Turkish Airlines’ Passengers to Enjoy Special Headsets

IN line with its commitment to offer its passengers across the world high-tech entertainment experience, Turkish Airlines has decided to offer a special headset to its economy class (EC) passengers on long-haul flights.

According to the airline, by continuously aiming to further increase the passenger satisfaction, the airline offers a state-of-the-art headset to its economy class passengers on their long haul flights.

As a starting point, the airline said the new service will be effective in all United States flights as from March 30, 2017 and will also be effective for all long haul flights of Turkish Airlines as from May, this year.

“The passengers will feel more comfortable by experiencing this high quality headset, specially designed for long flight hours,” the airline said in a statement.

Also, “By taking the advantage of this headset on long haul flights of the airline, the passengers will also be able to uninterruptedly enjoy the awarded in-flight entertainment system, Planet, includes a wide variety of entertainment options for all preferences.”

With the service, Turkish Airlines said it continues to improve its inflight offerings –just as the other various services– in order to make its passengers feel more special and valued throughout the flight.

 

Communication Minister Launches InsuranceMarket Trading Portal

AN insurance trading portal, insurancemarket.ng developed to deepen insurance penetration in the country has been launched by the Minister of Communications, Barrister Adebayo Shittu in Lagos.

 

The an online market, the latest in the nation’s fast growing e-commerce sector was unveiled by the Minister before key stakeholders in the insurance and the ICT industry at an event, tagged: E-Insurance Conference, 2017 and with the theme: “Driving Insurance Penetration With ICT”.

 

According to Shittu, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) remains the panacea for harnessing and deepening insurance penetration in Nigeria, saying that the official launch of insurancemarket.ng by Pinet Informatics Limited will provide support for the sector, just like ICT has done for the financial institutions.

 

He said that the Insurance sector despite being a major driver of business growth that provides a critical support system to the financial market has not fared well given the current size of the Nigerian economy and population.

 

“Information available to me indicates that there are less than 1.5 million insurance policyholders, representing a paltry 0.9% of a population of well over 170 million citizens. Similarly, the gross premium of the sector is said to be less than 500 billion naira, implying that the sector contributes less than 1% to national GDP”, he said.

 

He said, InsuranceMarket will be expand market activities in the insurance sector explaining that it will improved operational efficiency(including smooth communication between clients and company officials), office automation and optimisation, digital marketing and online marketplace for assessment and purchase of insurance packages.

 

Shittu said, in other climes, e-insurance has already been fully adopted and various insurance products can be obtained through online insurance portals, which are programmed to tailor unique insurance packages to the distinctive individual requirements of prospective customers.

 

Some aspects of insurance that have been adapted to e-Insurance, he added, include auto and car insurance, health insurance, home insurance and life insurance.

The minister who was delighted with the organisers of the conference promised that government will continue to introduce and drive policies that will propel Nigeria to attain the status of a knowledge-based nation.

 

Managing Director, Mutual Benefits Assurance, Mr. Segun Omosehin described the idea of using ICT to drive insurance penetration as a worth initiative saying that patronage of insurance by Nigerians has been very low.

 

He said that the business of underwriting in the insurance market needs ICT to deepen insurance penetration in the country adding that the launch of insurnacemarket.ng will promote the insurance industry in Nigeria.

 

Also speaking at the event, Managing Director, Brightways Insurance Brokers, Mrs. Nike Braimoh said that the use of ICT to grow the industry in the country was long over-due because of the impact of mobile telephone in the growth of other sectors in the economy.

 

She said that it now possible through insurancemarket.ng for anyone to buy  insurance product from any part of the country noting that this new method will benefit the brokers a lot.

 

Earlier in his welcome address, Managing Director of Pinet Informatics, Engineer Lanre Ajayi, and the convener of the conference said that the Conference was to drive home need for technology and insurance sectors collaboration to drive penetration.

Ajayi said that they saw the gap and came up with the initiative so that successes recorded in the telecommunications sector can be replicated in Insurance industry.

This he said requires “Policy consistency- this has worked in stabilizing telecommunications industry.

Samsung Unveils Galaxy S8 Featuring Artificial Intelligence

 AFTER severe setback last year following the crisis of its smartphone, Galaxy S7, Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, has shock the entire mobile device market with the introduction of an Artificial Intelligence smartphone, Galaxy S8 flagship smartphone.
 

The latest device launch which signaled the retaking of its  market leadership it lost to Apple Incorporated was unveiled yesterday in New York City, and viewed life in Lagos, Nigeria by a select group of technology journalist, which included top celebrities entertainers, Banky W and Seyi law as well as publisher of Today’s Woman, Adesuwa Onyenokwe.

The Galaxy S8 enters the market bubbling with of a 6.2-inch (15.75 cm) and 5.8-inch curved screens- the largest to date for Samsung's premium smartphones.

The South Korean technology company's latest device has the largest wrap-around screens ever made, and with two versions of the Galaxy S8, code-named Dream internally.

Expected to go on sale on April 21 in New York and early May in Nigeria, the S8 features Samsung's new artificial intelligence service, Bixby, with functions including a voice-commanded assistant system.

There is also a new facial recognition application that lets users unlock their phones by looking at them and also boast of a new voice assistant and larger display.

The device two models comes with different screen sizes - the 5.8-inch Galaxy S8 and 6.2-inch Galaxy S8 Plus as well as some of the key features such as the "infinity display", giving the device a bezel-less curved edge and a 12 megapixel back camera. 

