Author: Rosheena Zehra

Apple Music Now Has Over 11 Million Subscribers

It’s only been a little over six months since Apple started operations at Apple Music, and in that short span of time, this promising service has outdone expectations, as well as the previous market leader, Spotify. Apple Music now has over 11 million subscribers, along with 782 million iCloud users.

The new 11 million figure was mentioned by Craig Federighi and Eddy Cue, Apple’s Senior Vice Presidents, on John Gruber’s podcast, The Talk Show, published today. It should be noted at this point that it took Spotify, its main rival, 6 long years to reach its first 10 million milestone.

This is an interesting piece of information because Apple’s streaming service had faced a lot of flak at its launch owing to its bug ridden, and clustered interface. It was only after iOS 9 came in that many of these issues were cleared.

However, Apple Music is not where it ends for the Cupertino tech-giant. “Apple Video” is something else the company has up its sleeve. It’s the next big Apple project with many partners involved, such as ABC, CBS, and Fox. Apple already has a large library of movies and video on its iTunes Store, which can currently be only bought or rented.

Streaming is slowly becoming the preferred form of consumption of music, and is growing rapidly as people give up on downloads. In the US, demand for streaming has increased more than 50 per cent, with 317 billion songs being streamed last year.

Apple despite all of this has a long way to go before it comes close to overtaking Spotify. Spotify last reported its number of subscribers in June, and it is expected to have grown substantially since then. Back then it had 20 million paid members, and in total it reported 75 million users.

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February 13, 2016
Google to Shut Down Picasa This March

It’s time to say good-bye to one of the most popular photo editors of all times. Google has announced in an official blog post that Picasa would no longer work come this March. Following which, users would no longer be able to edit Picasa web albums post May. Google plans to shift its focus to Google Photos by shutting down the application.

“After much thought and consideration, we’ve decided to retire Picasa over the coming months in order to focus entirely on a single photo service in Google Photos.”

Users with a Picasa account can access their pictures using the Google Photos app. People who are not using this app can still access their albums and delete or edit them. The company will withdraw support for the Picasa desktop app on 15th March, 2016. For those who have the application on their systems already -it will continue to run just as it does right now, but there will be no further updates or developments.

Google ended the blog-post by way of an apology, “We apologize for any inconvenience this transition causes, but we want to assure you that we are doing this with the aim of providing the best photos experience possible.” Time to bid adieu indeed.

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February 13, 2016
Galaxy Note 6 Leaks Suggest 5.8-inch Display and 6GB RAM

As Samsung prepares to take on the world with its flagship devices this year, this is the latest we have about its phablet Galaxy Note 6.

A Chinese Weibo account has posted some specifications of the Note 6 which mention a 12 MP camera, along with 5.8-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 2560X1440. Additionally, there is also a mention of 6 GB of RAM. The latter news does not come as a surprise because it was only a couple of months ago when Samsung had announced it 12 GB mobile DRAM chips. This opened the door for 6 GB smartphones in the near future because the 12Gb LPDDR4 enables 3 GB or 6 GB of mobile DRAM in a single package by simply using two chips and four chips respectively.

Currently, even the fanciest of Samsung phones do not go beyond 4 GB of RAM. However, a 6 GB phone sometime this year shouldn’t come as a surprise now that the official announcement about the technology has been already made.

Note 6 will be equipped with an S-pen (who saw that coming?) according to the leak, but there are no updates about the battery-life of the device. Watch this space for all the latest developments.

February 13, 2016
iPhone 7 May Have a Second Speaker Instead of a Headphone Jack

There is no end to the rumours being churned out about the iPhone 7 and more and more new updates continue to pour in. Latest in the series of speculations and expectations is that the headphone jack on the iPhone 7 may be replaced by an extra speaker.

Analysts speculate that the 3.5 mm headphone jack will be removed and an extra speaker will be added in its stead to improve the sound quality of the new iPhone. Analysts Blayne Curtis and Christopher Hemmelgarn believe that the speaker would be provided by Cirrus Logic

The analysts also speculate that unlike many other phones in the market, iPhone 7 will not employ dynamic noise cancellation, Apple fans might have to wait for the next iPhone for this feature. The smartphone would instead use a basic digital codec.

