Sony Xperia Z Smartphone to Unleash in August 2012

Sony’s flagship device for the second half of the year year, the Sony Xperia Z, is rumored to be slated for an August 2012 launch.

This device will replace the company’s current flagship device, the Xperia S.

The forthcoming Xperia Z handset joins Sony’s upcoming lineup of smartphones this year that includes the Xperia C, Xperia E and Xperia Y three new second-generation NXT phones.

Unlike the Xperia Z, however, these three devices will reportedly be launched earlier, possibly in July 2012.
These devices will all carry an OLED display and an S4 Snapdragon processor.

Moreover, they will have camera lenses with Cybershot technology and lenses from the T Camera line.

They will likewise sport PlayStation Certification and have an integrated Walkman audio player.

However, these specifications are only based on rumors, for now, and might not even be present in the phones.

At the very least, we know that the specifications of the Xperia Z will be higher than those of the Xperia S which is still a pretty decent phone according to today’s standards.

The Xperia S sports a 4.3-inch LED-backlit capacitive LCD touchscreen and a resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels.

It also has a 1.5 GHz dual-core Qualcomm MSM8260 Snapdragon for its processor.

At any rate, consumers will know soon enough as Sony is scheduled to reveal its fresh Xperia devices in an Xperia media preview event to be held in Singapore this coming June 20th.

Since its separation from its former partner, Ericsson, Sony had been quite aggressive in producing and marketing its new devices.

It made tech headlines recently through a Facebook campaign called “Fast Forward” that allowed users to decide when the company will unveil one of its new Xperia devices.

This campaign revealed the Xperia Miro, an Android device targeted at the low- or mid-tier market.

The Japanese company as well recently unveiled another low-end smartphone called the Xperia Tipo.

Android Apps Easily Hijacked

Dead Trigger, a relatively popular FPS game for the android and IOS version eventually become free for Android.

The reason is due to exceptionally high levels of piracy in Android according to its developers, Madfinger Games. It is a sad situation, especially for small developers.

We all know the android operating system has grown rapidly in the last two years.

With the advances experienced by the android, most developers continue to bring their applications on Google’s platform.

This is regardless of the problems such as fragmentation and monetization.

Very serious problems in dealing with the android is piracy. Android apps is very easy Hijacked. And its results are pirated and will be distributed as an APK file, after which the Android Apps is installed on pirated android device.

Malware and security issues have not been proven as a deterrent enough people keep plowing applications.

And, Google also does not care about what is installed APK file on Android Apps devices.

Android Apps Easily Hijacked This does not apply to the IOS, because each application published by Apple for free or paid, the application needs to validate the apple, and must be downloaded through the app store.

Monetization issues are not new in Android Apps. According to a report by Flurry, for every $ 1 earned by the developer at IOS, Android developers get only 24 cents.

This is why many developers, including major developers such as Rovio, go put ads on the applications they have on Android Apps, while the developer also has an ad- free paid version for IOS.

Last Update Android Apps Jelly Bean says Android OS will be equipped with encryption model of paid applications.

The move is expected to slow the growth of piracy on Android.


Source : sitesgadget.com/news/android-apps-easily-hijacked

Apple secures EU-wide Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7

US electronics giant Apple and South Korea's Samsung Electronics each scored partial court victories in Germany Tuesday in their global war over rival tablet computers.

A regional appeals court in the western city of Duesseldorf upheld a ban on sales of Samsung's Galaxy Tab 7.7 computer for infringing on Apple's design patent, and extended it from Germany to the rest of the European Union.

But it said that the redesigned Galaxy Tab 10.1 N was now sufficiently different to the Apple iPad to be acceptable under competition law.

The two technology giants are engaged in a legal battle involving dozens of cases worldwide as they struggle for leadership in the hugely lucrative smartphone and tablet computer market.

Apple launched legal action in April last year, accusing Samsung of "slavishly" copying its iPhone and iPad designs.

Samsung has focused its own lawsuits on technology patents rather than design.

In November, the Duesseldorf regional court had slapped a temporary ban on Samsung's previous model, the Galaxy Tab 10.1, saying it copied the iPad.

But changes Samsung made to the successor model for the German market to meet the court's demands rendered the tablet computer sufficiently different, it said in February Apple appealed this decision.

Earlier that month, two other courts in Germany also quashed Apple's request to impose a preliminary ban on sales of its Galaxy Tab 10.1N and Nexus smartphone.


