Petiksmode » Tech Stuff

BiKN: This Is Not Just An Ordinary iPhone 4S Casing

eyesfortech — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 09:34:18 +0000

Hey forgetful Joe! This is your lucky day because there’s a new cool gadget that will help to remind you of those things you always forget. And if you have an iPhone 4S and you are looking for something to dress it up and protect it then you ought to check out BiKN iPhone 4S protective case. It is not just an ordinary protective iPhone 4S casing but it can also help you find your stuffs if you misplaced them. The design itself looks sleek, durable and precisely made to fit into your iPhone device. Another thing that you’ll love about BiKN is the thumbnail-sized tags that comes with the package when you buy it. These colorful tags are not just an ordinary tags that you can hook into your important stuffs, consider it as a tracking device from which you can locate your stuffs (where your tags are clipped) through your iPhone 4S with a help of BiKN app. And lastly, the best feature of this iPhone 4S casing is its three locator features: Find, Leash, and Page.

The locator features are so amazing and helpful especially if you have kids or dogs who loves to wander around. First the “Find” features, you can put the special designed tags to your most important stuff and in case you forget where you placed it then you can use the Find feature of your BiKN. How does it work? The BiKN app will create a locator map around you and will guide you where to find your lost stuff.

Then the “Leash“, a good example is for this is when you have kids with you in a place like a park or mall. You just need to clip the tags on the kid’s belt or anywhere on him then set a limit on how far he should wander away from you. Once he reached or goes beyond the limit then your iPhone will alarm to notify you that your kid is now beyond the limits you’ve set.

Lastly, “Page” let’s say your family goes out for a walk around the mall and each one of you are looking for something or just wandering around. Give each one of them a tag and ask them to clip it. Once you’ve decided to round them all up, all you have to do is select them from your iPhone BiKN app and page them with a message.

The technology used for that keeps the communication between your iPhone 4S and the tags is called 802.15.4 which enables your phone to use a low-rate wireless network.

The price and official release has not been revealed yet and like you, we’re also waiting for the updates. We will update this post once we receive the report.

How To Avoid Traffic Jams With Waze App For iPhone 4/4S

eyesfortech — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:58:19 +0000

Heavy traffic jams – one of the major problems here in the metro most especially during peak days and peak hours. In most cases, when we say peak days it pertains to the business days of the week (usually weekdays). While peak hours is when all of these people including students are all out in the road in the morning going to their respective destinations and another one is late in the afternoon where they head home. During this busy hours you should expect heavy traffic jams as if you don’t to go to the office or head home. If you have the same dilemma then worry no more because there’s an amazing iPhone application that you can download and ease that problem. The application is called Waze GPS & traffic application.

This Apple iTunes application Waze is not only a traffic and navigation app but also a social networking program. You will become a part of your local community not only by contributing road data but also you can create or join various driving groups within your area. The application is free to download and use either on your iPhone 4/4S or iPad. Once you have this on your device, all you have to do is download the data before you leave so that you’ll have the idea on the status of the road. Or, if you want a real-time information you have to ensure that your Internet connection or data connection is always on to get the most updated data within your location or destination. Another feature of this application is you can contribute within the community or to other people who have the same application by providing a report or status of your location. By the way, this application is also integrated with Foursquare, Twitter and Facebook so this mean you can share also your location and status on your favorite social media services.

For more information about the application and where to download it – check it here.

SmartDock for Sony Xperia Ion | Connect Your Phone To A TV

eyesfortech — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 08:54:46 +0000

Sony has this thing with docking stations and it is becoming their habit that for every smartphones they release to the public, it should be accompanied by a newly designed docking station. If you are not yet convinced then think of their Xperia Play which had the DK300 Multimedia docking station, and what about all of those Xperia handsets released last year they have the Livedock multimedia docking station. And for this year 2012, Sony introduced their ever-first 4G LTE Android 2.3 Sony Xperia Ion from the recent Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2012 event held in Las Vegas. And guess what? This latest smartphone comes with an optional docking station called SmartDock for Xperia™ Ion. Yes folks, as expected from Sony after their breakup with Ericsson, they wanted people to forget about it and focus on what they can offer to the public.

The SmartDock for Sony Xperia™ Ion technical specification is almost the same as with the previous docking station Livedock but the only difference between the two is that this new Smartdock have a HDMI port at the back. This means that you can now connect your Sony Xperia Ion onto your television (TV) for as long as your TV’s HDMI output port is CEC compatible (Consumer Electronics Control). Well, almost all of the new released televisions nowadays carries HDMI version 1.3 inputs so most likely it will be capable or it is already a CEC compatible appliance.

