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All the Latest, News, Reviews, Updates, How To, Mobile Phone news, Global and International News, From Cameras to Automobiles, from TV To PC and a lot more! Constantly updating!

Plushtography’s Lenstastic Pillows

Are you an avid photographer? Do you keep thinking about how to get the perfect shot? Well do we have the accessory for you. Plushtography has come out with a line of pillows that are ‘pre-hugged by a team of koalas to ensure maximum huggability.’

The pillows come in various designs ranging from the Canon 50mm and 24-105mm to the Nikon 35mm. Each pillow is hand sewn and made with a secret mixture of fleece, felt and a little bit of love. They range in price from $35 to $65 each and can take upto 10 days for delivery. They won’t imbibe you with any special photography skills but they will make for an interesting conversation starter.

July 7, 2011
Toshiba Thrive Tablet goes up for Pre-Order on Amazon
The Toshiba Thrive tablet has gone up for pre-order on Amazon.com, the tablet was already on preorder in various places including Best Buy. The 8 Gb Thrive is priced at 429.99 $ with the 16 and 32 GB versions for US$ 479.00 and US$ 579.00 respectively

Specs include
- 10.1-inch multi-touch widescreen display
- Adaptive Display Technology, supporting 720p
- NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual-core mobile processor
- Android operating system 3.1 Honeycomb
- 5.0 MP rear camera with autofocus and
- 2.0MP front-facing webcam
- Stereo speakers with Toshiba sound enhancements
- 8 /16/32 GB internal memoryUSB
- Mini-USB, and HDMI ports and full-sized SD card reader
- Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity supporting Adobe Flash
- Easy Grip non-slip interchangeable rubber backplate
- User-replaceable prismatic lithium battery
[Amazon]
July 7, 2011
How To: Move your Facebook Photos to Picasa

With Google+’s popularity on the rise, a lot of users are looking for an easy way to shift their albums from Facebook to Picasa. The aptly named move2picasa.com website allows you to log in with your Facebook id and copy all your photos to Picasa. Please note that the photos would be moved without captions etc.

If you have a lot of photos, it could take you a few hours to transfer them. Apparently, the more photos that you and others try to transfer, the slower the service will be. Despite the wait, this seems to be an adequate solution for most people. One other thing, you either move all your photos or you move none. There is no feature to select or filter which images are copied.

Once your photos are in Picasa, sharing them with your circles is very easy. The web app was built by AmiWorks’ Aman Kumar Jain and Amogh. According to the website, some 300,000 photos have already been moved.

July 7, 2011
LG sees 40% Increase in Smartphone Sales in H2 , Cuts Targets

LG Electronics Inc , the world’s No.3 handset maker expects its Smartphone sales to rise by 40% as it launched its LG optimus 3D in South Korea Today. The number is estimated at 14 million units in Q3-Q4.

Our overall performance is gradually improving…but it’s difficult to give a precise prediction when our business will turn around due to a fast changing external market environment,” Park Jong-seok, head of LG’s handset division, told reporters.

LG also said that they believe a target of a total 24 million Smart-phones can be achieved this year as they completed 10 Million in the First Half of 2011. Overall handset sale on the other hand will rise only 30 % above the First Half total of 50 Million units.

[read]

July 7, 2011
Mole Rats May hold the Cure to Cancer

The naked mole has wrinkly skin, no hair and out-sized teeth and resembles something akin to a saber-toothed sausage. While it doesn’t look like much, this rat may hold the key to curing cancer. The mole rat has a life span of close to 30 years, almost seven times longer than an average rat, and it seems to be immune to most diseases including cancer.

The mole rat is uniquely adapted to survive the deserts of East Africa. It lives underground, is impervious to pain and can survive the severely depleted oxygen levels in its burrows. Dr Joao Pedro Magalhaes, who led a team at the University of Liverpool unravelling the animal’s genetic blueprint, hoped one day it would provide therapies to treat conditions in humans.

The level of resistance it has to disease, particularly cancer, might give us more clues as to why some animals are more prone to disease than others. With this work we want to establish the naked mole rat as the first model of resistance to the chronic diseases of ageing.

Scientists cut out sections out of strands of DNA using chemical ‘scissors’, which allowed them to read the strands and insert them back into the genome. Their investigations will now focus on the methods by which cells repair themselves and protect against disease.

Larger animals usually live longer than smaller ones, but scientists were stumped with the mole rats almost a decade ago as they just did not seem to die. In the US, scientists started to focus on their lifespan instead of the primary reason they were being researched in the first place, their social habits.

