TW, Issue 50, Week 26, June

WEEK 26, JUNE 27 - JULY 3, 2013

AN AL ROYA PRESENTATION

OMAN’S FAVOURITE MAGAZINE, NOW A TABLOID

TECH@DEEN ARMEDIA .COM

Games, essential, Tech Selection, movies and more...

Windows Glee

Design and mobility at its best

Free Falling Zenith breaks barriers

Side Stinger The all-new Corvette StingRay is out

Desktop icon With space-saving design and a mega display, Asus ET2300INTI doesn’t disappoint

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Issue

50

H om e S cree n

Everything Google Produced by

Google+ helps users share their real lives online, and a new rumored Google service and app reportedly called Google Mine could soon help them share their real lives in real life, too.

Deenar Press and Publishing LLC PO Box 139, PC 102, Al Qurm, Sultanate of Oman Tel: + 968 24696868, Fax: +968 24693569 E-mail: info@deenarmedia.com

Printed at Ruwi Modern Printers 2013 © All rights reserved. This publication may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form in whole or in part without the written permission of the publishers; while every care has been taken in the preparation of the magazine, the publishers cannot be held responsible if factual errors in product and pricing occur. MSRP (Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price) listed only as a suggestion. Actual prices are set by dealers and are subject to change at any time. The publishers regret they cannot accept liability for errors or omissions contained in this issue. Please check any quoted hardware specifications and pricing with your supplier before purchase.

Google Mine would allow Google+ users to catalogue their worldly belongings, advertising them to friends and examining their friends’ collections in a sort of casual, friendly online barter environment, unofficial Google blog Google Operating System reported today.You can also review your belongings and make lists of items you want to give away or those you want to borrow from others, said the site. It even lets users set statuses for their objects, like ‘lent,’ ‘given away,’ ‘got it back,’ or ‘lost it.’ Google Mine will reportedly be available both on the web and as a standalone Android app and the service is said to be in private beta testing within Google. That doesn’t guarantee a public release, though.

On another note, Gmail users will soon be able to add links to files stored on Google Drive, allowing easy sharing of files up to 10GB by email. The new update, which is rolling out to all Gmail users, brings much tighter integration between Google’s popular webmail platform and its rapidly improving cloud storage solution. When composing a new email, Gmail users will have the option of inserting a file from Drive, alongside the traditional ‘attach files’ button which uploads a locally stored a picture, document, video or whathave-you.

Because Drive files have already been uploaded to the cloud and don’t need to be directly attached to the email, much larger files can be inserted, with the recipients just following a link. Anyone wishing to test the new functionality, needs to opt in for the ‘new compose experience’ within Gmail.

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4

NEWS WEEK 26, june 27 - JULY 3, 2013

Huawei’s worlds’ slimmest smartphone The Android-based Ascend P6 is 0.24-inch thick and is also unusual in that it has a 5 megapixel front camera for high quality self-portraits. The Chinese firm has said it expects the handset to do ‘miracles’ for its brand.

HTC releases Butterfly S Phablet into the wild

One analyst praised its design, comparing it to a ‘steamrollered iPhone’ but said its lack of support for 4G networks might limit sales. “It’s undoubtedly the most impressive phone that Huawei has launched to date in terms of the design, the materials used and its quality,” said Ben Wood, director of research at consultancy CCS Insight, who was at the London launch.

Huawei says it designed one of the slimmest and narrowest circuit boards in the industry to squeeze the electronics into the new handset. The device has a 4.7-inch screen making it comparable to the HTC One but is more than 0.1-inch thinner.

It weighs120g and the phone features Huawei’s own tilebased user interface called Emotion and proprietary software, including an ‘auto-facial enhancement’ tool designed to make self-portraits look better.

Facebook launches photo comments Facebook is now letting its 1.11 billion members react to their friends’ status updates with photo comments. The social network said last Wednesday that it has started the global release of the new feature, which lets people add photos to comment threads using a new ‘Attach a Photo’ button. To start, uploads of photo comments will be restricted to the Facebook Web site and mobile site but simply viewing photo comments will be possible from Facebook’s mobile applications, the company said.

Photo comments are a product of one of Facebook’s famous hackathons.

Facebook engineer Bob Baldwin, one of the developers behind the release, said he was inspired to create the photo comments feature because, “sometimes showing a photo helps me tell a story much better than words alone.”

The new addition could transform the social network into a more meme and teen-friendly zone, as photos turn commenting into a more playful activity. Of course, there’s also the potential for spam, but imaginer Baldwin wishes the best. “I hope this will make threads with friends more expressive and engaging.” he said.

PS 3 update causes console malfunction Sony has pulled an upgrade to its PlayStation 3 after it caused some users’ machines to stop working. The 4.45 system software, released Tuesday, June 18 causes the console’s on-screen navigation to disappear. Sony told BBC News it was investigating cause of the issue, which had affected a ‘small number’ of machines globally. “We apologise for the inconvenience.” Disgruntled users have taken to message boards to discuss the problem. “You’d think they test these things out, right?” wrote one. The issue presents something of a public-relations blip in the week following a strong showing at games industry event E3.

Sharp’s 90-inch TV comes to Europe Sharp has released what it says is the biggest LED TV ever to go on sale in Europe. The Aquos LC-90LE757 features a 90-inch screen, trumping an 84-inch display from LG. Sharp has offered the size in the US since June 2012 - the world’s biggest market for jumbo-TVs - but said it now believed there was demand in the UK and rest of Europe for such a set.

Sharp’s new TV uses a liquid crystal display with LED (light-emitting diode) backlighting, weighs 64kg and is less than 4.7-inch deep. It supports 3D broadcasts, has three tuners - allowing several

channels to be watched at once - and also offers a ‘wallpaper mode’, which can

display a static picture at a low brightness level when it is not otherwise in use. The firm says owners need to sit at least 3.5m away to enjoy its picture.

