Delhi High Court bans sales/import Xiaomi devices in India

The world’s fastest growing mobile brand Xiaomi, which made an impressive entry into India with its Mi3 handset in July this year, has now been barred from importing and/or selling its devices in India over an alleged patent infringement, for the time being.

Ask anyone if they have seen the same design language as Xiaomi devices before, and the response will be a unanimous yes. Ask them where and you will hear one name — Apple. The Cupertino giant has every reason to sue the Chinese smartphone-maker but it isn’t them. Not this time.

According to the PTI wire, the Delhi High Court has passed an interim injunction banning the sales and import of all Xiaomi devices running on technology patented by Swedish equipment maker Ericsson, in India. The court order is directed toward Xiaomi India ( or Mi India ) as well as its exclusive online retail partner Flipkart.

I am satisfied that plaintiff (Ericsson) has made out a prima facie case for grant of ad interim injunction in its favour.

— Justice G.P. Mittal, Delhi High Court

The court has also notified both of them to submit affidavits declaring the number of devices sold by them and the revenues earned thereof.

In the patent case against Xiaomi, Ericsson India had submitted to the Delhi court that the Chinese device marker had been violating eight of its patents pertaining to 3G, EDGE and other technologies.

The Court’s order poses to be a setback for Xiaomi which has already sold over half a million smartphones in India. Its weekly flash sales of limited number of handsets, one model at a time, had upped its brand status. But the company also drew criticism for hyping the product by controlling supply. In this week’s flash sale, Xiaomi said 75,000 Redmi Note devices had been sold out in 8 seconds.

Ericsson has said that it had invited Xiaomi to use its patented technology by obtaining a licence, but instead of doing so, the Chinese manufacturer launched its devices in India in July 2014. Reportedly, Xiaomi is readying to open discussions with Ericsson to ‘resolve this matter amicably’.

Reports quoted a Xiaomi spokesperson as saying the phone maker is readying to open discussions with Ericsson to ‘resolve this matter amicably’.

 

Apple announces the much rumoured 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K display, starting at $2499

Apple has finally introduced its much-awaited new 27-inch iMac with Retina 5K Display at its October 16th event.

According to Apple, it is spreading the Retina display technology across all of its devices and the iMac was next in line. The new iMac features what Apple is calling the world’s highest resolution display with 14.7 million pixels. The iMac features a 5K display with more than seven times the number of pixels in a HDTV. Despite the massive increase in the number of pixels, Apple has kept the iMac just 5mm thin, just like the previous generation.

The new iMac features a resolution of 5120×2880

Alongside resolution, the display also has a greater contrast ratio to maximize detail. Meanwhile, Apple uses power-saving LEDs which decreases power use by 30%.

It also includes the fastest CPU chips, starting at 3.5 GHz Intel Core i5 and upgradeable to a 4 GHZ Intel Core i7.

In terms of graphics, the iMac is 45% faster than the previous version and also includes a Thunderbolt 2 port for faster IO.

This iMac with Retina 5K display will start at just $2499.

 

Apple unveils the new, thinner, more powerful iPad Air 2 with Touch ID and a gold option

Yesterday, Apple revealed the next generation of it full-sized iPad Air, the iPad Air 2 along with its smaller sibling the iPad Mini 3 (with Retina), at its event at Town Hall.

Apple CEO Tim Cook described the tablet as the perfect combination of simplicity and capability. “Beautifully simple on the outside, but packed with tech inside,” he said.

He also touted figures showing that iPad sales were more than sales of computers from any of the top four PC manufacturers over the last 12 months. Phil Schiller, SVP of Worldwide Marketing, Apple, also brought on stage third party developers to help show off new photo and video-editing apps (Pixelmator and Replay respectively) running on the iPad Air 2 that previously would have required a high-end desktop computer to run.

