ZeroZero Calling cards : Mobile Add-on that cut international call cost

UK Company Vectone has launched its new service called the ZeroZero Calling card.

ZeroZero is been called the future of the mobile industry. ZeroZero comes with a new call routing gadget that gives users the option to make calling card rate, cheap international calls from their mobile. Its simply a mobile add-on that cut the cost of international phone calls.

This device simply fits between a user's mobile phone and the existing SIM card and recognizes when the user dials an international number. In simple language, whenever you dial a local number or a national number then your call is routed via your normal telecom provider but when you dial a International number, ZeroZero recognizes it and the number is routed via ZeroZero thus bypassing your telecom provider (what it does is dial a local access number and then connect to international number via ZeroZero). Vectone is banking on the service to attract contract users with free minutes in their bundle to use them in conjunction with ZeroZero to get low rate international calls.

This way you simple save a lot of your international phone bills as you are charged by ZeroZero and the call cost are very cheap.

• Your Zerozero card automatically activates as soon as you make an international call.
  provided you have topped-up your ZeroZero SIM. To top-up, call #123 and
  following the instructions. You can also top online.
• ZeroZero reduces costs for international voice calls only, not SMS. ZeroZero will only work on your home network - you should disable it when calling from abroad.

ZeroZero is compatible with

NOKIA:
N95, N70, E61, E66, 6300, 1208

MOTOROLA:
W156

LG:
KE970, KP100, KP500

SAMSUNG:
SGH-E820, SGH-400, F210

SONY ERICSSON:
K720i, T280i

Now talking about the call rates of ZeroZero calling card by Vectone. The call rates are very cheap compared to other calling options. The call rate to India is just 1 pence per min.

To make calls to Pakistan you have to spend just 5 pence per minute. Too many other countries call rates is 1 pence per min.

You can buy ZeroZero online now: For just £10.99 you will get
£10 of ZeroZero calling credit
1 x free ZeroZero SIM (worth £4.99)
Postage and packaging @ £0.99

Well according to me a great deal for people who make international calls, and prefer phone to phone dialing. This device removes the need for dialing access numbers, very easy to install and very easy to use. Overall a great mobile add-on.

READ MORE - ZeroZero Calling cards : Mobile Add-on that cut international call cost

Iriver P7 (16GB)

Iriver P7 (16GB) measures 4.5 inches across, 3 inches tall, and a relatively svelte 0.5 inch thick. The overall form is more pocket friendly than the chunkier design of the Cowon O2, feeling more like an Archos 5 with a shrunken screen. The majority of Iriver P7 (16GB) is operated using touch screen control, however, you'll find teeny, tiny buttons for power, menu, and volume on the top edge of the player. Iriver P7 (16GB)'s headphone jack is on the right edge, along with a hold switch, and a microSD memory slot covered by a plastic door.

While the P7's hardware looks like it takes a few cues from Apple, the touch screen interface is entirely unique. Iriver appropriately describes the main menu screen as magazine like, laying out each of the player's functions on a single screen, compartmentalized into an attractive arrangement of boxes. If you're accustomed to scrolling though menus, Iriver P7 (16GB)'s Mondrian esque layout takes a little time to grow on you.

After spending some time with it, we can't say the layout offers any practical advantages, but it's a pleasant break from the norm. Once you dial down into Iriver P7 (16GB)'s music and photo menus, the single page interface of the main menu eventually gives way to a more common list view. Unlike the iPod Touch's smooth, swift, and responsive song lists, sorting through your music on Iriver P7 (16GB) requires patience and a precise touch on a slim graphical scroll bar.

If you plan on storing a large music collection on Iriver P7 (16GB), prepare for some navigation frustration. The P7 is easy on the eyes, but the features are nothing to write home about. Despite the movie worthy 4.3 inch screen with a 480x272 resolution, video really isn't the P7's strong suit. On paper, support for formats such as AVI, MP4, WMV, MPG, FLV, XVID, H.264, and a handful of others, makes Iriver P7 (16GB)'s video capabilities seem very impressive.

