Different models of HTC One X

If you are planning to buy HTC One X, know what exactly you are buying. I was about to finalize on HTC One X and realized that there are different models with different hardware configruations under the same name. I wish you are reading this blog before buying one so that you can avoid unplesant shock. If you are reading this late, my condolences are with you.

I feel frustrated to see HTC selling different hardware configurations under the same phone name, in this case, HTC One X. In USA, HTC One X has a dual-core processor whereas the international version is quad-core. The US version has LTE but not the international version. The CPU, GPU, storage are different.

It is common that the frequencies are different for the same phone (same name) in different regions. For e.g In HTC desire, the 3G frequency is 900/2100 in India while this is 850/1900 in USA. So, even if your phone is a quad band phone, it may not get 3G in all networks. You will get calls though as "quad-band" indicates only to the voice section of GSM. The frequencies may be different for different providers in the same region. For e.g. AT&T vs T-Mobile uses different 3G frequencies (850/1900 vs 1900,1700/2100).

I dont understand the reasoning behind this by HTC. Imagine the poor souls who saw quad-core specs and bought the phone in USA. I am not making this up. There are comments in amazon product reviews saying that they were expecting a quad-core phone but got a dual-core (Thanks to this guy. I can say that my confusion started with that comment which saved me). See the table in the wikipedia article which nicely shows the differences.

Offtopic... I was curious to know the naming convention of HTC phones. They have their models suffixed X, S, V etc. It was not easy to find but I finally found one link which explained it. X-Extreme, S-Sense, V-Value, XL-Extreme with LTE.

One thumb typing keyboard for mobile from microsoft

When the first keyboards were invented we used to sit infront of the devices and type them. So, a horizontal layout would make sense that way. Over time we realized that it is not so good from an ergonomics point of view and split keyboard claim to be easy on the nerves. But all this is when the typing keyboard is based on a platform.

Imagine typing on the same keyboard while we are holding that keyboard. I sounds so stupid. right ? Right, but we sticked to the same idea for too long. We hold our mobiles in hand and try to follow the same layout. To top it we hold the mobile in one hand. So, whats the solution when you are holding the keyboard itself.

I think the split keyboard in ipad is a good idea to start with. We generally hold it in both the hands and splitting the keyboard closer to the grip area is a good idea because we can type without loosing the grip. But still the keyboard is vertical. Will it not be hard on the nerves ?

I think microsoft nailed it this time. They have a curved keyboard with which we can easily type all the keys without loosing the grip. I belive that this model will be easy on the nerves too. This may not be a game changer to make people go crazy and make them buy windows phones. But it definitely is a good idea. When will everyone copy this idea and start a patent war on this (tounge-in-cheek) ?
http://wmpoweruser.com/new-arc-soft-keyboard-may-be-coming-to-windows-phone-8/

HCI (Human Computer Interface) more than simple touch

This is touche in development at disney research. This interface can detect not just simple finger touch but complex gestures using hands and other parts of the body. It claims to have 99% accuracy in detecting a gesture. It is based on something called "Swept Frequency Capacitive Sensing" (SFCS) technique. The difference of this technique, in simple terms, is that this technique samples a wide range of frequencies related to the gesture than a single frequency which gives a binary result YES/NO. i.e. touched or not touched. In the SFCS technique, they can detech different types of touch. It can tell if it is just touch, pinch, grasp, etc. All difference gestures are demonstrated in the following video along with the freqency graph for each type of touch.

 

With this SFCS technique, they can detect multiple aspects of the user using the device. It can detect how the user is touching the sensor, how the user is connected to the ground, and some properties of the individual body. One reason why they say that this kind of research was not done before is due to the lack of fast and inexpensive micro processors. This technique is computationally intensive and it has to analyze hundreds of data points.

Source:
http://www.slashgear.com/disney-research-works-on-touche-touch-control-using-body-parts-07226425/
http://www.disneyresearch.com/research/projects/hci_touche_drp.htm

Ipad 3: no siri

Apple seems to have repeated itself. After raising the expections of the people a lot and creating a lot of marketing hype, I am sure it disappointed a lot of people. The latest ipad, ipad3 is released without the siri application on it. Siri is one of the most wished for feature on ipad3. It has dictation instead. Oh wow!!!.

Atleast the other features packed with ipad3 are inline with the expectations. They include
- Retina display
- 5MP camera
- 4G support
- Faster processor (A5X)

So, what is special about ipad3 ? Almost nothing. To top it, the expected feature like siri is not there. So, what should you do ? Buy this ipad3 and then wait for apple to release ipad3S with siri support to make you feel like a looser unless you buy ipad3S. Apple repeats...