What about CBSE 12th result?

The wait for anxious Class 10 students is finally over.Results where finally declared on 21 Monday evening...bit surprisingly.Chennai region achieved an overall pass percentage of 99.66.But there is no clue for cbse 12th result.Normally CBSE publishes 12th result before the 10th. But since the result of class 10 got ready first we are announcing it first,”said the cbse.But they are not giving any information about the 12th result.the long waiting for the cbse result had had created problems for the students.They face problems during there admission process.They find it difficult to get into the best collages as the seats get filed.As HSC result of the state schools had already arrived the admission process had already started by the collages.Both the students and parents are equally worried on the present scenario.


Hoever there is information that the cbse Class 12 results will be declared a day after Class 10 result on Saturday May 26.Lets pray for a faster and better result. 
 

SAMSUNG GALAXY s3...........A PERFECT FIGT AGAINST I PHONE 5

After the huge success of the S2, Samsung is almost ready for the Samsung Galaxy S3 release, the third Galaxy Series smartphones on the first half of next year.

While the iPhone 5 looks set to be launched pretty soon, it seems it won’t be alone this fall with Samsung Galaxy S3 to join it this fall.

J.K. Shin, president of Samsung’s mobile communications division has confirmed the release of a follow-up to this year’s Samsung Galaxy S2 in 2012. The device would be the Samsung Galaxy S3, most probably featuring Google’s Android Ice Cream Sandwich, its new OS. According to Shin the 4G transition in the Galaxy S3 is inevitably important as it requires faster download speeds than smartphones to handle bigger volume content which is another big thing Samsung is working on for its products.

Going with the specifications it’s expected to obviously be an upgrade of the Galaxy S2 with 12 MP Camera, quad-core processor, a super-bright AMOLED 3D screen with NFC. It would also be the first phone featuring the Ice Cream Sandwich. The screen size would be around 4.5″ beating the LG Optimus 3D and also offering 4G connectivity support. Lets wait and watch the actual Samsung Galaxy S3 launch date before considering whether its worth upgrading your current phone or not. Read more on Samsung Galaxy S3 Specifications, Features, and Price.

A concept design of the Galaxy S3 drafted by a creative design company based in Ukrainian shows how similar it is to the Galaxy S2 though with a larger edge to edge 4.5″ screen along with Android 2.3/4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS. Moreover, the home button has been replaced with a Samsung logo and slimmed down to make room for the larger screen. The real design though may be a little different with a large touchscreen and a more powerful effective processor.

The Galaxy SII came out as a competition to the iPhone 4, Now it has been predicted that the Samsung Galaxy S3 release along with Apple’s iPhone 5 will be a tough competition. Especially if the Galaxy S3 will really “have the data processing capacities of a regular PC”, then the iPhone 5 is sure to meet a genuine rival.

The success of the Samsung Galaxy S3 depends totally on its capability to attach the users in large numbers. The people are waiting with bated breaths for this amazing gadget, expecting that its amazing features to provide them ultimate experience and lifetime satisfaction.

     Mahindra XUV500.......TheHot Launche

Looks

As discussed before, the XUV’s styling cues are all derived from the likes of Koleos and this means that this one doesn’t look offensive. Infact, its all aggression, however all plastic inserts. There are a tad too many cuts on the grille and creases to it. There is a plastic net covering all the creases. The Mahindra saber tooth logo is what the grille tries to mimic. The projector head lamps along with the LED linings look great. Mind you, these aren’t the daytime LEDs and would work only when one presses a switch in the instrument console. The fog lamps seem to be half peeping from underneath the bonnet. The wheel arches are flared ones, keeping in mind the general theme of this vehicle. The door handles are a new thing for Mahindra, however, how they stand up to the test of time, remains to be seen.17 inch alloy wheels with the 235/65R17 configuration is what this SUV boasts of in all the variants. The roof is a floating one with a sharply tapered rear end. The blackened out effect can be seen in almost all the pillars of this SUV thus making it look sporty from all the angles. At the posterior of this vehicle, there is not much flash, as can be seen at the front. The twin tail pipes do lend some muscle and the rear glass is way too small, almost the same as the Evoque. Peer closely into the tail lamps and one can notice the crystalline elements embedded in the glass.

