LG and Google launch the Nexus 4 in India for Rs. 25999

The Google Nexus 4 went on pre-order from Flipkart yesterday. Now LG and Google have officially launched the Nexus 4 in India. It was announced back in October last year, and it packs a 4.7-inch (1280 x 768 pixels) True HD IPS Plus display, powered by a 1.5 GHz Quad-Core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor and runs on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean).

Regarding the launch, Soon Kwon, Managing Director, LG Electronics India, said,

LG Electronics is pleased to partner Google on the release of the Nexus 4 in India. We added the best of our talent to our strength, and the result is a feature- packed smartphone that packs superb hardware under a slim hood. With LG Nexus 4, consumers would be delighted by the perfectly balanced combination of style, function and power. The smartphone encourages consumers to explore a world of possibilities and also helps them balance between business and entertainment.

Google Nexus 4 Specifications

• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor with 1.5GHz Quad-Core Krait CPUs
• Operating System: Android 4.2, Jelly Bean
• Network: 3G (WCDMA), HSPA+
• Display: 4.7-inch WXGA True HD IPS Plus (1280 x 768 pixels)
• Memory: 16GB
• RAM: 2GB
• Camera: 8.0MP rear / 1.3MP HD front
• Battery: 2,100mAh Li-Polymer (embedded) / Talk time: 15.3 hours / Standby: 390 hours
• Size: 133.9 x 68.7 x 9.1mm
• Weight: 139g
• Wireless charging
• 3G HSPA+ 42, Bluetooth 3.0/USB /2.0HS /WiFI 802.11 a/b/g/n (Dual Band)
• GPS with GLONASS Support/ Slimport/ NFC (Android Beam)

LG’s Nexus 4 is priced at Rs. 25,999 and will be available at selected LG exclusive brand shops, Multi brand outlets and speciality stores across India.

Android Was Designed for Cameras

It is now time for smart cameras to show up, although the outgoing Android head Andy Rubin says that they could have been around for many years. During a tech event in Tokyo, he revealed that Android was initially developed as an operating system for cameras, not smartphones. He confirmed that the exact same platform and operating system the company developed for cameras became Android for smartphones. Rubin demonstrated slides from an investor pitch created 9 years ago, which was focused on wired and wireless cameras linked to a so-called “Android Datacenter”. So Android was destined to be used with smart cameras, but Google stepped in and made the operating system what it is today. According to Andy Rubin, his team of developers eventually decided that the market of digital cameras wasn’t big enough. In addition, Rubin said that he was mistakenly worried about Microsoft and Symbian, not Apple – this, as you can see, turned out to be wrong.

Android boss also talked about the decision to make the OS completely free for cellphone makers – the company wanted as many smartphones to use Android as possible. This is why instead of charging any sum of money – whether it is $99, or $59 – to Android, the company was simply giving it away for free, as they realized the industry was price sensitive. As you can see, this approach proved to be quite successful and in result, Android quickly occupied a huge share of the market, which grew up to 70%, as for 2012. In the meanwhile, the devices that the OS was initially intended for – Android cameras – are still few and far between. Well, at least they are finally hitting the market – it would be interesting to try a smart camera running a familiar Android.

Asus Fonepad launched in India for Rs. 15999

Asus has launched the Fonepad, the company’s first 7-inch tablet with voice calling support.The Fonepad has a  7-inch (1280 x 800 pixels) IPS display, runs on Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) and is powered by a 1.2 GHz Intel Atom Z2420 processor. It packs a 3-megapixel auto focus rear camera which supports 720p HD video recording and a 1.2-megapixel front-facing camera. It has metallic finish with a streamlined design. It has 3G support via a micro SIM card slot and has voice calling support.  It is 10.4mm thick and weighs 340 grams.

It has dual microphones for Noise cancellation and echo suppression. The SonicMaster audio technology with MaxxAudio 3 processing by Waves provides clear, well-rounded sound quality. It comes with exclusive Floating App for easy management of running apps and simpler multi-tasking, SuperNote lite for handwritten notes and drawing, and 5GB of free lifetime ASUS WebStorage.

It has 1GB RAM, 8 GB of internal memory and expandable memory up to 32GB with microSD. The connectivity features include, 3G HSPA+ 21 Mbps, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Blueooth 3.0 and GPS. It has a 4270 mAh battery that promises up to 9.8 hours of continuous video playback.

The Asus Fonepad is priced at Rs. 15,999. It would go on sale across India from Croma stores and select ASUS authorized retail outlets starting 30th April 2013. Asus would also sell option VersaSleeve 7 wraparound cover with a folding design that both protects Fonepad, and props up the screen in two different positions for typing and watching video.

