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Brace Yourself for the Last Day of Xiaomi’s Re.1 Flash Sale

Tech-nerds, time to gear yourself for Xiaomi’s Re.1 flash sale. Today is the last day so make sure to be there in time. The company is holding a #DubsmashWithMi contest in which participants would get a chance to win a Mi Band. The timing for the contest is 11 am to 6 pm on the official Mi Twitter and Facebook accounts. Four winners will get a Mi Band as part of this contest.

https://twitter.com/XiaomiIndia/status/662118374432894976/photo/1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Third day of Xiaomi’s Diwali celebrations will follow the same pattern as the last two days. The Mi Band and Mi in-ear phones already went up for sale at 10 am in the morning at the price of Rs. 799 and Rs. 299 respectively. Now the Re. 1 flash sale will take place between 2 pm and 6 pm.

To participate in Xiaomi’s flash sale, users have to share the flash sale promotion from Xiaomi’s official website mi.com/in on Facebook or Twitter. This will take the users to the ‘Light Me Up’ game. Players of this game will have a chance to win coupons for the Mi store. Additionally, customers who make purchases using the Mi store app during the sale period also stand to win a Mi TV 2S.

Customers who use PayU for transactions will get a 5% cashback. Find more details and rules of Xiaomi’s Diwali sale here. Xiaomi has been trying and succeeding at wooing customers with exciting sales and offers for a while now. Earlier this year, a 1000 customers who had managed to register themselves in time had received Mi Bands for Re. 1.

Needless to say, the sale has seen an incredible response over the past two days. Happy shopping on the final day of this sale. Get set go!

November 5, 2015
YU Rolls Out Cyanogen 12.1 Update for Yureka and Yureka Plus

The official Cyanogen 12.1 update for Yureka and Yureka Plus has begun rolling out. Some of the highlights include a Live Display feature which adjusts the screen based on environmental conditions. This would ensure better readability in sunlight and a softer, dimmer screen during the night. Your eyes will definitely be happier about this update.

Another feature of this update is the calendar which is integrated with the email. This allows you to sync emails from different sources like Gmail and Exchange in the calendar, making sifting through appointments and reminders easier and more convenient. It also allows scheduling of appointments directly from an email.

The redesigned UI for the folders and app drawer allows one-handed-use of the device to the user, while also reducing visual clutter. YU also promises better performance and an over-all improved sound experience with an updated audio FX UI.

It is time to get your YU devices updated, folks, and tell us about your experience in the comments below.

November 4, 2015
Google’s New Smartphone App Will Answer Emails For You

Allowing you to take laziness to the next level, Google’s new email app will come up with responses for emails and thereby saving your brain cells the extra effort. The Smart Reply feature of the Inbox by Gmail app was unveiled on Tuesday and offers three responses that can be customised by the user.

Smart Reply, Google’s smartphone app, uses deep learning, a modified version of Artificial intelligence to make the appropriate replies. Over time, the app would study the pattern of responses to emails, and suggest responses based on the most and least often used ones.

The president of the Google for Work program, Amit Singh commented on this, “The possibilities of machine learning are endless.”

Users tend to keep replies short on mobile phones and it was precisely this style of emailing on phones which led to the development of Google’s newest app. Google has also made sure to include or exclude responses which are more commonly used or steered cleared of. This ensures no private replies get mixed with business emails and vice versa. Smart Reply is expected to be available by the end of this week as part of the Inbox app that is compatible with both Android and iOS devices.

[tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://gmailblog.blogspot.in/2015/11/computer-respond-to-this-email.html”]Official Gmail Blog[/tw-button]

November 4, 2015
Modular PuzzlePhone Launches Crowdfunding Campaign on Indiegogo

There are smartphones and then there are modular phones. We hear something new about smartphones everyday, but even modular phones need their day in the sun. Last year, the PuzzlePhone was introduced to the masses. The modular phone is made up with multiple pieces that can be upgraded, swapped or replaced as needed. The PuzzlePhone has three pieces: the Brain, the Spine, and the heart.

