iPhone 5s sapphire crystal button rumor

Recently a Taiwanese website – TechNews released a report claiming that the iPhone 5s will be receiving a new home button. The traditional home button we have been using since the first iPhone has been known to become flimsy after a while of use as it tends to wear out. The new home button is expected to be made out of sapphire crystal which has hardness second only to diamond. This will prevent the home button from getting scratched and wearing out easily; also will protect the fingerprint scanner (which is also some new news).

Initially when I heard the iPhone 5s would incorporate a fingerprint scanner, I assumed it would be placed on the side of the phone or under the home button. However placing it on the actual home button itself would be very ergonomic as your thumb is meant to be placed there anyway!

Is the iPhone 5s sapphire button plausible?

Although this is just a rumor, it does seem somewhat plausible as Apple are currently using sapphire crystal to protect the camera lens in the iPhone and iPod Touch 5th generation. Then again we haven’t heard much Apple rumors from TechNews before so I guess we will have to wait and see what Apple bring to the table this year!

So what do you guys think of the rumor? Is it plausible? Let us know in the comments section below.

The post Apple iPhone 5s to get sapphire crystal covered fingerprint home button appeared first on Gadget Mill.

How AppleCare currently works

As of now the procedure works like this for iPhones, iPods, iPads and other gadgets:

1) You book an appointment to be seen in the Apple store (or sneak your way in on an emergency appointment)
2) Your iPhone, iPod or iPod is diagnosed for the fault you describe.
3) If the fault is replicated and it is an obvious hardware fault or if software restore fails then you receive a replacement.

Which is what I love about Apple customer service, no hassle with repairs or coming back to collect your faulty phone etc.

AppleCare gadget support changes

However this may all be coming to an end as an Apple insider claims that Apple will start to repair these gadgets on-site and then returning the same device to the customer.

Apple stores currently have tools to replace speakers, batteries, receivers, home buttons and vibrator motors. This will now be expanded so they can replace the displays, cameras, power buttons and logic boards. By doing so Apple are looking to save $1 billion a year.

This is not the only update! AppleCare will also be changing into a subscription service – this might be good for some people and bad for others.

As of now you have to purchase additional AppleCare for each Apple gadget you own separately. The new subscription service ties in with the customer instead of the device allowing you to cover all your Apple gadgets under one plan.

Pricing details for the new subscription based service has not been confirmed, but I believe the more Apple gadgets the individual has the more they will benefit.

So what do you think of the new AppleCare updates? Do you feel it is a step backwards like I do; or will it help add to the customer experience. Let us know in the comments section below!

The post Apple to update AppleCare service for the worst! appeared first on Gadget Mill.

As oil prices have seen a trend of rising prices; you may question what seems to be pushing the prices higher and higher as time goes on. Our first instinct might be the fact that the oil companies are getting greedier day by day; especially due to the economic climate and inflation. But truth be told the scenario is much deeper than that!

Fossil oil as you would know is a finite energy source – meaning it will at some point run out. The upcoming ‘peak oil’ crisis doesn’t refer to the oil actually running out but the amount of oil we can extract.

As you can see illustrated by the graph above, we are currently around the peak in terms of extracting oil. This means oil prices will continue to rise not only due to the demand but the amount we can extract decreasing as time goes.

How does the oil crisis effect technology?

As oil prices continue to sky rocket so would materials such as plastic as this is also made out of oil. Plastic can be found everywhere in your technology and gadgets such as your computer, mobile phone, musical keyboard etc. This itself would increase the price of your gadgets never mind the other increase cost of shipping the electronics from one place to another via vehicles using oil.

Now you might be thinking that the cost of your gadgets might rise a little compared to usual, this surely cant be a crisis? Well as a matter of fact it is! As oil prices continue to rise this would also bring up the cost of our everyday necessities such as food, clothes and medicine. Which would mean technology itself would become a luxury.

If we add the existing economic situation with the oil crisis a government collapse is also inevitable; but what happens when the government collapses? Well mail won’t be delivered; air traffic would halt; maintenance will be neglected and more. If existing technology isn’t maintained then surely the network infrastructure we have built over the years will rapidly fail. This includes cellular phone services; internet services, public transport and more! Not that any of this would matter as there will surely be plenty of riots in search for food and the common necessities mentioned previously.

