Micromax Canvas Blaze Review

Micromax has become one of the most well-known brands in India. The company has introduced new handsets on a regular basis and the Canvas Blaze is the latest model to be released. Building upon the trending Canvas platform, this device is primarily targeted at the youth segment. The Canvas series of phones are phablets, that is, they combine some features of a tablet and a phone into one; the most prominent one being a big display.

Display:
The screen on the device is a 5 inch touchscreen with hardened glass. It has a resolution of 480 X 854 pixels; the screen clarity is quite good considering the segment the phone falls into. The colours appear quite vivid and image sharpness is also quite acceptable.

Technical Specifications:

The phone runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon Processor clocked at 1GHz and also features 768mb of RAM.  The phone runs stock on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean; we expect Micromax to roll out an upgrade to Android 4.3 soon after the launch though. Like almost all Android devices, the storage can be expanded using a memory card and the phone offers a host of connectivity options including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPRS, EDGE and 3G.

The one interesting thing to note on this device is that it’s one of the few, if not the only device to support 3G-EVDO networks. That is because it’s a dual-SIM phone with one slot for MTS’ CDMA network.

Camera:
The main camera is an 8MP one while the 0.3 MP camera on the front completes the set. The main camera shoots great pictures with sharp outlines and vivid colours. The balance of these images is quite good and overall, we liked the quality of photos. Videos are recorded in 720p HD and look acceptable. There is the distortion that you’d expect from  a camera in this range, but it’s nothing that we’d complain about.

Battery:
The 1850 mAh battery provides enough juice to last a long time. The battery lasted an entire day and some more when we used the phone for watching videos, listening to music and surfing the net. Also, we noticed that the phone does charge quite quickly and this is something we really liked considering the target audience of the device.

Performance:
At the core level, the phone is directed towards the youth. From that perspective, the phone functions as you’d expect it to. A huge emphasis is given to the media (images, camera, videos, music, etc.) side of things. The battery life is quite impressive and the core design of the phone reaches out to the target segment, Micromax has joined hands with telecom major MTS for the launch of this brand new device. 

The Micromax Canvas Blaze comes with bundled offers from MTS which include 2GB of free data, 1000 free minutes for MTS to MTS local calling, and 120 free minutes for other local and STD calls, all of which are applicable per month for six months.

Verdict:
The college-going crowd will love this phone. The primary audience of the phone has been kept in mind while designing all the aspects as we believe the phone is bound to be a big hit in that segment.

Summary:
Micromax has achieved a phenomenal amount of success in a relatively short span of time. The Canvas Blaze is another offering in the Canvas line of phones from the Indian mobile manufacturer. The phone is catered towards the youth and has an impressive set of features that would entice the target audience.

Alternate Link Building Avenues – A Panacea To The Current Chaos

Keeping pace with the recent Google updates, the most important challenge that lies ahead of all we digital marketers lies in finding continuously authoritative link building avenues. These avenues don't only need to be viable as a long term opportunity for building links but also very authoritative from the Search Engine perspective. Below are the few methods which can be used for building relevant links in the current scenario-

Flippa Auctions
Flippa is a marketplace where the domains are being auctioned and purchased 24*7. When one has a site which deals in cloud computing, the job is simple. All one has got to do is go to flippa and search for cloud computing. We get an extensive list of all the top ranking domains for sale. Eg: We searched for the keyword 'cloud computing' & these are few of the 87 results that flippa threw back –

 Based on the USPs of each of the domains (the USPs are provided), we can pick up the one which comes closest to our domain. For eg : - For a domain related to cloud computing, we can pick up something like cloud computing point. We analyze the backlinks to this domain using open site explorer. And with that, we have got our hands on to an extremely rich avenue of links which can definitely help a site.

Also we have scope to analyze the most Active Listings, New Listings, Just Sold Listings, Ending Soon Listings, Top Ranking websites & much more. Given below is a screenshot of the active listings which again provides us with a couple of potential domains.








  
Moodle CMS
Moodle is a software package for producing Internet-based courses and web sites. It is a global development project designed to support a social constructionist framework of education.

Moodle is provided freely as Open Source software. Basically this means Moodle is copyrighted, but you have additional freedom. You are allowed to copy, use and modify Moodle provided that you agree to: provide the source to others; not modify or remove the original license and copyrights, and apply this same license to any derivative work
We can use the same moodle for getting a backlink from .edu sites for domains.

Moodle is used by a variety of institutions and individuals including:

• Universities
• High schools
• Primary schools
• Government departments
• Healthcare organizations
• Military organizations
• Airlines
• Oil companies
• Homeschoolers
• Independent educators
• Special educators

In terms of community discussions, there is a lot going on Moodle. There are Forums, Events, Registered Sites & Connected Sites. The CMS gives a sureshot avenue of link using Registered Sites & Connected Sites option. However it also gives a chance to get backlink from .edu sites using Forums as most of the people active on these forums are from different international universities.

