Asus Zenfone 4 selfie Pro review: Stylish selfie expert or overpriced player in the race?

Asus has launched a plethora of devices under Zenfone 4 series this year and one of such devices is the Zenfone 4 Selfie  Pro. As the name suggests this device has its USP in the selfie camera or should we call cameras as the device comes with dual selfie camera. The Zenfone 4 Pro selfie is priced at Rs 23,999/- . So does the device justify the price tag or its an overpriced player in arena of 'Selfie Experts' ? Let's find out.

Specifications at a glance:

The zenfone Selfie pro is powered by time tested Octa-core Snapdragon 625 with 4 GB RAM and 64 GB of internal storage. The Zenfone 4 Selfie pro comes with 5.5 inch Full HD AMOLED display which has brightness of 500nits and clor gamut that's greater than 100% of NTSC color space as claimed by company. The display is crisp and can handle any type of content with ease. Even in outdoors on bright sunny day the display is readable and bright enough. The Zenfone 4 Selfie pro comes with a 76.7% body to screen ratio, however competitors in similar price segment are coming up with full view display now.

The phone comes with a finger print sensor on the front which is claimed to unlock phone in 0.2 seconds. We can say that finger print sensor is fast and accurate and we didn't faced any issues while using the device.  Zenfone 4 Selfie pro comes with 3000 mAh strong battery with Fast charging support. The charger supplied with device has a rating of 10W (5V/2A) rating. 

On camera department the Rear camera is a 16MP Sony IMX351 Sensor, which supports 4K video recording and comes with ASUS own SuperPixel Engine. On Front there are are two cameras for selfie , the first one features Sony IMX362 dual pixel image sensor that is said to be equivalent of 24 MP resolution camera. The 24 MP DuoPixel camera technology uses the information captured by the sensor to intelligently create one 24 MP photo. The second sensor is used to widen your frame area, i.e. it expands your view to upto 120 degrees which is best suited for group selfies.

Design:

The Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro is a sleek and stylish device which feels premium when held in hand. The device sports a rectangular metal unibody design with rounded corners. On the front of the device 2.5 D corning gorilla glass protects the 5.5 inch display. On top of the display there are two selfie cameras to the right of the ear piece and array of sensors to the left of ear piece. On the left edge of the device there is a SIM tray slot which can be ejected using the pin. The SIM tray can hold 2 Nano SIM cards and a micro SD card (upto 2 TB is supported). On the right side of the device you get volume rockers on the top and power button just above the middle of the edge.

Bottom of the device houses speaker grill, micro USB slot, mic and 3.5 mm audio jack. On the top edge there is just another mic (probably noise cancellation one). Turning the device on back, Antenna lines are visible on the top and bottom of the back panel. The Rear camera is sitting in middle horizontally and towards the top vertically with a flash light placed just the left of the Camera unit. In the middle of the back ASUS branding is visible.

Camera:

The frond camera works well in normal mode where there is enough light. The images are sharp and colors are natural. Sometimes images are overexposed when you are using front camera in sunlight. The low light performance is mediocre and images become bit noisy or blurry. 

There is a portrait mode as well in front camera which works pretty well. In group selfie mode the secondary 5 MP camera comes into the play and increases your view area. In view finder one can observe that switching to group selfie mode the edges resembles that of fish eye mode. The selfie camera is also capable of shooting 4K videos which will be useful for Vloggers specially. 

The back 16 MP camera does its job as expected and doesn't disappoint. The images from rear camera are detailed and clear in bright lit areas however in low light the images are grainy and not something we were hoping for with this camera. The images loose detail as soon as the light source is diminished. The autofocus of the camera works fine and quickly locks the focus on object in frame. The image processing is quite good and images are rendered in real time without any noticeable lag.

Below are few samples from the camera.

