Tuesday, 22 November 2011

Five Online Options for Making Music on Your Web Browser

In the past, there have been many obstacles that have stopped the average person from making their own music. However, most of these obstacles are now gone thanks to cloud computing. No longer does a person have to purchase expensive software to competently edit, record, and mix their own music. Those types of applications can now be accessed through regular internet browsers for free. Thanks to cloud computing technology. Below is a list of five of these amazing programs.

Produce music online on web browser

(Courtesy Of Flickr User: Gorski)

If your connection speed is too slow to handle these kinds of programs, consider reading internet provider reviews to find a better ISP. You don’t want to lose an audio project you put a lot of work into. Using internet provider reviews, you should be able to find out which hosts provide the bandwidth needed for these sophisticated music editing programs.

Otomata

One such program is known as Otomata. It is available online free of charge. This program allows people to compose music with the simple click of the mouse. It’s extremely simplistic in design and easy for anyone to pick up.

A person can compose music by clicking on cells within a box. You can choose to send those cells left, right, up, or down. Once you press play, it releases these cells. When the cells hit a wall in the box, it produces a sound in a certain pitch that is determined by where the collision takes place in the box and other settings such tempo and scale.

Audio Sauna

Another website that takes advantage of the power of cloud computing is Audio Sauna. This website gives you access to powerful production tools that once were only available to individuals that could afford to buy or rent very expensive synthesizers, drum machines, and other audio production equipment.

Tools available in this site’s music production suite include a digital keyboard, synthesizers, low-pass and high-pass filters, a channel mixer, and more. It’s like having high tech music studio right on your web browser.

Produce music online on web browser

(Courtesy of Flickr User: Marco Raaphorst)

Audio Tool

Another great free resource is Audio Tool. Like Audio Sauna, Audio Tool gives you direct access to digital production tools such as synthesizers and drum machines. However, it does more than let you produce music. It also allows you to record vocals and instrumentals through the microphone application and edit them in the Audio Tool digital studio.

This program is also great for newcomers. It comes with a number of templates such as “dubstep” and “techno” that can be used as a starting point. Audio Tool is available both as a browser program and as an app, allowing people to edit and record music nearly anywhere.

Tone Matrix

Another fun online program is Tone Matrix. Like Otomata, this tool was designed to be very intuitive and easy to pick up for just about anyone. Also like Otomata, it allows people to construct music by simply clicking on different grid spaces within a box.

This box, however, is actually a 16 step sequencer. It can allow you to create complex compositions that rival anything that could be produced by an ordinary keyboard. It is also extremely addictive. You may find yourself spending a lot of free time to see what different tunes you can come up with, using this very simple tool.

Soundation Studio

Lastly, but certainly not least, is Soundation Studio. Like other online digital music suites, this online program grants you access to a plethora of different production and mixing tools. However, Soundation has certain great resources not available elsewhere. This includes a large loop library as well as digital tools that reproduce the sounds of acoustic instruments.

Using this digital studio, you can edit and record your music. You can also use the studio’s tools to post your music on your website so you can share it with others.

In Conclusion

Due to the advent of the internet and cloud computing, being forced to pay for expensive studio time or the assistance of a sound engineer to create polished music has come to an end. Paying for expensive programs like Pro Tools may also be a thing of the past as well.

This is due to the fact that many of the same exact tools are now available for absolutely free to anyone that has internet access. The introduction of even more advanced tools and features such as online collaboration between different musicians shouldn’t be too far off either. The face of music is certain to change forever.

How to Improve Battery Life on Android Phones

 

Increase Android Battery LifeFor a long time I used to have an old Nokia phone. It didn’t have any cool features, but I liked it a lot and didn’t want to replace it… until the day I saw the HTC Incredible S. First of all, I liked its appearance, then I started reading about Google’s Android OS and its advantages, and one day I decided to buy this phone. I was lucky enough to find it for quite an affordable price, so I went for it.

The HTC Incredible S is really a very stylish, I can even say a gorgeous smartphone, and Android brings in so many useful features my old phone didn’t have… But the problem is – I found out that Android phones have a really short battery life, or so it seemed to me. I could use my old Nokia for about a week before the battery was drained, and my new Incredible S’s battery lasted only for a day or even less. I was really surprised and started reading different forums to find out if the other Android users had the same problem. It came out that Android devices usually have a really short battery life – HTC Incredible S users said they could actively use their fully-charged devices for 6-9 hours – and that’s all.

6-9 hours couldn’t be enough for me, so I started looking for ways to improve the battery life of my Incredible S. It took me some time to find ways to save some battery life not depriving myself of the goodies Android offers. And here are my tips; I hope they’ll be useful for other Android users as well:

1. First of all, try to keep your phone’s software and apps up-to-date, download the new versions as soon as they appear, since they’re usually more optimized and consume less battery life.

