Author: Sushant Talwar

iPhone of the Future To Be Self Healing

According to reports, Apple Inc, has pretty interesting, and possibly ground breaking plans in works for its future iPhones. The Cupertino based tech giant, famous for its innovation, and creativity, has been granted patents for some really cool ideas.

Apple, has plans of bringing to life what seem to be iPhones that could heal, and clean themselves while you sleep peacefully in your bed.The newly granted patents reveal a system to fix dead pixels on a screen, and even dry the handset’s speaker and internal components all without human intervention.

The idea is for the phone to run an automatic, screen diagnostic overnight which last a couple of hours while you sleep to help fix issues of dead pixels. The smartphone will also run other diagnostics while you sleep, like testing the camera, as well as checking on the handset’s components to make sure your phone is able to connect to the internet properly, make calls and send texts.

The patent also has information on how the phone will deal with a situation in which it has been accidentally dunked in a drink. Showcasing intelligence beyond its processing power, the future iPhone would wait until you take it somewhere loud, like a concert, and then play a special tone that would expel the water stuck in the speaker grill.

Such fancy ideas by Apple would only result in greater customer satisfaction, and hence increased sales. After-all, none of us like the dreaded visit to the repair centre. Do we?

January 8, 2016
Oppo F1 for Photography Enthusiasts to Launch on 28th Jan

CES 2016 has seen a number of high profile launches, and device confirmations already, and now jumping into the mix is the Chinese Smartphone maker, Oppo, which in its latest official communications has invited the media, and its partners to a launch event on the 28th of this month.
Keeping in mind how Oppo conducts its business, this press event could well see the Chinese company bring to the market its much awaited Oppo F1.

Teasing the media, and fanboys alike, the company tweeted,”Attention photography lovers! Something exciting is coming your way. Stay tuned.”
The phone is rumoured to come equipped with an above par 13 Megapixel snapper, with ‘Phase Detection Autofocus’ technology, and will be the camera centric F series phone that Oppo had previously talked about.

Sadly, there isn’t much clarity about the other specs of the phone, but an 8 Megapixel front camera, backed by 3GB of RAM, and a Snapdragon processor could be expected. On the upside the phone will sport a 5 inch display.

January 8, 2016
Microsoft Surface Pro Range Launches in India

Microsoft fanboys, the day you’ve been waiting for is here. United States based tech giant, Microsoft has launched its highly appreciated laptop killer range, the Surface Pro in India today. The Surface Pro 3 models start at Rs 73,990, while the Surface Pro 4 range starts at Rs 89,990. The country being a make or break market for Microsoft, this over-the-top pricing for the Pro 3, and Pro 4 range could hurt Microsoft in the long run.

The Surface Pro 4 features a 12.3-inch Pixel Sense display, that can output a maximum resolution of 2736 x 1824 (267 PPI). It will run on a 6th Gen Intel Core m3, i5, or i7 processor. The device will have 4GB,8GB,16GB RAM depending on the variant of choice, and will be available in storage options of 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB SSD drives. To add to this, the Surface Pro 4 will also come equipped with Intel HD Graphic chips, or an Intel Iris chip for the top of the line i7 variant.

The hybrid tablet will be powered by Windows 10, and the cool thing about the the device is that it turns into a fully-powered laptop while running a desktop software. Battery life is promised at just over 9 hours on a single charge, and the device will weigh not over 786 grams.A 5MP front, and 8MP camera at the back are also found on the tablet.

Surface Pro 3, on the other hand, has a smaller 12-inch ClearType screen that can output maximum resolution of 2160x1440p and will be available in Core i3 and Core i5 processor options. Further specifications reveal variants with 4GB RAM and 128GB SSD; 8GB RAM and 128GB SSD; and 8GB RAM and 256GB SSD. The tablet comes with the same connectivity options as its newer sibling, but the camera on the front and back have 5MP resolution.

January 7, 2016
iPhone 7 Leaked Parts Reveal Design Change from iPhone 6S

Following the release of the iPhone 6s series, the crowded corridors of internet have already been abuzz with news,and leaks of the next range of phones from the Cupertino based company. Some might call it pre-mature to make predictions about the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, which are not due until September this year, but fresh leaks surfacing on the Internet seem credible enough to be worth taken note of.

According to new leaked pictures of the the backlight screen for the iPhone 7 published by Taiwanese website Apple Club, there are clear suggestions of design changes in the upcoming iPhones. It had been previously claimed that the handset will win the race to dump the headphone socket, relying on the lightning port, or use wireless headphones to do its work. This new leak has only made these rumours grow stronger.

