Tag Archives: smartphones

The Best Smartphones For Your Online Fun

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Mobile phones are so much more than just communicative devices these days. With Wi-FI available everywhere from cafés to high streets, not to mention the rise of 4G internet, more than ever we’re using these little gadgets to get online.

 

If you’re a little behind on the times when it comes to picking a smartphone, we’ve done our homework on the best smartphones for whatever your needs, from social media to online shopping and gaming.

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Social media

 

Shameless selfie addicts and status updaters can doubtless choose a better smartphone than the HTC One for all their social media needs. The phone boasts some funky features for those who like to snap at every opportunity, including a camera with its own name – ‘Zoe.’ Dubbed as ‘ultrapixel’ thanks to its low light pixel performance, it’s great for capturing those special moments. What’s more, its Android interface helps to aggregate all your social media and news feeds into one place, so you’ll always have a finger on the pulse.

 

Gaming

 

Today, more than ever, mobile gaming has increased in popularity thanks to more choice from sites like Uptown Aces. Improved graphics, faster loading times and better sound effects all make for some big demands on a smartphone, but luckily, the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 is equipped to deal with all of these. The powerful Snapdragon 800 chip has 3GB RAM, giving gamers the opportunity to multi-task, while its 32GB of storage is ample for storing your precious hours of game play.

 

Video streaming

 

With apps like Netflix giving us access to our favourite movies and TV shows 24/7, the last thing today’s smartphone users want is a phone which is badly optimised for video streaming. Thankfully, the T-Mobile G2X is perfect for streaming, thanks to its sharp display and accessibility. The phone features a 4-inch LCD display, guaranteeing a cleaner image with more vivid colours, while it also gives users the chance to play videos on their TV through an HDMI connection.

 

Online shopping

 

With online retail sky rocketing in recent years, it’s only natural that today’s smartphones should offer more secure operating systems in order to make sure users are shopping safely. Generally, the iOS system for iPhones is regarded as securer than the Android due to the latter’s open platform. Malware threats are considerably lower for Apple systems, so you may be advised to purchase the iPhone 5S if you want the latest model – or wait a few weeks and get your hands on the highly anticipated iPhone 6.

 

 

 

Top SEO Apps for Businesses

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Let me take you back to 20 years ago; there was no such thing as the Internet, no one had even thought about search engines, and smartphones were a distant fantasy.

Today, these technologies have become a vital part of society. Aside from transforming our personal day-to-day lives, the invention of digital technology has also had a profound impact on the world of business.

Operating a business was previously about forming relationships through basic human face-to-face contact. Now, you can operate a business without ever meeting any of your clients, and you can even run a business from the palm of your hand.

Digital has become big business. And you can’t mention digital business without the matter of SEO.

So, if you’re looking to boost your business’ digital presence with the help of your smartphone or tablet, here are a selection of top SEO apps that’ll help you to do so.

WordPress

If you have a website or blog page that uses the WordPress theme, this app will be right up your street.

Available on a variety of platforms, including Apple and Android, the app allows you to manage the content side of your SEO right from your fingertips.

You can edit existing articles, change existing links or add new articles with anchor texts and hyperlinks without even having to think about writing in HTML. You can also effortlessly add photos, check your spelling and even change existing keywords in an instant should the competition drop for a particular trending keyword.

If you’re also keen to see how an article has gone down with your readers, with the ability to edit, modify and reply to your comments, staying in touch with your readers couldn’t be simpler.

Google Analytics

The Google Analytics app is the perfect SEO reporting platform; it allows you to measure your sales and conversion, as well as gives you a good overview of how users have found your site, how they’ve utilized it, as well as how you can keep them returning to it.

Aside from analyzing your reports, Google Analytics also holds the power to analyse your social media programs and your content – so every aspect of your SEO is completely covered.

SEM Calculator

Available from the App Store, the SEM Calculator app helps you to analyse every aspect of your Search Engine Marketing, through the use of the app’s multiple calculators.

A useful tool for businesses that use affiliate marketing, Adsense or online buying of banners, the app assists you in working out your cost per impression for many of your marketing campaigns. By doing so, the app provides an effective overview on which of your campaigns are working well, and those that aren’t – so you can decide where your marketing budget would be best spent, or where it’s most needed.

HootSuite

No one can argue the influence of social media on today’s world; most have it, most use it, and most follow it in one way or another. It’s for these reasons that social media has become such a prominent part of SEO and why so many companies now implement it.

As Vroom SEO in Dublin believe, ‘it’s the varied and distinct nature of groups in social media which allows companies to target a specific demographic in a way they previously could not.’

Whether you’ve decided to implement Twitter, Facebook, or Google+ as backlinks for your website or blog, HootSuite allows you to stay ahead of your social media management by managing all of your social networks on one single dashboard.

