Author: Shivaank Rana

Sennheiser Launch Momentum On-Ear Headphones In India (PR)

Sennheiser has launched a new, smaller and lighter version of its Momentum on-ear headphones, sporting a new compact design and – for the first time – availability in a range of colours.

Both the ear pads and stainless steel headband are covered in Alcantara, which has the same texture and feel of suede leather. While equally plush and comfortable, this composite material is supposedly more durable and stain resistant, too.

Audio performance-wise, the Momentum boasts a wide 16Hz to 22kHz frequency response using a pair of large 32mm drivers. According to Sennheiser, this model has been tweaked with a slight bass emphasis and is capable of blocking out ambient noise. Another highlight is its low 18ohm impedance, making the Momentum easily compatible with most mobile devices, such as smartphones, tablets and notebooks.

Gunjan Srivastava, MD Sennheiser Electronics India Pvt Ltd said “The new Momentum On-Ear embodies an urban style, focused on the perfect amalgamation of high performance and the finest materials. This new range is perfect for those who demand the best audio experience without compromise on personal style.”

The new member of the Momentum family will cost Rs 14,990 and is available in blue, green, pink and ivory colour variations at selected retail outlets across the country. The product carries a worldwide warranty of two years.

[toggle title=”Press Release”]Sound meets fashion-
Sennheiser’s new MOMENTUM On-Ear

~ To be available in four vibrant colors ~

New Delhi, August 2013 – Music and fashion have a link that has existed for a really long time. Music is associated with fashion and different eras in history have witnessed fashion influenced by music of that era. German audio specialist, Sennheiser, have developed the new range of MOMENTUM On-Ear headphones which combine quality, substance and value. Equipped with high-quality audio technology and finished with the finest materials, the MOMENTUM On-Ear is the perfect blend of audio quality and sophisticated design. The MOMENTUM On-Ear are smaller, on-ear version that makes it possible to define your personal style with a range of contemporary colours.

The MOMENTUM On-Ear is a new addition to the MOMENTUM family, adding a dash of colour to the Sennheiser product range. The new range of headphones is available in four fresh shades- blue, green, pink and ivory. The distinct looks have been selected by an international team of designers and trend scouts.

Mr Gunjan Srivastava, MD Sennheiser Electronics India Pvt Ltd said “The new MOMENTUM On-Ear embodies an urban style, focused on the perfect amalgamation of high performance and the finest materials. This new range is perfect for those who demand the best audio experience without compromise on personal style.“

High-quality audio technology and the finest materials

The MOMENTUM On-Ear headphones stand out for their minimalist design, but also for the tangibly high quality of their materials and workmanship. The ear pads and headband have been finished in Alcantara®, a high-tech material produced in Italy. As a result of its unique combination of suppleness, durability and breathable comfort, this luxury material is valued by fashion designers and interior designers alike. As with all other models in the MOMENTUM family, the headband of the MOMENTUM On-Ear is made of stainless steel.

The sound of these headphones is also clear and uncompromising, creating a sound experience in which even the tiniest details can be heard. Equipped with high-end 18-ohm transducers, MOMENTUM On-Ear guarantees full stereo sound with a slight bass emphasis in a frequency range from 16 to 22,000 Hz. The closed, on-ear design of these headphones isolate the listener from external noise to ensure a great listening experience on the move – even in noisy urban environments.

