The event started and ended with Advaita putting on a spectacular show by playing some of their songs which are incidentally available on Nokia Music Store for download. I found the songs to be very good and I would strongly suggest you to download ‘em all. Jasmeet asked them what the word ‘Advaita’ meant, well this is what it  means -- non-duality, it is a Sanskrit word. They (the band) stated that they are inspired by music that is transcendental.

Nokia’s Music Store is a new approach towards delivering music content to people. Jasmeet mentioned in his brief presentation that the formats for music have changed, but music by itself has not. It is interesting to note that India has close to 1000 movies being launched every year and if you assume 6 songs on an average per movie, we are talking 6000 songs annually, which is quite a number if you ask me.

Mr. Gandhi went on to add that we are at such a point that want our music at our convenience and in our format, and on a portable device. In face today, many of us choose to not pay for music that we own. This means that an artiste performs and creates the music but doesn’t earn anything because everyone wants it free. This is where Nokia comes in, it has the reach and that’s clearly visible with the number of handsets it sells in India. Nokia Music allows the user to download the content he/she wants and that too from a library of 3 million songs (30 lakh songs) which will be increasing regularly now. And with ‘Free tracks of the Week’ one can be assured of something free  every week. If you want to listen to a track before buying it then you can actually listen to a 30 second clip of it and then download it. Which means that you know what you are buying.

Mr. Gandhi was also quizzed about why one could not use a credit card at the store, he replied by stating that, the majority of the people (target audience) does not have credit cards, a student for example might not have a credit card,  thus making voucher based distribution easier as it allows tapping different forms of distribution, in fact one doesn’t need a PC for it, just a phone. Credit cards were also not expected to give Nokia volumes either. he did however mention that adding that as a payment mode was a minor thing and could be done anytime, if a demand for it arose.

The duration of the music is the tricky part, a song of 7 minutes is considered as one track, increments of 3 minutes thereafter makes the song a 2 track song. Further increment of 3 minutes – 3 track song. What this means is that when you are downloading a song from the store of duration 11 minutes, the store will consider them as 3 tracks and will deduct three tracks from your voucher. This is bit unfair, but I don’t know if many people will object to it or no.

Mr. Gandhi also assured us that by the first quarter of next year we shall see ‘Comes With Music’ branded devices in India. This means the X6 and the X3 will be available from next year.

Overall the event went off great! it was really nice to meet with some old friends. Here are a few photos of the event.The event also saw the launch of a new website to keep people informed of the happening at Nokia Music Store in India, http://millionsongs.co.in.

And if you want to hear and see Advaita, live in concert -- here are the videos!

• Nokia Music India Gets Festive and Offers 100 free tracks. Download Now!
• Nokia Music Store is Live in India
• Nokia To Launch Music Store In India by Year End
• Nokia 3720 -- A phone that survives torture -- Videos included
• Nokia N900 Fondle Video

“Right now our own people are testing the site, and we will go live as scheduled in the second half of this year,” a spokeswoman for Nokia. Also, the accessibility to the music store will be available only through vouchers, which will be given to the users when they buy a new handset or any other equipment from Nokia.

For Nokia, to allow users to buy music from their online music stores,  will require a payment mechanism. Nokia has tied up with HCL Infosystems which will handle all the online retailing for Nokia, in India. Nokia will promote legal music exclusively and has tied up with Indian music labels like T-series, Times Music, and Universal Music India. Nokia will use Microsoft DRM technology on its online music store.

A number of companies including service providers in India are now into online music retailing. I wonder how many of them actually buy online music from the service providers. If you take a look at the ARPU in India it’s not fairing that well.

• Nokia India eyeing Gaming and Music download market
• Motorola Closing Down SoundBuzz
• Nokia Music Store – Delhi Blogger Meet
• Nokia Ovi Store goes live in some countries, coming soon to AT&T
• Nokia Music Store Goes Live in India, Sortof

Powered by Windows Mobile 6.1 OS, this handset has a 5 megapixel camera and boasts of a WVGA resolution for its 3.5 inch touchscreen.

The WVGA resolution offers five times the number of pixels of most phones and delivers the best document, photo, movie and website viewing experience possible.  The handset also comes loaded with an improved version of the ASUS proprietary glide user interface.

