A new
company called Energous has devised a method of wirelessly transmitting power
over long distances. Its prototype system can beam 10 watts, more than enough
to charge your smartphone or tablet, over a distance of 15 feet — and, rather
importantly, it will track your device if you move around. The company hopes to
commercialize its technology soon, with partner companies showing off the tech
at CES in January 2015. It seems that the first generation of wireless
charging — those awful, short-range
charging plates — may finally be drawing to a close. The dream of
having your smartphone and other mobile devices constantly topped up — while
you sit on the sofa, while you stand in line at the coffee shop — may soon come
to pass.
Usually when
we write about wireless
charging on ExtremeTech we’re referring to magnetic resonance, where
you have two coils of wire (antennas, basically) that are both tuned to a
certain frequency. When you pass electricity through one coil, it induces a
resonant electromagnetic field in the other coil, (fairly) efficiently
transferring energy through the air. This is the method that almost every
upcoming wireless charging technology uses, including WiTricity (an MIT
spin-off that has been trying to bring magnetic resonance wireless charging to
market for a good 5+ years). Not Energous, though.
According
to Technology
Review, Energous appears to use a very different technique, consisting of
“lots of small antennas.” This antenna array sends radio waves to nearby mobile
devices that have announced their presence via Bluetooth. Beyond that, there
are sadly few few details. In the demo video above, you can see that Energous’
Energy Router can send power to two devices. The Router can also “track”
devices as they move around (though there’s no word on how big an area it can
track). From these details, we can infer that some kind of beam forming is
used, to transmit a tight beam of electromagnetic radiation at the target
device. The max range is apparently 15 feet (4.7 meters), with fairly
modest efficiency of 20% (not a huge deal, when you’re talking about
mobile devices with tiny power consumption).
To
receive the wireless power, Energous uses special case that you slip your
smartphone into. Again, no word what’s inside the special case, but presumably
it’s a bunch of antennas/coils. It is these cases that will first come to
market, says Energous, with partners showing off cases and Energy Routers at
CES 2015. Eventually, though, of course, Energous wants to get its technology
built directly into devices — and the company says it’s having receiver and
transmitter chips made at the moment. This is a good sign that, despite the
cases and Energy Router being rather large at the moment, the technology can be
scaled down.
While Energous might not have the industry
support that WiTricity has (its “Rezence” tech is backed by Intel and Qualcomm
among others), it’s exciting to see another technique for wireless power
transfer that doesn’t use magnetic resonance. With magnetic resonance there are
some fairly strict rules (as governed by the laws of classical physics)
that limit its potential for wireless power transfer. An array of beamforming
antennas makes a lot of sense, for wirelessly charging multiple devices as they
move through a 3D space. (If that’s how Energous actually works, anyway; I
could have it completely wrong.)
Who
knows. With Energous (or WiTricity/Rezence if
it actually comes to market in mobile devices) we may soon be living in a world
where your mobile devices can be constantly topped up, whether you’re sitting
on the couch, at your office desk, or standing in line at the coffee shop.
Wireless power transmission could also be the key to powering large sensor
networks (smart homes, smart
cities), without having to attach each device to the grid or provide them
with a bulky battery.
We have been again treated with a new round of alleged iPhone 6 dummy images making their way to the web, this time tipping us about the measurement of the next iPhone device.
Discovered on the iphone-store.ro by GSM Arena, the flurry of images show the alleged dummy 4.7-inch iPhone 6 model being measured by a digital sliding gauge. The site claims that the yet-to-be-launched 4.7-inch iPhone 6 model will sport a dimension of 137.5x67x7mm, while the iPhone 5s measured 123.8x58.6x7.6 mm. The dimension measurements of the alleged iPhone 6 dummy hints we might see the next iPhone with a large display size, in-line with earlier leaks.
The purported leaked dummy iPhone 6 model images of the 4.7-inch variant are in-line with what has been widely expected based on earlier leaks. The iPhone 6 will take design cues from Apple's current generation iPod touch. Further, the iPhone 6 dummy images again show the power button positioned on the right panel of the device, instead of on the top panel seen on existing iPhone models.
