All Posts in Review

|In: e-commerce|Last Updated: | 2 Comments

From exclusive mobiles to laptops, apparels to toys; every category of item is available online. Discounts, Cash back and Easy Buy & return policy is driving the growth of e-commerce in India. Not to forget, exclusive tie-ups that brands have with e-tail companies which becomes a unique proposition of the e-commerce company.

However, when we think about e-commerce, only B2C companies like Flikpart, Snapdeal, Paytm, Amazon etc. comes to mind. Either you have Horizontal Players [as mentioned above] or Pure play vertical players like FirstCry, BabyOye etc. that cater to the ever expanding B2C segment.

Just imagine this random scenario – You as a Business owner want to buy a particular product in bulk but via the online route ? The options that come to your mind are very less & the resistance shown would be enormous since the capital required to buy in bulk would also be more !!! In a nutshell, in order to buy in bulk; you require higher capital, greater risk appetite & need to have faith on the seller/re-seller and the distribution model.

A typical B2B distribution model can encompass as many as half a dozen channels – distributors, resellers, retailers, in-house sales, dedicated agents and representatives, and independent agents. And, in many cases, can have as many layers – the publisher or manufacturer may distribute to a bevy of national and international distributors, who supply regional distributors, who provide product to independent sales agents, who service accounts that may have their own distribution systems to service the end buyer [Source – DigitalRiver]

However in the year 2014, IndiaMart – the undisputed leader in the B2B segment came up with the idea of Tolexo to solve this important problem for businesses. Tolexo is India’s online store for Business & Industry. It has the largest collection of products for offices, factories & businesses.

Tolexo is an IndiaMART Intermesh Ltd subsidiary that aims to leverage it’s expertise in the B2B segment by connecting buyers with sellers and providing supplementary services like Marketing, Brand Building, Product Fulfillment, Shipment etc.

Tolexo : Products Catalogue

Tolexo is the ultimate destination for Business Goods & Supplies, which transforms the way businesses buy these products. It offers consumer shopping experience for the largest collection of products needed by businesses, factories, offices and laboratories.

Tolexo has already served customers from more than 800 cities & towns across India. In order to maintain high level of customer satisfaction, Tolexo has rightly invested into it’s back-end infrastructure which has ensured friction-less e-commerce 🙂 E-commerce eco-system comprises of Buyers, Sellers [Merchants] & Products. Tolexo has more than 10,00,000+ essential products for business and industry, with more than 5000 sellers & 7500 brands.

Tolexo also provides Last-Mile delivery to it’s esteemed customers and has a very friendly ‘Cancellation & Refund Policy’.

Some of the prime categories on Tolexo are listed below:

[Source* – Tolexo]

Tolexo : Product Fulfillment

When we purchase any product online, one thing which we are concerned about is the timely product delivery. As mentioned above, risk becomes much higher in the B2B segment. Tolexo not only bridges the gap between the Buyer [Business Owner] & Seller [Merchant on Tolexo] but also provides supports to the merchant via Packaging, Logistics  etc. which play an important role in customer retention [apart from quality product :)].

To achieve this, Tolexo does inspections, ensures quality packaging and it has partnered with most of the top courier and logistics partners and communicates shipping status to customer at each stage of shipment. It’s logistic partners are FedEx, Gati, Blue Dart and Delhivery.

When me & my wife started selling Home-Made chocolates online, we gave prime importance to product packaging since that plays a crucial role in the product life-cycle.

Tolexo : Customer Service

Like other e-commerce companies, once the order has been placed customer can track of the product online as the updated status of shipment at its each stage from order is placed to processes to ready to ship to dispatch to deliver.

Tolexo_Customers

For this review, we called up Tolexo Helpline Number – 91 8282 8282 82 & the response was immediate. We asked them queries about certain factory products and posed questions about bulk-buying etc. The customer-care department did not disappoint us 🙂 Similar queries were sent to Tolexo Customer Support email which were answered in less than 24 hours.

Tolexo : Cancellations & Refund

At numerous times, we place an order for a product but plan to return the product due to some un-solicited reason. This is where the “Cancellation & Refund Policy” plays a very important role in ‘Customer Retention’. As per Tolexo’s Cancellation & Refund policy, it guarantees 100% MoneyBack if the issue not resolved in maximum 30 days via same mode.

Tolexo allows return of products for 3 days from delivery in all the following cases:

  • Product is used/worn or altered
  • Physical damage to the box or to the product
  • If sealed package of branded products is open
  • The packet was empty / some item or accessory was missing
  • The product was defective,
  • Significantly different from the description given by the merchant [wrong size, colour, quality or material related issues]
  • You changed your mind due to any other reason

Customer Testimonials section does indicate that they consider Customer Service, Last Mile Deliveries, Ease in Refund etc. core to their business !!

