September is a great month for lovers of technology. There’s the IFA tech show in Berlin, Samsung’s Unpacked event, and very soon, Apple’s event possibly bringing the iPhone 6 to an eager world. And of course, everything leaks a little before it happens so much was already known about Samsung’s next version of the Note, the Note 4 super-smartphone. Way back in 2011, the Note was responsible for kicking off users’ fondness for really big phones that blur the lines between smartphones and tablets. It’s a trend that has shown no sign of ending. In fact, it’s rumoured that Apple will be going so far as to follow that trend by unveiling a “phablet.” If it does, one wonders whether the device will have anything of the maturity of Samsung’s Note, which has by now had a few years to evolve.This time, Samsung has actually gone ahead and unleashed not one, but two Galaxy Notes, the Note 4 and the Note Edge, presented by Samsung’s Vice President, DJ Lee. This was at a three-city event with the main event being in Berlin and echoed in Beijing and New York, and it took place just ahead of the IFA tech show. And depending on how you want to play it, you may see the fare at the Unpacked event as being either about iterations or innovation. I’m inclined to think there was plenty of both. Galaxy Note 4The Note 4 doesn’t look dramatically different from the current Note. It’s the same size, a bit thicker and heavier, and has more metal on the edges, I suppose because people complain so vociferously about plastic. The still-removeable back panel is made of soft leather-looking material, as before. But practically everything else has been bumped up so that the Note 4 today is most likely the most powerful smartphone around. First there’s the screen. Not only is it Super AMOLED with its strong contrasts and colours, it’s now at 1440 x 2560 pixels resolution or QuadHD and has a pixel density of 515ppi. So it will look crisp and as well as bright and colourful. There are two or three other phones with this resolution and also one of Samsung’s own tablets, but on a device the size of the Note 4, it is dazzling, as those who’ve seen it are reporting.Other specs are also enhanced, including the processor which is a 2.5GHz quad core Snapdragon 805 and a variant which is Exynos 5433 octa-core. There’s 3GB of RAM and a 3,220 which while it isn’t very different from the Note 3’s now includes quick charging, going to 50 per cent in just 30 minutes.The cameras are another iteration. The primary camera is a 16MP and now has optical image stabilisation for less blurred phtotos, low light images and steady video. The front camera is a 3.7MP shooter, being touted as just the thing for selfies. It would have been great if they’d just put in a swivel mechanism and allowed you to use the primary camera all round. But another good use of the camera onboard the Note 4 is that it has a Snap Note function with which you can take a picture of text and then be able to edit it.The heart of the Note and its main differentiator is the stylus or S-Pen and this has been enhanced in several ways. First, the pressure sensitivity has been played with so that it feels more like natural writing. There are very useful additions such as being able to select multiple objects and text and dragging that into a note application. In the note taking app, there are now additional pen styles including calligraphic ones, again, to make the handwriting more personalised and real. Samsung Note EdgeThere’s a fingerprint scanner which is said to be improved, a heart rate sensor which even has a camera triggering function, and a recording function that journalists will love as it picks up sound from eight different directions and allows the user to control what can be heard more.Coming in with a second Note and surprising everyone with an entirely new feature, Samsung has put in an extra bit of screen space on the right of the screen, rolling off the main area. This edge, after which the Note Edge is named, displays apps, alarm clock, news and whatever else app developers will now work to put there. It’s innovative and attractive and can be potentially put to many interesting uses.Samsung also launched two wearable devices at the Unpacked event, one of which uses virtual reality.The Note 4 and Note Edge will start to be available in October although the Edge may not be present in all markets. IDC says that “phablet” shipments will hit 175 million over 2014 and by 2015, they’ll actually surpass tablets. So it looks like big phones are here to stay, unsurprisingly as there’s so much more that can be done on them. With the Note being just about the most capable and feature-endowed of these so far, there’s no doubt Samsung has a good thing going.Mala@businessworld.inmala.bhargava@gmail.com@MalaBhargava
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Chipmaker Freescale, a dominant player in the automobile market, says that start-ups will disrupt business models to make the internet-of-things a reality. Their thread networking protocol is now being made available for start-ups that want to play in the connected household business. Simply put, their chips allow several devices to interact with the cloud as one whole. "The start-ups can use these tools to build applications on the android platform, there will be 50 billion wearable devices in five years," says John Dixon, director of corporate marketing at Freescale Semiconductor Inc. He adds that today standards are created by different industry verticals and that Freescale can provide chips that can enable every industry based on their standards. The company is part of several global start-up community boards which are trying to build micro-controllers that can work in the nascent wearable technology space. "Power consumption and battery efficiency are on the key aspects that start-ups are working on while adding more sensors," says James Bates, senior vice president and general manager for analog and sensors at Freescale Semiconductor. Today an average wearable is retailing at $100, which offers services on top of the product separately. This may currently be very expensive for the average individual and may be catered to only people who have a fashion and lifestyle element attached to owning a wearable device. However, once the Chinese and Taiwanese fab companies figure out that the hardware is being built for different verticals they will mass produce to bring the costs of the hardware down and approach clients on their own. By then device hardware will be commoditised. It is in the software and services that Indian start-ups will need to create intellectual property in. Today there aren't many engineering community boards in India but there are several start-ups attempting to build the connected car eco-system and are also building services on top of commoditised wearable technology. An ABI Research estimated that the number of wearable computing device shipments will reach 485 million units by 2018. All these wearable devices along with cars and homes will be sharing massive amounts of data on the cloud.Self-tracking apps and services are by their nature designed to collect and analyse personal information. A study done by Symantec on Quantified-self highlights that 52 per cent of apps examined did not make available privacy policies for the users. Privacy policies should preferably be understandable even by those not in the legal profession and must be shown to users before they sign up for a service so that they can make a considered choice before using it. "There will be several new technology companies in the coming years and we already see different pieces coming together to create these businesses in the IOT world," says Dixon of Freescale.
