When Steve Jobs introduced the “retina display” at WWDC, a lot of folks including myself were skeptical of its actual capabilities until we were given a hands-on session right after the Jobs’ keynote. I was impressed weeks ago and I’m even more impressed now. The amount of pixels that Apple managed to cram into such a small space is ridiculously amazing. Just look at the following comparison and it’s obvious to the naked eye how much better the iPhone 4 display is. Folks can argue about Apple’s somewhat outlandish claims that the display goes beyond what the human eye can digest but there’s no denying it’s beauty.

I’ll be perfectly honest, I wasn’t a big fan of the new design when images of the iPhone 4 first leaked. I actually thought it was downright ugly but after seeing it a few weeks back and now, I can’t help but appreciate what Jony Ive and his team have managed to accomplish with this iteration. Sure, it feels a big awkward in hand compared to the 3GS and 3G models because it no longer has a tapered back but it feels so damn good after a few minutes. The weight is perfect. I love the industrial design. The glass back, super high-res display and steel band leave me speechless. I just want to look at it all day long.

I’ll be the first to tell you that I’m not fanboy because I’ve never actually been a fan of the iPhone until now. My first gen iPhone literally sat in my desk drawer for an entire year. This is the iPhone that we’ve all been waiting for since day one. It has all the bells and whistles and then some. Because this particular unit is not my own, I can’t attest to call quality because it’s linked to someone else’s account and I’ll reserve judgment on the cameras until later in the day once I have my review unit.

No, I’m not having any reception issues or yellow discoloring. I simply cannot get my iPhone 4 to last longer than eight hours after a full charge. I’ve cycled it twice now and I’m still having battery life issues. I pulled it off the charger at 9:05 yesterday morning and by 4:30 in the afternoon I was at 13%. So what was I doing, you ask?

• One 2 minute phone call in Times Square (did not drop)
• No FaceTime sessions
• 3 Push e-mail accounts (Exchange, Gmail, Yahoo)
• Screen brightness at 50%
• No apps running in the background
• Sporadic Twittering (once every 45-60 minutes)
• Two minutes of the Flood-It! game on the subway
• 5 minutes of video playback
• No music playback
• No video recording
• 10 test photos
• 20-30 minutes of total web browsing
• 5 minutes of Google Maps usage
• 20-30 minutes of Wi-Fi connectivity
• No text messaging

So, yeah, I’m not really sure what the deal is. How’s your battery life?

“Just to box. The object is to throw as many punches at your opponent without getting hit. We are looking for big things,” Julaton told 8countnews.com’s Brad Cooney of her game plan.

Julaton will take on Villalobos at “Rumble at Rama XII” at the Casino Rama, in Rama, Ontario, Canada on Wednesday (Thursday in Manila).

“She’s pretty strong. She has a good strong right hand and she had a nice knockout awhile back. She is going to bring it to me, and I feel like I am ready,” the Fil-Am said of her opponent.

The two female pugilists will fight for the vacant World Boxing Organization (WBO) super bantamweight title.

Villalobos has 6 wins (with 3 KOs) and 3 losses while Julaton, a 2-time world champion, currently has 6 wins (with 1 knockout), 2 losses and 1 draw.

The Fil-Am will aim to bounce back from her unanimous decision loss to Canadian Lisa “Bad News” Brown in March.

Julaton, a former WBO and International Boxing Association (IBA) champion, also said that Roach has been working on the game plan since Day 1 of their training.

“It’s been great,” she said of her renewed partnership with Roach. “Ever since the first day he’s been working on a game plan. We have been working great on the mitts as well. His communication with me is excellent, and it’s been great being back at the Wild Card gym around fighters that have the same goals that I have.”
She was full of praise for her trainer, a 4-time Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA) Trainer of the Year recipient.

“The way that Freddie explains things, and the way that he sees things is pretty incredible. It’s amazing how he just puts it all together. That’s why he’s a 4 time trainer of the year, and I feel very honored to have him in my corner,” she said.

Chief Superintendent Benjardi Mantele said he has created Task Group Quezon, which will also be composed of eight sub-task groups. The task group will be in constant coordination with the Presidential Security Group (PSG) and other concerned agencies, he said.

