Blog

Panasonic Lumix FZ150 with CMOS Sensor and 1080p Video Launched
Panasonic has launched yet another SuperZoom camera to add to their stable. A successor of the Lumix FZ100, the new Fz150 adds a full CMOS sensor along with a full HD video recording feature. Other specs include
- Stereo mic with noise cancellation
- 12 fps burst mode
- 12.1 megapixel CMOS sensor
- 25-600mm (24x) f/2.8-5.2 Leica lens
- Nano surface coating
- Faster autofocus
- Venus Engine FHD Pro processo
- ISO 3200
- 3-inch LCD and 0.2-inch EVF
Other features of the Panasonic LUMIX FZ150 include:

• Motion Deblur Mode, which helps to prevent blur.
• Intelligent Handheld Nightshot Mode, which generates beautiful night scenery with illumination by layering multiple images shot consecutively.
• PHOTOfunSTUDIO 6.5 BD Edition Software makes it possible to sort and organize photos not only of those newly taken but also of those stored on the PC with quick start-up and fast read-in of images. Recorded videos can be edited with the Short Movie Story function and written into MPEG2 to burn onto a Blu-ray or DVD disc.

[toggle title_open=”Press Release” title_closed=”Press Release” hide=”no” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]PANASONIC EXPANDS POPULAR LUMIX FZ SERIES WITH PREMIUM 24X SUPER-ZOOM, 3D SHOOTING COMPACT DIGITAL CAMERA

New Panasonic LUMIX FZ150 Digital Camera Packs a Powerful 24x Optical Zoom in High-Quality 25mm Ultra Wide-Angle Leica Lens That Shoots Full HD Video

SECAUCUS, NJ (August 26, 2011) – Panasonic today introduces the newest addition to its super-zoom LUMIX FZ-Series digital cameras. The new LUMIX DMC-FZ150 is fully equipped with a 25mm ultra wide-angle LEICA DC VARIO-ELMARIT lens and a powerful 24x Optical Zoom (35mm camera equivalent: 25-600mm) available for shooting both stills and videos. Additionally, the LUMIX FZ150 has two of Panasonic’s newest features – newly advanced Nano Surface Coating technology which helps minimize light reflection that causes ghost and flare – and the new 3D Photo Mode.

As the top-end model of LUMIX’s popular FZ series, the FZ150 combines a new 12.1-megapixel MOS sensor and the renowned Venus Engine giving the camera high-performance image recording capability in both higher light sensitivity and speed. And as a step-up from the recently announced LUMIX FZ47’s 1920 x 1080 60i video feature, the FZ150 realizes 1920 x 1080 60p Full-HD AVCHD Progressive (MPEG-4 / H.264) format. It is also possible to take still images while recording video simultaneously (3.5-megapixel) and the powerful 24x optical zoom is available in video recording. The FZ150 incorporates a stereo zoom microphone with a Wind Cut function, so that videos come with high-quality stereo sound through Dolby® Digital Stereo Creator.

“Panasonic continues to strive to meet the photography demands of its consumers by providing unique features and advanced technology in all our LUMIX digital cameras,” said Darin Pepple, Senior Product Manager, Imaging, Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company. “With the 24x Optical Zoom and 3D shooting capabilities the FZ150 is a versatile, powerful camera that gives users endless options to take creative and high-quality images and videos.”

The Light Speed AF of approx. 0.1 sec never misses fleeting photo opportunities. To encourage step-up users to enjoy shooting even more, full manual control is available with the FZ150. Users can enjoy image shooting while expressing their intention not only in photos but also in video, utilizing a host of options including the new Creative Control and Photo Style with a wide variety of preset options. The effective hand-shake correction system POWER O.I.S. now gains Active mode, which helps to record stable video even if shot while walking.

The LUMIX’s popular iA (Intelligent Auto) Mode powerfully assists in any shooting situations to get the best results. Thanks to the Intelligent Resolution technology, Intelligent Zoom is available with the FZ150 extending the zoom ratio by approx. 1.3x, maintaining the picture quality while combining a digital zoom. This means the 24x optical zoom can virtually extend to a 32x equivalent. Not only drawing near the subject that is far away with its powerful optical zoom, the 25mm ultra wide angle lens captures approx.196% wider angle of view compared with a standard 35mm camera. This is helpful for shooting dynamic landscape or indoor group portrait.

The popular iA (Intelligent Auto) Mode is also available in video recording. The POWER O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer), Face Detection, Intelligent Scene Selector and Intelligent D-range Control also support shooting beautiful videos with ease. The Intelligent Scene Selector automatically switches between Normal, Portrait, Macro, Scenery, and Low Light modes according to the situation, to optimize visual quality. The Intelligent D-range Control makes images look more natural by preventing blocked shadows and blown highlights to optimize the exposure for each part of an image. It also ensures a beautiful reproduction of gradation and details.

A new 12-Megapixel High Sensibility MOS sensor pursuing Resolution, Sensitivity and Speed has been incorporated along with the renowned Venus Engine enabling the FZ150 to excel in image processing power. The combination of these powerful components results in the S/N ratio improvement by 3.9dB (ISO 100) to 4.7dB (ISO1600) compared with the predecessor – the FZ100. Newly developed Multi-process Noise Reduction applies optimum noise reduction according to the brightness of the part of the picture. Both high frequency noise that occurs in the dark part and low frequency noise in the light part are suppressed even in a picture. As a result, Images recorded in low-lit situations are now dramatically clear.

