Stories by Barbara Krasnoff

  • Today's high-end smartphones: Too big for comfort?

    It's obviously the start of smartphone season. Tech-fashionable vendor OnePlus announced its <a href="http://www.computerworld.com/article/2953519/smartphones/first-look-oneplus-refines-its-successful-formula-with-new-phone.html">new OnePlus 2</a> high-end low-cost smartphone on Tuesday, while <a href="http://www.computerworld.com/article/2953255/mobile-wireless/samsung-event-in-august-portends-new-smartphone-launch.html">Samsung has sent out invitations</a> to an upcoming press event that will take place in a couple of weeks.

  • Review: 7 Android apps that track your expenses

    Traveling these days is a hassle, no matter why you're going, or where -- and the necessity to track your expenses along the way just adds to the irritation. A good app, though, can make things a lot easier -- not only during the trip but afterwards, when you have to report it all to your (or your company's) accountant.

  • The signs of spring: Birds, flowers and new tech

    Back in the dark ages, when the only way to get onscreen entertainment was by tuning in a television set at a specific time (get home late? miss your favorite show? too bad for you!), networks had a habit of scheduling similar shows opposite each other. The notion was presumably, that the competition would cause one show to win out over the other, which would eventually drop in the ratings and get cancelled. The idea that viewers might be interested in seeing both apparently was not in the networks' psychology.

  • Bad with names? 2 Android apps try to help

    A few years ago, Evernote picked up a small contact-manager app called Hello (which was then retitled Evernote Hello). One of the main ideas behind the app was to help those of us who had trouble remembering names (a category I definitely fall into). It let you take notes about people you met at, say, a conference, and pick up extra information, including photos, from LinkedIn. You could then use the info and/or the photos to jog your memory.

  • Wearable technology isn't just for runners

    CES has a multitude of wearables out there for athletes, runners, bikers, long-distance hikers -- it's enough to make you tired just thinking about it. Last night, at the Pepcom press event, an eager PR guy asked me, "When you run, how often do you wonder how fast you're going?" Since the last time I ran anywhere, it was to catch a bus, I wasn't sure what to say.

  • 7 Bluetooth speakers: Still portable, now with better sound

    With the abundance of smartphones and tablets comes a proliferation of Bluetooth speakers. And it makes sense: Although mobile devices have, on the whole, better speakers today than they had even a couple of years ago, they still can't produce the sound quality or the volume that a good speaker can.