Gionee Elife E7

Chinese handset maker Gionee has launched its new flagship phone, Gionee Elife E7, in the Indian market. The phone boasts of a full-HD screen and high-end hardware including a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor, in addition to a slim, attractive form factor. We got a chance to spend some time with the phone, here are our first impressions:

At first glance, Gionee Elife E7 looks like a taller version of the Elife E6. However, on closer inspection, you'll notice that it looks more rectangular, majorly due to the lack of rounded corners. The phone's top and bottom edges, however, are rounded, just like the ones seen in Huawei Ascend P6.

The phone is made of good quality plastic material, but sports a glossy finish that makes it prone to smudges.

The front of the phone is dominated by 5.5-inch Full-HD (JDI) display that sports a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels and pixel density of 401ppi. It also features Gorilla Glass 3 for added protection. We found the display to be adequately bright, with images and text appearing sharp and crisp. There's minimal bezel at the left and right side of the display panel, giving the phone an edgy look.

The three capacitive physical buttons for Menu, Home and Back are placed just below the display. The 8MP front-facing camera lens is located above the display, along with the sensor array. There's no branding on the front.

The left edge of the phone features a sim card tray, while the volume rocker key sits alone at the right edge. The power key and the 3.5mm headset jack are placed at the top edge, while the micro USB port is at the bottom. We wish Gionee had put the Power key at the right or left edge, as its present location makes it cumbersome to use. The keys are made of plastic and offer above average tactile feedback.
Gionee Elife E7 doesn't have a removable back. The phone's back is curved and sports a glossy finish that is prone to smudges. The large camera lens (housing a 16MP sensor) is placed at the top, similar to the Nokia Lumia 1520, along with a small LED flash. There's Gionee branding towards the lower part of the back. The phone was good to hold, despite the glossy back.

Gionee Elife E7 runs a heavily customised build of Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean, called Amigo 2.0, which is second iteration of its UI skin. The skin is similar to Xiaomi's MiUi ROM and doesn't feature a separate app launcher. Instead, the app icons are merged with the home screen, similar to the iPhone. Even the multitasking menu of the phone is similar to the card-based multitasking menu introduced first in webOS and now in Apple's iOS 7. During our brief use of the phone, we didn't encounter any stutters or lag while launching apps or going back to the home screen, however, we still feel that Gionee has gone overboard on transition effects and animations.

Elife E7's USP is its high-end hardware that includes a 2.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor, 2GB RAM (3GB for the 32GB version) and Adreno 330 GPU, and a 16MP rear camera with 1.34m pixel size. We weren't able to play around extensively with the phone's camera but clicking a casual indoor shot (under fluorescent light) in the default mode, we observed some minor noise, and slight aberration in colours, though the level of detail was pretty good.

Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 Phablet

 

NEW DELHI: Within a fortnight of launching the Galaxy Duos 2, Samsung has unveiled the Galaxy Grand 2 phablet in the Indian market. It is the successor to the Galaxy Grand that was launched earlier this year and was a big hit in the country. This phablet has a larger screen, more RAM and bigger battery than its predecessor.

The new phablet will be be available for sale from January 2014 and will be priced between Rs 22,990 and Rs 24,990, Samsung said.

Vineet Taneja, country head, mobile and IT, Samsung India, said, "Galaxy Grand 2 with a vivid HD screen offers a premium viewing experience and enhances multitasking abilities with its Multi Window feature. Along with this, the introduction of Club Samsung will significantly elevate user experience in terms of features, content and services. Our new offerings are a testimony of our commitment to offer differentiated products to all our valued customers."

The all-new Galaxy Grand 2 has a 5.25-inch HD screen and 1.2GHz quad-core processor. It comes with 8GB internal storage, up to 64GB microSD card support and 1.5GB RAM. On the back, it has an 8MP camera with LED flash and sports a 1.9MP camera in front.
Connectivity suite of Galaxy Grand 2 includes 2G, 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 and microUSB 2.0. It is powered by a 2,600mAh battery and the company claims that it can provide talk time of 17 hours. The phone will be available in white, black and pink colours in the market.

Some of the proprietary apps that come preinstalled in Galaxy Grand 2 are Story Album, S Translator, S Travel, Sound & Shot, Samsung Hub, Samsung Link and Group Play.

This phablet will compete against the likes of Huawei Ascend Mate, the upcoming Nokia Lumia 1320 and its sibling Samsung Galaxy Mega 5.8.

Robot on Space mission

TOKYO: The first humanoid robot in space made small talk with a Japanese astronaut and said it had no problem with zero-gravity on the International Space Station.

Footage released by the robot's developers showed Kirobo performing its first mission on the station, talking in Japanese with astronaut Koichi Wakata as part of an experiment testing Kirobo's autonomous conversation functions. Wakata says he's glad to meet Kirobo, and asks the robotic companion how it feels about being in a zero-gravity environment.

"I'm used to it now, no problem at all," Kirobo quips.