2. Second, did you know that the air temperature and pressure affect your Android phone’s battery life? Keep in mind that your battery will be drained in a few hours if it’s too cold or hot around or if you take it with you to high mountains.

3. Third, services like Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and GPS consume battery life even if they’re just on but not being used at the moment. So if you want to improve your Android phone’s battery life, it’s better to keep these services off when you don’t need them.

4. Screen brightness also affects the battery life of Android phones – the brighter the screen the more power it consumes. So decrease the default brightness of your smartphone’s screen if you want to save battery life or turn auto-brightness on (if your phone has such an option; the HTC Incredible S has it) – the phone will make the screen darker when you’re indoors thus saving a considerable amount of battery life. You can also use darker static wallpapers instead of bright live ones – they also consume less power.

5. Sometimes when you close an app its process remains open and continues to drain your phone’s battery, that’s why it’s a good idea to always make sure that all needless processes and apps are closed. Android phones usually have built-in apps and task managers to deal with those apps and processes, but you can also use something like the Advanced Task Killer or any other similar app from Android Market.

6. And the last tip is to check emails, weather forecasts and other things like that manually, since data push services also consume much battery life.

If you follow these tips, you’ll be able to prolong your Android phone’s battery life up to 2-3 days. Maybe it’s not too much, but at least it’s much better than 6-9 hours, right?

5 Reasons to Swap Your Old iPhone for the iPhone 4S

While the rate at which technology changes and improves can sometimes be overwhelming and even frustrating — especially when you purchase a new piece of hardware only to find that a newer one has just been released — the benefits of technology’s advancements far outweigh the costs.

iPhone 4S

Apple iPhone users are currently experiencing this cost-benefit trade-off; the iPhone 4S recently replaced the iPhone 4, giving Apple fans yet another reason to open their wallets.  Many customers, however, are hesitant to shell out another $100-$400 for a phone that at first glance doesn’t offer any significant upgrades to what is already a great product.

But looks, as they say, can be deceiving.

Underneath the case the houses the iPhone 4S there are 5 remarkable changes to the hardware that make the 4S the best iPhone yet.

1. The A5 processor chip

While the A5 is still only a single core processor (rumor has it that the iPhone 5 will have the A6, which is a dual core), it offers twice the processing speed of its predecessor, which means that processes, programs, multitasking, and apps will all be faster and more efficient, with less lag, so you can do what you need and want to more quickly.

2. The dual core graphics processor, along with the upgraded still and video cameras

While Apple has always been known for its multimedia capabilities, the iPhone 4S represents a new standard in stunning visuals, which are now seven times faster than they were before.  That means that everything you see will be lighting fast, and ultra-responsive.  Furthermore, the graphics processor drives the camera and video capabilities in the phone, which are both wonders in and of themselves.  The still camera has over twice the resolution of the iPhone 4, and the video camera records in full 1080p, and also allows users to edit video on the go.  You’ve simply got to see the clarity and speed of these features to believe them.

3. The SIRI voice assistant

By now you’ve probably seen the Apple commercials that showcase this feature.  What the SIRI voice assistant does is make browsing and using your phone as hands off as possible.  Simply tap the icon and ask a question or give a command and your phone will respond.  It will read text messages, perform internet searches, find directions, set alarms, open apps, and much more.  The new signal processor in the iPhone 4S makes the SIRI voice assistant possible, and is only installed in the 4S.

4. The new antennae

That’s right.  Plural.  That means better signal strength and fewer dropped calls.  Need I say more?

5. The new OS and storage options

iOS5 was released in mid-October, and all new iPhone 4S’s come with it.  iOS5 has more features than I can list here, but rest assured that they all work to make your phone experience, and your life, easier.  With the 4S, customers also have the option of 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB models, so you can pick the phone that fits your price and storage preferences.

So, while it may seem like you won’t ever catch a break, and that Apple is always coming out with new and better phones faster than you can buy them, the truth is that the breakthroughs in technology are worth the extra buck now and then.  Technology isn’t going to stop improving — if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em!

