At the Facebook F8 developers conference recently, the social media powerhouse announced a slew of new updates for the Messenger app to make it a formidable messaging tool. The addition of third party apps to the ecosystem is the most prominent upgrade to the new Messenger platform. But Apple might prove a major hindrance to Facebook’s plans.
Facebook inducted third party apps on its Messenger platform to make it a more powerful messaging tool.
Apple, the makers of iOS devices, have strict policies in place for apps on its App Store. Section 2.25 of the App Store Review Guidelines, states, “Apps that display Apps other than your own for purchase or promotion in a manner similar to or confusing with the App Store will be rejected.” The addition of support for third party apps on the Messenger platform puts it directly in conflict with the above app store policy.
The gist of the policy is that Apple doesn’t allow apps to set up their own app store on their ecosystem. If the policy is enforced against the Messenger platform, it will be a major downer for Facebook. As of now Apple has given no indication about its policy towards the new messaging platform. But we might get to hear something soon as Apple might still be studying the situation. Considering the massive market for Apple devices, Facebook is likely to get a deal sorted out to prevent a rejection from the App store.
Since the announcement of Honor 6 Plus, the company has been putting stress on the one-of-a-kind dual lens camera of the device. The Chinese smartphone brand called it a competitor of iPhone 6 and even claimed that it is better than the latest iPhone in various camera aspects.
The rear shooter on the Honor 6 Plus is an 8MP bionic parallel dual lens, which offers users an advanced camera experience. Honor claims this innovative camera lets you capture DSLR quality images. It also allows users to refocus images after the shot is taken. The focus time on the camera is claimed to be just 0.1 seconds, which means you won’t ever have a lost moment.
The Camera Interface :
The camera interface of the Honor 6 Plus is fairly simplistic. You can conjure up the camera just by hitting the volume key twice from the lock screen and it will bring up the interface within 1.3 seconds. You can switch between Photo, Video and Wide aperture mode here. The various picture modes are present next to the shutter button on the right side.
The camera interface doesn’t offer a lot of manual options to the user. You can set the ISO and the white balance, but that’s about it. The device though offers excellent object tracking feature that keeps the object you want to click in sharp focus but unfortunately this feature is not available for video where it could have been more useful.
Here are a few camera samples of the different modes to give you a better idea of its performance:
Photo Modes:
Mode: Halo
Mode: Valencia
Mode: Sweet
Mode: Pure
Mode: Vintage
Mode: Mono
Mode: Illusion
Mode: Dawn
Mode: Nostalgia
Mode: Normal
No doubt, the camera of Honor 6 Plus functions brilliantly in normal mode and takes shots in fine detail. It captures true colours of the subject with minimal noise. The other modes offered by Honor 6 Plus include Childhood, Illusion, Halo Effect, Nostalgia and few more. True to their names, each of the modes give the image a new look by adjusting the colour tone. You probably won’t need any Instagram filters with this camera.
Wide Aperture Shot:
The Wide aperture mode creates an artificial bokeh effect. The depth can be adjusted manually with the help of slider provided in the camera app. The aperture can be adjusted from f/0.96 to f/16. By moving the slider, you can see the change in the depth of field and adjust it as you please.
HDR:
HDR OFF
HDR ON
The HDR mode is productive in high contrast light environments. The colors get more saturated and sharpness increases.
Super Night Mode:
Super Night Mode
The super night mode is basically a slow shutter shot and won’t be useful for people with shaky hands. When the shutter button is clicked in super night mode, a countdown starts. The duration of the countdown depends upon the amount of light you have in your vicinity.
So when we took the above shot with the wood block in an almost dark room, it took about 25 seconds to click the image. With a fair amount of lighting, the counter comes down to 3-7 seconds. To get the best out of this feature you need to invest in a tripod or find a stable surface to keep the phone.
Video:
Honor 6 Plus does allow you to tap for focus while shooting videos. This feature will come really handy for folks who want to focus on a particular part of the frame. But every time you tap to focus, there is a visible jerk in the video. So it is advisable to use this feature sparingly.
