Samsung, Galaxy Note 10.1

The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 brings split-screen multi-tasking, creative apps and quad core power. Oh, and the mighty S Pen too.

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review – design 

A touch skinnier and lighter than the iPad 3, the Note 10.1’s looks will win over any long-time Samsung fans looking for a powerful Android tab. Yes, you’re paying nearly $600 for a tablet with a plastic back but on the plus side, there’s a microSD slot, two front facing speakers and an IR blaster to turn the Note into a remote.

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review – display 

As the Note 10.1 is aimed at creative types, the WXGA 1280x800 display is a bit of a disappointment. In use, it’s up there with the brightest and has good viewing angles for watching HD movies. But an eye-popping Super AMOLED screen wouldn’t have gone amiss here, nor would a few (hundred) extra pixels to make us choose this over the 2048x1536 iPad 3 for working with images.

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review – multiscreen, pop up play, smart stay

The Note 10.1 is as close as you’ll get to a Galaxy S3 (aka the best smartphone in the world) in tablet form. Pop Up Play gives you a video window while you browse the web, email or get some work done (risky) and Multiscreen will display two apps (from S Note, Video Player, Email, Gallery and Internet) side by side in both portrait and landscape modes. You can even use mini apps like the music player and email on top of the two main screens which we loved. 
Another nifty addition is Smart Stay which uses the front facing camera to make sure the Note 10.1 doesn’t go to sleep while you’re looking at it – clever. 

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review – quad core power

With a 1.4GHz quad-core Exynos chip and 2GB of RAM under the hood, the Note 10.1 melts Ice Cream Sandwich down (no sign of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean) and runs super smooth. When switching between the video player and web pages using Multiscreen (with a pop up play window on top for good measure) you might have to be patient but performance is still impressive.

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review – cameras 

The 1.9MP/720p front facing camera won’t impress in a Skype video chat but the 5MP snapper on the rear is good enough for on-the-go shots once it’s focused – although the results are a little washed out. 

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review – S Pen 

The 6.5mm S Pen hides out at the bottom right hand corner of the Note 10.1 and the curved end elegantly blends in to the tablet’s form factor. Pull it out and you get a sidebar of options like S Planner and S Note that you can use with it. 
The S Pen itself is light and easy to exert pressure with (thanks to Wacom’s expertise here) but a little on the spindly side. And with PS Touch and other apps, the Samsung stylus does encounter some lag but not enough to stop us enjoying it.  

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review – best Galaxy Note 10.1 apps

Samsung’s S Choice selection helpfully pushes S Pen-friendly apps to Note 10.1 users. So alongside pre-installed suggestions like Crayon physics (a simplified Amazing Alex with drawn lines), there’s also painting app Infinite Painter and the pattern making OmniSketch. 
With Wacom’s digitizer technology, the S Pen claims to give would-be artists greater precision than cheap tablet pens. There were a few hitches when drawing in the Infinite Painter Android app so we switched to the non-S Pen optimised SBMX. Blending colours and working our illustration muscles was impressive but wouldn’t replace anything more professional. 
Games wise there’s the simple enough MazeRacer which sees you using the precise S Pen to draw routes against the clock, as well as secure signature apps that could put an end to using your cranky scanner. Nothing groundbreaking then but we hope more optimised apps show up soon.
The S Pen isn’t your regular party animal stylus though, it can work hard too. With Polaris Office, you can turn it into a highlighter or use it to annotate documents, spreadsheets or presentations. Be careful though – we’d keep the notes for your own use to avoid your boss asking what a four year old’s been doing with your report. 

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review – S Note 

It’s a good thing that Samsung spent time making built-in apps for the S Pen itself. Fire up S Note and you get the choice of shape, formula or handwriting recognition. The gestures take a little getting used to and typing will inevitably be quicker but scrawling your no doubt world-saving thoughts and seeing them instantly transform into text is still satisfying. This is the future. 

Samsung  Galaxy Note 10.1 review – Photoshop Touch 

We were seriously impressed by PS Touch too – the S Pen is genuinely useful when dragging the corners of images to resize or rotate them, sliding saturation and brightness levels and creating selections and layers in PS Touch – Adobe Photoshop Lite for tablets. It won’t satisfy professionals but will be enough for the rest of us to wave goodbye to keyboard shortcuts, especially since the app comes pre-installed on the Note 10.1. 

