Tag Archive for Smartphones

How To

[How-to] Share files using FTP on Android

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Android is the most versatile mobile operating system. It has loads of functionality which other mobile operating system restricts. FTP which is the acronym for file transfer protocol is the popular way to exchange data between two machines. Web hosting generally use this or HTTP for file transfer. Android being a complete mobile os supports this protocol as well but needs a client to unleash its productivity. Matching the needs we found a suitable app for this purpose called as ES File Explorer.

ES File Manager

The application itself is a complete package which completely manages files and additionally has support for FTP, LAN and cloud storage as well. We shall for now focus on how to share files via FTP. Below is the step-by-step guide on how to make your Android device as a FTP client and use a different machine to extract files from it.

  • Download ES File Manager application from Google Play Store.
  • Tap the globe icon on the top left corner.
  • You shall see a dropdown menu, expand network and select FTP.
  • Make sure you are connected on a WiFi network.
  • Tap on ‘Turn on’ button.
  • Your FTP server is now ready.
  • On your computer or any other device use the IP address as shown on the screen with the port number after ‘:’ on any FTP client like FileZilla.
  • You can also type the address exactly in any browser or file manager on your machine to access the files directly.

ES File Manager

FTP gives you the access to exchange data that is you can add and delete files from the Android device easily that too wireless. Therefore this can be an alternative for users using OS X or linux which don’t have MTP support.

How To

[How-To] Change App Launcher On Android

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Android being an Open source project has its pros and cons with pros dominating the cons. Open source projects have this great advantage over that of proprietary that anyone who wishes can fork this project and can improve or develop different apps, tools and tweaks for the operating system. As a result Android operating system has number of applications that can change the functionality of the operating system in the desired manner. For example, if you are fond of stock UI and have Samsung, or a LG or any other device you can too get some of the UI layering on your handset or tablet with minimal tweaking.

Smart launcher
Image source : Android Beat

Nova launcher, Apex launcher, Holo launcher and many more are simple applications which can be found on Play Store which make some changes in the basic UI layering plus adding advanced features. These launchers change the way your home screen and app drawer behave and look along with some additional features like gestures, home screen lock, etc. Its very easy to get these tweaks on your device because they don’t require any hacks.
To install launcher on your launcher simply follow the steps below.

  1. Decide which launcher do you want on your Android device. Some of the options being Nova launcher, Apex launcher, Smart launcher, etc.
  2. Search for the launcher on the Google Play Store
  3. Install the application.
  4. Now your launcher has been installed. Press the Home key and Select that launcher as Default.
  5. Remove the previous launcher from RAM making it available for further use.

Nova laucher

In case you want your stock launcher back, go to Settings->Application Manager->All Applications->Launcher Name->Clear Defaults. Still left with any doubts?

How To

[How-to] Change App Icons on Android Smartphones and Tablets

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Android open source mobile operating system by Google is popular for its open standards and this uniqueness has made it most favored mobile operating system not by smartphone users but also for smartphone manufacturers. Android’s openness gives it the scope of modifications and customization so that when users get bored of looking at the same thing again and again they have the access to modify it without any pain.

Android-Menu-Icons
Image Source : Enfew

We humans always have this desire to get what we don’t have. Ever wished to have app icons which would look something funky or colorful or 3D or maybe flat? Developers and designers across the globe do have something for you.
Changing icons on Android is simple as installing an application. You literally have to do nothing in order to get your favorite icon pack. Follow the step-by-step guide below on how to change the icons and feel the refreshing look on your same old Android smartphone or tablet.

android_iconpack_by_gmadzl-d2skr11
Image source : Devianart gmadzl-d2skr11

App icons are available as packages which can be downloaded from the Play Store. So you don’t have to hunt around for them. But you have to make sure that you are using Nova launcher or Apex launcher because the stock launcher does not provide this option.

  1. Search for the icon pack you want. There are plenty of them available on the Play Store. Some of them are MNML White, Sense 5, MeeUI, Stark etc.
  2. After choosing the one, search for the icon pack on the Google Play Store and hit install.
  3. After installing the icon pack, select the installed package from the settings of the launcher.
  4. And its done. Simple isn’t it?

If you are still left with any queries feel free to contact us on our Twitter handle @idigestindia, our Facebook Page or you can leave a comment below.

Smartphone

HTC Desire 600 With Active Dual SIM Standby Launched In India for 26,990 INR

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HTC Desire 600 Dual SIM smartphone has been officially launched in India. The Dual SIM handset was announced back in May and went on sale earlier this month for ₹26,860.

