Lumilor – Electroluminescent paint that you will like

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we live in the future, and by that I mean this technology is something that will change many things we see in our world, what is Lumilor?

lumilor-el-paint-3

 

its a kind of paint that can be lit up with electricity (batteries) so its not that “glow in the dark” stuff, its paint that is engineered and designed to be powered to shine bright and colorful, the example here is the first showcase of this piece of decorative technology, on a bike with a custom dragon paint job, as much as I like bikes, I honestly don’t like the paint job itself.

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but what matters the most is that we can now have walls. cars and objects that light up. isn’t that cool ? its mind blowing to see something like this emerge.

Check out this video for the Bike in Action:

here’s the explanation from the company itself:

“The LumiLor TM Electroluminescent Coating System is a patent pending EL coating that can permanently be applied over compound curves to form a truly conformal coating that emits light. LumiLor is a sprayable solution that offers revolutionary functional capabilities and requires no special tools or equipment to apply.”

 

for more Info check out the source article [Here] or go directly to Lumilor’s Site [Here]

3Doodler

a compact 3D drawing pen, its a simple tool to draw objects,

your lines can turn into a piece of art instantly no need for computers.

it’s basically a pen shapes 3D printer.

a really great Idea, what do you think ?

if you think its a good idea, back them up on Kickstarter [Here]

source

Ubuntu for Phones

 

Ubuntu is known mostly as the Linux based OS for computers, but news surfaced on Christmas about an Ubuntu mobile OS, just like samsung’s TIZEN, this OS will compete with Android and iOS devices, personally I used Ubuntu for about a two years on the desktop and the new OS for computers is good, as well as the mobile version is very exciting, I can’t wait to try phones with the new systems, like:

  • Windows 8
  • TiZen (by Samsung/Intel)
  • Ubuntu Mobile
  • maybe even BlackBerry 10

Check out this Post I made on TIZEN a while ago, it seems that its official if you check online they are planning to release it some time this year.

PS: I still love Google Android though :P

GameStick – promising gaming console

"Ouya" popular Android based gaming console

“Ouya” popular Android based gaming console

you might have heard of “Ouya“, its an Android based gaming console, GameStick is a similar console but the difference is the design, its shaped a lot like the Android TV I bought earlier [Review] with an HDMI output and it can be stored in its own controller, the console uses MHL which is a standard that means an HDMI port also provides the power to keep the device on, just like how the USB port can power up gadgets.

the first GameStick Version

the first GameStick Version

the compact and elegant design is what really attracted me to this “gaming” console, the truth is there are many options and possibilities for Android based consoles, my own ASUS transformer infinity tab can play all kinds of games if you connect a controller to the USB port in the keyboard (provided the games supports game pad/controller).

this is the Mark 2

this is the Mark 2

but the differnce in these consoles is that they have their own user interface, a customized Android and maybe even their own market design.

GameStick UI looks nice and clean.

GameStick UI looks nice and clean.

on the other hand the beauty of these consoles is that they are cheaper than the current generation of gaming consoles (Sony PS3, Xbox360, Wii) and they are also great because Android games are much cheaper and sometimes free even, so the cost is significantly less, another issue is that smartphone/tablet games are becoming better and more developed, so I think that the market for these consoles is still young, and its very promising.

 

you can support GameStick at KickStarter [HERE]

http://kck.st/Uk6VPu

personally i paid $79 to get me one of them, I’d like to see how it plays, you can also read about them in the engadget .

TIZEN – Samsung/Intel OS

logo

 

this is not really news, information on this OS has been floating around the internet for months now (and most sources here are from 2011), but I decided to look at this OS that is a probable threat to Android, Android has been doing well and the past few years it has great market penetration, so what is TIZEN and what are the chances it will compete with Android ? also where will that put iOS ?

 

What is TIZEN?

this OS is a development collaboration between Intel and Samsung developers, powered by Linux Mobile (LiMo) and Linux foundations, Its very close to systems like the MeeGo (formerly MaeMO which I loved on my Nokia N900) and Android however it will be working on issues that Android have regarding copyright (and Copyleft) because Android is an open source OS that has some copyrighted elements; this means its not 100% open source or something.

