When you decide to spend your Saturday evening in the cinema, picking a movie can be tough. Modern cinema means you have to pick a film and you might even have to choose between 2D and 3D. Going to see Dunkirk was an easy choice given the rave reviews it’s been getting. It’s only available in 2D, so that was easy, but it is available to watch in standard cinemas, IMAX and 70mm. Why do decisions have to be so hard?
Dunkirk: A Spoiler Free Review
I’m going to dive into Dunkirk without spoiling anything for you, even though it is based on a true story, so history buffs have already had it spoiled.
Dunkirk in a Nutshell
Don’t let the name fool you. Dunkirk refers to a coastal town in France by the name of Dunkerque. In 1940, Germany had secured much of mainland Europe. As they advanced in France, German troops trapped Allied forces on Dunkirk beach. Christopher Nolan’s movie picks up with the men on the beaches awaiting evacuation.
One thing you should be prepared for before taking your seat for Dunkirk is the film takes a multi-timeline approach to telling its story.
Why You Should See Dunkirk
Christopher Nolan has created some modern-day masterpieces and Dunkirk is another. Nolan’s depiction of war is not one which glorifies heroes. Instead, it shows how war is little more than a collection of people being extremely human. Despite this focus on humanity in a war situation, Nolan’s Dunkirk strips the majority of the movie’s cast of that humanity. I went through the cast of the film and found 87% of the characters in the movie are never named. In war, soldiers are reduced to little more than statistics.
Nolan’s Dunkirk wanted to bring home the realities of war, something often attempted but rarely achieved. Which brings me onto the biggest question cinema goers are asking.
You Should See Dunkirk in IMAX
Nolan returned to IMAX cameras for Dunkirk, equipment he previously used for Interstellar. The director’s goal was to create a cinematic sensation which he describes as
virtual reality without the goggles
Goal achieved. Dunkirk is visually stunning, but the for me the audio completed the experience.
The sheer volume of the gunfire made cinema goers jump in unison. People were visually uncomfortable with the volume of gunshots and diving fighters. I couldn’t help but appreciate Nolan’s effort to rip you out of your seat and place you in a hopeless war setting. The tension that builds up in nothing short of incredible.
Is Dunkirk Worth Seeing in a Normal Cinema?
All the fancy cameras in the world won’t make up for a crap film. In its own right, Dunkirk is a fantastic movie. Dunkirk was a miracle of deliverance, the perfect foundation for a story. I’m rather shocked it’s taken this long to make the big screen.
If you can, make the trek to Cineworld in Dublin and view Dunkirk in IMAX. Failing that, the Irish Film Institute is showing the movie in 70mm, which will offer 70% of the IMAX experience along with the charm of gritty, non-digital footage. Most importantly, if you’re outside Dublin, just get to the cinema and watch Dunkirk. It’s a harrowing true-story that’ll make you appreciate growing up during peaceful times.
The world wide web is constantly evolving. Shopping online has become easier and browsing the web on the toilet now means websites are mobile friendly. These changes mean the web of today looks very different to what it looked like ten years ago. You can view some of the world’s biggest websites like Reddit and how they looked back ten on Ten Years Ago.
But what about the most popular Irish sites?
I did some digging to find Ireland’s most popular sites and then travelled back in time to 2007.
Most Popular Irish Sites of 2007
RTÉ
RTÉ is actually one of the leaders in Ireland when it comes to innovation. They’re the reason we’re only second to market in Ireland with an Amazon Flash News Brief Skill. Back in 2007, their site was pretty tidy, already offering catch-up TV services and pushing RSS feeds. Really interesting to see how their brand colours and logo hasn’s changed dramatically in recent years.
Boards.ie
How social media hasn’t killed boards.ie is beyond me. Don’t get me wrong, I love Boards and it has a most amazing community feel to it. The site only got a makeover recently, but before that, the site of 2007 was pretty much the site of today. Given the purpose of Boards, it really doesn’t need to look fancy.
DoneDeal
DoneDeal was pretty unashamed to look like a car-boot sale back in the day. Dare I say they even sank to the level of using puppies and kittens to lure people in. Have they no shame? Today, DoneDeal is much slicker, with an eBay feel to their site.