So what’s so special about this feature? With your Sony Xperia Ion connected into your television, you can now access your photos, watch all of your stored videos and even listen to your favorite music. Another cool thing about this docking station is since it has a dedicated port for a keyboard, mouse and game controller you can now even play some of the best RPG games available for this device like Samurai II: Vengeance. And last but not the least, the Smartdock should serve as a charging station for your Sony Xperia Ion.

Unfortunately, this docking station is not yet available in the market but surely it will since the smartphone Sony Xperia Ion is now out on some online stores and they are now accepting pre-orders of this amazing and promising smartphone from Sony. And by the way, Sony Xperia Ion is now exclusive under AT&T and I am pretty sure before the end of this first quarter both the phone and the docking station will be available.

I will update this post once I’ve spotted this in the market and for the meantime, let’s all enjoy this teaser from Sony flaunting their Smartdock for Sony Xperia Ion.

AT&T Nokia Lumia 900 Specs and Hands-on

Keeyo — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 13:42:40 +0000

In the past few days, rumors and leaked photos about the Lumia 900 have been seen. Those rumors can now be put to rest as Nokia and Microsoft unveiled their flagship smartphone at the CES 2012 yesterday. Lumia 900, which supports 4G LTE will be exclusive only to AT&T customers in the US. The Lumia 900 features a 1.4 single processor, 8 megapixel camera and a 4.3” AMOLED display.

Lumia 900 is yet the best Windows phone 7 smartphone released by Nokia based on specifications but does it have what it takes to match the Iphone 4S and Samsung Galaxy Nexus? Take a look at the specification comparison below.

	Lumia 900	Iphone 4S	Galaxy Nexus
Operating System	Windows Phone 7.5	IOS5	Android ICS
CPU	1.4Ghz single core	800Mhz dual core	1.2Ghz dual core
RAM	512MB	512MB	1GB
Screen Size	4.3 inch	3.5 inch	4.65 inch
Resolution	800x480	960x640	1280x720
Display	AMOLED, 217ppi	Retina Display, 330ppi	Super AMOLED, 316ppi
Camera	8MP	8MP	5MP
Front Camera	1MP	VGA	1.3MP
Storage	16GB	16,32,64GB	32GB
Thinkness	11.5mm	9.3mm	8.84mm
Dimension	5 x 2.7 inch	4.5 x 2.31 inch	5.4 x 2.7 inch
4G Network	4G/LTE	no	4G/LTE
Weight	160g	140g	135g

If I plan to get a Windows phone I would probably consider Lumia 900 as my first option since Nokia is a trusted brand even before android and iOS. But it is still best to compare Iphone4S, Lumia 900 and Galaxy Nexus on hand, by the end of the day it’s still a matter of preference.

hands-on video by ubergizmo

Verizon Samsung Galaxy tab 7.7

Keeyo — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 13:05:37 +0000

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 has finally landed in the US with Verizon mobile. It’s not actually surprising since we’ve seen it launched at the IFA last year. But here it is folks a new version of the 7-inch tablet!
I own the first version of galaxy tab 7 (wi-fi) and I still love it because of its size which is probably the main selling point of 7 inch tabs. Too bad there’s no software upgrade available yet for my tab.

The new Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 is equipped with 1.4GHz dual core processor (Exynos CPU maybe?), 1GB RAM, 16GB internal and up to 32GB external storage. It has 3-megapixel auto focus camera at the back with flash and a 2 megapixel front-facing camera for video calls. The screen has a 7.7inch 1280×800 Super AMOLED Plus HD display at 197ppi. There is also an infrared transmitter for remote control supported devices. Who said IR is already obsolete? The new tab is 7.9mm (.31 inch) thin which is approximately 5mm thinner and 40g lighter than the first gen.

For now, Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 is powered by android honeycomb 3.2 and it is said to be upgradable to ICS in a not so distant future. I hope upgrading won’t be a problem on this device because the 7-inch wifi version is still stuck with Froyo.

Lenovo K91 Smart TV will use Android 4.0

Keeyo — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 13:17:43 +0000

Lenovo unveiled the first android 4 ice cream sandwich powered Smart TV called K91 at CES yesterday. Since this is an android device we expect to see some functionality that we can find on a Smartphone. The 55 inch SmartTV is capable of displaying 3D video that has 1080p IPS display. It is powered with 1.5 GHz dual core snapdragon processor and 1GB of ram. It has a built in 5 megapixel camera that support face recognition for face unlock feature. I’m sure that camera will work on other feature as well.

The K91 supports video on demand (VoD), internet apps and of course regular TV programs. It has motion sensor and supports voice control and dictation, I just don’t know yet how good the voice recognition is. Apps can be downloaded from both android market and Lenovo download site.

