Blog

Airtel’s 4G phone to join the race of ‘beyond affordable’ handsets

Tue, 12 Sep 2017 05:59:42 +0000

Ever since Reliance Jio was launched, the Indian telecom market has been unravelled and one of the biggest contenders who has been battling eyeball-to-eyeball with Jio is Bharti Airtel. And here they are with a plan to introduce 4G handset, just like Jio did recently – because why not. Reportedly, Bharti Airtel is said to be talking with multiple handset makers to build affordable 4G smartphone which will cost about Rs 2500 to Rs 2700. Not much has been revealed about the new phone yet and Airtel doesn’t wish to comment on market speculation. But all we know is that it has to be one hell of an offer to stand against the ‘effectively free’ JioPhone.

Yet, how many phones can Indians buy after all, because JioPhone reportedly garnered over 6 million pre-orders in just 3 days! So is there still any room for more phones? Well we don’t know but it is getting out to be a mega telecom bonanza for Indian customers and we are way past the overcharged calls and internet bills, thanks to none other than Jio. But the factor that manages to make Airtel standout among others is perhaps its quality, I’d personally pay a few more bucks rather than compromising with quality, and probably most people will go for the same – so there goes the ‘room’ question answered to some extent.

Oh and that is not all Airtel has to offer next, it is said that the 4G phone will come bundled up with 4G connections and several other ‘attractive’ data offers. So that is their plan. We have no idea about features and specifications of Airtel’s handset, but the company believes that despite being little expensive than JioPhone, “people would be ready to shell out a little more to get a loaded handset.”. It is believed that the new smartphone might be launched sometime around Diwali, because Diwali is all about new launches and mega offers and sales and so just stock up with some money and anticipation.

Apple Event on September 12: What we can expect at Steve Jobs theatre

Mon, 11 Sep 2017 12:44:14 +0000

Image Credit: Apple Event

Falling back to 2007, Apple released its first iPhone which became a vital product soon in Apple’s economy. Soon, it started gathering many fans, die-hard users and over-rated rumours about upcoming hardware from Apple.

Here is some strong research on what Apple is going to release just a day after tomorrow.

New iPhones

As it is damn sure product this year, iPhone 8 is considered as whole new design and hardware Apple will be releasing this year. Some of the speculated rumours are iPhone 7S & iPhone 8. Although there were many leaked photos available, iPhone is believed to be anticipated device of Apple for current fiscal.

Expected features are Edge-to-Edge OLED display, a new 3D face-scanning camera, wireless charging capabilities and a non-existent home button.

Apple Watch 3/LTE

Apple is now 2nd to manufacture and provide wearables to the world after Xiaomi. It is the as important product as iPhone for Apple. And this time, company may add an LTE modem to the device which will be capable of sending SMS, making & receiving phone calls, plays music and even can install new apps straight to your synced Apple device.

Apart from this, there will WatchOS 4 update too.

Apple TV

With Roku, Chromecast and Amazon, Apple may finally catch up the 4K support on its streaming media. Rumours say about HDR10 and Dolby Vision.

Homepod, Mac Pro & iMac product

Everybody is in race of high-quality speaker rather than just a digital assistant, Apple may start shipping Homepod by December. On another hand, tech-giant has already announced Mac Pro & powerful iMac Pro but it won’t be available until next year. Although, it’s hard to think that whether company will announce perfect date on Sept. 12.

iOS 11, MacOS High Sierra & ARKit

After going through the Beta versions of iOS 11, we strongly feel that it is going to revamp the whole iPad user experience with consolidated Control Center, a new, grid-like app switcher, and a new file-storage app called, simply, Files.

With ARKit launch, Apple is stepping-up with Augmented Reality apps along with iOS 11. It will let the developer build 3D AR apps, for example, Pokemon Go. iOS 11 will be rolling out to iPhone 5S & higher.

Steve Jobs Theatre

A new $5 Billion campus in Cupertino (California), Apple has named this infrastructure after the late co-founder and CEO of Apple, Steve Jobs. There is also deep underground and it has the capacity to facilitate more than 1,000 people. Most Apple employees still haven’t been inside of it yet.

Whatsapp Business app will launch for free, but with plans to monetise in future

Thu, 07 Sep 2017 07:25:56 +0000

Whatsapp is gearing up to take the message application up-the-notch, by making it an efficient tool for easy and effective communication for businesses through its business app. Reportedly, Whatsapp business app has made its debut and is available for free, but it might soon be charged for larger enterprises.

Buzz about making the globally popular mass messaging application – Whatsapp more efficient and useful for businesses, have been around since a while now; and finally, Whatsapp has officially declared that it will offer a free app for small to medium businesses.

This feature will help businesses and companies in developing a better customer communication platform. As per Whatsapp chief operating officer – Matt Idema, the business app is designed for small businesses and addresses the three challenges of lack of a business profile, managing messages at scale and managing customers at one place. Facebook owned messaging app has officially announced that they will offer free app for small-to-medium sized businesses but they do intend to charge businesses in future. The cost or figure hasn’t been revealed yet, but Whatsapp says that they want to help small business whereas they could levy charges from bigger businesses like airlines, banks and ecommerce websites.

The app will also facilitate artificial intelligence robots for better functionality and transactions within organisation. That is not it, Whatsapp has also announced the ‘verified business’ accounts feature which will help users to distinguish them from personal accounts and fakes. A green tick mark against any business account will indicate that the company has confirmed the phone number of the account to a business account. The testing phase of Whatsapp Business app has already begun in India and as per reports, companies like BookMyShow, Ola and Oyo are the first business clients in the country. Being able to integrate business conversations with Whatsapp will step up the way we do business, and it will be worth the money, I suppose.

Brace Yourself! iPhone 8 is in under-construction and here is some hints for you

Mon, 24 Apr 2017 04:15:32 +0000

IMage Credit: Slash Gear

A graphic allegedly showing the ‘final’ design regarding the iPhone 8 has appeared online. Arriving directly from Foxconn, the organisation that manufactures iPhones and numerous other popular gadgets for numerous technology companies, the image shows the schematics being then followed in the iPhone 8’s creating process.

In accordance with the leaked schematic, iPhone 8 will sport a 5.8-inch OLED display with 2.5D Glass protection, in line with preceding rumour. It has additionally been mentioned that the handset’s side buttons won’t be mechanical, which means users definitely won’t be in a position to press them. However, they will feature haptic feedback. This really is similar to the way the iPhone 7/iPhone 7 Plus’ Home button works.

Users will also get a haptic feedback while increasing or decreasing the quantity or once they turn the handset on. The fingerprint sensor is supposed to be embedded in the iPhone 8’s display itself.

The image further signifies the smartphone should come with reduced bezels on all four sides. Also visible is that 3D sensors is supposed to be added to the most truly effective, alongside the speaker grille as well as the front-facing camera.

Since Apple, as usual, has not yet confirmed anything concerning the upcoming smartphone, the above-mentioned details should be taken with a pinch of salt.

In the event that countless rumours can be believed, Apple is going to be launching three smartphones — iPhone 7s, iPhone 7s Plus and iPhone 8 — this year. Among these, the iPhone 8 probably will come with a drastically different design (and quite possibly, features).

One of the several highlights for the rumoured iPhone 8 is anticipated to be the inclusion of 3D sensing technology. How exactly the company intends to implement the technology in its upcoming smartphone is still unknown. The iPhone ‘Edition’ smartphone may also feature augmented reality (AR) features. Supporting the rumour, a Bloomberg report recently mentioned that Apple has set up a team including knowledgeable hardware and software developers to push its AR efforts.

How to verify your Twitter account

Mon, 17 Apr 2017 04:25:28 +0000

The reason behind verifying Twitter account is to differentiate the phoney and fake accounts which were often mistaken to consider it as a real account of concerned person or authority. It is important for Twitter that you are tweeting to right person without screwing up.

Blue tick mark is a social status in Social Media, which indicates the success of person and its now, a matter of ego when it comes to direct tweet or message.

Journalist Mike Rundle wrote this upon getting verified on Twitter: In the world of Twitter, being ‘Verified’ is the closest thing there is to gaining a knighthood. The program is theoretically restricted to “highly sought users in music, acting, fashion, government, politics, religion, journalism, media, advertising, business, and other key interest areas”, but there is no obvious way to apply to join their ranks.

Although, a scenario is now changed a bit. Twitter has open the door for anyone who wants verify their account by accepting through minimum requirement. In short, if Twitter thinks that you are important enough and influential in Twitter with huge engagement, you can apply for blue tick.

“We hope opening up this application process results in more people finding great, high-quality accounts to follow, and for these creators and influencers to connect with a broader audience,” said Tina Bhatnagar, Twitter’s vice president of User Services.

The main benefit of getting verified account is you can filter the notifications pane that filters only replies, mentions, and likes by other verified users. It’s a simple way to reduce a number of junk interactions a popular account gets.

Here’s a brief list of what you need:

Twitter name that should match your real name (or your company’s real name if it’s a corporate account)
A verified phone number
A confirmed email address (corporate accounts should use their corporate email address)
A comprehensive bio for your account
A real profile photo of yourself or your brand (which can be easier if you check out our tips to shoot the perfect profile picture)
A header photo that reflects you or your brand
A birthday (for accounts that are not company, brand, or organisation accounts) A website link in your account that reflects you or your brand
Tweets set as “Public” in Twitter’s privacy settings
A brief statement on why Twitter should verify you;
A scanned copy of a government-issued ID (like a passport or driver’s license)
Once you have updated your Twitter profile to meet all of these requirements, head to verification.twitter.com and fill out the forming step by step.

Once you have filled this information, Twitter will undergo your interest of getting verified and if required, it may ask you for scanned ID for security precautions. Your document upload is fully secured from the Twitter side so no need to worry for that.

Airtel launched its first Internet TV in India; subscriptions start from Rs 4,999

Thu, 13 Apr 2017 04:03:07 +0000

Image Credit: Airtel

The set-top-box basically accompanies a group of ports including HDMI, USB, Ethernet, and support Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. The box is packaged with a Bluetooth-empowered remote control and furthermore, bolsters Google voice search feature. The set-top-box keeps running on Android OS, and comes preloaded with applications, for example, Netflix, YouTube, Google Play Music, Airtel Movies, and that’s just the beginning. Since there is likewise Google Play locally available, you can download and utilise applications or amusements on your TV.

“Growing broadband penetration is driving the popularity of online content, particularly in urban homes, and with Airtel ‘Internet TV’ we are bringing world-class content from the web and much more to the TV screen,” Sunil Taldar, CEO & Director – DTH, Bharti Airtel said.

“This latest innovation has been designed keeping in mind the needs of Indian homes and it bridges the gap between online and offline worlds to enable an end to end entertainment experience with the convenience of a single device. We will continue to add exciting content platforms to Airtel ‘Internet TV’ and invite customers to experience this innovative offering,” he added further.

As you would expect, Airtel Internet TV requires an internet connection, and the company suggests a connection of no less than 4Mbps. The box underpins 4K content and furthermore gives you a chance to pause, record or rewind live shows. There’s likewise support for screencasting, which gives you a chance to cast your Android, iOS or Windows gadgets on the TV screen. There’s additionally support for Dolby Surround Sound Audio.

Membership rates for Airtel Internet TV begin from Rs 4,999 legitimate for three months. As a starting offer, Airtel is likewise offering yearly membership for Rs 7,999. Existing Airtel clients can subscribe for Rs 3,999, which incorporates content and more than 500 satellite channels. Existing Airtel broadband clients who plan to purchase the Internet TV can enlist for myHOME on the MyAirtel application and can get up to 25GB additional data. The set-top-box will be accessible solely by means of Amazon India beginning today. Following a month, Airtel Internet TV will be accessible online by means of Flipkart and Snapdeal, and through Airtel stores.

Samsung Galaxy S8: Release date, specs and everything you need to know

Thu, 30 Mar 2017 12:16:07 +0000

Samsung Event

Samsung announced the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge in March 2016 and the two devices received huge amounts of praise for their design, powerful specs and great cameras. No smartphone is perfect, though. There will always be a few specs in the rumours that never see the light of day, leaving some disappointed and wanting more.

Don’t worry, though, more is finally here. Definitely, completely, undoubtedly here. This is everything you need to know about the new Samsung Galaxy S8. For everything about the slightly larger Galaxy S8+, unveiled alongside it, read our separate round up.

Samsung Galaxy S8: Design

No physical home button and reduced bezels
Rear fingerprint scanner
148.5 x 68.2 x 8mm, 155g
IP68 waterproofing

Samsung released two curved devices this time around rather than one flat, one edged, meaning the Galaxy S8 offers a dual-edge display like the S7 edge or Infinity Display as Samsung is now calling it. The glass and metal sandwich design remain, continuing on from the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S7 for a beautiful, premium and waterproof design but there have been several changes to make the S8 stand out from its predecessors.

The front of the Galaxy S8 is where the biggest change can be seen with the removal of the physical home button, along with the reduction of bezels for an almost all-screen front. It means you get a device that’s actually smaller than the S7 edge at 148.5 x 68.2 x 8mm but with a display that is 0.3-inches larger.

Samsung Galaxy S8: Display

5.8-inch, 2960 x 1440 pixels, 570ppi
18.5:9 aspect ratio
AMOLED Infinity Display
HDR certified

The Samsung Galaxy S8 features a 5.8-inch display, which is 0.3-inches larger than the Galaxy S7 edge and 0.7-inches larger than the standard Galaxy S7. Despite the screen increase, however, the footprint of the Galaxy S8 is ever so slightly smaller than the S7 edge.

The new device offers an edge-to-edge AMOLED Infinity Display meaning punchy and vibrant colours, while it also moves to an aspect ratio of 18.5:9 compared to the standard 16:9 found on the majority of other smartphones. The change in aspect ratio means the display is taller, allowing for better multi-tasking capabilities as well as one-handed use, but you don’t get as much screen area as you would on a 16:9 device.

The resolution has also improved for the Galaxy S8, with Samsung opting for Quad HD+ at 2960 x 1440 pixels, delivering a pixel density of 570ppi. There were reports of a 4K display for the Galaxy S8 but alas, not this time. There is Mobile HDR Premium on board however and Samsung has said the S8 and S8+ will be the first devices to be certified by the Ultra HD Alliance for the technology.

Samsung Galaxy S8: Camera

8MP front camera, 12MP rear sensor, both f/1.7
Multi-frame image processing
AR, stickers and Bixby integration
Iris scanning

The Samsung Galaxy S8 features the same Duo Pixel camera as the S7 and S7 edge offering a 12-megapixel resolution, coupled with a f/1.7 aperture, optical image stabilisation and phase detection autofocus. That’s not to say Samsung hasn’t introduced improvements, however, adding stickers, augmented reality and filters to the party, as well as multi-frame image processing.

