Industy Updates

Redmi K20 and Redmi K20 Pro ‘Will Not Have  Ad-Supported Monetisation,’ Says Xiaomi:  What  It Actually Means But don't expect notifications from apps like Mi Music and Mi Video to go away. Redmi K20 and Redmi K20 Pro are Xiaomi's latest launches in the India market, starting at a price of Rs. 21,999 and Rs. 27,999 respectively. This makes the K20 duo the most expensive Redmi phones in the market. While the Redmi K20 Pro price in India has been pretty well received, its more affordable sibling has been the caught in a bit of storm about its price tag, forcing Xiaomi to speak up on the issue and India head Manu Jain even penned an open letter on the subject. Another area where the company has been criticized in the past is an overdose of ads across its custom MIUI, but it seems that is one topic Redmi K20 and Redmi K20 Pro buyers won't have to worry about. “For a premium series, like the [Redmi] K-series that we are launching today, we are kind o...

A draft bill to completely ban cryptocurrencies is in the works though. Despite banking restrictions put in place by the Reserve Bank of India, the country has not put any blanket ban on trading in cryptocurrencies yet, the government has clarified. Responding to questions in the Rajya Sabha on whether the government has prohibited cryptocurrency in the country, Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Anurag Thakur this week said the answer was no. "Presently, there is no separate law for dealing with issues relating to cryptocurrencies. Hence, all concerned departments and law enforcement agencies, such as RBI, Enforcement Directorate and Income Tax authorities, etc. take action as per the relevant existing laws," the Minister said. "Similarly, police/courts take action on IPC (Indian Penal Code) offenses. Further, in view of the risks and dangers associated with cryptocurrencies, (the) government and RBI have been issuing advisories, press re...

Prime Day 2019 sale will bring new products, more deals, and more entertainment. Amazon's Prime Day sale is all set to begin from July 15 in India. Amazon's biggest sale event of the year will run for 48 hours this year, promising a large number of great deals, new product launches, and more. Amazon's Prime Day sale is an exclusive sale event open to Prime subscribers. While we're almost two weeks away from this year's Prime Day sale, Amazon has already kicked off the event with new releases on Prime Video in India. Amazon Prime Day 2019 sale in India - Everything you can expect: Deals and offers during Prime Day 2019 Just like the previous Prime Day sale, Amazon is promising a much bigger sale event this year with over 1,000 new product launches, exciting deals and offers across all major product categories, and more. This year, Prime Day will begin on July 15 and will continue throughout July 16. As for deals and offers, Prime Day 2019 sale...

Google has updated it's Android Developer's beta page for the Android Q beta. The page now consists of a note, which states that the newly launched Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL will not be eligible for the beta program until June. Google has updated it's Android Developer’s beta page for the Android Q beta. The page now consists of a note, which states that the newly launched Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL will not be eligible for the beta program until June. Which means you cannot signup for the Android Q beta automatic over the air (OTA) update. As of now, the only eligible devices from Google include the Pixel, Pixel XL, Pixel 2, Pixel 2 XL, Pixel 3 and Pixel 3XL. You can still get the Android Q Beta 3 on your Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL by downloading and manually flashing the OTA files on to the smartphone. This is a bit odd, as many Pixel 3a owners have reported online that they were able to sign-up for the Android Beta Program till last Tuesday. This might mean th...

Microsoft on Thursday said that its Windows 10 operating system (OS) is now running on more than 800 million active devices worldwide, one step closer to its goal of 1 billion Windows 10 users. "Thank you to all our customers and partners for helping us achieve 800 million Windows 10 devices and the highest customer satisfaction in the history of Windows," Yusuf Mehdi, Corporate Vice President of Modern Life and Devices Group tweeted. It took almost three years and eight months for Windows 10 to reach the goal of 800 million after it was released in July 2015, Xinhua news agency reported. Microsoft had originally expected to attain the goal of having Windows 10 installed on 1 billion devices globally in three years after its release, but it missed the target last year. The company announced in September 2018 that over 700 million devices were running Windows 10, indicating it had won 100 million new users in less than six months. Earlier, Microsoft ha...

Google has launched a new app called Bolo, which aims to help students with their reading and comprehension skills. The beta version of Bolo, launched in India first, is optimized for native Hindi speakers and works with phones running Android 4.4 (Kit Kat) and higher. Google today launched a new app called Bolo, which is aimed at helping students in India, especially those in rural parts, with their reading and comprehension skills. Advertising The Bolo app, which is launching in beta first, comes after a pilot project that Google ran with 900 children in over 200 villages in Uttar Pradesh with ASER center. The annual ASER 2018 report showed that of all students enrolled in grade 5 in rural India, only about half of them can confidently read a grade 2 level textbook. The Google Bolo app will hope to plug that gap with its tutor-based approach in helping children read. The app includes an Assistant called Diya as well, which encourages children with thei...

Samsung is expected to launch as many as three phones - Samsung Galaxy S10, Samsung Galaxy S10+, and Samsung Galaxy S10e. Samsung could also unveil a foldable Samsung Galaxy X, the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active and the Samsung Galaxy Buds. Samsung is all set to launch its tenth anniversary  Galaxy S10 series  smartphones on February 20 at a 'Galaxy Unpacked' event in San Francisco. In India, people can live stream the event from 12:30 am midnight on February 21. The live stream of the Galaxy Unpacked event would be available on Samsung's Facebook page, Twitter page and YouTube channel. This year, Samsung is expected to launch as many as three phones - Samsung Galaxy S10, Samsung Galaxy S10+, and Samsung Galaxy S10e. Samsung could also unveil a foldable Samsung Galaxy X, the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active and the Samsung Galaxy Buds. the Samsung Galaxy S10 and S10 Plus will have a Super AMOLED curved edge-to-edge display design. On the other hand, the display of the S...

