Category: Tablet Computers

Using QR codes and NFC to take tourist attractions further

Article

QR Code And NFC Talking Statues | 2D Code

My Comments

London is using QR codes and NFC tags that head to Web-based links as a way of enhancing the visitors’ experience with the well-known characters’ statues. Here, the links provide experiences like Sherlock Holmes talking to you or where you can experience the Bow Bells call associated with the Dick Whittington legend.

But this could be used for various goals like having interpretation boards that “read out” the text to you, show the text in another language or provide extra detail on the attraction. Sometimes you may be able to engage in multimedia content or have the device’s GPS navigate you to another point in a pre-defined tour as part of a tour app.

It just requires the use of QR codes which work with all mobile platforms or NFC “touch-and-go” tags that work with Android and Windows 8 / Windows Phone 8 platforms linking to micro-sites that “take the attraction” further. These would them make the smartphone or tablet become more relevant when you tour an area rather than just as toys.

Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S tablets to snap at the iPad’s heels

Article

S is for SMACKDOWN: Samsung takes Galaxy Tab slab war fruit-side | The Register

Samsung sticks more colorful screens in its new Galaxy Tab S | Engadget

From the horse’s mouth

Samsung Mobile US

Press Release

Product Site

My Comments

Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10" tablet - Press Photo courtesy of Samsung

Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10″ tablet

Apple is having to face some serious competition from the Android front when it comes to high-quality mobile-platform tablet devices courtesy of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S range of tablets. These units work with enough processor power to put Apple on notice courtesy of the latest Exynos or Snapdragon quad-core chipsets.

But they implement 8.4” or 10.5” Super AMOLED displays similar to what you see on the Galaxy S series or Note Series smartphones, but have the same resolution as the latest iPad tablets i.e. 2560×1600 for both models, leading towards a similar pixel density to the “Retina-class” Apple devices. From my experience with my Galaxy Note II smartphone, the Galaxy S smartphone and the Nokia N85 feature phone which are equipped with the AMOLED display technology, these displays yield a bright sharp well-saturated image that can be viewed at wider angles. These tablets also implement automatic-display-optimisation logic to provide the best view for the environment.

They can “take” to the latest Wi-Fi networks using both bands and supporting 802.11ac technology, as well as working with Wi-Fi Direct and Bluetooth 4.0 Smart Ready setups. They are available with onboard 16Gb or 32Gb storage and have a microSD slot for up to 128Gb of extra storage.

As for the operating system, they come with Android 4.4 KitKat but also have apps for magazine subscriptions which make hay while the sun shines with the display technology. Even for that matter, the Google Play store is fronting up with apps and games of the same calibre as what is offered on the iTunes App Store, thus making able to compete with the iPad as a high-quality mobile-platform tablet.  They also reckon that these tablets will run for 11 hours of video play on their own batteries.

At the time of publication, the “ask” for these tablets is US$399 for a Wi-Fi-only 8.4” model or US$499 for the Wi-Fi-only 10.5” model.

I would personally recommend that if you do purchase any of these tablets, I would recommend that you buy a USB “On The Go” cable and SD card reader so you can review your digital camera’s pictures on these tablets. This is more to take advantage of the high resolution images that your camera puts up when you take pictures with it.

ASUS to launch a Windows detachable laptop with detachable Android smartphone

Article

ASUS Transformer Book V is a Windows hybrid laptop with a detachable Android phone | Engadget

My Comments

There have been various devices that were effectively multiple devices in one package with one device being able to be detached to perform its own function. One of these devices that came to my mind was Hitachi’s TRK-W1 boombox of the early 80s. This was a high-quality radio-cassette unit with two cassette transports but one of the transports in this unit was in fact capable of becoming a cassette Walkman once it was detached from the main unit and effectively combined two portable-audio paradigms that were underscored through that time period.

ASUS has applied this same concept to the Transformer Book V detachable laptop which has a separately-detachable smartphone. Here, you had a 12” detachable “hybrid” laptop running Windows 8.1 which could become a tablet one moment and a laptop the next like with the HP x2 series. But you could clip a supplied 5” Android smartphone in to the back of the tablet to provide for access to the mobile broadband service.

The tablet could run Windows 8.1 or, with the phone attached, could run Android 4.4 KitKat in a “virtual-phone” window or run as a full-on Android tablet / laptop. It has 4Gb RAM and 128Gb solid-state storage but has a 1Tb hard disk in the battery-less keyboard attachment. The phone would have 64Gb of its own storage and 2Gb of its own RAM. But there is a limitation that each operating system can only use its own storage space.

