BlackBerry 10 review

BlackBerry 10: Big Changes & A New Experience

BlackBerry's next operating system will be here soon and they're going straight from version 7 to 10! Hitesh Raj Bhagat outlines the main features and speaks to a few experts for their verdict


In a world where glitzy smartphones with gorgeous,expansive touchsreens rule the roost,BlackBerry seems to have been left behind.According to a recent report by IDC,things dont look so good for RIMs beleaguered BlackBerry service and platform.Android still rules the roost with 68.3% global smartphone market share and IDC predicts that it will still be around the 63.8% mark in 2016.Meanwhile,BlackBerrys current 4.7% share is predicted to be 4.1% by 2016.The situation may not be as grim as it appears though,because RIM may yet have an ace up its sleeve.ET got a chance to experience RIMs newest BlackBerry 10 platform or BB10 for short completely new from the ground up.The devices currently doing the rounds are developer units,released so that app developers can get a head start with porting existing apps over to the new platform before it arrives.This is already a step in the right direction because one of the primary complaints against BlackBerry is limited apps.Gone is the stodgy,serious interface in its place is a sleek,slick and superfast interface that is very much designed for both work and play.BB10 is built using the QNX platform just like the PlayBook.Granted,there may be some inspiration drawn from the current popular smartphone platforms an app drawer with multiple rows of apps,a pull-down notification tray,notifications on the lock screen and so on.But it also brings some interesting firsts to the table.For instance,there is no home button instead,the area around the screen is touch sensitive (see the graphic on the left for information on more interesting features).After using BB10 himself,Varun K r i s h n a n,e d i t o r i n ch i e f o f FoneArena.com,a popular phone news/reviews blog,was quick to comment.One has to admit that the BB interface has been a boring affair and RIM is trying to change that with BB10.RIM seems to have cracked the social aspect in BB10 but what remains to be seen is the application aspect this is crucial to the success of any platform. He further pointed out that The final hardware is still to be seen but I'm sure RIM won't disappoint us with the hardware.I think that the time to market would also be critical. Ashish Bhatia,independent technology writer and former editor of PC World,echoed the sentiment."As a mobile operating system,BB10 definitively seems to have what it takes.The interface,with its combination of taps,swipes and gestures is interesting,intuitive and well-thought out.But circa 2012,an OS alone does not a smartphone make.A lot depends on how much support RIM has garnered from third party app developers more so,the top 100 apps that all of us have come to expect on our phones.For instance,will BB10 have apps like Skype,DropBox and YouTube at launch A lot depends on it."Not everyone was as positive though.Clinton Jeff,executive editor of UnleashThePhones.com had this to say: I dont think RIM will be able to take on Android or iOS right now,because the two platforms have a huge lead in terms of numbers,overall ecosystem and apps.But BB10 has a good shot at taking the 'third slot' in the war of the mobile ecosystems the position Windows Phone is trying to claim. Jeff also echoed some analyst claims when he said that Personally I do think it's too late.RIM took way too long to push out their new OS.But I've also noticed that a lot of developers are very interested in BB10.More interested than Microsoft's Windows Phone OS.And as such,I'm inclined to believe that they just might have a chance if the third party developers out there are onboard.Plus from the looks of things,BB10 looks quite great,like a short of mix of Android and Nokia-Intel's MeeGo OS.The interface is a familiar grid but that might mean folks are more willing to try out a BB10 phone instead of a Windows Phone which has such a radically different look and feel. Clinton Jeff signed off with some sound advice for RIM.RIM's challenge will be to pump out great hardware,keep the OS updates coming along quickly and make sure the platform is open enough to tie into various third party services in addition to the core BlackBerry experience that loyal fans enjoy. If only it were that simple.

Hands-on with BB10

What you see here is an 'Dev Alpha' device a pre-release developer device with 4.2-inch touchscreen (1024 x 768 pixels) and dual core processor.The second launch device is expected to have a physical QWERTY and large touchscreen.The final hardware might look completely different,but we'll only know on Jan 30,2013.