The Venus Engine has a quad-circuit system for processing large amount of progressive Full HD data at high speed. Not only 1920 x 1080 60p smooth Full-HD video recording, but also super fast consecutive shots at 12 fps (without auto focusing) and 5.5 fps (with auto focusing) in full resolution. It is also compatible with recording high-speed video at 220fps in QVGA. At the same time, the multi-task image-processing engine, the Venus Engine, realizes a super-fast response time. The auto focus gains approx. 50% faster speed compared with the FZ100, achieving Light Speed AF of approx. 0.1 second. The speed in AF Tracking also becomes faster, thanks to the improved tracking performance which doubles its sampling frequency.

The FZ150 provides the new Creative Control mode with a selection of artistic effect modes; Expressive, Retro, High Key, Sepia, High Dynamic, Miniature Effect, Film Grain and Pin Hole. In addition, Photo Style is newly added to the FZ150 for the expression of finer nuance. It has Standard, Vivid, Natural, Monochrome, Scenery, Portrait presets, while enabling finer adjustment of contrast, sharpness, saturation and noise reduction by each.

As a further step-up from the FZ47, the FZ150 is equipped with a hot shoe allowing attachment of various accessories including an optional stereo microphone (DMW-MS1) or an optional external flash (DMW-FL220 / FL360 / FL500). The FZ150 is also compatible with an optional remote shutter (DMW-RSL1) for advanced expression in photography.

The newly-added 3D Photo mode takes 20 panning shots and then the camera automatically selects the two most suitable images – one for the right eye and one for the left eye – to synthesize a 3D composite. The 3D image can then be viewed on any VIERA 3D HDTV. The format of 3D images is compatible with MPO which can be played back on other MPO-compatible equipment.

Other features of the Panasonic LUMIX FZ150 include:

• Motion Deblur Mode, which helps to prevent blur.
• Intelligent Handheld Nightshot Mode, which generates beautiful night scenery with illumination by layering multiple images shot consecutively.
• PHOTOfunSTUDIO 6.5 BD Edition Software makes it possible to sort and organize photos not only of those newly taken but also of those stored on the PC with quick start-up and fast read-in of images. Recorded videos can be edited with the Short Movie Story function and written into MPEG2 to burn onto a Blu-ray or DVD disc.

The Panasonic LUMIX FZ150 will be available in black for a suggested retail price of $499.99, starting in late-September 2011. For more information on Panasonic LUMIX digital cameras, please visit www.panasonic.com/lumix.[/toggle]
August 27, 2011
Panasonic Launches the Lumix GF3X, Reduces Wide angle to a whole new level with X series Lens System (PR)

Panasonic has just announced the new GF3X, essentially the GF3 with a new X Series Lens. These new lenses are much more compact and have steel mounts as opposed to the plastic mounts found in the original Lumix G lenses. Read the Press Releases below for the full low down on these cameras and lenses.

[toggle title_open=”Collapse Press Release” title_closed=”Press Release” hide=”no” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]PANASONIC ANNOUNCES THE LUMIX GF3X, THE COMPANY’S SMALLEST COMPACT SYSTEM CAMERA COMPLETE WITH A NEW RETRACTABLE POWER ZOOM, LUMIX G X LENS

Panasonic’s New Premium LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 14-42mm Lens Features a Retractable Design to Achieve Ultra-High Mobility and Stunning Photo Quality

SECAUCUS, NJ (August 26, 2011) – Panasonic today announces a newly designed and innovative LUMIX G “X” lens that retracts to help minimize its size, without compromising its focal length or image quality. Panasonic’s new premium LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 14-42mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH./ POWER O.I.S. (H-PS14042) lens, will be available with the company’s smallest and lightest compact system camera as a lens kit option in the DMC-GF3X model. With electric-powered zoom operation, the retractable Power Zoom H-PS14042 lens is extremely compact, approximately 26.8mm in length, and weighs approximately 3.35oz, offering ultra-high portability.

Panasonic’s new premium LUMIX “X” Series of lenses, including the LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 14-42mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH./ POWER O.I.S., offers a versatile zoom range of 14-42mm (35mm camera equivalent: 28-84mm) suitable for a wide range of scenes, such as dynamic landscape to portrait. Also announced today is another LUMIX X lens, the LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 45-175mm/F4.0-5.6 ASPH./POWER O.I.S. Crystallizing Panasonic’s optical technologies, the LUMIX X lenses feature superb image rendering for lifelike textures, crisp edge-to-edge contrast, a unique Nano Surface Coating to help minimize ghosts and flaring in natural settings with remarkable transparency.

“Panasonic continues to innovate in digital photography by offering advanced features in small and compact bodies, thus addressing the consumer’s need for camera equipment to be lightweight and easy to carry,” said Darin Pepple, Senior Product Manager, Imaging, Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company. “With the new LUMIX X Series of premium lenses, we do not sacrifice size for quality and Panasonic still offers top-of-the-line image quality for our G Series, but in a smaller design that makes it extremely mobile.”

With the LUMIX GF3X, the camera and lens combination can achieve Light Speed AF of approximately 0.1 second – making it an extremely quick and high-performing digital camera. The LUMIX GF3X with the new 14-42 PZ lens also features POWER O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer), to make it easier to shoot clear photos even in low-lit situations. The convenient zoom lever on the lens barrel gives users a stable way to zoom. Manual focusing is also available with a manual focus lever for even more precise control.

