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Last minute Christmas gift ideas for any tech lover in your life

Published on December 13, 2018December 13, 2018 by girltechweeklyLeave a comment

As we all know, Christmas is just around the corner.

And i bet not everyone has finished their Christmas shopping, so i’m coming to the rescue with some ideas for those last minute gifts, that any tech lover would definitely love.

1. Touchscreen gloves are a must for anyone that is just glued to their phone, and don’t want to stop using it just because it’s freezing outside.

Here you can find a pair from mujjo.com that will work with any type of touch screen. They provide a snap closure that will make them comfortable to wear , they are knitted with a soft integrated fleece lining and are durable. Compared to other gloves, i like that they do provide a good grip, so you won’t have to stress about your device slipping from your hands.

Price £26.69 , but you can use the code “girltechweekly” to get 15% off if you place your order before 19th Dec. (discount code applies to any product from mujjo.com)

2. Staying within a lower end budget , here’s a gift for any photographer out there that would like to display their images in a creative way. The KiiPix Instant printer is something a bit different, as it does not use any ink or batteries. You simply find an image you’d like to print on your phone, place your phone on top of the printer, press a button and roll your image out.

It uses the Instax mini film that can be found at about £14.99 /per 20 shots and it’s quite an interesting little device. Price £29.99 at Jessops.com

3. If you’re looking for a gift for a gamer in your life, that is loving the retro vibes, i found this Saga Smartphone Controller, that looks quite fun.

It’s only compatible with android smartphones, and comes with over 17 retro games, so that your friend can relive their childhood games all over again. Price £29.99 at firebox.com.

4. Now if you want to spend a bit more on your Christmas gift, and you have someone in your life that is just loving photography, but they don’t yet have a proper camera, i have a suggestion.

Yes i know, it’s from Jessops again, but they are the only ones offering this deal that for the same price of the camera, you get a memory card, jolby tripod, a body jacket and strap for the camera and even a 1 hour tuition in one of their stores. It might only work for people living in the Uk that have a store close by so that they can take advantage of the 1 h session, but honestly it’s a pretty sweet deal. Price £449.

Not only the quality that you get from the camera is amazing but it’s also really easy to use. It’s a mirrorless camera ( that i explain about here) that your friend or even you ,if you decide that you should make yourself a gift this year will be able to use with ease.

5. And finally if you already have that friend in your life that “has it all”, because they are already into tech gadgets this next one is something that they will definitely love.

It’s a customizable keyboard that makes designing and editing so much easier. It’s compatible with all the Adobe softwares and it’s made of aircraft-grade aluminium. You can use the knob to zoom in and out, turn volume up and down, adjust different settings and much more. I know i would love to have one of these. You can order it from here and it’s £65.99.

Let me know what you think of these gifts ideas and which one of them you’d like to get under the tree.

Let’s talk CAMERAS!

Published on June 20, 2018August 31, 2018 by girltechweekly5 Comments

You guys probably know by now that i’m a bit obsessed with cameras and technology and this post is hopefully going to help those that feel a bit overwhelmed with the amount and type of cameras available out there when they want to get a camera.

First of all I need to mention that in 90% of the cases it’s not really about the camera you have but the way you use it, and I know you guys heard this before a million times but I strongly believe is true and everyone should keep this in mind while searching for a new camera.

I’m going to break down the main 4 categories and hopefully by the end of this article you’ll have a clearer image of what you should look for next time you’re in a camera shop.

COMPACT CAMERAS

As the name suggests, they are small and compact so they can be stored/carried in small bags or even pockets. They are becoming more and more powerful in terms of the quality and features and you can also find very basic ones that will probably only have one automatic mode, while others come with a full set of manual ones as well.

They are usually ideal for travelling due to their size and most of them will provide quite an impressive zoom option (30-40 x). They also don’t need any other accessories apart from a memory card and maybe a tripod to make your photography game even better.

You can find some models here.