EXPECTED PRICE 29,990 onwards



Standout Features



Peek

No matter where you are,with a simple upward swipe,you can take a 'peek' at your notifications the number of new messages you've received.Swipe up and right,and you get the BB Hub.

Revamped BBM

Apart from multiple language support,the new BBM will be more social and will feature both voice & video chat over a data network.While BBM will remain exclusive to BB users,it's still nice to have.

BB Hub

The 'Hub' is aptly named because it's the one place you head to for all your email,texts,instant messages (like BBM and others ) plus all your social network updates (like Facebook & Twitter).

Improved Multitasking

You can have up to eight apps open as cards.This lets you switch between apps faster since you can see them all.Plus,a developer can choose to have active cards with information that periodically refreshes with new data similar to Windows 8 tiles.

Smart Contacts

The phone contacts will integrate with contacts from other social networks you're signed into.But you'll also see updates,meetings,schedules and more info about your contacts,all in one place.

Balance

Balance keeps work & personal lives separate on the device.However,unlike before,both profiles are active at the same time.

Intelligent Camera

The native camera app detects faces,but also has a cool Time Shift feature.In this mode,you can tap on a subject after taking a photo and use a rotating slider to choose the point in time when your subject was looking the best.

Worlds most expensive foods

Here is the list of World's Most Expensive foods

Device for deaf and dumb people

Device helps them find a voice

Bengaluru: Communicating has always been a problem for the speech and hearing impaired. The sign language does come to their rescue, but only if they are communicating with those able to understand it.

Now helping them overcome this handicap is a device, Communication Glove,  which seems all set to  revolutionise the way the deaf and dumb communicate, by recognising the sign language and converting it into alphabets and numericals for any ordinary person to read and understand. The translation is also converted into a voice output , making communication even easier for the mute.

The portable device that costs around Rs. 8,000 and can be worn on the body, was developed in  a little over three months by Shashank Deshpande, an engineering student from a small town in Hubli.

Any mute person, he claims, can now communicate with a normal person using this device as it converts the universal sign language into alphanumerical characters that are presented as text display and a voice output using dual access accelerometers of 5.0 volts.   The whole device works within split seconds with 99 per cent efficiency, he says.

“I was in Chennai six months ago when I saw some deaf and dumb children having great difficulty communicating with normal people. So I decided to innovate and develop this Communication Glove,” explains the budding scientist. The device can also be interfaced with a computer or any other external pheriperal device  to help the deaf and dumb send emails and so on.

Successfully tested on the deaf and dumb children of Deeds Public Charitable Trust, Mumbai , Communication Glove will be launched early January 2013. “The device meets the requirements and so has measurable market

Adam lanza

Adam Lanza a loner who felt no pain:

Southbury, Connecticut: At Newtown High School, Adam Lanza had trouble relating to fellow students and teachers, but that was only part of his problem. He seemed not to feel physical or psychological pain in the same way as classmates.

Richard Novia, the school district's head of security until 2008, who also served as adviser for the school technology club, said Lanza clearly ‘had some disabilities.’

"If that boy would've burned himself, he would not have known it or felt it physically," Novia told the media. "It was my job to pay close attention to that."

Novia was responsible for monitoring students as they used soldering tools and other potentially dangerous electrical equipment.

He recalled meeting with school guidance counsellors, administrators and with the boy's mother, Nancy Lanza, to understand his problems and find ways to ensure his safety. But there were other crises only a mother could solve.

"He would have an episode, and she'd have to return or come to the high school and deal with it," Novia said, describing how the young man would sometimes withdraw completely "from whatever he was supposed to be doing," whether it was sitting in class or reading a book.

Adam Lanza "could take flight, which I think was the big issue, and it wasn't a rebellious or defiant thing," Novia said. "It was withdrawal."

Authorities on Saturday continued a wide-ranging investigating into the second-deadliest school shooting in U.S. history, trying to understand what led the young man to kill his mother in their home and then slaughter 26 children and adults at a Connecticut elementary school before taking his own life.

A law enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to discuss the unfolding investigation, said Lanza had been diagnosed with Asperger's, a milder form of autism. People with the disorder tend to function poorly socially but can be highly intelligent.

