racoma.com.phJ. Angelo Racoma on technology, economics, writing, problogging, and getting things done

Nokia has just launched the Lumia 800C in China, and is banking on smartphone sales in this region for a comeback in the smartphone industry. Nokia’s launch of its Windows Phone 7.5 Refresh (formerly “Tango”) smartphone likewise signals the arrival of the WP7 platform for entry-level devices. Will WP7 pose a serious threat to Android and iOS like analysts have been saying?

Perhaps you’d like to review a Nokia Windows Phone handset for yourself. Nokia is offering an opportunity for gadget lovers to take the Lumia 900 (or any other current Nokia device) for a spin. Check out the video below.

Nokia asks what extemes you would go to with your smartphone. I’m not sure if I’ll be jumping off cliffs with my smartphone just yet, although it sounds like a good idea to see how a smartphone peforms under extreme situations.

VoIP or internet phone is the number one phoning technology as experts as well as its users know the infinite benefits that it can offer to them. This article will look at a future technology in its making that would not only replace the landline phone but the cell phones as well.

Background concept behind mobile VoIP

VoIP has been around for many years now, but mobile VoIP is still not that common in use. The first time this concept was introduced, many industry experts said that this technology will not be practically possible to be successfully implemented. There were many reasons at the time of introduction of this technology.

The first major hurdle was the slow wireless internet connection which meant that you could not transfer the data at the required speeds. The second problem was the slow mobile phones with low computing powers which created a major hurdle in having devices which could handle all the tasks simultaneously. Lastly the infrastructure was also a big problem as not all places had the type of infrastructural support for such fast internet speeds.

With the passage of time most of these hurdles have been overcome. New smart phones have been introduced which have better computing power and the ability to handle multiple tasks without any problem. The overall development in the infrastructure has been great because now wireless networks are able to handle faster data transfer speed without any glitches.

I published a review of the top-of-line Honda CR-V a few weeks back. So far, we found it a capable car that’s just right for a family of five.

The CR-V is a very capable utility vehicle, considering our review was done right in the middle of inclement weather. The 2.4 liter i-VTEC engine doesn’t even complain when going uphill, and you get adequate engine braking going downhill. At the highway, even a light foot can get you from zero to highway speeds in reasonable time. You’d only have to pedal the floor when overtaking hard.

Check out the Honda CR-V at Pinoy Auto Blog.

Aside from the Nissan Teana, I recently reviewed a Honda City 1.3S A/T. Check out my review at Pinoy Auto Blog.

The City shines in spaces it’s designed for: city roads. The compact size and nimble handling make it easy to weave through city traffic. Unlike other small cars, the City does command respect, given its styling and size relative to other pocket rockets.

Good points: The car is big for its class, and has adequate performance, particularly for where the car was designed for. I found some minor issues, although these should not be a deal-breaker to folks who want a dependable car that has value-for-money.

Google’s Chrome OS has been a novelty because of the idea of putting everything on the Web. Now that Apple will be releasing its upcoming OS X Lion soon, it seems they’re taking a page out of the Chrome OS playbook by adding a browser-only mode.

Beta versions of Mac OS X Lion feature a “restart to Safari” mode, which can be used to leave your current session and open a browser-only session, sans the desktop, finder, dock and other desktop UI elements. You’re basically left with something like Chrome OS’ interface–just the browser.

This option can be accessed from the user lock/login screen, which means you can boot right into Safari-only mode if you don’t want to access your desktop. Perhaps this is some form of guest-only mode. Some early reviewers say it’s a good way to troubleshoot your computer in case a catastrophic error happens and you need to research how to troubleshoot. Still, with Lion’s new auto save and and restore capabilities, you can return to your regular desktop and all your apps and sessions will still be there.

Will this new feature be a challenge to Chrome OS? Probably not, since Chrome OS was designed primarily to be a browser-only OS. OS X Lion, on the other hand, is a full-fledged desktop operating system and you would need to boot it up until the login screen before you can access Safari. In contrast, Chrome OS promises to be lighter and quicker, although you will need access to either a Wi-Fi network or 3G. Then, there’s the price. If you compare prices, the latest Chromebooks from Acer and Samsung are about half or almost a third the price of the cheapest MacBook.

Will OS X Lion’s browser-only mode put Chromebooks to shame?