Dell Inspiron 13 Laptops

Look, we know you’ve spent the last three or so hours toying around on Dell’s build-to-order page, but be honest with yourself — are you really willing to pull the trigger on an Inspiron 13 without taking one tiny peek at a review first? Notebook Review has snagged one of the new 13-inchers and taken it for a ride on the test bench, and overall, things are look in’ up. Reviewers found the design to be “sleek,” the specifications to be “reasonable” and the price point “attractive.” Beyond that, it also found the battery life to be surprisingly satisfactory, though the “cheap palm rests and noisy slot-loading optical drive” were small (albeit noteworthy) nuisances. In the end, critics summed things up by suggesting that if you’re scouting “a basic mobile companion with good looks and a low price tag, then this is probably the right notebook for you.” Hit up the read link for the full write up and even a few benchmarks.

Source: http://www.engadget.com

Nokia N97 Price

Nokia’s recently launched flagship N-Series touchscreen device, the N97 will retail in India at a price of Rs. 36,119. The phone was, until recently, available through pre-order and it is only now that Nokia has revealed the exact retail pricing of the device. The pricing of the device puts it in the league of the iPhone 3G and the likes. However, it remains to be seen if the demand for the phone sees a dip, now that the actual pricing has been revealed.

The price of Rs.36,119, however, does not come as a surprise as it was expected that the N97 would be priced at around the 35K mark. In fact, in Techtree’s review of the handset, we had made this fact clear as well. The saving grace of the N97 is that unlike the iPhone, which has more or less remained in the same price range ever since launch, the price of this phone might head southwards in the not too distant future.

The N97 runs Series 60 Fifth Edition OS and comes loaded with novel features. If you think you can’t afford the phone at this price, but are desperate to get one, you have two options. Participate in the Nokia N97 contest (which unfortunately has now ended) or buy it on EMIs. That’s correct! Nokia has tied up with HDFC Bank and Citibank to provide a three month EMI option to consumers in select Nokia Branded Retail outlets in select cities. So, there you go! Are you getting one?

Source: http://www.techtree.com

Nokia to Offer Life Tools for Rural Mobile Users

Nokia plans to roll out its Life Tools group of services to more emerging markets following a successful pilot program in India, a company executive said Monday.

Nokia is now formulating plans to roll out Life Tools, which includes agricultural and educational services for rural mobile users, in other emerging markets following the “great success” of a trial conducted in India, said Mary McDowell, executive vice president and chief development officer at Nokia, speaking at a company event in Singapore ahead of the CommunicAsia conference and exhibition, which opens on June 16.

Nokia sees emerging markets in Asia and elsewhere as an important source of growth as the number of mobile subscribers increases and many come to rely on their handsets for Internet access.

Life Tools includes a range of services aimed at rural mobile users in emerging markets, where agriculture remains a mainstay of local economies.

Agriculture-related offerings on Life Tools include local weather forecasts, information on crop prices at local markets, advice on growing crops, as well as pricing information for pesticides, seeds and fertilizer. Educational services include English lessons and advice on taking exams, while sports scores and music are available for entertainment.

Nokia conducted a limited trial of Life Tools in India at the end of 2008, and announced the nationwide availability of the program in April. While McDowell did not offer a timeframe for rolling out Life Tools in other countries, Nokia has previously said it wants to make Life Tools available in other Asian and African countries before the end of 2009.

On the hardware side, Nokia plans to roll out a low-cost 3G phone designed for emerging markets during the third quarter. The Nokia 2730 Classic supports WCDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access) networks and will cost around €80 (US$112), making it one of Nokia’s cheapest 3G handsets, McDowell said.

Pricing for Life Tools was not disclosed. During the trial offered in India, access to Life Tools’ agriculture services cost 60 Indian rupees (US$1.20) per month, while services such as English lessons cost 30 rupees each.
Source: http://www.pcworld.com

Apple’s New iPhone 3G S Pricing

The new iPhone 3G S is coming out on July 19th. Because it’s a mobile phone, the pricing is really difficult to understand. Here’s the full deal.

All prices below are for the 16 GB model. For the 32 GB model, add $100. For the old 8 GB iPhone, subtract $100.

If you are an existing AT&T customer who has been in your current contract for at least somewhere between 18 and 22 months (it varies by individual), you pay $199.

If you are a new AT&T customer willing to sign a two-year contract, you will pay $199 plus a $36 activation fee, for a total of $235.

If you are an existing AT&T customer who hasn’t been in your current contract for 22 months, and you’re willing to extend your contract, you pay $399.

If you want no commitment and no contract, you pay $599 – plus the $36 if you’re activating it on a fresh line.

You will want to get AppleCare, which gives you decent service beyond the iPhone’s 90-day support period, for up to two years. That’s an extra $69.

Now, this means that most folks who signed new contracts for iPhone 3G models a year ago are not eligible for the lowest possible price. That was in your contract. Your two-year contract only gets you a discounted phone every 22 months. You agreed to that.

iPhone service plans are similarly complicated. Here’s how they break down.

The iPhone data plan is always $30/month. Don’t want a data plan? Get an iPod Touch instead.

On top of that, you can pay $39.99-$99.99 for various amounts of voice minutes. 450 minutes cost $39.99, 900 minutes cost $59.99, 1350 minutes cost $79.99 and unlimited minutes cost $99.99

Text messages cost extra, too: $5 for 200 messages, $15 for 1500 messages and $20 for unlimited messages.

So an iPhone plan can run anywhere from $69.99/month for 450 minutes with no texting to $149.99/month for unlimited minutes and texting.
Source: http://www.pcmag.com

Nokia N97 Launched with Focus on Online Features

Nokia today unveiled the N97 phone in Bangalore; the latest addition to Nokia’s popular N-series lineup. At the press conference today addressed by Regional General Manager-South, Nokia India, TS Sridhar and Head of Design, Nokia N-series, Axel Meyer, the focus was on the new Nokia’s ‘personalized home screen.’ This essentially means that users can choose from a number of widgets that will rest on the home screen and keep users updated thanks to constant online feeds.

Another feature highlighted during the press conference was the N97’s integration with the Ovi Store, Nokia’s answer to Apple’s app store, and according to a press release, “a full catalog of applications, games, videos, podcasts, productivity tools, and web and location-based services.” Also, Nokia claims that the N97 will be optimized for social networking since Facebook, Twitter and MySpace widgets are also available.

Features of the phone include a 3.5-inch screen that supports 16:9 widescreen display, a slide-out QWERTY keypad, 32GB of in-built storage, expandable to 48GB. Nokia claims that the phone boasts of a battery life of 1.5 days during constant music playback. The imaging features include a 5MP camera with Carl Zeiss optics and a dual LED flash. Plus the phone is 3G ready and supports HSDPA and Wi-Fi.

Although Nokia was unwilling to give us the exact pricing, we did manage to get a Rs. 30,000 to Rs. 35,000 estimate. Expect this new Nokia in stores within two weeks.

source: http://www.pcworld.in