Mole rats tend to live in large groups of upto 300 individuals with a single reproducing queen. During mating season, the queen mates with upto three males and the remaining males in the colony suppress their reproductive tendencies to focus on their roles in the defence of the colony against predators such as snakes.

July 7, 2011
New Swift to be More Economical

Maruti Suzuki Swift, is one of india’s best selling hatchbacks. After nearly six years in service, the car is finally due for an overhaul. The new Swift which is due to launch next month is said to be more fuel efficient and will come in 1.2l Petrol and 1.3l Diesel varients.

The new Swift is built on a slightly longer platform and engineers have managed a substantial weight reduction by replacing the metal fuel tank with a plastic one. This has improved the car’s mileage by almost 13%. The new model will be produced in the company’s Manesar Facility. The petrol version is said to give a mileage of around 20 kmpl as compared to the existing mileage of 17.9 kmpl. Similarly, the diesel variant will give a mileage of around 23.8 kmpl as compared to the existing mileage of 21 kmpl. No pricing details have been shared by the company as yet.

According to an industry expert, plastic fuel tanks are usually 25-35 per cent lighter than the conventional metal tanks. Besides the decrease in weight, these tanks are corrosion-free, durable, non-explosive and easily recyclable. Maruti may also offer a four-speed automatic transmission option in the petrol version of the new car.

July 7, 2011
HTC receives Eight Design Awards (PR)

HTC has been awarded eight design awards for its creations including the IDEA Gold Award .

The HTC Droid Incredible was given a Gold award, the HTC EVO 4G was recognized with a Silver award, and the HTC Legend garnered a Bronze award. The HTC Aria was also named a finalist in the communications tool category. Amongst others.

Read the full PR below for the total information.

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HTC Recognized for Global Design Leadership

Honored with Eight Awards, Including the Prestigious IDEA Gold Award

New Delhi, India – July 6, 2011 – HTC Corporation, a global designer of mobile phones, has been honored by three separate international organizations for excellence in product design, reflecting the company’s commitment to creating perfect experiences for everyday life that make consumers’ lives a little better.

HTC’s philosophy of designing mobile phones for the individual passions and pursuits of consumers is reflected in each winning product line, resulting in recent awards from IDEA, and earlier in the year from red dot and IDA.

“Countless HTC employees came together to earn the recognition we received at IDEA 2011, red dot 2011 and IDA 2010,” said Scott Croyle, Vice President of design at HTC. “Our award-winning designs span multiple disciplines and regions around the world. Our teams listened to and observed customers, recognized their differing needs, and partnered to design products that have these customers’ desires at heart.”

HTC garnered four top awards at the 2011 International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA), known as the “Oscars of Design,” and sponsored by Fast Company magazine and the Industrial Designers Society of America, for devices in the communications tools category. The HTC Droid Incredible was given a Gold award, HTC EVO 4G recognized with a Silver award, and the HTC Legend garnered a Bronze award. Additionally, the HTC Aria was a finalist in the communications tool category.

“The rigor of selecting the best of over 2,000 entries culminated in three days of intense dialogue and debate that was stimulating and rewarding for the 20 expert jurors—we are proud of the work we have chosen to represent the best from our profession,” said IDEA’s Jury Chair Davin Stowell, founder and CEO of Smart Design.

Started in 1980 by the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA), the International Design Excellence Awards Program (IDEA®) fosters business and public understanding about the impact of design excellence on the quality of life and the economy.

HTC Receives “red dot” of Approval from Global Jury

In March 2011, HTC won three awards from red dot. The EVO 4G won the highest product design award: the “red dot: best of the best” award, recognizing trailblazing design. In addition, the HTC Legend and HTC Aria won a red dot, a quality seal awarded to devices with high design quality, that stand apart from comparable products.

Red dot was judged by a jury from across the globe, whose background gives them unique insight to assess the special intercultural aspects of design. The red dot awards are sponsored by the Red Dot Museum in Germany and Singapore. The competition is aimed at all those who would like to distinguish their business activities through design.

“HTC’s drive to connect with consumers through design was apparent in the winning selections,” said Professor Dr. Peter Zec, president of the competition. “Each year we seek out brands that successfully harness the power of design to the masses.”

International Design Awards (IDA) Gives HTC Gold

In May 2011, the IDA, a four-year-old awards program honoring smart and sustainable design, recognized HTC’s pioneering design by awarding the HTC Legend a Gold at the 2010 IDA Awards.

“This competition year has been our largest to date, with entries from over 65 countries,” said Jade Tran, competition director. “We were very excited to see design that was so committed to design theory and creating a strong connection between consumer and product. HTC certainly exemplified this in the Phone and Communications Technology category.”

