Tech Blogger: October 2020

4G on Moon; NASA and Nokia working to enable real-time navigation and video streaming on moon surface

An astronaut exploring the space tweets his selfies with the rover. An astronaut posts beautiful shots of the Moon from space and streams videos in vacuum. These things will soon turn from imagination to reality.

NASA and Nokia have teamed up and planned to set up a 4G network on the Moon as a solution to internet connectivity problems.

The research wing of Nokia, Bell Labs has been selected by NASA as a partner to advance the “Tipping Point” technologies for Moon. Around $14.1 million has been granted for the project to build and deploy the first wireless network at the Moon that will start with 4G/LTE technology and would soon evolve to 5G.

NASA says that the idea of installing 4G and 5G network on the Moon has been inspired by the “terrestrial technology”.

NASA further added that Nokia has proposed to deploy 4G/LTE communication system in space. The system will support lunar surface communications at greater distances and increased speeds and offer more reliability than the present standards.

Bell Labs said in a tweet that they are excited to have been named as a key partner by NASA to advance “Tipping Point” technologies for the Moon and make a way towards the sustainable human presence at the lunar surface.

In another tweet, they said that the pioneering innovations would be used for building and deploying the first wireless network at the Moon which will start with 4G/LTE technologies and will later evolve to 5G.

Bell Labs, terming it as a “groundbreaking network” stated that it would be the critical communications fabric for data transmission applications which includes the control of lunar rovers, real-time navigation of lunar geography and video streaming in high definition.

The LTE network has been designed to withstand the excess temperature, radiation and vacuum conditions at the space.

Also, it will withstand the sizable vibrational impact at the launch and landing at the lunar surface.

Bell Labs stated that the mission would validate the future of operational deployments and potential for human habitation on the Moon.

NASA is planning to build a lunar base and sustain the human presence on the Moon. $370 million has been awarded to some companies by the agency to deploy the technology on the surface of the Moon which includes cryogenic freezing, remote power generation, robotics and 4G. The address the problems of energy storage, communications, surface power generation and others.

NASA said that the their Space Technology Mission Directorate or STMD would negotiate with companies to offer milestone-based firm fixed-price contracts that would last for around five years.

Metal bar falls off Biodiversity flyover in Hyderabad

HYDERABAD: As unprecedented rains battered the city’s infrastructure, commuters on Sunday noticed a metal bar (presumed to have fallen off from the Biodiversity flyover) on Raidurgam flyover.

Inspector Sridhar from Madhapur traffic station said, “We did get a call with regards to a metal bar in the middle of Raidurgam flyover. However, no commuter was hurt. We have called Strategic Road Development Plan (SRDP) officials, who said they will conduct a routine inspection. The metal bar was immediately removed and there was no requirement of traffic diversion as there were very few commuters on the flyover today.” SRDP officials are yet to comment on the incident.

Nearly 1.75 lakh LG G8X smartphones sold in less than 12 hours during Flipkart sale

LG said that it recorded Rs 350 crore revenue from the sale of the G8X dual screen smartphones in less than 12 hours of opening of the Flipkart Big Billion Days sale.

10 tips to note before shopping from Amazon, Flipkart sales

Here we list crucial things to keep in mind before going on to a virtual shopping spree this festive season.

Amazon Great Indian Festival and Flipkart Big Billion Days sales have begun ahead of the festive season. Both e-commerce giants are offering jaw-dropping deals during the festive sales but these deals don’t last for long and keep changing depending on the consumer demand. Amid the barrage of exciting deals and jaw-dropping discounts, one might often get over-enthusiastic and may fall prey to devious tricks by online shopping sites, so here we list crucial things to keep in mind before going on to a virtual shopping spree this festive season.

Check discounted prices properly

It often happens that discounted prices are applicable only for premium members or only on those products that fulfill certain criteria in a particular category for a specific time period. That’s why you should thoroughly read the discount related guidelines before buying the products.

Calculate bank offers properly

Bank offers are crucial while purchasing any product as they may reduce the price of your shopping list considerably. So, it is a necessity to calculate the discounts offered by banks carefully keeping in mind all the provisions and maximum discount provided by the offer.

