Tag: indian

Triumph Motorcycles coming to India soon

Bike-manufacturer Triumph’s entry into the Indian two-wheeler market has been making the rounds for a long time now. According to rumours, Triumph motorbikes may be available in the market as soon as the 2013 festive season. However, we are slightly skeptical of these rumours, given the history of ups and downs of Triumph’s attempts at foraying into the Indian scene.

The 2012 Auto Expo witnessed the famous British marque’s announcement of aggressive pricing for a model range of seven big-bikes. However, not much has happened since then with the only worthwhile news being that of an upcoming factory located on the outskirts of Bengaluru. A major reason for this delay is Triumph’s intelligent business strategy, which involves bringing bikes through the CKD (Completely Knocked Down) route instead of the much more expensive CBU (Completely Built Unit) route. According to other rumours, the iconic English company is already in process of setting up a compact, efficient motorcycle assembly unit in Manesar, on the outskirts of New Delhi, which will help bring in Triumph motorbikes without further delay.

The CKD units can be expected to be competitively priced, close to their announced target prices from the 2012 Auto Expo. Triumph will be directly competing with other high-end motorcycle marques such as Harley-Davidson which has been present in India for much longer, and the upcoming Indian and Victory brands.

July 24, 2013
Polaris to bring Indian and Victory bikes to India

Globally famous marques Indian and Victory are going to set up shop in India sometime in 2014. Minnesota based Polaris Industries is planning to bring both their motorcycle brands after witnessing the success of similar motorcycles such as Harley Davidson. Polaris India Pvt Ltd is headed by Indian two-wheeler industry veteran Pankaj Dubey who plans as managing director to import the new motorcycles in via the CBU route. Contrary to popular belief, Indian and Victory motorcycles will sell from independent showrooms, not sharing space with ATVs from the same parent company.

It is unknown when the brands will be launched, and which will come first. Indian and Victory motorcycles rely mainly on V-twin configuration engines, which will mean competition for Harley-Davidson, once these new motorcycles are available in the exponentially growing Indian market. That said, HD holds the early bird advantage, and brings most of their motorcycles into India via the more affordable CKD route, giving its motorcycles a pricing edge.

Polaris acquired Indian Motorcycles in 2011 to complement their Victory brand and give direct competition to HD in the cruiser and tourer bike segments.

Polaris India remains tight lipped about further details at this stage. Watch this space for updates!

[Autocar India]

June 28, 2013
Bharti Airtel Becomes World’s 4th Largest Mobile Operator

According to the Wireless Intelligence ‘Scoreboard’ report, Bharti Airtel has 250 million mobile subscribers across its operations by the end of June 2012. Bharti Airtel took over Telefonica Group with a growth of 13 percent over the year.

Bharti Airtel has operations in 20 countries across South Asia and Africa with a subscriber base of 250 million.

According to a PTI report, China Mobile continues to be at the top spot with 683.08 million connections, followed by Vodafone Group (386.88 million) and America Movil Group (251.83 million). Bharti Airtel (250.04) and Telefonica Group (243.51) are at fourth and fifth position, respectively.

The research report also listed three other Indian operators in the top 20 mobile operators with Reliance coming in 8^th position having a subscriber base close to 155 million, followed by IdeaCellular in 14^th position with 117 million subscribers and then BSNL in the 20^th position with 98 million mobile subscribers.

October 22, 2012
NIIT partners Microsoft to offer new programs in Cloud and emerging technologies

Technology trainer NIIT inked a strategic alliance with Microsoft Corporation to develop cloud-ready professionals, to take on assignments in the global IT industry. Under this alliance NIIT will offer new programs in cloud and emerging technologies in association with Microsoft.

This initiative will allow students to look at the next generation opportunities in the field of cloud computing, cloud services, and apps development. Further, the benefit of Microsoft Certification integrated with NIIT programs will be made available to students both in the retail and academic space, by NIIT.

[ET]

September 13, 2012
Google Introduces Voice Navigation To India

Commuters in India are all set to get turn-by-turn, voice-guided directions, using the Google Maps Navigation. In addition, if you’re living in Bangalore, Mumbai, New Delhi, Chennai, Pune and Hyderabad, you’ll find that live traffic updates feature just got activated on your maps menu.

You can even speak your destination into your phone and have your route set for you. A country-specific option lets you set the voice to an Indian accent for easier comprehension.

[quote]“Whether you’re heading to the Bengaluru airport for a business trip or visiting Agra’s world-famous Taj Mahal for a weekend of sightseeing with friends, Google Maps Navigation has you covered,” say Darren Baker, product manager and Suren Ruhela, senior program manager, Google Maps, in a statement posted on the Google India blog.[/quote]

While Navigation app was always a feature of Android phones in India, the service was not supported officially. It used to show just the route and lacked support for voice instructions. Currently, the Navigation feature is in beta and Google tells users to exercise caution while using it.

