Reliance CDMA Tab launched in India

Reliance Communications became the first CDMA operator in India to enter the tablet space by unveiling its ‘Reliance CDMA Tab’, a fully loaded Android tablet, today. With this launch, Reliance also emerges as the first telecom operator in India to offer tablets on both the GSM and CDMA networks. The tablet is priced at Rs.12,999 and will be avialable across all Reliance World Stores and other retail outlets.

Let's not forget the CDMA crowd

The Reliance CDMA Tab comes with a 7-inch capacitive touch screen with Android 2.3 OS. Loaded with 512 MB RAM and a microSD external storage, it is sure to appeal a large segment of value conscious consumers, just as the Reliance 3G Tab did last year. The lightweight (397g) Reliance CDMA Tab comes with a 2.0 MP rear camera and a front camera, among other key features, catering to both business users as well as the youth segment. The Reliance CDMA Tab is supported by Reliance’s CDMA network across 22 circles in over 1,000 towns in the country. As you can see below, you can also get attractive monthly and annual data plans. To further enhance its value proposition, Reliance Communications is offering a 1 year free subscription on McAfee Mobile Security, 2 months free subscription on BigFlix+, and Rs.250 worth of calling on Reliance Global Call, all together valued at Rs.2,100.

Special rates

Reliance CDMA Tab is pre-loaded with 15 most popular applications to provide information services (browsing, navigation maps and search), communication services (e-mail, blog, SMS, and MMS), entertainment services (music, video, and games) and social networking services (Facebook) and access to thousands of applications provided through the Android Market. You can also expect a 24X7 customer care at your disposal for any technical issues, should you have any.

Google announces development of Chrome for Windows 8

Browser wars have heated up and every major developer, be it Mozilla, Google, Microsoft and Opera are hard at work to get the biggest pie in the market. There are a ton of features being added and the next big change that’s about to come is support for Windows 8. The Windows 8 operating system is expected to launch sometime, this year and browser manufacturers are racing to get their browsers ready for it. A few days back, we talked about Mozilla preparing the Firefox browser for Windows 8. Now, Google has announced that they are working on a Chrome build for Windows 8 as well. A Google spokesperson told Mashable that they were working on the Windows 8 build based on the desktop version of the Chrome browser.

For Windows 8 Metro UI soon

The Windows 8 version will run on the Metro interface. Google hopes to offer fast, simple and secure Chrome build for both desktop and Metro users. The Metro version of Chrome will be build for better support for touch interfaces. However, there are still some doubts about browsers being allowed to run in the Metro user interface. For example, Firefox developer Brian Brondy mentioned the same issue, while trying to develop the Firefox browser for Windows 8. Internet Explorer seems to be the only browser that will be allowed to work in the Metro user interface. However, Mashable says that that a whitepaper by Microsoft clearly mentions that other browsers on the Metro UI were welcome. While most Metro apps don’t support multitasking, browsers would be allowed to do so. 

Users looking forward to the Windows 8 version of the Chrome browser can expect to see the same features found on the desktop version and the Android version - things like syncing of settings and bookmarks between different versions. Swipe functionality as well as extension support, like the desktop version will also be present. Users used to the desktop version will be able to use a similar browser that they’ve been used to on the older Windows versions.

PayPal backtracks on "obscene" e-book policy

PayPal, the online payment service owned by eBay Inc, is backtracking on its policy against processing sales of e-books containing themes of rape, bestiality or incest after protests from authors and anti-censorship activist groups. PayPal's new policy will focus only on e-books that contain potentially illegal images, not e-books that are limited to just text, spokesman Anuj Nayar said on Tuesday. The service will still refuse, however, to process payments for text-only e-books containing child pornography themes.

The revised policy will also focus on individual books, rather than entire classes of books, he added. E-book sellers will be notified if specific books violate PayPal's policy, and the company is working on a process through which authors and distributors can challenge such notifications, the spokesman said.

