Sony Xperia Sola Review

Simple & Smart

My Ratings: 3/5


I have used almost all the major brands of mobile phones except Sony. Finally I have got a chance to use it. I gifted Sony Xperia Sola to my brother and am using it vigorously to know the positives and negatives of this phone.

In the quest

I explored extensively for a right phone to gift it to my brother. There were few basic requirements before I started the search.
1. Android phone; the version was not of much concern.
2. Minimum 5MP camera (secondary camera was needed but not of primary concern).
3. Impressive screen resolution.
4. Preferably single-SIM support.
5. Amazing looks and design.
6. Minimum 3.5inch screen.
7. Pricing should be in in the range of 15-20k.

I was surprised to find out that there were not many mobiles matching these specifications . I choose Sony just because I want to try out something new and Sony is always a preferable brand for music playback.

Design & Performance

The Sony Xperia Sola is very basely designed in a decent way that appears like a candy bar (all square design) with well-built plastic body and matte finish for comfortable handling and finger print resistance . On the right there is microUSB port for charging and connectivity, volume up/down keys and dedicated camera button. On the left is power/screen lock button and 3.5mm audio jack at the top. It houses 5MP camera at the back along with flash .

The phone has 3.7-inch display with a resolution of 854 x 480 pixels . There are three backlit capacitive buttons (back, home & options) below the screen and a notification LED and the sensors on top. There’s no front camera that is surprising considering the price range of this phone. A non-removable 1320mAh battery is housed under the back cover along with a hot swappable microSD card slot and a standard sized SIM card slot.  

The location of power and volume keys are quite odd as most people are accustomed to use power key or screen unlocking with thumb and volume control by fingers. Here in this phone it is opposite and the volume keys are very absurdly placed at right bottom side of the phone and you have move down the thumb to control the volume. All the keys work well except the camera button which is really hard to press.

The best part of this phone is its weight of 107gms and the 9.9mm thinness that you will not even feel that you are holding something worth 20k in your hands.

Sony Xperia Sola is powered by dual-core 1GHz Cortex A9 processor, 512 MB of RAM and 8GB of internal memory , of which 5GB is user accessible . The storage capacity of phone can be expanded upto 32GB using microSD card. The phone comes with Gingerbread version of Android but ICS update has been rolled out so you can update it.

The images with 5MP camera are decent in daylight , though indoor snaps using built-in flash are not upto the mark. Also in normal photos, there’s too much noise reduction and the colours are a bit washed out but anyhow it looks good. It also gives you the option of clicking pictures with a ‘3D Camera’ app . It’s not exactly 3D but Sweep panoramas and a Multi-Angle Panorama shots. There is dedicated camera button and you don’t even have to unlock the device to click an image (in tune with iPhone). It also supports up to 720p video recording that works quite well. The camera app can perform basic functions like choosing scenes, white balance, focus etc.

Sony has introduced an innovative technology with this phone called floating screen that help you to highlight an icon on the screen by moving your finger over it before you tap on it to open. As of now it is used only in default browser in this mobile. The Xperia Sola comes with Sony’s Mobile Bravia Engine technology for colour management, noise reduction, and sharpness filtering to reproduce high quality graphics and images. The Bravia engine gives the animations, videos, pictures all of super high quality which is one of the major advantages of this device.  Believe me, reading texts on Sola is very much similar to my experience with iPhone and is very crisp and clear.  

Sony have their custom Timescape for their phones that is useful in integrating social profiles; its quick and lag free with daily usage. If you’re somebody who installs a lot of memory intensive apps and games, you’ll have to be careful though as it slows down the phone and takes a toll on the battery as well.

Performance wise, phone works quite well and smooth (all credit to dual-core processor) and there is no lag in switching homescreens, multitasking or playing games .

For connectivity, Xperia sola includes Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, and DLNA. It can even be used as Wi-Fi hotspot to use mobile internet over other devices using Wi-Fi and the performance is quite impressive.

The default music player works quite nicely and gives decent audio output using Sony’s xLoud feature. It comes with a minimalistic interface , home screen widget, and always-on lock-screen controls available at the flick of a finger.

The call performance is upto the mark. The earpiece and loudspeaker volume is loud and clear. Another great addition is the use of a second microphone for noise cancellation . The second microphone at the device’s back identifies noises and cancels them to offer better sound for the receiver.

The major drawback is its weak battery performance . Android is known for battery sucking and still this phone is provided with meagre 1320mAH battery . If you use it regularly then it will hardly cross 10 hours line.

Pros
1. Superb scratch-resistant screen .
2. Rubberized back panel that provides fingerprint resistance and better holding grip.
3. Very light weight and small yet easy to grip and handle.
4. Excellent pixel density for this screen size.
5. NFC support with NFC tags supplied in the box, very less phone available to support NFC in this price range.
6. 5MP camera with panorama and quick capture feature.
7. USB on the go feature.
8. Bravia engine feature.

Cons
1. The phone comes with lot of bloatware just like Sony Vaio computers. It unnecessary eats up RAM and battery .
2.   Very low RAM of just 512 MB out of which only about 350MB is user available.  
3. No front facing camera .
4. Placement of volume button.
5. Very poor battery backup.

Verdict

The screen seems smaller for game lovers . Ironically its 3.7in screen seems much smaller than my iPhone’s 3.5in screen. May be it is because of huge difference in form factor.  For a mid-range smartphone, this phone works pretty well. The animations are sharp and there is hardly any lag ever. Response time in starting applications and application performance is also quite impressive.

The customization over Android done by Sony is very neat and impressive. I like the minimalistic and sober approach in UI and simple yet impressive looks . In gist I would say that nothing is overdone and nothing is left out either.

Considering the market situations and available options, this phone has nothing new or great to offer. It is a very simple phone that has few unique features. I purchased this mobile for Rs.19490 but Sony has recently reduced the price to Rs.17490 on flipkart.com . It is really a nice deal at this price. It is available in three colours- red, white and black.

If you are looking for a decent mid-range phone that gives value for your money, do not hesitate to check it out!

Windows 8 Review

Window for a new experience

My ratings: 4/4


New gadgets, new releases, new technologies, new updates and upgrades attract me so I immediately installed Windows 8 Pro once it was launched. I didn’t wait for reviews or feedbacks because I want to remain updated anyhow. It’s more than a week I am using the latest version of Windows. I would share only key points that would help you decide that whether you need this upgrade or not and how to use it more effectively.