Acqui-hire is a portmanteau of  "acquisition" and "hiring". This is Intel's first major talent acquisition in India . US-headquartered technology giant Intel Corporation has acqui-hired Hyderabad-based Ineda Systems' 100 engineers, in what seems to be a swift move, sealed between the two companies a week ago--on February 12. Acqui-hire is a portmanteau of "acquisition" and "hiring". This is being seen as a validation of India's talent capabilities and establishes the fact that it has come a long way from where it began seven years ago. Dasaradha R Gude, the founder of Ineda, told Business Today that since it was an acqui-hire deal, the global giant was acquiring Ineda's 100 engineers and one of their office facilities in Hyderabad. This apparently is to help Intel expand and grow faster. Ineda, however he clarifies, will retain its IP and its products; including microchips, medical devices, and smart meters. Ineda, he...

The Pentagon will evaluate the certification for Elon Musk's SpaceX launch vehicles to determine whether the US Air Force complied with certain guidelines, according to a memo on Monday. "Our objective is to determine whether the US Air Force complied with the Launch Services New Entrant Certification Guide when certifying the launch system design for the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle-class SpaceX Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch vehicles," US Department Of Defense Deputy Inspector General Michael Roark said in the memo. In December, a SpaceX rocket carrying a US military navigation satellite blasted off from Florida's Cape Canaveral, marking the space transportation company's first national security space mission for the United States. The successful launch was a significant victory for billionaire Musk, who has spent years trying to break into the lucrative market for military space launches dominated by Lockheed Martin Corp and ...

The Rs 119 recharge plan from Vodafone India comes with 1GB of data and unlimited voice calling benefits for 28 days Vodafone India has launched a new recharge plan priced at Rs 119. The new plan comes with 1GB of data and unlimited voice calling benefits for 28 days. However, the Vodafone Rs 119 plan is only available in limited circles and hasn't been launched countrywide as an open market plan. Vodafone India also has a Rs 169 plan with 1 GB data, 100 SMSs, 28 days validity and free access to Vodafone Play app . But, unlike the Vodafone 119 plan, the Vodafone 169 is available as an open market plan. The Vodafone 119 recharge plan is available in the 4G circles and only to the select users. Also, the plan does not include SMS benefits unlike the Rs 169. There is also a similar Rs 119 recharge plan for the Idea Cellular customers in circles such as Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and Kerala circles. Vodafone India had introduced the Rs 169 recharge plan in 2018 to offer un...

Microsoft is set to host its annual three-day Build developer conference at the Washington State Convention Centre in Seattle from May 6 to 8. The Build conference is Microsoft's main annual developer event where the company unveils its latest Windows versions alongside additions to other software and service tools like Office and Azure. The software giant is planning to post the agenda of the event later this month and open registrations from February 27, The Verge reported on Wednesday.  The company is currently finalizing its latest Windows 10 update, code-named "19H1" which is expected to reach the existing machines ahead of event leaving room for Microsoft to highlight new features in its upcoming Windows 10 release scheduled for later this year.  The software giant is also likely to outline details of "Windows Lite" - which is a lighter version of the operating system (OS) for users who do not require full power Windows...

NASA and SpaceX are now aiming for a March debut of the first capsule from a private company designed to fly astronauts to the International Space Station. No one will be on board for the crew Dragon's inaugural test flight to the orbiting outpost. Officials on Wednesday set March 2 as the latest launch date. If the demo goes well, two NASA astronauts will take a test flight in July aboard the SpaceX capsule. It would be the first launch of US astronauts into orbit, from US soil, since NASA's shuttle program ended in 2011. President Donald Trump mentioned the upcoming milestone in Tuesday night's State of the Union address. Boeing, meanwhile, is shooting for an April launch of its first Starliner capsule without a crew. The first Starliner flight with astronauts would be August at best. NASA's commercial crew program has been delayed repeatedly over the years, forcing a lengthy, expensive reliance on Russian rockets. Each seat on a Russian Soyuz c...

Samsung’s four-camera phone Galaxy A9 gets more affordable, price down by Rs 6,000 Samsung Galaxy A9 has a setup of four cameras - a 24-megapixel primary sensor, a 10-megapixel telephoto sensor, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide sensor, and a 5-megapixel depth sensor. Samsung Galaxy A9, the world’s first quad-camera smartphone, has become more affordable the latest price cut. Samsung has slashed the price of the Galaxy A9 to Rs 30,990 for the base variant, just about a month after its price was reduced to Rs 33,990 from the original pricing of Rs 36,990. The Samsung Galaxy A9 was launched in India last year and went up for sale in November. The new pricing of the Galaxy A9 base variant with 6GB RAM is Rs 30,990 while the 8GB RAM variant now costs Rs 33,990. The Samsung online store now reflects the new pricing and it seems to be the permanent one. Flipkart has also revised the pricing of the smartphone on its website along with some offers that will bring the effe...

Kalyan Krishnamurthy, the head honcho of Walmart-backed Flipkart, sends an internal email to employees reiterating Walmart's confidence in the Indian market. Kalyan Krishnamurthy, the CEO of Walmart-backed Flipkart yesterday shot down a recent Morgan Stanley report that suggested India's new FDI (foreign direct investment) norms for e-commerce might prompt the US retail behemoth to divest its stake in the homegrown e-tailer unless it found a long-term path to profitability. According to The Business Standard, the head honcho sent an internal email to Flipkart employees on Tuesday reiterating Walmart's confidence in India. "The report couldn't be further than the truth. Walmart remains extremely confident about the potential of the Indian market and in Flipkart's ability to lead the e-commerce space," read the email. "By partnering with Flipkart, Walmart has taken a long-term view of the opportunities and hence is unfazed by any short-term ...