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Bing Search to be powered by Britannica Encyclopedia

The deal would ensure better search results for users.

Microsoft’s search engine, Bing, signed a deal with Britannica Encyclopedia to add more content to its search results. The deal was announced by Microsoft through a blogpost which also said that when information from Britannica was relevant to a search, Bing users would see a small box summarising salient facts about a topic or subject.

[quote]We are excited about how new instant answers from Britannica Online delivers relevant information in a more organized way that helps people find information more quickly, a Microsoft spokeswoman said.[/quote]

This deal builds on Britannica’s decision in March to stop publishing it’s 244-year run of print volumes and Bing’s website redesign.

June 11, 2012
Xperia Neo L for China to have ICS out of the box we itch for a taste

Sony is really depending on its new strategy to kick off in China and other Asian Countries including India. The new Xperia Neo L is an unannounced, ICS packing, China bound variant of the Sony lineup. Specs include 1GHz Snapdragon S2 CPU, 512MB of RAM along with a MBE in a 4-inch 854 x 480 resolution.

There is no indication on pricing, but a confirmed, launch in China is happening this month.

[ePrice]

June 11, 2012
Sony SmartWatch to launch this month, to cost Rs 6299

The SmartWatch will work with all Android phones.

According to Sony India’s Facebook page it will release its SmartWatches for Android smartphones by the end of this month at a price of around Rs 6299. The SmartWatch has a 1.3 inch OLED display that is used by the watch to notify users about the updates and events, like incoming calls, texts, messages and social feeds with the use of vibration and screen alert. It would also include a bluetooth headset which allows users to recieve calls.

The watch, which would be available in various colours, would be compatible with all Android smartphones and would sync over Bluetooth 3.0.

June 11, 2012
AiAiAi TMA-1 Studio Headphones Launched, Will arrive in India after global availability (PR)

The new TMA-1 Studio headphones from AiAiAi have a very promising spec lineup. With 40 mm drivers and an Impedance of 32±15% Ohm, the design adds to the package. The Headphones will retail for a price of $249 (Rs. 13999) for the standard ones and $269 (Rs. 14,999) for the ones with a mic.

The over the ear design has large cushions that will isolate for ears from any outside noise. The headphones are currently on pre-order, and will be delivered within US and UK. The company has confirmed that once the supply in these markets is met, they will start shipping globally including India.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Transducer Principle: Dynamic, closed
Driver Unit Size: 40 mm
Impedance: 32±15% Ohm
Load Rating: 0.07 W
Frequency Response: 20 to 20.000 Hz
Total Harmonic Distortion: <0.3%
Sensitivity: 110±3dB
Weight without cable: 220 Gram

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The TMA-1 Studio Now Available for Pre-order

Yes, we’re finally releasing the beast. The new AIAIAI headphones designed specifically for the on-the-go producer/musician will be shipped on the 20th of June.

The TMA-1 Studio was born out of necessity. Where we prevoiusly sought to fill the need for a particular kind of durable, great-sounding DJ Headphone with the TMA-1, the TMA-1 Studio is our response to the needs of today’s frequently traveling producers and musicians.

Designed by longtime collaborators, KiBiSi, and engineered in cooperation with one of Scandinavias’ most prominent producers and sound engineers, Jon Schumann, the latest addition to the AIAIAI headphone family provides durability for the road, comfort over longer periods of time for producing, and a meticulously engineered sound design suitable for mixing on the laptop. Where the TMA-1 enhances the DJ performance, the TMA-1 Studio enriches the music production experience.

SOUND:
At the core of the TMA-1 Studio is a 40mm titanium driver insulated and filtrated by the most advanced speaker materials available. From the voice coil, to the yoke, magnet and speaker diaphragm, the TMA-1 Studio achieves crisp highs without compromising its ability to deliver rich mids and deep lows.

CUSHIONS:
The design also takes the different situations in which headphones are used into account – from long studio sessions to just being on the road and recording. What’s more, it offers two types of easily changeable and different over-ear cushions. Each cushion is connected to a specially designed cushion plate.

HEADBAND:
The one piece TMA-1 Studio headband is designed to provide the functionality of a DJ headphone headband but also to strip it down to the bare essentials. This ensures a stronger and more durable product, which can withstand daily use for a considerable length of time. The TMA-1 Studio is equipped with a new PU headband padding, which is softer, more durable and extra comfortable to wear over longer periods of time.