A handful of designers, thinkers and entrepreneurs created the International Design Awards in 2007 as a response to the lack of recognition and celebration for smart and sustainable multidisciplinary design.

About HTC

HTC Corporation (HTC) is one of the fastest growing companies in the mobile phone industry. By putting people at the center of everything it does, HTC creates innovative devices that better serve the lives and needs of individuals. The company is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange under ticker 2498. For more information about HTC, please visit www.htc.com.

Follow HTC India on:

Twitter: http://twitter.com/HTC_in

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/HTCIndia

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July 7, 2011
Liquid Robotics to Launch Wave Gliders to collect Oceanographic Data

Liquid Robotics, a Silicon Valley startup, makes remote controlled robots that cruise the open ocean and gather data. The company plans to collect this data and offer it up to consumers on the web. The machines, called Wave Gliders, can keep track of all sorts of data including whale songs, wave heights and the presence of nearby ships. The company plans to sell these robots to governments, research institutions and energy companies for between $1,50,000 and $5,00,000 a piece depending on the included components.

The wave glider features a 6-foot, 10-inch-long floating section equipped with solar panels, a battery and sensors. Tethered 23 feet below the float in the water is a similarly sized glider with metal wings and a rudder that propel and steer the device.

The inventor of the device, Robert Hine, originally made the device for a friend who wished to study whale songs off the coast of Hawaii. He started designing and fabricating the machines in 2005, taking every other week off from his job as a semiconductor engineer. He experimented with different Electric Engine designs, but they all failed. After much research, he came up with a design that harnesses the natural energy in waves, like a sailboat harnesses the wind.

The gliders ‘wings’ use the up and down motion of the waves to propel the device forward at a pace of around 1.5 miles per hour. Operators are able to map out a route and have waypoints transmitted to the robot via satellite. It then uses GPS signals to follow the programmed route. The robot is unable to remain still but can criss-cross the same area.

Because the gliders are essentially floating platforms that can be programmed to go anywhere, there are many possible uses. They can measure ocean and air temperature to help predict storms and water currents and wave height for shippers trying to determine the safest route for their vessels. They also can help oceanographers monitor whales and other aquatic life. In crowded areas like the Gulf of Mexico, gliders could collect location, speed and destination information for ships—information that now is sent through radio signals—and display the information on a map. There are less obvious uses as well. Mr. Vass imagines equipping gliders with cellular towers to provide coverage in the middle of oceans. Also, gliders could be programmed to dispense fish food, creating fish farms that move around at sea.

Liquid Robotics isn’t the only company that makes unmanned sea vehicles for data collection. iRobot Corp., creator of the Roomba vacuum cleaner, makes a glider that collects information up to 3,000 feet under water, surfacing from time to time to transmit its findings and collect new instructions. The Slocum glider from Teledyne Technologies Inc. works in a similar way. Both gliders can collect information from far deeper in the ocean than the one from Liquid Robotics, but aren’t able to transmit data continuously.

July 7, 2011
Facebook also comes to Skype

Skype has also added Facebook live chat to their windows client. Skype 5.3 for windows enables people logged into Skype to talk to their Facbook friends via an easy interface.

Import your Facebook News Feed to keep up with the latest from your friends. Comment, Like and call them direct from Skype. Update your Facebook status from Skype, too.

Get all the latest Skype features plus send instant messages direct to Facebook chat. See when your friends on Facebook are online and get in touch in one click.

Its only available for Windows Right now, But expect a Mac client soon. Hit the link below if you rock a PC.

[Skype for Windows]

July 7, 2011
Facebook Brings Group Chat and Video Calling – Targets Google +
Facebook has just announced Facebook Video calls, in partnership with Skype. The Video feature embeds directly into Facebook chat and is a free to use service.

There were three major announcements today.
- Group chat(“an easier way to find someone who is online”)
- Skype-enabled video chat
- 750 million Facebook members
In a direct approach the Member downloads a tiny Skype applet .jar file and Facebook Video chat becomes available. Users can now click the video button in the chat module to initiate a video call. The user on the receiving side, get a popup, much like a Skype call. The video camera on either side is turned on only when the recipient accepts the call.

As Mark pointed out, the interface is buggy. we tested it out and after several repeat failures we were able to get a stable connection.

The popup is pretty simple and is always on top. The video chat can be made full screen and minimized or muted. Mark also noted that more developments will come as and when improvements are done to the system.