Tolexo : Design, Interface

Tolexo website has an simple & intuitive design. Searching for products across any category was very easy & we did not encounter any issue. The page-load time was also very less. It is also available on Play Store that ensures that it does not loose it’s customers and they can buy products in bulk even when they are on the go 🙂

The entire buying process was seamless which was a delight for us. They have a rigorous merchant selection process which ensures that they have the best merchants on their platform.

Closing Thoughts

Our overall experience on Tolexo was good. As mentioned by Sahil Barua, co-founder, Delhivery in this interview “B2B is an entire different ball-game and requires Logistics expertise”. Considering that the big-daddy of e-commerce – Amazon also ventured into B2B segment via AmazonBusiness [Source], Tolexo needs to pull up it’s sleeves & fill in the gaps where-ever required 🙂

If you are a business owner & have used Tolexo, please share them in the comments section !!

|In: e-commerce|Last Updated: | 0 Comments

The eCommerce sector has witnessed an unprecedented growth since last couple of years. The growth was driven by rapid technology adoption led by the increasing use of devices such as smartphones and tablets, and access to the internet through broadband, 3G etc. which led to an increased online consumer base.

With many companies like Motorola, Xiaomi, One-Plus etc. opting for 'Online-Only' mode via exclusive launches through e-commerce route, it is a sector that has expanded pretty fast. With the launch of Flipkart's Ping, online-shopping will no longer be a lone show and you can now involve your 'Social Connections' in the important decision of buying a particular product.

But what if could you combine Online Commerce with Social Networking for the purpose of doing something for a Social-Cause… it sounds interesting 🙂 An online venture Gudville wants to convert Online Commerce into 'Impact Commerce' by helping a Cause at no extra cost to you.

Gudville_Logo

Gudville : What, Why

What is Gudville

Gudville Shopping is a way of Impact consumption that helps you support causes that you care about while you shop online. By shopping on partner stores – Amazon, Flipkart and Snapdeal, through Gudville, you can earn Cause Donations [Wishes] and shopping vouchers [Gudville Points] everytime you shop.

The other partner stores of Gudville include Jabong, YepMe, TrendIn, Croma, Pepperfry etc. The interesting aspect about the partnership is that Gudville has ensured that it has partners across different e-commerce businesses e.g. Horizontal e-commerce like Flipkart, Snapdeal & specialized or vertical e-commerce sites like Pepperfry, TrendIn etc.

Have a look at how Gudville can create a difference through shopping as demonstrated in the video:

Gudville Shopping Buddy

Gudville plans to convert casual online-shoppers into impact shoppers by encouraging them to shop through Gudville Shopping Buddy. Gudville Shopping Buddy is a browser extension/add-on to make it easy for shoppers to make this world a better place by shopping on various partner websites.

You can download the Gudville Buddy for Chrome from here The Firefox extension can be downloaded from here

How does Gudville Shopping Buddy work

After installing Gudville buddy, you can check the list of Impact Offers on their partner websites through the add-on. Once you select an offer, you would be routed to appropriate shopping section on the chosen e-commerce partner.

Gudville Shopping Buddy accounts your online shopping to influence a donation for a non-profit organization of your choice and earn Gudville Points which can be redeemed.

Adding the Gudville Shopping Buddy does provide a 'Social Angle' to your shopping experience. We performed a dry-run by shopping on Flipkart using Gudville Shopping Buddy & the experience was seamless. The question that definitely comes to mind is "How does an NGO benefit if you shop using Gudville Shopping Buddy" ? Well, Gudville helps the non-profits to build their influencer base through various campaigns that they can run on Gudville.

Non-profits also benefit from other online consumption activities that Gudville facilitates for its supporters and influencers. Gudville Shopping is one way to influence funds for these non-profits where donation of 1% of the purchase amount goes to a non-profit when you shop online on Flipkart, Amazon and Snapdeal using Gudville Shopping page or Gudville Shopping Buddy

You can refer to the other details about the Gudville Shopping Buddy from here

Gudville : Non-Profit Associations

Along with 'Impact Shopping', Gudville in it's old avatar used to facilitate it's users to create their own 'Impact Campaigns' also termed as Ripple Campaigns, but now all the user needs to do is use the Gudville Shopping Buddy to Shop & create an impact [Chrome & Firefox]

Gudville has tied-up with 500+ Non-Profit organizations & it drives campaigns with/for them. 

Gudville : Road Ahead

Gudville : The impact of App-Only Mode

Since Myntra decided to shutdown it's website couple of months back & decided to go 'App-Only', many e-commerce biggies also have that plan on their cards. The topic has been under constant debate & many companies are vary to take that route. But with increasing mobile penetration, arrival of 4G & reduced data rates, App Only would definitely be an important agenda for many of the e-tailers [Source – TOI].

