Recent News

Nokia plans to lower prices of 4G and 3G mobile phones in India to leverage operators’ plans to launch high speed 4G services and boost its market share in the country. “We want to continue to push price points lower and lower than anything we have today. That’s the statement for both 3G and LTE (4G) because that is the thing which gives us scale of the ecosystem,” Microsoft’s Mobile Device Sales, Corporate Vice President Chris Weber said.

In a major initiative, the LV Prasad Eye Institute (LVPEI) and the Microsoft India Development Center (MSIDC) have launched a computer training center in Visakhapatnam for visually challenged persons—the first such facility in Andhra Pradesh. A local youth, P Mohan Kumar, who lost his eyesight at 16 and later learnt computer skills at the LVPEI, inaugurated the institute in the presence of LVPEI founder GN Rao and MSIDC Managing Director, Anil Bhansali.

Expanding its portfolio in the booming yet fiercely competitive, global smartphone market, Microsoft has launched three new Lumia smartphones—including one designed for ‘selfie’ enthusiasts. The company has introduced the new devices—the Lumia 830, 735 and 730, priced at about Rs 26,190, Rs 17,370 and Rs 15,800 respectively—as it builds on its acquisition of Nokia’s mobile division earlier this year. All the handsets will start being rolled out globally this month.

Several companies in India have found the ‘right fit’ employees among differently abled people in a number of job profiles. According to company representatives, they perform better than most average employees under certain circumstances. A Microsoft spokesperson said, “At Microsoft, we believe that diversity enriches our performance and products, the communities where we live and work, and the lives of our employees.”

The Xolo Win Q900s, the company’s first Windows Phone-based smartphone and the lightest in the world, is now available on Snapdeal.com at Rs 9,999. Weighing only a 100 grams, the handset was initially priced at Rs 12,999 but is selling at a lower price as an introductory offer. Win Q900s runs on the latest Windows Phone 8.1 operating system and was released for pre-booking in June, and so far, Snapdeal has processed 5000 orders.

Microsoft has rolled out a major update to the Nokia X2, the latest Android powered smartphone launched by the company in June 2014. The update brings Google’s Gmail client to the Nokia X platform, among other features and improvements. While the Nokia X devices are running on Android, they are based on Android Open Source Project (AOSP) and lack Google Mobile Services (GMS) like Gmail, Google Maps and YouTube. This update also allows users to sync their contacts with their Gmail account.

At its IFA 2014 event, Acer unveiled four new Windows 8.1 convertibles devices in its Aspire R and Aspire Switch series—Acer Aspire R13, Aspire R14, Aspire Switch 10, and Aspire Switch 11. Acer has said that Aspire R13 and Aspire R14 will be available from October starting at approximately Rs 54,300 and Rs 36,200 respectively. The Aspire R13 features a 13.3-inch IPS touch display that comes in two different screen types and includes Zero Air Gap Technology.

Windows Phone users will soon be able to browse the Web using the Opera Mini browser. The Oslo-based maker of Internet browsers is now asking users to sign up for Opera Mini’s beta group to test the browser. “We know we took a long time, but our test version is now available. Download it, try it and give us your feedback. We’ll listen and make improvements to give you the best browsing experience on your Windows Phone,” the page states.

Life for a managed services provider (MSP) is seldom straightforward. Support staff in the service center have long had to juggle between screens as they log in and out of numerous applications from different vendors in the course of their day-to-day remote management operations. Over the years advances in technology have created ever more diverse technical environments for them to manage. Nowadays it’s commonplace for customers to have a mix of traditional on-premise IT along with mobile devices and the latest cloud-based applications.

The budget friendly Android device from Nokia, the Nokia X2, has been promised to be offered at “lower and lower price points”. Today, India witnessed the original price of Rs 8,200. The Nokia X2 is now another addition to a group of high quality and affordable Android handsets in the Indian market. As mentioned by a Microsoft executive, the company had the intention to bring this device at “lower and lower price points.”