Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Connecting a Macbook (or Laptop) to your TV. Better than Roku/Boxee?
I’ve definely been able to use Hulu right on the laptop and it is fine. When it comes to Netflix, it gets a bit challenging for the top quality 1080p HD content. To fix this I use the computer on a cooling pad like this. All Mac laptops run very hot especially the newer ones which are faster and this is a required investment to not scorch your floor, desk or laps.
When talking about projecting to a TV I think you need to buy a mini DVI to DVI adapter and then a DVI to HDMI (or DVI or VGA depending on your TV) cable. You also need to get a computer audio (3.5mm) to RCA audio (red/white) cable. After all that, there is no guarantee that the resolution will be great. It worked great on my flatmate’s TV a few years ago but text was blurry on a TV at another person’s place.
But here’s my honest recommendation: if you had a budget of around $385
• you buy a used mac mini if you really want a mac on your TV (~$350, +about $100 for wireless keyboard and mouse)
• if you’re willing to be fine with only a browser, then you will have a lot more access to channels and tv shows designed for TV consumption with a boxee ($200) or a roku ($100) and if you really needed a mouse in addition to the remote keyboard, something like this ($50)
• $150 blu-ray player that comes built in with apps like Hulu and Netflix
I connected my super human desktop (insane core i7 config) to my <1 yr old 1080p HD tv and it looked OK for text but was awesome for video. It’s all about the light levels. A computer screen is able to manage the text on white background without burning your retina but for a TV which is set to be naturally of high dynamic range you’ll end up having to manually set the colour levels for the TV when using the computer and then go back for when watching just TV. And after about 2 weeks it became annoying trying to type for things with a wireless keyboard. It just seemed to be too much interaction for TV. I was so used to a very simple TV remote. My TV has online apps and with <3 button presses I can get to the Hulu app or the Netflix app and that is what I always use and have moved my desktop back to my desk, where it belongs. And for boxee and Roku you haves apps for each channel. You don’t need to go to comedycentral.com or whatever. Just pick the app (channel) and the show and it takes you right to the video. It is truly customised for the couch and cheaper. Source(s): www.wannabetechie.com
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
TravelSmart: Renewing your H1b Visa in Toronto
I’m a full-time employee (not contractor), so that affects experience. Contractors/consultants need to prove the vendor-client relationship. Most employers give employment letters for only 3 months out and it worries the consulate to approve a 3 year visa on a 3 month employment guarantee. But it's all the documentation you have. Take photos and letters to prove employment and length of actual projects and engagement. Just be prepared, that's all you can do.
Documents
As for documents they only asked for my previous passport with the old h1b stamp. They didn’t ask for any other documents (I had bank statements, wage records, tax records, offer and employment letters, performance reviews, office photographs, all old passports and visa stamps)
Immigration Clearance on Return to US
When entering the US (immigration) they asked for the old passport, h1b stamp and company letter and a lot of the same questions asked during the interview.
Interview
(my responses shortened and in bold)
1. Tell me about your employer and your job. Petition says address of home company, you say you work in SF. Explained
2. What degree do you have. EE. How is this relevant to your current job. Explained my current roles and how the degree helps me in my daily job
3. Tell me about your previous H1b and employer. Talked about previous job and why I left it for this job and how they are related.
4. Asked about life in San Francisco and how it is to work for employer continued to chat about life and work
--He issued me a provisional visa.
Timing
Visa interview was on Monday, issued visa on this day (no PIMS). Sent to DHL office on Thursday, I picked up on Friday. They recommend 7 business days from interview to receipt. In the case of PIMS nothing is certain.
Many people think you need to renew H1b in your resident country. While it is preferable especially for your first H1b stamping, you actually don’t have to. I did my first H1b in London (was a resident there) and the second in Toronto. My home country is Sri Lanka.
I’ve been hearing though that depending on your home country and city consulate the success rates may be different. Some people who have gone back to India have not been able to come back. Toronto is a tough consulate. Vancouver and Tijuana (I have heard) are easier. London definitely was easier. Essentially there was a time when it was easier to renew in the home country. It isn’t the case anymore. It’s fair chance wherever – you just need to have your documents. It is cheaper to renew at a border consulate (Canada or Mexico) vs. India because of the cheaper flight cost.
The end to end time in Toronto from interview to Passport receipt was 5 business days (can be sometimes 7 days). In Mexico it is around the same. I am hearing it is much longer in India.
www.wannabetechie.com
TravelSmart: Applying for a Canadian Visa from San Francisco
Type up a letter that lists of all the documents required for an applicant who is currently a US resident with H1b status (or whatever status you are in --this will slightly affect the documents required to prove residency in the US).
