Wednesday, 29 October 2014

Samsung Galaxy Note 4 review: The most powerful phablet yet


By Ravi Sharma

When Samsung launched its Galaxy Note phablet four years ago, everyone scoffed at two of its features, the screen size and the stylus. Of course, the series went on to become a hit, defined by the same screen size and stylus that naysayers were quick to put down.

Fast forward four years and for the first time we see that Samsung has not increased the screen size in the Note series (over the previous year). The Note 4 stylus too performs nearly all of the same functions as the one in its predecessor. In fact, there are only a few differences between the two phablets, but are they meaningful enough to warrant an upgrade? Should this phablet be your next buy at Rs 58,000? Find out in our Samsung Galaxy Note 4 review...

Display

The display has been the biggest selling point of Note phablets since the series' launch, and the situation is no different this time as well. Galaxy Note 4 has a 5.7-inch SuperAMOLED screen, the same as last year; however, Samsung has upped the screen resolution, from Full HD (1080x1920p) in Note 3 to 2K (1440x2560p) in Note 4. This increase in resolution leads to pixel density of over 500ppi; the pixels in this phablet are packed so closely together that it is nearly impossible for the naked eye to set them apart.

However, the pixel density is high enough in Note 3 as well (386ppi), as the human eye cannot differentiate individual pixels after approximately 330ppi. So, even the display of Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is gorgeous, it is pretty much similar to that of its predecessor's. Of course, a few display elements come to life on a 2K display, such as shadows in the Facebook app or markings in certain areas of games etc. But as we have said earlier in our Oppo Find 7 and LG G3 reviews, a 2K display is not necessary right now as the app developers are not making full use of having the extra pixels on the screen.

Moving past the screen resolution, you get a beautiful display that earns top marks on all counts. The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 screen has excellent viewing angles, such that you won't see a change in colours even at the steepest angles. The SuperAMOLED screen performs okay-ish under direct sunlight, and colours appear a little oversaturated sometimes.

Samsung has added a layer of toughened plastic on top of the screen to make it harder to crack when dropped; this is in addition to Gorilla Glass 3. The plastic layer is characterized by a slightly glossy look and a noticeable curvature rising from the sides.

Design

The display covers most of the front panel of Samsung Galaxy Note 4, and leaves room for pretty thin bezels, hardware and soft keys and a bunch of sensors. In terms of looks, there are only a few differences in the design of Note 4 compared to last year's Note 3. In fact, you would be forgiven to mistake Note 4 as Note 3 from a distance. But a closer inspection reveals that there are more than just a couple of changes that distinguish the design language between the two.

The biggest change is the introduction of metal. Galaxy Note 4 features a metallic rim on the sides, making it only the second Samsung smartphone to feature this look. The metallic edge has been given a white paintjob all around, which creates a kind of contrast; in our white review unit, you see the white coloured front/back, then metallic chamfered edge and then the white paint-clad rim. Whether this looks good is pretty subjective, as some in the office like this look while other found it rather unnecessary.

Below the display is hardware Home key, the Task Switcher and Back button. The volume key is on the left side; for right-handed people, reaching the volume becomes a chore while operating the phablet with one hand due to its size. Samsung has used the faux leather back panel design that was introduced with Note 3 in its successor. However, the texture is a little less apparent this time and the widely-panned stitching on the sides is gone.
In terms of size and weight, Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is only a hair bigger and heavier than its predecessor. The difference is nominal, so you won't actually feel any substantial change in dimensions and heft while operating the two. Note 4 is, however, a little smaller than iPhone 6 Plus but a lot bigger than LG G3.

Hardware

Galaxy Note 4 is a heavyweight player for Samsung and so gets the latest chipset available in the market today. It is powered by Qualcomm's quad-core Snapdragon 805 silicon, clocked at 2.7GHz; it is actually the only smartphone in the market to feature this processor. The inclusion of this processor in the India variant is actually quite significant, considering that Samsung has always launched an Exynos variant of its top devices in India, not the Qualcomm-powered iteration. This means that Samsung is betting on proliferation of 4G in coming time.

This processor is coupled with 3GB of RAM. Internal storage maxes out at 32GB, but you can add a microSD card (up to 128GB) to add more data. Samsung provides 50GB of free Dropbox storage for two years as well. A 16MP rear camera and 3.7MP front camera constitute the imaging module.

