Samsung has been awarded the prestigious title of Smartphone Manufacturer of the Year at the Mobile Industry Awards 2021.
The award recognised the manufacturer that has done the best to showcase its technical innovation, the strength of its product portfolio and industry relationships to achieve commercial success and captivate consumers and businesses.
The winner isn’t just the company that offers the most exciting devices, but the one that has also worked effectively with its partners across the UK.
Our 2021 finalists were:
Oppo
Motorola
Samsung
Sony
Our entrants were asked to submit entries based on the following criteria:
Showcase exciting products that have captivated customers and partners
Highlight innovation in design and features
Offer a balanced range of products
Demonstrate market leading execution of sales and marketing
Show how you have been a reliable partner for trade buyers in terms of forecasting, finance, returns and aftercare
Why Samsung won
It was another year to remember in terms of device innovation and Samsung was rewarded for another outstanding 12 months amid an incredibly high-class field.
The company was able to offer a wide range of devices for customers and partners, excelled when it came to product innovation, and wrapped this offering with great customer service.
Samsung really impressed our judges, who also wanted to award a ‘highly commended’ to Oppo for its own terrific entry.
Congratulations to Samsung on its victory and to the rest of our 2021 finalists!
Professional-grade VR/XR brand Varjo announced today the start of sales and shipments of its virtual reality and mixed reality devices –the VR-3 and XR-3 – to the UAE. The headsets feature industry-leading resolution and technology needed to develop photorealistic, true-to-life VR/AR/XR experiences.
“We are pleased to scale our business in the Middle East and for the first time, make human-eye resolution virtual and mixed reality available for customers in the United Arab Emirates,” said Seppo Aaltonen, Chief Commercial Officer of Varjo. “Current global circumstances have accelerated the need for high-fidelity immersive tools. Together with our local resellers, Varjo can now support advanced virtual, augmented and mixed reality use cases in UAE by offering best-in-class, yet cost-effective solutions. These are the perfect tools to help drive UAE’s technology transformation over the 50 years.”
Varjo will make its products available through Lenovo in the UAE, allowing customers a single point of purchase for high-performance workstations and VR/XR headsets.
“Lenovo’s professional workstations and Varjo’s VR and XR headsets are specifically engineered to perform in the most sophisticated and demanding professional use cases,” said Mohammed Hilili, General Manager, GULF, Lenovo. “We are excited to expand our partnership with Varjo to bring its human-eye resolution headsets, matched with the processing and computing power found in Lenovo’s workstation portfolio products, to our customers in the United Arab Emirates.”
Varjo’s latest offerings feature human-eye resolution at over 60 ppd, a 115° field of view, integrated eye and Ultraleap (formerly Leap Motion) hand tracking, XR-3 inside-out tracking and pixel-perfect mixed reality depth awareness, all working together to produce a fully immersive environment.
Companies in the UAE can order the Varjo VR-3 and XR-3 via Varjo’s website or through Lenovo for $3,195 (around AED 11,700 ) and $5,495 (around AED 20,200), respectively.
Varjo headsets will be demonstrated at the Finland Pavilion at the World Expo 2020 in Dubai on October 31, as well as at the GITEX conference on October 17-21 at Lenovo’s booth A250 in Hall 6.
Samsung’s ‘Not a School’ programme has been named as CSR and Sustainability Initiative of the Year at the Mobile Industry Awards 2021.
This award looked to celebrate those within the industry that look to give something back to the community or to the environment.
The winner is recognised as going that extra mile in making important and valuable contributions to those in real need.
Our 2021 finalists were:
Genuine Solutions/Telefonica
Likewize UK Sustainability
Samsung Not a School
Sky Zero
Ur.co.uk Love it. Use it. Return it.
Our entrants were asked to submit entries based on the following criteria:
Define the project or initiative scope: include timelines, goals and team members. It is acceptable for the entry to focus on a particular stage of a long-term project
How successful was the implementation of this project or initiative? Was it within budget and delivered in time?
What have been its benefits? Provide hard evidence that goals have – or are being – achieved.
Feedback: Provide an appropriate written reference that illustrates the success of this project
Why Samsung won
The calibre of entries this year was exceptionally high, and the judges wanted to recognise Sky Zero with a highly commended entry. However, Samsung’s ‘Not a School’ initiative was the overall winner of this years’ award.