There’s no news on the price at this stage, but looks like that this is yet the smartest SmartTV I’ve seen so far. I’m sure other manufacturers will release their version of android TV soon.

How to create Xbox Live account outside US/UK

chuwiti — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 15:46:25 +0000

I bought Xbox 360 last Christmas for my wife and of course for myself as well hehe. We both love it specially kinect games, it’s really fun to play with.

It’s my first time to use Xbox since I only played games on PC and PS2 before. One problem that I encountered was creating Xbox live account. I never thought that Xbox live is not yet available in the Philippines and that I would ever need it. When I login with my email (hotmail) it says “Sorry, Xbox LIVE isn’t currently available in the locale associated with this Windows Live ID. Try a different Windows Live ID“.

I tried to change my Country/Region to United States in my email profile and connect to XBOX live again using the console and viola! It worked. If this doesn’t work for some reason go to Xbox live using your PC and create your account manually then download profile to your console afterwards. If you have already created your gamer profile locally just select join Xbox live from your console and use your email account with country/region set to US.

Why do I need xbox live?

Xbox live is actually free but you can upgrade it to gold membership for Netflix, online gaming, etc. I’ll stay with free for now since I don’t have friends yet to play with online. I need Xbox live to play trial games which helps me decide if I would buy it or not. There are game updates and fixes that need downloading, which requires xbox live account. One example is Battlefield 3, you will need xbox live to download HD content for you to be able to play it in high definition. These updates are essential to the game. Another feature that I like is I can be able to track my profile online (xbox.com).

Now you can be able to login to xbox live add me gamertag: ahlod

Xbox360 + Kinect bundle Price Philippines

chuwiti — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 15:15:52 +0000

My wife wanted to buy a Nintendo Wii because of Wii sports and other cool Wii games. We already agreed on buying it, fortunately she saw xbox kinect demo and played kinect sports. I insisted that we should buy Xbox 360 with kinect instead. It was an easy decision, kinect sensor made it easy for her to decide.

We scouted for the cheapest package, Anson’s Appliance Centre was offering it P18K for 6 months, package includes 4gig memory, 1 controller, kinect sensor and 1 game (Kinect Adventures). Automatic Center’s price is at P1, 815.83 for 12 months. I checked online for xbox 360 kinect bundle and there were plenty of sellers on sulit website but with the same price range, some of them are cheap but already second-hand. When we were about to buy the P18K package we dropped by at Datablitz Megamall to check their price, they don’t have an installment package available, but their cash price is the lowest among other stores I’ve checked so far. The price is at P14, 300, same package with Anson’s and Automatic Center. Mike (friendliest sales person ever..woot!) attended to our inquiries and explained to us the price difference of the kinect bundle, US Version and Asian, etc.

We could have looked for cheaper packages at Greenhills, etc. but what the heck we were excited to take home that damn 360. Aside from the low price, Datablitz also offers discount for the unit and several other discounts on accessories and CDs when paid in cash. The price of the game accessories and cd games are cheaper at Datablitz, however we had to take advantage of the BPI Madness offer and bought another controller for P2, 229.75 and other CD games at Toy Kingdom. The cost is a bit pricey and there are fewer choices compared to those available at Datablitz.

So far so good, it’s almost 1 month since I bought it and I have no regrets buying it. Hmm actually there is one; I should have bought the 250Gig bundle : 4Gig is not enough for downloadable contents. Expansion HDD is about 5K for 350GB, cheaper than 250GB based on Datablitz price, weird. I’m going to get that one as well soon I need to hold it for now, I got no molah left. haha

If you guys are selling or you know a store selling cheap xbox360 kinect bundle feel free to post a comment below. Gotta go play BF3!

Samsung Galaxy Y Review, Price and Specs

Keeyo — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 16:15:40 +0000

If you are looking for a low budget android phone another option would be Samsung Galaxy Y. For a price of P6,000 you can already experience android at low price. I had a chance to play with it since my sister in law had it for 2 weeks now; I borrowed it to give it a review.

Since this is a budget android phone I expected it to be laggy but it’s not, maybe if you are comparing it to galaxy S, then you can say that this is a crappy phone. Taking into consideration the selling price, it is pretty decent compared to other entry level Samsung phones.

What are its features?

This is usually asked when buying a phone before “Ati anu bang pityurs nito?” “Ah meron yang plas layt ser!” “ilang mega piksel ito teh?”. All we care about before is megapixel. Now you will have to consider processor, sdcard slot, operating system, 3D, sensor, gps, battery life, HD, etc.

Let’s see what Galaxy Y has to offer.

