Cicret Bracelet : Your Skin Is Your New Smart Display

The Cicret Bracelet, what it is all about. Their tag line ‘Make you skin you new tablet’ makes everyone excited to know what this bracelet does.

Its a phenomenal future technology in working which makes your skin your new smart display. Yes you read it right, this bracelet projects your tablet or smartphone’s display directly on to your skin. 

What else we can do? Projection is just the first step, we can interact with the display on our skin as we interact with the touch sensitive display of our smartphone.

We can pick calls, type messages, play games, watch videos, browse internet and all those stuffs we do in our smartphone directly on our skin without even touching the phone. Just connect this bracelet with your smartphone and you are ready to go.

Its still a technology in making and all these are possible features that the Cicret Bracelet can provide. The Techzoot team applaud the idea behind this technology and are looking forward to it.

To know more visit their site at cicret.com

Watch video here : 

  

Denim update for Windows Phone 8.1 is up and ready for larger number of countries

The much awaited Denim update for Windows smartphones running WP 8.1 is up and ready to be grabbed in most parts of the world.

After starting the roll out from the first week of December in Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America, Middle East and to the Verizon Wireless Lumia 822 and 928 in the US, the denim update is slowly but steadily making its mark in other markets and to more handsets around the world.

Here is the list of some more countries/handsets where the roll out of Denim update has begin :

Austria : Lumia 520, 620

Albania : Lumia 620, 720

Brazil : Lumia 520, 620, 625, 720, 1320

Bulgaria : Lumia 620, 720

Belgium : Lumia 520

Belarus : Lumia 535

China : Lumia 520T, 535(dual SIM), 620

Croatia : Lumia 620, 720

Czech Republic : Lumia 520, 620, 720

Denmark : Lumia 520, 535, 620, 720, 930

Finland : Lumia 535, 620, 720, 930, 1520

France : Lumia 520, 535

Germany : Lumia 520, 535, 620, 720

Greece : Lumia 520, 620, 720

Hungary : Lumia 520, 535, 620, 720

Iceland : Lumia 520, 535, 620, 720, 930

India : Lumia 520

Indonesia : Lumia 535(dual SIM), 620, 720

Ireland : Lumia 520, 620

Italy : Lumia 520, 535, 620, 720, 735, 1320

Norway : Lumia 520, 535, 620, 720, 930

Philippines : Lumia 535, 620, 626, 720, 1320

Portugal : Lumia 520, 535, 620

Spain : Lumia 520, 535, 620, 720, 1320

Sweden : Lumia 520, 620, 625, 720

Switzerland : Lumia 520, 620, 625, 720

Thailand : Lumia 535 (dual SIM), 620, 720

United Kingdom : Lumia 520, 535, 620, 720

Vietnam : Lumia 520, 525, 535 (dual SIM), 620, 720, 1320

There are some more countries where the Lumia Denim update is reportedly rolling out to users. Will cover those along with more handsets that have started receiving the update in our next post. Keep visiting for further updates. 

What all Denim brings to your phone.. see here

Thankyou :)

Source : Microsoft, WP Central

Yu Yureka Review : #YuPlayGod

Newly launched YU introduced a new smartphone last month starting with Yureka  for Indian market. And guess what its not just Micromax but a collabration between Micromax and Cyanogen. Micromax is really trying to change its’s brand image but it isn’t just a cake task.

The Yu Yureka being the first phone from the war chest has a lot to offer. Micromax pushed the right buttons at the very moment OnePlus One entered Indian market, with a low price tag and yet it is loaded with some impressive specs, but we already have seen devices from Xiaomi, OPO & Motorola that already rule this market globally. So, does the Yu Yureka match up to its competition? Let’s find out.

Build & Display

The Yu Yureka has a 5.5-inch IPS display with resolution of 1280 x 720 and 267 ppi. The Moto E has a 4.3-inch display with 960 x 540 resolution resulting in 256 ppi. So when it comes to display quality in Phablets . 5.5-inch is just not enough. Its main competitor in price segment is Xiaomi Redmi Note. Yureka has a much more premium feel with the Moonstone back compared to cheap plasticity feel of Redmi. And it actually is a inexpensive rip-off of Sandstone  back that we have on One Plus One devices.That said, the Yureka also has a plastic body, but the company has done well to not make it feel like a cheap build like it did with its Canvas range of devices. The Yu Yureka is the best one can get considering its price tag in the build and design department. The fact that it has a removable battery is icing on the top, but there are no surprises that you may have expected.