The ‘brain’ contains the processor, camera, RAM, and storage; the ‘spine’ provides the structure and screen; and the ‘heart’ holds the battery and secondary electronics. Finnish company Circular Devices initially offered multiple size options for the PuzzlePhone, but had to streamline their offer for its initial crowdfunded release.

The team behind the PuzzlePhone has launched a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo seeking to raise $250,000 to kickstart production. So far the site has received $40,234 with 41 days left. The Indiegogo money will be used for manufacturing, shipping, and the product itself.

In terms of features, the PuzzlePhone features a 5-inch 1080p display, an unspecified 64-bit octa-core processor, 3GB RAM, a 2,800mAh battery pack, a 12-megapixel back camera, and Android 6.0 Marshmallow (or higher depending on the release date). The PuzzlePhone will have 16GB, 32GB and 64GB storage options for various backers of the campaign.

We’ll know in a few weeks whether the team behind the PuzzlePhone has everything to go ahead with the production. If you want to be a part of the campaign then head on over to Indiegogo and do your part.

November 4, 2015
EmojiWorks Creates the World’s First Emoji Keyboard

We are all aware how important emoticons are nowadays. Nobody wants to type ‘okay’ anymore, just a thumbs up emoticon will do. The process is supposed to save time, but we still have to press an extra key to open our emoji options. These troubles will however soon be in the past, because EmojiWorks has debuted its first hardware based emoji keyboard. So now, with the help of a built-in shortcut, you can immediately just type in your preferred emoji.

Design wise it looks like an Apple keyboard with emoji symbols and each key has an emoji along with a character. Just like the shift key we use in order to type in a letter in capitals, there is an additional ’emoji’ button which you need to press in order to insert the specific emoji.

EmojiWorks has been very careful so as to include all your favourite emoji, including the poop emoji. They also claim that the emoji keyboard is up to 10 times faster than a standard keyboard and is Bluetooth enabled; this feature in turn makes it compatible with Mac and iOS devices. The only con that comes with this keyboard is that it cannot be customized as it comes pre-printed with emoji on the keys along with pre-programmed emoji shortcuts. Here is a short video:

https://youtu.be/Hvm3B6kXPK0

Speaking of its availability, the emoji keyboards come in three different models: the Emoji Keyboard at $79.95 (approx Rs.5,175), the Emoji Keyboard Plus at $89.95 (Rs.5,830), and the Emoji Keyboard Pro at $99.95 (Rs.6,485). The difference between these keyboards is that the number of emoji shortcuts differ, so basically, the cheapest one will have one emoji per key, the emoji plus will have a total of 94 emoji and the emoji plus will have more than 120 emoji, with three shortcuts per key.

Click here for your pre-order and more information.

November 4, 2015
Vodafone’s Free 100 MB Data Has Got to Be the Lamest Diwali Freebie Ever

Just when you thought things in the country couldn’t get any stranger (to use a safer word), we have been proved wrong one more time as Vodafone chooses to take randomness (once again, playing it safe) to a whole new level. In a very unusual turn of events, the company is offering a 100 MB of data for free to all its users all over India.

Vodafone says in an official statement, “At Vodafone, we are driven with the singular objective of delivering superior experience to our customers.”

Sorry, what? Next time if there’s a brainstorming session for ideas of Diwali free gifts at Vodafone, hopefully somebody comes up with something probably just a tiny bit more useful like – better customer service where the company representatives actually manage to solve the user’s problem for a change, or better network coverage which doesn’t require the user to perform all sorts of acrobats to get a single bar of reception in their device, and what’s up on the 4G front, folks? How about offering something that truly helps your 188 million ‘valued’ customers in the country? Take a look at re-volt to get a better picture of what we’re trying to say.

Vodafone Diwali freebies got us excited like.

Unfortunately, Vodafone is already glorying in the extra 100 MB of data they are going to be handing out to their customers to realise how badly they have missed the mark. The “special” offer, as Vodafone fondly calls its problem child, will be available to all Vodafone customers on Wednesday, November 11, 2015. They can avail it by SMS-ing ‘DIWALI’ to 199. Do let us know how many extra selfies you manage to exchange with all this free data.

