Flipkart Digiflip Pro XT712 review: Fails to impress

The biggest online retailer in India, Flipkart recently launched its first 

tablet under the Digiflip brand. The Flipkart tablet, named Digiflip XT712, 

is the company's attempt to tap into India's huge market of content 

consumers, and if it gets to sell a few more ebooks and a few more products... 

then all the more better. At least what the effort seems to be aimed at.

We review Flipkart's Digitflip XT712 tablet to see whether it is indeed the 

best option you can get in the market now at the price of Rs 9,999.

Design and display



​Flipkart's Digiflip XT712 is a plain-looking tablet, lacking the design flair 

that rivals like HP Slate VoiceTabs tout. Since the bezels around the screen 

are quite small, the tablet is pretty small in size for a (7-incher anyway) 

and can be held in one hand without much problem. On the back, you will 

notice stripes at the top and bottom, and the rest is just plain plastic.

Talking about build quality, this tablet is pretty well-built. It looks sturdy 

and the fit and finish are pretty nice, giving it a place among the few quality 

products under Rs 10,000. The back panel is not removable, and you need 

to pry open the cover in order to put in the sim cards and microSD card.

The volume and power buttons of the tablet seem a little stiff, but still give 

decent feedback when pressed.



Flipkart has opted for an all-plastic build, so there is no hint of metal on 

the device, which makes it harder to distinguish when set beside any stock 

Chinese tablet. Moreover, the absence of the Flipkart branding on the body 

makes it just another run-of-the-mill tablet for potential buyers.

The display quality of Flipkart Digiflip XT712 tablet is pretty good. It offers 

nice contrast and colours are very good for a tablet under Rs 10,000. Being 

an IPS panel, the display offers decent viewing angles as well. However, it is 

hard to discern most text under direct sunlight even when the brightness is 

conked to the maximum.

Hardware



Flipkart is playing the hardware game with Digiflip XT712 tablet. It is 

offering better hardware than other tablets priced under Rs 10,000, such as 

Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 Neo. Dell's Venue 7 offers competing hardware, but 

it does not have voice calling and is, therefore, not really an option for the 

consumers that Flipkart is aiming for.

The tablet has a HD display (1280x800p resolution) and runs on a quad-core 

1.3GHz Mediatek processor with 1GB RAM. It comes with a 5MP rear 

camera with LED flash and a 2MP front camera. You get 16GB of built-in 

storage and can add storage via microSD cards of capacities up to 32GB. 

It is powered by a 3,000mAh battery, which is rather small capacity 

compared to that of rivals'. There is no LED notification light.

Connectivity suite of the tablet is the standard fare: 2G, 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 

4.0 and microUSB 2.0. As mentioned above, it is a voice calling tablet and 

can support two sim cards simultaneously.

Software
Unlike Amazon, whose tablets have a heavily customized version of Android 

in order to sell its content and products on Kindle tablets, Flipkart's 

Digiflip XT 712 has stock Android. And it's Android 4.2, the version that was 

released in late 2012. It is hard to determine why Flipkart went for such an 

old version of the operating system, since the difference between the performances 

of Android 4.4 and Android 4.2 is apparent.

As you would expect, Flipkart and Flipkart Ebook apps are preloaded on 

Digiflip XT712 tablet. Apart from these two, you get MX Player, File Manager, 

Bluetooth Proximity apps etc. The Home, Back and Task Switcher buttons are 

on the screen, displayed on a black band at the bottom. The black strip looks 

pretty ugly, and it is not going to change unless the Flipkart tablet gets the 

Android 4.4 update.

Performance
Though Flipkart's Digiflip XT712 tablet offers better specifications compared to 

rivals, it is still not a good performer. Though apps do not hang much, they do 

take a lot of time to open, much more than what you would expect from a 

device with quad-core processor. Even commonly-used apps like Facebook and 

Twitter take their own sweet time to start.

Graphics, on the other hand, are rendered pretty nicely on the tablet's display 

during gaming sessions, considering the price. Playing Angry Birds, Jetpack Joyride 

and Temple Run 2 on this tablet is a breeze. However, games like Dead Trigger 2 

and Injustice: Gods Among Us show noticeable lag and shut down more than 

once due to lack of memory during our review period.