Conclusion:
Overall, the camera is undoubtedly good. The 8MP dual parallel lens camera shows promise, but it is a slight bit low on software support. Honor should work towards adding more manual features to this camera. The company should also add features like slow motion and time-lapse to let it take on the top-end devices. Honor can also allow users to take 3D images through its dual lens camera which will be appreciated by the consumers. Honor 6 Plus is a great all round device and its unique camera will attract customers towards itself, all it needs is a few software upgrades to become their primary shooter.
Honor which is now an independent smartphone under Huawei dazzled the Indian audience with the launch of the Honor 6 Plus and Honor 4X in the Indian market. Honor 4X will take on the likes of Moto G, Redmi Note, Yu Yureka and similar devices. The first flash sale for the 4X will be held on the 30th March and looking at the registrations for the device, it seems like Honor has a winner on their hands.
Honor claimed to have registered over 1,00,000 registration for the Honor 4X within just 24 hours. The device is priced at Rs. 10,499. The registration started on e-commerce website Flipkart at 4:00 pm on March 24, 2015, and will last until midnight on March 29, 2015.
Honor 4X feels like a bang for the buck device. It sports a 5.5 inch HD display and is powered by 1.2 GHz, Snapdragon 410 processor. It offers 2 GB RAM and 8 GB of storage which is expandable up to 32 GB.
The phone flaunts a 13 MP camera on the back and a 5 MP selfie shooter in the front. The device runs EMYI 3.0 which is based on Android 4.4.4 KitKat. It is juiced up by a 3000 mAh which will ensure that you have enough juice to keep you going all day.
It seems that the companies are finally ready to offer quality handsets to budget consumers. The intense competition between the brands is great for the Indian consumers who now gets great features without emptying up their wallets.
Samsung recouped the lost reputation with the launch of Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge this year at MWC. Both the handsets received tremendous positive response by customers over the world. The Galaxy S6 received lofty admiration because of its powerful processor and unbeatable specs, but it also carries with itself a some flaws that fails to impress a vast section of Samsung fans. The latest Galaxy handset doesn’t have a removable battery, expandability option to hold more content, and is not waterproof. The Korean firm now is aiming to overcome the weak points and is reportedly bringing out a new smartphone called ‘Galaxy S6 Active.’
According to the rumors, the new Galaxy S6 Active will be an overhaul of Galaxy S6 and will boast features like detachable battery, MicroSD card space and few more. The word about the S6 Active is spread by a Reddit user who claims to have drawn information from a Samsung representative. The source reports that the next smartphone from S series will not have a fingerprint sensor or a heart rate monitor. It is said to pack the same set of specs as that of S6, but the camera will be altered to bear low resolution. As said earlier, the phone is anticipated to hold a removable battery which is supposed to be bigger than that of S6. The protective features include water and dust resistance.
He also stated that Galaxy S6 Active could bear buttons at the front, just like Galaxy S5 Active. It is expected to come out in Mid-summer. From what the user has disclosed, it is clear that Samsung doesn’t want to lose any single potential customer. The extra storage and bumped battery will surely lure users who earlier made up their minds to switch because of the hyped price of the higher variants.
There are no further details about Galaxy S6 Active and the device is in developmental stage. Another Samsung device that the company is planning to bring out is Samsung Galaxy Xcover 3, as per the same source. The smartphone houses the identical features as that of the S6 Active and will come with dust and water resistance, removable battery, and MicroSD card space.
Meanwhile, it should be noted that these are just rumors and the company hasn’t authenticated any of these reports. Customers who view the Galaxy S6 Active as a better alternative to the Galaxy S6 have to wait till summer to own this still rumored device.
Samsung is all set to bring out its Virtual Reality headsets, the Gear VR in the hands of the consumers. The Korean electronics firm along with Oculus is rolling out the Innovator Edition of VR headset to the developers who will be able to purchase it from the 100 Best Buy retail locations. The sale of the VR Headset Innovator Edition will start from tomorrow i.e. March 27, 2015.
For now, the virtual reality headset will be available in the retail stores of the US. One can stroll into a Best Buy store and grab one for $199. The Innovator Edition of VR Gear is compatible with Galaxy Note 4 smartphone. Drop the Note 4 or the Note Edge into the VR headset and the phones display will do all the work. It lets the user indulge into the immersive virtual experience and gives you a tour of an alternate world. The Best Buy has exciting offer in store for those who don’t own a Galaxy Note 4. Willing buyers can buy a combo of the Note 4 and VR Headset at discounted rates.
