Wednesday, December 25, 2013

The 'Portland Santa' returns, with 'hemp milk egg nog' and more

Last year, the creative folks at Portland's Bent Image Lab animation studio sent out a holiday card with a very distinctive version of the Jolly Old Elf. The "Portland Santa" was a hipsterish dude who looked more like a refugee from "Portlandia" than a guy who hangs around with elves.

This year, the Portland Santa is back, in a new Bent Christmas card, and he's as alternative as ever, with an "Eat Local" T-shirt and animated christmas cards online frame eyeglasses. He's up in the skies over the city, in a flying sleigh -- er, wait, make that a flying food cart -- led not by reindeer, but by what look to be two urban goats. An attractive female elf is dispensing "Hydroponic Mistletoe," and a sign indicates that Santa and his team have other treats to offer, including "Hemp Milk Egg Nog" and "Gluten Free Fruit Cake."

So enjoy this bit of seasonal cheer, with a Rose City slant, illustrated by Brett Superstar, and conceived by Chel White, Solomon Burbridge, Greg Arden and Superstar.

-- Kristi Turnquist

Monday, December 23, 2013

2013 has been a Banner Year for Walgreens API

2013 has been a banner year for Walgreens. The company launched the Walgreens Pharmacy Prescription Refill API, announced the QuickPrints Photo App Developer Contest encouraging developers to integrate the Walgreens QuickPrints API into their mobile applications, and announced the integration of QuickPrints with the Adobe Revel website. Nearing the end of 2013, Walgreens has unveiled the brand new QuickPrints SDKs for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8, announced the QuickPrints Developer Contest winners, and has just released version 2.0 of the QuickPrints API.

Users of the Printicular Windows 8 Desktop App can send their photos to Walgreens for same-day pickup.

QuickPrints SDKs for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8

Walgreens announced the upcoming launch of new QuickPrints SDKs for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 at the Microsoft BUILD Conference that was held earlier this year. These new SDKs are now available for download and include a set of APIs that allow developers to create Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 applications where users can submit a photo print order to a Walgreens store. A few examples of Windows 8 desktop and tablet applications that use the QuickPrints SDK for Windows 8 include Printicular, Order Prints, and PhotoWeaver. Bruce Seymour, Managing Director at MEA Mobile, the publisher of the Printicular app, told ProgrammableWeb that:

"The Windows 8 QuickPrints SDK provides a critical bridge for our Photo Assistant App, Printicular to the retail endpoints at Walgreens. The Walgreens technical team is comprised of the some of the best API architects in the business. We're very proud to be working with Walgreens on developing our next generation of Print to Retail apps on the Microsoft Windows 8 platform."

The Walgreens QuickPrints SDKs for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 are great examples of how the Windows developer tools provided by Microsoft help to create a mutually beneficial ecosystem for Microsoft, companies like Walgreens, and app developers. Using Microsoft developer tools, Walgreens created QuickPrints SDKs for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8, which can be used by developers to create apps that help promote Microsoft products and Walgreens. Tim O'Brien, General Manager of Platform Strategy at Microsoft, provided ProgrammableWeb a statement:

"Microsoft is committed to providing developers with opportunities to build engaging scenarios and to be successful on the platform. Partnering with companies like Walgreens empowers developers to create an enhanced and differentiated photo-sharing experience for their consumers."

QuickPrints Developer Contest Winners

Walgreens has announced that Moments and tapsBook are the winners of the Fall 2013 QuickPrints Developer Contest. Moments is a free application for iPad that allows users to easily create photo books from their Facebook, dropbox download or iPad photos. The Moments app also allows users to print their photo books to Walgreens for same-day pickup. Walgreens offers same-day pickup for photos at over 4,000 Walgreens locations across the US. Amit Sherman, CEO and Founder of Moments, states in the company press release that:

"The Walgreens QuickPrints API is great for Moments, since we only had to focus on creating a great app: they take care of the brick-and-mortar part of photo book printing. This is why we could focus on creating a simple application, built for mobile, for the creation of striking photo books that are real simple to make."

tapsBook, is also a free application for iPad that allows users to create storytelling photobooks "with just one tap." tapsBook photobooks can be instantly shared and can be printed with same-day pickup at Walgreens' many locations across the US.

QuickPrints API Version 2.0

Walgreens has just released version 2.0 of the QuickPrints API which includes several key new features and updates. The new release only applies to users of the direct QuickPrints API and does not apply to users of the SDK variations. Some of the key new API features include:

  • Support for Web Channel based photo print checkout.
  • Support for Mobile Browser based photo print checkout.
  • Supports navigation to originating site after checkout completion.
  • Ability to upload images to Walgreens Storage via REST approach.
  • Overall more seamless and simpler API integration than past versions.

For more information about the Walgreens developer program, the QuickPrints SDKs for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8, and other available Walgreens APIs, visit the Walgreens Developer Portal.

See also ProgrammableWeb's analysis of the business model behind Walgreens QuickPrints API.

By Janet Wagner. Janet is a Data Journalist and Full Stack Developer based in Toledo, Ohio. Her focus revolves around APIs, open data, data visualization, and data-driven journalism. Follow her on Twitter, Google+, and LinkedIn.

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

The road to the top

A WARM wind tugs at the coat-tails of Reverend Urio as he rides his motorbike on a paved road circling the base of the world's highest free-standing mountain. Kilimanjaro rises out of the parched east African plain as only a volcano can, its icy peak towering three miles above a sea of yellow grass. The reverend makes the trip every morning and yet, blinded by the slanting sun, he seems surprised when the tarmac runs out. Bike and rider shudder as he turns on to a track of packed red earth that leads uphill. The breeze turns cooler and the land greener. Mountain streams feed farms and groves. The hooded heads of acacia trees become tangled like manes.

Halfway up the mountain, Reverend Urio switches off the engine and parks outside a church made from cement and corrugated iron. He removes his helmet and coat, exposing short-cropped hair and a dog collar. He says he doesn't mind the 90-minute ride from Moshi, the regional capital, to the village of Mshiri, where he was appointed pastor a few weeks ago. He enjoys overtaking the minibus he would otherwise have to squeeze into. "The only part I don't like is the rocky section where the paving runs out," he says.

Reverend Urio was born on this hillside and everyone knows him by his curious first name, Speaker. As a ten-year-old he received a Tanzanian government scholarship to one of the best secondary schools in the country. From there he joined the church, which sent him to university. Around here the church has a habit of pinching the best talent. It is better organised than the government, he says, brimming with confidence. The pastor has developed a fine awareness of power. He says the elders in the village call him "shimaku", an honorific, and that he knows who among them will be helpful.

After stints in Dar es Salaam, Nairobi and Kampala, he spent the past few years as a church administrator in Moshi and still lives there. But his ties to the village never frayed. He has returned out of loyalty, he says, "and for the view". With the enthusiasm of a schoolboy, the 49-year-old points at the peak above us, calling it an island in the sky. Clouds envelop it during the day but they have yet to blow in. The view in the other direction, down to the plain, is if anything more spectacular. Distant dust storms whirl like tumbleweed.

Reverend Urio walks into the church to check on preparations for the Sunday service. An assistant is hanging red banners above the pews. Another carries two wooden stands with numbered slots to the main door. They are filled with envelopes and worshippers are asked every week to put in money. A clerk collects it, noting the amount in each envelope on a score card. Following the service the pastor is handed a set of accounts, which he spreads out on his desk and studies. The suggestion that worship does not receive top billing fails to offend him. "We are flexible," he says and points out that the church is Lutheran yet the cross on the altar is adorned with a likeness of Jesus. "It was there when I came. So what if people think we are Catholics?"

The service starts with a hymn and ends with prayers, spoken in a mix of languages. Swahili, used nationally, is rapidly displacing the local Chagga. Ever more villagers migrate to the cities. Change is all around, says the pastor. The schools are getting better, but not fast enough. More is required from the government. During his first sermon he told the congregation that the track leading to the church must be paved. "We need a new road," he said. "You are right," they shouted back. He wondered what they might do about it.

On Sunday mornings all the radios in the village are set to gospel music. Why, asks Mshukuru Kimaro, his arms hanging loosely in an oversized jacket, does anyone bother going to church? "You can get the service at home."

The 17-year-old has just left secondary school and is considering his employment options. All his ancestors were farmers. Most neighbours still are. Techniques have changed little. Bananas are cut down with machetes fixed to long sticks. Millet is ground with a bucket-size pestle and mortar made from hardwood; most of it is malted at home and turned into beer.

The soil on the slopes is volcanic and needs extra nutrients. Since few farmers can afford chemical fertiliser, they keep cows and goats for the manure-but not many, since land is scarce. Animals are tethered and fed dry grass. The milk they provide was once churned to make butter in hollowed-out pumpkins but now the farmers use plastic containers. Houses have evolved, too. Before, people lived in conical huts, 15 feet high and made from grass, in which man and beast cohabited. Very few remain.

Mshukuru shares a two-room wooden shack with his mother. Mosquito nets cover the beds and clothes hang from a string under the ceiling. A second shack houses two goats and a fireplace with a blackened pot. Mshukuru's mother is the cook at the local primary school. She has been gone all day and Mshukuru is bored. He turns off the radio and notices a concert of birdsong and mooing. The range is symphonic. Animal life is always audible on the mountain, though mostly concealed by the plant life. Dwellings are dwarfed by surrounding vegetation. Corn conquers idle patches; flowers grow in rampant colonies.

