Showing posts with label Tech News. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tech News. Show all posts

Microsoft releases Blink Lens app with burst mode for Windows Phone 8

Microsoft has released a new Lens app for Windows Phone 8 devices. The app, named Blink, is available on the Windows Phone Store for free. It gives the camera burst mode capability. According to the description of the app, it captures a burst of images before you even press the shutter, and continues to capture pictures after you've taken your shot.

Here is the complete description of the app: “With BLINK for Windows Phone 8, you'll never miss the best shot. BLINK captures a burst of images before you even press the shutter, and continues to capture pictures after you've taken your shot. It’s no problem if you press the shutter a few seconds too early or too late. With BLINK, a simple finger swipe lets you find the perfect shot. Advanced image stabilization technology from Microsoft Research removes camera shake and lets you focus on the important parts of the scene.”
Blink gives you burst mode in your WP8 camera

Blink gives you burst mode in your WP8 camera





The Blink lens essentially lets users take many photographs in the span of a couple of seconds and pick the one they find to be the best of the lot. This is not different from the burst mode in the camera of higher end devices such as the HTC One X+ and the Galaxy S III.

While the lens has received praise from many users, some still have their misgivings about it. According to some user reviews on the Windows Phone Store, the pictures taken through the Blink lens tend to be of a lower quality compared to those taken without any lens. Some users have also reported on a bug that makes images appear skewed when being edited. Considering that this is the first release, though, it's likely that Microsoft will solve a lot of the problems with the lens in future updates.

Lenses basically work like addons to the Windows Phone 8 camera app. They allow you to do a number of things, ranging from having instagram-like filters to giving you the ability to take pictures in panorama mode. With the addition of the Blink lens taking the WP8 camera closer to that of high-end Android devices, one can venture a guess that a lens that gives the ability to take pictures in HDR (high dynamic range) lighting is not too far off.

Temple Run: Oz the Great and Powerful to release on February 27

With the recent release and success of Temple Run 2, Imangi doesn’t seem to be taking a break. According to SlashGear, the company is working on another game in the series, and once more, it will be a movie tie-in game. The upcoming Temple Run will be based on the Disney movie Oz the Great and Powerful. The game is set to be released on February 27.

The game was announced through a tweet by Disney representative Cecile Fouques. No other detail on the game is available yet. It’s not even known whether the title of the game will simply be Temple Run: Oz or Temple Run: Oz the Great and Powerful. While it does make more sense to have the complete name of the movie in the game, it ends up being a name that’s too long to say in conversation.
Temple Run 2 is out now for iOS

Getting another movie tie-in




Earlier this month, Imangi had announced that Temple Run had hit 50 million downloads in 13 days.

Imangi’s press release stated: “Temple Run 2 originally launched exclusively on the App Store on January 17 and quickly rose to the  number 1 slot in Free Apps, earning over six million downloads in less than 24 hours. Following a release on Google Play and Amazon Marketplace, the sequel continued its record-breaking success, racing to the number 1 spot, respectively, in each store. Following in the footsteps of Temple Run, which has been downloaded over 170 million times, Temple Run 2 has cemented itself in mobile gaming history.”

Keith Shepherd, co-founder of Imangi, said the Temple Run franchise has grown much bigger than the company. “The game has performed beyond our wildest dreams, and we are thrilled that gamers and fans have embraced Temple Run 2 in such a short period of time,” he said.

The Temple Run franchise has expanded to include apparel with JEM Sportswear, digital comics with Ape Entertainment, and card and board games with Spin Master, among other licensing partnerships. In June 2012, Imangi and Disney Pixar launched Temple Run: Brave, a collaboration between the makers of the animated film Brave and the game developers. The game rushed to the top spot on Apple’s App Store soon after it was released.

Temple Run’s premise is simple: as an intrepid explorer, you steal an idol from a temple (where else?) and are chased by "demonic monkeys," and all you can do is run away from them as fast as possible. There are obstacles, of course, like overhanging tree branches or sections where the path has caved in.