Who knows when ASUS would officially launch it with many people looking at it housed in a glass showcase. As well, who knows if this would he launched to all of the markets but ASUS are showing that a device integrating Windows and Android in all the useable form factors can be made available.

AMOLED displays to come to tablets courtesy of Samsung

Article

Samsung Premiere 2014 set for June 12, here come the AMOLED tablets! | Android Authority

My Comments

Those of you who use recent Samsung, HTC or Sony premium smartphones will notice that they implement AMOLED display technology. Here, the display has that high contrast ratio along with vibrant colours and a wide viewing angle, courtesy of the fact that each pixel lights itself rather than a light source illuminating the display.

There have been a few attempts to bring the technology to large TV screens but Samsung are now implementing it in two new Galaxy Tab S tablet models. These will have either an 8.4” display or 10” display depending on the model  This will be augmented with the “Tab Into Color” tagline to augment the vibrant colour and high contrast features that they have. As well, it becomes feasible for Samsung to design them as highly-slim units due to the display technology not needing a backlight.

Personally, I would also like to see people who manufacture consumer and small-business electronics devices like printers and hi-fi components implement the AMOLED display technology on these devices, especially as a tool to differentiate the premium models from the rest of the range. This is because they work well as a low-power just-as-bright substitute for the vacuum-fluorescent display that has been commonly used on consumer electronics devices. Some devices like the recently-reviewed Brother MFC-J6720DW A3 multifunction printer or the Cyrus Lyric CD receiver implement a touchscreen as the operating interface and they could use the same display technology as the Samsung Galaxy S or Sony XPeria smartphones,

Who knows whether the OLED family of displays will displace the LCD displays in most common applications or not.

A convertible or a detachable–It’s Acer’s Switch 10

Articles

Acer announces new devices including new 2-in-1 laptop and 23-inch All-in-Ones | Windows Experience Blog

From the horse’s mouth

Acer

Press Release

Previous Coverage

Convertible Or Detachable – Where To Go?

My Comments

A detachable of the ilk of HP’s x2 Series or ASUS Transformer Prime series is either a conventional laptop when clipped with its keyboard base or a tablet that lies flat on the table or cradled in your hands.

But Acer has changed this view with the Switch 10 detachable tablet. This is one which can be positioned in a manner not dissimilar to most convertibles like the Lenovo Yoga series or the Sony VAIO Fit 13a where you can arrange the screen to be positioned at an angle for convenient touchscreen operation or viewing of pictures and video.

This is implemented with Acer’s Snap Hinge which is a special hinge that clips the keyboard base and tablet together like normal or can simply allow the tablet to be swiveled with the screen facing out. This means that the tablet be in a “tent” mode or an angled display mode as well as the laptop or tablet modes. As well, this 10” detachable runs on an Intel Bay Trail chipset with 2Gb RAM and 64Gb SSD storage and uses Windows 8.1 as its operating system.

But what I see of this is that it could be come a way to present a computer that offers the advantages of a detachable tablet in the form of lightweight operation and a convertible laptop which can be swiveled around for viewing or creating content. It is another way of making sure that the portable computer idea doesn’t forget that the keyboard has relevance for creating content.

Convertible or detachable–where to go?

You are not really keen on keeping a separate laptop for creating content and a separate tablet for casual browsing. But there are portable computers that can become a regular clamshell-style laptop; or a touchscreen tablet at a moment’s notice.

Typically these will run the “open-frame” operating systems such as Microsoft Windows 8 or, in the case of most smaller 10” variants, Android with some newer varieties moving towards being able to boot from either operating system or run Android as a separate virtual machine..

Why own a convertible or detachable?

HP Envy X2 detachable-screen hybrid tablet-notebook computer

One of the HP X2 series detachable-screen hybrid tablet-notebook computers

These portable computers are optimised for both content consumption and creation. Here, they work as a tablet to use for reading in bed or on the couch, or they can become a laptop for frequent text-entry work such as using Google / Bing frequently to look for concepts, creating emails of any length, or amending notes for your speech, typing up documents “on the go”.

A person who values the idea of separate devices may stand for the idea of particular screen sizes and operating platforms being perfect for particular tasks. For example, a 10” tablet such as the popular Apple iPad family may work well for reading while a 13”-15” laptop may work well for writing up material and performing “larger tasks”.

