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Do you have a graduation gift to buy? Are you stumped? Want to impress the graduate? Here are some suggestions that will impress even the most stubborn graduate.

iPhone 4S Power Case
Is your graduate (or you for that matter) a person who uses their iPhone for everything? The iPhone 4S only has a 1700mAh battery so power users may find their iPhone need charging quite often. The solution is the Rechargeable iPhone 4S Charger Case for iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S. It has an Easy-entry Design Protective Case that lets you slip it in easily and also has a Battery Status Indicator. Simply switch the On/Off Switch to on when your iPhone battery is low. It also has a Charge and Sync Option. The charging case protects your iPhone and isn’t much thicker than a traditional case.

Universal Bike Mount Phone Holder
Is your high school graduate going to be living on campus next year and biking to class? The Smartphone Bike Mount fits most handle bars and is a great way to be able to listen to tunes or navigate with the GPS while riding. It’s an inexpensive gift that will fit most budgets.






Bluetooth Stereo Headset
Does the graduate listen to lots of music? The Universal Bluetooth Stereo Headphones/Headset, Multi-Point & Intuitive Talk by LG is an excellent choice. Not only does it have Noise Reduction & Echo Cancellation, it’s Water Resistant, and has a Magnetic Earbud Storage. If connected to a cell phone, there are no more missed calls with the Vibrating Call Alert and Automatic Reconnect Music and Phone Control.

Don’t Miss the Photo Ops! Make sure you have a spare camera battery to capture those special moments. Do you have a Canon camera? Find your model and buy a Canon camera battery now so you are all charged up for the big event. Do have a Canon camera? Here’s a list of all the camera replacement batteries.





And let’s not forget Dad. Father’s Day is June 16th. Most of these gifts would work well for Dad as well. In addition, Dad may be a fisherman and needing a solar charger to make sure he can call when he gets the big catch! The Solar Cell Phone Charger is compatible with all devices that use a USB cable to charge. Gives a full charge to most phones, MP3 players, GPS, Apple devices, e-Readers and other USB powered devices. It has a convenient, side-loaded LED flashlight feature that provides up to 20 hours of light on one charge! It also includes an AC power adapter, MicroUSB, MiniUSB charging cables, and window suction mounts.

Regardless of whether you are shopping for a graduate or Dad, remember to check out batteries4less for all your cell phone batteries and accessories, cordless phone batteries, camera replacement batteries, and laptop batteries.

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Support for technewscorner.com is provided by batteries4less.com, the leading online retailer of cordless phone batteries, cell phone batteries, camera replacement batteries, laptop batteries, chargers and mobile accessories. Buy a new Droid Charge Extended Battery online.

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For the past two years, one third of robberies involve the theft of a cell phone. According to Julius Genachowski, the chairman of the F.C.C. (Federal Communications Commission), the FCC started working with cell phone companies to provide a national database of stolen cell phones last year. Unfortunately, according to an article posted this week in the New York Times, police officials say the database has not helped stanch the ever-rising numbers of phone thefts, in part because many stolen phones end up overseas, out of the database’s reach, and in part because the identifiers are easily modified. Additionally, there is a concern that the carriers and handset makers aren’t trying very hard to help with the problem. Apparently there is little incentive for the cell phone providers to help at all.

“The carriers are not innocent in this whole game. They are making profit off this,” said Cathy L. Lanier, chief of the police department of the District of Columbia, where a record 1,829 cell phones were taken in robberies last year.

According to the article in the New York Times, “George Gascón, San Francisco’s district attorney, says handset makers like Apple should be exploring new technologies that could help prevent theft. In March, he said, he met with an Apple executive, Michael Foulkes, who handles its government relations, to discuss how the company could improve its antitheft technology. But he left the meeting, he said, with no promise that Apple was working to do so. “Unlike other types of crimes, this is a crime that could be easily fixed with a technological solution,” he added.

Apple declined to comment although Apple does have an app to let you locate your iPhone if lost or stolen. You can also log into the iCloud and search that way. Google doesn’t have a method for locating the lost phone. Verizon has its own stolen phone database making it impossible to reactivate the stolen phone on their network. Apparently none of these methods really deter thieves.

The cell phone manufacturing industry is extremely lucrative. Sales of new cell phones topped $69 Billion last year in the US, according to IDC, the research firm. However, black-market sales are also soaring. According to the New York Times article, “In San Francisco alone, the resale market for stolen phones is thriving, with a new iPhone netting a thief $400 to $500 in cash, said Edward Santos Jr., a police lieutenant who investigates robberies. The starting price of a new iPhone 5, without a contract, is $650.” It seems to me that this makes it very attractive to cell phone thieves to continue this market. The phones are often moved to a house or storage facility where all traces of the phone’s identity are wiped clean. Wiping out the International Mobile Station Equipment Identity makes it possible to re-activate the phone in the cell phone provider’s network.

Many of these stolen phones end up overseas. Recent cell phone theft cases in San Francisco suggest that many end up as far away as Mexico, Vietnam and China. The national database of stolen cell phones wouldn’t be of much assistance in that case. The extent of the international market with its huge profits and technology expertise suggest possible ties to organized crime.

