Source-ANI: Tata-owned Jaguar Land Rover is set to start manufacturing cars outside Britain for the first time in a 1 billion pounds deal with a Chinese firm.

The UK-based luxury motor maker and China’s largest vehicle exporter, Chery ­Automobile, are building a new plant near Shanghai after striking a deal.

“For the first time, one of the most famous names in the British automotive industry, Jaguar Land Rover, is poised to begin manufacturing outside the United Kingdom,” the report quoted Speth, as saying.

“It seems only fitting this new venture will take place in the world’s fastest-growing market for premium vehicles,” Speth added.

The agreement follows an 80 percent rise in sales of Jaguar Land Rovers in China so far this year, the report said.

JLR hopes to boost last year’s record 1.5billion pounds profits when the new factory opens, it added.

Source-ANI: Roads that glow in the dark, and which could one day even charge electric cars, are set to be introduced in the Netherlands from next year.

‘Smart Highways’ unveiled last week at Dutch Design Week will use the latest technologies in roads their designers claim will be “more sustainable, safe and intuitive.”

The companies behind the project said that their goal is to turn around the usual route of transport innovation by focusing on the highway, rather than the vehicles which use it.

Among the most ambitious of the ideas for the future of road travel are special lanes which will allow drivers of electric cars to recharge their vehicles as they travel along them, the Daily Mail reported.

Another plan is to fit the roads with power-saving lights which will gradually brighten as vehicles approach then switch themselves off after they pass.

Those ideas are still some years off, but from next year Dutch roads will be painted with lines made from a photo-luminescent powder that charges in sunlight to illuminate the road for up to 10 hours overnight.

Another technology aimed for implementation next year is temperature-responsive dynamic paint which will make ice-crystals visible to drivers when cold weather makes road surfaces slippery.

We haven't seen her yet, much less had the opportunity to trace her features with our own fingers but the rumuor mills been so abuzz with Apple's iPad Mini launch in the last few weeks that we feel rather well acquainted with the lovely lady anyway. In that vein, here's our summarization of what you need (might want) to know about the Apple family's new 'baby.' 

It's been known for a while that Apple was going to flood the market with a smaller, portable tablet but it made sure it wouldn't be even considered as competition for any budget Android tablets out there as far as pricing was concerned. It's far too (ludicrously) expensive for that. Anyway, here's what you need to know about the sleek, shiny new tech toy. 

She's got the look…

Good genes run in the family and she's certainly inherited them. Sleek, thin and light, this 7.9-inch-long tablet is resplendent in all its anodized aluminum and glass glory. At 0.68 pounds and 7.2 mm in width it's the size zero of tablets that all the others will strive to achieve now. It has a larger surface than the Nexus 7 or Kindle Fire HD, close competitors in the size bracket. 

In any case, it's 53% lighter than the fourth-generation iPad. 

But is her beauty only skin-deep? 

Only a deeper look at the iPad Mini's features will answer this particular question. 

-As far as storage goes, it's the same ol' story as with all iPads. It comes in 16GB, 32 GB and 64 GB flavors. 

-It has a 16.3-watt-hour rechargeable lithium-polymer battery which boasts a 10-hour-long batter life even while surfing the web in Wi-fi, watching videos or listening to music. This is a fair bit longer than other mini androids available in the market. 

-Camera happy? We think so. The FaceTime HD Camera it comes with is far better than the iPad 2's. It supports face detection like its predecessor and is 1.2 megapixels. It also has a 5 megapixel iSight camera on its back which is a feature no other mini tablet can claim to have.

-It's armed with a dual-core A5 processor chip. It is also enabled with 4G LTE  as well. 

-Screen resolution is 1024 * 768 pixels making it around 163 pixels per inch. There is however, no retina display quality like the iPad 3 and 4th generation iPad. 

Willing to pay for her keep?

And finally, as always, it comes down to the pricing with this heftily priced apple product as well. Sure she's seek, shiny and undoubtedly well-endowed with features we'd all like to see in our mini tablets but considering pricing starts at $329 for the wi-fi only 16GB version and goes up to $429 and $529 for the 32 and 64GB versions, not to mention an extra $130 for LTE connectivity, we're not sure if users will find she's worth her pricy keep. 

