Samsung Galaxy Star Pro Android smartphone with 4-inch display spotted selling for Rs 6,989

By Vijay

Here comes another Samsung Galaxy smartphone which falls in the 4-inch entry level smartphone segment to compete against the likes of Mircomax and other domestic handset vendors ruling this segment. Samsung’s unannounced Galaxy Star Pro S7262 has spotted selling on a popular online retail portal for as little as Rs 6,989. It becomes Samsung’s second 4-inch smartphone priced under Rs 10,000 after the Galaxy Trend Duos.


The Galaxy Smart Pro supports dual-SIM and comes with a 4-inch WVGA display (480×800 pixels) just like the Galaxy Trend Duos. It runs on the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and is powered by a 1GHz single-core cortex A5 processor coupled with 512MB of RAM. In addition to that, there is 4GB of internal storage which can be supplemented with a 32GB of microSD card. Basically, aside the display, it is an extension of the Galaxy Star smartphone launched earlier for Rs 5,240.

It also features a 2-megapixel rear camera which is capable of shooting videos but lacks a front-facing camera like the Galaxy Trend Duos. The Galaxy Star Pro supports Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, but doesn’t have 3G connectivity. Other features in the phone include an accelerometer and a 1500mAH battery, which is claimed to offer up to 15 hours of talktime and up to 370 hours of standby time. In addition to that the smartphone will come pre-loaded with several Samsung apps including ChatON, as well as other apps like mFluent IM, and ActiveSync.

With this phone, it is clear that Samsung has its eyes set on its domestic rivals, especially Micromax which with 22 percent smartphone market share has become a threat to Samsung’s 26 percent market share in India.

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HTC One mini and HTC Desire 500 listed online in India for Rs 37,299 and Rs 21,490

By Vijay 

 

The One mini is available on e-commerce sites in India for Rs 37,299. The Desire 500, on the other hand, is listed online for Rs 21,490 and will ship in the coming days. 




To recap on the specifications, the One mini flaunts a 4.3-inch HD (1280×720 pixels) display cramming in 341ppi and is powered by a dual-core Snapdragon 400 processor clocked at 1.4GHz. Other features included are 1GB of RAM, Ultrapixel rear camera with LED Flash and a BSI Sensor, 1.6-megapixel front camera, Beats audio support, 16GB of internal storage and a 1,800mAh battery. It runs on Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean wrapped under Sense 5 UI and comes pre-loaded with HTC’s BlinkFeed, Zoe and BoomSound.
The dual-SIM Desire 500, on the other hand, sports a 4.3-inch (480×800 pixels) display and is powered by a quad-core Snapdragon 200 processor clocked at 1.2GHz. It features 1GB of RAM, 8-megapixel rear camera, 1.6-megapixel front camera, Beats audio support, 4GB internal storage that is expandable to up to 64GB using a microSD card and 1,800mAh battery. On the software front, it runs on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean wrapped under Sense 5 UI.

The fact that they have been listed on e-commerce sites in India indicates that an official launch is right around the corner..

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Nokia launches community mapping tool in India for Here maps

By Vijay

 
Nokia’s Here maps are considered to be among the best mapping solutions in the market. Now, the company has launched a community mapping program in India that will combine industrial mapping techniques with crowd mapping techniques. Nokia has hired a team of 1,000 people in India, and it will work with local experts from a dozen of universities around the country. Nokia will leverage the map creator tool that will allow people to add missing streets, bridges, points of interest and other information. This not too dissimilar from what Google is doing with its Map Maker tool in India.

To maintain the accuracy of the data and map quality Nokia has built a community moderation mechanism that will allow the Here team and the community to verify the edits to the maps before they get integrated into the base map.

According to Nokia, Here will work with a variety of communities across the country. In smaller towns and cities, Nokia believes locals will help Here build out road networks, while in densely populated areas contributors will provide information about points of interest and capture changes.

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