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Sony Launches the NW-A25 Hi-Res Walkman in India

Sony today launched the NW-A25 high-resolution Walkman in India at a price of Rs 13, 990. The audio player is available through all Sony distributors and is available in Black, Blue, Pink, Red, and Yellow.

The Walkman comes with a 2.2-inch display with a 320×240 pixel resolution and has an internal storage capacity of 16GB that is expandable up to 128GB via MicroSD card slot. Sony promises up to 50 hours of MP3 playback and up to 30 hours of high resolution playback.

The audio player supports mp3, wav, aiff, wma, aac, he-aac, flac, and Apple Lossless formats. Other features include USB 2.0 support for fast charging and Bluetooth 3.0. One of the highlights of the Walkman is its digital noise cancelling system which means you won’t have trouble hearing music in buses, trains and anywhere else noisy.

Sony’s LDAC technology also allows for wireless Bluetooth audio streaming from compatible devices. The DSEE HX (Digital Sound Enhanced Engine HX) bumps up standard quality audio to Hi-Res quality.

February 10, 2016
6 Free Dating Apps to Download Before Valentine’s Day

The horrendously red hearts dangling from pretty much every Archies store out there tells us it’s that time of the year again. While it’s always great to celebrate love, in whichever form, love for pets and family and hobbies and life, this particular day has come to be associated with a specific kind of love. And in case you have missed out on finding yourself someone to share it with, things might not be too pleasant.

To make sure things don’t come to this for you, here’s a list of apps to make life easier this Valentine’s Day. While Indian parents are busy creating secret profiles for their kids on matrimonial websites, the kids are already taking things a step further with these apps.

1. DesiCrush

This is pretty much the Indian version of Tinder. It requires the user to create an account with an image and basic details. For verification purposes, the user would have to link their account with Facebook. There are preferences that can be given based on which matches would be made. Once two people mutually like each other’s profile, a match would be made and they can begin chatting. DesiCrush is available in both Google Play Store and the App Store.

2. Woo

Called ‘Matchmaking app for singles’, Woo is a fun app that allows the user to connect with the right person. Once again, you are required to create an account using Facebook and enter your basic details. Even though Woo is very particular about its users’ privacy, one concern that many may have with the app is that it leaves your Facebook profile accessible to everyone you chatted with, even if you ‘unmatch’ them later. On the brighter side, the app allows you to record seven second long voice messages to exchange, and shows only the initials of its women users to other people until they choose otherwise. Woo is a free Android app that can be downloaded from the Google Play Store and the App Store.

3. OkCupid

OkCupid is an app that breaks away from hetero-normative roles and lets the user choose from hetero, homo and bi-sexual partners. This app also has one of the most elaborate searches. It asks you detailed questions about your life, habits, choices and preferences. The user can increase these filters, refine their searches and get a better look at who is viewing and visiting their profile by opting for a paid subscription of the app called ‘A-List’. Otherwise OkCupid is available for free download on both Android and iOS devices.

4. TrulyMadly

TrulyMadly is a great app that includes games like ‘Hocus Pocus’ and ‘Styletastic’ to help you find like-minded people. In case you feel at a loss of words, to describe yourself or express ideas in your profile, the app comes to your rescue in the form of stickers that it offers. The profile can be created either using Facebook or your email address. TrulyMadly can be downloaded for free from Google Play and the App Store.

5. Tinder

The immensely popular dating app which needs no introduction -Tinder. Once again, you have to create an account using your Facebook profile and put up a picture with a short description. Depending on whether or not you like the results it shows, you can swipe right to choose or left to move on, along with an option to ‘Super-like’ people you see. In case the user wishes to disclose their location, or undo a left swipe, it can be done on a paid version of the app called Tinder Plus. The usual app is available for free download on both Android and iOS devices.