Experiments with Kirobo will continue until it returns to Earth at the end of 2014. In the meantime, Kirobo says he wants to ask Santa for a toy rocket this Christmas.

Kirobo is programmed to process questions and select words from its vocabulary to construct an answer, instead of giving pre-programmed responses to specific questions.

The creator of the robot, Tomotaka Takahashi, said the autonomous functions meant nobody knew how well Kirobo would be able to answer Wakata's questions.

Though Kirobo had some awkward pauses and Wakata spoke more slowly than usual at times in their chat earlier this month, Takahashi said conversations smoothed out over time. "Through layers of communication, we were able to observe the initial stages of a relationship begin to develop between a human and a robot, and I think that was our biggest success," he said.

Kirobo took off from Japan's Tanegashima Space Center for the International Space Station this summer aboard a space cargo transporter. Wakata arrived in November and will assume command of the station in March.

The project is a joint endeavour between advertising company Dentsu, automaker Toyota, and Takahashi at the University of Tokyo's Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology.

Acer Iconia W4

 

BANGALORE: Acer India, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Acer Computer International, unveiled its 8-inch Iconia W4 tablet.

Iconia W4 tablet features IPS and zero air gap technologies providing a sharp display with enhanced clarity and brightness. It is also equipped with Windows 8.1 and the 4th generation Intel Atom processor offering faster tablet performance, upto 10 hour battery life for web browsing and up to eight hours for video playback, company officials said.

The devices cost Rs 24,999 and Rs 26,999 for 32GB and 64GB models.

The company said it expects 20% growth in the PC segment next fiscal.

"Our year is January to December, so looking at next year we think that first quarter is going to be bit static because of the uncertainty in the political part, but we believe after that it is going to grow very very strongly," Acer India Chief Marketing Officer Rajendran told PTI on the sidelines of the launch of Acer's Iconia W4 tablet.

He said: "Reasons being sentiment- India's sentiment is going to be positive; another thing is- all these fears about runway Dollar rate,Current Account Deficit - all that has kind of come under control. I don't know what elections are going to throw up, but I think there is general positive mood for change."

"If that happens, I think people will start coming back to buy," he added.

Stating that the company has not frozen the figures for next fiscal, Rajendran said "20% is not unreasonable."

"This year we are closing in December, I would say it has been flat, flat or minor positive," he added.

Rajendran said "at the more subliminal level even if I look at SMB's, corporate, enterprise-that space, may be consumers also- the time for refreshing is very relevant."

"It is not because three or four years has gone by,but the XP end of life was announced two years back, end of support is going to be there- the whole....of devices are going to be exposed to virus attacks, malware- which is bigger challenge."

"So people even in the lower spectrum of SMB are getting sensitised to this, and technology has come a long way in these three, three and half years- we think that is also going to be a bump up in terms of refresh cycle coming in," he said.

Declining to comment on company's stature in tablet market, he said: "...we want to build up momentum and build up critical mass." "...I do expect substantial increase in that segment as well- because we see the user behavior- which is very very revealing for us."

Worlds first phone with 2k Resolution

NEW DELHI: Chinese manufacturer Vivo has pipped the likes of Samsung and LG to launch the world's first smartphone with 2K (2560x1440p) resolution, named Xplay 3S. This phone's screen has more pixels than the current crop of 1080p displays, making text, videos, images etc clearer and sharper.

The new Vivo Xplay 3S's 6-inch display has pixel density of 490ppi, which is higher than the 469ppi (the highest pixel density before this launch) of HTC One. Other features of Xplay 3S are also top end, such as 2.3GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 chipset, 3GB RAM and 13MP rear camera. It also has a 5MP camera in front and comes with an app called Photo+ that features augmented reality functionalities and shares video on the cloud.

The phone is powered by a customized version of Android, named Funtouch OS. Other features of Vivo Xplay 3S include 32GB built-in storage, 3,200mAh battery and metallic bezel. The phone weighs 172gram, measures 4.95mm at its thinnest point and comes with a fingerprint scanner.

The manufacturer has included several audio technologies in the phone, such as TI OPA2604 amplifier and ESS Technology ES9018 DAC. Its DTS Headphones:X technology supports 7.1 and 11.1 surround sound effect.

Vivo is also the company behind the world's thinnest smartphone, X3, which is just 5.75mm thick.

Samsung's upcoming Galaxy S5 smartphone is also rumoured to feature 2K resolution. Earlier this year, LG unveiled its 2K resolution display panel that is likely to be used in future smartphones. Chinese manufacturer Oppo has also announced that its upcoming Find 7 handset will have 2K screen resolution.

Sony Playstatio 4 (ps4)

NEW DELHI: Sony has launched the PlayStation 4, its new gaming console in the Indian market for Rs 39,990. The console will be available in stores starting January 6, 2014.