To deliver the aforementioned performance, Apple has upgraded the processor inside the iPad to the new A8X chip, which is a more powerful version of the A8 cup found in the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. According to Apple, it’s 40% faster and that some apps will run twice as quick. It also claims a 2.5x increase in graphics performance. What wasn’t revealed is whether there’s more RAM in it than the 1GB available on the iPhoandne. Some examination of the parts suggests the RAM has, in fact, been doubled to 2GB.

According to Schiller, the new iPad Air 2 is 56% less reflective than the previous generation. This feat was accomplished by removing the “air gap” between the glass, the touchscreen layer and the panel itself and by adding an anti-reflective coating on top of it. “This is better than any tablet on the market,” says Schiller.

Schiller also showed off the new thickness of the iPad Air 2, a mere 6.1mm. This is 18% thinner than the previous generation and less than half of the thickness of the first generation iPad, launched in 2010 (on left in the above comparison picture). Apple has also managed to trim .04 pounds off the weight of the iPad Air.

Apple has also upgraded the shooter of the new iPad with larger 1.5 micron pixels, slo-mo, time-lapse, burst mode and other software features already available for the iPhone. The front-facing camera has also been upgraded to allow better FaceTime-ing and better selfies.

Another much awaited and much rumoured feature added to the iPad is the Touch ID feature allowing you to unlock your iPad just by touching the home button and giving your fingerprint. This feature can be used to make purchases on the iTunes Store as well as the new Apple Pay, though only via apps. Since the iPad Air 2 lacks the NFC chip needed to use Apple Pay at physical retailers, Apple Pay on the iPad won’t work there (unless the retailer allows you to pay with an app, not by swiping your device over a credit-card terminal).

Apple’s iPad Air 2 will be available in Space Gray, Gold, and Silver starting at just $499 for the 16GB model. Though, like the iPhone 6/Plus storage configurations the next tier jumps up to 64GB for $599 and 128GB for $699.

 

Where the iPad Air 2 seems to have grown by leaps and bounds over its predecessor, the iPad Mini 3 seems to be just like the Mini 2 repackaged with a new Touch ID sensor and a gold colour option.  It was the most disappointing product to be unveiled at the event. All of the internal specifications match its predecessor, but it’ll also be available in Gold. That being said, you can pickup an iPad mini 2 for only $299 now. If you need to have Touch ID or fancy the color gold, you’ll have to shell out $399 for the iPad mini 3.

How to watch Apple’s iPad and Mac Event on Mac and Windows

Just under a month after it’s last event, Apple is here with yet another event which is set to reveal updates to the iPad and Mac product lines.

Mac

The live stream will require Safari 5.1.10 or later on OS X v10.6.8 or later; Safari on iOS 6.0 or later. Mac and iOS users can stream the event through Apple’s website here when it kicks off at 10 a.m. PDT tomorrow.

Apple TV

Streaming via Apple TV requires second- or third-generation Apple TV with software 6.2 or later.

Windows

Like the iPhone 6/ Apple Watch event, Apple’s iPad/Mac Oct. 16 press event won’t be streaming on Windows and will requires Safari on a Mac, iOS device or an Apple TV. That means that Windows users will have to figure how to get the stream going using the workaround (via 9to5Mac).

You’ll need to download VLC player and check back here tomorrow for the final streaming link to complete the instructions:

1. Download VLC Player from here: http://www.videolan.org/vlc/download-windows.html
2. Install it.
3. Open VLC. Click Media (top left) > Open Network Stream.
4. You will see this screen:
   
5. Paste this link into that field: http://p.events-delivery.apple.com.edgesuite.net/14pounqefvoiubefvpiub10/m3u8/atv_mvp.m3u8
6. An “Unable to open the MRU file …”  will appear until the stream has started.

Apple is expected to unveil a new iPad Air, iPad mini, and Retina iMac alongside a possible Retina MacBook Air and a release date for OS X Yosemite. 

Apple sends out invites for its iPad and Mac event on October 16th

Apple has recently announced that it will be hosting a keynote address on Thursday, October 16th at the Town Hall auditorium on its Infinite Loop campus in Cupertino, CA. Invitations to select members of the media and special guests indicate that the event will, as always, begin at 10 AM Pacific time/1 PM Eastern Time.