Reports have for a while been indicating that Apple might finally enter the screen size battle with the launch of the iPhone 6, and its rumoured two display size variants - 5.5-inch and 4.7-inch.
Earlier this month, the Cupertino-based company was rumoured to be testing a higher screen resolution on at least one of the two iPhone models likely to debut this year. The report suggested that one of the two alleged iPhone 6 models would come with a 960x1704 pixels resolution screen, compared to the 640x1136 pixels resolution found on the iPhone 5, iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s - which all sport 4-inch displays.
The much-awaited new iPhone from Apple has been widely speculated about, and quite a number ofleaks and alleged dummy models of the yet-to-be-announced handset have made their way to the Web.
Recent reports suggested that the alleged iPhone 6 with 5.5-inch display has been delayed due tobattery cell supply constraints. Due to use of costly sapphire as a display material, the alleged iPhone 6 with 5.5-inch display is said to have limited production.
An earlier report even claimed that Apple might unveil the alleged 4.7-inch iPhone 6 model in August, while the 5.5-inch variant will follow later.
Micromax has launched an Android 4.4.2 KitKat-based smartphone called Unite 2. Priced at Rs. 6,999, the Micromax Unite 2 will be available from Thursday and is touted to feature support for 20 regional languages (as well as English) with its Reverie Multilingual Pack. The smartphone is not currently listed on the company's website.
The Micromax Unite 2 smartphone offers dual-SIM support, and features a 4.7-inch Bright Graph IPS display with a 480x800 pixel resolution. An unspecified quad-core processor powers the device, clocked at 1.3GHz, along with 1GB of RAM. Notably, the smartphone is first from the company to ship with Android 4.4.2 KitKat out-of-the-box, and Micromax is promising further upgrades via OTA.
The Unite 2 smartphone by Micromax sports a 5-megapixel autofocus rear camera with LED flash, while there is a 2-megapixel fixed focus front-facing camera also onboard. The handset comes with 4GB of inbuilt storage, and can be expanded to an additional 32GB via microSD card.
The Micromax Unite 2 supports 3G, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS under its wireless connectivity options. It is backed by a 2000mAh battery. The smartphone is available in Grey, Green, Red and White colour variants.
Unite 2 comes preloaded with some apps such as MAd, Getit, Games Club, Hike, M!Games, Kingsoft Office, M!Live, Opera Mini, Reverie Phonebook, Reverie Smartpad, Burn the Rope, Toystory Smash it, and Marble.
The Micromax Unite 2 is the company's first handset to come with support for 21 languages (including English). The 20 regional languages supported by the handset are Hindi, Gujarati, Punjabi, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Odia, Bengali, Assamese, Marathi, Nepali, Bodo, Dogri, Konkani, Kashmiri, Maithili, Manipuri, Sanskrit, Sindhi.
"India is a diverse country and language at times can act as a barrier for people to seamlessly communicate on their phones. Therefore, we firmly believe that support for local languages on phones will perhaps be the next big driver for day to day phone transactions, internet usage and online content consumption in India given that most of the population does not use English as their primary language," stated Shubhodip Pal, CMO, Micromax.
"With the launch of the Micromax Unite 2, our aim is to enable local customization to serve the unique needs of Indian consumers across multiple markets. We aim to create a powerful medium for our consumers to interact, engage, entertain and connect in their preferred language to remove any barrier for technology adoption for the masses in the country," he added.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 can be defined by one word: evolution.
The camera has evolved to give clearer, faster snaps. The fitness-tracking abilities of the S5 are enhanced over theGalaxy S4 by packing in a more powerful S Health app and a dedicated heart rate monitor on the rear. A fingerprint scanner adds to the most secure Galaxy phone ever made.
The battery is larger, the screen bigger and brighter, the processor quicker and the design altered.
The spec sheet certainly doesn't let it down: a 2.5GHz quad-core CPU, 2GB of RAM, a 2800mAh (removable) battery, 16 / 32GB of memory (with up to 128GB extra through microSD), one of the world's most vibrant screens that's been extended to 5.1-inches and added biometrics.
