NEWS-India under grip of cyber-attacks: Report

India is under the grip of cyber attacks and there is an obvious peak in the growth of malware and their modifications on mobile devices, especially on the Android platform, according to a report.Though PC is still the prevalent target for malware authors, there is an obvious peak in the growth of malware and their modifications on mobile devices, especially on the Android platform, The Quick Heal Annual Windows and Mobile Malware Report, 2012, released by Quick Heal Technologies, a leading player in India's anti-virus segment said Mumbai.
As per the findings, there has been a persistent increase in the number of malware attacks on the Google Android platform and mobile applications have become the easiest way to compromise devices, the report said.
According to the Report, social engineering still remains one of the most coveted ways of spreading malware. Cyber criminals continue to use it as a convenient way of exploiting human behaviour and platform vulnerabilities.
The report reveals that India is under the grip of cyber attacks with increase of almost 90 percent in Windows malware and a mind-boggling increase of 170 percent in its modifications and the bad guys are also winning the war in the mobile platform.
Virus attacks in the mobile space have started soaring at a rapid pace with 30 percent growth registered in 2012 and 80 percent increase in its modifications.
Commenting on the findings of the research, Sanjay Katkar, Technical Director and CTO, Quick Heal Technologies, said "Windows is still the most attacked Operating System. 2012 saw numerous attacks that were devised for windows vulnerabilities. Cyber criminals have leveraged zero-day exploits even more effectively with new software patterns and business models".
The web is still the most conventional way of targeting victims and our efforts should be driven to educate the end users and create awareness, Katkar said.

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Posted in: CYBER,NEWS

Microsoft Bluetooth Mobile Keyboard 5000 review

Microsoft recently launched its Bluetooth Mobile Keyboard 5000 in India. It can be paired with any Bluetooth enabled mobile phone, notebook, desktop or tablet.

Mobile Keyboard 5000 succeeds company's Mobile Keyboard 6000 and the only major difference between the versions is the missing numeric pad in the former.

Packaging and contents
The red keyboard box is just as sleek as the product. Apart from the Bluetooth keyboard, the package comes with a user manual and two Alkaline AAA batteries that are required to power this device.

Design and build quality
Microsoft's Bluetooth Mobile Keyboard 5000 is a visually appealing device. Unlike the competing keyboards that are rectangular in shape, it has a slightly curved design that works in its favour.  Another positive for this keyboard is its slim and light-weight profile.

The keys are large and well-spaced, but unlike other keyboards not all keys on Microsoft's Keyboard 5000 are of equal size. The function keys placed in top row are very small in size; however, as the function keys are hardly used, we did not find it much of an issue.

Function keys aren't the only ones with smaller size on the keyboard. While centre keys such as 'B', 'N', 'G' and 'H' are larger, the corner keys like 'O', 'K', 'L' and 'Q' are smaller. According to the company, this unusual size of keys, and the design of this keyboard, encourages natural posture while typing. That might well be true, but it certainly takes some getting used to.

Talking about the other parts of the keyboard, the battery lid has been placed at the rear along with power button and Bluetooth pairing button. The pairing button is quite small and we found it a little uncomfortable to use. If you plan to pair with different devices on a regular basis, this may be a slight pain-point.

Moving on to the build quality, this keyboard is made essentially of the plastic but it does not look cheap and feels like a sturdy device.

With mere 414 grams weight, the keyboard is quite lightweight, but because of the size, we didn't find portable enough for tablets. To make it more travel friendly, the keyboard should have ideally come with a soft cover/pouch. But, Microsoft seems to have overlooked it.

Further on the downside, there is no indicator for Caps Lock, or the battery life. Company has just given a power indicator, which informs you if the device has been powered on and also blinks while the device is in discoverable mode.

Performance
To use the Microsoft Bluetooth Mobile Keyboard 5000, all one needs to do is insert two AAA batteries in the keyboard and pair it with a compatible Bluetooth device. We paired it with an Apple iPad and Windows notebook, and in both cases we found the connecting procedure to be similar and fairly straightforward.

In terms of usage, the device is comfortable to use and is very responsive. However, as we have already pointed out, it takes a while to get used to the keys on this one.

Verdict
If you are out in the market looking for a wireless keyboard for home-use, Microsoft Bluetooth Mobile Keyboard 5000 is a decent option, but if you want a portable keyboard for your new tablet, you might find it a bit large.

