Philippine Daily Inquirer

CAMARINES SUR

2 soldiers hurt in car accident

TWO SOLDIERS from the Army’s 22nd Infantry Battalion were slightly injured and lost cash, guns and cellular phones after their car turned turtle and caught fire in Barangay Pamukid, San Fernando town, on Sunday.

Cpl. Albert dela Cruz was driving a Mitsubishi Lancer, with Lt. Christopher Porras on board, along the highway at around 6 a.m. when he lost control of the car, said Maj. Angelo Guzman, spokesperson of the 9th Infantry Division.

Both soldiers were able to get out of the vehicle before it caught fire but failed to retrieve the P86,000 cash intended for a paramilitary unit, their .45 cal. pistols, and three cell phones. Juan Escandor Jr., Inquirer Southern Luzon

CAVITE

2 dead, 2 hurt in shooting

A 70-YEAR-old farmer who shot three persons who he thought were thieves was killed in a gunfight with police in Kawit town early Monday.

Boy Evangelista was tracked down by policemen and engaged them in a shootout hours after he went on a firing spree that resulted in the death of Joel Hernandez Manisi and the wounding of two other persons, said Senior Supt. John Bulalacao, provincial police director.

Manisi, who was driving a motorcycle with two companions on board, was passing by Evangelista’s farm in Barangay Batundalig at around 5:45 a.m. when the farmer fired at them with a .45 cal. pistol, Bulalacao said.

When lawmen arrived at his farm an hour later, Evangelista again fired an M-16 rifle as he escaped into the woods. At about 8:45 a.m., police found Evangelista behind a large tree. A shootout ensued.  Maricar Cinco, Inquirer Southern Luzon

CATANDUANES

Suspected NPA leader held

ARMY soldiers captured a suspected leader of the communist New People’s Army in Catanduanes during an encounter in a hinterland village of Sioron in the coastal town of Gigmoto on Friday, the military said.

Lorenzo Jimenez, alias Enzo, 33, a native of Gigmoto, and five other rebels were cornered after a five-minute firefight with the soldiers belonging to the 83rd Infantry Batallion in Barangay Sioron, 52 kilometers from the capital town of Virac, said Col. Arthur Ang, commanding officer of the 901st Infantry Brigade.

Troops seized an Uzi sub-machinegun from Jimenez while an M-16 rifle was recovered from the battle scene.  Mar S. Arguelles, Inquirer Southern Luzon

DAVAO DEL SUR

Kidnap victim found dead

A FARM worker abducted by five armed men in a van in General Santos City on Feb. 16 turned up dead inside a banana plantation in Malalag, Davao del Sur, on Sunday, the police said.

Senior Supt. Ronaldo Llanera, provincial police director, said the decomposing body of Mohammad Manampad, of Barangay Batomelong in General Santos, was found by a laborer of AMS-MFI plantation in Barangay Bolton. The victim was identified from his company ID.

Llanera said Manampad’s body bore torture marks and bullet wounds. Orlando B. Dinoy, Inquirer Mindanao

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT

‘Big brother’ role for shipbuilder

A BEST PRACTICE program in safety and health measures is now being implemented by Korean shipbuilder Hanjin, its subcontractors and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to ensure the safety of workers in Hanjin’s shipyard.

A memorandum of understanding was signed on Friday by Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz and Ahn Jin Kyu, president of Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Philippines Inc. Robert Gonzaga, Inquirer Central Luzon

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Article source: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/149247/newsbriefs-118

CHICAGO (Feb. 21, 2012) – U.S. Cellular (NYSE: USM) and Samsung Telecommunications America (Samsung Mobile) announced the upcoming availability of the Samsung Galaxy S® II. The Android™-powered smartphone is designed to deliver advanced multimedia features with a powerhouse 1.2 GHz dual-core processor. The 4.5-inch Super AMOLED Plus display shows brilliant colors, providing a vivid and crisp viewing experience. The Galaxy S II runs on U.S. Cellular’s high-speed nationwide 3G network, which has the highest call quality and network satisfaction of any national carrier. It will be available for $229.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate.

The Galaxy S II is ideal for the multi-tasker who also wants easy access to entertainment wherever they go. You can quickly update your calendar and browse the web to read the latest news, check the weather or get driving directions. The multimedia functions allow you and your family to keep up with your favorite TV shows and keep the kids entertained while you’re traveling with HD Games. With its superior screen display, camera, webcam and access to thousands of helpful applications in the Android Market™, customers will be able to get more done throughout the day.

“The Galaxy S II is the ultimate phone for people looking to simplify and organize their lives,” said Edward Perez, vice president of sales and marketing operations for U.S. Cellular. “The features combined with U.S. Cellular’s unique benefits, like our Battery Swap, make it the go-to device for customers who depend on their smartphone to keep up with their busy schedules.”

Highlighted features:
· 1.2 GHz dual-core processor (Samsung Exynos C210)
· Powered by Android™ 2.3 (Gingerbread)
· 8-megapixel rear-facing camera with LED Flash
· Swype™ technology for quick text, picture and video messaging
· 16 GB user memory – supports up to 32GB microSD™ cards

Smartphone enthusiasts who switch to U.S. Cellular get unique benefits, like new phones faster without continuously signing contracts, free Overage Protection and can participate in U.S. Cellular’s Trade-In Program. Through the U.S. Cellular Trade-In Program, customers can receive up to $150 on qualifying smartphones by trading in their current phone.

