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Just weeks into the iPhone 4 era and the roll out has been anything but smooth. Complaints ranging from antenna reception flaws to faulty proximity sensors have plagued the initial run of iPhone 4′s. To make matters worse the customer service which Apple traditionally hangs it’s hat on has come under fire, most infamously advising customers to hold their iPhone differently to combat bad reception. Another issue is the rocky start the iOS 4 (operating system for the new iPhone) had at launch; however, the past few weeks has seen it become more stable.

While a recall might not happen and might not be needed, the fact remains the iPhone 4 launch has dented Apple’s credibility and put a chink in it’s armor. How Apple deals with this adversity will be very interesting to see in the future.

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According to this video from Intel Labs tabletop computing is the future user experience. It uses projected displays on everyday household surfaces like kitchen counter-tops to create interactive “islands”. So while your cooking up a storm in the kitchen you could be watching “Twister”… or “The Day After Tomorrow”… or just “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” cause you love Will Smith. Anyway whatever you’re fancy is, this idea is definitely intriguing.

Video after the jump: Smart Computing Islands on Everyday Surfaces

Ever been away from your computer but needed to work on a word document you have saved? Well with the Zoho Online Office Suite you can access and work on your documents wherever you are as long as you have internet access. You can store and edit up to 1 GB worth of documents with a free account.

For more information click here

The new Microsoft Office is out! With many new features, and different packages for its various customers, this new software is something to check out. Read a brief overview here or to read a full review of it click here.

Lost amid the hubbub about the new iPhone is the release of the latest version of Apple web browser Safari. Apple is saying that the new version is 3% faster than the latest stable build of Chrome (5.0) and twice as fast as Firefox 3.6. All of this is based on SunSpider JavaScript tests of Apple’s latest Nitro engine. Safari is also adding a new feature called “Reader” which will make it easier to read webpages by taking away all the excess design (and ads).

The link to download Safari is here

Read more about the release here

Don’t have a graphics editor but want to add special effects to your photos? Well this tutorial about the Artistic Effects feature in Office 2010 is sure to help you!

Read more here

That’s right, Chromium. What is it? It is Google’s new OS. This operating system is quite different from Windows or Macs. This OS is based off Google Chrome which is Google’s web browser. However, this OS cannot be installed through discs or upgrading your laptop. You must buy a net book or laptop designed for the Google Chrome OS and has it already pre-installed. Why you ask? Because Google Chrome OS is a strictly web-based OS. That means you can’t even log on unless you have access to the internet so this OS isn’t for everyone.

But on the bright side, you no longer have a hard drive that stores everything and have to worry about it crashing or failing. These net books with Chromium already install have a solid-state flash memory because everything you need is stored online through Google’s servers. This OS also only works with online applications. If you perform regular word processing or spreadsheet work, you could easily use Google Docs. One more perk to Chromium is its claim for speed. While the usual Windows OS takes roughly a minute to load, Chromium can load in 7 seconds. Fast huh?

If you’re interested in learning more about the oddities of this OS, click here.

Ever dream of wallpaper that acts as a television? People call you crazy to believe in such nonsense? Well they can still call you crazy, but the technology to realize your dream is just getting closer and closer. Sony has just unveiled an ultrathin rollable OLED display. With the width of a human hair, this screen was rolled up while displaying the moving images.

Even though this is a prototype, it will be years before this type of technology will become feasible in today’s market. The cost to produce such a screen is out of most consumers reaches, however the big companies are working on ways to mass produce them more easily and cheaper. But do not fret, you can look forward to rolling up your television and taking it wherever you want!

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Ever had someone owe you money but they had no cash on them and only a debit/credit card? Well now if you own a iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch you can get paid by the card with an app called Square!

If you sign up to the free Square service available at Squareup.com you can get a free card reader that plugs into the audio jack of your device which allows cards to be swiped. Card details can be entered into the app manually if no reader is present. Receipts and photo verification are included with the service so users are sure of secure transactions with signatures signed on the iPhone screen. Square makes money by taking a small percentage of each transaction, currently 2.75% +15 ¢ with the card present and 3.5% +15¢ when the card number is keyed in.

Today at Google I/O, the company made the announcement that everyone was waiting for — Google TV. Google is now trying to reach the 4 billion TV viewers worldwide.  Or rather, advertising to the 4 billion TV users worldwide. In the U.S. alone, 70 billion dollars are spent on television ads annually.

With Google TV, companies can now have more targeted ad’s toward TV viewers. Google has partnered with many heavy hitters in the entertainment industry to help launch Google TV ex. Dish Network, Sony, Intel, Logitech, Youtube, etc. It will be interesting to see if Google can sustain the success they have had with Google TV. If they do, this looks to be a game changer in terms of how viewers watch TV and how advertisers are able to reach viewers.

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