Karthik R

Yep the government has constituted a committee under Pitroda to scout for new CMD. But I dont they will finalise anyone in the near future.

Are they consistently providing 1.9Mbps, in Delhi? Peaks at? Share more about it!

@Aalok and Sumit Samsung Mpower 219 displays the FTA MEID with the code *#06#, just like the GSM ones displaying IMEI number. And the MEID number shown is different from the MEID number of the device labeled behind the battery. So obviously it is about OMH card right?

You will be charged at a uniform tariff of 1paisa /second for roaming - both incoming and outgoing (local and STD), across India while on Tata DOCOMO Network. In areas where they dont have network and you are carried on partner network you will be charged Re.1/min for incoming calls. The outgoing charges will be Re.1 for local calls and Rs.1.50/min for STD calls. This applies in Delhi.

Currently Vodafone is running free trial offer for its customers whereby they can get a feel of the service. Under this offer the customers can enjoy 3G data service on their current 2G data plans at no extra cost. To activate the offer one need to send “ACT 3G” to 111.

Mr.Misra have a herculean task before him. Wish him good luck. BSNL have to find ways to change its typical style of operation as a state-run organization - slow in processing customer request and implementation of policies, inefficiency, high level of bureaucracy and the heavy unhealthy unionism. It should regain the top slot in the market and the trust of its customers by providing prompt, efficient and courteous service.

Ice phone is a triple-flip 3G smartphone with a touchscreen, full QWERTY keypad and third function panel that flips face down beneath the keypad and double as a gaming controller. See Image below … Features : GSM Quadband 850/900/1800/1900, GPRS/EDGE 7.2 Mbps HSDPA UMTS 2100 connectivity Freescale iMX31 532 Mhz CPU 3? 240 × 400 px 65K color transflective TFT touchscreen Windows Mobile 6.0 Pro OS 3.1 mpx camera with autofocus and LED flash Built-in GPS Wi-Fi b/g 1250 mAh battery Dimensions: 127×60.8×23.3 mm Weight: 210 g

Samsung Bundled Offer Prepaid Plan: Total benefit up to Rs.750 spread over 3 months. 1st month – 200 Local minutes T2T + 200 local minutes to other network + 200 SMS (Local & National) 2nd month - 150 Local minutes T2T + 150 local minutes to other network + 150 SMS (Local & National) 3rd month - 150 Local minutes T2T + 150 local minutes to other network + 150 SMS (Local & National) Postpaid Plan: Total benefit up to Rs.750 spread equally over 6 months. Enjoy a 50% rental discount for 6 month on the 249 PPS plan. Rental discount to be credited from 4th month’s bill onwards. SMS TTLSMG to 12524 to avail the offer This offer is available with following Samsung CDMA mobiles: Samsung Mpower Muzik216 Samsung Guru559 Samsung Duos169 Samsung Duos259 Terms & Conditions: Prepaid The offer shall be given on ESN MDN tracking The transfer of first month benefit within 24 hrs of ESN check, 2nd month benefit after 30 days of first benefit transfer date & 3rd month benefit after 30 days of 2nd month benefit transfer date. Benefit validity – 30 days from the date of transfer Off net & On-net minutes applicable only for local calls and applicable for both local & national. Not applicable for ILD & VAS services. This offer is applicable for both new & existing customers. To complete the activation process new customer need to do an FRC of any amount. Customer should SMS TTLSMG to 12424 to avail this offer. Confirmatory SMS will be sent to the customers. If the handset is changed at any point during the offer period no further benefit would be passed to customers from then onwards Offer period – all activations done on or before 30th April 2011 The offer is valid for a limited period & can be modified or withdrawn at the sole discretion of Tata Teleservices Ltd. In case of problem in the transfer, contact our customer care on 12524 Postpaid Rental discount would be credited from the 4th months bill onwards This offer is valid for new customers only No other offer can be clubbed with this offer. If the handset is changed at any point during the offer period no further benefit would be passed to customers from then onwards Offer period – all activations done on or before 30th April 2011 The offer is valid for a limited period & can be modified or withdrawn at the sole discretion of Tata Teleservices Ltd. Check it out at the official Tata Indicom website

I just checked with my Samsung Mpower Muzik 216 phone (that was lying idle ) and was greeted with the SMS, "We thank u for registering in Dil Khol Ke Bol offer. 500 local on net min, 500 local off net min, 500 sms to be given post new Samsung handset ESN check. T&C apply". Will keep you posted on the progress.

