The Life's Way: June 2015

Thursday, 25 June 2015

@ObikwaWines For every meal - every day of the week

Hi Guys,

Every day is wine day with OBiKWA and with their wide variety of easy drinking, quality varietal wines you can afford to try a different one with every meal. In addition to the line-up of Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc and Moscato to entice white wine lovers, OBiKWA also offers a blushing, refreshingly dry Pinotage Rosé. Red wine lovers are also spoilt for choice with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinotage and the much lauded, value for money Shiraz.

With a different wine variety for every day of the week, OBiKWA is sure to add a touch of adventure to every meal from appetisers to desserts. Treat your family and friends to the Chardonnay with a layered Mexican salad and nachos, to a main serving of chicken wraps and Chenin Blanc or gourmet boeries and Pinotage. And lastly, finish off your perfect food and wine pairings with the irresistibly sweet one, Moscato.

Life is a journey worth celebrating, so go on stick your neck out and grab a few bottles of OBiKWA. Selling at around R30 per bottle, the OBiKWA range of quality, value for money varietal wines is available country-wide.

For more information visit www.obikwa.com, join the OBiKWA tribe on Facebook or follow them on Twitter @ObikwaWines.

Cheers!!!

Follow me on twitter @araijain or @thelifesway
Email - thelifesway@gmail.com for invites to launch events / sponsored posts and product reviews!
Checkout my Instagram (araijain) page
Checkout my photo blog - www.photoyatra.blogspot.in
Like The Life's Way Page on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/TheLifesWay

@MicrosoftSA Art Exhibition #SeeTheBigPicture @SandtonCity

Hi Guys!

As with many other industry buzzwords, Big Data means different things to different people, but commonly accepted is the challenge of how to find, combine, manage and analyse any type and volume of data in order to quickly gain insights and solve problems. In practicality this means, for example, that advertising agencies would be able to improve campaign effectiveness and boost ad revenue with big data by providing crucial analytics to advertisers, faster.

“To most people and organisations, Big Data might be no more than an industry buzzword. People and organisations need to be made truly aware of the capability Big Data has to deliver the competitive advantage for businesses or empower consumers to do more with the data that they have, and ultimately empower them to transform their businesses?” asks Kelly Husband, Data Platform Product Marketing Manager at Microsoft SA. Technology has the ability to empower people and organisation to see the big picture from the masses of data that is out there. Not many people are aware of the power that technology has to manage big data and turn it into meaningful insights and show the big picture.

To illustrate the business benefits that Big Data analytics can unlock for local companies and communicate how international Big Data trends are relevant for local consumers, Microsoft partnered with Innovator and trend analyst Dion Chang.

Chang asserted that the world of the consumer is changing; with the use and analytical power of Big Data, consumers are able to redefine the way they engage with brands, companies and services. Focusing on his most recent research findings in the retail sector, Chang went on to state that retailers no longer compete against their local, provincial or national competitors, but with global players. These global competitors are capable of quoting prices in local currencies and delivering products and services in the same timeframe as a local business is able to. To stay relevant to the customer, retail companies have to anticipate changes in buying patterns and product turnover by tapping into the power of Big Data. Follow Dion Chang on twitter & FluxTrends.

Companies such as Tracker, a leading vehicle tracking company in South Africa, has been leveraging the data collected through the nodes in their customer database of vehicles to provide insights to organisations such as Navigation companies, Insurance companies, and Emergency Services.

“With the use of already installed vehicle tracking devices, we are able to track the live movements of vehicles around the country, segmenting the data down to the side-streets of the city we can predict traffic issues, map traffic incidents and even help define the state of the roads. The possibilities are endless to help organisations like to improve the quality of our roads or reroute emergency services to help improve emergency response time,” says Wayne De Nobrega CEO of Tracker South Africa.

To address this, Microsoft South Africa has launched a Big Data campaign entitled See the big picture, to spark conversations around Big Data and educate people around the technological tools they can use to tap into the power of Big Data and see the big picture. As part of this campaign, the company commissioned six young artists to produce works of art that depict Big Data as seemingly meaningless pieces that only make sense or come into focus, when technology is used to interpret the artwork.