Multi-frame image processing isn’t a new technology, though it is a welcomed addition. The technology means the camera will take three images and combine the information from all three in order to create one better and more detailed final image. It should mean we get even better results on the S8 than we did on the brilliant S7 and S7 edge.

The rear camera of the Galaxy S8 also offers Bixby integration through a new feature called Bixby Vision. This feature allows the user to scan things using their device and receive information on said things, or shopping options, depending on what you’ve scanned. For example, you could scan a box of chocolates you want to buy, or scan a picture of a landmark for information on it.

In terms of the front facing camera, a resolution has increased for the Galaxy S8 to 8-megapixels compared to the 5-megapixel resolution of last year’s devices. Samsung has also added autofocus to the front over fixed focus, which is something the Sony Xperia M5 and the HTC Desire Eye both offer.

There is iris scanning on board the Galaxy S8 too, as we mentioned, which Samsung has said is more advanced than the system we saw on the Note 7, hopefully allowing for quick and speedy unlocking, especially if you can’t get used to the rear-mounted fingerprint sensor.

Samsung Galaxy S8: Hardware

Exynos 8895 or Qualcomm SD835 chipset, 4GB RAM, 64GB storage with microSD
USB Type-C and 3.5mm headphone jack
3000mAh battery
Wireless charging

A faster, more powerful processor is on board the Galaxy S8, as many would have expected. Rumours said the device will come with either the 3.2GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset or the Exynos 8895 chipset, depending on the region but Samsung has yet to specify which countries would get what. Both models will offer 4GB of RAM support, 64GB of internal storage and a microSD slot for further storage expansion.

The Exynos 8895 is the world’s first processor to use 10nm FinFET technology. The company says it has 27 per cent performance boost and uses 40 per cent less power than the previous chip with 14nm technology. Samsung also said the S8 would offer a 20 per cent boost in graphics performance compared to the S7 edge.

A bigger battery capacity is always welcomed, though not if it results in exploding devices. The Galaxy S8 does not increase battery capacity, however, with a 3000mAh cell under the hood, charged via USB Type-C and offering support for both fast charging and wireless charging.

Despite rumours suggesting Samsung would do away with the 3.5mm headphone jack like Apple, this turned out not to be the case. Instead, there is a 3.5mm headphone jack at the bottom of the Galaxy S8 and the device will also come with AKG headphones in the box.

Samsung Galaxy S8: Software

Bixby confirmed for US and Korea at launch
Android Nougat with TouchWiz
Samsung DeX dock
Samsung Connect smarthome integration

Samsung’s Galaxy S8 launches on Android Nougat with the TouchWiz interface over the top. The core experience is similar to Nougat on the Galaxy S7, offering the same visual arrangement of menus and features but Samsung has added a few extra features to the new device.

The main new features are seen in Bixby, Samsung Connect and the desktop experience through DeX. Bixby is Samsung’s AI service that is launched via its own button on the side of the device. Its aim is to offer everything from searching and identifying to helping you control and navigate your device.

From launch, Bixby will be compatible with 10 Samsung apps, though there are plans to launch an SDK for developers which should mean third party apps will then be supported in time. Korea and the US will get the full Bixby service first, with Europe following later in the year. For now, those in the UK and the rest of Europe will be taken to the Bixby Home area when they push the Bixby button, offering cards like Google Now does.

In terms of Samsung Connect, this is all about using your phone as part of your connected home, while the Samsung DeX offers the advantage of multiple windows for running apps, notifications and calls when used with the new Samsung DeX docking station. There is also a Citrix login option for accessing your desktop properly, which is more likely one for businesses.

Samsung Galaxy S8: Release date and price

Launch: 29 March
Pre-orders UK: 29 March-19 April
Pre-order delivery UK: 20 April
General availability UK: 28 April
Samsung Galaxy S8 price: £689

Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked event took place on 29 March 2017, where the S8 and S8 Plus were unveiled. The Galaxy S8 will cost £689, while the S8 Plus will cost £779. Both are available for pre-order from 29 March to 19 April. General availability will begin on 28 April.

Both the Galaxy S8 and S8+ will be available in Midnight Black and Orchid Gray from launch in the UK. Arctic Silver will follow eventually. There is also a gold finish and a new Coral Blue within the portfolio.

Android O Developer Preview has been started rolling out by Google. Nexus & Pixel user can flash the ROM manually into their device.

Sat, 25 Mar 2017 04:58:54 +0000

Representative Image

If you find the major difference between these two versions, Google pushed OTA updates to Nougat users who wanted to install early preview. Although, this time Developer Review is not directly available from Android Beta program instead users need to manually download and flash. Google has announced that it will soon open the window for Android Beta enrolment.

“For this release, we wanted to focus on giving developers time to test for compatibility, explore new features and send feedback which will help make Android O a great platform,” a Google spokesperson to TechCrunch.

Apart from tweaking core features, Google this time has some different planning to enhance the overall Android usage experience.

Notifications: Android O is adding a new feature called notification channels. Testing Google News, developers can group the notifications from their apps to groups (you want to group notifications by “politics” or “technology”). From this, users will be able to manage notifications based on channels.

The picture in Picture: Video apps of Android O will now facilitate to put themselves into Picture in Picture mode so that video will still play after you switch to a different app. You can see this in YouTube when pressing back button while watching videos.

Multi-display support: Chrome and Android seem to merge partially or incrementally as many devices will be supporting simultaneously to cast the media. With this, developers will now be able to launch an activity on a remote display.

Keyboard navigation: As on Chrome OS, Android keyboard will now be supporting arrow and tab navigation in apps. “With the advent of Android Apps on Chrome OS and other large form factors, we’re seeing a resurgence of keyboard navigation use within Android apps,” Google says in today’s announcement.

Background limits: Putting serious approach to Android Battery life, Google has focused on limiting background apps. These limits focus on three areas: implicit broadcasts, background services and location updates.

New Wi-Fi features: Android O is adding support for a few (relatively) new connectivity features. The updated OS will support more Wi-Fi Aware features like Neighborhood Aware Networking (NAN), for example. NAN makes it easy for apps and devices to talk to each other without an internet access point in the middle. Google says it is working with partners to bring support for NAN to devices “as soon as possible.”

Better interop for calling apps: Android O will make it easier for calling apps to talk to each other and make calls over the carrier network. Developers will now be able to use the new Telecom framework to build their own UI for placing calls and calls will be displayed and controllable via Bluetooth devices with displays like you’d find in a car. For the most part, this looks like a feature the telecoms will be happy about.

Android Nougat shares 2.8 percent of all Android devices in the world and many users are still on Marshmallow and below. On another side, this developer preview will be available to Google phone users only.

Stop whatever you are doing and read because the Red iPhone 7 is coming!

Thu, 23 Mar 2017 04:49:27 +0000

Image Credit: Mothership.sg

There are regular days and there are some special mornings when we wake up with a new phone. Today is one such day, but what’s peculiar this time is that the new phone works just like the old phone. Yes, yes I am talking about Apple’s iPhone 7 series. Apple has come up with a new model or rather a special version of iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus and only difference is that well it’s red, bright brilliant flaming red! It’s so red that seems like it is making the rose gold blush.

The phone is so red, like right into the eyes red and I am personally loving how it looks! The back case – red, the power and volume buttons – red, the teeny tiny SIM card tray – yeah that’s right it’s red and the beloved Apple logo? Sorry, NOT red! But it is actually popping up so well with everything else being red.

Critics’d be like, so what it’s just another colour, but hey, it’s iPhone and it’s red! This is the first ever Apple product to be launched in this colour. Even though the internals are same as the regular iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, it is different, it is special. And it doesn’t have to be internally or functionally changed to be different, sometimes things just have to be red to make a difference.

Officially named iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus (PRODUCT)RED, the phone looks inc-RED-ible. It looks like it’s been dipped in classic red Chanel nail-enamel or like it’s made of Iron Man’s suit, it is red you know. The red iPhones are accompanied by not-so-red iPad with minor upgrades but a much lower price. And the whole RED series will donate its earnings to support the programmes that provide counselling, testing and medicine that prevents the transmission of HIV from a mother to her unborn child. So far, Apple has raised over US$130 million through the sale of (RED) products. Now we’re introducing iPhone 7 (PRODUCT)RED™ Special Edition. Every purchase brings us a step closer to an AIDS‑free generation.

In India, the special edition iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus red variants will be available from April with a red-hot price tag of Rs. 82,000 price tag for the 128GB Red iPhone 7 Plus. The price of other red models is yet to be declared by Apple. Will you be joining the great aimed for good cause Apple RED PARADE?

Adobe and Microsoft joins hand to share sales and marketing data focusing strong competitors.

Wed, 22 Mar 2017 04:17:42 +0000

Representative Image

“It’s going to enable to customers to go beyond the current (software) silos they have to navigate today,” said Scott Guthrie, executive vice president of the cloud and enterprise division at Microsoft. Adobe's Photoshop Suite and Acrobat PDF will be dealing the Azure cloud computing service as a part of partnership build.

Pushing B2B is the Adobe's key role to step-up the marketing since it purchased website tracking giant Omniture Inc. In addition, keeping weight on digital marketing and advertising campaigns covered almost $1.2 billion of Adobe’s $4.6 billion in revenue last year.

If customers have spent a lot of money with a business, they expect the business to remember who they are and don’t like it when they have to constantly re-enter their name and information, said Melissa Webster on this deal.

“Every time a company says with its body language ‘Who are you, again?’ it eats into their brand equity a little bit,” she added further.

Consequently, Microsoft is increasing effort to expand Dynamics, its software system for sales people. Getting one Adobe hand, it will compete more strongly with Salesforce and Oracle, which both offer a combination of sales and marketing software.

Brace yourselves, the Indian Army Bots are coming!

Tue, 21 Mar 2017 04:56:17 +0000

Image Credit: aermech.in

Robots occupying the military areas with weapons is still a far really far-fetched idea but India doesn’t want to lag behind in arming its army up with up-to-date Artificial Intelligence and robots that could help and do the dirty military tasks.

The robots designed at IIT Mumbai will assist the military to improvise explosives and land mines from remote areas. The bots will also help to peep at the remote inaccessible areas with the use of their high-resolution cameras. Indian Army aims to operate a third of its operations using bots which might seem an intrusive goal but even if 10% tasks would be handled by drones, that would translate to roughly 1 lakh robots which seem quite achievable. The robotics market for defence in India might touch over a whopping Rs. 68,000 Crore annually!

Omnipresent Tech recently flew drones as part of Border Security Force (BSF) and army trials and we learnt that the defence and security sector is expected to use over 100,000 drones in the coming decade. In addition to bots for the armed forces, “botic” boats and submarines will be used by the navy.

Upcoming Google Pixel series codenames are probably Walleye and Muskie. Release date still unknown.

Sat, 18 Mar 2017 05:04:50 +0000

Representative Image

It is said that Walleye will be the younger and smaller that Muskie of bigger size. Earlier, for debutant Pixels, Google selected the fish codenames - Marlin and Sailfish while in last Nexus series it was Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P.

According to the source, the information is extracted out from AOSP website where 'Walleye' has been referred. Google's SVP for hardware Rick Osterloh recently confirmed that Pixel 2 will be released this year with its premium quality as usual. Besides, it is rumoured as waterproof, powered by Snapdragon 835 chip and come with a better camera focusing DxO Mark.

Although, Google is also working on a budget smartphone but may not have Pixel branding in it.

Guardian Magnetic Shields for habitation on Mars

Wed, 15 Mar 2017 06:59:13 +0000

Image source: Shutterstock

Scientists at NASA have deduced that installing gigantic magnetic shields on the dead and cold Red planet can give it the liveable atmosphere back. It is said that Mars lost its magnetic field some 4.2 billion years ago which eventually resulted into ripping off of its atmosphere due to solar wind and storms. Mars is dry and dreary now, but once it had a rich atmosphere with oceans gushing over the Martian crust.

Over the time, there have been many speculations about possibilities of terraforming Mars from designing a protective shell to breaking the Martian crust to release CO². Scientists have now come up with a new phantasm to terraform Mars using magnetic shields. Mars’ magnetic field once protected the planet’s atmosphere and if that can be restored artificially, then Mars could be terraformed.

Research teams at NASA have recently conducted simulations using artificial magnetosphere and they found that a dipole shield can protect Mars against solar wind and help to balance of the Martian atmosphere. The atmosphere will then eventually thicken up making it much more life-friendly on Mars.

This could be a further step towards re-birth of our neighbour deserted Red Planet.

Google guy builds bot that earns money from Trump tweets.

Tue, 14 Mar 2017 04:24:58 +0000

Image Credit: Mashable India

Now, Max Braun, the head of software for Google X's Robotics division, decided to put Trump's itchy Twitter finger to good use: He built a fully automated bot that analyzes Trump's tweets and buys or shorts a company stock depending on whether Trump praised or disparaged it.

Amazingly, this actually works. Trump tweets about companies a lot, and the market appears to be quite predictable when he does. As you can see in Braun's table below (which is a simulation, not an actual list of trades), the bot is earning money more often than not.

"You’ll see that it sometimes misses a company or gets a sentiment wrong, but it also gets it right a lot. The trading strategy sometimes leaves you up and sometimes down," Braun wrote in a blog post-Monday, warning that anyone who decides to use this for profit could also end up losing money (which is why some professionals are wary of using similar tactics).

Interestingly, Braun's not the first to build an automated trading system based on Trump tweets; advertising agency T3 has a similar project, though their bot only shorts stocks.

Just like T3, Braun says he's donating any profits he makes off this project to charity; in his case, it's the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Resources Defense Council and Planned Parenthood.

Amazingly, Braun claims he coded the first working version of the bot on a single plane ride. He invites developers to improve on his code, which is available on GitHub.

Google Station is coming to this city before anywhere else in the world.

Sat, 11 Mar 2017 04:33:09 +0000

Image Courtesy: Google

About 150km south-east of Mumbai, the city of Pune will soon become the first place in the world to see Google deploy fast-internet hotspots at public places as part of its Station project, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The move comes as IT giant Larsen & Toubro (L&T), in association with Google, state-run internet service provider RailTel, and IBM form a consortium to bag a Rs 1,500 million ($22.2 million) with local authority Pune Smart City Development Corporation to turn Pune into a smart city.

