Apple launches White iPhone

WASHINGTON, April 28: The long-awaited white model of the iPhone 4 is finally available, nearly a year behind schedule.

Apple said that white iPhone 4s can be bought through Apple's online store starting Thursday or at Apple stores and authorized retailers.

Apple planned to begin selling the white iPhone along with the black model in June of last year but its release was repeatedly delayed by manufacturing challenges in a rare setback for the California gadget-maker.

"The white iPhone 4 has finally arrived and it's beautiful," Apple's senior vice president of worldwide product marketing Philip Schiller said Wednesday.

"We appreciate everyone who has waited patiently while we've worked to get every detail right," Schiller said in a statement.

Apple said the white iPhone 4 will be available on Thursday in Austria, Australia, Belgium, Britain, Canada, China, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Macau, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand and the United States.

Apple sold 18.65 million iPhones last quarter, up 113 per cent over a year ago.

BlackBerry chief walks out of BBC interview when asked on India's demand

TORONTO, April 14: Research In Motion (RIM) founder Mike Lazaridis ordered a BBC reporter to stop the interview after he was asked questions about his problems with India and Middle East countries which are seeking accessing to BlackBerry enterprise emails in view of national security issues.

"That's just not fair," Mike Lazaridis shot back at BBC technology correspondent Rory Cellan-Jones when he posed this question to the RIM co-CEO at a recent interview.

Looking sideways, a visibly upset RIM boss said, "First of all, we have no security problem. We've got the most secure platform. We've just been singled out because we're so successful around the world."

When the reporter asked whether he could assume that BlackBerry has no issues with India and Middle East countries, Lazaridis said, "No, we don't... we have just been singled because we are successful around the world. It is an iconic product, it used by businesses, it is used by celebrities, it is used by consumers, it is used by teenagers... we are just singled out just because of our success."

When the reporter pressed him further on the India question, the BlackBerry chief said, "We are dealing with a lot of issues... we are doing our best to deal with the kind of expertise..."

The RIM co-CEO exploded when the reporter finally asked him whether he could "confidently tell" and give "assurance" to BBC listeners in India and the Middle East whether they could continue using the BlackBerry smart phone without any problems in future.

"The interview is over. You can't use that, Rory. It's just not fair. This is a national security issue. Turn that off," the BlackBerry boss told the reporter.

The BBC has posted the video of this portion of the interview on its web site.

The BBC interview followed Lazaridis's recent interview to the New York Times in which he slammed those who are writing off the BlackBerry maker as a "broken brand."

Though after many deadlines, RIM has given India access to its BlackBerry Messenger (BBM), it has remained non-committal on allowing access to its encrypted corporate service.

India has more than a million BlackBerry users and RIM has set sights on the fast growing market as its share in the North American smart phone market shrinks.

The Canadian wireless giant, whose stock has slipped nearly 20 percent since last month after forecasts of a less-than-spectacular current quarter, is pinning its hopes on its PlayBook tablet due to hit markets in Canada and the US April 19.

Samsung Galaxy Tab WiFi-only Version Costs $349

NEW YORK, April 6: Samsung is selling the WiFi-only version of the Galaxy Tab from CompUSA, TigerDirect and Circuit City beginning April 10 for $349. With the iPad 2 and Xoom in play, will anyone buy it?

Samsung said it will begin selling a WiFi-only version of its Galaxy Tab 7.0 April 10 for $349, or a couple hundred dollars less than what U.S. carriers began selling the Android tablet computer for on contract.

Samsung currently lists CompUSA as the only brick-and-mortar retailer slated to begin selling the Tab next week, with online stores for CompUSA, TigerDirect and Circuit City offering the tablet for pre-order. Other retailers will begin carrying the WiFi Tab later, Samsung claimed.

Samsung launched the 7-inch tablet with a 1024-by-600 resolution display in conjunction with carriers last fall. The gadget, which supports Adobe Flash Player 10.1 for multimedia consumption, has a rear-facing 3-megapixel camera and a front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera and camcorder to enable video chat.

While Sprint and T-Mobile sold the device for $399 with two-year contracts, Verizon Wireless and AT&T sold it for $599 and $649 off contract, respectively.

Weak sell-through and more tablet choices prompted carriers to cut their prices for the device a couple of times. Verizon and Sprint both slashed their Tab price point to $199.99 with a two-year deal April 6.

There are a few reasons for the weak demand and resulting price cuts. For one, Apple's iPad remained a hot seller throughout the holiday season.

