Mobility july-2016

Mobility Monthly Magazine

July 2016

Issue 7

Volume 13

Pages 32

20

beyond technology, beyond lifestyle

www.mobilityindia.com

Mobility Monthly Magazine

July 2016

Issue 7

Volume 13

Pages 32

20

www.mobilityindia.com

beyond technology, beyond lifestyle

interaction

Mr. Vikas Jain Managing Director, Ziox Mobiles

interview

Mr. Sandeep Parasrampuria Director and CEO of iBall

Contents

6

The New

Trend setters of Smartphone Industry

News 10 Launchpad 14 report

17

Men Can’t Leave their Phones Alone, Experiment Shows

INTERACTION

18

Channels are what drive brands to sustain in the long run to be a part of consumer lives

special story

20

The New Trend setters of Smartphone Industry

Circulation Manager

P. Biswas

:

Production :

Ashish Ghosh Ashok Kumar Paul

System Manager

Ajay Biswas

:

H.O.: Delhi / Editorial Office Roy Mediative A-23, 1st Floor, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase-I, New Delhi-110020 (INDIA) Mob: 09810380882, 09811346846 Ph: 91-11-41602841, 65683896, 40536384-87 Redg.Off.: 38-B / 56 Block, C. R. Park, New Delhi-110019 (India).

Kolkata: 105/12B, Dum Dum Road, Sil Colony, Kolkata-74 Contact: 09330922965; 09903392620 E-mail : roy@ mobilityindia.com

26

“Oppo and Vivo have limited but widely needed models, supported by good service”

Interview 28 For us, the Journey of decade is a new beginning: A total of more than 50 million products sold in India by iBall.

apps 30 4 Great Learning App.

Swapan Roy Manoj Jha Jayanta Ghosh E.J. Jawahardatham Anit Kumar Karmendra Singh Negi Sandip Sarkar Tridip Dey Sujit Goswami, Pratap Biswas S. Dutt Raj Kumar

Branch Office: Mumbai: E-mail: roy@ mobilityindia.com

channel focus

Editor : Chief Editor : Associate Editor (Tech,) : Asst. Editor : Art Director : Creative Head : Acct. & Finance : Marketing Manager : Marketing Executives :

Orissa: Saraswati Behera Building, Kharavella Nagar, 2nd Lane, Near Jyoti Nagar, Berhampur-760001 (Orissa) (India) Contact : Raj Kumar-09338410809, 09439263711 Email : info@mobilityindia.com ncn_reporter@yahoo.com Mobility Monthly News Paper, Printed, Published & Owned by Swapan Roy at 38-B / 56 Block, C. R. Park, New Delhi-110019 (India).

Printed at Pushpak Printer, C-96, Okhla Industrial Area-I, New Delhi-20. Retail selling price of a magazine copy Rs. 20/-. Annual subscription Rs. 240.

Editor

: edit@mobilityindia.com

roy@ mobilityindia.com

Marketing : tridip@mobilityindia.com marketing@mobilityindia.com Info

: info@mobilityindia.com

Subscribe : subscription@ mobilityindia.com

Mobility JuLY 2016

8

editorial

The number of new smartphones hitting the market seems to be growing day-by-day Devices are slugging it out for dominance. In the cosumer space, media rich devices are everywhere.

Today’s smartphones may be a little on the dull side, and everything might be starting to look a lot alike.

Swapan Roy roymobility@gmail.com

We can, however, hope for a manufacturer to finally think outside the box and begin exploring form factors once again to spice things up for a change. We have to wonder if we have actually met the pinnacle of smartphone design. Has the smartphone industry met the design plateau that has plagued the laptop industry for the last few decades? Or will a youthful and rebellious manufacturer upend the industry in the next decade with a novel design and form factor?

Editor’s Choice

Asus ZenFone 3 Laser It sports a 13-mgapixel ‘PixelMaster’ camera with Sony IMX214 sensor with EIS, 5.5-inch full-HD display with 2.5D curved glass. It is powered by an octa-core processor coupled with 4GB of RAM. There is 32GB of inbuilt storage and smartphone sports fingerprint scanner. It is 7.9mm thick.

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Mobility JuLY 2016

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edit@mobilityindia.com

10

News

Sanjay Kalirona Quits Intex and joins as COO of Zen Mobiles

Sanjay Kalirona, Business Head of Intex Technologies (Mobile division), has put in his papers, making his exit the latest among a slew of senior executives leaving the No. 3 smartphone player in a fiercely competitive market.

According to sources he will be joining Zen Mobiles as a COO. He is an old hand at Intex and will be moving on after spending more than 15 years at the IT peripheralsto-mobile phones company.

He did a stint of a little over a year at Akai’s mobile phone division in between his tenure at Intex. Zen Mobile is a brand of Teleecare Group which has expertise in managing and distributing the best mobile brands in India for over 15 years now. In a short span of three years, brand has attained and builds a distinct identity among the consumers and has shown a rapid growth year on year.

Intel Security to Safeguard the New LG G5

Intel Security announced McAfee Mobile Security will be pre-installed on the latest smartphone from LG Electronics, the LG G5, to enable users to connect with more confidence. This extends an existing agreement whereby LG Electronics selected McAfee Mobile Security to help protect against security threats and provide theft protection for its G4 smartphone.

