Indian IT companies like Wipro, HCL, Infosys and MindTree find it tough to hold on to expats

BANGALORE: Indian information technology (IT) companies that have turned to expatriates and foreigners to fill senior management positions — to take advantage of their global experience and give the companies better global branding — are facing challenges in retaining them. Despite a loaded compensation package, some have hit the exit button even before they have completed their contracted tenures.

Prasad Medury, partner at global executive search firm Amrop India, says there tends to be a serious mismatch between expectations projected at the time of recruitment and the actual working environment . "Indian IT firms overcommit job content and organization positioning at the time of recruitment, but this does not materialize in reality," he says.

Dell Launches Two XPS Laptops, One with Ultrabook Capabilities

Dell has unveiled two new additions to its XPS laptop lineup including a 14-inch clamshell that can be configured as an Ultrabook and a more high-powered 15.6-inch device. The new laptops feature thin aluminum casings, edge-to-edge displays with hardened Corning Glass, backlit chiclet keyboards and multigesture touchpads. Both of the new laptops are available now and the specs are pretty close to what leaked to a Chinese tech site earlier in June.

Shared specs between the XPS 14 and 15 include USB 3.0 ports, a mini DisplayPort, HDMI Out, a 3-in-1 media card reader, and a 1.3 megapixel Webcam. Both devices also come with an Ethernet jack, but Dell says the devices were too thin to offer a full Ethernet option. To get around this problem the company included a hinged Ethernet port that expands to fit a cable when you open it.

The XPS 14 standard configuration includes a 14-inch WLED display with 1600-by-900 resolution, dual-core 2.6 GHz Ivy Bridge Core i5-3317U, Intel HD Graphics 4000, 4GB DDR3 RAM, 802.11 a/g/n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity. For storage options you can choose a 500GB hard drive, a 500GB hard drive with 32GB mSATA SSD, or a 512GB SSD. If you choose one of the SSD options, the XPS 14 qualifies as an Ultrabook, according to Dell’s chief blogger, Lionel Menchaca. Dell claims battery life for

Upgraded Android 4.0 Aakash 2 tablet will release in August, priced at Rs. 2,263

A much more advanced and upgraded version of world's cheapesttablet, Aakash has been developed and is ready to be released in India. Aakash 2 will be updated with the latest Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich operating system and will start its production in July or August.

Aakash 2 was lauched in IIT Bombay. DataWind is manufacturing it.

Aakash 2 has gone through many upgradations from operating system to processor to touchscreen and improved battery. All have been improved to provide a complete computer like experience.

IT Minister Kapil Sibal said, "Aakash is no longer just a device that only consumes content. Through the efforts of IIT-B, Aakash is now a device that creates content."

There has been delay in the launch of this tablet but IT minister didn't provide an answer to it.

"Unfortunately, there was some delay in taking this project forward for reasons that I don't want to go into now," Mr. Sibal said.

Lets take a look at the features and specifications of upgraded Aakash 2 tablet:

Aakash 2 tablet will operate on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. It will generate its power from 800MHz ARM Cortex-A8 processor.

Aakash 2 tablet will be topped with a 7-inch capacitive multi-touchscreen

The Aakash 2 will come with 256MB of RAM and 2GB internal storage.

Aakash 2 tablet will run on Li-ion Polymer 3200 mAH battery that will give the tablet a working time of 3 hours.

Aakash 2 tablet will boast Wi-Fi and GPRS features (with SIM and mobile functionality).

Output ports of Aakash 2 tablet are a micro SD card slot and a USB port. It does not have 3G capability.

Google goes up against Amazon, Apple with Nexus tablet

Google Inc (NSQ:GOOG) will sell its first tablet from mid-July for $199, hoping to replicate its smartphone success in a hotly contested market now dominated by Amazon.com Inc's (NSQ:AMZN) Kindle Fire and Apple Inc's (NSQ:AAPL) iPad.

By taking a greater role in the tablet market, Google hopes to ensure that its various online services remain front-and-center to consumers amid a changing technology landscape in which tablets by Apple and Amazon are increasingly becoming gateways to the Web and Web-based content such as movies and music.