Here are the links that I found very helpful:
· Comprehensive visa guide: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/
· Photo specifications. I was able to take and print the picture for the US visa myself but the Canadian consulate has more stringent requirements. On some parts of their website they have even asked it to be taken by a professional photographer:http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/
· Fee schedule. Single entry visa will be given for period of trip and multiple entry visa will be given for two years. Cannot make payment online. Must be (drawn in US dollars) a money order/cashier’s check or bank draft payable to “Canadian Consulate General”http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/
· Application by mail. If you cannot make it to the Seattle or Los Angeles consulate for same day service (apply 9am, receive visa by 3pm – keep in mind arriving at the consulate after 11am will classify your application as apply by mail and will not have same day service), you can apply by mail. Use USPS Express Mail – most convenient for you and the Canadian consulate. Add a paid self addressed express mail envelope in your package that you will be sending to the consulate. Once you get the visa the consulate will send back your passport and requested documents in the self addressed express mail envelope. As for costs, this ran me about $40 including tracking (delivery confirmation) and signature service. Express mail is fast – overnight service.
· Timing. Technically it takes 14 business days for a mail application to process (additional days are added if you have a passport from this list of countries http://www.
www.wannabetechie.com
Friday, February 4, 2011
Apple iPhone 5 Rumors: What's Coming July 2011?
Premiership News writes:
Apple’s expected to release its 5th generation iPhone in a traditional fashion as usual to new product launch policy new product for many years which is at July 2011. In this article, we will try to understand what the iPhone 5 will bring to the market by depending on the tips and taking advantage of the official sources and sources close to Apple.
Firstly the hardware will be redesigned for sure due to improve the signal problem occurred with the previous version and obviously for style purposes.
The company behind the chipset was Infeneon, but have been changed to Qualcomm and it is expected to have GSM / CDMA / UTMS support. It could be said that the 5th generation iPhone will not have LTE
Apple said in a statement made previously, and indicated that the current stage of transition to 4G currently. They have also stated that this year will not be the iPhone 4G year because of the unstable equipment.
A new processor called A5, (double-Cortex A9 processor) with 1.2 GHz clock speed is to be used. Therefore it is possible to say that the new iPhone will be faster and higher performance.
Source(s): Premiership News
www.wannabetechie.com
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Nintendo 3DS Coming March 27th - Real 3D; No Glasses Necessary
- 3D screen
- 3D depth slider
- Motion sensor
- Gyro sensor
- 2 screens
- 3D camera
- Adjustable stylus
- Street pass
- Spot pass
- And many more features
www.wannabetechie.com
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Motorola Atrix Launching March 1st on ATT?
See our earlier post for more details on the actual smartphone, or go straight to the source.
Source(s): Motorola
www.wannabetechie.com
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Macworld 2011: $10* Groupon Deal of the Day (1/12/11)
Source(s): Groupon
www.wannabetechie.com
Saturday, January 8, 2011
CES 2011: Motorola Atrix 4G = Phone + Laptop
Only downside is that this will only be available on ATT (at least for now, we hope).
Read more at cnet CES.
Source(s): cnet CES
www.wannabetechie.com
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Top iPhone Apps for 2010
Angry Birds
The survival of the Angry Birds is at stake. Dish out revenge on the green pigs who stole the Birds’ eggs. Use the unique destructive powers of the Angry Birds to lay waste to the pigs’ fortified castles. Angry Birds features hours of gameplay, challenging physics-based castle demolition, and lots of replay value.
Fruit Ninja
Fruit Ninja is a juicy action game enjoyed by millions of players around the world, with squishy, splatty and satisfying fruit carnage! Become the ultimate bringer of sweet, tasty destruction with every slash.
Cut The Rope
A mysterious package has arrived, and the creature inside has only one request…CANDY! Help get the candy to Om Nom, the adorable monster, in this highly innovative and addictive puzzle game. Combining outstanding physics, devilishly tricky levels, and bright colorful visuals, Cut the Rope is one of the most original and fun-filled games on the App Store.
Hipstamatic
Digital photography never looked so analog. The Hipstamatic brings back the look, feel, unpredictable beauty, and fun of plastic toy cameras of the past! The Hipstamatic keeps the the quirks of shooting old school but gives you the ability to swap lenses, film, and flash settings all with the swipe of a finger.
Skype
With Skype on your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad, you can make and receive calls (including video calls), and instant message anyone else on Skype, wherever they are in the world. You can also save on international calls and text messages to phones. Skype is free to download and easy to use. With the latest version, you can now call over 3G*, and keep Skype running in the background.
Google Goggles (Google Mobile)
Originally introduced in the Android, Google Goggles is now a feature of the Google Mobile App for iPhone. Google Mobile App already lets you speak your queries, and it can also use your phone’s location to give you more relevant search results. In the new version of Google Mobile App just tap on the camera button to search using Goggles. Goggles will analyze the image and highlight the objects it recognizes!
