You may not be familiar about VPN or the Virtual Private Network yet and it’s time you know if you want to experience worry-free internet surfing. Whether you’re going online for personal, work or business reasons and no matter the frequency, this kind of service will protect your vital information onwards.

Next to your internet connection, this is a very important service anybody should think about subscribing to today. It’s all about ensuring your privacy and safety online amidst the ongoing hacking, scamming and phishing activities on the internet.

What is a Virtual Private Network?

A VPN is a public network of computers. Individuals can use to access network resources not covered in their local area network (LAN) or simply to secure their communications when using a public network such as in an internet café. Businesses also use it to connect to their remote servers or datacenters. Primarily, its objective is to ensure a secure and encrypted communication to protect people’s personal information and identity. More →

People use the internet for varied reasons. Some use it for personal reasons such as to entertain themselves by browsing through websites to watch news or videos on YouTube, connect with friends on social networks or download music. Others use it for work and business purposes.

Whatever the reason, one will need to store files in his computer or mobile device. And as time goes by, these files can take up disk or storage space which can result in a slow performance of your device.

With the introduction of cloud storage service, however, people can now back up their files without causing trouble to their desktop or laptop computer. As files can be stored in a separate server, internet users can enjoy seamless browsing. This type of storage service is also very beneficial as files can easily be accessed by the user in various devices as long as they are all synched together.

A 2010 survey of Storage magazine entitled SearchStorage Purchasing Intentions showed that most respondents use of cloud storage for disaster recovery. Some use it to keep primary data from their data centers while the others use it for nearline data storage.

This kind of service is indeed very attractive and useful but before you sign up with a provider, it is advised that you consider certain factors. These should include the cost, security and do take into account your storage needs as well.

Your storage requirement is very important as most providers often set a limit to the storage space it offers. Even the free plans have a limit. Amazon Cloud Drive, Box, Google Drive, SugarSync and Apple iCloud, for instance, only allow 5GB storage for its free plan while DropBox has a lower limit of 2GB. Get to know the cloud storage services for various operating systems for both PC and mobile devices at www.bestbackups.com.

Types of Cloud Storage Users

Basically, there are two types of users – the personal and business users. Those in business normally have a larger requirement what with the large volume of documents they need to keep. Their storage need can range from 50 GB to 100 GB or more. The regular consumers can make do with a free account that provides from 2 GB to 5 GB storage space.

Using a cloud storage service is a straightforward process. One just needs to log into the service, upload files and organize them in specific folders. But then again if you’re opting for a paid plan, make sure to know the cost per gigabyte per month depending on your needs. Also, read the service agreements very carefully and be aware of hidden costs that might be charged to you. Knowing all of these will prevent problems later on.

Image via krypto.ku.edu

The technology scene is booming all over the world, more so in certain places than others. The success of areas like Silicon Valley has prodded many others from different locations to emulate rock stars in the tech scene. While it might work for others, it doesn’t always apply.

The fact remains, though, that local tech communities have to find their own way by building their own scene and adapting strategies and techniques to their own particular circumstances. In Australia, the tech scene is just as prolific, with a considerable number of events slated to happen this year. If you are looking at expanding your knowledge and your network, here are some Australian tech events scheduled for 2013. Take your pick! More →

Japan’s NTT DoCoMo, the leading mobile company in Japan, recently revealed a new prototype Android smartphone that could potentially shake up the tech community because of its innovation.

The new device is a smartphone that has a transparent dual-sided touchscreen display. It was officially unveiled by DoCoMo last week at the Wireless Japan Show held in Tokyo, Japan.

The new technology used on the smartphone was developed in partnership with Fujitsu. With the new technology, the user can carry out different tasks on the back screen so that the view on the front display is unobstructed. More →

Korean tech manufacturer LG has announced that it will start full scale production of its thin e-paper displays. The company has also announced that flexible products that will sport this new display will begin appearing in the market as early as this month.

The new technology surrounding the flexible e-paper display may open new doors to a whole new category of products. The e-paper display is very durable, which makes it the perfect display choice for products that are prone to be dropped More →

Somewhere along the way someone decided they like to dance and move their bodies, but they couldn’t be away from Facebook. After all, if you’re out doing some great you want everyone to know about it in your status. Pulling out your phone and typing in a status can be a drag. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just move your body to update your Facebook status? Well you guessed it—a new technology known as the LikeBelt makes this possible. No, I’m not joking.

