Google to offer Lego-like modular phone in 2015

U.S. tech giant Google has announced it plans to offer $50 customizable modular phones -- that users can modify themselves -- by early next year.

Google confirmed ongoing work on Project Ara, an effort to create phones that can be easily updated by users by switching parts in an out of the phones like Lego blocks, Time magazine reported.

The project of Motorola's Advanced Technology and Projects group -- which Google sold to Lenovo for nearly $3 billion in January -- has been retained by Google for further work.

A working prototype could be completed within the next few weeks, Google told Time, and modular phones could be in the ands of consumers by the first quarter of 2015.

The devices will utilize a permanent backbone, to be sold by Google, to which different modules created by outside developers can be attached.

"The question was basically, could we do for hardware what Android and other platforms have done for software?" project leader Paul Eremenko told Time. "Which means lower the barrier to entry to such a degree that you could have tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of developers as opposed to just five or six big [manufacturers] that could participate in the hardware space." 

                              POSTED BY MUHAMMAD USMAN 

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HP Slate 6 VoiceTab review: Good design, average performance

 

Over two years after HP - a company we all know for its desktops and laptops - killed WebOS, it is taking another stab at the smartphone market. But this time HP is doing it with Android. The company today formally launched Slate 6 and Slate 7. Both are part of VoiceTab series, which means they support 3G connectivity and you can make calls using them. Both are first launching in India and are created keeping in mind the needs of customers in developing market.

We have Slate 6 with us for review today. It is a phablet with 6-inch screen and is meant for consumers who like to have one device through which they can make calls as well as enjoy web browsing, video playback and games on the large screen.

In India, the phablet category is quite crowded. Almost all phone makers have at least one phablet - a phone with a screen size of more than 5-inch - in the market. Can HP match or surpass the existing phablets with Slate 6?

Dive in for the answer.


Getting the design of a phablet right is not easy due to its size. But with Slate 6, HP has done well. With a thickness of less than 9mm, Slate 6 is among the slimmest devices in its class. The slim design means it feels compact and easy to hold and carry despite its large screen. Another thing that helps is the weight. At 160gm, Slate 6 is surprisingly light for its size. It is definitely not a device that you will like to - or will be able to - use with a single hand. But it is not as unwieldy as Huawei Ascend Mate.

The phone has the usual rounded-corners, flat-box design but there are some design elements that make the Slate 6 stand apart from other devices in the market. The back cover, which can be removed, is made of plastic with matte finish. But the highlight of the back cover is the glass-weave finish. It looks really nice and gives the device a premium feel.

The plastic frame around the device has been given gold finish instead of the usual faux chrome that we find in other devices. The metal buttons too feature the same finish. The combination of black body and the golden frame gives Slate 6 an appealing look.

Despite all plastic design, the build quality of the device is very good. It doesn't have any flex. Back cover fits snuggly. Buttons feel firm and not loose.

Slate 6 is powered by a quad-core processor. HP says the processor runs at 1.2GHz. However, in our tests we never saw it go past 1.1GHz. Though this is a very minor difference and something that doesn't have potential to affect any performance. There is 1GB RAM in the device. It has 16GB internal storage - you can add more through a micro SD card, a 3000 mAh battery, a 5MP primary camera and a 2MP front camera. The 6-inch screen has a resolution of 720P (1280 X 720 pixels). The device is powered by Android 4.2.2. Slate 6 has support for two sim cards.

Let down by performance
For Slate 6, HP gets the design part absolutely right. However, on other - and more crucial - aspects it has missed a beat.

The biggest let-down is the overall responsiveness of the device. Unlike other phone manufacturers who love to customize, or rather over-customize, the Android experience on their devices, HP is using the stock version of Android in Slate 6. This is a good thing. Unfortunately, it looks like HP just didn't optimize the OS at all for the device. The user interface on Slate 6 has noticeable lag. This lag is visible while scrolling through the list of home page, or during multitasking. Also, apps take a few extra milliseconds to open. And so does the keyboard when you click in a text field.