Google's maiden entry in the tablet market, which will also see the advent of Microsoft Corp's (NSQ:MSFT) Surface this year, could also help accelerate development of tablet-specific applications for its Android operating software -- a key factor that has helped popularize Apple's iPad, analysts say.

The "Nexus 7" tablet, built by and co-branded with Taiwan's Asus (TAI:2357), was one of several gadgets unveiled at its annual developers' conference on Wednesday, as the Internet search and advertising leader dips its toe into the intensively competitive consumer arena.

The announcement of the new tablet comes a month after Google acquired its own hardware-making capabilities with the $12.5 billion acquisition of smartphone maker Motorola Mobility. But Motorola, which Google has said it will run as a separate business, was absent from most the new products and services showcased at the event.

Google co-founder Sergey Brin demonstrated Google Glass, a futuristic-looking eye-glass-computer that

Is Google a hardware company now?

It was an event that included sky divers, stunt bikers and people rappelling down the side of a building.

SAN FRANCISCO: It was an event that included sky divers, stunt bikers and people rappelling down the side of a building. Then came another spectacle: watching Google, the Web search giant, reimagine itself as a hardware maker.

On Wednesday at Google I/O, the company's annual conference for developers, Google unveiled a new 7-inch tablet computer, called Nexus 7, and a sphere-shaped device for streaming music and video that it is calling Nexus Q.

Both debuts paled in comparison to the company's ramped-up demonstration of Project Glass, a device that puts a camera and a tiny video screen into a kind of eyeglass frame. This involved Sergey Brin, Google's co-founder, jumping on stage wearing the device and engaging in a live video chat on Google's social network with a couple of wing-suited sky divers as they jumped out of a plane. They were followed by stunt bikers and rappellers who dropped down the face of the Moscone West convention center, all

Google's futuristic glasses move closer to reality

APGoogle co-founder Sergey Brin talks on the phone as he wears Google's new Internet-connected glasses at the Google I/O conference in San Francisco, on Wednesday.

Google helped create a world brimming with digital distractions for people spending more of their lives tethered to the Internet. It’s a phenomenon that seems unlikely to change so Google is working on a way to search for information, read text messages, watch online video and post photos on social networks without having to fumble around with a hand-held device.

The breakthrough is a wearable computer a pair of Internet-connected glasses that Google Inc. began secretly building more than two years ago. The technology progressed far enough for Google to announce “Project Glass” in April. Now the futuristic experiment is moving closer to becoming a mass-market product.

Google announced on Wednesday that it’s selling a prototype of the glasses to U.S. computer programmers attending a three-day conference that ends Friday. Developers willing to pay $1,500 for a pair of the glasses will receive them early next year.

The company is counting on the programmers to suggest improvements and build applications that will make the glasses even more useful.

“This is new technology and we really want you to shape it,” Google co-founder Sergey Brin told about 6,000 attendees. “We want to get it out into the hands of passionate people as soon as possible.”

If all goes well, a less expensive version of the glasses is expected to go on sale for consumers in early 2014. Without estimating a price for the consumer version, Mr. Brin made it clear the glasses will cost more than smartphones.

“We do view this is as a premium sort of thing,” Mr. Brin said

Android grew by 500% in India in one year

Google revealed that Android grew by 500% in India in the last one year.

NEW DELHI: At its I/O event for developers in San Francisco, Google revealed that Android grew by 500% in India in the last one year.

"Android is a truly global phenomenon. We now have 400 million Android devices. In countries like Brazil, India and Thailand we have seen it grow by 500% in the last one year," said Hugo Barra, director of product management, Android.

Barra added that the company was not slowing down. "We are not slowing down. One million new android devices are activated every day," he said.

At the event Barra showed a heat map depicting Android activations. Countries like India and Brazil were depicted in yellow colour, indicating high number of Android activations.

At the IO event, Google made one more India-Specific announcement. The company said

Vodafone India offers new international roaming pack

http://mtmit.blogspot.in/search/label/cell%20phones

A sign for a Vodafone store is pictured in central London. (AFP Photo)

Telecom service provider Vodafone India has launched an international roaming package under which subscribers can avail of 60 per cent discount on services including voice and data. "Vodafone subscribers can now avail international roaming services at 60 per cent discount rate for voice,data and SMS in one single pack. This discount offer is applicable across 40 countries on specific partner networks across the globe," the company said in a statement.

