Most IT administrators know that to have a secure network, firewalls, proxies or spam filters are not enough to prevent threats. They work great against outside threats but what about those coming from the inside?
It’s not that your employees are bent on wreaking havoc on your network. Sometimes, they’re just the curious type who wants to sniff your network for shared folders or somebody who unknowingly plugged in a harmful USB stick that slowed down the whole network. I’m sure that problem is something that your network administrator also has to worry about.
ForeScout CounterACT is a Network Access Control solution that lets you see and control everything on your network–all devices, all operating systems, all applications, all users. This includes external drives connected to a PC on a network as well as smartphones or outside laptops introduced into the network. With a number of policies you can implement, you can block such devices or sandbox them so as to limit access to the network.
What’s nice about ForeScout CounterACT is that it’s brand agnostic making it an affordable solution even if you already have an infrastructure in place. It doesn’t rely on a particular brand of routers or switches or what have you, it can play nicely with every brands. Speaking of affordable, ForeScout claims that their CounterACT platform can save you 50% more against leading network brands out there. Yes, we’re talking about the big “C”.
Another good thing with ForeScout CounterAct is that it includes everything in a single appliance. No software to install , nothing to configure into client machines. Built-in integration lets you leverage your existing infrastructure including directory, switches, endpoint security systems, patch management systems, ticketing systems and reporting systems. This simple set up makes deployment quick and hassle-free that even your standard IT people can figure it out in a short while.
ForeScout CounterACT focuses on key industries that include defense, financial, local and federal government sector, enterprise, medical, and educational verticals. In fact, one of the biggest banking institution in the country recently adopted this platform.
According to Marc Fernandez, ForeScout Regional Vice President for Sales-Asia Pacific, many of their customers have seen real reductions in their cost of managing the network by implementing automated control mechanisms with ForeScout.
“We have helped them automate the end-point compliance and risk mitigation by constantly scanning the network for policy violations and security gaps,” he said. “We have also helped in providing complete visibility into the types of devices or applications that are connecting to their networks, avoiding the risk of threats that may infect their entire network.”
The Dell Streak 5 is the very first 5-inch tablet we’ve ever seen and is actually the only one available in the market today. Is it really a tablet or just a huge smartphone? Check out our full review of the Dell Streak below.
With a 5-inch form factor, the Dell Streak 5 is a little small for a tablet and a little big for a smartphone.
In over a month that I’ve been using this, I’ve actually come to the conclusion that it serves well as a smartphone than a tablet (rather a really big one).
A couple of evidence pointed me to that direction — it’s got Android Froyo instead of Honeycomb (understandable since Honeycomb wasn’t available yet when this was announced); the 5-inch form factor is closer to other smartphones at 4.3″ than competing tablets at 7″; and even the user-replaceable battery is rated at 1530mAh which is right up the alley of most other high-end Android phones (tablets have much higher battery capacities — between 3000mAh to 7000mAh).
The Dell Streak 5 as pretty solid build with a combination of hard, glossy polymer and metal plating at the back. It’s actually thin at just 10mm on the side which tapers towards the end (top and bottom end on portrait position).
The red color variant we used here has a glossy finish all around which is a huge finger-print magnet (I’ve seen the black variant and it had a matte finish at the back).
In landscape position, you will find the power button at the top side along with the volume rocker, 3.5mm audio port and a dedicated camera button.
The proprietary 30-pin connector for charging is found at the bottom and is also used USB connectivity. There’s no micro-USB port or mini-HDMI port here though (there’s an optional adapter or a separate dock that has an HDMI port). At the back, there’s the 5MP camera and 2 LED flash beside it, a large metal plate that serves a cover for the battery compartment with a huge Dell logo at the center.
Up front, the 5-inch display is huge (if you think of this as a phone) with the speakers on top along with the front-facing camera and the touch panel at the bottom has three controls for Home, Settings and Back.
I especially liked the red and black color combination (it’s got that Ferrari-like look to it) but the size makes it a bit awkward to use as a phone when you hold it next to your ears (I’ve seen people doing the same with a 7-inch Galaxy Tab too).
The display is clear and bright but only has a screen resolution of 480×800 pixels (it’s already not desirable on a 4.3″ and becomes even more on a 5-incher) and very prone to glare outdoors making it almost un-usable against direct sun light.
