Motorola and Kodak Launch MOTOZINE ZN5

It's official. Motorola and KODAK’s collaborative 5 megapixel auto-focus camera phone the MOTOZINE ZN5 has been launched. Unveiled in Beijing, the ZINE ZN5 is the first mobile phone to combine Motorola’s ModeShift Technology and Kodak Imaging Technology. With Kodak Easyshare Software and easy access to Kodak Gallery or other web sharing sites, pictures are easily moved off the device, allowing consumers to print, share and enjoy their favorite photos whenever they want.

“Today’s creative consumers not only want to be the photographer, but also the retoucher, the exhibitor and the critic,” said Jeremy Dale, corporate vice president, mobile devices marketing, Motorola, Inc. “The MOTOZINE ZN5 lets them be all the things they want to be.”

The ZN5 also comes with a Xenon flash and optimized settings for low-light environments. The built-in Kodak Imaging Technology combined with Kodak Perfect Touch Technology, should enable the handset to take some really vivid images. Other camera features include multiple capture modes, like multi-shot and panorama, which automatically stitches together continuous shots taken on the horizon line into a single, extended image. Pictures can also be uploaded via Gallery Link in one click and instantly sent to the Kodak Gallery to be viewed, stored and shared. Users can transfer pictures to a computer via USB, Wi-Fi or Bluetooth and print wirelessly on Bluetooth-compatible Kodak All-in-One Printers and at Kodak Picture Kiosks.

In phone mode, ZN5 features Motorola’s patented CrystalTalk technology to help callers hear and be heard, even in noisy environments. With dual compatibility for GSM and Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), users can connect in more areas around the world and enjoy high-speed wireless connections to surf the Web via a full HTML browser. To complete the communications experience, ZN5 also supports SMS, MMS, IM and personal e-mail.

MOTOZINE ZN5 will be first available in China in July 2008 and is expected to roll out around the globe throughout the remainder of the year. No prices have been made available yet.

Nikon’s new camera range

NEW DELHI: The new range of Nikon’s Coolpix offers the consumer the opportunity to not only express themselves with their photos but with their cameras as well. The Nikon D60 makes stepping up to digital SLR photography easy for anyone and is also a wonderful choice for photo enthusiasts looking for remarkable performance in a compact package.

Available in irresistible colours, the Coolpix range and D60 boasts of innovative technologies to ensure the picture is bright, in focus and the subject is free of red-eye. Each camera is powered with Expeed, Nikon's image processing engine to produce sharp photos with outstanding clarity.

The D60 comes with 10.2 effective megapixels and shares a form factor similar to the D40. The D60 is available across India at a retail price of Rs 36,680.

Nikon has also added the new Coolpix S52, S210, S520, S550 and S600 to its Style Series line of compact digital cameras.

The super thin, just 18mm, (less than 3/4-inch) Coolpix S210 offers 8 effective megapixel resolution, a 3x Zoom-Nikkor glass lens, Electronic Vibration Reduction (VR) Image Stabilisation technology and a quality-crafted aluminum body.

The cameras come in an array of color options such as black, silver, blue and pink.

The S210 will retail for Rs 11,950, the Coolpix S520 will retail for Rs 14,450, S550 will retail for Rs 15950, the S600 will retail for Rs 18,450 and the S52 will retail for Rs 14,950

Bill Gates to retire this week

SAN FRANCISCO: A Harvard University dropout who ushered in the home computer age and made billions of dollars along the way will have his last official day of work at Microsoft on June 27. Three people will essentially fill the void left behind when Bill Gates retires from the company he and friend Paul Allen co-founded in 1975. Since Gate's began his transition from leading Microsoft to heading his personally-bankrolled charity, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation , his job as chief software architect has been handled by Ray Ozzie. Craig Mundie inherited Gate's chief research and strategy officer duties, while former Harvard classmate Steve Ballmer became chief executive officer at the Seattle-based software colossus. Gates left Harvard after two years to found the firm that became global powerhouse Microsoft. He later received honorary degrees from Harvard and other universities. After retiring, Gates will remain chairman of the Microsoft board of directors and its largest shareholder. "I don't think anything is going to drastically change the day he leaves," said Matt Rosoff of the private analyst firm Directions On Microsoft. "If he thinks something is important and tells Steve Ballmer, Ballmer will listen to him." Still, Gates's bespectacled nerdish visage is an integral part of Microsoft's image and his departure is symbolic, according to analysts. "The challenge Microsoft has when the founder departs is remembering its heart," said analyst Rob Enderle of the Enderle Group in Silicon Valley. "At some point the firm has to take the essence of what made Bill Gates successful and make sure that is preserved. Whether it is a company or a person, once you've lost your heart there isn't much left but a shell." Analysts say there are signs that Microsoft has been struggling since Gates stepped away from managing operations several years ago. Microsoft has "missed a number of opportunities" and the Windows and Office software on which its fortune is built have stumbled.

