How to track your lost Android phone and find it again

If you have misplaced your mobile phone then there are ways to track it and get it back. The easiest instance would be that you turned the ringer into silent mode and then forgot where you left it. If you have one of the apps listed below it will help you to turn the ringer on by remote controlling your phone via SMS or TEXT messages and turning it back on. Below are a list of apps that can definitely help you track your lost phone.


1. Plan B

This is an app that you can use after you have lost your phone. There is no software to be downloaded and if by chance your phone is missing, head over to this app located in Google Play and start it over the web to begin searching. To begin using the app you will need a Google Account and then start using it over the web. Once installed you get an email in your associated Gmail account telling you the app has begun searching for your phone. This is followed up by another email with a Google map showing you where your phone is. If it is unable to locate your phone you can use another phone and text the word 'Locate' to your phone. The service will not work if your phone is turned off. has no SIM card or no network connection. Works in the US only.


2. Where's My Droid Lite
This is one app can also be used after you have lost your phone. Once you phone is missing you can use this app to send a text message to your phone that will turn the ringer volume right up and help you locate your phone. You can also use text commands to send you back your phones location and get the longitude and latitude position of your phone. 


3. Agastya
This app will allow you to again turn on your phone's ringer even if it is silent mode. You can do so by using any other phone and using text message commands to get the job done. Here is a list of commands you can use with this app, provide by Tech blog Digital Inspiration. 



SILENT – Turn off the phone’s ringer
RINGER – Turn on the ringer
IMEI – Get the IMEI number* of your phone
LAST MESSAGES – Retrieve the last 5 text messages received on your phone
LAST CALLS – Know the last 5 missed/received/dialed numbers
– Fetch the contact number of a person from the address book.

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Sociolatte

Siri: "What is the best smartphone ever?"

Image Credit: Cult of Mac

Apple has fixed an issue with Siri, when Siri was asked which is the best SmartPhone ever. The reply was Nokia Lumia 900 - seems that Apple was not happy with the answer.The problem stemmed from Siri's heavy reliance on Wolfram Alpha, 25 percent of all queries returned by Siri are based on Wolfram Alpha. Apple has since fixed the issue and now Siri has a different answer. If you did search Wolfram Alpha independently you will find that Nokia Lumia 900 is recommended as the best. Apple has rushed to fix the issue as the Nokia Lumia is a decent handset but definitely not the best Smartphone ever. There is also a video doing the rounds showing Siri's answer to the best smartphone ever. After the fix by Apple is you ask Siri the same question, You'll now be told that the answer is the iPhone 4S, with responses like "the one you're holding" and "you're kidding, right?"
Source: TheVerge

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Sociolatte

Get a SpareOne mobile phone its charge lasts for 15 years

Finally a cellphone that promises outstanding performance with a single AA battery. This mobile phone has not been designed for you to use as your main phone. This is your secondary phone the one you keep in your car and forget all about. The makers of the phone promise battery life of 15 years and full talk-time of 10 hours. So you might be wondering why would someone need a phone like this. Well, this is the phone you  might need in an emergency, you go out camping things go wrong, you phone is missing. Then you remember that you have that spare mobile phone in your car, the one you almost forgot about. This is the one you can use to get to emergency services quick. There is nothing fancy to look at, at this phone. It is a straightforward design and its main purpose is longevity and the ability to save you in a tough situation.


Now if you're wondering whether you need a GSM phone with an active plan or a SIM card that needs to be kept active. That is not the case as with other GSM phones even an expired or inactive SIM can still be used to dial emergency numbers. The phone will be shipped in The phone will go on sale on March 15, and priced at £60 in the UK and $70 in the U.S. The phone as previously mentioned comes with no fancy extras like a camera or touchscreens. It has been designed to simply function as a phone and will come in handy during a family safety, natural disaster, daily emergency or travel. It can be kept in the glove-box of your car or in a bag of luggage and can be pre-programmed to call emergency numbers of that particular area. 
SpareOne Mobile

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Sociolatte

New iPad Name

Tim Cook unveiled the new iPad at a launch event in San Francisco. The big question on everyone's mind was what the new version of the iPad was going to be called. For starters it was speculated that it was going to be called 'iPad 3' or maybe even 'iPad HD' but gone are the numbers and the new iPad unveiled is simply being called the 'New iPad'. This is the most significant launch by Apple for its most important product ever. The launch event has also gained enough traction on Twitter and trending under the topic 'The New iPad'. So let's look at a few of the features that truly set this tablet apart. With ever increasing competition from companies like Amazon. Will the new iPad continue to dominate the tablet pc market.