These packs will be available till September 30. The offer is activated on a minimal one-time rental fee of Rs.1,499 valid for 30 days, the rental for which will be charged in the customer's bill.

"This latest offering addresses the latent needs of customers travelling to multiple countries with a single pack on one number and one-time rental, thus making international roaming a worry-free experience," said Sanjoy Mukerji, chief commercial officer, Vodafone India.

With this pack, customers can roam internationally without having to pay multiple rentals, in various countries they visit.

Reliance Communications sinks as Veritas slams co's financial health, again

MUMBAI: Almost a year after calling Reliance Communications the "poster child of everything that is wrong with corporate India," independent equity research firm Veritas has published another report slamming the financial state of India's second-largest telecom operator by subscribers.

"We value the core business at 15 per share, suggesting a 77% downside from current levels," the research report said. The report, which hit all major news sources on Tuesday morning, sent the Reliance Communications stock to a 52-week low of Rs 59.45 a share in early trade. However, the stock recovered to close at Rs 64, down 1.8%.

Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group-owned Reliance Communications responded strongly in an e-mailed statement. "The Veritas report lacks any credibility and is mala fide in intent and approach... The report is full of factual inaccuracies, and baseless allegations masquerading as research."

The report, which is marked by the trenchant language that has become the signature of the Canada-based research house, said steps taken by Reliance Communications to tide over its financial problems were short-sighted. "In order to tide over the cash crunch, we believe that RCom has been scaling back its capital expenditures ("capex") and has put assets on the block," it said. "Given the weak competitive position of the company in the Indian wireless sector, we believe that curtailed capex will be detrimental to the company's prospects, going forward."

For the year ended March 31, 2012, the company's capital work in

Google’s smart glasses: The biggest innovation yet?

The future is here, with Google rolling out its pair of Internet Smart glasses to developers at $1500. Smart glasses, known as Project Glass, were sold to developers at Google’s annual conference I/O conference in San Francisco. According to reports the glasses will ship early next year and won’t be available for sale outside the three-day conference.

“This is new technology and we really want you to shape it,” Google co-founder Sergey Brin told about 6,000 attendees. “We want to get it out into the hands of passionate people as soon as possible.”

Brin told reporters that Google intends to sell the glasses for significantly less once the product is released to the mass market. He added that Google hopes to start selling the device to consumers in early 2014.

Google co-founder Sergey Brin demonstrates Google's new Glass, wearable internet glasses, at the Google I/O conference in San Francisco. AP

So what are these smart glasses all about? With the glasses,everything will appear right before you eyes. From directions to

Apple wins order blocking US sales of Samsung Tablet

LOS ANGELES | SAN FRANCISCO: Apple won a court order immediately blocking US sales of Samsung Electronics' Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet computer as the companies continue their global patent dispute.

US district judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California, issued the order on Tuesday after rejecting a similar request in December. Apple's request, part of a broader patent dispute over smartphones and tablets, was based on an appeals court finding that it will probably win its patent-infringement claim relating to the Tab 10.1 tablet.

The world's two biggest makers of high-end phones have accused each other of copying designs and technology for mobile devices and are fighting patent battles on four continents to retain their dominance in the $219-billion global smartphone market. South Korea-based Samsung will take necessary legal steps in response to Tuesday's ruling on the year-old model, the company said in a statement on Wednesday.

"This is an extension of their fight in the smartphone space," Kim Young Chan, a Seoul-based analyst at Shinhan Investment, said by phone. "If you look at precedents, different cases yielded different rulings. As long as smartphones aren't blocked, Samsung's fundamentals will stay intact."

Quarterly sales of the Tab 10.1 in the US may total about 3,00,000 units on average, Kim said. Samsung, which doesn't disclose shipment figures for smartphones and tablets, sold 44.5 million smartphones globally in the first quarter, according to market researcher Strategy Analytics. Apple is also the biggest buyer of Samsung chips and displays.

Samsung shares gained 2.5% to 11,67,000 won at the close of trading in Seoul while the benchmark Kospi index was little changed. The US sales ban follows last week's ruling in The Hague that Apple has to compensate Samsung for damages caused by a breach of patents since August 2010. Apple also sought a US ban on the latest model of the Galaxy S smartphone, which went on sale in the market this month.