With the pre-installed application, LG G5 users will enjoy antivirus and antitheft benefits as well as enhanced privacy settings, enabling them to experience the mobile world with greater confidence.

Additionally, Intel Security found that in Q4 2015 mobile malware samples increased 24 percent compared to Q3 2015.

“McAfee Mobile Security offers award-winning protection for mobile devices, so it’s no surprise that smartphone manufacturer LG chose it to help protect its G4 and now G5 smartphones,” said John Giamatteo, corporate vice president at Intel Security.

BLACKBERRY AND EMTEK FORGE PARTNERSHIP TO ACCELERATE AND ADVANCE BBM’S CONSUMER BUSINESS GLOBALLY BlackBerry Limited announced a strategic alliance with PT Elang Mahkota Teknologi Tbk. (Emtek, IDX:EMTK) that will provide cross-platform BBM users with access to enriched content and services. This landmark partnership accelerates BlackBerry’s vision to advance BBM for the consumer market through a licensing agreement with Emtek Group that enables the company to develop new BBM applications and services for Android, iOS and Windows Phones.

To strengthen the alliance, Emtek’s digital content arm KMK Online will establish an office in the Toronto area to work closely with BlackBerry. KMK

Online has a wide breadth of media assets that will be combined with more than 20 of Emtek’s businesses and investments to bring significant value and services to BBM. These investments span across broadcast television, Web properties, content production and artists. This means, in the coming months, users will have access to a plethora of content such as national free-to-air (FTA) television stations, one of the leading online video platforms, three exclusive production houses and a library of more than 100,000 hours of TV and premium content, just to name a few.

LeEco becomes Coolpad’s largest shareholder

Ericsson Launches 5G Plug-Ins to Equip Today’s Networks for 5G

LeEco has become Coolpad’s largest shareholder after it purchased another 11% of the latter’s shares, according to a deal announcement on June 17th. LeEco bought the 11% Coolpad shares from Data Dreamland, the former largest shareholder of Coolpad, with 1.047 billion HKD (US$135 million). After the transaction, LeEco holds a total 28.9% of Coolpad’s shares and becomes the largest shareholder of China’s top four domestic mobile brand. On the same day, Mr. Jia Yueting, founder and owner of LeEco also confirmed the deal at a speech at Russia’s St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

Before the deal, LeEco was Coolpad’s 2nd largest shareholder after it invested 2.74billion. The integration is looking to become the strongest Chinese smartphone league, and will also allow LeEco to have a stronger voice and influence in the smartphone industry.

Mobility JuLY 2016

5G subscription uptake will commence in 2020 and is expected to be faster than for 4G.The development of 5G is being driven by new use cases that will impact both consumers and industries.

New applications and use cases anticipated for 5G include safe, self-driving cars, remote controlled robots, haptic feedback-enabled drones and fixed wireless access – rivalling fiber capacity –for residential homes. As a result, mobile operators are today planning for their 5G future.

Ericsson is already working with more than 20 leading mobile operators worldwide on 5G networking and use cases, including 5G field trials in 2016. To facilitate rapid evolution of 5G access networks and the successful adoption of5Gservices, Ericsson has announced 5G Plug-Ins, which are software-driven innovations that bring essential 5G technology concepts to today’s cellular networks.

12

News

Deepak Kabu Appointed as CEO of Ziox Mobiles

Ziox Mobiles has announced appointment of Deepak Kabu as the Chief Executive Officer for Ziox Mobiles. Deepak moves in from Intex where he was leading the organization as General Manager. His focus in his current role will be on increasing Ziox’s presence in the market, spearheading the transformational agenda which the brand intends to do. With nearly two decades of experience in Distribution, Marketing and Sales - Deepak has exponentially contributed to the growth of the ‘Intex’ brand across the country, having strived to grow it from the grassroots to ensuring last mile connectivity. Ziox Mobiles is a brand of Sun Airvoice Pvt. Ltd which understanding the requisites of a developing economy. The company aims to expand aggressively with its ethical approach towards product distribution, market handling and other business practices.

Innovation and dedicated customer satisfaction are practices they swear by.

Vodafone Brings Global Design Experience to Mini Stores In NCR

Vodafone India, staying true to its commitment to deliver seamless retail and customer experience, begins to upgrade all its Vodafone mini stores to treat customers with technology and services at par with any Global design store. Following the success of its Global Design stores and to provide world-class service experience, Vodafone is extending the concept to its mini stores (franchisee stores) beginning with stores at Malviya Nagar & Lodhi Road, New Delhi. The upgraded mini store retail concept is designed and equipped to be warm and customer friendly, to meet the evolving needs and expectations of the customers. This store has been specifically adapted and customized after testing and validating a full suite of customer insights, which are relevant to customer needs in India.

Microsoft Online Store Launches with Tata CLiQ to Strengthen E-commerce Presence in India Microsoft Corp announced the launch of its Microsoft Online Store with Tata CLiQ – the recently launched e-commerce portal of Tata group – to sell Microsoft products through the e-commerce chain’s phygital model. The Microsoft Online Store will allow Microsoft fans and consumers across the country to enjoy an easy access to Microsoft’s wide range of productivityenhancing products. Merchandise available on the brand store will include an assortment of Microsoft products such

as tablets, PCs, software and phones. The consumers will be able to buy their favourite Microsoft products and services using innovative services such as click online & PIQ up at store, return to store and ship from store through a large on-ground store network of partner brands. TataCLiQ.com phygital services will be available across 500 plus stores of 12 partner brands. In addition to Surface Pro4, customers will also be able to buy Office 365 subscription, Lumia 550 and Lumia 650 on TataCLiQ.com at attractive prices.

