MarcForrest.com

Category: Tech News

  • FNB offers iPad2 & other tablets & Smartphones at hugely discounted prices

    If you didn’t already know, I am a HUGE fan of FNB. In fact, the other day I likened them to the Google of South Africa, cause they are on top of everything. They have hit the spot by targeting all corners of the market, and today, they came to the party, again !

    From today you, if you are an FNB Gold or Platinum cheque account holder, you can order a variety of Android, Apple & Blackberry devices, at hugely discounted rates, and also the ability to pay the devices off over a period of 24 months, INTEREST FREE ! !, with the amount coming straight off your account monthly.

    To take advantage of this offer, if you are an FNB customer, you can sms the word “phone” or “tablet” to 32812

    The devices on offer are as follows:

    Apple iPad 2 – 16GB 3G

    Suggested Retail Price: R5,699
    FNB Price:  R4,800 (R899 – 16% Saving)
    Monthly Repayment: R200 for 24 Months

     

    HTC Sensation (Android Phone)

    Suggested Retail Price: R5,900
    FNB Price:  R4,800 (R1,100 – 19% Saving)
    Monthly Repayment: R200 for 24 Months

     

    BlackBerry Curve 8520

    Suggested Retail Price: R1,999
    FNB Price:  R1,608 (R391 – 15% Saving)
    Monthly Repayment: R70 for 24 Months

     

    HTC Flyer (Android Tablet)

    Suggested Retail Price: R6,900
    FNB Price:  R4,800 (R2,100 – 30% Saving)
    Monthly Repayment: R200 for 24 Months

     

    HTC Wildfire S (Android Phone)

    Suggested Retail Price: R2,600
    FNB Price:  R1,680 (R920 – 35% Saving)
    Monthly Repayment: R70 for 24 Months

     

    These are some awesome deals, and I highly suggest, that if you not already an FNB client, that you sign up. Even if it is not for these deals, there are other awesome benefits. You can sign up for an FNB account on the FNB website or using the awesome FNB Smartphone app.

    Disclaimer: I was not asked to write this post by FNB or any of it’s affiliate agencies. I just think that this is probably THE best smartdevice deal I have ever seen !!

  • Tech-Ed Africa kicks off in Durbs

    I got the opportunity to attend the Microsoft Tech-Ed Africa conference in Durbs again this year, which kicked off yesterday with an exciting keynote from Microsoft’s Corporate Vice President, Jason Zander.

    The focus of the keynote, and clearly is Microsoft’s strategy for the next couple of months is, Cloud, Cloud & More cloud. By announcing that Windows Azure & Office365 will both be launching in the new year, we def going to see a shift in the way we work. Windows Azure is your won fully integrated Windows operating system, which is hosted in the cloud, while Office365 allows you to work & edit your documents on the go, across multiple devices.

    Azure is slated for local release by May 2012, while Office 365, which brings cloud productivity to businesses of all sizes, will be commercially available in the first half of 2012, with trial availability towards the end of this year.

    The Windows Phone Mango update, which is already available, brings 500 new features to local users of the platform, but the major development is the availability of Marketplace, which will allow South African consumers to buy local and international apps using local currency via their credit cards. Mango also includes Xbox live integration, which will allow users to access Xbox mobile games.

    Another really interesting thing that was presented was a sneak peak at Windows8, which is currently in beta at the moment, which is clearly been designed for tablet devices, and incoroprates the very stylish looking Metro theme, which is really visually appealing from a UI point of view.

    So far Tech-Ed Africa 2011 has been pretty interesting and having attended a few more talks this morning, on the Windows Phone 7 operating system, it is very clear where Microsoft’s focus is going. Mobile & the cloud looks like it’s the future.

     

  • 5 cool iOS5 Tips & Tricks

     

    So, today is iOS5 day. I have been using iOS5 for a couple of weeks now, and I can promise that this update is probably the best I have seen of all the updates. There are loads of new features included in this release, and definitely make life a lot easier.

    So, here are a couple of cool tips & tricks I have found over the last few weeks on how to make the best of iOS5. Some of them are a bit different and not your standard stuff. If you want a complete list of over 200 new features & changes, I highly suggest checking out this post on Techzoom.org – iOS 5: Complete List Of 200+ New Features or 15 iOS 5 tips from Cnet.

    1. Keyboard shortcuts

    Hidden deep in the new OS is a nifty feature called Keyboard Shortcuts, which will help you save time when typing the same message over & over. So like an email signature, or  twitter hashtag. As an example, I have setup “omw”, which expands to “On My Way!”. This pops up in the same way as an auto complete.

