung Galaxy Note 3 a run for its money. The race for larger smartphone (or rather phablet) screen size isn't going to stop anytime soon, it seems. But I'll stick to my trusty old 4" screen phone for now, and maybe save a little bit of money.

I tend to agree with the recent research finding that bigger phones mean bigger bills.


Source: Computerworld Malaysia

Kuala Lumpur school to test social media as teaching platform

I wrote about tablets as eventual replacement for heavy text books quite some time ago.

While the idea seems far-fetched and may not be favoured by many parents, a government-aided school in Kuala Lumpur has recently taken the first step towards testing social media as teaching platform. The tool they use is none other than tablet computer, or simply known as tablet.

What this means is that, there will be more and more tablets in schools and people will start coming up with innovative ways to maximise the usage of this popular gadget. St. Mary's started with social media, but with time, ideas will be pouring in, including replacing heavy text books with tablets.



New Ninetology tablets for the school students at St Mary's Kuala Lumpur. Photo: Computerworld


Malaysia's first social media platform dedicated to education

Malaysian secondary school St Mary's KL will pilot Malaysia's first social media platform, which is dedicated to education, according to EduNation Programme founder.

The government-aided mission school in Kuala Lumpur, which has been handed with 46 tablets by Asean mobile solutions firm Ninetology Marketing, has 1,243 students with the support of 65 teachers, said the school principal Goh Hai Bee


Rational behind the pilot test

"Technology advancement moves at a rapid pace. Students' exposure and hands-on knowledge about the world of Internet and digital media, is critical. In today's new work environment, high IT knowledge and the know-how of using digital media should not be limited only for those studying IT as a career option.

All of our children need strong skills in IT. From doctors to engineers, lawyers and teachers; we all need these skills. Our children, who in the future will look for employment, will need to, for example, apply for jobs online."
- Goh Hai Bee, St. Mary's school principal.


The EduNation Programme

The school Alumni Club's initiative to bring EduNation and Ninetology to the school has made the EduNation Programme a reality. The programme is expected to expose students to a new pedagogical approach using technology for teaching and learning.

Teaching videos for Mathematics, Science, Economics, Accounting and languages such as English and Bahasa Malaysia as well as an online exercise and test paper can now be conducted on a social media platform so that participating students will be able to practise their comprehension on subjects and concepts.

The idea behind the EduNation Programme is to enable any student in need of academic assistance to be connected to parents, teachers, volunteers and fellow students to receive free real time tuition powered by the Malaysian Community.

EduNation Programme aims to complement the Malaysian Education system. By putting the entire Malaysian school syllabus online, free for all, we will empower every Malaysian regardless of their economic status to excel in school.


TheGreenMechanics: Tablets and other mobile devices, and technology related to such invention are not going to fade away, so we may as well put them to good use in the education industry, such as the EduNation Programme.


Reference

Would you wear this Space Glasses to change your view of the world around you?

You’ve probably heard of Google Glass by now – the specs that overlay graphics onto the world around you. It costs $1500 to own this internet-enabled glass.

Now, a futuristic pair of ‘Space Glasses’ called META is going one step further by offering something called ‘mediated reality’.

It's basically a 3-D glasses with mediated reality

How the META works

Like augmented reality, this technology overlays text and graphics onto your field of view. However, it can also subtract objects by scanning your environment with a camera and identifying the objects around you. Once it knows what you’re looking at, it can enhance or diminish objects’ visibility so that you can add or remove them at will.

For example, imagine you're sitting in front of the telly. Meta’s built-in 720p camera will be able to recognise the TV, overlaying graphics so that it looks like they're being displayed on the screen.

Or imagine you’re holding a blank sheet of paper in front of you. The glasses will recognise it and track its position, allowing the headset to ‘print’ text or graphics onto the paper. If you bend or move the paper, the text will move accordingly, while folding the paper or turning it over will hide the text as if it were really printed there.

Priced at $667 (around RM2,158), Meta will be the first truly affordable mediated reality system available when it arrives in December this year. That's way cheaper compared to Google Glass at $1,500 (around RM4,850), but still, well... an expensive gadget.


Watch this one and a half minutes video of how it supposedly works:-



So, would you use a pair of Space Glasses to change your view of the world around you? I ticked the 'No' box. How about you?

You can get more information at Space Glasses website.

How do wireless charging mats work

By now, most of us would be familiar with wireless charging.

When Samsung announced its latest flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S4, it came supported by wireless charging, although not out of the box; meaning you have to buy the charging mat separately.

Charging pad for the Galaxy S4. It works on induction concept. Remember AC induction motors?

Wireless charging mats allow you to power-up multiple gadgets all at once by simply resting them on the surface, eliminating the need for tangled wires and device-specific adaptors.


How do they work?

They work via a process known as magnetic induction, the same method used to charge electrical toothbrushes, which employs an electromagnetic field to transfer energy between two objects.

According to Faraday’s law of induction, a current is produced when a conductive substance passes through a magnetic field. So the electromagnetic force created in the mat induces a current in the device you’re charging.

In future, manufacturers plan to integrate the technology into the gadgets, as well as domestic surfaces and furniture, so you can just drop your gadgets on the kitchen table and leave them to charge. For now, though, your gadgets have to be slipped into special cases that will enable wireless charging.