HTC One X+ specs : rumoured

Rumours of the HTC One X+ have once again surfaced. An image purportedly of the HTC One X+ made an appearance on the web, showing complete specs and pricing. According to reports, the One X+ has notable bump in specs as compared to the original HTC One X.

GSM Arena in its report says the HTC One X+ will have a faster quad-core CPU, clocked at 1.7GHz along with 64 GB built-in storage. Running on the latest Android version 4.1, Jelly Bean, the One X+ will come with 25GB of Dropbox storage. Other specifications include 8MP rear camera and Beats Audio integration. The One X+ has been priced £479.99 for the U.K. The device is however expected to be priced much lesser in Asian markets. Here's the alleged image of the One X+ spotted in brochure for UK's wireless carrier O2:

Earlier rumours had suggested the device would feature a 5-inch HD display, taking on the likes of the Samsung Galaxy Note II. Read our previous coverage on the HTC One X+ here. Also check out the specs of the One X+ that had leaked on Twitter:

Source:- ThinkDigit

Nokia Lumia 920 pricing revealed; higher than the Samsung Galaxy S III

Pricing for the soon to be released Nokia Lumia 920 smartphone has been revealed for the selected European markets. The company published the pricing data on its local websites on Thursday, with Lumia being cheaper than the Apple's iPhone 5, but more expensive than Samsung's Galaxy S III smartphone.

The Nokia Lumia 920 32GB variant will be sold at around 5,700 Swedish Crowns, which is around Rs. 46,116. It's notable the 16GB Samsung Galaxy S III in the country is around 4,515 Crowns, while the 32GB iPhone 5 is due to sell 6,995 Crowns.

In Italy, the Lumia 920 has been priced at 599 Euros (Rs. 40,925 approximately), against the 16GB Samsung S III's 529 Euros. In Germany, the Nokia Lumia 920 for 649 Euros (Rs. 44,352 approx.). It sells the iPhone for 820 Euros, the 32GB Galaxy S III for 740 Euros and the 16GB Galaxy for 530 Euros.

Nokia has pinned its turnaround hopes on its new Lumia series smartphones, featuring Windows Phone 8. However, experts believe the high pricing for the Windows Phone 8-based Nokia Lumia 920 could jeopardise the company's efforts to catch up with the competitors. Experts suggest the pricing of the Lumia 920, which is 10 to 25 percent higher than Samsung's Galaxy S III, also risks a consumer backlash.

Reuters quoted Ovum analyst, Nick Dillon elaborating: "Hardware-wise they are pretty similar, it would be hard for Nokia to justify that extra cost to consumers. Windows Phone is still largely an unknown to consumers - they would probably expect to pay less if they are taking a risk."

"Nokia will find it difficult to command a premium over Samsung's Galaxy S III which is the pricing benchmark for a non-Apple flagship smartphone," says Ben Wood, head of research at British consultancy CCS Insight.

The pricing of the Lumia 920 puts the device in direct competition against high-end smartphones such as the iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy S III. However, the S III has been in the market for quite sometime now, while the iPhone 5 will be rolling out in different markets very soon.

As far as the Indian market goes, the high-end devices like the Samsung Galaxy S III, Galaxy S II, HTC One X and Apple's iPhone 4S are priced between Rs. 30,000 Rs. 45,000. If reports are to believed, the iPhone 5 will also fall under the same price range. The Indian market has been traditionally price sensitive, even for the premium devices. Nokia, on the other hand, has a reputation of giving out affordable devices to the Indian consumers. However, it is a little unlikely that the Indian consumers will be willing to shell out more money the Lumia series, unless the Windows Phone 8 platform proves to much more compelling than Android and iOS.



Source:- Reuters

HP Spectre XT launches in India for Rs. 64,990

HP has announced the launch of the Spectre XT in India. This is the latest ultrabook to arrive in the market, and is positioned as the “ultramobile premium ultrabook”, and joins HP’s Folio and Envy series ultrabooks in the market. The Spectre XT will be available in various versions, with prices starting at Rs 64,990. As expected, the latest gen Intel processors power this ultrabook. With Ivy Bridge on-board, you automatically get the Smart Connect feature that allows email updates and sync even while the ultrabook may be in Sleep mode.

HP's new Spectre XT has a 13.3-inch display, and is pretty thin at just 0.57 inches. Users will get the option of either buying one with a HDD + an mSATA for caching, or completely go the Solid State Drive way. Backlit keyboards are optional as well. HP’s CoolSense technology is implemented on the machine, along with the Beats Audio engine.

The Spectre XT will come preloaded with a 2-year version of Norton Internet Security, Intel Identity protection as well as full versions of Adode Photoshop Elements 10 and Adobe Premiere Elements 10.


Source:- ThinkDigit

Samsung Galaxy Note 2 launched in India at Rs. 39,990

Samsung has launched the Galaxy Note II in India today at an event in Hyderabad, shortly after the phablet’s Korea debut yesterday. Priced at Rs. 39,990, the Samsung Galaxy Note II will be available on store shelves from next week, and is already up for pre-order on Samsung’s India eStore.

Some of the key specs of the Galaxy Note 2 are:- 

• 5.5-inch Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 1280x720 pixels (16:9)
• 1.6GHz Exynos 4412 Quad processor
• Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
• 2GB of RAM
• 8MP autofocus rear camera with LED flash
• 1.9MP front facing camera
• Available at 16/32/64GB – the Rs. 39,990 pricing is for the 16GB version.
• 3,100mAh battery

Samsung has maintained the S Pen stylus from the original Galaxy Note and its core functionality still remains the same as its predecessor. Pulling out the S Pen stylus from its housing and Popup Note loads on the device for quickly jotting down reminders. Stay tuned for our detailed hands-on of the device, at the launch event.