Telecoms Sites of 2007
Meteor
There’s an extra tinge of sadness seeing the old Meteor site. Meteor was the network that paved the way for parents being able to afford phones for their kids. You could even argue that in 2007, the site’s design was way ahead of its time. The extra sadness, of course, comes as Meteor is set to be merged into the eir brand and vanish from the Irish telecoms scene.
Vodafone
If I was to pick out a modern website that’s a bit crap, I’d probably pick out Vodafone’s current site. Even with some recent updates, Vodafone has yet to really modernise from what was another fairly advanced site in 2007. Regardless, how exciting is it to travel back in time and see the Motorola V3 flip phone. What a beauty.
Carphone Warehouse
Ah yes, the one you always forget. They’ve been around for years, but still you only think of them because you’re passing a Carphone Warehouse store. Their website back in 2007 was pretty tidy. Today it’s decent too, though their ability to sell online is extremely limited compared to their UK counterparts. That’s set to get worse now too with iD Mobile leaving the Irish market.
Travel Sites of 2007
Ryanair
Do you remember that episode of The Simpsons where Homer sets up a website? Yeah, Ryanair’s website felt like that back in 2007. All they’re missing is a flying toaster. Today, Ryanair is still focused on upselling, but they’re much smarter about that, keeping most of their offerings to when you’re checking in.
Aer Lingus
I recently took an Aer Lingus flight and honestly, it’s not very different to Ryanair. When you look at the Aer Lingus site of 2007 and compare it with Ryanair’s, they both went after a similar look too. What this really shows is the importance of brand for the two companies as people think they’re completely different when really they’re not.
Banking Sites of 2007
Bank of Ireland
Banking is boring. Bank of Ireland’s old 2007 site is incredibly boring. Good lord. Today, little has changed either as Bank of Ireland is one of the few banks yet to adopt Apple or Android Pay.
AIB
By comparison, AIB was all over delivering a great web experience ten years ago. Some forgivable use of stock images aside, their site was functional but also nice to look at.
Permanent TSB
Today, Permanent TSB has the most modern looking website in Ireland. Back in 2007, they were behind AIB in design but miles ahead of Bank of Ireland. It was pretty cool that you could personalise your card back then too, a feature that continues today.
How Is All This Possible
In the early years of the internet, the vast majority of the web was disposable. What I mean by this is, websites were being created and vanishing fairly regularly. This posed unique problems for people trying to get important info from sites that shut down years ago.
Seeing the risks and problems a disposable web, the Internet Archive was founded in 2001 to record the web in a series of snapshots. Today, you can travel back in time through their “Wayback Machine” and see what the web used to look like.
Come September, Meteor will be no more and in its place, eir will take over. Back in 2001, Meteor was established. It quickly became the brand of the youth with savage Pay As You Go offers, even offering texts to everyone – remember when that was important? Combining this with catchy jingles, Meteor was truly a revolutionary brand. While it’s sad to see it go as a name, nothing will really change for the customer.
Way back in 2005, eir, then Eircom, bought the Meteor brand. Now after a long a fruitful 12 years the orange team will hang up their boots for good.
Eir Ceo Richard Moat has said:
The trAnsition will be seamless, and Meteor customers will continue using their mobiles exactly as before – with the added benefit of a world of possibilities
He also believes:
By focusing on a single mobile brand and reducing the duplication of supporting two brands, we can offer better value and increased innovation
Interestingly, Moat believes that most customers were not actually aware that Meteor and eir were part of the same brand. This fact is key to the transition. To you or I or any of the common punters, nothing changes, just the name on the top of your phone. Unlike when Three and O2 merged or the recent EU Roaming contract change for Three customers, you will not be able to walk away from your contract early for the simple fact that all offers have been the same for over year. We reckon this has been in the pipeline for a while.
If you’re not of the 1.1m customers that received a text or an email in the last couple of days, fear not. eir have assured customers that soon the full terms and conditions of the switch will be relayed. For the most part, this looks like nothing more than a simple name change.
“This decision reflects the confidence we have in the eir brand,” said Richard Moat, the company’s chief executive.
Over the next couple of months, all Meteor stores will be rebranded as eir and that’s the general gist of it.
To celebrate what has been an iconic brand in Ireland over the years, here are our favourite ads from Meteor. Their marketing team were known to make some whopper ads down the years. Wanna see our favourites from down the years? Bet your sweet ass you do!