If there is a particular service which a site offers in a particular geographic region, we can get in touch with the university representative and have a backlink from a particular .edu site. For eg: If we have a domain which is an internet service provider in Canada, we can get in touch with a Canadian University representative and offer Internet Service for the university students. Such people always prefer discounts for the students since they are managing studies with work. That again is something which can be used to build on for a good pitch.

Surveys
Another potential avenue for linking building is survey. There's generally a two-step process to attracting links with surveys.

The first step is asking people to participate. If it's on a particularly interesting topic, we will reach out to bloggers, experts, and industry news sites to ask to spread the word both on their blog and on social media sites which will be a great way to attract the first wave of links. One can use a site like Monkey Survey to create the survey.

The second step is releasing the results.  These results can be released on the sites like  Survey Savvy

These are just a few techniques which can be used in the current mayhem that Google updates have been playing upon digital marketers. However our quest just cannot end here as Google always has & will focus on providing the best search to its users. Quality Link Finding & Link Building is an ongoing process which needs to be filtered from time to time keeping abreast with Google updates & changes in algorithms.

Author bio:
Aaditya Shah works as a Search Marketing professional at SMG Convonix. He loves every aspect of digital marketing especially content outreach & link building. Closely follows Google updates & algorithm changes & loves to continuously experiment with SEO to decode the mystery around web search. A complete foodie!! -his hobbies include playing Cricket & watching movies.  

Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 Preview

Introduction:

Samsung is the market leader in the mobile phone industry right now. Not only that, it seems that Samsung comes out with a product that is not only a blend of the latest technology and design, but also something that takes the device as well as brand, Samsung, into the upper echelons of the industry, farther from the rest.

In late November, Samsung launched yet another ambitious product – the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2. In this preview, we’re looking at the device, some of the features we’re excited about and what we expect from the handset in the Indian market.

The Basics:

Samsung's Galaxy Grand 2 sports a 5.25-inch screen with a resolution of 1,280x720 and 16:9 aspect ratio. Those are pretty impressive features to start off with. Add to that a 1.2 GHz processor and it’s pretty obvious this not a slouch of a phone. The camera on the back is 8 MP and there are rumours that this camera has seen a few upgrades. We’ll have to wait and watch. Android 4.3 is operating system on the phone. Apart from this, the battery has been upgraded to a 2600 mAh one to address the perennial complain of battery drainage among smartphone users.

What’s New?

First the big one, the phone is a dual-SIM model. This is great news, particularly in the Indian market where there is a huge demand for these phones. Also, we’re excited to see a phone in this segment have some of the features mentioned and can’t wait to try it out. According to the manufacturer, camera specific apps such Best Face, Best Photo, and Continuous Shot come preinstalled. This is a nice touch and along with other preinstalled apps, it’s great to see a manufacturer do something like this. That’s not all; the phone will be released in 3 colours – white, black and pink.

Something Missing:

Yes, we know this is a preview but we couldn’t help but lament the 4G incompatibility of this device. Yes, 4G in India is still some way away, but it would have been great to see it on this model. HSPA+ is standard though and with 3G there’s plenty to keep you satisfied for the moment at least.

What We Expect:

Overall, we are curious to try out this device and experience it. Being a dual-SIM model with high end features, it sure such to appeal to a niche crowd who have for long been asking mobile phone manufacturers for a phone similar to this one. Also, putting out phones in different colours is a trend these days and Samsung seems to following it with colours like White and Black, but adds an unique dimension with a pink coloured device.

Summary:

Samsung for long has released handset after handset hoping to eat into every market segment. However, one area has remained quite unchartered and this phone aims to address that. On paper, things look promising and when this phone does release, expect it to sell like hot cakes.  

Google Nexus 5 Review

The Nexus 4 took Google to a new level in the mobile handset category. A great, slim, high performance device that sold for a mid-level price, it was also sold as is, that is, under no contract from a carrier. The phone was an international super hit. As with every great thing these days, the launch of its successor was awaited with baited breath. Now that we have the phone in our hands, let’s see if it lives up to the expectations.  

Sleek Design:

The phone is quite sleek. Its looks are a bit understated; it’s looks nothing more than a slim well designed phone. Our test handset, which was the black coloured device, enhanced this feel with its all black tone. The phone has a uni body construction and is made of polycarbonate. The SIM card slot and power button are to the right of the phone while the volume rocker is to the left. It all makes for a phone whose basic functionality is quite high. It's surprisingly light, at only 130 grams and 8.6 millimetres thick. Overall, this phone just feels great to hold in the hand. 

The Awesome Screen:

Google increased the size of the screen from 4.7 inches to 4.95 inches. It also uses Gorilla Glass 3 which gives ample protection against scratches and fingerprint smudges. The screen is a Full HD 1080p one. Clarity and picture density is amazing on the screen. With a high pixel density of 445 ppi, we’d expect nothing less. It’s great for reading text, playing games or watching a movie.