Most of its features are the commonly expected features of an android phone, I will discuss the key features instead. Samsung galaxy Y has a default Touchwiz UI same as what we can see on the Galaxy S2 but in lower resolution of course. If you want to change the default home screen you can install different launchers instead.

You want to use this phone as your MP3 player? No problem! You can expand the external memory up to 32GB which is enough for more or less 8,000 songs. It has A2DP support for stereo Bluetooth headphones if you choose to go wireless listening to your songs. FM radio is supported too.

Galaxy Y is powered by 830MHz ARMv6 processor with Gingerbread 2.3.5, just enough to play games in decent speed. It also supports 3G network HSDPA up to 7.2 Mbps for faster browsing. Not only that, you can use this phone as a wi-fi hotspot and share internet to your laptop or other wi-fi enabled gadgets. This is best if you have a postpaid with unlimited data plan. You don’t need a wi-fi router anymore.

Battery life lasts for 2 days of regular call and text use and 4-6 hours for continuous play, wi-fi and internet browsing.

Other feature includes 3-inch multitouch screen, 3.5mm jack, Proximity sensor, GPS, and loudspeaker. Sorry no flash light

I tested it with the following games and captured a video see below. Overall game experience is not quite entertaining for me because of the small screen. But that is just my preference, I like big screen when playing games so if you are ok with playing angry birds on a 3-inch screen, then that’s fine.

As for the camera it has a standard 2 mega pixel resolution which captures up to 1600×1200 pixels dimension photo. It is pain taking pictures in a low light environment with Galaxy Y because there’s no flash. But on the other hand the quality of the shots is still acceptable to me in normal lighting conditions.

Below pictures are taken using galaxy y camera.

The Downside

No phone is perfect everything has its flaws. But you cannot really whine about it because you only get what you pay for. I will just enumerate what I think is missing here:

No flash
No auto focus
No secondary camera

I should have included that it lacks internal memory but, come on, for the price of 6,000 you cannot get a better phone with that budget. There are custom ROMs and Mod out there if you want to go down that road.

The Verdict

If you are looking for a low budget android phone then I think Samsung Galaxy Y is another one for you to consider. You can already experience android for a price 6K or free if you’re on postpaid. I am not saying that you will get the full android experience from it but you can get almost every app that is available in the android market. Yes it might not be as responsive as the iphone or galaxy s2 but just take a look at the price. This is what I consider a good buy if you ask me.

If you are planning to get this with Globe see eyes4tech’s galaxy y post.

Get ice cream sandwich and honeycomb lockscreen on your android phone

Keeyo — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 15:13:51 +0000

I haven’t published an article here for 3 months now. Thanks to eyes4tech for writing about his galaxy s2 2 weeks ago and this inspired me to write again.

Since the android invasion, developers took advantage of the flexibility of this OS and created customized themes that changed the stock look of a phone from icons, status bars, app drawers and what not. You can even create your own theme if you know what I mean.

Lockscreen is also customizable these days and you can find quite a few of them in android market but I personally think that Widget locker shines above all other. Since honeycomb was released I’ve been crazy about its lockscreen and been looking for a port on my phone. There were locks that simulate the same ripple effect but it’s just too slow and buggy for me so I gave up and forgot about it for a while. Until widget locker released version 2.2.1 by TeslaCoil which has a custom slider like the ice cream sandwich. I tried googling about it if it has the default honeycomb lock and it did. I downloaded (it costs $2.99 or btw) and finally got my honeycomb lock the way I want it. And for those who are looking for ice cream sandwich lockscreen, I think this is the best app for you as well. Forget the rest and get widget locker instead! (I’m starting to sound like infomercial again, am I?)

This app doesn’t have a free version though so you can’t really try on and decide to buy it later. TeslaCoil software should have trial version for those who wants to try it first, I’ve read on some forum that people are forced to look for pirated copies to try on instead.

HOW TO CHANGE SLIDER TO HONEYCOMB OR ICS

If you have the new version of widget locker (2.2.1 and up) you should have a default ICS slider. To change it to honeycomb or any custom slider you want just open widget locker on design mode.

Open widget locker from application drawer
Open menu and press add (or you can long press anywhere)
Select Custom Slider from the popup
From Theme dropdown select honecomb or any custom theme you like
Save & Exit

You’re done! Enjoy your new ICS or Honeycomb slider

How to install custom ROMS and themes on Android | Beginners Guide

Keeyo — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 16:37:48 +0000

Since the inception of android devices, theme and ROM developers took advantage of the flexibility of the Android OS by building their custom roms and mods. You can find these roms at xda-forum. It’s good a place to look for mods, roms and themes.

