NOKIA 3310 IS BACK!! YES THAT'S CORRECT

Today at Mobile World Congress HMD held a press conference in Barcelona to showcase its first Nokia-branded phones.

As expected, the Nokia 3 and Nokia 5 appeared, and the international variants of the ‘phablet’-sized Nokia 6, the Rolls Royce of the range. Rumours that HMD was going to reboot the legendary Nokia 3310 device proved correct.

The new phones are not manufactured and sold by Nokia but by HMD Global, another Finnish company, which has licensed the Nokia brand.

The Nokia 6 has already launched in China. Its international variant has a 5.5-inch display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 processor, 4GB RAM+64GB storage, 16 MP rear camera+8MP front camera and 3000 mAh battery. Nokia 6 will cost 229 Euros and the Nokia 6 Art 299 euros.

Nokia unveiled its Ozo, their 360-degree camera for virtual reality. Nokia also talked about Withings, which it owns, and its plans for healthcare. Withings products will now carry the Nokia brand name as will as new Nokia Health Mate app. Nokia CEO Rajeev Suri outlined plans for the Nokia Home hub.

HMD Global CEO Arto Nummela said the Nokia 6 was sold out in 23 seconds in China during the first sales. The Nokia 6 has a special “Art black” version. The Nokia 5 was also announced but this has a smaller 5.2-inch display and comes in blue, copper, black and silver colours. Priced at 189 Euros.

Nokia 3 has a 5-inch HD display, Gorilla Glass, with an 8MP selfie camera. The price will be 139 Euros. All of the devices will be available from Q2 of 2017 and all run pure Android Nougat. The 5 has an 8MB sensor from camera with a wide-angle for selfies.

Scant information was given about the re-boot of the 3310 other than it will have a massive 22hrs talk time (10 times more than the version in the 90s), 1 month standby time, Snake and the old Nokia Ringtone.

What’s the upshot? HMD Global is using the Nokia brand to gun for the low-end, mid-range segment of the market, with pure Android, premium built devices and all will get Google Assistant.

How Google is trying to make SMS sexy again

Credit: Google and The Next Web

Messaging apps are constantly adding functionality to allow you to do more than simply chat with your contacts. But now, Google is going all-out to champion SMS as the standard of the future for mobile users.

The company has imaginatively rebranded its Messenger app, which previously handled SMS messages on Android, to ‘Android Messages’. Beyond the name change, there are also a bunch of iMessage-like features that you’ll be able to experience soon.

The Verge reports that Google has rolled out a new platform based on Rich Communications Services (RCS) tech to allow businesses to “brand text messages, alerts and other communications, in addition to giving them access to features not available through SMS, such as group texting, high-resolution photos, and read receipts.”

That means you’ll be able to receive things like travel boarding passes along with QR codes, as well as options to top up your mobile data right within Android Messages. Gamestop, Time Inc., Virgin Trains and Walgreens will be among the first to deliver enhanced messages through the new platform. Google’s app already supports RCS; Android Police noted that the feature was turned on last November.

This is mostly thanks to Jibe Mobile, the RCS service provider that Google acquired in 2015.  That firm’s CEO, Amir Sarhangi, was tasked with expanding RCS support. With his help, Google has convinced several carriers to support the Universal Profile standard to ensure that RCS messages are delivered to customers successfully.

Mobile carriers Deutsche Telekom, Globe, Orange and Vodafone have signed on to preload Android Messages on phones they bundle with their subscriptions. Plus, a large number of manufacturers, including LG, Motorola, Sony, HTC, and Nokia, will also ditch building custom SMS apps; Pixel and Android One devices will also come with Android Messages.

The use of RCS, which is compatible with SMS, ensures that all partner companies’ customers receive the texts even if they don’t have Android Messages installed; they’ll just receive a simpler text message than if they had the app. That negates the need for brands to rely on customers using a specific messaging service when they want to reach them.

Of course, Google’s work isn’t finished yet. It still has to get a lot more buy-in from the likes of carriers like Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T in the US, numerous others across other regions, as well as major manufacturers Samsung and Apple, before RCS is more widely adopted.

Android Messages is available now from Google Play.

