Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said in the final CES keynote that “the Nokia Lumia 800 will eventually find its way into the United States via Microsoft’s stores without carrier support.” With the launch of bundle, Microsoft is trying to bag all the valentine day’s gift shopping costumers but with the $899 price tag, they might prefer gifting a diamond to their love.

It is a dual-band GSM phone designed for sponsorship, hotel-use , emergencies, transmitting its location alongside its call ID, or as a loaner phone for big corporate events.

“SpareOne’s breakthrough technology presents an unprecedented lifeline during dire situations that require a burst response,” said Alan Cymberknoh, SpareOne Project Director at XPAL Power.

“By performing operations on one AA battery, SpareOne solves a great number of daily issues, serving as a targeted back-up phone you will be able to carry without worrying whether it’s charged or not. It could be left inside of a car for emergencies, utilized by hotels who are wanting to pre-program concierge numbers for guests, passed on your children or parents to sustain a wide open type of communication – it’s essentially designed to make and receive the most crucial calls, it doesn t matter what. pareOne has limitless potential and we’re pretty excited to first announce it at CES 2012,”Alan Cymberknoh added.

The package includes an Energizer AA battery and a microSIM for just $49.99 and it will be available from march 2011.You can order it from here.

Onlive desktop delivers a seamless and innovative Windows desktop experience with instant-response multi-touch gestures, together with a full on-screen Windows keyboard and handwriting recognition, enabling complete and convenient viewing and editing of even the most complex documents. This comes in handy as Microsoft hasn’t yet released a version of their popular Office for the iPad and iPad users still rely on iWork for their presentations. Rich media, such as video, animation, slide transitions and even PC games, never before practical via remote desktop delivery, run fluidly and dynamically with instant-action interactivity which makes us feel in love with this app.

Onlive.com has further promised that they would extend this service to iPhone , android and Mac users too. Onlive.com has made this app a free offering and it is irresistible. The free version comes with 2GB cloud storage and access to Microsoft Office, several other Windows applications and games. This will soon be followed by the pro variant of the app which will provide 50 GB of storage to users.

The app will be available worldwide on Thursday via the Apple App Store.

Several there exciting products will be unveiled at the CES 2012. Keep checking out the blog for more interesting updates.

For all those who do not know what an LTE network means, LTE (Long-Term Evolution) provides a major speed boost and enhancement in the way different types of data are transmitted. LTE network is faster than the current HSPA+ networks which are currently being referred as 4G. HSPA+ connection tops out at 21 (practically 14.4) Mbps for downloads. On the other hand LTE networks are capable of delivering rocket speeds upto 40 Mbps.

This is a photograph taken with a Samsung Galaxy S2. It is a LTE enabled device and as you can see by the headline image, “the 4G LTE symbol” is active and the speeds are amazingly fast. Using the speedtest.net app for android, an anonymous Galaxy S2 user performed and posted this speed test and the results he got are pretty amazing, aren’t they?? . Speeds ranging from 15-20 Mbps are being reported and such a big increase in speed is welcome news.

If you want to know whether your smartphone is LTE 4G capable, you can check it for yourself on the AT&T website. Sadly the iPhone 4S users are going to miss out on this and it will surely be a big blow to Apple. These speeds show how promising the LTE network is and that our smartphones can now easily do things beyond our imagination. Verizon released its version of LTE network months back, but it is much slower than that of AT&T’s.  In this point AT&T is one step ahead of its rivals. Now, this keeps us wondering about the WiMAX networks which theoretically can deliver speeds upto 1 Gbps !!!

speeds comparision

We would like to remind you that the term 4G is actually being misused here. The correct term is LTE, and mobile phone operators are using “4G” indiscriminately.The term “4G” should be used when the network is capable of 1Gbps for pedestrians and stationary users, and 100Mbps from trains and cars.

There is fine line between the processing power of laptops of previous generation and smartphones of this era and it is diminishing slowly. And completing the task is none other than the much anticipated Tegra 3, first commercially released quad core processor mobile CPU. And to get a quick impression of its sheer power has a look at the graph below.

It is apparent that Tegra 3(codename Kal-El) is much ahead of Core 2 Duo processors released few years ago.

