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BlackBerry Releases First Official Images of the Priv

BlackBerry has released official images of what the upcoming Priv smartphone looks like. It seems companies have grown tired of unofficial leaks and have decided to provide the details themselves knowing that images and specs are destined to come out weeks before a launch.

On Tuesday, BlackBerry revealed the first official photos of the security-focused Android device, the Priv. “Priv users will enjoy choice, innovation, security, privacy and productivity. In other words, no compromises,” BlackBerry said in its blog post along with the images. The photo below shows the device’s slide-out keyboard feature and also a curved display that is reminiscent of Samsung’s Galaxy S6 Edge.

Along with this, BlackBerry has revealed two other photos that show a side profile of the Priv, both open and closed.

The side profile shows a slender device that has managed to stay that way despite having a traditional slider feature.

The company has not revealed the prices or a specific release date, however, it is likely that the Priv will come out towards the end of the year. The company also said that more images, specs and features will be known in the coming weeks. From what we know already, the Priv will have a 5.5-inch curved display and is rumoured to come with an 18-megapixel camera, a hexa-core 1.8GHz Snapdragon 808 processor and 3GB of RAM. However, you can expect official details soon enough.

Image Source: [tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://blogs.blackberry.com/2015/09/priv-by-blackberry-first-official-images-2/?linkId=17428680″]Blackberry[/tw-button]

September 30, 2015
HTC Reveals List of Devices to Receive Android Marshmallow

A new report suggests that HTC is all set to give their smartphones an update to the new Android Marshmallow 6.0. Obviously, this update will not be available to all their smartphones, but a select few which include the HTC One M9 and HTC One M8 before the end of this year.

We’re roasting marshmallows this fall! We’ll begin our Android 6.0 rollout to devices before the end of the year. pic.twitter.com/Zd59NaqTjx

— HTC USA (@HTCUSA) September 29, 2015

The list is however longer than this, since it also includes – the One M9+, One E9+, One E9, One ME, One E8, One M8 Eye and the HTC Butterfly 3.

All the above phones are HTC’s high-end phones, but it has also been said that HTC’s mid-ranged Desire 826, Desire 820, and Desire 816 will also be updated in the future. No dates have been confirmed for this update, but what we also know is that HTC will be adding more devices to this list. So sit tight and hope that one of them is yours.

September 30, 2015
Here’s Why SnapChat’s Profile GIF Changes Interaction

Snapchat seems to be changing its display, format and along with it, the way its users interact with each other. Snapchat originally became very popular amongst the younger generation because of the fact that it erased memories in 10 seconds and kept their live statuses for just 24 hours. So, unlike Facebook, where someone can look through your past and bring up an embarrassing status or profile picture, Snapchat erases it all.

However, there is one thing on Snapchat that does not self-destruct, and that is the profile GIF. The profile GIF was added in July along with the tap-to-view feature. So, now, on your profile screen, if you tap on the QR code you will be able to shoot a series of 5 selfies which turns into an animated profile GIF.

Initially this seemed like just a cool customization which encouraged people to share it more and thereby strengthening Snapchat’s user base. However, there is another purpose for this customization, and that is, it somehow solves Snapchat’s identification problem. Basically, previously, when you added someone on Snapchat, you knew nothing about them except for their username. The anonymous character of this app made it very popular with the youngsters.

However, now, when you add someone, their profile GIF shows. So, you can immediately identify the person’s gender, and perhaps even their sense of humour. So, you won’t have to follow a person, then check out their Snap Story and then unfollow them, if you’re not interested.

This is very useful for Snapchatters who make their profiles public, because they can efficiently decide whom to follow back. The profile GIF definitely seems to be providing more transparency to one’s identity, thereby allowing you to be more aware of whom you add and follow.

Oh well, in this fast-paced world where social interactions and networking seem to play an important

role, it is necessary for social media to catch up too. And that’s exactly what Snapchat is doing.

