iPhone Vs Android: The Real Showdown!

Let's start measuring both the mobile platforms with features which we care about the most.

In terms of ease of use, most of the users will agree that iPhone takes the cake. Android has come a long way and has improved a lot but from the ease-of-use perspective, the iPhone wins hands down. Android phones consist of too many buttons and home screens too.

In terms of openness, Android is the clear winner since it is open source, and most users prefer openness in terms of what can be used with the smartphone. The apps make the phone, after all!

iPhone has the best battery compared to the Android phones. Most Android devices get lots of features and that is why the battery life is lower compared to the iPhone. Android phones vary in terms of battery performance but overall they are a notch lower than the iPhone here.

Both the mobile platforms are supportive of multi-tasking. iPhones and Android phones both support multitasking to the hilt nowadays while iPhone has had some trade-offs in terms of battery life improvements which is important too!

The iPhone's software keyboard is significantly better than the Android's default keyboard while in terms of a system-wide search, both iPhone and Android can search out almost anything although Android devices cannot search emails.

iPhone's notification center is a bit clumsy compared to the Android's list of notifications. But in terms of voice to text feature, the odds are slightly in favor of the iPhone since with the new Siri, the feature works much better than any of its counterparts.

iPhones are surprisingly old-fashioned when it comes to syncing and it requires the users to plug in and connect to iTunes that should have been done wirelessly. Android phones have a fantastic Google syncing capability so much so that it continues to work even if you change or lose your old smartphone.

Android is not so great in syncing with popular sources of data other than Google Sync especially Outlook, Address Book and the like. Here iPhone is the clear winner. The Android tethering situation is seriously better off than what the iPhone provides. Android edges ahead of the iPhone since it has the ability to turn your handset into a Wi-Fi hotspot which can actually deliver wireless connections to you of up to 7 friends.

Apple presents the iOS updates better than what Android does. The iPhone ecosystem is pretty much easy to understand and every new phone receives the new update. Every other phone in the ecosystem can also receive the update unless and until it is the oldest one.Android does not have a streamlines way of going about the updates.

And one of the most important feature of all: the apps. Though the Apple store has more than four times the number of apps than that of Android, there is a lot of crap too in the App Store. Also, as of now most of the critical apps are now available for both the iPhone and Android. Overall, it can be said that both are good.

One can safely say that in terms of gaming and music experience, there's no beating the iPhone apps yet. Android has a lot of catching up to do with the Android apps.

Is Windows 8 the Next Generation Operating System?

Windows might not be the most perfect operating system in the market. However, if you go through the operating system statistics, one thing is clear. Eighty to ninety percent of the computer users uses a Windows operating system. Supporting wide range of hardware models, provide a simple user friendly platform to work with and giving it for a reasonable price are the key factors for the success of the Windows. With time there are more hardware and software challenges in the market where Microsoft need to proved a solid solutions. Let's see how Windows 8 will take your computer experience to the next level.

Hardware challenges for Windows 8 are the touch base devices and low powered mobiles devices.

Microsoft first demonstration of Windows 8 shows, Windows 8 uses same user interface of Windows mobile 7. It is modern, clean touch friendly interface will change how you interact with the computer. It is not only designed for touch base devices tablets but for desktops, laptops and netbooks. That will allow you to use one operating system for your desktop, laptop netbook or even for tablets. Special requirement of Windows 8 is to support ARM devices, which are low powered mobile devices. That clearly shows that Windows 8 will enter the tablet market in 2012.

With the popularity it inherits the security issues. Windows operating systems are been the target of attacks, hacking and virus and malware attacks. Windows 7 fix most of the vulnerabilities that Windows XP was suffering. Windows 8 needs to improve it to provide a solid platform for its users. Early leaks and the Windows 8 Build show that it is going to have 128 bit option. It will give power to have fast processing and more secure computers with Windows 8. Not only that it be powered with Hyper-V 3.0 virtualisation. It is a more secure, fast and reliable environment.

Kinect is another life changer still only limited to gaming world but slowly rolling to your computer with the recent released software development kit (SDK) for the PC. Definitely it will change the way you use the computer. Control your computer with the hand and body movements. New Windows 8 user interface will provide the ideal user interface for this type of situation. Already, there are various application build with Kinect that can be run on the PC.

Windows 8 biggest challenge is to replace Windows XP and Windows 7. Windows XP is there for ages and Windows 7 been the most stable and secure operating system. Beating Windows XP and Windows 7 will need lots of improvements and adding new features required to support the new technology. Faster booting is one of the key areas that need to come with Windows 8 especially if Windows 8 is going to support tablets. Early Windows 8 leaks revealed that it solved the problem with Hybrid boot.

