It's a laptop! No, it's a tablet!

Let the debate begin as a new wave of portable gadgets flood the holiday market

This holiday shopping season, the hot tech item won't be a tablet or a laptop. If a recent wave of product announcements is any indication, it'll be a little of both.

The imminent release of the new, tablet-friendly Windows 8 operating system has sparked the imaginations of numerous tech companies, many of them proven PC manufacturers looking for a foothold in the exploding tablet market.

The result: A slew of gadgets that aim to merge a laptop's processing capabilities with the user-friendliness and portability of a tablet. Time will tell if buyers will take the bait, but these new-to-the-market gadgets may just be the best of both worlds.

Samsung Ativ Smart PC

Samsung's Ativ convertibles come in two versions — the basic Smart PC, which can handle day-to-day tasks, and the Smart PC Pro, which packs a powerful i5 chip. What sets the Ativ family apart is the accompanying S Pen stylus, which earned raves in early reviews for its responsiveness and handwriting recognition software. The 11.6-inch screen comes with 10-finger touch capabilities, letting you pinch, zoom, rotate and scroll with greater dexterity. The entry-level model will sell for $699, and the Smart PC Pro is priced at $1,149.

Acer Iconia W510 - Design, Connectivity and Keyboard Dock

First impressions of the W510 are certainly positive. Though the entire unit is made out of plastic, its matt silver finish gives it an attractive look that’s further enhanced by sleek, edgy lines. That matt finish also provides a good grip, if not on a level with soft-touch, and doesn’t show off fingerprints.

Competing with the 11.6-inch Asus Vivo Tab and Samsung Ativ Smart PC, the 10-inch Acer Iconia W510 is a ‘proper’ Windows 8 tablet/laptop hybrid that can run much of your legacy software, provides a multi-touch IPS screen, throws in a keyboard dock that also extends connectivity and battery life, and will last up to 18hrs on a charge according to Acer.

Toshiba Satellite U920t Ultrabook Convertible

A sliding hinge takes the Satellite from laptop mode, which features a LED-backlit keyboard, to tablet mode, where you can take advantage of a five-point touch Gorilla Glass screen. The Rapid Start feature found in much of the ultrabook family mimics the quick boot time of a tablet, but it certainly doesn't skimp on performance: The Satellite includes an Intel i5 processor and 128GB hard drive. Along with an HD webcam, it's equipped with a 3MP back camera for use while in tablet form — not stunning, but the Satellite, which is at its core a notebook mimicking a tablet's convenience, has its priorities in place. TheSatellite starts at $1,149.99.

Dell XPS 12

Dell does something a little different for its convertible unit — the screen is mounted on a spinning hinge within a frame, allowing you to fold the unit flat with the screen facing out for a tablet-style experience. The XPS 12 is, like the Satellite, a laptop in tablet's clothing; it boasts a number of high-performance, customizable specs, including Intel i5 and i7 processors, 4-plus GB of RAM, and either 128 or 256GB of hard disk space. The lightning-fast boot speed and processing punch should help make up for the price tag: It's $1,199.99 to $1,699.99 at Dell.com.

HP Envy x2

The Envy x2, which detaches from its keyboard using a magnetized hinge, fits more squarely in the "tablet" category. Its lower 64GB hard drive capacity, coupled with its 8MP back camera, suggests a device built with on-the-go use in mind. But in addition to the reasonable processing speed from its Intel Atom chip, there's bonuses like Beats Audio speakers and NFC technology, which allows you to share information between devices (like a desktop PC) by tapping them against one another — a feature you'll likely see in more machines going forward. It'll be available in early December for $849.99.

Microsoft Surface

Of course, Microsoft is getting in on the Windows 8 fun themselves with their newly unveiled Surface tablet. The flagship tablet borrows its design cues from Windows 8's colourful signature Live Tiles home screen; that's evident in the Surface's standout feature, the ingenious Touch Cover accessory. The cover includes a touch-sensitive "keyboard" — plus, there's also an upgraded Type Cover that includes more traditional moveable keys. The Surface negates the need for tablet stands with its built-in Kickstand, which folds into the device when not in use. The Surface opts for portability over power with its 32GB and 64GB iterations and NVIDIA Tegra 3 processor. Microsoft may be hoping its in-house software will lure buyers — the Surface comes pre-loaded with the Microsoft Office Home and Student software suites. It'll start at $519.