Sony Xperia Tipo launches in India

Sony India has announced the launch of the Xperia Tipo in the country, the company's latest budget Android phone. The Tipo will be available in two versions – single SIM and dual SIM. The price of the single SIM version is Rs. 9,999, while the Tipo Dual (dual SIM version) is priced at Rs. 10,499.

Some of the key specs of the Xperia Tipo are:- 

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 800MHz
• Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) 
• 3.2-inch display
• 1500mAh battery 
• Expandable memory up to 32GB
• Box.net will offer free 50GB storage on the cloud

Additionally, Vodafone users will get 500MB free data usage on 3G for three months. The Tipo will be available in four colours – white, black, blue and red.

Idea introduces Aurus 3G dual-SIM Android phone at Rs.7,190

Idea Cellular has announced the launch of a new 3G smartphone called 'Idea Aurus'. Priced at Rs. 7,190, the Idea Aurus features dual-SIM (GSM + GSM) support, and has a 3.5-inch screen. Idea Cellular is also offering data and voice calls worth up to Rs. 2,300 bundled with the new smartphone.

The Idea Aurus runs on Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread operating system and is powered by an 800 MHz processor. It has a 3.5-inch capacitive multi-touch display with 320x480 pixels resolution and sports a 5MP rear camera, aparr from a VGA camera for video calling.

Other features include 256MB of RAM, microSD card slot that supports up to 32GB storage, 4GB microSD card bundled, and a 1,300mAh battery. For connectivity, the Aurus supports GPS, 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, EDGE and GPRS.

The Idea Aurus features a wide gamut of preloaded apps including Idea App Mall (Idea's app store), Android Manager, YouTube and other social networking apps such as Facebook, Twitter and Orkut.

As said before, Idea is offering benefits worth Rs. 2,300 bundled (in terms of data and voice calls) for Aurus customers. For prepaid subscribers, Idea is offering 10 minutes of free calls every day for 90 days with recharge of Rs. 259/269. Moreover, users will get 2GB of data and Idea TV service subscription free for three months. On exceeding the given 2GB limit, users will be charged 5p per 10KB.

For prepaid users, Idea is offering 2GB of data free for three months on a plan of Rs. 260. Post paid users are also given a discount of Rs. 100 on voice calls per month along with free Idea TV subscription for three months.

Idea says deep-rooted mobile networks and availability of affordable smartphones are making acceptance and adoption of 3G services faster in tier 2 & 3 towns. “The new Aurus will offer key 3G features like Video calling which will be a new experience for users of all age groups, especially the youth and working professionals, who want to own high-end, feature rich smartphones but find them unaffordable,” says Sashi Shankar, Chief Marketing Officer, Idea Cellular.


Source:- ThinkDigit

Nokia unveils two new touch phones, Asha 308 and Asha 309

Nokia has unveiled the Asha 308 and Asha 309, the latest additions to the Asha Touch family of mobile devices.

The Asha 308 is a dual-SIM phone where as the Asha 309 is a single-SIM phone. To enhance the browsing experience on these devices, Nokia has released a new version of Nokia Xpress Browser, which Nokia claims enables up to 90 percent more efficient mobile browsing and faster access to web applications compared to conventional browsers.

Nokia Asha 308

Both the Asha 308 and the Asha 309 offer a fluid 'swipe' user interface and an open environment for third-party application development. We have seen the fluid ‘swipe’ interface before when Nokia unveiled the Asha 305 and the Asha 311. You can read more about the Nokia Asha 305 and 311 here.

"Our innovative Asha Touch family of devices is designed for people who want a great smartphone experience with lower running costs," says Timo Toikkanen, executive vice president, Mobile Phones, Nokia. "By introducing the Nokia Asha 308 and Nokia Asha 309, we're expanding our affordable smartphone lineup and bringing new mobile experiences to more people."

Nokia estimates the retail price for the Nokia Asha 308 and Nokia Asha 309 to be about $99 (Rs. 5,300 approx.), excluding taxes and subsidies, with shipping expected to start in the fourth quarter of 2012.  Nokia claims that the Asha 308 and Asha 309 are the company's most affordable capacitive touchscreen devices to date.

Nokia Asha 309

The Asha 308 and Asha 309 are 2G-enabled devices, each featuring a 3.0-inch WQVGA capacitive display, multiple home screens, Wi-Fi, stereo radio, loud speakers and up to 32GB microSD card support. The Nokia Asha 308 is a features Nokia's Easy Swap technology, meaning one SIM card is hot swappable and you don't need to switch off the device to change the SIM card.

The phones also come with the free gift of 40 premium EA games, social features such as standalone Facebook and Twitter clients, Nokia Messaging Service, and video streaming through the browser from sites like YouTube. We have seen the 40 free EA games bundle when the Asha 305 and the Asha 311 were launched in India.

Nokia has also introduced Nokia Life+. The Nokia Life+ web app will give users access to content that spans education, health and infotainment. Nokia Life+ is available in English across 18 countries, with local versions coming to India, China and Indonesia in the fourth quarter of this year. Nokia Life+ can be accessed through Nokia Xpress Browser or the Nokia Store on the Asha touch phones.