"This is going to be a major victory for writers, readers and free speech," said Mark Coker, founder of e-book distributor Smashwords. "They are going to build a protective moat around legal fiction."

PayPal warned Smashwords and some other e-book publishers and distributors earlier this year that it would "limit" their PayPal accounts unless they removed e-books "containing themes of rape, incest, bestiality and underage subjects."

PayPal's original policy was criticized by groups, including the Authors Guild and the National Coalition Against Censorship, which voiced concern that banks and payment companies may be exerting too much control over what books can be written, published and read. PayPal is relaxing the policy after the main credit card companies made a distinction between extreme pornographic images and e-books that explore such topics with only the written word.

Better policies

PayPal told e-book distributors earlier this year that the original policy was in place partly because the banks and credit card companies it works with restrict such content. However, Doug Michelman, global head of corporate relations for Visa Inc, suggested that the company would not crack down on e-books that explore such topics, according to a letter he wrote that was posted on the blog Banned Writers. A Visa spokesperson confirmed that the letter was real.

"The sale of a limited category of extreme imagery depicting rape, bestiality and child pornography is or is very likely to be unlawful in many places and would be prohibited on the Visa system whether or not the images have formally been held to be illegal in any particular country," Michelman wrote. "Visa would take no action regarding lawful material that seeks to explore erotica in a fictional or educational manner."

A MasterCard spokesman drew a similar distinction on Tuesday, saying that the company "would not take action regarding the use of its cards and systems for the sale of lawful materials that seek to explore erotica content of this nature."

PayPal's new policy will still prohibit the use of its service for sale of e-books that contain child pornography, or e-books with text and obscene images of rape, bestiality or incest, the spokesman said. PayPal has not shut down the accounts of any e-books publishers involved in this debate, he added.

Sophisticated' cyber-attack hits BBC

According to reports coming in, the British Broadcasting Corporation suffered a cyber-attack of a sophisticated nature. The attack, according to Director-general, Mark Thompson follows close on the heels of a campaign led by Iranian authorities against the company's Persian service. It has been reported that the cyber-attack rendered the satellite feeds into Iran jammed, while also swamping the company's London phone lines with automated calls. Reports also add that in his speech, which Thompson made to address the cyber-attack, he, albeit not directly, accused Tehran of being the one to have orchestrated the cyber-attacks on the British Broadcasting Corporation, by stating that "the coincidence of the attacks as "self-evidently suspicious"".

Suffers a hack! 

Apparently, BBC's Persian news service hasn't been having a smooth run. Reportedly, last month, Thompson raised allegations against Iranian authorities, accusing them of arresting and threatening the families of BBC journalists, in a bid to get them to quit the Persian news service, altogether. BBC's Persian news service provide Farsi-language TV, radio and online services. Western journalists, reportedly find it difficult to work in Iran, since the government there perceive foreign media with suspicion. Hence, very few Western journalists are permitted to work there. 

Further in this statement, Thompson said, "It now looks as if those who seek to disrupt or block BBC Persian may be widening their tactics. There was a day recently when there was a simultaneous attempt to jam two different satellite feeds of BBC Persian into Iran, to disrupt the Service's London phone-lines by the use of multiple automatic calls, and a sophisticated cyber-attack on the BBC. It is difficult, and may prove impossible, to confirm the source of these attacks, though attempted jamming of BBC services into Iran is nothing new and we regard the coincidence of these different attacks as self-evidently suspicious."

Reports further state that despite, all the employees of BBC's Persian service working outside Iran; authorities in Tehran have been arresting and forcing their relatives living in Iran. Although, Thompson did not reveal further about the details on the cyber-attack, he did state that they are trying to ensure that the "vital service continues to reach the people who need it."