Mantele and his deputy chief, Senior Superintendent Audie Arroyo, will oversee the command post at the Quezon shrine as well as personnel from the Bureau of Fire Protection.

The security personnel will be composed of policemen in plain clothes for “covert security,” traffic policemen, and fire fighters, Mantele said.

On board a vehicle, some 20 members of the group Gabriela managed to sneak in front of Aquino’s residence at Times Street at around 10:30 am to hold a short program.

In a statement, the group reminded Aquino of his promise to go after Arroyo and her minions.

“We take him to task on that promise and like the rest of the country, we expect no less from him,” said Joms Salvador, deputy secretary-general of Gabriela.

“If Aquino would be truthful to his promise of leading the people to ‘daang matuwid,’ [straight path] he should jail the culprit and free the innocents. He should work for Arroyo’s imprisonment and free women and all political prisoners,” Salvador added.

Salvador said there are 61 women out of 344 political prisoners under the Arroyo administration

“These women political prisoners suffered from the hands of their captors and many of them were sexually abused.”

“They are also in a most detrimental condition where they are continually made vulnerable to all forms of harassment, be these sexual, physical or emotional,” Salvador further stated.

Another group of protesters, leaders and members of the Philippine Airlines Employee’s Association, also staged a rally to seek Aquino’s intervention on the brewing labor dispute at the Philippine Airlines.

In a decision dated June 15, acting Labor Secretary Romeo Lagman found the planned mass lay off of some 30, 000 PAL employees’ “contracting out” to be lawful and based on a “valid exercise of management prerogative.”

The PAL union wants the incoming Labor Secretary to be given the right to study and decide on the issue “according to procedure and on a just basis.”

In a letter to Aquino, the union also asked for the cleansing of corrupt officials in the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), and reform of the policy regarding contractualization.

In a statement after his meeting with Aquino Wednesday, Binay said he declined to accept “any Cabinet position so as not to burden the President and allow him to focus on the many challenges facing the nation.”

Aquino confirmed that he offered Binay government positions but the outgoing Makati Mayor “declined.”

“Several positions were offered but the VP declined assuring us however of his support,” Aquino said in a text message to INQUIRER.net.

Asked if the local government portfolio was among the posts offered, Aquino said: “No.”

Binay, who said he first conveyed his message to Aquino Monday evening, has publicly expressed his desire for the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) post.

But Binay assured Aquino of his “friendship and support and readiness to extend any assistance whenever needed.”

Talking to reporters after the meeting, Binay described the meeting as “social and cordial.”

Asked why the meeting lasted for more than an hour, Binay said: “E, basta’t social and cordial talagang mahaba ‘yan. Pagka hindi social maiksi lang (Since it’s a social and cordial meeting then expect it to be long. If it’s not social then it’s short),” Binay said.

The outgoing Makati mayor also refused to say who initiated the meeting.

“Hindi importante kung sino ang nag-propose. Basta’t kami ay nag-meeting. Ayos na ‘yon (It’s not important who proposed the meeting. We met. And that’s it),” he said.

Binay evaded all questions about the Cabinet issue.

Asked if they discussed during the meeting the Cabinet issue, Binay said: “No. We just had…”

Pressed further if he would accept other post in the Aquino administration if offered, the vice president-elect said “Siguro. Tingnan na lang natin sa mga susunod na araw (Maybe. Let’s see in the coming days).”

Binay’s camp had said that the DILG remained the “first and only choice” of the Vice President-elect.

But Aquino, in an earlier interview with reporters, said that while he respects Binay’s preference, “at the end of the day, it’s my Cabinet.”

“I’m responsible for how it performs,” Aquino said.

“And I think, I should be accorded the right to choose who I want to serve as my alter ego,” he said.

Harry Roque, a professor at the University of the Philippines College of Law, said they have an eyewitness who can identify those who killed Suwaid Upham, or “Jesse,” in Parang, last June 14.

“May positive identification sa kanilang apat na bumaril sa kanya,” said Roque in an interview with radio dzMM Saturday.

Upham claimed he was one of the gunmen ordered to kill the 57 victims in the massacre last year. Roque’s law firm represents 14 media victims of the massacre.

Roque said he will reveal the names of the suspects on Monday.