New iPad Retina Display
The new iPad's screen is has more pixel's than your home theater HD. This third generation iPad has 4 times more pixels that iPad 2. Therefore the screen of the new iPad is stunning and razor sharp. Consider this your HD TV at home has 1920 by 1080 resolution whereas the new iPad has  2048 by 1536.


Of course it also has HD recording and a host of other goodies but the choice of Apple to get rid of the numbering of each model release might be quiet significant. Many websites said that the new iPad should be called iPad 4G. That we now know did not happen. The reasons why Apple decided to go this way is not clear as the company has not given reasons as yet for its decision. It, however can be very significant as it seeks to walk away from all speculated branding efforts. Maybe they seek to create an entire new branding effort and by simply naming it the new iPad they have already set themselves up as the leader in the Tablet market. This is the new device that you need to get, yes it is an iPad but it is totally new. With most competitors also trying to brand themselves along the lines of Apple although not directly. What Apple is saying that the features on the new iPad are so cool it is totally new and a whole other device. You thoughts please in the comments section below.

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Sociolatte

How to delete apps on the Samsung Galaxy Tab

One reason why you might want to delete to remove apps on the Samsung Galaxy Tab is to free up some space for new apps you want to check out and try. All apps that you install and add from the Android market can be removed except for apps that come pre-installed on the tablet. So apps like Blockbuster, Kindle, Slacker and movie cannot be removed as it is a part of the ROM of the device. All other Apps that you have installed and added can be removed with a few simple steps listed below.



How to remove, delete or uninstall apps on the Samsung Galaxy Tab
1. On the Home screen tap on menu
2. Select settings
3. Now choose applications
4. Tap manage applications
5. Select App you want to remove
6. Now tap the uninstall button
7. Select OK
8. You're done and the app removed

If you are using Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 there it is even simpler as you do not need to go to the app settings to remove apps

1. On the home screen tap on the Apps icon found on the right-hand side

2. Tap and hold the app you wish to remove

3. Drag the icon of the app to the red remove bin

4. Tap OK

5. You're done

 

Please leave a comment below to continue this discussion.

 

How to: Galaxy Nexus Face Unlock [Ice Cream Sandwich]

When Google released Android 4.0 better known as 'Ice Cream Sandwich' the OS came with some really new cool features. Like the Google Nexus phone has a feature called 'Face Unlock. There are many forums online discussing the feature and one of the points that keep coming up is, whether it is safe and can it be used a real security. This post is not going to discuss that but how to set up the facial recognition feature available on your Galaxy Nexus. What's really fun is that you can now smile and open your phone. The software is fun to use and well, you can now open your phone with a smile. Set it up and show it off to your friends. quiet a nice fun and handy feature to have on your phone


How to set up Face Unlock on Ice Cream Sandwich
1. Tap on settings
2. Tap on security
3. Touch screen-lock
4. Touch Face Unlock
5. Tap on Set-It-Up
6. Hold your phone like a mirror in front of you
7. Position your face in-between the dots that appear in a circle. You can smile and you don't have to hold perfectly still. Works best indoors with moderate even-lighting.
8.  Click on continue


Use this to set up a backup option in case your phone cannot see your face clearly
9. You can now set-up a backup lock option. This is handy is your phone cannot see your face for some reason or the other.
10. Under choose backup lock you can choose between 'Pattern' or 'Pin'.
11. Click on pattern you run your fingers over the dots to create a pattern.
12. tap confirm
13. Draw patter again to confirm
14. Touch confirm
15. You're done


Need more help check the video out below

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Sociolatte

How to check if your Android phone has Carrier IQ

Image: VooDoo Carrier

We have already done a post of how to remove Carrier IQ from your iPhone. If you are wondering what all the noise is about you can read our previous post about the same here. So if you're wondering if your Android phone has Carrier IQ installed and it just might be recording your keystrokes there is now an App to help you out. The App does not remove Carrier IQ but will let you know if CarrierIQ Rootkit is on your phone or not.


Once you install the App on your phone you will get a score if you get 0 it is best as it means that Carrier IQ is not on your device. Anything above that means your phone hosts the CarrierIQ rootkit. VooDoo Carrier IQ Detector will not be able to remove the program from your device but will let you know if your phone hosts Carrier IQ.


