Use Your Android Phone to Cure Cancer

Smartphone manufacturer HTC has announced “Power to Give,” a new initiative that harnesses the collective processing power of the company’s smartphones to solve epic scientific challenges. Power to Give (PTG), an Android smartphone app currently in beta, works a bit like Folding@Home, Play to Cure and other similar projects. Once installed on your HTC phone, research institutions of your choice will automatically begin using its computing power during downtime to help analyze important data. The app only works when your phone is connected to WiFi and a power source. It never eats up battery power or your data allowance, and it won’t interfere with your normal use of the phone. HTC is currently highlighting four specific PTG projects: Computing for Clean Water, Help Fight Cancer, Say No to Schistosoma and Nutritious Rice for the World. Other popular projects like SETI@Home are also available. You can divide your phone’s efforts as you choose. For now, the Power to Give app is only compatible with the HTC One family, HTC Butterfly and HTC Butterfly S running Android 4.3 or above. The company hopes to release a version compatible with all Android phones later this year. HTC owners can download Power to Give on Google Play. This article was written by Fox Van Allen and originally appeared on Techlicious. More from Techlicious: Glove App Determines Which Wireless Carrier is Best For You 10 Apps & Sites that Will Save You Money Major Security Flaw Discovered in Asus Routers, Too HTC Offering Limited Free Screen Replacements Techlicious 2014 Best of Toy Fair Awards

MWC 2014: The Samsung Galaxy: a history of the S series

Galaxy i7500 to Galaxy S2

When Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S5, the world sat up and took notice, simply because it's one of the most anticipated phones for 2014.
But how did the South Korean giant become so influential in the mobile phone market? Lest we forget, it was a no-hoper just a few years ago, spraying out demi-smartphones that were met with shrugs and derision in equal measure.
Then Android emerged, Samsung decided that enough was enough, and it decided to take the plunge and become a fish in Google's pond.
The Galaxy i7500 - where our journey begins - was by no means a smash hit, and the Galaxy S did little to improve the situation.
It was with the S2 that Samsung really began to get its act together, and even though last year's S4 fell a little flat, the buzz that remains is proof that Samsung is still the only major player that can take on Apple in terms of overall mobile handset sales, and that it's truly become a shark in the Android lake.

Galaxy i7500

The month is April, the year is 2009, and Samsung debuts an Android 1.5 Cupcake phone that we described at the time as "run of the mill".

The key specs
Screen: 3.2-inch OLED, 320 x 480 pixels
Battery: 1500mAh
CPU: 528MHz, 128MB RAM
Key features: One of the early phones to run Android
Internal storage: 8GB
OS: Android 1.5
Price at launch: £499

Packing a 5-megapixel camera, the i7500 sported an OLED 3.2-inch screen that offered a resolution of 320 x 480 pixels, and made use of a conventional D-pad — how mobile technology can change in the space of five years. The device weighed in at 116g, which is a little lighter than today's Nexus 5.
Under the hood the handset had a 528MHz Qualcomm MSM7200A CPU and an Adreno 130 GPU powering the display, a setup which we found to be laggy on occasion. The i7500 had 8GB of built-in storage and 128MB of RAM (absolutely paltry by today's standards but not so bad for 2009).
Despite a relatively large 1500mAh battery, battery life was disappointing: during heavy use it only lasted 3-4 hours, and the handset had to be charged at least once a day.
An underwhelming start for the Galaxy range then, and definitely room for improvement. Android was still in its infancy, and Samsung was still finding its feet: in October 2009, HTC was the only other manufacturer making mobiles running Android. The price was off-putting too, with the i7500 originally costing £499 to buy SIM-free.

Galaxy S

The next Galaxy handset appeared a little over a year later, in June 2010. The D-pad was gone, and the Galaxy S had a far more recognisable shape and style to it, with the now ubiquitous back, home and menu buttons in place.