We got a chance to try out the Gear VR at Samsung’s event in Bangkok and we were quite impressed by the graphics. The device lets you watch movies while sitting in a giant empty theatre. If you don’t like the empty theatre then you can easily shift to the Moon, yes with the Gear VR you can watch your favourite movies on the moon with the Eagle lunar module next too. We loved the brief experience and hope Samsung gets it to our shores soon.
With the launch of its new flagships, Samsung has also unveiled a new version of the VR headset. The new iteration is compatible with the two latest handsets, the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge. The latest edition is built to fit the smaller screen of the smartphones and is not on sale till yet. It is likely to arrive post the arrival of Galaxy S6 and its edgier counterpart on April 10.
Samsung finally launched products which are worthy of the Korean giant’s stature in the tech industry. The Galaxy S6 and its curvy sibling the S6 Edge bring unique features to the market that set a standard for others to follow. Samsung paid heed to all the criticisms directed towards it and built a smartphone that seeks to address all the issue and take smartphones to the next step.
Here are the ten features of the new Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge which make it stand apart from the rest of its competition.
Fact #1: Metal and Glass
Samsung has been making Android smartphones since the early days of the operating system. Smartphones are its most prominent product, but the company was criticised lately for bringing products with lackluster designs and made mostly of plastic. So this time around Samsung gave its devices the premium look and feel that its target consumers were looking for. The new flagship handsets are crafted with metal and glass which makes them flaunt-worthy. It has an aluminium frame and is strengthened with Gorilla Glass 4 on both sides.
Fact #2: Wireless Charging
Both the Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge offer wireless charging that supports major standards including Qi charging.
Fact #3: Quick Charge
The new flagships feature Quick Charge capability that allows you to get 4 hours worth of juice with just 10 minutes of charging.
Fact #4: Non-Removable Battery and No Expandable Storage
Samsung had in past flaunted the fact that you can easily pull off the back cover, pop in your secondary battery, and you’ll be ready to go. Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge are the first smartphones from the company to feature a unibody design with no removable battery and expandable storage. Samsung said that they were confident of their battery’s features, so they decided to lock it in. The phones are available in 32, 64, and 128 GB storage options.
Fact #5: The First Dual Edge Curved Smartphone
The Galaxy S6 Edge is a one-of-a-kind device. It is the only handset in the world to have a dual edge display. Samsung hasn’t really added a lot of features to the two curved displays, but they sure look fantastic. The curved displays are open for developers to innovate so we might see new utilities for the edge displays in the future.
Fact #6: Gorilla Glass 4
The premium metal and glass design asks for ingredients that look appealing while being tough and robust. Corning Gorilla Glass 4 is one of the strongest protective glass in the world, and the new Galaxy S-series flagships are covered with it on both front and back ends.
Fact #7: Samsung Pay
Mobile payments are the next step in payment technologies. Apple has already introduced the NFC-based payment system called Apple Pay with the new iPhones. Samsung went further and introduced Samsung Pay, a mobile based payment method that even works with conventional credit/debit card readers. Your payments will be secure as they will have to be authenticated with the phones inbuilt fingerprint reader located in the home button.
Fact #8: Flagship Camera
Both new Galaxy S flagships feature amazing camera modules. Both these devices have f/1.9 mm lens on both front and back cameras which ensure that you get bright photos and great night-time imagery. The 16 MP main camera with F1.9 on the back also comes with OIS, so you get fantastic images and videos devoid of any shakes.
Fact #9: Powered By Exynos
Samsung has previously marketed devices based on its homegrown processor, Exynos along with Snapdragon options. This time around, Samsung has put the task of powering the new flagships solely to the new octa-core Exynos chipsets based on 14 Nm architecture.
Fact #10: Samsung Knox
Considering the prices of these premium devices, you can guess that its target audience is the executive and businessman on the move. Mobile devices are playing a major role in the enterprise ecosystem. It’s important here that the crucial enterprise data remain secure while being convenient to access. Samsung Knox attempts to do just that. You can have two device in one, for professional and personal use. With Knox, your enterprise data remains separate and secure from your personal data. Samsung Knox also addresses several security concerns of the Android ecosystem and thereby becomes a valuable addition to the new smartphones.
