The Week's Best Android, iPhone, iPad, and Windows Phone Apps

Everybody knows the feeling of despair you get when you finally finish a TV series, but it's so much worse when your streaming service of choice doesn't have the whole lot. Then again, I suppose it's a great starting point to go off and watch it elsewhere. Sure Netflix might only have one season out of three, but that's one season you wouldn't have watched otherwise. Speaking of which, here are some apps you might not have known about:

iPhone Apps

Dreamstime Photography Companion: We all know that stock photos exist, but where do they come from? Well in the case of Dreamstime they come from contributing photographers. You simply upload your images to the app and it gets added to the marketplace, if any of your photos get used you get paid real money. It probably won't make you millions, but it's an easy way to monetise your photography. [Free]

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Climendo: Plenty of news outlets come with their own weather forecasts, but how do you decide which one to use and, more importantly, which one do you believe? Climendo takes five of the most popular weather services (different from country to country) and shows them side-by-side to give you the best idea of what's to come. [£0.69]

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Wiper Messenger: Private communication is all the rage, but can you delete logs from the other person's device? With Wiper, that's more than possible. With free worldwide texting and calls, it's one of the more private ways to communicate with people across the world for zero cost. [Free]

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Soundwave: An app that lets you chat and share music with your friends. By capturing the music you play from places like Spotify and YouTube it makes sure you'll never lose music again, and makes it easier to share it with your friends. The new version has private groups to make sharing easier, and personalised recommendations. [Free]

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Fantasy Football: The World Cup may be over but we have less than a month until the Premier League kicks off, so you might be thinking about your fantasy league for the next year. This offering from Yahoo is ideal with unlimited weekly transfers, private leagues, and cross-device synchronisation. [Free]

iPad Apps

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Flightradar 24 Free: Chances are you've heard of this one, FlightRadar lets you view millions of plans in transit in real time, and can identify any planes that fly overhead. This is an updated version which brings in a whole host of functions from the premium version absolutely free of charge. Now you can search for planes, identify overhead planes, and view pictures of them all for zero cost. [Free]

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Togethera: Finding an accessible private space to share photos online is easier said than done. The default for many websites seems to be sharing semi-publicly, and you don't want random strangers. Togethera is such a space, and it's simple enough for even the most tech-illiterate grandparents to use with no problems. [Free]

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Passible Password Manager: Passwords are a pain the remember, especially since each one has to be alphanumeric, with a capital letter, a special character, three hieroglyphics, and must be an anagram of the word salmon. Password manager will store your passwords for easy access to your apps, as well as your credit card info for your easy checkouts. [Free -- with subscription]

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Pause: Pause is a quarterly music magazine with includes reviews, features, and interviews. The latest issues have just been released, a guide to 2014 festivals, and the best of Q2 2014. [Free]

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Guardians of the Galaxy - The Universal Weapon: The trend these days is to release a video game tie-ins on mobile devices, but they tend to be over-the-top freemium games loaded with in-app purchases. Not so with this one. You take control of the eponymous Guardians in their quest to prevent the Universal Weapon falling into the hands of the villainous Ronan the Accuser over 25 different levels. [£2.99]

Android Apps

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Pullshot: Screenshots and photos are very distinct, and some phones don't distinguish between the two in your photo gallery. If that's the case, then Pullshot is there to help out. What it does is simple, it identifies your screenshots and organises them together for you automatically. From there you can further organise them into folders. [Free -- with in-app purchases]

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Kabx: Pretty much all taxi apps that work in this country are restricted to the Greater London area, which is irritating since roughly 87 per cent of the British population lives elsewhere. Fortunately Kabx is no longer one of those apps since it now works in Manchester. Book you taxi within seconds, organise how you're going to pay within the app, and with 2,000 drivers available you shouldn't have to wait more than five minutes if you're within the M60. [Free]

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QCast: QCast is a way of creating and controlling shared playlists on a Chromecast stick. Anyone who can connect to the Chromecast in question can add a song to a shared queue, and anyone can downvote songs they don't want to hear. Songs can be removed by the host, the person who queued them, or if the majority of people downvote it. You will need a Google Play Music All Access Subscription to host though. [Free -- with subscription]

