PakTechnical

You must have heard of the Blue Whale Challenge by now. If not, here’s why you should know about this most dangerous fad. It is a game where the player is challenged to do different tasks by an administrator for 50 days, ranging from seclusion, to self-harm, and eventually suicide. This game is believed to have originated from Russia, created by a psychology student who is in prison now. Reports say that it has claimed over 100 lives in Russia and Europe. It first appeared on Russian social networking site VKontakte. Why is the Game Named Blue Whale Challenge? Often times, blue whales kill themselves by washing up ashore on a beach, committing suicide in a manner of speaking. It allegedly caused its first suicide in 2015 and only yesterday, a 19-year old from India also committed suicide and left a note which read: “Blue Whale – This is not a game but danger. Once you enter, you can never exit.“ What are the 50 tasks? They say prevention is better

Nothing like a good news to start your day. Xiaomi is reportedly preparing to reveal its first physical store in Pakistan. The company’s presence till now has been either as an online store or at select Zong dealerships and customer care centers. Need For Offline Presence A dedicated physical store is a necessity in Pakistan. Despite the increasing penetration of e-commerce sector in the country, people are still cautious about buying anything online. Most of Xiaomi’s competitors (Huawei, Oppo etc) have brick and mortar stores and an extensive presence in Pakistan which makes Xiaomi’s move all the more important. Based in Faisalabad This was announced by Xiaomi Pakistan’s official Facebook page: The post mentions that the store will be located in Faisalabad and will be unveiled at 7 pm tonight. This store is also just the first of many that Xiaomi has planned to launch in Pakistan. According to the Google Maps, the store appears to be located between Sitara Mall

Apple is still new in the augmented reality world and is yet to unleash a mainstream product aimed at it. It revealed its first AR kit a few months back at WWDC. This kit facilitates developers, helping them easily embed AR features into their apps with iOS 11. Some apps compatible with AR on iOS: Take On Me type of music video A virtual pet game A restaurant app that can show virtual food on the plate and many more such apps. All of these apps are pretty cool and Google, which has been developing hardware and software for AR, has obviously been impressed by Apple’s take on promotion of AR. The search giant is all set to release its very own AR kit by the name of ARCore. What is ARCore? ARCore is going to be very different from one of the older Google’s AR projects, Tango. Tango requires hardware, like depth sensing sensors and cameras, but ARCore is completely different. All it is going to need is a regular smartphone. Google’s kit is already available in the ma

The Emmy Awards is responsible for honoring the very best in United States’ prime time television shows every year, but did you know that technology companies can also get an Emmy for feats of Science and Technology? While the two, fiction and science, may seem like polar opposites, there is a connection that makes one responsible for making the other possible. Ever wondered how the fire-breathing dragon in Game of Thrones looks so terrifyingly real? Or what equipment makes it possible to capture a complete panoramic view of the whole scene? All that (along with a lot more) is made possible, with a combination of Science, Technology, and artistic flair. The National Academy of Technology, Arts, and Sciences (NATAS) has now announced the recipients of the 69th Annual Technology, Arts and Sciences. From creating more innovative ways to interacting with your TV in “Contextual Voice Navigation for Discovering and Interacting with TV Content” to implementing better methods of ens

Instagram is finally adding a much-requested feature to its platform. You can now choose the format of the pictures you upload in your Instagram album, with both landscape and portrait modes supported. Previously, you could only upload a picture in a square frame. The new feature The app introduced its album feature in February that lets you add up to 10 photos or videos in a single post. You can now upload landscape or portrait photos and videos to your album without being restricted to only squares. The previous restriction required you to either post photos in a row or let it be cropped. Limitations Exist The new feature, although an improvement, does have a restriction: you can only post photos in a shared format. So you can’t upload landscape and portrait photos in the same album. The company says this limitation is “to keep the experience smooth and consistent” across the app. The new update is on the roll The app is slowly making improvements to its clunk