Low Light (Rear Camera)

Artificial Light (Rear Camera)

Day light (Rear Camera)

Group Selfie Mode (front camera)

Normal Mode (Front Camera)

OS and Apps:

The Zenfone 4 Selfie pro runs on Android 7.1.1 Nougat with its own ZenUI 4.0 skin on the top. Thankfully Asus has listened to our pleas and this device is as neat as you would want in terms of applications. The only app on board are the required minimal set of apps to get started without any bloatware. The UI experience is fluidic and smooth. We didn't noticed any lag while opening multiple apps. In settings we have an Asus customized settings option where in you can enable twin apps feature for accessing two accounts on apps like Facebook and Instagram.

Final Verdict:

This selfie expert has great build quality and hardware strength. The phone has got most of the things on the right side. We are happy that Asus has not compromised on the hardware or quality in this device. The camera features are in line with the competition, however the competitors are offering features like full view display at lower or similar price. If you are looking for a decent camera phone with smooth UI experience then you can opt for this phone. For other uses there are still options in market at lower price. 

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Nokia 2 with '2 Day Battery Life' launched in India for Rs 6999/, will be available from Nov 24

HMD Global, manufacturer of Nokia Smartphones has today announced launch of Nokia 2 in India. The phone will be available for Rs 6,999/- from 24 November in leading retail stores. It comes in three colours in Pewter/Black, Pewter/White and Copper/Black. 

Nokia 2

The main highlight of Nokia 2 is its claim to offer 2 days of battery life backed on its massive 4100 mAh battery, which makes it direct competitor to Redmi 4 which comes with same battery power. The device also relies on its simplistic design and pure Android experience apart from 'The Nokia' brand to attract customers.

Nokia 2 comes with a 5-inch 720p display protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 3, the device is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 212 processor combined with 1 GB RAM. Nokia 2 comes with 8 MP rear camera and 5 MP front camera. The phone comes with 8 GB internal storage which can be further expanded using microSD card.

Nokia 2 runs on pure stock Android 7.1.1 Nougat out of the box with a promise to get update of Android 8.0 Oreo very soon. 

Ajey Mehta, Vice President and Country Head - India, HMD Global, said: “Nokia 2 is a smartphone

that is built keeping the Indian consumer in mind. It is a smartphone people can rely on without

subconsciously rationing their battery usage. Every component of the Nokia 2 – from the display to

battery, chipset to system design – has been engineered to draw as little power as possible from the

huge battery. This gives fans a long-lasting phone they can rely on. In addition, a great display and

pure, secure Android means you don't have to do less with your Nokia 2 to preserve longevity, it has been built to give you the freedom to do more."

Jio customers can enjoy additional 45 GB 4G Data on Nokia 2 i.e. 5 GB additional 4G data on every recharge of Rs. 309 or above, limited to 9 recharges till August 31, 2018. All Nokia 2 users will be eligible for a complimentary 12-month Accidental Damage Insurance by Servify on opening the Kotak 811 savings account and activating it with an initial deposit of Rs 1000/- in the introductory period.

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These professionals are walking ahead by adopting online learning

Two things we often hear about the today's world is - it's moving at a speed like never before and change is the only constant thing. I think we all agree that these phrases are true for every part and person of the world irrespective of origin or location.

We human beings have always been the change initiator and also the ones who have to cope with the changes - be it technological advancements, new processes or a modern strategy to win over your customer. However, this fast-paced environment becomes the reason for decline of many organizations and individuals who fail to cope with the new paradigm. 

Organisational goals are met by collective efforts of individual employees, thus it is important that employees of an organization possess the right skills to adopt and master the change rapidly. Sadly, sometimes employees who fail to upskill themselves are handed over the infamous pink slip.

Now competition is not limited to schools, colleges or colleagues - it is you versus you. What you are now and what you can become after acquiring the right skill sets. It is about adding medals on your jersey by reinventing yourself. Here comes the challenge - why do you think people don’t invest in themselves to get more skills? If you think it is about college education or financial aspects then you are wrong. It is more about the mindset or lack of support. Besides, there is a tendency that when you are well settled you don't need to go that extra mile to add an extra arrow to your quiver. At times, non-availability of the right courses and engaging facilitators do make a difference. Whatever be the reason, you risk stagnating your growth when you don't add to your skills at the right time. Thus, we have to evolve with the market trends and requirements to provide a fillip to our career.