The LUMIX GF3, like all the LUMIX G Series of Compact System Cameras, captures high-quality photo images with real-to-life details through excellent resolution, image rendering and color reproduction. With its stunningly small compact profile, the LUMIX GF3 boasts high-speed, precise Contrast AF system and quick response times. The LUMIX GF3 is also capable of 1920 x 1080 Full High Definition video in the AVCHD format.

The LUMIX GF3X will be available in a black body and black lens or a silver body and silver lens kits options in October 2011 for a suggested retail price (SRP) of $749.99. The new LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 14-42mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH./ POWER O.I.S. (H-PS14042) lens will also be available separately for an SRP of $399.99 and will be compatible the Panasonic LUMIX G Series. For more information about Panasonic LUMIX digital cameras, please visit www.panasonic.com/lumix.[/toggle]

[toggle title_open=”Collapse Press Release” title_closed=”Press Release” hide=”no” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]PANASONIC ANNOUNCES BRAND’S FIRST DIGITAL INTERCHANGEABLE POWER TELE-ZOOM LENS

Panasonic’s New Premium LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 45-175mm Lens Offers State-of-the-Art Design to Achieve Increased Functionality and Spectacular Image Quality

SECAUCUS, NJ (August 26, 2011) – Today, Panasonic announced the LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 45-175mm/F4.0-5.6 ASPH./POWER O.I.S. (H-PS45175), the company’s first cutting-edge digital interchangeable lens with electric-powered zoom operation. This marks the launch of the company’s premium lens brand “X” which is compatible with the Panasonic LUMIX G Series and complies with the Micro Four Thirds™ system standard. This lens introduction accompanies another LUMIX X lens announced today, the LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 14-42mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH./ POWER O.I.S.

The new LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 45-175mm/F4.0-5.6 ASPH./POWER O.I.S. lens features superb image rendering for lifelike textures and crisp, edge-to-edge contrast. A unique Nano Surface Coating technology minimizes reflections at entire visual light range (380nm-780nm) for a dramatic reduction of ghosts and light flare, resulting in outstandingly clear picture quality.

Using a Multi-Actuator Floating Inner Focus System to control three lens groups separately the LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 45-175mm/F4.0-5.6 ASPH./POWER O.I.S. achieves a reduction in both size and weight without compromising picture quality. Boasting outstanding compactness, the lens is approximately 90mm in length and 7.4oz in weight, resulting in ultra-high mobility.

Offering a versatile zoom range of 45-175mm the LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 45-175mm/F4.0-5.6 ASPH./POWER O.I.S. allows distant subjects to be captured sharply at the tele-end. Also notable, the lens is extremely suitable for portrait and landscape shots, as its high contrast and resolution helps images shot at the wide end maintain exceptional quality, and the zoom lever allows for quick and stable zooming, even while shooting a moving object.

The new lens system features two Extra-low Dispersion (ED) lenses which suppress chromatic aberration and contribute to high descriptive performance across the entire zoom range 45-175mm. The POWER O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer) integrated into the LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 45-175mm/F4.0-5.6 ASPH./POWER O.I.S. makes it easy to shoot sharp images even in low-lit situations. With improved sensitivity of the gyro sensor, the new POWER O.I.S. also suppresses large, slow movements two times more effectively** while small, fast movements are compensated for by the conventional MEGA O.I.S.

LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 45-175mm/F4.0-5.6 ASPH./POWER O.I.S. contains seven aperture blades to help produce an attractive smoothness in out-of-focus areas even while shooting at large aperture. Adopting an inner focus system driven by a stepping motor, the lens’ superior optical design supports Light Speed AF of approximately .15 seconds and fast aperture control results in a shortened shutter time lag of approximately 20% when compared to the LUMIX G VARIO 45-200mm/F4.0-5.6/MEGA O.I.S.

The Panasonic LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 45-175mm/F4.0-5.6 ASPH./POWER O.I.S. (H-PS45175) will be available in black and silver starting September 2011 with a suggested retail price of $449.99. For more information about Panasonic LUMIX digital cameras and lenses, please visit www.panasonic.com/lumix.[/toggle]

August 27, 2011
Leaked : HTC Vigor pictures

Droidlife has got its hands on new images of the HTC Vigor, the device is rumored to have a texturized backplate comes “WITH HTC SENSE” a dual LED flash, a front-facing camera along with four capacitive buttons its also rumored to have a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage. The popular Beats by Dre Sound engine will also possible premiere in this device.

Looks like this device is heading to Verizon, so it may never reach the Indian Shores.

August 27, 2011
Leaked : PlayBook OS version 2.0, Drops BES

A bunch of pictures / screenshots of the playbook running what appears to be RIM OS 2 for Playbook are being tossed around on the internet. As if the Playbook wasn’t out of the sack punch the next update is really going to drop notice.

Looks like RIM is dropping the BES from its playbook, disabling enterprise support on their only tablet that sold only 40,000 units since it was launched. It could also mean that the BES isn’t installed on whatever dev version this device is running, but there have been a lot of speculations regarding the BES dropout by RIM, and this looks like what is going to be the first real proof of their desertion of BES.

Also if you look closely enough you can spot the green Android that could mean only one thing- Android app compatibility could be built into this update. Is that a big woohoo? I guess not, considering only a couple of you have bought the Playbook if any.

