Author: Sushant Talwar

Google Paid Apple $1Billion in 2014 to Keep Search Engine on iOS

Its no secret that Google and Apple, two massive rivals, have an agreement in place which enables the search engine to be the default search provider on the iOS platform, but what is emerging right now are details of this deal born out of convenience, and the numbers involved here are staggering!

Google which makes 4 times more money from iOS users than it does from users of its own Android platform, holds the business from the Apple based devices very important to its core business, and as such it has gone to great extents to keep its search engine running on iOS devices worldwide.

According to details that have emerged in the midst of a high-profile Oracle vs Google battle in a San Fransico court, Google has paid Apple $1 billion in 2014 as part of its ongoing deal to be the default search provider on iOS devices. The deal allows Apple’s to get a percentage of the revenue that the Google search engine generates through Apple devices. The numbers quoted for the revenue shares stands at 34%.

This is not the first time rumors about how much Google pays Apple to be on the iPhone have surfaced on the Internet. For their part, the two companies have also never commented on it, and not to anyone’s surprise, Kristin Huguet, a spokeswoman for Apple, and Google spokesman Aaron Stein both declined to comment on the information disclosed in the court of law.

January 22, 2016
Titan Launches First Smartwatch in India

The smartwatch category seems to be heating up some more with every passing day. For the past couple of months, we have seen a number of manufacturers jump into this space, and sell to us wristwear for the future. While

While yestreday Samsung launched its much-awaited Samsung Gear S2 smartwatch to much fanfare, there was another launch which being equally as big for Indian customers still went under the radar a bit. Enter the Juxt.

Juxt is Indian watchmaker Titan’s foray into this growing market of smartwatches in India. This smartwatch will be sold in India and other markets as well at a starting price of Rs 15,995. The company also has plans of bringing different two more variants of the smartwatch to the market. The first will be Rose Gold Stainless Steel which will retail at Rs 17,995 and the other Titanium on sale for Rs 19,995.

The watch comes equipped with a Three piece body in stainless steel material and a beautiful OLED display, and is water resistant to 50m. It can connect both to your Android, and iOS devices. The watch can track your steps, connect to your social media apps and also gives you alerts on your watch for calls.

At the launch Titan’s CEO, S. Ravi Kant said, “JUXT is India’s most stylish smartwatch. It has been designed for those who are appreciative of classic watches, yet want smart capabilities in their timepiece.”

Juxt is launched in collaboration with HP, and it is expected this collaboration will help Titan to make an international presence in the markets like the United States, U.K and Canada. Titan will use HP’s distribution network to sell its smartwatches outside the country, starting with the above three, but later plans to expand to six-seven more countries.

January 22, 2016
Weibo Beats Twitter in Removing140-Character Limit

China’s very own social media network, Sina Weibo, which can be at best described as a cross between Twitter, and Facebook, today revealed its plans to remove the 140-character limit that it has had from the time of its inception.

According to a report from Xinhua, a Chinese news agency of repute, the company’s CEO confirmed the plans for this change, told the agency what will follow. The new format will see Weibo allowing posts up to 2,000 characters in length. This new feature will initially roll out to “senior users” on January 28th, and will be live on all other accounts in exactly a month’s time.

In a letter to developers sent from the desk of Weibo’s CEO, Wang Gaofei, the social networking company explained how exactly the change be like. Wang informed that users will still only see 140 characters per message in their feeds, but in added functionality, they’ll also be able to click a link to the whole post if it exceeds the 140 character limit.

Funny enough, this change comes amid rumours that Twitter has future plans to drop the character limit on its own platform. The company has already dropped the limit for direct messages but it’s still not clear as to how it will implement taking this cap off tweets.

The last fiscal year saw Twitter face increasing pressure from investors because of its falling share prices. The company is said to be in dire need for new users, and as such, this step from Weibo of removing the cap on character limit could well push Twitter into serious contemplation mode over its strategy going ahead.

January 21, 2016
Apple iOS 9.2.1- What’s New!

Apple has released the first public build of iOS for 2016 in the form of 9.2.1, and it was made available to all iPhone, iPad and iTouch users.

Before you get your hopes high, Apple in no way intends for this to be a blockbuster release. That title firmly will be bestowed upon iOS 9.3 when it finally hits devices across the globe. 9.3 a couple of days back was released to developers, and beta testers for feedback, and for those who missed the news of it, the particular releases promises to bring with itself a whole host of changes, and fancy tricks to makes users fall in love with their iOS devices all over again.