Motorola Rokr E8

MUMBAI:Motorola has launched the newest addition to its Rokr family, the Rokr E8, which is an advanced audio player mobile device that offers access to Motorola's new music portal Motomusic through GPRS.

Motomusic is a result of the company's recent acquisition of Soundbuzz, an online and mobile music retailer. The Web site offers a range of down-loadable digital content (music and other) including full song tracks, ring tones, and music videos. Users can download the content directly on their mobile phones or PCs.

The phone features a first with technologies like "Morphing", which basically entails illuminating only those keys on the keypad that are needed to work - like Camera, Music etc.

The Rokr E8 includes ModeShift technology, a FastScroll navigation wheel, and haptics technology. ModeShift technology transforms the device from a phone to a music player with the touch of a button.

The FastScroll navigation wheel allows scrolling through songs with the slide of a thumb. Meanwhile, haptics technology provides tactile response on pressing a virtual key.

The new Rokr features a virtual numeric keypad, which disappears when the phone is turned off, displaying a smooth surface with no visible keys. With pressing any virtual music key once, the numeric keypad disappears and control keys for the music player offering functions such as play, pause, fast forward, and rewind appear in place. Users also get a tactile feedback confirmation when they've pressed a virtual key.

Other features of the phone include a 2 GB internal memory with an option to extend it further by another 4 GB.

Supplementing the music player is a 3.5mm stereo earphone jack with support for A2DP (a Bluetooth profile for wireless headsets).

The supported music formats include MIDI, MP3, AAC, AAC+, Enhanced AAC+, WMA, WAV, AMR-NB and Real Audio (RA) v10.

The camera is a 2 mega pixel one with 8x zoom, and connectivity features include USB 2.0 Hi-speed, GPRS Class 12 and EDGE Class 12.

The Rokr E8 is available for Rs 15, 455.

HELSINKI: The world's top cell phone maker Nokia said that it has agreed to buy social networking start-up Plazes as part of its major push into offering Internet services.Plazes provides a location-aware service that people can use to plan, record, and share their social activities.

"This acquisition helps Nokia to accelerate its vision of bringing people and places closer together, in line with our broader services strategy," Niklas Savander, the head of Nokia's Internet services, said in a statement.

Plazes has staff of 13, and its main operations are in Berlin. Nokia did not disclose the value of the deal.

"This acquisition will help Nokia to accelerate its vision of bringing people and places closer together, in line with our broader services strategy," Niklas Savander, the head of Nokia's Internet services, said in a statement.

Companies such as Plazes are trying to tap into the potential for new services as more mobile phones get equipped with technology to pinpoint their location.

Nokia has said it would have dozens of such phones to offer by the end of this year.

To achieve new growth as the cell phone business is set to mature in coming years Nokia started to invest heavily in building up its presence in Internet service.

It has offered $8.1 billion for US digital maps firm Navteq -- a cornerstone of its services push -- and has said it would invest millions more this year and next.

How iPhone will hit rivals

Mail to friend Price cuts to combat the new iPhone have already begun. Samsung's Instinct, sold by Sprint Nextel Corp, will go for $130 with a rebate and a two-year contract later this month, down from earlier expectations of above $200. LG's Voyager, sold through Verizon Communications Inc, was offered at $199 this month, after being launched at $400, and then later reduced to $299 with a two-year contract. CJ Investment & Securities analyst Kim Ik-sang said he has cut his handset shipment and operating profit margin forecasts for LG this year by 4 percentage points. "Before the new iPhone, I expected LG to sell 121.68 million phones -- now my forecast is 116.8 million units. LG's North American market share will also take a hit," he said, cutting his 2008 US market share forecast to 18 per cent from 20 per cent.

