• Web Developers: PHP/ MySQL, Magento, Ruby on Rails,  OsCommerce (Open Positions – 4)
• Iphone/ Android Developers (Open Positions – 2)
• Copywriters (Open Positions – 2)
• Social Media Marketers (Open Positions – 2)
• PPC & Analytics (Open Positions – 2)

For more information about the latest career job openings, visit http://www.cueblocks.com/careers.php

If you are interested to be part of CueBlocks and have a passion for any of the above areas, please send your latest CV and Motivation/Cover letter to careers@cueblocks.com

Please make sure that the email accompanying the CV and cover letter should clearly highlight which position you are interested in applying.

“Though much of our testing is already happening offline, this month we’ll also test the delivery of organic and paid search results provided by Microsoft on live Yahoo! traffic.”

So users will soon be able to see Bing powered results on Yahoo Search! The transition is expected to happen anytime over the next couple of days or may be months. The powered results are expected to influence competition among search engines vying to provide users with precise, relevant and accurate results. Is Google listening or can continue to enjoy the biggest slice of the search pie (read users). Hmmm.. this only time will tell.

Yahoo holds a large chunk of advertisers – undoubtedly a win-win situation for the Bing-Yahoo transition! Wherein Microsoft will be taking charge of algorithmic search serving platform & search advertising marketplace for both the companies. The search alliance covers algo search (web, image and video), search advertising and contextual advertising. None of the aspects of display advertising, vertical searches or site searches, such as queries on Flickr or Yahoo! News will be included in this alliance reports Yahoo Transition FAQ’s

Visit http://www.clickz.com/3640998 for more about the yahoo-Bing transition buzz or check out http://advertising.yahoo.com/transition/en_US/managed_faqs if the buzz has sparked questions in your mind!

But is making a profile on LinkedIn enough? Or Will making a business page on Facebook or MySpace solve the purpose?

The answer is a big NO! Because making a profile alone will not help, you have to jump into all the action and make some serious communication efforts. You have to be as active on your business profile as you would be on your own profile.

The perks of Social Media Marketing:

Social Media Marketing offers numerous benefits which provide the much deserved limelight to your online business. Let’s look at some of these perks:

1. Social Media Marketing can get huge amounts of free traffic to your website, which in turn results in increased visibility.

2. Through various social networking profiles, you can build a considerable fan base for your online products and services.

3. Most of the social networking websites like FaceBook, LinkedIn and MySpace offer the option of creating free accounts. Thus, using these websites generally proves to be very beneficial in terms of COST and BUDGET.

4. As you are communicating directly with people who share interests similar to your services/products, you can directly target a specific group of people who might be interested in what you have to offer.

5. Social Media Marketing helps in increasing the popularity of your website through various backlinks which leads to better search engine visibility.
6. As a result of User Generated Sites and Book Marking Sites, people can find your business online more easily than ever.

The most important factor in Social Media Marketing is to keep in touch with your user base and try to be as transparent as you can. Aside from Blogs, Video-Promotions and Photo-Sharing, start delving into micro-blogging services like Twitter & Plurk so that you are able to reach mobile users as well.

And last, but definitely not the least, BE PATIENT!

Have any queries, comments, suggestion or want your site to grow with Social Media Marketing? Contact us today!

We come across websites with both www and non www versions of its URLS.

• www.yourwebsite.com
• yourwebsite.com/
• www.yourwebsite.com/index.html
• yourwebsite.com/home.asp

Most people would consider these the same URL but technically, all of these are different.  Matt, in his post on SEO advice: URL canonicalization, explains that a web server could return completely different content for all the URLs listed above.

If you have duplicate content on multiple webpages of your site, this can cause problems for search engines – specifically in determining which URL should be shown in the  search results. Canonical URL comes to rescue in such a scenario:

•    Canonicalization becomes helpful as it takes the duplicate pages and uses a 301 re-direct to point all versions to a single, “canonical” version of the content or web page.

•    Google recommends that you pick a “canonical URL”as the preferred version of the page. You can indicate your preference to Google in a number of ways. Google recommends them all (if you don’t indicate a canonical URL, Google will identify what it thinks is the best version).

