Sony Xperia Z Unboxing and Hands-On

We have a fairly new addition in our family. It's a sleek temptress with lines and angles that put my Droid RAZR HD to absolute shame. It's incredibly thin compared to the Motorola as well, but that's no difficult feat nowadays. It's also rather tall and wide, which posed a few concerns for its owner before it arrived. Those fears were quickly allayed upon first holding it however, and overall the Sony Xperia Z has actually made my sister interested in smartphones.

Anti-Theft Apps - how tall have you built the fortress walls on your device(s)?

Getting back into the spirit of writing (if there even is one), I found myself stumped today with where to pick things up from my somewhat lengthy absence. It was only as I was trawling through my G+ feed, searching for a source for inspiration that I was startled by the high-pitched, irritating tone of a security alarm fitted on the newly built house next door. Not showing an immediate concern for whatever was happening next door, I tried to drown out the sound with tunes but to no avail - 'Gimme Shelter' just wasn't the same with an alarm sounding in the background. After a good 3 minutes, I checked outside my window to see what all the fuss was about and realised the slip-up was caused by a real estate agent who had no clue how to turn the alarm off.

Photo of an old Gregory's map from the 1940s that we have in the family - unusual that it knew
 we'd  need to know the location of our mobile telephones one day...

It was then that I began to think about security. What would happen if you lost your precious gem of a phone at a restaurant, or on public transport - or worse yet, it was stolen. How would you react, and what methods do you have in place to safeguard any data that may be sensitive?

Google Drive - Cloud Storage Challenge pt.II

Google Drive continues to be the home for my primary office suite of sorts, and for storing most, if not all of my Uni related work - and now even extra stuff I work on outside Uni. It truly is becoming more and more a part of my life the more I'm using it. But don't assume that this entire post will express my love affair with this service, because not every love affair is rosy, there are bound to be some pitfalls and it's no different in this case.

Source: play.google.com

Launcher Challenge - Apex Launcher

To start my long overdue launcher challenge - I'll be talking about Apex Launcher Pro, which from the moment I first flashed a nightly CM9 build to my Defy, it was the first 4.0 launcher I bought and have mostly stuck with since.

An old screenshot I thought I'd
throw in

Already in my weeks since announcing this launcher challenge, in using other launchers I've found that I will never have the same dependency on Apex as I've had in the past. There are just way too many avenues for customisation and personalisation on Android, and Apex is only the start of it. But alas, I have to start somewhere with this challenge, so why not comment on what has largely been my primary launcher since Android 4.0?

Most Galaxies are Mere Pawns in Samsung's Game Strategy

Why don't we just come to expect a new phone or two from Samsung every fortnight?

To be quite honest, I'm tiring of Samsung's continued exploitation of the 'Galaxy' name and design language. Just in case you weren't aware, Samsung recently announced the Galaxy Mega 5.8 and 6.3, which look just about the same as every other Galaxy device on the market, save for the back and menu buttons on the 6.3 - which have been swapped around.

Source: ubergizmo

Changing the button configuration which has just about always existed on their range which feature that hideous physical home button is a worrying thought for me. I believe it signifies Samsung are aware that their designs are ageing quickly, and at fears of coming up with a new design language - they're playing it safe by making subtle design 'enhancements' to an otherwise stale slice of bread.

Xiaomi MI-2S - One Attractive Alien

I think I'm smitten for a smartphone from an OEM whose name I often find fleeting both in recollection and spelling. I've never been a fan of Chinese OEMs, but this quirky device brings premium specs at a bargain basement price that makes it an extremely difficult offer to pass up.

Themed Icons that aren't assigned to the App Drawer

As I gear up to write about Apex Launcher as part of my launcher challenge, I thought about something which I've never quite understood with respect to some icon packs - that being why don't certain app icons which do exist in the icon pack theme themselves in the app drawer, and why don't themers take the steps necessary to mend this annoyance?