One of the reasons cited has been 'Price Comparison' since that is not possible on mobiles [through browser add-ons]. On a similar note, we would also love to see a stand-alone Gudville mobile app that would act as an aggregator for the 'Impact-ful Offers' across it's various partner sites.

One more change that might be of interest in it's browser add-on is "to make the user aware that a particular e-commerce site is Gudville's partner & have a Gudville icon on the product page". This would result in incremental user-awareness & user-growth [something like what MakkhiChoose extension does to your online-shopping].

Gudville : Offline Partnerships

Gudville can explore offline-partnerships with CSR department of various organizations. The partnership could be for CSR programmes taken by the organization that are not designed to produce profits or directly improve the business performance.

Gudville can leverage these partnerships by awarding employees of the partner organizations or universities with 'Gudville Points' based on the impact of the CSR activity. This would create a two-way impact by converting the Employees into online, impactful shoppers & hence leveraging the use of "Social aspect of Commerce" & "Social aspect of Responsibility" 🙂

We are sure that conversion of 'Offline Shoppers to Online Shoppers' for creating grass-roots impact would be there on Gudville's agenda !!

Closing Thoughts

If you are an online shopper & want to ensure that your online-shopping affects lives of millions than download the Gudville Buddy [Chrome & Firefox]. Do share your experience in the comments section.

Earn 'Gudville' while you shop with the Gudville Shopping Buddy…

|In: Blogging|Last Updated:

Has the “Youtube Offline” advertisement caught your attention? But with the improving internet speed & increasing broadband penetration, “Buffering” would sooner/later be history 🙂 With Telecom companies entering into tug-of-war over “Pricing” in order to woo customers, it is definitely happy time for us !!!

This would also mean that in future, customers can view their favorite videos without/with least amount of buffering [contrast to this advertisement :)]. This would definitely give a huge boost to companies or start-ups that provide On-Demand TV.

Few weeks back, we had a meetup with start-up named Lukup that wants to create a dent in the “On Demand TV” market that is still at a very nascent stage in India but the points discussed above could definitely turn out to be a winner for Lukup. It is a video streaming service offering licensed Indian & international content

Today, we do a walk-through of Lukup’s product called Lukup Player which we personally experienced during the “Blogger’s brain-storming” session.

Click on Image to enlarge

DSCN0396

Lukup Player

Lukup Player is a connected device from Bengaluru based start-up Lukup Media that aims to provide India’s first On-Demand TV service. Using the Lukup Player, consumers will also be able to stream content on more than one screen or devices like TV, tablets, phones etc. The best part is that the “Synchronization” is maintained between the connected devices to ensure better viewing experience.

Setting up the Lukup Player was a very easy task. The player supports multiple options for connectivity i.e. Ethernet, WiFi, Bluetooth that ensures that consumers can view high-quality videos using HDMI input & at the same time, broadcast content using WiFi/Bluetooth.

Features of the Lukup Player

  1. The Lukup Player is easy to set up. Works with your home broadband or WiFi connection.
  2. Personalize your TV experience by creating your profile. You have the option of linking your social network to your profile.
  3. Swipe on the Lukup Player’s touch screen to navigate content on the TV.
  4. Use applications on the Lukup Player to search for content, browse the TV guide and much more.
  5. With the TV guide, choose from a list of on-demand video, audio and broadcast TV channels.

  6. From the context menu for any content title, you can select a screen or device to stream to.
  7. Content is available as pay per view titles or as monthly subscription channels. Subscribe from the context menu.
  8. Stream content to TVs using WiFi and to music systems and headsets using Bluetooth, all at the same time.
  9. Record live TV channels on your unlimited cloud storage drive which starts with 500 GB free storage.
  10. Use the media Storage application to browse and view recorded content anywhere, on any device.

  11. Use the Planning application to view reminders, recording schedules and receive notifications.
  12. Social Integration & Screen synchronization.
  13. Use the Lukup Player as a WiFi hotspot that you can connect your mobile phones, tablets and PC to access the internet.
  14. Play Interactive Games.

Pricing, Variants & Availability

The Lukup player is available in two variants – Lukup player S [without WiFi & multi-screen connectivity] and Lukup Player X [with WiFi & multi-screen]. Lukup Player runs on a 1.7 GHz processor & is loaded with 1 GB of RAM. It has a micro USB port for charging. Lukup Player is exclusively available on Amazon where Lukup Player X is available for Rs. 12,660. As stated in Lukup Player Requirements page:

The Lukup Player requires a single connection to bring TV, interactive content and internet access to homes. A minimum of 2 Mbps for a single screen home and a minimum of 4 Mbps for multi-screen home is recommended.

Instead of using a broadband modem, wireless router and set top box separately, you can just use the Lukup Player that combines all the functions.

