Top 5 Tablets to Have

November 27, 2012 by ·

Nowadays people are usually on the run and want a discreet and reliable device for work, school or entertainment. Fortunately, hardware companies have found the solution and they are working on improving their tablets to cater to all the customers’ tastes and wallets. Here are five of the best and most popular tablets for you to choose from:

Apple iPad

Features like incredible image quality, thanks to the Retina display, fast 4G speed, improved camera and a wide selection of fun apps place the new Apple iPad in the lead both from the customers’ and the specialized websites’ point of view. The costs may sometimes increase, when you find yourself in the position of having to pay for additional upgrades, like for example special docks for the new Lightning connector, but that does not seem to bother loyal fans too much.

Google Nexus 7

Leading the market of Android tablets, Google Nexus 7 offers you high-quality design, speedy performance and a powerful version of Jelly Bean, all for a great price. It has its own downs, like the lack of a microSD card slot (same situation as iPads) or of a back-facing camera, as well as some lag when using the Magazine app, but its advantages make you forget about them. All in all, it is considered the best 7-inch tablet and it combines fast quad-core performance and a smart operating system with a top-notch design.

Amazon Kindle Fire

Amazon brings you yet another great-priced Android tablet, which was developed from the world’s favorite e-book reader, the Kindle. Its pros are the solid and compact design as well as the friendly and easy-to-use interface. It also gives you access to a lot of apps and also free videos and books for the customers who are Amazon Prime members. Unfortunately, the 8 GB memory is not expandable and the performance may be a bit sluggish now and then, but the very affordable price makes it worth buying.

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1

If the 7-inch tablets are too small for you, you can choose the larger Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 for its bright display and powerful speakers, but also for its long-lasting battery life and other features. If you always lose your TV remote around house, you will be happy to know that you can control your TV using the smart app offered by this tablet. On the other hand, the camera is not spectacular and the charging times are a bit high, but the tablet is still a good and affordable choice.

ASUS Transformer Pad Infinity TF700

The last one on this list, the tablet from ASUS has a very bright and sharp display, as well as improved cameras, long-lasting battery life and a high quad-core performance. The sound quality is good, despite the rather awkward speaker placement; the display may show some distortions if you put too much pressure on it when you touch it. It has its ups and downs, but it is a balanced Android tablet and it is the first one with a full HD screen.

If you’re looking for a new tablet, check out these 5 models first, and you are bound to find something that suits you perfectly.

Filed Under: Apple, Email News, General News, Microsoft, Tablets · Tagged: , , , , ,

A Little Bit About Windows 8

November 21, 2012 by ·

Much of the tech press has reported about Windows 8, although it has only recently come out. This is great for you, as you can find out a little of the ins and outs before you use it. One article we found especially interesting was one written by InfoWorld’s J. Peter Bruzzese. It covers several intriguing features about Windows 8. We have highlighted a few below.

The charms bar

Windows 8 comes with a side navigation bar called the charms bar. It becomes visible on the right side of the screen when users click or swipe there. Once it’s visible, the bar allows users to take advantage of an array of shortcuts. Users can click or tap the “Settings” option and then click on “Power” to put their computer to sleep. The charms bar has settings for searching, sharing, and switching to the Windows 7 desktop.

Retrieving lost files

What’s worse than losing a file? Not much when it comes to computing. Fortunately, Windows 8 can help. The operating system comes with a new way of saving copies of files that lets users obtain previous versions if their current file is lost or damaged. This feature works in much the same way as does OS X’s Time Machine utility.

Windows on the go

If you are on-the-go a lot, you will like this nifty feature. Using the Enterprise Edition of Windows 8 users can capture their entire Windows environment and store it on a USB drive. This enables them to take it with them and pull it up on a PC that uses Windows 7 or 8.

