Google Assistant gets the ability to set music alarms, can now look up TV schedules

Google Assistant picks up few new features that include the ability to set music alarms, look up TV schedules and more. To set up music alarms, you need to store the songs that you wanted on your Google home or other assistant-enabled speakers.  To set up a music alarm, all you have to do is say “Hey Google, set an alarm for 6 AM with 'the music/musician you wish' to the Assistant on Google Home or your other Assistant-enabled speakers. Once it is done, you now can wake up to your favorite song, playlist or radio station. Another addition is the ability to help you learn about actors or play a TV show, and also, it can now help you keep up with the TV shows that you are following. To take advantage of this ability, all you have to do is Just say “Hey Google, what channel airs 'The Flash' or “Hey Google, when does 'The Flash' air next. You can even set reminders, so you never miss a show. Google says that it has worked closely with Netflix to make your Netflix casting experience more personal. Firstly, you need to link your Netflix account in the Google Home app or via the Google ...

Honor 7X now being manufactured in Tamil Nadu, Red Limited Edition launching in India soon

Huawei's Honor brand introduced new Red edition of the Honor 7X in China back in December and it was introduced for the global markets at the CES 2018 last month. Today Amazon.in has started teasing the Red Limited Edition smartphone in India. The company also confirmed that the Honor7X is now made in India and the company in partnership with Flex has started manufacturing the phone at Flex's plant in Sriperumbudur, near Chennai The Red variant will join the Black, Blue and Gold color variants that were launched in India in December exclusively on Amazon.in starting at Rs. 12,999. After selling the phone through flash sale every week, the phone is now available through open sale. The Red edition is expected to available in limited quantities since the company already said that only 20,000 units will be made available for the overseas market. Regarding the Red edition, Honor at the CES 2018 said, "Red version offers customers a passionate, energetic new color and a terrific out-of-box experience". It also said that the phone will get Face unlock sometime in Q1 2018 through OTA update. The Honor View 10 recently got the Face Unlock feature. We should know more details about the availability of the Honor 7X Red Edition ...

Flipkart Billion 10000mAh and 15000mAh ‘Made in India’ power banks launched for Rs. 799 and Rs. 999

Flipkart's Billion brand today launched new 10000mAh and 15000mAh power banks that are 'Made in India' and 'Made for India'. Both these feature Lithium-ion batteries and come with 5V/2.1A USB out ports (2 in 15,000mAh, 3 in 10,000mAh), a 5V / 2A input port and also come with built-in LED Torch Light. These batteries lose less than 3-4% charge when idle for one month and are also made to last longer, with upto 500 charge/discharge cycles, says Flipkart.  Highlights of Flipkart Billion 10000mAh and 15000mAh power banks A+ grade high-energy density Lithium-ion battery Less than 3-4% charge loss when idle for 1 month Battery Capacity - 15,000 mAh and 10,000mAh 15,000 mAh power bank fully charges a 4000mAh phone 2.5 times 5V/2.1A USB ports that charge twice as fast as regular 5V/1A ports Multiple Device Compatibility - 2 USB ports on 15,000 mAh and 3 USB ports on 10,000mAh power bank Weight 260g (10,000mAh) /  320 g (15,000 mAh), Up to 13% lighter than top-selling power banks LED battery-level indicators Safety Features - Temperature protection against overheating while charging devices, Over & under voltage protection to keep the device safe Extra Features - Handy torch light in the power bank, for ease of ...

YouTube TV now available on Apple TV, Roku players and Roku TVs

YouTube TV is now finally available on a 4th generation Apple TV, Roku players, and Roku TVs in the US. You can stream live sports, local and national news, and must-see shows the moment that air on YouTube TV. However, YouTube TV is a subscription-based service that costs $35 per month after the 7-day free trial. with YouTube TV you can access live TV from 40+ networks including ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, CW, Disney Channel, ESPN, FX, Telemundo and more. Sports and premium networks like SHOWTIME, Shudder, Sundance Now and Fox Soccer Plus are also available for an additional monthly charge. [HTML1] YouTube says that YouTube TV is available only on the 4th generation Apple TV and above, but said that it is working to expand to more devices. Features of YouTube TV include the ability to record programs as you want at the same time through the Cloud DVR function without worrying about storage. The library tab lists the new episodes, most watched, recordings, shows, events and more personalized to you. The 'Live' tab shows a live guide to what's airing currently, background playback experience, and the ability to share with up to 5 family members in your household with personalized recommendations and profiles for each family member. ...

Microsoft Launcher 4.6 beta adds Cortana integration, pin contact to home screen and more

Microsoft launcher for Android gets a new beta update with version number V4.6 adding Cortana support and it works exactly how does in the Cortana app eliminating the need for installing the dedicated app. Using Cortana, you can find answers, makes calls, and more. However, Cortana integration is not just the only change, the update also brings the ability to share launcher via NFC & QR code, support for Arabic/RTL languages, Intune integration supports remote data-wiping. It also lets you choose what contacts to display on your People card, Place widgets into the dock and pin searched app or contact to the home screen. Other Cortana abilities include schedule meetings, change the wallpaper, Continue on PC or read the latest headlines. Microsoft has been very actively pushing out timely updates to its Android apps suite showing its commitment towards the App platform. However, since it is a beta update, you will have to sign up for the best testing on Google Play Store.  Then you will get the update, on the other hand, if you wish to not sign up for the beta testing, you can manually download the APK here and side-load it.

