It’s Tuesday once again and it’s time for another episode of
Tech Tuesdays on TFL. This week, we’ll be talking about the newest and possibly
be the game changer in the tablet market, news about the release of the much
awaited update to two very promising mobile operating systems and the technical
problems that were recently encountered by a very popular social networking
site.
So, let’s begin.
OUTAGE
Popular social media network Twitter suffered a major outage
last week as the site intermittently went down for around three hours. Rumours immediately spread the following day
that the outage might have been caused by hacker attacks, but Twitter’s VP of
engineering, Mazen Rawashdeh wrote in a blog post that the outage was not
caused by hacker attacks but rather a “cascading” bug that affected the site’s
system.
Apparently, the bug that caused the outage wasn’t confined
to a particular software element in the site’s system but instead cascades
itself into other elements of the site, thereby affecting users worldwide.
Rawashdeh said that Twitter is already taking measures to fix all the problems
that the bug has caused and that they are doing everything in their power to
help prevent these things from happening in the future.
UPDATES
Two important news updates were revealed last week as
Microsoft announced the upcoming release of Windows Phone 8 while leaked
information of Google’s new Android version was seen on the company’s own Play
Store.
Microsoft has already given some clues of the release of
their brand new mobile operating system when they announced to the members of
the media the release of Windows Phone 8 also known as “Apollo” around two
weeks ago. There were also confirmations that the new breed of Windows Phone
devices will be using Qualcomm’s Snapdragon S4 Plus processors.
Aside from the multi-core Snapdragon processors, other
features of the new OS include: support for higher resolution screens, NFC
(Near Field Communication) and an improved user interface, specifically the
home screen. This was made possible because of Microsoft redesigning the
platform from the ground up.
Unfortunately, this total makeover means that Windows Phone
8 will not be available to legacy devices which pretty much (urghh) means all
the WP devices currently in the market. Instead,
selected models will just be updated to Windows Phone 7.8, while the rest will
just have to settle with Windows Phone 7.5.
Google on the other hand is posed to announce Android 4.1
AKA Jelly Bean when they let a bit of information slip a little via the Play
Store. The info leak is seen when purchasing a Galaxy Nexus on the Play Store.
Once the purchased Galaxy Nexus is checked out, a short descriptive snippet is
displayed saying that the Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ will soon be the first phone with
“Android 4.1 Jell…”
Magnifying the image in the checkout page will also reveal a
new background and a new frosted search widget which are good indicators that
the phone will indeed have the new OS. It also somehow confirms news about
Google launching a Nexus Tablet at I/O with Jelly Bean, in contrast to their
tradition of releasing a new phone for a new OS.
RELEASE
Microsoft has indeed been very busy these past few weeks.
Not only did they announce the newest version of Windows Phone last week, but
they also launched their newest tablet to compete with the iPad and other
android tablets in the market.
The tablet is around 9.3mm (RT Version) and 13.5mm (Pro
version) thick and will sport a 10.6-inch screen protected by Corning’s Gorilla
Glass. Both versions will also have two USB ports, a Micro SD port for the RT
version and a Micro SDXC for the Pro version.
The Surface also has a kick built in kick stand at its back
to help users in holding up the tablet especially when typing or viewing
videos. A Touch cover can also be used with the tablet and protects the screen,
much like Apple’s smart covers. However, the Surface’s touch covers also double
as a fully functional keyboard with a built-in track pad. A stylus is also
available for the Pro version and attaches to the side of the Surface for easy
storage.
Memory-wise, the RT version will come in 32GB and 64GB
variants while the Pro version will be available in 64GB and 128GB sizes. Both
versions will have 2x2 MIMO antennae. A Micro HD Video port will be available for
the RT version while a Mini Display Port Video will be available for the Pro
version.
Prices have not been announced yet, but experts are thinking
that the tablet may retail for about $599 or more once it becomes available to
retailers.
And that’s just about it for this week’s episode of Tech
Tuesdays. Tune in again next week, for the latest technology and gadgets news
from around the globe. Again, if you have any comments, suggestions and
reactions, please do leave them using the comment box below.
Till Next time!
