Category: Tech

Latest Technology News, Alternative, Bio-Tech, Medical, R&D and Innovations

Pioneer’s new HDJ-500 Headphones add Sexy to the DJ

Audio equipment giant, Pioneer, introduced the sleek and sexy HDJ-500 headphones in India. The headphones look attractive and are targeted towards professionals such as DJs and folks who just want great headphones for their tunes.

The right ear housing of the HDJ-500 can swivel by 60 degrees. This, along with the flexible headbands, will make it easy for the DJs to check on the monitors with ease. The company claims that even for an everyday user, the headphones can recreate the club experience, minus the unwanted second-hand smoke of course.

The headphones are available in multiple fashionable colour options.

For the sound aspect of the headphones, the cans increase the effective sound pressure by utilising Pioneer’s newly developed 40 mm (diameter) driver unit. The HDJ-500 are sound engineered to reproduce a rich low-range. Pioneer has also narrowed the ear pad opening, to reproduce clear sound.

The headphones come with a single-sided replaceable cord that plugs into the left side. The cans are available with two types of cords, a 1.2 meter coiled cord which can be extended up to 3 metres for DJ’ing and a 1 metre straight cord for personal listening.

The Pioneer HDJ-500 are available at a price tag of Rs. 8,590. They look like a good option for people who want a professional pair of headphones or someone who just wants the best out of their music.

November 6, 2014

Lava becomes Number 2 Indian Mobile Brand, While Micromax Leads

The emergence of Chinese companies into the Indian market has taken most of the sheen off the Indian phone makers. Even Motorola’s high specification, low priced devices have taken customers away from the Indian handset manufacturers. But with the combined strengths of feature phones and smartphones, the Indian brands have continued to grow. The companies have benefitted from the shift to smartphones in the lower segment, and their offerings are perceived as affordable. These factors have helped Lava reach the second spot on the podium amongst the Indian handset model.

The report was published by market research venture called Cybex Exim. The company took into consideration the following handset manufacturers: Micromax, Lava, Motorola, Karbonn, Gionee, Lenovo, Spice, Intex, XOLO, Panasonic, Zen, Maxx, Videocon, Xiaomi and Lemon.

To elaborate on their findings, Mr. Amit Gupta, Cybex Exim said, “To understand the market dynamics, we track the import shipments of various players on a daily basis. Domestic players have shown remarkable growth over the last two quarters; majorly credited to the success of Indian brands like Micromax, Lava and Karbonn. With local vendors reducing the price gap between the entry level smartphones and feature phones, usage for mid-price phones is expected to increase at a high rate. At the same time, the recent launch of Android One devices is expected to drive more volumes in the price sensitive market with many other local players geared up to introduce their devices in the coming quarter.”

Cybex Exim’s findings is as follows:

Volume data of Top 5 Indian players (in Mn) July – September’14 – Cybex Exim Solutions Pvt Ltd
Company	Feature Phones	Smart Phones	Total Volume	% Volume Share
MICROMAX	5,058,002	3,723,445	8,781,447	31.2%
LAVA	5,307,184	1,968,575	7,275,759	25.8%
KARBONN	4,591,947	1,803,583	6,395,530	22.7%
INTEX	2,542,483	965,627	3,508,110	12.5%
SPICE	1,764,181	426,992	2,191,173	7.8%

This has been a good year for Micromax. According to a study by Counterpoint Research, Micromax outsold Samsung in Q2 of 2014 to become India’s biggest smartphone supplier. Also, Micromax finished on the pole position of Cyber Exim’s report. The company is also taking some risks like introducing a Cyanogen-powered smartphone in the coming future.

Lava has said that the company will be investing about 500 crores in a phased manner to set up its own manufacturing unit in India over the next couple of years. This would be a positive step towards increasing tech-based manufacturing workforce in the country.

It’s great to see these Indian companies on a growth track. But looking at the competition they are facing against the Chinese companies, its time the companies up-ed their game. The phones need to get better in terms of specs and overall quality. The Indian companies may also want to take a leap into the flagship business and challenge the name brands.

November 6, 2014

Samsung Galaxy Grand 3 Specs Leak, 13MP Camera and 5.5-inch Display

Reports of Samsung’s next flagship, Galaxy S6, did its first round of leaks yesterday. Now, a phablet with model number SM-G7200 has been spotted on GFXBench, clearly indicating to be the next iteration in the Grand series, the Galaxy Grand 3.