So how do we do it in an efficient way? First, we need flexibility to learn from anywhere. Second, we need someone to monitor our progress, answer our queries and colleagues to gain from healthy discussions. Pretty much what we get in classroom trainings, but without having to move an inch and wasting time and resources in reaching the place, without waiting too much time for feedback or clarifications. To address these issues, Talentedge  has come up with its unique SLIQ 2.0 platform powered by AI.

Talentedge brings you courses from reputed educational institutes such as XLRI, MICA IIM Kashipur, among others. Talentedge has partnered with the best institutes for these courses that are structured and carried out by their esteemed instructors. The SLIQ 2.0 platform helps students to attend live classes, ensures they are meeting the attendance criteria, and provides interactive features to ask questions, interact with faculties, students and group for any updates, clarifications and queries.

With the help of Talentedge, you can watch yourself grow in your career. To testify this effectiveness, we have a few videos of students who have completed their courses and are happy to share what feat they have achieved after upgrading themselves.

Nidhi, a working professional enrolled for course 'Televised Event Management and Production', says that learning through Talentedge was really superb and it helped her getting an Internship at Global Citizen Concert. She shares how the modules, presentations and other learning materials have helped her overcome challenges encountered in her professional journey.

Rohit Gaharwar, who has completed course on "Strategic Performance Management" from XLRI, shares similar views. He describes the course content to be well structured and compiled to cover all aspects. He shares that the faculty is excellent with good knowledge and command over the subject, which has helped him to get to the depth of the subject. He doesn't miss appreciating Talentedge for providing him with the platform and for the all-device- compatible application that enables students to be in touch with the relevant updates as well as a mechanism to make sure a student gets right notifications at the right time.

So now you know that you don't have to risk your existing jobs or quit it to take a course and upskill yourself. You can just find it on Talentedge and enroll yourself so that you can grow professionally without having to worry about your current priorities and schedules. 

Talentedge CEO Aditya Malik adds “We had students who have come back to us after doing a course from Talentedge and were explicit in telling us how this course has made a big difference in their professional lives. Not only were they able to up skill themselves, they even gained more confidence while dealing in bigger forums. This helped them see the broader prospective of business. And the best part was, with the help of Talentedge and its online courses, they were able to take a career leap in their professional lives without even disturbing their work schedule.”

So, if you are still wondering – Why Talentedge? Read on.

Talentedge is a unique platform and probably the first tech-ed platform in India with Live and Interactive sessions, chat facility for students to raise any query at any time, AI bot to answer your queries and a Student Relationship Management team to assist you further in any kind of queries. The courses are from well-reputed institutions and taught by eminent faculty members who are really experienced and supportive. The course duration, structure, modules are appropriate for each course and appreciated by the students. So what else you need from a facilitator when it has more than what you have expected? May be it is time for me to look for something in Digital Marketing or Data Sciences and take a course from Talentedge, what about you?

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Swipe targets Corporate space with launch of brand specific Tablet PCs and Smartphone Customization for Enterprises

 A new trend has ushered in India Inc – customization of technology at the enterprise level. Companies – big and small, regional and national – are looking at customized Tablet PCs and Smartphones to help them increase brand loyalty and brand recall. Key sectors including Healthcare, Education and Infomedia are the early adopters of customized gadgets and companies from these sectors are offering customised communication devices to its employees, students, customers, vendors etc. 

Heralding this trend is none other than Swipe, the leading mobile technology company, better known for introducing innovative Android-based Tablet PCs & Smartphones in India. Some of the recent clients of Swipe are Fasoos Food Services, Akanksha Foundation, NM Wadia Medical College, Amanora Park Town, State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, Metro Shoes, Cabby Tabby, Vibble India, Emenox Healthcare, Seasons Marketing, Chocolate Biclate, Moving Digital Frames, Ricky Rickshaw, Eagle Eye Solutions, IOEMAS & Motivation for Excellence Initiative.

