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Cortana, Microsoft's own take on a virtual personal assistant, is all set to be revealed at the //build/ developer event today in San Francisco. While we still haven't heard anything straight from Microsoft regarding Cortana yet, it's own property, Bing, which will power Cortana, now has references to the long awaited assistant. Cortana has been rumoured to be like Apple's Siri and Google Now combined, with it offering personalized results, recommendations and more, apart from setting your alarms, reminders etc like Siri.
Inside the Bing personalization settings page, we are presented with renewed options with respect to search options. If the image above is not clear enough, here is the text inside -
Clear personal info
When you’re signed into your Microsoft account, Microsoft services like Cortana, Bing Apps, and Bing services personalize your experience. This personalization will be impacted when you clear the information below and will be reflected on all devices where you have authenticated with your Microsoft account.
Interests
This will clear your saved favorites and interests in Cortana and related Bing apps and services.
Other Cortana data
To provide personalized recommendations, we upload some info from your Windows Phone, such as your calendar, contacts, location, and browsing history. If you clear this info, ...
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Samsung has launched new buy back and EMI plans for their Galaxy Tab 3 series, including their latest Galaxy Tab 3 Neo tablet. Back in December Samsung launched Stay New ownership plan for its flagship Galaxy devices that lets users buy flagship Galaxy devices at low EMIs and Easy Buyback offers.
The new EMI offer lets users pay just Rs. 725 per month for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 Neo and also offers up to Rs. 2,500 discount in exchange for old smartphones and tablets. It also offers up to Rs. 3000 discount on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 7-inch and 8-inch tablets. Check out the details about the offer.
Customers can buy these tablets through participating banks’ (HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Citibank, SBI, Axis Bank, Kotak and Standard Chartered) credit cards and avail the Samsung’s easy 18- month EMI scheme, at applicable interest rates. This is a limited period offer that would be available till stocks last.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 series got confirmed last month and is expected to be unveiled later this month. Looks like Samsung is planning to push out all the stock of the Galaxy Tab 3 series before the Galaxy Tab 4 range arrives.
Apple had already altered international App Store pricing to bring them in line with current exchange rates. This time Apple has decided to increase the price of apps in the App Store in order to compensate for changes in foreign exchange rates, reports TechCrunch. Apple would make changes to retail rates for Australian dollar, Indian rupee, Indonesian rupiah, Turkish lira, and South African rand. Apple current charges Rs. 55 for $0.99 as exchange rate in the Indian App Store.
Retail prices for Israeli New Shekels and some price tiers for the New Zealand dollar will decrease, according to the official note sent to the developers. Apple's App Store is the biggest in terms of earnings. Earlier this year Apple announced that the Apple App Store has more than one million apps in 24 categories. It also made $10 billion sales in 2013 and paid $15 billion to their developers.
Apple App Store price changes in these countries would reflect in the next 24 hour. This might be a minor change, which is common.
The Xbox division at Microsoft was caught in a flux after Don Mattrick, the previous head, left the company for Zynga. Julie-Larson Greene then took over along with other hardware divisions like Surface until she was reassigned to user experience recently. And then Marc Whitten, who was all set to become the head of Xbox, left the company for Sonos, so now, the baton has been passed on to the head of Microsoft Studios, Phil Spencer. Satya Nadella, Microsoft's CEO, announced this and other changes over a company-wide email, welcoming all the new heads into the senior leadership team. Phil Spencer will be leading the Xbox team responsible for Xbox - the console, Xbox Music & Video and Microsoft Studios.
Phil Spencer was previously the Microsoft Studios leader, the division which handles first party Xbox games. So, Phil is more of a gaming guy than any one else, and is also known to be closer to the gaming community. Before that, he used to work on the Encarta Encyclopedia, remember that? But of course, Microsoft Studios has been the highlight of his career because -
Microsoft Studios has been instrumental in building a community of 76 million Xbox 360 owners and 48 ...
Motorola has pushed an update to Motorola Boot Services app that adds new 'Powered by Android' boot screen logo to Moto G and Moto X smartphones instead of old 'a Google company' logo. There were reports that Google has made 'Powered by Android' boot logo mandatory for all new Android smartphones that comes with Google Mobile Services.
Since Motorola offers updates to most services such as Camera, Gallery and more through app store, it is easy to update the boot screen. This update also brings a new boot animation that has new creatures, UFO, bigfoot, and the Loch Ness Monster. Motorola updated their boot animation during holidays last year. It also adds new battery indicator when the phone is being charged when it is off.