If these GFXBench results are to be believed, then the Grand 3 seems to be quite an overhaul over its predecessor. Going by the reports, the upcoming flagship in Grand series is likely to feature a 5.5-inch display, which is slightly larger compared to the Grand 2, though the screen resolution remains the same at 720p.

Under the hood, it will be powered by a 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon clocked at 1.2GHz, bundled with a 1.5GB RAM and Adreno 306 graphics. In terms of memory, it is likely to have 16 GB of onboard storage, out of which 12 GB will be available to users.

The camera seems to be the biggest upgrade. The Grand 3 will likely get a 12MP rear camera along with a 5MP front-facing camera, compared to the 8MP rear and 1.9MP front snapper found on the Grand 2.

The Grand 3 is expected to run Android 4.4.4 KitKat. As of now, there is no confirmation regarding the Lollipop update. We can expect the Grand 3 to launch in India anytime before the end of this calendar year.

November 5, 2014
Dropbox and Microsoft Announce a Surprise Collaboration for Office App

Microsoft and Dropbox are surprisingly working together to closely integrate the cloud services into Office. The deal between the two rivals means users will be able to edit and share Office content across different devices and softwares.

“Access to Dropbox content popped as one of the very first [Office for iPad] requests that customers had,” explains Kirk Koenigsbauer, Head of Microsoft’s Office Engineering team. “They want access to where their content is. We’re doing it to make sure customers have a great experience.”

Under the partnership, Dropbox gets a prime space that is used by more than a billion people, and the potential to make an even bigger name for itself particularly in the business enterprises. Notably, Microsoft has its own cloud service called OneDrive which will co-exist with Dropbox in the Office for iPad apps, letting users natively browse, open and edit Office documents uploaded on Dropbox directly within the app.

“From our perspective, it is about users’ choice,” says Kirk Koenigsbauer. “Of course, we have a OneDrive service, which is quite differentiated — it works incredibly well for users. But there are also people who use Dropbox, and we want to provide that choice and flexibility.”

In turn, Dropbox is adding options to its mobile application to push users over to Microsoft Office to edit documents. If you’re on a mobile device that doesn’t have Office installed, you’ll be prompted to download the apps to edit, and any changes will sync back directly to Dropbox automatically. Microsoft Office for iPad and Android application, at present, requires an Office 365 subscription to edit documents.

“It’s really about creating a deep connection between Dropbox and Office,” says Ilya Fushman, Head of Product for Dropbox and Dropbox for Business. “We think this is a huge win for our users. We think this will result in the best possible experience for people trying to get work done, and trying to get work done on the go.” The move came just months after Dropbox unveiled its “Project Harmony” work to bring collaborative features to Microsoft Office. “We’re continuing that experience,” explains Fushman. “That experience is really about making it simple and easy to work on the desktop.” Most of the changes for which Dropbox is partnering up with Microsoft are focused on web and mobile.

November 5, 2014
ASUS ZenWatch: The Best Smartwatch is Yet to Arrive!

India’s smartwatch shelves are filling up while major companies are releasing their models in the country. ASUS surprised everyone with its latest smartwatch at IFA Berlin this year. The ASUS ZenWatch is touted as the best Android Wear smartwatch in the market currently and it has received some rave reviews. The smartwatch looks real classy and has options for user-replaceable 22 mm watchband. The ZenWatch is expected to arrive soon to the Indian stores.

ASUS ZenWatch comes with a 1.63-inch 320×320 AMOLED display. The screen is curved to give off a 2.5D effect and the watch is powered by a 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor, along with a 512MB RAM.

The ZenWatch is stylish, classy and slim.

The feature that makes it desirable is the user removable 22 mm watchband. You can adjust its size according to your convenience. It is rated IP55 for water and dust-proofing, so it can tolerate accidental splashes. The ZenWatch also has a 9-axis sensor for tracking activities and movements like step counts, heart rate and relaxation levels. In short, it’s a personal wellness manager that helps users keep a close watch at their fitness goals.

ASUS has inducted several gesture controls and pre-loaded features on the device, and they set it apart from its competition. It provides features like unlocking your phone or tablet by tapping on the face of the ZenWatch, auto-opening a function you set with a double-tap. To mute the watch, you can just cover it. The device also helps you to find your phone and operate the camera remotely. However, for these feature to work, you are required to install a separate, ASUS-created Watch Manager app in addition to Android Wear on your companion device. But that won’t be too much trouble, and you’ll get used to its convenience really soon.