As the second Apple event this fall, the Cupertino-giant will likely use its smaller, home court stage to debut updates to its iPad and Mac lines…

Apple iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus to launch in India on October 17; Pre-order it Today!

Apple has recently announced that its latest smartphones, the 4.7″ iPhone 6 and the 5.5″ iPhone 6 Plus will be launched in the country on Friday, 17th October 2014, via various Apple authorised resellers. Preorders for the smartphones have already begun today on infibeam.com and is due to start on flipkart.com & Amazon.in at noon.

The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus will be available via Apple Authorized Resellers including Ingram Micro, Redington, Rashi Peripherals and Reliance.

Although Apple did not announce the prices of their smartphones, many of the online retailers have revealed the pricing as follows:

iPhone 6

• 16 GB – Rs. 53,500 ($868)
• 64 GB – Rs. 62,500 ($1014)
• 128 GB – Rs. 71,500 ($1160)

iPhone 6 Plus

• 16 GB – Rs. 62,500 ($1014)
• 64 GB – Rs. 71,500 ($1160)
• 128 GB – Rs. 80,500 ($1305)

Since this just the launch, pre-order pricing for all the colours of a similar storage-sized phone are the same.

Check out Apple’s press release and various offers after the break:

Pebble smartwatch gets price cut and new fitness features!

Pebble, the smartwatch startup which started the wearable wrist revolution a couple of years back with its KickStarter campaign, has recently revised the prices of all of its models, bringing the price of the entry-level Pebble down to $99 and the premium Pebble Steel to $199. Along with the decrease in price, the startup has also improved upon the fleet of fitness-related features introduced to the watches in an update earlier this year.

The Pebble smartwatch and Pebble Steel had aspirations to track fitness, but were never able to do background tracking — an essential feature for counting steps. That’s changed now: Pebble’s latest software release adds true background fitness tracking capabilities, while partnerships with Jawbone and Misfit have resulted in new apps that work on the Pebble to run continuously and track steps and sleep, just like an everyday fitness tracker.

 

 

Fitness bands have been selling alongside the likes of the Pebble for a while now, but as Apple and Google have demonstrated, smartwatches can comfortably include most of the exercise-related features as standard. The new Pebble update sees both regular and Steel versions of the Pebble track steps and sleep-related data in the background, eliminating that tedious rigmarole of having to leave the Misfit app open for step-counting.

Different fitness apps are free to use their own algorithms to interpret the data: or, as Eric Migicovsky, CEO of Pebble, explained during a phone call to CNET, some are even working to develop non-fitness apps, like one to track epileptic seizures while sleeping. The Pebble will be able to track fitness (or use its compass) while offline and unpaired with a phone, holding up to 140 days of data without syncing. But the initial apps won’t sync with phone apps yet: that feature will be coming soon.

Along with the new features and price drop, Pebble is also expanding the reach of its smartwatch, with Fry’s, Sam’s Club, and Sprint in the U.S. joining Dixons, O2, and Amazon in the UK to begin retailing the device today onwards.

All these moves by the startup seem to point to the fact that they feel threatened by the entry of the big names like Apple, Motorola and LG with their state of the art looking smartwatches like the round Moto 360 or the svelte Apple Watch…

What do you think of these changes made by Pebble? Let us know by sounding off in the comments!

Third party keyboards top App Store charts after iOS 8 release

As the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus go on sale today, many consumers will be getting their hands on Apple’s new mobile operating system, iOS 8, for the first time. And what are iOS 8 users downloading from the App Store? After years of strictly controlling the iOS user interface, Apple has opened things up. You can now replace the default iOS keyboard with that of your own choice, including apps from popular keyboard makers like SwiftKey and Swype, out of which the former says it has now been downloaded 1 million times, and has become the #1 free app on the App Store…

These keyboard apps are burning up the US App Store’s Top Charts, currently accounting for the 3 out of the Top 5 Paid apps (#1 Swype; #2 Fleksy; #3 Color Keyboards), as well as 3 of the Top 5 Free apps (#1 SwiftKey; #2 CooolKey #3 Kiwi). And throughout the Top 20 in both charts, other keyboard apps can found, too.