Tomorrow it will be market day at the spot where the paved road starts, and Mshukuru decides to walk down to have a look. He calls out, "He's my friend," pointing to a youngster in the window of a house. Mshukuru asks him for a piece of chewing gum. "My friend works in a shop," he says, a faint realisation that he too will have to earn a living now flitting across his face. He is an only child and lost his father many years ago.

By a toppled tree trunk he encounters a girl in a blue dress. Their conversation is art deco christmas cards and leaves him grinning. "She is my friend," he says later, then stalls. "She is not my girlfriend..." He declares that he doesn't want to marry until he has a college degree. But how to pay the fees? He would like to find a job as an engineer in a city. When he has money he might come back to Mshiri. Or he might marry in the city. He stops in the middle of the track and declares after a moment's hesitation, "I believe, if God wishes it, I will become a rich man." His index fingers are pointing upwards. "If it happens, I will not be surprised. And if it doesn't happen, I will not be surprised either." He looks up to the peak of Kilimanjaro, briefly visible. "One day I want to go there."

At the bottom of the track, Mshukuru greets a friend of his mother. The man looks aggrieved. He says his 18-year-old daughter recently ran away from home. She said there was nothing for her to do in the village. Nonchalantly Mshukuru tells the man that his daughter will return soon and pats him on the back. Asked later how he could be so sure, he shrugs and says, "I didn't want him to go looking for her. Give her a chance."

The market is a collection of wooden stands. Many are already filled with produce from surrounding fields: carrots, onions, tomatoes, potatoes, avocados, ginger, garlic and watercress. Red coffee berries are sold to a co-operative for roasting. The previous night several stalls caught fire and burned to the ground. The men standing around the ashes blame an electrical fault. Still, their ire is directed at the fire brigade whose engine arrived an hour late, with no water in the tank. When nothing came out of the hose the crowd turned angry. Official neglect is seldom so obvious. Stall-owners smashed the windows of the fire engine while the flames still flickered behind them. The firemen tried to flee, and backing up the engine, they drove over and destroyed several motorbikes.

"The road is everything," says Mshukuru. His father died waiting for an ambulance

"We get nothing from the government," says Mshukuru. "It is the same with our road." He is walking back up to Mshiri. The free-falling equatorial sun lights the treetops. Men push wobbly wheelbarrows filled with fruit; women balance shopping on their heads. The minibuses that carry people along paved roads do not come up here. Mshukuru lists the many reasons why the dirt track should be paved. "The road is everything," he concludes. His father died waiting to go to hospital. No ambulance would come up to the village. Mshukuru stops to smell the lemony scent of a spindly eucalyptus tree by the side of the road. This is all the medicine we have, he says, worried about his ageing mother's health.

Official neglect

Reverend Urio consults the elected chairman of the village council in Mshiri about upgrading the road. Wilson Mosha is a retired school teacher and behaves like one. When asked a question he repeatedly asks for your correspondent's pen and notebook to give answers in writing. He has lived on his shamba, or smallholding, all his life. He inherited it from his father, who fought for Britain during the second world war in Ethiopia and Burma, and named him Wilson after a brother-in-arms from England. During his childhood the village road was barely passable. In the decades that followed the residents slowly widened it, in part at his urging. He has been an unpaid village administrator since 1972. "I pushed for houses to be connected to the national grid," he says. "It is happening but some are still without lights." If anyone knows how local politics works, it is him.

Within a week of the pastor's first sermon, Mr Mosha convenes a public meeting to rally support for paving the road. Several hundred villagers turn up, at least one from every family. Both men and women attend. Formerly only men attended but that changed when bequests of land to daughters became common in recent years. Horny-handed, they cram onto benches in the dining hall of the local school, chattering until elders walk in. The sudden silence is startling, as is the evident respect for authority.

Mr Mosha has invited officials from the local government. Villagers bow and scrape, addressing them as honourable minister or director even though they are neither. Every utterance is prefaced with profuse expressions of gratitude. Many villagers are practised flatterers. They profess agreement with the government, then demand a change of policy.

The meeting lasts two hours and also includes a discussion on leaky water pipes. The officials respond curtly. Anyone asking a tough question is accused of "lacking respect". The meeting is not a success. Afterwards Mr Mosha points out that villagers pay no tax; only the rich do. A neighbour responds, "Do you mean the officials don't have money for our road? Look at the expensive cars they came in." Accusations of corruption fly.

Mr Mosha tries a new tack. He teams up with the executive officer of Ashira, the village down the mountain where the paved road starts. Vicky Lyimo agrees to help. When it rains, muddy water runs down the track from Mshiri and floods her village. She persuades a higher official to take a look. He makes encouraging comments but offers no money. A local MP visits. He promises to look for funds but does not sound hopeful.

Some villagers suggest tougher action, perhaps a demonstration, but Mr Mosha says that, "protocol must be followed." Even at lower levels, bureaucracy is stifling. When your correspondent asks to meet Mr Mosha's brother, an official in the church, he suggests calling the local parish to get them to arrange it.

A mixed blessing

Two roads run through the village of Ashira: a dirt one up to Mshiri and a shorter paved one to a girls' secondary school. Ms Lyimo, the executive officer, explains that her predecessor is responsible for the laying of the tarmac ten years ago. She spots him at the "First And Last" bar. Elialifa Lyimo (no relation to Ms Lyimo) is sitting on a plastic chair under a tin roof. He points at an empty beer glass and tells a waiter, "You know what I drink." A cigarette stub sits in the corner of his mouth. "This is the first bar when you come from the field and the last when you go home," he explains.

As a young man Mr Lyimo worked as a salesman for a shoemaker in Kenya. When he came back in 1985 he volunteered as a village administrator. He heard that the former headmistress of the girls' secondary school had been a classmate of the wife of the then president. "So I took the headmistress to State House in Dar es Salaam and asked for the First Lady," he says. They saw the president's wife and told her that schooling was difficult in the rainy season. The road flooded and many girls failed to turn up. "We didn't see the president and I don't know what the wife told him but soon after that they paved the road to the school. It is how things work."

Mr Lyimo is ambivalent about the effects of better roads. All his seven children have left the village. "They are building houses in the city and eating well. I suppose they may never come back. Perhaps when I die they will bury my ashes there." The prospect makes him spit on the ground. But he sees a potential upside to a paved road to the village. "They might at least visit."

Yet he says development is undermining ancient traditions. The Chagga people have lived here for half a millennium. Some families hire Mr Lyimo to teach them rites they barely remember: how to slaughter and divide a cow between mother, father and siblings to celebrate a betrothal. "Some things have improved, of course," he says. "In the past we believed children will never grow hair if women eat eggs during pregnancy. Now we know better. Still, my grandchildren cannot speak our local language."

Bow-legged, he announces he must go to a funeral. He walks out of the bar and along a banana grove. Above him the mountain is sheathed in cloud. Unprompted, he says, "Bananas are flowers, not trees." When he doesn't get a response he walks into the grove and starts pulling down leaves that are flapping like sails. By the time he is done, nothing is left of the plant. He says, "See, no trunk. Bananas are just rolled up leaves." When he returns to the track he says, "Bananas are radioactive as well." (A check online reveals he is right. Scientists refer to a "banana equivalent dose", a tiny measure of radiation similar to eating one banana.)

At the village cemetery Mr Lyimo sits down under pine trees. Only a few graves dot the grassy slope. Most people are buried on family land to ensure their children's right of occupancy. This makes borrowing money difficult. Banks will not accept grave land as collateral since they cannot repossess it.

"What else can you do in a village but dress up and die?" asks Mr Lyimo

After a minute's rest, Mr Lyimo joins hundreds of guests along the track to the house of the deceased. Some sit down on chairs under a marquee. Prayers are said over loudspeakers. Mr Lyimo belts out hymns. Then family members carry the coffin above their heads into a banana grove for burial.

Complimented on his starched shirt, Mr Lyimo says, "What else can you do in a village but dress up and die?" He and other guests are members of the ruling Party of the Revolution. They agree that the party is venal; MPs are leeches; national bosses are worse. "Every party is corrupt, and it didn't start today, or yesterday," he says. "Are you Christian? Well, after Jesus died on the cross they took him to a cave and posted Roman guards outside. Three days later he was resurrected. Do you think he got out without paying a fee?" The villagers giggle. The only people they trust are unaffiliated local leaders. "We know how they live," Mr Lyimo says. "We can tell their honesty from their house."

Damp stains the wall behind a tattered armchair. Mr Mosha, the chairman of Mshiri village, and his family live in two rooms held together by corrugated iron. They feed themselves from a vegetable garden along the road to Ashira. Three cows provide milk but no meat.

A month after the arrival of the new pastor the road looks remarkably different. The surface is smooth even if still earthen. Many of the rocks are gone. The sides are solidly squared off. Occasional vehicles pass each other easily.

After the government rejected calls to fund a new road, Mr Mosha visited all the homes in the village and solicited contributions of $13 each. Few families refused. He also contacted offspring who had left the village. Money came from as far as America. Within a week he had collected $10,000. "We can't wait for the government," he says. "We do it ourselves."

Money in hand, Reverend Urio phoned a local man who works in construction in Dar es Salaam. He drove his ten-tonne Caterpillar motor grader 350 miles to Ashira and ploughed his way up the slope to Mshiri. To save money he stayed with Mr Mosha. In one week he flattened eight miles of road.

Since then the villagers have dug drains to protect the road from downpours. They still hope for tarmac one day, or at least gravel. Some have even bigger plans. They imagine continuing the road all the way up to the summit of Kilimanjaro. At the moment the track thins to a grassy path above the village and then loses itself among bananas and corn.

