Sunday, 9 February 2014

Moto G review

2/09/2014 10:29:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

Moto G review

Budget smartphones might not attract as much attention as their high-end counterparts, but there is no denying that these devices are in massive demand, especially in markets like India. Motorola's Moto G is an attempt to grab buyers' attention by offering a number of features at an extremely reasonable price.

After a brief sabbatical, Motorola has returned to the Indian market with its Moto G smartphone, which is an affordable device for cost-conscious consumers worldwide. This phone was designed as part of Google's plan to focus on creating a distinctive lineup of devices for different markets. Now, withLenovo recently acquiring Google's stake in Motorola Mobility, we don't know whether or not the company will stick with the same strategy.

Motorola underscored its plan to focus on emerging markets by unveiling the Moto G at a huge event in Sao Paulo, Brazil in November last year. The budget-friendly smartphone was supposed to have reached Indian shores by January 2014, and it's here after only a short delay. As promised, it comes at a decent price.

We got our hands on the black version of the Moto G (single-SIM). Does this low price come at the cost of performance?

Look and feelThe first thing that struck us about the Motorola Moto G was its novel packaging. When it came to our doorstep, we didn't realise that the sleek box hid a mobile phone inside. Amazingly everything from the device to the charger fits within this slim box.

The Moto G is a candybar phone. It doesn't have any contours - the design is very basic yet modern. When we first looked at the Moto G, we mistook it for the company's flagship Moto X.

The G looks like a replica of the Moto X (except for its size), which is not really a bad thing considering the premium look of its elder sibling. However, the Moto G is different in a few ways. It's definitely thicker, measuring 129.9x65.9x11.6mm compared to 129.3x65.3x10.4mm for the X. At 143 grams, the Moto G is also heavier than the Moto X (130 grams). However, we assume that for an average buyer in this price segment, thickness and weight of a smartphone are not the biggest concerns. The Moto G features curved edges that offer a good grip.

The Moto G's front panel is dominated by a 4.5-inch screen, which is only marginally smaller than 4.7-inch display found on the Moto X. The front panel features a black strip of glass around the screen that visually differentiates the plastic front and rear panels. Notably, the Moto G does not have any logo or branding on the front.

There's a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera which to the left of the chrome earpiece. There are no soft-touch capacitive buttons on the front panel, a design touch that is commonly seen on the Nexus range of devices. It's worth pointing out that Google's Nexus 7 (2013) tablet's front panel also bears a lot of similarities to the Moto G. The new Nexus 7 features a glass strip around the screen, identical to the Moto G.

It seems Google wanted to align the industrial design of its hardware products. The Nexus line and Motorola's two recent phones do have a family resemblance that sets them apart from Samsung's and HTC's phones.

Motorola has also used a nano-coating on the Moto G that acts as light water repellent. This does not make the Moto water resistant, but it can protect the smartphone from light splashes of water, which is still an interesting touch for a smartphone at this price point.

The curved rear panel is made of a soft-touch polycarbonate, and is comfortable to hold. Yes, it sometimes gets badly smudged by fingerprints, but this is nothing that cannot be cleaned. The panel is removable even though the battery isn't. Motorola has announced that there will be accessories including rear shells and flip covers (both in seven colour options) and Grip Shells (in five colour options). This means that customers will have a choice of colours, something we generally see on Nokia's Lumia range.

The power and volume rocker buttons are placed on the right side of the Moto G, while the 3.5mm audio jack is on the top and the Micro-USB port is on the bottom panel. The placement of the physical buttons is fine and we had no problem reaching them even when we were not looking at the device. The Moto G's back houses a 5-megapixel camera with an LED flash with a speaker grille to its left. The Motorola logo is embossed just below the LED flash and is identical to the one found on the Moto X. Peel off the back panel and you can get to the SIM slot, which accepts a Micro-SIM. The unit we received was a single-SIM device, though Motorola has introduced a dual-SIM Moto G variant in India.

The Motorola Moto G has an overall solid build, though it does feel bit plasticky. Yes, it follows a tried and tested design rather than a radically new one, but it certainly has its own identity and there's no mistaking it for any other phone from any other company.

ScreenOne of the biggest highlights of the Moto G is its 4.5-inch 720x1280-pixel IPS LCD, which works out to a density of 329 pixels per inch. Notably, the Moto G's screen is a bit sharper than Apple's iPhone 5s, which offers 326ppi.