Especially when pitted against the likes of more budget tablets like Google's Nexus 7 (a close competitor in terms of looks and capabilities) it really depends on whether people compare the price tags or not. Only time will tell the fate of this PYT. 

If the iPad Mini floats your boat, pre-orders started on October 26 and shipping too begins on November 2. Log onto the apple website to check out more features to help with your decision. 

It's a brand new interface, a massively improved app store, has all the ARM support you could possibly need and much, much more. Windows 7 reminded users that the Redmond giant still had some fight left in it. It ensured us that writing them off would be a mistake but its dizzying success also made our expectations of Windows 8 that much more exalted. So is it really that different from its predecessor, is it worth installing and is it worthy of being touted as Window's 'most ambitious move in years?' Read on to find out everything you need to know. 

Let's start with the key differences. Window's main challenge was to prove that their interface would be able to keep up with the huge tablet influx in the technology market. 

Windows 8 Touch

The most obvious difference between it's older sibling and the new windows is the user interface of course. Windows 7 didn't support touch screen devices in the most ideal manner but Windows 8 has made sure to take care of all those glitches. Now tablet-using customers will be happy to know that the interface is much more user-friendly, intelligent and without any major issues. 

The difference is evident right from the start page where tiles have replaced the older menus and getting to the program you want is a much quicker process. On-screen keyboard and handwriting recognition is vastly improved too. No need for concern if you don't have a touch PC however because it works well on non-touch machines as well. 

Speed

Thanks to the vastly improved responsiveness, lack of lags and touch-friendly menu system, the speed of Windows 8 is the greatest improvement in this new program.

Multiple Monitor Support

There's been a complete overhaul of desktop management here. Microsoft seems to have realised that most of us today use multiple monitors on our screen and have attempted to keep up with this evolution by providing greater multiple monitor support. 

This means you can now have the Start Screen on one monitor and the desktop in another. Or you could just opt to have both its desktop and task bar on both screens.

It also allows users to split the screen between different apps.

Social Networks

Living in the era of social media, Windows 8 has given sites like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter far more importance as well. Users can browse for social updates from within the People app itself or elsewhere. 

ARM Support

ARM's chip designs are being used increasingly in more and more devices so this was a very logical and well-thought out change on Microsoft's part. Instead of limiting its support to only x86-based Intel and AMD PCs, it will now also support devices running on ARM architecture. 

This is also a clever marketing strategy as they're looking for their cheaper Windows 8 Tablets to compete with the iPad and Android tablets.

Windows Store

And finally, some competition for Apple's bank account-depleting app store. Much like its competitor, the Windows store also offers plenty of desktop and modern UI apps, both free of cost and paid. You can search by using the Search charm or look through these apps by category. 

The download process is just as uncomplicated and easy as it is on an iOS.

Cloud Integration

Keeping in times with the supposedly 'post-PC era' cloud integration is central to the new Windows 8. With the SkyDrive app, one can sync data to it and save data to and from your cloud storage. Also, since it includes sync settings, photos and files can be shared across multiple PCs.

Windows 8 Charms

This is the newest and key additional feature to Windows 8. Charms enable users to access the Start Screen on a touch deice and include buttons like search, share, devices and settings which provide far quicker access to these functions which are almost generic in their necessity now. Best of all, it's contextual to the app you are using. 

Finally, Windows has caught up with Apple as far as its search bar charm is concerned and this is the most useful charm of the lot. Since the start menu is gone, it's a huge relief to be able to simply type out any app, file or program you're searching for into the contextual search bar which is available on the start screen itself. Doing a web search is especially quick. 

With that, we wrap up the main differences we could spot out in this new and improved version of Windows. As far as we can see, it's an all-round improvement on most fronts, especially as far as these new inclusions and changes are concerned. 

By now you've heard the hype and you're keen to be a part of it too or you wouldn't be here. The launch of Windows 8 has sent the tech world into a tizzy and rightfully so because it's definitely new and improved, not to mention finally in keeping with our massively evolved times, technologically speaking. 

You can now officially install the new Windows operating system to run side by side with your current OS or right from scratch but it can be challenging if you're not well-versed with this stuff. Here's a comprehensive, simplified guide on how to get it installed. 