Coming back to the build that has been made available to the public, 9.2.1 does not bring with it any new features, but rather comes packed with promise of security updates, and bug fixes. The only specific thing mentioned in Apple’s release note for the iOS update is “a fix for an issue that could prevent the completion of app installation when using an MDM server.”

iOS 9.2.1 comes weighing in at a slender 40MB, and is up on Apple servers for download. Keeping in mind its low size, and promise of bug fixes, this update comes highly recommended.

January 21, 2016

Samsung Gear VR Headset Launches in India

The Samsung Gear VR Headset, alongside the Gear S2, and Gear S2 Classic Smartwatch launches for a price of Rs 8,200 today to eager Indian customers. The product will be available through the company’s retail stores, as well as through Flipkart.

The focus on virtual reality is growing with every passing day. As more and more important names from the tech industry are coming forward with their products, Samsung too has decided to jump into the fray with its new VR offering for its millions of fans around the globe.

The Gear VR Headset features a wide interface, ergonomic design and a large touchpad. Gear VR promises convenient and accurate control to enjoy games and videos. At the launch the company stressed that Gear VR Headset works seamlessly with Galaxy smartphones. As of now, the Gear VR supports the latest high-end Galaxy smartphones including the Galaxy Note 5, Galaxy S6 Edge+, Galaxy S6, and Galaxy S6 Edge. Samsung also added the recently unveiled Galaxy Note 5 Dual SIM to the compatible devices list.

Samsung stresses that the new Samsung Gear VR Headset is 19 percent lighter compared to the previous model. The new VR Headset features a large touchpad for control. It will weigh 318 grams and measures 201.9×116.4×92.6mm. The Gear VR comes with an impressive field of view of 96 degrees. It also houses back, volume, and focus adjustment wheel button for controls.

Samsung’s new offering packs sensors such as gyro, accelerometer, and proximity, and the device will support Micro-USB charging. The Gear VR comes with soft, flexible cushioning material, and also features adjustable straps for ease use of use.The Gear VR Headset will also support 360-degree videos.

Announcing the product Manu Sharma, Director, Marketing said, “Gear VR presents the unique opportunity for consumers to get an immersive virtual reality experience. Samsung will be at the forefront of this exciting revolution to create further ‘wow’ moments in our consumer lives.”

Specs	Samsung Gear VR Headset
Dimension/ Weight	201.9×116.4×92.6mm/ 318 grams
Sensor	Accelerometor, Gyrometer, Proximity ( Mount/Unmount detection)
Field of View	96 degrees
IPD Coverage	54-70mm (Fixed Lenses)
Color	Frost White
Compatibility	Micro-USB Connection to Galaxy Note 5, Note 5 Dual Sim, S6,S6 edge+, S6 edge

January 21, 2016

Vodafone to Start Roll-Out of 4G Ready SIMs in Delhi & NCR

After treating its loyal customers in Australia with the news of 5G launch in the country by 2020, Vodafone brings some much-needed love to its customers here in India. Vodafone India has revealed that it will from today start the upgrade of SIMs to the next generation 4G ready SIMs in Delhi.

Vodafone which has already launched its high-speed 4G services in Kerala on a trial basis, will continue to roll out 4G services to major metros by March 2016. As Vodafone India enters the final stages of bringing 4G network to the country’s capital, it announced the availability of 4G SIMs for its customers at Vodafone stores across the city.

Adding incentive to the already sweet deal, Vodafone has informed that customers who are upgrading to 4G-Ready SIMs will be rewarded with free 1GB 4G internet, at the time of launch. All they need to do is send a short SMS “GO4G” to 199.

Needless to say, to make the magic work, customers will need a 4G ready phone along with a 4G SIM at the time of the launch.

This upgrade before the launch is being done to ensure a smooth, seamless and hassle-free transition from older generation tech to 4G when the service finally arrives in the market. A formal announcement regarding the launch, which is expected soon, will be made in due course.

“Before we step into the next generation of telecommunications, we want to make the transition to 4G to be smooth and seamless for our 10 million customers in Delhi & NCR. We want them to be 4G-ready so that they can start experiencing the benefits of high-speed mobile internet services as soon as they are launched commercially. Hence, this facility to upgrade to 4G-ready SIMs in advance. We are excited and fully geared up to launch our 4G services on the superior 1800 MHz band in Delhi & NCR very soon,” said Apoorva Mehrotra, Business Head–Delhi & NCR, Vodafone India.

