Paytm Mall Back to School Sale: Best deals on laptops for students

A new school term is expected to begin shortly. If you're a schoolgoer or college student who is in the market for a new laptop, you're just in time for Paytm Mall's summer sale. Here's our list of what we think are the best deals on laptops for students this time around. We've listed them in decreasing order of discount rate. Go ahead and take a look:

Lenovo IdeaPad 130

The Lenovo IdeaPad 130 on sale on Paytm Mall comes with an Intel 6th Gen Core i3 CPU with 4GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive. The screen is a 15.6-inch unit with an HD resolution. There's no Windows 10 OS bundled with the laptop but it comes with an optical disc drive for easy OS installation. During the sale, the Lenovo IdeaPad 130 is selling on Paytm Mall for Rs 25,490.

Dell Inspiron 3000

The Dell Inspiron line of mid-range and budget laptops has been around for a long time now. You can't go wrong with one. The variant on sale on Paytm Mall has an Intel 7th Gen Core i3 CPU, 4GB of RAM, and a 1TB hard drive. The 15.6-inch display comes with a Full HD resolution. Windows 10 Home and Microsoft Office Home & Student 2016 come pre-installed on the laptop. During the sale, the Dell Inspiron 3000 is selling on Paytm Mall for Rs 29,522.

Asus F570

Here's a fine option for you gamers out there. The Asus F570 comes with an AMD Ryzen 5 quad-core processor with 8GB RAM and a 1TB hard drive. Powering the graphics is an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 GPU with 4GB of vRAM. The display measures 15.6 inches diagonally and has a Full HD resolution. Windows 10 comes pre-installed on this budget gaming laptop. To know more about it, read our review of it here. During the sale, the Asus F570 is selling on Paytm Mall for Rs 52,390.

Asus VivoBook X507

The VivoBook X507 is for those of you seeking something thin, light, and stylish. The variant on sale on Paytm Mall comes is powered by an Intel 8th Gen Core i5 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and a 1TB hard drive. The display measures 15.6 inches diagonally and has a Full HD resolution. In addition, there's an NVIDIA GeForce MX 130 graphics card onboard with 2GB of vRAM. Windows 10 comes pre-installed on this laptop. During the sale, the Asus VivoBook X507 is selling on Paytm Mall for Rs 47,490.

Acer Aspire 3

If you're looking for a proper budget laptop, here's a fine pick. The Acer Aspire 3 listed on Paytm Mall during the sale comes with an AMD E2 quad-core processor with 4GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive. The RAM can be upgraded up to 12GB in the future. The display is a 15.6-inch unit with an HD resolution. Windows 10 comes bundled with the Aspire 3, so you won't have to worry about buying the OS separately. During the sale, the Acer Aspire 3 is selling on Paytm Mall for Rs 20,990.

from Latest Technology News http://bit.ly/2PT9o8o

Google rolls out May Android security patch for Pixel phones

Ahead of Google I/O, where the company is most likely to officially announce Android Q, Google has rolled out the May security patches for Android and Pixel devices. In the Pixel bulletin, the company posts that there are no functional updates for the Pixel phones this month. The Android bulletin says that the latest patch has resolved a total of 10 issues across Framework, Media Framework and System components.

The vulnerabilities range from high to critical, with the most severe relating to the media framework and a remote attacker possibly executing arbitrary code through a crafted file. According to Google, there were “no reports of active customer exploitation or abuse of these newly reported issues.” Apart from Pixel devices, Essential Phones have also got the update with improvements to Bluetooth and shutdown responsiveness.

May system updates are here with improvements to bluetooth and shutdown responsiveness some of you experienced. Check your phone for the update! pic.twitter.com/t12OA99zmo

— Essential (@essential) May 6, 2019

Last month, Google released its Android Security and Privacy 2018 Year In Review report, which claimed that the overall health of Android ecosystem improved as compared to last year. The company's report claimed that in the fourth quarter of 2018, 84 percent more devices received a security update as compared to the devices in the same quarter last year.

Google also said that the devices that had apps installed from outside of Google Play were affected by PHAs eight times more often. Compared to the previous year, even those devices saw a 15 percent reduction in malware.

from Latest Technology News http://bit.ly/2vHChee

Redmi K20 Pro might be companys upcoming flagship phone powered by Snapdragon 855

Redmi is working on a Snapdragon 855 powered flagship phone, which it recently confirmed is not named the Redmi X. While the company’s GM, Lu Weibing, said that the upcoming handset would be named something "better," there is no confirmation of what it could be called. However, a new leaked image of the phone’s protective display sticker has surfaced online, which suggests that the phone might be named the Redmi K20 Pro. All smartphones feature some sort of protective sticker and some of them sport the phone’s name and its key specifications. The image if the Redmi K20 Pro’s sticker also reveals some phone’s specs. 

