Micromax unveils dual-OS tablet; to hit shelves in Feb

 

Homegrown handset maker Micromax today unveiled its latest tablet 'LapTab', which will run on both Windows 8 and Android JellyBean operating system. 

The device, which was unveiled at the ongoing Consumer Electronics Show here, will be available for consumers in early February. 

"The Intel-powered LapTab is the first dual-boot Windows and Android tablet. The device is aptly designed for multitasking across operating platforms and users would need to simply reboot the device and select the alternate option to switch from Windows to Android and vice versa," Micromax said. 

The device is powered by 1.46GHz Intel Celeron processor and has a 10.1-inch IPS display. It comes with 2GB RAM, 7400 mAh battery, 2MP front camera with light sensor and wireless keyboard. With storage of 32 GB expandable up to 64 GB, the tablet also supports Bluetooth v4.0 and Wi-Fi. 

"Over the past few years, we have been witnessing a growing trend of increasing consumer demand for two operating systems in one device, which offers a blend of great PC like productivity in a tablet like form factor for seamless consumption," Micromax co-founder Rahul Sharma said. 

Combining functionality and style, the LapTab further builds on the promise to constantly empower our users with superior technology that directly addresses their needs, he added. 

"We would be unveiling an array of innovative products across international markets in next six months for which Micromax is known for," Sharma said. 

The LapTab comes with a transleeve which can be combined as a cover and stand for the wireless keyboard. Consumers will also have an option to buy a customised keyboard for LapTab when it hits the stands.

Nvidia plans to put a supercomputer in your pocket

Chipmaker Nvidia gave new details of an upcoming K1 chip with beefed-up graphics for mobile gadgets and cars as it faces a slowing personal computer industry and harsh competition in smartphones and tablets. 

The K1 is Nvidia's first mobile chip to incorporate the Kepler graphics technology the company uses in the high-end components it makes for PC game enthusiasts, chief executive Jen-Hsun Huang told reporters at an event in Las Vegas on Sunday ahead of the Consumer Electronics Show. 

Huang in recent years has expanded Nvidia's business beyond its core PC market and into mobile devices with the company's Tegra lineup of chips. But he has encountered heavy competition from larger Qualcomm and Samsung Electronics in making components for tablets and smartphones. 

Nvidia is betting that adding cutting-edge graphics technology to its mobile chips will entice more manufacturers and consumers to see tablets as viable alternatives to consoles for playing high-end games like first-person shooters. 

"We've brought mobile computing to the same level as desktop computing... the same level as supercomputing," Huang said of the K1's graphics technology. 

Nvidia's most recent Tegra 4 processors are used in Microsoft's Surface 2 tablet and a smartphone made by Xiaomi in China, but Wall Street is concerned the company is making too little progress for the money it spends to develop the chips. 

In the third quarter, sales from Nvidia's Tegra mobile chips fell 54% and sales from its PC graphics chips, which account for the majority of the company's total revenue, declined 2%. 

The K1 was previously codenamed Logan, an alias of the comic book superhero Wolverine. An automotive version of the chip will be ideal for camera-based computation in future self-driving cars with applications like pedestrian detection and collision avoidance, Huang said. 

Following in the footsteps of recent chip announcements from Qualcomm, Samsung and Apple, Nvidia's Tegra K1 lineup will also include a version with 64-bit features typically found in personal computers. 

Processors with 64-bit features can take advantage of more memory than 32-bit processors now found in most mobile devices, potentially letting them work faster and more efficiently. 

Current smartphones don't have enough memory to give 64-bit processors an advantage of 32-bit chips, but future phones probably will include enough memory to give the 64-bit processors a performance boost. 

Nvidia said it expects a 32-bit version of the K1 chip to appear in devices in the first half of 2014, with the 64-bit chip appearing later in the year. 

With progress in mobile devices slow, Nvidia is increasingly looking to the automotive industry and cloud computing to fuel future growth. It has made deals with Audi, BMW and Tesla to use Tegra chips in dashboard entertainment and navigation systems. 

At last year's Consumer Electronics Show, Nvidia unveiled a handheld gaming device called Shield, made with its Tegra 4 chip and based on Google's Android platform. Nvidia has not said how many Shield devices it has shipped since their launch in July.

Let apps motivate you to get better physique

 

Whether you are trying to control alcohol consumption or forcing yourself every morning to jog, apps like iBeer and Zombies Run 2 can motivate you. 

Here's some fun apps to help you to focus on fitness, reports dailystar.co.uk: 

* iPint on iOS and iBeer on Android: If your friends are gulping down beer at parties, you can also join them with this virtual beer. The apps are available on phones that have mobile operating systems like Android and iOS. The best part is it won't cost you anything and you'll be hangover free in the morning. 

* Embarrassing Bodies My Health Checker: Before working on a healthier lifestyle, see what poor shape you're in with this app. Apple users can check out eyes, heart, lungs and body mass index. 

* Zombies Run 2: The app can be downloaded by Apple, Android and Windows phone users. But it will cost them 1.99 pounds, 2.19 pounds and 1.49 pounds respectively. But it will help to shed some kg. The phone app makes your morning jog a little more exciting. The story starts with you crash landing in the middle of a pack of zombies. As you listen to your playlists, a voice tells you the zombies are right behind you and it's up to you to save the civilisation. Your phone's GPS tracks your speed and if you're not fast enough you'll be eaten up by monsters.