TMA-1 STUDIO HIGHLIGHTS:
* 40mm titanium driver, which has been tweaked for a more neutral, reference listening-friendly sound
* Over-ear PU cushions that makes details stand out in full clarity
* PU headband padding, which is softer, more durable and extra comfortable to wear over longer production sessions.

The new studio headphones from AIAIAI thus represent robust and thoroughly crafted audio technology for the frequently traveling, professional DJ/ producer who needs headphones that can perform while on the road, at the airport or in the air.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
Transducer Principle: Dynamic, closed
Driver Unit Size: 40 mm
Impedance: 32±15% Ohm
Load Rating: 0.07 W
Frequency Response: 20 to 20.000 Hz
Total Harmonic Distortion: <0.3%
Sensitivity: 110±3dB
Weight without cable: 220 Gram

AIAIAI’s Research & Development Specialist, Jon Schumann, talks about the TMA-1 Studio

Please place your orders at our pre-order page. US customers: for speedier delivery, head on over to the Ghostly International webstore.

Retail price:€229 and US$249.

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[AiAiAi]

June 11, 2012
Adobe releases Flash 11, AIR 3

The new version supports multi-threaded video decoding

Software giants Adobe on Saturday released version 11 of their Flash software along with AIR 3 bringing about accelerated graphics rendering support through Stage 3D. Adobe states that the new technology improves rendering times by a factor of up to a 1000 times over Flash Player 10. The capabilities of the new version of Flash allows for “console-quality” games on the Flash platform, according to their blog.

Also with version 11 comes support for 64-bit, and multi-threaded video decoding which previously was not available at all.

June 11, 2012
Verizon’s Droid RAZR HD leaked benchmarks leave a mark

The next revision of the DROID RAZR series is due this year, dubbed the “DROID RAZR HD” the phone recently was spotted in a benchmark listing. A NenaMark2 report clearly shows what claims to be the Verizon phone with a Qualcomm Adreno 225 GPU. There is reason to believe that the chipset is actually a 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 .

More details from the benchmark report show a HD screen 1196 x 720 px and Android ICS (4.0.4). Possibilities also include really thin dimensions. We’ll keep you guys updated.

[NenaMark]

June 11, 2012
Leaked Hotmail Metro Style teases the future

Leaked images of a future build of Hotmail suggest that Microsoft is bringing it into Metro style. It seems like Microsoft has been able to keep the development of this project under wraps, until it is almost ready to be released.

In the images you will see certain metro elements, but, also the fact that it all looks very incomplete. Certain icons aside everything else looks very bland and generic hotmail.

Details on tool out of the upgrade are still sketchy, most rumors point to alongside the final release of retail Windows 8.

[WinFuture]

June 11, 2012
Galaxy Pocket Handled

The Galaxy Pocket is a Budget Phone from Samsung, Bharat takes a look at its initial impressions at the iGyaan Studio.

June 9, 2012
Apple will announce iOS 6 at WWDC 2012 , Confirms spotted Banner/s

A banner being put up by ground staff at the WWDC event being held this year at Moscone West. There have been other leaks of high res MacBooks with Retina displays and a new design. But the above image pretty much confirms the announcement of iOS 6, below which if you read correctly you will find the moniker ” World’s most Advanced Mobile Operating System” (Proud much Apple? )

The event happens on Monday, so stay tuned for the whole low down.

June 9, 2012
Facebook launches App Center

The App Center will be made available for Android and iOS

Facebook on Thursday launched it’s App Center to enable it’s billions of users to find and play games and use other apps. The App Center will be made available on it’s website and to Android and iOS, where users can send apps to their phones and then get redirected to the App Store / Google Play to download it if necessary.

Most users are introduced to new apps through the irritating requests that fill up the notifications panel, but looks like that will change now. The app center helps you find new games based on searches or your preferences.

The new App Center will initially feature about 600 Facebook apps, mostly games, which will undergo a quality check first by the company to maintain a particular standard. Games, such as Zynga’s “CityVille” and Electronic Arts’ “The Sims,” are the most popular types of apps on Facebook.

It will be made available to users from the US first, with the rest to follow later.

