Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.5 review: Slate will impress multimedia enthusiasts

With a mammoth 10.5-inch screen, quad speakers with Dolby Atmos support, and a 7,700 mAh battery, the Galaxy Tab A 10.5 tablet is a multimedia powerhouse

South Korean electronics giant Samsung is among a few companies that continue to focus on tablets to fill the gap between smartphones and notebooks. Tablets provide a convenience of a smartphone in a big form factor with a huge screen estate. These devices, when connected with a keyboard and mouse, also double up as a trimmed-down version of notebooks. However, with Windows-based mobile notebooks and Chromebooks redefining the computing space, the use case for tablets has moved from productivity to entertainment or as a device at the centre of connected space, also known as internet of things (IoT). The Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.5 seems to pack both of these.

The tablet is a fairly big device that puts it close to a notebook. It sports a mammoth 10.5-inch screen with huge bezels around. That is a plus, considering that you need some space to rest your thumbs while holding the device. The screen boasts a 1920 x 1200 resolution in a 16:10 aspect ratio which makes it compatible with most content and apps. The screen is bright and has ample contrast. However, it looks dull in comparison with OLED, which offers an impeccable colour rendition and deep blacks and is best suited for multimedia consumption. The screen also shows a shift in colours when looked at from angles, and that makes it less suitable for watching video content with a bunch of friends. The lack of S-Pen support also diminishes the overall utility of the otherwise large display panel.

The tablet's weight – more than 500 g – makes it difficult to operate using one hand. However, the weight is evenly distributed to helps in day-to-day operations. Thanks to a rubberised back, the tablet feels safe to hold and does not slip unnecessarily. However, a tiny bulging camera module on the back makes it uneven on flat surfaces like table.

Speaking of innards, the tablet is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 system-on-chip (SoC), mated with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage. The SoC is not a powerhouse. It is an entry-level octacore processor that barely manages to run power-intensive tasks. Surprisingly, it does not deter the tablet’s multimedia prowess and manages to run 1080p videos smoothly. The tablet runs smoothly and shows no lags in normal circumstances. However, things turn difficult when power-intensive or graphic-intensive apps like Asphalt 9 and PUBG are loaded. These games run on this device at the lowest possible graphics setting, and show stutters, becoming unplayable. This, however, does not come as a surprise, considering that the tablet makes no promise for gaming capabilities. It pitches its multimedia capability and that performs fairly.

Speaking of multimedia capabilities, the tablet features quad speakers (two on the bottom and two on the top) powered by Dolby Atmos for an immersive sound experience. The speakers are not loud but offer a good spatial output for a surround sound experience. Interestingly, these speakers automatically adjust left and right channels based on screen orientation, making them quite useful.

Article Source: Business Standard

Vivo V11 Pro review: Feature-rich smartphone with good camera, battery life

Priced at Rs 25,990, the Vivo V11 Pro is has rich features in the midrange smartphone segment. It is also among the first smartphone to have a tiny notch display

Chinese smartphone manufacturer Vivo started its journey with devices tuned to deliver best-in-class audio capabilities. With fast-changing dynamics of the smartphone game, the company soon shifted its focus to imaging by integrating higher megapixel cameras in its devices. Now, at a time when the specification race has saturated and the mobile phone game has moved to features, Vivo is seemingly taking the lead in shaping the future of smartphones — the Vivo Nex, with a three-side all-screen front and motorised pop-up camera is an example.

While the Vivo Nex seems to be a concept phone setting the benchmark for future smartphones, a Business Standard review of the recently launched Vivo V11 Prorevealed that the new device fits just perfectly as a smartphone filling the gap during thr transition. The Vivo V11 Pro features a modern design with glass body, a tall stance due to its 19.5:9 aspect ratio screen with a tiny notch on top (called Halo FullView), and respectable specifications.