November 4, 2015
MPAA Shuts Down Online Streaming App Popcorn Time

For those of you who secretly watch all the trending TV Shows and movies via online streaming sites such as Popcorn Time – its doomsday for you. Popcorn Time and YTS have been shut down following court orders in Canada and New Zealand.

This isn’t something that has come as a shock, because the Motion Picture Association of America or MPAA had filed a suit back in October against three operators of popcorntime.io, claiming that they had “enabled, authorized and induced copyright infringement via an app that allowed viewers to watch pirated movies and TV shows”.

In Canada, they received an injunction on the 16th of October to shutdown the site while in New Zealand they filed a suit on the 12th of October 2015 against YTS, which is a torrent site. Both sites have therefore, been shut down as the legal procedures continue.

All you can do now, is hope and pray the MPAA don’t get to your favorite site next.

November 4, 2015
Microsoft To Discontinue Windows 7 and 8 By October 2016

On a mission to secure a goal of having Windows 10 power 1 billion devices, Microsoft’s “Window’s life cycle fact sheet” shows us that October 31st 2016 could be the last day for sales of PCs pre-installed with Windows 7 professional or Windows 8.1. This means, that post the given date, all new computers will come with Windows 10 pre-installed. However, businesses with license agreements which entitle them to choose whichever version they prefer can continue working on Windows 7 or 8.1.

This deadline is probably not the best news for users who have become comfortable with the Windows 7 and have been procrastinating the update to Windows 10. Microsoft will however benefit from this deadline, because they will finally be able to tie together PCs and other devices with apps that can run on all the devices.

Microsoft usually sets their end-of-sales date for each version of Windows after two years of the release of a new version. However, since Windows 8 didn’t receive the best of responses, Windows 7 continued to be available. This privilege may not be available anymore because of the positive response that Windows 10 has mustered up.

But, for users who really want to continue with the Windows 7, technical support has been extended up to January 14th, 2020 for all users and up till January 10th 2023 for Windows 8 users. As of now, Windows 10 is available as an “optional update” on all PCs, however, early next year, reports suggest that it could become a “recommended update”.

Windows 10 is slowly finding acceptance, so Microsoft is probably just trying to make things easier for themselves and their users. All we can do is watch and wait for the response.

November 4, 2015
Twitter Drops ‘Stars’ For ‘Hearts’ and ‘Favorites’ For ‘Likes’

Twitter recently announced that they would replace their users’ ability to mark “favorites” with an option to “like” Tweets instead. Along with this, they have also decided to ditch the star icon for favorites with a heart icon for likes.

You can say a lot with a heart. Introducing a new way to show how you feel on Twitter: https://t.co/WKBEmORXNW pic.twitter.com/G4ZGe0rDTP

— Twitter (@twitter) November 3, 2015

The social media networking company made a statement regarding this change, saying that because “the star could be confusing, especially to newcomers”, they will now use a more “universal symbol” like the heart “that resonates across languages, cultures, and time zones.”

According to user tests, these changes have been said to do well and will soon be introduced on Vine too. However, as it happens with all new changes, this one, too, has had mixed reactions, since the “favourites” option was used to indicate various things and was even used as a bookmark or reminder.

I work at @twitter but even I can’t believe how we replaced a completely value-neutral term like “favorite” with something so loaded.

— Peter Seibel (@peterseibel) November 3, 2015

Social media is getting more emotive, and its users are becoming more and more aware of small things such as “like” buttons and its correct usages. Facebook is working on ways to let users express a lot more than simple “likes”, whereas Twitter seems to be going back a step by providing its users a basic “like” option. With all the revamping and the firing of employees, let us hope that Twitter can manage to stay afloat and save their dwindling fan base. What do you think about this? Let us know in the comments section below.

November 4, 2015
Sennheiser’s Orpheus: Most Expensive Headphones in the World At $50,000

Sennheiser will soon release it’s new set of headphones, Orpheus with a price tag of $50,000 (no, that’s not a typo) or Rs. 32,75,000. About twenty five years ago, the company had come out with Orpheus HE90, which soon came to be known as the best headphones money can buy. There were only 300 of those made by the company, and they came with an amplifier at a cost of about $16,000.