June 8, 2012
Google maps to go 3D

Google Maps: The next dimension

Google maps are set to add a new dimension! The announcement was made by Google from their San Francisco office where a press conference was held, keeping in mind Apple’s press event, the WWDC, which is set to take place next week. It is deploying a fleet of small, camera-equipped airplanes, via contractors, above several cities, the Internet search company’s latest step in its ambitious and sometimes controversial plan to create a digital map of the world. The images would be recorded at a 45-degree angle and would be integrated with Google Earth.

[quote]We’re trying to create the illusion that you’re just flying over the city, almost as if you were in your own personal helicopter, said Peter Birch, a product manager for Google Earth. [/quote]

The imagery would be done at a 45-degree angle.

Brian McClendon, Google’s head of engineering for its maps product, said that privacy issues were the same as that accompany aerial imagery. Privacy has been an issue for various countries, especially when Google’s Street View cars had been inadvertently collecting emails, passwords and other personal data from people’s home wireless networks.

A demo of a San Francisco map in 3d was showcased and it was nothing short of spectacular.

It also announced that Google maps for Android would soon get an offline caching feature, allowing users to download a part of a map on their devices and use them later.

Google doesn’t want to say when these features will become available, making it pretty obvious that today’s announcement is meant to preempt Apple’s rumored announcements next week.

June 7, 2012
Twitter Bird gets a makeover

The new bird is made out of overlapping circles.

Social networking and microblogging website Twitter revealed their new logo on Wednesday. The new logo was announced on their blog and the new bird has a upturned beak, no hair on top, and higher feathers. Overall it looks like its strutting and and seems a little more confident. Also the lowercase “t” will no longer represent Twitter on various share buttons across the web. The Bird is replacing the t.

[quote]From now on, this bird will be the universally recognizable symbol of Twitter. (Twitter is the bird, the bird is Twitter), said Doug Bowman, the company’s creative director. There’s no longer a need for text, bubbled typefaces, or a lowercase ‘t’ to represent Twitter.[/quote]

The logo is said to have been constructed purely through overlapping circles, similar to how your networks, interests and ideas connect and intersect with peers and friends.

Twitter, which now has 140 million monthly active users producing 400 million tweets daily, has ramped up its revenue-generating efforts since Costolo assumed the top leadership role in late 2010.

June 7, 2012
YouTube to stream Olympics in 64 territories

The broadcast will be made available in 64 territories.

YouTube, after reaching an agreement with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), is all set to broadcast the London Olympics in High Definition to 64 territories across Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. YouTube has already established itself in the field of live coverages after successfully broadcasting events like the India Premier League, U2 concerts and the royal wedding.

For a list of countries where YouTube will broadcast, check out the press release below.

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IOC to live stream London 2012 in 64 territories on its YouTube channel

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) today announced that it will live stream the London 2012 Olympic Games in 64 territories on the IOC’s channel on YouTube http://youtube.com/olympic.

During the Olympics Games (27 July to 12 August), sports fans in these 64 territories across Asia and Africa will be able to enjoy live coverage of the events as well as highlight clips on this digital platform – free-of-charge. Viewers from these territories will be able to watch the streams on the IOC’s YouTube channel, accessible online or on Internet-enabled devices like smart/mobile phones and other YouTube-enabled devices.

The live-streaming on the IOC’s YouTube channel will provide exclusive digital access to the London 2012 Olympic Games in territories where digital broadcast rights have not already been acquired by the IOC’s broadcast partners:

Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Brunei, Bhutan, Cambodia, East Timor, India, Indonesia, Iran, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam.

And in 42 Sub-Saharan African territories on a non-exclusive basis, including:

Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The IOC’s live streaming on its YouTube channel will consist of 11 different simultaneous high-definition broadcasts, all with English language commentary. There will be 10 live feeds from London 2012, running 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. (London time) (on some days, these will start earlier or finish later based on the competition schedule), plus a 24-hour broadcast of the Olympic News Channel, which includes summaries of the latest results, general reports on different events, and interviews with athletes.

Fans will also be able to catch up on highlights and full events – all organised by the day, medal event or the sport. The IOC channel will also continue to feature historic content from past Olympic Games. In total, the IOC’s YouTube channel will offer over 2,200 hours hours of sporting event coverage from London 2012, including all the medals finals.

Timo Lumme, Managing Director, IOC Television and Marketing, said: “We are delighted to be able to offer live online coverage of London 2012 to sports fans free of charge across these 64 markets. We first provided clips on our channel on YouTube during the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games across the region, and since then have continued to provide footage of past Olympic Games across the world on our YouTube channel. Now we will also be able to offer live coverage during London 2012, complementing the excellent coverage provided by our broadcast partners across the world across all media platforms.”

