Google Android 6.0 Marshmallow revealed: Check out top 10 points

Google Android 6.0 Marshmallow revealed: Check out top 10 points

 

All you wanted to know about Android 6.0 Marshmallow: Google has launched 2 new smartphones, Google Nexus 6P priced at Rs 39,999 and Nexus 5X at Rs 31,900 in India - available from mid-Oct, but tellingly, loaded it with the latest version of the Android operating system - Android 6.0 Marshmallow. So, if you want to experience the new Android 6.0 Marshmallow, you need to buy these smartphones first. Google had announced the upgrade way back in in May, 2015. So, till then, forget Lollipop, check out the top 10 features (and many sub-features) of Android 6.0 Marshmallow:

1. Contextual Assistance 
* Now on Tap: get assistance without having to leave what you're doing-whether you're in an app or on a website. Just touch and hold the home button.
* Do more with your voice. Now you can have a dialogue with any of your apps that support the new voice interaction service. For example, if a user says "play some music on TuneIn," TuneIn will respond by asking "What genre?".
* Direct Share: a fast and easy way to share to the right person in the right app.

2. Battery 
* Doze: when your device is at rest, Doze automatically puts it into a sleep state to increase your standby battery life.
* App Standby: no more battery drain from seldom used apps; App Standby limits their impact on battery life so your charge lasts longer.
* USB Type C support*: Quickly transfer power and data all through the same cable. Lightning fast charging gives you hours of power in just minutes.

3. Privacy & Security 
* On an Android Marshmallow device, apps designed for Android Marshmallow only ask for permission right when it's needed. You can deny any permission and still continue to use the app.
* Advanced controls to turn permissions on or off for all your installed apps.
* Verified boot: when your Android device boots up, it will warn you if the firmware and Android operating system have been modified from the factory version.
* Use fingerprint sensors* to unlock your device, make purchases in Google Play, authenticate transactions in apps, and pay in stores.

4. Android Runtime ("ART") 
* Improved application performance and lower memory overhead for faster multi-tasking.

5. Productivity 
* Bluetooth' stylus support*, including pressure sensitivity and modifier keys.
* Improved typesetting and text rendering performance.
* Smarter text selection, built-in undo/redo, and text actions closer to your fingers.
* Text selection actions such as a new Translate option that lets you translate text from one language to another right on the spot. (Note: requires Google Translate app installed)
* Save paper with duplex printing support.

6. System usability improvements 
* App links: enables installed apps to automatically handle their web URLs so you can jump right into the app, rather than the mobile web site, as appropriate.
* Easily toggle and configure Do Not Disturb from quick settings.
* If someone calls you twice within 15 minutes, you can choose to allow the call to ring through while Do Not Disturb is enabled.
* Use automatic rules to enable Do Not Disturb for as many custom time blocks as you like or around events on your calendar.
* Simplified volume controls allow you to manage notification, music, and alarm volumes easily from anywhere with the touch of your volume keys.
* Streamlined Settings let you manage an app's settings all in one place, from battery and memory usage, to notifications and permissions controls.
* Google Now Launcher app list refreshed with search, fast alphabetic scrolling, and predictive App Suggestions.

7. Connectivity 
* More power efficient Bluetooth Low Energy ("BLE") scanning for nearby beacons and your accessories.
* Hotspot 2.0: Connect to compatible Wi-Fi networks seamlessly and securely.
* Bluetooth SAP: Make calls from your carphone using your phone's SIM.
* Portable Wi-Fi hotspot now supports 5GHz frequency bands.

8. Expandable storage 
* Flex Storage: makes using SD cards or external storage devices as encrypted expanded storage for your apps and games on Android Marshmallow a whole lot easier.

9. Device setup and migration 
* Easily transfer your accounts, apps and data to a new device.
* During setup, you can add an additional personal or corporate email account (e.g., IMAP)
* Auto backup for Apps: seamless app data backup and restore.
* Backup/restore of additional system settings such as your Sync settings, preferred apps, Do Not Disturb settings, Accessibility settings and enabled IMEs.

10. Android for Work 
* When receiving calls or viewing past messages, you can now see the full work contact details even if you're not logged into your work profile.
* Work status notification: A status bar briefcase icon now appears when you're using an app from the work profile and if the device is unlocked directly to an app in the work profile, an alert is displayed notifying the user.
* VPN apps are now visible in Settings > More > VPN. Additionally, the notifications that VPNs use are now specific to whether that VPN is configured for a work profile or the entire device.

