The Best Tablets of 2015

About the Author Priya Gupta has a penchant for writing and is also a tech expert. Gupta covers stories relating to technology and business and has created a reputation for writing articles and new about the latest technological trends and developments happening around the world. She has about 3 years of experience writing for the tech sector. 

Tablets have greatly enhanced our lives. They have practically replaced desktops and laptops owing to their portability and light weight. The field of technology is only moving forward and 2015 saw its fair share of tablet launches. Here are a few that are worth mentioning:

Samsung Galaxy Tab Active

This tablet isn’t faint hearted- it doesn’t boast of sleekness but boasts of durability due to its dust proof and water proof and drop proof nature.  Its 1.2GHz Quad-Core Qualcomm processor brings out easy and effortless performance. This tablet is best suited for outdoor use made of plastic. It comes with a 3.1 MP rear camera which helps take decent pictures.

The tab comes with a stylus for easy navigation. A protective cover adds to its sturdy nature and its made for ruggedness. This tablet promises of taking a drop of as high as 4 feet! The tablet is best suited for workplace as texts of documents and web pages come alive and are clear and easy to read. This tablet can work all day with a battery life of 11 hours and more which beats the average of 8-9 hours promised by other leading brands!

Dell Venue 10 7000

Dell is always known for delivering high performance gadgets and it kept that promise with this tablet as well. Its sharp 10.5 inch OLED 2560 x 1600 display, Intel Atom processor and RealSense 8MP rear camera with 3D capability put other tablets to shame! This one is for the big boys. The tablet is configured with Android Lollipop which allows working personnel to sign into work accounts and personal accounts separately. It comes with various storage options of 8GB, 32 GB and 64GB along with options of expanding the existing memory.

Asus Transformer Book T300 Chi

Asus is a close substitute to a two in one device which is a combination of a desktop and a tablet. Asus Transformer Book has awe inspiring features which include an Intel Core M CPU, a Quad HD screen and a full size Bluetooth detachable keyboard which gives it an edge. The screen allows a two finger multi touch and the keyboard responds to the touch quickly. The keyboard attaches itself using magnet and the grip is pretty tight.

With a 2560 x 1440 pixel HD display, the screen is pretty vivid and alive with a range of beautiful colours splashed across the screen! You can also customize the colour temperature settings to suit your needs. The only slight drawback is that its sound doesn’t meet the rest of the quality and the clarity isn’t very crisp. It’s good for multitasking and will deliver on performance. Go ahead and download your favourite games along with streaming videos from YouTube non stop!

Lenovo Yoga Tablet 2

This tablet has it all- a great vivacious screen, a detachable keyboard as well as a long lasting battery life! It has a glossy screen and a matte finish for the body. Its powered by a 1.33 GHz Intel Atom Processor with a storage capacity of upto 32 GB. It too comes with a detachable keyboard however you must be cautious as the keyboard has a tendency to slip as the grip is not too tight. Don’t be fooled by its 10.1 inch screen as it provides great angles for viewing and greatly enhances your movie watching experience!

Its screen with a display resolution of 1920 x 1200 is highly interactive and responds quickly to swaps and touch gestures. What makes it a winner is its high powered battery which can last long even if you stream heavy media files and watch movies.

Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet

Sony always has a surprise in store for its fans and it doesn’t disappoint with this superbly designed sleek and sophisticated tablet with a sharp and crisp display screen. Sony claims it to the be the worlds lightest waterproof tablet and that’s not all- its also the slimmest! Its Octa Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 Processor nicely compliments its sleek design. This 10.1 inch tablet is as light as a feather but stuns with a 2560 x 1600 display resolution. It comes with something that would make Sheldon Cooper very happy- Digital Noise Cancellation Headphones!

This is not all- this beauty also promises a 6000 mAh battery for 17 hours of uninterrupted video streaming. Now go ahead and enjoy your favourite sitcoms and movies while its stunning display mesmerizes you!

A tablet is a cool and trendy gadget giving you the best of a phone, desktop and laptop. Go ahead and treat yourself to one today with these amazing tablets on the market!

Mail me for Guest Posts in dilipstechnoblog.com (dilipgeoffrey@gmail.com)

Top 5 Ways to Reduce VoIP Fraud Damage

About the Author
Michelle Patterson is excited with the new technologies that are threatening to change the way we stay in touch and communicate, particular in business. She works with companies that are introducing these technologies to make understanding them easy for regular people.