Based on ARM Cortex A9 architecture, it houses 4 cores clocked at max 1.5 GHz, it is the first one to be available in commercial devices viz. Asus Transformer Prime and to be released HTC Edge. And the fun doesn’t end here, since Tegra 3 is a SOC(system on chip) it has an integrated GPU(like Intel Sandybridge and AMD APU, but it is nothing new for mobile CPUs so no need feel overwhelmed) which is much beefier than ever since it houses up to 12 cores. This GPU supports WQHD i.e. resolution of 2560×1600, about 4 times 720p resolution.

It might look to be too much and actually it is. This is because there is a limit to the size of a smartphone screen which might limit the number of pixels that it can accommodate till it is useful, something which is apparent with iPhone’s retina display. It might become pointless to add pixels in a smartphone’s screen after some time making such a high resolution processing useless. The case of tablets is however different. Having comparatively bigger size, high resolution screen could be useful but  WQHD resolution still seems a bit too much, but you may never know!

And you can never forget those who want to make every feature work, might even connect it to an external display, I mean who asked you to be limited to your teeny weeny screen estate.

Claiming to be 3 times as powerful as the previous generation Tegra 2, we might wonder what effect would it have on the battery life, but it manages to be efficient. All this is possible due to the presence of 5^th COMPANION core, which is a low powered core used for low power needs. It switches on when the device needs less processing like moving through interface, listening to music or sometimes even watching video. It should be notes that during this time other 4 cores are switched off, so only either the companion core is active or the main cores. So calling it a penta-core chip wouldn’t be entirely correct as at a point at most 4 cores would work. The companion core is powerful enough for a 1080p video to run through it. Thus battery life while watching video massively improves.

Apart from the usual performance boost and flawless navigation through interface and browsers, what Tegra 3 would excel is in games. There are games being developed which would run specifically on Tegra 3 devices meant to use its high power to deliver graphically advanced games. nVIDIA assured that around 40 high end games would be available on Tegra Zone(their own little version of Android Market). A high end game called Shadowgun is already making waves.

So do we really need to get wet dreams about these devices and break you to get one of these? The answer would not be an optimistic one because there are hardly any applications that might use such power. But it could be your thing if you multi-task a LOT and even find your Galaxy S2 slow. But if you are primarily looking for a gaming device, its best you to wait for PSP Vita, the next generation PSP (another quad core device, again based on ARM A9, to be release in February next year in US & Europe may follow to Asia, other than Japan where it would be released in this December, months later) which would have much better games as it is a gaming console in addition to games at Tegra Zone as it is Android based. But since a good amount of mainstream work is getting diverted to tablets, Tegra 3 is a step forward to make them replacements for laptops.

At the conference were announced several tools and directions to developers to create innovative blackberry apps. RIM claims that there are 5 million app downloads from the App World everyday which is a pretty good platform for developers to release their apps. Developers were little disappointed as RIM could not produce a prototype phone running the new Operating System. In the conference very vague data was presented about the operating system and they hinted that it might be out early next year. No information was provided about how the OS would propel them ahead of their rivals.

The BB OS was natively designed using a modified java script and it is not easy to extend it to tablets and other devices. While QNX on the other hand is widely used in cars, ATM’s etc. QNX’s established platform and its extended support for HTML 5 make it the base for BBX operating system which bring blackberry’s mobile and tablet ecosystems together. BBX is not just a renaming of QNX, its way beyond that and it is a work in progress. The previous limitations of QNX like lack of support for mail, calendar, contact and other personal apps have been rectifies in BBX and it comes with good collection of personal management apps including e-mail, Blackberry messenger, voice and universal search.

BBX is a multitouch operating system which means we might expect to see more full touch screen phones from RIM. The main principle behind BBX is open source and it is built around QNX’s micro kernel.(kernel- the most basic level or core of an operating system of a computer, responsible for resource allocation, file management, and security). The operating system also boasts features like NFC( Near Field Communication) , Adobe Air 3.0 , native SDK, Flash and WebWorks, Blackberry Runtime, hardware accelerating capabilities with open GL and open AL support. BB runtime is an awesome feature which gives full fledged android app support to BBX devices.BBX will also include the new BlackBerry Cascades UI Framework for advanced graphics and bring “Super App” capabilities to enable many advanced capabilities including deep integration between apps, always-on Push services and the BBM™ Social Platform. Developers who want to support both existing smartphones (running BlackBerry 6 and BlackBerry 7 OS) and BlackBerry PlayBook tablets can monetize apps on both platforms today with BlackBerry WebWorks, which supports apps built on HTML5, CSS and JavaScript. The latest release, BlackBerry WebWorks SDK 2.2 (supporting both smartphones and tablets), is now available and includes updates for the new PlayBook OS SDK, PlayBook Simulator and more. The native SDK makes apps content rich and helps them run smoother and faster. The hybrid operating system preserves what Blackberry is best known for Security and Cloud services, intact it improves them by adding premium security features and RIM will deliver a new Blackberry server with a host of innovative security features. Well thats a big update of OS by RIM but will that be enough to lure customers into buying blackberry over an android or iOS device. Only time will tell us the answer.

