Cheap Copies in China

Have you heard the cheap copies of cell phones , computers, mp3 in China? Maybe you can not imagine how many they are. In the picture, it shows an phone called iorange. What's that? The answer is that it's a cheap copy of iPhone. They change apple to orange. There are not only iorange, but also many other cheap copy brands with different close spelled brand names. The problem is serious. Although Chinese government set laws and rules to ban it, you can also find tons of them in China. Because a large number of it, now it becomes a phenomenon in China. Chinese people call it "Shanzhaiji", which means cheap copies products made in small village factories. The factories try to escape the monitoring from the government. And then they don't need to pay the tax. No spend is on advertising, either.The advantages are obviously. The qualities are unsure. They violate other brands' copy rights. They have bug inside the products. The after-sale service are poor.

The strong thing is there are also a lot of fans follow Shanzhaiji. They love it because of the cheap price and the creation behind them. Usually, the creators are those who have ideas but not rich in China. There are a lot of websites created for this phenomenon, such as shanzhaiji.com.

Nowdays, Shanzhaiji is not an economic phenomenon but also a social phenomenon in China.

9th blog

I noticed awhile ago someone made a post about Sony and how they have fallen behind and that made me think and realize Microsoft has also. I think that is due to cell phones, because they are where everyone spends the real cash. A cell phone has become the most important piece to live life with, for 95% of the people.

Microsoft is about to release two cell phones this summer sometime soon. They will be called Kin One and Kin Two, these will be geared toward younger teenagers. They have all the social networking capabilities that are pretty much mandatory for todays teens. Along with special features within the camera and video camera that allow you to just click and drag the picture or video and send it to everyone at once, or post it directly online. A main thing they are trying to advertise for these two cell phone is that the music player on the phone is powered by Zune.

http://www.kin.com/

I hope that this helps Microsoft out significantly. Maybe this will just be one step for them in the cell phone market, and then they will run with it. Who knows, looks like only time will tell.

E-Waste to E- Recycling

When we were talking about RFID chips one day replacing the bar code i got to thinking about how much waste that'd add up too. I once saw an E-waste commercial on the tv channel g4, a particularly tech and gadget oriented station. i tried to youtube it and searched for it onth eweb, couldnt find it anywhere. However the entire commercial featured the station's biggest names talking about e waste. They tell how much battery acid has been dumped into landfills, how many cd's have been discarded, etc. I got inspired to find litte more info after seeing that commerial.

In an online article by "Greener Choices," a division of Consumer Reports Magazine, it is stated that electronic equipment is the fastest growing category of solid waste. "In 2005, discarded electronics totaled about 2 million tons. Its estimated that only about 15-20% of this was recycled." In the March 2006 Consumer Reports, an online survey yielded these results: 1)about 3 in 10 consumers replaced their computers last year, 2 in 10 consumers who discarded the old computer threw it away in the trash. 2) about 2 in 10 consumers replaced their tv's last year, and 3 in 10 who discarded the old tv threw it away in the trash. 3) about 4 in 10 consumers replaced their cell phones last year, and 2 in 10 threw the old ones away in the trash. This problem is particularly important because toxins in such devices can leak into landfills and possibly contaminate drinking water, etc.Get more stats at: http://www.greenerchoices.org/electronicsrecycling/el_ewaste.cfm


I really like this site,it gives good info and i know it can be trusted because Consumer Reports is such an established name. I particularly like the section where you can click on a given product: TV, cell phone, computer, other electronics, and it gives you step by step help on how to decide if you should "fix it or nix it." Also, they go into detail about how and where e-recycling can be done. Personally, i feel that more people replace their mobile phones the more often than other electronic goods, causing a big part of the e waste problem, so i concentrated on cell phones.

Apparently one big problem is that e-recyclers are sometimes behaving unethically and are dumping the e waste in other countries/places and not really recycling it as they say they are. Consumer Reports recommends recycling at a place where they've signed the "Electronics Recyclers Pledge of True Stewardship" an agreement not to ship hazardous waste/components to other places/developing countries.

Health Risks of Cell Phones

We all rely on our cellular phones, maybe more than we should. In fact, almost everyone has one, and as technology advances, we tend to use them more and more. Technology makes are lives easier, but do we ever stop to think about the risks? Did you ever think your cell phone could hurting you instead of helping you? When I received my first cell phone at the age of 16, my parents were very happy because I could call them and let them know my location or let them know if I ran into problems since I was a new driver. They never stopped to consider the amount of time I might use my cell phone (though I was told not to drive and talk), nor did they know it was hurting my overall heath. If they would have known, maybe I would not have received a cell phone at such a young age.