The relatively low resolution also makes displaying webpages a bit cropped by a couple hundred pixels on the side. It’s somewhat good for watching movies but reading sites would require you to zoom in on the text most of the time.
Dell included a simple Stage UI, which is more media-centric, on top of Android Froyo. I’m hoping they’d release a Gingerbread update soon or perhaps, if they’re pushing the tablet label then it’s Honeycomb. This was actually on Android 1.6 Donut when it first came out and Flash support was just added during the Froyo upgrade.
It comes with a few more native widgets as well. You can see how it looks like in the video below.
Performance of the device is great and comparative to most other devices in its class (Xperia X10, HTC Desire HD). The capacitive touch screen is responsive, apps and games run well and web pages render quite fast including support for Flash.
The 5MP camera on the Streak is pretty good actually, with crisp, nice vivid color and saturation. It not as good on low light conditions (the dual-LED flash does help though) but performs really well outdoors. It’s also nice that they’ve included a dedicated camera button on this one (although because of the size, I tend to use the virtual shutter instead).
See sample photos we took using the rear camera below.
HD video recording at 720p ranges from decent to good, depending on the ambient light available. Audio recording is pretty decent too. You will notice that photos and videos have that effect of excessive sharpening in the output. See sample video below.
The speakers at the back has a really good audio quality and can blast loud enough volume to appreciate music and movie playback right off the bat.
Battery life is acceptable if you look at this as a smartphone. It gets you an average of around 2 days on regular use. However, I wasn’t using it for phone calls, just SMS and a lot of web browsing the net-connected apps like Twitter, FourSquare and Google+. If you consider this as a tablet, you’d be disappointed with the battery performance and don’t expect even close to a few hours on a single full charge.
The 2GB internal storage is also a downer (another reason I think of this as a phone and not a tablet) but you can extend that up to 32GB via a microSD card.
Dell Streak 5 specs:
5″ TFT capacitive touchscreen (480 x 800 pixels)Gorilla Glass display1GHz Scorpion processor (Qualcomm QSD8250 Snapdragon)Adreno 200 GPU2GB internal storage512MB ROM, 512MB RAMup to 32GB via microSDHSDPA 7.2 Mbps, HSUPA 5.76 MbpsWiFi 802.11 b/g, Wi-Fi hotspotBluetooth 2.0 w/ A2DP5MP autofocus camera w/ dual-LED flash720p video recordingGPS w/ aGPSLi-Ion battery 1530mAh
The Dell Streak 5 is a tablet with an identity crisis. To put it simply, it’s a hybrid between a smartphone and a tablet and Dell must be targeting people who want a phone and a very portable tablet in a single device when they created this. It actually (somewhat) worked for me but I think others might find it a little lacking from both ends (smartphone and tablet, I mean).
The Dell Streak 5 was launched back in April with a suggested retail price of Php27,000. However, it’s current market price has not really gone down a bit since then and you could get it for around Php25,500 in some stores.
We were the first to break the news last week about the new Smart Bro Rocket12Mbps so we followed it up with Smart today.
It’s now official and you can get the prepaid SmartBro Rocket for Php3,995 (no lock-in period but is locked to the Smart network).
You should also see this poster in stores where it’s available.
Internet rates starts at Php10 per 30 minutes and you can just use the normal loading system. The Smart Bro Rocket will be available for sale at Smart Business Centers starting Monday. Remember though, there are only about 154 HSPA+ sites across the country (Metro Manila, Cebu, Davao, etc) so don’t expect it to reach 12Mbps anywhere else.
With hundreds of smartphones currently int he market, sometimes we get confused with the processor they run on and their relative capabilities compared to other variants. All we know is the clock speed and the number of cores. So Qualcomm is simplifying all that, starting with the Snapdragon chipset.
Soon, Qualcomm’s processors in the Snapdragon line will be referred to as S1, S2, S3 and S4 — the hgiher the number, the better the CPU.
The first 1GHz Snapdragon processors we saw last year (Xperia X10, HTC Desire) will be referred to as the Snapdragon S1.
The newer processors found in HTC Sensation (dual core 1.0GHz) and the HTC Flyer (single core 1.5GHz) will be referred to as the S2.
We have yet to see the S3 class and S4 class in handsets and tablet but once they come out, we should easily know they’re more powerful than their predecessors.
Smart will also be offering the BlackBerry Playbook to its customer starting Monday, August 8 based from a press release sent to us today.
