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Zynga brings ‘Hanging With Friends’ game to Android

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Zynga, the mobile gaming company which came out with the popular word game “Words with Friends”, has now come out with its new title for Market.

The game – Hanging With Friends, is a spin on the popular word game “Hangman” but with some difference. Here the players don’t have to deal with stick figure and noose, instead they have to find out the correct letter to ensure their animated characters stay afloat with their balloons.

If the players make too many mistakes, they lose balloons and their animated characters don’t stay afloat. The game “Hanging with Friends” is all about making the right guesses and all the fun lies in getting the guesses right by the players.

The main features of the game “Hanging with Friends” includes – turn based design that allows players to play 20 games at the same time, users have the option of playing with their friends or with random opponents, and they can also stay in touch with friends and family with in-game chat messaging. The push notifications tell the players when it’s their turn to play and when they have nobody to play with, they can search for somebody through the Facebook connect.

Last but not the least, the game just sounds gruesome but the actual gaming experience is much better.

Proxymate application comes to Android

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Proxymate, a application, has made its debut on Android. The app takes automisation to a whole new level in making driving safer and stress free.

Proxymate is simply a location aware automatic messaging application designed to allow the user to stay connected to the people they wish to while driving. The application makes use of coordinates and device’s connection to locate the location and based on the preset rule it triggers or sends a message to a designated person or persons.

All the user needs to do is enter information relating to the person, what message and the location, the application then automatically keeps a track of the location and sends the preset message when the location is reached. The application makes use of Google mapping service to out the location and then uses the same location to send the message.

The application can be used on non GPRS enabled phones as well. Proxymate makes use of GPS coordinates to be as accurate as possible while allowing people to use it in phones who do not have GPRS enabled.

Proxymate is compatible with devices running OS version 2.2 and above only. Proxymate is available for free for download from the Android Market. Users can locate the application through their phones or alternatively users can also follow this link to download application.

RIM launches BlackBerry 9860 in India

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Research In Motion (RIM) on Wednesday launched its latest smartphone &#151 BlackBerry Torch 9860, in India for Rs 28,490.

The BlackBerry Torch 9860 is a GSM model and comes preloaded with BlackBerry 7 OS and the Near Field Communication chip which allows transactions, data exchange, and wireless connections between two devices in close proximity to each other.

It comes with a 3.7 inch touchscreen which, according to RIM, is the largest on a BlackBerry smartphone yet. The BlackBerry Torch 9860 is powered with 1.2 Ghz Qualcomm MSM 8655 with 768 RAM and 4 on board with additional storage space for up to 32 GB.

RIM has added a 5 camera with Flash and continuous autofocus. Its camera is also capable of recording 720p video. Looking very curvaceous at the edges, the Torch 9860 has Optical Trackpad with dedicated Menu, Send and End keys.

For connectivity, the new Torch 9860 handset offers WiF i (802.11 b/g/n), Bluetooth, Near Field Communication chip, GPS, digital compass and accelerometer.

Torch 9860 comes with 1230 lithium-ion battery, which provides 6.8 hours of talk time on networks.

Earlier, the Canadian company had announced three new smartphones including its first network supporting device &#151 BlackBerry Torch 9810, last month.

How to install apps on your BlackBerry using a PC

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It would not be wrong if we say that after , BlackBerry devices are the ones that come with the most un-economical data plans. Although for non business users there are unlimited data plans for about Rs 600 per month, these plans offer very slow data speeds. Business users on the other hand get decent speeds but for that they have to pay as much as 1 paisa per KB of data they download. With such data plans it becomes a costly affair to download and install applications on BlackBerry devices.

But it is possible to install applications on a BlackBerry device directly from the internet via a personal computer or notebook. This way, users can save themselves from the hassle of struggling on the smaller mobile phone screen and installing applications, while also minimising data costs and time.