What to do to make sure Google picks up the URL that you want it to pick:

•    You can choose a preferred URL and use it consistently across your entire site. For example, don’t make half of your links go to http://example.com/ and the other half go to http://www.example.com/. Instead, pick the URL you prefer and always use that format for your internal links. If your site has duplicate content on multiple pages, there is a high possibility this could affect your search engine ranking results. For example – the link information could get diluted in a case where few incoming links may point to one version of the URL and few links to another.

•    Matt further adds that if you want your default URL to be http://www.example.com/. You can make your webserver in a way so that if someone requests http://example.com/, it does a 301 (permanent) redirect to http://www.example.com/. Doing this will help Google know which URL you prefer to be canonical. If you have a site that changes often, for example you have dynamic content on site, a blog, etc. then adding a 301 redirect can be very useful.

Using the URL removal tool to remove domain.com –

If you remove one of the www vs. non-www hostnames, you can end up removing your whole domain for six months. You need to do a reinclusion request if URL removal tool removes your entire domain when you actually only wanted to remove the www or non-www version of your domain. A reinclusion request refers to mentioning that you removed your entire domain by accident using the URL removal tool and that you’d like it reincluded.

For more information on 301 re-directs see http://www.mattcutts.com/blog/seo-advice-URL-canonicalization/

Following is the summary of Google’s Guide to Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

1. Search engine optimization is often about making small modifications to parts of the website and SEO affects only organic search results, not paid or “sponsored” results.

2. Create unique, accurate page titles.

Good practices for page title tags:

(a) Accurately describe the page’s content
(b) Create unique title tags for each page
(c) Use brief, explanatory titles

3. Make use of the “description” meta tag

Good practices for description meta tags:

(a) Accurately summarize the page’s content
(b) Use unique descriptions for each page

4. Improve the structure of your URLs.

Good practices for URL structure:

(a) Use words in URLs
(b) Create a simple directory structure
(c) Provide one version of a URL to reach a document

5. Make your site easier to navigate.

Good practices for site navigation:

(a) Create a naturally flowing hierarchy
(b) Use mostly text for navigation
(c) Use “breadcrumb” navigation
(d) Put an HTML sitemap page on your site, and use an XML Sitemap file
(e) Consider what happens when a user removes part of your URL
(f) Have a useful 404 page

6. Offer quality content and services.

Good practices for content:

(a) Write easy-to-read text
(b) Stay organized around the topic
(c) Use relevant language
(d) Create fresh, unique content
(e) Offer exclusive content or services
(d) Create content primarily for your users, not search engines

7. Write better anchor text.

Good practices for anchor text:

(a) Choose descriptive text
(b) Write concise text
(c) Format links so they’re easy to spot
(d) Think about anchor text for internal links too

8. Use heading tags appropriately

Good practices for heading tags:

(a) Imagine you’re writing an outline
(b) Use headings sparingly across the page

9. Optimize your use of images

Good practices for images:

(a) Use brief, but descriptive filenames and alt text
(b) Supply alt text when using images as links
(c) Store images in a directory of their own
(d) Use commonly supported filetypes

10. Make effective use of robots.txt

Good practices for robots.txt:

(a) Use more secure methods for sensitive content

11. Be aware of rel=”nofollow” for links

12. Promote your website in the right ways

Good practices for promoting your website:

(a) Blog about new content or services
(b) Don’t forget about offline promotion
(c) Know about social media sites
(d) Add your business to Google’s Local Business Center
(e) Reach out to those in your site’s related community

13. Make use of free webmaster tools

14. Take advantage of web analytics services

Google also offers helpful resources for the webmasters with its help forum, central blog, tools , guidelines etc. Check out the complete Google’s SEO Starter Guide.

Announcing the launch of the website, Pancham Prashar, President Sales & Marketing said, “Our new website design is more indicative of the current range of services we offer to our clients. Since we mostly do business with companies based abroad, primarily in Unites States, Ireland and United Kingdom, we wanted to make good use of pictures on our new site and allow people to virtually see our team here. I feel we have manged to accomplish that fairly well in the new design”.