6. Grindr

Grindr is the world’s largest dating platform for gay and bisexual men. It is available in about 190 countries, including India. It helps users find partners based on their location and is available with both paid and non-paid subscriptions. The official website asks potential users to “View the gorgeous men of Grindr the way they were meant to be – large and in charge.” Point conveyed and noted. Grindr can be downloaded from Google Play as well as the App Store.

February 10, 2016
Contact Lenses Could Work as Displays and Fitness Trackers in the Future

Forget VR headsets that simulate concussions or augmented reality that alters the world around you. Here’s a concept of lenses from the future that could work as electronic displays, along with tracking the vital stats of the body. A team of researchers at University of South Australia have come up with a concept of a conductive polymer film coating that is capable of achieving this with future contact lenses.

If the concept is realised into reality, it would be an immensely huge leap for virtual reality. As users do away with cumbersome VR headsets, this piece of futuristic technology would change lifestyles in an unprecedented way.

The idea behind the research is to use water-compatible conductors on contact lenses which would render them capable of measuring glucose levels or creating electronic displays.

Is it time for good-bye already?

Professor Drew Evans describes comments on their research and says, “The trick is to provide power to the contact lens display. We are excited by advances from other researchers showing you can use tear drops to power special batteries. There is a possibility to modify this for use with our conductive coatings.” He further added that the inspiration behind the research came from wearables and their increasing presence in the contemporary world.

Many people who require contact lenses for eye-sight correction, shy away from opting for them because the idea of making the eye under-go any kind of external physical contact is not a welcomed one. But if the future truly offers us electronic displays that could be attached to the eye-ball would you say yay or nay? Let us know in the comments below.

Source

February 10, 2016
Silver Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge Appears in Render

We get a lot of renders and live images of major flagship phones days before their official launch. The hype behind Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy S7 was always expected to be huge and this in effect would lead to a lot of leaked renders and images to please eager fans until the official unveiling.

Trust Evan Blass of @evleaks to post a render of the Galaxy S7 to please his followers. The render shows the Galaxy S7 in silver colour and it looks great. Agreed, it’s but a render, but we’d take a good looking render any day over a poorly lit live image.

The render shows the curved edge side of the device with the volume controls on the left and a new Galaxy S7 wallpaper. Now, @evleaks did not confirm this to be the Galaxy S7 Edge but it is pretty clear from the image that it is.

Samsung quite certainly looks to keep the Galaxy S7’s design language similar to its predecessors, which is not a bad thing at all. The render of the device looks positively great and a bump in specs will make the Galaxy S7 the flagship to beat this year. In a few days we will know everything about the deice at the MWC.

February 10, 2016
New HTC One M10 Render Emerges

While a few flagship devices are scheduled for the MWC, one device that will have an event for its on in March will be the HTC One M10. Over the past few weeks there have been tons of rumours to play around with. There have been suggestions that the One M10 will look a lot like the One A9 and now we have a new render that has emerged online that tell us what the next flagship from HTC could look like.

According to the image, the HTC One M10 does borrow a lot of the same design elements from the One A9. The front shows the disappearance of HTC’s famed BoomSound dual front speakers. instead, the front looks pretty similar to the One A9 with thin bezels and a home button on the bottom which is just marginally smaller than the one found in the One A9. The much-hated logo bar that was found on the One M10 has also disappeared improving the screen to body ratio.

The back shows the antenna lines on the top and bottom much like the One A9 and, in essence, the iPhone 6. The rear camera on the One M10, however, is slightly bigger and is placed just below the top antenna line. There also seems to be a slight bump with the camera module. The left side shows two card trays – one for SIM and the other quite possibly a MicroSD slot, which again looks very similar to the One A9. Naturally, the right side is where the power and volume control buttons will be.

This new render fortifies the image posted a few days ago by @evleaks on Twitter. Indeed, this is perhaps what the One M10 will look like and in a few weeks we will know just how true that is.