###

Rights-Holding Broadcasters for the London 2012 Olympic Games:

Download the list here

http://www.olympic.org/olympic-broadcasting

For more information, please contact the IOC Media Relations Team:
Tel: +41 21 621 6000 e-mail: [email protected], or visit our web site at www.olympic.org.

Videos
YouTube: www.youtube.com/iocmedia

Photos
For an extensive selection of photos available shortly after each event, please follow us on Flickr.
To request archive photos and footage, please contact our Images team at: [email protected].

Social media
For up-to-the-minute information on the IOC and regular updates, please follow us on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

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June 7, 2012
Spice Mobility Launches Stellar, Stellar Horizon and Stellar Craze, Ice Cream Sandwich to boot (PR)

Spice Mobile has launched three new Smartphones in the Android Segment. The Spice Stellar (Mi 425) , Stellar Horizon (Mi 500) and Stellar Craze are the new three launches for Spice all featuring Ice Cream Sandwich either out of the box or upgradability.

SPICE Stellar (Mi425)

We already Unboxed the Device Here , the phone features Android 2.3 (Upgradeable to 4.0), a 4.0 inch Capacitive Touch Screen, a 1 GHz Snapdragon Processor, a 2000 mAh battery along with a 5MP Autofocus + VGA front Camera. The device is a Dual Sim (3G+2G) device with a 32GB internal memory capability.

Price : Rs. 9999

SPICE Stellar Horizon (Mi500)

The device will be unboxed soon, it features a massive 5 inch Capacitive Touch Screen along with Android 4.0 ICS out of the BOX, am impressive 1 GHz Dual Core Snapdragon Processor, large Battery- 2150mAh, and the usually expected Dual SIM (3G + 2G) and 5MP Auto focus + Front camera. WHats more interesting is the fact that the device has 4GB ROM +512 MB RAM of course there is a 32GB upgradability.

Price : Rs.11,999

SPICE Stellar Craze

The Craze is the lower end model out of the three, featuring an 800 MHz processor, 3.5 inch capacitive screen, Dual SIM (3G + 2G) and 5MP camera + front camera. The phone will come with Android 2.3 out of the box but will be upgraded to ICS Android 4.0 soon.

Price: Rs. 6,499

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Spice Unveils India’s First ‘Secure Android’ Smartphones – ‘Spice Stellar”

The Ice Cream Sandwich ready range comes pre-embedded with the latest security solutions

Spice Stellar packs a punch with 1 year data plan – ABSOLUTELY FREE!

Delhi, 6^thJune 2012: Spice, India’s leading Mobile Internet company today announced the first ever range of ‘Secure Android’ smartphones in Delhi. This new range of smart phones is launched under the name ‘Spice Stellar’ and would come with 3 products with varied screen sizes – 3.5’’, 4’’ and 5’’. Present at the launch were Mr. Kunal Ahooja, Global Head-devices S Mobility Limited and Mr. Calvin Cai, GM-Overseas Business Development and Partnership, NQ Mobile.

The Stellar range offers ‘Security’ as the unique proposition which promises total protection against virus/data loss/theft/financial security on this android device for its customers. The initiative reinforces S Mobility’s efforts in making its devices safe and secure as users are becoming wary of the potential threat to data in their smart phones.

Speaking at the launch, Mr. Kunal Ahooja, Global Head – Devices, S Mobility said, “We are happy to tie up with NQ Mobile to offer latest solutions on mobile security for the benefit of our customers. This association will go a long way in reinforcing our brand vision of being ‘One step ahead of the needs of the mobile internet society’. High processor speed coupled with the latest android version on Spice Stellar range of devices, provides rich consumer experience but to ensure that this experience can be enjoyed without any interruption, Mobile Security is equally important!”Spice Stellar, launched today, is powered by the Android 2.3 Gingerbread which is upgradable to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS). It runs on a powerful 1GHZ Qualcomm Snapdragon processor and generates stunning graphics with 245MHz. Stellar has a big 4.0 inch touch screen which is a first of its kind in this price range. The smartphone also boasts of a huge 2000 mAh battery which provides a backup that lasts up to 7 hours of talk time and up to 120 hours standby. Currently, smartphones run on fast processors and have a lot of applications around them but do not have long lasting batteries to support them. The handset also packs in a 5 megapixel autofocus shooter along with a front camera to support video calls. Given the high end features, the latest handset from Spice’s smartphone stable will be available at a jaw dropping price of Rs. 9,999.