So what is the biggest health risk of using a cell phone? It seems like a device that is very useful. However, if one is not careful, it could be damaging to one's health. In one study, it was found that radio frequency radiation from wireless phone antennae caused "genetic damage in human blood." Another case study found an "increase in neuro-epithelial brain tumors among cell phone users." This is mostly a result of using a cell phone all of the time, but isn't that what people are doing more and more? I often talk to my boyfriend for hours on the phone every day. I see other people who are on their phones all the time. But my biggest concern is that kids are receiving these devices at a younger age. What is this doing to the development of their brain if they are using this device all the time? For more information on studies, and to find out how these risks are affecting companies, go to http://archives.cnn.com/2000/TECH/computing/08/02/cell.phone.liability.idg/.

These risks seem pretty scary, but it seems like there is nothing we can do to avoid it. In a technology-based world, we need our cell phones. Therefore, I would like to share some information with you on what you can do to decrease risks to your health. Wear a headset and clip the phone on your belt so you are moving antenna far from your head to reduce risk of brain cancer. Buy a hands-free kit for your car and use an external antenna. Don't let your children use your cell phone on a regular basis. Avoid using a cell phone while pregnant. Check the radiation information that the CTIA (the International Association for Wireless Telecommunications) mandated for inclusion in all cell-phone boxes. Buy a cell phone with the lowest radiation output. With doing all of this, you can stay healthy and continue to participate in this world of growing technology.

Kid Tracker

Over the past few years I have noticed that the trend of tracking your kids every movement has increases in popularity. It seems like there are now all kinds of way to not only track your child's every movement, but now you can know everything about what there doing. It seems like the need to know every little thing your kid does has grown. I understand that a responsible parent should know what there kids are up to, but to track their every movement takes away all the trust and if anything will end up making kids distrust their parents. I wouldn't expect anyone to track everything simply because it's an invasion of privacy.

The easiest way to track your kids is through their cell phones. Parents have a choice many different plans from a few different providers. Sprint has a plan that will allow you to check where your kids are at through your own cell phone. The plan shows you exactly where your kids are as long as the phone is on and has signal. Verison also has a simular plan that will allow you to see exactly where your kids are. This plan allows you to see the streets their by and direction/speed if their moving. This all seems like a over protective parents dream, but thats not the only way to see what those no good kids are doing.

The latest in keeping up with your kids every move is the car gps. You can now use your kid's gps to see where their car is and many other options. This gps allso allows you to see how fast your kid drives and where they typically go. you can also set it up so that if they break any traffic laws, ie run a red light, it will text your self phone allowing you to see when and where they ran the light. If this isn't enough for you then you can get a visa card for your child and then you can get alerts everytime they use it or spend money on specified items. Who knows what this consistant way of telling your kids you don't trust them even for a second will have on their over all self est

6th blog

One thing that seems to keep being discussed in class that just fits it's way right into any topic is the Android operating system cell phones. It stick's with me because I have been waiting for a really good one to come to Verizon Wireless for months now. I want an HTC phone, that has HTC sense on it.

HTC sense is based on three pillars, and those are: 1)make it mine 2)stay close and 3)discover the unexpected. To me this is the most brilliant idea possible to create a cell phone, based on. HTC Sense is a holistic experience that is based on putting YOU first, at the center, because you need to be able to add whatever you need to use and bring it to the surface of your cell phone. This can be broken down into one phone surface for weekdays, and a different surface for you to switch to during the weekend. This is very cool because the big business people don't need to have all the work stuff cluttering the surface even on the weekend.

Another way of thinking about how perfect this is could be made by you simply going to the name of your friend on your contact menu. After you are to the person's name you can slide over on the bottom of the screen and it will take you to that individuals Twitter, Facebook, or even Flickr account. These HTC cell phones that have HTC Sense using the Android operating system are brilliant devices, and I haven't even begun to tell you half of the great features. Be careful though, a few have Windows instead of Android. I don't think that Blackberry's even can compare right now at this point in time. Everyone should check them out, here is a good video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meBGJ_2f8RU

technology

I didn't what to blog about this week so I decided to Google technology, and this is what I found:

I found out that Microsoft is coming out with a cellphone. The article made it sound like that this wasn't the first phone they put out, but they were worried about the selling numbers due to the competition of the iPhone and T-Mobile Android. The phone slated to be called WinPho7. The phone is said to be a step down from the previous version WinMo 6.5. This was done to make it more user friendly, by not having it loaded with functions and the 6.5 version operating system was not have a friendly user interface. The new phone will be lacking a few key features that have been on previous models and you won't be able to do as much multi-tasking as on older models. Features like Cut & paste, full multitasking, and memory card support was eliminated from this unit. The multitasking was eliminated to help extend battery life and prevent complexities in the user interface. Cut and paste was also sacrificed on this phone. When asked iPhone owners how much they used cut and paste, some said once every 4 months. Another drawback with this phone is that all apps must be installed from the Windows Phone marketplace, not like the other phones where you could download directly from the internet.