NETGEAR announces new Universal Wi-Fi Range Extender

NETGEAR has announced the launch of its new NETGEAR Universal Dual Band WiFi Range Extender (WN30000RP), which extends dual band Wi-Fi coverage for any home office or home network. The NETGEAR Universal Wi-Fi Range Extender effectively doubles the operating distance of your entire wireless network and avoids additional need for power cables or device clutter on your office desk or home theater. The WN3000RP extends your wireless network to include the area outside the range of your existing wireless router by overcoming obstacles and enhancing overall network signal quality, giving you the added option to roam anywhere in the house and access Internet without worrying about the coverage. The product has been specifically designed to be plugged into an electrical outlet, and it blends in nicely with any surrounding. It is compatible with wireless b/g/n routers, gateways and Internet service provider devices.

The Universal Wi-Fi Range extender

Key Features:

• Extend Network — Extend Internet access throughout your home for wireless devices, like iPads, iPods, laptops, smart phones, game consoles and TVs
• Enhance Existing Equipment — Keep your current equipment and improve coverage to eliminate wireless “dead zones”
• Plug-and-play — Sets up in minutes, no need to insert a CD or plug-in Ethernet cables
• Push ‘N’ Connect — Push ‘N’ Connect using Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) connects computers and/or routers to the Extender quickly and securely
• Optimal Coverage — Link-rate LED locates the best placement spot to provide optimal wireless coverage
• Compatible — Works with any wireless b/g/n router or gateway from NETGEAR and other brands
• Superior Security — Works with all security standards including WPA-PSK, WPA2-PSK, mixed mode and WEP
• Connect — Ethernet port allows the Extender to function as a bridge to connect to home theater devices
• NETGEAR Green features — Power on/off button, 80 percent recycled packaging

This product is available with the authorized distributors in India. The NETGEAR Universal Dual Band Wi-Fi Range Extender (WN3000RP) is priced at MRP Rs.4,700. More information on this product is available here. Also, more information about other new NETGEAR consumer products and services is available here.

Samsung to supply Apple with screens for new iPad

Before you get all ‘Take that, fanboys’ about this story, let’s first clarify the deal here. Samsung Electronics is going to be supplying screens for Apple's new iPad. Why? Because, LG and Sharp weren’t able to meet Apple’s quality check requirements for their screens; and so it’s good ol’ Samsung that’s dealing with screens for the iPad. Err, so no surprise here, which means you can continue with your taunts and digs and fist pumps at those fanboys. As reported by Bloomberg Businessweek, a senior manager at iSuppli confirmed this news mentioning that Samsung is currently the world’s best top flat-panel maker and is the only seller for the 9.7-inch display that the new iPad requires. 

Make screens not war

Even though the two are embroiled in patent wars and lawsuits, it seems that this deal will further only strengthen their partnership, as far as hardware parts are concerned. For those not in the know, we’ll remind you that Apple’s new iPad consists of a Retina display with a resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels. Nobody from the four companies that we are talking about here commented or shed light on this topic. Nevertheless, it’s important to note that in the recent past Samsung has been supplying quite a few chips to Apple for their iDevices, so this doesn’t really come as a BIG surprise. 

Jakhanwal, the senior manager at iSupplie mentioned in an e-mail that, “The display specifications on the new iPad are very demanding in terms of the very high resolution, achieving this high resolution without compromising on the power consumption and brightness and maintaining Apple’s quality standards are supposedly proving to be a challenge for LG Display and Sharp.” So, it’s Samsung delivering the goods here. 

Now for the serious talk, though Samsung has been one of the top hardware manufacturers, what Apple clearly wins over at, is the ecosystem. Right from the launch of the device, to ensuring it gets all the attention it deserves, to not launching another flagship product of the same category that particular year, to garnering the right amount of support and care it requires, Apple knows better than Samsung on how to take care of its users and products. Something Samsung could definitely learn. And err, to get into the scheme of this story, a lot Apple could learn from Samsung, including manufacturing screens. Over to you guys.