Add your delivery details before for faster checkout

As online shopping sales remain active only for a limited period of time, it becomes mandatory to scroll through the pages quite diligently. That’s why add your delivery and payment related details before the sale commences for a faster checkout of the products before they go out of stock.

Big discounts are too good to be true

Huge discounts on products remain to be main attraction of these sales, but many times, shopping sites offer discounts on inflated prices. That’s why you should confirm the authentic prices from original sites or non-sale website to see if the product is already under your budget or not.

Add good deals in your cart fast

That said, attracting deals often remain to be for a specific time period while the product might get out of stock sooner than later. So, you should always add those deals immediately in your cart which you feel worth their price.

Compare products before purchasing

Always compare similar products available in multiple price ranges. As usual you may fall for the least expensive price but with that it may happen that you might get the low-quality product. So, it is better to compare products keeping qualitative parameters in mind instead of being regretful after getting an inferior item.

Check EMI offer properly

Ecommerce platforms often fool consumers by offering no-cost EMI usually on highly-inflated prices. So even if you feel, you aren’t paying any interest, you end up doing so. To avoid the gimmickry of these shopping sales, you should check the prices on original websites.

Wait for more before you make a purchase

Slow and steady wins the race. That’s why it is recommendable to check and patiently wait for various deals as they continuously change every hour bringing exciting surprises and offers on products.

Check Shipping costs

To further cut down some expenses, do check the shipping cost on your orders as most of the times free shipping is available only for premium customers while it is also available for generic customers, it is only applicable till a certain amount. In addition, shipping cost may also differ on the basis of your location, size of the product and duration it may take for delivery.

Revise product details

Generally, shopping sites try to allure customers to buy products by their attractive images which may often give a fallacious impression about the product. In the hindsight, customers also purchase them without reading their details. So it is advisable to attentively go through the description of the product before making any purchase-related decision.

Laxmmi Bomb Trailer

Top 20 VPN providers for privacy

Should you sign up for a paid VPN service? Only you can make that decision, but I do recommend them highly. Not only can they hide your activity from your ISP, but they can make you safer when using non-secure public Wi-Fi. Of course, you should avoid such public Wi-Fi networks when you can, but if you need to utilize them, a VPN is a must.

With all of that said, all VPN providers are not created equally. Free ones should be avoided at all costs, as their business models cannot be trusted. In other words, privacy and free services generally don't mix. Sadly, picking a good VPN provider can be hard, as there are so many from which to choose these days. Thankfully, VPNRatings.com has done some research on the subject, and it has shared its list of the Top 20 VPNs. And yes, privacy and security were huge factors.

"Experts at VPNRatings.com evaluated approximately 45 providers and conducted over 20 hours of research. Four key factors were considered for companies that qualified for the final list. Each provider was expected to have up-to-date security features and a vast network of servers in multiple countries. Additional requirements include a no-log policy, which prevents VPN services from recording activity and collecting personal data as well as a money-back guarantee or free trial offer," says VPNRatings.com.

Josephine Miller, PR Manager of VPNRatings.com explains, "Cybercrime is a major threat, especially with so many people using the internet for work and personal business. This year, data breaches exposed 4.1 billion records, so a trusted VPN service is a necessary tool for users to protect their identity, IP address, or location."

Below are the top 20 VPN providers listed alphabetically -- VPNRatings.com does not rate them in any particular order.

Do you agree with the list? Do you have a VPN recommendation that isn't listed above? Please name them in the comments below.

NOKIA 225 4G AVAILABLE ON PRE-ORDERS ON AMAZON UK

Nokia 225 4G was just recently launched in China, together with a more affordable Nokia 215 4G, and it seems that the phone will have its European premiere soon. Amazon UK just put Nokia 225 4G on its pages.

The phone is priced at £44.99, and it is currently available only in blue, or classic blue as Nokia Mobile calls it. You can only preorder the phone, but the phone should be in stock after October 30, 2020.