Some of the content is package-based, so users can subscribe for fixed amounts each month. There is also a pay-per-view model. We tried playing a couple of movies during the meet-up where Lukup Player X was up for display & we were able to watch HD movies [with some hitches due to WiFi issue at the venue]. Lukup Player X is definitely suited when viewers want to view HD content.

Road Ahead

Piracy is one of the major challenges that is creating a huge challenge for digital media companies. How can we forget that we get the pirated CD/DVD’s being sold openly on roadside(s) the very next day after a movie is released !!! However, Lukup’s Pay Per View [PPV] can provide an answer to curb piracy if it is able to provide digital content at reasonable price !!! As per recent report, Lukup Media is looking to expand its Over-The-Top [OTT] services by acquiring Multi-System Operator [MSO] & Internet Service Provider [ISP] licenses.

Lukup Media has also signed a deal with Widevine for integrating DRM solution. Widevine’s DRM solution provides the capability to license, distribute and protect playback of content on any consumer device. Now Lukup can provide access of protected content to its customers. The content including movies, music and television shows can be accessed to any device even in congested networks [Source – CableQuest]

Lukup Media also encourages developers to use their platform to develop apps for Lukup Player & if you are an Android developer, you should not miss this video.

Closing Thoughts

There has been news that many on-demand media streaming companies have announced to enter India which is the fastest growing market [due to increasing broadband & internet penetration].

Lukup Media has a first-mover advantage & given the interesting features in Lukup Player, it would click with cost-sensitive Indian consumers!!!

[Image Source – Lukup]

[Thanks to Neeva Tiwari from Lukup for the Blogger Invite :)]

|In: Mobile|Last Updated:

Disrupting the nascent 4G market with the best in class technology, Micromax has announced its endeavor to offer fast 4G LTE connectivity to the Indian consumers. To build on to the leadership position in the Indian smartphone market, the company launched its flagship product Canvas Knight 2, the first in the range of 4G smartphones and showcased its upcoming 4G range.

Micromax

The company has been consistently revolutionizing the 3G market since 2012 with the launch of some compelling affordable smartphones and aims to help the Indian consumers unlock the true potential of 4G with this new launch.

Commenting on the launch, Vineet Taneja, CEO, Micromax Informatics said

India is at the cusp of digital revolution and we expect 4G technology to push internet usage to an unprecedented level. Consumer demand is constantly shifting towards devices offering multi-tasking capabilities, 24×7 data connectivity with increased video consumption and real-time mobility solutions. Smartphones always lead any such technology shift, much before full scale network roll-outs are done by operators.

In our estimate, 4G handsets already account for 15% of total smartphone shipments, up from 4% two quarters back. Installed base of 4G handsets is ~5 Mn compared to a 90Mn+ base of 3G smartphones. With the launch of our new device Canvas Knight 2, the first in the 4G range, we are looking at driving the next wave of internet evolution in the country.

Surfing on 4G networks is said to be at least 5 times faster than 3G and enables the consumers to download movies, stream video and music, share photographs, surf internet and achieve much more out of their smartphones with great ease.

The Canvas Knight 2 with its super-fast 4G internet gives the consumers all the tools right at their fingertips to conquer the world be it your presentations or finding the perfect night stops. Heavy web downloading, hard-core gaming, high-quality premium video viewing without any lag ensures the users are on top of everything.

The device is a performance beast as one can push boundaries with 64-bit performance processing data at the speed of light. Power packed with a 1.5 GHz Octa Core processor, the smartphone is perfect for multitasking and efficiently running applications of any kind. Do more things at once on the Canvas Knight 2 with its 2GB RAM that helps you speed things up and lets you access all applications, faster.

The device is a design marvel with a perfect amalgamation of Glass & Metal which is fortified with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 on both sides. Glass provides the premium & rich look to the product while the metal sandwiched between the glass on both sides makes the device sturdy and strong. Powered with Cirus Logic Wolfson Stereo WM8998, the smartphone promises the best in class experience for music aficionados and delivers clear, room-filling, deep sound.

Running on the latest Android Lollipop 5.0, the new device promises great benefits like optimized battery usage, improved application performance, refreshed notification system etc. to the neo users.

With a 5-inch Amoled HD Screen the device provides a 16.7 million colour depth, the display catches every colour in its brilliant and spectacular form. One can capture all their moments as perfect as they can be with a 13MP AF rear camera powered with Sony IMX214 CMOS sensor and LARGAN 5P lens. Taking selfies on the go is now even more remarkable with a 5MP FF front camera accompanied with Omnivison OV5648 & LARGAN 4P lens.

