Category Archives: Personal Tech

Blu-ray Technology

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Yes, it is ray not the blue-ray. The letter ‘e’ was intentionally avoided to make it suitable for trademarking. And yes, the Blu-ray is more advanced and better than a DVD. Every one was so excited when DVDs came into existence in 1997 which made it possible playing digital audio/video even in our houses. Now, people are talking about the new technology which is even superior to DVDs that came into existence in 2006.

After VCR’s and DVDs, advances in technology brought us Blu-ray technology. The name blu-ray is derived from the fact that a blue (actually blue-violet) laser is used for reading and writing Blu disc.ray technology is not an achievement of any single company. A group of prominent companies like Apple, Dell, Sony, Sun Microsystems etc formed ray Disc Association which developed this technology.

Blu-ray discs are superior to DVDs in the following factors:

(a) More storage capacity A single-sided standard 12 cm DVD can store 4.7 GB of data whereas the same size single layer ray disc can store 25 GB of data which is almost five times greater than a DVD. A double layer ray disc can store 50 GB of data. Similar to DVDs we can get mini size ray discs also with the size of 8 cm. This mini disc with single layer capacity can store 7.8 GB and dual layer capacity can store 15.6 GB.
(b) Higher data transfer rate of 36 Mbps and,
(c) Audio and video are played with more clarity compared to DVD.

The following are the factors which are responsible to embed more data into a ray disc:

(a) Contrary to DVDs which depend on red lasers operating at 650 nm for reading and writing data, Blu-ray discs depend on blue laser that operates at 405 nm. As the ray technology is using the short wavelength laser compared to DVD, it can embed more data into the disc which has the same size of a DVD.
(b) The thickness of cover layer was decreased.
(c) Numerical aperture was increased to 0.85.

Different formats of ray disc:

(a) BD-R: Recordable format for HD video recording and PC data storage.
(b) BD-ROM: Read only format for pre-recorded contents like high definition movies, games.
(c) BD-RW: Rewritable format for PC data storage.
(d) BD-RE: Rewritable format for HD video recording and PC data storage.

The exclusive features of Blu-ray players are:

*You can create the playlists.
*You can make changes to the recorded video and shuffle their order.
*You can record high-definition television (HDTV) with improved sound and picture qualities.
*You can record a program while playing another one.
*The player automatically searches for the empty space to record new programs on the disc to prevent overlapping of programs.
*You can randomly go to any point on the disc.

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Differences Between the Kindle Wi-Fi and Kindle 3G As Available in the UK, And Kindle DX

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There are now two types of Amazon Kindle available from Amazon UK, and the Amazon DX which at present you have to order from the States. Amazon has not done a great job making it easy for customers to identify the difference between the models so I will try and demystify below.

Kindle Wi-Fi.

Currently £109.00 including free shipping and this is the ‘base’ model available. This model has a 6 inch diagonal screen, 9mm think (less than a pencil), can hold up to 3,500 books, has a battery life of one month with the Wireless turned off and three weeks with the Wireless turned on. It downloads books from Amazon UK in 60 seconds, has Wi-Fi access for Internet browsing etc,

Kindle 3G + Wi-Fi

This is currently £149 in the UK and is exactly the same to look at the Wi-Fi model, but it has the addition of free 3G global wireless coverage for downloading books and Internet access in over 100 countries. It is very slightly heavier than the model above and the battery life with wireless on is reduced to 10 days. In all other respects it is exactly the same.

Therefore in deciding between the two models that consideration is whether you will be using the Amazon extensively outside the UK and wanting access to the free 3G network while you are away (you can still access the internet (with it’s basic browser) using the Wi-Fi, in hotels, bars etc). I guess unless you travel a lot and need to access your e-mail etc while you are away and do not possess one of the latest smart phones such as an iPhone, HTC desire, Blackberry etc, then the more expensive 3G model may be what you are looking for. I suspect for the majority of people the standard Kindle Wi-Fi will be the most appropriate model out of these 2.

Kindle DX

This is currently $379 ( approx £250) and has to be purchased from Amazon.com although they ship to the UK. This has a 9.7 inch diagonal size screen, it still holds 3,500 books, includes the 3G access and has a reduced battery life of seven days with wireless on and 2 to 3 weeks with a wireless off it is also approximately double the weight and slightly thicker. So the difference other Kindle 3G + Wi-Fi being the screen size.