Some people even couple a tablet with a USB or Bluetooth accessory keyboard typically in the form of a device cover that has an integrated keyboard and works as a stand for the device. This is seen as a cheaper path to a “combined-device” concept and may be seen as whether it is the path to go for your portable computing needs.

Screen sizes and what they are good for

HP X2 detachable tablet as a tablet

HP X2 detachable tablet as a tablet

Most manufacturers have units with either 10”-11” screens or 13”-14” screens in their convertible and detachable product lineups with most of these products with the 10”-11” screens.

Sony VAIO Duo 11 slider-convertible tablet

Sony VAIO Duo 11 slider-convertible notebook

The 10”-11″ units will work well for short bursts of text entry such as searching for information, short email replies, a few Social Web entries at a time, or amending speech notes before / after your speech. This is while they work well as a tablet screen size that suits most users. Some of you may value these units if you are typing up notes during a presentation because they don’t cramp you in between the seating rows.

Sony VAIO Duo 11 slider-convertible tablet - Right-hand-side view - 2 USB 3.0 ports and an HDMI port

Sony VAIO Duo 11 as a tablet

The 13″-14″ units work better for longer periods of text entry such as creating documents or writing down heaps of notes. The larger screen can also earn its keep if you are browsing Web sites, or viewing pictures and videos alongside someone else like your significant other frequently.

15” convertibles like the Acer Aspire R7 or the Sony VAIO Fit 13a may also appeal to those of us who like the large screen for both typing up content and browsing. This may also allow you to see the detail more easily but they won’t be as portable as the 13”-14” varieties.

Detachable tablets

Sony VAIO Fit 13a convertible Ultrabook at Rydges Hotel Melbourne

Sony VAIO Fit 13a 13″ convertible laptop

These computers like the HP x2 family, the ASUS Transformer family and Microsoft’s Surface family, also known as hybrid tablets, have a keyboard that unclips from the tablet itself.

The computing power, memory and main secondary storage  in these detachables is housed within the tablet like what is expected for a typical tablet. But the detachable keyboards contain some extra functions like supplementary storage space, a high-capacity battery and extra connections like more USB ports. Some of these computers may use a microSD card slot in the tablet itself and a standard SD card slot in the keyboard and this would require you to use the keyboard if you are “developing” those pictures from your digital camera’s “film roll” on your detachable tablet.

They appeal to those of us who value carrying around the lightweight tablet and reading material from it more.

Convertible notebooks

Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 13 courtesy of Lenovo

Lenovo Yoga convertible notebooks

The convertible notebooks have a mechanical arrangement where you can fold, swivel or slide the screen to switch between a tablet computer or a clamshell-style laptop computer.

These would appeal to those of us who want a readily-accessible keyboard and don’t place emphasis on the lightweight tablet. Like the regular laptop, they have their connectivity, functionality and battery runtime as a known quantity and there is less of a likelihood of you losing the detachable keyboard.

Different convertible styles

Sliders

These computers, like the Sony VAIO Duo family, have the keyboard slide out from behind the screen with the screen coming up at a particular angle.

Typically most of these work at a fixed angle when they become a laptop and are worth their salt if you value a computer that, when used as a laptop, doesn’t have a larger footprint.

Swivel-head

Lenovo ThinkPad Twist convertible notebook courtesy of Lenovo

Lenovo ThinkPad Twist convertible notebook

This type of convertible computer was considered the “original” convertible laptop when Microsoft launched Windows XP Tablet Edition and brought on the idea of pen-based computing for the Windows platform. They have the screen swivel 180 degrees vertically to become a laptop or tablet. A current example of this is the Lenovo ThinkPad Twist which is pitched at the business user.

Flip-screen

This style has the screen flipping horizontally between a front view or a rear view with the display rotated accordingly. These will have the screen either on a small hinged support like the Sony VAIO Fit 13a or the Acer Aspire R7; or in a frame like the Dell XPS 12.

360-degree hinged lid

Another type of convertible notebook, popularised by Lenovo under the Yoga name, is the 360-degree hinged lid. These computers which are like regular laptops have the lid swing from a closed position to the back of the computer’s case. Once you have folded the lid out all of the way, you turn the computer over for it to become a tablet.

The disadvantage with this style is that the keyboard is exposed to dirt when the computer is set up as a tablet, which can limit its useful as a tablet in areas where you may be eating or drinking.