"In this case, although Samsung will necessarily be harmed by being forced to withdraw its product from the market before the merits can be determined after a full trial, the harm faced by Apple absent an injunction on the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is greater," Koh said in Tuesday's ruling.

She said a June 29 hearing to address Apple's third request to block Samsung's tablet computer wasn't needed. A trial is set for July 30.

The public interest "favours the enforcement of patent rights", Koh wrote. "Although Samsung has a right to compete, it does not have a right to compete unfairly, by flooding the market with infringing products."

Samsung said that it was disappointed in the ruling while it won't have significant impact on its business. Other Tab products will continue to be available to US consumers, the South Korean company said.

The ruling "will ultimately reduce the availability of superior technological features to consumers in the US", Samsung said in the statement. If Apple continues to sue based on "generic design" patent claims "innovation and progress in the industry could be restricted".

Koh on Tuesday rejected Samsung's arguments that the injunction was overbroad because the infringement claim was based on one aspect of the overall product, and that it would hurt Samsung's relationships with wireless carriers that provide the Galaxy Tab to their customers.

On June 4, Koh rejected Apple's second request to ban the tablet sales while the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington was considering her first such denial in December. Koh said then she didn't have jurisdiction to issue a preliminary injunction because the appeals court hadn't issued a mandate.

India upgrades 'world's cheapest tablet' Aakash

The Aakash 2 will be faster and more capable than its predecessor

Continue reading the main story

India has unveiled a new version of what it says is the "world's cheapest tablet computer" - the Aakash 2.

The device, primarily for students, is to be sold for 2,263 rupees ($40; £26). It has a faster processor, longer battery life and more programming capability than an earlier version.

The government believes that low-cost tablets can help revolutionise internet access across India.

But distribution has been an issue, with few schools receiving the tablets.

A right to information request filed by Indian media blog Medianama showed that only 572 of the first devices have been distributed, reaching fewer than 20 colleges.

"There was some delay in taking the project forward for reasons I don't want to go into," Information Technology Minister Kapil Sibal told a group of teachers and students who had gathered to see the Aakash 2.

The Aakash 2 sample devices are now being tested, with manufacturing projected to start by July or August.

UK-based company Datawind, which faced criticism over

Coming soon: Android’s next OS Jelly Bean with Galaxy Nexus

As Google’s app developer conference comes closes, rumours, leaks are taking place all over. Now DroidLife reports, that the next Android OS, version 4.1 will be called Jelly Bean.

The report says that according to the Google Play listing in the US for the Galaxy Nexus phone, it shows that the phone will be the first one with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.

It seems that Google caught on to this ‘mistake’, and pretty soon, the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean description was gone. The question all over is that whether this was a deliberate mistake. Hopefully Google’s app developer conference next week should sort out all the trouble. Will Jelly Bean be released next week? Perhaps.

Jelly Bean's next. AP

Even if Google does release it, there’s no need for every Android user to rejoice. Lots of Android users still haven’t got the Ice-Cream Sandwich update, so don’t keep your hopes high for Jelly Bean either.

Just two days back there were reports that Samsung Galaxy Note II would be launched in October, the same time as Apple’s next iPhone. According to that the Note II would be running on Android’s Jelly Bean. Well, hopefully those who buy the new Note will get Android’s next OS.

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Google Threatens To Sue Huge YouTube MP3 Conversion Site

According to a letter seen by TorrentFreak, Google are threatening action against one of the web’s largest YouTube conversion sites. The site, which according to Google’s own stats is pulling in 1.3 million visitors every day, extracts MP3 audio from YouTube videos and makes it available for users to download. Google’s lawyers say this must stop, and have given the site seven days to comply.

YouTube is without doubt the biggest free resource of videos and music available online today. It can be enjoyed on the site itself, embedded in any webpage, or accessed via YouTube’s Application Programming Interface.

This API, as it’s better known, provides web developers with access to certain YouTube features, but like many free gifts it comes with certain strings attached, aka the YouTube Terms of Service (ToS).

