mobile - Blog about Gadgets and News

Nokia to Close Here Mapping Deal With German Automakers

February 17, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

Home | Internet | Internet News Nokia to Close Here Mapping Deal With German Automakers by Gadgets 360 Staff , 4 December 2015 Nokia says it has received all regulatory approvals for the EUR 2.8 billion (roughly Rs. 20,737 crores) sale of its Here mapping unit to a consortium of German carmakers, Audi AG, BMW Group and Daimler AG, and expects to close it ahead of schedule on Friday.
Nokia's Here, which includes mapping, navigation, and location services, gives the leading automakers access to technology that could eventually be used for driverless cars.
The Finnish company originally said it expected to close the deal during the first quarter of 2016 after announcing the planned sale on August 3.
Nokia, formerly the top cellphone maker, has increasingly focused on providing networks for mobile technology. On Wednesday, shareholders approved its EUR 15.6 billion acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent, which will make it a market leader in networks.
The three automaker partners – Daimler BMW..

Strontium Nitro Plus On-The-Go USB 3.0 and Micro SDHC UHS-1 With OTG Card Reader Review

February 11, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

Strontium seems to have jumped into mobile storage in a big way. After our encounter with the Nitro iDrive for iOS, the company brought our attention to a couple of products aimed at Android devices which support USB On-The-Go. We've seen flash drives with Micro-USB connectors before, but we haven't seen an external card reader.
An increasing number of Android smartphones do not allow storage expansion, and some older ones don't support high-capacity microSD cards. Putting new data onto a card and sharing large files with others is sometimes a pain, requiring you to take your phone apart and pull out its battery or plug your phone into a PC.
USB-OTG can come in handy in some of those situations. While a flash drive sticking out of your phone is no substitute for a tiny microSD card, it can be really handy. You can store large files such as movies that you don't need immediate access to all the time, without filling up your phone's limited storage space. You ca..

Android 5.0 Lollipop Review [year]: A Sweet Upgrade

Android 5.0 Lollipop Review 2024: A Sweet Upgrade

December 15, 2018 Richard Gomez 0

Android's sweet new “Lollipop” flavor brings security improvements and easier ways to view and respond to notifications. The new Google software for mobile devices even lets you lend out your phone without worrying about a friend circulating your naked selfies on Facebook.
I tested Lollipop on Google's new Nexus 6 phone, which comes out this week. I can only hope that as other phones get the upgrade over time, it will be as good as what you get on the Nexus.
It's a shame many phone manufacturers that use Android believe they have to tweak it extensively to make the software theirs and not Google's. Mucking around with it only confuses customers and steers app developers toward working on iPhone versions first, where there is more uniformity – and thus incentive to incorporate the latest features.
Assuming your phone maker is running Lollipop in its purest form, here's what you'll get:
Notifications
You used to have to pull down the notification tray from t..

Prem Ratan Dhan Payo Game Review

February 21, 2018 Richard Gomez 0

Prem Game is the very catchy name of the mobile game based on the latest Salman Khan film, Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, or PRDP for short, but unfortunately, the rest of the experience just keeps going downhill. Movie games are a mixed bag – there are some games that are planned as standalone experiences, and because they're not tied to a film's release date or story, are allowed to develop more organically into something you'll relish. But filmmakers have also started to see games based on movies as a way to add to the bottom-line of the film, and this usually means mobile games filled with ads and in-app purchases.
The latter is true with games made around Indian movies as well, and we've seen some pretty enjoyable mobile games for games like Krrish 3, Dhoom 3, and Rajinikanth-starrer Kochadaiiyaan. The Prem Game is no exception, and features full-screen ads while loading the game, each time you press pause, and banner ads while levels are being loaded. On the other han..

Pac-Man 256 – 2024

April 27, 2017 Richard Gomez 0

What happens when Crossy Road meets Pac-Man? You get one of the smartest takes on the classic game, bringing in elements of an endless runner without losing out on that which is quintessentially Pac-Man.
We've described Crossy Road as either the best or the worst game out there, and included it in our 10 favourite mobile apps and games of 2014. Crossy Road was a smart take on the oversaturated endless runner genre, bringing in some fresh concepts to a type of game that hadn't really evolved since Subway Surfers hit our screens.
On the other hand, everybody knows Pac-Man. Launched in 1980, Pac-Man was one of the first video games you probably played – on an arcade machine if you were old enough, or on a computer or home console. In its 35 years, the game hasn't changed much, despite multiple iterations, including Pac-Man Championship Edition, which first released in 2007 for the Xbox 360 and PS3 consoles, but is now also available on iOS and Android. In 2010, for the 30..

God of War III Remastered Review: Great for Newcomers, but Not Worth Revisiting

February 18, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

God of War is an exploration of Greek myths, wrapped around a cool, action-packed video game that has been incredibly popular, with different instalments on the PS2, PS3, and now, a remastered version on the PS4.
In God of War, you control Kratos – a rage filled Spartan hellbent on getting revenge on the Gods who have wronged him – by killing off the entire pantheon. The first game was so popular that it spawned a series that includes seven games across the PS2, PS3, PlayStation Portable (PSP), feature phones, and PS Vita. Barring the mobile version that was in 2D, every game in the series sported gorgeous 3D graphics complete with gory combat.
(Also see: God of War III Remastered Coming to PS4 on July 14)
While a new entry for the PS4 is pretty much inevitable, for now PS4 owners can check out God of War III remastered. It's accessible to newcomers so you don't need to have played any God of War games before this to enjoy the game or follow the story.
Without spoiling mu..

