H.H Shaikh Khalifa pardons bloggers from their jail sentence

Today, president H.H Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan pardoned the five bloggers that were accused of speaking against the government, on the occasion of the country’s 40th National Day.

“The president has issued a decree pardoning all of them,” the lawyer, Mohammad Al Rokn, was quoted as saying, according to a report from Gulfnews.

The five bloggers, Al Shehi, Nasser Ahmad Khalfan Bin Gaith Al Merri, Fahd Salem Mohammad Salem Dalk, Hassan Ali Hassan Al Khamis, and Ahmad Abdul Khaleq Ahmad, were sentenced to three years of imprisonment after the Federal Supreme Court found them guilty of fueling the public against the government and calling a boycott of the Federal National Council electrons.

Kindle sold ‘millions’ of units in eight weeks

The Kindle Fire is all the rage in the technology world right now, mainly because of its cut-throat pricing of $199 for being a function tablet that gives iPad the run for its money. Whether we will ever get to see it in UAE is still a looming question, but Amazon reports that their Kindle line of products have been enjoying quite healthy sales these past weeks.

The company bragged in their recent press release that they managed to sell ‘millions’ of units of their Kindle products (which also includes the e-readers) in the past eight weeks since their new product line was announced.  They boast that the Kindle Fire was the best selling item for the store Target at Black Friday 2011.

“Even before the busy holiday shopping weekend, we’d already sold millions of the new Kindle family and Kindle Fire was the bestselling product across all of Amazon.com. Black Friday was the best ever for the Kindle family – customers purchased 4X as many Kindle devices as they did last Black Friday – and last year was a great year,” said Dave Limp, Vice President, Amazon Kindle. “In addition, we’re seeing a lot of customers buying multiple Kindles – one for themselves and others as gifts – we expect this trend to continue on Cyber Monday and through the holiday shopping season.”

It was already expected that the Kindle Fire would sell well since it caters directly to the audience that doens’t want to or have the resources to spend 500 dollars on a tablet and that’s where its true market lies. It’s a competent tablet for sure but doesn’t have the extra bells and whistles that its bigger brothers iPad and Samsung Galaxy Tab carry, but then it isn’t charged that high either.

Personally, I would love to see it release here with the services enabled for the country rather than being bound to US only. Would you buy one?

Google begins to show ads in Chrome, are you still staying?

Since it’s launch, the open source browser Google Chrome has been rapidly gaining a lot of following and users so much so that it has eclipsed the long-running leader Firefox in market share. And it makes sense – it’s fast and speedy and has the guiding hand of Google itself (although I still love Firefox like no other). But here’s something that could potentially get very ugly – adverts.

gHacks finds out that Google may be giving a shot at in-browser advertisements since the above image is from a Google+ post that clearly shows a one-line ad on the ‘new tab’ page of the browser that’s trying to sell you a Chromebook. Now, a couple of things need to be kept in mind – a) it’s just a Chromebook it’s trying to sell and may not have anything to do with Adsense and may be only promoting things related to Chrome itself b) the browser running here could be a Chromebook itself since there’s no evidence to prove that it isn’t. I wasn’t able to reproduce this on my browser, but that could just mean that it’s slowly rolling out or just a developing feature at the moment. Multiple users on that post are reporting that they are able to see that on their browsers as well, so there is definitely some truth to this for sure.

To be honest, we should have seen this coming since Google is famous to doing this to their services and may just be making good use of their market share by selling ad space and making good money. The ‘new tab’ section is perfect to do so since it’s not obstrusive, but it’s an ad nonetheless.

So I would like to ask Google Chrome users – will you bid farewell to the browser and jump back to Firefox or Opera or will you accept the ads even though none of the other browsers have this? How valuable is Chrome to you?

Windows 95 startup music composed on Mac, composer reveals

Here’s interestingly ironic piece of tech news to come out today. Those who are old enough remember the memorable start-up tune of Windows 95 very well. The composer of the music Brian Eno in a radio interview revealed that he actually composed the music on a Apple Macintosh.

Apparently, he worked from a list of around 150 objectives that Microsoft provided him. “Inspirational” “sexy”, “driving”, “provocative”, “nostalgic” and “sentimental” are just some of the words on the list that helped him create the right music. But the big bombshell happened when he was asked whether he created the music on the PC. He replied:

“No I wrote it on a Mac. I’ve never used a PC in my life; I don’t like them”

Wow. Well, everyone knows Apple is better at creating any sort of content so that makes sense. But the blow at the end wouldn’t go down well with Microsoft.

What do you think?

ASUS launches new X79 motherboards in UAE

As the X79 platform launches around the world, last week ASUS released four motherboards catering to different segments of the X79 enthusiast market.

First off is the mainstream P9X79 motherboards coming in the regular, Workstation, Pro and Deluxe versions. Each model differs in that there are minor specification changes that add and/or remove features, increasing/decreasing the price at the same time.

Next up is the up and coming TUF series with the TUF Sabertooth X79 motherboard which has Military grade components. What makes the Sabertooth unique is its attention to temperature monitoring and control, ideal for LAN cafes and heavy usage graphic designers where keeping the components cool is a high priority.