Sony also said that the PlayStation camera will be retailed at Rs 4,990. The PS4 controller has also been priced at Rs 4,990 in India. PS4 exclusive titles Knack and Killzone: Shadow Fall would be available at a price point of Rs 3,999.

The PlayStation 4 was released in November for $399 in the US market. The eagerly-awaited PlayStation 4 sold more than 2.1 million units after less than three weeks on the market after its November 15 debut in North America and Sony said it was on track to hit a worldwide target of 5 million units by March.

The PlayStation 4 is powered by an eight-core AMD Jaguar CPU, and features 500GB hard drive, 8GB of unified memory, built-in Blu Ray drive and the new DualShock 4 controller. The PlayStation 4 also features 802.11 b/g/n WiFi connectivity option, an Ethernet port, Bluetooth 2.1, and two USB 3.0 ports.

Sony has streamlined the PS4's on-screen user interface, and the menu features large app and games icons in a horizontal bar with another line of smaller icons above it that let users connect with other gamers, tinker with system settings and access the PlayStation Store, to download new games and buy or rent multimedia content.

The launch lineup includes 22 games to attract fans of just about any genre, from military shooters to sports simulations to family-friendly adventures including "Killzone: Shadow Fall," and "Drive Club." It also offers media apps, including Hulu and Netflix.

The PlayStation 4 competes with the Xbox One, Microsoft's next-generation console, that has been priced a $100 higher. Microsoft also claimed it sold 1 million units in in 24 hours following its November 22 release.

Lenovo Galaxy S4 Rival Vibe X

   

  NEW DELHI: Chinese electronics maker Lenovo expanded its smartphone lineup in India with the launch of Vibe X. It is a smartphone with a full HD 5-inch screen, 13MP rear camera and 5MP front camera and comes at a price tag of Rs 25,999.

The smartphone has hit the Indian market within two months of its global unveiling.

Lenovo Vibe X runs on a 1.5GHz quad-core MediaTek 6589T processor and is powered by Android 2.2 Jelly Bean operating system. It has a 2GB of RAM, and 16GB of internal storage.

For photos, there's an 13MP camera at the back, and a 5MP camera in the front. Connectivity suite of the device includes 2G, 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 and microUSB 2.0. It packs a 2,000mAh battery and comes in black and silver colour combination.

Unlike its metal-bodied sibling K900, Lenovo's new phone is made of plastic, but features the company's proprietary laser etched finish. With thickness of 6.9mm, the new Vibe X is slimmer than iPhone 5S and Samsung Galaxy S4. At 120 gram, this phone also weighs less than most top-end devices today.

With a 5-inch 1080p Gorilla Glass 3 display, Vibe X adds to the company's phablet range comprising Lenovo K900, P780, S920, S890, S880, A830 and K860 models.

Smart Phones: Bendable screens,Iron tech

SAN FRANCISCO: This may be remembered as the year smartphones became boring.

Although high-definition displays on smartphones have gotten bigger and their cameras have gotten better, the pace of gee-whiz innovation has dawdled.

Smartphone and software makers are working on ways to snap out of this technological lull, although it probably will be at least another year or two before breakthroughs revolutionize the design and function of mobile computing devices.

In a foreshadowing of things to come, LG Electronics is boasting about the G Flex, a new phone with a curved display. Previously available in Korea and Singapore, the concave device arrived in Hong Kong on Friday.

"We want to claim this as the future of smart devices," Ramchan Woo, the head of LG's mobile product planning division, said during a recent demonstration in San Francisco.

If such visions are realized, smartphones and tablets will be equipped with display screens that can be rolled up like a scroll or folded like a wallet.

Making the devices even easier to carry around will be important if software makers want to deepen the bond between people and their phones. That could happen as smarter tracking tools and voice-recognition technology let smartphones understand habits and thoughts like a family member.

The future smartphone "will be small enough to carry with you at all times without thinking about it, and it will be essential enough that you won't want to get rid of it," Silicon Valley futurist Paul Saffo said. "It will become a context engine. It will be aware of where it is, where you are going and what you need."

The G Flex provides a peek at the shape of things to come. Despite its name, the G Flex isn't pliable. The device is slightly bowed from top to bottom, allowing it to curve toward a person's mouth when used for phone calls. It also has a curved battery, something LG says is a first for smartphones. LG applied a "self-healing" protective coat on the G Flex to automatically repair any minor scratches.

More than anything, the G Flex is meant to begin the smartphone's evolution from the primitive state of flat screens. In theory, the curved-screen technology will lead to bendable screens, which will then pave the way to foldable screens. If that progression plays out, it would be possible to fold a larger smartphone so it can easily fit into a pocket.
Another Korean company, Samsung Electronics, also is selling a concave smartphone there. Unlike the G Flex's vertical bow, Samsung's Galaxy Round curves horizontally from left to right when it's held upright. With a price tag of about $1,000, the phone is more an expensive novelty than a mainstream product.

Like LG, Samsung is setting the stage for bigger things to come. Samsung vice chairman Kwon Oh-hyun told analysts last month that the company believes it can produce a mobile device with a foldable display by 2015.