Canvas2

With 2G/3G/4G support on both dual SIM slots, one can manage personal and work calls with ease, with intelligent dual SIM features and detailed preferred network settings for each card. Nano SIM card slot can be replaced with the memory card to store more pictures, songs, videos etc

With the best buy price of Rs. 16,299; the Canvas Knight 2 comes with a free 4G SIM and an Airtel 4G Double Data offer which doubles the 4G data amount for any consumer activating the 4G SIM.

The device will be available from June 10, 2015 across India.

|In: Mobile|Last Updated:

Phicomm, China’s leading provider of telecommunication equipment, terminals & services today launched its flagship LTE Android smartphone – Phicomm Passion 660, in India. This versatile and easy to use smartphone based on a Qualcomm chipset has a 5.0-inch IPS LCD display with 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution [FHD] and is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 processor with 4G LTE.

Phicomm Passion 660 features a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera with LED flash and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera. With Phicomm’s own EXPECT 5.0 UI, Global 4G Roaming support and its unique pedometer, PHICOMM Passion 660 offers consumers a dream like technologically advanced device aimed to enhance their mobile experience. Phicomm Passion 660 will be available for sale exclusively on Amazon at Rs. 10,999.

Key Highlights

Connect to the world faster

With Global 4G Roaming Support, the Phicomm Passion 660 promises speedy connectivity to the world. You could be on the road or at comforts of your home; Phicomm Passion 660 will seamlessly allow you to stay constantly connected. Qualcomm Snapdragon with 4G LTE offers high-speed connectivity that allow consumers to share their content, browse, game and more, around the world.

Slim, light, and stylish

With a thickness of only 7.3 mm and weighing only 110 grams, Phicomm Passion 660 is one of the thinnest and lightest 4G smartphones available in the region. It has stronger structure on one piece metal body, seamless back cover by unibody process and decoration of metal frame.

Advanced technology

PHICOMM Passion 660 exhibits features based on innovative technology which includes a professional pedometer along with gesture recognition. The pedometer is one of the best features of the smartphone which enables one to track how much you walk in a day and it also the calories burnt! Set a goal and record your growth towards good health.

The built–in step-counter sensor does not require GPS & Network and it has 166 times power saving Capability as compared to a Software Solution. Gesture recognition enables you to access the functions of the phone with hand gestures, making the smart phone a futuristic gadget.

Passion 660 can also record your altitude by the built in barometer. When taking a picture, you can use Geo-tag and Barometer to record your 3D position [That means your latitude, longitude and altitude of your position].

Crystal Clear conversations

Not forgetting the primary function of a phone, the Phicomm Passion 660 employs 2 microphones to enable noise cancellation and suppression using Qualcomm Snapdragon Voice+ technology for superior speech clarity even in noisy environments.

Stunning pictures

The 5.0” FHD IPS screen at 441ppi gives an excellent colour reproduction and contrast. A 13 MP rear camera, armed with IMX 214 sensor from Sony and a 5 MP BSI front camera with super wide view angle [84 degrees] guarantee that your photos will look brilliant with amazing colour & outstanding details whatever taken in a bright or a dull background. The built in memory [2GB RAM/ 16GB ROM] can be additionally expanded up to 64 GB via SD card.

Features in a Nutshell

Phicomm_Features

Video review [Courtesy – GadgetsToUse]

Availablility

Phicomm Passion 660 is exclusively available on Amazon.in. The sales would begin on 9 June 2015

|In: Books|Last Updated:

I am sure that most us would have watched [if not read] the Ramayana that used to be tele-casted on Doordarshan. Few months back, we had reviewed the book Ramayana : The Game of Life : Rise of the Sun Prince which was aptly written to convey the messages from the Ramayana to the urban audience.

Today we review the second installment of the book titled – Ramayana : The Game of Life: Shattered Dreams.

About the Author

Shubha Vilas is a motivational speaker, spiritual seeker with B.E in “Electronics & Telecommunications” and L.L.B specializing in Patent Law. You can find more about him here

Detailed Review

Just like the previous book, here also the author tries to connect the learning from each instance [of the Ramayana] with real-life [through footnotes]. The book starts off with the dilemma that King Dasratha faces in deciding who should succeed him. It showcases the life of Ram while in exile. The author has beautifully taken the famous Ramayana and given it his own touch. It teaches us that “Despite all odds, how both Rama & Sita shared a very beautiful & understanding relationship with each other”.

20150309_072835-1

The author helps us visualize the beauty of “being self-less” through the actions of Lakshmana & Bharata. Through Manthara’s character, it beautifully portray’s “How poisonous instincts of one person can lead to the disaster of an entire nation [Ayodhya]”.

The author had to make sure that the reader finds the story interesting [and can co-relate to it] else it would have been “Me-Too” book on the epic. There are learnings on Leadership, Mentoring, Giving-up etc. from each chapter [or I can say from each page :)] which readers can easily co-relate to day to day life.

The Ramayana is narrated in a very crisp & simplistic manner ensuring that the epic gives out more learnings to it’s readers !!!