The rumoured specs of the One M10 suggest a 5.1-inch QHD AMOLED touchscreen, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 chipset powering the device with 4GB of RAM, 32GB of storage and a microSD card slot. On the camera front lies a 12 MP UltraPixel rear camera with laser autofocus and optical image stabilization. The device will likely run Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow with HTC Sense 8 atop. We’ll know more as we approach HTC’s event in March.

Source

February 10, 2016
Vodafone Launches 4G Services in Mumbai

After launching 4G services in NCR last week, Vodafone has today announced the roll-out of its high-speed 4G services in prominent business and residential corridors of Mumbai across the Western suburbs and South Mumbai in a phased manner. The roll-out will be complete by the end of next month as had been earlier revealed by Vodafone.

Vodafone has revealed that all existing customers can move to 4G plans at the same price as their existing 3G plans. The Vodafone 4G network in Mumbai is built on an 1800 MHz band and will enable Vodafone 4G customers to gain access to the service across a range of smart devices including Mobile Wi-Fi and dongles.

Speaking at the launch, Sunil Sood, Managing Director and CEO, Vodafone India said, “We are delighted to launch our high-speed 4G services in Mumbai for our customers to experience the most advanced wireless broadband experience available across the globe today. Vodafone’s global expertise and experience of launching 4G across 19 countries gives us a better understanding of this technology and need of the 4G customer. Initial response from customers who have experienced 4G services in Kerala, Karnataka, Kolkata, Delhi and NCR has been positive and encouraging. As a steadfast partner of Digital India, we remain focused on deploying multiple technologies – 2G, 3G or 4G for optimum use as each technology has its own vital role to play in servicing the myriad connectivity needs of consumers across the country. ”

February 10, 2016
HTC Slashes Price of Desire 626 and 728 Dual SIM

HTC launched the Desire 626 Dual SIM on Friday and slashed the price by Rs 1000 on Tuesday. The device, which was originally priced at Rs 14,990 is now available for Rs 13,990. Another device that got the same price cut along with the Desire 626 is the Desire 728 Dual SIM which is now available at Rs 16,990.

The HTC Desire 626 Dual SIM comes with a 5-inch display and resolution of 720 x 1280. Internal storage of 16 GB expandable up to 32 GB with the microSD card slot, and 2 GB of RAM are some of its other specifications. Desire 626 is powered by 7 GHz octa-core MediaTek MT6752 processor, while its Android OS is coupled with HTC Sense.

The phone has a main camera of 13 MP a BSI sensor, f/2.2 aperture, and a front camera of 5 MP, again with BSI sensor. Further, Desire 626 packs a battery of 2,000 mAh.

Meanwhile, The Desire 728 Dual SIM features a 1.3GHz MediaTek octa-core processor paired with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage expandable up to 2TB via MicroSD card slot.

The handset also features a 13 MP primary camera and a 5 MP front camera with 1080p video recording capabilities, a 2,080 mAh battery, and will run on Android 5.1.1 Lollipop. Other connectivity features include dual-SIM card slots, 4G LTE support, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.1 and GPS.

February 10, 2016
Google Public Alerts Will Now Include Flood Information in India

Using information provided by Central Water Commission (CWC) of India, Google will now provide flood alerts for different parts of the country. It has put together data from 170 areas where the CWC has active observation stations, Google mentioned in an official blog post.

In the wake of recent natural disasters in the country, Google has tied up with India authorities to ensure real time information on the water-levels in various water bodies in India. This information can be accessed by the user through Google Now cards, Google App, Google Maps and the Google Public Alerts homepage.

“We’re constantly working to improve our Google Crisis Response tools to make critical information more accessible around natural disasters. Through Public Alerts we show relevant official weather, public safety and earthquake alerts to give people the information they need to make informed decisions in times of crisis”, says Payal Patel in the blog-post.

The role played by the Internet has been commendable during the time of crisis recently. When Chennai was struck by catastrophic floods last year, Facebook’s ‘Safety Check’ feature had helped immensely with determining the location of people. Similarly, large amounts of important information related to emergency helplines had been swiftly exchanged using various social media platforms. Now, Google seems to be preparing us better for disaster control by offering this useful information.

