Blogs3,454 Entries


Smartphone blogs: best apps, best phones, best freeware

February 9, 2010

Mobile phoneOur regular round-up of who's saying what about smartphones today turns up some great apps, brilliant phones and recommended freeware. There's also some positive news for the smartphone market in general.

Dipping into the blogosphere to take the temperature of the smartphone world is not without risks. For every piece of valuable info, there's a rant, a rave or - even worse - a malware trap set for the tenderfooted surfer.

PC Advisor Blog | Cornelius Trilbyman | Read more...


Smartphone focus: Twitter - will Apple, Google dislodge BlackBerry?

February 9, 2010

TwitterThe microblogosphere (you may know it as Twitter) was alight this afternoon upon the news that Apple is chasing down BlackBerry as the world's top smartphone maker.

A quick search on 'Apple 25% smartphone' was turning up 30 or 40 Tweets a minute, all bearing the news that the maker of the Jesus phone is chasing down RIM at the top of the smartphone operating system tree.

PC Advisor Blog | Megan Burger | Read more...


Google plots instant translator for smartphone

February 9, 2010

SmartphonesGoogle wants to pioneer the first smartphone technology to translate foreign languages almost instantly, the search giant has told The Times. The technology will be able to convert spoken words into a different language in real time, and could be ready within a few years.

Just as Google Translate converts text in 52 languages, the voice translation service will mimic a human interpreter. To achieve this, Google plans to combine the technology behind its text translation service with a voice recognition system, similar to the one found on Android smartphones.

PC Advisor Blog | Daniel Ionescu | Read more...


Free and friendly Windows security software? What's the catch?

February 8, 2010

Avast! Free AV securityAn anti-virus solution for Windows that's free, respects your personal privacy and doesn't get in your face? I'm currently trialling Avast! Free, a free-to-download package from Alwil Software. And historically, Avast! is also rated well in AV group tests. The only drawback I've seen so far is the daft Yahooesque! exclamation mark in the name...

Depending on how you measure it, most anti-virus software is at least 90% effective against the majority of virus, Trojan and worm threats. That figure drops significantly, though, when you include the most up-to-date flavours of malware, the stuff that's updated daily by the eager developers.

PC Advisor Blog | Andrew Harrison | Read more...


Google Books: time for a rethink?

February 8, 2010

GoogleGoogle Books is a wonderful idea that's having a hard time meeting legal requirements. That's the upshot of the latest round in the battle between the world's search leader and the people who actually create the content Google exploits for huge profits.

It should surprise no one that Google ran into legal challenges after it decided to suck all the world's books and magazines into its search engine. What's surprising to me is that the project has been allowed to continue for so long. This is because it's easy to see value in the project, but hard to see how one company can be allowed to control it.

PC Advisor Blog | David Coursey | Read more...


Apple iPad trademark dispute, and other madness

February 5, 2010

Apple iPadWill Apple be sued over its iPad tablet device? And is Apple already working on its own 'iPad killer'? The rumours continue to fly.

It feels like far more than week ago that Steve Jobs came down from the mountain bearing his magical tablet.

PC Advisor Blog | Robert X Cringely | Read more...


Smartphone blogs: Are smartphones good for business?

February 4, 2010

smartphoneIs the explosion in portable functionality a boon for business or a data-security nightmare? We delved into the blogosphere to find out: are smartphones good for business.

That fewer teens and tweens are blogging these days may be a good thing for the long-term health of the weblog. Long before every man, his dog and the dog's racy alter ego had an online diary, blogging was the preserve of those in the know. It remains the case today: if you want to test the pulse of the technorati, see what expert bloggers are saying.

PC Advisor Blog | Matt Egan | Read more...


Smartphone Focus: Twitter - what do you use your mobile phone for?

February 4, 2010

TwitterJust a few years ago, asking someone what they use their mobile phone for was akin to asking a footballer who'd just missed a crucial penalty how he felt. "It's statin' the bleedin' obvious, innit?" The answer: making calls.

No longer, as a recent Twitter chat facilitated by PC Advisor's own SmartphoneFocus illustrates. Asked what they used their phones for other than making calls, readers' answers were consistently broad.

PC Advisor Blog | Matt Egan | Read more...


Nexus One gets multi-touch. And the rest?

February 4, 2010

SmartphonesGoogle is finally letting the Nexus One use multi-touch for maps, photo galleries and the web, but that's little consolation to owners of Motorola's Droid and T-Mobile's G1. These less fortunate Google Android smartphones continue to miss out.

Now don't get me wrong. It's great that at least one more Android phone is getting pinch-to-zoom gestures - it's never been clear why certain phones don't include the feature. Rumour has it Apple asked Google to avoid multi-touch back when the companies were getting on well, but Google may no longer want to comply now that the relationship has soured.

PC Advisor Blog | Jared Newman | Read more...


Protect yourself from online shopping perils

February 3, 2010

CameraWhen it comes to online shopping, there are a number of steps you can take to protect yourself against scam websites designed to fleece you of your hard-earned cash. But protecting yourself from bad customer service online is much harder, as I recently found out.