Brief description

The new windows has two versions of screens- one is the old ‘desktop screen’ and other is tiled ‘metro screen’ . There is a hidden shortcut bar (shortcut to search, share, start, devices and settings) on left edge (named as ‘ Charms Bar ’) that is visible when mouse is pointed on top right corner. The ‘ settings’ option in charm bar can be used to control Wi-Fi, Volume, Power on/off, brightness, notifications and online keyboard . You will also find ‘Change PC Settings’ at the bottom in settings pane to control general settings. When you press the Start shortcut on this bar, you will be transferred to a totally new screen having live tiles that can be scrolled from left to right.

The best part of this new OS is these tiles which differentiates itself from all the previous versions of Windows. The metro style apps run in full screen and can’t be minimized or re-sized like the previous windows. When you start your system, it automatically booted to new Metro screen. There is a ‘desktop’ link on that screen to get the old desktop screen.

Windows 8 requires 1GB RAM and 20GB of disk space, 1GHz processor , 1,366 x 768 resolution and DirectX 9 graphics. You can upgrade if you are running Windows XP SP3 or higher and you need to reinstall your apps if you’re upgrading from XP or Vista.

How & where to download

Just go through the link http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-8/upgrade-to-windows-8 and it will guide you for each and every detail needed by you.

Why you need to upgrade?

1. I will start with the most basic reason that if you have a habit of updating software’s on regular basis irrespective of the advantages then you should go for Windows 8 as it is an update of previous versions.
2. While upgrading you will be given three options: fresh update, retaining files & retaining files and settings . So you don’t need to worry about your files and settings.
3. It is different and will definitely give a fresh feel and look to decades old desktop style screen.
4. Microsoft has tried dynamic changes in the UI (user interface) and got successful to an extent. It has followed the tile style icons that are previously used in Windows Mobiles.
5. It is the right time to download Windows 8 as you are getting it at promotional prices of just Rs.1999 or Rs.699 if you’ve purchased new PC with Windows 7 between 2 June 2012 and 31 January 2013. This is dirt cheap and you cannot imagine a proper OS at this price (except the Linux). Microsoft is going to hike the price to Rs.8k (approx.) after 31st Jan’13.
6. If you are hooked to your old desktop, you can still use it without any hitch. The only thing you will miss is the ‘Start’ button.
7. Now you can use a whole new world of full-screen, touch-friendly, Web-connected apps to explore. Though there are very limited apps there as of now but these will increase with time.
8. It has comparatively faster boot up and shut down time . Overall it is faster than its predecessor.
9. The metro style UI lets you feel the full screen features of every app. There is no annoying status bar, toolbar or task bar. It will take some time to get used to these new developments but once you are done it’s just awesome.  
10. You will get a new copy feature with an all new ‘copy progress dialog box’. There is no multi windows for multi copying. Now everything is integrated in one window with lot many features such as transfer rate and pause option.
11. There is in-built anti-virus software named ‘Windows Defender’. It will take time to know that whether it is capable to upgrade itself with all the new threats multiplying every day.
12. This Windows comes with a new feature of ‘File History’ that keeps backup of all the files and can be restored to any version of a file at any point.
13. When you login in your PC with Windows id, the settings will follow you whenever you sign with that account in any computer. It’s all because your Microsoft account is linked to SkyDrive storage available online.
14. Windows 8 has introduced "Snap multitasking" to run two apps simultaneously that can even be resized. But you cannot view all your running apps on single screen.
15. There are many preinstalled apps : Mail, People (can link Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn & Google accounts), Messaging (can only link Windows live & Facebook), Photos, Music, Video, Calendar etc.

Tips: Solutions to problems faced by me
 
1. I use BSNL broadband and it took almost 14hrs to download this new version of Windows so be patient. The time taken may vary depending on the internet speed. You can do normal work on PC while downloading.
2. You need to use Windows account to login your PC to utilize complete features and functionality.
3. You can shut down your system using simple: press Ctrl+Alt+Del in metro screen and Alt+F4 in desktop screen.
4. If you really miss your ‘Start’ button on desktop, you can create a desktop shortcuts by this link- ‘C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\’. Similarly you can create shortcut for Shutdown (C:\Windows\System32\shutdown.exe -s -t 00), Restart (C:\Windows\System32\shutdown.exe -r -t 00) and logoff (C:\Windows\System32\logoff.exe).
5. There is no ‘x’ button for closing any screen in Metro UI and I got surprised for the first time. You may use ‘Alt+F4’ for closing windows or use ‘drag down’ option (dragging widows downwards while pressing mouse button).
6. There is no volume up/down option on Metro screen of ‘Music’ and ‘Video’ . So either you have to set volume through settings option in ‘Charm Bar’ or press the hardware key for volume up/down that will direct you to a small hanging screen for control.
7. The best part in Metro UI is its searching feature . Just start typing without selecting any option and it automatically redirects you to search page.  If you are on desktop screen, press ‘Windows’ key +F and it will take you to search page. Quite an easy shortcut. The search results are categorized into Apps, Files & Settings.
8. If you want to use Metro style Internet Explorer, you have to make IE as your default browser else it will open in desktop style only.
9. The new version will occupy around 20GB of your C drive so be prepared for that and beforehand make the space available. You can use EaseUs partition manager to repartition the drives.
10. When you are in Metro screen, be aware that it works with single click only.

Finally I would like to say that Windows 8 is designed for touch enabled devices so the full features can be explored on that only. The experience is worth even if you are using normal PCs. It’s new and better, it’s different, it’s charming, it’s cheap, it’s fast and these reasons are enough to go for upgrade. If you don’t like the tiled Metro Screen, you can always use the old desktop screen and there are many apps that can bring back the old ‘start’ menu or you can use shortcuts as mentioned above. So go for better till 31st Jan 2013 or you may regret later.

Khiladi 786 Music Review

The Khiladi is Back... with a bang!!!

My ratings: 4/5

Akshay Kumar is back with Khiladi series after a long gap of 12 years. All were waiting for it as an action movie including me. I have no expectations with the music of this movie but it’s music album totally astonished me or I should say it is biggest turner as per me. The music of this album is composed by Himesh Reshmmiya who is playing multiple roles of co-actor, producer, lyricist, singer and composer. HR is here with a bang after lot of critics by fellow composers with 14 tracks. Can you ever imagine any action movie with 12 tracks? So let me discuss this album.

