Apple and a Chinese phone-maker were having design patents disputes between them, and as per the ruling by a Chinese court Apple has won the case. This will help overturn the ban due to which Apple could not sell the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus in China.
Apple wins design patent case against Shenzhen Biali
May 2016, a patent regulator in Beijing asked Apple to stop selling iPhones after a company named Shenzhen Baili Marketing Services lodged a complaint against Apple. They claimed that the patent for its mobile phone 100c was being infringed by the Apple iPhone.
Apple and its Chinese retail partner Zoomlight felt the case against them wasn't having any ground. Thus, took the company to the Beijing intellectual property court.
After almost a year-long battle, Apple on Friday got the ban removed. The court issued a statement saying that - Apple and Zoomlight did not violate Shenzhen Baili's design patent for 100c phones. The court also ruled that the regulator didn't follow the proper procedures in ordering the ban. And also there wasn't sufficient proof to the claim. The design of the iPhone does not violate any intellectual property rights.
In a related ruling, Apple had motioned the court to strip Shenzhen Baili of its design patent. For its 100c smartphones, which got denied by the court.
MuveAcoustics A-Star and A-Plus portable speakers launched in India by Zeeva Electronics. These are high-quality portable speakers for music lovers who like to carry their tunes with them everywhere. These distinctive type speakers are crafted for all your needs and then some, at just Rs.3,999 and Rs.2,999 respectively.
MuveAcoustics A-Star
The MuveAcoustics A-Star lets you indulge in a captivating music experience with great sound and powerful bass wirelessly. You can utilize the A-Star anywhere you want whether it is in the comfort of your room or be it in the woods when you go for camping. The MuveAcoustics A-Star is having an extremely durable body which lets it take a beating or two also it is having IPX-6 water resistance rating so you don't have to worry about it getting a few splashes of water. It also has a six-hour long battery life on a single charge.
Price: Rs.3,999
MuveAcoustics A-Plus
The MuveAcoustics A-Plus, on the other hand, is also a Bluetooth portable speaker. The MuveAcoustics A-Plus is having almost the same sound as the A-Star but a much deeper bass. The A-Plus also comes with a nylon strap like the other one so that you can carry it around. It is having a bigger battery than that of the A-Star and gives a playback time of seven hours.
Price: Rs.2,999
Zeeva has been in the consumer electronics industry for more than three decades and has launched MuveAcoustics in India in partnership with the famous Indian cricketer Virat Kohli. MuveAcoustics was launched in India on January 1, 2017, and has been started to cater the needs of the Gen-Next consumer.
The MuveAcoustics products are exclusively available on Amazon.in & Croma Stores.
Brainwavz recently launched their latest B-series earphones, The Brainwavz B100 and B150 in India. The B-series earphones by Brainwavz come integrated with Balanced Armature speaker technology. Which is known to produce high-grade audiophile quality sound at an affordable price. The Brainwavz B100, according to the company are the most affordable Balanced Armature earphones available in India.
Design and Build
The Brainwavz B100 comes with an over-the-ear design which for some is an effort to get in the ear, but once you get used to it, it's really comfortable. The earpieces have an unusual crescent shape but fit really well in the ear. The main drivers have no Brainwavz branding and are made of plastic. There is an 'L' and 'R' marking to aid better fit. The plastic helps to drain down the weight but doesn't give an elegant finish as the metal does.
The cable comes with rubber coated over an oxygen-free copper core. The cable looks very normal. The rubber coating gives it a sporty look with a subtle touch. The cable is bent near the earpiece for over the ear design. The over the ear design helps the earphones to stay in place while running or jogging.
The earphones have a standard 3.5 mm 'L-shaped' jack which is compatible with most of the devices in the market. The jack is also gold-plated which while providing durability complements the overall look of the earphones.
There are six pairs of silicone tips included with the package(two each of small, medium and large). There is also a pair of medium comply T-100 foam tips included which provide noise isolation as well as superior comfort in the ear. A velcro to wrap the earphones and a clip is included with a strong carrying case for people who travel frequently.