Federal agency to switch to iPhone, drop BlackBerry

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) said it will end its contract with BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd in favor of Apple Inc's iPhone

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) said it will end its contract with BlackBerry maker Research In Motion in favor of Apple Inc's iPhone, dealing a new blow to RIM just months before it launches a vital new device. 

The agency said in a solicitation document posted last week that it intends to buy iPhonesfor more than 17,600 employees - a purchase worth $2.1 million. 

The agency said it has relied on RIM for eight years, but the company "can no longer meet the mobile technology needs of the agency." 

It also said it analyzed Apple's iOS-based devices and Google's Android operating system and concluded that, for the near term, Apple's iPhone services offer the best technology for the agency because of Apple's tight controls of the hardware platform and operating system. 

The agency said the iPhone will be used by a "variety of agency personnel, including, but not limited to, Homeland Security Investigations, Enforcement and Removal Operations and Office of the Principal Legal Advisor employees. 

"The iPhone services will allow these individuals to leverage reliable, mobile technology on a secure and manageable platform in furtherance of the agency's mission." 

RIM is expected to launch its new BB10 smartphone in early 2013. The BB10 will come equipped with a revamped operating system and is aimed at putting an end to a precipitous decline in RIM's market share over the past year and longer. 

"Of course, we are disappointed by this decision," RIM vice president of government solutions Paul Lucier said in an emailed statement. "We are working hard to make our new mobile computing platform, BlackBerry 10, meets the future needs of government customers." 

RIM said that, after accounting for the ICE move, it had one million government customers in North America. 

RIM's advantage has been what industry experts widely describe as superior security and device-management features that have made the BlackBerry appealing to corporate IT managers and a crucial tool for police, government and military use. 

But that advantage is waning with the growing number of providers that help companies beef up security on iPhones and Androids.

Google to launch Android 4.2, Samsung Nexus 10, LG Nexus 4 on Oct 29

Google is reportedly planning to unveil a new tablet from Samsung, a new phone from LG, an updated operating system and an improved Nexus 7 during its upcoming event on October 29.

LONDON: Internet search giant Google is reportedly planning to unveil a new tablet from Samsung, a new phone from LG, an updated operating system and an improved Nexus 7 during its upcoming event on October 29.

The firm is expected to unveil at least one new Google Nexus phone as well as an enhanced version of its existing Nexus 7 tablet that will add more memory and 3G capabilities.

Perhaps the most exciting product, however, is a 10-inch tablet developed with Samsung codenamed 'Manta', the Telegraph reports.

According to a report by The Next Web, sources said that running an updated version of Google's Android, the new tablet will offer a 2560x1600 pixel (16:10) resolution.

The device, expected to be called Nexus 10, will be among the first to offer Android 4.2, which will have incremental improvements over the current Android 4.1, the report said.

The event's tagline is 'The playground is open', leading many to suspect it will feature a range of devices.

The Next Web claimed that the firm will also launch LG Nexus 4 mobile handset, which will feature a quad-core 1.5GHz Qualcomm APQ8064 Snapdragon processor, 4.7-inch 1280 x 768 display, 2GB RAM, 16GB storage, an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera, a 1.3-megapixel front-facing snapper and a 2100mAh battery.

Samsung kicking Apple to curb for LCD panels, report says

The Korea Times says Samsung will replace the lost Apple business with more display orders from Samsung's handset business and Amazon.

Samsung's display business plans to end its LCD panel supply agreement with Apple as of 2013, the Korea Times is reporting.

The publication, citing an unnamed senior Samsung source, said Samsung is taking the step because it "believes its American partner is no longer a cash-generator due to the iPhone maker's stiffer supply-chain management structure." Basically, Samsung isn't making as much from Apple's display purchases as it did in the past.

Samsung expects to replace the lost Apple business with orders from Samsung's handset division and from Amazon for tablets, the Korea Times said.

Samsung later denied the report in a statement to CNET.

While the publication cited financial concerns as the basis for Samsung's move, the strained relationship between the two companies likely has something to do with it. Apple and Samsung have been suing each other seemingly nonstop, with each accusing the other of ripping off its designs.

At issue is control of the booming smartphone and tablet markets, areas that are vital for continued growth at electronics makers.

Apple, which previously relied on Samsung to supply many components for its products, has been reducing its reliance on the company. The Cupertino, Calif., company has been sourcing displays from companies like Sharp and LG, and it reportedly plans to have its chips manufactured by a company other than Samsung.

