AppZapp: The Best App Store

Among the smart phones available in the market, iPhone is the best because it can function as a video camera, a portable media player, an Internet client with email and web browsing. Aside from that you can send and receive texts as well as visual voicemail. Not only that; it has also Wi-Fi and cellular data connectivity like 2G and 3G. Amazing isn’t it? The device is also a multi-touch screen with virtual keyboard.

Did you know that the easiest way to organize and add to your collection of digital media. AppZapp the App Bargain Guide for the Apple App Store for iPhone & iPad. Browse the site to buy and download AppZapp Pro - Free Paid Apps. You have the chance to look all App sales, new Apps on the Apple App store. What is very interesting is that you can have alerts on App-sale in the future. Furthermore, now you have the chance to share with your friends by the worldwide AppZapp community.

Search for the perfect accessories for your iPhone from cases to speakers to headsets. And the easiest way to buy a new iPhone Pro is through the Apple Store App. Get iPad Pro, whether for your business, school or career, you’ll surely have the best with its advanced design and breakthrough technology. Browse AppZapp to find out about iPhone Free on the App store!

USB 3.0 for High Speed Performance

We know that the greatest success story in the history of computing is the USB connector. Indeed, there are more than 2 billion USB- connected devices sold up to date.

Now, USB3.0 is a way to increase the performance by a factor of 10. Isn’t it amazing to have a faster charging your iPod by 10 times? Maybe, you have experienced using your USB3.0 now and have found out the difference!

Size Matters

Since there is a wide range of refrigerators on the market, selecting/buying one requires a great deal of thought. I do hope that these buying tips will help you decide which features best suit your needs.

SIZE: What size do you need? The dimensions are also an important consideration. Standard refrigerators are usually roughly 5.5 feet tall, top-mount range from 24" to 36" across and about 27" to 32" deep and compact ones usually about 20" tall. However the internal dimensions may vary. In deciding what to get will depends on your needs. A young, single person may simply have somewhere to keep drinks and leftover. While a couple with teenaged sons may get a larger size. Remember that a model that is too big wastes both money and energy, while one that is too small could waste energy if it becomes overcrowded with food and drinks.

Gifts For the Holiday Season

Do you already have a gift for your loved ones this holiday season or are you one of those who are not done yet with Christmas shopping? This holiday season, I have tried buying unique gifts like those personalized holiday gifts from Pexagon. For me, flash drives are perfect gifts for those people who are tech savvy. Indeed, I have lots of friends who are tech savvy and I bought flash drives for them. When they received their gifts, they really liked it because these drives are not just the ordinary flash drives that we have seen. These drives are available as business card flash drives which is perfect for business people and administrators, the earth-friendly wooden USB flash and of course the ordinary thumb drives which is available in 14 colors and upto 16 GB capacity. My friends just loved these flash drives that they can put anything that they want because of the option of free line of personalized laser engraved text!

If you are still planning to buy gifts for the holiday season, visit Pexagon website now and get some holiday gifts. Did you know that Pexagon is offering 20% off from their personalized thumb drives and pens? Furthermore, you can get a personalized laser-engraved pen for as low as $1.59 after discount, Business Card Flash Drives and wooden USB flash drives for as low as $15.99 after discount.

The Toshiba Cell TV

The Toshiba Cell TV is one of those devices that stand out during the CES or Consumer Electronics Show which was recently ended on Sunday in Las Vegas, Nevada. This television is the pride of Toshiba requiring no remote control. The television makes use of the gesture technology. One can simply wave his hands in the air to control the menu, fast-forward movies and turn the volume up or down. Toshiba is the first one to show this technology publicly although it has not been perfected yet.

If you were looking for a cool new Television, you should check out this one because it comes with many features that have not been seen on a TV previously. It comes with amazing technologies which makes your experience quite enviable. The Television comes with a 4k resolution quality and you can also get LED brightness which is twice as bright.

Camera Buying Tips Part II

LCD Viewfinder
One of the most important basic design features to consider is the camera's viewfinder. The LCD screen can see what your picture will look like before you take it. Consider LCD quality and the construction of its screen, whether it is fixed or positioned on a rotating mount.