Choosing the right convertible style

Each convertible style suits particular users and scenarios. These depend on how easy they are to switch between the different setups, what usage environment they work well with

The swivel-head, flip-screen or 360-degree lid may appeal to those of us who want to place the screen at an angle for viewing photos and videos when the machine is resting on a table. A swivel-head or 360-degree lid may appeal to those of you who may have dexterity problems or find operating some mechanisms difficult.

A slider unit or some flip-screens like the Acer Aspire R7 may appeal to those of us who want to expose the keyboard without taking up too much room when you do this. An example of this may be a public speaker who needs to quickly amend notes for their speech at the lectern using the regular keyboard rather than picking around on the touch keyboard.

Conclusion

If you are thinking of having one touch-enabled portable computer to use as a tablet or a laptop / notebook computer, I would suggest that a detachable would work well for those of you who value the lightweight tablet or a convertible for most usage scenarios.

It is also worth considering the convertible notebook or detachable-keyboard tablet as a valid option for your portable-computing needs especially if you see yourself typing up material.

Handling the many-source one-destination situation with Bluetooth audio devices

Pure Jongo T6 wireless speaker

There may be difficulties running a Bluetooth speaker like this with multiple source devices in the same room

The Bluetooth A2DP audio playback setup which provides a wireless link between a mobile device and a sound system or Bluetooth speaker has now brought along its own set of complications. This is something that will show up more as the number of Bluetooth-capable wireless speakers, audio adaptors and music systems in circulation increases.

One main complication is that the last-connected Bluetooth-capable source device “lays claim” to the Bluetooth-capable sound system until either device’s Bluetooth functionality is turned off. This is even though the user of that source device stopped playing the audio content using the media player and can cause complications where, for example, an “established” Bluetooth device like a tablet cannot be used with the sound system it is normally used with because a guest “walked up” to the sound system and paired their iPhone full of their music collection to that unit to play some of their tunes.

The practice is expected to be common with music systems that are operated during a party where you want to let a guest “look after the tunes” for the evening; and will become common with cars when a group of people go on a long journey and one of these passengers offers to “look after the tunes” for a part of the trip. At the Australian Audio And AV Show 2013, the people who were demonstrating the Aktimate active speakers with a Bluetooth adaptor allowed me to try the speakers with a track on my phone but asked me to make sure the Bluetooth on my phone is off or the speakers removed from the phone’s devices list after I had finished playing the music.

Nokia BH-111 headphone adaptor connected to headphones

Two or more devices paired to the one Bluetooth headset and on in the same vicinity may cause problems.

It can also show up when you use the same Bluetooth headset or audio adaptor amongst a group of devices which is common when you want to use your headset with your smartphone while walking down the street or use it with your laptop to make that Skype or Lync call.

How do you handle this situation

When you have finished using a Bluetooth sound system, especially one you use on an ad-hoc basis, you have to make sure you logically disconnect your computer or mobile device from that sound system. Most commonly, you may have to turn off your computer’s or mobile device’s Bluetooth functionality. But if you are using your own Bluetooth peripherals, then you have to enable the Bluetooth functionality again.

Logically disconnecting the device

The recent versions of the Android mobile operating system handle this better by allowing a Bluetooth device to be “disconnected” without the Android smartphone or tablet losing its paring data. Here, you enter the Android Bluetooth menu to tap on the currently-connected device to disconnect it immediately.  The ability to retain the pairing is important if you are using a particular Bluetooth device regularly such as a car sound system in the car you regularly drive or a commonly-used Bluetooth-capable hi-fi setup.

Unpairing or removing the device from your operating system

Most other desktop and mobile platforms require you to “remove” or “”unpair” the music system from the Bluetooth-capable source device. Then if you want to use the same Bluetooth device again, you have to put that device in to pairing mode which typically requires you to press and hold a button to invoke this mode; and use the operating system’s Bluetooth menu or “Add New Device” menu to add or pair with a new Bluetooth device.

In Windows, this requires you to go to the Devices Menu, select the device and select the Remove option to remove the sound system. There is the Bluetooth icon in the Taskbar which has the right-click option to “Show Connected Devices” to bring up all the Bluetooth devices associated with your system.

Macintosh users have to click on the “System Preferences” item under the Apple menu, select the Bluetooth icon in the System Preferences window, select the device in the left-hand list box and click the “-“ button to remove the device.