U.S. Cellular offers customers the only points-based rewards program in the industry to get benefits for doing simple things like paying their wireless bill on time, adding a line or referring friends and family. Points can be used for new phones faster, additional lines, devices, accessories and ringtones. It’s one of the reasons U.S. Cellular has the happiest customers in wireless.

For more information about all of U.S. Cellular’s deals, plans and phones, and other restrictions on these offers, visit any U.S. Cellular store, go to uscellular.com or check out U.S. Cellular on Facebook.

The Samsung Galaxy S II will be available for $229.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate. Purchase of a data plan is required, and a new two-year agreement and activation fee may apply for new customers. Additional terms, conditions and/or charges may apply.

Article source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/21/samsung-galaxy-s-ii-uscc/

Founded in 1983, Phoenix Children’s Hospital is one of the ten largest children’s hospitals in the country and provides specialty and sub-specialty inpatient, outpatient, trauma, emergency and urgent care to children and families in Arizona and throughout the Southwest. In 2006, the organization recognized the looming pediatric population boom that was facing Arizona and made plans for a $538 million expansion, including a new signature 11-story, 750,000-square-foot tower, which opened last year.

The expansion increases Children’s Phoenix Hospital’s capacity from 345 licensed beds to 465 licensed beds, ultimately targeting a total of 626 licensed beds at full build-out, which is expected in the next five years. The new tower features expanded clinic space, state-of-the-art operating rooms, cutting-edge pediatric radiology technology, a new Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and a separate Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit to support the hospital’s growing Children’s Heart Center. The new facility also includes a robust, neutral DAS designed and installed by TriPower that supports a variety of electronic devices including cellular phones, mobile devices and two-way radios used by the hospital’s maintenance and security as well as those used by local fire and police personnel.

“We went into this project with our eyes open, knowing that reliable wireless access is important for our doctors and staff as well as families and other guests in the facility,” said Dave Cottle, Vice President of Planning, Design and Construction for Phoenix Children’s Hospital. “TriPower was instrumental in bringing a tremendous amount of expertise to the table, allowing us not only to execute against our plans in a timely manner, but also improve things along the way. Their involvement was invaluable.”

“We’ve been involved in healthcare facility construction for over 25 years and have key personnel with a deep understanding of the unique needs and requirements of the industry,” said Mike Severns, VP, Healthcare Technologies for TriPower. “We commend Phoenix Children’s Hospital for their growth and innovation in serving the needs of the greater Phoenix area and feel extremely honored and grateful for being a part of it.”

About TriPower
TriPower’s unique knowledge of wireless infrastructure makes us one of the most qualified integrators of in-building coverage and enterprise wireless networks over a scalable Distributed Antenna System (DAS) in the nation. TriPower, a leading wireless system integrator, focuses on planning, designing, installing, and managing complex in-building coverage solutions for customers in healthcare, hospitality, government, public safety, enterprise, and public venue sectors. Working with leading technology providers, TriPower provides an integrated suite of wireless connectivity solutions including wireless data, cellular, public safety, and real time location services.

For additional information about TriPower, please visit www.tripower.com.

Cathy Cunha
TriPower
925-583-8239
cathy.cunha@tripower.com

Article source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/tripower-installs-distributed-antenna-system-140000493.html

The Galaxy S II is ideal for the multi-tasker who also wants easy access to entertainment wherever they go. You can quickly update your calendar and browse the web to read the latest news, check the weather or get driving directions. The multimedia functions allow you and your family to keep up with your favorite TV shows and keep the kids entertained while you’re traveling with HD Games. With its superior screen display, camera, webcam and access to thousands of helpful applications in the Android Market(TM), customers will be able to get more done throughout the day.

“The Galaxy S II is the ultimate phone for people looking to simplify and organize their lives,” said Edward Perez, vice president of sales and marketing operations for U.S. Cellular. “The features combined with U.S. Cellular’s unique benefits, like our Battery Swap, make it the go-to device for customers who depend on their smartphone to keep up with their busy schedules.”

Highlighted features:

• 1.2 GHz dual-core processor (Samsung Exnyos C210)
• Powered by Android(TM) 2.3 (Gingerbread)
• 8-megapixel rear-facing camera with LED Flash
• Swype(TM) technology for quick text, picture and video messaging
• 16 GB user memory — supports up to 32GB microSD(TM) cards

Smartphone enthusiasts who switch to U.S. Cellular get unique benefits, like new phones faster without continuously signing contracts, free Overage Protection and can participate in U.S. Cellular’s Trade-In Program. Through the U.S. Cellular Trade-In Program, customers can receive up to $150 on qualifying smartphones by trading in their current phone.

U.S. Cellular offers customers the only points-based rewards program in the industry to get benefits for doing simple things like paying their wireless bill on time, adding a line or referring friends and family. Points can be used for new phones faster, additional lines, devices, accessories and ringtones. It’s one of the reasons U.S. Cellular has the happiest customers in wireless.

For more information about all of U.S. Cellular’s deals, plans and phones, and other restrictions on these offers, visit any U.S. Cellular store, go to uscellular.com or check out U.S. Cellular on Facebook.

The Samsung Galaxy S II will be available for $229.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate. Purchase of a data plan is required, and a new two-year agreement and activation fee may apply for new customers. Additional terms, conditions and/or charges may apply.