Vivo V11 Pro design, display and in-display fingerprint sensor

With almost every phone offering the same specifications in their respective segments, the industry focus has now shifted to design and display; these have become a key differentiating factor for new-age smartphones. In terms of design, the V11 Pro is a step forward, especially with its glass-metal-glass design that looks plush. The back of the smartphone is uniform with almost no obstructions, except for a vertical dual-camera module placed on the top-left corner. The glass on the back has a starry night design of a glittery blue hue at the bottom, and a glossy shade of black on the top. A caveat: The phone’s back looks like an enhanced version of the V9.

The front is dominated by a new format 6.41-inch superAMOLED screen of fullHD+ resolution, stretched in a 19.5:9 aspect ratio. The screen boasts a new tiny notch screen area, accommodating just the front camera. Interestingly, the earpiece now sits under a thin bezel above the display, along with an infrared sensor on its right for the face-unlock mechanism. The new screen format gives the phone a tall look — that makes operating it using one hand somewhat difficult.

Being an AMOLED unit, the display is bright and looks vivid. It has a good saturation and contrast ratio. Sunlit legibility is satisfactory, but a fullHD+ resolution for such a big panel looks a bit pixelated, especially while reading text, playing games and watching videos. The lock screen supports the always-on mode to show notifications, time and date. However, unlike Samsung smartphones, there is no way you can interact or check notifications. 

Article Source : Business Standard

Xiaomi Mi A2 review: A capable midrange smartphone with a sleek camera

The Mi A2 offers a power-packed performance, clutter-free user interface and top-notch camera. While the Mi A1 was an all-rounder, the Mi A2 seems more of a balancing act

Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi has refreshed its Android One platform-based Mi A-series with the launch of the Xiaomi Mi A2. Priced at Rs 16,999, this smartphone features a new design when compared with the predecessor, along with a better hardware, upgraded camera modules and stock Google Android Oreo, which would soon be upgraded to Android Pie, according to the company.

The Xiaomi Mi A2 is a midrange smartphone which has a design language identical to the one Xiaomi introduced with the Redmi Note 5 Pro. The new phone boasts an aluminium unibody covering the back and sides, and glass on the front. The back features a vertically aligned iPhone X-inspired dual-camera module that bulges out from the body, making the phone uneven on flat surfaces like table. It also makes the glass covering the camera module more prone to scratches and smudges. Like other Xiaomi devices, the Mi A2 also sports a circular fingerprint sensor at the upper centre on the back that is easy to reach and operate.

The front is dominated by a 5.99-inch LTPS IPS LCD screen that leaves thin bezels on the top and bottom. The phone’s display is a shift away from the predecessor's conventional 16:9 aspect ratio. It has also let go of the notch-based screen, which is currently the most used screen format, in favour of an 18:9 aspect ratio screen, which makes it look different from other current-generation midrange phones.

ALSO READ: Poco F1 review: Xiaomi redefines flagship with this hard-to-beat smartphone

The Mi A2 is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 system-on-chip (SoC), paired with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. Unlike the predecessor, the Mi A2 does not support storage expansion via microSD card slot. However, the phone is expected to get a 128GB internal storage variant soon with 6 GB of RAM. Coming back to the 4GB variant, the phone gets free unlimited storage on Google cloud to store photos and videos as part of Android One benefits.

The phone boots Android Oreo 8.1.0 out of the box with no customised MIUI skin on top, so it offers vanilla Android experience. The user interface is sleek, free from clutter and swift to operate. It does not show any lag and manages most common day-to-day tasks like internet browsing, conversations over instant messaging apps, online music and video streaming and calling without any hiccups.

Boat products review: Inexpensive phone accessories with quirky design

Boat is inexpensive, not cheap. It needs a bit of tweaking before taking on the audio biggies

Quirky is a characteristic of Boat, a comparatively new consumer electronics brand founded in 2016. Its designs have a generous use of bright colours -- red, pink, blue, fluorescent -- and the occasional grey and black, aimed at catching the eye in the cluttered segment of affordable mobile phone accessories. The company makes earphones, headphones and portable speakers, along with accessories such as chargers and cables. We tested out one in each category for its design, quality and ruggedness.