Amosta introduces identity managemnet solutions

Tata Communications launches new solution for mobile network operators

The biggest challenge at any workplace or homes is lack of trust between employee / employer , Landlord / Tenant , House owners / Domestic helps. This lack of trust is valid considering growing incidences of thefts , murders , frauds and terrorism. Amosta in strategic alliance with Humari Suraksha is focused in bridging this gap of trust by promoting validated identity cards for workers / staff / Tenants / blue collared workers / domestic help etc. It is a fact that 99% of staff / workers are honest but because of 1% anti-social elements everyone is looked at with distrust. Amosta has introduced a platform where the concerned employee / tenant / worker is given an identity card after taking their data (41 parameters including name, age, DOB, native place, 4 personal references, 3 personal references, finger prints, body marks, color of hair, eyes, skin etc.

Mobility JuLY 2016

Tata Communications launches Wi-Fi+, a new Wi-Fi cloud communication solution, which enables mobile network operators’ customers to access the internet for calling, messaging, and data applications more seamlessly than ever. Through access to more than 21 million Wi-Fi hotspots globally, the new solution allows mobile network operators (MNOs) to offer their customers a high-quality mobile experience – whether at home or abroad – and generate additional revenues from Wi-Fi services.

Costing just a few dollars per month per user to mobile network operators, Wi-Fi+ enables mobile network operators to bring their customers unlimited calling, messaging and data over high-quality, secure Wi-Fi. It harnesses Tata Communications’ Cloud RTC expertise and iPass’s more than 21 million Wi-Fi hotspots in more than 100 countries, creating a huge meshed network of borderless, global connectivity.

14

LaunchPad

Honor launches Sony launches its first “X” series the much awaited smartphones, Xperia X and XA Driving on its vision for the future of communications, Honor 5C smartphone and Honor Sony India unveiled its all new “X” series smartphones with the launch of – Xperia X and Xperia XA. These advanced T1 7.0 tablet

Honor, Huawei’s Smartphone e-brand for digital natives, launched the Honor 5C in India. The highly anticipated product packs the

unmatched Kirin 650- 16nm processor which is the fastest processor available in the segment. In line with it philosophy of “Dare to MAIN256Perform” the Honor 5C promises enhanced performance, faster processing and optimum battery usage.

Honor 5C, will be available in three colors – gold, silver and grey). Pre-orders at the Honor store and Flipkart start from 15:00 hours on 22nd June 2016.

Portronics Launches “Muffs XT”

Portronics has launched one of the most amazing bluetooth headphones– Muffs XT in its on-ear bluetooth headphone series. What is unique about Muffs-XT is the combination of Clarity – Comfort – Convenience for that perfect u l t i m a t e personalized music experience. With a built-in microphone and earpad mounted controls, MuffsXT gives you complete control on your music and phone calls. Muffs-XT gives you 12+ hours of non-stop music on a single recharge as it uses the low-power consuming Bluetooth ver 4.1, which also has less interference with 4G signals than lower versions.

At the same time, one does not have to worry about compatibility with lower Bluetooth smartphones/tabs/ laptops as Muffs-XT works well with them too.

Mobility JuLY 2016

smartphones are designed to further elevate the smartphone experience for its consumers.

Amongst many revolutionary innovations, the Xperia X and Xperia XA brings refined design language, advanced imaging capabilities, contoured software functionality and unparalleled connectivity with a host of experiences.

Redesigned for creating increasingly personalised and intelligent products and services, these all new stylish smartphones offer unified design with beautifully crafted body. First “X” Series smartphones: Xperia X and Xperia XA The Xperia X series embodies Sony Mobile’s new brand vision through adding new layers of intelligent technology across popular and acclaimed Xperia features: camera, battery and design, to make every day smarter and simpler.

Zebronics launches the best budget Sound Bar: Zebronics Juke Bar 2

With the success of Juke bar came its successor, Zebronics, a brand known for its diversified technological innovations to create enriching experiences, announces the addition to its sound bar range with ‘Zeb Juke Bar 2’ which is not just Wireless but effortless too with great sound only for Rs. 4949/ – . With the room full of sound, and the World of Wireless Music Zeb Juke Bar 2, is born out of a desire for elegance with glossy front panel and the ultra slim profile to add new dimension to your home cinema set up not only in sound but also in looks. Although slim the incredible sound is really something to behold. The sophisticated matt black finish and high gloss LED display adds a sophisticated touch to your home cinema set up.

Envent unveils portable Bluetooth speakers

Envent launched new range of Bluetooth speakers under their LiveFree sub brand. These two marvels LiveFree 570 and LiveFree 530, are fully-equipped with latest features and tech-

nologies for on-the-go music listeners. These Bluetooth speakers bring forward a set of avant-garde features that includes long-lasting battery power, light weight, voicecalling, water-resistance, dust resistant and more, all packed in a stylish, strong and compact body. These speakers are launched exclusively with Flipkart and are available on special launch prices of INR 3,999 & INR 2,499 respectively.