September 30, 2015
How and Why You Should Disable Autoplay on Facebook

Facebook’s newest change has been the addition of the autoplay feature in its videos. One day you’re happily scrolling down your homepage, and suddenly you hear a cat meowing in the background. Yes, the video has begun to play simply because you happened to stumble across it on your homepage. No, you did not give the command for it to start meowing.

Other than causing the annoyance of unnecessary cat-noises, this new feature is also a big toll on your internet data, not to mention taking away your right to completely ignore other people’s videos on your homepage.

So here’s a quick look at how you can disable autoplay:

iPhone:

Go to your settings, scroll down until you find Facebook and then select Settings again. Once there you could choose either ‘Wi-Fi Only’ or switch it off entirely.

Android:

You will find the autoplay settings in your Android app. Choose the Menu button followed by Settings and therein lies your answer.

Desktop:

Click the arrow in the upper-right corner of your Facebook profile and choose Settings. There will be Videos on the bottom left of your screen now. Click on it, which will take you to the autoplay settings and from there you can switch it off.

September 30, 2015
Customer Match by Google Will Target Ads Using Your Email Address

Google is letting advertisers in on your email address so that they can get you exactly what you’re looking for. And yes, this is a new feature by Google. The company is rolling out a new tool called Customer Match, which allows advertisers to use a list of email addresses to target specific users across Google. So now you can be tracked online by your Gmail address.

When you buy a smartphone, for example, from an online retailer and provide your email address, the retailer will feed your email id along with your recent purchase to the Google server. So the next time you’re surfing the net while logged in to your Gmail account, Google will be able to send you a whole bunch of ads related to you recent smartphone purchases such as phone covers, earphones, and other accessories.

“Let’s say you’re a travel brand. You can now reach people who have joined your rewards program as they plan their next trip. For example, when these rewards members search for “non-stop flights to new york, on Google.com, you can show relevant ads at the top of their search results on any device right when they’re looking to fly to New York. And when those members are watching their favorite videos on YouTube or catching up on Gmail, you can show ads that inspire them to plan their next trip.” Sridhar Ramaswamy, Google’s ads and commerce veep explained in a blog.

Google is perhaps trying to catch up with Facebook and Twitter who also use your respective email addresses to provide targeted ads within their site. Google calls Customer Match a “privacy-safe” product, but it is still a matter of concern for users who feel that advertisers are getting even more specific with their ad targeting, which calls into question just how much ‘they’ know about you. .

Google, however, has stated that companies will not be able to create personalized profiles of individuals and the tool mainly allows them to compile a list of the user’s habits on YouTube, Google search, and other Google related services. Customer Match will be available to advertise in the coming weeks and you can soon expect to see more specific advertisements pop up in your Gmail account, YouTube, and Google search.

September 30, 2015
Doctor Who Adds Headphones to Their Tech Merchandise

Massive Audio Inc announced their new set of ‘Doctor Who’ Headphone Collection today, under license from BBC Worldwide North America. The company had previously released other products such as the TARDIS and Dalek Bluetooth speakers for Doctor Who fans too. So, this new collection of TARDIS and DW insignia Bluetooth and Wired Over-Ear Headphones will add to their line of tech merchandise.

These Bluetooth Headphones have built-in buttons for full control over tracks, volume, phone calls and a bass boost option. The device also has a built-in microphone for phone calls without the need of a boom. Apart from these savvy buttons, the headphones also have a rechargeable battery which can be charged via the USC cable and will last for up to 30 hours with constant music.

The wired headphones are slightly different, since they come with an inline control box. However, they come with the same features and microphone. The packaging comes in a cool Doctor Who branded carry bag along with flat tangle-free wire packed in a collector’s-style windowed gift box.

The TARDIS & DW Bluetooth Headphones will come at a price of approximately Rs.7,889 while the TARDIS & DW Wired Headphones will be priced at around Rs.5,194. Both products will be released on the 1st of October 2015 and will be available for sale online an in retail stores starting early October.

