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AppCrazy Publication

Volume 4 • Issue 6 • September 2017 • Pages 32 • `30

COVER STORY

READ-TRY-EXPERIENCE

Bitcoin

A beginner's guide to

TED

TES

e Not 8 K ed Spe e 24

Pag

APP OF THE MONTH

TALLY FOR

GST Get APPS UNVEILED App:

EDITOR'S CHOICE

HOME CREDIT INDIA In Conversation with

INDUSTRY CONNECT

Monetization Simplified

Kshitij Parashar, South Asia Marketing Head, U-Dictionary

W

ho says only the government has a control over the currency? We are talking about decentralized digital currencies that are just growing and growing in value. After the popular WannaCry Ransomware attack, which happened in May 2017, the cryptocurrency ‘Bitcoin’ has caught almost everyone’s attention across the globe. The question that has raised many eyebrows that time was ‘why are hackers demanding payments in Bitcoins?’ and even before that ‘what’s this Bitcoin?’ Well, since then Bitcoin has become the centre of attraction for many, including investors, hackers, and the government.

In fact, Bitcoin has surpassed key price levels of $2,000, $3,000, and $4,000 this year. In Indian Rupees, the current value of one Bitcoin is above ` 3,00,000. Notably, the total market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies surged from roughly $17.7 billion at the start of the year, to over $172.2 billion. Even when the digital currency ‘Bitcoin’ is setting new records every day, the majority of people still don't know much about Bitcoin. Noting that, we have compiled the basics of Bitcoin in this issue, answering questions like what is Bitcoin, how it works, what affects its price, how to buy and sell bitcoins, and so on. To know more, please check out our Cover Story from Page No. 6.

This month the ‘App of the Month’ title goes to the ‘Tally for GST’, a one-stop destination to know everything about the Goods and Services Tax (GST), including the latest updates.

And, if you are looking for a dual camera smartphone under ` 10,000, then you must read our Zopo Speed X review on Page No. 25.

The list is not over yet. There is a lot more to explore in this evergrowing world of mobile apps, including the top 10 features of Android 8.0 Oreo, a brand new version of the Android OS. Grab your copy now! Appy Reading

6

Cover Story

18 Kshitij

In Conversation with

Parashar

South Asia Marketing Head

U-Dictionary

21

Industry Connect Learn about

An innovative Mobile Survey Monetization SDK program

24 New Releases 26

Gadgets Corner TESTED Lenovo K8 Note Zopo Speed X

A quick look at top 10 features of Android 8.0 Oreo Microsoft Kaizala: An app for teams to communicate within and outside the organization. mAadhaar: Store your Aadhaar Card digitally.

Geetika Hemal Vora

PR Head

: Yogesh Aggarwal

APP OF THE MONTH

TALLY FOR

There is no doubt that when we think of buying an accounting software for our new/existing business, the first name that comes to our mind is TALLY. And, with the latest release “Tally.ERP 9 Release 6”, Tally empowers your business to be GST compliant from day one.

The company has not limited itself to merely delivering a solution to assist businesses with GST returns. Tally Solutions is also working extensively to help educate businesses about GST and how they can become GST compliant, through various initiatives like ‘Tally for GST’ mobile app, GST blog, GST camps and kendras, to name a few.

‘Tally for GST’ mobile app is your pocket companion for all you need to know about GST.

For more information, please visit www.tallysolutions.com/gst

GST Available on:

Price: Free

Let's have a quick look at Tally for GST app's key features: RICH SOURCE OF INFORMATION ABOUT THE GST: This app is a one stop destination to know everything about GST and get the latest updates. Whether you are a tax

consultant, a business owner or an accounting professional, you must download this app to know more about GST and to stay updated with the recent developments and changes.

GET THE LATEST UPDATES: The app timely notifies you about the latest GST updates, news, due dates, and so on so that you don't have to rush at the last moment.

UPGRADE TO GST-READY TALLY SOFTWARE: If you're already an existing Tally user and upgrading to GST-ready “Tally.ERP 9 Release 6”, then the app includes a step-by-step procedure to follow for a smooth transition, along with detailed information on how to set up GST rates, record GST sales and print invoices, update sales and purchase ledgers for GST compliance, for example.

GET TALLY.ERP 9 RELEASE 6: If you are new to Tally and want to buy GST-ready “Tally.ERP 9 Release 6”, you can watch a product demo video in the app and buy the software right there as per your business requirements. In case, you are not interested in making a purchase online, you can then search for an authorized Tally Partner near your location within the app.

September 2017 5

COVER STORY

THE ITCOIN ENIGMA

D

igital currency Bitcoin has surged nearly 400% in 2017 with its price climbing to as much as $4,800 (over `3 lakh) on August 31st, 2017. Bitcoin has surpassed key price levels of $2,000, $3,000, and $4,000 this year. Notably, the total market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies surged from roughly $17.7 billion at the start of the year, to over $172.2 billion.

The cryptocurrencies market is growing for several reasons, according to analysts. A steady supply of Initial Coin 1 Offerings (ICOs) , a rising

1

number of funds that trade cryptocurrencies and the sustained interest of investors are all contributing to this trend.

Though digital currency ‘Bitcoin’ is booming across the globe, the majority of people are still unaware of its existence, trade, rules, and the risks associated with it. Noting that, the editorial team at Apps Unveiled decided to do a small story on Bitcoin, answering questions like what is Bitcoin, how it works, what affects its price, how to buy and sell bitcoins, and so on.

An Initial Coin Offering (ICO) is an unregulated means of crowdfunding via use of cryptocurrency.

6 September 2017

A BEGINNER'S GUIDE TO BITCOIN………

September 2017 7

COVER STORY

LET’S GET STARTED WITH

WHAT'S BITCOIN…..

Bitcoin, introduced in the year 2009, is a decentralized digital currency that is created and held electronically.

It is the first example of cryptocurrency.

QUICKFACTS 4

A cryptocurrency is a form of digital money where encryption techniques are used to regulate the generation of units of currency and verify the transfer of funds without a central bank or regulating authority.

Bitcoin follows the ideas set out in a white paper by the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto, whose true identity has yet to be verified. Bitcoin offers the promise of lower transaction fees than traditional online payment mechanisms. The bitcoin network is operated by its users with no central authority or middlemen. This means, no single authority or financial institution holds or controls the bitcoin network just like no one owns the internet. All Bitcoin transactions are verified by network nodes and recorded in a public distributed ledger called Blockchain.

4

New cryptocurrency can be created any time.

4

Invented by an unknown programmer or a group of programmers under the pseudonym of Satoshi Nakamoto (in 2009), Bitcoin (BTC) is the world's first digital decentralized currency and payment network.

The system is peer-to-peer, that is, users can transact directly without an intermediary like a bank, a credit card company or a clearing house.

Bitcoin balances are kept digitally using public and private “keys,” just long strings of numbers and letters, that are linked through the mathematical encryption algorithm that was used to create them.

The public key (comparable to a bank account number) serves as the address that can be shared with anyone and to which others may send Bitcoin. The private key (comparable to an ATM PIN) is used to authorize Bitcoin transmissions.

Because the private key is the “ticket” that allows someone to spend bitcoins, it is important to keep it guarded and have multiple backups of it.

4

Nobody owns the Bitcoin network much like no one owns the technology behind email or the Internet.

4

Why would I use bitcoin? The answer is: As a global digital currency you can send bitcoin to anyone, anywhere in the world without worrying about cross border remittance fees. Bitcoin offers the promise of lower transaction fees than traditional

8 September 2017

online payment mechanisms.

Moreover, you can spend bitcoins to buy goods and services all over the world. A growing number of Businesses / Service Providers are gradually accepting payments in Bitcoins.

4

Bitcoin has not just been a trendsetter, ushering in a wave of cryptocurrencies built on a decentralized peer-to-peer network, it's become the de facto standard for cryptocurrencies. As of today, there are more than 900 cryptocurrencies available over the internet.

4

Bitcoin (BTC) is currently the largest blockchain network, followed by Ethereum (ETH), Bitcoin Cash (BCC / BCH), Ripple (XRP) and Litecoin (LTC). Note: In this Cover Story, our focus is only on Bitcoin as it is on the number one spot in terms of market capitalization, user base and popularity. Maybe we will do a story on other cryptocurrencies in the near future.

4

According to research produced

by Cambridge University in 2017, there are 2.9 to 5.8 million unique users using a cryptocurrency wallet, most of them using bitcoin.