VoIP fraud can be extremely damaging for any business (small or big) and you can fall prey to malicious programs that breach the security of your communication network. You cannot let the guard down just because you have a new firewall protection installed on your network – do not forget, the hackers find new ways to penetrate your communication network. Prior to learning about reducing VoIP fraud damage, you must learn about the common ways through which you can suffer VoIP attacks. In this article, we will try to learn about the top 5 ways to reduce VoIP fraud damage.

1. Give limited access to routes for every user – It is very important to limit the fraud areas or the high price to only those customers who would actually need it. Often it has been observed that customers do not need international termination – it is better not to extend this service to all customers. Do not offer international dialing plans to all your customers; give it to those who really need the service. Give access to routes only when they send you a request for the same. It is also equally important that you block the premium rate numbers. It is imperative that you do not offer the fraud toll or high cost numbers. Blocking the premium rate numbers is extremely easy and you will have to provide this safeguard to your customers. Offer these numbers on receiving special requests.

2. Stop routing numbers that are without a fixed rate – Calls, which do not have a fixed or defined cost, must be blocked. You will have to block all the calls that do not have the defined rates. Even though this sounds to be the most plausible path but the strange fact is that not many people use this until and unless they receive the ULC or underlying carrier invoice. The number of simultaneous calls should also be limited so that you are able to restrict the number of calls or the maximum number of channels to be used simultaneously. You can monitor your requirement of the number of channel usage by finding out the average monthly usage. Thus, call flooding can be easily prevented in the event of a breach.

3. Drop the calls after a fixed time period – You will need to set the call time limit as this would work in tandem with the limitations on the number of channels. Thus, any fraudulent call would not last longer as it would be automatically be cut after a predefined time period. Hackers won’t be able to make long calls that last for hours and you will be able to reduce the severity of the attacks. You can even opt for the prepaid billing or the postpaid that have limited quota where the service can be terminated in the event of a breach. The best thing about the postpaid or prepaid connection with termination facility is that you will be able to automatically terminate after a certain time period.

4. You can opt for the Geo-IP restrictions – Well, this is a bit contentious but if you think that the threats are coming from a particular location then you an even block the IPs from which the calls are coming. Thus, if you are not selling your products or services to china then you can even block the IPs belonging to the country.

5 Set alarms for the unusual activities – You can put in place a system that tracks the traffic activity and in case anything unusual is noted, you are immediately sent a notification. This will help you to keep track of any unnatural increase in the traffic volume and reduce the VoIP fraud damage.

Mail me for Guest Posts in dilipstechnoblog.com (dilipgeoffrey@gmail.com)

Best phones of 2015

1. Samsung Galaxy S6

Price when reviewed: 32GB, £600 inc VAT

Samsung finally kicked out plastic for its latest smartphone design and, aside from a couple of reservations, the result is a triumph. The S6 looks glorious with Gorilla Glass 4 at the front and rear and coloured metal beneath it to give it a glitzy, shimmering look. And Samsung has significantly beefed up the innards without impacting on battery life negatively.

The highlight, however, is the improved camera, which now boasts optical image stabilisation and a wide f/1.9 aperture for stunning image capture in all conditions.

The S6 edge is just as good and arguably the more attractive device, but its unusual curved screen and the fact that there's no 32GB option bumps the price of an already expensive phone up to an eye-watering £760. Buy the S6: you won't regret it.

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2. Sony Xperia Z3 Compact

Price when reviewed: £348 inc VAT

Sony’s pint-sized smartphone packs in a host of premium features without the high-end price.

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3. Nexus 5

Price when reviewed: £199 inc VAT

Google has finally killed off the Nexus 5, but if you can get your hands on one it remains a superb smartphone. The price is significantly lower than most flagship devices and is set to drop yet further, which is why it's still one of our favourite smartphones. The design is impressive, it's as powerful as you need and the screen is great.

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4. Samsung Galaxy S5

Price on 30/03/15: £330 inc VAT

There's an awful lot to like about the Samsung Galaxy S5: it's good-looking, tough, big, feature rich and we love the user-replaceable battery and memory expansion. It's a great smartphone in every way, and now that the S6 is here, the price is more reasonable. If you're not precious about the way your phone looks, the Samsung Galaxy S5 is a great buy.

