Xiaomi ties up with India retail chain The Mobile Store to boost sales

MUMBAI: Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi Inc has decided to sell devices through a leading electronics retail chain in India, part of its effort to move away from online-only sales and boost growth in the world's third-largest smartphone market.

Xiaomi launched its India operations with online marketplace Flipkart.com in July, selling its phones through flash sales where availability is limited to short timeframes.

The company this year decided to sell its Redmi Note fourth-generation (4G) handsets through shops of carrier Bharti AirtelBSE 0.89 % Ltd, but that would still need an online registration.

On Tuesday, Xiaomi said it would sell its phones through The Mobile Store retail chain, as well as expand its online retail presence by adding online retailers Snapdeal and the Indian unit of Amazon.com.

"Some people said we were generating artificial demand. We are trying to increase our supply, to bring more goods into India and to supply them in a free manner to all our partners," Xiaomi's India head, Manu Jain, told Reuters.

Xiaomi, which was not among the top five smartphone makers in India at the end of the December quarter, is under pressure to gain market share in the country, analysts say.

Of the 22 million smartphones shipped to distributors in the fourth quarter, Samsung contributed 27.4 percent while Xiaomi stood sixth at 4.1 percent, according to Neil Shah, director at Counterpoint Technology Market Research.

"India is their growth market now. They have to go offline to scale in India," Shah said, adding the retail expansion was likely to boost Xiaomi's ranking in the country.

With the The Mobile Store partnership, Xiaomi handsets will be available in stores, like products from rivals Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, Motorola, and India's Micromax Informatics Ltd.

Xiaomi's offline foray is in addition to the 100 "service and experience stores" it is opening across India this year to help customers touch and feel its devices, which are sold under the Mi brand. The company does not plan to sell devices at these stores.

"By tomorrow Mi phones are to be available in about 30 to 35 stores. Customers at some point need to touch and feel and they need to buy phones when they need to buy them," said Himanshu Chakrawarti, chief executive of The Mobile Store.

Xiaomi's Jain said the Chinese company was also planning to hire aggressively in India as it plans to invest in the country, starting with a new office and a research and development centre.

The Bangalore R&D centre would be Xiaomi's first such hub outside China, he said.

Twitter’s 'Quote Tweet' revamp leaves more room for your thoughts

witter is overhauling its “Quote Tweet” button, and in doing so could change the way we use the social network.
Instead of just wrapping the original tweet in quotes, as the Quote Tweet button used to do, Twitter’s iOS app now embeds a link to the original tweet. This leaves room for up to 116 characters of additional comments from the person making the quotation, The Next Web reports.
Users can already embed a tweet this way by manually pasting in the link, but this was a cumbersome process that users tended to avoid. Likewise, the Quote Tweet button never got much traction, as users often stuck with “manual retweets” (that is, writing their own comments and “RT” before the original tweet) when adding commentary.
It’s likely that both of these practices will fade from use now that Twitter is providing a much simpler alternative. We may also see a dip in “.@” mentions that publicize a response to someone else’s tweet, as the embedded tweet gives readers a more complete view.
Twitter says the new Quote Tweet function is rolling out now for iOS and the web, and will arrive on Android devices soon. You can find it by pressing the Retweet button under any tweet.
Why this matters: While this might seem like a small change, it could have a big impact on the nature of Twitter conversations. By encouraging lengthier interactions around retweets, the result could be chains of commentary that further distance Twitter from its original 140-character limits. In terms of lasting effects on how people use Twitter, put the new Quote Tweet button on par with conversation threads and embedded images.