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review – versus Apple iPad 3

The question on every one’s lips – can the Note 10.1 slay the iPad? The answer, in a word, is no – the answer in two words is not yet. The iPad 3’s few extra grams and millimetres shouldn’t give your bag too much bother and its glorious 9.7in Retina Display will win you over within minutes. 

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review – verdict 

If you love the Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note smartphones but hanker after a bigger screen, this is it. But though there’s lots to love, we found ourselves already wishing for the Note 2 10.1 (or another such unwieldy Samsung moniker) – if this tablet were a little faster with at least a 1080p display, it would be a serious contender for the top Android tablet title. 
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 offers features you won’t find on iOS. But a third party stylus won’t cost the earth if you really need a pen substitute and for creativity, developers continue to push the most innovative and interactive apps in the direction of the iPhone and iPad.  
The Note has carved out a creative niche amidst tough competition from the very affordable Nexus 7 and the workaholic-friendly Transformer Infinity. But the iPad is still the tablet to beat.

Alienware M17x R4

A quad-core Ivy Bridge CPU and AMD’s Radeon HD 7970M make the M17x R4 a gaming force to be reckoned with, and the chassis is an absolute monster.

While most manufacturers are paring down their laptops to Ultrabook proportions, Alienware’s M17x R4 looms at the other end of the scale. This giant will spill over the edges of the average lap, comes with a 17.3in Full HD screen, and houses a super fast graphics card. And also uses the first Ivy Bridge laptop processor.

 

The quad-core Core i7-3610QM is a 45W CPU with a nominal 2.3GHz clock speed that Turbo Boosts up to 3.3GHz. As with all the new Ivy Bridge parts, the die shrink to 22nm combines with Intel’s Tri-Gate transistors to provide even more performance per Watt. The integrated GPU has been upgraded to the HD Graphics 4000, which adds DirectX 11 support and an extra four execution units to bring the total up to 16.

 

Tasked with the challenge of our Real World Benchmarks suite, the new Ivy Bridge hardware teamed up with the M17x R4’s 64GB Samsung PM830 SSD and 8GB of DDR3 RAM to produce a scorching result of 0.94. By comparison, the Samsung Series 7 Gamer, with its 2.2GHz Sandy Bridge Core i7-2670QM, scored 0.84. The Alienware is only 6% slower than our reference desktop PC, powered by a Sandy Bridge Core i7-2600K. It’s a stunning achievement, even more so when you consider the Alienware’s performance in the media encoding portion of our benchmarks, where it proved quicker than the desktop PC. 

 

Gaming isn’t bad either. The Alienware comes with a top-end AMD Radeon HD 7970M, which we’ll come to in a moment, but first we disabled that to test the processor’s integrated graphics. With Crysis running at 1366 x 768 and Low quality, it managed an average of 43fps, 25% faster than the HD Graphics 3000. At 1600 x 900 and Medium quality that dropped to 22fps. Given that Ivy Bridge’s Crysis performance is almost on a par with AMD’s new Trinity platform, AMD will have to work hard to remain price competitive.

 

Of course, on this laptop you won’t be gaming using the processor, as the AMD GPU is a beast: with 1280 pixel shaders and 2GB of RAM it tore through Crysis, pushing an average of 42fps at Full HD and High quality. Only at Very High did it drop below 40fps, finishing with a final average of 35fps. 

 

That’s superb, but it means we can’t properly test Ivy Bridge’s efficiency with this laptop. The CPU certainly runs cool – we never saw the core temperatures exceed 83°C, even after running at 100% load for several hours. But that huge 17.3in display and the high-performance components take their toll on battery life. The M17x R4 ran dry after only 3hrs 2mins in our light-use test, and taxing the CPU with our looping Cinebench test saw the Alienware expire after only 1hr 10mins. We’ll have to wait for the first Ultrabook to see if Ivy Bridge can really deliver on its promises.