Coming soon will be the Spice Stellar Horizon which has a swanky 5 inch touch screen bundled with the Android 4.0 ICS. It packs in a powerful 1 GHz Dual Core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor that makes multi tasking a piece of cake and a dedicated 300 MHz GPU for the game heads. It possesses a 5MP auto focus camera with a 0.3MP front camera supporting video calling. Other key features include Dual Sim capability, GPS/ AGPS, Wi- Fi Tethering and a big battery life amongst many others.On the other hand also coming soon will be the Spice Stellar Craze that offers a 3.5 inch touch screen, 800 MHz processor and runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread which is upgradable to Android 4.0 ICS.

The Spice Stellar Horizon and Spice Stellar Craze will be hitting the retail market by end of this month and will be available at a price of Rs. 11,999 and Rs. 6,499 respectively.

Speaking at the launch, Mr. Kunal Ahooja, Global Head-devices S Mobility Limited said, “With the launch of the ‘Stellar’ series of handsets, we have brought in the country’s first secured Android handsets and also created a platform in offering one of the best in technology at an affordable price. We are proud to offer the latest Android ICS platform on the ‘Stellar’ handsets.”

To address mobile data security concerns, Spice has entered into an association with NQ Mobile, one of the leaders in mobile security solutions space with its headquarters co-located in China & USA and operating in more than 150 countries, to provide security software solutions in all Android devices of Spice. The solution is very critical in today’s environment since there are numerous threats in terms of malwares which can steal user’s data, banking information, or simply makes the phone sluggish.

The solutions offered will include an Antivirus that will provide real time protection from malicious Internet threats and also offers flexibility for the user to set a schedule for regular scans of data in the device as well as SD card. Also in the security stable is a Network Manager giving access to data like Traffic, setting monthly data transfer limit. Other features include Anti-Theft and Vault- privacy lock for following apps like, Photos, Videos, SMS and Call Logs & Secret Contacts. The users can update the virus/malware database for a period of six months absolutely free.

Speaking on their association with Spice, Mr. Calvin Cai said, “This cooperation is aimed at alleviating the security concerns in using smartphones for mobile internet activity. We are proud to be associated with Spice and are confident that we will collaborate to offer the best solution for customers in the future as well.”

The Stellar performance comes bundled with Stellar benefits for the consumer. To enable the consumer enjoy uninterrupted and superior mobile internet experience, Spice Stellar comes packed with 1 year data plan – Absolutely Free!

S Mobility has entered into partnership with Aircel, one of the leading 3G telecom operators in the country for its Spice Stellar series of devices. As part of this partnership the consumer is eligible for 100 MB data free per month for a period of 1 year without any additional conditions. The Aircel-Spice partnership promises a long term data usage plan for an unmatched mobile internet experience.

With this tie up, you can now stream your favourite videos, checkout the coolest websites, video chat on Skype, and enjoy loads of other features while staying connected with your world for one full year.

The handsets will be available across India through more than 50,000 retail points including the 750+ Spice HotSpot retail network and www.saholic.com. S Mobility is also conducting the ‘Spice Mobile Indiblogger meet’ on the 10^th of June, 2012 in Delhi where the top ranked bloggers from the country will converge to discuss Spice Stellar and its unique features.

About S Mobility Ltd

S Mobility Ltd is one of the fastest growing mobile devices company in India. With a customer base of over 15 million and an annual volume of over 6 million devices, the BSE/NSE listed, S Mobility has market share of nearly 4-5% of the Indian mobile devices market. Known for its innovation, S Mobility has launched several firsts including the Dual SIM phones – across GSM, CDMA, Triband & Touch Screen PDA and smart devices on Android platform. S Mobility also became the first company in the country to introduce a 12 mega pixel camera phone with optical zoom and now has won Golden Peacock Innovation award for India’s 1st 3D phone this year. With business operations spanning across India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Uganda, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka S Mobility is expanding its geographical presence from Indonesia to Ivory Coast. Moving forward the company aims to achieve further brand acceptability among all target segments through a broader offering of cutting-edge handsets that combine mobile phone functionality with enriched content and smart device capabilities for greater high-speed voice and data capacity. S Mobility has been featured in Forbes 2010 Asia’s 200 ‘best under a Billion dollar’ Companies. S Mobility is spearheaded by Dr. B.K. Modi, Global Chairman & Futurepreneur- Si2i. He has set up joint ventures in partnership with global companies in the field of information technology, document processing, telecommunications and cellular telephony. He engineered the S spice brand which is driving business involving technology-innovations, communication and entertainment. Dr.Modi’s vision enabled S Mobility to become one of the first and leading Mobile Internet devices providers in the nation.