September 30, 2015
Exclusive : India Pricing of the Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X Revealed

Last night Google threw the curtain off its new smartphones – the LG Nexus 5X ad the Huawei Nexus 6P.

Although we had all the information, thanks to previous leaks, the company officially confirmed that the Nexus 6P features a 5.7-inch QHD touchscreen, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 810 chipset, with 3 GB RAM, and a USB Type-C port. The camera sports a 12.3MP sensor at the rear and a rather impressive 8MP on the front.

The Nexus 5X on the other hand, comes with a 5.2-inch FHD display, USB Type-C and is available in three colours – Carbon Black, Sports White and Ice Blue. Pre-orders for the smartphones began last night in US, UK, Ireland, Canada, and Japan.

We now have information that the smartphone will go up for preorder in India in the 3rd week of October.

The 16GB Variant of the LG Nexus 5X will be priced at Rs. 31,900, and the 32GB variant will be priced at Rs. 35,900. Meanwhile the Huawei Nexus 6P (32GB) will cost Rs. 39,999, the 64GB variant will cost Rs. 42,999 and the 128GB will cost Rs. 47,999.

We also have information that the company will be bringing in a range of covers to India, along with the handsets, priced at Rs. 2,800.

We did an article earlier giving detailed specs of the new Google smartphones. Check it out here. Stay tuned; we’ll be bring you the hands on review of the two devices, shortly.

September 30, 2015
A Chromecast Upgrade, a New App and Much More

Google has announced a bunch of new devices at it’s event tonight, from the Nexus 6P to the Android Marshmallow. Among these, they have also announced a new Chromecast and another Chromecast Audio along with a Chromecast App.

So let’s have a look at all of them one by one.

The Chromecast: has been one of Google’s most successful ventures and it has decided to bring in a second option, an upgrade. The new Chromecast comes in a circular shape instead of a dongle shape. It also comes with an HDMI cable and various colours such as – lemonade, coral and black.

The new device comes with a new adaptive antenna system which allows it to stream higher resolution videos and can also support up to 5GHz Wi-Fi now. As mentioned earlier, there were speculations that it might come with a ‘fast play’ feature – well it does. This feature gives it the ability to establish a connection with the TV set much faster than the original version.

Google has also announced that you will now be able to use Spotify on your TV and Google Photos too. The Chromecast will go on sale starting today in 17 countries on Google Store, Best Buy or Wal-Mart. Obviously, you’ll get the best deal on Google Store.

The Chromecast Audio : is an extension that Google has created, for a higher audio experience. It looks almost like the new Chromecast except with a 3.5mm audio port instead of an HDMI. This audio port will conveniently plug directly into the back of your speaker, allowing you to stream audio over Wi-Fi from all your existing apps.

The Chromecast Audio will also support and cast music from Spotify, Play Music or Pandora and is expected to come with a multi-room audio streaming soon.

The Chromecast App: This app is pronounced as being “completely redesigned”. How? Well firstly, it shows you the popular activities on their ‘partner’ apps like – Twitch, ESPN, YouTube, Hulu, Netflix. Then, it also shows you content from apps you have installed on your smartphone. The company also announced that most of the apps would be cast-enabled, along with this, they’ve also added some playback controls on the app which should make accessing it much easier. You can also use voice search to access things within the Chromecast app and is universal across all services. The ‘Fast Play’ feature will allow you to pre-fetch video streams on the Chromecast app.

As if this wasn’t enough, the new app can also guess what you might want to watch as soon as you open an app, and will start caching the stream in the background. How cool is that? Oh, and did we mention that the app also supports Netflix (for those of you who have access to it). However, they have mentioned that some of the content prediction features will roll out next year. The new app will be rolling out on the Android and iOS devices soon.

September 30, 2015
Google Brings Out the Android-Powered Pixel C Tablet

Pixel C is the newest Android tablet on the block released at the official Google event today. The device is the result of an attempt to put together something where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts, claims the company.