All six pieces of artwork form part of an exhibition at the Mr Price Court in Sandton City, and will be on show during normal shopping hours between 19 June and 3 July. Entrance to the exhibition is free for all visitors. Follow the conversation on twitter and facebook and https://www.microsoft.com/en-za/

All of these photographs are taken using +Samsung Mobile #GalaxyS6 phone which I received for product review.

Cheers!!!

Celebrating Winter Solstice Collection @JCLeRoux

Hi Guys,

Donning their finest winter chic, Jozi fashionistas toasted the longest night with flutes of bubbly at J.C. Le Roux’s glamorous Winter Solstice Celebration on a cold night of 20th June 2015 .

Guests also got up close and personal with the limited edition J.C. Le Roux Winter Solstice Collection, three beautifully designed packs showcasing Le Domaine, La Fleurette and La Chanson for the first time with different designs and ribbons in celebration of the winter night sky.

The limited edition bottles will be up for sale only for a month and are available in all stores across the country at R59 each.

Famous faces spotted at the event, held at the trendy Level 3 in Marlboro place, Kramerville, included actors Diaan Lawrenson, Jody Abrahams, Atandwa Kani, rugby player Robbie Coetzee, SABC 2 news anchor Louise Wingerden and YFM DJ Ayanda Mdluli.

The evening certainly provided one bubbly highlight after another, with superb live electric violin music followed by a breath-taking laser show and a surprise performance by songstress Chiano Sky. Ebith Jurgens Brand Manager #JCLeRoux welcomed all the guests and explained about the new Winter Solstice Collection.

The DJ played all the favourite songs and everyone was on the dance floor till the end of the party at around midnight. Chiano Sky was awesome and even sang a song from her latest album which will be out in the market in July.

The guests were given awesome J.C. LeRoux soft blankets to keep them warm after the party also in their goodies bag along with a bottle opener. It was an awesome launch event and I really enjoyed myself with great food and company. Follow the brand on twitter, facebook, instagram & https://www.jcleroux.co.za/. Thanks very much to @GC_Com once again for the invite to this awesome launch event.

All of these photographs are taken using +Samsung Mobile #GalaxyS6 phone which I received for product review.

Cheers!!!

Follow me on twitter @araijain or @thelifesway
Email - thelifesway@gmail.com for invites to launch events / sponsored posts and product reviews!
Checkout my Instagram (araijain) page
Checkout my photo blog - www.photoyatra.blogspot.in
Like The Life's Way Page on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/TheLifesWay

Thursday, 11 June 2015

Product Review - @SonyXperiaZA E4 Android Smartphone

Hi Guys,

It's been many years since I tried any of the Sony mobiles and when I visited the website some weeks back, I could see the whole range of smartphones catering to different segments. I remember the last time when I bought a Sony phone just to get the goodies from Orange Stores in Southwark, London as the price of goodies was much more than the cost of the phone. The phone was the cheapest option available in colored screen with Walkman feature and at that time in 2011, I paid £49 for the same. I still have that Sony phone which I use in emergency when the battery dies on the main phone.

I do keep an eye on the flagship models that are available in the market from all the brands but never got the opportunity of venturing into the value range of products for Sony Mobile Communications. I got this device names Xperia E4 to review for 2 weeks. It was my first experience of Sony's user interface on android device, all the various apps and camera functionality which comes along with the smartphone.

Sony Xperia E4 is a value segment phone which is targeted at the young generation. The phone has big 5" qHD smart display which helps you to view the phone screen from any angle to get super sharp image and accurate colors. Thought the ppi density (960x540 pixels) is less on the phone but considering the price that's good which also comes with scratch resistant glass. I watched a complete movie on Youtube on this screen and never felt the need to watch the same on tablet or laptop. The other feature that kept me glued to the device was it's xLOUD Loudness Enhancement Engine which really helped me listen to dialogues of the movie without any need of headphones or so in a home environment where kids are also making a lot of noise playing etc. The audio was crystal clear (Clear Audio+ technology) and I even used their normal (old style) earphones but they produces some nice quality music and I was lost in my own zone within no time. Also the equalizers that are available in this smartphone makes you really go in your own zone. I totally loved this feature and also Walkman phones needs no introduction and hence the legacy continues in all of Sony Xperia devices.