Along the lines of what it had earlier promised to customers in Mumbai, Vodafone is also making arrangements for home delivery of 4G-ready SIMs to its premium customers across Delhi & NCR region. A formal communication is being sent out to all these customers with details of the initiative

January 21, 2016
Apple Files Application to Set Up Retail Stores in India

Amid growing concerns over the stagnating economies in the western markets, and slowing pace of its own sales in China, Cupertino-based tech giant, Apple Inc, is looking for new markets to expand its business to. On that list of unconquered lands for Apple, India finds itself at the top.

Apple which has seen a jump of 90% in sales in the country during the last fiscal year is zooming in increasingly on India as the new frontier for its products. To Apple’s credit the company has been quietly building infrastructure for such a move by boosting advertising, logistics network, and most importantly lowering prices for old phones to start making deeper inroads into the homes of millions of customers.

The next step in this process it seems will be Apple setting up shop in the country. The company plans to bring to Indian customers its very own Apple Stores in the coming months. These stores which are renowned world over for encapsulating Apple’s DNA in their ambience and design will soon start selling you the whole Apple experience.

According to reports, Apple Inc. has filed an application with the department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP) to open its own branded stores in India. “We have just received Apple’s proposal. We are examining it,” said DIPP secretary Amitabh Kant.

Apple already has over 460 branded stores worldwide, but there is no information as of now regarding how many such stores Apple wants to set up in India. The move comes on the heels of the government easing foreign direct investment (FDI) rules for single-brand retail in the country. According to new rules, the government has relaxed the mandatory local procurement stipulation for technology manufacturing companies and allowed single-brand retail permission holders to sell their products directly online.

Apple along with its own branded stores also plans to set up mini stores within stores in a bid to promote its brand. The first set of these could be seen opening at Chroma in the near future.

January 21, 2016
Samsung Galaxy S7 Antutu Leak Confirms Hardware

Samsung is being tipped to launch the Galaxy S7 during the Mobile World Congress next month, and as expected the internet has gone into overdrive with rumours and leaks of this upcoming phone. Latest set of leaks about the phone confirm to us the underhood specs of the Galaxy S7.

As it had been reported for some time now, the S7 would come in two variants, the S7 Edge, and the flat screen S7. The curved screen Edge is expected to sport a Snapdragon processor with a 5.1-inch QHD screen along with 4 GB of RAM. The other model, the Galaxy S7 will come equipped with a Exynos processor.

All this news comes from Antutu’s Weibo page. The Galaxy S7 (SM-G930F), apart from sporting the new Exynos 8890, will also come with a 5.1″ 1440 x 2560 pixels screen, 12 MP rear camera, 5 MP front camera, 4 GB of RAM, and 64 GB of internal storage.

As it is visible, the only difference between the S7 and the S7 Edge is the choice of the SoC. Sporting two different processor is not a new strategy for Samsung. The Galaxy flagships have done so in the past, except for last year’s lineup which dropped Snapdragon altogether from the show.

January 21, 2016
Apple, Samsung, Microsoft Amongst others face Child Labour Claims

Several big-name tech firms, including Apple, Samsung, Microsoft and Sony have been accused by Human Rights Organization Amnesty of using kids for sourcing minerals used in their various products.

Citing a report that it did into cobalt mining in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, it found children as young as seven were working in unearthing cobalt that these large incorporations use for their Lithium Ion batteries.

The African country produces over 50% of the world’s cobalt. Miners working in the area face long-term health problems and the risk of fatal accidents, according to Amnesty. Amnesty also claimed that at a minimum of 80 miners had died underground in the country between September-December last year.

The report by Amnesty is the first comprehensive account of cobalt mining in Democratic Republic of the Congo. To arrive at their conclusions, Amnesty International along with Afrewatch visited five mines in DRC in April and May 2015. They interviewed 90 workers, 17 of them children.

According to Amnesty, “more than half of the world’s total supply of cobalt comes from the [DRC]. According to the government’s own estimates, 20 percent of the cobalt currently exported from the DRC comes from artisanal miners in the southern parts of the country. “There are approximately 110,000 to 150,000 artisanal miners in this region, who work alongside much larger industrial operations.”