Smarter Way To Chat Up
Meteor showing the pulling power of their plans and the beloved Nokia 3310. i just wonder if calls were even that cheap back in the day.
Black Friday Ad
Meteor really pulled out all the stops at Christmas, expanding that to Black Friday. This lad appeared in a few campaigns and, to be fair, was always gas.
The Meteor Tea Cosy Ad
This actually caused a massive stir when it launched amid fears it created a negative image of the elderly. Non-sense surely? What do you think?
The Christmas Party
If you mention Meteor ads in Goos3D Tower and Martin is floating around, he’ll always tell you this ruined Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire for him. Not just because of the shrill laugh in the ad, but because no video of it can be found. Some say it didn’t even happen. To this date, Martin isn’t even sure if it was Meteor.
Big Jugs
Here’s Meteor’s classic humour in the shape of big jugs. Can’t wait for this page to start appearing in Google for that phrase.
2 August 2017. Chalk it down and remember the date. Finally, the most hotly anticipated phone of 2017 is going to hit Irish shores.A year ago, if you said to anybody that a retro Nokia would be the big hit of Summer, you’d have been locked up. But that is exactly what has happened.
The all new Nokia 3310 is finally going on sale in the UK and Ireland, the long wait is over and Snake is back!
The old school Nokia took the world by storm when it was unveiled at this years MWC in Barcelona. It managed to eclipse the flagship smartphones at the event, generating a level of hype we haven’t seen in a long time.
an astonishing groundswell of interest in the Nokia 3310
Under the hood
The Nokia 3310 has been brought into the modern era with a new bigger colour screen, an updated design that’s claimed to be even more durable. Yes more durable! Is that even possible?
The 3310 even now comes with a rear camera, something that back in the day we could only dream off. Most importantly there is going to be an incredible month long battery, which will be a welcome change from daily charging.
Did we also mention Snake makes a return?
Pick Up The Nokia 3310
So how much is this all going to cost? So far the rumour is that the Nokia 3310 will go on sale for anything between €49 and €80. All the major networks apart from Three has confirmed that they will be stocking the 3310. It will also be landing in four colour – Red, Yellow, Blue and Grey. I’ll be taking mine in red.
We’ve already gone into detail on the Nokia 3310, but here are the key specs:
Nokia 3310 specs:
• Software platform: Nokia Series 30+
• Weight: 79.6 g (including battery)
• Display: 2.4’’ curved window colour QVGA (240*320)
• Connectivity: micro USB, 3.5mm AV connector
Bluetooth 3.0 with SLAM
• Camera: 2MP camera with LED flash
• MicroSD card support up to 32GB*
• LED torchlight
Over the past year, taxi safety has become increasingly important. Various Garda investigations have uncovered bogus unlicensed taxi drivers, transporting people from A to B. Today, there are plenty of steps you can take when taking a taxi alone. Here are our 5 top taxi safety tips on how to stay safe when grabbing a cab.
Share Your Live Location With Facebook Messenger
This is so cool:
You can share your live location with friends through Facebook Messenger. This feature is amazing if you’re trying to meet up with people for a pint. It’s also great if you’re trying to get a taxi home on your own.
Once you share your location with someone they’ll be able to view it for sixty minutes. If you veer off the expected route home or are taking too long, it’ll be spotted.
Share Your Live Location With Google Maps
Ok, so it’s practically the same thing, but you can also share your live location with Google Maps. Still, Google Maps has some benefits. You can set a destination for your trip and get an estimated length of time for your journey home. There’s also the obvious benefit that this allows you to share with people who are not on Facebook. Within Google Maps you can also hail a taxi with MyTaxi.
Hail A Taxi With MyTaxi
This is important:
Nothing can replace having a taxi driver you know and trust
Having a regular driver in bigger cities can be quite difficult. If you find yourself in a city without a regular taxi driver, MyTaxi is a must have app.
Back in the day, MyTaxi was known as Hailo, a service that defined the smartphone taxi hailing experience in Ireland. A simple tap of the app will usually get you a taxi within five minutes. By using the app, you don’t need to carry cash, can estimate your fare before you set off and see how others rated your driver. Just like Facebook and Google Maps, you can also share your live location, offering both safety and convenience if you’re picking someone up.