"With the goal of creating a great Internet for the next billion users, we have found that making high-quality public Wi-Fi more easily accessible can play a critical role in bringing the benefits of Internet to millions of Indians," a Google spokesperson told Mashable India in a statement.

"We believe that Google Station, can help ISPs, venue operators, and city governments quickly and reliably deploy high speed internet," the person added. The Economic Times first reported about the consortium’s deal with PSCSCL.

With Google Station, a program announced last year, Google is looking at bringing affordable and fast internet connectivity with the help of businesses, or individuals who have good internet connectivity. The company has plans to offer monetary benefits to its partners, Caesar Sengupta, VP of Google’s Next Billion Plan had mentioned last year.

According to ET’s report, IBM will provide smart city solutions, while state-run ISP RailTel helps with last mile connectivity lines. The city will also have message displays to deliver information across 161 locations in the city.

L&T also has partnership with the Maharashtra government to bring Wi-Fi at over planned 5,00 locations in Mumbai.

NASA to gift public a portfolio of software products without any charge.

Fri, 10 Mar 2017 06:44:05 +0000

Image Credit: NASA

Washington, DC: On its latest software catalog of 2017-2018, NASA releases the bundle of free software for public. It includes a wide variety of applications which does not include any royalty or copyright issue. “The software catalog is our way of supporting the innovation economy by granting access to tools used by today’s top aerospace professionals to entrepreneurs, small businesses, academia and industry,” said Steve Jurczyk, Associate Administrator for Nasa’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) in Washington.

Agencies from data processing/storage, business systems, operations, propulsion and aeronautics played a vital role in providing the free software to the public, available in offline as well as online. It includes many of the tools Nasa uses to explore space and broaden our understanding of the universe. One of the programs included in the new Nasa software catalog is LEWICE, developed to help study the effects of ice on an aircraft in flight.

In April 2014, NASA presented his first software catalog to the world which was not totally free to the public and included various other parameters to follow before proceeding to a certain level of its usage. There are a number of software packages which is releasing the first time, accompanied by a plain language description.

“Software has been a critical component of each of Nasa’s mission successes and scientific discoveries. In fact, more than 30 percent of all reported NASA innovations are software,” said Dan Lockney, NASA’s Technology Transfer program executive. “We’re pleased to transfer these tools to other sectors and excited at the prospect of seeing them implemented in new and creative ways,” Lockney said.

Quick And Easy Guidance To Resolve Slowness Of Outlook IMAP Folder Synchronization Issues

Thu, 09 Mar 2017 04:56:15 +0000

Representative Image

In today’s high technology world all sorts of business as well as personal communication is done via the email. One can easily get in touch with anyone at any part of the world via the Outlook email account. But recently the users of Outlook have been facing an issue which is causing tremendous amount of delay in time as well as productivity. The issue is slowness of the Outlook IMAP folder synchronization issue. This type of issue can be easily resolved by seeking assistance from the Outlook Customer Care Number where a pool of skilled and well qualified technicians are always willing to assist the users and resolve the underlying issue within the shortest span of time. So in order to meet the concerns of the users this article will deal ways to troubleshoot the issue if it again happens with the users in the near future or in current situation.

One of the symptoms that will occur when encountered this issue is Outlook account will then run very slowly. Outlook Customer Service Number can prove to be a fruitful medium to get instant fixation of this type of issue. Users who have a bit knowledge of the technical part can easily resolve the issues by self only as they are very much user friendly or easy to understand. Below mentioned is a short tutorial which users can follow now and get their things done within a short span of time without any sort of doubts or hesitation.

Steps to follow in order to fasten Outlook IMAP folder synchronization issues:

Step 1: First of all open the Outlook email account via the desired account username and password.

Step 2: Users can then move on to “Send/Receive” option and then on “Send/Receive” groups and finally define send and receive from there.

Step 3: Users can then click on the “Edit” option which is available in the right hand side of the Send/Receive group windows.

Step 4: The next thing which users will need to do is uncheck “Get folder unread count for subscribed folders”.

Step 5: Users will then need to check on the option “Use the custom behavior defined show” which is available under the received mail items.

Step 6: In the window that will be appearing next users will need to select “Inbox” and then leave the other folders unchecked.

Step 7: Users can then click on “OK” and exit from all the list of options available.

Step 8: Finally, users can now try sending and receiving the mails and check if the slowness of the Outlook email account is fixed or not.

Some of the users may not be able to get the above mentioned steps even if they try to because of lack of understanding while some of the other users may not find the above mentioned steps fruitful. Such users can immediately seek assistance from the immensely qualified and skilled technicians by dialing the 24/7 Outlook Technical Support Number. The best part is that services is available by the technicians all through the year which gives customers a chance to consult the technicians at any point of time without any sort of hesitation. The certified technicians will offer one stop solution to the users as they have been working in the similar domain for years. The technicians do a in depth analysis of the issues and then offer solution to the issues via different technical assistance modes which are remote assistance, onsite assistanceFree Web Content, and live chatting and mail support. So just call the technicians at any point of time and get quick and easy guidance for instant resolution of any of the issues.

Remote assistance is the most widely accepted mode by the users as in this case the technicians remotely access the users system and then perform troubleshooting steps irrespective of the location. If the technicians are not available at a particular time then the users can mail the technicians about the issue or query. The technicians will revert back as soon as they see the mail. Live chatting can also be done if the technicians are available online or you can call on Outlook Customer Support Number. Onsite assistance can be availed if the technicians are at nearby location and are willing to come to the users place to fix the issue. So feel free to choose any of the modes which fit the best and then resolve instantly so that there is no delay in productivity.

NASA announces the discovery of the largest cluster of Earth-sized planets, raising new hopes of life in a galaxy far far away.

Tue, 07 Mar 2017 05:41:18 +0000

Image source: www.space.com

Turns out that it wasn’t just dust on the lens of the NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope, but an unexplored star system with seven Earth-size planets around a dwarf star named TRAPPIST-1 (The Transiting Planets and Planetesimals Small Telescope), some or all of which could harbor water and possibly life! This expedition can be titled as the biggest set of such planets found at once yet.

This star system is said to be located in the constellation Aquarius, less than 40 light-years or 235 trillion miles away from us; which can be considered close as per astronomical standards. The 7 planets orbit Trappist-1 and the orbit size ranging from 1.5 to 20 days. If Trappist-1 were our sun, the orbits of all 7 planets would fit inside the orbit of Mercury. Yes! They are that closely bound. The planets are only known by letters, "b" through "h".

The exciting news about the discovery is that three of these planets smack dab in the Goldilocks Zone, which is the “habitable zone” indicating the possibility of the existence of watery streams and conditions which are just right for life to flourish. Voila, right! Well easy, Earthlings; because it’s is just an assumption and the scientists still need to research a lot for being sure.

Spitzer, Hubble, and Kepler will help astronomers plan for follow-up studies using NASA's upcoming James Webb Space Telescope. Scientists need to study the atmospheres of the new

The flagship killer of 2017 Samsung Galaxy S8 series to launch on March 29.

Sat, 04 Mar 2017 12:32:29 +0000

Image Credit: BGR

Barcelona: Mobile World Congress 2017 has already raised many eyebrows by unveiling the numbers of flagship mobiles from different manufacturing companies including LG, Sony, Samsung, Huawei and many more. Samsung Galaxy S7 has already won the award of Best Mobile device of 2016. Taking ahead its popularity, Samsung has cleared his way to launch his upcoming most powerful mobile Samsung Galaxy S8 by this month. At the end of a product presentation, the company showed a short video clip announcing the date for its traditional “Unpacked Event”.

According to a leaked specifications sheet by Techno Buffalo, the Galaxy S8 will feature a 5.8-inch QHD+ Super AMOLED display, 4GB of RAM, IP68 dust and water resistance, 12MP dual-pixel camera, 8MP front camera, an iris scanner, 64GB of expandable memory, Samsung Pay, wireless charging, and bundled earphones tuned by AKG.

Both Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+ will launch with its own virtual assistant Samsung Bixby which will support 8 major languages of world. It has been also rumoured that it will be the first phone to power Snapdragon 835 processor. 6GB RAM/64GB ROM and 6GB RAM/128GB ROM variant will be available as per initial stage, according to report.

Samsung will formally unveil the new Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ during a press conference in New York City on March 29th, and the phones are expected to launch globally on April 21st.

Samsung Galaxy S8 is all set to clear flagship ground in mobile sector by its most powerful features and hardware. “Unpacked Event” on March 29.

5 Reasons You Need a Responsive Website to Let Your Business Grow

Thu, 23 Feb 2017 06:58:00 +0000

So why are there so many businesses that haven’t adapted to the mobile market?

Naturally, since the mobile internet use is on the rise, the importance of responsive web design is too. In the past, where you had to design two separate sites for desktop and mobile, are bundled together in one universal mobile-friendly website.

So, at Notion technologies, a Web Designing Company in India based presents you with 5 reasons to convince you to convert to RWD.

1. Google Recommends

Google is the primary search engine which singlehandedly monopolizes the search engine market, so it is a smart move to love what Google loves. Google not only recommends RWD but also favors the mobile optimized sites for searches on the mobile device.

Even from the SEO perspective, a single website is much better than a separate website for mobile and desktops.

With 67% market share, when Google speaks, designers listen. And now Google states that RWD is not only the industry standard but also the future of mobile browsing.

2. Website Many Devices

RWD provides easy navigation and seamless transition between different screen sizes and multiple devices. You can check for something on the mobile device and yet continue to the same website on the desktop without hampering the user experience.

3. Easy Management

Taking care of separate desktop and the mobile site requires having separate Google Adwords campaigns, SEO campaigns, and separate Google Analytics reports. Managing one site is, of course, far easier than managing two sites, it’s just simple mathematics.

You can also incorporate mobile specific keywords which will universally work alongside the desktop version. Targeting keywords that are frequently used on smartphones will help you circle down on the estimated client base. Invest and contact an agency which offers SEO services in Mumbai for professional support.

4. Speed is the deal breaker

The content on the web page should load under/between 2-3 seconds according to Google PageSpeed Developers. This gets tricky for a desktop website to load fast on the move, but it is also observed that people often don’t wait long enough for the site to load. Optimize your web media to load quicker.

5. RWD Is a Money Saver

Responsive web design calls for one single website across all devices, thus the extra expenses of maintain two separate sites are cut down. Furthermore, a complicated, well-crafted responsive design can be expensive, but once published, you can easily maintain it. Plus it is always economical to design one website instead of two, wouldn’t you agree too?

Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com

How to Clear Cache on Mac OS X

Wed, 22 Feb 2017 07:02:00 +0000

Image Credit: Macrumours

Thankfully, latest versions of the Safari web browser on your Mac offers a hidden feature to clear web caches automatically from the browser without having to remove browsing history, cookies, searches etc. Let’s discuss ways to clear cache on Mac OS X.

Delete the Cache in Safari

In order to clear cache in Safari for Mac OS X, you’ll first require enabling the Develop Menu in the menu bar from within the app's Preferences. This optional menu contains various developer-centric features. It also includes the ability to directly clear cache from Safari browsing session on your Mac. To clear & empty Safari browser caches in Mac OS X,

Open Safari on the Mac.
Now go to Safari menu in the upper left corner and select Preferences > Advanced > and click on “Show Develop menu in menu bar” option and close the Preferences window.
Go back to Safari browser window and select “Develop” menu, choose “Empty Caches” from the drop down menu. This process will remove Safari Caches but retain browser history and saved passwords.
To delete all browsing history and cache from Safari, click on Safari menu and select Reset Safari option. Now select the browsing data you want to delete such as saved passwords, history, auto-fill entries etc. If you choose Clear History option than your Cache will be removed as well.

When you enable Develop menu in Safari on your Mac it will provide you access to a keystroke shortcut for removing Caches in Safari using Command + Option + E option. It offers a faster method to delete cache without having to pull down the menu every time. You can also clear browser cache for a specific page with Shift + Click option.

Manually delete the Cache files

If you find that clearing cache from within the browser doesn’t delete all of the cache files, then you can do the manual cleaning to remove all cache files from your system. To do the manual cleaning:

You need to first open the hidden Library files as some cache files remain hidden in your system. To open this, you’ll require special commands. To do this first open the Finder menu at the top of your screen. Now hold down the Option key and click on the Go menu. Select Library folder from the drop-down menu.
Next is to navigate to the cache file. To do this open the Cache folder from within the Library folder. In the Cache folder find and open “com.apple.Safari” folder and select file named “cache.db”. Drag this file to the Trash Can to completely remove your browser’s cache. Safari on your system will create a new “cache.db” file automatically when you run a new web page.

You can follow these simple steps to fix cache problem on your Mac OS X. Clearing unnecessary cache files you can recover some precious storage space. It also helps you improve your system performance.

Take Instant Help For Your Gmail Not Working On Your Iphone

Tue, 21 Feb 2017 07:09:00 +0000

Image Credit: Macworld.co.uk

Gmail is an email service was first presented by the Google. It is considered as one of the most wanted email services. The email services are used all over the world by the users in order to transfer messages, for receiving messages and also for instant transfer of official data required by the officials. The invention of the Gmail is a boon to the modern world.

The Gmail services are rated as one of the most reputed and trusted brands in the market. No matter the services provided by the Gmail users are user friendly and error free. There might be some technical glitches or issues that the user might face in accessing the gmail account. The users can take help of Gmail Customer Care Phone Number for getting comprehensive solutions to their queries ina lucid language.

Steps to make the Gmail work on their Iphone:

The users might take help of the following steps in getting the Gmail work on the iphones and thus help in resolving the issues for solving the issue.

Firstly the user need to relax and does need to panic at all. The user needs to go to the settings of the Gmail and then needs to turn on the Internet Message Access protocol(IMAP).
Then the user needs to quit all the mail customers that are getting to the influenced Gmail account.
Then the user needs to open the gmail on the affected iphone and then needs to enter the link specified that takes the user to the google page.
Then in the given column , the user needs to enter the Gmail account ID and the password.
Thereafter the user needs to press on the proceed button.
At last the user needs to enter the characters in the box which is visible on the display screen of the computer.

In case the users are not able to solve the issue , then the user might take help of the Gmail Customer Service Phone Number for getting the exact, simple and viable solutions for resolving their complicated issues in a speedy and faster manner.Also

Some Issues in accessing the Gmail on the Iphone:

The users of the Gmail may suffer from the various issue while accessing the Gmail on the iphone. Some of them are as follows:

The user might not be able to either send or recover the mails.
Then the user might face an issue in connecting to the IMAP server.
Thereafter the user might receive an error message while delivering the error message on the Gmail account.
Sometimes the username or the Gmail password is not correct.
The users of the Gmail might face an issue in not being able to connect using the SSL.
The mail server “gmail.com” is sometimes not responding. The user needs to verify that the correct account information has been entered in the mail settings.
Also the IMAP server “imap.gmail.com” is sometimes not able to respond.