The device is a 10.2-inch tablet that has a display and resolution of 2560×1800 (308) ppi. The screen is capable of sensing when to employ the physical keyboard and when to opt for touch. The GPU is Maxwell with an NVIDIA X1 quad-core processor. It operates on Android 6.0 Marshmallow and boasts of far-field voice recognition with the help of four microphones in the device.

Battery life can be checked with the double tap light bar in the gadget. Google promises regular updates on the device’s software and apps post its release.

Yes, it all sounds lovely, too lovely to be palatable, and therefore it’s time to mention the price. The tab is priced at $499 for the 32 GB version and $599 for the 64 GB version. The keyboard is an additional accessory costing $149. Looks like Google too has gone the Apple way and has refused any relief of a lower price to the buyers.

September 29, 2015

HTC Unveils Butterfly 3 and One M9+ Aurora Edition

HTC unveiled the Butterfly 3 and the HTC One M9+ Supreme Camera (Aurora Edition) smartphones on Tuesday. While the HTC Butterfly 3 is essentially the same as the J Butterfly that was launched in May, the HTC One M9+ Supreme Camera is almost identical to the One M9+ but with an upgraded rear camera.

The HTC Butterfly 3 comes with a 5.2-inch QHD LCD display, Snapdragon 810 chipset, and 3GB of RAM. It runs on Android 5.0 Lollipop and come with a 32 GB built in storage which can be expandable via microSD card up to 2 TB, theoretically speaking of course.

The Butterfly 3 also sports a massive 20.2 megapixel rear camera with dual-LED. The front is a 13-megapixel camera which has a fast f/2.0 aperture and can shoot 1080p videos.

The HTC One M9+ Supreme Camera edition now has a new laser autofocus system and better rear camera at 21-megapixels and an f/2.2 aperture. The rest of the specs are similar to the M9+ with 5.2-inch Quad-HD (1440×2560 pixels) display and powered by 2.2GHz octa-core MediaTek Helio X10 processor with 3 GB of RAM. It is available in 32 GB inbuilt storage with up to 128 GB expandability via microSD card.

Here’s a detailed look at the specs for both the Butterfly 3 and the One M9+ Supreme Camera. Global availability and price details are yet to be disclosed.

Specs	HTC Butterfly 3	HTC One M9+ Supreme Camera
Display	5.2-inch	5.2-inch
Resolution	1440×2560 pixels	1440×2560 pixels
Processor	1.5GHz octa-core, Qualcomm Snapdragon 810	2.2GHz octa-core, MediaTek MT6795T
RAM	3GB	3GB
Storage	32GB	32GB
Rear Camera	20.2-megapixel	21-megapixel, laser autofocus, f/2.2 aperture, dual-LED
Front Camera	13-megapixel	4 UltraPixel camera
Exandablity	microSD up to 200 GB	microSD up to 2 TB
Battery	2700mAh	2840mAh battery
Connectivity	Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth v4.10, 4G/ LTE	Wi-Fi, GPS, NFC, Bluetooth v4.10, 4G/ LTE
OS	Android 5.0	Android 5.0
Price	–	–

September 29, 2015

Google Announces All New features For the Marshmallow

By now, we’re all mostly aware of the Android Marshmallow and how it’s different from the previous versions. However, at its mega event, Google has announced a couple of new features to its already new Marshmallow version, and here they are.

Firstly, they’ve announced that you can voice stream from the lock screen itself. Basically you have to swipe from a corner to launch it and it’s up and running.

Google also detailed its charging abilities, so now, the Marshmallow can tell you whether you are on the fast-charging mode and also tells you how long until your phone is fully charged.

Google also talked about the app drawer and revealed that the new app drawer will help us look for apps much faster, because it will arrange the apps according to our usage of it. Bringing the most used apps at the top of the app drawer, making them much faster to access.

The company also announced something exciting – the new Nexus devices which come with the Android marshmallow will not have as many ‘pre-loaded’ app. Which means, that since they’re going to be “post-set up”, you can eventually uninstall them, if necessary.