Please note that before you begin with the procedure mentioned below make sure that you have the latest version of the internet browser, preferably Internet Explorer or Firefox and BlackBerry Desktop Manager software installed on your computer. Also, your device should be connected to the computer and the Desktop Manager should recognise it.

Step 1

Use your internet browsing software to visit the BlackBerry App World online at appworld.blackberry.com.

Step 2

On the home page of BlackBerry App World the upper right hand side shows you the ‘login’ and the ‘sign up’ links. If you already have a BlackBerry ID, login, or else select sign up and create a new BlackBerry ID.

This BlackBerry ID is required for app installations, upgrades and installation, and is a must have for any BlackBerry user.

Step 3

After logging in you will find all the related information in the menu on the upper right hand side of the page.

Step 4

To check the applications already installed on your device you can select the ‘My World’ link.

Step 5

Here you will find all the information related to your device and the applications already on the device. To cross check the details take a look at the right hand side where there are details of your device, the version of software you’re using and even your telecom operator.

Step 6

My World will also show the list of applications already installed on your device. Here you can see and even choose to upgrade your device’s applications, if any.

Step 7

On the upper left of the page you will see the BlackBerry App World icon, from where you can view and install apps, themes and even games on your device. Select the desired link to proceed further.

Step 8

The next screen will show you results related to your selection. For example, if you have chosen an application you will be shown the top applications followed by the app categories menu from which you can select the category of application you want to install on your device.

Step 9

Select the desired application and the following screen will show you the application page. Here you will see information about the application, screen shots, features and even the change log, and that too in detail. So the whole selection process is easier and useful at the same time. Once you are satisfied and have read the details about the application go ahead with the installation by selecting ‘Download’.

Step 10

The download will begin automatically or it will prompt you to install the helper plugin. Accept and install the plugin to proceed. This plugin allows the BlackBerry App World website to communicate with your device and install the application on it.

Step 11

Once the download starts you will see the progress in the status bar.

Step 12

If the installation is successful you will see the status as ‘Complete’ or else as ‘Try again’. If the installation is successful you can proceed by selecting the ‘Continue Browsing’ button and install more applications on your device.

Top 5 education apps for iOS devices

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Apple’s based devices &#151 iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch &#151 are gaining popularity in India thanks to the wide variety of applications the company offers on its store. Besides the number of productivity and utility apps there are several educational apps available in the Apple App Store that could aid in educating young people around us.

Multi-touch devices such as iPad, iPhone and iPod can be used as good educational tools for toddlers and even for pre-teens for that little extra fun while finishing homework quickly.

TeachMe: Toddler

This is a perfect app to get your toddler hooked to your iOS device for learning about letters, numbers, pronunciation, shapes, colours and counting. These are the very basic and fundamental things taught to kids as soon as they step into kindergarten. Topics can be chosen by parents and they can review performance for each topic to see where the toddler needs inspiration to improve.

This iOS app works on a reward based system and offers six different reward scenes &#151 playground, farm, beach, city, pirate cove and underwater reef. For every correct answer, a sticker is rewarded which needs to be placed appropriately in the different reward scenes. Reward based teaching certainly helps in boosting the morale of toddlers and keeps them engaged.

Alternatively, parents can use a coin based reward system where five correct answers earn the toddler five coins. Parents can record their toddler’s performance and accordingly work on the areas they are weak in for improving their overall performance.

TeachMe series also offers two other apps targeting different age groups &#151 TeachMe: Kindergarten and TeachMe: 1st Grade.

A Piano for Kids

All work and no play could make anyone dull. Kids need to play and learn at the same time as they are easily distracted. That’s where A Piano for Kids could help. It promises to teach alphabets and numbers using music. Because it has colourful keys kids also love playing around and tapping the different keys to compose their own symphony.

The app carries more than 140 individual sounds. Its multi-touch interface may add to the amusement when kids aimlessly tap on the screen creating random sounds. However, parents can help their children understand as well as associate the letters with colours as well as sounds.
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Drawing Pad

Drawing Pad is the perfect eco-friendly replacement for kids and teens who love to draw. Users can create sketches and pictures using their fingers with different colour crayons, paint brushes, colour pencils, stickers, and more options.