Samsung Display was the top panel supplier to Apple as of the end of the first six months of this year, shipping over 15 million LCDs, followed by its biggest rival LG Display with 12.5 million and Japan's Sharp with 2.8 million, the Korea Times said, citing market research firm DisplaySearch.

We've contacted Apple and will update this report when it responds.

Facebook starts phasing out 'Questions'

Facebook is phasing out its 'Questions' feature, which allows users to poll their friends directly from a newsfeed. According to CNET, a Facebook representative has said the company is now shifting its focus to “other things”.

Facebook's Questions, however, will be available inside Facebook's Groups and Pages products, but the social networking giant has already begun removing the feature from users' News Feeds. Moreover, users will still have access to old Questions which they'd asked via the Activity Feed. The phase out will take place over the next few days.

AllFacebook quotes a Facebook spokesperson as saying: “Yes, starting today, we are going to begin removing the Questions feature from the composer for users. The removal will happen over the course of a couple of days. Pages and groups will still have the Questions functionality, and users can still access all past Questions and answers. We’re choosing to focus our efforts elsewhere.”

Facebook had launched 'Questions' in 2010 but it failed to gain traction among users. So, what “other things” Facebook is concentrating on now? The company hasn't said anything about this, but rumours predict the shift in focus is onto developing a solid search feature. It may be recalled that Mark Zuckerberg had also hinted at the company's efforts to ramp up its search functionality, having said, “[Facebook is] pretty uniquely positioned to answer a lot of questions people have.” It's sort of "friend mining".

Huawei and Airtel unveil India's first 4G smartphone, Huawei Ascend P1 LTE

Bharti Airtel and Huawei have teamed up to unveil what they call India's first LTE TD (4G) smartphone, the Huawei Ascend P1 LTE. The price of the device has not been yet revealed but speculations are it will be around Rs. 30,000.

The Huawei Ascend P1 LTE supports 4G high speed wireless data on the LTE network and voice calls on the 3G network using Circuit Switched Voice Fall Back (CSFB voice) technology. The smartphone runs on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS and is powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor.

Other specifications of the device include a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED touch display with a resolution of 960×540 pixels, Corning Gorilla Glass, 1GB of RAM, 4GB built-in storage, microSD card, and an 8MP rear camera with dual-LED flash. The device also supports Wi-Fi, microUSB and Bluetooth connectivity, and ships with a 1,800mAh battery.

"It [4G services] is taking time to ramp up. But it definitely has a wow offer. Right now we are able to offer 40 Mbps of download and 20 MBps of upload speed. The icing on the cake is that the customer pays us around $20 ARPU," says Sanjay Kapoor, Chief Executive Officer, India and South Asia,Bharti Airtel.

Airtel is the first telecom operator in India to launch 4G services. Earlier this year, the telco launched 4G services in Kolkata, later rolled out to Bengaluru as well. Even as 3G coverage gradually expands in India, 4G services, according to an estimate, are estimated to reach 5 million users by 2013. The growth of the TD-LTE market depends on other mobile manufacturers following suit, such as Nokia, Samsung and Apple, which are expected to launch LTE-enabled smartphones in India soon.

1Gbps broadband speed plans coming soon for Indian users: Radius Infratel

Broadband users of nine Indian cities will be soon having access to ultra-fast download speeds up to 1Gbps, says telecom infrastructure firm Radius Infratel. The company expects the high speed broadband will be available for users by mid-2013.

"In the next 6-9 months, world class 1,000 Mbps or 1 Gbps (Gigabits per second) plans will be available in India to residential consumers. On connections like these, the same two hour HD movie will download in 30 seconds," Radius Infratel CEO Rajnish Wahi is quoted as saying. At average broadband speeds, the same content takes more than an hour for full download.

Declining to divulge the names of the service providers or areas where the ultra high-speed plans will be first launch, Wahi said that the discussions are underway, while the deployment work is about to be completed in Gurgaon. Radius, Wahi added, has teamed up with real estate developers, including DLF, Unitech, Emaar MGF, Ansal, Mantri, Vipul, ATS, Omaxe, Vipul, M3M, Paramount and Prateek for fibre optic network that will provide high-speed broadband services in projects undertaken by them.

"Radius network is already available in or near 3 lakh homes and is live in Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida, Greater Noida, Indirapuram (Ghaziabad). The network will soon be available in Bengaluru, Chennai, Pune, Mumbai and Chandigarh," Executive Director of Radius Infratel, Kuldeep Goyal is quoted as saying.

