Honest

@lostjournal My dear friend, Nokia E71 could be the best bet for you.

My dear friends, no doubt that earlier Reliance CDMA provided the best services. Voice quality was also superb. But now, Reliance CDMA really s**ks. Voice breaking & Call Drops are very frequent now a days. It seems that Reliance is now a days much more considering towards its forthcoming GSM launch. They had totally shifted their focus to GSM. Now they don't care for CDMA customers. God know why ? Regards.

^^^ Oh....., now you decided to say bye bye to Reliance CDMA. So, now we can defientely expect FAREWELL party from you my dear Pankaj ?

^^^ Dear Vikas, just wait upto NEW YEAR, might be on the eve of New Year Reliance will Gift such more Surprizing Gifts to its subscribers.

Idea Sabarimala plans Business Line l 10 Dec l Kochi Idea cellular Ltd has added more services on its Sabarimala packages. All prepaid and post-paid customers can now call 56797 and avail themselves of different services such as Sabarimala Special Dialer Tones, Ringtones, get route information and dedicate songs. This service is charged Rs 3/minute. Customers can also get access to a wealth of information on Sabarimala by dialling 554444. They can choose from a menu of daily pooja timings, details of famous temples en-route to Sabarimala. This service is available at Rs 6.99/minute.

LG's LTE Test Brings 4G Closer The chip has a 60Mbps speed While we still (patiently) await the arrival of 3G here in India, the Koreans are busy with plans of moving away from 3G already. You might have already heard of 4G that is touted to be the next big thing. In a significant push for 4G technology, Korean telecommunications major LG has managed to successfully test the first working Long Term Evolution (LTE) chip. LTE happens to be the successor to the current GSM/UMTS technology. While people using 3G are already experiencing blazing speeds while surfing the internet using their phones, LTE aims to up the ante even further. The just tested LTE chip exhibited insane downlink and uplink speeds of 60Mbps and 20Mbps respectively. That is way faster than the fastest connections we have here in India! Even in Korea and Japan, where they have some of the fastest connections you can ever come across, the new technology could pose a threat to existing wired broadband providers. Now, if 60Mbps sounded insane, here's more. Apparently, the chips are capable of handling even higher speeds. How does 1Gbps on your mobile phone sound? Breathtaking! It is almost certain that by the time we have a robust 3G network up and running here, the rest of the world would have switched to 4G. Sigh! Courtesy : Techtree

4G Coming in 2009! Verizon CTO heard saying LTE technology to be up and running by "this time next year" The just demoed LTE technology seems to be hot and happening with folks at Verizon who are sounding upbeat about implementing it very soon. Verizon's chief technology officer **** Lynch was overheard saying that he expects LTE technology to be up and running by "this time next year". The comment came during an informal meet with reporters covering Cisco's C-scape conference held earlier this week, according to Ars Technica. Mass deployment of LTE networks was not a priority until now for most wireless carriers owing to the fact that consumers were still unhappy with the existing 3G coverage. A jump to an entirely new platform, especially after investing lot of dough building up the existing 3G infrastructure might have not made sense. However, that sentiment seems to be weakening by the day. While carriers themselves had predicted an expected 2010 to 2012 deployment of LTE, the pace seems to have gotten much faster. Additionally, with constant improvements with LTE chips it is possible that you will see LTE networks seeing the light of the day sooner than you expected. As for India, we do have some happy news in the form of the 3G launch which finally happened at Delhi with MTNL offering users an initial look at the service. For the uninitiated, LTE is unofficially termed a 4G technology! Courtesy : Techtree

Idea Cellular gets competitive edge Business Line Indus Towers stake a shot in the arm. Idea Cellular’s pan-India expansion has received a boost with the allocation of 4.4 Mhz start-up spectrum for the Kolkata circle. This follows the allocation of spectrum to the company in Tamil Nadu (including Chennai). New entrants to the mobile telephony space such as Unitech have also been allotted start-up spectrum in 16 circles, with Kolkata being the most recent allocation. But Idea would have a clear edge over these players in the newer circles that it has launched services. It would leverage the benefit of being a stakeholder in the tower infrastructure company Indus Towers, and this can lead to a quicker rollout. Once mobile number portability is introduced, Idea may steal a march over new entrants and gain from any churn of subscribers from incumbent players. The other key advantage that Idea may possess is that new spectrum has been allocated in the 1800 MHz band. This makes capex rollout more expensive for new entrant such as Unitech. For Idea, except the newer circles, in as many as nine circles, it has spectrum allocated in the more efficient 900 MHz band. Idea would hope to replicate the robust subscriber addition that it has managed in Mumbai and Bihar where it has launched operation over the last three months. The company has managed to garner 18.5 per cent and 21 per cent of incremental market share in Mumbai and Bihar, respectively, despite Idea being the sixth or seventh operator in these states.

