Apple SIM – The Cupertino Giant is Ahead of the Pack! Yet again!

Apple has just recently announced what everybody was waiting for – new iPhones and iPads along with a refresh of their MacBook and MacPro lineup. While they do bring in the expected bump in hardware and new version of IOS, the one factor that truly is innovative is the Apple SIM for iPad.

Cellular iPads were available for contract from various service providers up till now. But with Apple SIM, Apple aims to free their customers from the hands of the carriers. Without getting too technical, it is an embedded SIM that is not fixed for any carrier and you can switch carriers according to your likings.

All about Apple SIM

The traditional way of carrier subsidy on otherwise expensive Apple devices works as follows – You buy the device at a hugely subsidized rate but in turn commit to a 1 or 2 year contract for any carrier with a fixed voice and data plan. Thus until your plan expires, switching carriers is not possible without changing the device all together.

However, Apple aims to change this and in a good way. It is following an embedded SIM approach – where in your SIM is independent of any carrier.

You can switch carrier if you don’t like your present one or due to other reason without getting a new device or swapping the SIM – the same SIM works for any network. The specification for such an approach to SIM existed before but Apple is the first to bring it to the market.

What it means to Apple? 

As always, Apple with embedded SIM as set itself apart from the competition. Firstly, Apple is able to show its might over other OEMs – only Apple has the power to convince the biggest carriers from US like AT&T, Sprint, T Mobile and EE in the UK to allow such switching of SIM without actually doing it.

Further, by releasing it only for tablets, it is bound to meet certain amount of success. iPhone users traditionally use data plans anyway but tablet PC users tend to avoid cellular data connection all together. Thus rather than being harmful for the carriers, it represents a better opportunity to promote data plans to customers. Thus, it is a win-win situation for both.

The Future

Apple SIM is not free from its fair share of problems. First and foremost, for smartphones carriers will vehemently oppose it as it involves no contract and users can switch carriers at any point. Secondly, making a single SIM work with 20 different LTE bands across the worlds and bringing all carriers to support it will not be easy.

The software and hardware support is going to have to improve if Apple wants to see larger support for embedded SIM. With this release, Apple not only shows its innovation but also its power. Further, such embedded SIM technology can be utilized to control large-scale distributed devices as well over data networks. Expect a wider rollout of this feature from Apple in near future.

Puls Smartband Allows You to Leave Your Phone At Home

Technology is creeping into our lives faster than you can even comprehend all of it. SmartWatches certainly fall into one such category which hasn’t seen a burst of demand but yet everybody is jumping in the bandwagon looking at the future.

However, most of these wearable devices are downright ugly with thick, impractical design and with little utility. “They look more like technology”, quoted Will.i.am. Hence, Will.i.am has taken it to himself to design a device that can be wore around as a fashion statement instead of tech gizmo called the Puls band.

It’s more than a watch! 

The device for its size packs quiteanoomph. The device comes with a Qualcomm processor, 1 GB RAM, 32 GB internal storage, Built-in Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS and sensors like Accelerometer, Pedometer and Gyroscope.

The biggest surprise however is the fact that it has a built-in 3G radio through which you can make calls and supports data connection too. The data plan is right now provided by AT&T and in UK provided by O2. While Samsung with Gear S band was the first with cellular connectivity, the design alone wins it for many. However, the extra wide bezel may not please many.

The software side on things

The Puls band is not just for receiving notification from your smartphone. The band features a ton of software. The most useful would be a voice assistant akin to Siri from Apple – called Anita built in partnership with Nuance (which is an established player in the field of voice recognition software).

There is a Humin app too which lets you tap on the band screen face and ask to call people whom you met in the past and it can pull their bio-data too. Music is given adequate emphasis – there are collections of songs and you can ask Anita to store them in your custom collections.

Furthermore, there is support for fitness and health accessories and can help you with your trainer. In case you were wondering, it has a keyboard and email client too – though typing is not a pleasurable experience at all.