Camera:

These days, a high quality camera on a smartphone is pretty much a requirement. The 8 MP camera on the Nexus 5 takes quite decent photos when used with the auto settings. However, once you get a big deeper into the camera and adjust settings such as exposure and contrast diligently, the camera performs well. Low light performance isn't exactly poor, but again you need to manually tweak a few things to get the best out of it. 

As far as videos go, Full HD 1080p videos look great. Again, low light performance isn't the greatest, but it’s acceptable. We do genuinely hope that the next camera software update that’s expected to roll out will fix this because the camera is quite frankly the weakest link in this fantastic phone.  

Android 4.4 KitKat:

There isn’t a world of difference between KitKat and previous Android version. KitKat really is a solid improvement over earlier versions of the software, and the Nexus 5 shows it off quite well. Things like Messaging are now integrated with Hangouts that combine all of your messaging and chat under ine single hood. You can also now search keywords from within the phone dialer, which is a bit like having Google Maps business info integrated perfectly into the app. Also, the dialer has been completely redesigned. Icons and other symbols seem starker, cleaner, and larger and personally, we like it!

Processor and Performance:

Powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor clocked at 2.26GHz, 2GB of RAM and an Adreno 330 GPU, the Nexus 5 is like a supercar in world of phones. The device is astonishingly fast and games such Asphalt 8: Airborne which usually eat the processor run smoothly. Multi-tasking is an ease and we were astounded that the phone handled anything we threw at it with considerable ease. The phone comes with LTE and NFC and while LTE isn’t operational in India, NFC works like a charm.

Battery Life:

One complain about the Nexus 4 was that battery life wasn't that great. Google has bumped up the battery to 2300 mAH. However, battery life was rather inconsistent. We had varied battery life ranging from an entire day to a measly few hours. The screen takes up a huge chunk of the battery life and using it optimally is a great way to prolong battery life. 

Verdict:

Overall, the Nexus 5 lives up to its expectations. Combining a great UI with some smartly designed features, the phone performs and exceeds expectations in many areas. KitKat looks fantastic too and the display is one of the best we've seen. The only downside was the less than stellar camera and rather inconsistent battery life. Apart from that, it’s one of the best phones money can buy. 

Summary:

The Nexus 5 was one of the highly awaited phone launches of the year. After using it, we can see why. Intelligent design, a great display and a brand new version of Android make it one classy device.  

Why does it make Sense switching to Nexus 5

Google finally announced the much awaited Android 4.4 KitKat release yesterday along with Nexus 5 handset manufactured by LG which went on sale in 10 countries (Great Halloween treat!). The initial handset inventory got sold off in 27 minutes flat, that goes to prove a strong potential Google has got for Christmas to compete with flagship phones from other companies.

More importantly Nexus 5 got listed immediately on Indian Play Store with a coming soon tag and priced at Rs 28,999 for 16 GB and Rs 32,999 for 32 GB version. Android ecosystem seems to be up for a major overhaul after KitKat OS announcement where Google intends to go with one single version of Android running on almost all devices post Jan 2014, which is a bold move and more concrete step taken to do away with Android OS fragmentation issues.

This does not warranty automatic upgrade for handsets with low configurations released earlier, however Android OS bandwagon would be less crowded post 2014 with version 4.4 targeting major share.

Manufacturers like Samsung, HTC, Sony and LG could be sweating over Nexus 5 soon as their current crop of flagship phones are going to be left far behind in terms of performance and pricing. Also being a stock Google device dependency of being at mercy of these companies to push across new OS upgrades that take too long also goes away.

 There are rumors that Samsung may go for an early Galaxy S5 release next year to compensate for a less blockbuster response to Galaxy S4 sales, they have already announced that the next version of Galaxy phones would be based on 64 bit processing capacity and we may also see more RAM packed in OR better graphical processing power under the hood.

Samsung is not showing any signs of a shift in design, build and quality of it's Galaxy flagship phones. Note 3 is the only phone which comes with a different build quality now and TouchWiz OS gimmicks would continue to be offered as new features which most smartphone users do not actually use.

Both Sony and HTC has received decent response on Xperia Z1 and One phones which can provide them much required impetus to challenge Samsung's Android smartphone dominance in India.I am not sure how successful LG has being with G2 however Nexus 5 has got just the right pricing for Indian market which can boost prospects for this company next year.

Apple's iPhone 5C has got limited success until now where it has launched and 5S would be priced under premium category going beyond Rs 50,000 range as the case is with all new Apple iPhone's which get launched in India. I am doubtful how would Apple push their device adoption even with 5C (expected pricing around 41/42K) and EMI schemes across smaller cities and town in India?

Google device upgrades have being more balanced and well paced compared to yearly ritual now adopted by most companies, There's a limit to the upgrades we're going to see in smartphone hardware and software, and as the market saturates, the pressure to compete on price is going to become more intense. In such scenario a phone like Nexus 5 can be a value for money upgrade, which has got me planning to sell my S4 and go for this phone as it launches in India.

Would you go for Nexus 5 with the price it would be launched in India or prefer to wait for Galaxy S5 Or iPhone 5s, It would be interesting to read through your response on this.

