TeChNoPhObIi...

India has to wait for low-cost Windows 10 phones: Microsoft exec

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Sun, 13 Dec 2015 15:03:00 +0000

For those in India waiting for low-cost Lumia smartphones that come packed with the latest Windows 10, there is still some time as the company is now focussed on re-branding and launching new generation smartphones to take on big players, a top Microsoft executive has said. “We are sort of re-building so we will start high. New generation smartphones first and then you will see a scale overtime,” Steve “Guggs” Guggenheimer, the chief evangelist at Microsoft Corporation, told IANS in an interview here. “I do not have a timeline for new range phones as of now. One step at a time and you can assume it to be logical for us to scale the Lumia line to other price points over time,” Guggenheimer told this reporter on the sidelines of “Think Next 2015” – a day-long event that brought innovation and technology leaders under one roof in the capital this week. Watch video of Microsoft Lumia 950 and 950 XL In a one-on-one interview, Guggenheimer, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s Developer eXperience & Evangelism (DX) group, also talked about new features and Microsoft’s future plans with upcoming Lumia 950 and 950 XL smartphones for the Indian market. “Lumia has stretched from really low end to medium to high. The truth of the matter (of introducing high-end costly phone) is that globally, the company that takes the most margin for phones is Apple. We want to put a little dent in that,” added the executive who is responsible for enabling the development of industry leading applications and services globally across devices. Microsoft, which bought Finnish teleco Nokia last year, has launched two models of Lumia – 950 and 950XL smartphones with Windows 10 – for the Indian consumers. Priced at Rs 43,699 and R .49,399, both models are available at the company’s resellers, retail chains of Croma, Reliance and Sangeetha and Microsoft Store on Amazon.in. Also read: Microsoft Lumia 950, 950 XL first impressions: Display Dock is the big advantage While discussing the app crunch that Lumia users face, the soon-to-be-released Microsoft Office 2016 and use of technology in sports, Guggenheimer said it could differ from user to user. “If you use the phone as a business tool, the way our phones work with Microsoft Office, the way it helps users create calendar and emails and all those things seamless is awesome,” he told IANS. Shedding light on the new “Continuum” feature for phones, he said this new feature is a big-time productivity tool. “The unique Continuum feature makes you use your phone as your primary device. I can attach my phone to a keyboard or a mouse or a monitor and use it like a PC. It does the same work with the same output. For a country that is mobile first, the new phone offers a unique option to act as a personal computer,” he explained. When asked about the solution to the crunch of famous apps in Windows app store, he stated that there are very less Windows-based phones and “asking developers to make an app for a phone becomes hard sometimes”. Must see: Microsoft Lumia 550 with Windows 10 OS goes on sale “I wish I had a date. Part of the reason is due to the universal app model (that) is to give developers good reasons to build experiences from PC to TV to phone. So if we just go to a developer and ask to make an app for phone, it becomes hard sometimes, but if you say please make an app for Windows that works on phones, tablets and PCs, that’s actually an easier conversation,” he told IANS. Talking about the new Office 2016, Guggenheimer said it not only gives you a fresh client version with new features in email, outlook and excel but also allows you to update on a regular basis. “Ultimately you are sort of getting a mix of traditional client service and cloud mobile version,” he explained. The “Think Next 2015” forum not only saw the participation of more than 800 delegates from leading companies, investors, thought leaders and delegates from Microsoft who partnered to push the collaborative innovation agenda for the ecosystem but also witnessed the graduation of Microsoft Ventures’ Winter batch 2015.

Gionee Marathon M5 Lite launched in China: Here are all the specs

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Sun, 13 Dec 2015 15:01:00 +0000

Gionee Marathon M5 Lite with a smaller 4000 mAh battery and a 5-inch screen, has been launched in China. The smartphone is listed on the company’s China website and is priced at Yuan 999, which is around Rs 10,387 when converted. Gionee has not yet announced an India release date or price for this smartphone. Gionee’s Marathon M5 Lite has a 5-inch HD screen, 1GB RAM and runs the MediaTek MT6735 quad-core processor. It has 16 GB storage space (expandable to 128 GB), sports an 8 mp rear camera and a 5 mp camera on the front. Watch video review of Gionee Marathon M5 Unlike the Gionee Marathon M5 which has a massive 6020 mAh battery, the M5 Lite has a smaller 4000 mAh battery, which still promises a standby time of 39 days. The Gionee Marathon M5 Lite is also lighter at 182g compared to the 210g Marathon M5. The dimensions of the Marathon M5 Lite are 143 x 69.9 x 8.5 mm. This a dual-SIM smartphone that supports 4G LTE.

Facebook set to launch professional version

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Sun, 13 Dec 2015 14:59:00 +0000

Facebook at Work, Facebook Inc's professional version of its social network, is expected to launch in the coming months after spending a year in tests, a company executive said. The new service, geared towards workplace collaboration, is nearly identical to its ubiquitous social network with a scrolling news 'feed', 'likes' and a chat service. "I would say 95 per cent of what we developed for Facebook is also adopted for Facebook at Work," Julien Codorniou, director of global platform partnerships at Facebook, told news agency Reuters. However, Facebook at Work users will maintain special profiles that are distinct from their existing Facebook profiles. The company is also developing exclusive products for Facebook at Work, including security tools, Codorniou said. The online career market, which includes LinkedIn Corp and Monster Worldwide Inc, is worth about $6 billion a year, market research firm IDC had said in August. More than 300 companies, including Heineken, Royal Bank of Scotland and jewellery company Stella and Dot, are using Facebook at Work and Club Mediterranee SA is set to be the latest adopter. The French resort company will offer the service to all its 13,000 employees through summer 2016, Anne Browaeys-Level, Club Mediterranee's chief marketing and digital officer, told Reuters. Codorniou said that almost everything on Facebook at Work is the same as the regular Facebook social network with some minor exceptions. "You cannot play Candy Crush on Facebook at Work," he said. Meanwhile, Facebook defended its Free Basics initiative on Thursday saying programmes that help people connect should not be halted or limited. The reaction of Facebook comes against the backdrop of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India coming out with a consultation paper on differential pricing for data services, through which telecom operators offer free or discounted tariffs to access certain websites.