The only way to the top is on foot. It takes a week. Mr Lyimo thinks it should stay that way. "In my 69 years I have never been up there," he says. "Why go? Where will these new roads lead us? It's beautiful down here, green and warm. Up there is only stone and ice."

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Is 'Delightful' the New 'Cool'?

In July 2012, when Marissa Mayer became the new CEO of Yahoo, she told The New York Times about her plans for the company. "My focus at Google has been to deliver great end-user experiences, to delight and inspire our end users," Mayer explained. "That is what I plan to do at Yahoo: give the end user something valuable and delightful that makes them want to come to Yahoo every day."

"Delight" is a fitting goal for tech firms like Google and Yahoo, whose business models rely on keeping customers happy-not just occasionally, but daily and over time. "Twitter's products influence everything from pop culture to politics, delight our users and change lives," a recent job posting for the company put it. An ad for Facebook's head of global recruiting summed up the role thusly: "Facebook will need a recruiting leader to scale while continuing to delight users, candidates, and customers through hyper growth."

It's the lexographic equivalent of artisanal pickles, or of horn-rimmed glasses, or of Zooey Deschanel: It seems to be visiting us from another place and time.

It's not just tech firms, though, that are taking and talking delight in a web-augmented world. Everything, it seems, is delightful right now. Literally. Everything.

I know this, on the one hand, in the most anecdotal way possible: I've recently found myself using "delightful" pretty much all the time. To describe TV shows. And books. And songs. And children. I've dropped the D-bomb while describing blog posts and cat videos and actors ( hello there, Jake Johnson) and one particularly twee pair of holiday socks. Last weekend, I used it to describe pizza.

I know! Pizza. In my defense, it was really, really good pizza. ( It was de-licious, you might say. And de-lovely.)

Another thing in my defense? I do not think I am alone in finding some of the world to be such a total freaking delight. I think, instead, that there is an epidemic (or, if you prefer, a simple abundance) of the sentiment out there-a veritable garden of earthly "delightfuls." Delight is all over Twitter. It's all over Facebook. It's all over (often, warning, with NSFW connotations) reddit nsfw.com/search?q=%22delightful%22&sort=new">Reddit. It's all over the Internet.

Here are some recent headlines:

This $40,000 TV Is The New Thing To Ridicule With Delightful Amazon Reviews ( Consumerist, December 9, 2013)

Delightful 'Six By Sondheim' Leaves You Wanting Six More ( NPR, December 6, 2013)

Watch this delightful video of an 81-year-old Nelson Mandela dancing on stage ( Washington Post, December 5, 2013)

29 Utterly Delightful Things You Only Find In Britain ( Buzzfeed, December 3, 2013)

The delightful paper world of 'Tearaway' ( The Verge, November 2013)

Wes Anderson Honors Fellini in a Delightful New Short Film ( Slate, November 2013)

Breaking Bad on Ice Is Ridiculous and Delightful( Slate, October 2013)

And here are some less-recent ones, from last year:

Insect Discoveries, Delightful and Disturbing ( New York Times)

The Most Delightful-and Little-Noticed-Idea in Bill Clinton's Speech ( Slate)

Kathy Griffin's New Talk Show Is Surprisingly Delightful ( Gawker)

Inside the Delightful World of Islamic Terrorist 3D Graphic Design ( Gawker)

You get the idea.

Nor, by the way, is its usage limited to other media outlets. We here at The Atlantic are fans of it, too.

Doctor Who's 50th-Anniversary Episode: Delightful, Fan-Servicing Chaos ( November 2013)

M.I.A.'s Delightful Middle Finger of an Album ( November 2013)

'The Trip': A Delightful Movie About Nothing ( 2011)

'What Are Clothes?' Asks Most Delightful Supreme Court Argument in History ( November 2013, via yours truly)

As a matter of fact, we've been fans of delight since the very first page of our very first issue back in November of 1857, when one English dramatist, Douglas Jerrold, was celebrated thusly by James Russell Lowell:

It will be something to remember in afterlife, that one enjoyed the friendship of so brilliant a man ; and if I can convey to my readers a truer, livelier picture of his genius and person than they have been able to form for themselves hitherto, I shall be delighted to think that I have done my duty to his memory.

But the question remains: why do so many of us delight in "delightful" now? On the one hand, I'd say, it's simply a nice, elegant word: light of tone, buoyant of spirit, semantically supple. It's got that long iiii sound- līt-in the middle of it, which is a structure Joan Didion would surely approve of, and which means, among other things, that you're almost forced to smile as you say it. De-liiiiiight-ful. It's also just lovely and lilty and a little bit childlike, the kind of word you might imagine the Pillsbury Doughboy using, were he capable of speech, to describe his giggle. ( Hoohoo!) "Delightful" suggests not just charm, but the best kind of charm there is: the kind that isn't trying to be charming. The kind that takes you, just a little bit, by surprise.

But there is also something, as those tech-firm marketing messages suggest, very specific and very current and very webby about delightful's appeal. (This despite its age: It was introduced sometime around 1200.)

Because while its usage-in books, at least- has trended downward since its peak in the early 19th century ...

... if you look at just the years after the turn of the 21st, you'll see a fairly sharp uptick. (The data below track instances of "delightful" and, for comparison, "delight" between 2000 and 2008, the most recent years Google charts in its Ngram Viewer.) Presumably-if only anecdotally-that upward trend continues into 2013.

So why the recent resurgence? It likely has to do, at least in part, with the fact that "delightful" now has a decidedly retro affect. Teddy Roosevelt "DEE-lightful." Which: . And, obviously, wasa fan of it. (He apparently pronounced itEmily Dickinsondelightful.) used it, too. So did Thomas Jefferson. And Albert Einstein. And Oscar Wilde"Delightful" is the lexographic equivalent of artisanal pickles, or horn-rimmed glasses, or Zooey Deschanel: It seems to be visiting us from another place and another time. Get your "delightfuls" in now, apparently, before Doc gathers them in a DeLorean and whisks them back to 1908, never to be seen again. The Sugar Hill Gang. Which makes "delightful"-that quintessentially vintage accessory, the kind you find in a secondhand store-a fitting adjective to describe the products of the Disneyfied, Etsyfied, Thrift Shop ified American culture of 2013. A culture that is by turns ironically earnest and earnestly ironic.

FunnyJunk

So ... where does that leave us? Should we double down on "delightful," embracing its twee little charms? Or should we leave it to play itself out, to go the way of and and other obsolescent endorsements?

I should probably, at this point, do the thing that has the best chance of putting me on the right side of history: mount a full-throated attack on "delightful." I should probably take for granted its imminent extinction. As a word, I should point out, it is ridiculously precious. As an adjective, I should continue, it is comically banal. I should give the next section a header that is wry ("Take 'Delightful' ... Please") or inquisitive ("Have We Reached Peak 'Delightful'?") or emotive ("Why the Word 'Delightful' Makes Me Strangely Sad") or aggressive ("Every Time You Call Something 'Delightful,' a Puppy Dies") and then proceed to explain why "delightful" is the worst thing to befall the English language since the coining of the word "moist."

When our interactions find us doubling as curators, positive adjectives are at their best when they can endorse and describe at the same time.

I should ... but I cannot. Because despite it all, I still find "delightful" ... delightful. It will do where no other will. The social world as it plays out online, after all, can be one of almost reflexive positivity. It's a world often driven by what Buzzfeed's books editor, Isaac Fitzgerald, has called "the Bambi Rule": "If you can't say something nice, don't say nothing at all." It's a world in which, as Slate's Jacob Silverman put it, "cloying niceness and blind enthusiasm are the dominant sentiments."

There is, of course, nothing wrong with a culture of courtesy. It's delightful! But it creates (among other things) semantic needs among those who are participating in it. In spite of all the new words that have sprung into existence with the advent of new digital technologies-in spite of all the new slang and acronyms and portmantohhhnos we have at our disposal-we still have precious few words to express one of the things we most often find ourselves needing to convey: simple satisfaction. We have "great," sure. We have "good." We have, if we're into that kind of thing, "awesome." We have, if we're getting excited about it, "fascinating." We have, if we are not, "interesting." And we have, still-still!-"cool," the near-universal endorsement that remains, almost in spite of itself,

But these adjectival exclamations, useful as they are, are also often unsatisfying: They're generic and occasionally perfunctory, the rhetorical equivalents of Facebook's thumbs-up. They say something, yes, but they don't always mean something. They may take the form of words; they are much more akin, however, to punctuation marks.

"Delightful" is different. It's a word that explains itself, fully and efficiently. Instead of "This is awesome because X," you get, essentially, "This is delightful because it's delightful." Delight is its own reward. We all recognize this. And when more and more of our interactions find us doubling as curators, filtering Internet for friends and family, positive adjectives are at their best when they can endorse and describe at the same time. "Delightful" is nondescript and nuanced at once. It is retro and modern in equal measure. And therein lies its charm. "Delightful" may well be the new "cool": the adjective we turn to, collectively, to convey our approval. It is, as Urban Dictionary explains, "a positive word that could mean anything good." It may well be becoming the universal validator. And that's pretty ... well, you know.