Next, they elaborated further about the ‘Now On Tap’ feature, which basically allows you to search Google automatically from any app, if you press the home button for long enough. They’ve added voice interactions to this, so now you can control apps with your voice. Google also mentioned that the “Okay Google” detection will now work when the screen is switched off too.

Here’s something new about the battery too. The Android Marshmallow will also come with a new “doze” mode that informs apps to sleep (for lack of a better word), when the phone hasn’t been used for awhile. So, when the screen is switched off, the battery life will be 30 percent longer than in previous versions.

The Android marshmallow will roll out on the new Nexus 6P and 5X next week. Till then if you want to brush up on your Android Marshmallow history then look no further and click here.

September 29, 2015
Nexus Owners Get Ready! Android 6.0 Releases Next Week

Google has announced that the release of Android 6.0 Marshmallow will take place next week. The news was given to international press and audience at the official event. The exact date has not been confirmed but according to speculations, it should be the 5th of the month. As expected, Google line-up of Nexus devices will be receiving the update first. However, if you own any other Android device other than Nexus you might have to wait longer before being able to use Marshmallow.

One of the highlights of the new OS is Doze, the power saving mode which prompts the phone to shut itself down if the device has not been moved or touched for a while. Other features include finger print sensors which make using Android Pay very convenient and an updated version of Google Play called Google Play on Tap As for the rest, we’ll have to wait and see what more Marshmallow has to offer. Watch this space for all the latest updates from the event.

September 29, 2015

LG Nexus 5X: Price, Specs and Everything Else

The much awaited Google Nexus event is finally here with the launch of its two new Nexus phones as well as updates on Android Marshmallow. We have brought to you news of all the recent developments, and now that LG Nexus 5X has been launched let’s take a closer look at everything that it has to offer.

Dave Burke took to stage, following Google CEO Sundar Pichai and introduced the two highlights to the audience.The one we’re concerned with is LG Nexus 5X. As leaked had already showed, the main camera is a protruding structure and is marked at 13 MP.

The phone also boasts of finger print scanners, keeping itself abreast of touch-related technology. Burke attributes to this feature an “incredibly low” false recognition, and calls it very convenient while using Android Pay.

The device comes with USB Type-C and is available in three colours – Carbon Black, Sports White and Ice Blue. It will be available for shipping in late October.

The specs of LG Nexus 5X are as follows:

Specification	LG Nexus 5X
Display	5.2-inch Full HD IPS (1920 x 1080 / 423ppi)
Resolution	1080 x 1920 pixels (~424 ppi pixel density)
Chipset	1.8 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 808
CPU	Quad-core 1.44 GHz Cortex-A53 & dual-core 1.82 GHz Cortex-A57
GPU	Adreno 418
RAM	2 GB LPDDR3 RAM
Front Camera	5 MP with F2.0 Aperture
Rear Camera	Up to 12.3 MP with F2.0 Aperture
Storage	16 or 32 GB eMMC ROM
Expandability	NA
Battery	2,700 mAh (embedded)
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11 a, b, g, n, ac / Bluetooth 4.2 / NFC / Type-C USB
Operating System	Android OS, v6.0 (Marshmallow)
Price	Rs. 31,900/ Rs. 35,900

September 29, 2015

Everything You Need To Know About The Nexus 6P

The Huawei Nexus 6P is finally out in the open and everything we have learnt so far from the leaks have been confirmed. The Nexus 6P phablet is in the high-end range priced at $499 (Rs. 33,000 approximately) for the 32 GB model. Another report that suggested that the 6P will be available in 32 GB, 64 GB and 128 GB storage options has also been confirmed.

The design of the Nexus 6P is what you have come to expect after seeing the leaked images. The phone indeed has a black bar on the rear that houses the camera. This does give the smartphone an odd look and we’re not sure how many will take to that. The phablets sports a new design with a rectangular frame with curved edges and a full metal body, with dual front-facing speakers for crisp, clear sound and a finger print scanner on the back. The phone will come in four colour variants of silver, black, white and gold.