“The biggest challenge we had was to try to hide the framework that is encasing the screen’s pixels,” explained Sharp’s UK product manager, Tommaso Monetto.

“We used a technology called Fred [frame rate enhanced driving] to minimise the structure holding the pixels together so that you hardly see the lines between them and it becomes a seamless panel when you look at it from the front.”

The latest addition to HTC’s ‘Butterfly’ line is a brand-new phablet, one of that emerging class of devices sized somewhere between a phone and a tablet. “Like with so many things, bigger is better and that is particularly true with screen size,” said Roger Entner, principal analyst at Recon Analytics. “You are trying to go as big as possible while still fitting into pockets.”

HTC’s latest handset has emerged from the proverbial cocoon, but it’s no tiny newborn. Rather, the Android-powered Butterfly S has ‘phablet’ proportions, meaning it’s larger than the traditional smartphone but smaller than a tablet.

Packed with a quad-core 1.9GHz Snapdragon 600 processor, a 3,200mAh battery, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of built-in storage, the nascent device sports the 5-inch HD screen common to the emerging phablet class of devices. Announced last Wednesday in Taipei, the device - which is actually an updated version of the original HTC Butterfly launched last fall - will be available in select Asia Pacific markets starting in July.

Microsoft pulls a 180 Microsoft backtracked last week on its much-derided policy that would have required Xbox One gamers to connect their consoles to the internet once a day to prevent game piracy. Microsoft faced a huge backlash when it announced the policy, just before the E3 video game conference earlier this month. Then, the company said it would allow gamers to play offline for up to 24 hours on a primary console or one hour if they were logged onto a separate console accessing their library of titles. At that point, offline gaming would have been disabled until players re-establish a web connection.

“Since unveiling our plans for Xbox One, my team and I have heard directly from many of you, read your comments and listened to your feedback,” Don Mattrick,

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President, Interactive Entertainment Business, wrote in a blog post. “After a one-time system set-up with a new Xbox One, you can play any disc based game without ever connecting online again,” Mattrick wrote. “There is no 24 hour connection requirement and you can take your Xbox One anywhere you want and play your games, just like on Xbox 360.”

Microsoft also reversed its policy with regard to game resales. The company had planned to let game publishers set the rules for reselling games to retailers, something that a regular web connection would have allowed.

Game makers could have restricted the use of games on more than one console, or required a fee for reuse.

Microsoft had also planned to limit gamers’ ability to

share titles with friends, allowing them only to give a disc to a buddy who has been on their friends list for at least 30 days. Those restrictions have been rescinded as well. “Trade-in, lend, resell, gift and rent disc based games just like you do today,” Mattrick wrote. “There will be no limitations to using and sharing games, it will work just as it does today on Xbox 360.”

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nuovotech

Geeky goodies PocketStrings portable guitar If you play the guitar or have ever wanted to play the guitar, a PocketStrings portable guitar practice tool is a very useful gadget to have.

Slide open the guitar and a section of a guitar neck with real frets and strings is exposed, so practice your chords without bringing along the whole axe and do it anywhere without making a lot of sound. When you’re done, just slide the PocketStrings portable guitar practice tool close and slip it in your pocket.

Price: USD30 (RO15+S&H), thinkgeek.com

Monster’s U ‘Mike Wazowski’ earbuds These Monsters’s scare and wear earbuds are perfect for causing a fright. The stereo earbuds come with great sound quality, soft ear cushions for added comfort and durability and put the beloved Mike Wazowski in your ears, while being stylish and geeky at the same time.

Price: USD12 (RO6+S&H), amazon.com

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TECH@DEENARMEDIA.COM

Robot cleaner Auto Mee S Some gadgets are fun to have simply because they exist. A lint-free rag can be used to clean your touchscreen but there’s no cool-factor in that. The Auto Mee S is like a ‘Roomba for your touchscreen.’ All you have to do is turn it on, set it on your touchscreen and then go take care of other things while it does its job or just sit and stare at it as if in a trance while it slowly makes its way across the screen, cleaning as it goes.

5

Feast your heart out at thesetech toys

Price: USD26 (RO13+S&H), amazon.com

Illuminated fish bots These illuminated robotic fish provide ambient light in a pool while swimming autonomously. The pair reproduce the exotic characteristics of lionfish with flexible, elongated dorsal and pectoral fin rays and contrasting purple, blue and orange colour bands. Ideal for providing a whimsical diversion in your pools and aquariums; blue LEDs housed in the bulbous eyes and fins provide illumination as each fish swims just below the water’s surface with a reciprocating tail fin.

Price: USD50 (RO26+S&H), hammacher.com

Necomimi braincontrolled cat ears Brainwave emotion controlled cat ears by Necomimi show the world what’s really on your mind and helps impress your friends with some of the most advanced brainwave technology available. The cat-like reactive movements show how interested or relaxed you are in real-time.

It’s a fun and quirky addition to parties and anytime you want to entertain your friends and family.

Price: USD70 (RO36+S&H), amazon.com

To order, email techtoys@deenarmedia.com

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6

WISHLIST WEEK 26, JUNE 27 - JULY 3, 2013

Tech dreams Lego mindstorms EV3 This Linux-powered Lego set is no toy, more a robot army. You don’t need a computer, as you can set up routines right on a programmable brick and even control it remotely from your Android or iOS device. A robot snake snaps when its infrared eyes detect you (great fun for terrifying small dogs) and you can use your phone to make it hiss. An app also provides stepby-step guides to help you build your creations. The snake it is, then.