    To turn this feature on: Settings -> General -> Keyboard -> Keyboard -> Add New Shortcut. Very cool :)

    2. iMessage

    iMessage is an awesome new addition which allows instant messaging between iDevices. This also means iPod Touches, iPads & iPhones. For the iPad & iPod Touch you can set an email address (your Apple Account) as your contact address, while the iPhone works with Telephone number & email.

    To make sure iMessage is turned on, go to Settings -> Messages -> iMessage -> On. To add an email address or phone number scroll down on that page, you can also add additional email addresses under the “Receive At” menu

    3. WiFi Sync

    Another cool feature is WiFi sync, which allows you to sync your phone over your WiFi network, ensuring you don’t need to plug it in every time. I can promise you this is a HUGE time saver, and syncing your phone becomes so simple. Apparently the phone also automatically syncs when it is plugged into a power source, although I haven’t used this yet. Another feature is you can now use your iDevice in the background while it is busy syncing. No more waiting hours to finish a sync.

    To set up WiFi Sync, you need to ensure you have ticked the “Sync This iPhone over WiFi” check box in iTunes. You can do this after updating to iOS5 and your phone is still plugged in with a cable.

    To do a manual WiFi Sync from the phone you need to do the following: Settings -> General -> iTunes WiFi Sync -> Sync Now. It will also show you the computer name you are trying to sync to.

    4. Custom Vibrations

    Ok, might seem like a bit of a silly one, but cause I have a bit of a hearing problem in 1 ear, this has def helped me quite a bit. You can also assign a specific vibration pattern to a specific contact. So if my wife phones me, it vibrates differently to other contacts. Soon you can pick up the differences :)

    To set Custom Vibrations on you need to do the following

    Settings -> General -> Accessibility -> And turn Custom Vibrations -> On (Another really cool tip here is to turn LED Flash for Alerts on, so your Camera LED flashes every time you get a call, message, or alert. Aka BB)

    Once you have turned your Custom Vibrations on, you need to go to:  Settings -> Sounds -> Scroll right to the bottom to Vibration Patterns. Click the Vibration button and You will see a list of predefined vibration alerts. You can create your own vibration pattern by tapping “Create new Vibration” And tap your new vibration sequence out. Loads of fun :)

    To assign a Custom Vibration to a contact, go into contacts and edit, and then set the Vibration alert (about halfway down the page)

    5. Notifications

    Probably one of the best features in iOS5 is the new notification centre, which allows you to see any notifications you have received.

    When you receive a notification for any app, missed call or voice mail, you can simply swipe from left to right on the home screen and it will take you directly into that app.

    If you need to see all your previous notifications, on any screen in the phone, you simple drag the top bar (where the time is) down. This will bring up all your notifications from all your apps. And you can clear these by clicking on the x above each app. Tapping on a notification will open that app

    You can also select which apps display on this screen by setting individual alerts under Settings -> Notifications -> And tapping on each app. You can then select a banner alert (top of screen) or Alerts  (old style alerts) You can also set how many alerts per app you want to see, or turn the alerts off completely.

    And that is my top 5 tips & tricks. Of course there are LOADS more. Any cool ones you have picked up on ? Leave a comment below.

     

     

  • Blackberry vs iPhone packages

     

    I dunno, maybe it is just me. But given the last 2 days’ issues with the Blackberry BIS service, things really aren’t looking bright for BB users around the country. I asked a couple of questions earlier on Twitter about BB vs iPhone and got some pretty heated responses, so I thought the right thing to do was do a blog post with some of my (personal) thoughts :)

    I have been called an “Apple Fanbooi” plenty times given my somewhat affinity to Apple products. 100%. I’ll take the knock.But surely there is some logic. I am really not going to get into the technicalities about Apps, constant OS updates, superior hardware (show me an 8MP camera on a BB).

    I thought I would take a quick look at some of the”misunderstandings” that exist between iPhone & Blackberry, and hopefully try and clear up some of the air.

    1. BBM

    The biggest drawcard for Blackberry IS BBM. There is no doubt about it. I have previously worked out though that you need to send close on 500,000 BBM’s to ensure you cover your R69 a month BIS fee. (That obv excludes browsing etc)

    iOS5 is being released this Wednesday. Included in iOS5 is an awesome new feature called iMessage. Essentially a BBM “replacement”. I use the word replacement very loosely, cause you need to have either the other users email address or cellphone number stored in your contacts to send a message. With BBM, you just need to have a pin, and then anyone can add you (Security) . Also, remember you will also now be able to communicate through iMessage to iPad users as iMessage comes standard in iOS across all devices.