Of course this is just scraping the barrel and I’m sure there will be much more to the situation; but this gives an overall picture of what to expect in the upcoming future.

So what can we do to avoid the oil crisis?

Well instead of sitting around playing on our mobile phones; PlayStations and watching TV all day. We could actually prepare for the crisis. We can do this by becoming more energy aware by switching off electronics when not in use; recycling more of our materials and stocking up on food and water. This won’t avoid the oil crisis but would help slow the process down.

The crisis itself is unavoidable under the current economic situation and mentality. So your best bet would be to be prepared mentally and learn the basics of survival which includes things like learning how to start a fire. It might also be a good idea to invest in a push bike and solar powered gadgets to keep the boredom away!

Conclusion

The oil crisis is inevitable and we would love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below. Any ideas on avoiding the crisis? Or ideas on how to survive through the transition phase? Just drop a comment!

The post Upcoming oil crisis will leave existing technology useless! appeared first on Gadget Mill.

My first instinct for this was that it was all down to nostalgia reasons – playing old maps such as Crash, Crossfire etc. Doing so did have a slight impact on my feelings towards the game. But the more I played COD4 the more it felt fluid and balanced. So I decided to give Black Ops 2 a shot again to figure out what went wrong; after all Treyarch did emphasise how balanced Black Ops 2 was meant to be right? Having playing Black Ops 2, I did enjoy myself but seemed to have periods of frustration and that’s when it hit me. The shots ‘missed’ and foreign people speaking on their headsets.

The problem with the latest Call of Duty titles doesn’t concern the actual gameplay content itself; but rather the technology implemented in the background or well lack of (when it comes to multiplayer anyway). Fixing some if not all of these issues would certainly put the Call of Duty series back in prime form.

Include dedicated servers

The latest Call of Duty titles are lacking dedicated servers which is quite an alarming issue especially for a company who sells millions upon millions of these games. I would have thought they would have invested some kind of infrastructure to back their cash cow by now. Doing so would increase the amount of happy gamers and of course help minimize some of the problems online therefore putting a stop some of the whining you see towards the game nowadays.

I understand doing so will cost the company a huge amount of money – however it’s not much compared to how much they make.

Lag compensation

This was one of the blatant issues I had when playing Black Ops 2. I currently game use a fibre optic 60MBit broadband service and so you would expect blazing fast download speeds and very decent upload speeds on my side. However in most cases I am not host and I end up in a lobby full of foreigners. This has an obvious impact on the latency especially when I’m not host causing my auto-aim to not lock in well at times and my bullets to barely miss the opponent.

The worst thing about lag compensation is you can’t really figure out if your having an off game or if the game is lagging as the technology causes ‘lag’ to become appear seamless. However in reality lag compensation is just masking the lag rather than eliminating it completely. I’d much prefer it was gotteen rid off as when I did lag in Call of Duty 4 – I knew very well due to the stuttering so had a better idea which games were unplayable and which were bearable.

Matchmaking

Whenever I play Call of Duty in the newer titles – I am always matched up against people who don’t live in the UK. I sometimes get people from France, Spain etc. They are European countries but I would much prefer playing people in my country not only due to latency reasons but for social benefits – such as trash talking etc.

I feel Infinity Ward need to take matchmaking to a new level; I’m not a big fan of joining rooms manually so would prefer it to keep an ‘automatic’ feel to joining games. However they could include a filter/option where you could choose the country you would like your players to be from – limited to their own country. Therefore everyone who has this filter set will be matched with each other when searching for games. They could also automate this without even asking (but my guess is they have already done that and failed – on my side anyway).

Glitching

One thing the Call of Duty series is famous for is the glitches players expose. For example getting out of the multiplayer maps, floating around, weapon tricks and more. Although these are patched as time goes on – it gets a bit ridiculous downloading update after update. I believe this could be solved by hosting a multiplayer public beta of some sort which would help iron out some of the glitches and of course create a better game via gamer feedback.

Other Call of Duty Annoyances?

I’m pretty sure whatever happens the next Call of Duty: Ghosts will sell like hot cakes, but I think when next generation comes around things will be a little different for the Call of Duty series.