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Samsung Electronics announced the launch of the NX mini - slimmest and lightest interchangeable-lens camera, will be available exclusively through Amazon.in as part of a strategic partnership. Asim Warsi, Vice President, Mobile & IT, Samsung India said, "This shift in our strategy is created to meet the needs of our customers who are constantly looking for the best in technology. We understand the buying patterns of our consumers and are constantly strengthening our network to cater to their evolving needs. This offering through Amazon.in will enhance accessibility for the NX mini camera". The latest addition to the NX series, NX Mini SMART camera sports a portable and stylish design and offers stunning image quality which makes it the perfect ‘go-to’ camera for capturing special moments. This power packed camera with a 1” BSI CMOS sensor and innovative features like Wink Shot and Baby Monitor, also boasts of NFC and Wi-Fi capabilities that allow sharing of images on a real-time basis. The NX mini is world’s slimmest and lightest interchangeable-lens camera which will be sold on Amazon.in.ValueFirst Acquires Social Media Mandate For Govt Of Madhya Pradesh ValueFirst Digital Media, a leader in digital and mobile communication, acquired the social media mandate for Madhya Pradesh Madhyam which is a PR body for the government of Madhya Pradesh. Started in 2003, ValueFirst offers targeted marketing services through its digital platforms and properties to over 2,500 customers. It uses both the Internet and mobile to engage with consumers through multiple communication channels like SMS, voice, e-mail, WAP, mobile video and social media.Vish Bajaj, CEO, ValueFirst, said: "We welcome this opportunity and are keen to become an integral part of the state and central government initiatives on transforming our nation into a 'Digital India'."It will be responsible for managing the social media presence on behalf of the Madhya Pradesh government which includes their social media properties such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube etc. to raise the awareness of the state government's initiatives.Aroon Kumar, Vice President - Marketing & Social Media, said, "We have invested into building the best social media talent and tools in the country which will allow us to service Madhya Pradesh government as well as other similar government projects. We are focusing on creating teams which understand government agendas and their connect with the citizen of India."India PC Market Improves In Q2 2014: IDCThe overall India PC shipments for Q2 2014 stood at 2.55 million units which is a substantial quarter-on-quarter growth of 23.6 per cent over Q1 2014 and year-on-year drop of 27.8 per cent over Q2 2013. The market remained upbeat buoyed by business purchases, as well as channel intake of low priced PCs at the end of the quarter.The commercial PC segment emerged stronger against expected performance with 1.38 million units shipped in Q2 2014 with a quarter-on-quarter growth of 34.5 per cent over Q1 2014. A clear mandate in elections signalled a mark of recovery in the economy. Against last calendar year, business prospects are expected to remain moderately better in the coming six months..The Overall consumer PC market recorded 1.16 million units, a quarter-on-quarter growth of 12.8 per cent over Q1 2014. “The overall sentiments have picked up and IDC observes improved discretionary spending from consumers across devices. It is expected to have a positive influence on the market as we enter the festival season starting Onam,” comments Manish Yadav, Market Analyst, Client Devices, IDC India. The retail and online acceptance of new product category such as Bing SKU facilitated growth this quarter.PC market looks to recuperate in due course of time. “IDC anticipates increase in consumer spending both as a result of seasonality owing to festive buying and cautious end user spending on high end smart phones. This indeed was driving away wallet share in the recent past,” adds Kiran Kumar, Research Manager, Client Devices, IDC India.Symantec Launches Backup Exec 2014 in IndiaSymantec announced the availability of Backup Exec 2014 which delivers powerful, flexible, and easy-to-use backup and recovery to protect virtual, physical and hybrid infrastructures. Featuring improved performance, increased visibility, simplified management, and support for the latest operating systems and applications*, Backup Exec 2014 is a faster and stronger** backup solution than its previous versions.“To help build Backup Exec 2014, Symantec sourced feedback from approximately 3,700 customers and partners worldwide who participated in a beta program. This feedback helped us do our homework in understanding what customers and partners really want in a backup and recovery solution,” said Tarun Kaura, Director, Technology Sales, India, Symantec. “With more than 2 million Backup Exec customers worldwide and a set of new product features built from the feedback of our customers and partners, Symantec is set to leap ahead in the backup and recovery market in India.”OnlySSD To Launch Samsung SSD 850 PROONLYSSD.com, the exclusive complete high-end SSD portal, announced the launch of Samsung 850 PRO - First 3D Vertical NAND flash memory enabled SSD. A new solid state drive (SSD) line-up featuring Samsung's cutting-edge three-dimensional (3D) vertical NAND (V-NAND) flash memory technology. This new SSD offers a new era of performance for solid state drives.Samsung's flash memory is fabricated using an innovative 3D V-NAND architecture, which stacks 32 cell layers on top of one another rather