Hyve Launches Two Androidbased Smart phones in Indian Market Hyve - a mobility startup, successfully launched two Android- based smartphones, namely- Buzz and Storm. The two smartphones are aimed to extend delight,

Syska Accessories launches India’s first Qualcomm Quick charge

Syska Accessories, brings whole new imaginative directions with the launch of India’s first QC support ‘Power Elite 100 (QC)’ 10050mAh Power Bank that has it all; attractive design, moderate size, and the ability to charge faster being India’s first Qualcomm Quick charge support.Enriched with the next generation QualComm Quick charge, it refuels devices faster than conventional charging, so you can get a mobile charge on your phone just as fast as if you were tethered to a wall outlet. Indeed, it’s time to spend less time charging and more time doing!

with its best-in-class hardware, pure Android and PAN India pick-up & drop support services. Both Buzz & Storm will be available on leading e-Commerce portals, Amazon, Flipkart & Gadget360.

16

LaunchPad

STK plans to enter the Indian Smartphone Market, as part of its Global expansion plan

STK plans to enter the Indian Smartphone Market, as part of its Global expansion plan

Josh Mobiles Launches Budgetfriendly Dual SIM Feature Phone

After witnessing the successful launch of its smart phone Josh Nest last month, Josh Mobiles introduced its latest budget friendly feature phone ‘Emerald,’ equipped with powerful 1400 mAh battery for best performance and power packed features, enriching the user experience. Centered on its high performance, stylish looks and durability, the phone is rightfully named Emerald! Emerald, comes with 2.4inch bright colored display backed by the power packed speakers also features auto call recording facility that records both incoming and outgoing calls with perfect sound precision.

HP India Unveils World’s Thinnest Laptop

HP India launched eagerly awaited and the most stylish Notebook of the year, Spectre 13 at an event that witnessed convergence of Art with Technology. Raising the bar for the premium PC experience, HP Spectre 13 is the world’s thinnest laptop – as thin as a AAA – battery at just 10.4 millimeter, weighing only 1.1 kg.

OPPO to Launch Selfie-Special A37 Smartphone in India

After seeing a positive growth and achieving great success in the mobile phone accessories market in India, STK, the London born brand now announces its plans to enter the evolving Indian handset market this month.

STK aims to bring intense action on ‘user experience’ with exceptional design and build with the support of a unique software and services ecosystem with a friendly user interface platform, as it seeks to establish the stronger foothold in the Indian Markets.

OPPO is all set to launch its latest selfie technology with a spectacular design. OPPO brings for its consumers the A37 which is equipped with two-high performance cameras, power-packed with an upgraded ColorOS 3.0, making it a superb all-around experience for users. The A37 brings users an outstanding selfie experience, even in low-light conditions. It uses a 5 MP front camera with a 1/4-inch sensor and OmniBSI+ (backside illumination), while its extremely large 1.4ìm pixels, the biggest available in this price segment, increase light sensitivity and reduce noise.

Coupled with the Screen Flash feature, which emits a flash from the display, these features ensure that the A37 takes bright and natural-looking selfies in any condition. The Beautify 4.0 technology has been optimized using data from millions of users, and now supports 7 different levels of intelligent beautification with two modes for different skin tones.This allows the A37 to capture your best look at any moment.

Xiaomi Launches 6.44 inch Smartphone Mi Max in India

Xiaomi launched Mi Max in India, its latest smartphone with the largest-ever battery and screen in its lineup to date. Priced from INR 14,999, Mi Max is set to redefine the 6-inch and above smartphone category in India, dramatically improving the experience of consuming content on the go.The company also unveiled MIUI 8 for India today, the next generation of its popular Androidbased operating system, with new features including Dual apps, Second space, Scrolling screenshots, Quick ball and T9 dialer with Hindi search.

Mobility JuLY 2016

In symphony with the stylish new Spectre 13, HP collaborated with celebrity designers Meera & Muzaffar Ali to launch the device in a uniquely choreographed fashion event showcasing an extraordinary collection inspired by the looks of HP Spectre 13. Blending stunning looks with top of the line performance, Spectre 13 is equipped with powerful Intel Core i5 and i7 processors, 8GB RAM and hyperbaric cooling technology that keeps the laptop cool and provides peak performance.

HyperX CloudX Gaming Headset Launched To have a decent headset that sounds good and looks good is never easy for Xbox Gamers.

Understanding what “elite” gamers needs, HyperX, a division of Kingston Technology, the independent world leader in memory products, today announced the launch of its CloudX Pro Gaming Headset in India, expanding the company’s console product offerings with its design specifically for Xbox convenience and style.

With an MRP of INR 9,999, the HyperX CloudX will be available in both, online and retails stores. It comes with

interchangeable velour ear cups, a 2M PC extension cable and a hard shell carrying case. HyperX first announced its partnership with Microsoft in January to create an official licensed headset for Xbox One.HyperX CloudX has durable silver aluminum frame and matte black finishes complement the Xbox Elite Wireless Controller for a stylish matching setup, along with an exclusive hard shell carrying case for protection and convenient portability.