Judges believed the programme showed clear adaptability in light of the challenges caused by Covid-19 and demonstrated a clear objective and social goal. It was seen as an example of how technology can help solve some of the biggest problems in our world today.
Congratulations to Samsung and to all of our 2021 finalists!
Alcatel is celebrating after winning Campaign of the Year, in association with Red Blaze, at the Mobile Industry Awards 2021.
Bringing products and or services to life is one of the most important things a vendor chooses to do - the job that an agency does can genuinely make or break the success of the technology in question.
At a time when attracting new customers has never been more important for our industry, this award recognised the companies that went above and beyond in creating the most exciting and appealing marketing campaigns of the past year.
Our 2021 finalists were:
Alcatel Mobile UK: The People's Champion 2021
Google Pixel presents Mobile Cinema
Samsung: Inspired by a True Photo
TCL 10 Series UK and Ireland Launch
Our entrants were asked to submit entries based on the following criteria:
Tell us about your brief, and what the KPIs were
What did you propose? Tell us about the services and solutions you recommended
Tell us the cost - showcase how this was financially successful for both you and the customer
What makes this campaign special? Provide customer testimonials
Why Alcatel won
Alcatel’s ‘People’s Champion’ campaign recognised some of the unsung heroes of the past 12 months and the role they played in keeping us all connected during the pandemic.
The campaign looked to use channels where it could make the most impact, gaining universal praise from our expert judges.
Congratulations to Alcatel and to all of our 2021 finalists!
Samsung has received the honour of Best Manufacturer Field Marketing Team at the Mobile Industry Awards 2021.
In a year like no other, a well-trained and enthusiastic field marketing team can really make a difference when it comes to those all-important sales figures, providing a vital link between supplier and store staff.
This award recognises the accessory manufacturer which best utilised its products, market position and relationships to drive its overall strategy and reputation within the industry and beyond.
Our 2021 finalists were:
Oppo
Samsung
Our entrants were asked to submit entries based on the following criteria:
Showcase outstanding impact in the retail community
Showcase outstanding impact in call centres
Highlight innovation in marketing, education and training
Show exceptional results and significant stand out for the manufacturer
Highlight adaptability to changing market conditions
Give examples of high impact launch campaigns with excellent ROI
Execute a strategy reflecting the manufacturer’s brand image
Why Samsung won
Samsung’s record of flexibility and innovation, coupled with its ability to help store staff react to everchanging needs during what was a difficult and challenging 12 months impressed our judges.
The company's field team continued to train teams digitally, and provide support for furloughed staff when they returned to work, helping maintain continuity and to drive sales.
Congratulations to Samsung and to Oppo for making the shortlist!
EE has been named the winner of the Best High Street Retailer award, in association with Oppo, at the Mobile Industry Awards 2021.
Despite the growing influence of online retail and other sales channels, the high street remains an important route to market for the industry and success demands the seamless integration of sales, logistics, marketing, and purchasing.
This award recognised the retailer that has demonstrated excellence and ingenuity to provide the very best high street shopping experience alongside great financial results.
Our 2021 finalists were:
EE
Three
Vodafone
Our entrants were asked to submit entries based on the following criteria:
Demonstrate commercial performance
Provide the best in-store experience for customers
Explain how the retail strategy relates to key industry trends and challenges
Show initiatives aimed at growing customer relationships and selling additional services
Promote best practice in customer service
Why EE won
In a challenging year for retailers in all sectors, not just the mobile industry, EE emerged victorious.
Its stand-out customer service, record of innovation, and ability to adapt were all qualities that stood out, while our judges also recognised the 'hybrid' role of stores in supporting contact centre teams during a challenging period.
Congratulations to EE and to all of our 2021 finalists!
Mobile operator O2 has tasted success at the Mobile Industry Awards 2021, winning the Best Online Retailer award at the ceremony.
To be successful in today’s mobile market, the top online retailers must be able to not only secure the best deals, but also market them in innovative ways to grab the attention of customers everywhere.
This award recognised the key role online retailers play in the mobile industry and rewards the company which has performed to its potential over the past 12 months.