Each year Samsung launches a flagship, and it outperforms all of its rivals. Or at least it tries to. This month again Samsung has outed its flagship, the Galaxy Note 8 and it comes with the best display ever available on any smartphone. DisplayMate, a company which specializes in testing displays for color accuracy and calibration, has released a comprehensive report of the display found on the new Galaxy Note 8. This year’s Galaxy S8 already had the crown for the best display but it seems like the Note 8 has stolen it and it has also been given its first ever A+ rating on a smartphone. Highlights While the report itself is a long one, we’ll just summarize it and list the important findings from it. According to DisplayMate, coming in at a record brightness of 1,240 nits, it’s the brightest display around. This makes the the Note 8 22% more brighter than the Galaxy S8. This improves display performance and screen readability in challenging indoor and outdoor

Google and YouTube are planning to redesign their mobile and desktop apps. Recently, YouTube has decided to restyle its logo and turn it into something meaningful. “We have the word tube in a tube. This is weird. No one know what this is”, says Christopher Bettig, the head of YouTube’s art department commenting on the previous logo. In order to rectify that issue, the online video streaming service has introduced a new logo – which consists of the play button placed above the red outline of a CRT TV – as part of its redefined look. The icon is situated on the top left of the website. Its going live all around the world so you may see it in a couple of days. Here are the other changes YouTube made in its Mobile and Desktop versions. Mobile App changes Navigation Tabs, new Library and Account sections are updated in the YouTube mobile App. Now a user can also speed up and slow down playback on the Mobile App, which was only available as a feature on the w

Canon is updating the EOS M10 in October. Called the EOS M100 the new mirrorless camera includes a number of changes compared to the original model. The EOS M100 is a mirrorless camera with an upgraded 24.2 MP APS-C sensor (was 18 MP on M10). The burst mode has also been slightly improved, going from 4.6 fps to 6.1 fps. It can now record 1080p video at 60 fps (was limited to 30 fps on the M10) however there is no support for 4K. It has a built-in, manual pop-up flash which means you won’t need to buy one separately for the EOS M100. The camera weighs in at 266 g with the body only and 302 g with the battery pack and a memory card. Bigger ISO Range, Better Image Processor The M100 will come with a Dual Pixel, 49-point autofocus and a DIGIC 7 image processor (same as the M5 and M6). ISO ranges from 100 to 25,600 (previously 100-12,800). It has a 3″ TFT LCD screen, tiltable up to 180°. Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and NFC are also added in the EOS M100. For storage options, SD/SDHC/SD

Thailand has officially declined the invitation to invest in the auto industry of Pakistan. The decision was made after the eighth round of bilateral meetings between the two countries held on 23rd and 24th August in Islamabad. A source privy to the matter told that both sides have almost finalized the text of the proposed free trade agreement (FTA). However, negotiations are still underway on the tariff reduction. Thailand’s Commodity Advantage According to an official study, Thailand has a comparative advantage in around 1,000 commodities, chiefly electrical and electronic appliances, machinery and component, and automobiles and parts. The final decision on the Pak-Thailand FTA would be made during the 9th round of talks between the two countries scheduled on November 14-15 in Thailand. Both sides had exchanged the final offer lists of items for free trade, including automobile and textile sectors for removing the reservations of the business communities. During the

Google, Microsoft and several strive to make their web browsers faster. Google launched AMP, Edge was built on a new architecture and Mozilla overhauling its Firefox browser are some of the examples in this case. Researchers at University of Michigan may have found a way to make web browsing even faster. The all new Vroom architecture loads pages twice as fast on average, even AMP pages’ load faster. How Does It Work? Its working is pretty simple. It downloads more of a page at once rather than going back and forth while downloading, which is the usual process in most web browsers. According to Vaspol Ruamviboonsuk, the researcher that led the development on Vroom, When a browser begins to load a page, all it knows is the main URL. Everything else, it's to find on its own through multiple rounds of parsing and execution code to work out all the assets it wants Vroom minimizes the load time by bundling up the information the browser requires to load a ce

Samsung has launched yet another mid-range smartphone for the masses. Samsung Galaxy J7 Core (known as J7 Nxt in international markets) is now officially available at retail and online shops in Pakistan. The phone comes in at a price of Rs. 24,999 and comes in black and gold colors. Design and Display Like other mid-range Samsung phones, the Galaxy J7 Core features a similar design with a home button below the screen flanked by back and recent apps buttons. Displays are Samsung’s forte and the Galaxy J7 Core showcases that. The phone features a 5.5 inch Super AMOLED 720p (1280 x 720) resolution screen. The icons may appear pixelated when viewed up close however the colors are punchy with plenty of contrast. Internals and Storage On the inside, J7 Core is powered by Samsung’s own 1.6 Ghz Exynos 7870 octa. It has 2 GB RAM and 16 GB internal storage with a microSD card slot. The phone is dual SIM by default and comes with Android 7.0 Nougat with Samsung’s Tou

