HTC HD7 India price drop

Just last week in my earlier post I had written about flipkart offering HTC HD7 with 1 Year India Warranty for Rs. 31790. It seems the price drop has already begun with flipkart offering the same mobile now for Rs. 30599 which is a drop of Rs. 1200. Another noticeable change is its immediate availability indicated by "Buy This Now" while last week it was "Preorder Now".




Whats interesting to note is that on ebay.in one of the seller is offering HTC HD7 for Rs. 28990 which is a whopping Rs. 2800 cheaper than what flipkart was offering last week.



This is surely an excellent buy considering HTC HD2 with 1 Year India warranty and which comes with 8GB memory is available for approximately Rs. 24000 while HTC HD7 comes with a 16GB memory. If you are hoping for a further price reduction you will have to wait till February 2011 by when both Samsung Omnia 7 and LG Optimus 7 should be available.

LG Optiums 7 launching this month in India

HTC has already beaten both Samsung and LG to become the first handset manufacturer to launch Windows Phone 7 in India. HTC HD7 is available for Pre-Order on flipkart and delivery is expected from 15th December 2010.

In its press release on the launch event of LG Optimus One last month following information about LG Optimus 7 was mentioned.

LG Optimus 7 – coming soon

Another phone to create waves in the international market is the LG’s Windows® phone 7 device – Optimus 7. A direct result of LG and Microsoft’s close work together in the smartphone market, the LG Optimus 7 series offers the glance and go experience of Windows Phone 7 combined with unique features only available on the LG devices. These compelling applications — the DLNA-based Play To, augmented reality (AR) and Voice-to-Text — are available as Live Tiles on Windows Phone 7 and can be accessed via integrated “Hubs”. The phone allows users to enjoy a new era of entertainment through the introduction of Microsoft’s popular Xbox LIVE® and Zune® services. The advanced 5MP camera offers a host of technological enhancements from LG such as Intelligent Shot, which lets users, take the perfect photo without having to adjust camera settings and Panoramic Mode for stitching together a full 360-degree landscape scene. It has 3.8 inch WVGA LCD and 16GB of internal memory.


Going by the above excerpt and also with HTC launching HTC HD7 it is quite likely that LG will launch its Optimus 7 phone this month.

HTC HD7 launching this month in India

Good news for all Windows Phone 7 aspirants in India. While everyone were speculating Samsung and LG to launch their Windows Phone 7 this month, HTC has quietly beaten them to become the first company to launch Windows Phone 7 in India. HTC is launching its latest Windows Phone 7 offering, "HTC HD7" in India on 15th December 2010. Flipkart India's leading e-commerce portal is accepting Pre-Orders for HTC HD7. Also it's important to note that this is not an imported unlocked version because it comes with a 1 Year HTC India warranty for the phone and 6 months warranty for accessories



Though the pricing looks to be a tad expensive its surely a great news for everyone ready for Christmas Shopping.

LG Optimus 7 India price could be a dampener

Today LG launched Android 2.2 based LG Optimus One at an affordable price of Rs. 13,500. In its press release it brought lot of cheers for the Indian Windows Phone 7 aspirants by mentioning that LG Optimus 7 would be launching soon. While this definitely is a great news, all the excitement around this launch could be short lived unless LG comes out with a very aggressive pricing.

LG Optimus One
As per ebay.com currently the cheapest Buy Now listing for LG Optimus One available in USA is $332.86 which works out to Rs. 15,070 (Today's exchange rate $1 = Rs. 45.275)

LG Optimus One was launched in India today at a price of Rs. 13,500 which in value terms means it is cheaper in India than USA which surely is great.

