Acer Iconia B1 tablet sells for Rs.7999

Acer released its 7” tablet, Acer Iconia B1-A71, in India last month. The price tag of Rs. 7999 for this device makes it a good deal for Indian buyers. It comes with the Android Jelly Bean 4.1 Operating System and weighs 320 grams.

7-inch diagonal WSVGA capacitive multitouch screen with 1024x600 resolution display. India has a big market for 7-inch tablets and there are many brands, like Micromax, Karbonn, Milagrow and HCL, that are competing in the price bracket of Rs.10,000 and below. This latest release though has better features.

Seven inches is a standard book page size, and a tablet of this size is comfortable for web browsing, reading eBooks, playing games, or watching videos. With the Acer Iconia B1, you can do all this and more.

Here are the features and specifications:
•    Display:  7-inch diagonal WSVGA capacitive multitouch screen with 1024x600 resolution display.
•    Operating System: Android 4.1 Jelly Bean Operating System
•    Battery:  2,710 mAh battery
•    RAM and Storage:  512MB DDR3 memory, 8GB of internal storage, microSD expansion slot with up to 32GB support.
•    Processor: Mediatek dual-core 1.2GHz processor (MTK 8317T)
•    Camera: Front-facing 0.3-megapixel webcam
•    Connectivity: Wifi, Bluetooth, GPS
•    Dimensions: 197.4 mm x 128.5 mm x 11.3 mm

PHOTOS: Acer Iconia B1

Other tablets by Acer

Acer has also released two other tablets namely Iconia W5 and Iconia W7.

ICONIA W5
This 10.1-inch tablet comes with a key board. MS Windows 8 (32-bit) Operating System and Intel Atom processor power this device. It is priced at Rs. 43,000.00.


ICONIA W7
Iconia W7 is an 11.6-inch tablet with 1920×1080 Full-HD 10-point touch display. This device is powered by Windows 8 Operating System.

10 most affordable phablets in India

Byond Tech Electronics, an aggressively playing tech startup has launched the Phablet PII, a business-ready smartphone.  Good looks and excellent features for the price they ask. This supports two SIMs, a feature available only in Karbonn A 30, in this segment of phablets.

With a 5.7” screen (145mm), Phablet PII has the right blend for lag-free performance: Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean, Dual Core 1GHz Advanced processor and 1GB RAM. 4GB internal storage memory is expandable to 32 GB.

byond phablet PII-Dual SIM, 1GHz dual core processor, 1GB RAM, 4GB storage, 8MP and 3MP cameras, 2500 mAh b …
Screen:

The 5.7”, 5-point multi-touch capacitive screen gives 1280x720 HD IPS display for excellent video experience.

Cameras:

8MP Autofocus Primary camera with Auto flash comes with Panorama Mode which lets you capture bigger and longer allowing you to capture the entire picture, not just a part. The 3 MP front camera gives you amazing clarity whilst having video conversations with your family and friends around the world.   

Social media, Apps:

All major social media and instant messaging apps are integrated. Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Skype… you name it and these social media platforms are there at your finger tips. And there is the vast android market of 600,000 apps for business, entertainment, sheer fun and pranks.

Connectivity:

Wi-Fi, 3G, GPS and Bluetooth make sure that you will never have to worry about connectivity, no matter where you are.

Sensors:

It has G-sensor, Proximity sensor and Light Sensor. These sensors aid in seamless user interface, prevent accidental touch and also aid in saving valuable battery power.

Long lasting battery:

The Byond Phablet PII sports a 2500 mAh battery which gives you 100 hours of stand-by time enough for all your needs.

With an MRP of Rs. 14999/- the Byond Phablet PII is available on online stores like Flipkart.com and also across India through multiple dealers and distributors, at much lower prices.

South Korea unveils missile it says can hit North‘s leaders

South Korea unveiled a cruise missile on Thursday that it said can hit the office of North Korea’s leaders, trying to address concerns that it is technologically behind its unpredictable rival which this week conducted its third nuclear test. South Korean officials declined to say the exact range of the missile but said it could hit targets anywhere in North Korea.

