Thursday, May 17, 2012
Review of Zenithink ZTPAD ZT280 C91 Android 4.0 Tablet PC

This is short review of the Zenithink C91 Android Tablet.  Zenithink are a relatively new Chinese company (founded 2007) producing Android based Tablet PC and TV products for the global market.  See zenithink.com for more information.

This is the first time I have ever used an Android device, so this is as much a review of the OS as it is the actual device.

Specifications

Model:        Zenithink ZTPAD C91 (ZT-280)
Dimensions:    Height: 264mm, Width: 161mm, Depth: 16mm, Weight: 725g
OS:          Android 4.0.3 (Ice Cream Sandwich)
CPU:         ARM Cortex A9 800MHz
Screen:     976x600 capacitive touch screen.
Wi-Fi:        802.11 b/g/n
Ethernet:    Built in.
Storage:    Micro SD slot for up to 32GB cards.
RAM:         1GB DDR
NAND:    8GB
Cameras:    1 Front facing (1MP ?)
Battery:    7000mAH, 7.4V rechargeable lithium battery
I/O:        DC in, 3.5mm Stereo Headphone, Ethernet, TF port, USB 2.0, HDMI
Sensors:    Accelerometer

First impressions

The box is simply labelled ZTPad with no mention of the company name which is a bit odd.  There are apparently a lot of ‘fake’ versions of this tablet being sold so you would think they would want to brand this at every opportunity?   Inside the box is a very small manual, a USB cable for connecting to your PC, a micro-USB to RJ45 cable for connecting to Ethernet, a US style power supply, and the C91 Tablet.

I had a quick flick through the manual but most of its contents were very basic and self explanatory anyhow.  Upon plugging the device in and switching on I’m greeted with the desktop containing a few basic applications.  Went straight into settings and configured the Wi-Fi with no problems at all.  I was then able to setup my Google account and go to the Google Play Store.  Installing applications is really simple.  So first impressions are very good, the device seems well built, and the screen response is good.  Tested the ubiquitous ‘Angry Birds’ game, and it works perfectly.

Usability

The settings, installation of applications, and general use of the device is mostly self explanatory and within an hour you feel very comfortable with the device.

Skype is preinstalled on this device, so I tested this with a friend doing a two-way video call.  This worked great, both the video and audio were clear.  The only thing I didn’t like about this version of Skype was that in IM mode the messages display in speech bubbles which takes up a lot of screen space and is pointless.  I’m not sure if there is a setting to change that?

Google Gmail works fine as you would expect, I have not tested other email accounts yet.  The built in web browser rendered all the sites I visited well including ours.

I tested playback of a few DIVX and XVID AVI videos which all worked fine from a 4 speed micro SD card.  Video was smooth and even the sound from the rear speakers was ok.

This device also has Adobe Flash installed, and this worked fine within the browser when viewing YouTube videos.  It did seem to have a problem with our virtual classroom though.  This seems to be a security issue in that it did not ask permission to take control of the webcam and therefore failed.  So this needs further investigation.

Conclusion

The build quality is good at least from the outside.
The screen is excellent, although very shiny & viewing angles are limited.
The front facing camera seems fairly low resolution but is fine for Skype.
The Wi-Fi reach seems weak, but this is probably sensible to save battery power.
Although the battery hasn’t been properly tested, the device seemed easily capable of lasting 5 hours or more during general Wi-Fi browsing etc.
It fully supports the Google Play store and applications can easily be installed and uninstalled.

So overall I would say for £126 which this cost from www.ebellking.com this is well worth the money.  The only question that remains is will it last, what is the internal build quality like, only time will tell on that front.  

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Posted by LearnByCam Admin Team - Thursday, May 17, 2012 10:04 AM    0 comments

Monday, May 14, 2012
Planning A Holiday Or Vacation in 2012, 5 Reasons To Learn A New Language Before You Go

That time of year is upon us again where we start to think about taking a well-earned break from our busy working lives and plan our summer vacation and holiday. Whether we flick through the pages from our local travel agents and imagine ourselves with a pina-colada on those beautiful sun-kissed beaches or see ourselves trekking up some mountain on the adventure holiday of a lifetime, one thing is for sure, in today's ever stressful working world, we have certainly deserved our welcome break.