August 27, 2011
Dell Vostro 360 Launched in china – AIO Desktop at good price
Dell has launched a new AIO desktop PC in China, dubbed the Vostro Success 360.

Specs Include:-
- Windows 7 Professional Edition
- 23-inch Full HD WLED display
- Intel i3 or i5 processors with the H61 chipset
- 1 TB 7200RPM Hard Drive
- 1GB NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M
Price is set at US $780 or INR . 35000/-

Hopefully we start to see a trend of these hit Indian markets, so that people get more and more used to the concept of Fast paced AIO’s.

Dell [Chinese]
August 27, 2011
Microsoft Patent Applications Reveal a possible Dual Screen Tablet Future

Microsoft has been playing with the idea of a dual screen tablet for quite some time, remember the courier tablet? This time around MS is teasing the world of tech itself with the Tablet patent that promises a dual screen experience. Microsoft has been talking a lot about Windows 8 and a tablet specific OS.

MS has filed for multiple patents including, Muti-screen dual tap, on-off gesture, Muti Screen Pinch and expand, Muti-screen – Hold – Expand- page flip and radial gestures. Microsoft has not yet been awarded with these patents. But looks like the whole Tablet frenzy has been fueled by the Apple Patent Lawsuits.

August 27, 2011

Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini Pro Unboxing and Hands On Video

We got our Hands on the Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini Pro. Check out the Unboxing of the impressive Android Slider Phone :

Hardware Specs

Model	Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini Pro
Price	15,399 approx.
Frequency	GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz; HSDPA 900 / 2100; HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100
Phone Style	Touchscreen with QWERTY Slider
OS	Android 2.3 (Gingerbread)
Thickness	18mm
Length	92mm
Width	53mm
Weight	136 grams
Built-in Memory	320MB + pre-installed 2GB memory card
Additional Memory	MicroSD up to 32GB
High-speed Data	GPRS, EDGE, HSDPA, HSUPA
Connectivity	Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS
Screen Size	3-inch, 320 x 240 pixels
Secondary Screen Size	N/A
Screen Colours	16 million
Camera	Yes, with LED Flash and Auto Focus
Camera Resolution	5-megapixels
Flash	Yes
Ringtones	Yes
Music Player	Yes
Music Formats	MP3, WMA, AMR, OGG, AAC, AAC+, WAV
Radio	Yes
Speaker	Yes
Processor	Qualcomm MSM8255 Snapdragon 1 GHz processor
Internet	Yes
Browser	HTML With Flash support, Webkit browser
Games	Yes
Battery	Talk Time: Up to 5 Hours 40 Min (2G) Up to 5 Hours 25 Min (3G)

Unboxing Video

August 26, 2011

EDIT: Kapil Sibal and the Indian Vaporware

Its been almost 2 full years since the announcement of the 20$ Tablet for the Indian market which has come and gone into release cycle time and again. From changing vendors to dropping manufacturers,Why is Kapil Sibal good at making excuses?

The tablet deemed to be an Indian product from the core, yet manufactured in China? HCL was the first company to refuse the manufacture of this tablet soon to be followed by Wipro, Satyam and others. The manufacturers all possibly gave up on the possibility of such a device, why make it impossible for a device to exist, and if you launch one 3 years later what is the point anyway.

A year ago a touchscreen tablet with Android 2.1 and a resistive touchscreen made sense, the recent news showed a device with a capacitive screen and other bits such as WiFi and USB ports etc. Also news upped the OS to Android 2.2. But is it really happening ? The usual bits are in place and excuses follow. The govt. gave a grant of several hundred crore to the project, an undisclosed amount, but to our dismay we could neither get details of the grant or what actually happened to the device.

A tablet that has touchscreen, WiFi and Android may or may not be able to educate the kids of today. But will definitely be a source of entertainment to them. low price- large screen Angry Birds anyone? There goes the education system down the drain.

Post this discussion the biggest question remains : whether or not the device would be even capable of playing Angry birds? Imagine you pull on the bird and it just gets stuck in mid air!

When we tried to contact Mr. Sibal’s office to get a comment, we got a polite reminder of how the country’s politics are more important

Abhi Anna Hazare is taking too much time!, whatever the Govt. wants to do-will do. You please mind your own business”

-Refused to tell us name – Assistant at Kapil Sibal’s Office

Why does “Anna Hazare” have anything to do with the Launch of a tablet that was supposed to happen last year. If anything the protests should speed up the process not slow it down.

Fortunately for us China is a wonderful country and many companies have started to bring in tablets in the price range of 5-10 thousand rupees. The HCL and Beetel Tablets cost 10,000 and the Reliance tab costs 12,999. With pricing already dropping daily, we can expect a good 2000-3000 tablet before the govt. even begins to allot this “Ration” based tablet. Which will probably end up going to “Politician and Family” as Diwali Gifts.

Here is a “Poof” to the Sakshat Tablet for India. Come on Mr. Sibal we expect a better result with a IT oriented country.

