Google Releases Best Android Apps Of 2012

A new post in the Google Play store by merchandising manager Tavares Ford outlines the top 12 Android apps for 2012 in the eyes of the search giant. Those of you that picked up a new Android handset or tablet this holiday will likely want to pay close attention as part of the fun with a new connected device is discovering the latest and greatest apps that everyone is using.
The best part about Google’s list is that all of the apps listed below are completely free! Here’s Google’s list from top to bottom with a brief description from Google Play:

17 Million Devices Activated By Google And Apple On Christmas Day

Apple and Google likely have a lot to be happy about following this year’s holiday season. According to data recently released from mobile app analytics firm Flurry, the two companies combined to activate 17.4 million devices on Christmas Day. That’s good for a 332 percent increase over the average number of activations in December and more than 2.5 times more than on Christmas Day a year ago.

Google Maps For iOs 6

Google Maps has finally landed in the App Store, causing not only a surge in the number of people who will now be updating to iOS 6, but also probably proving the fact that there really is a God. If you don’t believe us, you just have to ask those poor chaps down in Australia who got stranded in the middle of nowhere thanks to Apple Maps.

Nokia Launched Universal Portable Charger DC-16

Smartphones are big on power these days, but unfortunately, battery technology has refused to keep up. For people who use the phone heavily during the day, or are on the move most of the time, this has been a real issue. However, there seems to be a relatively inexpensive solution at hand.

 Design:

The design of the DC-16 is essentially that of a stick. It is as wide and thick as two fingers from your hand joined side by side. It is small enough to be carried around in a pocket.

On one side is the micro USB port that allows you to connect the DC-16 to a wall charger to top up the internal battery. This side also has four LED indicators showing up the charging status and the current amount of charge when charging a connected phone. You need to press the tiny button with a depressed placement to light up the indicators. The other side has a full-fledged USB port that lets you connect any micro USB or mini USB cable, depending on what your phone needs.

The materials used are plastic throughout, but fairly good quality. The entire battery pack has been put together very well. For those who might want one, there are multiple colour options available as well – black, white, cyan and fuchsia.

Features:

The most important thing first - the battery capacity! This charger packs in a 2200mAh battery pack to top up your phone on the move. With most phones these days coming with under 2000mAh battery capacity, this one will be able to fully charge a completely discharged phone at least once.

Since this a Nokia accessory, you would half expect this to only work with Nokia phones. However, this claims to be a universally compatible accessory, and we tested this on multiple phones, including Blackberry and Android devices. And it charged up the devices without fail. The wide compatibility is a huge positive.

The DC-16 comes with a self-charging cable as well as a data cable for charging phones.

Performance:

The 2200mAh battery pack in the DC-16 is more than capable of fully charging my Blackberry from complete discharge to full charge in just more than 2 hours and 30 minutes. This is the same time taken by a full-fledged wall charger. Full marks to the Nokia DC-16 for offering rapid charge as claimed, something that most other chargers are unable to do, despite tall claims.

Self-charging is somehow slower than we expected. Completely discharge the DC-16 and it will take around 5 hours for it to fully charge via a traditional wall charger. Not that this is a huge drawback, but this is surely a time consuming process you need to factor into the schedule if you plan to grab the DC-16 on the way out to the airport!

Final Review:

For anyone who finds their phone’s battery life inadequate, the Nokia DC-16 will help keep it topped up on the move, at least till you get home. The 2200mAh battery pack will offer at least one complete charge of the phone’s battery. At this price, we recommend everyone should buy one and keep in the backpack. You never know when you might need it.

Pornography Banned In South Korea

The South Korean government has laid out plans to install software on teenagers’ smartphones that will block "'illegal [and] harmful information." The Ministry Of Gender Equality And Family believes that installing the software will block swear words and slang — as well as prevent cyber-bullying — on social and messaging networks such as KaKao Talk, Facebook, and Twitter. The governmental body will also require a compulsory filtering service for mobile carriers that will block "harmful information" that includes pornography and nudity.

Top 5 Mobile Phones In 2012

2012 has been a rather active year for reviewers like us. There were smartphones launched as if someone was rolling them off a non-stop assembly line. This made the job of sifting the best from the 'okay' rather tough, considering how most of the competing phones are so close to each other in terms of the overall package. However, after a lot of hair pulling, double-checking the test sheets, bringing on the rival’s viewpoints – the good and the sublimely insane – we have the five best phones of the year. For anyone of you who’s favourite phone may not have made it to the list, all we can say is, sorry!

Best Five Budget Tablets

If you are looking for a tablet under Rs. 15,000, you are spoilt for choice. There are a plethora of tablets available in this space that will give you a bang for your buck but may compromise on some features. However, the one place where these devices shouldn't compromise is on the display. If the display isn’t great, then there is nothing really good you can do with the tablet. So here’s listing 5 budget tablets for you with good displays.

The All New 27-Inch Apple iMac

We just got the 27-inch version of Apple's new, slimmer iMac into PC Labs. As usual, the new iMac has a new set of packaging, which is functional and sets the system apart on the store shelves. The new iMac box is tapered, minimizing the amount of cardboard you'll be schlepping around after your purchase. The top is slimmer than the bottom, so the packaging subliminally lets you know that the new iMac is thinner than its predecessor.

Apple Selling It's Factory Unlocked iPhone 5

Apple has finally begun selling factory-unlocked iPhone 5 smartphones in the US. As with previous releases, the move comes roughly two month after carrier locked versions went on sale in the country, whereas Canada and some European nations see both versions launch alogside each other. The unlocked phone starts at $649 for 16GB of storage, with the 32GB and 64GB models adding an extra $100 and $200, respectively.

Yahoo Dispatching It's Chat Room Services On December 14Th

Yahoo announced that it is cutting down on some of the Yahoo Messenger features such as public chat rooms, Windows Live Messenger support, Pingbox on december 14 and will not be offering Yahoo! Voice Phone In and Phone Out services by January 30th, 2013.

Facebook Planning To Buy Whats App

If reports are to be believed, Facebook is looking to buy multi-platform instant messaging application WhatsApp in a bid to improve its mobile services.
Citing sources close to the matter, TechCrunch reports the social networking giant has shown keen interest in acquiring WhatsApp. The site, however, could not provide more information about the possible price range or the talks are in which stage right now. Facebook and WhatsApp are yet to comment on the reports.

Text Message Celebrating It's 20Th Birthday Today

One of the most popular means of modern communication is celebrating its 20th birthday today. The very first text message was sent from a PC to a mobile phone on December 3, 1992, by then 22-year-old Neil Papworth over the Vodafone network in the UK.

Android In Samsung Galaxy Camera

There’s been a dramatic uptick in amateur photography over the past few years — more people want to share more photos, and faster. This has led users to demand more and more from their smartphone cameras, while at the same time cheap DSLRs and the birth of Micro Four Thirds and other interchangeable-lens systems have put stupendously high-quality cameras in the hands of the everyman.