While it looks like it's been plucked right out of a science fiction movie, the Turing Phone is actually very much here and now. Developed by San Francisco-based Turing Robotics Industries and in one fell swoop, it addresses many of the cribs users have about Android phones today and shows how desperately the smartphone needs to be reimagined. Here we are, handling no end of plastic on our devices, feeling delighted at the little bit of metal we get, and generally feeling that most phones look identical to each other. One look at the Turing Phone and you'd be taken aback at the difference. First, it's not made of the usual old mix of things but of liquid metal or liquid morphium which is real tough stuff, droppable and unbreakable. The use of this material that extensively in a phone is a world first. Some people are calling it the Terminator of phones, others the Superman of phones but for sure it's been built to be stronger than steel and titanium. Design-wise too, the Turing phone looks refreshingly different, with interesting colour combinations and arrangements on it which make you wonder why no one else has experimented with the way phones look, beyond a point. Probably the cost of making them. The phone is also waterproof. It can be dropped in water and has a coating on the inside to protect components. Apparently, one would just need to wipe the phone and get on with it. The Turing Phone is a 5.5 inch device, runs on a 2.5GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor with 3GB of RAM to play with, and comes in 16GB, 64GB and 128GB variants. It's on Android 5.0 Lollipop and has a 3,000mAh battery. The cameras are 13MP and 8MP. That's a decent set of specs. There's a fingerprint sensor on this phone, but it's intriguingly placed on the side of the device. And that's not the only standard thing that's different about it. There's no micro-USB port for charging. It has a special magnetic charger. It also doesn't have a jack for headphones because you're supposed to use Bluetooth to connect. The software on the inside is also as radical as the design on the outside. The basics are Android, but there's a lot of customisation over that, all with the aim of making the device super secure. There's strong encryption used to keep all the data safe so that you don't have to keep worrying about what your apps are trying to get at. They claim it is unhackable - along with being unbreakable physically and waterproof, three key features that are distinctive apart from the snazzy space-age designs. The Turing Phone isn't just a lab project but ready to pre-order from the 31st of July and rumoured to be headed to India in September. It'll cost $610 for 16GB, $740 for 64GB and $870 for 128GB. How many of these phones the company will be able to release into the market and how many consumers, whose curiosity is certainly piqued, will want them, we'll have to see. Also how will the rest of the industry react to this unusual device will be interesting but even if it helps spur a little bit of creativity in the ocean of black rectangles flooding the world today, it'll be welcome.
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MWC or Mobile World Congress is the largest exhibition and conference for the mobile industry which features a number of launches and announcements from a variety of mobile operators, device manufacturers, technology providers, vendors and content owners from across the world. It is held at the beginning of every year at the GSMA (Groupe Speciale Mobile Association) headquarters in Barcelona, Spain and is the biggest show for anything and everything related to mobiles.This year the GSMA organized the first ever event in China as the Mobile World Congress Shanghai, which took place from the 15-17th of July 2015 in Shanghai, China. The conference was a scaled down version of the official show from Barcelona and the three day event saw a huge participation from a variety of brands especially Asian vendors which covered almost 90% of the expo.There were a bunch of product launches from well known and not so well known brands and the only popular Indian brand that made a buzz was Intex as it announced a SIM-based smartwatch called the iRist and its official partnership with Jolla to make smartphones with Sailfish OS as the mobile operating system. The expo also included showcasing of mobile devices from ZTE, Huawei, HTC and Gionee. The key announcements however revolved around the launch of advanced 4G LTE and 5G networks and how they will transform the way we access data and why is it necessary to arrive at the earliest. The second biggest focus was around smart homes and IoT (Internet of Things) and how manufacturers are getting closer to make these a reality.An interesting wearable device called the Soundbrenner Pulse was showcased which is the first ever band designed for musicians. The band basically throws vibrations and acts as a metronome so that musicians can feel every click rather than listening to it.Virtual reality is also picking up fast and a 5G VR booth showed how the future of gaming is going to transform as apart from your senses, your how whole body movements will be a part of how you play games and interact with machines.The MWC Shanghai was quite an insightful event and gave an impressive impression of the fact that how much development is taking place globally and how rapidly technology is taking over us.Photo credits: Kunal Khullar
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A large variety of fitness bands have started selling in the market and while most of them offer stats about how much one has walked, burned calories and step count, the newest competitor brings a bit more to the table. YU Televentures, part of Micromax mobiles, has officially launched its fitness band ‘YuFit’ which will be available by the end of this month.The YuFit has a very similar design to the Xiaomi Mi Band except it comes with a small OLED display to give quick notifications about calls, text messages, step count, calories burned and so on. YU has tied up with HealthifyMe to provide fitness packages which has been specifically designed for YuFit. Basically the YuFit app lets you control the device itself and the HealthifyMe app acts as an extension to the health advisory services.Once you download the YuFit app and the HealthifyMe app, you register with the app along with your data. The HealthifyMe app tells you how much calories you consumed, how much burned and advice on how much workout you should do. It also includes subscriptions Fitness trainers, Nutritionists and Dieticians to get personalized health advice from the experts themselves. Plans start from Rs. 1800 to upto Rs. 10,000 depending on the duration. Other features include a sleep tracker, an SOS feature, alarms alerts, task alerts and even an option to control the camera.The YuFit band definitely offers a lot more in terms of functionality as well as providing something beyond just a basic health band. The price of the band is Rs. 999 and will be available through flash sales on Amazon.in starting from the 29th of July. Registration for the device begins 21st July onwards with first 1000 customers to get access to fitness trainer at no cost.
