Unlike in case of smartphones, deciding whether to go for a budget device or shell out heavily on a safe premium one is not always easy when you are out in the market for a tablet. But there have come a few promising but inexpensive tablets in recent times, making the choice somewhat easier for users. The Alcatel 3T10 is one such tablet.

Priced at Rs 11,999, this 10-inch tablet comes with a Bluetooth speaker that also acts as the charging stand. When used separately, the tablet’s dual speakers with 5W drivers give a considerable output. Also, the speaker has a 2000mAh battery that lasts 4-5 hours on full charge.

This tablet runs on Android 9.0 and has Google Assistant pre-installed on it. Its 10-inch IPS display with an 800 x 1200 resolution leaves thick bezels around it. We found the display to be a bit dull, but that did not cause much hassle while reading mails, social media posts, or even streaming videos from Netflix or Amazon Prime. But we would advise you not to expect too much. Also, reading anything on its screen in sunlight would not be easy.

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India is emerging as the testing and acquisition playground for global consumer technology companies, especially the so-called FAANGs, according to a veteran internet analyst.

RBC Capital Markets’ Mark Mahaney, who calls himself Wall Street’s “oldest internet analyst” after covering the sector for more than two decades, said India is now more popular than markets like China because it has the same growth dynamics but with fewer regulations.

As one of the largest economies and most populous countries in the world, India has turned into a testing ground for companies such as Facebook Inc., which has used it to beta-test a payments feature for WhatsApp. Netflix Inc. rolled out a mobile plan in India at 199 rupees ($2.80), much cheaper than what it charges for a basic plan elsewhere, and has created original content to capture more market share.

“India does have regulations but it doesn’t seem to be as protectionist as China,” said Mahaney. India has been considering a new law that would require personal data to be stored locally, which could impair the operations of the Internet giants but Mahaney remains confident they can still penetrate the market. Readmore

Launched in India on October 1, the Samsung Galaxy Fold is now available for pre-orders on Samsung online store, Samsung shop, and select retail outlets, including the Samsung Opera House in Bengaluru. The pre-orders will continue for a couple of weeks from now and the delivers for pre-orders will start from October 20.

Priced at Rs 1,64,999, the Galaxy Fold is India’s first smartphone with a bendable screen. First unveiled in February, the phone’s first iteration received a negative feedback from early reviewers over durability of its bendable screen and longevity of the hinge mechanism. Following a backlash, the phone’s initial pre-orders were cancelled and the device went back to the labs for testing and improvements. Thankfully, the model coming to India is the second iteration, which seems to have an improved bendable screen and folding mechanism.

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Having an optimistic mind-set may reduce the risk for cardiovascular disease and early death, a review of studies has found.

In previous studies, optimism has been shown to be associated with a range of favourable physical health outcomes and with greater success in work, school and relationships.

This new meta-analysis, published in JAMA Network Open, included 15 studies that measured optimism and pessimism by asking the level of agreement with such statements as “In uncertain times, I usually expect the best,” or “I rarely expect good things to happen to me.”

Analysis of the 10 studies that looked at heart disease, which pooled data on 209,436 people, found that compared with pessimists, people with the most optimistic outlook had a 35 per cent lower risk for cardiovascular events.

Nine studies with data on all-cause mortality included 188,599 participants and found that optimists had a 14 per cent lower risk of premature death than the most pessimistic people. Read Complete Article

Bollywood actor Taapsee Pannu unveiled a new peppy track from her upcoming movie ‘Saand Ki Aankh‘ titled ‘Woomaniya’ on Thursday.

The desi song is all about Tapsee and Bhumi Pednekar’s characters, Chandro and Prakashi Tomar, celebrating the new sterilization facility’s availability in their village.

The foot-tapping song has lyrics from Hanuman Chalisa.

In the video, the actors who are playing shooter grannies in the flick can be seen in young avatars.

Before this, the makers of the film released the first song of the film ‘Udta Teetar’ which depicts the heroic story of the shooter Dadis.

The trailer of the flick was released last month, which took the audience into the world of the brave ladies, who battled with a society dominated by men, in order to encourage their daughters towards a bright future and win against all odds. Read Complete Article

Microsoft’s October 2019 Event saw the company unveiling a large range of new Surface devices.

Some other big announcements include Surface Laptop 3, Surface Pro 7, Surface Earbuds, Surface Neo, Surface Pro X and Surface Duo.

