IntellectBeat

Bing for iOS will now let iPhone and iPad owners search for information by snapping a photo. A picture is worth a thousand words and seeing that even the best text-based search engines cut off after the 32nd word in a search command, Microsoft has found a novel way of letting people use its Bing search engine entirely with images. Simply point a smartphone, phablet or tablet at an item or object and take a photo, and Bing should be able to identify it, meaning that it could be just as useful for those out exploring a new city as it is for those out shopping. The updated Bing app for  iOS  is available to download from the iTunes App Store now.

Google Chrome on Monday was crowned the top Internet browser, officially ending the long reign of Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE). NetMarketShare calculated the Chrome had 41.7 percent of desktop browser share in April, narrowly topping the 41.4 share for IE. Mozilla's Firefox browser was third with 9.7 percent, according to the market tracker. A second market tracker, StatCounter, had given the title to Chrome four years ago and gave Google's software for browsing the Internet an even bigger lead over IE in April. A graph posted online at netmarketshare.com showed a Chrome use trend line rising while a line for IE sloped downward. When it came to using browser software to access the internet from mobile devices, Chrome commanded slightly more than 49 percent of the market, according to NetMarketShare. The results came as Google faces regulatory scrutiny, particularly in Europe, over its dominant position in Internet lifestyles and as Microsoft was pursuing a shif...

Micromax, soon after launching Canvas Spark 2 Plus, has now unveiled the new Canvas Mega 2 smartphone. Priced at Rs. 7,999, the Micromax Canvas Mega 2 smartphone is now available in India. The highlight of the smartphone is its 6-inch qHD (540x960 pixels) display, which is one of the largest screen sizes available in the price segment. The handset is backed by a 3000mAh battery. To recall, Micromax showcased the Canvas Mega 2 at the Canvas 6 and Canvas 6 Pro launch last month, and had promised that it will be revealed in the coming weeks. Micromax Canvas Mega 2 is powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core processor that comes paired with 1GB of RAM. There is 8GB of storage which is further expandable via microSD card (up to 32GB). It sports an 8-megapixel rear autofocus camera and also houses a 5-megapixel front-facing camera. The rear camera comes with LED flash. It supports 4G LTE connectivity in India and other options include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Micro-USB, G...

Korean smartphone maker Samsung is developing an app called "Voices of Life" that could help premature babies develop while in an incubator. The app works on the premise that the sound of a mother's voice and of her heartbeat has a nurturing effect on foetus in the womb. If these sounds are prematurely interrupted it can have an adverse effect on a baby's brain development. The new smartphone app, which enters a pilot programme this week, transmits the mother's heartbeat and voice to an incubator via a special speaker that filters out sound frequencies not present in the womb, a sound engineering process Samsung calls "wombifying."

Apple sees a "huge market potential" for its products in India and the technology giant is "really putting energy" in the country which will begin rolling out high-speed wireless networks this year, CEO Tim Cook said. "This is another huge one. India will be the most populous country in the world in 2022. India today has about 50 per cent of their population at 25 years of age or younger. It's a very young country. People really want smartphones there, really want smartphones," Cook said in a CNBC interview. He said in emerging markets like India, LTE (wireless) penetration is currently "zero" but as LTE begins to roll out this year in the country, the dynamics will change. "And so that's changing. Huge market potential," he said in response to a question about the Indian market for Apple. Cook said the company has got "great innovation" in the pipeline and new iPhones that will attract people in markets like India...

Sony India launched a new portable wireless speaker for music aficionados in India. The speaker offering "extra bass" technology to enhance deep bass sound is priced at Rs 12,990. The 48-mm large speaker unit called SRS-XB3 is equipped with water-resistant properties and offers one-touch wireless listening with near-field communication (NFC) and bluetooth connectivity. The speakers have an alternative portable battery, which can be connected to the USB-A port via a USB cable, allowing a smartphone to be charged when on low battery. It provides up to 24 hours of continuous playback when properly charged. SRS-XB3 is available at Sony centres and major electronic stores across India in three colours -- black, blue and red.

Electronics giant Philips announced today it was floating its lighting arm on the stock market in a "historic" initial public offering, aiming to spin off at least a quarter of the division's shares. "The offering would consist of a sale of existing shares only held by Royal Philips, the current sole shareholder of Philips Lighting. The offering and listing, and their timing, are subject to, among other factors, market conditions," the Amsterdam-based Philips said in a statement. Philips in late 2014 announced it was selling off its core lighting business - a mainstay of its income for more than a century - to focus more on medical equipment. But since then Philips said it has been examining its options, hesitating between a straight sale and an IPO. Philips said it would retain the majority stake in the lighting arm "with the aim to fully sell down over the next several years" as it shifts its focus to healthcare products. "Today's annou...

The discovery of three planets that circle a small, dim star could bolster the chances of finding life beyond Earth, astronomers said on Monday. The Earth-sized planets are orbiting their parent star, located in the constellation Aquarius relatively close to Earth at 40 light years away, at a distance that provides the right amount of heat for there to be liquid water on their surface, a condition scientists believe may be critical for fostering life. The discovery marked the first time that planets were found orbiting a common type of star known as an ultra-cool dwarf, the scientists said. "If we want to find life elsewhere in the universe, this is where we should start to look," Michael Gillon of the University of Liege in Belgium, lead author of the research published in the journal Nature, said in a statement. The discovery was made using Europe's Transiting Planets and Planetesimals Small Telescope, or TRAPPIST, located at the La Silla Observatory in Chile. The ...