Our 2021 finalists were:
Affordable Mobiles
Chitter Chatter
musicMagpie
O2
Samsung
Smart Cellular
The iOutlet
Xiaomi
Our entrants were asked to submit entries based on the following criteria:
Offering customers the best products and services
A clear and easy to use online store
Offering the best customer service, including after care services
Proving to be the best at generating hits with products, marketing and deals
Showcasing all-round innovation
Highlighting innovative marketing initiatives
Showing strong commercial performance
Why O2 won
In a tightly-fought category that included a wide range of online retailers, vendors and operators, O2 was the one that caught our judges’ attention.
With strong performance, diverse device offering, a clear marketing strategy, and service innovation, O2 is this year’s winner.
Congratulations to O2 and to all of our 2021 finalists!
Smartphone launches usually slow down towards the end of the year, but the month of September this year seems to be the peak for launches in India. With more than 25 smartphones launched in the months, we have compiled a list consisting of all the new smartphones launched in India this month.
Samsung started off the month with the launch of the Galaxy A52s and the Vivo X70 series was the show stopper for the month of September. In between these launches, Realme, Infinix, iQoo, Oppo, Xiaomi brands also added their smartphones.
With Amazon Great Indian Festival and Flipkart Big Billion Days starting in the first week of October, most smartphones were rushed and launched in the last week of the month. In fact, more than ten smartphones were launched in the last ten days of September.
Here are all the smartphones that were launched in the month of September 2021:
The Samsung Galaxy A52s is the first phone to launch in September 2021. The Galaxy A52s is powered by Snapdragon 778G(5G) with up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. In terms of visuals, you get a 6.5-inch Full HD+ Super AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate.
Further, in the camera department, the Galaxy A52s sports a quad-camera setup with 64MP wide(OIS), a 12MP ultrawide, a 5MP macro, and a 5MP depth sensor. There is a 32MP shooter for selfies and video calls. The device packs in a 4,500mAh-capacity battery, 25W fast charging, and IP67 water resistance rating.
After unveiling five Redmi Note 10 series devices, Xiaomi India launched its first number series device in the Redmi 10 lineup on September 3. The device is powered by MediaTek Helio G88 SoC, which also marks its debut in India. That is accompanied by 6GB RAM with 2GB Virtual RAM and 128GB internal storage.
The Redmi 10 Prime pack in a 6.5-inch FHD+ 90Hz display along with a 6,000mAh battery, 18W fast charging and 9W reverse charging. In terms of optics, the Redmi 10 sports a 50MP main camera, an 8MP ultra-wide secondary and two 2MP macro and depth cameras. There's another 8MP camera on the front for selfies and video calls.
The Realme 8i and Realme 8s 5G are Realme's newest members in the Realme 8 series. The Realme 8s is powered by Dimensity 810 SoC chipset which also makes its global debut in India. The Realme 8i also comes with the new Helio G96 SoC.
The Realme 8s comes with a 6.5-inch FHD+ 90Hz display. It comes in two variants with 6GB and 8GB base RAM that can be pushed up to 11GB and 13GB with virtual RAM respectively. It has a 5,000mAh battery with 3333W fast charging support. In terms of optics, you get a 64MP primary camera and a 16MP camera for selfies.
The Realme 8i on the other hand is the cheapest phone with a 120Hz display in India. It features a 6.6-inch LCD screen. The Realme 8i comes with up to 6GB RAM and 128GB storage. It comes with a 5,000mAh battery and supports 18W fast charging. Lastly, it offers a 50MP main camera and a 16MP selfie snapper.
The iPhone 13 now comes with up to 1TB storage and four models were unveiled on September 14. All four models come with a new Apple A15 Bionic chip. The iPhone 13 Mini has a 5.4-inch display OLED Super Retina XDR display while the iPhone 13 has a 6.1-inch OLED panel. The Pro variants come with a 120Hz refresh rate with 6.1-inch and 6.7-inch screen sizes respectively.
In terms of optics, there's a 12MP wide camera and a 12MP ultra-wide shooter. As for the iPhone 13 Pro duo, you get three 12MP cameras with new sensors and lenses. There's a wide camera with an f/1.5 aperture and large 1.9 µm pixels, an ultra-wide snapper with an f/1.8 aperture, and a telephoto camera with an f/2.8 aperture.