Sennheiser Orpheus in 1991

After almost a quarter of a century since 1991, Sennheiser is ready with an updated version of the Orpheus. The company had been working on the gadget for over a decade now. German craftsmanship and over 6,000 components that include gold-vaporized ceramic electrodes, platinum-vaporized diaphragms, and Carrara marble amplifier housing from Italy -same as the one used by Michelangelo -all have gone into making this beauty. Clearly, these headphones are not meant for metro rides or listening to music on the laptop.

All these intricately chosen components improve sound quality and audio experience. Digital amplification takes place directly in the headphones and therefore steers clear of any disturbance that might have happened because of cord travel of the sound. Sennheiser plans to make the Orpheus available starting mid-2016 and would keep the production at a 250 piece per year. Time to bring out the piggy bank and start saving up, folks!

November 4, 2015

Spec Battle: Canvas 5 vs OnePlus X vs Moto G (3rd Gen) vs Xiaomi Mi 4i

In the past one week we have seen a number of smartphone launches under the 20K range. The OnePlus X that was officially launched on the 29th of October gave fans many reasons to cheer for the company. Today, it was Micromax’s turn to please the crowd with the launch of the Canvas 5.

Both OnePlus X and the Canvas 5 have been designed to please the eyes. Two other phones that come under the same banner are the Moto Gen (3rd Gen) device that was launched in July this year and the Xiaomi Mi4i that came out in April.

Starting from the earliest then, the Xiaomi Mi4i has a 5-inch Full HD OGS IPS display with 441ppi pixel density. The phone is powered by a 64-bit octa-core Cortex-A53 processor. It features 2GB of RAM and runs on Android 5.0 Lollipop with the company’s MIUI 6. The two cameras include a 13MP in the rear and a 5MP in the front. The dual-SIM device is powered by a 3120mAh battery. Connectivity options include Micro-USB 2.0, Bluetooth 4.0 and Wi-Fi.

The Moto G (3rd Gen) with the rounded design and silver accents has a premium look and feel to the device. The device has a 5-inch 720p display with 1280×720-pixel resolution and 294ppi. It is powered by a 1.4GHz Quad core Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor with 2,470 mAh battery that can last roughly up to a day. The handset is available in two variants- 8GB storage with 1GB RAM and 16GB storage with 2GB RAM.

The OnePlus X is a mid-range phone that aesthetically looks high-end with ceramic-glass and onyx variants for the back. The device sports a 5-inch AMOLED display (1920×1080), with a primary camera of 13 MP and a 8 MP front. The device runs on a 2.1 GHz Snapdragon 801 chipset. It features a 3 GB RAM with 16 GB internal storage and is expandable up to 128 via MicroSD card slot.

Finally, the Canvas 5 also wins in the design department with curved metallic edges, a plastic back panel that has a leather-like feel to it, and at 8.5mm thickness the device is pretty slim. The flagship sports a 5.2-inch FHD screen with 480ppi. It is powered by a 1.3GHz octa core MediaTek MT6753 ARM Cortex-A53 chipset. It also features 3GB RAM and 11GB internal storage expandable up to 128 GB via MicroSD card slot.

Here’s how the four devices stand in comparison. Have a look and post your winner in the comments below.