Motorola Moto G Turbo Edition first impressions: One big, brave step for Moto G-kind

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Sun, 13 Dec 2015 14:57:00 +0000

Motorola just announced an upgraded version of its Moto G smartphone called the Moto G Turbo Edition. The smartphone is a mid-range device and is priced at Rs 14,499 and goes on sale on Flipkart starting from 10 December. The Moto G Turbo Edition is supposed to be a budget smartphone, however, its hardware specifications place it a notch over the currently available Moto G (2015) smartphone and eerily close to its elder sibling Moto X Play that is priced at Rs 19,999. Still then, the smartphone will find plenty of takers and these will be upgraders who want to step up from the budget Moto G with a few new features. So without delay, here are our first impressions of the Motorola Moto G Turbo Edition:

As with every other Motorola smartphone that has launched this year, the design is again pretty similar to its predecessors. But the Moto G Turbo Edition does feel a bit special and you will notice this once you pick up the phone. It certainly does not feel cheap and nothing like the Moto G models of the past.

This one feels heavy and premium and the frame that is designed in a typical Motorola fashion is actually made of plastic. On the front we have a Gorilla Glass 3 panel protecting the HD display beneath which has the earpiece on the top and a loudspeaker below.

On the top side of the Moto G Turbo, you will find the 3.5 mm headphone jack accompanied by the secondary mic.

On the bottom bit of the frame is your standard microUSB port for charging and data transfers. While the left side of the smartphone is barren, the right side sports a conveniently placed power or unlock button and volume buttons.

At the back is a grippy fingerprint like texture that lets you grip the smartphone very easily, no matter how you are holding it. The back panel can be removed to reveal the dual SIM set up and the slot for the microSD card. Also visible on the back is the capsule like layout for the Motorola logo (with the typical dimple for support) and camera set up that includes a dual LED flash. All of the above is tightly packed into a construction that is dust and water resistant with an IP67 rating.
Display

The 5-inch TFT LCD display is indeed a sharp one. Motorola has packed in an HD (1280 x 720 pixels) screen that delivers a pixel density of 294 ppi. While the display seemed perfect for the hardware at first glance we did notice the pentile matrix pattern in the areas that lit up in white. Still then, it is a great display that is bright enough both indoors and outdoors.
Chipset, RAM, Storage

As I said earlier the hardware selection by Motorola is indeed what makes the Moto G Turbo special. And at an asking price of Rs 14,499, the only smartphone that seems to one up the Turbo is the Obi SF1 Worldphone. In addition, you do have better value for money with plenty of upgrades when compared to your typical Moto G. There is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 chipset with an Adreno 403 GPU that is coupled with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of onboard storage. As mentioned earlier Motorola has added its now standard microSD card slot that supports cards up to 32GB, which seems a bit limited. Motorola indeed seems to know its way with software as the Snapdragon seems to show no signs of stutter or lag while opening closing or switching between apps.
OS, Connectivity

Motorola’s standard recipe of stock Android mixed with a few Moto specific features seems to work well even for its E series of devices. And the same tradition has been carried over with the Moto G Turbo that appears almost stock with a few customisations that never get in your way nor seem to slow down the system. You get just the basics with the Moto login app and the Moto Migrate app that will get you up and running in no time. Also available is the handy flick to launch the Camera gesture (Quick Capture) that we got used to pretty quickly (more so because the grippy back gave us the confidence to do it). In terms of connectivity, Motorola has left no stone unturned. The smartphone packs in everything under the sun with 4G, 3G radios with a dual SIM set up, 802.11 b/g/n (2.4 GHz), Bluetooth 4.0 LE and the usual GPS, AGPS, GLONASS.
Camera

The Moto G Turbo Edition packs in a 13MP, AF, f/2.0 primary camera with a 76 degree field of view (FOV) and also packs in a dual tone, dual-LED flash. The camera supports 4X digital zoom, and is capable of shooting 1080p Full HD video at 30 fps, slow motion video, iHDR Video, Auto HDR and even offers video stabilisation. A 5MP Fixed Focus unit sits on the front that sports an f/2.2 aperture with a 72 degree FOV. Our initial tests showed above average image quality on a cloudy day so we will hold back our view for the full review.
Battery
Given the price tag, you pretty much get a bang for your buck when it comes to battery life. The device packs in a 2470mAh battery and the smartphone supports Motorola’s TurboPower charging tech that delivers up to 6 hours of use from just 15 minutes charging. Motorola claims that the battery is designed to last a full day, but we will have to test that out to come to a conclusion.
Bottom line

We would like to think of the Motorola Moto G Turbo Edition as the first smartphone to step out of the G series. With the plastiky Moto G still on sale, we are pretty sure, Moto fans may want to upgrade given the better specs and the snappy new processor. So far we like what we see, a premium looking device with plenty of heft and horsepower that comes very close to its true mid-range sibling the Moto X Play. Still then we would suggest that you hold on to your purchase until our full review arrives.

Decoded: Why is it so difficult to leave Facebook permanently

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Sun, 13 Dec 2015 14:42:00 +0000

