Category: Lookit!

Categories
Event

80 sprinters vie for ‘Speedstar’ title

Leading schools in the country today competed against each other at Mumbai’s KJ Somaiya Ground in four different age categories.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Today, Mumbai witnessed intense action as 80 of the country’s fastest sprinters from leading schools competed against each other for the coveted title of ‘Speedstar’. The initiative, now in its second year, is conceptualised by KOOH Sports, and is a nationwide athletics talents hunt. The grand finale of Speedstar Season 2 was held today, February 9, 2014 at the KJ Somaiya Sports Ground.

This year, more than 1,700 schools and 25,300 children across all sections of the society participated in the event. KOOH Sports also partnered with Special Olympics Bharat, thereby making this India’s first unified athletics event.  In a span of 8 weeks, the Speedstar team travelled to 10 cities – Mumbai, Goa, Pune, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Chandigarh, Jalandhar, Jaipur, Lucknow and Hyderabad – with the overarching objective of promoting athletics at the grass root level in India.

The hunt was conducted for four age categories competing under two race formats – Under 10 (60-meter sprint) and Under 12, 14, and 16 (100-meter sprint) for both boys and girls. The event was organised under the aegis of Athletics Federation of India. The winners were felicitated by former athlete PT Usha, who also mentored the city winners before the finale.

Except for the U-10 winners, the remaining six winners will now head to Australia for a week-long training under the guidance of noted athletics coach Sharon Hannan.

(Picture courtesy KOOH Sports)

Categories
Tech

LG launches G Flex, its first curved smartphone

The new smartphone will retail at Rs 69,999 in India, and also comes with a ‘self healing’coating at the back.
by Manik Kakra

After launching the phone in several international markets, LG today launched the G Flex in India. Its USP, as the name suggests, is its 6-inch 720p OLED screen that is curved at the centre, thus making a curvature when you hold it in your hand. The device also bends a bit if you apply pressure using your hand against the curved design.

Under the hood, similar to the popular LG G2, it has the Snapdragon 800 SoC (with Adreno 330 GPU), along with 2 GB of RAM. The G Flex follows the same ‘Power/Lock and Volume buttons on the back’ approach, and has the same 13 MP rear camera; and a 2 MP front-facing camera.

Another unique thing about LG’s G Flex is that its back carries what LG calls as ‘self-healing’ coating, which means any scratches and marks on its surface are ‘healed’ automatically. Running Android 4.3 with the Optimus UI on top, this LG phone boasts of a 3,500 battery.

While it is yet to be seen what all real life advantages this curved screen brings you, the launch price seems steep. Priced at Rs 69,999, the G Flex comes with a flip case and will be available for sale within a week.

Categories
Tech

Moto G launches in India, starting at Rs 12,499

Motorola is back in India, with a new smartphone – Moto G, a dual SIM phone available in two models.
by Manik Kakra

Motorola has returned to India, and has launched its Moto G smartphone in the country. This Android 4.3 device comes with a 4.5-inch 720p screen, with Gorilla Glass on top. It is powered by Qualcomm’s 1.2 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 400 chipset (with Adreno 305 GPU), along with 1 GB of RAM.

Moto GMotorola has launched the phone in dual-SIM avatar (GSM + GSM), and says it will roll out an Android 4.4 upgrade for the phone within two weeks. Also, the company has set up, thanks to some tie ups, about a hundred service centres in the country.

Under the hood, there is a 2,070 mAh battery cell. Other features include 3G connectivity, A-GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, and FM Radio.  On the back, there is a 5 MP camera (with an LED flash) that can shoot 720p videos at 30 FPS; while the front side has got a 1.3 MP camera.

The phone has been priced at Rs 12,499 for the 8 GB model, and Rs 13,999 for the 16 GB model, but will only be available online starting tomorrow. Flipkart has a few deals for early buyers, which include Rs 500 off on books, to 70 per cent off on various coloured back shells for the Moto G.

Categories
Tech

Saving time and lives of harried Mumbaikars

Traffline app upgrades to allow two wonderful new features – one helps report accidents, the other gets help in time.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

A lot of Mumbaikars are already using the Traffline app – and why wouldn’t they? In a city increasingly facing traffic snarls and spending more than half of its travel time on the road, the app comes in handy when wishing to know which routes to avoid and which ones to take to reach their destination faster.

The app has now added two new features – and both will help Mumbaikars in crucial ways.

traffline logoSpeaking to The Metrognome, Brijraj Vaghani, Director of Birds Eye Systems that runs Traffline, says “We introduced two new upgrades to the app recently. These will introduce a ‘humanitarian touch’ to the app. One deals with road accident alerts and the other helps people in distress.”

