Jackery Mini External Battery Will Charge Up Your Smart Phone

For all the smart phones in the market today with the fantastic features, one would think they could improve the battery life on 4G LTE phones to last more than the approximate work day life. When I say approximately, because the battery life varies widely from smart phone to smart phone manufacturers. Even for the same phone, such as the iPhone 5 or Galaxy S3, people report difference battery life, so things are not that consistent. For smart phone owners, having to charge up your phone in the middle of the day to make it through until you get home is not what is needed. Having an all day battery life is what we want and need as a minimum, but today's smart phones have not been able to consistently provide that.

That is not going to happen until some new battery technology emerges to address this problem. In the mean time, you need to carry a spare battery, but with the exposed connectors, that is not a good idea. A better one is to carry an external battery which can charge up your smart phone. The Jackery Mini from Jackery does not have a solution for battery life, but they provide confidence by providing a product which can re-charge your smart phone when you are away from being able to charge it up. The Jackery Mini is about the size of a lipstick case, so it is very tiny and easily portable. But, having an external battery with you to charge up your smart phone can be considered "priceless".

The Jackery Mini external battery provides you with enough power to completely charge up your iPhone 5 or Galaxy S3. And since those are the top 2 popular phones right now, that says a lot about what the Mini will do for you. It is only 3.7 inches long, 0.9 inches wide and 0.8 inches high, so it will not take up much space. And it weighs in at 2.72 ounces. Coming in orange or silver, the Mini has a 2600 mAh battery packed inside. The company claims that the Mini battery charge will last up to 6 months in stand by mode, waiting for you to tap into because of their unique power lock technology. That is impressive.

The Jackery Mini comes with 4 LED indicators on it which let you know what the level of charge remaining on the external battery is. Given the small size of the Jackery Mini as an external battery and its ability to recharge your smart phone, this is definitely one of those things which you should always have with you to provide some peace of mind. If you have ever received a low battery indication on your smart phone and are not near a power source, this is a must have.

The suggest price of $29.95 is easily found at Amazon, though the only color available is orange. The silver is not found at Amazon. If you have ever found yourself with a low battery and no power source available to charge your phone up, take a look at the Jackery Mini.

The Future Of Phone Tablet Versus Tablet Phone

If you are like many, it does appear that mobile devices have been changing a lot for the past few years. And the features of tablets seem to be coming to smart phones. You only have to look at the ever increasing screen sizes to see the growing real estate becoming available as a result. The Samsung Galaxy S3 with its 4.8 inch screen was seen as something which was deemed too large for a smart phone. But, if you have had the pleasure of using one, you quickly come to appreciate that space. And the resulting sales prove that people want to have a smart phone with a large screen. You if you have not used one with a larger screen, take the time to take a look at one.

And over the past few months, we have been seeing that a 5 inch screen has become the new standard for smart phones. If you do not currently have a smart phone with a screen of 4.5 or greater, you soon will. The rumors for the iPhone 5 have it coming in at 4.8 inches in size. The coming Galaxy S4 is rumored to be coming in at 5 inches and matches so many other phones coming out right now. This increasing screen size does make the phones more difficult to just slip into your pocket. With screen sizes above 4.5 inches, we are looking at features of tablets coming to smart phones. Some comes with a stylus and software to do drawing. That is where things appear to be headed for phone tablets.

On the other side, we have been seeing tablets being reduced in size to less than 7 inches as they size down to fill a space in the market. The first one to really do this is the Galaxy Note with a screen size of 5.3 inches. And with all the promotion for what Samsung called a phablet, it has done remarkably well in sales. The follow on is the Galaxy Note II with a screen size of 5.5 inches. This is creating a situation where you have tablet phone. The features of a tablet with the features of a phone being added to it.

The features of a phone are now being included in what has previously been strictly a tablet and had no characteristics for using one as a phone. That is changing and blurring the lines between whether devices in the 4.5 inch to 6.5 inch screen size are to be considered a phone tablet or a tablet phone. Either way that you look at it, it is creating some confusion as to what category a phone or tablet falls into when they are that size and the included features.