Perfect Prep

Before you begin you will need the following:

Windows 7, a blank DVD, a DVD burner, an internet connection and of course…a computer!

Upgrade Assistant 

Downloading this Upgrade assistant is a quick and easy way to assess your computer and see if it meets the system requirements to run the new system. It also additionally checks everything else on your machine out from hardware to printers to apps and if anything isn't going to work right it'll give you a fair warning in the compatibility report. 

As such, we highly recommend you go through with this step before making your decision to buy the latest Windows operating system.

The Purchase

If your computer passes the above-mentioned test, you need to know all your purchase options. There are actually several version of Windows 8 including Pro and the Windows RT. It costs $39.99.

The Back-Up

This needs to be a hard and fast rule for all system upgrades for the rest of your life but it only applies to those performing a clean install of Windows 8 rather than a simple upgrade from a previous version. Since an installation process usually wipes out you hard drive of all previous data it's important to back all your data up beforehand. 

The Easy Stuff

Now you're on the last leg of the installation. All you have to do is place the Windows 8 disc into your optical drive and restart your computer. Be patient and keep a keen eye out for a message that reads 'Press any key to boot from CD or DVD.' At this point you'll need to hit any key which will start up the Windows 8 DVD. Don't worry if you miss it, you can just restart and try again. 

You'll see a flash screen with the Windows 8 icon and a series of options to choose from before starting the installation for which you will need a valid product key (available with your purchase). When you're asked what kind of installation you want choose 'Custom: Install Windows Only.' If you're overwriting a precious OS you'll need to to delete previous data (refer to point no. 3!) Wait for anywhere between 10 to 20 minutes and one automatic reboot later you'll find yourself back at the familiar installation wizard. Just follow their simple prompts and you'll be done in no time.

In case you're looking to install this system to run side by side with your current OS, click here to know how to install in the right manner as it's a bit more complicated.  

"I don't know who you are but if you don't let my daughter go, I will find you, I will kill you." 

On October 12, one of 2009's cult action movie hits' sequel will hit the ground running and we're intrigued to see how it has shaped up. Of course, given our insatiable appetite for films, we'd like to think we have a pretty good idea of what gets audiences' goats and what doesn't so here's our take (no pun intended) on Taken 2 and whether we should expect box office gold at all.

Before we set about preordaining the doom of this poor film, let's take a small stroll down memory lane. The first Taken didn't exactly have a script penned by some genius. Really, it seemed like the writers of 24 had simply spat out an older Jack Bauer, given him less screen time and made the entire plot unfold in 24 days rather than 24 hours. Sure the relentlessly quick pace, blowout action sequences and somewhat rivetting story (Neeson is a retired CIA agent who is determined to save his estranged daughter from being sold into prostitution after she was kidnapped on a trip to Paris) were enough to keep us glued right through but can Hollywood really sell us the same story twice?

From what we can tell from Taken 2's international trailer (watch below) all the people who Neeson managed to piss off in the first film are back for revenge. Which is obviously most easily sought out by taking his family yet again. Only this time, the writers threw his wife into the mix as well. First of all, who would be crazy enough to take another member of one-man-army Neeson's family again and secondly, how many more unbelievable action sequences is it going to take to sell an audience on what is essentially the same story retold?

Still, there's no denying that Hollywood is currently banking on Neeson to get them out of the doldrums they've been experiencing in the last few months. Audience interest definitely seems to be higher given Neeson's new status as a cult action star so here's what we think is going to happen. The film's weekend opening will be reasonably successful, perhaps even crossing the 40 million dollar mark but it's all going to be downhill from there. 

Because if we're brutally honest about it, the first Taken film was a complete surprise hit but if the second doesn't bomb at the Box Office it'll be far more than a surprise—it will be a miracle! 

Here's the trailer for appetite-whetting purposes:

With 50 years, 22 released films and who knows how many future films under its belt, some of film's most epic action films have come from the Bond film franchise. Here are some of our favorite action sequences in video form. 

Source - IANS: Mass production of a smaller and cheaper version of Apple's iPad tablet computer has started, according to various media reports. Asia-based LG Display and AU Optronics have already began manufacturing the LCD screens for Apple's new device in September, Xinhua quoted The Wall Street Journal as saying.