“Nagdo-double confirmation muna po ako at isisiwalat natin iyan sa Lunes,” he said.

The lawyer said he will also identify the mastermind behind Upham’s killing, based on the eyewitness’s statement.

According to the lawyer, the eyewitness is an employee of a family in Maguindanao.

The informant is now in hiding for fear of his life.

Roque refused to identify Upham’s killers, but said his informant told him residents of Maguindanao know them as being close to the Ampatuan clan.

The lawyer, however, said he has yet to personally verify the information.

Love triangle?

Meanwhile, the provincial director assigned in Maguindanao said on Friday that Upham’s death had nothing to do with the massacre case.

Senior Superintendent Alex Lineses said they are eyeing love triangle as the motive behind the killing.

“May nililigawan na isang babae na nagkataon yata na parang engaged na yun, nakatulog pa nga doon sa bahay ng tatay ng babae,” Lineses said.

The woman’s family did not know that Upham was involved in the massacre of relatives of Gov. Esmael “Toto” Mangudadatu, lawyers and members of the media.

“Parang mabait pero hindi natin masyadong kilala yung tao,” Naida Sapal said.

Meanwhile, Lineses expressed his readiness to vacate his post after he was accused of neglect that led to the killing of the witness in the massacre.

With the opening of classes, Filipino-owned RedFox is introducing 3 new technologies for the academe: the Interactive Whiteboard, an e-reader, and a Multi-Learner Station.
The Interactive Whiteboard (IWB) is compatible with Windows, Mac, and Linux.

RedFox partnered with Promethean in bringing the Interactive Whiteboard (IWB) to Asia. IWB is an interactive display that combines whiteboard, personal computer, and projector.

The package comes with a small projector called Picos, a 78-inch digital whiteboard, and a gray digital pen. “It can be used in discussions, trainings, and other purposes to view presentations and manipulate it directly through the whiteboard,” according to the RedFox Philippine homepage.

According to Shishiir Manzo of RedFox, the IWB is an effective way to engage students in class discussions. Teachers can use images as background for presentations, play videos, draw graphs, and the like.

With IWB, what can be seen or done on a computer screen can be projected to an interactive whiteboard, Manzo told abs-cbnNEWS.com. The IWB also includes a handwriting recognition software and can work as wired or through wireless connection to a host PC.

Energy efficient, cheaper

Aside from the IWB, RedFox boasts of the Multi-Learner Station which gives access to 5 to 10 computers through a very powerful (RedFox has not released the specifications yet) single desktop PC.

The unit works on 1 operating system and enables easy file sharing.
The package is energy efficient, another plus factor, said Manzo. It uses 250 watts of electricity to power five 18.5-inch LCDs and the central processing unit. A typical desktop computer uses roughly the same amount for every use.

Bookworms and e-book followers can also make use of the WizLib, a local version of Kindle, the reading device being distributed by Amazon.
Aside from viewing e-books, it can store documents, text files, and black and white images.

Though e-books have yet to acquire a following in the country, RedFox is eyeing possible discussions with the local publishing industry to push for e-versions of textbooks. The move, said RedFox, will be cheaper in the long run.
WizLib has 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity.

Other technologies

Aside from these technologies, RedFox is joining the touch-screen smartphone craze and will be releasing its own WizPhone.
It will run on the latest Android 2.0 and comes with a music player, digital map, gaming pad, 3-megapixel digital camera, and other office applications.

RedFox also showed off the new eVolve, the company’s first “all-in-one” personal computer, which combines a computer and television. It can be mounted on the wall or placed on any smooth surface and easily switchable to TV or PC by remote.

The multimedia PC-slash-TV comes in dual core, quad core, and 6-core configurations.

Almost in the same league as the Multi-Learner Station, the new Docking Station connects up to 6 laptops simultaneously through USB and can serve as an external hub.
RedFox started in 1998 and has since been actively churning out personal computers and laptops in the country’s booming technological industry. It has extended its market base to Taiwan, Singapore, and China, while maintaining a manufacturing hub in Cavite, a province located south of the capital Manila.

“We are delighted to say that a modern and up-to-date Philippines is within reach. We are getting there,” RedFox CEO Andy Te said in a press release.