Tony Bates from Skype noted that over 150 million video calls are made each month through Skype, and now this feature will be available on Facebook.

visit the link below to get started

[Facebook Videocalling]
July 6, 2011
Realm of the Mad God

Realm of the Mad God, created for the TIG Assemblee competition, is ‘a massively co-op fantasy adventure’ featuring a remarkably large world to roam and explore (inhabited by thousands of monsters), real-time battling, a full leveling up system, lots of different equipment and magic spells to experiment with and different classes to choose from.

At first look the game reminds us of the 8-bit days of yore. What the game lacks in graphics it definatly makes up for in usability. The game is browser based and its so simple to play, just log in and go. Even though it already has so much content, the game is still being built. When you join, you’ll be placed into the world alongside every other connected player.

A major difference from most games of the genre is that death is permanent. It doesnt matter if your level 1 or level 100. If you die, you loose all progress that you made in the game, and you have to start over. You may get a respectable level, but one tiny slip up and its all gone.

Go and give it a try here.

July 6, 2011
Sony Playstation 4 coming in 2012 ?

CONCEPT PS4 Image

[dropcap]I[/dropcap]f a report from market hardware news watch website Digitimes reports that, Sony’s manufacturing partners will begin building the Playstation 4 by the end of this year for a launch schedule of quarter 2 2012. There are no specific details , but most rumors talk about a kinect type motion sensing technology to replace the current generation PS3 Move.

Sony has always held in strong opinion that physical controls are essential for gaming. Dropping that claim would be very convenient for the company and possibly beneficial. Foxconn and Pegatron, the two manufacturing firms charged with assembling Sony’s PlayStation 3, will build the new console according to DigiTimes’ sources. Also mentioned in the report, shipment volume for 2012 is set at 20 million.

With the Wii U and the next Xbox coming next year, if was only expected that the third giant upgrade their flagship console.

July 6, 2011
Audi Sales Rise in India by 75%

[dropcap]A[/dropcap]udi India today reported a 75.11% jump in its sales for June 2011, at 408 units when compared to the 233 units sold same time last year.

Given our outstanding performance in the first six months of the year, we will soon surpass our 2010, annual sale of 3,003 cars. Audi India’s growth momentum is testimony to the overwhelming response received from our customers,” Audi India Head Michael Perschke said.

The statement further said that China has overtaken Germany as the single biggest market for Audi, while the Indian and US markets were the fastest growing regions for the company.

Audi is currently the third largest luxury car manufacturer in India after BMW and Mercedes, the company offers a range of cars including A4, A6, A8, A7 Sportback, Q5, Q7, RS5, R8 and R8 Spyder.

July 6, 2011
Convert 2D display to a 3D display with the Pic3D Film

Japanese company Global Wave, has come up with a technology that can convert a 2D display into a 3D display. They have developed a film that can be stuck onto any display, which allows you to enjoy 3D content. The film works on all devices including smartphones, Monitors and even the iPhone and iPad.

The film is called the Pic3D and is based on a lenticular lens system which basically creates 2 serperate images, one for the left eye and one for the right, at slightly different perspectives, which creates the illusion of depth. The film was designed to be used with stereoscopic content. In case you have regular 2D content, you can download the software from the company’s website and it allows you to view the regular 2D content in 3D.

The film allows 90% of the screens brightness through with viewing angles as wide as 120^o. The film will be available from the Global Wave website in August with prices ranging from $25 for the iPhone and iPod Touch to $189 for a 23″ display film.

July 6, 2011
MIT smartphone clip-on will detect a eye cataract using the iPod / iPhone or your Phone

[dropcap]R[/dropcap]esearchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are working on an inexpensive way to use smart phones to quickly detect early-stage cataracts, the clouding of the eye lens that is the leading cause of blindness worldwide.

Dubbed the “Catra” system this ingenious device which uses all off the shelf components, was designed by Media Lab Camera Culture group director Ramesh Raskar and colleagues.

The user peeps through the eyepiece attached to the smartphone or iPod (in the image) and views a bunch of lines on the screen. If the lines appear cloudy, the user presses a button and the inbuilt scanner scans and maps the eye for cloudy patches. This data is then displayed on the screen of the used Phone / iPod.

Identifying the position, size, shape, and density of the clouds, Catra can produce a diagnosis of cataracts in minutes. Check out the promo video below. Catra has been tested on 22 people, and it found one case of cataracts that had been undiagnosed, despite an eye test at a doctor’s office a few months prior, according to MIT.

“Catra could provide great value as a simple and low-cost way of making the initial diagnosis that cataracts are present, especially in parts of the developing world where such services are now rare and often require travel to distant cities,” an MIT statement said.

[Read at MIT ]

July 6, 2011