OnePlus One 64 GB phone launched at Rs 21,999

Chinese start-up OnePlus has launched its One smartphone in India after months of rumour and conjecture. The company has aggressively priced the 64GB variant of its device at Rs 21,999. The phone will be available via Amazon.in using the OnePlus invite system.
The phone has attracted the attention of geeks as it boasts powerful hardware and an innovative software layer built using Android known as Cyanogenmod.
However, its use in India is clouded as the Micromax, the popular Indian smartphone brand announced that the Cyanogenmod ROM will be exclusive to its soon to be launched Yu sub brand in India. The phone is based on Android 4.4 KitKat.
OnePlus says Indian users will be able to manually update the phone, but as per the Cyanogen deal with Micromax over the air updates for the phone will be disabled in India.
The company says that it is developing a community build based on Android Lollipop. It says that the community build of the Lollipop based ROM will be out by December, but a stable build will be available in February 2015.
The phone has a 5.5-inch 1080P IPS display, 3GB of RAM, a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor clocked at 2.5GHz, a 13-megapixel rear camera, 5-megapixel front camera, and a 3,100mAh battery. The phone is offered in two finishes - Sandstone Black and Silk White.

Lava Iris Win1 Windows smartphone unveiled in India at Rs 4999

The Lava Iris Win1 is yet another Windows Phone 8.1 device to be launched by an Indian brand within a fortnight, pegged at an extremely affordable price of just Rs 4999. This phone is slated to go on sale come December 4 exclusively through Flipkart, the manufacturer has revealed.
The Lava Iris Win1 carries pretty modest components that are highlighted by a 4-inch 480 x 800 pixel display and a 1.2GHz quad core Snapdragon processor. It features a 5MP BSI+ rear-facing camera which is accompanied by an LED flash, while its front surface is adorned by a 0.3MP snapper for selfies and video calling.

Despite its low asking amount, this Lava phone offers a 1GB RAM module, apart from 8GB of inbuilt storage which is expandable up to 32GB. It’s a dual SIM device which is powered by a 1950mAh battery and bears 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS and microUSB connectivity choices.
Also Read: Celkon Win 400 vs Microsoft Lumia 530: Battle of the cheap Windows Phones
Last week saw the launch of a similarly priced handset from Celkon which is dubbed the Win 400. Other players like Micromax, Karbonn, Xolo and so on have already outed their Windows Phone 8.1 offerings in the past, while software giant Microsoft, introduced its newest offering dubbed the the Lumia 535 to Indian buyers late last month.
A neat look at the specs of the Lava Iris Win1:
- Display: 4-inch IPS, 480 x 800 pixels
- OS: Windows Phone 8.1
- Processor: 1.2GHz quad core
- Memory: 1GB RAM, 8GB storage (expandable up to 32GB)
- Camera: 5MP BSI+ rear with flash, 0.3MP front
- Battery: 1950mAh
- Connectivity: dual SIM, 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, micro USB
Like we said, the Lava Iris Win1 will be made available only via Flipkart from December 4 onward at the aforementioned cost of Rs 4999.

Microsoft to discard clip art from Office products

Microsoft has announced its decision to pull the plug on the last trace of clip art in its Office products, a report said.
The company will now guide its users, in need of imagery, towards Bing Image Search because they are already getting their images online anyway, reported Tech Crunch.
Bing images won't be vector art and hence, not as resizable as its predecessor but will give users a whole range of options. The search engine built inside Office is the same as the one that's built into its standard search engine, just with Creative Commons filters switched on by default to allow commercial use.

Xiaomi Redmi Note smartphone review: Great but might not impress everyone

The Xiaomi Redmi Note is here and this phone too has an eye-popping spec sheet at a jaw-dropping price. However, before you line up virtually on Flipkart, note that this is a really large device and one that runs on the now dated Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean operating system. I played with the new Xiaomi phablet for five days before penning down this review.
Quick specs: 5.5-inch IPS display 720 x 1280 pixels | Android 4.3 OS with MIUI 5 | 1.7 GHz MediaTek MT 6592 octa-core CPU | Mali 450 GPU | 2GB RAM | 8GB internal memory expandable up to 32 GB | 13 MP rear camera | 5 MP front camera | Dual-SIM (regular SIM 3G+2G) | 3200 mAh battery
Picture gallery: Xiaomi Redmi Note
Box contents: Handset, USB cable and adapter.
Price: Rs 8,999
Design: The Redmi Note looks ordinary. After I unboxed the review unit, I was not sure this is something for which people will line up on Flipkart. However, at Rs 8,999, you really can’t expect more.
If you were lucky enough to get a glimpse of the previously launched Redmi 1S smartphone, then for you this phone will appear as an enlarged version of the same. For the rest, the Redmi Note will appear like just another smartphone made by any Indian brand.

