We quite liked the Ford Figo when we chanced to drive it just last month, and our verdict for the car was certainly positive albeit if Ford India managed to price the car sensibly. Pricing for the new hatch has just been revealed, and Ford seems to have gone for the jugular – the Figo will start from Rs 3.49 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) for the base version 1.2 petrol. The 1.4-litre diesel engine option will start from Rs 4,47,900 (ex-showroom Delhi).

Pricing is at par with the respective new benchmarks for hatchbacks. The 1.2 petrol Figo will equal the smaller but newer Chevrolet Beat in its pricing, while the 1.4 diesel is almost at par with the Maruti Suzuki Ritz. The diesel variant will also undercut the newly launched Volkswagen Polo 1.2 diesel by almost half a lakh of rupees.

Deliveries for the new car will begin immediately, in fact we have already spotted the car on display at various Ford dealerships already. The company has also ensured that its sales and service network has been suitably ramped up to accommodate the initial demand for the Figo. The company currently has 167 dealerships in 97 cities ? 28 of these dealerships were opened in one day. Clearly, Ford India seems geared up for the bringing the Figo on the streets in a large way.

Figo 1.2 Petrol

Figo 1.4 TDCi Diesel

Lxi – Rs 3,49,900

Lxi – 4,47,900

Exi – Rs 3,81,900

Exi – 4,72,900

Zxi – Rs 3,99,900

Zxi – 4,96,900

Titanium – Rs 4,42,900

Titanium – 5,29,900

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Tata Teleservices has launched DIALOG, a unique product that can convert your mundane TV into a full-fledged Internet device.

The DIALOG kit includes a set top box that connects to your TV directly and enables it with browser and photo viewing abilities. This set top box also has USB ports (four, actually) so you can plug in your pen drives and watch videos and listen to movies right on your TV screen. The USB port can be used to plug in a Tata Photon Plus EVDO modem, thereby bring Internet access to your TV.

The DIALOG will be available in two options – with Photon Whiz at Rs. 6,699 and Rs.7,699 with Photon Plus. As of now, the service is restricted only to the Chennai and the Kolkata circles. It will see a gradual roll out across India in the months to come. Apparently, the current service is in the Test Run period and this would continue for the next three months.

The Tata DIALOG could turn out to be the easiest way to go online since computer penetration remains low across India. The Television, on the other hand, has sizable presence across the country and for this very reason; this could prove instrumental in bringing the Internet to the masses. One thing that might detract people from using this is the relatively high price for the set top box and the usage. At the aforementioned prices of Rs. 6,699 and Rs. 7,699, this certainly isn’t for the villages. Once it goes down considerably on the price ladder, the DIALOG could be the solution to India’s low Internet penetration issues.

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Experts have come up with a cellphone that can recharge its own battery by harvesting energy from the owner’s motion.

The self-charging handset by Nokia, who has already filed for a US patent, was predicted to work with heavier components, such as the radio transmitter circuit and battery, supported on a sturdy frame.

The frame apparently could shift along two sets of rails, allowing it travel up and down and side to side, New Scientist reported.

Each rail apparently hosted strips of piezoelectric crystals at its end, capable of generating a current when compressed by the frame such that motion, by the user or the movement of the phone, generates electricity.

That in turn charged a capacitor and subsequently the battery, boosting the charge.

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Sony Ericsson’s eco-friendly handset, the GreenHeart labeled Naite, has been seen at the SonyStyle website with its pricing details.

This 3G phone is priced at $159 in U.S. (as listed on the site) while it is available for around Rs. 6,500 in India already.

The Naite, being an eco-friendly phone, comes equipped with a plastic housing that is 50 percent post-consumer recycled. The charger too is very frugal and offers reduced power of .03W in the standby mode. Another thing you’d notice is that the package (which itself is eco-friendly) contains no manuals and that the manual is inside the phone in the form of an e-guide of sorts.

The phone is fairly capable and comes with decent social networking abilities as well. It supports conversational texting and has a Facebook application pre installed as well. There is Google Maps, one-click Google search functionality, Bluetooth Stereo and FM radio support as well. It supports Bluetooth and wireless Bluetooth headsets, thanks to A2DP. The Naite has a 2-megapixel camera at the rear and supports video recording as well. It has 600-hours of standby time on (2G) which decreases to 583-hours while on a 3G network. The talktime on 2G is up to 13 hours 45 minutes and 4 hours 30 minutes on 3G.

USB – Yes, v2.0

2G Network – GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900

Additional features TrackID / E-manual / Eco friendly materials / Ecomate, CO2 Calculator

Card slot – microSD (TransFlash) up to 8GB

Call Records – 30 received, dialed and missed calls

3G Network – HSDPA 2100 , HSDPA 850 / 1900 / Quadband Networks GSM 850, 900, 1800 , 1900

HSCSD – Yes

GPRS – Yes

EDGE – Yes

WLAN – No

Height (mm) 108 Width (mm) 47 Depth (mm) 12.6 Weight (g) 84 g

Battery – Standard battery, Li-Po 950 mAh (BST-33IrDA)

Camera resolution – 2 MP, 1600×1200 pixels

Memory Internal – 100MB

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