Cisco

Cisco systems is a multinational company founded by Len Bosack and Sandy Lerner, a married couple who worked as computer operations staff members at Stanford University, later joined by Richard Troiano founded Cisco Systems in 1984.
Company mainly deals in Networking Device, Network Management, Cisco IOS and NX-OS Software, Interface and Module, Optical networking, Storage area networks, Wireless, Tele presence, VOIP, Security, Datacenter. Main business of company is designing, manufacturing, and selling networking equipment.
The name "Cisco" was adopted from the city name, San Francisco.
Bill Graves was the company's first CEO who held the position from 1987 to 1988. On February 16, 1990.
Cisco Systems listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange and became public.
During the period of 1992 to 1994, Cisco acquired several companies in Ethernet switching; most of them are Kalpana, Grand Junction and Crescendo Communications which together formed the Catalyst business unit.
Throughout mid-2000s Cisco also built a significant presence in India. establishing its Globalization Centre East in Bangalore for $1 billion.
Main competitors companies of Cisco are Alcatel-Lucent, Juniper Networks Huawei.
In 2006 as part of a massive rebranding campaign, Cisco Systems adopted the shortened name "Cisco" and launch "The Human Network" advertising campaign. These efforts were meant to make Cisco a "household" brand – a strategy designed to support the low-end Linksys products and future consumer products. Cisco's current portfolio of products and services is focused upon three market

• Home
• Small Business
• Enterprise and Service Provider

The solutions for each market are segmented into Architectures, which form the basis for how Cisco approaches each market.

Home user

• Linksys product line of access points, switches etc.
• Broadband: cable modems

Small businesses

• Routers and switches (including those for networks of smart meters)
• Security and surveillance: IP cameras, data and network security solutions etc.
• Voice and conferencing solutions: VOIP phones and gateway-systems, WebEx, video conferencing
• Wireless: WiFi Access points
• Network storage systems

Corporate market

• Borderless networks: for their range of routers, switches, wireless systems, security systems, WAN acceleration, energy and building management systems and media aware networks.
• Collaboration: IP video and phones, TelePresence, HealthPresence, Unified Communications, Call Center systems, Enterprise social networks and Mobile applications.
• Datacenter and Virtualization: Unified Computing, Unified Fabric, Data Centre Switching, Storage Networking and Cloud services.
• IP NGN (Next Generation Networks): High-end routing and switching for fixed and mobile service provider networks, broadcast video contribution/distribution, entitlement and content delivery systems.

Cisco Career Certifications

Cisco Systems also sponsors a line of IT Professional certifications for Cisco products.
There are five levels of certification: Entry (CCENT), Associate (CCNA / CCDA), Professional (CCNP / CCDP)), Expert (CCIE / CCDE), and recently Architect, as well as eight different paths, Routing, Switching, Design, Network Security, Service Provider, Service Provider Operations, Storage Networking, Voice, and Wireless. A number of specialist technician, sales and data-center certifications are also available.
Cisco also provides training for these certifications via a portal called the Cisco Networking Academy. Qualifying schools can become members of the Cisco Networking Academy and then provide CCNA level or other level courses. Cisco Academy Instructors must be CCNA certified to be a CCAI certified instructor.

Myntra to Shutter Desktop Website, Go App-Only

After closing its mobile website last month, online fashion retailer Myntra is now moving to an app-only strategy by shutting down its desktop website. The company confirmed the move by telling NDTV Gadgets it will "focus on mobile, and will soon be mobile only," but the spokesperson refused to comment on whether this would happen as soon as May 1, as claimed in sections of the media.
Myntra, which became a part of Flipkart last year, claims that around 85 percent of all users come to the site via the app anyway, and that around 63 percent of all purchases happen on the app. Therefore, maintaining both a desktop and an app presence was not warranted, the company believes.
Speaking about the growing importance of the mobile app platform in an interview last week, Prasad Kompalli, Head of e-commerce platform, Myntra told us over the phone that the growing adoption of smartphones has allowed it to become more than a catalog, which isn't necessarily possible when working on the desktop.
"Mobile apps are the best platform for Myntra today," says Kompalli, "as they allow you to integrate with contacts, calendar, and camera, which can be used to improve the user's experience in a number of ways."
The site currently sees approximately 4 million monthly active users, Kopalli says, and he adds that in terms of traffic, there are already some days where the app accounts for 90 percent of all people browsing Myntra.
We asked Flipkart if the company is going to follow a similar move, and why it shut down its mobile website. The company mailed us the following prepared statement:

We are constantly experimenting with various aspects of our service to create the best shopping options and experience for our users. This initiative happens to be one such experiment.