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interaction

“Channels are what drive brands to sustain in the long run to be a part of consumer lives”

Mr. Vikas Jain

Managing Director, Ziox Mobiles

Z

iox Mobiles, under the aegis of Sun Airvoice Pvt. Ltd was incepted in the Year 2014, with a singular motto to break the boundaries while offering technologically superior products without compromising on the quality. Within a year, Ziox has built up an impressive product portfolio of distinguished products. Empowering consumers with affordable technology through the quality products - The brand has truly demonstrated quick and robust expansion since inception, showing profitability and growing sales since the first year of operations.

In an interaction with Mobility India the man at the helm Mr. Vikas Jain, Managing Director of Ziox Mobiles, shares the company’s vision and its roadmap.

As an old or a new player what is the first thing that comes to you before launching a new product?

Being a new player, it becomes important for us to understand why a product from the Ziox stables should exist and whether or not the device solves any problem for the consumer. Of course one needs to be aware of market sensibilities and what all features are offered by

Mobility JuLY 2016

the competition, but if it doesn’t address the consumer’s needs then it either needs to be upgraded with some Ziox specific features or not released from us in the first place. It is our endeavor to create technologically superior affordable devices without any quality compromises, and is something we always strive towards.

Do you feel consumer behavior in India has played a vital role in this segment in the recent times and they are ready to experiment with new brands?

Markets cannot exist without buyers and in the rapidly developing Indian context, evolved consumers. With the world now available at the touch of a button it is wrong to assume that a consumer will take whatever is offered to him.

A mobile phone is ceasing to be a luxury item and moving to be a core utility item where a device is so much more than just a calling device. The Indian consumer continually challenges categories in being better and especially so in a high involvement category like mobile phones. With so many players in the market, consumers are all the more careful with who they want to partner with and thus do a thorough background research before arriving at their decisions- though at the lower price rungs the final purchases still have basis retailer recommendations but there is a visible shift in moving to buyer-end checks than seller-end recommendations.

How important is Channel for your brand? Or do you feel Online is the best way to sustain in this market?

Channels are what drive brands to sustain in the long run to be a part of consumer lives. Not debunking the online proliferation totally but it is still a nascent channel, considering the reach that online can have- even in the case of high priced devices, one may buy online but the physical trial is done in the conventional brick-and-mortar format. In our case, we are operating in the sub-5K segments, thus, physical channel partnerships are very important as that is what gives us Width-of-Distribution taking us to be present in consumer consideration sets.

What is your focus on Tier-2 and tier-3 cities?

The segment we are operating in leads us to the mentioned topographies and with the intent of being present as near to the consumer as possible- direct distribution, i.e. general trade, becomes the key for us.. This is where majority of the market is moving.

In the coming years what will be the latest technology trend in the smartphones that will drive this segment?

Anything new now is old tomorrow and obsolete the day after. With trends moving to better internet connectivity at the moment, the next round of innovations have to be on activating what high speed internet puts into the devices, e.g. for a music aficionado- bass initiated speakers, for a gamerhigher RAM and graphic capabilities or 3D implementations.

Now as most of the brands have boarded the “Make in India” wagon, how far you have travelled till now?

We are a 100% Indian manufacturing setup with an existing capacity of 12 lines and 2 more factories in the pipeline. While some components are currently being sourced internationally, we soon plan to have manufacturing capacities for all the components in India.

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special story

The New

Trend setters of Smartphone Industry

S

martphones have become an essential thing in India, whether it is for personal use or business. And not only the number of smartphone users are growing in India, but also the phone companies are growing as well. More than 25 Brands are recently Competeing in Indian Smartphone Market. In the last couple of weeks we have seen even more Chinese manufacturers jumping into this market. We may see some more brands coming in 2016 and the whole smartphone market expand even more. The expected sales for smartphones in 2016-2017 in the Indian Market may cross 200 million

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smartphones.

The battle is getting very tough and to sustain and scale up is going to be difficult for new entrants. Also for the major players in India, to play the strategic game extremely well, particularly when it comes to developing strategies to defend their competitive advantage, is getting challenging day by day.

And as this list growing day by day we shortlisted a few latest devices which are recently launched in India with a fresh new approach to improve quality and usability.

special story

Creo Mark 1 First in our list is Creo Mark 1, this Bangalore based firm has come a long way. Formerly known as Mango Man Consumer Electronics Pvt. Ltd., CREO’s first product offering was Teewe – an HDMI media streaming device. They have now secured funding from Sequoia and others to take on smartphone makers and mobile software developers. The company recently launched its Mark 1 handset which runs Fuel OS, a custom Android fork that promises a new feature every month.

The Mark 1 is a sleek metal body device that is protected

by Gorilla Glass 3 on both sides and 2.5D curves, comes in Gun Metal Black with a 5.5” screen and a Quad HD display yielding an astonishing 534 PPI. Makes it one of the good looking phone in this segment. The phone comes with a top-of-theline 21MP Sony IMX 230 Exmor rear camera and 8MP front camera and is powered by a 1.95 GHz True Octa Core Helio X10 Processor with 3GB RAM and a 3100mAh fast-charging Li-Po battery. With 32GB of storage, expandable up to 128GB, Mark 1 offers convenient and smart Dual SIM Slots enabled with 4G connectivity.