Overall, the Brainwavz B100 has a very subtle design with more emphasis to build quality and comfort rather than the looks. They aren't for flaunting off but certainly very useful for a daily usage. There is, however, no inline microphone which is a major concern concerning the price of these earphones.
Technical Specifications
The earphones run on a Single Balanced Armature driver with the impedance rating of 50Ω. The sensitivity of the earphones is rated at 110 dB at 1 mW. The frequency range of these earphones is at 15 Hz-to-22 kHz. They come with an over the ear design with an oxygen free copper cable and a 3.5 mm gold-plated jack. All these technical specifications prove the quality of earphones but are a bit boring.
Performance
We tested the Brainwavz B100 on various devices with a variety of sound file types. The Brainwavz B100 has good mids and lows but we felt like the highs were a bit off. The balanced armature technology provides good sound for long conversions, as well as pop music and the bass is really good.
The only problem we faced was while shifting the song from one type to another, the adjustment would take a bit of time to get it right. This would not be a problem for most as people do not shift genres as often as we did in our testing.The absence of an in-line microphone obviously causes inconvenience during phone calls. The over the ear design makes sure the earphones stay in the ear while running or jogging. The noise cancellation is great which is partly due to the balanced armature technology and partly due to the comply tips included. The silicone tips included are of pretty good quality but feels uncomfortable in long sessions compared to the comply tips.
The absence of an in-line microphone was felt, as it would have helped in answering calls. The over-the-ear design makes sure that the earphones stay where they are meant to be at all times. The noise cancellation is great in these earphones, which is partly due to the balanced armature technology that they come with and also due to the comply tips supplied in-the-box with these. The silicone tips included are of good quality.
Conclusion
The Brainwavz B100 is aimed at the Balanced Armature earphones market, which is highly untouched in India. Priced at ₹4,199, the B100 are one of the most reasonably priced earphones considering the build quality and the technology used. The sound is good, they are comfortable, and the build quality is sturdy. The only problem is the absence of an in-line microphone.
Samsung has launched its Mobile Payments Service in India: Samsung Pay
Samsung today launched its mobile payments service Samsung Pay in India. It can be used to make purchases, and make the payments at the point of sale(POS) terminals across the world.
Samsung Pay has available already been available in some parts of the world, and now India also has joined the others, but with a slight twist. Which is that Samsung Pay allowed people to pay with only their debit and credit cards worldwide, but in India, Samsung has also included payments through the Paytm wallet and also the government’s Unified Payments Interface(UPI). Samsung also has now partnered with a huge number of issuers, banks to make a payments eco-system. These include Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, SBI Card, Standard Chartered Bank and much more.
Samsung Pay: An easier and more secure way to pay
Samsung has tried making the Samsung Pay a highly secured platform with military grade encryption by adding three levels of security, which are fingerprint authentication, card tokenization, and Samsung’s mobile security platform KNOX.
They have tried to make Samsung Pay very easy to access, as a user simply needs to swipe up on the screen, select a card, authenticate with PIN or fingerprint and place the phone near the POS terminal.
Samsung Pay utilizes two methods to make payments, one is by the use of Near Field Communication(NFC) technology and the second one is Samsung's patented Magnetic Secure Transmission(MST) technology. MST replicates a card swipe by transmitting magnetic waves from the device to the POS terminal, making the payment. And NFC works by sending your card token into the NFC reader in the POS machine and transmitting the data.
Samsung Pay will be able to work everywhere, even the older POS machines without the NFC reader thanks to its MST technology.
Mr. HC Hong, President and CEO, Samsung Southwest Asia and Mr. Amitabh Kant, CEO, Niti Aayog launching Samsung Pay in India. Image Credits: Samsung
Quotes on Samsung Pay
Samsung Pay is an example of how we continue to push the boundaries of innovations to make life simpler and better for consumers. I am confident Samsung Pay will redefine digital payments and contribute to Digital India.
Mr. HC Hong, President and CEO, Samsung Southwest Asia
When we launched Samsung Pay, our goal was to enable consumers across the globe to make payments that are simple, secure and accepted almost everywhere. Over the past year and a half, this vision has evolved into building a complete digital wallet solution, allowing customers worldwide to not only make payments but also use membership and transit cards, receive deals and rewards and more.