Specs & features at a glance:

• HSPA (DL: 7.2Mbps, UL: 2Mbps), UMTS 900/1900/2100

• EDGE/GPRS/GSM 850/900/1800/1900, Class 12

• Microsoft Windows® Mobile 6.1™ Professional

• 115mm x 59mm x 13.8mm

• 148g (with battery)

• 3.5” TFT, 65K-color Touchscreen, WVGA (800 x 480 pixels)

• 4GB Internal Storage + 288MB SDRAM + 256MB ROM

• MicroSD with SDHC support

• WLAN 802.11b+g , USB v2.0, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR

• WAP Browser

• HTTP / WAP 1.2.1/2.0

• SMS / MMS / Email / MSN / Push Email

• GPS

• Word (editor), Excel (editor), PowerPoint (viewer), Adobe Reader, Windows® Live, MSN, Voice Commander** and Push Email (Exchange Server)

• Opera browser

• Wi-Fi Access Point

• YouTube, Flickr

• ASUS Virtual Keyboard

• 5 Megapixel Auto Focus camera

• Video Call, Audio/Video Streaming

Colour:

Black

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Edward Wang – Business Head, Mobile Communication Business, ASUS (India) said, “At ASUS, we always strive to find new ways to bring mobility with perfect connectivity to our customers. Innovation is the core of everything we do at ASUS and thus for our business professionals, we have designed this P835 handset. We are truly delighted to bring P835, which has a high quality 3.5 WVGA display, motion sensor, 5 Megapixel camera alongwith a fastest connectivity option. With these features we are sure a profeesional would have a hassel free, comfortable work life.”

It is quite surprising how companies are increasingly designing handsets that looks like virtual clones of the iPhone and still not as sleek! However, the P835 promises to pack a punch with its browsing experience even if it fails to impress in the looks department.

The exact availability of this handset and pricing will be announced by the company soon. So watch this space for the update!

Via: PressRelease

• Asus M930 communicator launched in India
• Asus announces two PDA handsets for India
• ASUS P750 PDA launched in India
• Asus Lamborghini comes to India
• Fastest business phone in the world Asus P565 to be withdrawn

The Nokia N79 is THE handset for music buffs. The handset comes preloaded with ‘Anthems 1998-2008’, a compilation of 19 all-time favourite classic club songs and 17 new age music videos, presented by the Ministry of Sound…only for the Indian market.

“The Nokia N79 packs cutting-edge technology into a super-sleek, compact design – a characteristic typical of the iconic Nseries,” said Devinder Kishore, Director Marketing, Nokia India. “It has been designed for those who want a device that is as appealing as it is powerful. This balance of performance, style and entertainment means that it is a defining step forward from the popular and very successful Nokia N72 and Nokia N73,” he further added.

Specs and features at a glance:

• AGPS with voice navigation

• High-speed connectivity

• Web browsing

• 10 pre-loaded N-Gage games

• 5 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics, dual LED Flash, sliding lens cover

• Video light for sharp, clear images

• Video editor

• 4GB microSD card

• Non-stop music playback time of up to 30-hours

• High-fidelity sound from dual speakers

• FM Transmitter

• USB cable

• Internet Radio

• 3.5mm audio jack

Each Nokia N79 pack comes with two additional interchangeable Xpress-On smart covers in different colours. They have an inbuilt microchip that ensures that when the back cover is changed, the display theme changes automatically to match the colour of the cover. Available colours – Light Sea Blue, Espresso Brown, Olive Green, White and Coral Red.

Price:

The Nokia N79 is priced at Rs. 22939/-

• Nokia launches two high end handsets Nokia N79 and N85
• Nokia N85 launched in India for 27000
• Nokia N85: Image Review
• Nokia N81 8GB Music Playback Hands On Video
• Nokia N86 launches as N86 8MP with 8 MegaPixel Camera

With the Sports Tracker you can map your activity (such as cycling, walking, driving, running etc) through the GPS and position it on Nokia Map. While the activity is ‘on’ you can take pictures that will get tagged on to your route.

This amazing feature will allow you to track your movement in any part of the world on a map (all the while noting details such as speed, altitude, latitude, longitude etc) that you can share with your friends and even other travel enthusiasts such as yourself.

The Sports Tracker therefore is your very own, personal travel map with a photo album thrown in! It is just AMAZING!!!!