As far as running games are concerned, the franchise is easily the most popular one for smartphone users, a fact underlined by this latest achievement. Temple Run 2 was first released on iOS and Android users had to wait a week for it to be released. Even so, the game has been widely praised for its new levels and intricate courses. Check out our review of Temple Run 2

Facebook developing a location tracking friend-finder app

Facebook will now know everywhere you go. The social networking giant that celebrated its ninth birthday yesterday is reportedly building its own mobile location tracker, reports Bloomberg.


Trying to benefit from the growing number of smartphone users, Facebook is developing a whole new app for tracking purposes. Currently, Facebook does work with locations, but only through check-ins and geo-tagged posts. With this new app Facebook will try to help users locate friends nearby while their location is tracked in the background.


According to sources that are working closely with its development, the entirely new app is slated to be released sometime in mid-March and is designed to run in the background even when it isn’t open on the handset. Reports suggest that the app in essence will be quite similar to Google Latitude, Apple Find My Friends and similar services.


Facebook will help you find your friends

Facebook will help you find your friends




The location software is said to be headed by Peter Deng, a product director who joined over from Google in 2007 according to a source. The team also consists of engineers from Glancee, a location tracking startup and Gowalla, a location tracking social network that were bought over by Facebook in the past couple of years.




Facebook had attempted to launch a feature in a similar vein in June last year. Very quietly, the social networking website had launched the ‘Find Friends Nearby’ service that did exactly what the name suggests. The service that used GPS to locate users and inform their friends about their whereabouts was slammed by users and critics alike for being ‘creepy’ and ‘stalker like’.


Just as quietly as it was launched, it was taken off by Facebook that was stung by the severe backlash it generated. Facebook explained the pull out of the service stating that the feature was under test and it wasn’t a formal release. The company said that the feature was just something that the engineers were testing. "With all tests, some get released as full products, others don’t. Nothing more to say on this for now, but we’ll communicate to everyone when there is something to say,” read the official statement.


Now it looks like Facebook learnt some lessons from the service test and is set to package old wine in a new bottle for users who have been lapping up Facebook’s latest mobile offerings like Poke and newer features in the Messenger app.


Late in January this year, Facebook announced in its Q4 earnings call that for the first time ever Facebook Mobile’s Daily Active Users exceeded those on the desktop version of the website. CEO Mark Zuckerberg highlighted the surge in mobile users, saying, “There’s no argument, Facebook is a mobile company.” He also referenced a comScore report to prove that Facebook is the top app in the US, beating Google Maps, and accounts for 23 percent of total time spent on mobile apps in the country.

HTC to ditch megapixels, M7 could launch with a 4 ultrapixel camera

The HTC M7 is one of the most eagerly-awaited handsets of 2013, and will be the first phone to boast of a 1080p resolution display under 5 inches in size. But a new rumour suggests that won’t be the only headline-grabbing feature of the M7.

According to a report by Pocket-lint, the M7 incorporates a new camera sensor that won't be measured in megapixels, but in a new term the company has coined: "Ultrapixels." Earlier rumours suggest that the new smartphone will use a 13 megapixel sensor, however, sources familiar with the company’s new flagship have told the website that the new camera will instead be made up of three 4.3-megapixel sensor layers. Image processing is done by combining the layers to produce one image.
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An earlier leak showing the HTC M7 running Sense 5.0




Three layers of 4.3 megapixel sensors add up to 13 megapixels, but instead of delivering one image at a 13 megapixel resolution, the sensor picks a pixel from each layer to represent one final pixel. The technique is similar to the one used by Sigma in the Foveon X3 sensor.

In layman terms, this means the data from the three sensors is combined to generate a crisper, cleaner image, and at least in the case of the Foveon X3, it delivers better colour accuracy.

Nokia handled image data in the 808 PureView’s camera in a similar fashion, but a more conventional sensor structure is employed; the 808 uses surrounding pixels to render one pixel in the final image. The multiple-layered structure that HTC is allegedly using is a first for mobile phones.

