Leaked picture shows incredibly thin bezel on a Nokia phablet

A possible Nokia phablet has been rumoured for quite some time now. Courtesy of PhoneArena, we now have a picture to go along with those rumours. Chinese company ICTech has posted a photo of the front panel of the6-inch Nokia Lumia handset. Notable inthe leaked picture is an incredibly thin bezel. This is one of the thinnest bezels that we have seen in a phablet. There also appears to be a tiny hole where we expect a front-facing camera will fit in.
The Lumia phablet is slated to be a direct competitor to Samsung's Galaxy Mega series and Sony's Xperia Z Ultra. The phablet is set to run on thelatest (at the time) version of Windows Phone 8. According to ICTech, Nokia has already kicked off mass productionof the phablet. It is only a matter of time beforeNokia makes an official announcement that acknowledges theexistence of the Lumia phablet.
Back inJune, we saw reportsstating that Nokia has been working on two phablets. The report states that one of the phablets, which is expected to be launched between September and October this year, will come with a camera similar to that of Lumia 925 and will carry a 5.5-inch or 6-inch display. We’re assumingthat theleaked picture shows this phablet.
The second smartphone,which will be launched by February 2014, is expected to feature a bettercamera thanthe first phablet, with a higher megapixelcount (presumably thesame camera featured on the Lumia 1020); it could also have a Lytro-style camera, which lets you adjust focus after shootingan image. Nokia has been rumoured to be using Pelican Imaging's 16-lens array to improve thephotography experience on smartphones.

Android 4.3 Jelly Bean version officially announced with better multi-user support

Google has announced the latest version of the Android operating system dubbed as Android 4.3 Jelly Bean along with the second edition of Google Nexus 7 tablet. However, it is not offering special new game changing features because it is just a minor updated version of the Jelly Bean 4.2 version. But, the latest version now offers better multi-user support with restricted profiles. Google talk is now officially replaced by the Google hangouts in the latest version of the OS.
Notification area of the OS is also improved with the access to notification history to the users. Open GLES 3.0 support is also introduced in the new version to provide better 3D game graphics rendering. Google has also introduced GooglePlay Games app that shows you which game your friends are playing and their leaderboard achievements in the games.
Bluetooth 4.0 with low energy mode is also integrated in the OS to provide longer range for the low bandwidth accessories like fitness tracker etc. Google said that the Nexus devices are going to be the first Android based devices to get the latest OS update in the future. Then it is expected by the mobile phone manufacturers to upgrade their supporting devices with the latest version of the operating system.
Overall, the Android 4.3 Jelly Bean version is not a totally revamped version of the Android OS because it is just having some minor upgraded features. However, the better multi-user support in the latest version of the OS is a great enhancement by the company that allows you to restrict app usage for a specific profile on your Android powered device.
Source: Google

Google announces Chrome cast for $35 to stream internet content on TV

Google has announced many new products in its press event yesterday and Chrome cast is one of the notable devices unveiled yesterday. Chrome cast is launched for the Android devices users to access their internet content on their TVs. It is kind of a thumb drive that can be plugged into the HDMI port of your TV to display your internet content on your TV. It brings the Netflix as well as YouTube on your TV device after plugging in.
Chrome cast is basically a 2inch USB dongle that is running the stripped down version of the Chrome operating system. A user can plug it into the TV devices to stream media contents from the famous websites like Netflix, YouTube and Google music services. Chrome cast is basically controlled by the software that you already use on a daily basis. So, if you are a heavy Google user than the Chrome cast is surely the next gadget you should buy.
Price of this smart gadget is only $35 that is surely affordable for most of the smart gadget buyers in the market. If you are watching a new season of your favorite TV serial on your Google Android OS powered device than just push the Cast button to stream it on your TV, if you are already using the Chrome cast USB device.
So, basically this new smart device from Google Inc. allows you to check your emails, join a Google hangout, check Twitter on your TV while enjoying your favorite content. Chrome cast device is currently not available for the Indian users, but we will update you more when it will be available in the country.

Foursquare expands its Ads service to more small businesses

In an attempt to take its Ads service to more small businesses around the world, Foursquare, the popular location-based social networking site has introduced its self-serve Foursquare Ads. A post on the Foursquare
blog confirms that the service aims to help small businesses around the world to “connect people looking for somewhere to go with businesses that want to drive traffic to their stores.”
“Foursquare is the best way for those businesses to reach nearby customers. In our ad pilots over the past year, we’ve been honing our targeting technology, using the same algorithm that powers our Explore recommendation engine,” an excerpt from the post reads.
Foursquare is hopeful that with its new self-service tools, it will be able to help more peopleconnect with the1.4 million+ small businesses around theworld that use Foursquare. Interestingly, the new toolsmean that businesses will only pay whenpeople visit – inperson or thelistingon thesite.
The feature is currently being rolled out and will reach more businesses in a month, and a few thousand local businesses will receive it today. If you want to be among thefirst ones to try this out, click here.
Foursquare recently launched an all-new app for Nokia’s S40 range of phones , including thenew Asha devices. This release is boundto bring in a lot more users to the social app’s fold, consideringthefact that S40 is still one of theworld’s most popularoperating systems. The application’s new user interface looks minimalat best and will provide for simple discovery and check-in using your S40 phones. The application will come pre-loaded onto newer Asha devices around the world as they go on sale inthe next few months.

All IndiaRadio news to be delivered as SMS soon

All India Radio (AIR) news will soon be available on mobile phones via SMS. The public sector broadcaster is all set to launch an SMS-based service which will bring the latest headlines to registered users across the country.
Official sources said through this service, AIR would send news alerts thrice everyday to its registered users. Every SMS will have 3 to 4 news headlines along with an advertisement tag. Officials said this latest service was expected to expand the reach of AIR, while the advertisement tag could generate revenues as the service becomes popular.
The headlines,which will constitute news content, will have nearly 100 characters, as finalised by the News Service Division of AIR, while an advertising tag of up to 60 characters will follow. The Marketing Division of AIR would try to sell the advertising tags which would accompany the news alerts.
Officials said the new service required a huge database to store details of registered users and AIR was in the process of finalising a firm that would generate and maintain the database. The intent is to create a system where a user can register himself through an Internet-based application with a feature through which the service can also be disconnected if a request is made by the user, a source said.
AIR has already obtained permission from TRAI to send bulk news messages under transactional messages category, the sources said.
PTI