The 13-inch Surface Laptop 3 comes with the latest 10th-generation quad-core processors from Intel, while the 15-inch model comes with a custom AMD Ryzen 7 processor, or as Microsoft calls it, “Ryzen 7 Surface Edition”.

The 13-inch Surface Laptop 3 will start at $999 and will go up to $1,199 for the 15-inch model.

Microsoft has updated its Surface Pro 6 tablet with the Surface Pro 7. Like the Surface Laptop 3, it finally gets a much-requested USB-C connection.

Inside, there is an option of tenth-generation Intel Core CPUs, and storage options that run from a 128GB SSD through to 1TB. Read Complete Article

South Korean electronics manufacturer Samsung on Tuesday launched its first foldable device, the Galaxy Fold, in India, at Rs 1,64,999. With this launch, the company became the first smartphone brand in the country to foray into the new product category of bendable screen devices. The device, a foldable smartphone, comes with 12 GB of RAM and 512 GB of internal storage. Its pre-orders will start from October 4, and the deliveries for pre-orders from October 20. The Galaxy Fold pre-orders could be done on the Samsung online store, Samsung shop, and select retail outlets, including the Samsung Opera House in Bengaluru.

The Galaxy Fold, introduced before the Mobile World Congress earlier this year, was upgraded recently to address the build and longevity issues reported by early reviewers. The reported issues were mostly related to the device’s bendable screen and hinge mechanism — key components of the company’s first foldable device. The upgraded version showcased by the company at the India launch on Tuesday seemed a robust device, but we will reserve our final verdicts for the review of the smartphone.

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GoPro on Tuesday launched its HERO8 Black and Max action cameras in India for Rs 36,500, and Rs 47,000, respectively.

Both the devices are available for pre-order at GoPro.com beginning October 1.

Shipments of HERO8 Black begin October 15 and it will be available at select retail partners globally starting October 20.

GoPro Max can be pre-ordered via GoPro.com with shipments beginning October 24. It will be available at select retailers globally on October 24 and in the US on October 25.

Its Mods, which comprise the ‘Media Mod’, the ‘Display Mod’ and the ‘Light Mod’ cost $79.99, $79.99 and $49.99, respectively. They will be available in India starting December.

GoPro MaxGoPro Max

“It’s been 15 years since the first GoPro camera, and from the start, we’ve been about enabling people to share their passions whether they’re fueled by adrenaline or artistry,” Nick Woodman, Founder and CEO, GoPro, said in a statement. Read Complete Article

Staying at a mid or top-end hotel will be less taxing from today, as the new goods and services tax (GST) rates kick in. On September 20, the GST Council had slashed GST rates for mid- and high-segment hotels and six per centage points and 10 percentage points, respectively.

So now, travellers staying in a hotel room costing over Rs 7,500 per night will have to pay GST at the rate of 18 per cent, against 28 per cent earlier. Similarly, for mid-segment hotels (in the price range of Rs 2,501 to Rs 7,500), the GST rates has been reduced to 12 per cent from 18 per cent.

While hotels in the price range of Rs 1,001 to Rs 2,500 will continue to attract a levy of 12 per cent, rooms that cost less than Rs 1,000 remain in the zero GST bracket.

The move, aimed at giving a boost to the hospitality sector, was welcomed by the hotel industry, which said it could provide a major fillip to the hospitality and tourism sectors.

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E-commerce platform Amazon India is offering discounts, deals, exchange offers, bank offers, zero-interest equated monthly instalment schemes, etc, on a wide number of products, including smartphone, as part of its ongoing festive-season sale. The Amazon Great Indian Festival sale started on September 29 and will continue until October 4. In the sale, the e-commerce platform is offering up to 10 per cent instant discount on SBI cards and credit-card EMI transactions, free one-year screen replacement in partnership with Acko, besides exchange offers and besides interest-free EMIs on smartphones.

Here is a look at some of the best deals on budget smartphones:

Samsung Galaxy M30 (3GB/32GB)

Samsung Galaxy M30 This budget smartphone from South Korean electronics major Samsung is available at a discounted price of Rs 9,999, which is nine per cent lower than its prevailing retail price of Rs 11,000. The phone has a 6.4-inch fullHD+ screen with infinity-U-shaped notch on the top. Powered by Exynos 7904 mobile processor, the phone boasts a 5,000 mAh battery and 15W fast charge support. It has a triple-camera set-up on the back featuring a 13-megapixel primary sensor mated with 5MP ultra-wide sensor and a 5MP depth sensor. On the front the phone has a 16MP shooter for selfies. Readmore