Also, the Galaxy Tab is speedy and crisp-performing, but it runs Android 2.2, an OS that isn't optimized for tablets. To wit, some applications don't play well on the machine.

Then, tablet evolution struck. Not long after the Tab hit the market, rumors of Android 3.0 "Honeycomb," a more powerful, tablet-tailored Android OS emerged.

Verizon and Best Buy are selling the Motorola Xoom Honeycomb 3G and WiFi tablets. Rumor has it that only 100,000 Xooms have shipped, but Honeycomb machines from Samsung, Toshiba, LG and others are on their way.

Then, there is the Apple iPad 2, Research in Motion PlayBook and HP TouchPad to contend with. Clearly, carriers want to make room for them by selling Tab 7.0 devices at a major markdown.

In view of all of these market developments, offering a WiFi-only Galaxy Tab 7.0, which many consumers asked for last year, seems quite tardy, even if it offers double the storage of the WiFi-only iPad 2 at $150 less.

It's possible those looking for a cheap, high-quality tablet would be interested in the new Tab offering.

LG introduces dual core processor smartphone

NEW DELHI, April 6: Eyeing fast-growing smartphone market in India, LG on Tuesday said it plans to launch a range of phones in this particular segment this year. The company also announced the introduction of world's first ‘ Dual Core' processor smartphone, Optimus 2X, in India.

“By the end of 2011, LG will be launching 10 smartphones that would contribute 20-25 per cent in the overall mobile division revenue for us,” LG Electronics India Business Head (Mobile Communication) Vishal Chopra told this correspondent.

With focus on the smartphone series, LG plans to dedicate 40 per cent of the launches to high-end phones in 2011, further expecting to increase the category market share to 10-12 per cent. The company has also earmarked Rs.250 crore for strengthening the infrastructure for retail development and marketing activities, Mr. Chopra said.

About the new offering, Mr. Chopra said with the launch of Android-based Optimus smartphones, LG has further strengthened its portfolio with setting benchmarks in word-class technology. “Optimus range will get 10 more devices in the next six months,” he said.

Priced at Rs.30,000, Optimus 2X is the first phone to run on Nvidia's new Tegra 2 chipset, which promises excellent mobile experience. “It is an exceptional smartphone as it delivers powerful performance with the dual-core processor, as well as enhanced user interface and multimedia experience,” Mr. Chopra said.

Samsung Google Nexus S On Pre-order In India

NEW DELHI, March 25: It seems that the much anticipated Google Nexus S is finally going to arrive in the Indian market. Recently we found the device to be listed is on Flipkart’s online retail stores for pre-order sale. Google Nexus S has been priced at Rs. 27,999.

This high-end smartphone is powered by Android Gingerbread, which is Google’s latest mobile operating system. Gingerbread facilitates Nexus S to place Internet calls with a SIP account.

Users can enjoy superior VoIP dialing to other SIP accounts and even to the phone numbers Gingerbread allows Nexus S to place Internet calls with a SIP account. Users can enjoy superior VoIP dialing to other SIP accounts and even contact numbers.

Nexus S also functions as a Wi-Fi hotspot for up to six transportable devices like laptops or tablets. Once it is connected, these portable devices will have access to the Internet.

The expected release date of the Google Nexus S as scheduled on Flipkart is early April. The Nexus S has already received an update to the latest Android Gingerbread 2.3.3 though.

Steve Jobs Unveils Apple's iPad 2

SAN FRANCISCO, March 2: Apple Inc. Chief Executive Steve Jobs surprised a crowd of fans by taking the stage Wednesday to unveil the next version of his company's iPad tablet.

Mr. Jobs's surprise appearance was greeted by a standing ovation by the crowd in San Francisco. The executive, who took a medical leave earlier this year, joked with the audience, saying he "didn't want to miss today."

Mr. Jobs, a cancer survivor and transplant recipient, appeared energetic though thin as he took the stage at the invitation-only event.

The Cupertino, Calif., consumer electronics maker unveiled a second-generation iPad. Mr. Jobs said the iPad 2, which has a dual-core microprocessor and two video cameras, is thinner and lighter than its predecessor.

The new version will start at $499, which is the same price as the original model. It will be available in black and white colors and offered by both AT&T Inc. and Verizon Wireless. Mr. Jobs said it will begin shipping on March 11 in the U.S. and in more than two dozen other countries on March 25.