Simond the developer has also uploaded the open source code to Github. If this makes you feel a little more comfortable since the program is just about a day old.


VooDoo Carrier IQ Detector


To view a demo and how to use the App on your Android phone check the video out below.

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Sociolatte

How to try out the new Windows Phone on your iPhone or Android phone

If you are curious to know how the new Windows Phone 7.5 Mango feels like. You don't need to wait around in some store to demo it. Microsoft have made it possible for any iPhone or Android phone to test the new mango phone out. Will this actually lure iPhone and Android phone users away from their beloved phones to start using Mango is left to be seen.

Back to the topic now if you want to test the Windows phone on your iOS or Android device all you need to do is to point your browser to http://aka.ms/wpdemo and you will be taken to the Windows Phone 7.5 interface and you can then play around with it to see how it works. You can also play around with it on your web browser, click here to try it out now. 

So go ahead and demo the functionality of the phone and let us know your feedback in the comments section below.

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Sociolatte

Facebook Phone Buffy

Image: AllthingsD

This is not a confirmed report but news sites are buzzing with the news that the rumor is out again. The rumor that Facebook will be building an all new smartphone. This will be a Facebook Phone and will be called Buffy, from Buffy the vampire slayer. There are reports on the internet that a Mobile Phone manufacturer has also been chosen to produce the phone and that would be HTC, who incidently beat out rival Samsung to win the contract. There has been no official announcement from Facebook regarding the phone but the rumor mills are churning. 


Now a deeply social phone from Facebook does make some amount of sense but whether it is really going to take users away from their current phones and use the Facebook phone is left to be seen. Facebook does have over 350 million active mobile phone users. 


A Facebook spokesperson had this to say to AllThingsD.
“Our mobile strategy is simple: We think every mobile device is better if it is deeply social. We’re working across the entire mobile industry; with operators, hardware manufacturers, OS providers, and application developers to bring powerful social experiences to more people around the world.”


So it sounds like Facebook does want to get into the phone business given that it is a social platform that all other hardware and software manufactures have deep ties with. An official phone from the company could ensure that service providers across various countries would have tie-ups with Facebook and maybe offer a lot of free and add-on services to offer. 


The Apple iPhone has Twitter as its main social touch-point and Google has Google+ that has been integrated into Android based phones. Facebook looks like it is keep to get into the game. In Fact the Facebook Phone - Buffy will run on a modified version of Android OS. The release date for Facebook Phone Buffy is set to be as long as 12 - 18 months away.

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Sociolatte

Parrot ASTEROID The world’s first Android-powered car receiver now available

The parrot ASTEROID an Android-Powered radio was unveiled this year as CES 2011. There have been some minor delays with it supposed to be coming out in October. The gadget is here and avialbale for purchase. Priced at MSRP of $349 it can now be ordered  online  from this list of retailers. 


You might be wondering what is so special about this raid for starters it is the world's first Android powered receiver. Which can replace your radio or CD player when it comes to playing music, your GPS system for navigation, it can even hook up to your phone for voice based texts and emails. To make things easier for you it also comes with a large tuning nob. This is a must because if it's text you need to read that you can turn out difficult. This neat gadget seems to have all the promise with voice-recognition and all. Please let us know what you think in the comments section below. 

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Sociolatte

Siri: How to change the voice from male to female on the iPhone 4S

In Australia and the US Siri has a female voice but in the UK Siri has a male voice. Now which male would want that, well there might be a few but not most males. This post will help you fix that problem and ensure that your Siri has a female voice and not a male voice. If you want to go the other way around and give Siri a male voice follow the procedure mentioned below in reverse.

How to change British Siri's voice from male to female.

1. Tap on settings

2. Tap general

3. Clicking on Siri will give you a language menu

4. Change it to Australia or the US

5. Siri will now have a female voice

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Sociolatte

Deals: Get a 32GB HP TouchPad For $149 at Best Buy

Best Best have made an announcement, starting Nov 1, customers are being offered a bundle deal. The tablet was originally priced at $599 but dropped to $100 during a fire sale. HP had decided to move away from the tablet business. But the way the $99 flew out the window made HP change its mind. There has been a lot of interest in the HP TouchPad with it being a decent enough device and at a low cost it makes a lot of sense. The Best Buy offer will be available from Nov 1 and these are the details. You will be able to get a HP TouchPad for $149 provided you buy a HP or Compaq Laptop, Desktop or All-in-One computer1.  Customers can get this deal online at BestBuy.com, it will also be available at all Best Buy and Best Buy Mobile standalone stores across the US.

