San Francisco based Obi Worldphone MV1 released at MWC 2016

Obi Worldphone has come up with their latest phone called Obi Worldphone MV1. MV1 most probably refers to Mountain View 1. This is the first time Obi Worldphone has launched its phone at Mobile World Congress. 

The phone has been designed by famous Ammunition Group which is led by Apple alumni Robert Brunner. Obi Worldphone's founder John Sculley said during the launch, “This is an industry with 200 different brands vying for consumers’ attention. There will be 1.4 billion Android phones produced in 2016 alone, so there needs to be a way to stand apart from the pack. The components for all these different phones are mass produced, in the same countries, and often in the same exact factories. What we’ve done with the Obi Worldphone from the very beginning is show that it’s possible to have a beautifully designed phone that fits into your lifestyle at an accessible price without sacrificing form and technology. You don’t have to give up style in exchange for substance. With the MV1, you can have both.”

Robert Brunner mentioned that, ““For our markets, the design of the MV1 is a fresh, modern breath of air in a sea of sameness. Its combination of simple form, iconic outline and resolved details make it an object to be desired.”

As far as the specifications of Obi Worldphone MV1 are concerned, it has a 5 inch floating display with a resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels. The elevated display is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection. The phone will have an option of dual Operating Systems i.e. you can either use Android 5.1 or Cyanogen 12.1.1. Now coming to the processor, the phone runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 212 with 1.3 GHz clock speed. The frontal camera of the phone is of 2 MP and the primary camera is of 8 MP. The phone is available in either 1 GB RAM or 2 GB RAM. Both the variants will have 16 GB inbuilt memory and will offer expansion of up to 64 GB through microSD card. The battery power in Obi Worldphone MV1 is 2500 mAh. The 1 GB variant is priced at USD139 and the 2 GB variant is priced at USD149.

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5 tips for taking better pictures

Lights, Camera and Click! This is the new phrase out for those who love clicking all that is beautiful around them. But here one thing is important and needs attention, i.e. all that seems beautiful in real should look equally beautiful in pictures and if this reality is missing in your snaps then it is not the fault of your stars. The reason for a bad picture is not being clicked by a DSLR, but lack of camera skills. Yes, a Smartphone can be your DSLR. All you need to have is a little knowledge of using your device in a better way.

Focus

Before you click, look at the screen and ensure that the focus is correct. Most of the Smartphone are pre- loaded with autofocus system that makes clicking perfect. But some camera’s needs your assistance. So, make sure that the object you want to capture is in focus for perfection.

Don’t Zoom as Digital Zoom is Bad

Smartphone may give the option to Zoom. But by opting zoom you are not capturing the details of the object instead cropping the picture. The Zoom option is just an option because Smartphone doesn’t have no physical lens that moves in to magnify just like in shoot cameras. Perhaps, you end up cropping the picture even before you click it without capturing any details of the object.

If details of the object matters, then you must not use digital zoom. But if you quickly want to click something and details doesn’t bother you then go for Zoom. But here the point to be noted is Digital Zoom same as cropping, avoid it.

Use Environmental Lighting not Flash

Flash for the most part isn't useful, especially in the day time. Sure, this is good if you need to get detailed images of a crime scene at night. You're most likely attempting to catch a photograph that looks more like what you're seeing right now. Simply picture a photo of a light during the evening without glimmer — you'll see the sparkling flame and little else — with a photo of a candle with whatever remains of the room enlightened with a brilliant blaze.

Instead of using camera flash, enlighten the thing you're shooting with ordinary light from your surroundings. You may need to go into your Camera application's settings and debilitate the glimmer to keep it from shooting naturally. This one tip — maintaining a strategic distance from the blaze unless totally important — will help you take vastly improved looking pictures.

Use the Back Camera, Not the Front Camera

These selfie loving generation goes around clicking pictures with their front Smartphone’s front camera. The camera just above the display screen is said to be for selfie. But if you notice every Smartphone device includes a better, higher- detail cameras on the back. Surely camera with high quality can give you better picture compared to the low power front camera. Clicking with the back camera can surely be a tough job.  But you can always take help from people around.

Try Alternative Camera Apps with Manual Controls

Alternative camera apps can enhance your picture clicking experience and quality. Elective camera applications can improve your photo clicking background and quality. The most recent variants of Google's Android and Apple's iOS both incorporate a camera API. These camera applications can connect to this API to get more propelled control over the Smartphone's camera, offering propelled controls over the camera equipment that aren't offered in the default camera application.

Simply exchanging applications, presumably won't give you a superior picture. They offer more control, and that control can prompt better pictures on the off chance that you take the time to change different alternatives. Make sure to keep your cell phone's camera lens unadulterated, as well. You may need to painstakingly tidy it on the off chance that it's gotten earth and smears.

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Net Neutrality vs Free Basics: What will India choose?

Free Basics, an initiative by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has been in controversy ever since it was born as internet.org. Facebook has been aggressively promoting Free Basics through which it aims at getting internet to every corner of the world. 

In India, it has tied-up with Reliance. Free Basics is nothing like its name though. It doesn’t define what is free and what the basics are. Facebook is spending almost INR 100 Crore for this dream initiative. It seems to be a not-so-well-thought-of and a flawed initiative though. It is purely against Net Neutrality and offers services which the people may or may not like. Facebook has been trying so hard to save Free Basics that it seems to be more of a marketing gimmick than a pure heartfelt initiative. Facebook wants to be ‘the’ internet. Facebook wants to brand itself as the internet. That is what Free Basics will do. It just seems to be a high profile sham. Telecom Regulatory Authority of India had given 7^th as the last date for the users to approve or condemn Free Basics. Now let us see what the future has in store for the complicated and costly Free Basics.