The 'ultrapixel' sensor is expected to be a core feature of the new M7 smartphone, the name of which was seemingly confirmed by an excited CEO Peter Chou last week. It seems possible that the ultrapixel name could be a marketing strategy to prevent consumers from assuming that the M7 will be launched with a 4 megapixel sensor.

HTC released an infographic on its site today, which showed the development of photography and, predictably, touted its cameras as being the best in the market when they were launched. It boasts about the camera on the HTC One X, which was released last year, and promises to bring a new sound and camera experience in 2013.

The M7 is expected to be launched on February 19 at two events in London and New York. The phone was shown off to HTC’s employees by Chou and other executives at the company’s year-end bash last week. A leaked video of the event suggests that the phone will have a physical camera shutter button, which, if true, should fall nicely in line with the company’s aim of positioning the M7 as a phone with a super camera.

The M7 is said to have a 1.7GHz quad-core Snapdragon processor, 2GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage, and an LTE chip. The device is expected to have a dedicated amplifier designed by Beats, along with stereo speakers. The smartphone is expected to run Sense 5.0 over Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt world will be 20% larger than Skyrim

Details of CDProjekt RED’s next fantasy epic—The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt—have emerged on the latest issue of GameInformer, and it seems the new game's world will be around 20 percent bigger than it was in Skyrim, and player's will take 30 to 40 minutes to cross it on horseback. The details were brought to light by a user on the NeoGAF forums.

It's also been revealed that the company is opting for a new game engine—CDRED Engine 3. The game will be out on “all top-of-the-line” consoles, so there is a very high chance that it will be a next-gen console game. The game will also be opting for a more open-world design instead of the acts/chapters system of the previous games. Unlike in the previous games, the protagonist—Geralt— will not be suffering from amnesia this time.
The render of Geralt will see improvements

Geralt will look better, besides remembering stuff.




GameInformer wrote: “CD Projekt RED has provided the screenshots you see here from its current in-game assets running on its Internal PC development hardware. However, the renderer - the part of the engine that translates the game files into what you ultimately see on screen - is still in development and will boast significant improvements by the time The Witcher 3 ships. "Right now you see the game in the old renderer, but it's going to be taken to a truly next level," says gameplay producer Marek ZSiemak. In particular, the developers tell us that skin shaders and the dynamic lighting model will be markedly more advanced in the final version.”

More information will be available when CDProjekt officially announces the game later today.

CDProjekt had hinted that it would be announcing the game via a secret message hidden in the CG trailer for its upcoming sci-fi RPG—Cyberpunk 2077. The message was discovered, again, by a member of the NeoGAF forums. The secret message seemed to be about the announcement of a new game. The message read: "We are about to reveal our other project, which is much closer to being completed, and it will also be a fully open world game with an intense story. You can probably guess the game we're talking about. On the 5th February, it will all be clear."
Concept art for the open world

Concept art for the open world




Most of the speculation about this secret message points towards the next Witcher game—the series that made the company famous. The Witcher games are based on the universe created by Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski and revolve around Geralt, the titular Witcher. The Witcher games have received critical acclaim thanks to its handling of mature themes such as politics and racism. The first game of the series received some criticism because of collectible cards in the game, which revolved around having sex with as many women as possible. Despite this, the games have been praised for its mature storyline and moral choices that actually mattered.

The first game revolved around Geralt losing all of his memory and everyone who knew him thinking that he was dead. The main story revolves around the Salamandra—a cult hell-bent on taking over the world.

The second game involves Geralt being framed for the assassination of a king, and him being set free to clear his name. Much of this game's plot revolved around the racism and political tension between humans and a group of freedom fighters/terrorists named the Scioa'tel.

Wishtel launches two 'Ira' Android budget tablets, starting Rs. 4,000

Wishtel India has launched 2 tablets in the Indian market, the Ira Thing and the Ira. The two tablets are priced at Rs. 4000 and Rs. 5,500 respectively, plus tax.