Soon we can figure out how Windows 8 will enter in to the tablet market as well as change the way we use the PC. Microsoft is planning to release Windows 8 in April 2012 and soon it will hit the market with the compatible hardware. One thing is sure that it will come with great new features and improvements and Microsoft will try their best to give an answer to security and provide an optimised PC experience.

How Is Windows 8 Different From Windows 7?

The article sheds light on the differences between Windows 8 and Windows 7, the two latest flagship operating systems from Microsoft. The information provided here is quite simple and reliable. Microsoft has taken an ambitious yet bolder step in terms of Windows 8. The engineering shows that Microsoft is all up for enthralling the world.

Windows 8 isn't out of Microsoft's magic box yet. However, the Windows 8 Developer Preview has been already out and on a roll for download. Since the rollout of the Developer Preview, users have been speculating how similar or different Windows 8 is from Windows 7. Do both the operating systems have anything common or rare to change the way they use their computers or the internet? Let's explore Windows 8 and depict the major differences between the to-be successor and its predecessor.

USB 3.0 support- Windows 8 integrates a built-in USB 3.0 support for a wide range of latest hardware and networking devices such as hubs and ports etc. The OS features a brand new, improved software stack for USB 3.0 support. It, besides, still features the old USB software stacks to support old USB devices. Individual users or businesses can now easily create virtual USB drives and transfer data 10 times faster than the earlier USB 2.0 functionality. Such an advanced USB device compatibility and data transfer speed are absent from Windows 7.

User Interface- The Metro-style UI (user interface) is the catch in Windows 8. It has become the most talked-about thing so far. The UI has been completely overhauled to offer more space and neatness. Why is it called Metro-style? It is because it brings all your apps and settings in one place. You can access everything from your emails, RSS feeds, photos, documents, to settings in Control Panel etc. from the user interface with a single tap and without navigating to different sections.

You can now touch-open all your apps with the new touch-friendly screen. Those shortcut icons don't appear anymore on the Start screen. You will rather see small, beautiful tiles for all the apps viz. documents, Windows Explorer, Internet Explorer, and Control Panel among other things. You can even customize your apps to determine what appears and what not on the interface. The years-old Windows Start button is gone. You will rather see 4 buttons at the extreme left hand corner if you want to navigate further. You will now also be to touch-type using either of two virtual keyboards, a thumb size and a full size.

Now you need not click on the famous X button to close a window. The app windows will close automatically after a certain period of time (don't worry, it will save the changes before being closed) to offer you a more enhanced and faster experience. You need not worry about closing all the windows before leaving or shutting down your computer. The famous and useful Windows Search utility has been shifted on the right hand of the screen and appears only when you want it to. There are many hidden utilities on the UI that appear only and only when you hover around your mouse. Otherwise, these remain hidden to make the UI look neater and spacious. All such features are not available in Windows 7.

SoC and ARM Support- Windows 8 now integrates a built-in support for SoC (System on Chip) structural designs and ARM (Advanced RISC Machine)-based devices from Intel, AMD, NVIDIA, Texas Instruments, and Qualcomm. The inbuilt featuring of SoC and ARM designs will surely change the computing experience of users. Powered by ARM designs, Windows 8 devices will now support both full desktop and Metro-style apps. The Windows 8 ARM version will come pre-integrated with Microsoft Office 15 apps viz. Excel, OneNote, PowerPoint, and Word etc. and Internet Explorer 10 among other desktop apps. Since Windows 7 has none of features, it remains totally different from Windows 8.

Built-in Security- Windows 8 integrates an inbuilt antivirus program in its Kernel. It will prevent viruses or other online threats from intruding into your system via the internet or infected USB devices. So if you plug in an infected USB device in the drive or your Windows 8 computer, it will simply not boot telling you that the device is infected and needs to be removed immediately. Isn't this sound great? Yes, it does as a built-in security is still a dream in Windows 7 and previous OS versions.

ISO Mounting- Windows 8 features an inherent ISO mounting utility. It means that you need not rely on third-party tools for creating virtual disk drives for partitions or ISO images files. There is no more DVD or CD burning if your hard drive already has a disk image. Mounting ISO files has become easier and more convenient with Windows 8. Every time you will mount an ISO file, a new letter (drive) will appear in the list of drives. Windows 7 has no built-in ISO mounting feature.

Galaxy Tab 2: Is It Worth The Purchase?

Samsung and Apple are into court battles because of the claims of the latter copying the designs of the former. The Galaxy Tabs are one of those products that said to have been copied from the iPad. But amidst the controversies, it had enjoyed some success behind Apple. It provided some alternative for those who either have no money to spend on shinier devices or just hate all products by Steve Jobs.