You get all the standard connectivity options: 2G, 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.1, NFC, Infrared and microUSB 2.0. The last one is actually a surprise since Note 3 has microUSB 3.0, which makes Note 4 inferior to its predecessor in this one aspect. The battery capacity of Note 4 is 3,220mAh, just 20mAh more than that of Note 3.

Like Samsung Galaxy S5 and Alpha, Note 4 also has a fingerprint sensor integrated in the Home button and a heart rate monitor on the back, beside the LED flash.

Software

This is where Samsung Galaxy Note 4 sets itself apart from the competition. Note 4 is a productivity device that has a lot of software optimized for just this purpose.

Samsung has tweaked the Android software heavily over the years, adding a number of features to the base OS. Many a times, the approach makes the phone feel cluttered and too confusing for most users; however, there has been a move towards making it a little easier for the consumer to use all the TouchWiz functions. If you are a Samsung user switching to Note 4, you will find the move easy; but if you are using a Samsung device for the first time, the software can be a little too much to handle.

Let's talk about the Note 4-exclusive features here. Last year's Note phablet could recognize contact info you jotted down on the screen; this year's model can recognize the data given on a visiting card and saves it directly in your address book. When we tried it out, this feature could recognize the name, email ID and phone number accurately, but for some reason would not copy the address correctly.

Then there's the feature that lets you copy various type of data, such as web pages and photos, by selecting certain portion of the screen using the S Pen stylus. This is neat function for those who regularly store troves of data for themselves or send it to others; for example, a travel enthusiast can simply copy the details of a tourist destination, pick up images from the web and mail it to anyone within a few seconds. This makes the S Pen another step closer to the mouse we have become used to on the computer.

Samsung's big-screen phones have been able to open two apps simultaneously for quite some time now. But with Note 4, you are not limited to keeping the just two apps open; with this device you can open multiple apps at the same time on the screen by resizing them. You can either open them in a smaller window like the Chrome browser given in the image below or keep them as a floating icon (see the small WhatsApp icon on the left side of the screenshot). You can switch an app from fullscreen view to a small-scale version by swiping from the top left or right corners of the screen.
These are the notable software added by Samsung that are actually useful in day-to-day operations of the phablet. Apart from these, Note 4 has all the software we have seen in previous Samsung devices, like S Health, fingerprint scanning, S Pen functions like S Note, Air Command, Action Memo etc.

Performance

With the best hardware in the market and software that pushes mobile multitasking to the maximum, you can expect tremendous performance from Note 4. The device is a powerhouse and easily the fastest we have seen till date; in fact, the difference between the Snapdragon 805-touting Note 4 and other Snapdragon 801 devices like Galaxy S5, HTC One (M8) etc is apparent to the trained eye.

With the super-fast 2.7GHz quad-core Snapdragon 805 processor and 3GB RAM, Note 4 has enough power to handle any task thrown its way. Whether it's the most demanding games or heavy-duty apps, Note 4 can do it all with aplomb. The amalgamation of the software and hardware sometimes feels clunky instead of cohesive, but the feature-set is strong enough to mask this for the regular user.

Battery life of the phone was a concern to us before starting this review; of course we understood that the phablet would easily last a day on one charge, but we wondered if the 3,220mAh battery would be able to deliver more running time than that due to the resource consuming 2K display. As it turns out, Samsung has tweaked the software to ensure that Note 4 lasts at least a day and a half with moderate-to-heavy usage and nearly two days with moderate usage on one charge.

Note 4 also has fast-charging capability, and Samsung claims that it can go from zero to 50% in half an hour. In our tests, the phablet only goes from naught to 40% in 30 minutes, failing to hit the 50% mark each time we tried it.

Multimedia has to one of the strong suites of the big-screen Note 4. Watching videos is an amazing experience on this phablet because of the deep colours and excellent viewing angles. However, the audio needs to improve; the rear-mounted speaker is loud, but it's not clear. There is distortion at high volumes and the quality is just not good for a device that is the most expensive mainstream Android phone. Sadly, while HTC and Motorola have switched to front speakers, Samsung is still stuck with speakers on the back that easily get muffled when the phone is laid on the back.