than trying to decrease the cells' length and width to fit today's shrinking form factors. Samsung's V-NAND features a proprietary vertical cell structure and represents a breakthrough in overcoming the density limit currently facing planar NAND architecture used in conventional flash memory, yielding significant speed, endurance and energy efficiency improvements. When in Rapid Mode, user can enhance performance by processing data on a system level using free PC memory (DRAM) as a cache, providing 1.8 times faster performance in the RAPID mode*.Saurabh Bhatia Becomes The New CEO For VdopiaVdopia Inc, rich media advertising, announced a realignment of its top management that positions the company to expand on and expedite its product offerings and enable the company to meet the distinct demands and challenges of the ad tech industry.Saurabh Bhatia, who co-founded Vdopia, in 2007, has appointed as Chief Executive Officer, succeeding Srikanth Kakani (also a co-founder) who became Chief Technology Officer and Chhavi Upadhyay, another co-founder, who has served as Chief Operating Officer, became it's President.As Vdopia's first Chief Technology Officer, Kakani will oversee the development, implementation and growth of comapany's technology vision.Upadhyay, as the company's President, will provide leadership and direction to human resources, legal, accounting and finance in addition to her current responsibilities of global operations and business development.
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Spice Retail Limited has taken the lead in democratizing the handset category through an ultra low cost phone, the country’s first Firefox OS powered smartphone, Spice Fire One Mi – FX 1. Priced at an unbelievable price of Rs,2,299, Spice Fire One is purely targeted to the nearly 90 per cent of the feature phone users wanting to switch to smartphones. The device is aimed at the masses that are looking for a larger than life phone statement but are deterred due to price sensitivity.Commenting on the launch, Prashant Bindal, Chief Executive Officer, Spice Mobility Ltd, said, “This is a step towards enabling the dreams of the small town masses of connecting with their aspirations through affordable smartphones. With the ultra-low cost Spice Fire One, we at Spice, aim to convert the feature phone users into smartphone users." Dr. Li Gong, President of Mozilla Corporation, said, “Just one year after the first Firefox OS device launched, Firefox OS smartphone is now available in 17 countries across Europe, Asia and Latin America. Our partnership with SPICE will be an exciting Firefox OS launch in India. Having one more strong partner as SPICE, we are confident that Firefox OS devices will realize a whole new category of smartphones with affordable price. Furthermore, we can ensure every user to enjoy the power of Web”.Increase in FAR Ratio What can be seen as a move to woo voters, Haryana Cabinet clears a proposal to increase FAR ratio for residential colonies. In NCR areas of Haryana, floor area ratio for residential colonies may be increased from 175 to 300.The Haryana government claims this will be an encouraging step for generating revenue needed for extension of metro corridors in upcoming areas.The move for better financing for the mass rapid transit system (MRTS) will gradually reduce the dependence on private vehicles and induce public transport use through easy public transport access."Now a day's buyer's preference largely depends upon the enhanced connectivity, walking distance from the residing area. This scheme will result in densification of the particular area thus resulting in push for demand for the local housing projects". Ajay Singal, Director Avalon Group. Next Education Embarks On New JourneyNext Education, India’s leading source of technology-backed K-12 solutions forays into trainings for teachers, Students, Parents and Principals of schools of all boards. It is also the empanelled agency of CBSE for providing mandatory the trainings for the schools under its affiliation.The training is divided into two categories; one for the CBSE board schools and the other is the customized programme for all boards. The first category has subject specific training program/competence building for teachers, CCE & CBSE's Initiatives for Teachers, Classroom Management for Teachers and Communication Strategies for Students. The second category has "Nurturing Creativity"- The Creative Classrooms, "Showcase your portfolio"- Academic Quality Management & Documentation, Emotionally Intelligent Classrooms, and Leadership Infinite- for Students, Collaborative Classrooms, Train the teacher- The Parent, Character Building & Value systems and SQAA Awareness.All the training programmes by Next Education are designed, crafted, mentored and conducted by the leading academicians in the country. These training programs are very effective and unique with features like demonstration method, interaction approach and experimential learning methodology.Shaadi.com Hosts 30 Mn Users With RackspaceRackspace, the Managed Cloud company, on Friday (22 August) announced Shaadi.com, the world’s largest matrimonial website is using Rackspace dedicated hosting. Based in India, Shaadi.com manages over 200 million page views per month and over 10,000 registrations daily.Beginning with one Rackspace server in 1998, Shaadi.com has grown exponentially since its initial deployment. Sixteen years ago, Shaadi.com saw an opportunity to build the world’s largest online matrimonial site and create an online experience that would match and heighten the traditional dating experience in India.