Laura Lualhati, U.S. Cellular, laura.lualhati@uscellular.com, 312-813-1425

About U.S. Cellular

U.S. Cellular rewards its customers with unmatched benefits and industry-leading innovations designed to elevate the customer experience. The Chicago-based carrier has a strong line-up of cutting-edge devices that are all backed by its high-speed nationwide network that has the highest call quality of any national carrier. U.S. Cellular was named a J.D. Power and Associates 2011 Customer Service Champion and received PC Magazine’s 2011 Readers’ Choice Award. To learn more about U.S. Cellular, visit one of its retail stores or uscellular.com. To get the latest news, promos and videos, connect with U.S. Cellular on Facebook.com/uscellular, Twitter.com/uscellular and YouTube.com/uscellularcorp.

About Samsung Telecommunications America

Samsung Telecommunications America, LLC, a Dallas-based subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., researches, develops and markets wireless handsets and telecommunications products throughoutNorth America. For more information, please visit www.samsungwireless.com.

About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies with 2010 consolidated sales of US$135.8 billion. Employing approximately 190,500 people in 206 offices across 68 countries, the company operates two separate organizations to coordinate its nine independent business units: Digital Media Communications, comprising Visual Display, Mobile Communications, Telecommunication Systems, Digital Appliances, IT Solutions, and Digital Imaging; and Device Solutions, consisting of Memory, System LSI and LCD. Recognized for its industry-leading performance across a range of economic, environmental and social criteria, Samsung Electronics was named the world’s most sustainable technology company in the 2011 Dow Jones Sustainability Index. For more information, please visit www.samsung.com.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://www.cisionwire.com
http://www.cisionwire.com/u-s–cellular/r/samsung-galaxy-s-ii-coming-soon-to-u-s–cellular,c9223081

Article source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/samsung-galaxy-ii-coming-soon-150815045.html

These results are based on Gallup’s annual World Affairs poll, conducted Feb. 2-5, 2012. The contour of responses to this “greatest enemy” question has changed substantially over the seven times Gallup has asked it since 2001. Americans most frequently mentioned Iraq as the United States’ greatest enemy in 2001 — before the U.S. invaded the country and removed Saddam Hussein from power — and in 2005, when it tied North Korea. Iran has topped the list in each of the five surveys since.

More Americans Now Name Iran Greatest Enemy

The 32% of Americans who name Iran is the highest reading Gallup has measured for that country, and is up from 25% last year.

More Americans mention China as the United States’ greatest enemy (23%) this year than at any point in the 11-year history of the question, likely reflecting at least in part Americans’ concern over China’s global economic influence. Last year, China tied North Korea for second place, but mentions of North Korea have declined, leaving China alone in second place in 2012.

Also, over the last two years, Americans have been modestly more likely to mention Afghanistan as the nation’s greatest enemy than in years prior, perhaps partly because U.S. attention has turned away from Iraq. Mentions of Iraq have dropped significantly since 2008.

Republicans More Likely Than Democrats to Name Iran and China

Iran rates as the top enemy among all party groups, though Republicans are slightly more likely than independents or Democrats to mention Iran. Republicans are also more likely to mention China than are Democrats.

Democrats are more likely to mention Afghanistan as the nation’s greatest enemy, although this difference is not large.

Implications

Iran’s continued public announcements of its growing nuclear capabilities, its threats of war with U.S. ally Israel, and the possibility that Iran could disrupt the flow of oil out of the Middle East and further affect domestic oil and gas prices no doubt all contribute to Americans’ negative views of the country.

Americans are now more likely to name China as the greatest U.S. enemy than at any time over the past 11 years, although probably for different reasons than is the case for Iran. Americans now view China as the world’s greatest economic power, and China’s impact on the United States’ economic situation may be the driving force behind Americans’ increasingly apprehensive views of that country.

Americans’ views of Iran as the greatest enemy of the United States align with the highly unfavorable ratings they give to the country. Iran’s 87% unfavorable rating is the most negative for any country measured in Gallup’s February World Affairs survey.

On the other hand, while China is second on Americans’ greatest enemy list, it has a significantly more positive image than Iran, North Korea, Afghanistan, or Iraq, the four countries that join China in constituting the top five on Americans’ greatest U.S. enemies list. Americans give China a 41% favorable rating, while North Korea, Afghanistan, and Iraq have favorable ratings of 24% of lower.

Survey Methods

Results for this Gallup poll are based on telephone interviews conducted Feb. 2-5, 2012, with a random sample of 1,029 adults, aged 18 and older, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.

For results based on the total sample of national adults, one can say with 95% confidence that the maximum margin of sampling error is ±4 percentage points.

Interviews are conducted with respondents on landline telephones and cellular phones, with interviews conducted in Spanish for respondents who are primarily Spanish-speaking. Each sample includes a minimum quota of 400 cell phone respondents and 600 landline respondents per 1,000 national adults, with additional minimum quotas among landline respondents by region. Landline telephone numbers are chosen at random among listed telephone numbers. Cell phone numbers are selected using random-digit-dial methods. Landline respondents are chosen at random within each household on the basis of which member had the most recent birthday.

Samples are weighted by gender, age, race, Hispanic ethnicity, education, region, adults in the household, and phone status (cell phone only/landline only/both, cell phone mostly, and having an unlisted landline number). Demographic weighting targets are based on the March 2011 Current Population Survey figures for the aged 18 and older non-institutionalized population living in U.S. telephone households. All reported margins of sampling error include the computed design effects for weighting and sample design.

In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.

View methodology, full question results, and trend data.

For more details on Gallup’s polling methodology, visit www.gallup.com.