Performance

 The Yureka is one of the few devices to be running on Qualcomm’s new generation 64-bit SoCs right now. The octa-core Snapdragon 615 in this is clocked at 1.5 GHz and takes care of  much of your routine activities well. High ends games like Nova and Modern Combat 5, don’t give the processor much trouble. The CM 11 ROM is not the stablest custom rom available and you might have some App crashes. The best thing about this device is that it has 2 GB of RAM, which is more than enough for anything that you might want to use your smartphone for.

Battery

The 2500 mAh battery on the Yureka is somewhat similar to Canvas devices,  But with Cynagon mod we do get around 7-8 hours of heavy usage which is not at all impressive. You still need a Power Bank .

Camera

The 13MP back camera is descent if not the best. And in under-10k ($150)category this is the best deal one can get. The colour reproduction is good and there is a slight saturation in images.

After Sales Support

We all have came across Micromax customer service either through word of mouth or our own experience.And you will agree when I say that they have clowns who are running these customer service centres. To overcome this Micromax rather YU has come up with a forum where you can get answers all your firmware/software related queries and with device Micromax is also planning Direct to home(D2h) service which we noticed with Canvas Gold. Cool Isn't it.?

Bottomline

The Yu Yureka is completely a new brand Micromax and is nothing like any(anything) device that the company has made so far. The Yureka is a satisfactory device for the price that Micromax is asking. Yu is following the same flash sale model as Xiaomi, the only difference is that Yureka is exclusively available on Amazon and it is essentially the only toughest competitor that the Redmi Note. If you want a phablet within 10k or want a phone to tweak in roms, then go ahead and buy this device.It is easily the best phablet available in the market at such a competitive price point.

Get Yureka from Amazon

Source- Digit, Amazon

Chromecast: Now everything you love on your smart gadgets is on your TV too

The first question that everyone would have in their mind is what actually Chromecast is?

Chromecast is a digital media streaming device developed by Google, it just plugs into the HDMI port on your TV and uses your smart gadgets like your Android smartphone, tablet, Mac or Windows Laptop or Chromebook, iPad, iPhone to cast your favourite movies, apps, photos, videos and many more stuffs right on your TV’s big screen.

The Working:

Plug In and Play: Yes using Chromecast is as simple as this. Plug it to your HDTV then connect it with your wifi and there you go, cast your apps from your smart devices to your TV.

Chromecast works with apps including HBO GO, YouTube, ESPN, Netflix and cast it directly on your TV. Now watch your favourite YouTube video on the big screen or use ESPN app for the latest sports news on your TV.

The features are not done yet ;)

You can mirror anything and everything from your small screen to the big screen, working on your laptop? Cast any website in Chrome directly on to your TV screen. Good ha?

Your smartphone works as your personalized remote control. Work on the apps on your phone as you normally do and it will show up right on your TV. Play, rewind, pause, and stop videos on your TV using your phone. Control the volume and even make playlists. And yes while casting you are free to use your phone for the very basic purposes (messaging and calling).

What to do when not casting anything?

Turn your TV screen into a beautiful backdrop like your smartphone's lock screen, filled with personal photos, satellite imagery, artwork or anything else. It’s your personal device make it do what you want. 

So guys, are you interested in Google's Chromecast. How many of you will be buying this. 

How about the features it is providing? 

Feel free to comment below .

For Indian users Chromecast is officially launched on Snapdeal.com with warranty and amazing offers on free data and content at just Rs. 2999

Nokia returns with an Android Tablet

The biggest news in the mobile world recently belonged to Nokia. After the sale of its devices and services section to Microsoft, Nokia was left with three major departments Mapping, Networking, and R&D. Nokia and team made the reveal of an Android powered tablet at Slush Conference.

This is the first of many brand licensing deals put in place by Nokia. The majority of the work for the N1 will be done by Foxconn including the warrant repairs, software support, distribution and manufacturing. The Nokia name, design, and software have been licensed from the Finnish company.

The N1 have impressive specifications

It has the same 7.9-inch display size and ‘Retina’ ready 2048 x 1536 pixel display as the iPad mini 2 and 3.

It got an aluminium unibody with power and volume buttons.

It comes with a 64-bit Intel Atom Z3580 2.3GHz processor and 2GB of RAM.