(Text courtesy android.com)

RBI surprises, cuts repo rate by 50 bps; keeps CRR at 4%..

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) lowered the benchmark repo rate by 50 basis points to 6.75 percent, while keeping CRR and SLR unchanged at 4 percent and 21.5 percent, respectively. This marks the fourth repo rate cut by the RBI since January 2015.

However, it has lowered its FY16 GDP growth target to 7.4 percent from 7.6 percent. It also said the focus should now shift to bringing inflation down to 5 percent by FY17-end. The repo rate was last at 6.75 percent in March 2011.

 The focus of monetary action in the near term will now shift towards removing impediments in rate cut transmission by banks, the RBI said. It also intends to work with the government to ensure that banks pass on the bulk of the cumulative 125 basis points cut since January this year.

      "A further monetary policy accommodation will be conditioned by the abating of recent inflationary pressures, the full monsoon outturn, possible Federal Reserve actions and greater transmission of its front-loaded past actions," the RBI press release said.

    Governor Raghuram Rajan said the RBI intends to be as accomodative as possible given its inflation targets and with this 50 basis points rate cut, he has front-loaded action. However, the RBI cautioned that since the third bi-monthly statement of August 2015, global growth has moderated, especially in emerging market economies (EMEs), global trade has deteriorated further and downside risks to growth have increased.

 As far as India is concerned, a tentative economic recovery is underway, but is still far from robust, the RBI statement stated. 

 However, there are a lot of questions on the impact of poor monsoon on inflation. The RBI said looking forward, inflation is likely to go up from September for a few months as favourable base effects reverse. The RBI expects the outlook for food inflation to improve if the increase in sown area translates into higher production.

   "Moderate increases in minimum support prices should keep cereal inflation muted, while subdued international food price inflation should continue to put downward pressure on the prices of sugar and edible oil, and food inflation more generally," RBI said. 

 Rajan also expects pro-active supply-side management by the government. "It is important that pro-active supply-side management by the government be in place to head off any food price pressures should they materialise, especially in respect of onion and pulses.

" RBI said it expects CPI inflation to average around 5.5 percent in October-December and 5.8 percent in January-March 2016 and finally moderate to 4.8 percent in January-March 2017. The RBI has also said that foreign investment cap in government bonds will be relaxed in phases to 5 percent by March 2018. A hike in foreign investment limit in bonds will be announced every March and September.

The foreign investment limits in debt will be fixed in rupee terms. In aggregate terms, this is expected to open up room for additional investment of Rs 1,20,000 crore in the limit for central government securities by March 2018 over and above the existing limit of Rs 1,53,500 crore for all government securities (G-sec). Also, the RBI said Indian corporates can now issue rupee denominated bonds with a minimum maturity of five years at overseas locations within the ceiling of foreign investment permitted in corporate debt (USD 51 billion at present). 

Flipkart Announces Next Big Billion Sale’s Dates!!

BENGALURU: Homegrown e-commerce giant Flipkart has announced the second edition of "Big Billion Sale," to be held between October 13 and 17.An app-only shopping event, Big Billion Days, will offer exciting offers and unbeatable discounts across 70+ product categories for customers to shop from, the company said.
Celebrating the start of festive season, Big Billion Days will be the ultimate shopping event for customers to shop for gifts and other items for friends and family, it said.
Stating that customers can shop across a range of categories during the five-day long shopping festival, Flipkart said Myntra will also be a part of Big Billion Days and will be presenting a curated selection from iconic fashion brands at never-before offers.
Flipkart had last year apologized for the glitches encountered during the 'Big Billion Day' sale, admitting its "failure" in living upto the expectations of its customers.
"India shops the most during this time of the year. With over 75% of traffic coming via mobile, we expect this app only sale to be the biggest shopping event of the year. Bigger and better as compared to last year, we have worked towards ensuring a seamless shopping experience for our customers," Flipkart head of commerce Mukesh Bansal said.
Pointing out that the company has ramped up its technology and supply chain support to ensure all our 50 million customers have the best ever mobile shopping experience, he said "Infact, to cater to the massive customer demand; we have opened new fulfillment centers across the country to guarantee efficient delivery."
"Considering the sale will feature fantastic deals across millions of products in all categories from over 40,000 sellers, our aim is to give our consumers nothing less than 5 days to shop to their hearts content," he added... 

Mumbai Central will be the first to offer Google's WiFi services.