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Cortana is intended to be central to the Windows 10 experience, learning what you do, taking notes on your preferences if you let her, and predicting what you will need as you work with your PC as well as any tablet or mobile It looks like we’ll have several voices clamouring for attention, very soon. Apple’s Siri, Google’s whatever-her-name-is, Amazon’s Echo, Facebook’s Moneypenny, and then there’s Microsoft’s Cortana. These virtual assistants are going to get into everything and battle it out to be the one that guides you through everyday life. Facebook’s, for now, seems to be intended for helping you buy stuff, and so isAmazon’s to some extent, but the others are looking to be more comprehensively embedded in all the tech you use. Cortana may be Microsoft’s voice, but she’s already found her way to Android and will soon be on iOS as well because people no longer use Windows alone but live on their mobiles – not necessarily thoserunning Windows either. With so many activities having shifted to mobiles and Microsoft’s Lumia phones barely maintaining a tiny share of the mobile market, the company that once was in so much trouble for being monopolistic now has to put its software on to other platforms more frequently used all over the world. This includes Cortana, the virtual assistant. As we draw closer to the launch of Widows 10 on 29th July, a beta version of Cortana for Android has leaked (in that purposely accidentally way that companies have these days) and many users are trying that out right now. Cortana is intended to be central to the Windows 10 experience, learning what you do, taking notes on yourpreferences if you let her, and predicting what you will need as you work with your PC as well as any tablet or mobile. The idea is for you to be able to take up where you left of as you move from one device to another. Cortana is supposed to understand semantic language and respond meaningfully including getting you a file you were working on for example. Personalisation is the intention here. To download Cortana on Android, you’ll need to key in a web search and links to the “apk” will come up. You’ll get an alert about downloading an unknown file to your phone and indeed, you may want to avoid it, but if you want to risk it, you’ll get a glimpse into Cortana. Cortana, at the moment, is not yet fully functional and in fact the real value is supposed to be when moving across devices that include a PC or laptop running Windows 10, so you may wonder what the big deal is. There’s already Google Now ready to respond to all sorts of queries and, on many phones such as those from Samsung, a voiceassistant from the company anyway. Currently, Cortana on Android will push some information at you, answer queries, set reminders etc. The interface for the Cortana app is interesting to see and what will be incorporated in Windows 10.
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Intex has been on a hit and trial path as last year it partnered with Mozilla to bring in the first and the most affordable Firefox OS based smartphone in India. While that smartphone didn’t gain any perspective in India, it seems that Intex is not going to give up that easily. The company has just announced its official partnership with Jolla at the MWC (Mobile World Congress) Asia 2015 in Shanghai, China and has confirmed that the Indian brand will be making smartphones in the future which will be running on Jolla’s Sailfish OS. This makes Intex the first device maker that will be licensed to use the Sailfish OS.Jolla has been around in the smartphone market for a couple of years now and has been popular because of the fact that the company grew out of a side project from Nokia. Jolla already has one smartphone selling in India with its own mobile system called Sailfish which is based on swipes and gestures and aesthetically looks quite good. Sadly neither the smartphone nor the mobile system has gained any popularity. Intex, however, believes that the mobile system has potential and has confirmed they will be making smartphones with Jolla’s mobile operating system. Intex also showed a reference design model of the smartphone that the company will be bringing to India in November. The new devices will be launched under the Aqua Fish series and will come with Qualcomm Snapdragon 200,600 and 800 series processors.Jolla showcased its new updated mobile platform which is called Sailfish 2 OS and a customised version of the mobile system will be used in the upcoming smartphones from Intex. The new update, like the previous version supports Jolla and Android apps and the customised version will have integrated apps on the homescreen including Snapdeal and Gaana. These will customisable to any other app. Intex will be selling its first Sailfish based smartphone in November through Snapdeal and the first device will be under the 10k segment. Keshav Bansal, Director of Intex officially said that Intex is experimenting with the new mobile system and doesn’t have plans on launching a variety of devices until they get a feedback from the consumers.
