Tech Biscuits

Friday, June 5, 2015

Yahoo Maps and few other services to shut down

Yahoo Inc will be shutting down its Yahoo Maps and few other services as it will try to focus more on search and digital content.

In a blog post, Yahoo's Chief Architect Amotz Maimon said "At Yahoo, we continue to focus on our key product pillars: search, communications and digital content. Part of that focus includes taking a hard look at our existing products and services, and ensuring our resources are spent smartly and with a clear purpose. Ultimately, we want to provide you with the best products, platforms and experiences possible."

The blog post said stated that the Yahoo Maps service will close at the end of June this year. However, other interdependent Yahoo services like Flickr will continue to support the maps.

To read more about this, click here to visit the official blog post

Monday, June 1, 2015

Asus ZenFone Selfie with 13MP front camera unveiled at Computex 2015

The Taiwanese mobile phone giant Asus has officially announced its Zenfone Selfie smartphone featuring a 13MP front and rear cameras at Computex 2015.

Specifications of the Asus Zenfone Selfie:

OS- Android 5.0 Lollipop with Asus ZEN UI
Processor- Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 octa core SoC
GPU- Adreno 405 (clock speed of 1GHz)
5.5 inch full HD display with resolution of 1080x1920 pixels
RAM- 2GB

The front camera of the Zenfone Selfie has f2.2 aperture, 24mm wide-angle lens and 88 degrees wide angle support. The rear camera has f2.0 aperture and 28mm lens. The phone also supports an optional Swing attachment that allows you to take more effective selfies as well as use the attachment as a kickstand.

The phone will be available in different variants of 3GB and 4GB RAM also and with different storage capacities like 16GB, 32GB and 64GB. As of now, there is no word on pricing.

You might also like to check Asus' new wearable called the ZenWatch 2. Click here to know more.

Saturday, February 14, 2015

Asus Zenfone - My Ideal Valentine

#UnconditionalLove with Asus Zenfone

So it is Valentine's Day and I am sitting in my home, with my Zenfone 5, preparing for boards. So no girl loves me this valentine's and also none loved me one the other days. But suddenly I hear my Zefone 5 whisper ' I love you'.

Asus Zenfone 5

Display: 5 inches IPS panel with 1280x720 resolution (294ppi)

Battery: 2110mAh

Storage: 8GB, expandable via microSD card

Camera: 8MP rear with LED flash, 2MP front

SoC: Intel Atom Z2560

CPU: 1.6GHz dual-core

GPU: PowerVR SGX544MP2

RAM: 2GB

Operating system: Android 4.3, upgradeable to kitkat(4.4)

Connectivity: 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Dual-SIM

Asus Zenfone 6

Display: 6 inches IPS panel with 1280x720 resolution
Battery: 3300mAh
Storage: 16GB, expandable via microSD card
Camera: 13MP rear with LED flash, 2MP front
SoC: Intel Atom Z2560
GPU: PowerVR SGX544MP2
RAM: 2GB
Operating system: Android 4.3, upgradeable to kitkat(4.4)
Connectivity: 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Dual-SIM

Reasons as to why I fell in love with Asus Zenfone

Super cool Camera

The Zenfone 5 is packed with a superb 8MP while the Zenfone 6 offers an 18MP camera. Both phones offers various camera functionality and various photo modes. The Zen UI makes it even more easier to interact with the camera. Low light mode is quite effective. Of all camera features, I liked Depth of Field mode the most. The details that this mode brings are outstanding. Being a photography lover (check out my photography blog), I fell in love <3 with it at the very first instant.....(dekha jo tujhe yaar dil mein baji guitar).

Here are some photos taken by me with Zenfone 5 (Source: my instagram)

Asus Zen UI

The Asus Zen UI is user friendly and effective. The shortcuts listed in the notification panels are useful. Also it takes no time to surf from one app to another. Another striking feature of the Zen UI can be seen with the flip cover on. The clock and torch shortcut provided in the locked mode comes in handy.

Fantastic Display

The Zenfones are provided with a grand display. The Asus TruVivid technology offers brightness and colour resolution like none. Movie experience has been made more enjoyable. In short, someone like me will look handsome when seen in Zenfone. Huh.

