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CONTENT{February 2010 | Volume 2 | Issue 8}

cover storydata on sMartphones,next BiG thinG 08According to industry analysts, in year 2011 ofthe traffic generated into the mobile netw...

teLecoMLate niGht packaGes: teLcosare not onLy to BLaMe 12This should not only lie with the telecomcompanies who have invested billions of rupees...

enerGythar coaL shouLd not BecoMe another kaLaBaGh 18The positive steps of any government have always been appreciated but what is lacking is....

event1st pink eLephant it serviceManaGeMent conference 20Trillium Information Security System in collabo-ration with Pink Elephant organized the...

itiLLeGaL trade of it productand pakistan 22The officials found involved in assisting smug-glers both directly and indirectly should be...

BankinGwho takes the Lead, isthat McB? 24Though all the competitors have come up withinnovative ideas, the one introduced by the....

convert 2G network into3G or 4G with one device 16If the majority of wireless subscribers on thenetwork are using GSM, the module will be...

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career Guide12 tips for ManaGinGyour career 26I recently ran across an article that advocatesthinking “outside the box” and developing an...

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reviewsnokia 2700 affordaBLefeature rich phone 30Similarly, WH-102 Nokia headphone is very irri-tating if you put them for more than 5 minutes...

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{cover story | More Team}


n Mobile broadband networks are about

to get hit by a tsunami of smartphone data

across the world. Making networks ready

to deliver the superior experience that

consumers expect is the issue of the mo-

ment. Some 1.7 billion People or 25% of

world population have access to internet.

According to the ITU, mobile broad-

band subscriptions topped 600 mil-

lion in 2009. As mobile broadband

connections overtake fixed, few net-

works are prepared to cope with this

new wave of mobile data. A combination

of always on apps, mobility and the

growth of smartphones and mobile com-

puting devices like the iPad, will increas-

ingly test operators around the world.

With mobile broadband it’s always

bandwidth, or download speeds, that

grab headlines. Of course, capacity is vital

for mobile broadband. When a single

YouTube video is equivalent to half a mil-

lion text messages sent across your net-

work, you need the capacity to cope. But

it is the unique demands of mobility –

not just a wireless connection – that re-

ally impact the performance of mobile

broadband, and therefore determine the

experience of people using mobile com-

puters like the iPad. That unlimited data

plan isn’t worth much if the network

you’re on isn’t smartphone friendly. You

just won’t get the most from your device.

{cover story}

To give two very specific ex-amples: if you’re using mo-bile broadband, and theoperator does not havesmartphone friendly kit, theexperience is either equiva-lent to unplugging and plug-ging in a fixed connection toyour computer every fewseconds, or your batterydrains very fast


{cover story}

It may help to picture it like this: a typical fixed

broadband operator knows where you want your

connection. It knows– in fact, it often supplies – the

single, approved device such as a wireless router,

to get online, and it can predict the traffic across

this, literally, fixed network. Of course, you can

probably also plug your devices - router and com-

puter – into a permanent power supply.

Now imagine for a moment if a mobile service provider de-

livered broadband like fixed. It quickly descends into farce:

“What number do you want the broadband line on?” they may

ask. “And where exactly do you want the broadband, because

we need to switch it on at the relevant local mobile base sta-

tion? Ah, you want it to be in different places? Oh,

right. Well, it will be active at a site of your choosing

within two working days, when you’ll also receive

our approved ‘Mobile Broadband Terminal’…”

It’s a caricature, of course, but highlights the

phenomenal experience we expect of mobile

broadband. Switch on your device, activate an app

that requires broadband, and receive a broadband

connection. For the user: simple. Nobody contacted to switch

on your service at the nearest base station, no insistence on

using a single approved device to connect with, no waiting. In

fact, as the wireless part of the service happens through the air,

the potential line speed of the connection isn’t even held back

by an old copper wire originally designed just for voice. That’s

one of the reasons that mobile broadband is growing so much

faster.

But as you know, this description may not match your cur-

rent smartphone experience. To exceed the experience of a

fixed line on a mobile connection is a unique challenge. But now

there is a capability to transform those networks. One of the

companies is NSN.

To give two very specific examples: if you’re using mobile

broadband, and the operator does not have smartphone

friendly kit, the experience is either equivalent to unplugging

and plugging in a fixed connection to your computer every few

seconds, or your battery drains very fast. I’ll explain why.

Depending on the network they’re on, some smartphones

automatically turn off their antenna to save battery life as soon

as you are not sending or receiving any information, so that the

next link you click or the next app that asks for data from the

‘cloud’, has to establish a new connection. Every time that hap-

pens the network has to check who you are and what services

you’re entitled to, change your status in its database and allo-

cate you an IP address – all in a split second. This “talk” with the

network – known as signaling – doesn’t improve the experience

for you at all. In fact, it wastes capacity on your operators’ net-

work and can cause congestion – a poorer service for you and

other smartphone users.

The alternative, however, is for your device to keep its an-

tenna permanently connected to the operator while your

browser or app is open. But then your battery drains, fast.

This company NSN has this technology, built into their mo-

bile networks all over the world, to eliminate wasted signaling

According to industry analysts, in year 2011of the traffic generated into the mobile net-works 50% is generated by mobile voice, theother 50% by mobile data. By 2015 over 85%of traffic in the mobile networks in generatedby mobile data, 49% via handheld devices.


and improve the battery life of smartphones. It allows the net-

work to put the smartphone into an idle state that means it re-

tains its connection, but switches off its broadband antenna. As

well as doubling battery life in the smartphone, this technology

can make signaling more efficient to such an extent - a five

times reduction - that it can save the average service provider

45 million Euros.

The challenges don’t stop there. Mobility itself makes pre-

dicting traffic across a network tough. During rush hour, around

the world, millions of people change their location – all at the

same time, putting varying loads on changing locations across

mobile networks at different times of the day. How does a mo-

bile operator cope with the fact that its capacity can be wasted

– but still cost money - if a business district is geared to support

peaks in traffic at certain times, but empty at weekends and in

the evenings? Again, load sharing techniques can save an av-

erage mobile operator 11 million Euros by dealing with exactly

this movement of people and the change in net-

work traffic it causes.

There’s a lot more that needs to go

into giving you the experience you

want on a smartphone – or a new

iPad - and we have a lot more to

say on the topic. But as this next

wave of technology becomes

more widespread, isn’t it time you

checked whether your mobile opera-

tor has a network that’s smartphone

friendly?

According to industry analysts, in year 2011,

of the traffic generated into the mobile networks

50% will be generated by mobile voice, the other

50% by mobile data. By 2015 over 85% of traffic in

the mobile networks will be generated by mobile

data, 49% via handheld devices.

smartphones shipmentin 2009

For the year 2009, Nokia

shipped 67.8 million smartphones

with a market share of 39%, RIM

shipped 34.5 million smartphones

with 15.5% market share, while Apple

accounted for 14.4% of the market share

with 25.1 million shipments.

According to the firm Strategy Analytics,

the smartphone market will become ultra

competitive in 2010. Samsung and LG have

ambitious plans to grow volumes and expand

their app stores, while emerging players like Dell

and Huawei are strengthening their device port-

folios and courting major operators. The smart-

phone wars will be good news for consumers,

but the fierce competition will inevitably place downward

pressure on vendors’ pricing and margins.

smartphones in pakistanPakistan has emerged as one of the major

mobile phone user in the world. Accord-

ing to official figures, there are more

than 95 million mobile phone

subscribers in Pakistan and it is

the fifth largest mobile phone

user in the the Asia. Mobile

phones have become a neces-

sity in Pakistan.

Though smartphones are

available in Pakistan but its usage

is not according to the definition.

Apart from other hindrances, one of

the major issues is the non-existence of

3G operation in Pakistan. Available smart-

phones are being used on GPRS/EDGE

based network which does not justify its

usage. In the absence of 3G network, statis-

tics in Pakistan cannot be verified truly as

smartphones are meant for data.

Future is data and we must realize its im-

portance, our policy makers and regulators

should not waste time and must move on so

we could also become the part of global

community more effectively. n

{cover story}

Though smartphones are avail-able in Pakistan but its usage isnot according to the definition.Apart from other hindrances,one of the major issues is thenon-existence of 3G operationin Pakistan. Available smart-

phones are being used on GPRS/EDGE basednetwork which does not justify its usage

n Over the last six to seven years, the rapid

growth of the country’s telecom sector has

both positive and negative implications on

the society. If, on one side, the competition

in the industry has facilitated the customers

and businesses, on the other hand, the tele-

com companies for the sake of expanding

their customer base may have offered

some packages that have not a good im-

pact on the youth.

While comprehending how different kinds

of packages are risking youths’ morality, the

Punjab Assembly has recently passed a res-

olution demanding that the Government

should direct the cell phone companies to

suspend the “cheap” night packages. It is

pertinent to mention here that the resolu-

tion has been tabled by Ms Samina Khawar

Hayat of PML(Q), whose government was

very vocal in claiming the telecom revolu-

tion in Pakistan. It would have been better


{teLecoM | More Team}

following the befitting example of television channels,

which have recently formed a “Code of Conduct” for airing of sensitive news and images, the telecom giants should also develop some common standards for

offering any package, so that it does not compromise the well-being

of the citizens


if the PML(Q) government had formulated

such policies in the beginning.

However, it has been rightly emphasized

that such packages have negative effect on

the education, health and personality of the

youth, especially students. Almost all the

cellular companies in the country have

been offering late night packages, which

usually activate at 12 am (5-6 hours after

sunset) and goes till 7 in the morning. Most

of the customers utilizing these “cheap” of-

fers are students who simply waste their

time in useless talks, which has definitely

adverse affect on their studies, not to men-

tion physical and psychological hazards.

The off peak hour calls are relatively

cheaper, however the late night packages

are almost free. One can talk for an hour for

just Rs. 3-7 at night, while charges for the

same call ranges from one to four rupees

during the daytime.

The youngsters spend sleepless nights and

even some of the students could not attend

their colleges and schools in the morning.

Staying up during late nights and working

throughout the day definitely affects

health, education and professional life of

these people. We listen to many parents

complaining that their children are badly

affected by these night time offers, al-

though it is their (parent’s) responsibility in

the first instance.

However, the notion of the Corporate Social

Responsibility (CSR) demands that the tele-

com entities should seriously think about

the moral degradation in the society,

caused by such offers. Following the befit-

ting example of Pakistan’s television chan-

nels, which have recently formed a “Code of

Conduct” for airing of sensitive news and

images, the telecom giants should also de-

velop some common standards for offering

any package, so that it does not compro-

mise the well-being of the citizens.

A socially responsible business entity al-

ways takes responsibility for impact of its

services on the society. As adopted by the

businesses worldwide, CSR policy functions

as a built-in, self-regulating mechanism

whereby business monitors and ensures its

adherence to law, ethical standards, and in-

ternational norms. In the developed world,

it is made sure that the businesses embrace

responsibility for impact of their activities

on environment, consumers, employees,

communities, stakeholders and all other

members of the public sphere.

Therefore, rather than putting the youths’

future at stake by applying shortcuts for

moneymaking, the telecom companies

should compete to improve the quality of

service as well as coverage of a wider area.

It must be realized that a positive competi-

tion will help in industry’s growth, which

will mutually beneficial for both the service

providers and the customers.

The onus should not only lie with the tele-

com companies who have invested billions

of rupees. Whatever packages they are of-

fering, they had full support from the Gov-

ernment of Pakistan so it would be totally

unjust to solely blame the telecom compa-

nies for any moral degradation that is

caused by late night offers.