With all of this going on where companies are releasing tablets or phones which are in this gray area, Asus has taken a far different approach. They have released both a phone and a tablet calling it the FonePad, though some are calling it the PadFone. They are looking to capture both the phone interests and tablet interests at the same time. The difference is that it is really two devices. To use it as a smart phone, you remove it from the dock on the tablet. To use it as a tablet, you put the phone back into the dock to turn it into a tablet.

Strange device, but it does point out the confusion of whether we are looking at phone tablets or tablet phones. Is this the future we are going to be seeing?

Firefox Mobile OS Coming To Crowded Field

In the world of mobile devices, there are a number of operating systems which drive the mobile phones and tablets. The biggest ones are Apple's iOS and Google's Android in the market. Along with a number of other players, it seems that things are fairly diverse in the products that are available and manufacturers are choosing to supply with their mobile devices. With all the competition, you would think that we are seeing mobile OS software which meets the needs of the market. And you would be wrong.

This month, we talked about Ubuntu as a mobile OS and how they are preparing to supply their Linux version to smart phones and tablets. And now, we are hearing that Mozilla is coming with the Firefox Mobile OS to the market some time this year. So, we now have 2 new mobile OS products showing up this year. That creates an interesting challenge to break into the market given the strength of the existing mobile OS software.

And with the Firefox Mobile OS, early testing by some has indicated that it does not perform as well as it should. But, it has just been announced, so we are not surprised that issues have been found and there is plenty of time to get them resolved. One of the strengths for the Firefox OS is that it is being written from the ground up as a brand new product. And it is based on HTML5 using the current standards of the day, so all the code is based on web standards. This may be exactly what they need to drive the phones and tablets for today and the future.

Adding to the discussions is the fact that there are 18 wireless carriers to the platform. Not that we are going to see new phones showing up in the next few months, but they are coming. Since it certainly looks like this is going after a different market than others, we expect to see most of the sales of mobile device using the Firefox OS to be in countries where the people purchasing phones are concerned about price. And with that idea, they are going after the lower end of the market to start and grow from there.

With the release of the Firefox OS by the middle of the year, it is not going to be arriving any time soon in the US. The current estimates are for some time in 2014 to arrive here on mobile phones and tablets. The US market is dominated by Apple and Google right now and that dominance may not be the best thing for consumers. With the announcement of the Firefox Mobile OS, it will be one to watch over the next year as to whether they are able to grab enough of the market share to become a threat to Google.

Android OS Coming To HP Slate 7, Not Windows 8 RT

If you remember HP's last tablet with webOS (TouchPad), it was something which was short lived and ended up with a fire sale which wiped out the supply very quickly. So, for HP's next tablet offering, one would assume that HP was going to be offering Windows 8 RT on their tablet. A logical expectation given that webOS had been moved to the Open Source arena and not part of HP's future plans. Rumors abound as to what is going to happen to webOS, but for now, the question of tablets for HP remains. But, the expected OS for HP's tablet is not Windows 8 RT, but rather Android.

That's right, Android on their latest 7 inch tablet, the Slate 7. They are bringing their new tablet into the very competitive 7 inch market space. The competition is much greater since Apple came out with the iPad Mini. It seems that things are getting very crowded and prices are being pushed downward. The Slate 7 will retail for $169 and undercuts the iPad Mini at $329. But the decision to enter at a much lower price point is not an easy one to make. And in so making it, they have to reduce costs so that it was affordable. Other than reducing some of the hardware components, the only thing left is the OS by moving to Google's Android. By taking Microsoft out of the picture and reducing some hardware components, they were able to drop the price down to where it is at.

By selecting Android, HP has found an easy to leverage OS to work on the Slate 7 and is easier for them to make changes to it. Much like the Android OS for smart phones, HP can add on their parts to the OS and make it theirs. And with the popularity of Jelly Bean (Android 4.2), there is a known interface that many are familiar with. Along with the Google name behind it, HP has partnered with a popular OS.