Panasonic P51 Review

Introduction:

Panasonic is well-known as a home appliance company but its mobile phones are not really well-known in India. What’s surprising that Panasonic has not really marketed itself in the mobile phone segment in India, until now.  

Design:

The Panasonic P 51 feels quite substantial in the hand. The 5-inch display has a generous bezel all round and the sides and the back have a smooth rubberized coating. The back is completely sealed off and the volume rocker and power button are placed on top. The 8MP camera lens protrudes out a bit due to the slim chassis, so you’re going to have to be careful when placing it down.

The phone also comes with a capacitive stylus. However, there’s no place to keep the stylus with the phone. Hence, we’re not sure how people would use it.

The phone has dual SIM-card slots and both of these slots are micro-SIM slots.

Display:

The 5 inch HD IPS display looks really great, partly due to a high pixel density of 294 ppi. The panel is evenly backlit and produces bright, vivid colours and sharp text. The display is also protected by Dragon Trail Glass and features an oleo phobic coating as well. 

Interface:

The Panasonic P51 is powered by a MediaTek MT6589 quad core processor clocking at 1.2GHz and is paired with 1GB of RAM. Internal memory is 4GB and this can be expanded with a micro SD card.

Panasonic is running Android 4.2.1 Jelly Bean on this phone and hasn't tampered much with its interface. 

Camera:

The 8MP autofocus camera gave good results in well-lit conditions, and in low light they were of average quality. Close-ups and portraits came out really well. Videos record in 1080p full HD mode and come out well in daylight. However, as with the images, they suffer in low light mode and aren't really all that great.

Battery:

The Panasonic P51 features a huge 2500 mAh battery. This provided the phone with enough power to comfortably last an entire day with heavy usage. 

Performance:

The phone runs smoothly owing to its fantastic hardware and multitasking is a breeze. All the applications we tested ran smoothly. Boot up time is fairly quick, and apps load quickly. Games play without any issues.

The P51 also comes pre-installed with a bunch of applications. There’s a file manager, Chrome, Evernote, Google+, Skitch, Media Share for DLNA, ToDo and WeChat.

Both the SIM-card slots run smoothly. However, we found it a bit strange the only one of the SIM cards can run 3G while the other runs 2G.

Conclusion:

The Panasonic P51 is a phone packed with some great features. The display is one of the major attractions and the relatively untouched android interface makes it a close to pure android experience as possible. The dual-SIM feature is also a great feature.

The review is written by experts at Reliance Digital.

Jelly Bean update for Galaxy Note in India goes live

Jelly Bean update for the first Galaxy Note is now available to download via Samsung KIES, did not check the exact download size of the firmware, the entire download process took close to an hour and no back up was required during this upgrade process. All call logs, SMS and other essential data was intact after the upgrade completed.

Observed initial lag while using the phone right after the firmware was installed, normalised in some time. Galaxy Note gets Jelly Bean version 4.1.2 with Nature UX and it does feel smooth to operate, Icons look slightly up sized and crisp. Camera seems to have improved on center focus capture mode which gives a tilt shift effect while capturing pictures. Animated collapse view visible while accessing apps grouped into folder, S Memo is now merged into S Note app.

Notable features that make an appearance are:

• Google Now
• Multi view and side panel 
• Page buddy
• Customizing notification panel 
• Smart rotation 
• Samsung cloud sync service
• Features like Direct Call, Smart Stay and Pop-up Play
• Updated Music Player with Sound Alive

This upgrade has limited features from the premium suite available on GS3 and Note II. You do not get features like video and other content preview with S-Pen hovering over, pop up note for S-Pen, Burst mode for camera etc.

Interesting part is that Group Play and AllShare play also arrive on Galaxy Note which were announced during Galaxy S4 launch, Galaxy Grand is also due to get both of these soon in India. More screenshots from the upgrade below, share your feedback on any performance improvements, battery life as you upgrade your Galaxy Note via KIES as OTA upgrade currently does not seem to be available.

By the way, Galaxy Note along with some older crop of Galaxy series phones like S2 are due to get their last upgrade up to Jelly Bean version 4.2.2, so hopes for a Key Lime Pie update (Android 5.0) look very bleak as per a recent news published on sam mobile website, Nevertheless finally Jellybean made it to the original note after almost like 9 months Google released this OS code for Android manufacturers.

Celebrating the spirit of triumph

Navrati just got over and there is no better way to start preparing for Diwali by starting off another round of festive season on this occasion of Vijaya Dashmi, here's wishing you all and your families a Very Happy Dusshera celebrating our spirit of never giving up to the problems that we deal in our daily life, let the fragrance of joy and victory spread like the flowers of Marigold that would be a part of all the decorations across millions of homes in our country today.

The journey of good waging battle against evil has passed on across ages, this fight was never limited to battlefield grounds, from the reflection of our society today in an arrogant government, faceless opposition, corruption, terrorism, rape, molestation, female fetal killings and much more that surrounds us with all the noise, hue and cry, it reminds us there is always a battle going on somewhere, with a hope that someday we would get over with this struggle.