Representative Eliot Engel, Democrat of New York, has proposed a legislative solution. A week ago, he introduced legislation that would make it illegal to modify a phone’s identifier, among other preventive measures. In Britain, it is illegal already. Proponents of privacy are of course against it. Again, if the phones are being shipped overseas, this seems to be a moot point.

What is the solution? Thieves are getting bolder and bolder. Rose Cha (Bronx, NY) reported a teen boy just grabbed her iPhone right out of her hand on a busy street. She reported the theft to her carrier and to the police — just as she had done two other times when she was the victim of cell phone theft. Again, the police said they could not help her. Is the solution to make the security so tough that you have to enter a complex code just to open your phone? Perhaps a failsafe switch that renders the phone unusable if someone other than a licensed technician tries to wipe out the data? You would think that with all the techno-geeks out there, someone would come up with a way to slow down the criminals.

Do you have an idea for a solution? Or are you not concerned? Let us know.

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As one of the most popular Smartphones on the market, the Galaxy S III has all kinds of handy features. Sadly, some of those features are turned off by default when you get the phone. Simon Hill, Digital Trends, gives us some handy tips and tricks to get the most out of your Samsung Galaxy S3.

Security
A lot of the handy features on the S3 are only available if you don’t engage some of the tougher security lock options. It’s really a trade-off between convenience and security. You can however, set up a locking/unlocking pattern or password on your screen and only utilize it when you go out. Go to Settings > Security to begin and select Screen lock. Motion is the handiest option as the phone will unlock when you tap and hold the screen and tilt it towards you. Swipe is equally easy but neither offers any real security. You can also set up the Face Unlock and Face and Voice options. You can set them up by using the front facing camera to record your face and if you want the voice too then you record a phrase or command. This way if someone looks a lot like you, they can’t pass security without a voice that also matches yours. More often than not, this feature won’t recognize you and you will have to run through the whole process to unlock your phone. It’s rather annoying. The Pattern unlock is still the best option for a mixture of security and convenience. If you want to really make it secure, using a pin is really the best way.

Motions and Gestures
There are some pretty cool options in this category. Go to Settings > Motion if you want to activate them. Options include a vibration when you pick the phone up to indicate you’ve missed a message or call, shake to update your email list, turn over face down to mute, and sweep your hand across the screen to capture a screenshot. There are quite a few other options. One handy option is the ability to tap and hold the screen when it’s locked and rotate to landscape to launch the camera (only available with screen lock set to swipe).

Display
According to Simon Hill’s article, “One of the best options is in Settings > Display. Tap to tick the box next to Smart stay and the device will check to see if you are watching the screen before timing out. You can also set how long it takes your screen to timeout if there’s no activity. Remember to go to Screen mode if you want to play around with color saturation. You can also change your default font style and size in the Display menu.”

Sound
By default, your S3 will be noisy, emitting a tone every time you touch the screen. Go to Settings > Sound and tap Touch sounds. You can decide when you want sounds to play and how much vibration feedback you want in here as well. If you go to Device vibration you can select Create at the bottom and make your own vibration pattern. Simon’s tip is: “There are a range of sounds to choose from in Default notifications and you’ll find a few ringtones in Default ringtones. The chances are good that you’ll want to use your own sounds and ringtones. It’s easy to set a general ringtone, a ringtone for a specific contact, or an alarm. Just find the track you want and long press until the menu pops up. Select Set as and choose Phone ringtone, Caller ringtone, or Alarm ringtone. If you pick Caller ringtone you’ll be taken to your list of contacts to select one. If you want to set your own notification ringtone for the Samsung Galaxy S3 then you will need to put the track or sound you want in the right folder. Go to Apps > My Files and then navigate to wherever you put the file you want to use. Long press on it and choose Copy or Move then go to Apps > My Files > sdcard > media > audio > notifications and click Done at the top right to place it. Now when you go to Settings > Sound > Default notifications you should see it in the list.”

Battery Saving
Although the battery life is pretty impressive with the Samsung Galaxy S3, however there are some ways to improve it. Samsung Galaxy S3 extended battery life is possible in a few steps. A Power saving option in Settings which allows you to limit the CPU performance, reduce frame rate and brightness, change background color and brightness, and turn off haptic feedback. It’s a tradeoff between having your phone perform at top level and prolonging the battery life. You can also go to Settings > Battery and get a percentage read out of how much power is left and see a breakdown of exactly where it went. If you like to see the percentage of power left then you can also go to Settings > Display and choose Display battery percentage to have it appear at the top right all the time. The bottom line is that the more things you have turned on, the faster your battery will drain. Try to get in the habit of turning off things when you aren’t actually using them. You can also download an app called Tasker to do this automatically for you.

Voice commands with S-Voice
Just double-tap the Home Button to bring up S-Voice. If you ask “What can I say?” it will bring up a full list of commands. You can call people, check the weather, schedule events in your calendar, dictate text messages, play music, and lots more. You can also set a Wake up command so you can activate S-Voice by speaking but it will drain your battery much more quickly.

