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BSNL 4G Network Comes to Life as Minister Makes First Call
Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G Review: Power With Beauty
OTT Predictions for the Coming Year
Airtel, Jio Smartphone Offers Might Not be Enough, Let’s Talk
Jio, Airtel, and Vi Couldn’t Deliver True 4G, It’s Not Their Fault Though

BSNL 4G Network Comes to Life as Minister Makes First Call

Posted: 10 Oct 2021 09:58 AM PDT

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is soon expected to compete directly with the likes of Reliance Jio, Vodafone Idea (Vi), and Bharti Airtel in the 4G segment. In a new development, the telecom minister of India, Ashwini Vaishnaw, made a voice call over the 4G network of BSNL. The minister has confirmed the same via a tweet. Vaishnaw said that Narendra Modi's vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat is taking shape. BSNL's 4G network is already live in multiple areas of the country. Further, the state-run telco is also offering a free 4G SIM card to the users until December 31, 2021. It is worth noting that the standalone cost of a BSNL 4G SIM card is just Rs 20, so it is not that big a saving.

When Can BSNL 4G Coverage Across India Come?

It is really hard to say when this will happen. But a few things are already confirmed. First is that, unlike the private telecom operators, BSNL's 4G networks will be made and run through homegrown technology/equipment. This will mean that BSNL's 4G networks might be the safest in the country. The telco had earlier floated the Expression of Interest (EoI) to get proof from the Indian companies that their technology is ready for BSNL to use for 4G. After everything, it is most likely that the 4G tender will go to the Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). BSNL getting into the 4G competition will only mean great things for the Indian market and the telecom sector in general. The rush for coming out with better technologies and services from the telecom companies will increase once BSNL starts providing 4G services in India as well. There's one thing that we can expect from BSNL, and that is great rural 4G coverage. The state-run telco doesn't operate the way private firms do. While profit is a target, the telco doesn't undermine rural areas.

Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G Review: Power With Beauty

Posted: 10 Oct 2021 05:51 AM PDT

The Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G launched a couple of months back in India. The device has been pegged against the likes of the OnePlus 9R, Mi 11X Pro 5G, and the iPhone 11 now. What's interesting about this Oppo smartphone is that this is the first time I have felt like Oppo has tried to focus a lot on the user experience. Mind that I haven't had a lot of experience with the Oppo premium or mid-range smartphones, but the Reno6 series has changed my mind a little about the company's overall focus. The device is very decent. It has a beautiful design, a strong camera performance, improved OS, and a premium feel. However, I will say that it is a little over-priced. Let me tell you everything in detail.

Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G Review: Design

Out of my complete experience with smartphones, I think the Oppo Reno6 series has the most beautiful Android devices in the market. The Reno6 Pro 5G is just a beauty right out of the box. The Reno6 Pro 5G features the Oppo Reno Glow design, which comes with the AG glass at the rear that feels really beautiful and elegant. While the colours are striking and fancy, Oppo has done a good job to not make them look cheap. Oppo

The display is curved for the Reno6 Pro 5G, and it doesn't bum me out, but I don't think the flagships necessarily need to come with a curved display. Anyhow, the speakers, SIM tray, USB Type-C port are at the bottom, while the power button is at the right. The volume rockers are at the left side of the body. Oppo

The camera bump is solid and looks very much like what we saw on the OnePlus 9 series. If you have been dying to hold a strikingly beautiful device, the Reno6 Pro 5G can be a good one for you.

Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G: Performance, Display, and Battery

The Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G comes with a 6.5-inch FHD+ OLED curved display. The only thing I am bummed out about is the lack of support for the 120Hz refresh rate. Sure, the device comes with 90Hz refresh rate support, and that is not bad, but at the price Reno6 Pro 5G is selling at, it should have featured 120Hz refresh rate. All of its direct competitors do that. Further, it is supposed to be the 'Pro' variant, so it is a little hard for me to understand why Oppo would not do that. The display is quite smooth. It is as responsive as I would like it to be. The animations and gestures work very fluently as well. The Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G supports both dark and light modes. I have been using the device in the dark mode, and it is really good. There's also the 'Eye Comfort' mode for people who want to save their eyes from the blue light exposure. There are a host of features that I don't get to see on other smartphones, including the OnePlus devices. The 'Black Screen Mode' and '01 Ultra Vision Engine' are a few of them that can be accessed directly through the drop-down menu. Oppo

Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G is a powerful device. But it is not exactly as powerful as a 'Pro' device should be. The Geekbench scores of Reno6 Pro 5G came out to be 806 for single-core and 2631 for multi-core. 806 for a single core isn't exactly the flagship material that people expect. Its direct competitor, the OnePlus 9R, delivered a single-core score of 938 and a multi-core score of 2961. Regardless, you can play heavy games on this device. It is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 1200 SoC. The variant that I had for review came with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. The Reno6 Pro 5G at the time of review was running on ColorOS V11.3 based on Android 11. Users can increase the RAM by up to 3GB if they have storage available on the device for the same. Multi-tasking won't be an issue with the device; however, I think the battery will be an issue. The Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G's battery drains faster than any other device in the same range that I have used. But the good thing is, it comes with support for 65W fast-charging and packs a 4500mAh battery. You will be able to charge the device in no time. The device does over-heat a little when playing heavy games. So I would suggest avoid using it when charging for longer times. Let's not forget that the Reno6 Pro is a 5G smartphone. It comes with support for eleven 5G bands. This will ensure that the device is future-proof for people purchasing it today. The eleven 5G bands that this smartphone can support are – n1/n3/n5/n7/n8/n28/n38/n40/n41/n77/n78. But the support for 5G has only been restricted to the SIM card slot 1. So you won't be able to use two 5G SIMs on this device.

Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G Review: Camera

Now camera department is where Oppo shows that it has released a 'Pro' device. The Oppo Reno6 Pro clicks crisp pictures that are colour accurate and work superbly even with close up shots. You can record videos at up to 4K 60fps. The camera app is very easy to navigate through. Whether you are a OnePlus or an Oppo user, you won't see a difference in the camera app. The selfie sensor does add auto-beauty, which can be a turn-off for people who want raw images. I am attaching some of the camera shots below.

Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G Review: Price and Conclusion

The Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G is a performer in a true sense. The device looks really good in the hands, but it is even cooler while using. Honestly, the Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G has to be one of the best devices I have ever used. I am someone who is very sceptical about using curved display smartphones. This is because I fear they break easier than the normal flat-screen displays. But I have really enjoyed my time with the Reno6 Pro 5G. The Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G is currently available in a single variant for Rs 39,990 on the official website of the company. Oppo Review

OTT Predictions for the Coming Year

Posted: 10 Oct 2021 02:45 AM PDT

By – Mr. Arjun Bajaj – CEO & Founder Daiwa & Director Videotex The pandemic changed everything in 2020. With people being forced to stay at home with minimal entertainment options, people started a new hobby – streaming content. Research indicates that streaming trends reached a new peak height, with consumption not restricted to any age group. The consumption growth was propelled by frequent lockdowns, new technologies, Internet penetration and most essentially, the many possibilities with the Smart TV. Video content gained importance in the past year, and digital streaming and OTT platforms got a more prominent seat at the table as movies began to be released directly on OTT Platforms. OTT brought the flux of fresh and engaging content. OTT opened new opportunities for the Indian Markets. The popularity of OTT platforms stems from the fact that they offer subscribers limitless and instant access to original high-quality content. Popular OTT providers in India include Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar, Zee5, MX Player, and Voot, among many others. With the dearth of entertainment avenues, an updated library that includes digital premiers and Originals by the OTT players has led to the growing consumption of online content and rising paid subscription. Both 2020 and 2021 has seen a steady rise in the paid subscription. With growing competition, OTT players too have started exploring freemium and bundle models, which has made it affordable to the viewers but instead challenged the profitability for the future. There are about 200 million online video viewers in India currently, which is set to exceed 400 million in the next couple of years. Although the catalyst for the online boom was Reliance Jio, the trend now has wings of its own. Furthermore, the streaming platforms ride on premium internet, i.e. Fibre penetration, to drive high-quality content till the last mile. With that, let's look at some developments in the OTT industry and some trends to watch for in the coming year.

5G will be a game-changer

5G internet shall become standardised like 4G that has settled down. We shall have most users, especially in urban areas on 5G internet. The 5G network is 100 times faster than the 4G LTE network, and this shall reflect the trend. For instance, consumers would pay a premium if 5G content is provided for better video quality. This technology shall also push live sports and event streaming.

OTT Advertising

Along with Netflix, Amazon and the traditional giants of the industry – regional and local players, will have strong momentum. Ad revenues shall see an increase as more and more people begin to use these services. The tectonic shift reflects in the growing competition with new OTT apps being launched in regional languages. With this, OTT Advertising will become more and more critical in the online ads space as well.

Subscription fatigue

There are excessive options in the OTT space both globally and locally. Consumers are now accustomed to subscription-based video services. At the same time, many viewers are becoming increasingly tired of subscribing to multiple apps/devices, etc. With this, we may see increased usage of bundled subscription packages together to create the viewer comfort. We are already witnessing Jio bundling the content providers together against its Internet subscription. This will likely expand in the future.

Rise of OTT Originals

OTT Industry saw a rapid spike in consumption as Lockdown forced everyone to be indoor. This also led to the increase of OTT Originals across content producers. OTT App players have already announced increased spends up to Rs 1900 crore in 2021 for original content, which pulls viewers to pay for the content they consume. Be it the Sacred Games or Mirzapur, OTT platforms are continuously sprucing up their library and have also put regional content in focus.

OTT Video Chat Consumption

This trend would be interesting to explore. Since Cinemas won't be opening any sooner, OTT Video Chat consumption shall bring people to watch movies together on a video chat. This platform intends to bring people together, especially when it's safer to be physically distant. The OTT industry is getting challenging and highly volatile with many developments led by technology. The war is getting intense; innovation in key content & strategy is the need of the hour. Apart from the content, what also differentiates the OTT Platforms is the user experience which can further be enhanced by Smart TVs – enabling a cinematic experience at home.