Mud still penetrated the casing
However, it's hard to point to one stand out feature that will grab the prospective user when they handle the Galaxy S5 for the first time.
To many, that won't matter, as Samsung's built a fan-base that only Apple can rival, and a number will be picking up the new Galaxy without a second thought over whether it competes adequately with its rivals.
Price-wise, if you're shocked by the cost of the Samsung Galaxy S5 then you've not really been paying attention to the previous flagship models. It's actually a little cheaper than previous years in some territories, coming in at around £550-£600 SIM free in the UK, $650+ in the US and AU$900.
As you can imagine contract offers are flying all over the place at the moment, but the Galaxy S5 is being offered for a near identical price to theHTC One M8 and the iPhone 5S give or take a few dollarpounds.
The messaging around the launch of the Galaxy S5 was that Samsung had listened to the consumers and dialled down the gimmicks, focusing instead on what makes a phone special to the consumer.
It promised a 'fashionable' and 'glam' design, a camera that works in the way you'd want it to and strength through being water resistant.
There's also the small notion of an improved version - the Samsung Galaxy S5 Prime looks like it's about to appear any day now, and that's going to have the much-fabled metallic chassis and a QHD screen, mostly to keep it in line with the LG G3, which seems to be the phone that's got Samsung worried.
And if this current phone is too big, then the Galaxy S5 Mini is in the offing - Or Samsung Galaxy S5 Dx if you believe the official website. Either way, the South Korean brand is putting a lot of effort into expanding the range here.
So let's look at one of the key questions that Samsung needed to answer with the Galaxy S5: is it good enough in market that's becoming saturated with decent high-end handsets?
The simple answer, from the second you hold it in the hand, is no – because the design simply isn't up to the same level as the likes of Apple and HTC. That's only a small part of the story though, and underneath the hood Samsung has continued its play of stuffing all the latest specs in and optimising them in a way that doesn't suck down oodles of battery.
Is this phone good enough to keep Samsung fighting with Apple at the top of the sales charts? Yes, but that's mostly through the impressive marketing machine that rolls out in every territory. Samsung needs this to be the last phone that rolls with such design language - the Galaxy S6 needs to be the dawn of a new age for the South Korean company, something to give consumers real lust for the way it looks.
Critically, it feels like there's very little to shout about with the Galaxy S5 – but perhaps that's no bad thing for a brand that was accused of bringing pointless innovation with last year's model.
Design
I've always played it safe when talking about the design of a Samsung phone. The Galaxy S2, the brand's first big hitter, was made mostly of plastic and still was one of our very few five star phones, after all.
That said, year after year, Samsung has failed to bring out something that wows where the rest of the competition has seen this as a key battleground.
HTC is the frontrunner here with the metal unibody design of the One M8, and Apple has maintained its position at the sharp end of design ever since the launch of the iPhone 4.
Happy as a phone in mud
Sony's efforts with its Z range have culminated in the industrially designed Xperia Z2, and even Nokia has been toying with aluminium to make things feel a little more premium.
All of this makes me curious: why is Samsung refusing to give the consumers what they want… namely, a metal chassis?
It's plastic, not metal
There are a few possible reasons: cost of manufacture could be too high, especially at the volume Samsung spits them out at, Samsung likes to keep things lighter, waterproofing with a metal shell could have been trickier.
However, none of these arguments really holds water, given Apple does the same with a metallic phone, balanced handsets are better than lighter ones and Sony's Xperia Z range has combined metal and water without a problem.
A bright and clear screen
The Samsung Galaxy S5 is a more solid phone than the Galaxy S4, that's for sure, and looks more well-packaged thanks to the wider back and the grippier, pock-marked battery cover.
However, it doesn't look like a cutting edge smartphone. It seems more akin to the product of a Galaxy Note 3 and the S4, with the metal-effect band around the outside subconsciously making me search for an S Pen.