The specifications of both the budget tablets are the same apart from the fact that the Ira Thing has a resistive touchscreen and the Ira has a capacitive touchscreen. The battery of both the devices too is different.

The Ira Thing has a 2,200 mAh battery where as the Ira has a 2,800 mAh battery. Other specifications of the device can be found in the table at the end of the article.

The device comes preloaded with a bunch of apps such as a Web Browser, Media Player, Photo viewer, Office, MSN, Skype, Gtalk, Note pad, Clock, Weather and more.

The devices on display at the press event ran Android 2.2 Froyo but the manufacturers have confirmed that the device will launch with Android 2.3 Gingerbread.

Apart from Android, customers will have the option to use the tablet on the Linux Sugar OS.

Speaking at the event, Milind Shah, CEO, Wishtel, said:

    “This launch is the first step in our long term vision of bringing people closer to technology by creating gadgets that truly touch their lives. By enabling support for Indian languages, we are providing the opportunity for hundreds of millions of Indians to join the tablet revolution that is sweeping the globe today. We also hope to reach out to those brilliant minds in India that are inhibited for the lack of proper resources.”

Richard Brown, VP International Marketing, VIA Technologies, Inc., added:

    “With the introduction of the IRA and IRA Thing, Wishtel is leading the way in driving tablet innovation in India. The potential for these devices is breathtaking, particularly in areas such as education.”

I&B Ministry joins Facebook to create awareness about digitalisation

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has now decided to use the power of social media to address the issues related to the digitalisation. The ministry has created a Facebook account, through which it also aims to have more direct communication with the key stakeholders. The Facebook account is likely to help the ministry create more awareness among public about its policies and taking up a wide range of public concerns.

The ministry's Facebook account also features answers to some of the frequently asked queries and also provides users direct links to other organisations associated with digitisation. The government officials hope that the ministry will now efficiently deal with stakeholders such as multi-system operators and cable operators as well as provide a source of information for individuals.

It's learnt that the ministry plans to complete the digitisation of Cable sector by December 31, 2014. In the first phase of the plan, the ministry will digitise services in the four metropolitan cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata by June 30 this year. Check out the I&B Ministry's Facebook page here.

AOC announces its entry into the Indian television market

AOC has announced it will be entering the TV business in India. The Taiwanese brand is part of TPV Technology Limited, which has been manufacturing LED and LCD displays for global distribution across Asia, Americas and Europe since 1999.


The company says it is looking to provide consumers the same level of satisfaction as it has with its computer displays in the past, with the “same promise of durability, performance and elegant design.”

AOC aims to become a household name and recognized brand for LCD and LED TVs in India, and to start with, will focus on B and C class cities. According to AOC, the Indian market is still migrating from CRT televisions to LCDs, and the company hopes to capture consumer’s attention by capitalizing on C and D class retailers with its attractive pricing. AOC will also partner with large format retailers and retail chain stores in A & B class cities.

Targetting the channel segment, AOC currently boasts of a 500-dealer network for TV sales in India, and plans to drastically expand its distribution network to over 2000 dealers by May 2012. The company says it intends to invest approximately Rs. 30 crore in the Indian TV market in 2012.

AOC TVs will come 3 years warranty, and will be backed by the more than 200 local service centres, and in-house call centre for 365-day service. You can check out the list of available AOC TV models in India, here. Prices start at roughly Rs. 15,500, for 22-inch models.

Ms. Seema T. Bhatnagar, Director, AOC TV India and SAARC, spoke on the company's aims in the country:

    "AOC TVs are designed for consumers' needs and lifestyles. We are introducing new models of AOC TVs endowed with superb technology. I am confident that our entry into this new product segment will enliven the industry and stimulate growth. The launch of AOC TVs will enable consumers to benefit from AOC premium standards and also demonstrate our commitment to enhancing our consumer's experiences. With this in mind, we expect to be one of the top brands in the local premium market in the years to come".
 