Mumbai Central will be the first to offer Google's WiFi services

The Mumbai Central railway station will be the first to offer Google's Wi-Fi services. The station's Wi-Fi service is expected to be ready for public use by mid-October. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced during his visit to Google's headquarters that the company will be collaborating with the Indian Railways to offer free Wi-Fi services at 500 stations by next year. 

Google will be partnering with RailTel Corporation of India to offer Wi-Fi services in stations. The service would be free for the first 30 minutes for a 24 hour period. RailTel has stated that it will be a high-speed network. It also claims that the network will be fast enough to deliver HD video streaming services, and passengers will be able to download a movie in four minutes.

RailTel's statement also added that high speed connectivity offered by the service can spur vendors in railway stations to offer additional services. It also said that it created a possibility of building an IoT ecosystem. This could lead to automated operations such as monitoring of rolling stock, efficient use of electrical lighting systems, and so forth. A. Seshagiri Rao, Director/Network Planning and Marketing of RailTel said, "Railway stations being places of human aggregation of all sections of society are ideal places to bridge the digital divide. With high penetration of smartphones, the station Wi-Fi could become locations where people can get initiated into experiencing broadband and digital literacy." In 2012, RailTel began providing free Wi-Fiservices at the Bangalore Railway Station.

Earlier this month, it was reported that Google is going to partner with the Indian Railways to launch Wi-Fi Services in over 400 railway stations. This initiative was said to have been codenamed Project Nilgiri. It was also reported that in phase two of the project, Google may provide Wi-Fi on moving trains. Currently, there are only a few trains in the country that provide Wi-Fi services.

Earlier this year, Google had added the Indian Railways schedule to Google Transit. It had also added public transport information of eight Indian cities. In December 2014, it was reported that Google was planning to introduce Google Fiber in India as part of the Digital India Program. It is possible that providing Wi-Fi connectivity in stations is just the first step in that plan, and may soon launch their internet services in the country soon.

Rate cut to be gamechanger for markets, say experts !

Parag Thakkar, Head-Sales, HDFC Securities believes with the government and RBI both making the right moves, the domestic cyclicals should be on ones radar.

Rashesh Shah Chairman & CEO, Edelweiss Financial Services says RBI cutting repo rate by 50 basis points and the country’s  biggest public sector lender State Bank of India  following it with a 40 basis points base rate cut shows that banks are ready for transmission, which could be a big game changer. 

Shah believes flows coming in through mutual funds, insurance companies, direct investor would strength and be the key catalysts for markets going forward because concerns on global growth could continue for some more time. 

When one witnessed massive outflows from emerging market funds, the domestic institutions supported Indian market. 

The cut in rate would make investing in equities more attractive for investors than just parking their money in fixed deposits etc., says Shah. 

In the same interview CNBC-TV18’s Sonia Shenoy and Anuj Singhal also spoke to Parag Thakkar, Head-Sales, HDFC Securities, Kunal Bothra, Head - Advisory, LKP and Neeraj Deewan Director, Quantum Securities on the way forward for markets.

 Thakkar believes domestic cyclicals is the space to be in. With the government and RBI both making the right moves, the domestic cyclicals should be on ones radar.

 One could definitely see improvement in micros and macros on the domestic side but it would be a while before earnings would come back, says Thakkar. 

All the market experts believes that global growth would still lag in the coming quarters but the base for the Indian market or the downside seems to be capped. 

According to Shah, the surprise 50 basis point rate cut by the Central Bank indicates that inflation seems to be under control, and in all likelihood the retail inflation one-year down the line could be 4-5 percent, which could give further room for RBI to cut rates, says Shah in an interview to CNBC-TV18. 

Puffs, Flakes and Dollars: Why Your Breakfast Cereal Costs So Much!!!

It's far from the most expensive item Americans put in their grocery carts, but the climbing price of cereal seems to draw more than its share of consternation.

Cereal manufacturers are on the ropes. Euromonitor International estimates that demand for cold cereal has fallen in four out of the past five years.

Market research firm Mintel predicts U.S. shoppers will spend a total of $9.5 billion on cold cereal this year. That sounds like a lot, but it's nearly 7 percent less than the $10.2 billion we laid out in 2012.

The reduced spending has occurred despite a steady rise in the average price of breakfast cereal — the cold variety, not oatmeal and the like — which has climbed from $2.89 a pound in 2010 to $3.09 a pound in the second quarter of this year, according to market researcher Packaged Facts. That's an increase of just under 7 percent.