How iPhone will hit rivals

Mail to friend Operating margins at Samsung's telecoms division rose to a strong 16 per cent in the January-March quarter, from 11 per cent in the fourth quarter. LG achieved a handset operating margin of 14 per cent on a global basis in the first quarter, versus 8.8 per cent in the previous quarter. "Samsung and LG's margins in the second half will be 1-2 percentage points lower than the first half as they cut prices of their high-end models," said John Park, a Seoul-based analyst with Daishin Securities.

How iPhone will hit rivals

Mail to friend Samsung has four sleek touchscreen phones -- Omnia, Haptic, F490 and Instinct -- lined up to take on Apple. LG offers three touchscreen models -- Prada, Viewty with a five-megapixel camera, and Voyager. Frost & Sullivan analyst Daniel Longfield estimates Samsung and LG's iPhone look-alikes could suffer up to a 20 per cent fall in sales volumes competing head-to-head with Apple's device. "If a carrier sells both the iPhone and Samsung or LG's models, you would expect a solid 10-20 per cent decline in these model sales," Longfield said. Handset profits for both Samsung and LG probably peaked in the second quarter and are likely to fall in the second half, analysts 111said.

How iPhone will hit rivals

Mail to friend "You don't need an analyst to tell you that a low subsidised price for the most-anticipated gadget ever is going to move huge amounts of iPhones in the finite number of channels through which they'll sell," said Yankee Group analyst John Jackson. "It will hurt the Koreans in key high-end segments." Rivals Motorola and Sony Ericsson are also expected to face a tough time against the next-generation iPhone which melds a phone, iPod media player and web browser, and offers faster Internet access on advanced wireless networks. It will sell for as low as $199 when it goes on sale from July 11, half the price of the original model, thanks to heavy operator subsidies. "Now is the time for Korean makers to trim the fat from cell phone prices -- how can their $700-$800 phones compete with the iPhone?" asked Daiwa Securities analyst Jae Lee.

How iPhone will hit rivals

South Korean phone makers Samsung and LG enjoyed a stellar start to 2008 but the launch of Apple's much-hyped new iPhone is set to dent their sales and profit margins later this year. A strong portfolio of phones helped LG Electronics' sales grow at almost four times the annual industry average in the first quarter, while Samsung Electronics expanded at twice the rate, data from Strategy Analytics showed. But the Korean companies could hit a speed bump in the coming months as the progressive global rollout of Apple Inc's third-generation (3G) iPhone shaves a few percentage points off their profit margins and crimps sales of their top models, analysts said. And it is not only the Korean giants who are likely to face iPhone challenge, but all smartphone manufacturers across segments

Need for Speed: Undercover Announced

If you thought last year's Need for Speed: ProStreet was a crappy game, you're not alone. EA’s head honcho John Riccitiello feels pretty much the same way as well, "I thought it was an okay game, in terms of gameplay. It's not good. But who wanted ProStreet? It was a sort of made up, put numbers on the side of your car and pretend to drive your Ferrari where? Or your Porsche where?"

He goes on to announce the next Need for Speed game called Undercover that will play out similar to Jason Statham’s Transporter flicks. Here’s what he had to say at a recent investors meet, "For those of you who ever saw movies like The Transporter - it's sort of a cult classic among people with a B-movie mentality, which fits me perfectly. I liked it. I apologize. For those of you with no taste, and you liked it too, we can go have a Schlitz after this."

All we know as of now is that the game is being developed by two of EA's internal studios and will be released on every imaginable console on the planet.

Samsung Launches 5 Phones, Aamir Khan As Brand Ambassador

Samsung today announced the appointment of Actor Aamir Khan as its Brand Ambassador for Samsung Mobile Phones in India while launching five new phones — Samsung SGH –i450, SGH-G800, i550, D880, J210. Talking about having Aamir Khan on board, H. B. Lee, President & CEO, Samsung South West Asia Headquarters said, "The Samsung brand stands for qualities of innovation, change, discovery, self-expression and excellence in performance. And these very same qualities are epitomized by Aamir Khan, whose quality and depth of work as well as versatility as an actor, have made him a much loved and respected actor in India today. We are indeed very proud and privileged to have him as our Brand Ambassador."