It is said to be a de-featured version that could lack the ability to share multimedia files. We can see BBM dominating the mobile IM market soon

Good to see them promoting EVDO data capable phones. Prices mentioned are very competitive vis a vis market prices.

Vodafone seems to be following Tata Docomo's footstep by unnecessarily bundling free voice minutes and SMS with 3G packs instead of offering more data allowance. Cant see any logic in that.

A police officer pulls over a speeding car. The officer says, " I clocked you at 80 miles per hour, sir ." The driver says, "Gee, officer, I had it on cruise control at 60, perhaps your radar gun needs calibrating. " Not looking up from her knitting the wife says: "Now don"t be silly, dear -- you know that this car doesn't have cruise control." As the officer writes out the ticket, the driver looks over at his wife and growls, "Can't you please keep your mouth shut for once !! ?" The wife smiles demurely and says, "Well dear you should be thankful your radar detector went off when it did or your speed would have been higher." As the officer makes out the second ticket for the illegal radar detector unit, the man glowers at his wife and says through clenched teeth, "Woman, can't you keep your mouth shut?" The officer frowns and says, "And I notice that you"re not wearing your seat belt, sir. That's an automatic $75 fine." The driver says, "Yeah, well, you see, officer, I had it on, but I took it off when you pulled me over so that I could get my license out of my back pocket." The wife says, "Now, dear, you know very well that you didn"t have your seat belt on. You never wear your seat belt when you"re driving." And as the police officer is writing out the third ticket, the driver turns to his wife and barks, "WHY DON"T YOU PLEASE SHUT UP ??" The officer looks over at the woman and asks, "Does your husband always talk to you this way, Ma'am?" "Only when he"s been drinking, officer."

The days when most of us had a single PC or laptop are gone. Many of us use a PC and a laptop and there are those who have many more. The modern geek’s home usually has a primary desktop, a netbook or notebook, a smart phone and obviously an HTPC in the living room right next to the television set. Networking all of these PCs and laptops is possible with a simple hub or switch but there are a bunch of cables involved. Wi-Fi routers these days offer more than just wireless connectivity. The easiest solution is investing in a WiFi router. If you don’t already have one, you may be able to buy one from your internet provider. Some providers offer Wi-Fi routers on rental basis whereas some offer an over-the-counter purchase option. The only problem there is that you have no control over the model. Its better if you buy your own router, but like buying any other product these days, things can get a little confusing. Let’s look at some of the most important things to consider before going out to buy one. How much will I need to spend? Wi-Fi routers can be bought for as little as600, if you buy it from your ISP. Other branded routers start from as little as Rs.1,300 and go right up toRs.12,000 or more depending on the kind of features. If you’re looking for a basic router that you want to use with your devices for just browsing, then something in the range of Rs.1,300 to Rs.2,500 will be fine. The moment you want higher speeds for streaming good quality video content and more advanced features, then be willing to increase your budget. ADSL2 connectivity Many of the larger ISPs today use ADSL to distribute internet connections and customers are provided with ADSL modems to use with their PCs. If your ISP uses ADSL, then look for a compatible router which has the ADSL2 modem functionality built into them. These are bound to be a little more expensive than regular Wi-Fi routers but you’re no longer dependent on a separate ADSL modem for internet access. Which one - 802.11g or 802.11n? Most routers are sold as either 802.11g or 802.11n. They’re all backward compatible but 802.11n offers faster speeds than 802.11g. IEEE 802.11g has a speed limitation of 54Mbps whereas 802.11n offers speeds of up to 150Mbps in a single stream. Dual band setups can reach twice that speed. The performance of routers as we’ve seen changes one from location to another. IEEE 802.11g offer enough speeds to transfer fairly large files and browse the internet and even stream Youtube and DVD-quality content over the network. You’ll have problems streaming HD 720p and 1080p content though. IEEE 802.11n’s improved bandwidth definitely increases that limit but streaming HD 1080p content is still off limits when you move from one room to another. Once again, this depends on the layout of your home or office. Ethernet ports Wi-Fi routers typically come with Ethernet ports which can also be used to connect PCs using cables. These can be used to connect a PC that’s kept right next to the router. The advantage you get is 100Mbps or 1000Mbps speeds and there’s none of that tiny latency increase that you notice with wireless connections. If you’re looking for good wired connectivity, look for routers with Gigabit Ethernet ports, but also remember to upgrade your cabling to CAT6 to support the higher speeds. USB ports USB ports on a router are becoming a common sight these days. The USB ports on a router can be used to connect external storage devices such as an external hard drive or a flash drive. USB ports can be used to share content over the network You can access all the contents of that drive from anywhere in your home or from the web. Sometimes, the USB ports may also be used to connect a 3G USB modem as well. Additional services The USB functionality adds a whole world of possibilities to routers. Sharing data on a Windows network is just one of the basic features. Some routers offer FTP functionality which lets you host a FTP server with the option to set user permissions as well. Some of the more advanced features are built-in download managers which allow file downloading capabilities without the need of a dedicated PC. Downloading Torrents without a PC is also possible. All of these features can be accessed through a web interface. Custom firmware support Routers have upgradeable firmware and almost every router should have that feature. There are custom firmware developed by third party developers and communities. Two of the well known are DD-WRT and Tomato. The advanced bandwidth monitor on the Tomato firmware These custom ROMs are free for download but unfortunately, only work on specific models of routers. Before you go out and get yourself a new router, you might want to check the compatibility lists on these sites to see if your router will be supported. Remember that you might void the warranty of the router if you install a custom firmware. 3G functionality If you’re looking to use your router with a 3G broadband connection, look out for routers that support 3G dongles. There are some routers which have a slot for a 3G SIM card as well. These routers are somewhat more difficult to come by and expensive as well. Some of the 3G enabled routers are also compact, can be powered by a USB connector and carried in a pocket. These are great if you're traveling very often. Via tech2.in