Watch the videos to understand the expanse of this feature that Nokia offers ‘simply’ without too much publicity and grandeur.

Part I

Part II

Fonearena thanks Bloggers Mind for the handset!

• Nokia E75 and N85 Video Reviews
• Nokia N78 Video Review
• Nokia Launches the N96 and the N78
• Nokia N78 gets Firmware Update to 20.149.051.1
• Nokia N78 v30.0.011 Firmware Change Log

Features:

• FM radio
• Music player
• Bluetooth connectivity
• Anti Theft Mobile Tracker

Anti Theft Mobile Tracker

If the phone is lost or stolen and the finder tries to insert any other SIM, the phone automatically sends out messages on two pre-stored numbers, and the receivers will know the location and the number of the SIM inserted in the phone. Apart from this the phone sends the messages to the two numbers after every 12 hours or whenever the phone is used.

Commenting on the launch from LG, Anil Arora, Business Group Head, GSM, PCs and DAV, LGEIL said, “We at LG Mobiles thrive to offer the finest and most essential features to our consumers.  Considering the importance and urge for communication, style and usability for the Indian consumer we have come out with some never before features in our mobile segment. KP199 is not just a product but a package deal with all the important aspects, technology and features which are sure to entice and satisfy our consumers. The KP199, a fully loaded phone with advanced multimedia functions and long battery life will definitely appeal to our customers.”

Price:

Rs. 4390

• Nokia 5800 Xpress Music Touch phone launched in India
• Motorola Yuva W396 Launched in India
• Spice Braille phone to the rescue
• Low end Intex Handset – An Indian offering
• vJazz Music Phone from Virgin Mobile with free unlimited music downloads

The N79 is a candy bar handset where as the N85 is a dual slider much like the N95.

N79
Touted to be a multimedia phone, the handset comes with changeable back covers in five colours: Light Sea Blue, Espresso Brown, Olive Green, White and Coral Red.

Specs & features:

• GPS with A-GPS support on Nokia Maps 2.0
• Geo tagging support
• 5MP auto-focus camera
• Carl Zeiss optics
• Lens cover like the N82
• Dual LED flashes
• N-Gage
• 3G
• HSDPA
• Wi-Fi
• EDGE
• GPRS
• Bluetooth with A2DP support
• 2.4 inch TFT display
• 240 x 320 pixel resolution sporting 16 million colours
• 4 GB microSD memory card

“The Nokia N79 packs cutting-edge technology into a compact design – a characteristic of the iconic N-series – that allows people to discover, create and share their passions with others,” said Juha Kokkonen, Director, Nokia N-series in a statement from Finland, Head Quarters of Nokia. “It has been designed for those who want a device that is as appealing as it is powerful and comes with interchangeable covers that have automatically matching screen themes.”

Availability:
From October 2008

Price:
Rs. 22, 500 approximately without applicable taxes

N85
The N85 is a gaming device.

Specs & features:

• 2.6-inch OLED screen
• N-Gage gaming
• Music with in-built FM transmitter
• 5 megapixel auto-focus camera
• Carl Zeiss optics
• Dual LED flash
• Geotagging
• 3.5G HSDPA
• Wi-fi
• Bluetooth (A2DP)
• 8GB microSD card
• RDS radio
• 3.5mm audio jack
• A-GPS support

“The Nokia N85 was created to be more than the sum of its parts, offering a complete mobile entertainment package designed for connecting, sharing and discovering,” said Juha-Pekka Sipponen, Director, Nokia N-series. “The iconic Nokia N-series dual slider design has evolved to become smaller and sleeker while integrating the newest features and services to deliver the best mobile experience to date.”

The Nokia N85 is pre-loaded with at least 10 made-for-mobile N-Gage gaming titles and a voucher to activate one full game license. Dedicated gaming keys light up when the device is in landscape gaming mode to further enhance a user’s gaming experience.

Availability:
From October 2008

Price:
Rs. 28, 800 approximately without applicable taxes.

Via: Nokia.com

• Nokia N85 launched in India for 27000
• Nokia Launches the N96 and the N78
• Nokia N86 launches as N86 8MP with 8 MegaPixel Camera
• Nokia launches N95 multimedia phone
• Nokia N79 now in India redefining cool !

It has a Schneider-Kreuznach auto-focus optics with an Image stabilizer.