Pros
Appealing design
Light-weight/Portable
Easy to connect

Cons
Takes a bit of time to get used to the key placement
No battery life/Caps Lock indicator

Price: Rs. 3,350
 

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Posted in: COMPUTERS,Keyboard

Samsung Galaxy Note 800 review

The stylus is back in business and we should give Samsung some credit for this, which released its first S-Pen sporting device, the Galaxy Note last year. The so-called phablet turned out to be a decent success for the company. The Korean manufacturer has since moved forward to reveal the successor and a bigger version of its Galaxy Note in the form of the Note 2 and Note 800 respectively.Samsung Galaxy Note 2 is yet to reach India, but the Note 800 (called Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 in other markets) has already landed in the country. Packing a quad-core processor and Ice Cream Sandwich, the tablet looks enticing on paper but do the specs translate into real performance? We shall find out in this review.
Hardware
Don't expect any design innovation here. Samsung has played safe and kept the looks of the Note 800 similar to its other tablets. Blame it on the design patent troubles with Apple, or just laziness, there is nothing extraordinary about Samsung Galaxy Note 800's looks. That said, it isn't bad either. The Note 800 is a decent looking Android tablet, but the all-plastic build makes it feel cheap.
You can even the feel the plastic in your hands. The plastic back of the tablet bends if you apply pressure - certainly not Samsung's best work.
At just 0.35 inch thickness, the Samsung Galaxy Note 800 is slim and feels light in hand, so you at-least won't have trouble holding it for long durations.
The front of the tablet is largely taken by the 10.1-inch display, which is surrounded by a huge bezel and a dark silver border framing stereo speakers.
The top of the tablet features the power button, volume rocker, SIM card slot, microSD card slot, infrared sensor and 3.5mm jack, which is pretty much everything apart from the proprietary charging-cum-data port that is present at the bottom. We don't find any sense in why Samsung uses this proprietary port, when a Micro-USB would be much more useful and easily accessible.
Samsung also bundles its S-Pen with the tablet, which fits at the bottom right of the device. The company has made the S-Pen slot smart as it recognises when you pull out the pen and gives you a shortcut menu of apps, which support S-Pen or even wakes up the tablet if it is in the sleep mode.
Display
The 10.1-inch display on the Note 800 comes with 1280x800p resolution, which is slowly becoming obsolete for 10-inch or bigger tablets and the full-HD is the latest trend. Apart from that, the viewing angles are decent and the display is sufficiently bright for indoor as well as outdoor usage. The colour reproduction is also good.
The display is however a fingerprint magnet and loves smudges.
Camera
We aren't the ones who click photographs with our 10-inch tablets and the Galaxy Note 800 doesn't offer anything that'll change that.
If you do plan to click, Samsung has included a 5MP rear camera with LED flash on the tablet, which in no way spectacular. The resulting images are mediocre, at best. Similarly, the recording video quality is just okay and the camera only allows you to record 720p videos.
The tablet also comes with a 1.9MP front camera, which can be used for video chatting or making video calls over 3G network.
The camera app is decent and includes quite a few options to tweak, like effects, focus mode, and white balance.
Software/ User Interface
Samsung has pre-loaded Ice Cream Sandwich on the tablet with its Touchwiz UI on top. Considering that Jelly Bean is already out in the market, we are a little disappointed to see Android 4.0, especially given the fact that Samsung was one of the first manufacturers to get hold of Jelly Bean source code as they are involved with Galaxy Nexus. Anyways, company has promised to provide Android 4.1 before the year-end.
As expected, you will hardly notice any stock Ice Cream Sandwich on the tablet and everything has been completely customised. While some of these customisations are good, others are totally unnecessary.
One of these unwanted customisations is the irritating touch sound, which is enabled by default in the tablet and we are not sure why Samsung thought it was necessary to keep it enabled out of the box.
Samsung has replaced the default Android apps for Calendar, Browser and Email with its own re-worked versions, which in no way seem to add any value. However, the one place where Samsung's customisations do add value are its mini apps. Tapping the ever present small arrow in the bottom of the tablet brings forth the full list of mini apps, which can float on any existing open apps and with a single click; you can even open their full version.
These mini apps are Alarm, Calculator, Email, Messaging, Music Player, Phone, S Note, S Planner (calendar app), Task Manager and World Clock.
Another useful Samsung customisation which we will also like to see in the tablet version of stock Android, is multiscreen mode. It allows you to open select apps side-by-side. But the usability is lowered because multiscreen only works with Polaris Office, S Note, Video Player, Gallery, Email and Browser.
Samsung has also added a Safari like Reader mode in its custom Android browser which allows you to view the vanilla version of a webpage sans all the ads, links, menus and other media. It is especially useful on websites filled with too much of unwanted content.
The company has also bundled quite a few apps including Adobe Photoshop Touch (costs $10 in Play Store), ChatOn, DropBox, My Education (content for students), Polaris Office, and Peel Smart Remote.
Overall, the Note 800 is a mixed bag on the software front, though Samsung has added some useful stuff. The reworked version of the default apps does not necessarily work as well, as the company would have hoped.
Performance/ Battery Life
The Note 800 includes a 1.4GHz quad-core processor and 2GB RAM, which makes it one of the most powerful mobile devices in the market and this raw power is visible in the daily performance of the device. However, there is still some lag in the tablet when working in the multiscreen mode. The tablet takes some time while switching between two apps in this particular mode, which should not be the case in a device with a quad-core processor inside.
It seems the software is not optimised to really make use of all this power. We hope that it changes with the Jelly Bean update, which is due sometime later this year.
On the battery front, the Note 800 comes with a huge 7,000 mAh battery that gives sufficient amount of juice to last through more than two days on normal usage, occasional gaming and 3G usage as well.
The tablet also offers voice-calling and messaging, which is certainly a plus, but not many of you would be making calls from your tablet unless an emergency.
Overall, the tablet works pretty good and unless you open all apps at once, decide to do some really heavy multi-tasking, you will have no problems with the Note 800's performance.
S-Pen
The USP of the Samsung Galaxy Note 800 is the bundled S-Pen and the supported app ecosystem. Since the original Note, Samsung has improved quite a few elements in the stylus and it is more fluid and responsive. Same can be said for the software.
The S-Pen now supports up to 1024 degrees of pressure, not sure how much of these pressure points are going to useful in real life. Hardware-wise, the S-Pen has grown in size, but it is still lighter than the normal pen.
App-wise, Samsung has included support for S-Pen in S Note and Adobe Photoshop Touch. More apps are available in the company's app store. S Note gives you the option to work in pre-defined templates or a blank one. It also supports handwriting recognition, but this one's a bit of a hit and miss.
Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Note 800 looks great on paper, however not everything is hunky-dory when it comes to practical usage. The tablet has its own share of problems including the user interface and build quality. The software also doesn't seem to be optimized for utilising the raw power of a quad-core processor; however the overall performance of the tablet is still good apart from odd hiccups.
In the end, all of it comes down to whether you want S-Pen or not, then the level of integration the Note 800 offers with it is great and if you are ready to pay close to Rs. 40,000 for the same, then go for it. In case you decide otherwise, we suggest you take a look at other much cheaper options including the company's Tab 2 10.1, which comes with ICS, dual-core processor and 10.1-inch for Rs. 32,000.