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The US has applauded India's recent support for multi-stakeholder approach on Internet, saying the decision is critical for ensuring the vitality of the World Wide Web. "Just a few weeks ago, (Indian) Communications Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad announced the Government of India's support for the multi-stakeholder approach at the last Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) meeting," said Catherine A Novelli, Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and Environment, yesterday. Addressing a meeting of Internet Governance Forum-USA, Novelli said Prasad stressed the idea that multi-stakeholderism should embrace all geographies and societies. "I could not agree more with Minister Prasad on this point and we look forward to our continued dialogue with India and others on this important issue," Novelli said. "Every citizen ? regardless of the country they live in ? can contribute to global decision-making on how we manage this common resource," she said ahead of this year's global Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Brazil. Noting that over the past few years there has been growth in IGF stature in participants, diversity and in substance, she said this was a very positive development. The IGF has demonstrated that it is a preeminent venue for the multi-stakeholder community to share opinions, ideas and solutions to problems regarding a range of Internet governance and policy issues. Its continued growth and long-term stability is absolutely essential to the future of the Internet, Novelli said. "In Brazil, we must continue to demonstrate to the world that the multi-stakeholder approach, that brings together government policy-makers, businesses, NGOs and Internet experts on an equal footing, is the best way to effectively overcome today's challenges and preserve the Internet's future," Novelli said, adding that she was thrilled with the growing support for this model of Internet governance. Observing that Internet offers unprecedented opportunities for economic growth in developing countries, she said of the developing world's 1.4 billion extremely poor people, 70 per cent live in rural areas. Their lives can be transformed by connecting village schools to the web, bringing telemedicine to far-flung rural health centers, providing accurate weather information to farmers and fisherman and supplying up-to-date market information to producers, Novelli said. She said for every ten per cent increase in a country's Internet penetration, its total economic growth expands by one to two per cent. "Internet is a foundational tool for creating shared prosperity. It is as fundamental for economic growth as highways, power grids and ports," Novelli said.
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The $50-billion technology company, Uber, has tied up with healthcare network Oxxy to bring healthcare benefits to all driver-partners and riders across India. Oxxy, is the world record holder for organising the maximum number of free camps in 100 cities simultaneously in May 2015. Uber on Friday (17 July) announced an extension of its association with Oxxy. In March, Uber and Oxxy joined hands to provide free rides to and from any hospital, diagnostic and Path lab. The extended partnership will now include free health checkups and subsidised medical rates for Oxxy’s gamut of services, for all Uber driver-partners and riders in 18 cities across India. Oxxy healthcare network includes over 100,000 centres including hospitals, diagnostic and pathological laboratories, spread across 1,500 cities in India. India is already the largest geographic market for Uber after the US and the advantages of this alliance will automaticallly be available for driver partners and riders in every new city Uber launches in as well. Amit Jain, President, Uber India, said: “Healthcare plays a vital role in enhancing people’s lives, something Uber is dedicated and deeply committed to. Furthering our association with OXXY, I’m proud that we will now be able to provide quality and affordable healthcare to the millions of Uber driver partners and riders in the country, a problem that’s been persistent so far.” To facilitate this process OXXY has decided to issue a special promo code which will be visible on Uber APP from now on. The services are likely to start from early next year. First medical checkup is free and the subsequent checkups will be highly subsidised. Health checkups include blood tests that comprise a combination of sugar tests, cholesterol, thyroid, eye, dental and BMI to name a few. The combinations might change depending upon the area and the city.
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If you’re not worried about someone getting into your email account or having a good look at your Whatsapp messages, opening up your workdocs or coming upon your credit card info – you should be. All of this and more is on the devices we use and the slightest drop in vigilancecould expose your personal information to someone who has no business going anywhere near it. We all know that. And yet, it’s difficult tobe on your guard proactively all the time, changing multiple passwords on half a dozen devices and even more accounts. We have technologieslike fingerprint scanners on phones and some laptops and tablets, but those are sometimes a little troublesome. There’s face recognitionwhich commonly available smartphones are now using increasingly to open up access to the device, but that’s been cracked with a photograph before. There’s voice recognition used as a biometric to allow you and only you into the device, but voices are vulnerable to change, noise, and more. So there’s nothing for it but to keep searching for the perfect method. Mala BhargavaA bunch of neuroscience researchers at the Pyschology department of the Binghamton University in New York, may just have found that perfect way. This is what they say: We know that brainwaves can be measured at the level of the scalp, using electrodes. We know that as EEG. Well, what if the EEG pattern yielded could be correlated with a specific event or situation or stimulus? Such as when a word is presented. Repeat the exact exercise over many sessions and you have an ERP or Event Related Potential. So, these ERPs are unique to individuals, specially when related to meaning. The researchers isolated patterns that resulted when certain text was presented to an individual – with the meaning unique to that person. The accuracy with which the brainwave pattern would come up when presented with the same text was in the region of 85 to 97 per cent. This result was reliable even after a lag o six months. This tapping into a person’s semantic memory and the brainwave pattern that comes up could certainly be explored to function as a password.So you would have to merely think of a specific thing or memory and that is used to get access to a device or even as a security pass intoa building, for example. Or for banking or any of the other million things that need passwords today. The brainprint has to translate into everyday usage yet but it won’t be long before it becomes one more level of security in our increasingly technologically empowered lives.
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