Camera

The camera of Note 4 is easily among the best we have seen in the past year. As has become customary, the resolution has been increased from 13MP to 16MP, and Note 4 this time has optical imaging stabilization after missing out on the feature last year. Latching on the selfie craze is the 3.7MP front camera.

The rear camera of Note 4 takes photos that capture most of the details of the surroundings. The camera is quick to focus on the subject so that you don't lose shots while making home videos. The white balance in the photos is pretty accurate and shadows don't appear too grainy. OIS makes sure the photos and videos are blur-free even when you move. Lowlight image are actually better than we have seen on most phones.

The selfie camera is pretty feature-laden. You can take widescreen selfies by turning on the panorama-like feature that captures more area by turning the lens sideways. The heart rate sensor on the back can be used as a hardware button to click selfies on this phone. Just put your finger on the sensor and it the screen will show a green circle around your face; remove the finger from the sensor to take the selfie. In terms of photo quality, the selfies taken from this phone are pretty good even under low light, as the noise levels are rather low compared to those on other phones.

Verdict

Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is a powerful, powerful phablet that does not falter on any count. Sure, there is room for the software and hardware to work a bit more smoothly, but most users would find that the features are more than sufficient for their requirements. The price tag of Rs 58,300 is pretty high for any gadget, but if you do want the best smartphone (with all the possible bells and whistles) in the business right now, then Galaxy Note 4 is the best choice you can make.
The other new phablet in the market is iPhone 6 Plus, Apple's first big-screen device. Stay tuned for our detailed comparison between Samsung Galaxy Note 4 and Apple iPhone 6 Plus.



THE APPLE PAY CHALLENGE: LESSONS LEARNED FROM MY WEEK WITHOUT A WALLET


IT'S NOT WITHOUT ITS GLITCHES--AND ITS ENEMIES. BUT APPLE'S MOBILE PAYMENT SYSTEM STILL FEELS LIKE THE FUTURE.

A week ago, when Apple's Apple Pay service became available for the new iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, I decided to give it the most real-world test possible, by leaving my wallet at home and paying for a week's worth of stuff using only Apple Pay. Along the way, I wrote an initial post explaining the experiment and a midweek update.
The experiment ended on Monday, when I opened my sock drawer, retrieved my wallet, and ceremonially returned it to my pocket. Here's a final report on my week with Apple Pay, and what I learned:

THE QUALITY OF THE APPLE PAY EXPERIENCE VARIES.

My experiment was a success in that there was never an instance when I theoretically should have been able to use Apple Pay, but couldn't. And I never buckled and paid for anything with a card or cash. There were times, however, when Apple Pay felt like a needless complication, not a great leap forward.
Oftentimes, the technology was buttery smooth--especially at my local Whole Foods, where the transactions happened so quickly that it did feel a little like wizardry. But when I tried using Apple Pay at a McDonald's drive-thru, it was so unwieldy that I felt guilty about holding up the hungry motorists behind me.
In principle, the cashier was supposed to be able to hand me a portable terminal so I could do the Apple Pay gesture in my car. Instead, he took the phone from me, then handed it back and asked me to launch Passbook. That's an unnecessary step: The app pops up automatically when the phone nears the terminal. And then he had to hand it back twice more before the payment went through. (Fortunately, neither of us dropped my phone.)
Inside the same McDonald's at the counter, my iPhone 6 kept asking me to hold it closer to the payment terminal--even when I was pressing it up right against the sensor. Eventually, it worked, but if I'd had a credit card or a $5 bill with me, I would have given up on Apple Pay after the first error message.
Why my experience was inconsistent from store to store, I'm not sure. It might have something to do with the brand of payment terminal in use, or the cashier's familiarity with the process, or how deftly I held the phone and performed Touch ID authentication, or general kinks in the system. Or maybe a little bit of all of the above.

THERE'S NOT A LOT OF MARGIN FOR ERROR.

