Monday, 7 April 2014

The strongest case yet for a bigger iPhone 6... made by Apple itself

4/07/2014 11:13:00 pm TECHNOLOGY 1 comment

The strongest case yet for a bigger iPhone 6... made by Apple itself

One of the fallouts of Apple's seemingly endless legal battle with Samsung - which is in round two (or round we-have-lost-count, depending upon how you look at it) - has been the wealth of otherwise confidential documents and emails becoming available in the public domain, thanks to the discovery process. The latest document - an internal Apple presentation titled FY'14 Planning Offsite - gives the clearest indication yet that Apple is ready to offer an iPhone with a display bigger than the 4-inch screen seen on the iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, and iPhone 5s.

The slide (pictured above) notes that the between 2011 and 2012, the overall smartphone market grew by 228 million units. Out of these, the slide adds, a majority of the growth (159 million units) came from smartphones carrying a sub-$300 price tag, while the 'over-$300, display bigger than 4-inches' segment accounted for a growth of 91 million units. Sales of smartphones in the 'over-$300, 4-inches or less' segment actually shrank by 22 million units between the two years, the slide notes.

It's worth pointing out that all of Apple's smartphone offerings till date, lie in the last segment, the one that actually reduced in size. As is clear from Apple's own documents, to remain competitive in the smartphone market, Apple has two choices - one is to make a sub-$300 smartphone, and the second is to make an iPhone that is bigger than anything it's built till date, while maintaining its ~$650 price tag.

Based on everything Apple has done till date, it's safe to say Apple has no interest in slugging it out in the sub-$300 segment, and it will instead focus its energies on building a bigger iPhone. This internal slide further underlines the chatter we've been hearing about the iPhone 6 coming in 4.7- and 5.5-inch screen sizes.

Apple Fy 14 Planning

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Samsung Galaxy S5's anti-theft features praised

4/07/2014 11:10:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

Samsung Galaxy S5's anti-theft features praised

A move by Samsung to include free anti-theft features on its Galaxy S5 smartphones sold by Verizon Wireless and U.S. Cellular won praise on Friday by two U.S. members of an international coalition aimed at combating robberies involving smartphones.

The new features allow Samsung Galaxy S5 users to track devices and require the owner's account information to reset the phone. The features, Find My Mobile, and Reactivation Lock, will come installed in the phones but must be activated by users.

"The decision ... to provide Samsung's Find My Mobile and Reactivation Lock features on Galaxy S5 smartphones and to allow those features to be activated for free is a step forward in our effort to ensure the industry makes effective theft deterrents available on every smartphone sold in America," New York's attorney general, Eric Schneiderman, and San Francisco's district attorney, George Gascon, said in a statement.

(Also see: Samsung Galaxy S5: 10 big new features)

Schneiderman and Gascon, along with London Mayor Boris Johnson, are co-chairs of the coalition Secure Our Smartphone Initiative.

They said, however, that they remain "concerned that consumers will need to opt in to the system, thereby limiting the ubiquity and effectiveness of the solution."

Both Schneiderman and Gascon have criticized the cellphone industry for what they say is a perceived unwillingness to solve an escalating theft problem.

Schneiderman has publicly supported bills currently in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate that would require a kill switch to be installed in every smartphone manufactured in the United States. The switch would prevent the phone from being re-activated in the black market.

In 2012, 1.6 million Americans were victimized for their smartphones, according to Schneiderman's office.

© Thomson Reuters 2014

Samsung Galaxy S5

Display

5.10-inch

Processor

1.9GHz

Front Camera

2.1-megapixel

Resolution

1080x1920 pixels

RAM

2GB

OS

Android 4.4.2

Storage

16GB

Rear Camera

16-megapixel

Battery capacity

2800mAh

See full Samsung Galaxy S5 specifications

Flipkart introduces exchange scheme on Moto G purchase, offers Rs. 2,000 discount

4/07/2014 11:09:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

Flipkart introduces exchange scheme on Moto G purchase, offers Rs. 2,000 discount

If you wish to exchange your existing phone for a Moto G, you might just be in luck.

Flipkart, the exclusive online partner of Motorola, has introduced new 'exchange your old phone' offer under which customers can get Rs. 2,000 discount on the purchase of the Moto G smartphone in exchange of select old phones. With the exchange offer, the Rs. 12,499 (8GB) and Rs. 13,999 (16GB) price tags on the Moto G get reduced to Rs. 10,499 and Rs. 11,999 respectively.

