In fact, most of the popular Linux distributions come with a very worthy media player which can play a decent amount of formats and is rather simple to use. While I wouldn’t say it’s better than VLC, it does remove the need to install VLC unless you require a very specific feature.

About Totem

Totem is the default media player for most Gnome-based distributions, and with plenty of reasons. It is extremely easy to use, doesn’t have a cluttered preferences window, and plays just about anything you’ll find regularly without any difficulties. Some distributions are known for not including codecs for legal reasons, so the user usually has to install these on their own.

Totem, along with an appropriate plugin which is often already installed alongside Totem, can determine which codec is needed for whatever you want to play, and will download and install it for you.

Installation

In case, for whatever reason, Totem isn’t installed on your system, you can do so by searching for the package “totem”. It’s also often just called Movie Player, so don’t be confused if you see what whenever you search for Totem. Ubuntu users can install Totem via the command line using the command sudo apt-get install totem, while Fedora users can runsudo yum install totem.

Main Window

When you first launch Totem, you’ll immediately see the simplicity of the application. Most of the screen is obviously taken up by whatever video is playing, or if it’s music, then a large Totem logo or other visualization. On the bottom you’ll have your usual media control buttons as well as volume control and full screen, while on the right side you’ll have either a playlist view or technical data about the media such as bitrate.

Plugins

Totem also supports a multitude of plugins, many of which come automatically with the installation of Totem. Some notable plugins include the ability to change your instant messaging status based on what’s currently playing, a YouTube browser, support forJamendo, thumbnails, support for Zeitgeist, and Bemused capabilities (which lets you control Totem from your mobile device).

Settings

The preferences are, like mentioned above, fairly uncluttered. Here you can take care of things such as network speeds, subtitles, playback, display, visual effects, color balance, and audio output. These settings are necessary to make use of the hardware that you have at hand, but other than that there’s nothing more you need in a simple viewing experience.

Conclusion

Overall, Totem is a very nice application to use for all your music and videos. There’s nothing that gets in the way of your viewing experience, which is great when all you want to do is watch or listen. The plugins help make the application more functional for those who’d like to get a bit more out of it, but otherwise it is perfect for the niche it serves. In case you’ve been resorting to other media players, give Totem a try!

What’s your favorite media player and why? What could be done to improve Totem? Let us know in the comments!

The second phase of iPhone 5 rollout, which begins on September 28, includes the following 22 countries – Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

India will have to wait till the third phase of the roll-out, which is expected to begin in December

Here’s a good news for those who cannot wait till its official launch in India !  A Bangalore-based seller on eBay India is offering the iPhone 5 16GB model  for Rs. 74,000.

The seller on eBay claims, “The iPhone 5 will be dispatched within one business day on or after September 24 and will reach you the next business day in major cities.” Offering cash on delivery for Bangalore buyers, the seller adds that those interested can also “buy it on an EMI basis with any ICICI, Citi or HDFC Bank credit card”. The iPhone 5 will be available in the US for a suggested retail price of $199 for the 16GB model and $299 for the 32GB model and $399 for the 64GB model.

Micromax has launched HookUp, a messaging app that allows users to exchange pictures, music, videos, send and receive messages, its a  completely free messaging service.

The application will come pre-bundled with their new phone Micromax A25 Smarty. The best part  of the newly launched app is that  a HookUp user can send messages to even a non-HookUp user free of cost. The A25 Smarty comes with a Hook-Up bundle giving buyers 330 free messages per month for an year.

Features of HookUp App

• Single Entry Point: SMS and IM-Chat
• SPAM/Block list
• Image/Photo, Video, Audio, Doodle, Contact, Location

Currently HookUp is available on Android and MediaTek platforms.

HookUp is currently available on:

• A57 Ninja 3.5
• A87 Ninja 4.0
• Q34, and
• X335

You can download the app for your Micromax Android smartphone from here.

In Smart Drive app traffic is calculated basis the number of GPS devices being used on the particular road and their average speed and historical trends of traffic. The device can record all trips and help in navigation over voice commands.

A user can also access Wikipedia information of places as well as weather information. SmartDrive offers services such as search for points of interests like restaurants, theatres and shopping malls, and voice navigation. While search and map views are being offered for free, a daily pack for navigation services costs Rs 10, its monthly pack would cost Rs 99. Live traffic services would cost Rs 3 per day while a monthly pack would be for Rs 49.

The company is offering data browsing free till Nov 30, post which normal data usage charges will apply as per the data pack availed by the customer.

Samsung Galaxy CHAT is a latest Full QWERTY and Touch smart phone from Samsung to hit the Indian markets. It is now readily avaialble at all leading online stores for about Rs. 85,00 only. Announced in July this year, Samsung Galaxy CHAT features 3.0 Inch QVGA TFT-LCD and Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.

