Things to do before selling your android phone

If you want to sell your android phone, there are some task that you must do before selling. Here is the list of things you should do before selling

Backup Your Data

You can backup your data in to your computer or you can backup data to your Google account. The simplest and the more secure way to backup your data is by using Google drive account.
The back up option will be available under settings> Accounts > Google Account and select the data which you want to sync. This way you can back up all important things in your phone like photos, videos, files, bookmarks, apps, passwords, settings.

If you have a slow internet connection or you can back up your important data to your PC. Just connect the phone and PC via USB cable and transfer the data which you need to your computer.

Reset 

Next step is to encrypt your data, that is to completely wipe your data from the phone. For this go to your Settings >Backup and Reset > Factory Reset. Once you had tapped on factory reset, it will erase all data on your phone and the device will be like when you have bought it.

Remove the SIM Card and Memory Card

You may have many contacts saved on your SIM card and also data stored on your Memory card. So it is important to remove both of this and keep it with you to ensure full security.

Before removing the memory card, go to Settings> Sorage and tap on Unmount SD card Option and your memory card is now safe to reove.

Pack It Up

You might have got a box and accessories like charger adaptor, USB cable, headset, bill, guide along with your phone when you had bought it. Re assemble everything in the box, if you have it. having all the accessories including box will add to the value of  your phone and it is most likely to be selled at a higher price. 

Clean It

Once you had completely cleaned the inside of your phone, next step is to clean the outside. If there are many scratches at your screen guard, it is better to replace it a new one so that the phone will look much better.Also clean any dirt or build up in the outer portion your phone so that the buyer will be satisfies and feels that your phone is money -worth.

Rooting your Android Phone - things you should know

What is Rooting?

Rooting is the process of unlocking the Operating system for specific purposes. Rooting is performed to overcome the limitations put the hardware manufacturers on the device. With rooting , you will get the root access to your device . By this you can modify your Phone's software to the deepest level.The process of rooting is not recommended by the manufacturers and  can ruin the Phone's warranty.

Need of Rooting

By rooting, you gain the ability to load Custom ROM of your device. There are many Custom ROM's available which has completely different look and performance. Some of  the popular one's are CyanogenMod, AOKP, Paranoid Android.  You can select from the wide range of ROM's available based on your need. Here are the advantages of Rooting

* Install Incompatible apps

Sometimes, Android will block installation of certain apps which may hack into the android system or which might be a threat to your device. By rooting, you can install incompatible apps to your device and unlock new features.

* Update your OS

If your device is working on an older version of  OS and the manufacturer does not provide a way to get updated to the latest version, you can get latest version of OS in your device even before they are officially announced.

* Change Theme

By rooting, you can get the full themeing capabilities of your device and every graphic on your device can be customized. Even the colour of the battery indicator and the font of the device can be altered.

*Full Control of the CPU and the Kernel

*Improve Battery life and Speed

  There are many Custom ROM's available which would increase the speed and performance of your device and also improve battery life

*  Better Backup

By rooting you can backup or recover all the data ( pictures, apps, files, audio clips and so on ). You can even recover the information stored in your apps.

*  System processes can be automated

Disadvantages of Rooting

 In spite of all the benefits you gain via rooting, there are some disadvantages too which are discussed below.

* Security 

  There is an increased risk of getting malware into your device by rooting. Root access the permissions to the apps which might be harmful to your phone. on rooting, these permissions are removed and the harmfull apps gain the right to control the device. Because of security reasons, even Google refuses to support the Google Wallet service for rooted devices.

*  Warranty

 Once you have rooted your device, you had void your warranty of your phone but you can always un root your device by simply re introducing the original Backup ROM onto your device.

* Bricking

 ' Bricking' means screwing up your phone's software so badly so that your phone can never function properly. Loading of Unsupported Custom Rom into your device can also ruin the software and cause bricking.  

What is a Custom ROM?

If you own an Android device, You will get to hear about terms like Custom ROM , Custom Recovery Rooting and so on. Most people don't know what exactly these terms are meant for. Today I will let you know about Custom ROMs and their influence on your device.

Custom ROMs

In Android sense, ROM is typically a file that contain the executable instructions to run the OS. A Stock ROM is the one which is developed by the manufacturer and comes with the phone when you buy it. Custom ROMs are also filled with features and customization options which control the behaviour of the device. There are many custom ROMs available. Some of the popular Custom ROMs are

CyanogenMod

This is the best custom ROM available and as reports suggest, till now, there are more than 4.2 million active installation of CyanogenMod releases. Some of the features of CyanogenMod are Open VPN integration, DSP equalizer, Wi-Fi,Bluetooth, USB tethering, CPU over and under clocking.