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Notific: Lockscreen notifications are great, but not all apps support them. Enter Notific which will let you create a lockscreen notification for any app you deem important. As an example, by day-to-day phone doesn't support lockscreen notifications for Gmail, but with Notific it can do. Normally the app would light up your display whenever you get a notification, but it's clever enough to realise when it's in your pocket and won't light up until you pick it up -- saving you that precious battery. [£0.57]

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Short Paste: If you want to cut down a link you usually have to copy it into a link generator on the web, but if you're on your phone/tablet that might not be as easy as it sounds. As always, there's an app for that and Short Paste is simple and designed to work on a mobile device, so that you can copy the long link in and choose from one of many different kinds of shortened URLs. [Free]

Windows Phone Apps

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Clipr: The thing about backgrounds on any device is that the icons can get in the way of an otherwise amazing picture. Now the thing that separates the Windows Phone home screen from other devices are the tiles, and Clipr utilises those tiles to ensure you get the best background. It utilises the tile space, which means that they won't be getting in the way of your pictures; they are your pictures, after all. [Free]

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Chrome Mini: As far as I can tell there is, like many popular apps, no official Chrome Browser for Windows Phone; if you want the Chrome experience you have to go third party. Chrome Mini is such an app, dedicated to bringing you the basic feel of Google Chrome. It also claims to be the fastest browser available for Windows Phone, but I'll leave that for you to decide. [Free]

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Climatology: Sick and tired of your own home climate? Why not look into the different climates that exist across the world? Whether it's just for your own amusement, or if you're looking to go on holiday and don't want to get trapped by the wet season, this is something to look into. [Free]

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App Locker Pro: Sure you can lock your phone, but it isn't as foolproof as some people would hope. That's why you download an app like App Locker, which adds an extra layer of security to your important apps. Bear in mind that this isn't a case of you choosing which apps to lock, instead the app has a preset list and you can choose which ones you want protecting. Sure it's limited, but it's better than nothing. [Free]

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Spending Tracker: If you're anything like me, you just love to spend money on frivolous crap that you don't need. "It's looks so awesome" you might say, but how do you know if you can afford it? Spending Tracker is a financial app that logs how much you've spent, where you've spent it, and how much of your budget you have left. So whether you enjoy eating out, drinking out, or browsing eBay, you'll know exactly how much you can spend without missing this month's rent. [Free]

Source : gizmodo

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5 steps to protect your smart phone from theft or loss

Also learn what to do when your phone goes missing and when you get it back

One day, someone you don't know may end up holding your phone. Maybe you'll forget it in a taxi, or it will be snatched out of your hand—smart phone thefts are on the rise. And you're going to be concerned because that phone holds a pocket-sized summary of your digital life. It has photos of the places you've been and people in your life. It also has a record of what you posted on Facebook or bought from Amazon, where you bank, and which restaurants you like.

Here's how you can keep strangers from accessing your personal information, safely back up and retrieve the photos and videos you've stored in the device, and, with a little luck, increase your chances of recovering your phone.  

Before your smart phone is gone

Step 1: Use a strong screen lock

This is your first and strongest line of defense. Skip the easy 4-digit PIN and instead create a strong password that contains a string of at least 8 characters that include some combination of letters, numbers, and special characters that don't form recognizable words or phrases—especially those that could be associated with you. For instance, Fred1969 is a weak password, but F!ed9691 could be much harder to crack. While typing a nontrivial password may feel cumbersome at first, it should get much easier with practice.

The iPhone 5S's Touch ID fingerprint reader, built into its Home button, is designed to do away with this drudgery. We found it faster than typing a PIN. (Even with Touch ID enabled, you should still use a strong passcode.) We were able to go from a sleeping screen to the desktop in about a second. Password protection comes with another safeguard: After several unsuccessful tries to enter a passcode, typically 10, some phones will automatically erase all of your personal data. If your phone provides this option, activate it.

Step 2: Use a 'find my phone' app

The same GPS and network connections that help your phone find the best nearby restaurants and the fastest way home can help you find and protect that phone should it go missing. To take advantage of this, you need to install a special free app that we’ll describe below, which works together with a free service that you can use to locate or erase the phone once it’s gone.