Lonely

Tujh se dur main bhi hoon majboor,
Dil ko sataye teri akhiyon ka noor,
Aah, bbat ye sachhi aaj tujh ko bataaun
bas tere liye main ye geet likhte jaaun
Din raat hi main inhe goongunaaun
Phone mein photo teri dekhu baari-baari
Ji Kardaa aa java main maar ke udaari,
O baawariyaa O baawariyaa

The album opens with this rap song by Yo Yo Honey which is carried forward by Himesh Reshammiya who still sounds nasal at many points. The lyrics by Shabbir Ahmad are good but the song sounds very ordinary. HR beautifully uses one line ‘Teri yaad saath hai’ from Akshay’s hit movie ‘Namaste London’ , may be to show old association with AK :).

My ratings: 3/5

Balma

Fire brigade mangwa de tu..
Haaye!
Fire brigade mangwa de tu
Angaaron par hai armaan
Ho balma, ho balma haaye
Tera rasta dekh rahi hun
Sigadi pe dil sek rahi hun
Aa pardesi more balma
Ho balma ho balma

This song is portrayed as item song of this movie and is in news because of the return of Claudia in this item song after a long time. The lyrics of Sameer Anjaan are on the track of all the item song these days with more of fun and random similes . This song is composed on the track of ‘Mehbooba Mehbooba’ of Sholay and HR is almost successful (still far behinf RDB) in his attempt and is full of energy and liveliness . The vocals of Sreeram (Indian Idol winner) and Shreya Ghoshal suits this song very well.

My ratings: 3/5

Long Drive

Party sharty karenge, Karenge aaj tere naal
Dynamite teri meri jodi soniye
Ghodi Chadhke ni aaya main
Gaddi soni soni laaya main
Long drive pe chal chal chal
Long drive pe chal chal chal
Long drive pe chal mere naal soniye
Ni mere naal soniye

Mika is there with his pet style with mix of folk, Punjabi and rock . This song is full of masti and youthfulness and will be a sure hit among the youths , especially in four-wheelers with full volume turn on.

My ratings: 3.5/5

Saari Saari Raat

Palkan di chaavan, thandi hawaavan
Main mangu duaavan
Palkan di chaavan, thandi hawaavan
Main mangu duaavan
Oh rabba ve
Saari sari raat, soye na hum
Sari sari raat, soye na hum
Jo tenu vehkiyaa, saansen gayi thum
Sari sari raat, soye na hum

The lyrics of this song by Shabbir Ahmad are very interesting and emotional and it will definitely be a hit among the peoples in love. HR is at its best in this song with instruments and maintains the tempo from beginning till end of this song. There is no nasal effect in this song and touches the heart and soul.

My ratings: 4/5

Hookah Bar

Teri ankhiyon ka waar, jaise sher ka shikar
Tera husn dhuyedaar, jaise jaltaa sigaar
Tere pyar ka nasha kabhi aar kabhi paar
Tera pyar pyar pyar hookah bar

When everything was going well, HR introduces his literary skills and the result is this cheap lyrics of this song (how can love be compared to a hookah bar?).  The song is sung by HR, Vineet Singh and Aman Trikha. The music is fast, catchy and in old and pet style of HR. It can be considered a song for DJs.

My ratings: 3/5

Khiladi

Jo paar lagaaye sab naiyya
Wahi phans gaya
Bhanwar mein bhaiyya
Kab aayegi nain ladaiyya
Jo bolegi humko saiyyan
Taare gin gin kar
Intezaar mein hum
Baiju-Bawra ban gaye bhaiya
Khiladi bhaiyya khhiladi bhaiya khiladi
Khiladi bhaiyya khhiladi bhaiya khilad

The title track of this song is among the best of this album and is perfect in lyrics (or I should say mix of lyrics), composition and vocals. It is sung by Vineet Singh and assisted by Aman Trikha, Yashraj Kapil, Alam Gir Khan and Rajdeep Chatterjee, and the overall impact of the team is appreciable. The song is good but the punch is missing to describe an action character . The few phrases in between are sung in ghazal tone and sounds impressive.

My ratings: 3.5/4

Tu Hoor Pari

Tu hoor pari hai lajawaab
Chaudanvi ka chaand ya aaftaab
Dekha maine ik khaab khaab
Tu shehzaadi main tera nawaab
(sher-e-punjab aha sher-e-punjab)

The song is started with two Punjabi lines and the lyrics of Shabbir Ahmad is good. I don’t understand the logic of insering ‘Sher-e-Punjab’ after every few lines and seems totally out of order with rest of the song. It will definitely irritate you after few ‘Sher-e-Punjab’.  HR has tried to compose this song as a mix of Punjabi folk and qawwali . The vocals by Javed Ali, Shreya Ghoshal, Harshdeep Kaur & Chandrakala Singh is ok but there was lot of scope for improvement in this song. I think over experimenting turns fatal for this song.

My ratings: 3/5

Remixes

Out of total seven original tracks, there are five remix versions . ‘Lonely’ remix exceeds the energy of the original track. I noticed one ironic thing with the remix version of ‘Balma’ that the starting beats are very much similar to world famous ‘Gangnam Style’ . It may be just a coincidence or deliberated attempt of HR, can’t say!!! ‘Long drive’ and ‘Khiladi’ sounds very much similar to the original track though there was lot of scope in both these songs. ‘Hookah bar’ sounds little better in remix version.

My ratings: 3/5

My picks - Lonely, Long drive, Khiladi and Saari saari raat.

Overall ratings: 4/5

Verdict

No matter what, this music album will definitely be a chartbuster and the best thing with it is that there were no expectations attached to this album. It is very rare nowadays that an album has 12 tracks and that too in an action flick. Hats off HR!!! This music album will be a contributor of the success of this movie.  It will be a hit among the masses and especially among the youth generation .

Try it once, you may love the varieties provided in this album.

Samsung Galaxy Chat Review

 Best Touch-n-Type ANDROID Phone

 My ratings: 3.5/5

Recently I have purchased Samsung Galaxy Y Pro Duos (GYPD) and the main reason for choosing that phone was its dual SIM feature. Samsung has launched a new mobile in place of that, with better features but single SIM. I got a chance to use newly launched Samsung Galaxy Chat for few days and I am sharing my experience here.

Samsung Galaxy Chat is unique mobile for its feature and price range. There is no Android ICS enabled mobile with touch and type feature at this price.

This phone has 3-inch display with a resolution of 240x320 pixels, and comes with a physical QWERTY keypad . It is equipped with Android ICS (4.0) that is upgradable to Jelly Bean (Android 4.1); 850 MHz processor with 512MB of RAM . It is powered with 1200mAh battery and available in black and white colours.

It has 4 GB inbuilt memory space as mentioned on the specifications and can be expanded to 32 GB using a micro SD card. Half of the internal memory is occupied by operating system and other apps already installed.  