THE CONCEPT OF A

BLOCKCHAIN‌..

All Bitcoin transactions are recorded in an open ledger called Blockchain, in a linear, time-stamped series of bundled transactions known as Blocks.

In simple words, Blockchain holds a decentralized record of all transactions that is updated and held by all users (also known as miners) of the Bitcoin network. Once a transaction is updated in the Blockchain, it can't be erased or modified, no matter what.

We could say that the Blockchain is similar to a ledger that a bank maintains to record its each and every transaction on a daily basis, which can't be modified in the future.

The only difference is that in the case of a bank, the ledger is controlled by the bank itself and is not accessible to anyone apart from the bank authorities, whereas Blockchain is a public distributed ledger, which means a copy of the Blockchain ledger file is shared between all the participants globally, also called miners. Even you can become a miner by simply downloading the open source bitcoin software.

Miners secure the Bitcoin network and process transactions. Without miners, Bitcoin would be vulnerable to attack and become worth nothing.

People do mining because they receive newly created Bitcoins in return for their efforts. {To know what is Bitcoin Mining, turn to Page no. 11}

HOW IT WORKS

1

A wants to send Bitcoins to B

4 Those in the network approve the transaction and validate it

2

5

The first Block is created online and represents the transaction

The Block is then added to the Chain which provides a permanent, nonrepudiable and transparent record of the transaction

3

This Block is broadcast to every party in the network

6

B receives the Bitcoins from A

B

September 2017 9

COVER STORY

WHAT AFFECTS

BITCOIN'S PRICE? Like everything, Bitcoin's price is determined by the law of supply and demand.

Bitcoin is traded for dollars, euros, yen, INR and other currencies in real time – 24 hours a day. The price of a bitcoin changes in real time based on the number of people who want to buy or sell it at a given moment.

This is similar to the manner in which the value of a stock or property can go up or down based on supply and demand. Bitcoin's value can be volatile compared to traditional currencies such as the US dollar because it is still an emerging digital currency.

How are bitcoins created?

The answer is BITCOIN MINING. Bitcoin mining is the process through which new bitcoins are released to come into circulation. Roughly, new bitcoins can be created every 10 minutes.

10 September 2017

What is Bitcoin Mining?

In simple terms, mining is the process of confirming transactions and adding them to a public ledger called Blockchain. In order to add a transaction to the Blockchain, the “miner” must solve an increasinglycomplex computational problem (sort of like a mathematical puzzle). Mining is open source, so anyone can confirm the transaction.

The first “miner” to solve the puzzle adds a “block” of transactions to the Blockchain. The way in which transactions, blocks, and the Blockchain work together ensures that no one individual can easily add or change a block at will.

Once a block is added to the Blockchain, all correlating transactions are permanent and a small transaction fee is added to the miner's wallet (along with newly created coins). Currently, this reward is 12.5 bitcoins every 10 minutes. The competition starts all over again once a winner is declared and a block is added to the Blockchain by the winning miner or a mining pool.

If you’re interested in Bitcoin Mining, then you may need to follow the following steps: Step 1: Get the Best Bitcoin Mining Hardware The first step of bitcoin mining requires you to acquire a Bitcoin Mining Hardware. In some cases, you may need to purchase mining hardware with bitcoins.

In the earliest days of bitcoin, it was possible to mine bitcoins with your computer CPU or a high speed video processor card, but that's a history now. Today, custom Bitcoin ASIC chip (which stands for Application-Specific Integrated Circuit) designed specifically for bitcoin mining offer performance up to 100x the capability of older systems.

Mining is competitive, and nowadays, all serious bitcoin mining is performed on dedicated Bitcoin Mining Hardware ASICs, usually in thermally-regulated data centers with access to low cost electricity. Think of a Bitcoin ASICs as specialized Bitcoin mining computers or Bitcoin mining machines.

QUICKFACTS 4 There are certain rules governing the creation of bitcoins; miners cannot just keep producing bitcoins as they please. In order to protect the value of the bitcoin system, only 21 million bitcoins can ever be produced by miners, regardless of the earth's population and its corresponding demand for bitcoins.

4 As of August 2017, there were around 16.5 million bitcoins in circulation.

4 Anyone with access to the internet and suitable Bitcoin Mining Hardware can participate in Bitcoin mining and become a miner.

4 Each time a miner who successfully solves the increasingly-complex mathematical puzzle according to the proof of work1 algorithm mines a “block2” on the blockchain and receives a block reward (a set amount of newly created bitcoins agreed upon by the network).

4 Currently, the winning miner or mining pool receives 12.5 bitcoins every 10 minutes. But, this reward value is originally set to get halved

every 210,000 blocks or roughly 4 years (in order to keep bitcoin inflation in check). The next halving will happen in mid-2020.

1

A Proof of Work is a piece of data which is difficult (costly, timeconsuming) to produce, but easy for others to verify and which satisfies certain requirements.

For example – guessing a combination to a lock is a proof to a challenge. It's very hard to produce as it requires you to guess many different combinations – but once produced it's easy to validate.

Just enter the combination and see if the lock opens. Bitcoin uses the proof of work concept to solve a mathematical puzzle to make sure that the network isn't easily manipulated by the Bitcoin miners.

2

A block is a record in the blockchain that contains and confirms many waiting transactions. Roughly every 10 minutes, on average, a new block including transactions is appended to the blockchain through mining. In simple words, Block is a record of bundled transactions in the Blockchain, which can't be erased or modified once created.

Apart from buying a Bitcoin Mining Hardware, you can also go for a Bitcoin cloud mining contract. This greatly simplifies the process, but at the same time increases the risk – as you don't have a control over the actual physical hardware.

In terms of profit, there is not any major difference as such. Solo mining will give you large and irregular payouts, whereas pooled mining will result in small and frequent payouts.

Step 2: Download Open Source Bitcoin Mining Software available online

You'll need a Bitcoin wallet to receive the bitcoins you mine. Bitcoins are sent to your Bitcoin wallet by using a unique address that only belongs to you. The most important step in setting up your Bitcoin wallet is securing it from potential threats by enabling two-factor authentication. In India, the popular Bitcoin wallet providers / exchanges are Unocoin, Zebpay, and Blockchain.info (supports 140+ countries).

While the actual process of Bitcoin mining is handled by the Bitcoin mining hardware itself, special Bitcoin mining software (like CGminer, BFGminer, and BTCMiner, to name a few) will be needed to connect to the Blockchain.

Step 3: Join a Bitcoin Mining Pool If bitcoin mining experts to be believed, joining a bitcoin mining pool is a better choice than mining bitcoins individually.

Bitcoin mining pools are groups of bitcoin miners working together to solve a block and share in its rewards.

Step 4: Set up a Bitcoin Wallet

Step 5: Stay Up To Date with Bitcoin News Staying up to date with Bitcoin news is important for your bitcoin mining profits.

September 2017 11

COVER STORY

BITCOIN CASH On August 1st, 2017, Bitcoin experienced what's being called a “hard fork” as a result of a few issues, including the limited number of transactions that can be processed per second.

Essentially, the cryptocurrency split into two, with Bitcoin Cash debuting.

The symbol for Bitcoin Cash is BCC, but on some exchanges it is referred as BCH (instead of BCC) to avoid conflict with already existing tokens on that platform. As of today, i.e., nd September 2 , 2017, Bitcoin Cash is trading at around a value of $572 per coin.

Best Part? People who held st Bitcoins on August 1 , 2017 when Bitcoin Cash was created got an equal value of Bitcoin Cash. Note: Any transactions after the August 1st, 2017 ledger split are completely separate between Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash. This means any Bitcoin acquired after the split does not include any Bitcoin Cash, and any Bitcoin Cash does not include any Bitcoin.

12 September 2017

What is the difference between Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash?

Bitcoin Cash was created as an answer to the years-long debate among the Bitcoin community regarding the best way to scale Bitcoin to more users. Technically, increasing the maximum block size limit parameter of the Bitcoin codebase could have solved the problem, but the community could not reach a consensus, even after years of debate.

While Bitcoin's block size limit remains at 1MB (allowing for ~250,000 transactions per day), Bitcoin Cash has increased this limit to 8MB, allowing for around two million transactions to be processed per day. And, this is the only major difference between Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash.