Samsung appears to be working on two slightly different concepts, according to two analysts who saw prototypes of what's in the company's product pipeline during last month's meetings. Reporters weren't given a chance to see the prototypes.

Lenovo s930 and s650

            

             NEW DELHI: Chinese device maker Lenovo has launched two new mid-range smartphones, S650 and S930. Both the new smartphones are powered by MediaTek chipsets and run on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean operating system.

The Lenovo S930 is a phablet sporting a large 6-inch screen with 720p display and pixel density of 245ppi. It measures 170 x 86. x 8.65 mm and weighs 170gram.

It's powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core CPU part of the MediaTek 6852 chip along with a Mali 400MP graphics processor and 1GB of RAM. The device sports an 8MP rear camera and a 1.6MP front-facing camera. The phone comes with 8GB internal storage expandable via a memory card slot and a 3,000mAh battery.

The Lenovo S650 on the other hand, is a compact phone featuring a 4.7 inch qHD (540 x 960 pixels) display, with a pixel density of 234ppi. The phone measures 138 x 69.8 x 8.7 mm and weighs 126 grams.

The S650 is also powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core CPU part of the MediaTek 6852 chip and 1GB of RAM. It offers 8GB internal storage expandable via a microSD card slot, and a 2,000mAh battery. The phone will also come in a dual-SIM variant. It sports an 8MP rear camera and 0.3MP front-facing camera.

While Lenovo S650 has reportedly been priced at $366, S930 will carry a price tag of $427. There is no word on the global availability of the phones yet.

Google Nexus7 (Review)

Google came out with its first tablet - Nexus 7 - in 2012. In many ways, it changed the market. Unlike other Android tablets, which had a clunky user interface developed by Google's hardware partners, Nexus 7 used the default Android user interface. The result wasn't as pretty as the interface on a Nexus phone but it gave the tablet a clean and streamlined look.

Nexus 7 was also quite fast and portable. This made it one of the most popular Android tablets. Now Google has updated the device.

The new Nexus 7 - the name remains same and it is still made by Asus - is a different beast compared to the older tablet. But is it also any better?
Unlike the older Nexus 7, the new tablet comes with a primary camera. This 5MP camera is capable of taking decent shots in daylight. When we say decent, we mean decent for a tablet. The pictures taken with Nexus 7 lack the contrast and clarity of what high-end phones manage. But the focus is mostly right and so is the level of detail.

In low light, however, there is lot of colour noise in images shot with Nexus 7. They also come out over-exposed. If you have a high-end phone like a Nexus 5 or Galaxy S4, you should use that instead of Nexus 7 to take photos. But if you have to click a shot and you have nothing else at hand, the tablet will do an acceptable job in good light.

Powered by Android KitKat
The new Nexus 7 launched with Android Jelly Bean 4.3. It can be updated to Android 4.4. In terms of core user interface, not much has changed for Android since the days of Ice Cream Sandwich and the first version of Jelly Bean. On Nexus 7, KitKat looks clean and uncluttered.

The performance of the tablet is very good. It is fast and very responsive, although it lacks the kind of smooth animations that you see on iPads running iOS. In our use, we found that the tablet handled tabbed browsing and multitasking with ease. There was no noticeable lag. Demanding games like Asphalt 8 ran well and without any framerate issues.

High definition videos in MP4 format can be played using the default media player app. But for videos in other format you may have to download a third-party app like MX Player. The quality of stereo speakers is good. They are loud enough to fill a small room with sound.

Should you buy the new Nexus 7 or not? If you need a tablet and don't want to spend on iPad, go ahead and get the new Nexus 7.

Right now, it is the best Android tablet you can buy.

Unfortunately, with a price of Rs 20,999 it doesn't offer the kind of value that the older version of Nexus 7 offered. In fact, nowadays the entry-level version of older Nexus 7 sells for Rs 9,000, which is one hell of a deal for a tablet that runs Android KitKat and is still better than most of the other Android devices.

To summarize, here is our recommendation: If you don't want to spend more than Rs 10,000, pick the older Nexus 7. It is a great value for money! But if you can spend Rs 21,000, pick the new Nexus 7. The improvements it offers over the older Nexus 7 are significant enough to warrant the premium.


 

First Look Of Mototrola Moto G

            

                                        
              
                     Have a look at the recently launched gadgets which grabbed the attention in India... Motorola, which is owned by Google Inc has come up with Moto G, it has a decent screen.The Moto G's screen measures 4.5 inches (11.4 centimeters) diagonally, which is larger than the iPhone's but small for Android. It runs a fairly recent version of Google's Android system, with a promised upgrade to the latest, Kit Kat, early next year. 

 

HTC Desire 501,601 and 700

                                         

 NEW DELHI: HTC has introduced three new mid-range smartphones, the Desire 700, Desire 601 and Desire 501 expanding its Desire product line. The Desire 700 will be available at a price point of Rs 33,050, while the Desire 601 has been priced at Rs 24,190. The Desire 501 will be available at Rs 16,890.