August 26, 2011
Sony Ericsson will Update the Xperia line with Gingerbread 2.3.4 (PR)
Sony Ericsson has announced that it will start pushing upgrades for its Xperia line and start moving them on to Gingerbread in October. In this Upgrade users get
- OEM enhancements
- Facebook integration
- 3D sweep panorama technology
- 3DTV viewing
- Native screen capture function
- Google Talk with Video Chat
The upcoming Sony Ericsson Neo V will be the first phone with these upgrades with the rest to follow suit

[toggle title_open=”Collapse” title_closed=”Read the Press Release” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]25 August 2011
Sony Ericsson boosts 2011 Xperia™ family with new experiences and new software

2011 Xperia™ range to be upgraded to Android Gingerbread platform version 2.3.4
Enhanced Facebook inside Xperia™ functionality
Introducing Xperia™ neo V Android smartphone with the best of entertainment technologies from Sony and Google

25 August 2011, London, UK – Sony Ericsson today announced new functionality and features to its 2011 Xperia™ smartphone range with a comprehensive software upgrade from October 2011. Consumers with 2011 Xperia™ smartphones will benefit from improvements to Sony Ericsson’s unique Facebook inside Xperia™ offering and 3D camera functionality from Sony. The upgrade also allows consumers to enjoy the full benefits of the Android Gingerbread platform including Google Talk with Video Chat.

Sony Ericsson’s unique social experience provided by Facebook inside Xperia™ has been super-charged enabling Xperia users to like, share and discover on Facebook in a faster, easier and more intuitive way. The new functionality aims to make entertainment more social by giving users the ability to share and discover apps and games with friends through Facebook.

The latest camera enhancements from Sony introduce 3D sweep panorama technology so that images can be captured and then viewed in 3D by connecting the phone to a 3D TV using the HDMI output.

“With this software upgrade, we are bringing a wealth of new and really entertaining experiences to all our 2011 Xperia™ smartphones, including those already in consumers’ hands today,”said Nikolaus Scheurer, Head of Product Marketing at Sony Ericsson. “Our users will get to enjoy new features from Google, an even richer Facebook integration, and enhanced camera functionality from Sony.”

Xperia™ neo V is one of the first new products to launch with the new software and will include all the features like Google Talk with Video Chat, 3D sweep panorama and enhanced Facebook inside Xperia™ functionality. Building on the success of the original Xperia™ neo launched earlier this year, Xperia™ neo V takes the latest Android software for smartphones and the best of Sony entertainment experiences, including Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA® Engine, to even more markets. Sony Ericsson Xperia™ neo V will be available globally in select markets from Q4 2011.

The software upgrade will be available in select markets through a phased roll out starting from October 2011. Xperia™ owners will receive a notification instructing them to instantaneously download the software over the air via 3G or WiFi. Alternatively, they will have the option to connect to a computer and download it via PC companion.

Upgrade at a glance:

Xperia™ smartphones to be upgraded to the 2.3.4 version of the Gingerbread platform with new features including Google Talk with Video Chat for smartphones with front-facing cameras
Updated Facebook inside Xperia™ functionality for enhanced like, share and discover abilities
Xperia™ smartphones introducing world’s first 3D sweep panorama functionality powered by Sony.
The software upgrade enables consumers to turn their Xperia smartphone into a mini-mobile PC by connecting USB peripherals (mouse, keyboard or game controller) to Sony Ericsson LiveDock™ multimedia station. Connect the smartphone to a TV via HDMI to get a big screen experience.
Swipe text input – text input by swiping the finger from one letter to the next
Screen capture – allows the user to share a screen grab from anywhere in the phone

For full details all products news, please visit the press room and the product blog:
http://www.sonyericsson.com/cws/corporate/press/pressreleases/latestnews
http://blogs.sonyericsson.com/products/

Sony Ericsson Xperia™ neo V at a glance.
*Please note that all services mentioned below may not be available in every market.
Colours

White
Blue Gradient
Silver

Facts

Size: 116 x 57 x 13mm
Weight: 126g
Operating system: Google™ Android 2.3 (Gingerbread version 2.3.4)
Processor: 1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8255

Camera

3D sweep panorama
5 megapixel camera
16x digital zoom
Auto focus
Face detection
Flash/LED
Front facing camera (VGA)
Geo tagging
HD video recording (720p)
Image stabiliser
Red-eye reduction
Scene detection
Self-timer
Send to web
Smile detection
Sweep panorama
Touch capture
Touch focus
Video light
Video recording
Video stabiliser

Music

Album art
Bluetooth™ stereo (A2DP)
Media player
Music tones (MP3/AAC)
PlayNow™ service
Sony Ericsson Music player
TrackID™ music recognition
xLOUD™

Internet

Android Market™
Bookmarks
Google™ search
Google Voice™ Search
Pan & zoom
Web browser (WebKit)

Communication

Call list
Conference calls
Facebook™ application
Facebook inside Xperia™ V2
Google Talk™ video chat*
Noise Shield
Polyphonic ringtones
Sony Ericsson Timescape™
Speakerphone
Twitter™ (Timescape™ integration)
Vibrating alert
Video chat ready

Messaging

Conversations
Email
Google Mail™
Instant messaging
Multimedia messaging (MMS)
Predictive text input
Sound recorder
Text messaging (SMS)

Design

Auto rotation
Keyboard (on-screen, QWERTY)
Live wallpaper
Picture wallpaper
Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA® Engine
Swipe to write
Touch screen

Entertainment

3D games
Media browser
Motion gaming
Radio (FM radio with RDS)
Video streaming
YouTube™

Organiser

Alarm clock
Calculator
Calendar
Document readers
E-Manual
Flight mode
Google Calendar™
Google Gallery 3D
Infinite button
Phonebook
Setup guide
Widget manager

Connectivity

All services mentioned in this leaflet may not be available in every market.