Motorola has also used Corning Gorilla Glass 3 on the Moto G to protect it from scratches. It's worth pointing out that Gorilla Glass is usually found on premium devices priced at Rs. 30,000 and above.

The IPS LCD screen doesn't have the fullest colour reproduction like the HTC One and LG G2 or the deepest blacks like Samsung's high-end Galaxy smartphones (Galaxy S4 or Galaxy Note 3) with AMOLED screens do, but it is bright and colours are consistently vibrant. Thankfully the viewing angles are never a problem. The screen is not very reflective and visibility in bright sunlight was also acceptable. Further, the Moto G's 4.5-inch screen is fine for video playback and gaming.

Text on the Moto G is always crisp and clear.

There is no denying that many brands have launched smartphones with full-HD screens of late, but after using the Moto G for some time we felt that 329ppi is more than enough for a screen of this size. Motola has definitely upped the ante for phones in this price bracket.

Camera
The Moto G sports a 5-megapixel rear camera accompanied by an LED flash, and also has a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera. At this price point, we didn't expect a higher megapixel count. The camera delivers decent but uninspiring shots in good lighting conditions.

We tested the Moto G's rear camera both outdoors and indoors in a variety of lighting conditions and found that images taken outdoors during daylight came out well, though they were a little over-saturated and we could detect a little bit of noise at the edges. You can notice that detail is lacking if you zoom in to a photo taken with a Moto G. Other than that, we found the quality of images taken in sufficient light to be satisfactory. However, the same could not be said for indoor and low-light shots. Photos taken in artificial light (without using the LED flash) are not very impressive, as background noise does tend to creep in.

The Moto G's rear camera can be set to take 5-megapixel shots in the 4:3 aspect ratio, while 16:9 shots will come out at 3.8 megapixels.

The Moto G's camera app is not stock and adds a bit of flavour the otherwise vanilla OS. Motorola's camera app has a circular control bar that pops out from the left of the screen when tapped. Additional features include 4X digital zoom, slow motion video, burst mode, auto HDR mode, Panorama and tap to focus. The Moto G's burst mode allows users to take up to 99 shots at once; users just need to long-press the camera soft key on the screen to start shooting. Notably, there are no ISO and exposure control settings on the Moto G.

The 1.3-megapixel front facing camera can be used for selfies and video chats. We found that videos and images captured indoors or even outdoors with this camera were a bit grainy.

We would have liked a physical button for the camera as one has to rely on the soft key on the screen to click images.

Software/ Interface
When the Moto G reached our office, the device was running Android 4.3 out of the box. However, we soon encountered an alert that said "Please update your Moto G to Android's latest version (4.4.2)."Motorola had rolled out the Android 4.4.2 KitKat update for the Moto G ahead of schedule in December last year.

The Moto G with Android 4.4.2 KitKat is most updated smartphone in its price segment and offers a stock Android experience.

The Nexus 5 was the platform lead for Android 4.4 (KitKat) and the Moto G bears a lot of similarities to it in terms of software. Android 4.4 has a number of visual changes compared to Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean), including a new launcher that makes the interface even more minimalistic. The Moto G also has flatter design elements, more muted colours in the status icons, more transparency, and smoother transition animations.

We noticed a smooth flyaway animation on the Moto G, similar to the one seen on the Nexus 5, while moving between the app launcher and homescreen. The Moto G's app launcher features app icons and widgets; now due to the icons being larger, you'll see a grid of 4x5 instead of a 5x5.

The Moto G offers five customizable homescreens, and lots of widgets and apps classified into preloaded and downloadable categories. Notably, you cannot go beyond five homescreens, unlike with the Nexus 5.

Shortcuts for the dialler, Chrome browser, main menu, Messages and camera app remain visible when you swipe between homescreens. Notifications in the tray can be expanded with a two-finger pull gesture, and there are buttons for clearing all notifications and showing the quick settings shortcuts. These include toggles for Brightness, Settings, Wi-Fi, Network, Battery, Airplane Mode, Bluetooth, and Location settings. Unlike the Nexus 5, the Moto G does not have a quick Alarm clock shortcut.

Long-pressing on the Moto G's homescreen brings up options to change the wallpaper. A choice of still, live and custom wallpapers are now available under a single menu.

Another feature that gives the Moto G a clear advantage in the affordable smartphone segment is the voice guided search feature. This was also first seen on the Nexus 5. A user can initiate a voice search on the Moto G when it's unlocked by simply saying, 'OK Google.' However, it is only available when the language is set to US English.