It offers 32GB internal storage but sadly with no micoSD card support. Connectivity options include wifi, micro USB 2.0 and Bluetooth 4.0.

The Nokia Z launcher:

The Finnish company has skinned its tablet with the Nokia Z Launcher. Released as a beta, it is a predictive launcher which allows you to trace the first letter of an app or service on the screen to help launch it.

The Nokia Z launcher is available for free on Google Play Store.

The Nokia Z Launcher learns how you use your phone and promoting your favourite apps so you can access them faster. The more you use it, the better it gets.

So, what are your thoughts on Nokia’s return to consumer market with an Android tablet and its own Z launcher? Do comment below :)

Smartphones with Windows 10 : What you want?

Microsoft recently announced via their twitter account that all current Lumia smartphones running Windows Phone 8 OS will be updated to Windows 10 in 2015. I am sure this is the happiest news for WP 8/8.1 owners. 

We know it’s pretty early, but still lets figure out what features we can expect from Windows 10 smartphones and I will not be the only one to guess those features. You people too contribute in the comments below, what you expect or want.

May be Microsoft will hear us and you never know we get those features in the next major OS update.

So first let’s see the features I want for sure shot in Windows 10 for phones:

1.  The live tile should work really like a live tile, with frequent updates as they arrive and a brief description of the new notification.

2.  The music tile should have control buttons on the tile itself (the forward, backward, pause buttons) and should also show the album we are currently playing.

3.  More features in the action centre. It should move the more important notifications on the top. Should have more options like the Data Connection tab, improved brightness level control and more tabs to add frequently used settings.

4.  We should be able to sort app list with options like recently used, alphabetically, installed and so on.

5.  Add widgets to the lock screen should be introduced and a swipe from left to right on the home screen should also be utilised.

6.  Multitasking should be much smoother, multi window support by just dragging a window in the multitasking mode on the other.

These are some of the features which I definitely want in Windows 10 for smartphones. What are your expectations? What stuffs you want?

  

Microsoft's new Lumia 535 : the "5x5x5" smartphone

The all new Lumia 535 is the first Lumia to feature the Microsoft’s branding. 

Lumia 535 is the entry level smartphone which is all set to launch this month starting from China, Hong kong and then to other parts of the world.

The Lumia 535 is an affordable smartphone with the following specifications:

·         1.2 GHz quad-core processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 200

·         5-inch IPS LCD display

·         1 GB RAM and 8 GB of internal storage which is expandable to up to 128 GB

·         5 MP rear camera and a 5 MP front facing camera too

·         1905 mAh battery

Microsoft have included a good 5 MP front camera in Lumia 535 which will be a welcome spec for the selfie lovers who all want to click good selfies that too with a budget phone. The front facing camera on Lumia 535 is the same wide-angle camera on the so called made for selfie phone, the Lumia 735 and Lumia 730.

Microsoft announced the new device via the Lumia Conversations blog , said, “ Today sees the launch of the new Microsoft Lumia 535, our “5x5x5” smartphone package bringing a 5-inch screen, 5-megapixel front and rear camera and free integrated Microsoft experiences to more people at an affordable price.” 

The Lumia 535 is set to launch in two variants :  3G single SIM and 3G dual SIM.

The price range of Lumia 535 is expected to be around $140.

Watch the Microsoft Lumia 535 - Big on experience video :

Source : Wcentral

Hey Windows Phone users, have you updated your WhatsApp?

Today WhatsApp for Windows Phone was updated with some cool new features and importantly the bug fixes and other improvements. WhatsApp on Windows Phone last got an update in June and since then it’s a long wait for the Windows Phone users.

But yes the WhatsApp team hasn’t disappointed us either. Some cool new features have been added to WhatsApp.

According the store listing and what I have noticed after updating WhatsApp on my Lumia, here is what is new in the latest update :

§   You can set backgrounds for each chat and group. Earlier users were allowed to set a single background pic across all their chats and groups.

§   Users are now allowed to add captions to photos and videos.

§   Now share locations with your friends and family. Drop and drag pin lets you share accurate locations.

§   You can now crop and rotate photos.

§   Archive chats and groups

§   I have observed a better resolution as compared to the earlier version. The texts, the User Interface looks graphically more better (though no major changes).

§   And yes WhatsApp now opens faster :)

Feature we still miss is the ability to send music (mp3) files over WhatsApp.