Specs	Micromax Canvas 5	OnePlus X	Moto G (3rd Gen)	Xiaomi Mi 4i
Display	5.2-inch full HD screen, Corning Gorilla Glass 3	5-inch full HD AMOLED screen, Corning Gorilla Glass 3	5-inch, 720p HD, Corning Gorilla Glass 3	5-inch IPS LCD capacitive with Gorilla Glass 3
Resolution	1920×1080 pixels, 423ppi	1920×1080 pixels, 441ppi	1280x720p pixels, 294ppi	1080×1920 pixels, 441ppi
Chipset	Media Tek MT6753, ARM Cortex-A53	Qualcomm Snapdragon 801	Qualcomm Snapdragon 410	Qualcomm Snapdragon 615
CPU	1.3 GHz octa-core processor	2.3 GHz Quad-core processor	1.4GHz Quad core	1.7 GHz quad-core
GPU	Mali-T720 MP2	Adreno 330	Adreno 306	Adreno 405
RAM	3 GB	3 GB	1 GB/ 2 GB	2 GB
Front Camera	5 MP	8 MP	5 MP	5 MP
Rear Camera	13 MP	13 MP	13 MP	13 MP
Storage	11 GB	16 GB	8 GB/ 16 GB	16 GB
Expandability	Up to 128GB via MicroSD card slot	Up to 128 GB via MicoSD	Up to 32 GB	NA
Battery	2,900 mAh	2,525 mAh	2,470 mAh	3,120mAh
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS/AGPS	Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz b/g/n WCN3680 / Bluetooth 4.0	MicroUSB, 3.5mm headset jack, Bluetooth 4.0WiFi 802.11 b/g/n (2.4 GHz)	MicroUSB, 3.5mm headset jack, Bluetooth 4.1WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac
OS	Android 5.1.1 Lollipop	Oxygen OS based on Android 5.1.1	Android 5.1.1 Lollipop	Android 5.0 Lollipop
Price	Rs. 11,999	Rs. 16,999	Rs. 12,999 (16 GB)	Rs. 12,999

November 4, 2015

Micromax Canvas 5 Hands On Review : Unboxing Video

Micromax Canvas is a name that popularised Micromax with the new market of India. The latest Canvas from the company is the Canvas 5 and comes at a time where Micromax needs it the most.

The device is a big improvement from the build quality standards of the company and has a lot to offer for a consumer at a price of Rs. 11999. The phone goes on sale today online and offline.

The handset has decent specifications, however only to be burrowed by the likes of its own YU Yureka Plus. The new Canvas has a fantastic 2.5 D curved glass that not only looks good and feels great to use, the aesthetic makes the device look a lot more premium.

The handset also features Gorilla Glass 3 on the front glass and a front facing flash. Running everything is a MT6753 chip with eight cores at 1.3 GHz. Owners will get 3 GB of RAM which comes in real handy especially if you do a lot of gaming. The phone has an fast and fluid UI and runs Android 5.1 with sober customizations from Micromax not affecting usability a lot.

The handset has a metal frame that adds rigidity and polish along with rounded edges and a matte finish that feels excellent. The back panel is plastic and has a faux leather finish that is soft to touch and easy to grip onto.

The camera app is appreciated with lots of modes and pro features like those found on flagship Samsung Galaxy phones. You also get apps to re touch images and mostly do makeup etc.

The phone scored over 32000 on benchmarks and has been found to be 95% better than devices in the range. Gaming experience on the handset is good and feels like the 3 GB of RAM helps in leveraging that. We managed to play his end games on the handset with graphs turned to max without issues.

November 4, 2015

Micromax Canvas 5 Launched in India Today

Micromax launched the much awaited Canvas 5 smartphone in India today. The newest flagship from Micromax promises improvements on the Canvas 4 that saw some negativity regarding build quality and camera performance.

While some of the specs are similar to its predecessor, the Canvas 5 has improved where it needed to. The Canvas 5 has a powerful processor and larger battery. The display of the phone has improved quite a lot and so has the overall design that feels good in your hand. The handset has a removable plastic back panel that has a leather feel to it. The front glass joins the curved edge that has a matt finish which gives the phone a sleek look; and at 8.5mm thickness, the device is quite slim.

The Canvas 5 does offer is a full-HD display that fans were expecting for a long time. The handset has also bumped up the RAM to 3GB, which is great for a phone under Rs. 12,000. The camera remains the same as the Canvas 4 and a hands on will tell us whether the low-light images come out better with the Canvas 5.

The flagship sports a 5.2-inch FHD screen with 480ppi. It is powered by a 1.3GHz octa core MediaTek MT6753 ARM Cortex-A53 chipset. It also features 3GB RAM and 11GB internal storage expandable up to 128 GB via MicroSD card slot.

