ZTE to launch 5.5 inch phablet in India in Nov

ZTE had launched six smartphones in India in July this year.

ZTE, the Chinese handset giant, will launch a huge 5.5 inch display bearing smartphone in the first week of November in India, according to a senior executive of the company. Another phablet with 5 inch display is also set to be launched.

"We will launch a 5.5 inch display bearing smartphone and a 5 inch smartphone in India in the first week of November in view of the upcoming Diwali season," said Amir Saxena, ZTE's director of marketing to The Mobile Indian in an exclusive meeting.

Both the devices are based on Android operating system and quad core processors; also, both are said to be priced "affordably".

However, no further information (including their names) about the devices were revealed. ZTE Grand Memo, which is not available in India and is the biggest smartphone in its stable, comes with a 5.7 inch display and not 5.5 inch as told by the ZTE official. However, ZTE has several 5 inch Android smartphones in its kitty and it could not be ascertained which one ZTE plans to launch in India.

As per ZTE China's webpage, it has a smartphone called Grand S Flex, which comes with a 5 inch screen. ZTE Grand S, which also comes with a 5 inch screen, also fits the bill to be launched in India; in fact earlier media reports also said that the ZTE Grand S will be launched in India this Diwali.

ZTE had been supplying CDMA phones to Indian operators. In July this year, though, it launched six handsets under its own brand name in a price bracket of Rs 5,000-Rs 15,000. To know more, click here.

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Google Nexus 5 with Android 4.4 KitKat spotted

A hands-on video showing Android 4.4 KitKat build running on LG Google Nexus 5 was leaked online showing different features of both - hardware and software.

Google and LG are expected to launch the Nexus 5 smartphone with Android 4.4 KitKat (KeyLimePie) operating system on it. A French website (smartphones.sfr) has now posted a video showing off the final version of the Nexus 5.

The LG and Google's Nexus 5 smartphone with model LG-D820 will feature a 4.95-inch display with full HD (1080p) resolution. It is powered by the quad-core 2.3 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 with 2 GB RAM. In the video, the build was still listed as Android 4.4 KeyLimePie update. There are no visual improvements visible so the build is obviously old.

The fresh leaks of the Android 4.4 KitKat will show a transparent like notification bar and overall treatment seems to be inspired by the iOS 7 update. Check out the full video of the slim slab like finish of the Nexus 5.

Google is expect to launch the Nexus 5 smartphone later this month.

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HTC Desire 500 now available in India

Though according to Flipkart, the handset is expected to be released in India in the third week of October, Snapdeal is promising delivery in just three days.

HTC Desire 500 is now available in India through many online retail stores. While Flipkart has opened its prebooking for Rs 21490, Snapdeal is offering it for Rs 20,452 only. Though according to Flipkart, the handset is expected to be released in India in the third week of October, Snapdeal is promising delivery in just three days.

The HTC Desire 500 is just 9.9 mm thick and comes with a 4.3 inch display having WVGA(800x480 pixels). The 123 grams weighing smartphone has the 1.2 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 200quad core processor which is assisted by 1 GB RAM. The Desire 500 has Android 4.2 Jelly Bean operating system with HTC Sense and the famous BlinkFeed user interface.

Besides, HTC Desire 500 has 4 GB Internal memory, 64 GB micro SD card slot, 8 megapixel auto focus rear camera, and 1.6 megapixel front camera. Both the front and rear camera comes with BSI sensor. Besides the f2.0 aperture and 28 mm lens bearing rear camera is said to be able to capture high definition videos. The phone also comes with Beats audio integration like many other HTC smartphones.

The Desire 500 has an 1800 mAh battery which is said to provide 12.1 hours of 3G talktime and 435 hours of 3G standby time. The dual SIM smartphone has GPS with AGPS support, Bluetooth4.0, WiFi, and DLNA. Besides it comes with Accelerometer, proximity sensor, and ambient light sensor.

HTC has a range of smartphones in its Desire series including the Desire C, Desire U, Desire X, Desire SV, and the recently launched Desire 600.

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Top 5 free Windows Phone apps for Indians

Get the best out of Windows Phone devices with these five apps meant for Indian users.

While most mobile platforms offer global level apps, it becomes difficult for the user to get applications that can benefit them in their routine. Thankfully, we now have ample Indian developers working on apps that can benefit Indian users and also offer global standard design.

These are five essential apps that Windows Phone users must have, apart from the other cluster of apps. Most importantly, these apps have been developed in India by Indian developers.

1. IRCTC

Booking a train ticket online is like a relentless quest but the new beautifully designed IRCTC app pleads otherwise. The fully functional app offers train ticket booking, and the ability to check train schedules and even PNR status for booked tickets.

Apart from that the app can be used for canceling a ticket, checking booking history, adding Favorites and getting live notifications from the app. Among the most essential apps for Indian travellers, it is available for free but we do not promise the best connectivity.