NokiaN900

the Nokia N900

others who are involved in the project:

  • ACCESS
  • Panasonic
  • NEC Casio
  • NTT DoCoMo
  • SK Telecom
  • Telefonica
  • Vodafone
  • Orange

 

So who are the competitors for TIZEN? 

other than Android there are many competitors, Windows 8, iOS , BB 10 and many other OS’ are out there, the competition is fierce however after reading I realized that the Linux MeeGo is probably the base for the Tizen system, so the relationship between the two is not a competitive one, but rather a son/father kind of relationship.

logo-meego

How will TIZEN effect the market ? 

this is only my opinion, as I am still reading on the subject and I don’t have the information or the ability to tell how will Tizen perform, but I think its a very big project, a lot of people are involved in it, and it will most likely have a few devices released running Tizen before the companies behind it can measure the performance and how the market will react to it (they are designing it to work on Smartphones, tablets, Car systems…etc) so even if say TIZEN is Successful, will it replace Android ? at least withing Samsung ? I don’t think it will, I really hope that Samsung runs TIZEN Along with Android, two parallel systems within the company, but then again I can dream.

 

Honestly the main reason I was interested in this OS is because I had read a bout it a long time ago and I used to think its a threat to Android, but now I’m interested in it because I owned and used Maemo (now known as MeeGo) with the Nokia N900 phone, it was a lot of fun and I think everyone should use an open system like that for once.

Read with me on the sources, there’s much to learn:

  • News Article [Here]
  • TIZEN Wiki Article [Here]
  • Tech Radar Article [Here]
  • Official TIZEN Site [Here]
  • SlashGear Article [Here]

 

I would love to read about any info you have on TIZEN or MeeGo, I would like to write more as I read more on the OS, I hope you find this interesting enough to see that open source software is getting more main stream, which I believe is a good thing.

Mada Online Games Bloggers Tournament

 

Last night I had the pleasure to attend the Mada Event,

they were showing off their online gaming side,

they had four Sony PS3′s and Mada routers connected,

and they made a little tournament, two games were up for the picking:

  • Call of Duty: Modern warfare 3
  • Need For Speed.

the prize was Samsung Galaxy S3 for the #1 player on each game.

what I like about the even was that it was small,

simple and friendly, it was casual and nothing like pro gamers.

what I didnt like about the even is that I almost won an S3 :P

and some guys complained about the fact the Mada had connection issues, the thing is that they made this event to show the technology capabilities, but I don’t think any wireless based connection is perfect for online gaming, I have Mada at home and its pretty fast, but I use DSL for gaming, cable based connection is the best, that is the truth.

on the other hand, the games i personally played didn’t have much issues,

there was a tiny bit of lag but maybe I’m used to that.

Anyway I would like to thank them for the nice fun event,

it was great and well organized.

Miniand MK802 Android TV – Review

The other day I was lurking YouTube and I found this type of Android Devices, they weren’t phones or tablets, but they were TV Media Players, this is not really a review of this device, but is more like a showcase. How does it work? the MK802 is built like any phone or tablet, and it runs on Android. it uses an HDMI cable to connect to your TV and turn it into an Android based Entertainment system: the MK802 Specs are as follows:

 

  • 1.0GHz Cortex-A8 + 500Hz GPU
  • 1GB DDR2 Ram
  • 4GB Internal Storage (also available  8GB)
  • Micro SD Card Reader
  • 1 Standard USB Port
  • 1 mini USB port
  • mini HDMI out port
  • WiFi + Bluetooth
it runs on Andorid 4.0.4 (Icecream Sandwich), and has 1080p output, and it plays full HD content, and it also gives access to the normal android interface (using a launcher) and this way you can access the market and get all kinds of apps on it.

Click to see it connected

 

Why would you need it?