Good to Know Before and at the time of hard fork, Indian Bitcoin wallet providers/ exchanges were not that excited about the Bitcoin Cash (BCC) in India and have mutually decided to stay away from the split and not to accept Bitcoin Cash.

However, the situation is changing now.

Taking into consideration the recent developments around the fork and the interest shown by users towards Bitcoin Cash, leading Indian Bitcoin wallet providers/ exchanges, namely, Unocoin and Zebpay recently announced the support for Bitcoin Cash via their respective blog posts.

Frequently Asked Questions Why was a fork necessary to create Bitcoin Cash?

The legacy Bitcoin code had a maximum limit of 1MB of data per block, or about 3 transactions per second. Although technically simple to raise this limit, the community could not reach a consensus, even after years of debate.

Was the 1 MB block size limit causing problems for Bitcoin?

Yes. In 2017, capacity hit the ‘invisible wall’. Fees skyrocketed, and Bitcoin became unreliable, with some users unable to get their transactions confirmed, even after days of waiting.

Bitcoin stopped growing. Many users, merchants, businesses and investors abandoned Bitcoin. Its market share among other cryptocurrencies quickly plummeted from 95% to 40%.

Would Bitcoin Cash fix this problem?

Yes. With Bitcoin Cash the block size limit has been raised to 8MB as a part of a massive on-chain scaling approach, creating an ample capacity for everyone's transactions.

Plus, low fees and fast confirmations will resume with Bitcoin Cash. As a result, users, merchants, businesses, and investors will return.

Things you must know about Bitcoin....

4 Bitcoins can be divided into smaller parts, which means you do not have to buy an entire bitcoin. The smallest divisible bitcoin amount is one hundred millionth and is called a ‘Satoshi’, named after the founder of bitcoin.

You can send bitcoins to each other using mobile apps or their computers.

It's similar to sending cash digitally.

HOW TO

GET STARTED WITH BITCOIN…..

Step 1: Download a Bitcoin Wallet Just like you need some sort of software to send and receive emails, you need a Bitcoin wallet to send and receive bitcoins. A Bitcoin wallet is an app or a software program that allows you to send, receive, and store bitcoins.

Every Bitcoin wallet comes with a unique Bitcoin Address that you can share with others to receive bitcoins from them. Generally, wallets also keep a history of your bitcoin transactions.

Though Bitcoin transactions meant to be private, many Bitcoin wallet providers / Exchanges require you to upload and verify your bank account and PAN card details before you could use their respective services.

Step 2: Put Some Bitcoin in Your Wallet Once you have your Bitcoin wallet ready, it's time to get some bitcoins. It is worth mentioning that Bitcoins can be divided into smaller parts, which means you do not have to buy an entire bitcoin.

Most of the Bitcoin wallet providers also offer a secure trading platform, allowing you to buy and sell bitcoins. This means that they also work as a Bitcoin Exchange. You can quickly set up an account and buy bitcoins with funds from your bank account or credit card. You can even request bitcoins from your peers.

Step 3: Use a Bitcoin Wallet to Send and Receive Bitcoins Well, once you have bitcoins in your Bitcoin wallet, you can now send bitcoins (in any amount) to anyone in the world without needing a bank.

Moreover, the transaction fee is very low in comparison to traditional online payment mechanisms and you don't even need to worry about cross border remittance fees.

You can also buy goods and avail services by paying in bitcoins. Presently, a few big names that accept bitcoins include Overstock.com, Expedia, WordPress, Newegg (an online retailer of items including computer hardware and consumer electronics), Save the Children (Global charity organization), Microsoft (you can buy content on Xbox), Reddit (you can buy Reddit's premium features with bitcoins), Dell (accepting Bitcoins in partnership with Coinbase). Note: Coinbase is a digital currency exchange company headquartered in San Francisco, California.

4 Bitcoin transactions are sent to and from Bitcoin wallets, which is where your bitcoins are stored electronically. Anyone can see how many bitcoins are held at a certain address, but they don't know who the address belongs to.

4 A Bitcoin address is a long string of 27 - 34 numbers and letters that works like an email address. The address enables the Bitcoin blockchain to recognize when bitcoins are sent and received.

4 Bitcoin transactions are composed of an amount, an input (sending address), an output (receiving address) and a private key (a key which allows you to spend bitcoins you own). A user simply enters a receiving address and if he possesses the private key associated with the bitcoins he is trying to spend the transaction is sent and verified with the help of miners confirming blocks of exchanges (transactions) within the Bitcoin blockchain.

4 Bitcoin transactions (once sent) cannot be reversed or refunded. You should only deal with businesses or people you trust.

4 Though Bitcoin network is highly secure, in early 2014, Bitcoin suffered a devastating loss after the alleged hacking of Mt. Gox, a Japanese exchange. About $460 million of the currency (in 2014 value) was stolen. It was the largest loss of bitcoins ever and raised concerns about how secure the currency was.

4 Over the past few years, despite the lack of regulations in the Indian digital currency industry, a few Bitcoin exchanges have sprung up and started operating with self-regulated trading platforms with strict Know Your Customer (KYC) and anti-money laundering systems in place. These include leading startups like Unocoin, Zebpay, and Coinsecure. Each one offers Bitcoin Wallet to hold your Bitcoins, and a secure platform for trading. {Read our Unocoin app review on Page no. 16} 4 These startups have also raised funding from investors and have slowly been building faith in the Bitcoin and digital currency sector despite skepticism from the Indian government.

September 2017 13

COVER STORY

Remember the WannaCry Ransomware attack?

The WannaCry Ransomware attack is one the most fatal cyberattacks that took place in May 2017 worldwide. It targeted computers running on the Microsoft Windows operating system by encrypting data and demanding ransom payments in the Bitcoin Cryptocurrency.

The attack was reported to have infected more than 2,30,000 computers in over 150 countries.

IS IT LEGAL TO BUY

BITCOIN IN INDIA?

So far, it is. The Indian Government has not yet announced the Bitcoin to be legal or illegal. However, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cautions Bitcoin users every now and then about the risks associated with it. The RBI once announced that it has not given any licence/ authorization to any entity/ company to operate such schemes or deal with Bitcoin or any virtual currency. As such, any user, holder, investor, trader, etc. dealing with Virtual Currencies will be doing so at their own risk.

Having said that, cryptocurrencies are not a bad investment provided you know the risks with associated with them.

What are the RISKS associated with Bitcoin?

Cryptocurrency is still in its infancy stage and would take time to become a fool-proof currency.

Bitcoin is more volatile than practically any other type of asset, including the stock market.

Bitcoin isn't owned by anyone. There is no regulatory body (unlike government issued currencies), which means you can't hold any central authority responsible if something goes wrong.

Fake Bitcoin wallet providers/exchanges are growing in numbers.

Bitcoins are being used to promote the trading of illicit goods including drugs and weapons on the virtual black market.

Of late, digital currency Bitcoin has emerged as a favourite tool for hackers.

14 September 2017

Why WannaCry Ransomware Attackers demanded Payments in Bitcoins?

By now, we know that Bitcoin is a decentralized digital currency, in which people pay each other without any bank or clearing house; thus, it provides a lot of anonymity.

Though each bitcoin transaction is recorded in a public log (called Blockchain), names of buyers and sellers are never revealed – only their wallet IDs. While that keeps bitcoin users’ transactions private, it also lets them buy or sell anything without easily tracing it back to them. That's why it has become the currency of choice for people online buying drugs or other illicit activities.

However, nowadays many Bitcoin Wallet providers and Bitcoin Exchanges ask for Know Your Customer (KYC) details before you could use their Bitcoin trading platform.

Is Bitcoin Completely Anonymous?

No. Sending and receiving bitcoins is like writing under a pseudonym. If an author's pseudonym is ever linked to his identity, everything he ever wrote under that pseudonym will now be linked to him. In Bitcoin, your pseudonym is your Bitcoin Wallet address through which you send or receive Bitcoin.

Every transaction involving that address is stored forever in the Blockchain. If your address is ever linked to your identity, every transaction will be linked to you.

YOUR GUIDE TO AVOIDING

BITCOIN FRAUD…..

If you are new to Bitcoin trading, here is a list of few things that you must take care of in order to avoid Bitcoin fraud.

Fake Bitcoin Exchanges Often on social media you'll see a link saying something like “Buy bitcoin for 2% under market value. Save big!” This is a marketing trick to get you to visit and use their fake Bitcoin Exchange.