Sony Xperia E4 smartphone has 1.3 GHz quad-core processor (ARM Mali-400 MP2) with 1GB RAM and 8GB of ROM. The memory capacity can be extended upto 32GB using the micro-SD card which goes behind the cover on the back of the smartphone. The phone runs on Android 4.4 KitKat and weighs only 144 grams. The curve factor is very high on the phone and it feels really nice to hold the phone. The battery capacity of Xperia E4 is 2300 mAh and comes with power savings features called STAMINA to extend the usage of the smartphone. I was able to watch the 3 hours long hindi movie on Youtube with 35-40% reduction in the battery life of the phone on wi-fi network at home. I also installed some games from PlayStore and was able to play them without any lag on the new review device but may be when all the apps are running and consuming data then there will be lag due to only 1GB of RAM.

Sony Xperia E4 has 5 megapixel rear camera with flash and front camera is 2MP (720p video capability). Here considering the fact that all value segment devices from other manufactures are going towards 5MP wide selfie camera, Sony didn't followed the herd race. But I took some selfies which were really clear and crisp. The main camera also takes nice pictures with 4X digital zoom & image stabilizers and I found them good enough for a phone in the value segment. The rear camera takes Full HD videos at 1080p.

The phone screen feels like sitting on the top of the body of the phone and I never felt that the phone has 5inch display as it was so easy to grasp the phone. Underneath the back cover you will find slots to insert the micro-SIM and micro-SD card. The battery is hidden underneath the cover and can't be taken out. The power button and volume rockers are on the right hand side of the phone. The top portion has 3.5mm jack for your earphones etc and left hand side has the mini-USB charging port. The phone package contains Xperia E4, a charger, cable (small length) and earphones with mic along with some manuals, warranty etc. The phone also has a dual-SIM version available. The phone is available in two colors - Black and White and priced at around R2100 on Orange website for South Africa.

It was a great experience to use a Sony Xperia device made especially for the value segment customers. Also the Sony has made the whole experience towards using the phone to develop your interest in mobile photography and music. They have various tutorials on their website to learn various types of mobile photography and camera software on the phone offers you a lot to venture into the same. The phone is really nice for the students and gives you a long battery output which under normal conditions goes till 2 days. If you want a new phone for day to day activities then this is the phone to go for. Follow Sony Xperia ZA on twitter and Facebook.

Cheers!!!

Wednesday, 10 June 2015

Product Review - Lumia 535 @MicrosoftSA #WindowsPhone

Hi Guys,

Microsoft could have been late to enter the buzzing smartphone market but since the time it has arrived, it has taken the world by storm with its Lumia devices which have some of the best features in all the range of products. Though Lumia was earlier Nokia's range of products but Microsoft has enhanced it further and taken it to the next level with all new range of smartphones. Even the Microsoft App store now has a lot of popular apps that are launched for iOS and Android and gives you some decent options to choose which apps you want to install on your smartphone.

Microsoft Phone has launched it's own very first phone with all Microsoft branding named Microsoft 535. The phone is launched for value segment featuring 5MP selfie (front) camera and Windows 8.1 operating system with Lumia Denim.Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 Quad Core processor is clocked at 1200 MHz with 1GB RAM gives enough power to meet your day to day requirements. The phone looks good and feels nice.

The phone has very nice form factor with minimalistic buttons on its sides. Right hand side has power button in the middle and above the same volume rocker buttons captures the side. The left hand side of the phone has no buttons. The bottom has only micro-USB charging point. The top side has 3.5mm jack towards the left to take care of your headphones/earphones etc. The back covers are interchangeable and are available in six colors.

The phone comes with a wall charger, Microsoft earphones (old style) and interchangeable battery. The battery is 1905mAh (3.7V 7.0 Wh) rechargeable Li-ion with Microsoft Mobile branding. The battery gives sufficient power to last 12 hours under moderate usage. Underneath the back cover is the micro-SD card slot for expanding the memory upto 128GB for your music etc and micro-SIM card slot. Dual-SIM version is also available in the market and Lumia 535 is going at around R1700-1900 pay-as-you-go.