The key specs
Screen: 4-inch Super AMOLED, 480 x 800 pixels
Battery: 1500mAh
CPU: 1GHz Cortex-A8, 512MB RAM
Key features: Stronger TouchWiz overlay, front-facing camera
Internal storage: 8GB / 16GB
OS: Android 2.1
Price at launch: £449

The display was bigger (spot the emerging trend), offering a 480 x 800 pixel resolution across 4 inches of Super AMOLED screen real estate.
The S originally appeared with Android 2.1 Eclair and bowed out with 2.3 Gingerbread. The RAM was boosted to 512MB, 8GB and 16GB storage options were available, and a 1GHz Cortex-A8 processor kept everything running. A PowerVR SGX540 GPU was in charge of graphics, and the handset tipped the scales at 119g.
Android had added support for a forward-facing camera, so the Galaxy S included one, as well as a 5-megapixel shooter around the back. The battery was again a Li-Ion 1500mAh model, and again the phone struggled to get through a working day without a recharge. The 2.3 Gingerbread update did wonders in this department though, almost doubling its lifespan.
"There are a few faults, but on the whole it's a cracking bit of kit, and you really could do a lot worse," concluded our review at the time, and Samsung now had a foundation it could build on. In 2010, the SIM-free price for the Galaxy S was £449.

Galaxy S2

The S2 was the first Galaxy phone to cause a significant splash in the mobile handset pond.

The key specs
Screen: 4.3-inch Super AMOLED Plus, 480 x 800 pixels
Battery: 1650mAh
CPU: dual-core 1.2GHz Cortex-A9, 1GB RAM
Key features: Blazing fast internals, strong camera, brilliant screen
Internal storage: 16GB / 32GB
OS: Android 2.3.4
Price at launch: £499

It brought along with it an improved Super AMOLED Plus screen that was expanded to 4.3 inches, a faster dual-core 1.2GHz Cortex-A9 CPU, 1GB of RAM and a superior Mali-400MP GPU.
The Galaxy S2 debuted in April 2011 with Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread and would eventually get as far as 4.1 Jelly Bean, a sign of its prowess and longevity. In terms of storage space, 16GB and 32GB models were available.
In our review of the phone, its thinness and lightness (116g) came in for praise, as did the display, responsiveness and 1080p video recording capabilities.
The camera had been bumped up to 8 megapixels and now had a flash, while the 1650mAh battery was good for almost two days of average use — a target that many of today's phones would love to be able to stretch to. At launch, SIM-free prices for the S2 hovered around the £500 mark.
After the moderate college radio success of the Galaxy S, Samsung finally had a chart-topping hit on its hands: within five months, it would shift 10 million of its S2 phones.
Here's what we thought at the time: "If you're after a one-word summary of the Samsung Galaxy S2: awesome. We've were waiting for a phone to set a benchmark among the dual-core breed, and we found it in the Samsung Galaxy S2."

Galaxy S3 to Galaxy S5

Galaxy S3

After a brief Google-sponsored detour to make the Galaxy Nexus, Samsung returned to its own flagship phone in the shape of the Galaxy S3 in May 2012.

The key specs

• Screen 4.8-inch Super AMOLED, 720 x 1280 pixels
• Battery 2100mAh
• CPU quad-core 1.4GHz Cortex-A9, 1GB RAM
• Key features Smart Stay, Android Beam, Pop up Play - all about the software and screen
• Internal storage 16GB / 32GB / 64GB
• OS Android 4.0.4
• Price at launch: £499

It was the second home run for Samsung in a row: the S3 arrived to almost universal acclaim, and we called it "the best smartphone around right now" in our original review. Again, the screen was bigger: the Super AMOLED display grew to 4.8 inches at a resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels, and the weight grew to 133g as well.
The heavy lifting was done by a quad-core 1.4GHz Cortex-A9 CPU, while the Mali-400MP GPU showed up again alongside 1GB of RAM. The S3 originally came with Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich and was at the same £500 SIM-free price level as its predecessor.
As on the S2, an 8-megapixel camera was around the back, though various software optimisations helped to create slightly better photos. In terms of storage, 16GB, 32GB and 64GB options were available.
Not even battery life could spoil the S3 party: the 2100mAh battery was good for eight hours or so of heavy use, which placed it very favourably amongst the other handsets of 2012. Speed, design, battery life, display, responsiveness, bundled features... the phone scored highly in every department.

Galaxy S4

And so to Samsung's current flagship phone until the S5 replaces it this April.