Side-by-side pictures comparing the leaked images with the one used in the Apple iPhone 6s also show flex cables located on the left side of the iPhone 7 backlight while the iPhone 6s backlight has it on the opposite side.

These moves will possibly help the new range of iPhones achieve between 6.0 mm and 6.5mm thinness, and a design that’s waterproof. The devices may also have a faster TSMC-built A10 chip and non-metallic casing with hidden antenna bands.

January 7, 2016
Xiaomi Mi 5 Running Snapdragon 820 SoC Confirmed for February Launch

Rumours of Xiaomi’s next flagship had been doing rounds on the internet for sometime now, and earlier today Xiaomi Co-Founder and Senior VP Liwan Jiang through a Weibo post put them to rest by confirming to the world the Chinese phone maker’s plans of launching the much anticipated Xiaomi Mi 5 in the coming months.

As revealed by Jiang himself, Xiaomi has already started mass production of its next flagship, Mi 5, and the phone will hit markets shortly after the Chinese Spring festival, which will be February the 8th this year.

The Xiaomi Mi 5 with the latest Snapdragon 820 processor is ready and in volume production. It will be released after the Spring Festival to have enough time for stocking up – Xiaomi Senior VP Liwan Jiang

Though no official word is out on the specifications of this much awaited device, but according to leaks, and the ever churning rumour mills of the Kingdom of Internet, the Mi 5 is slated to feature a 5.2-inch display with Quad HD resolution. 3GB or 4GB RAM, with a minimum of 32GB Internal storage. The camera on the device is expected to be a 16-megapixel at the back, and an equally impressive 13-megapixel snapper at the front.

This power hungry device is set to pack a battery of 3600 mAh with support for Quick Charge 3.0 technology. At the software end, the handset will run MIUI 7 based on Android 6.0 Marshmallow.

January 6, 2016
Vodafone to Soon Roll Out 4G services in Major Indian Cities

India’s second largest telecom operator, Vodafone, has revealed plans to roll out 4G services in major cities including Delhi, and Mumbai by end of March, 2016. The Britain based operator, which has one of the widest network in terms of reach in an official statement communicated,”Vodafone has already launched its high speed 4G services in Kerala. The intensity of its roll-out will continue with major metros like Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Delhi to be launched by March 2016″

In a bid to showcase it’s superior customer service, it has already started to issue 4G ready SIM cards in Mumbai. Vodafone India Business Head Mumbai, Ishmeet Singh said,

“The company is fully geared up to launch 4G services in 1800 Mhz band in Mumbai very soon. We want our customers 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”

Vodafone is also planning on home delivering 4G-ready SIMs to its premium high-value customers in Mumbai, and formal communication for it is already being sent out.

January 6, 2016
Microsoft to Launch Surface Pro 4 in India Tomorrow

Microsoft’s flagship 12 inch hybrid tablet that promises to put your laptop out of business for good is all set to take up Indian markets by storm in the coming days. Microsoft has started sending invites of the launch event for the Surface Pro in India on the 7th of January, 2016. Microsoft fearing a backlash because of the high price of the series had shied away from introducing the Surface Pro range in India for a long time, but its seems the company has decided to cast those apprehensions aside, and trust its loyal user base in the country.

The Surface Pro 4 whose pricing has not been disclosed by the company yet, looks set to retail in India over the Rs. 60,000 mark. For the hard earned money you spend, Satya Nadela, and Co. present to you a gorgeous piece of consumer hardware that can easily take on all the productivity tasks that you throw at it. This hybrid tablet is a sure-shot upgrade from the Surface Pro 3, but still leaves you wanting more when it comes to battery life.

The Surface Pro 4 features a 12.3-inch Pixel Sense display, that can output a maximum resolution of 2736 x 1824 (267 PPI). It will run on a 6th Gen Intel Core m3, i5, or i7 processor. The device will have 4GB,8GB,16GB RAM depending on the variant of choice, and will be available in storage options of 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB SSD drives. To add to this, the Surface Pro 4 will also come equipped with Intel HD Graphic chips, or an Intel Iris chip for the top of the line i7 variant.

The hybrid tablet will be powered by Windows 10, and the cool thing about the the device is that it turns into a fully-powered laptop while running a desktop software. Battery life is promised at just over 9 hours on a single charge, and the device will weigh not over 786 grams. Not bad we say.