Microsoft Lumia 535 has 5inch qHD (IPS LCD) display with 220 ppi pixel density. It has Corning Gorilla Glass 3 which is a scratch resistance glass and seen very less in this price range. The phone has 8gb ROM out of which only half (nearly 3.7GB) is available for the user for media etc. The phone only weighs 146 grams and feels really light to carry around.

The front camera is 5MP with focal length 24mm and rear camera which is also 5MP has focal length of 28mm. The camera can shoot video with 30fps in FWVGA resolution (848x480). Lumia 535 comes with a lot of apps pre-installed which helps a lot as straight out of the box you can start using them if you have a Microsoft account. A single-sign-on enables all the Microsoft enabled apps. Lumia Selfie, Lumia Camera, Creative Studio etc are vaious apps that helps you to better your photographs.

Overall, this is a phone for the value segment with large display and 3G capability. The phone has trendy looks to cater to students segment with changeable covers and battery. The phone doesn't comes with any micro-USB cable to transfer your content to laptop but has features by which you can share your content with others. Also, the Lumia Selfie camera doesn't inverts the picture making alphabets written go mirror-imaged which has been same since last phone I tried. This is an error in the software for the front cameras they have installed in the phone.

Cheers!!!

Monday, 8 June 2015

Product Review - @SamsungSA Galaxy Tab4 - 10.1" Tablet

Hi Guys,

Samsung has launched a lot of products to cater to the markets in all segments of users. They keep launching niche and flagship products for high end customers and value for money products for others. They have products which suits every budget and gives your money's return by their superior service quality and warranty on their products.

Tablets have become an integral part of society and I still remember people clicking snaps with them in London Eye thought it would block the view of the other people on-board but nevertheless people carry this device all the time with them to stay connected to the world. Samsung has launched several tablets in the market before with huge success and now they have come up with another android tablet called Samsung Galaxy Tab4 with 10.1" WXGA LCD display which is available in the market in black and white colors. It's better than the 7" inch tablet as it gives you much more viewing area along with multi-tasking capability to open several (two apps) windows together.

The tablet has a very nice display with screen resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels which comes with a 1.2GHz Quad-core processor with 1.5GB RAM and 16GB ROM. Out of 16GB around 12.7GB is available for users to consume. The processor gives sufficient power to play all the tablet games without any lags. Galaxy Tab4 has a 6800mAh battery which gives the tablet power for nearly 8-10 hours under moderate usage. The tablet has Bluetooth v4 to connect to the other bluetooth enabled devices really quick.

Samsung Galaxy Tab4 has multi-user mode where you can restrict the access to apps and other material if the same tablet is being used by kids or anyone else in the family. This Wi-fi tablet runs on Android v 4.4 KitKat and gives access to all the apps in Play store as well as Samsung's own version of apps. The tablet has 3MP rear camera with 4x digital zoom and 1.3MP front camera for video calling. The sound comes from speakers on both sides of the tablet and is sufficient for your daily needs. The main screen contains only one physical button along with two touch sensitive buttons.

The Tab4 weights around 490 grams and easy to carry with you all the time. The tablet comes with a charger and micro-USB cable. The tablet has nice features like SoundAlive which helps you to set your own equalizers as per the music or video you are playing. 3.5mm jack is also available to use the tablet with headphones etc. The tables do get a lot of fingerprints all over it as matte finish plastic back catches it a lot. The tablet is very responsive to the touch and has very good build quality at the price point of R4000.

Galaxy Tab 4 has 3G as well as Wi-fi capability to connect to the internet and has GPS connectivity to help you with Google maps too. The tablet can play 1080p full HD videos along with HD recording. Overall, this is an android tablet with 3G feature to buy if you are looking for something in that price range which can help you stay connected to your family and friends. The thing I loved the most about this tablet was it's display quality which is much better than many tablets in the same price range along with the sound output the two small speakers on the sides produces. Follow Samsung SA on twitter and facebook.

Cheers!!!