Apple Pay competes with using credit and debit cards the old-fashioned way, by removing one from your billfold and swiping it. And plastic is actually a pretty great way to pay for stuff: It's simple, quick, and reliable.
At its best, Apple Pay is better still, and more secure. (The store's payment system sees only a one-time transaction code for your purchase, not full details of your credit card.) But in any scenario in which Apple Pay works less than flawlessly--whether because of technical glitches, confused cashiers, or user error--it loses most of its advantage over doing a card swipe. If it turned out to be as clunky as I found it to be at my nearby McDonald's over the long haul, there wouldn't be any point in using it.

YOU NEED TO BE SURE WHETHER YOU CAN USE APPLE PAY OR NOT.

The only retailer I visited during Apple Pay's first week that was making an obvious effort to drum up interest in the service was Whole Foods. There was signage promoting the service at every checkout aisle, and it was even mentioned on the payment terminal's screen. Other stores I visited weren't yet playing it up--including the Apple Store itself.

Even if a chain is on Apple's list of official partners, it's not a given that you'll always be able to use Apple Pay. At my local Chevron station, I successfully bought gas--once I figured out that I needed to go inside and pre-pay at the register. But when I went back to the same station later in the week and assumed I knew what to do, I discovered that the cashier was ringing me up at a different register, without a contactless terminal. (When I told her that I had no way to pay other than with my phone, an expression flashed across her face that suggested she regarded me as a crazy person, but she politely started all over at the other register.)
That's another issue relating to the tiny window of time which Apple Pay has to be superior to swiping a card. If you have to pause and wonder if you can use Apple Pay, or be picky about which register you choose, it's already lost its edge.

RETAILERS COULD SCREW THIS UP.

In fact, CVS (where I successfully used Apple Pay several times) and Rite Aid already are doing their best to foil Apple Pay. By the end of the week, they'd disabled contactless payments altogether in order to prevent anyone from using Apple's service at their stores.
Both druggists, along with Walmart and others, are backing a competing digital wallet app called CurrentC, which isn't arriving until next year. It doesn't sound like much fun: To use it, you've got to turn on your phone, launch an app, and scan a QRC code at the payment terminal. And CurrentC isn't really an Apple Pay replacement, since it works with debit cards and bank accounts, not credit cards.
Apple Pay is never going to be the one digital wallet to rule them all, since it will only work on properly equipped Apple devices. But really, what retailers should be doing is welcoming a variety of payment options--not shutting some of them out even though the stores' registers are technically capable of accepting them. The odds seem far higher that CVS and Rite Aid will eventually decide to accept Apple Pay than that consumers will flock to CurrentC.

I'M STILL CAUTIOUSLY UPBEAT.

I cheerfully admit that I'm happy to have my wallet back. More than once during the week, I was in a store and realized at the very last moment that I'd forgotten that I could only shop at Apple Pay-friendly establishments. (I even asked my wife if she'd like me to buy her popcorn at a movie theater, and then had to sheepishly retract the offer.)
But even though my experience with Apple Pay wasn't perfect, and despite obstacles such as recalcitrant retailers, I had a good time using it. I expect to reach for my phone rather than my billfold quite often from now on--partly for convenience's sake, and partly for the privacy and security benefits of being able to pay a store without sharing any information about myself. And if mobile payments finally start to catch on--which seems likely to me--we could end up looking back on last week as the most important moment so far in the history of the technology.


The 100 apps that will change your life

Everything you want to know about apps... but were afraid to ask: The Mail runs down the 100 apps that will change your life
Apps are the neatly packaged programs that make your smartphone smart and your tablet more than just a nice, shiny toy. They’re digital tools designed to do a specific job. Here are 100 of the best, most useful apps around. Many are functional, some are just fun. 




Monday, 27 October 2014

Apple Pay isn't magic, and it isn't 'private'

Summary: Apple's new iPhone-based payment system may offer advantages, as will any similar product from competitors. But adding in a smartphone doesn't add privacy, it removes it.