The Surface Pro 4 on paper looks like a device which if priced right could easily make deep inroads into the Indian consumer market, and keeping in mind how carefully Microsoft has been looking at India in the past year or so, come 7th of January, 2016 Indian consumers could well expect this game changer from the tech giant to be priced reasonably, and make way into their homes.

January 6, 2016
HTC & Under Armour Team Up to Build A Fitness Tracking System

If ever there was need of proof that HTC & the Under Armour team were up to good work together, then the UA HealthBox is it. It feels like ages that HTC & Under Armour announced their partnership together to roll out fitness gear such as the HTC GRIP, which sadly never saw the light of the day.

But fast forward to the first day of CES 2016, and much to the liking of fitness enthusiasts these two giants have finally launched for a measly $400( Approx Rs 26000) an all in one fitness tracking system. This apt named UA HealtBox is a collection of three different, but beautiful looking devices.

UA Band which is a fitness tracker, is designed to be worn 24/7. It tracks the number of steps taken, heart rate, workout, and sleep patterns of the user. It is the first accessory in the box.The UA Band comes in black with a red textured underside to allow for moisture wicking.

The second piece of the HealthBox is the UA Heart Rate. This is a band designed to be strapped to the users chest to provide more accurate reading of the pulse. The UA heart Rate is targeted towards athletes, and advanced users who are on intense workout regimes. It also gives an accurate calculation of calories burned during the workout.

The final piece that completes this fancy jigsaw puzzle is the UA Scale which measures your weight, and body fat ratio. The scale is Wi-Fi enabled, and syncs with the UA Record app to keep a check on things.

Though not physically a part of the UA HealthBox, but still the most critcial element of the system, is the UA Record app. Developed by Under Armour, this app is the element on which hinges the whole experience of using the UA Healthbox system. It brings together these isolated elements of the box together, making them work seamlessly as a single entity. To top it off, this app even has an option where it lets you rate on a scale of 1-10 about how you felt about your workout on a particular day!

January 6, 2016
Windows Powered Galaxy TabPro S Launches at CES 2016

The long wait is finally over. Samsung, after having ignored the Windows OS platform for sometime now, has come to the market with a Windows 10 based tablet. The Galaxy TabPro S, is a sleek tablet, which at its size is thinner than it’s main competitors, the Apple iPad Pro, and the the Surface Pro. Samsung at CES,2016 gave a sneak peak into this new offering from its stables.

The product from the outside looks better than most other Android tablets that Samsung has in the market. With its detachable keyboard case, and stylus input bears, it’s more than a passing resemblance to Microsoft’s very own Surface Pro lineup. Because of its fanless design, it runs at a sleek 6.3 mm.

Inside this frame of it, the Galaxy Tab Pro S houses a dual core 2.2 GHz Intel Core M Processor. This, paired with 4 GBs of Ram, and 128 GB/256GB of storage space, works wonders with the Windows platform to give users a smooth, stutter free experience. The TabPro S also comes equipped with a rear 5 MP camera, and a 5 MP front camera.

On the connectivity front, it comes with Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and option of LTE connectivity, but sadly no HDMI, and USB ports are to be found on the TabPro S. A 12 inch Samsung Super Amoled display on the outside running a resolution of 2160×1440 is arguably the star of the show here. It’s bright, colourful, and much like the other displays on Samsung devices, has brilliant viewing angles.

The Tab comes with the much loved USB Type C Port which charges a cool 5,200 mAh battery packed inside the case.

The TabPro S, with it’s sleek looks, under the hood hardware combined with the fact that it’s running the fast growing Windows platform looks to be a sure winner. Pricing, and further details are expected by February.

January 6, 2016
Asus ZenWatch 2 with Android Wear Launched

The long wait is over. It’s been almost 7 months from the date that Asus first announced its plans for this second generation SmartWatch, and finally today the ZenWatch 2 has hit Indian markets.

The successor to the first ZenWatch comes in two sizes, 1.45-inch (WI502Q) and 1.63-inch (WI501Q). They are priced at a cool Rs. 11,999 and Rs. 14,999 only, and considering the price tags with which previous Android wear smartwatches have been released in the country, this at least on paper, looks like a smart buy.

The ZenWatch 2 variants come with Gorilla Glass 3 protection, and are run by the quad-core Snapdragon 400 Soc chipset, paired with 512 MB of Ram. Internal storage as revealed is 4GB, and the smartwatch comes equipped with Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.1 to ensure continued connectivity.