For iOS, you may have to go to the Bluetooth menu under Settings – General. and touch “Unpair” to detach the sound system.

What needs to happen

Support for “connect / disconnect” on all desktop and mobile operating systems

An improvement that needs to be able to exist for an operating system’s Bluetooth functionality is to allow the user to logically “connect” and “disconnect” a Bluetooth peripheral manually. Here, the parings are retained in the host device while it is disconnected yet, when you connect, they come in to play as part of attempting to connect up with the device. This doesn’t remove the ability for a device to immediately connect when it is paired but  allows it to stay paired without being connected.

Bluetooth-capable audio equipment to support multiple connections

We are starting to see some Bluetooth headsets, speakers and in-car setups able to support multiple connections to different devices. This is typically to facilitate a media-player-only device like an Apple iPod Touch to play content while the device serves as a hands-free for a smartphone that is not necessarily used as a media player. Sony has made an effort with their SBH-20 Bluetooth headset adaptor to support the multiple-connection requirement for two smartphones thus facilitating one-touch answer from either phone.

Similarly, a Bluetooth-capable audio device could implement a multiple-connection setup where it can stay connected to many Bluetooth host devices. Each of these host devices can be enumerated as a virtual source as far as the Bluetooth-capable audio device is concerned and there is a user interface on the Bluetooth audio device to select between the different hosts.

Automotive implementations could allow multiple smartphones to connect with one being determined as a “primary” device for making and taking calls and receiving messages and others determined as either “secondary” devices used primarily to take calls or as “media-player” devices that only play media.

Conclusion

This issue of having Bluetooth devices, especially Bluetooth audio devices, work with multiple host computing devices is something that has caused headaches and will be doing so until the people designing the operating systems and devices can handle this reality properly and easily.

The three-platform tablet race is now on

Toshiba AT300 10" Android tablet computer

Toshiba AT300 10″ Android tablet computer

Previously, if anyone though of a mobile-platform tablet device, they thought of an Apple iPad which was a 10” tablet that had its success driven by a large quantity of apps along with ease of use that made it appeal to those of us who didn’t have much for computer skills.

Very shortly after, the Android platform, driven by the 3.0 “Honeycomb” version of this operating system, came to the fore as far as mobile-platform tablets were concerned. Some of the manufacturers offered the tablets in two different screen sizes – a 7” size that can be kept in a coat pocket or handbag or a 10” that can be rested on the lap like the iPad.

This has continued on with Blackberry having a “bite at the cherry” with their Playbook “business-pitched” tablet to go with their business smartphones. But Microsoft stepped forward with Windows 8 and its Modern UI (née Metro UI) and this saw the arrival of the Surface tablet under their banner along with other PC vendors offering 11” tablets and convertible computers. Now Microsoft released a mature Windows 8.1 operating system with the ability to work on 7” displays along with a mature Surface 2 series of tablet computers. This has been underscored with other manufacturers offering keenly-priced 7”-8” Windows 8.1 tablets that run the Intel “Bay Trail” Atom processors.

This is very similar to what has come about with the regular computing market where three main platforms have surfaced in the form of the Apple Macintosh, Microsoft Windows and the open-source “desktop Linux” platform. The latter two have focused on the use of commonly-available hardware designs with commonly-available peripheral and network interfaces, thus allowing for low-cost systems to be built around these platforms.

Bridge devices

Convertible laptop-tablet devices

Sony VAIO Duo 11 slider-convertible tablet

Sony VAIO Duo 11

Since Windows XP offered “tablet with stylus” support, there have been a few so-called “convertible” laptops that become tablet computers. These computers appeared very much in a trickle of highly-priced business computers which were hard for most of us to come by. But Windows 8 with its touchscreen user interface,along with Android underscored this need for the “convertible” tablet-computer device.

These came in either a form with a fixed keyboard but having a screen that either swivelled or slid out, which is underscored by the Sony VAIO Duo 11; or a detachable-keyboard form where the keyboard was able to be unclipped from the tablet computer; which is underscored by the ASUS EeePad Transformer Prime or the HP x2 series. They legitimised the ability for one of these to work as a small content-creation laptop or a tablet that comes in to its own for browsing content.

The “phablet” or large-screen smartphone

Android users are also seeing more of the 5”-6” large-screen smartphones which are being referred to as “phablets” because the screen size is close to that for a small tablet. This was brought on by Samsung with their Galaxy Note series but Sony, HTC and others are pitching in to the game for this screen size. What is being valued here is more or less the small handheld device that comfortably works as a phone for making and taking calls.