3.5 mm audio jack
aGPS
Bluetooth™ technology
DLNA Certified™
Google Latitude™
Google Maps™ for Mobile
Google Maps™ with Street View
HDMI™ support
Media Transfer Protocol support
Micro USB support
Modem
Native USB tethering
Synchronisation via Facebook™
Synchronisation via Google Sync™
Synchronisation via Sony Ericsson Sync
Synchronisation via Microsoft® Exchange ActiveSync®
TV Out
USB mass storage
USB High speed 2.0 support
Wi-Fi®
Wi-Fi® Hotspot functionality
Wisepilot™ turn-by-turn navigation

Display

Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA® Engine
16,777,216 colour TFT
Capacitive touchscreen (multi-touch)
3.7 inches
480 x 854 pixels (FWVGA)
Scratch-resistant

Memory

Phone memory: Up to 320MB
Memory card support: microSD™, up to 32GB
Memory card included: 2GB microSD™

Battery life

Talk time GSM/GPRS: Up to 6 hrs 55 min*
Standby time GSM/GPRS: Up to 430 hrs*

Talk time UMTS: Up to 7 hrs*
Standby time UMTS: Up to 400 hrs*

Music listening time: Up to 31 hrs*
Video playback time: Up to 7 hrs 25 min*

*According to GSM Association Battery Life Measurement Technique. Battery performance may vary depending on network conditions and configurations, and phone usage.

Networks

UMTS HSPA 900, 2100
GSM GPRS/EDGE 850, 900, 1800, 1900

UMTS HSPA 850, 1900, 2100
GSM GPRS/EDGE 850, 900, 1800, 1900

In the kit

Xperia™ neo V
1500 mAh battery
Stereo portable handsfree
2GB microSD™ memory card
Charger
Micro USB cable for charging
Synchronisation and file transfer
User documentation

Legal
1) Facts and features may vary depending on local variant. 2) Operational times are affected by network preferences, type of SIM card, connected accessories and various activities e.g. playing games. Kit contents and colour options may differ from market to market. The full range of accessories may not be available in every market.

© Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications AB, 2011[/toggle]
August 26, 2011
Transcend Introduces USB 3.0 StoreJet 25A3 Portable Hard Drive (PR)
Transcend has launched the new StoreJet 25A3 Portable Hard Drives in India. Available in 3 sizes 500GB , 750GB and 1TB, these drives are available now at a local Transcend dealer.

Specs include
- USB 3.0 compliant and backwards compatible with USB 2.0
- Connection bandwidth up to 5Gbits per second
- Advanced internal hard drive suspension system
- Durable and shock-resistant
- Easy Plug and Play operation – no drivers required
- USB powered – no external adapter necessary
- Power saving sleep mode
- Transcend Elite backup and security software
- LED power / data transfer activity indicator
- 256-bit AES file & folder encryption
- One Touch Auto-Backup button
- Three-year Limited Warranty
[toggle title_open=”Collpse” title_closed=”Press Release” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]

In a move to further strengthen its product portfolio in the range of USB 3.0 Portable Hard Drives, Transcend Information, Inc. (Transcend) a worldwide leader in storage and multimedia products announces the launch of feature-packed StoreJet 25A3, USB 3.0 portable hard drive in India. Besides its slender and compact design, this next generation, shock resistant portable hard drive flaunts impressive looks along with robust durability. Featuring strikingly fast data transfer speeds, powerful software tools and up to a full terabyte of storage capacity, the StoreJet 25A3 is an ultimate choice for everyday backup and storage needs.

Equipped with a next-generation SuperSpeed USB 3.0 connection interface and backwards compatible with USB 2.0,the Transcend StoreJet 25A3 portable hard drive provides 10 times the bandwidth of USB 2.0. Thanks to the improved connection speed of USB 3.0, the StoreJet 25A3 delivers real-world transfer speeds of up to 90MB/s – fast enough to transfer a full DVD in just 50 seconds. Much more than just a place to store files, the StoreJet 25A3 can also function as an advanced data backup station, with a convenient One Touch Auto-Backup button for swift, effortless data backup and synchronization when used with the bundled Transcend Elite software backup and security software. To add to its security measures, the Transcend hard drive comes with powerful 256-bit AES file & folder encryption features.

Transcend’s exclusive shock-absorbing suspension damper system, the StoreJet 25A3 effectively protects its internal hard drive by softening the force of impact in case of accidental slips or falls.

With easy plug and play features, StoreJet 25A3 requires no drivers. Powered by USB, there is no requirement of external adapter and can run on power saving sleep mode.

Key Features:

Ø Super Speed USB 3.0 compliant and backwards compatible with USB 2.0

Ø Connection bandwidth up to 5Gbits per second

Ø Advanced internal hard drive suspension system

Ø Extra-large storage capacity

Ø Sleek durable and shock-resistant

Ø Easy Plug and Play operation – no drivers required

Ø USB powered – no external adapter necessary

Ø Power saving sleep mode

Ø includes Transcend Elite backup and security software – LED power / data transfer activity indicator

Ø 256-bit AES file & folder encryption

Ø One Touch Auto-Backup button

Ø Three-year Limited Warranty

Pricing and Availability:

The USB 3.0 StoreJet 25A3 is currently available in 500GB, 750GB and 1TB capacities at Rs.6150/-,Rs.7350/-,and Rs.9800/- respectively, backed by Transcend’s three-year limited warranty.