Still a good work done by the WhatsApp team and we hope there will be more cool updates to come for the Windows Phone users.

Download WhatsApp for Windows Phone:

What you think of the new update. Have you seen any other changes? Feel free to comment below   

  

Dream League Soccer

FIFA 15, Ultimate Team is available for Windows Phone but it’s not available for the devices with 512mb RAM. But football fans owning a Windows Phone which boosts 512mb RAM need not to worry as here comes ‘Dream League Soccer’, a fully fledged football game for all those sports enthusiasts.

I myself have been playing this game for past 1 week now and I can tell it totally makes up for the non availability of FIFA 15 for my Lumia 720. 

Coming to Dream Leagues Soccer game play, it’s really good and simple. Playing a football game on your handheld device was never so easy, you have moving controls on the left hand bottom corner on the screen. A rotator like stuff which you can move in any direction to make your player run or run fast. On the right hand side of the screen you have three buttons ‘B’,’A’,’C’ for pass/tackle, shoot/slide/head and long pass respectively. The graphics are good but not as good as in FIFA 15, but I bet you won’t miss it either. Players run smoothly, passes, shoots, headers, tackles all look good.

Now heading to other stuffs in the game. A user is required to build his own club, he can edit its name, edit the kit, edit squad and so on. Your club will have its season’s objectives and once you are done with these, you will compete in matches in the Division 3 league. As you win more and more matches you will be rewarded with coins and points too. Staying at the top of the table makes your club promoted to higher Division leagues where you face more tough competition from top clubs of the world. Coins help you in making transfers and strengthening your team, you can buy new kits and even upgrade your club’s home stadium using these coins.

Purchase and sell players, set the logo of your club, set formations and your team’s tactics before every game, substitute players in the middle of the match, head to training ground, everything that a football game should have is there in ‘Dream League Soccer’.

The game is free to download though have inside purchases, you can purchase coins for real money too instead of just earning them by winning matches.

It’s good to see a football game of this quality has finally arrived for Windows Phone with 512mb RAM.

Positives: Good graphics, nice background music off and on the field ;), easy to use controls, no lag, download size is just 106mb, fun to play...

Negatives: Nothing :) 

Download Dream League Soccer (available on all three platforms) :

     

Love Soccer? Check out our review of FIFA 15 here-

LINK

PhotoMath App Makes Solving Maths Equations as Simple as Taking a Picture

Do you have math homework? Are you in a hurry to finish that assignment of 50 problems? Worry no more, check out this app – PhotoMath. Basically, it simply uses your phone’s camera to look at your math problem and before you know it. BOOM !. Problem solved. It’s a really cool idea – isn't it. However, it shows the potential of smart phone with math homework. Soon, there will be some app (or this one) that can figure out all your homework. Not just math. I, for one, welcome that day. And I am not that good with math anyway so its a win win for me anyday. It makes solving math equations as easy as taking a picture.

Now coming to PhotoMath its a free mobile app that can read and solve mathematical expressions using your smartphone camera in real time. PhotoMath might sound like it help kids cheat, but the app also provides all the steps showing how each of the problems is solved. This step-by-step guide is beneficial to students that do not have access to a tutor and struggle with solving math problems. Parents can also use the PhotoMath app to jog their memory when teaching math to their kids. 

“PhotoMath currently supports all basic fractions,arithmetics and decimal numbers, linear equations in fact even several functions like logarithms. The PhotoMath app uses optical character recognition (OCR) technology to read the equation and calculates the answers within seconds. There is a red frame in the PhotoMath app that can be adjusted which you have to use for capturing the equation. PhotoMath’s ability to read math problems has some limitations though one of them is that PhotoMath can only read printed text so your handwritten notes cannot be solved by this app. 

When I tested out PhotoMath on an order of operations equation, the app kept on mistaking the “X” variable as the multiplication symbol. The red frame also causes limitations because there may not be enough spacing between two separate math problems in the textbook to capture the equation that you want but you can try to reframe the red rectangle. 

Microblink, the London-based app development company behind PhotoMath, is also planning to use the same technology for online banking in the future. Aside from the PhotoMath app, Microblink also works with a number of customers across 30 countries to set up “computer vision technology” for their mobile apps. For example, Microblink integrated its PhotoPay technology to eliminate manual data entry for bill payments with several major European Union banks. Another app that Microblink developed — which is called PDF417 Barcode Scanner — lets users scan 1D barcodes, 2D barcodes and QR codes. The PhotoMath app is available for free on iOS and Windows Phone now , but the Android version will be released next year. 

