In the previous post, we took a look at some of the biggest tech flops of 2012. Now we take a look at some of the best Tech Products that 2012 has bestowed upon us. Again, in no serial order we mention a few devices, gadgets, apps, OS etc. that have impacted you and people around you (and the world in general) in 2012. If you feel there is something missing from this post that you think should be included too, then do drop in a comment with your pick and also mention why.
Instagram
Instagram has been the biggest (money value) app ever. The app, which is a photo manipulation tool allowing users to quickly apply presets or filters over the photos clicked by them and quickly share them over Instagram (Instagram having over a 100 million users is itself a Social Network, a big one at that) or on Facebook or Twitter (this has some issues presently) immediately.
Instagram on the Google Play Store
Instagram on Apple iTunes Store
What nobody saw was Facebook buying out the app for $1 billion. Yup, that is $1 billion for an app. Many believe it was over valued but Instagram really has proven itself over time as one hell of a popular (and useful) app. Well, it does get the key aspect for an app right, i.e. to make the user feel good about themselves. Here, everyone can feel like they've clicked (or shared) amazing pictures!
Google Nexus 7 & Nexus 10
Google shook the Android tablet market this year with two stunning (and cannot-be-ignored-at-all if you haven't heard of them you must be living-under-a-rock) products, namely the Google Nexus 7 and the Nexus 10. While the former is built by ASUS, the latter is a Samsung product.
Now you must be wondering why like every year and most websites the Apple iPad hasn't got this place. Well that's because Google beat Apple to it this time. The Nexus 7 is currently the best 7" tablet, and it's not a money-can-buy piece. You can have a Nexus 7 with 16 GB of storage all under $199. That's a quad core beast and a Google powered tablet with on-time Android updates. Simply doesn't get better.
The Nexus 10 was designed to take on the iPad, and it beat the iPad at the single point it marketed the most with it's new iPad 3. The Nexus 10 took iPad's retina display, increased the resolution and brought the aspect ratio to a more modern widescreen format and won our heats with it's $399 take-me-home, now price tag.
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean & Google Now
Something that was introduced alongside the launch of the Nexus 7 tablet was Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. Till date, Jelly Bean is the most optimized form of Android ever, complete with the modern UI which was introduced with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. Google introduced Project Butter which was Google's attempt to make Android 4.1 Jelly smooth on the supported devices. And Google really did prove itself with the slo-mo camera recordings at 240 fps (just to prove a point).
Another addition was Google Now. Now is Google's answer to Apple's Siri. Google Now, for starters, will understand your Indian accent. Strike One. Google has designed a system of cards which pop up with relevant information which can also be based on your past searches and preferences. Smart ain't it?
Intel Ivy Bridge: Enter 22 nm
Intel introduced their next generation micro processors based on their Ivy Bridge architecture. Ivy Bridge improves upon Intel's core architecture from Sandy Bridge bringing in the usual 7-10% improvement in performance (clock for clock as well). In addition, Intel improved on the GPU side with the Intel HD 4000, which is sometimes 50% faster than HD 3000 although it doesn't really pack many more cores than the HD 3000 (16 cores v/s 12 cores only).
The most important aspect of this Ivy Bridge lineup is that it's based on Intel's new 22 nm Tri-Gate manufacturing process. Intel now employs 3D transistors (FinFET) in their processors. Till now, Intel is the only foundry company making 22 nm chips (of this complexity and in this large a scale). This happened more than half a year ago. Even now the industry is stuck on 32 nm or 28 nm manufacturing process. Speaks volumes about how far ahead Intel really is (years) over competition.
Google Glass
Google took a leap into the future by introducing the first ever (proper, for commercial purposes) wearable computing device. Google Glass is an augmented reality headset which hopes to replace your smartphone some day, or at least work in tandem with it.
Seen people in Sci-Fi movies wear those glasses that show them everything? Well Google loves it too. And so they decided to make a commercial product out of it. What Google wants in the final product is the ability to:
All of this wil be done via a head-mounted display. Google will deliver the first glasses to developers who paid $1500 for it in 2013.
Microsoft Surface RT
Last but not the least is Microsoft's Surface RT. The first tablet product from Microsoft ever, it also runs the first ARM version of Microsoft's NT kernel based Windows (8) OS. Windows 8 for RT is the ARM version of Microsoft's latest (and fastest) Windows 8 OS, which is a touch-optimized OS (touch revolution has hit our favorite desktop OS too).
Microsoft does it differently with it's Surface tablet. Packing a 10" display with a modest 1366*768 resolution and a quad core nVidia Tegra 3 processor, the Surface RT is no weakling. It's the design that separates Microsoft's Surface tablet from the crowd. Starting with the Metro UI on Windows 8 to the excellent and innovative (and thin) Keyboard dock, the Surface RT only needed a proper price tag (check) to get it going. Oh, and if you're wondering, it's got Minesweeper as well as Office. This device is officially a go!
Thus concludes our round up of some of the best Tech Products of 2012. We will be writing more such articles in the coming days till CES 2013 kicks off (after which we will obviously be focusing on that). If you feel something needs to be added to the list feel free to comment what and why.