Aakash II tablet to launch in April: Sibal

Union minister Kapil Sibal has said that an upgraded version of the Aakash tablet will be launched at the same price of the original Aakash tablet in April this year. Sibal said this while responding to a question in Lok Sabha during question hour today. The minister also revealed that DataWind, the company spearheading the Aakash I project, will be supplying one lakh high speed tablets with a longer battery life and improved screen.

Speaking about the new features, the minister add that the improved Aakash tablet will feature a 700MHz Cortex A8 processor, 3,200 mAh battery with three-hour usage time and a capacitative touchscreen, which were missing in the original Aakash tablet. The minister further said that the first phase of the project mainly focussed on students in higher technical educational institutions so that the government received technical feedback on the performance of the tablet.

On demands to provide the Aakash tablet to school students, Sibal said the same would be done after National Mission of Education through ICT for Schools received funds. The minister further said that the Aakash tablet project would prosper after the government builds production capacities and policies for distribution of the device with a special focus on students from marginalised sections of society.

The Aakash tablet is one of the most ambitious projects of the Indian government. The low-cost device is aimed at bridging the digital divide in the country. The Indian government, however, had a bitter experience with DataWind, as the company failed to provide a tablet that stood up to IIT's test criteria. The government has already faced heavy criticism over the Aakash fiasco.

DataWind has already launched a commercial version of the Aakash tablet as UbiSlate 7 and its upgraded version UbiSlate 7+. Check out our detailed coverage on the Aakash tablet here.

Toshiba launches its PS20 Power TV televisions, starting Rs. 32,990

Toshiba has launched a brand new LED TV range in India, under its Power TV lineup, called the Toshiba PS20. Featuring a narrow 17mm bezel, the PS20 Power TV series is powered by the company’s powerful Regza display engine.


The Toshiba PS20 Power TV is available in three sizes – 32-inch, 40-inch and 46-inch – priced between Rs. 32,990 and Rs. 64,990. They feature 3 years warranty, and Toshiba is quick to point out its newly expanded service network, with centres in 195 cities across the country, as well as a dedicated 24x7 call centre.

According to the Japanese electronics giant, the Toshiba PS20 Power TV series is capable of playing back up to 28 video formats. The Regza display engine uses what Toshiba calls the “Power Meta Brain” to deliver crisp, high resolution images with vibrant colours - with a 10-bit video processor capable of reproducing over 1 billion colours.

The Toshiba PS20 LED TVs also boasts of the “Auto Clean” feature, which automatically reduces the noise during the transmission of the images. They also have the “Auto Signal Booster” and “AutoView” features, which improves signal sensitivity and auto-adjusts backlight brightness to the room, respectively.

Commenting on the launch of the new Toshiba PS20 LED Power TV series, Mr. Tengguo Wu, Director - DS Division, Toshiba India Private Ltd. said:

    “By incorporating amazing picture quality with superior performance and connectivity, well complimented by the magnificent design, Toshiba is delivering a marvelous TV today to India.”

'More phones than toilets' - Census 2011 sheds light on changing India

India has seen a phenomenal growth in the field of communications in last one decade. From the era of landline telephones, we have now entered the world of smartphones. The country seems more wired than ever before. The first set of final data from Census 2011 also confirms the remarkable growth the in the field of communications. About 63.2 per cent households in India now own a telephone connection, up from 9 per cent 10 years ago. But in spite of all the talk of development and “phenomenal growth”, Census further reveals a contradictory story of the country. The census says more than half of Indian households (some 53.1 per cent) do not have access to something as basic as a toilet.

 These and many other interesting facts of changing lifestyle have come out in Census 2011. The data on housing, household amenities and assets show that there has been a complete transition in the country as millions have now access to high end technology and consumer goods but at the same time a massive number of people lack access to the most basic facilities.

Computers are still considered as luxury item with 20 per cent households in urban areas and 5 per cent in rural areas own one. Interestingly, almost 9 per cent of households that own computers, 6 per cent don't have Internet connection.

