ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) on Monday announced a new range of PC lineup featuring the latest AMD Ryzen 5000 Series Mobile Processors in India, at a starting price of Rs 10,3990.

The new range of laptops include ROG Strix SCAR 15/17, Strix G17/G15, TUF A15 and ROG Strix Desktop GA35, designed to give the best gaming experience to consumers.

“Our new range of devices comes packed to the brim with the latest technological innovations that give competitive gamers an edge and casual players a whole new level of immersion. We have introduced industry’s fastest display along with innovative cooling solutions to boost gamers’ in-game experience,” Arnold Su, Business Head, Consumer and Gaming PC, System Business Group, ASUS India, said in a statement.

According to the company, the flagship Strix SCAR 15 and Scar 17 integrate the latest innovations to keep the most demanding gamers at the top of their game. It introduces the fast laptop display with a 300Hz refresh rate and 3ms response time.

They come further equipped with powerful new GeForce RTX 30 Series GPUs and Ryzen 5000 H-Series Mobile Processors.

Both, Strix SCAR 15 and 17 are the first in Strix series to come with optical-mechanical keyboard, delivering rapid response and high durability at the same time. The laptops are built with quad speakers backed by Dolby Atmos technology to offer a more immersive audio experience, while the Two-Way AI Noise Cancelation processes both input and output audio to make your chats crystal-clear and disturbance free.

The company also launched the ROG Strix G15 and ROG Strix G17, which incorporate the new ROG gaming laptop DNA, making stylish designs accessible to all gamers.

The PC maker also introduced the ROG Strix GA35 gaming desktop for those who are looking for some extra power and the freedom to upgrade and customize.

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The gaming sector in India attracted USD 544 million in investments during August 2020-January 2021 period, and this is set to double over the next 12-18 months on the back of higher user awareness and accelerated engagement, as per a report by Maple Capital Advisors.

With more than 400 million gamers, a plethora of investors are looking to deploy funds in the sector, and with over 15 per cent of the global gaming traffic, Indian gaming market is at an inflexion point.

“We believe gaming is now at an inflexion point with greater investment and consumer traction. With growth-oriented private equities now participating and the first meaningful IPO around the corner, gaming is poised to attract greater capital across stages, and we expect increased cross-border M&A,” Maple Capital Advisors founder and MD Pankaj Karna said.

He added that the investments are expected to double in the sector in the next 12-18 months.

“Consumer traction (15 per cent of global traffic) on the back of greater awareness and engagement is likely to accelerate. Also, clearer category leaders are likely to emerge. We expect improved regulatory coverage or judicial clarity, especially in the real money gaming space,” he said.

As per the report, growth capital funds like Chrys Capital and TPG participated and numerous others have started to look at the sector.

Early-stage investments have spanned actively on e-sports and casual gaming and are witnessing good growth, it added.

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Indian music label Saregama’s Carvaan series of portable music players is now an established brand, popular among people across generations for its timeless collection of songs. The series has been upgraded with new features several times, and the latest entrant brings karaoke features with built-in screen and about 1,000 karaoke tracks to choose from. Named Saregama Carvaan Karaoke, the music player still looks pretty, quite like the previous generation Carvaan 2.0 (review). But it has gained a little bit of weight – not too much, just a little.

Starting with the Karaoke-related features first, the Saregama Carvaan Karaoke has a built-in screen, and it comes with a pair of wireless microphones. Besides, the music player now comes with an HDMI out port, in addition to USB 2.0 and AUX-in ports. While the placement of buttons and ports remains mostly the same as in Saregama Carvaan 2.0, the top side of the Carvaan Karaoke houses its pop-up screen module, which comes out in the Karaoke mode. It is a colour screen with no support for touch operations. Nevertheless, the screen is big enough to stay readable even from a distance. It, however, lacks the brightness to stay legible in outdoors.

The screen shows information related to karaoke track collection, making it easy to browse through the catalogue and find songs of choice. Once a song is selected, the screen shows the lyrics (Hindi and English) in bold letters with a highlight function to keep you in sync with the audio track. The highlight feature is colour coded – sky blue for parts in the lyrics sung by a male voice and purple for female. Thanks to the HDMI out port, you can connect the Carvaan Karaoke with a supported screen or projector. The HDMI connection, however, only projects the lyrics on the connected screen and does not bypass audio. Speaking of the audio output, the Carvaan Karaoke’s speakers boast a good volume level but are not able to keep up well in terms of quality. The speakers are tuned for vocals which works for karaoke tracks but not otherwise. The speakers lack bass depth, and the treble is misguided.

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Samsung has released the One UI 3.1, the latest version of its custom Android skin update, for the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite.

The update brought a refreshed UI design and various other features to the mid-range tablet.