Get photomath

Smart camera calculator

Source- Forbes.com

FIFA 15

The all new FIFA 15 looks just great and it features several modes that are going to make the football lovers keep coming back and play the game for hours. Whether it is a quick single player game, tournament or on-line multiplayer, it's hard to get bored with FIFA 15. One of the most entertaining mode in FIFA 15 is the Ultimate Team, which is EA Sports' most popular mode.

When playing FIFA 15 there are many things that add up from its previous versions. There are certain new animations and replays that make you feel like watching a live game instead. In this version of FIFA, EA sports has added what's called Emotional Intelligence. Players now have  emotional responses based on what happens on the field. Like, when a goalkeeper makes a save, you will see his teammates giving him a chest pump or a high five. You will observe when a striker misses a shot, his teammates getting frustrated.

There are many such subtle changes that makes FIFA 15 totally different from its previous versions. Few changes in the visual details can also be seen. The field wears and tears as the match progresses which looks just great. The jerseys also move realistically when players run or get pulled by opponents. Jerseys also get wet from rain and dirty when the players hit the ground.

FIFA is purely looking to create authenticity or you can say is aiming for authenticity. Do have a look at the players' faces closely, you will see players looks just real, Ronaldo looks like Ronaldo, Messi looks like Messi. EA Sports have also improved commentary and audio of the gameplay. Realistic audio to goal reactions, misses, whistles and over two-hours crowd specific chants have been recorded to make the gameplay more realistic and live. 

Tackles, collisions, players, stadiums all look so real.

EA Sports's FIFA is one of the best selling sports video game and with FIFA 15 they have got another winner. It looks great and feels more authentic than ever before. There are plenty of modes available that will keep you busy.

Here is the official trailer of FIFA 15:

So will you buy FIFA 15? Do you like it?

Do feel free to comment :)

The new update for Skype on Windows Phone now allows you to draw and doodle

Microsoft’s latest update for Windows Phone Skype app will allow users to actually draw in the app along with some other new features and improvements.

In a blog post by Microsoft, it is stated that the update will allow Skype users to “get creative on a  canvas, add silly touches to a photo or draw a fastest route on a map and share it with your friends and family.” Users can enable this feature by tapping on  the ‘+’ icon during  a chat, then open ‘drawing’ to draw pictures.

Users are also allowed to use pre loaded pictures from their gallery or even draw on a Bing map. Along with all these features Microsoft also added HD screen support for the app.

Microsoft stated: “On Windows Phone 8.1 to save time you can now automatically sign in using the Microsoft Account linked to your phone. Plus, we’ve heard existing users ask for the flexibility to sign in with their Skype account, so we’ve added the ability to do this too.”

This update will surely offer faster app resume times. Skype app is supported for Windows Phone with 512mb RAM.

So will you be using this new feature provided by Microsoft in Skype update??

Source : Windows Central, Skype blog J

Is Windows 10 the next version of Windows Phone too??

I think this is the question every Windows fan have, after Microsoft launched Windows 10 with the tag line “One platform, One store, One product family.” And yes, as expected Microsoft too has confirmed that Windows 10 is also the next version of Windows Phone as well, which also confirms that the desktop-notebook PC operating system is merging with the mobile OS.

After their presentation in San Francisco, Microsoft’s operating system head Terry Myerson and Joe Belfiore were asked, “Is Windows 10 the next version of the phone operating system too?” to which he replied “Yes.” Belfiore then added, “The best way to think of it, it will be a natural step forward from the Windows 8.1 model.” He also stated that the phone version of Windows 10 won’t have a desktop user interface.

So, there we have.

The next version of Windows Phone will be Windows 10. Earlier rumours claimed that Microsoft will be removing the ‘Phone’ from ‘Windows Phone’ to lay basis for One Window motive. The launch of Windows 10 for all the devices (tablets, phones, PCs, notebooks) confirms this.

Windows 10 is expected to be launched in 2015 and it will be a very, very interesting 2015 for fans of the platform and we should learn a lot more about Microsoft’s plans for the mobile version of Windows 10 next year.

In the meantime, what you guys think of this? Is Microsoft heading in right direction? With One Windows aim.

Source : WP central, The Verge, GeekWire