Mr. Thomas Ko, Global GM of Samsung Pay
Our insights show that convenience, security and acceptance are seen by consumers as the most important influencers when choosing among different digital payment options,With Samsung Pay, we give our consumers the smartest way to make digital transactions by far. Samsung Pay is highly secure through the signature KNOX Platform, fingerprint authentication and tokenization. We have partnered with major banks and card networks to give our consumers the widest range of choices, and are working on bringing more and more partners on board soon.”
Mr. Asim Warsi, Senior Vice President, Mobile Business, Samsung India.
Samsung Pay
Samsung with its "Make for India" initiative, has committed to building products and services as per the Indian consumer's needs. Thus while introducing the new service Samsung also gave support for the famous online wallet in India Paytm and the government's UPI payments. Samsung has partnered with Axis Bank to provide its UPI services.
Since its initial launch in July 2015, Samsung has rapidly expanded to service to various regions. After its launch in India, Samsung Pay is now available in 12 countries worldwide.
Though Samsung Pay expanding its worldwide reach is also facing competition with many other brands who are trying to do the similar thing, like - Apple Pay, and Android Pay.
What after mobile payments
After Samsung goes ahead, it plans to introduce more services in the application for the customers. Now they plan to expand their services and support various gift cards, membership cards, transportation cards and also allow people to utilize the service at ATM's.
Devices Samsung Pay will work on
It currently is available for the Galaxy S7 edge, Galaxy S7, Galaxy Note 5, Galaxy S6 edge+, Galaxy A5 (2016), Galaxy A7 (2016), Galaxy A5 (2017), Galaxy A7 (2017), and also the Samsung Gear S3.
Samsung Pay support will be rolling out to more devices in the upcoming months.
FAQ's
Q- Can you accept money via the application?
A- No, not yet. Though you can transfer money from your Paytm to someone else.
Q- Can other smartphones use the Samsung Pay app.?
A- No, only the list of devices above can use the app.
Q- Can you use the app. in a country where the service isn't introduced?
A- No, you cannot.
Q- What if my phone is stolen?
A- You will have to remote wipe it if you want no trace of anything left. Though even if stolen nobody can use your payment data as it is protected with three layers of security.
Apple Inc. on Tuesday, as we covered before announced loads of new products via their press channels. The California-based tech company unveiled a bouquet of new updated products and accessories.
Though, for all this Apple didn't have a media event for the announcements. They just put all the updates on its website. We have gathered up everything that was launched on Tuesday and bring all of it to you:
iPhone 7 (Product RED)
Apple launched a new iPhone 7 and 7 Plus RED special edition. The iPhone 7 RED is like every other product RED, it is only a color change. It will only be available in the capacity of 128GB and 256GB, also a part of the profits will go into research of HIV/AIDS.
It will become available in India in the month of April.
New iPad
The main attraction between all these launches was the new iPad, which will just be called the iPad. This was announced to be the successor to the iPad Air 2. Though being bulkier than its predecessor it is having a much cheaper price tag. The new iPad will be starting from $329 for the 32GB storage option. It is powered by Apple's A9 chip(Used in iPhone 6s).
From now on Apple will have only two versions of the tablet - The iPad and The iPad Pro.
Improved iPhone SE
Apple also dropped the iPhone SE 16GB and 64GB versions from their line-up, and have replaced them with newer 32GB and 128GB models. Basically, Apple doubled the internal storage of the iPhone SE. And, this change in storage did not cause any price change for the iPhone SE.
Clips - video editing application
Apple also launched a new application along with all these products called "Clips". Clips is a mixture of the popular social networking application Snapchat and its own video editor iMovie. It lets you take images and videos add special effects, edit them a bit and then helps you upload on any of your social networking apps.
Apple Watch bands
Apple also unveiled a few new Watch bands for the people to customize their Apple Watch with. The new options are:
Striped woven nylon
Nike Sport
Apple Watch Hermès Bands.
Apple iPhone 7 cases
Also amongst all these launches, Apple also brought to the market six new iPhone 7 and 7 Plus cases. These include three silicone cases - Azure, Camelia, and Pebble. And also three leather cases - Berry, Taupe, and Pebble.
