Dark Horse Comics are available for Android users

When I was a kid, I was hooked to the tales of Phatom and Mandrake the Magician which was published in India by Indrajaal comics.  As I grew up I become a fan of Archie.  Like me millions of kids and teenagers are hooked to comic books.  Through my earlier post I had already given details of Marvel Comics unlimited for iOS users.  Now you can enjoy you Jedi and Hellboy by Dark Horse Comics for your Android phones.

The Samsung Note and Galaxy alongwith the Nexus make pretty good readers for comics.  So like manna from heaven for lovers of the Star Wars, Hellboy, Serenity, Buffy the Vampire Slayer comics the Dark Horse Comics gives you vast array of comics.

Dark Horse is available in Australia, Canada, Spain, Germany, Italy, South Korea, Japan, Mexico, UK, Russia, US, Mexico and our own India at a promotional price.  The collection is good and if you are a comic book addict this one is a must have for you.

Please get the App from Google Play now.  The App is free and some of the comics are priced as low as $0.99 (Rs.55.00)

Please post your comments on the article.

Vijay Prabhu

Now be connected anywhere in the world, even in the deserts of Sahara on your iPhone

Staying connected has always been a problems for mobile users around the world.  The situation is not so bad in the developed countries but if you are travelling to some remote place in sub Saharan Africa or the remote parts of India than you are in serious trouble with the network.  Now iPhone users have a choice of staying connected even in the remotest of places through the satellite service provider Thuraya's new SatSleeve case.

If you remember the bulky Satellite cell phones manufactured by Thuraya than you may know that they are clunky and looks more like a walkie talkie than a phone.  Now Thuraya has plans to change all that with a device called SatSleeve.  SatSleeve is a case which wraps or docks around iPhone and uses its bluetooth to covert iPhone into a satellite phone.

SatSleeve will operate using the Thuraya Satellite network which at present is available over Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia.  The Satellite covers the most remotest parts of the world in Africa and Asia like the Mount Everest and Kakoram range of mountains or the vast waters of Indian Ocean.  

The SatSleeve at present is available only for iPhone 4 & 4S but iPhone 5 users can get a cradle attachment.  The SatSleeve will provide you basic voice and SMS services in the areas that aren't connected with GSM or CDMA technology. 

The SatSleeve will come with its own 2400 mAh LioN battery which will have 48 hours of standby time and 3 hours of talk time.  It will come with 12 languages support including English, Chinese, Italian, German, Arabic, Russian and Bahasa Indonesian among others. The SatSleeve will at another 3.5. ounces to your iPhone.

The SatSleeve fits around the iPhone just like a standard case and comes with its own SIM, earpiece and microphone which will make it independent of the iPhone. In case of emergency a button located on the device  can be preset to one specific number.  SatSleeve uses a free App to communicate with the iPhone over Bluetooth, though the company plans to launch a model which will communicate via a more stable Wi-Fi connection.

As of now Thuraya plans to launch only text and voice only version of the SatSleeve but by August it will launch data capable version though data capability is still in it pre natal days.  SatSleeve will be available to users for a expected price of  $499 and the data friendly version could be in  $600-$800 range.  Thuraya says that Android versions could follow as soon as June 2013.

Thuraya airtime costs around $0.75 per minute so making calls wont be cheap.  But if you are working in the Navy, a Journalist, a Photographer, a Explorer or a simple backpacker this is a must for you.  Check out the docking video below to get a idea how the SatSleeve works.

Please post your comments on this first satellite integration device. 

Vijay Prabhu

Sunday Punch 17.3.2013 on indianfilmbar.blogspot.in

The Sunday Punch released on 16.3.2013 by my sister website here.  I couldn't put it up as I was out of Mumbai last week.  This one is part art and part Tradition.  

'Paan' as you know is a must for many people of subcontinent after a hearty meal.  It is not health friendly and has been criticized by people as being cancer pill.  But older Indian generation look at it as a good digestive habit.  This 'Paanwala' is unusual, he rings a ghanti after completing the making of 'Paan'

Watch the video and have fun but dont indulge in one.