The blender tool can be used to give a more artistic touch to drawings. Children can paste Photo Stickers in the background to draw on top of them. And parents need not worry about kids getting their hands or clothes dirty.

Drawings can be shared over Facebook, Twitter or via email. The app offers five illustrated books that are available through in-app purchase.

Here, Sketchbook Pro developed by AutoDesk certainly deserves a mention for iPad and iPad 2 users who need precision as well as an artistic touch to their artwork. Adored by professional artists as well as occasional painters, Sketchbook Pro is a must have app for those who love art, painting and sketching.

SkyView &#151 Explore the Universe

Little do kids and teens know that the night sky has several cool stories, factoids and interesting things in it, waiting to be discovered. SkyView’s augmented reality based application is a classic example of technology put to good use. By simply pointing the camera at the sky anyone can learn about the several mysteries of outer space and learn cool things with the help of amazing 3D graphics.

Simply take your iPhone or iPad 2 and point the camera to the sky. The app makes use of your location using satellites along with gyroscopic rotation and clubs it with 3D graphics to give you a complete augmented reality view.

You could select the sun or the moon to learn the sky path of either of them during a 24-hour period. Besides that, the app also offers trivia on NASA’s final space shuttle missions, compass and horizon display.

Little did we think that learning about those secrets in the sky would be so much fun. There is a free as well as a paid version of the app to suit your requirements. This app is meant for kids as well as those who aspire to be astronomy buffs someday. If you are hardcore into astronomy and would not mind spending quite a lot, then SkySafari 3 Pro is the app but it is costly at $30 (Rs 1,350 approx.).

Wolfram Algebra Course Assistant

Most math geeks might have heard of the Wolfram Alpha search engine. This is the perfect application if you want to ace your algebra tests.

Created by Wolfram Research, the Wolfram Algebra Course Assistant app features the Wolfram Alpha computational engine and one can connect to supercomputers via 2G, or WiFi to draw their computational power for complex algebra problems.

The app covers Algebra I, Algebra II and college level algebra which includes topics like simplifying fractions, square roots, expanding polynomials, dividing expressions and so on.

Wolfram Research also offers other interesting apps which cover astronomy, calculus, fractals, general chemistry, personal finance, physics, statistics, and so on.

Conclusion

These apps are priced at between $1 to $10.

Good apps and perfect use of devices can certainly help kids enhance their knowledge as well as develop skills of something they are really good at. Also, it is quite a learning experience for parents to pass on the love for technology to young ones.

Apple offers educational discounts only on the MacBook Pro family. It would be great if any special scheme were applicable for iPod touch or iPad.

Game Review: Dragon Fly

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The game Dragon Fly is the story of baby dragon running away from the nest and is pursued by the mother. The baby dragon needs to collect diamonds during the game, both to progress up on different levels and to learn flying.

Controlling the dragon in the game is extremely simple – users just need to tap and hold to screen to increase the speed of the dragon. Once it is at the lowest point of the drop, the gamers have to release the screen and the dragon flies and soars yet again, covering large distances. That’s how the dragon manages to keep a decent distance between the pursuer and the dragon baby. The baby dragon is too young to fly and that’s why he needs efficient handling by the gamers to fly over the hills.

Those who are looking for a more complicated control will be glad to know there isn’t any. There is no need to press any complicated key combinations, the users just have to make a choice when to tap and when not to tap. A similar game, which is present on iPhone and iPad, is Tiny Wings though the game plot of it is slightly different.

The skills required at every level of Dragon Fly are slightly different though. Either users may have to perform swoosh three times one after another, or collect 100 diamonds or collect 10 speed flasks. The users may need to keep playing the game in order to improve their game and progress across the levels. The game has been designed so well that the users feel inclined to play it time and again.