Instagram has been the biggest (money value) app ever. The app, which is a photo manipulation tool allowing users to quickly apply presets or filters over the photos clicked by them and quickly share them over Instagram (Instagram having over a 100 million users is itself a Social Network, a big one at that) or on Facebook or Twitter (this has some issues presently) immediately. Instagram on the Google Play Store
Instagram on Apple iTunes Store
What nobody saw was Facebook buying out the app for $1 billion. Yup, that is $1 billion for an app. Many believe it was over valued but Instagram really has proven itself over time as one hell of a popular (and useful) app. Well, it does get the key aspect for an app right, i.e. to make the user feel good about themselves. Here, everyone can feel like they've clicked (or shared) amazing pictures!
Google Nexus 7 & Nexus 10
Google shook the Android tablet market this year with two stunning (and cannot-be-ignored-at-all if you haven't heard of them you must be living-under-a-rock) products, namely the Google Nexus 7 and the Nexus 10. While the former is built by ASUS, the latter is a Samsung product.
Now you must be wondering why like every year and most websites the Apple iPad hasn't got this place. Well that's because Google beat Apple to it this time. The Nexus 7 is currently the best 7" tablet, and it's not a money-can-buy piece. You can have a Nexus 7 with 16 GB of storage all under $199. That's a quad core beast and a Google powered tablet with on-time Android updates. Simply doesn't get better.
The Nexus 10 was designed to take on the iPad, and it beat the iPad at the single point it marketed the most with it's new iPad 3. The Nexus 10 took iPad's retina display, increased the resolution and brought the aspect ratio to a more modern widescreen format and won our heats with it's $399 take-me-home, now price tag.
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean & Google Now
Something that was introduced alongside the launch of the Nexus 7 tablet was Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. Till date, Jelly Bean is the most optimized form of Android ever, complete with the modern UI which was introduced with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. Google introduced Project Butter which was Google's attempt to make Android 4.1 Jelly smooth on the supported devices. And Google really did prove itself with the slo-mo camera recordings at 240 fps (just to prove a point).
Another addition was Google Now. Now is Google's answer to Apple's Siri. Google Now, for starters, will understand your Indian accent. Strike One. Google has designed a system of cards which pop up with relevant information which can also be based on your past searches and preferences. Smart ain't it?
Intel Ivy Bridge: Enter 22 nm
Intel introduced their next generation micro processors based on their Ivy Bridge architecture. Ivy Bridge improves upon Intel's core architecture from Sandy Bridge bringing in the usual 7-10% improvement in performance (clock for clock as well). In addition, Intel improved on the GPU side with the Intel HD 4000, which is sometimes 50% faster than HD 3000 although it doesn't really pack many more cores than the HD 3000 (16 cores v/s 12 cores only). The most important aspect of this Ivy Bridge lineup is that it's based on Intel's new 22 nm Tri-Gate manufacturing process. Intel now employs 3D transistors (FinFET) in their processors. Till now, Intel is the only foundry company making 22 nm chips (of this complexity and in this large a scale). This happened more than half a year ago. Even now the industry is stuck on 32 nm or 28 nm manufacturing process. Speaks volumes about how far ahead Intel really is (years) over competition.
Google Glass
Google took a leap into the future by introducing the first ever (proper, for commercial purposes) wearable computing device. Google Glass is an augmented reality headset which hopes to replace your smartphone some day, or at least work in tandem with it.
Seen people in Sci-Fi movies wear those glasses that show them everything? Well Google loves it too. And so they decided to make a commercial product out of it. What Google wants in the final product is the ability to:
- click photos
- enable video chat
- receive & send IMs and emails
All of this wil be done via a head-mounted display. Google will deliver the first glasses to developers who paid $1500 for it in 2013.
Microsoft Surface RT
Last but not the least is Microsoft's Surface RT. The first tablet product from Microsoft ever, it also runs the first ARM version of Microsoft's NT kernel based Windows (8) OS. Windows 8 for RT is the ARM version of Microsoft's latest (and fastest) Windows 8 OS, which is a touch-optimized OS (touch revolution has hit our favorite desktop OS too).
Microsoft does it differently with it's Surface tablet. Packing a 10" display with a modest 1366*768 resolution and a quad core nVidia Tegra 3 processor, the Surface RT is no weakling. It's the design that separates Microsoft's Surface tablet from the crowd. Starting with the Metro UI on Windows 8 to the excellent and innovative (and thin) Keyboard dock, the Surface RT only needed a proper price tag (check) to get it going. Oh, and if you're wondering, it's got Minesweeper as well as Office. This device is officially a go!
Thus concludes our round up of some of the best Tech Products of 2012. We will be writing more such articles in the coming days till CES 2013 kicks off (after which we will obviously be focusing on that). If you feel something needs to be added to the list feel free to comment what and why.
Happy New Year
Buying a new phone? Or a tablet? Need help with something everyday-tech related? Ask me and I'm sure to help!
— Preetam Nath (@hipreetam93) April 18, 2013
— Preetam Nath (@hipreetam93) April 18, 2013