Apple's new iPad is hitting the market at a time when a slew of other manufacturers have announced plans to launch similar products this year. As competition intensifies in the growing tablet space, analysts and companies are also concerned about a looming price war.

Mr. Jobs rattled off a list of statistics about the growth of the iPad. The device, which debuted last year on April 3, generated $9.5 billion in revenue in 2010, he said. More than 2,500 publishers have joined the iBookstore that was created for the iPad and the company has paid $2 billion to developers of programs sold at its App Store.

By the end of 2010 there were already 30 different tablets for sale, according to research company PRTM. The company now counts 102 tablets from 64 different makers that are either available now or in development.

The category "is completely overbuilt," said Brian Gladden, Dell Inc.'s chief financial officer, in a recent interview.

Some of the most high-profile tablet contenders so far haven't chosen to undercut the iPad's price. Motorola Mobility Inc.'s new Xoom tablet, based on Google Inc.'s Android operating system, costs $799 without a cellular service plan compared with $729 for an equivalent iPad.

Apple confirms March 2 media event to introduce iPad 2

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb 23: Apple on Wednesday sent out official invitations for a media event next week on March 2 in San Francisco, presumably to show off its second-generation iPad.

According to The Loop, Apple sent out invitations to the media on Wednesday. The event will be held as usual at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco.

An image sent with the invitation shows an iOS calendar icon with the date March 2. The calendar is peeling away to show an iPad screen in the background, confirming that the event will indeed be about the iPad.

The announcement confirms a rumor from earlier this week that Apple would host a media event next Wednesday. Apple is expected to show off a new iPad with faster hardware and a FaceTime camera.

Earlier Wednesday, AppleInsider was informed by analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of Concord Securities that overseas supply chain sources expect Apple partner Foxconn to build between 4.5 million and 5 million iPad 2 units in the first quarter of 2011. That would be followed by another 3 million to 4 million units in April.

The analyst has also said that the iPad 2 will feature an upgraded display that will be feature improved anti-reflection capabilities, though not a higher pixel density. The new device is expected to be thinner and lighter with more RAM, a faster CPU, and improved graphics processing capabilities.

More than 60 percent of the first wave of iPad 2 shipments are expected to be 3G-capable models. Apple is expected to build 3G models with both GSM and CDMA cellular radios -- and perhaps even a "world mode" device that would support both technologies in one.

Apple has waited longer into the year in 2011 to announce its next iPad. The first-generation device was revealed in late January of 2010, though the Wi-Fi-only model didn't ship in the U.S. until April.

Raja, aides arrested in 2G spectrum scam

NEW DELHI, Feb 2: Former Telecom Minister A. Raja has been arrested along with his two former associates in connection with the 2G spectrum scam.

Mr. Raja arrived at the Central Bureau of Investigation headquarters on Wednesday morning, a day after his brother A.K. Perumal was questioned by the agency about alleged funding of some front organisations owned by telecom companies which had been allocated spectrum from October 2007 to January 2008, official sources said.

Mr. Raja, his former personal secretary R.K. Chandolia and former Telecom Secretary Siddartha Behura were arrested for allegedly abusing their official position and manipulating the tendering procedures to benefit certain telecom companies in getting the spectrum.

The arrest of 47-year-old Mr. Raja, who has been questioned four times by the agency, comes over two months after he was forced to resign in the wake of the spectrum controversy.

Mr. Raja, who was questioned earlier on December 24 and 25 last year and January 31, was called to the CBI office on Wednesday morning and quizzed before being arrested, the sources said.

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MP had been confronted with some questions and documents recovered from the computers seized during searches conducted by the investigation agency earlier at his premises, the sources said.

He was also asked about his conversations with corporate lobbyist Niira Radia and the reasons for advancing the cut-off date of applying for license for spectrum allocation in 2007 by a week.

Mr. Raja was forced to resign on November 14 last year in the wake of the CAG report which held that the spectrum allocation at undervalued prices resulted in a notional loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore to the state exchequer.

The Supreme Court has asked the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate to submit status reports on their investigations into the 2G spectrum case to it by February 10 when the case will come up for further hearing.

In its FIR, the CBI mentioned the loss in spectrum allocation as Rs. 22,000 crore based on Central Vigilance Commission findings which had referred the case to it.

The CBI has also questioned former Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) chief Pradip Baijal, a 1966 batch IAS officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre, and former Telecom Secretary D.S. Mathur in connection with the case.

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