The form factor is really amazing and it is pleasure holding it in hand. It is comparatively lightweight and fits properly in palm . I have not seen any other touch and type phone of this large touchscreen and beautiful QWERTY keypad. It has 3inch multi-touch capacitive touchscreen which is similar to Galaxy Y, Nokia Asha 311 and Sony Xperia Tipo. The resolution and pixel density of phone is very poor and it’s really a big task to read something on this phone. For other purposes one may not even notice its low resolution.

The phone design is very much similar to GYPD and has similar positioning of volume up/ down key on left side and power key on right side. There is 3.5mm audio connector jack at top and micro USB charging-cum-connecting post at the bottom. The four Android keys are just below the screen and are feather touch that is different than GYPD.

The keypad of this phone is similar to all the previous QWERTY phones of Samsung but the keys of this handset are comparatively small to maintain the form factor. It has a dedicated key for ‘Samsung Chat On messenger’ and for me it is a totally useless as I have never used that messenger.  There is no trackpad provided in this phone so scrolling is to be done solely using touchscreen. There is provision for on-screen keyboard that can be used in horizontal and portrait mode.

There is 2MP camera and is great letdown of this phone . There is no LED and auto focus options provided. There should be minimum 3MP at this price range. One more ironic thing is that there is no front camera which is very much required for a smartphone.

The notification panel is equipped with many shortcuts against the five provided in GYPD. Even the brightness can be set from that notification panel.

For connectivity it has a 3G, Bluetooth 3.0, USB for mass storage and PC connection, GPS and Wi-Fi that can even be used as hotspot to use mobile internet over PC .

There is nothing worth mentioning for music player. It serves the basic purpose. Inbuilt video player can easily play MP4 videos. For other formats you may have to download third party app. The sound quality is loud and clear. Signal reception is good. I am facing a problem in my GYPD that the voice is not very clear while on call . I have faced the same problem in this set also. It is not alarming but a problem worth noticing.

The 1200mAh battery easily lasts for a day on normal usage and 6-7 hours on Wi-Fi. There is no complaint regarding its battery performance that is much better than other Android phones.

Positives
1. Very stylish looks and lightweight.
2. Android 4.0, upgradable to Android 4.1 .
3. Decent screen size of 3inch.
4. 4GB internal memory, almost 2GB free to use.
5. Quick responsive touchscreen.
6. 32GB external memory support.
7. Physical keys are small but comfortable to type.

Negatives
1. Poor camera, just 2 MP.
2. Less RAM, results in sluggish performance .
3. Low screen resolution.
4. Glossy back cover attracts fingerprints and smudges.
5. No dedicated camera button.
6. No secondary front camera.
7. Not compatible with many apps due to its low resolution screen.

Advices
1. Make it a habit to turn off 3G and GPS when not in use.
2. Keep closing unused applications through ‘Manage application’ in settings to save battery power.
3. It is better to use pattern lock for screen locking as the odd positioning of ‘power off/ unlock’ key may unlock the phone while in pocket.
4. It is advisable to uninstall preinstalled app s that are not useful, so as to optimise the available space.
5. Install a third party app for better browsing experience . Opera Mini is better as it will save data cost also.

Recommendations
1. Recommended for people who are fond of messaging and chatting.
2. Not recommended for heavy gamers, ok for those who casually play games.
3. It is good option for those who want touch and type mobile phones as there are no better option in any price range (except Blackberry).

It is an average handset with stylish looks and cute QWERTY keypad . The phone is available at very reasonable price of Rs.8000 (approx.) at online stores . It is a steal for these many features at this price. There is no other mobile of reputed brand having all these features in market nowadays. This mobile is solely for not-so-heavy users who are comfortable with physical keys. The best part is that this mobile is worth the price paid.

MY RATINGS FOR THIS PHONE: 3.5/5

Casio Edifice EFA-120L Review

All purpose. One watch.

My ratings: 3/5

I was passing my time on Hyderabad airport when I first noticed this watch- CASIO EDIFICE ANALOG DIGITAL EFA-120L-1A-1V . There was something in this watch that I got attracted towards it, I think it was its simple and sober look and few important features.

Looks & Design

The watch is analog and digital watch with exciting features. The dial of the watch is rectangular in shape and made up of stainless steel. There is a spherical hard glass (resistive to normal scratches) attached to the dial. This dial is attached to black colored tough leather straps . The strap is uniformly pinned on its body that improves its gracefulness and it is bordered with a red colored stitching.
The inner side of dial is black in color with two small sized overlapping chronographs on one side. There are two luminous hands for pointing hours and minutes. ‘CASIO EDIFICE’ is written on top in white in two lines. It is to be noted that working area of dial is round shaped and remaining area is adorned with 12 steel pointers for hours.
The dial displays date (in MM-DD format) and day (two letters) on top, time (in HH:MM SS format) on bottom and temperature in middle.


There are total five push buttons in the watch - three on right and two on left.
The back side of the dial is engraved with the brand name, model number and few important features. The names/ functions of all the five push buttons are also engraved near below the respective buttons.

Specifications

Daily alarm
Hourly time signal
Auto-calendar (to year 2099)
12/24-hour format
30 time zones (50 cities)
100-meter water resistance
1/100-second stopwatches (two in numbers)
Dual Chronograph for separate timing operations by two stopwatches
50 lap time memories
Countdown timer (1 minute to 100 hours)
Accuracy: ±30 seconds per month
Temperature display range: -10 to 60 °C (14 to 140 °F)
Approx. battery life: 3 years
Size of case: 43.9 X 38.3 X 12.9 mm
Total weight: 64 g

Features

The watch can be operated in 7 different modes (Timekeeping, Stopwatch, Recall, Countdown timer, Alarm, World time & Handsetting) to access the various features and functionalities of the watch. The default mode is timekeeping mode that displays basic information such as time, date and temperature.

Electro-luminescent panel -  The dial of the watch can be illuminated using a dedicated push-button. This feature can be set to auto mode that will turn on the light when the watch is moved closer to the face in a particular angle. The auto-feature has to be used cautiously as while driving the sudden illumination may panic you.

World Time - The watch can display current time in 50 major cities (30 time zones) of the world. Just by a press of button, time zone can be changed as per the choice.

Stopwatch - The measuring unit of stopwatch is 1/100 second for the first 60 minutes and 1 second for the display after 60 minutes. There are two measuring modes- Single stopwatch mode that displays lap times & total elapsed time for a single runner or vehicle; and Dual stopwatch mode that displays two independent lap time &  lap time differential.  The watch is even equipped to memorize 50 lap times & total elapsed time entries.