Monday, 21 November 2011

Nokia Lumia 800 Price in India – 3.7-inch touchscreen Nokia Windows Phone Smartphone

The new Nokia Lumia 800 is the first Windows Phone Smartphone from Nokia . It sports a large 3.7-inch touchscreen AMOLED ClearBlack display with toughened glass stretching to the sides of the phone . It sports stunning design , similar to that of Nokia N9 (MeeGo OS) . There is no front camera in Nokia Lumia 800 , god knows why Nokia thought that this flagship smartphone can not be used for video calling .

nokia lumia 800
Nokia Lumia 800 mobile features :

  • First Nokia mobile with Windows Phone OS
  • Large , Bright full touch screen display
  • 8MP camera
  • smooth single-piece body
  • Powerful processor
  • Long battery backup

Nokia Lumia 800 specifications :

  • Display : 3.7-inch bright AMOLED ClearBlack display
  • Dedicated buttons at the front : Back, Start and Search (set in the glass)
  • available in colors: black, cyan and magenta
  • Camera : 8 mega-pixel with auto-focus ,Carl Zeiss optics ,and flash
  • HD video recording @ 30 frames per second
  • CPU : 1.4GHz processor
  • Internal memory : 16GB
  • cloud computing : 25GB of free SkyDrive storage
  • Network : Quadband GSM , UMTS
  • Connectivity : 3G HSDPA , WiFi , Bluetooth
  • Battery :
    • Talktime : up to 13 hours
    • Stand by time : up to 335 hours
  • Dimensions : 116.5 x 61.2 x 12.1mm
  • Weight : 142gm
  • Nokia Drive – free turn-by-turn navigation and a dedicated in-car interface
  • Nokia MixRadio – free global mobile music-streaming
  • Browser : Internet Explorer 9 fast, HTML5 applications

Nokia Lumia 800 Price in India : Around Rs.28,000 . Coming in December 2011 .

BlackBerry Bold 9790 Price in India – Touch and Type QWERTY smartphone

BlackBerry Bold 9790

RIM has launched the new BlackBerry Bold 9790 , a Touch and Type smartphone sporting a 2.4″ capacitive touch screen and a QWERTY keypad below it .

BlackBerry Bold 9790 features/specs :

  • Display : 2.4-inch capacitive touchscreen ,360 x 480 pixels resolution
  • Thickness : 11.4mm
  • Weight : 107g
  • Primary Navigation : Full QWERTY keyboard
  • Processor : 1 GHz
  • Camera : 5 mega-pixel auto-focus camera with LED flash
  • Memory : 768 MB RAM, 8 GB internal memory
  • Storage : Expandable up to 32GB (MicroSD card)
  • NFC support
  • Wireless LAN : Wi-Fi 802.11 n
  • Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
  • GPS Navigation with A-GPS
  • Office document editor : Documents To Go (Premium)
  • Pre-loaded applications : BlackBerry Protect for backup , Social Feeds 2.0 , Social networking applications , BlackBerry Balance (virtual wall between corporate and personal content)

BlackBerry Bold 9790 Price in India : Coming soon .. (Around Rs.24,000)

Blackberry Curve 9380 Price in India – 3.2-inch Touchscreen BlackBerry 7 OS Smartphone

Blackberry curve 9380

RIM has launched the new full touchscreen Blackberry Curve 9380 smartphone .It sports a large 3.2-inch touchscreen display with an optical track-pad below it  and is loaded with the latest BlackBerry 7 OS . This the is a slim and sleek all-touch design smartphone with light weight and premium build quality .

BlackBerry Curve 9380 features/specs :

  • Display : 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen , 480 x 360 pixels resolution
  • Secondary Navigation : Optical trackpad , navigation keys
  • Processor : 806 MHz
  • Camera : 5 mega-pixel with LED flash
  • Memory : 512 MB RAM, 512 MB internal memory
  • Storage : Expandable up to 32GB (MicroSD card)
  • NFC support
  • Wireless LAN : Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n
  • Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
  • GPS Navigation with A-GPS
  • Office : Documents To Go (Premium)
  • BlackBerry protect
  • Social Feeds 2.0 and Social networking applications

Blackberry Curve 9380 Price in India : Coming soon .. (Around Rs.18,500) .

Blackberry curve 9380

Intel Core i7-2700K Price in India – 3.5 GHz 2nd Generation Quad-Core Desktop Processor

Intel Core i7-2700K

The new Intel Core i7-2700K is the latest 3.5 GHz 2nd Generation Quad-Core Desktop Processor based on 32nm lithography .

Intel Core i7-2700K processor specifications :

  • Processor : Intel Core i7-2700K
  • Number of Cores/Threads : 4/8
  • Clock Speed : 3.5 GHz
  • Max Turbo Frequency : 3.9 GHz
  • Intel Smart Cache : 8 MB
  • Manufacturing tech : 32 nm
  • Max TDP : 95 W
  • Memory support : up to 32 GB DDR3-1066/1333
  • Processor Graphics : Intel HD Graphics 3000
  • Intel InTru 3D Technology
  • Intel Clear Video HD Technology
  • Dual Display Capable
  • Intel Turbo Boost Technology
  • Intel Hyper-Threading Technology
  • Intel Virtualization Technology (VT-x)

Intel Core i7-2700K Price in India : Around Rs.17,000 . Coming soon in Q4 2011 ..