Nokia 225 4G is the latest affordable feature phone, which is bringing the classic feature phone reliability and long-lasting battery experience to the modern times where 4G is a standard. If you are interested in buying it, here are the basic specs:

Colors: Black, Classic Blue, Metallic Sand
Dimensions: 124.74 x 51.02 x 13.71 mm
Weight: 91g
Display: 2.4-inch, QVGA, TFT
RAM: 64MB
Internal Memory: 128MB (microSD card up to 32GB)
Camera: VGA
Battery: 1150 mAh
Processor: 1GHz
Networks: GSM (850, 1900), WCDMA (2, 4, 5), LTE (2, 4, 5, 7, 12, 13, 17)
Connectivity: Bluetooth, Micro USB
Retail Box Contents: Nokia 225 4G, Bl-4WL Battery, AC-18U Adapter (5V/550mA), WH-108 Earphone, CA-190CD USB Cable

Apple Diwali offer: Get AirPods for free with an iPhone 11

Apple has a Diwali offer for all iPhone fans in India. Apple is offering AirPods for free if you buy an iPhone 11 from its recently launched online store. The offer starts from 17th October. Apple made the announcement on the homepage of the its online store.

Currently, the iPhone 11 base variant with 64GB of internal storage is priced at ₹68,300. iPhone 11 costs ₹73,600 for 128 GB of internal storage, and 84,100 for 256GB.

On the Apple's India online store, AirPods with charging case is priced at ₹14,900. AirPods with wireless charging case costs ₹18,900. Customers need to shell out ₹24,900 for AirPods Pro.

Apple joins Amazon and Flipkart to start its special festive season offerings from mid-October onwards. Amazon’s Great Indian Festival also starts from 17 October, and the e-tailer is expected to offer iPhone 11 for ₹49,999. Flipkart's Big Billion Days sale will kick off on 16 October

If the Amazon's iPhone 11 offer is to be considered, customers will still be paying over ₹3,000 for direct purchase from the Apple official store. Apple has also put a disclaimer that the offer will be subject to availability.

Permanent Work-from-Home, Flexible Working Hrs: Microsoft's New 'Hybrid' Policy for Post Virus World

Employees can move across country for remote work, but compensation and benefits will vary depending on the the company's own geopay scale Those who move will need to cover their own relocation expenses. Microsoft will cover home office expenses for permanent remote workers.

Seattle-based technology giant Microsoft has decided to expand its work-from-home policy and make it permanent for some workers. The company has released the new “hybrid workplace” guidance that lays out how employees can have a more flexible remote work schedule and even relocate elsewhere in the country, while it continues to adjust to changing needs during the ongoing pandemic.

Microsoft will allow employees to work from home freely for less than 50 per cent of their working week, and managers will be able to approve permanent remote work. “We will offer as much flexibility as possible to support individual work styles, while balancing business needs, and ensuring we live our culture,” Kathleen Hogan, Microsoft’s chief people officer, said in a post on the official Microsoft Blog.

“To address this, we have provided guidance to employees to make informed decisions around scenarios that could include changes to their worksite, work location, and/or work hours once offices are open without any Covid-19 restrictions.”

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said he is focused on three major considerations of how the nature of work is changing amid the pandemic: how collaboration happens, how learning happens inside companies and how to ensure employees aren’t burning out. The company also said that most employees’ work schedules were also flexible, meaning start and end times for workdays were no longer standard.

Employees can move across country for remote work, but compensation and benefits will vary depending on the the company’s own geopay scale. Those who move will need to cover their own relocation expenses. Microsoft will cover home office expenses for permanent remote workers. Flexible working hours will be available without manager approval, the company stressed, adding that some roles still require access to Microsoft offices, hardware, data centres and in-person training.

“Flexibility can mean different things to each of us and we recognize there is no one-size-fits-all solution given the variety of roles, work requirements and business needs we have at Microsoft,” Hogan said.

Microsoft was one of the first companies to shift its tech workforce remotely when the coronavirus pandemic hit in March. Other tech giants such as Twitter and Zillow have said they will allow employees to work from home indefinitely.

Big Billion days Coming soon

Big Billion days from Amazon and Flipkart are coming from October 16 presenting great offers with huge discounts I will update the offers soon. Stay tuned.