I am one of lurkers of that forum before and I wanted to try those cool themes on my Optimus one but I was too afraid to root my phone. As a newbie there are terms that I didn’t understand. But I patiently read all I needed to know and after that I have gained confidence in flashing ROMS.

This guide will walk you through the process of installing custom ROMs to your android devices. I will try to explain it in a more detailed way.

This post is only for installing ROMS and themes, if you want to know why we need to do this read my previous post about rooting and custom roms.

I used LG Optimus One for this post. If you are using different phone the process is basically be the same but I suggest you read specific instructions for you phone. I am not responsible if you brick your phone in the process. Full charge your phone before doing any of this

Lets start!

What you will need

Rooted phone
Custom recovery tool
Terminal Emulator
Titanium Backup
Class 4 SD card or higher
ROM to use
Gingerbread Theme

Rooted phone

For LG Optimus one I used z4root.

z4root doesn’t work on all devices and if you happen to have upgraded your firmware to 2.2.1 and up z4root won’t work. Check full compatibility here. If this doesn’t work for you try using superoneclick or gingerbreak. Rooting is different using these two.

Rooting on Z4root

Download z4root here
Copy apk file to your SD card
Reboot your phone
Open and select Settings > Application > Unknown Sources
Go to your file manager and open the z4root apk file
Click and install
After install click open
Select Permanent Root. You will be asked to Turn on USB debugging. Click OK and tick Turn on USB debugging.
Continue and confirm rooting.
Your screen will go white for about 15 seconds then reboots automatically.
Wait for it to boot, open Z4root again and you should see re-root and un-root which it means your phone is already rooted.

Create Backup

Now that you are rooted you can backup all your apps. This is very important! You don’t want to lose all your apps and system data. Download Titanium backup from the market an install.

Open titanium backup
Go to Backup/Restore
Click menu and select Batch
Run “Backup all user apps + system data”
Wait until the backup is finished. This will take some time depending on how many apps you have.
When you are done you can see your backup inside your SDCard under TitanumBackup folder.
Copy ALL contents of your SDcard to your computer.

Now you all your apps are safe. The next step will remove everything in your internal and external memory.

Custom Recovery Tool

Now that your phone is rooted it’s time to install custom recovery. Custom recovery is basically a tool that is similar to BIOS (PC) with some added features. If you boot to custom recovery you will have an option to partition disk, clear data, backup/restore, flash ROMs etc.

At the moment there are two custom recovery tools available, ClockworkMod and Thunderg (AmonRA edited by drellisdee). You can use either of the two but this is also depends on the ROM you are installing. For my case I will use Megatron ROM by Noejn and the instruction is to use Drellisdee’s custom recovery so I will be using that.

Download AmonRa recovery here

Unzip recovey_installer.rar
Copy the 3 files to SDcard root directory (not inside any folder)

Install Terminal Emulator from the market

Open terminal emulator
Type “su”to get super user access. Press Enter. You will notice that $ will change to #
Type “sh /sdcard/rf.sh”. Press Enter
It will reboot your phone to custom recovery. To navigate use vol up, vol down, menu button, and back button.

Now here’s the tricky part.

Create a Nandroid Backup – Select NandBackup (+ext and secure if you like) – This will create a NAND flash backup of your entire phone. In case something breaks you can always restore this to the current state of your phone. Not the apps but you can reinstall them from the titanium backup we did earlier. Note: you can also do Nandroid backup using other apps.

When it’s done go back to main menu and select USB-MS toggle and activate it. Plug USB cable to your PC

Copy the Nandroid back up to your computer. This is located inside Nandroid folder.
After copying deactivate USB-MS. Disconnect USB
Go to “Partition sdcard” and select Partition SD

Select swap: 0, ext: 512 (use vol-up and down to change values). Continue and wait for it to complete.
After that go back to Partition menu and select Repair SD:ext.

Go back again to Partition menu and select SD: ext2 to ext3, confirm and continue.
Go back again to Partition menu and select SD: ext3 to ext4, confirm and continue.
Go back to main menu and select Wipe

Select Wipe only /data. Complete wipe and go back
Select Wipe only /cache. Complete wipe and go back
Select Wipe only Dalvik-cache. Complete wipe and go back
Select Wipe only /sd-ext. Complete and go back
Activate USB-MS toggle again an insert USB to your computer.
Copy Megatron zip to sdcard
Deactivate USB-MS and disconnect USB from your computer.
Go to Flash zip menu

Select Flash zip from Sdcard
Navigate sdcard and select Megatron-v1.zip. This will take about 5 mins.
After it’s done go back to main menu and select Reboot system now

This is the first time to boot on a new ROM so it will take long to boot, don’t panic. It took about 10 mins for me, it loaded LG logo twice and then the new android logo appears.
You’re done! Check system version build number should be Megatron v1 now.