New Launches

Samsung i450

The Samsung SGH – i450, seeks to give users a Mobile Theater experience, which brings alive the experience of 3D surround sound powered by ICE Power amplifiers by Bang & Olufsen. The phone makes use of the Music wheel and the Dual-Slider form factor. The SHG –i450 has been priced at Rs.15, 000.

Samsung G800

The Samsung SGH-G800 sports a 5 mega pixel camera phone with 3x optical zoom, and comes packed with face detection, Xenon flash and Wide Dynamic Range (WDR). It is priced at Rs. 21, 799.

Samsung i550

Samsung i550 addresses the needs of the business consumer. Powered by Symbian S60 operating system, the i550 comes with an in-built GPS Receiver and five hot keys provided for music, camera, navigation, internet and main menu. The trackball provided in the phone allows for 360 degrees movement on the screen for navigation and selection. This 3 mega pixel camera phone with capability to support Bluetooth audio streaming is priced at around Rs. 25, 000.

Samsung D880

The Dual GSM Sim phone from Samsung, the D880, comes with 3.2 Mega Pixel Camera, 2.3-inch Wide LCD screen, Bluetooth and Stereo FM radio. It is priced at Rs. 13, 799.

Samsung J210

Lastly, the J210 comes with a 2 mega pixel camera phone with FM recording, microSD memory card expansion and Bluetooth music streaming (A2DP profile). It is priced at Rs. 6,649.

Samsung i780

Another phone that also made an appearance at the launch was Samsung's Windows Mobile handset the SGH i780. A very Blackberry like phone with a QWERTY keypad, inbuilt GPS receiver and an optical mouse for navigation in the middle of the navigation pad.

You can expect all handsets to hit stores in the next week or so.

It's no child's play

AHMEDABAD: Raunchy video games are a big hit with the city’s school kids, who are spending hours playing them in cyber cafes. The games, some of which are titled Playboy The Mansion, Seven Sins, Bible Black, Private Dancer, Jeena, Singles Flirt Up Your Life and Lula, allow the players to kiss, fondle and undress virtual models and finally make love to them.

The games are designed to play on youngsters’ imaginations. While one of the games shows a player as a high-flying media baron making love to pretty models, the other has a player working at a garment store and seducing his female customers.

Available all over the city in shops selling compact discs and digital video discs (DVDs), these pirated CDs and DVDs cost not more than Rs 150 while originals come at steep Rs 1,500.

According to the owner of one such shop, school vacations were the best time for business . “We were flooded with kids asking for naughty video games during the summer vacations. Even now, we have at least three kids asking for naughty games every day.”

The games have profited cyber cafe owners as well. A cyber cafe owner in Naranpura said, “A large number of school kids come and play games for hours. We don’t allow people to surf obscene websites but there is nothing wrong in playing video games. After all, they are virtual.”

And of course, the big bucks kids shell out for spending hours in a cyber cafe can make any owner look the other way. Each game lasts for hours and is filled with sexual interaction between a player and the virtual models. In Playboy The Mansion for example, the player plays to enact Hugh Hefner, the owner of Playboy magazine and a self-confessed womaniser.

He gets to select the ‘models’, undress them, and take a shower with them. Of course, there is empire building involved and the player also conducts editorial meetings, design the magazine’s 12 editions and at the end of the year, choose his Playmate of the Year. Hefner would have been proud of this!

In Seven Sins, the player works at a female lingerie shop and his target is to seduce as many customers as possible. Once the virtual customer is seduced, the player goes to the next level, where he can make love to the woman.

In Flirt Up Your Life, the player’s target is to make a woman cheat on her lover. Said 12-year-old Ravi (name changed), “I love playing Playboy The Mansion... it’s a fantastic concept. I get a kick just thinking I’m in Hefner’s shoes, so what if it’s virtual.” Ravi’s 11-year-old friend said, “These games are not at all vulgar, they are simply naughty. What’s the harm in having some fun? Our entire group spends about five hours everyday in cyber cafes playing such games, which de-stress us after boring tuition classes and school.”

latest LG model KF750

Mobile phones promoters display the latest LG model KF750 with tempered glass touch screen, carbon fibre body and 5 megapixal camera at the CommunicAsia 2008 exhibition in Singapore.