 

this is perfect for people who want to play HD content from a Hard drive or a flash memory on their TV, the cheap price of the player and the versatility of Android as a system make a really strong competitor to other media players like WD TV Live or Boxee, I would also like to mention the Size of the MK802 is way much smaller than any other Media player, and the Micro SD card really keep it compact (up 32GB Micro SD). I have a Samsung Smart TV and I enjoy plugging in a small hard drive and watching  shows, and with the MK802 I can do that on any other TV.

 

Whats in the box?

  • the MK802 Unit
  • HDMI Cable
  • USB Cable
  • Power Adapter (alternatively you can use the  USB for power)
  • Mini USB to Standard USB converter

Video review.

 

here is an Engadget review.

And you can order it here.

please note that I bought the MK802 by mistake,

there is a second version called MK802 II which is better.

EDIT:

and a third version the MK802 III which is better even. :P

ASUS Padphone 2 and HTC J Butterfly

in a previous post I was trying to decide on which phone to get next, out of the options there weren’t so many pics/videos on the ASUS PadPhone2, and now I found a video that shows the size and docking of the phone/tablet combo.

too bad its white, because I don’t like white on my phones.

 

more and more videos are flooding YouTube on the ASUS.

 

on the other hand, something else got me excited; the sexy HTC J Butterfly.

Read the rest of this entry »

Help me choose my next smartphone

as more and more smartphones are being launched/released/announced

I’m getting more excited about getting me a new one,

the following is a list of Smartphones that I’m hoping to get,

and I need your opinion on which you think is the best.

I just want to mention that one phone outside of this list “Samsung Galaxy Note 2″

is also an interesting option, but I would rather one of the following:

 

  • the Nokia Lumia 920 [Link]
This is the one I’m leaning towards the most, by peer pressure XD.
but seriously I would like to try Windows 8 mobile as a platform,
I’m sure Windows 8 will cover all my mobile needs in terms of apps,
but I’m not sure if its as fun as Android when it comes to use,
will I be Able to customize stuff? is it intuitive and easy ? I dunno.
so getting the Nokia means I might want to go back to Android later.
on the other hand I’m certain that the Hardware on Nokia is superb and I’m
having a hard time picking a color.

Click the Image for video.

this is the wireless contact charging thing they have,
also I dunno if this is out yet or when it will be out.
  • ASUS PAdphone 2 [Link]
the second most interesting smartphone,
because I’ve been a fan of ASUS since I got the Tablet
(See Post Also Greak’s Nexus7 Post ).
this video is the first (and probably only) of the phone that’s there,
although I love it but please ignore the Taichi it’s irrelevant </3.
 (video courtesy of OreoQ8).
the downside here is that I don’t really need another Tablet,
and it beats the purpose to get it without the Tablet part,
but if I would buy it I would for the specs.
  • LG Optimus G

Click Image for Source and article

the Optimus G is the only one on this list that I like PURELY because of specifications,
on paper its really amazing, and it looks great too
(the back panel has a fancy looking gorilla glass bezel)
but I dunno when it will be released or if LG is good when it comes to performance quality, one review stated that the battery life is weak, and the 13MP camera is not as impressive as it sounds.
 
It’s really exciting to see a high spec phone on the market, but my concern is the brand name here, I never owned an LG before, also i would like to mention that the ASUS Padphone matches it perfectly in terms of specs.
  • HTC One-X+
Ahhh, HTC.
the one-x is the phone I wanted earlier, and now it got an upgrade,
simply put this among the other phones on the list is the least interesting,
but I want it because I truly love HTC, the hardware quality,
the screen is beautiful and the phone is generally great
(warning this video is in German, but watch it in HD :B)
the older one had some manufacturing  downsides,
some of my friends complained about screen malfunction or weak Wifi.
I certainly hope all these things are fixed in the new HTC One X+.
  • Conclusion
after looking around online, and reading I can’t really make my mind on which phone I would get, ideally I would get the Lumia an another one of the three Androids, but I don’t want to spend 300KD+ on phones, so check out the phones and let me know in the comments.
please note that I’m not interested in iPhone or Samsung phones.