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5. iPhone 6

Price when reviewed: £539 inc VAT

It's a brave new world for Apple's larger iPhone, and it's much the better for it. Super-fast, beautiful to look at and lovely to use. It's the dictionary definition of a flagship handset.

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6. Motorola Moto G

Price when reviewed: £140 inc VAT

A high-quality budget Android handset with an excellent screen and decent battery life. There's now a 4G version as well, for those hankering after faster mobile data.

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7. HTC One M9

Price when reviewed: £580 inc VAT

HTC took the One M8's design and refined it for 2015, creating a truly stunning smartphone. The internals have been upgraded as well: Qualcomm's octa-core Snapdragon 810 SoC; the camera goes from the M8's 4-megapixel snapper to 20 megapixels; and HTC has added a host of features to its Sense Android launcher software. 

It's a beautifully crafted and highly competent smartphone, just like last year's HTC One M8. But it's only a small improvement on the M8.

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8. LG G3

Price when reviewed: £459 inc VAT

LG rustles up a classy, top-rung smartphone, with a ridiculously high-resolution screen and super-fast camera; but that display takes its toll on battery life.

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9. Samsung Galaxy Note 4

Price when reviewed: £599 inc VAT

Samsung has produced the finest phablet yet. In addition to a new Quad HD display and a smart new look, Samsung has bumped up the speed, battery life, camera quality and range of features – big-screened phones don't get any better.

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10. Samsung Galaxy Note Edge

Price when reviewed: £609 inc VAT

With most of the same features as the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 and a funky curved-edge display, it’s hard to criticise the Edge. However, that curved display, intriguing as it is, both adds to the cost and impacts upon both battery life and build quality – and that's enough to cement the Note 4 as our large-screen smartphone of choice.

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11. Nexus 6

Price when reviewed: £499 inc VAT

The Nexus 6 has taken us by surprise in the short time we’ve had it. Once you sidle past the unavoidable fact of its gargantuan size, there’s an awful lot it does right. Battery life is good, the camera is excellent, and the build and design quality are second to none. And although its rivals hold an edge over it in many areas, the differences aren’t huge.

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12. iPhone 6 Plus

Price when reviewed: £619 inc VAT

Apple’s 5.5in giant isn’t for everyone, but for some it may prove the perfect mid-point between an iPad and iPhone. And contrary to initial reports, our long-term review sample hasn't suffered from any undue bending - it's remained rock-solid in the face of all the abuse we've dished out.

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13. Samsung Galaxy Alpha

Price when reviewed: £550 inc VAT

The Galaxy Alpha is Samsung's best-looking smartphone to date, but it's short on features and the price is too high. Come the 10th April and the release of the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge, we suspect the Galaxy Alpha will be consigned to the scrapheap.

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14. Motorola Moto X

Price when reviewed: £419 inc VAT

Motorola’s second-generation Moto X hits most of the right notes, coupling beautiful design with a hatful of innovative and useful features.

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15. Nokia Lumia 930

Price when reviewed: £419 inc VAT

The Lumia 930 is a knock-out from the first moment you pick it up. It's a Windows Phone device, so it can't compete on apps, but the design of Nokia's flagship is sumptuous and right up there with the best around.

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16. Sony Xperia Z2

Price when reviewed: £440 inc VAT

Sony proves that big really is beautiful; the Xperia Z2 provides a long-lasting alternative to the Samsung Galaxy S5 and the HTC One M8.

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17. Sony Xperia Z3

Price when reviewed: £477 inc VAT

The successor to the Z3 isn't that much different. It's a touch slimmer and lighter than the Z2, the screen is brighter, and the processor is clocked a fraction higher, but almost everything else is the same. It's a very good Android device, and if you can still find a Z2 for sale it will be much cheaper and almost as good.

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18. Motorola Moto E

Price when reviewed: £79 inc VAT

Makes plenty of compromises to keep costs down, but performs where it counts; the Moto E is another winner from Motorola at a highly tempting price. This is the best sub-£100 handset by a country mile.

Discover the best smartphone for your pocket

Discover the best smartphone for your pocket, your budget and your apps with our buying guide and in-depth reviews

If you're looking for the best smartphone on the planet then you've come to the right place. Scroll down to see our pick of the ultimate smartphones available at the moment, or read on to find out about the questions you should be asking before buying any new mobile phone.

