Samsung Galaxy Grand vs Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 – Hardware, Camera, Specs Review

Today we compare the Samsung Galaxy Grand smartphone with the newly unveiled Samsung Galaxy Grand 2. This is one of the first battles where a mid-segment smartphone goes one on one with its successor.

This is the battle that many mid-segment consumers have been looking forward since the time Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Grand 2! We put these two smartphones in a head to head battle of specs and features in an attempt to find out the changes and improvements that have been made in the new version.

If you are interested in knowing how good the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 smartphone is, then this is the post for you! Will the Samsung Galaxy Grand be able to put up a fight against the Galaxy Grand 2 or will the successor prove to be way more powerful and advanced? Let us find out.

Samsung Galaxy Grand

Samsung Galaxy Grand 2

DISPLAY

The Samsung Galaxy Grand has a 5-inch TFT capacitive touchscreen display with a screen resolution of 480 x 800 pixels and a pixel density of 187 ppi. The display is clear enough for regular viewing, but a screen resolution of 480 x 800 pixels on a 5-inch display does not really sound good.

The Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 has a 5.25-inch TFT capacitive touchscreen display with a screen resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels and a pixel density of 280 ppi. Compared to the original Galaxy Grand, the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 has a much better resolution and hence provides much better clarity.

WINNER – Samsung Galaxy Grand 2

HARDWARE

The Samsung Galaxy Grand is powered by a 1.2 GHz dual-core processor, standard GPU and has 1 GB of RAM. This hardware configuration is decent enough to ensure that the device functions normally and is able to handle most of the apps and games that need more power.

On the other hand, the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 runs on a 1.2GHz quad-core processor, standard GPU and has 1.5GB of RAM. So once again, there is a major upgrade in the processing system of the Galaxy Grand 2 when compared to the original Galaxy Grand.

WINNER – Samsung Galaxy Grand 2

OPERATING SYSTEM

The Samsung Galaxy Grand runs on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean out of the box. The smartphone has been around for quite some time, but Samsung has still not rolled out the latest version of Android operating system for the smartphone.

The Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 runs on Android 4.3 Jelly Bean out of the box. So even though consumers will not be able to experience Android 4.4 KitKat right away, the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 does have a major advantage over the Galaxy Grand that is still on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean.

WINNER – Samsung Galaxy Grand 2

STORAGE

The Samsung Galaxy Grand has 8GB of internal storage space; there is no other option available. But you can expand storage up to 64GB with the help of a microSD card, bringing your total storage space up to 72GB.

The Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 also has 8GB of internal storage and has a microSD card support. The smartphone supports cards up to 64GB, hence the maximum total storage space you can have is 72GB.

WINNER – Draw

CAMERA

The Samsung Galaxy Grand has an 8 MP primary camera with autofocus and LED flash and a 2 MP secondary camera. The primary camera supports 1080p video recording at 30fps and comes with features like geo-tagging, touch focus, face and smile detection and image stabilization.

The Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 also has an 8 MP primary camera with autofocus and LED flash and a 1.9 MP secondary camera. The primary camera supports 1080p video recording at 30fps and comes with features like geo-tagging, touch focus, face and smile detection and image stabilization. So there is hardly any difference in the cameras of these two devices.

WINNER – Draw

BATTERY

The Samsung Galaxy Grand has a removable 2100 mAh Li-Ion battery. You can expect a talk time of up to 8 hours and a stand by time of up to 300 hours.

The Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 has a removable 2600 mAh Li-Ion battery (that’s 500 mAh more than the Galaxy Grand). We do not have the official battery stats for this device, but we expect the smartphone to perform similar to the Galaxy Grand as far as battery backup is concerned. Remember that the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 has a bigger screen and higher pixel density, so it will use up more battery.

WINNER – Draw

DIMENSIONS

The dimensions of the Samsung Galaxy Grand are 143.5 x 76.9 x 9.6 mm whereas the dimensions of the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 are 146.8 x 75.3 x 8.9 mm. In spite of the bigger screen and larger battery, the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 manages to be much more compact and at the same time thinner than the original Samsung Galaxy Grand.

WINNER – Samsung Galaxy Grand 2

WEIGHT

The Samsung Galaxy Grand weighs 162 grams whereas the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 weighs 163 grams. Once again, the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 is just 1 gram heavier than the original Galaxy Grand. But it packs a much bigger battery and larger screen, so cheers to Samsung for the new compact body and design.

WINNER – Samsung Galaxy Grand 2

CONCLUSION

This was one interesting battle! Honestly speaking, we know that there is a generation gap between the Samsung Galaxy Grand and Galaxy Grand 2. But for now, we want to keep this point aside because we are quite sure that both these smartphones will have a very small difference in price.

So as far as the hardware configuration and features are concerned, we don’t see one good reason why consumers should buy the older Samsung Galaxy Grand! Samsung has definitely put in a lot of efforts in the making of the new Galaxy Grand 2, and we like all the changes that have been made. We are always ready to welcome suggestions but the device is already out, so let’s get on with reality.

