Google officially ends forced Google+ integration on YouTube

Google said it will no longer require Google+ accounts to use any of its products, and it will continue to strip Google+ integration out of all of its products. The YouTube blog announced that "in the coming weeks," comments will no longer require Google+; as of today, comments made on YouTube won't show up on Google+, and vice-versa.

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015/07/google-officially-ends-forced-google-integration-first-up-youtube/

Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 (SM-T311): A tablet with steady performance

The Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 is an 8-inch Android-based tablet computer made by Samsung Electronics, and it is part of the 3rd generation of their Galaxy Tab series. Other tablets in this series are the Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 (7-inch) and the Galaxy Tab 3 10.1 (10.1-inch). This series of tablet computers were showcased in the Mobile World Conference in 2013.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 8.0
(SM-T311)

There are three variants of the Galaxy Tab 3 8.0, out of which we focus on the SM-T311 in this post. I expect the other variants to have similar performance standards based on their respective features.

1. Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 SM-T310 - Wi-Fi only
2. Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 SM-T311 - 3G and Wi-Fi capable
3. Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 SM-T315 - 4G/LTE & Wi-Fi capable

I ordered the SM-T311 in midnight black in May 2014 when it was retailing in Flipkart for Rs. 22,499 inclusive of all taxes. The delivery was quick, and I had the device in my hands in two days. The box includes the tablet with the battery built in, a travel charger, a USB cable, and the user manual.

Setup

Setting up the device is simple. Just insert a SIM or USIM card into the appropriate slot on the left side, optionally insert a microSD card in the provided slot. Charge the battery if needed and you are good to start the tablet computer.

Calling

The SM-T311 is one of those few tablets that accepts a SIM card to make voice calls over 2G or 3G GSM networks. Making, receiving or rejecting voice and video calls on this phone is a breeze with the intuitive user interface. It also allows putting a call on hold, dialing a 2nd number and setting up a multiparty conference call, call forwarding, call waiting, and muting. It also stores the phone numbers of recent received, dialed and missed calls.

Performance

Running Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean) and later Android 4.4.2 (KitKat) on the 1.5 GHz dual core Samsung Exynos 4212 CPU with 1.5 GB RAM, the tablet handles all tasks smoothly. Multitasking using the Multi Window Panel is effortless and apps run flawlessly with no visible lag or crashes.

Display

The touch screen display consists of an 8-inch WXGA TFT screen with a resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels. The 16M color screen displays pretty crisp and vivid colors and is responsive to all touch and gestures.

Audio Quality

In-call reception audio quality is excellent, and the device plays music at amazing clarity.

Camera

The tablet carries a 5MP auto-focus primary camera with LED flash that can take 1.3-megapixel photos and HD videos at resolutions up to 720 x 1280 pixels at 30 fps. The image quality is fair. There is also a 1.3MP front (or selfie) camera. The camera also allows automatic GPS tagging of captured images.

Internal Storage

The 16 GB internal memory provides enough storage a large number of apps to coexist.

Expandable Storage

The tablet accepts a FAT-formatted microSD or microSDXC to extend the storage up to 64 GB for storing multimedia files. Loading the 64 GB microSD with audio, video, and document files of various formats showed no noticeable lag and the device has been able to handle the file-load smoothly.

Battery

As one of the major factors in a mobile computing device, the tablet is powered by a non-removable Samsung T4450E 4,450 mAh Li-ion battery built into the casing. The battery packs enough juice to last a long time even with heavy use. It takes about 5 hours to do a full charge from zero. 

Connectivity

The tablet supports a single SIM card on GSM 2G and / or HSDPA 3G networks. On the WLAN front it supports Wi-Fi 802.11 on the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands. It also has Bluetooth v4.0. For wired PC connectivity using USB 2.0, it accepts a MicroUSB data cable which is also provided in the box.

PC Connectivity

Synchronizing with the PC is possible using Samsung's Kies PC Sync software which can be used to manage media libraries, contacts and calendars on the tablet. Windows Media Player can also be used to synchronize media files. The tablet needs to be connected to the PC using the MicroUSB data cable.

Security

The tablet allows various ways to unlock, including the following:

1. Face unlock
2. Face and voice unlock
3. Pattern unlock
4. PIN unlock
5. Password unlock

SAR (Specific Absorption Rate)

SAR value for this phone when tested for use at the ear is 0.535 W/kg and when worn on the body is 0.666 W/kg. The SAR limit set by the FCC is 1.6W/kg.

FCC ID

The FCC ID for the device is A3LSMT311 and the reports are available here.

Warranty

The product comes with a 1-year manufacturer warranty on the device and 6 months of warranty on the accessories.

