Jim O Brien/CEO - techbuzzireland.com - Page 1082

First Look – The One Plus 3 unboxing and gallery. #Ireland #Tech #OnePlus3

So we decided to take a bet on the One Plus Three which has received good and bad criticism to date but for the measly €365 thanks to the collapse of sterling we decided to take a punt on it,for the price you cant really go wrong to be honest and at that price its a bargain. We just have used it for two days and said we will do a quick unboxing and overview as there is plenty of reviews and so on out there now. My initial thoughts are ITS GOOD.. ITS DUAL SIM..

Good but perhaps for people moving up from the One Plus One but for those using the One Plus 2 it might not seem such a huge step forward,Considering the specs on tow here though for even new users to Android with not much cash to spare this is a good move if you would rather skip the more more expensive HTC or Samsung’s out there now which we also use here ourselves and lets not leave out Huawei either which have some good offerings now but with bumped prices compared to what we are use to seeing from,them,their flagship phones are now approaching flagship prices bordering HTC and Samsung price brackets.

First off the handset looks well it must be said although resembling Apple and HTC they did not hold back here but this is the new design language from many manufacturers now and perhaps we might see a change here as this design language is now getting boring but where do we go from here,I still think the Samsung Edge range win the looks department from any other devices out there today.

Image Gallery

Back view

Bottom view,home/fingerprint sensor and ports

Top view

Right side,power key and Sim tray

Keys close

Front view

Dash charger

Whats in the box

Dash charger

keys close up

USB-TyPE C

Left side,Silent lock and volume toggle

Front top

Camera area

Dash charger

1 / 15

From what you pay though,which has increased recently you really cant complain,unless you are just looking for bear-bugs to nitpick at but just forget it. The phone is great,feels great,looks good and familiar,light,fast and sports Marshmallow out of the box with a huge 6GBs of of RAM.This is insane. Given we are held to a 64GB storage capacity which actually turns out to be 56GBs on ours there is enough for the average user and again not to mention the word CLOUD which we seem to be pushed towards. On using the phone so far I found it fast doing what I tend to do on a smartphone today which is browse,shop,social media,listen to music,you tube and very little gaming,It performed with ease,no lags no crashes YET….

The only downfall here is the battery especially for a power-user like myself but then again you get their version of fast charging with a caveat for many USB Type C is on offer but its something we will eventually become custom too,I own two phones using this new charging option and find it a hassle using them as in many sockets around the house I have the standard micro USB plugs well settled in but its time for change…And that is me nitpicking to be honest,You could say I am just comfortable as I am puttting it on the long finger,Something which reminds me when I started to really get into smartphones and would not move away from the darn Symbian OS when Android was wining the race, Yes my very First Android was the Galaxy S2 and some HTC,took my time there didnt I.

Overall the more pros than cons to be fair and its worth a punt,It takes little or no time to get a good judgement on a device since I sue so many and this has mostly been impressive thus far,so If you are on a budget this is the one to go for,Or perhaps look at what the other chinese OEMs have to offer or maybe Huawei or Motorola.

You can check out the One Plus 3 and its Full spec sheets HERE

Unboxing and First Look Video

The Carphone warehouse launches universal virtual reality headset. #VR #VirtualReality

Everyone is jumping on the VR bandwagon make no mistake about it and now the Carphone warehouse have too,Considered they do sell plenty of headsets themselves it was only a matter of time before we seen this happen and probably up next will be the networks…

Called the Goji Universal VR Headset its compatible with a range of handsets, for just £39.99 and will go on sale this weekend instore and online in the UK.. There is no word yet about these hitting Irish stores but one could presume it again will be just a matter of time before we see them here.

Dean Kramer, Accessories Director at Carphone Warehouse said: “Everyone should have the opportunity to try the latest VR technology, so we’re bringing a universal headset to our stores for our customers to experience. At just half the price of some other headsets currently available and compatible with a range of handsets, we’d encourage everyone to pop into their local store where our staff will be on hand to assist those looking to test out this latest mobile accessory.”

The Universal VR Headset from Goji takes customers into the cinematic world of virtual reality, where imagination becomes reality, for just £39.99. Users will be able to fully immerse themselves in a virtual reality environment, enjoying new content in the most engaging way possible with 360-degree videos and 3D games.

Built with soft, cushioning and lightweight materials, the Goji Universal VR Headset is comfortable to wear. It connects easily to earphones whilst the charging cable securely holds the phone in place whilst in use.