Price: USD340 (RO175+S&H)

Spend the summer daydreaming about these nifty gadgets or you can just order them now Charge faucet plus An aluminium frame makes this more lightweight and with 29-inch wheels and 27 gears, it’s considerably more useful if you’re trying to get up a hill. Hydraulic brakes should help on the way down, too. It’s not purely for hilly areas though it’s versatile enough for your daily commute and built to be a fun all-rounder. If there’s a better mountain bike at this price, we haven’t seen it.

Price: USD1,252 (RO646+S&H)

To order, email techtoys@deenarmedia.com

Nike fuelband The Nike+ FuelBand uses a sportstested accelerometer to measure your movement in NikeFuel, a universal metric of activity. You can decide how active you want to be by setting a daily NikeFuel goal and then get moving to see your progress along the way.

Syncing with the Nike+ FuelBand app let’s you see your activity history, stay motivated and connect with your friends. Through a sports-tested accelerometer, Nike+ FuelBand tracks your daily activity including running, walking, basketball, dancing and dozens of everyday activities. It tracks each step taken and calorie burned and also tells the time of day.

Price: USD313 (RO161+S&H)

Garmin fenix GPS on your watch means you’ve got your hands free for eating, drinking or fighting any bears you may have come across. It has an altimeter, barometer and compass, making it perfect for exploring the great outdoors. And it’s great for fitness too, thanks to a heart rate monitor letting you keep track of your progress. It’s rugged, weatherproof and will even tell you when sunset is, so you can plan your photos. It’s all the hiking buddy you need.

Price: USD435 (RO224+S&H)

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cover story

7

TECH@DEENARMEDIA.COM

Home entertainment master

Windows 8 touch screen desktops are making way into peoples homes; we look at the best option available

W

ith their large displays, space-saving designs and reasonable price tags, it’s no surprise that all-in-one desktops have been steadily growing in popularity and with the release of Windows 8, now’s arguably the best time to get your hands on a system with a roomy touch display. The Asus ET2300INTI-B022K delivers all of these positive attributes in a sleek package with a dazzling multi-touch display that lends itself to the touch-centric interface of Windows 8. While its shortcomings are namely a lack of a Blu-ray player, which can’t be overlooked, they’re outweighed by the good prospect, making it an all-inone worthy of serious consideration.

Asus ET2300IUTI USD1,500 (RO578)

Design and Features Measuring 572x265x448 mm and weighing a formidable 11.6kgs, the ET2300 is certainly a heavy system, although that’s a fairly insignificant factor for a desktop-bound all-in-one that wasn’t designed to be carried around like the Sony VAIO Tap 20. After the initial difficulty of lifting the ET2300 out of the box, setting it up is simple: Plug the system to a power line and connect the included wireless mouse and keyboard via a single dongle.

As is the case with every all-in-one desktop, the display is the main attraction that ties the system’s various elements together. In this case, it’s a widescreen IPS panel whose 23-inch size lands between the 20-inch Sony Tap 20 and the 27inch Asus ET2701INKI, and turning it on reveals a dazzling, 1,920x1,080 resolution (full 1080p HD) display that easily succeeds in delivering spoonfuls of crisp and bright eye-candy. More importantly, the display’s 10-point capacitive touch functionality nicely complements Window 8’s interface, and makes flipping and swiping through the tiles a far more intuitive experience. Ten-point touch means you can use both hands simultaneously, or share the screen with another person.

Regardless of your opinion for Microsoft’s new operating system, it’s tough to deny the improvement in navigation brought on by touchscreen capability, at least as far as the tiled interface goes. While the same cannot be said of the traditional ‘desktop’ mode, the included wireless mouse remedies this problem, which is far

Operating System: Windows 8 Pro, Windows 8 Display: 58.4cm, 16:9, Full HD 1920x1080, LED-backlight, 178-degree wide viewing angle, touch screen, multi touch, (10 fingers touch) Processor: Intel Core i7 3770, i5 3330, i3 3220 Chipset: Intel B75 Chipset/Graphic: Intel HD Integrated Graphics 2500, 4000

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more useful for honing in on this mode’s smaller icons. Moreover, the mouse comes in handy when you don’t feel like reaching across your desk to navigate through Windows 8 since its scroll wheel lets you flip through the tiled interface.

Given this superlative display, then, it’s a shame that it only comes with a DVD burner, as Blu-rays would’ve undoubtedly looked gorgeous on the ET2300. There is, however, an HDMI-in port that you can plug a Blu-ray player or gaming console.

For this reason, users looking for an all-in-one with a built-in Blu-ray player would be better suited with the Asus ET2301INKI. Most, if not all, of the ports are housed in the base beneath the display. The ET2300 makes the most of its available real estate by coming loaded with a solid variety of ports.

The right side features two USB 3.0 ports, two Thunderbolt ports, a USB 2.0/eSATA combo port, an SD/SDHC/MMC card reader, and a Kensington lock

slot. The left side, houses two additional USB 3.0 ports as well as headphone and microphone inputs.

As for the rear of the base, there’s a subwoofer jack, an Ethernet port, and HDMI-in and HDMI-out ports. The HDMI-in port is a nice touch, as it allows the ET2300 to function like a small television. Users looking to ditch wires altogether can take advantage of the ET2300’s built-in Intel Wireless Display (WiDi) capability by hooking up an adapter along the lines of the Netgear Push2TV to their television sets.

Thunderbolt is a relatively new I/O port, offering up to 10Gbps throughput over a dual-channel cable, which can transfer data twice as fast as USB 3.0.

Thunderbolt is mainly found in new speedy hard drives, but you’ll see other peripherals like video input boxes in the near future.