Plus, always check a URL of a website you visit and make sure it's HTTPS secured. Stay away if it is just HTTP.

about the Bitcoin Wallet on the internet before downloading it. Try to find out its user numbers, website (HTTPS secured or not), or ask your peers if someone has used that wallet before. You can also enquire about the wallet on the Bitcoin Forum or Bitcoin Reddit.

Phishing Scams Typically, phishers contact you via email or a fake web advertisement. The end result is you go to their website by mistake and either get malware, or lose your bitcoin through a fake sale.

Fake Bitcoin Wallets

With emails you have to be careful to not take the bait. You may receive an email from a wallet or exchange you're already using, either by coincidence or through past database hacks.

It is difficult to identify fake bitcoin wallets. It is recommended to search

A good practice is to not to click on any hyperlinks in an email or open

attachments. Go directly to the website if you have to do business there. Also, make sure to enquire about that website on Bitcoin forums.

Ponzi Scams Ponzi scams are promises from websites that offer to “double your bitcoin” overnight, for example. Ponzi sites may be harder to spot, but they're easy to figure out once you understand this: the only way to double your money is to first send it to them. Also, it is recommended to not sign up for bitcoin wallets through a referral link.

Cloud Mining Scams If you are interested in bitcoin mining, then let's warn you about growing cloud mining scams. Please be careful and do thorough research about a cloud mining company before investing your money in it.

September 2017 15

COVER STORY

Started in December 2013, Unocoin is a Bangalore based technology startup, which operates India's largest BTC-INR trading platform, enabling Indians to buy, sell, store, accept and use digital cryptocurrency BITCOIN. Every month, Unocoin processes 2000+ transactions worth more than INR 350M for its 370,000+ customers.

UNOCOIN BITCOIN WALLET Available on:

Unocoin is also known for industry leading innovations such as the Bitcoin Systematic Buying Plan (SBP), Bitcoin Point of Sale (POS) app and Bitcoin Over-The- Counter trading (OTC). Unocoin has its own full-featured mobile app as well, which gives 24/7 access to real-time bitcoin market prices and enables Indian Unocoin users to manage their bitcoin wallet, send and receive bitcoins, as well as buy and sell bitcoin for INR through their INR wallet. The app also lets you use bitcoins to recharge your mobile number and DTH service. Plus, it keeps you updated with Bitcoin news.

How to register

on Unocoin?

Launch the Unocoin app, and then enter a valid email ID and a password of your choice on the home page to create a user login account. The next step after logging into the app requires you to verify your account. For that, you need to provide your name (as mentioned on your PAN Card), PAN number, phone number and address. In the subsequent form, you'll be asked to upload a scanned copy of your PAN card, address and ID proof. After completing your KYC details, you'll receive a verification call from the Unocoin team.

The entire verification process will take 2-3 working days. Once your account is verified, your account status in the app will be updated from ‘Verification Pending’ to ‘Verified User’. After becoming a verified user, you can buy and sell 10 bitcoins per day; however, there is no daily limit on sending and receiving bitcoins.

Your Unocoin account comes with a

Bitcoin Wallet Once you become a verified Unocoin user, you'll receive a Bitcoin Wallet Address unique to your account, which can be seen on the “Send/Receive” page. By following a few simple steps, you'll be able to send and receive bitcoins using your Unocoin's Bitcoin Wallet. There is no fee for sending bitcoins to another Unocoin user.

However, Unocoin currently collects 0.0005 bitcoins as a transaction fee when you send bitcoins to a bitcoin address. There is no fee for receiving bitcoins in your Unocoin's Bitcoin Wallet.

16 September 2017

Price: Free

Buying and Selling Bitcoin

is a simple process In Unocoin, there are basically 2 different wallets –INR wallet and Bitcoin Wallet. To buy bitcoins from Unocoin, you'll first need to add funds in your INR wallet through NEFT/RTGS/ IMPS from your registered bank account. Unocoin also has a tie-up with PayUbiz Money to facilitate the transaction process (the upper daily transaction limit is ` 20,000).

Once you've money added in your INR Wallet, just let the app know, how many bitcoins you want to buy or for how much in INR. The balance will get deducted from your INR wallet and buying process will be initiated immediately.

Unocoin also offers a Systematic Buying Plan (SBP) feature that allows you to hedge risks and invest in bitcoins over a period of time. Let's say, you want to buy bitcoins worth ` 30,000, then the Unocoin will set up the process where the system will buy bitcoins worth ` 100 daily on your behalf. This averages out the risk, rather than buying bitcoins worth ` 30,000 in one go and facing the impact of volatility. It is worth mentioning that Unocoin charges a fee of 1% (which will get reduced to 0.7% after 60 days of trading) to buy or sell bitcoins.

Note: You can withdraw money from your INR wallet to your bank account anytime.

YOU CAN ALSO TRY

ZEBPAY

CoinSecure

By Zeb IT Service Pvt. Ltd. Available on:

By Secure Bitcoin Traders Pvt. Ltd.

| Free

Available on:

ü Zebpay is an Ahmedabad based mobile bitcoin exchange (only for Indian users). ü Buy, Sell, Send or Receive Bitcoins. ü Zebpay guarantees fast transaction processing and the best bitcoin rates.

Blockchain Bitcoin Wallet

By Blockchain Luxembourg S.A. Available on:

| Free

ü Founded in July 2014, an ISO certified company, Coinsecure offers Bitcoin wallet, Bitcoin exchange, trading and merchant services along with other Blockchain based services. ü Coinsecure services, currently, are only available for Indian users.

Coinbase

By Coinbase, Inc. Available on:

| Free

| Free

ü Securely store your bitcoin and instantly transact with anyone in the world. ü Blockchain works with exchange partners all around the world to make buying bitcoin in your wallet both a seamless and secure experience. 140+ countries supported. ü Recently, the company integrated Unocoin's exchange directly within the Blockchain Wallet in order to make digital currency simple and more accessible throughout India. However, the Unocoin integration facility is only available to web users as of today.

ü Buy and sell digital currencies, namely, Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin. ü Coinbase is available in 32 countries.

However, buy and sell is not available in India yet.

September 2017 17

IN CONVERSATION

U-Dictionary, which has been awarded as the Best Self Improvement app in 2016 by the Google Play Store, is a great offline dictionary app that bridges the gap between English and local languages. The app helps native speakers of regional languages understand and communicate in English when needed. The app can be integrated with web browser, instant messengers, or any other app (that allows you to copy the text) for flawless conversations. It comes with useful features like Copy to Translate, Quick Translate, and Reply Translate, to name a few, and covers 12 Indian languages (namely, Hindi, Tamil, Marathi, Telugu, Urdu, Punjabi, Bengali, Gujarati, Malayalam, and Kannada), along with 26 international languages (such as Indonesia, Spanish, Thai, Arabic, French, German, Italian, and Japanese, to name a few). This means that the users of U-Dictionary app can see the meaning of any word written in English in their native language, and reply back to the sender by typing the answer in their native language, which the app will automatically translate to English before sending using its ‘Reply Translate’ feature.

In an email interview with Apps Unveiled team, Kshitij Parashar, South Asia Marketing Head, U-Dictionary, shared a lot more information about the U-Dictionary mobile app and said, “U-Dictionary is there when you need it most: when you encounter a difficult word/sentence (written in English) in a conversation with your friend, email from your boss, or while preparing for an exam. All you need to do is just copy the text inside any app and U-Dictionary will provide you the meaning (in your local language) instantly. We provide Offline packages for 38 languages. Every language package consists of at least 40,000 entries.” Edited Excerpts: What inspired you to develop U-Dictionary mobile app?

What was the turning point for you and the U-Dictionary's team?

We were inspired by the needs of millions of Indian mobile internet users who are native speakers of regional languages and wanted to improve their English to advance their career and social interactions. The turning point for our team was when U-Dictionary received the Google Play's Best Self Improvement App Award in 2016, in just a few months of its launch. Since then, we have been committed to consistently serving the needs of our users better and better.

Please tell us a bit about U-Dictionary mobile app and its key features.

U-Dictionary app is by far the best selfimprovement app for English learning.

The app provides most comprehensive bilingual meanings of an English word in most Indian languages online as well as offline. One of the key features of U-Dictionary app is that it provides Sample Sentences & Phrases for each word so that one can quickly grasp the usage of a new word. Another interesting feature of U-Dictionary app is that it can be integrated with third party apps such as WhatsApp, which enables users to instantly find out the meaning of a word or sentence just by copying it.