Countdown timer - The countdown can be set from 1 minute to 100 hours . There are 1-min and 1-hr increments provided to set the time. The measuring unit is 1-sec. The timer also has a feature of auto repeating.  

Timekeeping - The time can be displayed in 12-hour or 24-hour format. If the time is set in 12-hour format, a small ‘A’ or ‘P’ is displayed with time to symbolize AM or PM. There are also two needles for analog timekeeping. The company assures accuracy of ±30 seconds per month.  The watch is set for auto-calendar feature till 2099 so there is no need to setting time when there is a leap year.
There are two options in time displays- standard time & daylight saving time . Daylight saving time advances the time by one hour. This feature is not useful for India but can be used in many other countries.

Temperature measurement - There is in built temperature sensor in the watch and the temperature can be set to display in degrees (D) or Fahrenheit (F). The display range varies from -10 to 60 °C (14 to 140 °F) and the display unit is 0.1 °C (0.2 °F). The temperature is updated during each even-numbered minute .  When the watch is in wrist, the temperature displayed gets affected by body temperature, moisture and direct sunlight. To get the exact surrounding temperature, the watch has to be removed from the wrist and placed in a place away from sunlight and moisture. It will take 20 to 30 minutes for the exact surrounding temperature.

Alarm - Two types of alarms can be set on the watch- daily alarm and hourly alarm . The watch beeps at the set time; the beep is loud enough to alarm you but it cannot wake you up if you are sleeping or moving in a noisy area.

Battery - As per the company specification, the battery will last for 3 years that is sufficient enough.

Water resistance - The water resistance of the watch is mentioned in two units- 100m and 10bars . The "BAR" value indicates the number of atmospheres to which water resistance is ensured that means it is wearable during swimming, washing etc.,  but not during high board diving and surfing.

Positives

1. Very sturdy and robust look
2. Scratch resistive metal glass
3. Simple and sober
4. Dual watch (analog & digital), that is quite unique

Negatives

1. Costly, when considering looks and features
2. Digital display is not visible in bright light
3. Temperature sensor shows a mix of body temperature, direct sunlight & moisture
4. Very heavy in weight even though there is no metallic chain
5. Push buttons are very hard to push

Bottom line

First of all I would like to mention the price of this watch. The MRP of the watch is Rs.5995 and you can get it at a discount of 10% from many stores.  The looks are very ordinary when compared to price, so don’t expect turning heads. The looks are comparable to the watches of the range of Rs.2000.
The watch has many useful features that can be used in daily routines. It depends on the user that how could s/he use it impressively.

I would recommend this watch to office goers who like formal accessories. This is not at all for youths or funky peoples.

Samsung Galaxy Y Pro Duos review

Basic ANDROID for basic users

(This review got First Prize of Rs.10,000 in 'Mouthshut.com Review contest'  Click here for details )

My ratings: 3/5

I am back with another review of a gadget I possessed recently.  Till now I have used Java, Symbian, iOS, BADA, Windows and thus I was eagerly waiting to acquire an Android phone. I want to solve many purposes with this phone, so I started my quest for a dual-SIM Android phone with QWERTY keypad . There were not many options in reputed brands so I finally zeroed upon Samsung Galaxy Y Pro Duos.

Basic Specifications

GPRS, Edge, GPS, 3G connectivity
Android 2.3 OS
800 MHz processor, 512 MB RAM; 150 MB internal memory
2.6-inch TFT capacitive touchscreen (320 x 240 pixels)
3.2MP rear camera, VGA front camera
Touch and type, Dual SIM functionality
1350 mAh battery

Features of the phone

The phone is a bar shaped with QWERTY keypad, trackpad and four Android buttons . The rear of the phone looks metallic with smooth finish. The volume key is on the left and power/lock button are on the right. The 3.5mm jack is on top and mini USB port is provided at bottom for charging and connectivity.
The display is a 2.6 inch unit with 320 x 240 pixels . Due to low resolution individual pixels are visible.
Due to small screen and horizontal layout the basic menu, call, contacts and messages are placed vertically in a bar and remains there in all the three home pages.
The keypad is nicely designed and is quite comfortable to work with. The trackpad and the Android buttons are placed just above the keypad. The only drawback is that these buttons are not backlit like the rest of the keypad.
The phone has 3.15 megapixel camera without LED flash and VGA camera at front for video calling. The camera has features like smile shot, panorama mode and all the other basic features.
The images can be shared direct from gallery to all the applications such as Facebook, Bluetooth, messaging, mail etc.
The dual SIM can easily be maintained with a dedicated button.
The music player is very simple and easy to use. Songs can be sorted as per artists, albums and playlist.
The inbuilt browser works well but pinch-to-zoom feature is really missed. Even the volume keys cannot be used for zooming the pages. The screen doesn’t support multi-touch so we have to rely on onscreen zoom to navigate.
Though it is provided with 832 MHz processor but multitasking slows down this phone.
The pull-down notification screen can be used to on/off Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, Silent mode, auto rotation and can even be used to switch between the two SIMs.
The phone can be used as a modem via USB tethering and even via Wi-Fi that is very useful if you want to use the mobile connection on your computer.
The data on the mobile can be synced with various accounts such as Facebook, Gmail etc.

Pros   

1. Very reasonable pricing considering the features of the phone.
2. Very responsive touch screen . I am using iPhone in parallel and still very comfortable with the touchscreen of this phone.
3. Music player is very nice.
4. QWERTY keypad is very comfortable to type.
5. Internet browsing speed is good and comparable with high end phones. Works quite well with Wi-Fi.
6. Optical trackpad is an additional feature and is very sensitive.
7. SIM card manager works well and there is a dedicated key for switching between the two SIMs.

Cons

1. Ordinary looks , not at all comparable to mid-range or high end phones.
2. Very low internal memory and you may face problems if you want to install more and more applications from Google Play.  
3. Sometimes the phone responds very slowly for no known reasons.
4. Low screen resolution.
5. No multi touch and hence no pinch to zoom feature.
6. Battery drains at super quick speed. If you are using GPS or Wi-Fi, the battery will hardly run for half day.
7. No flash for the camera.
8. There is no hardware key for the camera or contacts list.
9. Not good at multitasking.

