Unlocking Your Mobile Phone to be ILLEGAL as of Tomorrow January 26!

This may come as a bit of a surprise, but that mobile phone you have in your possession may be a source of legality come tomorrow. In October there was a big news story going around that people were allowed to unlock their phones no matter what carrier and no matter what contractual obligations they had. Well, that allowance was for 90 days and tomorrow that deadline is up.

First of all, what is unlocking? In the most basic sense it is making a mobile phone not dedicated to simply one mobile service provider. A device purchased under contract from one carrier is usually “locked” to only work with that service’s network. This creates a problem when a phone is only offered under one carrier, but a person wants to use that phone under another carrier. This mess can be solved by unlocking a mobile device. This means that the code in the phone is replaced to allow any network to function with another networks SIM card. This means any device can be used by a person under any mobile service. This seems like it should be the way it should be anyway, but here’s the issue.

Many times phones are purchased with a new contract and the phone price is slashed drastically as a result. A phone that would retail without a contract for maybe $500 would only be $100 or free. This charge that the mobile carrier is willing to take is so that the phone will be used under their network and they will make money off of your business for the amount of time of the renewed contract. If the phone is unlocked then you could get the cheap price and they might never hear from you again. For this reason, phones paid for at full price are sometimes available as unlocked legally by the provider. This is because they are making their money upfront from you and have no reason to care what you do with the phone.

It is all a mess of technicalities and in the long run ,and in the real world, this law will probably go the way of jaywalking and speed limits where they are broken unnoticed around every corner.

Samsung Unveils Mid-Range Smartphone Galaxy Xcover 2 with underwater camera

Today Samsung announced their newest phone in the release lineup. It went heavily unnoticed since the Galaxy line is mostly given publicity to the S lineup, but nonetheless the Xcover 2 is now out there. This phone is sold as a rugged and waterproof phone that can take a beating. Being able to withstand depths of 1 meter the phone is essentially a shower proof, and accidental toilet swim proof device, but isn’t exactly fully waterproof by any means.

The other specs are almost entirely lackluster and honestly kind of surprisingly considering the Samsung name. Only hosting a 5 megapixel camera on the back this phone seems to have put any type of actual luxury to the wayside and mostly caters to people who want a rugged and sturdy dependable phone but not much else.

Featuring three physical buttons, home, back, and menu, the Xcover2 also seems reminiscent of an older generation smartphone. Either way the phone looks solid and will most likely cater to a very targeted audience which will seek out this kind of device when on the market which is why it has probably gone under-publicized.

There are also rumors of the Xcover 2 having a workout program system integrated into it with some sort of cardio trainer too. We’ll see what really ends up happening when the phone is fully launched. Although right now it looks like unless you plan to use your phone for running in the rain or a quick, shallow water photo-shoot this device might be easily overlooked. If you’re a rugged butterfingers who might drop their phone a lot but still wants the dependability and function of a smartphone this one might be for you. If you’re looking to replace your Galaxy S series or iPhone I’d look elsewhere.

Shhhh… Secret Codes for Your Android Device!

There’s a little secret among smart phone developers. Often times in order to keep open areas of the phones data, memory or access, the programmers must leave open these little access codes to gain entry into otherwise blocked off “doors”. These little shortcuts and, codes, as they are known by allow any developer on many platforms access to new menus, and other diagnostics that most device owners have no idea exist.

Since the coding and programs for most phones are different, even from generation to generation, not all of these codes will work, but try them out and impress your friends or show off that you look like you can hack into your phone. I’m sure it will impress somebody. Here’s a list of a few codes, but beware, some of these can reverse other blocks, and make your phone act very differently and sometimes even damage components of the internal system. Just be careful, but have fun. They are all designed to be entered from the numeric entry keypad in the phone.

*#06# – IMEI number

*#0*# – Enter the service menu on newer phones like Galaxy S III

*#*#4636#*#* – Phone information, usage statistics and battery

*#*#34971539#*#* – Detailed camera information

*#*#273282*255*663282*#*#* – Immediate backup of all media files

*#*#197328640#*#* – Enable test mode for service

*#*#232339#*#* – Wireless LAN tests

*#*#0842#*#* – Backlight/vibration test

*#*#2664#*#* – Test the touchscreen

*#*#1111#*#* – FTA software version (1234 in the same code will give PDA and firmware version)

*#12580*369# – Software and hardware info

*#9090# – Diagnostic configuration

*#872564# – USB logging control

*#9900# – System dump mode

*#301279# – HSDPA/HSUPA Control Menu

*#7465625# – View phone lock status

*#*#7780#*#* – Reset the /data partition to factory state

*2767*3855# – Format device to factory state (will delete everything on phone)

##7764726 – Hidden service menu for Motorola Droid

More of these secret codes can be found on the internet, and probably ones designed specifically for your device. Have a quick search and show off your hacking skills to your unknowing friends!