“The update also brought a major feature to the device: Samsung DeX,” reports SamMobile.

DeX support will allow Galaxy Tab S6 Lite users to optimally connect it to the big screen and use it as a portable desktop.

The update now means a more productive use of the S Pen, external keyboard, mouse or when an external screen connection is made.

One UI 3.1 features improved touch autofocus and autoexposure controller, making adjusting the focus and brightness of photos easier.

With the latest update, Samsung syncs the weather widgets on the main and cover screens to offer the same information to the users while also allowing them to turn these screens off with a double-tap or a palm touch.

Samsung launched the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite last year. The tablet features a 10.4-inch display, and it comes bundled with the S Pen.

It also packs a 7,040mAh battery. The tablet comes with 4GB of RAM and 64GB storage on both models.

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Samsung on Thursday launched a new M-series smartphone — the Galaxy M12 with a 48MP quad-camera setup and a 90 Hz refresh rate display in the Indian market.

The Samsung Galaxy M12 comes in two variants — the 4 GB RAM + 64 GB storage variant is priced at Rs 10,999, and the 6 GB RAM + 128 GB storage model will set you back by Rs 13,499.

“Galaxy M series has turned two since its launch in 2019 and has been designed ground-up in India, keeping consumers’ needs at the core. The newest addition to this series, Galaxy M12, is #MonsterReloaded. It is designed to power the lives of our young consumers,” Aditya Babbar, Senior Director and Head, Mobile Marketing, Samsung India, said in a statement.

It features a 6.5-inch HD+ (720×1,600 pixels) TFT Infinity-V Display with an aspect ratio of 20:9 aspect ratio.

The smartphone is powered by the Exynos 850 SoC, paired with up to 6GB RAM. Internal storage is listed to be at up to 128GB.

The device runs on Android-based One UI Core OS and supports dual-SIM (Nano) slots.

It has a quad camera setup on the back that comprises a 48MP primary sensor with f/2.0 aperture, a 5MP secondary ultra-wide sensor, a 2MP macro sensor, and a 2MP depth sensor. The smartphone houses an 8MPselfie camera.

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Prices of LED TVs are set to rise further from April as the cost of open-cell panels has gone up in the global markets by up to 35 per cent in the past one month.

Brands including Panasonic, Haier and Thomson are considering to increase prices from April this year, while some like LG have already raised prices due to hike in prices of open-cell.

Panasonic India and South Asia President and CEO Manish Sharma said, “Panel prices are rising continuously and so are the prices of TVs. It is likely that TV prices may increase further by April.”

When being asked about the quantum on increase, he said, “Seeing current trends, it might go up 5-7 per cent more by April.”

Expressing similarly, Haier Appliances India President Eric Braganza said there is no other way than to increase the prices.

“The prices of open-cell have gone up tremendously and the trends are that it would keep on increasing,” said Braganza adding that “if that continues, we would have to continuously increase prices”.

The open-cell panel is an important part of TV manufacturing and covers around 60 per cent of the unit.

Companies import television panels in an open-cell state, which require further assembling with value addition before being shipped to market for sale.

Super Plastronics Pvt Ltd (SPPL), the brand licensee for French Electronics brand Thomson and US-based brand Kodak, said there is a scarcity of open cell in the market and the prices have almost gone up by three-folds in the past eight months.

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The HP Spectre x360 (13-inch) has always been appreciated for its ergonomic design, but not so much for its performance. The thin-and-light convertible laptop recently upgraded to the 11th-Gen Intel Core i7 processor (review unit). This upgrade has brought the performance gain this 2-in-1 laptop required to justify its premium stature. Besides, the laptop is Intel Evo platform-certified to deliver optimal user experience with a quick-boot time, instant resume function, extended on-battery time, and enhanced data transfer rate. So, how do the fresh upgrades work for the HP Spectre x360? Let’s find out:

Design and display

The HP Spectre x360 has been through several design refresh cycles, but the latest upgrade does not bring any significant changes to its looks. The convertible laptop boasts portable ergonomics with a thin and lightweight form factor. Crafted from a single piece of aluminium, the laptop has faceted corners and sides and chamfered edges. The top side of the laptop has minimal visual elements, except a glossy silver accented HP logo engraved on it. Like the top, the rest of the laptop carries a silver theme with no flashy design elements – even the keyboard, power button and fingerprint scanner are painted silver to maintain a design symmetry. Overall, the HP Spectre x360 looks premium and stunning.