Install Titanium Backup again then copy the titanium backup we did earlier from your computer to /sdcard/TitanumBackup folder. You can select what to install from your previous firmware.

Now that we have a new ROM we can install a custom theme. You can skip this part if you want but your theme still looks android 2.2. We will install gingerbread theme as below (minus the wallpaper):

Installing a Theme

This theme that we will install has been tested working for megatron ROM. If you have other themes in mind you have to make sure that they are compatible. If you have CM7 ROMs you should be using CM7 themes or theme chooser themes. I know this is a lot to process at the moment but you have flashed your first ROM, everything should be easier from here-on.

Download theme here

Copy Gingerbread theme v1.2.zip to SDcard
Reboot to recovery. (Shutdown phone, then reboot to recovery by holding power button, home button and vol-down button.)
Go to Flash zip menu (as we did earlier)
Select Flash zip from SDcard
Browse and select Gingerbread theme zip
Then continue flash
After that restart phone and it will take longer to boot again as it deploys new files.
You’re done!

Wrap up

Installing ROMs and Themes could be very intimidating if you haven’t done any in the past. When I first read the instructions in the developers forum I thought those instructions are not for beginners because on the first look I didn’t understand what they were saying. But everything you need is already there you just need patience to search for words and read everything that you don’t understand. This guide that I did hopefully helped beginners speed up a little bit. If you have questions don’t hesitate to comment, I’m not an expert yet on this one but I will help in any way I can.

Why do we need to root and install custom ROM on Android?

Keeyo — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 12:40:11 +0000

“Why do we need to root our Android phones?” This a question I get a lot and I usually answer it like this, “We need to root so that we can install custom ROMs” and by saying that, you’ll get a follow-up question like “What the heck is a custom ROM?” These are questions that people ask and they have to be answered properly, otherwise it gets more confusing for them.

I will try to enlighten you about this topic through this article and hopefully you will be able to understand why we need to root our Android phones.

What is rooting and why do we need to do it?

When I first heard of the word rooting I thought of the word “scary” as well. Maybe because of the disclaimer attached to every article that they are not responsible if your phone is bricked during the process. This will not happen if you follow the rooting instructions correctly.

Root is a userid that is powerful which controls everything on your phone. In a Linux operating system (which is basically where android came from) there are userids that can only access files assigned to them. Like for example you have a userid as “appuser” you will only be able to access or modify things that are assigned to this user, everything else is read-only. Same as with your phone, if you don’t have a root access you won’t be able to do whatever you want with it. Rooting will provide you with a super user access to everything on your phone.

Rooting is a big leap to world of hacks and mods. If you don’t plan to change anything on your phone and you are happy with it then don’t take this step.

Freebies of Rooting

You will be able to install applications that needs root access. Here is my top 10 list of applications that is open to rooted devices. It’s up to you to read more about them; I won’t stress much explaining it all here.

Root explorer – You will be able to access any folders in your device. Just be careful to not delete system files.
Uninstaller for root – Pre-installed apps can be uninstalled using this application. This is useful if you want to clear some space on your phone and remove the ones that you don’t need. But don’t just go in there and delete everything, you should know that there are services that your operating system needs. If you are unsure, Google it!
Move2SD/App2SD – This application made me want to root since my phone lacks internal memory. It is very helpful for devices with limited internal space. This will enable you to install applications to your external SD card. I use this on games as they take up large space. Take note that apps like widgets and live wallpapers will need to be installed internally. Read on the documentation before you move any application to your SD card.
Wireless Tethering – Some carriers specifically in the US blocks tethering. But with this app you can be able to share your data connection and use your phone as wifi hotspot.
Titanium Backup – Back up your apps and app data with titanium backup. You can never tell when you need it. It is always a good to have a backup when everything fails.
Metamorph – Metamorph is a theme app that is used to apply metamorph themes. You can change the look of your Lock screens, menu, dock, and notification bar or just about anything that you can see on your screen.
SetCPU – Is an app that you use in controlling processor speed. This can help you increase and decrease speed when needed.
Busybox/Terminal Emulator – Provides terminal with linux/unix commands. This is probably worthless to most people but it’s a powerful tool in the hands of a linux masters.
ShootMe – Screen capture app which is useful when you publish “how to tutorials” on the web.
ROM Manager – This is a useful application and probably the easiest way to flash roms, addons and mods. You can boot to recovery and make a nandroid backup of your device and restore it anytime you want. Check how to install custom roms if you want to see how to use this app.

Why do we need to install custom ROMs?

