Computer Support Blog

Apple is not the only company that is working hard to fill in the last size gaps between the smartphone and the tablet computer.  While e-readers once had a niche of their own, with the emergence of the Kindle Fire and the growing rumors about the mini-iPad, it appears that every major mobile computer company is racing to create tablet computers or smartphones with screens in the 5” – 6” range.  One of the first to market is the Samsung Galaxy Note.

The Samsung Galaxy Note joins the Samsung Galaxy line as a smartphone with a significantly larger touchscreen – 5.3”! – than most and it is designed to impress.  With its HD Super AMOLED display, the Galaxy Note presents vivid colors in an incredible 1280 x 800 resolution.  This level of resolution is incredible for a handheld device and means that streaming movies and television will look about as good as they would on a high definition monitor!  With the display screen made of Corning’s Gorilla Glass, the Samsung Galaxy Note resists scratches and breakage.

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Learning a new musical instrument is never easy.  But, following the demise of Guitar Hero, there is – as one might suspect – an app for that!  Now, those who want to learn to play the guitar need only a guitar, an iPad, and Wild Chords to get started on a road to musical proficiency!

Wild Chords is an application, currently exclusively available for the Apple iPad, that helps teach you how to play the guitar.  In order to use Wild Chords, all you need is a guitar and an iPad; you do not need speakers or an amplifier if you are using an electric guitar.  In fact, if you are using an electric guitar, you have to unplug it from other equipment – like an amp – because the distortion from other equipment affects the program.  Even if you have never picked up a guitar before, Ovelin – the app’s publisher – is confident that Wild Chords can teach you.

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Every company in the technology sector has a strategy and few companies have been as open about their outlook for the market as Nokia.  Nokia, the mobile phone manufacturer, is widely attributed with connecting one billion people to cellular networks through their innovative and popular devices.  Recently, Nokia unveiled its “Next Billion” Strategy.  While their stated goal is clear – Nokia wants to be the supplier for another billion mobile phone customers – their exact strategy to reach the goal is not as evident.  However, it is Mary T. McDowell who will be responsible for achieving the Next Billion goal!

Mary T. McDowell is the Executive Vice President of Mobile Phones at Nokia.  This means that the ultimate decisions and responsibilities for all things having to do with mobile phones at Nokia fall upon her.  While Nokia’s CEO plays an important role in achieving the Next Billion Strategy, McDowell’s marketing prowess with mobile phones will go a long way toward determining the success or failure of the plan.  Given that McDowell was the executive that shepherded the popular and wildly successful E-Series mobile phone from Nokia to the global marketplace (well in advance of the current CEO taking that position), it looks like McDowell is more than up to the task.

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If asked what they first think of when putting cars and smartphones together, most people would answer with something about not texting while driving or about touch screens in their car. No one would answer with “an iPhone case.”

That may be about to change, however, because Nissan is getting ready to release a new iPhone case. Yes, Nissan the car manufacturer is making an iPhone case, yet why they are is very interesting. The Nissan Scratch Shield iPhone case will heal itself from any kind of scratches that occur.

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Like so many industries, the consumer electronics sector has a vibrant secondary market.  Thanks in no small part to Alpha Consumers frequently upgrading and the consumer culture that fosters the mindset that this year’s new products will be obsolete or uncool by next year, the used electronics market has grown in recent years.  Buyers who are more interested in substance than style or who are simply thriftier than their peers can enjoy significant benefits from buying their electronics in gently used condition.  One of the biggest sectors in the electronics secondary market is in cell phones and smartphones.

However, just like when you are considering purchasing a used car, there are some good rules to live by when purchasing a used cell phone or used smartphone.  Both as a buyer and a seller, you should consider the following:

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Apple Computers, employs an elegantly simple strategy to dominate the mobile computing marketplace.  Apple’s strategy is built largely on a hope that you will buy their entire product line, not just one or two of their devices.  That is to say, products from Apple, more than any other company in the technology sector, are designed to interact easily with one another.  For example, Apple makes it very easy to connect an iPad to an iTV or a MacBook Pro.  But, as many people have discovered, there are more affordable high definition televisions with more options than the iTV.  But why should you be inconvenienced for wanting a great HDTV and an iPhone and wanting them to interact?  Scosche does not think you should be inconvenienced!  That is why Scosche made the sneakPEAK HD Cable!