BRIDGE CAMERAS

These ones are also an ideal option if you want to go travelling, as they are really easy to use, packed with a full set of automatic options and some manual ones as well. What they excel at is usually the zoom power and most often they are a favourite for those photographing wildlife or needing a powerful zoom in their photos.

Though they tend to look like DSLR’s (which we’ll get to in a second), they don’t need extra lenses, because everything is built in. Imagine if a compact camera and a DSLR had a baby…it will be a bridge.

See the best ones here.

DSLR CAMERAS

They are what most people consider “Professional equipment”. The main thing to keep in mind about these cameras is that you have to get a lens with them as well as the main body of the camera. In most cases, they will come with something that most people call a “standard lens”, that is able to provide you with wide angle images as well as having the option to zoom in a little bit. They have a big sensor which will allow you to enlarge, crop or print them in large formats without losing quality.

Depending what you like to photograph, keep in mind that you can customise your kit getting the lenses that you’re going to use most often. Downside is that as times goes by your camera bag might get really heavy, but if that’s not an issue for you, GO FOR IT!

If you’re after a DSLR here’s a list with some top picks.

MIRORLESS CAMERAS ( CSC)

Also called CSC- compact systems cameras, they are preferred by those that used DSLR and want a lighter kit to carry around, or for those that want to have the option of changing lenses without having to break their back. As the name suggest they don’t have a mirror between the lens and the sensor which makes them smaller and lighter.

There are also 3 different types you can get, clasiffied by their sensor size : 4/3rd (Panasonic and Olympus) , APS-C (Fuji and Sony mainly, though there are some models produced by Nikon and Canon too) and even full frame (Sony). There is also a small amount of mirorless cameras with a 1 inch sensor that are very compact but do offer the possibility to change lenses.

Here you can find some popular models, though i do prefer the ones produced by Fujifilm.

Now that you have this extra information, what camera do you think will suit your needs? Also, would you guys like more in depth information about the camera sensor, different type of lenses and so on?

New Galaxy…Samsung Galaxy 8

Published on March 29, 2017June 14, 2017 by girltechweeklyLeave a comment

After a not very successful year, Samsung finally announced a new phone. Thursday 29/03 they will be launching in New York a new phone model after their fail and having their previous Note 7 being recalled.

The new Galaxy S8 not only that promises to not catch on fire while charging but also comes with something that some of us are already used to. Bixby is their new added feature and it’s an artificially intelligent voice assistant that, they claim, is going to be different from Siri and Google Assistant.

On their official page they say “Bixby will be a new intelligent interface on our devices. Fundamentally different from other voice agents or assistants in the market, Bixby offers a deeper experience thanks to proficiency in these three properties:”

The idea behind it is that machines should be able to adapt to humans instead of the other way around it. Bixby claims to be more intelligent than any other voice assistant and will understand better the user’s needs without you having to remember exact phrases.

“We do have a bold vision of revolutionising the human-to-machine interface, but that vision won’t be realised overnight. Ambition takes time. Bixby will be our first step on a journey to completely open up new ways of interacting with your phone. At the launch of the Galaxy S8, a subset of pre-installed applications will be Bixby-enabled. This set will continue to expand over time. Our plan is to eventually release a tool (in SDK) to enable third-party developers to make their applications and services Bixby-enabled easily.” (source)

Apart from this new addition, the phone will also feature a no home button and a more sleek design and also a dual bluetooth option that will allow you to use 2 different headsets simultaneously.

Galaxy 8 will also have a fingerprint recognition, face recognition, iris recognition a secure folder for all your important files and a Samsung pass that will register your passwords for different websites so you won’t have to type in your details when trying to login.

Probably one of the best feature is that the phone will be water resistant and the new Samsung DeX which will allow you to use your phone like a computer connecting it to an external display, keyboard or mouse.

Only time will tell if the battery issue has been solved and let’s hope this time Bixby won’t catch on fire.