Pakistan Telecommunication Authority

(PTA) is the industry’s regulator, which

should ensure that the sector which it is

controlling must operate fairly. PTA is not

only responsible to issue licenses, promote

investment and look after some of the tech-

nical aspects. It is Authority’s obligation to

observe and analyze whether different ac-

tivities/services of these companies are

beneficial for the society.

It may be noted that under license terms of

the PTA, any such package offered by the

telecom operators is a product they offer to

the consumers and the license does not put

any sort of restriction on the mobile com-

panies. There is no doubt that the compa-

nies have paid hefty amounts to acquire

these licenses and they have the right to

earn, but again there must be some limits.

Whatever steps are needed must be taken

to modify the terms of the license.

“The negative impact of such packages has

only been ignored to generate taxes for the

government but now the issue has come to

the limelight. The unanimous passing of

resolution by the Punjab Assembly gives

credence to the fact that there is no second

opinion about this issue,” says Altaf, who is

not happy with his son availing the late

night offers.

Saima who is a high school teacher says,

“There is no doubt that the only purpose

of these packages is to mint money. These

packages should have been banned long

ago but its better late than never. We

should not care so much about revenues

of the companies at the expense of our

youth. Some people are comparing these

packages with the internet, which is not

comparable because internet has many

positives usages while not even a single

quality of late night cellular packages can

be justified.”

The Government should learn from its

mistakes and, in future, deliberate upon all

the pros and cons of any policy before its

implementation especially that affects al-

most every citizen of this country. More

importantly, all the stakeholders must also

be consulted in this regard. It is hoped that

neither the Government and telecom

companies nor the people of this country

will be at a loss, and a proper way out will

be thoroughly discussed which would be

beneficial for all the stakeholders. n

{teLecoM}

This should not only lie with the telecom companies who have invested billions ofrupees. Whatever packages they are offering, they had full support from the Governmentof Pakistan so it would be totally unjust to solely blame the telecom companies for anymoral degradation that is caused by late night offers

“ “


{teLecoM | Waseem Khaliqdad}

n The revolution brought in by the devel-

opment of Information and Communica-

tion Technology (ICT) has a tremendous

impact on every aspect of human life. Start-

ing from mobile technology to internet and

satellites, the ways and trends of communi-

cation have changed altogether through-

out the world. Like many other features of

ICT, the video conferencing system is an

amazing invention whose importance has

not yet been comprehended in Pakistan,

especially in the government sector.

The benefits of video conference technol-

ogy are overwhelming. Meetings and confer-

ences may be scheduled anytime, especially

if an emergency meeting has to be called and

the participants are far from each other. The

system provides the luxury of calling them

any time you want and do the video confer-

ence without spending a lot of money on

travel expenses, hotel accommodations, and

many more. Above all, it saves time. Interna-

tionally, there is a growing trend among the

government departments and business firms

to hold discussion forums, meetings and con-

ferences through video conferences, using

state-of-the-art technology.

The technology allows the users to

communicate not only with people within

their organizations, but with the clients and

other people outside the enterprise. There

is no need to have the same system as most

desktop conferencing programs can work

together, otherwise such systems are easily

acquired online by downloading. Instant

The Government should also plan to use this technology for tele-medicine and tele-nursing applications such as diagnosis, consulting and other such requirements. Usingvideo-conference, the patients may contact physicians while doctors and other paramed-ical professionals can discuss cases across large distances

“ “


messaging systems are also offered for free

and those who have basic video conferenc-

ing needs can very well take advantage of

these services. This allows costs and efforts

to be cut significantly.

While at present most systems involve

separate programmes, in future one can ex-

pect to have everything integrated, making

available to everyone a more streamlined

platform for video conferencing and other

communication needs. Video conferencing

has taken the art of communication to lev-

els once thought to be unreachable. People

are just left wondering what exciting thing

would come out next.

Video conferencing has proven itself

useful not only to the governments and

businesses but also to the academia.

Through video conferencing, learning insti-

tutions can offer online lectures with ex-

perts from other countries, who no longer

have to travel to deliver their lectures. This

has made knowledge sharing very afford-

able and efficient. Moreover, companies can

improve their after sales customer support

through video conferencing because they

can respond to customer queries or com-

plains in real time. They can also provide

technical support to their clients through

web conferencing. Video conferencing does

not only promote technology but it can also

connect lives, people and families.

The video conference systems make

use of audio modems to transmit the line

of connectivity from the subscriber to

his/her participants. Because of the avail-

ability and efficiency of POTS, also known

as the plain telephone network, some low

speed applications like video telephone

satellite are converted to POTS and their

digital impulses from their analog waves

are connected through audio spectrum

range. The birth of the 3G wireless phone

services has been welcomed with great an-

ticipation by test markets in Europe and the

Asia Pacific. With the 3G-324M system for

mobile phones, it is now possible to engage

in a real-time multimedia communication

with speeds that are comparable to broad-

band internet connections. Soon enough,

practically everyone with a cellular phone

would be able to engage in video confer-

encing that is very efficient, stable with

great quality of video and audio.

It is worth-mentioning here that the

Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pak-

istan has initiated a national level of Video

Conferencing project, under which a world-

class facility has been provided to 70 univer-

sities and degree awarding institutions

across the country. The project involves sup-

ply, installation, integration, testing, com-

missioning and maintenance/support of

fully functional Video Conferencing System

along with the collaborative tools to en-

hance the teacher-student interaction

through distance learning.

The project is successfully bridging the

gap of good faculty, especially at those uni-

versities located at far-flung areas and ulti-

mately to uplift the standard of education in

Pakistan. Eminent scholars including Nobel

Laureates/Scientists/Researchers from

across the world deliver interactive lectures

on various topics, with an aim to develop

the fundamental concepts, enhance the

critical thinking of undergraduate and grad-

uate students, as well as discuss cutting-

edge technologies and research work in the

fields of modern sciences. The facility is also

being utilized for conducting conferences

and meetings, thus saving precious re-

sources of time and money.

Now, taking HEC’s initiative as a model,

the Government can implement the video-

conferencing facility throughout the coun-

try, for official purposes and save billions of

rupees. In this regard, the Ministries of Sci-

ence and Technology and IT & Telecommu-

nication should be tasked to come up with

a comprehensive plan and prepare a feasi-

bility report. HEC experts’ help may also be

sought as their system is effectively work-

ing on the national level.

The functionaries of the Federal and

Provincial Governments, including the Pres-

ident, Prime Minister and Ministers have to

travel, some of them on daily basis, to at-

tend meetings and conferences in different

cities. If the Government makes a sincere at-

tempt and manages to adopt the video-

conferencing facility, one can imagine the

immense reduction of load on the national

exchequer.

Similarly, the Government should also

plan to use this technology for telemedicine

and tele-nursing applications, such as diag-

nosis, consulting and other such require-

ments. Using video-conference, the patients

may contact nurses and physicians in emer-

gency. Physicians and other paramedical

professionals can discuss cases across large

distances. In rural areas, the technology can

be used for diagnostic purposes, thus saving

lives and making more efficient use of

health care money. Special peripherals such

as microscopes fitted with digital cameras,

video-endoscopes, medical ultrasound im-

aging devices, otoscopes etc, can be used to

transmit data about a patient.

Moreover, the Government should also

promote technology such as VOIP, which

may be used in conjunction with desktop

videoconferencing to enable low-cost face-

to-face business meetings without leaving

the desk, especially for businesses with

wide-spread offices. n

{teLecoM}

Taking Higher Education Commission’s initiative as a model, the Government of Pakistanshould implement the Video-Conferencing facility throughout the country, for official pur-poses that will save billions of rupees. In this regard, the Ministries of Science and Tech-nology and IT & Telecommunication should be tasked to come up with a comprehensiveplan and prepare a feasibility report

“

“


{teLecoM | ApnaTime.com}

n Alcatel-Lucent introduced a new radio

module, based on software defined radio

(SDR) technology, that gives mobile service

providers the flexibility to support any mix

of 2G GSM, 3G W-CDMA/HSPA+ and long

term evolution (LTE) services simultane-

ously. In addition to supporting new de-

ployments today, this capability can be

introduced in more than 700,000 Alcatel-

Lucent base stations already deployed by

service providers worldwide, offering a

seamless, cost-effective way for operators

to introduce the latest generation of tech-

nologies – at their own pace – while contin-

uing to support their existing customers.

The new converged radio module,

called the MC-TRX, is a key building block

of Alcatel-Lucent’s Converged RAN (radio

access network) portfolio, which is geared

toward increasing the capacity and the cov-

erage of all networks while minimizing the

overall total cost of ownership (TCO) for op-

erators. This product is available for opera-

tors worldwide and has already been

selected by tier 1 mobile service providers.

“With multiple spectrum options and

technology options before them, operators

need to make CapEx containment a priority

as they plan their network launches,” said

Peter Jarich, Service Director with Current

Analysis. “To that end, network infrastructure

that supports spectrum and technology

evolutions along with the carrier capacity to

execute on these evolutions is a must.”

With the explosion of mobile data traf-

fic that is underway today, service providers

face a variety of technical and operational

challenges as they seek to increase their

wireless network capacity and transform

their networks toward end-to-end IP. This

new converged radio module elegantly ad-

dresses these needs by giving mobile serv-

ice providers the ability to “re-farm” their

900 or 1800 MHz spectrum -- currently used

to provide 2G GSM services -- by introduc-

ing more advanced W-CDMA/HSPA+ or LTE

services through simple software activa-

tion. This process can be managed dynam-

ically -- if the majority of wireless

subscribers on the network are using GSM,

the module will be configured in GSM

mode. As more subscribers move toward

W-CDMA or LTE the module can shift the

relative mix of technology to allocate more

power and carriers to W-CDMA or LTE.

This ultra-compact, easy-to-install con-

verged radio module has the same form factor

as the previous generations of TRX modules.

This means that the new module can be im-

plemented on all multi-standard base stations

deployed by Alcatel-Lucent around the world

since 1999, and is of course supported in all

base stations sold today. In addition it supports

any 3GPP (third generation partnership proj-

ect) specification and complies with all local

regulatory requirements.

The new converged radio module offers

very high GSM capacity, supporting up to

2.5x the transceiver capacity per cabinet

today to help operators address market den-

sification requirements. The new converged

radio module can be configured to maximize

network coverage thus reducing the number

of sites. It integrates advanced radio capabil-

ities such as MIMO (multiple input/multiple

output) to ensure the best performance

when used in a W-CDMA/HSPA+ or LTE con-

figuration. It also can address a range of spec-

trum configurations, supporting bandwidths

of up to 20MHz, offering exceptional flexibil-

ity for deployments and maximum capacity

to enable the introduction of LTE.

This new module is complemented by

the company’s extensive professional

services capabilities, particularly in the

areas of radio network design and deploy-

ment. Leveraging its extensive experience

managing mobile network upgrade ef-

forts, Alcatel-Lucent can collaborate with

and counsel mobile operators as they

plan for and work through the re-farming

process and manage the evolution of

their networks to support next-genera-

tion services and applications. n

If the majority of wireless subscribers on the networkare using GSM, the module will be configured in GSM mode.As more subscribers move toward W-CDMA or LTE the modulecan shift the relative mix of technology to allocate morepower and carriers to W-CDMA or LTE

“

“

MC-TRX




{enerGy | MORE Team}

n In the beleaguered history of Pakistan, many successive gov-

ernments have made huge claims about different mega proj-

ects, but most of these schemes became political issues and the

ultimate victims have always been the people of Pakistan. Had

our rulers formed right strategies to use the wealth of natural

resources that Pakistan is blessed with, we would definitely be-

come a prosperous nation in the world.