The Moto G also includes a revamped Phone app that now automatically prioritises contacts based on who you talk to most often. The app includes a search bar, space for the most frequently called contacts and favourites, and shortcuts to the contact list, dialling pad, call history and settings.

The Moto G also features a new Photos app that allows viewing and editing of locally stored and Google+ images. The new Photos app features deeper integration with Google+ and can be used to tag photos.

The Email app on the Moto G has also been revamped, and it now displays pictures of contacts for emails. Navigation has been made identical to the Gmail app and you can swipe messages to delete them.

The Moto G also includes Google Drive, Keep, Play Games, Play Movies, Play Movies, Play Books, Play Newsstand and Quickoffice for creating and editing documents, spreadsheets and presentations. You can print documents through the Google Cloud Print plugin, or apps made by printer manufacturers.

Motorola preloads two other major apps on the Moto G. Motorola Migrate can help move the contents of an old Android phone to your new Moto G. Motorola Assist allows users to silence the device while you're sleeping or driving. We tried it out, and noted that the app automatically sent a text message to callers in the time we told it we were busy.

Performance/ Battery LifeThe Moto G is powered by 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor with Adreno 305 graphics and 1GB of RAM onboard. The Moto G comes in two storage capacities: 8GB and 16GB, and does not support expandable storage. We received an 8GB unit, of which only 5.5GB was user-accessible.

Even though the Moto G falls in the budget smartphone segment, the limited storage on the device is definitely a limiting factor. Google is offering 50GB of free Google Drive storage for two years for every Moto G buyer, which is additional to the standard 15GB available to every Google account user. However, cloud storage is no substitute for physical storage, especially since budget users won't have very expensive data plans.

The Moto G definitely ups the ante in terms of innards. Brands such as Micromax and Xolo, which have come to dominate the sub-Rs. 15,000 segment, usually use MediaTek chipsets.

The overall experience of navigating through the Moto G's interface was extremely impressive, thanks to all the power under its hood, and the fact that the UI is devoid of unnecessary bells and whistles such as transition effects. We did not experience any lag at all while launching apps, playing light games, scrolling through web pages and switching between apps on the Moto G.

With its quad-core processor running under the hood, the Moto G manages to chug along just fine. We multi-tasked all day, which included chatting via WhatsApp and Hangouts, browsing the Web and playing games like Temple Run 2 and Plants vs. Zombies 2 without any trouble. In day to day activities the Moto G worked smoothly and we were never left wanting for more power - that is until we tried a few heavy games like Shadow Gun and Dead Trigger.

The clarity of the Moto G's loudspeaker is good, but isn't too loud and breaks at its highest volume. Motorola does not supply any headphones in the Moto G box, which is a surprising omission.

The Moto G's 4.5-inch IPS LCD HD screen is good for movies and videos. We were impressed with the colour reproduction and viewing angles on the Moto G.

Call quality on the Moto G was impressive and the device was able to latch on to cellular networks even in weak signal areas, which came in handy at times. Our tests were performed on a single-SIM model, although Motorola will be selling the dual-SIM version here.

The Moto G scored well in our benchmark tests. We recorded a score of 11,874 in AnTuTu, which was right behind the Nexus 4 and Samsung Galaxy S III. Quadrant gave us a score of 8,569 which is ahead of HTC's flagship smartphone from two years ago, the One X. On the graphics front, the Moto G remarkably reached 11 frames per second in the GFXbench test, and 5629 in the 3DMark Ice Storm Extreme run-through.

The Moto G packs a 2070mAh battery which is non-removable and can deliver a mixed usage time of up to 24 hours, according to Motorola. We were able to get about a day (22 hours) of normal usage on the Moto G, which consisted of Web browsing and watching videos on YouTube, a few calls lasting for about an hour, with Wi-Fi switched on, the display set to auto brightness, and the usual notifications for the messages, emails, Facebook, Hike and WhatsApp enabled.

With heavy usage, which included calls lasting for about two hours, 3G turned on all the time, casual photography and watching a movie for around two hours, an hour of casual gaming (Temple Run 2 and Dead Trigger), and notifications enabled, the device lasted for about 12-13 hours, which was not bad.

In our video loop rundown test, the Moto G was able to able to deliver 8 hours and 30 minutes of battery life.

Verdict
What makes the Moto G special is the fact that it is one of a very small number of devices running the latest version of Android, and one of the only ones priced this low to be doing so.