That is a serious shortfall and raises privacy concerns. Do pursue the matter and complain.

You bought the phone recently? If yes, you may be eligible for promotional free data usage for a month. Contact CC The data packs of RCDMA (or for that matter any cdma operator) are damn expensive. You wont be getting anything of the sort 2Gb for Rs.98 like the case with GSM.

I am relying more on TI's EVDO these days.. The base tariff is just 50p/1Mb which can be effectively reduced to 30p/1Mb with their HSIA packs - Rs.320 for 1Gb, Rs.94 for 350Mb, etc. Though the PeaK speed is a bit lackluster, stability and coverage is excellent. Heavy download is through BSNL home broadband

Tata Docomo is a long way from being profitable, so they wont risk selling the CDMA business which attained break even and is currently leading certain segments like Photon plus in data card.

This discussion brings to one's mind what Henry ford said a century ago "Any customer can have a car painted any colour that he wants so long as it is black." (well he was actually cutting costs by using a type of quick drying paint that was then only available in black ) Whatever black is cool

BSNL Gears to Meet LTE Challenge As state-owned operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. (BSNL) prepares to commercially launch its WiMax network in India, it faces a number of key challenges, with the potential role of Long Term Evolution Time Division Duplex (LTE TDD) in the Indian telecom market high on the list. That threat has arisen since 2010's auction of Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) spectrum (in the 2.3GHz band) that is suitable for either WiMax or LTE TDD deployments. Recent developments suggest that the auction winners are opting for TDD LTE-based strategies and could have networks up and running this year, potentially leaving WiMax as a secondary wireless broadband technology. "We have to meet the LTE challenge and have a clear technological roadmap to move to the next technology. Besides this, we are also facing challenges in roaming and bandwidth issues. We have to rethink how to market our capacities," says RK Agarwal, director of consumer mobility at BSNL, during a recent WiMax Workshop. BSNL already holds licenses for BWA spectrum in a higher frequency range (2.6 GHz), though it has had to pay the same amount the private operators shelled out for their 2.3GHz licenses. The 2.6GHz radio band is believed to be unsuitable for LTE TDD, but potentially suitable for FDD LTE. BSNL faces another issue with its WiMax offerings -- the cannibalization of its other services. The state-owned operator offers competing CDMA EVDO services that are an alternative to mobile WiMax, while its fixed-line DSL service is an alternative to fixed WiMax in areas where copper plant has been deployed. Not surprisingly, BSNL has been struggling with the business case for WiMax. In 2010 the company threatened to scale down the government-led WiMax project to connect 62,000 Common Service Centers (CSCs) that serve rural villages, unless the government increased its financial support of the project. BSNL has already set up 1,000 base stations for this project, and plans to increase this to 6,000 by the end of 2011. For WiMax in the urban areas, BSNL has opted for the franchisee model, where it works with partners that deploy the access infrastructure and market and provision the services. "We would be in a position to commercially roll out WiMax networks in the urban areas by the end of March 2011. We hope to have two lakh [200,000] subscribers in the first year of operations. Initially we would be launching in the main cities," Agarwal told Light Reading Asia. However, Agarwal seems to be too optimistic with his timeline. Informal interactions with BSNL's WiMax team, as well as with its franchisees, reveal that the rollout is unlikely to happen as soon as March. Starnet Communications is one of the franchisees, with a license to run BSNL's WiMax operations in three circles (service areas) -- Chennai, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. "The Proof of Concept is likely to be finalized by March and [after that] we would need security clearances. I think we would be able to launch by June this year. We would be setting up 1,800 BTS [base stations] in the first year. We are exploring the options of deferred payments, vendor finance and revenue-share models to reduce our capital expenditure," says Starnet's CEO Shankar Kambam. Via - lightreading