Scosche’s sneakPEAK High Definition Audio/Video Cable for iPad, iPhone & iPod is a fairly simple cable that allows you to connect virtually any Apple i-product that has a screen on it to a high definition television.  By connecting your Apple products’ output port to the HDTV’s input ports, you are transforming your Apple product into a media player, like a DVD or Blu-Ray player.  This will allow you to play media from your iPod Touch, iPhone or iPad on your high definition television, even if you are streaming it from the Cloud!

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Puzzle games are exceptionally popular among casual computer game players.  The rise of smartphones has made video games accessible to a much larger audience. Puzzle games like Hexic and Angry Birds have effectively captivated smartphone users and opened entirely new markets up in the video game industry.  But while Angry Birds has remained comparatively static – Rovio has effectively merchandised Angry Birds beyond the popular game, but not released any new expansions for some time – a new game has come to dominate the puzzle game niche.  That game is Cut The Rope.

Cut The Rope is a physics-based puzzle game similar in several ways to Angry Birds, which might be why it so easily took over the same niche.  Developed by Chillingo, Cut The Rope features bright colors and simple animation that makes it ideal for playing on a smartphone or tablet computer, where one does not need the most advanced monitor to get the most out of the game.  When Chillingo released Cut The Rope to the Apple App Store during the fourth quarter of 2010, it sold three million downloads before the end of that year!  Since its initial release, Chillingo has continued to release Cut The Rope for different video game platforms, as well as a new expansion, Cut The Rope: Experiments.

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With so many people investing heavily in better and better high definition television sets, it is getting hard to recommend new computer monitors.  For sure, if you keep your PC segregated from your HDTV, a new computer monitor is necessary.  But, if you are spending a lot of money on a fancy high definition television, many of your peripherals will interact with it.  In other words, you can get the most for your money out of both your computer and electronic devices and your high definition television by connecting your gadgets to your HDTV.  For those who have a Sony Cyber-shot digital camera, that means getting a VMC-MHC1 High Definition Output Cable.

The VMC-MHC1 High Definition Output Cable serves as an adapter for the Cyber-shot digital camera.  Designed for high definition video signals, the Sony VMC-MHC1 converts the images on your Cyber-shot digital camera into a format that your high definition television may recognize.  Because of its simple configuration, the VMC-MHC1 cable is exceptionally easy to use and requires no software to reconfigure your images.  This is a true plug and play device and it allows you to see all of your photographs on a giant, high definition screen!

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With all of the rapidly-changing aspects of computer technology, it can be very hard to keep up.  Indeed, for those who are casual computer users without real investment in the computer hardware industry, it was not so long ago that the USB port became the dominant interface port.  Suddenly, when you upgraded your computer and wanted to use your favorite old keyboard or mouse, you discovered there were no ports in the back of your new computer for it!  Like compact discs to records, the USB port has pretty much eliminated most specialized ports on computers.  In the world of USB ports, USB 3.0 is slowly creeping up in popularity.

But, you might be wondering, just what is USB 3.0?

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One of the most popular New Year’s Resolutions in the United States is to make a commitment to lose weight or improve your health through better management of your diet.  To that end, there are a lot of impressive ways that technology can help you in your fight to lose weight.  Sites like CalorieCount and devices like the DietMate Weight Loss Computer can be real assets if you are trying to lose weight.  But, if you do not want to buy a new computer device or if you eat out a lot, those products may not work well for you.  For you, there is the YumPower app!

YumPower is an application for smartphones from HealthPartners.  The premise of the application is ridiculously simple; when you tell the app your current location and the type of diet you are on, it finds proximate restaurants to you that will meet your dietary needs.  Even more impressive, YumPower not only indicates which restaurants you can eat at, but it informs you of the menu items that meet your dietary needs.  So, for example, YumPower asserts that for those who are on a low calorie diet, Denny’s has nine options for your dining pleasure!

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