The Canvas 5 is priced at Rs. 11,999 and is available starting today. Airtel also has a double data offer going on if you purchase the device from an Airtel showroom. We’ll have a detailed hands-on with the Canvas 5 soon so stay tuned. Till then check out the specs of the device below. We’ll fill the blanks as we know more.

Specification	Micromax Canvas 5
Display	5.2-inch full HD screen, Corning Gorilla Glass 3 with 2.5D Curve Touch Panel
Resolution	1920×1080 pixels with 480ppi
Chipset	Media Tek MT6753, ARM Cortex-A53
CPU	1.3 GHz octa-core processor
GPU	Mali-T720 MP2
RAM	3 GB
Front Camera	5 MP with flash (2560×1920)
Rear Camera	13 MP AF (4160×3120)
Storage	11 GB (7.5GB available)
Expandability	Up to 128GB via MicroSD card slot
Battery	2,900 mAh battery
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS/AGPS, 4G LTE (LTE FDD 850MHz/1800MHz and TDD 2300MHz)
Operating System	Android 5.1.1 Lollipop
Price	Rs. 11,999

November 4, 2015

Chinese Investors Buy Swedish Luxury Smartphone Maker, Vertu

Vertu is a well known UK-based manufacturer of coutour, handcrafted luxury smartphones. The company, previously owned by Nokia, who had created it in order to form a niche in the luxury trade market, has now been sold to Chinese investors.

Vertu phones are well known for features that include precious metals, leather casings and sapphire screens. Its chief executive, Massimiliano Pogliani says that it is now “an appropriate time to pass on the baton of leadership to a new team”. And with Chinese investors, occupying a large portion of the smartphone market, they do seem like the obvious successors.

What we know about the company’s timeline is that it was founded by Nokia in 1998 and then bought by a Swedish private equity group called EQT from Nokia back in 2012 for more than 200 million euros. Vertu had shipped its first phone in 2002 and had sold around 450,000 devices by 2015. The company will continue to conduct its business via its headquarters in Hampshire, England.

Vertu was created to provide premium handsets for those who were willing to pay for it. For example, its latest handset costs almost 7,000 pounds or Rs.70,8074 for a basic version and up to 17,000 pounds or Rs.17,19,609 if you want a rose gold frame! It’s most expensive handset is priced at almost 200,000 pounds which is approximately Rs.2,02,30,696 and this comes signed with the name of the craftsman who made it. Yes, that’s a lot of dough indeed.

However, with smartphone companies like Apple providing consumers with a smartphone that bettered Vertu in technology and also came with some sort of a status symbol attached to it, the Swedish company began to struggle in its own niche. Therefore, Vertu has in the recent past tried to improve the technology in its latest phones while also lowering its prices, so as to create a slightly larger customer base.

So, hopefully with the new ownership of Vertu will be able to maintain its position in the luxury phone department while catering to the need for high end specs as well.

November 4, 2015
Micromax Canvas 5 to Take On Devices by Motorola and OnePlus

With only a few hours left for the launch of the Micromax Canvas 5, speculations are high about the device. We expect it to fall under Rs. 20,000 and therefore take on handsets by Motorola and OnePlus that fall under a similar bracket.

The OnePlus X, launched on the 29th of October is priced at Rs. 16,999 for its entry level variant. Motorola’s Moto X Play, which was launched earlier this year in July, costs Rs. 18, 499 for its 16 GB variant and thus also falls within the same price bracket. Another Motorola device to provide competition to Canvas 5 is Moto G (3rd Gen) whose price starts at Rs. 11,999 for the 8 GB variant.

On the specs front, we expect Canvas 5 to have a 5.2-inch full HD screen, Corning Gorilla Glass 3, and a 3GB RAM. While some of the specs are similar to its predecessor, the Canvas 5 is expected to have improved where it needed to. The device is also likely to sport a slim and sleek design.

We’ll soon have all the specs and a detailed hands-on with the Canvas 5. Watch this space for more.

November 4, 2015

Category: Latest

Specs

Micromax Canvas 5

OnePlus X

Moto G (3rd Gen)

Xiaomi Mi 4i