18 September 2017

What defines your target audience? How are you reaching out to them?

The app is targeted at people who want to improve their English skills for both personal and professional growth irrespective of their age and career.

We are currently doing social media campaigns to reach out our target audience.

Why one should download U-Dictionary mobile app?

Your top three reasons for that.

My top three reasons for recommending U-Dictionary app are:1. U-Dictionary app provides most comprehensive definitions and references for any word in one place.

2. It helps you improve your English on a daily basis through Articles, Quizzes, Word of the Day and other resources.

3. U-Dictionary is there when you need it most: when you encounter a difficult word/sentence (written in English) in a conversation with your friend, email from your boss, or while preparing for an exam. All you need to do is just copy the text inside any app and U-Dictionary will provide you the meaning (in your local language) instantly.

How is the response for U-Dictionary app so far?

Please shed some light on the user base and growth figures.

The response for U-Dictionary app has been amazing so far. We receive heartfelt appreciation from our users be it students, housewives, or senior citizens every day. For instance, we got positive feedback from businessmen who are from Tier 2 & 3 cities, but have a customer base or clientele in Tier 1 cities. They shared their stories with us how U-Dictionary helped them in their

business conversations as they can check meaning, pronunciation, sample sentences and phrases for every word in one place.

We even got appreciation from housewives in Tamil Nadu whose native language is Tamil and how they are using U-Dictionary app to help their kids (going to English-medium schools) with their homework.

If we talk about our growth, we had 100K downloads in June 2016 and now the figure is 5 million+.

What was the most challenging part of your journey till now? How did you overcome those challenges?

We are constantly driven by our vision to aid our users’ English learning in the most impactful ways. The most challenging part of our journey so far was to come up with a feature that would have the single greatest impact on our users. We had to make sure that we will be able to provide the meaning of a text (written in English) to our users in their local language when they need it most. So, we came up with the ‘Copy to Translate’ feature that allows users to copy a word or meaning in any app and see the most important definitions without leaving that app.

But, integrations with third-party apps were required for this feature to work and thus, we had to make sure that it should be bug-free and enhance the users’ experience.

The risks taken by us paid off in terms of humongous rewards. Coupled with the marketing activities that we did post the feature launch, we'd witnessed a sudden hike in app downloads and user engagement numbers. We were ranked No.1 on the Play Store in Education category in 5 countries including India.

What do you see as U-Dictionary's biggest challenge in the coming months?

The biggest challenge for us in the coming months is to execute our expansion plans into growing international markets such as SouthEast Asia, Middle East & Latin America. This all requires the understanding of the needs of users in these markets (why they need to install U-Dictionary app), along with figuring out the effective marketing plans to promote U-Dictionary app in these international markets. While at the same time, we need to ensure that the market growth in the new markets aligns with our long-term strategy.

What’s your roadmap for next 3years? Are you working on any new features, with plans to release them soon?

We recently launched ‘Reply Translate’ feature, which works in conjunction with our ‘Copy to Translate’ feature for instant messaging apps such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, for example. Not only U-Dictionary users can copy the text (written in English) to translate it into their local language, they can also reply back to the sender in English by typing the reply in their local language.

Our growth plans are to keep on developing features that would help our users to advance and master their English language skills, irrespective of their base levels. We want to cross 50 million users across all platforms in the next three years.

Currently, U-Dictionary is only available for Android users. Do you have any plans to launch it for iPhone/iPad users as well?

Currently, iOS & PC users can check out the Mobile Web version of U-dictionary app at http://u-dictionary.com. We have received requests for launching the iOS version, and we are working on that.

Last but not least, what would be the one liner for U-Dictionary mobile app?

Best English Offline Dictionary with ‘Copy to Translate’ and ‘Reply Translate’ features.

MEET

Kshitij Parashar

Currently I'm using Xiaomi Mi 4C smartphone My Favorite App picks: Opera Browser, Facebook and YouTube (other than U-Dictionary) I am a regular user of WhatsApp mobile app (other than U-Dictionary) My message for Apps Unveiled Readers: U-Dictionary app is a great utility tool that you must try if you are interested in building your vocabulary and understanding the right usage of the word.

September 2017 19

EDITOR'S CHOICE

HOME CREDIT INDIA Available on:

Getting a loan is easy, but keeping a track of its EMIs, due date and other loan related information is quite a hassle. Keeping this in mind, and in its efforts towards going digital, Home Credit India, which offers easy, simple and fast loans for a range of home appliances, mobile phones, laptops/ tablets, two wheelers and varied personal needs, recently introduced its mobile app. The app provides Home Credit India's customers with a onestop view of loan details, repayment schedule, and information on the amount due and payment date of a loan.

Price: Free

HOW IT WORKS The app can be downloaded from the Google Play Store by anyone, however, only existing customers of Home Credit India can register on the app. To start off the registration process, you first need to enter your 10-digit Home Credit India loan number in order to receive an OTP on the mobile number registered with Home Credit India. Enter OTP, set up your 4-digit PIN (for future logins into the app) and access your loan details on the home screen.

On the home screen page, you'll get to see your loan's monthly instalment amount and due date, along with options like Pay Now, My Loans, Profile, and Contact. Under the ‘my loans’ tab, you can quickly go through the summary and payment history of your each loan. You can even edit your profile to update details like mobile number or email id.

ABOUT HOME CREDIT INDIA Home Credit India Finance Pvt. Ltd. is a leading consumer finance provider that is committed to drive credit penetration and financial inclusion by offering financial solutions that are simple, transparent and accessible to all.

goods and two-wheelers. It also offers Mini Cash Loan up to ` 10,000. With operations in 77 cities across 15 states, and 11,000 points-of-sale (PoS), Home Credit India currently has over 3 million customers. For more information, please visit www.homecredit.co.in.

Home Credit's offerings primarily consist of providing in-store financing (direct non-cash loans in retail outlets) to qualified customers looking to purchase consumer durable goods such as mobile phones, home appliances, electronic

The convergence and adoption of smartphones, mobile internet and digital payments offers a huge opportunity to expand access to financial services for unbanked population. The mobile app is a major step in our journey of introducing seamless and innovative digital solutions to customers, especially who are new to credit. As a responsible lending institution, we are committed to promoting financial inclusion by leveraging technology and contributing to the growth of digital payments architecture in India.

20 September 2017

Tomas Hrdlicka Chief Marketing Officer Home Credit India

Monetization through surveys becomes, even more easier, profitable and analytical Simple. Easy to Integrate. Effective Engagement.

ZippyREVs is an innovative Mobile Survey Monetization SDK program which helps app-developers & publishers to monetize their app, reward their users and grow their user base.

The ‘easy integrate & start monetization’ concept gives the developers & publishers an opportunity to increase user engagement and earn more revenue with zero acquisition cost. The consent based all in-app survey approach now comes with higher monetization options coupled

with notification option for developers/publishers to inform their users of survey opportunities and hence not miss on any reward opportunities.

ZippyREVs now is more profitable with increased rate card and has multiple survey opportunities wherein the duration and rewards are mentioned beforehand. It's completely at the discretion of users to choose the surveys they wish to participate in. A sample depiction is mentioned in Image 1.

ZippyREVs entails an easy theme of ‘Monetize Your App- Reward Your Users- Grow Your User-base’. The brand name – ZippyREVs, a conjugation of Zippy meaning fast and REVs inferring Revenue, is symbolic of its broader objectives to be quick in its service and help generate additional revenue for all its partners. A snapshot of your journey is appended below:

Developer downloads SDK

User takes in-app/ website survey Developer paid per successful survey completion by user User rewarded by developer

Image 1

þ Hassle free integration process – not more than 5 minutes þ Light weight SDK – requires minimal technical know-how for integration þ Opportunity to increase your revenue by a whopping 100-200% þ Increased User Engagement and in-depth feedback þ Zero cost acquisition model þ Flexible UI Option þ Native App Experience þ Notifications to let your users know of available survey opportunities þ Better insights from real-time analytics, demographics of users þ Improved conversion rates and Brand Loyalty

We are growing with all the developers and publishers, and below is the factual testimony to that:

Developer registers on ZippyREVs Platform

Developer integrates SDK with app/website

If you’re a Developer or a Publisher - You must not miss this opportunity!!