You would wonder where all these devices are coming from. Since the fire sale you would think that there were not many devices left lying around. Turns out there are and are being used in the pre-holiday season sale. We are sure to get to see a lot more deals and offers coming our way from tablet makes. As tables will turn out to be the hottest selling item this holiday season. 

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Sociolatte

How to get a free BlackBerry Tablet

RIM is now trying everything possible to bolster sales of its Tablet the BlackBerry Playbook. We have read numerous reports on the net that this holiday season is going to be gadget season. People of all ages including women over 50 according to one report, all want gadgets as gifts. right on top of the list of most desired gadgets is the Tablet. Tablet computers are most prized and sought after. RIM wants to make the best of it and has now come out with an offer for the BlackBerry Playbook. Business customers who buy two will get one free. Those who buy two PlayBooks' with get one free accessory and They can choose from a black leather sleeve, a charging pad, or an six-foot HDMI cable if they participate in the promotion. The offer runs only in the US and Canada and devices must be purchased for an authorized reseller. Offer ends Dec 31, 2011.

With this offer BlackBerry wants to make the most of this holiday season and increase sales. They have also said that rumors that the company wants to move away from the Table industry are false and that they are highly committed to the tablet industry. 

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Sociolatte

Mini iPad arriving in 2012 ???

Apple Insider is reporting that a mini iPad could be seen in the market in the early months of 2012. According to sources it is believed that the mini iPad is to rival and take on Amazon Kindle Fire. Amazon Kindle Fire is their first foray into the touchscreen tablet market and costs just $199. The rumor that a device somewhere between an iPod and iPad from Apple is not new. This smaller device can come with iPad functionality and sit in the $200 price range. This would make the device much more appealing to a large market segment. We had previously written about a cheap iPhone that could come from Apple. This would ensure that they get into the global prepaid smartphone market which till now is untouched. In countries like India and China the market for a prepaid iPhone would be really high and would give Apple a chance to get into the global smartphone market at a very competitive level. The market till now has been enjoyed by Nokia and BlackBerry.

A mini iPad could do just that becoming a huge hit in the global markets. China especially would have a huge market for such a device, in this price range. The US and Europe could also have big demand for products in this range. 

Read more at Apple Insider. 

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Sociolatte

Siri: How does it work

 

With the announcement of the iPhone 4S comes the news that Siri is coming with it. She will be your virtual personal assistant and help with a whole lot of tasks on your new phone, Siri is a part of iOS 5 and is capable of making you life a lot easier. For instance you get a message or text on your phone it will be read out to you be Siri and you can reply to that message or text with your normal voice. You do not need to touch your phone at all. It is all done automatically and you keep on doing your work and Siri will keep working in the background.

You can ask Siri to set your timer, tell you about the weather, remind you of all your appointments, and ask questions like which route to take and what the traffic situation is like. Siri will also speak to you in an intelligent way and has the ability to ask for clarifications. 

How does Siri work

Works just like a personal assistant, albeit a very wise one. Speak the the assistant in your normal voice and give it all your commands and everything gets done. Will also bring down accidents that happens while texting and driving. Just speak to Siri and ask for nice places for dinner around here. You will get a reply and choose a nice place. You do not need to hold it close and keep using your fingers as it is a voice based assistant that will go on the net and do your research for you. will reply to you in a female voice and keep you updated. Please see video below for more information. 

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Sociolatte

Aakash - World's Cheapest Tablet Computer

India is launching what it's calling the world's cheapest tablet computer. Called 'Aakash' meaning Sky the tab will be sold at a subsided cost to students for $35 and later be sold in retails stores for $45. One of the chief uses of the device will be to help eradicate poverty in villages in India. It is being manufactured in India by Datawind a UK based manufacturing company. The tablet has been jointly developed by DataWind and Indian Institute of Technology - Rajasthan. 

The Tablet uses Google Android and uses resistive LCD display rather that full touchscreen. Future versions would include a cell phone connection as well. The device actually costs nearly $50 – the government is paying 2,250 rupees each for the first 100,000 batch of them. Previously referred to as the Sakshat tablet, it’s now being called “Aakash,” or “sky.” This will go a long way in helping the rural poor because of the device's simplicity and portability. it can reach people in remote villages much more easily and give them a feel of a computing device and its uses. The Tablet developed by the government of India will be called Aakash for students and Ubislate for retail consumers. It is also being called the $35 tablet. 