Govt defends spectrum policy in HC Business Line l 10 Dec l New Delhi The Government on Wednesday told the Delhi High Court that the allegation of a scam in spectrum allocation to new players was baseless. It said that the allegations were being made at the behest of some existing telecom companies who do not want entrants in the sector. The Government was responding to a petition challenging its policy of allocating spectrum on the first come first served basis. “It seems that the petitioner is acting (at) the behest of parties who shall have competition from the new entrants in the market. This is with an ulterior motive of stalling competition. The allegation that there is a scam of several thousand crores is totally false and has been made only to embarrass the Government of India,” the government said in its 48-page affidavit filed at the Delhi High Court.

MTNL to commercialise 3G spectrum by Jan-end Moneycontrol l 11 Dec RSP Sinha, CMD of MTNL expects the 3G network to go commercial and to launch in Mumbai by the end of January. He plans to launch the 3G spectrum free of cost for the first month to the company’s CIP customers. He added that the spectrum would be given to customers at reasonable prices. 3G finally kicked off in India today with the PM making the first call on public sector MTNL’s network. But, even as this happened, Meanwhile, the DoT has indicated that it is not comfortable with the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) recommendation for levying a 2 % additional administration charge. The TRAI’s 2% admin charge has been opposed by the COAI (Cellular Operators Association of India). The COAI will formally oppose this in writing shortly. The DoT (Department of Telecommunications) fears that this may affect 3G bids. The Telecom Commission will discuss this next Friday. The 3G bid document would be next week, the DoT says. The 3G auctions will be completed by January end. Here's is transcript of RSP Sinha's interview in a press conference Q: What are you initial thoughts on the 3G pricing. We know that you haven’t yet decided upon it but what is it likely to be. Can MTNL offer some indications? A: One thing is clear, our 3G pricing cannot be different from the existing prices across the world. So he pricing has to be affordable price then only 3G will sale. Q: Have you decided on price because you don’t know how much amount you will have to pay for the spectrum? A: We are already working on the price factor but initially for almost a month we are launching it free of cost and giving it to our CIP customers. So the price will be reasonable, affordable and everyone will like it. Q: When will the MTNL 3G network go commercial? A: By the end of January everything will be commercial. Q: When it will launch in Mumbai? A: We are planning to launch in Mumbai by the end of January. Q: How many subscribers at present can you support on 3G in both Delhi and Mumbai? A: It all depends upon the network which we are going to establish. We are sure that once the full network is rolled out; two lakh customers can be supported. Q: What is your definition of affordable pricing? A: I do not want to disclose the price. Once it’s commercially launched we will come out with the prices. But the price cannot be different than what other operators outside India are charging. Q: How much more per minute? A: Today I will not be able to answer because it’s a question of data capability. If the data transmission is going to be very high then some discounts have to be given and depending upon the data utilisation the pricing will be also decided. Q: Barring the 3G spectrum charge that you may have to pay what is MTNL’s total capex plan for the 3G operation? A: In Delhi and Mumbai we will be installing more than 1,500 Node B, its like BTS (Base Transceiver Stations) for 2G so we are spending amount on that. Fortunately this Node B can be mounted on the existing towers but you need another supply infrastructure like battery, power plant and other things. So there will be some incremental expenditure but it is not like 2G.

MTNL launches 3G services in Delhi 11 Dec 2008 l New Delhi l IANS Ushering in a new era in the Indian telecom sector, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Thursday launched the state-run Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd's (MTNL) third generation (3G) mobile service 'Jaadu' here. Communications and IT Minister A. Raja, who was also present on the occasion, made a video call, demonstrating the capabilities of 3G services. Launching the services, the prime minister said: "I congratulate MTNL and the communications minister for launching the 3G service." "Competition has to be the major propeller of the Indian economy and it has to be a sustainable one," he said while demonstrating the mobile TV facility available with 3G services. "However, effective objective and impartial regulations have to be an integral part of all these processes for investors to invest further," he added. Added Raja: "BSNL (Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd) and MTNL have already been allotted 3G and broadband wireless access spectrum with a view to ensuring early rollout of 3G and Wi-max services in the country." While MTNL has rolled out its 3G services only in Delhi Thursday, BSNL will launch its services in Chennai next month. Talking about the revenues generated through licensing fees and sale of spectrum, Raja said: "After migrating to revenue sharing regime, this sector has contributed Rs.500 billion (Rs.50,000 crore) through licence fee, entry fee and spectrum charges till the end of last financial year." "During this financial year alone, it is expected that about Rs.160 billion (Rs.16,000 crore) will be collected from the licence fee and the spectrum charges," he added. The minister also said mobile number portability (MNP) would be implemented in metros and category A circle by the middle of 2009 and the entire country by end of next year. MNP will enable mobile users to retain their telephone numbers when changing from one network to another. "This will promote competition among service providers," he added.