September 8, 2012
SMS Curb May Lead to 7-8% Revenue Loss To Mobile Companies

Restriction on SMSes to five per day is not only causing problems for millions of mobile phone users but may also lead to loss of 7-8 percent revenue of telecom operators for the month.

The government had banned bulk SMSes and MMSes for 15 days across the country from 18 August to check spread of
rumours which has led to exodus of people from northeastern states from cities like Bangalore, Hyderabad and Pune.

There were reports of widespread circulation of SMSes and MMSes containing misleading information about Assam violence, threats to people from northeast states living in other parts of the country and doctored videos.

While pre-paid mobile users, who account for over 90 percent of the 930 million mobile subscriber base, are unable to send more than five messages per day, postpaid users do not seem to be facing any problem.

People across the country wanting to wish their friends and relatives for Eid are feeling the pinch of the government order restricting the text messages.

“A ban of 15 days means they could lose around seven to eight percent of revenue this month from this service alone,” Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) Director General Rajan S Mathews said.

Operators on an average get 15-18 per cent revenue from data services of which SMS is a part, he said.

Mathews, however, added that “all the members will definitely make every effort to abide by the rules, as national security and human lives are at stake.”

Youngsters are the largest users of SMS and many of them are upset by the restriction. “I wanted to SMS my Eid greetings to friends as it is not possible to call everyone. However, after five messages, I am unable to send anymore messages. As a subscriber, I feel cheated,” Pragya Gupta, a student at Delhi University said.

The order, which limits the number of SMS’ a subscriber can send for the next 15 days, was given after bulk messages were circulated that provoked exodus of northeast people from various cities like Bangalore and Pune. “SMS has become a way of life. As a media professional, I need to stay in touch with industry peers and it is generally over messages. However, with this ban, we are finding it difficult and it is impacting our work,” Rakesh Kumar Jha, a PR professional said.

He, however, added that “the situation is very sensitive and I can understand the government’s decision to ban bulk sms in order to prevent any untoward incident”.

Subscribers trying to send their sixth SMS received messages like “As per the government’s order, your limit is 5 SMS a day”.

The order however does not cover transactional messages related to banking, financial institutes and railways.

[FirstPost]

August 20, 2012
“Remove Hate Content” : Gov To ISPs

Government has issued directions to all Internet service providers to disable any inflammatory or hateful content that targets the community for north eastern states.

“Based on complaints regarding content that’s inflammatory, hateful and inciting violence targeting North East Community, DIT has issued an advisory to all intermediaries,” Union Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology Sachin Pilot said.

The advisory based on terms and provisions of IT Act and Rules asks them to take action for disabling all such content on priority, the minister said.

[Economic Times]

August 17, 2012
India ranks No.2 in Google search queries for education

India ranked second in the number of education queries on Google, the search engine major said today.

India was ranked 8th in 2008, and is now behind only to the US, reveals a study titled ‘Students on the web’ compiled by Google India. The study was compiled by combining Google search query patterns and an offline research conducted by TNS Australia on behalf of Google India

[quote]“With over 60 million Internet user population in India being in age group of 18-35, educational related search queries are exploding on Google. Our core objective behind compiling this study was to understand the impact Internet is having on this young population with regard to education related decision making by the students,” Google India Vice President and Managing Director Rajan Anandan said.[/quote]

Education related queries on Google in India are growing at over 46 per cent year on year that highlights strong demand for information on institutes and courses that are available in the country.

Out of all education related search queries on Google, over 40 per cent of queries were for higher education courses and institutes.

Search queries from mobile phones have considerably grown showing a growth of over 135 per cent and amounting to over 22 per cent of all education related search queries.

August 8, 2012
TRAI to ask for import ban on phones with fake IMEI

Telecom regulator TRAI is planning to approach the Commerce and Industry Ministry to ban imports of mobile phones carrying inauthentic unique IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) numbers, which help the authorities track users.

[quote]“TRAI will soon write to the Commerce Ministry to ban such phones. Import of only those cell phones should be allowed which are certified by GSMA-and TIA-authorised bodies for GSM [Global System for Mobile] and CDMA handsets respectively,” an official told PTI.[/quote]

The GSM Association and Telecommunications Industry Association are global bodies that provide unique numbers to mobile handset companies.

The move aims to check proliferation of mobile handsets with duplicate or cloned IMEI numbers, which are dangerous for national security.

An IMEI comprises 15-digit codes assigned to a handset and it appears on the operator’s network whenever a call is made. Concerns had been raised over their usage after terror attacks in India.

Cloning issues in the case of CDMA handsets are negligible but rampant in the case of GSM handsets, the official said.

The government has banned services on mobile handsets with fake IMEI numbers after November 30, 2009.

However, according to informed sources, during a test conducted in a telecom service area, government officials were surprised to see over 18,000 mobile handsets using the same IMEI number.