So to sum it up, the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 is the winner of this battle! And here is a list of reasons why it proves to be much better than the older Galaxy Grand:

• Premium faux leather back panel
• Better display resolution
• Quad-core processor
• 1.5GB of RAM
• Android 4.3 Jelly Bean
• Higher capacity battery

Here is a specifications chart of the Samsung Galaxy Grand and the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2:

Top Tricks to Increase Your Twitter Traffic

With our current way of life, Social Networking Websites are one of the best ways to reach the masses, if used correctly. Websites like Twitter make it possible for you to easily advertise and promote your business or blog, although, unless you are actually able to build up a decent following, you will simply be talking to yourself. The only real way to get a massive number of followers is to tweet something positive about Justin Bieber, and then sit back and watch as thousands of young fan-girls follow you, although these probably aren’t the people you want to be targeting with your blog/business ideas. Here are some helpful tips to remember if you wish to improve your Twitter traffic.

Brilliant Twitter Bio

On a social networking site that has millions of users, you need to ensure that you have something that makes you stand out. This is where your Twitter biography comes in. If you are going to have a boring biography that puts the reader to sleep, there will be no ‘follow’ coming your way. It is important to have followers that have similar interests to you, therefore it is important to actually be yourself (this is rare on the internet). This is not an excuse to write an essay about yourself, keep it short and sweet, making sure to add something about both your personal and professional life.

Username is Key

Usernames need to be selected carefully and according to your specific niche. Let’s say you are a gambling fanatic and wish to tweet about all your epic adventures on http://www.jackgold.com.Calling yourself @CuteSk8erChikk isn’t quite going to cut it. It would be much more beneficial to go with something like @JackpotJoy, which will help make it easier for people to find you.

Pointless Hashtags

There is nothing more off-putting that reading tweet after tweet that ends with a large number of completely pointless hashtags. If you wish to promote your educated ideas with fellow educated individuals, using hashtags like #cute #summer #NoFilter and #Yolo, is definitely not the way to go.

Tweet Regularly

No one is going to follow you if they find your profile and see that your last tweet was some eight months ago. With the fast-paced world that we live in, it is important to tweet regularly, with information that will appeal to your followers. This will make them want to retweet what you have to say, and will ultimately increase your traffic. There is however a fine line between regular tweets and spam. Constant tweeting will fill your follower’s feed, frustrating them to the point of an ‘unfollow’.

By Jason Swindon

Get over 50GB of free online storage and syncing with MediaFire

Just about every major tech company is offering free online storage space, but few give you as much free space as MediaFire. The cloud storage provider is heating up the competition with offers of 50GB or more of free storage--and, with the new Windows and Mac desktop app--automatic file syncing as well.

Yes, that means, as The Next Web reports, taking on popular online storage provider Dropbox.

MediaFire starts you off with 10GB of free space, and it's ad-supported, but that's still five times as much free space to start off with as Dropbox. You can earn 50GB (or more) with referrals and other actions. I had already locked in a 50GB account, thanks to downloading the Android app, but the bonus space--via connecting social accounts or installing MediaFire Desktop, even--is still available on top of that.

Even if you've already got an account with Dropbox, Google Drive, SkyDrive, and/or another cloud storage provider, 50GB of free space is still hard to pass up. MediaFire Desktop includes: automatic file syncing to the cloud, link sharing, file version tracking and automatic duplicate file removal, activity feed, and quick screenshot capturing.

Love and hate for Java 8 (Everything that you need to know)

Java8 isn’t scheduled for for release until March 2014, but early release versions have been available for a while. Some of the most interesting new features of Java 8 are: 

• Streams 
• Functional interfaces 
• Default methods 
• Lambdas 
• Java Time 

Streams 

The new java.util.stream package contains “classes to support functional-style operations on streams of elements”. Streams aren’t a new type of collection and don’t replace any of the existing ones such as Lists and Queues. Instead, they provide a way to interact with an existing collection, and in that respect are more similar to iterators. 

The javadocs describe a stream as “a sequence of elements supporting sequential and parallel aggregate operations.” A stream pipeline consists of a source (e.g. a collection), intermediate operations (e.g. a filter or map) and a terminal operation, which produce a result (e.g. sum or count). Streams are lazy in that the operations on the data are only performed at the last minute i.e. when the terminal operation is called, and the stream is processed only once. 

For example: 

int totalFxTrading = blocks.stream()
        .filter(trade -> trade.getType() == FX)
        .mapToInt(b -> b.getTradedAmount())
        .sum();

Functional interfaces

Java 8 will have a new feature called functional interfaces. A functional interface has exactly one abstract method. There are many such interfaces that you have probably used as a Java developer, such as Runnable, ActionListener, Comparator and Callable. In Java 8 these types of interfaces are now more formally called Functional interfaces. They can be identified using a new @FunctionalInterfaceannotation, and most importantly, can be represented using Lambda expressions (more later). For example, to use an ActionListener in the past, you needed to create an implementation, often using an anonymous inner class. 

For example: 

JButton button = new JButton();
        button.addActionListener(new ActionListener() {
            @Override
            public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent ae) {
                System.out.println(ae.getSource());
            }
        });

Using functional interfaces, this becomes much simpler: 

JButton myButton = new JButton();
        button.addActionListener(
            ae -> {System.out.println("You clicked the button");}
        );

We never need to even mention ActionEvent – the compiler derives the type of ‘ae’ from the context. Note that the @FunctionalInterfaceannotation, like the @Override annotation, is not required. Instead it signals to the compiler your intentions so that it can warn you if something looks amiss e.g. more than one abstract method is available. 

Default methods

Prior to Java7, an interface was a fairly simply thing. It could contain abstract methods only (and constants) which had to be implemented by concrete subclasses. An interface was basically a bunch of method signatures, but could never contain a method definition/implementation. 

In Java8, things gets more interesting. Default methods can now be added to an interface. These are methods that do have an implementation, do not have to be overridden in the interface implementation and can be run directly from the interface. 

