TECHNOLOGY INSPIRATION
Technology-People-Innovation

Latest Post
Twitter Facebook

March 17, 2015
Singapore-based no-frill carrier Tigerair has tied up with one of India's largest private banks for a special 'Pay to go, return for free' offer for holders of the lender's credit and debit cards.


"The offer 'Pay to go, return for free,' would be available to Axis Bank's customer from March 17 for a period up to March 29, for travel between July 5 to September 30, 2015," the airline said in a release.

The airline has launched this scheme to mark Singapore's golden jubilee celebrations.

Tigerair has also announced all-in return fares to Singapore from Chennai starting at Rs. 7499, excluding taxes and other charges, during the promotional period.

"On the occasion of Singapore's golden jubilee, we wanted to provide an opportunity for our travellers to be a part of the celebrations in Singapore by offering affordable fares. We are pleased to introduce Tigerair's best offerings to Axis Bank's customers through this attractive offer," Tigerair Singapore's director for sales and marketing Teh Yik Chuan said.

Tigerair operates 37 weekly flights to Singapore from five Indian destinations.

Besides, the airline also connects to a host of destinations in South-East Asia including Bali, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Taipe and also to Perth in Australia via Singapore.
Twitter Facebook

February 10, 2015 ,
This may sound odd, but you don't have to use Google as the default choice when you search for something on Android. 
There's a clever trick, specifically if you're using the Google Now Launcher, that allows you to use DuckDuckGo, Bing, or even searching directly in Firefox. 
Here is the best way to live on the edge and ditch Google search on your Android phone or tablet.
Get the Google Now launcher
The method I'm describing here works with the Google Now Launcher, which works on all Android devices running 4.1 Jelly Bean or above. The key feature here is that you can hold the home button and swipe up to go directly into search. 
The specific action on your device may be different depending upon your soft or hardware button configuration. 
You don't have to search with Google every time from the Android home screen if you don't want to.
Once you install another search app you'll get a choice the next time you perform this action. Android will ask which app you wish to use. You can select an alternative for "just once" or "always," which of course will make it the default.
One of the most interesting uses of this is with the Firefox browser. When you install the Firefox Android app, it adds in an option to launch Firefox search. This then takes you right into Firefox. If you have a specific search engine preference, however, you'll then need to adjust that with the browser instead of the Android settings.
Note that the Google search bar still remains dedicated to Google search, even if you change the default search for the swipe-up action. 
How to change it back to Google
When your experiment is over and you want to run back for the safe grasslands of Google, you'll need to reset your app preferences.
Head to Settings > Apps and then touch the specific app you want to change (the search app you chose instead of Google). Then touch the "clear defaults" button.
Change the default apps anytime by hopping into the settings menu.
If you want to completely mix things up and reset all of your defaults at once there's a method for also. Again the settings, select apps from the device menu. Touch the three vertical buttons at the top right and select "reset app preferences."
When you reset the app preferences you can change the default search engine, browser, email app, and other choices.
Just remember that this won't only reset your default search option. It will also change the default for your browser, music player, email program, and other apps. What this means is when you click a link, Android will ask if you want to open it with Chrome or any other browsers you have installed on your device. Only go this route if you don't mind choosing default apps for a bunch of actions all over again.
Twitter Facebook

February 10, 2015 ,

First, a disclaimer: Neither I personally nor PCWorld are in the computer repair business. We're here to offer advice. I'm happy to answer your tech questions, but please don't ask me what I charge to fix your computer. I'm a writer; I charge by the word.

The people who do repair laptop screens charge by the hour and the parts. Knowing the cost of a replacement screen will help you predict and control the cost. Doing the job yourself may save more money, but it may also brick the computer--and that doesn't save you anything.

When I last covered this topic, I recommended readers check out the online retailer ScreenTek and possibly buy a replacement screen from them. Since then, ScreenTek has changed its policies, and only sells screens in lots of 10 or more. In other words, if you need to replace the screen on a Lenovo X220, you'll have to buy ten Lenovo X220 screens. So much for saving money.

I haven't found a site that can replace the older and kinder ScreenTek, but there are other ways to find screens. You can search eBay--be sure to include the make and model number in your search. A Google shopping search can also provide useful results, although most of them will be on eBay.

Should you do the repair yourself? Only if you already have experience, or you want to take up a new and challenging hobby. It's a lot more difficult than swapping a hard drive or adding RAM. 

If you decide to have a professional do the job, go with a local repair shop over the manufacturer or a big box store. You won't get caught up in red tape, you don't have to ship things back and forth, and you're more likely to get personal service. Ask friends or check Yelp for recommendations.

Twitter Facebook

February 10, 2015 ,


 

Improved audio quality is a hard thing to measure. Lots of cell phone carriers claim to have it. But only T-Mobile and Verizon actually offer nationwide VoLTE (Voice over LTE) — the relatively new calling standard that, when possible, places calls over 4G LTE data networks, instead of the traditional circuit-switched networks.

We're still a long ways away from the day when you'll get pure HD voice with every phone call. These days, there are so many limitations that HD voice may not actually be very noticeable. Nevertheless, our guide will give you everything you need to enable HD voice on your iPhone 6. We'll also outline the limitations.  Thankfully, those limitations are shrinking. Expect to see more VoLTE ready phones in the next few months.



 

How to enable HD voice

By default, your iPhone 6 limits 4G LTE network to "Data only." To enable HD voice, you'll have to configure your iPhone 6 to have voice and data sent over the 4G LTE network. This means you will need to manually enable VoLTE. From your iPhone 6's home screen, go to Settings > Cellular > Enable LTE >  then select Voice and Data.  