Given that Flipkart closed its mobile website soon after Myntra, and keeping in mind the relationship between the two companies, it looks likely that Flipkart will also close its desktop website in the near future.
What is particularly interesting in these events is that Flipkart seems to be increasingly using Myntra as a petri dish to test out new innovations, and determine what works and what doesn't.
Many other Indian companies are also shuttering their mobile websites, including MakeMyTrip and Ola, with the likes of Snapdeal also not-so-gently nudging their users towards the apps. With a growing number of smartphones and mobile Internet users, it is possible that other websites will also start to focus on an app-only approach, dropping not just the mobile Web but desktop as well, to streamline their spend on technology.

Facebook sees a decline in users.

A study published in the journal Management Science stated that the content creators are declining as these users are more inclined towards sharing information at intimate places rather than on social media.

The research is co-authored by an Indian-origin Ganesh Iyer and Zsolt Katona from the University of California, Berkeley - Haas School of Business stated "Social communication incentives diminish even as the reach or the span of communication increases,". According to the research the users are unable to gauge the perception and cater to end user due to the distance and relevance of the matter.

Katona stated that "Industry reports estimate that just 10 percent of Twitter users broadcast 90 percent of the network's tweets, while only a tiny fraction of the 55 million users who blog post daily"

As per the research the information or message have declined for a while however the trend was brought to light very recently. the research showcased a link with numerous social media sources few are recipients of the message and rest of them are just sharing in turn causing a decline in new content. The problem is further aided by the fact that many of the users are located are various part of the globe and it becomes difficult for the 'content creators' to understand and crater to the needs of these individuals.

The authors added " As competition grows, some senders decide the payoff is not worth the trouble and drop out, and others decide not to enter the fray, which explains why the proportion of senders to receivers is so low.".

Airtel Zero: Another blow to net neutrality

NEW DELHI: Airtel has launched 'Airtel Zero,' a platform through which it will offer users free access to certain mobile apps. These apps will be from developers who have signed up with the company.

Through the scheme, app developers and internet content service providers (or over-the-top content providers) will be able to make some part of or their entire mobile app free for customers. This implies that users will not have to pay data charges (or get usage allowance deducted from their data packs) when they access these apps via Airtel's mobile data network.

It's worth pointing out that Airtel Zero violates the principles of net neutrality as the company will offer an advantage to certain players in terms of cost of access and will even promote them. These players will most likely shell out a fee to get this favourable position. While Airtel will get an additional source of revenue, for service and app providers, it will be an additional expenditure just to ensure that they don't lag behind their competitors.

Airtel claims the platform is similar to providing toll-free numbers for customer care and says Zero is 'an open and non-discriminatory marketing platform for all developers in India - irrespective of the size of their business.'

"We believe that this platform is consistent with India's Digital Inclusion agenda and also contributes to the government's 'Make in India' vision by providing a platform to millions of small businesses to reach out to the end consumer.", said Srini Gopalan, director - consumer business, Bharti Airtel (India).

Interestingly, the move comes a few days after TRAI floated a consultation paper on net neutrality. Net neutrality implies that all websites and services should be treated equal and there should be no discrimination in terms of speed and cost of access. This means that a telco can't block a certain website (because of commercial or other interests) or promote one service over the other. It also means that an internet provider or telco cannot throttle speeds for one service or charge extra.