Among many other precious resources, Thar Coal is one of

the world’s largest coal reserves. About 9,100 square kilometers

of Thar desert contains 175.506 billion tonnes of coal. According

to an estimate, these reserves are worth 25 trillion US dollars

and if we put only two percent of it into use we can produce

20,000 megawatts of electricity for the next 40 years. If utilized

in a proper way, it can save oil import bill, reduce unemploy-

ment and help strengthen economy, rupee and foreign ex-

change stocks. Just compare our resources with the

ever-increasing problems of this country.

For generation of electricity in many of the developed and

developing countries, coal is used as the most important energy

source. Statistics of the World Coal Institute London indicate

that the US produces 52.2 percent of its electricity through coal,

China produces 77.5 percent of its total electricity by coal, India

generates 70 percent of power by coal while Pakistan is using

just five percent of coal for energy generation. Since the discov-

ery of Thar Coal in 1991, very little development work has been

done to utilize this natural resource. Thar coal is environment

friendly with a low sulfur content. The deposits extend across

the border where they are being mined for power generation

by India in Rajistan.

Coal extraction from Thar requires at least 3-4 years before

coal is made available for use and if our government succeeds

in utilizing these reserves, Pakistan's dependence on hydro proj-

ects and diminishing gas reserves will definitely decrease, re-

sulting in the rapid economic development of our country.

We have seen the worst power crisis in the country during the

last few years that has jeopardized the very basic elements of our

economy. But our policymakers and leaders don’t seem to bother

about such a critical situation. Several MoUs were signed be-

tween past governments and multinational exploration compa-

nies, who even invested and work started on the infrastructure

but the projects were stopped on political grounds. During the

last six to seven years, German, Chinese and other companies had

not only carried out surveys and feasibilities of this project but

also offered 100 percent investment but they were discouraged

in a systematic way and they had to quit.

The positive steps of any governmenthave always been appreciated butwhat is lacking is consistency, espe-cially when there is a change in gov-ernment. Our politicians must have torealize that development schemes,particularly mega projects like TharCoal, must not be politicized rathercredit be taken for further develop-ments and success of such projects.


Some analysts even believe that the petroleum lobby is very

strong in Pakistan and they are against any other means of

power generation except for the imported oil. They argue that

this lobby is major beneficiary of the increasing oil bill that is es-

timated above 15 billion dollar this year.

Dr. Samar Mubarakmand, Member (Science and Technol-

ogy) Planning Commission, who is a strong proponent of the

utilization of Thar coal, recently said a seminar that by exploiting

our coal reserves to the optimum, we could provide power to

farmers at the rate of Re.1 per unit, which could boost our agri-

products and make the country self-sufficient, adding that

cheaper electricity will improve and increase our exports. He

said reverse osmosis could also be used to purify underground

saline water, making fresh water available for agriculture in the

Thar area. He lamented that the Australians, Americans, British

and Chinese know more than us about our cobalt, gold and

copper deposits.

It was really encouraging to read that the Sindh government

has notified the constitution of a committee, headed by Dr.

Mubarkmand as Chairman, for conducting interviews and mak-

ing contractual recruitment for two coal projects in Thar Coal-

field. The Committee, which will be the sole authority to make

contractual appointments in the two coal management units

to be established under the Sindh Coal and Energy Develop-

ment Department, comprises Additional Chief Secretary, Plan-

ning and Development, Government of Sindh, Provincial

Secretary, Coal and Energy; Special Secretary, Finance; one rep-

resentative of SGA&C department and Director General, Sindh

Coal Authority will work as member of the body.

The positive steps of any government have always been ap-

preciated but the thing which is lacking is consistency, espe-

cially when there is a change in the government. Our politicians

have to realize that development schemes, particularly mega

projects like Thar Coal, must not be politicized rather credit be

taken for further developments and success of any project. Pro-

fessionals and companies engaged for such projects should be

selected solely on merit.

There must not be any delay in finalizing the feasibility study

of Thar Coal so that work on the project is started at the earliest.

If we start working in 2010, the first megawatt of power from

the project will flow somewhere in early 2016, if all goes accord-

ing to plan. So we are already very late and no more excuses are

acceptable to the people of Pakistan. There are many problems

that need to to be addressed urgently. Thar coal is believed to

be high in moisture content, which makes it unsuitable for

transportation or easy use in power generation. Then there is

the issue of acquiring adequate water to run a power plant, and

overcoming the inter- and intra-provincial water disputes that

will inevitably ensue. And any new power plant in Thar will have

to be connected to the national grid at great cost and effort.

But more than the technical problems, politics and funding

hang heavy on the Thar power project. For one, disputes between

the Centre and Sindh over who has the ultimate say on Thar coal

and its use for power generation could yet scuttle the project. Ad-

ditionally, there is the question about how exactly power projects

in Thar will be financed. Domestic banks are wary of additional ex-

posure to the power sector given its recent troubles, while Pak-

istan’s poor standing in the international financial market could

render the project prohibitively expensive to finance.

Clearly, we must do more to put our overall economy in

order to make credit cheaper. And from an environmental and

local point of view, it must be ensured that clean-coal technol-

ogy is employed and that the people of the area benefit directly

and fairly from the exploitation of Thar Coal resources.

It is again requested to the provinces as well as the political

parties that they should rise above their differences and unite

for making Thar Coal Project a big success. They must realize

that it will solve many many problems that this poor nation is

faced with. n

{enerGy}

Several MoUs were signed betweenprevious governments and multina-tional exploration companies, whoeven invested and work started on theinfrastructure but projects werestopped on political grounds. Duringthe last six to seven years, German,Chinese and other companies had notonly carried out surveys and feasibili-ties of this project but also offered100 percent investment but they werediscouraged in such a systematic waythat they had to quit.


{event}

Trillium Information Security System in collaboration with Pink Elephant organized the 1st Annual Pink Elephant IT ServiceManagement Conference on 26-27th January 2010 at Jumeirah Beach Hotel Dubai. The event was gold sponsored by Loyalist (Cer-tification Services) and endorsed by itSMF (IT Service Management Forum). Below are the pictures of participants.

A Groupphoto of Conference Organizers and Speakers

Mr Mohsin Sheikh (MD, TISS), Mr. Yasin Miheisi (Director IT Service Delivery Division, ADJD), Julia Chapelle (Director, LoyalistCertification Services) and Mr. Mr. David Ratcliffe(Co-Founder and President of Pink Elephant)

Conference AudianceAmmar Elkaderi (Sr. IT Consultant, NationalInformation Center, Riyadh, Saudia)

Mr. Azhar Zia ur Rehman( Group Director IT, Etisalat )

Mr. Abdulrahim Almudhareb ( IT Director, Dubai Courts)




{it | Nauman Butt}

n Computer and IT industry of Pakistan has not been able

to keep the momentum as a result of numerous factors in-

cluding worse ever law & order situation, energy crises, ill

conceived taxation policies, fragile currency and failure

at official level to identify and explore new opportunities

in the sector. But the most conversable and formidable

counterpart in this regard that need to highlight is Illegal

trade or smuggling of computer IT items and its allied ac-

cessories. Illegal trade or smuggling among countries can

be defined as the form of trade across the borders/ports with

hidden strong collaboration between traders/smugglers and

the government officials responsible for controlling such move-

ment across the boundaries.

A variety of computer and non computer items is traded il-

legally at Pak-Afghan and Pak-Iran borders. The mainstream

products are Notebooks, Ram, Toners and Telecom sets with al-

lied accessories.

The local assemblers claimed that smuggling of computer

and electronics items like Notebooks, Ram, drives, toners and

memory chips was started after the imposition of general sales

tax, which now contributes to 30 per cent of the total industry

size, thus causing a loss of millions of dollars to the national ex-

chequer. The computer hardware industry was growing at

steady 20 per cent growth in Asia Pacific, which was the third

highest growth in the region after China and India. Since the

government imposed 15 per cent GST on computer hardware,

the growth declined 17 percent.

The question arises that despite of encouraging global

trends in the IT industry, why Pakistani market is showing the

reverse trend and not exploiting the opportunities. New report

of IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker shows that Global PC

shipments rose 2.3% year on year in the third quarter of 2009

(3Q09). Pakistan IT industry is going down every day and con-

trary to this, people in illegal trade are minting money. Accord-

ing to the data of Export Promotion Bureau, there are more than

25,000 people involved in illegal trade earning 720 million ru-

pees per annum. This implies that a big network of smugglers

The officials found involved in assistingsmugglers both directly and indirectlyshould be awarded exemplary punish-ments through a very rapid and effec-tive prosecution. The arrestedsmugglers should not be released atany cost. Their punishment should alsobe exemplary so that no personshould dare of entering into such il-legal business. The efficient custom/ex-cise officers should be awarded rapiddepartmental promotions as well asvarious prizes and medals.


is present in Baluchistan. These groups are strong an influential

and high GST pave the way for smuggling, eventually, making

it difficult for the hardware companies to survive.

Pakistan does not manufacture any IT product. The global

trade, especially for developing country, is subject to WTO with

zero tax. This is done to promote the IT related business in every

way. The margin after selling genuine IT products are hardly 2-4%

and after paying almost 17% GST to government at the time of

import, a further GST on sale plus 3.5% withholding tax makes the

total tax percentage to almost 25%. In

this condition, earning mere 4% and

giving a 1-3 year warranty on prod-

ucts make the trade unvi-

able to IT companies.

Our neighboring countries, in-

cluding India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka are giving top priority

to their IT industry. There are no duties and undue taxes on the

trade. Because of very same policies, Indian IT industry has set

a target of $ 175 billion for itself till the year 2020. They are all

set to achieve the target for the year 2010 which is almost $ 50

billion. It became a reality because the Global IT giants have out-

sourced their IT ventures in India due to IT friendly policies. IBM,

Microsoft, Oracle etc have their regional offices and plants in

India having thousands of employees.

In Pakistan, there are few assembling units for IT and elec-

tronic products. There is no transfer of technology in any ways.

Most of the IT giants have not even opened there offices in Pak-

istan and they are just relying on distributors because it is more

feasible to them rather than having a complete work force here.

Though, the representatives of the global hardware manufac-

turers keep requesting government and other stakeholders

through seminars and workshops but it seems all the efforts are

bringing no fruits.

Not only the IT industry is facing these issues, automobile,

consumer electronics and other industries have similar prob-

lems. This is the very reason that there is no transfer of technol-

ogy in Pakistan so far. There are example of local manufacturing

in shape of refrigerators, air conditioners, televisions etc but one

thing to note is that no major part of them is being manufac-

tured here. Every important element is imported. Pakistan has

a considerable market for a host of electrical items almost all of

them are being imported or smuggled into Pakistan.

One of the major reasons for not developing the local indus-

try is the culture of giving preference to the imported goods as

compared to those produced locally. One should however ac-

cept the harsh fact that usually the poor quality goods pro-

duced locally were enough to shift the interest of the consumers

towards the imported goods. Spelling out the facts which gave

way to the menace of smuggling in Pakistan, specially the IT

and electronics goods; sources identified the double standards

of duty structure for Karachi and Sust borders at Karakorum (Silk

Road), as the loophole of this industry.