Some popular phones that can be used for the exchange offer for buying the Moto G includes theBlackBerry Curve 9320, Nokia Lumia 920, Nokia Lumia 520, Samsung Galaxy S III, Samsung Galaxy S4 mini, Sony Xperia Z1, Sony Xperia Z Ultra, Micromax Canvas 4, Micromax Canvas Doodle 2, HTC 8X, and HTC One S. The list also includes the Apple iPhone 5 and iPhone 4S. Consumers can check their old phone's eligibility on the Moto G listing on Flipkart. The online retailer also notes that consumers will be charged Rs. 50 for picking up the old phone, which would differ according to the location.

Flipkart has laid a few conditions for the 'exchange your old phone' offer for the Moto G. The old phone that you wish to exchange should be in a working condition.

In February, Motorola launched the Moto G dual-SIM phone in 8GB and 16GB storage variants at Rs. 12,499 and Rs. 13,999 respectively.

Within few weeks after the successful launch of budget smartphone Moto G (Review) in the country, the former Google-owned company unveiled the Moto X, also exclusively available via Flipkart.

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

India scrambles to avert court summons for Samsung boss: Reports

4/07/2014 11:08:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

India scrambles to avert court summons for Samsung boss: Reports

India's government is scrambling to prevent the boss of South Korea's Samsung Electronics from being forced to appear in an Indian court on criminal charges over a $1.4-million payment dispute, reports said Friday.

The Supreme Court ordered Lee Kun-Hee, South Korea's richest man, to appear in a local court within six weeks to answer fraud and other criminal charges stemming from the dispute or face arrest if he steps onto Indian soil.

New Delhi-based JCE Consultancy alleges Samsung "cheated" the Indian company out of $1.4 million by failing to pay a bill dating from a 2001-02 transaction and names Lee as among the accused.

The case has been dragging through India's notoriously slow legal system since it was initially filed in 2005.

The Indian government fears the legal case against Samsung could aggravate bilateral commercial ties already strained by delays involving a giant South Korean steel project in India.

"It (the situation) is very unfortunate in our view. Samsung is a major player in India and we want them to continue to expand and invest in the country," Amitabh Kant, secretary in India's industrial policy department, told the Economic Times newspaper.

The external affairs and commerce ministries are discussing ways to resolve the matter amicably by approaching the Supreme Court with alternative options, the media reports said, quoting senior government officials.

"The Supreme Court order may have an adverse impact on India's manufacturing and investment climate. We will explore how best we can ensure that India's investment climate is not affected," Kant added said.

The government fears the summons to Lee, who has an estimated net worth of $11.2 billion, could prove another blow to South Korean giant Posco's steel project in the impoverished eastern state of Orissa, the reports said.

The $12-billion Posco project the biggest foreign investment in India has become emblematic of difficulties facing overseas companies in starting up businesses in India.

The project has yet to start work since being announced nine years ago, after being dogged by environmental, regulatory and land acquisition issues.

The Business Standard newspaper quoted a senior unnamed Indian government official as saying Seoul has "threatened to stop all investments coming into India".

Samsung said in a statement Wednesday that Lee had no connection with the case, which the company said involved a "multi-million dollar fraud scheme" perpetrated against a Dubai subsidiary.

In its ruling, the Supreme Court made no comment on the merits of the case.

Indian courts have a history of summoning top executives who are deemed responsible for alleged offences because of their seniority in their firms.

Samsung Gear Fit, Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo now officially available in India

4/07/2014 11:07:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

Samsung Gear Fit, Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo now officially available in India

The Samsung Gear Fit fitness band, alongside the Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo smartwatches, is now officially available online in India, ahead of the wearable devices' announced April 11 release date.

The Samsung Gear Fit and Gear 2 Neo are listed carrying an identical price tag of Rs. 15,450, lower than the official launch price of Rs. 15,900. The Samsung Gear 2, which is the successor to the company's first smartwatch, has been listed at Rs. 21,550, thought it was also launched at a higher price of Rs. 21,900.

As of now, there is no word on the lower price tag of the three Samsung wearables, but we can expect this to be a limited period offer for the first few consumers. The official Samsung store notes that the Gear Fit, Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo will be delivered in three to five business days.