AOKP (Android Open Kang Project)

AOKP allows more customisations than what is available with stock ROM. This is rising in popularity now . It allows customizations which are normally not permitted by the factory firmware. Some of the features are use of Custom Toggles,  CPU overclocking, Navigation ring, Wi-Fi , Bluetooth, USB tethering, LED control.

Paranoid Android

Paranoid Android is a Custom ROM aiming at enhancing the beauty of the android system and allow more customizations in the system. It is completely different from CyanogenMod and also packs some cool features like Hover, Pie and Peak. Hover allows you to to interact with the notifications as soon as they arrive at your screen . Pie helps to enhance the simplicity of the navigation bar and the navigation buttons can be used with just a simple swipe at the screen. Peek feature allows you to take a glance at your notifications as soon as you take your phone out of your pocket. Other Features of Paranoid Android are Multi-tasking and Floating notifications, UI customization, Gesture control and so on.

Nexus 6P Review

Google is back with its most awaited, feature rich new-generation Smartphone Nexus 6P. Nexus 6P is not like its predecessors - it's far too better.Google has stated that the 'P' in the device name stands for Premium.

The last Nexus device which was really popular was the LG made Nexus 5X which was launched at 2013. even though Google couldn't make a big impact last year, with the launch of Nexus 6P they had made their comeback with a blast. The device was announced and launched this September and the reviews seems to be much satisfactory.

This is Google's first partnership with Huawei. Coming to the design aspect, the device had come with metal body instead of plastic and is made of anodised aluminium with diamond-cut chamfered edges. With a thickness of 7.3 mm and weight of 178 grams, Nexus 6P is not the lightest of the phones available.

The device has a 5.7 inch 2K AMOLED huge display which is the best currently available and with rich range of colours and wide viewing angles. It also has Corning Gorilla Glass 4 protection. 

It works on Android v 6.0 Marshmallow OS and is powered by a quad-core 2 GHz Qualcomm MSM 8894 Snapdragon 810 processor with 3 GB LPDDR4 RAM. IT comes in 3 variants 16 GB/ 32 GB/ 64 GB internal storage space and there is no option for increasing the Storage memory as there is no external memory card slot.

Nexus 6P has a rear camera of 12.3 MP f/2.0 with laser autofocus and dual-LED flash. The rear camera is placed inside a corning Gorilla Glass 4 enclosure and hence the camera has pop out to a small extend at the top. It also has an 8 MP front facing camera with FULL-HD video recording. Other camera features include HDR+ mode, Panorama mode, Timer mode, lens blur, geo-tagging, face detection and Photo Sphere.The rear camera is capable of shooting 4K videos at 30 fps.

The Nexus 6P also houses a non-removable Li-Po 3,450 mAh battery. The 3,450 mAh battery along with the Android Marshmallow battery new saving feature like doze will provide a long lasting battery life.Nexus 6P has a stand-by time of up to 440 hours and a talk-time of 23 hours on 3G mode.The device also supports USB-C charging port and hence faster charging can be attained in minimum time.

Nexus 6P supports a single nano-SIM slot which supports a 4G LTE SIM card as well. Other connectivity options of this device include Wi-Fi 802.11, Bluetooth v 4.2, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, NFC and so on. It also Packs sensors such as fingerprint, gyro,accelerometer, proximity, compass and barometer.

Priced at Rs 39,999 for the 32 GB model and 42,999 for the 64 GB model, Nexus 6P is available in Aluminium Graphite and Frost colours. Being a Google device, Nexus 6P will also be the first device to get any ne Android OS updates in the future. 

Android 6.0 Marshmallow Features

Android v 6.0 Marshmallow is somewhat visually similar to its predecessor but Marshmallow have come out with many new stunning features. 

Memory Manager

One of the most heard disadvantage of Lollipop was its looting memory for apps. Android 6.0 marshmallow has come with a new inbuilt feature which allows you to check out the memory usage of newly installed apps without the help of any third party app.

You can browse through the RAM usage over the last 3, 6, 12 or 24 hours and identify when RAM looting have occured without much concern from user's side.