Airtel, Jio Smartphone Offers Might Not be Enough, Let’s Talk

Posted: 09 Oct 2021 11:02 PM PDT

Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel both now provide users in India with smartphone offers. But they are not enough. Both the private telecom operators are trying to gain a larger market share and also trying to maximise revenues. Reliance Jio's aim is to turn India into a '2G Mukt' country. But in order to do that, there should be an ultra-affordable 4G smartphone available. The JioPhone offers are good, but they are not what everyone wants. Most people today don't want a feature device anymore, regardless of it being cheap. The JioPhone Next offer from Reliance Jio should help a little, but just to what extent it will benefit the country is something that remains to be seen.

Bharti Airtel Smartphone Offer Won't Help in Converting 2G/3G Customers to 4G

Just like the JioPhone offer from Reliance Jio couldn't convert India into a '2G Mukt' country, the smartphone offer from Bharti Airtel won't help in doing the same. Airtel's offer is mainly geared towards maximising revenues for the company. This is because Airtel is pushing subscribers to recharge with at least Rs 249 plan or more and get a smartphone for doing the same. Because of the costs involved, the low-income customers who are on 2G/3G networks won't be motivated to shift to 4G networks. However, for normal consumers, these offers are good. JioPhone offer has clearly made a positive impact in the country. The Airtel offer is also going to push some people who can afford smartphones in the Rs 10,000 range to earn cashbacks worth Rs 6,000. What's unclear at the moment is whether this cashback will be a direct benefit transferred to the bank account of the user or whether it will be recharge benefits, etc. Jio and Airtel are both offering very unique smartphone offers, and it will be interesting to look at what impact the JioPhone Next has on the company's books. What do you think about the smartphone offers from the two telcos?

Jio, Airtel, and Vi Couldn’t Deliver True 4G, It’s Not Their Fault Though

Posted: 09 Oct 2021 06:32 PM PDT

While 5G is on its way to India, and there are 4G networks present in almost all nooks and corners of the country, there is something that can't be ignored. The private telecom operators who have built a strong business around providing 4G coverage throughout the country have failed to deliver 'true 4G' to Indians. Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is still a 2G/3G player, so we will leave the state-run telco out of this conversation. However, the telcos aren't really at fault here. If you haven't received true 4G speeds, it is partly because the Indian market is tailored that way. Don't follow what I am saying? Let me explain it to you.

Indian Telcos Didn't Deliver True 4G, Because Then It Would Have Hurt Your Pockets!

According to the 'Speedtest Global Index' report from Ookla, India is currently at the 126th position in terms of providing the fastest mobile data speeds to users. India's arch-rival, Pakistan, sits above at 120th position. The average mobile speed delivered to users in India is 17.96 Mbps. In comparison, the number one country on the list, United Arab Emirates (UAE), offers users 195.52 Mbps speeds. There is a humongous difference between UAE and India. So why does a telecom operator like Jio, which has so much profits in the books, can't provide very high-speed networks to the users. This question also applies to companies like Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel. The thing is, getting more mobile internet speed would have costed the end-consumer, which is you, a lot more money. Today, India offers mobile data at one of the cheapest/most affordable rates globally. From paying more than Rs 200 for each GB of data in 2016, now Indians pay less than Rs 10 for the same. This has allowed even the low-income class people to latch on to the same network services as the high-income ones. Since Jio came, the telcos could either reduce the price of data, or they could go out of business. Because of affordable plans and services, which benefitted a lot to the customers, the overall profit margins and the average revenue per user (ARPU) started to drop. This resulted in the telcos being limited in their capacity to make investments in the networks to enhance performance. In simple words, if the telcos don't charge you more, they don't earn more. If they don't earn more, they can't invest in their networks and really can't provide you with the 4G experience customers in countries like the UAE do. But there's one more thing to factor in here. It is not just how the Indian market is that is responsible for this. But the telcos have also been fighting to get the larger subscriber market share. Companies like Jio can easily hike tariffs and support Vi and Airtel in doing the same. But Jio won't go for the tariff hike to increase ARPU because it wants a larger subscriber market share. The other companies are also handicapped because of the same. However, it is not like Vi and Airtel don't want a better subscriber market share; it's just that the ball is in Jio's court at the moment. Further, the government had also put so much stress on the sector. There were so many forms of statuary dues, regulatory norms that involved so much money going out of the operators' pockets. However, the recent relief package should be able to help with that. The Indian telecom operators aren't evil. They aren't deliberately providing you with slow internet speed when they can offer you something better. The operators are just limited to provide a premium service to each of their customers because of their limited return on investments. Mind that providing better network services also includes purchasing more airwaves from the government, which involves thousands of crores. Then there are also other investments such as network towers, fiberisation costs, and much more than a normal consumer is unaware of.

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