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Posted in: GADGETS,SAMSUNG TABLET

Sony -launches waterproof, wire-free Walkman Sports MP3 Player

The iconic Sony Walkman, that spawned an entire category of products, lives on. Its latest avatar is the waterproof, wire-free Sports MP3 Player.

Sony lifted the wraps off the NWZ-W273 W Series Walkman Sports at CES in Las Vegas on Monday. It comes with 4GB of storage and delivers up to eight hours of audio playback on a full charge. It also offers a convenient quick-charge function. Even if the battery if fully depleted, with just three minutes of charge time, the device can provide music for up to 60 minutes.

The entire MP3 player is a pair of headphones joined by a tension band for a supportive fit and comes with small, medium, and large earpieces, making it ideal for secure, long-term wearing comfort during running, cycling or swimming.

The W Series Sports Walkman can stay continuously submerged at a depth of up to 2 metres (6.6 feet), making it the ideal casual swimming companion. Sony advises against using the Walkman in sea water.

The Sony Walkman Sports MP3 Player will be available in March in blue, pink, white, and black at Sony online and with authorised retailers for about $99.99.

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Posted in: SONY

MOBILE-BlackBerry 10 leaks keep on coming, reveal purported price and specs

Research in Motion (RIM) seems to be having a tough time keeping its forthcoming BlackBerry 10 smartphones away from the camera. Pictures and videos of the full-touch BlackBerry 10 smartphone, which is touted to be launched as BlackBerry Z10 have been around for a while.Adding to that list of leaks is the ones received by Business Insider, which reveal that this smartphone will be available through two major US telecom operators - Verizon and AT&T. Verizon is the largest telecom operator in the United States of America and was one of the first operators in the world to offer BlackBerry smartphone when they were launched.
The current set of leaked pictures placed iPhone 4S in between two BlackBerry Z10 smartphone to help compare both these devices. Business Insider claims that the build quality of BlackBerry Z10 is really nice. Its back cover feels rubbery and snaps pretty much like the back cover of Samsung Galaxy S III. However, these leaks do not give any indications on by when will these smartphones will start retailing.
Furthermore, a new video of the BlackBerry Z10 has been leaded by ETradeSupply.com, whichallegedly details the internal parts of this smartphone. According to this video, the full-touch BlackBerry 10 will be 10 millimetres thick.