The Defense Ministry released video footage of the missiles being launched from destroyers and submarines striking mock targets. The weapon was previewed in April last year and officials said deployment was now complete. “The cruise missile being unveiled today is a precision-guided weapon that can identify and strike the window of the office of North Korea‘s leadership,” ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said told reporters.

North Korea has forged ahead with long-range missile development, successfully launching a rocket in December that put a satellite into orbit. The North’s ultimate aim, Washington believes, is to design an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead that could hit the United States.

North Korea, which accuses the United States and its “puppet”, South Korea, of war mongering on an almost daily basis, is likely to respond angrily to South Korea flexing its muscles.

North Korea, technically still at war with the South after their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty, carried out its third nuclear test on Tuesday, drawing condemnation from around the world including its only major ally China. The test and the threat of more unspecified actions from Pyongyang have raised tensions on the Korean peninsula as the South prepares to inaugurate a new president on February 25.

“The situation prevailing on the Korean peninsula at present is so serious that even a slight accidental case may lead to an all-out war which can disturb the whole region,” North Korea‘s official KCNA news agency said.

North Korea conducts nuclear test

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea conducted a nuclear test on Tuesday, South Korea's defence ministry said, after seismic activity measuring 4.9 magnitude was registered by the U.S. Geological Survey.

The epicentre of the seismic activity, which was only one km below the Earth's surface, was close to the North's known nuclear test site.

"We've been informed by the South Koreans that there's been a (North Korean) nuclear test," a U.N. Security Council diplomat told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

An international nuclear test monitoring agency said the location of the seismic event was "roughly congruent with" 2006 and 2008 tests carried out by the reclusive state and had "clear explosion-like characteristics".
North Korea, which had been threatening a third nuclear test, had informed Beijing and Washington on Monday of plans to undertake a test, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported.

The isolated state, which is banned under U.N. Security Council resolutions from developing nuclear and missile technology, did not make any immediate comment.

North Korea is not prone to seismic activity and it may take hours or even days to determine officially whether a nuclear test had been conducted.
South Korea's defence ministry said the North Korean seismic event could be the result of a 6-7 kiloton or stronger nuclear blast. South Korea's President Lee Myung-bak called a national security council meeting for 0400 GMT.
North Korea successfully launched a long-range rocket in December in violation of U.N. resolutions that banned it from developing missile or nuclear technology after nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009.
It announced plans for a third nuclear test in response to the sanctions imposed in January after the rocket launch, although satellite imagery indicated it has been readying its test site for more than a year

How Volkswagen plans to drive up profits

 

Ulrich Hackenberg isn't yet a household name but if Volkswagen's $70 billion bet on his big idea pays off, he may join the likes of Henry Ford, Alfred Sloan and Taiichi Ohno in the canon of auto industry pioneers.Since the heyday of Henry Ford and his Model T, the world's automakers have considered the "global car" to be their Holy Grail - the same basic design that can be built, in subtle variations, and sold in different markets.
Take that fundamental concept, stretch it across many different vehicle types, sizes and brands, then build them by the millions, and you begin to sense the enormity of Volkswagen's rapidly evolving "mega-platform" strategy and its potential impact on competitors around the globe.

India plans to develop solar-powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Bangalore:  India is planning to develop a solar-powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and scouting for a foreign partner for collaboration.

The proposed solar-based UAV would have much longer flight duration - as high as 15 days - compared to conventional UAV, according to sources in the Bangalore-based Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), a lab of the Defence Research and Development Organisation.

Villagers lay siege to Kudankulam nuclear plant

Chennai:  Around 1,500 villagers on Saturday laid siege to the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu to demand immediate cessation of all work at the site, said an activist.

Year's last total lunar eclipse left enthusiasts spellbound

New Delhi:  The moon's bright white glow turned into coppery, luminescent orange as the lunar surface was completely covered by the earth's shadow during the last total lunar eclipse of this year.

Top 5 mobile phones under Rs 10,000 for October & November

This edition of our 'Top five mobile phones under Rs 10,000' has two smartphones that were earlier priced around Rs 15,000.

Samsung Galaxy Y S5360 @ Rs 7,000

It maintained its numero uno status in our last list of 'Best smartphones under Rs 10,000' purely on the basis of its specifications and price.

