Mahindra launches XUV 500 at a killer price

Mahindra has launched its new global sport utility vehicle XUV 500 at a staggering price of Rs 10.80 lakhs. The company will begin bookings from Saturday.

• Mahindra has launched its new global sport utility vehicle XUV 500 at a staggering price of Rs 10.80 lakhs. The company will begin bookings from Saturday.

Amazon’s Kindle fire launched for $199

Bangalore: Amazon launched its much awaited Kindle fire tablet for $199, the latest--and possibly biggest--challenger to Apple Inc.'s dominant iPad.The $199 device that will run on modified version of Google's Android operating system has a 7-inch screen nd can access Amazon's app store, streaming movies and TV shows.

The tablet will go on sale from Nov 15 and the pre-orders will start from today.

Amazon's CEO Jeff Bezos said, "We asked ourselves, Is there some way we can bring all of these things together [web service, Prime, Kindle, instant video and its app store] into a remarkable product offering customers would love. Yes there is Kindle Fire," during the launch.

The cheapest new Kindle will cost $79, and dispenses with the keyboard the Kindles have carried since the first model launched in 2007. Previously, the cheapest Kindle cost $114.

Amazon is also bringing out the first black-and-white Kindle with a touch screen. It will cost $99 and is reminiscent of Barnes & Noble's latest Nook. A version with access to AT&T's cellular network for book downloads will cost $149.

Bezos said that most of the content is backed up in the cloud, and that the device features wireless synching. The specifications are however lower when compared to higher end tablets in the category. Though it has a dual core processor and is 3G enabled, it lacks other features like camera and a microphone. Fire includes an IPS display, an ultra-wide viewing angle, and fast dual-core processor

On the e-reader front, Bezos said the Kindle Touch e-book includes an advanced E Ink display, infrared touch interface, extra long battery life, access to millions of e-books, free storage in the Amazon Cloud, Audible integration, and more, including a feature known as X-Ray, which shows the "bones" of a book, or details Amazon thinks a reader would find interesting.

It would be interesting to see how it survives in an already crowded tablet market. So far Apple's iPad has been the most popular tablet for its ease of use, elegant design and selection of over 90,000 apps. The iPad has sold 29 million versions since its introduction, owning more than two-thirds of the market.

So far, iPad rivals like HP's touchpad, Research in Motion's Playbook, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.'s Galaxy Tab and Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc.'s Xoom have failed to attract mass audiences.

For Amazon, its relationships with its users could be its biggest advantage and also the smart pricing might help them.

Less famous star kids

Don't mistake him for Ranbir Kapoor. Boney Kapoor's son Arjun has a striking resemblance to Ranbir. Arjun Kapoor is 20, and is interested in working behind the camera like his dad.

Jackie Shroff's son Tiger Shroff is set to debut in Sajid Nadiadwala’s next film.

Malhar -Nana Patekar's son.

Harshwardhan Kapoor - Anil Kapoor's son.

Mimoh Chakraborty - Mithun Chakraborty's son.

1. Don't mistake him for Ranbir Kapoor. Boney Kapoor's son Arjun has a striking resemblance to Ranbir. Arjun Kapoor is 20, and is interested in working behind the camera like his dad.

2. Jackie Shroff's son Tiger Shroff is set to debut in Sajid Nadiadwala’s next film.

3. After Sonakshi, her elder brothers - twins Luv and Kush Sinha - too are going to hit the big screen.

4. After Akshaye andRahul, Vinod Khanna is readying to launch his teenage son Sakshi (from his second marriage) in Bollywood.

5. Zeenat Aman with her son Azaan.

6. Malhar -Nana Patekar's son.

7. Siddhant Kapoor - Shakthi Kapoor's son.

8. Chiranjeev- Ranjeet's son

9. Vivaan Shah -Naseeruddin Shah's son

10. Harshwardhan Kapoor - Anil Kapoor's son.

1. Don't mistake him for Ranbir Kapoor. Boney Kapoor's son Arjun has a striking resemblance to Ranbir. Arjun Kapoor is 20, and is interested in working behind the camera like his dad.

2. Jackie Shroff's son Tiger Shroff is set to debut in Sajid Nadiadwala’s next film.

3. After Sonakshi, her elder brothers - twins Luv and Kush Sinha - too are going to hit the big screen.

4. After Akshaye andRahul, Vinod Khanna is readying to launch his teenage son Sakshi (from his second marriage) in Bollywood.