Bharti sees 3G launch in 6 mths of allocation 11 Dec 2008 l New Delhi l REUTERS Bharti Airtel, India's leading mobile firm, said on Thursday it expected to launch third-generation wireless services within six months of the spectrum being allocated. "Six months after spectrum allocation," CEO Manoj Kohli told reporters when asked when would the company launch 3G services. The government has said it would auction 3G spectrum in January. Kohli said he expected the allocation to happen within a few weeks of the auction.

Telecom Commission to discuss admin charge on 3G players Press Trust of India l 11 Dec l New Delhi Department of Telecom will on December 19 consider adopting regulator TRAI's proposal for levying 2 per cent administrative charge from 3G players. "Telecom Commission will discuss the TRAI proposal on administrative charge on December 19. Worldwide there are charges like this. But there is also a spectrum charge of 3 per cent. "We have to see if this could put a burden on the prospective bidders", Telecom secretary Siddhartha Behura said here on the sidelines of India Telecom here. TRAI on Wednesday proposed that companies successful in their 3G bids pay 2 per cent of the highest bid amount annually as administrative charges for utilising radio frequencies. For standalone 3G players and new entrants who want to enter the Indian market via the 3G route, TRAI has proposed these companies share an additional 3 per cent of their annual gross revenues with the government. The regulator's move to propose an administrative charge for using 3G radio frequencies is aimed at ending the ongoing controversy about the methodology for calculating to calculate this levy.

PM expects telecom user base to touch 700 mn by 2012 Press Trust of India l 11 Dec l New Delhi Prime Minister Manmohan Singh expects the telecom subscriber base in the country to touch 700 million by 2012, going by the massive number of monthly addition of new users. "In October 2008, Indian mobile telephone operators signed up a record number of over 10 million users. At this rate of growth, the total telecom subscriber base is expected to reach 700 million by 2012 with about 650 million mobile users and 50 million landlines," Singh said while inaugurating 'India Telecom 2008' fest. The Department of Telecom has fixed a target of 500 million telephone connections by 2010 and 750 million by 2012. Currently, the country's telecom user base is at 373 million, including November figures. Indian telecom sector has a unique distinction of being the fastest growing telecom sector in the world, with addition of over eight million subscribers per month, and the second largest wireless network in the world after China, surpassing the US. According to analysts, the only glitch in the growth pattern is that the telecom growth in rural areas has not kept pace with that in urban areas. That being the reason, the government has a long way to go in bridging the rural-urban divide and further improving the connectivity in rural areas. But the situation is improving there too. The Prime Minister said, "Many of the new subscribers are now coming from rural areas. More than three million rural subscribers are being added every month. India has one of the cheapest cell phone rates in the world. This helps our rural countrymen, farmers and fishermen in using mobile phone services. However, rural tele-density stays low at 13 per cent compared to the national average of 32 per cent and the urban tele-density of 74 per cent." Speaking on the occasion, Telecom Minister A Raja said the sector had made remarkable growth in the recent past. "In the last 18 months, the country has added 150 million subscribers, and tele-density has increased from 18 per cent in 2006 to 32 per cent in November 2008. The pace of expansion will be more as the new operators start rolling their networks, he said. On new initiatives, he said, the mobile number portability, which allowed users to keep the mobile number after changing the service provider was likely to be implemented in metros and A category circles by middle 2009 and in the entire country by end 2009.

Mobile number portability by end 2009: Govt 11 Dec 2008 l New Delhi l REUTERS Mobile number portability will likely be implemented across India by the end of 2009, telecoms minister, Andimuthu Raja, said on Thursday.

^^^ My dear Subodh, congrats for the purchase of new handsets. We are eager to hear from your side, please post the review about Spice D88 Gold. Regards.

^^^ No updates as per now my dear friend. We are eagerly waiting for the launch of this Smartphone from Reliance. Regards.