Follow me on twitter @araijain or @thelifesway
Email - thelifesway@gmail.com for invites to launch events / sponsored posts and product reviews!
Checkout my Instagram (araijain) page
Checkout my photo blog - www.photoyatra.blogspot.in
Like The Life's Way Page on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/TheLifesWay

Sunday, 7 June 2015

@MercedesBenz_SA #BOKEH Fashion Film Festival - Johannesburg

Hi Guys,

After a breath-taking event held in Cape Town earlier this year, the Mercedes-Benz Bokeh Fashion Film Festival arrived in Johannesburg for a one night only extravaganza at the Mercedes-Benz Lifestyle Centre in Bedfordview. The location was awesome as it was a AMG special dealers showroom and really loved all the latest models of cars on display.

Invited guests braved the onset of winter and freezing temperatures to dress in their fashionable best and join celebrities, VIP’s, local and international film-makers for a sensory interactive brand experience. Each guest was chauffeur driven in the latest Mercedes-Benz models and entered an Oscar style red carpet flanked by a host of local and international media jostling for the perfect shot and interview opportunity.

The venue was transformed into a light and sound extravaganza with winning films from the Mercedes-Benz Bokeh Fashion Film Festival presented on large format UHD Hisense screens. Selvin Govender, Marketing Director of Mercedes-Benz cars commented, “This is the second year in a row that we are title sponsors for this event and we are even more excited about the overall success of our brand alignment and collaboration with Adrian, his team and the fashion film genre. Fashion Films are relevant, powerful and stylish and this is exactly why we feel that this event is the perfect platform for our brand, as it definitely showcases the stylishness and elegance of our Mercedes-Benz vehicles. Naturally, we were first to embark on this alignment and as a result, the Mercedes-Benz brand in other countries are now looking to follow.”

Aidan Whytock, winner of The Mercedes-Benz Award along with the US$ 10000 prize money, thanked founder Adrian Lazarus and Mercedes-Benz for their commitment and support, and mentioned that the competition had allowed him to showcase his winning film internationally, opening doors and opportunities for himself and other entrants. His movie was simply awesome and moved the other passionate photographer to learn some of the video photography and participate next year in this contest.

The Cape Town Fashion Council were joined on the evening by some of South Africa’s top designers including Spero Villioti, Hendrik Vermeulen, and Gert-Johan Coetzee. The ever stunning MC Bailey Schneider donned an exquisite Spero Villioti Couture dress to welcome the guests and introduce proceedings. Catherine Timotei also grabbed the attention by exhibiting several original art masterpieces and Mercedes-Benz had guests drooling at an interesting showcase of their latest and greatest cars.

What started off as a dream for founder and MD, Adrian Lazarus, is now a reality. “We’re just getting bigger and better every year, and once again Johannesburg didn’t disappoint. Guests ventured out in freezing conditions tonight to join us and experience the incredible talent that this year’s Fashion Film Festival offered, and we are all delighted for the support as well as our amazing sponsors,” said Adrian. It was really freezing as the weather Gods decided to start winters on that very first evening but the warm food and drinks kept us sane.

Sponsors of the event included: Mercedes-Benz South Africa, Hisense, Cape Town Fashion Council, Fashion-One TV, MAC cosmetics, Luxury Brands, GHD Hair care, Sunglass Hut, Monkey Shoulder, Tranquini and African Pride Hotels. Tranquini was a nice non-alcoholic drink which is catching a lot of attention and I really loved drinking the same.

The goodies bag has awesome Mercedes Benz 8gb pendrive, Mercedes Benz Keyring along with Sunglass Hut Gift vouchers and the very first issue of BOKEH magazine which was launched recently. Overall, it was a great event with lot of great Mercedes-Benz cars, selfie stick models and live performances by entertainment singers as some models of the cars make their way into the event area.

Cheers!!!

Saturday, 6 June 2015

Product Review - All-in-One Media Keyboard @MicrosoftSA

Hi Guys,

Keyboard was an integral part of our desktop and laptop experience till the time touchscreens have taken over in Windows 8 and mobiles/tablets environment. From time to time keyboards have been given various design changes by several brands to include multiple functionality like multimedia capabilities and gaming experiences. These days Swype and other flow keyboards have taken the world by storm in the mobile and tablet environments.