In practice, however, we found that Iriver P7 (16GB) didn't offer the kind of drag and drop video format and resolution flexibility we've seen from competitors such as the Cowon O2 or Archos 605 WiFi. Just like the smaller screened Samsung P3 or Iriver SPINN, we found ourselves spending extra time converting the videos we wanted to watch on Iriver P7 (16GB) using the included software. Power users and the patient minded may be able to put up with Iriver P7 (16GB)'s particular video requirements, but people looking for drag and drop simplicity should look elsewhere.

In spite of our complaints about the sluggish, unfriendly design of Iriver P7 (16GB)'s music menu navigation, the audio capabilities of the P7 are arguably the best feature of the device. Iriver P7 (16GB) supports MP3, WMA, FLAC, WAV, and OGG file formats, along with album artwork and lyrics, but leaves out the AAC format critical for playing back music purchased from iTunes. Songs are listed in either an ID3 tag sort (Album, Artist, Genre, Playlist) or presented as the user's own custom list of folders.

Once a song is playing, you can apply custom or preset EQ (there's also some nice SRS WOW HD enhancement settings), change the playback mode (shuffle, repeat, etc.), rate the song on a five star scale, and even view song lyric information embedded within the file's ID3 tag. There are also settings for bookmarking, looping, or saving files to a custom playlist. Between Iriver P7 (16GB) and the similarly priced Cowon O2, we're a little torn when it comes to each player's audio capabilities.

Neither device shines in terms of touch screen menu navigation, but we suspect the O2's AAC support is more important than its lack of ID3 song sorting (some will surely disagree). Iriver P7 (16GB) features, such as the FM radio and text reader, are nice to have, but unexceptional. The photo viewer, like most aspects of Iriver P7 (16GB), is a little sluggish. At best, transitions between photographs take 3 seconds to complete, and the image browser uses the same tiny, tedious scroll bar found on the music player.

READ MORE - Iriver P7 (16GB)

Reliable calling offers 1 cent per minute to India

Though betamax companies are increasing their call rates to India, however we have found some alternatives for you. We promise you won't have to pay much for making voip calls to India.

Just like AirtelCallhome and Reliance India Call, Reliable Calling is offering 1 cent per minute calls to India. Reliable calling works just like other calling card providers like Airtel, Reliance, Trueroots. These are Phone to Phone calls which can be made dialing the toll free access number or the local access numbers.



Lets talk about the Calling plans offered by Reliable Calling.

Monthly Plan

The Monthly Plan is an exclusive offer where you can enjoy great Talk time for a period of 30 days. Subscribe to this plan with $9.99 which includes rental charges of $3.99, for the remaining $ 6, you get 600 mins at 1cent/min using local access number and 260 mins using Toll Free access number. Effective rate comes down to just 1.6 cents per minute (and this is Phone to Phone calling rates).

Refunds: No refund of talk time value, rental or plan value will be entertained under any circumstances.

Any talk time value left after expiry of validity will be automatically forfeited.

FortNight Plan

The Fortnight Plan is an exclusive offer where you can enjoy great Talk time for a period of 14 days. Subscribe to this plan with $7.99 which includes rental charges of $3.99, for the remaining $ 4, you get 400 mins at 1cent/min using local access number and 200 mins using Toll Free access number.

The calling rate to India in both the plans is 1 cent per minute however the effective calling rate is bit high (though the effective rate is also not much).

Some other features of Reliable Calling.

• Your Call is routed to India using ILD providers.
• Your caller id will be passed to the destination phone in India.
• Lowest calling rate in the Industry
• Quality calling at most competitive rates with no hidden cost
• 60 seconds rounding
• No Connection Fees
  

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SmartVoip, ActionVoip increases call rates to India

Few days back we blogged about ActionVoip and SmartVoip the betamax, companies offering cheapest calls to India.

These voip companies brought a kind of revolution in India calling plans with offering call rates as low as .7cent per minute to India. But the betamax is known for the rate fluctuations and that is the reason many people don't prefer these services. Again the betamax has done same thing.