Apple has kept the screen size of its iPad unchanged at 9.7 inches since the product debuted in January 2010. In comparison, a smaller Apple tablet will feature a 7.85-inch liquid-crystal display with a lower resolution than the latest iPad, according to the Journal.

The launch of a smaller iPad is seen as Apple's move to stay competitive against rivals such as Google and Amazon, which have introduced 7-inch tablets at just $200. The cheapest iPad starts from nearly $400.

Fortune magazine has reported that Apple is rumoured to be sending out press invitations on October 10 for a special event that might be held a week later on October 17 to unveil a smaller iPad. Apple has not yet commented on the reports. 

Source - ANI: A young inventor has come up with a technology for a suitcase, which will follow you by using the bluetooth signal on your smart phone.

A video on YouTube has revealed a prototype of the “Hop!” suitcase, which shows a man walking while the small suitcase dutifully follows, albeit at a slow and occasionally jerky speed.

The basic technology behind the novelty is the work of Spanish native Rodrigo Garcia Gonzalez, the Daily Mail reported.

The phone signal is received by three sensors in the luggage, a microprocessor driving two caterpillar tracks that power the suitcase along.

If the signal is lost, the bag will lock itself and vibrate its owner’s phone.

Gonzalez’s design was one of the winners of Spain’s James Dyson Award this year and, he admits, needs some fine tuning.

He is now studying a Master’s in Innovation, Design and Engineering in London and hopes to gather a team to work on the project and find funding.

“It’s not working 100 percent and it’s not ready for the market but it’s something I’d like to develop,” he said.

“I think in the future it’s something we could see often,” he added. 

The Revolutionary Rover

On Monday, 6th August of this year, NASA made yet another breakthrough with their latest Mars Rover. They attempted to land it on the Red Planet and the entire world got to watch as they succeeded in their awesome endeavour. Considering this is one of the greatest things to occur in modern science, we suggest you read on for a more comprehensive guide to this awesome machine. 

A Brief History Lesson

Also known as the Mars Science Laboratory, Curiosity is by no means the first Rover to touch base on the red rocks of Mars. In fact, NASA was probably all 'been there, done that' when it actually landed considering there've been three others before it. Sojourner was the first in 1997 while Spirit and Opportunity landed on the extraterrestrial surface in 2004. Amazingly the latter is still roaming around today more than 3000 days after it first woke up on the red planet. 

Size Does Matter

You must be contemplating what sets this rover apart from its predecessor. Well, for one thing, it's larger than all the others and the largest rover in general yet. For another thing, this rover is as state-of-the-art as science can get. It needs to be as big as it is so that it can carry the ten seriously advanced science instruments, two of which it carries inside its belly. 

The Instruments

For all the real science geeks, here's an insight into the equipment onboard:

Alpha Particle X-ray spectometer, Chemistry and Camera, Chemistry and Mineralogy, Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons, Mars Descent Imager, Mars Hand Lens Imager, Mast Camera, Radiation Assessment Detector, Rover Environmental Monitoring Station, and Sample Analysis at Mars.

There are also 17 cameras which will help the scientists do their work from Earth rather than samples having to be sent back home for humans to analyse. 

Journey To Another World

Since its launch in November 2011, this robot of sorts has been on a 560 million-kilometer journey to the Red PLanet which took something like nine months. It was tucked safely into a spacecraft for flight purposes but was deployed by parachute when the time was right to land on Martian surface alone. The parachute itself is a creation of intrigue. At 15 meters in diameter it is a supersonic parachute and the largest one to ever have been deployed in the world—or out of it apparently. It could also withstand unto 65000 lbs of pressure which was critical to arrange for the tough and frigid terrain of this planet. NASA also employed landing rockets, a hovering sky crane and several other complicated mechanisms to help lower the rover onto Mars' surface. 

Curiosity's Goal

The purpose of this expedition is simple. Curiosity has enough nuclear power (from multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator and lithium-ion batteries) will roam the planet for one Martian year or 687 Earth days in an attempt to determine the planet's past—and present—potential for habitability. 