By doing so, this allows businesses to improve SEO influence by efficiently tracking conversations and brand mentions, as well effectively building backlinks and social media traffic for your site.

 

This article was written by Ella Mason, an experienced freelance writer. Ella specialises in providing informative and engaging technology advice to businesses.

 

 

Bargain-Hungry Mums Find Deals Online

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More than 80% of mums are shopping online for themselves or their children at least once or twice a month – with 16% doing so once a week or more.

And they are making use of all of today’s technology, including smartphones, tablet computers and even work PCs, to ensure they do not miss out on a bargain.

More than half of the 1000 mums surveyed (52%) by flash sales website Casabu (in association with Mumsnet) always compare prices when they shop online, with 86% admitting they like to “feel they are getting a bargain” when they buy.

In these price-conscious times, mums are looking to keep their outlay on items such as children’s jeans and T-shirts to the absolute minimum. Some 66% want to spend less than £10 on a T-shirt while 98% would spend less than £20. Almost half (49%) would spend less than £10 on children’s jeans and 94% would pay no more than £20.

Even on their children’s birthday presents, mums are looking to keep costs down with 69% saying they would spend less than £50 and 46% less than £40.

A quarter of mums surveyed (26%) said they had spent between £100 and £200 on items such as clothes, toys and books for their children during the past month, while a further 32% had spent between £50 and £99.

The survey revealed that 16% of mums shop online once a week or more often for their children or themselves, a further 25% shop once or twice a fortnight and another 40% at least once or twice a month.

Mums are making use of all of the modern technology at their disposal with 94% shopping online from their home PC or laptop, 44% using their smartphone or mobile, 31% using tablet computers and 26% their work PC or laptop.

Some 78% of mums said they would definitely or quite likely buy children’s clothes online in the next month, 76% would treat their child to a new toy, while 69% would buy for a children’s birthday party.
Rachel Oxburgh, CEO of Casabu, said: “This research confirms that mums are looking for great deals on exciting brands and that they will make use of the full range of technology available to ensure they don’t miss out.

“Flash sales on sites like Casabu will often start at 8am which means mums on the school run might be packing their child’s lunchbox with one hand while snapping up a bargain with their smartphone in their other hand.

“Mums still want to dress their children and themselves in quality brands, but economic necessity means they want to find great deals. For example, rather than spending £50 on a pair of designer jeans for their daughter almost half of mums surveyed are looking to spend less than £10.”

SPOOKS, SPIRITS AND SMARTPHONES, Top 5 Paranormal sightings.

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Phone-paparazzi boosts ghostly sightings

With Halloween approaching, research has shown that having the latest technology at our fingertips has caused a surge in the number of paranormal images that have been recorded.

Tesco Telecoms has found that one in three people have noticed spooky goings-on in photos and video clips taken on their mobiles.

This spine-chillingly high figure is driven by the growing popularity of Smartphones which have high quality cameras and the internet and email at the touch of a button.

‘Digging-up’ some consumer research into Smartphone technology and consumer behaviour, Tesco Telecoms found that 78% of people felt that their phones made it easier for them to capture those weird, unexpected moments on the cuff.

Taking their findings to Paranormal Research UK, leading investigator Phil Hayes confirmed that they had seen a 70% increase in paranormal evidence captured by Smartphone cameras or videos.

The research group attributed this rise with the fact that people carry their phones with them everywhere they go, making it easier to record those eerie moments. They also confirmed that submitting evidence has become faster, as the email and social network function on internet-enabled Smartphones, allows material to be shared easily.

Further results from Tesco Telecoms’ spooky research showed that Brits are in fact a nation open to paranormal activity with more than half of the population believing in ghosts and poltergeists.

And despite one in five admitting that if faced with a ghost they would run away, over half of Brits said they would bravely stay put and try and capture the sighting with whatever technology they have to hand.

Frighteningly, almost 60% of those questioned had or knew someone else who had experienced paranormal activity, with one in two saying that they had experienced a shiver down the spine upon entering into a room.

Some of the scariest incidences reported included objects moving by themselves, transparent figures floating across the room and ghostly cackling coming from nowhere.

Some of the male respondents even cheekily cited their wives first thing in the morning as the scariest thing they’d ever seen!

Lance Batchelor, Chief Executive Officer of Tesco Telecoms and Tesco Mobile commented: “Halloween is the perfect time of year to keep an eye out for the ghostly and ghoulish.

“We’d recommend those brave enough to capture any spooky sightings should MMS or email their pics to Paranormal Research UK for investigation.

“Keep your camera phone on the highest quality resolution setting and use the recorder to capture the noise of any spectral sounds.”

Top five most believed-in paranormals

1. Ghosts

2. Aliens

3. UFOs

4. Past lives

5. Out of body experiences

By Catherine Balavage