And the price of cereal has climbed faster than grocery prices overall for years, government data show. For every dollar a shopper spent on breakfast cereal in 1980, today you'd have to spend $2.93.

That means some high-end cereal prices now carry price tags more reminiscent of steaks than flakes, with unit prices that top $8 a pound.

At a Food Emporium store in midtown Manhattan, for example, an 11.2 ounce box of Bear Naked Original Cinnamon Granola costs $5.69, or 51 cents an ounce. A Safeway store in Alameda, California, sells 10.5 ounces of Kellogg's Frosted Flakes for $5.49, or 52 cents an ounce. On Walmart's website, a 9.5 ounce box of Cascadian Farm Organic Honey Nut O's costs $5.01, an equivalent of 53 cents per ounce.

But those figures don't tell the whole story. Cereal companies have also have been shrinking package sizes to disguise higher prices and cutting back on issuing money-saving coupons try and boost profits.

"If you think about the breakfast cereal category overall, it is a category that's been challenged," said Morningstar equity analyst Erin Lash.

Some of the damage is self-inflicted, he said. Cereal manufacturers were slow to invest in innovating their product lines when consumers were looking for something new and exciting. "Within cereal, in particular, that happened at a time when an array of breakfast alternatives stepped up their game," Lash said.

The three biggest name-brand cereal manufacturers — Post, General Mills and Kellogg — all declined to comment on their product pricing when contacted by NBC News.

Related: Kellogg to Eliminate Artificial Ingredients in Cereal, Snacks

According to outside experts, there are a few culprits for the declining demand for cereal: People are consuming less milk, eating fewer carbs and looking for lower-sugar foods to feed their kids, while favoring higher-protein alternatives like Greek yogurt or protein shakes for breakfast.

Cereal is also losing ground to easier, more convenient items such as protein bars that can be tossed into a briefcase or eaten in the car.

And competition from fast-food chains is increasing as the economy improves and more people hit the drive-through in the morning.

"Manufacturers … face a ton of competition," said Jared Koerten, research analyst at Euromonitor International. "In that environment, raising prices is one way they can try to combat the volume losses."

But raising prices can be a double-edged sword, Lash pointed out. "Higher prices could constrain volume growth, particularly if customers balk at the higher price tag," she said. "Consumers aren't willing to pay up if they don't see the added value… (They) are willing to pay up when they do see that."

To make higher prices more palatable, companies have been aggressively catering to the consumers who demand high-protein, minimally-processed products by rolling out new products like granola and muesli, not to mention overhauling their traditional recipes to cater to shoppers who want gluten- and GMO-free options.

Cereal companies also are using a new sizing trick to raise prices right under our noses by selling us more large packages.

When Post Holdings told investors that profit declines had slowed in its most recent quarter, President and CEO Rob Vitale said the sale of bigger packages played a role.

"We continue to see a migration of larger package sizes which bodes well for our combined business," he said, noting that extra-large boxes and bags both saw increases.

Shoppers are conditioned by a warehouse-club mentality to think that bigger is a better value, but they likely don't realize that this isn't generally the case when it comes to cereal, said Teri Gault, founder and CEO of TheGroceryGame.com, a coupon and saving website.

"Rarely do we find that the biggest box is cheaper per ounce," she said. "Usually the medium size is less per ounce."

Related: Cereal on Ice? Some Swear By Chilly Breakfast

Smaller boxes are another way they can earn more: Spot-checks of historical cereal prices across the country in TheGroceryGame's database show that the sizes of many small- and medium-sized cereal boxes or bags have ticked down by an ounce or two over the past couple of years.

In response to a complaint posted by a customer last year on its community message board, a Kellogg's employee moderator acknowledged that some boxes had shrunk, saying, "Some package sizes have been reduced due to high commodity prices and other related costs. We do this instead of raising the price of our products."

And Kellogg executives the company's last quarterly conference call told investors that avian influenza was having an impact on how much they paid for eggs.

Rising commodity increases often get pushed down the line to customers, said Koerten, the Euromonitor analyst.

"More volatility in weather has caused price spikes and (fluctuations) going on in some of these commodity markets," he said. "You can definitely see that reflected in the retail price."

Manufacturers are also trying to stem their losses by pulling back on promotions. "Promotion spending isn't a sustainable or profitable strategy longer term," Morningstar's Lash said. Instead, cereal companies are concentrating their coupon campaigns on product launches, for instance, trying to entice consumers to put something new in their carts, she said.