If he did have Asperger's, his lack of sensation could be related to the disorder, said psychologist Elizabeth Laugeson, an assistant clinical professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. People with Asperger's can be overly sensitive to things like touch, noise and pain, or sometimes under-sensitive, she said.

Back in their teenage years, Adam and his older brother, Ryan, were both members of the tech club, which offered students a chance to work on computers, videotape school events and produce public-access broadcasts.

It was popular among socially awkward students. But Adam, while clearly smart, had problems that went beyond an adolescent lack of social skills, Novia said.

"You had yourself a very scared young boy, who was very nervous around people," Novia said.

The club provided a setting for students to build lasting friendships. But while other members were acquainted with Adam, none was close to him.

Adam was not physically bullied, although he may have been teased, Novia said.

The club gave the boy a place where he could be more at ease and indulge his interest in computers. His anxieties appeared to ease somewhat, but they never disappeared. When people approached him in the hallways, he would press himself against the wall or walk in a different direction, clutching tight to his black case.

"The behavior would be more like an 8-year-old who refuses to give up his teddy bear," Novia said. "What you knew with Adam is it was a possession. It was not a possession to be put at risk."

Even so, Novia said, his primary concern was that Adam might become a target for abuse by his fellow students, not that he might become a threat.

"Somewhere along in the last four years, there were significant changes that led to what has happened," Novia said. "I could never have foreseen him doing that."

Jim McDade, who lives a few houses from where Nancy Lanza was slain, said his family became acquainted with the two brothers and their mother because their children were about the same ages and rode the school bus together.

"There was certainly no indication of anything unusual that lets you think that a kid's going to do something like that," said McDade, who works in finance in New York. "There was nothing that would indicate anything going on behind the scenes that would lead to this horrible mess."

He recalled Adam Lanza as "a very bright kid."

Olivia DeVivo, a student at the University of Connecticut, was in Adam Lanza's 10th grade English class.

"He was very different and very shy and didn't make an effort to interact with anybody," she said.

DeVivo said Lanza always carried a briefcase and wore his shirts buttoned up to the top button. She said he seemed bright but never really participated in class.

"Now looking back, it's kind of like 'OK, he had all these signs,' but you can't say every shy person would do something like this."

Lanza's family was struggling to make sense of what happened and "trying to find whatever answers we can," his father, Peter Lanza, said in a statement late Saturday that also expressed sympathy for the victims' families.

Kate middleton facts

Learn about the girl behind the princess

We all know the Kate Middleton story by now — girl meets boy, boy turns out to be Prince Charming, marriage follows and they live happily ever after. But what about the real Kate, away from the spotlight and media attention? We've done some digging on William's new wife, so check out these 10 lesser-known facts about Britain's favourite princess.

SAS training

It seems Kate is one princess not to be messed with. Due to the enormous amount of attention she was receiving after her and William's engagement, the royal-to-be was deemed a kidnap risk and sent to SAS headquarters for training. There she was given an intensive course by Britain's Special Forces on how to react to dangerous situations, so she's now fully prepared to deal with any would-be attackers. Kidnappers, you have been warned!

Oldest royal bride

With her radiant good looks and perfect figure, 'old' is certainly one word we would never associate with Kate. However, at the ripe old age of 29 on her wedding day, Kate became the oldest royal bride to walk down the aisle. Her new Gran-in-law Queen Elizabeth II was 21 when she got married in 1947, and the late Princess Diana tied the knot with Prince Charles when she was only 20.

Catherine, not Kate

Most of us know her by the nickname 'Kate', but did you know the latest royal addition actually prefers to be referred to by her proper name, 'Catherine'? Since achieving royal status she feels that 'Catherine' is more suited to a person in her position. Sadly we think the years of media attention as 'Will and Kate' mean she is stuck with her unfavoured nickname for the foreseeable future.

Not so humble beginnings

The media likes to portray Kate's marriage to William as a rags-to-riches tale, in which the noble prince sweeps the small-town common girl off her feet and shows her a life of luxury. This isn't quite the case though, considering both of Kate's parents were already self-made millionaires due to their hugely successful party supplies website. They even had enough money to send Kate to Marlborough College, one of the most expensive private schools in Britain.