Perfection in every detail
MOMENTUM On-Ear headphones feature a single-sided detachable cable with convenient in-line remote and microphone for Apple iDevices, for easy control of music playback and to make and receive calls on the go.
The new member of the MOMENTUM family is available across in the colours blue, green, pink and ivory at selected retailers across the country. The product is backed by a worldwide warranty of two years.
The Sennheiser e-store now lets you check out and buy these headphones anytime and from anywhere. Visit the e-store at http://shop.sennheiserindia.com

The Momentum On ear range is prized at: Rs 14,990

About Sennheiser Electronics India Private Limited

Sennheiser Electronics India Private Limited, established in February 2007, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sennheiser electronic GmbH & Co. KG / Germany. Sennheiser India, with its Head Office in Gurgaon and a branch office each in Mumbai and Bangalore, has three full-fledged service centres across all locations to provide the best service support for Sennheiser and its Group brands’ product range. Also part of the Sennheiser Group are Georg Neumann GmbH, Berlin (studio microphones and monitor loudspeakers), and the joint venture Sennheiser Communications A/S (headsets for PCs, offices and call centres).
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August 8, 2013
YouTube Founders Launch Mixbit, A Vine And Instagram Rival

Steve Chen and Chad Hurley, the two original founders of YouTube and current team behind San Mateo-based incubator AVOS, are in the process of launching MixBit, a new social video clip service.

Video recording and sharing seems to be a very competitive market at the moment. For longer videos YouTube and Vimeo are the key services. Shorter video captures are being catered for by Vine (6 second limit) and Instagram (15 second video).

Here’s how the Mixbit site itself puts it:

“The MixBit app and website helps people create videos together. The app lets you record, edit and publish videos as short as one second or as long as an hour—right from your mobile device. The MixBit site is also the first site that lets users collaborate with each other and remix videos uploaded by the community.”

MixBit is very similar to Vine in that you use an app to record a short video on your mobile device. However, the time limit for each video capture is 16 seconds rather than just 6, and MixBit goes a step further than that by introducing editing.

For example, once you’ve recorded a series of 16-second clips, you can then edit them and stitch them all together in any order you choose. You can also mix photos in with them. Up to 256 clips can be merged into one, resulting in a short home movie that lasts over an hour.

Once you have a video you’re happy with, you can share it with your friends and family via Facebook, Twitter, Google+, or the MixBit website. You can also choose whether your videos are public or private, so if you have a clip you only want to share with certain people, that’s not a problem.

What’s really interesting about MixBit is that even after your video has been finalized and uploaded, it still consists of a whole bunch of separate video clips and photos. So you can go back into it at any time and make further edits. You can even edit your videos in your web browser on the MixBit website.

[Via]

August 8, 2013
Where Have We Seen That Before? Facebook Testing Trending Topics Feature

Soon after introducing hashtags, Facebook confirmed that it’s now testing another Twitter-esque feature: trending topics.

“Today we started running a small test that displays topics trending on Facebook,” confirmed the social network. “It is currently only available to a small percentage of U.S. users who use Facebook’s mobile web site (m.facebook.com) and is still in very early stages of development.”

What those mobile users will see is a banner atop their News Feed that will highlight the people and subject matter that Facebook users are talking about the most. Tapping the banner will reveal what their friends are saying about the topic in addition to opinions and feedback from other users they don’t know.

Hopefully, when Facebook rolls out this feature across the site it’ll continue to base trends on newsworthy events being discussed within the community rather than the asinine nonsense users are currently subjected to within the trends section on Twitter.

Facebook has borrowed several features from Twitter over the years, including “@” mentions, verified accounts and the option to follow people.

No word has been given on a timeline for the testing or a full-scale rollout of the Trending Topics system.

Meanwhile, in other news, Facebook today confirmed its Graph Search indexing feature has now rolled out to all members using US English. The feature allows users to find people with similar interests, revisit photos they’ve liked, find recommendations and look for movies and music liked by their friends.

[Via]

August 8, 2013
Bill Gates : People Dying of Malaria Don’t Need Google Project Loon

Google recently unveiled Google Loon, which intends to use hot air balloons 49 feet wide stationed 12 miles above the planet, in order to provide high speed Internet services to regions without adequate broadband infrastructure. While most people around the world, whether they understood the concept or not, were impressed by the idea, Microsoft founder Bill Gates wasn’t.