Notes to Editor

About Transcend Information Inc.

Transcend is a globally recognized leader in the manufacture of memory products and peripherals. Established in 1988, Transcend offers a full line of standard and proprietary memory modules, USB flash drives and portable hard drives, solid-state disks, MP3 players, flash memory cards, card readers, and multimedia products. Transcend has manufacturing facilities in Taiwan and China, and has offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, The Netherlands, Japan, Taiwan, and China. For more information, please visit http://in.transcend-info.com/.

[/toggle]
August 25, 2011
BBM music now available to Blackberry Users looking for cloud love

A new service for Blackberry Messenger services has now been officially announced after being tossed around in the rumor mill for the past weeks. BBM Music is a new cloud based music streaming service for Blackberry owners. For $5 per month, users may keep up to 50 songs in their personal library. A social component allows you to add BBM Music friends, which gives you access to their current 50 songs, and up to 25 songs per month can be swapped out for new ones, and your current library can be stored locally on the handset.

A launch of several music based services has happened over the months, it seemed only logical that RIM jumps the bandwagon.

[toggle title_open=”Collapse” title_closed=”Press Release” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]

RIM Announces BBM Music – A New Social Music Sharing and Discovery Service

New Cloud-Based Music Service Makes Music a Social Experience

Waterloo, ON – Research In Motion (RIM) today announced BBM Music, a new BBM (BlackBerry® Messenger) service for socially connected music fans.

BBM Music is an easy-to-use cloud-based service that enables social and viral music discovery by allowing users to build an evolving, community-based music library that is shared amongst their BBM Music friends. The size of the music library continues to grow as new friends join the community and each user can select music from a catalog with millions of songs from leading music companies – Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group and EMI.

“More than 45 million customers already love the social communication benefits delivered through BBM and we are thrilled to be extending the experience into a uniquely social and interactive music service,” said Mike Lazaridis, President and Co-CEO at Research In Motion. “We have partnered with leading music companies to provide a „full track? music sharing and discovery experience that will provide users with quality music on demand and allow them to connect with friends on a whole new level.”

Key features of BBM Music include:
– Music made social – BBM Music is a cloud-based, social music service that allows you to share and discover music with your friends, creating a continually evolving music library:
– Build a personal music profile with 50 of your favorite songs. You can refresh your profile by swapping out up to 25 songs each month.
– Invite your BBM friends to subscribe to BBM Music and to join your BBM Music Community.
– With each friend that is added to BBM Music, you grow your music collection since the songs from the profile of each BBM Music friend are available to you at any time.
– Up to 50 tracks from your personal profile are shared with your BBM Music Community, and each member of your community shares up to 50 songs from their profile with you.
– Enjoy a truly social community-based music experience – the more friends who join your community, the more songs you can listen to.
– Easily discover music that your BBM Music friends are listening to, and comment on your friends? songs and playlists.
– You can create multiple playlists from music in your profile as well as all of your friends? profiles, and with one click you can shuffle the entire collection of music from your BBM Music Community. You can even see which friend contributed each song while it plays.
– Within your BBM Music app, you also see a visual timeline that shows the recent updates of all users within your community. It gives you a chronological view of community updates, including who added new friends, which songs were added or removed, which playlists were created and what comments were made by your BBM Music friends.
– Listen to Full Tracks – BBM Music subscribers can listen to full tracks from their friends? profiles – not just previews.
– Offline Listening – Music can be saved to smartphones for offline listening, allowing users to access songs even when they don?t have wireless coverage.
– Topping the Charts – Keep track of how many friends are listening to your tracks.

“A major component of online music continues to be about community, and the ability to discover new artists and music through word of mouth,” stated Rob Wells, President of Global Digital Business for Universal Music Group. “BBM Music dynamically and elegantly integrates the excitement of this social music discovery process with a high quality music service, enabling tens of millions of BlackBerry users to experience new music and to share those experiences with their friends virtually anywhere and at anytime.”

“We are pleased to be partnering with Research In Motion on their BBM Music service. RIM and its large base of BlackBerry Messenger users represent an exciting platform for expanding the reach of commercial digital music around the world,” stated Thomas Hesse, President, Global Digital Business, U.S. Sales and Corporate Strategy, Sony Music Entertainment. “The combination of a premium music solution and instant messaging will enable viral music discovery and emphasize the social power of digital music. It also offers an effective way of serving younger consumers by integrating music into the fabric of an important hub of their digital activity.”

“A dynamic social music experience is a powerful way for our artists to connect with fans and also for fans to discover music by interacting with each other,” said Michael Nash, Executive Vice President, Digital Strategy & Business Development, Warner Music Group. “Addressing more than 45 million BlackBerry Messenger users with a service tailor-made for its mobile community, BBM Music has the opportunity to reach a broad and engaged audience.”

“We are very excited to work with Research In Motion to bring our artists? music to BBM?s huge and very loyal user base,” said Mark Piibe, Executive Vice President of Global Business Development at EMI Music. “BBM Music?s unique social discovery experience offers fans a great new way to discover music, share their favorite tracks with their friends and build a stronger connection with the artists they love.”