5. Zeenat Aman with her son Azaan.

6. Malhar -Nana Patekar's son.

7. Siddhant Kapoor - Shakthi Kapoor's son.

8. Chiranjeev- Ranjeet's son

9. Vivaan Shah -Naseeruddin Shah's son

10. Harshwardhan Kapoor - Anil Kapoor's son.

1. Don't mistake him for Ranbir Kapoor. Boney Kapoor's son Arjun has a striking resemblance to Ranbir. Arjun Kapoor is 20, and is interested in working behind the camera like his dad.

2. Jackie Shroff's son Tiger Shroff is set to debut in Sajid Nadiadwala’s next film.

3. After Sonakshi, her elder brothers - twins Luv and Kush Sinha - too are going to hit the big screen.

4. After Akshaye andRahul, Vinod Khanna is readying to launch his teenage son Sakshi (from his second marriage) in Bollywood.

5. Zeenat Aman with her son Azaan.

6. Malhar -Nana Patekar's son.

7. Siddhant Kapoor - Shakthi Kapoor's son.

8. Chiranjeev- Ranjeet's son

9. Vivaan Shah -Naseeruddin Shah's son

10. Harshwardhan Kapoor - Anil Kapoor's son

The mystery of Sonia Gandhi’s illness

Why isn't anyone telling us what's wrong with Sonia Gandhi? That's the question an opinion piece in The Hindu is asking after India's most powerful politician returned from a US cancer hospital.
Nirupama Subramaniam writes: "That the Congress should be secretive about Ms Gandhi's health is not surprising. What is surprising, though, is the omertà being observed by the news media, usually described by international writers as feisty and raucous. On this particular issue, reverential is the more fitting description. Barring editorials in the Business Standard and MailToday, no other media organisation has thought it fit to question the secrecy surrounding the health of the government's de facto Number One."
Omerta refers to a 'code of silence', when people in the know conspiratorially refuse to discuss a matter of importance in public.
The Telegraph, UK, quoted sources as saying Sonia had been suffering from cancer for eight months. There is no official word on it yet, and a reclusive Sonia has been busy mediating between Pranab Mukherjee and P Chidambaram on the 2G note controversy.
The law frowns on the unauthorised disclosure of medical details, so why should anyone be curious? Nirupama Subramaniam argues citizens should know, since Sonia's health determines the fortunes of the nation. She writes: "True, politicians are entitled to privacy in matters of health. But this right to privacy cannot hold if it impacts on their work. Ms Gandhi has led the Congress for more than a decade; her party's election victories are credited to her leadership. The argument that Ms Gandhi does not hold high office, is not the head of the government, and therefore her illness is not a matter of public importance, hardly holds. Since 2004, she has been seen universally as the main power centre in the UPA. Clearly, several matters of national importance ride on her health, including her ability to lead the party into the next election, and the issue of succession in the Congress leadership, should this become necessary. These are not private matters."
In the absence of an aggressive tabloid culture, details of politicians' illnesses don't quickly make it to the headlines in India. But many celebrities use their situation to draw attention to a disease, and canvass for research. After a horseriding accident that left him confined to a wheelchair, actor Christopher Reeve campaigned on behalf of people with spinal cord injuries.
NewsX reported Sonia has a benign skin cancer, and no dire illness. Squamous skin cancer, a doctor who came on the show said, is common in the West, and is handled easily. Manmohan Singh, Vajpayee and other leaders have also benefited, says The Hindu, from the omerta of the press.
In India, several politicians have thrived even when they were in physical distress. Jayaprakash Narayan inspired the movement against the Emergency from a hospital bed, while M G Ramachandran and M Karunanidhi, both crippled by severe diseases, have ruled Tamil Nadu well into their late years. Rajinikanth recently came back from Singapore, and his problem remains undisclosed to this day, but his fans remain steadfast.
The question of whether it is ethical to publish details of a newsmaker's illnesses remains, but the illness itself is no big deal in India. Politicians have such tenacity that they can swing things in the world out there even when they lie motionless in hospital beds or sit breathless in wheelchairs.
While the media in India may hush up problems afflicting our leaders, The Telegraph, UK, shows no confusion when it comes to medical stories. Late last week, it published this story with a heading guaranteed to startle those used to the feeble medical coverage in the Indian papers: Shoaib Akhtar's genital warts keep him out of Pakistan's World Twenty20 squad.