HTC-Desire-600

HTC Desire 600 sports a 4.5-inch qHD (960 x 540 pixels resolution) super LCD2 display featuring a 1.2 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 MSM8625Q processor running on Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean). It comes with a 8-megapixel camera on the back with LED flash, BSI sensor and a 1.6-megapixel front-facing camera with BSI sensor.
It has active Dual SIM support that allows you to have both the SIM cards active all the time, facilitating you to receive a call on first SIM, even if you are already using the other. Along with this BlinkFeed, Video highlights, and HTC BoomSound with beats audio integration also come in the list.

Features

  • 4.5-inch (960 x 540 pixels) pixels super LCD2 display
  • 1.2 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 MSM8625Q processor
  • Android 4.1 (Jellybean)
  • Dual SIM with Dual Active
  • 8MP rear camera with LED Flash, BSI Sensor
  • 1.6 MP front-facing camera with BSI Sensor
  • 3.5 mm headset jack, Beats audio support
  • HTC BlinkFeed
  • HTC BoomSound, Dual frontal stereo speakers with built-in amplifiers
  • 3.5mm audio jack, Beats Audio
  • 1GB DDR2 RAM, 8GB internal memory, expandable memory up to 64GB with micro SD
  • 3G (HSDPA up to 7.2 Mbps), WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 with aptX, GPS with a-GPS
  • 1860 mAh battery

Pricing

The HTC Desire 600 has been priced at an MRP of ₹26,990. We think the pricing for the device is not justified as it does not packs anything extraordinary than what we can get for this price. Infact this chipset at 26k seems to be little expensive. Only USP about the device is its active dual SIM standby which definitely is unique and have been never seen before.

How To

[How-To] Take Screenshots On Any Mobile Operating System

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Screenshots might not come handy for general masses but it comes very much in use for us bloggers. Screenshot is a screen capture of whatever is running on your current screen. So the next time, when you want to note down some information can be while reservation of some tickets or any transaction numbers after payment just take a screenshot and keep it safe.

All Mobile operating system

Smartphones today come with inbuilt function for taking screenshots but most of the people don’t know how to use it. It basically is done by a combination of keys which then makes the screenshot stored to the image gallery. Every smartphone operating system no matter iOS, Android, Windows Phone or BlackBerry all have a generic key combination to perform this function which works for both smartphones as well as tablets.

For iOS devices, iPhone or iPad or iPod:

iOS has a standard key combination of Power button + the Home key which takes screenshots and are saved to the Photo Roll.

For Android:

Generic key combination for Android devices are Power button + Vol Down key but Samsung Galaxy Devices work on Power + Home Key. The screenshots taken can be found in Gallery.

For Windows Phone:

Windows Phone prior to Windows Phone 8 does not have this feature. So it is the first WP release having this which follows the similar trend, Power button + Windows key.

For BlackBerry 10 and PlayBook OS:

Even BlackBerry OS did not have this feature inbuilt prior to BB10. For devices on earlier than BB10 needs an application to take screenshots but with BlackBerry 10 and PlayBook OS this can be done by pressing volume up and volume down keys simultaneously.

Smartphone

Micromax To Launch Octa-Core Canvas A240 Soon

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After the disappointment from Micromax with the Canvas 4, there are rumours that Micromax is planning for something big this time. MMXNewscaster the source for all Micromax leaks recently tweeted “Next: Micromax Canvas A240. #StayTuned”. Analysing this tweet we can infer that the next Micromax Canvas model which Micromax is currently working on will have model number A240 alike Canvas 4 which has A210.

Micromax

There are rumours that the next Canvas model will feature the latest octa-core chipset from MediaTek MT65892 which is known to exist. Recent reports tell us that the new octa-core MediaTek chipsets are expected to arrive by the end of this month and if it proves to be true then our hopes to the octa-core budget smartphone lives in.

Micromax-Canvas-4-Launch-In-India.jpg

The Canvas 4 though pictured itself as a budget alternative to Samsung Galaxy S4 with some similar features lacking the octa-core performance but still was not able to surprise the public which expected it to be the first smartphone using MediaTek updated quad-core chipsets with Turbo boost. MediaTek MT6589T which boasts up to 1.5GHz pushing up benchmark test results a little more higher is an improvement over MT6589, the chipset in Canvas 4, Canvas HD and most of the other budget smartphones by Karbonn, Lava, Zen, Xolo and maybe some more.

GizChina expects the first MediaTek chipset octa-core smartphone to launch sometime before December this year but Micromax better hurry up before anyone else take this oppurtunity to stand back in the competition. Another possibility is having a big screen which has been now trending these days as phablets market share is constantly rising up.

We expect Canvas A240 to have:

  • MT65892 Octa-core chipset
  • 5-inch full HD display
  • 2GB RAM
  • Android 4.2

What do you think? It will be fun to see how these rumours come out to be, stay with us for more updates.