At last but not least there is always room for remedy pro-

vided how serious we are to implement and enforce the law and

order. This illegal trade of computer IT products and electronics

can be minimized and can be controlled if following steps

would be taken seriously. The duties of the collectors should be

rotated after short intervals. Only honest and dutiful persons

should be posted at all borders that are assumed to be a path

way of illegal trade.

The honesty of the personals should be monitored through

the intelligence department. The officials found involved in as-

sisting smugglers both directly and indirectly should be

awarded exemplary punishments through a very rapid and ef-

fective prosecution. The arrested smugglers should not be re-

leased at any cost. Their punishment should also be exemplary

so that no person should dare of entering into such illegal

business. The efficient custom/excise officers should be

awarded rapid departmental promotions as well as various

prizes and medals. n

{it}

Indian IT industry has set a target of $ 175 billion for itself till the year 2020. They areall set to achieve the target for the year 2010 which is almost $ 50 billion. It became a re-ality because the Global IT giants have outsourced their IT ventures in India due to ITfriendly policies. IBM, Microsoft, Oracle etc have their regional offices and plants in Indiahaving thousands of employees

“

“


{BankinG | MORE Team}


n Ever since the telecommunication

technology was introduced in Pakistan, a

number of magnificent features have

been added in the services provided by

the mobile companies. In the beginning,

cell phone was a luxury enjoyed only by

the elite class; however, over the years it

has become an affordable commodity for

everyone. Starting from a simple call and

messaging service, there’s nothing that

you can not do through your mobile. Just

name it. We are using the mobile phone

not only to communicate with each

other, we are using it to connect all across

the globe. And in this excessive flow of in-

novative services, mobile banking is an-

other important addition that has yet to

flourish.

The cell phone consumers can now

make monetary transactions via their

mobile, no need to take cash or credit

card along. The service enables the users

to perform online transactions including

money transfer, cash-in, cash-out, person-

to-person transfer, bill payments online

purchases and much more.

This is rightly being anticipated that

the mobile banking will further enhance

the mobile phone users in Pakistan as

now an average man can feel safe for not

having to carry cash, and make utility bill

payments from home.

Although in the last decade or so, the

computers revolutionized the banking

sector in Pakistan and made transactions

easier for the customers, even then the

internet banking could not grow much

because of lack of a large community’s

access to the computers, especially lower

middle and poor strata of the society. In

comparison, everyone carries a mobile

phone, he/she may belong to any age

group or any community so it is easy to

assume as to what are the prospects of

the mobile banking in Pakistan. Availabil-

ity of internet on the mobile phones has

opened up a large resource pool for mass

enrolment in the banking sector, which is

not only a good omen for the baking and

telecom sectors, it also shows bright

prospects for the overall economy of the

country.

Having said that, transaction through

a mobile phone is not as easy as it may

seem because a lot of technical expertise

is needed to design a system that takes

into account the dynamics of all the

stakeholders, including customers, gov-

ernments/businesses, banks as well as

the telecom companies. A number of mo-

bile banking solutions have already been

offered by the banks and the telecom

companies and some are extension of the

online internet banking services while

others stand alone as mobile banking

platforms. But there is still a big room for

improvement.

An important thing that must be

highlighted here is that both the banks

and telecom companies will have to have

a close coordination so that a reliable and

long-lasting system is in place. A true

spirit of partnership between the two

sectors is indispensable to make mobile

payments revolution a success.

Though all the competitors have

come up with innovative ideas to attract

the customers, the one introduced by the

Muslim Commercial Bank (MCB) seems to

have an edge over others. The Bank

launched mobile payments service by the

name of MCB Mobile, which has been a

great success with thousands of cus-

tomers registered and the Bank proving

itself a leader in providing the service as

yet. But those who want to compete will

have to grow faster and continuously in-

novate by introducing new payment

types and functionality.

In today’s marketing world, one must

be extra sharp as the fittest will survive. It

has taken over many decades for the

banking industry to get more than 30

million bank accounts, and the telecom

companies attained the customer base of

90 million in less than 10 years, so it be-

comes crystal clear that the next 30 mil-

lion people will be brought into the

formal economy by opening a bank ac-

count in not more than five years. The

race is on! n

{BankinG}

though all the competitors have come up with innova-tive ideas, the one introduced by the Muslim commer-cial Bank seems to have an edge over others. the Bankhas launched mobile payments service by the name ofMcB Mobile, which is being seen as a great success withthousands of customers registered and the Bank prov-ing itself a leader in providing the service as yet.

companies attained the customer base of 90 millionin less than 10 years, so it becomes crystal clear thatthe next 30 million people will be brought intothe formal economy by opening a bank account innot more than five years

www.apnatime.com26 | More | February 2010

{career Guide | Shahid Khan}

I recently ran across an article that advocates thinking “outside thebox” and developing an “entrepreneurial spirit” with an openness tonew opportunities when it comes to managing your career — aswe are likely to experience multiple career changes throughout ourwork lives. The article also provided twelve tips for successful careermanagement — which I’ve paraphrased below.

n Brand yourself. In other words, understand what your skills, experience, knowledge, values and expertise are and then encapsulate them into a sentence or a phrase that describes you, much like creating a simple personal mission statement.

n Market yourself. Make sure people know what you can do. Having an updated and customizable resume readily availableis a must.

n Network…network…network. That means building relationships. Socializing with peers, joining professional associations, volunteering and making sure you’re taking advantage of online communities are all great ways to do this.

n Develop professionally. Know your business, stay current withadvances in your area of expertise, read journals, attend workshops — truly become an expert in your field.

n Keep a portfolio of your accomplishments. And make sure they’re known, even if it feels “uncomfortable” to toot your own horn. You’ll be glad you did when performance review time comes around, as they’ll be right at your finger tips.

n Be a team player. It’s great to be great on your own, but it’s even better — and absolutely critical in today’s work environment — to achieve greatness in partnership with others.

n Be prepared to make changes at a moment’s notice. Flexibility,adaptability and readiness for change are key characteristics ofsuccessful employees. If you can anticipate and be prepared for“what’s next,” change will no longer be your enemy.

n Keep a healthy work life balance. While it might be difficult to replace you at work, it can be done, but no one can replace you to your family, your friends — and yourself!

n Look for a mentor who can guide you through your career development. Mentors not only teach us, but can be very influential when it comes time for a promotion or a move to anew opportunity.

n And in turn, be prepared to mentor others as your expertise grows.

n Attitude is everything. Being positive, especially in the face of adversity, will make you someone your colleagues wantto work with and managers want on their team.

n Lastly, though it’s your career, you’re not in it alone. Makesure you’ve engaged your manager, your co-workers andothers around you in your journey.

I like these twelve tips. Reading through them Irealized I’ve used many of them in my work life — in-cluding mentoring, keeping a portfolio, networkingand staying positive. The twelve tips also remind methere is a lot I can do to control my career path — andthat’s invigorating.

I’d like to know if any in particular resonate withyou, or if you have other tips that have helped you suc-cessfully manage your career.

Writer works for a multinational firm.You can send your feedback [email protected]




{technoLoGy | Aliya Ali}

n With the films like ‘Avatar’ and ‘District 9’

in Oscar nominations, who is not talking

about success and advancement of visual

effects in recent time’s cinematography?

2009 was a big year for animated films. Ani-

mations and visual effects ruled the year. Vi-

sual Effects are the methods used to create

and blend non-existing scenes into a live ac-

tion movie. These are used when a scene

would be too expensive or dangerous, or

simply impossible to film any other way.

The use of computer generated im-

agery (CGI) has evolved over a period of

time. In 1980’s audience were subjected to

experience practical visual effects on big

screen. Elaborate models, puppets and

cameras did the trick for movies like Em-

pire strikes back and for the blockbusters

like Batman and Indiana jones and the last

crusade. Computer generated imagery

techniques surprised cinema goers in

1990’s with films like Terminator 2. At this

time visual effects artists were creating im-

ages which were near to impossible with

previous techniques.

In the last decade CGI ruled out tradi-

tional techniques to fool audience. Its

dominance was widely seen in Matrix,

transformers and Lords of the rings.

CGI is used for visual effects because

the quality is often higher and effects are

more controllable than other more physi-

cally based processes, such as constructing

miniatures for effects shots or hiring extras

for crowd scenes, and because it allows the

creation of images that would not be fea-

sible using any other technology.

two important techniques which can beused by using cGi only are:1. Fluid dynamics

2. Facial animation

Firstly we will talk about facial anima-

tion. Often film makers need to make

photo realistic face images which cannot

be digitally created using other methods.

One remarkable example is the movie Ben-

jamin Button, where we saw an older ver-

sion of Pitt’s face. Did you even realize the

first hour of the movie was a completely

computer animated face? Every action, re-

action, motion and emotion of Brad Pitt’s

face was interpreted by a computer, and

transformed to a face which aged roughly

45 years. And it looked 100% real. It took

155 people over 2 years to create the

'heads' of Benjamin Button. The face not

Quite often we see films based upon natural phenomena’s. One recent example is2012. More than 100 artists created 2012's 1300 visual-effects shots, including volcaniceruptions, tsunamis, floods and a massive earthquake that rips California apart“ “

A scene from the movie Benjamin Button


{technoLoGy}

only needed to look alike Brad Pitt’s, it also

had to move like it in convincing manner.

Pitt was given a series of exercises to

practice so that he could easily move his face

into various actions. A 3D laser scan of Pitt’s

face would then yield a complete configura-

tion of his facial geometry in that position.

What the audience is actually seeing

in the first-third of the movie is a com-

puter-generated copy of Pitt's head, which

the studio aged digitally. It acts like Pitt on

the screen, that's because Pitt was filmed

performing all of the scenes and the visual

effects artists then mimicked his move-

ments on the digital head.

Quite often we see films based upon

natural phenomena’s. One recent example

is 2012. More than 100 artists created 2012's

1300 visual-effects shots, including volcanic

eruptions, tsunamis, floods and a massive

earthquake that rips California apart. Every

single thing had to be destroyed. Visual Ef-

fects artists for this film built a 3D photore-

alistic version of several city blocks using

60,000 high-dynamic images as a reference.

Then they made every mailbox, tree and

building shake and crumble.

Previously such scenes were created

using models and other traditional tech-

niques. Artists used to make models and

then flood them, blew them up or set

them on fire. It not only requires a lot of

man power but very serious security is-

sues. The dam breaking scene in Dente’s

Peak was one of the most remarkable out-

comes of its kind using similar method.

Now using fluid dynamics, real life

scenes can be amazingly shown to audi-

ence which was previously impossible or

required much expertise, time and cost. In

‘The Day after tomorrow’ spectacular

scenes were shot using this technique. In

one scene a tidal wave was shown which

appeared to be nothing less than reality.

In Pirates of the Caribbean, the water-

fall was to represent the end of the world,

stretching to the horizon and infinitely

deep. The overall effect needed realistic

water flowing, spray and mist rising from

the fall, bubbles floating and all other

minor details. Artists had to be able to

change each layer in parts of the waterfall

without affecting, or unnecessarily re com-

puting, other regions.

Still there are challenges faced by vi-

sual effects artist. With advancement in

technology, audience has become clever

enough to guess what is real and what is

not. And the whole point of CGI is to de-

velop images which look real. Now, the

technology has matured and is hitting the

mainstream as more theatres and the big

movie studios adopt the technology in an

effort to attract more people to the cinema

In future, we are expecting to see

some tremendous work in this field. The

charm of CGI has influenced film makers

like never before.

Absolutely with no doubt, CGI and vi-

sual effects has captured film industry all

over the world with its amazing room for

improvement. But in all this visual effects

magic, we see Pakistan far lagging behind.