Problems faced

1. Memory card scanning would happen on its own whenever I try to switch on the mobile and is very time consuming.
2. There is no option for delaying the automatic screen lock. The screen locks in a blink and I have to go through cumbersome process of unlocking it again.
3. There is no separate draft folder in messaging . So if a message is unsent for any reason, it will keep stuck in conversation that is very annoying.
4. There is no physical button for making or receiving calls . The calls are received using swipe feature that is not very responsive (sometimes).
5. Loudness is not upto the mark and there are times when I had missed calls due to it. Sound quality is clear but not loud.
6. There is no backlight in the four Android keys (Menu, Home, Return and Search) so I have to struggle in dark to find out the right key (though icons are embossed on the keys).
7. There is no direct keypad to dial a number . I have to go to ‘Call’ option and from there I have to select ‘keypad’. If a number is dialled directly from the homepage, it goes to Google search.
8. The ‘Unlock screen/ Power off’ button is provided at the right side of the phone instead of top as it is used to be placed in all other phones. The button gets pressed whenever the phone is in my trousers pocket and any app may start functioning then. It was very disturbing and finally I find a solution and started using pattern lock.
9. PC suite for this mobile- Samsung Kies is not very user friendly. It nowhere stands close to Nokia Suite or iTunes.
10. There is very limited internal memory of 160MB. There are many apps that cannot be moved to SD card so left with no option but be choosy while downloading applications.
11. Most of the apps don’t work properly because of the horizontal alignment of the screen. It is very irritating to work on this phone holding it horizontally.
12. The moment I get a call on any of the SIM, the data service stops and will start again once the call is ended on the active SIM.

Recommendations

1. Recommended for Android lovers who are uncomfortable with full touch features . As it provides keypad, optical trackpad with touchscreen.
2. Recommended for people who want their first android phone with low budget and moderate performance requirements.
3. Go for it if you want a dual-SIM phone with QWERTY keypad and Android OS.

Don’t buy if

1. You have used or using high end smartphones.
2. You want an Android phone for gaming purpose.
3. You are fond of taking pictures through your camera phones .
4. Your fingers are big as you may not be able to use the touch features properly, considering the small touchscreen.

Verdict

This phone is a very basic Android phone running Gingerbread while ICS is running on all the new devices . It seems that Samsung is in no mood to upgrade it to ICS or any other higher version. It has very fixed target buyers like me who want dual-SIM, QWERTY and Android in one phone. If you are searching for all these features, this phone is for you as there is no other phone in market with all these features and in this price range. Despite all the problems mentioned above, I am quite satisfied with this phone.

It is available for Rs.8500 in many online stores and can be bargained for Rs.8000 or less at any store near you.

Nokia C2-02 Review

Touch. Type. Nokia. All at Rs.3400.

My Ratings: 3/5

I needed a phone to gift to my younger sister. Her requirements were very basic- messaging, calling and listening music/ videos. As she is not internet savvy, I have to choose a very basic and user friendly phone for her that comes cheap but doesn’t look that cheap. There were many phones in market but I zeroed upon Nokia C2-02 touch and type having slider form factor.

Basic specifications 
 
1. Screen:   2.6" 65K-color resistive touchscreen    
2. Operating System:  Symbian series 40   
3. Camera:  2 MP fixed focus, 15fps video recording   
4. Connectivity:  Bluetooth 2.1, GPRS, EDGE, microUSB   
5. Storage:  10MB internal, 32GB external support   
6. Others:  Stereo FM radio with in-built recorder, Alphanumeric keypad
 
Features and functions

The phone is very well built and looks quite attractive with matte finish battery cover. It doesn’t look cheap like many other mobile phones in this segment. There are only two physical keys provided for volume control and screen locking. The slider works quite smooth but with time it may not work so smooth. The USP of the designing is golden chrome plating at bottom of this phone.


It is 17 mm thick with height and width of 103 mm and 51.4mm respectively. The form factor is slider bar. It has resolution of 320×240 pixels and weighs 115g. The screen resolution is nothing to boast upon .

The touchscreen is 2.6” and doesn’t seem small. Important point to remember is that it is resistive touch and not so smooth like the mostly used capacitive touchscreens. It will take some time to get used to it. It was horrible experience for me when I tried to use this phone after using iPhone and N8 (the comparison is totally invalid, considering less than 1/10th pricing).

There is no touch keypad provided in this phone so you have to use physical alphanumeric keypad on sliding the slider. The keys are like a flat pad and no gap is been provided between them but still it is quite comfortable typing on it.

The phonebook and messaging feature are very basic like any other Nokia phone.

The camera provided is fixed focus 2megapixels without any flash . It solves the basic purpose of photography. I very much missed the physical camera key.

The photos are neatly arranged as per the timeline and albums. There is editing tool provided that can perform all the necessary editing. The photos can be transferred via message, mail, Bluetooth or direct upload to web.

Nokia is still using the old age Symbian ; the OS of this phone is Symbian 40 6th edition. The only advantage of this OS is that it is very user friendly and helps in better battery backup. It is like any other Nokia phone experience you have ever used in your life- the same icons and the same style. The biggest drawback is inability to perform multitasking and you have to close one app to work on other.

The speaker is provided near the camera and is very loud for music playback . It can playback mostly all the major audio formats. The music folder is categorized as per albums, artists, playlists and genres.  There is n o provision for changing the audio track, playing or pausing, when not in the now playing interface .

The call quality and reception is great as expected from a Nokia phone. There is 3.5mm jack provided for headphone and can be used with any standard headphone in market.  

Video player of this phone can only play MP4 and 3GP formats and it will not play high-res videos.  There are basic video control functions provided- play/pause & previous/ forward.

The phone supports GPRS and EDGE . The Nokia has recently improved its web browser on the track of Opera and compresses the webpages on loading.   The speed is ok considering the pricing, RAM and OS and is just ok for web browsing- better for basic surfing. The browser provides flash based content surfing using flash lite feature but it doesn’t provide tabbed browsing. For better experience it is better to download Opera. Pushmail feature is also provided that is really great for this budget segment. Chat app is also there that supports Google Talk, Ovi Chat, Windows Live Messenger and Yahoo! Chat.

There is social networking app ‘Communities’ provided inbuilt with the phone that give access to Facebook, Twitter & Flickr. Nokia store can be accessed to download more apps. All the basic applications are provided such as calculator, voice recorder, to-do list, notes, timer, stopwatch etc.

It is provided with Bluetooth feature and microUSB port for data transfer . The shocking part was that charging feature is not supported via microUSB that is standardly used in almost all the mobile phones nowadays.

The battery provided is 1020mAh and easily works for 2 days with normal usage. Anyhow, Nokia is master in battery backups.
 
Pros   

1. Stylish design with golden finish at the bottom.
2. 32GB memory support .
3. 2MP camera with 4X digital zoom.
4. EDGE and GPRS enabled.
5. Push mail feature
6. Touch and type feature .
7. Easy user interface.