The report further reveals, ” the miners who are referred to as ‘creuseurs’ in the DRC, mine by hand using the most basic tools to dig out rocks from the tunnels deep underground. Artisanal miners include children as young as seven who scavenge for rocks containing cobalt in the discarded by-products of industrial mines, and who wash and sort the ore before it is sold.”

Not surprisingly, these major tech firms such as Samsung, Sony and Vodafone denied any link to this supply chain or to DRC sourced Cobalt . Apple informed that it is evaluating alooking at a number of different materials, including cobalt, to identify both labor and environmental risks. Microsoft on the other hand said it hadn’t traced cobalt use in Microsoft products all the way to the source “due to the complexity and resources required.”

January 20, 2016
Facebook Extends Tor Support to Android Facebook App

Facebook has revealed that it’s Android app now offers Tor support to users concerned about keeping their social networking activity private. While this functionality has for some time now allowed Facebook users to directly access its site via Tor’s browser on personal computers, this support for Tor on the Android app will be welcomed by users who majorly use facebook through their phones.

This step is expected to give users a relatively easy way to encrypt their Facebook viewing on the road. The user along with Facebook Android app will need to download the Orbot proxy app to make it work with Tor.

The Tor access support will take some time before all users can take advantage of it. For now, Facebook is looking at gathering as much feedback on the app as possible. The whole idea still requires a lot of polishing, but nonetheless, it’s worth a try if you’re paranoid about privacy when it comes to Facebook. Also, just in case you were wondering, Facebook does not intend to extend this Tor support functionality for its iOS users anytime soon.

January 20, 2016
TRAI Takes on Free Basics After Response from Users

In what will come as welcome news to millions of netizens across the country, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India(TRAI) in its latest communication to Facebook, has in rather stern words intimated to the company that it does not approve of the manner in which Facebook is misrepresenting the results of its ‘support Free Basics’ campaign, and what it seems to be suggesting is a subtle attempt at nudging the voice of the people out of the decision-making equation.

This letter from the desk of TRAI’s joint advisor K.V Sebastian, pulls up Facebook for the way it has conducted itself through the campaign to save Free Basics from being shut down. TRAI has suggested that Facebook is guilty of not conveying the full text of the regulator’s message to users who had supported Free Basics, and hence is misleading them into making uninformed choices.

TRAI had earlier asked Facebook to convey to its users in support of Free Basics and zero-rating campaigns four specific questions which the telecom regulator wanted answers to before taking any final decision on the matter. Facebook, for its part responded to TRAI’s request by sending back a highly charged template response in favour of saving Free Basics which it claimed reflected the sentiment of its users.

TRAI’s reply to this read,

“Your response is silent on whether the text of TRAI has been shared with users as was specifically requested by TRAI. In light of the tangential natures of the responses by the users to the questions asked, the communication of the text was vital to demonstrating and ensuring that those who are responding to TRAI are making informed decisions.”

The letter further goes on to say that in light of Facebook not disclosing crucial information to users, TRAI does not accept Facebook’s assertion that the initial template responses in support for ‘Free Basics’ and ‘Digital Equality’ are an appropriate representation of what people are saying.

TRAI, not mincing its words, has also slammed Facebook in this letter over what it calls as ‘self-appointed’ spokesmanship on behalf of its users who it says “have not authorized Facebook of speaking on their behalf collectively.”

It has further said that it does not approve of this practice of Facebook, and believes that what the company is doing through these uninformed template responses is curbing “public consultation” which it believes “has the flavour of reducing this meaningful consultative exercise designed to produce informed decisions in a transparent manner into a crudely majoritarian and orchestrated opinion poll”.

January 20, 2016
Microsoft To Donate $1Billion in ‘Cloud Computing Services’

Microsoft yesterday took a giant leap towards fulfilling its mission of giving back to society, and acknowledged through philanthropy the growing importance of cloud computing in the modern age.

The Redmond-based company made an announcement yesterday to donate $1 Billion worth of ‘cloud computing services’ to university researchers, and non-profit organizations. These services, billing into multiple digits, would be doled out to these universities, and over 70,000 such organizations over the span of next three years.

Microsoft’s Hyderabad-born CEO, Satya Nadela, who was at the heart of this decision said that he believes that cloud computing has become a vital resource for addressing the world’s problems that many of these institutions and non-profit organizations are trying to fix, and as such this is the best way to help them in their cause.