Article source: http://www.gallup.com/poll/152786/Americans-Rate-Iran-Top-Enemy.aspx?utm_source=tagrss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=syndication

Rajat Mukherjee, chief corporate officer – Idea Cellular [ Get Quote ], says that they were not part of the group of companies which started out in 2008. In fact, they had applied for licneses three years earlier. “It is unfortunate that we were clubbed with the others.”

In an exclusive interview with A Ganesh Nadar, Mukherjee talks about the company’s future plans and the scam. He is the first officer to speak on the scam from Idea Cellular, a company that is part of the Aditya Birla group.

What is your take on the 2G scam?

The order of the Supreme Court is fairly judgmental. Overall the judgement to cancel all the licenses granted in 2008 seems fair. We cannot question the judgement, but we feel that some parts need to be reviewed.

Were you shocked by the license cancellation verdict?

Yes! It was a shock. Even our chairman Kumaramangalam Birla feels the same. Idea Cellular has been in operations since 1995. And, we applied for expansion of our services in 2006. Our application was kept pending for 19 months. We were never a part of the new operators. But, we were granted licenses along with them. We expected the Supreme Court to observe this.

What is your company’s loss? How has it affected your expansion plans?

The impact is quite small. We have 110 million subscribers and only 6 million members are affected. The revenue loss is only 5 per cent. The markets, too, have realised that and the overall share value has not been affected.

Will a fresh auction help your company?

Yes! We are a serious player. We will participate in the auction.

What is your take on the political-business nexus when it comes to awarding big contracts?

(Smiles) I don’t think I want to answer this question.

How many circles are you planning to expand?

The seven circles where we have a presence, we will apply for that.

How can the government make the auction process transparent?

Consultations are going on between the mobile operators and TRAI to help us understand the procedure.

Are you hopeful of a positive outcome?

I believe that the industry has faced many upheavals in the past. We have succeeded nevertheless. The scope of the telecom industry will be more in the future. The government should look at the industry as a whole, as it is not doing so well at the moment.

How do you see the telecom market growing in India [ Images ]?

Very positive! We have 900 million subscribers. Also with the presence of two SIM phones and dual applications, we hope to grow at a fast pace. Further, as the number of devices grows, much more connections will be required.

Will the mobile tariffs fall further in India?

I don’t think that will happen but we will have to wait and watch.

How do you see Idea’s growth in the coming years?

Our last quarter was very positive. Our balance sheet is well. We will grow ahead.

Image: Rajat Mukherjee 

Article source: http://www.rediff.com/business/report/interview-how-idea-cellular-aims-to-move-on-post-2g-scam-verdict/20120220.htm

MacNN Rating:

Product Manufacturer: Samsung

Price: $300 (2 yrs ATT), $200 (3 yrs Telus)

Samsung made much ado of the Galaxy Note during the Super Bowl: the massive 5.3-inch screen and pen were tickets to “freedom” from the comparatively tiny iPhone. But are size and handwriting giving smartphone owners real choice, or is it an attempt to shoehorn the phone/tablet crossover into a market that doesn’t want it? Our review of the Galaxy Note will find out if it’s rethinking smartphones or just rewinding back to 2006-era PDAs.

Design, display, and the pen

All of Samsung’s high-end smartphones from 2011 — which, despite the North American street dates, includes the Galaxy Note — share a common formula of a minimalist design with rounded corners and edge-pushing screens that provide only slightly more than the minimum space needed for controls. It’s not an exciting design, but it’s tasteful and well-built. As usual, the back battery cover is just a thin plastic shell, but as on other phones, it has Samsung’s Hyperskin (really just a finely-textured surface) to help with grip. The controls are the standard, competent, four-point touch-sensitive Android layout, a change from the very conspicuously iPhone-like international version with its large, physical center button.

But here, that texture is necessary because the phone is big. Very big. If you’re a man with average-sized hands, the Note is just barely fits well enough to be held in one hand. While it’s tolerable for us to hold during a half-hour phone call, there’s no question that it could be too big entirely for anyone with smaller hands. Even as a data device, you often have to hold it two-handed, and there’s no way for your fingers to reach every part of the screen without shifting position. And despite what you might think, it’s not necessarily easier to type with a larger screen. Some of this is software, which we’ll touch on later, but we found that there wasn’t much advantage over even an iPhone for typing speed.

Moreover, it’s just hard to see the Note fitting into some pockets or, for that matter, lifestyles. It fit into our average-sized jeans, but we wouldn’t want to include much else; anything smaller or tighter and it would be awkward. There’s no way to avoid looking slightly ridiculous on a call, either. By comparison, even the 4.65-inch Galaxy Nexus looks small and socially acceptable, and the iPhone appears almost dainty. We asked several men and women we know, some of whom use Android and some who don’t, and all of them thought the Galaxy Note was unwieldy and strange to use in public. That’s not a good sign for Samsung when it’s the company’s new hero phone in the US.

Inside, it’s slightly more upbeat. The 16GB of built-in storage and microSDHC card slot are familiar, but it now has the NFC (near-field communications) of phones like the Nexus S and Galaxy Nexus for reading tags, pairing devices, and making mobile payments. There’s also a very high capacity 2,500mAh battery, whose performance we’ll see soon enough. We’re somewhat disappointed in the processor choice: in what’s believed to be a conflict between the LTE-based 4G chip the Note is using in North America and Samsung’s Exynos processors, the American and Canadian versions use a dual-core 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, which has downsides we’ll see soon enough.