Nokia unveiled a couple of affordable phones in India in September. The Nokia G10 is priced at Rs 12,149 while the Nokia C01 Plus is available for Rs 5,999. The G10 has an HD+ screen, MediaTek Helio G25 processor, 4GB RAM, 64GB storage, 13MP+2MP+2MP triple rear camera setup, and an 8MP front-facing camera. Powering the device is a 5050mAh battery backed by a 10W fast charger.
On the other hand, the Nokia C01 Plus is an entry-level phone with an HD+ screen, 2GB RAM, 16GB storage, and Unisoc SC9863A SoC. It runs on Android 11 Go Edition and comes with a 5MP camera on the front as well as on the back.
The Realme C25Y is the first 50MP camera phone in the entry-level C series. It comes with a massive 5,000mAh battery with 18W quick charge. The Realme C25Y will be powered by a Unisoc T610 octa-core CPU with up to 1.8GHz clock speed.
The phone comes with a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner and a dew-drop notch on the front. Colour options include Blue and Black. It has a 6.5-inch HD+ display and a three-card slot.
Infinix Hot 11, Hot 11S
(Image credit: Infinix)
The successor to the Infinix Hot 10S from May 2021, the Infinix Hot 11S is powered by MediaTek Helio G88 processor. It comes with a 50MP main camera along with a new wave design. It is packed with a 5,000mAh battery paired with an 18W Type-C fast charger, a first in the Hot series.
The Infinix Hot 11 on the other hand comes with a 6.6-inch Full HD+ display, 5,200mAh battery, and a MediaTek Helio G70 SoC. You get a 13MP main camera and an 8MP selfie camera.
The Oppo A16 flaunts a 6.52-inch HD+ LCD display with 720 x 1600 pixels resolution and a 60Hz screen refresh rate. It is powered by a MediaTek Helio G35 chipset with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. For optics, you get a 13MP primary camera with f/2.2 aperture, a 2MP mono and a 2MP macro camera. Selfies are handled by an 8MP shooter on the front.
The phone runs on Android 11 out of the box and comes with a side-mounted fingerprint scanner and face unlock support as well. Other features include a 3D sleek design, a 190-gram weight, 8.4mm thickness, a dual SIM slot, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Realme Narzo 50 series is the successor to the Narzo 30 series and the Narzo 50A and Narzo 50i devices were launched in India in September. The Narzo 50A is powered by MediaTek Helio G85 SoC and comes with 50MP+2MP+2MP rear cameras and 16MP selfie snapper. It has a 6.5-inch HD+ display, a 6,000mAh battery, and 18W fast charging.
The Realme Narzo 50i comes with Unisoc SoC, a 6.5-inch HD+ screen, an 8MP main camera, and a 5MP selfie camera. The device runs off a 5,000mAh battery with support for reverse charging.
Realme 50A: Rs 11,499 onwards
Realme 50i: Rs Rs 7,499 onwards
iQoo Z5
(Image credit: iQoo)
The successor to the iQoo Z3, the iQoo Z5 comes with some improvements over its predecessor. It is powered by a Snapdragon 778G chipset paired with up to 12 GB of LPDDR5 RAM and up to 256 GB of UFS 3.1 storage and sports a 6.67-inch IPS LCD Full HD+ display with 20:9 aspect ratio, 120Hz refresh rate with 240Hz touch sampling rate.
In terms of optics, the iQoo Z5 sports a three-camera setup with a 64MP primary lens with an f/1.79 aperture, an 8MP ultrawide lens, and a 2MP macro camera. For selfies, there is a 16MP shooter. The iQoo Z5 runs off a 5,000mAh battery with 44W fast charge support 一 which is said to offer 50% battery in just 26 minutes. The phone also comes with features like 28837mm2 VC liquid-cooling system.
The Oppo F19s joins the F19 series in India. The device comes in a single variant with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage priced at Rs 19,990. The Oppo F19s is powered by Snapdragon 662 and has a 5,000mAh battery which is backed by a 33W flash charge.
Further, the device comes with a 48MP main camera and a 16MP selfie camera. It has a 6.43-inch AMOLED display with a 60Hz refresh rate. Along with this phone, the company also announced Reno 6 Pro Diwali Edition. The special edition comes with the same specs as the regular Reno 6 Pro, but the only change comes in terms of color as it comes with the Majestic Gold color option.