But before I start, a little background. It's fair to say I'm known for my love of pink. From handbags and shoes to gadgets, most things I own are a shade of cerise, bubblegum, blush or, at a push, plum. And my digital camera is no exception.

PC Advisor Blog | Carrie-Ann Skinner | Read more...


What's your favourite gardening website?

February 3, 2010

Internet & broadbandWe're looking for recommendations of gardening websites. Where do you go online for help in the planning, design or maintenance of your garden?

Do you prefer to exchange tips with like-minded gardeners in a forum, or read authoritative opinions handed down by experts? Or just look at galleries of pictures people have taken of their gardens to get inspiration?

PC Advisor Blog | David Price | Read more...


Windows 7 RC users: prepare for shutdowns

February 2, 2010

Windows 7For users of Windows 7 Release Candidate (RC), the end is nigh. From February 15, anyone running Windows 7 RC, the free pre-release version of Microsoft's latest PC operating system, will receive a notification that their trial software is about to expire.

A post by Microsoft blogger Brandon LeBlanc on The Windows Blog explains that the bi-hourly notifications will remind Win 7 RC users that their PCs will "begin experiencing bi-hourly shutdowns" from March 1. According to Microsoft Support, brave souls who ignore the reminders are in for some serious nagging.

PC Advisor Blog | Jeff Bertolucci | Read more...


Amazon sells 'millions' of Kindles: Is Apple too late?

February 1, 2010

Apple iPadAmazon has always been cagey about releasing sales figures for its Kindle e-reader, but maybe it's opening up a bit. The online retailer is now providing numbers - well, sort of. And things look ominous for Apple's iPad.

"Millions of people now own Kindles," said Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com in a statement released yesterday.

PC Advisor Blog | Jeff Bertolucci | Read more...


Microsoft Zune Phone: who cares?

January 29, 2010

Zune phoneThe latest rumours suggest that Microsoft could launch a Zune phone as early as next month, but we've heard this story before. And it's getting hard to care.

Earlier this week, tech blogger Long Zheng spotted some code in Microsoft's latest Zune software update suggesting USB driver support for three phone-related devices. Each device ID contained the words 'Zune' and 'Phone', prompting Zheng to say that "the elusive 'Zune Phone' is pretty much confirmed".

PC Advisor Blog | Jared Newman | Read more...


Apple's iPad ready to challenge the Kindle

January 28, 2010

Apple iPadThe Apple iPad will compete with the Amazon Kindle as an e-reader. And, because Apple's new tablet will run iPhone apps, it will compete with Kindle's software, too.

People who buy the iPad can choose to use Apple's new iBooks app and bookstore, or they could opt to run Kindle's iPhone app on the device instead.

PC Advisor Blog | Daniel Ionescu | Read more...


Apple tablet - giant iPhone: in-hands photos

January 27, 2010

Apple_logo_60The Apple tablet computer - Apple iSlate, Apple MacTablet, Apple iPad, etc - will be announced today, and all speculation suggests it will be just like a giant iPhone; or rather a giant iPod touch with front-facing videocam for video chats.

See: Steve Jobs launches Apple iPad: full details

PC Advisor Blog | Lexton Snol | Read more...


'Leaked advert' for Apple Tablet

January 26, 2010

AppleWow! I just heard something crazy. Are you ready? Apple might be introducing a new tablet computing device. Maybe even this week. 

Wild, I know, but a friend of a friend of my brother's ex-girlfriend's mechanic's step-uncle swears it's true. If only someone were writing about this supercomputing gizmo...

PC Advisor Blog | JR Raphael | Read more...


Pope to priests: go forth and blog

January 26, 2010

Internet & BroadbandA year after the Vatican launched its own channel on YouTube, the Pope is asking priests worldwide to adopt social media to spread the word of God.

Looking ahead to May's 44th World Communications Day, Pope Benedict XVI released a message at a press conference over the weekend, urging priests to use digital media to reach out and take their ministry online. He encouraged priests to use blogs, websites and online video alongside their traditional communication methods.

PC Advisor Blog | Sharon Gaudin | Read more...


Will 2010 be the year of spam?

January 25, 2010

PC securityIf you think spam attacks were bad in 2009, just wait until 2010 gets going. You ain't seen nothing yet.

In its 2009 Annual Security Report [PDF], the networking gurus at Cisco predict that worldwide spam volumes will increase by 30 or 40 percent over 2009 levels.

PC Advisor Blog | Brennon Slattery | Read more...


Going Google-eyed

January 25, 2010

GoogleAt the start of 2010, Google summoned the tech press to its HQ in California for the launch of its own Android-based smartphone, the Nexus One.

Slimmer than the iPhone and with its own application download store, it's an intriguing device that puts Google in direct competition with partner firms that have previously developed handsets to run the mobile platform.

PC Advisor Blog | Rosemary Hattersley | Read more...


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