Constant support provided by the ZippyREVs team for any issue faced

by Developer

§ Average number of completes per month – 45,000 § Average number of affiliates joining us per month – 24 § Average number of active users per month – 10,00,000 § Average pay out per month – ` 12,00,000 It’s time you testify these benefits, come and let us partner in scripting your success story. For more information, please log on to www.zippyrevs.com OR reach out to info@zippyrevs.com.

September 2017 21

INDUSTRY CONNECT

Monetization Simplified

INDUSTRY CONNECT

Play Longer, Spend More:

India is among Top 5 Countries in Mobile Gaming Gaming has been a crucial part of the mobile industry since the launch of the App Store in 2008. For seven years in a row, gaming apps have been used more than apps from any other category.

Consequently, mobile gaming has truly shaped how we engage on our smartphones today. However, since 2015, gaming sessions have been on the decline. Does that indicate the end of the mobile gaming era?

To figure out the current mobile gaming trends, the 1 team at Flurry Analytics examined various gaming categories combining iOS and Android data and bundled related gaming categories together.

22 September 2017

WHO ARE THE HEAVY GAMERS? According to the report by Flurry Analytics, the top five countries that drive 50% of all gaming sessions in the world are United States, India, China, Brazil and Russia.

Additionally, the EEDAR mentioned in its report (Deconstructing Mobile & Tablet Gaming 20162) that users who spend more than 5 hours per week in mobile games in North America are 52% female, average age is 38.6 years,

and prefer to play on both smartphone and tablet in 60% of all cases.

The report also stated that the real gaming addicts are in Europe (users in Netherlands and Sweden spend both 31% of all their app sessions in playing games), and still, these countries don't have a significant attribution to the overall global gaming sessions. In fact, Netherlands only accounts for 2% and Sweden for about 1% of all gaming sessions globally.

KEY GAMING CATEGORIES IN DECLINE For the second year in a row, gaming sessions are declining year-over-year, even when the superhit games like PokĂŠmon Go have taken the world by storm. According to the Flurry Analytics report, gaming categories, namely, arcade, casual and brain train that were driving 55% of all gaming sessions in the year 2014 are declining every year substantially, especially casual games, and arcade gaming category. Arcade games, which accounted for 24% of all gaming sessions in 2014, decreased by 34%, and casual games by 50%. The decline in user base of these two main gaming categories is a key factor when it comes to the overall game session downturn within the last two years.

ARE THERE ANY WINNERS IN A TIME OF DECLINES? Though mobile gaming sessions have witnessed a 10% year-over-year decline, some gaming categories like Card & Casino have gained traction in usage.

Apart from that, Board and Strategy gaming category grew by 29% yearover-year from 2016 to 2017 and total sessions are up 80% since 2014. Racing games category also grew by 26% yearover-year.

FEWER BUT LONGER GAMING SESSIONS The Flurry Analytics report data shows that the time spent in gaming apps remained steady over the last year (+1%). The average user in the US spends 33 minutes per day in mobile games, and the average length of a session is 7 minutes and 6 seconds (in 2017) as compared to 6 minutes and 22 seconds in 2016. This is a significant growth, considering that the average session length never exceeded 6 minutes in 2014 or 2015.

NEW USERS REFLECT INCREASED REVENUE OPPORTUNITIES According to the Top Mobile Games Q2 2017 report by SensorTower, the combined mobile gaming app store revenue on iOS and Android has increased from $9.2Bn in Q2 2016 to $12.2Bn in Q2 2017. This reflects a 32% year-over-year revenue growth.

The report further stated that Quarterly gross revenue on Apple's App Store last quarter totaled approximately

$7.7 billion, a 34% increase year-overyear from Q2 2016's estimated $5.7 billion. Spending on mobile games from Google's Play Store grew by about 28%, reaching $4.5 billion, up from $3.5 billion in the year-ago quarter.

Overall, gross revenue from mobile games across both stores grew by about 2% quarter-over-quarter, up from an estimated $11.9 billion in Q1 2017.

In terms of downloads, worldwide mobile game installs on both stores totaled close to 9.2 billion worldwide in Q2 2017, an increase of approximately 19% from about 7.7 billion in Q2 2016.

All of these observations lead to the conclusion that the mobile gaming industry still has high potential to drive revenue (as users are now more comfortable with in-game purchases).

TO SUM UP The gaming industry remains a very attractive category for app developers, considering the way revenue conversions (in-app purchases within gaming apps) are growing. Additionally, longer session lengths are opening up new opportunities for innovative engagement and monetization tactics.

Moreover, game developers can take an advantage of peak gaming hours, i.e. between 6 and 9pm to acquire new users or engage existing users.

Thinking of the future, it is anticipated that the new technologies such as virtual reality and augmented reality will gain a momentum and enhance the in-app experience as a whole. And yes, we gamers, as always, are open to new types of gameplays.

1. Flurry Analytics tracks over 940,000 apps across all app categories which provides insights into 2.1 Billion devices 2 The EEDAR 2016 Deconstructing Mobile & Tablet Gaming Report focuses on the gaming habits of North American (US/Canada) adult mobile gamers, to provide a market profile, including Market Sizing & Device Segmentations, Market Demographics & Investment, Market Behavior & Motivations, Mobile Gaming Funnel, and Mobile Genre Analysis.

September 2017 23

GADGETS CORNER

K8 Note QUICK LOOK Launched in India, August 2017 180g, 8.5mm thickness 5.5-inch Full HD Display, 1920x1080p Android Nougat v7.1.1 13MP + 5MP Dual Rear camera, with f/1.7 aperture & Dual-LED Flash 13MP Front Camera with f/2.0 aperture, LED Flash 3GB / 4GB RAM Deca-Core MediaTek Helio X23 64-bit Processor ARM Mali T-880 MP4 GPU 32GB / 64GB Internal Memory (expandable up to 128GB) Venom Black, Fine Gold 4000 mAh battery ü Corning Gorilla Glass 3 ü Dual nano-SIM Slot + microSD Slot ü 3.5mm audio jack ü Dolby Atoms Audio ü Splash Resistant ü Fingerprint Reader ü TheaterMax VR support

` 13,999

Buy at

LOOK AND FEEL In terms of looks, basically, the Lenovo K8 Note is no different from other K-series Lenovo smartphones. Sporting a solid metal body, the K8 Note looks heavy and gives a certain sense of sturdiness when you hold the device for the first time. It doesn't slip even if your palms are sweaty.

The 5.5-inch full-HD display is protected by a layer of 2.5D Corning Gorilla Glass that renders a smooth finish. The viewing angles are great with decent sunlight legibility.

Moreover, the splash-proof P2i nanocoating makes the device capable of handling accidental splashes or light rain.

The Lenovo K8 Note has capacitive navigation buttons at the front, which aren't backlit and thus, you might face difficulty using these buttons in the dark. The 13MP front camera has its own LED flash, and the volume rocker and power button on the right edge are well-placed. On the left side, there is a ‘Music Key’ button (which can be reprogrammed to launch any app you prefer), along with dedicated slots for two nano-SIMs and a microSD card.

Though the K8 Note has two speaker grilles on either side of the charging

24 September 2017

` 12,999

(4GB RAM / 64GB ROM)

(3GB RAM / 32GB ROM)

port, throws audio only from one speaker. Nevertheless, the device is powered by Dolby Atmos technology to improve the audio experience.

factor that let us down was the heating issue. We noticed the heating issue while using the GPS navigation app nearly for 15-20 minutes.

The rear panel houses the dual cameras which are placed one above the other, accompanied by a dual LED flash. The fingerprint sensor, which is placed right below the dual camera setup, unlocks the phone in a snap.

13MP + 5MP DUAL CAMERA

PERFORMANCE AND BATTERY The K8 Note runs on the stock Android v7.1.1 instead of Lenovo's Vibe UI, which is a welcome change. However, you will find a couple of pre-installed Lenovo apps such as File Manager, Lenovo Help, along with a bunch of Microsoft Office apps and Dolby Atmos.

In terms of performance, the phone didn't show any lag when we browsed videos on YouTube, used social media apps and surfed the internet simultaneously, thanks to the Deca-Core MediaTek Helio X23 (MT6797 chipset) 64-bit Processor. Even with multiple apps running in the background, we played games such as FIFA 16 and Real Racing 3 without any stutter.