Have you ever shut down your Facebook account, only to meekly log back in a week later? Researchers have explored the factors that prevent users from logging off the social networking site permanently. Using survey data provided by 99daysoffreedom.com - an online campaign that encouraged participants to log off Facebook for 99 days - researchers at Cornell University honed in on those who made the pledge but ultimately could not resist the allure of Facebook's social network. The researchers found four main factors that led to reversion. The first reason is perceived addiction - those who feel that Facebook is addictive or habitual are more likely to return, according to the group's research. One participant described this habitual aspect by saying, "In the first 10 days, whenever I opened up an internet browser, my fingers would automatically go to 'f'." Another reason is privacy and surveillance - users who feel their Facebook activity is being monitored are less likely to revert, while those who use Facebook largely to manage how other people think of them are more likely to log back in. The third reason is subjective mood - users in a good mood are less likely to renege on their pledge to stay off Facebook. The fourth reason is other social media - the researchers found that Facebook users are less likely to log back in if they had other social media outlets - like Twitter, for instance. Those who reflected on the appropriate role for technology in their social lives are more likely to revert. In many of these cases, people returned to Facebook but altered their use, for example, uninstalling the app from their phones, reducing their number of friends or limiting the amount of time spent on the platform. The team's findings were drawn from more than 5,000 surveys issued to participants by Just, the Dutch creative agency that founded the 99 Days of Freedom project. These surveys were sent to project participants on days 33, 66 and 99 and were intended to gauge each user's mood throughout the Facebook detox. "Facebook serves numerous important social functions, in some cases providing the only means for certain groups to keep in touch. These results highlight the complexities involved in people's ongoing decisions about how to use, or not use, social media," said Eric Baumer from Cornell University. People who leave social media and then return, what researchers term "social media reversion," provide the opportunity to understand better what is at stake when people use - or do not use - sites like Facebook.

Waiting for Low-Cost Windows 10 Phones? Keep Waiting, Says Microsoft Executive

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Sat, 12 Dec 2015 10:45:00 +0000

For those in India waiting for low-cost Lumia smartphones that come packed with New-Age Windows 10, there is still some time as the company is now focussed on re-branding and launching new generation smartphones to take on big players, a top Microsoft executive has said. "We are sort of re-building so we will start high. New generation smartphones first and then you will see a scale overtime," Steve "Guggs" Guggenheimer, the chief evangelist at Microsoft Corporation, told IANS in an interview in New Delhi. "I do not have a timeline for new range phones as of now. One step at a time and you can assume it to be logical for us to scale the Lumia line to other price points over time," Guggenheimer told this reporter on the sidelines of "Think Next 2015" - a day-long event that brought innovation and technology leaders under one roof in the capital this week. Talking about the current trends in India where Android has a lion's share owing to the new launches in mid-price bracket ranging from Rs.6,000 to 10,000, he said India has broad Android users but as we go on releasing next generation phones, you will see a definite change. In a one-on-one interview, Guggenheimer, corporate vice president of Microsoft's Developer eXperience & Evangelism (DX) group, also talked about new features and Microsoft's future plans with upcoming Lumia 950 and 950 XL smartphones for the Indian market. Microsoft, which bought Finnish teleco Nokia last year, has launched two models of Lumia - 950 and 950XL smartphones with Windows 10 - for the Indian consumers. Priced at Rs.43,699 and Rs.49,399, both models are available at the company's resellers, retail chains of Croma, Reliance and Sangeetha and Microsoft Store on Amazon.in. "Lumia has stretched from really low end to medium to high. The truth of the matter (of introducing high-end costly phone) is that globally, the company that takes the most margin for phones is Apple. We want to put a little dent in that," added the executive who is responsible for enabling the development of industry leading applications and services globally across devices. While discussing the app crunch that Lumia users face, the soon-to-be-released Microsoft Office 2016 and use of technology in sports, Guggenheimer said it could differ from user to user. "If you use the phone as a business tool, the way our phones work with Microsoft Office, the way it helps users create calendar and emails and all those things seamless is awesome," he told IANS. Shedding light on the new "Continuum" feature for phones that turns them into a big-screen projector, he said this new feature is a big-time productivity tool. "The unique Continuum feature makes you use your phone as your primary device. I can attach my phone to a keyboard or a mouse or a monitor and use it like a PC. It does the same work with the same output. For a country that is mobile first, the new phone offers a unique option to act as a personal computer," he explained. According to Guggenheimer, the new security feature "retina scan" is just like a biometric log in. The "retina scan" uses the retina to unlock the Lumia 950 and 950 XL phones without a password. When asked about the solution to the crunch of famous apps in Windows app store, he stated that there are very less Windows-based phones and "asking developers to make an app for a phone becomes hard sometimes". "I wish I had a date. Part of the reason is due to the universal app model (that) is to give developers good reasons to build experiences from PC to TV to phone. So if we just go to a developer and ask to make an app for phone, it becomes hard sometimes, but if you say please make an app for Windows that works on phones, tablets and PCs, that's actually an easier conversation," he told IANS. Talking about the new Office 2016, Guggenheimer said it not only gives you a fresh client version with new features in email, outlook and excel but also allows you to update on a regular basis. "Ultimately you are sort of getting a mix of traditional client service and cloud mobile version," he explained. When Guggenheimer is not thinking about technology, he enjoys watching rugby matches and cheering on his hometown Seattle Seahawks. In a recent blog post, he talked about how International Motor Sports Association used Microsoft Azure and Visual basic in Motor Sports in creative ways to transform fans' experience. "It is fun to watch new start-ups using technology and apply it to areas which need to be refreshed. We don't say 'here are some products for sports'; we'll say here are some tools and some technologies to start-ups. Let them have the creative ideas. And then we bring them together," he said. The "Think Next 2015" forum not only saw the participation of more than 800 delegates from leading companies, investors, thought leaders and delegates from Microsoft who partnered to push the collaborative innovation agenda for the ecosystem but also witnessed the graduation of Microsoft Ventures' Winter batch 2015.

Coming soon - Android N with multi-window function

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Sat, 12 Dec 2015 10:44:00 +0000

Recently, during a Reddit AMA on the Pixel C, Glen Murphy, director of Android and Chrome UX, confirmed that a split-screen multitasking support is incoming. He said: “We're working hard on a range of enhancements for Android in this form factor. There are many things, like multi-window, that we've been spending a lot of time on -- hopefully we can share more about this soon." Apparently, this update won't come until Android 7.0 releases. Consumer hardware director at Google, Andrew Bowers, added: “We're working on lots of things right now for N that, of course, we wish we had, you know, yesterday. But we'd spoil the surprise of N if we shared all of them. Split screen is in the works!” Apple added iOS 9 added multitasking functionality into iOS9 this year for iPads, while we've seen similar functionality in Windows. Android N is likely to launch next year and we don't know what N stands for but we are guessing Nutella.

