EMONG'S JOURNALS

Should you buy an expensive DSLR or an entry-level DSLR? That is the question. It’s an age old conundrum that every camera buyer has to face, and neither answer is right or wrong. It all depends on your wants, needs, and budget. Let’s take a look at the costs and benefits of buying both expensive and entry-level cameras, so that you can make the right pick when you begin your DSLR-buying adventure. Oh, that big black, DSLR! A big, black DSLR is something many hobbyists are secretly lusting for, but they don’t know exactly what it is, except a vague notion similar to “it’s like my compact camera, only better”. I describe a DSLR as a wonderful tool to up your photography game to the next level. This is a versatile camera you can use on any imaginable circumstances - from taking pictures of your travel destinations to family gatherings, landscapes, architectures and even the smallest insects. This is the camera to let you take great photos and have your great moments forever docu...

Are you ready for the 360-degrees technology in photos and videos? Ricoh Theta S, the same and only camera accredited by Google to shoot Street View images is now available in the Philippines. The new techie device no bigger than a regular sized smartphone comes with a 14-megapixel camera,  and can shoot stills and videos in a stunning, spherical 360-degrees. It has autofocus functions and carries a very bright aperture of F2. The video mode is in full HD (1920 x 1080), 30 fps (frames per second) with 25 minutes of continuous shooting. FEATURES: HD Live Streaming - 360° images and videos can be streamed live and in real time. Live View - Exposure and white balance can be adjusted while shooting using the dedicated smartphone app.  Long Exposure - Shutter speed can be set from 1/6400 sec. to 60 seconds 8GB Memory - Still images: (L) Approx. 1600, (M) approx. 9000. Video (total recording time): (L) approx. 65 minutes, (M) approx. 175 minutes. USB Terminal ...

We so definitely saw this coming. Just last Christmas, every list of top gifts ranked the two-wheeled scooter, or the "hoverboard," as one of the most coveted items in Santa's bag. Kids won't stop yelling to their parents, "Get us our hoverboards!" But the slew of stories about hoverboards catching on fire, airlines banning them on board and causing plenty of injury has persuaded the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to impose stricter rules on the use of these self-balancing boards. Among the new rules is the prohibition of children below 14 years old to use hoverboards, and its use on the streets. According to DTI, effective immediately, the following labels must appear on every hoverboard box sold in the market: 1. This is not a toy. 2. This should only be used by children 14 years old and up. 3. For indoor use only. 4. The battery must pass the standards set by IEC (International Electrical Committee) or ISO (International Standards ...

Good news first! NetFlix has already arrived in the Philippines -- everybody can now get to watch those television shows and movies they love. But not really. The bad news... Around 93 percent of titles available on Netflix in the United States are not available in the Philippines. :(  , and that's according to a website called Finder. Finder also has the full list of movies and television shows so you'd find it easier to decide which of them you want to see first. NetFlix plan rates in the Philippines are at P370 (basic), P460 (standard) to P550 (premium). For a full list of NetFlix movies, click HERE . For a full list of their TV shows, click HERE . NOTE: When in the Finder page, Use CTRL+F to search for a particular title. Enjoy! WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS POST? Share your ideas by commenting.

Nowadays, even criminals are preferring digital over analog. While the Philippine National Police (PNP) has curbed down the number of street crimes in the country, statistics from its Anti-Cybercrime Group (ACG) say a total of 847 cases of cybercrime were reported from Jan to Nov 2015, or up by 56% as compared to 544 cases reported for the entire 2014. In a report from GMA news , Director General Ricardo Marquez said that the PNP has "more or less reduced or extinguished the existence of armed bank robberies," but it has "seen the emergence of computer crimes, ATM fraud, skimming," with several of the cases involving foreigners. Breakdown of the reported cybercrimes listed below: online scam or estafa: 292 (up from 154 last year) online libel: 188 (up from 112) online threat: 84 (up from 56) identity theft: 71 (up from 61) photo and video voyeurism: 52 (up from 43) hacking: 51 (up from 41) robbery/extortion: 27 (up from 11) unjust vexation: 26 (up...

Expecting an awesome hoverboard this Christmas? Tell your relative not to send them via a US airline -- they've just banned these gadgets on board their flights. On Friday, at least three major US airlines - Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and United Airlines -- have enforced a ban against the so-called "hoverboards" amid concerns that the lithium ions batteries of these "self-balancing" devices are fire hazards on their flights. A UK carrier, British Airways, is also set to implement the ban soon. According to an article from CBS News , "the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is currently investigating 10 reports of hoverboard fires in nine states. Many of the hoverboard electric scooters have high-watt lithium batteries, which the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) says can start fires in a plane's baggage compartments." Lithium Ions are also used on cell phones and laptops, but they are considered "low-watt" batterie...