For the app to be useful, the phone must be turned on and have a cellular or Wi-Fi connection. Location tracking (GPS) also must be enabled in order to find the phone on a map, but probably isn’t required to erase the phone’s contents. Since thieves will probably turn off the phone fairly quickly, yank out its SIM card, or put it in a room or box shielded from wireless connections, it’s imperative that as soon you learn that your phone is missing, you send it any commands you think appropriate.

• On an Android phone. To set up this app on a phone running Android 2.2 or later, find the Android Device Manager in Google Settings, which is typically an icon on your desktop with the letter "g" and a gear-like symbol next to it. If necessary, use the phone's search function to search for "Google Settings." To track down a missing phone, use a computer to access Android Device Manager in the browser's address bar.
• On an iPhone. Download and install Find My iPhone from the iTunes App Store, then sign in with your iTunes account. To track down a missing phone, use a computer to access Find My iPhone.
• On a Windows phone. Find the Find My Phone app in the main settings menu. To track down a missing phone, use a computer to go to Microsoft's account sign-in screen.

Apple took smart phone protection a step further on its iPhone models that run iOS 7, with a powerful feature that prevents anyone from using the phone—even after it's wiped clean—unless they type in your iTunes ID and Password. The feature, called Activation Lock, is built into iOS 7 and automatically enabled when you set up the Find My iPhone feature. Activation Lock has been available for only a few months, so it’s too soon to tell if it has had a noticeable impact on iPhone thefts.

As powerful as Activation Lock is, there’s evidence that it may be less than perfect. A security firm, SRLabs, recently demonstrated how a determined thief with the proper equipment can defeat Activation Lock in some cases.

Step 3: Attach a note

You may not love the idea of marring your phone’s great looks, but doing so may increase your chances of getting it back if it's found by an honest person. Tape a tiny note on the back of your phone with your e-mail address or a work number (You don't want to give a potential burglar your home number). In my informal tests, printing my e-mail address in a small font and taping it on with a small strip of shipping tape worked well on phones with smooth metal or plastic surfaces. On phones with rubbery or rough surfaces, neatly write that info, using a fine-point permanent marker, on a small strip of duct or electrical tape, which cling better to such surfaces. Choose a spot on the phone that's least likely to receive constant rubbing from your palm or fingers.

On Android phones, you can also type such a message in the Owner Info section of the Security submenu in Settings. But if you erase the contents of your phone, that message will disappear.

Step 4: Back up your photos and videos

Phone carriers, phone makers, and operating systems typically offer free over-the-air backup for phone camera content, settings, and more. These options often appear when you set up the phone for the first time, though you can always activate them later. Selecting a carrier-neutral source, such as Apple's iCloud, Android's Google +, or Microsoft's OneDrive will make it easier to retrieve your precious memories should your next phone be from a different carrier.

Check this detailed price and feature information about each of these services and some competing cloud services.

Step 5: Record your phone's unique ID number

Smart phones have a unique serial number known as an IMEI (International Mobile Station Equipment Identity) or MEID (Mobile Equipment Identifier). Unlike other identifying information stored on the phone’s removable SIM card, these numbers are etched into its circuits and difficult to alter. Your cell carrier already has this 15-digit number on file, and may be able to use it to put the phone on a missing phone list. Some police departments ask for either of these numbers when you report a stolen phone, so that they'll be able to return it to you if it's recovered. You can typically find either number on the phone box or in your phone's settings menu. It is also often found printed on or under the phone’s battery.You can find your phone's IMEI by dialing *#06#. The number should pop up on your screen.

You'll find an IMEI number on all phones from GSM carriers such as AT&T and T-Mobile, and so-called world phones from CDMA carriers such as Verizon and Sprint. Less-common nonworld phones from Verizon and Sprint have a different ID number called a mobile equipment identifier, or MEID. The MEID is comparable; you can find it the same way you find an IMEI.

After the phone is gone

Whatever your goal, the sooner you act, the better your chances of achieving it. Here are key actions to take.

Step 1: Seek and destroy

As soon as possible, log on to your "find my phone" service from a secure device. Try to locate the phone on a map. If it's nearby, have the phone ring. If it's not close enough for you to reach within the next few minutes, push the erase button. Hopefully an honest person will come across your device and notify you via the contact info you taped to your phone.