Here's an interesting case study which is related to a campaign that Google ran based on Ramayana for the Asia launch of Google Chrome,partnering with Fantasy Interactive Inc. and OgilvyOne Singapore, project titled as "The Story of Ramayana" brought to life by Google Chrome.

It is a website with interactive content developed with HTML5 and CSS that promotes Google products with character illustration inspired out of Indian, Thailand and Indonesia culture where Ramayana folklore is very popular amongst the masses. Google also got an an impressive TVC campaign for promoting Chrome in India on Tanjore paintings theme. Guess mythology and cultural history still relates very strongly to us which is good for the wired and always connected generation.

Leaving you with a animation video feature on Dussehra by SK Media

 

iOS 6 maps fail effect on Eric Schmidt?

Looks like Eric Schmidt had to ride the invisible horse dance gone viral, iOS 6 maps fail excitement is so difficult to Hide ;-), this dance jig lasted for few seconds but worth a watch. Something an Android fan boy would do if an iLost Apple fan boy comes across asking for directions!

BTW Tim Cook has already issued and apology about the problems reported by iPhone 5 users

 

 It does not stop here, there is an Android app now that teaches you steps to practice the Gangnam style dance, link here

Nexus 7 review: The 7″ tablet segment performer has arrived

Nexus 7 proved to be a huge success for Google which was important for them make a headway in the tablet market which is still ruled by iPad and a lot of android tablet manufacturers could not even challenge the supremacy of iPad due to challenges around fragmentation issues which exist within the android ecosystem and previous versions of android OS simply lacked the ease of use factor which iOS has always being proud of.

With Microsoft ready to launch Surface tablet along with Windows 8 and recently released Amazon Kindle Fire HD, does Nexus 7 still stand a chance to grow it's presence in the 7 inch tablet segment until iPad mini arrives? and how does Nexus 7 stack up to these expectations that previous android tablets have not being able to achieve?

My iPad 2 was gathering dust by now as my fascination for iOS experience had faded away after I started using android OS first via Samsung Galaxy SII and then Galaxy Note. When I decided to switch over to Nexus 7 from iPad 2 (you may probably think of this as a downgrade) I did consider Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 for once, however I wanted skip Sammy on this one as they are very slow in releasing android OS upgrades even on their flagship devices while they keep tuning it for their proprietary TouchWiz interface compatibility and SGT 2 7.0 scores came out well below Galaxy Note while I was running some benchmark tests on my phone.

I got rid of my iPad 2 and Nexus 7 is officially not available in India yet, so by the time I planned to order via a relative in USA, it was sold out online and in stores, so I chose to order via a seller on E Bay, my shipment was delivered within 15-20 days in good condition, hassle free. Luckily I did not have too may issues unboxing Nexus 7 with the kind of videos I watched on YouTube showing how difficult it was to get the tablet out of the packaging material used by Asus.

Here's my review of this tablet after using it for more than a month now.

Form Factor and Design

Nexus 7 tablet measures at 198.5 x 120 x 10.45mm (lhw) and weighs 340 gm. It surely packs a premium feel to the build quality and a rubberized back which feels like thick textured plastic allows better grip while holding the tablet it also does away with the worry of your tablet picking up scratches or dirt smudges on the rear section with frequent use.

Overall look of the tablet is very minimal, no physical buttons below the lower bezel with the one similar to home screen button on the iPad. There is a power button with volume rocker on the top right hand side of the tablet, has decent bezel space. Nexus 7 does not have a rear camera however there is a front facing 1.2 mp camera with light sensor which can be used for video calls/conferencing, surprisingly the placement of 3.5 mm headphone connector is towards the lower section of the tablet and not on the top, which is slightly intrusive while using tablet in portrait mode.

Nexus 7 scores high on portability, it cannot fit in your regular day to day apparel however it is easy to carry around in a sleeve case and would probably fit well in your suit or rear pocket in your jeans.

Display

Nexus 7 comes with a backlit LED IPS display that has resolution of 1280x800 pixels at 216 dots per inch (dpi) which is 48 dpi short of iPad's retina display at 264 dpi. Watching HD videos, scrolling through pictures in the gallery and accessing other multimedia content looks good however while accessing apps like Facebook, Twitter I noticed that the screen looks slightly washed out on colour and contrast reproduction, maybe it could be something related to poor colour calibration.

You would need to tweak the brightness settings for Nexus 7 as I noticed that screen display scores the highest as a battery hogger. No hassles experienced while reading e-books, minor lag noticed while rendering PDF pages with image content. Display glass is made up of corning scratch resistant material, however catches smudges very easily so a screen guard is a must.