The following is an excerpt from Gates’ interview published by Business Week :

One of Google’s convictions is that bringing Internet connectivity to less-developed countries can lead to all sorts of secondary benefits. It has a project to float broadband transmitters on balloons. Can bringing Internet access to parts of the world that don’t have it help solve problems?

“When you’re dying of malaria, I suppose you’ll look up and see that balloon, and I’m not sure how it’ll help you. When a kid gets diarrhea, no, there’s no website that relieves that. Certainly I’m a huge believer in the digital revolution. And connecting up primary-health-care centers, connecting up schools, those are good things. But no, those are not, for the really low-income countries, unless you directly say we’re going to do something about malaria.

Google started out saying they were going to do a broad set of things. They hired Larry Brilliant, and they got fantastic publicity. And then they shut it all down. Now they’re just doing their core thing. Fine. But the actors who just do their core thing are not going to uplift the poor.”

August 8, 2013
Android Occupies Nearly 80% of Smartphone Market, iOS 13%

Apple’s iOS is losing ground to Android when it comes to smartphone operating system market share, according to a new report from research firm IDC. Apple’s share of worldwide smartphone shipments dropped to 13.2% during the second quarter of 2013, while Android climbed to 79.3%.

The loss in market share is of course attributed to the lack of new product launches during the three month period, as was the case with IDC’s report on tablet market share earlier this week. But it’s also losing ground to both Android and Windows Phone, both of which increased market share and shipments year-over-year during Q2.

“The iOS decline in the second quarter aligns with the cyclicality of iPhone,” says Ramon Llamas, Research Manager with IDC’s Mobile Phone team. “Without a new product launch since the debut of the iPhone 5 nearly a year ago, Apple’s market share was vulnerable to product launches from the competition. But with a new iPhone and revamped iOS coming out later this year, Apple is well-positioned to re-capture market share.”

Available on a growing range of Nokia and HTC devices, Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 operating system was launched late last year and has continued to make third place its own, while BlackBerry continues to fall. Windows comes in at 3.7% during the second quarter of 2013, up 77.6% from its 3.1% share during Q2 2012.

[Via]

August 7, 2013
LG G2 Announced : Snapdragon 800, 5.2-inch Full HD Display, Rear Volume Controls

LG announced the followup to the Optimus G today, bringing a brand new design, a massive specs sheet and rear volume controls that promise a refined, mature Android experience.

The LG G2 intends to approach smartphone design slightly differently, by being ensuring that all of the buttons are located on the rear of the device, which would mean this is the first smartphone in the market to lack any side buttons at all. The idea for a Rear Key concept arrived after LG noticed that users found it more difficult to access the side keys properly the larger a handset is.

A spacious, 5.2-inch IPS LCD display with an amazingly thin bezel graces the front of the LG G2. Its resolution of 1080 by 1920 pixels ensures that everything on it will look nice and sharp, especially knowing that a standard RGB sub-pixel arrangement has been implemented. The screen panel will be countering the sun’s rays with 450 nits of maximum brightness output.

This is the first device announced to carry a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor (with 2GB of RAM), which will have four Krait 400 cores clocked at 2.26Ghz and the company’s new Adreno 330 GPU clocked at 500Mhz. This SoC is a huge upgrade over the Snapdragon 600, and should allow for next-generation 3D gaming (when it arrives).

Storage on the general model is 32GB with a microSD card slot included for further expansion, while LG has opted to switch to nano-SIM for its latest handset, following a trend set by Apple and recently supported by Asus and Motorola.

The LG G2 has a 13-megapixel shooter at the back with Optical Image Stabilization and a front-facing 2.1-megapixel camera, a 3,000mAh battery and Android Jelly Bean 4.2.2 Jelly Bean right out of the box. The LG G2 will be the first commercially available handset with support for 24bit, 192kHz audio output.

Following the global launch event in New York City on August 7, the LG says the G2 will be rolled out globally in over 130 countries in the next eight weeks starting in South Korea followed by North America, Europe and other key markets. Specific dates for market availability will vary by region. No word on pricing for the Indian region yet!