Kenya's been schooling the world on mobile money for 10 years

Ten years ago on Tuesday, a gutsy Kenyan company launched a mobile money initiative that would change the lives of millions.
Its name is M-Pesa, with "pesa" meaning money in Swahili.
Think mobile money and your mind will probably jump to NFC-powered payment services from Apple, Samsung and Google. M-Pesa predates all of those and launched before the smartphones they rely on. Four months before Apple's first-generation iPhone went on sale in 2007, Kenyan carrier Safaricom enabled person-to-person mobile payments in the country via M-Pesa.
M-Pesa allows people to store money in a secure digital account and transfer it using their phones, even letting them pay bills and send funds abroad. Authorized agents will swap cash for electronic money and can do the same in reverse. The service is primarily powered by text messages, although an app is also now available for the small number of smartphone users.
A decade after its launch, M-Pesa has expanded to 10 countries, boasts 29.5 million active users and processes up to 614 million transactions per month.
The Western world is catching up, but we're taking our sweet time. Mobile payments in the US and Europe still aren't mainstream, with most people preferring physical charge cards or paper money . But this is set to change, according to research firm Forrester. By 2021 mobile payments will have tripled in the US to $282.9 billion and will grow 23 percent in Europe too.
Global competitors like Apple, Google and Samsung are on their way, but M-Pesa has a solid head start.
Vodafone
M-Pesa, meanwhile, is already used in 96 percent of households in Kenya. That's the kind of market penetration most tech companies can only dream of. It has made M-Pesa the de facto example people use when suggesting Africa can "leapfrog" iterative tech development and put itself at the front of the pack.
"We needed to be revolutionary in order to be successful," said Michael Joseph, founding CEO of Safaricom and now the director of mobile money for Vodafone, in an interview. "If we applied western standards to all of the things we do, we would probably still be in the dark ages in Africa."
Helping the unbanked
As impressive as those stats and milestones are, it's the way M-Pesa has transformed people's lives and created a startup ecosystem in Kenya that cemented the service's reputation. It's also what Joseph is most proud of.
For many M-Pesa users, the service isn't just a debit card equivalent, it's their bank. Not long ago, banks and savings accounts were only for wealthy and middle-class Kenyans. In 2009, M-Pesa savings accounts were introduced and within three months 14 million accounts were set up.
An MIT study published last year estimated that M-Pesa is responsible for lifting two percent of households in Kenya out of poverty. That's equivalent to 194,000 families who now no longer live below the poverty threshold on less than $1.25 per day.
Running alongside M-Pesa are nonprofit campaigns, including a number around women's health. In Kenya, for example, expectant mothers are encouraged to save a small amount for health insurance in a dedicated M-Pesa account, which allows them to give birth in a clinic rather than at home. These projects vary region by region, as well as by country, depending on the given needs of the local people.
From Kenya to India
Key to launching in different markets, said Joseph, was learning how M-Pesa could most benefit local customers and operate within each countries' financial regulations.
In Kenya, for example, the initial six-month trial period was supposed to establish the appetite for microfinancing businesses. Instead, it helped Safaricom uncover what Kenyans wanted most from mobile money: an easy way to send funds home from urban to rural areas. When the service launched in Mozambique, it was the ability to pay utility bills that drove adoption among consumers.
It's India that is proving most tricky, said Joseph. Just like Kenya, people want to be able to send money home to their families. But instead of embracing tech, many people still prefer to physically pass money between family members as they have done for hundreds of years. M-Pesa is the market leader in India, but faces stiff competition from a number of other companies.
Gaining trust and viral success
This tailored approach requires the kind of patience that big multinational tech companies don't often exhibit, said Joseph, who has spent time analyzing the global mobile payments market as a World Bank Fellow.
"In Africa we tend to be much more innovative because we need to be, and we're kind of far from everywhere," said Joseph. "Nobody comes there to look and see what you're doing." As such, Safaricom could spend three to four years turning M-Pesa into a profitable business -- something Joseph hadn't even considered when he first set the project up.
A man sends money through M-Pesa using a simple feature phone.
TONY KARUMBA/AFP/Getty Images
"When we launched it, this was another innovation. It wasn't going to be an invention that would change the world," he said. "Nobody knew how successful it would become, and how it would change people's lives. But it has taken off and gotten a life of its own."
It's not just patience, though. Joseph attributes the success of M-Pesa to many different factors -- the culture of innovation within Safaricom, the Kenyan banking regulators and the country's spirit of entrepreneurialism, to name a few.
There is also trust. Joseph said this is gained by ensuring M-Pesa's tech is the best, no money is ever lost and that the customer is always protected. " I always say to the team, you can't have a dropped call with mobile money," he said.
Joseph recognizes that global competitors like Apple, Google and Samsung are on their way, but he doesn't seem too worried at this point.
"I still think that we know what we're doing at the base of the pyramid," he said, referring to M-Pesa's wide customer base. "We offer financial services to the poor, not just payments. We are trusted which is really, really important. And people like the penetration of M-Pesa. Everybody uses it. It's a viral success."
Credit CNET.com

HOW TO FIX ''GOOGLE PLAY AUTHENTICATION IS REQUIRED'' ERROR

e "Google Play authentication is required" error is a surprisingly common problem on Android devices. It makes you realize just how much you rely on Google products for your smartphone activity, especially the Play Store. The good news is that it's a super easy problem to fix. Let us show you how to fix this Google Play authentification error in three easy steps.