The front face sports a 5.5-inch screen above three red coloured capacitive navigation buttons. On the top is a 5 MP camera and speaker. A white glossy plastic back cover hides two SIM card slots, a microSD slot and a removable 3,100 mAh battery inside.
The Redmi Note with a 5.5-inch display is obviously a large smartphone to carry. However, the rounded edge makes one-handed operability easy. Weighing 200 grams, the Redmi Note is a bit bulky too. The device is mostly made out of cheap glossy plastic but it feels solid in the hand.

Display: The Redmi Note sports a 5.5-inch 720p display with a pixel density of 267 ppi. The display is not Full HD but does a good job. It is clear and crisp. You shouldn’t have any reasons to complain about the display. The viewing angles are good. Outdoor visibility is surprising good at full brightness. At medium brightness, you will be able to operate the phone under direct sunlight without much difficulties.

Performance: The Redmi Note offers good performance at this price range. The octa-core MediaTek MT6592 (32 bit, frequency 728 ~ 1664 MHz) with Mali 450 GPU and 2GB RAM will not disappoint you at all. It scored a decent 31337 on AnTuTu Benchmark (v5.3 ). General performance of the phone was good. I did not witness any lags at all while opening apps or doing regular things. On the gaming front, the CPU again performs well. Overall, multimedia experience is good and will satisfy most. However, I witnessed a slight lag while watching movies through USB OTG. The phone does heats up while playing games, but this should not be a problem.
Picture gallery: Xiaomi Redmi Note
Software: The Redmi Note runs on Android 4.2.2 sugarcoated with MIUI 5. There is no official word as to when the device will be upgraded to Android 4.4 KitKat, if not Android 5.0 Lollipop. The MIUI 5 comes without any app drawer. So, everything is there on the home screen itself.

Android Wear is compatible with Android 4.3 or higher devices only. So, if you have any Android Wear-based device, it will not sync with the Redmi Note, at least now. On the app front, you will miss several new games, Quickoffice integration (which comes with KitKat) among several others. The MIUI 5 has a ‘Notes’ app, which seems like the only justification of the name Redmi Note.
The MIUI 5 makes Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean look better and easier too. The UI includes a Lite mode which makes it much easier for first time smartphone buyers and elderly non-techie users to use the phone.
For power users, Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean will be a big turn off. However, if you are not much into apps, then you can live with it and wait for an update. Note that majority of the Android users are still on Android 4.1 or 4.2 Jelly Bean.

Camera: This is one area Xiaomi has not compromised at all. For a phone priced at just Rs 8,999, I would say the camera is really good. It’s not the fastest but it will not disappoint you. The camera is capable of taking decent macro and HDR shots. Low light images without flash were surprisingly good. The 5 MP selfie camera is decent too.
Storage: The device offers around 6 GB of internal storage. MicroSD cards up to 32 GB are supported.
Connectivity: The smartphone comes with two regular SIM card slots. The first slot supports 3G while the Slot 2 supports only 2G networks. Overall, there is no issue with connectivity.
Picture gallery: Xiaomi Redmi Note
Battery: The 3100 mAh battery does a good job. The device easily lasts an entire day on normal usage. I managed to watch a 2.5-hour movie via USB OTG with just 16 per cent of battery life (medium brightness and data connection switched off). On the gaming front, two hours of continuous 3D gaming at full brightness and volume drained the battery from 75 per cent to 25 per cent. Overall, the battery life is good. However, the 3,100 mAh battery takes time to charge.
Verdict: The Xiaomi Redmi Note offers great value for money, no doubt. However, be sure about the size and obviously Android 4.2.2 OS, before buying. If you want a large-screened smartphone then this is the only option under Rs 10,000.

ZTE launches Grand S II smartphone at Rs 13,999 on Amazon.in

ZTE has exclusively launched its Grand S II smartphone at a price of Rs 13,999 on Amazon.in today. The Grand S II sports a 5.5-inch Full HD display and runs on a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor and Android Jelly Bean operating system sugarcoated with UI Mi Favor.
Powered by a 2500 mAh battery, the phone houses a 13MP rear camera and 5MP front camera. On the memory front, it comes with 2GB of RAM with inbuilt storage capacity of 16 GB which can be further expanded up to 32 GB.
ZTE has also introduced ‘Hub and Spoke’ model for customer service and these centers are now open in major cities like Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai, Chandigarh, Pune, Kolkata and Delhi. ZTE has approximately 300 service centers across the country and plans to expand to 600 outlets along with the growth of the smartphone business in India. Additionally, ZTE has tied up with five regional distributors with geographical focus for market expansion.
Specs:
5.5-inch Full HD display
Android Jelly Bean with UI Mi Favor
quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor
2GB RAM
16GB internal memory expandable up to 32GB
13MP rear camera and 5MP front camera
2500 mAh battery