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Filed Under: General News, Microsoft, Tablets · Tagged: , , , , ,

Apple iPad vs Microsoft Surface Tablet

November 20, 2012 by ·

The battle between the tablets from Apple and Microsoft has been lasting for a while and the year 2012 is no exception. Apple announced the launching of their new tablet, iPad 4, just a few days before the official release of the Microsoft Surface Tablet – and they promised a powerful processor and a better Wi-Fi connection. So which one would you choose?

In fact, there are two versions of the Surface tablet – one is the already available model powered by Nvidia Tegra 3 and using Windows RT, and the other one will come out soon and it will be dedicated rather to business people, powered by a friendlier Intel Core i5 processor and using Windows 8 Pro. Note that both Surface tablets are significantly larger and slightly heavier than the iPads.

Surface has a bigger screen with great resolution – 1366×768 for the Windows RT model and 1920×1080 for the Pro one – but iPad does offer a brighter image and better detail, contrast and color, thanks to the Retina display. On the other hand, Surface has some pluses, especially when talking about storage size. The model using Windows RT starts from 32 GB built-in-storage, while the iPad offers you 16 GB. Moreover, Surface gives you the possibility of a microSD card if you want to expand that storage, whereas the iPads do not.

Apple customers were a bit disappointed when they heard that the new iPad has a Lightning connector replacing the traditional 30-pin dock connector used for the previous models. That means that if someone wants to use regular cables, they will have to buy more upgrades, therefore spend more money for Apple. Fortunately, Microsoft Surface has the good old full-size dock, usable with all cables – you can plug in USB devices, cameras and printers.

Both tablets offer you fun and interesting apps and let you connect to millions of songs, books, videos and games. A nice feature available on Surface is the Kickstand, which lets you place your tablet almost vertically so you can use it handsfree- while talking on Skype with your friends, watching movies or maybe checking up some recipes online when you are cooking in the kitchen! If you miss the presence of a keyboard – sometimes necessary at work, school or just more comfortable for you when you have typing to do – the people from Microsoft have come up with a great idea. The Touch Cover can be used as a traditional cover that protects your Surface, but also as a very thin and sensitive keyboard.

In the end, it is a battle of tastes, and the success of iPads or Microsoft tablets will resume based on what customers want. There are differences between all the models, which means that the companies are trying harder and harder to bring something new to the scene and to eventually lead the market. That is a good thing for customers, who will have more powerful and efficient tablets to choose from. But will the fans of a certain company stick with it from now on too, or will they switch to the other one? We’ll have to wait and see.

Filed Under: Apple, Email News, General News, Microsoft, Tablets · Tagged: , , , , ,

Microsoft Tablets – A Closer Look at the Surface Tablet

November 13, 2012 by ·

When Bill Gates introduced the first Microsoft tablet, nobody was very interested. But when a few years later, Steve Jobs did the same thing for Apple, the world was thrilled. It seems that now, with the Surface tablets, it is time for revenge, but should Microsoft create more and more tablets to compete with Apple or should they just stick to PC software?

With the Surface tablet, the motto is “Less is more” and it is indeed true! The design is great, very nice to look at – colorful and fun – and also very comfortable to hold. The interior is compact and very well protected by a resistant molten magnesium alloy called VaporMg – it is three times lighter than aluminum, but very durable. Surface also has a special coating to protect it from fingerprint marks, so it will always look flawless.

The Microsoft tablet screen offers a perfect, crystal clear image (16:9 ratio) so you can enjoy all your favorite HD videos or seeing your friends while talking to them. If you want to share something with them, you can use either the front or the rear facing camera. The rear one is angled at 22 degrees and you can use it and be visible when you use the Kickstand. Speaking of Kickstand, it is an intelligent and very useful addition to the regular tablet design. It allows you to benefit from your Surface hands-free too!