How will it do this? Simple. Equipped with the equivalent of an onboard laboratory, Curiosity has the ability to analyse Martian rocks, soil and atmosphere. An infrared laser will zap rocks from a distance, allowing a spectrometer to identify their chemical compositions. It's also equipped with a SAM (Sample Analysis at Mars) system which heats samples up to about 1000 degrees centigrade in order to look for traces of organic molecules or compounds. 

If the rover does manage to find these organic compounds (fingers crossed) it would be the ultimate breakthrough seeing as to how these are the carbon-based building blocks of life. It would indicate that the planet might have supported microbial life at some point in its past or even right now, in the present day!

The End

For now, we have a whole Martian year to wait and watch what thrilling insights this Martian Rover is bound to give us. As it braves the unforgivable terrain of the Red Planet, it wouldn't hurt to cheer it on from here on Earth, 250 million miles away. 

FULL REVIEW

Recently, we spent a fair amount of time with a twin set of bluetooth mini speakers by British Manufacturing Company, DBEST's London Outfit. There are plenty of other options out there if you're looking for portable speakers of course, but considering we gave this a 4 star rating, suffice to say this was time well spent. What made it quite so deserving? Read the reast of the review and find out!

DESIGN

We were definitely fans of the sleek, smooth and most importantly, compact design. At about 250 grams it's light without being too fragile. A key thing to note about this 'light' feature is that you've got to play it a bit safe. Bass-heavy music with its not-so-trepid vibrations can make the duet shake right off your table and onto the floor! Back to the design however, the 100% hand-printed emblem of the Union Jack Flag truly sets this apart from other speakers of its kind. Aside from this, it's fairly dust-resistant, unobtrusive and all the slots are easy to find and user-friendly. The gripping is great and its somewhat odd  three-legged stance is so that they can be mated together when not in use. This makes it even more compact and portable whilst traveling.

Conclusively, the extra mile Dbest decided to traverse in terms of design has definitely paid off because no one would mind pulling these beautiful babies out of their bag at a dinner party.

PERFORMANCE

Before I begin, let's just say i've spent copious (and even far too much) amounts of time with mini speakers of every brand, variety, size and shape. And having done so I can safely say that the PS43003BT are premium quality portable speakers. Its wireless music transmission feature allows you to roam freely with the device so that you can enjoy the exceptionally clear sound from up to 45-50 feet away. This is definitely a longer range than most. Of course, it works just as smoothly when connected through the included in-line cable (3.5 mm) to anything from your gaming console to your laptop to your tablet etc. The USB is compatible with pretty much all standard USB ports but the best feature of this 'double trouble' styled sound-delivering device is undoubtedly its impeccable battery life. Battery is the main issue with msot mini speakers as they tend to die within 6-8 hours defeating the purpose of taking them on an all-day trek/picnic. Dbest uses built-in, rechargeable batteries which last upto 18 hours in wireless mode and you can add another 10 hours if it's in wired mode. Now that's the kind of battery life we've been in search off all along!

Aside from the constant tangling of wires, inability to hear bass clearly (an issue with all mini speakers thus far) and the extra vibration issue i mentioned earlier, the power-packed performance of this duo defintiely blew me away. 

VERDICT

These adorable but powerful set of mini speakers is a rarity in the world of electronics. Why? Because it absolutely delivers on almost everything it promises. What with its gargantuan battery life, wireless music streaming and a powerful built-in amplifier which provides a surprisingly loud volume, as long as you're clear on what they're good for and what they're not, we doubt you'll ever regret purchasing them. All in all, a definite winner!

Source - IANS: Apple's highly anticipated, next-generation iPhone is finally here. Sporting a larger 4-inch screen iPhone 5 is 18 percent thinner and 20 percent lighter than its predecessor.

Said to be a bit more thumb-friendly, iPhone 5 with 16:9 aspect ratio was unveiled by Apple chief executive Timothy D. Cook Wednesday at the Yerba Buena Centre for the Arts in San Francisco.

"It's an amazing time at Apple, an extraordinary time," said Cook as he walked on stage, wearing a black button-down and blue jeans somewhat like Apple's co-founder Steve Jobs who always wore his trademark black turtleneck and jeans.

Last quarter, Apple sold its 400 millionth iOS device. "Today, we're taking it to the next level," Cook said in a room brimming with journalists as Phil Schiller, Apple's marketing chief, took the stage to expalin the new Iphone's features.