These default methods were added as a necessity to provide backwards compatibility. If they had not been added, it would not have been possible to extend/improve the existing collection interfaces, for example, without breaking all the implementations. So for that reason, default methods are sometimes referred to as defender methods. 

To me, the really interesting thing about default methods is that they allow a form of multiple inheritance. Since a class can implement more than one interface, and each of those interfaces can now potentially have a default method with the same name, which version does the subclass inherit? I think this is referred to as the diamond problem. If such a scenario arises when using Java8, the compiler will provide a warning. You can use the syntax X.super.m(…) to explicitly choose one of the parent class’s implementations. 

On a side note, why do these new default methods need the default keyword at all? Couldn’t they have worked just as well without that keyword? The answer is yes, the default keyword is redundant, just like the abstract keyword. Both were added to make things a little more clear. This post has some more details are links. 

Lambda

According to Wikipedia, a lambda expression is “a function defined without being bound to an identifier”. Lambda expressions are coming to Java in version, designed to allow code to be streamlined. 

Many of the other changes I discussed above(default methods, functional interfaces) are very closey related to the introduction of lambas. 

When a Lambda expression is written, it is translated into a functional interface at compile time. Here is an example of using Lambda expressions to replace an anonymous inner class with much cleaner and more readable code.

Old way without Lambda: 

button.addActionListener(new ActionListener() {
        public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent ae) {
            System.out.println(“Action Detected”);
        }
    });

New way with Lambda: 

button.addActionListener(e -> {
        System.out.println(“Action Detected”);
    });

Using Lambda expressions will often make the code easier to read and require fewer lines. 

Java time

Dealing with dates and time in Java has never been ideal. At best it has been quirky, and at worst, a bit of a nightmare. The Date class was clunky and is now littered with deprecated methods. The Calendar class was an improvement, but I personally always seem to spend more time that I would like having to trawl through the API docs, even for things I have done before. Other 3rd party libraries tried to deal with times in a more elegany fashion (e.g. Joda time). There have been rumors of improved handling in Java itslef anf with Java8, it is here – the java.time package. 

A new (abstract) Clock class provides some useful static methods such as systemUTC() and systemDefaultZone() to get the current time and timezone. And a number of new classes such as LocalDate and LocalTime, and YearMonth and MonthDay provide more elegant handing of day to day (pardon the pun) date operations. 

What’s not in Java8

On a side note, although date/time handling will be improved in Java8, amazingly there is still no good way to handle currency in Java (something I have blogged about in the past). Doubles (and all floating point numbers) are inherently unsuitable for money, or anywhere exact calculations are required. Using int or long requires keeping track of decimal points, and BigDecimal isn’t ideal either.Those guys may improve things, but it looks like we will have to wait until Java 9 for that  :-)

Install and run Windows on a USB / External HDD using an ISO

Ever wanted a copy of Windows you can take with you wherever you go, to use on any computer you want? It's possible: here's how to install a portable version of Windows 8 on a USB hard drive that you can take anywhere.P

The Enterprise version of Windows 8 has a feature called Windows To Go that lets you install a portable version of Windows on a "certified" flash drive. Unfortunately, most of us don't have the Enterprise edition of Windows 8, nor a certified flash drive. However, there is a tool called WinToUSB that can essentially do the same thing, no matter what version of Windows you have. Here's how it works.

WinToUSB is a free software that allows you to install and run Windows operating system on a USB hard drive or USB flash drive, using an ISO image or CD/DVD drive as the source of installation. WinToUSB also support creating bootable WinPE USB drive, it can help you to transfer the contents of WinPE to the USB drive and make the drive bootable.

WinToUSB's key features include:

• Easy-to-use wizard interface that provides step-by-step instructions for installing Windows/WinPE on a USB drive.
• Install Windows/WinPE from an ISO image or CD/DVD drive.
• Support for Windows NT 6.x OS family (Vista/7/8/8.1/2008/2008 R2/2012/2012 R2) and WinPE 2/3/4/5.
• Use any edition of Windows 8(.1) to create Windows To Go USB drive.
• Support for MBR and GPT disk layouts.
• Don't need install WAIK (Windows Automated Installation Kit) or WADK (Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit).

Important notes:

• Windows Vista/7/2008/2008 R2 does not have built-in USB 3.0 support, so Windows Vista/7/2008/2008 R2 will have to be booted from a USB 2.0 port.
• USB flash drives are very slow. It takes a long time to install and run Windows from a USB flash drive, highly recommend using a USB hard disk or Windows To Go Certified Drives.
• Windows To Go drives can be booted on different computers, so you can carry it to anywhere and use it on any computer.
• Windows 7 is not completely portable. You may have activation and driver problems when booting on different computers.
• You need to be an administrator on the computer you are installing the WinToUSB on.

System requirements

• Windows XP or later (32/64-bit).
• Intel® Pentium® processor.
• 256MB of available RAM (512MB or more recommended).
• 10MB of free space on your hard drive.
• 800x600 graphic device (higher resolution recommended).

Downloads

Download WinToUSB V1.4

• Local download

Let me know here:  Snehal [at] TechProceed [dot] com,  if you need any further help.  :-)

BBM for Android & iPhone – It's finally here!

BBM for Android and iPhone is now live in Google Play and Apple’s App Store

BBM for Android and iPhone nets over 10 million downloads on day one of release

BlackBerry has revealed than in the first 24 hours since it launched BBM for Andorid and iPhone it has been downloaded more than 10 million times, in what the company describes as "one of the best single-day openings for a mobile app to date ."