The rear of the phone isn't something that wows either. While I think the comparisons to a sticking plaster are a little cruel, it does share a more 'medical' feel, especially in the white colour.
Gold, white, black and blue
The blue and copper options are more attractive, but still don't have anywhere near the appeal of the likes of the HTC One M8.
White is particularly uninspiring, looking quite medical
With the larger screen on board, Samsung's still managed to keep things well in proportion. Although the chassis is larger, it's not unmanageably so, although if you're coming from an iPhone, you might find it a little tricky to move up.
Those that have previously been fans of the Samsung Galaxy range before will find a lot to like here though. The home button – which now houses the fingerprint scanner, remember – is solid and easy to press, and the power key remains on the right-hand side of the phone, raised slightly and very easy to hit.
The screen is clear even in daylight
The same can be said of the volume key on the right, although as the handset has increased in height I found it a little harder to get to this area when I wanted to change the level on music when walking along.
One of the key changes to the Galaxy S5 is the fact that it's now water-resistant, with IP67 rating meaning you can dunk it water for a short while, although going swimming with it isn't advised.
It's also dust resistant too, which makes the uncovered headphone port all the more impressive as it makes the S5 much easier to use without having to pull open a flap to listen to some tunes.
The water and dust cover is tricky to open
The USB 3.0 connection – which will look odd to some, but is the same used in the Galaxy Note 3 to give more power quickly while still allowing standard microUSB cables to be used – is covered to facilitate this IP rating, and it's a little stiff to get off.
The groove to get your nail in to open it is quite small, and might be the only thing that irks those looking to get their hands on the best Galaxy phone and don't care much about it being waterproof.
The capacitive buttons still flank the home key as before, but are slightly different now. Gone is the menu key, replaced by the multi-tasking button that seems to be Google's new favourite in Android 4.4.
The capacitive buttons have been tweaked
You can still use this as the menu key with a long press, but it doesn't work intuitively and the distance from the right-hand side, where the right-handed will predominantly have their digits, is a little too far.
It's not a bad system though, and the presence of a physical home button, while less necessary than before, still provides welcome tactility.
The other big design win Samsung still maintains with the Galaxy S5 is a removable battery. This is mostly for peace of mind nowadays, given that the battery life is so good on the S5, but if you're worried about failure then this is a good option.
It also means the ugly FCC regulation stamp can be hidden from view, and you won't need a SIM tool to get your card out – plus it's easier to pop in a microSD card too.
Muddy water still got in under the cover, but not into the port
The cover does give me slight cause for concern when you consider it from a water-resistant point of view, as it can be hard to make sure all the clips are securely fastened when snapping it back on.
A warning message does come up on the screen to remind you of this, but it can take a couple of passes to make sure it's completely fixed on.
If you look under the battery cover, you'll see that the battery is protected by a tight ring of rubber - if you've just dunked it in water, it's a little disconcerting to see how much fluid is in the phone already... but this seems to be fine.
I did worryingly notice some grit got into the home key, but after an hour or two it seemed to dislodge itself, although it doesn't make me think this phone is really that dustproof.
Put it on stones, drizzle it in water. It'll be fine.
Overall, the design of the Samsung Galaxy S5 is likely to be the area that receives the most criticism, and for good reason.
It doesn't command a premium feel in the hand like so many other high-end phones on the market, and while some will point to how strong and high-quality the polycarbonate used is, it still pales in comparison to the competition.
Yes, it's lighter and probably more hard-wearing (you're much less likely to need a case with the Galaxy S5, for instance) but this is the biggest pain point for Samsung and it's one that it needs to improve with the Galaxy S6.
So, I think guys this is quite enough for Samsung Galaxy S6 and stay in touch for more information about gadgets and further digital stuff!
Have an AirPrint-supported printer. If you have an iPhone 3GS or later, you can print using AirPrint with the right kind of printer. Major printer brands like Brother, Canon, Dell, HP, Lexmark, and Samsung have made AirPrint compatible printers in recent years.
Check the instruction manual that came with your printer or call the company that made it if you aren't sure whether your printer is AirPrint compatible.