On the first hand, there are no films being

made. And those few which are, they have

shamelessly low budget, with no good

script. There are some exceptions though

like Shoaib Mansoor’s Khuda K Liye and

some films from Javaid Sheikh, Shan and

Ajab Gul. The question is: Do we lack tal-

ent or we are just afraid to use it?

In 2007 The Golden Compass picked

up the award for Best Visual Effects and Mir

Zafar Ali was one of the ‘Effects Technical

Director’ at Rhythm and Hues, the US-

based company that worked on this par-

ticular film. Mir Zafar Ali is a FAST-Karachi

graduate. There are many such promising

students of technology in Pakistan. IT and

sciences has improved a lot in a last decade

here. Despite of that we are still unable to

use this talent in right direction. At this

point of era where technology is a very im-

portant part of entertainment industry, our

film industry has not even managed to

come up with average good films.

If adequate budget is provided and a

potential script is chosen, we can create a

new market for our IT professionals. Our

own people are now used to mind blow-

ing visual effects and remarkable captured

shots in foreign films. We not only need to

provide quality cinema to our audience

but also we should give our engineers and

technicians a chance to use their expertise

on big screen.

It’s high time to bring a revolution in

our films. We need good equipment, edu-

cated people and proper investment to

make this happen. We can not only bring

viewers back to cinema, we can also give a

new dimension to IT profession in Pakistan.

In this Global world, technology and

advancement are the keys to success and

development. Almost in every walk of life

scientists and engineers are improving

ways to make lives easier. Entertainment

industry also has been completely over-

powered by technology. Cinematic expe-

rience was never this brilliant before. In

Pakistan, we do have all talent, capability

and minds to compete in such environ-

ment. If a right step at this right time is

taken, we can surely succeed in this area.

Our IT professionals are doing wonders in

foreign countries. This is time to use our

talent in our own country. Creative minds

need to collaborate with technology.

When every field in today’s world has

taken benefits from technology, why not

our own “Film Industry”? n

In 2007 The Golden Compass picked up the award for Best Visual Effects and Mir ZafarAli was one of the ‘Effects Technical Director’ at Rhythm and Hues, the US-based companythat worked on this particular film. Mir Zafar Ali is a FAST-Karachi graduate“ “


{reviews | More-In-House}

Good things3.5 mm audio jackYou can use any headset or connect it to a set of speakers of your choice.

email clientIf you have the GPRS/EDGE activated on your phone, whichnormally is the case now in Pakistan, you can configure anyPOP3 enabled email account. The automatic configurationwon’t work and you will need to configure settings manually..

Built in MapsYou can download new maps , though it does not have a built in GPS but can connect through a GPS device.

web services It allows you to connect to Facebook without having to go via the phone's browser.

equalizerThe music player has an equalizer and a stereo widening option, which gives you a surround sound effect.

flash MessageThe function allows you to type messages which are directly opened on the receiver’sphone.

scientific calculatorBesides a regular one, you can switch to the scientific calculator for a more detailed working.


n Since the competition is getting stronger, mobile phone

manufactures are putting everything in the low range phones.

Nokia 2700 is one such example. Feature wise, the phone gives

you a feel that you are holding a good middle end phone which

could fulfill calling, texting and data need. Though Nokia is run-

ning a separate series for the music but this phone also has the

necessary music software to impress you.

Measuring only 109 x 46 x 14 mm and weighting only 85 g,

this item's size will satisfy its most skeptic users. This cell phone

comes with a 1020 mAh Li-Ion battery, letting a talk time of 6.00

hours and provides in standby mode 288 hours. It includes a 32

MB memory, a good quantity for a regular use but our never

shown more than 28MB of memory. For extra storage of your

music and image files, you can put a separate 2GB card into it.

The package in Pakistan comes with a 1GB card.

Screen is pleasant and sharp with enough readable fonts.

You can select the shortcuts for left and right menu buttons. The

default is the email function which is a real charm in this price

range. You can store contacts with much more detail besides

the Ovi Contacts, which Nokia is promoting a lot.

Nokia has been promoting music almost in every set, this

phone is no different. It has the music and video player along

with a good radio which has a good reception to catch major

stations in the city. One annoying fact for the music application

lovers is that you can’t adjust the volume from any side button.

Nothing is placed on any side of the phone. You only need to

rely on the navigation button for this. Similarly, WH-102 Nokia

headphone is very irritating if you put them for more than 5

minutes. They will never pass you any sound adjustment done

by the equalizer. Even Chinese phones in the local market have

the headphones which will give you an ultimate sound quality.

We had to dig the menu for locating the camera application

which was not a pleasant experience. The device does not have

a camera button outside. That means if you want

to take a quick shot, you will need to rely on

the quick menu (shortcut). If you

have other important short-

cut on the display screen like music or radio you will miss your

favorite shot every time. 2MP camera will give you the good re-

sults but video is not acceptable and crisp. Maximum image size

it can take is 1200x1600, for video it is 176x144. Very rarely, the

camera application gets stuck and you will need to restart your

phone.

Voice quality is good and won’t let you down so is the typing

if you are a slow texter. Those who love to text a lot won’t find it

a smooth sail every time. Buttons are a little tough, better than

Nokia 5030 but still a little improvement is required. It is com-

pletely contrary to the outlook of the phone.

The good thing about this phone is that it has all standard

interfaces nothing proprietary of Nokia

particularly. Connectivity is standard mi-

croUSB, you have a standard 3.5 mm

headphone socket so any headphone can

be jacked in & you have a microSD card

which can fit in any standard SD adapter.

Bluetooth, GPRS and USB options are

available for the connectivity, again, the package does not in-

clude the USB cable. This is the second cheap but important ac-

cessory that is not available inside your box.

Few good games are packed inside. Diamond Rush, Rally 3D,

Snake III, Sudoku are built-in and entertaining games. You can

download more. Bad part is, you can’t reduce the volume which

is quite high. Such a thing would remind you of a Chinese

phone where most of the post production quality checks are ig-

nored. Anyways, for this, you need to change the profile and

turn the “silent” mode on. After playing your game, turn it off or

else you may miss some important calls.

You may find your MicroSD card causing your

phone to halt after using for some days. In such a

case remove the card and phone will be back to

normal.

Battery life is 3-4 days which is the hall

mark of Nokia phones. Finally, those who

want communication, imaging and

media in one phone at an afford-

able price, the Nokia 2700 clas-

sic is the one for you. n

{reviews}

Badn Screen can get too many scratches just in few daysn No USB Cable in packagen No external Camera buttonn No external Volume controln Very irritating WH-102 headphones

Similarly, WH-102 Nokia headphone is very irritating if you put them formore than 5 minutes. They will never pass you any sound adjustment doneby the equalizer. Even Chinese phones in the local market have the head-phones which will give you an ultimate sound quality

““


{reviews | More-In-House}


{reviews}


{reviews}

n Imagine, you are holding the digital camera and standing

with arm outstretched to take your own snapshot, most of the

time you will end up taking the picture of half of your head,

sometime you will miss your favorite background scene just be-

cause there was no one to tell you what was your camera cap-

turing exactly. It’s a thing of past, Samsung’s ST550 has

introduced the first camera with two LCDs, One on the back and

other one on the front side just adjacent to the lens. While stand-

ing in front of the camera, you can easily see what it is capturing

and you can adjust yourself accordingly. The front LCD is a 1.5

inch display, to take a self portrait, simply tap the front screen to

activate it and compose your shot. LCD monitor is hidden be-

neath the transparent surface of the front panel, to the left of the

lens. When not in use the display is almost invisible beneath the

tinted black surface, but shines after tapping. When activated

face when activated face and smile detection feature will kick in

and the camera will take your picture automatically.

The front screen can also have animation activated from the

menu; it will be good to get attention of yours or the subject for

a better picture. In self timer mode you can also see the count-

down on the front screen to know when the picture is being

taken. Press the shutter halfway and the smiley face will appear

on the front screen to remind the subject to smile. Bad thing is,

the front LCD screen cannot be used in video mode.

The ST550 has plenty of user-friendly features to show off.

A Smart Auto mode automatically detects scene conditions and

selects the best settings, the Beauty Shot feature fixes skin im-

perfections while the Photo Style Selector consists of a variety

of in-camera creative effects that, according to Samsung are

there ‘to evoke a mood’ and include colour manipulation, neg-

ative, retro and soft effects.

The ST550 is a slim 12Mp compact with a 4.6x optical zoom

4.9-22.5mm f-3.5/5.9 lens equivalent to 27-124mm on a 35mm

camera. The LCD on the back is a 3.5in touch screen LCD. It also

sports an 80-3200 ISO range and a 1280 x 720 HD video record-

ing at 30fps.

The camera rely mostly on touchscreen technology which

Samsung has been using in its mobilephone quite excellently.

In the coming models Samsung can also make use of space by

removing even the “play” button from its body. For the camera,

touch screen is new, no doubt we will see lots of improvements

in the coming models.

The large backside display uniquely provides haptic feed-

back when you tap on it. The cameras buzzes slightly when you

touch an on-screen button. The smart gesture allow pattern on

the screen to execute certain commands such as rotate or

delete the saved picture. If you want to scroll through your pho-

tos you can just tilt the camera one way or the other or if you

want to delete a picture you just have to draw an X on it with

your finger.

Interestingly, the ST550 uses microSD cards for storage. Accord-

ing to Samsung, the front LCD took up space inside the camera and

hence the company had to resort to a smaller memory media.

The lens is sharp enough in the centre of the frame and

shows very little distortion at wide angle, but corner sharpness

could be better. The camera has an automatic contrast booster,

but all it really does is brighten the image, clipping the high-

lights even more.

Image noise control, on the other hand, is surprisingly good.

Images at 400 ISO have a little noise and colour distortion but

are quite printable, and even at 800 ISO tone gradients remain

fairly smooth, usable for web and email purposes.

In use, the zoom slider feels flimsy and has a less than smooth

motion. It sometimes bumps its way through the different focal

lengths. Yet the ST550 has an excellent Macro mode for this level

of camera, which allows you to focus up to 5 cm away. Response

times are also good with little shutter lag and a fast Auto Focus

The camera has 760mAH Lithium-ion Rechargeable battery

which needs more improvements. While using the camera, we

activated the flash and front display more often and the battery

could take some 123 pictures before it got discharged.

The ST550 is a very interesting camera with two screens and

a lot of functions. It’s a beautiful gift for ladies and teenage pho-

tographer. n

The lens is sharp enough in the centre of the frame and showsvery little distortion at wide angle. The camera has an automaticcontrast booster, but all it really does is brighten the image, clippingthe highlights even more

“ “


{Month in focus}

n Mobilink has launched a new and innovative service allowing users tolisten to select movies on their cell phones. Jazz Audio Cinema is the first ofits kind service allows users to enjoy the original dialogues & songs of popularblockbusters on the go. The movies have been adapted into a storytellingformat and converted into durations of 60 to 90 minutes.

Commenting on the service, Wasif Mustafa, Director Value Added Serv-ices, IR & Products & Platform shared that, “Today the cellular handset hasbecome a tool not only for communication but also entertainment. At Mo-bilink we continue to add value to the cellular experience with our new andinnovative product portfolio which is the largest in the telecom industry.The Jazz Audio Cinema is an exclusive treat brought to Pakistani audiencesfor the first time.”