• How to solve Google Play Store errors
• How to disable auto-install of Google Play apps

• . Simply remove your Google account

  The error may simply be a sign-in issue, which sometimes occurs when the Play Store is updated. The first trick is to go into your phone's main Settings menu and then Accounts and simply remove the Google account you have registered (the one that's getting the "authentication is required" message). Once you've done this, you can re-add the account and it should work just fine. However, you may need to do this step along with the second step below.

  

  Go into Settings > Accounts. 

  

  Then remove that account and re-add it. 

  2. Clear data from the Google Play Store

  To clear data from the Play Store, you need to go into Settings and then Applications and find the Google Play Store. Tap it and than select Clear data. (You can try just clearing the cache first, if you like, but clearing data will clear the cache as well). If the previous step didn't work for you, you may find that it does if you repeat it after carrying out this step. 

  

  Go into Settings > Applications and select Google Play Store. 

  

  Tap on Clear Data and confirm when prompted.

  3. Uninstall Play Store updates

  Sometimes the problem is not with your credentials but the Play Store itself. Go to the Play Store inSettings > Applications and hit Uninstall updates. This will take you back to the original version of the Play Store that was installed on your device. Then, all you need to do to fix the error is install the latest version of the Google Play Store and sign in once again.

  

  If the problem lies with the Play Store itself, go into its settings and uninstall the updates.

  

  Uninstalling Play Store updates will set it back to the version that came on your phone. 

  If you're still having problems after trying all these steps, run through them again in this order, rebooting your phone between the steps: remove Google account, reboot, uninstall updates, install new Play Store, reboot, add account, and so on. Just keep trying until you the error goes away. 
  Have you suffered from the "authentication is required'' error in Google Play before? How did you solve it? Let us know in the comments.

How to Fix the Google Play Store When It Constantly Force Closes

Nothing is quite as dreadful as seeing that fateful “Unfortunately, Google Play Store has stopped” message…every time you open the Store. Here’s what to do if the Play Store on your phone or tablet just keeps crashing.

Clear the Play Store’s Cache and/or Data

When any app force closes as soon as you open it (or shortly thereafter), the first thing you’ll want to try is clearing that app’s cache. This doesn’t always work—in fact, more often than not it probably won’t fix the issue—but it’s the first thing you should try because it keeps all of your pertinent data (login info, etc.) in place.

First, head into your device’s Settings menu. This is usually accessed by dragging down the notification panel, then tapping the “gear” icon.

Scroll down to the “Device” category and select “Apps.” This will open the menu entry where you can control all the apps that are installed on the device.

On Marshmallow, scroll down until you find the “Google Play Store” option. On Lollipop (and older), slide over to the “All” tab, then find the “Google Play Store” option. Tap it to open the Play Store’s app info.

 

There will be a few options here, including “Force Stop,” “Disable,” and possibly even one that reads “Uninstall updates.” Go ahead and tap “Force Stop,” just to make sure it’s not running in the background. A warning will appear telling you that this may cause the app to misbehave—just press “OK.”

Here’s where things get a little convoluted—depending on what version of Android you’re running, you’ll see totally different options. We’ll outline both Marshmallow and Lollipop here, but the latter should also cover most older versions as well (including KitKat and Jelly Bean).

On Marshmallow, tap the “Storage” option, then tap the “Clear Cache” button. This will erase the Play Store’s cached data, which could possibly be causing the FC (force close) issues.

 

On Lollipop, simply scroll down the screen a little bit and press the “Clear Cache” button.

Try to open the Play Store. If the force close issue persists, let’s try clearing data.

Follow the same instructions as above, but instead of tapping the “Clear Cache” button, hit “Clear Data.” Keep in mind that this will delete all login info and and other data, so it’s like starting the Play Store for the first time. Your installed apps will continue to function normally, and any applications that you’ve purchased will still be available—this has no effect whatsoever on your Google account, just the app itself.

Once you’ve cleared its data, try opening the app again. It should theoretically open correctly this time. If not, you have one final option.

Install the Newest Version of the Google Play Store

In some instances, something has gone awry that clearing app data and cache simply won’t fix. In that case, installing the newest version of the Play Store should fix things right up.

Before you can pull the newest Play Store APK (Android Package Kit), you’ll need to allow installation of “Unknown Sources.” To do this, jump back into the Settings menu.