Specs 5.50-inches (1440x2560 pixels) screen, Gorilla Glass 3 on Both sides, 21 MP rear camera, 8 MP front camera, Android L 5.1.1, Customised UI Fuel OS, 1.9GHz octa-core CPU, PowerVR G6200 GPU, 3 GB RAM, 32 GB memory (expandable to 128 GB), 3100 mAh battery

What’s new The Mark 1’s core promise of “A New Phone Every Month” manifests itself in the first-of-its-kind community Inclusive Update system, which keeps the Mark 1 new by introducing functional and brand new features every month. What’s more, these features rolled out monthly will come from the very users who share the common goal of Making Android Better. ReFuel the one-stop app powering the updates, acts as a centrestage for Feature Suggestions, Forums, Support, Mark 1 tips, and significantly, delivering concrete communication about an update before you choose to install it, via rich graphics and featurettes.

Unique OS Creo has come with lots of cool, smart and innovative features with Fuel OS… .

Sense: This is an unified search experience built exclusively in Fuel OS. Sense facilitates the local search of contacts, applications documents, music files, emails etc.

Sense can be activated from anywhere in the phone by a simple Double Tap on the Home Button.

Echo: This built-in answering machine feature will never let you miss a call as it can receive your calls when you can’t answer. It is a type of answering machine that will help to manage your calls. This feature comes very handy when you have to manage your calls while in a meeting or driving.

Retriever: It adds a layer of security for when your Mark 1 is stolen. You can set it up to instantly send an email alert when a new SIM is inserted into it, along with the last known location of the device as well as the number of the new SIM even after the factory reset..

Pros : Great design, Fuel OS, Great features Cons : Bulky, inconsistent camera, price Mobility JuLY 2016

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special story

Le 2 and Le Max 2 LeEco has launched two new smartphones in India, the Le 2 and Le Max 2. The Chinese technology company trying to combine content and hardware in its Le devices. And LeEco now has its own e-commerce portal called LeMall for India as well.

Both the handsets Le 2 and Le Max 2 have a metal unibody design, and looks very similar. The only difference you can notice from outside is that the Le 2 has a 5.5-inch full HD display, while Max 2 gets a 5.7-inch 2K display. The largedisplay size of Le Max 2 makes it little heavier as compare to Le2. Le 2 is the budget offering by LeEco and with great specs and features its is a hot cake in this segment. Only worry is that you can’t use any regular headphones with it and while charging you won’t be able to enjoy music with the headphone. Other than that it is a device that will impress all with its attractive price and specs.

And the Le Max 2 launched in India in two versions: 4GB RAM+32GB storage and 6GB RAM+64GB storage. The 4GB RAM version is priced at Rs 22,999, while the 6GB one costs Rs 29,999. Le Max 2 runs the top-end Qualcomm Snapdragon

Specs Le2: 5.5 in, 1920 x 1080 pixels, 16 M effective pixels, 8 megapixels, Qualcomm Snapdragon 652, 3 GB LPDDR3 RAM,32 GB ROM LeMax 2: 5.7 in, Android 6.0 Marshmallow with EUI 5.6, Snapdragon 820 quad-core 2.15 GHz, 21MP with 6P lens & dualtone flash, 64GB, 6GB RAM, 3100 mAh battery

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820 processor, clocked at 2.15 Ghz. It will be little tough for Le Max 2 to compete with One Plus 3, S7 and Mi5. The device runs on EUI 5.6 based on Android Marshmallow and is very intuitive. For power-users the Le Max 2 will not be a disappointment at all. As Le Max comes in two versions its easy for you pick one of them according to your budget. If you are not a One Plus fan and want to use equally powerful flagship device with lost of video streaming features then this is a right device for you.

What’s new The biggest change with these two phones is that now they support Type-C USB headphones and it is an end of the 3.5 mm headphone jack. Which we feel is a very bold step by a new entrant.

PROS : Premium design, Plenty of power, Affordable price CONS : Only 64GB, no microSD slot, Camera could be better

special story

Coolpad Max Coolpad did such a great job designing this smartphone, strating from its great elegent packaging. The phone comes in Metallic body with, 2.5D curved-edge glass display, It has dual speaker grills on the bottom side with a USB port in between. There is a 3.5mm audio jack on top side. The back side hosts 13 Megapixel camera and fingerprint sensor. The back also comes with two thick antenna lines. The box comes with a micro USB cable, power adapter, SIM pin, earphones, screen protector, back cover, user manuals, and of course the handset itself. The phone will be available in royal gold and rose gold colours option. The Coolpad Max smartphone flaunts a 5.5-inch full HD (1920*1080 pixels) IPS display and Full Metal Unibody. Under the hood is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 octa-core 1.5 GHz Processor paired and 4GB of RAM. Also on offer is 64GB internal storage. It sports a 13-megapixel camera on the rear and a 5-megapixel camera

on the front. Also on offer is a 2,800mAh battery, a fingerprint scanner on the back and connectivity options like dual-SIM card slots, 4G LTE support, Wi-Fi, and USB.

What’s New Users get an encrypted “private space” for sensitive apps and data. You can enter the private space either through a shortcut in the dock or a bar just under the quick shortcuts in the notifications shade. The mode is useful as a way to avoid carrying two phones.