There is a huge list of rumours that have been going around for the longest time, and we are unsure as to which ones would materialise and which ones won’t. Hold your breath until we have more to go on with.

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February 13, 2016
UK Newspaper to Shut Down 30 Year Old Press, Focus on Online

As contemporary existence becomes more and more technology-centric, there is another development to emphasise this movement further. UK’s Independent has announced that the paper will go out of print, after a long, flourishing career of 30 years. Instead, the platform would become a digital news portal with http://www.independent.co.uk and its associated sites.

The owner of The Independent and the Independent on Sunday newspapers, Evgeny Lebedev announced today. The last Independent issue would hit the stands on the 20th of March, while Independent on Sunday on the 26th of March. Following this, it will be a digital-only product sold to Johnston Press for £24 million.

Lebedev told his staff, “We faced a choice: manage the continued decline of print, or convert the digital foundation we’ve built into a sustainable, profitable future.”

Many employees would join Johnston Press while many would have to be laid off. However, it’s been further added that those who are “long-term casuals” as per their contract will receive two weeks’ pay for each year worked, along with their notice period.

It is indeed time to say goodbye, and perhaps go on a trip of nostalgia often associated with the forward movement of contemporary lifestyle owing to the changes ushered in by technology.

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February 12, 2016
‘Destiny’ Sequel Announced on the Official Blog

Hello, Destiny-fans. Right around the time when preparations for the Destiny‘s Valentine’s Day event are underway, there is a new update from the front. Developer Bungie informs that the much-anticipated, and delayed, sequel to the game is all set to arrive – wait for it -next year.

Along with this, the game is also set to get an update this Spring which would include a “significant” Light level increase, new gear and challenges. The official blog post further mentions a larger expansion later this year, and the biggest news of them all, a sequel to Destiny in 2017.

The developer had been quiet for a while as to the plan of action, leaving fans a little lost in terms of what to expect next from their favourite game. During the first year post Destiny‘s release, there had been a fairly clear blue-print provided to players about the next stages of development. However, the same blueprint had been missing from the scene lately. Consequently, this new update comes as a much-welcomed news for the gaming community.

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February 12, 2016
Apple Finds Itself in Another Lawsuit, This Time Over Haptic Touch

Apple loves court-room drama because it clearly can’t keep itself out of them. The latest name to be added to the list of Apple lawsuits is Immersion. Immersion, another California based company, has taken Apple to court over what it claims is infringement of three patents related to haptic touch used in iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6s, 6s Plus, Apple Watch and Apple Watch Sport Edition. Phew.

The patents include “Haptic Feedback System with Stored Effects” and “Method and Apparatus for Providing Tactile Sensations”. Additionally, two more Apple devices, the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus have led to the infringement of a third patent called “Interactivity Model for Shared Feedback on Mobile Devices.”

Apple devices have used haptic touch before Immersion’s patent. However, the company added an upgrade in its devices post the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, called “Taptic Engine” which provided them with 3D Touch/Force Touch.

“We will vigorously defend the intellectual property we have developed when it is infringed”, said Immersion in an official statement.

Immersion has a history of dragging other significant names of the tech world to the court. This includes AT&T, Microsoft, Motorola and Google. Before things turned sour between Immersion and Apple, there were rumours of the former actually working with the latter on haptic touch tech in its devices. But alas, now we all now how that ended.

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February 12, 2016
Google’s Virtual Reality Headset to Not Require Tethering With Phones and PCs

It was reported earlier that Google is working on a virtual reality headset quite similar to Samsung’s Gear VR. While speculators busy themselves pitting the two head-sets against each other, another development has occurred on the Google VR-front. If sources are to be believed, Google is expected to come out with a VR headset that would not require tethering to a computer or a smartphone. Being independent of these devices will definitely give the VR-headset an edge over its Samsung, HTC and Oculus counterparts.