BBM achieved number one app status in the UK, US, Canada, Indonesia and "most of the Middle East," according to a BlackBerry statement. It also gained "overwhelmingly positive" user ratings on both Apple's App Store and Google Play with 60,000 five star reviews on Google Play.

Andrew Bocking, BlackBerry's executive vice president of BBM, said, "This has been an incredible launch for BBM across Android and iPhone devices. The mobile messaging market is full of opportunity for BBM. We intend to be the leading private social network for everyone who needs the immediate communication and collaboration of instant messaging combined with the privacy, control and reliability delivered through BBM."

He added: "While we’re excited to bring BBM to iPhone and Android – we aren’t stopping there. Work isn’t slowing down at all. We committed to delivering a BBM experience on iPhone and Android that was equal to that on BlackBerry 10. That means bringing BBM Video, BBM Voice and BBM Channels to Android and iPhone customers too.

"My team is still committed to bringing those features to BBM on Android and iPhone in the near future. And we’re not stopping there – we have some great new features planned that will build on BBM as the private social network you count on for immediate conversations you can control and trust."

Reviews of BBM for Android called into question 

A slew of five star ratings for BBM for Android has resulted in allegations that something fishy is going on inside Google’s Play store, and the allegation is as follows: BlackBerry is writing up fake reviews of its newly released IM application, BBM.

BlackBerry launched BBM for Android and iOS on Monday. Since then a stream of “fake” reviews has appeared inside Google’s Play store (see below).

At the time of writing there are currently 182,000 reviews of BBM for Android. It’s not uncommon for companies to hire marketing firms to write up decent reviews of newly released applications, although BlackBerry says this is not the case it all –– it has nothing to do with the reviews.

A BlackBerry spokesperson gave TNW the following statement:

"We have been made aware of a number of potentially fake reviews of BBM for Android on Google Play, with ratings anywhere from one to five stars. We have no knowledge of how these reviews were created or populated. We do not approve of or condone such activities. There are also many genuinely great and useful reviews from our new BBM users on Google Play. We would like to encourage our fans and users to continue to provide true assessments of the BBM experience through the proper channels."

BlackBerry officially launched BBM for iPhone and Android

After much ado, BlackBerry has finally confirmed the release details of BBM for Android and iPhone. The IM application is now available for download inside Google Play And Apple’s App Store.

BBM for Android and iPhone was downloaded by five million users within the first eight hours of its release, BBM has confirmed. 

BBM now inside Google Play & App Store

BlackBerry confirmed the rollout would begin yesterday evening. Here’s the company’s official statement:

“I am thrilled to tell you that we are about to officially resume our rollout of BBM for Android and iPhone customers around the globe!* In the next few hours, people will start seeing BBM in Google Play, the App Store and in select Samsung App Stores – where it will be free to download,” wrote Andrew Bocking on the official BlackBerry Blog. 

Around six million people signed up for email updates on BBM.com, according to Bocking. And to ensure this rollout goes more smoothly than the last one, BlackBerry has implemented the following roll out schedule:

Download BBM – the easiest way is to visit BBM.com from your Android or iPhone browser

Once you install the app, open it, and enter your email address to hold your spot in line

We will email you as soon as you reach the front of the line and can start using BBM

Users that signed up for email alerts from BBM.com can download and start using the application straight away. But if you didn’t sign up for alerts –– and this is the kicker –– you’ll have to wait for BlackBerry to activate your account. 

“If you didn’t sign up in advance, don’t worry – we are focused on moving millions of customers through the line as fast as possible,” added Bocking.

Once you’re email has reached the front of the queue you’ll receive an email from BlackBerry and you can then –– and only then –– begin using BBM.

Beat the queues and get BBM straight away

In a bid to ensure that the rollout of BBM isn’t royally mucked again, BlackBerry has taken the rather unique approach of implementing a queuing system for access to its now-cross-platform IM app.

How it works is simple: you download the app, register or sign-in, and then wait for BlackBerry to verify your BBM account and grant you access to the service. That’s all well and good but it doesn’t take into account one thing –– most people are very impatient.

So, if you don’t want to have to go through all that, and you just want to start using BBM as soon as you’ve downloaded the app, check out this handy little trick, via CNET, to get instant access to BBM as soon as it’s downloaded: 

“Open the BBM app, enter your e-mail address and click Next. Then, force-close the app: on an Apple device double-click the home button and swipe the app away; or on Android, enter the multitasking menu and swipe the app away, or go to Settings, Apps, BBM, and Force Close.

“Relaunch the app and it should allow you to create an account and start using the app. Bear in mind however that BlackBerry could close this sneaky loophole at any time.”

How do I download or save a YouTube video to my computer?

YouTube has been designed to only allow users to watch and view videos on their website. Many users want to save their favorite videos to their computer so they can watch them without being connected to the Internet or so they can watch them on other devices. Below are the steps required for downloading and watching YouTube videos on your computer for free.

Saving YouTube video as a video file on your computer

Today, there are several online websites that allow you to enter the URL of the video you wish to save to your computer, and get a link to download the file. Below is the simple three step process that will link you to a page that does the job.

1. Go to the YouTube video page and copy the URL of the video you wish to save. For example, below is a URL to a video on YouTube, the whole address would be copied.
2. Once this address has been copied, paste that URL into the below URL text field and click the Download Video button.