The rebrand from Hailo to MyTaxi wasn’t smooth, but there are benefits. The app works in 9 countries, meaning you can get a taxi to the airport and use the app again when you land abroad.
Check out their site for the latest offers or download the app below:
One of the most simple and effective methods of ensuring your taxi driver is genuine is to check his details in the Transport for Ireland Driver Check app.
You first enter the taxi’s number plate, driver’s licence number or vehicle licence number into the app. Rather intelligently, the app also offers an option to simply scan the driver’s QR code, visible on his dash board info. Once completed, you’ll be given a photo of the driver, the details of their taxi and other items of information such as the area they are permitted to work in. From here, if you are not satisfied, you can report the driver and email details to a nominated contact.
Having lived with the new OnePlus 5 for a month now, I feel I’m ready to give it a proper no holds barred review. Like many others, for years I’ve been a slave to two mobile devices; one for work, one for personal use. Working in the telecoms industry for the last 19 years and the nature of the roles I’ve held meant that more often than not I’m carrying around two mobile phones, bringing two phones on holidays and up until more recent times, carrying two chargers.
Introducing OnePlus
I had heard of OnePlus before but no one I knew had one. The OnePlus range in Ireland is a pretty rare commodity, as the Chinese brand is slowly breaking into new markets. The idea of dual SIM has always intrigued me but the idea of a non-flagship smartphone has not. A couple my colleagues had Oneplus 3T handsets that they picked up in India. Having seen them I thought I’d take the plunge on the Oneplus 5.
So here’s an equation for you:
OnePlus 5 – Galaxy S6 – HTC M8 = An easier life!
Performance and Software
I’ve always been an Android fan. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had iPhones and liked them, but as a bit of a PC nerd, Android always offered a level of freedom not available on an iPhone. The OnePlus 5 offers two variants; a 64GB version with 6GB RAM and a 128GB version with 8GB RAM – mine being the former. Both are powered by the same processor, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 and an independent Adreno 540 GPU. All this makes this phone is super fast! The OnePlus 5 can easily keep pace with any other flagship, if not outperform them. It’s more than capable of doing whatever you’ll need it to do with some power to spare. Apps and games open quickly and the phone stays responsive even with tonnes of apps open – something I’m often guilty of.
The performance of the OnePlus 5 is aided by the noticeable lack of ‘bloatware’ installed on the device. It runs the latest version of OnePlus’ own OxygenOS based on Android Nougat 7.1.1 with some small customisations to take the raw feel from it. When you look at the file manager, there isn’t an unexplained 18GB of software uninstalled out of the box that you can’t shift – very refreshing. It will feel a little ‘naked’ to the hardened Samsung or HTC user but trust me, after a few days you’ll really appreciate it when you’re just looking at apps you want.
Some of the useful features OnePlus have added include a ‘Reading Mode’, which turns your screen to greyscale. Combine this with a blue light filter and it’s effectively an e-reader. There’s a ‘Do not disturb’ mode designed with the gamer in mind and the app drawer swipes up from the bottom of the screen, like the Google Pixel launcher.
Design
All of the OnePlus 5’s high-performance innards are wrapped in a full metal jacket, only adding to the quality feel. Something I hadn’t expected was how thin the phone is; just 7.25mm and the sharp taper around the edges only serves to accentuate its thickness – lack thereof. Rounded corners make it easy to hold and look all the sexier. Let’s call a spade a spade though, it’s the image of an iPhone 7 Plus.
Spot the difference?
It even has the dual camera in the same location although OnePlus had the good sense to retain the headphone jack.
This is not a poser phone, the colour choices are slate grey and midnight black. Something that could discourage the ‘playas’ out there from purchasing. The style is sleek and understated, none of yer bling here folks. In more standard smartphone fashion, the OnePlus 5 has its volume control on the left side. You’ll find the power button on the right and the home button right where you’d expect it. That’s below the screen flanked by an integrated back key on the left and recent apps key on the right – the opposite to the Samsung I’ve had for some time now. Luckily, you can flip the buttons around in the phone settings if you wish; a clever touch.
Display
Smartphone marketing has conditioned us to expect QHD, 4K ultra-docious screens. In this respect, the OnePlus 5 has gone ‘Old School’ with a 1080p 5.5 inch AMOLED display operating at a 16:9 resolution. Now believe me when I say, this is one of the richest, brightest screen I’ve seen on a smartphone. Sunlight does not bother it in the slightest and the colours are truly vibrant with deep blacks and great contrast. A joy to behold.