But while we grouse about the display’s 5.3-inch size, what we won’t complain about is its visual output. It’s using the same Super AMOLED HD technology as the Galaxy Nexus, which to us is mostly a positive. The PenTile layout, or an RGBG (red, green, blue, green) pixel array, does create a slightly fuzzy look, but the dense 800×1280 resolution minimizes the effect even with such a big screen. Both it and the Galaxy Nexus share the same color traits, which is to say an exaggerated but still very pleasing look. The iPhone 4S is technically more accurate, just not as exciting. Having the wider aspect ratio does wonders for reading and sheer workspace, so if you feel the narrow displays most phones are limiting, you’ll be satisfied here.

The Note’s namesake S Pen input is mostly a software story, but the hardware bears mention. Samsung’s stylus doesn’t require any power of its own but manages to have pressure sensitivity and a button for extra features, such as taking a screenshot by touching the screen with the button held down. It’s comfortable enough to use, and it has the advantage of talking to a Wacom-based digitizer system like those in dedicated drawing tablets.

There’s a fairly convenient slot for the pen, but we couldn’t help but be reminded of one of the late Steve Jobs’ well-known complaints about having to remember to take out, use, and put away a stylus: just having to recall it can be a bit of a nuisance. We were careful with the pen, but at $40 for a replacement unit, it’s a very costly mistake if you lose or break it.

Android 2.3, TouchWiz, and the Android 4.0 upgrade

If you’ve seen our review of the Galaxy S II, you’ll be well-prepared for the Galaxy Note. Despite it now being a year since the S II was unveiled, the Note has the same combination of Android 2.3 and TouchWiz, albeit with minor changes. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, since it leads to a fairly smooth experience, if one that feels a little too much like that on the iPhone at times. We most like Apple Expos-style home screen overview and the ability to unlock directly to a missed call or message, although the new, slightly Android 4.0-like unlock method doesn’t have either a camera shortcut (as in 4.0) or the ability to unlock to a third-party app, like in Apple’s iOS 5.

Some of the deeper support for landscape-mode apps makes more sense on the larger screen of the Galaxy Note than it did on the SII. As long as you adjust the font sizes, the non-Gmail e-mail client and the Social Hub are potentially useful ways to quickly scan multiple messages by seeing both the list and previews. Most of the motion controls are more novelty than anything, though, and we still question the needs for both Samsung Apps and the Social Hub given that the built-in Android Market and individual social networking apps both do the job better. Social Hub doesn’t include Google+ support, which is becoming increasingly important for Android users.

In spite of its coverage, the big screen does backfire in a few ways. Significant parts of both Android and TouchWiz aren’t optimized for the larger screen, so elements are either oversized and waste screen area or are hard to reach without moving your hands. Swype is active by default and provides the autocorrection that Samsung’s own keyboard doesn’t, but apart from not gaining much from the larger screen, we noticed a tendency for it to accidentally interpret taps as swipes and occasionally insert short words (usually US state acronyms) on its own.

A few apps are new in the Galaxy Note edition, although their utility is somewhat debatable. S Choice is what amounts to a curated selection of titles from Samsung Apps, which after a few explorations and downloads saw apps that were mostly non-exclusive (Skitch, for example) or mediocre quality. Mini Diary gives a basic way to juxtapose images and notes for a personal history, but there’s not much to it — and it strangely doesn’t support the pen. We’ll cover the key S Memo app in more detail, but the only other app that’s truly useful is the S Planner, a nicely visual upgrade to calendaring that still supports Google Calendars but which is more fine-grained. We actually prefer the tabs and other organizers Samsung uses for sorting schedules than the multi-touch “stretch” of the calendar in Android 4.0.

Some extra apps fill out both expected and welcome roles. AllShare media sharing lets you send content to a DLNA-equipped TV, a PlayStation 3, or a similar box. Our favorite is Kies Air, a way to wirelessly send media, call logs, and other content to and from a computer on the local network through its browser. To some extent, though, it’s almost needed: at least with our Galaxy Note, a USB connection would only allow using the Windows-focused Media Transfer Protocol (MTP) and couldn’t let us directly copy from Mac OS X, even with Google’s own Android File Transfer app. A Galaxy Nexus doesn’t have this issue, and it’s notable that an iPhone can now conduct a full, automated sync with iTunes over Wi-Fi.

Voice recognition through Android Voice Actions and the bundled Vlingo app has lost its luster in a post-Siri era. Samsung doesn’t have Android 4.0′s improvements for continuous voice input and suggestions. Vlingo can technically do more in some areas than Apple’s system, such as launching an individual app, but it’s an incredibly stiff interface by comparison. It can’t really address natural language and doesn’t understand anything about context, or even in some cases bring up common requests the way you’d like. Ask “what’s the weather in Austin?” and it will just run a web search for the phrase; you can set an appointment, but it won’t check if there’s a conflict and let you give a simple “move it to two” to adjust the timing. That and having to launch an app or trigger a widget, instead of having voice commands truly built -in, really discourages voice use.

Some of this would be solved through Android 4.0 itself, but that raises its own questions. Samsung has promised Android 4.0 updates for its higher end devices, including the Galaxy Note, in the near future. The first upgrades for Samsung’s line could show before the end of March. However, Samsung is known to take a long time for upgrades and isn’t always consistent. The Continuum, a Verizon phone from late 2010, only just got Android 2.2 in February 2012, a year and a half after it was made public. The only surefire way to get newer versions of Android in a timely way is to get a Nexus phone, and there’s no guarantee the Note will get long term support after 4.0 arrives.

Until the Galaxy Note moves to Android 4.0, then, apps like Chrome for Android are off limits. Critics argue that fragmentation on the platform is exaggerated, but it’s the absence of major new apps like Chrome that shows a splintered platform in action.

