insideout

iPhone 3GS in India

The new iPhone 3GS has been officially announced. Its a new improved version of the iPhone 3G, which was launched last year. India was one of the last few countries to get the iPhone and it still stands at the same spot.

iPhone 3G generated a lot of buzz all across the globe last year. It however, failed to convert the hype to sales in India. It was a revolutionary device with the latest and best technology implemented in smartest way. But features that appeal to an Indian consumer the most, such as cut-copy-paste, MMS, Video recording, bluetooth etc. were missing. The deal-breaker, however, was the price. It got priced almost 3 times the price of a regular phone. It was rejected outright in the Indian market and was dubbed as a high profile good for nothing show off gadget.

This year, Apple is back with a better hardware and an OS upgrade with a huge array of new features, including those which were missing earlier. It has a better battery life now and is almost twice as fast. There is a new version with double the storage capacity too. In short, Apple has more or less fixed up all the major drawbacks that were present in the earlier releases.

The prices for the new version is in tune with the last year’s prices, its $299 for 32GB and $199 for the 16GB versions. These are the reduced prices, with a 2 year contract with AT&T, applicable only in the US. Now, there is no 8GB iPhone 3GS (yet), but there is a 8GB iPhone 3G which is now available at $99 only (with a two year contract, of course).

For the Indian market too, I think, the pricing would be similar to last year’s pricing, 30K for 16GB and 36K for 32GB models. There is no intimation for the price drop for the iPhone 3G yet, but it can happen in August, when the new version is launched. However, I believe the lowest the prices for the old version would get is around 24-26K (it at least seems so from the pricing  for the unlocked device in the US).

With the OS 3.0 and 3GS, Apple has got everything right for the phone and its features. However, the price still remains a major concern. If Apple can manage to bring down the price to a 20-22k range, that is when, I think, the Indian masses would start considering it as an option.
One can’t really expect the latest 3GS line to be made available in anything lower than the 30K mark, but the 8GB 3G version can surely hit the mark. Though, it wouldn’t get video recording features with it, but if its priced right, it would still make a good competition for the other phones in the market.

But that would be only ‘if’ Apple actually reduces the price, else it would continue to remain just a show-off gadget in the Indian market, like the earlier version.

Image : Gizmodo.

Tags: 3GS, Airtel, India, iPhone, pricing

Top 10 things you can do for the nation

We are hurt, we are angry, we are betrayed, we want security, we want a better life…we want change. All the leaders are corrupt, electoral system is flawed, security forces are weak. What can one do to help the situation ?

After criticizing the politicians, conducting numerous candle marches, speaking so much about the necessity for a change, the fact is that we are still clueless of what action can we take to bring about this change that we need. Here are a few suggestions..

1. Apply for Short Service Commission or join the Indian military forces. There are still thousands of positions vacant in the Indian Armed forces

2. Join Politics/Civil services, stay unfazed, stay clean and lead India to a better future. If politics is a mess, we need to step right in to clean it up.

3. Cast your vote in the elections.  Get everyone else you know to vote too. Use 49-O if necessary. You can’t really blame the government which you haven’t elected.

4. Pay your taxes, ask the government what it is being used for. Use the RTI. Keep a regular check on where and how the money is being spent.

5. Stop bribing govt. officials/policemen/traffic police. Its us who promote the corruption, lets stop it now.

6. Do not indulge in any illegal activity. Stop buying pirated CDs/DVDs, they make a good source of income for the underworld.

7. Know your neighbors. If there is someone new in the area, get the info about them, cross check with the local police station.

8. Speak up and reach to the authorities, if you see anything wrong/illegal happening, do not stay quiet. Most govt authorities work if they are nagged to do so.. go ahead do your bit.

9. Participate in educational initiatives and teach, more education, more awareness, better society.

10. Have faith in your efforts to bring the change. Together we can and will create a difference.

Please feel free to add more things to the list… lets identify every possible thing in our hands to bring the nation back on track..

Please visit voteyatra.com to get more information about the elections and clarify any doubts you have.

Edit: sadly voteyatra.com is not functional anymore, however you can always visit jaagore.com for more info about elections.

Tags: fight corruption, India, list, nation, to do

The truth about 49-O: valid but not effective.

In the last couple of days we have witnessed the most shameful phase of the Indian politics. At one hand we have irresponsible and insensitive government who has been ineffective in securing us from the terror attacks, and on the other, the opposition is busy taking the maximum advantage of the situation securing their vote banks. No one is bothered to work in the interest of the nation and help recovering from the terrible phase. There is a lot of anger and frustration against the politicians who just look for an opportunity to encash their votes and forget their responsibilities later. People are confused and have lost faith in the current political system.

With all this happening around, there has been a lot of buzz about choosing the right candidates, election process and the 49-O rule. So what is the 49-O rule?

There is a rule under section 49-O in the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, which allows the voters to ‘not vote’ for any of the candidates and get his decision registered. The rule officially states -

Elector deciding not to vote. If an elector, after his electoral roll number has been duly entered in the register of voters in Form-17A and has put his signature or thumb impression thereon as required under sub-rule (1) of rule 49L, decided not to record his vote, a remark to this effect shall be made against the said entry in Form 17A by the presiding officer and the signature or thumb impression of the elector shall be obtained against such remark.

There are a lot of emails doing rounds suggesting that this can be used as a tool against the corrupt politicians. These mails suggest that in case the number of votes recorded under section 49-O is found to be greater than the maximum number of votes polled in favor of any of the candidates, the poll is considered null and void and a re-poll is held. These mails also state that the current candidates will be barred from re-contesting.

I did some research about this and tried to find out the truth consulting all possible sources. In my attempt to find out more about this, I called up Election Commissioner’s Office and spoke with Mr. C.P. Sharma who is PPS to Mr. Navin Chawla (Election Commissioner). Mr Sharma told me that this rule is valid, anyone can exercise it. One has to go to the polling booth, get their name marked, get their finger marked and infrom the Polling officer on duty about the decision of not voting. The Polling Officer might ask you to give a written undertaking stating the same. Through this process, the vote would be registered as ‘no-vote’ and will be counted under the same head at the time of final counting. However, irrespective of the number of such votes, the results would be declared and one of the candidates would be elected. There is no provision of a re-poll or banning the candidates to appear in any of the further elections.

49-O is a good way to secure your vote against a misuse. But this, by no means is a way to fight against the corruption or politicians. If you do not appear for voting, there is a possible chance of someone else casting a vote in your name and with the current state of affairs this happens quite often than not. Hence, it would be better to go for a ‘no-vote’ rather than sitting at home, allowing the misuse.

However, ‘not voting’ will not make a real difference in the current  scenario. What we really need is a fresh batch of young politicians, who care for the cause of nation and can lead us from the front. However, till that happens, we will have to keep the faith and choose the better off the worst. You should try and make an informed decision. Check the previous track record of the candidates, find out what have they done till date, checkout their educational qualifications, their criminal history and based on these facts choose who you feel can be a better option. Only If you are unable to make up your mind and have got convinced that none of the candidates is better than the other, use 49-O.

Whatever the case may be, please ensure that you go out and register your vote… each vote makes a difference.

To get more information about the elections and electoral process please visit voteyatra.com

Tags: 49-O, Election, India, myth, politics, section-49-o, vote