Another interesting fact that Census reveals is the changing character of the media. It says the number of people watching TVs has gone up by 16 per cent, but a 15 per cent dip in the number of people using radios and transistors for information. A total of 47.2 per cent of households own a television; only 19.9 per cent have either radio or transistors.

Census findings show India's uneven growth in different sectors. Evidently the government has succeeded in developing IT and communication sectors, but failed to push social development in rural and semi-urban areas at that pace. Do you think efforts should be made to achieve comprehensive growth? Let us know in the comments section below:

HTC starts rolling out Android 4.0 ICS upgrade for 16 of its smartphones

HTC has confirmed rolling out the much-awaited Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade to its smartphones including HTC Sensation and Sensation XE. In a blog, the company said that it has already begun releasing Android 4.0 ICS upgrade for as many as 16 HTC  devices. HTC said that the upgrade will be made available over-the-air. Users will receive a notification regarding the upgrade through which they can download and install the updates on their devices. HTC, however, suggests users should use Wi-Fi to download these update to avoid data charges.



The HTC devices that will be getting the ICS update and are available in the Indian market are HTC Sensation, Sensation XE, Sensation XL, Desire S, Desire HD, Evo 3D, Incredible S, and Rhyme. The devices getting the update but are not launched in India are roid Incredible 2 by HTC, HTC Amaze 4G, HTC EVO Design 4G, HTC Sensation 4G, HTC Raider, HTC Rezound, HTC Thunderbolt, and HTC Vivid.

“As for timing, we’re in the early stages of rolling out Android 4.0 for the HTC Sensation and HTC Sensation XE and upgrades will be more widely available in the next few weeks. The update for the HTC Sensation 4G and HTC Sensation XL will follow. Please note, once we start pushing out updates it will take time for all carriers in each country to get the update,” said the HTC blog.

Toshiba launches Portege Z830 Ultrabook in India for Rs. 96,290

Toshiba has entered the Ultrabook market in India with the launch of the Toshiba Portege Z830. Toshiba claims that the Portege Z830 is the lightest Ultrabook available in the market, weighing a mere 1.2 kgs. The device was launched in the U.S. way back in September 2011.


The Toshiba Portege Z830 boasts of an ultra slim design. The device measures a mere 0.63-inches thin and has a 13.3-inch display with a resolution of 1366x768. Under the hood, the device is powered by an Intel Core i5 processor, 6GB of DDR3 RAM, 128GB SSD, one USB 3.0 port, two USB 2.0 ports, a HDMI port and a display connector. Toshiba also claims that the backlit keyboard is spill resistant.

The Portege Z830 runs on Windows 7 and will cost consumers Rs. 96,290. That’s more expensive than the top of the line 13-inch MacBook Air. You could get an entry level 13-inch MacBook Air with 128GB SSD, 1.7GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor, 4GB of 1333MHz DDR3 RAM, Two USB 2.0 ports Thunderbolt port and an SD card slot for Rs. 73,900.

If you are in the market to pick up an Ultrabook, here’s a look at some Ultrabooks you can pick up today in India.

If you are skeptical and want to see what Ultrabooks are expected to launch in the near future, here’s a look at 7 Ultrabook to look out for in 2012.

If you are wondering whether you should pick up a laptop or an Ultrabook here’s a quick guide on Laptops vs Ultrabooks.

Nikon launches D4, D800 and D800E DSLR cameras in India

Nikon has launched three new DSLR cameras in India, featuring FX-format CMOS sensors, specifically – the Nikon D4, D800, and D800E, priced at Rs. 324,950, Rs. 149,950 and Rs. 164,950, respectively. Retail availability will start next week.

Nikon D4, the company’s new flagship, features a 16.2MP (36 x 23.9mm) sensor, coupled with a new EXPEED 3 image processing engine. It has wide native ISO range from 100 to 12,800 ISO, even in video mode, and can in fact be used from ISO 50 (with Lo-1 mode) to ISO 204,800 (with Hi-4 mode). The Nikon D4 is ready to shoot in 0.012 seconds, and captures full resolution JPEG or RAW files at up to 10 fps with full AF / AE, or up to 11 fps with AF / AE locked.