Source:- ThinkDigit

Fujitsu launches LIFEBOOK U772 ultrabook at Rs. 75,900

Fujitsu has announced the launch of a new ultrabook called LIFEBOOK U772. The company says its new ultrabook is mainly aimed at business professionals and appeal employees, who are now able to choose their own computer because of “Bring Your Own Device” initiatives in the corporate workplace. The Fujitsu LIFEBOOK U772 is priced at Rs. 75,900.

Fujitsu's new LIFEBOOK U772 has a 14-inch display, measures 16mm and weighs 1.4kg. The LIFEBOOK U772 comes with a red or silver shell and frameless display. The LIFEBOOK U772 notebook is secured by Advanced Theft Protection technology with Intel Anti-Theft and Absolute Computrace features, making it possible to remotely locate a lost or stolen device, and to copy or delete data remotely.

The LIFEBOOK U772 offers optional built-in 3G/UMTS or 4G/LTE support. “Thanks to Anytime USB Charge functionality there is no need to leave a Fujitsu Ultrabook running overnight just to power-up mobile devices such as smartphones. Charging via USB ports is possible even when the notebook is switched off or in standby mode,” says Fujitsu in a release. Find out full specifications of the Fujitsu LIFEBOOK U772 ultrabook here.

How to open two VLC at the same time

To open two VLC media players at the same time, follow these steps: 

• Open VLC. Go to Tools -> Preferences (Shortcut key - Ctrl + P)
• In the bottom left corner, you will see 'Show Settings' tab. Select 'All' ( see the image below)
• Choose the 'Advance; option from the menu at the left.( see the image below)

• Under the 'Performance Options', remove the tick from 'One instance when started from file'.( see the image above)
• Click Save and now you can open two VLCs at the same time

EBay redesigns logo

EBay Inc executive Devin Wenig unveiled a new logo on Thursday, a re-design he said reflected a shift by the online marketplace away from auctions and collectibles toward full-priced, buy-it-now merchandise.

The new logo keeps eBay's famous colors, red, blue, yellow and green, but the letters are thinner and arranged inline, rather than the previous, slightly jumbled approach.The new design will be rolled out across the company's websites this fall.

"The eBay logo is known the world over, so changing it was not a decision made lightly. The time felt right," Wenig, president of eBay Global Marketplaces, wrote in an email to employees.

EBay is focusing more on new, fixed-priced sales as it tries to compete better with Amazon.com Inc, which has been growing faster. Wenig said the new logo reflects this new direction.

"It's eBay today: a global online marketplace that offers a cleaner, more contemporary and consistent experience," he wrote.

"Auction-style listings, used goods, vintage items and quirky, one-of-a-kind finds are still a big part of what makes buying and selling on eBay special," Wenig added. "But we've evolved a lot in the past few years, and eBay is much more than auction-style listings today."


Source:- Tech2 and Reuters

Cable TV Digitisation: 2 minute blackout on TV from today till Sunday

Starting today till Sunday, four metros - Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai, will have to brace themselves for a two-minute blackout on television, as broadcasters make attempts to convince viewers to make the switch to digital signal before the pre-set deadline. The Times of India now reports that on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, all broadcasters will switch off transmission, at the same time at 7:58 pm, 8:58 pm and 9:58 pm to make way for an advertisement in both Hindi and English.  

The 30-second advertisement that will play across channels, will essentially remind viewers across the four metros to install a set-top box before the deadline, or just forego the idea of viewing television. The report confirms further that the advertisement will end with a brief warning in English, “Go digital or go blank”, and in Hindi, “Set top box lagayein ya TV bhool jayein".

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Bharti Airtel announces voice-based navigation service, SmartDrive

Telecom giant Bharti Airtel has announced the launch of its navigation service called SmartDrive. The navigation service, only available for Airtel customers, features voice-based turn by turn navigation, real time information update on traffic, and also lets users see their location on the map and plan the journey accordingly.

Airtel's SmartDrive app features information about restaurants, theatres and shopping malls. Along with turn by turn voice navigation, SmartDrive also gives an approximate time of the travel, on the basis of the traffic situation on the various routes. Airtel says its app calculates the traffic on the basis of the number of GPS devices used on a particular road, their average speed, as well as historical trends of traffic on that route.

The SmartDrive app also has a 'Trip recorder' feature, which allows users to record their trips for later reference. There's also Wikipedia information of places. Users can add frequently visited location to their favorites. Weather information about the place is also available.

Airtel's SmartDrive service is currently available for Delhi and NCR, Mumbai and Bangalore. The company will be expanding the service to Pune, Chennai and Hyderabad by December this year.

Airtel customers can download the app from www.airtellive.com/smartdrive using their mobile devices or by sending SMS smart to 54321. Following are the subscription charges for SmartDrive:

Click to enlarge

To see the list of compatible devices for the SmartDrive app, click here. Find out more details about the SmartDrive app here.

GPS-based navigation services are quite popular among smartphone and tablet users globally. In India, there are however very few options for such navigation services. Nokia, TomTom and MapmyIndia are some companies offering navigation services in the country. Google recently added voice-guided GPS navigation service to its Maps for India users.


Source:- ThinkDigit

Apple announces iPhone 5

There was a lot of hype behind Apple’s September 12 event and all the rumours have finally been put to rest. Apple has finally officially announced the iPhone 5.

The sixth generation iPhone is much the same as what we have seen in the numerous rumours surrounding the device, and that has left us a tad disappointed.