Gionee Elife S7: First Impressions of Gionee's latest flagship phone for India

 

Chinese smartphone maker Gionee is often credited with starting the inflow of Chinese phone makers into India. The company’s foray into India brought it big success and others from its homeland followed soon. Unlike Xiaomi, Lenovo, OnePlus and others, Gionee doesn’t just sell online, it puts the major portion of its resources into brick and mortar stores, especially in tier II and tier III cities. The Gionee Elife S7 is the company's latest premium smartphone for the Indian market.

While the company may shun the online trend, there’s one trend it takes very seriously — slim phones. The Gionee Elife S5.5 was followed by the Elife S5.1 and now the Elife S7, all three of which are among the slimmest phones in the world. It’s not an easy trend to keep up with though. A slim phone is easier said than done. Processors today need space, heat regulation is not easy and slim phones offer no space for large batteries. Even biggies like Samsung and Apple have learned that and put a lot into their research to reach where they are.
A slim phone is essentially eye candy, something that looks really good in your hand. In fact, the Elife S5.1 is one of the best examples of a good looking and slim smartphone. Gionee got the looks part of that phone right, but got just about everything else wrong. Which is why the Elife S7 didn’t really inspire confidence in me when I first heard about it.

At an asking price of Rs. 24,999, me or anyone else for that matter, would at least want a level of performance equivalent to the Snapdragon 615. The 1.7 GHz MediaTek MT6752 octa-core processor doesn’t quite inspire that kind of confidence. Yes, I saw no lags in the UI on the demo devices, but the keyword here is ‘demo device’. A lot can change once you fill a device up, clog up the memory blocks and so on.
It runs Android Lollipop though, which is good, because the superior memory management is something that such a phone really needs. I wonder if 3GB RAM wouldn’t have been a safer, if not better, choice though. I can’t quite comment on the performance till I’ve actually reviewed it though, so theory is all I have for now. It is important to mention though that Gionee says this phone will heat up much less than competitors and that its battery will run for two whole days. Both of these are hard to believe and shall be put to the test in the review.

Like I mentioned above, slim phones are about the looks. The Elife S5.1 was a masterpiece in this respect, but the S7 doesn’t quite suit my fancy. It’s a bar design, but the ergonomics don’t feel right. The 5.2 inch display could have been dealt with better. The top and bottom bezels are too big, which make the phone feel big. Thankfully, the weight and thinness come to its rescue. The 126 grams and 5.5 mm together still make for a comfortable block in your hand. The real problem is when you put it in your pocket.
Looks are subjective, but if I had to choose, I’m going with the Elife S5.1’s looks over this one. The parallel bar design is not as sophisticated, for the lack of a better word, as the rounded edges of the S5.1. The rounded edges gave the S5.1 a very premium look and feel, which the parallel bars don’t.

There are two aspects of this phone that I did like though. One is the AMOLED display panel provided by Samsung, which brings out the warmth that many of us like. In addition, photos shot with the 13MP camera look good, at least on the device’s own screen. Gionee has chosen a tough price range though, taking on the formidable trio of the OnePlus One, Xiaomi Mi4 and Honor 6 Plus, all of which have top class cameras. I think, both the 8MP front and 13MP rear cameras can beat the OnePlus One, but I’ll have to pit it against the Mi4 and then the Honor 6 Plus side by side to see how it does. What I can say for certain is that the camera is good, no doubt about that. What I can’t say is whether it is the best.
With all of the above in mind, I can still see a user buying this phone, simply because it’s available in retail outlets. That is, until we talk about the mere 16GB of internal storage with no slot for a memory card. Better phones than the Elife S7 have disappointed because of this one shortcoming. The Moto X (2nd Gen) 16GB and Apple iPhone 6 16GB come to mind. The lack of a memory card is not what bothers me, but the lack of storage does. The OS takes up about 5GB, which means 10-11 GB is all you’ll ever have on this phone.

All things considered, I’m not quite convinced by the Gionee Elife S7, yet. I personally don’t like the looks and overall design ergonomics, but I can’t deny that others may easily like them. The camera is good, but is it good enough? We’ll answer all these questions in the review, which will be out soon.