The Web Design, Development and Internet Marketing (SEM and SMM) Company has its main office in Chandigarh, India and deals with clients from different corners of the world. The company has over 25 team members who have a collective experience of over 2000 Internet Marketing and Web Designing projects.

Sarthak Aggarwal, President Products and Services, who coordinated the website design effort with his team, further added, “Our focus in the new design has been simplicity as well as uniqueness of design. Usually people have very little attention span while they are browsing the web – and the initial few seconds are vital. We wanted to showcase the various aspects of CueBlocks in such a manner that they catch attention early on. We have text intensive pages as well inside in the form of articles, service pages and blog posts. In addition, new features and sections will keep getting added to the site as we move along”.

Currently touring United States for business development, Pancham and Sarthak indicated that CueBlocks has extensive plans of expanding its client base in the States.

The site is live at – http://www.CueBlocks.com

About CueBlocks Technologies:

CueBlocks Technologies is a Web Development and Online Marketing firm – specializing in Search Engine Marketing and Social Media Marketing. Formed in 2005, the company offers its services to a global audience and has a team of over 25 designing, programming and Internet Marketing specialists. CueBlocks is a member of Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO) and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

Contact Information:

Pancham Prashar
Cue Blocks Technologies Pvt. Ltd.
SCO 822, 2nd Floor,
NAC ManiMajra
Chandigarh – 160101
India
US Toll Free – 1-866-
Email: sales@cueblocks.com
Site: http://www.cueblocks.com
Blog: http://www.cueblocks.com/blog
###

There has been a lot said and done on how to make an impression for an upcoming interview….with hundreds of websites, books and articles that talk about thousand other ways to get through the interview process. I decided to do things a little differently and give out tips on HOW NOT TO GET HIRED!!

Sending the cover letter?? Make sure you sound too desperate for a change in job and that your world would come to an end if they didn’t hire you.

Have a great academic back ground?? Go on, boast about it. If you don’t have one- Tell them you have been too busy thinking what went wrong that you didn’t have a great academic background!!

Professional work experience – Did you work for the giants in the industry?? Did you get multiple incentives?? Promotions?? Fill the pages of your cover letter and let the hiring manager know you are the BEST EVER!!
If not, tell the prospective employer that you have just been waiting for an opportunity with them and you are sure that the wait has been worth it!!

Ok, now that your CV is ready and the cover letter has been taken care of, make sure you cc it, not bcc, cc, to multiple companies. Wait a few minutes and resend, just to make sure the employer gets it if they missed the first one.

Wait till the evening, then send an email or call and ask if the employer received your profile.

Ask them if your interview has been scheduled already ??

If you don’t receive a reply drop in to the office (of course, if the employer location is local!), and let them know you were expecting a reply. There is a high possibility they will take the initial screening interview then and there. If not, don’t forget to leave your visiting card at the front office!

What to do if your luck outshines and you get a call for the interview: [wow! ]

1.    Do not wish to apply for a leave at your current workplace? Ask the prospective employer to reschedule the interview as you will be out of station on a business trip, or better is to call one hour prior to the interview and tell the hiring manager that you are unwell and can’t make it to the interview. You also have the option to not inform your unavailability for the interview at all and walk in to their office the day you feel is the perfect day for you to get interviewed.

2.    Be an hour late. Tell them you were stuck in a traffic jam. Your meeting with them is important and they should value it, even if you are late by an hour!

3.    When asked for a self introduction – tell them about you mother, father, their jobs, your siblings, your residence, your native place etc., etc.

4.    When asked about your abilities, make sure you tell them that you don’t like to be self pompous!

5.    Make sure you settle the salary and other benefits that the prospective employer wishes to offer you against your services before the clichéd line that all hiring resource persons love to say when they wish to discontinue the interview “THANKS FOR YOUR TIME, WE WILL GET BACK TO YOU!!”

6.    Be bold to ask them the time they require to get back to you, make sure you ask them to recheck the contact numbers on your cv.