The video features two 4.3-inch screens of what they claim to be BlackBerry Z10 smartphone. Both these screens seem to have a different layout of camera and sensor. Only one of the screens in the video seems to have BlackBerry logo, which makes the website speculate that this may perhaps be the final version of the display, while the other might be a prototype of a forthcoming BlackBerry 10 device.
RIM has already sent out invites for the January 30 event, where it will be launching its much awaited BlackBerry 10 operating system. It is expected that RIM will be launching two new devices at the launch, the all-touch BlackBerry Z10 and a QWERTY smartphone that is rumoured to be dubbedBlackBerry X10. Certain operators around the world have already started taking pre-orders for these smartphones.
The latest to join this bandwagon is the Canadian telecom operator Bell. The operator is also running a contest on its site, and promises to give away five new BlackBerry 10 devices to users who pre-register for updates.
As per Mobilenapps.com, the terms and conditions of this contest hints that the new BlackBerry 10 smartphone may carry a price tag of 700 Canadian dollars. Though it is not certain whether this price is for the full-touch smartphone or the QWERTY one.

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Posted in: MOBILE - BLACK BERRY

MOBILE-Lava Xolo A800 review

Lava entered the smartphone segment with the X900 in the Xolo series way back in May 2012. This was the first smartphone in the world to come with an 'Intel Inside' tag. However this device failed to set the market on fire, partially because of its Rs. 22,000 price tag.So, the Indian handset maker has taken a U-turn and returned to familiar territory of budget smartphones with the latest members of the Xolo series - Lava Xolo A800 and Lava Xolo A700. Both these smartphones run on Mediatek's dual-core MT6577 chipset.
Priced at Rs. 11,999 the Xolo A800 comes with a 4.5-inch (960 x 540 pixels) screen, 512 MB RAM and an 8-megapixel auto focus camera with LED flash. Let's find out if this device from Lava's Xolo series is a worthy contender in the smartphone market.
Design/ Hardware
The White coloured Lava Xolo A800 looks very similar to Samsung Galaxy S III. However, it comes with a matte finish, which makes this smartphone look less plasticky than the Galaxy S III.
The Xolo A800 has round corners with an aesthetically done silver border. The front of the device is mostly taken up by the 4.5-inch screen. There are three Android buttons - Menu, Home and Back - embossed at the bottom of the screen and a VGA camera on the top. The left panel houses the volume keys and Micro-USB/charging port.
The back panel has an 8-megapixel camera and the loudspeaker. The 3.5mm jack and power/wake button find room on the top panel.
In terms of hardware, the device is powered by a 1GHz dual-core processor with 512MB RAM, has 4GB internal storage expandable up to 32GB with microSD.
The Xolo A800 is a dual-SIM smartphone and supports GSM SIM card in both the slots. On opening the back panel one notices a big black rectangular patch attached perhaps to maintain space between the battery and the back panel. This looks extremely out of place and we would have appreciated if Lava would have paid a bit more attention to detailing.
Display
The Lava Xolo A800 comes with a 4.5-inch 16M colour capacitive touch screen IPS display with 245 ppi. The display and the viewing angles look good. The under-sun visibility on the Lava Xolo A800 was decent. The screen used in this smartphone is reflective.
CameraThe pictures captured through the 8-megapixel auto focus camera on board are quite crisp and clear. The Lava Xolo A800 comes with a BSI Sensor, which made sure that even the low-light pictures look decent. The quality of videos captures through the back camera is good too.
There is a VGA front camera, which takes average pictures, pretty much like any other front camera. All in all, the camera experience on the smartphone is good; wish it had a dedicated camera button to help click a quick one.
Software/ Interface
The Lava Xolo A800 runs on Android 4.0.4 (Ice Cream Sandwich). There are five customisable home screens to fill with apps and widgets. The software runs quite smoothly pretty much like any other stock Android smartphone.
There aren't too many pre-loaded applications on Lava Xolo A800 except NoteBook and Xolo care but one can always download them from Google Play Store.
With the help of the Noteook app one can take quick notes. These notes can be under various categories such as work, personal, family affair or uncategorized. Saved notes can be easily accessed through this app.
Performance/ Battery
As mentioned earlier, the Lava Xolo A800 comes with Mediatek's dual-core MT6577 chipset rather than Intel's chipset that was seen on the earlier Xolo A900. However, we found this smartphone to be quite smooth and responsive. There were no real lags that we faced while using the device.
Powered by a 1,600mAh battery, the Xolo A800 is easily able to last a day on single charge.
The audio quality is good both on the headphones and the loudspeaker.
Verdict
For about 12K, the Lava Xolo A800 is an interesting smartphone. It has a good display and delivers a decent performance. However, consumers looking for a large screen smartphone might be tempted to bend towards, Micromax Canvas 2 A110, which has a 5-inch screen and a bigger battery (2000mAh). Micromax Canvas 2 A110 is powered by the same processor and runs on Android 4.0. Also, Micromax's device is available at a best buy price of Rs. 10,000. Lava Xolo A800 scores better than its Micromax only on the display front.
Pros