Xiaomi embarked on a journey into the tech segment on March 31, 2010. The company has had a splendid time in the world of electronic equipments and the brand went bigger and bigger every passing year. On March 31 this year, the Chinese manufacturer will become five-year-old and it has some big plans to celebrate the fifth anniversary with its fans.
According to Gizmo China, Xiaomi is geared to release some products that are different from its present offerings. Xiaomi’s co-founder Lin Bin posted an image through the company’s official account on Weibo which suggest that the next product from Xiaomi would be women-centric.
As one can see, the teaser image comprises an outline of a dress with a feminine pink background. A text in block letters NSSJ in written on the top of the dress. The dress is enough a hint to inform users that the upcoming product would cater to females.
Apart from that, Xiaomi is shifting its focus from sleek construction and curvy edges to being more fashionable. As per a conversation between Bin Lin and a fashion group, it appears like Xiaomi is collaborating with the fashion group to bring out a gadget that is high on fashion.
Meanwhile, there is no information if Xiaomi will launch an all-new device or will just give a fashion angle to its already existing line of gadgets. But according to Times of India, it could launch a mid-range smartphone codenamed ‘Ferrari’. The handset appeared on the graphics benchmarking website GFXBench.
If the source is to be believed then the next device could be a 4.9-inch FHD device with 1.6GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 octa-core processor, Adreno 405 GPU and 2GB of RAM. The phone is said to pack 16GB of internal memory storage along with 12MP rear and a 5MP front-facing camera. The phone will run on Android 5.0 Lollipop out of the box.
The best part is that users don’t have to wait for long. We are less than a week away for March 31 and buyers will get to know about the devices shortly at the forthcoming event.
At Facebook’s F8 Developer conference yesterday, the CEO of the company Mark Zuckerberg took the stage to announce the future of its Messenger Platform. The company recently spun off Messenger into its own independent app. Messenger will now become a superpowered messaging app that can become the most formidable competitor in the market.
Mark Zuckerberg spoke about the new service at the conference –
It’s a new platform that developers can use to build apps that help people connect.
Facebook introduced 40 new apps for the Messenger Platform. These apps come within the Messenger service and adds up to the vast ecosystem of apps on Android and iOS. The newly developed tools allow users to interact with businesses like online retail brands, where they can place their order directly and get details about the order through chat. Also, you would be able to send messages to the Messenger app store to download an application. Facebook can use its reach and introduce a Messenger tab on major websites to speak directly with businesses or content creators. By opening up Facebook Messenger platform, the social networking platform has given the third-party apps access to the millions of Facebook users. Besides, it has made Facebook Messenger a strong contender among other messaging platforms like WeChat and Line, who are all-round services that offer for gaming, e-commerce, and of course, communication. The new platform is said to be open for all the developers, but the company has already finalised 40 launch partners. Some of them includes ESPN, Imgur, The Weather Channel, and Giphy.
A while back, Facebook detached Messenger from its smartphone app and asked the users to install the new independent app. The decision by the social networking giant led to mass disapproval at that time, but it has now begun to make sense. Facebook was preparing its user-base to explore the new developments of the Messenger store and its scope for business communication.
Th company has been continuously building up its Messenger platform. Few days back, Facebook announced a new payment feature that allows you to send money via instant message. Messaging app will soon become the center of future communication and might replace tools like e-mails and become our primary mode of communication. Facebook also said that Messengers new features can act as a model for WhatsApp in the future. The future of messaging apps looks great.
WhatsApp recently led a direct assault at telecom companies’ core business, voice calling. By introducing the voice calling feature, WhatsApp became a complete phone utility in itself. The feature is being rolled out gradually on Android and WhatsApp’s founder has announced that iOS users of the app will be bestowed with voice calling feature really soon.
WhatsApp’s co-founder, Brian Acton was speaking at Facebook’s F8 developers’ conference when he made the announcement. He said iOS users will be getting the voice calling update in a “couple weeks”.
There have already been a few unofficial efforts towards bringing the feature on iOS through jailbroken iPhones, but an official version is definitely better and secure.
