IntellectBeat

Direct-to-home (DTH) players like Tata Sky and Videocon d2h are bringing Internet browsing applications on their set top box, which will enable subscribers to browse and interact on certain apps. "This launch of gen-next HD smart set top box demonstrates our unrivalled expertise and innovation in creation, delivery and execution of technologically advanced products," Videocon d2h Executive Chairman Saurabh Dhoot said in a statement. "This product promises to make your existing TV into a smart TV and ensure connectivity with the world. We are enabling convergence of TV, DTH and internet all in one place," he said. Tata Sky in a statement said the service will be available at no additional cost to its subscribers, in the coming months. "We don't look at ourselves as a DTH operator. We are a content distribution platform. The scope of that is defined by what content, which medium, what screen the subscriber wants. That is the level of convergence that Tat...

If the current lineup of high-end laptops in the market isn't cutting it for you, Eurocom's new offering may interest you. The Canadian computer manufacturer has launched its Sky X9W laptop, a 'mobile workstation' upgrade to its already impressive Sky X9 that it released in October last year. Much like many other good things in life, the laptop also has a big price tag, with a starting price point of $2,930 (roughly Rs. 198,000). Eurocom is referring to the Sky X9W as a mobile workstation, but don't get confused by the word mobile here. The laptop comes equipped with top-of-the-line desktop-class specifications. The Sky X9W is powered by a quad-core, Intel Core i7 'Skylake-S' 6700K SoC and Intel Z170 Express 'Skylake' chipset. Users have the option to opt for Intel Core 'Skylake-S' i5-6600L or Core 'Skylake-S' i7-6700 SoC. As for the GPU, the Sky X9W comes with 8GB Nvidia Quadro M5000M, 4GB Nvidia Quadro M3000M, or a single 200W de...

Apple for the first time is accepting banged up iPhones as a trade-in from those wanting to upgrade. Until now, Apple offered credit to iPhone owners only if the device had an intact screen and working buttons. Apple hopes that with more leeway, applicable only to iPhone 5 and later models, more people will upgrade to new iPhones. Apple Inc. has told investors that it may book its first revenue decline in 13 years when it reports quarterly earnings in April due in part to weakness in the global economy. But the smartphone market has matured as well after a yearslong streak of blistering hot demand. Apple relies on the iPhone for two-thirds of its revenue. Tech blogs have speculated about an iPhone 7 to be released in the fall with dual cameras and wireless earbuds. Apple pays up to $350 for phones without cracked screens or broken buttons. For damaged phones, it will pay $50 for a 5s, $150 for a 6 and $200 for a 6 Plus. The changes, first reported on the tech blog 9to5Mac, were ...

Nasa is monitoring a 100-foot (30-meter) wide asteroid that could make a close pass by Earth next month but has no chance of hitting it, the US space agency said on Friday. First spotted in 2013, the asteroid could fly as close as 11,000 miles (17,700 km) from Earth on March 5, according to scientists at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. That is roughly 1/20th the distance from Earth to the moon and about half as far as many communications satellites that ring the planet. But given uncertainty about the precise path of the asteroid, known as 2013 TX68, it also could end up as far as 9 million miles (14 million km) from Earth during its flyby. The asteroid was visible for just three days during its last approach to Earth in 2013 before it passed into daytime skies and could no longer be tracked. "It will be hard to predict where to look for it," Nasa's Paul Chodas, who manages the agency's Near-Earth Objects Studies office,  said in a...

Just over a decade ago, students at a smattering of elite colleges were debating the merits of a new website called thefacebook.com. It was all the rage at Harvard, naturally, where it had been launched by a sophomore who "literally" made it in a week. "I'm just like a little kid," Mark Zuckerberg told the Harvard Crimson in 2004. "I get bored easily and computers excite me. Those are the two driving factors here." The other students on campus were pretty excited, too. Within weeks of going online, the site offering a "visualization of your social network" gained thousands of users, expanding quickly to other schools. At Columbia, where there was already a social media platform called "CUCommunity" (later restyled to "Campus Network"), there was the sense that The  Facebook  was trying to usurp a preexisting tool. In an April 2004 column, one student accused  Zuckerberg  of launching his website out of jealousy. "...

Apple has asked the US Supreme Court to dismiss Samsung's appeal in the blockbuster patent case between the two smartphone giants, saying the ruling followed "well-established" legal precedent. A filing Thursday from the California giant came in response to Samsung's appeal seeking to overturn a $548 million (roughly Rs. 3,720 crores) award for patent infringement related to copying features from Apple's iPhones. "Samsung had its day in court - many days, in fact - and the properly instructed jury was well-justified in finding that Samsung copied Apple's designs and should pay the damages that the statute expressly authorizes," Apple said in its response, first reported by the blog Foss Patents.  "While this litigation may be high-profile, it is legally unexceptional, and Samsung has shown no reason for this court to prolong it." Attorneys for the South Korean consumer electronics titan argued in December that the massive payout was no...

The big game day is almost upon us: Super Bowl 50 will pit the Carolina Panthers against the Denver Broncos on Sunday night at 6:30pm ET or 5:00am IST, Monday. But American viewers don't need cable or even a television antenna to tune in: CBS is streaming the game online for free. Fans will be able to watch it on CBSSports.com from their computers or tablets. They can also use the CBS Sports app to stream it to a pretty wide range of connected-TV devices, including Roku set-top boxes, Apple TVs, Google's Chromecasts and Xbox Ones. But only "eligible Verizon Wireless customers" will be able to stream the game to their smartphones, via the NFL's mobile app. And fans outside the US will have to subscribe to NFL Game Pass, a video service with a $99-a-year price tag, to watch the game online. That is, unless they go the somewhat ethically questionable route of using a virtual private network or proxy to make their web traffic look like it's co...

Twitter said Friday it suspended more than 125,000 accounts, most of them linked to the Islamic State group, as part of increased efforts to eradicate "terrorist content" on the popular messaging platform. The accounts frozen since mid-2015 were targeted "for threatening or promoting terrorist acts," said Twitter, which is under pressure from governments to act but is also keen not to be seen as effectively censoring free speech. "Like most people around the world, we are horrified by the atrocities perpetrated by extremist groups," Twitter said on its policy blog. "We condemn the use of Twitter to promote terrorism and the Twitter rules make it clear that this type of behavior, or any violent threat, is not permitted on our service." The announcement comes after the United States and other governments urged social networks to take more aggressive steps to root out activity aimed at recruiting and planning violent acts. Twitter said it alre...