The Xiaomi 90 Minutes All Weather Bag, originally launched in June this year is now available on sale for 199 Yuan ($30). The aesthetic bag-pack with a reflective outlook is well designed for outdoor activities, vacation, and travel, as well as for daily use. About The Backpack The bag has an origami structure that features a minimalistic design. Here’s what this multi-purpose bag has to offer: The bag pack comes with a removable chest strap and a belt to share the load. For night–time safety, the bag has shoulder straps with reflective material. The bag is durable and water resistant. The waterproof coating ensures that the bag can resist rain while keeping your valuables in the bag safe from water. The bag is light weight and clings well on the back. This eases your movement while travelling. The bag comprises of separate compartments for your gadgets such as: laptop, smartphones, tablets etc. The power bank too has a separate compartment. The ba

Careem has decided to introduce three new features in its app in order to enhance user experience and facilitate people. The new feature set will enable Careem users to provide feedback regarding their ride experience and appreciate the Captains by tipping them straight through the app. Tipping Feature Some users appreciate Careem Captains by leaving them tips at the end of a trip. Careem has now made this process more easy and convenient. Previously, riders were able to rate the Captains on a scale of 1-5 based on their experience during the trip. Now, after every ride, a popup will show up asking users if they want to give a tip. If the Captains deserve it, commuters will be able to tip a pre-selected amount or enter a custom amount of their own choice. If a user wants to leave a tip, they will receive two separate receipts, one for the ride and the other for the tip. It should be mentioned that the tip feature is optional and not compulsory. Providing Feedback If

Symantec Corp, a digital security company, has found evidence of a cyber spying campaign that targeted both Pakistani and Indian security agencies. According to Symantec’s threat intelligence report, the malware attack against the two countries has been going on since October 2016. They also said that it looks like that several groups have been involved in this. They say that even though a lot of groups have been involved in this, it seems like all of them are working towards the same agenda. Symantec hasn’t ruled out the possibility of the attack being financed by a single sponsor, possibly a state. Reuters also reviewed the case but did not name the nation behind it. Even Symantec has refused to give any more comments on the subject saying that they don’t release any information about the clients they work for. They are not willing to give any information regarding malware analysis, investigations and incident response services they are providing to their clients. Wrong

Dell is giving XPS 13, arguably its most popular laptop, a refresh. The new XPS 13 comes with an eighth-generation quad-core Intel Core i5 or Core i7 Kaby Lake processors. The former is clocked at 1.4 GHz with turbo to 3.4 GHz, while the latter at 1.8 GHz with turbo to 4 GHz. The processors are said to bring up to 40 percent better performance than their Kaby Lake counterparts. Other than that, you get up to 16 GB RAM, PCIe-based storage of 128, 256 or 512 GB capacity or a 1 TB hard drive. There are still older 7th-generation options available for people who want something within a tighter budget. You also have the option of getting a dedicated GTX 1070 graphics card, though the base models will have to make do with Intel HD Graphics 620. Smallest 13-inch Laptop in The World Design-wise, Dell calls it the smallest 13-inch laptop in the world, thanks to its small bezels. That’s not all, as Dell has still fitted a QHD+ (3200 x 1800) display on the front, still supporting bat

Dell is stepping onto the Windows Mixed Reality platform full-time with the announcement of its new Visor headset. The ‘Visor’ is being released as an accessory for some of the gaming systems that Dell produces. The company is pretty much mum on all of the details as of now. However, we do know that the display part consists of two 1440 x 1440 LCDs, which is the norm for the industry. Comfy Headset Hands-on impressions of the headset point towards a pretty comfortable experience, not a surprise given the excessive amounts of padding you can see in the design. It can be worn over glasses and has a clip at the back for securing all the wires connected to the glasses. There’s also the faceplate we’ve seen before that allows you to look around without having to remove the headset itself. The weight distribution is also on point. The headset doesn’t require any additional cameras to work, which adds to its appeal to casual gamers. Still Early These are still early days