Before I start, this post is not a rant about themers/devs not having themed an app I have - I realise I'm more than capable of emailing the themers/devs with a list of app icons I'd like to see themed. This post is questioning why when I sift through the often extensive list of icons in an icon pack, and actually find a themed icon for the Chrome app for instance, that the icon itself isn't themed in the app drawer to begin with.

Impatiently awaiting the arrival of Play Store Gift Cards

For the last week or so, I've found myself out of "Google dollars". By that I mean the prepaid credit card that I use to make all sorts of purchases through Google Wallet has ran dry, and by time I finally have the opportunity to go down to the local post office (the only place my card can be recharged), it's closed.

Ingress Activation Codes are going to send me to the madhouse

I don't think I've ever been more anxious to play a game as I am with Ingress. Part of this could come down to the fact that the game is in closed-beta and operates on an invite-only basis. Knowing that thousands around the world are "geeking" out, improving their health and are part of something I'm not makes me feel as though I'm struggling to prevent a rock from defeating me. Though I may not be living completely under a rock, unless I'm actually involved and playing the game itself I might as well be. You don't understand, I'm pacing up and down the house, thinking of a new, creative way of landing my hands on an activation code, should my artistic skill and efforts see me through.

Source: geek.com

Breaking my Silence - thoughts on the S4 and Samsung

I think it's time I broke the silence I've been holding following the Galaxy S4 launch. Before I start, I'd like to point out without question, there are a number of features and improvements Samsung have made to the device which I think are great. I want to love the Galaxy S4, but I just can't.

Source: news.com.au

Why anything Facebook related on Android probably isn't a good thing

I had no clue what I would write about today, up until the point I checked my Google+ feed and was alerted to the news of a Facebook event to be held on the 4th of April, which is supposed to reveal their 'New Home on Android'.

Under any normal circumstances, I'd welcome almost any new organisation to the Android game, but as far as the things go with the social media giant - I can't be nearly as excited. To be honest, I care very little about what it is they plan to announce. Whether it be a Facebook phone with integrated Graph Search and a UI akin to their News Feed, or that they plan to release more of their services on the Play Store, Facebook are the last group I personally want to see in the smartphone game - heck, push me far enough and you might even get me to consider an iPhone over a FacePhone if I had no other option. Even if I did have a gun to my head, I'd still probably take the bullet if it meant not having to give any more of my personal information to Facebook.

Why sometimes the easiest fix is the most effective fix

As a user who frequently revisits older devices, appreciating what we once regarded as "snappy", I found after recently returning to my GNex from a stint with my N1, that aspects of performance soon sparked questions and doubts for my "fastest" smartphone. Little did I know, the simplest trick in the book would end up being a solution to what was rapidly shaping up to be another unfortunate purchase.

Like the colouring of this case, the GNex was on the
verge of being another lemon

Changing up the Launchers

A few posts back, I tackled the topic of homescreens, and the fact that the number I have on my devices are  becoming lesser and lesser as time goes on. Looking through my app drawer today, I found I actually own a large selection of Launcher replacements, but I mostly find myself staying with Apex - the one I know best.

Updated Chameleon Launcher - now for phones

Launchers can breathe new life into anyone's device, and I've come to realise I don't customise as much as I did when I first got into Android (which is odd, given I now have a GNex which affords way more customisation than my Defy did). With this, I've decided I should make an attempt to set up my homescreens and shortcuts for each launcher - so as to make it easier when I feel like a change of "scenery", I suppose you could call it. I'll make sure to post screenshots of what's sure to be "aesthetically pleasing" layouts.

This is a short post, but it's more or less an official reminder to myself that I'm going to stick with this challenge, as I'm doing so with my cloud service challenge.