Best phones of 2015: Android, iOS or Windows Phone

The number one question to tackle is which platform to buy into. Now that BlackBerry has all but left the phone game, you have Apple’s iOS, Android and Windows Phone from which to choose.

iOS means iPhones, and you probably already know whether or not you’d like to own an iPhone. They’re great devices, with a wealth of apps and games on offer, but they don’t come cheap. That said, for anyone looking to buy a high-end phone, the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus deserve a place on the shortlist.

If you definitely don’t want an iPhone then Windows Phone and Android handsets are available in a number of shapes, sizes and prices. The downside of Windows Phone is that its selection of apps and games isn’t anywhere near as healthy as that of Android or iOS. If you want to play a new game every week, and want the best entertainment and travel apps out there, it probably isn't for you.

However, Windows guarantees you a certain level of gloss right down to the super-budget models, and Nokia’s top-end Windows Phone handsets are pretty impressive. Performance is spritely, even on the lower-end models, thanks to the minimal demands of Microsoft's Windows Phone OS - these phones just don't need high-end processors and gigabytes of RAM to perform.

For many, though, Android is the right choice. Most phones use it, and nowadays it offers a good balance of apps, games and general performance. All the most high-profile phones aside from the iPhone use Android, including the Sony Xperia Z2, the HTC One M8 and the Samsung Galaxy S5, and with Google's Android L on its way, the Android smartphones and phablets out there are only going to become more attractive.

Best phones of 2015: what size of phone?

Once you’ve made your choice of platform, you need to pick a size. This is partly determined by how much you want to spend, but as long as you’re willing to fork out £150 or more, there's quite a choice available to you.

Most of the higher-end phones are quite large these days; if you’re not used to a bigger phone we recommend trying one out in a high-street shop before buying. Most people can generally get accustomed to phones up to 5in in screen size, but anything larger than that becomes a bit of a struggle for people with smaller hands.

Have huge hands? Want a big screen? In the past couple of years, the phone-tablet hybrid market has exploded, and there are several phones that offer 5.7-6.1in screens – truly massive displays for a phone.

For any phones of 5in or larger, we recommend a 1080p screen, which will get you sharp images. Even around the £100 mark it's possible to get hold of handsets with super-sharp screens, such as the Motorola Moto G. We recommend opting for screen quality over whether it has wireless technology extras such as NFC or an IR sensor.

Best phones of 2015: 4G or not 4G?

One wireless technology that does matter, though, is 4G. Once reserved for expensive phones, this super-fast mobile internet standard is now available in fairly low-cost models too.

Although performance can vary depending on where you live and the network you subscribe to, 4G can get you around ten times the speed of a normal 3G network. While a 3G network might provide 2Mbits/sec downloads, you’ll often get 16-20Mbits/sec from a 4G network in a big city. That may well be faster than your home broadband.

Most contracts are subject to quite limited data allowances, however, so make sure you do your research before getting too excited about 4G hardware.

Best phones of 2015: how important is a camera to you?

The one other bit of hardware that’s important to consider is the camera. If you’re looking at a phone costing £200 or more, you’re almost guaranteed a reasonably good camera, but if you’re a budget buyer then you'll find most models make compromises.

Low-end phones often leave out the front camera and the flash. Some don’t even have autofocus. If a phone leaves out any such features, it cuts hugely into the photographic flexibility of a smartphone.

At the higher end of the scale, look out for optical image stabilisation. This moves the lens and/or sensor to compensate for the effect of shaky hands. It allows the phone to use longer exposures, allowing more light onto the sensor, which leads to cleaner, less noisy photos when shooting in low light.

Best phones of 2015: how much do you want to spend?

How much do you need to spend to get a good phone? Great mobiles start at around £80, with models such as the Motorola Moto E. It’s currently about as cheap a phone as you can get without having to give up too much in the way of looks or build quality.

High-end phones start at around £270, with slightly older mobiles such as the LG G2 and Google Nexus 5 providing most of what you get from a more expensive phone at a less scary price.

If nothing but the best will do, the very latest flagship phones from companies such as Samsung, LG and Sony cost between £400-500. On a contract, that normally equates to at least £30 a month, unless you’re a better haggler than we are.

Hopefully, you now have a good idea about the kind of phone you’re after. But which model should you buy? Here are the mobile phones we recommend.