The headset would be launched alongside the other Google VR headset expected to be in the same league as Gear VR, and therefore, providing strong competition to the Samsung device. It is also expected to arrive alongside a new version of Android which would make virtual reality the core of the operating system.

Virtual Reality seems to be the next big thing in the tech world, already making a stable base for itself in the mainstream. Needless to say, this update from Google is bound to get users excited all over. However, the arrival date of this Google device is a little unclear at this point. We can hopefully expect to see it sometime later this year.

February 12, 2016

Honor Holly 2 Plus to Go on Sale in India Next Week

Honor’s recently launched Holly 2 Plus is all set to go on sale in India on 15th February midnight. It will come in three colour variants -Dark Grey, White and Gold and will be exclusively available with Amazon and Flipkart.

The phone sports a 5-inch HD display and is powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core Mediatek MT6735P processor and Mali 720 GPU, paired with 2GB of RAM. It offers 16GB of built-in storage, microSD slot, and a massive 4,000 mAh battery.

The company says about the device in an official statement, “Holly 2 Plus is a smart phone specially designed for India market with dual SIM 4G support and also one of the only smart phone which supports 2G/3G/4G LTE and CDMA at this same time.”

This device also comes with Smart Power 3.0 and quick charge capability. It features a 13MP rear camera and a 5MP front. Connectivity options include dual-SIM and 4G LTE support.

The Honor Holly 2 Plus is priced at Rs 8, 499. Find the complete specifications of the device below.

Specs	Holly 2 Plus
Display	5-inch HD
Resolution	1280 x 720 pixels (296 ppi)
Processor	1.3GHz quad-core Mediatek MT6735P
GPU	Mali 720
RAM	2GB
Storage	16GB
Rear Camera	13MP f/2.0, autofocus, LED flash
Front Camera	5MP
Expandability	Up to 128 GB via MicroSD
Battery	4000mAh
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot, bluetooth v4.0, A-GPS, microUSB v2.0
OS	Android 5.1 Lollipop
Price	Rs 8,499

February 12, 2016

Galaxy S7 to Run on Marshmallow, Flagships from Last Year to Get the Update Post Launch

Samsung Galaxy S7, the company’s much-anticipated flagship device is all set to launch at the Mobile World Congress on the 21st February. The phone would run out of the box Android Marshmallow as its operating system.

To recap a bit about the specifications of the phone, the Samsung Galaxy S7 upon launch is expected to to feature a 5.1-inch Super AMOLED display with Quad HD resolution, a new 12 MP BRITECELL camera with f/1.7 aperture, and a 5 MP secondary cam. Two SoC configurations are expected. One being a Exynos-based version and the other a Qualcomm-powered model. The battery is expected to be upwards of 3500mAh.

Other Samsung flagship devices from last year, Galaxy S6, S6 Edge, S6 Edge+ and Note 5 would get the update post the S7 launch. For those who are using one of these Samsung devices, here’s a quick look at their specifications.

The specs for both S6 and S6 Edge remain the same and the new colours would be available in 32, 64, and 128 GB variants. S6 Edge has a 5.1 inches display with a resolution of 1440X2560 pixels. Powered by Exynos 7420, it is further equipped with 3 GB of RAM, 16 MP main and 5 MP front camera, along with a non-removable Li-Ion battery marked at 2600 mAh.

The Galaxy S6 Edge+ has a 5.7” Quad HD Super AMOLED 2560 x 1440 (518ppi) dual edge screen and is protected by the Corning Gorilla Glass 4. The device runs on the Android OS, v5.1.1 (Lollipop) with an Octa core (2.1GHz Quad + 1.5GHz Quad), 64 bit, 14nm processor. The device comes in two variants – 32GB and 64 GB both with a 4 GB RAM.

The Note 5 runs on the Android OS, v5.1.1 (Lollipop) with an Exynos 7420 chipset, a Quad-core 1.5 GHz Cortex-A53 & Quad-core 2.1 GHz Cortex-A57 CPU and a Mali-T760MP8 GPU. As far as storage capacity is concerned, this handset comes in two variants – 32 and 64 GB along with 4GB of RAM. However, it does not have an expandable microSD card slot.