 

Enable HD voice through Verizon and T-Mobile

iPhone 6 users with T-Mobile contracts can enjoy the simple, one-step activation of HD voice (there are lots of limitations, see below). Not the case when you're under contract with Verizon. It added an additional step called, Advanced Calling 1.0. Both the Verizon and T-Mobile offer VoLTE services at no extra charge.

To activate Advanced Calling 1.0, log on to your Verizon account > Manage My Account > Change Features > Add Advanced Calling.  



HD Voice with other carriers

AT&T: AT&T provides limited HD voice service. Currently, HD Voice is available in Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, and parts of Minnesota.

Sprint: Sprint does not offer HD Voice over VoLTE.

Limitations

Okay, so HD Voice sounds pretty good. But here's the deal, HD voice will only happen once in a blue moon. VoLTE is still new. And many HD Voice and VoLTE connections frequently drop calls. That's because both lines engaged in the HD Voice conversation have to remain in a LTE network for the duration of the call. The call will drop if one line leaves the 4G LTE network or the connection becomes too weak.

What's more, HD voice will only work when both callers are using VoLTE ready phones on the same carrier. Aside from the iPhone 6, only a few other VoLTE-ready devices are currently available, including Samsung Galaxy S5 and the Galaxy Note 3.



Twitter Facebook

December 06, 2014
LONDON: Amazon.com's launch of its own private label brand of consumer goods, starting with diapers and baby wipes, underscores the website's maturity as a grocery retailer and the migration of grocery shopping online. 

And if successful, the line's sharp prices could pressure profit margins for other makers of consumer goods, such as Procter & Gamble and Kimberly-Clark. 

Amazon this week announced the launch of Amazon Elements, a new line of premium, everyday products available to members of its loyalty programme Prime, whose membership could exceed 40 million US households this year, according to Bernstein Research. 

Elements will offer information — such as where and when items were made, why each ingredient was included and where the ingredients were sourced. 

"The two things customers told us they want are premium products that meet their high standards and access to information," Sunny Jain, Amazon.com consumables vice president said in a statement. "We're excited to offer Amazon Prime members added selection, beginning with diapers and baby wipes." 

"Most large grocers have their own private labels, so Amazon's move should not be a huge surprise," said Will Hayllar of OC&C Strategy Consultants. But it does underline Amazon's confidence in its push into consumer products. 

"This is a sign of Amazon maturing as a retailer and certainly a sign that they're getting some critical scale in a couple of pockets of CPG (consumer packaged goods)," Hayllar said. 

Amazon Fresh, its grocery delivery programme, is now in about 10 US markets. That is less than it had originally planned last year, a source said at the time. It faces competition from established companies like FreshDirect and startups like Instacart. 

E-commerce accounts for just 3.7% of sales for fast-moving consumer goods like packaged food, drinks and toiletries, but that amount is growing as retailers like Amazon and Ocado gain traction among weekly grocery shops. 

The Amazon Elements line is priced in between branded players' premium and basic lines, and its success could pressure margins at suppliers, said Bernstein analysts. 

"This would be a challenge for CPG companies, both in terms of the top-line and their own margins, requiring CPG to change the way they fundamentally operate to adapt to this more dynamic and potentially deflationary online pricing environment," Bernstein said in a note.
Twitter Facebook

December 06, 2014
Mark Zuckerberg just slammed Tim Cook and Apple.

In an interview with Time magazine, he said:

A frustration I have is that a lot of people increasingly seem to equate an advertising business model with somehow being out of alignment with your customers ... I think it's the most ridiculous concept. What, you think because you're paying Apple that you're somehow in alignment with them? If you were in alignment with them, then they'd make their products a lot cheaper!

Previously, Cook went after advertising-supported businesses like Google and Facebook, saying they were not in alignment with customers because for them the customers served as the product.

"If [companies are] making money mainly by collecting gobs of personal data, I think you have a right to be worried," Cook said in an interview. "And companies I think should be very transparent about it."

It's rare to see big technology executives — and in this case, two of the biggest — make such public attacks on each other's companies.

Facebook's entire business is built around collecting personal data, then selling advertisements tailored to that personal data.

Apple is the exact opposite. It sells hardware products, collecting very little data.

Cook has been using this as a selling point for Apple to consumers. The idea is that if you don't want to turn over your personal information to a company, then you should use Apple products.

This is a bit rich coming just months after the iCloud hacking scandal. Nude photos of celebrities were posted online after hackers accessed iPhone accounts on which they were stored. Apple says iCloud wasn't breached. It says hackers used "phishing" tactics to get access to accounts.

Still, it's not good for Apple, especially if it wants to be seen a steward of users' personal information.

As for Zuckerberg's counterpoint, it makes sense. Consumers have repeatedly shown that they are willing to give up a little privacy for a great, free product.

Facebook has more than 1.3 billion users despite the fact that it uses personal information for advertising. Google has more than a billion users on its products, and it uses personal information. Twitter has hundreds of millions of users, and it relies on advertising based on personal information.

People don't mind ad-supported products.

Further, the average iPhone costs over $600, while the average Android phone costs half that. Zuckerberg is saying that if Apple were on the side of the consumer, it would lower prices and make its products more broadly available. After all, Apple has $150 billion in cash on hand. It is the most profitable technology company in the world. It can afford to lower prices.

Facebook is free for everyone to use. The price for that is that it collects some user information. Zuckerberg and consumers, based on their actions, think that's a fair deal.

Contact Form

Name

Email *

Message *

Powered by Blogger.
Javascript DisablePlease Enable Javascript To See All Widget