There are interesting lessons on Management which we would like to share in this article.

Management Mantras

Lord Rama revealed five key management concepts a good leader has to adhere to. These five tenets form the most important limbs of a leader’s portfolio.

Respect Management

The foundation of any leadership rests on respect management. A leader who respects his superiors, allows the flow of energy to descend into his life. With that in mind, Rama’s question to Bharata were:

  • Are you treating your preceptors respectfully ?
  • Are you making sure mother Kaushalya & Sumitra are happy ?
  • Is the venerable Keikeyi rejoicing ?
  • Do you honor Sayujna, the son of Vasistha ?
  • Are you respectful toward, brahmanas, teachers and ministers ?
  • Are women respected & taken care of ? Respect toward them is the root of all the good that happens in society & dis-respect toward them is the root of all evil in the society.

Decision Management

Decision-making with discernment becomes an ornament that brings respect & appreciation from followers. Rama gave Baratha some crucial pointers:

  • Do not deliberate either alone or with too many men.
  • Your decisions should not be made public before being carried out.
  • Neighboring kings should not understand your undertakings before execution.
  • Your decisions should have maximum benefit at minimum cost.
  • Do not delay decision-making.
  • Do not falsely accuse, kill or punish a noble man without appropriate inquiry. Remember that tears of victims falsely accused actually destroy justice givers.
  • Do not release a thief for greed of wealth.
  • Encourage your ministers to be impartial to both the rich and the poor.

Reputation Management

Reputation is like a glass ball. It has to be clean, but before that, it has to be in your grip. People see before they hear; they judge a leader on the basis of his actions before they get inspired by the words. The reputation of the leader imbibes confidence in the follower. Rama’s suggestions to Bharatha were:

  • Do not fall prey to excessive sleep & wake-up at an appropriate hour.
  • Contemplate about the adroitness of your action in the second half of the night.
  • Dress royally. The regal appearance of a king gives confidence to the subjects.
  • Make yourself available to hear your subject’s grievances. First hand interaction with the leader gives hope to the subjects.
  • Do not over-indulge in wealth, religion or delights of the senses. Over-indulgence or indulgence at the wrong time or place creates doubts in subjects.
  • Do not eat without sharing. Not sharing makes one hardhearted & others jealous.
  • Avoid incurring the wrath of Brahmanas by falling into wrong habits.
  • Ensure that servants are not dis-respectful toward you nor should they hasten away in fear on seeing you. Disrespect & fear are two extremes indicating barriers in connections between the leader and his subjects.

Team Management

Team management is to a leader what life management is to a doctor. When a team is managed with grace, the subjects are filled with gratefulness; the team becomes the solution to all problems a leader faces. Rama revealed these pearls of wisdom:

  • One wise man is better than thousand stupid ones; one good minister can ensure the prosperity of a kingdom.
  • Assign tasks according to the level of intelligence, ability, skill, position & status of the employee.
  • Surround yourself with ministers who are not only corruptible & full of integrity but also born and raised in a family that imbibes Vedic values & culture.
  • Train your ministers to avoid flexible decisions that makes subjects fearful.
  • The army chief should be cheerful, wise, courageous, well-behaved, loved by his subordinates, efficient, born & raised in a family that imbibes Vedic values & culture.
  • Honor courageous warriors in public.
  • The army should be paid their salary & daily provisions on time. A delay in wages & maintenance causes servants to be corrupt and infuriated with their master.
  • Select an ambassador who is knowledgeable, wise & skillful, has a presence of mind and knows how to speak to the point.
  • Though three spies, unacquainted with one another, collect all information about your important officers as well as those of your enemies. Do not place your trust on one spy.
  • Do not spy on your own ministers, your guru & the princes. Monitor their actions.
  • Do not house a physician who is an expert at aggravating a disease, a servant intent on bringing disgrace and a valiant warrior seeking kingly power. They can be the cause of your destruction.

Character Management

A leader should religiously avoid these 14 sins. By carefully avoiding these, the leader can suitably manage his character.

  • Giving the material world as much importance as the spiritual world.
  • Carelessness.
  • Procrastination.
  • Lack of appreciation of righteous people.
  • Autocracy in decision making.
  • Avoiding decisions already made.
  • Dishonesty.
  • Revealing confidential information.
  • Indulging in discussions with people of adverse opinions and thus wasting valuable time.
  • Invading enemies from all directions.
  • Respecting bad people.

Closing Thoughts

“Ramayana : The Game of Life: Shattered Dreams” is a breezy read & keeps the reader’s hooked with the learnings [documented in the footnotes]. Overall the book is a must read for all Epic lovers, Management gurus & Aspirants to get the story from an entirely different angle knitting it well with the modern era.