Android Police has found a folder called 'aprilfool' in the APK of the updated Boot Services app, but it is not clear if the boot animation would be reverted back after April Fools Day. Check out the video of the new boot animation.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_XNDt8TCV0
Lava has launched the Iris 550Q the company’s latest smartphone in the Iris series. It has a 5.5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) IPS display based on OGS technology, powered by a 1.2 GHz quad-core processor and runs on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) OS. It has narrow 3mm bezel that makes the body smaller. It packs a 8-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, BSI sensor and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. Lava launched Iris Pro 30 with a 4.7-inch HD display earlier this year.
Lava Iris 550Q specifications
5.5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) HD IPS display based OGS technology
1.2 GHz quad-core processor
Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean)
Dual SIM
8MP rear camera with LED Flash, 1080p video recording, BSI sensor
2MP front-facing camera
3.5mm audio jack, FM Radio
1GB RAM, 4GB internal memory, expandable memory up to 32GB with microSD
3G, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS
2600 mAh battery with up to 10 hours of talk time on 2G
The Lava Iris 550Q comes in Black color and is priced at Rs. 13000. It also comes with a free flip cover. It would go on sale through national retail chain stores, multi-brand outlets across India and online stores in April.
Huawei has unveiled the Ascend Y600, the latest smartphone in the Y Series. It has a 5-inch (854 x 480 pixels) FWVGA display, powered by a 1.3 GHz dual-core MediaTek (MT6572) processor and runs on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) OS with Huawei's own Emotion UI on top. It has a 5-megapixel rear camera and a 0.3-megapixel (VGA) front-facing camera.
Huawei Ascend Y530 that was unveiled earlier this year had a 4.5-inch FWVGA screen, powered by a Snapdragon 200 processor and runs on Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean). It is not clear why Huawei has switched to MediaTek CPU for the Y600 since both come under Y series. Also the 5-megapixel rear camera lacks LED flash. Looking at the specification, it is likely to be be priced affordably.
Huawei Ascend Y600 specifications
5-inch (854 ×480 pixels) FWVGA capacitive touch screen display
Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) with Emotion UI
1.3 GHz dual-core MediaTek (MT6572) processor with Mali 400 GPU
5MP rear Camera
0.3MP front-facing camera
Dimensions: 144.5 x 74.5 x 10.8 mm; Weight: 180 grams
3G HSPA+, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, GPS
512MB RAM, 4GB of internal memory, Expandable memory up to 32GB with micro SD
2100 mAh battery
The Huawei Ascend Y600 comes in Black and White colors. No word on pricing or availability yet.
Samsung has finally unveiled its Galaxy Tab4 series - Galaxy Tab4 10.1, Galaxy Tab4 8.0 and Galaxy Tab4 7.0 after several leaks. These tablets have 10.1-inch, 8.0-inch and 7.0-inch WXGA displays with 16:10 screen ratio. All these are powered by 1.2 quad-core processors and run on Android 4.4 (KitKat) and come in WiFi and 3G / LTE variants. These have Group Play, Samsung Link and Samsung WatchON software features.
These have a 3-megapixel rear camera and a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera. These have Samsung's signature power button and capacitive touch buttons and also have leather-like back. Other specifications are almost similar except the display size and the battery life. Processor is also likely to vary depending on the models.
Samsung Galaxy Tab4 10.1 specifications
10.1-inch (1280 x 800 pixel) WXGA display
1.2 GHz quad-core Processor
Android 4.4 (KitKat)
7.95mm thick and weighs 487g
3MP Fixed Focus rear camera
1.3MP front-facing camera
4G LTE/3G HSPA+, Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, GPS, GLONASS
1.5GB RAM, 16GB internal memory, microSD (up to 64GB)
6,800mAh battery
Samsung Galaxy Tab4 8.0 specifications
8.0-inch (1280 x 800 pixel) WXGA display
1.2 GHz quad-core Processor
Android 4.4 (KitKat)
7.95mm thick and weighs 320g
3MP Fixed Focus rear camera
1.3MP front-facing camera
4G LTE/3G HSPA+, Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, GPS, GLONASS
1.5GB RAM, 16GB internal memory, microSD (up to 64GB)
4,450mAh battery
Samsung Galaxy Tab4 7.0 specifications
7.0-inch (1280 x 800 pixel) WXGA display
1.2 ...
Oppo unveiled Find 7, the company’s first Snapdragon 801-powered smartphone earlier this month. It comes in two version, Find 7 with a Quad HD display and the Find 7a has a 1080p display. We already brought you the hands on impressions and the benchmarks of the Find 7a. Check out the photo gallery of the smartphone.