Sunday, December 8, 2013

Newcastle West Dec 7

CHRISTMAS RECITAL: Newcastle West Church is the venue for a much-anticipated Annual Lions Christmas Recital which takes place on Thursday, December 12 at 8pm. The schedule is now finalized for this grand event, which is recognided as one of the high points in West Limerick's Christmas entertainment calendar. The occasion this year brings together two magnificent artists who are both West Limerick natives. Anne Phelan (Violin), who hails from Castlemahon, is an artist of International renown, who has performed with many Orchestras at home and abroad. Brian Hartnett (Tenor) is a Newcastle West native, who has numerous awards to his credit, and has performed on National TV and Radio on many occasions. Keeping the talent local; the Desmond College Choir, with Jean O'Brien (Piano), presents a Christmas Tableau. The entire program promises to be a most amazing evening of seasonal entertainment. Entry is FREE - with a bucket collection for West Limerick Charities - so bring the whole family.

NEWCASTLE WEST FILM CLUB: On Friday next, December 6, Newcastle West Film Club present the last film in the current season "Come as You Are" - a laugh out loud comedy - described by many as a road trip like no other. It stars at 8pm in The Desmond Complex (rear of fire station). It costs €7 per screening, with refreshments available. Returning again in February - trailers are available to view on www.ncwfilmclub.wordpress.com. Tel. 087 687 7970, e-mail : ncwfilmclub@gmail.com

WINTERFEST IN NEWCASTLE WEST: An exciting and expanded programme has been created for a seasonal festival of family fun. It opens on Friday, December 6 at 4.30 pm. Starting with the tree-lighting in the Square, including the launch of 'Encounters' - an exhibition of art from the state collections of the Republic and Northern Ireland. On Saturday, December 7: The Christmas Market, Santa's Grotto, a giant interactive drum, falconry, and more. On December 8, the Living Crib with Carol Singing takes place from 2 to 4 pm, in front of the Banqueting Hall and a Mini Market and Food Court will take place from 1 to 5 pm. Visit us at www.facebook.com/WinterfestInNewcastleWest and follow us on Twitter @winterfestncw

GREAT SOUTHERN TRAIL: A new book by railway historian, Dr Alan O'Rourke entitled 'The North Kerry Line' was launched in the Lartigue Railway Museum, Listowel, Co. Kerry by Minister Jimmy Deenihan on Sunday, November 24, and at the Library, Gortboy, Newcastle West, on Tuesday, November 26 by Éamon Ó Cuív T.D. The subject material is the Limerick to Tralee railway, along with the branch lines to Fenit and Foynes. The book is the result of several years of research and contains a detailed history of the four railway companies - who constructed these 90 miles approx. of railway in West Limerick and North Kerry during the latter half of the 19th century. It also provides a fine description of the lie of the land and of the communities - linked by the lines and their 22 stations.

BAPTISM PREPARATION PROGRAMME: A Baptism Preparation Programme will take place in the Parish Centre at 8 pm on Tuesday, December 17 (please note earlier date). All parents with a child to be baptised must first have attended one of these one-hour baptism programmes. Ring 069-62141 to book your place.

JOHNNY DONEGAN REMEMBERED: Knockfierna Rambling House will hold a special 2nd Anniversary Remembrance for the late Johnny Donegan. It will take place on Sunday, December 15 in the Desmond Complex, Newcastle West (behind library) at 7.30pm. This, "A night at the Rambling House" is a must for all traditional entertainers. A raffle will take place on the night, admission is free and all are welcome..

SOCIETY OF ST VINCENT DE PAUL: The Annual collection takes place next weekend, December 7 and 8. Your usual generosity will be much appreciated.

AFTERNOON TEA DANCE: A dance in aid of the local volunteers with the Ray of Sunshine Foundation, who are travelling to Kenya in January, will take place at Fr. Casey's Clubhouse on Sunday, December 8 from 3-6pm. Teas served. Admission is €5, with music by Donie Walsh and your support is welcome.

PARISH TWITTER: If you are on Twitter, we encourage you to follow us @NCWParish. We will be posting thoughts for the day, reminding you of upcoming events, posting links for the newsletter, photos and updates of parish events. For family or friends who are away from home at this time, it's a quick and easy way for them to keep in touch with their home parish.

ACCORD MARRIAGE CARE SERVICE, NEWCASTLE WEST: ACCORD provides Marriage Preparation Courses for couples choosing to get married in the Catholic Church. There are still some places available on the January course - which takes place on Saturday, January 18. For further details: Phone 069-61000 or email accordnewcastlewest@eircom.net

TIDY TOWNS: A special showcase and seminar for members of the West Limerick Tidy Towns Network, and interested members of the wider community, will take place on Wednesday, December 11 in the Desmond Complex Newcastle West from 7pm to 10pm. The evening will include a number of special guest speakers - with full details to be announced shortly. Communities considering entering the competition in 2014 are also invited to attend. Entrance is free and all are welcome. Contact Suzanne at West Limerick Resources on 069 79114 or email srowley@wlr.ie

S.J.Y.P.S.: The monthly meeting of the NCW branch will take place on Thursday, December 5 at 8pm in the Parish Office. New promoters would be most welcome.

ARRA FRIENDS: The next meeting will take place on Wednesday, December 11 at 7 pm in the Desmond Complex, with a Mass for deceased members, followed by music and dancing. The last Aquarobics will take place on Monday, December 2 at 11am in Killeline Leisure Centre. Demesne Walk continues on Wednesdays at 10.45 am. The Christmas Party will be held on Friday, December 13 in the Devon Inn Hotel, with an opportunity for dancing after the dinner. The coach will leave Bishop Street at 8:00 p.m.

DEVELOP YOUR IDEA: An Information Evening, to give you guidance, advice and direction with that big christmas cards idea, will take place over the next few weeks. The next information evening will be held in Leens Hotel, Abbeyfeale on Wednesday, December 4 from 5pm to 7pm. You can also e-mail info@reddoorbic.ie or ring the chamber office at 069-77751.

COFFEE MORNING IN AID OF ADAPT HOUSE: A Coffee Morning in Aid of Adapt House takes place in the Community Centre, Newcastle West from 10am to 1pm on Thursday, December 5. Any donations of toys, clean clothes, books etc. would be greatly appreciated on the day. Please support if you can.

VOLUNTEERS REQUIRED: Volunteers are required for English Language classes in Newcastle West in the New Year. Volunteers do not require any specific qualifications or experience but must be willing to commit to volunteer 1.5 hours per week for an 8-10 week period to support small groups of 3-4 people at a time to develop their English language conversation skills. Contact Irene at West Limerick Resources on 069 66298 or email iocallaghan@wlr.ie

ACCORD MARRIAGE CARE SERVICE NEWCASTLE WEST: Provides Marriage Preparation Courses for couples choosing to get married in the Catholic Church. There are still some places available on our January course which takes place on Saturday, January 18. For further details: Please phone 069-61000 or email accordnewcastlewest@eircom.net

MEDJUGORJE PRAYER MEETING: The monthly meeting of the Medjugorje Prayer Group will take place on Saturday, December 7 at 8 pm in the Parish Pastoral Centre.

THE OPTIMISTIC GROUP: The Optimistic group (formerly the Newcastle West Jobseekers Network) meets on Thursdays in the Newcastle West Community Centre from 1.30 to 3.30 pm. The group recently began a selection of training courses which will run up to Christmas - including Confidence in Communication, Art, Healthy eating and Cooking on a Budget. This is an open door, drop in, relaxed format with a social group aspect. New members are always welcome. Further details are available from Dearbhla at West Limerick Resources' Rural Employment Service (RES) on 069 61316.

MASS DIARY FOR JANUARY 2014: Please note that we will begin to take bookings for January 2014 from 9.00am on Monday, December 2 in the Parish Office (069-62141). Bookings for the rest of the year commence as usual on January 1.

CHRISTMAS LIGHTS: Another spectacular Christmas lighting display will open at Tony Noonan's house in Templeglantine on Friday, November 22. Tony and his family have delighted and excited children (and adults) for many years with their amazing lighting display - which is going from strength to strength each year. What's more amazing is the fact that admission is free - with voluntary donations optional. The money raised is kindly distributed to some worthwhile charities as follows: Brothers of Charity Foynes, Alzheimer's Centre Adare, Acquired Brain Injury Centre Castleisland. Santy Clause will arrive (by sleigh) at 5pm on December 7 - with a Garda escort to protect all the toys. Carrigkerry Wren Boys will provide the entertainment, and to restore your faith in humanity, the toys, teas and sandwiches will be provided free of charge - the season of goodwill is alive and well! The display, which will continue over the whole Christmas period, will be well signposted at various points on the main road (N21), between Newcastle West and Abbeyfeale.

CAMINO DE SANTIAGO: The Youth Ministry Team in the diocese are organising a pilgrimage on the Camino in Spain next summer. The Camino De Santiago (the Way of St. James) is a large network of ancient pilgrim routes - stretching across Europe, and coming together at the tomb of St. James in Santiago De Compostella in Northern Spain. It has become very popular with people from all over Europe in recent years and is particularly popular with Irish Pilgrims. The proposed pilgrimage of young adults (21 or over at the time of travelling) will take place from July 8 to July 15, 2014. The cost of the pilgrimage is not yet fixed, but it is hoped it will not exceed € 600. Those who would like find out more are invited to attend an information evening in the Limerick Diocesan Pastoral Centre on Friday, November 29 at 7.30pm. If you cannot attend, you can find out more by phoning 061-400133.

THE FOLK CHOIR: New members are welcome. If you can sing or play an instrument and would like to be part of this group, contact Joan Callaghan at 087-2200189. Practice is held in the Parish Centre on Tuesdays - beginning at 8pm for 45 minutes.