Once there, scroll down to the “Personal” section, and tap the “Security” option.

Scroll down just a bit, till you see the “Unknown Sources” option. Toggle the slider to enable installation of apps downloaded from the web.

A warning will be displayed telling you that this can be a dangerous practice that could put your personal data in jeopardy. While accurate, installing third-party apps—or “sideloading,” as it’s called—is a safe practice as long as you only install things from trusted sources. So tap “OK” to enable the feature.

With that done, head back to the home screen and open your web browser of choice. In this case, we’re using Chrome for Android.

Tap the address bar (at the top), and head to www.apkmirror.com. This is a highly-trusted website that mirrors APKs normally found on Google Play—only free apps are available (no paid content), and each application is verified as legitimate before it’s allowed on the site.

At the top of the page, tap the magnifying glass icon, which opens the search menu. Type “Play Store” and press enter to search the site.

The very first option on this page will be the newest version of the Play Store that’s available for download. Tap the down arrow to go the Play Store download page.

Scroll a little way down the page till you see the “Download” button. If you’re concerned about the safety of the download, you can tap the “Verified safe to install (read more)” link, which will open a small dialog box with information about the app’s cryptographic signature and legitimacy. Once your curiosity has been satisfied, tap the “Download” button to pull the APK from the site.

 

If this is the first time you’ve downloaded anything on Marshmallow, you may get a popup asking you to allow Chrome (or whatever browser you’re using) to access your media files. Press “OK” to pull the download.

Another dialog will show up a the bottom of the screen asking you to verify the download. Tap “OK.”

Once the app is finished downloading (it shouldn’t take long), you’ll find it in the notification shade. Just tap it to start the installation process.

If, for some reason, tapping the notification doesn’t open the app installer, you can find it in the Downloads folder, which can be access through the shortcut in the app tray.

 

Once the installer is running, just hit “Install” to start the process. It may or may not show a popup asking you to allow Google to check the device for security issues—you can choose to accept or decline, though I generally just let it go ahead since I like to help Google out.

 

Once the installer is finished—and keep in mind it may take several minutes to completely the installation process—just tap “Open” to fire up the newest Play Store.

With any luck, it will open without force closing.

---

The app data/cache clearing method above can be used on essentially anything that’s installed on your Android device, which comes in handy if other applications are having issues. Similarly, if that doesn’t fix the issue, just uninstall the app and re-install it from Google Play.

Best android games for 2017 offline and moded

I present you with updated links to the most daring android offline games for 2017 here is the link to Over kill 3

Overkill 3 is an action game for android.

download last version of Overkill 3 Apk + MOD (Unlimited Money) + Data for android from  with direct link

Overkill 3 is a game where you have to complete missions in different regions.
Download android256.blogspot.com

Welcome to the future. It’s grim and dark. The ever oppressing Faction wants everyone to follow and obey. They will stop at nothing. People are scared. Demoralized. The few who fight back are painfully outnumbered.

They need hope. Someone to show them the way. Will you stand up for humanity and fight for its future?

Step into the action of the audio-visual spectacle that is Overkill 3. Lead the Resistance into victory over the evil Faction forces and their brutal killing machines.

> UNPARALLELED GUN CUSTOMIZATION WITH TONS OF GUN UPGRADES AND ATTACHMENTS
Arm yourself with massive arsenal of fully customizable guns ranging from classic shotguns, assault rifles, sniper rifles and machine guns to super-powered futuristic firearms.

> VARIED AND EVOLVING GAMEPLAY
Travel through ever-changing environments, from hostile deserts to abandoned cities and industrial complexes. Fight against loyal Faction soldiers, heavy assault squads and snipers. Use new tactics to win each battle.

> CONSOLE QUALITY GRAPHICS
Experience console quality right on your device. Beautifully rendered world, incredibly detailed gun models, ragdoll physics and special lighting effects are all part of the Overkill 3 experience.

> EPIC BOSS BATTLES & CINEMATICS
As you grow stronger and more dangerous, the Faction will do anything in their power to stop you. Prepare to face dreadful robots and mechanical horrors straight from your worst nightmares.

> 3RD PERSON SHOOTING WITH EASY CONTROLS DESIGNED FOR MOBILE
Get comfortable with easy to use controls designed for mobiles and focus all your attention on shooting.

> STATE OF THE ART NANO-SUITS
Get the protection every soldier deserves! Kickstart the Resistance’s armor research to protect yourself with futuristic bulletproof Nano-Suits.
To survive long enough and become the legendary Resistance leader you will need to master the art of deadly precision. Without it there will be no hero. Only bones left in the sand. Do you have what it takes?

Don't mess with Kansime Ugandan Comedian