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Saturday, December 29, 2012

My First Full Frame, and It's Compact

I have to say Sony still has some innovation power in its products, at least in digital camera space (not a fan of its smartphones though). Its release of the first full frame compact camera, RX1 really tempts me. It took me quite some struggling to choose between a normal full frame (e.g. Nikon D600, Canon 6D, etc.) and this one. But considering about that I'll use the camera mainly for travel and casual outings, I finally settled with my decision...

Sunday, December 16, 2012

Windows 8: the Next Vista?

The release of Windows 8 was highly anticipated this year. It is given the mission that it's gonna stand up front and challenge the fast rising iOS and Android, and of course the new era of tablets. However, so far Windows 8 seems not bringing any glory back to Microsoft yet.  I've tried Windows 8 before, not for a long time though. I have to say that Microsoft has put enormous amount of effort in this piece of work. The new UI is fantastic,...

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

500px - Showcase Your Photo Online

Call me too old-fashioned or out of date or whatever, I haven't tried 500px out until yesterday though I came across this name a couple of times. Judging by the name, I thought "nah, it's just another photo-sharing website". It is, but it is much more than that, and much better than I thought.  I have been using flickr for some time, but as an average user who doesn't log on frequently. Anyone who has used Flickr before should have known how...

Sunday, December 9, 2012

This Apple Isn't Golden After All

Source: Yahoo Finance - http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/AAPL:US/chart/ Ever since it hit the $700 per share earlier this year, Apple, Inc. has seen some sharp fall in its share price. As the US market closed on Friday, 7 Dec 2012, its share price is quoted as $533.25. That is a massive 24% decline in the market capitalization or $157 billion equivalent, and it was within 3 months. Taking a more distant perspective, say 5 year horizon, it could...

Saturday, December 8, 2012

Sound and Look Cool - Beats Solo HD

To be honest, I am not a huge fan of earphones, headphones or any audio equipment. To me, it doesn't seem too attractive to spend a few hundred bucks just to feel that the sound is more pleasing or detailed or whatever. As long as I could wear them comfortably and the sound quality isn't terribly bad, I wouldn't want to upgrade my audio gears.  Besides the iPhone original earphones (many audio fans may give a sarcastic smile here) and ATH FC700,...

Sunday, November 25, 2012

The Good and Bad About iPhone 5

It didn't take me much time to decide to get an iPhone 5 after the frustration that Android has brought me: system is laggy and irresponsive, battery is draining fast, and the Android apps just don't work well.  I got my iPhone 5 on Monday, as soon as I came back in Singapore. Having been using the phone for the past 5 days, all I want to say is that it is simply amazing and such a delight to use. But nothing is perfect, here are some things...

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

iPad Mini - A Brief Comparison to Kindle Fire and iPad 2

  I now have three tablets in hand after my recent purchase of iPad mini. Kindle Fire and iPad 2 have served their purpose well. However, iPad mini eventually combined the strength of the two other tablets. This blog is about a brief comparison between the three tablets, which hopefully can give you an idea what tablet you are looking for.&nbs...

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

How I Met My iPad mini

iPad mini is definitely the buzz word in the technology industry this week. Though the launch wasn't as overwhelming as the other Apple products, it still has attracted hard-core fans without too much convincing. To be honest, I wasn't planning to get my iPad mini in London. The price is still cheaper back in Singapore even after the 10% plus tax refund. I was also keener on the 4G models rather than a WiFi only version because judging by the smaller...

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Sony NEX E50 1.8 First Impression

It has been hell long time since my last update. I was back in China for the last four months and had no access to the blogger..Anyway, it's always good to be back in Singapore and this blog too! Today I am bringing some fresh content here! I just got a Sony E-mount lens 50mm F1.8 a few days ago. The reason that I bought this is that I need a good lens for taking the portrait. The large aperture makes the subject more outstanding and also allows...

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Shoot Your Photo Wide! - Sony VCL-ECU1 Ultra-Wide Converter

My previous blog (Sony NEX-5N First Impression) has given an introduction on this lens converter - Sony VCL-ECU1. Here is a more detailed post on this lens converter show what this converter is capable of.  First, this converter is suitable only for E-mount 16mm F2.8. There are reviews on other websites saying that it is also compatible with Panasonic M4/3 lens 14mm F2.5. I can't test this out since I don't have the lens around. The converter...