The Moto G scores heavily in terms of style and substance, and our only major quibbles are the non-expandable storage and below-par camera performance. The 4.5-inch HD screen is wide, and yet the phone is small enough to hold in one hand and type easily with a thumb. Most of all, praise be, the Moto G is also extremely affordable.

This phone is definitely aimed at price-conscious Indian smartphone buyers, and its array of colourful back shells will attract the style-conscious as well. Yes, it isn't perfect, but it isn't meant to compete against the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S4, HTC One or LG G2. At its price, we're willing to overlook its faults.

The Moto G is available in two variants: 8GB for Rs. 12,499 and 16GB for Rs. 13,999. At this price point, no other phones offer an experience that is as good, so in that sense the Moto G is a game changer. If you have your eyes set on the Moto G, we recommend you spend the extra bucks and get the 16GB version, given the limited user accessible storage available in the 8GB version. Our only other complaint with the Moto G is the average camera, but the only phone that offers a better camera in the same price bracket is the Nokia Lumia 720, so the newest Motorola smartphone is a winner overall.

Moto G in pictures

Motorola Moto G

Rs. 12499

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery life
Camera
Value for money

Good
Excellent pricing
Runs Android 4.4.2, the most recent version
Decent specs for the price

Bad
Non-expandable storage
Average camera performance

Read detailed Motorola Moto G review

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Amazon Kindle Paperwhite 3G (2013) review

2/09/2014 10:28:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

Amazon Kindle Paperwhite 3G (2013) review

Amazon announced an updated Kindle Paperwhite in September last year. The refreshed ebook reader comes with various improvements including a higher contrast display, a faster processor, improved touch technology, and several software enhancements.

While the Wi-Fi variant started shipping in US the same month, the Wi-Fi + 3G variant became available closer to the holiday season. The Kindle Paperwhite 3G (2013) was listed for pre-orders in India last month, and is now available via Amazon.in as well as offline retailers across the country.

Does the new Kindle Paperwhite come with enough improvements to stay ahead of the likes of the Kobo Glo? We spent a little over three weeks with the ebook reader in a bid to find out. Let's dig in.

Look and feel
At first glance, you'll be hard-pressed to find a difference between the Kindle Paperwhite 3G (2013) and its predecessor. The two have identical dimensions (169x117x9.1mm). While the current model (222g) is marginally heavier than the Kindle Paperwhite 3G (2012), which weighed 215 grams, the difference is, of course, too small to notice. Similarly, the 2013 Wi-Fi-only model (213g) is 7 grams heavier than the corresponding Kindle from the year before, but all four models have the same dimensions. This means you can hang on to the covers, skins and sleeves you may have accumulated for your current Kindle Paperwhite.

The astute will observe that the 'kindle' branding just below the 6-inch screen is now in a slightly thicker font. The Micro-USB port and power button are on the bottom edge as before.

Changes at the back, however, are more prominent. The spot where the word 'kindle' was written has given way to 'amazon' in bigger and more legible letters. FCC and various other certification logos can be found towards the bottom.

Included in the pack is a Micro-USB cable, but, in typical Amazon tradition, there's no charger. You can buy the overpriced Kindle charger separately or use any standard USB charger that you might have lying around.

Improved display and processor
We have to admit that we were pretty happy with the display on the previous generation Kindle Paperwhite, so when Amazon came out claiming improvements on the new model, we were curious to see what was in store. When you set the two models side by side, the text on the 2013 Paperwhite is definitely easier to read, thanks to the better contrast ratio and the improved front-lit display. However, the change is not so significant that switching back to the previous model would be a problem.

The Kindle Paperwhite 2013 edition sitting atop its predecessor.

Similarly, in the side-by-side tests, books load significantly faster and page turns are a little bit quicker on the new Kindle Paperwhite, thanks to the improved processor. Again, while the enhancements are a nice touch, we never felt that speed was a problem on the previous model.

Software enhancements

The software changes on the Kindle Paperwhite 3G (2013) are a little more significant. Perhaps the handiest amongst these is an improved Smart Lookup feature that lets you select any word or phrase within the text of a book, and look it up in the dictionary or on Wikipedia, without leaving the page you are reading. This works similar to the Look Up feature in OS X and iOS, and comes in really handy when you stumble upon a new word or the name of an unfamiliar historical figure.