Micorsoft has the phone hitting the market early September, and iPhone will update its phone in June. Once again Microsoft is putting themselves behind the eight ball and following in the footsteps of iPhone.

So Mircosoft decided that cut & paste, full multitasking, and memory card support was something this new phone could do with out. In there opinion, less is more. Better for the customer to a more user friendly phone and with a battery that will last longer. At this time I couldn't find a price for the phone, but I did manage to find out that HTC will be the manufacturer of the phone.

Phones

The world is always changing and evolving and I have noticed that the world of cell phones is a great example. When I was five I remember that the guy who lived in the house behind us had a car phone. This was the first time I had ever seen anyone drive and talk on the phone at the same time. The cell phone business took off and the next thing I knew everyone had a cell phone. I remember playing games on my parents cell phone during car trips or other various boring times. Even the first cell phone I had was nothing compared to the phones of the day.

I remember the first cell phone I had was really cool for it's day. Ok even for it's day it was really lame, but it did have some basic functions. It had the basic calender, clock, and contact list. The fanciest thing it had was and old game called snake. As time went on I got newer and more advanced phones ending now with what is considered a smart phone. It has the ability to run multiple functions at once along with Internet connectivity. This phone is really a fun tool. The amount of things I can do are amazing and the phone really helps. Even though this the phone i have now still isn't the best.

We all know that smart phones have the ability to connect to the Internet and they allow you to keep track of your life. The smart phone is always getting smarter. I see now that you can watch T.V. at any time and any place on your phone. This is just a few of the things that smart phones can do. One of the newest things is a phone that has a projector. the projector allows you to show others what is on your phone without a tiny screen holding you back. This new projecting ability can allow you to watch a movie on any flat surface or show your friends those pic's you took at the bar last night.

The Evolution of Communication

1. Communication has evolved through centuries of technological advancements. In class we learned that the telegraph was the fist real way to communicate at a fast rate. Even though it takes a long time for the telegraph to be delivered. Over time communication between long distances became easier through the telephone and the internet/via email. Over time the world wide web advanced and people were able to surf the internet faster. Now a lot of people no longer communicate through emails and people use social networking websites like facebook, blogger, and myspace.

Another way of communicating is through text messaging and instant messaging. Majority of teens and young adults communicate through text messaging. I personally like to text message, but I think that it is consuming a lot of peoples lives when calling someone to have a conversation would be so much easier. The reason I like to text message is because you can save the time of trying to use your minutes and going through that greeting that you must always do when you're talking through a phone. It is also a lot more convenient to send a text message because people never leave their house without their phone and phones are very portable to carry around.
Cell phones have taken a large toll on peoples lives today. They are peoples life lines when it comes to staying in touch with other people. If I didn't I would feel lost, and naked without it because my cell phone is my life line. I have a blackberry phone and it does everything for me, and it is something that i love to use and can't live without. I think that communication technology will only improve and soon it will be a part of everyone's lives.

Super Phone

As I sit here typing at the last possible second, I'm simultaneously trying to find something interesting to write about, and looking out of the corner of my eye to see if the Fedex truck is here yet. I'm waiting on my new mobile phone to arrive. Some might call it an obsession, but gadget lust is a way of life for me. Its the new Google phone; the Nexus One. Google calls it a "super phone", but most of us what probably prefer to leave it in the established realm of smartphone.

From what I've read, this little thing is pretty amazing. It has been interesting to study the history of the computer while simultaneously researching a tiny computer that I'll be carrying with me everywhere. Based on clock speed alone, the processor in this phone, at 1 GHz, is significantly more powerful than the first desktop computer my family had. Significantly more powerful. It makes me think back to the days of our first home computers in the late 80's early 90's. Pre-internet, at least commercial internet, pre-cellphone, pre-netbook, pre-navigation. And it wasn't that long ago!

Moving forward, I can only imagine what I'll be carrying around ten years from now. Ten years ago I got my first cellphone, a giant Nokia. It made calls, and that's it. With the exponential growth of technology and processing capabilities, I look forward to the new sources of technological wonder that will continue to fuel my gadget lust well into the 21st century.