Zonbu Green Laptop

Mail to friend Makers of mini desktop PC, Zonbu, launched an environment-friendly notebook computer. The laptop is designed to consume less power usage and is made of less hazardous material than normal laptops with proper recycling techniques. With 15.4 inch (1,440-by-900) widescreen display, the notebook weighs 5.3 lbs. It loads a 1.5GHz, ultra-low-voltage VIA C7-M processor, 512MB of RAM, a 60GB local hard disk, a dual-layer DVD-RW/CD-RW drive, VIA Chrome9 HC IGP graphics (64MB shared memory, 128MB maximum), built-in speaker, microphone and headphone ports. The company claims that the battery lasts 2 hours 30 minutes to 3 hours per charge. The notebook received an EPEAT silver rating from the Green Electronics Council. Courtesy: Indiatimes News Network

Fujitsu's wooden laptop

Mail to friend Japanese giant Fujitsu recently displayed a concept laptop product whose casing is made of wood. The company said that the laptop would have cedar wood for its case. The company is also using bio-plastics for other parts to make the laptop environment friendly. Also, it is collaborating with Monacca, a Japanese design team, for this concept product. Monacca specialises in wooden products ranging from furniture to calculators.

Nokia 3110 Evolve

Mail to friend Late last year Nokia launched its eco-friendly phone, Nokia 3110 Evolve, which it claims is 65 per cent recyclable. The phone has a bio-cover made with over 50 per cent renewable material and comes in a box made of 60 per cent recycled material. Evolve comes with a 1.3 megapixel camera, FM radio, digital music player, 262K color display, infrared and a mini USB port. The phone supports Bluetooth withA2DP, external memory with microUSB cards up to 2GB. The company has also announced plans to launch about 40 new green mobile phones this year. The phones which will be priced across all ranges, will have biodegradable phone covers and recyclable battery designs, which contain small amount of toxic material such as cadmium and lithium. The company is also working towards reducing the energy consumption of its mobile chargers by up to 50 per cent. Nokia also plans to open up ‘Green Bins’ across all Nokia dealers in India, where customers can dispose of their old mobile phones for recycling.

Green Sony Bravia

Mail to friend Japanese giant Sony has launched a flat-panel Green TV that consumes less energy compared to regular models without compromising image quality. The 32-inch, Bravia KDL-JE1, consumes 82 watts of energy on its liquid crystal display. Priced at $1,400, the TV goes on sale in Japan on July 30, and is expected to hit the global market later this year. The company claims that it achieved the energy savings by developing a brighter back light and better filtering that delivers light more efficiently. Compared to the old-style TVs with a cathode-ray tube monitor, Bravia KDL-JE1 consumes about 70 per cent less energy a year. The company claims that by consuming less energy, the new Green TV reduces carbon emissions by 79 kilograms a year, the amount equivalent to the one consumed by about six cedar trees in a year. As for consumers, it means a good saving on the electricity bill.

Samsung W510 and F268

Mail to friend Samsung recently made its entry in the eco-friendly cell phone category with the launch of two new handsets -- W510 and F268. W510 is the company's first mobile phone that has 'bio-plastic' made from natural material extracted from corn. The company plans to use renewable and eco-friendly material instead of using common plastic produced from petroleum. Samsung claims that it didn't use any heavy metals such as Lead, Mercury and Cadmium in its latest eco offerings. The other model Samsung F268 does not contain BFRs (Brominated Flame Retardant) or PVC. Also, its accessories including charger and headset are free from BFRs and PVC. The products are in line with Energy Star requirements set by the US Environmental Protection Agency and the US Department of Energy.

Dell Vostro 410

The leading computer vendor Dell launched its Green PC for the small and medium business segment recently. Dell Vostro 410 desktop is designed to reduce carbon footprint as well as help customers' save as much as 47 per cent on their electricity bills. The PC comes with Intel Core 2 Quad, 512MB Nvidia GeForce, 800MHz system memory, six expansion slots, four bays and gigabit Ethernet. With a price tag of Rs 32,900, Vostro 410 offers up to 3TB of local storage. The company claims that the PC has high-performance processing power, graphics technology, fast networking and maximum expandability. Dell also announced the availability of the E207 20-inch widescreen flat panel monitor. The company claims that more than 25 per cent of the monitor's plastic comprise recycled materials. The E207 display starts at $259 (approx Rs 10,000).