Overall, Slate 6 feels a little slow. Yes, it works. You can browse all sorts of websites on it. You can play all kind of videos in all sorts of formats on it, if not through the default player then using an app like MX Player. The GPS in Slate 6 works reliably. But it all feels a little slower than it ought to be, especially compared to phones like Galaxy Grand 2 or tablets like Nexus 7.

What about games?

Slate 6 can handle casual games like Angry Birds Go with ease. But more demanding games like Asphalt 8 can be played with smooth frame rates only at low graphics settings. At high graphics settings there is visible lag and the game doesn't respond to controls well.

The performance story is repeated in the hardware. On paper, Slate 6 has good hardware. But in actual use we found it to be rather average. While the screen is adequately bright and shows decent colours, we have seen better. The viewing angles for the Slate 6 screen are below average and there is a noticeable shift in colours if you tilt your head or move the device while looking at it.

The story with camera is the same. The 5MP camera is capable of shooting usable images, but only in good light. The photos lack proper contrast and level of detail but at least you can share them on social media sites. In low light, even if it is evening, colour noise creeps into the images shot with Slate 6. The camera software too could have been better. The shutter speed is slow and acquiring focus, especially in close up shots, can take a few seconds if light is low. Overall, the camera performance is disappointing.

The device records videos in 720P. These are recorded in 3GP format and the quality of video recording is decent. The level of detail that is recorded is poor but at least the focus is maintained well.

The 2MP front camera works well during video chats.

Slate 6 has stereo speakers, placed on the top and bottom of the screen. However, the volume is on the lower side. At full volume, the audio is sufficient for games but if you intend to watch films on Slate 6, we recommend using it with a headphone. We also found the volume to be on lower side during calls, though the voice clarity was good and signal was maintained well even when we used the device on the go.

Slate 6 has a good battery life. Depending on your use, it will last anywhere between 12 to 16 hours. When paired with a 3G connection, the device gave us a battery life of around 14 hours while we used it for gaming, photography, web browsing, emails, calls and instant messaging.

Should you buy it or not

HP has priced Slate 6 at Rs 22,990. Given the performance issues we don't recommend Slate 6. Though these performance issues are likely to be software related and could be fixed in the coming days, we suggest you to stay away from Slate 6 until these issues are fixed.

Slate 6 is not a bad device. But there are better devices in the market.

If you want a big screen device, we feel Huawei Ascend Mate is a better, albeit a little more expensive, choice. But if you can compromise on the screen size, Lenovo K900 nowadays has almost the same price. It is a much better phablet than Slate 6 and Ascend Mate even though it has a screen size of only 5.5-inch. At the same time, you can also take a look at the Galaxy Grand 2, which has a screen size of 5.25-inch, but offers better experience than Slate 6.

source:::timesofindia

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New ozone-depleting gases found in atmosphere

PARIS: Worried scientists said Sunday they had found four new ozone-destroying gases in the atmosphere, most likely put there by humans in the last 50-odd years despite a ban on these dangerous compounds.

It is the first time since the 1990s that new substances damaging to Earth's stratospheric shield have been found, and others may be out there, they said.

"Our research has shown four gases that were not around in the atmosphere at all until the 1960s, which suggests they are man-made," the team from Europe and Australia wrote in the journal Nature Geoscience.

They analysed unpolluted air samples collected in Tasmania between 1978 and 2012, and from deep, compacted snow in Greenland.

"The identification of these four new gases is very worrying as they will contribute to the destruction of the ozone layer," added a statement from the team.

"We don't know where the new gases are being emitted from, and this should be investigated."

Three of the gases are chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) -- a group which includes chemicals traditionally found in air-conditioning, refrigerators and aerosol spray cans but banned under the Montreal Protocol.

The fourth is a hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC), part of a closely-related group of compounds which replaced CFCs but are being phased out.

More than 74,000 tonnes of the four newly-identified gases had accumulated in the atmosphere by 2012, said the team.

This is very small compared with peak emissions of CFCs in the 1980s of more than a million tonnes per year.

- Riddle of the source -

"However, the reported emissions are clearly contrary to the intentions behind the Montreal Protocol, and raise questions about the sources of these gases," the team wrote.

Two of the gases, one CFC and the HCFC, are still accumulating.