There is one problem, however – not all the apps being downloaded by iOS 8 users actually replace their keyboard.

Despite the disclaimers in the apps’ descriptions explaining they are meant as standalone apps, some pseudo-keyboard apps are being downloaded, then slammed in the reviews as “rip-offs” and “scams.”

These fake keyboard apps have been around for some time now, hoping to capitalise on user demand for iOS customisation. They operate in a grey area along with apps which claim that they can help you “pimp your homescreen,” change your lockscreen, install “live wallpaper,” or change your icons. Many of the apps, however, were never able to do what they led their users to believe – iOS was not built for customisation, previously. At best, these apps offered an illusion of customisation, but the iOS operating system itself was untouched.Of course, users didn’t read the fine print, and continued to buy the apps, regularly sending them into the top charts.

But now that iOS 8 does allow for customization – well, custom keyboards, that is – some of these fake keyboard apps are surfacing yet again. For example, #9 in the Top Free apps chart is “Pimp My Keyboard,” an app whose description reads: “Please Notice: Using this app you are able to edit the keyboard only within this application.” In other words, it does not replace your keyboard.

Caveat Emptor: Before you download some new, color-changing, emoji-filled iOS keyboard app, make sure you know what you’re getting.

Apple edits company description following Apple Watch and Apple Pay announcements

Apple’s press release this morning has introduced Apple’s new company description (or mission statement). Apple tweaks this from time-to-time based on new product introductions. With Apple Pay and Apple Watch arriving soon, Apple has edited their company description. Check out the new one below:

Apple reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, defined the future of mobile media and computing devices with iPad and has announced Apple Watch, its most personal device ever. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store, continues the rapid pace of innovation of mobile software with iOS and integrated services including Apple Pay and iCloud. Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world with OS X, and free iOS and OS X apps like iWork and iMovie.

Here’s the earlier one for comparison:

Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices with iPad.

Apple India slashes ‘official’ prices of iPhone 5s 16GB and 32GB model

After announcing the next generation iPhones last Tuesday, it seems that Apple has now lowered the prices of the iPhone 5s 16 GB and 32 GB models,according to Mumbai based  retailer Mahesh Telecom.

At its event at the Flint Center, the Cupertino tech-giant had announced that the 16GB and 32GB variants of iPhone 5s will remain available in the market, along with iPhone 5c 8GB. However, there was no word on the revised prices of the these models at the event.

The iPhone 5s’ 32GB model has been lowered from ₹62,500 to ₹49,500 while the  16GB model has come down from ₹53500 to ₹44500, according to a tweet by Mahesh Telecom’s twitter handle.

It's official !#Apple #iPhone #PRICEDROP #iPhone5s 16GB & 32GB w.e.f today
5S -16 Gb MRP 44500
5S -32 GB MRP 49500 pic.twitter.com/vvKcDirSHg

— Mahesh Telecom (@MAHESHTELECOM) September 13, 2014

Interested buyers can, however, purchase the iPhone 5s 16 GB for as low as around ₹37000 at Amazon India, while the same model retails for  about ₹36000 at Flipkart.

The 32 GB model, though is available for around ₹57000 on Flipkart but remains priced at ₹62,500 at Amazon India.

There is no word whether or not Apple will start a buyback offer for iPhone 5s, like it did for iPhone 5c earlier this year. However, the 8GB iPhone 5c can be purchased for ₹24,000 via online retailers without the buyback offer.

Apple, on September 9, posted on its India website that iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus will be launched in the country on September 26, later changing the date to October 17. However, it then removed the launch date from the India website altogether and has since not given an official statement regarding the rollout of the new iPhones in the country.