The question one has to wonder is whether HP is not happy that Microsoft has entered the hardware market. Given that HP has been struggling with retail sales for the past few years, making a cheaper product which has brand recognition may well help sales. And by bundling Android with their Slate 7, they have added more brand recognition to the product. For Microsoft, this is going to be another indication of their struggling tablet OS.



Microsoft is going to start feeling pressure with HP's decision and may cause some to think about other tablets not including the Surface Pro which they are heavily promoting. For HP, the decision to move to Android for their coming Slate 7 is going to make them stand out as being different from the Microsoft crowd and may be just enough to spur some additional sales to their latest tablet.


Given the lower price for the Slate 7, is this going to be one you might purchase?

Apple Patent Filing Shows Smartwatch With Wrap Around Screen

The idea of smartwatches has become a big topic this year and is continuing to grow. Much of the discussion this year has come about because of the Pebble watch which was presented at CES this year in Ls Vegas. And that unveiling has created a lot of coverage from so many about what the Pebble was going to provide with the Bluetooth integration with your smartphone. For us, the bigger question is Will SmartWatches Make Watches Popular Again?. Watches have fallen out of favor because your smartphone has a watch on the screen available at all time to review.

But, with the revelation of Apple's iWatch Patent Filing (20130044215) from August 17, 2011 and approval, we are entering another period of discussions about smartwatches. What makes the iWatch patent filing so different is that it is a wrap around design indicating that the screen will be continuous around the wrist. We have not seen anything like that previously being talked about. And this is a patent filing from 2011, so this is not what may come to market, but rather a conceptual design. Apple has done another great job of trying to predict what the future may hold.

The idea of a flexible smartphone screen is expected to arrive this year and resulting in some great looking and functioning smartphones. Samsung has already shown prototypes of things to come. Translating the idea of a smartwatch which can worn around your wrist is not a stretch and will be seen this year. But, a wrap around screen has not been discussed in the past few months, so the iWatch is going to alter what can be possible this year. And we are already starting to see mock ups of the iWatch showing a series of small screens strung together on the band.

All of this is going to lead to competition for the smartwatch market between Apple and Samsung which is always a good thing for consumers. Whether a completely wrap around display arrives remains to be seen. But we will be seeing smartwatches which have multitouch screens. Yes, we expected to see them with 2 or 3 small square panels to provide a number of features and functions. The most notable with be the ability to connect to your smartphone via Bluetooth and let you know who is calling or information about the latest email or text.

As with any technology device interaction, there is the issue of providing power. And smartwatches are not going to be any different in that area. Apple's patent filing shows the idea of solar panels on the watch to attempt to supplement the battery. The bottom line is that a smartwatch is going to have to be recharged. Just how often you will have to recharge it is an unknown and too early to have any information as to potential usage between charges. This is going to be the one big item to indicate sales. If your smartphone can make it through the day before charging, that is OK. The same cannot be said for a smartwatch.

Waiting for smartwatches to arrive.

Scandock: A Non-PC Scanner For A Mobile World

KickStart Friday - A Scanner for your smart phone with Scandock

If you have worked with scanners over the years, you understand the nature of connecting them up to a PC. And the issues with getting the configuration set up so that things worked as expected to make a copy of a document can be a challenge. Once your scanned document was on your PC, you could use other tools to work with your copy. But in today's world, everything has become so mobile and hooking up a scanner to your mobile devices is not something you can do. Sure there are scanners which have computer functions in them which can scan you document, but you still have to send that to your computer to work with them. Something for the mobile world is what we need.

That is where Scandock comes in and is a recently funded KickStarter project. They are promoting this as the post-PC scanner, but it is really a non-PC scanner. It does not require a computer, unless you look at your smart phone and see that as a computer. The Scandock unit has a place for you to place your iPhone or Android smart phone into and that becomes the scanner engine. With the Scandock app, your phone has everything it needs to perform the scanning operation. The smartphone technology has improved the megapixels on your smart phone so that it can take a high resolution picture and obtain a great starting pointing for document capture.