LG also uploaded a bunch of LG G2 related videos on their YouTube account, which can be viewed below.

[youtube id=”6-5DrKdyM8c” width=”100%” height=”300px”]

[youtube id=”QdBpmfk56UQ” width=”100%” height=”300px”]

[youtube id=”zqmQ1A22nIQ” width=”100%” height=”300px”]

August 7, 2013
Blue HTC One Emerges In Leaked Press Shot

After being released initially in silver and subsequently in black and red in the UK, HTC is poised to add a blue variant to its One flagship.

According to evleaks, the HTC One will be made available in blue sometime in the future, though it’s uncertain for which market it is intended. With the launch of the Moto X and Nokia’s proliferating colour choice through its product lineup, OEMs are taking to less obvious colour schemes as a way to differentiate themselves.

It’s unlikely that India will see this variant, but we can always hope.

The HTC One was launched with a 4.7-inch screen, a quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM, 32GB of internal memory, 4MP UltraPixel camera on the back, and front camera for making video calls.

HTC is busy promoting its next device, which is expected to be the One Max, on Twitter. The company posted a teaser video on Tuesday, suggesting something big is arriving.

The new video was tagged as ‘Big Things Ahead’ and showed a person with an HTC device (which we believe is the HTC One Max) that featured the same design as that of the HTC One.

[Via]

August 7, 2013
Micromax Testing Android 4.3 With Canvas HD Update Coming Soon

Micromax has been lambasted by consumers in the past for not following up with software updates for their devices. That might change soon.

A tweet by regular @MMXNewscaster reveals an image of the Canvas HD A116 running the recently revealed Android 4.3 Jelly Bean. If true, this would please all Micromax consumers.

Micromax testing Android Jelly Bean 4.3. #Canvas HD #ComingSoon pic.twitter.com/icAWYYrKuY

— MMX Newscaster (@MMXNewscaster) August 6, 2013

At its Canvas 4 launch event, Micromax focused on the importance of consumer satisfaction and introduced the 7-day service center policy to improve its service. Providing regular software updates should be the next step forward for the company if it wants to really establish itself as a brand that can compete with the big players. We expect the Android 4.3 update for the Canvas 4 after the Canvas HD update is rolled out.

If we talk about Android 4.3 itself, the new operating system will feature multi-user restricted profiles. This will let users control access to contents and apps per user—so parents, for example, can control which applications their kids can access. When accessed from restricted profiles, applications behave differently. On stage, Hugo Barra demonstrated this by showing a puzzle game whose in-app purchase functionality was automatically disabled when it was accessed on the kid’s restricted profile.

Other features include built-in OpenGL ES 3.0 support, DRM APIs for providing hardware-based encryption for protecting content, which will allow it to provide 1080p video to its tablets. The first partner is Netflix, which supports 1080p HD streaming. The Nexus 7 is the first device to support it.

Android 4.3 also introduces many other features, including support for Bluetooth Smart devices, background Wi-Fi location, more language support and “easier text input.”

The Micromax Canvas HD sports a 5 inch HD display with a screen resolution of 1280 by 720 pixels backed by a MediaTek’s MT6589 Cortex-A7 SoC quad-core processor clocked at 1.2 GHz. The Canvas HD launched with Android Jelly Bean 4.1.2 operating system.

August 6, 2013
Lumia 1020 Rival? Oppo N-Lens N1 Cameraphone’s Render Leaks

Chinese mobile phone maker Oppo recently confirmed plans to bring to the market a new series of highly capable camera smartphones, namely the N-Lens lineup, and the first device in the family appears to have leaked online.

Called the N-Lens N1, it is believed to have a 12 megapixel camera on the back. Now, 12 megapixels doesn’t sound too impressive stacked up against camera phones like the Nokia Lumia 1020, which boasts a whopping 41-megapixel sensor. But the N-Lens N1 is reportedly using an “Owl” image chip, which promises strong low-light performance.