The pen and S Memo

Ostensibly the phone’s reason for being is its pen input. After rooting through the interface, though, there’s precious little to actually run with it. Samsung has a pen development kit, but as of February there was still little in the way of apps. We wouldn’t count on third-party help for what’s a sub-platform of one manufacturer’s Android devices; anyone who has owned a Kyocera Echo can attest to the pitfalls of putting faith in support for hardware that doesn’t have a guarantee of success or future support.

Apart from the photo editor (more on this soon) and a simple if interesting copy of the draw-to-win game Crayon Physics Deluxe, the core pen app on the Galaxy Note is S Memo. In truth, it’s an all-purpose drawing app that fulfills both artistic drawing and notes, including ones typed with the familiar on-screen keyboard. The app doesn’t have a particularly broad set of tools, although it does have a surprising amount of control over the pen type, the drawing width, and the color. Along with the pressure sensitivity in the pen, it can recognize speed as well, and you’ll create drawings that have effects more akin to real paper, such as lines that thin out as you lift the pen tip. We’ve created work that reflects our (limited) ability and seen considerably more creative work drawn live by others.

Actually settling down to draw underscores some limitations of the pen system itself. There was a small but frequently visible amount of lag between drawing and action. Precision can be just as much of an issue depending on what kind of content you’re creating, and we found it hard to be accurate without moving slowly. It’s hard to tell how much is Samsung’s own doing versus the inherent differences between drawing on a capacitive touchscreen with a plastic stylus instead of paper. The friction and immediate natures of paper, brushes, and pens aren’t there, so it still feels slightly unnatural.

Consequently, the S Pen at its best feels more like a nice-to-have extension of the Galaxy Note than a core component, and that’s a shame. What’s supposed to be a rethink feels more like a bolt-on extra. We’d have preferred that Samsung have a whole suite of apps and a truly mastered drawing experience before it declared a truly different experience.

Performance: device, 3G, and 4G

Subjectively, the Snapdragon processor (which Samsung never publicly acknowledges) only has a limited effect on perceived speed, although it’s noticeable. TouchWiz is still very fluid, more so than some pre-4.0 implementations; still, we noticed that the Expos-like view and other occasional transitions were slightly jittery where they were fast on the Galaxy S II. The Galaxy Nexus (and to some extent, the Nexus S) has an advantage in boosting some 2D apps. While it needs to be enabled, you can insist that hardware graphics acceleration be used for every 2D app, giving apps like Twitter that tend to bog down on Android a lift in speed that just isn’t an option on Android 2.3.

Most modern Android games are still designed to run well within the parameters of average phones, so it wasn’t surprising to us that games like Wind-Up Knight ran smoothly. Behind the scenes, it’s apparent the Galaxy Note’s chip isn’t as fast as Samsung’s own Exynos. Quadrant Standard hit a score of 2,581, or about 20 percent slower than the 3,216 of the Galaxy S II. The more gaming-oriented Neocore benchmark from Qualcomm itself showed a 55.7 frames per second average instead of the 59.6 of the earlier phone. Either is somewhat disappointing for a phone that was released several months later than the S II and yet is supposed to carry a price premium.

Cellular network performance is another story. Not surprisingly, LTE network performance is almost stratospheric if you’re in a good coverage area. We were on Telus’ fledgling network in various parts of Ottawa and managed between 20Mbps to a very high 36Mbps downstream, and between 7Mbps to 12Mbps for uploads. Lag time was down to as little as 28ms, where it’s not uncommon to get ten times more latency on a 3G network. Performance on ATT, Bell, or Rogers can vary sharply, but we’ve had the opportunity to try LTE on all of these networks, and can say they at least sometimes match what we saw here. It’s good enough to match a very good landline in nearly every respect.

We did have some opportunities to try the HSPA+ support, which still goes up to 21Mbps. As you’d imagine, it’s not as brisk as LTE, although we got very respectable performance of up to 7.7Mbps down, 2Mbps up, and lag at 50ms. If you have to fall back to 3G (which some carriers still call 4G), it’s still very acceptable.

The catch with LTE, of course, is having it available. Telus had very literally switched on its LTE network the week before we were trying the Galaxy Note, and access to it was patchy. A trip downtown saw LTE go on and off enroute our destination, and LTE that we had in our home territory on Rogers wasn’t yet there with Telus. This will change, but it’s a reminder of why LTE isn’t yet a mainstream feature. Even Verizon’s network in the US still leaves out a large number of cities and still leaves holes where it drops down to 3G. ATT’s is smaller still and will be until sometime in 2013. Don’t be afraid to get a device it you’re not in an LTE area; just be aware the network isn’t quite the panacea it seems to be.

Camera apps and image quality

The imaging app is still that from TouchWiz 4.0, and is arguably still one of the more powerful available. It’s a careful blend between simplicity and control that can be completely hands-off if you like but lets you fine-tune the behavior. You can set the ISO sensitivity levels, the white balance, and the metering in addition to easier features like scene presets. Our only real issue was the curious decision to set the default video resolution to 720p rather than the maximum 1080p given that there’s no frame rate differences.

Another repeat of the Galaxy S II comes in the camera system, which borrows the same eight-megapixel rear sensor and two-megapixel front sensor as the back. Again, this may not be a real problem given that the S II’s cameras performed relatively well most of the time in still photos. It’s very much possible to get the coveted shallow depth of field and soft backgrounds that photographers crave from macros and other close-up shots. Colors are generally accurate, if a bit muted, and the images are clear. We even managed a few truly workable low light photos.