Current launchers I own are as follows (feel free to suggest any I should look at purchasing):

• Action Launcher Pro
• ADW Launcher EX
• Apex Launcher Pro
• Chameleon Launcher (recently updated and compatible with phones)
• Launcher 8 (yes, curiosity killed the cat)
• Nova Launcher Prime
• SF Launcher Plus
• ssLauncher the Original

HTC's CEO willing to stake his life (at least as head of the company)?

A piece of news which really caught my attention today was the announcement (at least in the boardroom) that HTC's long serving CEO and co-founder, Peter Chou would step down if his brainchild, the One wasn't to live up to the hype.

Google Drive - Cloud Storage Challenge pt.I

As you've guessed, it's now been just over a fortnight since I posed myself the challenge of relying on absolutely nothing else for my University work other than Google Drive. That's right, I'm not using MS Word or Adobe Acrobat on my desktop , and no LibreOffice on my Ubuntu laptop - I'm relying heavily on Google's services on each device I use.

Why can't Samsung just let go?

Straying from all the Google related news I've been dumping on this blog over the last week or two, I thought I'd delve into some of those Samsung leaks that have been surfacing, mainly because a few of the purported design elements have been getting under my skin.

The elusive SIV?

I'm not one to take rumours of specs which may/may not feature on a device too seriously. I think it's all good and nice to have a look at what fans believe will be the 'killer-specs' of an upcoming device, but given the way releases of other devices have been in the past, OEMs tend not to stray too far from what is already quite common on other devices, flagship or not - it's mainly the software and design that differentiates.

When it comes to leaks however, I'm a sucker, and though for the most part I know that a large majority may be fan renders, I still admire the all the effort that one goes to, in order to fool a selection of people. As soon as a leak, or render sees itself used in a video, it's usually by then that I'm completely pulled in, which is precisely why when a leaked video 'claiming' to show the Galaxy SIV for China Unicom was released, my hopes were shattered.

Exposing Vulnerabilities in Systems - the Case of ChromeOS and others

Something which has piqued my interest these last couple of days were the Pwn2Own and Pwnium3 events, which encourage hackers to show off their skills with exposing flaws in programs, browsers and OS', all for the chance to stick their hands into companies' bank accounts.

I love the concept of these events. Not only do they promote computer geeks leaving their seedy basements for a bit of fresh air, but it provides them with an outlet to showcase their technical aptitude - with an opportunity to rake in some top coin if they're successful.

Nexus Accessories and why sometimes it's an annoyance living "Down-Under"

As the next Google I/O event fast approaches, and the possibility of a follow up to the Nexus 7 is announced, Asus have finally released the official Nexus 7 dock for sale on the Play Store in some major countries.

Source: TheVerge

But what's the deal with consumers getting hold of official accessories, months or in this case - three quarters of a year after the device has been released?

Why Google Needs to up the Ante with their Distribution of Play Store Services

The Google Play Store has come a far way since its beginnings as the once bland, green and white themed Android Market it replaced last year. As we approach the one year anniversary of the Market's re-branding and its inclusion of a number of new categories within the store, one must wonder: "why are many around the world still missing out on access to features of the Play Store?"

Is Motorola lacking the X-Factor?

Over the last day or so, we've heard from a recent conference that Google Chief Financial Officer, Patrick Pichette commented on the lack of "wow" in Motorola's 18 month product pipeline that Google inherited in their acquisition.

Whilst praising the assets that Motorola brings to Google's table, Pichette undercut the undisclosed list of devices that came with Motorola, claiming they're "not really to the standard that Google would say is 'wow, innovative, transformative'", much to the dismay of fans of Motorola and noted reviewers of their more recent products.

In response, Android Central's Phil Nickinson posted to his Google+ followers, an image of a collection of Motorola's handsets, wherein the caption asked individuals to 'spot the "wow"'. The image was inundated with views of fans and users who mostly reminisced about their past and present Motorola loves, effectively seeking to make a point about Motorola's ability to capture consumer's attention, and hinting that frail ol' Moto has 'still got it'.

But what of the facts behind the views?