The 1.45-inch variant sports an Amoled 273 ppi 280×280 resolution display, while the 1.63-inch variant comes equipped with a superior 278 ppi, 320×320 display. The smaller of the two siblings comes with 300 mAh battery, while the other model gets the juice it needs from a 400 mAh pack. The smartwatch interestingly is also one of the few Android Wear devices that can be paired with iPhones, and other iOS 6+ devices.

The ZenWatch 2 is currently being sold exculsively via Flipkart, but Asus has informed that it will soon start sales of the smartwatch through its exclusive Asus Stores. It has also informed that another cool looking stainless steel version of the watch will also hit stores some time in the future.

January 5, 2016
Next Gen Wifi to be the End of Bluetooth?

The Wi-Fi Alliance, body that controls research, and advances of the Wi-Fi technology, yesterday at CES, 2016 announced its future plans for taking this already indispensable medium of communicating with the Internet forward.In a bid to expand the reach and adoption of the Wi-Fi technology when it comes to connectivity with the Internet of Things, ‘Wi-Fi HaLow’ was announced. This new Wi-Fi framework which will operate on the 900 Mhz range, promises to double the reach of the already existing 2.4, and 5 Ghz Wi-Fi baseband.

This switch to the new spectrum will also help conserve energy, making it the perfect platform for low-power, less data intensive devices like smart watches, and other Internet enabled household appliances that the coming days will bring to us.

When quizzed about the real world benefits of ‘HaLow’ to the end consumer, Kevin Robinson, Vice President of the Wi-Fi Alliance had this to say,

“For a consumer, you might imagine someone who wants to deploy a water sensor in their basement to detect flooding or a motion sensor at the end of their driveway to warn them of someone arriving late at night.

In both of these cases, Wi-Fi HaLow will deliver power-efficient connectivity to the home access point, despite the challenging environment caused by obstructions in the device’s path or ranges involved.”

Emergence of ‘Wi-Fi HaLow’ will have implications far greater than just how efficiently low powered devices will interact with the Internet in the future. It will most likely be sounding of the death knell for the outdated Bluetooth framework which currently is used by such low-powered devices. ‘Wi-Fi HaLow’ in time promises to be the perfect platform to meet the needs of the various upcoming Smart Homes, and Smart Cities around the world.But, all is not lost in the land of despair for our trusted old warrior, Bluetooth. According to reports, the new Wi-Fi framework will not come into effect any time before 2018; even then it will take some time to make its way into consumer durables, and even more time through our routers in to our homes, thus leaving a small window of chance for low energy Bluetooth framework to reinvent itself, and leave ‘HaLow’ feeling like a hollow idea to implement altogether.

January 5, 2016
LG to Showcase Its K Series Phones at CES

South Korean electronics giant, LG, has decided to launch two smartphones under its new K series. LG K10, and LG K7 will be displayed at CES 2016, in Las Vegas, and will replace the phones from its L series.

The phones, which as claimed by LG, are targeted towards users looking to create or view multimedia content, will come in two versions, LTE and 3g. The LTE baseband version of the K10 will house a 1.2 GHz/1.3 Ghz Quad core or 1.14GHz Octa Core process under the hood, while the 3g version will be powered by 1.3 Ghz processor. RAM amount will range between 1 and 2 GBs, while the internal storage will be either 8 or 16 GB. The device will be available in three colors -white, indigo, and gold.

The K10 will have a 5.3 inch , 720p display and will come with Android 5.1 Lollipop pre-installed. The LTE model will be equipped with a 13 MP rear camera, while the 3g version will have to do with an 8 MP shooter. Powering the K10 will be a 2300 mAh battery.

It’s younger sibling, the K7 will also come in two variants. The LTE variant will have a 1.1 GHz quad-core CPU, while the 3G iteration will sport a 1.3 GHz quad-core processor. The back camera will either be 8 MP or 5 MP, while the RAM will be 1.5 GB or 1 GB, and the built-in storage 8 GB or 16 GB. It will also house a 5-inch 480 x 854 resolution display, and will be driven by a 2125 mAh battery. The color options available for the K7 will be ‘Titan’ hue which will only be available on the LTE version, while the 3G version will be offered in white, black, and gold.

LG has further revealed that both these phones will include the new 2.5D arc glass tech, and other major features aimed at photophiles such as Gesture Shot, and Gesture Shot Interval, will also be available with these phones. Also, both these phones will have LG’s new pebble glass displays, and will use a woven pattern at the back to prevent those expensive out of hand slips.

The wait now is to see how LG prices them at CES, 2016. These K series phones from the stables of LG, if priced right, backed by the decent under the hood specs, and a good firmware support might just prove to be a good options for consumers across the globe.

January 5, 2016