Answering this trend

Something that can easily fall short in the “three-horse race” which describes the tablet market is the availability of apps for each of these platforms. This is manifest with the app stores for the iOS and Android platforms having more software available than what is currently available in the Windows Store for Windows 8.1 .

SBS and Facebook had made positive efforts to reach all the tablet platforms especially with Facebook offering a comprehensive “dashboard” app to the Windows Store for Windows 8 and 8.1 users.

But a problem that may affect the short-order and custom app-development scene, where apps are turned out for particular events and locations is that they will have to develop apps for three platforms each with their different interface abilities and needs. This same problem can affect the so-called “app-cessory” scene where devices are linked to a tablet or smartphone via USB, Bluetooth or the home network and benefit from an app that provides extended functionality.

As far as designing hardware accessories is concerned, it will be easier to design for the Android and the Windows 8.1 platforms. This is through these platforms encouraging an open-frame attitude when it comes to developing accessories and software for these tablets. Here, most of the connections used on devices that work to these platforms are designed around common industry standards. For that matter, it could allow the availability of low-cost tablets and similar devices that work on these platforms.

What I see of this

Once manufacturers present tablets that offer more that what the Apple iPad offers for a reasonable price but without a steep learning curve especially for computer novices, this could displace Apple’s market lead in this product space.

Similarly, a company offering a product form factor that impresses customers more than what is out there, whether in looks or functionality, can allow a particular tablet platform to break through more easily.

RCA to deliver an Android-powered three-piece AV system

Article

RCA’s Internet Music System blends detachable Android tablet, boombox | Engadget

My Comments

RCA is intending to turn the classic 3-piece bookshelf music system design on its head by using a touchscreen tablet as the centrepice of the system’s design.

This unit has what is expected for a bookshelf music system such as a CD player, an FM broadcast-radio tuner as well as a line input for other audio devices. But it usies an Android-powered 7” dockable tablet with access to the Google Play Store as its key feature.

When you detach the tablet from this music system, it implements a Bluetooth wireless link for sending the sound to the speakers while this tablet can link to the home network via Wi-Fi wireless technology. There is also an HDMI output so that one can put images or video like those YouTube videos or Facebook or Instagram pictures on a large flat-panel display.

Installing apps like Twonky Mobile or Bubble UPnP to this music system’s tablet will allow you to play what is on the NAS using the DLNA technology while adding TuneIn Radio, Spotify or last.fm brings online music services to the music system’s speakers.

From what I see, who know who else will put up a small music system that allows for this customisability through the use of an Android tablet.

Internationaler Funkaustellung 2013

IFA LogoThis year’s Internationaler Funkaustellung has been about strengthening the personal IT space especially with the “phablet” smartphones, newer tablet-laptop hybrid computers and the smartwatch. Similarly, there has been some concerted activity in the living-room space with the 4K ultra-high-definition TV technology amongst other things.

Personal IT

Over the last year, the Android platform has gained ground with some very impressive mobile devices that have come through from Samsung, Sony, HTC and others. This has been underscored through various platform-exclusive features like an open development environment, the use of NFC “touch-and-go” functionality, large high-resolution screens amongst other features and one observer at Samsung’s “Unpacked 2” press event which was part of this show described the up-and-coming Apple iPhone 5S as being “fool’s gold”.

Smartphones

The rise of the “phablet”

Nearly every manufacturer is offering a “phablet” – a smartphone with a 5”-6.5” screen that is pitched as a bridge between a tablet and a regular handheld smartphone. These handheld devices, typically the size of one of the pocketable scientific or financial calculators exploit the large screen as a user interface feature yet can be held in one hand.

Samsung, who had launched the first of these devices and defined this product category through the Galaxy Note family, has launched the Galaxy Note 3 which is the third-generation. This Android 4.3 smartphone has a 5.7” Super AMOLED screen, the ability to film video in 4K UHDTV resolution with a 13 megapixel rear camera, 2.5Gb RAM, Wi-Fi connectivity that even reaches to the 802.11ac wireless segments amongst more desireable features.

Sony had fielded their “phablet” which is the 6.4” XPeria Z Ultra. Alcatel have fielded the “One Touch Hero” which has a 6” Full-HD screen, 2Gb RAM, 8 or 16Gb storage, 13 Megapixel rear camera / 2 Megapixel front camera and Android 4.2. It is able to come with accessories like an E-ink cover or a wireless-charging cover. Not to be missed, HTC have launched the One Max 6” Full-HD phablet.