Pros : Built quality, premium looks, Dual mode, fingerprint scanner, good camera Cons : Price

Specs 5.5-inch 2.5D curved Full HD (1920x100) display, Gorilla Glass 4 coating, Android 5.1 Lollipop with Coolpad UI, 1.5GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 CPU, 4GB, 64GB storage, microSD support by up to 64GB, 13MP rear camera (dual-tone LED flash), 5MP front camera, Wi-Fi, 3G/4G/2G, GPS, Bluetooth, USB Type C charging port, USB OTG, 2,800mAh

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special story

LG’s modular G5

The most ambitious phone of recent years and it is a first modular phone from a major manufacturer that you can actually buy and use like a normal handset. By press of a button the bottom of the G5 will pop out, allowing you to yank the attachment off the battery, and when you clip the battery into the new module you have to push it all back together. The LG G5 is an altogether different kind of handset. Not only that but Its aluminium build looks and the two cameras on its back are a pleasure to use. LG’s innovative Modular Type design gives the LG G5 the ability to transform into a digital camera, Hi-Fi player and more, while evolving to marry the traditional removable battery in a full metal uni-body design. With the G5, LG introduced a paradigm-shifting smartphone ecosystem — the LG Playground. As part of the ecosystem, LG brought forth a wide range of companion de-

vices, aptly called LG Friends, to deliver fun while providing a whole new mobile experience that transcends far beyond the traditional smartphone boundaries. The very diverse range of Companion devices with LG G5 includes LG 360 VR, LG 360 CAM, LG Rolling Bot, LG Tone PlatinumTM, H3

by B&O PLAY, LG Smart Controller and LG Friends Manager.

What’s New LG innovates and brings a brand new design concept in the smartphone segment, with dual cameras, and modular capabilities. The LG G5 is an incredibly ambitious device from LG, and it’s by far the most unique smartphone till date.

Pros : Innovative Design, Dual Camera, removable battery, fast fingerprint Cons : Price

Specs Processor: Quad-core 2.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 820, Screen Size: 5.3in, Screen resolution: 2,560x1,440, Rear camera: 16 + 8 megapixels, Storage (free): 32GB (23.5GB), Wireless data: 3G, 4G, Size: 149x74x7.7mm, Weight: 159g, Operating system: Android 6.0.1

OnePlus 3

Whether you’re a OnePlus fan or not, you will love this device for sure. If you talk about its design or its specs it has it all. OnePlus has done it again, though we didn’t liked the One Plus 2 as much we liked the first variant, but now we can easily say that this is the best ever phone by OnePlus. Its 7.4mm-thick aluminium frame makes this handset a delight to both look at and hold. It’s great to see OnePlus including NFC in its third-generation flagship, but expandable storage will surely disappoint some. Inside the aluminum frame it has the 820 processor and 6GB of RAM which make it a futureproofed device whether you are a power user or an average user.

The OnePlus 2 model was available in 16GB and 64GB versions; there’s only one OnePlus 3 and it has 64GB of storage. Performance wise we can say that this device may not have any ground breaking features but the whole package simply outperformed many devices in its price bracket and even in the premium segment.

What’s new: What’s new as it didn’t break enough new ground but finally they have managed to ditching its irritating invite system.

Pros : Great build quality, Value for money, Design Cons : Battery life Mobility JuLY 2016

Specs 5.5-inch 1080p Super AMOLED screen, 6GB dualchannel DDR4 RAM ,64GB storage, Android 6.0.1, OxygenUI, Snadragon 820 CPU.

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Channel focus

“Oppo and Vivo have limited but widely needed models, supported by good service” Mars Distribution is a New Delhi-based distributor of mobile phones of Oppo and Vivo brands. Vinal Chawla and Vikas Gupta, Proprietors, Mars Distribution, in an interaction with Mobility magazine share their distribution company’s strategy and philosophy.

Q. Please brief us when you started and what is your smartphone brand portfolio at present.

A. We started in 2014 with OPPO brand. Right now we are dealing only with Oppo and Vivo.

Q. Lot of Chinese brands are appearing in the market?

What new brands do you want to add?

A. We do not want to partner with small brands and those brands which launch online. Next, we want to partner only with reputed and the latest technology brands.

Q. Earlier sales used to be good and margins were better. Now too many brands are bringing down the margins. How do you face this situation?

A. Today a lot of cheap brands are selling in the market, and they are cutting into the market share of big brands. But these cheap products have a lot of service-related problems for the customers. As I said, we only tie up with strong brands.

The Oppo and Vivo brands are offering good service. Their investment plans are very good and management strategies are effective.

Q. How do you find response to the Oppo and Vivo models in the market?

A. Oppo and Vivo have grown very fast in the last 1 year.

They have limited models but good models which users find convenient both in terms of price and features. And they

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provide excellent after-sales-service, their products had good quality and they have dynamic dealer and reseller network.

In fact, promoting limited and good models is a better strategy than launching too many models. Too many models just bring down the overall market share. And as I said we do not partner with the brands which have online sales channel that clashes with the offline channel.

Another plus point with Vivo is they have not employed any National Distributor and the company is directly working here with regional distributors. That is good because National Distributors often come up with their own often which often differ from those of the vendor. This often leads to clash of ideas that will negatively affect the brand’s market share and growth.