Word Lens (our addition)
It's one of the most unique and useful apps out there, especially if you're a traveler. Just recently released by Quest Visual, it translates text in Spanish to English, and vice-versa. What's so cool about it? It does it in real-time, as you can see in the video below. It may not be 100% accurate and complete yet, but we're assuming its future updates will create improvements, as well as added features. One main functional element we think is missing is a screen shot button to save the image.
Source(s): Gizmo Crunch
www.wannabetechie.com
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
CES 2011: Panasonic Releases 3 New 3D Cameras
Still aimed for professional use, Panasonic has just pushed some new 3D/2D cameras out. The three new models are the HDC-TM900, HDC-HS900 and HDC-SD800 and all feature 3 MOS image sensor system with 1080/60p recording, Hybrid OIS, Intelligent Auto, and Eco-Mode. Additional specs:
* F1.5 Leica Dicomar lens
* 35mm wide-angle capability
* 20x optical zoom
* Crystal Engine PRO processors
* Hybrid Optical Image Stabilizer
* Intelligent Auto functions
* Record to SDXC/SDHC/SD cards
Source(s): Panasonic, Tech Digest
www.wannabetechie.com
CES 2011: D-Link WiDi: Display Media from A Laptop onto an HDTV Wirelessly
From the press release:
Source(s): D-Link
www.wannabetechie.com
Motorola Tablet: Running Android 3.0 (Honeycomb)?
* 1.0 GHz processor, 512 MB RAM
* 10 inch multitouch screen, 1280 x 760 resolution
* Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 3G
* Android 3.0 Honeycomb operating system
Source(s): addictivetips, YouTube, BGR, Engadget
CES 2011: LG's Smart Web-Connected Home Dream via THiNQ
www.wannabetechie.com
CES 2011: Hot Hot Smartphones
www.wannabetechie.com
CES 2011: More Tablets from ASUS
- 7" Asus Eee Pad MeMO running Android3.0, available June 2011, $499
- 10.1" Asus Eee Pad Transformer running Android 3.0 available April 2011, $399-$699
- 10.1" Asus Eee Pad Slider running Android 3.0 available May 2011, $499-$799
- 12.1" Asus Eee Slate EP121 running Windows 7 available January 2011, $999
CES 2011: Live Press Events
www.wannabetechie.com
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
CES 2011: Eye-Fi Announces Direct Mode - Connect Directly to Your Wireless Device, Smartphone or Tablet
Source(s): Eye-Fi
www.wannabetechie.com
CES 2011: Fling iPad Game Controller
Source(s): Ten One Design
www.wannabetechie.com
CES 2011: Iomega Announces Personal Cloud Storage
According to Iomega:
Iomega Personal Cloud is a patent-pending technology that connects desktop Iomega network storage devices to other devices—like PCs, Macs®, iPhones®, iPads®, and more*—via the Internet. Unlike public and private cloud applications, the Personal Cloud is completely self-owned and managed, so the content and accessibility is always under your control, and there are never any usage fees or subscription charges.
*Availability of iPhone/iPad application is expected in early 2011.
Source(s): Iomega Cloud, Iomega Press Release
www.wannabetechie.com
Monday, January 3, 2011
4gb vs. 250gb... or Upgrading your Xbox 360 Hard Drive
- Storage: the 250GB version of course has 250 gigs of memory (hard drive) while the 4GB version has 4 gigs of memory (flash). A hard drive upgrade of 250gigs is available.
- Finish: the 250GB version has the piano black finish similar to the Kinect accessory while the 4GB version has a matt finish.
Vizio Back Again: VIA Tablet and Smartphone running Android
Another thing to look forward to CES Jan 6-9 2011 is Vizio's launch of the VIA Tablet and Smartphone, say the folks at BGR.
HC EVO 4G Shift = Droid Incredible + Epic 4G
BGR just sent out a blast about the revelation of the latest HTC 4G phone with a slide our qwerty. To us it looks like Droid Incredible and Epic 4g have been mashed up to create this phone.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Big Tech Bets for 2011
1. Smartphones: iPhone 5, Android (3.0 -Honeycomb, 2.3 Gingerbread), Dual-Core Processors, NFC
2. Tablets: iPad2, Nook, Motorola Tablet
3. High-Speed Cellular Networks: 4G, LTE, WiMAX, HSPA
4. 3D: Gaming, Television
5. Cloud Computing: Storing it all online (Google Docs, Microsoft)
6. Social Networking: Facebook and Twitter
7. Graphic Hardware: Integrated Graphics Solutions
Read more about it at the source: PCMag
If you've got something to add, feel free to express yourself in the comment section below.
Happy New Year!