SmartVoip and ActionVoip have increased their calling rates to India. However the calling rate is still lower than 1 cent, and still these companies hold the title of cheapest voip provider to India.

Let me put forward the latest calling rates to India.

SMARTVOIP
India (Landline) $0.009 (that's .9 cent per minute)
India (Mobile) $0.009 (that's .9 cent per minute).

ACTIONVOIP
India (Landline) $0.009 (that's .9 cent per minute)
India (Mobile) $0.013 (1.3 cents per min).

The calling procedure remain the same, you can either make Pc to Phone calls or Phone to Phone calls using SIP. But the question arises whether you should continue with betamax or look for some other option.

In my opinion it depends, if you make less calls then better stay with betamax (buy the minimum amount, so if you loose the loss is less). But if you make lot of calls to India then choose other cheap voip providers like Nymgo for making cheap calls to India.

READ MORE - SmartVoip, ActionVoip increases call rates to India

Canon PowerShot A590 IS

As with previous PowerShot A-cameras, Canon built Canon PowerShot A590 IS around a large, bright, flexible lens. The 35 to 140mm equivalent, f/2.6 to f/5.5 lens offers a slightly longer reach and wider aperture than the 3x, f/2.8 lenses found in most compact cameras. It incorporates Canon's Optical Image Stabilization system, which shifts lens elements to help reduce image shake.

The camera can also accept conversion lenses with an optional adapter that fits over the base of the original lens. Unfortunately, the adapter retails for about $25, and conversion lenses retail for $100 or more, so outfitting your A590 IS with wide and or telephoto conversion lenses can cost almost as much as the camera itself. Skilled photographers will appreciate the camera's myriad controls and options.

Like other PowerShot A-series cameras, it offers program, aperture priority, shutter priority, and full manual exposure control modes. Of course, if you don't want to use any of those features, you can still shoot in the automatic mode, or with the camera's several scene presets. Finally, the camera adds a new "Easy" mode, which further simplifies and automates the interface. Slow shot to shot speed hindered Canon PowerShot A590 IS's otherwise very quick performance.

After a 1.8 second wait from power on to first shot, the camera could capture a new picture once every 2.3 seconds with the flash disabled. With the flash turned on, that wait more than doubled to an anguishing 5.2 seconds. Burst mode further disappointed, capturing 9 full resolution shots in 11.2 seconds for a rate of 0.8 frames per second. On the other hand, its shutter performed admirably, lagging a scant 0.45 seconds with our high contrast target and an even more impressive 0.7 seconds with our low contrast target.

Whether you shoot in low light or outside on a sunny day, you can expect the camera to grab the shot quickly, and then leave you waiting a few seconds before you can shoot again. Last year, the Sony Cyber shot DSC-T100 wowed us with its remarkably crisp picture quality. Though the A590 IS retails for far less than that camera, it manages to produce photos that are nearly on a par with those from the T100.

While the A590 IS's automatic white balance does a great job for a camera in its price range, it's not quite as good as the automatic white balance in the T100. The A590 IS does a good job of neutralizing colors shot under incandescent light, but leaves a hint of warmth. It also leaves more of a green cast than we'd like to see on a camera like this when shooting under fluorescent lighting.

Its tungsten setting did a wonderful job of neutralizing our very yellow tungsten hot lights. While noise remains extremely low from ISO 80 to 200, we did see some noise even at the camera's lowest sensitivity setting. Still, at these lower ISOs pictures look very good for a camera of this price, and fine textures such as fabric and fur appear consistently crisp. Noise becomes prominent at ISO 400, though details still come through clearly.

Like most compact cameras, Canon PowerShot A590 IS produces significant grain at ISO 800 and its maximum of ISO 1,600, covering the picture and damaging details with a fuzzy sheen. Overall, Canon PowerShot A590 IS produces very nice images and can even yield usable small prints at ISO 800, which is impressive for a camera of its class.

READ MORE - Canon PowerShot A590 IS