Details about the Oppo N-Lens fisrt appeared a couple of days ago and now we get to see the Oppo N-Lens N1 coming with Xenon flash.

No one knows anything about its specifications and features at this point in time. Though the device itself looks more of a smartphone than a camera, as opposed to the Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom, which definitely resembles a camera more than it resembles a smartphone.

According to online gossip, Oppo’s N-Lens N1 cameraphone will carry a $480 off-contract price tag. There’s no saying when it might launch, though.

Unfortunately, no other details on the upcoming device have been provided as of now, but more should emerge soon, so stay tuned.

[Via]

August 6, 2013
New Google Play Store 4.3.10 Update Brings New Features Including Recently Updated Section

Google is rolling out a new version of the Play Store for Android phones and tablets, bringing a much-requested feature that many will be sure to appreciate. Since the implementation of automatic updates, many users have complained that they don’t know which apps are updated. They’re supposed to update and leave an entry in the notification panel, but many times that either doesn’t happen or they are overlooked.

In version 4.3.10, Google has added a ‘Recently Updated’ section appended to the top of the My Apps tab. Now, when you’re checking for your favourite apps to be updated, they will display at the top of the page, in descending order from recent to least recent. While there’s no word on how many apps the section will fit — it hasn’t been available long enough to test more than a few — it’s a great feature nonetheless.

Additionally, it seems that the Wallet logo is no longer displayed in the Play Store. Apparently, the update notification will now prompt users to “Touch to update.”

And, when multiple apps are updated at once now, users will see a single expandable notification indicating which ones were altered, not a never-ending list of intruders. It’s a small but worthy change.

Also, the new Play Store shows full list prices for book sales, while also packing a series of small tweaks, such as swapped position for the Buy and Rent buttons (with the former now placed at the top now, and the latter at the bottom).

According to Android Police, which links to the available download, the file’s cryptographic signature guarantees that it hasn’t been modified, and that users can safely download and install it on their devices.

[Via]

August 6, 2013
Apple Set To Restore Developer Services This Week

Apple’s developer portal went down without warning mid-July, the victim of a minor hack the company took very, very seriously.

While few, if any, sensitive information was compromised, Apple took down the developer portal to rework the security backend and plug the hole. Today, the company has confirmed that most of the important developer tools will be returned to users this week.

Developers with accounts set to expire during the downtime have been extended for the same period, so any apps about to be removed due to non-payment will remain in the App Store for a little while longer.

“We plan to reinstate most of the remaining services this week: Xcode automatic configuration as well as access to license agreements, TSIs, program enrollments, and renewals in Member Center,” Apple said in an e-mail that went out to developers Monday morning.

Following the breach, Apple promised that it would be performing an “overhaul” of its developer systems, including security updates and a rebuilding of the company’s database. In its initial status updates on the security breach Apple promised that no “sensitive” information had been accessed, but as always we recommend a password change and two-factor authentication for any registered Apple developer whose information may be at risk.

August 6, 2013
Google Adds Touch Features To Chrome

Google is finally testing out some touch-friendly features for its Chrome browser, which seem to be more and more needed with all the mobile devices running the browser.

The update adds new features including the ability to swipe left to right, or right to left, to shift forward or back through visited web pages.

And if you go poking around the Flags section of the browser you can also find the “enable pinch scale” option which lets you zoom in and out. Windows 8 also gets a tiny bit of love with Chrome fully supporting the on-screen keyboard on the desktop.

Google warns users that Canary is prone to complete failures and is designed for developers and early adopters. The stable Chrome browser has 750 million active users browsing across multiple operating systems.

Earlier this year Microsoft announced that with the help of Windows 8.1 and industry partners, end users will expect touchscreens on PCs the same way they do on smartphones, leading to 80 percent of all Windows 8 devices having touchscreens by 2014.