The South Korean electronics giant also unveiled a new feature called Dex. It's a device that users can dock a Galaxy S8 on, then plug into a monitor or TV, effectively turning it into a PC. It runs a version of Google's Android operating system optimised for a larger screen. Samsung also said several apps such as Google's YouTube were optimised for the bigger screen.

Samsung also used its launch event to unveil a new Gear 360 camera which allows users to film 360-degree video and broadcast this to sites such as YouTube or Facebook. It's the firm's second generation version of the device, as it pushes further into virtual reality and keep users locked into Samsung's ecosystem of devices.

More exciting about this flagship smartphone from the Korean phone maker giant company is its slim design and barely-there bezels to its eye-catching display and biometric security features, this is undoubtedly one of the best smartphones money can buy right now.

The new device has an all-glass body, and is slim and long compared to most modern smartphones, designed to be held in one hand while the physical Home button has been removed, and replaced with a pressure-sensitive panel placed underneath the screen, so that the front of the device is a sheer pane of glass.

The fingerprint reader is now located on the back of the phone, next to the camera module, and is designed to be used with an index finger rather than a thumb. The phone also supports iris scanning for added security.

The Galaxy S8 boasts the industry's first 10nm chip, which Samsung claims enable heightened speed and efficiency. It also contains 6GB RAM and 64GB of in-built storage, expandable up to 256GB with a MicroSD card.

The Galaxy S8 is also the world's first mobile device certified by the UHD Alliance as "Mobile HDR Premium", meaning it lets you see the vibrant colours and contrasts that filmmakers intended while watching your favourite shows.

Shortly before the unveiling of the device, the company's mobile chief D.J. Koh said:  "We must be bold enough to step into the unknown and humble enough to learn from our mistakes", acknowledging that it had been a challenging year for Samsung.

Samsung May Recapture Market with Galaxy S8

CONSIDERING the amazing features, which the Samsung Galaxy S8 parades, there are indications that the device, which will be launched tomorrow at the Unpack Event across the globe including Nigeria,  may just be one strategic moves of reclaiming its position in the smartphone market. 

 

The Samsung Galaxy S7 was almost everything we hoped for, but while it may have scored five stars in our in-depth review, there's always room for improvement for the next Galaxy.

Based on the sheer volume of rumors, leaks and teases so far we're confident we'll see some significant improvements with the Samsung Galaxy S8.

The headline features point to a larger 5.8-inch display with an elongated 18.5:9 aspect ratio, but with a similar body size to the S7 with Samsung opting to reduce the bezels above and below the screen.

That will be partly achieved by removing the iconic physical home button from the front of phone, shifting the fingerprint scanner to the rear of the Galaxy S8 and introducing 3D Touch-esque pressure sensing tech under the screen to provide a home button experience.

The new Galaxy S8 will even pack an iris scanner, providing another secure way of unlocking the handset and potentially authorizing payments - we fear it won't be as speedy, or as user friendly, as the trusty digit reader though.

There is some talk of a dual-lens camera, but it looks more likely that the Galaxy S8 will stick with a 12MP sensor on the back - although the front snapper could be bumped to 8MP.

Samsung has confirmed that its new AI assistant, called Bixby, will take on Apple's Siri and Google's own Assistant on the Galaxy S8. Oh, and there's good news for audiophiles - it looks like you'll get a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Truecaller, Google Bring Innovation into Video Calling

TRUECALLER has gone into a strategic agreement with Google to integrate Google Duo, a high quality video calling service, within the Truecaller app. This will add a crucial communications layer that strengthens the value of Truecaller's wildly popular dialer, caller ID, and spam blocking app already used by more than 250 million users globally.

 

The Google Duo integration into Truecaller  is expected to bring all-in-one communications app to millions, as Truecaller app adds new messaging and SMS blocking features.

Along with news of this integration, Truecaller said it has a completely new redesign of the Android app, and now with a broader array of useful features including: Instantly see who's SMS'ing you and filter out all spam messages. Spam SMS account for 15% of all SMS messages sent globally, and represents 1.2 trillion spam messages each year.

Flash Messaging: which allows the user to send quick pre-defined messages to any Truecaller user to let them know if you're in distress, you're on your way, your location, or that you've reached home.

Co-founder and CSO of Truecaller, Nami Zarringhalam, said: "From the very beginning we have worked relentlessly to build a product that helps simplify communications for consumers across the globe, and help them address important needs such knowing the identity of those calling, and blocking unwanted numbers.”

He said that with valuable partners like Google, “we are excited to take the next step in our journey, bringing all your mobile communications under one roof and giving you the safest, most efficient, and most convenient experience possible without having to switch back and forth."

Head of Duo at Google, Amit Fulay noted that, "Video calling should work for everybody, regardless of what platform they are on. Our aim is to make video calling simple, fast, and available to everyone," said "With this Truecaller integration, we're able to bring a better video calling experience to millions of new users."

The new look and feel of Truecaller is consistent with its ongoing commitment to provide a safe and efficient experience for millions of mobile users who've become increasingly frustrated by the growing problem of spam calls and texts from unknown users. 

Now as one of the fastest growing mobile apps in the world, Truecaller sits at the center of your mobile phone experience helping you connect with the people who matter, in the way you want to communicate, while avoiding calls and texts from those you don't.

Google Duo is a simple video calling app that takes the complexity out of video calling. The service has been built to be fast and reliable, with a single button push for connecting with other users.

Truecaller integration with Google Duo will be available in the coming months for Android and iOS as a permission-based service, where users will be able to opt-in and out at any time.