Kesav bhai I have registered at their website long time back. It is particularly helpful as we can check the past 10 deductions, prepaid balance, date of last recharge, activate/deactivate DND, progress of user requests. The option to check data usage leads to a new window where we have to key in the 'Start date' and 'End date'. It wont display any results! It even shows the default data tariff wrongly as 1rs/1Mb when pan India the one applicable is 50p/1Mb. They got some serious homework to do

With TI prepaid we can know the past five data charges by smsing 'data' to 12524. Is there any way to check total data consumed and the remaining balance? We can get the same easily in other telecos by requesting *111#, *123#, etc CC as usual is helpless.

I think most people are against getting a postpaid connection dreading possible bill shocks especially with regard to data usage.

The low-end Android handset segment is beginning to get a little crowded recently – we got the Micromax Andro A60, Intex’s previously announced Rs.5,500 Android handset which was supposed to release this month and a few others. The Huawei U8150 IDEOS is a strange one, however. It’s not as cheap as the aforementioned handsets, instead looking to offer a more value-for-money option. The big question is whether the IDEOS manages to bridge the gap between the Micromaxes and Intexes, and the Galaxy 3s and Optimus Ones. Let’s take a closer look to find out. Form Factor and Design The candybar IDEOS, with its funkily coloured back panels, is like a middle-aged man trying to dress youthfully. The piece we got sent had the Aqua Blue back panel, which is not a colour I particularly hate, so it’s one I’m rather sympathetic to even if I wouldn’t recommend dressing like that. Apart from the Blue, the IDEOS also comes with Purple and Yellow back panels. Uhh… yeah. Anyway, what’s interesting is that the phone carries no Huawei branding at all, instead boasting a Google logo on the back panel, right below the camera. There’s a circular navpad below the 2.8-inch QVGA (240 x 320) capacitive touchscreen and the touch-sensitive keys and on its sides are the call take and end keys. All of these light up when the phone is active, so you don’t have to spend much time memorizing their positions before you get used to them. There’s a micro-USB port at the bottom, volume keys are on the left, and the 3.5mm headset jack is on the top-right of the device. The phone feels quite well-built and doesn’t feel cheap at all, apart from the bundled handsfree, that is. It just feels cheap, poorly designed and even looks like a horrible performer. More on that later, and onto the few problems the device has. While the circular navpad in itself isn’t a bad idea, it would’ve been nice if it was an optical trackpad instead – like the HTC Wildfire’s. As it is, the inner circle serves as nothing but a clicker, and that just seems like a bit of a waste to me. The microSD card slot is under the back panel, which isn’t much of a problem, but it’s also under the battery – which means no hotswap. The power button on the top-left of the phone is way too small, which is a real headscrather. Locating the button when you’ve gotten used to it is not an issue and the button itself functions well, but there’s a bunch of wasted space around there that could’ve been used to provide a bigger button and more convenience for the user. And of course, the screen resolution is a downer. While I understand the need to keep the costs as low as possible, in my humble opinion 240x320 is too low. The screen just looks extremely blurry, which brings the overall experience down a notch. Interface The IDEOS is powered by a Qualcomm MSM7225 chipset that originally runs at 528MHz clock speed. Huawei have overclocked it to 600MHz though, in an effort to make the phone a smoother device for the operating system it’s running – Android 2.2 Froyo, and it’s a stock version, too. It lacks multi-touch capabilities though, just like the Andro A60. Apart from this, the phone is boosted by an Adreno 200 GPU. The UI is a bit sluggish in spurts, though. While it’s smooth enough in parts, you’ll notice those small little frame drops when scrolling through your menu, which will put you off. It certainly put me off, as did the load times when multi-tasking. It’s clear FroYo is slightly too much for the processor to handle – only slightly though, and the improvements 2.2 itself brings to the table makes Huawei’s decision a wise one. Input options are a bit limited out of the box, with only the QWERTY virtual keyboard as an option. Installing Swype is an option, but the vanilla release doesn’t support QVGA screens, so you’ll have to get your hands on a modified release. Media As a multimedia phone, the IDEOS is a bust. The bundled handsfree lived up to expectations admirably by performing extremely poorly. It just sounds terrible overall, even more so when listening to FM Radio, and replacing it with my trusted NuForce NE7-Ms did improve audio quality a bit, but not by a lot, which is ample evidence for a DAC that’s not up to the mark as well. It does, however, scrape through as barely acceptable when paired with some decent earphones. The speakers are on the back of the device as well, which results in some rather muffled audio. Video format support includes H263, H264 and MPEG4 in the MP4 containers. But the phone just isn’t a good one to watch videos on, what with the tiny 2.8-inch screen and the QVGA resolution to top it off. It does support 16:9 resolutions of upto 640x360, and the quality is alright even if the video ends up getting vertically letterboxed thanks to the native 4:3 aspect ratio. Still, being able to play 640x480 4:3 videos in full-screen is not bad, but it’s not much good either. Connectivity This is where the IDEOS really shines. A myriad of connectivity options are included, which is everything you could expect from a phone in this range and much, much more. There’s Wi-Fi, 3G, HSDPA, Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP support and GPS with A-GPS. EDGE and GPRS are also included, and work without a hassle. Misc. Features The Social Networking sphere is well covered, too. Gtalk, Gmail, Facebook and Twitter apps are pre-loaded, as are other standard Android apps like YouTube, Google Maps, Latitude etc. There aren’t any extras that Huawei have thrown onto the device. But being a stock OS, the IDEOS has access to virtually every app on the Android Market, which is all you need really. I wouldn’t call it a disappoint per se because I saw it coming, but Adobe Flash is conspicuous in its absence. The IDEOS’ hardware just isn’t powerful enough to handle Flash, so if you’re one that relies on it for a lot of what you do, prepare for some difficulties. Camera Where do I even begin with this one? It’s a 3.2 megapixel camera, and the cost-cutting measures are clear as day when you look at this aspect of the phone. The camera app includes Zoom and White Balance options, but all that is for naught because the image produced by the camera is tosh. The colours look all washed out and even worse is the fact that the images look like they’ve been watercoloured. Yeah sure, I’ll admit to having some fun on Photoshop with the so-called Artistic brushes every once in a while, but I really don’t want the actual images to look like that. Even as a 3 megapixel camera in this low a price range, this one ranks below adequate. Battery The Huawei IDEOS’ battery is, again, below average. On a full charge with low to medium usage, the 1200mAh battery limps to a day and a half, and if you’re a heavy user with your social networking and what not, expect the requirement to charge your phone every day pop up. Ze Line at ze Bottom As a phone, the Huawei IDEOS is well below average. But if you factor in the price, which is an excellent Rs.8,499, the device transforms into one that’s packed to the brim with value for money. The tradeoff Huawei has made in terms of media, screen and camera for Stock Froyo and excellent connectivity options in order to keep costs low is one that plenty of people would make, even if not everyone would. The IDEOS is a rather decent entry-level Android phone, and one that is capable of enticing those who didn’t really want to take the plunge with the Andro A60 or the others. Alternatively check out Samsung Galaxy Pop. Via : Tech2.in - Sriram Gurunathan

My TD number 9037533xxx (Kerala) which I am having since launch, havent let me down with any unwarrented deductions. In a lone occasion they deducted my balance for consuming data when internet packs where activated and should apply. They credited my balance back after 12hrs without me complaining and send a note ''as a token of gratitude...'' WTH!