Thanks to Mr Shubha Vilas for sending us the review copy of this book 🙂

|In: Mobile|Last Updated:

Things are heating up in the Smart-Phone segment with many manufacturers entering into the sub 15K~ 20K range. The latest to join the bandwagon is ASUS with it’s latest model – ZenFone 2. The much awaited ASUS Zenfone 2 would be launched in India & like other companies, the model would be available exclusively on Flipkart from 23rd April. The phone would be officially launched by the

We have a look at some of the interesting facets of the ASUS ZenFone 2 including it’s price.

Design

ASUS has followed the same design principle used in ZenFone 5. ZenFone 2 has a highly-intuitive control layout, incorporating a physical rear key as part of the new Ergonomic Arc design. The ZenFone 2, with its curved back and thinnest edge measuring just 3.9 mm, is designed to comfortably fit your palm for ultimate comfort without sacrificing style – the back cover features an exquisite hairline design with a metallic finish. The back comes with a metallic cover.

The added rear key helps the user to perform naive functions like changing volume-control etc. using the index finger. Considering that “selfie” has become a part of every smart phone user’s life, the added rear key gives added comfort to take selfie’s 🙂

Asus_Zenphone2_BackCovers

Though the back-cover is removable, user cannot replace the battery. There are dual-sim slots & a single micro-sd card slot.

Design features in a nut-shell

  • Premium Color Options
  • Ergonomics Arc Design
  • 72% Screen-To-Body Ratio
  • Rear Key for Convenient Access

Hardware

The phone is powered by Intel Quad Core 64-bit Atom Z3580 with PowerVR Series 6 G6430 GPU.  The device sports 5.5 inch LED backlit IPS display with Gorilla Glass 3 and Anti-Fingerprint Coating. The resolution is 1920*1080 px which makes display very sharp & vivid. It has 4GB LPDDR3 RAM which makes the performance fast & snappy !!!

It comes in 3 variants:16 GB/32 GB/64 GB & has 13MP Rear Camera. It has 5MP Front Camera for selfie lovers. It has WiFi, BT 4.0 & AGPS. The phone has mammoth 3000mAh batery that has support for “Fast-Charging”.

It weighs 170 gm [Dimensions – 152.5 x 77.2 x 10.9-3.9mm]

Performance in a nut-shell

  • Intel Atom Z3580/Z3560 64-bit Processor
  • BoostMaster Fast-Charging Technology
  • Dual Active SIM
  • LTE Cat 4 connectivity

PixelMaster

  • World’s best Low-Light Mode
  • World’s Best HDR Mode
  • Beautification mode and Panorama Modes

Display & Camera

The ASUS ZenFone 2 packs a Full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution IPS display complemented by an ultra-thin bezel. The 403 PPI is more than any phone in its price range and provides for an ultra-sharp viewing experience and a brightness of 400 nits ensures that you can see the screen in even the brightest of days.

Camera is one of the most critical features in any smart phone & ASUS has coined the term “PixelMaster” term to reference the suite of camera features provided with ASUS Smartphones. ASUS provides 16 different built-in picture modes to allow the user the most amount of flexibility in the pursuit of the perfect shot. PixelMaster on the ZenFone 2 include the world’s best low-light and HDR modes.

ASUS_Camera

ASUS ZenFone2 camera has Auto-Suggestion feature that recognizes the current environment & suggests preset’s to capture the best moment. It also has Try-It option. ASUS claims that the ZenFone 2 captures best images in Low-Light mode compared the competitors in the same price segment.

ASUS PixelMaster intelligently adjusts noise-level, color and contrast automatically. Smart Pixel Merging and Pixel Perfecting results in 400% better light sensitivity, 400% noise reduction, and a 400% increase in contrast.

It also has best oriented pictures for capturing the best shots. Super Resolution Mode allows you to maximize your camera’s ability. ASUS PixelMaster makes it possible to use the 13MP rear camera in order to take images with up to 4X more clarity, up to 52MP, by extracting a high-resolution image from multiple lower-resolution images of the same subject.

ASUS ZenFone 2 Variants

The ZenFone 2 comes with two variants – ZE500CL & ZE550ML. ZE500CL is tagged as an “entry level” ZenFone 2 & would come with a price-tag of Rs. 12,000. ZenFone 2 ZE551ML is tagged as “top-end” model & would come with a promotional price of Rs. 20,100.

Zen UI & Zen Motion

ASUS has optimized the Android experience through its custom ZenUI to provide a simple, direct, and unique look that can be modified to each user’s liking. It has made an excellent attempt to follow the “Material Design” principles and same is visible from it’s UI.