Overall, this is one heck of a device that you simply cannot miss. If you were still making up your mind on which smartwatch to buy, then the ZenWatch can be your no-second-thought-needed purchase.

November 5, 2014
Samsung Geared to Redefine Galaxy S6, Codenamed ‘Project Zero’

With Samsung having already launched its Galaxy S5 flagship nine months back, it’s no surprise that a follow-up, Galaxy S6, is in works. Last week, the company announced that the Galaxy A3 and Galaxy A5 smartphones, which dropped the plastic body to include the premium metal frame.

Now, according to the recent report from SamMobile, the South Korean giant has already started working on the Galaxy S6, and has codenamed it as ‘Project Zero.’ Previous flagship phones have gone by the names such as Project J, Project H, Project K and Project T in the past few years.

According to the publication, the Project Zero codename signifies that the company is developing the device from scratch — putting lots of thoughts into its design and materials. Right now, not much can be said about the upcoming flagship. However, previous rumors have hinted that the Galaxy S6 might come with a flexible OLED display, like the one included in the Galaxy Note Edge. It is also possible that Samsung will opt for a metal design like it did with the just-announced models, Galaxy A3 and A5.

Samsung is expected to opt for a metal design like it did with the just-announced Galaxy A3 and A5 and Galaxy Alpha

A few rumours surfaced online reveal that the Galaxy S6 could be a monstrous device featuring a 5.2-inch Super AMOLED 4K (3840×2160 pixels) display, a 64-bit Snapdragon 810 processor, and 4 GB of RAM. Additionally, it is also expected to boast a 20-megapixel camera with optical image stabilisation, and other features like a retina scanner and a fingerprint scanner, which already come with the present flagships.

The company has pledged that it will be bringing several changes to the future device to lure in more customers, after a huge setback during the Q3 earnings. Over the past years, the company has been criticised for the use of cheap plastic material in the high-end phones. With the new flagship on its way, the company is expected to make a lot of changes in design to compete in the market ruled by beautiful devices like iPhone 6, HTC One, and Sony Xperia Z series and many more.

November 5, 2014
Gionee Launches Marathon M3 with 5000mAh at Rs. 13,999

Chinese mobile manufacturer, Gionee has introduced the successor to its M2 smartphone, Marathon M3 which comes a 5000mAh battery. Interestingly, even though there is no official information about the pricing and availability, it was yesterday available on an e-commerce site at Rs. 13,999.

Of Course, the major highlight of the device is the massive 5000mAh battery which lends it 2G talk time of 51 hours and 32 hours of the same on 3G networks. The Marathon M3 predecessor, M2 was launch back in february which came with 42oo mAh battery.

On the hardware side, the devices sports a 1.3GHz quad-core Cortex-A7 processor coupled with an ARM Mali 450MP GPU and 1GB of RAM. It is a dual-SIM smartphone that runs Android 4.4 KitKat out-of-the-box and features a 5-inch HD (720×1280 pixels) IPS One Glass Solution (OGS) display.

It comes with 8GB of inbuilt storage, which is further expandable via microSD card (up to 128GB). It sports an 8-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, while there is a secondary 2-megapixel front-facing camera also onboard. On the connectivity side, the Marathon M3 includes 3G, Wi-Fi, WLAN Direct, Micro-USB, GPRS/ EDGE, GPS/ A-GPS, FM radio and Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP. It includes a proximity sensor, accelerometer, and compass (magnetometer).

According to the company’s official website, the device will come in two colour variant – Black and White. The handset was available on eBay.in yesterday, however, the listing is ended, now.

Update: Gionee has confirmed the price of the device as Rs.13,999.

November 5, 2014
Galaxy Note Edge Confirmed to Debut in the US on 14th November

Samsung’s Galaxy Note Edge, the world’s only smartphone with a functional curved touchscreen, finally gets a launch date. The phone will debut on 14th of this month, but in the US only. Samsung Telecommunications America officially announced this yesterday.

The Galaxy Edge is a one of a kind device with a fully functional curved display for hassle-free access to notifications. The edge screen gives access to e-mail, internet, apps, notifications, news and more without the need to navigate from the main screen. The phone did grab some attention at floor shows this fall for its bizarre design.

The Galaxy Note Edge will go on sale via major carriers across the US. AT&T is reportedly offering it at a starting price of $400 on a two-year contract.

Apart from the curved display, the phablet is more or less identical to the Galaxy Note 4 when it comes to features and peripherals. As of now, there is no word regarding its price, but we can expect it to cost a bomb, as the Galaxy Note 4 is priced at a staggering Rs. 58,300. Samsung has also revealed that the Galaxy Note Edge will be a limited-edition phablet and won’t be produced in large stocks.