Source : gadgets.ndtv.com/tablets/news/apple-secures-eu-wide-samsung-galaxy-tab-77-ban-247122

Nokia losses quadruple as smartphone sales fall 34pc

Nokia's losses have quadrupled on sagging sales of smartphones but its shares jumped as overall sales exceeded forecasts. Nokia posted a net loss of €1.41bn (£893.8m) in the second quarter, compared with a loss of €368m in the same period last year.

Overall sales were down 19pc to €7.54bn, not as low as analysts' forecast of €7.36bn, according to financial data provider FactSet. Smartphone sales were weak, however, dropping 34pc to €1.54bn. Nokia shares jumped 10pc to €1.50 after the report. Analyst Mikko Ervasti at Evli Bank in Helsinki said Nokia performed better than expected in lower-end devices,shipping 84m such units compared with market expectations of 80m.

The Finnish company was the world's
leading mobile phone maker for more than a decade but was overtaken by Samsung in the first quarter, according to research firm Gartner. Facing stiff competition from Apple's iPhone
and devices running on Google's Android software, Nokia tried to stem the decline in smartphones in part through a partnership with Microsoft announced last year, replacing Nokia's existing Symbian operating platform with Microsoft's Windows Phone software.

A drop in sales was expected during this transition period, and Nokia said that the decline of Symbian phones dragged down sales in all regions expect for North America, where the decline was "more than offset" by sales of Nokia's Lumia devices, which run on the Windows software. Nokia said it sold 4m Lumia devices worldwide in the quarter. Questions arose about Lumia sales in the US earlier this week when Nokia and AT&T halved the price of the flagship Lumia 900 to $50, just three months after its introduction. Nokia called the cut "a normal strategy that is put in place during the life cycle of most phones".

Nokia's global market share has steadily shrunk from the peak of 40pc in 2008 to 29pc in 2011 and is expected to dwindle further this year. Meanwhile, Nokia shares have fallen to their lowest level since the 1990s, plunging below €2 in mid-June.


Source : telegraph.co.uk/technology/nokia/9411499/Nokia-losses-quadruple-as-smartphone-sales-fall-34pc.html

Best New Bank Account Promotions, Offers & Free Money

With many financial institutions experiencing a decrease in profits banks are vying for your business. This i s good news for you, because instead of just offering standard perks like no fees, free checking, or a free pen when you sign up for an account, some banks are raising the stakes with cold hard cash, giveaways, and great interest-bearing products.

July is a good month for bank promotions from both big and small banks. Banks are giving away a lot of free cash to attract new customers and get them to open up accounts. The banks listed below have some pretty sweet deals that you should take advantage of if you are in the market for a new bank.

Don’t want to miss out? Here are the best bank promotions for the month of July. Top Bank Account Promotions (July 2012)

1. ING Direct – $50 Bonus

ING Direct frequently runs many of the best bank perks in the market. ING Direct is giving away $50 to anyone who opens up an Electric Orange Checking account. Getting the $50 bonus requires you to make a total of 3 card purchases from your account. If you don’t want to do that then you can qualify by making three Person2Person Payments. You can do any combination of three purchases and payments if you wish. You will receive a $50 bonus automatically in your account on day 50.

2. Citibank – $100 Cash Back

You can earn a $100 cash back reward by opening a Citigold checking account. The offer runs through the end of this year, and all you need to do is fund the account with $1,000 within 45 days of opening, set up a
direct deposit, and make one qualifying online bill payment for two consecutive months.

3. Chase Bank – $150 Bonus

Open a Chase Total Checking Account with at least a $100 initial deposit and direct deposit, and you can get a $150 cash bonus. To open the account, click on the link and enter your email address. They’ll send you a coupon for the bonus, which you have to print out and take to a local branch. The Chase Total Checking Account has a $12 monthly service fee, but it is waived if you have monthly direct deposits of $500 or more, a daily balance at or above $1,500, or an average balance of $5,000 or more in your checking and other types of qualifying Chase accounts. This offer expires on July 15, 2012.

4. PNC Bank – $150 Bonus

To receive this cash bonus, you’ll need to sign up for PNC’s Virtual Wallet with an associated Performance Spend Account. You must make one direct deposit and one payment via online bill pay within the first sixty days of opening the account. There are certain fees involved, so make sure
you investigate the setup before going forward. This offer ends on September 30, 2012. 5. Valley National Bank – $150 Bonus Valley National Bank is now offering a $150 bonus for opening any one of their customer-friendly checking accounts. You get free checking for one year, a free order of checks, and free online banking, eStatements, mobile and text banking, debit card, and banking by phone. If you open a checking account with Valley National Bank, you get $75 when you sign up for mobile banking, and an additional
$75 when you enroll in online bill pay or start a monthly direct deposit. You must do this within 60 days of opening the account, and the money will appear within 90 days.