Now sit back, relax and wait for your offer letter!! Or not…after all here we are telling you about how not to get hired!

Ok on a serious note, these are not anecdotes, these are just a few faux pases that we came across at the time of hiring. I am sure if you focus on these more than getting confused with the thousand other answers to how to cakewalk the interview…it will be a sure shot hit!! If not, at least you know what you can afford to avoid.

Looking for a change in your current job? You either have strong reasons to support your decision for the change or you are just trying your luck. Well, if its scenario one, there will certainly be some amount of seriousness involved… let’s start with the cover letter, are you sure your cover letter speaks what you intend to tell the prospective hiring person?? Be specific with details and your intention of approaching the XYZ employer.

Don’t sound desperate for a change in job. Let your CV speak of your credentials and work experience. Pushing too many bold statements and reasons why should you be considered is still a highly debatable issue, it is safe to be genuine and only highlight your unique abilities and achievements in support of the position that you are applying for. AVOID using statements like I am the best !! Let the prospective hiring person take care of the decision whether to consider the application or not!!

Nervousness associated with meeting the prospective employer is understood. One small tip – go on and just be your self!

World Environment Day

Today is world environment day and the theme for WED 2009 is ‘Your Planet Needs You-Unite to Combat Climate Change’.

We can’t really take care of everything in one single day, but if we all come together and make a couple of small changes, we can make a big difference in the long run! So, let’s do our bit and go GREEN!!

Check out the following link. Lets awaken ourselves. The planet needs us!

http://www.eonecon.org/pdf/green-sheet.pdf

To live up to the spirit of the festival, we decided to take up the challenge of adding colors to our immaculately  clean white interiors of our office. Aman managed to put her creativity to use, as she worked her way with the flowers and came up with a simple yet very pretty design for Rangoli and believe me the Rangoli had made all the difference in brightening up the workplace.

Without any pomp and show or extravaganza,  Diwali at CueBlocks was  simple, warm and a memorable affair..  The evening was full of small surprises that added a great charm to the festive spirit. We kicked off the evening with some great French wine and lots and lots of good food to go along with the wine. Our wine sipping session gave us all an opportunity to discuss new developments in life, on the personal as well as the professional front.

To add to these great moments came along our Diwali gifts from CueBlocks. They were small candy-like blocks wrapped in environment friendly gift wrappers which kept most of us guessing !! After a lot of unsuccessful guesswork, we opened our presents and Voila, Ipods they were! Stunning, Apple Ipods in different colors! Our day was surely made, thanks to Cueblocks.

This was the best Diwali gift ever, now all the CueBlocks members have their personal ipods. Exulting and cheerful faces all around made this small get together a great and a unforgettable evening for years to come.  With all these jubilant moments we thoroughly experienced and felt the true emotion and soul behind celebrating Diwali, symbolizing the age-old culture of our country which teaches us to vanquish ignorance that subdues humanity and to drive away darkness that engulfs the light of knowledge.

It also taught us the lesson of commonality and togetherness. We also realized the value of blessings and how they influence our lives. Wishing Cueblocks an unprecedented glory and success, we ended the Diwali celebrations only to begin living them throughout the following year!

The responses to the beginning of a week, i.e Monday are universal and identical irrespective of culture, creed or race. These include sullen, discouraged and grumpy behavior and in extreme cases may also lead to diurnal depression commonly known as ‘Monday Blues’. To ward off this gloomy strain and influence that Monday drags along with it, we have come up with a cure to combat the Monday Blue Syndrome. This effective cure is the after work ‘Monday Movie’. Note that the cure works best when accompanied by pizzas, burgers, popcorns and delicacies of other kinds. Yes, it is a great way to terminate the germs of stress and vapidity which gradually kill the motivation, zest and energy in an individual during the course of the week. Therefore, at our company, CueBlocks, we decided to give this innovative cure a chance and to our delight, it has not only worked exceedingly well but also made all of us look forward to Mondays, which have now ceased to be mundane and monstrous.