At the iPhone 5 event, Apple also announced updates to iTunes, refreshes for iPod Touch and Nano, as well as iO6’s release date.

iPhone 5

The iPhone 5 is made out of aluminium and glass, and is 18 percent thinner than the iPhone 4S, at a svelte 7.6mm. It is also 20 percent lighter than its predecessor, weighing in at a mere 112 grams. The new 4-inch 16:9 Retina Display has a resolution of 1136x640 pixels, with a pixel density of 326ppi. The display is supposedly also more vivid. With all the added visual real estate, iOS 6 will feature an additional icon row. All native software will be compatible with the larger size, while third-party apps will temporarily feature extra space above and below until they make the necessary changes.

The new Apple iPhone is powered by the A6 chipset, that’s 22 percent smaller than the A5, which powers the iPhone 4S. Apple unfortunately has not revealed many details about it. We know that there are separate chips for voice and data, and a separate radio chip. According to Apple, the A6 chipset offers twice the CPU and GPU performance as the A5. We do not know if it bears a quad-core CPU and quad-core GPU as expected, or just a dual-core CPU with a quad-core GPU like the A5X chipset on the iPad 3.

With the more efficient processor, Apple also claims the following battery life for the iPhone 5 – 3G talktime/browsing up to 8 hours, Wi-Fi browsing up to 10 hours, video playback up to 10 hours, music playback up to 40 hours, and a standby time of up to 255 hours.

Apple’s new iPhone comes with an 8MP iSight camera, capable of 1080p HD video recording. It has an f/2.4 aperture five-element lens, a BSI sensor, Hybrid IR filter and is roughly 20 percent smaller than the iSight on the 4S. It also features a new panorama mode that allows users to create images 28MP wide. Relevantly, the A6 chipset features a new signal processor on the phone, helping to capture images 40 percent faster, along with better low-light performance, image and video stabilization. Users will also be able to click stills while recording video. The front of the device has a 720p HD camera for FaceTime.

4G LTE speeds have also finally come to the iPhone. The iPhone 5 has all new Wi-Fi, 2.4GHz and 5GHz on 802.11n, up to 150mbps. Rumour mills were also proven right about the new dock connector for the iPhone 5. Called Lightning, the new dock is all-digital and has an 8-signal design. For your old 30-pin accessories, Apple has an adapter at your disposal.

The pricing of Apple’s 6th generation iPhone is as follows: 16GB for $199, 32GB for $299, and 64GB for $399. The iPhone 5 will be available in white and black, and pre-orders start as expected on September 14, with shipments beginning September 21.

iPod family

Apple has updated the iPod Nano and the iPod Touch.The all-new iPod Nano has the new dock Lightning connector, is 5.4mm thin and has a 2.5-inch display. It has a home button just like the iPhone/iPod Touch. The display is multi-touch. The Nano comes in 7 different funky colours and also supports Bluetooth. The Nano has a battery life of 30 hours of music playback.

The iPod Touch too has received a facelift. The 5th generation iPod Touch is only 6.1mm thin. It is really light at 88gms. Just like the previous gen iPod Touch was a slimmer version of the iPhone 4/4S, the 5th gen iPod Touch is a slimmer version of the iPhone 5. The new touch will be powered by the A5 chipset – dual-core processor, dual-core graphics. It boasts of 40 hours of music playback. The iPod Touch also has a 5MP camera with an LED flash and a front facing 720p FaceTime camera. The Touch now supports Bluetooth 4.0 and AirPlay Mirroring. But that's not all, Apple’s voice controlled personal assistant Siri is making an appearance on the 5th gen iPod Touch. The iPod Touch is available in 5 vibrant colours. Apple has also designed a hook called Loop, built into the chassis as a strap to tie around your wrist.

Apple has also introduced new earphones called EarPods that will come bundled with the new iPods. Apple says that they have spent three years perfecting the design of the new earphones. If you want to buy the EarPods separately, you can do so starting today (in the US) for $29.

Pricing and availability: iPod shuffle, $49. iPod Nano (16GB) $149. Keeping the 4th gen iPod Touch, 16GB at $199. New iPod Touch, 32GB, $299 and 64GB $399. New Nano and touch will be made available in October.

iOS 6

Apple announced the latest iteration to its mobile and tablet operating system, iOS 6 at WWDC 2012 without a concrete release date. As expected, the company has revealed it at this event - iOS 6 will be out on September 19 and will be compatible with the following devices – iPhone5, iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, the new iPad, iPad 2 and the iPod Touch 4th gen.

With iCloud and iOS 6, Apple has a new feature called Photo stream. Apple has also brought panorama mode to the iPhone’s camera in the new OS.

We have seen the capabilities of iOS 6 and Apple showed us another glimpse of the new features of the OS. As we reported earlier, Apple has ditched Google Maps for a Map app of its own. Maps for iOS 6 has been updated with features such as POI’s (Point of Interests) along with turn-by-turn directions, satellite imagery, and 3D view.

In iOS 6, apps such as Safari open in full screen mode. Apple showed off this feature on the iPhone 5 and it looked quite good.

In other updates to the OS, the native phone app now has the ability to automatically send an SMS back when you can't take a call, a feature that should have been made available to users a long time ago. Finally, users will be able to make FaceTime calls over a cellular network.

No more iPhone 3GS

Apple also announced that the iPhone 3GS has reached the end of its life and the company is discontinuing the device. The iPhone 4 8GB is still available and customers can pick up the smartphone for free with carrier contracts. The iPhone 4S 16GB is available at $99.

iTunes

Apple’s iTunes store too received a new design. It has Facebook integration enabling you to share whatever you want or like in the app store to your social networking account. The new iTunes store for the desktop is very similar to its iOS counterpart in terms of appearance.