Although we spend much time researching the best resorts and hotels, one thing we often overlook is the language that the people speak in those countries. Whilst even the most exotic of places in far-flung Asia or the Caribbean or the most historic European cities may already speak English as their second language, there are so many benefits for the traveler in knowing even the most simplest words and phrases. Here are five reasons to learn another language before you go abroad.

1 - Improving communication. Obvious as it sounds, if you and the locals are able to understand each other, you will get more out of your travel experience. You will also know what they are saying about you.
2 - Respect from the locals. If you have taken the time to learn another language the locals will respect you more. This also means you will be less likely to get ripped off or charged excessive prices for items.
3 - If you are lost or in a remote area where no-one speak English, knowing the local language could help get you out of trouble.
4 - By reading, memorising and learning another language you will improve your memory skills and be more open minded to cultural differences between people. You will feel more confident in your abilities.
5 - Employment opportunities. If you are able to add another language to your CV or resume, then you may be able to improve your salary, change your career or have the opportunity to work abroad in the future.

Here at LearnByCam we are blessed with many experienced and dedicated language tutors who are able to teach you from the comfort and safety of your own home. That's right; you don't have to leave the house! Whether you wish to learn Spanish, French, German, Italian, Thai or even Romanian we have the perfect language tutor for you. Many of our teachers offer the first lesson for free, so you can try without any risk or obligations. If you wish to learn more click on the following link -  Learn A Second Language Online

Alternatively if you are a language teacher interested in teaching online, click here -  Teach A Second Language Online

Bon Voyage and we hope you enjoy your trip

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Posted by LearnByCam Admin Team - Monday, May 14, 2012 4:59 AM    0 comments

Monday, May 07, 2012
Exam Help And Revision Tips Online

We all know how stressful exam time can be. Whether you have GCSE, A-Level, Undergraduate or any other exams looming, it's crucial to be organised in your approach to revision. Here we will discuss some revision tips and how they can help in preparation for those all important exams.

1) Identify What You Need To Know - To start you need to get organised. Find out the date of the exam, then calculate how many days you have until your exam date.

2) Create a Revision Checklist - If you do not know already, you need to find out how many topics you need to revise. You can ask your teacher, consult the course syllabus or past exam papers for guidance. Once you know how many areas you need to cover, you can then divide the number of days you have until the exam by the number of topics you need to revise.

3) Devise a Revision Plan & Timetable. - Once you know how many days and topics you need to cover, you can then create your revision plan and timetable. You need to commit to this as much as possible and make it part of your daily schedule. When planning your timetable be realisitic and set aside time for everyday things you need to do, such as chores, school and mealtimes. Once you have done this, split the remaining time into 30 minutes slots, break down each topic of your revision checklist into those half-hour slots. Also consider your strengths and weaknesses. If you are stronger in one area than another, then you can manage your time around those topics accordingly, giving more time to those areas you feel need improvement.

4) Going Over Your Revision Notes. - When you read through your revision notes, take it slowly, ask yourself questions when reading and try to think how the information can be used during an exam. Try to identify the main ideas within each paragraph and home in on dates, quotes, names and numbers. Once you have re-read your revisions notes several times, you are then able to identify and focus on the areas that need further understanding.

5) Take Care Of Yourself - Try not to put too much pressure on yourself. Ensure that you take regular breaks, eat healthy fruit and vegtables, as well as ensuring you get enough sleep and exercise. Also schedule in a hobby or leisure activity into your revision timetable so that you are giving your mind some time away from thinking about exams.

6) Consult a teacher or tutor. - If you are still stressed about your exams or need further assistance in understanding a subject, then you can always consult a one-to-one teacher. Even if you are unable to find one locally or at a convenient time, do not despair. We have many teachers that are able to provide exam and revision help on virtually any subject. For further information, click on the following link -  Exam Help Online

We hope this article has helped and good luck in your exams!

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Posted by LearnByCam Admin Team - Monday, May 07, 2012 4:23 AM    0 comments

Monday, April 30, 2012
Internet Video Chat Latency In Skype and Flash

As discussed in last week’s blog “An Introduction To Internet Latency” we do not have much headroom left to waste latency due to the restrictions laid down by the laws of physics.  Thankfully the Earth is just about the right size in this regard and even getting from two points as far away on Earth as possible this still allows a normal conversation to take place via phones and the Internet.  This article discusses current Internet video chat technologies and how they perform latency wise.