The key specs

• Screen 5-inch Super AMOLED HD, 1080 x 1920 pixels
• Battery 2600mAh
• CPU quad-core 1.6GHz Cortex-A15, 2GB RAM
• Key features Air gestures, Smart Scroll, Smart Pause, Drama Shot, Infra red remote, humidity sensor
• Internal storage 16GB / 32GB / 64GB
• OS Android 4.2.2
• Price at launch: £600

The Galaxy S4 arrived in the world in April 2013, offering users a whopping 5-inch 1080 x 1920 pixel Super AMOLED screen, an upgraded 13-megapixel camera, Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean and a 2600mAh battery that typically lasts at least the length of a day.
The specs of last year's model remain impressive: a quad-core 1.6GHz Cortex-A15 CPU, a PowerVR SGX 544MP3 GPU, 2GB of RAM and 16GB, 32GB or 64GB of built-in storage.
It weighs in at 130g and offers a slew of sensors to track your eyes, measure humidity and more besides. You can currently pick up a SIM-free S4 for around £400, though it was closer to £600 at launch.
Despite a high TechRadar review score, and sales of 40 million units in the first six months, Samsung is reportedly disappointed with the S4's impact on the market. As far as we're concerned though, the phone was a success, if not on the same level as the S2 and the S3.

Galaxy S5

So, onto the latest iteration of the Samsung Galaxy family: the S5, and it's powerful while remaining a little underwhelming.

The key specs

• Screen 5.1-inch Super AMOLED HD, 1080 x 1920 pixels
• Battery 2800mAh
• CPU Quad-core 2.5GHz Snapdragon 801, 2GB RAM
• Key features Waterproof, Super fast autofocus, heart rate monitor, fingerprint scanner
• Internal storage 16GB / 32GB / 64GB
• OS Android 4.4.2
• Price at launch: £TBC

In February 2014 the Galaxy S5 was launched unto the baying public, and delivered in a number of stable ways. Gone were the theatrics and the pointless sensors, to be replaced by a heart rate monitor, a blazing fast autofocus and a fingerprint scanner.
The main specs were up again: the CPU was faster at 2.5GHz, the screen was larger as a 5.1-inch Super AMOLED HD option, the camera boosted to 16MP and the battery now rocking up at 2800mAh.
On top of that Android 4.4.2 was included to make things look a lot slicker and the overall interface was overhauled to make things like the lock screen much clearer and generally improve the flow through the device.
The fitness elements were boosted through S Health 3.0, which brings the most holistic tracking app ever for your fitness, according to Samsung, while most other elements stayed the same - although the rubberised back is a lot a grippier.
We're still awaiting a price, but chances are it will be the same as before, hovering around the £500-£600 mark depending on your spec choice.
Our hands on: Samsung Galaxy S5 review found that the "Galaxy S5 has a great camera, strong screen, impressive packaging, a waterproof casing and a blazingly fast engine pumping things along.
"But it doesn't have an amazing camera, incredibly battery life, stunning design or genuinely innovative feature, and that cause a few people to wait and see what the competition brings."
...and so there you have it: a complete walk down the Samsung Galaxy memory lane. Are there any particular handsets that you have fond memories of? Or are there specific innovations that you'd like to see Samsung offer next time around? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

25 Galaxy S5 Features You’ll Actually Care About

25 Galaxy S5 Features You’ll Actually Care About is a post by Josh Smith from Gotta Be Mobile.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 is official with a lengthy list of features and an April release date. While you wait for Samsung to announce the Galaxy S5 price and for carriers like AT&T or Verizon to confirm the Galaxy S5 release date on their shelves we share a look at 25 Galaxy S5 features you’ll actually care about and use.
Samsung beat Apple and HTC to announce the first flagship smartphone of 2014, showing consumers and competitors what the company thinks are the essential smartphone features for the year.
After the Gotta Be Mobile team used the Galaxy S5 and shared our Galaxy S5 hands on, we wanted to call attention to the Galaxy S5 features we are excited about and the ones we think buyers will actually care about.

This collection of Samsung Galaxy S5 features highlights some of the most impressive features that we see consumers using. Some of the features won’t see use everyday, but everything on this list is something the Gotta Be Mobile team thinks consumers will use on a regular basis.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 release date is set for April 11th and the phone is coming to all major U.S. carriers, though the release date may vary slightly on each carrier.