The movie is screened at 5:30 pm, half an hour before the office gets over, and goes on till 7:30 or 8:00 and is selected unanimously. One can imagine the success of this small indulgence, when it can make all of us stay longer happily at the office, without being irate!

Till now three comedy movies have been screened Khosla ka Ghosla, Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro and Bheja Fry, and the result, well, the dispirited symptoms have now given way to increased laughter, interactions, discussions (about subjects apart from the movies also) and a general sense of commonality. We also watched, ‘The Secret’ a highly inspiring film that motivates to lead life in a bigger, better and a more beautiful way. The movie really touched the chords of everyone’s heart and encouraged us to realize our dreams and achieve our goals. The movie turned out to be a life lesson rather than just an inspiration. It helped us to actually incorporate ‘The Secret’ of living life to the fullest into our attitude.

It is very significant that a workplace gives you more than just work. It is important that it teaches, influences and shapes your way of life. You know that a company is evolving when its employees also share moments apart from work!

Hence, the cure does work and eventually we aim at completely eradicating the disease of melancholy Monday and maintain an active consistency through out the week. As our credo is ‘All can only end well if it begins well’.

New information in the article:

1. The 3 philosophies behind Google ranking:

1) Best locally relevant results served globally. (according to Amit, it’s their “no query left behind” principle)
2) Keep it simple.
3) No manual intervention.

2. …

Reminder in the post:

From Google’s Official Blog:

The second reason we have a principle against manually adjusting our results is that often a broken query is just a symptom of a potential improvement to be made to our ranking algorithm. Improving the underlying algorithm not only improves that one query, it improves an entire class of queries, and often for all languages. I should add, however, that there are clear written policies for websites recommended by Google, and we do take action on sites that are in violation of our policies or for a small number of other reasons (e.g. legal requirements, child porn, viruses/malware, etc).

Looking forward to the “followup post!”

Described as the “Coach behind Ireland’s Celtic Tiger” – Kevin Kelly is one of Europe’s and Asia’s leading authorities on motivation, entrepreneurship, leadership, communication, and personal excellence. Kevin Kelly is Europe and Asia’s leading authority on entrepreneurial thinking, leadership and motivation.You can read more about Kevin Kelly at – www.KevinKellyUnlimited.com

Paypal Fee: For withdrawal amounts of more than 7,000 Rupees are free. For withdrawal amounts of less then 7,000 Rupees, Paypal charges a fee of 50 Rupees.

Paypal has partnered with almost all the major bank in India, so this immensely increases the reach and utility of this new option. These banks include: State Bank of India , Bank of India, Canara Bank, Union Bank of India, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, ING VYSYA Bank, UTI Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, HSBC and Citibank.

Some days back, Paypal had announced another exciting facility – allowing users to withdraw funds from their Paypal accounts to their Visa credit cards as well.

You can read more about these features by visiting the following links:

• Paypal – Indian Bank Account Withdrawal
• Paypal – Transfer to Visa Credit Card

A perfect Diwali Gift from Paypal to Indian companies, freelancers and entrepreneurs!

However, with the advent of computers, as everything around us has become much easier than before, so has the expression of one’s creative ideas. Software like Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Flash, Corel Draw, 3DS Max, Maya amongst others have been the pioneers in providing tools that let people display their talent through the channel of computers very easily. Imagine the convenience to an artist, who can just use the paintbrush tool, hook up their computer with a digital drawing pad, install compatible software and create instant digital portraits. Apart from this, media professionals can use software like Flash and create attractive advertisements which highly appeal to customers.

Software
Companies like Macromedia, Autodesk, Adobe and Corel have been widely recognized as the front runners in the digital graphics genre of computers. They have given to the world some of the best and the most unimaginable tools. Maya and 3D Max are extensively used in motion sensing related animations and movie special effects. Flash and Fireworks are used to create impressive web graphics, both as advertisements or as complete website presentations. Software like Corel Draw and Photoshop are more used where still or static images are to be produced. They find a wide application for print media.

The cost of these software is a daunting factor for many startups. For example, the Adobe CS Suite retails for close to $500-$600, which is not really affordable for many individuals. Although, these software are easily pirated and can be downloaded off the internet, full technical support and upgrades are not available in such case which is a major drawback.