Cons   

1. Resistive touchscreen that will require a pointed object (pen, nail etc.) for functioning.
2. Only 10MB of internal storage .
3. No dedicated keys for camera or music playback.
4. No navigation key or D-pad .
5. Unable to perform multitasking.
6. Delicate SIM and memory card tray.  
7. Limited connectivity options .
8. No Wi-Fi and 3G.

Verdict

This phone is the only phone in this price range from a reputed manufacturer that has touch and type feature . It performs all the basic functions required by a normal user. It cannot be misunderstood as smartphone and is a big NO for heavy internet users .

It is important to note that it should not be confused with Nokia C2-03, which is dual-SIM mobile phone with same looks and form factor.

It is available at Rs.3365 at flipkart.com and can be bargained for Rs.3300 at any store near you.

It is recommended depending on the following conditions

1. Best suited for young girls who need phone for basic purpose and basic internet usage.
2. Those who want a pocket friendly stylish phone.
3. Those who hate QWERTY keypad.
4. Those who want touch feature in a budget phone without compromising on brand.
5. It can be preferred if anyone is planning to own an extra phone aside a smartphone.

Apple iPhone 4S Review

iPhone: Need, Luxury or Show-off???

My Ratings: 3/5

Many of you know that I am a gadget freak and love to possess one and all. I have written reviews of many mobiles but this one is special as it is the costliest mobile I had ever possessed. I was (still am) proud owner of Nokia N8 but many Apple lovers had asked me to try iPhone so it became a desire for me. Finally I decided to fulfill this desire of mine and purchases Apple iPhone 4S. As you all know that earlier days of acquiring anything are the most exploring days so I am sharing my views on this costliest mobile. I am not mentioning specifications or performances of this mobile (you can read that on many places), I am just discussing my own personal views.

Limitations

No user profiles- Choosing a profile as per your situation are a basic function of any mobile. Everyone used to have lot many combinations of ringtones, volumes, vibrations etc. but iPhone doesn’t give you the liberty for all that. There is only two options- Loud & Silent.

Activation of iPhone- Once you purchase this phone, it needs to be activated by Apple servers and you cannot use this phone without activating it. For activation, you compulsorily require internet connection- wired or wireless.

No mass storage mode- You cannot use this phone as an external storage like other phones. If you connect it to computer, you can only access the photos stored in the device.

Limited Bluetooth functionality- Bluetooth cannot be used for transferring files.

ITunes dependency- iTunes is required for transferring songs, videos etc.

No micro SD card slot- It comes with an internal storage and that cannot be further extended as there is no micro SD card slot.

Micro-SIM card support- Micro-SIM cards are still not very common in our market so you have to cut your normal SIM by SIM cutter. The cut SIM may not work properly in iPhone and in that case you have to ask your service provider to arrange one micro-SIM.

No FM radio- It may not be a major limitations but still one expects this basic feature when investing 40k in a phone. There are many radio apps available but will only work with mobile data or Wi-Fi. 

Pros

1. Apple has the largest app store where you can get varieties of applications. Few of the apps are really very useful in daily life.

2. Retina display is far better than AMOLED. Reading on iPhone is a pleasure to eyes.

3. The camera is very fast and clicks without much hassles.

4. Best build quality and feels premium by looks and feel.

5. Very simple and user friendly operating system with no hidden menus under menus.

6. Useful iMesaging feature that can be used to freely exchange messages between all iOS supported devices over Wi-Fi & 3G.

7. Reader optionis provided in the Safari browser that will give you a clean view of the article you are reading - only text and the related pictures. There are no ads and navigation controls. This option depends on the compatibility of the webpages with the integrated reader; there are still many pages that cannot be used with Reader.

8. The touch is very smooth and the performance is blazing fast.

9. There is no categorization of memory and whole space is available for apps downloading as well as music or videos.

Cons

1. You have limited options for everything.

2. There is no option for changing camera resolution.

3. Despite solid build it feels very delicate, may be because of the glass back.  

4. Apple video chat feature- Facetime works only over Wi-Fi.

5. Limited sound quality because of the small microphones at the bottom. You may even miss a call if it is in bottom-down position in your jeans pocket.

6. Applications keep running in background, killing battery. There is no option of quitting in any app and these are to be closed specifically following a certain procedure. 

7. Limited multimedia playback options as Apple can’t play many popular formats.

8. Unimpressive phonebook with no speed dialing option.

9. Very basic photo editor with limited option of cropping, rotation and red-eye removal. You have to download various apps for more editing.

My Views

I was willing to own this phone since the time it was launched but was unable to do so because of the rocket high prices. Anyhow I fulfilled this dream of mine recently. I was using Nokia N8 before this phone so the comparison is natural. If I decide upon performance, N8 was very slow with sluggish and rather confusing operating system but it can be customized as per my need and requirements. Apple lags far behind in this field as you have to compromise with the limited customizing options.

I am using iPhone for last one month and frankly speaking I haven’t felt any ‘wow’ factor till date. The phone is good may be great but I was expecting much more.  I am mentioning few of my personal views about this phone.

1. The design and look is very premium and classy but I can’t forget my Nokia N8 that has got unique looks and pure aluminum body.

2. I have read and heard so much about Safari browser but it was great let down for me. It may be better than many browsers in the market but it is definitely not the best.

3. The best thing I liked about iPhone is its keypad. It is pleasure to type using its keypad and I have never felt this ease in any other phone. The keys are placed very nicely with sufficient space between each other. The keypad keeps changing automatically as per the requirement (works with default apps).

4. There is no need to choose the destination while downloading any application. Downloading an app from app store is very smooth and hassle free.

5. I very much miss the ‘exit’ or ‘quit’ option in every application. Even if I have closed the application, the fear is always there that it might be running in the background.

6. The battery performance is very poor and it hardly works for a day. It may be because my Wi-Fi is always on but still I was expecting it a little better than Androids.

7. I love 12MP camera of my previous phone but still the 8MP camera of this phone doesn’t let me down. The image quality is very superior and sharing images is quite simple. It even gives me compressing options while emailing a pic.

8. Useless SIRI feature- The SIRI may be the USP of this iPhone but I didn’t find any utility till date. Why do I waste my time asking him to do things that I can easily do with few clicks. Personally I feel that my hands can perform much better than my mouthJ.

9. Poor signal reception- This is the worst thing I have noticed in my iPhone. When all the phones are showing full signals, iPhone is always one or two bars down.