Swype for Android out of beta, now available for download from Google Play

wype keyboard for Android finally leaves the beta tag, and is now available from Google Play Store for download for smartphones and tablets. With the release of the stable version of Swype 1.5, the Swype Beta v1.4.9 will expire on September 14, 2013. Swype keyboard for Android has living keyboard feature that builds a personal language to lean new words and it also predicts next words and Multimodal input with four input modalities on one keyboard such as letter to letter, predictive text input powered by XT9, Swype input and voice input.

Samsung Galaxy S4 launch event scheduled in India on 26th April

The phone packs in a a range of software and hardware innovations including a temperature and humidity sensor. The phone sports a 5 inch Super AMOLED display with full HD resolution. Samsung has also upped their game with adding a lot more features like Smart Scroll, Air View, Air Gesture in TouchWiz. Design wise, the phone is not much of a departure from the Samsung Galaxy S3 which might miff a few prospective buyers.

Globally, the phone is shipping with either a homegrown Exynos or a Snapdragon 600 processor depending on the market. We expect India to get the Exynos variant due to the lack of LTE networks in the country. As for the pricing, we’re hearing that the device might launch around the Rs. 40,000 mark to just about undercut the HTC One which has received rave reviews. Are you waiting for the Samsung Galaxy S4 to launch in India or do the Xperia Z and HTC One interest you more ? Let us know in the comments below!

LG Optimus L5 II dual now available in India for Rs. 11499

The LG Optimus L3 II Dual (E435) and the Optimus L7 II Dual (P715) officially launched in India earlier this month. The Optimus L5 II dual (E455) is now available from online retailer Infibeam in India. It has a 4-inch (800 × 480 pixels) capacitive touch screen IPS display, powered by a 1 GHz processor and runs on Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean). It has a 5 MP camera with LED Flash. It has dual SIM support with dual standby, and a dedicated SIM switch key.

LG unveiled the Optimus L Series II devices at the MWC 2013 back in February, and the Optimus L5 II dual went on sale last month starting from Brazil. It has a Quick Button that lets you personalize a hotkey to launch any app and QuickMemo to jot notes quickly..

LG Optimus L5 II Dual specifications

• 4-inch (800 × 480 pixels) capacitive touch screen IPS display
• 1 GHz processor
• Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean)
• Dual SIM (GSM + GSM) with a dedicated SIM switch key
• 5 MP camera with LED Flash
• 512MB RAM, 4GB of internal memory, expandable memory up to 32 GB with microSD
• 3G, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth, aGPS
• 1700 mAh battery

The LG Optimus L5 II dual is priced at Rs. 11,499 and is available from Infibeam. It is also listed onFlipkart for a similar price, but it is currently out of stock.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 might be coming to India as soon as April 27th. The Korean smartphone giant is gearing up to launch the Galaxy S4 in several countries across the world on April 26-27th. Samsunglaunched the much anticipated successor to the Galaxy S3 at a launch event in New York City last month . India is a key market for Samsung and would be getting the flagship Android device pretty soon. The S4 features a 5 inch display , quad-core or octa-core processor (depending on the market), Android 4.2.2 , 13 Megapixel camera, 2600 mAh battery and many other interesting features.

Regarding the pricing , Samsung is expected to price the S4 in the Rs.40000 price band  in India. It will be available in two colors – Black Mist and White Frost. Multiple sources we spoke to have confirmed the launch plans although there is no official confirmation from Samsung yet.

Interestingly the HTC One is also hitting India later this month for Rs.42900.

Are you looking forward to buying the Galaxy S4 ?

HTC One X and One X+ get a price cut, now available for Rs. 25999 and Rs. 28999

HTC has cut the price of the One X and the One X+ in India, which are now available for Rs. 25999 and Rs. 28999 respectively. This is a huge price drop for both these smartphones since the launch, and this might due to the launch of the HTC One, the company’s latest flagship. The HTC One X was launched in India at Rs. 37,899 (MOP) last April and the HTC One X+ was launched last November for Rs 40,190. No details about the price cut for the HTC Butterfly, that was launched in India earlier this year at a price tag of Rs. 45,990.

Both these phones have a 4.7 inch (1280 x 720 pixels) Super LCD display and run on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. The HTC One X has a 1.5 GHz AP33 Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core processor and the One X+ has a 1.7 GHz quad-core AP37 Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core processor. Both these phones have a 8MP camera with LED Flash, BIS Sensor, Full HD (1080p) video recording, front-facing camera and 1 GB of RAM. The HTC One X has 16GB of internal memory and packs a 1800 mAh Battery. The HTC One X+ comes with 64GB of internal memory and has a 2100 mAh battery.

