TechTalks Now

Internet giant Google is working with the Indian government on a pilot project for providing Internet connectivity by using large balloons. Google, under its 'Project Loon', is using big balloons floating at a height of 20 kilometres above the Earth's surface for transmission of Internet services. It has already tested this technology in New Zealand, California, and Brazil. "Google approached [the] government to set up the Loon project and drone-based Internet transmission. Government has approved testing of Loon project only as of now. A committee under chairmanship of Secretary, DeitY, has been formed to work on it," an official source told PTI. Google  may initially partner with  BSNL  for testing this technology by using broadband spectrum in 2.6GHz band. When contacted, a Google spokesperson refused to comment. The technology, used for 4G services, has potential to replace mobile towers as it can directly transmit signals on 4G mobile phones. ...

A large number of Facebook employees are shunning their iPhones and switching to Android devices. And they are doing it - not necessarily willingly - under strict instructions from chief product officer Chris Cox! "I am mandating a switch of a whole bunch of my team over to Android, just because people, when left up to their own devices, will often prefer an  iPhone ," Cox was reported as telling mediapersons by Wired.com  on Friday. If you thought Facebook has suddenly developed some sort of vendetta against  Apple , it is not the case. Nor is there a new bonhomie with  Google . This is a practical decision, according to Cox. Actually, a large chunk of Facebook's expanding user base in emerging markets in the developing world access the social network on  Android  devices, and not iPhones. As  Facebook  seeks to reach more people around the world, Cox said he wanted his team to switch to the world's most popular mobile platform "s...

Philips has added two new smartphones in its growing mid-range offering. The company in China announced the Sapphire S616 and the Sapphire Life V787.  Phillips  says that it has utilised a new technology called 'SoftBlue' in both the smartphones that reduces the blue light coming from a screen by up to 86 percent, thus reducing eye fatigue that most electronic displays today are credited with. Other features of  Philips Sapphire S616  sports a 5.5-inch full-HD display with a 1080x1920 pixel screen resolution. It is powered by octa-core MediaTek MT6753 SoC clocked at 1.3GHz and a Mali-T720 GPU, paired with 2GB of RAM. As for storage, the phone offers 16GB of inbuilt storage and supports microSD card for up to 128GB of additional storage. Other features of the Sapphire S616 include a 13-megapixel rear camera with an aperture of f/2.0, and a 5-megapixel wide-angle selfie shooter placed on the front. It also features a removable 3000mAh battery. The dual-SI...

Samsung is sending invites for a New Delhi launch event on Tuesday, and the company is expected to launch its new Galaxy On smartphones series in India - specifically, the Galaxy On7 and Galaxy On5. While the invitation does not mention exactly what Samsung will announce at the event, it does mention "the latest addition to its smartphone portfolio," indicating the launch of the recently unveiled Galaxy On series of smartphones. The invitation, seen below, also features the word 'On' placed in isolation, lending further credence to the launch of the Galaxy On series of smartphones. Both the Galaxy On7 and Galaxy On5 were recently listed on the company's India and China websites. The  Samsung Galaxy On5  and  Galaxy On7  smartphones sport a lot of similar specifications, with the biggest difference being the screen size. While the Galaxy On5 features a 5-inch display; the Galaxy On7 comes with 5.5-inch display. Both the handsets come with TFT touchscr...

If you're planning to purchase a  Nexus 6P  handset, you might want to check this bend-test video that has become the talking point among enthusiasts. The rather sketchy video shows that the  Huawei -made flagship smartphone is highly prone to bending. Numerous bend-test performed since, however, seem to offer a different conclusion. YouTuber Jerry Rig put his Nexus 6P through a series of tests. These included the "burn-test," "bend-test," "scratch-test" and the likes. Rig, as shown in the video, reaches the conclusion that the Nexus 6P is very prone to getting bent. If you're a little sceptical about his methodology, you're not alone. The test isn't fair. Admittedly so, Rig had already used the handset in a number of other tests - such as the burn and scratch tests that broke the display - before putting it through another series of tests, thus it is likely that the rigidness of the handset was already compromised bef...

by  NDTV Correspondent  ,  16 September 2015 In a bizarre incident, two men in China's eastern Jiangsu Province apparently tried to sell their kidney for Apple's latest offering, the iPhone 6s. One of the men identified as Wu, wanted an  iPhone 6s  but could not afford it. His friend Huang suggested they sell a kidney each for money. The two found an illegal agent on the internet who asked them to take medical examinations at a hospital in Nanjing, state-run China Daily  reported . However, when they arrived at a hospital, the agent did not turn up as promised. They later reconsidered selling the organs. Wu told his friend, Huang, to stop the plan but Huang did not listen. Wu then called the police, but Huang ran away and has been out of reach ever since. This is not the first time people in China have gone to crazy lengths to get their hands on Apple products. Two years ago, a Chinese couple illegally put their third child up for ...

by  Harpreet Singh  ,  14 September 2015 This week we have the MacBook Pro, iPhone 5s and iPhone 6, Panasonic smart LED TV and more at great discounts. 1. Apple MacBook Air 13-inch The entry level variant of the 13-inch MacBook Air is now available at an all-time lowest effective price of Rs. 52,499 (effective after cashback). The last lowest price was around Rs. 55,000. The same variant sells at the price point of Rs. 62,500 at major online stores. Use the coupon code A10K to receive Rs. 10,000 as cashback in your Paytm Wallet. You can use this cashback to pay bills, recharge pre-paid connections or pay for your purchases. You can also use this cashback to pay on websites that accept Paytm Wallet. The MacBook Air 13-inch is powered by the Intel Core i5 processor, supported by 4GB of RAM. It comes with a 128GB SSD and runs OS X Yosemite out of the box. You'll be able to upgrade it to OS X El Capitan when it releases by the end of September this year....