Google’s Project Loon still grounded in India

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Sat, 12 Dec 2015 10:43:00 +0000

Just days before Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai is set to visit to India, the company’s ambitious project to provide internet access for all in the country is facing roadblocks from at least three ministries, including defence, civil and telecom. The Economic Times reported citing government sources, said the ministries had raised concern over the balloon-based project, called Loon. Pichai, who is visiting India next week, is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Loon is likely to be one of the top discussions between the two. Modi and Pichai had earlier discussed Project Loon during the former’s trip to Silicon Valley in September. Reports suggest that the Prime Minister’s Office is in fact directly monitoring the progress of Loon.

It is Google’s mission to provide internet access to rural and remote areas. It uses high-altitude balloons, 18 km from the ground, to create an aerial wireless network with up to 4G-LTE speeds transmitting as far as 40 kilometers in diameter. It was named Project Loon is presumably short for loony since Google itself found the very idea of providing internet access to a population of 5 billion unprecedented and crazy. How does the technology work? Project Loon balloons float in the stratosphere, twice as high as airplanes and the weather balloons. In the stratosphere, there are many strata of air, and each layer of has wind going in different directions at varying velocities. According to Google, Loon balloons go where they’re needed by rising or descending into a stratum of air, blowing in the desired direction of travel. “By partnering with telecommunications companies to share cellular spectrum, we’ve enabled people to connect to the balloon network directly from their phones and other LTE-enabled devices. The signal is then passed across the balloon network and back down to the global internet on Earth,” Google’s Loon team wrote on a post describing the project.

India’s concerns

The project requires connectivity to work and hence needs a share of the spectrum in the 700 to 900 MHz bandwidth which is currently occupied by cellular network providers. India is pressed for spectrum availability and the cost of operation is very high in the country. If Loon enters the market, it will crowd the spectrum bandwidth and market. Telecom operators are already facing issues with fixing incremental call drops, with the debate on the compensation rule for customers adding to their woes. Union communications and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has also said that there are technical glitches in Loon. “The proposed frequency band to be used in the Loon Project of Google is being used for cellular operations in India and it will lead to interference with cellular transmissions,” he said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.

Other troubling matters

The civil aviation ministry is concerned that the balloons may interfere with flight paths, and wants to monitor these balloons via Air Traffic Control to avoid accidents. However, the home ministry has expressed security fears if these balloons can be used for surveillance. A government official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, claimed that several meetings have been held between Google and nodal officers of concerned ministries to resolve these issues, the Economic Times reported. However, the spectrum sharing issue remains to be the most important roadblock in getting Loon up in the air.

What is Loon’s status in India?

Loon, like most other ‘Internet-for-all’ technologies is at the proposed pilot stage. According to government sources, it was given conditional clearance and is yet to take off as a pilot project. Clearance is conditional on all ministry concerns being resolved. The discussions on Loon were last held in October and the Department of Electronics and Information Technology, which is in charge of the proposal, is now awaiting Google’s response.

Where in the world is Loon active?

Elon Musk, Other Tech Chiefs Back Artificial Intelligence Non-Profit OpenAI With $1 Billion

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Sat, 12 Dec 2015 10:33:00 +0000

Tesla Motors Inc Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk and other prominent tech executives are pouring $1 billion (roughly Rs. 6,714 crores) into a non-profit aimed at creating artificial intelligence that augments humans' capabilities, rather than making them obsolete. The effort announced on Friday, called OpenAI, joins significant investments from companies such as Alphabet Inc's Google, Facebook Inc and Amazon.com Inc , which have used artificial intelligence to sharpen their businesses with services such as facial recognition or language processing. But the OpenAI founders suggested they have set their sights on bigger problems. "Our goal is to advance digital intelligence in the way that is most likely to benefit humanity as a whole, unconstrained by a need to generate financial return," a blog post on OpenAI's website said. Predicting that human-level artificial intelligence will eventually arrive, the backers argued that it was vital to have a research institution like OpenAI in place to seek "a good outcome for all over its own self-interest." Musk has warned of the harm that may come from artificial intelligence, telling Massachusetts Institute of Technology students it was humanity's "biggest existential threat." He will be co-chair of the non-profit with venture capitalist Sam Altman, who has backed Reddit. As artificial intelligence races ahead, non-profits have a special part to play by focussing the technology on society's most pressing problems, said Oren Etzioni, CEO of the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence, a non-profit established in 2014 by Microsoft Corp co-founder Paul Allen. "AI is too important a technology to be dedicated to things like ad targeting or ordering things in a news feed," Etzioni said. OpenAI's list of donors include PayPal Holding Inc co-founder Peter Thiel, LinkedIn Corp co-founder Reid Hoffman and Musk himself. Other supporters include Amazon's cloud unit Amazon Web Services, Indian IT firm Infosys Ltd and Greg Brockman, former chief technology officer of payments startup Stripe. While the backers have ponied up a vast sum, OpenAI said it expects to spend a "tiny fraction" of the $1 billion in the next few years. Even so, the money will go a long way, said Norman Winarsky, a lecturer at Stanford University and co-founder of Siri, a startup Apple acquired in 2010 to launch its digital assistant. Siri was inspired by a government programme that invested $150 million (roughly Rs. 1,007 crores) over five years, he said. A $1 billion investment "will have a tremendous impact," Winarsky said.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai writes open letter supporting Muslims

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Sat, 12 Dec 2015 10:31:00 +0000