If we were to normalize dollar value on Rs. 13,500 the exchange rate would be $1 = Rs. 40.557

LG Optimus 7
As per ebay.com currently the cheapest Buy Now listing for LG Optimus 7 available in USA is $599.00 which works out to Rs. 27,119 (Today's exchange rate $1 = Rs. 45.275)

Even if we were to consider the normalized dollar value it works out to Rs. 24,293 (Exchange rate $1 = Rs. 40.557) which surely is expensive. So there is a huge possibility that pricing for LG Optimus 7 would be Rs. 24,000. Anything less would be a sweetener.

LG Optiums 7 - December 2010 India Launch?

Today LG launched Android 2.2 based LG Optimus One at an affordable price Rs. 13,500. In its press release LG has mentioned about its growth plans for the coming year and interestingly towards the end it has following information about LG Optimus 7

LG Optimus 7 – coming soon

Another phone to create waves in the international market is the LG’s Windows® phone 7 device – Optimus 7. A direct result of LG and Microsoft’s close work together in the smartphone market, the LG Optimus 7 series offers the glance and go experience of Windows Phone 7 combined with unique features only available on the LG devices. These compelling applications — the DLNA-based Play To, augmented reality (AR) and Voice-to-Text — are available as Live Tiles on Windows Phone 7 and can be accessed via integrated “Hubs”. The phone allows users to enjoy a new era of entertainment through the introduction of Microsoft’s popular Xbox LIVE® and Zune® services. The advanced 5MP camera offers a host of technological enhancements from LG such as Intelligent Shot, which lets users, take the perfect photo without having to adjust camera settings and Panoramic Mode for stitching together a full 360-degree landscape scene. It has 3.8 inch WVGA LCD and 16GB of internal memory.


Going by the above excerpt we can comfortably say that LG will end up being the first Windows Phone 7 based mobile in India unless Samsung decides to jump the gun by launching Samsung Omnia 7. All in all a great news for all WP7 aspirants in India.

Samsung betting big on Windows Phone

In an article in AsiaOne News Head of mobile marketing in Thai, Sitthichoke Nopchinabutr has said that Samsung is betting big on Windows Phone.

He said Samsung will introduce 15 to 20 new smartphones models next year using Android, Windows Phone 7 and its own Bada operating system. For every 50 smartphones using Windows, Samsung will release 24 using Android and 5 using Bada which in percentage terms would mean 63.29% Windows based smartphones, 30.38% Android based smartphones and 6.32% Bada based smartphones.

Samsung Continuum gets its first commercial

The Samsung Continuum is up for sale in USA through Verizon. This is a new offering from Samsung which is primarily an Android 2.1 powered Galaxy S phone with a dual–display screen. Below the main 3.4" Super AMOLED screen there is a 1.8" ticker display where updates are shown in real time. This is the worlds first ticker display phone where unobtrusive updates are delivered on the Ticker display as they happen.

Following commercial shows what this wonderful masterpiece has to offer

Samsung Galaxy S i9000 price drop?

Samsung Galaxy S i9000 in amongst the best Android phones available in the market. It offers
# 4" Super AMOLED display
# Android OS v2.1 with TouchWiz 3.0 UI customization
# 1GHz Cortex A8 Hummingbird CPU; 512 MB of RAM
# 5 MP autofocus camera with face, smile and blink detection
# 720p HD video recording at 30fps
# Wi-Fi 802.11 b, g and n support
# GPS with A-GPS connectivity; Digital compass
# 8GB internal storage, microSD slot
# Accelerometer and proximity sensor
# Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
# microUSB port (charging) and stereo Bluetooth v3.0
# Stereo FM radio with RDS
# 1500 mAh Li-Ion battery

Over the past few weeks we have seen dramatic drop in its price. The latest listing for a New Samsung Galaxy S on ebay.in is priced at Rs. 24,490 which not so long ago was close to Rs. 30,000. This dramatic drop in price may be attributed to a sufficient demand-supply ratio and also a possibility of new Samsung mobiles to be available in the range of Rs. 25,000 - Rs. 30,000

Some of the new mobiles we may expect in the near future are
- Samsung Continuum which is an Android 2.1 powered Samsung Galaxy S with a ticker display.
- Samsung Omnia 7 which is a Windows Phone 7 device with most features of Samsung Galaxy S.