 The Desire 700 dual-SIM phone (GSM+GSM) features a 5-inch qHD display with a resolution of 540x960 pixels. The phone features two Boom Sound front speakers similar to the HTC One. It's powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core processor and offers 1GB RAM. Desire 700 sports an 8-megapixel rear camera with autofocus and LED flash and a 2.1-megapixel front-facing camera with BSI sensor.

The phone comes with 8GB internal storage which is expandable up to 64GB with a microSD card. It runs on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean with HTC's Sense 5 UI running on top and packs a 2100mAh battery. The Desire 700 will be available around Christmas.

The Desire 601 dual-SIM phone features a 4.5-inch qHD display with a resolution of 540x960 pixels. It's powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core processor and 1GB of RAM and runs Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean with HTC's Sense 5 UI on top. The phone sports an 5-megapixel rear camera with autofocus and LED flash and a 0.3-megapixel front-facing camera.

Desire 601 comes with 4GB internal storage, expandable up to 64GB with a microSD card. The phone features GSM+GSM dual-SIM support and comes with a 2100mAh battery. There are also two Boom Sound front speakers similar to the HTC One. The Desire 601 would be available starting this weekend.

Desire 501 dual-SIM phone features a 4.3-inch Super LCD 2 display with a resolution of 480x800 pixels. It's powered by a 1.15GHz dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM. The phone sports an 8-megapixel rear camera with autofocus and LED flash and a 2.1-megapixel front-facing camera. It has 8GB internal storage, expandable up to 64GB with a microSD card. The phone runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean with HTC's Sense 5 UI on top. The Desire 501 too has same battery as the other two devices: 2100mAh.

 

           

Turn Your Iphone Into A Blackberry

               
                                       

WASHINGTON: A new device has been launched for iPhones aimed at making typing a lot easier.

American Idol host and serial reality TV producer, Ryan Seacrest, has invested one million dollars in the Typo keyboard, an accessory that is trying to make typing easy.

According to Mashable, the case snaps on to the top of an iPhone  and turns the touch screen keypad into one that resembles the BlackBerry's qwerty keyboard.

The Typo Keyboard priced at 99 dollars targets those who carry two phones: one for typing and another an iPhone for most everything else.

The keyboard, which works when Bluetooth is enabled, adds less than 1 inch (2.54 centimetres) to the iPhone's length, the report added.

 

 

Best Android Apps Of 2013

Android is the world's most popular mobile platform. And it is no different in India. The operating system's popularity has made it a hot favourite of developers too. The Google Play Store now boasts of over a million apps. While this offers huge variety to app lovers, it also makes selection difficult.

So here's help: Google's list of best apps for 2013. We bring you nine best apps from the list, picked from categories across gaming, productivity, widgets and more.

 

Umano – Best app launched in 2013

Umano, named the best app launched this year, combines the best of a podcast and news/articles by reading aloud stories. You can use this app to stay abreast of news and other developments while cooking, working out at the gym or driving.

 Instead of relying on text-to-speech technology, the developers of Umano hired voice actors to read aloud all the articles. According to them, this makes the app more engaging.

 

Fifa 14 – Best game of 2013

Fifa 14, the official app for the football franchise, has been adjudged as the best gaming app of 2013 by Google. The app includes 33 leagues, over 600 teams and more than 16,000 players to choose from.

You can stay up to date on your favorite team, build your own fantasy league team and play football with peers. Though the app is free, you will have to pay in order to access Manager, Tournament and Kick Off modes.

 

Day Frame – Best innovative app of 2013

The best innovative Android app of the year is Day Frame, which turns your smartphone or tablet into a digital photo frame when you are not using it. The app will pull photos from various accounts, including Facebook, Flickr, Google+, Instagram and Drop box.

You can filter the photos that will appear in the slideshow as per category. You can even choose when the app will be active by customizing the timer, battery and bandwidth settings.

 

Asphalt 8: Airborne – Best graphic game of 2013

Racing game Asphalt 8: Airborne has been named the best graphic gaming app of the year. An arcade game, it offers 47 cars and nine racing tracks to choose from and allows you to compete with up to eight racers in multiplayer mode. The stunning visuals and high-fidelity car motor sounds add to the immersive gaming experience, according to reviews.

 

Beautiful Widgets – Best designed app of 2013

The title of best designed Android app of 2013 goes to Beautiful Widgets, an app to customize the home screen with over 2000 themes. The app includes widgets for clock, weather and toggles and allows you to customize them the way you want.

You can check the temperatures in various cities from the same screen or use the whole screen just to see weather forecasts for coming days. It also allows you to resize widgets, add graphics and change transparency levels.

 

Zen Day – Best app for everyday life for 2013

Zen Day, a productivity app, is called the best Android app for everyday life fir the year. It includes a calendar and to-do list that lets you keep track of scheduled tasks via a 3D wheel.