For users looking for an all-in-one desktop that delivers, the Asus ET2300INTI-B022K is worthy of serious consideration. The ET2300 is still a solid choice that deftly combines tthe power of a desktop with the spacesaving form-factor of an all-in-one.

Memory: 4GB Up to 8GB, DDR3 at 1600MHz, 2xSO-DIMM Storage: 500GB Up to 2TB SATA Hard Drive Optical Drive: Slot-in Supermulti DVD RW 16X Camera: 2.0MP Dimensions: 572x265x448mm Weight: 11.6 kg

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SELECTION

This section showcases our selection of electronics in the market today. Let us know if you have any favourites on tech@deenarmedia.com

Smartphones

RO270

RO80

N

N

RO200

RO260

RO272

N

Blackberry Q10

Huawie Ascend W1

Nokia Lumia 920

Sony Xperia ZL

Samsung Galaxy S4

Blackberry 10 OS, Dual Core 1.5GHz, 2G/3G/4G, 8MP primary and 2MP secondary camera, 16GB storage

Windows 8, 1.2GHz, Dual Core, 4GB storage up to 32BG, 3G, WiFi, 5MP camera, GPS

MS Windows 8 OS, Dual Core 1.5GHz Krait, 8MP camera, Dual LED flash, 32GB storage, 3G, WiFi, A-GPS, NFC

Android V4.2.2 OS, 1.3GHz Quad core, 512MB RAM, 13MP camera, 16GB storage up to 64GB, 3G, WiFi

Android V4.2.2 Jelly Bean OS, Quad Core 1.6GHz Cortex-A15 & Quad Core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A7, 13MP camera, 16GB storage up to 64GB, 2GB RAM, 3G, WiFi, A-GPS

Tablets

RO180 RO285

N

Surface – Microsoft Windows

Samsung Galaxy Note 8

10.6-inch screen, MS Windows 8 OS, Quad Core 1.3GHz, Intel Core i5, 2GB RAM, 32GB HDD, NvidiaTegra 3, WiFi, Bluetooth, 8MP camera

8-inch 1280x800 screen, Android 4.1.2 OS, Samsung Exynos 4 Quad Core 1.4GHz, 2GB RAM, 5MP camera, Bluetooth, WiFi, 3G, A-GPS

N

RO315

Asus PadFone 2 4.7-inch 1280x800 screen, 1.5Ghz Quad core, 32GB Storage, Bluetooth, 13MP camera

RO83

RO200

17

N

Amazon Kindle Fire HD 7-inch 1280x800 screen, Android 4.0 OS, 1.2GHz Dual Core, 16GB storage, WiFi, Dual Speaker Dolby, HD camera

iPad Mini 4G 16GB 16GB, 7.9-inch LED-backlit, multi-touch with IPS technology, 1,024x768p, Dual-core A5, Bluetooth, built-in 16.3-watthour rechargeable lithiumpolymer battery

Computers

N

RO600

N

RO630

N

RO500

N

RO315

Sony SVJ20215CAB

Apple Mac pro MD212

Samsung XE700T1A

HP Spectre 13 2110

20-inch, Windows 8, Intel HD Graphics 4000, Intel Core i53317 1.7GHz with Turbo Boost up to 2.60 GHz, 500GB HDD, 4GB RAM, Shared graphics, WiFi

13.3-inch Retina display LED backlit, 2.5GHz Dual Core Intel i%. 8GB RAM, 128GB flash storage, Intel HD graphics 4000, OS X, iLife

11.6-inch LED HD, Windows 7 HP, Intel CORE i5, shared graphics, 4GB RAM, 64GB SSD, WiFi, Bluetooth

13.3-inch LED HD, Windows 8 Pro, Intel Core i7-3317u 2.4GHz, 6144MB DDR3SDRAM, 128GB Hard disk, webcam, WiFi, Bluetooth

N

RO210

Acer Aspire V3 571G 5324G 15.6-inch HD LED screen, Windows 7, Intel Core i5-3210M 2.3GHz, 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD, Webcam, WiFi, Bluetooth, Nvidia GeForce GT 640M Graphics

Compact cameras

N

RO111

RO290

Sony WX200

Sony RX-100

18.2MP, 10x optical zoom, 2.7inch LCD, Full HD movie, CMOS Sensor, WiFi, DLNA

20.2MP, 10FPS, 3.6x Optical zoom, Exmor CMOS sensor, 3-inch ‘White Magic’ LCD touch screen, Full HD movie

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RO170

N

RO141

Samsung Galaxy camera GC100

Canon PowerShot SX260

16MP, 21x optical zoom, 4.8-inch LCD touch screen, Full HD movie, Android, WiFi

12.1MP, 20x optical zoom, 3-inch screen, Full HD movie, GPS, CMOS sensor

N

RO60

Olympus VR 350 16MP, 10x Optical Zoom, 3-inch LCD, Full HD movie, magic filter

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Disclaimer: Prices quoted in this tabloid may be subject to change. Please check with your local dealer for the current costs. Lists are not in any particular order.

Prices as of June 20, 2013.