This slider is a Tri-Band handset that comes quite well equipped for various media functions like a media player, FM radio, video and image editors and even motion sensitive games that work with the KC550’s integrated accelerometer sensor.

The KC550 also supports Bluetooth with an A2DP profile and EDGE for net connectivity. It also uses MicroSD cards for memory expansion.

Price:

Rs. 14,719

No word on when it will be launched in India. But we hope soon.

• Nokia Supernova is here – 3 new handsets that redefine slick

Apple released its new SDK for the iPhone and its raining applications for the sexy touch screen gadget. First it was Gameloft who made an announcement that they will be launching as much as 15 3D games for the iPhone based on the new SDK and now it is time for the all time favorite Lego Building blocks to come on iPhone. Lego is popular among kids as well as adults, if I say that it is a kind of cult in the world of block building games then I don’t think so I am wrong in saying that. PlayNYC’s LEGO-touch application concept is being materializing at the company’s office, they say that it will be built on the new iPhone SDK that was released recently. Just imagine playing Lego on your iPhone, it will be so much fun. You can Build, share, challenge others, personalization and many more things that you can do with this application. With the new SDK for iPhone released and new games being developed, I think iPhone games will give tough competition to Nokia’s N Gage platform.

• 3D games coming soon on iPhone courtesy Gameloft
• Apple iPhone SDK downloads cross 100000 mark
• Apple iPhone SDK 3.0 released
• Apple iPhone 8GB Live Pics
• Handwriting Recognition on iPhone

Samsung Soul

A slim, lightweight, stylish phone with features that adapt to the user depending on the application, the Soul is pure eye candy. With Magic Touch by DaCP, navigation indicators on the keypad change according to the user’s needs.

This 3G handset is equipped with professional photographic functions including a 5MP camera. It features music library navigation and a digital power amplifier.

Measurements of the Samsung Soul are 105.9×49.5×12.9mm.

Metal Series
Samsung launched three new Metal Series phones at the – SGH E840, SGH D900i and SGH D840. The latest SGH E840 is also touted to be the world’s slimmest slide-up phone.

SGH E840
The SGH E840 is touted to be the world’s slimmest handset.

Specs:
• Full mirror LCD
• Hidden touch keypad
• 2.22-inch wide TFT LCD screen
• Made of tempered glass and metal
• 2 mega pixel camera
• FM Radio
• MP3 player
• Mobile printing
• Document viewer
• 70 MB internal memory
• MicroSD flash external memory (up to 2GB)
• Mobile tracker

SGH D900i

A 12.9mm slim slider that comes with artistically designed metal lining body offering high-end multimedia features like 3 mega pixel camera with dynamic user interfaces, vivid 262K color screen, Bluetooth stereo headset, FM Radio, New camera UI, enhanced battery life and speedy shutter.

SGH D840

For the fashion conscious business user, the SGH D840 comes with a 2 Megapixel Camera, MP3 player with integrated dual speaker, multi-format music player along with 80 MB of internal memory and external microSD memory.

SGH-G800
A digital camera and a multimedia phone, the SGH-G800 is a sleek 5MP camera phone with 3x optical zoom. It is equipped with advanced camera features such as face detection, xenon flash, and wide dynamic range (WDR), and supports sharing of images and videos as well as mobile blogging.

The phone is priced at Rs 21,799.

Serenata
The Samsung Serenata is definitely one of the strangest looking phones but it is different from almost everything else since it is the result of a joint effort between Samsung and Bang & Olufsen.

Specs:
The screen is a square 2.3″
• 240 x 240 pixel panel
• 256,000 colours
• 3G with HSDPA
• Tri-band 900 / 1800 / 1900 GSM
• MP3, AAC and WMA
• 4GB internal memory
• 136 grams in weight
• 110 x 63 x 20mm in size

Armani
A touch screen handset with a 2.6 inch display.

Specs:
• 87.5 x 54.5 x 10.5-mm
• 85-grams
• Tri-band 900/1800/1900 GSM
• 3 megapixel camera
• 262K colour
• QVGA touchscreen LCD
• Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP support
• MicroSD expansion
• Full Internet browser
• Support for H.263
• AAC/MP3/WMA audio
• MPEG-4 video

More Samsung Mobile Asia launches here.

None Found