Apple’s music app, iTunes to received an update. The new version of iTunes will be made available to users in October. The new updates are as follows:

When users click on an album it expands in place. It is very reminiscent of folders on iOS.
Each album comes with a feature called 'in the store' where you can see top songs and albums. Users can also browser their library by artist.

The currently playing window provides a dropdown to see upcoming songs.The iTunes mini Player has also received a design making it more compact yet easy to navigate and use. The mini-player allows you to manage playlists and upcoming songs as well.



Source:- ThinkDigit

Intel unveils Haswell processors

SAN FRANCISCO - It's the goal of almost every new technological innovation, at least on the component level, to deliver more performance for less of a power cost than previous-generation products. At the Intel Developer Forum here on Tuesday, Intel committed itself to pursuing exactly that goal with its upcoming fourth-generation Core microarchitecture, code-named Haswell.

Intel senior fellow Tom Piazza joined Intel fellows Hong Jiang and Per Hammarlund, and senior principal engineer Ronak Singhal in a Technology Insight session to provide a detailed examination of the new 22nm technology at IDF, which is expected to replace Intel's current third-generation Core ("Ivy Bridge") processors in desktops and laptops in the first half of 2013. Their talk focused on a number of Haswell's innovations, but placed a special emphasis on power usage, which will help Haswell function equally well in servers, tablets, and every form factor of system in between.

The power savings will be obtained in a number of ways, beginning with the new graphics system. Intel expects Haswell's graphics performance to be twice that of Ivy Bridge at the same power level—and thus the same performance when half the power is being used. Singhal stressed that Intel is going for "all-day experiences," and is thus improving power management whether the system is active or idle.

Active (S0) and sleep (S3 and S4) states use less power by default. The former accomplishes this through Turbo Boost improvements that enable more turbo with better load balancing, and a decoupled frequency that lets the chip devote improved power or performance to the activities that need them most. The latter use optimized power delivery to enable fine-grain power gating and additional optimizations in the manufacturing process (which also help systems resume from sleep states more quickly). There's also a new extremely low-power active state called S01x.

Intel is also working to decrease power usage in other areas, by introducing things like Panel Self Refresh (PSR), which shuts down video processing when the image does not change, and by adding new link power management states to frequently used systems like USB, SATA, and PCI Express.

Altogether, Intel claims, these represent a 20x improvement in power usage from the previous generation. That would have a major impact on battery life, something Intel remains focused on as it continues to increase its focus on tablets and ultrabooks



Source:- ThinkDigit

Buying a Digital Camera: Things to Know

Buying a digital camera is a very easy work. All you need to do is to know some basics of camera features. But first see my photography blog World Behind Lenses. I took all pics with a basic point and shoot camera Canon A3100 IS.  Now let's get back to the topic. Look for these 5 things in a digital camera :-

ISO

ISO helps you to take pictures in low light. The greater the range of ISO, the better pictures and can be taken. A normal digicam should have ISO range of 80 to 1600. Try looking for greater ISO. Nowadays, you can easily get 1600+ ISO range cameras for a cheap price. Remember, the greater the ISO, the better pictures can be taken. So try buying camera with 1600+ ISO range (i.e., 80-3200 ISO).

Macro

One of the key feature of a camera. Macro mode allows you to take splendid Macro Photos. I love Macro modes. Look for macro modes in a camera. The average macro range of a camera should be between 1 inch to 3 inch. Remember, the smaller the macro range, the better it is because you can focus objects as close as the macro range is. For example, if macro range is 1 cm, you can take a sharp and good quality pic of an object placed at a distance of 1 cm from the camera lens. Nowadays, you can easily get cameras having macros between 1 inch to 3 inch

HD Video Mode

HD videos are becoming popular. So look for HD digital cameras. You can find them easily.

Shutter Speed

The average shutter speed for a camera should be 1/1600th part of a second. Very fast indeed. But try looking for even a faster shutter speed like 1/2000th or even less. The faster the shutter speed, the sharper the picture can be taken for a moving object.

Optical Zoom

Everyone is familiar with this term. Look for camera with 5x or 5x + optical zoom.

Important Note

Buying a camera certainly depends on your purpose. Buy a DSLR if and only if you are taking photography seriously. If you are thinking of buying a DSLR just for hobby photography, then better go for mirrorless cameras beacuse they are the future of camera technology. Choose Olympus Pen E-PL5. Mirrorless cameras are just awesome, to sum up in a line "a rocket in your pocket". And if you are having a smartphone and still want to buy a basic and simple digital camera, then don't. Since nowadays all smartphones comes with good cameras and HD video recording, so mostly all features are similar to those of a digicam.

Remember, photography doesn't depend on the type of camera you use. It depends on your way to compose a snapshot. Camera just acts as a source to capture your composed way of looking the subject.

Nokia Lumia 920 pricing and release date revealed

The Lumia 920 is Nokia’s flagship smartphone running on Microsoft’s latest mobile OS, Windows Phone 8. When the Lumia 920 was unveiled last week it was shown off without two key pieces of information – price and release date.

The India launch date and price is still a mystery, but the device is expected to launch SIM-free in Germany for Euro 600 (Rs. 42,000 approx.). The Lumia 820, which is Nokia’s mid range Windows Phone 8 device, will be priced at Euro 450 (Rs. 32,000 approx.) for the SIM-free version. The smartphones are expected to hit store shelves in November.

Nokia announced the Lumia 920 and the Lumia 820 at an event that Nokia held jointly with Microsoft last week. You can catch the specifications of both the smartphones and details of the launch event here.