25 Galaxy S5 Features You’ll Actually Care About

Some of these Galaxy S5 features come from the Galaxy S4 or Note 3, while others are unique to the Galaxy S5. Consumers deciding between the Galaxy S5, Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 3 or an iPhone 5s or HTC One should check out these Galaxy S5 features before buying.

Better Build Quality

The Galaxy S5 is still plastic, but offers a better feel than previous phones.

The Samsung Galaxy S5 is still plastic, but according to the Gotta Be Mobile team members that went hands on with the device it doesn’t feel like cheap plastic. Samsung may not match the HTC One or iPhone 5s with metal, but this is an improvement.

Samsung Galaxy S5 vs iPhone 5s

Samsung Galaxy S5 vs iPhone 5s is a post by Craig Lloyd from Gotta Be Mobile.
Samsung announced and unveiled the Galaxy S5 as its latest flagship smartphone, rocking a slightly-larger display, faster internals and a better camera. The new device firmly places the ball back in Apple’s court, reiterating that a larger display is the way to go in today’s handset market.
Apple and Samsung are two of the biggest smartphone makers in the world, so pitting each company’s flagship device up against each other is pretty much the battle of the year — like Muhammad Ali vs. Sonny Liston or Peyton Manning vs. Tom Brady.

The Galaxy S5 can be regarded as a direct response to the iPhone 5s, coming with a fingerprint sensor on the home button and now the choice of a “copper gold” flavor that seems to be the new phone’s version of the gold iPhone 5s that was introduced last year in September. In any case, let’s take a look at the two devices and find out what makes each phone tick compared to the other.

Display

One of the most obvious differences between the Galaxy S5 and the iPhone 5s is the screen. The Galaxy S5 rocks a 5.1-inch display with a 1920×1080 resolution, providing nearly 541 pixels per inch. The iPhone 5s only has a 4-inch screen with a resolution of 1136×640, giving it 326 pixels per inch after it’s all said and done.
There were rumors that Samsung would bring out the big guns and introduce a 2560×1440 display on the Galaxy S5, but we knew that was a little far-fetched to begin with. Instead, we’re still stuck with the traditional 1080p resolution, which is still rather admirable.
Either way, both the Galaxy S5 and the iPhone 5s sport great pixel densities and images and videos look good on either device. Your only choice is whether you want a massive screen that may be too big for your hands or your pocket, or if you want the more subtle option of the iPhone 5s.

Fingerprint Sensor

Samsung took a page from Apple’s book this time around by introducing a fingerprint sensor in the home button of the Galaxy S5. However, instead of simply tapping down on the home button to get your fingerprint scanned, the Galaxy S5 requires users to swipe their finger downward in order to scan it.
Hopefully we don’t see any long-term problems with the Galaxy S5′s fingerprint sensor, as many iPhone 5s owners have experienced degraded performance from the Touch ID fingerprint sensor. In other words, the sensor would fail to recognize fingerprints over time, most likely because the sensor would become dirty after several scans.
In any case, Samsung certainly agrees that a fingerprint scanner is the way to go as far as securing your personal information. The iPhone 5s’s Touch ID fingerprint sensor can only be used to unlock the phone and purchase apps in the iTunes App Store, while the Galaxy S5′s fingerprint sensor can be used for other things like mobile payments. It’s likely that Apple’s Touch ID system will expand its usage, but who knows when that’ll be.

Camera

The camera in the Galaxy S5 is a huge improvement over the Galaxy S4, and it quite possibly might be in the running for the best smartphone camera on the market, but further tests will need to be done to see whether or not that’s true.
The 13-megapixel camera sensor in the Galaxy S4 has been bumped up to a 16-megapixel sensor in the Galaxy S5. Of course, megapixels aren’t everything, but it seems Samsung stepped it up significantly with new features like the world’s fastest autofocus in a smartphone camera, as well as Lytro-like focus shifting, where you can change the focus of a photo after it’s been taken.
As for the iPhone 5s, it’s rocking an 8-megapixel camera sensor, and again, megapixels aren’t everything; the iPhone 5s takes great photos and it’s still one of the best smartphone cameras around, but we just might see Samsung edge past Apple in this category this year.