Fitbit has finally entered the smartwatch market after hesitating for some time. Fitbit has made fitness bands before, though the new Ionic is its first which can go toe-to-toe with most modern smartwatches. On the front, you get a 1.42-inch display with 348 x 250 resolution and is said to offer accurate, punchy colors. The brightness level here is said to reach up to 1000 nits. The OS runs on the new Fitbit OS, making the Ionic the first device to run the operating system. Fitbit also packs some new fitness-focused programs for the smartwatch, the chief among which is Fitbit Coach, a paid service with a training program tailored for you. The watch comes with ability to track SpO2 levels, which makes it more accurate to measure your fitness regime. You can track sleep, swimming, heartbeat and more. Connectivity The Ionic comes with support for waterproofing by up to 50 metres in depth. For connectivity, you get Bluetooth, GPS, and NFC. Like a regular smartwatch, it can also

You might not have heard of this one. YotaPhone 3 is now officially available featuring dual screens. The one on the back is an e-ink display, the kind you see on e-book readers like the Amazon Kindle. YotaPhone 3 will cost you $360 for the base model and $460 for the 128 GB version. Design and Display The design of the phone comprises almost entirely of displays. You get a 5.5 inch 1080p AMOLED display on the front. On the back sits a 5.2 inch 720p display E-ink display, aided by three capacitive buttons. The fingerprint sensor is located on the home button at the front due to a lack of space on the back. In a way, it gives you a phone and e-reader at the same time, if you don’t mind the small size. Internals and Storage Internally, you get an octa-core Snapdragon 625 processor with 4 GB RAM and either 64 or 128 GB of storage, which is likely non-expandable. Yotaphone is Dual SIM by default. The phone comes with Android 7.1.1 Nougat with a custom skin (Yota OS 3.0)

Infinix is known for some of the best mid-range smartphones available in Pakistan. This time around they’ve released an entry-level phone called Infinix SMART. The phone comes at a price of Rs. 9,499 and is available at various online stores and retail shops. Design and Display Infinix SMART looks plain from every angle. On the front the phone has stereo speakers which is the only thing worth noting about its design. SMART uses a 5 inch 720p IPS LCD display with a 293 PPI pixel density. It should be sharp enough and you won’t notice individual pixels up close. Internals and Storage A quad core MediaTek MT6580 processor powers the phone which should be just enough for light multitasking. It has 1 GB RAM and 16 GB internal storage. Storage is expandable via a dedicated microSD card slot. The phone is Dual SIM by default and comes with Android 7.0 Nougat with XOS custom skin on top. Camera and Battery The primary camera features an 8 MP sensor with

Nikon’s new full frame DSLR, the D850, targets not only the most ardent of professionals in the field, it also marks the 100th anniversary of the company so you know it is special. The outcome is a product which aims to achieve the best in every possible area and mostly succeeds. It comes with a 45.7-megapixel sensor on the front, compared to 36.2 on its predecessor, being the first DSLR by Nikon to come with a BSI CMOS sensor. It is complemented by the new Expeed 5 image processor, offering ISO range from 64 to 25,600 and an optical low-pass filter (OLPF) or anti-aliasing filter for sharper images. The increased speed results in shooting modes of up to 7 frames per second (9 with the $399 battery grip), with a 51-fps image buffer for 14-bit RAW files (or 170 fps at 12-bits). There’s a new silent shooter mode (doing exactly what you think it does), with 6 fps shooting modes at peak resolution. It features a 153-point autofocus system with 99 cross type sensors. Video Record

Meizu’s latest smartphone might give Xiaomi a run for its money. Meizu M6 Note is a strictly mid-range smartphone with the price of an entry-level one. Coming in at a price of $164 it aims to compete directly with Xiaomi’s budget Redmi series. Meizu hasn’t released a phone with a Snapdragon processor in quite some time which makes the M6 Note all the more important. Design and Display The design is a low-key affair, featuring a clean metal-based build. It’ll be available in Black, Blue and Gold. The display itself comes with a 5.5-inch IPS panel with 1080p resolution. Below it is a fingerprint scanner on an otherwise bland and generic front. Internals and Storage Under the hood, you get a Snapdragon 625 processor with Adreno 506 GPU and several RAM and storage combos. The 3 GB RAM variant comes with either 16 or 32 GB storage, while the 4 GB version amps it to 64 GB. Storage is expandable via a microSD card slot, so you won’t go wrong with any variant you buy. The p