Online retailer Saholic is now selling these devices at new rates.

Micromax A91 Ninja with 4.5-inch display, 1 GHz dual-core processor now available for Rs. 8499

The Micromax A91 Ninja, a new dual SIM Android smartphone is now on sale from online retailer Saholic. It has a 4.5-inch (854 x 480 pixels) capacitive touch screen display, powered by a 1 GHz dual-core MediaTek processor and runs on Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). It has a 5MP auto focus rear camera and a 0.3 MP (VGA) front-facing camera. This has a TFT LCD display instead of Super AMOLED display in the A90S that was launched last year, but the display resolution and that battery are slightly better. Most of the features are similar to the Karbonn A12 that was launched earlier this year.

Micromax A91 Ninja specifications

• 4.5-inch (854 x 480 pixels) Capacitive touch screen display
• 1 GHz dual-core MediaTek MT6577 processor
• Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) OS
• Dual SIM (GSM + GSM)
• 5MP auto focus rear camera, 0.3MP (VGA) front-facing camera
• 3G ( HSDPA: 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA 5.76Mbps), Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1, GPS
• 512MB RAM, 4GB internal memory, up to 32GB expandable memory with microSD
• 3.5mm Audio Jack, FM Radio
• 1800 mAh battery

The Micromax A91 Ninja is available from Saholic for Rs. 8,499.

Micromax A115 Canvas 3D images leak

Micromax unveiled the A116 Canvas HD, the company’s latest flagship back in January. It was originallypriced at Rs. 13990, but they increased the price of the device to Rs. 14,499 few weeks back. We even saw the phone in a new packing, and a matt finish rather than the glossy finish. According to some alleged shots from a Twitter user MMXNewscaster, Micromax is working on the A115 Canvas 3D, which is in the final stage of development. This doesn’t come with a stereoscopic 3D display, but renders images in 3D form, as you can see in the image above.

Facebook Home Android launcher coming to select HTC and Samsung phones on April 12

Facebook just announced their Facebook Home Android product and only select HTC and Samsung devices will be getting it initially. The Samsung Galaxy S3 , Galaxy Note 2 and HTC OneX+ are existing devices which are supported.The HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S4 are new devices which will be compatible with the app. Facebook  put rumors about a Facebook phone or an forked Android OS with the launch of this app.

Facebook home would be launched as launcher on the Google Play Store. The app should go live on April 12. HTC also announced the HTC First which comes with Facebook Home pre-installed and the phone is exclusive to AT&T. There is no word about regional availability of the app and if the roll out would be restricted to US only.

One of the most popular Android phones the Google Nexus 4 made my LG seems left out of the initial launch party.

The app is a pretty interesting approach taken by Facebook but will users be willing to trade off their familiar Android skins for something designed by Facebook ? Would you use such a launcher ?

PhotoCal with Event app for iPhone and iPad lets you arrange and view photos in a calendar view

PhotoCal with Event, is a new application for iPhone and iPad that arrange and view your photos more efficiently, while keeping you up to date on your events. It lets you arrange your images in chronological order and displays them on your monthly calendar view along with all of your upcoming appointments and errands. This app would be much useful to view photos based on a date, since it arranges the images according to the date they were taken and displays them on your monthly calendar view, instead of searching for a picture in the default camera roll.

Features of PhotoCal with Event for iPhone and iPad

• Arrange and display images by date taken
• Displays photos and events simultaneously in monthly calendar view
• Keeps track of your tasks and events
• Create or modify appointment
• Apply recurring rule to appointment
• Take a photo on certain date
• Dot style monthly event view
• Elegant Photo album calendar
• Esthetic day view with photos and events
• Display birthdays
• Move previous/next month by swipe gesture
• works with all iPhone supported calendars(MobileMe, iCloud, Google Calendar, Exchange, CalDAV)
• Multiple calendars and photo groups control

Download PhotoCal with Event from the Apple iTunes Store for $0.99 / Rs.55.

Nokia Music arrives for Windows RT/8, brings Metro mix radio goodness

Nokia Music is Nokia’s own music service which has been there for a long time, previously under the Ovi Music moniker. The music service was re-launched at the same time as the first Lumias launched, bringing Mix radio, a Pandora-like discovery engine that let you create your own mix radios, by adding a maximum of three artists per mix.

Google Play Movies goes live in India , rent and buy movies from Rs.80

Close on the heels  of the official launch of the Nexus 7 tablet in India, Google is now rolling out Movies on the Google Play store in India. India seems to be letting a lot of love from Google off late. The Book store went live few days back and now we have the Movie store.  Apple did get a head start in India by rolling out the iTunes store late last year.