“When starting out as an online startup, it was critical that we found a technology partner that allowed us to keep IT costs to a minimum, while also providing the right IT infrastructure to meet our growing needs,” said Anand Mittal, COO & director, Shaadi.com. “We needed to find a partner that could help us build a premium online experience for our customers – one that could accommodate millions of customers and scale as demand grew.”Boosting Business With Adobe Creative CloudAdobe on Friday announced that MPS Limited, a global leader in high-quality publishing solutions, has subscribed to Adobe Creative Cloud and Adobe Acrobat to enhance their capabilities in digital publishing, interactive learning and multimedia, and creative design. This Enterprise Term Licensing Agreement will provide all MPS offices and departments in India with expanded access to the software.As a leading publishing company that covers every stage of the author-to-reader publishing process, MPS has implemented Adobe’s latest Acrobat solutions and products like Adobe InDesign CC to enrich existing workflows, increase productivity and leverage multi-screen platforms.Commenting on the strategic deal, Umang Bedi, Managing Director South Asia, Adobe said, “Publishing is a dynamic industry and increasingly relies on newer technologies and better processes to deliver high-quality content faster. MPS has been using Adobe Creative Cloud to drive critical initiatives like workflow transformation and multi-screen presence for increased productivity and better consumer experience which is helping to fuel their business growth.”More Than 100 Mn Production SoCs ShippedSynopsys, a global leader providing software, IP and services used to accelerate innovation in chips and electronic systems, today announced that its DesignWare®USB 3.0 Controller and PHYIP has shipped in more than 100 million production system-on-chips (SoCs) used in mobile computing, digital home and cloud computing applications such as smartphones, tablets, set-top boxes, digital TVs, gaming systems and servers.More than sixty companies have successfully integrated silicon-proven DesignWare USB 3.0 IP into their products’SoCs, including SoCs in the MicrosoftXBOX One. This broad usage demonstrates the quality of the IP and howSynopsys enables rapid adoption of the standard. To help ensure interoperability and lower designers’ integration risk,the DesignWare USB 3.0 solution has been certified by the USB-IF through USB compliance testing inplugfests andby third-party labs.International Realty Brand Debuts in IndiaSotheby's International Realty Affiliates LLC announced it has signed an exclusive agreement to develop the Sotheby's International Realty® brand in India with the opening of North India Sotheby's International Realty.Amit Burman, Vice Chairman, Dabur, has been appointed as the Honorary Chairman of the firm, which is led by Amit Goyal, co-owner and Chief Executive Officer, together with co-owners Ashwin Chadha and Ankit Tyagi, who will serve as President and Chief Operating Officer respectively. The team will look into the luxury residential real estate market throughout Northern India. The team boasts of several decades of collective experience in the Indian market ranging from real estate advisory to wealth management.The first office will begin operations in September 2014 in New Delhi followed by Gurgaon, Noida, Chandigarh and Jaipur. "India is one of the most exciting, beautiful and fastest growing markets in the world, with a developing luxury real estate market," said Philip White, President and Chief Executive Officer, Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates LLC. "Expansion into India was one of our core objectives for this year, and I am proud to welcome Goyal and his team to our global network." Dr Paul Boldy, Managing Director of the Asia Pacific region for the Brand, shall be working closely with the India team to set up the business successfully in the region.IPE Global Acquires Triple Line Consulting LimitedIPE Global, an Indian origin group with focus on international development sector, has acquired a UK based international development-consulting firm, Triple Line Consulting Limited. The acquisition will expand the group’s footprint in the development sector to over 100 countries globally with offices across Africa, Asia and Europe.Triple Line, established in 1999, provides valuable technical expertise to improve life in poor and developing countries. Triple Line’s diverse, international staff and strong network of consultants are experts in monitoring and evaluation, grant management, private sector development, governance, social development, gender and inclusion. Triple Line works with clients such as DFID, the European Commission, the World Bank, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, EURASIA Foundation, Comic Relief, SIDA, AusAID (DFAT), Korean Development Agency, NGOs such as VSO and FERN as well as some private clients. Triple Line is headquartered in London and has implemented over 350 projects in over 70.Rajesh Padmanabhan Appointed As President Rajesh Padmanabhan, a senior HR executive is recently appointed as the Vedanta Group’s President and Group Chief Human Resource Officer. Rajesh has over 29 years of experience in corporate banking, leasing, structured finance and global human resources. He joins from Capgemini where he was Corporate Vice President & CHRO. His experience spans over IT, Manufacturing, Hospitality & Financial Services and represents several industry bodies and international forums. He is a member of the National board of NHRDN. Padmanabhan is academically a Double Masters degree in Human Resources and Finance from the University of Mumbai.