Conclusion

If you are looking for an Andriod-based tablet computer right now, go ahead and get it. The user experience is flawless, and the apps run like a breeze.

March 13, 2021 Update: After various forms of usage over the last ~7 years, I finally let it go. The device is still working though it has gotten slow, and many apps won't work on it anymore. It has never visited a service center, so you see that the hardware has been very reliable.

The MouthShut rating is 3.59 out of 5 based on 1,295 user votes.

The user manual is available here at ManualsLib, here at Samsung and here at the FCC ID database.

Yahoo! shuts down Yahoo! Directory

Yahoo! has retired the hand-curated web directory named Yahoo! Directory. Earlier in September this year, Ars Technica had written about it here.

The web directory started as the foundation of Yahoo!'s business when it started in January 1994 as Jerry and David's Guide to the World Wide Web. It was later renamed to Yahoo which became the acronym for Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle.

During the early days of the World Wide Web, web directories were a preferred way to discover and find content on the web but with the advent of crawler-based search engines, the relevance of web directories have diminished. Below is a screenshot (for remembrance) as the page was on December 20, 2014 - also archived here. 

Google also had a web directory service which it shut down in July 2011. I have logged it here.

Music I'm listening to in 2014

Here is a quick log of the music albums that I have been listening to this year.

1. Khola Haowa / Shaan
2. Fossils 3 / Fossils
3. Jeevan Kya Hai / Jagjit Singh
4. Cowboys From Hell / Pantera
5. 20th Century Hits / Boney M.
6. Abhimane Chole Jeyo Na / Manna Dey
7. Beastie Boys Anthology: The Sounds of Science / Beastie Boys
8. Jashn / Pankaj Udhas
9. Bali / Nitin Bali
10. Artist Of The Century / Elvis Presley
11. Desi Kalakaar / Yo Yo Honey Singh
12. Flying In A Blue Dream / Joe Satriani
13. Beatles For Sale / The Beatles
14. Antonio Vivaldi: Harmonic Inspirations - L'estro armonico / Antonio Vivaldi, Südwestdeutsches Kammerorchester and others
15. Vivaldi: Four Seasons And More / Moscow Symphony Orchestra
16. A Little South Of Sanity / Aerosmith
17. The Essential Jim Reeves: Jim Reeves
18. Anubhabe Jenechilem / Srikanto Acharya
19. Anthology 1 / The Beatles
20. Isspecial / Bhoomi
21. The Beatles / The Beatles
22. Berukhi / Jagjit Singh
23. Beautiful Garbage / Garbage
24. Baro Asha Kore / Shaan
25. The Very Best of Shafqat Amanat Ali / Shafqat Amanat Ali
26. Hooked on Classics 2000 / The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
27. Mati'Swar / Dohar
28. Hriday Majhe / Dola Ganguly
29. Alive III / Kiss
30. Unreleased Collection / Eminem
31. A Little Light Music / Jethro Tull
32. A Treasury of Golden Classics / London Festival Orchestra
33. Chants Of India / Ravi Shankar
34. 12 Arnold Grove / George Harrison
35. Berukhi / Jagjit Singh
36. Hey Bandhu, Hey Priyo / Srikanto Acharya
37. Aar Jani Na / Chandrabindoo
38. Themes From Calmi Cuori Appassionati / Enya
39. Evergreen / Jagjit Singh
40. Bibagi Hiya / Kamalini Mukherji
41. Aloha from Hawaii: Via Satellite / Elvis Presley
42. 1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours / Green Day
43. Alternative / Pet Shop Boys
44. Armaan /Armaan Malik
45. Abhang / Bhimsen Joshi
46. A Day Without Rain / Enya
47. Amarantine / Enya
48. 2001 / Dr. Dre
49. A Boy Named Goo / Goo Goo Dolls
50. Bandho Bhangar Chhanda / Kamalini Mukherji
51. Lalan Fakirer Gaan / Amar Pal
52. A Rush of Blood to the Head / Coldplay
53. Donna Summer / Bad Girls
54. Wild Ones / Flo Rida
55. A New Day Has Come / Céline Dion
56. Item / Euphoria
57. A Real Dead One / Iron Maiden
58. Coda / Led Zeppelin
59. A Day at the Races / Queen
60. A Kind of Magic / Queen
61. A Journey /Ravi Shankar
62. BBC Sessions / Led Zeppelin
63. A Night at the Opera / Queen
64. Achtung Baby / U2
65. Ami Ek Jajabar / Bhupen Hazarika
66. Actually / Pet Shop Boys
67. Daaknaam / Chandrabindoo
68. Twelve Songs of Christmas / Jim Reeves
69. 666 / Aphrodite's Child
70. 101 / Depeche Mode
71. Paint The Sky With Stars (The Best Of Enya) / Enya
72. The Celts / Enya
73. A Matter of Life and Death / Iron Maiden
74. Les Plus Belles Chansons D'Amour De Joe Dassin / Joe Dassin
75. Led Zeppelin / Led Zeppelin
76. Led Zeppelin II / Led Zeppelin
77. Led Zeppelin III / Led Zeppelin
78. The Song Remains the Same / Led Zeppelin
79. Bad / Michael Jackson
80. A Momentary Lapse of Reason / Pink Floyd
81. Tomay Gaan Shonabo / Rupankar Bagchi
82. 4 (Deluxe Edition) / Beyoncé
83. A / Jethro Tull
84. Bridges/ Ravi Shankar
85. Antichrist Superstar / Marilyn Manson
86. A Girl Like Me / Rihanna
87. A New Day... Live In Las Vegas / Celine Dion
88. Boheme / Deep Forest
89. B.B.'s Boogie / B.B. King
90. Aabaar Bochhor Kuri Pore / Moheener Ghoraguli
91. Nevermind / Nirvana
92. 07 104 / Armageddon Dildos
93. Always on My Mind / Elvis Presley
95. Adapt or Die: Ten Years of Remixes / Everything But the Girl
96. A Moment of Love / La Bouche
97. Physical Graffiti / Led Zeppelin
98. God Hates Us All / Slayer
99. Before I Self Destruct / 50 Cent