Incredible Performance

Packing a 1.6 GHz Intel dual core processor, PowerVR GPU and 2 GB RAM, one would enjoy flawless performance on the Zenfones. It seriously works faster than many human brains to say the least. You wouldn't find any glitches in it. When it comes to running hardcore games like Injustice: Gods among us and FIFA 15, the Zenfone provides more greater performance than many other high end smartphones

Price

Another factor that made me fall in love with the Zenfone was its cheap price. You wouldn't find such a GREAT phone in such a low range. I had spend more money on girls, but still couln't find a true love. Zenfone, I barely spent any money on you and now you and I are soul mates.

http://www.flipkart.com/asus

You can buy Zenfones from here (flipkart links)

Wednesday, February 11, 2015

10 TV shows to watch before you die

There are some TV shows that you ought to watch before you die. If you didn't watch them, then your life in Earth is going to end in vain. It will be disrespectful to the world and I don't want to live in that world. So folks, tune into the channels and watch these shows. Remember..You Only Live Once

10. Big Bang Theory

Why? - Ever wondered how life would be like if we didn't had geeks and nerds? And how a geek can score a sexy girl like Penny?

Honorable mention- Swag is for boys and class is for men.

9. Californication

Why?- Because Hank Moody is too cool for school.

8. Prison Break

Why?- Because you have never seen a guy with tattoos of the map of a prison on his torso. And how he manages to break his brother, who was convicted for killing the President, out of jail.

7. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1984 Jeremy Brett series)

Why?- If you are a crime fiction fan and want the TRUE essence of Sherlock Holmes, the you got to watch Jeremy Brett as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes. Each and every episode of the series is intriguing and the plot and the cast marvelous. Sorry Robert Downey Jr., but you suck as Sherlock Holmes.

6. Suits

Why?- Harvey Specter's winning personality and quotes invigorates me. It will do the same to you.

5. House of Cards

Why?- Oops. Spoilers of the first 10 episodes of its season 3 were online early. It ruined many lives.

4. Spartacus

Why?- Classic action and realistic fighting scenes coupled with tremendous graphic and story line. This one show is sure to leave you awestruck

3. Sherlock

Why?- Has 9.3 rating in IMDb. Portrays modern Sherlock Holmes. The plot is intriguing. Plus Benedict Cumberbatch won an Emmy.

2. Breaking Bad

Why?- Because one of its episode has 10/10 rating in IMDb. And that reason speaks for itself.

1. Game of Thrones

Why?- History's most pirated show and my all time favourite. It holds an IMDb rating of 9.5, the highest by any film or series. So, stop wasting time and watch this.

Thursday, April 17, 2014

Get Cortana in India or outside USA

The advanced voice assistant for Windows Phone 8.1 Cortana is only available in the USA as of now. Microsoft will roll out Cortana in UK now, followed by China. Other countries will get it in 2015. So, if you can't wait for that long, follow these steps.

(You might also like : How to install Windows Phone 8.1 Developer Preview)

Change your region and language

Go to Settings>Language and change the language to English (USA). It is compulsory to change the language to this. Restart your phone now.

Now to change the region, go to Settings>Region and change and change the region to United States. Restart your phone now.

Now you are ready to use Cortana. You can find the Cortana icon in the app list.

Note: Changing your phone region will affect your payment options. So during payment change the region to your country. Also, you won't face any problems after changing the region.

How to install Windows Phone 8.1 Developer Preview

Windows Phone 8.1 Developer Preview is now available for download. Downloading it is not a big deal. There isn't any issue that you will face. To know more, click here. Follow these simple steps:

Register as a Windows App developer

You can register for free as an app developer in the App Studio. Go to http://appstudio.windowsphone.com/ and register yourself before you can download the developer preview.

Download the app 'Preview for Developers'

From the Store, download 'Preview for Developers' to install the developer preview. Click here to get the app

Now open the app and check the box next to 'Enable Preview for Developers'. Tap done to enroll yourself to get the developer preview

Downloading and Installing the update

Go to Settings>Phone Updates to check for update and download it!

Now you are ready to use Windows Phone 8.1 Developer Preview!

Is it safe to install Windows Phone 8.1 Developer Preview?

To keep it short and simple, yes it is absolutely safe to install Windows Phone 8.1 Developer Preview. You will face no issues.

Windows Phone 8.1 Developer Preview was recently launched by Microsoft as an upgrade to it's Windows Phone 8 OS. The developer preview works just like a normal Windows Phone 8.1 OS. The only difference is of firmware which, rarely, will not allow you to connect your phone to certain PCs. That's all.

I myself got Windows Phone 8.1 Developer Preview installed on my Lumia 520. Being an Indian, I wasn't able to wait for the official launch of Windows Phone 8.1. Believe me, I am not facing any problem. Windows Phone 8.1 is much better, faster, smarter and cooler than the previous Windows Phone 8