Talking more about its specs, Samsung Galaxy CHAT has somewhat different form factor unlike its preceders Samsung Galaxy Y Pro and others. It has 850 Mhz Processor, 2 MP Camera, 3G Connectivity, standard connectivity features like Bluetooth etc and much more. Here are the detailed Specs & features of the Samsung Galaxy CHAT:

• 3 Inch TFT-LCD Capacitive Touchscreen supporting 240 x 320 pixels resolution with Touchwiz User Interface
• Android Ice Cream Sandwich
• 850 MHz Processor
• 2 MP Camera with VGA Video Recording
• 512MB RAM, 4GB Internal Memory and microSD Card support up to 32GB
• 1200 mAh Li-Ion Battery
• 3G 7.2 Mbps HSDPA and 5.76 Mbps HSUPA connectivity
• Wi-Fi 802.11 (b/g/n), USB 2.0 and Bluetooth 3.0, GPS with aGPS support and GLONASS
• Accelerometer, Digital Compass, Proximity
• 59.3 x 118.9 x 11.7 mm, 112g
• Stereo FM radio with RDS, 3.5mm Audio Jack

Best Samsung Galaxy Chat Price in India is Rs. 8,490. Here is the Price Comparison at leading Online Store:

MTS India has announced the expansion of its High Speed Data Service, the MTS MBlaze in 7 more towns in the state of Kerala. Now the MTS MBlaze Data Service would also be available inValappad, Pappinisseri, Vadakkancheri, Perinjanam, Thiruvalla, Cherpu and Kodungalluracross Kerala taking the total tally to 65 towns in the state.

MTS offers Data Packs starting from Rs. 96 offering 1GB Unlimited with a validity of a day. Also recently MTS had introduced MTS Social Media Packs that comes for price of Rs. 647 offering 4GB Data at High Speed aling with Unlimited Free Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn access.

Here are some of the Unlimited Usage STVs on Offer in Kerala:

Speeds

• STV 96: Up to 512 MB – 3.1Mbps, 512 Mbps to 4GB – 144 kbps, > 4GB – 64 kbps
• STV 298: Upto 1GB – 3.1Mbps, 1GB to 6GB – 144 kbps, > 6GB – 64 kbps
• STV 798: Upto 5GB – 3.1Mbps, > 5GB – 144 kbps
• STV 999: Upto 10GB – 3.1Mbps, > 10GB – 144 kbps
• STV 1298: Upto 15GB – 3.1Mbps, > 15GB -144 kbps

* These denominations can be recharged only from the Website through online recharge mode

Also you can watch popular Malayalam Channels like Asianet News, Kairali, Jeevan TV , India Vision, Manorama News, Jai Hind TV on MTS TV. MTS has about 10,000 retail outlets and 30 MTS branded retail stores in Kerala.

The new nano-SIM is actually the fourth generation of Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card that has been used since the introduction of GSM mobile phones in the early 1990s.

Types of SIM cards :

The size of SIM cards have been made smaller over the years. Full-size SIMs were followed by mini-SIMs, micro-SIMs, and nano-SIMs.

The first was the size of a credit card. It’s also referred  as the first form-factor card, or 1FF  (85.60 mm × 53.98 mm × 0.76 mm).

It was followed by the 2FF card, known as simply a ‘SIM’, although technically it is a mini-SIM. It is 25 mm long and 15 mm wide

The Apple iPhone 4 was the first phone to popularise the micro-SIM, aka, 3FF card. It measures 15 mm x 12mm.

The advantage with this SIM card was that users were able to simply use their existing SIM and cut it down with scissors or a cutter because the gold contacts were the same between the two generations of card.

The new nano-SIM comes with the same idea of shrinking the card, removing just a few millimetres of extra plastice. This new nano-SIM card measures just 12.3 x 8.8mm, and its thickness has also been reduced fractionally, from 0.76mm of the 1FF, 2FF and 3FF cards, to 0.67mm.

SIM Card Cutter

Most GSM handsets such as iPhone 3G/3GS, Blackberry and HTC use standard SIM, but iPad and iPhone 4G use Micro Sims. If you want to change your phone but want to use your old sim then SIM card cutter may help you out. You can trim the extra plastic of your standard SIM and make it a micro SIM using micro SIM card cutter.

The cutter consists of twelve stainless steel parts and doesn’t allow you to cut your card wrongly. It cuts any normal standard sim card (12*25mm) to a micro sim (12*15mm).

How to use the cutter ?

• The cutter is precision made, so all you have to do is insert a standard sim and press the leaver, its as easy as using a hole puncher.
• Once cut you can use your new sim in iPad or iPhone 4
• You can also use it in conjunction with an adapter as a standard sim card again.

Should You Upgrade?

The upgrade to iOS 6 may be obvious for some, as the update brings a number of new features to your iPhone, including Panorama mode, a great new Maps app with turn-by-turn directions, Facebook integration, Shared Photo Streams, Improvements to Siri, and more.

