Lifesperience

Cyborg Superman through the Google Camera App Regular readers of my blog will remember my Nexus 5 pictures post which showed off snapshots taken by my non professional photographer self.  With the recent Google Camera  update now installed on my Nexus 5, I decided to take some new snapshots to see if picture quality has improved.  In my opinion, it has.  The camera has a faster response time switching back and forth between HDR modes (you should really just leave it on all the time) and is now able to capture fast moving scenes with little to no blur compared to the prior stock android camera app.  With the app being fairly new, there are some features still missing such as time lapse, and a self timer, but I suspect that they will return with time. As for now, I find that picture quality has improved dramatically, along with the shutter speed.  Compare these shots to my last blog post about the camera quality and decided for yourself. ...

On the Surface, (Ha! get it?)  the Surface Pro 2 seems like it is a great compromise in regards to the sum of its parts.  At 10.6 inches, you get a good amount of laptop with some tablet mixed in.  Just shy of a month ago, I took a trip to the Microsoft store, excited to buy the Surface Pro 2.  It was to replace my aging Acer Aspire 1810TZ, which all things considered, is still not a terrible laptop.  So why did I end up with the Dell Venue 8 Pro instead?  Read on to find out. First, let us compare the basic differences.  The most obvious is the price difference.  The Dell Venue Pro 8 is $299 for the 64GB version while the Surface Pro with the same amount of storage is $899.  The Dell tops out at 64GB, while the Surface Pro 2 tops out at 512GB.  The problem is that high capacity version costs a ridiculous $1,799.99 without a keyboard. Maybe I am picky, but honestly, even 512GB on a computer is anemic in this day and age. ...

Can Retro-bit bring the Super Nintendo gaming to the modern era? Lifesperience is now Raycommend, which can be found here:    Ray Commend   Over the recent months, I have acquired a serious retro gaming habit.  The latest gen systems have not really appealed to me at this time since they have not offered anything new in terms of gameplay, while the classic systems are still attractive to me due to their pick up and play gameplay, instant on functionality, and games that are simply fun to play . The only issues of course are the poor video cables supplied with these systems, and of course, being tethered via a corded controller.  Luckily, there is now an option if you want to wirelessly play from over 30 feet away from your console.  Is it any good?  Read on for my opinion. Snes connected via S-video on the left, while using standard composite on the right.  First things first.  If you still have the original SNES (or even a ...

Android Apps integrate into the Modern Start screen. Those of you that follow my blog are aware that I recently purchased a Dell Venue Pro 8 ( reviewed here ) and am pretty happy with the performance and usability for the price.  In that review, I compared it to the Google Nexus 7 , another one of my favorite devices.  For those of you who are not that familiar with the various ecosystems, when it comes to touch apps, Microsoft is a distant third place behind Apple and Google.   While the Microsoft store has been slowly getting more apps geared towards touch devices, there are still many notable apps missing such as HBO GO, or Showtime Anytime, Temple Run, Instagram, etc.  Some times there are third party replacements, and some times there are not.  The good news is that you may not have to wait to use your favorite app on Windows 8.x.  There is a program by the name of Bluestacks  that will allow you to run Android apps in Windows as close t...

The front and back of the Dell Venue 8 Pro As a fan of technology in general, I have always dreamed of the day where convergence would allow me to have the greatest flexibility in a portable and sleek package.  My current options, which are the Galaxy Note 2 and the Nexus 5 are great, but too small to do any actual work while my ultraportable Acer Aspire 1810TZ is too big to fit in my pocket when going out.   My Nexus 7 2013 is an incredibly great piece of technology with very few trade off's and is my usual partner in crime when I venture out into the real world.  Its 7 inch screen and slim/sleek design easily fit into the back pocket of my jeans or an inside jacket pocket.   Dell Venue 8 Pro side by Side with the Nexus 7 2013 They are very close in overall thickness. Needless to say, I am always on the look out for something more.  With the recent update to the intel atom processors, the processors have actually become useful with a surpr...

Over the last year, there has been a push my manufacturers to popularize wearable electronics.  Samsung, Sony, Pebble, Qualcomm, etc have at some point over the last year introduced some type of smart watch.  Today, Google finally threw its hat into the ring with Android Wear, a version of Android made specifically for wearable electronics.  Centered around the excellent "Google Now" experience, it should do for watches what android 3.0 and up did for tablets by creating an experience specifically for the devices. The video gives a summary of what is to be expected from the upcoming Android Wear : Frankly, I have yet to own a smart watch, instead using my sixth generation ipod nano to play that role for me.  All of the current offerings from manufacturers suffer from either half baked operating systems, terrible battery life, or just ugly design. The Moto 360 (pictured at the beginning of the article) looks incredible and from the demo looks slick and ...

To put it bluntly, Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey rocks! The show features famed astrophysicist superstar  Neil Degrasse Tyson  as host in place of the late Carl Sagan  and is produced by Seth McFarlane and Anne Druyan who co-wrote the original series. Add modern special effects along with up-to-date science facts and you now have the potential for an excellent program. Tyson on the Ship of imagination Debuting a week ago on ten networks, Cosmos will continue to air on two, which are Fox and the National Geographic channel.  Fox will air the show at 9pm on Sunday nights (after Family Guy) while National Geographic will air the following night on Mondays at 10pm with bonus material. If you're wondering what the show is about, according to Tyson, " The goal is to convey why science matters to the person, to our society, to us as shepherds of this planet. It involves presenting science in ways that connect to you, so Cosmos can influence you not only intelle...