Vishal Mathur is Technology Editor for Hindustan Times. When not making sense of technology, he often searches for an elusive analog space in a digital world.
Articles by Vishal Mathur
Samsung’s ecosystem possessiveness gets very serious with the Galaxy Buds2 Pro
Most of the Galaxy Buds2 Pro’s headline functionality, including 24-bit audio and head tracking for immersive sound, work exclusively with Samsung’s Galaxy smartphones
Published on Nov 01, 2022 08:58 AM IST
Elon Musk is already throwing the kitchen sink at it
Twitter executives are already on the way out, and big changes in content moderation policies as well as eliminating bots and spam accounts are expected
Published on Oct 28, 2022 10:10 AM IST
The beta iCloud.com is what iPhone users with Windows PCs really need
The update for the iCloud website is primarily meant for iPhone or iPad users who may otherwise have a Windows or Chrome OS computing device, to quickly access mails from their iCloud account
Published on Oct 27, 2022 02:54 PM IST
WhatsApp’s biggest outage has been resolved, but Meta doesn’t say what broke
WhatsApp was unavailable for users for about two hours, making this the longest outage the service has faced
Updated on Oct 26, 2022 09:43 AM IST
Acer Aspire 7 is a consistent yet unremarkable laptop, and that’s enigmatic
The Aspire 7 is priced at ₹62,990 and you would expect a premium laptop experience after spending as much. But that’s where it falls short, without actually dropping the ball elsewhere
Published on Oct 25, 2022 09:00 AM IST
Elon Musk’s attempts at marshalling world peace: Fumbles or gambles?
By weighing in on Russia’s war against Ukraine, China’s standoff with Taiwan and claiming 75% of Twitter’s workforce will be fired once he takes over, it is hard to not notice Elon Musk. Reports suggest an uncomfortable US government is mulling national security reviews for Musk’s deals
Updated on Oct 21, 2022 04:36 PM IST
Smartphones are hitting Ctrl + Z, and that’s good news, says Vishal Mathur
Wireless data transfers and LED notifications are making a comeback. Other features might too, as phone makers return some of what was lost in the race to be slimmer and faster.
Updated on Oct 21, 2022 03:56 PM IST
Google persists with Messages tweaks while waiting on Apple to accept the invite
Messages for Android is getting a new logo, alongside new functionality. The Voice Message Transcription feature is being made available on more phones, while individual message replies will be available in the coming weeks
Published on Oct 21, 2022 02:04 PM IST
Apple isn’t done with 2022 launches: new iPad, iPad Pro and Apple TV 4K incoming
There is confirmation that the iPadOS 16 for all iPad users, old and new, releases on Oct 24 and the 3 new launches will arrive on our shores, in a staggered manner, though pre-orders have started now
Published on Oct 19, 2022 10:04 AM IST
Lenovo Tab P11 Pro: An eclectic mix of impressive versatility and curious choices
There is just one variant that Lenovo will offer at this time, that’s priced at ₹39,999 and has just Wi-Fi connectivity. It is perplexing, because the lack of 4G or 5G hampers portability in the truest sense
Updated on Oct 14, 2022 01:21 PM IST
Apple AirPods Pro’s second gen is more about the same, yet better in every way
The 2nd generation AirPods Pro, priced at ₹26,900, competes against the Sony WF-1000XM4 & It’s a pitched battle, which sees swinging fortunes in terms of audio quality and noise cancellation prowess
Published on Oct 14, 2022 11:09 AM IST
Google Pixel 7 Pro is the absolute no-nonsense Android flagship
Pixel 7 Pro carries a sticker price of ₹84,999 & core specs include 128GB storage, 12GB RAM and a triple camera setup that really draws on Google’s machine learning and image processing prowess
Published on Oct 13, 2022 09:24 AM IST
Cameras and Photos smarts give the Google Pixel 7 an almost unfair advantage
The Google Pixel 7 is priced at ₹59,999 and there is just one variant on sale in India. The dual camera setup continues to impress, while Android’s nifty feature additions really add value
Updated on Oct 12, 2022 10:46 PM IST
5G gate open but customers encounter ‘update’ or ‘invite’ barriers amid wait for key software
Telcos may have launched 5G services across several cities in India, but users will have to wait to access 5G on their phones. Most smartphones, across brands and price bands, await crucial software updates that will allow users to upgrade to 5G.