Build Quality

Samsung decided to forgo its slimy plastic that it used on the Galaxy S III and the Galaxy S4 in favor of a soft-touch plastic with a textured finish that makes it more appealing to the senses. While many have joked around that the gold Galaxy S5 looks like a band-aid, it’s hard to deny that that the new look and feel is a welcomed improvement over the previous generation.
Then again, the Galaxy S5 still uses plastic across most of the device, while the iPhone 5s uses a sleek aluminum casing on the back and sides, making it one of the best-looking smartphones on the market.

However, many folks would argue that this makes the iPhone 5s much less tolerable to drops, while the Galaxy S5 looks to have a more robust build quality overall. In fact, Samsung’s new flagship is water-resistant, meaning that you can drop it in the toilet or in a puddle and it’ll still live to tell the tale. Granted, it’s not completely waterproof, but for those accidental moments, the new water-resistant feature can be a life-saver.

Wrap-Up

While the Galaxy S5 might not be a huge upgrade from the Galaxy S4 just from the face of it, the new smartphone is actually a huge upgrade, with just a few amazing new hardware features, as well as a handful of new software features that really puts the Galaxy S4 leaps and bounds ahead of the Galaxy S4.
However, the iPhone 5s is still right there along with it, and it seemed that Samsung played catch-up a little bit with the Galaxy S5 in terms of the iPhone 5s, with the inclusion of a home button fingerprint sensor and a new gold color option for those who like to bling it up.
However, Samsung still brought their own style and flavor to the Galaxy S5, especially with the upgraded camera and the new rear body design. It’ll be quite interesting to see how Apple responds when it unveils and launches the alleged iPhone 6 at some point later this year.

Truecaller ties up with Nokia‘s Android-powered X series

Aiming to expand its reach in emerging and mass markets like India, phone directory app Truecaller has tied up with Nokia for newly launched Android-powered X series smartphones. 

The Truecaller app will be available on the Nokia apps store for all devices in the Nokia X series. 

"Given Nokia's reach in the emerging and mass markets, our collaboration will help in further expanding the reach of our application in these markets," Truecaller co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer Nami Zarringhalam told PTI. 

Truecaller, which has a global userbase of 45 million, has about 25 million users in India, he added. 

"Our recent product enhancements, rising user base in emerging markets especially India makes it the right time for us to expand our product availability to newer platforms," Zarringhalam said. 

The firm claims to add about 900,000 users every week globally, while in India its users are expanding at a rate of 500,000 per week, he added. 

"Our users make over 600 million phone searches every month," he said. 

Nokia X series users will have access to all the features of Truecaller's 4.0 version which includes caller ID, name search and call blocking functionality, Zarringhalam said. 

Truecaller 4.0 is the latest update on the app which provides the customary caller ID and call block feature, coupled with integrated functionality using Twitter. 

This will help users to see if a number is connected with a Twitter account and have the ability to tweet or follow a person directly through the Truecaller app, he added. 

"With Truecaller, you are able to control how your contact information is shared and how others can contact you. This is done by guarding your most personal accessory (your mobile phone) and eliminating the annoyance of unwanted calls, while making it easier for people you want to hear from to find you," Zarringhalam said.

Major bitcoin exchange is insolvent, companies say

 

A major bitcoin exchange has gone bust after secretly racking up catastrophic losses, other virtual currency companies said Tuesday _ a potentially fatal blow for the exotic new form of money. 

The website of Tokyo-based Mt. Gox was returning a blank page Tuesday. The disappearance of the site follows the resignation Sunday of Mt. Gox CEO Mark Karpeles from the board of the Bitcoin Foundation, a group seeking legitimacy for the currency, and a withdrawal ban imposed at the exchange earlier this month. 

Prominent members of the Bitcoin community _ including San Francisco-based wallet service Coinbase and Chinese exchange BTC China _ sought to shore up confidence in the currency by saying Mt. Gox's collapse was an isolated case of mismanagement. They said it had abused users' trust, but did not offer details on how. 

``As with any new industry, there are certain bad actors that need to be weeded out, and that is what we are seeing today,'' the statement said. 

