Lookout Mobile Security

Lookout Security & Antivirus provides free security protection, contacts backup, and remote locating and screaming for both phones and tablets. The app requires you to create a free Lookout account, which can be accessed by going to mylookout.com and signing in with your account credentials. Upgrading to a premium account ($2.99/m or $29.99/yr) adds safe browsing, a privacy advisor, backup of pictures and call history, and remote locking and wiping.

The security protection automatically scans apps you install and update and (optionally) new files for viruses and malware. By default it also performs a full scan weekly, which you can schedule for a particular time or day, or turn off if desired.

The backup feature saves your contacts and, if you have a premium account, your pictures and call history to your online account. There you can view them and restore them to the same device should you accidentally erase your data. Premium account holders can choose to restore their data to another tablet or phone, a handy feature if you're migrating to a new device.. Lookout makes backups daily by default, though you can adjust the frequency in the settings menu.

The missing device feature lets you remotely control your device from your online account. By logging in to the Lookout website, you can locate your phone or tablet on a Google Map or make it scream so you can find it even if the device volume is set to low or silent. If you have a premium account, you can remotely lock your tablet or phone to prevent someone from using it, or wipe it to erase all your data in case you have no hope of ever getting it back.

If a thief replaces the SIM card in your phone with their own, the Lookout app will detect the change and show the new number on your online account. You can then use the number to help in catching the thief or, if you are especially devious, you can prank call them at all hours of the night--making them really regret stealing your phone.

If you upgrade to the premium account, the safe browsing feature automatically detects and alerts you if you visit a phishing or malware site. And the privacy advisor helps you identify apps that may be invading your privacy by listing apps that have sensitive permissions, such as those that can read identity info, access messages, or track your location.

When evaluating this app on my Android phone and tablet I didn’t find any major issues. Setting up the app was painless and took only a few minutes. By default, Lookout appears on the notification bar, offering a quick way to open it. Once you open the app, you find a simple, inviting, and user-friendly interface that is extremely easy to navigate.

Though Lookout uses the same uninstall protection as other security apps (setting the app as a device administrator), it would be great to see additional uninstall protection so it’s harder for thieves to remove it.

Overall, this is a great app to help protect your Android smartphone or tablet. However, it’s hard to recommend the premium upgrade for everyone given there are other cheaper or free apps out there that can provide similar protection. For most, the free version will be adequate and you can always upgrade later should you ever need to take advantage of the paid features.

What Will Windows 8 Touchscreen Laptops Look Like?

Windows 8’s touch-centric interface will help to usher in a new wave of laptops with tabletlike touchscreens. To make it easier for users to tap and swipe on even superthin Ultrabooks, laptop makers will break out of the traditional clamshell shape and introduce laptops with more unusual designs.

What will these new Windows 8 hybrid laptops look like? The new operating system will make rotating, sliding, and flipping possible on Windows laptops. Here are a few examples of existing hardware designs that offer a taste of what a laptop with Windows 8 capabilities could do.

Going Beyond the Clamshell

Although laptop manufacturers could simply add a touchscreen to a laptop without changing the traditional clamshell shape, that could pose a few problems, especially in the case of the new category of superthin Windows laptops, Ultrabooks.

When trying to interact with the thin touchscreen panel on an Ultrabook, you could easily end up pushing the screen down. And according to DigiTimes, laptop manufacturers can’t just strengthen the hinge to compensate, because that could cause the bottom of the lightweight laptop to flip up when you press the screen. Aside from the physics problem, reaching over the keyboard for extended periods of time with the screen at an angle might not be ideal for users from a usability or ergonomics standpoint.

Thankfully, we’ve seen many innovative laptop designs that manufacturers could adopt successfully for Windows 8.

Convertible Tablet Design

Fujitsu Lifebook T580Convertible tablet PCs, such as the Fujitsu Lifebook T580, have screens that rotate 180 degrees and fold flat to work in tablet mode. Since their introduction about a decade ago, convertible tablet PCs have never really taken off outside of niche business and student circles, owing to their bulky size and high cost.

Windows 8 convertible PCs, however, will likely be not only much sleeker but also much more budget-friendly than previous tablet PCs--ditching optical drives and arcane, expensive pen-optimized displays. Relatively thin Ultrabooks with rotating touchscreens could take advantage of the finger-friendlyWindows Metro interface like a slate, but then could transform back into laptop mode.