 

Built like a tank

Physically, this is very much an Alienware laptop. The AlienFX lighting array can illuminate the laptop in multiple colours or be switched off completely, so the M17x R4 can gently glow or adopt all the subtlety of an Ibiza nightclub. It’s entirely up to you. 

 

The thick, contoured body has an air of brutishness, but there’s one downside to the bomb-proof construction: it’s almost impossible to carry with one hand, tipping the scales at a massive 4.37kg. 

 

That bulk, however, proves the perfect ally for the high-end components within, leaving plenty of room for sizeable internal heatsinks, large twin exhausts and a pair of internal 2.5in hard drive bays. Those rear exhausts aren’t only for effect, either – they provide the processor and GPU each with dedicated cooling, so temperatures remain reasonable even when they’re both flat out.

With the GPU cooled by a triple heatpipe and the CPU by a dual heatpipe arrangement, the Alienware brushes off the demands of all-day gaming effortlessly. The only downside is noise – push it flat out and both fans spin up to intrusive levels. 

 

Cinematic experience

Fire up one of the latest titles, such as Diablo III, and the Alienware delivers a full-bodied, luscious experience. Our model came with the Full HD 17.3in display option, and while colours are a little cold, the 621:1 contrast ratio and 298cd/m2 brightness are plenty to make games pop off the screen.

 

With Klipsch speakers firing out of the glowing front grilles, audio is crisp, detailed and underpinned by only enough bass to make us hesitate before reaching for the headphones.

The backlit keyboard has a delightful soft-touch feel under the finger, and the keys have plenty of travel, and a cushioned break at the end of the stroke. While few gamers will use the touchpad, it’s equally good. The discrete buttons are welcome, and the wide touch area provides lag-free cursor control and responsive two-fingered pinching and scrolling. 

 

Around the huge chassis you’ll see acres of space for connectivity. With four USB 3 ports, HDMI 1.4, mini-DisplayPort, D-SUB, Gigabit Ethernet, an SD card reader, an optical digital output, headphone and microphone jacks, and a dedicated headset output, there’s nothing missing. If we have one quibble, it’s with the single-band 802.11n Centrino chipset, which seems out of place on such a high-end laptop. We’d pay the extra $65 for the Killer Wireless-N upgrade with its triple stream and dual-band support. 

 

Indeed, the sheer level of customisation on offer is astonishing. The base model starts at $2199, and it’s easy to send the price soaring over $6500 by adding faster CPUs, hard drive setups, RAID arrays and SSD boot drives; by swapping the AMD or Nvidia graphics; or by upgrading to a 120Hz 3D-capable, display. This is one flexible beast.

St. Petersburg’s Palace Bridge

If you ever go to St. Petersburg (or the “City of 300 Bridges,” as it’s sometimes called) don’t miss the opportunity to visit the Palace Bridge.
If you just stand on the bridge and look around, an impressive panorama will open up before you: the Winter Palace, the Peter and Paul fortress, and the wide array of palatial buildings along both banks of the Neva River.
The Palace Bridge is one of the most famous bridges in the world. It connects Palace Square to Vasilevsky Island. The total length of the Palace Bridge is 260.1 meters and the width is 27.8 meters. The bridge is decorated with ornate cast-iron railings, lamp posts and lion sculptures.
Most of the bridges spanning the Neva River are drawn at night, and the Palace Bridge isn’t an exception. So, ships can sail along the river at night, but it’s impossible for people to walk from one part of the city to another on foot. And if you get stuck on one side of the bridge, you’ll have to wait a long time before you’re able to cross to the other side.

The history of the Palace Bridge dates back to 1901. At that time a competition was announced for the best project for the construction of the Palace Bridge and the Bolsheohtinsky Bridge. There were 27 projects, but none of them was good enough to be chosen. In 1909, the project of the engineer Pshenitsky was accepted, and the famous architect Roman Meltzer was entitled to design the bridge’s architectural decorations. The construction of the bridge finally began in 1912.

When World War I began, the construction wasn’t yet completed. The bridge opened in 1916, but some decorative elements of the designs were missing. The construction was finally completed in 1939.
It would be a great idea to go to St. Petersburg during the White Nights that usually start in the end of May and last until the beginning of July. The view of the Palace Bridge is really astounding especially during the White Nights.