I would wager that if the spec sheet said QHD, most people wouldn’t doubt it.
Battery Life
In my life, this phone is under pressure, doing the work of not one but two phones. Originally when I’d heard that the OnePlus 5 was actually fitted with a smaller capacity battery than it’s predecessor (3300mAh vs 3400mAh in the 3T model) I was concerned. Once again though the OnePlus 5 shines through with exceptionally good battery life. Thus far it has lasted comfortably through a full day of use with conference calls, personal calls, camera use, YouTube videos, Spotify, social media and email reading.
After all that, I’m left with about 20% battery at the end of the day. I would point out that I have a bad habit of leaving apps open in the background and the Facebook app is a harsh mistress on the juice. Swapping over to the likes of Metal instead of the official app would probably add a few hours to my battery life alone. Over the weekend, with fewer calls, I can get maybe a day and a half out the phone until I need to charge it. Which leads me nicely onto the charger itself. The Dash Charge that comes with the phone can give a 60% charge in a little over 30 minutes. You’ll get a full charge (from empty) in about an hour and twenty minutes – amazing stuff!
The USB-C Dash Charge that comes with the phone can give a 60% charge in a little over 30 minutes. You’ll get a full charge, from dead, in about an hour and twenty minutes – amazing stuff!
Camera
One of the bigger marketed features of the OnePlus 5 is its new dual camera setup. Of course, to keep up with the other industry flagships, this was a must have with each of the smartphone kings sporting a slightly different set of dual camera features to make it unique. The OnePlus 5 is thankfully no exception to this standard.
The main sensor on the OnePlus 5 is 16 megapixels with a f/1.7 aperture and image stabilisation feature. The secondary sensor has a 20-megapixel resolution with telephoto lens technology, a smaller f/2.6 aperture and no image stabilisation. The telephoto feature is a combined effort of optical zoom and software with the optical zoom at 1.6x and the remaining 0.4x achieved through a SmartCapture multi-frame technology software system, blah, blah, blah. But what does that mean exactly?
Well, if you’re not into specs, head on over to OnePlus’ image gallery, showing stunning shots snapped with their latest flagship. You’ll get shots like this cracker:
If you are into your specs, you’ll have a fair idea that while the OnePlus 5 sports a great camera, it’s really a bit of a close-up specialist. The photos are detailed and sharp while the colour reproduction looks natural with no bleed. The addition of the secondary telephoto lens allows you to get better close ups than you would with a digital zoom, retaining a high level of detail. Macro shots work particularly well. In lower light conditions, stick to the main 16MP lens. The lack of image stabilisation and smaller aperture can result in highlight blurs and some lens flaring and noise with the secondary lens. The main lens achieves much better stability and colour reproduction.
If video is your thing. The OnePlus 5 is capable of recording 4K video and has a handy electronic image stabilisation feature, perfect for ironing out the shakes. You can choose between the sensors but again I would recommend the primary for video because of the lack of stabilisation on the secondary unit.
Dual Sim
I couldn’t finish a OnePlus 5 review without going into a little detail on the dual sim functionality on the phone. This is the icing on the cake for me. The phone has a dual nano sim tray as standard and operates on a dual sim LTE standby basis. So what’s that then?
Well, both sim receivers are capable of 4G and you do not need to switch between sims to receive calls. So here’s a quick run down of features:
Incoming Calls: receive a call from either sim but not at the same time. If you receive a call on one sim while on another call, the second call will go straight to voice mail.
Outgoing calls: Choose which sim to use at the point of dialling. Incoming SMS: works with both sims. Outgoing SMS: you can choose a default at set up or switch while typing your message. Data: You choose which sim to use for data and you can switch between them in the settings. If you’re really clever, you can use your work sim for data during the day and use Tasker rules to switch to your personal sim after work.
Of course, if you’re even smarter you’ll just use your work sim for data all the time.
You can use a cool app like Parallel Space to run two simultaneous WhatsApp accounts on the phone, one for each number, maintaining separation of work and personal life.