Some of us can’t wait for the official firmware update from our manufacturers and custom ROM is the fastest way to experience updated OS. Updates take like forever to roll out, and we are lucky if manufacturers are ever planning to release it. I am thankful that there are forums like xda-developers that cook their own ROM and we benefit from it.

Custom ROMs are basically an image of an actual OS and kernel with added tweaks for stability and performance. Since android is an open source OS, developers get the stock ROM, modify them and do whatever they want with it to create a custom ROM that will fit your device needs.

If you are a sucker for performance and don’t want any lags then you will love custom ROMs. Look for ROMs that is right for you and your devices.

The downside

When flashing ROMs a few things might go wrong and it could make your phone a very expensive paper weight. But this scenario is pretty minimal nowadays, there are ways to restore them back to normal and developers are very helpful in times like this.

Custom ROMs have bugs, the best way to minimize it is to report them to the developers in the forum and they will do something about it. But stock ROMs have bugs too, try to report them to your manufacturers and we’ll see if you get any fix.

It can void your warranty. You will have to choose between warranty and ROM.

Flashing ROMs can wipe everything on your phone including contacts, messages and apps. But you don’t just flash a ROM without making a backup. This is where the Titanium Backup shines; it can make a copy of your apps, contacts, texts, bookmarks, etc and you can restore them after you install a new ROM. The risks are now low but there are still risks especially if it’s your first time doing it. If you can’t take these risks then I don’t suggest doing this on your own. Ask for someone who had done it and do a little bit more research until you’re confident enough to execute it yourself. Don’t be a hero, asking questions won’t hurt you.

Conclusion

I chose rooting and Custom ROM over warranty. I’ve waited for 9 months before deciding to do it and I’m glad I did. I am very satisfied with the performance of my android phone now plus there are a lot of customization options to choose from. Thanks to the developers @ xda-developers forum.

This is just my personal opinion don’t take my word for it. If you are OK with stock ROM then so be it. But I suggest you compare your stock device with someone who uses custom ROM and see what you’ve been missing.

Tablet Dual Boot Android and Windows 7 – View Sonic tablet

Keeyo — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 03:14:15 +0000

I can still remember my first CRT monitor with a 3 bird logo during my college years and I never thought that they will come this far. Do you know what company am I talking about? That’s right, ViewSonic, just look for the 3 colorful birds hehe.

ViewSonic unveils their 10-inch tablet on Tuesday that runs intel’s atom processor and has two operating systems, android 2.3 and windows 7 as dual boots. You can actually work on this tablet with your windows applications and can still get the android goodness. That is something I want on a Tablet. Though Windows 7 is not yet fully optimized for tablets and it should be better if this is windows 8 but it’s a start and we should be expecting more fusions in the future. I want to see IOS, android and windows in one but I think that is not gonna happen.

The ViwSonics ViewPad 10Pro will run on windows professional or home and android 2.3. A switching button will be available for users to have a quick switch between windows and android. It has the first chip from intel to compete with ARM designs with 1.5Ghz processing power, a 3500 mAh battery and a 1.3 mega pixel front camera for video calls. Price ranges at $599 for windows home premium + 16 GB model and $700 for windows 7 professional + 32 GB model.

What do you think? Is ViewPad 10Pro good enough for you?

video credits: mobileburn.com

Android Tablet Stylus

Keeyo — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 01:51:14 +0000

Android tablets are becoming popular these days but does it have what it takes to beat the Ipad? I can’t answer that but for me it’s just a matter of preference. Both devices are great but they also have strengths and weaknesses. One thing that I like about these devices is their capacitive touch screens where it reacts perfectly with your fingers or any part of your body. Unlike resistive screens it does not require pressure to function. It doesn’t work if you use non electric conductor materials like plastic and rubber. That’s why you cannot just use any stylus for these devices; it has to be capacitive stylus.

There is no special android tablet stylus, any capacitive stylus can work on any capacitive touch screens. So if you are looking for android tablet stylus you can also look for capacitive stylus as well. All ipad stylus will work on any android tablet stylus as long as it uses capacitive touch screen.

How does capacitive stylus work?

The human body is an electrical conductor that when touching the screen it creates a distortion of the screen’s electrostatic field which is then measured as change in capacitance. The capacitive stylus serves as conductor and transfers static electricity from your hands to the touch screen.

What are the benefits of using Capacitive Stylus?

Aside from the fact that it is more accurate to point on your android devices than your fingers, the capacitive stylus is also used by artists when sketching on autodesk or any other sketching apps. If you need super fine stylus you might want to consider this diy capacitive stylus by kobausks.

Available Android Tablet Stylus Online

Acase 2nd Generation

Greater responsiveness and increased tip durability over most other capacitive styluses.