Those who are new to the game may take some time to fine tune their tap and release screen actions along with the flight of the baby dragon. The physics of the game is smooth, which anyway is necessary for the gamers to get the timing right. The landscapes are generated a new every day to ensure the game remains fresh for the mobile gamers playing the game.

App Review: RTI India

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The Right to Information Act was enacted by the Parliament of India in the year 2005. Under this act, an Indian citizen enjoys the right to seek information and ask questions to public authorities, take copies of relevant documents, inspect government documents as well as works, and take samples of material used in any government work.

At times, however, getting information out of government functionaries seems an arduous task and it becomes more difficult if one does not know the right procedure.

RTI India, a forum of strong over 2.3 lakh users, thus provides a platform to guide others. It has recently released an Android App to extend the aid to the Android smartphone users as well.

The RTI India app isn’t some fancy looking application with a great user experience to be honest but it certainly serves the purpose &#151 provide information.

RTI India app for Android is an attempt to mash-up the Forum style with social networking features. For instance, the navigation and appearance is like a vBulletin based website but one can post photos, add friends, and other things with one’s profile.

First time users need to create an account with the RTI India while the registered users simply need to login and get started with the app.

Pressing the Menu button will reveal three core sections/features of the app which include &#151 Forums, Articles and Blogs. Along with, other social features are clubbed which include &#151 Messages, Notifications, My Profile, Friends and Photos.

Before moving ahead, we would like to plead that not everyone in the forum would be great at vocabulary, spellings and English. The objective of this app is to share the right information and pass on the correct process to procure information from govt.

The app is quite responsive even on EDGE/GPRS data connections. Green comment count, depicted by speech bubbles, takes one directly to the comments.

While majority of the information is in textual form, several administrators of the forum and comments love sharing URLs which are not clickable at times. That can be a bit frustrating.

Most importantly, there is a dedicated section for new users who wish to learn everything about the format of an RTI letter. Apart from that loads of information about States as well as Central government regulations is being provided and shared every day via forums, articles, blogs and even comments.

RTI India app for Android is quite a helpful app for those willing to explore and educate oneself about everything from applying for passport to format of RTI letter need to try out this application for Android smartphones. The same application is also available for users as Write RTI app.

App Review: Tetris Game

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Tetris is one of the most popular puzzle games of the last three decades. It was designed and programmed by a Russian computer engineer, Alexey Pajitnov, back in June 1984.
After being made available through several platforms, Electronic Arts released the free and paid version of the Tetris game (in colour) for the Android 1.6 or higher update running handsets. The free version of Tetris can be downloaded from Android Market.

Tetris is a puzzle game that requires arranging the four blocks on the playing field to create a horizontal line of ten blocks without gaps. Each shape comprising of four blocks are known as Tetromino, a geometric shape. There are seven Tetrominoes which keep coming at a random order and the player is required to arrange them at the bottom of the playing field to create a horizontal line of gapless ten blocks.

Sounding as easy as any other puzzle game, Tetris has certain challenges involved though. Unlike the handheld Gameboys of the 1990s, the Tetris game for Android supports gestures, making it tad difficult. Gesture controls are the two edged swords and at times bit abysmal.

The player is supposed to perform certain specific gestures for required output. For instance, tapping on the screen will rotate the dropping Tetromino in the playing field. Slide down gesture will make it drop at the bottom.

One good feature of this game is the Ghost PC feature in the Options that shows how exactly the Tetromino will appear at the bottom of the playing field, almost like the preview of how each shape can appear when dropped. Users can make the best of this feature and practice to improve the game. Also if you think the upcoming Tetromino doesn’t fit with those already in the playing field, then you can tap in the Hold box for pulling that one aside.

The free version of Tetris comes with 15 levels with different gravity speeds. Jumping directly to the level 15 and attempting to play it will certainly kick back your confidence a bit. That’s clearly because one needs to tweak and tune the gestures to respond accordingly with the gravity of the Tetrominoes.