By 

"With Apple Pay, you can use iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus to pay in an easy, secure, and private way," begins the Apple Pay security and privacy overview. Well, sort of. It depends on what you mean by "private". As with any commercial product, the brochure is glossier than the reality.
When it comes to security, Apple Pay is certainly a step up from using a raw credit or debit card number. Assuming, of course, that everything has been implemented correctly and is bug free. That happens all the time, right?
Much of the architectural work has been done in conjunction with banks and credit card processors. As explained in thisinfographic from MasterCard, the iDevice doesn't store the card number, but rather the device-specific Device Account Number (DAN). If some other device attempts to authorise a transaction using that DAN, it won't work.
If the device is lost or stolen, just that single device's DAN needs to be cancelled, not the card number itself. There's no need to contact everyone who had that card number. That's one of the real ease-of-use advantages, along with the potential for easy integration with other smartphone apps — not the idea that taking your phone out of your pocket, logging in, and waving it over an NFC terminal is somehow easier than taking a card out of your wallet and doing the same. Besides, a card never runs out of battery, and is still needed for low-tech merchants.
When it comes to privacy, Apple doesn't get to see what you bought, and the merchant doesn't get to see your card number. "Apple Pay doesn't collect any transaction information that can be tied back to you. Payment transactions are between you, the merchant, and your bank," says Apple's guide.
In fact, some merchants have complained that Apple Pay is too private. Well, too private for them. As US sandwich shop chain Panera Bread told Bloomberg Businessweek, Apple Pay users still have to swipe their loyalty card to be recognised. "Obviously, that's not where we want to be," Panera's executive vice president for technology and transformation Blaine Hurst said. "Why can't I just walk up to a cashier with my phone and all that information magically appears?"
But to call such a transaction "private" is to stretch the meaning of the word beyond breaking point.
The time, location, and value of your financial transactions are still known to Apple and to your card provider — and to every other business they might share that data with. The merchant knows what specific goods or services were purchased for that amount, but not who bought them. But all that is true only if no one does any data matching — either directly between the participants, or by providing the data to data brokers such as Acxiom, Equifax, Experian, or Datalogix, or by collaborating with any of the companies connected with the many, many data-logging apps already on your smartphone.
Given the volume of data being collected and shared these days, supposedly anonymous transactional data can easily be re-identified.
In a recent data-matching exercise, Anthony Tockar of Neustar Research analysed a database of New York's taxi journeys to find the home addresses of frequent visitors to Larry Flynt's Hustler Club. To find their names would be an easy second step. Just "working late", eh?
As International Business Times wrote in its report on this research, "It takes just one or two other pieces of information to turn seemingly anonymous tranches of metadata into precise and specific information about millions of individuals — and not just those who are famous."
In recent years, other researchers have found that they could re-identify 40 percent of individuals in a DNA study and re-identify Netflix users from their movie ratings.
Now add to this mix the facts that almost every retail business has security cameras covering their cashiers, and that face-recognition technology is getting very, very good.
Apple Pay may not give merchants any data that allows them to compile a log of everything that a particular customer bought, but their security systems can help. If the customer then happens to do anything in-store that provides a timestamped and geotagged log entry in a data stream that can be cross-matched, bingo! Anonymity disappears.
Businesses may love being able to do this, of course. But how will it stand up under increasingly tough privacy legislation, or what customers themselves will put up with once they figure out what's going on?
Either way, the idea that Apple Pay transactions are somehow "private" needs to die.

Sunday, 26 October 2014

13 Apps For Transforming Your Phone Into The Ultimate Toolkit


Dark Sky App
Dark Sky

By STEVEN TWEEDIE


Dark Sky.
The best utility apps are designed to make your hectic life a little bit easier, and maybe even more enjoyable.
From apps that makes budgeting beautiful to ones that let you know the exact minute it's going to rain, there's something for every lifestyle.
We've collected the best of the best in this unique mix, and we tossed in a few lesser-known surprises to show what modern apps can do.



Dark Sky tells you exactly when it's about to rain (or snow).

Dark Sky does one thing very well: It tells you exactly when inclement weather, like rain or snow, is going to happen. The app is beautifully designed and features a precipitation timeline that lets you know minute-by-minute predictions for when you can expect rain.
Price: $3.99 (iOS)

Level Money helps you budget your spending in an easy and elegant way.

Level Money helps you budget your spending in an easy and elegant way.
iTunes
Level Money links to your bank account to help you know how much you can spend today, meaning you never have to manually input your purchases. It takes into account your income, monthly spending habits, and how much you're trying to save. If you spend more than you should on a given day, the app will adjust and tell you to spend less the following day.
Price: Free (iOSAndroid)

FlyCleaners lets you choose when to have your laundry picked up and dropped off.