Read More: http://www.smartcritique.com/facebook-free-basics-sham/

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5 health issues every Smartphone user should be aware of!

Technology with all its benefits can be hazardous to health if not used with care. Here are some major health issues that a Smartphone can cause with the tips to avoid. If you are a Smartphone user then you need to smart while using them. Otherwise, they can bring the following health problems.

Text Neck

This is the medical term used to describe the spinal cord disorder. This arises out of excess usage of Smartphone. While reading or texting, on the phone people tend to bend their neck up to 60 degrees. This increases the pressure on the neck causing forth neck pain.

The best way to avoid it is to bring the phone to the level of your eyes and look straight into it. Another solution is to lower your eyes instead of bending your neck.

Vision Loss

This issue happens as your eyes are strained constantly by looking at the blue light leaving the mobile phone. Examining or using mobile phones in the midst of absence of external light further helps the issue. Your vision gets the chance to be poor and you may need to go for glasses.

The most perfect way to deal with avoiding this is to move in the opposite direction of mobile phones at a standard between times. Look at something far away and focus on it for quite a while before returning to the phone screen.

Wrist Problem

The way we hold cell phones for long lengths of time, strains the wrist. Individuals more often than not hold their telephones utilizing last three fingers and the thumb while utilizing the pointer for performing activities on the cell phone screens. Holding the stance for more terms consistently has a tendency to make torment in the wrist.

It is ideal to continue changing the stance of telephone when performing assignments like perusing. You can put down the cell phone while lying on the bed or in the lap while sitting on a seat and take a gander at it rather than continually grasping it.

Numb Fingers

Fingers of smartphone users get to be numb and produce a shivering sensation. Holding the device spots stress from the elbows to the fingers. The hands above elbow encounter slower blood course and if not revised instantly, can have dependable impacts. The pointer too encounters the same and gets to be numb before long.

It has been prescribed to put the smartphone away for some time. At that point perform some development of arms and fingers so that the inclination goes away. I would suggest, one should keep the phone away, at least for a minute every fifteen minutes of usage of the device. This would help the user in avoiding permanent problems that may arise due to prolonged usage of the smartphone.

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Motorola Moto G Turbo Edition: The most responsive Moto G yet

The smartphone market is always buzzing with new updates and launches. After reclaiming the position in the market with its Moto E and Moto G series, Motorola has been on a roll. This time they have come up with a new smartphone in the mid section – Moto G Turbo Edition. The phone was launched in the Indian market last week for INR 14,499 (USD 220 approx).

Similar to its predecessor, no new variations in the design

Turbo Editions’ body is 142.1X72.4X11.6 mm and weighs about 155g. The textured silica back cover has a premium feel, and the frame is made of plastic. The left side of the phone is clean and the volume button and a textured power button are placed on the right side. There is a standard Micro USB port at the bottom. Underneath the back cover there are two slots that hold Micro SIM cards and a slot to hold a Micro SD card at the top. The phone is available in two colours- black and white. The black phone has a bluish back panel. However, Motorola has provided back panel changing options in different colours on their website.

Standard HD display with TFT panel and Oleophobic screen

The device has a 5-inch display screen with a resolution of 720X1280p that has a pixel density of 294 PPI. Initial speculations about the device suggested a 1080p resolution. The LCD screen has a TFT panel which allows good visibility at odd angles and under bright sunlight. However, there are options available by brands like Xiaomi and Obi that offer a better display and screen experience at a lesser price. The screen has Gorilla Glass 3 panel that protects the HD Display. The oleophobic coating avoids smudges on the screen and keeps the display clean. Moto G Turbo Edition is IP67 rated that makes the device water-proof, provided the back-panel is properly closed.

New improved software allows ability to perform heavy tasks smoothly

As per Motorola, Moto G Turbo Edition is the fastest, most responsive Moto G yet as per Motorola and helps run the phone without stutter, with a 1.5 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon Octa-core processor (615 chipset) and 2GB RAM. It runs on Adreno 405 GPU, so graphically intensive games are played with ease. Apart from this, Motorola G Turbo Edition has a 16 GB internal memory and comes with an SD card slot expandable up to 32GB which seems a bit limited for the given price. The OS runs on Android 5.1.1 Lollipop and is will soon receive and updated version 6 (Marshmallow).

Turbo charger for quick charging

The Turbo Edition has a turbo charger that promises up to 6 hours of battery life in 15 minutes. It has a non-removable 2470 mAh, battery that claims to give a full day backup. Although Asus, Xiaomi and Obi Worldphone are amongst the few brands that offer a higher battery capacity of up to 3000 mAh or more for a far lessees price.

Decent camera with dual LED flash

It has a 13 megapixel rear camera with auto focus and dual LED flash. The 5 megapixel front camera will help click that perfect selfie. You can tap anywhere on the screen to take a picture making it easier to take a selfie. Initial tests show an above average image quality. The camera also has features like Geo-tagging, face recognition and panorama view.

Conclusion

Motorola G Turbo Edition is a mid-range phone that has a water-proof and dust-resistant design. Among other features like 4G, Bluetooth and WIFI connectivity, the phone also has FM Radio. However, there is no new innovation in terms of design and also the fast processor is borrowed from Moto’s high end variant Moto X Play. The phone tries to impress but fails at multiple specifications like display, battery power, absence of a USB charging cable and the fact few companies offer better specifications at a lesser price. Priced at INR 14,499 (USD 220) the phone is available on Flipkart.

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