Final words

If you are Apple fan, you will purchase no matter what critics or reviewers say. (For those who are not Apple fans) if you want to purchase a phone with full functionalities, there are many other phones available in market at much lesser price.

It is one of the best mobile phone in the market and it does perform well but you have to decide that whether investing Rs.40000 plus on a mobile phone are worthy or not.

I am unable to decide that I have become an Apple fan or not but I would love to purchase iPhone 5 on its release.

May be this is the charisma of iPhone that I can be critic and lover of it at the same time.

May be you need to own it to judge it better.

May be you would love to own it as this is the only show-off mobile available in this universe.

May be you would advise others not to buy it but you can’t resist yourself.

Wrote about my iPhone

(This is in line with the most famous show-off signature ‘Sent from my iPhone’)

eBay.in Review

STOP. Then SHOP.

My Ratings: 2.5/5

I don’t know how I got hooked to online shopping but I have become online shopaholic from last few months. The reason may be because of my remote location and inaccessibility to latest products and gadgets. I have tried many sites in newly found passion of mine, eBay.in is one of them. So I thought of sharing my experiences with you all on this platform, it may be useful to you in taking purchasing decisions.

Introduction

EBay does not require any introduction as it is the one of the largest and oldest online shopping destination in India. It is found as baazee.com which was later took over by eBay.com. Interestingly, it is just a platform where sellers and buyers meetand sell or purchase. EBay acts as a regulatory body and acts as mediator so as to make the transactions fair and honest.

Advantages

1. Shop for all: EBay has some or other thing for all the age groups and for all the genders.

2. Unique products: There are many products which you have never ever thought of and you will get it on eBay.  

2. Better bargaining: This is a common platform where all the sellers are present with their prices, so you may get a better bargain then other online stores.

3. Discount Coupons: There is always one or other discount coupons or sales that tempts me for more shopping. EBay used to regularly mail some or other discount coupons ranging upto 15% discount. So you can imagine buying a Samsung Galaxy S3 at Rs.35k which is lower than the lowest possible price of GS3. These types of deals can happen only on EBay.

4. EBay guarantee: EBay provides 30-days guarantee for every transaction and you can claim for refund if you feel that you are been cheated.

5. Paisapay: Payment on EBay is done by Paisapay which is very secure medium. It also guarantees your transaction for 60-days. 

Disadvantages

1. Cheaters/sellers: Though EBay checks all the transactions and even regulates the feedback but still there are many sellers who will try to fool you by displaying wrong products or delaying shipments etc.

2. Customer Support: This is the worst part of eBay although it provides every mode of customer support. I have tried their call center that took me 45mins to connect, online chat- 50mins to connect and even mailed their customer support for which they responded after 4-5days.

3. 30-day limit: The sellers know the 30-days eBay guarantee so the cheaters will try to extend the delivery for 30-days and once the limit is crossed eBay will simply ask you to deal with the seller directly.

4. Feedback ratio: The feedback ratio may not be a reflection of actual characteristics of sellers as the buyers used to give feedback once they are in receipt of the products. But the actual problem arises after the receipt and there is no option to share those experiences.

BEWARE!!!

I have written this review because of this section only so read it carefully if you are deciding to purchase on eBay for the first time.

1. Product specification: Do read carefully each and every line and even between the lines for the actual product description. There might be a small catch somewhere so be alert. Do notice that whether it is new, used or refurbished item.

2. Mode of delivery: If you are from a remote location, it is very important to know the mode of delivery. It is better to ensure that whether that particular courier used by the seller is servicing in your area otherwise you will have to face lot many problems to collect it.

3. Communication with seller: There is an option of asking questions with seller so in doubt simply clarify before transaction. Do note that if the seller is not responding to your query, he may not be relied upon as if he is not interested in pre-sales queries what the surety that he will help you post-sales.

4. Seller feedback: Though it is not very important but it does give a brief idea about the seller. There are cases when 99%+ feedback seller cheats the buyers.

5. Warrantee: This is the most important point when buying any electronic item/ gadget on eBay. There are many items that come with seller’s warrantee. It is better to prefer the items with manufacturer’s warrantee as it will give you liberty to take it to the nearest service center. In case of seller’s warrantee, you have to ship it back to seller and they will rectify it (they may not rectify citing unknown reasons) and ship it back to you. And you have to bear all the cost of shipping!!!

6. Product origin: Just read the description carefully if you are purchasing an electronic item that whether it is bought from Indian dealer or imported from USA, UK or some other countries. If you are purchasing a mobile, it might be unlocked to a career of that country of origin.

7. Read online reviews: It is always better to search for online reviews of seller, if you are purchasing a costly item. Just copy the name of seller and paste it in Google bar and the history geography of seller will be before you if he usually cheats his buyer. If the Google search does not return anything, it might be because buyers have no complaint against that seller.

8. Don’t get tempted: Control your senses when you are exploring eBay as you might get through a deal that saves you money in the range of thousands. Read everything carefully about the product and the seller before transaction.

9. Communication with eBay: In case of delays or delivery of wrong products, keep updating everything with eBay. Don’t get fooled with sweetened talks of seller as it might be just another attempt to fool you. Sellers on eBay has unusual habits of delaying delivery and updating you with wrong delivery information and extending delivery dates, better be aware of all these pranks.

10. Transaction outside of eBay: There are many sellers who will advise you to make payments in cash, be aware of them if you want to avail the eBay guarantee. Those transactions are not authorized by eBay and you may lose your money with wrong or defective product in your hand.

My eBay Moments

I have purchased many things on eBay and there are times when the products were as per the specifications but the quality was so poor that I have to discard those items(wall clock, key stand, photo frame etc.). So be careful when purchasing home décor items as the quality may not be upto the mark.

In March, I have purchased a factory unlocked Apple iPhone 4S for approx. Rs.38k. The seller updated wrong delivery information and then keeps delaying delivery dates. I got the item after 20days and the worst part was it was factory locked. So I informed eBay about it and they ask me to communicate with seller. I asked seller to replace the item and he willingly accept my request. He makes arrangements to ship the item back to him at his cost. The real drama starts after that. He keeps promising delivery dates every day and gradually he stops responding to my calls and mails. He keeps doing all these for more than a month. Fed up with all these, I just shared my experience on eBay Facebook page. And it did wonders!!! I got my phone within 3 days.

Conclusion

EBay has many advantages and disadvantages but still it is heaven for buyers. It provides some of the best deals among offline and online shops. The only thing is that you have to be aware and alert for every purchase you are making on eBay.

Happy & Safe eBaying!!!