I remember the days when we have to pay much for a long distance voice call, spending hundreds of pesos to pay up when our phone bills arrive. But now, technology has made it possible to make free voice and video calls to our Facebook friends over the Internet, thanks to Facebook’s voice calling feature in its Messenger app. What's great about the app is it's toll-free. No charges even for international calls when you're using a Wi-Fi connection (except when you're using data connection where you have to spend minutes from your network's voice plan). Here's how to use it: 1. Make sure you and your FB friend have the Facebook Messenger app installed on your Android or iOS phones, and both of you are connected to the Internet via Wi-Fi connection. 2. From your menu, tap the Messenger button to open the app. 3. Once opened, you'll see the usual list of your FB friends. Tap to choose who you want to call. 4. When you and your friend's conver...

Since you just bought your new bluetooth headphones (either from a friend or Lazada.com) for use with your smartphone, you'd very much like to use it pronto and get them to pair with your device. But after about an hour or two of very frustrating attempts, you just can't seem to make them work. You look at your headphones plus the box that went with it, and you see they're in very pristine condition. So what the heck is wrong? I've been to this situation before and believe me, I was equally frustrated as you were. My last resort: the worldwide web. I googled a few how-to videos and all of them got me nada results. Until I got to eBay. According to the eBay website, all Bluetooth headphones work in pretty much the same way - maybe the color of the LEDs is different - but the mechanics of how to set them up is almost the same. The reason why you are having problems with pairing the devices is that your smartphone can't find the headphones. The cause ...

THE iPhone 6S and 6S Plus. These are likely what the next iPhones will be called come September 9 when Apple launches its event in San Francisco. In an article from tech website VentureBeat , the new set of iPhones "will be an upgrade from the existing iPhone 6 and 6 Plus phones. Apple’s challenge was to build into these devices an attractive-enough feature set to tempt current iPhone 6 owners, and owners of earlier iPhones, to upgrade." Here are the new features, according to VentureBeat : Force Touch The new iPhone 6S will get a front screen with Force Touch and haptic feedback. When you press harder on the screen, sensors in the screen detect the increased pressure by measuring the increased surface area occupied by the finger. The device then responds with haptic feedback — a tap — that gives you the illusion you’ve pressed down on a physical button. The point of Force Touch is to add a new type of navigation tool to the phone’s user interface. For instance, b...

WE'RE sure everybody's wondering why their Facebook friends are posting the words "God is Real" on their FB timeline all of a sudden. The phrase seems all over the FB news feeds and everybody's not sure what started it. We saw this question on Reddit a couple of weeks ago so we did a little research -- and this is what we found out: Your friends who posted "God is Real" are taking part in a 7-day challenge wherein those who will like or leave a comment on the Facebook status are encouraged to post the following sentences for 7 consecutive days: Day 1: God is real Day 2: God is good Day 3: God is faithful Day 4: God is my strength Day 5: God is my shield Day 6: God is love Day 7: God is alive However, it is still uncertain who and where the challenge started except that it's been on Facebook for almost two months now. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS POST? Share your ideas by commenting.

THE Oppo RX1, probably the only smartphone to have a "diamond-back" design, may also be the thinnest android device in the market. Elegant and stylish, the Oppo RX1 conceals in its back a diamond pattern that becomes visible only at certain angles. Though thin at 6.8mm, the camera doesn’t protrude which is common for a device this slim. What to expect The screen. The Oppo RX1 is easy to operate with just one hand. There's an option called the "one-hand operation" mode which will “shrink” the screen so that everything is within reach of your fingers. The hardware. The device uses an octa-core Cortex-A53 processor, Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 chipset and 2GB RAM, which puts it in the mid-range category. It runs on a 4.4 android KitKat OS. The camera. Lots of fun using its 13mp and 5mp shooters at the back and front respectively. The 13mp cam offers settings and customizations allowing you to tweak your photos even after taking the shots. The shutt...

FOND of making rude, insulting comments against somebody on Facebook and other social media networks? Better start breaking the habit as "cyberbullying" will soon become a criminal offense. According to a news article from Sun Star , Camarines Sur Representative Rolando Andaya Jr. filed House Bill 5718 to make accountable persons who make insulting and defamatory posts online against another individual. Under the proposed law, a penalty of P50,000 but not more than P100,000 and imprisonment of not less than six months but not more than six years, or both, shall be meted upon any person found guilty of cyber-bullying. Andaya said cyber-bullying is a problem generated from the advancement of technology and it has the potential to affect not only school-age children but also any individual who can access a mobile phone or the Internet. "The onset of the internet has shattered world barriers empowering users with immense information and allowed them to be social...