Documents purportedly leaked from the company lay out the scale of the problem. An 11-page ``Crisis Strategy Draft'' published on the blog of entrepreneur and Bitcoin enthusiast Ryan Selkis says that 740,000 bitcoins are missing from Mt. Gox, which roughly translates to hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of losses, although figures are fuzzy given Bitcoin's extreme volatility. 

``At the risk of appearing hyperbolic, this could be the end of Bitcoin, at least for most of the public,'' the draft said. 

In a post to his blog, Selkis said that the document was handed to him by a ``reliable source'' and that several people close to the company had confirmed the figures. Reached by phone, he declined further comment. 

The scandal may cost Bitcoin enthusiasts dear. 

At the Tokyo office tower housing Mt. Gox, bitcoin trader Kolin Burgess said he had picketed the building since Feb. 14 after flying in from London, hoping to get back $320,000 he has tied up in bitcoins with Mt. Gox. 

``I may have lost all of my money,'' said Burgess, next to placards asking if Mt. Gox is bankrupt. ``It hasn't shaken my trust in Bitcoin, but it has shaken my trust in bitcoin exchanges.'' 

Mt. Gox CEO Karpeles did not immediately return several messages seeking comment. A security officer at the office tower said no one from Mt. Gox was in the building. Tibbane, an Internet company that Karpeles is CEO of, still has its name listed on the building's directory. 

``I have no idea'' where they are, said Burgess, the trader. ``I'm both annoyed and worried.'' 

On bitcoin exchanges, the currency's value has fallen to about $470 from $550 in the past few hours, a figure already down more than 50 percent on the price of $1,200 per bitcoin reached on Mt. Gox three months ago.

 

The disappearance of Mt. Gox could be fatal for Bitcoin, which was started in 2009 as a currency free from government controls. Bitcoin's boosters say the currency's design make it impossible to counterfeit and difficult to manipulate, and the virtual money has won an eclectic mix of die-hard fans, including libertarians, tech enthusiasts and adventurous investors. 

But the currency has struggled to shake off its associations with criminality, particularly its role in powering the now-defunct online drug marketplace Silk Road. Only last month another member of the Bitcoin Foundation, Vice Chairman Charlie Shrem, was arrested at New York's Kennedy Airport on charges of money laundering. 

Authorities have been taking an increasingly hard look at Bitcoin and related virtual currencies including Litecoin, Namecoin, Ripple, and countless others. Some countries, including Russia, have effectively banned the currency. In other jurisdictions, authorities are weighing whether to try to tame the marketplace through licenses or other mechanisms. 

Even if Mt. Gox doesn't drag Bitcoin down with it, there's fear that the exchange's demise will push officials to take an even more skeptical stance. 

``I think this is disastrous from a (regulatory) standpoint,'' Selkis, the enthusiast, said in a message posted to Twitter. ``The hammer will now come down hard.''

LinkedIn to launch site in Chinese

 

LinkedIn is launching a Chinese- language site for the world's most populous Internet market and says it will comply with the communist government's censorship rules. 

The professional networking service will compete with established Chinese-language services Tianji, owned by France's Viadeo SA, and homegrown rivals Ruolin and Dajie. 

LinkedIn says it has 4 million users in China but until now its service was in English. 

Professional networking services see fast-developing economies such as China and India as important sources of growth. In China, LinkedIn says it sees a potential market of 140 million professionals. 

Unlike Facebook, Twitter and other sites, LinkedIn has always been allowed to operate in China. 

LinkedIn Corp, headquartered in Mountain View, California, acknowledged that expanding in China raises "difficult questions" because it will be required to censor content. 

Such restrictions have hampered some other Internet services. Google Inc closed its mainland search engine in 2010 after a dispute over censorship. Chinese authorities block access to Twitter and Facebook but have allowed LinkedIn to operate. 

LinkedIn promised to make clear how it conducts business in China and to undertake "extensive measures" to protect members' rights and data. 

"Government restrictions on content will be implemented only when and to the extent required," said CEO Jeff Weiner in a statement today. 

"LinkedIn will be transparent about how it conducts business in China and will use multiple avenues to notify members about our practices." 

Two-thirds of LinkedIn's 277 million users are outside of the US. China had 618 million Internet users as of the end of 2013, according to an industry group, the China Internet Network Information Center. That included 277 million users of social media sites, though no details of those targeting professionals were reported.