These are some of the issues that the users might face when the Iphone is not working on the iphones contact Gmail Technical Support Phone Number. Then the user might take help of the above steps in dealing with the issue and thus resolve the issue instantly and quickly.

Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com

Customizing a Computer? Here's What You Need

Mon, 20 Feb 2017 11:56:00 +0000

Image Credit: Google

Processor and Motherboard

The component to start with is the processor, which will dictate your selection of other necessary parts, like the motherboard. UserBenchmark's exhaustive list of user-rated processors is a good resource to help you decide. AMD and Intel are the top manufacturers, but I prefer Intel.

Intel is the industry standard when it comes to processors, so you can't go wrong if that's your choice. Its Core series comes in three families: i3, i5 and i7. The i3 series is good for average computing needs, while the i5 offers a little more horsepower. The i7 series offers you the best performance. For the price, a Core i7-6700k really can't be beat.

After you choose your processor, select a motherboard to go with it. Make sure it is USB 3.1/3.0-capable for optimal speed. One factor to consider is whether you plan on overclocking, which involves running your PC at a speed higher than manufacturer recommendations.

While you can benefit from short-term performance boosts, overclocking may lead to a shorter lifespan for your computer, so you'll need to consider a compatible motherboard if you plan to do it.

Storage and Memory

Next, choose the storage you want to use. HDD drives are the traditional hard drives that most computers have, and they are extremely affordable.

However, SSDs are the choice for sheer performance, and their prices are dropping.

I prefer a hybrid option that includes both. A computer built with its system files on a smaller SSD will boot faster, while a larger and cheaper HDD in the 2-TB range gives plenty of storage.

Decide how much RAM you need. If you plan on running a 32-bit OS, then you only need 3 GB of memory since the OS won't support any more. Most likely, though, you will be using a 64-bit architecture where 4 GB is the minimum.

RAM is a relatively cheap upgrade for the performance you get in return. Choose 8, 12, or 16 GB for a better user experience.

You can also put in a DVD/CD drive, though it is not necessary, thanks to portable storage and cloud-based software.

Video and Audio Cards

If you intend to play video games, create digital graphics or edit video, you should invest in something more advanced than a basic video card.

For enhanced graphics, AMD, ATI or Nvidia cards will do the trick. The AMD Radeon RX 460 is a reasonably affordable option that can also handle the needs of most casual gamers.

The same goes for your audio card: If you are editing audio files, you should always opt for a higher-quality card that's compatible with the peripheral equipment you want to connect.

Case, Power and Cooling

You have to buy a case to hold all of that amazing hardware! There are many types of cases on the market with different features. Many cases have a rudimentary power supply and cooling fans. However, if you are building a high-performance system, they are probably inadequate.

All that performance generates heat. Too much heat will cause your computer to crash and may even damage hardware, so be sure to invest in some qualitycomputer cooling fans.

At a minimum, you will want one attached to your CPU heatsink, one larger fan to exhaust heat from the case -- and if not built in, one to disperse heat from your graphics card.

The more powerful your components, the more power you'll need to run your system properly. You don't want to burn through a cheap power supply and have everything shut down on you.

Plan on at least a 500w power supply, but if you've opted for a bigger processor, graphics card, and the requisite fans, you'll need something with more juice. Your components may come with recommended power allowances. If not, I suggest at least a 750w power supply.

Final Thought: Don't be afraid to invest more money up front, as your custom machine can provide years of use before you'll need to upgrade it again. Good luck with your project -- and most of all, have fun!

How To Market Your Website Properly For The Maximum Benefits?

Mon, 20 Feb 2017 07:15:00 +0000

Image Credit: it-impresa.it

Some Essentials To Follow To Gain The Maximum Benefits Of Marketing Your Website:-

Start Blogging: Blogging on a regular basis implies that you are giving a lot of information to your visitors and people are looking for the right stuff to get acknowledge about your brand as well as what products you serve. A blog can also do wonders for improving your ranking as per the Google's algorithms.
Video Marketing: Video marketing is one of the latest trends that are buzzing the market. The videos demonstrate the things precisely and help to learn better. The visuals are remembered for a long time and it is easy to save the videos for later use than the content.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO): It is the most influential tool that does wonders for improving your ranking and promoting your business. It involves the use of relevant keywords, inserting internal links, creating a sitemap, and regularly updating new content to make things better. All these activities help to improve page ranking of your website.
Unique Content: Regularly updating fresh content is another key to appear better on the search engine. Google hates the copy content, although duplicate content can take you down and ruins everything by deterring the visitors.
Social Media Optimization: Social media is the main medium that connects you with the global market. There are a huge number of visitors that are searching for the products they want to buy and social media makes it straightforward for both buyers and the traders. Nowadays, you can easily find anything on social media accounts. Update your fresh content regularly on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, etc.

Trump Clings to Personal Phone Despite Security Risks

Sun, 19 Feb 2017 11:52:00 +0000

Image Credit: TechNewsWorld

The president told a friend he had given up his phone as security officials urged him to do, the AP reported last week. It was unclear whether he would be using a heavily modified BlackBerry like the phone President Barack Obama carried, however.

Trump nevertheless has continued to use his personal Android to tweet, according to multiple reports.

Mic Hijacking

If the president were to limit his personal phone use to tweeting -- and it's not clear whether he has -- it still could pose a threat to national security.

"Even if he isn't using the device for storing or sending classified information, having the device in the president's presence still raises security concerns," maintained Andrew Blaich, a security researcher at Lookout.

"We have discovered sophisticated spyware that when successfully deployed can remotely access the phone's microphone and camera," he told TechNewsWorld. "Think about the impact an attacker could have if they could access the POTUS phone's microphone during key briefings throughout the day."

Telemetry features, such as GPS tracking, also pose a risk.

"Tracking the physical movement and geographical location of a target is classified information for high-value targets," said Israel Barak, CISO ofCybereason.

"It's also valuable information for an adversary. Using a commercial off-the-shelf smartphone by a high-value target like the U.S. president is an unacceptable risk," he told TechNewsWorld.

"When it comes to a corporate executive, balancing risk with functionality might lean towards using a commercial device," Barak said, "but when it comes to a high-value national target, where the threat actors are sophisticated military-grade adversaries, that's a risk that can't be balanced in favor of a commercial phone."

Safety vs. Convenience

Obama's BlackBerry mobile phone was specially modified to be extra secure, even though BlackBerry devices, in general, are considered more secure than other phones.

That's because BlackBerry isn't just a phone. It's also a network. Traffic from the phone is encrypted and sent to BlackBerry servers operated by the enterprises or government agencies. The traffic also is encrypted when it goes from the server to the Internet.

The tradeoff for all that security, though, is performance.

"The reason that BlackBerry isn't as popular as it used to be is all that encryption slows things down," explained Slawek Ligier, vice president of engineering for security at Barracuda Networks.

"Using a browser on a BlackBerry device has always been painfully slow," he told TechNewsWorld.

The good news for the president, though, is that text-only tasks, such as tweeting, don't take much of a performance hit.

Resistant to Change

When it comes to their phones, many consumers resist change, and it appears presidents aren't any different.

"Where Trump is concerned, usually the most banal explanation is the correct one -- he's used to it, it seems convenient, and he's stubbornly digging in his heels against the advisors explaining it's a bad idea," said Julian Sanchez, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute.

"He's also clearly not terribly technically sophisticated, and so probably doesn't grasp how risky it is," he told TechNewsWorld.

If the president insists on using an insecure phone, can anyone stop him from doing so?

"Federal laws and regulations prohibit the communications of classified information," observed Michael Harris, chief marketing officer for Guidance Software.

"Even the president of the U.S. is required to comply," he told TechNewsWorld, "but enforcing laws on the president is in the hands of the U.S. Congress."

LibreOffice Update Offers Fresh Experience

Sat, 18 Feb 2017 11:47:00 +0000

Image Credit: LibreOffice

Growth Spurt

LibreOffice 5.3 represents the bleeding edge in term of features for open source office suites, according to The Document Foundation.

The growth in LibreOffice's adoption is the result of The Document Foundation's ability to grow its developer community, said Michael Meeks, a member of the board, during a teleconference this week.

"In 2010, only a few people were betting on our capability of attracting a large number of code contributors, which are instrumental for the success of a large code base," he said. "In six years, we have attracted over 1,100 new developers and, thanks to this large community, during the last two years we have had an average of 300 people active on the source code."

LibreOffice 5.3 is available now for Windows, macOS and Linux, and for the first time also online.

LibreOffice Online for Cloud Servers

With LibreOffice 5.3, The Document Foundation also has introduced LibreOffice Online.

Its primary developer, Collabora, based it on LibreOffice's desktop core engine.

LibreOffice Online is an enabling technology for the public clouds of ISPs or the private clouds of enterprises and large organizations.

It provides a cloud office suite for basic collaborative editing of documents in a browser. Rendering fidelity is excellent, and interoperability matches that of LibreOffice.

It is not a standalone offering that will compete with Google Docs or Microsoft Office 365, said Vignoli. The Document Foundation is not providing LibreOffice Online binaries.

Top New Features

A better text display using HarfBuzz for cross-platform consistency and menu content is unified across the office suite modules for Writer (word processor), Calc (spreadsheet), Impress (slide presentations) and Draw.

Keyboard shortcuts now are displayed in context menus. They are enabled by default on Windows and Linux.

The Area dialog is simplified and includes a new Patterns section for better compatibility with other office software. The result is a better work fit for filled shapes.

Also, you now can import a new custom bitmap image directly from the sidebar. Similarly, you can insert PDFs into documents as images with the first page shown. Even better, you can sign existing PDF files and verify those signatures.

7 Types Of Friends You Meet In Every New Year Party

Fri, 17 Feb 2017 05:17:00 +0000

Although many cultures celebrate this happy day in their own unique way, typically the customs and traditions of the celebration involve the reflection upon the last year while looking ahead to the future’s possibilities. For many people, it is a good opportunity to learn from the prior year and make positive changes in their life. Common resolutions concern diet, exercise, bad habits, and other issues concerning personal wellness. A common view is to use the first day of the year as a clean slate to improve one’s life.

Have you got presents for your family and friends? Company will be the best present for them. Celebrate with loved ones at a party featuring toasting, drinking and fireworks late into the night before the New Year, where the gathering counts down the final seconds to January 1st. As soon as the first day of New Year arrives, people say “Happy New Year” to each other, which people believe will bring good luck to loved ones.

Dear CoverMe users and blog visitors, what’s your wish? Hope you can get everything you want and be happy every day in the coming new year. Happy New Year!

"Super Mario Run" now sits atop two of Apple's Top Charts as the most popular free and top grossing app.

Thu, 16 Feb 2017 05:48:00 +0000

Without the unlock, gamers can only play through three levels before being rate limited to 20-second try-outs.

At the time of this writing, Super Mario Run has an average 3-star rating with well over 21,000 reviews.

Considering the speed at which Nintendo's title soared to the top of Apple's charts, it is likely that both companies are making significant gains —more so for Nintendo —from gamers eager to get their hands on Mario's latest adventure.

Announced in September, Super Mario Run is Nintendo's first official attempt at an in-house iOS game. Hyped for months, the release might have temporarily crashed Apple's online storefronts due to expectedly high demand.

For those who tried out the sample levels, or have yet to download the title, and are on the fence about dishing out $9.99 for a full unlock, make sure to check out AppleInsider's in-depth review.

Robotic food delivery is rolling into the United States in February.

Wed, 15 Feb 2017 05:58:00 +0000

Image Credit: popsci.com

On test day, the Starship company will have an employee walking behind the bot—which is basically a secured container box rolling along at 4 mph—to deal with unexpected incidents and too-curious pedestrians, according to CNN Money. For the lucky crowds who are going to live-tweet this scene, the spectacle may bear resemblance to a parent following their toddler as it learns how to walk, the parent ready to save the little tyke from tripping and crying.

The company's first two U.S. customers will be Postmates and DoorDash, but their product is already pretty street savvy. The Starship baby has already been tested in the U.K., Germany, and Switzerland, where it has delivered food orders, groceries, and parcels. As of November 2016, the bot had over 12,000 miles under its belt (or under its wheels, if you will).

Despite its 4 mph speed, the robot actually sounds pretty high-tech, according to an Ars Technica story from late 2016. It has “nine cameras, a 360-degree ultrasonic sensor array, and an Nvidia Tegra K1 processor” to take in its surroundings, map the environment and avoid obstacles. And its navigation system is reportedly more precise (by 1.5 meters) than “the best non-military GPS receivers” out there.

Starship isn't the world's only attempt at automated food delivery, and the competing bots are already having playful rivalries. When Domino’s Pizza launched its self-driving, four-wheeled bot in Australia last spring, Starship's official Twitter advised its buddy DRU (Domino’s Robotic Unit) to seriously consider losing some weight:

DRU weighs 419 lbs. Starship? 35 lbs. But DRU's extra heft helps give it more power, allowing it to zip along at a cool 12 mph—three times faster than Starship.

Ubiquitous robot delivery is probably a long way off. Starship’s current robots can only carry 20 pound loads within a 3-mile radius. As Postmates’ senior vice president of business Holger Luedorf put it, the upcoming test is part of a learning process. The company will analyze data like delivery time, delivery quality rated by customers, and feedback from merchants to determine whether they want to pursue this ground-based robot delivery strategy on a grander scale.

Customers won't be asked to shell out extra for the privilege of a robotic delivery—at least for now. “We are treating these robots just like any other Postmates carrier," Luedorf says.

E-Waste has risen by 63 percent in just 5 years

Tue, 14 Feb 2017 06:05:00 +0000

Image Credit: Emnet via Pexels

Between 2010 and 2015, the U.N. think tank United Nations University tracked 12 Asian countries to see how much electronic waste they produced. On average, the volume of digital trash increased by nearly two thirds over this period, with certain countries worse than others. China, for example, doubled its e-waste. By the time 2015 rolled around, the region produced 22 pounds of e-waste per person per year. The worst culprit was Hong Kong, which trashed nearly 48 pounds per person, while more frugal Cambodians dumped fewer than 3 pounds per person.