3. If done properly, a new window will open with available video formats that can be saved. For most users we suggest the MP4 format, other formats may include FLV, 3GP, and WebM.

Hope you liked the simple way to download the videos from YouTube.  :-)

How to Root any Android Phone without PC

Rooting your android phone is a time consuming tasks and requires having a PC with other accessories. For those people who want to root android phone without a PC now can root their device without using computer.

Not everyone roots their android phones, but there are several advantages of rooting your phone. It removes several restrictions and gives you full access to the device. You can increase the performance of your android phone by tweaking few things on it, ability to install custom ROM with latest firmware update and many more awesome things.

But the thing to remember before rooting any android phone is that it voids warranty of your device. And if something goes wrong while rooting your phone you better forget you have any warranty card.

Can you Unroot your Android Phone?

Thankfully! Yes you can unroot any android phone easily with few clicks. I have covered this topic in this post: How to unroot any Android Phone

Coming back to the method rooting android phone without PC is instructed and developed by a developer called alephzain from XDA forums. By using Framaroot app you will be able to root any android phone without the need of a PC.

How does this App Works?

Once you download and install Framaroot application on your android phone it can install the Superuser and Su binary on your phone and also uses six safe exploits to complete the rooting process namely Gandalf, Boromir, Sam,,Frodo , Aragorn and Gimli.

Note: Using Framaroot You can only root phone running on Android 2.0 to Android 4,2 Jelly Bean.

Root Android Phone without a PC

1. Download Framaroot App on your PC or You can directly download it on your Android phone

Note: Download the Frameroot APKs from the XDA site. 

2. If you have downloaded the apk file on your computer then copy it to your android phone memory and if you have downloaded on your phone then be it there itself and proceed with step 3.

3. Now click on the downloaded or copied apk file to install it

4. Next inside the app choose “Install Superuser “ option

5. Now select any of the exploits that appear in the app and wait till the process completes

6. If the rooting is successful then you’ll see a message like this “Success. Superuser and su binary installed”. You have to reboot your device”

7. If the rooting process fails with a message like “Failed. Try another exploit if available” then try any other exploit from the app.

That’s it! You have successfully rooted your android phone without using a PC. If you want you can also unroot your device using the same app.

Compatibility for Qualcomm devices (Gandalf exploit only) :

Asus Padfone 1/2

Asus Padfone Infinity

Asus Transformer Pad Infinity TF700KL

BW T18+ (Fortis Evo)

Cloudfone Thrill 430x

Disgo 8400g

DNS S4504/S4503/S4502

FAEA F1

Gigabyte GSmart G1315 Skate

Gigabyte GSmart Rio R1

Google Nexus 4

Highscreen Spark/OMEGA Q/Blast/Strike/Boost

HTC One S

Huawei Honor Pro (U8950-1)

Huawei U8815/U8816 Ascend G300/G301

Huawei U8825D Ascend G330D

Karbonn Titanium S5

Kyocera Torque

Lenovo S870E

LG Nitro HD

LG L7 II P710/P714/P715

LG Optimus F5 (P875)

LG Optimus G E970/E975

LG Optimus L3 II E425

LG Optimus L5 E610/612/615

LG Optimus L7 II P710/P713/ P714/P715

LG Optimus L7 P700/Р705

LG Optimus LTE 2

MEDION LIFE P4013

Micromax A111 Canvas Doodle

Oppo Find 5

Orange Nivo

Pantech Discover

Pantech IM-A840S Vega S5

Samsung Galaxy Win I8552

Sharp Aquos Phone SH930W

Sony Xperia E C1505/Dual C1605

Sony Xperia L C210X

teXet TM-3204R

teXet TM-4677

Xiaomi Mi-2S

ZTE V880G/ZTE V955

Compatibility for MTK devices (Boromir exploit only) :

Alcatel OT 4030D S’POP

Alcatel OT 8008D Scribe HD

Alcatel OT 997D

Alcatel OT Idol 6030X/6030D/6030H

Amoi N828

ASUS Memo Pad HD 7

Chinese Star S7589

DAXIAN XY100S

Explay HD Quad

Explay infinity II

Explay Polo

Explay Surfer 7.32 3G

Explay Surfer 8.31 3G

Fly IQ440 Energie

Fly IQ441 Radiance

Fly IQ442 Miracle

Fly IQ443 Trend

Fly IQ446 Magic

Fly IQ450 Quattro Horizon 2

Fly IQ451

GoClever Fone 570Q

Haipai I9389

Highscreen Alpha GTX

HKC Q79 3G

Huawei U8836D G500 Pro

IconBIT NetTAB Space 3G Duo

iOcean X7

Jiayu G2

Jiayu G3S

Jiayu G4

KENEKSI Beta

Lava iris 405

Lenovo IdeaPhone P700i

Lenovo IdeaPhone S720

Lenovo IdeaTab A3000-H

Lenovo IdeaTab S6000-H

Lenovo P770

Lenovo S820, S920, A390

Micromax Canvas HD

Motorola RAZR D3

Newman N1

Oppo findway U7015

OUMEI X5

Philips W536

Philips W736

Prestigio MultiPhone 4055

Prestigio MultiPhone PAP 4505DUO

Sharp AQUOS SH837W

Star S5 Butterfly

TeXet NaviPad TM-7055HD

Texet TM-5277

THL V12

THL W100 (130711)