Flash
Most digital cameras have a built-in flash. This triggers automatically in low light conditions when set to auto mode. Some cameras include additional features, such as red-eye reduction or night portrait mode.


Self-timer
The obvious reason for using a digital camera's self-timer is so the photographer can be in a photo. A self-timer sets your digital camera for a delayed exposure, usually giving you about 10 seconds before it takes the picture. Some models have a custom self-timer, which lets you set the countdown time.


Audio recording, Movie mode, TV connections, and Computer connections
Look for these features also.


Size
There are three basic sizes of digital cameras. Know what’s the size of your camera that suits your needs. Compact digital cameras are designed to provide a moderate feature set, stylish looks, and a tiny, pocket size. Standard digital cameras are similar to 35mm point-and-shoot models in appearance and features. If you care more about robust features like interchangeable lenses, flashes, and other accessories, you will most likely have to consider a larger-sized camera or professional camera.


Formats: Common formats are the Joint Photography Experts Group standard (JPEG) and Tagged Image File Format (TIFF).


Digital Camera Brand:
It is a matter of personal preference.


Price range
Prices are based primarily on resolution and features. The newest consumer electronics products are always priced at a premium. The best bargains are usually found on last season's models.

Camera Buying Tips Part I

What should I look for when I want to buy a digital camera?
Digital cameras capture and store photographs electronically instead of using photographic film. It records images on memory cards, no developing cost, you can print only what you like, it has LCD viewer and the like. Modern digital cameras are multifunctional, capable of recording sound and/ or video.

In buying, identify what you need. Is it for professional graphics work? Will you want a zoom lens? What is your budget? How much you want to spend? Also knowing what kind of photos you will be taking will help you decide. Before you decide what camera to buy consider the following:

Resolution: This describes the detail an image holds. Higher resolution means more image detail. Decide the resolution on what you plan to do with your photos.

Batteries:
The AA batteries are common, however non- rechargeable alkaline batteries are capable of providing enough power for only a very short time. CR2 batteries are lithium based and intended for single use. Most consumers use AA nickel metal hydride batteries (NiMH), which provide an adequate amount of power and are rechargeable. Proprietary batteries are built to a manufacturer’s custom specifications. They are almost lithium ion, which accepts only a certain number of recharges before the battery life begins degrading.


Memory/ Storage:
Memory is where pictures are stored as you take them. It determines how many images you can store. If you plan taking many pictures without having access to your computer for downloading, you should plan to buy an extra memory card such as compact flash cards, memory stick, SD/ MMC, mini SD, XD picture card and others, which is determined by your camera.


Lens:
The lens may zoom from moderate wide-angle, through normal, to moderate telephoto; or from normal to extreme telephoto. Consider the lens in order to take a good photo, may it be near or far from you.

Samsung’s Transparent Laptop

Samsung’s transparent laptop is one of the gadgets astounded the public of the CES. The laptop has AMOLED screen. This laptop is being celebrated as it is the first and largest transparent OLED prototype. It is a 14-inch laptop and it is up to 40 percent transparent.

RF Simulation Time

I have been simulating the IP3 response of the buffer circuit I am designing lately. I noticed that it is very long to simulate the IP3 using the transient and DFT method. Here I list the time to simulate:



Using the QPSS method is far faster than using transient and DFT method. I can save about 13 minutes. Utilizing the QPSS means I am using an RF license though.

RF for the First Time

I met my soon to be boss two days ago, that was March 9, 2011. He is a Japanese engineer working in our company for almost 16 years already and he is now the department's manager. Early next month, April, he will join our division as our General manager. This young brilliant man is only 38 years old and have been to many countries like China, Singapore, USA, and Philippines to develop cutting edge technologies and innovative products. He is responsible in creating RF designs used in RF applications such as audio portable devices.

Having been in circuit designing for 8 years, developing multi-purpose Integrated Circuits like linear regulator, motor driver, operational amplifier, dc-dc converter, and LED driver Ics, it would be my first time to be involved in RF design.

Since last week, I was asked to develop a super buffer. So I shall be getting good IP3 and 1dB compression from my design. I have two-tone signal in my input, f1=98MHz and f2=100MHz. From the equation (f1*2)-f2 and (f2*2)-f1, I shall have 96MHz and 102MHz as my 3rd order frequencies.