As far as the ‘accident alert’ feature goes, it works like this: if a user witnesses an accident or is in the vicinity of an accident, he or she can immediately tag their location. “This information immediately forwarded to the concerned local police station and shared with fellow Traffline users who might be on the same route. Thus, others will be alerted on taking an alternative route, while it will become possible for rescue units to reach the spot faster,” Brijraj explains.

The other feature has been designed keeping in mind women’s safety in Mumbai. “While there are many apps that help women in distress alert their near and dear ones about their location, we go a step further. We have added a feature which will give the recipient an estimated travel time to the location, taking into account possible traffic delays. We also give a choice of alternate routes and estimated travel times to reach the location as fast as possible,” he says.

Additionally, Traffline is offering traffic information through SMS and email, such that users gets live traffic updates every day for a certain route. Users can also get a unique number ot call and learn about surrounding traffic condition. There is also a feature that indicates available parking space in the area where you wish to park your vehicle. The app is available on iOS and Android. 

If you’ve used the app, tell us what you think of it in the comments section below.

(Pictures courtesy www.socialsamosa.com)

Categories
Event

Colaba, Mulund schools make a mark at rugby c’ship

The recently concluded 8th Mumbai Schools Touch Rugby Tournament 2014 saw a great turnout and huge participation from city schools.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Like every year, the Mumbai Schools Touch Rugby Tournament was held in Mumbai, at Bombay Gymkhana grounds. And like every year, interest and participation in the event continued to swell.

The 8th edition of the tournament was held on January 29, 2014 with over 65 teams and over 500 students (both boys and girls) from across Mumbai (city and suburbs) participated. Participants compete in three categories – Under 12, Under 14 and Under 17.

Touch Rugby, the non-contact format of the sport, is a fast paced game that promotes fitness, teamwork, discipline and skills and is used universally to foster camaraderie. On the occasion, Nasser Hussain, Secretary, Rugby Association of Maharashtra (RAM) said, “We are thrilled to see the enthusiasm, participation and eagerness from schools across Mumbai (from international schools to Government schools) to participate in the tournament and are once again, grateful to the Bombay Gymkhana for hosting the tournament and being a forerunner in supporting the sport.”

He added, “Having the sport back in the 2016 Olympics and with Rugby’s recent inclusion in the SGFI (School Games Federation of India) there is immense potential for growth and development of the sport across the country. And with grassroots tournaments like this, we aim to provide a platform to identify young budding sports men and women who will potentially be the next breed of athletes that go on to excel at the elite level.”

Results:

St. Mary’s Girls (Mulund) – 1st and 3rd place in U-17, 1st, 2nd, 3rd in U-14, 3rd in U-12.

Colaba Municipal defended their titles at the U-17 Boys categories and secured 2nd Place in U-12 Girls and U-14 Boys.

NM Joshi defended their titles at the U-12 Boys age categories.

Podar International won the U-14 Boys and secured 3rd Place at U-17 Boys.

Yashodham School won U-12 Girls, 3rd in U-14 Boys abd 2nd in U-12 Boys and U-17 Girls.

Categories
Tech

Oppo arrives In India; launches the N1 at Rs 39,999

Chinese phone manufacturer Oppo, after making waves globally with its great hardware, is now an official phone seller in India.
by Manik Kakra

Oppo, the popular Chinese phone manufacturer, is now officially a phone seller in India. The company previously launched its phone in China and a few other countries, while shipping orders (made through its website) worldwide. Known for being the first handset manufacturer to officially support the popular custom ROM CyanogenMod, it has made some waves when it comes to hardware.

N1Oppo has launched its N1 smartphone in the Indian market. This Anrdroid 4.2 phone with Oppo’s own ColorOS sports a 5.9-inch full HD screen, which is coated with Gorilla Glass 3 on top. The N1 is powered by Qualcomm’s 1.7 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 600 SoC (Adreno 320 GPU), along with 2 GB of RAM. One of the USPs of this device is its 13 MP camera (with LED flash) which has a swivelling base, allowing the sensor to rotate 206 degrees, meaning it can also be used as the front-facing camera. For the camera purpose, including HD videos at 30 FPS), there’s also a dedicated Fujitsu chip under the hood.

Connectivity-wise, there is Bluetooth 4.0, microUSB (supports USB on-the-go), WiFi, GPS, and NFC. Another unique feature of this smartphone is its O Click accessory. You can use this gizmo to keep a check on your phone’s location. Apart from allowing you to control the phone’s camera remotely if it is not within 17 feet distance from O Click, the device will make an alarm sound. The N1 also has a O panel on its rear that can be used with your finger for scrolling on the device’s screen.

Available in 16 GB and 32 GB storage options, Oppo’s N1 comes in white, and has been priced at Rs 39,999 for the 16 GB model.

We have seen quite a few new Chinese entrants into the Indian phone market, and it will be interesting to see how Oppo is received initially in the Indian market.

Exit mobile version