Interiors

As radical as they are, the interiors also are very different from any other Mahindra vehicle. Infact, the textures used for the fabric are also very different than the other Mahindra SUVs. Surprisingly, this SUV doesn’t require one to climb into it. The floorboard doesn’t seem too strong though and would start creaking if a heavyweight actually climbed on it. Once inside, the seats are pretty much comfortable. However, moving the driver’s seat to accommodate a larger driver would result in the middle row passenger to lose out on leg space. The middle row passengers as also the rear seat ones are pampered with air volume control systems. The third row is entirely cramped and would fit kids for a fair part of a long journey. For the geeks, Mahindra have endowed the interiors with 12V sockets for all three rows and there are bottle holders for even the last row passengers. For the central console, there is a V shaped design theme. The glovebox is large and accommodating while there is also a lid atop the dashboard which is lined with soft touch materials and has good storage capacity. The driver’s arm rest is adjustable and below it is a cool box for keeping all the drinks cool. The door pockets are also generously endowed and can fit in maps and magazines easily. The steering wheel gets audio controls as also voice activated dialing feature. The instrument console wouldn’t look out of place in a high end car. It is very trendy and shows which gear the car is driven in plus the moment one inserts the key, there are lakhs of tell tale lights coming up. The XUV is loaded with features like tyretronics, GPS navigation, touchscreen audio system, rear parking sensors and many other stuff. The boot space in this one is laughable and almost all the vehicles at Mahindra’s show rooms had their last seats flipped forward. There are dozens of puddle lamps and reading lamps all over the place. Plus there are two sunglass holders and also an auto dimming conversation mirror. Moreover, the power windows have a one touch down operation to them while the wing mirrors are electrically controlled.

Handling and ride quality

Apart from the looks, Mahindra have spent a great deal of time in fine tuning the handling as also ride quality of the Mahindra XUV500. The suspension was fine tuned by Lotus Engineering and needless to say, they have done a fine thing with the handling aspect. The ride quality, is absorbent on normal roads, however show it some dirt track and the calm poise of the SUV is all lost. I got to test the hill ascent system and it works perfectly fine. Couldn’t test the cruise control system though since there was no nice stretch of road wherein the system would come into picture. I have heard as also read some negative things about the electronics in Mahindra vehicles not standing the test of time; however, I would reserve my comments until further comments come in about the same from you readers. The noise insulation under the hood seems to be insufficient since there is a lot of engine noise permeating inside the cabin. However, the road noise was perfectly isolated. The steering wheel is a chunky unit and features adjustments for both rake and reach. It is also quite linear but somewhere down the line loses the plot. The AWD system would be put to test later on in a rigorous 4 wheel drive system test. However, knowing Mahindra, its bound to be a proven unit. Mahindra could have put in a better sounding horn as the current one is too meek to disperse jaywalkers.

Engine, performance and fuel efficiency

140 Bhp of power and 330 Nm of torque is what the 2.2 liter motor develops from under the hood. As of now, there is only a 6 speed gearbox which is manual in nature. A 6 speed auto box would make its debut sometime next year. The power plant initially seemed lazy but then the turbo wakes up lazily and then plants a wide grin on the face of the driver. It did to me. 0-100 kmph came up somewhere close to 13.6 seconds and this SUV is capable of hitting 150 plus on the open highway. The 6 speed box is placed a tad too away from the driver. It however does have a positive shifting action and the clutch is also lighter than the one in the Scorpio. Brakes deserve a special mention here since they are very powerful units and aligned with ABS, traction control and even EBD, make for a good unit. As far as safety is concerned, this can be termed as one of the safest SUVs this side of Rs 13 lakhs. It has got 6 airbags with high impact protection crash testing already done on it. The ARAI certified fuel efficiency is 15.1 kmpl falls short of some others in its class. The MicroHybrid technology works well and its interval has been lessened now to 2.5 seconds. The first guinea pig for this technology was the Bolero, then the Scorpio and now the Mahindra XUV500. Reverse parking sensors are available on this one; however I would have preferred a reverse camera here.