All terms that you look up are automatically added to a list called the Vocabulary Builder. You can use this list to refresh your memory at a later stage and even quiz yourself with flashcards. While we imagine this could come in handy for students, it's also useful for anyone looking to improve their vocabulary. The functionality can be disabled altogether, in case you don't want any 'embarrassing' lookups tracked.

Swiping up from the bottom of the screen brings up the new Page Flip feature that lets you view another location in the book as an overlay on the current page. You can skip to the end of the book, a specific chapter, or navigate page-by-page. Sadly, there's no way to jump quickly to custom points in the books (like your bookmarks). New inline footnotes let you read the complete text of each footnote without leaving the current position.

The new Kindle OS features integration with Goodreads, an online community of book lovers thatAmazon bought last year. You can see what your friends are reading, share highlights, rate the (physical and e)books you read (or want to read), and more. Goodreads can be invoked by tapping the 'g' icon on the top bar, but you need to sign up separately for the service.

The Kindle Paperwhite leather cover (left) is sold separately

Kindle FreeTime is another new software feature that lets parents decide which books to share with their children and set reading goals for them in the process. Kids are encouraged to get into the habit of reading with rewards such as badges, while parents can monitor their progress by tracking the total number of books read, the words looked up, and more.

Other software features unchanged from previous version(s) include the ability to have unlimited notes, highlights and bookmarks for each ebook; sharing quotes or other passages to Facebook and Twitter; the handy X-Ray that lets you zoom in on a character's biography and more; and the 'time to read' indicator that tells you how much time it will take to finish a chapter or a book based on your current reading speed.

Another handy feature is the ability to send various documents to your Kindle by emailing them to a 'secret' email address. The Kindle accepts various file formats including PDF, Microsoft Word (doc, docx), Rich Text Format (rtf), HTML files (htm, html) but not URLs, text documents (txt), archived documents (zip , x-zip), compressed archived documents, and the Mobipocket format.

Performance, 3G and battery life
Amazon claims that the touch grid on the Kindle Paperwhite 3G (2013) is 19 percent tighter, and while the touch performance has improved slightly, those used to super-sensitive touch panels like those used in smartphones and tablets will continue to be disappointed. Like before, you may have to type slower than you are used to, but that's a perfectly acceptable tradeoff given the nature of the device, especially when you will be doing relatively little typing.

The real highlight of the device of course is the battery performance, which is unchanged from before. Amazon claims that a single charge lasts up to eight weeks, based on half an hour of reading per day with wireless off and the light setting at 10. Even if you read around an hour a day, leave the wireless on, and prefer a higher brightness level, the device should last you around three weeks, which is quite remarkable.

The 3G Kindle Paperwhite (2013) is being sold at a premium of Rs. 3,000 compared to the Wi-Fi-only variant. While the Wi-Fi version definitely offers more value, the 3G comes in handy when, say, you are at a Wi-Fi-free airport and need to grab a book before getting onto your flight. 3G Kindle ebook readers of course come with pre-activated 3G that can be used in most countries across the world without any associated charges, subject to certain conditions and coverage areas. Unfortunately, the 3G access is limited to the Kindle store and in-book functionality like lookups and you cannot use it with the 'Experimental Browser', which works over Wi-Fi only.

Amazon sells ad-supported (or 'With Special Offers', as Amazon calls them) Kindle models in the US and other markets at a slight discount, but our review unit was one without special offers. If the Amazon.in listings are any indicator, all units being sold in India are 'Without Special Offers'.

Amazon offers 'over 2 million' free and paid books, newspapers and magazines in the Kindle store - including titles that are available exclusively on the Kindle - and you can pay in INR instead of USD if you have a Visa or Master Card debit or credit card issued by an Indian bank. If you are unsure about buying a title, you can download and read a sample for free before spending your money. Books you purchase can also be read on the Web, mobile and desktops using the various Kindle apps.

Each Kindle Paperwhite comes with around 1.25GB of free storage (but no free ebooks, in case you were wondering). This is enough to keep more than 1,000 books with you at any given time, which should satisfy even the biggest bibliomaniacs. Of course there's no limit on the number of titles you can buy and store in the 'cloud'.

Wrap up
The Amazon Kindle Paperwhite (2013) is clearly intended as an incremental upgrade over its predecessor. While it lacks a stand-out feature that makes it a compelling upgrade for existing Paperwhite owners, it does enough to stay ahead of the competition. The Wi-Fi version is the one to get if you are in the market for an ebook reader; go for the 3G variant if you feel like giving yourself a treat.