The app syncs with Google Calendar, Google Tasks and Ever note and uses color coding to differentiate between upcoming tasks and meetings from older ones. Not only can you prioritize tasks, you can also rate how well you performed them with this app. Zen Day allows you to set deadlines as well as reminders for the same.

  

Rip Tide GP2 – Best game with Play Game service of 2013

Rip Tide GP2 has been named the best game with Play Game service for the year; Play Game is an Android service to share the gaming experience with their friends. It is a jet ski racing game that is known for its graphics and gameplay.

The app has 9 hydro jets, a number of stunts and playing modes like Race, Hot Lap, Elimination and Free Style. You can play in a four-way battle with your friends and compare achievements online.

 

Candy Crush Saga – Best immersing game of 2013

Google has rated Candy Crush Saga, a popular game on Facebook, as the best immersing game of 2013. It is known for its circus-themed animation as well as a map-view for all stages. You simply have to match three similar the candies to clear them off the board. Candy Crush Saga keeps the game challenging by limiting the number of moves you can make or setting goals for each stage.

 

 

Smasung Chrome Book

                                    

        Chrome books are light and portable laptops that are powered by Google's Chrome OS instead of Microsoft Windows. ​ These laptops cannot run programmes available for Windows computers.

The search giant Google announced the launch on its India blog, "Starting today, people in India have more hassle-free options with the launch of the Samsung Chromebook... In addition to giving you more Chromebook options, we're also announcing more store locations. The entire range of Chromebooks will now be available from select Reliance Digital and Croma stores in five more cities — Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata and Bangalore — in addition to Mumbai and Delhi."

Google has partnered with Tikona and Airtel to provide a range of cellular and broadband offers.

Samsung Chromebook features a 11.6-inch display with a resolution of 1366x768p and runs on 1.7GHz Exynos 5 dualcore processor. The Chromebook packs 2GB of RAM, 16GB of Solid State Drive (SSD), weighs 1.1kg and offers over six hours of battery life. Like all other Chromebooks, Samsung version too comes with 100GB of free Google Drive storage.

Acer C720 is powered by Intel Celeron 2955U processor based on Haswell architecture. It has a 11.6-inch screen and weighs 1.25kg. It has 2GB RAM and 16GB SSD for storage. The laptop claims to offer a battery life of over 8.5 hours.

HP Chromebook 14 is also powered by Intel Celeron 2955U. It has a 14-inch screen and weighs 1.85kg. It has 16GB SSD and 4GB RAM. Chromebook 14 claims a battery life of over 9.5 hours.

 

NEW DELHI: Google has announced the launch of Samsung Chromebooks in the country. ​Priced at Rs 26,990, Samsung Chrome book is the third Chromebook in the country after  acer C720 or HP Chromebook 14. ​

7Cool Alternatives To Apple Iphone 5s

While Apple's new flagship boasts better performance, a great camera, a fingerprint reader and various new software features, it has a hefty price tag starting at Rs 53,500.

If you want similar features but don't want to spend as much, here are some smartphones that you can consider:

 

Samsung Galaxy S4

Price: Rs 40,690

The Galaxy S4 has a gorgeous 5-inch display with a resolution of 1,920 x 1,080 pixel. It weighs 130g, has a width of 7.9mm, and a plastic body. The hardware includes an octa core processor (1.6 GHz Quad core + 1.2 GHz Quad core), 2GB RAM and 16GB storage, with support for 64GB microSD card. The 13MP rear camera delivers stunning results that can beat those of the iPhone. The 2,600 mAh battery manages a day's back-up with moderately heavy usage. Our favourite features in the S4 are the IR remote, screen and various air gestures.

 

Nokia Lumia 1020

Price: Rs 45,999

It's easily the king of camera phones. It has a 41MP sensor and delivers unmatched image quality. It also has optical image stabilisation, Xenon flash, manual focus, along with 4X loss-less zoom. The phone runs Windows Phone 8 OS on a 4.5-inch display. It's powered by a dual core processor, has 2GB RAM with 32GB non-expandable storage, and a 2,000mAh battery, that easily lasts over a day on mixed use. Its also comes with various apps and services, including free navigation and music subscription.

 

Google Nexus 5

Price: Rs 28,999

The Nexus devices are known for their top-end hardware at a great price. Their new flagship, Nexus 5, is no different. It's powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 Quad core processor, 2 GB RAM with 16GB storage (non expandable). It has the latest Android 4.4 OS without customisation, delivering zippy navigation and good performance.

It has a responsive 4.95-inch display with a resolution of 1,920 x 1,080 pixel. It has dual cameras - 8MP rear camera that does full HD video and a front 1.3MP camera for video calls. The unibody design looks good and has a built-in wireless charging support.