Type 3 USB

Marshmallow supports the new Standard Type C USB. which is associated with the USB 3.1 . The new feature supports faster charging . Type C charging cables and adaptors are currently available for a few hand picked number of devices. Type C cables support faster charging, faster data transfer and advanced multi tasking.

Marshmallow devices will also be having reverse charging feature which allows it to reverse charge other devices using Type C cable.

Google Now on Tap

Google Now on tap is the most highlighted feature of Marshmallow update. With this feature, you can go to Google Now with just a long press of the Home button. You can activate this even without leaving the current app you are using. 

while using an app, Tap will create a new Google Now overlay with your running app as the background. Now on Tap scans the current page, and provides relevant details regarding what now seen on the app. In case of music may show links to Youtube, saavn, and if it is a place then it will provide you with its directions on Google Map.

Fingerprint Scan

Google introduces System Level Fingerprint support for the Android Marshmallow. We have seen enormous number of third party finger print sensors in the hardware, but this is the first time fingerprint sensors are supported by the core itself. 

With this feature, you can use fingerprint lock to unlock your device,make payments in Android Pay or log in to various apps and services as seen on iPhone. 

Doze

This feature helps to improve the battery life of the device. This feature senses whether your device is in rest and put your device somewhere close to Airplane mode when not in use and thus adds more life to the battery. It simply cuts down the background processes . 

Cut and Paste

After you had highlighted a text, options for cut/copy/paste will float over the highlighted text rather than at the top of the screen. This feature is seen on iOS devices.

Moto X Play Specifications and review

Moto X Play has the features in between Moto G and Moto X. Moto X Play is one of the 3 Moto X devices in 2015. other devices being Moto X Style and Moto X force.

Coming to the design , Moto X Play is solid , neat and good looking with just speaker grills and front camera sensor at the front side. With a thickness of just 8.9 mm at its thinnest point and curving out to a maximum of 10.9 mm thickness, the handset is pretty much comfortable in hands with its rubberised robust rear panel. It also has a customisable rear back cover.

Moto X Play comes with a giant 5.5 inch full HD  IPS display with Gorilla Glass 3.0 protection and with a pixel density of 403 ppi. Instead of AMOLED display, this device features an LCD panel. 

The smartphone runs on quad-core 1.7 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 chipset  and with 2 GB of RAM. It is powered by Android 5.1.1 Lollipop with Android 6.0 Marshmallow update . Moto X play has two variants available based on its internal storage either 16 GB or 32 GB.  The 16 GB variant is priced at Rs 18,499 while the 32 GB variant goes at Rs 19,999. It also has a micro-SD card slot with which Storage space can be expanded to up to 128 GB.

One of the most highlighted feature of Moto X Play is its huge 3630 mAh battery which will last for almost 2 days on a single charging. It also includes Motorola's Turbo charging facility which provides 8 hours of battery life in just 15 minutes of charging.

One of the disappointing feature of this phone is the lack of water resistant feature which was previously seen on Moto G 3rd Generation handset. 

Apart from its huge battery, another stand out feature of Moto X Play is its camera. It packs a 21 MP main camera with f/2.0 aperture, face detect autofocus, and with dual-tone LED flash. It also has a 5 MP front camera with f/2.0 aperture  for taking better selfies. Both the front and rear camera have a blue glass filter which would remove the infra red and thus the pictures look more natural.

The connectivity options of this device include Bluetooth v4.1, Wi-Fi, GPS, A-GPS ,GLONASS, FM radio with RDS, 4G LTE support, NFC. The Smartphone has customisable polycarbonate back plate and is available in 14 colours. 

The handset is available for purchase at Flipkart.

Xiaomi Mi 5 Specifications and review

Xiaomi has announced its latest smartphone Xiaomi Mi 5 this month. The release date of this phone is not yet confirmed, but is expected to come in the market at January 2016.

The phone will be having a 5.3 inch IPS LCD capacitive touch screen with a resolution of 1440 pixels by 2560 pixels and a pixel density of around 525 ppi. According to the reports by Xiaomi, Xiaomi Mi 5 smartphone is seemed to have an impressive bench mark score of  73,075.

The device is expected to run on Android v 5.1.1 Lollipop, powered by 2.2 GHz Adreno 530 Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor and with 4 GB of RAM.  It is also rumoured that , since many heating reports has been filed against Snapdragon 820 processor, Xiaomi Mi 5 might run on Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 SoC chipset.