Last, but definitely not least, is the legendary ROG Rampage IV Extreme motherboard which is aimed at the overclocking enthusiasts. While the TUF Sabertooth X79 is designed to keep the motherboard cool, the Rampage IV Extreme takes to completely different levels with components and temperature monitoring for tempeartures as low as -193ﾟC. The Rampage IV Extreme also comes with an new ‘OC Key’ which is basically a small adapter which allows you to have complete real-time control of your motherboard on a separate monitor, allowing you to tweak your overclock to perfection.

All of these motherboards come with SSD caching, a feature that Intel themselves didn’t bring with the X79 based boards. A one-click software solution has been implemented whereby using an additional SSD to cache your regular hard drives contents becomes a hassle-free experience. And then of course all of these motherboards come with the intuitive UEFI BIOS that makes overclocking a piece of cake.

The maximum expected retail price for the ASUS P9X79 Deluxe will be AED 1,840; the TUF Sabertooth for AED 1,500 and the Rampage IV Extreme for AED 2,040. Look forward to our reviews of these motherboards in the coming weeks. All of these ASUS board come with the golden 3 years warranty whereby the defective motherboard will be completely replaced with a new unit in the first year. The 2nd and 3rd year will get you a refurbished unit, but again, an immediate replacement; no repairs and waiting for weeks.

Win a Thermaltake eSports Shock Spin HD Headset

 

Shock Spin HD is one of the latest gaming headset to come out of Thermaltake’s eSports division. It’s light and comfortable, plays music amazingly well, and can be a great companion in your movies and gaming escapades.

Features:
• 50mm Neodymium Magnet Speaker
• Frequency response: 15~20,000Hz
• Impedance: 32 ohms, 1 kHz
• Sensitivity: 95±3 dB SPL/mW, at 1kHz
• Rated Power:40mW
• Maximum Power:100mW

Thanks to Thermaltake, we have one eSports Shock Spin HD headset to give away.

BlackBerry App of the Week: Nobex Radio

I use my MP3 player all the time, when I’m at the mall, at the gym and especially when driving. After a while I got bored of listening to the same songs over and over so I started listening to the radio. Sadly the variety of music and channels here is limited and the radio stations like to play mainstream music which is usually not my thing. That’s where the Nobex Radio app for Blackberry comes in.

Part of the slew of free apps RIM is giving away to its loyal customers, Nobex Radio is an app that streams radio stations from around the world onto your Blackberry. When you start the app you simply choose whether you want Music, Talk or Sports radio stations to listen to. I first tried the music stations where you can choose your desired genre from the 80s to R&B, Rock, Metal, Salsa, Easy listening, Bollywood and even Classical music. After choosing the genre you get a list of available radio stations from around the world. Most of the stations I found are from the US or UK, but that’s because of the genres I chose. Once you’ve chosen a station you have to wait for it to initialize and create a buffer and that depends on your reception and data speeds. You can also choose whether the audio output is automatic or specific such as from the speaker or the earphones. Once connected you can choose to stop the music at anytime, add the channel to your favorites or share it via text message, Facebook, Twitter, BBM and even email.

I found the variety of music channels quite reasonable and the sound quality was pretty good especially when connected to a decent pair of earphones or a speaker system. However, while on the move I found you need 3G in order to ensure the music doesn’t skip. At home 2G/Edge seemed adequate enough to stream from but not while in the car. The downside to all this is that constant usage drains your batteries real quick especially with 3G so I recommend investing in a car charger. The other caveat is that it uses your bandwidth so it may not be suited to users who have just opted for the Etisalat and Du social data plans. One other thing to note is that some radio stations just will not work, I could not get any stations from Boston to work but didn’t have any problem with stations in the UK.

The Nobex Radio app is an excellent app to use while in your car going from city to city or emirate to emirate where your normal radio station might be out of range. There are a large number of stations to choose from and the audio quality is pretty good however it will drain your battery and take its toll on your data plan. Overall its a useful app to have while on a trip or if you’re stuck at work or at home and don’t have a radio with you. The variety of choices means there’s bound to be a channel to suit everyone’s tastes and best of all it is free until the end of December, so grab it while you can!

BlackBerry Curve 9360 Review

The BlackBerry Curve series has been supporting RIM’s major market share for years, by providing a decent smartphone whose cost of entry is accessible to many. The new Curve 9360 brings this tradition back in the form of a smaller, faster and more elegant package.

The first thing old Curve users, and indeed anybody else who’s in the market for a smartphone, will notice is that how slim the new Curve 9360 is. Measuring only 109x60x11mm, the Curve 9360 weighs a mere 99 grams. And the way it is designed, what with all the curved edges, the new Curve 9360 is arguably the sleekest smartphone in the market right now.

The 2.44 inches screen has a 480×350 resolution, giving it a rather crisp 246ppi pixel density with 16m colors. Below that are the main menu keys; the phone control keys in particular being rather hard to press. That alone makes the whole phone feel very tacky; thankfully the main touch-based navigation key is very smooth to touch. The bottom half of the Curve 9360 is dominated by the full QWERTY keyboard.