The complete postpaid offering has not yet been detailed but here are the minimum plans to go with it.
The BlackBerry Playbook is available for pre-order from August 8 until August 17, 2011 from Smart’s official website, www.smart.com.ph/bbplaybook. Get it for free with a BlackBerry Pearl 3G 9105 at Plan 3000 or with a BlackBerry Torch 9800 at Plan 4000.
Globe also did a pre-order last July and did a launching at the Dusit Hotel the other night so it looks like Smart’s turn next week.
If you’re saving money to get yourself a Sony PlayStation Vita this Christmas then you might want to start looking at other gadget ideas now. Sony Corp. announced that the only country where the PS Vita will be released this Christmas is Japan.
Kazuo Hirai, president and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI), told reporters in Tokyo that the PlayStation Vita will initially launch in Japan before the end of December, followed by introductions in the U.S. and Europe early next year. That only means much later in other parts of the world.
Last June, we reported that the PlayStation Vita will start shipping late this year so this was a surprising turn of events from Sony who couldn’t capitalize the holiday season especially on the two markets that accounted for more than 40% of their revenue last fiscal year.
The PlayStation Vita is Sony’s next-generation gaming device with high-end gaming specs, 5-inch multitouch screen and a number of controls available to a gamer. Good news is Sony’s sticking to the $249 (WiFi) and $299 (3G/WiFi) price tag for the PS Vita.
When we interviewed the regional rep of Nokia regarding the delay of the Nokia C2-00 after the announced it last year, they said they wanted to do the dual-SIM functionality right. So when Nokia Philippines sent us this Nokia C2-00 (as well as the X7), I thought this was my chance to look into Nokia’s dual-SIM strategy.
So here’s the case — most, if not all, of the previous dual-SIM handsets before the C2-00 placed the SIM card tray at the back of the unit, buried beneath the battery.
As such, when you want to switch SIM cards, you have no option but to turn off the unit, remove the back-cover and battery and replace one of the SIM.
According to some study (forgot the source), most dual-SIM users have a primary number which they always use and a secondary number, which has specific use and is the one that’s switched over to a 3rd SIM.
The old process of SIM swapping is tedious or cumbersome so Nokia found a way to solve that — make the secondary SIM hot-swappable. Place the 2nd SIM slot on the side of the phone which you can easily pop-out, replace and activate in less than 10 seconds without turning off the handset.
It’s a tiny detail but a novelty that Nokia introduced. I haven’t personally encountered any other dual-SIM phone that can do that (a quick Google pointed me to a MicroMax M2 handset being sold in India that can also do SIM hot-swap).
1.8″ display @ 128×160 pixels65 MB RAMup to 32GB via microSDGPRS/EDGEBluetooth 2.1 w/ A2DPVGA cameraStereo FMFM recordingLi-Ion 1020mAh battery
Here are some of the dual-SIM functionalities of the C2-00:
* Pop in a second SIM in the external slot anytime (either ON or OFF state) and the phone automatically recognizes it.
* You can choose to have the phone ask you which SIM to use every time you send an SMS or you can set a default SIM to use automatically.
* Each SMS message is appended by the name of the carrier and the SIM used. If you resend a failed SMS, you can also pick another SIM to send it.
* Both SIM uses the same Inbox (that’s why they append the name and SIM number on each SMS to differentiate).
* The phone remembers up to 5 SIMs so your settings will remain intact even if you swap around more than 2 SIM cards.
There’s only one little hiccup I encountered with this hot-swap strategy — you can’t use the external SIM slot as the solitary SIM. You will need the to use the internal SIM tray first before you can use the external slot.
In any case, the Nokia C2-00 is a pretty solid entry-level, dual-SIM phone. It doesn’t have a whole lot of features to go along with it but it’s a worthy attempt by Nokia to thwart the threat that’s eating their market share in the low-end segment.
For a suggested retail price of around Php2,900, the C2-00 is actually a little more expensive than all other brands with the same specs. Where Nokia really excels is the brand-recognition, solid build and quality control, and an excellent service warranty. I guess that’s what a lot of people are looking for when they want to part with their hard-earned money.
Ever since I first saw the new line of Dell Vostro V-series last year (t’was just the V13 before), I already liked the form factor. Now, they’ve got something meatier with the Vostro V130. Read our full review of the Dell Vostro V130 after the jump.