Step 2: Change your important passwords

As soon as you realize your phone is no longer in your possession and not quickly recoverable, go to the nearest secure computer, log into every account you had on your phone (banking, shopping, e-mail, etc.) and change your passwords. Start with the financial and shopping accounts that have your credit card on file, such as Amazon.com or your bank, and quickly move on to e-mail and social networks.

Step 3: Call your institutions

Inform your bank and credit card companies that you've lost your phone to alert them to possible fraudulent charges. The sooner they know, the easier it will be to dispute unauthorized account activities.

Step 4: Report the loss to the police

Notifying the police not only launches an official recovery attempt, but is also required for a credit freeze. The three major reporting agencies—Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion—require a copy of the police report before they'll freeze it. You may also need the police report to dispute fraudulent charges made on your credit cards.

Learn how to put a freeze on your credit file.

If you recover your phone

Wipe it anyway. You never know what malicious app or spyware someone may have installed while the phone was out of your hands. To be on the safe side, reset the phone to factory settings. If you see an option to "erase everthing," make sure you select it. (Before doing that, though, check the backups on your computer or cloud service to make sure that you have copies of all the irreplaceable photos and videos on your phone.) Some phones give you the option of resetting their settings without erasing everything. Make sure you check the Reset Everything option.

To reset an iPhone, go to Settings, then General, then Reset. You’ll see a warning that the next step will erase all your media and data, followed by a red Erase button. Hit this and after a few minutes, your iPhone is ready to restore. Finding Factory Reset on Android phones is trickier because device makers tweak Android to their own liking. In Settings, look for a submenu named Backup Options, Privacy, Accounts, or something similar. On Windows phones, the factory reset option is in Settings under About Windows Phone.

Using cloud services to back up your smart phone

For iPhones. These offer two pre-installed photo or video backup options: My Photo Stream and iCloud Backup, both of which are part of the iCloud constellation of services. My Photo Stream, a free service designed for sharing photos with other Apple device owners, stores up to 1,000 photos (not videos). But after 30 days, Apple deletes them. iCloud Backup has no expiration date and also automatically backs up your videos. The first 5 gigabytes are free, but you can buy more for an annual fee: 15GB for $20; 25GB for $40; and 50GB for 100.

For iPhones, Android, or Windows phones. For Android phones (and iPhones if you download the Google+ app, or Windows phones if you get the Google Station app), Google Drive gives you 15GB of free storage for photos and videos (full size photos can be no larger than 100 MB and videos no longer than 15 minutes or saved at a resolution higher than 1080p). Upping storage to 100GB will cost you $2 a month, and data hogs can up storage to a terabyte for $10 a month. On Android phones, you'll find the Auto Backup option in Google+ settings, after tapping the Google icon under Accounts in the phone's Settings menu. On iPhones and Windows phones, you can access settings after launching the Google+ app.

Microsoft OneDrive (formerly Sky Drive) provides 7GB of free storage for photos, videos and more. Upping storage to 50GB costs $50 a year. But each file can't be larger than 2GB. Pre-installed on Windows phones, the app is a free download from Google Play on Android phones or the App Store on iPhones. On Androids and iPhones, you may have to fiddle with additional phone settings to make the backups automatic.

Also See :- How to Type Faster on Android: 5 Tips & Tricks

                    How to reduce your data usage on Android or iOS

Source :- consumerreports

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Huawei Ascend G6 – the phone for lovers of ‘selfies’

Chinese phone giant Huawei has unveiled a new Android smartphone at Mobile World Congress with a surprising 5-megapixel front-facing camera. This is a much higher resolution than most front-facing cameras and is designed to take advantage of the popularity of self-portraits (‘selfies’).

Although not well known in the UK, Huawei attracted some attention last year when it launched the world’s thinnest phone, the Huawei Ascend P6. This did reasonably well in our lab tests though we felt it was a little under-powered and that the camera could have been better.

The new mid-range G6 isn’t quite as slim but in many other respects appears to be a step up in class from its older sibling. Read on to find to find out more about the new Android smartphone.

Huawei G6 – three key features

Improved performance – the Ascend P6 was Huawei’s top of the range model when it launched last year but no longer seems as advanced. The new G6 offers faster 4G connectivity and an improved 1.2GHz quad-core processor.