Hottest energy-saving gadgets

Green's in. Green computing, the hottest mantra for IT cos, is fast inching into our lives. Almost all leading tech manufacturers have launched a range of eco-friendly gadgets that promise lower energy and power consumption and offer environment-friendly disposal. Right from energy saving bulbs, to exercise gadgets, to cell phone chargers to laptops, Green is everywhere. This week Dell unveiled its small business PC Vostro 410. With a starting price tag of Rs 32,900, the PC claims to reduce consumers' electricity bills by as much as 47 per cent. The biggest cell phone maker, Nokia, too plans to roll out 40 Green phones this year. Here's looking into these hot new Green gadgets.

How your gadgets harm you

Print EMail Discuss New Bookmark/Share Bookmark / Share Del.icio.us Google Bookmarks Facebook Yahoo MyWeb StumbleUpon Reddit More Save Write to Editor Single page view

NEW DELHI: It’s difficult to imagine life without the cellphone or the laptop. From being luxury gizmos earlier, they are almost human appendages now, attached to us 24x7. But are we paying a huge price for our dependence on such electronic items? Recently, a Jawaharlal Nehru University pilot study found that 20 rats subject to mobile phone radiation had damaged DNA and low sperm count. And last week, the Union health ministry commissioned the first large-scale study of the effects of radio frequency radiation from mobile phones on humans. With 250 million mobile phone subscribers currently in India, and many more using other appliances like television, computer, vacuum cleaner, microwave etc, the fear is that these ‘essentials’ of life may actually be posing a big health risk because of their electromagnetic fields (EMFs). As such, research has not yet established anything definite about the impact of EMFs on the human body. They are every where, though we cannot sense them. Almost all electronic equipments have EMFs and we are constantly bombarded by the radiation from these fields. But then, not all EMFs have an impact. Only those with high frequencies -- 2mG (milli gauss) and above -- cause the maximum harm. And these are usually found in appliances that we use on a daily basis -- microwaves, cordless phones, computer monitors, fax machines, cellphones, cellphone towers, hairdryers and so on. Cancer connection? Various international studies have tried to establish the link between EMFs and some diseases. Doctors believe that constant exposure to high frequency EMFs leads to digestive disorders, fatigue, hypertension, insomnia, irritability, low blood pressure, infertility in males, cancer, neurological and cardiovascular problems. A Swedish study in 1993 demonstrated a 1.7 times higher risk of leukemia in adults and a 2.7 times higher risk for childhood leukemia from exposure to EMFs A few years back, the California Department of Health Ser vices concluded after a seven-year study that EMF exposure is a risk factor for childhood leukemia. The threat is real and omnipresent. Says oncologist Dr Ramananda Nadig, president, Health Care Global-Triesta Sciences Bangalore, “Most, if not all, electrical appliances that emit EMFs are harmful to a certain extent. While they may not be initiators of a malignant change, there is every likelihood that they promote/augment such a change. The more people are exposed, the greater the risk. That is why it’s important that we be cautious of EMFs.” In recent years, experts have been studying the impact of cellphones and cellphone towers on the human body, and the initial research results have not been too comforting An Australian neurosurgeon of Indian origin Dr Vini Khurana, recently published a research paper on the link between mobiles and brain cancer. He said using mobiles for over 10 years could more than double the risk of brain cancer. Mobile phone radiation, he says could heat the side of the head or ther moelectrically inter act with the brain while Bluetooth de vices and “unshielded headsets could “convert the user’s head into an effective, potentially self-harming antenna” . Similarly, cellphone towers are a cause of concern. A 2005 study by Gursatej Gandhi, a re searcher in the Human Genetics Department, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, found that “exposure to radio frequency (RF) signals generated by the use of cellular phones has increased dramatically and is reported to affect physiological neurological, cognitive and behavioural changes and to in duce, initiate and promote carcinogenesis”