Kate Middlebum

It turns out that Britain's newest princess had quite the cheeky side when she was younger — literally. An old school teacher of Kate's claimed that the future princess was prone to mooning boys out of windows as a prank, earning her the nickname 'Kate Middlebum'.

Sports crazy

She pulls off the look of elegant princess effortlessly, but did you know Kate was quite the tomboy when she was younger? Sports mad Kate was a keen hockey player at both school and university, and even held her school's record for the high jump and long jump.

Kiss the cook

They could take their pick from the best chefs in the world to cook for them, but apparently Kate actually prefers to personally prepare meals for her and William when they're at home. She doesn't get that jaw-dropping figure by eating whatever takes her fancy though. Kate's diet reportedly consists of healthy foods such as lean meats, salmon, beans and salad.

Babykins and Big Willie

With the media circus that constantly surrounds them, we often forget that when it comes down to it Will and Kate do a lot of the same things as regular couples do. One such loved-up habit is the use of pet names — 'Babykins' for Kate and 'Big Willie' for William. Hopefully she'll cut this out when he ascends to the throne though. 'King Big Willie' isn't very regal, is it?

DIY makeup

There were reportedly over a billion people watching the wedding, and she had a future king to impress, so surely Kate had her makeup done by a professional? Apparently not. After the success of her self-applied makeup for the couple's engagement photos, Kate decided to stick with this approach for the wedding itself. She wasn't flying completely solo though — she had a series of private lessons with expert beautician Arabella Preston before the big day.

Frugal fashion

Even though she has both the budget and the status to wear clothes from any exclusive designer she fancies, Kate is a big fan of high-street fashion. She regularly buys outfits from normal British retailers, and transforms these everyday items into princess-worthy apparel. This has given birth to what is dubbed the 'Kate effect'. Whenever Kate is pictured in a high street item, it instantly sells out as people try to emulate the fashionable royal.

Kim kardashian facts

Facts about kim kardashian:

FAMILY LIFE

Kim Kardashian was born in Los Angeles on October 21, 1980 and is the daughter of Kris Jenner and the late attorney Robert Kardashian.

She is the second oldest of four, with older sister Kourtney and younger siblings Khloe and Robert.

HIGH SCHOOL YEARS

During high school, Kim worked at her father’s music marketing firm, Movie Tunes.

ACTING GIG

Kim’s first acting role came in 2006 in the television series “Beyond the Break.

MILLION DOLLAR GAL

According to E!, Kim makes $5.545 million a year.

A TOP MODEL

Kardashian appeared as a guest judge on Cycle 13 of “America’s Next Top Model.”

PLAYBOY

Kim posed nude in the December 2007 issue of Playboy magazine.

 Kim Kardashian has been accused of having plastic surgery for her butt, breasts, eyes and cheeks. She has said that she has tried botox in the past but that she has had no other procedures. In 2008, she even posted a picture of herself as a teenager in a bikini on her website to prove the body she has now has not been altered.

KEEPING FIT

In April 2009, Kardashian released a workout DVD series, “Fit in Your Jeans by Friday,” with trainers Jennifer Galardi and Patrick Goudeau.

SHOE FANATIC

Kim Kardashian is the co-founder and chief fashion stylist for ShoeDazzle.

FASHIONISTA

In the spring of 2010, Kim and her sisters released a clothing line for Bebe.

They also own Dash clothing store.

EX-HUSBAND

In 2000, Kardashian married music producer Damon Thomas. They divorced in 2004.

DANCING SHOES

Kim was partnered with Mark Ballas on season 7 of “Dancing with the Stars,” but was the third contestant voted off.

INSPIRED

Getty Images

Kim considers singer/actress Jennifer Lopez to be her style icon.

LAWSUIT

Dr. Sanford Siegal, the creator of the Cookie Diet, sued Kardashian, claiming she defamed him on Twitter. According to Siegal, Kardashian tweeted that he was “falsely promoting” that she was on the cookie diet.

1ST LOVE

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Kim Kardashian’s first boyfriend was Tito Jackson’s son, T.J..