OnePlus One listed on Amazon India, no mention of CyanogenMod support

So the OnePlus One is coming to India tomorrow, but you already knew that. What you perhaps missed is that Amazon has already put up a way for you to win an invite for the device. All you need to do is open the Amazon.in website and click on the OnePlus One invite link. There you have to subscribe to the newsletter, just like on the OnePlus website. What's more interesting though is how there's no mention of CyanogenMod anymore. The technical specifications on the listing mentions everything except the operating system that the device runs on. OnePlus India General Manager Vikas Agarwal had earlier confirmed to us that the device would launch with CyanogenMod , which is what the global version of the One comes with, but OnePlus is also working on its own OS, which would be ready by February 2015. Agarwal said that the beta version for the new OS would be available in December itself.

While the OnePlus smartphone will be launched with the CyanogenMod 11S ROM on it, CM won't officially support the device anymore because of its exclusive tie-up with Micromax for its new range of Yu smartphones. Many of you have already indicated that this makes a big difference for you. Native CM support was the main reason behind many, especially power users, going for this smartphone. While the below Rs. 25,000 price tag remains quite attractive, the lack of CM support seems to have disappointed many users. Another clarification that we recieved was that while users are welcome to flash the international for CM onto the OnePlus One, OTA updates would still be unavailable and you would need to update devices manually and at your own risk. Of course, rooting never voids the warranty of a OnePlus One and the same shall still apply to India.

The OnePlus One is scheduled to launch in India tomorrow and we are hoping that the new OS is announced at the event tomorrow, so watch this space for more.

Sony FES Watch: Everything You Need to Know About the New E-Paper Smart Watch

 
While it may not be as smart as Apple's upcoming Apple Watch or Motorola's Moto 360, Sony's new FES e-paper watch is certainly the first of its kind.
The watch first made an appearance under the brand name "Fashion Entertainments," with Sony trying to see if it could build momentum around a product using nothing but viral marketing techniques.
"We hid Sony's name because we wanted to test the real value of the product, whether there will be demand for our concept," said a spokesperson for the project.
The FES watch raised 3.5 million yen, which is equivalent to around $30,000. Considering the fact that the watch originally had a goal of 2 million yen, that's not bad at all. Those who gave money to the project will get their device after May 2015.
There are a number of advantages to using e-ink over other forms of a display. For example, users will be able to change the patterns and designs of the device quickly, including color options using newer e-ink technology that allows for colors. In fact, the design of both the face and the band of this device can be changed based on the user's preference, from among more than 20 pre-set design options. Users can even give the band a metal or faux leather look.
The watch is very minimalist, which is great for those who are into that kind of design. However, it also doesn't have many features that other smart watches have, such as a GPS or heart-rate monitor, and is not Internet-connected. Supposedly, however, the price will reflect that fact that it does not have these features.
Sony's new watch is not the first to use e-ink technology. The Pebble Watch, which was one of the first popular smart watches, also uses the technology. Like the FES Watch, the Pebble was also crowd-funded.
Sony is not limiting the e-ink concept to just watches. The company has also mentioned that the technology could be used in other wearables, from bowties to frames for glasses, and so on. E-paper is flexible and does not require a lot of power, meaning that devices using the technology can last a long time without needing to be charged. In fact, the charge for a watch using the technology reportedly lasts around 60 days, which is far more than the single day that a charge for the Apple Watch is likely to last.
E-paper is the name for a display technology that resembles real paper and works by reflected light, taking very little power to display a static image, while electronic ink is the optical component of a film used in electronic paper displays. The display is what's used in most e-book readers.
E-ink has low power needs, especially when compared with LCD displays. E-ink is what is called a reflective display, meaning no backlight is used. Instead, existing light is reflected from the surface of the display back to the viewer's eyes. That is different from an LCD unit's emissive display where light from a backlight is projected through the display toward the viewer's eyes. E-ink is also what is called bistable, which means the image on an e-ink screen will stay even when all power sources are removed -- the display consumes power only when something is changing.
Sony has been pushing for innovation of late. Under the direction of CEO Kazuo Hirai, the company has encouraged employees to come up with new product ideas, with the company providing financial and advisory support for these projects.