Sony raises the bar for smartphone photography

Sony has launched the XPeria Z1 which has its rear camera able to be as good as a standalone compact “point-and-shoot” digital camera.

Similarly, they have sold two “lens-cameras” which clip on to and pair with most smartphones. These are cameras that have a proper lens structure equivalent to that of a digital camera but send the photos to the smartphone using their own Wi-Fi network that is created with the host phone. They will work with handler apps for both the iOS and Android platforms so you can get the pictures you took with them off the lens camera to your phone’s storage and on to Facebook. The QX10 has a fixed-focal-length prime lens while the QX100 has a 10x optical-zoom lens.

For Android users, these lens-cameras implement the NFC “touch-and-go” setup to reduce the hassle involved with getting them going.

Other smartphone products

Lenovo had tendered their first smartphone which was known as the Vibe X which is a 5” Android model.

Tablets and Notebooks

Rather than 7” and 10” tablets being focused on mobile operating platforms like iOS or Android. we are seeing some of the tablets in this size range being available to work with the up-and-coming Windows 8.1 operating system. These are becoming effectively like a regular computer that is pitched to the consumer rather than a “toy” or an “enterprise workflow / kiosk” tablet. As for the Windows-based computers, most of these will be released with Windows 8.1 from the factory or may allow you to upgrade to the operating system in October if it cam with Windows 8.

Even the connvertible tablet-notebook computers and the detachable keyboard “hybrid” tablets have finally grown up and been considered a valuable part of a person’s or business’s computing “arsenal”.

Different forms of convertible or detachable-keyboard tablets showing up

The convertible tablet-notebook computer grows up.

This class of device also is encompassing an increased range of convertible laptop-tablet computers of the 11”-13” size as well as 20” adaptive-all-in-one desktop-tablet computers answering the Sony VAIO Tap 20. What we are seeing here is that there are two paths for a primarily-touch-based computing experience – a unit with an ARM-based RISC processor that runs the Android operating system or a unit with an Intel-Architecture processor that runs the Windows 8.1 operating system.

Sony has taken another path for a convertible tablet which is known as the VAIO Fit Series. These 13” and 15” computers work in a similar manner to the Lenovo Yoga convertibles where they can fold the keyboard outwards to become a tablet. This hasn’t been seen as a way to displace the Duo slider-convertible design as shown with the VAIO Duo 11.. As well, Sony have launched the VAIO Tap 11 which is a Windows 8.1 tablet that uses a magnetic detachable keyboard and is claimed to be the world’s thinnest Windows 8 tablet coming in at 9.9mm thick. Like the Duo that I reviewed, this also implements the Full HD display which is said to be a benefit for photos and movies alike.

Lenovo have also pitched newer or refreshed computers in the Yoga and Flex lineup of convertible tablet-notebook computers. Infact Lenovo’s latest ThinkPad Yoga has given the convertible Ultrabook form-factor some “balls” by being something that can do most computing tasks very adeptly rather than being a second-rate performer. This is due to it being kitted out with some serious horsepower in the form of the Haswell graphics chipset and an i7 processor.

Acer have even provided the  the Aspire P3 Ultrabook which is an 11.6” detachable-keyboard tablet and has today’s expectations for performance and storage for this class of computer. They also have launched the Aspire R7 which is a 15” convertible in a similar vein to the Dell XPS 12 but uses a pedestal-type arm as the support for the screen and is one of the few 15” mainstream laptops to be in the form of a convertible touch-operated computer.

Samsung, not to be outdone had launched the Ativ Q which is a slider convertible tablet  with a variable angle. But this unit is a dual-boot design capable of being operated on Windows 8 or Android operating systems.

Regular tablet computers

Of course, Samsung have launched a regular 10” Android tablet in the form of the Galaxy Note 10.1 which is implementing the Android 4.3 operating system. Thomson have returned to the personal IT fold by releasing the TO7 and TO8 Android tablets which have four-core processors and IPS LCD screens and is amongst a number of personal computing equipment including a laptop computer.

The adaptive all-in-one takes hold

They also released the VAIO Tap 21 which is really a current-generation “refresh” of the previously-reviewed VAIO Tap 20. This machine has been answered by a few other “adaptive all-in-one” models including the Panasonic ToughPad UT-M85 which implements a 4K display.