[Via]

August 5, 2013
Samsung To Announce The Galaxy Note 3 On September 4

Samsung took to Twitter to inform the masses that the next iteration of their Unpacked event will take place on September 4th. This will be the IFA in Germany and the invite also shows the words “Note the date,” which could indicate that the the Galaxy Note 3 will be unveiled.

The Galaxy Note 3 is also rumoured to launch alongside a smart watch, AKA ‘Gear’, although that isn’t confirmed on the invite.

Samsung traditionally launches devices just before – or just after – the big shows. The Samsung Galaxy S4 coming out just after Mobile World Congress in February, for instance.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 is the next chapter in Samsung’s super-successful phablet range and is said to feature a 5.7-inch Super AMOLED screen, 3GB RAM and either a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 SoC or the company’s own Exynos Octa 5 chipset – although the latter will only come to certain territories.

It will come equipped with a Samsung Galaxy S4 matching 13-megapixel rear camera.

Apparently, 5.5-inch, 5.7-inch and 6-inch versions of the smartphone will reportedly touch down on September 4, although such small size differences seem a little strange to us.

What do you think? Will the Galaxy Note 3 take everyone by surprise? Or will it just be a bigger Galaxy S4? Let us know below!

August 5, 2013
HTC One Max Leaks Online, Reveals 5.9″ Display

HTC’s new lineup of devices this year has many people looking twice. The all-aluminum build of the flagship One is certainly their best designed smartphone, while the One mini attracts the entry-level market with decent specs.

Over the past several months there’s been rumours that HTC will also come to market with a phablet – potentially called the HTC One Max. According to a post on ePrice, the HTC One Max may make an official announcement at IFA in Germany this September, but to tide us over they’ve posted the first round of leaked images.

Specs-wise, the HTC One Max shows a lot of improvements over HTC One, starting with the 2.3GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor, which is paired with 2GB of RAM.

The upcoming mobile phone also features a full HD resolution on its large screen, along with an UltraPixel photo snapper on the back, and a 2.1MP front camera for making video calls.

HTC One Max is also rumored to feature 16GB of internal memory, most probably paired with a microSD memory card slot in this model, which is China-specific (the international model should feature more internal storage and no microSD card support).

Apparently, this flavor of the smartphone will also feature dual-SIM capabilities, along with a detachable back cover, so as to offer access to the microSD and SIM slots.

The handset will also include a 3300 mAh battery inside, and might even land on the market with support for a stylus, though no confirmation on this has been provided as of now.

[Via, Via]

August 5, 2013
LG G2 User Manual Leaks, Reveals Removable Battery And Expandable Memory

LG hasn’t been shy when it comes to teasing its upcoming flagship G2. We’ve seen LG drop the ‘Optimus’ name from its marketing, unload various teaser videos, and even announce official cases. In addition, a plethora of leaked images and hands-on videos revealed its design and unique features – mainly the back volume buttons.

A new post on Nowhereelse, by the way of a user manual, confirms previous rumours and a few missing specs of the LG G2 :

– Android 4.3
– 5.2-inch display 1920 × 1.080
– 2.3Ghz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor with Adreno 330 graphics chip
– 2GB of RAM
– 32GB internal storage (no micro-SD slot)
– 13MP rear-facing camera
– 2.1MP front-facing camera
– uses a nano-SIM
– 4G/LTE capabilities
– back volume buttons
– 138.5mm x 70.9mm x 8.9mm thin
– 143 grams
– 2,610mAh removable battery

The manual appears to be legit and reveals the phone will be using the nano-SIM standard like the Motorola Moto X and the iPhone 5. This leak also gives confirmation of the 2610 mAh battery, which will also be user-removable.

The leaked shots show that the LG G2, or at least this Korean LG-F320 version of it, will measure in at 138.5mm x 70.9mm x 8.9mm and weigh 143g.

The LG G2 will officially be unveiled in New York on Wednesday, August 7th and we’ll bring you all the details.

[Via]

August 5, 2013