Samsung Galaxy M52
(Image credit: Samsung)
The successor to the popular Galaxy M51, the Samsung Galaxy M52 is a 5G device powered by Snapdragon 778G processor. The Galaxy M52 will sport a 6.7-inch 120HZ AMOLED display. The device weighs just 173 grams and measures 7.4mm thick 一 the Galaxy M51 weighs 213 grams and measures 9.5mm.
The device comes with up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage. The Galaxy M52 5G brings a triple camera setup with a 64MP(f/1.8) main camera, a 12MP(f/2.2) ultra-wide lens, and a 5MP(f/2.4) macro camera. There is also a 32MP selfie camera with an f/2.2 aperture. The Galaxy M52 features a 5,000mAh battery and supports 25W fast charging.
Yet another sleek phone from Xiaomi, the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G has landed in India. The phone weighs just 158 grams and measures just 6.81mm thick. It sports a 10-bit 6.55-inch AMOLED display with a 90Hz refresh rate. The device is powered by Snapdragon 778G and packs in 4250mAh with 33W fast charging.
In terms of optics, the Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G comes with a 64MP main camera along with a 20MP selfie shooter. It also features dual stereo speakers and a side-mounted fingerprint scanner.
The Samsung Galaxy is powered by MediaTek Dimensity 700 SoC and in terms of visuals, you get a 6.6-inch Full HD+ display with 90Hz refresh rate. The phone comes with up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage. The Galaxy F42 5G runs off a 5,000mAh battery unit which is backed by a 15W Type-C fast charger.
In the optics department, the device comes with a 64MP main camera, 5MP ultra-wide-angle camera, and a 2MP depth lens. For selfies, there is an 8MP shooter on the front, inside the dew-drop notch.
Poco launched a new affordable phone in the C series. The Poco C31 comes with MediaTek Helio G35 paired with 4GB of RAM and up to 64GB of storage. It has a 6.43-inch HD+ display, 13MP main camera.
The phone also comes with a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner along with a face unlock. It runs off a 5,000mAh battery and there is also P2i nano-coating for accidental spills.
The Poco C31 is priced at Rs 7,999 for the 3+32GB and the 4GB+64GB is priced at Rs 8,999.
Vivo X70 series
(Image credit: Vivo)
Vivo announced two new phones in the X70 series 一 the Vivo X70 Pro Plus and the Vivo X70 Pro. The X70 Pro Plus costs Rs 79,990 and the device comes with Snapdragon 888 Plus SoC with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. The camera-centric phone comes with a 50MP Samsung GN1 sensor, 48MP ultra-wide camera, a 12MPOIS portrait camera, and an 8MP periscope camera. It comes with a bunch of shooting modes as well.
The Vivo X70 Pro Plus also comes with an E5 AMOLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate and it runs off a 4,500mAh battery with 55W wired and 50W wireless charging.
On the other hand, the Vivo X70 Pro is powered by MediaTek Dimsnsity 1200 SoC and comes with a 6.56-inch FHD+ AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, 50MP gimble camera, 8MP periscope lens, and a 32MP selfie snapper. It is backed by a 4,450mAh battery unit with a 44W fast charge.
Vivo X70 Pro price: Rs 46,990 | Rs 49,990 | Rs 52,990
The best Linux distros for privacy and security make it simpler and easier to secure your computer against cybersecurity threats, from malware to hacker intrusion.
Best Linux distro for privacy and security
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Additionally, privacy and security have become increasing concerns for internet users, not least with increased government monitoring and corporate collection of user data, and a long string of well-publicized hack attacked in which this user data has been stolen and mis-used.
While Windows and macOS computers have some protections in place, and there are additional options such as using a VPN or Tor browser, a number of Linux distros are now available that put privacy and security at their core.
For some of these Linux distros it's a case of building in privacy protection by default using a variety of tools. For others, it's a matter of including security software as standard for those who need to do penetration testing.
Each of these distros has a different focus on privacy and/or security according to user interests and needs. The distros in this guide have all been crafted specifically to equip you with the means to defend your privacy and ensure you stay secure while browsing the internet.