6. BankDirect – AAdvantage Miles

Open a BankDirect Mileage Checking Account and earn American Airlines AAdvantage miles. You’ll receive 1,000 miles just for opening an account, 5,000 miles for initiating direct deposit, 2,000 miles for using BankDirect’s bill pay service for one year, and 1,000 miles for referring a friend. There are other ways to earn miles as well, and some restrictions apply. Be sure to investigate the offer thoroughly for
full program details.

7. Citizens Bank – $1,000 Bonus for College Savings

Citizens Bank is currently offering a $1,000 bonus for those who sign up for a CollegeSaver savings account, an easy, manageable savings plan that will help your meet your college savings needs. It is an interest bearing account, and if you open it before your child’s twelfth birthday and save the monthly minimum amount every year, you’ll receive a $1,000 bonus when your child turns 18. Opening an
account earlier than when your child turns twelve will only increase the savings.


Source : moneycrashers.com/best-new-bank-account-promotions-offers-free-money/

Ways to Make Your Business Irresistible to the Media

Ever wonder why some businesses get press and some don’t? Getting a mainstream media outlet to pay attention to your business seems like an impossible-to-solve mystery.

You might see your competitors spouting a diatribe that you know for a fact is wrong, or that you could explain better.

“Why did they interview that guy instead of me?” you wonder.

Actually, it’s not you. 99 times out of 100, it’s not your qualifications, your knowledge, or your ability.

It’s your approach.

After 10 years as a journalist, I’ve seen just about every bad pitch you can imagine. And I’ve also come up with 109 foolproof ways to entice the media in your city to highlight your business — approaches that make the mainstream media unable to resist you.

(And lots of them work just as well with bloggers and social media influencers.)

Build relationships months in advance of pitching

1.Connect on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, or in real life more than six months in advance of pitching a reporter.

2.Monitor the Twitter hashtags of your community. Often reporters chat with the public on Twitter, and you can respond to comments they make.

3.Compliment a reporter via Twitter, Facebook, or e-mail on a story he or she did.

4.Introduce yourself to reporters at big public or chamber of commerce events. Pass along your card, but don’t try and sell them the idea on the spot. Just be helpful.

5.Invite reporters out for coffee, and ask a lot of questions about them.

6.Leave a comment at the end of the online version of a story a reporter did, which you genuinely liked.

7.Congratulate them on their birthdays, or other personal news they post.

8.Comb through Muck Rack to find regional or national reporters on Twitter who cover your industry.

9.Write a positive blog post on your blog highlighting a story of theirs, and e-mail them the link.

10.Respond regularly to posts they’ve written either on their blog, or on a local community blog you’ve noticed they post on.

11.Visit city council meetings in your town. Typically there’s a reporter sitting around bored, that you can build a relationship with.

12.Sign up on helpareporter.com. Several e-mail lists are sent out daily, full of reporters needing experts for stories. Jump on those that fall within your expertise.

13.Scout publications with smaller and more targeted readerships, such as a local business weekly publication. These media outlets are often run by just two or three people, and they’ll jump at a guest column or article by you because it’ll save them the time of tracking down a story on their own.

14.Listen to AM radio stations, especially on weekday mornings or on Saturdays. Befriend one of the regular show hosts. Often they’ll highlight any business that is doing something interesting the public might find interesting.

15.Nix spending money on an online press release site early on. Those online press release systems are more useful for building inbound links, or if you’re already a recognized expert with a track record, and there’s a major news event breaking that you could discuss.

16.Ask them if they’d mind if you added them to your email list. Then provide them with education-based content marketing to sell them on doing a story about your business.

Once You’ve Met, Make The Pitch Transition Smooth

17.Say “yes” without fail if a reporter wants to interview you that day, even if it has to be over the phone or while you’re on vacation.

18.Offer occasional suggestions of angles you think would make great follow-up stories, especially that don’t have anything to do with your business. Nearly all stories are parts of a long-running issues, so reporters always need additional story follow-up ideas.

19.Offer to connect reporters to experts you know . If the reporter sounds interested, follow through with the offer.