The Vostro V130 followed the same design and genetic make-up of the premium Dell Adamo series (which was discontinued earlier this year). Only this time, they’ve rationalized it and offered it to the business/enterprise market, making it more affordable and somewhat configurable.
The Vostro V130 model that we got had this specifications:
Dell Vostro V130 specs:
13.3″ display @ 1366×768 pixelsIntel Core i5 U470 @ 1.3GHzIntel HD Graphics4GB DDR3 RAM500GB SATA HDD2 x USB 2.0 portsBluetooth 3.0WiFi 802.11 b/g/nHDMI porteSATA portWindows 7
The laptop does not come with a built-in optical disk drive (CDROM) so you will get to get an external if you want one. Some models have a 3G SIM card slot and WiMax (US only).
This model was actually announced in the US sometime in November last year and came to the Philippines several months ago. It’s pretty normal from laptops in the business market to have this refresh cycle since corporate users usually follow a more stringent laptop replacement process than consumer variants.
As such, you will notice it is still using Intel’s first-generation Core i5 ULV processor (the U470M running at 1.33GHz dual-core and goes up to 1.86GHz on Turbo Boost).
The Vostro V130 has a relatively thin frame at just 0.65″ at the thinnest side (that’s 16.5mm only but goes up to 19.7mm at the thickest base) and lightweight as well (under 3.4lbs) considering it has a 13.3″ form factor.
The Vostro V130 has this unique lid design as well — the base of the lid does not close at the edge but a couple centimeters inwards. This gives the laptop a protruding edge (for a lack of a better term, I’d call it the butt end) that provides space for the ports. So unlike most other laptops that places the ports on both the left and right side, the V130 has all of them placed at the back.
This makes sense when you realize that this is good for docking in the office (where all the cables and connections are pulled out from the wall or the back side of the cubicle). Aside from the usual USB ports, you also get an eSATA and HDMI ports accessible at the back.
The only other socket not placed at the back is the SD card slot which is found on the right side (wait, the Kensington locks are there too and the audio port is up front).
The full-sized keyboard on the V130 uses the conventional type, maximizing the size of each key. I liked the soft response of the keys and the tactile feedback it offers (touch typing is a breeze). It’s got a wide trackpad, which is a little flushed to the left, and a nice set of trackpad buttons.
The lid and and screen have a matte finish which is good since it minimizes glare on the display and fingerprint marks on both surface.
Performance on the Dell Vostro V130 is very good since it already uses a dual-core Intel Core i5 processor. It runs at a base speed of 1.33GHz (which is normal for ultraportables) but can go up to 1.86GHz on Turbo Boost when required. The integrated Intel HD Graphics is decent but don’t expect it to cut it out in the gaming department (besides this is a business laptop, right?).
We got a sub-score of 5.2 for the processor while the graphics got the lowest score of 3.1.
What got us a bit disappointed is the battery life. For an ultraportable, we only got a paltry 2.5 hours on a single full charge (3 hours at best but that’s without WiFi). Not sure why Dell would make it so but I guess they think this pretty little laptop just needs to stay in the office.
Dell claims this model is the first ultra-thin laptop to offer Hyperbaric Cooling, an Intel Advanced Cooling Technology, to help it stay quiet and cool.
The Dell Vostro V130 is being offered to Small Business and Corporate customers for a retail price of Php41,700.
RIM has just announced a couple of new BlackBerry Torch, including the earlier BlackBerry Bold 9900. The BlackBerry Torch 9810 is a slider phone that looks like a successor to the first one while the BB Torch 9860 is a full touch screen phone that reminded us of the Blackberry Storm from many years back.
BlackBerry Torch 98101.2GHz processor3.2″ capacitive touch screen @ 480×640 pixelsOptical trackpadFull qwerty keyboard8GB internal storage768MB RAMup to 32GB via microSD cardHSDPA 14.4Mbps, HSUPA 5.76MbpsWiFi 802.11 b/g/nBluetooth 2.1 w/ A2DPGPS w/ aGPS support5MP camera with autofocus and LED flashNFC supportLi-Ion 1300 mAhBlackBerry OS 7
The BB Torch 9810 is 11.5mm thin, which is not bad for a touchscreen and slider phone. The Torch 9860 also has the same thickness.