Another highlighted feature of this device is its 16 MP primary camera with LED flash which would be a strong competitor for latest HTC, Samsung, and Sony Smartphones. It also features a 6 MP front camera with 1080P full HD video recording. The rear camera is expected to be a ' flip side camera ', suggesting that it would be hidden in the chassis by default and will prompt out when a picture is taken. 

The Xiaomi Mi 5 will include a 3D touch technology , which allows pressure sensitive interactions with the screen. with this feature, you can copy a text by light press on the screen and cut a text by touching hard at the screen.

The device is available as 2 variants, one with 16 GB internal Storage space and other with 32 GB internal Storage. Based on the informations received from various sources, it is expected that Xiaomi Mi 5 packs a Non-Removable Li- Po 3800 mAh battery. Faster charging can also be achieved through Quick Charge v 2.0. 

Connectivity options of this device include Wi-Fi 802.11 , Wi-Fi direct,Wi-fi Hotspot, Bluetooth v 4.1, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS. It also feature sensors such as Fingerprint sensor, accelerometer, gyro sensor, proximity sensor, compass, barometer.

The price of this device is not yet known. Xiaomi Mi 5 will be available in White Colour. 

How to update Google Play Store on your Android Phone

Google Play Store is the No.1 trusted app market available for android devices. You could download apps from Google Play Store and install it in to your device. So, from where you will download Google Play Store.Here is how you can update your Google Play Store for your Android Phone.

You could get APK of latest version of Google Play Store from various websites, we don't prefer to use them, as they may contain malware which would be harmful to your device. You don't need to download APK file for Google Play Store from external sources. You can update your phone's Google Play Store from your device by following the below mentioned steps.

You would have any version of Google Play Store on your device inbuilt . Firstly open the Google Play Store and you will get a screen like this and you will see a hamburger (three line) icon on the top left corner. 

Tap on that icon and you will get a list of options.

Select the settings  option from the side menu and it will open another screen. Scroll down and find " build version " option. Tap on it and now you will get a pop-up window. 

If your Google Play Store is up to date the popup window will show a message " Google Play Store is up to date " and if you have a new version of Google Play Store available, then the message will be "A New version of Google Play Store will be downloaded and installed " tap OK and the Google Play Store will automatically be downloaded.

Galaxy S7 Specifications and release date

After the success of Samsung Galaxy S6 and Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge, Samsung is coming with a much more feature rich smartphone, "Samsung Galaxy S7 ". Galaxy S7 will have same build quality and design as that of Samsung Galaxy  S6 but it would come with more updated features.

The release date of this device is not yet confirmed by the authorities but is expected to launch by February 2016.The price for this device is not yet known but it might not cost greater than Galaxy S6 and S6 edge. 

Like its predecessors,  it would also be having curved pressure sensitive display.

Samsung Galaxy S7 comes with a 5.1 inch 4K AMOLED display. It is powered by an Octa-core Snapdragon 820/ Exynos 8890 processor with 4 GB of RAM. It would be available as 3 variants based on the storage capacity as 32GB/ 64GB/ 128GB. 

The device runs on Android v6.0 Marshmallow . It also packs a giant 23 MP rear camera with ensures better picture quality with BRITECELL sensors and an 8 MP front facing camera with dual video call facility.

The networking options of this device include Wi-Fi, 2G, 3G, 4G LTE, HSPA, Bluetooth v4.2, GPS, AGPS, GLONASS. It also packs sensors such as Fingerprint, Retina scanner, Gyro, Accelerometer, Barometer, Proximity and heart beat sensor.

The device will run on a 4000 mAh battery with USB Type-C charging port for faster charging.

Huawei Mate 8 review

The Chinese Telecommunications company Huawei, has launched its new generation smartphone Huawei Mate 8, this November. It comes with a giant 6.0 inch IPS-NEO LCD capacitive touch screen with a resolution of  1080 pixels by 1920 pixels. It supports Dual-SIM cards (nano SIM).

Mate 8 is packed with features. It runs on Android v6.0 Marshmallow .The device is Powered by 1.8 GHz Octa-Core HiSilicon Kirin 950 processor with 3GB /4GB RAM. The phone has 3 variants. One with 32GB internal storage space with 3 GB of RAM, second with 64 GB Internal storage space and 4 GB RAM and the third one with 128 GB internal memory and 4GB of RAM. The device also has a external memory card slot (one slot of SIM card) and memory can be expanded to up to 128GB using external micro-SD card.