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By now every-one knows that there's a Chinese phone on Flipkart that is in the habit of disappearing before you can get anywhere near it. For those who want it, it's like a round of KBC — try your luck. For those who don't, it's still a curious thing, this gadget that can take all of two seconds to sell out. Marketing gimmick, or genuine under-estimation of the potential market, we may never know. But we certainly can check out the device to see what the fuss is about.Beyond all argument, is the Xiaomi Mi3's price. For the same amount, until recently, Indian customers have been treated to cheesy products, compromised in some way or the other. What the Mi3 offers, first off, is a good build and a classy look and feel. In fact, the Chinese phone maker has constantly been accused of copying Apple in many ways. Xiaomi is certainly busy gobbling up Apple's share in China.The Mi3 itself doesn't look very Apple-ish. It's got a smooth silver matte and very neat back and is solid but light. The Mi logo looks exceedingly classy glinting at the bottom of the panel. It's got very rounded sides, making it easy to get your hand around but it's also tall, bringing in a little awkwardness to that grip. You also have to watch it doesn't slip. I'm not convinced it's a one-handed device because that involves using your finger at the correct angle, not just reaching across the screen. It isn't just about the price but what you get for that price. What used to be — and in some cases still is — the stuff of top- tier phones that cost around Rs 40,000 is now housed in a device about one third the price. With the Mi3 you needn't worry about getting a sluggish or lag-riddled phone. The hardware has the device performing well and the software doesn't interfere with the performance. It's fast enough at browsing, navigating, switching apps, etc. Benchmark tests also bear that out. The device doesn't overheat or guzzle up power. The battery is a big one for the size of the phone and on my moderate usage, it lasted the day. The screen looks good and the sound is okay.Xiaomi's interface is pretty different from the regular Android look. You'll immediately see that there's no separate level for apps which are organised Apple style. Instead of their being too many gimmicks, the focus is on giving the user customisation options. So there are themes you can download and use, including one especially for India. It's a simple yet adaptable interface with enough apps to get a user started. In China, many downloadables for Xiaomi phones are paid, but in India, that's not the case yet.The camera on this phone is no low light specialist, but that's a problem for most smartphones. I found the colours dark and lifeless on indoor low-light shots, but with a big improvement if one uses the HDR mode which is quite nice and natural rather than giving you artificial looking images. There's also an easy panorama mode and more to fiddle with. Daylight shots have good detail and colour. Overall, good for the price.Interestingly, the Mi3 uses a standard SIM card.The one thing that remains untested is the after sales service. That's where the older players still have an advantage. Should newer companies like Xiaomi manage to work in that piece of the puzzle, the others who've been charging the earth for their products have had it. (This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 08-09-2014)
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It's difficult to stop looking at the screen on this tablet. Some call it over-saturated, some eye-popping, but either way it’s a vibrant feast of colour and contrasts that makes everything on it look gorgeous. And clear. In a moment, you forget Samsung’s usual design, somewhat tweaked. Anyway, if you buy a case for the Galaxy Tab S, as you will undoubtedly need to, it’s the case that will dominate — not that the design is bad, just unremarkable. The version I reviewed is the 10.5 inch white and it has a gold-ish metal trim all around and looks fine. On the back is the dimpled non-slippery panel that you may have seen on the Galaxy S5 smartphone. Samsung knows well enough that the killer feature on the Tab S is that sizzler of a screen, so it’s positioned the tablet (available in two sizes: 8.4 and 10.5) as a consumption device. The iPad’s Retina screen seems to literally pale in comparison, though, of course, the same can’t be said of its elegant build and that universe of fine apps. In fact, it’s well to keep in mind that apps optimised for Android tablets are few and far between even after all these years of Android growth. Still, the Tab S is considered one of the strongest rivals to the iPad yet. Even minus Android tablet-specific apps, there’s plenty to do on the device. While the Tab S may not have the design and finessed build of the iPad, it certainly has good ergonomics, specially for a landscape-oriented device of that size. I’ve never liked those wide tablets — without their keyboards — but in this case, Samsung has managed to make it so thin and light — lighter than the iPad Air — that it isn’t a strain to hold, and I quickly got comfortable with it in either direction. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a chance to test it out with any of its optional accessories such as the flip case-stand and keyboard case.It doesn’t take too long to discover that an HD movie, a video on YouTube, a nicely designed website, or visually fantastic apps like Flipboard, are a pleasure on this screen. So is reading, flipping through photographs, and also doing two things at the same time because you can split the screen and put two apps on it.Pity, but the sound on the tablet doesn’t match the screen. There are stereo speakers and they’re fine, but not unusual and extraordinary. The Tab S, apart from that wonder of a screen, has plenty of hardware and software chops. There’s an 8MP camera which has got to be useful when you’re scanning things or taking a quick pic. There’s an IR blaster to use as a remote for your TV, and a fingerprint scanner, which while it isn’t a joy to use, is an option. The battery gives you a day. Power saving and bringing down the brightness helps.As for software, Samsung has always laid it on thick. If you’re familiar with the S5, the company’s current flagship, all that is on this tablet in bigger form. Incidentally, you can SideSync your S5 so that it can be controlled from the tablet, including receiving calls. Not having an S5 handy I wasn’t able to try this, but reports are that the feature works well enough. There are also other Samsung favourites such as the My Magazine app, smart gesture controls, etc.Check out both sizes of the Tab S as the larger will give you more real estate to enjoy movies and pictures on, while the smaller will add portability and even mode lightness to the experience. Asus Zenfone 5The batch of smartphones that have been coming into the market of late make everyone wonder what right other phones have to be costing upward of Rs 40,000. Devices that cost one fourth that amount are rich in looks and features and make for quite a value proposition. Among these is the ZenFone 5, available in different colours including a striking cherry red. The back is a clean matte finish that doesn't attract fingerprints and anyway wipes easily.The ZenFone 5 costs Rs 9,999 for the 8GB version and Rs 12,999 for the 16GB variant. A micro SD card slot adds to data storage.Unlike other phones that typically have a Qualcomm or Mediatek processor, the ZenFone 5 has an Intel Atom Z2560 dual-core processor running at 1.6GHz with 2GB RAM. Benchmark tests don't peg this phone as being a powerhouse but all things considered, performance isn't bad and quite lag-free. The device doesn't heat up and wears its Android 4.3 well enough. The battery is a 2110mAh but you'll need one of those portable chargers.The ZenFone 5's screen is a 5-inch 720x1280 IPS display with pretty good colours and viewing angles.The primary camera is an 8MP and does a nice job of low-light shots. The camera app has a ton of features including a faster burst mode.On the software front, Asus' ZenUI interface is flat and neat and has some nice features like a task and notification manager, Do it Later. (This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 08-09-2014)
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Andy Palmer, Nissan Motor’s chief planning officer, executive vice-president and Infiniti’s chairman, is an avid punk rock fan, a mathematician, and wants to make the car relevant for the millennial generation. He thinks young people want connected cars that enable zero emission, connect to the cloud and in future, may become autonomous. To Carlos Ghosn, chairman and chief executive officer of Nissan Motors, Andy is the go-to man for any decision about products and market research. He spoke to BW|Businessworld about Infiniti, connected cars, and Datsun’s debut in India, among other things. Excerpts:What is your vision for Infiniti, especially in the US? You are seeing competition from other luxury carmakers...The vision is to be an established successful premium brand within our corporation. We are known globally for edgy design, sporty performance and stirring up the German carmaker establishment. We need to get the brand perception right — what does Infiniti stand for now and what do we want it to be? At present, Infiniti has a very US-centric focus, which is understandable given its history and success in the country. The next step will be to establish Infiniti as a global brand, and then, extend the product portfolio. The current line-up is great, sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and sedans alike. We recently announced the Q30 Compact, which is another good and ‘required’ product for Europe; it is also meant to underline the global line-up. But what we need is a ‘halo’ car to underpin the high-performance character. I also envision an electric vehicle with the latest charging facilities to serve consumers’ desire worldwide. Our latest project is the IFA2 platform (common module family or CMF) with partner Daimler to produce compact vehicles. The first plant using this platform will be built in Mexico. Also, efficient engine technologies are high up in the list of priorities for Infiniti cars. One can also see the newest safety shield features from Nissan Motor Corporation such as lane departure warning or forest air climate features being applied to Infiniti to show the premium character.What is your opinion on connected cars — beyond entertainment modules in cars? What is it that will make connected drive a reality? Autonomous drive technologies are the key that will make connected drive a reality. At Nissan, we believe that the first mass-market, autonomous drive vehicle could be brought to the market in three stages by 2020 — the first for in-lane driving, the second for multi-lane, and, finally, for intersections. Within two vehicle generations, this technology could be available across Nissan’s entire vehicle portfolio. The technologies offer multiple benefits — better vehicle