Price
Kindle Paperwhite (2013) Wi-Fi only: Rs. 10,999
Kindle Paperwhite (2013) Wi-Fi + 3G: Rs. 13,999
Kindle Paperwhite leather cover: Rs. 2,399

Samsung Galaxy S5 to be launched at low-key event, without QHD display: Report

2/09/2014 10:24:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

Samsung Galaxy S5 to be launched at low-key event, without QHD display: Report

Samsung's next flagship smartphone will indeed be dubbed Galaxy S5, and will be launched at the MWC event the company has scheduled, reveals a new report, which also makes some other claims that contradict previous rumours about the phone's specifications.

Eric Pfanner of the New York Times in a report has shed some plans of the South Korean major and has claimed that the Galaxy S5 unveiling will apparently be a low-key event citing an insider with knowledge of Samsung's plans.

Samsung has already sent media invites for its "UnPacked 5" event, where the company is said to unveil the next Galaxy flagship smartphone at the sidelines of MWC 2014 on February 24 in Barcelona.

According to the report, Samsung Galaxy S4's underperformance in terms of sales, despite of a flashy launch in New York last year has been a reason for the company to go for a toned-down event.

Further, the report claims that the Samsung Galaxy S5 will come with design upgrades and other enhancements in the camera and processor department. Contradicting earlier reports that have been claiming that the Galaxy S5 will sport a Quad HD display, Pfanner claims that the device will not feature such a display and also claims that no eye-scanner feature will be introduced by Samsung.

The Galaxy S5 is also said to feature upgraded Knox security software which is expected to be targeted for business users. However, a recent report suggested that BlackBerry Enterprise Service is safer than Samsung Knox software.

In addition, the report notes that Samsung can showcase the Galaxy Gear successor along with Galaxy S5 at MWC, something we've heard previously, from a Samsung VP. Earlier reports had suggested that Samsung has been busy developing the successor to the Galaxy Gear smartwatch, which is said to be 15 to 20 percent thinner than the current smartwatch. As of now, there is no word on specifications of the rumoured Galaxy Gear smartwatch.

Rumoured specifications of the Galaxy S5 include a 5.24-inch AMOLED screen with a QHD (2560 x 1440 pixels) resolution; two storage variants- 32GB/64GB; two processor variants - Exynos 6 and Snapdragon 805, and a 3200mAh battery. The optics rumoured for the Galaxy S5 include a 16-megapixel rear camera, and a 3.2-megapixel front-facing shooter. The Galaxy S5 is widely expected to feature the fingerprint scanner which is said to be integrated into the device's display panel.

Sony announces sale of Vaio PC business to Japanese investment fund

2/09/2014 10:23:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

Sony announces sale of Vaio PC business to Japanese investment fund

Sony on Thursday drastically slashed its full-year earnings forecast, saying it would lose about $1.08 billion as the Japanese consumer electronics giant announced it was exiting the personal computer business.

The firm, which said it earned 11.17 billion yen ($110 million) in the nine-months to December but would lose 110 billion yen over the full fiscal year, announced it would sell the unit under the Vaio brand to a Japanese investment fund.

The shock announcement reverses Sony's previous outlook which was for a 30 billion yen net profit in the year to March.

The company blamed the poor outlook on a declining business and planned assets sales "which were reconsidered", as well as some losses in its games business which were not included in the earlier forecast.

Sony also said it would sell its struggling PC business to Japan Industrial Partners (JIP).

(Also see: Sony in talks to sell Vaio PC business to investment fund: Report)

It did not disclose financial details, but Japanese media have reported that the deal was worth between 40 billion yen and 50 billion yen.

Citing "drastic changes" in the global PC market, Sony said it had decided to "concentrate its mobile product lineup on smartphones and tablets and to transfer its PC business to a new company established by JIP that will enable (its) continuation".

The firm would "cease planning, design and development of PC products", it added.

"Sony's manufacturing and sales will be discontinued after the Spring 2014 lineup."

(Also see: As Sony prepares PCs exit, pressure mounts for reboot on TVs)

Sony on Thursday said it would cut 5,000 jobs from its workforce, saving more than $1.0 billion annually as the Japanese electronics giant undergoes a painful restructuring.

The job losses about 1,500 in Japan and 3,500 overseas were tied to an overhaul of its television unit and the sale of its personal computer business, it said.