The preceder of this device, Mate 7 featured one of the best batteries and also provided more battery life as compared with other similar smartphones. Huawei has stated that the new version Huawei Mate 8 will have 30% more battery life than the previous version.

The Phone packs a 16 MP primary camera with features like optical image stabilisation, phase detection autofocus with dual-LED flash. It also has an 8 MP front camera for taking better selfies. it also has features like face/smile detection, panorama mode and HDR.

The connectivity options of Huawei Mate 8 includes Wi-Fi 802.11, Wi-Fi hotspot, Bluetooth v4.2, GPS, AGPS, GLONASS, FM Radio, micro USB v2.0. It also packs sensors like Proximity sensor, Fingerprint, Accelerometer, Ambient light sensor, Barometer and Gyroscope. 

Top Messenger App's of 2015

1. Facebook Messenger 

Facebook Messenger app is integrated with the giant social networking website Facebook. You have to log in with your Facebook user id and password. You can see the list of Facebook friends who are online, chat with them,group chat, send similies, emoticons, stickers . Video call and audio call features are available for the latest version of the app . 

The latest version of the app has a brighter interface, faster response, and cleaner service. You can also send GIF files, images and videos using  this Messenger app.

2. WhatsApp Messenger

WhatsApp, which is currently under the ownership of Facebook is the leading messenger app. WhatsApp is the most popular instant messenger app, handling more instant messages in a day than the entire global SMS industry. WhatApp is not known for the stunning features like other apps, but because of its fast response, simplicity and user friendly interface. 

Using WhatsApp Messenger app, you can send text messages across the globe for free, send videos, audio clips, send location map. Recently in 2015 , WhatsApp has also come up with the online calling facility and WhatsApp users can call any person using internet free of cost  even using 2G network.

3. Hike Messenger

Hike is the new generation Instant messaging app and is used by people around the world. Hike provides both Instant Messaging and SMS under one roof. Users can send SMS to anyone from Hike. 

Hike offers 100 free messages to anyone who are not on Hike which gives Hike a great advantage over other messaging apps. Hike also has huge collection of stickers in more than 50 languages (local and international) . Hike also allows its users to create groups with a maximum of 200 members while WhatsApp only offers groups accommodating 100 members. Latest Version of Hike also provides use of Hike Stickey with which Hike users can send Hike stickers via other messaging apps as well.

In addition to all these features, Hike also provides money for referring friends to join Hike and can be used to recharge your prepaid mobile phone.

4. Telegram

Telegram is one of the most secure messenger apps available. Telegram is almost similar to Whatsapp. The thing that makes Telegram stand-out from its counterparts is the end-to-end encryption of messages. Encryption will be done on all transmission stations for your chat and your data will be encrypted till it reaches the receiver and no data is stored on the telegram servers.

How to get pass the lock screen on Android phone

Almost all the android phone users tend to secure their phone's lock screen with pattern / pin lock and we are more likely to forget the pattern or pin.  Here's what you should do if you cant get pass the lock screen.

By Signing in to Google account/ using Backup Pin


If your phone runs on Android 4.4 or any previous version, it is relatively simple to get pass the lock screen . Enter anything where it is asked to enter the pin  and on 5 incorrect attempts, you will receive  a message " too many attempts " on your screen and then you will be asked to enter back up pin or your email id and password of your Google account . You can either enter the backup pin or sign in with your email id to get pass the lock screen.


Using Android Device Manager

Any version of the Android Phone can be unlocked or recovered by using this method. For this you need another phone or computer. From this go to google.com/android/devicemanager ,sign in to your Google account . Now , at the screen select the device which you want to unlock . Tap 'Lock' . Then a a new window will pop up and enter a temporary password at the provided space in the new window and tap Lock again. you will receive a conformation message at the beneath the box . Now, you will see the password field in the locked phone and now enter the temporary password which you had earlier provided and this will unlock your phone. 

By Factory Reset method 

This is the most simple method adopted but this method will erase all your data and your device will be back to its factory condition. For this, first turn OFF your phone. Now press and hold Volume down button and Power button (volume button + Power button + home key for some devices ) while the phone is booting and you will be directed to the Bootloader . Use volume keys to browse through the options untill you find  " Recovery Mode " , tap the power button to select the Recovery mode. Now , using the volume control buttons browse for " Wipe data/ factory reset " option. Tap power button after you had found it. Conform the prompt option and your device will be restarted and all the data will be erased.