February 11, 2016
Facebook Confirms: No Free Basics in India

The entire song and dance around Facebook’s Free Basics has finally come to an end as the company officially announced its end in India today.

“Free Basics is no longer available to people in India,” explicitly states the emailed statement.

The entire issue has attracted immense attention the last couple of weeks, both from media and the average user alike. While people ‘voiced their opinion’ on Facebook, rest of social media went crazy trying to attention to the fact that the campaign was in direct contradiction of net neutrality.

It was finally on the 8th of February that TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) announced its final verdict and sealed the fate of Free Basics once and for all. It was banned by the Indian authority and even though it seemed like the end of the road, Mark Zuckerberg went on record just the next day saying he will not give up on it just yet.

The picture seems to have altered a lot in a matter of two days now that Free Basics has unceremoniously exited from India. Net neutrality: one, Free Basics: zero.

February 11, 2016
Google Rolls Out New Features to Strengthen Online Security

In wake of the privacy scare haunting all netizens, specifically so in recent times, Google has announced the roll-out of new features to strengthen online security of users.

The new features include easing the filtering of messages from trusted sources. This would be achieved by the company by simplifying security settings and making them more user-friendly. Google also plans to run various initiatives to make Indian users more aware of ways of ensuring their security online.

“We are adding five million new users a month taking the user base of a connected’ Indians to 500 millions online by 2018-2019. It’s more important now than ever before to ensure the data and profiles of these users is safe online,” says Sunita Mohanty, director, Trust and Safety, Google India.

Along with this announcement, Google India also revealed trends in security related searches from last year. According to the collated data, there has been a 20% increase in searches for “change password”. The trend also shows another 97% increase in searches for “two-step verification”, which is basically a process of signing in to your Google account by using more than one password. An example of this is a 6-digit code sent on your cellphone, along with the usual password.

Privacy settings are becoming an immediate concern for all inhabitants of the virtual space with every passing day. Consequently, the added security that Google promises its users comes as welcomed news making us feel ever so slightly safer on the Internet.

February 11, 2016
Harvard Study: Mechanical Stimulation Leads to Muscle Repair

A new research to come out of Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University and the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) suggests that mechanical stimulation will one day be able to help with muscle repair.

The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. recently, shows skeletal muscle regeneration can be promoted in this manner. It could improve upon the current practices, or perhaps replace them entirely in the future if the method is adopted successfully.

“The results of our new study demonstrate how direct physical and mechanical intervention can impact biological processes and can potentially be exploited to improve clinical outcomes,” says David Mooney, a member of the team that is carrying out the study.

Half of the human body is made up of skeletal muscle which is capable of repairing itself in case of minor injuries. However severe trauma to the body as a result of accidents requires some sort of muscle regeneration which the body is often unable to provide on its own. This is where research like the mechanical stimulation of this specific process becomes relevant.

The method was tested upon two separate groups of mice. While one was provided with magnetized gel to be in direct contact with the damaged tissue, the other group was only given a robotic, pressurized cuff placed over the damaged part in a non-invasive manner.

The gel was exposed to magnetic pulses to bring about regular stimulation to the muscle. The robotic cuffs on the other hand were provided with pulses of air to regularly massage the required part. Over a period of two weeks, the results turned out to be markedly different.

There was a 2.5-times improvement in muscle regeneration and reduced tissue damage in the group which was provided mechanical stimulation. The reason behind this is that oxygen, fluids and important nutrients get transported to the injured regions as a result of direct stimulation and therefore help with muscle repair.

“This work clearly demonstrates that mechanical forces are as important biological regulators as chemicals and genes, and it shows the immense potential of developing mechanotherapies to treat injury and disease,” says Donald Ingber, a leading name in the field of mechanobiology.

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February 10, 2016
6 Free Dating Apps to Download Before Valentine’s Day

The horrendously red hearts dangling from pretty much every Archies store out there tells us it’s that time of the year again. While it’s always great to celebrate love, in whichever form, love for pets and family and hobbies and life, this particular day has come to be associated with a specific kind of love. And in case you have missed out on finding yourself someone to share it with, things might not be too pleasant.