Mopeds and Scooterettes

If the metal bodied scooters have fallen out of the consumers' choice, scooterettes have been climbing up the popularity charts lately. These set of two wheelers are a hit among people over the age group of 45, women and the young adults. These two wheelers are lighter which makes them easier to handle, they come with a digital ignition system to do away with the inconvenience of the kick start.

They also have smaller wheels for better balance and maneuverability. They cater to the load carrying and personal transport requirement of most urban two wheeler user.scooterettes and moped segment amount for a quarter of the two wheeler market share in India and about 8% of all the exports which takes place from the country. One company which has remained in the forefront of scooterettes and mopeds manufacturing in the country is TV Sundram Iyengar and Sons Limited (TVS), they were the first to launch an indigenous scooterettes in the Sub 100 cc category in the year 1984. Incidentally the company had also launched a two-seater 50 cc moped in the year 1980.

HondaMotorcycle and scooter India Limited

However it was not until the entry of HondaMotorcycle and scooter India Limited in the late 90s which revolutionized the un-geared scooter market in the country. The entry of HondaActiva brought about a much needed change in the scooterettes and moped market in the country though the latter can't strictly be included in this category. The market then had not seen any significant change for about 10 years till the time Hondahad come in with its' set of two wheelers.

Now most of the two wheeler companies like Bajaj Auto, Hondamotors, Kinetic motors have their presence in the scooterettes segment.

Mopeds were first manufactured in the country by automobile Products of India in the year 1955. Nearly three decades later the first indigenous two-seater moped was rolled out of the TVS factory in Hosur, Tamil Nadu. mopeds have also seen a downward trend in sales in the recent years. It's because the boys prefer motorcycles to mopeds and girls usually go for a scooterette rather that these metal bodied two-wheelers.

Mopeds are mainly used for commuting by the lower middle class; it is also used as utility vehicle in the rural areas. The looks hardly matter for these less than 100cc set of two wheels; it's the economy factor which comes to the forefront.

Here are the list of some moped manufacturers and their products.

Kinetic Motor

Kinetic V2 range which includes Kinetic V2 XL and Kinetic V2 80
Kinetic King 100 and Kinetic King Dlx
Kinetic Luna Super
Kinetic Luna TFR

TVS Motor

TVS XL which includes TVS XL Super and TVS XL Super Heavy Duty
With the motorcycles becoming more fuel efficient with every passing day the moped might see a further dip in the sales in the days to come.

Michelle Obama's 'just relax' tips for to-be diners with hubby Barack

 Michelle Obama has tipped to-be diners with husband Barack 'to relax' and enjoy the occasion.

The US President is holding fundraisers besides mailing his supporters to contribute at least three dollars each in a bid to reach a financial goal for the third quarter.

"Not everyone knows how to prepare for a dinner like this. As someone who's eaten countless meals with my husband, I want to tell you the one thing to do if you're selected to join him..." Politico quoted her as saying.

"Just relax. Barack wants this dinner to be fun, and he really loves getting to know supporters like you.

"I hope you'll take him up on it before Friday's (Sept 30) deadline.

"Will you donate 3 dollars or more today and be entered to have dinner with Barack?" she said.

She also admitted that the dinner would be special to the President too, as he'll get to interact with the people who are helping the campaign turn successful.

"These dinners mean a lot to Barack. They're a chance for him to talk with a few of the people who are driving the campaign - and a chance for him to say thank you," she added.

World War II shipwreck full of silver discovered

When the SS Gairsoppa was torpedoed by a German U-boat, it took its huge silver cargo to a watery grave. Seventy years later, US divers said they are working to recover what may well be the biggest shipwreck haul ever.

• The SS Gairsoppa had emergency stern steering which included a stern compass on the top of the poop deck. The binnacle housing the stern compass of the SS Gairsoppa shines in the lights of Odyssey’s Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) during a visual inspection of the site approximately 4,700 meters deep.
• The SS Gairsoppa was sunk by torpedo from a German U-boat U-101 in 1941 during World War II. Odyssey’s ROV inspection of the wreck site revealed the torpedo hole in the area in which the U-boat Captain’s log reported the ship was struck.