Hardware and Battery Performance

Nexus 7 runs on NVIDIA's Tegra 3 quad core chipset (SoC) with ARM Cortex A-9 processor that clocks at 1.3 GHz, has 1 GB memory and also houses 12 core ULP GeForce @ 416MHz graphical processing unit (GPU) which works great on this tablet to provide a lag free and smooth gaming experience. Takes around 30 seconds to boot, multi tasking between apps works efficiently on this tablet, screen transitions are extremely smooth, I did notice that it took few milliseconds to normalise text display while zooming in and out of web content in Dolphin browser.

There is a definite plus of playing games on Nexus 7 in comparison to those I have played on my Galaxy Note. I noticed less time lag duration in game loading process for titles like Real Football 2012 and Asphalt 7, however the visual quality does not differ in such games even with all the extra juice Nexus 7 posses on GPU front. Rendering overall game environment, colour and contrast reproduction difference is noticeable while playing the game titles which are Tegra HD versions of popular games on Google Play store like Samurai II Vengeance, Dead Trigger, Shadowgun, Galaxy on Fire 2, Max Payne Mobile, Shine Runner which I have installed on my tablet.

If you compare this device's performance to iPad on the gaming front, It would fall a notch behind when it would come to rendering textures, anti-aliasing feature that helps in reducing jagged edges, however Tegra 3 optimized games give you additional eye candy effects within the game environment, like a water splash on screen, improved gun flare and bullet path effects in some FPS games.

With a 4,326mAh battery, Nexus 7 lasted between 6-7 hours on a test I ran with Wi-Fi on throughout, 30% gaming, 50% web browsing(inclusive of uploading and downloading content), 20% watching HD videos on tablet and YouTube. I tried doing a standby test with 30% battery left once which lasted 1 day 12 hours and still 7% battery left. Time taken to complete full charge is around 3 hours, No complaints here in this section. I am posting few tests run on benchmarking tools like NenaMark 2, SmartBench 2012 and AnTuTu with battery test screens as well, link here

Nexus 7 tends to get a little warm on the lower left side of the screen during extended usage, luckily it does not overheat like an oven which I experienced with Samsung Galaxy SII.Speaker performance is not so good, Stereo effect is hardly audible with the external speakers, while listening to videos and music with a headset quality is slightly better.

Connectivity

This tablet has standard Bluetooth and 802.11n WiFi connectivity, Nexus 7 would probably be my first NFC device, yet to use it for any practical purpose. This technology is still at a nascent stage and catching up with mobile and gadget users globally, Samsung and Nokia also have already launched some NFC enabled mobiles in India.

There are two mics provided for noise canceling action on the tablet, which works well for voice based Google Now search service, You can modify settings on this app with English(India) as language and it works! though it has trouble understanding few difficult Indian names and words so you would have to fiddle around with your dialect a little.

Google has recently introduced turn by turn navigation for Google Maps in India, you can take advantage of the live traffic updates allowing you to take a look at estimated travel time from home - work - home, as it covers major cities in India, also check out display cards of places nearby, which makes it worth putting it on the car dashboard for using navigation features on this tablet.

Absence of 3G connectivity is going to hurt Asus in the long run as they are planning to bring this tablet in India this year around Diwali, Samsung is providing calling feature on a 10 inch Galaxy Note 800 tab and Galaxy tab 2 7.0, personally it does not make sense to me for having a camera, calling feature and 3G connectivity on a tablet.

I have used 3G dongle for my laptop, 3G service on my phone connection while travelling and frankly speaking these services are completely dependent on network infrastructure of a mobile service provider, when you leave the safe zone of your home Wi-Fi connection, there is no guarantee you would get seamless connectivity outside and with new radiation norms for cellular towers implemented from 1st September, be ready to notice a drop on quality of service and connectivity related to 3G services, unless you want to show off rarely used features of your gadget do not fall for a "value for money" concept of getting a phone and 3G device in a tablet, however all I can say this is how the taste of Indian consumers has evolved for gadgets and hence the demand exists.

OTG connectivity issue has being resolved with a workaround of installing a paid app Nexus Media Importer available on Google Play store, allowing you to mount flash drives and SD cards from a card reader to transfer content on the go, connecting game pads, keyboards and mouse. (Requires compatible OTG cable)

Storage

Storage is another area of concern for Asus when it comes to lack of expandable memory slot supporting SD cards, even with the 16GB version, actual available memory space you would get would be around 13.2 GB and I would not recommend this tablet in case you want to carry lot of multimedia content on your tablet and downloading few graphic heavy games would clog your tablet memory in no time. I was able to manage my storage needs with the 16GB WiFi version I had of iPad 2, so it does not make much difference to me.

Jellybean experience 

Thankfully Nexus 7 does not come with too much of  bloatware pre-installed and my tablet was immediately updated to version 4.1 after the initial set up process was completed, over and above the smoothness and lag free navigation and usability on Nexus 7, there are features like smart widgets which resize according to the space available on a home screen, you can expand a specific widget which may occupy larger screen space, other widgets would adjust in size accordingly. Push Notifications have also improved on Jellybean OS, you get content preview in the drop down menu while accessing notifications and Smart update feature is a god send, In my opinion it is not possible always to update apps and games over 300 MB in size for a small tweak or improvement patch released by the publisher.