Sarahah, is the newest app that has become the latest craze over social media. Its claim to fame? Letting you get anonymous messages and feedback from your friends and everyone else. It got so popular that it currently sits with more than 18 million downloads already. It has also become the third most downloaded free application on iTunes and is also among the top 5 downloaded apps in Play Store. But now, some recent developments might have put a damper on its popularity. Cause for Alarm Well, the surprising news is that the hit app does more than just getting you honest feedback – it uploads your private data including your email and phone contacts when you first launch the app, without informing the users! Talk about a privacy nightmare, especially for an app that’s supposed to be all about your privacy! Although the newer Android versions and the iOS app asks for permission to access the contacts, it is not disclosed how this information is used and where i

The Entrepreneurs’ Organization is holding a global competition called “Global Student Entrepreneur Awards” for undergraduate students to bring their ideas to the global stage. The international competition, featuring over a thousand competitors from all across the world, now provides a direct opportunity to students in Pakistan to compete by first participating in a local version of the competition. What is GSEA? GSEA, short for world Student Businessperson Awards, is that the premier world competition for student entrepreneurs UN agency actively run a business. It is organized by Entrepreneurs’ Organization, a non-profit organization with more than 12,000 members in more than 160 Chapters in 50 Countries around the globe. The competition’s aim is to promote innovation and a business-mindset in students, providing an exclusive opportunity for student entrepreneurs to make connections, find resources, and grow their businesses. An annual event, GSEA 2018 is now scheduled to

Lee-Jae-Yong, the vice-chairman of Samsung, has been found guilty of bribery and embezzlement. Due to the charges against him, he has been sentenced to five years of imprisonment. His crimes were disclosed at the Seoul Central District Court on Friday where he was found guilty of offences related to a corruption scandal that brought down exiled and former South Korean President Park Geun-Hye. Experts believe that Lee-Jae-Yong’s absence in the industry can lead to a great deal of mismanagement and obstruct further key investments for Samsung. He is the son of the current Samsung group chairman, Lee Kun-Hee. The company was founded by his grandfather in 1938. It is referred to as the “Republic of Samsung” by many South Koreans and is one of the largest family-controlled firms dominating Asia’s fourth-largest economy. The vice-chairman of the company walked out of the justice ministry bus handcuffed with a white rope bound around his jacket. He carried an envelope of document

The country’s largest life insurance company State Life Insurance (SLI) has earned Rs 154 billion in profits during the fiscal year 2016-17. During the last fiscal year, SLI distributed over Rs 38 billion among its policy holders. This was expressed by Chairman SLI Naveed Kamran Baloch on Friday, whereas making known the National Assembly commission on Commerce here at Principal State business office in city. Chairman National Assembly Standing Committee Siraj Khan lead the delegation, with State Minister of Commerce Haji Akram Ansari, MNA Shazia Marri , MNA Nazir Bughio , and MNA Dr Fauzia also attending the briefing. Chairman SLI Naveed Kamran aforesaid “that State insurance may be a terribly profitable government organization.” “It has paid over Rs 2billion profit and revenue enhancement to the central,” "Mr. Baloch told the committee. In his briefing, the chairman said that SLI has made a substantial increase in Investment income; it has introduced Struct

The online shopping trend is growing rapidly in Pakistan, leading many entrepreneurs to launch their customized e-commerce platforms. The newest entrant to this online shopping craze is Buhat Ala. As its name states – is it really  buhat ala ? What does it offer which the other online shopping sites don’t? Here are a few reasons that Buhat Ala claims help people differentiate their offerings from others. Buhat Ala claims that their product price is lowest when compared to other websites and shops. Kitchen appliances for starters, their prices beat the prices offered by other e-commerce stores. Buhat Ala is selling this Sinbo Blender at just 4,815/- while other websites are selling at Rs. 5,295/- This WestPoint Deluxe Kitchen Chef ‘Metallic Gold’ edition costs 5,899/- at other online stores while at Buhat Ala it is being sold at just 5,603/- Rupees. Moving on to larger electronics and app