Published on Oct 11, 2022 11:49 PM IST
Vishal Mathur, New Delhi
Sony SRS-XG300 is still inclined towards a party, but is a more polished bundle
The XG300 succeeds the larger XG500 speaker in the portfolio, but Sony’s refinements have crucially made this speaker more versatile for a variety of music
Published on Oct 10, 2022 01:16 PM IST
Expanding 5G network coverage across urban centres likely by early next year
It is likely to take at least till early 2023 for widespread coverage of 5G networks across India’s urban centres, and perhaps up to two years for the rest of the country
Published on Oct 08, 2022 11:24 AM IST
GoPro Hero11 Black is proof how vital upgrades can elicit maximum impact
The biggest changes that GoPro Hero11 Black action camera brings to the table are the updated stabilization mode, a larger sensor and improved photo resolution
Published on Oct 06, 2022 09:37 AM IST
Apple MacBook Pro 13 proves chip upgrades are exciting, when much else isn’t
The returning 13-inch MacBook Pro takes a big step forward on performance. But by clinging to an older design, some niceties will likely be missed
Published on Oct 04, 2022 04:01 PM IST
India may clock 100 million 5G users in 2023 as FWA evolves home broadband
FWA will be bring 5G connectivity to homes, by creating a home Wi-Fi network. Reliance Jio has already spoken about such a product being in the works, called JioAirFiber
Published on Oct 03, 2022 10:37 AM IST
Vi, CareGame try to prove relevance of cloud gaming as Google Stadia exits
Google has confirmed that the Stadia cloud gaming service will shut down on January 18, 2023, while Vi has announced the first ever Mobile Cloud Gaming service in India in partnership with CareGame
Published on Oct 01, 2022 04:14 PM IST
DTH counters dipping subscriptions: Games, smart homes and OTT dictate agenda
Rising costs of paying for TV channels, largely due to the current tariff order which has complicated package structures too, is one of the reasons for DTH services facing the heat
Updated on Sep 30, 2022 07:35 PM IST
Why is Mozilla so angry with Apple, Google, and Microsoft?
There is concern that while Windows, Android and iOS platforms do not force a default browser choice on users, the way to the alternatives isn’t as well lit up as it should be.
Updated on Sep 30, 2022 07:22 PM IST
Card tokenisation will the change the way you shop or pay online, and safer too
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guidelines which come into effect from October 1, will prevent any online platform and payment gateways from saving any credit card details in their absolute form
Published on Sep 29, 2022 11:05 AM IST
Wi-Fi 7 is coming, and it goes much beyond just theoretical speed upgrades
The previous standards, Wi-Fi 6 and the step up, the Wi-Fi 6E, were released in 2019 and 2021 respectively. It is expected that the standard will be referred to as 802.11be, succeeding 802.11ax
Published on Sep 27, 2022 03:18 PM IST
Can this Google TV be the underdog in affordable big screen smart TV battles?
If you’re in the market for a big screen TV without having to part with a lot of your money, your choices would usually revolve around Android TVs from brands (better known for their smartphones) including Xiaomi and OnePlus
Published on Sep 23, 2022 02:02 PM IST
Apple Watch Series 8 Review: Evolution at its best, piece by piece
If you see the evolution of the Apple Watch, at least over the last 3 years, it’s all been about improving things where improvement was needed, while leaving the rest as is
Published on Sep 22, 2022 12:35 PM IST
Sony WH-1000XM5 have matured with age, which shouldn’t come as a surprise
The competition landscape for the Sony WH-1000XM5 ( ₹26,990) includes the Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless ( ₹34,990) and Bose’s latest QuietComfort 45 ( ₹32,990)
Updated on Sep 21, 2022 01:02 PM IST
If you want to splurge on an Apple iPhone 14, think of it as an iPhone 13s
The camera system has been tweaked (there’s an upgraded sensor for the main camera), even though the troika remains 12-megapixel each
Published on Sep 20, 2022 10:40 AM IST
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max Review: Early adoption of the Dynamic Island lifestyle
The iPhone 14 Pro phones have a smidgen more premium attached to the price tags and cost upwards of ₹1,29,900. The Android competition starts with Samsung’s Galaxy S22 Ultra, priced ₹1,00,999 onwards
Updated on Sep 19, 2022 01:42 PM IST
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro makes a strong case to splurge on a “Pro” smartwatch
There’s something very likeable about the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, which had us reach for it more than the Galaxy Watch 5, most times
Published on Sep 19, 2022 11:16 AM IST