SUE RYDER: Share some festive cheer this Christmas and messages that matters - by sending our exclusive range of Sue Ryder's Christmas cards - available in store in Sue Ryder Charity Store, Maiden Street, Newcastle West. The Sue Ryder Foundation is a not-for-profit charity, introduced to Ireland in 1978. The aim of the foundation is to provide a safe and secure environment for older people. Age brings with it many challenges, but for many people, a nursing home is not always the ideal solution. The Sue Ryder Foundation offers its residents the opportunity to continue living independently within a more supported environment

DESMOND COMPLEX: The next Fun Day will take place on Wednesday, December 11. This will be our last Fun Day for the year. We would like to remind people to contact Brendan on (069) 84069 to enable us have a good approximation on numbers. We would also like to remind people about the hospitalities offered by the Desmond Complex. Dinners are available on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays of every week - with music on most days. Groups can also be accommodated but require advance bookings by ringing the office on (069) 62757 during normal working hours.

NCW FAMILY CLUB: The family Club for primary school-age children and their parents meets on Wednesday after school at 3.30 to 4.45pm. We do Art, sports and games together and have a snack - it includes a play area for younger siblings to come along also. Free for eligible families in receipt of social welfare. Parents must stay throughout. For further information: Contact Theresa on 069 79113.

COMMUNITY CENTRE: The AGM of the Community Centre takes place on Wednesday, December 11 at 8 pm. Members of the public are invited to come along and get involved on the committee. It is the wish of the existing committee to expand and bring some new blood on board.

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Holiday | The Daily Gift: Black Action Tees

At blackactiontees.com, Geoff Cain offers T-shirts that he says, "bring up the good feelings from childhood." They feature real life action heroes like Samuel L. Jackson and animated and comic book heroes like Black Vulcan and Verb! (from the "Schoolhouse Rock!" educational videos). For the more politically minded, there is a depiction of the Obama family inspired by Pixar's "Incredibles." But the shirts that connect most deeply with fans are those adorned with childhood icons like "The Brown Hornet," a hero admired by Fat Albert and his friends. $9.99 to $29.99; blackactiontees.com.

More: xo so kien thiet-guide.html">Daily Gifts
Source: Nytimes

Nikon D5300 Vs. Nikon D7100

<Nikon D5300 Offersp>Nikon has just released its brand new D5300 DSL camera, and it's looking pretty good. The Wi-Fi feature in this model is a first for the company in single-lens reflex camera design, according to Gadget Review. So how does it compare to previous models?

NIKON D7100

According to Digital Photography Review, The D7100 is the first Nikon DSLR to do away with an optical low-pass filter (OLFP), with higher resolution than the usual filtered 24 Megapixel sensors found in the D5200 and D3200. It also has a slightly larger 3.2-inch 1.2M dot rear LCD that features an RGBW display than the D7000.

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Some of the features include a 24.1 MP DX format CMOS sensor, EXPEED 3 processing, Max 6 fps continuous shooting in DX mode, where it is 7fps in 1.3X crop mode, 1080 60i/3p video recording, built-in stereo mic, pentaprism with 100% coverage and .04X magnification, a 3.2-inch and 1.2m-dot LCD screen, front and rear IR receivers and equivalent water and dust resistance to the D800/D300S. It also weighs 765g, so it is relatively light as well.

The camera is available for $1,299.95.

Nikon D5300

The latest model of the DX-format DSLR has 24.2 megapixels, a DX-format CMOS sensor with no optical low-pass filter, built-in Wi-Fi capabilities, a built-in GPS, a durable light body, a 3.2-inch 1037k-dot vari-angle LCCD monitor with wide viewing angle, NAL-1 features for zoom/focus assist, and more.

It also has a full-HD 1920x1080/60p capability for movies, where selection can range from 24, 25, 30,50, and 60p. There are also 9 special effects for creative expression.

As previously reported, Nikon Rumors reports that the Nikon D5300 is expected to be introduced before the Photo Plus show in NYC at the end of the month or the CES show in Las Vegas in January.

It is reported that this will be the first camera to get the new EXPEED 4 processor. Some other rumored specs include 24 Megapixels, 39 AF points, built-in Wi-Fi and built-in GPS.

Photography Bay reports that the D530 will be introduced as an entry-level APS-C format camera. There are no reports yet of whether or not it will have better image quality over the D5200, but it would make sense to add additional video features to the D5300.

The price is $799 for the body only, where it is available in black, red, and a Nikon gray finish.


Source: Designntrend

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Nikon D5300 Rumors, Specs, Price and Release Info: Camera Company Recently Releases Full Specs

<Nikon D5300 Buy Cheapp>Nikon has recently come out with a full list of specs for the new D5300.

The latest model of the DX-format DSLR has 24.2 megapixels, a DX-format CMOS sensor with no optical low-pass filter, built-in Wi-Fi capabilities, a built-in GPS, a durable light body, a 3.2-inch 1037k-dot vari-angle LCCD monitor with wide viewing angle, NAL-1 features for zoom/focus assist, and more.

It also has a full-HD 1920x1080/60p capability for movies, where selection can range from 24, 25, 30,50, and 60p. There are also 9 special effects for creative expression.

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As previously reported, Nikon Rumors reports that the Nikon D5300 is expected to be introduced before the Photo Plus show in NYC at the end of the month or the CES show in Las Vegas in January.

It is reported that this will be the first camera to get the new EXPEED 4 processor. Some other rumored specs include 24 Megapixels, 39 AF points, built-in Wi-Fi and built-in GPS.

Photography Bay reports that the D530 will be introduced as an entry-level APS-C format camera. There are no reports yet of whether or not it will have better image quality over the D5200, but it would make sense to add additional video features to the D5300.

No prices have been reported yet either, but Inferse reports that it may be priced lower than the D5200 was when it first was released.


Source: Designntrend

Saturday, November 9, 2013

Nikon finally adds built-in Wi-Fi to its DSLR line-up with the D5300

<Nikon D5300 Buy Cheapp>

As cameras all around them have gained built-in wireless capabilities, Nikon DSLRs have begun to feel strangely dated with their need for an additional Wi-Fi adapter to keep up with their wireless sharing and remote shooting counterparts. But with the freshly announced D5300, Nikon has finally revealed its first DSLR with built-in Wi-Fi and GPS.

The Nikon D5300 is an update to the mid-range D5200 which was released last year and arguably closes the gap to the enthusiast-targeted D7100. While it still features a 24 megapixel DX format (23.5 x 15.6 mm) APS-C CMOS sensor, and a 39-point autofocus system with nine cross-type sensors, the D5300 has now been designed without an optical low-pass filter to enable it to capture a greater level of detail than equally megapixeled cameras.

It's also been upgraded to use the Nikon EXPEED 4 image processing engine which enables a larger ISO range of 100 to 12,800 (expandable to 25,600 equivalent) though the camera still has a top continuous burst speed of 5 frames per second. Other improvements include the flipping, tilting and turning LCD on the rear which now measures 3.2 inches and has a 1037K dot resolution. Full HD 1080p video can now also be recorded at 60/50 fps and a new pentamirror increases viewfinder magnification to approx. 0.82x.

But it's the built-in Wi-Fi ability which will arguably be seen as the biggest improvement over the D5200, which required the optional WU-1a Wireless Mobile Adapter. Wireless functions in the Nikon D5300 include the ability to transfer images without interrupting your shooting, and to manually select the files you want to send to a phone or tablet for instant sharing.

There's also the option to use an iOS or Android device as a remote monitor or controller for things like adjusting focusing and shutter control when not directly with the camera. This can be handy for things like shooting group pictures with yourself in, or just times when awkward camera positioning would make it too difficult to use on-camera controls. Built-in GPS also means images can be geotagged with latitude, longitude, and altitude data, without the use of external adapters.

Measuring 125 x 98 x 76 mm (4.9 x 3.9 x 3 inches) and weighing 530 g (1 lb 2.7 oz) the D5300 is slightly smaller and lighter than its predecessor. Nikon says this is because it's used a newly developed monocoque-structure with carbon fiber reinforced plastic material for the camera body, allowing it to be both more compact and durable.

The Nikon D5300 will be available in black, red or gray in November. It's due to sell for US$800 body-only, or $1,400 with a AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-140mm F3.5-5.6G ED VR kit lens.

Product page: Nikon D5300


Simon is a journalist and photographer who has spent the last ten years working for national UK newspapers - but has never hacked a mobile phone - and specializes in writing about weird products and photography technology. When not writing for Gizmag, Simon is often found playing with LEGO and drinking far too much coffee. All articles by Simon Crisp

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Source: Gizmag

Thursday, October 31, 2013

Nikon D5300 Digital SLR Wi-Fi Camera

Nikon D5300 Buy Cheap.jpg">

Nikon just introduced the D5300 DSLR camera, which offers an enhanced 24.2-megapixel DX-format CMOS sensor, EXPEED 4 image processing, Vari-angle LCD, GPS and the convenience of built-in Wi-Fi. The mid-range SLR is compact and lightweight (16.9 oz.), and can easily be packed for a day trip or a planned getaway. The small body of the D5300 affords the photographer the freedom to travel while still being easy to handle and comfortable to use.

The D5300 is Nikon's first D-SLR to feature built-in Wi-Fi, allowing the user to share high quality photos instantly. The Nikon D5300 sends images to the user's smart device, allowing them to share their D-SLR quality photos through e-mail and social media. The Nikon D5300 also includes built-in GPS, another first for Nikon D-SLRs. Now the user can geotag images and allow others to see where life has taken them.