The Nexus 6P features a 5.7-inch QHD touchscreen, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 810 chipset, with 3 GB RAM, and a USB Type-C port. The camera sports a 12.3MP sensor at the rear and a rather impressive 8MP on the front. Pre-orders will be available starting Tuesday in US, UK, Ireland, Canada, and Japan. We do not yet know when the device will come to India.

The main highlights of the Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P is the Nexus Imprint, the fingerprint sensor which boasts of fast, fluid fingerprint accessibility, and the rear camera which features a 1.55 micron pixels which is greater than the iPhone 6s Plus.

Here’s a detailed look at the official specs of the Huawei Nexus 6P (GPU yet to be announced). Tell us what you think about Google’s latest offering in the comments below.

Specs	Nexus 6P
Display	5.7-inch QHD Corning Gorilla Glass 4
Resolution	2560 x 1440 pixels, 518 ppi
Processor	Qualcomm Snapdragon octa-core 810 v2.1
GPU	Adreno 430
RAM	3 GB
Storage	32 GB/ 64 GB/ 128 GB
Rear Camera	12.3 MP, laser autofocus, dual-LED flash
Front Camera	8 MP, 720p@30fps
Expandability	N/A
Battery	3450mAh battery
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac; Wi-Fi MIMO support; Bluetooth 4.0 LE; GSM bands 850/1900; 3G bands; GPS with AGPS; NFC, USB Type-C
OS	Android 6.0 Marshmallow
Price	$499/549/649

September 29, 2015

Why You Should Think Before Using Facebook’s Indian Flag Photo

Mark Zuckerberg recently changed his Facebook display picture to one which has an over-lay of the Indian flag. This was done following his Town Hall meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Silicon Valley this week. Zuckerberg unequivocally expressed his support for the Digital India campaign of the country.

Prime Minister Modi soon followed league and changed his display picture on Facebook as well. Facebook also introduced a feature which allowed users everywhere to make the tri-colour part of their display pictures. Post this, people, as we know them to be, switched their profile pictures left and right and centre. All of a sudden, we woke up to find unanimous, enthusiastic support for Digital India. Utopia, could it be?

Maybe not. A lot of netizens took to social media platforms to express their dismay at the new feature, which was allegedly directly connected with Facebook’s Internet.org. It was assumed that these pictures had a source code which would automatically link them to Internet.org, inadvertently making them support the initiative.

Now the idea of thousands and millions being included within the ambit of the virtual world sounds brilliant and one everyone is up for. But before that, those endorsing this initiative as part of Digital India campaign need to understand all that it entails.

Internet.org:

Internet.org refers to a collaboration between Facebook and six other companies, namely, Samsung, Qualcomm, Nokia, Ericsson, MediaTek and Opera Software. The aim of this collaboration is to bring easily accessible internet to developing countries, especially in remote rural areas. However since it includes only selected services and online operators, it is seen not only as a direct threat to net neutrality but also as rampant publicizing of Facebook. It would be a single company, or a small group of them, which would decide what services are made available and which ones are excluded, a right earlier extended only to the user of the internet, not the service providers.

However, earlier today, an official statement was made by Facebook which reads as follows:

“There is absolutely no connection between updating your profile picture for digital India and registering support for Internet.org. An engineer mistakenly used the words “Internet.org profile picture” as a shorthand name he chose for part of the code. But this product in no way connects to or registers support for Internet.org. We are changing the code today to eliminate any confusion.”

And so, the hue and cry gradually died. But the proposition still remains -before you jump at the idea of a tri-coloured display picture, try remembering the things it implies. Granted such a picture does not necessarily mean support for Internet.org, yet the issue of separating Digital India from Internet.org remains just as relevant. Nothing would be better on the tech front than to have a country where internet is available in every household. But any policy that endangers net neutrality, and therefore, the freedom of expression and to make choices in the virtual space, needs to be reconsidered.

September 29, 2015