More modest design– the new phone isn’t as slim as the P6 and lacks that model’s brushed metal finish. Instead the G6 has a rubberised back which at least makes it easy to grip. Huawei has also saved money by using a smaller, lower resolution display (4.5-inches with 960×540 pixels down from 4.7-inches with 720×1280 pixels) though in our hands-on time with the phone it seemed reasonable.

High resolution front camera – Huawei hopes the G6 will stand-out from the crowd thanks to its unusual 5Mp front facing camera. That’s far more pixels than usual (most smartphones top out at around 2Mp) and the camera also comes with a wide angle lens so you can take group shots plus a special ‘selfie window’ so you can frame yourself perfectly.

Also See :- Samsung Galaxy S5 vs. LG G3: A Closer Look

                     Samsung GALAXY Tab S

Source :- Tech Daily

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Samsung GALAXY Tab S

Slim and Light

Premium design with thinness and lighter weight

Feel its lightness as you grab it.

It has the screen size 8.4” (Wi-Fi Model : 294g / LTE Model : 298g) and 10.5” (Wi-Fi Model : 465g / LTE Model : 467g).

Be amazed by great portability and premium design completed with sleek edges.

Multi Window

Optimized for multi-tasking

Multi window lets you easily complete multiple tasks on one screen. You can browse the web while watchingvideos or chatting with your friends. You can send and receive voice callswhile multitasking on the LTE model

SideSync 3.0

Seamless connectivity between phone and tablet

Once you set up SideSync 3.0 with your phone and GALAXY Tab S, you can view your phone screenon the tablet, transfer data, copy & paste text easily. You can even send and receive voice calls from Tab S.

* Call Forwarding supported on GALAXY S5 and SideSync 3.0 supported on GALAXY Note 3, S4 and S5 as of July 2014.More devices may be added.

Adaptive Display

Display Optimized for your viewing experience

Adaptive display1) automatically adjusts color gamut, sharpness, and contrast according to your usage.For instance, if you switch from watching a movie to reading an e-Book, the screen adjusts itself to give you an idealized display.3 Screen Modes2) let you choose among AMOLED Photo, AMOLED Cinema and Basic Mode according to your current usage.

1) Adaptive Display feature works on the following 7 apps: Gallery, Camera, Internet, Video, e-Book (Google Playbook), VT Call, and UI.

2) 3 Screen Modes are applicable for all Screens, including the 3rd party apps.

Finger Scanner

Safe & Convenient Access with Fingerprint

Security is as easy as the simple swipe of a fingerprint. The embedded sensor provides featureslike ‘Lock & Unlock the Device’, ‘Replacing ID & P/W’, ‘Multi-User Mode Login’, and‘Hiding Private contents’, providing convenience and all-round security

Cisco WebEx
Remote Video Conference Experience all-round communication with video conference. WebEx allows multi-point video conference for up to eight people. Converse directly and share documents simultaneously. Experience WebEx in the GALAXY Tab S with a 6-months free trial worth of $144; it is ideal for excellent remote conferencing without restriction.

Remote PC
Access your PC at anytime from anywhere Take your office desk with you at all times. Sync your PC at home or work with GALAXY Tab S. Control your PC from any place to edit, save, drag and drop. Experience convenientt control from anywhere, anytime with GALAXY Tab S.

* Support Windows/Mac PC       

* PC should be turned on.

Kids Mode

Fun & Safe contents for Children

Kids mode provides the perfect design for kids to play and use. Vivid and colorful UX, specialized apps for kids and parental control usage satisfies both kids and parents with great pleasure and relief.

Download Booster

Powered speed with LTE & Wi-Fi together 

When you need to download files in a hurry, turn on Download Booster and experience faster network speeds. Download Booster uses advanced Smart Bonding technology to seamlessly combine Wi-Fi and LTE.

* Only supported on LTE model

Samsung KNOX

Keep application and data secure 

Samsung's seamless GALAXY Tab S security solution, KNOX, meets the industry's toughest security requirements. This will keep your applications and data secure. Work and play with peace of mind.

Also See :- Top android tips & tricks.

Source :- Samsung

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