India-born Google head Sundar Pichai is the latest technology industry CEO to come out against Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's recent anti-Muslim tirade. "Let's not let fear defeat our values", Pichai wrote on Friday on Medium, a blog platform. "... it's not just about opportunity. The open-mindedness, tolerance, and acceptance of new Americans is one of the country's greatest strengths and most defining characteristics. And that is no coincidence -- America, after all, was and is a country of immigrants." Though Pichai didn't name Trump directly, he did make a reference to the controversy. "That is why it's so disheartening to see the intolerant discourse playing out in the news these days -- statements that our country would be a better place without the voices, ideas and the contributions of certain groups of people, based solely on where they come from, or their religion." Earlier this week, Trump advocated a ban on all new immigration of Muslims to the US. The idea was widely condemned, including by some of his fellow Republicans. Pichai, who was named to Google's top post in August this year, is himself an immigrant. He was born in Madras and moved to the US almost 22 years ago. "I was fortunate enough to gain entry to a university here, and time after time, I saw that hard work opened other doors. I have built a career and a family and a life here. And I've felt as much a part of this country, as I felt growing up in India," he wrote. Recently, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg too came out in support of Muslims, saying that they should not fear being "persecuted for the actions of others." Zuckerberg said in a Facebook post that the Muslim community should not face discrimination following attacks in Paris and elsewhere linked to extremists. "After the Paris attacks and hate this week, I can only imagine the fear Muslims feel that they will be persecuted for the actions of others," he wrote. "As a Jew, my parents taught me that we must stand up against attacks on all communities. Even if an attack isn't against you today, in time attacks on freedom for anyone will hurt everyone."

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg gets praised by Turkey president Recep Tayyip Erdogan

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 12:57:00 +0000

ISTANBUL: Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday praised Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg for emphasizing the difference between Islam and terror, after the billionaire social network tycoon posted a message defending Muslims against discrimination. Erdogan, who once threatened to ban Facebook in his country, used his official page on the website to respond to Zuckerberg both in Turkish and in English. "I highly value Mark Zuckerberg's message for pointing out the profound difference between Islam and terrorism since these two concepts are often mentioned in the same breath these days," he wrote. "As I always express on different platforms, Islam is a religion of peace. Murderous networks that abuse Islam for their self-serving goals are massacring innocent people every day, particularly Muslims." In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Zuckerberg said that the Muslim community should not have to fear being "persecuted for the actions of others" following attacks in Paris and elsewhere carried out by Islamic extremists. "If you're a Muslim in this community, as the leader of Facebook I want you to know that you are always welcome here and that we will fight to protect your rights and create a peaceful and safe environment for you," he said. The supportive message came just days after Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump caused international outrage by demanding a ban on Muslims travelling to the United States. Erdogan, who was elected president last August after ruling Turkey as premier for over a decade, has in the past made no secret of his disdain for social media, vowing to "eradicate" Twitter ahead of local elections in March 2014. The government blocked Twitter and YouTube days before March 2014 local elections after they were used to spread a torrent of audio recordings implicating Erdogan and his inner circle in an alleged corruption scandal. He had at the time raised the option of a ban on Facebook, arguing that his opponents were using the social media site to attack him. But the Turkish strongman appears to have softened his stance in recent times. His official Facebook page is now used regularly to post his speeches and statements, while Erdogan in February even finally began tweeting from the official handle @RT_Erdogan.

Facebook News Feed gets 'offline mode'

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 12:51:00 +0000

Often wished you could post comments on Facebook posts even when you are offline? Facebook just heard you. The social networking giant has launched a new technology that will allow users to access new content on their News Feeds even with patchy or poor internet connection. In a blog post, the company announced,"As a next step in improving people's experiences on slower internet connections, we are shipping several changes that will more efficiently show you relevant stories in your News Feed when you're on a slow connection and will let you compose comments on posts when you're offline." News Feed is primarily Facebook's homepage which shows readers real-time aggregation of statuses, photos, links, and the Likes posted by users they follow. Wondering how this will work? Here's what Facebook has to say: "Anytime someone loads News Feed, we retrieve the latest and most relevant stories for each person. But most people don't scroll through all stories when they look at News Feed. In the past, if you were on a poor internet connection or had no connection, you might need to wait for stories to load when you opened News Feed. We are now testing an update in which we look at all the previously downloaded stories present on your phone that you have not yet viewed, and rank them based on their relevance. We also factor in whether the images for the story are available. This way we can immediately display relevant stories you haven't seen yet, instead of showing a spinner while you wait for new stories. When we receive new stories from the server when you're back online, we load and rank those stories normally.

Google's Project Loon Will Interfere With Cellular Transmissions, Says Telecom Minister

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 12:50:00 +0000

Google's Project Loon, through which the online search giant plans to provide Internet connectivity using balloons, will interfere with cellular transmissions of mobile operators in India, the government said on Friday. "The proposed frequency band to be used in the Loon Project of Google is being used for cellular operations in India and it will lead to interference with cellular transmissions," Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha. The statement of the Minister assumes significance in the backdrop of call drop problem faced by consumers due to poor network quality. On a query that whether there are technical glitches in according approval to Project Loon, the Minister replied in affirmative. Google, under its Project Loon, is using big balloons floating at a height of 20 kilometres above earth surface for transmission of Internet services. It has already tested this technology in New Zealand, California (the US) and Brazil. As per Google, each balloon can provide connectivity to a ground area about 40 km in diameter using a wireless communications technology called LTE or 4G. To use LTE or 4G, Project Loon partners with telecom companies to share cellular spectrum so that people will be able to access the Internet everywhere directly from their phones and other LTE-enabled devices. Google uses solar panel and wind to power electronic equipment in the balloon throughout the day.

Zomato gets a new chat feature to communicate with support staff

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 12:48:00 +0000

The widely used restaurant finder app has partnered with Konotor to give users a new chat feature on app. Konotor has created and provides support for the chat interface on Zomato. Konotor lets Zomato users communicate via a two way messaging inbox within the Zomato app. Users can communicate with Zomato within this chat interface, and can also start a conversation regarding promotional offers, track orders that they have placed, cancel orders and even check the refund status on cancelled orders placed online (with a debit card). Messages are then sent through push notifications to your Zomato account. The chat feature can be used from 9am to 11pm across India and the UAE for any order related query or feedback.Global Business Head - Online Ordering of Zomato, Tanmay Saksena said, “Over the past 6 months, we have built a solid online ordering product and are constantly working on improving user experience. With this update, we've focused on improving and simplifying the communication flow between users and Zomato during the order process. We aim to simplify the online ordering process and give users the option of a faster, more efficient, and reliable way of getting food delivered, with the introduction of this feature.”