Yes my dear friend, I think the time has come now when we should surrender our CDMA numbers with Reliance and subscribe to other GSM operator. Regards.

My dear friend, in Mumbai Vodafone provides EDGE services and it is the best among all other operators, may be its Airtel or even Reliance CDMA. I personally used it and the service is magnificent. Regards.

Yes my dear Kumaar, Japan had WCDMA tech.

Nokia 6275 could be the best choice my dear friend.

Yes my dear friends, it stopped permanently.

TRAI OKs higher spectrum fee Economic Times l 10 Dec l New Delhi Foreign telecoms firms looking to enter India by offering 3G services in the world's fastest-growing market for wireless services, will have to pay a higher annual fee for radio waves, the sector regulator said on Wednesday. Approving a government proposal, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India said such "standalone" operators who win 3G radio spectrum in an auction due in January would have to pay 3 percent of their revenue as annual fees. The government had initially proposed a 3G spectrum fee of 1 percent of revenue, but revised that plan in November. The spectrum fee will be in addition to an administrative charge of 2 percent of the highest bid for the spectrum, the regulator said in a statement. India has set a reserve price of 20.20 billion rupees ($412 million) for spectrum covering all of India, but bids are expected at much higher levels. The administrative charge will kick in one year after the operator receives the radio spectrum, the regulator said.

LG Reveals First LTE Chip for Mobiles LG has announced that it has independently developed the first handset (user equipment) modem chip based on 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology standards. The modem chip can theoretically support wireless download speeds of 100Mbps (megabits per second) and upload speeds of 50Mbps. This represents a significant step toward creating a market-ready 4G phone. LG demonstrated the chip at its Mobile Communication Technology Research Lab in Anyang, Korea, achieving wireless download speeds of 60 Mbps and upload speeds of 20 Mbps. The fastest phones currently on the market use HSDPA technology and download at a maximum speed of 7.6 Mbps. With LTE technology, users can download a 700 MB movie file in less than one minute at speeds of 100 Mbps. LTE technology would also allow consumers to simultaneously stream four HD movies without any buffering. For the past three years, LG has been pursuing 3GPP LTE standardization, working to develop and test commercially viable LTE technology with an R&D staff of approximately 250. The result is a 13mm by 13mm modem chip for the next generation of slim handsets. For its demonstration, LG used a test terminal running Windows Mobile to play back high quality, on-demand video. In addition to this handset modem, LG is also developing the first preliminary LTE-based data card, which can replace the wireless cards currently used in computers. “Now that LG has developed and tested the first 4G handset modem, a commercially viable LTE handset is on the horizon,” said Dr. Woo Hyun Paik, CTO of LG Electronics. “This latest breakthrough gives us a strong technology advantage that we will use to bolster our industry leadership.” Most of the major mobile operators are pursuing LTE-based 4G technology. Because it is based on the existing WCDMA technology evolutionary path, 85 percent of WCDMA service-provided carriers will be able to upgrade their networks to LTE with far less cost than building a new network based on a different technology. According to market research company Strategy Analytics, the global LTE handset market will double from 70 million sales units in 2012 to 150 million sales units by 2013. Mobile phone carriers have now built LTE test networks and are currently working on early stage handsets. The first LTE mobile phones will likely reach the market in 2010. Courtesy : Tech2

Gmail adds To-do list Often forget important to-dos? Need help? Google Inc is testing a new Gmail tool designed to help users keep a better track of their tasks daily. The company has announced a new tool called Tasks that is designed to help Gmail users create their daily to-do list. Tasks sits in the same kind of Window as chats, so it visible while users read e-mail, use the search function or do other tasks, Google's Task Team said in a Gmail Blog post. The feature, which is coming out of Google Labs, is still in the testing phase, according to a Google spokesman. To enable Tasks, go to Settings, click the Labs tab (or just click here if you're signed in). Select "Enable" next to "Tasks" and then click "Save Changes" at the bottom. Then, after Gmail refreshes, on the left under the "Contacts" link, you'll see a "Tasks" link. Just click it to get started. To enter a new task, users just need to click in an empty part of their list and start typing. No buttons to click and it's saved automatically. Hit Return and there's a new task right there. Gmail users can also easily convert emails into tasks: select one or more messages and go to More Actions > Add to Tasks. (Or turn on keyboard shortcuts and use + t.) However, there is no time frame for the new feature to be officially added (if at all) to Gmail. Courtesy : Indiatimes Infotech