The release of BBX is very crucial for RIM as it has lost most of its smartphone market to Apple and Google. The launch is even more prominent after the recent embarrassing network outage that knocked out Blackberry service around the world. RIM tried to cover it up with a 100$ app world coupon but by then the damage had already been done. RIM certainly seems to be banking big time on BBX to reverse its fortunes. But RIM fans have to wait until next year to get their hands on a new BBX device.

The new Droid RAZR is very reminiscent of the original RAZR with the bulge on top, and same super sleek profile (just 7.1mm).  It has a Gorilla Glass (very strong, extremely resistant to scratches) on top a 4.3inch Super AMOLED display at 960×540 resolution. The brain of the beauty is a 1.2GHz Dual Core Processor with 1GB RAM. It runs on the Gingerbread flavor of Android for now, but we can soon expect the Ice Cream Sandwich to arrive on this phone considering Motorola is now owned by Google. It can capture images in 8MP, and record full HD video at 1080p. There’s 16gigs of internal memory, and space for another 16GB microSD card should you want to add more.

 The phone is not only capable of winning both Scholarships as well as Beauty Pageants but also Races and Wrestling Competitions. Equipped with LTE, and Wi-Fi, it ensures that your internet is as fast as is comes. With the Gorilla Glass, Stainless Steel and Kevlar its sure survive those clumsy hands of yours. And to top it all of, the RAZR comes with a water-resistant coating so it can shake off a little splash of water as well.

The phone is compatible with a host of accessories like the lapdocks (plug in your phone to a laptop like base, and use it like one), HD Docks (Connect Phone to TV, and use the Smart Controller to answer calls, and navigate your phone, etc), wireless keyboards and can also be used in conjunction with motoACTV. So the potential for expansion of this phone is truly great.

It also comes with a host of Motorola developed apps for managing your battery, a few apps for business (Citrix Receiver, Motorola Webtop), and a new cloud based service called MotoCast.

Now when compared against the likes of the Galaxy Nexus and the iPhone 4S, the phone holds its own.  The earlier RAZR was plagued by the pathetic UI but this particular model will have no such trouble at all since it runs Android, and that too on pretty powerful Hardware. The exceptionally Slim profile makes it a great fashion statement as well. The sheer number and variety of accessories available add to the complexity and charm of this phone. Whether it will replicate the success of the original RAZR remains to be seen.When launched in November, it will be slightly expensive at $300 on contract, with Verizon providing the service. Pre-orders in the US begin on October 27th, be sure to order yours!!

Follow the next steps to boost the battery life of your Samsung Wave:

• Download emails manually instead of having web account sync check for new emails every few minutes. Do this unless you’re waiting for some really important email of which you must be instantly notified upon arrival.
• Turn off Bluetooth. It’s easy to forget Bluetooth on after you’re done using it; most of us do. Together with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth is a major drain on your battery.
• Stick to 2G mode whenever you can. 3G is much more demanding in terms of resources and will deplete your battery relatively quickly. Try to use 3G only when browsing the Web.
• Disable Push Notification. Though a cool and practical feature, Push Notification is another drain on your battery. Consider disabling it especially when your battery is running low.
• Disable the navigation and GPS service. These services are big drains on your battery and should only be activated when needed.
• Turn off Wi-Fi when not using it. It’s true that it’s more practical to have it always on, but you have to remember Wi-Fi eats your battery away.
• Grab a good task manager and kill all background apps that you don’t really need. By doing this you’ll not only conserve battery, but also free up some RAM, making your Samsung Wave run smoother.
• Dial *#8740# to use the power saving mode whenever you want to make your battery last as long as possible on the current charge. After you dial the code, Wave will enter the AP UART mode which dramatically reduces the brightness of the screen, limits the Internet connection speed, and slows down the multitasking capability. Though AP UART has many disadvantages, and overall makes Wave perform below its capacity, it helps you squeeze the few extra hours of battery life that you may sometimes desperately need. To leave AP UART and return to normal mode dial *#8740# again.
• Prevent your apps from downloading and installing automatically updates from the Internet. Some widgets may update themselves without notification, without you even knowing it until the updating process is complete. So, whenever you install a new app make sure you turn off the auto update feature.
• Disable vibration. It may seem hard to live without it at first, but it takes just a short time to get accustomed to not having it on.
• Never set the display brightness at the highest possible level. Instead, lower the brightness to a level you feel comfortable with.