Fold-Over Design

Lenovo IdeaPad YogaThe Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga presents another possible design solution. This 0.67-inch-thick Ultrabook, not yet available, flips back 360 degrees on a pair of double hinges. Propped up on a table like a tent, the Yoga will resist toppling over when you use touch apps, and it will offer an ideal viewing and tapping angle. The Yoga can also flip into other positions.

The Yoga’s fold-over design is a newer concept than the convertible/rotating screen. How the fold-over design actually feels and works remains to be seen; the Yoga is expected to be released later this year. Still, it’s an innovative and viable option that other laptop makers could adopt.

Sliding Screen Design

Laptops may also take design inspiration from smartphones, with keyboards that slide out from underneath the touchscreen.

Samsung TX100One example of a model with a sliding screen was the Samsung TX100, which debuted at CES 2011. This slim tablet PC was reminiscent of the MacBook Air but had a keyboard that slid out from beneath its screen just as the original Android G1 smartphone keyboard did. After its introduction at CES, the TX100 was due to go on sale in spring 2011--in Europe, at least. However, that never happened.

Another example of a sliding design is the Asus Eee Pad Slider, even though it’s an Android tablet rather than a laptop. PCWorld’s review of the 10-inch Eee Pad Sliderfound the design to be effective, with the display sufficiently tilted and sturdy for touch navigation.

Docking Station Design

Perhaps the most versatile option is the docking station design, in which tablets slide into a docking station (or connect to one wirelessly) to create a hybrid laptop of sorts.

Android tablets--in particular, the Asus Transformer Prime and the more recent Lenovo IdeaTab K2--lead the way here. While those devices are technically tablets that connect to docking stations to become more laptoplike, you can find Windows tablets with laptoplike specs and docking stations.

Samsung Series 7 tabletFor example, the Samsung Series 7 tablet boasts the same hardware specs as Samsung's Series 7 laptops, but in a thin and small tablet form. The Windows 7 slate comes with an Intel Core i3 or i5 processor, a solid-state drive, and 4GB of RAM. The docking station extends the tablet’s capabilities with a wireless keyboard and more ports for full laptoplike functionality. A Windows 8 version is in the works.

Windows 8 laptop manufacturers considering incorporating touchscreens could perhaps go this route, offering the best of both worlds by making tablets as powerful as laptops with keyboard docking stations. After all, Microsoft wants Windows 8 to be the “everywhere operating system” for all devices--good on tablets, laptops, smartphones, and everything else, whatever shape or form they come in.

Intel Working With 10 Vendors to Release Windows 8 Tablets by Year-end

Intel is working with 10 undisclosed Chinese and global vendors to design Windows 8 tablets using the company's chips, a senior company executive said Wednesday.

"You'll probably see many Intel-based tablets by the end of this year," Intel China chairman Sean Maloney said while speaking at the Intel Developer Forum in Beijing.

Maloney made his comments as Intel has been working to expand its chip business into smartphones and tablets. The company's newest Atom processor, the Z2460 and also code-named "Medfield", is built for smartphones and tablets, and promises to give high computing performance while also offering long battery life.

The Medfield chip will be used in Chinese PC maker Lenovo's K800 handset, the first smartphone to use an Intel processor. The K800 will go on sale in China at the end of May, according to Lenovo vice president Wayne Chen.

Lenovo share of China's smartphone market last year was less than five percent, according to research firm Canalys. The K800 smartphone is positioned at the "high end", Maloney said.

Intel is also developing another mobile chip, code-named Clover Trail, which is designed for tablets and is scheduled to arrive this year. The chip features a 1.8 GHz processor, according to a slide shown during Maloney's speech.

Although Intel is best known as a PC chip producer, the company has big ambitions for the tablet and smartphone market, especially in China. "Our strategy in China now is to win with smartphones and tablets. We are making progress on it!" Maloney said during an online chat with Internet users earlier this week.

Chinese handset manufacturer ZTE also plans to launch a smartphone using Intel chips during the second half of this year, according to Maloney.

Intel is also developing two other Atom chips for smartphones. The Intel Atom Z2580 will offer twice the performance of the Medfield chip. The Atom Z2000 has a 1.0 GHz processor and is positioned for the lower end of the market.

The New Sony Xperia™ mTab Concept World Congress 2012