TechFan Roundup: What feature on your phone or tablet do you rarely use?

Here we are on the Big Day - the day we get to hear about the refresh of the Samsung Galaxy S III, the phone that toppled the iPhone off of its highest-selling pedestal last year. The Samsung Galaxy S 4 is to be revealed later today, and is purported to become the smartphone to end all smartphones.

How much more can they really cram into these things, really? Big (and Bigger!) screens, NFC, Bluetooth 2.0, 3.0, 4.0, GPS, accelerometers, gyros, and wait for it.... IR (Infra Red) Blasters that you can control your fancy television with! How many of these fancy add ons does one really use? It seems every day we're inundated with phone specifications that are a mile long, only to become obsolete by the Next Big Thing just a few weeks later.

So, we ask our staff this question:

What popular feature on your phone or tablet to you rarely use and why not?

For me, it has to be NFC (Near Field Communications is used to 'bump' phones to kiosks or other phones to transfer payments or data wirelessly). I used the NFC feature on my Nexus 4 for about a week when I first bought it, but rarely use it now. There aren't many retailers near me using NFC terminals for payment. I'll admit it's fun and convenient to use, despite the weird looks I get when I DO use it. I wish I could use it more and hope the technology takes off some day.

Tony Robinson: I have a Samsung Galaxy Note 2 on Verizon Wireless and I hardly ever use the S Pen. Jotting down notes via the virtual keyboard is something that just comes second nature. I'll explore the S Pen features sooner if my life slows down a tad.

Greg Madhere: I use every single feature daily... kidding.... For me, it's Wi-Fi Direct. Though technically it could be my LTE radio since Sprint is rolling out their nationwide network as fast as uploading the Lord of the Rings Trilogy HD Extended Cut over dial-up. /Rant over

Marc Zeffren: Camera. I know, one huge thing people look for in a new phone is the camera. The camera on my iPhone 5 is great, but I just don't really have much to take pictures of on a regular basis, so I rarely use it.

Jason Moser: iPhone. I never use the Stocks app/Widget. I think I've accidentally opened it after moving icons around but never intentionally.

Russ Hanson: I have the the HTC One X+ and I rarely use the front-facing camera. Don't get me wrong, it's a nice feature to have and I have used it maybe once. I don't do video chats, but it is handy when taking self portraits. I'm sure the same could be said for all smartphones, just not a feature I use very much.

Rick Nelson: I don't use the burst shot and video on my One X that got hyped up. I want to record videos use the burst shot but I lack reasons to use my phone over my dedicated video camera.

Andrew Allen: I second the front facing camera. It's nice to have, if I ever decide to use it, but I don't think I've used it more than twice on any phone I've owned. If I need to do a video chat I don't want to have to hold the phone. I'll sit down with my desktop for that.

Shanice Richardson: I hardly ever use Siri on my iPhone 5. I'll admit she's convenient about once every other month, but I wouldn't miss her if she were gone.

Sharon Copeland: Ok this is going to cause gasps...but it's Siri on my retina iPad. I never use her. If I want something, I use Google. On my (Galaxy) Note, I never use the NFC feature, I am actually scared to, but look forward to using it with the Samsung SG3 and One.

Kayla Ward: My Lumia 900 actually fits me well, where the only feature I next to never use is Nokia City Lens. I love the Local feature too much to care a whole lot about City Lens. "That's all I have to say about that." - Forrest Gump

Patrick Campanale: I just got a phone with NFC, and I was super excited to use it as tons of retailers by me have the NFC terminals. Only to find out that, as far as I know, you can't use the NFC on the Lumia 920 for that (unless I've completely missed that). I so badly want to use it, but just can't.

How about you? What feature on your phone to you use the least? Sound off in our comments!

Catch more of our TechFan Roundup articles here.