THL W200

ZOPO C2 Platinum

ZOPO ZP 910

ZOPO ZP300+

ZOPO ZP900 Leader

ZTE V880G/H

ZTE V987 Grand X Quad

Compatibility for Samsung devices (Legolas and Aragorn exploits only) :

Samsung Galaxy Core GT-I8262

Samsung Galaxy Proclaim S720C

Samsung Galaxy Young GT-S6312/GT-S6310

Samsung Lightray SCH-R940

Compatibility for Exynos devices (Sam, Frodo, Legolas and Aragorn exploits only) :

AT&T Galaxy Note 2 SGH-I317

Highscreen Explosion

Hyundai T7s

Impression 9702 (Exynos 4412)

Lenovo K860/К860i

Newman N2

Meizu MX2

Samsung Galaxy Camera EK-GC100

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 GT-N8000, GT-N8010, GT-N8013, GT-N8020

Samsung Galaxy Note 2 GT-N7100

Samsung Galaxy Note 2 LTE GT-N7105

Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0

Samsung Galaxy Note GT-N7000

Samsung Galaxy S GT-i9000

Samsung Galaxy S2 AT&T SGH-I777

Samsung Galaxy S2 Epic 4G Touch – SPH-D710

Samsung Galaxy S2 GT-I9100

Samsung Galaxy S3 GT-I9300

Samsung Galaxy S3 LTE GT-I9305

Samsung Galaxy Tab Plus GT-P6200/GT-P6210

Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 GT-P6800/GT-P6810

Samsung SGH-i997 Infuse 4G

T-Mobile Galaxy Note 2 T-889

Verizon Galaxy Note 2 SCH-I605

iBerry Auxus CoreX2 3G and CoreX4 3G

Compatibility for Omap36XX devices (Gimli exploit only) :

Archos Gen8

Cliq 2 MB611

Coolpad Quattro 4G

Droid 2 (a955)

Droid 2 Global (a956)

Droid X (MB810)

LG Marquee LS855

LG P970 Optimus Black

Motorola DEFY+ (MB525 / MB526)

Motorola Droid PRO

Motorola Droid X

Motorola XPRT

Parrot ASTEROID Smart

R2D2 (a957)

If you have any queries/feedback, please write it in comments section below OR mail me here : Snehal[at]Techproceed[dot]com

Happy Androiding :-)

How to Enable USB Debugging & Developer Options in Android 4.2 Jelly Bean

The USB Debugging and Developer Options are hidden in latest Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. If we want to use that options, manually activate it. Google has rolled out latest Jelly Bean OTA update for their nexus mobiles. After the updating process, the developer option is not there in settings. Here is the guide to enable USB debugging on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean running mobiles and tablets.

Developer Options have many features for app developer to test an app on their device from PC via ADB. After enabling the debugging mode only, access the mobile from PC. ADB is used for users if they want to quickly access and run commands on their device from their PC or Laptop. In gingerbread it is placed in Settings >  Applications  >  Development  >  USB Debugging. And ICS it is placed in Settings  >  Developer Options  >  USB Debugging. But, after upgrading it to 4.2 it is missing. After a long time to search around, we found the way how to activate it.

How to Enable USB Debugging and Developer Options on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean:

1. Go to – Settings > About phone.
2. Then move on to Build number option
3. Tap on Build number repeatedly about 7 times.
4. This is enough.
5. After touching 7th time you will see a message that, “you are now a developer”.

Now the option will be placed in Settings menu. Normally it placed under System in Settings menu. Then you can enable it in Developer Options and Android Debugging.

5 class design principles [S.O.L.I.D.] in Java

Classes are the building blocks of your java application. If these blocks are not strong, your building (i.e. application) is going to face the tough time in future. This essentially means that not so well-written can lead to very difficult situations when the application scope goes up or application faces certain design issues either in production or maintenance.

On the other hand, set of well designed and written classes can speed up the coding process by leaps and bounds, while reducing the number of bugs in comparison.

In this post, I will list down 5 most recommended design principles, you should keep in mind, while writing your classes. These design principles are called SOLID, in short. They also form the best practices to be followed for designing your application classes.

1. Single Responsibility Principle
2. Open Closed Principle
3. Liskov’s Substitution Principle
4. Interface Segregation Principle
5. Dependency Inversion Principle

Lets drill down all of them one by one.

Single Responsibility Principle

The name of the principle says it all:

"One class should have one and only one responsibility"

In other words, you should write, change and maintain a class for only one purpose. If it is model class then it should strictly represent only one actor/ entity. This will give you the flexibility to make changes in future without worrying the impacts of changes for another entity.

Similarly, If you are writing service/manager class then it should contain only that part of method calls and nothing else. Not even utility global functions related to module. Better separate them in another globally accessible class file. This will help in maintaining the class for that particular purpose, and you can decide the visibility of class to specific module only.

Open Closed Principle

This is second important rule which you should keep in mind while designing your application. It says:

"Software components should be open for extension, but closed for modification"

What does it mean?? It means that your classes should be designed such a way that whenever fellow developers wants to change the flow of control in specific conditions in application, all they need to extend your class and override some functions and that’s it.

If other developers are not able to design desired behavior due to constraints put by your class, then you should reconsider changing your class. I do not mean here that anybody can change the whole logic of your class, but he/she should be able to override the options provided by software in unharmful way permitted by software.

For example, if you take a look into any good framework like struts or spring, you will see that you can change their core logic and request processing, BUT you modify the desired application flow just by extending some classes and plugin them in configuration files.