Mobilink Jazz users can subscribe to this service by dialing IVR shortcode 606 for a nominal monthly subscription fee and enjoy the service atlow per minute browsing rates. Mobilink has the most diverse bouquet ofvalue added services including revolutionary and exclusive services such asMobi Track, Mobilink Insurance and Mobile Money Order that provide userswith convenience and flexibility no other operator provides.subscription process:

User can subscribe to this service by dialing IVRshort code 606. After subscribing to service, users willget the successful subscription notification via SMS.After successful subscription of service, users can dial606 and enjoy the service.un-subscription process:

To unsubscribe this service user dials the IVR andselect unsubscribe option from the menu. A notifica-tion SMS will also be sent to user after un-subscribingthe service.service charges

Monthly Subscription Charges @ Rs. 20 + Tax. IVRBrowsing @ Rs. 0.20+ Tax per minList of Movies available:Chance Pe Dance, Chori Chori Chup Ke Chup Ke, DhanDhana Dhan Goal, Fashion, Hattrick, HUM, KAMINEY,Karz, Khalnayak, Khosla Ka Ghosla, Life in a Metro, MeinAur Mrs Khanna, Oye Lucky Lucky Oye, Tezaab, WakeUp Sid, Welcome to Sajjanpur, Whats Your Rashee

note: the service is available for Jazz customers only

n Tariq Mehmood who is father of four children, two sons and two daughtersis a government employee and works with the relief agencies in Bagh, AzadKashmir. Like any Mobilink Jazz user, Tariq is fun loving and an optimist by na-ture which is why he could not resist participating in the Mobilink Jazz SMSKhazana contest. Hooked to the thrill of winning, the brain tease, Tariq keptaccumulating points.

Little did he know thatthese SMSes will completelychange his life and that hap-pened when he was de-clared the 1st winner of JazzSMS Khazana Weekly Prizeof Rs. 500,000/-

Munching on the treatslaid out in his honour at Mo-bilink House, Tariq sharedwith the Mobilink JazzBrand team that he hadnever taken part in any con-test of this nature before.

This was his first time and he did so because he had faith in the company.He said, “I knew Mobilink is a big company and I have been using Jazz numberfor last 5 years, I fully trusted the company and their SMS Khazana campaign.I decided to give my luck a try aur Allah kay karam se sab Acha ho gaya!” Seniormembers of the Mobilink team met Tariq and asked him for his feedback onthe Mobilink Jazz SMS Khazana before handing him his cheque for Rs 500,000.

Using the prize money Tariq plans to start a small side-business as he be-lieves this way he will be in a much better position to support his family as wellas his ageing parents. Tariq was extremely thankful to Allah and everyone in-volved for totally changing his life. He said, “I believe everyone should take achance in life because unless you give it a try, you won’t come to know whatluck has in store for you.”

The SMS that changed his life!

Winner of 500,000 with Mobilink team

Tariq Mehmood being awarded by Mobilink official


{Month in focus}

n Pakistan Telecommunication Company

Ltd (PTCL) recently announced its finan-

cial results for the half year ended on 31st

December, 2009. The Company has an-

nounced a Net Profit of Rs. 5.354 billion

compared to Rs. 5.314 billion recorded in

the same period last year. On a consoli-

dated basis, for half year ended December

31, 2009, the Group earned Rs. 6.7 billion

Profit after Taxation i.e. a 13% growth

compared to same period last year.

During last year, PTCL has continued

its strategy of developing new sources of

income, on the Commercial side. The

Company remained focused, inter-alia,

on enhancing Broadband penetration

and accordingly PTCL achieved 85% mar-

ket share by acquiring about 336,000 cus-

tomers spread over 200 cities in Pakistan.

During the period under review, ‘Evo’ –

the wireless Broadband based on 3G

technology with nationwide roaming for

the first time in Pakistan, expanded to all

the major cities in the country too. Under

the USF scheme, PTCL is extending voice

and data services to the underserved and

far-flung areas of Pakistan using satellite

backhaul as well.

To provide value services to its Corpo-

rate clients, the Company has launched

Enterprise DSL, I-Sentry (IP video moni-

toring and surveillance solution), man-

aged services and also soft launched

Tele-presence for the first time in Pak-

istan. Also, Data Centers equipped with

latest technologies are being established

at Karachi and Lahore with the objective

to provide data-hosting as well as disas-

ter-recovery services to our valued corpo-

rate customers. Another initiative is the

on-going project to equip over four thou-

sand (4,000) schools with IT labs under

the auspices of Government of Punjab.

For the PSTN customers, various innova-

tive packages at national and regional levels

have been introduced. Free on-nets minutes

for new connections, Double-up Unlimited

Package with single pricing for voice and

broadband services, Bundle deals in Lahore

and Karachi and Regional Packages all over

the country are a few examples.

President PTCL Walid Irshaid com-

menting on the results said “We strive

hard to ensure the high standards of

quality that our valued customers expect

from us. Now customers can experience

the Internet at its fastest with high-speed

President PTCL Walid Irshaid commenting on the resultssaid, we strive hard to ensure the high standards of qualitythat our valued customers expect from us. Now customers canexperience the Internet at its fastest with high-speed access fromBroadband Pakistan

“

“

Mr. Walid Irshaid, President PTCL


access from Broadband Pakistan, simulta-

neously, enjoy Voice service over the

same telephone line without any extra

cabling connections! Broadband Pakistan

offers DSL service with unmatched relia-

bility, affordability and connectivity

He further added this reflects our

commitment to add value to the lives of

our customers and provide them access

to the most sophisticated and advanced

services with Automation of processes,

operational costs optimization, commis-

sioning of Next Generation Networks, de-

velopment of nationwide backbone

infrastructure, and propagation of broad-

band services among few of the envi-

sioned objectives for the near future.”

PTCL is offering special 30% discount

package for the students on 1 Mbps con-

nection on high speed broadband serv-

ices. The company says, it is giving better

services to growing student segment of

Broadband customers in recent years

with the confidence that this package will

continue to facilitate students in their ed-

ucational requirements.

EVP Multimedia and broadband, Syed

Zomma Mohiuddin said that the aim be-

hind offering this package is to provide

uninterrupted service to all our existing

and new student customers. He also said

that we take this opportunity to thank the

loyal customers of PTCL in displaying great

faith in Broadband services being offered.

All other packages of greater than 1

Mbps i.e., 2 Mbps and 4 Mbps on high

speed broadband services will not have the

student package discount applicable which

is effective from 1st March 2010 onwards.

Another service that has thrilled the

industry is PTCL’s Wi-fi facility with its

fixed line broadband service that will give

the PTCL Broadband customers the abil-

ity to use high speed and secure broad-

band services anywhere in the house.

This service will provide wire free con-

nectivity to all WiFi enabled devices like

desktops, laptops, PSP, cell phones etc

with strong WiFi signals up to 54MBPS,

with a secure password which enables

protection to avoid any misuse.

PTCL is offering this customer friendly

WiFi service at an additional charge of

only Rs 200 per month. However, the

service has no extra cost for the cus-

tomers having Broadband with the smart

TV service. The package also includes a

WiFi USB to enable customer’s desktop pc

to be used on the WiFi service.

SEVP Commercial Naveed Saeed

Stated, “By launching this service, PTCL

again has reinforced its commitment to

provide our customers with updated

technology at value added cost and with

no additional cost for Broadband cus-

tomers with smart TV service. This is an-

other milestone towards reinforcing

positive image of PTCL Broadband as a

customer centric organization

EVP Multimedia and broadband, Syed

Zomma Mohiuddin said that the aim of

launching this service was to make the

fixed line broadband service available to

multiple people in the house at the same

time on a single connection, thereby pro-

viding users with the fastest Broadband

connectivity with the added convenience

of roaming anywhere within in the house.

In order to reduce the communication

cost in the corporate sector, its audio con-

ferencing platform has introduced new

state of art service ‘Personal Collaborator’.

The aim of this conference service is

to connect national and global workforce

of corporate clients and small businesses,

where clients immediately can support

virtual meetings of up to 10 users.

EVP Customer Care Jamil Khawaja has

stated that PTCL audio conferencing solu-

tions has been designed in a way so as to

keep the usage easy with economical

billing packages while allowing the cus-

tomer’s organization to collaborate with

their customers, staff and partners located

both in Pakistan and internationally, thus

enhancing their work productivity.

This service is being offered both in

English and Urdu with reservation-less in-

stant meeting, where customer’s employ-

ees keep the same dial-in number and

pin code so meetings can be started at a

moment’s notice.

PTCL is determined to develop sys-

tems and services that are customer-cen-

tric and customer-friendly. As part of that

endeavor PTCL is exploring new horizons

of technology to provide its customers

best value of their money. n

{Month in focus}

SEVP commercial Naveed Saeed Stated, by launching thisservice, PTCL again has reinforced its commitment to provide ourcustomers with updated technology at value added cost andwith no additional cost for Broadband customers with smartTV service

“

“Naveed Saeed, SEVP Commercial, PTCL


{Month in focus}

“areeb iqbal” has won the finals of the com-petition and will be flying to south africa forthe world finals of red Bull street style.

what is “red Bull streetstyle”?“Red Bull Street Style” is a new event that aims to unitethe loosely organized international scene that has grownup around “Freestyle Football“ under a single banner. It’sa competition about artistry with a soccer ball that is tak-ing place in 41 nations, with the winners of the nationalcontests advancing to the world finals in Brazil.

how, when and where did freestylefootball originate? It’s impossible to pinpoint exactly when and where it began because peoplehave been performing tricks with soccer balls for ages. But there was a no-table increase in the buzz around Freestyle Football at the start of the 21stcentury that came largely from urban areas. The roots lie much deeper, how-ever, with legends such as Pele or Maradona considered early pioneers withtheir great technical ball-handling skills. The trend continued with latter-daystars such as Ronaldinho, Beckham and others carrying the torch.

when exactly do the finals take place? The finals will take place in November/December in Sao Paulo. More exactdetails will be published at a later date.

Telenor send Areeb Iqbal to South Africa

n Pakistan Telecommunications Authority(PTA) has successfully achieved 95 percentof its Targets and Goals for the year 2009and set new Targets and Goals for the year2010. The Annual Meeting was held at PTAHeadquarters, Islamabad wherein progressof Division and Directorates of PTA for theyear 2009 was reviewed and proposed Tar-gets and Goals for the year 2010 were dis-cussed and finalized. Chairman PTA. Dr.Mohammed Yaseen chaired the session.It was decided in the meeting that duringthe year 2010, PTA Commercial Affairs Divi-sion will carry out Consultation Paper onCharging of Calls to Toll Free Numbers from

Mobile, Broadband tariffs-BenchmarkStudy, Financial analysis of Mobile Opera-tors and some other studies.The Enforcement Division, along with othertasks, will conduct QoS surveys of differenttelecom services in the country.The Finance Division of PTA will work on theComparative Study of MVNO with differentCountries, Review of Mergers and Acquisi-tions in the Telecom Sector of Pakistan andsome other studies. PTA Strategy and De-velopment (S&D) Division will conduct dif-ferent studies including study on Status of4G and 3G deployments globally and wayforward for Pakistan.

The Licensing Division will carry out studieson Regulatory Changes in WLL Regime inline With Technological Advancements, 3GLicensing, and Low Power GSM Trends etc.The Law & Regulations Division will work onthe preparation of Research Papers on dif-ferent topics including Unification of Li-cense: Provision of Coveraged Services i.e.voice, video and data under one Umbrellaand their Regulatory Issues etc.The ICT Directorate will conduct consul-tancy on recommending various strategiesfor improving Telecom market in Pakistanand will be responsible for carrying outsome other important tasks.