During our review, the hefty 4,000mAh battery lasted over a day on a single charge with moderate usage. The only

Powering the cameras are a 13MP PureCel®Plus sensor and a 5MP Samsung BSI sensor. Both, when clubbed together, deliver decent bokeh effect in images. However, this totally depends upon the surroundings and lighting. Daylight shots from the K8 Note were above average in terms of photo quality and color capturing.

However, the low light shots didn't impress us at all.

The Camera app on the K8 Note is pretty stock, which means you won't get a lot of tweaking options. You can take images either in Normal mode or in Depth-enabled mode for a bokeh effect.

The 13MP front camera is capable of taking good selfies even in low light, thanks to a dedicated front-facing flash.

There's also a beauty mode to tweak the selfies slightly.

Why Lenovo K8 Note? ü

Strong Build Quality

ü

Splash Resistant

ü

Powerful Processor and Battery

Speed

QUICK LOOK Launched in India, July 2017 131g, 8.1mm thickness

5.0-inch Full HD IPS Display, 1920x1080p, 441ppi Android v7.0 Nougat 13MP + 2MP Dual Rear Camera with f/2.2 aperture, Bokeh mode and LED flash 13MP with f/2.0 Aperture, soft LED Flash and Beauty mode 3 GB RAM 1.3GHz Octa-Core MediaTek’s MT6753 64-bit CPU Mali-T720 MP3 GPU 32GB Internal Memory (expandable up to 128GB) Charcoal Black, Orchid Gold, Space Grey, Royale Gold 2680 mAh battery ü Fingerprint Sensor ü Dual nano-SIM slot ü 3.5mm audio jack

Buy at

` 9,499

(3GB RAM / 32GB ROM)

LOOK AND FEEL Available in four unique colors, namely, Charcoal Black, Orchid Gold, Space Grey, and Royale Gold, the Zopo Speed X sports a metal unibody design with rounded edges and corners. Having the sleek profile, the phone looks pretty attractive and offers a comfortable grip.

The front panel hosts a 5-inch Full-HD IPS display, with a resolution of 1080x1920 pixels at a pixel density of 441 pixels per inch. The volume rocker and power button on the right edge are conveniently placed for single-handed use. The hybrid Dual nano-SIM tray is placed on the left edge.

Flipping over, the Zopo Speed X boasts a dual camera setup that includes a 13MP primary sensor with f/2.2 aperture lens and a 2 MP secondary sensor, along with LED flash. The smartphone also has a fingerprint scanner mounted on the rear panel, which is quite fast and accurate with 0.16 seconds of response time.

The smartphone comes with preloaded bloatwares such as Zopo Care and Zopo World, and also features the Ratan Tata-backed Niki.ai chatbot, which helps you ‘shop on chat’. The chatbot has tie-ups with over 20 e-commerce services ranging from travel and entertainment to daily utilities.

PERFORMANCE AND BATTERY The budget smartphone is equipped with MediaTek's MT6753 Octa-Core 64-bit CPU combined with 3GB of DDR3 RAM along with 32GB internal memory (expandable up to 128GB).

The phone runs on Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box, and there is no additional layering, meaning you will experience fast stock Android.

However, Zopo offers over 1500 emojis (including 72 new ones), data saver, file-based encryption, smart screen split, quick switch between apps and many other tweaks.

Speaking of the performance, the phone is decent enough to play nearly all the games and we didn't notice any visible performance lag while navigating between UI elements.

Backed by a 2680 mAh battery, the Zopo Speed X can easily last for more than a day on moderate usage. In case you are a heavy user, you'll get 8-10 hours of battery. However, you can play and watch videos for more than 20 hours on one full charge, all thanks to battery optimization. In our battery loop test, it lasted for 4 hours 45 minutes, playing videos over Wi-Fi with full brightness and volume.

13MP + 2MP DUAL CAMERA The Zopo Speed X hosts a 13MP primary camera which works in tandem with a 2MP secondary camera. Photos taken in HDR mode (in daylight) came out good with a decent amount of detailing. The video Quality is equally good.

The camera app offers several modes and effects to click amazing shots. You can get awesome bokeh effect photos using the Zopo dual rear camera, as it lets you focus on the subject and blur the background as per your choice.

The Zopo Speed X is for selfie lovers. At the front, the smartphone holds a 13MP camera with f/2.0 aperture lens and soft LED flash. It captures beautiful selfies in both daylight and low light conditions, and comes with Face Beauty mode.

Why buy Zopo Speed X? ü

Just for ` 9,499, you are getting a dual rear camera with tons of features

ü

Impressive looks

ü

Good battery life

September 2017 25

NEW RELEASES

Meet Android 8.0 Oreo

Powerful

Secure

Smart & Seamless

Apart from Google’s own Pixel and Nexus series of smartphones, the devices that are likely to receive Android 8.0 Oreo update are Nokia 3, Nokia 5, Nokia 6, OnePlus 3, OnePlus 3T, OnePlus 5, Coolpad Cool Play 6, Essential PH-1, HTC U11, Asus ZenFone 4 series of smartphones, Lenovo K8 Note, Sony Xperia XZ Premium along with other Xperia range, LG G6, LG Q6, Moto Z2 Play, and Samsung latest devices including Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+. Many other smartphone makers like BlackBerry, Huawei, Xiaomi, and Oppo, for example, hasn't yet officially announced which phones will get Android Oreo.

Let's have a quick look at top 10 features of Android 8.0 Oreo: Picture-in-Picture mode

Picture-in-Picture mode

#Android 8.0 Oreo

Android 8.0 Oreo, the newest version of Google's mobile operating system, is finally here. This new version has plenty of changes in store, ranging from revamped looks to under-the-hood improvements, so you'd get to explore a number of cool new features. But, if you don't own a Google flagship device, namely, Nexus and Pixel, then you'll have to wait a few months to get your hands on Android 8.0 Oreo.

Fast

The new picture-in-picture mode will let you minimize the video you are watching to a tiny window so that you can use any other app at the same time.

This means you can now watch a video on YouTube video while chatting on WhatsApp, or you can make a video call while browsing the internet. Note: App developers need to update their respective apps to support the new API.

Notifications Dots and Channels

shade and tapping on the notification to open it.

Notification channels, on the other hand, will allow apps to create channels for the various notifications they post. For instance, an airline app might have one channel for important flight alerts and a second one for discounts on airfare.

Note: Again, this is something that the app developers are required to incorporate into their respective apps.

App developers will give you a choice between different notification channels, allowing you to control the priority and visibility of each type of notification posted by that app.

Snooze Individual Notifications

Apps that have new notifications will now have a dot appear on the app icon to notify you. You can long press on the app icon to quickly see what's new instead of pulling down the notification

Android Oreo will allow you to snooze individual notifications so that you don't miss out on anything important.

When you swipe the notification right, you'll get a clock option to snooze it either for 15 minutes, 30 minutes or one hour. This feature will work for each and every app notification.

Autofill API We use Autofill every day in the Chrome browser, and now Google is bringing a system-wide iteration to Android devices. If you've ever allowed Google Chrome to save your login details, you'll be able to use that information to automatically fill in sign up details (when required) in Android Oreo.

As an example, you can log in to the Facebook account on your Android phone using the suggested account name and password that Google remembered from your Chrome browsing session.

In case you use password managing apps like LastPass or Dashlane, you can select an autofill app, similar to the way you select a keyboard app in the phone's settings. So, managing passwords and signing into multiple apps would be a lot easier for Android O users.

AI-based Smart Text Selection Using Google's AI-based machine learning capabilities, the text selection menu in Android Oreo will suggest quick actions based on the type of text you've selected. For example, when you select an address, it will offer navigation as on one of the options, along with the usual cut, copy and format options.

Moreover, you don't need to select the entire address. Just double tap the part of the address and Android Oreo will intelligently select the entire address and offer relevant quick actions.

Better battery life and performance With Android Oreo, Google has done some serious work on the backend to improve speed and battery's performance. Optimizations to Android's core code speed up boot time.

Google says that on the Pixel, Android Oreo starts up twice as fast as Android Nougat. This also means that apps will load faster and smoother by default, without any work needed by the developers.

In order to improve the battery's performance, Android Oreo will automatically limit what an app can do when it is open in the background. This will stop an app from consistently using data when it is not the main app that is being used. For instance, it will limit the frequency of location updates for the apps running in the background.

Rescue Party The main purpose of Android Oreo's Rescue Party feature is to prevent Android devices from getting stuck in reboot loops (more commonly referred to as bootloops). Bootloops can happen for a number of reasons, including broken system files, installing software updates, or corrupt app files.