The Find 7a has a 5.5-inch 1080p display. It runs on ColorOS 1.2.0 based on Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean). It is powered by a 2.3GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor. The design of the phone reminds us of the Oppo Find 5.
It has a 5-megapixel front-facing camera.
There is a Skyline Notification on the chin that notifies with blue oscillating light.
It also has capacitive touch buttons below the display.
There is a power button on the left side.
The volume rocker is present on the right side.
On the top it has a 3.5mm audio jack.
It has a micro USB slot and a tiny microphone hole on the bottom.
On the back it has a 13-megapixel camera with dual LED flash. It also has a secondary microphone. Unlike the carbon fiber back on the Find 7, the Find 7a has a plastic back. It has the same Sony IMX214 sensor with f/2.0 lens and has Super Zoom mode to capture 50MP images by combining four ...
BlackBerry has announced a new BBM 2.1 update for BlackBerry, Android and iPhone that would bring stickers through new BBM Shop. This offers sticker packs, similar to stickers on the Facebook Messenger. Each pack would have 20 to 25 stickers. BBM shop has both free and paid (about $1.99) stickers. This update also brings option to send larger files up to 16MB on BlackBerry 10, Android and iPhone.
New features in BBM 2.1
Get BBM stickers available in the new BBM Shop
Get stickers relating to characters like CosCat, Gilbert’s Tales or Bubble Bot, popular brands including Shaun the Sheep and WWE
Send larger files (up to 16MB on BlackBerry 10, Android and iPhone)
Share pictures in multi-person chats
BlackBerry also plans to offer free WWE stickers, just in time for the WrestleMania 30. BlackBerry asks BB 10 users to be updated to the latest version (v10.2.1) for the best experience. The update would start rolling out in a few hours through the respective app stores.
[Update: BlackBerry Messenger 2.1 is now available for Android, iPhone and BlackBerry]
OmniVision Technologies has launched OV6211, the company's new ultra-compact, low-power global shutter sensor designed for notebooks, tablets, mobile phones, wearable electronics, gaming devices, security systems and more. It is the first global shutter sensor to capture 400 x 400 (square) resolution video at 120 frames per second (FPS), says the company. OmniVision sensor is already present in several smartphones from companies such as Gionee, Motorola, Xiaomi, Micromax and more.
The new sensor brings gesture recognition and tracking functions to mobile and wearable devices. It also has object and motion detection functionality and features a 3-micron OmniPixel3-GS global shutter pixel.
It features two low-power modes, the light sensing mode that wake the sensor only when the light has been detected and ultra-low power mode that reduces resolution and frame rates to conserve additional power.
Features of OmniVision OV6211
3 micron global shutter pixel
1/10.5-inch OV6211 fits into an ultra-compact 3.2 x 3.2 mm chip-scale package (CSP3)
Automatic black level calibration (ABLC)
Programmable controls for frame rate, mirror and flip, cropping and windowing
Supports output formats: 8/10-bit RAW
Supports images sizes: 400x400, 200x200, 100x100
Fast mode switching
Supports horizontal and vertical 2:1 and 4:1 monochrome subsampling
Supports 2x2 monochrome binning
Standard serial SCCB interface
Programmable SCCB device ID
One-lane MIPI serial output interface
Embedded 128 bits of one-time programmable (OTP) memory for part identification, etc.
Two on-chip phase lock loop (PLL)
Programmable ...
Google has released the Android’s Platform Distribution numbers for the period of March to April 2014. This reveals tremendous growth in KitKat share that has doubled from 2.5% to 5.3% in one month. This could be due to increase in number of new devices with Android 4.4 (KitKat). Several manufacturers like HTC, Samsung and Sony have started rolling out Android 4.4 (KitKat) update for their older devices globally.Sony and Samsung have promised Android 4.4 updates for some of their devices, so the KitKat share would increase in coming months. The chart shows that still 61.4% of Android devices are running on Jelly Bean, in which Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) leads with 34.4% share. Since some companies are yet to offer KitKat update for older devices, Jelly Bean share is not likely to come down anytime soon.
Gingerbread and Ice Cream Sandwich are losing their share gradually. Back in December KitKat was running on only in 1.1% of devices. It took just four months for KitKat to grab 5.3% share. Some local OEMs like Xolo and iBall have promised KitKat upgrade for their latest devices. Other OEMs are likely to provide KitKat update directly, skipping Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) later this year, that would improve its share.