One out of three feature phone users in India intend to shift to data-enabled phones in next one-year: IDC

According to International Data Corporation (IDC)’s Smartphone Consumer PULSE research, One out of every three feature phone users likely to shift to data-enabled phones in the next one-year. Thanks to the availability of affordable mobile data from telecom networks; feature phone users are getting more awareness.  The research further states that the upfront purchase of mobile devices cost still remains a strong barrier for the much-needed migration to 4G. Thanks to JioPhone, several brands are now gearing up to fill the bridge by providing telco bundled value to the large feature phone base in India. IDC says that it smartphone PULSE is an extensive smartphone end consumer-facing research program covering 10 major cities of India. IDC in the research states that one out of three mobile phone consumers are willing to spend more than their planned budget and more than half ready to spend between Rs. 6,000 to Rs. 15,000 on a new smartphone. This also reflects how strong the segment is and in fact, this price range contributes almost half of the India smartphone market which is dominated by Xiaomi, followed by Samsung, and Motorola. Additional offers like no-cost EMI, easy exchange are an additional bonus. Himanshu Jain, Market Analyst, IDC India said: Word of mouth and recommendation by family ...

Sony Mobile outlines upgrade policy, flagship Xperia smartphones to get Android updates for 2 years

Sony might not be the top sellers in the world, but the company pushes out major updates at least to its flagships, but for how long the Xperia devices are supported is somewhat vague. This is the case with most Android phone vendors, not just Sony. However, today Sony has outlined its Android system upgrade policy and said that it would support high-end premium device for 2-years since the day it launched.  Google is the only brand that tries to stay clear for how long it will support its products both Android upgrades and security patches. While Sony premium phones get support for two-years, the mid-range and budget phones are less lucky as they get dropped half-way. Sony says that it may not choose to upgrade mid-range phone if the testing does not meet the required standards or if the hardware isn’t capable of delivering stable user experience. Talking about the Meltdown and Spectre security vulnerabilities, Sony says that it is in the process of making the patches available to Xperia XA1, Xperia XA1 Ultra, Xperia L1. The  Xperia XA1 Plus, Xperia XA2, Xperia XA2 Ultra, Xperia L2, Xperia X Performance, Xperia X, Xperia X Compact, Xperia XZ, Xperia XZ Premium, Xperia XZs, Xperia ...

Instagram now lets you post text-only ‘type-mode’ stories

After  testing for a while, Instagram now gets text-only 'type-mode' stories feature. It is a new way of sharing stories with creative text styles and backgrounds without the need for photos or videos.  http://ift.tt/2FF5gT8 Like with regular stories, once you open the camera within the Instagram app, you’ll see “Type” next to “Normal” under the record button. Tap the 'Type' icon to write anything that you wish to share. Then, you can pick different background colors, highlight words and phrases or add a background photo. It also allows you to add new styles when adding text to any photo or video. Like with the regular stories, the text-only 'type-mode' stories will also disappear after 24 hours. The company says that " you can write whatever comes to mind like your favorite lyrics, a silly thought or a random idea — and play with different styles to change the look and feel." The update with the latest feature is available for both Android and iOS with version number 30. Instagram recently rolled out 'Show Activity Status’ letting you see when a user was last active. Source

Alphabet revenue up 24% YoY in Q4 2017, Google ad, cloud business remain strong

Google's parent company, Alphabet today announced financial results for the quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2017. The company posted a record 24% increase in revenue with $32.323 billion compared to the $26.064 billion in Q4 2016. The company posted revenues of $110.9 billion in complete 2017.  Google’s core ad business remains strong pulling 27.27 billion in revenue with 24% YoY growth. TAC or traffic acquisition costs continue to grow as Google shifts its business focus to advertising and mobile search ads which resulted in nearly $6.5 billion, up 33% YoY in the Q4 which ended on December 31st, 2017. However, the company posted a net income of $3,020 billion which is a dip compared to the $5,333 billion YoY. The company currently has 80,110 employees and it reported earnings per share of $9.70 which is less compared to $9.90 which was expected. Alphabet mentioned that the one-time tax hit caused a net loss of $3.02 billion in the fourth quarter. However, the revenue grew $32.323 billion which is higher than analyst expectations of $31.86 billion. Google's cloud business, and sales of products like the Pixel smartphone and Google Home, and its Google Play app store, reported $4.69 billion in revenue. Other bets revenue reported a revenue of $409 million in Q4 2017 on operating losses of $916 ...

Apple overtakes Samsung to become top smartphone vendor in Q4 2017, Xiaomi beats OPPO: IDC

Smartphone vendors shipped a total of 403.5 million smartphones worldwide, down 6.3% year over year, and up 8.1% from the third quarter, in the fourth quarter of 2017 (4Q17), as per the latest  International Data Corporation (IDC). For the full year, 1.472 billion units were shipped, down less than 1% from 1.473 billion in 2016. "Developed markets such as China and the United States both witnessed a decline during the quarter as consumers appeared to be in no rush to upgrade to the newest generation of higher-priced flagship devices.," said IDC. Top 5 ranking did see a couple of changes from the third quarter,  but except Xiaomi other vendors saw slight decline in growth YoY. Apple has finally passed Samsung to grab the top spot with 19.2% market share and 77.3 million smartphone sales, slightly better than Samsung's 74.1 million smartphone shipments, down 4.4%, compared to 77.5 million units from last year. This is largely due to iPhone 8, 8 Plus, and iPhone X sales during the holiday quarter. Huawei continues to hold the number three position with 41 million unit shipments, down 9.7% compared to 45.4 million a year earlier. Xiaomi overtook OPPO to grab the fourth spot, doubling its share to 7% from 3.3% with 28.1 million shipments, up 96.9% from 14.3 million ...