Most popular apps are compatible for Nexus 7 on Google Play store, however there is still work to do for Google to match up to the vast library of apps available for iPad, issues around OS fragmentation and slow adoption rate of new OS releases from Google by manufacturers need to be sorted out in time, even today Gingerbread remains the most installed OS version of Android globally, ICS was just settling in and Jellybean has arrived on the scene and going to be rolled out on major flagship devices of various companies, which allows very little time for developers to adapt themselves to the changing requirement of the OS framework on which apps are developed.

Verdict

Nexus 7 has the ability to shine as a strong performer for Google and without any doubt is the best 7 inch tablet to go for today, A slightly expensive variant offering 3G connectivity and expandable memory would be a big plus for Asus in augmenting sales figures for this tablet.

This tablet works best as an e-book reader, portable gaming device and for watching multimedia content. Even with iPad I could never use it as an extension to my laptop for creating content, which is where Windows Surface would play an important role once launched. Gaming on a 7 inch tablet is much better than getting your fingers sore juggling with touch screen controls on a 10 inch screen,

You may also think aren't budget tablets from Micromax and Karbonn and other Indian manufacturers not worthy enough in case they need to be used just as consumption devices? I have used Micromax Funbook and checked a demo piece of Karbonn Smartab in a store, Indian manufactures are not conscious on building a credible product in this lucrative 7 inch tablet category.

A low cost tablet would comes with performance and lag issues, touch screens are not so responsive in these tablets and overall product build quality from these manufactures leaves a lot to be desired, add after sales service which is again a concern. Micromax Funbook has battery calibration issues also, It loses charge at 50-60% battery levels and the cost of replacing cracked glass on a Rs 6,400 Funbook is Rs 3000, what point does it make to buy a low cost tablet then?

I already mentioned the reason why I skipped the thought of purchasing Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 at the beginning of this review, and being a device promoted by Google you can be rest assured that you would receive OS updates much earlier to tablets made by other vendors. Currently Nexus 7 8GB version is available for around Rs 15,000 and 16GB version for Rs 20,000 on EBay India site.

You can wait for Asus to officially release this tablet in India and the pricing range is going to stay in the similar bracket of current online pricing on e-commerce portals for Nexus 7, it is a true value for money product in the 7 inch tablet category, Amazon's Kindle Fire HD is a noteworthy competitive product and luckily Apple did not reveal iPad mini during their September 12 iPhone 5 announcement event, which gives Asus a chance to expand sales in additional countries where Nexus 7 is yet to be launched and it would continue getting a first mover advantage in those markets.

Please feel free to leave your comments, video review to follow with more updates and tips for Nexus 7

Link to unboxing pics here

My review got featured on Rediff.com, and also the top emailed article on 29th Sep 2012, many thanks to all the readers.

Google celebrating 25 Billion android app downloads

Google is celebrating 25 Billion Android app downloads by offering 75% discount on popular apps on it's app marketplace Google Play, frequency of such discounted app sale is comparatively less on Android when compared to iOS app store, today's list includes noteworthy applications like:

Angry Birds Space Premium (Game)
Office Suite Pro 6 (Productivity App)
Runtastic Pro (Fitness App)
Asphalt 7 Heat (Game)
Ocean HD
Draw Something (Game)

*Please note that this discounted app sale event is still available for the next 4 days.

Download all these apps for just Rs 13.35, screenshot of the list below:

Narendra Modi on Google hangout

Narendra Modi is going to host a face to face conversation with citizens of this country on 31st August via Google + hangout session which would be broadcasted Live. We have seen politicians abroad utilizing social media to connect with people.

Narendra Modi has being very much active on social media, this would a first kind of initiative by a politician in India interacting with people over a social media platform, check out the promotional campaign on YouTube in the video below.

I watched some part of this live Google hangout session on YouTube, must admit that as a public orator and motivator Narendra Modi is way better than Manmohan Singh who lacks the charisma and public presence to the office he is currently holding.

Android Tips:Manage your Android Battery

A common gripe of Android mobile users is poor battery life on which a lot has being written about and starting as Android novice user I managed to find some workarounds to improve my phone's battery back up effectively over the last year, I would like to share these tips which may help you as well.

Moving from Nokia N8 to Galaxy S2 and then Galaxy Note, my enthusiasm of migrating to Android was bogged down by battery issues, I gradually got along with this fact assuming maybe Android phones are supposed to last only with 1 day battery back up max. Read lot of posts on battery saving tips, tried almost all of them and downloaded many battery saving apps, task killers etc from Google Play store, eventually it did not help much and as a heavy 3G and Wi-Fi user I started thinking that I may have to just stop bothering about the battery issues.