Rockerz 430 (on-ear wireless headphones)

The packaging of Boat products is unimpressive across categories. The boxes are flimsy and aesthetically banal -- uncharacteristically opposite of how the products look. The Rockerz 430 we reviewed has a charcoal grey exterior and is bright red inside. The plastic headband feels solid and the PU coating makes the headphones comfortable to hang on the neck when not in use. It’s also light.

have never been a fan of small ear-cups that sit on the ears and not cover them completely. Doesn’t matter the cushioning on the cups, even the slightest of pressure makes the headphones hard to keep on for extended use. The Rockerz 430 has a passive noise cancellation, which means they sit on the ears snuggly to block the outside noise by design; and the headphones won’t slip off even if you run with them. But not everyone can get used to the pressure on the outer ear.

The Rockerz 430 is paired easily, and is even faster to connect the next time. The over-enthusiastic announcer welcoming you with “you have plugged into Nirvana” is quite unnecessary though.

Moving on, the headphones don’t falter on delivering the low frequency sounds right. The sub-bass is deep and surround. Even the mids -- that include the vocals -- are clear. Listening to Drake and DJ Khaled is a pleasure, but only until the highs kick in. It seems like in order to achieve satisfactory base, the highs have been amped up. And the distortion is quite evident when bass takes a back seat. The snare drums in Highway to Hell by AC/DC were overbearing after a point, and by the time I moved an era to Charlie Puth’s Done for Me for its treble-heavy music and Puth’s high-pitched voice, I could not increase the volume over 70 per cent. While the bass is good, the overall sound quality Rockerz 430 delivers for Rs 1,995 -- even though cost-effective -- is average, at best.

Read more about : BassHeads 225, Stone 200 (Bluetooth speakers), Charging cable (for iOS)

Star's Rs 2-bn ad revenue target to take a hit over Virat Kohli's absence

Asia Cup is being held in the United Arab Emirates this year, since India and Pakistan have severed bilateral cricketing ties

The absence of Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli is expected to put a dent in broadcaster Star India’s advertisement revenue projections from the ongoing Asia Cup 2018. Media buyers in the know say that while it is difficult to put a number on how much the impact on the ad sales tally could be, it is quite possible the broadcaster will not be able to make its Rs 2-billion target.

The broadcaster holds the television (TV) and digital media rights to the tournament and was targeting a total of Rs 2.5 billion in ad sales revenues — Rs 2 billion from TV and Rs 500 million from digital ad sales. It had sold 60-70 per cent of its total advertising inventory before the start of the tournament, amounting to around Rs 1.2 billion in ad revenues. The broadcaster was hoping to cash in on the higher spot (last-minute buys) rates to complete its target of Rs 2 billion in TV ad sales.

However, with Kohli missing in action, the spot rates for the remaining 40 per cent inventory will be affected. “There is evidence that when Kohli comes to bat, viewership moves up and when he gets out, it comes down. The fence sitters may have one more reason to stay out because of the news,” says Vineet Sodhani, chief executive officer, Spatial Access, a media audit agency. He explains that while people will still watch the matches in the tournament, especially the India matches, the incremental reach that Kohli brings when he is on the field, will not be achieved. This may give the fence sitters reason to not pay big bucks for the remaining inventory. Existing advertisers however, have no option but to go ahead with their investment, so no advertiser is pulling out of the tournament as such.

ALSO READ: As Comcast, Disney face possible Fox bidding war, spotlight on Star India

Sponsors on the Asia Cup include Hero, Byju’s, Google, Britannia, Gra-Do, Droom, Coca-Cola, USL, Domino’s, Unimoni, GSK, Dell, Eureka Forbes, MP Birla, UltraTech, Apollo Tyres, Vini Cosmetics, Parle Agro, and Nerolac.