The enhanced 24.2-megapixel CMOS sensor delivers stunning images and HD videos with heightened clarity and detail due to the removal of the optical low pass filter (OLPF). Its 39-point high-density autofocus system with 9 cross-type sensors quickly locks onto your subject, and Nikon's unique 3D-tracking uses the 2,016-pixel RGB sensor to recognize and follow it across the frame.

Features:

  • Amazing Low Light Performance - For clean, sharp details even in the most challenging lighting conditions including night games and dimly lit restaurants, the Nikon D5300 covers a wide ISO range of 100-12,800 and is expandable to ISO 25,600.
  • EXPEED 4 Image Processing - Nikon's most recent image processing engine drives the rapid response and swift performance of the D5300, while maximizing energy efficiency, reducing image noise and delivering true-to-life colors.
  • Scene Recognition System - To further help users capture the image they intend, the Nikon D5300 features Nikon's Scene Recognition System and 2,016-pixel RGB metering system to analyze and recognize the scene. Utilizing these systems results in adjustments to exposure, AF and white balance to deliver the best photo possible, whether it's a landscape or portrait.
  • 39-Point AF System - Nikon's quick and precise 39-point AF system works with the Scene Recognition System to accurately acquire and track subjects throughout the frame, resulting in tack-sharp images. Kids too active to pose for a photo or pets chasing after a toy are easily captured in brilliant sharpness for memorable photos.
  • 5 Frames-Per-Second - While using the optical viewfinder or in Live View, capture great moments that would have otherwise been missed with the D5300′s 5 frames-per-second (fps) rate.
  • 3.2-inch Vari-Angle LCD monitor - Whether shooting above a crowd or getting low to capture the details of a flower, users can explore new shots from a dramatic point of view with the large 3.2-inch Vari-angle LCD monitor. This super sharp (1,037K-dot) screen allows photographers to easily make camera adjustments and read menus, while also allowing them to compose the photo they want clearly when shooting from high or low angles. The rotating LCD makes it easy to capture "selfies" at an arm's length away or frame creative perspectives when capturing still photos and HD video.
  • Full HD 1080p Video Capture - Create movies fit for the big screen with Full HD 1080p video capture at 60p with built-in stereo, wide ISO range for high quality videos in any light and improved full-time AF to keep the subject in focus.
  • NIKKOR Compatibility - The Nikon D5300 is compatible with Nikon's legendary NIKKOR lenses and powerful system accessories, further adding versatility and creativity.

Price and Availability
The Nikon D5300 kit with the AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR lens will be available in October 2013 for$1,399.95. Available colors include Black, Red and Gray.


Source: Ecoustics

Monday, October 28, 2013

Nikon Releases Cryptic Teaser for New DSLR Camera

<Nikon D5300 Cheapp>A man stands in an open field, a soft breeze rustling long strands of green grass around him. He gazes out at the landscape.

Though that scene might seem like a perfect opener for a gritty, independent film or a self-reflective novel, it's actually the beginning of Nikon's new teaser ad. Viewers watch a mysterious man, clad in a beige trench coat, as he adjusts something unseen with a couple of clicks. Right when he lifts what we know to be a camera to his face, the scene changes back to him in the midst of the gloomy landscape.

That teaser doesn't show the camera but it includes a very important sound that excited many camera fiends online - the distinct click of an old-school shutter. That small clue paired with one line of dialogue at the end - "It's in my hands again" - seem to hint that Nikon will release a retro-styled DSLR camera.

Little else is known beyond hearsay, with Nikon Rumors conjecturing that the full-frame camera will be called the Nikon DF, for "digital fusion." The post also claims the camera will include the same autofocus system found in the D610 and that it will offer settings for aspect ratios of 1:1, 3:2 and 16:9.

On its official site, Nikon explains the short video as the first in a series called Pure Photography. The videos follow a photographer traveling through Scotland as he "reunites with his creative self during this uniquely ambitious trip."

Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.

Image: YouTube, Nikon Asia

BONUS: 5 Fun DIY Camera Kits


  • Source: Mashable

    Sunday, October 27, 2013

    Nikon refines its enthusiast-level DSLR with GPS-equipped D5300

    Oct. 17, 2013 at 8:18 PM ET

    The latest from Nikon D5300 Cheap is a refresh of the popular D5200 that doesn't fix anything that wasn't broken, but makes a few welcome changes under the hood, such as adding built-in Wi-Fi and GPS.

    The predictably named D5300 doesn't just add extra bullet points to the feature list, though. The actual picture-taking parts have gotten an upgrade as well. Its 24-megapixel sensor has lost the anti-aliasing filter - this optical filter was necessary on digital cameras for years, but recent advances in high-resolution sensors and in image processors have made it obsolete. Removing it can improve image quality, and that's just what Nikon has done.

    Also updated is the image processor, which will allow the D5300 to shoot five stills per second, or video at 1080p and 60 frames per second. It's only a small step up from its predecessor, but every little bit counts.

    Its articulating rear LCD has also gotten slightly larger, and the viewfinder is a bit better now as well. Again, nothing that will make D5200 owners particularly jealous.

    Wi-Fi and GPS, however, might come in handy. Being able to geotag your shots and sync them with Dropbox quickly becomes indispensable, and perks like being able to activate the shutter from your smartphone don't hurt either.

    At $800 for the body or $1,400 with a capable 18-140 F/3.5-5.6 zoom, the D5300 is competitive with the likes of Canon and Sony for consumer-grade DSLRs. That said, if none of the new features are calling your name, just remember: pretty soon you'll be able to pick up the D5200 for a song.

    Devin Coldewey is a contributing writer for NBC News Digital. His personal website is coldewey.cc.
    Source: Nbcnews

    Saturday, October 26, 2013

    WIN a Nikon S9500 camera!

    <Nikon D5300 Couponsp>


    Honda has launched a#HondaPassport Twitter competition for one lucky winner to choose their dream journey, worth £5,000. We all love to take photos when we're out and about and perhaps even get a little snap happy, so why not put them to good use and try to nab yourself your dream holiday?

    All you need to do is fill your Honda passport with stamps from different categories by tweeting your image, including #HondaPassport. Images will be automatically uploaded to the content hub Myjourneys.com/hondaPassport and all entries will receive a stamp in their Honda passport depending on which travel category you're collecting.

    The aim of the game is to fill your passport with as many stamps as possible and the more stamps received, the better chance of winning the £5,000 dream holiday. The winner is decided by the public, who will be asked to vote for the Honda Passport they like the most.

    To celebrate the #HondaPassport competition, Honda has joined forces with Nikon to help capture those special memories by giving you the chance to win a Nikon S9500 with 22x optical zoom.

    For your chance to win, visit our Facebook page and enter your details on the entry page before November 15.

    Good luck!


    Source: Parentdish

    Thursday, October 24, 2013

    Capture, Create, Connect: The Nikon D5300 D-SLR Lets Photographers Do It All With Confidence

    <Nikon D5300 Offersp>Related:

    MELVILLE, N.Y., Oct. 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ Today, Nikon Inc. announced the latest addition to its legendary digital SLR lineup, the Nikon D5300. Offering the benefits of SLR performance with the versatility of wireless connectivity, the D5300 allows users to easily capture and share amazing images and videos. Though compact and lightweight, the Nikon D5300 packs an enhanced 24.2-megapixel DX-format CMOS sensor, EXPEED 4 image processing and the convenience of built-in Wi-Fi 1. Users now have the power to take both frame-worthy and share-worthy photos and HD videos with one device no matter where they are.

    "With the Nikon D5300, we are continuing our commitment to delivering unparalleled performance and image quality while addressing the importance of staying connected and sharing images with ease," said Masahiro Horie, Director of Marketing and Planning, Nikon Inc. "By answering the need to share high quality photos, the Nikon D5300 allows photographers to capture their memories in astounding clarity and share them with family and friends moments after they happen."

    Advanced Performance for When it Matters Most
    Making memorable moments even better, the Nikon D5300 offers stunning image quality with sharp, crisp detail to preserve life's precious memories. The enhanced 24.2-megapixel CMOS sensor delivers stunning images and HD videos with heightened clarity and detail due to the removal of the optical low pass filter (OLPF). From planned family portraits to candid moments, the D5300 has the performance, along with easy and intuitive features, to help users capture photos confidently, including:

    • Amazing Low Light Performance For clean, sharp details even in the most challenging lighting conditions including night games and dimly lit restaurants, the Nikon D5300 covers a wide ISO range of 100-12,800 and is expandable to ISO 25,600.
    • EXPEED 4 Image Processing Nikon's most recent image processing engine drives the rapid response and swift performance of the D5300, while maximizing energy efficiency, reducing image noise and delivering true-to-life colors.
    • Scene Recognition System To further help users capture the image they intend, the Nikon D5300 features Nikon's Scene Recognition System and 2,016-pixel RGB metering system to analyze and recognize the scene. Utilizing these systems results in adjustments to exposure, AF and white balance to deliver the best photo possible, whether it's a landscape or portrait.
    • 39-Point AF System Nikon's quick and precise 39-point AF system works with the Scene Recognition System to accurately acquire and track subjects throughout the frame, resulting in tack-sharp images. Kids too active to pose for a photo or pets chasing after a toy are easily captured in brilliant sharpness for memorable photos.
    • 5 Frames-Per-Second While using the optical viewfinder or in Live View, capture great moments that would have otherwise been missed with the D5300's 5 frames-per-second (fps) rate.