This trend seems much less disturbing when you compare these Asian countries to Europe and the Americas, where the average person tosses about 34 pounds of electronics in the trash each year. But if the comparatively thrifty consumers in Asia continue to ramp up their e-waste, they could easily outpace Westerners. Asia already purchases about half of all electronic gadgets on the market. And the trends that the U.N. report credits for the increase in digital trash—a growing consumer class, more types of gadgets, more imported devices, and good ol' planned obsolescence—will only continue.

In Asian countries that lack an infrastructure for e-recycling (and laws that make it mandatory), most old electronics wind up in trash fires, backyards, or informal recycling systems that release harmful fumes into the environs. However, the report praises Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan for the e-recycling systems that they have already established. Other countries in the report have only recently begun dealing with their e-waste problem, while a few rely on private systems. Now they just need their Western counterparts to follow suit.

Malware has breached over 1 billion Android devices.

Mon, 13 Feb 2017 06:21:00 +0000

Image Credit: Wikipedia

Devices running Android versions 4 (a.k.a. Jelly Bean and KitKat) and 5 (a.k.a. Lollipop) are at risk. Currently that accounts for more than 74 percent of all active devices, about 19 percent of which are in the U.S.

The Googlian malware infects phones by hiding in apps that appear totally legit and tempt users further because they’re free. These apps live in third-party app stores (i.e. outside the Google Play Store), but Check Point says that many users also download them by clicking on phishing links in emails and text messages. Once the malicious software is installed, it sends key device data to Googlian, allowing it to root the device and gain near-complete control over its operations.

At this point, Googlian becomes especially sneaky. It downloads its own control module onto the device, which mimics user behavior, making it difficult to detect and allowing it to swipe authentication information, and install apps and adware. By doing this, Googlian is actually able to artificially bump up the ratings of its malicious apps, further tempting users to download them and enter the vicious cycle. (Suspect apps are listed in Appendix A on the Check Point blog.)

In a blog post published Tuesday, Google assured users that the company’s security team has worked closely with Check Point in their investigation of the Googlian malware. According to the post, the security team has been working on measures to protect users from what it terms “Ghost Push” apps, which are most often downloaded outside the Google Play Store and work to install malicious software on their own post-download.

To check if your account is breached, visit gooligan.checkpoint.com. If your credentials are among the compromised, Check Point suggests a clean installation of your operating system. A clean install (or “flashing”) a device is a long, multi-step affair, so you may want to head to your service provider for help. Once that’s done, reset your Google account password(s).

While you’re already in the process of resetting, make sure to create an iron-clad password. Consult Google’s own tips for creating strong passwords, or take it directly from net-security expert Brian Krebs.

Google Home vs Amazon Echo

Sun, 12 Feb 2017 06:27:00 +0000

Image Credit: Xavier Harding

Where Amazon created a personal assistant that looks more like a computer accessory than a home appliance, Google has clearly tried to make its competing product fit in with less high-tech objects: Home looks like a jar hooked up with an air-freshener and had a really smart (maybe even too smart) baby. The Google Home curves and slants in all the right places, allowing it to better blend with the other items on your desk or countertop. The emphasis on aesthetics extends to the base, which is easily swappable and comes in six colors (some bright mesh, and some in stately metals). Hitting the microphone mute button even reveals an almost candle-like set of yellow lights – much more pleasing to the eye than Amazon's harsh red ring.

Home provides a house for Google's aptly-named Google Assistant. Introduced alongside the company's chat app Allo, the Assistant received an encore with the release of Google's Pixel. But what exactly can it do?

Amazon and Google's virtual, voice-only assistants both allow you to carry out simple tasks. Asking questions like "who is Barack Obama?" or "how many cups are in a quart?" will offer up variations of the same answer. You can ask it to provide all sorts of information – the results of mathematic equations, the weather, or the latest headlines informed by your personal news settings. Every question you've asked can be revisited in the Google Home or Amazon Alexa app, even allowing you to play audio of your query so you can hear how the device hears you. These responses are stored in the cloud, which, depending on how paranoid you are, is unnerving. Equally unsettling: you're actually handing over money to Google (or Amazon) to have an always-listening microphone in your home. So there's that.

But when it comes to simple answers to random questions, Google Home completely blows Amazon out of the water. That's because Assistant utilizes Google's knowledge graph. If you've searched Google recently, you've noticed that answers to common queries have already been added to Google's base of knowledge, appearing in the fact sheet Google puts to the right side or even above the first search result. So questions like "how much is the Google Pixel?" or "how tall is Pikachu?" result in usable answers from Google Home and very little from Amazon Echo. One foot, four inches, if you're wondering.

For now, neither assistant will help you send a text or place a phone call, but that functionality is "a feature the team is working on" for Home, Google tells Popular Science.

WhatsApp launches two-step verification for all users to improve account security, here’s how to enable it

Sat, 11 Feb 2017 04:49:56 +0000

Image Credit: 9to5 Mac

Then press the Enable button which will display the setup screen, as shown above. This screen asks you to pick a six-digit passcode which will you be required to enter anytime you register your phone number with the app, including when you upgrade phones. Therefore, it is important that the passcode is memorable.

After choosing a code, WhatsApp will also let you pick a backup email address in case you forgot your code. If you do get locked out of your account, WhatsApp will be able to send a recovery email to this chosen address. Although optional, adding an email is recommended as a fallback in case you cannot remember your passcode. Note: do not click on links in emails unless you specifically request it from WhatsApp.

Now, when you setup a new device and install WhatsApp, it will ask for this six-digit passcode in order to validate your identity. WhatsApp will also periodically ask for this same passcode when you launch the app — this helps you remember your code. You cannot disable this reminder feature without disabling the entire two-step verification.

As an additional safeguard, WhatsApp will not allow you to verify your phone number within seven days of using the service without the passcode. This means if you don’t choose a recovery email, it will be impossible to verify your account without your code within seven days. After the seven day period has elapsed, you can access your WhatsApp account again (even without a code) but all messages will be deleted.

If your number is verified on WhatsApp after 30 days of not using a passcode, the account will be deleted entirely. If this happens to you, you will have to setup a whole new account and start from scratch.

Download WhatsApp for free from the App Store. Two-step verification is rolling out to all users now.

You may have to present your social media passwords before getting U.S. visa – Homeland Security Chief, John Kelly

Fri, 10 Feb 2017 04:12:29 +0000

Image Credit: Tech FirstPost

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary, John Kelly has said that in order to tighten security in the country, visa applicants, especially those from seven Muslim-majority countries that were temporarily banned from entering the U.S may be required to provide their social media passwords.

He made this known to a hearing of the Homeland Security Committee.

“We’re looking at some enhanced or some additional screening.

We may want to get on their social media, with passwords.

It’s very hard to truly vet these people in these countries, the seven countries. But if they come in, we want to say, what websites do they visit, and give us your passwords. So we can see what they do on the internet

These are the things we are thinking about. But over there we can ask them for this kind of information and if they truly want to come to America, then they will cooperate. If not, next in line,” Kelly said.

Kelly stressed that no decision had been made, but tighter screening would be implemented, even if it means longer delays for awarding U.S. visas to visitors.

President Trump‘s immigration ban on the seven Muslim-majority countries has since been suspended following a court order.

Kelly regretted that the order may have been rolled out too quickly.

“The thinking was to get it out quick so potentially people coming here to harm us would not take advantage,” of a delay, he said.

He said that it wasn’t a ban on Muslims as critics have charged, but a “temporary pause” on immigrants and visitors from countries about whose residents the U.S. can’t access solid information.

He defended the order and sought to take responsibility for the chaotic rollout, saying the confusion was “all on me.”

“Going forward, I would have certainly taken some time to inform the Congress, and certainly that’s something I’ll do in the future,” he said.

Android Auto vs Apple CarPlay

Thu, 09 Feb 2017 07:19:50 +0000

Image Credit: Stuff.tv

Ok, so many modern cars now have touchscreens and the like, but even these are bumbling idiots compared to the sophisticated smartphone operating systems we use every day.

Wisely, rather than continue the futile game of catch-up, a whole bunch of manufacturers now let you get a car-specific version of Android or iOS onto their infotainment systems. You can even add either or both to your existing car with a third-party head unit from the likes of Pioneer or Alpine.

But should you? And which of the two is the best? It’s time for Android Auto to take on Apple CarPlay in the battle to reawesomise your automobile.

Android Auto

This is a far friendlier interface than the impassive grid of icons that CarPlay gives you, thanks mostly to a customisable wallpaper. Five small icons (for navigation, telephony, home, audio, and manufacturer apps) are arranged in a row at the bottom.

Keeping these icons out of the way means the main display can be used for notifications. At first plug-in you’re told what the weather’s like. Then Google Now will automatically use your driving habits, emails, etc, to try to guess where you’re going and create a banner with distance and traffic details for that drive. Click on that banner and Google Maps pops up, ready to guide you. It’s lovely and slick.

If you return to the home screen during your drive the top notification will always give you your next navigation instruction, and things such as messages (which can be read to you and to which you can dictate a reply) will appear beneath it.

Apple CarPlay

It should come as no surprise that Apple’s gone with a grid of square icons for its in-car homescreen, given that that’s been the stylistic approach of its mobile operating system since the first iPhone launched way back in 2008.

With just eight icons on each ‘page’, prodding the one you’re after is mighty simple even when doing 70mph on the M25 (should the M25 ever clear up enough to make 70mph possible), but you miss out on the clear notifications you get on the Android Auto homescreen. You do, though, get notified when a text message comes in and you can send and receive using audio and dictation.

Irritatingly, you can’t reorder the apps, so Apple’s Podcasts, for example, will always appear on the first page, while your chosen podcasts app is relegated to the second or third.

Winner: Android Auto

THE APPS THAT MATTER

Because each app has to be specifically tailored and approved for use in-car, you only get a small portion of the overall selection on Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Even so, around half the apps available on each infotainment platform are fairly worthless, so allow me to run you through the ones that are most useful on each platform:

Android Auto

Audible ● Google Maps ● Google Play Music ● Spotify ● TuneIn ● WhatsApp Messenger ● Skype ● Amazon Music ● Pocket Casts ● Stitcher ● Podcast Player ● 7digital

Apple CarPlay

Audible ● Apple Maps ● Apple Music ● Spotify ● TuneIn ● Deezer ● Downcast ● Overcast ● Podcasts ● Radioplayer ● Rdio ● Stitcher

Article Courtsey: stuff.tv

5 Reasons to buy the Huawei Honor 6X

Tue, 07 Feb 2017 04:17:52 +0000

Image Credit: FoneArena

The Honor 6X has a great camera and a dual lens system at that with a primary 12 Megapixel camera and a secondary 2 Megapixel depth sensor. This allows users to capture the depth of field effect like you would in a high-end camera or DSLR. The large 1/2.9″ sensor with 1.25 µm pixel size also gives you great image quality in all lighting conditions including low light.

Speedy Performance

With smartphones applications and games becoming more and more resource hungry, it is important to have good performance. The octa-core Kirin 655 chipset along with Mali T830 MP2 GPU powering the Honor 6X makes it a breeze to handle any app or game that you throw at it. There’s even up to 4GB of RAM for all your multi-taskers out there to seamlessly switch between apps to help you boost your productivity.

Long Lasting Battery Life

Heavier load on the processor would mean a heavier toll on the battery life. Luckily, the Kirin 655 chipset is quite power efficient and coupled with the large 3340 mAh battery, the phone will give you over a day of battery backup even with heavy use. You can even extend that battery life further by using the built-in power saving modes.

Engaging Entertainment

The large 5.5″ 1080p screen on the 6X is ideal for watching your favourite TV shows, movie or videos online. Coupled with a large battery that offers long-lasting battery life, the 6X will keep you entertained for long no matter what you are doing, be it web browsing, music, games and much more. It also supports DTS audio for an enhanced acoustic experience.

Solid Build Quality

Honor spends a lot of money into R&D and the Honor 6X truly resonates that thanks to its solid build quality. It has a premium metal body and all the parts that go into making the handset are of the highest quality. You really need to hold a 6X in your hands to know just how well-built the phone is.

While the camera on the Honor 6X is most definitely in a league of its own, the handset is a full package and gives you more value for money than other handsets in the same price range.

The Honor 6X is available exclusively on Amazon India. Its first flash sale is already over and was a tremendous success. If you’re interested in grabbing one for yourself, go ahead and register yourself for the next flash sale that will take place on 9th February at 2 PM. Note – Entries will be permitted only till 7th February midnight.

LG G6 case renders show its design and metal back

Mon, 06 Feb 2017 04:24:27 +0000

Image Credit: Fonearena

There is a dual camera setup at the back followed by the fingerprint sensor which will also work as a power button. The volume rockers are present on the left while SIM card slot is situated on the right

The 3.5mm audio headphone jack is present at the top along with a microphone and two antenna bands. At the bottom, the phone has a single speaker to the right of the USB Type-C port, microphone and antenna bands.

LG Display recently introduced world’s first 5.7-inch (1440 × 2880 pixels) QHD+ LCD panel with an 18:9 aspect ratio that will be used in the G6. LG already said that the phone will have heat pipes to lower the heat, so safety is greatly enhanced. LG also confirmed that the phone will be comfortable to hold without slipping out of your hand and will be waterproof.

We had already seen several renders and a few live images of the upcoming LG G6. Now a fresh set of renders of the smartphone has surfaced from the popular case maker Ringke. This coincides with earlier leaks and also confirms the earlier rumour that the phone will come in the matte finish and glossy back versions.

These images show rounded design, brushed metal back and narrow bezels on the sides.

On the top, there is a small earpiece grill along with the sensors and the front camera.

The previous report had stated that the G6 will not be powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 and instead will come with Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor. It is expected to feature a non-removable battery and Google Assistant.

We should know all the details of the LG G6 at its MWC 2017 conference in Barcelona on February 26th at 12:00 PM CET (4:30 PM IST).

Microsoft Hardens Latest Windows Version Against Hackers

Sat, 04 Feb 2017 12:07:32 +0000

Image Credit: Windows 10 OS

Countering unidentified vulnerabilities -- also known as "zero day" vulnerabilities -- is particularly important because they are a powerful tool used to penetrate systems and steal data by attackers, especially those working for nation-states.

Rather than focus on a single vulnerability, Microsoft is focusing on mitigation techniques that counter classes of exploits, Oh and Florio explained.

"As a result, these mitigation techniques are significantly reducing attack surfaces that would have been available to future Zero-Day exploits," they wrote.

Paying for Protection

For the most effective post-breach protection, customers should sign up for Windows Defender ATP, Oh and Florio suggested, a service that is available only to users of Windows Enterprise E5.

That appears to be a departure from how Windows security was treated in the past, observed Michael Cherry, an analyst with Directions on Microsoft.