Here therefore we'll list the best Linux distros for privacy and security for you to consider.
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Linux Kodachi uses a customized Xfce desktop and aims to give users access to a wide variety of security and privacy tools while still being intuitive. The distro is loaded to the brim with apps that cater to all kinds of users. Kodachi includes all the apps you’ll find on a regular desktop distribution and then some.
To ensure privacy, Kodachi very uniquely routes all your connections to the Internet through a VPN before passing them to the Tor network. Advanced users can also connect via their own VPN.
Kodachi also takes many steps to bolster security. The distro uses AppArmor for application isolation. It also includes an entire suite of privacy-protection tools including VeraCrypt, zuluCrypt, KeePassXC, Metadata Anonymization Toolkit (MAT) for zapping metadata information from files, and more.
The distro also bundles a collection of tools to easily change identifying information such as the Tor exit country. Additionally, the distro encrypts the connection to the DNS resolver and includes well-known cryptographic and privacy tools to encrypt offline files, emails and instant messaging.
The Panic Room entry includes various privacy tools including a tool to wipe RAM, and an option to create a password that when entered will securely erase all contents of your encrypted Kodachi installation.
(Image credit: Qubes OS)
2. Qubes OS
An extremely secure distro, with an innovative user experience
Security by isolation
Radically different yet usable
Well documented
Qubes has established itself as arguably the most popular security-centric distro. It works on the principle of Security by Isolation and makes intelligent use of virtualization to ensure that malicious software doesn’t infect other parts of the installation.
Qubes uniquely isolates several essential elements of the operating system inside different virtual machines, called qubes. An individual instance of an app is restricted within its own qube. Thanks to this arrangement you can run Firefox in one qube to visit untrusted websites and another instance of the browser in a different qube to transact online. A malware ridden website in the untrusted qube will not affect the banking session.
Thanks to its radically different approach, Qubes does have a learning curve. However it isn’t abrupt enough to prevent you from using the distro like a normal Linux installation. Qubes is based on Fedora and uses the Xfce desktop environment. But instead of a list of apps, its application menu lists several qubes such as work, personal, untrusted, each of which rolls the individual apps inside them.
(Image credit: Septor)
3. Septor
Routes all traffic over Tor
Routes all traffic through Tor
Several privacy tools
Relatively new support infrastructure
Septor is produced by the Serbian Linux project, which also produces a general purpose Linux distro for Serbian language speakers. Based on Debian’s Testing branch, Septor uses the KDE desktop environment and is one of the newest distros in this guide that’s only had a handful of releases.
To earn its privacy credentials the distro routes all Internet-bound traffic through the Tor anonymous network. Earlier, the distro used a launcher script to fetch the latest Tor release from the Internet, but now bundles it by default.
In addition to the Tor browser, the distro also includes a couple of tools that are designed for use over the Tor network. There’s the anonymous file-sharing program called OnionShare and the Ricochet instant messaging client.
Besides the Tor tools, the distro also has a few other privacy and security enhancing programs such as the Sweeper utility to clear the cache and temporary files, VeraCrypt encryption software and the Metadata Anonymisation Toolkit (MAT).
(Image credit: Tails)
4. Tails
The official distro of the Tor project
Anonymizes connections using Tor
Can be used from an encrypted USB
Firefox equipped with privacy plugins
Tails (which stands for ‘The Amnesiac Incognito Live System’) is probably the most well-known privacy-focused distro. It can be run from a DVD in Live mode whereby it loads entirely into your system RAM and will leave no trace of its activity. The OS can also be used in ‘persistent’ mode where your settings can be stored on an encrypted USB stick.
All connections are routed through the anonymity network Tor, which conceals your location. The applications in Tails have also been carefully selected to enhance your privacy – for example, there’s the KeePassX password manager and Paperkey, a command line tool used to export OpenPGP secret keys to print on paper. There are also a small number of productivity apps such as Mozilla Thunderbird and the powerful LibreOffice suite.
The distro ships with a number of desktop applications such as LibreOffice, GIMP, Pidgin, Inkscape, Audacity and Thunderbird. You can also utilize the Synaptic Package Manager to flesh out the Gnome-powered distro. Any packages you choose to install aren’t made available at subsequent reboots, unless you configure persistent storage.