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Sociolatte

Intel Medfield Android Honeycomb Tablet [Pics]

The prototype is out for all the see. Intel has on display the new Android tablet running on Medfield. Medfield is an upcoming Atom chip for SmartPhones and tablets, will offer better graphics. This is one of their newest chips with great power-efficiency and contains a single core. It will be available in devices during the first half of 2012. Intel tablets and smartphones will be based on Google's Android Software and now their own internal MeeGo. So you can expect to see Intel-Based phones in the first half of 2011 and they will initially be running on Android Gingerbread and later transition to Ice-cream Sandwich. 


The Intel Tablet has a 10.1in screen and was shown off running Android 3.x Honeycomb. It is 8.9mm thick. World's first Intel x86 based Android tablet.

Image: tablets Planet

Image: TheInguirer

Image Credit : Cnet

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Sociolatte

Trade-in your Used iPhone, iPod, iPad at any US GameStop Store

GameStop Stores in the US are allowing trade-ins of all used Apple products. The store is taking any generation of iPod Nano, iPod shuffle, iPod mini, iPod or iPod Touch, including all generations of the iPhone and the iPad. GameStop have announced on their site that it is as easy as 1-2-3, walk-in to your local GameStop store and an associate will tell you the value of your trades and once you agree, you can trade-in or exchange your gadget for either cash or store credits. 


Here is what is not accepted.

- iPod, iPhone or iPad devices with dents, severe scratches or personal engravings on the casing are NOT accepted.

- iPod, iPhone or iPad devices with cracked or severely scratched screens are NOT accepted.

- iPod, iPhone or iPad devices that are defective, will not power on OR which the screen is not readable are NOT accepted.

- iPod, iPhone or iPad devices with water damage are NOT accepted.

Any generation of iPhone, iPad or iPad is accepted. 


Visit GameStop now to find out more. 

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Sociolatte

Ultrabook: what it is

Image Credit: lenovo

Everyone dreams have having the most amazing laptops and that is what Ultrabooks wants to become. The Ultimate laptop device that people will be proud of and the envy of those who have not. Ultrabook will become the MacBook Air rival. Ultrabooks are slim and sexy and weigh a little less than 1.4 kgs. The first Ultrabooks from Lenovo, Toshiba and Ausu have already arrived and boast some ultra-modern technology like a breathing keyboard. So with all the competition heating up and companies predicting that Tablets are a way to the future. Laptops have not gone out of style and are needed for serious work. Ultrabook is a trademark owned by Intel to be incorporated in the ultra-modern Ultrabooks. Incorporating new low voltage Intel processors, integrated graphics, and flash-based solid-state drives (SSDs)


Some of the highlights of Ultrabooks are
1. Thin - less than 20 mm
2. Lightweight - less than 1.4 kgs
3. Long battery life -5 to 8 hours
4. Cost -less than $ 1000
5. will use SSD Solid state drives and no optical drive
6. Low voltage LED lights display
7. Low power consumption RAM
8. Advanced Polymer batteries

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Sociolatte

Twitter reacts to Grid 10 Tablet Launch

JooJoo developer Fusion Garage has reveled itself as the secret developer behind TabCo. Their latest product the Tab10, a tablet running an Android based OS. The company has been using the promoted tweets option on Twitter and are now trending worldwide. The Tablet market is highly competitive and there are no end to tablets ending in disappointment on the consumer buying front. The operating system has been named as Grid OS.  The company did have a miserable start with the JooJoo unit that went down the drain.


Now the they have decided to launch the tablet via Twitter it is interesting to see how Twitter is reacting to the whole thing. 



Fun fact: The Grid 10 was named after the number of people who will ever know or care that it exists. #Grid10TabletLaunch
#Grid10TabletLaunch I will go check it out
What is Grid10? I don't care much for Tabs unless they're made by Apple. #Grid10TabletLaunch.
#Grid10tabletLaunch needs to stop trending
#Grid10TabletLaunch sorry, don't pay attention to other tablets unless its made by apple :) (iPad)


From the above it seems very clear that Apple has captured the Tablet market and the iPad fonboys don't want their domination to end any time soon. This also seems reasonable considering the fact that Apple came out with a tablet that captured the attention of people with all its design, functionality and apps. All other tablets seem destined to a fate of gathering dust on the shelves of Tech stores. If you would like to know more about the Tech Specs check out this article by Gizmodo. 

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Sociolatte