The new machine has speedier innards, thanks to a new A6 chip designed by Apple. The chip is twice as fast in terms of CPU and graphics, he said. "Not only is it a jump forward in performance, it's 22 percent smaller."

The iPhone 5 has chips that support additional bands and frequencies and it's capable of delivering up to 100 Mbps per second, Schiller said announcing the carrier partners for the new iPhone: AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, Telefonica, among others.

The roomier screen of the iPhone 5, which has 40 percent more colour saturation, can be used by apps makers to provide most accurate display in the industry.

The iPhone's width is just right for navigating with one's thumb, Schiller said, to make it easy to send text messages, swipe through pages and browse the Web.

The additional vertical space on the iPhone 5 screen will let users add a fifth, additional row of apps on the home screen - more room for Web browsing and reading, he said.

Apple now has 380 stores in 12 countries. Some 83 million customers visited Apple stores in June, roughly 1 million per day, Cook said.

Source-ANI: A famous lavatory maker in Japan unveiled a motorcycle on Wednesday that can travel as far as 180 miles on a tank filled with animal waste.

Touted as the world’s first waste-powered vehicle, the three-wheeler has a lavatory in place of a regular seat and huge paper roll at the back.

“The biogas it uses as fuel is not made from human waste. It’s made from livestock waste and sewage,” the Telegraph quoted Kenji Fujita, a company spokesman, as telling reporters in a Tokyo suburb. “We hope to raise awareness among customers about our green campaign through development of environmentally-friendly products such as water-saving showerheads and water-saving toilets,” Fujita added.

The company, however, has no plans to commercialise the motorcycle.

You've all seen them; late at night, you hear the roar in the distance, followed by a symphony of tyre squeals as pedestrians and other traffic compensate for their boneheadedness. Four, five, no, six young wannabes on bikes zip past, living some sort of deranged Hell's Angels fantasy.

You've just seen a pack of crotch-rocket riding morons. How did they get there, you ask? Well, it started off innocently enough. They saw a Dhoni motorcycle ad on TV or heard about John Abraham's recent Hayabusa purchase, bought a bike, and it was all downhill from there. Get ready to piss off a lot of people as we get you in on all you need to know to be a crotch rocket rider.

THE BASICS 

You need a bike, of course. Not just any bike. And definitely not a reasonably-powered, well-designed get-me-from-A-to-B bike. You need the loudest, most overpowered piece of engineering there is. And the blingier the better. The dream for any crotch rocket rider is a Suzuki Hayabusa or a Kawasaki Ninja. But those require serious cash, so they're likely to settle for the next best thing. 

TRICK IT OUT

Silencers are evil, and are meant to be ripped out and cast away. Anything that makes your bike louder is better. Ditto for anything that draws more attention to it--decals, LEDs, the mind boggles at the possibilities. If it gives you a headache, you want it on there. 

STYLE UPGRADE

Now that your bike is sorted, you need to focus on yourself. A helmet and motorcycle jacket are the norm, but the design is where you get to really express yourself. A skull lets you know the world you mean business, while a naked woman helps compensate for the lack thereof in your life. A visit to the barbershop is also on the cards, if only to get the latest Dhoni/Abraham haircut. Some piercings will help enhance your stature as a tough guy, and tattoos will show your crew that you're the real deal. 

FIND A PACK

No true crotch-rocket rider ever rides alone. You'll have to find a bunch of like-minded fellows. Remember, a big part of the lifestyle is hanging out and comparing sizes. Of bikes and such. Each pack has a leader, who's usually a goon of some short. If he's flunked out of college, bonus points. 

RIDE STRONG AND LOUD

Now that you're ready, it's time to announce your arrival. Ride past hospitals, nursing homes and residential neighborhoods without a care--you're above the law, aren't you? Harassing single women is part of the initiation process, and every family you leave un-terrorized is a missed opportunity. Come on, you guys are the kings of the road--it's time to lay claim to the kingdom!

Seriously though, crotch-rocket riders are the bane of our existence, and we'd love for a pack to run right into a likeminded cop or two and get a taste of some lathi justice. If a friend displays any of the above signs, run--because he's about to turn into a crotch rocket rider!