I still remember the first keyboard I saw was a big huge MS-DOS operating system machine way back in 1992. When my father bought me my first desktop, I got this amazing keyboard with volume and other multimedia controls way back in 2002. With the old technology making way for the new, I saw wireless keyboards way back in 2005 and instantly fell in love with the same. The price was at least 10 times more than a wired branded keyboard.

Today I am writing this blogpost from the Microsoft's All-in-One Media Keyboard with my laptop long far from my hands and connected via wireless (USB) dongle. As I am writing this first post from this keyboard I am falling in love with this tech. Though I have been using a wi-fi mouse since 2011 and loved Microsoft Arc mouse also but this is an amazing keyboard as it has integrated muti-touch trackpad. The trackpad has left and right click buttons as available in any normal trackpad and mouse which makes the experience of using this keyboard much more great.

Microsoft All in One Media Keyboard runs on 2 AAA size batteries (included in the package) and have a magnetic slot to keep your usb dongle (nano-receiver) attached to the same hidden underneath along with the batteries compartment. The power on off button is on the right hand side of the keyboard if you want to preserve battery life when not in use.

The trackpad is really sensitive and responsive with swipe, drag, zoom and click with ease. Just by tapping two fingers it gives right click menu. The pinch and spread to zoom works just fine. There are many more such features you can use if you are using Windows 8 machine. The keyboard also works with some selected Smart TVs and gaming consoles which can be checked online for compatibility. The keyboard has spill-resistant design and each key has it's own space between themselves.

The keyboard has no backlight which could have been a beneficial factor in the long run considering you want to use it on a Smart TV. The other thing I found was that I was using UK laptop which has '@" key switched with "'" and this keyboard also behaved liked my laptop keyboard which is intelligent. I also missed the home & end keys. The keyboard has all the functional keys that can be customized to Windows 8 gestures with a software upgrade available at www.microsoft.com/hardware/downloads

Overall, this Microsoft All-in-One Media Keyboard is great to buy as it gives you access to both keyboards and trackpad functionality. The price varies between R450-500 across various stores in SA. Follow them on twitter and Facebook.

Cheers!!!

Thursday, 4 June 2015

Product Review - @HuaweiZA MATE7 - Android Phablet

Hi Guys,

Huawei needs no introduction as it's one brand which will make its presence felt to you automatically via its niche products and network services it provides to the other big brands. Huawei has dropped "Ascend" brand name from its devices like P6, P7 and Mate7as well as recently launched P8 because Huawei brand awareness globally has increased drastically in the past year. P branded devices are now flagship models, Mate is used to identify phablets and G is for affordable premium products.

The latest in the series of new launches is the Huawei Ascend Mate7 phablet which has 6 inch FHD IPS in-cell LCD display which shows bright colors even in sunlight. The pixel density is 368PPi with 16M colors. The Mate 7 has a metallic body and bezel and weights only 185g.

The processor used in Huawei Mate 7 is Hisilicon Kirin 925 which is built around octa-core architecture with four large A15 1.8GHz cores and four small A7 1.3GHz cores. These processor starts working as and when required by a specific app or functions. I was able to play HD videos and take amazing photographs and there was no lag the phone showed during any of those functions. Mate7 has 2GB RAM with 16GB of ROM out of which more than 12GB is available for the consumers.

The battery life of Mate 7 is 4100mAh which gives you a full day of uninterrupted entertainment with heavy use of all applications. The phone also has some power saving modes (normal, smart and ultra) to make it go longer in case of emergency. Ultra power saving mode disables other apps and brings the call and text messaging to make you stay connected for some more time.

Mate 7 has LTE Cat6 connectivity which can download at 300 Mbps speed to get amazing online viewing experience. Though the network to support this is still not in South Africa but your smartphone is ready to download the content as and when required. The Mate7 is running on Android 4.4.2 KitKat and it also has its own Huawei Emotion UI on top of the same.

The best part of Mate 7 is its single touch fingerprint technology which is located at the back of the phone just under the camera. This helps you to open the phone using any of your five fingers and can also be used to perform different functions like clicking selfies. The tech behind this amazing is a reader featuring 184 x 184 pixels, 508 ppi resolution with 8 bit grey level identification to know exactly who are you. This works well with both wet and dry fingers.