There was a stage where I started losing my Galaxy S2 battery within 8 hour span, even with heavy data usage S2 battery used to last between 10-12 hours, Android OS has many background processes running which constantly use phone memory and battery power. Onscreen widgets help you to keep yourselves constantly connected with news/social networking updates that you like to have on your phone offering easy accessibility, add live wallpapers and plethora of themes and launchers available for Android that offer enough eye candy to pep up your phone home screen.

If you also happen to download lot of apps out of curiosity to try them or for any specific requirement, they contribute further to the list of battery munching apps which would exhaust your phone battery charge at a higher rate, downloading battery saver or task killer apps would not help in the long run. Android apps with poor API (Application programming Interface) settings are major of battery draining issues, here are some basic steps that you can follow with the phone first:


1) Network Settings - Avoid keeping your phone on 3G/Wi-Fi mode while not using data, In my opinion it does not make much difference on voice calls with 3G network and while you are on the move being on the 2G network is your best bet to save battery drain resulting out of poor coverage in many places, try switching your phone to flight mode during night time.

2) Screen Time-Out and Brightness - Maintain 10%-20% screen brightness for regular indoor use, with a screen time out duration of 30 seconds, you can increase brightness while watching movies, games etc.

3) Manage phone profile: You would get basic option in most Android mobiles to manage phone profile settings however it takes lot of manual effort to customize and switch between these phone profiles every time, however there are apps both paid and free to help you manage these settings, let's take a look at few of them.

Notable Apps

1) Setting Profiles (Paid and Free version): If you are looking to manage only your phone's profile settings, this app would be sufficient to offer ample customization options to configure temporary or automatic settings for managing sound, network, wi-fi, bluetooth, backlight or automate specific tasks.

Google Play link

2) Tasker(Paid): Tasker is one stop solution to manage actions and events on your phone beyond the profile setting and would require extensive input from the user which may feel like rocket science to begin with however it's like writing a visual script to manage your phone they way would think of it as a real smartphone.

Google Play Link

3) Onavo Extended (Free): This App helps you compress data usage while using your mobile internet service, which in turn helps you remain within the limits your data plan, What it actually does by compressing media and images goes almost unnoticed in your quality of browsing, you get to see report of how much data you have saved in form of Twitter/Facebook post count, email data usage stats etc.

Google Play Link

4) BetterBatteryStats(Paid): This app is a must have to save on android phone battery that would take some time for users to understand the real cause if your phone is getting discharged quiet quick, from the time you unplug your phone from charging, you can check 3 sections on this app.

a) Partial Wakelocks: Display's a list of service/app that has being running in minutes and seconds and the event count, any abnormally high listing on this report needs attention to that specific service or app that you may not be using very regularly.

b) Kernel Wakelock: Display's list of events again in minutes and seconds along with the count, however if you find any abnormal activity here, you can google the event name and you would find probable solutions on various android forums informing you how to deal with that particular process.

For example: After ICS version of Android was released for Samsung Galaxy Note in India, I noticed two events "fuel_alerted" and "l2_hsic" were preventing my phone by going into a deep sleep state and having a high background run count in my Kernel Wakelock list, Solution that worked for me was to switch the phone on Airplane Mode, switch it off and remove the battery for few seconds and re-start the phone again with Airplane Mode on return to your network profile again, problem solved.

However this takes some searching with Trial and Error to fix battery draining issues that Google is not directly responsible for as phone manufacturers tweak Android OS versions with a taste of their proprietary interface UI (example: Samsung's Touchwiz)

c) Other: When you choose the option other from BetterBatteryStats app, you need to see to it that your phone's awake and screen on ratio should be closer to each other rather than a big percentage gap between both of them which indicates that your phone is sweating it's processing and battery power even when the phone screen is off and you are doing nothing with it, and this is where both Kernel and Partial Wakelock screens would help you find the real culprit.

I would also mention few details around Bloatware that comes with Android mobile phones and differs with each manufacturer. These are apps and related files associated with events that do not cause any harm if you happen to disable or totally uninstall them. Rooted devices have easy fix with Apps that can be downloaded from Google Store that automatically uninstall all these apps from your phone, however if you do not want to risk voiding warranty on your phone with Rooting, ICS now offers option to this the easy way as well.

Go to Settings --> Apps and click on the "All" tab which would show a list of applications and processes that you can disable and here's a link to a guide of apps and processes safe to be stopped or uninstalled mostly common to Samsung Galaxy S2 and Galaxy Note.

You can check the adjoining screenshot which shows my Note still left with 19% charge after a close to 16 hour usage, on which I pushed my phone usage extensively by using Wi-Fi/3G browsing, playing games for almost 2 hours, making few calls and all this without any battery saver app or task killer. Some times I am able to reach 20 hour mark with reasonable 3G/Wi-Fi, voice calls and no gaming on the phone.

Please leave your comments if you also happen to know additional ways of improving battery life on Android phones, I'll give a try to few of them myself and quote those solutions left by you.

50+ Android games on discount

 Check out this website that is offering an impressive collection of more than 50 games on discount from the Google Play store, they have tagged few games based on Metacritic scores and also award winning ones on the list.

Visit this site here