safety, reduced congestion, better speed management, improved fuel consumption, and lower emissions.Will connected cars change the telematics modules to connect to databases, networks and then to mobiles of customers. What work are you doing in this space?Around 1.5 million Nissans will be connected by 2016. The Nissan LEAF is an excellent example — all these cars will be connected and allow us to monitor their health and the typical usage of customers. In principle, I expect all cars to be connected in the near future, although there are differences on how companies will achieve this. At Nissan, we think Big Data is vital for marketing and targeting new vehicles to the target audience.But what is the purpose of a connected car? Is it active safety combined with entertainment? I’m pretty sure that one of the questions will be whether self-driving cars are safer than those driven by motorists. The answer is yes. In the US, the government’s research shows that driving errors are likely to be the main reasons behind over 90 per cent of the crashes. More than 40 per cent of fatal crashes involve alcohol, speeding, aggressive driving, distraction, drugs or fatigue. But self-driven vehicles will not allow such human errors. This could potentially lead to reduction of fatal accidents by 40 per cent. Robotic cars don’t drink, don’t text, have a 360-degree view around the vehicle and never doze off. About 100 years ago, the vehicle market underwent a major shift from horse and man-power to the use of internal combustion engines, finally delivering individual travel in a way that was beyond imagination. Self-driving vehicles have a huge potential to stimulate an equal transformation in the future. And Nissan will take the lead in this with the introduction of the first autonomous drive system by 2020. There are many reasons to connect a car. Safety is high priority. But it is necessary to make sure that we truly understand our customers and their usage. How important is software in cars today and how will the connected car ecosystem work, between consumers, telcos, tier-I vendors, OEMs and dealers? Software is a fundamental part of today’s car as a wheel. The Infiniti Q50’s centre display unit has 10 million lines of software in it.What do you think of Datsun’s debut in India? Has it got the market segmentation right because you are targeting middle-class individuals? Remember, income is never a marker for any company; they look at risers over a period of time. I do not like the word ‘middle-class’. But if we have to use it as a terminology, if there is disposable income then what would you buy? Would an individual choose a car over a bike? We need to know if they care about safety. Are they willing to invest in something that will protect the family and satisfy aspiration? I don’t think Datsun is for the US and the UK. Yes, generally, there is the widening gap between rich and poor, and the brand fits a segment below Nissan. But the brand Datsun is not for those markets. It cannot satisfy the safety norms in the US, and hence, can never be manufactured at the current cost it is retailed in India. Datsun is for the markets where people want to aspire and drive for the first time. Please throw some light on the battery technology in Nissan and the autonomous LEAF Concept. Nissan is a leader in li-ion batteries with Automotive Energy Supply Corporation (AESC) — a joint venture between Nissan and NEC Corporation. Chemistry is evolving each year to enhance energy density, but the most important consideration is safety. This is always Nissan’s top priority.Why is the CMF platform becoming the preferred one for Nissan? How different will it be from the V-platform? The CMF platform is split into three groups: CMF-A, CMF-B and CMF-C/D. The intention is not to have one platform but a collection of modules that can be interchanged in various combinations. Nissan and Renault together make over eight million cars every year, so it gives us a huge purchase power if we can communise modules, but also allows us maximum differentiation. CMF-A will be the first to be seen in India. The key is, of course, the consumer’s purchasing power and infrastructure. India is on a good path for this and that is why everyone is interested in being here. However, understanding consumers is vital and that is why we have decided to introduce Datsun here.Are car design cycles coming down? As an engineer, what is the next best technology to watch out in cars and why is it important? Car cycle times are remaining about the same, circa five to six years — but what we are seeing is an explosion in the number of derivatives — the so-called ‘upper-bodies’. I believe, this trend will remain for a while. Of course, you will see hybrids and electric vehicles within the mix, but the underlying trend will be downsized, fuel-efficient engines. vishalskrishna@gmail.comtwitter: @vishalskrishna(This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 08-09-2014)