• Smooth performance
• Crisp display

Cons

• Android upgrade roadmap not clear

Price: Rs. 11,990
Ratings (Out of 5)
Design: 3.5
Display: 3.5
Performance: 3.5
Software: 3
Battery Life: 3.5
Value for Money: 3
Camera: 3.5

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Posted in: LAVA,MOBILE

GOOGLE-NEWS, -All you need to know about Google's antitrust settlement

Google Inc. has settled an U.S. antitrust probe that largely leaves its search practices alone. In a major win for Google, the Federal Trade Commission unanimously concluded that there is not enough evidence to support complaints from rivals that the company shows unfair bias in its search results toward its own products.

Below are six of the biggest takeaways from the decision announced Thursday:

1. Google promised to license hundreds of important mobile device patents to rivals that make gadgets such as smartphones, tablets and gaming devices, on "fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms," the FTC said. Google got the patents as part of its $12.4 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility last year. The patents cover wireless connectivity and other Internet technologies.

2. Upon receiving a request to do so, the online search leader pledged to stop using snippets of content from other websites, such as the reviews site Yelp Inc., in its search results. It had already scaled back this practice before the FTC settlement after a complaint from Yelp that triggered the FTC probe. Under the agreement, specialty websites such as those on shopping and travel can request that Google stop including such snippets in the search results, while still providing links to those websites.

3. Google pledged to adjust its online advertising system so marketing campaigns can be more easily managed on rival networks. Some FTC officials had worried that Google's existing service terms with advertisers make that difficult.

4. The FTC's unanimous conclusion that Google does not practice unfair "search bias" to promote its own properties against competitors is a major victory for the online search leader. It means it won't have to change its search formula, considered to be the company's crown jewel.

5. Not everyone was happy with the results. FairSearch, a group whose members include rival Microsoft Corp., said the FTC's "inaction on the core question of search bias will only embolden Google to act more aggressively to misuse its monopoly power to harm other innovators."

6. Next up, European regulators are expected to wrap up a similar investigation of Google's business practices in the coming weeks.

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Posted in: GOOGLE-NEWS

GADGETS - TABLETS, --Indian tablet market expected to double in 2013; Samsung leads the pack

The year 2012 was an interesting year for the tablet market. There were plenty of new Indian players that entered this market such as Micromax, Karbonn and Lava. According to India Quarterly Media Tablets Market Review for 3Q 2012, the India tablet market recorded sales to the tunes of 1.1 million units in 3Q (July-September) 2012.This is a huge jump considering that only 98,135 tablets were sold in the same quarter last year.
Furthermore, the India's tablet market is expected to double to around six million units in 2013, led by increased enterprise adoption and availability of Windows 8-based devices, as per research firm CyberMedia.
The research also indicates that there were about 135 vendors that have launched their tablets in India till 3Q 2012. It is expected that keeping the current trends in mind a few more vendors might be tempted to join the bandwagon soon.
Another interesting facet that gets highlighted in the research report by CyberMedia is that the Average Sales Value of tablets in India during 3Q 2012 was approximately Rs. 13,200, while 63.5 percent of all tablet sold were below the Rs. 10,000-mark.
In terms of ranking, CyberMedia research pegs that Samsung is currently the market leader in the tablet market with a market share of 23.9 percent, followed by Micromax at the second position with 15.3 percent share and Datawind (manufacturer of the controversial Akash tablet) at third position with a 12.3 percent share, in terms of sales during 3Q 2012. However, sales of Aakash tablet have not been taken into consideration for the compilation of this data.
The total shipments for the tablet market are expected to close at 3 million units in 2012, as per this report
Commenting on the trends for 2013, CyberMedia says 2013 will see markets crystallise around three price points, which include Rs. 5,000-10,000; Rs. 15,000-20,000 and over Rs. 35,000. The research firm believes that some vendors might have to undertake price corrections to fit their devices within these three price segments, to serve the market aptly and participate in these high-volume price levels.
The analysts at CyberMedia also feel that will be at least a few Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) who will announce LTE / LTE-ready Tablets for the India market in 2013. According to Faisal Kawoosa, Lead Analyst, CMR Telecoms Practice, "A majority of the Tablets currently on offer have built-in Wi-Fi connectivity with 3G access enabled through a USB dongle. However, going forward, increased penetration of 3G networks, declining ASVs of 3G-enabled Media Tablets and launch of BWA (4G / WiMax / LTE) services in the country is likely to see a rise in 3G-only Tablet devices with larger screen sizes. This trend is expected to give a fillip to new types of data services and content being demanded and consumed by subscribers, which in turn will drive a further increase in adoption of Media Tablets in India."