20.Be a source for stories that fall within your expertise by letting reporters in your industry know you’re available when they need a source. This can lead to regular spots on the news.

21.Point reporters to blog posts you genuinely think they’d be interested in – whether on your blog or others. It validates you as an expert.

22.Treat journalists with respect. You’ll set yourself apart just by being friendly

.

23.Keep a camera handy for “spot news” photo opportunities, and then pass along to the media outlet. This can be anything from a deer crashing into a department store while you happened to be there to a good shot of an event or store opening.

24.Offer to write a column on your specialty for the online website of a media site, or for a print publication in your area.

Ponder These Issues Prior to Pitching

25.Define the story in just one sentence, so you can easily explain it to the media in 10 seconds.

26.Include people in your story pitch. Many owners try to pitch their company’s achievements, but stories that sell normally have people involved, not just the company.

27.Focus on selling the benefits to viewers, listeners or readers first. It’s about their perspective of what you’re selling, not about how wonderful it would be for you to sell your product or service.

28.Think visually. When can a media station shoot video and pictures? If that’s not possible, are there video or pictures you can provide?

29.Avoid offering a posed or fake event or picture. They are typically frowned on by the media.

30.Hold an event where you’re actually doing what you’re talking about, and invite them to come, whether it’s to write a story, or just take a picture or video.

31.Post your video online for easy download, or put it on DVDs.

32.Seek permission from the individuals in a potential photo shoot ahead of time.

33.Highlight trends in which your business is just one of several examples. Nearly every trend can be turned into a story pitch, and it has the added advantage of letting you not hog the limelight, which reporters often don’t find appealing.

34.Provide actual users of your service or product for the media to interview. Their testimonials will boost your credibility.

35.Offer to review the facts or your quotes if you feel nervous the journalist misunderstood you. Don’t try to pressure the journalist into letting you review the entire article before publication, though, because media stations normally don’t allow this.

36.Provide a journalist with an expert to interview who has used and can vouch for your product. If you sell skin cream, for example, ask a dermatologist who likes your product to be available for an interview.

37.Copy relevant documents for the reporter, to provide at the interview, or prior to it.

38.Create a list of key dates and facts relevant to the story, along with potential quotes.

39.Write a couple paragraphs describing the process in simple terms, ideally with a drawing if the story is complex.

40.Write a killer press release in the form of a ready-made story, if submitting a story to a weekly or a daily in regions of fewer than 50,000 people. You’d be surprised how often a newspaper will print almost exactly what you sent.

41Give reporters two weeks’ notice for an upcoming story or event.

42.Remain flexible. Reporters have days that are jam-packed with breaking news, and other days that are slower and more open to a less-urgent story like yours.

43.Choose to meet in person if an option, because the journalist will then get to know you better, and you’ll have more time with him or her.

44.Travel to where the story actually happens for the interview – whether in your office or an hour away at a gravel pit.

45.Muzzle the natural urge to provide stacks of background research. Most reporters don’t have the time or interest in looking through it.

46.Leap on breaking news relevant to your industry as a chance to put yourself in the local news. The shootings in Arizona presented an opportunity for anyone who deals with mental health to be interviewed on local radio, television and in the newspaper.

47.Pitch local stories to local reporters. National attention typically springs from local attention first.

48.Call ahead and pitch a story, if you’re showcasing your products at a local convention or other major event typically covered by the news. Otherwise reporters just walk the aisles and randomly choose businesses to speak with.

49.Watch the calendar, and pitch a story that would ideally run around major holidays, when things are often really slow in newsrooms.

50.Act enthusiastic. If you don’t seem excited about the idea, neither will they.

51.Express why this story is of value to your community. If it’s a story you wouldn’t bother watching or reading, don’t pitch it.

52.Show an image that encapsulates the story you’re trying to tell. When Google held a national competition, our video shot on a Flip Camera received national attention from a variety of media outlets because it easily showed in one image how wild the competition became.

53.Forget about giving up. Don’t be a pest, but keep trying every few weeks to pitch an idea, until a reporter gives a straight yes-or-no answer to your idea.

54.Write very short e-mails to reporters. Three or four sentences total. Your e-mail is much more likely to get read by busy reporters if it’s short and to the point.

55.Devote lots of time on e-mail subject lines to reporters. You can apply the same techniques for writing magnetic headlines for blog posts – they make both readers and reporters want to know more about what you have to say.