Nokia is reportedly working on some mid-range and budget Windows Phone 8 devices as well called the Nokia Flame and Nokia Zeal. Just like the Lumia 710 and the Lumia 610, these devices will be aimed at the entry level and mid-range smartphone markets. No official details on the price or availability of these devices is known. You can catch the details about the Flame and the Zeal here.


Source:- ThinkDigit

When iPhone 5 will launch?

Apple has sent out media invites to an event slated for September 12. With the date of the announcement of the iPhone 5almost confirmed, the point of interest is the launch date of the handset. A recent report by GottaBeMobile has backed the numerous rumours that Apple will launch the handset on September 21, nine days after the announcement.

As per the report, the author Josh Smith states, “The iPhone 5 release date is September 21st. A trusted source familiar with Apple’s iPhone shipping plans confirmed plans for the iPhone 5 to arrive on the doorsteps of customers on Friday the 21st for the first to complete iPhone 5 preorders. Our source tells GottaBeMobile that Apple notified shippers to expect mass shipments of the iPhone 5 on September 21st and shippers are taking steps to make sure enough staff are on hand for the large number of deliveries.”


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Zynga launches FarmVille 2

Zynga on Wednesday announced the launch of FarmVille 2, a new version of its popular FarmVille game. With the new game, the online gaming company aims to woo former addicts as well as new players. Check it out here.

FarmVille 2 is Zynga's first game to be developed entirely in 3D and had been in the works for quite some months. The new game not only allows users to grow and harvest crops but also use the harvested crops to feed farm animals. When fed, the chickens lay eggs, the cows produce milk. Animals also give fertilisers, important component for farming.

Users can also bake treats and sell them in the market. The coins earned can be used to buy more items. Moreover, planting and harvesting crop have been made easier in FarmVille 2. Users can now simply drag mouse over an area and plant crops at that area at once.

Zynga has made it clear that FarmVille 2 is not aimed to replace the original FarmVille and hopes users will enjoy playing both games. FarmVille 2 will have more social features such as players can earn crops by assisting their friends' farms. Zynga plans to enable users to sell, barter, or trade their crops with fellow farmers. The game will be available in 16 different languages, apart from English.

Zynga had launched FarmVille on Facebook in 2009. The Facebook game soon became one of the most popular games online. According to an estimate, FarmVille has been played by at least 83 million people worldwide. However, popularity of the game started to decline. Once the game had 32 million daily active users, more than ten times the number today.

FarmVille 2 is now live on Facebook. Check it out here.


Source:- ThinkDigit

Milagrow launches Kupa X11, a Windows 7 tablet starting at Rs. 54,990

Milagrow has launched a Windows 7-based tablet in India, called the Milagrow Kupa X11. Developed by Kupa, a German Windows tablet maker, the Milagrow Kupa X11 is a high-end device, considering its price, and specifications. It is available in two storage variants, one with a 64GB SSD for Rs. 54,990, and the other with a 128GB SSD for Rs. 66,990.

Some of the key specs of the Milagrow Kupa X11 are:-

• 10-inch capacitive multi-touch display 
• 1,366x768 pixel resolution
• Dual-core Intel Atom N2600 1.6GHz ‘Cedar Trail’ SoC processor
• 2GB of RAM
• Connectivity: 3G,Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB, and miniHDMI
• Rear 1.3MP camera
• Front 1.3MP camera
• 10 hour battery life, with a 30 day standby time.

X11 is available for order now with Milagrow. You can get more information at www.milagrowhumantech.com.

Amazon unveils new Kindle Fire models

Amazon.com Inc. unveiled four new Kindle Fire models on Thursday, including ones with larger screens, as the online retailer steps up competition with Apple Inc. ahead of the holiday shopping season.Amazon unveiled the larger Kindle Fire amid expectations of a smaller iPad from Apple.

The larger Fires will have screens that measure 8.6 inches diagonally, compared with 9.7 inches for the iPad. The original Fire had 7-inch screens. The speculation on the mini iPad is that it'll have a 7.85-inch screen. Apple isn't commenting, but it has an event scheduled next week, during which it is expected to at least announce a new iPhone. 

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Astronauts use toothbrush to fix space station

NASA astronaut Sunita Williams and Akihiko Hoshide were finally able to install a power unit on the International Space Station Wednesday during their second spacewalk. They used tools made out of a toothbrush.The astronauts fulfilled their main task to complete the installation of a new Main Bus Switching Unit (MBSU) on the station's truss, which had caused problems during an Aug 30 spacewalk, reported RIA Novosti. 

Fixing Space Station with toothbrush..

Williams and Hoshide used tools made out of a toothbrush and some spare parts to conduct the repair. They also installed a camera on the station's robotic arm, Canadarm2, during the spacewalk that lasted 6 hours and 28 minutes, according to NASA. Last time NASA Flight Engineer Williams and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency Flight Engineer Hoshide spent 8 hours and 17 minutes in space, but failed to install a new MBSU on the station's S0 truss as they had difficulties driving a bolt to secure the equipment.

The MBSU is a heavy component that is used to relay power from the station's solar arrays to its systems.Williams and Hoshide's previous spacewalk was the third longest in history. The longest spacewalk, of 8 hours and 56 minutes, was carried out by US astronauts Susan Helms and James Voss in 2001.

Nokia reveals Lumia 820

Nokia took the wraps off its Lumia 820 smartphone and it is now official. The Lumia 820 sports a 4.3-inch screen ClearBlack OLED display and comes with high brightness mode and Sunlight Readability Enhancements. The display features include - polarization filter, Light time-out, Ambient light detector, Brightness control, Orientation sensor, Proximity sensor, High Brightness mode, RGB Stripe, Sunlight readability enhancements, Aspect ratio 15:9, Super sensitive touch and Color boosting. The super sensitive touch functionality allows you to use the handset even with gloves on. Pricing and availablity is yet to be officially announced, so stay tuned.  