“The idea is to ask importers of handsets to provide a certificate issued by a GSMA or TIA authorised body for entry of his consignment in the country,” the official said.

Mobile phones without the unique security code are making inroads into the grey market by cloning the IMEI numbers of genuine sets. Through cloning, the IMEIs of bona fide mobile sets can be used by antisocial elements.

August 6, 2012
Tekfusion Twinwoofers In Ear Earphones Initial Hands on Review

We recently got our hands on the Tekfusion Twinwoofers in-ear headphones and got down to an initial hands-on review.

Technical Features :

Frequency Response : 19-21 KHz
Impedance : 16 Ohms
Pressure Level : 113 dB
Net Weight : 30g (1.06Oz)
Color : Black Chrome
Cable Length : 1.1m
Cable Type : Symmetric
1 Year Manufacturer’s Warranty

The package consists of the Twinwoofers In-Ear Hedphones , 5 pair of Eartips – 3 pair regular S/M/L, and 2 pair Tripple flange – M/L, Clip & Cable Slider , a Carry Pouch and a User Manual.

The first thing you’ll notice is they are light-weight but pretty tough. They are made from metal, and have partial gloss and partial matte finish – which gives them a very premium look . The twin-woofer logo adorns the back of the drum and overall the headphone is very well crafted. The earphones come with a 3.5 mm gold plated jack.

The initial impression of the headphones was that they perform really well at low volume but a slight clipping can be noticed at high-volume bass. We will take a look into this once we come out with our full in-depth review but for now, for a price tag of INR 1000-1200 these are definitely one of the best earphones in the market.

Check out our hands-on review here :-

July 4, 2012
Mercury mTab Rio 9.7-inch tablet launched at INR 11,999

Computer peripherals manufacturer Kobian has launched its tablet, the mTab Rio.

The tablet supports Wi-Fi and provides a battery backup of six to eight hours and runs on Android 4. The device is priced at Rs 11,999, which includes a one-year warranty.

The device boasts of a 9.7-inch IPS panel, and is powered by a 1.2 GHz processor, 1GB of DDR3 RAM and has 8GB/16GB internal storage expandable via microSD card up to 32GB.

The Mercury mTab Rio supports Wi-Fi and claims battery backup of 6-8 hours. The device also has a 2MP camera and a front facing camera for video chatting. The device also supports 3G connectivity via a USB dongle and has HDMI output.

[quote]Commenting on the target audience, Ms Sushmita Das, Country Manager-India, Kobian, said: “Mercury mTab Rio can be a companion for students to surf the net, for office-goers who are able to do their work anywhere and for families to enjoy movies.”[/quote]

July 2, 2012
Cyber Pirates Target Corruption in India

The hacker group know as Anonymous has shown its support for India’s Anti-Corruption Movement by hacking the National Infomatics Center (NIC) Website and placing this message:

The NIC is responsible for implementing and managing IT related projects including e-governance in India. Until now, most cyber attacks on India have been done by Pakistan based hackers as part of the on-going cyber-war between the two countries. Anonymous placed its logo along with a message for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the NIC website. The page was not accessible by Tuesday, but a google cache of the page still reveals the message.

There was however no data stolen by the hack, or any damage done, according to a government expert on cyber security. “This was more a playful threat, that exploited some weaknesses of the NIC site,” an NIC official said on condition of anonymity.

June 9, 2011
iPhone 4 India Launch Tomorrow : 27th May 2011 : Airtel and Aircel reveal details

Its already been known for a few days now, but it has been made official. The iPhone 4 officially becomes available in India from tomorrow the 27th of May 2011.

Both Airtel and Aircel have begun pricing their devices

Airtel is offering the iPhone 4 16GB at : INR 34,500 and 32GB at : INR 40,900 these devices will be locked to Airtel.

“As 3G services drive the next wave of growth in the country’s telecom industry, iPhone 4 on Airtel’s exceptional high-speed network will provide customers with a truly mobile 3G experience at affordable service offerings” said Atul Bindal, President, Mobile Services, Bharti Airtel

Prices for the device remain same on Aircel with the carrier lock shifting to Aircel.

Check out Offers below

Airtel

Aircel Offers

[Aircel – iPhone 4]

[Airtel- iPhone 4]

May 26, 2011
iG Exclusive : Apple iPhone 4 for India around the bend?

Recent rumors that the Apple iPhone 4 will be launched with BSNL, seem to be coming true. Sources close to us, have notified us that the Apple iPhone 4 for India will be launched very – very soon. Will be available unlocked through the Reliance – Apple – iStores and through other resellers. Price point is set at 40k for 16 and 45k for 32 gigs. Hopefully India gets the white version instantly!

looks like its Apple Day today at iGyaan!

Stay tuned while we get more scoop on this!

February 24, 2011