The design is complemented by a 13.3-inch IPS LCD touchscreen of a fullHD resolution. It is bright, vivid and responsive. The screen is connected with the body through a 360-degree hinge, which makes it go all the way to the back to turn the laptop into a tablet. Thanks to the 360-degree hinge, you can also turn the laptop into a display stand to enjoy multimedia content. Speaking of multimedia content, the built-in audio set-up is not great, despite featuring the ‘Bang & Olufsen’ moniker. It is, however, s compromise that seems negligible in the larger scheme of things – some of the positives being the laptop’s solid build quality, thin and lightweight form factor, and comfortable ergonomics for both laptop and tablet usage.

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As OPPO continues to expand its audio category, fresh in its line-up is a premium pair of wireless earbuds. Named the Enco X, these true wireless earbuds boast a premium design complemented by flagship features like active noise cancellation, touch controls, and wireless charging. Priced at Rs 9,990, the OPPO Enco X seems to be a competitively priced pair of true wireless earbuds for those who seek a premium experience. But are they really good? Let’s find out:

Design

It is good to see OPPO continuing its efforts to add finesse to its true wireless earbuds’ design language. Though the OPPO Enco X sports a familiar in-ear design with a stem protruding from the earbuds, it has a smaller form factor than OPPO’s previous wireless earbuds. Made of plastic, these earbuds have a glossy finish with a silver mesh on the speaker grille and microphone and silver-coloured charging connectors at the bottom end of the stems. The glossy profile makes it a bit difficult to pick the earbuds out from their charging-cum-storage case. Moreover, they are prone to accidental drops because of small and unstable footprints. As for quality, the earbuds seem to have a durable and sturdy build. They might withstand everyday abuse, but they do easily become dirty and require regular cleaning to stay in good condition. The Enco X is IP54-rated for water and dust resistance.

As for the charging-cum-storage case, it is a pebble-shaped unit with a glossy plastic finish on the front and back, and a silver metallic strip sandwiched in between. There is a pairing button on the right, and USB-C charging port at the bottom. On the front, there is a tiny LED battery indicator that doubles up as the pairing light indicator. The back, surprisingly, is not boring and features a ‘Co-created with Dynaudio’ engraving on the case’s lid hinge. Important to note that the Enco X charging case supports wireless charging – something some in the segment lack. Speaking of the hinge, it is made of metallic with a strong feedback. It is easy to open and close, and does not require much effort to operate.

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Taiwanese electronics maker Asus on Wednesday refreshed its gaming-centric ROG Phone line-up with the launch of the ROG Phone 5 series. Named the ROG Phone 5, ROG Phone 5 Pro and ROG Phone 5 Ultimate, the smartphones in the series are built on the same blueprints but with different design theme on the back covers and RAM & storage configurations. Besides, the Pro and Ultimate variants get two additional touch sensors on the back cover over the vanilla ROG Phone 5. Let’s look at what is new in the ROG Phone 5 series:ROG Phone 5 series: Price in India

The ROG Phone 5 series goes on sale in India from April 15 at 12 pm, exclusively on Flipkart. The ROG Phone 5 is priced at Rs 49,999 and Rs 57,999 for the 8GB RAM + 128GB storage and 12GB RAM + 256GB storage variants, respectively. The ROG Phone 5 Pro is priced at Rs 69,999, and the ROG Phone 5 Ultimate is priced at Rs 79,999.ROG Phone 5 series: Design

The ROG Phone line-up has been through several design changes, and the latest iterations take the design quotient a notch above. Though the smartphones in ROG Phone 5 series are built on the same blueprints, each of them have different design language.

The ROG Phone 5 comes in storm white and phantom black colours with a glossy clean dot-matrix design on the back cover similar to the popular ROG products like the ROG Zephyrus G14 (review). The vanilla model has an illuminated ROG logo, which supports 8 different lighting schemes

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Over 4,400 URLs from Facebook and Twitter were blocked by the government in 2020 under Section 69A of the IT Act, Parliament was informed on Wednesday.

Minister of State for Electronics and IT Sanjay Dhotre said Section 69A of the IT Act, 2000 empowers the government to block any information generated, transmitted, received, stored or hosted in any computer resource in the interest of sovereignty and security of the country, friendly relations with foreign states, public order or for preventing incitement to the commission of any cognizable offence related to these.

“Blocking is done as per the process specified in the IT (Procedure and Safeguards for Blocking for Access of Information By Public) Rules, 2009 notified under this section,” he said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.

Dhotre said there are adequate safeguards and checks-and-balances prescribed in these rules in the form of an Inter-Ministerial Committee having members as a joint secretary or equivalent to examine blocking requests and to make its recommendation.

He stated that 1,717 URLs from Facebook and 2,731 URLs from Twitter were blocked in 2020.

While 2,049 Facebook URLs and 1,041 Twitter URLs were blocked in 2019, 155 Facebook URLs and 224 Twitter URLs were blocked in 2018.

In response to another question, the minister said a total of 305 cases of cybercrime against children were registered in the year 2019.

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