Messenger Type Video Chat

One example is the ‘Messenger’ type applications such as Skype, MSN, Yahoo, Google etc.  Skype is currently the leader in this area and has been doing video chat within its application since January 2006. 

Skype works on a P2P (peer to peer) basis which means after communicating with a central server to setup the connection, all the voice/video data is then transmitted directly between the two parties on the call and not via the server.  This means that the latency is purely the distance between those two parties and therefore as low as it can possibly be.  It is this reason why Skype calls generally have the best performance.

Web Browser Video Chat Using Adobe Flash

Another method of video chat is through the use of Adobe Flash Player and its server side variants such as Adobe Flash Media Server, which started to appear around 2002.  This method runs the video chat within the actual web page so you need no other software installed other than Adobe Flash Player and a web browser.  The downside of this method is that it is usually implemented with the video data passing through the server in each direction.  This means that latency is increased as the length of the path between the two parties has now increased going via the server each time.  The up side is that you have more control over the connection so that it can be recorded, logged and managed from the server, so administrators have a clear view of what has taken place and it is arguably easier for end users to use.

Depending on where the users and the server are located this extra trip to the server could significantly increase the latency.  Adobe has within the last few years created a P2P version of their video chat solution, codenamed ‘Cirrus’.   Although this solves the latency issue by bypassing the Flash Media Server it is not as seamless as Skype in setting up the connection so depending on your firewall and router configurations many Adobe Cirrus connections currently fail to connect unless additional complicated server solutions are deployed to try and cater for these issues.  These failures fail over to the old method of going via the server and so the latency issue returns.

Web Browser Video Chat Using HTML5

A future method of Internet video chat will be possible through HTML5.  This will be P2P based, possibly without any server intervention at all.  The methods for this are currently being constructed so this will not be possible for at least another year or two.  Whether this will be able to overcome firewall and NAT issues and behave like Skype is still unknown.

Conclusion

There are of course many other video chat solutions out there, but the majority utilise either a proprietary P2P solution like Skype or Adobe Media Server.  As you have probably gathered this subject is rather complicated and there are many factors involved that make choosing one video chat solution very difficult.  For example two people within the city of New York going through an Adobe Media Server also in New York will see hardly any latency issues as the distance between all three are very close.  So in this instance adding the server between the two users is not really an issue at all when it comes to latency. 

It is our opinion that due to the lack of latency headroom offered due to the physical distances between two potential parties if the application is a global one as in the case of LearnByCam.com then the connection has to be P2P to achieve the best performance.  Our current position on this is to first offer the simpler solution for the end user by using our ‘Virtual Classroom’ which utilises the Adobe Flash solution.  Then if latency issues are encountered with that you can then move to Skype by simply sharing your Skype details using the messaging tool within the ‘Virtual Classroom’.  We continue to analyse the available solutions and would welcome your feedback on any performance issues you find. 

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Posted by LearnByCam Admin Team - Monday, April 30, 2012 8:36 AM    0 comments

Monday, April 23, 2012
Teach Needlework, Knitting or Crochet Tips Online

Are you passionate about Needlework, Knitting or Crochet? Do you gain pleasure in designing your own patterns or making your own scarfs, hats and shawls? If the answer is yes, then you could be exactly what we are looking for. We need people who are interested in teaching and passing on their needlework, knitting and crochet tips to others. Whether you have been knitting for many years, are someone self-taught or new to the art of crochet, your experience and advice could be just what others are looking for.

If you know the difference between "intarsia" and "Fair Isle" knitting, the best way to "cast on" and "bind off", best needles and hooks to buy, how to calculate whether you have enough yarn or how to lengthen a knitted sweater, your knowledge is invaluable and could earn you extra money.

We at LearnByCam have made the process of sharing your knowledge and ideas online to other people so simple. You can register for free, charge between US$10 and US$100 per session, working the hours you want, at a time convenient for you. You do not have to be a "technical guru", all you need is a computer, broadband internet connection and a webcam. You do not necessarily have to be formally qualified, the most important factor being that you are knowledgable and passionate about needlework, knitting or crochet. It really is so easy to get started!

If you are interested in becoming an online tutor with us, simply click on the following link to learn more -  Teach Needlework, Knitting or Crochet Tips Online

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Posted by LearnByCam Admin Team - Monday, April 23, 2012 5:15 AM    0 comments