FlyCleaners lets you choose when to have your laundry picked up and dropped off.
iTunes
FlyCleaners is great for when you're just too busy to find time to do your laundry. The app lets you choose when to have you laundry picked up, and your first time they provide free bags. Your laundry is then whisked away, and you can set a time on the app to have it dropped off when it's finished.
Price: Free (iOSAndroid)

Sky Guide is a beautiful astronomy app that works like magic.

You don't have to know anything about astronomy to use Sky Guide. You just aim your phone or tablet at the sky and Sky Guide will highlight the constellations, stars, and planets high above you, displaying details about each. If you want to try locating things on your own, you can use the app's built-in compass to guide you.
Price: $1.99 (iOS)

Venmo makes it easy to instantly pay people quickly and securely.

Venmo makes it easy to instantly pay people quickly and securely.
iTunes
Venmo lets you pay your friends using your smartphone. It's a great tool to have if you need to split a check or you just owe someone money. The app connects to your bank account, and the Venmo's secure 256-bit encryption and Verisign certification means you don't have to worry about your money getting lost in transaction.
Price: Free (iOSAndroid)

1Password and LastPass will make sure you never have to remember a password again.

1Password and LastPass will make sure you never have to remember a password again.
App Annie
1Password and LastPass are two competing services that remember all your passwords for you across all your computing devices. With a special browser extension, you just have to remember one "master password" and the apps will do the rest, helping you fill in your login and password details. It's a hassle-free way to keep all your passwords safe and secure.
1Password available onMacWindowsiOS, and Android 
Price: $7.99 (iOS), Free (Android), $49.99 (Mac and Windows)
LastPass available foriOSAndroid, and Windows Phone
Price: Free

Timeful learns your behaviors in order to help you change your habits.

Timeful learns your behaviors in order to help you change your habits.
Timeful
Timeful is an intelligent calendar app mixed with a to-do list. The app's algorithm learns how you get stuff done and smartly suggests ways to build new habits and get things taken care of, all on your own terms.
Price: Free (iOS)

Yahoo Weather is the best-looking weather app out there.

Yahoo Weather is an award-winning weather app that is elegant, informative, and plenty useful. The app is packed with gestures, and displays photos that match your location, time of day, and current weather conditions.
Price: Free (iOSAndroid)

Square lets you accept credit-card payments anywhere.

Square is the best way to accept credit-card payments on the go through your smartphone or tablet, using a small square reader that plugs into your device's headphone port. It's a great option for small businesses that don't want to work directly with credit-card companies, and the service charges you 2.75% to process transactions for Visa, American Express, MasterCard and Discover. The best part is that you can sign up free and Square will send you one of its credit-card readers at no charge.
Price: Free (AndroidiOS)

Hyperlapse from Instagram transforms your shaky footage into a stunning time-lapse.

Hyperlapse from Instagram transforms your shaky footage into a stunning time-lapse.
App Annie
Until recently, to create smooth time-lapse videos, you needed expensive tripods and stabilization gear. Luckily, Hyperlapse from Instagram uses its image-stabilization techniques to smooth out shaky footage, and the results are impressive. It's great for capturing sports moments, car rides, weather, crowds, and journeys on foot.
Price: Free (iOS)

Skype is an easy and free way to video message.

Skype is an easy and free way to video message.
Skype
Skype is still the best way to video-message people, and voice calls and video calls to other Skype users are free. And since Skype works on multiple platforms, it's an easy way to IM or video conference without having to worry about what device everyone is using.
Price: Free (iOSAndroid)

Google Chrome is the best mobile browser.

Google Chrome is the best mobile browser.
App Annie
Google Chrome for mobile is great because it's lightning fast, easy to use, and syncs with your Chrome web browser on your laptop or home computer. It also lets you keep open an infinite number of tabs, and it can reduce your data usage by up to 50%.
Price:Free (iOSAndroid)

Humin acts like your digital butler.

Humin is an app that remembers all the tiny details about how and where you met someone, so you can focus on the moment instead of remembering. All you need is someone's number, and Humin will do the rest. You'll then be able to search through your contact using familiar phrases like "met last week" or "lives in Brooklyn."
Price: Free (iOS)