The VR headset is compatible with most handsets including iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. There’s already a robust catalogue of 3D apps customers can enjoy for Android and iOS including games, films, 360-degree video and experiential content. The headset is also equipped with magnetic controls to pause and resume playback so you never miss a moment.

Source

TravelWise keeps you informed when travelling. #Travel #Apps #TravelWise

There has been plenty of apps of late to keep people informed when travelling and with sporting events ever so popular now it is essential we have all the relevant information at hand when we need it.We all sport smartphones today so there is no better place to have all the information at hand in one app,The app is now free on Android and iOS which initially is a 4MB download with secondary background download of global travel advice and guides 11MB. Once again though we do not see a Windows Phone app here which users of the platform will find disappointing.

What is good about this app is PUSH NOTIFICATIONS but in order to receive them you will need some kind of connection so hopefully depending where you are travelling allows it in case of emergency and you are not in a blackspot or an area with bad coverage.

Speaking at the launch, Minister Flanagan said:

“I am delighted to launch TravelWise, my Department’s new free smartphone app. TravelWise will help Irish people travelling abroad to stay safe and informed while travelling, living or working overseas.

“I would encourage all Irish people travelling abroad to download and use the App; all Irish citizens currently living abroad; any citizens with an interest in travel abroad; or even mothers or fathers who have sons or daughters travelling abroad.”

TravelWise provides security ratings for over 200 countries – a clear way for us to show you how safe or unsafe we believe a country may be to visit, and to help you to make informed decisions about overseas travel.

There are four colour-coded levels to our security ratings:

Normal Precautions (Green)

High Degree of Caution (Yellow)

Avoid Non-Essential Travel (Amber)

Do Not Travel (Red)

App description

TravelWise is a free smartphone app delivered by Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to help inform Irish citizens make decisions about travel abroad. The content within the app is available off-line, allowing access abroad without roaming charges.

TravelWise includes the Department’s country travel advisories, based on reliable reports provided by Ireland’s network of Embassies abroad and by our EU and international partners. Users can subscribe to be notified via an alert of significant changes to our travel advice for countries of interest to them. We also include more general advice by theme, for example victim of crime abroad, LGBT travellers, death abroad, children’s issues, etc. And there’s a handy checklist of things to do before you go.

Especially if you are travelling to a higher-risk destination, we strongly encourage users to register with us so we can make contact with them in the event of a crisis. Contact details and mapping of all Irish Embassies, Consulates and other missions abroad are included in the app.

Vouchers everywhere.. Watch out for the latest scam with #Boots Vouchers #Scam

In recent times we have seen plenty of scams in the form of vouchers,It wont be the last nor will it cease anytime soon but the latest voucher giveaway is from Boots. Again the same trick email saying you have won a €100 voucher and then you click a few links and get a giftcard, Sadly its not true so just delete the email and do not click on any link within the said email…

Again this time round they have a period of claim time to try coax you into the so called voucher,If you receive such a mail check the senders details where you will quickly find that is not from Boots at all… The header in the mail will of course say boots but view the details of the sender and you will spot it.. See below for the details..

At the end of the mail the following is also present which is well known now at this stage…

Aerial Productions

P.O. Box 12006, Ortigas Center Post Office
Emerald Ave., 1605 Pasig City
Philippines

BBC iPlayer Radio app now available in Ireland. #BBC #iPlayer #Radio

As the title suggests and will be welcome for many folks here the BBC iPlayer Radio app now available in Ireland,This app has been available since 2012 in the UK and as part of an international roll-out Ireland is the first to get it..

James Montgomery, Digital Development Director, BBC News and Current Affairs, says: “The new international BBC iPlayer Radio app makes it easier for audiences around the world to discover and enjoy the richness of our output – both live radio and to downloaded content.

“We hope that the app will be a destination on mobile homescreens for audiences around the world who want to explore the breadth of BBC radio, from news and current affairs to drama, comedy and music. This launch also comes at a time when the UK is at the centre of a huge news story which the BBC is helping to explain to audiences worldwide.”