As per the leaked image, the Redmi K20 should come equipped with a 6.39-inch AMOLED display. In line with the previous rumours, the handset is said to run on the Snapdragon 855 SoC and come equipped with a 4000 mAh battery that supports 27W fast charging. Additionally, the phone could feature a triple-rear camera setup with a 48MP sensor. An earlier report suggests that the upcoming Redmi flagship would sport a 48MP + 13MP + 8MP sensor configuration for the main camera setup. On the front, the phone is rumoured to feature a 32MP sensor. Do note that the leak comes from an unofficial source and should be taken with a pinch of salt.

Weibing recently confirmed that the upcoming Redmi flagship will come equipped with a  super wide-angle lens. It will also enable NFC capabilities and retain the 3.5mm audio jack. The Snapdragon 855 powered Redmi smartphone is expected to go up against the Realme X handset, which will also run on the same flagship chipset. Realme has confirmed that the Realme  X will be unveiled on May 15 in China and a Lite or Youth Edition of the phone is rumoured to launch as well. 

from Latest Technology News http://bit.ly/2PT9Jrj

Xiaomi Black Shark 2 gets BIS certification, India launch imminent

Last year, Xiaomi Black Shark 2 was launched in China, and now it seems that the phone will make its way to India as well. The device has appeared in the database of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) suggesting that the phone will be launched in the country soon. The BIS certifications does not mention anything about the specs, so it is yet to be seen which variant(s) will be launched in India.

Xiaomi Black Shark 2 specifications:

The Black Shark 2 features a 6.39-inch AMOLED display with an in-display fingerprint sensor and 1080 x 2340 pixel resolution. The display comes with a pressure-sensitive system that enables gamers to map the buttons located on the flanking corners of the screen. Under the hood, the smartphone features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 mobile platform. The phone was launched in Cina in “frozen silver” and “shadow black” colours, and comes in two RAM and storage options: 6GB RAM and 128GB storage, 12GB RAM and 256GB storage model, and an 8GB RAM and 256GB storage (available only in the frozen silver colour).

The imaging responsibilities are on a dual camera system on the back and a single shooter on the front. The rear camera has a 48MP Quad Bayer sensor with 0.8µm pixels and an f/1.75 aperture. The secondary camera has a 2x telephoto lens and a 12MP sensor with 1.0µm pixels. The selfie shooter has a 20MP sensor with f/2.0 and 0.9µm pixels. The phone draws power from a 4,000 mAh battery, which comes with a 27W fast charging support. The Black Shark 2 comes with a cooling tech that Xiaomi claims is the world’s first “direct touch multilayer liquid cooling system” that keeps the temperature of the CPU 14-degrees cooler during intense gaming sessions.

The Black Shark 2 competes against other gaming devices such as the Razr Phone 2 and Asus ROG phone, and it is the third phone in the line-up after the Xiaomi Black Shark and Black Shark Helo that were launched last year. In March, a report claimed that Black Shark has set up headquarters in Bengaluru. It was said that the company’s VP David Li will look after India operations while Chirag Nagendra, who was formerly with OnePlus in the communications team joined as Black Shark’s Marketing head.

from Latest Technology News http://bit.ly/2vHCgXI

Apple Releases Its Second iPhone Game Ever, Featuring Warren Buffett

Apple has launched a new iPhone game starring billionaire Warren Buffett. The game is now available as a free download on the App Store.

from RSS Feeds | GAMES - RSS Feed - NDTV Gadgets360.com http://bit.ly/2PQgqKS

Pokemon Go Celebrating Detective Pikachu’s Release With 10-Day Event: Here Are the Details

Niantic has announced a limited-time event for Pokemon Go to celebrate the release of Ryan Reynolds-starrer Detective Pikachu movie.

from RSS Feeds | GAMES - RSS Feed - NDTV Gadgets360.com http://bit.ly/2YeG2UW

Indians are in bed with skin-eating dust mites, finds new Dyson-FICCI research

You, me and everyone in India is in bed with creepy, skin-eating dust mites. Not only do we willfully let these tiny bugs eat away at 20g - 66g of dead skin we produce each month, they also latch onto our clothes, shoes and other body parts to travel around the places we visit. A new study conducted by Dyson, in association with the FICCI Research and Analysis Centre (FRAC), has revealed alarming results about the allergens present in house dust found in India.