Image credit: Samsung Mobile US Twitter

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Jelly Bean 4.1 Rolls out to Moto Droid RAZR and RAZR Maxx

Owners of the Verizon-branded Motorola Droid RAZR and RAZR MAXX can now enjoy Android 4.1 as the carrier rolls out its Jelly Bean update over the next few days. There's no confirmation just yet on whether or not the usual bloatware is on board, but users can now enjoy the following Google goodies:

• Google Now – We could all use a good planner to keep track of our busy lives. With Google Now you get notifications generated automatically and in real-time even before you ask. Now your DROID RAZR and DROID RAZR MAXX can deliver sports scores, stock updates, weather reports and traffic updates so you have all the information you want even before you’ve had your morning coffee.


• Expanded Notifications – You should be able to call or text someone back right from your missed call notification. With Android™ 4.1 Jelly Bean you have the ability to do that and more. When you get a reminder about a meeting you can either tap once to snooze or even email participants to say you’re running late.


• Voice Search – Ask a question and get back the answer you’re looking for, ranging from “When is the next bus?” to “Where can I find a great Mexican restaurant?” You’ll either get a spoken response back or search results that answer your query.

Jelly Bean will make a great fit on this pair of Motorola's more powerful phones with great battery stamina on board to boot.

Source: Engadget, Motorola

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TechFan Roundup: Our Must-Have Apps for BlackBerry 10

Later this month we’ll be introduced to the next version of the BlackBerry OS- BlackBerry 10- and the devices that will run BB’s much storied OS. Like webOS of days past, this is gearing up to be one of the most anticipated announcements in the tech world to date. Heck, some may even compare it to webOS itself, as the rumored (leaked) phones set to run it ditch the keyboard and go completely gesture-based.

Will this be the #3 player in smartphone-based operating systems we’ve been waiting for? Or will it see the same demise as our beloved webOS and go the way of the history books? Our own Andrew Allen makes a couple of key points in his article- the BlackBerry name is known world-wide and its user base has held strong, but for how long? This is BlackBerry’s time to shine, no doubt.

A popular brand name and large user base aside, a smartphone OS is nothing without key apps to keep users interested in the platform. For this Roundup, we went around the table to find out what key apps would get us interested in using BlackBerry 10 full time. For me, key apps would include easy access to my cloud-based storage in Dropbox and Google Drive. Evernote is critical, since I record almost everything with it. For navigation, Google Maps must be a sure thing. And forget on-board storage for music- give me access to my music in the cloud with a solid Spotify and Google Music app and I’m in 100%.

Tony Robinson: Pocket, Flipboard, Instagram, Tumblr, and a great Dropbox app.

Greg Madhere: I would definitely need Google+, Google Voice, Tumblr, and apps from major banking institutions.

Andrew Allen: I'm pretty easy when it comes to essential apps, and I think most will be there at launch. My five would have to be: Spotify, a podcatcher, well done Twitter client, some sort of parcel/package tracker, and a good Google reader app.

Shanice Richardson: Instagram, Level Up, a good navigation app, Good Reads, and Zinio.

Patrick Campanale: Instagram, a good Twitter client, Google+, a good YouTube app, and an official Google Talk client.

Andrew Clausen: When I was on Blackberry, there were several apps (or good versions of said apps) that were noticeably absent now that I've been on Android for a while. A decent Facebook that is native is simply unparalleled. Even new to Android, it is just faster than any other versions of the app. That bundles in Twitter apps as well. Twitter for BlackBerry was fine, I guess, but there's a reason I went searching for other apps: true push. Finally, there needs to be a good news aggregator. Whether Google Reader, Flipboard or some variant, it needs to be easy, fluid and pretty.

Chris Spells: Twitter client, Instagram, Google Music, Google Drive, Chrome browser.

What mobile apps would you need to make BlackBerry 10 your daily driver?

See all of our TechFan Roundup articles here.