Q. What problems do you face with the online channels?

A. Online retailing upsets the MOP and this is very bad to the traditional channel players like us. So we partner only with those brands like Oppo and Vivo which do not have online channels.

Q. What are your plans for the next 3 years and where you want to be?

A. We have a network of 400 retailers and we want to grow and expand more in the smartphone segment in the coming years.

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interview

For us, the journey of decade is a new beginning:

A total of more than 50 million products sold in India by iBall

In conversation with Mobility Mr. Sandeep Parasrampuria Director and CEO of iBall

the launch of over 75 products and technologies for the first time in India exclusively by iBall.

Some of the key milestones for the brand underlines, ranking amongst the top 3 brands in most of the product categories. In the recent report by IDC, it confirmed iBall’s market leadership being No. 1 brand in Tablet PCs in India. Additionally, the brand holds a strong foothold in most of the product categories in India.

Since its inception, the brand has grown by leaps and bounds, with strong distribution across India, leveraging the endorsement by Brand Ambassador, Kareena Kapoor. It has entered the minds and hearts of the consumers. For us, the journey of decade is a new beginning!

What are the innovations and differentiators of iBall?

To start with, could you tell us about iBalls journey so far?

Back in 2001, we had made humble beginnings with a single product, the ‘Mouse’. It was only the single-minded focus that we collectively displayed which led us, to landmarks and achievements in the coming years. Today, with an enviable range of products – technology accessories, mobile phones, networking products, security solutions, tablets and newly launched laptops, iBall stands strong with 350 products across 27 categories in less than 15 years.

With commitment to quality and valuefor-money proposition at our backbone, iBall has actually challenged the status quo of the Industry that Innovation comes with a price.The brand in the last decade has also become synonym to ‘Innovation’ with the several first timers to several of our product range including

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iBall is considered as one of the most innovative and fastest growing brands in majority of its product categories. With the constant endeavor to build products, understanding the needs of the Indian Consumers, iBall has built a robust portfolio of products with the latest affordable technology. We believe in the philosophy of premium quality with affordable prices to meet the growing demands of the consumers.

Next is the key to innovation.

We build state-of-the-art products never seen in India.

We have introduced 75 products for the first time in India and also 3 products for first time in the world, which makes the brand offerings exclusive to the Industry. For instance, the First Senior Citizen Phone – Aasaan, First Women Safety Phone Udaan and now iBall CompBook India’s first laptop at the best budgeted prices, are some of our offerings which

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bridged if technology is made affordable. Syncing the same thoughts, iBall is privileged to be worldwide partners with Intel and Microsoft, devoted to drive forward the digital revolution in India with World class products and offerings. We are working very closely with the technological partners and have several product offerings in pipeline exclusive to Indian consumers.

Brief us about iBall’s present and newly planned products in Asian and African markets

revolutionizes the perspective to the Brand and also the Industry.

Please provide iBall’s revenue uplift portfolio

Currently, our products are present in Indian market.iBall has launched products under each its brands in India. The products launched thus far span under 26 product categories under 6 broad product lines – iBall Baton (Networking range of products), iBall Andi (Smart Phones), iBall Cobalt (smart phones), iBall Slide (Tablet PCs), iBall Guard (Security products) & iBall CompBook (Laptops). A total of more than 50 million products sold in India.

The areas include finding products that are in line with the existing brand offerings, improving existing successful product offerings and promoting them accordingly, focusing on trending markets.

How much excited are you about Govt’s Make in India initiatives? Will it help iBall in anyway? How will it affect the Indian handset manufacturers?

We are very positive about Govt’s Make in India initiative.

Manufacturing locally in India has and will enable companies to make significant savings on import duty and logistics costs, which remain considerably high (up to 25-30% of total landed cost). It shall help brands to build cost effective solutions at best affordable prices. There will also be a significant reduction in lead-time for deliveries to the customer, especially in the case of complex engineering or high-tech products. This will allow companies to be far more responsive and flexible to changing customer needs.

Apart from which the initiative shall help the country in numerous ways such as generation of employment, skill enhancement and contribution of economy to the nation. The entire move shall, live to the dream of the nation to make India as one of the largest electronic manufacturing hub.

The latest strategic association with Intel and Microsoft iBall has always remained at the forefront of technological developments.

Our latest products at iBall are focused on innovation with pricing, as we understand the needs of Young India and most of the digital gaps can be

What are your big plans for 2016? How many products we will see from iBall this year?

We aim to utilize the R&D Division to further strengthen our product portfolio, making it more consumer centric, suited to Indian operating conditions and user preferences. We also are concentrating strongly on Tier 2/3 Cities with the newest product offerings in focus.

Lastly, developing the products in the emerging markets with Value for Money product strategies. Like we always say Your Eyeball view. Our Technology new.

What are the current industry trends and how iBall is dealing with these trends?

With technological advancements and introduction of digital revolution in the country, the Indian consumer electronics industry has made rapid strides.

Over the last few years, the IT Hardware Industry has witnessed a great level of awareness and knowledge among consumers, and this is greatly influencing the market.

Smaller cities are showing great response too. The mature e-commerce market has also fueled the growth of the Industry.

Technological trends are dynamically changing at an unprecedented speed. The Internet of Things (IoT) is the future of the Industry. Essentially, new products will emerge that will offer the consumer and businesses a solution that will enhance the way they do things daily.

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