Users are expecting another product when the Galaxy Tabs 2 was announced. This was during the time when the rumors of the release of the iPad 3. But when the news about the specifications of the new tablets by Samsung came out, there was nothing to be impressed about.

All the hardware remained the same as the original. There is the dual-core NVIDIA Tegra 2 which is the same with the one on the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus. This processor is not an improvement over the original's Exynos processor. Actually, the Exynos is faster at is clocked at 1.2 GHz while the Tegra 2 is clocked at only 1 GHz.

The screen resolution is also the same which is depressing for Galaxy Tab loyalists. This is probably because of the news that the iPad 3 will have retina display and their favorite tablet has no improvements on this area. The 10-inch version will remain at 800 by 1280 pixels and the seven-inch version will stay at 600 by 1024 pixels.

While tablets are now transitioning to 4G LTE connectivity, the Galaxy Tab 2 remains at 3G. Just like the original, you have a choice between 3G and Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi only models. The speeds are the same as original: 21 MB/s for download and 5.76 MB/s for upload.

The only improvement on the Galaxy Tab 2 is the interface as it now sports the latest Android version, Ice Cream Sandwich. This version is the best looking version of Google's mobile OS besides offering a slew of new features. Ice Cream Sandwich is Android's answer to the simple elegance of Apples iOS 5.

With all of these, it seems like the Galaxy Tab 2 is just the original upgraded to the latest Android OS. ICS is good but we would have expected something better in terms of hardware from a company such as Samsung like what ASUS did with their Transformer Pad. There could have been added functions such as NFC or, as mentioned, support for 4G LTE. No prices have been released yet for these devices. But there are rumors that they will be sold at a lesser price than the original. If this is true then the Tabs are worth a look in terms of practicality. But performance wise, the new tablets by Samsung are depressing.

Google Play to Compete With iTunes

Google, who has long since been getting criticism for having its digital media services splintered, announced today the launch of Google Play. Google Play is cloud-based and consists of Android Market, Google Music, Google Movies, and the Google eBookstore. They will all merge together as a unified media service. Over the next few days users will see changes in the names as app updates will appear on their Android device: The Android Market will become "Play Store", Google Movies will be "Play Movies", Google Music will be "Play Music", and the Google eBookstore will become "Play Books". Google's motivation behind merging its content is to put itself "out there" on the market in order to compete with iTunes and Amazon and ensure the Android Market doesn't get bigger than Google itself. It's a long time coming, but now users will have more choices and iTunes gets another competitor worth mentioning for sure.

Google's Director of Digital Content, Jamie Rosenberg, stated on Google's Official Blog 3/06/12, "Entertainment is supposed to be fun. But the reality of it is; getting everything to work can be the exact opposite--moving files between your computers, endless syncing across your devices, and wires--lots of wires. Today we're eliminating all that hassle."

Google Play boasts 450,000 Android apps and games for download along with as many as 20,000 songs. The cloud based storage creates an Android cloud storage system capable of the same functionality as iTunes and opens up a whole new media system for Android users. Apple's App Store has more than 550,000 downloadable apps putting Google Play right behind the mobile app giant. Google and Apple will definitely be competing for the mobile-device market share since this transformation has been completed; making Google a force to be reckoned with.

Although Google Play will be marketed towards Android users, any Google user can get the benefits of the cloud-based storage. Google Music has the capability of storing 20,000 songs per user. Any previous songs you had already purchased or uploaded will not be affected by the change. As far as movies go, with Google Movies you are currently not allowed to upload personal movies to the cloud. The movie app is simple rentals only. Another thing to keep in mind with Google Play is that Google loves integration. Expect Google+ to appear prominently throughout Google Play and its apps to "connect users."

Considering the Apple App Store has had over 25 billion downloads and is rapidly increasing to an estimated rate of 15 billion app downloads per year, Google Play has its work cut out indeed! Google's move closes a "niche" that needed filling and by all accounts will give iTunes some clear competition. It's all about having everything in one convenient location and Google finally took the plunge and stepped into the big leagues. As noted previously in the Jamie Rosenberg statement, "Entertainment is supposed to be fun..." Google Play has listened to their users and resolved their problems with a simple, yet huge change and I believe it will take off in a big way. Google Play has the potential to become a name everyone uses like iTunes. They have placed themselves with precision in the Android Market so the rewards will be huge. Google has always been good at finding "niches" like ranking in search engines and little things like that. They have done it again with Google Play, so I say, "Watch out iTunes, you finally have legitimate competition in the mobile-app world!"