When Microsoft launched its Trustworthy Computing initiative in 2002, there was a commitment to making all versions of Windows equally secure, he recalled.

"Now, what Microsoft is saying in a subtle way," Cherry told TechNewsWorld, is that "to be the most secure on Windows, you should be using Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection -- but we're saving that for our best customers, our customers willing to pay for the enterprise edition. That's a big change that's happening in Windows security."

What Users Get

Nevertheless, the security improvements in the new Windows 10 Anniversary Update are worthwhile for consumers.

"This is great news for users," said Jerome Segura, a senior security researcher for Malwarebytes.

"Microsoft is addressing zero days and exploits in general by sandboxing a lot of the components in the operating system," he told TechNewsWorld.

Sandboxing is a technique used to isolate activity in a space where it can be observed without affecting its surroundings. If it behaves badly in the sandbox, then it won't be allowed to play with the other parts of a system.

Sandbox techniques were used in Windows 10 to neutralize an exploit that used corrupt fonts to gain escalated privileges on a system, Microsoft's Oh and Florio explained. Escalated privileges allow an intruder greater freedom to roam and access data on a network.

Room for Improvement

While Microsoft is making good progress in hardening the Windows kernel, it could improve the operating system's security in other areas, too. One of those areas is third-party applications and components.

"While it's trying to ensure that its operating system is secure, it still depends on Flash, Java and other pieces of software. At the end of the day, the security of the system is going to depend on all the pieces, not just what Microsoft ships," Malwarebytes' Segura observed.

"You can have an OS that's safe, but if you have an outdated Flash plug-in, you can still get infected," he pointed out.

Hackers also are exploiting Microsoft Office documents.

"Microsoft needs to tighten up legacy code like macros -- either disable it or sandbox it," Segura said.

Threat to Security Vendors?

As Windows security improves, will it threaten the security ecosystem that has grown up around the OS?

"Ultimately, Microsoft's new anti-exploit features in Windows calls into question the value of legacy antivirus protections," said Simon Crosby, CTO of Bromium.

"However, it is important to note that relatively few enterprises use Windows 10 yet, so any Microsoft mitigation in Windows 10 that fails to address the legacy Windows installed base cannot address threats targeting [the security ecosystem]," he told TechNewsWorld.

Windows users still need to use antivirus programs, added Jack E. Gold, founder and principal analyst with J.Gold Associates. "Microsoft is pushing its antivirus program," he told TechNewsWorld, "so it's not saying you don't need antivirus anymore."

Samsung Explains Note7 Failure, Promises to Do Better

Sat, 04 Feb 2017 12:02:03 +0000

Image Credit: Peter Suciu

Samsung has reaffirmed that the design and production of the batteries caused the problems -- not the hardware or software -- but the company has acknowledged that it should have done more to ensure that the batteries could not overheat and cause fires. It has enlisted a group of external advisors to provide clear and objective perspectives on battery safety and innovation.

All the Right Moves

Samsung unveiled its new "8-Point Battery Safety Check," which is meant to address any potential problems. It encompasses a durability test, visual inspection, X-ray test, disassembling test and OCT test, as well as a charge and discharge test, TVOC test and accelerated usage test.

In addition, Samsung will conduct a multilayer safety measures protocol on all its devices. It will cover the overall design and materials, as well as device hardware strength. Further, it will ensure that software algorithms are in place for safer battery charging temperatures.

"Samsung is doing the right thing. It took its time, but eventually it got enough instances of failed batteries in the lab to figure out what the technical issue was," said Roger Kay, principal analyst at Endpoint Technologies Associates.

"At the same time, Samsung has been relatively forthcoming about the results and taking responsibility," he told TechNewsWorld.

"The first thing Samsung had to do was make it clear that it understood the core of the Note7 fire, and it had to ensure that it won't happen again," noted Ian Fogg, senior director for mobile and telecoms at IHS Markit.

"It had to make creditable assurances to customers, vendors and retailers that this wouldn't happen with future models," he told TechNewsWorld. "The announcement today addressed both of those issues."

Passing the Buck?

Although Samsung addressed what it will do to help avoid future problems, the company did not take full blame for the issue.

"There is plenty of blame to go around here," said Ramon Llamas, IDC's research manager for wearables and mobile phones.

"When [Samsung] asks a supplier to ramp up production on batteries to meet demand, there is blame as well," he told TechNewsWorld.

"The next test will be when they unveil a new flagship phone; they will have to showcase how innovative it is in terms of features, but also address the power in the way it charges and its reliability," said IHS Markit's Fogg.

"That will be part of the next announcement for any of its products, as the lithium ion batteries are used in so many products --from laptops to phones and even to cars," he added.

Galaxy Delays

What is also likely to come out of Samsung's new emphasis on battery safety is a delay of its next flagship handset, likely the Galaxy S8. It had been expected to make its debut at the upcoming Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, next month, but that now appears unlikely.

"If they don't make MWC, that breaks from tradition -- but we can expect that the phone is still coming," said Llamas.

In fact, such a delay could be met positively, as "taken in this context, [it shows] that the company is making sure it does things right next time," said Endpoint's Kay.

"The public is both sophisticated about understanding that technical failures occur and ADD enough to forget the past pretty quickly -- so if Samsung gets the next one right, all will be forgiven," he said.

"It is a right step, but that's all it is," said Llamas. "Samsung will need to make multiple steps to regain consumer confidence. They've identified the problem, but now they need to ensure that this doesn't happen again."

World Cancer Day, 4th Feb 2017. Here is, everything about it to know.

Sat, 04 Feb 2017 05:11:47 +0000

UICC continues to expand on the success and impact of the day and is committed to ensuring that year-on-year the event is seen and heard by more people around the world. We do this through working directly with our members to develop a campaign that serves their differing organisational priorities; this is achieved through a two-pronged strategic approach:

UICC provides support through the development of tools and guidance to encourage its member organisations to run local cancer awareness campaigns that are aligned and adapted to the global World Cancer Day message.
On an above-country level, we work to secure and support digital, traditional and social media opportunities to raise public awareness of the day. Through the continued support of our membership and key partners, World Cancer Day is beginning to firmly cement itself in calendars across the world.

Put simply, cancer is a world’s leading killer and is not yet on key global health agendas. In 2008, there were 7.8 million cancer deaths and 12.7 million cancer cases. Without intervention, the global cancer burden is projected to increase 75% by 2030. Every month 600,000 people die of cancer and many of these deaths can be avoided with increased governmental support and funding for prevention, detection and treatment programmes. Unless urgent action is taken to raise awareness about cancer and develop practical strategies to address the disease, millions of people will continue to die.

Sadly, the greatest increase in cancer is projected to hit low- and middle-income countries, those least equipped to cope with the social and economic impact of the disease.

In 2008, UICC developed the World Cancer Declaration as a tool to help bring the growing cancer crisis to the attention of government leaders and health policymakers. The 11 Declaration targets, designed to significantly reduce the global cancer burden by 2020, have served as the basis for UICC recommendations to the World Health Organization (WHO). The Declaration, with more than 500,000 signatories, has also been instrumental in generating political will for cancer control targets both at UN and grassroots levels.

The 11 Declaration targets provide the strategic direction for the World Cancer Day campaign.

Apple selects Bengaluru’s Peenya area to set up iPhone manufacturing plant

Fri, 03 Feb 2017 04:25:17 +0000

Image Credit: Apple, Inc

“Apple’s decision on initial manufacturing in Bengaluru has further enhanced the reputation of Bengaluru as the most preferred destination for foreign investment and further validation of the state government policies aimed at fostering manufacturing, innovation and investments in Karnataka,” read the statement signed by Karnataka Information Technology Minister Priyank Kharge.

The global tech major opening a manufacturing plant in Bengaluru “will foster cutting-edge technology ecosystem and supply-chain development in the state, which are critical for India to compete globally,” the Karnataka government said, according to The Times of India. India will only be the third country to assemble iPhones.

Apple’s original component maker – Taiwan-based Wistron Corp – will manufacture its flagship smartphone in India. Wistron is believed to have narrowed down on Peenya, an IT hub of Bengaluru. In the first phase of its India operations – expected to begin between April and June – Apple will make phones for the Indian market, according to the Mint report. It currently sells its products in India through contracts with stores such as Imagine and the Reliance Digital-owned iStore.

The news comes after Apple executives presented their proposal to the Centre on January 25, seeking to begin manufacturing iPhones in India. The company had sought exemptions to the rule that makes it mandatory for companies to procure 30% of components from local sources, among other concessions.

The presentation was made by senior executives of the company, Priya Balasubramanian. It cited the country’s business friendly ecosystem for keenness to start local manufacturing. With sales tapering in the US and China, Apple is eyeing India—the fastest growing smartphone market in the world—and looking to set up a local manufacturing unit to cut costs. It, however, does not manufacture devices on its own and rather does it through contract manufacturers.

Chrome on iOS is now open source

Wed, 01 Feb 2017 05:08:51 +0000

Image Credit: Google Images

Chrome for iOS becoming open source is good news for developers looking to put their own spin on an iPhone browser. For context, some desktop browsers like Opera that seemingly rival Chrome actually share the same underlying Chromium code. For users, it means you might have more choices when it comes to choosing a browser in the App Store. [Chromium Blog]

Speaking of browsers, Microsoft Edge will have some new tab management features when the Creators Update arrives this spring. You’ll be able to quickly see thumbnails of all your tabs, organize them in groups, and hide them away for later. Other improvements include WebVR support, e-book integration, and performance improvements. The Windows 10 Creators Update is expected to arrive in April. [Windows Blog]

"Due to constraints of the iOS platform, all browsers must be built on top of the WebKit rendering engine. For Chromium, this means supporting both WebKit as well as Blink, Chrome's rendering engine for other platforms. That created some extra complexities which we wanted to avoid placing in the Chromium code base," says Rohit Rao, Google.

Rao further shares, "Given Chrome's commitment to open-source code, we've spent a lot of time over the past several years making the changes required to upstream the code for Chrome for iOS into Chromium. Today, that upstreaming is complete, and developers can compile the iOS version of Chromium like they can for other versions of Chromium. Development speed is also faster now that all of the tests for Chrome for iOS are available to the entire Chromium community and automatically run any time that code is checked in."

What does this mean for end-users? Well, they can now comb through the code looking for bugs and vulnerabilities -- something that could make them more comfortable from a security standpoint. Let's be honest though, most users of the browser are not code literate. With that said, security researches will appreciate this greatly.

With Donald Trump’s surprising victory, Silicon Valley is having a meltdown

Tue, 31 Jan 2017 05:01:47 +0000

Image Credit: Reuters

lot has changed since then President-Elect Donald Trump convened the nation’s top tech leaders at Trump Tower to offer his unqualified assistance with anything they might need. “I’m here to help you folks do well,” he explained. Some six weeks later, Trump capped the end of his first week in office by signing a sweeping executive order restricting immigration, landing a direct blow on Silicon Valley’s bottom line. Tech leaders responded with alarm to the order, which indefinitely blocked Syrian refugees and temporarily banned people from seven majority-Muslim countries from entering the United States. At least 187 Google employees, among many others, were reportedly affected by the ban, which drove dozens of tech C.E.O.s to the digital barricades. Google co-founder Sergey Brin, himself a former political refugee, joined hundreds of others at San Francisco International Airport to protest.

Tump’s assault on the heart and soul of Silicon Valley, where 51 percent of billion-dollar start-ups were founded by immigrants, does not appear to be over. On Monday, Bloomberg reported that the Trump administration has drafted a new executive order, which would overhaul the work-visa programs, including H-1B, that tech companies use to hire highly skilled workers every year. Besides overhauling the visa programs, it would affect tech companies in other ways, making them hire Americans first and giving priority to the most highly paid foreign workers. “Our country’s immigration policies should be designed and implemented to serve, first and foremost, the U.S. national interest,” the draft proposal reportedly reads. “Visa programs for foreign workers … should be administered in a manner that protects the civil rights of American workers and current lawful residents, and that prioritises the protection of American workers—our forgotten working people—and the jobs they hold.”

Some tech leaders have already predictably protested the potential executive order. “The world is moving from Industrial Capitalism to Technology Capitalism, which means global economies will have an insatiable demand for tech labour,” Hunter Walk, a partner at V.C. firm Homebrew, told Vanity Fair. “I wish this Administration's ‘education moonshot’ was rethinking how to train and reskill the American workforce rather than figuring out how to close our borders.” Gary Burtless, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, told Bloomberg: “Immigrant STEM workers have contributed an outsized share to founding new companies, getting patients, and helping build up American companies, which in turn because of their success have created tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of jobs.”

The visa programs affected by the incoming executive order would include not just the H1-B visa program, but also the L-1, E-2, and B1 visa programs. This isn’t quite a surprise: last year, Trump vowed that he would “end forever the use of the H1-B as a cheap labour program,” which the tech industry relies on, “and institute an absolute requirement to hire American workers first for every visa and immigration program. No exceptions.” His close adviser Steve Bannon, who previously served as executive chairman of Breitbart News, has suggested in conversation with Trump that Silicon Valley has too many Asian C.E.O.s and that international students in the U.S. should go back to where they came from.

Google makes page reloads work 28 percent faster for Chrome v56 on smartphones, tablets and PC.

Sat, 28 Jan 2017 04:11:53 +0000

Image Credit: Google

Google has announced enhancements to the way reloading pages works on Chrome for smartphones. Originally, the reload feature was designed to fix broken pages, and refresh the page to represent new content that has been added since the last time the page was loaded. The existing methods for reloading a page, worked better with fixing broken pages, and was less efficient at representing added content, especially on mobile phones.

Chrome is arguably more than a browser: With over 1 billion users, it’s a major platform that web developers have to consider. In fact, with Chrome’s regular additions and changes, developers have to keep up to ensure they are taking advantage of everything available. Chrome 56 marks HTTP pages that collect passwords or credit cards as “Not Secure” in the address bar. Until now, Chrome only used a green “Secure” label to indicate when a website is using HTTPS and a neutral icon when a website is not using HTTPS.

HTTPS is a more secure version of the HTTP protocol used on the internet to connect users to websites. Secure connections are widely considered a necessary measure to decrease the risk of users being vulnerable to content injection (which can result in eavesdropping, man-in-the-middle attacks, and other data modification). The move follows similar actions by Mozilla, which released Firefox 51 earlier this week. Both browser makers plan to mark all HTTP sites as non-secure in the future, with the long-term goal of getting the whole web onto HTTPS. Google also wants to eventually change the HTTP security indicator to the red triangle that Chrome currently uses for broken HTTPS.