Star India was hoping to make up to Rs 600,000 per 10-second ad spot during the series and anywhere between Rs 1 million and Rs 1.3 million for the India-Pakistan tie.

However, this will need to be revised, and it is more likely to make Rs 400,000 to Rs 450,000 per 10 seconds on an average for the tournament, while the India-Pakistan tie would fetch them Rs 800,000 to Rs 900,000 for 10 seconds. “India is yet to play a single match in the series and its first match is against Hong Kong.

Petrol at Rs 80.87, diesel at Rs 72.97 in Delhi after a 14 paise hike today

At least 20 Opposition parties led by Congress staged a Bharat Bandh across the country on Monday to protest against the rising fuel prices and falling value of the rupee

Petrol and diesel prices saw a hike for the sixth straight day on Tuesday as oil marketing firms again revised fuel prices across the country. Petrol prices were hiked by 14 paise in both Delhi and Mumbai, while diesel saw an increase of 14 paise in Delhi and expanded by 15 in Mumbai.

Petrol now costs Rs 80.87 per litre, up from Rs 80.73, in Delhi and Rs 88.26 per litre, up from Rs 88.12, in Mumbai. Similarly, Diesel prices have been increased from Rs 72.83 to Rs 72.97 per litre in Delhi and from Rs 77.32 to Rs 77.47 in Mumbai.

Rising fuel prices in the country have been an issue of friction between the government and the opposition parties for the past couple of days.

Opposition parties are demanding a cut in the excise duty on petrol and diesel and bringing fuel under the ambit of GST.

At least 20 Opposition parties led by Congress staged a Bharat Bandh across the country on Monday to protest against the rising fuel prices and falling value of the rupee.

Opposition parties like the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S), Samajwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Maharashtra Navanirman Sena (MNS), led by the Congress party, took part in the protests. Left parties staged a separate shutdown of their own.

ALSO READ: Here's how rising fuel prices could increase your mobile phone bills

Other parties such as Trinamool Congress, Aam Admi Party and Biju Janata Dal voiced their concerns over the price hike, however, they stayed away from the street protests called by the Congress.

Later, amid the constant rise in the prices of petrol and diesel, BJP president Amit Shah on Monday met Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, PTI reported.

Meanwhile, Rajasthan government announced a 4 per cent cut in the state VAT on petrol and diesel on Sunday to reduce their prices by Rs 2.5 per litre in the state, while Andhra Pradesh government on Monday announced a reduction of tax on petrol and diesel by Rs 2 a litre, to reduce the burden on common caused by zooming fuel prices.

Ind vs Eng 5th Test Day 4 highlights: Rahul, Rahane take India to 58/3

Courtesy the twin hundreds by the former Alastair Cook and current skipper Joe Root, England declared their second innings on 423/8 with a massive target of 464 for Team India

On Day 4 of the fifth and final India vs England test match of the Specsavers Test series, Alastair Cook will be taking the field for one last time in his international career. Earlier, Ravindra Jadeja followed up on his good bowling show of 4-79 with a gutsy 86 not out to take India to 292 in the first innings. But England captain Joe Root and Cook dug in as England extended their lead in the second innings. With India’s tour of England coming to end, it has been observed that despite the 3-1 series scoreline, England and India are two well-matched teams, with strong fast-bowling attacks and flawed batting line-ups. This has provided captivating four Tests to date with plenty of ebb and flow, but the reason for England’s victory has been that it has been they who have risen to the occasion whenever crucial moments have presented themselves.

India vs England 5th Test Day 4 live score

Alastair Cook's farewell test: Achievements

Before the start of the fifth and final test, England’s highest run-getter, Cook, announced his retirement and it was apparent that in his final international appearance he would show his batting masterclass. He scored a fifty in the first innings. It was a coincidence that Cook was playing his swansong Test against India, against whom he had debuted as well. His highest Test score of 294 also came against India at Birmingham during the 2011 series. One of the high points of his captaincy certainly was leading England to a 2-1 series win against India in India back in 2012.

Alastair Cook international record