Source : Daily Bhaskar

Smartphone

ZTE Launches Six Budget Smartphones In India

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ZTE corporation recently made its arrival in the Indian sub-continent and now after 2 months they have launched six smartphones and four 3G datacards in India on 19th July 2013 at an event in Mumbai. With the arrival of chinese mobile giants in the country like Gionee, Lenovo, Huawei and now ZTE we have a wide range of devices for customers to choose from but what it matters is performance and pricing.

The company launched four mid-range handsets in Blade series, one in high-end and one in low-end counting it to be total of six.

ZTE Grand X Quad Lite

zte-grand-quad-lite

ZTE Grand X Quad Lite is the flagship device from ZTE perfectly priced for the Indian market. The specifications are almost the same what other budget smartphone manufacturers are offering with 5-inch display. The complete specifications are as follows:

  • 5 inch qHD 960×540 touchscreen
  • 9.6 mm thick, 170g weight
  • 1.2 GHz Quad Core processor with 1 GB RAM
  • 4 GB internal memory with 32 GB micro SD support
  • BesAudEnh audio support
  • 5 MP rear facing camera with AF and 720p video recording 0.3 MP front facing camera
  • Dual SIM with one SIM 3G and the other EDGE, bluetooth, WiFi and GPS
  • 2500 mAH battery
  • Android 4.2 JellyBean
  • Price: ₹14,999

Coming to the mid-range Blade series, ZTE has 4 smartphones priced between 12,599 to 7,599 INR

ZTE Blade L

zte-blade-l

Arranging in the price one first is the Blade L with 5-inches WVGA display. Complete specifications are as below.

  • 5.0 inch WVGA 800×480 display
  • 10.5mm thick, 200 gms weight
  • 1.2 GHz Dual Core processor with 512 MB RAM
  • 4 GB Internal Memory with micro SD cards upto 32 GB
  • 5 MP AF rear camera with single LED flash, 720p video recording, 0.3 MP VGA Front facing camera
  • 3G, WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS, DUAL SIM. Only one SIM will work with 3G.
  • Android 4.0 ICS
  • Price: ₹12,599

ZTE Blade G2

zte-blade-g2

Next in the series is Blade G2 cutting down price and screen size from the Blade L. Technical specifications are as below:

  • 4.5 inch 854×480 display
  • 9.9mm thick, 145g weight
  • 1.2 GHz quad core processor with 512 MB RAM
  • 4 GB internal memory with micro SD card slot support, upto 32 GB
  • 5 MP AF rear camera with 720p video and 0.3 MP front facing camera
  • BesAudEnh support
  • Bluetooth, WiFi, 3G with Dual SIM. Only one SIM will work with 3G.
  • Android 4.1 Jellybean
  • 2000 mAH battery
  • Price: ₹11,599

ZTE Blade E

zte-blade-e

After G2 comes ZTE Blade E for 11,999 with some changes as compared to the predessor Blade G2. It features:

  • 4.5 inch 854×480 resolution IPS LCD
  • 11mm thick and 140g weight
  • 1.2 GHz Quad Core processor with 512 MB RAM
  • 5 MP rear facing camera with 720p video recording and 0.3 MP front facing camera
  • 4 GB of internal memory with 32 GB micro SD support
  • Bluetooth, WiFi, Dual SIM with one SIM HSPA 3G.
  • 1600 mAH battery
  • Android 4.1 JellyBean
  • Price: ₹11,999

ZTE Blade C

zte-blade-c

Blade C is a low end offering that comes at a cheaper price. The complete specifications are –

  • 4 inch WVGA 800×480 display
  • 11.9mm thick, 130g weight
  • 1 GHz Dual Core processor with 512 MB RAM
  • 4 GB internal storage with 32 GB micro SD card support
  • 3 MP fixed focus rear camera with 720p video recording
  • Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity, DUAL SIM with 1 3G and the other EDGE
  • 1600 mAH battery
  • Android 4.1 Jellybean
  • Price: ₹7,599

ZTE Kis Flex

zte-kis-flex

And lastly the Kis Flex which is the cheapest in the range and is targeted for first time smartphone users. Its complete specifications are :

  • 3.5 inch QVGA 320×240 display
  • 1 GHz processor with 256 MB RAM
  • 512 MB internal memory with micro SD cards support upto 32 GB
  • 2 MP fixed focus rear camera
  • Dual SIM, with 3G on primary SIM
  • WiFi, 3G, Bluetooth and GPS
  • Price: ₹5,799

All these smartphones doesn’t seem to impress us but we shall get more details once we have review. So till keep checking our blog.