Verdict

The Mahindra XUV500 in India is an important product for Mahindra. This SUV was under wraps for more than 2 years and now its unveiling has led to a coup of sorts. The looks match upto everything Mahindra hasn’t been associated with while the interiors are at an all new level than the competition. The build quality is very solid barring a few itsy bitsy bits. The engine is a tried and trusted product plus it has got good claims of fuel efficiency as well. Mahindra have tried to satisfy both the enthusiasts as also the normal SUV buying public. The XUV is sure to steal some of the sales of the Scorpio as well. When I am penning this down, news has come in that the XUV’s waiting periods have extended from 6 weeks to almost 5 months. Current production capacity for the XUV stands at 1500 units each month and Mahindra dealers are working overtime to take all the bookings that are coming their way. This type of buzz was created when the Xylo was also launched and whether it would be sustained over the coming time remains to be seen. The XUV 500 is available in three variants and the top end W8 with AWD is the one that I got to drive. The Mahindra XUV500 price in India starts from a very cool Rs 10.85 lakhs while the top end model comes in at Rs 12.88 lakhs. All these prices are ex-show room, Pune

RENAULT FLUENCE -DRIVE THE CHANGE

Fluence in India. This car was launched recently and is Renault’s independent foray into the world of Indian cars. Yes, they have put behind Mahindra and quietly shook hands with their world wide partner, Renault. They would be sharing their facilities in Chennai. The Renault Fluence would be assembled out there very soon. We had carried out a preview of Renault Fluence. Now is the time for reviewing this car. Renault were kind enough to lend both the petrol and diesel models for the review. So, we have both of these cars for a detailed report.

Looks

What the Renault Fluence in India aims to do is to offer looks which are palatable by all and not too radical like the Civic or be very somber like the Laura. Infact, the Fluence looks like a shark. Yes, that’s the word which comes to mind when one looks at the Fluence. However one would definitely note the muscle up ahead of the A-pillar which converges into the smoothly sloped bonnet. The half asleep head lamps also complement the shark look of this car. Fog lamps are standard on both the petrol and diesel variants. The outside rear view mirrors are clipped by small turn indicators. The Renault logo is going to be clipped off at a fair pace again as can be seen that most of the Renault Logans pressed into Meru cab services don’t have them. Guess, that this time around as well, they would have a gala time. The radiator grille in an expensive car shouldn’t be such an open one that the internals of the engine are put up on prominent display however Renault have chosen to ignore this fact. Badge apart, looking at the exteriors of this car, one would be hard pressed to say that this is from the same manufacturer which gave us the boxy Renault Logan. The chrome garnishings can be seen only on the petrol variant while the diesel one makes do without one. The doors however get a thick cladding for company. Both the cars get 10 spoke alloy wheels which eerily look like the one in the Fiat Linea. The tyre section is 205/60 R16. The Fluence gets a jacked up for India, 170 mm of ground clearance. In the European sections, the Fluence only boasts of 160 mm ground clearance. How it affects the handling of the car would only be revealed later. As for the rear of this car, it is typical French in its look. The tail lamps look similar to the head lamps and this is a trait which we have noticed in many new cars. The bumpers however aren’t body colored and are capsuled in black plastics. The tail pipe is also a chrome tipped one. However we noticed that upon significantly revving the car, the tail pipe changes its color. We aren’t sure how this would stack up in the future.