As the date mentioned by the company is still vague, you can expect it to take a few weeks more. Facebook Messenger chief, David Marcus had said that WhatsApp had spent years creating and testing the voice calling feature before bringing it to Android phones. So maybe it’s better to wait a few weeks to get a fully functional voice calling feature instead of bug filled versions that may be available now.
It would also be interesting to see how the telecom companies respond to this as it’s a major threat to their core business. If past is an indication, they might steeply increase the price of data packs and may also try to take initiatives to break the internet. This is no ordinary feature, and we should anticipate a major legal battle soon between the old powers and the new innovative tech developers over the future course of communication technology.
It was once the only way to connect to the internet in most personal computers. For years, Microsoft’s Internet Explorer brought internet to the masses. Before the arrival of multiple tabs, search from address bars, and a multitude of browsers to choose from, there was the Internet Explorer (IE). Now it’s the year 2015, and we have come a long way from 1995 when IE first came into existence. The browser landscape has changed dramatically, and Microsoft has decided to slowly say farewell to the good old IE.
Microsoft launched the Internet Explorer in 1995 as an add-on package Plus! for Windows 95. After its launch, Microsoft had to face a much publicised lawsuit against the American government who alleged that by integrating the internet browser with the operating system, the company was engaging in monopolistic behaviour. It was said Microsoft’s inclusion of a web browser would be severely detrimental to other browsers of that time such as the Netscape Navigator. Microsoft used its monopoly power and eventually won the war of browsers as well as reached a settlement, in that case.
Over the years, IE has constantly lost ground to newer browsers like Firefox and Chrome.
In recent years, there have been immense developments in the field of browsers and IE has now taken a back-seat. Not just that, it has received much ridicule over the internet for not keeping up with the times. Browsers like Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome are fast eating into the IE’s market share though IE still enjoys a comfortable majority with almost 40% of the market share as its present by default in most systems.
Coming to the future of IE, Microsoft has already announced that it would be replacing IE for a whole new default browser for Windows 10 OS with what is presently known as Project Spartan. Internet Explorer will still be present on a few Windows 10 systems, for enterprise consumers who use it for its business applications. Microsoft had previously said that the new rendering engine for Spartan will also be shared with IE, but the company said that it would not be doing that any more.
Internet Explorer will be replaced with Spartan which will be the browser of the future for Microsoft.
In Windows 10, IE will be carried forward unchanged from Windows 8.1. Spartan, on the other hand, will offer unique features that would let it take on the present giants of the business. Microsoft’s voice assistant, Cortana, will also feature in this new browser to make it easier for you to find what you are looking for.
Every journey has its end, and IE is on the last leg of its journey. As the enterprises and governments who still use IE shift to newer browsers, IE will rapidly lose its share in the market. But considering the iconic stature of the browser, Microsoft needs to send it off in style. We hope Microsoft gets this message, and it hosts a legendary farewell event for the grand old Explorer.
Entourage fans have waited a long while for the movie based on the series to play in a theatre near their house. That wait will come to an end real soon. The movie, like the show is produced by Mark Wahlberg, who also plays himself in the movie. The cinematic version of Entourage stars many recognizable faces from Hollywood.
Ari Gold, the legendary talent agent, is now the head of a studio and invests $100 Million in Vince’s directorial debut. But all seems to be in chaos as usual. The boys; E, Turtle and Drama will also engage in shenanigans that will get them stuck in weird places. Watch the new trailer and get ready for the chaotic adventures of Vincent Chase and his Entourage.
Display technologies have witnessed immense evolution over the years. We now can find displays in all shapes and sizes, and they are now an integral parts of our lives. There have also been efforts to create innovative display which has led to the arrival of various curved and manipulable displays in the market. Samsung wants to take it a step ahead and introduce flexible, foldable displays by next year.
The Korean electronics giant had previously initiated a competition where it offered cash prizes ranging between $2,500 and $10,000 to get entrepreneurs excited about creating startups around flexible display technologies. That initiative was called Samsung Create: Flexible Future Business Plan Competition.
BusinessKorea reports that they have insider info on the future of Samsung’s foldable display endeavour. They say that the commercialization of foldable smartphones will be possible in 2016. They cite a Samsung Display official for the quote.