The belt was created by design and development company Deeplocal. The way it works is this: If you’re walking down the road and see something that you like and you want to Facebook “like” it, all you have to do is thrust your hips into the direction of what you like. This thrust will then register with your android smartphone and let all of your Facebook friends know what you “like” at the very moment you have decided you like it. You can see a photo of the LikeBelt taken from Deeplocal up above.

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In an earlier article here in 901AM, we talked reported on survey results that more and more people are relying on the cameras on their phones in favor of point and shoots for taking photos on the fly. That report showed that current technologies are making the built in cameras on phones perform almost at par with stand-alone cameras. But Sony has announced a new technology that will still narrow that gap between built-in cameras and stand-alone cameras some more. More →

The company VMware, a leader in the virtual machine segment, has introduced new technologies allowing employees to use personal mobile devices for work. At the same time, the applications on these phones that are related to work will be controlled by means of a number of novel security settings. One example of one such state of the art device is Horizon Mobile, which the company introduced last week. This device can operate a virtual machine of a work Smartphone that is inside your personal phone. Other devices, thanks to which you can benefit from a work phone inside your personal one, include applications that can deliver a virtual desktop image to your desktop computer at work and applications that can deliver other work-related graphics and designs to your Smartphone or tablet. More →

Alright, to clear out confusion regarding the recent change in the delivery date of iPad pre-orders on the Apple Store, Apple made an official announcement stating that the iPad Wi-Fi +3G will ship on April 30 to those who pre-ordered earlier than this week. Likewise, it will also be available on Apple retail store at around 5:00 PM, on the same day that Apple starts shipping these iPads.

The confusion started yesterday, when Apple puts a May 7 shipping date for the iPad Wi-Fi+3G on the online Apple Store. Many thought that Apple moved the shipment date of the said iPad model to the said date.  Many got worried and irritated perhaps because those who pre-ordered the said iPad earlier thought that their magical device will not be ship during the last week of April.

It turns out that the May 7 shipping date apply only to those who just placed their order this week, starting yesterday. Among those people is yours truly.

Aside from this, nothing much has changed from the previous pre-conditions relating to the release of the iPad Wi-Fi+3G model. Price-wise, it’s still $629 for 16GB, $729 for 32GB and $829 for 64GB. In line with the release of the 3G iPad, AT&T also announced that it will be offering a “breakthrough” 3G pre-paid data plans for iPad users.

Now, before you jump for joy since April 30 is just a few days away and start ordering your iPad in the hopes of getting it on April 30, well you’re in bad luck as the April 30 shipment does not apply to you. If you order the said iPad now from the Apple Store, the May 7 shipment day applies.

And if you’re not from the U.S., it might interest you to know that Apple will start accepting pre-orders for the iPad on May 10 in Australia,  Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK.  International pricing is yet to be announced.

Google has just updated its Google Maps for BlackBerry app to version for. It’s a pretty big update if I may say so with some great features such as Google Buzz on Maps, voice search, location starring and more.  It’s a pretty cool update, especially Google Buzz which I’ve been wanting to check out on my Nexus One phone but still couldn’t make it run.

Let’s go over to these new features of Google Maps 4.0 for BlackBerry. First off we have search by voice.  The new feature lets you do your search by simply speaking out your search term. Just press the green “call” button, speak out and wait for your search results. As easy as that. The app lets you search for name of establishments, addresses or generic search terms. Search by voice support English and Mandarin Chinese.

Next Google Buzz for Mobile – a feature that I’ve been wanting to try in my other smartphones but failed to execute. Google Buzz for mobile on BlackBerry Maps 4.0 app lets you add the Google Buzz layer to see what’s going on around you as well as post to your Google Buzz account. You can share pictures, news and more. You can enable this feature by selecting Layers > Buzz and you’re good to go with your Google Buzz activities.

Another nice feature of  Google Maps for mobile 4.0 for BlackBerry device is personalized search suggestions. What the app does is to utilize your search history to suggest search terms for your new search. You need to enable web history on your Google account to use this feature on Maps for Mobile.

Once you’re signed in to your Google Account, the app will synchronize starred items between your maps.google.com on your computer and on your BlackBerry so much so that you’ll have the same starred locations on both interfaces.

Other new features of Google Maps 4.0 for BlackBerry include – Google Labs’ experimental features and viewing nearby businesses by choosing a point from the map.

To get Google Maps 4.0 for Mobile on your BlackBerry devices, simply point your phone’s browser to m.google.com/maps.