If you don't own an AirPrint compatible printer, you can still use AirPrint by finding a network that has an AirPrint-supported printer at your workplace or in another facility.
2
Configure the printer to use AirPrint. Some models automatically work with AirPrint, but others have to be configured first. Determine whether you need to change settings on your printer to enable it to use AirPrint. Make sure the printer is on the same wireless network as your iPhone.
3
Open an iPhone application that supports AirPrint. Most apps from Apple fit this category, including Mail, Safari, and iPhoto. You can also print emails, documents, and pictures from your phone.[1]
4
Open the item you want to print and select "share," then "print." When you select share, you'll see a drop down menu that gives you options to text the item, email it, and so it. You will also see an option to "print"; select it.
If you want to print an email, touch the arrow on the bottom of the screen that points left (as you would to reply). If you're looking at a webpage, find the icon with a right arrow partially inside a box. When more options show up, touch Print.
5
Select the printer. When you press "print," a screen listing available printers will open. Select the printer you know to be AirPrint compatible. Enter the number of pages to print, the number of copies you want, and change any other settings you'd like to change before printing.
6
Tap "print." When you're ready, press the print button and watch your document, email or picture start printing.
To use HP ePrint, a free printing app, you'll need a networked HP printer or any supported HP printer with an internet connection. This app also supports cloud-based printing to HP ePrint-enabled printers, whether at home or at public printing facilities.
The app Print from IRM will print to any printer, including all AirPrint printers. Print also prints multiple file types and is featured by Apple as compatible with iOS 5 & iOS 6.
PrintCentral, from EuroSmartz, will print to all printers—not just AirPrint printers—and will print over 3G networks when Wi-Fi is not available.
Breezy for iPhone has moderate reviews, but it's easy to use, and you don't have to be connected to your home wireless network to print. You can also fax and print documents to printers near you.
2
Download an app and use it with your printer. Choose an app that works with the printer you have, make sure your printer is configured to be used with it, and print from your iPhone to the printer.
Method 3 of 3: Using Alternative Printing Methods
1
Print using MS Outlook. You can set up a new mailbox in Outlook that is used specifically for documents you want to print. Set it up by following these instructions:
Select Rules & Alerts from the Tools menu. Copy the rule, "Clear categories on mail." When Outlook asks for the destination folder, choose Inbox or select your specific email account. Click OK.
Double click "Copy of Clear Categories on mail" to edit it. Check "With specific words in the subject" and uncheck "From people or distribution list" in the Rules Wizard.
Set up the the subject line. Click on the blue "Specific Words" and add "Print Me" or "To Printer" or any other phrase to the rules subject line search list.
In the next window check "Print it". Click next.
Specify a name for this rule.
Check "Turn on this rule" and click finish.
Test it. Send yourself or forward an email from your iPhone with the phrase you chose in the subject and it'll print automatically when Outlook checks for mail. If it doesn't check often enough, go to "Options", tab "Mail Setup", button "Send/Receive" and change the default check period.
2
Use automatic print email software. This type of software only works on Windows, and is free for 30 days. Try it by following these instructions:
Create a separate free Internet POP-accessible email account, like Gmail orYahoo!. This will be the email address to which you will forward all the emails you want to print.
Set up the automatic print email program to check and print both the email message and attachment automatically, or whichever you prefer.
Click on "Your email account" in the top-left corner and then on the "New Account" link.
A wizard will pop up to help you set up your account. Start by entering what you'd like to name the email account, and selecting whether this is a POP3, IMAP4, or other type of account. Type in the server address for incoming mail. Then enter in your username and password for logging into your email account.
Choose the printer that you'd like every email and attachment to print from. Click on the blue "Settings" link if you want to modify the print settings, as you won't get to do so for each print job. If you scroll down, you can also opt to have the program delete the email after printing it.
When you get an email on your iPhone, just forward it to this new email account to send it to the printer.
Determine what version of iOS you are running. To do this open the Settings app on your Home screen. Tap the General category and then select About. Your iOS version # will be listed next to the Version entry.