Updated

N New

Pro cameras

RO822

RO560

N

RO215

RO640

RO550

Canon 7D

Fujifilm X-E1

Sony NEX 3N

Nikon D7100

Sony Alpha NEX7

18MP, 8FPS, APS-C CMOS sensor, 3-inch LCD screen, Full HD movie, 19-point AF system, Eye-level Pentaprism viewfinder, 63-zone SPC TTL metering exposure, 30 seconds to 1/8000 shutter speed, 18-135mm lens

16.3MP, 6FPS, 2.8-inch LCD screen, Full HD movie, 1920x1080p, ISO 200-6400 and 100-25600 expanded, Ultra Sonic Vibration, Single AF / Continuous AF / MF Distance Indicator, 1855mm lens

16.1MP, Mirrorless interchangeable lens, Sony A lens mount, memory card SD (SDXC, SDHC), CMOS sensor, ISO200 - 16000 equivalent, Electronically-controlled, verticaltraverse, focal-plane type shutter

24.1MP, 6FPS, 23.5mmx15.6mm CMOS sensor, 3.2-inch LCD screen, Full HD movie, 51 auto AF-S/AF-C selection, ISO 100-6400, Eye-level Pentaprism viewfinder, 1/8000 to 30 seconds shutter speed, 18-105mm lens

24.3 MP, 10FPS, 23.5x15.6 mm Exmor APS HD CMOS Sensor, 3-inch LCD screen, Full HD movie, ISO 100-16000, WiFi, 25 point contrast AF, 30 to 1/4000 seconds shutter speed, 18-55mm lens

Televisions

N

RO180

LG 39LN5100 39-inch LED 3D, 2MP Full HD, 3HDMI PC in/AV in, USB port, DIVX HD, 100Hz True Motion, Intelligent sensor, Energy Saving

N

RO220

Samsung UA40EH5000

N

RO300

Sony KDL55W804

40-inch LED 3D, 1920x1080 Resolution, 2MP Full HD, 2 HDMI, 100Hz clear motion rate, USB Ports

55-inch Dynamic Smart LED 3DTV, 2MP Full HD, 400 Hz motion plow, WiFi, 3 USB port movie ply, NFC share 4 HDMI, PC Input, 2D-3D converter

N

RO500

Sanyo LCE 55R68HD3D 50-inch LED 3D TV, 2MP, full HD, USB movie playback, 3 HDMI, 100HZ Motion rate

N

RO950

Samsung UA46ES8000 46-inch 3D LED Smart TV, 2MP, Full HD, Smart interaction (face, voice, motion), Smart evolution and content, micro dimming ultimate, built-in camera, 800Hz, Dual Core processor

audio systems

RO211

RO211

RO75

RO280

RO91

Denon AVR 1713

Sony BDV E690

Philips HTS 3551

Bose Sound D10

Yamaha NS C500

5.1 Channel AV receiver, 120 watts (per channel), Internet radio, wireless streaming, 6 HDMI, USB

3D Blu-ray, 5.1 channel home theatre, DVD, CD, MP3, DIVX playback, 1000watts RMS, USB port play

Blu-ray home theatre, DVD, VCD, MP3. CD-R, DIVX playback, surround sound, 300watts RMS, HDMI input, USB port

Compact sound dock for iPod and iPhone with Bluetooth option

RO91 2-way acoustic suspension speaker, 160W maximum input power

TECH RECOMMENDS PS3 wireless keypad

RO50

HP Deskjet 5525 Ink Advantage e-All-in-One Maximise your productivity with this efficient printer. HP claims that you can two times more pages for the cost of one. With wireless and mobile printing, you can print documents, photos and more from anywhere. Scan to email without a PC and print direct from memory cards. The HP Deskjet 5525 Ink Advantage e-All-in-One is designed for home users wanting easy and affordable printing of lab-quality photos, two-sided documents and more, with low-cost inks and a choice of mobile printing options.

This is the most convenient way to chat with friends on PS3. It makes PlayStation Home communication a lot easier, is a great for Web browsing and its touch-pad functionality acts as a mouse. The keyboard works with any Bluetooth device. Though it has no backlight and has tiny keys, the PS3 Wireless Keypad is the best way to chat with friends and browse the Internet on the PlayStation 3.

RO18

Seen at Emax, Muscat City Centre

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ESSENTIAL

10

WEEK 26, june 27 - july 3, 2013

Tech tidbits

MUSIC

Eclectic empire

This week’s interesting movies, music album, app and more app in depth

Evernote A Platform: Android, iOS

pple’s native app Notes may be simple, but it doesn’t do what Evernote does for you. For those in need of a quick spot of note-jotting, Evernote is the pro’s choice for iPhone.

Four flavours of note-taking facility are at your fingertips: a plain text note. a snapshot, which uses the iPhone’s camera, camera roll, which opens up your iPhone’s photos folder and lets you tag snaps you’ve taken earlier and voice memo, which starts a countdown from three before launching into voice recording.

Rating:

Once notes or photos have been taken they can be tagged, annotated and e-mailed around and on a free account the storage allowance is a passable 60MB, great for short notes or low-res

iPhone snaps; not ideal for audio clips or big image files.

All notes taken on your iOS are accessible online at evernote.com and are searchable by their names, tags and content, but by far the coolest addition we found to Evernote was the app’s ability to search through text copied with the camera. We took photos of webpages and magazine articles and found Evernote magically effective at tracking them down just by using search terms that cropped up in the photographed text.

If you’re just looking for a way of send and store simple files, then Evernote might seem overly complicated compared to something like Dropbox, but for jotting down simple reminders it’s a brilliant little free addition to your iOS device.

Empire of the Sun are an Australian electronic music duo from Sydney, formed in 2008. The duo consists of long-time collaborators Luke Steele of alternative rock act The Sleepy Jackson, and Nick Littlemore of electronic dance outfit Pnau.

The awards Their award-winning, 2008 debut album Walking on a Dream shot the duo to international success and to date has been certified double platinum in Australia and gold in United States.

When Empire of the Sun emerged in 2008, they were fascinating, even at a glance: Wearing costumes that evoked community-theatre Flash Gordon, or perhaps the leaping wing-people from the NES version of Contra, they made cheery, brightly pumping synth music that suggested similar pop-culture carbon dating.