Well these are only some of the problems that gamers have been experiencing with the Call of Duty series as of late. Fixing these would surely pave a way towards another Call of Duty classic. I’m pretty sure there are plenty more annoyances to be solved so why not let us know in the comment section below?

The post What Infinity Ward can do to turnaround the Call of Duty series appeared first on Gadget Mill.

Previously Apple used to put the tickets up for sale as soon as they announced the event; although this time round they have gone ahead and decided to sell the tickets the next day. This gives the developers an equal chance of attending as tickets usually sell out in less than 2 hours, meaning if developers hear the announcement later than others they literally have no chance of attending.

In order to attend the conference there are a few requirements set out by Apple. These requirements include membership in one of the company’s developer programs (which you pay for). You cannot sign up for a paid developer program now as Apple have ensured last minute sign ups will not change eligibility for attending the conference. Tickets purchased by developers aged between 13 and 17 must be purchased by a parent/guardian who is also a member. Tickets have been limited to one per person and five tickets per organisation.

If you are a developer who is unable to attend – don’t worry as Apple will be posting session videos during the conference rather than afterwards. These will be available for free this time round to registered developers where previously Apple used to charge hundreds of dollars.

So will any of our visitors be attending? Or have attended a conference in the past? Please share your experiences and views in the comments section below.

The post Apple announces WWDC 2013 – June 10-14 – Tickets Cost $1599 appeared first on Gadget Mill.

Tim Cook also later added that the new category may not appear this year and that it is extremely difficult to work on truly innovative products – but rest assured Apple are working closely with manufacturers to achieve a “very exciting roadmap”

I believe the announcements will be made in the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC 2013) – which has been confirmed to be taking place June 10-14 in San Francisco. Whether or not the new products will be released in the same year is unconfirmed but I’m sure Apple will give everyone a taster of what’s to come.

So what do the latest rumors suggest in terms of what the new ‘product category’ is? It could possibly be the long rumored Apple iTV which is a TV basically with built in Apple software and services. Another rumored product involves an Apple iWatch which of course is a watch with an iOS operating system that allows you to do wonderful things your current watch couldn’t do (except tell the time of course).

Apple iTV latest rumors suggest

Steve Jobs himself spoke about this project in an interview claiming that they were working on an actual TV set.

Rumors suggest the following about this product:

- The manufacturer Sharp was asked to create the displays for the television set
- Acts as an home entertainment hub interlinking other iOS devices via the iCloud
- Use current iOS devices as a remote control
- Uses iTunes to purchase in TV content
- Has access to existing content on iTunes such as music
- Apple have been linked with paying for the rights to broadcast English Premier League Football Matches (Soccer)
- Different sizes: 37 inch, 40 inch and 50 inch
- Price $1,499 (£947) for 42 inch model

Apple iWatch latest rumors suggest

Rumors have suggested that Apple have been testing Apple iWatch designs which marked the start of the Apple iWatch rumors.

- The iWatch is said to have ‘willow glass’ flexible as paper without breaking
- Will support Bluetooth and can communicate with iOS devices
- The screen size suggests to be 1.5 inches touchscreen that is waterproof and shockproof
- Will be like a wearable computer – full inbuilt operating system
- Will allow handsfree functionality for your iOS device – SMS, emails calendar, alerts, caller ID etc
- Built in vibration to assist with alerts

So what products line do you think will be announced? Perhaps the iTV? The iWatch? Or maybe even both! Let us know in the comments section below.

The post Apple to announce new product category this Fall – Confirmed appeared first on Gadget Mill.

After a few moments I decided to see how popular this new gadget was amongst our followers and found that the iPotty made a big hit with the International Space Station – Control Room!

Unfortunately we only had 1 hit from London (myself) and 41 hits from just the International Space Station itself! At least we know there is a target market for the iPotty and that they are already getting sick and tired of it of using it!

Here is a screenshot to prove that I wasn’t seeing things!

By the way for anyone else interested in selling their iPotty (any condition) please check out: Sell your iPotty For quick cash within 24 hours!

The post Google Analytics April Fools Joke! appeared first on Gadget Mill.

Why 2038 brings doomsday for computer software and systems?