This improvement was made in part because Facebook got in touch with data showing that Chrome was sending validation requests at three times the rate of other browsers. Page reloading was originally designed in times when broken pages were common, though now users typically use the feature when content seems stale. To improve the latter use case, Chrome now only validates the main resource and continues with a regular page load, maximising the reuse of cached resources, which results in lower latency, power consumption, and data usage. Chrome 56 also adds support for the Web Bluetooth API on Android, Chrome OS, and Mac. This lets sites connect to Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) devices such as printers and LED displays with just a few lines of JavaScript. For more details, check out the Chrome team’s samples and demos on GitHub.

Hugo Barra to Join Facebook After Leaving Xiaomi

Fri, 27 Jan 2017 04:09:54 +0000

Image Credit: Facebook HQ, Mark Zuckerberg

Interestingly, Zuckerberg pointed out that Hugo is currently in China and they both were together using the virtual reality technology that Oculus has been working on. He further adds, “Hugo shares my belief that virtual and augmented reality will be the next major computing platform. They’ll enable us to experience completely new things and be more creative than ever before. Hugo is going to help build that future, and I’m looking forward to having him on our team.”

This comes days after Barra announced that he will be leaving Xiaomi to return to Silicon Valley to work on something exciting. During the announcement Barra cited health reasons for the exit but pointed, ““This journey has been nothing short of spectacular in every way, and I can proudly say that Xiaomi Global is the first baby I helped bring into the world”. The sudden move was unexpected and nobody anticipated as he is the most recognised face to represent Xiaomi on the global platform.

Last year, Oculus introduced its debut device, the Rift virtual-reality goggles, which need to be tethered to a powerful, pricey computer to work. But shipping problems and a higher-than-expected price bungled the launch. The goggles also face mounting competition from products by the likes of HTC Corp. and Sony Corp. The headset has also failed to gain traction among mainstream consumers.

“I don’t think that good virtual reality is fully there yet,” Mr. Zuckerberg said during his testimony. The move brings Mr. Barra back to familiar stomping grounds. In 2013, Mr. Barra was recruited to Xiaomi from Google, where he was product head of its Android mobile operating system.

When Mr. Barra resigned from Xiaomi this week, he said only that he wanted to return to Silicon Valley and declined to specify where he was going.

Mr. Zuckerberg said he has known Mr. Barra since Mr. Barra’s time at Google “when he helped develop the Android operating system.” Mr. Barra is still in China. To commemorate the moment, Mr. Zuckerberg chose to share a picture of his virtual-reality avatar seated alongside a representation of Mr. Barra. “Here we are together in VR,” Mr. Zuckerberg said. “It seems fitting.”

Republic Day 2017 Live updates: Magnificent parade begins, UAE contingent takes part

Thu, 26 Jan 2017 05:34:40 +0000

Image Credit: inUth

This year’s Chief Guest is Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Former President of the United States Barack Obama who joined Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the Republic Day parade along with his wife Michelle Obama in the year 2015.

A salute of 21 guns and the unfurling of the Indian National Flag by Dr. Rajendra Prasad heralded the historic birth of the Indian Republic on that day. Thereafter 26th of January was decreed a national holiday and was recognized as the Republic Day of India.

The Constitution gave the citizens of India the power to choose their own government and paved the way for democracy. Dr. Rajendra Prasad took oath as the first President of India at the Durbar Hall in Government House and this was followed by the Presidential drive along a five-mile route to the Irwin Stadium, where he unfurled the National Flag.

Apple may replace Touch ID with facial recognition

Tue, 24 Jan 2017 04:22:09 +0000

Image Credit: irishexaminer.com

“We believe it is leaning toward facial recognition technology rather than iris recognition. However, we note that the technical challenges of facial recognition include: (1) algorithms; (2) hardware design; and (3) the build-out of a database for verification and authentication, which could be time-consuming. As such, before Apple can fully replace the fingerprint system with facial recognition, a combination of the two steps of bio-recognition could be a valid solution for enhancing transactions security”.

Apple is expected to announce 3 iPhone models this year. The 3rd unit is expected to pack in a 5.8-inch display and will be a radical redesign with exotic technologies. Tagged as ‘Ferrari’, the 10th anniversary iPhone is expected to feature an OLED display that stretches from edge to edge, a glass body (with wireless charging) and include new facial recognition features. Going by the current rumors the device is also expected to be the platform to kickstart Apple’s augmented reality (AR) applications.

To date, Apple’s Touch ID Home Button has existed in two versions: the original sensor which debuted with iPhone 5s and a 2x faster second generation sensor included since the iPhone 6s. Independent reports about the next major iPhone, coming in the fall, claim that Apple will integrate the Home Button into the screen to reduce the bezels on the front.

Some form of face recognition technology has also been rumored to be part of the iPhone 8 tentpole features. KGI says that Apple is leaning towards full-face recognition rather than biometric iris recognition. Eventually, the firm believes Apple will rely solely on face recognition for authentication and unlock, eliminating the Touch ID sensor entirely. The timeline for this is not clear and again seems to be far in the future.

For the time being, KGI says Apple will rely on a combination of fingerprint and face detection sensors, rather than fully supplanting the latter with the former. It’s worth noting the report does not tie its commentary with any particular Apple product, so even if other rumors are swirling about face recognition for iPhone 8, KGI is not necessarily endorsing that sentiment at this stage.

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey apologises for making 5,60,000 Twitter users follow Trump

Mon, 23 Jan 2017 10:26:19 +0000

The interesting thing was that this ‘force follow’ happened for people who had unfollowed the POTUS account before the inauguration to unfollow the @POTUS handle under Trump Administration. This problem was not isolated to one account and occurred with other official accounts like @VP and @PressSec. In fact, the people who followed @POTUS44, the archive of @POTUS account under Obama administration.

One interesting thing to note is that Dorsey pointed that Obama administration felt that it was only fair to transition accounts with followers intact instead of any old tweets. This shifting or ‘transition’ of accounts without any prompt consent from the users was against the policies set by Twitter, and it is good that the problem has been rectified. You can go and follow Barack Obama on his personal account to keep up with his posts.

Over 80% Indian youngsters shop on their smartphones

Fri, 20 Jan 2017 09:18:59 +0000

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu announces plans to save Rs 41,000 crore in energy costs

Thu, 19 Jan 2017 04:35:53 +0000

Image Credit: Campusghanta

“To implement this comprehensive strategy with the participation of various stakeholders, we shall take advantage of regulatory frameworks, look at new technologies,” Prabhu said. Prabhu added that around 15-16 Round Table Conferences with stakeholders are in the pipeline on various initiatives. According to the railways, about 50 percent tracks are electrified as of now, which contributes to keeping the energy bill low and reducing the carbon footprint.

The ministry wants to take electrification to 90 per cent in the next few years “through Mission Electrification with an aim to reduce dependence on imported fuel, change energy mix, and rationalize the cost of energy”.

The discussion was attended by members and senior officials from the Railway Board and representatives from various government and private agencies in the field of energy, international experts, and industry associations. UNI RBE RSA SNU 1954.

The railways also aim to procure more and more electricity at cheaper rates through open market instead of sourcing it through DISCOMs and thereby hope to save as much as 25 percent on its energy expenses. New technologies are also being explored to bring down electric consumption. In the last Budget, the railways have already set a target of generating 1000 MW of solar power and 200 MW of wind energy. Indian Railways consumed over 18.25 billion units of electrical energy for its traction and non-traction application during 2014-2015 for which it paid a total of Rs 12,635 crore. For diesel traction, it spent Rs 18,586 crore in the same period. The launch of this program was undertaken at a Roundtable Discussion on Energy Initiatives of Indian Railways with external stakeholders.

IoT devices will be a prime target for Cybercriminals in 2017

Wed, 18 Jan 2017 04:33:25 +0000

Image Credit: Google

“Security is now high on the radar for the security C-suites. Unfortunately, many organizations still do not have their security basics right and remain vulnerable to cyberattacks,” said Sunil Sharma, Vice President (Sales) Sophos, India, and Saarc.

Cybercriminals will use ever more sophisticated and convincing targeted attacks to lure users into compromising themselves by bringing together multiple technical and social elements and probe an organization’s network to proactively attack a specific target.

With ‘old’ ransomware looming around the web, users may fall victim to attacks that cannot be cured because payment locations no longer work, the report noted.

“There are six key measures that organisations should put in place to help keep more complex threats at bay: move from layered to integrated security; deploy next-generation endpoint protection; prioritise risk-based security; automate the basics; build staff and process to deter mitigate social attacks; and improve defender coordination,” Sharma added.

Using cameras and microphones to spy on households, cyber criminals may target people using home IoT devices to find a way to profit.

“But once attackers ‘own’ a device on a home network, they can compromise other devices such as laptops containing important personal data,” the report added.

As encryption makes it hard to inspect traffic, criminals can use it as a cover to sneak through a network.

“Security products will need to tightly integrate network and client capabilities, to rapidly recognize security events after a code is decrypted on the endpoint,” Sophos suggested.

The company predicted that in 2017, societies will face growing risks from both disinformation and voting system compromise, as technology-based attacks have become increasingly political.

WhatsApp privacy issue: Supreme Court asks center their inputs. Facebook to work hard too.

Tue, 17 Jan 2017 04:52:04 +0000

Image Credit: WhatsApp, Inc.

The Supreme Court on Monday issued a notice to the Centre, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and social media platform Facebook over a plea seeking privacy on data.Seeking a reply in two weeks, the apex court asked the government, Facebook and Whatsapp to respond to the plea for privacy policy for social media networks."WhatsApp is a free facility, don't use it if concerned about privacy," the apex court observed.

Last week, a Guardian report stated that WhatsApp had a backdoor which could let third-parties snoop in on private conversations. WhatsApp later clarified, “WhatsApp does not give governments a “backdoor” into its systems and would fight any government request to create a backdoor.”

But this is not enough, at least for the time being, as Supreme Court of India has sought a response from both the center, Trai and Facebook with regards to a petition filed by Karmanya Singh through lawyer Harish Salve.

A petition filed before the Supreme Court has claimed that there is no protection of data on Facebook and WhatsApp which is violative of Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. According to the petitioner, there are 157mn users on WhatsApp and Facebook, therefore the service provided by the social network and messaging app should be considered as a public utility service.

If a service is categorized as public-utility service, then the govt is mandated to protect the personal data placed on the domains of such services.

Further, the petitioner stated that Facebook and WhatsApp should be treated at part with telecom service providers who can face termination of licenses, if there is any snooping which comes to light.

The Supreme Court of India has sought a response from the center, Trai as well as Facebook within a two-week timeframe for the same.

In September 2016, the Delhi High Court had ordered WhatsApp to delete the data of users who had deleted the messaging app from their devices. Additionally, not share these users’ data with Facebook.

NPCI has given away Rs 55.10 crore to 3.56 lakh winners of Niti Aayog lucky draws since December 25

Mon, 16 Jan 2017 04:25:38 +0000

Government of India has initiated numerous steps to combat the scourge of Corruption and Black Money in the last two and a half years. The Union cabinet had approved a slew of initiatives in February 2016 to encourage digital payments and a transition to less-cash economy in a strategic manner. The Prime Minister had highlighted these measures in his Man Ki Baat address in May 2016. He had urged people to adopt cashless transactions. He said “If we learn and adapt ourselves to use cashless transactions, then we will not require notes. Businesses will function automatically, resulting in a certain transparency. Under-hand dealings will stop; the influence of black money will be reduced. So I appeal to my countrymen, that we should at least make a beginning. Once we start, we will move ahead with great ease. Twenty years ago who would have thought that so many mobiles would be in our hands. Slowly we cultivated a habit and now we can’t do without those. Maybe this cashless society assumes a similar form. But the sooner this happens, the better it will be”.

It would be recalled that towards this end, the Government had launched a major drive for financial inclusion in terms of opening Jan Dhan accounts, giving a statutory basis for Aadhar, implementation of Directs Benefits Transfer, introduction of RuPay Cards and Voluntary Disclosure Scheme for unaccounted money. Demonetization of 500 and 1000 Rs. notes was another important milestone in this endeavor. Following demonetization, there has been a spurt in the digital payments across the country and both the volume and amount of money transacted through digital methods has seen manifold increase since November 9th.

Nokia needs to work hard to rebuild its value of 90s. Need tight catch in market.

Thu, 12 Jan 2017 06:17:17 +0000

If there’s one thing that sticks with me though, it’s the fact that Nokia’s phones were always rugged, reliable devices that stuck with me through thick and thin. They could take any amount of abuse, abuse that I’d be horrified to subject any of today’s phones to.

The Microsoft buy-out and Microsoft’s initial, aggressive push for Windows Phone adoption brought some relief to the company. The Lumia 820, 920 and 1020 series saw a taste of success, but fortunes again declined thereafter.

Sushma Swaraj takes on Amazon. Threatens for Visas of Amazon Official for insulting Nation Flag.

Thu, 12 Jan 2017 05:54:37 +0000

"Amazon must tender unconditional apology. They must withdraw all products insulting our national flag immediately," she tweeted on Wednesday night. "If this is not done forthwith, we will not grant Indian Visa to any Amazon official. We will also rescind the Visas issued earlier."

But the equations change when the external affairs minister tweets about this issue. Swaraj, who has close to 7mn followers, is one of the most active Indian ministers on Twitter. In fact, just last month, despite undergoing kidney treatment, Swaraj was actively addressing grievances on Twitter. Even in the past, Swaraj has intervened to help out Indians facing difficulties abroad.

Ahead of Vibrant Gujarat Summit 2017, Narendra Meets the influential leaders of world.

Wed, 11 Jan 2017 04:47:45 +0000

"The Gujarat government pegs the conversion rate at almost 70 percent and some of India's biggest businesses including Reliance Industries Ltd. and the Adani Group said last month that they have fulfilled most of their commitments," reports Bloomberg, adding that the opposition Congress insists the conversion rate is below 10 percent.

Piruz Khambatta, chairman and managing director of Rasna Pvt Ltd, justified the stance of not speaking about investments. “Once investment commitments are announced, it actually becomes a tool in the hands of the opposition and the critics to say that only a fraction of the investments comes in. This is probably why (Mukesh) Ambani spoke about the actual investments he has made in the state. So, this is a strategic decision.”

MumbaiWiFi goes public ahead of BMC elections. The largest WiFi initiative of nation.