As a voice calling tablet, Flipkart Digiflip Pro XT712 is supposed to offer a good 

calling experience. However, the reality is much different. If you put the front 

speaker next to your ear, you will be hard-pressed to make out what the other 

party is saying. The voice is nearly inaudible! This was a problem all the time, 

not just in areas where signal strength is usually weak. However, while using 

the tablet with earphones and Bluetooth headsets, voice clarity is good.

One of the reasons you are picking a 7-inch tablet over a large screen 

smartphone is media consumption — you probably have a large media 

collection and you want to enjoy it on the go. Flipkart Digiflip Pro XT712 is 

decent for media playback and can play HD (720p) videos with ease. However, 

1080p videos are not its cup of tea, as Full HD files refused to play without 

stuttering. Audio quality is a little tinny, so you better go for a set of decent 

earphones.

Battery life delivered by the tablet is decent, lasting approximately 12 hours with 

moderate usage. However, with more active usage — consisting of 2 hours of 

video playback and internet browsing each, half an hour of gaming, and an 

hour of calling — the battery life decreased to less than 7 hours.

Camera
Flipkart Digiflip Pro XT712 tablet has a 5MP camera on the back, complete 

with LED flash.



Photos taken by the device are decent, offering good contrast and natural 

colours. However, details are pretty poor in daylight photos, and the camera 

is functional at best under poor lighting conditions, so the images turn out 

even grainier.



Verdict
Unlike rival e-commerce site Amazon's Kindle tablets, Flipkart's Digiflip 

Pro XT712  tablet is not the result of extensive software and hardware R&D. 

It seems to be a move towards pushing Flipkart's services on the buyers by 

luring them with better hardware than the competition. However, the ageing 

software, inaudible voice during calls, unremarkable performance and 

less-than-expected battery life turn out to be its bane.

You would be served better by HP's Slate 7 VoiceTab or Samsung Galaxy 

Tab 3 Lite 7.0, which cost just a few thousand rupees more but offer a better 

user experience.

7 gadgets that are great investments

As opposed to the norm, these are halo products that will not get easily 
obsolete — they will continue to function well (sometimes over several years) 
though they may be more expensive to purchase initially. They will stay future 
proof, compatible and will expand with you. Here's where we suggest you can 
spend your hard earned money.

1. Digital SLRs

Even though manufacturers dish out multiple variants of the same digital 
SLR camera (DSLR) every year to entice new customers, a DSLR is 
actually one of the best investments you can make.

2. Desktop PC

While many people prefer the portability of a laptop, many homes still have
a desktop computer and there are good reasons to buy a new one too.

A desktop is more future proof — you can easily add more storage, upgrade
the RAM, graphics card or audio card as and when required.

3. Media player

A good media player supports all video formats and can work with USB
and portable drives.

While most new TVs also support playback via USB, they don't support
all formats.

A media player is relatively small compared to a full fledged DVD player
and usually comes with HDMI to output in full HD quality with optical audio
for multi-channel audio output. It is relatively inexpensive and can be
upgraded with support for newer formats with a firmware update. Plus,
it's got no moving parts, consumes very less electricity and has low
failure rates.

4. Flash storage

This is by far the best performance upgrade you can do for your desktop
or laptop computer.

While the cost of an SSD (solid state drive) is much higher than a traditional
hard drive (a conventional 1TB hard drive costs the same as a 128GB SSD),
the performance benefits are worth the money.

Not only will your computer boot and shutdown faster, all your apps also
get a speed boost in processing.

5. 4K televisions

Just like full HD became a standard over the years, 4K resolution is the 
next highest standard in resolution. 

While 4K TVs have been commanding a huge premium, prices are
coming down.

If you want a new TV and opt for a 4K unit now, you can start enjoying the
benefits of a high-quality panel plus be ready for the upgraded 4K content.

6. Quality headphones

The difference in quality and sound between a Rs 500 and Rs 5,000 pair
of headphones is startling.

Not only do you get better bass but also clear vocals even at high volumes.

Keep in mind that it is not the size of the headphone that impacts the audio
but also the quality of construction and components used.

7. GoPro cameras

If you haven't heard of GoPro cameras, we suggest you head to
www.gopro.com or YouTube and check out the videos shot with it.
These tiny, high-performance cameras are already at the pinnacle of
their ilk.
They are capable of recording up to 4K video in a wide 170-degree angle
and capture high quality still images at 12MP resolution.