November 4, 2014
Skype Introduces the Preview of its Real-Time Language Translator

It had been in people’s imagination for a long while. An instrument through which you can translate the other person’s language has always been desired. Human translators are great, but you cannot call a person every time you want to have a conversation with another person from a new country. In the global interconnectivity age, when people can connect to each other from any part of the world, the only hindrance has been the language. The solution to this problem may lie in the Skype’s new real-time translation feature called Skype Translator.

The translator’s preview is only for Windows 8.1 devices. This feature can give a great boost to the operating system as most translation needs are required in the government and corporate sectors, where Windows is still a dominant power.

The real-time translation feature listens to the conversation and converts it into the native language on the other side. There is a short delay in this process as the engine has to convert what’s been said, but you get to hear both the speaker and the translation. There is also an on-screen transcript of what’s being said by the person for added convenience. The software can take care of the instant messaging translations in 45 languages currently.

This will also be a great feature if you want to date people on the other side of the planet. The language barrier can be beaten through features like these, and they will keep both the languages valid and usable. If you have a Windows 8.1 device, go ahead and communicate with the world.

November 4, 2014
Xiaomi Set to Bring Out a Massive 16000 mAh Power Bank

Xiaomi knows how to create an impression and gain public attention. The company has created waves in country after country with minimum marketing budgets. You really need to have a unique product to gather that much attention and they sure do have that. The company is bringing out a power bank which can take care of a week’s worth of charging needs.

With the advent of Quad HD display and other power-hungry elements on smart devices, the burden has never been greater on the battery. Even with great programming tweaks, the batteries still require a shot of juice at the end of every day. If you are always on the move, a power-bank can be a great solution for you and Xiaomi’s new 16000 mAh battery pack will keep you tension-free for a good long time. It may still have enough power left to take care of your weekend.

Previously, the Chinese electronics giant had launched 5200 mAh and 10400 mAh power bank variants. This is a whole new step for the company. The 16000 mAh power bank variant looks like an elongated version of the 5200 mAh battery pack. The size is similar to a smartphone, so you can even carry it around in your pocket with ease.

Keeping in mind that this is Xiaomi, you can expect the price to be dirt cheap. The power bank is expected to be priced at 129 yuan (Rs. 1300), but it can get slightly higher by the time it makes to India. Even at that price, it still wins over all the other alternatives in the market. Xiaomi seriously is a typhoon in the tech world.

November 4, 2014
Google Unveils a Slick New Calendar App, Plans to Release it on iOS Soon

Same as all the other official Google apps, the company has totally reworked on the Calendar app as well for the new Android 5.0 material design. According to the company, the upgrade of the Calendar app is smarter, more colourful, and all-around more helpful.

This new app has been reinvented in the ‘Material Design’ style that’s working its way across all Google apps. The major part of the new upgrade is all about making, adding and viewing events much easier.

With the new upgrade, Calendar will automatically pull events, such as booked reservations, flights, or concerts, out of your inbox and add them to your calendar. This new upgrade will also help you enter events by automatically filling in the information as you type, such as your contacts and nearby locations.

There is a new feature onboard with the new upgrade called ‘Schedule View,’ which just displays your upcoming appointments. They’re all given big, colourful backgrounds, often with images that are contextual to the events, which should make them easier to browse through. Third-party calendar apps that plug into Google have continued to add new and more intelligent features, and this release in many ways feels like Google has left no stones unturned.

Apart from this, another surprising news is that this new Google Calendar app will be available for iOS devices too. While there have been a good number of ways to access your Google Calendar on the iPhone and iPad, including through Apple’s Calendar app, this will be the first time Google has actually released a proper Calendar app for iOS.

The app is already available on the devices running on Android 5.0, however, the company will roll it out to the Play Store over the coming weeks for everyone running Android 4.1 and above.

November 4, 2014
Samsung Upgrades Galaxy Tab S with High-Speed LTE-Advanced

The original Samsung Galaxy Tab S series of tablets released in July. However, there have been talks about the LTE-A variant of the supersize tablet. The company has unveiled a version of the Galaxy Tab S 10.5 with 225 Mbps LTE-Advanced inside, giving the tablet the power to utilize a fast data connection. Well, the speed is well enough to download 421 songs in a single minute, if the official estimates are to be believed.