Mate7 has 13MP rear camera with f2.0 and 5MP HD front camera to take awesome selfies. The rear camera takes some really nice photographs as I took it to Central Drakenburg and took a lot of pictures with a single touch on the fingerprint scanner of the phone. The rear camera can take 1080p videos and the phone can play them too on its screen. The flash is strong enough to take pictures in the dark. Check out some of the pictures taken using this device on my instagram channel or Photoyatra with hashtag #AscendMate7

Mate7 comes with a charger, normal earphones (old style) with built in mic, USB cable and some manuals but the black box packaging is simply amazing to open. The sound output by the device is very loud and you can easily watch youtube video's etc without any headphones. I watched a lot of content on this phone because of it's big screen and battery life also helped me to watch the same all day. I also used the device as a portable hotspot and it really was able to catch Telkom signal even in the basement of Sandton Convention Center.

I really liked this phablet which comes at around R5700 which is a great price if you don't require S-Pen if considering Samsung Galaxy Note4 which trades at around R9000 and iPhone 6 Plus which is even more costlier. The touch and feel of Huawei phablet Mate7 is niche and looks expensive too and at that price point it makes it value for money device. I will strongly recommend this product to those who wants a bigger, larger display along with super fast processor which can do multitasking and also takes great photographs even in running car. Follow the brand on twitter and Facebook.

I really didn't wanted to let it go but I had amazing fun with the device. The only cons I could identify was the #selfie images captures doesn't get inverted automatically so if there are any alphabets written behind, they appear as mirror image. See the image as an example, sorry for using other brands diary as I didn't had any Huawei branded stuff. This is also a problem with Microsoft Phones and this needs to be corrected in the next software update for the camera.

Cheers!!!

Wednesday, 3 June 2015

#Lumia apps for the busy mom @MicrosoftSA

Hi Guys,

Being a working mom or even a stay home mom can be quite a challenging job with tasks from running errands, ensuring that the kids’ needs are met, helping with homework etc. Knowing how hectic things get we thought we’d share some apps from the Windows Phone store that all moms will love making use of (even dads!). We hope this list includes something all moms will find useful, no matter her interests from gaming to baking, to the creative or entrepreneur.

PicknPay

The Pick n Pay app is free and lets you manage your account anywhere and everywhere. Keep track of your Smart Shopper points, view shopping history, see current promotions and view or use vouchers. You will really appreciate the convenience the PicknPay apps brings to your Lumia handset with features like getting cash back on your card or getting airtime, in exchange for points. Other services include getting travel rewards with Avios or purchasing Webtickets.

PriceCheck
Are you too busy to shop around for deals in store? Download the PriceCheck app and at your convenience, compare the best deals on an extensive range of products before heading out. PriceCheck says it has more than 30 million products listed. You can sift through by category or location. It’s also useful when you are in-store and want to scan a barcode. Results include prices, description, images and user reviews.

Home Remedies

For moms who rely on home remedies to keep the family in good health, look no further than the Home Remedies app. It has more than 50 recipes made from herbs, vegetables, spices or fruit, and claims no side effects. There are options for colds, coughs, acne, hair loss, etc. You can also sift through kids, women, obesity, diabetes etc.

Dictate Now!
For the moms who always have their hands full, the Dictate Now! app is a life saver. We all know that typing takes up more time, so why not just speak to your phone? If you are on any app, just hold down the Windows button (WP8) or Search button (WP8.1) and say “dictate now to clipboard”. The Dictate Now! app will then listen to what you say next and copy it to the clipboard, which you can then paste into whatever app you are in. Or, you can run the app on its own.

Cozi Family Organiser

Cozi Family Organiser has won the award for Best Family App in the Appy awards and for good reason. It has a colour-coded shared calendar to view schedules of individuals or the family, set reminders, shared shopping lists, see items added by family members, and to do lists. The whole family shares one account but each individual can access it using their own email addresses. Another bonus is the cross platform support.

Sometimes these mobile apps really makes it very easy for us to order stuff and other times we want to De-stress ourselves via going to the actual stores and have our own say what to buy and what not? Smartphones have taken the market via storm and Windows Phones is also gaining market share from Android and iOS as more and more apps are being developed for this platform also.

Cheers!!!