Tech toys for motorcycle heads

Commuting to work on motorcycle on rush hour is hell. Where your mind yearns to take your bike out onto the great wide open roads and let loose to Ladakh and Leh. Where trucks and vans belch black smoke in your face. Not to mention car driver around you look at you smug while they turn up the volumes on their car stereos. Well, we're all about making your life easier with tech, and with a bit of money, you can make those commutes to work on your two wheel a lot comfortable. Not to mention make those epic road trips out of town more epic.

So here's a bunch of ways of bringing Tech into your lonely motorcycle commutes or to spice up long rides out of town with your very own soundtrack. If you do get one of those nifty intercom's do remember to be polite and say "over and out". As always do let us know in the comments if you've tried any of these, and remember always ride safe and be careful. These are just to assist you, not to distract you.

Mobile holders
Starting off with the most obvious, is the mobile phone holders. Sure, using a mobile phone when riding your bike can be injurious to health, so you got to be careful with this one. You cannot ride your bike while playing candy crush. This is handy for glancing down at google maps, or when stuck in traffic, you can easily recalibrate your route, find the shortest gully out of this mess and leave those poor car sods to stew in their own AC. Pair this with a motorcycle bluetooth headset and you don't need to touch your screen. Just say "Okay Google..."



While there are plenty of options in the market, a sturdy Amzer should work, and the best place is to keep it near your instrument cluster. The best part of this is that you can also use it on your bicycle on your morning cardio sessions.

Phone recharge apparatus
For just 200-300 Rs. you can pick up a simple charger apparatus that charges your mobile phone in a pinch from the motorbike's battery. Though, if you do a lot of long distances on your bike, or are part of one of the numerous Royal Enfield clubs who brave rough weather and storms, then you can spend a bit more and get a waterproof mount with a USB charging port.



Helmet Bluetooth with Intercom
Sure, you can stuff a hands free under a helmet with a bit of work, you're in for a world of pain if the earbud moves. However for upwards of Rs. 2000 you can pick up a simple clamp on Bluetooth headset with mic, so you can listen to your music as well as answer any emergency calls. The simple ones are available at most online retailers, but don't expect anything awesome in terms of music. Perfect if you love listening to audio books when commuting.



Now, if you have a bit more to spend, you can pick up a more advanced Bluetooth, which has slim earpad, that you slide under your helmet's foam and position to where your ear is. You have a nifty mic running on the inside near your mouth, and on the outside is a big answer button. These are fantastic for both music, your favourite podcasts and audiobooks, and the volume is low enough so you can hear the cars around you.

For long distance drives, you can get your motorcycle pack to invest in Bluetooth/Intercom versions of these headphones, which can transmute your voice across 500 meters shortwave radio, like good old-fashioned walkie-talkies. A great feature that can mean the difference between life or death as you navigate through the great unknowns.

Bluetooth Helmet
Hate fiddling with wires? Well then why not go for a Bluetooth helmet. LS2 FF310 is an helmet with all of the above all built in. Bluetooth hands free, with three buttons on the front face, and inside you have some nice sounding headset as well as short wave intercom.



So all you need to do is set your GPS on target, and let the GPS voice guide you to your destination. The LS2 FF310 will set you back by about 12,000, though you get a pretty awesome looking helmet to boot.

Music and anti-theft speakers
For about a 1000 Rs. you can get a decent pair of speakers to mount on your bike, and for about Rs. 5000 plus you can get ones with better sound and style. Sure, you cant listen to music with a helmet on, but these are primarily burglar alarms, to warn you if you're bikes been stolen, or towed.



However, you can hook them up to your phone and have some nice portable tunes for when you're chilling out, watching the sunset on some remote mountain road. Plus, they're not loud enough to cause a landslide. Unless you're playing some Shakira.

A HUD

Only attempt if you have a lot of disposable income.

SKULLY AR-1 - The smart helmet: This does not come cheap. Your head may not shatter, but your wallet sure will. It retails for about $1300, and like everything awesome in Tech, you do not get it in india. So with shipping you're looking at an easy $1600. It's still in production and will be shipping post May 2015.

Now, what you get for your money, is a super cool looking smart helmet. With a Heads up Display, Rear View Camera and GPS all on your awesome electrochromatic visor. Add to that all the acoustic accoutrements you would want in this, and you have a winner.