One of the countless resources to use the

Microsoft may be making own phone - analyst

Microsoft Corp is looking at making its own smartphone to kickstart sales of its Windows mobile software, according to a Wall Street analyst who has followed the company for many years.The talk - unconfirmed by Microsoft - comes a day after the company unveiled its latest Windows Phone 8 software, and the same week it announced an own-brand tablet, signaling a break with 37 years of focusing on software and leaving hardware manufacturing to its partners.
"Our industry sources tell us that Microsoft may be working with a contract manufacturer to develop their own handset for Windows Phone 8," wrote Nomura analyst Rick Sherlund in a note to clients on Thursday.
"It is unclear to us whether this would be a reference platform or whether this may be a go-to market Microsoft-branded handset," wrote Sherlund, who covered Microsoft for Goldman Sachs when

Web piracy: HC says block links, not websites

The Madras HC’s June 15 order came after its April 25 John Doe order led to ISPs blocking several websites. The move was criticized by internet users and led to protests against web censorship in the country.

NEW DELHI: If you are sick and tired of your internet service provider frequently blocking some popular websites, you can relax now. TheMadras high court has ruled that its April 25 order against internet piracy should not be used to block the entire website; only specific web links should be blocked.

On an appeal filed by a group of internet service providers, the court in a June 15 order clarified that the content owners should give ISPs the specific web links through which the copyrighted material was being shared so that the ISPs could block them. Following the HC order, most of the websites blocked by ISPs, except Piratebay, have become accessible again.

In recent months, there has been a spurt in John Doe orders — orders against unnamed entities — in India. Film producers have gone to various courts and obtained such orders against those who might pirate their films. This has invariably happened a day or two before the release of the film. Armed with these orders, film producers have prevailed upon ISPs to block entire websites, leading to resentment among web users and a wave of protests by net activists.

The high court's June 15 order came after its April 25 John Doe order led to ISPs blocking several websites, including Vimeo. The move was severely criticized by internet users in India, who blamed ISPs for the inconvenience caused to them. The blocking of websites also prompted Anonymous, a hacker collective, to raise concerns over what it perceived as web censorship. Anonymous attacked several government websites in protest and even organized real-world protests in several cities.

The high court in its latest order said: "The interim injunction [dated April 25] is granted only in respect of a particular URL where the infringing movie is kept and not in respect of the entire website. Further, the applicant is directed to inform about the particulars of URL where the interim movie is kept within 48 hours."

Sunil Abraham, director of Centre for Internet and Society, a Bangalore-based thinktank that tracks internet policy, said the court clarification was much needed.

"There are two problems with John Doe orders. They lack specificity. It's against an anonymous infringer. These orders also allow petitioners to misuse them as they demand complete blocking of websites without taking recourse to identifying the pirates and the URLs through which copyright material is being shared," Abraham said. "The latest court order addresses these issues. By asking ISPs to only block specific URLs it addresses major concerns about John Doe orders."

John Doe, a virtually unknown entity in this country, has of late become the favourite of film producers. Reliance Entertainment obtained several John Doe orders last year. Recently producers of "Gangs of Wasseypur" obtained such an order. After the film's director, Anurag Kashyap, received negative feedback from web users on Twitter, he said, "When my films were pirated, my investors and studio never blamed me for it but when the studio got a John Doe order for GoW, the internet blames me."

At the same time, he claimed he would try his best to make sure web users didn't suffer blanket bans on websites because of the order.

"The order has been taken by investing parties to protect their investment but they have assured me that it will be used responsibly. I can argue with them about not taking down entire sites and just the URLs, and they have assured they will do that," he tweeted.

Times View

The Madras high court order is a welcome step in guarding the rights of internet users. The internet is all about freedom of choice and free flow of information. Therefore, entire websites should not be blocked just because there might be some illegal content on them. Only specific URLs where pirated content is available should be blocked. An entire website may be blocked only when government and industry agree that it deals predominantly in pirated stuff. There should also be quick redress of copyright owners' grievances — illegal content should be blocked within, say, six hours, of verification. Websites on which a huge chunk of the content is illegal should be blocked for a specified period, say, three months, and given a chance to mend their ways. How huge is 'huge' — 5%, 10% or 15%? That may be decided by a committee comprising representatives of government and industry. The numbers mentioned here may sound arbitrary, but we have to start somewhere.