    2. iPhone uses way more data than BB

    Probably. But given that the most data used on an iPhone is used to download apps, then that makes sense. The majority of browsing and now iMessage is generally compressed data, which means you don’t end up using all your data. Last month Vodacom increased the data bundle included on the iPhone packages to 500MB from 250MB. For free. I can promise you now. 500Mb is a lot. I hardly reach that in a month, but I do have wireless at home and work, which is what the iPhone takes preference of. Still. 500MB is a crap load. And if you follow me on twitter, I mentioned yesterday that a little birdie told me that unlimited smartphone data bundles are just around the corner. Watch this space :)

    3. iPhone contracts are more expensive

    I think this is where people are mostly uninformed. My iPhone contract with Vodacom, the iPhone 120s, gives me 120 free minutes, 500MB of data, and 100 free sms’s. This costs me R450 a month. Most months I hardly ever go over that. Maybe the minutes, but more often not. That’s with the phone. Actually, I think I may pay another R20 on top of that and I got my 16GB iPhone4 for free.

    The equivalent Blackberry package which I could find on the Vodacom site is a Blackberry BIS 100 package, which goes for R349 a month (yes, R100 a less) which includes 100 free minutes, “unlimited” BIS internet. No free SMS’s. Which actually scrap. Who the heck SMS’s anymore? We have iMessage & BBM. That’s just the package. If you looking at the new Blackberry Bold 9900, you looking at R429 a month on the BIS 100 package.

    29 rands. That’s the difference in price.

    In all said and done, BB has a HUGE pre-paid market. Which, honestly, I can’t see iPhone competing with. But let’s say, RIM (The company that owns & runs Blackberry) does fold, which is looking more and more likely every day, there is no alternative to the pre-paid market.

    4. Apps

    I know I said I wouldn’t touch on this, but my friend Ewan, just replied to a tweet on Twitter about this.

    Apps. We all know Apple’s ecosystem revolves around apps. They have revolutionised the smartphone market (around the world) by allowing people to add value to their phones by downloading and installing apps. One thing Apple has got right, is that apps are moderated before they are added to the app store. Yes, some of them are crap, and some of them do crash, but 99% of the time, out of all the over 500 apps I have downloaded (eish !!) the majority have been workable. If they don’t or they are crap, they get deleted and never seen again. Also, you develop 1 app for 1 OS. No screen sizes, hardware.

    Blackberry also has an app world, but there is no moderation on the apps. Anyone can upload apps, and more often than not, the apps are terrible. Again, this I can’t vouch for as I have limited BB use, but from what I have experienced & people have told me, that the apps crash more often than not. Or you get complete rubbish apps. From a development perspective, you need to develop your app across 3 operating systems and multiple screen sizes. Same goes for Android.

    But that said, and is something I am experiencing at the moment. Do Blackberry users actually download & use apps from BB app world, APART from Facebook or twitter ? Any other apps you use ?

    Taking my fanbooi cape off here, There is no doubt that Apple’s app store far superseeds that of Blackberry & Android. Just look at the number of apps as an example.

    ————————————————————

    I got asked about Android. Yip. Cool OS. Shit phones. Except for the Galaxy S2, which I would take in a heartbeat. There is still no free instant messaging platform there (Google talk doesn’t count). Also there are no Android specific packages (that I know of) which means you pay for your data.

    So again, I know I probably sound like the Apple fanbooi. But like I say, that’s fine. I totally take it. But really, if you are looking at upgrading your phone/contract do the maths before claiming the free internet & BBM for R69 a month. You may be pleasantly surprised.

    I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on this in the comments below, or if maybe I am missing the whole point. I dunno, maybe it is just me ?

     

     

  • 5FM iPhone App

     

    After expecting to see this app to make an appearance sometime on the app store, I was quite excited to see it earlier today. The Official 5FM iPhone app (FREE) is now available on the iTunes app store. Nice !

    The app offers a whole bunch of features, least of all, streaming, which is very cool. I have posted before about how to stream 5FM on the iPhone, but this now make it so much easier.

    Some of the features include:

    • Play the 5FM radio station live and in the background on multitasking capable devices
    • View live track-list information which displays previously played songs, the current song as well as the next song to be played (when available)
    • News feed with up-to-date information on the latest 5FM news
    • Twitter feed displaying the latest tweets from 5FM
    • Audio visualizer
    • Live webcam views of the two 5FM recording studios
    • Backgrounding support
    The design is also very visually appealing, and the dev’s have done an awesome job. Well done. Looking forward to seeing it get loads of downloads