Basically around the year 2038 computer software and systems that store system time as a signed 32 bit integer will run into problems. This is due to the fact that signed 32 bit integer cannot output time further than 03:14:07 UTC – Tuesday, 19 January 2038. This means software that currently use and are dependent on signed 32 bit integers will have their system time reset to December 13, 1901 rather than January 19, 2038.

To be technical about this – the problem is caused by an integer overflow. This happens when the counter runs out of bits to increment and starts incrementing the ‘sign’ bit instead.

Why the date reset causes a problem

As this problem causes the counter to increment the sign bits – this results in the computer software to start outputting abnormally large negative numbers instead of what the system is used to. This will most likely cause errors in the computer software itself and of course cause abnormal behavior such as not letting the computer software run.

2038 is far away, we have enough time to fix it don’t we?

The answer to that is yes and no. Some systems which work with dates in the future will have to sort this problem out beforehand. So for example if the program works with dates set 24 years in the future. Then this problem will need to be eliminated before 2014! Only a year away might I add.

Which software and systems are vulnerable to the 2038 bug?

Pretty much any system that uses the 32 bit signed system time. This can range from transportation systems to telecommunication systems. So don’t be too surprised when your router stops working in 2038 that is if your deciding to keep your current one for a very long time.

Jokes aside, a lot of systems which contain databases that handle dates in the format mentioned will also be directly impacted. So bad news for people who use the UNIX_TIMESTAMP() function in MySQL.

So what is the solution to the 2038 bug?

So far there are not any universal solutions, but good news for people with 64bit architecture you won’t be affected! As they use 64 bit signed integers giving them more dates (292 billion years).

The proposals are still ongoing but I believe we shall have to wait and see how this one plays out! There isn’t any point making any harsh moves just yet, the best solution to use will be the one that is universal as then everyone will be in sync when tackling the 2038 bug!

So what are you guys going to miss if the 2038 bug hits your computer systems and software? Let us know in the comments section below!

The post Year 2038 doomsday for our computers! appeared first on Gadget Mill.

Gadget Number 10 – Ouya

The Ouya is an Android based gaming console which started as a Kickstarter project. It will launch with an Android Jelly Bean OS, quad-core tegra-3 processor and 1GB ram. To play games you hook up the console to your TV via HDMI and download games through Google Play.

It sounds like a great concept but the machine will set you back £99.00 in the UK and additional controllers will cost a whooping £40.00. However I’m sure there will be third party controllers available. I’m still not sold on the concept; from my experience Android games aren’t as entertaining as you would find on proven platforms. The games available as of now are mostly games I would play when passing time on a journey, but who knows this could change once the console is released.

Gadget Number 9 – *Enter Celebrity Here* Headphones

We have seen a lot of new celebrities endorse headphones lately, some celebrities who are music artists and some who are not. I understand that having Dr Dre, 50 cent, Ludacris and the list goes on help produce the headphones become a benefit, but not a benefit enough that justifies the price tag in most cases.

Then we also have celebrities such as Usain Bolt come out with their own endorsed headphones which really makes no sense except for purely marketing reasons.

I’d recommend that you do your research first before taking a plunge in buying your favorite celebrities headphones! In most cases there would be an alternative with better quality and a lower price tag.

Gadget Number 8 – Spy Camera Belt

Over the years we have seen spy cameras incorporated into various items. For example: lighters; pens; sunglasses; baseball caps etc. I find this one slightly bizarre due to the fact of it’s placement, I mean what are you going to capture with a camera so low?

Oh well I guess this might be a good one for the experienced spy who might need this in a certain scenario and it does also record audio; so might be a decent buy for some.

Gadget Number 7 – Smart Body Analyzer

This is basically a weighing scale which has built in WIFI. This allows the weighing scale to sync various data about you and your surroundings to your phone’s app (which you download for free).

The data includes: your weight, fat measurement, heart rate and indoor air quality. So it is quite obvious that this does more than your standard weighing scale but it will set you back around £90.00.

I reckon you might be better off paying for a gym subscription instead as it will help you get fit rather than tell you that you need to get fit and give you tips.

Gadget Number 6 – iPotty

This gadget is designed for parents who would like to potty train their kids. This involves a seat with a stand to place your 2nd, 3rd or 4th generation iPad. The iPad will be well protected with a clear protector and is rotatable to switch between portrait and landscape views.