(Image credit: Whonix)
5. Whonix
Harness the power of virtual machines to stay safe online
Connections routed via the anonymous Tor network
Many privacy-specific apps preinstalled
VM performance isn’t as fast as local installation
Booting a Live operating system is a nuisance as you have to restart your machine, while installing it to a hard drive means there’s a risk of it being compromised. Whonix offers an elegant compromise by being designed to work as a virtual machine inside the free program Virtualbox.
Whonix is split into two parts. The first ‘Gateway’ routes all connections to the Tor network for the second ‘Workstation’ part. This hugely reduces the chance of DNS leaks which can be used to monitor what websites you visit.
The OS has a number of privacy-conscious features. These include bundled apps such as the Tor Browser and Tox instant messenger.
As it runs in a virtual machine, Whonix is compatible with all operating systems that can run Virtualbox. Virtual machines can only use a portion of your real system's resources, so Whonix will not necessarily perform as fast as an OS that has been installed to a local hard drive.
The news from the cinema industry across the country is many new movies have decided to wait out and release in theatres as many of have started to allow patrons, albeit in moderate numbers. And also the festival season peaks next week.
Considering all that, the new releases on Indian OTT platforms this week are a bit low key. But that is not to say they are uninteresting. We are particularly kicked up about Aamis, an Assamese movie --- and this is the first Assamese production that is making it to our weekly recommendation list.
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In our picks, there's the Amitabh Bachchan starrer Chehre, the intriguing web series on esports (yes, you read it right) Clutch, the Tamil film Lift and the series on the Indian tennis duo of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi, Break Point.
Synopsis: Set in the world of gaming, Clutch captures the essence of passionate gamers and the ups and downs they face in wanting to compete for eSports tournaments. It is a story of a man, who left professional gaming to follow a stable career path, but returns to his first love, gaming, by setting up a team to compete in a major eSports tournament, and takes them to great heights. In that sense, it is a typical sports redemption story. But the backdrop is interesting and unique.
Actress Ahsaas Channa said, “Gaming has been my love and of course, when the opportunity came, I had to grab it. Clutch is a project very close to my heart, given that it will show the world the unspoken excitement, and fun we gamers have in eSports. The team has done a fantastic job and cannot wait to share this with the audience.”
The first episode of Clutch releases October 1 with a new episode every week on Dice Media’s Youtube and Facebook channels.
Synopsis: The movie is believed to be unofficial adpatation of the 1956 German novel A Dangerous Game by Friedrich Dürrenmatt. Apparently, it had earlier been attempted in Kannada as Malle Nilluvavarege (2015). The movie had a theatrical release last month. It is a thriller that features four very old men living in an antique house in the middle of nowhere with a strong man who cannot speak and a maid who looks after their needs. All of them are experts in different departments of justice. And they have a mission - to punish ‘criminals’ through their trial as they believe that these ‘guests’ have been freed by the justice system.
It is an interesting premise, and with the legend Amitabh in it, there is an even more attraction to it.
Aamis
Quick Details
Director: Bhaskar Hazarika
Cast: Lima Das, Arghadeep Baruah, Neetali Das, Sagar Saurabh, Manash K Das
Language: Assamese
Platform: SonyLIV
Release date: Oct 1, 2021.
Synopsis: As we said, this is the first Assamese movie to feature in these columns. But it comes with solid reputation. It had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival where it was nominated in five categories in the festival's "International Narrative" section. It was also screened at Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival in 2019, Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles and the San Francisco International South Asian Film Festival in 2019.
It is a story of obsessive love that leads to chaos and complications.
The tale is about a woman paediatrician, who is trapped in a loveless marriage and the mundane tasks of domesticity. Her joyless existence transforms with the entry of a young student who is researching food habits and the use of various kinds of meats in the cuisine of the Northeastern part of the country. But the twist in the plot is about when this meat fetish crosses a threshold.
Break Point
Quick Details
Director: Ashwini Iyer Tiwari and Nitesh Tiwari
Cast: Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi
Language: English
Platform: Zee5
Release date: Oct 1, 2021.