Blackberry unveils smart phones made by Foxconn

 

Struggling Canadian handset maker Blackberry unveiled Tuesday its first smartphones built by new Taiwanese partner Foxconn as it fights to recover from huge losses. 

Blackberry showed off two devices to help it claw back market share in a new a five-year partnership with Foxconn. 

"We are definitely here to compete and to win back some lost ground before the end of the year," Blackberry chief executive John Chen told reporters at the February 24-27 World Mobile Congress in Barcelona, Spain. 

Blackberry reported a $4.4 billion (3.2-billion-euro) loss in the third quarter of 2013 last December but cheered investors by announcing it was teaming up with Foxconn, which is also a key supplier to a chief rival, Apple Inc. 

The first handset is the Q20, which has Blackberry's trademark physical keyboard and is to be released later this year. 

The second, the Z2, has touch screen and is aimed at the Indonesian market, going on sale in April for less than $200, Chen said. 

Now joined with Foxconn, which is the marketing name for Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Blackberry will focus its comeback fight on selling phones to its traditional marketplace, the corporate sector, he said. 

"Our turnaround strategy is to focus on enterprise," Chen said. "We are always known as the number one in security." 

The Blackberry boss said he aimed to improve the company's liquidity position this fiscal year before making a return to profit in the following year.

Why cloud computing has high penetration in India?

By Akhilesh Shukla 

It is more than a mere coincidence that Satya Nadella, before moving into the shoes of Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer as the CEO of Microsoft, was heading cloud computing initiatives of the company. His elevation from head of cloud computing to the post of CEO shows the growing significance of cloud services within the IT giant.

The entire ecosystem, be it service provider, vendor, research firms, etc are positive about the growth of cloud computing.

Research firm IDC in a recent study predicted that in 2014 spending on cloud services would surge 25% to over $100 billion worldwide.

CIOs in India have also adopted cloud computing with open arms. The adoption rate of cloud computing is 67%, as per IDC.

It is lower than countries such as Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. However, Indian CIOs have adopted cloud for more strategic purposes like collaboration solutions, disaster recovery, supply chain management, etc. On the other hand, CIOs of South Asian countries have moved only basic applications like database hosting, email hosting, back-up, servers and storage on cloud.

The main reasons for high usage and adoption of cloud in India are its cost-effectiveness, agility and scalability. Cloud also suits the present need of CIOs, who are asked to show quick results and high return from every investment made on IT infrastructure.

"Cloud computing has several benefits, which are driving its adoption worldwide. It helps the CIOs to save IT resources, space, and it is also scalable. It can be quickly deployed, reduces the capital expenditure as well as the time to market," said Sandra Ng, Group Vice President, Practice Group, IDC Asia/Pacific. "It's a win-win situation for them," she added.

But cloud computing comes with its own risks and apprehensions. Data security is one of the major concerns for technology buyers. Meeting compliances is another barrier to adoption of cloud. Apart from these, factors such as lack of understanding of how cloud works, vendor lock-in, and upgrades required in the existing infrastructure are some other concerns of users.

"It is not that Indian CIOs are not aware of the risk factors involved in adoption of cloud computing. But they try to ignore them, as they look at the merits (faster and cheaper) of cloud computing," pointed out Sandra.

Another factor that is discreetly driving cloud computing in the country is lack of regulatory guidelines.

In the West, permissions are required from the authorities in case an organisation is moving any data, services or applications on cloud. In Europe, an organisation requires permission from the government to store data out of the physical geography of the country. Similarly, National Security Agency needs to access any data, any time in the US.

"It is true that cloud is popular in India because it is cheap and we do not have any guidelines for data security and privacy. Indian government and to some extent CIOs are yet to rise to the growing challenge of data security and privacy. Off-late, we have seen some action. But it will take some more years for them to match steps with their western counter parts," said Manpreet Singh, director, Technology Business Services, Capita. Capita provides business process outsourcing and integrated professional support services solution in UK. The company has an India office in Pune.

India has always been a price-sensitive market. CIOs, just like other denizens, are no exception to the rule. They love to shop cheap goods including technology. But security should not be compromised, especially, when around 80% of the critical infrastructure is in hands of private organisations.