Vijay Prabhu

Justice delayed is justice denied? Did Sanjay Dutt really deserve the jail sentence!

 

Actor Sanjay Dutt was today sentenced to a five year jail by the Supreme Court of India in a case which has spanned nearly 2 decades.  I wholeheartedly agree with the decision but my question is that can a man be jailed for an offence he has committed 20 years ago and is repenting his crime.  

In 1993, Mumbai was rocked by serial blasts in major junctions and business hubs like Plaza Cinema, Century Bazar, Bombay Stock Exchange, Air India Building,  Passport Office, Zaveri Bazaar etc.  257 people were officially declared dead, nobody knows the unofficial count.  More than 2000 people were injured on that sinister day.  

Sanjay Dutt who was then in his 34 years old and had kept a AK 47 assault rifle and a 9mm pistol illegally with him which he had acquired from the accused of 1993 Mumbai Blasts.  The TADA Court had acquitted him from any involvement in the bomb blasts.  He has already served 18 months in jail from 1993 to 2007.  

Though it has been categorically proved that Sanjay Dutt is guilty of the possession of illegal arms. But the man has been repenting his guilt for past two decades.  The jail term is given in a civilised society to criminals so that they can repent their crimes and turn into a new leaf to return back to civilised society.  Every where in the world the jail is known as correction facility.  This means that the convict is given a chance to correct him or herself and make him/her a better individual.  Once the person is deemed to have corrected himself and is no longer considered a danger to the society he or she is let out of the jail to live a normal life.  The prison term is often awarded based on the seriousness of the crime and it ensures that a  criminal is reformed and becomes a better civilised individual who can behave responsibly in a civil society and is no longer deemed to be harmful to the society as a whole after he/she is released.

In Sanjay Dutt's case the justice has been delivered by the Supreme Court of India all right, but way too late.  The man charged of guilt against the civil society is already repenting it and accepting that he had done something wrong.  So without questioning the wisdom of the Hon Supreme Court, plainly from a humane point of view sending a person to jail for the crime which he is already very shameful about and cursing himself for committing it, the justice came far far late.  If this sentence would have been given to him 15 years ago, may be it would have made sense in making him a better individual.

The views are my personal, please post your comments on the same.

Vijay Prabhu

The great Indian divide; the haves and have nots

Hi friends its good to be back from a trip to Mangalore.  The journey of 17 hours by Airavat (a bus service by Karnataka State Transport) was hectic and tiring but one of the things I noticed going from Mumbai to Mangalore was the great Indian divide.  I have read in many newspapers, watched intellectuals speak over TV and had several arguments with friends and colleagues but have had never seen the stark reality of the wide chasm that exists between the rural and urban India.

As soon as the bus moved out of the Pune towards Karnataka, the earth seemed barren, the buildings had all but disappeared.  In place of building there stood mud and brick huts, there were no Malls and shopping plaza's.  In their place stood just shacks and sheds.  The roads are just mud paths and dirt roads in many parts of Karnataka. There is no street lighting in much of the state.  Where it is existent, the poles have a fluroscent light or a small halogen lamp.   The roads are bad and bumpy.  The only saving grace is that you get to see many beautifully constructed temples and masjids along the way.  Maybe the people are putting their money into religious beliefs more then developmental issues.

Why is this happening in a developing country, where in Mumbai, it is often an eyesore to see so many buildings, one often competing with other in terms of height and the most high tower that I could seen in Karnataka was a BSNL tower.   I was in Karnataka for around 38 hours out of which at least 20 hours were spent with a power cut.  It is quite common to have power cuts as many as 5 times in a day in Karnataka.

Though the land in Karnataka is fertile, the people are simply poor. They may be happy with their lifestyle as the standard of living is extremely low, you get to taste the vegetable grown in you own back yard and the basic necessities are pretty cheap.    But the question remains.  Why this great Indian divide?  