The Venture from Will.i.am

It seems like Will.i.am wants to make a statement in the world of technology and gadgets. He has created a full-fledged smartwatch/band that provides all the hardware and software and also has a style of its own.

It is slim, aesthetically pleasing and is not boxy in design. It will be available in Blue, Red, Pink and White along with variations involving gold and diamonds too. In addition, there are few other gadgets announced as well – A power jacket, Back pack that doubles and power source and speakers as well.

Puls band from Will.i.am is a product from i.am+ - a company that is funded by him. Apart from storing all you music, a voice assistant and internet, there is also voice calling as well. Will.i.am hopes that with this gadget in tow, you don’t have to lug around with your smartphone all the time. And the device is a style statement in itself.

A New Tool for Skype users- Translates Different Languages

Microsoft has revealed a latest Skype tool that permits voice chats to be translated into another language or words in near real-time. This real-time translation tool for Skype helps the users to carry out cross-lingual communications over the internet phone facility. There have been a lot of attempts over some years, through the Microsoft Research, to display such features of translating human communication. However, delivery of anything that is practical in real life, to suit the voice and words of many types of users and the tones of various languages has been regarded a nearly impossible job.

Researches to make such translator-

Microsoft Research has basically been concentrated on machine translation for over 10 years. Primary outcomes came with conversions for the product friendly Knowledge Base of Microsoft. The system became accessible for public use like the technology behind Bing Translator, prompting the tool’s development and status since its release. Nowadays, Bing Translator is utilized by many people and accepted by organizations globally.

If the translation method is centered on written content, it may work very weakly with spoken language. In case of Skype Translator research has been made on the neural networks that apply senones, that is, little pronunciation parts and these are the major component in speech decoding. In the opinion of Microsoft, it develops the exactness of speech-recognition nearly by sixteen percent, and hence enhances translations.

The company has stated that the technology starts a new system for speech detection and real-time speech translation, and gives a sight into a future generation language will no longer have to be a obstacle.

Skype Translator primarily will be obtainable as a Windows 8 beta application before the ending part of 2014. However, it is yet undecided whether the service would be free for the Skype users, or would be spread to other platforms.

Members present at the time of launching-

Gurdeep Pall, who is the vice president of the company Skype revealed the device at one of Code Conferences organized in Rancho Palos Verdes of California, recently. Here, chief executive of Microsoft Satya Nadella was also present. The demo illustrated the real-time audio conversion from English to the language of German and also vice versa, merging Skype voice and immediate messaging systems with Microsoft Translator tool, and neural network related speech recognition. 

Some other translators-

Microsoft is not the only one in its endeavor to present real-time conversion. Japanese wireless transporter NTT Docomo has presented a Japanese to English voice translator from the year 2011. Google also gave some endeavor to interpret voice chats, and by now offers an aspect for words on its own translation system. The big dissimilarity in this context is the sheer level of Skype that according to Microsoft gets above 300 million users joined every month, who spend over 2 billion minutes chatting every day.

Thus, with the help of it, you can converse in your local language to a different user who talks in a different tongue, and Microsoft will interpret it to the other individual.

Google Going to Consider New App Trial System for Google Play

Google is approaching to launch the new “Micro Apps “system that would allow the users to experience the entire features as that of the original system. It helps the users to get access easily and thus they can understand the entire features before purchase.

Once, you comprehend the complete benefits that you would receive you can take the right decision without any errors. Sometimes, you face certain confusions and want to get the trial option. Hence, Google brings in the suitable App trial system where you can get familiar with the complete features. Knowing the detailed procedure, you can analyze whether the App fulfills all your requirement according to your needs.

The User-Friendly Approach

Google maintains a complete user-friendly procedure that you can easily manage. Once, you get familiar with the comprehensive features you can understand the original importance of the particular system developed by Google.

Using the suitable Micro App facility, you would be able to download the trial version. So, it is useful to know the overall features and gain the confidence while purchasing the App. You can get the feasible product, as you already know the benefits that you would receive after purchasing the specific stuff accumulating the smart features.