PTA to study MVNO, 3Gand 4G in 2010


{Month in focus}

n LG Electronics reported record revenuesand operating profits in the fourth quarterof 2009, reflecting the results of the com-pany’s successful strategy and competitive-ness during the current recession. Record sales and operating profits were re-ported for the three months ending Dec.31, 2009. Sales on a global basis rose 6.8percent to USD 12.2 billion year-over-year.Operating profit was up to USD 382 mil-lion resulting in a margin of 3.1 percent,2.3 percent points higher than the fourthquarter last year.The LG Home Entertainment Company sawfourth quarter sales rise by 18 percent toUSD 5.0 billion, returning an operating profit

of USD 232 million for a margin of 4.6 per-cent, 5.2 percent points higher than the pre-vious year, as a result of strong productleadership and rising demand for LCD TVsand Plasma TVs. Unit sales of total flat panelTVs jumped 52 percent year-over-year to 6.6million sets from 4.3 million. Quarter-over-quarter unit growth was also seen in bothLCD TVs and Plasma TVs, 38 percent and 29percent respectively. Annual sales reachedUSD 15.3 billion, jumping 19.9 percent fromthe previous year, mainly led by record unitsales of 19.5 million flat panel TVs. The LGMobile Communications Company re-ported sales of USD 3.6 billion in sales, 7.4percent lower than the 2009 fourth quarter.

Operating profit of USD 48 million in the2009 period resulted in a margin of 1.3 per-cent. Handset revenues were USD 3.3 bil-lion, a 5 percent decline from the samequarter in 2008, while operating profitreached USD 57 million, resulting in a mar-gin of 1.7 percent. Unit shipments of hand-sets saw an increase of 32 percentyear-over-year and 7 percent quarter-over-quarter to 33.9 million units, which resultedin a record 117.9 million units being sold in2009 versus 100.7 million units in 2008 dueto robust growth in North America, Europeand emerging markets.Price erosion and an increase in marketingexpenses for year-end inventory clearanceand emerging market channel expansionresulted in lower profitability compared tothe third quarter.

LG’s highest earnings in its history

n ZONG has introduced ‘Chine-Ease’ one SIMtwo numbers, an additional service for ZONGpostpaid subscribers. Chine-Ease is a servicethrough which subscribers using interna-tional roaming services will be given roamingfacilities in China at the cheapest rates.‘Chine-Ease’ subscribers will be given a‘China Mobile’ number, mapped with theirZONG number; enabling them to have twonumbers on one SIM. Thus, the China Mo-bile number will serve as the calling num-ber, when the subscriber is in China. TheZONG number will serve as the callingnumber when the subscriber is in Pakistan

or in any other country.The calling number is switched automati-cally, according to the registered networkand location while incoming calls can be re-ceived on both numbers. This service willallow subscribers to avail the cheapest rateson roaming while in China and at the sametime have the convenience of carrying theirregular ZONG SIM.Awais Malik, Director Segment, Products &International Business, ZONG, while ex-pressing his views said that the new servicewould particularly benefit people whotravel frequently to China and do not want

the inconvenience of purchasing local SIMsfor making calls .ZONG has again produced a highly innova-tive and affordable service for its sub-scribers. The Chine-Ease tariff is very costeffective; it is even less than half of Chinaroaming tariff being offered by other oper-ators in Pakistan. Moreover, as the callingnumber is switched automatically there isno inconvenience to the subscriber.During initial phase the Chine-Ease servicehas been offered in Beijing, Guangdong, Zhe-jiang and Xinjiang provinces with plans to ex-pand the service to other parts of China.

Two Numbers in One SIM by Zong

n Appreciating the role played by Pakistani media in providinginformation to the people in very trying times, Ufone has an-nounced a capacity building initiative that will train journalistsfor reporting in security sensitive situations.

Akbar Khan, Chief Marketing Officer at Ufone announced the initia-tive at a dinner hosted in the honor of the elected cabinet of the Na-tional Press Club Islamabad. The capacity building workshop willbe held with international trainers in the month of April this year.Speaking on the occasion he said that both the cellular industryand the media had shown tremendous growth in the lastdecade and have empowered the people by providing them ac-cess to information. He congratulated the newly elected mem-bers of the National Press Club cabinet and expressedconfidence that that their tenure will bring further improve-ments to the important organization like National Press Club.President National Press Club Afzal Butt thanked Ufone for invit-ing the elected body and emphasized that telecommunicationand media were interconnected in many ways and support eachother. He hoped that the cooperation between Ufone and theNational Press club will further grow. He proposed a few stepsto strengthen the relationship with the journalist community.

Ufone to hold Capacity Building Workshop for Journalists

Mr. Afzal Butt, President National Press Club, Mr. Abrar Khan, Chief Marketing Officer, Ufone, Mr.Tariq Chaudary, Ex-President National Press Club and other officials at the reception hosted by Ufonein the honor of recently elected Governing body of National Press Club, Islamabad


{Month in focus}

n Kingston Digital’s second generation SSDNow V Series solid-state drive (SSD)are targeted for mainstream consumers andsmall and medium businesses, the new Kingston SSDNow V Se-ries offers higher performance than its predecessor and sup-ports Windows 7 TRIM functionality while maintaining pricing.Capacities are 30GB, 64GB and 128GB and the drive comes as a

standalone unit or with a bundled solution for desktop or note-book systems. There is no need to reload the operating systemor do anything that would alter critical data files. The includedcloning software makes it simple to move the contents of theexisting hard-disk drive (HDD) to the SSD.“Kingston has really increased the performance on the new sec-ond generation SSDNow V Series drive without raising the price,and maintaining pricing will be huge for our customers,” saidNathan Su, Flash Memory Sales Director, APAC Region, Kingston.

Basic featuressequential speedn 128GB: up to 200MB/sec. read; 160MB/sec. writen 64GB: up to 200MB/sec. read; 110MB/sec. writen 30GB: up to 180MB/sec. read; 50MB/sec. writepcMark hdd 2005n 128GB: 20,177n 64GB: 21,317n 30GB: 18,900

Kingston Boosts Speed, no price increase

Nubla Iftikhar,Marketing Manager for Consumer and SMB at Dellsharing a light moment with MTV VJ, Dino. Dino is holding aCherry Red Inspiron 1440.

MTV VJs Dino and Navin endorsing the Dell Consumer notebooks. "Yours isHere", the tagline for Dell Consumer is about the colorful personalities thatmake up this world and they can express themselves through Dell.

Provincial Minister Sindh Shazia Marree, C.E.O Mr. AsadSibtain & Country Manager Mr. Tauseef Khan at softLaunch of ASUS at PC Hotel Karachi.


{Month in focus}

n The 3rd Global TelecommunicationCongress 2010 (TeleCON 2010) with a spe-cial emphasis on “Taking Pakistan to theNext Level of Technology Frontiers” is beingorganized on April 24 at the Pearl Continen-tal Hotel-Lahore by SHAMROCK Confer-ences International. This high profiledforum is held annually, under the patron-age of the Pakistan Telecommunication Au-thority (PTA). TeleCON-2010 is the third in a successful se-ries of Telecom conferences designed to as-semble the Industry-Specialists, Regulators,Technologists, Speakers and investors fromnational and global institutions, includingthe Government and Private sectors. Theseexperts will discuss challenges & opportu-nities to equip this dynamic sector with rev-olutionary modern technology available inthe developed world. Deliberations on For-

eign-Direct Investment during the globaleconomic revival will also be held. Ammad Hassan Shah, Head of Conferencesat SHAMROCK Conferences International(SCI) said, “The national telecom objectivesand policies need prompt realignment withthe rapid technological advancements inglobal telecom. Over the years, this forumhas inspired innovative initiatives forevolved operations in Rural Area Connec-tivity, Broadband, Wireless Access, Connec-tivity, Mobility, Safety and Security.” Similar to the TeleCON forums in the past, theupcoming moot will attract leading namesfrom prominent telecom organizations.Proactive leaders in Telecom, GSMA and theCyber technologies are expected to sharetheir wisdom to enable seamless, instantconnectivity throughout Pakistan, deliveringhighest quality and futuristic capabilities.

3rd TeleCON-2010 on April 24 in Lahore

Viper Technology one of the leading IT solution companiesin Pakistan, steps forward in creating server technologyawareness through its mall based activities, with an ideato bring the high-end technology forward through the di-rect consumer interaction. Picture shows Viper representa-tive explaining a customer about Viper Server.

A recent survey on the topic, “why new computers are sold less than the old ones”, was conducted by MORE team. Reviews andfeedback of prominent hardware sellers are mentioned below;

saqib iqbal, Branch Manager, Galaxy com-puters says, it is good that Government is fo-cusing on IT sector at the same timeGovernment should review the tax policy onthe computers and related hardware. The cur-rent tax rate is very high and causing low rev-enue for the government. Revenue can beincreased if the policy makers could make it fa-vorable for the traders. Due to smuggled andused computers, 30 % - 40 % of genuine busi-ness is affected in the negative way.

Muhammad halim, ceodecent computers sayspeople are buying used com-puters more than the newones. Schools and collegesuse old computers whereascorporate sector rely on thenew computers. A used com-puter is available for Rs. 6,000whereas nearly Rs. 30,000 isthe price of new computer.This is huge difference. Taxes

should be low so that prices could be brought down.

Muhammad rehan anwar, ceo, Gscomputers says, dealers remove HardDisks and RAMs from used imported com-puters and install these components in thenew computers and then sell them onhigher profits. 90% of the dealers are in-volved in such activity. Only 10% of dealersare selling new computers in a proper way.Since the duties on used computers arevery low that is why they are being im-ported very easily and in bulk. Importers

of used computers do not mention the true value of their items atport hence they pay less tax and duties and gain maximum profits.All these activities have damaged the new computers industry.

emad saeed, ceo, surge enter-prise says the market for thecomputer and hardware is badlyaffected due the smuggledgoods and used items being im-ported illegally. If a new Dual Coreis sold at Rs. 20,000, a similar usedone is available for Rs. 10,000.How can we convince a customerto buy an expensive item? Itwould have been much easier toconvince the buyer if difference

between the price of new and used was not more than 20%.Government is not taking any action to bring this industryback to life. Stake holders should act immediately.

vectorform's sur-facedJ music mix-ing applicationn 3M Touch Systems communications manager Tim Holtdemonstrates Vectorform's SurfaceDJ music mixing appli-cation on a 3M 22-inch, 10-finger Multi-touch Display. Theunit will be available in March 2010 for USD 1,500 and canbe used like many touch screens but can handle so muchdata, combined with a high resolution and HD, that it isaimed at higher end users in the medical and engineeringfields. The screen even works when a user is wearing sur-gical gloves.

tinniestusBn Tuff-'N'-Tiny 8GB USBDrives by Verbatim aredisplayed. The devicesmeasure 1.19 x 0.5 x 0.06inches.

n A chimpanzee in theBudongo Trail at EdinburghZoo holds a chimp-proof cam-era in Edinburgh, Scotland.The 11 chimps at the zoo arebeing featured in a BBC Natu-ral World Documentry. Theyhave been taking part in a vol-untary study called 'The Chim-pcam Project', a collaborationbetween the Royal ZoologicalSociety , the University of Stir-ling and Burning Gold produc-tions. The chimps haveexperienced video streamingfor the first time, learned howto use touch screen technol-ogy and have been given the camera to shoot their own footage.

waterproof kindlen An Amazon Kindle is seen inside an M-Edge Accessories Guardiancase floating in. The molded plastic Guardian case floats and safe-guards Kindles in water up to one meter deep for those wanting touse them in the bath or pool. The case allows the Kindle navigationbuttons and keyboards to be used fully through flexible sealed but-ton cutouts.