One year ago I had gone to Narendra Modi's Gujarat and to my surprise, even the remotest place their had good roads, full time electricity,and the people seemed generally happy.  

So why can't Karnataka be a Mumbai or Gujarat.  This question came back to haunt me.  Karnataka has been in a political mess since the government of Yeddy was dismissed.  Even before, the mining barons of Shimoga were having a field day while the rest of the state was in a mess.  The present government doesn't seem to care about the development issues.  It is pretty much worried about is own fate given the precarious majority it has in the state.  What surprised me more was that Bharitya Janata Party (BJP) who is giving good governance in many of the states of India and whose motto is good governance has failed so terribly in Karnataka.   The growth rate for 2011-12 has already slipped to 6.4 % and this year it is not looking good either.  When states like Bihar are churning out 12 % plus growth, Karnataka is far far behind.  It will take a leader of total dedication and commitment to lift the people of Karnataka out of the poverty and into the life of development.

The elections are schedule on May 5th, 2013 across the state.  I hope the people of Karnataka use their sanity and choose the right leader to lead them for next five years.

Till the time states like Karnataka are really developed with good infrastructure, good roads, no power cuts, the question of the divide will continue to haunt me.  May good governance be the sole criteria for choosing the leaders.

Vijay Prabhu

Apple iOS now flaw free? 6.1.3 fixes the lock bypass bug

Eventually a month after the lock bypass flaw was discovered by users and after several complaints on various fora, the Apple today released a fix called the update version 6.1.3.  It is now available  via a software update in the setting menu or through Apples iTunes software Over-The-Air.

The flaw which was highlighted by various users and reported by me on 14.2.2013 had triggered privacy concerns for iPhone users.  You can read the full article regarding the flaw here.  Apple has promised that this update will fix the above flaw.  In addition the update also brings value additions to the Japanese users and visitors to Japan.  The Apple Maps has significantly made improvements in the Japanese maps.  If the readers will recall the Apple had already issued the Japan oriented maps to the previous version devices over the air but not with the beta release of this update on 22.2.2013.

iOS 6.1.3 fix also has variety of security patches for its WebKit based Safari browser.  The issue of unexpected termination of Apps and arbitrary execution of codes on visiting not so respected and malicious websites has been fixed via this update. The update has been issued for almost all iOS devices including iPad 2 and above.

The biggest heartbreak will be for the users who favoured jail breaking their devices to use the unauthorised Apps which were not approved by Apple Store and rebels without a cause.  As written by me earlier this update fixes the loop hole which allowed the Evasi0n developers to develop the most easy jail breaking program.  Now you will have to wait till Evasi0n developers break this update.  The version 6.0 took the longest for the developers and hackers to hack.  In case you prefer to have a jail broken iOS devices you should hold the update for now.  It is worth noting that over 1/5th of all iPhones in use are jail broken using evasi0n and programs are downloaded from Cydia or Big Boss repository.  I have given the entire tutorial process here.  For Apps please type Big Boss repository in Goolge and you will get the desired result.

Apple also issued Apple TV update today.  The new version is called Apple TV 5.2.1.  It has number of bug fixes and a fully redesigned Hulu App.  The fix also fixes a similar bug in Apple TV as iOS 6.1.1 which executed arbitrary code.   Hulu now comes with a better discovery tool and some simple UI changes. Content categories are across the top navigation bar now to make it easy for users to switch between sections easily. Now there’s a new "Shows You Watch" tray that helps you keep track of which episodes of your favourite shows are yet to be watched by you.  Users can also access the Subtitles and Audio menu for captioning videos. The 5.2.1 update also adds iTunes in the Cloud support for music lovers in Japan and Israel.

Download the update for your iOS here.  The Apple TV update is available here.  Please post your comments/suggestions regarding this article.

Vijay Prabhu

Samsung S IV finally here, a treat for all the mobile lovers

As I had already written in my earlier Blogs, the Samsung S IV will indeed have all the features I listed expect for one thing.  The Eye to Scroll feature is not what I expected.  Instead it is a feature which will recognise your face, wrist and hand moment to surf the web page, ebook or a magazine on the screen.  That may be a little difficult to handle, but believe me rest of the features are dead accurate.