Motorola Moto G Turbo launched - Primary review

Motorola has finally released its latest and better version 'Moto G Turbo' ,of their best- selling smartphone Moto G.

The new version comes with 1.5 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon octa-core processor and Adreno 405 graphics paired with 2 GB of RAM.

Moto G Turbo comes with a 5 inch HD display with a resolution of  1280 pixels by 720 pixels and is protected by Gorilla Glass 3 with a pixel density of 294 ppi. It also has 13 MP rear cam with LED flash an aperture of f/2.0 and a 5.0 MP front cam for taking better selfies. The device also has an inbuilt storage of 16 GB which can be expanded to up to 32 GB using micro-SD card. 

Moto G Turbo is powered by a 2470 mAh battery .It is also equipped with a Turbo Power wall charger for quicker charging of your phone.The company claims this device to attain 6 hours of talk time with just 15 minutes of charging.

The Smartphone also comes with IP67 certification, which means that the device is resistant to water and dust. Connectivity options of this device include Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi, GPS, A-GPS, and GLONASS.  It also packs sensors like proximity sensor, accelerometer, ambient light sensor.

Moto G turbo runs on Android 5.1.1 Lollipop Out-of-the-Box and it would be likely to get the Android 6.0 Marshmallow update. Priced at Rs 14,499, Moto G Turbo is available at Flipkart . As an Inaugural offer, Motorola India had offered 100% cash back for 100 lucky users. Also people can exchange their old handset with Moto G Turbo and get up to Rs 6000 cash back on purchase.

The device is currently available in Black and white colours. 

Top Launcher apps of 2015

Launcher apps allows you to customise your android phones home screen, change icons , add gestures, and provide a better overall user experience than before.

Here are some of the top Android Launcher apps of this year

1. GO Launcher Prime

GO Launcher is one of the most popular Launcher apps available. The Now available version of GO Launcher is GO Launcher Prime replacing the GO Launcher EX version. The app  features a great range of transition effects which also include 3 D transition (cloth, crystal, cross-fade, snake transitions).

GO Launcher Prime also provides additional section of lock screens and security lock feature to protect your apps, files, contacts and ensure your security. It also enables use of gestures  for fast and easy access to your contacts, settings, gallery,apps and more.

The app is available at Google Play Store  at $6. The free or trial version of the app is also available which would not be having all the features and ads would also be shown.


2. Nova Launcher

Nova is a powerful and robust android launcher app available . With more than 10 million downloads from Google Play Store and a stunning rating of 4.6 Nova stands at the top of the table of Android Launchers.

It is a highly customisable and performance driven launcher app with features like icon themes( more than 1000 themes available ), customisable app drawer, gesture support for fast and easy access, color control for labels, icons and widgets.

Nova launcher is available for download at the Google Play Store and all android users can download it for free.

3. Hola Launcher

If you are looking for an android launcher which consume less memory and less size then Hola Launcher is the best option for you.

Hola Launcher is a clean, fast and small-sized ( 2-3 MB) launcher app for your android phone. Its appearance is similar to  iOS phones with no app drawer. The app has almost no adverse effect on the phone's performance unlike some of its counterpart apps.

In addition to features like use of gestures,hiding apps,personalise wallpaper and themes,Hola Launcher app also posses some great in built features like
Hola shine which enables you to easily access frequently used app with just a swipe
Hola Boost to free up phones RAM with a single tap


4. C Launcher

The C launcher is a smart,speedy , personalised launcher app with battery saving feature which is not seen in other launcher apps. The icons at the home screen are somewhat similar as seen on iOS phones.

This app help you to customise your phone's view and also help save your phone's battery life. despite being fast and simple this bags features like clean junk files and speed up your device with just a single tap, hide and protect apps with pin / password / gesture.

Why do you need an antivirus app installed on your Android phone ?

It is often argued that android devices doesn't need antivirus software. Have you ever thought about this.. 

We have got many antivirus apps available at the Google Play Store like  Antivirus Free, 360 Security,CM Security etc. but we need to know whether antivirus apps are must requirement for Android phones. 

Android Security chief  Adrian Ludwig had once said , " Do I think the average user on Android need to install anti-virus apps? Absolutely not. I don't think 99 percent plus of users get a benefit from anti-virus apps. "

If the chief of a huge company like Android is quite confident in its security and had not find any useful thing in installing antivirus apps, then why should one download these apps from Google Play Store??