Cortana comes to iOS, Android and CyanogenOS devices; brings nifty features

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 12:46:00 +0000

After releasing Cortana with its Windows 10 operating system, Microsoft is doing everything it can to ensure that it can reach as many users as possible. According to a post on the official Window Blog, Group Program Manager for Cortana, Marcus Ash said that Microsoft was finally taking the big step of bring Cortana to platforms other than Windows 10, namely iOS, Android and CyanogenOS powered devices. Now get reminders wherever you go The post mentioned that you could set location-based reminders to have it pop-up on your smartphone when you arrive at a specific location.

For instance, if you want to wish your family member on their birthday, you could set a reminder for your home location, and as you approach the vicinity, Cortana would do her job of reminding you. Never miss phone calls Cortana has added some smart features such as the ability to never miss a phone call. The next time you’re stuck in a lousy meeting with your boss, and your friends are calling your for a movie, you don’t have to feel the stress to watch over your phone.

Cortana would let your friends know your plight. Hopefully, your friends would be as caring! Convenient tracking With the holiday season fast approaching, Cortana has also added a nifty package tracking feature. You can now track flights, packages, and get updates without having to stay stuck on your device or PC.

In November this year, Microsoft announced that Cortana would be available in Indiaafter adapting herself to the cultural nuances of India and learning the Indian accent. For now, Cortana will work only in English and Microsoft has made spruced it up to understand Indian accent. Besides, the company has also introduced an Indian voice. It also understands Indian terms such as festivals, India-specific food and popular game of cricket. With the last update, Microsoft added the ability to take/write notes in Cortana Notebook and it will also recognise phone number and email address.It will also let you book as well as track Uber. While Cortana, a digital assistant and Siri rival, was announced only for Windows devices, the company earlier this years revealed its plans to bring it to Android as well as the iOS platform.

What Your Facebook Posts Say About You

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Fri, 18 Sep 2015 03:18:00 +0000

LONDON: Your Facebook posts say a lot about you or so, a new study from London's Brunel University said. The study said that those who posted regularly about their relationship on Facebook were insecure and needed attention and approval to distract from their insecurities. On the other hand, those who posted about their healthy lifestyle or gym sessions were egotistical and wanted likes and comments to reinforce their sense of self, the Irish Independent reported. "It is important to understand why people write about certain topics on Facebook because their updates may be differentially rewarded with likes and comments," Tara Marshall, psychology lecturer at Brunel was quoted as saying. "People who receive more likes and comments tend to experience the benefits of social inclusion, whereas those who receive none feel ostracised," Marshall explained. However, although narcissists' bragging seems to pays off because they receive more likes and comments to their status updates, Marshall suggested that it could be that their Facebook friends politely offer support while secretly disliking such egotistical displays. Greater awareness of how one's status updates might be perceived by friends could help people to avoid topics that annoy more than they entertain, the study concluded.

Twitter rolls out new feature on Android

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Fri, 18 Sep 2015 03:16:00 +0000

NEW DELHI: Microblogging website Twitter has said it was launching a new feature called Highlights on the Android platform. The new feature, which will support over 35 languages, will enable users to see a summary of Twitter activities based on their earlier set preferences and relevance in turn saving time and effort to go through the whole timeline or jump from one page to the other. "While your home timeline is a great place to browse and engage with Tweets, we know it can be challenging to find the time to get through everything you'd like to see. No matter how much time you spend with Twitter, we want you to get the most out of using it," Volodymyr Zhabiuk, senior software engineer at Twitter, wrote in a blog post. "To create your Highlights, we look at things like the accounts and conversations that are popular among people you follow, tweets from people you're closely tied to, topics and events that are trending in your area or within your network, and people that are popular or trending among people you follow," he explained. The users will get a notification as soon as the Highlights are ready via phone. "We're rolling out this experience on Android first and will consider bringing Highlights to other platforms in the future," Zhabiuk added.

Google update Slides on Android to add new lock screen control feature

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Fri, 18 Sep 2015 03:15:00 +0000

Amsterdam:Google has released an update of its Slides app on Android with a couple of useful features.According to The Next Web, the new version allows the users to move forward or backward through their slide deck using buttons in a lock screen notification, eliminating the need to unlock their device each time. Also, the users can select 'Disconnect' to exit their presentation from the same notification. When presenting to an audience on Hangouts, the users can now switch to video. The users just have to select on the video camera icon and they will be able to see other Hangout participants and pin them to their screen.

Microsoft’s Upcoming Cityman And Talkman Don’t Look Like Flagships

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Sat, 29 Aug 2015 06:03:00 +0000

The world is changing indeed! Famed leaker @evleaks or Evan Blass has leaked out what looks like legitimate renders of the upcoming Microsoft flagships and things don’t look too good, Both Cityman and Talkman are visible in crystal clear renders and frankly speaking, it appears that Microsoft took the budget Lumia 640 XL and simply switched a few components. Clearly, a lot of Windows Phone fans will be missing Nokia today. While Windows Phone fans will be disappointed, there is some good news. We also have details about the hardware specifications of these two upcoming flagships (since there is no choice anyways).

For the Talkman which is the smaller one of the two:
=>We get a 5.2 inch WQHD (2560 x1440 pixels) OLED display
=>Inside there is hexa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 808, with 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of internal memory (expandable)
=> For the camera, there is a 20 MP PureView unit on the back and a 5 MP wide-angle unit up front =>The device will pack in the usual connectivity options along with a USB Type C port and Qi Wireless charging via a flip cover
=>All of the above will be powered by a removable 3000 mAh battery

Coming to the Talkman’s elder sibling the Cityman:
=>We get a 5.7 inch WQHD (2560 x1440 pixels) OLED display
=>Inside there is octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 810, with 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of internal memory (expandable)
=>For the camera, there is a 20 MP PureView unit on the back with what appears to be a triple LED flash and a 5 MP wide-angle unit up front
=>The device will pack in the usual connectivity options along with a USB Type C port and Qi Wireless charging built-in
=>All of the above will be powered by a removable 3300 mAh battery

Both smartphones are expected to sport a polycarbonate body, with the Cityman also showing off its aluminium side-buttons. As for “the world is changing” bit, it is, and so are the times. It is now a time when Samsung is producing polished and refreshed designs made of metal and glass, while Microsoft (dare we say Nokia) with its acquired Nokia bits is making a fool of the brand with designs like we have seen today.