Beyond net neutrality

As the debate for net neutrality rages on, Timothy B. Lee writes this detailed but easy-to-understand article on what it is and runs through the evolution of this debate.

https://www.vox.com/2014/5/2/5665890/beyond-net-neutrality-the-new-battle-for-the-future-of-the-internet

English words with interesting meanings

There are many intriguing words in English that carry interesting meanings. This post will list some of those words.

Frugal - (adjective) using only as much money or food as is necessary. Example: We cannot live with frugal engineering alone.

Serendipity - (noun) finding something valuable or delightful by chance.

Petrichor - (noun) The pleasant, earthy smell that follows a fresh rain.

Defenestration - (noun) The act of throwing someone out of a window.

Sonder - (noun) The realization that each passerby has a life as vivid and complex as your own.

Huawei Wingle E8231/E8231s-1 Data Card: Easy Wi-Fi Hotspot for up to 10 devices

The Wingle E8231/E8231s-1 data card is a USB dongle manufactured by Huawei Technologies that lets you create a Wi-Fi hotspot for up to 10 devices by using a 2G/3G SIM card for your data communication needs. It is powered by plugging in to the USB port on a laptop or directly on power adapter with a USB output socket.

Huawei Wingle E8231

I ordered the E8231 in May 2014 when it was retailing in Flipkart for Rs. 1,999 inclusive of all taxes. The delivery was quick, and I had the device in my hands just the next day. The box includes the data card and a quick start guide.

Setup

Setting up the device is simple and easy. Remove the back cover and insert a SIM card into the card slot, plug it in to a USB port on a laptop on a power adapter with a USB output socket. The device will connect to the network-enabled SIM and create a Wi-Fi hotspot to which up to 10 devices can connect.

Performance

Running on a Balong 330 Chipset the device handles up to 10 connections seamlessly while providing a download throughput of 21.6 Mbps and upload throughput of 5.76 Mbps. The device functions as expected and doesn't face any connection drops.

Display

There is no display on this device. There are two LED lights, one to indicate the power status and the other to indicate the Wi-Fi connectivity status.

Internal Storage

There is no option for storing any data in its internal storage.

Expandable Storage

There is no option for additional storage.

Battery

The device does not have a built-in battery but is powered by a standard USB port.

Connectivity

The device supports a single 2G/3G SIM card on the HSPA+, HSDPA, GSM, GPRS, EDGE, UMTS, HSUPA networks. On the WLAN front it supports Wi-Fi 802.11. It allows multiple devices to connect to the internet using its Wi-Fi hotspot with a total throughput of 21.6 Mbps.

SAR (Specific Absorption Rate)

The maximum SAR value for this device is 1.131 W/kg.

FCC ID

The FCC ID for the device is QISE8231S-81 and the reports are available here.

Warranty

The product comes with a 1-year manufacturer warranty on the device.

Conclusion

My experience with the data card has been good. I haven't faced any connection drops, and the speed throughput is good of the mobile network connection is good. For anyone looking for a solution like this, I would highly recommend it.

The user manual is available here at ManualsLib and here at the FCC ID database.