    Share Like Never Before
    The D5300 is Nikon's first D-SLR to feature built-in Wi-Fi, allowing the user to share high quality photos instantly. The Nikon D5300 sends images to the user's smart device, allowing them to share their D-SLR quality photos through e-mail and social media. From a winning touchdown to a surprise proposal, friends and family can now see these important moments clearly captured right after they happen. The Nikon D5300 also includes built-in GPS, another first for Nikon D-SLRs. Now the user can geotag images and allow others to see where life has taken them.

    Features for Creativity and Versatility
    Compact and lightweight (16.9 oz.), the Nikon D5300 can easily be packed for a day trip or a planned getaway. The small body of the D5300 affords the photographer the freedom to travel while still being easy to handle and comfortable to use. In addition to being able to capture amazing images anywhere, the D5300 is also packed with additional features to promote creativity and versatility, including:

    • 3.2-inch Vari-Angle LCD monitor Whether shooting above a crowd or getting low to capture the details of a flower, users can explore new shots from a dramatic point of view with the large 3.2-inch Vari-angle LCD monitor. This super sharp (1,037K-dot) screen allows photographers to easily make camera adjustments and read menus, while also allowing them to compose the photo they want clearly when shooting from high or low angles. The rotating LCD makes it easy to capture "selfies" at an arm's length away or frame creative perspectives when capturing still photos and HD video.
    • Full HD 1080p Video Capture Create movies fit for the big screen with Full HD 1080p video capture at 60p with built-in stereo, wide ISO range for high quality videos in any light and improved full-time AF to keep the subject in focus.
    • NIKKOR Compatibility The Nikon D5300 is compatible with Nikon's legendary NIKKOR lenses and powerful system accessories, further adding versatility and creativity.

    October 2013 for the suggested retail price (SRP) of $1,399.95*. To complement consumers' preferences, the Nikon D5300 will be available in Black, Red and Gray. For more information on the new Nikon D5300 and other Nikon products, please visit Price and Availability
    The Nikon D5300 kit with the AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR lens will be available in www.nikonusa.com.



    Press Release, News
    Source: Broadwayworld

    Monday, October 21, 2013

    Creative DIY Halloween Costumes

    Don't want to spend a ton of money on a Halloween costume? Fed up with the limited options that are in stores? Against the idea of being Miley Cyrus?

    You're not alone!

    If you want to look totally original (and save your hard-earned cash for yummy Halloween candy) then look no further. We've rounded up some awesome DIY Halloween costume ideas that just require a little bit of imagination, a couple of hours and a small budget.

    Story continues below the slideshow:

    Mary Poppins:

    Find a kooky hat, an old floral bag and go through your closet for a long black skirt, matching blazer and a white blouse. Wrap yourself up in a scarf, pick up an umbrella and you'll be "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" in no time.

    Link

    The Zelda video game character requires a lot of green felt, brown boots, a makeshift sword and shield.

    Grumpy cat makeup this month

    Paint your face brown and white, make some ears out of material from a fabric store and sport the biggest frown you've ever worn.

    Gingerbread Man

    There's no need to bake actual gingerbread for this costume. Go the literal route and throw on loaves of bread around you and dye your hair ginger red.

    Penny

    Get some cardboard and spray paint it bronze, attach it to your head and voilà! You are now a currency.

    Grey Scale

    Ever wanted to look as if you lived in black-and-white à la "Pleasantville"? Just wear solely black and white and paint your skin grey.

    Pregnant Zombie

    Flaunt your baby bump by pretending there's a zombie breaking out! Grab an old doll, some fake blood, glue and a shirt you're not afraid of ripping up.

    Scarecrow

    Do your best Cillian Murphy as Scarecrow impression by cutting up an old sack, sew up the mouth and draw 'X's" on the sewed-up mouth.

    "Where The Wild Things Are" - Carol

    This costume requires a bit more time and effort, but the results are spectacular. Go to your nearest fabric store and get black and tan material, and make the head, horns and nose out of paper mache.

    Poison Ivy

    The "Batman" character is actually perfect for Halloween because there are so many leaves to pick from the trees! Glue the leaves to a bodysuit, paint your face with lots of sparkly green makeup and find a cheap red wig.

    Red Bull

    This one is easy. Get a lot of duct tape, construct it into a dress, paint it blue and cut out the letters Red Bull from a print-out and tape them on the dress.

    Pac-Man

    Construct the Pac-man out of cardboard and hang it on a black sweater by using straps.

    Pretty Skeleton

    Paint your skin black with white bones on your arms, chest and face and throw on an old black dress.

    Slave Leia

    Everyone loves a good Slave Leia! Grab some red felt and cut up dyed-gold cardboard for the skirt and make the bikini out of cardboard or felt.

    Elliott From "E.T"

    Throw on a red hoodie and grab yourself a milk carton and bike handles. If you can't get your hands on an E.T. doll, put in your pet and wrap a white blanket around them!

    "The Hangover"

    Even if you don't have a real baby, you can pick up a doll for cheap and wrap it in a blanket around you. Just make sure to wear a pair of sunnies and stick out your gut.

    Lucy And Charlie Brown

    This super cute idea involves a yellow shirt, a blue dress and a black marker.

    Edward Scissorhands

    Kink your hair out a bit with a hair curler, paint your face with pale white makeup and a bit of black highlighter on the cheeks and mouth and throw on a black turtleneck and white collared-shirt.

    Prince

    Give yourself your best jheri curl, paint on a moustache and small goatee and throw on a ruffled and bedazzled shirt.

    Also on HuffPost:


    Source: Huffingtonpost

    Wednesday, October 16, 2013

    Lunch, Anyone? Saus

    Belgian-style frites and waffles, but condiment is king

    The menu at Saus is deceptively simple-sandwiches, salads, fries, desserts. Such fare can be found almost everywhere in Boston. But this small eatery, tucked into a little spot near Government Center, has taken these items and given them an unforgettable kick. How? The secret lies in the restaurant's focus on Belgian street food and its numerous homemade dipping sauces-hence the name.

    Saus was founded by two BU alums-Renee Eliah (SMG'08) and Chin Kuo (SMG'08)-and their friend Tanya Kropinicki, after they were laid off from a start-up software company. "We had always talked about food during work, and we joked around about opening a stand that sold French fries," says Eliah. "We were laid off together when the recession happened, and we could either find marketing jobs somewhere else or we could find restaurant jobs." With help from Greg Collier, a School of Management lecturer in strategy and innovation, they opened Saus in 2011.

    What they created is a place that celebrates Belgian-style pommes frites and waffles, enhancing both with more than 15 dipping sauces ($.75 each), as well as complimentary homemade ketchup, mayo, and hot sauce, to slather on top of anything and everything. It's a condiment lover's dream.

    Saus' inviting chalkboard menu includes the aforementioned hand-cut frites ($4.25-$7), double-fried and served in paper cones, and liège waffles ($3.75), made from dough, not batter, with pearl sugar. Either is delectable on its own, but add a unique sauce and it becomes downright irresistible (for the waffles, there are sweet sauces like salted caramel, nutella, and lemon cream). "We try to utilize our sauces and sandwich spreads to enhance flavor," Eliah says. "Every item has a sauce component to it that really makes it what it is."

    To gauge the range of distinctive sauces available, we recommend starting with the three most popular-the vampire slayer, the olé chipotle, and the bacon parm. True to its name, the vampire slayer is packed with garlic, the olé chipotle has delightful hints of lime and cilantro, and the bacon parm-our personal favorite-offers just the right balance of bacon and cheese. You can also take home any eight-ounce sauce for $5.

    The menu has more substantial lunch options as well. We ordered two entrées, the Frik and the veggie croquette pita. The Frik ($8), beef and pork, dill pickles, sharp cheddar, and andalouse sauce, is Saus' hand-rolled take on Belgian street food. The ingredients complemented one another perfectly. The veggie croquettes ($6.95), made with potato cauliflower mash, were a fresh and flavorful vegetarian option, packed with subtle flavors enhanced by vinaigrette and samurai sauce.

    Saus is deservedly famous for its carefully selected crafted beer list, which features a number of excellent Belgian and American craft beers. Among those currently on draft are Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin, Ayinger Ocktoberfest, and Green Flash Green Bullet. We passed on the enticing beer float (choice of beer and two scoops of vanilla ice cream for $2.50 plus the cost of the beer), but we plan to return to try it out.

    Patrons order counter-style and can sit at one of the few narrowly spaced tables. Deep wood accents and bright blue chairs give Saus a sleek and modern look, and the framed cartoon pumpkin strips of Belgium's boy reporter-turned-detective Tintin give the place a playful vibe.

    Saus, 33 Union St., Boston, is open Monday to Wednesday, 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to midnight, Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 2 a.m., Saturday, noon to 2 a.m., and Sunday, noon to 8 p.m.; phone: 617-248-8835. By public transportation, take an MBTA Green Line trolley to Government Center. This is part of a weekly series featuring Boston Irene Berman-Vaporis can be reached at imbv@bu.edu. lunch spots of interest to the BU community. If you have any suggestions for places we should feature, leave them in the comments section below. Check out our list of lunchtime tips on Foursquare.
    Source: Bu

    Easy, Awesome Group Costume Ideas (PHOTOS)

    <funny costumes for adultsp>Picking out a Halloween costume can be a little stressful... especially if you're strapped for cash. The good news? It's entirely possible to rock the scariest night of the year in not only a creative costume, but one that isn't going to break the bank -- with your friends, of course.

