PRIVACY 'IMPOSSIBLE' WITH GOOGLE GLASS- When Google Glass was unveiled, the tech world instantly fell into two camps. Camp one was excited: we're living in the sci-fi future! Camp two, though, wasn't so happy. It's vapourware! some said, while others worried that Google just wanted to plaster ads on the entire world. Is either camp correct? Let's find out.
Volkswagen's mini SUV Taigun likely to be launched first in India.The Taigun concept, based on a stretched version of the VW Up’s NSF (New Small Family) platform, made its debut at the Sao Paolo International Motor Show in October last year and previews VW’sfuture SUV face.
Measuring 3859mm (just under the crucial four metre mark) in length, the concept features a 108bhp, three-cylinder, turbocharged 1.0-litre petrol motor. The engine bay of the Up is currently not wide enough to take a four-cylinder engine, but it could be modified to recieve the new 1.5-litre four-cylinder diesel that VW is developing for India.
Ford Eco-sport would be the main competitor for Volkswagen Taigun
When Google Glass was unveiled, the tech world instantly fell into two camps. Camp one was excited: we're living in the sci-fi future! Camp two, though, wasn't so happy. It's vapourware! some said, while others worried that Google just wanted to plaster ads on the entire world. Is either camp correct? Let's find out.
What is Google's Project Glass?
Google Glass is the attempt to make wearable computing mainstream, and it's effectively a smart pair of glasses with an integrated heads-up display and a battery hidden inside the frame.
Wearable computing is not a new idea, but Google's enormous bank account and can-do attitude means that Project Glass could well be the first product to do significant numbers.
When will it be released?
Originally Project Glass was mooted for a public release in 2014 at the earliest but the latest news on the Google Glass release date suggest it's beginning to look like we could see consumer units by the end of 2013.
That's because the prototype Explorer units are becoming an increasingly common site around San Francisco - and Google is even allowing competition 'winners' to pay $1,500 to get these early offerings.
What does Google Glass do?
The core of Google Glass is its tiny prism display which sits not in your eyeline, but a little above it. You can see what is on the display by glancing up. The glasses also have an embedded camera, microphone, GPS and, reportedly, use bone induction to give you sound.
Voice control is used to control the device; you say 'ok glass' to get a range of options including taking pictures, videos, send messages using speech to text, 'hang out' with people or get directions to somewhere. You access these options by saying them out loud.
Most of this functionality is self explanatory; hang out is Google's video conferencing technology and allows you to talk to a people over web cam, and stream them what you are seeing and the directions use Google Maps and the inbuilt GPS to help you find your way.
The results are displayed on the prism - essentially putting data into your view like a head up display (HUD). It's potentially incredibly handy. Also rather nifty is the potential for automatic voice and speech recognition - and Google has given its Glass project a big boost by snapping up specialists DNNresearch.
People are already developing some rather cool/scary apps for Google Glass - including one that allows you to identify your friends in a crowd, and another that allows you to dictate an email.
What are the Google Glass specifications?
An FCC filing in the US revealed many potential details, suggesting that Wi-Fi and Bluetooth would be used to send pictures to the screen, whilst bone-induction may be used for sound, vibrating your skull to communicate the sound into your inner ear. It's not a new technology, but certainly does have critics who suggest that it falls short of traditional headphones.
We don't have a lot of the final details on specs just yet - but expect Google Glass to run modified Android, to sport a decent resolution camera with a decent lens and we'd be fairly certain that the microphone needs to be a good quality.
There will be a GPS chip, and the lightweight and flexible glasses design will come in five colours - Charcoal, Tangerine, Shale, Cotton, Sky. That's black, orange, grey, white and blue for anyone that prefers plain English over marketing speak.
I already wear glasses. Will Google Glasses work for me?
Yes. Google is experimenting with designs that will fit over existing glasses so you don't have to wear two lots of specs.
The NYT again: according to "several Google employees familiar with the project who asked not to be named," the glasses are expected "to cost around the price of current smartphones." So that's around $750/£500, then, possibly with the help of a hefty Google subsidy.
The latest hints definitely suggest a price that will make them attractive to technophiles.
The developer versions - traditionally more expensive that the final consumer units - were made available for pre-order for $1,500 (c£966).
As to WHERE you can buy the specs; online will be a certainty, but don't rule out Glass making a debut in a all-new Google Store, with the search giant apparently considering actual shops to showcase the tech to those who haven't been following every development.
Who is providing the competition?
Of course, with something as high profile as Google Glass, every major company has been linked with building a competitor.
Apple and Microsoft are Google's most obvious rivals - and both are rumoured to be working on their own equivalents, and Sony has gone as far as to patent a Glass-alike offering.