Liskov’s Substitution Principle

This principle is a variation of previously discussed open closed principle. It says:

"Derived types must be completely substitutable for their base types"

It means that the classes fellow developer created by extending your class should be able to fit in application without failure. I.e. if a fellow developer poorly extended some

part of your class and injected into framework/ application then it should not break the application or should not throw fatal exceptions.

This can be insured by using strictly following first rule. If your base class is doing one thing strictly, the fellow developer will override only one feature incorrectly in worst case. This can cause some errors in one area, but whole application will not do down.

Interface Segregation Principle

This principle is my favorite one. It is applicable to interfaces as single responsibility principle holds to classes. It says:

"Clients should not be forced to implement unnecessary methods which they will not use"

Take an example. Developer Alex created an interface “Reportable” and added two methods generateExcel() and generatedPdf(). Now client ‘A’ wants to use this interface but he intend to use reports only in PDF format and not in excel. Will he achieve the functionality easily.

NO. He will have to implement two methods, out of which one is extra burden put on him by designer of software. Either he will implement another method or leave it blank. So are not desired cases, right??

So what is the solution? Solution is to create two interfaces by breaking the existing one. They should be like PdfReportable and ExcelReportable. This will give the flexibility to user to use only required functionality only.

Dependency Inversion Principle

Most of us are already familiar with the words used in principle’s name. It says:

"Depend on abstractions, not on concretions"

In other words. you should design your software in such a way that various modules can be separated from each other using an abstract layer to bind them together. The classical use of this principle of BeanFactory inspring framework. In spring framework, all modules are provided as separate components which can work together by simply injected dependencies in other module. They are so well closed in their boundaries that you can use them in other software modules apart from spring with same ease.

This has been achieved by dependency inversion and open closed principles. All modules expose only abstraction which is useful in extending the functionality or plugin in another module.

These were five class design principle which makes the best practices to be followed to design your application classes. Let me know of your thoughts.

Happy Learning !!

How to root your Android phone or tablet

Is the allure of being a superuser tempting you? Android rooting opens up a world of possibility, but it can also void your warranty, or even leave you with a bricked device. The important thing is to be careful. Read up about what you are going to do before you begin. Make sure that you backup your data. Follow the instructions to the letter. Manufacturers and carriers have a vested interest in dissuading you from rooting. If you’re careful, the risk is minimal, and the potential benefits are impressive. Let’s take a closer look.

What is rooting?

If you’re an Administrator on a Windows machine, you have access to the entire operating system and you can do whatever you like. That’s essentially what happens if you root your Android device. With root access, you can get around any restrictions that your manufacturer or carrier may have applied. You can run more apps; you can customize your device to a greater degree; and you can potentially speed it up in a variety of ways.

The process involves backing up your current software and then flashing (installing) a new custom ROM (modified version of Android).

Why would you root?

One of the most obvious incentives to root your Android device is to rid yourself of the bloatware that’s impossible to uninstall. You’ll be able to set up wireless tethering, even if it has been disabled by default. You can also access your entire file system, install special apps that require a root, and flash custom ROMs, which can add extra features and streamline your phone or tablet’s performance. A lot of people are tempted by the ability to completely customize the look of their phones. You can also manually accept or deny app permissions.

You won’t find a lot of amazing must-have apps when you root, but there are enough to make it worthwhile. For example, some apps allow you to automatically backup all of your apps and all of their data, completely block advertisements, create secure tunnels to the Internet, overclock your processor, or make your device a wireless hotspot.

Why wouldn’t you root?

There are essentially three potential cons to rooting your Android.

• Voiding your warranty: Some manufacturers or carriers will use rooting as an excuse to void your warranty. It’s worth keeping in mind that you can always unroot. If you need to send the device back for repair, simply flash the original backup ROM you made and no one will ever know that it was rooted.
• Bricking your phone: Whenever you tamper too much, you run at least a small risk of bricking your device. This is the big fear everyone has. The obvious way to avoid it happening is to follow instructions carefully. Make sure that the guide you are following works for your device and that any custom ROM you flash is designed specifically for it. If you do your research and pay attention to feedback from others, bricking should never occur.
• Security risks: Rooting may introduce some security risks. Depending on what services or apps you use on your device, rooting could create a security vulnerability. For example, Google refuses to support the Google Wallet service for rooted devices.

How to root your Android

Before you actually try to root your device, make sure that you do some reading. The best place to find discussions about rooting, guides, and custom ROMs is definitely the XDA Developers Forum. Look for a thread on your specific device and you’re sure to find a method that has worked for other people. It’s worth spending some time researching the right method for your device.

Preparation for root

You’ll want to ensure that your device is fully charged before you begin. You’ll also need to turn USB debugging on. On the Galaxy S3 you’ll find it in Menu > Settings > Developer options and then check the box next to USB debugging. You will likely be plugging your device into your computer in order to root it.

Most Android rooting methods require you to install some software on your computer. It’s likely you’ll need to install the Android SDK. You may find other software is required. Make sure you follow the instructions and install all of it before proceeding.

One-click rooting

One of the easiest methods of rooting, which also supports a long list of devices, is SuperOneClick. You’ll find clear instructions, including a video, on how to use it at this XDA Developers SuperOneClick thread.

You will need to install some software to prepare, but the actual rooting process is one click. It will only take a few minutes to complete and then you’ll need to restart your Android device.

There is software out there that claims to provide one click rooting with no extra installs, but you should not have to pay to root your device and it’s very important to be wary about the method you choose. If in doubt, do more research. The XDA Developers forum is the most trustworthy source for rooting guides.