App features

Catch up or listen again to their favourite BBC Radio programmes
Download podcasts to enjoy anywhere, even when offline
Browse and listen to carefully curated BBC Radio highlights and collections
View daily schedules and categories quickly and easily
Discover audio and video clips, including many live performances
See what tracks are playing on air as well as track lists for on-demand programmes
Wake up to and doze off to BBC Radio with a built-in alarm clock and night mode

The BBC iPlayer Radio app is freely available to download from the Apple App Store, Google Play and Amazon Store.
At launch, the BBC iPlayer Radio app supports iOS running 7.1 and above, Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) and above and Amazon Kindle Fire 2012 and above.

Quark Expeditions Antarctic #VR Available free on Android and iOS #VirtualReality

Join Quark Expeditions, the world leader in polar adventure travel, on an immersive 360° Virtual Reality Antarctic Experience.

A polar expedition travel first, the Quark 360° VR Antarctic Experience transports you to the 7th continent, guided by Quark’s expert expedition team, to encounter amazing wildlife and explore the breath taking natural beauty of this remote part of the world few have set foot upon.

Told through four visually stunning narratives, you will explore the Antarctic Peninsula region expedition-style. Take a Zodiac cruise amongst giant icebergs, stand amidst a penguin colony, and kayak in one of the most pristine, unspoiled environments on the planet.

The Content

Filmed using GoPro cameras on board a voyage in February 2016, the Antarctic 360° VR Experience video series showcases different ways to explore the 7th continent and offers viewers the unique opportunity to participate in key aspects of a journey: Life onboard the ship, cruising on Zodiac landing craft, exploring on the Antarctic continent, kayaking, and learning about history and wildlife from Quark’s Expedition staff.

A two-man film crew captured the spectacular 360° footage, a process that presented a few challenges. The difficult task of positioning cameras on a moving Zodiac and finding ways to stretch battery life of the GoPro cameras were a few things the duo had to overcome; but the finished product was worth the challenges in the process, film crew member Hugo King-Fretts recalls:
“It was almost as if you were in a cathedral. These huge, huge walls were coming up and you’re in these small corridors where you would get surges of waves coming through. The geology, the scale of it, was just phenomenal. The awe-inspiring footage we were able to capture reflects a truly amazing experience that’s beyond description with words.”

VR App Development
“The real development challenge was to create a VR app that not only showcased this amazing content but that was also accessible to an audience of young and old, both seasoned and newcomers to the VR worlds,” commented Peter Maddalena from VRCraftworks. “The drawback is that it is a big download, but this was necessary to maintain quality and to allow people with less than high end devices to get a decent taste of the experience,” he concluded.

About Quark Expeditions®:
Specializing in expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic, Quark Expeditions® has been the leading provider of polar adventure travel for 25 years. With a diverse fleet of specially-equipped small expedition vessels, icebreakers, and unique land-based adventures, it offers travelers unparalleled access to the most remote places on earth. Led by passionate and seasoned expedition teams, including scientists, naturalists and researchers, the on-board program focuses on guest interaction to educate and enrich the passenger experience. The company is known for its unwavering commitment to safety and sustainability, including its partnership with The Nature Conservancy (USA). It also offers passengers — free of charge — carbon offsetting aboard Ocean Diamond and Ocean Nova voyages.

About the TUI Adventure Division:
The TUI Adventure Division offers premium, experience-based adventure holidays and expeditions worldwide for active travelers. In addition to QuarkExpeditions.com, the division includes expedition specialists IEtravel.com and Zegrahm.com; leading European adventure and activity specialists ExodusTravels.com, Headwater.com, World-Challenge.co.uk, Sawadeee.nl, TrekAmerica.co.uk and GrandAmericanAdventures.com; as well as US-based destination management company AmericanAdventures.com. From reaching the top of Kilimanjaro and canoeing on the Zambezi, to catching tiger cub sightings and breaking ice en route to the North Pole, the TUI Adventure Division offers inspirational experiences that create lifelong memories.
About VRCraftworks:
Vrcraftworks was established 3 years ago to create business focused VR apps for the mobile platform. We have developed over 20 VR apps for business as diverse as animation studios, investment companies and yacht sales. Often these apps are for internal use only. Our free apps however, are available across both Goggle Play and the Apple App Store. Our original free app Orbulus has had 500,000 downloads worldwide is constantly cited as one of the top 10 applications for mobile VR on both Android and Apple devices.