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Samsung Mobile announces the Galaxy S II Plus

Today, Samsung added another phone to the Galaxy S family with the announcement of the Galaxy S II Plus running Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean powered by a 1.2GHz dual core processor. Also on board is a 4.3” Super AMOLED Plus display, 8GB of memory, 1GB of RAM, NFC, 1650mAh battery, 8 megapixel rear camera, and a 2 megapixel front facing camera. From the Press Release:

Seoul, Korea - January 10, 2013 - Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. announced today Samsung GALAXY S II Plus, which combines the performance that have made the GALAXY S II one of the world’s most recognized phones, together with nature-inspired user-interface and intuitive features that greatly boost its usability and functionality.

The GALAXY S II Plus runs on Android™ 4.1.2 (Jelly Bean) enabling faster and smoother screen transitions, and providing an enhanced user interface featuring a new, easier-to-use notification panel. It is powered by an impressive 1.2 GHz dual core processor that enables easy multi-tasking, smooth screen transitions and superior graphics for some of the most demanding applications and games.

The GALAXY S II Plus’ nature-inspired user-interface is complemented with intuitive features that make the phone really easy to use. Direct Call enables users to automatically dial a call by taking the device to the ear. Smart Stay recognizes whether the user is looking at the screen to dim the screen accordingly; while Smart Alert lets users know about missed events or status updates just by picking up the phone.

The GALAXY S II Plus also sports a range of additional features that boost performance and the overall experience in entirely new ways. Popup Video allows a video to play anywhere on the screen in a resizable pop-up window while simultaneously running other tasks, eliminating the need to close and restart videos when checking new emails or surfing the Web. S Voice lets users control the phone using their voice; and Voice Unlock lets users unlock the phone using their own voice.

A 4.3” WVGA Super AMOLED Plus display offers a generous viewing experience and enables photos captured with the powerful 8MP camera to be enjoyed in true clarity.

The rear camera features a zero-lag shutter speed that captures moving objects easily without delay. The innovative ‘Buddy photo share’ function also allows images to be easily and simultaneously shared with friends pictured in an image directly from the camera or the photo gallery. Additional features include Group Facetag and Face Zoom to deliver a complete photographic experience. The device is packed with the latest Samsung content services including AllShare Play, which lets users share content across Samsung devices using a single account and password. Users can also enjoy all the benefits of Samsung Hubs, including the latest versions of Readers Hub, Video Hub, Game Hub and Music Hub.

More details along with full specs can be found here. Source: Samsung Mobile[gallery ids="10548,10549,10550"]

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CES 2013 Favorites: Day 1

Well, the Consumer Electronics show is off and running in Las Vegas this week. Although Tuesday is officially day one of the show, the parties began over the weekend and hinted at what was to come as the show went into full swing.

As expected, day one brought with it a stream of exciting news from the show floor. Here are a few of our favorites.

Asus Qube with Google TV

Ausus has jumped into the Google TV fray with the announcement of the Qube, coming to the US around March for around $150. It sports USB ports all around, HDMI in/out, RJ-45, and a couple of IR recievers. It is powered by a Marvell Armada 1500 chipset, 1GB of RAM, and 4GB of flash storage. Besides the standard buttons on the remote control, the flipside contains a QWERTY keyboard. If you feel like ditching the remote altogheter, apps are available for the Nexus 7 and other Android devices.

Source: Engadget

Time Warner brings the love to the Roku box

Time Warner cable subscribers will be able to receive up to 300 live TV channels on existing Roku boxes at no extra charge.This will enable customers to ditch their cable boxes and the monthly fees that come with them. The TWC TV app is already available on iOS, Android, Mac, and PC’s, and will be available in Roku’s ever growing app store in the first quarter of 2013.

Source: CNet

Huawei one-ups the Galaxy Note with massive 6.3 in. Ascend Mate

Chinese-based Huawei has taken the covers off of one of the largest smartphones seen to date- the super-massive Ascend Mate sporting a 6.1 inch, 720p display. The phone runs Huawei’s Emotion UI over Android Jelly Bean and features a 1.5GHz processor, 2GB of RAM, and an 8-megapixel camera. This thing is huge, folks! How much bigger can these phones get?