The wearables market is the next battleground for the manufacturers and it has become pretty evident that everybody has their eyes on the smart watch category as Google had just announced Android Wear for wearables. While most manufacturers are busy building products to reach the consumers, Toshiba has taken a turn and has just announced an application processor for the wearable devices.
The application processor - TZ1001MBG, is the latest addition to the ApP Life products from Toshiba and the shipments are expected to start from May 2014 while mass production is set to start in September.
Toshiba's latest chip combines a accelerometer, processor, memory and low energy bluetooth and a new higher end model, TZ1011MBG, will come with all the aforementioned components as well as a gyroscope and magnetometer. Toshiba claims that these new chips will be very small and consume less power, thus making it ideal for wearables.
The wearable market is indeed starting to come together and Toshiba is among the first to target the manufacturers instead of consumers. Lets see how things turn out in the wearable market.
Lenovo has announced four new Android tablets, A10-70, A8-50, A7-50 and A7-30 in the A-series. The A10-70 has a 10.1-inch (1280 x 800 pixels) display, A8-50 has a 8-inch (1280 x 800 pixels) and both the A7-50 and A7-30 have 7-inch (1024 x 600 pixels) displays. All these run on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean).
Lenovo A7-50 also comes in another variant A7-40 in Ebony color, 8GB internal memory and only with a front-facing camera. The Lenovo A8-50 also comes in data-only and data with voice calling support, apart from the WiFi-only variant. No details about RAM or internal storage, but all these are likely to have a expansion slot.
Lenovo A10-70 specifications
10-inch (1280 x 800 pixels) capacitive touchscreen display
1.3 GHz quad-core MediaTek MTK 8121 / MTK 8382 processor
Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) OS
8.9mm thick and weighs 563 grams
5MP auto focus rear camera
2MP front-facing camera
3.5mm audio jack, dual front-facing speakers, Dolby Digital Plus
3G (Optional), WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0
6300 mAh battery
Lenovo A8-50 specifications
8-inch (1280 x 800 pixels) capacitive touchscreen display
1.3 GHz quad-core MediaTek MTK 8121 / MTK 8382 processor
Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean)
8.9 mm thick and weighs 360 grams
5MP auto focus rear camera
2MP front-facing camera
3.5mm audio jack, dual front-facing speakers, Dolby Digital Plus
3G (Optional), WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0
4200 mAh battery
Lenovo A7-50 specifications
7-inch (1024 x 600 pixels) capacitive touchscreen display
1.3 GHz quad-core MediaTek MT8382 processor
Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) OS
2MP ...
Lenovo has launched the Lenovo A526, the company’s latest smartphone in the A-series. It has a 4.5-inch (854 x 480 pixels) capacitive touchscreen display, powered by a 1.3 GHz Quad-core Mediatek MT6582M processor and runs on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean). It has a 5-megapixel rear camera without flash and a 0.3-megapixel (VGA) front-facing camera.
It comes pre-installed Lenovo DOit apps for seamless data sharing, security and syncing. It has dual SIM support with dual standby.
Commenting on the launch, Sudhin Mathur, Director-Smartphones, Lenovo India, said
Out of the 876 million mobile phone users in India, about 10% of the users own a smartphone. However, today there is an influx of devices specifically targeted at this untapped segment in fast-growing markets like India. With the Lenovo A series range, we are looking at revolutionizing the concept of budget phones in India by offering consumers a superior smartphone experience at an affordable price point.
Lenovo A526 Specifications
4.5-inch (854 x 480 pixels) touch screen display
1.3 GHz quad-core Mediatek MT6582M processor
Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean)
Dual SIM (GSM + GSM)
5MP rear camera
0.3MP front-facing camera
11.1 mm thick and weight 145 grams
3.5mm audio jack, FM Radio
1GB RAM, 4GB internal memory, 32GB expandable memory with MicroSD
3G (HSDPA: 21 Mbps, HSUPA: 5.76 Mbps), WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS
2000 mAh ...
Nokia and Android has been a pipedream that geeks and avid smartphone users have held out for years now. That we'd actually see one in 2014 at the cusp of the Nokia - Microsoft merger is not something we'd expected in our wildest dreams. That said, the phone was announced alongside two other devices ie the Nokia X+ and XL at MWC last month and is now available in retail. We brought your our first impressions of this AOSP running device from the show floor and here's the complete low down on the Nokia X.
Hardware
Before we get into the inevitable software teardown let's start off with a quick hardware overview. Without a doubt, the Nokia X is the best looking device anywhere close to it's price point. With a design that brings influences from both the Asha and Lumia side of things, we're very impressed by what Nokia has been able to achieve at this price point.