Transistor for iOS Review: As Good as It’s on the PC

February 18, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

Transistor – made by Bastion creators Supergiant Games – first released in May 2014 for the PlayStation 4 and Windows, followed by Linux and OS X versions in October. Following in Bastion's footsteps, the game was released for iOS devices earlier this month.
We'd played the PC version last year and loved it, so purchasing Transistor on day-one was an obvious choice. But how has it fared in the journey to mobile devices, and should you buy this game for your iPhone or iPad, especially if you haven't played the PC or PS4 version?
Before talking about the porting of Transistor, it's important to get a measure of what this game is, in the first place. If you're already familiar with the game, and just want to know about how it handles on mobile devices, you could just skip the next section of this article. On the other hand, if you're a newcomer to the game, the introduction will help you understand what Transistor is all about, and why you might want to pla..

Battle of the bulge – Micromax A100 vs Spice Mi-500 vs iBall Andi 5c

February 13, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

A world where mobile phones are getting bigger and tablets are getting smaller has seen the rise of a new category of devices. At first considered Frankensteins of the mobile computing world, phablets became cool with Samsung Galaxy Note's success.
Recently, we've seen a bunch of new devices trying to make a mark by appealing to those looking for large screen devices, minus the stylus. We look at three such devices that attempt to woo the budget-conscious – the iBall Andi 5c, Micromax Superfone Canvas A100 and Spice Stellar Horizon Mi-500.
Build/ Design
The Micromax A100 is a clear winner in this department. The curves of the A100 fit well in hand, thanks, no doubt, to the slightly smaller profile compared to the other two devices. While none of the three devices scream “cheap plastic” (the Spice comes the closest), the overall finish of the Micromax ensures it stands out from the rest.
The Micromax A 100, like the iBall Andi, has the power button on the right, which makes it..

iPad mini: First look 2024

March 5, 2017 Richard Gomez 0

Apple's iPad Mini will bring a lot more excitement and a little more confusion to the holiday shopping season.
It only takes a few minutes playing with the iPad mini to realize the scaled-down tablet computer will be a sure-fire hit with longtime Apple disciples and potential converts who've been looking for a more affordable entree into the mobile computing market.
With a 7.9-inch screen, the iPad mini is perfectly sized to be stuffed in Christmas stockings. Recipients who will discover the pleasure and convenience of being able to take pictures, surf the Web, watch video, read books and listen to music on an exquisitely designed device that's pancake thin.
As enticing as that all sounds, the iPad mini also causes a dilemma, albeit a pleasant one.
The new option will make it even more difficult for holiday shoppers to figure out which mobile device to buy for their loved ones -or for themselves.
I felt the pangs of indecision within a few minutes of picking up the iPad ..

Common Software Would Have Let FBI Unlock Shooter’s iPhone

February 21, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

The county government that owned the iPhone in a high-profile legal battle between Apple and the Justice Department paid for but never installed a feature that would have allowed the FBI to easily and immediately unlock the phone as part of the terrorism investigation into the shootings that killed 14 people in San Bernardino, California.
If the technology, known as mobile device management, had been installed, San Bernardino officials would have been able to remotely unlock the iPhone for the FBI without the theatrics of a court battle that is now pitting digital privacy rights against national security concerns.
The service costs $4 per month per phone.
(Also see: Worldwide Protests Supporting Apple in Encryption Fight With FBI Planned By Internet Rights Group)

Instead, the only person who knew the unlocking passcode for the phone is the dead gunman, Syed Farook, who worked as an inspector in the county's public health department.
The iPhone assigned to Farook also lacked a Tou..

Lenovo Launches Global Wireless Roaming Service

February 22, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

China's Lenovo Group Ltd will launch a global wireless service for its mobile devices to cut roaming costs for its users, it said on Sunday.
The service, called Lenovo Connect, allows users to travel to 50 countries and use their devices at local prices on mobile Internet, without installing new SIM cards, Lenovo said in a statement on Sunday.
For years, roaming or extra charges for the use of telecoms services outside a person's home country have been a source of consumers' ire as many were confronted with high phone bills after returning from holiday.
The European Union has agreed to abolish mobile roaming charges across the 28-country bloc by June 2017, requiring telecom operators to treat all Internet traffic equally.
Lenovo said it could offer the service through its mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) activities, which currently has 11 million users globally.
MVNOs are operators who rent access on bigger rivals' networks and tend to sell cheaper mobile plan..

Kinivo releases ZX100 Mini Portable Speaker at an affordable price

November 30, 2014 Richard Gomez 2

Kinivo won’t be an organization that rolls off the lips of everybody, however this doesn’t imply that they don’t have something that’s value your time […]