In an online post Satya Nadela elaborated on the reasons behind this decision. He said,

” Last fall, world leaders at the United Nations adopted 17 sustainable development goals to tackle some of the toughest global problems by 2030, including poverty, hunger, health and education.
A careful read of those goals reveals the central role that data and cloud computing must play for analysis and action.”

This particular project will be a part of a greater three-part Microsoft donation program.In what will be welcome news to the various organizations who will be helped by it, yesterday’s announcement will see the company expand its global donation program to include its full suite of cloud services.

The particular suite will include Microsoft Azure, allowing nonprofit organizations to use Microsoft’s vast data centers for their apps and Enterprise Mobility Suite that will enable the organizations to manage all their devices/apps/data on a cross-platform basis.

January 20, 2016
Huawei P9 Will Reportedly Have Multiple Variants

For the past couple of days the crowded corridors of social media have been abuzz with leaks, and news about Huawei’s next flagship, the P9, and adding to it, more information has surfaced on the internet regarding this phone.

Last week, we saw leaked schematics, and Antutu benchmarks of the P9 and today sources have revealed that this much-awaited phone will come in multiple variants. What is expected is that Huawei besides launching its top of the line P9, will also come out with a cheaper P9 Lite, and a phablet the P9 MAX. The last variant which Huawei plans to bring to the market as a treat for all its fans will be a beefed up variant of the P9, and will come with premium features.

The fourth model is set to offer a display whose size would lie between the P9, and the P9 MAX, with QHD resolution output. It will also feature additional RAM and storage. The fourth variant on top of this will feature an improved camera: a dual lens, dual (12 MP) sensor configuration described as a second-generation technology.

In a move to give itself more time to perfect the upcoming devices, it is believed the company has also decided to launch these devices at separate events after the MWC where a lot of its big name competitors are expected to parade their fancy arsenal to eager eyes.

Source

January 20, 2016
BlackBerry Priv to Launch in India on January 28

BlackBerry today has sent out invites of a launch event for its first Android OS based device in India. The Canadian company has scheduled this event for 28th January, in Delhi, and at the event it has promised to launch to its patient Indian customers the BlackBerry Priv.

The Priv, which was first unveiled in October is a make or break project for BlackBerry as it sees it leaving its own OS behind in search of greener pastures that Android provides. This shift by BlackBerry is being seen as a move aimed at helping the ailing company’s return to its previous highs.
BlackBerry in its previous interactions with the media had also hinted the company may soon unveil another Android phone this year.

In terms of specs, this offering from the Candian company comes loaded with decent firepower. The Priv on the outside has a 5.4-inch dual-curved Plastic AMOLED screen with a maximum resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels (540ppi). Under its beautiful display, the device packs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 Hexa-Core, 64-bit processor with an Adreno 418 GPU clocked at 600 MHz.

Blackberry Priv further boasts of 3GB low powered RAM and internal storage of up to 32 GB, which is expandable up to an impressive 2 TB. The battery pack that makes this device run is rated at 3410 mAh. It is also equipped with an 18 MP dual-flash Schneider-Kreuznach certified camera to click amazing pictures.

Blackberry which has dubbed the Priv as the ” secure smartphone powered by Android” is going to roll out the smartphone ‘pre-loaded with the brand new BlackBerry DTEK application, designed to help you manage and protect your privacy.’ Blackberry claims that the DTEK app will tell you which apps access your personal data and shows the overall security assessment of your device.

January 19, 2016
HTC Reported to Launch Two Nexus Phones This Year

In latest news from the land of leaks and rumours, fresh reports suggest not just one, but two Nexus handsets from HTC this year. This revelation comes courtesy of a post on Weibo. The rumour is that there will be two Nexus smartphones just like last year, but unlike 2015, this time we will see the burden of both these being handled by HTC.

The rumour also claims that these smartphones will come in two display sizes 5-inch and a 5.5-inch. The decision to bring HTC back for both these phones means they could be similar to the Nexus 5X, fueling rumours of similar looking phones for the Nexus lineup this year. Much like what Apple does with its iPhones, and Plus range.

Considering that HTC is going through a bit of rough patch, if it indeed is true, this partnership will be great news for the Taiwanese company, though it is still unclear as to why this decision did not go Huawei’s way after its stellar work with the 6P.

January 19, 2016