February 10, 2016
Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge Battery Revealed Through FCC Filing

Though the Galaxy S6 series of phones from Samsung were great devices, they did have their obvious shortcomings. One of the major issues that crippled the S6, and S6 edge was the fact that these phones came with inadequate battery packs. Samsung, as FCC listing reveals plans to fix that with its latest phones.

Samsung in its latest disclosure to the FCC has revealed better battery capacity and the included connectivity features for the S7 and S7 edge. The filing has taken the lid off on what will be a 3600 mAh battery on the S7 edge. This will come as great news for Galaxy S series fans who were disappointed by the inadequate 3000mAh battery provided on the S6 edge.

The specific filing which is for the South Korean version, will come in SK Telecom, KT and LG U+ flavors, and will have LTE, Wi-Fi ac, Bluetooth and NFC.

This year’s S7 edge is rumoured to come equipped with a microSD slot and waterproofing feature missing from last year’s phone. Additionally, it is also rumoured to come with an Always-On display.

On the specs front, the Galax S7 edge will feature a 5.5-inch QHD AMOLED display, and will be powered by a Samsung Exynos 8890/Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 SoC. It will be paired with 4GB of RAM, and a 12 MP rear camera with f/1.7 aperture. A 8 MP selfie camera is expected at the front of the phone. The phone will come in two storage variants, 32GB and 64GB.

February 10, 2016
Apple is Selling Virtual Reality Binoculars for iPhone

Everyone is moving towards virtual reality. Indeed VR is the next phase for technology and the biggest names in the tech industry have already begun working towards it. We have already seen Samsung come out with its Gear VR, Google with its Cardboard, HTC with its Vive, Oculus with its Rift, and now Apple wants to join in too.

Over the past few months we have been seeing Apple’s growing interest in VR technology. The Cupertino-based giant has made some big acquisitions to boost its VR development. While a proper VR headset is still far away, Apple has released VR binoculars to fill the gap for now.

The View-Master VR binoculars from Apple has made a quite appearance in the App Store for a price of $29.95. The binoculars work a lot like the Gear VR and Google Cardboard. It needs a smartphone – in this case the iPhone – in order to create a virtual environment for the wearer.

The View-Master is not a hands-free device. It requires the user to hold the device up to their eyes just like the old school View-Masters. Like the Google Cardboard, the View-Master lets consumers get a taste of the virtual space. A sort of baby step to know whether consumers are ready for the major VR headsets like the Oculus Rift.

This is just an easy, affordable offering from Apple, which is planning in all likeliness to come out with its own Rift-like VR headset in the near future.

February 10, 2016
Xiaomi Mi 5 Camera Shots Surface

As MWC 2016 edges closer it is understandable for the Internet to go on a meltdown mode when a company like Xiaomi teases its users with let’s say camera shots from its upcoming flagship, the Mi 5.

This device which promises to come with market leading specifications and give flagships of other established brands a run for their money has today turned heads with a pair of images clicked using the handset later shared by none other than the company’s president on his Weibo account.

The uploaded images are quite impressive to say the least with good color reproduction and detail. The camera in the image has focused on a bird in mid-flight and captured its movement perfectly. This points to the phone camera coming with a laser autofocus system as it had been previously rumoured.

Moving from the camera, the phone will come with a Snapdragon 820 SoC paired with 3GB of RAM. It will come with 64GB of onboard storage. The display on the phone will be a 5.7-inch Full HD display. The launch of the phone is set for February 24th.

February 10, 2016
LG G5 to Feature an Always On Display Mode

Last week, LG confirmed that its LG G5 flagship will be officially unveiled on February 21 at the ‘Unpacked’ event just before the MWC. Today, just days before the unveiling, the company has revealed a new feature for the G5 – an Always On mode.