BlackBerry Torch 9860
1.2GHz processor3.7″ capacitive touch screen @ 480×800 pixelsOptical trackpad4GB internal storage768MB RAMup to 32GB via microSD cardHSDPA 14.4Mbps, HSUPA 5.76MbpsWiFi 802.11 b/g/nBluetooth 2.1 w/ A2DPGPS w/ aGPS support5MP camera with autofocusNFC support720p video recordingLi-Ion 1230 mAhBlackBerry OS 7
Aside from the 3.7″ touch screen display, the Torch 9860 also has a touchpad at the bottom with an optical trackpad in the middle.
These new BlackBerry Torch handsets might take some time to arrive in the Philippines (maybe sometime between October to December this year).
The next round of smartphone wars will be in the 3D front. At the moment, it’s just between the LG Optimus 3D and the HTC Evo 3D. No word when these two will arrive in the Philippines but let’s look at what’s coming up.
Looks like 4.3 inches is the new standard among superphones and both the Optimus 3D and Evo 3D come in this form factor. While HTC has been doing a number of handsets in the 4.3-inch range, the Optimus 3D is LG’s first of this size.
HTC Evo 3D
LG Optimus 3D
1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm MSM8660
1.0GHz dual-core TI OMAP4430
Adreno 220
PowerVR SGX540
4.3″ 3D @ 960×540
4.3″ 3D @ 800×480
4GB storage, 1GB RAM
8GB storage, 512 RAM
microSD up to 32GB
microSD up to 32GB
Dual 5MP autofocus camera with LED flash
Dual 5MP autofocus camera with LED flash
720p 3D video recording
720p 3D, 1080p 2D video recording
1.3MP front camera for video calls
0.3MP front camera for video calls
Android OS 2.3.3 Gingerbread
Android OS 2.2 Froyo
3G, 4G, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, DLNA
3G, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, DLNA
Bluetooth 3.0
Bluetooth 3.0
126 x 65 x 12.05mm
128.8 x 68 x 11.9mm
170 grams
168 grams
1730mAh Li-Ion
1500mAh Li-Ion
Local LG reps have hinted about the Optimus 3D but did not give any indication as to the release date in the Philippines.
It’s still a touch call between the two but if we based it from the comparative table above, which one makes you drool?
This article originally appeared at -Been using the MMDA Traffic Monitoring system for several weeks now but have not really blogged about it since I was waiting for an Android App or an iPad App. But, it looks like TV5 and MMDA has already officially launched the service the other night after being on beta for about a month.
If you follow @mmda on Twitter, you know you can actually ask them about traffic situation in certain areas and get answers instantly.
However, it would be nice if you can just pull it up on-demand. That’s what the MMDA Traffic Navigator does. It’s a visual microsite that shows traffic situation along EDSA and C5.
The site offers 3 visual interfaces that show live traffic conditions along the major roads in 15-minute intervals (it’s not really live but 15 minutes should be enough). Of the three, I liked the System View the most (there’s the Line Item view and Google Maps View). You can filter the results for Northbound or Southbound traffic as well.
Traffic is rated as Heavy, Moderate or Light with corresponding color codes. Just click on the POI (point of interest and more details will pop up on the screen.)
The microsite is best viewed on a laptop/netbook or tablet (renders very well on the iPad). It’s usable on smaller smartphones since you can always zoom in or out of the map.
Here’s some more improvements that, I think, should be included in future updates.
Get the apps out soon — Android, iOS, Symbian (we’re still a Nokia country) and BlackBerry. I hear they’re doing a beta on the iOS now. An Adobe Air app could be of good use for netbooks and laptops too.
Probably extend the traffic monitor to more areas like Kalayaan, Shaw Boulevard, Katipunan, etc.
I understand MMDA has live cameras along these routes. Maybe a screenshot of the actual traffic in those locations will give commuters more qualitative information on how heavy or light the traffic is.
The site is currently hosted on mmdatraffic.interaksyon.com which is a bit too long to remember or verbally share. A URL shorter or domain (traffic.ph) would do or maybe something like traffic.mmda.gov.ph. I understand this is a joint project with TV5 so they’d want to host it on their domain but a URL redirect can fix that too.
They also should put a disclaimer at the bottom of the website that says “This is where your taxes go”. *jk*
The MMDA Traffic Navigator is a really good start and I’m glad some branches of the government are catching up with the times and employing some really usable online services (we featured the DTI Mapping Project in Bohol earlier).