Some of the key specs of the Lumia 820 are:-

• 4.3-inch ClearBlack OLED display with a resolution 800x400 pixels
• 3G,EDGE/GPRS, Wi-Fi and NFC
• Bluetooth, USB 2.0
• GPS with A-GPS and GLONASS support for Nokia Drive, Nokia Transport and other GPS apps
• 8MP AF camera, Dual-LED flash with 1080p HD video recording, secondary VGA front facing camera
• 8GB mass memory with microSD memory card for up to 32GB 

The Nokia Lumia 820 sports the same polycarbonate shell as the 920 and previous Lumia devices. It comes in red, yellow, grey, cyan, purple, white and black colour options. It will feature exchangeable covers and a microSD card slot to expand memory (one bonus we've all been looking forward to). The Lumia 820 is powered by a 1.5GHz Dual Core Snapdragon S4 processor and is powered by a 1650mAh battery with support for Qi wireless charging. It sports an 8MP camera with Carl Zeiss optics. 

The Lumia 820 comes with the Smart Shoot feature. With one click, the camera takes a whole series of photos and merges it into one. Like the Lumia 920, the 820 comes with City Lens, too. The feature reveals to you the shops, restaurants and businesses in your vicinity. Users can then read reviews, book a table and/or find the quickest route. The camera features of the Lumia 820 include - Touch focus, Landscape orientation, Geo-tagging, Auto and manual white balance, Still image editor, Lenses applications and True 16:9 sensor

The Lumia 820 will get all the exclusive apps as the Lumia 920. The wireless charging feature is optional. It also offers users 7GB free SkyDrive storage



Source:- Tech2

Motorola unveils Droid Razr HD, Droid Razr Maxx HD, Droid Razr M

Google Inc's Motorola Mobility unveiled three smartphones to help compete with bigger rivals Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co for the holiday shopping season. Verizon Wireless will sell all three devices - the Droid Razr HD, the Droid Razr Maxx HD and the Droid Razr M - the companies said yesterday.

The smartphones will use Google's Android operating system. Motorola showed off the phones at a press event in New York, its first big media gathering since Google took over in May. Google has said that the handset maker will remain a separate subsidiary and will make fewer phones than before.

The unveiling was part of a flurry of mobile device launches ahead of the holiday season throughout the industry. Earlier yesterday, Nokia Oyj and Microsoft Corp unveiled their flagship phone, the Lumia 920, which uses the latest Windows Phone operating software. Nokia did not announce any wireless operator partners for its device. Amazon.com Inc is expected to unwrap the new Kindle Fire tablet today and Apple is expected to unveil the latest version of its seminal iPhone on September 12. 

Motorola Mobility's Droid Razr HD boasts a 4.7-inch screen with a sharper picture than Motorola's previous phones. Verizon Wireless did not announce pricing but said the device will be available in time for the holidays. The Razr M is a smaller phone for more cost-conscious consumers, with a 4.3-inch display that covers most of the front of the phone. That device will be available for USD 99.99 when it goes on sale at Verizon Wireless stores next week. The Droid Razr Maxx HD will have similar features to the Razr HD but will boast a longer battery life. Motorola promised that the device could run for 21 hours of phone calls or 13 hours of video viewing.

Google Chairman Eric Schmidt said that consumers are now activating as many as 1.3 million Android phones every day. Motorola rival Samsung is the biggest maker of phones based on Android. It is not known when these smartphones would be available in the rest of the world.

Nokia Lumia 920 now official

Today was clearly a big day for Nokia, for whom this announcement marks its big comeback into the smartphone race dominated by the likes of Apple and Samsung, among others. Leading to this day, there have been a range of leaks surrounding the upcoming smartphones to be released by Nokia.

Some of the key specs of the Nokia Lumia 920 are:-

• 4.5 inch PureMotion HD+ LCD touchscreen with a resolution of 1280 x 768 pixels
• Windows Phone 8 OS
• 3G, EDGE, Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct, NFC
• Bluetooth v 3.1 with A2DP
• GPS with A-GPS and Nokia Maps Suite
• 8.7 megapixel camera with  1080p HD video recording and a 1.2 megapixel front facing camera with 720p video recording
• 32GB internal memory
• Snapdragon S4 and PureView sensor 

Nokia took the wraps off their Lumia 920 at the Nokia World 2012 event in NYC. The Nokia Lumia 920 will pack in a Snapdragon S4 and a PureView sensor. It also comes with the Blink app, which is the smartphone's Burst mode. The smartphone will feature an LCD display, which is a little higher than the HD displays available now. WIth a polycarbonate body the phone will be available in many colours - yellow and red being two of them.

City Lens, an app which is to be one of the exclusive apps for Lumia 920 gives information about restaurants and stores on the phone, while looking at the world through the camera.

Microsoft collaborated with Rovio for Angry Birds Roost, which is a portal for all things Angry Birds, including the latest games, news feeds and ringtones and videos.

New “lenses” feature in the camera allows you to edit the photo as you’re taking it. Photosynth lens allows 360 degree panorama photos. The PureView captures between 5 and 10 times the light compared to other smartphone cameras and the floating lens technology is for night shots to balance the lens and stabalize it for images and video.