The Always On mode, much like the Active Display found in Motorola devices and Ambient Display in Google’s latest Nexus phones, displays notifications on the screen without having to turn the screen on. This feature that is slowly growing in importance will also be seen in the new Samsung Galaxy S7 devices, according to rumours.

The image release by LG shows the Always On feature as well as an outline of the phone itself, the shape of which looks similar to past renders of the device. Furthermore, it is also reported that the G5 will be made out of metal and will also feature a fingerprint scanner and a dual rear camera setup. It won’t be long before these rumours will be confirmed as we appraoch the big day.

February 10, 2016
LeEco Gets 95,000 Orders Within Twenty Seconds of Flash Sale

LeEco has clearly impressed the Indian consumers if we are to go by the company’s performance in its flash sales. Earlier today, LeEco held its second flash sale for the recently launched Le 1s, and performed even better than the previous sale.

According to LeEco, there were 95,000 orders for the Le 1s within the first twenty seconds of the sale. Additionally, the company also adds that there were 10.30 lakh registrations, a huge increase from the last sale’s 600,000 registrations, for the smartphone before the sale started.

With these numbers, the smartphone brand, has once again broken three records, same as the previous sale. These records are -largest number of phones sold in a single flash sale, shortest duration for the sale of so many devices, and the largest number of pre-sale registrations.

The device is marked at Rs 10,999 and packs some pretty impressive specs for the price-tag. The Le 1s comes equipped with a MediaTek X10 Turbo running at 2.2 GHz. It houses a VR6200 GPU, 3GB RAM with 32GB storage.

The ‘SuperPhone’ also supports Dual Sim 4G connectivity, backed by a 3000 mAh battery. It’s a slim device of 7.5 mm, and boasts of a 5.5-Inch Full HD display, with a clarity of 403 ppi.

February 9, 2016
Set-Top Boxes to Allow Internet Browsing on Television Sets

Even though this news is of not much consequence for smart-television users, it is an interesting development for those who use standard television sets. Tata Sky and Videocon d2h have announced that their set-top boxes will now also feature web browsing.

DTH (direct-to-home) service providers have experimented with various interactive features which have only been supplemented by things like 4K display support on TV channels. Internet browsing is yet another feather added to the cap. This doesn’t mean, however, that users can use services like video streaming.

Tata Sky offers this new service to all existing customers free of cost, while Videocon d2h is yet to confirm details of its offers. Those using a smart-TV already have access to the Internet along with a pre-loaded app store. Having said that, this is still an interesting tech development for others.

However, with such deep infestation of the virtual space in our daily lives, one wonders if we need another gadget to connect us to the Internet. What do you think -should we be moving closer or away from the Internet in our daily activities? Let us know in the comments below.

February 9, 2016
Mark Zuckerberg Stays Hopeful About Internet.org in India After TRAI Bans Free Basics

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has spelled doom for Facebook’s Free Basics campaign by banning it from India. So much for all the voiced opinions in the last couple of weeks.

Though this is big setback for Internet.org, Mark Zuckerberg refuses to let it douse his spirits. In a post he put up earlier today, he says,

“Our work with Internet.org around the world has already improved many people’s lives. More than 19 million people in 38 countries have been connected through our different programs. Connecting India is an important goal we won’t give up on, because more than a billion people in India don’t have access to the internet.”

One cannot help but question Facebook’s ‘altruistic’ intentions, or ones it cannot stop talking about when it comes to Free Basics. With its infinite resources can’t Facebook simply set up a company that provides Internet to remote locations for free? Wi-Fi powered stations that provide connectivity can be used to help with these attempts. Once there are a substantial amount of people involved, there can surely be a way figure out a way to make money without necessarily compromising on net neutrality.

It is a fact that Facebook has provided some sort of Internet connectivity, mostly through the platform of Free Basics in 38 countries. But in the future, both Internet.org and Free Basics are expected to face the same trouble it did in India elsewhere as well over net neutrality.

February 9, 2016