The front side of the phone has a 4 inch display with black bezels. Replacing the three buttons seen below Android devices is a single capacitive back key. As we'll find out soon enough, this is just the beginning of the differences from standard ...
Samsung, like all smartphone manufacturers these days, has followed the trend of releasing a flagship smartphone and shortly sometime after that releasing a "Mini" version of the flagship with toned down specifications. Samsung has been following this approach for the past two flagships - Samsung Galaxy S3 and Samsung Galaxy S4.
According to SamMobile, the trend is likely to continue with the Samsung Galaxy S5 as Samsung is preparing a mini version of the latest flagship. The Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini was a disappointed as it sported just a qHD display with mid-range specifications. The rumored Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini will be coming with a 4.5inch 720p HD SuperAMOLED display and will be powered by a quad-core Snapdragon processor and the chipset powering the device is expected to be a Snapdragon 400 unit.
The other specifications of the device include a 16GB internal storage, 1.5GB RAM, 8MP rear camera and a 2MP front facing camera. The phone will be fueled by a 2100mAh battery and in terms of specifications, the Galaxy S5 Mini looks very much like a Samsung Galaxy S3. Just like the flagship, the Galaxy S5 Mini will also be water resistant and will have IP67 certification. There will also ...
Cortana, Microsoft's own take on a virtual personal assistant, is all set to be revealed at the //build/ developer event today in San Francisco. While we still haven't heard anything straight from Microsoft regarding Cortana yet, it's own property, Bing, which will power Cortana, now has references to the long awaited assistant. Cortana has been rumoured to be like Apple's Siri and Google Now combined, with it offering personalized results, recommendations and more, apart from setting your alarms, reminders etc like Siri.
Inside the Bing personalization settings page, we are presented with renewed options with respect to search options. If the image above is not clear enough, here is the text inside -
Clear personal info
When you’re signed into your Microsoft account, Microsoft services like Cortana, Bing Apps, and Bing services personalize your experience. This personalization will be impacted when you clear the information below and will be reflected on all devices where you have authenticated with your Microsoft account.
Interests
This will clear your saved favorites and interests in Cortana and related Bing apps and services.
Other Cortana data
To provide personalized recommendations, we upload some info from your Windows Phone, such as your calendar, contacts, location, and browsing history. If you clear this info, ...
ZTE unveiled the Grand S II at the CES 2014 earlier this year. ZTE has launched the smartphone in China. It has a 5.5-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) full HD IPS display based on One Glass Solution (OGS) technology, powered by a 2.3 GHz Quad-Core Snapdragon 801 processor (instead of Snapdragon 800 at the time it was announced) and runs on Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) OS. It comes with a 13-megapixel rear camera with LED Flash, Sony sensor, full HD video recording and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera.
It has three microphones for noise reduction that makes voice calls clearer. It also supports 4G LTE. There were rumors that the phone would have 4GB RAM, after a ZTE smartphone appeared on Tenna certification database, but this has 2GB RAM and 16GB of internal memory. ZTE also offers an exclusive 32GB variant with 3GB RAM.
ZTE Grand S II specifications
5.5-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) OGS display
2.3 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor with Adreno 330 GPU
Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) OS
13MP auto focus camera with LED Flash, 1080p HD video recording
2MP front-facing camera
2GB RAM with 16GB internal memory / 3GB RAM with 32GB internal memory
4G LTE / 3G HSPA+, Bluetooth, WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n (Dual Band), GPS/aGPS
3000 ...
Vodafone India started BE SMART initiative long back to promote the use of mobile internet in India. The company recently launched a new campaign that uses tools like augmented reality, RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) aimed at engaging, educating and providing a better smartphone experience on the go to its customers.
Regarding the campaign Vodafone said,
The ‘BE SMART’ campaign focuses on informing customers about relevant content, latest apps, and educating them how to get best from their smartphones through 3G. The key message - ‘Smartphones Can Do More with Vodafone 3G’, is driven in a stimulating and interesting manner, be it through videos & music, navigation, social networking or online gaming.
Augmented Reality - Vodafone has created live size augmented reality screens on display across locations in Delhi and NCR to depict Vodafone’s superfast 3G internet speed by showing a virtual smart world where a super fast flight was possible, a flight so fast that one could go around the world and return in less than 2 minutes
RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) - When the user wears the RFID tag and connects with Vodafone , the same is flashed on his/her Facebook profile highlighting that they were at the Vodafone 3G world and also trending along with ...