Interiors

As for the interiors of the Renault Fluence in India, a 3 tiered dash welcomes the driver. Before opening the door, one would need to have a smart card access which is Renault’s thinking of keyless entry. A small black fob on the door handle, upon pressure and with the smart card in pocket, opens the car. Once inside, the smart card access can still be kept in pocket or if its too cumbersome, can be slotted into a dedicated section which is placed just below the music system. First up is the petrol car. Now, you would ask us as to why we mentioned petrol car. The reason is that there is a big difference between the interiors of the petrol and diesel model. The petrol is highly specced one whereas the diesel is a bare bones model. So on the good parts which are present in the petrol. There is dual zone climate control whereas the diesel only has the regular AC. There are no rear AC vents in the diesel. Electric mirrors are present in the petrol while the diesel one gets manually adjustable ones. While one inserts the smart key access, the petrol engined car’s mirrors just flip open and once the stop button is hit, they retract on their own. There are rear as also side sun blinds in the petrol model. The steering wheel is leather wrapped and has only the, hold it, cruise control function. Yes, the other regular controls like audio and Bluetooth phone are behind the steering wheel. The switches look like they could do with a lot more of innovation. The horn pads on the steering wheel require a very big finger to reach them from the resting position. The digital instrument console is a segment first. Oh, wait! The speedo is only digital and the tachometer instead of getting a red line towards 7000 rpm gets a yellow one. French cheese, anyone? The petrol’s front seats get lumbar adjustment which, sadly, is missing from the diesel variant. The dash is a three tiered one and one which has black plastic as the upper trim, a slight wood patch in the middle one while the lowest one is the beige colored one. Everywhere, contrary to belief, things are smooth and easy to touch. However things have not been Indianized or for that matter configured for right hand drive use. Some like the confusing wiper stalks and lights thing whereas others like the bonnet release mechanism to the front passenger’s side clearly show that the Fluence was brought to India in a hurry. Moreover the parking brake also slants slightly towards the front passenger and it is more like it that the front passenger would pull the brake.

As far as comfort factor goes, the Fluence is up there with the best in the business. Even for the tallest person buying this car, there is plenty of under thigh support. Moreover with the front seats in position for a 6ft 4 inches driver, the rear seat is still spacious. This is due to the fact that the Fluence boasts of having a wheelbase which is the longest and largest in its class by a fair degree. However rear passengers would have to bear with a slightly lower head room. This is due to the coupe like sloping roofline. One has to be real careful with the ingress and egress part of this car. Seating is a tad lower and in the same ball park as the Honda Civic. The small controls for the aircon and climate control however make one to take their eyes off the road. The dash board is also sun reflective and hence sometimes hinders the vision in broad sunlight. Boot space of 530 liters is at par with the competition though the suspension intrusions do count in as minor deterrents. The seats though split 60:40 and aid in load carrying chores.

Handling and ride quality

With the Logan, Renault had proved that they wanted to capture the ride quality obsessed market segment in India and with the Renault Fluence in India, they have done just that. The Fluence has got a soft spring setting which, even though isn’t as soft as say the Verna, is nicely setup. It absorbs all the road undulations without even a whimper.  Just like the Logan which handled the Indian road conditions very well without even asking for a change in the suspension components, it is very likely that the Logan would also maintain the same stature. For the NVH part, the Logan was a fair bit vocal whereas use of extensive sound deadening material has caused the Fluence to be on the quietest cars in its class. This was for the petrol however the diesel does show its roots in a fairly unobtrusive manner. People standing outside the cabin can hear the diesel idling or even starting up via the cheap looking start stop button however inside, passengers would only come to know that it’s a diesel through either the interiors at low speeds or the distant boom sound at higher speeds. As for the steering wheel, it is light in its operation but weighs up sufficiently when the Fluence is asked to take a corner at high speed. It does roll a fair bit but not as much as can be expected from the soft suspension setup. The handling can be called as fairly enthusiastic without giving too much for the enthusiast to rejoice.

 Engine, performance and fuel efficiency

Renault has launched the Fluence in India with 2 engine options. One is an existing motor found under the hood of the Nissan Micra and the Renault Logan nee Mahindra Verito. This 1.5 liter common rail diesel engine has now got a variable geometry turbocharger which is bigger in nature than the other vehicles mentioned here. This enables it to pull out 105 Bhp of power at 4000 rpm whereas the torque figure reads as 240 Nm at 2000 rpm. It is mated with a 6 speed manual transmission which feels similar to the one in the Logan except for the addition of an extra cog. At idle, as discussed earlier, there is some pitter patter of the diesel motor. 0-100 kmph is achieved in 14.4 seconds. This is in sync with the performance of the diesel motor in the Micra and Logan. The top speed remains in the regions of 162 kmph. However the clutch felt a bit hard and the gears not as smooth in their operation as one would expect from a car of this class. For the petrol, it is an all new engine by Renault in the Indian market. Renault had also taken help from Nissan for this engine and hence this 2.0 liter engine displays some of the Japanese characteristics. This engine makes 135 Bhp of peak power at a lofty 6000 rpm whereas the torque figure produced is 190 Nm at 3800 rpm. However instead of a manual transmission, Renault have given this 2.0 liter engine a CVT, which is called as CVT 2. As can be guessed, in the city, the Fluence does its work very nicely. There is minimum lag from the engine and transmission whereas in the diesel, a slight turbo lag was experienced. However out on the highway, the transmission changes characters and displays the engine as one lethargic piece. The 0-100 kmph figure was achieved in 12.2 seconds while the top speed was marginally more than the diesel at 176 kmph.