Facebook float could value company at $100bn

Social network will cross the critical 500 shareholder mark by end of 2011, which will force it to file financial data with SEC even if it does not choose to raise $10bn in IPO

Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg is said to be preparing a $10bn flotation for spring 2012. Photograph: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Agni-II Prime missile test fired successfully off the coast of Orissa

Balasore (Odisha):  Adding teeth to its nuclear deterrence, India today successfully test-fired an advanced variant of nuclear-capable Agni-II ballistic missile with a strike range of 3,000 km from an island off Orissa coast.

Delay in operations at Kudankulam N-plant could damage reactors: Russian engineer

Click to Expand & Play

Kudankulam:  Delay in operationalizing the nuclear reactors at the Kudankulam power plant in Tamil Nadu may damage them, a top Russian engineer associated with the project has said, as the Centre tries its best to overcome local opposition through a dialogue it initiated earlier this week. 

Naval power will be the key to India's emergence

New Delhi: India's defence policy has always lacked the strategic perspective. India adopted a non-aligned posture during the tumultuous days of the Cold War and saw itself as a non-interfering moral power which did not require the brute military force that is associated with great powers. However, since soon after Independence India faced a low-intensity conflict with Pakistan when the latter pushed in tribal raiders in its bid to capture Kashmir, India's defence posture was geared towards maintaining conventional superiority over Pakistan.

Iran work ‘specific’ to nuclear arms: UN report

The UN nuclear atomic energy agency said Tuesday for the first time that Iran is suspected of conducting secret experiments whose sole purpose is the development of nuclear arms.

The report is the strongest sign yet that Iran seeks to build a nuclear arsenal, despite claims to the contrary. With Israel threatening a military response, the report opens the way for a new confrontation between the West and Iran.

US regulators asked to probe huge expenses on games by children

Two members of Congress asked US regulators on Tuesday to look into a newspaper report that children had rung up huge bills buying virtual products in games on mobile devices.

The Washington Post reported Tuesday that an eight-year-old girl had racked up a $1,400 bill from Apple buying virtual products such as "smurfberries" in the Capcom Interactive game Smurfs' Village on the iPhone.

Super Bowl ad frenzy stretches far beyond the game

The Super Bowl commercial blitz is extending beyond the usual talking babies and office chimps to engage viewers online and get more for advertisers' $3 million-plus investment.

Marketers are using every trick in the playbook to dominate the buzz before the game and long afterward, too. The gimmicks include online contests, a car "race" powered by Twitter mentions, and a secret new level of a hit iPhone game.

Activision jumps into kids' game with 'Skylanders'

To impress kids these days, it's not enough to make another video game. Mere action figures won't do, either. So Activision is merging the two.

With "Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure," Activision is using some of its "Guitar Hero" technology in a new venture that's part handheld toy, part digital entertainment. Aimed at kids, "Skylanders" is among the latest and most ambitious game in a growing genre that blends a child's physical world with a video game and online media.

NPD: US retail video game sales fell in September

U.S. retail sales of video game hardware, software and accessories dipped 4 percent to $1.13 billion in September, according to market researcher NPD Group. Sales of the games themselves grew somewhat, but this was overshadowed by lower sales of game consoles and accessories.

Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini Pro

Back in May, we reviewed the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc which was the pinnacle of mobile technology at that time. At least, it was in the highest echelon of Google's Android kingdom. It was smart, sleek and fast. Now, four months later, we have the Xperia Mini Pro which is neither the smartest, nor the sleekest, nor the fastest. But this is not a bad thing, and we'll explain why in this review.

Windows 8 - Metro is hip, Explorer not so!

Before the rise and rise of Apple, desktop operating systems were dominated by Bill Gates' juggernaut Microsoft. Microsoft's Windows platform held more than 95% of the market share. But in June 2007 along came Apple with their simplified iOS that powered the iPhone, later on adapted for the iPod Touch and iPad. For Microsoft, it was a death knell. The Post PC Era, a term coined by no less a person than Steve Jobs himself, was one of innovation and evolution. The time of desktops was over, the time of mobile had begun. Jobs even went so far as to describe Windows based devices as trucks.