Synopsis: For decades, Indians have celebrated the country’s biggest tennis heroes who made India proud by winning many iconic matches and have also speculated about their much public split. However, for the first time, the speculation will be put to rest as Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi get candid and honest about their bromance and breakup and tell the world – what happened, how it happened and why it happened. Break Point, the 7-episode series, will not only construct their epic tennis matches but also deconstruct their relationship, both on and off the court.
It is a telling narrative on their friendship, brotherhood, partnership, belief, hard work and ambitions which made them one of the most feared doubles pair during the late 1990s, and ranked world number 1 in the year 1999. But it also throws light on their bitter breakup and how they couldn’t hold on to their meteoric rise. At core, it’s a tale of two friends who had planned for success.
Lift
Quick Details
Director: Vineeth Varaprasad
Cast: Kavin Raj, Amritha Aiyer
Language: Tamil
Platform: Disney+ Hotstar
Release date: October 1, 2021.
Synopsis: The film's release had been delayed because of the pandemic. And now the producers have chosen to release it on OTT directly. It is a horror thriller with the makers equating it to the levels of Evil Dead, which is a well-known film in the genre. Maybe a tall a claim. The premise of the film is interesting. It is about two person getting trapped in a lift. The makers of Lift claim it to be the Evil Dead of Tamil cinema. Kavin, the hero of the film, was a Bigg Boss Tamil contestant. A song from the film, Inna Mylu, sung by actor Sivakarthikeyan has already clocked in over 30 million views on YouTube.
There also other movies like Shiddat, Friendship, and Orey Bammardi releasing this week. So, have entertainment-filled weekend.
If you regularly use Lightroom to polish your photos, you'll likely have been equal parts impressed and frustrated by its editing tools – but Adobe is promising to make selective tweaking a lot easier with a big update that's coming soon.
From October 26th, Lightroom will be getting some long overdue masking tools that will bring some of the AI-powered tricks we've recently seen added to Photoshop (like Sky Replacement) to its popular photo editor and organizer. These upgrades will come to Lightroom, Lightroom Classic and Adobe Camera Raw.
The changes promise to make choosing specific parts of your photo – like a person, or the sky – a one-click affair, which should make it far easier to, for example, fix overexposed parts of a photo or make more granular tweaks.
The new changes will be found in the panel below Lightroom's histogram. Instead of the brush and gradient buttons, there will be a new 'masking' button – this contains all of Lightroom's masking options, including the new 'select subject' and 'select sky' options.
What's particularly interesting about Lightroom's new approach, which Adobe says is the biggest upgrade to its selective enhancements since Lightroom 2 in 2008, is that you can effectively layer extra masks on top of ones you've chosen. This isn't a full Photoshop-style layers approach, but it's a welcome taste of it.
The example given by Adobe below shows how quickly it now is to choose the background (by inverting the 'select subject' mask), then remove the sky from that selection. This means you can quickly adjust the exposure, shadows and contrast in the ground and background, without affecting other parts of the image.
While this may sound like a relatively minor boost to Lightroom's editing options, Adobe says it involved overhauling the program's image processing engine over a year-and-a-half. This process has apparently meant that Adobe has "some fun new tech brewing" that it'll be releasing sometime next year. For now, though, its new tools will help it keep pace with its more nimble rivals like Luminar and Affinity Photo.
Analysis: Welcome tools for speedier photo edits
For a long time, Lightroom has lacked the traditional masking tools that we've seen in Photoshop. Instead, photographers have tended to use a combination of local adjustment tools and range masks to choose particular parts of a photo to edit.
The previous existence of those tools mean that Lightroom's new features will feel more like an added convenience than a revolution to keen users of the program.
For example, Lightroom's 'auto mask' tool has been on hand to help you choose particular parts of a photo, while the very useful luminance range mask is a popular way to choose specific areas to adjust based on a defined level of brightness.
But there's no doubt that the one-click selection of subjects and the sky, if they do indeed work as flawlessly as Adobe's demo, will help speed up many photographers' editing workflows.
Even better, Adobe has said that many users have requested that the Lightroom experience is consistent across desktop and the mobile app, which has apparently meant that the "AI-powered tools work on mobile devices equally as well as on desktop". This includes the color range masks that were previously only available on the desktop app.
We're looking forward to taking all of the new tools for a spin from October 26th to see if Lightroom can move up the pecking order of our guide to the best photo editing apps.
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