For both the variants, all wheel disc brakes along with ESP and ABS are standard fare. The petrol motor in addition gets ASR as a complement. There are also rear parking sensors available on the petrol. As far as safety is concerned it is right up there with the Toyota Corollas and Honda Civics. The braking distance difference between the petrol and diesel engined cars is almost negligible. As for the fuel efficiency, we got a real world figure of 11.7 kmpl with the petrol and 16.3 kmpl with the diesel. These were overall figures achieved during the test while Renault claims 13.4 kmpl and 21.8 kmpl respectively as ARAI figures.

Verdict

The Renault Fluence in India is part of the comeback operations for the company post their failed alliance with Mahindra. The Renault Fluence however lacks the French flair which even the Logan lacked. However it has the equipment (petrol)  and also the space that a customer in this segment so desires. It is the best chauffer driven car in this category plus when the owner wants to take over the wheel, will equally delight him. Moreover, it stands out amongst the hordes of Corollas and Civics in a parking lot. However the negatives are that the diesel lacks equipment levels which is simply a big no-no as far as this class is concerned. Others include the odd placements of the controls and their inherited left hand drive layout. Fuel efficiency for the petrol is not also class leading. Moreover, Renault has a dealer network which is at par with that of the Audis and Lamborghinis. Renault has proudly claimed that they would setup close to 100 dealerships in India by 2012. Tall claims, eh? Even Nissan aims to step up its dealership network by that time. What can be seen as a good thing or problem is that both the petrol and diesel are available in a single variant with no options thrown in. The Renault Fluence price in India starts from Rs 12.99 lakhs and goes upto Rs 14.40 lakhs. The former price is for the diesel whereas the latter one is for the petrol. All these prices are ex-show room, Mumbai. To this sticker price, Renault should have atleast deducted a lakh from both the variants. It is said that the CKD operations would culminate within 6 months from now and in its place, the Fluence would be built in India, which would actually bring down its sticker price.

      Nokia's sleek new Windows smart-phone

Nokia, though, made a smart move when planning its ‘comeback’ smartphone, the Lumia 800 – it sat down for dinner with the chap with the cloven hooves, the fork and the faint smell of brimstone. Yes, Microsoft.
The child born of this unholy union is a great phone – a phrase I’m just not used to saying about a Nokia without some enormous ‘but’ lurking. You can check the rest of this article. There is no ‘but’.
The Lumia 800 is up there with the Galaxy S IIs of this world. 
The phone, out on November 16 and priced about the same as an iPhone, is gorgeous on the outside, courtesy of a moulded-polycarbonate design lifted from Nokia’s N8 – it’s OK, Nokia, no one bought it, so no one will ever know – and a luxurious-feeling high-contrast touchscreen.
The star of the show, though, is Windows Phone 7 – Microsoft’s jazzed-up, ultra-simple operating system.
The clean, bright-coloured tiles bubble with information – Facebook pictures, Twitter updates, etc – and even gaming is amply catered for, with your Xbox account popping up on the screen, and a surprisingly good mix of big-ticket titles such as Angry Birds and indie offerings.
Meanwhile, the camera’s a Carl Zeiss-lensed 8MP beauty – and the whole operating system feels like it’s been created by some black-polo-necked design agency. Never has scrolling through a settings menu been so exhilarating

The Lumia 800

The 8MP camera is a cracker, featuring a Carl Zeiss lens and taking crisp snaps that outshine those of the Galaxy S2.

The Xbox section has a decent selection of games – not as good as the iPhone’s, better than Android’s – and allows you to show off Xbox achievements you’ve earned at home.

The app store is a little threadbare, but Windows Phone hasn’t taken off yet.

You can also access documents on the go without having to download some irritating new app.