One of the disadvantages of using an ordinary tablet is that you sometimes miss having a keyboard, especially when you need it the most! The designers from Microsoft have that covered – with Touch Cover! At first glance, it looks like any other cover, protecting your Surface, but it actually works as a keyboard too. It is only 3 mm thick and pressure-sensitive. It has all the keys and media controls that you are used to, including a trackpad. If you need to get moving fast, you do not have to waste time with turning the tablet off – just flip the cover over the display and it will take care of everything.

Transferring large files is quick and easy with the new Microsoft tablet; just plug in a thumb drive or hard drive and then drag and drop them to or from your Surface. The USB ports allow you to connect mice, printers or even your phone when you need to charge it. You can also opt for a microSD card for up to 64 GB of extra storage.

Working with apps is so much fun – you can have access to all the music you want, as well as books and videos or games using the Xbox, you can even use two apps at the same time and see them on a split screen. Get a SkyDrive account and you will be able to share your work with others, or record seminaries while taking notes in OneNote.

In conclusion, Microsoft tablets are promising. Surface is perfect for everyday use, work and study, both for teenagers and adults. It is easy to use and it really brings some nice changes!

Filed Under: Apple, Email News, General News, Microsoft, Tablets · Tagged: , , , , ,

Microsoft Windows 8 In Review

October 31, 2012 by ·

Thursday, October 25, at New York City Pier 57 days before Sandy swept over the East Coast, Windows CEO Steve Ballmer led his crew with the formal release – next day – of the latest Windows 8 OS and the Surface RT tablet. By the following Monday, Ballmer would report that sales of the new OS were developing at a higher rate than the previous OS. Windows 7 came out in 2009 and had over 670 million licenses sold in three years.

Windows 8 is the new clothes of the technology emperor, slated to fit Microsoft concisely for some 20 years. The 1.0 version has been fully vetted through a rigorous schedule of pre-releases to developers and consumers and appears attractively functional. Most important is that Microsoft hopes its innovations prove to be the game changer needed for its OS to bring new parameters of connectivity into the mobile world.

The new OS is ‘concise.’ Windows 8 has been technically developed with a smaller footprint on the hardware and an even better operation of the computer’s memory. The OS sits upon the widely popular Windows 7, which is readily available in full operation in desktop view under the new tile-configured Modern UI. Without the signature Start button, many reviewers have been hesitant to accept the new configuration and have posed a rather high learning curve on getting use to it.

But, just as easily a large segment of society has adapted to moving icons swiftly about the small screen of a smartphone, it can be expected that the learning curve for Windows 8 will soon evaporate, and it will be as just as easily manipulative as a new phone. If the public grows to accept Microsoft’s integration of multi-touch functionality into the new OS, then the company’s innovative thrust could become the expected game-changer, standing on firm ground.

Users access information and open apps by tapping or clicking the tiles about the screen either by touch or by mouse. The same tiles can be seen across all devices within the company’s ecosystem. The methods for using and changing the Modern UI unify the tablet and phone mobile platforms to the PC in seamless style. Already with Windows OS on 92 percent of PCs around the world, adaptation of Windows 8 will certainly renew the company’s place again in the leading wings of technology.

Ballmer and his crew introduced the wares of partner companies carrying Windows 8 at the NYC event, looking forward to enlarge the territory of a bulging ecosystem. The different PC models included ultrabooks and all-in-one PCs made by Dell, Asus, Lenovo and Samsung. Varieties of Windows 8 phones will be out before the holidays. At another event that day, the company’s Surface RT tablet was released. The Surface Windows 8 tablet with the full complement of Windows 8 is expected to come out in a few months.

The features of Windows 8 have been well-documented, from the lightweight magnesium frame to the packet of software running on it. The OS is in route to becoming the optimal system operating today. At Dolomite, we are prepared to show you how Windows 8 can be used to communicate with all your mobile devices across one platform. The opportunity awaits businesses, from the single entrepreneur to the small and large enterprises, to take advantage of Microsoft’s new platform and to grow with it into the new age of seamless mobile technology.

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