Jay Z was impressed

DVD RELEASES The Call (2013)

Thriller, suspense

eBOOKS

GAME RELEASES

The Light Between Oceans

Spartacus Legends

M L Stedman

Xbox360, PS3

USD11

Fighting Games

‘Walking on a Dream’, their big hit, was so charming that Jay-Z flew them in from Perth to record for The Blueprint 3 the most unlikely, out-ofcontext guest spot on a Jay-Z album since Lenny Kravitz on The Blueprint 2. Empire’s Walking on a Dream was pop made by people fully intending to be famous, but part of its appeal was how endearingly homemade it felt.

Ice on the Dune is a pretty impressive pop album. But it’s hard not to wonder what might have been had just a bit of the imagination that goes into the visual side of Empire of the Sun been allowed to seep in.

Get the Album

Project X Zone

Venus Vegas (2009)

Comedy, romance

The Hit

3DS

David Baldacci

Turn-Based Strategy

USD13

The Power of Habit

Deadpool

Crawlspace (2012)

Charles Duhigg

PC, Xbox360, PS3

Sci Fi, thriller

USD28

Action

TW50 WEEK 26.indb 10

Ice On the Dune by Empire of the Sun USD8 (RO3), iTunes, empireofthesun.com

6/22/13 6:34 PM

dashboard TECH@DEENARMEDIA.COM

11

Sting like a ’Vette

The car that requires every mortal have a pacemaker is finally announced. We take a look at what the 2014 Corvette Stingray is

F

or the new Stingray, Chevrolet set out to elevate every aspect of the Corvette’s performance. Considered alone, the acceleration, braking and cornering performance of the Corvette Stingray is truly impressive. More significant is how well they work together, resulting in a lap time at VIR that places the new Stingray in the upper echelon of all sports cars.

from 0 to 96kmph in 3.8 seconds, braking from 60 to 0 in 32m feet, and sustaining 1.03 g in cornering.

Chevrolet released official performance estimates for the 2014 Corvette Stingray, the most capable standard Corvette ever.

Equipped with the available Z51 Performance Package, the new Stingray is capable of accelerating

“The new Stingray constantly communicates feedback to the driver, which makes you feel incredibly confident behind the wheel,” said Jim Mero, Corvette vehicle dynamics engineer. “That confidence encourages you to

The lap around VIR was conducted in Stingray equipped with the available Z51 Performance Package and Magnetic Ride Control. The vehicle that conducted the lap was modified only with safety features like a racing seat and harness, and fire extinguisher system.

attack each corner because the Stingray drives so well: the tire grip is incredible; the steering response is some of the best I’ve ever experienced; the Magnetic Ride dampers allow little body roll through the corner, while still soaking up the rumble strips when you clip the apex,” he said. “It’s just addictive on the track.”

The 2014 Corvette Stingray coupe goes on sale in the US the third quarter of 2013 for around RO22,000. The RO1,000 Z51 Performance Package includes an electronic limited-slip differential; dry-sump oiling system; integral brake, differential and transmission cooling; as well as a unique aero package that further improves high-speed stability. Magnetic Ride Control with Performance Traction Management is a RO700 option.

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6/22/13 6:34 PM

movies

12

WEEK 26, june 27 - JULY 3, 2013

The Purge One night allows a relief for people to take out all their anger and frustration, legally

T

he Purge is a 2013 American horror science-fiction thriller film directed and written by James DeMonaco. Starring Ethan Hawke and Lena Headey, the film is set in the year 2022 when the United States has become ‘a nation reborn’, with crime and unemployment rates hitting an all-time low. This is a result of the government having instituted an annual 12-hour time period called ‘The Purge’, during which people can vent their negative emotions because all crime (including murder) is legal and emergency services are suspended.

The Purge received mixed to negative reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes gave it a rating of 38 per cent based on 125 reviews, with the site’s consensus stating “Half social allegory, half home-invasion thriller, The Purge attempts to use thriller formula to make an intelligent

place this weekend, raked in USD36.4 million, according to studio estimates from boxoffice trackers Hollywood.com.

The debut stunned analysts, who forecast USD17 million for the critically ravaged Ethan Hawke movie, expected to be disposable fare between studio tent-poles.

point—but ultimately only ends up sinking in numbing violence and tired cliches.” The film held a score of 41/100 on Metacritic based on 33 critics, signifying mixed or average reviews. The film received a ‘C’ on CinemaScore.

But the film, a futuristic tale where all crime is legal for one night a year, began picking up online momentum last month, when its trailer, shot largely on shakey, handheld cameras hit the Internet.

On io9, Charlie Jane Anders described it as “a clunky and implausible political screed in movie form.” Entertainment Weekly gave The Purge a B−, saying that it “clearly has a lot on its mind, but it never really manages to express it.”

Director and writer: James DeMonaco Genre: Science fiction thriller

The Purge knocked Fast and Furious 6 from the top spot and trounced The Internship. Purge, a USD3 million-horror film that was expected to vie for third

Apps this week 1

Your new treat of fun and useful apps

2

3

Football Manager Handheld 2012

Greedy Spiders FREE

Platforms: iOS, Android

5

USD7

Aquaria

Platforms: iOS, Android

6

USD5

Analogous to the series’ reincarnation concept, you wander around a castle, grabbing gold and levelling up your character when you get the chance

Ant Raid HD USD3

A massive underwater world to explore in a tale of self-awakening and discovery, complete with a series of powers and abilities that you unlock

Platforms: iOS

7

USD10

An odd hotchpotch of resource management, interactive storybook, roleplaying and strategy genres

The latest handheld instalment of the best football management game out there is back for smartphones

Platforms: iOS, Android

Infinity Blade 2

King of Dragon Pass

USD10

Tough puzzles and a sharp difficulty curve mean this treads a fine line between fun and frustration