GSM telcos add 7.27 million users in May, Bharti Airtel leads

KOLKATA: The country's top mobile carrier, Bharti Airtel, enrolled nearly 28% of the 7.27 million subscribers that GSM operators added in May, according to data released by the Cellular Operators Association of India ( COAI) on Thursday. 

Airtel, which has a market share of 27.34 %, added 2.01 million subscribers in May, taking its total subscriber base to 185.30 million, the GSM industry lobby said. The country's total GSM user base climbed to 677.85 million at the end of May. 

Maximum additions in excess of 1.44 million transpired in UP (East), accounting for nearly 20% of the total subscriber additions, the industry body said. The latest subscriber growth numbers come even as the Pranab Mukherjee-headed panel of ministers is slated to finalise all issues relating to the upcoming 2G spectrum auctions. 

Vodafone India, with a market share of 22.50%, added 1.2 million customers during the month, taking its subscriber base to 152.48 million, while Aditya Birla group firm Idea Cellular added 1.75 million customers, taking its total subscriber base to nearly 116 million. Aircel, however, saw fewer customers additions at 0.8 million than 1.01 million recorded in April. 

MTNL lost nearly 0.17 million customers causing its end-May subscriber base to plunge to 5.31 million from 5.48 million in April. Uninor, majority owned by Norway's Telenor, added 1.52 million customers last month, taking its user base to 45.07 million. 

In fact, its market share climbed to 6.65% from 6.49% last month even though Uninor's future remains uncertain after the Supreme Court cancelled its pan-India mobile permit in February and has asked the government to issue fresh licences through an auction. 

The latest spurt in subscriber numbers comes after all leading GSM operators like Bharti, Idea, Vodafone,Aircel and MTNL dropped their 3G price plans last month to woo more customers to take up high-end data services like video conferencing on mobiles, hitherto, considered exorbitant.

Samsung Galaxy S III Reportedly Explodes in Car, Investigation Underway

A Samsung Galaxy S III owner in Dublin told sympathizers on a chat board that his smartphone exploded in his car although he avoided serious injury. Samsung, which gave him a replacement, is investigating.

Samsung no doubt thinks its Galaxy S III smartphone is red hot and ready to smoke the competition, but a user in Dublin has experienced something else entirely. His Galaxy S III, he wrote on a chat board June 20, exploded while docked in his car.
“I was driving along … when suddenly a white flame, sparks and a bang came out of the phone,” the Samsung owner wrote, using the handle dillo2k10. An included link to a Facebook page says he’s a university student named Dylan Kershaw. He added that the phone burned from the inside out and “burned through the plastic and melted my case to my phone. The phone kept working

Revamped Tumblr 3.0 app arrives for iPhone, iPad

Blogging service Tumbler has revamped the official app for iOS devices and gave it several improvements.

Blogging service provider, Tumblr has revamped its mobile application for the Apple iOS platform based devices. The new Tumblr app is touted to be faster, leaner and bears support for high-resolution images. The new Tumblr 3.0 app for the iOS based iPhone, iPod touch and iPad would be available for devices running iOS 5.0 or later.

New Tumblr 3.0 brings a sleeker dashboard that will aide in quick navigation to the relevant options. The menu icons have been made bigger which makes it easier to tap. Tumblr app now showcases a new image viewer along with the improved photosets for frequent photo bloggers or re-bloggers too.

For avid photo bloggers, it now offers

Samsung Galaxy S III: Not So Human After All [REVIEW]

There are Android phones, there are Android superphones, and then there’s the Samsung Galaxy S III. Samsung’s Galaxy phones are no longer just hot new mobile devices — they’ve become a force of nature. Just like the iPhone, users can expect a new Samsung Galaxy every year, and then must decide whether or not to upgrade.

The first Galaxy arrived in 2010. Prior to it, the “hero” Android device was the Motorola Droid, but the Galaxy set a new standard with its bright screen, slim form and wide availability. The Samsung Galaxy S II came the following year, taking the line a step further with a better processor, improved camera and extremely thin design. Thanks to the S II, Samsung became the top Android phone maker in the world.