 

Sony Xperia Z1

Price: Rs 38,999

The Xperia Z1 is a beautiful phone that sports an aluminium and glass unibody design. More impressive is the IP58 certification for dust/water resistance. Its 5-inch full HD display uses Sony's Triluminos technology, but is not the best of the lot. The highlight is its camera, a 20 MP Exmor sensor and Bionz image processor with Sony G lens. The camera delivers good results and comes with several software features: live video streaming, effects and Info eye. It is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 Quad core processor, 2GB RAM, and 16GB storage (expandable).

 

Samsung Galaxy Note 3

Price: Rs 46,900

Samsung's flagship device is the most powerful Android smartphone available today. It runs an updated Exynos octa core processor (1.9 GHz Quad + 1.3 GHz Quad-Core) with 3GB RAM, and has a 32GB internal storage (expandable via microSD cards). Its 5.7-inch super AMOLED display (1,920 x 1,080 pixel) uses Wacom's pressure sensitive digitiser technology for precision input using the S Pen stylus. The device's faux leather rear panel gives it a premium look, while the 3,200 mAh battery lasts two days on a full charge. It comes with the same 13MP camera as the Galaxy S4.

 

HTC One

Price: Rs 42,990

In our opinion, this is the only phone that gives the iPhone serious competition in terms of design and build quality. HTC One has an aluminium unibody with a 4.7-inch full HD display. It runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 Quad core processor with 2GB RAM and 32GB storage (non-expandable). While the 2,300 mAh battery lasts just a day, the smartphone is loaded with impressive features, such as dual stereo speakers with built in amplifier, IR port and a revamped user interface. It is the first device equipped with HTC's ultrapixel camera, along with optical image stabilisation, which takes images with 4MP resolution and provides good details and natural colours.

 

LG G2

Price: Rs 40,490

LG's flagship device comes with a unique design. It has the power and volume buttons on the rear panel just below the camera, where your index finger usually rests. The phone has a stunning 5.2-inch display (1,920 x 1,080 pixel) with a surprisingly slim bezel. Under the hood is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 Quad core processor, 2GB RAM and 32GB non-expandable storage. What is more impressive is that despite its slim 7.9 mm design, the G2 manages a 3,000 mAh battery that easily lasts two days with moderate usage. LG has incorporated optical image stabilisation in the smartphone's 13MP camera, which delivers superb images matching those of the iPhone.

YOTA Smart Phone(Dual display)

                        

                Russian manufacturer Yota Devices has launched the world’s first smartphone with a touchscreen in front and an e-reader on the back. While the e-reader screen is made using E-Ink display that does not harm the eyes and is touch-enabled, the other screen uses a standard LCD panel.

YotaPhone’s LCD touchscreen measures 4.3-inch and has 1280x720p resolution. The E-Ink panel also measures 4.3-inch but has display resolution of 640x360p. 

The E-Ink display of YotaPhone also enables users to see notifications like messages, calls, reminders, appointments, weather etc even when the smartphone display is not turned on.

Key specifications of YotaPhone are dual-core 1.7GHz processor, 2GB RAM and 32GB internal storage. It is powered by Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) software and runs on a 1,800mAh battery.

The 13MP rear camera and LED flash in YotaPhone are placed below the E-Ink display on the back; a 1MP camera is used in front.

The manufacturer pre-installs its proprietary gestures and Put2Back apps in YotaPhone. Connectivity options in the device include 2G, 3G, 4G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0.The manufacturer has launched YotaPhone at 19,000 roubles or 499 euros in the Russian, European and Middle East markets. The company has not announced when the device will be launched in the US and major Asian markets.

LG G Curved Smart Phone

                           

 

                    LG’s curved smartphone -- G Flex -- is going international! The curved phone, earlier available only in South Korea, will soon start shipping to other countries.

LG has announced that the G Flex will be available for pre-orders in Singapore from December 8 and Hong Kong from December 13. It will hit other “key markets” of Asia by the end of the year.LG G Flex will be available in Europe early next year and hit the US market thereafter. It will reportedly be available with US telecom carriers AT&T, Sprint and T-MobileLG G Flex has a 6-inch flexible OLED screen that is curved along the horizontal axis. Though the screen is flexible by itself, the glass casing does not allow it to be bent at will. However, the phone still bends if sufficient pressure is applied on it as the glass film is thin enough to be bent slightly. The G Flex’s curved screen provides the same viewing experience from 1 feet away that a 55-inch HDTV does from 10 feet, LG claims.

Though LG G Flex missed the bus in claiming the title of world’s first curved screen phone, it still has a feature that no other gadget offers. LG has used a self-healing technology on the phone’s back, which allows it to heal small scruffs and scratches on the rear panel within 5 minutes.

This self-healing is due to a molecular substructure coating on top of the phone’s back panel and depends a lot on the room temperature; hotter the room, faster the healing. However, deep cuts that pierce through the coating will not be healed.