Your specific device

The reason rooting isn’t more straightforward is that all Android devices are not created equal. There are significant differences between Android smartphones, between manufacturers, and even between carrier specific versions of the same phone model. Make sure that any rooting guide or custom ROM you intend to use does support your specific device or you are asking for trouble.

Once you have found the right guide for your phone or tablet, it’s simply a case of working through the listed steps methodically. It can be a complicated procedure and it can take a while. Here’s an example guide for rooting the Samsung Galaxy S3. It can appear intimidating at first glance, but provided you follow it step-by-step, it should be a pain-free process. You can post questions in the XDA Developers forum if you run into trouble.

To root or not to root

Gaining full root access to your Android device can be thrilling, especially if you want to tinker with settings and customize your device. How much it changes your experience depends largely on the device you have. If you have a shuttered device, like a Kindle Fire tablet, then it’s a great way to get the full Android experience.

The potential benefits for all Android users include improved battery life, root-only apps, custom ROMs, overclocking, an end to bloatware, improved performance, and the ability to upgrade your phone when you want. If you aren’t excited at the prospect of any of these things, rooting probably isn’t for you.

Have you tried rooting your Android? Did you have a positive experience? Would you recommend rooting to others, or do you think it’s pointless? Post a comment and share your thoughts.

How to Remove the Background from a Picture

Looking to cut out the background from an image, but aren’t quite sure how to do it? Well, no matter if you have Photoshop or not, you’ve come to the right place. In this article we’ll cover two different methods that will get the job done: one that uses Photoshop, and one that relies on a browser-based Web app.

We’ll start with the simplest option – the Web app. Even if you’re partial to full-featured programs like Photoshop or GIMP, we highly recommend checking out Clipping Magic. We like it because the learning curve is insanely low, it doesn’t require any downloads or installs because it runs in your browser, and it doesn’t cost a single cent. The program is currently in alpha, but it still works like a charm. Here’s a quick rundown of how to use it: 

If you’re fortunate enough to have a copy of Photoshop and prefer to use that,  we’ve also included a quick tutorial for that on page two. 

1. How to remove backgrounds with Clipping Magic

So let’s say you want to Photoshop a mustache onto your boss’s face, but you don’t have Photoshop and all of the gloriously curly mustaches you find have annoying white backgrounds on them. In order to strip out the background and get a PNG image of the mustache by itself, follow these steps:

1. Download/save the image to your computer.

2. Head over to ClippingMagic.com.

3. Click the big blue Choose File button or just drag and drop your image into the dotted box.

4. Draw a green line on the parts of the image you want to keep.

5. Draw a red line on the parts of the image you want to remove, i.e., the background. Zoom in as needed for more precision.

6. If the image preview on the right looks correct, go ahead and click save. 

Removing complex backgrounds

Looking to remove the background from an actual photograph, not just some clip art with a white background? Don’t worry – Clipping Magic can handle this too, but it’ll take a little extra work. To get the job done, just follow the same steps as above, but get a little bit more precise with the red and green markings. For example, this picture of my coworker Brandon Widder is pretty good, but the background just doesn’t do him justice. I want to replace it with something a bit more badass.

When I first dropped the image into Clipping Magic, the software’s edge-finding algorithm did a decent job of finding Brandon, but needed a little extra help catching his majestic, flowing locks.

So, to make it more accurate, I needed to zoom in and get more precise with my green markings. You can change the size of your brush in the top menu, but I’ve found that’s it’s much easier to just zoom in really far. Once you’re close enough to see where the algorithm missed the edges, drop a few green marks to help it straighten out. 

Once you’re done with that, just zoom back out too see if the finished product looks all right. Mine’s not perfect, but it’ll do.

Now I can add a newer, more appropriate background…

Perfect!

If you have any questions, feel free to post them in the comments section below and we’ll see if we can help!

2. How to remove a background with Photoshop

Photoshop is a pretty amazing program, and with such a massive selection of tools, the program offers a number of different ways to strip backgrounds from images. We’ll start with the easiest method. If you’re dealing with a background that’s a solid color, you can strip it away with these simple steps:

1. Open the image in Photoshop.

2. Select the Magic Wand tool.

3. Click on the background and hit Delete. It’ll magically disappear.

4. Save your image, and make sure it’s in PNG format.

Removing complex backgrounds

To strip away a more complex background in Photoshop, you’ll need to dig a bit deeper into your toolbox. Photoshop is an incredibly full-featured program, and as such, it supplies you with a myriad different ways to remove backgrounds. Some of these methods carry far steeper learning curves than others, so for this tutorial we’ll go over a method that’s fairly straightforward. Here’s how it’s done:

1. Open your photo in Photoshop.

2. Select the Background Eraser tool.

3. Adjust the brush size to your liking.

4. Set the Sampling to Continuous.

5. Set the Limits to Find Edges.

6. Adjust the Tolerance. Lower is generally better since a high setting will remove more colors. It’s generally a safe bet to opt for a setting in the 20-30 range.

7. Hover your brush over an area of the background that’s near your object. Click and it will magically be removed.

8. Continue this process until you’ve created a background-free border around your entire object. Feel free to adjust the tolerance as needed where your image gets lighter/darker around the edges.

9. Once you’ve got a solid border around your object, you can switch over to the regular Eraser tool to remove the rest and put on the finishing touches before you save

That’s it! if you have got any questions, feel free to post them in the comments section below and we’ll see if we can help!