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Posted in: GADGETS - TABLETS

TECH--2013 expected to be the 'Year of the Phablet'

Call it phablet, phonelet, tweener or super smartphone, but the clunky mobile phone closer in size to a tablet than the smartphone of a couple of years back - is here to stay.A surprise hit of 2012, it is drawing in more users, more handset makers and is shaping the way we consume content.
"We expect 2013 to be the Year of the Phablet," said Neil Mawston, UK-based executive director of Strategy Analytics' global wireless practice.
While Samsung Electronics Co Ltd has blazed a trail with its once-mocked Galaxy Note devices, now other manufacturers are scurrying to catch up.
At this week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Chinese telecommunications giants ZTE Corp and Huawei Technologies Co Ltd will launch their own.
ZTE, which collaborated with Italy's designer Stefano Giovannoni for the Nubia phablet, is scheduled to launch its 5-inch Grand S, while Huawei brings out the Ascend Mate, sporting a whopping 6.1-inch screen, making it only slightly smaller than Amazon's Kindle Fire tablet.
"Users have realised that a nearly 5-inch screen smartphone isn't such a cumbersome device," said Joshua Flood, senior analyst at ABI Research in Britain.
Driving the phablet's shift to the mainstream is a confluence of trends. Users prefer larger screens because they are consuming more visual content on mobile devices than before, and using them less for voice calls the phablet's weak spot.
And as WiFi-only tablets become more popular, so has interest among commuters in devices that combine the best of both, while on the move.
According to the latest Ericsson Mobility Report, the monthly data traffic for every smartphone will rise fourfold between now and 2018 to 1,900 megabytes.
The upshot is a market for phablets that will quadruple in value to $135 billion in three years, according to Barclays. Shipments of gadgets that are 5 inches or bigger in screen size will surge by nearly nine-fold to 228 million during the same period, though estimates vary because no one can agree on where smartphones stop and phablets start.
But that's the point, some say.
"I think phone size was a preconceived notion based on voice usage," said John Berns, a Singapore-based executive who works in the information technology industry. He recently upgraded his Note for the newer Note 2 and bought another for his girlfriend for Christmas. "Smaller was better until phones got smart, became visual."
The Asia-Pacific is, and will remain, the world's biggest market for phablets, says ABI's Flood. Last year, the region absorbed 42 percent of global shipments, a proportion that will expand steadily over the next few years to account for over 50 percent of shipments by 2017, according to ABI figures.
"Countries like Japan and South Korea will be major markets for phablets," Flood said, adding that China, India and Malaysia would see increasing demand for larger screen devices as they roll out 4G networks extensively.
Samsung has been both the engine and beneficiary. While other players shipped devices with larger screens earlier - Dell Inc launched its Streak in 2010 - it was only when the Korean behemoth launched the Galaxy Note in late 2011, with its 5.3-inch screen, that users took an interest.
"The Streak was launched at a time when 3-inch smartphones were standard and the leap to a 5-inch Streak was a jump too far for consumers," says Strategy Analytics' Mawston.
"The Galaxy Note was launched when 4-inch smartphones had become commonplace, and the leap to 5-inch was no longer such a chasm."
The bigger, the better
Since then Samsung has bet big on bigger: its updated Note has a 5.5-inch screen and its flagship Galaxy S3 the best-selling smartphone in the third quarter of 2012 has a screen that puts it in the phablet category for some analysts.
Samsung accounted for around three quarters of all phablets shipped last year, according to Barclays' Taipei-based analyst Dale Gai.
Samsung's marketing heft has paved the way for others. LG Electronics Inc accounted for 14 percent of shipments in the third quarter of last year, according to Strategy Analytics.
HTC Corp's 5-inch Butterfly - called the Droid DNA in the United States - has been selling well in places where Samsung is less dominant, according to Taipei-based Yuanta Securities analyst Dennis Chan. The first batch sold out soon after its December launch in Taiwan.
"I don't think we can say that Samsung invented phablets," said Lv Qianhao, head of handset strategy at ZTE. "But it did do a lot to promote this product category, which helped create tremendous demand."
Phablets are also proving popular in emerging markets.
A poll of nearly 5,000 readers of Yahoo's Indonesian website chose Samsung's Galaxy Note 2 as their favourite mobile phone of 2012, ahead of the iPhone 5.
Kristian Tjahjono, a technology journalist who posted the poll, said phablets were a natural fit for Indonesians who liked tablets but also liked making phone calls.
But while those in such markets who can afford them are going for the high-end devices, the door is opening for cheaper models. Tjahjono pointed to Lenovo's 5-inch S880, which has a lower resolution screen and sells for about $250, which is around a third of the price of Galaxy Note 2.
Sweet spot
Falling component prices will add to demand. The total cost of an upper-end phablet, its bill of materials, will likely fall to 2,000 yuan this year, says Gai from Barclays, and will halve within two years.
"One thousand yuan is a very sweet spot for China," he said.
India is also a fan.
Vivek Deshpande, who manages global strategy for Shenzhen-based mobile phone maker Zopo, says that while the Indian and Chinese markets are different, they both share a common appetite for aspirational devices: phones big enough for their owners to show off. This is changing the direction of lower end players.
"Zopo's primary focus is now on phablets," said Deshpande.
Even Samsung is pushing its own creation downmarket: In Las Vegas it will unveil the Galaxy Grand, a 5-inch device that lacks some of the resolution and muscle of its bigger brethren but will be aimed at markets like India. There is a version offering a dual SIM slot, a popular feature for those wanting to arbitrage cheaper call and data plans.
As phablets slide into the mainstream, handset makers are trying to find ways of differentiating.
As well as hiring Italian designer Giovannoni better known for his minimalist, sleek bathrooms, ZTE also came up with an onscreen keypad that inclines to one side of the screen, depending on whether the user is left- or right-handed.
Samsung, however, not only has first mover advantage, it can also build on its expertise in display.
Barclay's Gai says Samsung is expected to introduce a thinner, unbreakable AMOLED screen which will leave room for bigger batteries.
"That will put Samsung in good stead to still dominate the market," he said. Despite pressure in China, Gai estimates Samsung's share of smartphones with 5-inch or larger screens to fall only from 73 percent in 2012 to 58 percent in 2016, which is still the lion's share.
By then consumers will see the phablet for what it is, says Horace Dediu, a Finnish analyst who runs a technology blog asymco.com. Its rise is part of a wider march of computing power into wherever we reside - the living room, the train, bed or work.
"It makes sense that we're moving towards a time where we are served not by a computer or a netbook or a phone, but rather that we have these screens scattered around and available for us to play with," he said. "In a way the phablet is not a bulky phone but a very delicate computer."