First we need to know what  is malware or virus? .  

Malware or virus are the unwanted intruders to your device which negatively effects your device OS. 

Where do they come from? 

There are various ways by which viruses can enter your Android phone. Some of the main ways are from  downloaded apps, Spam mails,or MMS that get automatically downloaded. 

Every Android phone comes with a facility of downloading apps from third party other than Google Play Store. Downloading apps from trusted market place like Google Play Store would cause nearly no harm to your device. For additional security from malware, Google has introduced its new Tool named " Bouncer " which will scan all the apps submitted to the Google Play Store for  malware.

Use of apps from third party market places are the main cause of getting malware onto your phone. For avoiding this, try to avoid links which you think is spam. For avoiding installation of apps from source other than Google Play Store, go to your phone's Settings > Security Settings  and then un mark Allow installation of apps from unknown sources

Some of the Android users, tend to change or alter their OS by a process called rooting which would certainly break all the barriers of protection from malware and most of the rooted devices are prone to malware as reports suggests.

There are plenty of Android devices which doesn't use Google Play Services. For these devices, a third party anti-virus app would be helpful.

Asus Zenfone Zoom to hit the market this month

Asus has announced that Asus Zenfone Zoom (ZX551ML), the world's slimmest phone with 3x Optical zoom camera, will be available in the market this month.

.The company has announced that the handset will be available only at Taiwan as two variants.  One which is powered by a 2.3 GHz quad-core Intel Atom Z3580 processor and the other powered  by 2.5 GHz Intel Atom Z3590 processor. While the former bags 64 GB internal storage, the latter has 128 GB internal Storage space.

Asus Zenfone Zoom comes with a 5.5 inch capacitive touch screen with a resolution of 1080 pixels by 1920 pixels. 

The most attractive feature of this phone is its camera. It bags a 13 Mega-Pixel rear camera with 3x optical zoom and the company claims that Asus Zenfone Zoom is the world's thinnest optical zoom smartphone with an innovative 10 element HOYA lens arrangement. The device also offer magnification up to 12x. Other camera features of this phone include rocky-optical image stabilization , dual LED dual tone flash and laser autofocus. 

The smartphone has a metallic  unibody specially designed for the 3x optical zoom mechanism. 

Both the variants of Asus Zenfone Zoom runs on Android 5.0 Lollipop and is powered by a Non-removable Li-Po 3000 mAh battery.

Connectivity options of this device includes GPRS , Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Hotspot, 3G, 4G and micro-USB. The Phone will be available in meteorite black , glacier white and pink colors. The expected price of the 64 GB variant is about Rs 29000 and  Rs 33000 for the 128 GB variant.

  

Bluestacks v 2.0 launched with multi-tasking feature

Popular Android emulator for Windows and Mac, Bluestacks has launched its new version with more advanced features. The most highlighted feature of this app is its ability to run multiple apps at a time.

Bluestacks, which was found on 2011 has more than 100 million users within this 4 years. It is currently the No: 1 android emulator. Bluestacks App Player allows its users to run apps and games fast and full screen on Windows and Mac using its Layercake technology. 

The new version of Bluestacks App Player, Bluestacks 2 got many advanced features which include Multitasking ability, easiness to set location, manage volume much comfortably. 

With multi-tasking feature, its users can use more than one app at a time-can chat in one tab and play games in the second, stream videos in the third .

Another highlighted feature in the new version is the new toolbar with quick access features like Rotate App, cut/copy/paste, APK install, provide location, share files. It also comes with a new welcome tab with country specific content. 

iPhone 6c Expected To Launch in January 2016

iPhone 6C is expected to launch on January 2016 and sales starts on February 2016.As scene earlier with iPhone 5C which has plastic build ,this is enhanced with a metal build. iPhone 6C will be a 4-inch smartphone with sporty metal build which will be easy to handle.Despite of the metal build it will be available in different colours.

The phone will have an improved HD camera with f/2.2 aperture.It includes the latest finger print sensors which was not available with iPhone 5C.It is expected that this handset will not come with 3D display as in iPhone 6S and 6S plus.It is expected to be good budget phone for iPhone lovers.

iPhone 6C is expected to be much cheaper than iPhone 5C. the predecessor iPhone 5C was costlier and it somehow failed to have an impact on the market .The new project of iPhone 6C is aimed at reducing the cost and make it affordable for more people. Even though the price tag of the device is still unknown, it is expected to be less costlier than iPhone 5C. 