It is most likely that Samsung Omnia 7 will be available in the Indian market in the coming 2 months and this price drop could be an indication of the same.

Windows Phone 7 Ad

Windows Phone 7 Ad is out and it promises "the revolution is coming..."

Google China to Hong Kong - Click anywhere

Google Inc said yesterday that it will end the automatic redirection of users from its China portal to Hong Kong site within the next 24 to 48 hours. Instead of redirecting, Google was to show Google Hong Kong link on their homepage which a visitor can click and voluntarily move to the other site.

While Google has already done this.. to visit their Hong Kong site a user need not click on the URL mentioned on the homepage, a click anywhere on the homepage redirects you to Google Hong Kong site even if it was not intentional.

Now that's what you call a smart move :)

Apple iPhone 4G, 4, HD???

Will it be called iPhone 4G or iPhone 4 or iPhone HD ... too much confusion or is this all a marketing gimmick?

With Gizmodo releasing picks of what it claims to be the next generation iPhone, there is too much hue and cry about everything one can think of.

- What will it be called?
- Will it be revealed at Apple WDC scheduled on 7th June 2010
- 5 megapixel camera?
- Micro SIM?
- Will it have firmware 4.0?

Net-net even if we are to believe that photos revealed by Gizmodo are that of next iPhone, is it all that big deal for one to get excited about?

Google India celebrates Holi

Google India celebrates Holi with a doodle dedicated to Holi festival.

Wishing everyone a very happy holi!

Windows Phone 7 Series

Windows Phone 7 Series is out and its Rocking!!!

Today at Mobile World Congress 2010, Microsoft Corp. CEO Steve Ballmer unveiled the next generation of Windows® Phones, Windows Phone 7 Series. With this new platform, Microsoft offers a fresh approach to phone software, distinguished by smart design and truly integrated experiences that bring to the surface the content people care about from the Web and applications. For the first time ever, Microsoft will bring together Xbox LIVE games and the Zune music and video experience on a mobile phone, exclusively on Windows Phone 7 Series. Partners have already started building phones; customers will be able to purchase the first phones in stores by holiday 2010.

Hari Sadu is Back

Your popular or rather not so popular boss "Hari Sadu" is back. Naukri.com, India's No 1 jobsite has come up with a new TVC featuring their popular Hari Sadu theme.

The message is pretty clear, recession is over and its time to move on to your new job.

Sachin Tendulkar... 20 Not Out

Today the God of Indian cricket completed 20 years of International cricket. A feat which no other cricketer in the world has ever achieved. To celebrate 20 years of cricket, 20 Limited Edition autographed bats by the little master with the message 'Thank You India for 20 years of love', will be auctioned. To participate in the auction fans can log on to ibnlive.com/Sachin. The minimum auction price will start from Rs 50,001.The auction opens from Sunday, 15th Nov '09 and closes on Sunday, 22nd Nov '09. The proceeds of this auction will be given to the NGO "APNALAYA".

Current bid stands at Rs. 1,33,000. Bid now to grab this opportunity of a life time and contribute to a nobel cause.

Google Wave Invites Pouring

In my previous article I had mentioned me receiving invitation from Google for my Wave account on 30th October 2009. While I was expecting Google to send out next round of invites towards end of November 2009, they have proved me wrong. It seems they have sent another round of invites on 14th November 2009. Though this could be a part of delayed invitation process they started on 30th October 2009, what seems to be a coincidence is 2 of my friends ended up receiving their invitations yesterday.

This surely is a positive step coz most of the Google Wave account holders have been complaining about limited contacts in their Wave account thereby limiting their usage of Google Wave and at the same time many experts felt that Wave was loosing its fizz. Maybe its time Google went aggressive and offered invites to many more people.

Happy Waving!

More Google Wave invites.