Tue, 10 Jan 2017 05:29:02 +0000

Mumbai can now boast not only of being the city with largest public Wi-Fi service in India but also one of the largest in the world. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today announced that 500 Wi-Fi hotspots have gone live across Mumbai under the phase 1 of Mumbai Wi-Fi project. “#MumbaiWifi is India’s largest Public WiFi service & one of the largest globally too,” Fadnavis tweeted. He also announced that 1200 WiFi hotspots will become active by May 1, 2017.

The WiFi network was said to be used for smart parking and smart transportation facilities by providing real-time updates on the traffic, routes and the capacity of the modes of transportations. It was reported that the hotspots in the city would be set up in prominent locations such as the Gateway of India and Chowpatty, and certain areas in the city and the suburbs.

A decade of making Apple iPhones. Yet best to come.

Mon, 09 Jan 2017 09:35:25 +0000

Just to recap, the first iPhone was launched on this day 10 years ago, however it went on sale on June 29, 2007. It spearheaded the smartphone revolution, and was the first phone with a touchscreen 3.5-inch display. In its first year, Apple managed to sell as many as 6.1 million units. However, 2008 was the year of reckoning, as Apple managed to sell as many as 1 million units in the first week of the iPhone 3G launch. With the iPhone 3G, the company introduced 3G mobile network and GPS capabilities. It was also the first time Apple introduced the App Store and allowed third-party apps integration.

Since 2007 Apple has adapted and changed the design of the iPhone a number of times, ditching the metal design for a plastic one for the iPhone 3G and 3GS before moving to glass for the iPhone 4 and 4s models. It was back to metal with the iPhone 5, and with the exception of the iPhone 5c, the company has stuck with metal ever since.

While it may sound like a pretty picture, the iPhone, Apple’s hero product after the iPod is indeed losing steam. Sales have been slowing down and CEO Tim Cook recently took a pay cut following what was the first sales slump in 15 years. Indeed all eyes are on the special 10 anniversary iPhone (codenamed ‘Ferrari’)that is expected to showcase exotic technologies, which should help Apple keep the sales momentum going till the next year’s iPhone that is expected to be a complete redesign.

Android apps that can be used for woman safety.

Sat, 07 Jan 2017 06:18:17 +0000

Android, Emergency, iPhone, Mobile apps, Personal safety, Personal security, Police, safety, Smartphone, Woman, Women, women safety, women's safety. One important issue is that most apps are not well developed with system level integration. It requires low-level access app that can map hardware keys for instant actions and the apps can’t be installed directly. Even though, developing such apps will require significant coding skills, such apps should be mandatory for issues of personal safety.

Here are the list of Android apps that can be useful for woman safety

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.apps.emergencyassist&hl=en

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.safetipin.mysafetipin&hl=en

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.smartcloud.himmat

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=smart.emergencyservice&hl=en

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.eyewatchw&hl=en

Developers should note that these apps don’t generate any revenue but if any developer comes with a consolidated, well maintained and modern app that includes a monthly subscription then people will pay to use that app. People will choose personal safety over not paying for a smartphone app.

Samsung Galaxy S8 photo leaked. The eyecatcher of 2017.

Fri, 06 Jan 2017 04:53:12 +0000

The image comes from unknown source and shows a smartphone in a rich gold finish that looks similar to the current Galaxy S7 edge at first glance. The image has been sourced from a Weibo account indicating that smartphone may be undergoing test mode.

Going closer, one can see how much bigger the display has grown and spread out over the front face of the device. While the dual edge curves looks no different from the existing S7 edge, the top and bottom bezels have tiny part by a huge margin, so much so, that there’s no place for the usual home button at the bottom. However, there is another detail missing and this would be the navigation keys.

But there's still room for improvement and it's low on innovation, so we have a wish list for what we want to see from the Samsung Galaxy S8. We'd also love to hear what you think, so let us know in the comments below and we'll furiously email them to Samsung.

Some of this is likely to stem from news Samsung will again use its battery division, Samsung SDI , to supply batteries for the Galaxy S8. This is because SDI supplied batteries for the ‘explosive’ Galaxy Note S7, but such a conclusion would be reductionist since the same problems were also found when Samsung used replacement batteries by ATL.

Courtsey: First Techpost, Tech Radar, Forbes.

CyberZeist, Hacker breaches FBI for the second time, calls their security ’lazy’

Thu, 05 Jan 2017 06:47:30 +0000

A zero-day fault is a vulnerability in the code that has not been detected, listed, or patched yet. Therefore, the FBI had zero days to respond to the attack. This is not the first time the hacker claimed breaching the FBI site. In 2011, CyberZeist is believed to have hacked the FBI site as a member of a group known as Anonymous.

Cyberzeist claims to have conducted the hack last month and has posted to Twitter what they claim are screen captures showing the FBI patching against the vulnerability, which appeared to permit public access.

After his most recent hack, CyberZeist asked his Twitter followers who would they most like to be his next hacking target, with 37.3% of respondents opting for banking corporations.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai Speaks About India's Small And Medium Businesses

Wed, 04 Jan 2017 05:09:04 +0000

According to sources, Pichai could possibly meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant as well. Law and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad is likely to meet Pichai at the event where he has been invited to speak.

Google is also looking to tap the strong developer community in the country since it is central to creating new products, said Mr Pichai. A programme to train two million developers on its Android platform will be launched over the next three years through a partnership with the National Skill development Corporation of India.

BHIM APP Download For Android, ios – How To Install BHMI UPI APP to Send/ Transfer & Receive Money

Tue, 03 Jan 2017 06:45:41 +0000

BHIM UPI App Download : Prime Minister Narendra Modi Released Aadhaar Based Payment Mobile App Called BHIM App. BHIM App is Bharat Interface for Money, it a re branded version of UPI (Unified Payment Interface) and USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data). PM Launched BHMI aadhar Payment App Today on December 30th, 2016 at digi dhan Mela Event in tatikonda Stadium in New Delhi. PM Narendra Modi Announced Lucky Grahak Yojana Scheme Winners list in the Event. People can download BHIM Mobile App from Google Playstore.

The method works on all phones. The transactions are made using Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD), and can be done using the National Unified USSD Platform (NUUP). The interface is similar to a smart menu for accessing services from telecom operators. Consumers simply have to dial *99# on their devices, and the same number works across all operators. On dialing, users have to enter the short name of the bank, which is a three letter code, or the first four letters of the Indian Financial System Code (IFSC), or a two digit bank code known as the multimodal code. Here are the short three letter codes, as well as the first four letters of the IFSC, and the multimodal codes for banks.

iOS 10.3 And iPhone 8 Rumored To Feature Movie Theater Mode

Mon, 02 Jan 2017 06:40:55 +0000

None of this information has been officially confirmed. Even if true, though, it seems like it’d cause more problems than it would solve. Even if Apple could dim the screens low enough to not disturb anyone around said texter, the concept on its own would seem to invite more texting instead of working to squash the issue altogether. If one person can get away with texting in a theater, what’s stopping everyone else?

Dickson further revealed in his tweets that the iOS 10.3 beta one is scheduled to seed on 10 January. We are hoping that the company fixed the iPhone 30 percent bug that has been plaguing iPhone 5 and iPhonr 6S Plus users where the phone shuts down on 30 percent of battery life.

Pixel, a phone made by Google

Thu, 01 Dec 2016 11:58:01 +0000

Design & Display The least exciting part about the whole idea of the Google Pixel is its design. I know many people who dislike it completely, but I find it perfectly serviceable. It isn't as flashy as Samsung’s Galaxy S7, but it's much nicer than than the latest batch of iPhones. It’s also completely usable in one hand, something that can’t be said for the larger Pixel XL. It’s roughly the same size as an iPhone 7, just a little taller and marginally thicker. Performance 5-inch displays are becoming a rarity in the Android space, but for many they provide the perfect mix of portability and size. However, the problem – aside from the dearth of choice – is that smaller phones tend to be hamstrung by weak components and a lack of features. The Samsung Galaxy S7 is fast, as is the HTC 10 and OnePlus 3 with its 6GB of RAM, but random slowdown and strange behaviour is still commonplace in all those handsets. This isn’t the case with the Google Pixel: from opening apps, to scrolling through Chrome and playing games, it just feels right. It feels like it should; it feels like an iPhone. Software A speedy UI would be nothing without a functional one, but Google ticks the right boxes here too. Android 7.1 Nougat is overlaid with the Pixel Launcher, which adds in a swipe gesture to bring up the app drawer and slightly retooled icons. The biggest addition is the Google Assistant, which takes the place of Now on Tap and Google Now. Camera There isn't much on the spec sheet that's been improved over the camera in the Nexus 6P. It still has a 12-megapixel rear camera with dual-LED flash, laser autofocus and 1.55-micron pixel completed with an f/2.0 lens. What it does have over the Nexus 6P is the new Sony IMX378 sensor (upgraded from the IMX377), which boasts native phase-detection autofocus, plus much faster HDR thanks to SME-HDR tech.

Here's how smartphone users decide what to buy online

Wed, 30 Nov 2016 06:18:00 +0000

The smartphones have now become such a critical external appendage that users feel incomplete and lost whenever their device is not within their reach. Given that the smartphones play a key role in connecting device owners to the whole wide world, it is logical for the commercial microcosm to hail the device as its new poster boy. But we need to examine the smartphone user's buying behavior before we extrapolate it as the only transactional tool for online purchase. The present scenario: A recent study has revealed that over 90% of consumers now use their mobile devices for making impulsive purchase decisions on categories such as fashion, travel, music and movies. The same study also says that 36 % consumers place a higher weight-age on researched decision-making on products and services like insurance and investments for which they still rely on their PC or laptops. But this trend does not tell us which device consumers rely on more for buying, and which ones they check products frequently on, before taking the final plunge. Till 2015, global trends suggested that a greater percentage of online purchase traffic was driven by the PC. Conversely, around the same time Google had reported that search queries generated from India via mobile had superseded that of the desktop searches. However, we have to wait and see how Indian consumers who are now using their mobiles for performing search; eventually do their buying. For high unit cost categories like Cars or Housing it can be safely said that consumers do a ground research online. But a further in-depth research and actual purchase definitely happens offline with physical visits to the market.

Demonetisation and its side effects

Wed, 30 Nov 2016 05:58:24 +0000

. What is demonetisation? When a currency note of a particular denomination ceases to be a legal tender it is termed as demonetisation. But since our government is replacing the old Rs 500 notes with newer ones and doing away with the Rs 1,000 notes, it would be more appropriate to call the move as `scrapping' or `phasing out' of certain currency notes. 2. What has the government done? Prime Minster Narendra Modi's decision to scrap high value notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 has created a shortage of cash in the system, leading to a lot of discomfort for the general public and businesses. Also, since there is a shortage of newly printed Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 notes, the situation has worsened. The move has also led to a shortage of lower denomination notes such as Rs 100 and Rs 50 that are still legal tender, as people have taken to conserving whatever cash they have in hand. 3. How will it impact the economy? Since our economy is heavily dependent on cash, as only less than half the population uses banking system for monetary transactions, demonetisation has hit trade and consumption hard. With people scrambling for cash to pay for goods and services, the move is likely to take a big toll on the country's growth and output during the current fiscal. Consumption makes up for around 56% of India's GDP, hence, a drop in spending will pull down growth. The current step could also lead to behavioural changes in households' savings and their consumption pattern, say economists. 4. What does lower growth mean? Growth in cash-intensive sectors such as real estate, construction and FMCG is likely to take a hit in the short term as consumers are deferring purchases. However, there is a positive side to the story: over the medium term, there would be benefits through higher government spending and greater financial inclusion. Also, the movement of household savings from physical to financial will help boost growth, according to Yes Bank BSE -0.41 % report. The near-term fall in growth on account of spending slowdown, could push inflation down. Also, an increase in fiscal headroom will allow the government to maintain fiscal discipline, which in turn will support inflation target in the medium term.

Microsoft Surface Studio – The ultimate All-in-One Windows PC

Fri, 11 Nov 2016 09:57:07 +0000

“There is a tradition of us getting funding with pretty crappy prototypes,” admits Ralf Groene, Microsoft's head of industrial design, as he sits proudly next to the Surface Studio during its launch event in New York City last week. Those “crappy prototypes” include the original Surface RT concept, that was an acrylic sheet with a piece of string attached. Microsoft started with the basic concept of propping up a tablet on a table and typing, and the first prototype went to Panos Panay, head of Microsoft’s Surface devices, to approve. “In those crappy prototypes, the idea is pure because it’s easy to make good-looking design models with all chrome and details, and it kind of hides away from what it actually is at its core.” Solving the Surface Studio hinge problem relied on what Microsoft wanted the product to be. Microsoft started with the idea of having a device you could move the screen into a drawing mode, and it took some time to get to the final product that Microsoft unveiled last week. "We built these working contraptions where you'd grab the device and there was a capacitive sensor behind the screen and it would unlock a mechanism and it would go CRSSSH," explains Groene, excitedly making the machine's sounds. "Then you'd move it and let go and it would go CHERRRK." Although it sounds, in more ways than one, like an interesting mechanism, the team ultimately decided it was "too robotic." The bulk of the Studio is a 28-inch display mounted on a pair of "zero gravity" hinges that allow it to act as a regular monitor or fold down into "Studio mode" for a writing and drawing surface. In addition to 10-point multitouch, the display allows for interaction with a Surface Pen and a new accessory called the Surface Dial -- a small metal puck that can be placed against the screen and rotated. The display runs at an ultrahigh resolution (4,500 x 3,000) and can switch between the wide DCI-P3 colour gamut and the more common sRGB with the push of a button -- a useful feature allowing designers to see what their creations will look like on other devices. Inside the base is a pretty powerful PC. The $3,000 model comes with an Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, a 2GB GeForce GTX 965M GPU and a 1TB hybrid drive, while the high-end $4,200 model has a Core i7 CPU, 32GB of RAM, a 4GB GeForce GTX 980M graphics card and a 2TB drive. At those prices, with the incredibly high-spec display and the focus on Pen input, the Studio is clearly not meant for the average user. Microsoft says it's "designed for the creative process," pitching it as the centre of your workflow. But is this what that market wants, or needs? We spoke with a number of professionals across multiple fields, from video-game design to illustration, to gauge their initial reaction and see what Microsoft needs to nail for the Studio to be a success. This is Microsoft's first attempt at a desktop, and the first time any company has tried to put this level of functionality into a single, standalone device. Put the Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book next to the original Surface and Surface RT, and it's easy to see what a difference some refinement can make. It'll certainly be interesting to see how improved the Studio is in four years. If it really wants to own this niche market, it'll need to produce Studios with different screen sizes, performance levels and price points. But, from initial reactions, Microsoft is off to a very good start.