As it is low-priced, it would not be having features like 3D touch, pressure-sensing  feature as in iPhone 6 and iPhone 6S.

WhatsApp Updated their App With New Emojis

Recently WhatsApp has  released a updated version of the app with the facility of Starred Message.Followed by this update they also added new emojis.Now we can keep some messages starred so that they can be read easily when needed going through the starred message tab.Whatsapp is also providing the facility of back-uping the messages including the media to the google drive.

           

If you didn't get the new features of WhatsApp through Google Play Store updates, then visit WhatsApp website and download the latest version.

Whatsapp is quite improving with its features and we can hence fing more updates in the future.

Micromax Canvas Xpress 4G in depth review

Micromax Canvas Xpress 4G is the latest budget smartphone from Micromax. The handset has been launched this November and comes with a 5 inch IPS display touch screen with 1280 * 720 pixel screen resolution. Instead of on-screen keys, the device comes with offscreen buttons for home , back and options button just below the screen somewhat similar to Moto G by Motorola.

The design of this phone is a bit different from previous smartphones by Micromax. It has a removable plastic back panel with chrome finish. It owns a slightly curved design at the back and a metal frame on both sides which holds the volume and power button.

Micromax Canvas Xpress 4G is powered by 1 GHz quad-core MediaTek processor and with 2 GB DDR3 RAM.  The smartphone has an internal storage space of 16 GB which can be expanded to up to 32 GB using micro-SD  memory card. 

The Phone packs a 8 MP  auto-focus rear camera with flash and a 2 MP front camera for taking selfies. 

Micromax Canvas Xpress 4G runs on Android 5.1 Lollipop and is powered by a 2000 mAh battery which is not quite satisfactory for a 5 inch screen smartphone and hence the battery drain might also be more. The company offers a standby time of  182 h and talk time of  6.5 h. 

One of the main attractive feature of this smartphone is its 4 G connectivity. The phone has packs Dual SIM cards with both the SIM cards having 4G connectivity. Other connectivity options for this device includes Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, FM, GPS and micro USB 3.0 .

The Smartphone comes with a number of pre-installed apps like App center, Amazon Kindle, Wynk Music, Scandid, Quikr, Chaatz, Clean Master and Hike. 

WhatsApp continues to block links of its rival Telegram

Recently Social Networking site Facebook had blocked the links from its potential rival Tsu.co  and now the Facebook owned messaging app is reported to be blocking links from its rival Telegram app. Even though WhatsApp allows its users to share Telegram links but these links are not considered as hyper links. The URL's from Telegram just appear as unlinked texts.

It might seem a bit disappointing and discriminating for a popular app like WhatsApp to start blocking links of other competing apps. Currently the block is only applicable for android users,while Telegram links can still be shared iOS app. 

It has also been reported at Telegram's official website it is written that " Facebook seems to have taken down our page for no apparent reason. We're trying to figure out what happened and how to take it back". 

In a survey conducted by Gadget360, they had reported that WhatsApp not only block links like telegram.me and telegram.org but also links such as telegram.notme, and telegram.com which are not even associated with Telegram App. 

Telegram App, launched in the Year 2013, has showed a rapid rise in its customers with an average of 15 billion daily messages sent via the app per day, as reports from November 2015. 

Nokia 230 and 230 Dual budget phones to hit the markets

Nokia, which once ruled the feature phone market, is coming back into the competition  with new feature phones Nokia 230 and 230 dual. Windows has referred to these phones as ' premium quality internet-enabled feature phones'.

Priced at Rs 3300,  the phone features sand-blasted aluminium back cover and a polycarbonate frame.

Both the handsets Nokia 230 and 230 dual SIM have  a 2.8 inch display with a resolution of 240 by 360 and weighs 92 grams. The phone also packs a 1200 mAh Li-Ion battery with 23 hours of talk time and 528 hours of stand-by time . 

The Phones run on Nokia Series 30+ Operating system and has 16 GB of RAM. The Phone also has an expandable storage of 32 GB. The Phones have 2 Mega Pixel front and rear camera with LED flash. the phone also has internet enabled with Opera Mini browser and Bing search.

They are also equipped with preloaded apps such as Facebook, twitter,GroupMe by Skype, Bing search, MSN support and an IPv6 support. Connectivity Options for this devices include 2G, Bluetooth v3.0,  micro-USB, and 3.5 mm  audio jack. It also has built-in FM and torch light.