For others however, the update may not be such a clear choice. Users that heavily depend on an untethered jailbreak, or who heavily rely on apps that haven’t yet been updated with iOS 6 support may hesitate before clicking the button.

Most apps that work with the latest version of iOS 5 should work with iOS 6 even if they haven’t been optimized for it, but if the app is truly critical, you may want to think twice.

Upgrade Now Or Upgrade Later?

Whether you upgrade immediate or device to upgrade later, you’ll want to consider the new features that iOS 6 brings to the table. We’ve outlined what you can expect from iOS 5, and have highlighted it’s main new features in a separate article, so click here to get an idea of what you can expect.

Even with all of iOS 6s new features, and the long and detailed developer testing it has gone through, it may be a good idea to wait a day or to before upgrading to avoid any potential last-minute problems that Apple may need to address. We’ll be keeping an eye out for things like this and will keep you posted.

Update Your Mac & iOS Apps Before Doing Anything Else

It’s important to make sure that you have the latest version of Mac OS X and iTunes 10.7 before attempting to upgrade to iOS 6, or your update may fail. The latest version of OS X is necessary for iOS 5′s iCloud functionality to work correctly, and iTunes 10.5 is required to install the firmware update on your device.

After you’ve updated your Mac with the latest version of OS X and iTunes, it’s time to update your apps. Visit the App Store both in iTunes and on your device to make sure you have the latest versions of all of your apps. Most apps will already work with iOS 5, but many developers have hard at work optimizing their apps for the new version of iOS.

Check out our guide on how to prepare your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch for iOS 6for a complete guide on making sure you are ready!

Check For Compatibility Problems

To avoid any potential problems with your update, make sure you check the developer’s website for any essential apps that you rely on to make sure there aren’t any warnings about updating to iOS 6. If you find any warnings or issues, it’s probably best to wait until the developer can release an update to address the problem.

Prepare Your Device And Install The Update

Once you’ve decided to upgrade, updated your Mac, and checked for developer warnings, it’s time to prepare your iOS device for the big update! Backing up your iOS device, taking note of any app-specific passwords you might need, and taking screenshots of your setting page in iOS 5 are all important steps to take to make sure your upgrade goes as smooth as possible.

Should You Update to iOS 6 Over-The-Air, or Resture Through iTunes?

We recommend restoring your device to iOS 6 through iTunes rather than applying the over-the-air update, as it will help ensure the smoothest experience once the upgrade is complete. Updating over-the-air is faster, however, so if you lack patience and don’t mind potentially working out some kinks after the upgrade, that might be just the option for you!

After The Update

Once you’ve updated your device, you should be ready to use your device. It’s recommended that you wait to use your phone (or make changes in iTunes) until after your iPhone’s display shows that the upgrade is complete, and after iTunes has performed it’s first sync after applying the update.

And…you’re done! Play around with the settings, experiment with the new features, set your phone up just the way you like it, and enjoy!

Incoming search terms:

• upgrade to iOS 6

Apple is expected to bring the iPhone 5 in India by December 2012.

The iPhone 5 may hit Indian stores in the third slot of iPhone 5 releases. On September 21 the iPhone 5 will launch in nine countries: US, Canada, UK, Germany, France, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore.  Post that it will arrive in  22 other countries on September 28: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

In the US market Apple has priced 16GB iPhone 5 at $649, 32GB at $749 and 64GB at $849. According to the inside source when iPhone 5 will launch in India, it will be available in following price range:

iPhone 5 16GB is $649 in US – In India  Approx Rs.45,481

iPhone 5 32GB is $749 in US – In India  Approx Rs.50,948

iPhone 5 64GB is $849 in US – In India  Approx Rs.56,415

Apple India has appointed Ingram Micro and Redington for distributing iPhones and has already build up its sales team to prepare for the iPhone 5 launch.

TRAI said that Mobile operators should not charge customers on calls or SMSes beyond their existing tariff plans on ‘Blackout Days’ like Ganesh Chaturthi, Diwali, Holi and New Year etc.

The term ‘blackout days’ refers to the days on which the service providers do not allow free or concessional voice calls/ SMS offered by them under any plan/ package. Certain guidelines are already in place as per which the number of Blackout Days shall not exceed five in a calendar year and no alteration in any such date is allowed after the package is subscribed by the consumer.

The additional measures now being mandated include the following:

(i) The charges for calls or SMSs on ‘Blackout’ Days shall not exceed the rate in the tariff plan in which the consumer is enrolled;

(ii) Consumers shall be given intimation prior to start of every Blackout Day and the date/ occasion of the Blackout Day shall also be intimated.

(iii) List of Blackout Days applicable for the calendar year shall be displayed on the website of service providers, before start of every calendar year and shall be published, service area wise, along with the tariff plans of the service provider, every six months.