It is otherwise the same Android slate you’ve seen before, although we are not complaining given the slim profile and super-vivid display. That means, the Tab S 10.5 LTE-A runs on the Exynos 5 Octa chipset, has 3 GB of RAM and comes with 16/32 GB storage capacities.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S LTE-A features display of 10.5-inch with 1,600×2,560 pixels resolution. The tablet runs on Android 4.4 KitKat with TouchWiz UI on top of it. It is also equipped with 16 GB and 32 GB of built-in storage and microSD card for expansion up to 128 GB. The Tab S sports a good 8MP camera on the back and a 2.1MP front-shooter. The device is powered by a solid 4900 mAh battery unit. It also comes with a fingerprint sensor for unlocking the tablet.

Samsung has only announced the upgraded Tab S for South Korea, where it will cost 799,700 won ($743 approx). Since other countries are still waiting for the LTE-A bandwagon to break into their market, the new upgrade might not be available anytime soon.

November 4, 2014
China Develops a Laser That Can Shoot Down Low Flying Drones

In the history of weaponry, every new lethal weapon has led to the creation of a weapon that can take the lethal weapon down or at least diminish its effects. Even the most destructive of them all; the nuclear weapons can be defended from by using missile defense systems. One of the pieces of weaponry choice of countries like US is drones. The drones or unmanned aerial vehicles are capable of getting the desired result without putting the pilot’s life in danger. China though seems to have created the counter-measure for a drone offensive and their answer is lasers.

China’s new anti-drone laser weapon has a range of two kilometers and is capable of taking down low-altitude threats in five seconds of locating the target. The state media said that the technology will be used against “various small aircrafts.” The technology has been developed at the China Academy of Engineering Physics (CAEP).

Chinese government has been known for taking aggressive stands against almost every country that it sees as a threat. The nation’s President, Xi Jinping, had recently asked the country to be prepared for regional wars. China is already the 2nd biggest spender on defense in the world. It regularly finds itself at odds with its neighbours, especially India and the countries in the South China Sea.

The anti-drone weapon is one the steps taken by the country as a preventive measure and also to assert its military might. According to Xinhua, the weapon is effective up to a maximum altitude of 500 metres and against an aircraft flying at up to 50 metres per second (112 mph).

The drone technology has gained tremendous leap in just the recent times. Consumer models are available in departmental stores for really affordable prices. One of the officials has said that terrorists can make use of this easily available technology for their activities, and hence a deterrence is required.

A statement by CAEP says that shot down more than 30 drones in a recent test with a 100 percent success rate. The academy is also developing the next generation of laser security systems which will be capable of greater power and longer range.

November 3, 2014
Flipkart Launches the First Indian E-Commerce Android Wear App

All the industry giants are pointing towards wearable technology as the next leap in consumer electronics. But the market has given the segment a lukewarm response. It must have to do with the technology being relatively new and in its beginning stages. But Flipkart seems to be confident of the success of this form factor and so, they have launched the first Indian e-commerce app on Google Android Wear.

To get the app on your device; you need to update the latest version of the Flipkart app. Once you have paired the device with your wearable, the app will be available automatically on it.

The Android Wear app can assist you in your shopping by giving you tracking information, one-touch wishlist, notifications about price drop and personalized offers’ notifications. It has also got support for voice-based searches.

Flipkart is the exclusive address for the Moto 360, which has been the best smartwatch yet. It will surely try to target the segment in the future. Introducing an app in a new operating system environment will give Flipkart some first-mover advantages. We’ll wait and see how it works out for this e-commerce giant.

November 3, 2014
Leaked Images Show the First Microsoft-Branded Lumia

Earlier this month, Microsoft officially killed the Nokia brand for its Lumia smartphones, and now images have surfaced of what appears to be a new device with the Microsoft Lumia branding.

Images from Chinese regulator TENAA reveal a new Lumia handset with the Microsoft branding on the front and rear, and perhaps it is a larger version of the Lumia 530. Dubbed as the RM-1090 as of now, it offers dual-SIM connectivity.

Microsoft did hint at the possibility of a new Lumia launch soon, with features similar to that of the Lumia 830. It appears to be the latest addition to low-end Windows Phone from Microsoft. A ploy that the company is using to compete against Android and iOS, as it struggles to stamp its authority in terms of overall OS market share.

We have a witnessed a slew of launches by Microsoft over the past few months, with price and availability being their primary focus. We are expecting the RM-1090 to be on the same lines and see the possibility of it being unveiled before Christmas.

November 3, 2014