Is Project Glass evil?
It could be. Google's business is about making money from advertising, and some people worry that Google Glass is its attempt to monetise your eyeballs by blasting you with ads whenever you look at something.
If you think pop-ups are annoying in a web browser, imagine them in front of your face. The ADmented Reality spoof is one of very many parodies that made us laugh.
Some of the parodies actually make a good point by showing people bumping into stuff: heads-up displays can be distracting, and there may be safety issues too. Until Google ships its self-driving car, the thought of drivers being distracted by their glasses is fairly terrifying.
There are privacy implications too. Never mind your web history: Google Glass might record everything you see and do.
There is a red recording light, but the tech certainly raises some key debates that will become more relevant as this kind of technology surfaces. What are the repercussions from having everything you say potentially taped, turned into text and searchable? What are the repercussions for free speech.
All radically new tech brings new potential for evil. But you have to weigh that against the capacity for good and the progress it brings
Google Glass pre-order customers will get regular updates
Those people who paid Google $1,500 for the privilege of pre-ordering some Project Glass specs will be receiving "private updates" through Google+.
Today, the streets of many cities are so loaded in the workplace, which, at times, could not find a place to park even a small motor scooter, to say nothing about the car. This problem is solved by the advent of the compact folding scooter Moveo, which you can take with you to the office or home.
Scooter - this is a very popular form of private vehicles in any large modern city, because it is economical, portable and compact. But the new rage, it seems, is a special version of the transport - a folding scooter.
Anyway, in the past few years, was released several of its variants, for example, Honda Motor Compo, Boxycle or Moveo. Here is the last and will be discussed today.
Moveo - is ideal personal transport for city residents who work in the center of a metropolis. Its capacity would be enough to get out of the house in the morning to work, and in the evening - on the contrary. However, they also will be in a much better position than motorists, forced to stand in traffic and find a parking space for your car.
Now you can boost your Nokia Lumia’s battery without plugging it in. Nokia Lumia 920 has wireless charging built-in. And you can charge Nokia Lumia 820 wirelessly by adding on a wireless charging shell.
Our energy-efficient wireless chargers come in all shapes, sizes and colours, so you can pick one to match your phone.
Best of all, they’re all Qi-compatible, which means you can use any wireless charger you like. And your friends can share yours too.
Blackberry-maker Research In Motion, which is facing troubles in global markets, said it will top industry growth this year in India.
The Canadian company RIM, which has been fast losing its grip on the market of late to more agile players like Samsung and Apple, launched the BlackBerry Porsche, developed in association with Porsche Design, early this year globally.
The ultra-premium BlackBerry Porsche P'9981 is priced at Rs 1,39,990. On this highly aspirational phone, RIM India managing director Sunil Dutt told PTI that the phone is about power, style and aspiration.
"We will not be selling this through the traditional channels. The discerning customers can order their phones to begin with and later on, we will have select outlets like luxe watch and accessories showroom located on the high streets," Dutt said, hours before the domestic launch.
"The domestic smartphone market is growing at over 40 per cent this year, after clipping at 87 per cent in 2011. I am sure that we will be able to grow much faster than the industry rate," Dutt said, while refusing to put a number, citing the silence period the parent company is into now.
He also refused to put a sales target for the new launch on the same grounds. "The Porsche Design P'9981 smartphone from BlackBerry is a perfect culmination of style and functionality with exceptional look and feel," said Dutt.
BlackBerry enjoys 15 per cent of the smartphone market share in the country as of March 2012, up from 13 per cent the previous year, which places it at the third slot after Nokia and Samsung, according to CyberMedia Research data.
In 2011, the domestic smartphones market saw launch of 150 models. Smartphone shipments touched 11.2 million units in the year recording an annual growth of 87 per cent.
Nokia emerged as the leader in the segment with a 38 per cent share followed by Samsung at 28 per cent.
On the rationale behind such a costly phone at a time when the overall sentiment is down, Dutt, who joined RIM India last December from Samsung Telecom, said the market can still afford luxury products.
Some of the salient features of P'9981 are the design by Porsche Design that comes with forged stainless steel frame, hand-wrapped leather back cover, sculpted Qwerty keyboard, and crystal clear touch display. It also has an exclusive PIN that easily identifies the user as holder of this phone.
It features a 1.2 GHz processor and liquid graphics technology, HD video recording, 24-bit high resolution graphics, advanced sensors, and built-in support for NFC (near field communications) apart from 8 GB of on-board memory, expandable to up to 40 GB with a microSD card.
The Porsche Design P'9981 smartphone from BlackBerry will be available at select BlackBerry Premium and BlackBerry Exclusive stores in India.