Notably, Samsung launched the Gear Fit, Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo, alongside the flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S5 in late March for the Indian market.

Samsung globally showcased the new wearable devices at the Samsung unPacked 5 event during MWC 2014, where it also showcased the Galaxy S5, Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo.

Samsung's Gear Fit is the "world's first" wearable device with a curved Super AMOLED touch display and is a fitness band.

The Samsung Gear Fit is smaller and lighter than the Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo smartwatches, and is focused on health. It features a 1.84-inch Super AMOLED display with a 432 x 128 pixel resolution. The Gear Fit comes with a pedometer, heart rate monitor, and a sleep monitor. Other built-in functions include a fitness app, exercise mode, stopwatch, timer, schedule, smart relay, media controller. Additionally, the users will get active notification alerts for SMS, calls, e-mail and apps on the Gear Fit.

A 210mAh battery powers the Samsung Gear Fit, which gives a typical usage of 3 to 4 days and up to 5 days with low usage. The device measures in at 23.4 x 57.4 x 11.95 mm (body only) and weighs 27 grams.

The Samsung Gear 2 on the other hand, features a 1.63-inch Super AMOLED display, a 2-megapixel autofocus camera and sports a metal body. The Gear 2 comes is dust and water resistant (IP67 certified). Other features include accelerometer, gyroscope, heart rate sensor, IrLED and Bluetooth 4.0 LE.

The new Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo will have a heart rate sensor, a pedometer and various tools to measure exercise, sleep and stress levels. Notably, the Samsung Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo are based on Tizen OS, instead of Android.

The Samsung Gear 2 Neo, much like Gear 2 features a 1.63-inch Super AMOLED display. Although does not come with a camera. It is dust and water resistant (IP67 certified) and includes accelerometer, gyroscope, heart rate sensor and various tools to measure exercise, sleep and stress levels. The company rates that with typical use the Gear 2 Neo can last up to 6 days and also comes with Bluetooth 4.0 LE.

Lava Iris Pro 20 with 4.7-inch qHD display launched at Rs. 13,999

4/07/2014 11:06:00 pm TECHNOLOGY No comments

Lava Iris Pro 20 with 4.7-inch qHD display launched at Rs. 13,999

Lava, expanding its Iris Pro series, has launched Iris Pro 20 smartphone at Rs. 13,999. The domestic handset maker has announced that the Lava Iris Pro 20 will be available soon across various online and physical stores.

Notably, the Iris Pro 20 joins the Lava's Iris Pro 30, which was launched in January.

The Lava Iris Pro 20, much like the Iris Pro 30, is a dual-SIM (GSM+GSM) device and supports one regular SIM size, alongside one Micro-SIM. It runs dated Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, with no word on a software update.

It comes with a 5-inch (540x960 pixels) qHD IPS display and OGS (One Glass Solution). The Lava Iris Pro 20 is powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core processor (unspecified chipset) with 1GB of RAM.

The Iris Pro 20 comes with 4GB of inbuilt storage, which is further expandable up to 32GB via microSD. It sports an 8-megapixel rear camera with dual LED flash, while there is a secondary 0.3-megapixel front-facing camera.

On the connectivity front, the Iris Pro 20 includes GPRS/EDGE, 3G, Wi-Fi, Micro-USB, and Bluetooth. The smartphone packs a 2000mAh battery, which according to the company can deliver up to 7.5 hours of talktime and up to 400 hours of standby time. The Iris Pro 20 measures 138x67.5x7.7mm and weighs 120 grams. It is available in Dark Blue colour.

Commenting on the launch, Hari Om Rai, Chairman and Managing Director, Lava International Ltd said, "With the tremendous response that we received after the launch of Iris Pro 30, we are now launching another product in this series to address similar needs at a different price point. The premiumness of Iris Pro 20 extends itself beautifully from Iris Pro 30 and we believe that the product will deliver an unmatched experience to consumers who want a combination of exquisite beauty and unmatched functionality."

Earlier, Lava launched the Iris 550Q at a price of Rs. 13,000. The Android 4.2 Jelly Bean-based Lava Iris 550Q phablet will be available in Black colour variant. The company has claimed that the new phablet is upgradable via FOTA (firmware over the air).

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