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Posted in: Phablet',TECH

TECH-Intel announces Atom Lexington Z2420 chip for 'affordable' mobile devices

Intel said Monday it would step up efforts to make chips for smartphones and other mobile devices by targeting emerging markets and the rapidly growing "value" segment.Intel unveiled its plans at the Consumer Electronics Show, the world's biggest tech sector event, highlighting its efforts to get a bigger share of the sizzling mobile market.
Intel said its plans include "a new smartphone platform for emerging markets," one of the fastest growing areas for these devices.
"The best of Intel is coming to a mobile device near you," said Intel's Kirk Skaugen.
"We are set to deliver the biggest increase in battery efficiency in Intel's history while adding broad new human interfaces to computing devices through touch, voice, facial recognition, and gesture-based interactions.
"We're also significantly extending the performance and power savings in Atom processors as we accelerate our mobile offerings in an unprecedented fashion in 2013."
Intel said its low-power Atom processor-based platform would be targeted at the value smartphone market segment, estimated to reach 500 million units by 2015.
It said companies supporting the effort include Acer, Lava International and Safaricom.
Intel is the world's biggest maker of computer chips, but has been struggling as consumers and businesses shift to mobile devices powered by a different kind of processor.

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Posted in: TECH

How to --Draw Roses

Learning how to draw roses, one of the most popular flowers anywhere in the world, can seem daunting at first sight.