Previously, seven types of CFC and six of HCFC were known to contribute to ozone destruction.

CFCs, the main cause of the hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica, are man-made organic compounds made of carbon, chlorine and fluorine.

They were phased out from 1989, followed by a total ban in 2010.

HCFCs, CFC-like compounds which also include one or more hydrogen atoms, are less ozone-damaging but contribute to climate change by trapping more of the Sun's heat in the atmosphere.

The ozone layer comprises triple-atom oxygen molecules that are spread thinly in the stratosphere.

It plays a vital role in protecting life by filtering out ultraviolet rays that can damage vegetation and cause skin cancer.

In high latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere, where the ozone layer is damaged or subject to seasonal fluctuations, people are advised to cover exposed skin and wear sunglasses.

Possible sources for the new gases include chemicals used for insecticide production and solvents for cleaning electronic components, said the researchers.

Concentration differences between the samples suggested the dominant source was in the industrialised Northern Hemisphere, they added.

Study co-author Johannes Laube from the University of East Anglia's School of Environmental Sciences said the ozone layer stopped thinning from the late 1990s and there were signs of it starting to recover.

"As many ODSs [ozone-depleting substances], and especially CFCs, take a long time to break down once released into the atmosphere, it will be many decades until it will fully recover," he told AFP.

"Provided we do not have further unpleasant surprises."

Martyn Chipperfield, a professor of atmospheric chemistry at the University of Leeds in northern England, said the low concentrations of the four gases "do not present concern at the moment."

But, he added, "the fact that these gases are in the atmosphere and some are increasing needs investigation."

source:DAWN news

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Tribo-electric,' the buzzword of the future?

PARIS: Out at sea, gentle waves provide power for thousands of homes. In cities, dancefloor moves generate electricity for nightclubs. In the countryside, hikers use leg power to recharge their phones.

It is an alluring goal of clean, reliable power free from geo-political risks -- and scientists in the United States said Tuesday it lies within reach, thanks to a smart way to harvest energy called tribo-electricity.

Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology said they had built a simple prototype device that converts stop-start movement into power.

Waves, walking and dancing -- even rainfall, computer keys or urban traffic -- could one day be harnessed to drive sensors, mobile gadgets or even electricity plants, they contend.

Zhong Lin Wang, a professor of materials science and engineering, described the invention a "breakthrough."

"Our technology can be used for large-scale energy harvesting, so that the energy we have wasted for centuries will be useful," he told AFP by email.

"Tribo-electric" is a modern term with ancient roots -- from the Greek word for "rub."

Its electricity is created from friction between two substances causing a charge of electrons to be transferred from one to the other.

It commonly happens, for instance, when plastic-soled shoes are in contact with a nylon carpet, causing the snap of static discharge when one's hand touches a metal doorknob.

Because tribo-electric is so unpredictable, it has been generally shunned as a power source.

The preferred method has been magnetic induction -- a turbine driven by nuclear- or fossil-powered steam or water.

But, in a new study published in the journal Nature Communications, Wang's team said they had overcome key hurdles to converting a haphazardly-generated electrical charge into current.

Their prototype comprises a disc about 10 centimetres (four inches) across, designed to show the potential from a small, portable generator moved by ambient energy.

Inside are two circular sheets of material, one an electron "donor" and the other an electron "receiver," brought together through rotary movement.

If the sheets are separated, one then holds an electrical charge isolated by the gap between them.

Sandwiched between the two discs is a third disc with electrodes, which bridges the gap and helps a small current to flow.

At a top speed of 3,000 revolutions per minute, the device generated 1.5 watts.

This gave it an energy efficiency of 24 percent, three times greater than piezoelectric, the previously best source of mechanical electricity harvesting -- and as efficient as magnetic-induction turbines.

It can run on a gentle wind or tap water, or "random jerky motions," including human movement, to provide the rotation, Wang said.

"As long as there is mechanical action, there is power that can be generated."

The prototype used copper for the rotator and gold for the electrodes in lab tests, but these could easily be substituted for low-cost synthetics, he said.

The team is working on ways to scale up tribo-electric energy for harvesting power from the ocean. (AFP)

 

 

 

 

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