Now, how does it do all that. Well, the SKULLY team has positioned all of the HUD elements just below your line of sight, and it's transparent. So you can see what's coming up behind you, not to mention keep an eye on the maps. All fully voice activated. If that's not all it syncs to your Android phone, and lets you see who's calling and other details. This is only Android compatible, so chalk one more up for the green robot.

Samsung 'shuns' Google, licenses Nokia's Here Maps

NEW DELHI: Telecom gear maker Nokia has partnered Samsung to provide its maps and location services to Tizen-powered smart devices by the Korean electronics giant.

The Finnish firm's location-based services arm HERE will also provide solutions to Samsung's new smartwatch, Gear S.

Nokia in a statement today said, "HERE has partnered with Samsung to bring its maps and location platform services to Tizen-powered smart devices by Samsung, including the Samsung Gear S."

On the Samsung Gear S, HERE is powering an application called Navigator, which offers turn-by-turn walk navigation and public transit routing, it added.

Tizen, an open and flexible OS operating system, was launched as a competitor to Android and iOS operating systems.

The OS aims to address the needs of all stakeholders of mobile and connected device ecosystem, which includes device manufacturers, mobile operators, application developers and independent software vendors (ISVs).

Samsung will launch the first smartphone based on its Tizen platform in the July-September quarter this year, a move aimed at reducing dependence on the popular Google's Android OS.

Samsung, the world's largest smartphone maker, said the Tizen-powered 'Samsung Z' will be made available in the third quarter in Russia followed by other markets, Samsung said but did not disclose specific details.

A majority of Samsung's mobile phones are currently powered by the Android platform, which is also the dominant OS on most smartphones across the globe.

Previously, Samsung ran 'Bada' OS, which did not see much success. It has since been working on merging the platform with Tizen, which is backed by chipmaker Intel Corp.

The other popular operating systems include Apple iOS, Microsoft's Windows Phone OS and BlackBerry's proprietary platform.




According to research firm IDC, smartphone sales stood at 281.5 million units globally in Q1 2014, up 28.6% from 218.8 million devices in January-March 2013.

Samsung had a 30.2% share, while Apple had 15.5% and Huawei had 4.9% share in the said quarter.

Oracle loses bid to restore $1.3 billion SAP verdict

Oracle failed to revive a $1.3 billion jury verdict in its long-running copyright dispute with German software company SAP as a US appeals court said Oracle must choose to accept a lower amount or face a new trial.

In a ruling, the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco said jurors used "an undue amount of speculation" in awarding $1.3 billion in damages in 2010.

But the court found US District Judge Phyllis Hamilton in Oakland, California, had erred in concluding that Oracle deserved only $272 million of damages, a sum Oracle rejected.
Writing for a three-judge 9th Circuit panel, Judge William Fletcher directed Hamilton to offer Oracle a choice of $356.7 million of damages or a second trial.

In a statement, Oracle general counsel Dorian Daley said the company is "thrilled about this landmark recovery." Asked whether Oracle will accept the $356.7 million or proceed to another trial, a company spokeswoman declined to comment.

SAP spokesman Andy Kendzie said the ruling is favorable and "shows the strength of our position."

The case involved SAP's TomorrowNow unit, which the German company had bought to provide software support to Oracle customers at lower rates than what Oracle charged, hoping to persuade them to become SAP customers.

Oracle sued SAP in 2007 after noticing thousands of suspicious downloads of its software.

SAP later conceded that its employees were illegally downloading Oracle files, but it couldn't agree with Oracle on damages. The 2010 trial between the two enterprise software competitors was widely watched at the time, as top Oracle executives Larry Ellison and Safra Catz testified.

Subsequently, SAP agreed to pay Oracle $306 million, but that agreement allowed Oracle to seek to restore the jury verdict, or win a retrial based on its own damages theories.
During the 2010 trial, Oracle had said internal SAP documents showed the German software company expected over $1 billion in revenue from TomorrowNow. However, the 9th Circuit rejected that reasoning given that SAP had paid much less to buy TomorrowNow.

"If SAP truly anticipated that TomorrowNow would produce a $1.3 billion benefit to SAP, as Oracle contends, a $10 million acquisition price is strikingly low," Fletcher wrote.

In finding the $272 million damages award "below the maximum amount sustainable by the proof," Fletcher said Hamilton erred in finding that Oracle had lost just $36 million of profit, when the proper figure should have been $120.7 million.

The case is Oracle Corp et al v. SAP AG et al, 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 12-16944.