In the end note that how long your Samsung Wave battery lasts greatly depends on what apps you run, how much Web surfing you do, and how many features you have active at one time. Find a balance between all these and you’ll never run out of battery when you need it.

Author Bio
The article is contributed by Calvin Scott. Calvin is a professional writer and blogger.Apart from this he is a tech freak and loves to indulge in expensive gadgets. Visit his site for Nokia N8 and Samsung Galaxy S.

Q. What is 3G and 4G, and what’s the difference?
A. “3G” and “4G” has nothing to do with speed ratings. The G stands for “generation,” and the numeral designates what generation a device is. The generational “advancement” is usually noted when device technology changes to keep up with the sending or relay technology.

For example, your 3G smart phone is the 3rd generation your cell manufacturer produced. The speed at which that particular device may receive or send data may well be different than the speed at which other 3G devices send and receive. There is no industry standard for speed or when a “generation” evolves.

Q: If there are no standards, will upgrading from 3G to 4G matter?
A: Maybe, but maybe not. Your 3G device may serve well even with the flood of 4G devices available to you, whether in cell technology or satellite ISP options, simply because where you use your device the most isn’t a 4G-available area. If you upgrade to a 4G device when in you’re in a 3G area the most, and either your provider plans no area upgrade or you aren’t moving within the next few years, keeping 3G service is logical, and it often saves you money on the upgrade, a plan’s upgrade/renewal discount notwithstanding.

Q: Well, I live in a 4G area. Does that mean I should upgrade?
A: Again, not necessarily. You have to evaluate what you do with your device. If you’re looking at your smart phone, what do you do with it? Do you stream a lot, despite most providers’ limitation on bandwidth? Do you load a lot of new web pages? Do you send a lot of pictures or listen to a lot of music on your smart phone?

The 3G-4G speeds is data transmission speed. 4G is, indeed, faster than 3G, but if you don’t access the web a whole lot or don’t watch media files of any kind, your conversations and texting speed won’t make much of a difference.

Q: I upgraded my plan and my cell phone, because I live and work in a 4G area. Why don’t I notice much of a difference, if any?
A: A common complaint, that is. Just like WiFi use, it all depends on where exactly you are and how many others are accessing the 4G technology from your provider at any given time. If you are close to something that is interfering with your device, like high-voltage lines outside or leaning against or near a refrigerator or an operating microwave oven, move away from the interference source. Then,  if you experience this “unnoticeable difference,” odds are pretty fair that when you use your device, so is everyone else. There’s not a lot you can do about it but relocate either closer to a transmission tower or a new location altogether.

Q: I upgraded my Internet air card to a 4G device, because I live in a 4G area, but nothing’s changed. Why?
A: The above two possibilities may apply to your Internet service, so try those two resolutions. If neither one effects a noticeable speed difference, the cause is probably resting in your laptop or PC: The processor may not be able to handle the faster data transfer, and it can only keep up with the 3G-speed. The laptop’s processor and graphics card must be capable at processing—handling–the faster data receipt for a 4G upgrade to make a difference. Using a 4G air card in a 4G area will still give you the “same old, same old” if your laptop or PC is “YG,” ‘yesterday’s generation.

Before you shell out any money for a 4G upgrade, make sure that your activity warrants it and that your receiving device is capable of reflecting the higher maximum speed, whatever it may be for your provider.

The author of this post is Sara Woods @ Coupon Croc. Upgrade all of your media service packages and save when you use a Virgin Media discount code.

For this update, you’ll require your phone to be fully charged, and have around 200MB free on your microSD card. For Details click here.