Sochi Google doodle quotes the Olympic Charter in support of gay rights

2/09/2014 10:21:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

Sochi Google doodle quotes the Olympic Charter in support of gay rights

Google has placed a rainbow version of its logo on its search page, increasing pressure on President Vladimir Putin over Russia's "gay propaganda" law at the Sochi Winter Olympics.

The page now shows a winter sports competitor above each of the six letters in the U.S. Internet giant's name, set against backgrounds in the six colours on the gay pride flag - red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple.

The page also includes a quote from the Olympic charter underlining the right to practise sport without discrimination.

"The practice of sport is a human right. Every individual must have the possibility of practicing sport, without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play," it says.

Google Inc. did not immediately comment.

The international outcry over the law, signed by Putin last year, threatens to undermine his hopes of using the Games to portray Russia as a modern state that has come a long way since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.

Putin says the legislation, banning gay propaganda among minors, is needed to protect young people. Critics says it fosters a climate of discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) groups.

Telecoms company AT&T, a sponsor of the U.S. Olympic team, criticised Russia this week over the law, increasing pressure on other companies to speak out.

The Human Rights Campaign, an LGBT rights organisation, praised Google for what it called a move to show solidarity with LGBT Russians and visiting athletes.

"Google has once again proven itself to be a true corporate leader for equality," HRC President Chad Griffin said.

"Alongside Olympic sponsors like AT&T, Google has made a clear and unequivocal statement that Russia's anti-LGBT discrimination is indefensible. Now it's time for each and every remaining Olympic sponsor to follow their lead. The clock is ticking, and the world is watching."

Pressure on sponsors
Companies including McDonald's, Coca-Cola and Procter & Gamble pay around $100 million each for rights to sponsor the Olympics over a four-year period and want to tap into a feel-good atmosphere during the Games.

These companies are also facing pressure to speak out over the "gay propaganda" law.

"These brands have spent millions to align themselves with the Olympics, but have repeatedly refused to support the founding principles of the Games," Andre Banks, one of the founders of gay rights group All Out, said earlier this week.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned sexual discrimination and attacks on homosexuals in a speech to the International Olympic Committee in Sochi on Thursday which also drew attention to Russia's record on gay rights.

Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak said shortly afterwards in Sochi that there would be no discrimination at the Games, due to open later on Friday.

"We're all grown-ups and every adult has the right to understand their sexuality," Kozak said. But, echoing a remark by Putin, he added: "Please do not touch kids."

LG G Flex with 6-inch curved display launched in India at Rs. 69,999

2/09/2014 10:20:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

LG G Flex with 6-inch curved display launched in India at Rs. 69,999

LG has finally announced the launch of its much-awaited G Flex curved display smartphone in India, at Rs. 69,999. The South Korean major has confirmed that the LG G Flex will be hitting the Indian stores starting Thursday.

In early February, LG had listed the G Flex smartphone on the company's official India site with the same price, and no availability.

Notably, the LG G Flex with a whopping price of Rs. 69,999 has become one of most costly smartphones available in the Indian market leaving behind the Apple iPhone 5s, Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and HTC One Max.

Back in December 2013, along with the launch of the LG 55EA9800 55-inch curved OLED television in India, the Korean consumer electronics giant had announced the G Flex for the country, and given a tentative February 2014 launch date.

LG launched its first curved display smartphone in October last year with much fanfare, and it was rolled out only in South Korea initially.

The Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean-based G Flex is powered by a quad-core 2.26GHz Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974) processor with an Adreno 330 GPU, and 2GB of RAM. It features a 13-megapixel rear camera, and a 2.1-megapixel front-facing camera. The G Flex is powered by a 3,500mAh battery, weighs 177 grams, and is 7.9mm at its thinnest, while being 8.7mm at its thickest.

As for the 6-inch curved display, LG has used a curved OLED panel, which is also built on plastic substrates instead of glass, supposedly giving the phone better durability. The display features Real RGB technology to provide all three sub-pixels in one pixel, thereby making it "brighter and more precise."

LG has also included a new 'self-healing' coating on the back cover, an elastic coating that supposedly has the ability to "recover from the daily wear-and-tear scratches and nicks that un-cased smartphones are likely to receive." The LG G Flex's self-healing capabilities have also been creating a buzz worldwide.