Tanah Lot: One Of The Best Tourist Destinations

In May, when the spring rains give in to sun and the weather becomes sunnier and warmer, one of the best places to travel is Tana Lot, Bali. If you have been looking for sea tourist destinations that are exotic, sometimes dangerous and combine ancient history with modern motives, then this is one of the best tourist destinations that will please you and your expectations. Tanah Lot is a rock formation situated in the territory of Indonesian island of Bali. This is one of the seven sea temples of Balinese coast. A legend tells that in the 15th century priest Nirartha rested in these beautiful rock-islands. Later he talked to the fishermen that lived there to build a shrine on the rock because he felt that it was a holy place to worship the Balinese sea gods. The temple in this rock formation is called Pura Tanah Lot. It has become one of the most famous tourist destinations of Bali and is a sacred place for the locals.
Pura Tanah Lot is very simple in its construction, and you will not see any complicated architecture there, but it is an absolutely amazing place with its ocean-front location and is an important part of the mythology of Bali people who have been worshiping their Balinese gods in this temple for centuries. Tanah Lot is more beautiful in the evenings when sunset grace decorates the beautiful island of Bali and gives a magical view to Tanah Lot.

The entrance fee to Tanah Lot temple is 10.000 rupiah (approximately $1) for foreigners, if you are by car, motorcycle or bus, you’ll need to pay additional 2.000-10.000 rupiah for parking.
This is one of the best places to travel. You will have a great chance to appear in a completely different environment that will change your opinion about the world forever.

Beach Camping And Beach Vacations In California

All proper camping sites in California charge a fee, there are no free beach camping sites. Beach vacations are great fun, especially when camping in a crowd. There are a large number of beach camping sites to choose from in the California area. This does not mean that your camp site is located on the beach itself, but close to the beach. You could be across the road, next to it, or overlooking the beach. Some sites use the word beach to attract attention and may be located further away from the beach than you would like to be.


When considering beach vacations or beach camping, always check that the site you have chosen is actually located where they say they are, and that they provide all amenities they say they do. You can check on this by doing research and reading reviews on the particular site. It is essential that you know exactly what is provided, so that you will take along all the necessary camping equipment. Your vacation could be ruined without all the necessary equipment.



If you are thinking of taking your family, it is necessary that you ensure that the beach camping site you have chosen for a beach vacation is child friendly. There should be some recreation and play areas that are especially located for children. Some sites provide a play park for children, games rooms for teenagers and swimming pools for different age groups. Pets are allowed in some sites where others will not allow them at all. This is another consideration, should you want to take your pet along. With just a little research and good organisation, you will be able to enjoy your beach vacation.

Fairs And Festivals In Santa Rosa, California

The city of Santa Rosa, in California is home to many wonderful fairs and festivals. Though this bustling suburban community is located in one of the worlds most popular destinations for wine aficionados, namely Sonoma County, it itself is not much of a wine producer, it is just near them. A few minutes north on highway 101 finds one in Windsor, home of Martinelli Vineyards, Russian Hill Estate Winery and a host of others. They are the tip of the iceberg and a subject for another post.

Santa Rosa, while not a wine center, has some tourist attractions of its own. The Luther Burbank Home and Gardens is a registered National Historic Landmark. Many food events would have some gaping holes in their offerings if not for the products of this precedent setting botanist. There is also the Charles Schultz Museum, for this is the city where the great cartoonist plied his trade from.

Did I say that Santa Rosa is not a wine center? Well, that’s not entirely true. For three days a year the Sonoma County Harvest Fair features  and food events of epic proportions. It is one of the most prominent of fairs and festivals in the area, as is the Harmony Festival. The Harmony Festival, while now focusing on the music aspect, also is one of the healthiest food events, with many vendors serving up the best in nutritious treats.

The Sonoma County Fair may be the biggest of fairs and festivals to take place in Santa Rosa, which is the biggest city in Northern California. It goes on for two weeks and is chock full of down home fun. The seventy-fifth annual fair, in 2011, featured a cattle drive through the city streets. The Handcar Regatta is one of the most esoteric food events and the newest in this brief line-up of fairs and festivals.