When you look at all the intricate ways in which the petals appear to curl and fold around each other, you wonder where to start.

However, once you realise how the basic structure of a rose is formed, it suddenly becomes easier to understand. Even moreso, when you realize that anything you draw can be formed with just five basic shapes which you can find in the article by clicking on the link.

Before roses actually open out, each petal is wrapped around the one below like a spiral.

A really good way to understand and see this is to peel a tomato as you would peel an apple.

If you can keep the peel in one long piece, then roll it up, you'll find it makes a perfect impression of a rose that hasn't yet fully bloomed!

Keep this spiral effect in mind when you're drawing and it may help.

Anyone in the catering trade will know this trick. As an aside from drawing, it's a really neat way to embellish a salad...

However, enough of the food. We're here to draw.

Let's move on to Stage 1 of this how to draw roses tutorial.

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How To Draw Roses - Stage 1

If we look at the two photos, you'll see one is of a rose that's still to open, whilst one is of a beautiful peach color in full bloom.

In my usual style, I've superimposed guide lines over the pictures to show that despite the intricacy of the petals, they're really only basic shapes to point you in the right direction. These should also make sure the sizes are in proportion as well.

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How To Draw Roses - Stage 2

In Stage 2 of How to Draw Roses, we can see that by taking away the the pictures, we're left with basic shapes that provide a sort of 'scaffolding'.

Sketch these shapes lightly in pencil until you're happy with the overall proportions.

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How To Draw Roses - Stage 3

Moving on to Stage 3, you'll notice I've drawn a spiral for the main shape of the larger rose.

I've inked this in so you can see it easier, but for now, just put this line in pencil, becuase you'll be erasing it shortly.

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How To Draw Roses - Stage 4

In this next stage, I've inked in the final shapes, once I'm happy with the look of the flowers.

Some of the spiral has been stretched a little here and there and the triangles have been slightly rounded off to indicate where the petals have started to curl over.

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How To Draw Roses - Final Stage

The final part of this article sees the addition of some light pen marks to indicate shadow areas and give some 'body' to the roses.

Note how they've been drawn on the larger rose in the direction that the petals actually grow to suggest the veins and undulations. Have a close look at a petal on a real rose and you'll see what I mean.

So there we have our 'How to Draw Roses tutorial. As a bonus, you also now know how to make a rose from a tomato !! Click on the links below to find lots more tutorials. Keep coming back as well. I'm adding mew articles all the time.

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Posted in: HOW-TO

NEWS,-फेसबुक फ्रेंड को फ्री में कॉल कर सकेंगे आप

लंदन।। फेसबुक जल्द ही अपने यूजर्स को फ्री वॉइस कॉल की फैसिलिटी देने की तैयारी में है। इसके लिए मेसेंजर एप में नया फीचर जोड़ा जाएगा। इसके जरिए आप अपने किसी भी फेसबुक फ्रेंड से बात कर सकेंगे, वह भी बिना जेब ढीली किए।

वॉइस ओवर इंटरनेट प्रोटोकॉल (वीओआईपी) तकनीक से फ्री इंटरनेट कॉल की इस सुविधा का इन दिनों कनाडा में ट्रायल चल रहा है। इस फैसिलिटी का फेसबुक की ओर से कोई चार्ज नहीं लिया जाएगा। लेकिन तकनीकी रूप से देखें तो यह बिल्कुल मुफ्त नहीं है। इंटरनेट यूज करने के लिए इस्तेमाल डाटा पर मामूली चार्ज देना होगा।

कुछ समय पहले फेसबुक मेसेंजर ने दुनिया भर में वॉइसमेल की तरह मेसेजिंग का फीचर लॉन्च किया था, जिसके जरिए आप अपने फ्रेंड्स को अपनी आवाज में मेसेज रेकॉर्ड करके भेज सकते हैं। कुछ एक्सपर्ट्स का दावा है कि फेसबुक जल्द ही इसी तरह की फ्री विडियो मेसेजिंग सुविधा देने पर भी काम कर रहा है। एक्सपर्ट्स का मानना है कि फेसबुक वॉइस मेसेजिंग और वीओआईपी जैसी सुविधाएं देकर कॉल करने के पारंपरिक तरीके को चुनौती देने की तैयारी में है
।

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Posted in: NEWS

HEALTH - FOOD--Soy Milk

Soy Milk!
Soybean is the legume richest in nutrients. Its milk can be a substitute for cow's milk as it is more healthier than cow's milk.
It can be used in the following cases: 
-allergies
- heart disease
and gall stones

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Posted in: HEALTH - FOOD