Conclusion

The Kindle Wi Fi is exactly the same as the Kindle 3G except it does not have 3G, so for use as a ebook reader only and not wanting to download books while out of the UK it is perfect. To surf the web, download books abroad and over the internet you need the 3G, and if you want a bigger screen then the DX has it and the 3G.

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How Batteries Work

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In order to explain how batteries work you are going to need to understand whats inside them. Same as it would be impossible to explain how sun works without knowing what types of gasses its made of. Now before I go into a rant talking about hydrogen and fusion lets dive right into batteries. This would be easier to understand if the you have some knowledge about chemistry and physics. But if you don’t then that’s fine also.

Any object that can produce a flow of electricity without actually moving (like a battery or a solar panel) is known as a Cell. No matter what type cell it is they all have a few things in common. All cells possess two different plates. These plates are separated from one another. One is the positive plate while the other is the negative plate. They are both placed in a special type of liquid chemical that conducts electrons (electricity).

Both of the plates have to be made out of different types of material then its counterpart. This way they can both react with the chemical in different ways which allow the electricity to be drawn out of the battery. If both plates were made out of the same material then there wouldn’t be a difference in voltage. Therefore no electricity could be taken from the cell or put in the cell.

As more and more electricity is taken out of the cell then the both the plates and the chemical change in composition. Until such a point in which no more electricity can be taken out because the plates and the chemical can’t change any more. Also if you add electricity (charge it) then the chemical and the plates both start changing back though this constant change will eventually wear it out.

The difference between double A and triple A is in the composition of the plates and the chemical. The types of metals used to build batteries include Zinc Alkaline Carbon and Nickel. The size also matters as you can guess the bigger the battery then the more energy it produces and the more energy it can output at any given time.

The components of average battery are:

Container
A steel can to contain the other ingredients.

Cathode
Cathodes are the electrodes reduced by the electrochemical reaction.

Separator
A fabric that separates the electrodes.

Anode
Anodes are the electrodes that are oxidized. Taking the form of powdered zinc.

Electrodes
The area where the actual reactions take place

Electrolyte
Acts as the medium between the ions within the cell. Carrying the ionic current.

Collector
A pin down the center of the battery that collects electricity and takes it outside of the battery.

Also just a little interesting fact to put at the end of the article. Archaeologists have found ancient primitive batteries in Egypt. What their purpose was is unknown.

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The 2010 Apple MacBook Air 506LL/A 11.6 – Features and Specifications

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Apple’s latest foray into the world of netbooks is the 2010 MacBook Air 506LL/A 11.6. This sleek, sturdy laptop is Apple’s thinnest design yet, weighing in at only 2.3 lbs.

It comes with a 1.4GHz Core 2 Duo processor, the Mac OS X v10.6 Snow Leopard Operating System and NVIDIA GeForce 320M Integrated Graphics and an 11.6 inch LED display screen.

Here are some of the features you can expect with the new MacBook Air:

128 GB flash memory storage: This allows for faster boot-up and wake-up times, as well as quieter and cooler operation.

Wi-Fi wireless networking: This allows you to connect to the internet from any Wi-Fi enabled location for which you have access.

Built-in Face Time camera: This gives you the opportunity to video chat with other Mac users as well as friends with Wi-Fi enabled iPhone and iPods.

Bluetooth 2.1 + Enhanced Data Rate: This allows you to seamlessly connect with keyboards, mice, cell phones and other peripherals.

Two USB 2.0 ports: These ports also give you the option of networking with the Apple USB Ethernet adapter (sold separately).

A Multi-Touch trackpad: This supports inertial scrolling as well as pinching, swiping and rotating objects on screen. It also gives you the option of using a three or four finger swipe with the ability to tap, double tap and drag objects on screen.

Built-in Stereo Speakers: The speakers come with a headphone jack and built-in microphone.

A Full Size Keyboard: Perfect for students and others who deal with documents or data storage.

The Mac OS X Snow Leopard Operating system: Included in the package is the iLife ’11 software package, including the most up to date versions of GarageBand, iPhoto and iMovie.

It’s a Customer Favorite

Customers feel there are many positive features on this laptop. These include the processing speed, style and portability compared to other MacBook Air models. In reference to the vibration from the built-in speakers (easily solved by the use of headphones) and the lack of a computer lock, there has been some concern.

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