Now, you might be wondering why we at Digit are talking about a dust study. Simply put, Dyson conducted the said dust study in India to understand the best possible ways of optimising their V-series vacuum cleaners to better suit Indian household needs. Dyson and FRAC were able to collect 12,491 grams of dust from 100 urban homes across Delhi, Bengaluru and Mumbai. The samples were collected from mattresses, sofas, carpets, cars and such in order to analyse the composition of dust found in Indian homes.

What the study discovered was that cockroach allergens, including their saliva, faeces and shredding body parts, are commonly found in Indian households, alongside dust mites, and pet dander. All these form a deadly mix of allergens, leading to increasing respiratory problems in Indians. The study notes that while homes might appear clean, the hidden dust particles do not exit the home environment through traditional sweeping and mopping methods used in India.

“When you're sweeping the floors in the morning, a lot of small particles get airborne. These particles stay there for half an hour to an hour. And then after some time, they settle down once again. Because of the size of these particles, smaller than the diameter of your hair, they can easily be inhaled and go up to your lungs, or even reach your blood streams,” Shantanu Khandelwal, CEO at FICCI Research and Analysis Centre said during a presentation of the Dyson-FRAC India Dust study in Singapore, Dyson's manufacturing base for vacuum cleaner motors. 

To show us the contents of household dust found in Indian homes, Dyson had flown in petri dishes of dust samples all the way from India to Singapore. The technology company wants to highlight the need for Indians to adopt industrial cleaning solutions such as vacuum cleaners and air purifiers, two of the company’s leading product portfolios. For the 6-week-long study itself, Dyson’s V8 Absolute+ vacuum cleaners were made incharge of sample collection.

Dust samples collected from Indian homes for Dyson-FICCI FRAC India Dust Study

Kevin Grant, Head of Floorcare at Dyson claims that the company’s vacuum cleaners are “engineered to capture 99.97% of microscopic dust as small as 0.3 micron, effectively removing allergens and capturing them in the bin. In India, some Dyson cord-free vacuum cleaners have been certified asthma & allergy friendly by the Allergy Standards Limited (ASL).”

Challenging traditional cleaning practices in India, Dyson projects its V-series stick vacuum cleaners as must-needed gadgets for Indian homes. However, the company acknowledges that these vacuum cleaners are not a replacement for house help, rather a helpful addition to make cleaning easier and more effective. Also, Dyson does not defend the premium pricing of its products and has no plans of deviating from that costing strategy. Think Apple. 

The company currently sells the Dyson V7, the Dyson V8, and the Dyson Cyclone V10 in India. It will also be bringing its next-gen V11 Torque Drive vacuum cleaner (already available in US for $700) to India in the near future. The USP of Dyson’s vacuum cleaners is the digital motor employed by all of them. The motor has been made more efficient with each new iteration, increasing suction, but maintaining a spin of up to 125,000rpm. This, Dyson claims, helps permanently remove common allergens such as dust mites from mattresses and cockroach residue.

House dust mites exist in millions on a single piece of furniture, such as your bed. Director of the Asthma Chest & Allergy Centre in Delhi, Dr Vikram Jaggi, who was also part of Dyson's presentation, notes that if you purchase a 10kg mattress, by the time you are ready to dispose of it after about 10 years, it weighs 11-12kg because of the dust that settles deep within. According to him, dust allergens are contributing to the tremendous increase in allergies amongst Indians, growing at a rate of 50% on a yearly basis.

“There was an interesting study that came out of the Mayo Clinic some years back: In moderate degree of allergic rhinitis, moderate degree of heart disease, and moderate degree of diabetes, the impact on life was found to be the same,” Dr Jaggi explained, highlighting the fact that most Indians take allergies very lightly and dismiss the constant sniffles and coughs as something antibiotics can cure.

Mind you, the doctor did not feel that vacuum cleaners can solve the problem 100%, but said that they are a step in the right direction to avoid staying around allergens, especially those that we sleep on for a good 8-10 hours daily, A.K.A, our mattresses.

Disclaimer: The journalist is travelling to Singapore for a Dyson product launch. Travel and living expenses of the journalist are being borne by Dyson.

from Latest Technology News http://bit.ly/2Lr4b95