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Tom Foldesi, Senior Director of Product, New Devices Group at Intel explains the chip maker's push into wearablesHonestly, aren't wearables a solution in search of a problem?Consumers will always want their electronics to be more compact, portable, lighter, and at the same time less obtrusive. In many ways, it is the perpetual problem statement in computing. It is that same problem statement that gave birth to notebooks, smartphones, and now wearables. In fact, wearables introduce a new level of convenience in how we interact with information. To use a mundane example, imagine a world where you just glance at your watch and do not need to retrieve you phone dozens of times a day. In the wearables space, Intel’s product philosophy is to bring smart, connected features to the items that individuals already wear. So your wearable is not just another gadget. Rather, it’s something that you have always worn that now also offers convenient computing functionality.Would you say wearables are set to be as big an evolution as the mobile phone has been?It is still very early days for the industry, but wearables are already revolutionising the way we collect and consume data. The more features we integrate into wearable devices, the more compelling they will become. There is no doubt that this is the next frontier in computing. However, we do not yet know with certainty what dominant usage models and devices will emerge and when.Do you see any specific industries as being particularly ripe for wearables? Or is it all just a lot of experimentation? Tom FeldosiWe believe that lifestyle brands, including fashion houses and sports/fitness companies are going to be very powerful drivers of wearable technology. You can put a smartphone in your pocket, but wearables are actually worn on your body, easily visible. This makes them a very personal product - an expression of users’ personality and style. The aforementioned industries are best positioned to be able to address personal style on a very broad scale and will be instrumental in the deployment of mainstream wearable devices. To foster innovation in this field, Intel has already announced partnerships with the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), premium retailer Barney’s of New York, and international design house Opening Ceremony. It seems like wearables are sprouting up in too many different fields. There's a lot of fitness trackers, health tracking devices, notifiers, etc. Do you see something that would unify these? There has not yet been one single usage model or device that has emerged as the broad standard. People have different tastes and preferences and the market is growing very rapidly, so there is more than enough room for numerous devices/usages to coexist. Over the medium to long run, ongoing form factor miniaturisation will drive device convergence, as it did in mobile. Ten to fifteen years ago, you may have had a cell phone, a PDA, pocket camera, and a Blackberry. Today, you have a smartphone that can perform all of those functions. Wearable devices of the future will be able to integrate fitness/health tracking, notifications, etc. in one single device. That device could come in a variety of form factors: watch, bracelet, glasses, earpiece, etc. Intel has always been and continues to be a global leader in driving ever smaller form factors in technology. We are currently engaged with our customers on various devices/usage models and we are determined to help our partners shape this emerging landscape.What kind of developers have been taking up work with Intel Edison so far? Can you give me some idea of the work in progress? (Edison is Intel's tiny computer that fits into an SD card).Edison has not officially launched yet – the product is expected to be available within the next couple of months, so we are not in a position to talk about specific devices. Though our CEO did showcase the Mimo Baby “smart onsie” in his CES keynote in January 2014. It is a baby garment with biometric monitoring sensors powered by Edison. It allows parents a new level of insight into their baby’s biometrics. We will be able to talk about additional products soon after launch. Intel is sponsoring the Make It Wearable Challenge to foster innovation in this space and Edison is expected to power a lot of the devices for the competition. Intel has announced more than $1 million in prize money for the most innovative ideas. Competition finalists will be announced in the Fall.What new reference devices are in the works from Intel post CES?We have publicly announced that we are developing a smart bracelet with international fashion house Opening Ceremony. Our CEO, Brian Krzanich, also demonstrated a smart shirt last month at the Code Conference. It underscores Intel’s research and development activities in smart fabrics and garments. We will be making more product announcements in the coming months… stay tuned!How important will it be to have unifying standards in the upcoming wearables industry? Everyone's doing their own thing. Consumers have the most power in driving vendors towards particular standards, devices, and usage models. Convergence in mobile ecosystems was driven by customer behaviour. However, there is certainly room for vendors to align around particular technical standards to make the marketplace more transparent upfront. For example, in the interest of a better user experience, Intel is an active player in designing smart wireless charging technologies based on the Rezence (A4WP) standard. How do you see the problems of security and privacy being tackled as we move into the age of wearables?Every person has their own preferences when it comes to privacy. But regardless of whether individuals want to maintain a public or private profile, everyone agrees that they want their data to be secure. Intel has been a leader in designing security features into both hardware and software for more than 40 years in servers, PCs, and mobile devices. We are now bringing this rich, diverse experience set to bear in wearables.
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