Websites
To see what kind of endless possibilities are being realized by people all over the world using digital image processing software, check out some of the brilliant websites CueBlocks has dug out for you listed below. Be sure to have ample time on your hands before you scamper off to these URLs, because they are heavy websites which take some time to load, and you would spend an equal time being amazed by what these fine individuals have done with their creative talents.

• Jonathan Yuen (CueBlocks Pick – Most Creative)

A personal website by an advertising executive from Singapore. The artistic excellence depicted in his web pages is guaranteed to blow you away. This website is so rich in creativeness that it is simply unbelievable. Truly epitomizes attention to detail.

• 2Advanced Studios (CueBlocks Pick – Most Advanced Flash)

Long known as the pioneers of flash technology on the web, 2Advanced Studios LLC, is one of the most respected media companies in the world. Their seriousness for providing the best web experience to their clients is gauged from the fact that they have their own hosting servers, which are some of the most advanced in the world. Their current website is in version 5, with version 3 having been rated as the most influential flash design of the millennium. Truly, a company with an advanced vision of design.

• DJ Volcano

A website for a DJ based in Germany, the complex design which makes you feel as if you are in some other world is truly outstanding. Great interface, coupled with a high focus on detail truly makes this website highly ranked in terms of visual appeal.

• Bluestorm

The website has a very gothic element to it. However, the color themes are such that your senses of visual interpretation are heightened. A very good example of a website, which uses both image editing as well as image enhancing tools like Photoshop, Corel draw and Flash to produce the ultimate graphics.

• Deviant Art

Long recognized as the best outlet for displaying your creative genius in photo editing tools, Deviant Art has some of the most awesome graphics on display. Right from amateur designers to works completed by high profile agencies, people love posting their work on Deviant Art for the large number of admirers that visit this website each day. A must see for all graphic enthusiasts.

We hope you enjoyed surfing our choice of some of the most creative websites that we have picked out for you. Of course with over 15 billion pages on the internet, many more options exist for one to explore. However, we can surely say that it is a good beginning!

With all the technological advances happening around us at such a fast pace, that a new technology today seems outdated a few days later, we present a list of the top phones we currently have our radar fixed on. These phones defy convention, break the mold and come out in the open as uniquely new innovations. They are bound to make your head turn, heart beat stop and set your pulse racing for sure. Be sure to click the names and be guided to pages with complete description and photos.

Google Click

Yes, you read it right. Google is coming out with a phone! Joining the race in the mobile phone market, and looking to give tough competition to the likes of Microsoft and Apple, Google is now foraying into the market with its debut product, Google Click (Working name; final not confirmed). The phone, already being described as the ‘iPhone killer’, has been confirmed to be in the development and testing stages at Google’s headquarters.

As is expected the phone is entirely a touch screen, with no keys and has excellent support for multi touch. The standard features include a mammoth 4 inch screen, camera (expected >2MP), quad band GSM support etc. Then how, you might ask, are people calling it the iPhone killer. The answer lies in the power that Google is feared for the most- Software technology. Combine Google talk with phone services and you get a revolutionary phonebook and advanced messaging and dialing options. Combine Google Maps with GPS, and you get the best positioning system available. Of course, the phone will have an advanced web browser in order to harness the tru essence of Google’s prowess- the Internet.

Its being speculated however, that unlike other phones, it will not have a big storage capacity; rather most applications and storage will be done over the web, making it imperative for Google to introduce a revolutionary wireless networking technology.

Expectancy Rating: 11/10 (Because Google always does something amazing out of the blue and makes everyone go green with envy)

Apple iPhone

This is a pretty obvious inclusion in the list. Everyone who’s anyone wants the iPhone. If not for its stellar looks, then for its advanced multi touch technology. Apple has given consumers a multitude of reasons to buy the ‘revolutionary phone’ as they call it. It launches on 29th June, 2007 at price tags of $500 and $600 for the 4GB and 8GB models respectively.