 

Key specs of LG G Flex include a 720 display, 2.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor, 2GB RAM, 32GB internal storage and 3,500mAh battery. Just like LG G2, the new G Flex has the power key and volume buttons on the back, positioned below a 13MP camera with LED flash.

Nokia Lumia 1520

 

                

          With a six-inch, super-sensitive, full HD display and great readability in sunlight, the Nokia Lumia 1520 is the perfect canvas to tell your story on. Take amazing photos with a 20MP Pure View camera and let Nokia Storyteller organize them into stories using interactive HERE maps.

The Nokia Lumia 1520 is a powerhouse of productivity. Built-in Microsoft Office means you can view and edit Word, Excel and Power point files without losing any original formatting. Save documents to SkyDrive and return to them whenever it suits you.Tell a different story by reframing and re cropping high-resolution photos. Add captions and explore a whole range of creative effects and filters with exclusive photo editing tools. The Nokia Lumia 1520 comes with all the exclusive features of Windows Phone 8, like Live Tiles and People Hub. And they're all Optimised for the big screen, making your Windows Phone 8 experience even better. The Nokia Lumia 1520 is a formidable business smartphone with built-in Microsoft Office, respected business applications like Microsoft Exchange, Office 365 and Lync, as well as enterprise-level security to give you peace of mind.


  Clear specifications:
                          Display size: 6 ''

Display technology: Clear Black, IPS LCD 

Display resolution: Full HD (1920 x 1080) 

Touch screen technology: Super sensitive touch 

Main camera sensor: 20 MP, Pure View 

Flash type: Dual LED flash 

Processor name: Qualcomm Snapdragon™ 800 

Processor type: Quad-core 2.2 GHz 

Arctic Tablet

             

               5.0 Inch HD Android 4.2 Quad Core IPS Phone featuring a HD resolution of 720p, 1GB RAM and 4GB Internal Memory proves that this phone is a wholesale winner in the quad core smartphone market.
                 This phone uses the latest Android operating system, Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. This version of Android is faster than previous versions and allows more control over the way you want to customize your phone. Access the wealthy Google Play store and install any application such as YouTube, Facebook, Angry Birds or Twitter and the “Arctic” will run it with ease.

Enjoy the texture and quality of the display due to the “Arctic” having a high quality resolution of 1280x720. This high quality is also helped by the fact that the “Arctic” boasts about IPS. IPS panel (In-Plane Switching technology) is a screen technology used for liquid crystal displays (LCDs). Advatnages of IPS are that IPS panels display consistent and accurate color from all viewing angles and also IPS panels can process high speed signals without data loss by using copper wiring with low resistance values.

In additional to all this, the "Arctic" comes standard with GPS to help you to navigate through the urban jungle, Bluetooth for hands free calling and wireless music streaming, Wi-Fi, and 3G Tethering.

   This tablet is not yet released in India but in other countries............

The wireless Iphone photo printer

                  

                           This is the printer that connects wirelessly to an iPhone or Android-powered phone and prints vibrant color photographs. An iPhone running a free app transmits pictures over a home Wi-Fi network to the printer, allowing you to print from anywhere in the home. In less than a minute and without ink cartridges, it prints 4" x 6" borderless photographs at 300 dpi resolution in up to 256 gradations and 16.7 million colors. The pictures are printed on patented paper embedded with yellow, magenta, and cyan dye crystals, producing rich, vibrant photographs that are waterproof and resist fingerprints, dust, and scratches. It can also print pictures directly from PictBridge-enabled cameras. Includes paper cartridge for 10 prints; additional paper cartridges sold below. Compatible with all iPhone (including iPhone 5), iPad, and iPod touch models running iOS 3 and up and Android-powered devices running OS 2 and up. 7" L x 6" W x 4" H. (3 lbs)

         Its price is ranging from $219.95 only..........

FITBIT Flex (Crazy Bands)

                       

    The  Fitbit Flex is a simple-looking device that's capable of some complex tasks. This water-proof wristband tracks number of strides, distance covered, calories burned, and uses LEDs to show your progress, with each of its five lights representing 20 per cent of your goal. Its free online tools - and apps for Android and iOS - allow you to follow your progress through graphs and charts. You can log your workouts and weight, create a food plan to eat smarter, and before you know it, you'll have a complete picture of your progress.

   At night, the wristband measures sleep quality. Its online Fitbit dashboard reveals how long you slept and the number of times you woke up, to help you learn how to sleep more soundly. Flex also has a silent alarm that gently vibrates to wake you at your desired time.

   The band automatically syncs your data to your computer or smartphone via its wireless sync dongle or Bluetooth to give you real-time access to your stats throughout the day.

   The best part, this band shares its data seamlessly with over 30 popular health apps, including MyFitnessPal, LoseIt!, SparkPeople, Sleep Debt, Microsoft HealthVault and FitStar. And if your friends have a Fitbit Flex band too, you can challenge and compete with them on Fitbit.com. Yes, this band does all of this and more. All you have to do is put in the exercise

It costs about rs;6,600 only............