OnePlus 5 Review: The Verdict
I’ve not been this happy with a new smartphone for a long time. Sure, every new phone has a novelty factor, but after a week or two, you realise it does more or less the same as the last one, just a little bit better. The OnePlus 5 has managed to combine my two smartphones into one while delivering faster performance, better battery life and as good a spec as any other flagship smart phone on the market today. Couple that with a price that’s cheaper than any of its big brand competitors and you’ve got a flyweight competing as a heavy weight and winning.
It may lack some features like expandable storage, wireless charging and water resistance but with prices starting at €479, you’ll get a top of the line phone that packs faster processing than any of its premium brand rivals and on that basis, I think this phone is awesome. Well done OnePlus. Well done.
We love our retro gaming in Goos3D Tower. That’s why we were knocking down doors to get into Token not so long ago. For me personally, gaming was my gateway into computers that led to my love for technology. I had an Amstrad 464plus which came with a book full of code. You’d have to make your games, line by line before you could play them. Before that Amstrad, my family had an Atari, so of course, I’m excited to hear there’s a new Atari Box on the way.
What is the Atari Box?
Until today, little was known about what the Atari Box would be. In an email, the company revealed their plans “to create something new, that stays true to heritage, while appealing to both old and new fans of Atari.” Essentially, it appears that Atari’s plan is to emulate what Nintendo did last year with the NES Classic, something they will repeat this year with the SNES Classic.
The Atari Box takes huge inspiration from the original console which featured a gorgeous timber frame, like the one above. Though I will admit, I had the slightly less cool version:
Atari Box Specs
There’s not a lot confirmed, but early images do have a few giveaways. We know there’ll be two models, one in traditional timber and another in orange. The box will come with four USB ports, HDMI support and an SD card, suggesting the console will be open to adding games.
Images even seem to suggest LAN support, which could be for updates or badass multiplayer gaming perhaps?
When You Can Buy the Atari Box in Ireland?
Atari has decided to keep the public up to speed with progress. This is a great, transparent way of moving forward. It does, however, mean we’ll only be hearing about developments as they happen. Atari have yet to announce launch dates, prices or even what games will be available.
We’ll be updating this post with more information once it becomes available.
In the meantime, Atari feature as one of the huge ads that appear in the next Blade Runner movie. I’m in retro heaven for the next while and completely trust Ridley Scott to nail this. Here’s the trailer, see if you can spot Atari:
I can’t think of another TV phenomenon like Game of Thrones. The whole world comes to a standstill. Suddenly, it becomes acceptable to be wrecked tired on a Monday at work after staying up all night to watch the latest episode air live in the US. Of course, those of you staying up late are streaming illegally. Using the likes of Showbox; tut tut. Everyone else is depending on Sky Atlantic, but we’re here to show you how to Watch Game of Thrones in Ireland Without Sky – kinda.
How to Watch Game of Thrones in Ireland Without Sky
The eagle-eyed of you will notice I said kinda there. In the UK and Ireland, there’s no avoiding the need for Sky to watch Game of Thrones. Bloody hell sure, you can barely watch GAA without Sky these days. The good news is that you don’t need a full on Sky subscription or a dish on your chimney to watch the latest series of George R.R Martin’s masterpiece. All you need is Now TV.
What is Now TV?
I actually looked at Now TV not so long ago as it’s pretty new to Ireland. Now TV is Sky’s answer to Netflix, catering to those of us looking for some no-strings entertainment. Some apartment blocks can’t put up dishes and some people just don’t want a long contract with Sky. If this is you, Not TV is a grand way to dip in and out of having Sky.
You’ll find all the pricing you need in my previous article and on the Sky site, but we’ve got one more trick for you to watch Game of Thrones tonight for free.
Now TV Offers a Free Trial
This one is pretty obvious. Like all good services, Sky is more than happy to let you try out Now TV for 14 days. You do need to provide a card that will be charged €15 after the trial unless you cancel it.
Get Now TV Free With Just Eat
There are certain things that make sense as a duo. You know, like Kenan and Kel or Jon and toilet Snapchat selfies. Just East and Now TV has to be one of the most logical marriages in entertainment history. If you don’t have Sky and don’t have dinner plans, nail two birds with one stone.
Simply order your dinner with Just Eat and you’ll get a promo code emailed to you. Ping this into the Now TV sign up page and you’ll enjoy one month of Now TV’s Entertainment pack, worth €15. That’s dinner and how to watch Game of Thrones sorted.