About NQ Mobile

NQ Mobile Inc. (NYSE: NQ), formerly known as NetQin Mobile Inc., is a leading global provider of mobile Internet services focusing on security, privacy and productivity. The company was one of the first to recognize the growing security threats targeting smartphone users and is now a leading provider of Freemium subscription services with approximately 172 million registered user accounts in over 150 countries. NQ Mobile’s proprietary, cloud-based security solution has been recognized by third-party testing facilities around the world as the most effective solution for detecting and combating mobile threats. NQ Mobile was bestowed the 2011 Technology Pioneer Award by the World Economic Forum for its technology leadership and innovation in mobile security. To facilitate global expansion, NQ Mobile’s headquarters are co-located in Beijing, China and Dallas, TX, USA.

NQ Mobile offers the strongest mobile security and productivity products on the market today, including:

Mobile Security: We protect users from mobile threats, data theft, and privacy intrusion.
Mobile Productivity: We help users better manage their time and relationships.
Intelligent Cloud Services: We provide a customized user experience that can be easily accessed through mobile devices.

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June 7, 2012
Nokia Launches Asha 305,306 and 311 full touch Feature phones (PR)
Nokia has now dropped the type from their Touch and type series of Asha Phones, by launching three new full touch phones in the lineup. The Asha 305, 306 and 311 will add to the already existing and popular Asha series.

The phones all have 3-inch screens and run the Asha Touch UI (we all know what that is based on), also to lure the buyer are free Nokia Browser 2.0 and free games from EA

The 305 and 306 have a WQVGA resistive touch screen along with 2MP cameras, the 306 is the one with WiFi out of the two. The 311 has a capacitive glass screen, HSPA modem, 1GHz CPU and 3.2MP camera.

As Far as price is concerned the devices will be priced
- Asha 305 : Rs. 4999
- Asha 306 : Rs. 5999
- Asha 311 : Rs. 6999
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Nokia accelerates the journey to mobile internet with the introduction of Asha Touch device range