I understand the concept of the iPotty – the ability to keep your child on the seat by keeping them busy. But I’m thinking that this might be going a little too far. Unless of course you are literally pulling your hair out this might be the gadget for you.

Gadget Number 5 – Blackberry Z10

The Blackberry Z10 is the latest addition to the Blackberry lineup but this time boasting a new start. There was quite some hype surrounding the new BB Z10 regarding the latest BB10 OS and the manufacturers ‘comeback’ after its disasters with their recent service outages.

The phone is great overall but doesn’t seem to be on the same level as other flagship phones release by Samsung or Apple. The screen for example is satisfying but not as vibrant as you would find on the Samsung S3 or Note or as sharp as the iPhone 5. It lacks developer support therefore lacking applications such as Hulu, Netflix etc.

The operating system is great but has little annoyances such as the indicator light blinking on every notification until you read your Twitter message or Facebook message etc. The phone does however have the best touch screen keyboard on the market.

The price tag on this phone still doesn’t justify what you are actually getting. With the phone lacking consumer and developer support; you would be better off investing in a new Samsung or Apple flagship smartphone.

Gadget Number 4 – Hapifork

Hapifork is a gadget in which you place your own fork and it reminds you if you are eating too fast. This is done via notification lights and a built in vibration telling you to slow down. It can also transfer data which includes your eating habits via the built in micro USB.

This is clearly aimed at anxious eaters who are looking to keep an eye on their weight as eating slower makes you feel more full (I guess?). I’m not sure if this is the gadget of the year by any means with a price tag of $99 – £65.00; which would be enough to slow me down thinking about the price tag anyway!

Gadget Number 3 – 4G Technology

Ok this isn’t exactly a gadget but has a big influence in the gadgets you buy particularly mobile phones. In the UK 4G LTE is currently exclusive to one company known as EE. Due to the exclusivity of the ‘superfast’ technology the prices for contracts in particular have shot right up compared to their competition.

For example: Pre-ordering a Samsung Galaxy S4

EE: £79.99 for the phone + £41.00 a month (24 month contract)

The total for buying this phone with EE is: £1039.99

Three: £0.00 for the phone + £37.00 a month (24 month contract)

The total for buying this phone with Three is: £888.00

The difference between the two providers is £151.99

I don’t feel the 4G technology is enough to warranty a premium of that amount especially as in most cases especially when we are home we have access to our wireless routers which offer a great speed depending on your broadband.

Gadget Number 2 – Brainwave Cat Ears

This is a headband which has cat ears that reads your mind. This then wiggles and swivels the ears on your head expressing your mood which is read by a brainwave sensor.

As you can probably tell this is a really wacky gadget and will set you back $100 – £66. Probably best to keep your wallet in your pocket then.

Gadget Number 1 – 4K Television

These television sets are first of all very costly around $7000 – £4600 plus. This is due to the television sets mostly being available in only large sizes – 55 inches to 110 inches and of course the technology that goes in them. But the problem here though is the lack of content available for the 4K television sets.

If you were to buy a 4K television set this very second; finding 4K content would be extremely hard and I wouldn’t bare to see how 1080P content would look on your massive 110 inch television set anyway unless of course it has great up-scaling technology.

The prices for 4K televisions are destined to drop to around $2800 in 2014 and will drop again further in 2015. Then hopefully the trend will continue until 4K televisions reach an affordable price tag and also has 4K content and support available to justify the purchase. As of now in the UK we are struggling to broadcast 1080P content so it might take a while here as we would probably need to update our infrastructure before taking the 4K TV plunge.

So I STRONGLY advise not to purchase a 4K television set just yet unless of course the economic situation doesn’t have an effect on you.

The post 10 gadgets you should not buy in 2013 appeared first on Gadget Mill.

We have just added a new promotional code as we are going retro! We are crazy about the iPod Nano 1st Generation models. So if you have one of these old beauties lying around in your closet then why not sell your iPod Nano to us for some quick and easy cash!

The promotional code will earn you £10.00 extra cash for any memory size and any condition iPod Nano 1st generation model.

The voucher code is 1PROMO .

To use this voucher code all you have to do is add the iPod Nano 1st generation to your cart, once your on the cart page type and submit the promotional code to earn yourself an extra £10.00!

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