Simulating the circuit, I can get the 3rd order frequencies, which is shown in figure below:


To get the IP3 of the circuit, line is extended to the 3rd order graph through the 1st order line. Their intersection is the IP3, which is shown in the figure below:



To verify the data, I also get the transient response at the emitter and collector of the transistor. The transient response of the collector and emitter of the transistor is not distorted until input signal is 111dBuV.

TCL 3-D TV, sans glasses

TCL Corporation has recently showed its 3-D TV technology that doesn’t require glasses on the CES convention. The Chinese company made the first no glasses required set in order to solve the problem with 3D glasses which include headaches, eyestrain, and nausea. It is a 42-inch TD-42F and sells for about $20,000. TCL 3DTV Project Marketing Manager King said that it is already on the market in
China.

This 3-D technology adds a layer rippled lenses to the front of the TV screen to produce the three-dimensional effect. These could also be used in the home as well as on billboards. How does it work? There are actually eight lenses on the screen itself. You see only a few of those perspectives depending on where you stand in relation to the TV. The TCL’s TV set only displayed animation on the show floor. Review says that the 3D aspect of the screen did not “pop” forward as much. Well, it is better to see it yourself.

Blio e-reader at CES

The recently ended CES presented the Blio e-reader software application that can turn any laptop, netbook or smartphone into an image-rich, and full-color electronic reader. Blio E-Reader is free software that makes eBooks like you have never seen before. Because of its brilliant 3D, stunning and full-color pages come alive. Moreover, it uses publishers’ original PDF files to preserve the exact format of books and magazines while supporting interactive multimedia, including video and Web links. Now, everyone can enjoy a vast selection of cookbooks, travel guides, how-to books, schoolbooks, art books, children’s stories, and magazines.

Quasi-Periodic Steady State Analysis

I have learned that there are many ways to get the IP3 (input referred 3rd order intercept point) such as using the transient and DFT method, and the QPSS or quasi-periodic steady state analysis. It's my first time to use; I found it easy and interesting though.

How to use the QPSS? Using Virtuoso Analog Design Environment, here are the things to be set up:

1. First, make a test circuit creating 2 voltage source with frequency 1 and frequency 2 for the positive and negative input of the amplifier. For my analysis, I've used f1=98MHz and f2=100MHz. Of course, I should have the same amplitude for my 2 signals.

2. Engine setting is shooting.

3. Conservative is used for accuracy.

4. Pre-determined Sweep Range for the input signal. For example from 60dBuV to 120dBuV.

5. For the sweep type, I usually use the linear type with step size of 2.

Saving the netlist and running the program results to the following graph:

image credit by silvaco

Periodic AC Analysis

I am simulating the same circuit and getting its IP3 characteristic. This time Periodic AC analysis (PAC) and Periodic Steady State analysis (PSS) have been utilized.

Unlike in QPSS (quasi-periodic steady state) analysis, one tone is used. It means that one frequency will be applied in the input signal, e.g. 98MHz. Thus the positive (+) and the negative (-) inputs will have the same frequency and magnitude but the other input will have 180 degrees phase shift.

Source type is sine wave (voltage source) and the small signal parameter is employed to input the value for the PAC magnitude and PAC phase as well.

PSS analysis set-up:
1. The name of the frequency F1 with a value of let's say 98MHz is a large signal.
2. Ticking the auto calculate will give you a beat frequency of 98MHz.
3. For the output harmonics, you can select from range, let's say from 1MHz to 1GHz; and make 10 orders perhaps.
4. Select the desired signal frequency (98MHz).
5. For accuracy, tick conservative.
6. The input signal should be variable so you can sweep a range, maybe from 60dBuV to 120dBuV.
7. For the sweep type, I usually use the linear type with step size of 5.
8. Furthermore, the integration method parameter should be gear2only. This is optimized in the PSS Options section.

PAC analysis set-up:
1. Since 98MHz is used in the PSS analysis, then the Beat frequency is 98MHz.
2. Sweep is Absolute.
3. Single Point frequency is 100MHz.
4. For the sidebands, you can select from range, from 1MHz to 1GHz perhaps.
5. Select index frequency and some order frequencies like 96MHz and 100MHz.