Now, own a 64GB PlayBook tablet for Rs.19,990

Continuing their rather successful run with promotional pricing, Canadian tablet maker, Research in Motion have, according to reports, officially slashed the prices of the 64GB version of their BlackBerry PlayBook tablet in India by a whopping 18 percent, taking the price all the way down to Rs.19,990. Enthusiasts closely eyeing RIM's promotional pricing offers would be quick to point out that in late December, last year, RIM went ahead and slashed the prices of all the three versions of their PlayBook tablet.

According to our previous report, back then, RIM was offering the 16GB version for Rs.13,490, while selling the 32GB variant for Rs.15,990 and the 64GB version for Rs.24,490. However, then the offer was for a limited time, i.e. till the New Year's Eve. Needless to add, RIM have surely got their promotional pricing in place, since it has been working really well for the brand. Quoting Director Marketing Krishnadeep Baruah, Research In Motion India, the report stated, "We have seen positive momentum with the promotional pricing levels and have decided to maintain an aggressive pricing strategy in order to help continue the momentum."

Price slashed for India!

Late in November, last year, we had also reported about all units of the PlayBook tablet being sold off on Best Buy, post a stunning Black Friday promotions. Back then, RIM re-priced the tablets to $199.99 and $299.99 for the 16GB and 32GB models, respectively, which many believe to have triggered the massive sales figures.

We had got the PlayBook to our Tech2 labs for a detailed review. At that time, the PlayBook managed to sit atop a balanced scale. It was priced high (Rs.27,990 for the 16GB version, Rs.32,990 for the 32GB and Rs.37,990 for the 64GB one), and came without native e-mail, calendar and memo apps, but, having said all that, it did most of its other assigned tasks quite well. The only deterrent, other than the lack of apps was the price.

To confirm, yet again, here's a quick look at what you get for that slashed price: 

• 7-inch LCD, 1024 x 600, WSVGA, capacitive touch screen with full multi-touch and gesture support
• BlackBerry Tablet OS
• 1 GHz dual-core processor
• 1GB RAM
• Dual HD cameras (3 MP front facing, 5 MP rear facing), supports 1080p HD video recording
• Video playback: 1080p HD Video, H.264, MPEG, DivX, WMV
• Audio playback: MP3, AAC, WMA
• HDMI video output
• Wi-Fi - 802.11 a/b/g/n
• Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
• Connectors: microHDMI, microUSB, charging contacts

Will you now buy the PlayBook tablet, considering that the pricing for the 64GB version has been slashed in India? Do let us know in the comments section below.

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Firefox 11 available for download now, officially

Afew days back, we talked about Firefox 11, the latest version of the popular browser being available for download unofficially. As with most Firefox releases, the final release binaries are hidden away on the FTP, a few days before the official launch date. The official launch date is here and those wanting to upgrade their browsers can do so, today. There have been some minor issues, which seem to have been rectified. First, there was a critical security bug that needed to be fixed, but that has been done in time. There were worries that the official launch date would be missed due to this security hole being discovered at the last moment. Another issue was Microsoft’s Patch Tuesday, where Microsoft releases security updates for their operating systems.

Officially here!

The launch of Firefox 11 was clashing with Patch Tuesday, so Mozilla decided to launch the browser as a manual download only. Once Microsoft is done releasing patches, Mozilla will then enable the auto download feature for the new update. This is likely to take a day or two after which Mozilla will be aware of the impact of Patch Tuesday. This was mentioned in a post by Johnathan Nightingale, Senior Director of Firefox Engineering. There’s also some caution over future Firefox downloads and Mozilla wants to avoid releasing updates on Firefox because of these issues.

The next major Firefox release - version 12 isn’t too far away, the beta is already available for download and the final release is expected to be available for download on the 24th of April 2012, just weeks from now. Those wanting to try out the Beta version of Firefox 12 can find download links here. Firefox 11 brings along a bunch of new features and a ton of bug fixes. The new features, include synchronization features for Google Chrome to users can move settings and bookmarks to Firefox easily. There are also new developer tools, such as the 3D Page Inspector, which allow developers to look at parts of the pages in 3D.