Source: The Verge

Lenovo goes big with 27-inch Table Computer

While we’re on the huge devices kick, how about Lenovo announcing a giant, 27-inch “table PC” - or at least that’s how they describe it. It weighs 17 pounds and runs Windows 8 on a third-generation Core i7 processor. The “table tablet” is also adjustable so it can be viewed at various angles. One giant tablet for the entire family to enjoy on the table at breakfast time.

Source: All Things D

Fitbit Flex activity tracker gets stylish

Fitbit has announced the Flex- the 3rd product in its lineup of fitness monitors along side the Fitbit One and Fitbit Zip. Along with tracking calories like its Fitbit brethren, the water-resistant Flex counts steps taken and distance, transferring data to a personalized website wirelessly via bluetooth. The Flex is $100 and available for per-order today with a release sometime in the Spring.

Source: Engadget

Here are a few of our writers favorites from Day 1 of CES

Greg Madhere: Sony Xperia Z with 5 in. 1080P display

Likes: 1080p display resolution, 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon processor, LTE connectivity, and a 13-megapixel Exmor RS camera sensor. 3 color options. Water resistant and includes a microSD card slot.

Dislike: Not sure how I feel about the glass back trend and the video HDR sounds gimmicky. Also 5 inches might be too big for my paws.

Source: The Verge

Marc Zeffren: Samsung’s “worlds first curved OLED TV”

Samsung claims its curved TV will provide a more immersive viewing experience and improves viewing angles. The massive 55 inch TV is due in the second half of 2013.

Source: The Verge

Andrew Allen: I really like what the auto industry is doing. They seem to be headed towards an app revolution of sorts and heavily courting the idea of opening the car infotainment networks up to developers and 3rd party applications. This will make for interesting times ahead to see what type of apps are brought forth for on the road use and what kind of current apps may get heavy integration upgrades.

Source: All Things D

TeckieGirl: I am personally loving the new line up of Vizio's new tablets. They make fabulous TVs, I own one. They look great and you can use the remote or the touchscreen. The tablets look a little thick from the photos;  and I would love to see the tegra 4 chip running on them. I am happy TV's are getting smarter.

Stay tuned to TechFanatix as we bring you more from the show floor in the coming days!

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Pillow fight!

Every once in a while I'll run accross something and say, "Why didn't I think of this?"

Check out this Flickr Photo Set by one of my Flickr contacts, who is a great punk show photographer by the way. It features photos of a pillow fight league in Toronto, Canada.

I think this would be a hoot to see live.

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Nanofabulous!

Well... I caved and bought the new 2nd generation black 8 gig iPod Nano and loving it. I struggled with either getting this or the larger hard-drive based video iPod, but I realized that I really don't need my entire music library with me at all times, and I watch video on my Treo anyway. Thanks to services such as Avvenu and Orb, I have access to all of my music no matter where I am with an internet connection.

My old hard-drive based iPod started skipping songs, and made some slight clicking noises on occasion, probably telling me that it was time to put it to rest. It's now a spare USB drive for my laptop.

The new Nano is absolutely gorgeous. It's such a simple design and it just works. One annoying problem with syncing my Treo 700P with iTunes was that it loaded the songs out of order, and since I need to listen to the order of the JstreetRADIO playlist, it's critical the songs play in the order people will hear them on the air.

It's small enough to carry anywhere and while working out (more on that later!). My only real complaint is that the wheel doesn't have a backlight which makes it difficult to see what button your pressing in the dark- it's a bit disappointing. Oh well, I'd figure they can't cram too much into that tiny case anyway.

Now if they would just invent a Treo case that will piggyback my Nano on to it... hmmm... I smell an invention coming...

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