These technologies can be seen at the newly-launched InnoTech Laboratory at the National Computer Institute at the University of the Philippines.

Released earlier in Singapore, China, and Taiwan, these products will be available in the Philippine market by August 2010.

“Matagal naming sinubukan. James and I really tried to make this work. On my part, with finality, I can say ako ay sumuko na,” she said on “The Buzz.”

Aquino said it was not a “spur of the moment” decision.

“Kung anuman ang dahilan why this marriage, on my part, I’m saying it’s over, the only person I will owe an explanation to and the only person who can demand from me, ‘Bakit kayo naghiwalay?,’ is my son,” she added.

Aquino, who moved out of their home last week, refused to reveal the reason behind their separation. She said she is keeping quiet for the sake of Baby James, their 3-year-old son.

“The worst thing I can do for Baby James is, when he’s 7 or 8 years old, and mahanap niya sa YouTube ‘yong explanation kung bakit nag-hiwalay ang nanay at tatay niya. He deserves much more than that. He deserves to hear it only from me and only from James. Because in any separation, there are 2 sides to the story. And we owe it to him, James will owe it to him, that I will owe it to him to explain to him,” she said.

She added that Baby James will love, respect and value her more if she keeps the matter private.

It was last week when Aquino’s close friend, TV host Boy Abunda, announced that the high-profile couple was going through a difficult time.
On June 16, Aquino first admitted in public through her Twitter page that she and Yap, B-Meg Derby Ace’s (formerly Purefoods) star player, had a “big misunderstanding.”

Stress and long hours spent during her brother’s election campaign period took a toll on their relationship, said Kris, the lead star of ABS-CBN primetime soap opera “Kung Tayo’y Magkakalayo.”

Almost 5-year marriage

She said that although both she and Yap are public figures, apart from God, they are only ones answerable to their son.

“The world can judge me. I just want my son to be able to respect me and respect his father….To a certain extent, of course, it will affect Josh, but it’s really Baby James who will really be affected,” she said.

Josh is Aquino’s son from actor Phillip Salvador.

Aquino, who is 11 years older than Yap, married the professional basketball player on July 10, 2005.

This is not the first controversy to hound Kris and Yap’s almost 5-year marriage.

Kris made headlines early this year when she allegedly confronted a woman rumored to be Yap’s girlfriend. The incident had forced Kris to move out of their home, only to return days later.

In 2007, they went through a rough patch after Yap was rumored to have had a romantic affair with Hope Centeno, one of the receptionists at the Belo Medical Clinic.

In both instances, Yap denied the speculations.

Kris bids farewell to ‘The Buzz’

The “Buzz” episode on Sunday was Aquino’s last as regular host.

In her emotional farewell, Aquino admitted that leaving “The Buzz” was a big sacrifice, but it was something that she has to do for her family.

“Alam ko na magaling ako dito sa ginagawa kong ito. And paano kung ‘yong next project na ibibigay nila sa akin, paano kung hindi ako kasing galing doon. But, in the same way na siguro nagtiwala ang Pilipinas kay Noy….ganoon din siguro ang naging decision ko na binigay mo na ang lahat, alangan naman may part pa na, ‘Hindi ibigay ninyo sa akin ito,’” she said.

Earlier, Aquino said she was giving up the show to avoid criticisms that may get in the way of the administration of her brother, President-elect Benigno Aquino III.

She said hosting “The Buzz” for 10 years has been a “learning experience” for her. She said she was grateful to ABS-CBN management and the show’s viewers for allowing her to grow and be herself.

She also thanked her family, the show’s staff, her fans and most especially Abunda for being “ready to defend me and understand me.”

“You became Boy, I became Kris during this journey. And the partnership we had, siguro wala namang makaka-question, we had one of the best marriages on TV,” she said.

Nonetheless, she assured she is leaving the show happy.

“Who knows, 6 years from now, with science, baka maganda pa naman ako. (Laughs). At hindi pa ako kulubot, baka puwede pa akong bumalik sa ‘The Buzz.’ Or baka 6 years from now, ako na ang nagswe-swearing in. (Laughs),” she said in jest.

“Make the most of your Sundays, and I’ll continue to be tuning in,” she added. -With ANC