The Nokia Lumia 920 comes with Nokia Drive, which offers free turn-by-turn voice navigation out of the box. It also includes indoor maps in train stations and bus terminals. What is also included is City Lens that provides an "intuitive" way to explore a city. Nokia Maps has augmented reality. Once you have set a route on Nokia Maps, you can look at the street through the phone and get directions.

The Lumia 920 packs in a new PureMotion HD+ screen with a fast refresh rate. It comes with ClearBlack screen that automatically adjusts colour tone and brightness of the screen. The phone comes with a 2000 mAh battery - the biggest one that Nokia has ever made. The Lumia 920 will come with 7GB free SkyDrive storage.



Source:- Tech2

Microsoft launches Windows Server 2012

Microsoft officially released Windows Server 2012 today. The new OS shares quite a few things with Windows 8 such as the kernel and the UI. Aside from the GUI, the main focus of Windows Server 2012, just like with its client counterpart Windows 8, is on the cloud. Microsoft, it seems, is jumping on the cloud computing bandwagon to capitalise on the trend. It should suffice to say that the latest version of Microsoft’s server OS takes a giant step forward when it comes to usability and features.

One of the main features of this operating system is the inclusion of PowerShell, which lets you control the server remotely through a command line. Server 2012 is the first version of Windows that lets you do that just like Unix-based servers do. It also enables you to pipe, or forward, the output of one process to the input of another process.

The user interface being introduced with Windows 8 might make unsure of how to go about doing tasks, but there’s no need for administrators to worry as the UI is optional and can be disabled to get a fully-functional server. You can even do away with the GUI completely and run the server through the PowerShell command line. This can be of great use to administrators as they can now perform routine tasks by simply writing a batch script in the command line and running it.

Windows Server 2012 also features a data-centre-friendly installation method called Server Core, which provides a way to install the OS over the network.

Windows Server 2012 is available in four different editions to suit individual user requirements and cater to the wide base of Microsoft's followers. The pricing depends on which edition of Windows Server 2012 you are going for.

We have two main versions: Standard and Datacenter. Unlike its predecessor, Windows 2008 R2 Enterprise, where the different editions all had different feature sets, support for different hardware, etc., Windows Server 2012’s  two versions have the same set of features and the same hardware limits. Functionality is limited only by virtualisation rights. The Standard version lets you run it on up to two virtual machines, while the Datacenter edition lets you run an unlimited number of virtual machines. The Standard and Datacenter licenses will replace all Windows Server 2008 products currently available. 

The Standard and Datacenter versions of Windows Server 2012 both support a larger number of storage, memory and processing power than Windows Server 2008 R2. Server 2012 has support for up to 320 CPU cores and up to 4TB of data storage space. 

In addition to Standard and Datacenter, we have two limited-capability versions – Essentials and Foundation. Essential lets you run it on a machine with two sockets or in a virtual machine. Unlike the Standard or Datacenter versions, you can’t run Essentials on both hardware and virtual machines simultaneously. Foundation will be provided only via OEMs and will run only on single socket machines. Foundation doesn’t support virtualisation at all.


Source:- Tech2

Asus launches S Series ultrabooks, and F Series notebook in India

With 'high price' being a major hurdle for the acceptability of the ultrabooks in India, Asus has announced the launch of S Series ultrabooks, starting below Rs. 50,000. The Asus S Series ultrabooks are based on Intel's third generation Core i (Ivy Bridge) processors. Moreover, Asus has expanded its notebook offering in the country with launch of the F Series.

Asus S Series

Asus has launched two S Series ultrabook models namely Asus S56CA-XX030R and Asus S56CA-XX056R. The Asus S56CA-XX030R features Intel Core i3-3217U(1.6G,3M), Windows 7 Home Basic, 39.6 cms (15.6-inch) HD Glare display (1,366x768 pixels), Intel HD 4000, 4GB of DDR3 1600MHz RAM, 500GB 5400RPM plus 24GB SSD, DVD RW 8X SM DL, WLAN 802.11 b/g/n + BT 4.0 and 0.3MP camera. The ultrabook is priced at Rs. 46,999.

The Asus S56CA-XX056R has similar set of specifications, except that it has Intel Core i5-3317U (1.7G,3M) processor and 750GB 5400RPM plus 24M GB SSD. The S56CA-XX056R is priced at Rs. 52,999.

Asus  F Series

Asus has launched one F Series notebook namely the Asus F501A-XX187R. The notebook features Intel Core i3 processor 2350M, 2.3GHz, with 3MB cache. It is a 15.6-inch HD anti-glare notebook supports an instant on in 2 seconds and has up to 14-day standby. The notebook also features Windows 7, HDD capacity of 500GB 5400rpm, VGA - Intel HD 4000, HDMI, USB 3.0 and 0.3MP camera. The Asus F501A-XX187R notebook comes for Rs. 35,999.



Source:- ThinkDigit

Micromax launches Ninja 4 A87 at Rs 5,990

Micromax has introduced the Ninja 4 A87, an Android Gingerbread smartphone that comes at an affordable price of Rs 5,990.This Ninja 4 A87 is officially available for purchase on the retail website Saholic, and shipping is free. Consumers who choose to purchase this handset will receive it within four days, and they also have the option to pay cash on delivery.

Some of the key specs of the Micromax Ninja 4 A87 are :-

• 4-inch capacitive touchscreen
• ndroid v2.3 (Gingerbread)
• 1GHz Qualcomm processor
• 3G, Edge, GPRS, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n
• 2MP Fixed focus camera with video recording capabilities
• Bluetooth v2.1, USB v2.0
• Memory expandable up to 32GB via microSD card
• 1400mAh battery 
• Gravity sensor