Instagram adds new photo sizes to retain users and attract ads

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Sat, 29 Aug 2015 05:53:00 +0000

Instagram has added new layout options in addition to its signature square for pictures and videos in a bid to attract more advertisers and to stop users defecting to more flexible services such as Snapchat. The move is the first major alteration to the photo-sharing, social media service since Facebook Inc bought it for $1 billion in 2012, and addresses the wishes of many of its 300 million users, who have been constrained by the square format. “It boils down to giving advertisers and users more options,” said Debra Aho Williamson, a social media marketing and advertising analyst. “You want people to be able to see more of your ad. It’s something advertisers are definitely going to be interested in.” One in five photos and videos posted on the service do not fit the square format, Instagram said in a blog post. “Friends get cut out of group shots, the subject of your video feels cramped and you can’t capture the Golden Gate Bridge from end to end,” it said. From Thursday, Instagram’s web-based service and its mobile apps running on Google Inc’s Android system and Apple Inc’s iOS will allow portrait and landscape formats, giving both users and paying advertisers more options. The move should help Instagram in its battle with newer rivals such as Snapchat for users in the fast-moving messaging and media-sharing market. At the same time, it should attract more advertising revenue for Instagram, which said in June it would open its platform to all advertisers by the end of the year, rather than just to select brands. Instagram is expected to generate nearly $600 million in advertising revenue by the end of this year and $2.8 billion in 2017, according to projections from research firm eMarketer. By comparison Facebook, the world’s most popular online social network, generated more than $12 billion in revenue in 2014. The growing service hit one billion users in a single day for the first time on Monday. To promote the new formats on Thursday, Walt Disney Co released exclusive footage of its upcoming film, “Star Wars, The Force Awakens,” using the new landscape option. - See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/technology/social/instagram-adds-new-photo-sizes-to-retain-users-and-attract-ads/#sthash.GADlHzL5.dpuf

Panasonic unveils Toughbook CF-54 semi-rugged laptop at Rs 1,39,000

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Tue, 04 Aug 2015 18:08:00 +0000

Panasonic has introduced another Toughbook model called CF-54. Panasonic claims this semi rugged PC to be the thinnest and lightest in its category and is aimed professionals who are always on the move. With the ruggedity it offers it can also be used for usage by service engineers in the automotive diagnostic industry, field work and other business verticals, mainly for indoor maintenance, without compromising on the aesthetic appeal of the PC. It can also be customised as per customer usage with integrated ports, 3G, dedicated GPS and other customisation. The Toughbook CF-54 has a thickness of 29.8 mm and weighs 1.99 kg light. “This makes it approximately 50% thinner and 25% lighter than the previous model CF-53,” said Panasonic in a statement. The CF-54 is equipped with the new 5th Generation Intel CoreTM i5-5300U vPro processor with 3 MB cache, 2.3 GHz up to 2.9 GHz with Intel Turbo Boost Technology with 4GB RAM expandable upto 16GB. It has a sunlight viewable screen that enhances the screen for easy outside viewing and comes with a spill resistant keyboard, vibration, shock resistant features and is 2.5 feet drop shock resistant. “It has a good battery backup with 11hrs operational backup, it also has an option of hot swappable battery feature enabling you to change batteries without shutting down the computer, allowing you to work 24X7 if your work demands. It offers optional smart card reader, fingerprint reader and contactless smart card reader and various interfaces and options like Serial Port, VGA, PC Card, Rugged USB, 2nd LAN, etc,” according to the statement. Priced at Rs1,39,000, it is built for easy integration into existing IT infrastructures. - See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/technology/gadgets/panasonic-unveils-toughbook-cf-54-semi-rugged-laptop-at-rs-139000/#sthash.agYucEMr.dpuf

Review: Pixel V1

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Tue, 04 Aug 2015 18:04:00 +0000

Indian smartphone maker Lava has launched an Android One device for Rs.11,349. The Pixel V1 is part of Google’s Android One initiative, which aims to provide good, affordable Android phones.

Price matters

At Rs.11,349, the Pixel V1 is the most expensive Android One phone; the three phones launched earlier as part of this initiative are the Micromax Canvas A1 (Rs.6,499), Spice Dream Uno (Rs.6,499) and Karbonn Sparkle V (Rs.6,399).

The Pixel V1 faces stiff competition from more established rivals, the Lenovo K3 Note (Rs.9,999) and Yu Yureka Plus (Rs.8,999), which offer a better experience.

The screen lacks crispness

The Pixel V1 has a 5.5-inch display, with a screen resolution of 1,280x720 pixels. Though the screen size is ideal for watching movies, reading and gaming, the resolution is on the lower side. Plus, the screen isn’t very crisp, so the text looks dull. It isn’t very vivid either; the colours look washed out in videos and photographs. In comparison, the Yureka Plus and K3 Note each have 5.5-inch displays with full HD (1,920x1,080 pixels) resolution, with better text reproduction and colours.

The camera is slow

The Pixel V1 has a 13-megapixel camera. On paper, that seems fairly powerful. But just as with a lot of other smartphone cameras, this one struggles in low-light shots which are not clear or detailed. Even daytime shots are not crisp.

The default camera app is the Google Camera (free download on the Google Play Store). It does not have a lot of features and the user really does not have much control over aspects such as exposure, sharpness, contrast. etc. It also takes time to process images after the shutter button has been pressed. The Yureka Plus also comes with a 13-megapixel camera, which is faster and offers better picture quality.

