Nokia's First Dual sim mobile c1

Nokia has announced the launch of its first dual SIM handsets in India. This launch comes a few months after the initial announcement regarding Nokia foray in to the highly competitive dual SIM segment in the country.

The dual SIM range in India is mostly dominated by smaller players and unbranded Chinese phones so far and have proved to be extremely popular amongst the masses. Even mainstream manufacturers like Samsung and LG have dual SIM handsets in their kitty. Nokia, however, had stayed back and decided to be a silent spectator until now.

As for the new launches, the phones in question are the C1-00 and C2. The Nokia C1-00 costs Rs. 1,999 and  boasts of  basic features like a 128 x 160 pixels TFT color screen, 3.5mm headset jack, FM radio, SMS, flashlight. It offers up to six weeks of stand-by time. The C1-00 can take in two SIM cards but only one would be active at any given point of time. Users can switch from one SIM to another with the flick of a switch. As mentioned earlier, The C1-00 offers users a standby battery time of up to six weeks, the longest ever for a Nokia mobile phone, especially useful in those parts of the world where access to electricity is limited. 

Next is the Nokia C2 which is expected to be priced at around Rs. 2,500 (the official price is yet to be revealed). It will run on the Nokia S40 platform and allows both SIM cards to be used together. This phone also supports GPRS, Nokia Life Tools, Stereo FM radio with FM recording, 3.5mm headset jack, VGA photo camera, and MicroSD card support. The first SIM card on the Nokia C2 sits underneath the battery and the second is 'hot-swappable', a feature unique to Nokia. This means the second SIM card can be removed and inserted when the phone is on. It can also take microSD cards of up to 32GB!

While you can buy a C1-00 now, Nokia is yet to officially launch its other dual SIM handsets here. You might want to read more about each one of them here. 
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Apple to launch mini iPad soon

Technology giant Apple Inc. is reportedly planning to release a mini iPad this December, a media report said Wednesday.

Details of a smaller version of the iPad were leaked in a Chinese newspaper that had also correctly predicted the specifications of the iPad months before its release.

Apple intends to launch the smaller iPad this December in time for the Christmas shopping season, Sky News reported citing sources.

The rumoured version is predicted to be 200 grams lighter than the standard iPad, which was released in April this year.

A report in the Economic Daily News said Taiwanese companies have won contracts to make components smaller than those used on the current iPads.

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India's first e-reader Wink unveiled

Bangalore-based digital publisher EC Media International has launched its multi-function e-book reader Wink that not only supports 15 languages but will also offer over 200,000 book titles on debut.

Wink will offer consumers a one-stop e-store to access e-reading content of choice via www.thewinkstore.com that would enable access not just to e-books, but also journals, newspapers, magazines and selected articles, EC Media said.



Many of the titles have been acquired from international aggregators, giving Indians access to a whole lot of books not available in the country. "With the launch of Wink, we aim to revolutionise the way people read," said Ravi DeeCee, founder and chief executive of DC Group, which has promoted EC Media and the Kerala-based publishing house DC Books.

"Wink will allow readers to access their favourite content anytime, anywhere, that, too, in the language of their choice," he said.

Another offering will be Wink Wire for news, the first e-reader newspaper in India. EC Media has entered into a content alliance with IANS, India's largest independent news service, for Wink Wire.

EC Media's e-reader itself is designed primarily for reading digital books and periodicals but users can also listen to music, check e-mails or even play games, executives said.

This e-reader uses e-ink technology to display content to readers, and the main advantages of these features are portability, strain-free reading even in bright sunlight and substantial battery life.

"With the launch of Wink, we want to enable the growth of content provisioning through electronic medium by leveraging existing eco-system of global tie-ups with publishers and aggregators," said Pradeep Palazhi, chief operating officer of EC Media. "We hope to succeed in attaining this vision."

The group also aims to help publishers and authors leverage the new platform, simplifying the process of publishing -- from the draft of a book to its final printing, besides also helping them to reach out to a larger audience.

Wink has enrolled top publishers like Penguin, Roli, Oxford University, Harper Collins and Permanent Black for content so far. It will provide access to over 100,000 tiles to begin with, along with some newspapers and magazines.

The group has also announced a tie-up with Croma, the electronics megastore promoted by the Tata Group, as its retail partner. It has also roped in Redington as its distribution partner. "From a consumer perspective, it's going to be a resourceful investment. It will certainly enhance their reading experience with a variety of offerings," said Ajit Joshi, chief executive of Croma Electronics Megastore.

Explaining how the e-reader works, officials said a user can access the online store from the web or through the catalogue present on the gadget, intuitively designed for easy preview of content, downloads and a secure payment gateway.

The Wink store will have a strong base of regional language content on top of a wide-variety of international titles and category of e-books. Members will be able to avail of special deals and discounts on the store, they added. !-- START ADONION CODE -->