Once, you understand the usability of the system you can easily obtain the application in your device eradicating all the negative issues. It comes out as the strong platform where you can establish the enormous technical utilities.

Google’s Survey

Google carried out a detailed survey that reveals the success of iOS and thus they decide to bring the new option. It helps the users in a great way ensuring that they avail the accurate product accumulating the sophisticated features.

Therefore, the paid App that you purchase can successfully feature all the positive approaches according to your desires. Moreover, it inspires the users to buy the particular App on which they find the complete interest. Gradually, Google can enhance the consumers who become the feasible buyers after using the Micro App system.

So, the paid Android Apps would earn the suitable recognition all over the world due to the innovative strategy from Google. Once, the user get addicted to the particular App he/she cannot stop buying the product to enjoy the full version.

Beneficial for the Developers

Previously the developers need to develop a complete new version of the paid App that consumed much more time and cost. While coming to the Micro App they only have to produce the small trial version that reduces the overall time as well as effort. It helps Google to gain the genuine consumers that would help them to increase the business assets.

However, the user should know the terms and conditions before purchasing the feasible product. It would aid them to get the authenticated App along with the smart technical suites.

Gradually, all the Android users would come to know about the new option and would try the interesting trial versions. It would increase their urge to play the entire game and thus they would buy the complete paid App.

Solar Sinter, 3D Printer That Uses Sunlight to Melt Sand Into Glass

Solar Sinter Concept 

In our world with shortage of energy production and raw material which is of great concern, a project exploring the capabilities of desert manufacturing, has surfaced where energy as well as material seems to be in abundance. The project was developed by Markus Kayser during his MA studies in Design Products on Platform 13 at the Royal College of Art and built by him the `SolarSinter’ concept is not too dissimilar from laser sintering printers which are used in operations such as SpaceX for printing impossible objects from metal.

 A focused sun beam is less precise than a finely honed laser though the core concept remains the same. The product designer, Kayser from Hannover, Germany, had his solar powered sand printer taken to the Egyptian desert to portray how it functions. On harnessing the power of the Sun, he heated ordinary sand into glass to create natural and unique 3D objects.

In the experiment, sunlight as well as sand is used as raw material and energy in order to produce glass objects with the help of a 3D printing process, which combine natural energy and material with high tech production technology. Solar sintering would give rise to questions about the future of manufacturing, giving way to dreams on the full extent of the potential of production on the world’s most capable energy resource which is the sun.

Two Elements of Desert - The Sun & Sun

It was in August 2010, when the first solar machine – the Sun-Cutter was taken to the Egyptian desert in a suitcase which was a solar powered, semi-automated low tech laser cutter which used the power of the sun to operate it and directly harnessed its rays through a glass ball lens to `laser’ cut 2D components with the use of a cam guided system.

The Sun-Cutter created components in fine plywood with aesthetic quality of curious hybrid of machine made and nature craft because of the crudeness of its mechanism as well as the cutting beam optics together with variation in solar intensity and the outcome of the weather fluctuations.

The sun and the sand are the two elements which rule the desert world wherein the sun offers a huge potential of large amount of energy source while the sand with unlimited supply of silica in the form of quartz. This provided the experience of working in the desert with the Sun-Cutter directly with the new machine which brought together the two elements, where on heating silica sand to melting point and enabling it to cool solidified as glass.

Sintering – Central Process in Design Prototyping

This process of conversion of powdery substance through heating process to a solid form is called sintering and has become a central process in design prototyping in recent times as 3D printing or Selective Laser Sintering – SLS.

Laser technology is used in the 3D printers to create precise 3D objects from various powdered plastics, metals and resins since they are appropriate counterparts of computer drawn 3D designs data by the designer. With the use of the sun’s rays rather than laser and sand instead of resins, an entire new solar powered machine and production process in making glass objects which can tap into the vast supplies of sun and sand is found in the deserts.

In February 2011, the first manually operated solar sintering machine was tested in the Moroccan desert with good positive results leading to the development of the present larger as well as fully automated computer driven version – the Solar Sinter.