Fun, colorful range of touch screen phones will bring fast mobile web browsing, social networks and gaming to millions
Bangkok, Thailand – Nokia has today taken another step towards connecting the next billion consumers by unveiling the Asha Touch family of mobile devices, taking the full touch experience to new price points. The three new phone models – the Nokia Asha 305, Nokia Asha 306 and Nokia Asha 311 – further expand the successful Asha family, first introduced in October 2011. Today, there are 10 Asha devices available in more than 130 markets, providing young, social consumers with a choice of phones to match their own lifestyle.
These latest phones have been designed to provide an incredibly rich, smartphone-like experience to consumers who want to be set free from excessive data consumption costs and short battery life. The Nokia Asha 305, Asha 306 and Asha 311 offer a new, fully re-designed touch user interface, combining the proven ease-of-use from Nokia’s heritage with digital design innovations specifically fit for the purpose.
The beautifully crafted Nokia Asha 311 is a fast and fluid 3.5G capacitive touchscreen device, powered by a 1GHz processor to provide a great internet experience. The bright and edgy Nokia Asha 305 is a fun and affordable phone, featuring the exclusive Easy Swap dual SIM. Its sister, the Nokia Asha 306, is a single SIM model, and becomes Nokia’s most affordable Wi-Fi handset to date.
“By introducing the Asha Touch phones to the market, we’re accelerating our commitment to connect the next billion consumers,” said Mary T. McDowell, Nokia’s executive vice president for Mobile Phones. “These phones deliver on what young, urban people value most — a great-looking device; and an intuitive and affordable experience for connecting to the internet, to their friends, and to a world of entertainment, web apps and content.”
Great for fast, affordable mobile internet and gaming entertainment
The new devices take full advantage of the Nokia Browser 2.0, a major recent update which uses Nokia’s cloud technology to reduce data consumption by up to 90%, meaning that consumers can enjoy faster and cheaper internet access. Web sites load up to three times faster in comparison to devices without cloud-accelerated browsing, making it simple for users to find and select from more than 10,000 web apps available for download. They deliver a richer and more interactive consumer experience whilst using less data than a stand-alone internet connected app.
Consumers can easily stay connected with friends and family at the touch of a button as well as share files and links across their social networks. Furthermore, the Nokia Browser’s Download Manager feature helps consumers to manage external content easily, saving music, video or pictures on a memory card, while surfing the internet.
The Asha family is also getting positive support from developers and consumers. Nokia Store has just broken the 5 billion downloads landmark. From January to April, 42% of all content downloaded from Nokia Store was delivered to Asha and other Nokia devices based on the Java ecosystem. Just one year ago, that number was 10%. Also, there are 410 Nokia developers with apps which have achieved more than 1 million downloads. India Games and Pico Brothers just passed 100 million.
As well as providing a great, social online experience, the Nokia Asha 305, Asha 306 and Asha 311 have been created with entertainment in mind. All users will receive an exclusive gift of 40 EA games to download for free* and keep forever. These games range across action, arcade and sports, and include titles such as Tetris®, Bejeweled®, Need for Speed(TM) The Run and EA SPORTS(TM) FIFA 12. The Nokia Asha 311 also comes with 15 levels of Angry Birds pre-loaded onto the phone, perfect for making the most of the touchscreen and 1GHz processor.
“Nokia is taking another interesting step forward in connecting consumers to the Internet, seeking to improve their experience through a new touch user-interface that is allowing the company to compete in new mass-market price bands. The mass-market is a competitive segment, but we believe Nokia’s upgraded Asha portfolio has included an attractive package that can enable consumers to have lower running costs, taking advantage of things like its compressed browser and a long-life battery”, says Neil Mawston, Executive Director of devices research at Strategy Analytics. “It is also interesting to see how Nokia is promoting its Asha strategy with global launches taking place in important high-growth markets such as Asia. Nokia resonates well there and the response from local consumers is likely to be positive”.
Product details
The Nokia Asha 311 is a colourful, compact touch screen device that comes with all the features you’d expect for a fun and easy mobile experience. It boasts a bright and colourful, scratch resistant capacitive glass screen with polarization filters ensuring users get the best experience from the unique and visually entertaining user interface. The Nokia Asha 311 also features a 3.2MP camera and pre-installed Nokia Maps, in addition to the 15 level pre-bundled version of Angry Birds.
The pre-loaded social client makes accessing Facebook, Twitter and many other global social networks simple while Nokia Browser makes using mobile internet fast and affordable. It also includes the most popular messaging services. “WhatsApp has a clear vision of creating a reliable and easy to use cross-platform messaging application that enables people to stay in touch with their family and friends from all around the world,” said, Brian Acton, Co-Founder of WhatsApp Inc. “By partnering with Nokia whose worldwide reach in mobile is well established, WhatsApp becoming available for the Asha Touch devices will enable us to further realize our core mission”.
The Nokia Asha 305 is a fun and entertaining Easy Swap dual SIM phone, helping users make the most of their phone while retaining control of their costs. The phone features a bright and colorful 3″ WQVGA resistive touch screen along with Bluetooth and Dual Band connectivity. Forty EA games are available for download with every phone as well as a 2MP camera, Nokia Maps and the revolutionary Nokia Browser which helps significantly lower data costs.
The Nokia Asha 306 is the sister device to the Nokia Asha 305. Along with all the great features that come with its sister, such as bright and colorful, 3″ WQVGA resistive touch screen and 40 EA games for download – a Nokia exclusive offer, the Nokia Asha 306 also provides WLAN, enabling users to stay connected while on the move. It also supports video streaming through both GPRS and WLAN, meaning this handset truly is a fun way to stay in touch.
The estimated retail price for Nokia Asha 305 is EUR 63 and it’s expected to start shipping in the second quarter of 2012. The estimated retail price for Nokia Asha 306 is EUR 68. The Nokia Asha 311 has an estimated retail price of EUR 92. Both devices are expected to start shipping in the third quarter of 2012. Above mentioned prices exclude taxes and subsidies.
The new devices images are available at Nokia.com/press.
*Data costs may apply.

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June 7, 2012