The iPhone is not just a phone; it is a combination of an advanced web browsing device, an iPod and a camera, its just that it can let you make calls too. The revolutionary multi-touch technology has been implemented in the phone and by the keynote speeces and demonstrations, it looks extremely impressive.

The downsides of the phone however are things that cannot be ignored. The phone has NO keys (apart from the 1 home button) at all, raising doubts over whether people in a country like ours would be able to use it with ease. Another shortcoming is the non-support of MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service). However, it does come with built in Wi-Fi and GPS, thus trying to make up for these shortcomings.

Overall, a gadget I would certainly recommend people to buy and test and use. For the price of $500, you get an iPod, a phone and an excellent screen utilizing the next big thing in hardware- multi touch.

Expectancy Rating – 10/10

Sony Ericsson SO903iTV

If the above name sounds confusing to you, let me summarize it in a different way- its Sony’s TV phone. Yes, building up on the idea of companies like Apple implementing their hit products like iPods onto their phones, Sony now brings the revolutionary Bravia technology engine for televisions onto the phone screens.

Sony has for long been credited as the father of the picture tube technology. Although invented by other companies, Sony has pioneered innovative new technologies that have improved viewing by many folds. Their latest TV engine, Bravia, successor to the hugely popular WEGA engine, is credited as the best LCD/Plasma engine in the world.

Sony’s mobile phone division, Sony Ericsson (50% with Ericsson), has now taken it upon itself to integrate this technology and present to the world the first TV phone. Now you might question that many phones like the presently popular Nokia N95 already offer TV streaming services, what’s so different in this phone? Well the answer is that the screen you hold in your hand while using this phone, is not a standard mobile phone LCD screen, but a small TV screen. Viewing television or movies on this screen would be a whole new experience with a dedicated engine serving the same.

The phone is now in manufacturing stage and will be shipped initially in Japan only (due to TV services being offered on mobile networks there). The overall design, features and the prospect of being able to use the first TV phone, make this phone one hard device to ignore.

Expectancy Rating: 9/10

LG KE850 (Prada Phone)

Now many of us might not know, but LG actually contested claims that Apple copied its KE 850 phone’s design for the iPhone. One look at their model and you can say why. The KE 850, popularly referred to as the LG Prada phone, is already readily available in the markets and had been in design stage since early 2006. The phone’s designing has been exclusively handled by Prada and thus is extremely fashionable.

The phone offers features similar to the iPhone; Multi touch, MP3 player, 2MP camera et all. The phone’s tone however, is not the bright one that Apple generally chooses for its products. It has a dark, yet very stylish, feel to it and thus, although the screen has 16 million colors to display, the main menu and screen are set in a black and white tone. These can be changed, but would not look in tone with the phone’s design otherwise.

As mentioned above, the phone is already available in the market, mostly through Prada boutiques all over Europe. The phone retails for close to $350-400, making it a much cheaper alternative than the iPhone. The points of competency are Apple’s superior software, better multi touch support and a better brand name. The LG Prada phone is only aimed at fashion enthusiasts; testimony to this fact is the velvet cleaning cloth and the designer casing by Prada accompanying all handsets. However, publicity due to comparisons with the iPhone, have now made this phone a must have for all, irrespective of fashion sense.

Expectancy Rating: 8/10

Apart from the above mentioned phones, another head turner is the Nokia E90 . Ever since Nokia introduced the Communicator series of phones, people have been amazed at the innovative thinking they employed for the same. However, each successive model had some shortcomings which made the communicators fail in reaching the expectations attached with them. However, the new Nokia E90 has learnt lessons well from its predecessors and comes like never before. Dual 16 million color screens, mammoth storage options, vibrator (for the first time in a communicator), 3.5MP camera, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, EDGE; the list is endless. A sure shot success; this phone should be highly anticipated by all office executives and students alike.

With a plethora of options coming your way, you can be rest assured that the customer is still the king of the market in the world today. Companies continue to offer wide ranges of products, making consumers actually think as to what product would give them the best value for their money.

Look out for these phones and more, as the Indian mobile market gets set to undergo a massive technological change in the coming years.