The moment Android Oreo recognizes that your device is stuck in a bootloop, it will activate a “rescue party” and perform a number of different actions to recover the device and bring it back to a working state. In case Rescue Party feature fails to fix the issue after every possible attempt, it will prompt you to factory reset your phone, which is an effective cure-all for most bootloop scenarios.

All phones running on Android Oreo 8.0 will have Rescue Party feature enabled by default, and OEMs don't need to add anything additional to their hardware for this feature to work.

Wi-Fi Aware Android 8.0 has added support for a new feature called Wi-Fi Aware, which allows devices to share data with each other over Wi-Fi without an internet access point. Yes, Wi-Fi Aware functions just like a Wi-Fi direct, but offer more reliable connection and better data sharing speed.

Wi-Fi Aware API gives app developers a great opportunity to create awesome apps based on the communication between nearby devices.

Another interesting feature in Android Oreo is “Turn on Wi-Fi automatically”, which automatically enables Wi-Fi the moment your phone reaches a location where it was previously connected to a Wi-Fi network. This saves you from a hassle of switching between Wi-Fi and cellular data when you're near to a known Wi-Fi access point.

Google Play Protect Google Play Protect feature, which was announced at Google I/O earlier this year, is a background service that will optimize security on Android by analyzing the behaviour of apps to detect malware, and remove it from your phone and Google Play Store.

To keep your device safe Google Play Protect will be available in Oreo by default, and periodically scans the phone for malware apps. It will alert you about malware apps from time to time to keep your Android device out of danger.

No More ‘Unknown Sources’ Setting Not all applications installed from thirdparty sources are malicious, but most of the apps installed from sources other than Google Play Store could land you in trouble. In prior versions of Android, third-party app installation requires you to enable “Install from unknown sources” in the settings irrespective of from where you download an APK File.

This setting is now no longer available.

For example, when you download an APK from Chrome, you'll be prompted to review your “External Sources” settings. From there, you need to select Chrome and enable “Trust apps from this source”.

This new setting has been introduced to ensure that you'll be in complete control over every new install on your device.

September 2017 27

#GovernmentApp

NEW RELEASES

mAadhaar Available on:

Price: Free

Launched by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), the mAadhaar app lets you store your Aadhaar card information on your smartphone so that you can have access to your Aadhaar Card digitally, 24x7.

HOW IT WORKS: As soon as you launch the app for the very first time, you'll be asked to create a robust password followed by entering your Aadhaar number. Upon entering the Aadhaar number, you'll receive the OTP via an SMS that the app will automatically read and verify your Aadhaar number. There is no provision to manually enter the OTP in the app as this is a security feature.

Note: You need to make sure that your phone is carrying the same mobile number that you've provided at the time of applying for Aadhaar number. Otherwise, the verification will not work.

As soon as your Aadhaar number gets verified, the app will download your Aadhaar data from UIDAI and store the details in the app.

It is worth mentioning that this app enables you to store details of more than one Aadhaar card in the digital form (maximum 3 profiles). This is useful when members of your family have the same mobile number registered (as yours) with their Aadhaar Card.

Also, please check the app developer, i.e.

Unique Identification Authority of India before downloading the app from the Google Play Store as many fake ones are out there to steal your data. The app is only available for Android users.

Available on: Price: Free Q1. Will Sarahah show the identity of senders?

#TRENDING

Developed by Saudi developer ZainAlabdin Tawfiq, Sarahah app craze is continuing unabated. From teenagers to youngsters everyone seems to be hooked to it. Though the app is gaining the popularity worldwide simply because it lets you send anonymous messages to people, the idea behind developing the app is to provide a platform where one can provide constructive feedback to his/her colleagues and friends without revealing his/her identity.

How it works:

Anonymity promised! Really?

Download the app, set up a user account and then share your Sarahah ID (it usually reads xyz.sarahah.com) on your social media accounts, for example, Facebook, Twitter, or WhatsApp. Anyone who knows your Sarahah ID can send you messages anonymously. There is no option to reply back to the sender, as of now.

Nevertheless, you can share the messages received by you on your social media handles for some fun. In case you receive an offensive message, you have an option to block that sender and report the message.

Though the team behind the Sarahah app claims that there is no possibility of the identities of senders getting exposed and websites like sarahahexposed.com are scams, we can't ignore the fact that the Sarahah's founder recently gave a hint to a leading publication that they could reveal the identity of a user if he/she doesn't follow the set rules and regulations of the app and misuses its anonymous nature.

28 September 2017

Moreover, while going through the FAQs at www.sarahah.com, we came across the following two questions:

A. Sarahah won't disclose the identity of the logged-in senders to users except with their consent.

Q2. Is Sarahah a hacker?

A. Sarahah doesn't steal data, but websites and apps impersonating Sarahah could do that.

So, download the Sarahah app and send messages anonymously at your own risk. Tip: Use this app only to provide constructive feedback to your friends and known ones. Don't use it for cyberbullying or blackmailing purposes.

Are you missing out on something if not using Sarahah?

Absolutely not. If you're not interested in sharing anonymous messages received by you on your social media accounts, then this app is no fun. In my opinion, the app may lose its shine within days just like Secret, and Whisper (the apps which once got popular in the year 2014, all because of their anonymous nature).

#PRODUCTIVITY

Microsoft Kaizala Available on:

Price: Free

Microsoft India recently announced the launch of Microsoft Kaizala, a mobile app designed for large group communications and work management within Indian organizations. The app helps organizations connect with large numbers of people inside and outside their organization, easily coordinate tasks across the value chain, and gain actionable insights. Furthermore, the app is enterprise ready. Microsoft Kaizala Pro, an enterprise version, allows organizations to have full administrative control of their groups.

How it Works: Getting started with Microsoft Kaizala is super easy. One can sign up using his/her mobile number and then can create work groups by sending an invitation link to teammates or co-workers (within or outside the organization). Once a group is created, group members can assign tasks, create to-do lists for each other, conduct a quick poll or survey, request location and perform other such actions using ‘Kaizala Actions’ feature while chatting with each other in a group.

Microsoft Kaizala Pro's features: In addition to the above-mentioned features, enterprise-ready version Microsoft Kaizala Pro offers additional features such as user and group management (remove users from groups and wipe group data from the device), system integration and automation using Microsoft Kaizala APIs, advanced reporting and analytics, the ability to

publish custom actions, create public groups, and organizational profile and directory. Both, Microsoft Kaizala and Microsoft Kaizala Pro can be integrated with Microsoft Office 365.

Availability & Pricing: Microsoft Kaizala is available in India as a free download on iOS and Android phones.

And, Microsoft Kaizala Pro is available to purchase standalone at a list price of INR 130 per user per month. Current Office 365 customers can contact their Microsoft representative for additional information.

At the launch event in New Delhi, Rajiv Kumar, Corporate Vice President, Office Product Group, Microsoft told reporters, “Using Microsoft Kaizala, organizations can connect with their employees and the extended value chain. The product offers a simple and familiar chat interface and goes beyond

to make everyone more productive using Surveys, Polls, Jobs, Meetings and other actions, right in your chats. As we launch Microsoft Kaizala in India, we hope to help connect the unconnected parts of organizations – whether they are in large and small enterprises or in the Government. Microsoft Kaizala's vision is to empower every organization and community to achieve more through purposeful chat”.

“Microsoft Kaizala has been optimized for 2G networks to enable connectivity in remote locations and offers features with offline support”, added Anant Maheshwari, President, Microsoft India.

#UPI

Uber To Offer Enhanced Cashless Experience To Riders And Drivers Benefits for Riders Post UPI integration, millions of riders have an option to pay for an Uber ride via BHIM Benefits for Driver Partners Lakhs of Uber drivers will now be able to download BHIM app for cashless transactions with Uber.

Uber partnered with Axis bank to launch UPI integration for riders and HDFC bank to facilitate access to BHIM for driver partners Uber India recently announced a comprehensive Unified Payments Interface (UPI) integration in partnership with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and banking partners – Axis Bank and HDFC Bank.

Launching the integration, the Hon'ble Union Minister of Electronics and

Information Technology and Law & Justice, Government of India, Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad, said "India's digital economy will become a $1trillion economy in the next five years. India's digital payments economy alone will be bigger than $500 billion. Integration of Uber app with UPI-BHIM will boost the digital economy of India.”

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RNI No.: DELENG/2014/55665

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