Apple Iphone 5

Ben Barrett

2012-10-10T19:06:00.0000000 2016-07-21T19:09:10.4170000

The iPhone 5 is a touchscreen-based smartphone developed by Apple Inc, the sixth generation of the iPhone and the successor of the iPhone 4S. It was announced on September 12, 2012, and released on September 21 in nine countries. On September 28, the device was further released in twenty-two countries, comprising mainly European countries. It has a larger 4-inch screen and a smaller eight-pin dock connector than its predecessor, and is lighter, thinner, and contains the Apple A6 processor.It is the first iPhone to support LTE and have a screen with a 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio.

IPHONE 5 REVIEW

I’ve been using the iPhone 5 as my main device for almost a week now and it has been a treat. At first glance you may think the iPhone 5 looks exactly the same as the iPhone 4S, but that can be a little deceiving. There is no doubt the new iPhone is very similar to its predecessor, but there are many small changes.

For instance, the silver band around the iPhone 5 has the slightest bezel that gives the iPhone a slightly more rounded feel in your hand. You may be wondering how much difference that little change could make, but if you hold your iPhone all day, even the smallest change makes a big difference.

That has been my takeaway from the design of the iPhone 5 — small design changes that make for big user experience improvements. It’s important to remember that while the changes on the outside may be small to the naked eye, the changes on the inside are huge. Every major component of the iPhone has been changed in one way or another.

Of course, the thing that everyone is talking about with the iPhone 5 is the 4-inch screen. I can tell you that it’s gorgeous.

The thing with the larger screen is that you get this feeling of having space on the display that you didn’t have before. Clearly, that’s true because the screen is larger, but I mean even more space than the screen allows. Perhaps it’s a perceptual thing. If you told me that I would be able to see another few rows of emails or more of a Web page, I don’t know that I would see the importance, but when you look at the iPhone 5, it’s more than that. You have to see it to get an idea of what can be done.

Apps are not just going to be stretched to fit the screen. Developers have already shown at Apple’s event that with more space comes new and innovative design ideas. That’s the future of iPhone apps.

The most important point of Apple’s larger iPhone screen is that it’s not too large. I know that sounds strange, but bigger is not always better. If the screen is so big that you can’t comfortably operate the iPhone 5 with one hand, then Apple would have failed.

But they didn’t. I am able to easily navigate through the iPhone 5 menus and options using one hand. My thumb reaches the top of the screen to tap on options and hit the back button without shuffling the phone in my hand.

This is a mobile device, not a desktop computer. We want to operate an iPhone with one hand. This is a device that we use on the go, with a coffee in one hand and an iPhone in the other. We can send an email, visit a Web page or make a phone call.

We can also use the multitude of apps available, but the second you require two-hands, you take away functionality and convenience from the user. That is a design failure.

Another factor that comes into play with size is the ability to put the iPhone 5 in your pocket. Again, it’s a mobile device — we need to be able to take it out, use it and put it back in our pocket without really thinking about it. If we have to find a new place to put the iPhone, it’s no longer convenient. When that happens, we stop using it.

If there is one problem I had with the iPhone, it would be with the apps that weren’t designed for the larger screen. We’re used to going to the bottom of the screen for the menu, but because the older apps are centered on the screen, the menus aren’t there. I tap a few times before I realize I have to move my thumb up a little bit.

It’s a minor quirk that will go away as soon as the developers update their apps.

I use my iPhone 5 to make phone calls, iMessage, text, Web browsing, email, Twitter and generally keep up-to-date with what’s going on around the world. I unplugged my phone from the charger at 10:00 am, used it all day doing the things described above and then waited for it to run out of battery.

It wasn’t until about 7:00 am the next morning that it finally died. I didn’t watch any movies or intensive things like that, but I had Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on. Basically this was real-world usage testing for me. It was a normal day.

Many of us have experience with LTE from using the iPad. I’ll tell you it’s great to see it on the iPhone. I actually use LTE more on the iPhone than I do on the iPad, simply because I use the phone a lot more. The speed is incredibly fast, especially when compared to what the iPhone 4S could do.

Like the faster processor and graphics, LTE gives you the feeling of never waiting for anything. Apps open fast and you are ready to work or browse the Web right away.