    From sushi rolls to the cast of "Pretty Little Liars," scroll down below for 18 awesome DIY Halloween group costume ideas that'll no doubt impress.

    Take a look at more of the Coolest Homemade Halloween Costumes and visit Coolest Homemade Costumes on Pinterest.

    Also on HuffPost:


    Source: Huffingtonpost

    Tuesday, October 15, 2013

    Apple's iPhone 5S outsells cheaper iPhone 5c two to one

    Where Apple stands in the smartphone market is clear: The iPhone is the one to beat. It's simultaneously a leader in specs and a vanity status symbol. The high end is its territory.

    So when shoppers were given the choice between the latest iPhone and the ever so slightly cheaper iPhone 5C, they decided to go big or go home. Data from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) shows that the newest flagship iPhone 5s iphone cases otterbox defender purple is outselling the cheaper one by more than two to one.

    According to CIRP (via All Things D), the 5S accounted for 64% of total handset sales for Apple in the last days of September. The 5C only took 27% of sales, and the now two-year-old 4S making up the rest.

    In some ways, this is good news for Apple. The 5C is cheaper, and presumably comes at a lower margin. Analysts feared that if a lower-margin product ate up some of Apple's own market share, its profit margins would eventually suffer. IHS says that the cost of building and shipping the iPhone 5S is only 30% of the sticker price. That's the gold mine that makes Apple shareholders rich. Then again, there was plenty of reason to accept the lower margins because the higher-end already bought them. Maps with pinpoints indicating which cell phones people use corresponds very well to a map showing income inequality.

    In the map above, made by data visualization expert Eric Fischer, the red dots represent geolocated tweets from iPhone users; the green dots are from Google Androids. Manhattan and the well-heeled parts of Brooklyn and the New Jersey waterfront make up iPhone country. Central Brooklyn, Jersey City, and Newark have a much higher concentration of Android phones. Anecdotally, it seems like all of the beautiful, successful people in the world (even those paid by Microsoft to hawk Windows Phone), are iPhone users already. Of course Apple realizes the need to grab some of the middle shelf.

    So if a middle-class buyer decides to get an Apple product, he or she knows that the product is a status symbol. Why get a brightly colored one that advertises that you didn't go all the way?

    Of course, this is still early days, a time when die-hard Apple zealots and early adopters buy stupid amounts of electronics. When the holiday season comes and people give them as gifts, the cheaper iPhone might sell a little faster. For the geeks, however, you can't go halfway on a status symbol.

    This story originally appeared on Minyanville. FACEBOOK: SAMSUNG: APPLE: Apple's iPhone Rollout and Samsung's Fingerprint-Acquisition Fakeout For Samsung, All Roads Lead Away From Android Facebook Acquires Data Compression Company to Further Internet.org Mission
    Source: Usatoday

    Sunday, October 13, 2013

    Galaxy Round vs. iPhone 5S vs. Galaxy Note 3: Which gimmick is best?

    5s iphone cases electric knife with holder by cuisinart-5c-280x75-c.png">

    Maybe mobile device makers are running out of ideas. There's currently an arms race going on between companies as they race to be the first to do, well, pretty much anything. Samsung's Galaxy Note broke out an old accessory and made it new with the S Pen, the fanciest stylus we've ever seen; Apple equipped its iPhone 5S with a fingerprint sensor, turning your finger into your password; and now Samsung has unveiled its latest phone with a first: the Galaxy Round has a curved display. Why a curved display? Hmm ... why not? How do all these devices compare once you move past the gimmicks? We find out with a spec showdown.

    iPhone 5S

    Galaxy Note 3

    Galaxy Round

    You'll notice the Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Round are very similar, as if the Round is just a Note 3 that someone sat on. The Round has a slightly smaller battery, likely because of the concave screen, but that saves it a bit of weight it won't have to carry. Other than that, it features the same camera on the front and back, the same processor, RAM, internal storage, and display size. The Note 3 does come with the S Pen, something the Round currently lacks. The iPhone lags behind in the screen, looking shrunken along side the two huge Samsung devices. But it keeps the pixel count up and competitive. Its internals appear to lag behind a bit, but the powerful A7 processor and M7 motion processor make up for the lower RAM and Apple optimizes its machines far better, so weaker specs go further.

    Which special power do you want?
    • iPhone 5S Touch ID button: Apple's fingerprint sensor works really well. It doesn't do much except unlock your phone and let you pay for App Store purchases, but we imagine Apple will open it up down the line.
    • Galaxy Note 3 S Pen: Samsung has filled the Note 3 with so many pen-based gestures, you'll be hard-pressed to use it without the S Pen. The handwriting recognition is still slow, but the S Pen is the most accurate stylus on the market.
    • Galaxy Round: We can't think of a good reason why this exists. You can rock the phone to one side to show the time, but non-curved phones like the Moto X already have this feature (and it works better). We don't get it.

    We're not sure what the price will be for the Galaxy Round - aside from an off-contract price of 1.09 million won ($1017) in South Korea - or when it will become available in the US or UK. What we do know is its a device you're going to want in your hand before you make a decision about it. It's going to be all about the feel with the curved screen. Playing around with all of these devices, especially with their unique gimmicks that aim to set them apart from competitors, will give you a better feeling for which is right for you.


    Source: Digitaltrends

    Sunday, October 6, 2013

    Russian Air Force to Field a Stealth Bomber By 2020

    <valvep>In April 2013 the Russian Air Force has approved the conceptual design and specification of its future strategic bomber known as 'PAK-DA' (future long-range aircraft), paving the way for development of components for the aircraft. Air Force Commander Lt. Gen. Viktor Bondarev was quoted by Novosti news agency saying that the PAK-DA project has been in the works for several years but was given the formal go-ahead by the Russian leadership in 2012. It is due to replace Russia's aging fleet of 63 Tupolev Tu-95MS Bear and 13 Tu-160 Blackjack strategic bombers in the next decade. The principal nuclear armed weapon used with these platform is the Kh-102 that has entered service in the 2000s. The Tu-95MS can carry eight missiles and Tu-160 carries 12 on two rotary launchers.

    Click here for the full coverage of the Russian Strategic Missile Force Modernization

    The Tupolev design bureau has won the PAK-DA development tender offering a subsonic "flying wing" design, providing advanced stealth capabilities. It was selected over more speculative 'hypersonic bomber' recommended by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin. The new bomber will carry both conventional and nuclear weapons, including a new long-range cruise missile that has already been adapted for the new bomber. The characteristics of such weapon are still classified, but, according to debate that has surfaced in the Russian media this year, such missile could feature hypersonic performance. In the 1980s the Russians conducted several hypersonic missile researches, although none of the programs reached technological maturity. Experts say the combination of subsonic stealth and hypersonic flight overcoming access denial and counter-air weapons would enable the future bomber superior capabilities over existing platforms. The new bomber is expected to go in production by 2020 and will be built at a new aircraft assembly line at Russia's Kazan plant (KAPO). The same plant previously built the Tu-95MS and Tu-160. According to defense ministry officials, the PAK-DA could enter service by the year 2025.


    Source: Defense-update

    Saturday, October 5, 2013

    Barrett-Jackson sells Cobra Jet prototype for $200,000

    <promotionalp>Autoweek loves passionate comments and debate, but remember that you're part of a diverse community. Above all: be respectful. Critique statements, not people; talk about the automotive world, but skip the political rhetoric, hate speech, and obscenities. While we can't read every post, this site is moderated and Autoweek will remove comments as we see fit. Questions? Read our Terms of Use or email moderator@autoweek.com.


    Source: Autoweek

    Friday, October 4, 2013

    iPhone 5s vs. iPhone 5c - Full Comparison [VID]

    I've now owned the iPhone 5c for two weeks and the iPhone 5s for 11 days. With that in mind, I decided it was high time I compared Apple's two newest iPhones. In the video above I compare design, performance, camera and display. My biggest question throughout the whole process of owning both phones was whether or not the iPhone 5s would dramatically outperform the iPhone 5c. And I have to say, for the most part - and in real, day-to-day use 5s iphone cases compare otterbox defender and commuter - it doesn't. There are some noticeable differences like the Touch ID sensor and the improvements made to the camera sensor and flash system.

    10 days ago I wrote up a post featuring all the design differences and similarities. The full gallery from that post is below. If you want to read the entire article for a detailed view on the two phones, hit the headline directly above, it's a link to the original comparison.

    This slideshow requires JavaScript.

    As well as a design comparison, I've also compared some photographs form each of the two cameras in an in-depth look at the different results. For most average users in daylight, the results will be virtually identical. Again, a gallery of comparisons is below:

    This slideshow requires JavaScript.

    Speed Test

    Last but not least, I compared the two for performance. Launching apps, browsing the web and other, normal daily activities. Again, there's little between them unless you open up a 64-bit optimized application.

    Wrap Up

    The entire purpose of these comparisons is to see if the average user and iPhone buyer would notice any huge difference between the two devices. In most cases, they wouldn't. And there's certainly no performance issue on the iPhone 5c that's so big that it would give anyone a poor user experience. Both are brilliant phones, and for me it comes down to two things: Look and Feel.

    If you want a device that feels like it wants to be used; a comfortable device in your grip, but with all the performance of the iPhone 5, you should get the iPhone 5c. However, if you have to have the most elegant and refined looking model with the best technological advancements, go with the 5s. I don't think you'll be disappointed by either.

    If you're not convinced yet, read my iPhone 5c review and my iPhone 5s review and see which you think is the best model for you. We're all different, and want different things from our smartphones.


    Source: Todaysiphone