Sunday, April 29, 2012

Sony NEX-5N First Impression

Last Friday I got my new toy, Sony NEX-5N and I must admit it's an impulsive purchase but it turns out to be good. :) For all this time, I have been waiting for the new Olympus OM-D EM5 to come, of course the silver set since it has a more retro look. I never really laid my eyes on NEX series since it is of much more modern look and it lacks of physical controls. (NEX-7 has but it's way more expensive). On another day, I was accompanying a good friend...

Friday, April 20, 2012

Get Your Fair Skin Using Lightroom

It has been quite a while since I posted my last blog. I have been busy with school projects and presentations. Finally I got some time to write this new blog. Anyway, today I am writing on how I usually retouch skin in the post process. It might not be the best technique out there. But at least it does help to make you look better :) Here is an example how to do this. My friend is very kind to let me put her picture here as an example. Thanks very...

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Facebook Bought Instagram at $1 Billion !?

The very famous iOS photography app Instagram just expanded its territory to Android a week ago. Today Facebook announced that it will buy over Instagram at ONE BILLION US dollars in cash and stocks (link). *Photo from Newspress.me That might be a surprise to most of us. Why would Facebook acquire Instagram, and at such an unbelievable pric...

Friday, April 6, 2012

Selling Your Used Gears Online - Tips That You Should Know

  The update of gadgets is getting really fast nowadays. Popular products like iPhone and iPad, get their update once a year. Some other phones or cameras are even updated once in 9 months or even shorter! Tech geeks like me probably feel hard to resist the attraction of the latest products. Then how about the toys in hand? Of course we should sell them, and salvage some money as the fund of purchasing new gears. Selling things online would...

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Step into the DSLR World - Are You Ready?

*Photo from Pixelbing.com Unlike 10 years ago, cameras now are very affordable. Almost every friend of mine has a camera today, if not, at least a phone with camera. The interesting thing I noticed when I was traveling is that more people are using DSLR now, whether they really appreciate it or not. Many of my friends are also considering upgrading their gears to DSLR. Here I am giving some advices on getting a DSLR. This blog is more about...

Monday, April 2, 2012

Are You Getting the New iPad?

The long waited new iPad has been out for a few weeks. One of my friends also preordered his new toy and got it on the first day. I got a chance to play with it for a while. Many are asking me whether I am upgrading my iPad 2 to the latest generation since I upgraded to iPad 2 from iPad 1. After some careful thoughts, I decide to keep my iPad 2 in hand. There are a few reasons for me to decide not to go for the upgrade. Of course these reasons...

Combine Your Photos into Frames to Get a Better Look! - Introducing the App 'PicFrame'

Good morning everyone! It's Monday again. :( Hope you have had a great weekend spent with your family and friends! Oh, you got many photos about this weekend to share on Facebook and they are just too many to upload? Here is a small handy app that saves you out of this! PicFrame is a small app that helps you to organize and combine your photo into frames so that it looks nicer and you also avoid uploading a huge pile of photos to Facebook or Flickr....

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Make Your Photos Movie-like/Vintage! - Tutorial on Photo Post-processing

Many of my friends now own a DSLR or at least a point-and-shoot camera. However, they often are not very satisfied with the picture they took. They complained that the photo is too plain or the landscape is simply not good enough. Actually, with some simple tricks, they can make the photo much more vivid and stunning. Today I'll share with you guys one technique I found most useful when editing my photos, especially for landscape. ↑Here is the before...

Saturday, March 31, 2012

Organize Your Notes in an Aesthetic Way! - Hands-on of iOS app 'Paper'

Many of us nowadays have a tablet, either just for fun or for getting some serious work done. iPad from Apple is for sure the most popular choice for a tablet. I personally own an iPad 2 and I have enjoyed every bit of it. I use it for some casual readings before going to bed and sometimes for reading the lecture notes if I forgot to print. On the airplane, I can play some small lovely games to kill my time. Many people use iPad as a traditional...

Okay, the Very First Blog..

Hi, I am Cosmo Huang, currently a university student in my final year. Having stayed in Singapore for more than five years, I find this city is really great for a digital zealot like me. Many people, from secondary school students to retired elderly people, are into this tech mania. They are changing their phones frequently, following the latest tech news, or bringing their DSLRs to shoot around the island. I could see all kinds of digital gadgets in the street, on the train and almost everywhere else. Every year there will be several IT shows...