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL DESCRIPTION, USER REVIEWS AND PRICE

CCM® Capacitive Stylus 3-Pack / Stylus (Black-Red-silver)

Conveniently designed in pen form, perfect for carrying around.

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL DESCRIPTION, USER REVIEWS AND PRICE

Capacitive Stylus Ball Point Pen – Black

Integrated capped pen, perfect for taking paper notes

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL DESCRIPTION, USER REVIEWS AND PRICE

HTC Capacitive Stylus MyTouch Hero

Durable construction, perfect as a replacement or spare stylus.

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL DESCRIPTION, USER REVIEWS AND PRICE

BoxWave mini Capacitive iPad Stylus (Jet Black)

Works on all capacitive touch screens.
Available in: Jet Black, Metallic Silver, Crimson Red, or Lunar Blue color

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL DESCRIPTION, USER REVIEWS AND PRICE

Hard Candy Cases Stylus

Lustrous, chrome finished body. Secondary ink pen function with refillable reservoir

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL DESCRIPTION, USER REVIEWS AND PRICE

TouchTec® II Capacitive Stylus and Ball Point Pen

Premium, well balanced Capacitive Touch Screen Stylus and Ball Point Pen for taking notes in digital or paper tablets. No cap to lose! Won’t roll around. Very little pressure needed for touch screen activation and smooth glide on screens. Great for those with large fingers, long fingernails and leaves no annoying smudges.

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL DESCRIPTION, USER REVIEWS AND PRICE

Sun Broadband Pocket Wifi | E5 Huawei mifi

Keeyo — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 09:17:36 +0000

I did a Sun wireless broadband review 2 years ago and got different comments from my readers about how bad it is. But if you check the web too for Witribe, Globe tattoo and Smartbro you can also get same comments. I guess it doesn’t matter who your provider is, the truth is they all have flaws.

During my 2 years with Sunbroadband, I admit, I said the “F***” word a couple (or more) times when it loads 2 minutes just for Google homepage. I guess it might be because I am super downloading at least 10 gigs per month and they eventually cap my bandwidth when I reached a certain download/upload limit. This is part of their fair usage policy.

But what made me renew my sun broadband? They gave me a free Huawei E5832 portable wifi as loyalty for me to renew it again for 2 years. It is perfect because I got my Samsung Galaxy Tab wifi a month before that and with the Sun mifi I can surf anywhere I want.

On my first 2 weeks of use I was impressed with the speed. It is definitely faster than my previous USB dongle. Same sim card but new APN, it is now “fbband” my previous was “minternet”. I found out from the quick guide that minternet is for prepaid and SBW plan 350 lite while fbband is for plan 799, 649 and easy broadband. I was using a prepaid access point ever since??! I can say that it is faster than the previous USB dongle but don’t take my word for it, there are places that don’t have 3G signals yet, try it before you buy.

If your PC doesn’t have a wifi you can still use it via USB. It charges while connected to your PC. It doesn’t come with a charger but it works with my Tab’s charger so you can probably buy a cheap USB dock charger in cdr king or any cell phone store. I bet an iphone/ipod charger can also be used. It has a microSD card slot too which is capable of storing data using a microSD card up to 32GB.

It is powered by 1500mAh Li-polymer which is slightly smaller than my phone’s battery. With continuous use it can only last up to 4 hours. With today’s cool gadgets the battery is still left behind. Why can’t they invent a battery that can last for weeks if not months? You cannot really work outside with this without an outlet unless you have a solar charger.

I cannot comment much on the connection speed as we have all know how slow fast these things are. And it is not consistent. You might get 2mbps downloading ~~porn~~ videos today and crying with 10kbps speed tomorrow, but as of the moment let me give you a speed test pinging servers in the US.

I also noticed that during the 4 hours up time my wifi connection is being disconnected for about 2 – 3 times. This is a problem with the device and it has nothing to do with Sun. So if you are downloading something and you don’t want it to be interrupted connect it to USB instead.

I thought of getting a separate data plan subscription on my phone before so I can go online anytime. But good thing Sun provided me with a better option. The portable wifi is very useful for me when checking my stats and approve submitted articles for my sites by just using my phone when I’m not home. Perfect if you always need to be online to check emails and do business on the interwebs while on the road. You just need a spare battery if you are planning to use it for more than 4 hours without charging.

Sun Broadband might not be the best internet provider for everyone but for me it satisfies my browsing needs. I don’t use it for torrents and heavy downloading because I can do that in the office (Just kidding boss) and I have downloader friends who have better internet connection to supply me with my download needs. You get what you pay for with Sun Broadband, and if you want faster and better connection then upgrade your plan to better suit your needs.