Apple has unveiled its new iPad today, it will be available to order from the 24th of March, 2017. The price of the new iPad is the shocker as the starting price of the new Apple iPad is $329, which is the lowest-price-ever offered by Apple for a full-size iPad.
Apple also has made changes in their iPhone SE lineup and replaced the 16 GB and the 64 GB models for the 32 and 128 GB versions.
Apple adds a new iPad and variants of iPhone SE into its roster
These updates from Apple for the iPhone SE and the new iPad, are just incremental updates which were announced without a media event. Everyone is guessing that Apple is holding out on the new iPhone SE lineup due to the flagship iPhone launch this fall. The new iPhone is rumoured to have various new features like wireless charging, 3-D facial recognition, and a curved display.
The new Apple iPad replaces the iPad Air 2 and starts from 32 GB of internal storage. It is just under the price of the smaller iPad Mini 4. Which starts at $399 for the 128 GB version.
Alongside the new iPad and the iPhone SE. Apple also announced a new app for video creation and sharing to other iOS devices. This new app, along with the extra iMessage features launched in the recent years. Pushes Apple Inc. forward to compete with the social media giants such as Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat just to name a few.
This new application is called Clips, it lets users add captions, speech bubbles, smileys, etc. to videos. It also helps to share these videos on all social networks including Apple's own iMessage. This application also allows users to add captions using their own voice.
Microsoft and Adobe partner up to share sales and marketing data
Microsoft and Adobe partner up to make their sales and marketing software products better competitors to other options in the market like Oracle and salesforce.com.
Adobe at its annual user conference said that it will start working with Microsoft to create a shared data format between its marketing software suite and Microsoft's sales software. Which will thus allow the software systems to work together.
It’s going to enable to customers to go beyond the current (software) silos they have to navigate today
Scott Guthrie, executive vice president of the cloud and enterprise division at Microsoft.
Adobe has built up the partnership with Microsoft on a deal it struck last year with them for utilizing their Azure cloud computing services. Adobe has been pushing into the B2B marketing software side ever since it acquired Omniture Inc. in 2009. It is a firm that tracks website statistics. This partnership might bring a new age to the digital era.
Microsoft on its part has been trying to expand Dynamics(Sales Software), teaming with Adobe will thus help them compete more strongly against the other sales software present in the market.
Vodafone and Idea Cellular agreed on Monday to merge their operations in India. They cut a deal for $23 billion, thus creating India's largest telecom provider. This was the immediate response from Vodafone and Idea to the price war struck by Reliance Jio.
Both Vodafone and Idea combined now have almost 400 million customers. Thus, overtaking Bharti Airtel and taking the number one spot in the market. This deal shows how the telecom industry is transforming after the launch of Reliance Jio mobile network last year.
Jio started by India's richest man, Mukesh Ambani at the cost of more than $20 billion. Jio has been offering its customers free services for many months. And due to this all of the telecom operators in India like Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, Idea Cellular, etc. have had to slash prices and take home lower profits.
This improves the industry structure and it also equips us and Idea to be much more competitive in the future, I have no doubt that the Indian market will remain competitive but nothing can be free forever and we will be in a better position.
Vittorio Colao - Chief Executive
The news of these two companies had been emerging since January this year. Now they will have to shed spectrums in some areas to meet the Indian rules and regulations, although Colao reassuring the consumers said that it would be small. The deal is now expected to close in 2018.
About the deal
As per the deal, Vodafone will now own 45.1% of the merged entity, after the transfer of 4.9% to the promoters of Idea for a sum of 38.74 billion INR in cash.
Aditya Birla Group, the owner of Idea Cellular will own 26%. And the remaining 28.9% will be owned by the other shareholders. Aditya Birla Group and Vodafone aim to own an equal share of the joint venture. With the value of the new merged entity being $23.2 billion.
This deal does not include Vodafone's 42% in the Indus Towers. A joint venture between the British Group, Airtel and Idea. But commenting on this both the companies said that they would try and reduce their stakes in the Indus Towers by selling of their stakes in the joint venture.