JailbreakMe DOES NOT support iOS versions above 4.3.3. This means that the iPhone 4S, 5, iPod touch 5, and the iPad 3 are all not supported. Older hardware must be running iOS 4.3.3 or earlier.
If you’d like to jailbreak a newer iOS device, check out our guide for iOS 5.X and 6.X.
Ad
2
Backup your device. Open iTunes on your computer. You will be using iTunes to create a backup image of your phone. You can use this image to restore your device in case the process goes wrong, or you are unhappy with the jailbroken device.
3
Plug your device into the computer. In iTunes, click on your device in the sidebar. Choose “Back Up Now” from the options that appear. This will backup your data, contacts, and settings.
Turn off the passcode screen lock if you have it enabled. You can re-enable it after the jailbreak process is over.
Method 2 of 2: Start the Process
1
Visit the website from the device. The JailbreakMe process happens through the web browser on your device. Open Safari, and navigate to http://jailbreakme.com.
2
Make sure your device is compatible. If you do not have a supported device, the JailbreakMe website will inform you that your device will not work. If it is compatible, you will find the option to “slide to jailbreak”.
3
Slide the bar to start the jailbreak process. The jailbreak will download and install automatically. Depending on the speed of your connection, this could take up to five minutes or more. Once the process is complete, a message will appear on your device’s screen that says “Cydia has been added to the home screen. Have fun!” Press OK to return to your Home screen.
4
Reboot your device. This is not always necessary, but can help to work out any remaining kinks in the jailbreak process.
5
Browse Cydia for new apps. Cydia is the App store for jailbroken devices. It is not supported by Apple, but you can find a wide variety of apps and tweaks that you can apply to your jailbroken phone. For instructions on using and browsing Cydia, take a look atour guide.
Android 4.4.2 KitKat N7105XXUFND3 Official Firmware Update For Samsung Galaxy Note 2 LTE: How To Install It Manually
The international LTE version of Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.’s (KRX:005935) Galaxy Note 2 with the model number GT-N7105 recently received the official Android 4.4.2 KitKat firmware with the build number N7105XXUFND3.
The firmware update is the first KitKat build released for the Galaxy Note 2 LTE, which had been running on Android 4.3 Jelly Bean so far. The new firmware, which was rolled out in various countries, can also be downloaded for a manual installation.
Here is a tutorial, showing how to upgrade the Galaxy Note 2 LTE to the Android 4.4.2 KitKat N7105XXUFND3 using Odin. But before trying their hands on the installation process, users should be aware of certain aspects:
- All data stored in the handset should be backed up properly
- The handset must have at least 80 percent battery power
- The USB drivers for the device must be installed on the computer
- USB Debugging must be enabled
- After flashing the firmware, any installed custom ROM will be lost
- Custom recovery, such as ClockworkMod Recovery or TWRP, will also be lost
Note: International Business Times cannot be held responsible for anything that goes wrong. Users should proceed at their own risk.
Step 1:Download the firmware package and extract the zip file. There will be a .tar.md5 file along with some other files.
Step 2:Download Odin v3.09, and extract the zip file. There will be an Odin3 v3.09.exe file along with some other files.
Step 3: Run Odin3 v3.09 as an Administrator.
Step 4: Boot the Galaxy Note 2 into Download Mode by pressing and holding Volume Down, Home and Power buttons. After a warning message appears, press Volume Up key to enter Download Mode.
Step 5: Connect the Galaxy Note 2 to the computer via the USB cable and wait until an Added!! message appears in bottom left box in Odin.
Step 6: Click on the AP button in Odin and select the .tar.md5 file which was extracted in Step 1.
Step 7: In Odin, ensure that only the Auto Reboot and F. Reset Time options are checked.
Step 8: Click on the Start button in Odin to begin flashing.
Step 9: After the process is complete, you will see “PASS!” message in ID:COM port with green background and the device will restart automatically.
Step 10: After the Samsung logo appears on the home screen, you can unplug the device from the computer. The phone will now be running Android 4.4.2 KitKat N7105XXUFND3.