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Blackberry is killing it Classic #Blackberry #Classic #Tech

Blackberry have been having it rough of late,even with sales of the PRIV their first Android device sales have not been great by any means,The PRIV is a unique device and stands out in the crowd with that hidden keyboard underneath its screen when I even showed people they where impressed. With new Android handsets set to come on board soon their direction is clear because they have announced they are to discontinue the Blackberry classic which is another device I own along with the Silver Passport and PRIV..

On their Blog where I have been featured before Ralph Pini writes

Sometimes it can be very tough to let go. For BlackBerry, and more importantly for our customers, the hardest part in letting go is accepting that change makes way for new and better experiences.

These are the tenets that help keep us focused and the reasons why we are committed to the success of both BlackBerry 10 and Android devices. To keep innovating and advancing our portfolio, we are updating our smartphone lineup with state of the art devices. As part of this, and after many successful years in the market, we will no longer manufacture BlackBerry Classic. For many years, Classic (and its BBOS predecessors) has been in our portfolio. It has been an incredible workhorse device for customers, exceeding all expectations. But, the Classic has long surpassed the average lifespan for a smartphone in today’s market. We are ready for this change so we can give our customers something better – entrenched in our legacy in security and pedigree in making the most productive smartphones.

More sad news for some die hard fans I guess.

Via

Empire – #Review – Kids Over-Ear headphones with parental volume lock. #Headphones

Empire cases dont only do cases they have a wide range of accessories for you to pick from and a new addition to their catalogue is the Kids Over-Ear headphones with a built in parental volume lock,these come in a variety of colours such as Blue,Green Pink and Red to begin with. With a price of $24.99 and free worldwide shipping are they worth it,well lets see..

Disclaimer.These are a preview unit sent to us for testing..

To begin with we had no actual packaging to check out as these are a preview unit which is now in mass production and on that point we where disappointed to not have the official packaging but nice to try them out at this early stage,So we cant complain really..

On the upside the product is good,quite good to be fair,With kids these days now sporting tablets and mobiles you will see many sporting headphones to boot,but the issue here is volume control and another one to refresh your memory is how close the screen is to your childs face but Samsung took care of that with a recent app..

My daughter who is 7 has tried several headphones in her time and she enjoys some time on her tablet during the day and evening which is monitored,At times having called her I did notice from time to time she couldn’t here me but this issue is now gone due to having the option to lock the volume on the headphones manually and most importantly the child cant undo this. There is a box like fitting on the cable which requires a small philips screwdriver and you can test the volume level out yourself first then set it and lock it,the close the box up again,but a safety note I would hide the screwdriver,kids are inquisitive and will investigate and try anything especially mine since she is surrounded with tech all the time but again this is monitored and access is limited.

Image Gallery

Overview

Right side

Left side

Cups

Cups

Headband

Volume control

Thumbs up from our Alice

3 / 8

Comfortable sums them up too my daughter was happy with them and with adjustable arms each side again it was an easy manoeuvre for her to set to her own accord,With the both cups again lined with leather and cushioning they again made her feel comfortable,the cups also move in one direction to nestle over the ears and do not apply extra pressure making them sit nicely.

Build quality is good,flexible on the headband where kids might just spread them too much they seem they will have some longevity in them too and the plastic is easy to clean should they get and dirt on them which can be expected from kids.. Even the adjustable arms seem solid and feel like they can take a beating too and dont seem flimsy.

Sound quality is fine,nothing to write a book about but they are for kids and at that age whats provided here is enough but if you are and adult there is a notable difference in quality compared to mainstream options but again to note they are for kids and not us..

Check out our video review below and if you want to pick up a pair see HERE for all the options available.We would like to thank Empire case again for sending these over to check out…

Discover new incredible worlds with #Coastiality #VR app #VirtualReality #360° #Googlecardboard

A new VR app has launched called Coastiality by Europa Park and it has quite a bit to offer to the fore and for rollercoaster fans you are in for a treat,There is a lack of good rollercoaster apps that give a real immersive feeling but not here with several on board the app,the intro on the app is also excellent with great music to boot.

The app is also well presented with apps on display right from the start,Also you can pick to either download or stream the experience and then you can pick between 2K and 4K resolution.. I have tried out the apps and they are quite good..

App description

Fancy enjoying a real rollercoaster ride in 360° or VR from the comfort of your home?

Do you want to experience how virtual worlds come to life on board Coastiality rides throughout theme parks around the world?

Welcome to Coastiality, your home for unique, high quality virtual reality experiences!

Viewable with and without VR glasses (e.g. Google Cardboard).

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