Other features of the Nikon D4 include the new Advanced Multi-Cam 3500 AF system that works with 51-points and 15 cross-type sensors, down to -2 EV with an AF-NIKKOR lens, and can detect up to 16 faces. Refer to our previous coverage of the Nikon D4, for more details about its viewfinder, HDR, video and other functions, as well as the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 85mm f/1.8G prime lens.

The Nikon D800 is also a full frame camera, and is considered a more compact version of the D4 – however, it features a 36MP sensor. While it does not have the D4’s vertical grip and Ethernet connectivity, it has the same autofocus system, 921k dot LCD display, a minimum of -2 EV exposure, RGB Matrix III meter (91,000 pixel), support for dual-memory card slots (CF and SDXC), as well as support for H.264 B-Frame formats at 1080p30, 1080p24, 720p60 and 720p50 resolutions.

The D800 has a sensitivity range of ISO 100 to 6400 (which can be boosted to 25,600). It delivers an uncompressed HDMI video output, and has the first USB 3.0 port on a Nikon camera. The Nikon D800E is virtually identical to the D800, except for the lack of a low-pass antialiasing filter – which while susceptible to moirĂ© patterns, will give users the full 36.3MP to play with. For more details about the Nikon D800 and D800E, refer to our previous coverage.

Nokia to launch Lumia 900 in India soon, without 4G support

If reports are to be believed, Nokia will be launching a non-4G version of its Lumia 900 smartphone in India soon. The Windows Phone 7.5-based Lumia 900 smartphone was launched at the Mobile World Congress 2012 held in Barcelona earlier this year. Nokia has already launched Lumia 800 and 710 smartphones in India and is reportedly going to launch its low-cost Lumia 610 smartphone in the country within the next two months.

The Nokia Lumia 900 is touted as the first LTE network supporting Windows Phone device from Nokia. The device sports a 4.3-inch with 800 x 480 pixel resolution. It is powered by a single core 1.4 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon APQ8055+ processor on the MDM9200 mobile chipset, along with 512 MB RAM and 16 GB on-board storage. It also features an 8MP main camera and 1MP front camera.

The Nokia Lumia 900 is expected to be priced at roughly Rs. 31,500 in Indian market and is going to be pitted against the likes Samsung Galaxy S II and Apple's iPhone 4S. Nokia is a major player in the Indian mobile phone market, and may just launch the device at a lower price. It may recalled that Nokia recently slashed the price of the Lumia 800 by Rs. 6,000, making room for the Lumia 900.

Microsoft unveils prototype universal speech translator software

Microsoft has demonstrated prototype software that can translate a user’s words into another language, while maintaining the voice and pitch. For now, all 26 major languages on the Microsoft Speech Platform are supported by what is being called the ‘universal translator’

Microsoft has also been working on real-time translation and transcription of two-way VoIP communication – it’s Skype acquisition will play no small part in that direction, not just with Windows Phone 8. This should pave the way for a future that promotes communication while preserving traditional languages.

The universal translator software was unveiled at TechFest 2012 by Rick Rashid, Microsoft’s chief research officer, and a video of that keynote address can be found here. The software requires an hour’s worth of adaptive training with the user for it to be able to accurately recognize and translate the user’s speech, while maintaining the voiceprint.

Microsoft has certainly expressed interest in what it calls natural user interface (NUI) in the past, and apart touch and gesture/motion offerings like Surface and Kinect, recently brought voice-based search for the Xbox 360. Consumers can expect a multi-device ecosystem from Microsoft in the future designed to work with intuitive interfaces.

Nokia Windows 8 tablet in the works, confirms company's design chief

Rumours of Nokia prepping a Windows 8 tablet have been around for a while, but this is the first time we are hearing from a company official. Nokia's design chief Marko Ahtisaari has confirmed that the Finnish company is 'working on' a tablet and that he is spending a third of his time on the device. Ahtisaari said this in an interview with the Finnish newspaper, Kauppalehti. Ahtisaari, however, did not divulge more details about the tablet. Considering the time spent by Ahtisaari on the new device, it looks like Nokia is hoping to make a strong debut in the tablet market.