{Latest in tech}

“year of tiger”usB driven Kingston Digital launched another interesting USB andtermed it as “Year of Tiger” USB drive. Kingston’s Limited-Edition “Chinese New Year” USB drives with twelve zodiacanimal symbols have been popular since the “Year of Pig”USB drives rocked the market back to the year 2007.Kingston Limited-Edition “Year of Tiger” USB drive will notonly fulfill your needs for data storage but also serve as aseasonal greeting delivered by Kingston, which will bringyou unfailing good fortune and luck in 2010.


{Latest in tech}

save energyn The 304 Series luminaires, BetaLED's first luminaire toachieve landmark performance of over 100 lumens perwatt (LPW), have the potential to make a significant im-pact on our environment by saving as much as 70 percentin energy use.

n French designerPhilippe Starck present-ing a new line of MicroWind Turbines in Milan.Starck, creator of chichotels, high-tech lampsand modern-style furni-ture, has turned his at-tention to energy withthe design of two sleekmicro wind-power tur-bines aimed at domesticuse. Starck on Wednes-day unveiled the "Revo-lutionair" turbines,made by Italy's Pramacwhich makes powergeneration equipment,after two years of workon the project.

n An iPod is shown docked in a prototype of Cydle'si30 ATSC Mobile TV handheld. The company says it isthe first device to bring mobile digital TV to smart-phones.

n MagicJack CEO andfounder Dan Borislowholds up the new andimproved MagicJack.The company behindthe MagicJack, thecheap Internet phonegadget heavily pro-moted on TV, has madea new version of thedevice that allows freecalls from cell phonesin the home.

n On the display isa boom box playingan Apple iPhone.The boom box canrecord radio to anMP3 or SD card.

n The Powertech Slim USBcharger. The device plugs di-rectly into a wall outlet andlets you charge up USBgadgets while a normalthree-pronged plug isplugged into the socket.Consider the device some-thing of portable power strip,handy for the traveler run-ning low on computer portsand hotel room outlets.


{tips and tricks | Darren Rowse}

n Light your subject wellThe better lit your subject is the clearer

your image is likely to be. If possible shoot

outside or turn on lights when shooting in-

side. If you’re turning on lights in a room to

add extra light to your shot be aware that

artificial light impacts the color cast in your

shots and you might want to experiment

with white balance to fix it.

Some cameras come with a built in flash

or light – this can really lift a shot and add

clarity to it, even if you’re shooting outside

(in a sense it becomes a fill flash). If your cam-

era doesn’t have a flash or light you should

avoid shooting into bright lights as you’ll end

up with subjects that are silhouetted.

n Get close to your subjectOne of the most common mistakes

with camera phone images is that their

subject ends up being a tiny, unrecogniz-

able object in the distance. Camera

phone images tend to be small due to

low resolution (although this is changing)

– so fill up your view finder with your sub-

ject to save having to zoom in on the sub-

ject in editing it later (which decreases

quality even more).

Having said this, getting too close on

some model camera phones creates dis-

tortion and focusing issues (particularly if

the camera phone doesn’t have a macro

or close focusing mode).

n keep stillAs with all digital photography, the

steadier your camera phone is when taking

your shot the clearer your image will be.

This is especially important in low light

situations where the camera will select

longer shutter speeds to compensate for

the lack of light. One trick is to lean your

camera phone (or the hand holding it)

against a solid object (like a tree, wall, ledge)

when taking shots.

Keep in mind that many camera

phones also suffer from ’shutter lag’ (ie the

time between when you press the shutter

and when the camera takes the shot can be

a second or so). This means you need to

These days digital cam-eras are found in a variety of other gadgets– including cell phones. In fact Camera Phones are one ofthe fastest growing segments of the digital camera market. Unfortunately many of the pictures being takenwith Camera Phones are poor in quality. This might partially be a result of lower quality cameras – but it isalso often a result of poor photographic technique.


{tips and tricks}

hold the camera still a little longer to ensure

it doesn’t take a shot as you’re lowering it

away from the subject.

n edit images laterWhilst it can be fun to use your camera

phone’s inbuilt editing and effects, editing

pictures later on your computer produces

much better quality images. Take your

shots in color at high resolution to keep

your options open on how to treat it later.

You can always make it black and white

on your computer, but you can’t make it

color if you take it in Black and White mode

n don’t throw away ‘mistakes’Remember that on many phones the

quality of the screen will not be as good as

your computer’s. So if possible hang onto

your shots until you can get them on your PC.

You might just find that they come alive on a

quality monitor. You’ll also find that even ‘mis-

takes’ and blurred shots can actually be quite

usable (in an abstract kind of way)

n avoid using the digital zoomAs tempting as it might be to zoom in on

your subject when taking your picture (if you

have a zoom feature on your camera phone),

if the zoom is a ‘digital zoom’ it will decrease

the quality of your shot to use it (you’ll end

up with a more pixilated shot). Plus you can

always edit your shot later using photo edit-

ing software on your computer.

Of course some camera phones are be-

ginning to hit the market with ‘optical

zooms’ – these are fine to use as they don’t

enlarge your subject by enlarging pixels.

n experiment with white balanceAn increasing number of camera

phones come with adjustable white bal-

ance which allows you to modify color bal-

ance in your images based on shooting

conditions. Experiment with this feature to

get a good feel for the impact that it has on

your shots. I find that it impacts different

camera phones differently. Read your man-

ual to find out how it works on your phone.

n take loads of shots and experimentThe beauty of all forms of digital pho-

tography (including that of camera phones)

is the ability to shoot off many shots quickly

and without cost. This means you can ex-

periment with different modes and compo-

sition and discard those that you don’t want

to keep.

Camera phones are particularly good

for experimenting with new angles and

perspectives – shoot from down low, up

high, close up etc and you’ll end up with in-

teresting and fun shots.

n follow rules of compositionLearn some basic composition ‘rules’.

(for example – the rule of thirds – i.e. don’t

place your subject squarely in the middle of

your frame but a third of the way in). Simple

tips like this can bring life toyour photos.

But then also remember that the

beauty of a camera phone is its ability to

break all conventions – some of the best

shots around break all the rules. So shoot

from the hip, the floor, up high, up close –

anything goes.

n keep your Lens clean One of the challenges with many cam-

era phones is keeping them maintained and

clean. Phones spend a lot of time in pockets,

in bags and being used in all manner of

weather and conditions. As a result they get

dirty and can easily become damaged – fin-

gerprints are a common problem on cam-

era lenses – especially if your phone doesn’t

have a lens cover. From time to time clean

the lens of your camera using a soft cloth

(sunglasses cleaning cloths are great).

n observe camera phone etiquetteWhile there is no formal set of rules for

using camera phones – it is worth consid-

ering how you use it and what impact it

might have upon others. There are many

cases of camera phones being abused to

take sneaky or voyeuristic photos. Ask per-

mission to photograph strangers, consider

restrictions on the use of cameras in places

like theaters and concerts etc.

n use the highest resolution possible on your camera phone

Some phones allow you to choose

what resolution you want to take photos

at. It almost goes without saying (but we

like to state the bleeding obvious) that

the higher your resolution the clearer

your shot will be. This is especially true for

camera phones which often have sensors

of under 1 megapixel in them. Keep in

mind however that the higher the resolu-

tion the larger the file size of the images

you take – this means if you want to send

images they can end up taking a long

time to send.

writer is the editor and founder ofdigital photography school

46 | More | February 2010

{GadGets}

February 2010 | More | 47


{GadGets}


{GadGets}

n Canon’s compact digital cameras are synonymous with

premium build quality, powerful performance and chic styling.

This season’s new products, IXUS 130/105/210 and PowerShot

SX210 IS are set to raise the bar with new and enhanced fea-

tures to improve picture quality and creative expression.

All the models are equipped with the DIGIC 4 image processor that offers much faster image processing and improved noise re-

duction at high ISO sensitivities, and lens-shift type image stabilization for sharp image quality. With the exception of the IXUS 105,

all new models can record 14.1 megapixel stills and HD movies (1280 x 720 at 30 fps) and feature Servo AF/AE that tracks a moving

subject, maintaining optimum focus and exposure.

New scene and shooting modes have also been added to improve functionality and image quality, and all models in the new range

also support the SDXC memory card, facilitating fast data transfer and capacity of up to 2TB.

ixus 210


{GadGets}

ixus 130: Most compact Available in four attractive colours which

are also applied to the lens extension, the

IXUS 130 is the lightest and slimmest of

IXUS yet, measuring only 17.8mm in

width and weighing a scant 133g with

batteries. Yet within this svelte subtly

curved case is a 4x zoom lens with 35mm

equivalent focal range of 28-112mm.

Smart Auto mode has been enhanced in

the latest models, where the camera can

detect and analyse subject and scene in-

formation to derive the most suitable

shooting mode for the best results.

New scene modes include Fish-eye effect

where photos simulate the effect of a fish-

eye lens while retaining the rectangular

aspect of the image without the circular

fish-eye distortion, and the Miniature Ef-

fect which gradually blurs the peripheral

area of an image to increase emphasis of

the subject to make it stand out.

There is also a Low Light mode where ISO

speed can be raised to 6400 to manage

difficult shooting conditions.

Another new feature is the Smart Shutter:

beyond pressing the shutter or activating

the shutter timer, the shutter can now be

set to trigger with the detection of a face,

a smile or even via a wink!

ixus 210: the largestscreen, with touch af

The sleekness of the IXUS 210 is accentu-

ated by its 3.5-inch LCD screen – the

largest among the new models. The

screen covers the entire back of the IXUS

210. A touch-sensitive widescreen (16:9),

offers intuitive camera operation without

the need for many buttons, including

Touch AF, where users can select objects

and faces by simply touching them on the

LCD. The IXUS 210 then automatically

tracks these selected elements and main-

tains optimum focus and exposure.

The IXUS 210 also offers higher image res-

olution, with a 14.1 megapixel CCD sensor

coupled with a 5x zoom lens with 35mm

equivalent focal range from an ultra-wide

24mm, to telephoto 120mm.

The IXUS 210 also features the new Fish-

eye Effect, Miniature Effect and Low Light

scene modes and Smart Shutter.

ixus 105: performancewith value

For users who prize value and perform-

ance, the IXUS 105 offers these in a pre-

mium build, with five attractive colour

models to choose from. The IXUS 105 fea-

tures the DIGIC 4 processor with increased

image resolution 12.1 megapixels, and a

4x optical zoom (35mm equivalent of 28-

112mm) with wide-angle. LCD screen has

also been increased to 2.7 inches. The

IXUS 105 also features the new Low Light

scene mode.

powershot sx210 is: peakperformance

The PowerShot SX210 IS’s calling card is

formidable performance in a compact,

stylish camera. The PowerShot SX210 IS

features a 14.1 megapixel CCD sensor, and

a 14x zoom lens, offering an exceptionally

broad focal range between 28-392mm

(35mm equivalent).

Unique to the PowerShot SX210 IS, is its

ability to record HD movies with stereo

audio. Smart auto which automatically

detects 18 different scenes and optical

zoom are also available during movie

recording.

In place of the former’s 4:3 screen, the

PowerShot SX210 IS also features a 3-inch

16:9 wide screen LCD. Fish-eye Effect,

Miniature Effect and Low Light scene

modes are also new features in this

model, along with Smart Shutter.




{cover story | saddads}

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