I know we hear about Apple’s products being thinner quite a bit, but the iPhone 5 is noticeably thinner than the 4S. I was actually surprised at how much thinner the new iPhone was when I held it next to the 4S. Of course with thinner comes lighter, and the iPhone 5 is that too. I guarantee you’ll be surprised the first time you pick it up. Because it’s larger, you naturally assume it will be heavier, but it’s not.

Parco dei Mostri (Park of the Monsters)

Ben Barrett

2013-03-23T08:37:00.0000000 2016-07-21T08:41:12.8770000

PARCO DEI MOSTRI (PARK OF THE MONSTERS) REVIEW

Yesterday me and my girlfriend went to Parco dei Mostri (Park of the Monsters) located in Lazio Italy. It was a really nice park in fact very quiet! but probably because it's out of season. Inside the park there and loads of giant sculptures. Monsters, an elephant, a turtle. Even a leaning building that looks like it was about to fall over. Anyway this park is one to check out just avoid the rude lady serving coffee ;)

Taken 2

Ben Barrett

2013-03-19T09:53:00.0000000 2016-07-09T10:02:48.2970000

After the deaths of Albanian mobsters, the cousins of the criminals whom Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) killed while searching for his daughter, Kim (Maggie Grace), leave Paris, France and return to their hometown of Tropojë, Albania, for the dead mens' funeral. During the ceremony, Murad (Rade Šerbedžija), the employer of the men and father of Marko, whom Bryan killed by electrocution, states that they will find Bryan to avenge the deaths of their loved ones, no matter what the cost. Murad and his men capture and torture Jean-Claude Pitrel (the corrupt policeman from the previous film) for the Bryan's identity, before killing him.

Kim and her mother Lenore (Famke Janssen), who is currently having relationship problems with her husband, surprise Bryan by joining him on his trip to Istanbul, Turkey where he is on vacation after a 3-day business commitment. While Kim remains at the hotel, Lenore and Bryan are being followed by Murad's men on the streets of Istanbul, but Bryan suspects a tail. The men capture Lenore, forcing Bryan to surrender, but before he does he calls Kim and warns her about the men, allowing her to escape through the hotel balcony, and she escapes through the rooftops of Istanbul, but Bryan is captured.

Bryan wakes with his hands tied to a pole in a dark room. Using a communications device that he has hidden in his sock, Bryan calls Kim, instructing her to go to the U.S Embassy and tell them what happened, but she begs for a chance to help him and Lenore. Under Bryan's guidance, she opens up his weaponry suitcase and throws a live grenade out of the window. Bryan uses the time it takes for the sound of the explosion to reach him in order to deduce his location.

He then has her take a gun and two more grenades and travel towards his location via the rooftops, while he frees himself from his restraints and sends steam up a chimney to mark his location. Kim tosses the gun down the chimney and Bryan uses it to escape. Now on the run, they are chased by Murad's men. They steal a cab and are chased through the streets. Bryan has Kim commandeer the car and while she drives away, he shoots the assailants, escaping.

Bryan later returns to the building but Lenore has already been moved. Leaving Kim at the U.S embassy, he follows the route to Murad's safehouse he memorized from his abduction. After killing several men, he confronts Murad, who insists that his two remaining sons will seek revenge if Bryan kills him. Murad agrees to call off his vendetta in exchange for Bryan letting him live. Bryan drops his gun and walks away, but Murad seizes it and tries to shoot Bryan, only to discover that Bryan has removed the bullets. Knowing that Murad would never abide by a truce, Bryan kills him by pushing his neck into a coat hanger.

Three weeks later, the Mills family eats at a diner back home in Los Angeles to celebrate Kim's passing her driving test. They are joined, much to Bryan's surprise, by Kim's boyfriend Jamie, and Kim jokingly asks her overprotective father not to shoot him or restrain him.

TAKEN 2 REVIEW

If you're in to a good action movie then Taken 2 is the one for you. If you didn't like the first Taken then this movie won't be for you as it's very similar to the first. It's a bit of a blokes movie plenty of action, car chases, explosions etc. Overall it's got a great storyline and great acting so if you're looking for a good action movie check this one out!

James Bond Skyfall

Ben Barrett

2013-02-18T16:02:00.0000000 2016-06-13T13:04:07.4000000

JAMES BOND SKYFALL REVIEW

Just watched this movie last night and I loved it. I was glued to the screen throughout. Great storyline kept changing so I never got bored! Really enjoy it. Also Adele did a great job with the soundtrack. Looking forward to Bond's next installment!