This deal has happened after Jio has hit the market hard, and due to this even India's biggest telecom operator Bharti Airtel is now in the process of buying Telenor's India operations. And also Maxis and Sistema are merging with Reliance Communications.
Nubia launches Z11 Mini S in India exclusively on Amazon
Nubia has launched its premium photography smartphone in India, The Nubia Z11 Mini S. The Z11 Mini S has been launched with exclusive partnership with Amazon India. The Z11 Mini S has been focused on the people who love smartphone photography, as it comes with a high quality DSLR level camera system integrated.
Quote by Nubia Executive:
Nubia is a metronome when it comes to pushing user experience. The Z11 Mini S will lead the way in camera phone(s). We have been meticulous in building this device and it is tailored to meet the modern user’s requirements. The phone features a high-end camera that is powered by nubia’s proprietary NeoVision 6.0 photography system. It has everything a photography enthusiast can ask for, and that too in a phone.” He went on to add, “Z11 mini S comes 0.1s rapid focus and the capability to beautify videos on the fly and will serve as a benchmark in this segment. We are committed to our customers and will continue to focus on making nubia the leading smart-phone brand in India.
Mr. Dheeraj Kukreja, Marketing Director, Nubia India
Nubia Z11 Mini S Camera
The Z11 Mini S comes with a 23MP rear camera coupled with Sony IMX318 Exmor RS sensor, 6-piece Motor Drive Lens and ƒ2.0 aperture that to in the protection of sapphire glass lens. The front camera is having a 13MP Sony sensor with a front flash.
Nubia Z11 Mini S: Internals
The Z11 Mini S comes equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 MSM8953 Octa-Core Processor clocked at 2.0 GHz coupled with Adreno 506 GPU. To keep up with the storage needs of the consumer the Z11 Mini S comes with 64GB internal storage and 4GB of RAM. The internal storage is expandable up to 200GB.
The smart phone features a 5.2 inch 424 ppi full HD 2.5D gorilla glass display. It also features a 3,000mAh non-removable battery with support for Nubia’s Neo Power energy saver. With the 98% metal body comes a multi-function fingerprint sensor with support for unlocking, screenshot and pictures.
The Nubia Z11 mini S is 7.6mm thick and weighs 158 grams. It is being offered in Khaki Grey currently and will be soon available in Moon Gold. The device supports dual SIM with both TD-LTE and FDD-LTE network support.
Pricing and Availability
The Nubia Z11 Mini S will be available exclusively on Amazon in India, the sale will start from March 21 at 4PM. The Z11 mini S will be sold at the price of Rs.16,999.
Highlights
23 MP fast focus rear camera + 13 MP front camera with front flash
Powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 625
4GB RAM, 64GB ROM
98% metal unibody
5.2 inch Full HD screen with 2.5D Corning Gorilla Glass
Price: Rs.16,999
Sale will start March 21, 2017 4PM exclusively on Amazon.
Tesla has tapped Wall Street for the much needed cash. They have offered $1.2 billion in shares and convertible debt. It is the second time that Elon Musk and Tesla Inc. have raised such huge capital in 12 months. The Silicon Valley based company offered stock and convertible notes to raise the capital.
Company officials say that they raised almost 20% more than what they had planned to, but the investors were thinking that they would need more. As the launch of Model 3 sedan is coming up. After this raise the stock of Tesla in the afternoon trade was up to $262.42 per share on Nasdaq.
This funds raised by them show the ability of Elon Musk to make Wall Street believe in his vision of Tesla. That one-day they will become the biggest car manufacturer.
Tesla Inc. now plans to spend around 2.5 billion USD in the first-half of 2017, in capital expenditures ahead of the launch of the Model 3 sedan in July, 2017.
Liquidity and cash burn remain key near-term risks, and investors may grow weary of continued raises as this is the second capital raise in a year.
UBS Analyst Colin Langan.
Out of the offering that they put out, $850 million came from the convertible notes due 2022. And the rest $350 million came from the sale of 1.3 million shares at the rate of $262/share.
The company also declared that Elon Musk also bought 95,420 common shares for $25 million in the latest stock offering.