Folks looking for a good puzzle game for killing time and also some brain exercise, should certainly try out Tetris. Our only complaint with Electronic Arts would be the full screen ads which are quite irritating to be honest. There should’ve been an option to use optical buttons as controls instead of gestures.

You can always buy the Tetris full version for Rs 155.99 from the Android Market to get rid of the Ads.

Samsung Wave smartphones coming this Diwali

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Samsung may launch its next Bada 2.0 Wave 3 smartphones in India around Diwali. The handset manufacturer had unveiled three phones running Bada 2.0 operating system earlier this month. These were the Wave 3, Wave M and Wave Y.

“Samsung mobiles will be launching Bada 2.0 powered mobile phones for the Indian market around Diwali,” said a Samsung India spokesperson to The Mobile Indian.
It is expected that Samsung will first bring its Wave 3 smartphones to India ahead of the Wave M and Wave Y.

Bada 2.0 brings together a wide variety of new capabilities which were missing from the earlier version, including multi-tasking, WiFi Direct (which allows WiFi devices to share content without the need for wireless access points), Near Field Communication (NFC), and voice recognition. Bada 2.0 enables smartphone users to experience advanced services such as mobile payment, transport pass-card recharge and file sharing even without an internet connection.

In addition, considering the increased use of web-enabled smartphones, Bada 2.0 supports HTML5 and improved Flash functions, thus offering enhanced usability and web experience.

The new Samsung Wave 3 features a 4 inch Super with 480 x 800 pixel resolution. Running a 1.4 GHz and the latest Bada 2.0 operating system, it is expected to be considerably faster than previous Bada devices and much easier to use with the new and improved TouchWiz user interface.

Wave 3 also carries a 5 camera at the back with LED flash, capable of recording 720p videos. It also has a VGA camera on the front for video calling. Other features of the Wave 3 include 3.0, WiFi Direct, WiFi (802.11 b/g/n), stereo FM radio with RDS and 2.0 port for easy connectivity. Wave 3 will come with Samsung’s new services Chat On, Music Hub, Social Hub and Samsung Apps store.

Although the price point at which the new phone will be launched has not been disclosed by Samsung the device is expected to retail for about Rs 20,000. More clarity will only come after the details are revealed by Samsung.

G’Five to launch tablet PC under Rs 10K this month

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Chinese handset maker G’Five plans to launch an tablet with a 7 inch touchscreen priced below Rs 10,000. The tablet will be released in India by the end of this month, a person familiar with the development told The Mobile Indian.

The company is also seeking to expand its retail network to sell this tablet to a wider audience. “G’Five is actively seeking more channel partners across the country, not just in metro cities but in tier II and tier III cities as well. Besides channel sales, G’Five is also in the process of tying up with retail operators especially the LFRs (large format retail stores) that have chain of stores across the country,” the company said in a statement.

The spokesperson also said that “G’Five has ambitious plans for launching other consumer electronic products this year including netbooks, laptops, music boxes, digital photo frames etc. Soon, G’Five will launch its new and exciting range of enabled Android and Windows based tablet computing devices in India priced below Rs 10,000, shattering the price barrier and taking the market by storm once again.”

The company had earlier planned for a launch in the month of June but its plans got delayed. While the specifications of the tablet are not yet known, we do know that it will have a 7 inch capacitive touchscreen.

And given the fact that Beetel has a tablet in this price range, G’Five is expected to launch a product that has similar specs. Beetel Magiq has a 1 GHz Qualcomm processor, 3G, slot, Android 2.2, WiFi and 16 expandable memory.

While in June there were no major tablet launches even in more expensive categories, the market is now bustling with tablets in the Rs 10,000 range with Reliance 3G tab, Beetel Magiq, iBall Slide, MSI Enjoy 7, HCL Me, Viewsonic Windpad 7, Mercury 7 inch tablet and a few lesser known brands like Zinglife.

Given the competition in this price range it seems G’Five will have a tough time slotting its tablet in terms of pricing and specifications.