Commenting on the announcement, Soon Kwon, MD, LG India said, "Curved flexible displays are a groundbreaking technology that enhances consumers' viewing experience by many degrees. LG's latest offering G Flex combines innovation and technology along with sleek, curved design that not only delivers a more comfortable grip and fit, but offers better voice and sound quality. G Flex represents a new era in the smartphone space where curved and flexible displays are no longer a sci-fi fantasy."

Mobiles launched in February 2014

LG G Flex

Display

6.00-inch

Processor

2.2GHz

Front Camera

2.1-megapixel

Resolution

720x1280 pixels

RAM

2GB

OS

Android 4.2

Storage

32GB

Rear Camera

13-megapixel

Battery capacity

3500mAh

See full LG G Flex specifications

BBM for Android and iOS updated to bring Find Friends feature

2/09/2014 10:07:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

BBM for Android and iOS updated to bring Find Friends feature

BlackBerry has released an update for BlackBerry Messenger, or BBM for Android and iOS that brings the Find Friends feature.

The BBM update for Android and iOS (iPhone) gets the Find Friends feature that can search a smartphone's contact list and find people who are already using the BBM app. The Find Friends feature also allows users to send people an invite to join the BBM contact list. Notably, the new feature on BBM for Android and iOS also allows users to send an invite to people who are not on BBM app via an email or SMS.

Jeff Gadway, head of product and brand marketing for BBM notes on official blog post, "We know how important it is for you to connect with your closest friends, family and colleagues. With this update, we've made it easier to find and invite them quickly and easily. You're always in control of your contact lists."

The blog post further writes that the new BBM app update might take over 24 hours to show up. For those unaware, the BBM app allows users to exchange texts, voice notes and pictures with friends and others. It also offers group chat. Users need to sign-in with a BlackBerry ID following which a PIN is allocated to them, in a manner similar to BlackBerry Messenger on BlackBerry. Users can then add friends by sharing their PIN with friends via SMS, email and social networks in addition to QR codes.

Recently, the popular Canadian smartphone brand confirmed that BBM for Android-powered handsets running the OS version 2.3 Gingerbread will be rolled out in February. The messaging service was earlier only available for devices running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich or higher.

It has been previously reported that as early as February, BlackBerry may introduce the missing BBM Voice and BBM Channels features on both the Android and iOS platforms.

Additionally, the Canadian mobile maker revealed recently that it does not have plans to launch the popular BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) app on Windows Phone-based smartphones.

Oppo Neo with Android 4.2, dual-core processor launched at Rs. 11,990

2/09/2014 10:05:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

Oppo Neo with Android 4.2, dual-core processor launched at Rs. 11,990

Oppo has launched its budget smartphone, the Neo, in India at Rs. 11,990. The company has not revealed the availability details of the Oppo Neo for the Indian market, but notes that the smartphone will be soon available.

Oppo had announced the Neo smartphone in January via the Chinese firm's Indonesian branch.

The Oppo Neo was launched in two variants: single SIM and dual-SIM, however, the Chinese smartphone maker has only released the dual-SIM variant in India. The Oppo Neo runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean with company's ColorOS UI running on top.

The smartphone features a 4.5-inch IPS LCD display, which is able to detect touch input even when the user operates while wearing gloves. The screen features a low (FWVGA) 854 x 480 pixel resolution paired with a pixel density of 217ppi.

The Oppo Neo is powered by a 1.3GHz dual-core processor (unspecified chipset) along with 512MB of RAM. The smartphone sports a 5-megapixel rear camera and also houses a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. The Oppo Neo comes with 4GB inbuilt storage, which is further expandable up to 32GB via microSD card. It packs a 1900mAh battery, with no word on talktime and standby time. The smartphone measures 132 x 65.8 x 9.2mm, and weighs 130 grams.

Recently, Oppo entered the Indian market with the launch of its flagship smartphone, the N1 (16GB) at Rs. 39,999.

The Oppo N1 runs ColorOS which is Oppo's proprietary UI-based on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean out-of-the-box. Specifications on the Oppo N1 include a 5.9-inch full-HD (1080p) IPS display with 1080x1920 pixels resolution and 377ppi pixel density, 1.7GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 processor, 2GB of RAM, and 16GB and 32GB of inbuilt storage.

The N1 sports a 13-megapixel camera with dual-LED flash, which is the device's major highlight, as the camera can rotate up to 206 degrees, and can lock at any angle. Connectivity options on the device include USB OTG, Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, GPS, NFC and 3G. It packs a 3610mAh battery.

Mobiles launched in February 2014