Data Limits
Since going over your data limit will cost you big bucks, you might consider setting up the Data Limit feature. Go to Settings > Data usage and tick Set mobile data limit. You can change the time period to match your billing and then set a warning level by dragging the orange line and a hard limit by dragging the red line. If you check back you’ll see how much data you have used and you can also see a breakdown of which apps are eating it up.

Play with your phone. Have fun. You can set up all kinds of things to run automatically, including setting up blocks on certain callers. The important thing is that YOU are in charge. Make the phone work for YOU!



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It’s getting close to Christmas and you still haven’t finished your shopping list. Perhaps you need some stocking stuffers? What should you get that tech-savvy person on your list? Do they have one of the new iPhone 5s, or perhaps an iPad? Here are some ideas for just the right gifting surprise.

iPhone 4
If you have the iPhone 4 or iPhone 4S, a great gifting choice is the iPhone 4 Power Case which not only protects your iPhone but also has a built-in battery that extends the battery in your phone up to 7 more hours. It comes in either black or white for only $49.95 – a real bargain. Another great option for protecting your iPhone is the OtterBox Impact Case for only $19.95. OtterBox is known for great protection. If your tech-savvy iPhone user watches videos on their iPhone, perhaps an iPhone Charge and Sync Docking Station on special for just $27.22 would be the ticket to delight your little geek.

iPhone 5
A great gift giving idea for those iPhone 5 users is a new sleek iPhone 5 Case. You can choose from a great variety starting at only $12.95.

iPad
Do you love your iPad but dislike using the touch screen to type? A new Keyboard Case with a built-in Bluetooth keyboard is just what you need. (Oh yeah, it’s for someone else on your list, right? Sure…) Until January 1st the price is only $59.95, down from the $99.95 retail price. Or the Swiss Leatherware Axxis Case is designed to protect your iPad and works as a stand for portrait and landscape viewing angles. As an added feature, the pocket is detachable for when you don't want to carry the whole case. Until the first of the year it’s on special for only $29.88 for your gift giving.

Tunes for All
A nice little stocking stuffer is a new set of iPhone Headphones for yourself or your gift giving. Starting at only $9.95, ideal for everyone’s budget.

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The Super Storm Sandy has brought some valuable lessons to us. In this age of constant connection via Smartphones, our cell phones are more like umbilical cords from us to the world. As many people discovered during the power outages in the East Coast caused by the Frakenstorm, having a Smartphone only helps if your battery is charged. But how do you keep your battery up and running when there is no power to recharge it? My local news station, KCRA, posted a great article giving you 5 ways to help with your battery drain.

1) Use a Battery Life App
There are several app killers and app managers that work with either the Apple IOS or Android OS system. One of these apps, Carat, has come out this year for both the IOS and the Android OS. Carat allows you to monitor which of your application use the most battery juice and will even start recommending actions based on your Smartphone usage. Carat will identify the battery hogging apps and help you to curtail their drain. This can significantly help keep your phone from draining your battery life.

2) Stop Running Apps
Apps running in the background such as Wi-Fi, GPS and Bluetooth are notorious for draining batteries. You can turn them off and only access them when you have a need. Another helpful hint is that texting takes much less power than talking on your phone, so go that route, especially when there is a power outage. You can text your friends and family that you are safe, and even make arrangements to meet in case of emergency without draining your battery.

3) Your Laptop Can Act as a Battery Charger
Before a big storm is due, fully charge up your laptop. Chances are the Wi-Fi or DSL isn’t going to be working if there is a power outage, but you can use a USB cable plugged into your laptop to charge your Smartphone.

4) Use a Power Inverter
The Power Inverter plugs into your car’s cigarette lighter and has a plug that accepts the regular AC plug (wall plug) from your cell phone or laptop. The Power Inverter converts the power from your car’s battery from DC to AC so you can charge a variety of devices that you would normally charge in your home’s wall socket.

5) Use an Emergency External Battery Pack
There are a number of External Battery Packs on the market, varying from 1000mAh to 12,000mAh. There are even solar chargers, but of course that assumes you will have sunlight for charging. The large 12,000mAh external battery pack will even charge your tablet or laptop, but will charge your Smartphone numerous times before needing to be recharged itself. Figure the average cell phone battery is about 1500mAh. With the large battery pack, you could conceivably recharge your phone approximately 8 times. So if a storm is brewing, just make sure to have your Emergency Battery Pack all charged up and ready to go.

Of course there all kinds of gadgets out there to help you with your battery draining problems. If you have the iPhone 4 or iPhone 4S, there is a iPhone 4 Power Case that has a battery built into it. You charge the case while you are charging your phone. Then when the battery runs low on your iPhone, you simply switch it over to the battery in the case and are good for another 1700mAh worth of charge. It’s like doubling your iPhone’s battery.

The bottom line is to be prepared. With winter coming and storms brewing, the best plan is to actually have a plan in place. Make list of emergency contact numbers of friends and family and plan a way to communicate in an emergency situation. Pick an emergency meeting place or at least have a phone tree in place to let everyone check in his or her status. Remember texting will often work better if there is a low signal and won’t drain your battery as much as talking on your phone will. Be smart. Be safe.


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