2. Paytm

Paytm's clean and easy to use app offers pre-paid, data cards and DTH for all popular cellular service providers in India. Apart from that, users can also pay their postpaid account bill and DTH bill for all DTH service providers. The app supports debit cards, credit cards or Netbanking for making the payments. The interesting thing is that with every recharge, the user gets to choose different discount coupons available for a variety of online shopping avenues.

This means that while spending money on recharge, you also get to save a couple of bucks with the discount coupons. Use Paytm to recharge anyone's phone or pay your bill from anywhere.

3. Dhingana

For entertainment any time, the Dhingana app offers over a million songs in over 40 different Indian languages. Free for listening, these songs can be searched for and streamed online. The app offers access to the top new and popular albums along with playlists of all languages as well as genres. The recommendation engine offers albums and playlists similar to the one the user is listening to.

Dhingana can play songs in the background while you can continue using the device and easily share your favorite tracks on Facebook, Twitter or via email.

4. Zomato

Indians who love food would always love to see if there is any place nearby that is worth trying out. Zomato app offers the same with all the essential details about a restaurant close to the user's location or in a specified locality along with recommendations of recipes and reviews. The user can register for creating a profile and maintaining an activity for rating, recommending and writing reviews on the restaurants visited.

The Zomato app has a clean and neat user interface with ample amount of information, right from approximate cost of the meal to the map to reach the restaurant.

5. HDFC Bank

This is the only out of place app meant for a specific group of users: HDFC Bank account holders. The HDFC Bank app offers mobile banking in the true sense- transferring funds, viewing cheque status, paying bills, and other ancillary services. Users can even transfer funds right from the app, and can make credit card payments and call for cheque books as well.

Other than HDFC users, SBI Bank account holders too can fetch the free SBI Bank Freedom app from the Windows Phone Store . We resisted adding it here because of the tedious registration process.

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November 1 launch date expected for Apple iPhone 5S, iPhone 5C in India

Sometime back Apple iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C had been listed on Saholic -an Indian online retailer

Apple has said in a statement it will make iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C available in retail market from November 1 in India. Company has not revealed India-specific prices of both the devices.

Sometime back Apple iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C had been listed on Saholic - an Indian online retailer. Saholic has listed all the three versions of the iPhone 5S as well as iPhone 5C, i.e. the 16 GB, 32 GB and 64 GB versions of iPhone 5S and the 16 GB and 32 GB versions of iPhone 5C. Though the retailer had also not announced their prices or availability date, the iPhone 5C is expected to be priced upwards Rs 35,000 while the iPhone 5S's price is expected to start from Rs 45,000.

Apple iPhone 5C:

This phone comes with a 4 inch touchscreen with 1136x540 pixels resolution. It has three axis gyro sensor, proximity sensor, accelerometer, ambient light sensor, and even digital compass. It would be available in pink, white, yellow, blue, and green colours.

Apple iPhone 5C

The colourful iPhone 5C has 1 GB RAM, 8 megapixel rear camera, and a 1.2 megapixel front camera which is capable of recording high definition videos. Besides, the Apple iPhone 5C has 1.3GHz dual core Apple A6 processor, WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, micro USB 2.0, GPS with A-GPS, iOS 7 operating system, and a Li-Ion battery capable of giving 9 hours of talktime both on 2G and 3Gnetworks.

Apple iPhone 5S:

Apple iPhone 5S too has a 4 inch retinal display with 1136x640 pixels resolution. Armed with fingerprint sensor, the Apple iPhone 5S also comes with three axis gyro sensor, proximity sensor, accelerometer, ambient light sensor, and even digital compass. The display has Corning Gorilla Glass coating as well.

Apple iPhone 5C

Besides, the iPhone 5S has 8 megapixel rear camera, 1.2 megapixel front camera which is capable of recording high definition videos, iOS 7 operating system, the newly announced 64 bit Apple A7 processor, OpenGLES 3.0 graphics processing unit, WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, micro USB 2.0, and GPS with A-GPS. It has a 1440 mAh Li-Ion battery that is said to provide 10 hours of talktime on 2G and 9 hours of talktime on 3G network.

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Improved Skype For Android Mobile & Tablets

The new application also bring updated user interface for tablets.

Microsoft's cross platform chat and video calling service, Skype has updated its Android version. The new Skype Android 4.4 application brings a brand new user interface for tablets, users of which will now see a new interface that puts conversations first, displaying your most recent calls and chats.

The new Android Skype app claims to provide improved video call quality 4 with up to four times the resolution of previous versions, with enhanced clarity and frame rates. For Kindle device owners will also get to enjoy the updated user interface that has been made available in the new version and along with that they will continue to get hardware acceleration for video calling through the application.

The application has been rolled out for Android devices but Kindle device owners will have to wait for a little more time as the application will be made available later this month.

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