Foldable displays isn’t that new a concept. Most of us have come across random design renderings before the launch of every new iPhone. Flexible displays have also found their place in science fiction based films and TV shows. We have also seen some prototypes like the Kyocera Proteus, but there hasn’t yet been a foldable display in real life that matches up to its fictional silver screen counterpart. A fully developed flexible display might look something like this, except for the holograms of course:
The first foldable displays are expected to be featured in smartphones. So we might start to get some interesting revelations by the time the Galaxy S7 gets ready for launch. The technology is still in developmental stage, and it will be a major challenge to bring a new species of displays for the mass market in a year. But we will still be optimistic here and let Samsung work hard on our future flexible smartphones. Don’t disappoint us now Samsung, we finally started liking you again after the Galaxy S6.
The app-based taxi services have made it possible for us to travel with ease. What more can one expect than a car waiting at your doorstep? But the question still hovers around their registration issues.
Recent news points out that the Union Information Technology Ministry has been asked by the Delhi Government to block the mobile applications of Ola, Uber and Meru Genie taxi-hailing companies. That means soon these taxi service providers are going to cease their operations, unless they receive their licence in time.
This nationwide ban was issued for all unregistered web-based taxi companies in December last year because of a knee-jerk reaction to the rape of a female in the capital by a Uber driver. In spite of this ban, Uber the US-based taxi service company brought out UberX, a low-cost option with a new revised fare charts to operate in January. Ola, backed by Japan’s SoftBank Corp also applied for a radio taxi license, and they continued to contravene the December order.
As of now, license has been provided to Easy Cab, Yo Cab, Mega Cab, Meru Cab, Chanson Cab and Air Cab by the Delhi Transport Authority.
The government opines that they are not against these public convenient services. But they’d like them to follow proper guidelines by installing a GPS tracking system and an emergency button in the cabs for the sake of their smooth operation.
As the clock is ticking for the arrival time of Yu’s next smartphone ‘Project Caesar’, the Micromax subsidiary has released a promotional campaign to sustain the excitement of its potential customers. Yu is now teasing the forthcoming handset with a poster that gives away a few details about upcoming smartphone.
Looking at this image from Yu, one can make out that Project Caesar will be equipped with a 64-bit processor along with 2GB of RAM. Also, the on-board storage space on the device will be 16GB, as mentioned in the poster.
You will also notice that Yu has taken a dig at Xiaomi with the teaser. The home-grown company ridicules the specifications of the recently launched Redmi 2 and mocks Xiaomi with the caption “Read Mi Lips… The Future is Yu.”
Few days back, YU poked fun at Xiaomi with another poster that ridiculed Redmi phones for still running on KitKat OS. The company confirmed that its forthcoming device will feature Cyanogen OS 12 based on Android Lollipop.
Yu is slowly disseminating information about Project Caesar, but there’s still a lot to be known. The phone is confirmed to be launched in the month of April this year. Keep checking this space for more updates on Yu’s latest device.
In the past few years, technology sector has seen an upward graph. Many e-commerce websites like Flipkart, BookMyShow, Myntra, and CommonFloor came into existence recently and soon became top-tier consumer markets. One of the major support systems that led to the establishment of these firms, were companies such as Accel Partners, a global venture capital firm. The firm has now launched Accel India IV, a $305 million (Rs. 1,900 crore) fund dedicated to empowering Indian start-ups.
The fund launched by the company this time is double the amount raised by Accel Partners last time. The company provided $155 million in 2011 as a part of Accel India III and $60 in 2008 in Accel India II. The California-based growth equity firm aims at solidifying consumer, enterprise software, and mobile sector along with the healthcare division through the recently raised fund.
According to Subrata Mitra, an official from Accel –
While there is more competition (investors) and more start-ups, some of the better companies have begun to accelerate a lot faster and get a lot bigger. So, yes, we do expect to help build many large companies.
In past few years, the number of smartphone users in the country has increased tremendously. This has stimulated to the growth of many internet-related ventures; hence, making India a marketplace where investors are ready to invest their money.
Many global players have made huge investment in the Indian start-ups. Softbank invested $210 million in Ola Cabs and Housing.com, and on the other hand Alibaba contributed $575 million in One97. The favourable conditions for seed ventures in the nation are attracting financiers to invest in the start-ups. It’s a good proposal for the emerging companies and will help them to establish on a larger scale.