Meet Edison: A computer that is smaller than an SD card

How small a computer can get? If you ask Intel it is already as small as an SD card! On Monday, Intel unveiled Edison, a computer housed in an "SD card form factor". The device uses Quark microprocessor technology that was shown by Intel a few months ago. Intel CEOBrian Krzanich said that the "computer" is meant to be used in wearable smart devices like a health tracker or in everyday products like coffee mugs that has to be connected to the internet.

Edison has built-in wireless capabilities and support for multiple operating systems. "It is a full system. It's a full Pentium-class PC in the form factor of an SD card," said Krzanich. Edison will be available in the middle of 2014.

"Wearables are not everywhere today because they aren't yet solving real problems and they aren't yet integrated with our lifestyles," said Krzanich. "We're focused on addressing this engineering innovation challenge. Our goal is, if something computes and connects, it does it best with Intel inside."

In his keynote address at Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas Krzanich showed an example of Edison can be used. He said that it can be attached to the clothes of a baby. This will allow parents to monitor the baby even if they are not in the same room. For example, if the coffee mug used by parents also has Edison and can connect to the internet, it can talk to the device attached to the baby's clothes and tell parents whenever the baby is getting uncomfortable.

Edison is Intel's attempt to not repeat the mistake it made in the smartphone market. With smartphones and tablets, Intel failed to see the trend and did not address the market properly until 2012. Now when the companies are expected to push smart glasses and smart watches, Intel intends to not repeat the mistake it made earlier.

"Most of my career a computer has been something you hold in your hand [...] or sits on your desk... That idea is about to be transformed," said Krzanich.

One of Intel's most serious competitors, Qualcomm announced a smartwatch - Toq -- a few months earlier. On Monday, Intel too joined the bandwagon by showing the prototype of the smartwatch it is developing. The company also said that it was developing smart earbuds - called Jarvis -- with biometric and fitness capabilities. The earbuds will read a message to the user or track his physical movement.

In addition to developing reference devices for wearable technology, Intel will offer a number of accessible, low-cost entry platforms. These are allegedly aimed at helping lower entry barriers for individuals and small companies to create innovative Internet-connected wearables or other small form factor devices.

At his keynote, Krzanich also said that Intel, along with its hardware partners, will launch tablets that dual-boot Windows and Android.

The company will make McAfee security app for mobiles and tablets available for free this year. "As corporate bring-your-own-device programs have grown in popularity, many firms have prohibited Android-based devices that weren't compatible with their companies' security requirements. Intel this year will offer Intel device protection technology, which will help Intel-based Android mobile devices meet most security standards for use at home and work," the company said in a press note.

Apple sold over $10 billion worth of apps in 2013

Apple customers spent $10 billion (£6 billion, AU$11 billion) on apps for the iPhone and iPad last year, the company revealed this week.
Consumers spent $1 billion (£600,000, AU$1.1 billion) in a record breaking December that saw 3 billion apps purchased. Apple added that since the launch of the App Store in 2008, developers have been paid $15 billion (£9 billion, AU$16 billion).
Apple takes a 30 per cent cut of app sales, which suggests that it took $3 billion (£1.8 billion, $AU3.3 billion) last year and paid out the remaining $7 billion (£4 billion, AU$7.8 billion) to developers. This does not include, however, Apple's own paid-for apps.
A year ago Apple said that since 2008 it had paid out $7 billion over the entire history of the App Store. The fact that they equalled that figure in 2013 alone implies a massive leap in sales for apps and Apple.

Thank you for the music, but I prefer my apps

The figure also suggests that the app industry is rapidly overtaking music, and may have already done so. Figures are unavailable for 2013 from music sales, but total sales in 2012 were $16.5 billion £10 billion, AU$18.5 billion) according to the IFPU industry body. If Android, BlackBerry and Windows Phone are also taken into account, total apps sales are likely to be close to, if not eclipsing music sales.
Apple's senior vice president of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue said: "The lineup of apps for the holiday season was astonishing and we look forward to seeing what developers create in 2014."
More than 1 million apps are available in the App Store, which launched five and a half years ago alongside the iPhone 3G.

CES 2014: LG unveils 105-inch 21:9 cinema style TV with eye watering price tag

We're sure we're not the only ones who want a home cinema, and thanks to the LG 105UC9 that dream can now become a reality - sort of.
At 105 inches the 105UC9 is going to be pushing the dimensions of most living rooms, but its 21:9 aspect ratio and Ultra HD 5120 x 2160 resolution means that movies will look damn fine.
Obviously standard TV shows are not shot in 21:9, so you'll be losing a lot of screen real estate when watching your 16:9 and 5:9 programmes - hardly seems worth the outlay if half the screen is going to be off most of the time.

No 4K or 3D? No problem

The 105UC9 uses LG's Tru-Ultra HD Engine which can upscale your non-4K media into something which resembles the next-gen resolution, plus the Cinema 3D feature allows you to fine tune the dimensional effect to suit your eyes - and it can even convert your boring 2D shows into fancy 3D offerings.
LG has overhauled its smart TV operating system and the 105UC9 runs the firm's new webOS platform, which makes it easier for you to find the content you want with services such as Netflix, CinemaNow, Hulu Plus and Facebook all included.
In terms of the LG 105UC9 release date it's still undecided, but that probably isn't a bad thing as you'll need to get saving to meet the $69,999 (£43,000, AU$78,000) asking price.