The keyboard itself feels very good to type, thanks to the wide spaces between the keys and tactile feedback when pressing them. The click itself is somewhat dull, which I find comfortable because the loud clicky sounds on the older Curves was pretty annoying.

On the left is the USB port, while the right has the dedicated BB key, assigned to the camera by default, and the volume control keys. The top has the 3.5mm audio jack as well as the extremely hard to push and annoying ‘lock’ button.

On the rear we have the 5MP fixed focus camera accompanied by an LED flash. The biggest downer, apart from the fixed camera, is that there is no HD recording. I guess the lower speed processor wasn’t able to handle HD recording.

Speaking of which, the Curve supports a decent set of hardware components, namely the 800MHz CPU and 512MB RAM which is enough to run the BB OS7; the final traditional BB operating system before BBX hits the new handsets next year. The CPU may seem especially slow compared to the 1.2GHz processor on the Bold 9900 and Torch 9810, but without the touchscreen OS7 runs fairly smooth.

iPhone users most loyal to smartphone brand

In a recent survey conducted by the GfK Group, 4,500 people (in Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, China, the United States and Japan) were asked about their smartphone usage habits and how important the operating system is to them.

When asked about what phone the respondents are likely to go for when switching from their existing handsets, 84% said that they will stick with the iPhone; 60% said they will go for an Android handset again; only 48% said they will remain with RIM’s smartphones. On average, 63% of users will replace their existing handset with a newer version of the same, making a switch from one platform to the other.The reason for such high brand loyalty? There are three:

- 33% of respondents cited disrupting their current smartphone set-up (i.e. the apps and features I use)
- 29% – having to learn how to use another type of smartphone
- 28% – having to move their  content (music, video, books, apps) from one type of smartphone to another

“The barriers to switching smartphones show the importance of the age-old mindset, ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.’ ” said Ryan Garner, analyst at GfK. “Apple is clearly ahead of the game, but developments next year will challenge that,” Garner continued.

Despite how complex the integration of services becomes the more smartphones develop, 71% of users believe the various services and features work seamlessly on their devices. In fact, 72% of smartphone owners want their media content (movies, music and books) to be available across all internet enabled devices.

“The scope for brands to lure customers from rivals has diminished and the richest rewards will go to those providers that can create the most harmonious user experience and develop this brand loyalty,” GfK said.

 

Initial thoughts on Kindle Fire

I managed to get the Kindle Fire last week and I thought I’d write some quick initial impressions for it. Let me start by mentioning that I have an iPad 2 (that I passed to my wife once her MacBook Air broke down), a 7″ PlayBook that I haven’t touched in months, a Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 that I primarily use before I go to sleep and an HP TouchPad that I picked up during the fire-sale and use in the TV Room. Other than that, I love my third generation 7″ Kindle that travels with me to my press trips and bathrooms.

I did not post all that for bragging rights but just so you know that I have had some experience with Tablets. I’ve also played with tons of Android tablets- from the 7″ Tab to the 10.1″ ASUS Transformer, however, I knew that the Kindle Fire will be a one-of-a-kind device even though it is based on the older, non-tablet version of the Android OS.  Amazon has redone the UI for Kindle Fire making it look completely different than any other tablet and has tied it closely to its services- of which there are plenty.

Taking it out of the box, I immediately disliked the Kindle Fire. The word “Kindle” reminds me of my ebook reader that I love for three things- it’s incredibly thin and light to hold and carry, it has a mighty impressive battery life and the e-ink technology makes books look better on the screen and is much easier on my eyes than a back-lit device.

Unfortunately, the Kindle Fire is neither of these. It’s a bit too thick and heavy to comfortably hold it in one hand (412 grams vs 247 grams) and lasts a few hours compared to the days that the Kindle lasts. And coming to the screen, I started remembering how Amazon made fun of the original iPad about it’s readability outdoors which has come back to bit them with the Kindle Fire.

So I thought I’d stop looking at the Kindle Fire as an ebook reader and use it more as a tablet. Sadly, this didn’t work out too well either when I tried configuring my Gmail account (I use Google Apps) and Google Talk for IMs. The Kindle has an incredibly old version of the email app bundled with antique Android devices and not the slick GMail app found in pretty much all current tablets based on Android. In fact, it doesn’t have any Google services.

Not necessarily being able to use it as a full tablet or an optimal ebook reader, I was left a little confused on where the Kindle Fire stands. Sure, you can stream videos to it using Amazon, buy music and apps for it from the Amazon and browse the web using the Silk browser (which doesn’t support Arabic as of yet.) But then pretty much any tablet can do that using a combination of different applications. Where the Kindle Fire stands out is putting all these things together in a decent interface at a decent price point.

At $199, it almost becomes an impulse buy and I can see lots of people picking one up- but I’m not sure how many people will stay with it. The iPad is, without doubt, a better tablet and the regular Kindle is, without doubt, a better ebook reader. The Kindle Fire on the hand, is a bit doubtful as an all-in-one device. But I’m not giving up on it. Because it will sell really well due to it’s low price thus translating into a large user base, it will find it’s place. Eventually.

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