With this in mind, there are a number of signs that the camera is less of a performer than the one in the iPhone 4S or its close cousin in imaging terms, Sony’s Xperia arc. The Galaxy Note’s camera in some outdoor scenes can produce a “burnt” look where edges are darker; we suspect it’s either being too enthusiastic with detail enhancements or just has a problem with these color contrasts. We’d draw more attention to a tendency to blow out highlights. And low-light ability, while it exists, just isn’t on the level of the iPhone or Xperia, either of which can produce a usable shot in a uniformly dim (though not pitch black) scene where the Galaxy Note left much of the shot in darkness. We found the flash almost too bright for any close subjects.

The use of the earlier camera and Android 2.3 together reintroduces something that the Galaxy Nexus (and iPhone 4S) was trying to banish: shutter lag. Capture a photo and there’s always a gap between the press and the image showing on screen, although it’s small enough that you keep a sharp picture. Suffice it to say that you won’t be snapping rapid-fire shots during a concert or a sports event like you would with either the new Nexus or the iPhone 4S.

Samsung does make up for these deficits to some extent through a surprisingly robust photo editor app. It’s no Photoshop, but it does let you crop, grab selections, apply filters, and adjust qualities such as saturation. The pen gets one of its precious few extra uses here, although it’s mostly for drawing a lasso selection to cut out a specific object.

Video quality is generally solid and once more draws parallels with the S II. Any image quality positives and drawbacks persist into movie-making. There’s something of the “tower of Jell-O” (rolling shutter) effect that makes subjects appear to wobble, and video in lower light tends to blur faster than it would elsewhere. All the same, the Note’s video is still very acceptable, and we remain surprised with the audio quality inherited from the S II, which can pick up subtle sounds like footsteps.

Call quality and battery life

As odd as it is to hold the Galaxy Note up to one’s head, we can at least commend Samsung for keeping the same voice quality as on the Galaxy S II. It’s very nearly ideal on both ends: clear, reasonably loud, and gentle on the ear for long periods. As a speakerphone, arguably the more common use for a phone this big, it’s not especially loud, but it’s certainly adequate.

Longevity is a definite wildcard with a device this size; there’s equal opportunity for it to be exceptional and terrible. Thankfully, it’s very much on the positive side, although it also has one of the widest gaps depending on use. Moderate use, primarily in the evening and on 3G as well as Wi-Fi, is where it truly shines: we got 36 hours of being unplugged before the charger warning came on, and we still had 20 percent power left that (if used consistently) would have pushed us to 43 hours.

Even so, the 2,500mAh battery can’t entirely escape current-generation LTE’s tendency to crush battery life. In a second day of heavy use, including a large amount of primarily LTE-based Internet use and photography, we had just a few percentage points of battery left after 13 hours. That’s longer than the 8.5 hours of 4G use we’ve heard for Motorola’s Droid RAZR MAXX, and it’s enough for some users to get through a workday or a long evening out without panicking as to whether or not the phone will last the night. If you’re willing to accept a giant phone, you don’t have to wait for healthy 4G battery life.

Wrapping up

The Galaxy Note feels like the culmination of the mindset that has pushed many Android manufacturers since 2010. It’s the peak of a view that bigger numbers are always better, whether they’re really necessary or not. At this point, there is virtually no place else for Samsung to go in screen dimensions after the Galaxy Note: any bigger than 5.3 inches and the device would practically spill over into tablet territory. As it stands, it’s clearly a data device first and a cellphone a distant second.

It’s for that reason that it feels like Samsung is at once trying too hard and not trying enough with the Note. Technically, many of the admirable underpinnings of the Galaxy S II are here. The suddenly less comfortable form factor, the questionable advantages of the pen, and the slightly slower performance all end up diminishing what in the seemingly more modest S II was an ideal balance. In some ways, the pen feels like it came about as a justification for the screen size oneupmanship rather than an integral part of the design, a theory supported by the lack of pen-aware apps.

There are some advantages, such as LTE support and battery life, but we would still gravitate towards either the S II or, more likely, the Galaxy Nexus. Either was still designed around the mission of having a solid smartphone first, a device meant for both data and voice that still factored portability into the equation. The Galaxy Note has seemingly hit the wall creatively and is looping back to the pre-iPhone days. Samsung’s team appears to have forgotten that pens came with old Palm and Windows Mobile phones because their creators hadn’t had the foresight to adopt capacitive multi-touch displays, not because the pen was speaking to some inner need.

We’d still say the Galaxy Note is a good device, but it’s a niche device; not the kind that would merit a 90-second Super Bowl ad that may have cost as much as $10 million to air. At $300 on contract with ATT ($200 on a three-year Canadian term), it’s also a big commitment to make if you’re not already completely sold on the size and features.

We’re not as jaded as Steve Jobs, who proclaimed that “they blew it” if you saw competitors bring out a stylus, but we also don’t see any danger to the iPhone, either. As of fall 2011, Apple was the top individual smartphone maker with no more than a 3.5-inch screen to boast about. If screen size alone mattered, Apple would be marginal. Making a good smartphone isn’t about arbitrary screen sizes — it’s about smart design and fully realized software. The Galaxy Note, while an interesting experiment, shows that Samsung needs to slow down and adjust its priorities to reflect this philosophy.

by Jon Fingas

Article source: http://www.macnn.com/reviews/samsung-galaxy-note.html

Saturday, February 18, 2012

TAGUM CITY, touted as the “Music Capital of the South, is gearing for a more exciting and grander 11th Musikahan sa Tagum Festival this year.