With the S III, Samsung hopes to keep its winning streak going. It’s doing a lot more than just hoping, however, stuffing a goodie bag of new “human” features (a catchphrase of Samsung’s) into the phone that are so far only available on this device. Samsung appears to have awakened to how influential its Galaxy phones are: The Galaxy S III won’t just be the flagship of its mobile division — it’ll be the company’s top product, period.

There are a number of things the Galaxy S III does

Google will allow Motorola Mobility its own space

 Google intends to allow its newly acquired Motorola Mobility to keep its autonomy as it battles in the hotly contested smartphone market, executives said Thursday.

Google chief finance officer Patrick Pichette told the company's annual shareholder meeting that there is unlikely to be a integration of the mobile products firm.

"It's important it stays on its own battlefield," he said. "We are not integrating Motorola with Google, we're making sure it has everything it needs to win in its own space. You shouldn't expect a full integration of the two companies."

He added that the mobile products firm has "fantastic assets that need to be reset, reprioritized... and in that context think of Google in a way taking Motorola private."

Google chairman Eric Schmidt said of the deal: "We bought

Acer doubts the success of the Microsoft Surface

When Microsoft unveiled their Surface tablets a few days ago, the announcement caught many by surprise. With the brand building their own tablet PCs, one would have to wonder what the reactions of their hardware partners would be. Acer appears to be the first to make a statement and as per a report by Reuters, the brand claims that they are doubtful that the Microsoft Surface would succeed. Acer feels that the Surface may not succeed The report by Reuters states that sources have informed them that PC manufacturers were kept unaware about Microsoft's plans of building the Surface. The report states Oliver Ahrens, Acer's senior VP and president for Europe, Middle East and Africa claimed that Microsoft was trying to adopt Apple’s strategy and he was doubtful that it would succeed. He stated, “I don't think it will be successful because you cannot be a hardware player with two products.” He went on to state that Microsoft would need to change some aspects of its game in order to compete with the likes of Apple. He went on to add, “Microsoft is working with two dozen PC vendors worldwide, including the local guys, whereas Apple is alone, it can more or less do what it wants. Microsoft is a component of a PC system. A very important component but still a component.” As per a report by Digitimes, Acer founder, Stan Shih has also voiced his opinion about the Microsoft Surface. The report reads, “Acer founder Stan Shih has commented that Microsoft has no real intention to sell own-brand tablet PCs and the offering is an ploy to boost adoption of Windows 8. Microsoft hopes that marketing its own-brand tablet PCs will encourage vendors to offer Windows 8 tablet PCs and thereby help expand market demand for the product line, Shih analyzed. Once the purpose is realized, Microsoft will not offer more models, Shih said. Vendors adopting Windows 8 should interpret Microsoft's intentions positively, as they will benefit from Microsoft's marketing, Shih indicated.” He goes on to state that Microsoft would earn more profit from licensing their software and stated that they have no reasons to sell their hardware and may face many difficulties in marketing the tablet PCs on their own.  Microsoft's new line-up of tablets includes a Surface running on the ARM processor that features Windows RT and another running on a third-generation Intel Core processor featuring Windows 8 Pro. The brand is touting the Surface as "PCs built to be the ultimate stage for Windows". Company executives stated that the Windows tablets and accessories feature significant advances in industrial design and attention to detail. The Surface is designed to seamlessly transition between consumption and creation, without compromise. It delivers the power of amazing software with Windows and the feel of premium hardware in one exciting experience. Surface for Windows RT OS: Windows RT Weight: 676 g Depth: 9.3 mm Display: 10.6-inch ClearType HD Display Energized: 31.5 W-h Connectivity: microSD, USB 2.0, Micro HD Video, 2x2 MIMO antennae Productive: Office ‘15’ Apps, Touch Cover, Type Cover Practical: VaporMg Case & Stand Configurable: 32 GB, 64 GB Surface for Windows 8 Pro OS: Windows 8 Pro Weight: 903 g Depth: 13.5 mm Display: 10.6-inch ClearType Full HD Display Energized: 42 W-h Connected: microSDXC, USB 3.0, Mini DisplayPort Video, 2x2 MIMO antennae Productive: Touch Cover, Type Cover, Pen with Palm Block Practical: VaporMg Case & Stand Configurable: 64 GB, 128 GB