4

Cast: Ethan Hawke, Lena Headey, Max Burkholder

A hugely enjoyable RTS featuring the only ants you won’t want to nuke with powder from the garden centre

Platforms: iOS

8

Platforms: iOS, Windows Phone

9

Adobe Carousel

Demand 5

X-Men Arcade

Carousel allows for wireless syncing between all your iOS devices and your Mac, while lightroom, the editing tool included makes this app stand out

You get permanent access to every episode of Big brother and sister show, so for BB die-hards, this is a must-have app

You get to play as Cyclops, Colossus, Wolverine, Storm, Nightcrawler or Dazzler and your job is to take out the various bad guys from the X-Men universe

FREE

Platforms: iOS

TW50 WEEK 26.indb 12

USD3

Platforms: iOS, Windows Phone

USD1

Platforms: iOS, Android, Windows Phone

6/22/13 6:35 PM

tablets TECH@DEENARMEDIA.COM

13

Windows represented Acer W3, pre-installed with Microsoft Office is design and convenience at its best

A

cer unveiled the Acer Iconia W3, the industry’s first full-featured 8.1-inch tablet running Windows 8, bringing entertainment and full PC capabilities into a single hand. Further solidifying its spot as the ultimate mobile companion, the Acer Iconia W3 comes pre-installed with Microsoft Office Home and Student 2013.

The Iconia W3 carefully considers the human element with a design that is compact enough to use comfortably in one hand for reading and web browsing, yet sports a screen large enough for both productivity and entertainment. As a result, it’s ideal for business people, students and families who already use programs such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote for school and work.

“With the Iconia W3, Acer is giving the millions of students, consumers and professionals who create, read, work and play in the Windows environment a singlehanded device that does it all,” said Luca Rossi, vice president, consumer business unit, Acer Europe. “These adventurous will enjoy the industry-leading combination of a Windows 8 tablet in a sleek and lightweight 8-inch design, giving them a new and more effective way to take their fun and productivity on the go.”

Office Suite and design Microsoft Office Home and Student 2013 comes pre-installed with the new Iconia W3, so customers can begin using it for school and work right away.

It includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote, giving the applications you need right at their fingertips.

The Iconia W3’s design makes it incredibly useful for productivity in several ways. The slim and sleek device weighs only 540 grams and measures only 11.35mm thin, so it’s easy to take anywhere. The device pairs with an optional full-size Bluetooth keyboard that holds the tablet upright for typing and then conveniently docks to the tablet to lay flat for easy transportation while protecting the screen.

The keyboard mirrors the size of those found on larger 13.3-inch notebooks, so it is comfortable to use and makes working on documents and presentations even more convenient. Further boosting productivity, the Acer Iconia W3 was designed with a virtual keypad that is the ideal size for thumb typing, a common way for savvy mobile customers to connect in messaging and social platforms.

TW50 WEEK 26.indb 13

Performance for productivity and entertainment Windows 8 Companion brings mobile PC capabilities Since the Acer Iconia W3 runs Windows 8, it keeps files, photos, and contacts synced across other Windows 8 devices, so customers can work on documents and programs on the go and then conveniently access the most current version from another device. Plus, because it runs full Windows 8, the Acer Iconia W3 is compatible with x86 legacy Windows programs. Consumers can customise Windows 8 by utilising Live Tiles right on the start page to keep updated on the topics, news, weather and other events that they care about most.

The range of capabilities paired with the slim size makes the Iconia W3 great for sharing at school, work and home. Windows 8 supports multiple user IDs, so customers will have access to their email, Live Tiles and other apps. The device keeps content secure and safe with multiple layers of security and parental controls, even with multiple people using it.

The new tablet is powered by an Intel Atom Z2760, mobile-optimised processor to smoothly handle a range of apps including web browsing and enjoying digital media. Plus, the Acer Iconia W3 provides up to 8 hours of battery life to boost all-day productivity in classes, while traveling, or simply for staying in touch throughout the day. Connected Standby helps extend battery life by turning the display off while the device remains powered on to handle background tasks. The Acer Iconia W3 keeps consumers connected to WiFi networks and hotspots with 802.11b wireless technology.

The crisp 8.1-inch LED-backlit display brings 720p video to life with incredible detail and brightness.

The 1280x800 resolution makes photos and multimedia as well as text and graphics, appear crisp and clear. The tablet’s front and rear-facing 2MP webcams ensure that customers can capture images and video for social networking, video conferencing and sharing.

The Iconia W3 was designed to enable quick sharing of data between devices to bring full PC productivity to a tablet form factor. It has a microHDMI port for connecting to a TV or external display for sharing presentations, photos and video. The micro-USB port allows easy sharing of data and a connection to devices like phones, MP3 players, USB drives, or a mouse. The new tablet is available with either 32GB or 64GB of internal storage, and customers can add an additional 32GB via microSD for extra storage and convenient transfer of photos and video between devices.

6/22/13 6:35 PM

GAMING

14

WEEK 26, june 27 - july 3, 2013

Publisher: 11 Bit Studios Genre: Strategy Developer: 11 Bit Studios Platforms: PC, MAC, UNIX ESRB Rating: Mature

Multiplayer shines brightly alongside a short but dynamic campaign in the tower offense sequel Score Plot 8/10 Gameplay 8/10 Visuals 8/10 Overall 8

A

nomaly 2 is a tower defence game that turns convention on its head in favour of a less traditional approach to the genre. Anomaly 2 puts players on the opposite end of the field, as you control the creep wave whose goal it is to run the gauntlet of defence towers.But we see if Anomaly 2 offers a thoughtful and well-designed reversal of the traditional tower defence experience. To simply put it, it does. The game is split into different components. There is a single player campaign and a multiplayer mode. The

single player campaign has players taking control of the remnants of a battered and scattered human defence force with the ultimate goal of driving back the alien forces that have been occupying Earth for quite some years.