To make sure things don’t come to this for you, here’s a list of apps to make life easier this Valentine’s Day. While Indian parents are busy creating secret profiles for their kids on matrimonial websites, the kids are already taking things a step further with these apps.

1. DesiCrush

This is pretty much the Indian version of Tinder. It requires the user to create an account with an image and basic details. For verification purposes, the user would have to link their account with Facebook. There are preferences that can be given based on which matches would be made. Once two people mutually like each other’s profile, a match would be made and they can begin chatting. DesiCrush is available in both Google Play Store and the App Store.

2. Woo

Called ‘Matchmaking app for singles’, Woo is a fun app that allows the user to connect with the right person. Once again, you are required to create an account using Facebook and enter your basic details. Even though Woo is very particular about its users’ privacy, one concern that many may have with the app is that it leaves your Facebook profile accessible to everyone you chatted with, even if you ‘unmatch’ them later. On the brighter side, the app allows you to record seven second long voice messages to exchange, and shows only the initials of its women users to other people until they choose otherwise. Woo is a free Android app that can be downloaded from the Google Play Store and the App Store.

3. OkCupid

OkCupid is an app that breaks away from hetero-normative roles and lets the user choose from hetero, homo and bi-sexual partners. This app also has one of the most elaborate searches. It asks you detailed questions about your life, habits, choices and preferences. The user can increase these filters, refine their searches and get a better look at who is viewing and visiting their profile by opting for a paid subscription of the app called ‘A-List’. Otherwise OkCupid is available for free download on both Android and iOS devices.

4. TrulyMadly

TrulyMadly is a great app that includes games like ‘Hocus Pocus’ and ‘Styletastic’ to help you find like-minded people. In case you feel at a loss of words, to describe yourself or express ideas in your profile, the app comes to your rescue in the form of stickers that it offers. The profile can be created either using Facebook or your email address. TrulyMadly can be downloaded for free from Google Play and the App Store.

5. Tinder

The immensely popular dating app which needs no introduction -Tinder. Once again, you have to create an account using your Facebook profile and put up a picture with a short description. Depending on whether or not you like the results it shows, you can swipe right to choose or left to move on, along with an option to ‘Super-like’ people you see. In case the user wishes to disclose their location, or undo a left swipe, it can be done on a paid version of the app called Tinder Plus. The usual app is available for free download on both Android and iOS devices.

6. Grindr

Grindr is the world’s largest dating platform for gay and bisexual men. It is available in about 190 countries, including India. It helps users find partners based on their location and is available with both paid and non-paid subscriptions. The official website asks potential users to “View the gorgeous men of Grindr the way they were meant to be – large and in charge.” Point conveyed and noted. Grindr can be downloaded from Google Play as well as the App Store.

February 10, 2016
Contact Lenses Could Work as Displays and Fitness Trackers in the Future

Forget VR headsets that simulate concussions or augmented reality that alters the world around you. Here’s a concept of lenses from the future that could work as electronic displays, along with tracking the vital stats of the body. A team of researchers at University of South Australia have come up with a concept of a conductive polymer film coating that is capable of achieving this with future contact lenses.

If the concept is realised into reality, it would be an immensely huge leap for virtual reality. As users do away with cumbersome VR headsets, this piece of futuristic technology would change lifestyles in an unprecedented way.

The idea behind the research is to use water-compatible conductors on contact lenses which would render them capable of measuring glucose levels or creating electronic displays.

Is it time for good-bye already?

Professor Drew Evans describes comments on their research and says, “The trick is to provide power to the contact lens display. We are excited by advances from other researchers showing you can use tear drops to power special batteries. There is a possibility to modify this for use with our conductive coatings.” He further added that the inspiration behind the research came from wearables and their increasing presence in the contemporary world.

Many people who require contact lenses for eye-sight correction, shy away from opting for them because the idea of making the eye under-go any kind of external physical contact is not a welcomed one. But if the future truly offers us electronic displays that could be attached to the eye-ball would you say yay or nay? Let us know in the comments below.

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February 10, 2016