But what makes this year’s edition of the music-filled event is the participation, not only of Filipino talents from various parts of the country, but also of those from the Asia-Pacific who will showcase their musical skills as they conquer the city’s stage during the festival.

Considered to be Davao Region’s opening festival salvo, the musical event runs from February 21-26 and will feature the region’s best solo players and musical ensembles such as marching brass bands, choral groups, rondalla artists, drum-and-bugle-lyre corps players, young musicians specializing wind, percussion and string instruments, among others.

The City Government of Tagum under Mayor Rey T. Uy and the City of Tagum Tourism Council with Mrs. Alma L. Uy sitting as its president, assured that this year’s Musikahan will be grander and a must-see, following a decade of successful annual staging.

Exactly a year after Tagum’s successful hosting of the 3rd International Rondalla Festival last year, the city goes international anew, embracing foreign music, with the performance of foreign artists during the festival’s opening ceremony’s celebratory concert.

Set to perform on Tuesday’s opening ceremonies are Korean Soprano Eun Ha Choi, Kulintang Player Syman Adare of Indonesia and Sheryl Dalawer of Bali. Joining them are young virtuoso artists Gabriel Allan Paguiran, Jimmy Tagala and Myramae Meneses.

Ms. Uy shared that next year, an Asia-Pacific Choral Competition shall be added as a component of the festival, with the latest admission of the city to the Unesco-organized International Music Council which is the world’s largest network of organizations, institutions and individuals working in the field of music.

Two of the members of the panel of judges this year come from IMC, Ms Uy shared.

This year’s Musikahan banners the theme “Harvest of Creativity, Celebrating Global Harmony.”

New Flavors

Festival artistic director Nestor Horfilla disclosed that events in this year’s festival were “reinvented, reinvigorated and reintroduced” as to elicit excitement among tourists and from the Tagumeños as well.

Adding spice to the six-day event is the holding of the Musikahan @ I.T. which shall explore the multi-faceted usage of information technology and the new media in creative industry and knowledge production.

This will be participated in by IT educators and students from different learning institutions which shall compete in producing creative outputs promoting Tagum through websites, e-marketing application software disseminated through cellular phones and production of ringtones.

Tourists and local folks who don’t have enough time to attend to all events during the festival need not to worry as an online live streaming shall be available on the Internet, considered to be the biggest innovation of the festival this year, organizers said.

The city’s iconic New City Hall — the main venue of the festival — is boosting its wireless capability with the installment of two wi-fi zones with a T1 line which provides extremely fast internet connection that will ensure the event’s I.T. component.

Main Events

Highlighting the Musikahan are following: Himig Handog Choral Competition, Rondal-Awit Rondalla and Solo Singing Competition and Festival and Avenida Musika Marching Brass Band Competition. Pasiklaban sa Musikahan Battle of the Band Competition and the Huni ug Kasikas sa Dalan Drum, Lyre and Bugle Competition shall also add tone and color to the revelries.

The Best of Musikahan sa Barangay Talents featuring local talents in the barangays here will also be staged along with series of Filipino Contemporary Music Artists Concerts, celebratory concerts and outreach performances in hospitals, malls and other social institutions.

A photography contest which is a first in the history of Musikahan will also kick off this year as organized by the City Information Office.

Since its launching in 2001, Musikahan gathers the country’s best musical performers and the participation has grown tremendously through the years, generating participation not just from Mindanao-based contingents but also from Luzon and Visayas.

Some of the participants this year include musical talents from Bulacan, Quezon City, Cebu, Davao City, Bacolod, Butuan, South Cotabato, Panabo City, Quezon Province, Bukidnon, North Cotabato, Compostela Valley, the City of Manila and the many musical groups in Tagum.

These groups shall compete for musical supremacy, with an accumulated cash prizes amounting to the tune of 1.054 million pesos allotted by the city government.

Foundation Sought

The Musikahan sa Tagum Festival is mandated under City Ordinance No. 237 which declares this as the official city festival. But organizers believe much need to be done.

In its ardent desire to further institutionalize the festival, the City of Tagum Tourism Council will hold the Assembly of Partners on February 26, 2012 before the opening ceremony at the New City Hall which seeks to cement the partnership between the organizers and its supporters from the private and public sectors.

Uy shared that that this event was designed as an assembly of partners, with the end view of concretizing the membership, clarifying the programs and refining the organizational structure of the would-be organized Musikahan sa Tagum Foundation.

It also aims to expand the festival’s network of partners and volunteer members which shall sustain the holding of the Musikan sa Tagum Festival in the years to come.

Article source: http://www.sunstar.com.ph/weekend-davao/musikahan-2012-goes-international

Article source: http://www.pontiacdailyleader.com/news/x1353879500/Suspect-still-at-large

A man armed with a revolver entered the store at 1223 W. Reynolds St. about 9:30 a.m. Friday, Pontiac police said. The man ordered the employees and customers into the back room to fill bags with the “expensive” cellphones.

The man then fled with an unknown number of phones and entered a white, four-door sedan with no front license plate.

No one was injured, and no one is in custody.

The robber was described as a black male who is about 6 foot 2 inches tall and weighs 250 to 300 pounds. He was wearing a gray, hooded sweatshirt and gray sweatpants and had a black cloth covering his face.

Article source: http://www.morrisdailyherald.com/2012/02/17/armed-man-robs-pontiac-cellphone-store/at6g12b/