It's notable that Bharti Airtel and Tata Teleservice provide 100Mbps plans for users that cost up to Rs. 5,000 per month. State-run telecom operator MTNL offers fiber to the home FTTH plans. One of its plans, Fibre Thrill 2590, features 20Mbps download speeds at a monthly rental of Rs. 2,590, and free 150GB of data. Airtel recently launched its FTTH services in Delhi NCR. The Fibrenet 175GB plan features 100Mbps speed for a data transfer limit of up to 175GB, and 512Kbps thereafter, for Rs 5,299.

Google earlier this year had launched its ultra-fast 1Gbps Fiber Internet and Fiber TV service in Kansas City in the U.S.

Bharti Airtel becomes world's 4th largest operator: Wireless Intelligence

India's telecom giant Bharti Airtel has become fourth largest telecom operator in the world in terms of subscribers, according to the Wireless Intelligence ‘Scoreboard’ report. At the end of the quarter ended June 2012, the Company had over 250 million mobile subscribers across its operations, representing 13 percent Y-o-Y growth.

“India’s Bharti Airtel (#4) was the only other member of the top ten to move up the ranking, recording a 13 percent year-on-year rise in connections (to 250 million) and leapfrogging Telefónica to become the world’s fourth-largest operator group in Q2,” says the report.

“However, Bharti's US$3.04 billion in mobile revenue in Q2 2012 is significantly lower than the four other operators in the top five, reflecting Bharti's presence in the ultra low-cost, low-margin Indian and African markets.”

Bharti Airtel had become the fifth largest mobile operator in the world after it took over Zain Group’s mobile operations across 15 African nations in June 2010.

Among the top five operators in the world, China Mobile topped the list with 683.08 million subscribers. Vodafone stands at number two position with 386.88 million subscribers whereas America Movil Group and Telefonica Group occupy third and fifth position with 251.83 million and 243.51 million subscribers respectively.

In the top 20 list, there are three other Indian telecom operators as well - Reliance Communications, Idea Cellular and state-run BSNL. With 154.60 subscribers, RCom is at the 8th position, while Idea ranks 14th with 117.16 subscribers. BSNL is at the bottom in list with 98.28 million subscribers.

Telenor and Sistema foreign firms with a subsidiary in India stood at the ninth and fifteenth position, respectively.

Check out the full report here. Also check out the list of the top operators below:

Google Maps data shows what Indians are looking for

Google in collaboration with research firm IPSOS has prepared a report on what items residents of three metropolitan cities—Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore—are searching for on their internet-connected devices.

The report reveals that hotels are the most searched for destinations in these cities. In Delhi , The Imperial is the most searched for hotel, while Mumbai residents looked for The Trident, which has also become the most popular hotel on Google Maps. In Bangalore, The Leela Kempinski was the most searched five star property. The data was collected via maps.google.com in August this year.

According to the data, Karim's and Hard Rock Cafe were the top search hangout joints by people in Delhi and Mumbai respectively. Phoenix Marketcity is the most searched destination amongst all other city malls in Bangalore.

The data also lists educational institutes. According to the report, educational institutes especially engineering colleges were highly popular in Bangalore. IIM Bangalore stands at number two in the search list, NIFT, and the Bishop Cotton Boys school are the two other institutes which made it to the list.

Delhi and Mumbai, according to the data, listed Jama Masjid and Siddhivinayak Temple respectively, as the most searched for cultural/religious sites.

Connaught Place, National Rail Museum and India Gate emerged as the top hangout destinations in Delhi, while Mumbaikers going out for movies, with Big Cinemas—IMAX Wadala, and PVR Cinema topping the list.

Announcing this data, Lalitesh Katragadda, country head—India Products, Google said, “Earlier, India lacked the culture of using maps, but it is changing now. This data is proof that users are continuously accessing information on maps to find places and mapping their communities.”

The official also highlighted growing popularity of the smartphones in India. According to him, about 46 percent of smartphone users are now using their devices to search for directions or simply explore maps. The smartphones are now not just used for making and receiving calls, but for various other purposes such as entertainment, instant messaging, social networking and so on. “Unlike most content, which is fed to users, Google Maps engages consumers to create maps, which are then used by more users,” he adds.

On the relevance of Google Maps for the country, Lalitesh says, “India is an important market for Google. India’s citizen mappers have constantly helped us edit and improve Google Maps, bringing in deep, rich maps, and local information alive for India. Beyond recreational and convenience value, maps have an enormous influence on the world. Not only do they help in relief efforts during a calamity, but also aid social development.”