ASUS_ZenUI

Double tapping on the phone takes the device out of suspend-mode. ASUS has focused a lot on usability side & Zen Motion ensures that the user’s reach to their favorite apps using Gesture Control shortcuts [C – Launch Camera, B – Launch Browser, e – Launch Email]. The phone comes with a Kids-Mode [where user can manage app list for kids, control time they spend on phone etc.]. Like other phones, like comes with an Easy-Mode that would come in handy when the device is running out of battery !!!

Verdict & Availability

ASUS Zenfone 2 is a superb phone in the price segment where it competes with the Moto G, Huawei Honor 6 Plus amongst others. But given that it sports 4GB RAM & 64 bit CPU, that would definitely add a great amount of juice to the performance. Definitely a phone that every user would be eager to buy !!!

ASUS ZenFone 2 would be launched on 23rd April  & would be available exclusively on Flipkart.

To know more about the device, please visit the ASUS India FB Fan Page or visit ASUS ZenFone 2 link

|In: Review|Last Updated:

Changing work style and increasing need for 24/7 access to information is fueling the growth of India Laptop market. Personal Desktop and Laptops have been competing since the evolution of portable personal computers. However, Laptops are preferred due to the convenience and portability factor associated with them.

Also, since things have become mobile & consumers requiring constant connectivity, Laptop/Mobile has become an essential part of anyone’s life. According to 6Wresearch, India Laptop market reached 4.71 Million shipments for the year ending June-2014. Though mobile market is at it’s boom with companies coming up with good phones at lesser price; the mobile screen can never replace the laptop. We spoke to couple of people to get their views & they informed that there are some things like watching movies etc. where they prefer laptops !!!

Also, with explosion in number of colleges & growth of education sector has lead to growing demand of laptops. However, again the choice for laptops is personal where some prefer screens with smaller size [since it gives more portability & is suitable for people who are on-the-go most of the time] where there is another set of crowd that prefer “bigger screen size” [I am in this list :)].

HP, Lenovo, Dell have a combined market share of 70%. When we are talking of laptops, we cannot forget a brand – Sony which is awesome when it comes to Display 🙂
Just like mobile, laptops are also becoming “Personal”; so here we help you with various screen sizes that are available for the Sony Vaio laptop

VAIO® Tap 20 [White&Black]
It a high end laptop which carries an impressive spec

Spec Sheet

Intel® Core™ i5 Processor
Windows 8 Single Language
HDD : 500 GB
Memory : 4 GB
Display : 20 (50.8 cms); 1600 x 900; touch screen
Visual Technology    Mobile BRAVIA Engine 2

Surely, this would be a great laptop for high end users & consumers expecting zippy performance with their laptops !!!

VAIO® Duo 11 [Gun metallic]

Spec Sheet

Intel® Core™ i5-3317U Processor 1.70 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 2.60 GHz
Windows 8 Single Language 64 bit
Display : 11.6 (29.46 cms) wide (Full HD: 1920 x 1080) TFT colour display (VAIO Display Plus, LED backlight, OptiContrast™ Panel)
Smooth transformation between slate and PC mode thanks to the Surf Slider™ mechanism
Sleek, light and full featured Ultrabook™
Digital Noise Canceling Headphones

Consumers interested in Bigger, Better, Sharper display should definitely get their hands on it 🙂

VAIO E Series

Spec Sheet

Intel® Core™ i3-3120M Processor 2.50 GHz
HDD: 500 GB (Serial ATA, 5400 rpm)
High Audio Quality with “xLOUD” and “Clear Phase”
Rapid Wake + Eco: quick resume, longer battery life and data security
HD web camera powered by “Exmor for PC”
Display : 15.5 (39.37 cms) wide (WXGA: 1366 x 768) TFT colour display (VAIO Display, LED backlight)

This is the series for the users who want performance at lesser price 🙂

VAIO Z Series [Glossy Premium Carbon]

Spec Sheet

Intel® Core™ i7-3612QM Processor 2.10 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 3.10 GHz
Genuine Windows® 7 Professional 64bit
SSD in RAID 0: (256 GB (128 GB x 2; Serial ATA))
Absolute power in only 16.65 mm and 1.175 kg body
Power Media Dock™ to enhance productivity and connectivity: AMD Radeon™ HD 7670M, Blu-ray Disc™ Drive with DVD SuperMulti, and more ports.
Up to 11 hours battery life with optional sheet battery
Display : 13.1 (33.2 cms) wide (Full HD: 1920 x 1080) TFT colour display (VAIO Display Premium, LED backlight, Adobe RGB 96% coverage)

This is the series for the users who want “exclusive” performace & is suited for the “Urber” class 🙂

We hope that this guide would help you as a consumer, to choose the “best laptop” in the Sony Vaio series”. If you have any tips/suggestions; please share them in the comments section.

*Inputs from Sony website

We hope that this guide would help you as a consumer, to choose the “best laptop” in the Sony Vaio series”. If you have any tips/suggestions; please share them in the comments section.