To all game-lovin' brothers and sisters out there, TEKKEN 7 launched a new character in the person of a Filipina named Josie Rizal -- named from the country's national hero, Jose Rizal. Josie Rizal was introduced as a Tekken character in Japan on February 18, and in the US on March 18. On Sunday, Bandai Namco Games held a special event focused entirely on Josie Rizal, alongside two returning fighters, Jin Kazama and Devil Jin. According to gaming website Shoryuken , these characters were first revealed last week when their models were discovered in the game’s data. Jin Kazama is already present as a hidden sub-boss. The character Josie Rizal is of Filipino descent, created by Mark "MarkMan" Julio of gaming manufacturer Mad Catz. Mark Julio is reportedly of Filipino ancestry. The character Josie Rizal Josie is dressed in a gold blouse, blue skirt and a red headband, which are, obviously, the colors of the Philippine flag. In Tekken 7, Josie uses the ...

H ere's some good news and bad news about the new government initiative for a free WiFi service for all Filipinos. The Good News The Filipinos will now enjoy free WiFi across the country with no worries of having to pay up for the service. No need to apply and no need to wait in line. One only has to own a smartphone or a laptop to connect and surf the web. Because it's free, each Pinoy can now save more of his hard-earned money. Budget for data connection can now be converted into buying for something else, something more important. The free WiFi, according to the DOST's Information and Communications Technology office (DOST-ICT), will be available at the following locations: Public Plazas and Parks Public Primary and Secondary Central Schools Public Libraries Rural Health Units & Government Hospitals State Universities & Colleges Train Stations of the MRT and LRT systems Airports and Seaports City and Municipal Halls National Government Off...

Photo taken by Francis Olarte A pple's "Shot on iPhone 6" worldwide photo search have a Filipino photo in its gallery. The campaign picked photos snapped and edited from the iPhone 6 smartphone camera app, then posted them on ad billboards around the world including the United States, France, England, Singapore, and India. The photo, which was taken by Filipino blogger/photographer Francis Olarte, featured fishermen on boats in a Myanmar coast. His photo is now among the many photos featured worldwide via Apple billboards. "Shot on iPhone 6" is Apple's worldwide campaign for their smartphone cameras. Olarte's photo In an ANC interview, Olarte said Apple approached him after seeing his photo on Instagram, "... they saw my photo through the power of hashtag..." he added. Some of the photos featured in Apple's "World Gallery" have been filtered, enhanced or shared with apps such as Snapseed, VSCO Cam, Mextures, Fil...

T here will be a couple of new Samsung smartphones this April: the Samsung Galaxy S6 and the Galaxy S6 Edge which are, obviously, Samsung Electronics' answer to iPhone 6. The new Galaxy S6 and its double curved-screen variant the Galaxy S6 Edge were released on Sunday at the Barcelona trade show and were instantly featured on several tech magazines. According to sources, the new Samsung smartphones will be available globally starting April 10. SPECIFICATIONS In contrast to the mostly plastic Galaxy S5, the S6 will come encased in a slim frame made of reinforced glass and aircraft-grade aluminum. Below are their specs, what we know so far: Image: BGR.com ANY COMMENTS? Feel free to share your reactions and comments down below.

W anted to do more than your street photography? A new full frame DSLR camera from Nikon allows you to shoot for the stars -- literally! Nikon had just announced the new D810A, its new gear meant exclusively for astrophotography. The new model is based widely on their existing D810 model but equipped with more features and gizmos to make it the best astrophotography tool. The Nikon D810A comes with the same 36.3 megapixel full frame Nikon FX format CMOS sensor used in the D810 but will not include an optical low-pass filter. It will have Nikon’s latest and greatest image-processing engine, EXPEED 4. For its astrophotography, the D810A is built with a specially made optical filter that enabled ‘beautiful reproduction of vivid reds in images of nebulae that emit H-alpha light. Nikon claims that this optical filter is capable of four times greater transmission of H-alpha light than the one used on the regular D810 model. Other upgrades include a a long-exposure manual (M*) mod...

T ired of those endless (and senseless!) photos or stories from your Facebook friends, but can't tell them so anyway? Lo and behold, you now possess the power to "silently" unfollow them in Facebook's new feature, "see less". The "see less" tool allows the FB user to get less updates from a friend rather than completely unfollow him or receiving no updates at all. In other words, the new tool will control the content flow on your Facebook news feed. Plus, Facebook's new master view has been introduced which allows the user to see who all he is following or not following from your friend list. This feature has been extended to pages and groups. News has it that this new feature will be made accessible on Facebook mobile app and desktop starting today. For a detailed step-by-step guide on how to enable the "see less" tool, visit the Facebook News Room here . ANY COMMENTS? Feel free to share your reactions and commen...