As pointed out in one of my earlier posts, since the launch of Google Wave on 30th September 2009, Google has sent another round of Wave invites.

I was lucky enough to receive my own Wave invite from Google yesterday. This is exactly the same modus operandi which we had witnessed when Gmail was launched. In the coming year or so there is a high possibility that at least 50-55 percent of Gmail users will have their own Wave account.

Gmail has about 150 million users worldwide and with 20 additional Google Wave invites allowed per account, it wont take much time for Google to get their entire Gmail users to move to Wave. But lets not get too excited coz these invites will be sent by Google in a phased manner. There are also talks of Google replenishing invites of existing Wave users who have exhausted their earlier quota of invites.

One of the most notable things seen in the image above is 20 permissible invites which is up from 8 permissible invites at the time of launch. Also, for those who may not know email id for wave accounts are xyz@googlewave.com

Happy waving!

Apple takes a dig at Windows 7

With Windows 7 released on 22nd October 2009, Apple has taken a shot at Windows 7 in its new Ads.

Following Ad shows people queuing up at Windows 7 launch to upgrade from PC to Mac coz it is Number 1 in customer satisfaction.



Following Ad focuses on false promises made by Microsoft at each of its earlier launch.

Info Edge India Ltd. (Naukri) posts 6.3 percent increase in Profit Before Tax at 21.95 Crore for 2Q 2009-10

Info Edge (India) Limited posted a 6.3 percent increase in Profit Before Tax at 21.95 Crore for 2Q 2009-10.

Quarter Ended September 30, 2009
• Total Income in Q2 of FY 09-10 at 64.51 Crore, a 10.8 percent drop over the corresponding quarter in FY 08-09. Operating income is 56.16 Crore, which is 14 percent lower compared to the corresponding quarter last year.
• EBITDA is at Rs 23.51 Crore compared to 22.39 Crore being 5 percent higher as compared to the corresponding quarter in FY 08-09. Operating EBITDA is at Rs 15.16 Crore which is 2.17 percent lower as compared to the corresponding quarter in FY 08-09.

Ambarish Raghuvanshi, CFO and director, Info Edge India, has said, “The hiring environment continues to improve, albeit gradually. The drop in topline revenues and operating income reflects the changed scenario from the last year and is in line with expectations. However, the improvement is reflected in growth based on sequential quarter.”

About Info Edge (India) Ltd
Info Edge (India) Ltd (NSE: NAUKRI) is one of the largest internet company in India. Info Edge owns and manages Naukri.com - India’s no. 1 job site, Jeevansathi.com – India’s fastest growing matrimonial portal, 99acres.com - India’s No.1 real estate portal, Shiksha.com - an education portal, Quadrangle – an offline executive search firm, and Naukri Gulf – its foray into the Middle East market. Info Edge also owns Asknaukri.com, a career guidance site and Brijj.com, a professional networking site and Allcheckdeals.com, an online brokerage firm.

Info Edge has ventured into newer businesses and territories and attracted investments from leading venture capitalists. Formerly an ICICI Ventures investee company, Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers and Sherpalo Ventures have also invested in the Company. Info Edge raised Rs. 1,703 million through an IPO in the month of November 2006. The company has attracted a very high quality list of institutional shareholders and had a total of 10,664 shareholders on Sep 30, 2009.

With its headquarters in Noida (NCR), the company employs over 1450 people and operates through 53 offices in 34 cities in India and overseas offices in Dubai Riyadh and Bahrain catering to the Middle East market.

Big Boss 3 Videos

Big Boss 3 is already drawing highest TRP thanks to Mr. Amitabh Bachchan and after yesterdays stunning fight by KRK (Mr. Kamal R Khan) the TRP is expected to reach new heights.

Following are videos of KRK's fight on 21st October 2009







Currently most of the videos of Big Boss 3 are available on YouTube however on http://biggboss.co.in one may get to see video of each episode.