The phone has a 5 incher display with  with a 13 MP camera in the rear having a 1080p resolution(industry standard now a days) with Corning's Gorilla Glass 3.  The rear camera will take more than 100 shots in four seconds, according to Samsung.  The display has 441 pixels per inch, which is heavier in density than Blackberry Z 10.  Samsung calls its display  "full HD super AMOLED". 

The phone will run on 4.2.2 Jelly Bean making it the first phone outside of Nexus to have this OS.  The rear camera will have a 2 MP lens.  The phone will be shipped in two different processors for different  regions.  As of now Samsung has not specified which region will get Samsung's own Exynos 5 Octa and which ones figure the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro.  The phone will have a awesome 2 GB RAM.   The specs list goes on and on but lets study the Samsung Galaxy S IV only features.

1.  "Sound and Shot", This seems to be a copy of Zoe but without video.  It lets you record five seconds of audio before click a photo.

2. "dual camera" mode, which takes shots with both the front and back cameras and integrates them into a single scene.

3. "Drama Shot" it allows you to see all your creativity in one continuous time lapse.

4.  "Smart Pause" lets you pause a video simply by looking away, with the clip resuming playback when you look back at the camera.

5. "Smart Scroll" lets you move through web pages without looking at the screen. The page on the screen will move based on the movement of the users face and the wrist.

6. "S Voice Drive", which is basically a copy of the iPhones eyes free interface of Siri and basically of use when you are driving.  It optimises voice commands when you're driving.  Samsung should get ready for another patent suit from Apple 

7. "Optical Reader" which will scan your business cards among other things and call the number of translate the text as per you desire.

8. "WatchOn" Another first from Samsung to use the IR after a long time, this will make your phone a full fledged remote for your TV.

9. "Group Play"  this lets you  sync multiple phones to use them as stereo speakers to play your music.  In addition you can also share photos, files, games, documents with the people on GroupPlay without any network.

10. "S Health", this will be a native fitness trainer for you.  The S IV sensors will monitor your fitness levels.

11. "Air View", it  lets you preview messages or images and the  contextual data by hovering your fingers over them.  

12. "Air Gesture", this will allow users to control the music player, answer you calls or surf through the web without actually touching the screen.

In addition to above the S IV will have 2600 mAh battery.  It will come in three versions, 16GB, 32GB and 64GB.  It will have 802.11ac Wi-Fi running the standard a/b/g/n bands, Bluetooth 4.0, and LTE Cat 3. 

The full specs are as below:

a) 5-inch full HD Super AMOLED (1920 x 1080) display, 441 ppi

HSPA+, LTE, GPRS/EDGE

b) Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, DLNA, Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi hotspot

c) Bluetooth 4.0 with EDR and A2DP

d) GPS with A-GPS support and GLONASS

NFC

e) MicroUSB 2.0  with MHL, USB On-the-go, USB Host

f) 13-megapixel primary camera with LED flash, Simultaneous HD video and still image stabilisation, 1080p video recording.

g) 2-megapixel front-facing camera, 1080p video recording @ 30fps

h) 16/32/64GB internal storage with microSD card for further expansion up to 64 GB.

The above listed features are over and above the standard features available with every Samsung device.  So there you have it a complete anatomy of the S IV.  Indians are sure to get the Exynos Octa core processor phones as I know that Samsung gives a very strategic importance to India as a market for its phones.  But the only question is the pricing.  It cant price S IV too high, this will take it away from the middle class smart phone buyers who form a very huge class of mobile buyers and it cant price it low, this will lower the 'niche' or the status that is going to be labeled with the phone.  Either way Sony's Z is a firm  and handsome competitor to this phone in all class so it should price it in region of Rs.40000.00.  However this will be known only in days to come.

Please post your comments and views regarding this phone.  Meanwhile enjoy a hands on video of S IV

Vijay Prabhu