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As the government is pushing hard to track down the rising number of Covid-19 cases, data marketplace Aiisma, where users can share their user data in exchange for rewards, has enabled a feature on its app for contact tracing and symptom mapping. AiiHealth, its health-mapping feature, allows users to voluntarily and anonymously share their health data in turn helping authorities to take proactive measures if in case there are any abnormalities in the data pool. The  startup  also has a trigger function to send anonymous alerts to any user who might come in contact with a positive case. "Our data figures show nearly one-fourth of our users were regularly moving around the 500-metre radius during peak of the lockdown," said Ankit Chaudhari, founder and CEO, Aiisma. "So these are figures shared by users voluntarily and they are getting rewarded for this information." Read Complete Article

Facebook started testing a tool on Monday that lets users move their images more easily to other online services, as it faces pressure from regulators to loosen its grip on data. The social network's new tool will allow people to transfer their photos and videos directly to competing platforms, starting with Google Photos. The company said it will first be available to people in Ireland and will be refined based on user feedback. The tool will then be rolled out worldwide in the first half of 2020. US and European regulators have been examining Facebook's control of personal data such as images as they look into whether the tech giant's dominance is stifling competition and limiting choice for consumers. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has reacted by calling for new rules to address "data portability" and other issues. Read Complete Article

The world's first fully Blockchain-powered smartphone BOB (Blok on Blok) that runs two different operating systems (OS) at the same time seamlessly is now available for purchase for $599 (nearly Rs 43,000). The smartphone can be bought in various cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin via digital asset wallet app Xwallet. The users of the app will get the device for $539 as pre-order discount from November 30 to December 14, Singapore-based Pundi X Labs which is the maker of the device said on Thursday. The XWallet mobile app connects regular digital asset wallets with the Pundi X payment ecosystem. Built entirely on and for the Blockchain by Pundi X Labs, a leading developer of blockchain-powered devices, the smartphone has Android 9.0 as base OS, allowing it to function like a regular Android smartphone. Read Complete Article

Facebook-owned WhatsApp is working on a feature that will delete messages automatically after a stipulated time as set by users, according to WABetaInfo, a fan site that tests new WhatsApp features early. Renamed "Delete Messages" from earlier "Disappearing Messages", the feature is being tested in beta mode. "In the WhatsApp beta for Android 2.19.282 update, we presented a new feature called 'Disappearing Messages' that will automatically delete messages after a certain time. The feature is still under development, and WhatsApp is starting to work again on it in the 2.19.348 update, where they renamed 'Disappearing Messages' to 'Delete Messages'," WABetaInfo reported. Once available, the "Delete Message" feature will come with a toggle on/off button and users can choose a stipulated time -- 1 hour, 1 day, 1 week, 1 month or 1 year -- for the messages to automatically disappear. Read Complete Article

Alexa and Fire TV devices are constantly improving over time and now on Monday the company announced that a user can connect their Echo devices with their Fire TV. This allows a user to build a variety of immersive, wireless speaker configurations for living room set-up, including 1.0 and 2.0 configurations and, for owners of Echo Sub, 1.1 and 2.1 configurations as well, the company said in a statement. To use the new update a user need to tap on the devices icon in the Alexa app on the lower right-hand side and then tap the "+" icon on the upper right hand side. Tap "Set Up Audio System" from the popup and then tap "Home Theatre" on the next screen. Select Fire TV device and then "Next" to name your new Home Theatre system. Select the Echo devices like to use as speakers - one can set-up two speakers, plus an optional Echo Sub. Read Complete Article

US-based search engine giant Google has finally released the Android Auto for phone screens, what it promised back in May at I/O 2019. The app is now live in the Play Store, it is basically the same as the previous app but just adds an icon that is slightly different and it is only compatible with Android 10 on certain devices. "This app lets you use Android Auto on your phone screen with a phone running Android 10. If you have Android 10 and an Android Auto compatible car, you can project to your car display without downloading this app. Simply plug in your phone to get started," the company noted recently. "Android Auto is your smart driving companion that helps you stay focused, connected, and entertained with the Google Assistant. With a simplified interface, large buttons, and powerful voice actions, Android Auto is designed to make it easier to use apps that you love from your phone while you're on the road," the company added. Read Complete A...

Instagrammers and Facebook users in India will now be able to add music to their 'Stories' on the two social networking platforms. "Facebook today (Tuesday) announced new ways for people in India to express themselves through music on Facebook and Instagram, with music stickers on Stories and other creative tools such as Lyrics on Instagram, Lip Sync Live, and the ability to add songs to their Facebook Profiles," Facebook said in a statement. Users can share photos, videos and posts on 'Stories' that are visible only for 24 hours. With the roll-out of music products in India, users can add latest tracks such as 'Bekhayali' (Kabir Singh) and Ve Maahi (Kesari) to older songs like Bas Ek Sanam Chaahiye (Aashiqui), to their Facebook and Instagram Stories. Music products on Facebook and Instagram are now available in over 55 countries. Read Complete Article

Leading smartphone brands such as Xiaomi , Micromax, Redmi (a sub-brand Xiaomi) and OnePlus are set to disrupt the smart television space, which has so far been dominated by electronics giants Sony, LG, Samsung and Panasonic. Internet-enabled smart TVs, which are a relatively new segment in India, are expected to see a major boost on the back of lower data tariffs, which have resulted in a massive uptick in online video consumption. While Xiaomi is already present in this space, its sub-brand Redmi, whose smartphones are quite popular in India, is expected to launch smart TVs soon. Given the value it offers for its price point in the smartphone space, Mi TVs are also likely to be available at competitive prices. This week, OnePlus, the maker of the hugely popular OnePlus 6 and OnePlus 6T handsets, too announced that it would come out with smart TVs in September. The Chinese phone-maker is expected to woo consumers with smart TVs that are as aggressively priced as its fea...

Breaking the 10-year history of naming Android releases after desserts, Google on Thursday announced it had officially named the next version as just Android 10. "First, we're changing the way we name our releases. Our engineering team has always used internal code names for each version, based of tasty treats, or desserts, in alphabetical order," said Sameer Samat, VP of Product Management, Android, in a statement. The naming tradition has become a fun part of the release each year externally too, like Android Lollipop or Marshmallows. New Android 10 "As a global operating system, it's important that these names are clear and relatable for everyone in the world. So, this next release of Android will simply use the version number and be called Android 10," Samat explained. "While there were many tempting 'Q' desserts out there, we think that at version 10 and 2.5 billion active devices, it was time to make this change," ...

Google and OnePlus were the only brands which shipped all their smartphones with the latest version of Android OS in 2018, a new report said on Monday. According to market research techARC, 32 models of smartphones were launched by various original equipment manufacturers last year. Overall, Vivo led the number of launches  with 7 models having the latest Android OS version shipped out of the factory. The second spot was taken by Nokia which launched four models, followed by Tecno (3), the report said. "With stock Android becoming the preference of users, the OEMs are able to reduce the upgrade turnaround time for OS as it requires minimal integration from their end after Google releases one," said Faisal Kawoosa, Founder and Chief Analyst, techARC. Nearly 80 per cent of the launches with latest OS version had Android 8.1 (Oreo) pre-loaded when shipped for sale. The remaining 20 per cent had Android 9.0 (Pie) version . "The good news is that...