The campaign is carried out over missions that have various objectives.

You start the mission by purchasing a number of automated tank-like military machines. Since this is a tower defence game, your units may only travel on predetermined paths; so, your next order

of business is determining the path your machines will take to accomplish the mission parameters. Once you’ve determined a path, your units begin moving, all the while destroying towers.

away from your units and so on.

It may sound like Anomaly 2 is a rather slow-paced affair but it isn’t. Towers are placed in such a way that your creep units rarely, if ever, get respite from battle.

Players also have a commander unit that is available to them in every mission. The commander unit is used to run around the map and pick up certain buffs that destroyed towers leave behind. These buffs allow the commander to heal units, place a beacon that will draw enemy tower fire

Creep units also lose health very quickly and die in seconds if you’re not paying attention with your commander units and laying down the proper buffs at exactly the right moment. In fact, therein lies Anomaly 2’s brilliant reversal of design. The most impressive thing about this game is how well it combines strategy and action.

WEBZONE www.upworthy.com

Pass on the Internet

U

pworthy runs on a simple mantra: sharing is caring.

Barely a year old, it’s already a leader in a crowded community of social news sites, bringing attention to content that’s inspirational (watch a news anchor fight back against a bully who called her fat) and very shareable (see a waitress get a USD500 tip). Its deceptively simple design emphasises well-written headlines, the content itself and sharing options, creating a powerful viral effect. Just try and resist its siren call.

TW50 WEEK 26.indb 14

With this cool website, pass on what really matters

At best, things online are usually either awesome or meaningful, but everything on Upworthy.com has a little of both: Sensational and substantial, entertaining and enlightening, shocking and significant. That’s what you can expect here: A steady stream of the most irresistibly shareable stuff you can click on without feeling bad about yourself afterwards.

Upworthy’s goal is to foster a community of people who are focused on spreading ideas within their existing groups of friends on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and wherever else.

6/22/13 6:36 PM

watches TECH@DEENARMEDIA.COM

15

Breaking barriers Zenith’s Tribute to Felix Baumgartner was the first watch to break the sound barrier

A

ustrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner made history, becoming the first man to break the sound barrier in freefall, jumping from the edge of the stratosphere from a space capsule and landing in the New Mexican desert, 38,969.4 metres below. The watch he wore while making the jump was a Zenith Stratos Flyback Striking 10th.

Zenith, the august Swiss watch brand that sponsored Baumgartner and his Red Bull Stratos team in its daring aerospace missions and served as official timekeeper for the milestone jump, has this year released a new, personalised edition of the now-famous chronograph wristwatch, the Zenith Stratos Flyback Striking 10th Tribute to Felix Baumgartner.

Like the original Zenith El Primero chronograph, released in 1969, the tribute timepiece has that model’s groundbreaking tri-colour subdial arrangement: light gray for the small seconds, dark anthracite gray for the chronograph minutes counter tallying up to 60 minutes and deep blue for the chronograph 60-seconds counter.

The date is in a window at the sixth hour.

The watch contains Zenith’s world-

famous in-house automatic chronograph movement, Caliber 4057 B, nicknamed El Primero, which beats at a super-quick frequency of 36,000Hz. And, unlike with other highfrequency movements, you can actually see this one in action: the centre-mounted chronograph hand makes a complete revolution around the dial in 10 seconds rather than the usual 60. Thus, the chronograph hand is capable of recording elapsed times to 1/10 second.

The stainless steel case measures 45.5 mm in diameter and is 14.15 mm thick and has a black ceramic bezel that rotates in one direction. The watch’s domed sapphire crystal is treated with non-reflective substance on both sides. The main dial is silver-coloured with a sunray finish; the hour indices and hands are faceted, rhodium-plated and coated with Super-LumiNova for night time legibility. The solid steel caseback is engraved with the Stratos mission logo, framed by the words ‘First Watch To Break The Sound Barrier.’

Zenith Stratos Flyback

The Zenith Stratos Flyback Striking 10th Tribute to Felix Baumgartner is available on a steel bracelet or a black rubber strap, with a steel triple-folding clasp.

Price: USD10,400 (RO4,004)

Enter to win two Panasonic portable chargers.

Please send in your entries by July 8

TW50

Fax: 24693569 / Email: quiz@deenarmedia.com

1 Which of the following companies is wellknown for its April Fool’s hoaxes?

to webpage bookmarks?

A

Google

A

Pages

B

Tokina

B

Favourites

C

Apple

C

Labels

3 Which of the following programs is not TW48 Winners:

2 What word does Internet Explorer use to refer

included in all editions of MS Office?

4 Which term is synonymously used with ‘Storage capacity’?

1. Faisal Shihab

A

PowerPoint

A

Disk Space

2. Natalia D’Souza

B

Word

B

Memory

Last week’s quiz answers: 1 – C, 2 – B, 3 – B, 4 – A

C

Indesign

C

RAM

NOTE: Employees and family members of Deenar Press and Publishing cannot participate in the quiz. Judge’s decision is final. Please email the answers to tech@deenarmedia.com or fax this page to 24693569 by the deadline. Correspondence after the deadline will not be entertained. PLEASE WRITE CLEARLY. Incomplete or illegible entries will be disqualified.

Winner must provide valid ID to claim the prize. Allow up to two weeks to process.

GAMING+QUIZ 50.indd 15

Full Name _________________________________________ Age ______ Mobile __________________ Email ______________________________________Occupation _________________________________ Company ______________________________________________________________________________

6/22/13 7:20 PM

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6/12/13 10:23 AM

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