What time is Game of Thrones on at?
Winter is here. Game of Thrones is on Sky Atlantic every Monday night at 9 pm.
We take a lot for granted every single day. Right now, I’m watching the end of Cast Away where Tom Hanks realises he’s always taken fire for granted. Even watching a movie is something we often take for granted too. Imagine, or just one moment, that you couldn’t see. Microsoft has launched Seeing AI, an app that does the opposite of this scenario for the visually impaired.
What is Seeing AI?
Combining all the great buzz terms of today, Seeing AI uses computer vision, machine learning, and artificial intelligence, all that good stuff. The app narrates the world around you through your smartphone, scanning everything with the onboard camera. The app works in a number of situations. It can:
recognise people you teach it
recognise strangers, guessing age and emotion
scan documents
read signage
Why is Seeing AI important?
For the average smartphone user, Seeing AI has a fleeting novelty to it. However, should you be visually impaired or blind, the app could be life changing. Some functionality works best in the States, where the app can distinguish between currency. The benefit here is that for the visually impaired, there is no way to differentiate between paper Dollars.
Does it work?
I first spotted the app on Bill Nye’s Netflix series where it was introduced by Microsoft’s Seeing AI Tech Lead, Saqib Shaikh. I thought it was amazing, but there’s always a scepticism with non-live demos. It’s not perfect right now, but the app is effectively a newborn baby, learning with every scene that’s scanned. I took to the streets of Dublin to test it out:
Our technological standards today are really high, so it’s okay to think Seeing AI has a way to go before being perfect. If you’re visually impaired or blind, hearing about an app that can describe the world to you in a somewhat reliable manner has got to be exciting right? Let us know in the comments what you think of the app, or if you’re visually impaired and excited check this out.
Download Seeing AI
Currently, the app is only available in the US Store on iOS. You can change your store without too much drama, so no problems there. We don’t have a date for Android yet, but hopefully, it’s only a matter of time.
There are some partnerships that make sense in the tech world. Samsung and Occulus for example. Spotify with Vodafone is another. Being a sponsor of the Dublin Smartphone Film Festival is up there. But Huawei’s latest partnership left us scratching our heads.
Kentucky Phone Chicken?
The KFC Y7 comes in an exclusive shade of red with the Colonel engraved on the back
THE DESIGN WILL INCLUDE AN IMAGE OF COLONEL SANDERS ENGRAVED ON THE BACK
Yes, Huawei have teamed up with KFC to launch a limited edition version of their Y7 Prime. This is to commemorate the 30th anniversary of KFC opening their first branch in China. Reports are that only 5,000 phones will be manufactured, and will only be available in the Chinese market. The design will include an image of Colonel Sanders engraved on the back. It will be available in an exclusive shade of red to match the KFC brand.
Is It Any Good?
Once you get past having the Colonel as part of the design, the phone itself is a solid mid range smartphone. It boasts some great features, standing it up against it’s rivals, especially given the price of approx €140.
5.5″ Screen
12MP Rear Camera, 8MP Front Camera
3GM RAM
The KFC phone is available to order on the KFC China website now, if you fancy getting your hands on a finger swipin’ good deal. (See what we did there?)
Telecoms Sites of 2007
Travel Sites of 2007
Banking Sites of 2007
Once you share your location with someone they’ll be able to view it for sixty minutes. If you veer off the expected route home or are taking too long, it’ll be spotted.
The rebrand from Hailo to MyTaxi wasn’t smooth, but there are benefits. The app works in 
If you are into your specs, you’ll have a fair idea that while the OnePlus 5 sports a great camera, it’s really a bit of a close-up specialist. The photos are detailed and sharp while the colour reproduction looks natural with no bleed. The addition of the secondary telephoto lens allows you to get better close ups than you would with a digital zoom, retaining a high level of detail. Macro shots work particularly well. In lower light conditions, stick to the main 16MP lens. The lack of image stabilisation and smaller aperture can result in highlight blurs and some lens flaring and noise with the secondary lens. The main lens achieves much better stability and colour reproduction.
You can use a cool app like 
The Atari Box takes huge inspiration from the original console which featured a gorgeous timber frame, like the one above. Though I will admit, I had the slightly less cool version:
Images even seem to suggest LAN support, which could be for updates or badass multiplayer gaming perhaps?