Stutters during heavy tasks

Lava uses a MT6582 quad-core MediaTek processor and has paired it with 2 GB RAM. This provides enough power for smooth reading, calls, YouTube videos and social networking. Games and movies, however, do not run smoothly—it stuttered with HD movies and games like FIFA 15. While this phone is good for basic tasks, it isn’t worth the price. In comparison, the Yureka Plus is powered by a more powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 octa-core processor, works smoothly and supports 4G networks. The Pixel V1 works only with 2G and 3G network

Battery life is average

The Pixel V1 comes with a 2,650 mAh battery, which sounds impressive on paper. In real life, it barely managed to last a full day when used as a primary device for reading, Web browsing, calling and watching videos.

The positive aspect

The Pixel V1 is a smart-looking phone with neat design touches. The plastic looks like aluminium. The compact design ensures this 5.5-inch phone feel like it is 5 inches. The Pixel V1 weighs 135g, which is less than what many 5.5-inch phones weigh.The Yureka Plus weighs about 155g. The Pixel V1 runs the latest Android One software, based on Android 5.1(Lollipop). The company promises that the phone will receive all Google OS updates for the next two years.

Apple working on service to transcribe voicemail messages

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Tue, 04 Aug 2015 18:00:00 +0000

Apple's digital assistant, Siri, will soon be able to transcribe voicemail messages from iPhones, according to the publication Business Insider, which reported that the new service could make its debut next year. "Apple employees are testing a voicemail service that uses Siri to answer your calls and transcribe voicemail messages," said Business Insider. "Apple's iCloud service will then send you the text of the transcribed voicemail - meaning you will never need to listen to your voicemails again," the publication continued, adding that the service presumably will debut with the iOS10 operating system. Business Insider said that the new option will also help to bridge the generation gap because young users don't like to use voicemail. Essentially, when an iCloud Voicemail user is unable to take a call, Siri will answer instead of allowing the call go to a standard digital audio recorder. It will then transcribe the incoming voicemail. Apple is thus following in the steps of Google, which is already offering a voicemail transcription service as part of its Google Voice service, although the quality of the service has not always been very good. Google recently announced on its blog that it is improving the quality of the Google Voice transcriptions with a new technology that the firm says reduces transcription mistakes by about half. EFE

Windows 10 silently uses your bandwidth to send updates to others

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Tue, 04 Aug 2015 17:59:00 +0000

"Windows Update Delivery Optimization lets you get Windows updates and Windows Store apps from sources in addition to Microsoft. This can help you get updates and apps more quickly if you have a limited or unreliable Internet connection. And if you own more than one PC, it can reduce the amount of Internet bandwidth needed to keep all of your PCs up-to-date." A system that helps you save some bandwidth by sending updates to other PCs on your network. Sounds great, right? But then you read on [emphasis added]: "Delivery Optimization also sends updates and apps from your PC to other PCs on your local network or PCs on the Internet." So Microsoft is turning newly upgraded Windows 10 PCs into systems to effectively fileshare updates with others. Some aspects worth highlighting: Delivery Optimization is turned on by default in Windows 10. At no point during the Windows 10 installation process are users asked about this, which means that those with a restricted bandwidth don't get the chance to opt out. WUDO doesn't replace the existing Windows Update mechanism but instead is used to augment it. Microsoft states in the FAQ that WUDO "uses the same security measures as Windows Update and the Windows Store" and "doesn't access your personal files or folders or change any files on your PC". There are three options: Get and send updates from PCs on your local network and PCs on the internet, just with PCs on your network, or turn the feature off. For Windows 10 Enterprise and Windows 10 Education the default option is to download and share updates with PCs on your local network, while for all other versions Windows 10 with send and receive files from PCs on your local network and PCs on the internet. WUDO will not use connections marked as metered. To mark a connection as metered click Start > Settings > Network & Internet > Wi‑Fi > Advanced options and use the toggle switch under Set as metered connection. WUDO can be disabled. Go to Start > Settings > Updates & security > Windows Update > Advanced options and then select Choose how updates are delivered, and use the toggle to turn Delivery Optimization off. Beyond the ability to turn the feature off or mark connections a metered, I don't see any obvious method to control how much bandwidth this feature consumes. While WUDO doesn't present any known security risks at present, security expert Graham Cluley was keen to point out that hackers have previously managed to exploit weaknesses in the Windows Update mechanism, using it to spread the Flame malware.

YouTube’s Desktop Web Player Gets A New Look

noreply@blogger.com (Akhil Kumar Patnaik) — Tue, 04 Aug 2015 17:55:00 +0000

Does YouTube look different to you today? If you’re noticing that the YouTube player on the desktop seems to have a sleeker look-and-feel, then you’ve probably spotted the update YouTube has just rolled out. The company launched a new HTML5 video player for desktop users, which now features a transparent control bar that disappears when you’re not using it, as well as updated buttons and drop-down menus. The revamped player, spotted by the Google Operating System blog, has been in testing for around four months. With the changes and the disappearing controls, the YouTube player on the desktop now operates more like it does on mobile devices. However, as part of the update, the “Watch Later” button has been removed from the control bar. The buttons on the new player are also larger, while the drop-downs for speed and quality also look to be more mobile-inspired, the blog noted at the time of the initial tests.The updates, while minor in the grand scheme of things, come at a time when more people are watching YouTube on their phones than ever before. The company recently noted that, on mobile, YouTube is now seeing average session times of over 40 minutes, which is up more than 50 percent over last year. Meanwhile, growth in “watch time” on YouTube is now up 60 percent year-over-year – which is the fastest growth rate it has seen in two years. It makes sense then that YouTube would want to streamline its products to make its desktop web player feel more like its mobile counterpart, especially as users switch back and forth between devices. This is not the first time that YouTube has updated its product due to the impact of mobile users and their behaviors, we should point out. Recently, for example, the company made a change to how it displays vertical videos – which is a popular format now because of how users today hold their phones when they hit “record.” With an update to its iOS and Android apps, YouTube now expands these videos to fill your phone or tablet’s display.