HP have also taken another spin on the “adaptive all-in-one” design by releasing the Envy Recline series of all-in-one computers. These are like a regular all-in-one computer with the pedestal but can be laid flat to be like a tablet rather than the separate tablet with integrated kickstand.

Toshiba have also pitched their detachable-keyboard hybrid tablet answer to the HP X2 family with a Satellite 30t and a Satellite 30dt which will also be known as the Satellite Click. These will have a 13.1” display. There is also the Encore which is an 8” tablet kitted out with Windows 8.1. The Satellite (Pro) N810 family of subnotebooks will have touchscreen on some models but also will be kitted out with today’s laptop computing expectations.

The rise of the smartwatch

The digital watch of the 80s returns with a vengeance

During the time when “Footloose”, “Holiday”, “Flashdance…What A Feeling”, “The Reflex” and “Wake Me Up Before You Go Go” were hot on the mix-tapes, or when the “A-Team” or “Knight Rider” were on the TV; the thing to be seen with on your wrist was a digital watch where the more functions it had, the better it was. Sometimes, you invoked curiosity and a bit more if you were seen “jabbing” side of that watch to “pull up” the various functions.

Now these digital watches have returned with a vengeance in the form of the smartwatch which Samsung, Sony and a few others were premiering. These watches use a touchscreen to switch between the functions which are presented in the form of apps that can be loaded to these watches. They work hand in glove with your smartphone or tablet by making use of a Bluetooth link, serving as an extension display and control surface for the mobile device.

Samsung’s watch is in the form of the Galaxy Gear which works with the Galaxy Note 3 phablet and Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet but there is expected to be a software update that will make it work with other Samsung Galaxy phones like the S3 and the S4. It uses a Super AMOLED touchscreen as its man control surface and has an integrated microphone, speaker and band-mounted camera. Its stainless-steel band doesn’t just come in the natural finish but in different colours.

For that matter, Qualcomm are selling the Toq smartwatch which has been described as a “spitting image” of the Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch.

Sony had launched the second-generation of their smartwatch which is simply known as the “Smartwatch 2”. This doesn’t have the microphone, speaker or camera but can last for 4 days compared to 1 day with the Samsung before needing to be charged up. It also uses NFC-based “touch-and-go” setup and can work with most Android phones.

Digital cameras

The IFA also has been a chance for Sony to launch the DSC-RX100 II which is the successor to the ‘RX100, considered to be one of the top dogs when it came to small digital cameras.

For Sony, it also became the point to launch an API which allows Wi-Fi-based control of their Wi-Fi-capable digital cameras from computers, smartphones and tablets. This allowed for functionality such as remote shutter release / movie start-stop, remote viewfinder, exposure configuration and other photography aspects as well as the ability to download the images from your camera via the Wi-Fi network.

Sony has also mad 4K UHDTV digital videography affordable for the serious hobbyist or the small video studio who videos corporate, school or family events like weddings by offering a camcorder affordable to these kind of users’ pockets. This is in the form of the FDR-AX1 which has what is needed to get in to 4K recording. It uses XQD memory cards, a noninterchangeable 20x zoom lens and a 1/2.3″ sensor and records with the XAVC S codec which will be available down the line with most desktop-video software.

Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and NFC in the personal-technology space

NFC “touch-and-go” technology has become increasingly relevant as a data-transfer technology for personal health and wellbeing thanks to Plus Prevention. Here, they had released the TapCheck range of personal medical devices such as blood glucose meters, blood pressure monitors and a pedometer that can transfer their data to your NFC-capable Android smartphone which runs one of two companion apps. The data can be sent onwards via email or SMS to your health-care providers or family members. The goal that Plus Prevention had with these devices is that the technology is on a level playing field to be available to everybody.

As for the trend with small speakers for use with personal IT equipment, these either connect via Bluetooth as an A2DP Profile audio device or connect via the home network or, in some cases, a local Wi-Fi access point created by the speaker itself using Apple AirPlay or DLNA. Most, if not all, of the Bluetooth-enabled speakers will come with NFC “touch-and-go” paring and connection.

Another key trend is the emphasis on “app-cessories”. This is where a device that exhibits connectivity with a smartphone or tablet through Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or even USB-wired exploits this connectivity through the use of a manufacturer-developed app. I will be covering this in the next article on Internationaler Funkaustellung 2013.