Ahtisaari's comments on the Nokia Windows 8 tablet come days after reports suggested Nokia had well moved ahead in developing a new 10.1-inch Windows 8 tablet, which will be powered by a dual-qore Qualcomm processor and is slated to launch before this year. Speculations are rife the announcement regarding the launch of the tablet will be made at Nokia's annual Nokia World event, which is slated to be held in Helsinki this year.

As said before, rumours about the Nokia tablet have hit the Internet multiple times over the last year, even as CEO Stephon Elop, said once that the company would “hold off” until it launched something really out-of-the-box. Elop pointed out that the tablet market is interesting for the company. However, he had then not given any timeframe for the launch of Nokia's first tablet. The design exec’s full interview is not yet available online though, but an excerpt at the magazine’s site hints Nokia is also working on a significant “breakthrough” in user interface.

Microsoft recently launched the consumer preview version of Windows 8 and is supposed to launch the final version by mid 2012.

Samsung working on an Android-based digital camera

Recent reports indicate that Samsung is considering a digital camera with Android onboard. The company has experienced much growth in the mobile space with Google’s operating system, and apart from tablets, already offers it on one of its portable media players.

The concept of an Android digital camera is not especially new, and the implications are interesting, with specialist camera, social and sharing apps on the Android ecosystem, along with location based features transforming the device into much more than just a camera. A touch-based interface could allow for more than just navigation, but also editing features, and a full web-interface.

For now, details are scarce, and Android is just one of the open operating systems that Samsung is reportedly considering.

Google search to get a makeover with semantic search technology

Google is set to overhaul its search engine by incorporating “semantic search” technology, which will allow the engine to understand the actual meaning of the words. The new semantic search feature is likely to help the Google search engine find more relevant results, as compared to the present keyword-search system, which prioritises the sites on the basis of words it contains, quality of links and on many other measures. Over the course of next few months, Google's search engine wall start showing more facts and direct answers to the queries at the top of search-results page.

According to Google search executive Amit Singhal, the new semantic search system will be more like “how humans understand the world”. Search queries will be matched with a database of "entities", including individuals, locations and activities. Google is said to be developing the database for last two years after it took over Metaweb Technologies in 2010. The start-up had a 12 million-strong database of movies, books, companies and celebrities.

Google, however, isn't the first one to use this search technology. Microsoft's Bing search engine has been using the technology for a while and provides answers to direct questions along with a list of reports instead of page listings like Google search. Google's change to its search engine is likely to affect rankings of millions of websites.

Google is a dominating player in the Internet search market with a massive 66 per cent of market share. The Internet giant, however, was heavily criticised for pushing its newly launched social networking site Google+ on its search engine. Google has recently included Google+ results to its search results.

BenQ launches two 24-inch 3D gaming monitors in India

BenQ has launched two new 24-inch gaming monitors in the country, part of its XL series of 120Hz displays, featuring Nvidia 3D technologies – BenQ XL2420T and XL2420TX. Prices start at Rs. 21,990. They’ve apparently been designed for FPS games with the help of pro-gamers Zowei Gear, HeatoN, and SpawN.

The BenQ XL2420T and XL2420TX feature 2ms response times, 12 million to 1 dynamic contrast ratio, a Black eQualiser for enhanced visibility in dark regions. BenQ has also added a smart scaling feature to allow users choose from preset screen sizes and resolutions. They come with an ‘S Switch’ remote control to adjust display settings.

The difference between the BenQ XL2420T and XL2420TX is that the former features Nvidia 3D LightBoost technology, while the latter features Nvidia 3D Vision technology with a 3D IR emitter for the bundled 3D Vision 2 glasses.
BenQ has put two FPS special preset modes, designed for Counter Strike 1.6 and Source. Other modes can be downloaded via the Game Loader, and mapped to the S Switch controller.