“The widespread adoption of mobile devices provides the perfect foundation for consuming and sharing music. Brands that want to deliver a unique interactive experience must create services that are mobile, social, and contextual,” said Maribel Lopez Principal at Lopez Research and Constellation Research Group.

A closed (limited) beta trial of the BBM Music service is starting today in Canada, the United States and the UK. The BBM Music service is expected to be commercially available to customers later this year for a monthly subscription of $4.99 USD* in Australia, Canada, Columbia, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, UAE, the United Kingdom and the United States.

[/toggle]

August 25, 2011
Breaking : Steve Jobs resigns Apple as CEO

A news story that changes everything about a company that changed everything about computing. CEO Steve Jobs has resigned Apple naming Tim Cook as his replacement.

In a letter self published Steve Said

I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come.

I hereby resign as CEO of Apple. I would like to serve, if the Board sees fit, as Chairman of the Board, director and Apple employee.

As far as my successor goes, I strongly recommend that we execute our succession plan and name Tim Cook as CEO of Apple.

I believe Apple’s brightest and most innovative days are ahead of it. And I look forward to watching and contributing to its success in a new role.

I have made some of the best friends of my life at Apple, and I thank you all for the many years of being able to work alongside you.

-Steve

Apple does confirm that Steve will stay on to be the chairman of the board.

[toggle title_open=”Collapse PR” title_closed=”Read The Press Release” hide=”yes” border=”yes” style=”default” excerpt_length=”0″ read_more_text=”Read More” read_less_text=”Read Less” include_excerpt_html=”no”]Steve Jobs Resigns as CEO of Apple

Tim Cook Named CEO and Jobs Elected Chairman of the Board

CUPERTINO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Apple’s Board of Directors today announced that Steve Jobs has resigned as Chief Executive Officer, and the Board has named Tim Cook, previously Apple’s Chief Operating Officer, as the company’s new CEO. Jobs has been elected Chairman of the Board and Cook will join the Board, effective immediately.

“Steve has made countless contributions to Apple’s success, and he has attracted and inspired Apple’s immensely creative employees and world class executive team. In his new role as Chairman of the Board, Steve will continue to serve Apple with his unique insights, creativity and inspiration.”
“Steve’s extraordinary vision and leadership saved Apple and guided it to its position as the world’s most innovative and valuable technology company,” said Art Levinson, Chairman of Genentech, on behalf of Apple’s Board. “Steve has made countless contributions to Apple’s success, and he has attracted and inspired Apple’s immensely creative employees and world class executive team. In his new role as Chairman of the Board, Steve will continue to serve Apple with his unique insights, creativity and inspiration.”

“The Board has complete confidence that Tim is the right person to be our next CEO,” added Levinson. “Tim’s 13 years of service to Apple have been marked by outstanding performance, and he has demonstrated remarkable talent and sound judgment in everything he does.”

Jobs submitted his resignation to the Board today and strongly recommended that the Board implement its succession plan and name Tim Cook as CEO.

As COO, Cook was previously responsible for all of the company’s worldwide sales and operations, including end-to-end management of Apple’s supply chain, sales activities, and service and support in all markets and countries. He also headed Apple’s Macintosh division and played a key role in the continued development of strategic reseller and supplier relationships, ensuring flexibility in response to an increasingly demanding marketplace.

Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and has recently introduced iPad 2 which is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices.[/toggle]

August 25, 2011
Solar Powered Smartphones Without Solar Panels – Coming Soon

In a very interesting development, researchers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, have created an LCD screen which can charge its own batteries from any ambient light source such as the sun, an incandescent bulb and even its own backlight!

We took a look a little while ago at How Modern LCDs Work. As you might remember, each LCD has a polarizing sheet that controls the amount of light that passes through any given pixel. These polarizers are very inefficient, and waste most of the absorbed energy. With this new development however, the standard polarizers have been replaced by a polarized sheet made with organic photovoltaics. These photovoltaics convert any absorbed energy, into electricity, thereby increasing the battery life of any device that it is used in.

The researchers say that they are speaking to manufacturers so that this technology may be incorporated into future products.

August 25, 2011
WIMM – The Wearable Android Module

The Wimm Module has been developed by Wimm Labs to be an extensible and customizable touchscreen module that can be incorporated into devices such as watches, remotes, and other modules that can be small enough to be integrated with wearable products.

The device sports a 1 inch square, full colour 160x160px capacitive touch screen display and its wifi and bluetooth ready versions also feature an accelerometer as well as a magnetometer. The devices run a modified version of the Android operating system and are compatible with most devices running Android, Blackberry or iOS.

Weighing only 22 g, the Wimm Modules are designed to be integrated into a wide range of products from watches and pendants to ‘Smart’ wallets. Possible applications include use as calendars and appointment books, pedometers, calorie counters and other health trackers, mobile payment solutions, music and video players, file storage, and universal remotes.

August 25, 2011
Samsung Preps the Stage before iPhone 5 Launch, Readies new Galaxy GT-19220

Looks like Samsung was expecting the Apple next smartphone to be a knocker, and has studied a next gen device, in hopes of attracting the crazy iPhone buying crowd.

The device itself has 1280 x 720 Super AMOLED Plus display that measures in at 5.29 inches diagonal, it will run Android 2.3 and will have a 1.5ghz dual core processor, not to forget a 8mp camera

The device hopelessly reminds us of the trailer and details that came out by Samsung recently. Either way there is a big announcement on the 1st and we will wait for that.

August 25, 2011