On offer are tablets and smartphones with multiple degree of customizations ranging from custom apps, brandings, hardware configuration, and tailored customer support. Customizations can be done at Kernel level where we remove all the unwanted apps and include only the required software. This insures a simple to understand UI and optimum utilisation of hardware for the intended purpose, hence offering a fast and seamless user experience.

Depending on the clients need, Swipe can tweak the hardware in regards to screen sizes, processors, camera resolution, connectivity, memory and much more. While on the branding front, a client can get their respective company logos as the boot screen, engraved on the back cover of the devices, and even custom packaging of devices making the entire proposition more appealing.

According to a Bain survey approx. 65%-75% consumers preferred customized options, it engages them more with the company which ultimately increases the brand loyalty along with recall.

Commenting on this new segment launch, Mr. Shripal Gandhi, Founder and CEO said, “Enterprises are in need of brand-specific customization that can enhance brand recall and also help the sales and after sales team work smarter. In the bargain, this customized technology helps create brand loyalty of a different kind. At Swipe, we always go a step ahead to know what our consumers want and create products for them. Every industry works in a different fashion and even individual company in the same vertical has a different outlook towards business. Swipe’s customised enterprise solutions are designed keeping in the mind the corporate requirement and brand-fit.”

By offering customized devices, the communication and work channel becomes more systematic and simpler. For instance, required data can be accessible from all the devices easily. Devices can be accustomed to perform whatever function the Enterprise needs - a restaurant needs devices to only take orders, a cab agency needs devices only for entertainment of its passengers, a finance organization needs devices only for sharing data and view stock related news. These functions can be pre customized according to the needs and demands of the enterprise. For more information contact us on email: info@justswipe.com or call us: +91 73500 17595.

Disclaimer: This story is taken from a syndicated feed and is not edited by our team except for the headline.

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Visual Math Improves Math Performance

With the advancement of technology and education, the need to integrate both of them has been realized, especially for the subject involving numerous complicated concepts. One of the most crucial advancements in education includes implementation of visualization to enhance the understanding of students and help them learn more effectively.

Mathematics is one of the most complicated subjects with several unsolved mysteries involving numbers. The subject of maths is full of numbers, variables and proofs which become extremely difficult to understand if one is inattentive and lacks proper visualization of the concepts.

The following are the ways in which visual mathematics provides better understanding and proves better from the traditional methods of learning:

(i) Study through video lectures: A scientific study states that our mind has a better understanding and retaining power to the video lectures (or visual and audio signals). Students can understand the concepts easily as it focuses on making things understandable with real-life examples. Topics like probability, calculus, differentiation and other difficult topics can be easily explained through 3D video lectures which seem to be really difficult while studying through the textbook.

(ii) Time-saving: We all know that everyone has a different pace of learning. In a classroom, one can understand the topic in one go whereas another student might be dreaming about his football game and could not understand things even at the third time. Thus, this could be a time-consuming process. Through visual technique, anyone can understand things in one go. Also, it saves time as video lectures can cover the topics in few minutes whereas the traditional method takes around 3-4 hours.

(iii) Interesting lectures: It is a common problem with most of the students that they find their lectures to be boring, which is why they cannot catch up the concepts. The visual learning includes study through computers/laptops or projectors which enhance the interest of the students that ultimately lead to better understanding.

(iv) Understanding through real-life application: It is a well-known fact that concepts can be understood in a better manner by relating them to the real world. This technique would also help in retaining the concepts for a prolonged duration. Consider, for example, the topic like vectors is important in determining the position of an object with respect to any reference point which is used in Google maps. Another example is probability, which has real-life application in weather forecasting. All these techniques visually explain the concepts to the students to understand the things in a better manner.

All these techniques are helpful in clearing the concepts of the students about the topics which require in-depth understanding rather than mugging up. Therefore, visualization plays a key role in improving the performance of the students at an unreasonable rate.

Subscribe to Byju’s YouTube video channel to learn maths from various engaging video lectures-

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