And that capture is showing great color capture as well. With the specially designed ScanDock scanner, you get LED lightning which adds to the process by providing light across the entire surface. None of the surface of the unit is going to reflect light or create glare. Once you have your scanned document on your smart phone, you can move it to the web or print it to an AirPrint printer. These are printers attached to a Wifi network. Technology has come together to provide for a great way to move away from the old fashion scanners to a new way of doing things in our mobile world.

While the Scandock scanner looks to be the big value, it is actually the Scandock app which they are going to be providing which has all the power. With that, you can take your phone with you and actually do a scan of a document. The difference is going to be in the quality of the scanned image. The Scandock device has a color bar on the unit which the app uses to perform enhancements on the scan and make it visually much better. You will not get that feature when just using your smart phone to scan something.

We have noticed an earlier version of a ScanDock from as early as 2009 which looks like the early stages of the product, but from Kyle A Koch. We have to assume that he is either part of the new version or sold the rights to this for what we are currently seeing. This was a cardboard version for the iPhone.

While the Scandock is designed to work with the iPhone, there are limited Android devices which they have tested with. Those include the Galaxy S3, Galaxy Note II, Galaxy Note and HTC One X. That leaves a huge number of Android phones in question as to whether they will work with the Scandock. The Scandock scanner is planned for a release in April this year and pricing for pre-orders looks to be $480.

Is An Ubuntu Tablet In Your Future?

Ubuntu is well known as being Open Source software which you can download and install on a computer. And for those who have worked with it, there is an appreciation for just how well it works. And given the experience on the desktop, anything done on a tablet is going to have the same ease to work with along with some fairly advanced features for those who using it.

Canonical, the parent company for Ubuntu is announcing Ubuntu for the tablet. And with that comes a number of claims for the OS they will be delivering. We are getting a preview on what you can expect to see when the Ubuntu OS is shipping on tablets. And some of those things include merging of the smart phone, tablet and desktop into something which seems to be seamless. While this will be shipping on hardware later this year, you still may be able to start experiencing what it can do for you this month. It can run right now on selected Android hardware like the Nexus Tablet. But this is not for the faint of heart. Head on over to the developers site and take a look for yourself.

You can see a number of great features on their site, but one of the interesting ones is the claims regarding convergence between the Ubuntu tablet being a full PC and claims of being able to access Windows apps with a thin client. By having the exact same OS running on the Ubuntu phone, Ubuntu PC and Ubuntu TV, you get a single platform to run everything. This is what Microsoft is trying to do with Windows 8 and has some successes and some not so successful. Given what Ubuntu has done over the past few years in delivering their computer OS, they may well be in a better position to accomplish this.

In the video below, they demonstrate the ability to show things from your Ubuntu phone in a side panel of the tablet. Or the capability to take your tablet, attach a keyboard and mouse to turn it into a computer. Seems pretty impressive if they can deliver. We talked previously about coming smartphones using the Ubuntu OS to drive them. With coming tablets based on the Ubuntu OS, it looks like there is an organized challenge to Google. And that challenge is going be a big uphill battle to take away market share from Google's Android OS.

Ubuntu is working to provide for a comprehensive package by providing Ubuntu for the smartphone, Ubuntu for the tablet and Ubuntu TV. There is even Ubuntu for Android where they promote Ubuntu as being able to run on existing Android devices as we have already talked about. And it may be that simplicity and multiple platforms which will give them the inroads to convince people to give Ubuntu a try on either their smartphones or tablets.

If you have ever worked with Ubuntu as a desktop OS or even as a server OS, you know how easy they have made things to install and work with. If they carry that forward to the tablets, they are going to make life difficult for Google. Is an Ubuntu tablet something which you are will to consider?