Temple Run 2 For Android Finally Arrives!

A week ago Temple Run 2 was released into the Apple App store. This marked one of the fastest and most hyped app games releases of all time. The original Temple Run was synonymous with mobile gaming. It was one of the fastest growing and most popular games apps that the world has seen. It was loved by children, adults and everyone in between.

The sequel to this game has been long awaited and the hype surrounding it has been building fever with every day, every rumor, and every leak. With the new game the premise is the same, run! The new and exciting features in this game include more obstacles, newer ways to travel through the maps, more power ups, and of course better graphics.

It’s great when games of this magnitude are published cross platform within a close time period. It allows the entire mobile gaming world to share the excitement at the same time and not have one OS jealous over the other or create a divide.

Temple Run 2 will not disappoint. It has the same hectic pace, the same heart racing adventure, and the same addictive gameplay of the first installment just with more features and a better overall experience. Everything that made Temple Run great is still in Temple Run 2.

Downloading this game will be one of the best decisions of your day, that is, if you don’t need to get anything done. This addicting game will take up most of your free time and most likely take over some of your needed time as well. Who can’t resist trying to escape and getting those tokens? After all, the graphics and new features make it even more personal of an adventure for your character to navigate through.

There’s no telling how big Temple Run 2 will get, but if the first is any indicator this will soon be the most talked about and most downloaded game app of the year.

Source:  Temple Run 2 for Android

 

[Image Credit: Google Play Store]

Windows RT: The OS That Couldn’t Keep Up

Windows is a massive company. Their multifaceted approach to technology has won them numerous places in the homes of many people. From Xbox to PCs and Windows 8 the wide variety of it all has been impressive. Windows RT has fallen to the wayside.

Windows RT is not even really known. Chances are you’ve heard of Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8, but probably haven’t heard anything of RT before. It’s not surprising. For such a large portion of their market involving this operating system, it’s shocking that it has almost no publicity. When you look into the performance it’s not surprising why.

Windows RT is the operating system equivalent to the untalented sibling. Windows 8 is the child who always did exceedingly well in school, received all of the praise, and got all of the awards. Windows RT is the other sibling who tried so hard to be like Windows 8 but never really got anywhere. The opening screen, layout and overall appearance of RT is almost identical to Windows 8. The biggest misstep in the operating system is the compatibility. This may come as a shock since it is so hard to believe Windows would do this, but Windows RT CANNOT run apps and programs made for Windows 8. The code source is similar but different enough to make them incompatible.

Microsoft is the only large company to support this kind of system where two operating systems for one kind of device (tablets) are supported at the same time. It is crazy, nonsensical, and is surely creating a massive headache for consumers who purchase RT in hopes of running their favorite Windows 8 apps.

This ploy started out as a way to get people a cheaper entry into the Windows tablet market, but in the end I see this ending up as a nightmare that may have received initial consumers of the product, but will end up having much more displeased and unhappy recipients of the ARM Windows RT operating system.

Although at this point it seems like Microsoft has been quietly sticking to their guns, and will do nothing to rectify this egregious misstep of technology, only time will tell. Until then, skip the Windows RT based devices and spend a little but more on a much more complete and compatible Windows 8 device.

The Latest Samsung Galaxy S4 Image Leak

The technology world has been a buzz in the past couple of days with the apparent discovery of a new image of the elusive Galaxy S4. The Galaxy S line is always on the forefront of the news and is the only hype equivalent of the iPhone, other than well, the iPhone. The rumor mill has been on full blast for the last few months in anticipation of the yearly announcement of the newest S4 device.

As people are always on the edge of their seats waiting for the initial release of specs and photos, it is odd enough that this newest image was found on a public image sharing website, Picasa, and was titled, “Galaxy S IV GT-I9500 Product Image”. That blatantly enough spells out how this was not only hidden in plain sight, but right under our noses for the public to stumble across.

GalaxyS4-Leak-04-580-75

Whether it was a mistake or a clever viral marketing scheme by Samsung is unclear. The only thing that is obvious is that this version has a slimmer edge, more symmetrical sides, and a larger home button. The layout is, as usual, very iPhone-esque, but has the traditional larger screen and larger body.

All that is for sure is that this device will be released sometime this year. No one knows for sure, but something interesting to note is that the last time a leaked photograph of the last device, the S3 was published, the date on the home screen May 3rd, was the exact date that the device was announced to the public officially. This latest photo has the date of April 22nd which could be a clue to the release date. Only time will tell, but this newest release will keep us busy until the next clue we get.