According to Kantar Media, paper coupons (the most popular kind) for cereal have gotten both scarcer and skimpier since the recession. In 2009, around 4.1 billion cereal coupons were distributed, with an average face value of $1.02. Last year, the number of cereal coupons had fallen to 3 billion, and the face value had dipped to 91 cents.

Paul Norman, president of Kellogg North America, acknowledged as much during the company's last quarterly conference call.

"We're seeing a little bit of price realization," he said in response to an analyst's observation that the amount of cereal sold on promotion seemed to be falling. "I don't think there's going to be a lot more heavy promotion, per se."

While shoppers can still find coupons, TheGroceryGame's Gault said, they're more likely to come with conditions such as a minimum purchase or a requirement to buy multiple boxes. They also expire faster, she said — an average of nine weeks instead of the 12 to 15 that was typical just a few years ago.

Grocery stores have also encouraged customers to use digital tools to download coupons directly to their loyalty cards, but this convenience can come with a price, Gault warned. A coupon that automatically registers when an item is scanned will supersede a paper coupon, even if the hard copy is worth more.

"The digital coupons are for sometimes less value than the printed or paper coupons," she said. "I can only surmise they do that because they can make it for less because people are really into digital. … They know it's easier to make a sale." 

Indian PM Modi Faces Protesters' 'Unwelcome' to Silicon Valley!

Demonstrators hold signs in protest against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi before a community receptiion outside SAP Center in San Jose, California September 27, 2015.

Local activists say police estimate 3,000 people protested outside of San Jose's SAP Center Sunday during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Silicon Valley tour with tech leaders to draw attention to Modi's record on India's religious minorities (including Muslims, Sikhs, and Christians), women, LGBTQ people, historically marginalized castes, environmental issues, free speech issues, and free internet issues.

"Prime Minister Modi's 'Rock Star' visit to Silicon Valley can't make up for his rock bottom performance in human and civil rights," Virali Modi-Parekh of Alliance of South Asians Taking Action (ASATA) told NBC News. "Since Modi's been in office, violence against religious minorities has spiked. But Modi turns a blind eye while churches are burned and Muslims and Christians are being forcibly converted. There is a culture of fear and victimization, especially against minorities in India, which undermines Modi's standing as a business partner."

Modi's "unwelcome" included billboards across Silicon Valley drawing attention to Modi's human rights record; hundreds of bottles of Purell hand sanitizer sent to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, each with a name of a person killed in the Gujarat riots; challenges from South Asian LGBTQ employees of high-tech companies of India's Penal Code 377; a "faculty statement" from 125 academicson Modi's history; a "die-in" dramatizing continuing attacks against minority groups; and social media campaigns using the hashtags #ModiFail,#ChallengeModi, #ModiLiestoUS, #ZuckWashYourHands.

Zahra Billoo @ZahraBilloo

What will Facebook's CEO do with 250 bottles of hand sanitizer? http://zuckwashyourhands.com/  #ModiFail

12:30 AM - 27 Sep 2015

 ModiFailDotCom

Zuck, Wash Your Hands!

By ModiFailDotCom @ModiFaildotcom

What will Facebook's CEO do with hundreds of bottles of Purell?

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18millionrising @18millionrising

Silicon Valley has always been loud and proud about LGBT rights, @facebook @twitter should #ChallengeModi on his stances and policies!

10:24 AM - 25 Sep 2015

Manish Sirsiwal @msirsiwal

NRI's in US unwelcome Modi, for religious hatred #ModiFail Plz Max #RT http://buff.ly/1MxZil5 

5:46 PM - 27 Sep 2015

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Dalit Diva @dalitdiva

This is siliconvalleys real welcome for killer #modi! #modifail

5:32 AM - 28 Sep 2015

 
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"There is no doubt that development for India is critical - but not at the cost of human rights and personal freedom," Modi-Parekh said. "India needs jobs, a strong economy, supportive infrastructure, and ultimately smart growth that lifts up diversity, innovation, freedom, and access for all."

Before becoming prime minister, Modi had been denied a visa to come to the United States from 2005-2014 for his role in the 2002 riots in Gujarat where more than 1,000 Muslims were killed.

Inside the center, an estimated 18,000 people (out of 45,000 people who had applied for a ticket via lottery) gathered to hear the Prime Minister speak about his plans for Digital India. The prime minister's schedule was packed throughout the weekend in San Jose as he met with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, and Apple CEO Tim Cook.

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