Een technische kopie van ESA's ruimteobservatorium Gaia is vorige week geslaagd voor een belangrijke livetest. Ingenieurs koppelden de in het Franse Toulouse gesitueerde kopie aan controlecentrum bij ESOC in Duitsland, waardoor de missieleiding commando's naar de satelliet konden sturen en data konden ontvangen. Precies zoals dat zou gaan wanneer de satelliet zich in een baan om de aarde zou bevinden.
Sweden and Poland warned against knee-jerk reactions to the crisis in Syria on Saturday, saying that any international effort to solve it will require a commitment "for decades to come".
Speaking at a regional NATO conference in the Latvian capital, Riga, Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt said the West was being short-sighted regarding the instability sweeping the Middle East.
"Let's be realistic. We have an escalating civil war in the entire Levant...the only thing I can say that would have a reasonable chance of success would be to go in with armies and stay there for 30 years and try to do some real nation building. Appetite for that? Non existent," Bildt said.
"It is an immensely complex problem. There is not a simple solution. We will have, on the European side, to stay engaged with this part of the world for decades to come in every single respect," Bildt added.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski pointed to previous Western interventions in Libya and Iraq as a reason for caution.
"Do you really want us to do another Iraq? Was that really such a good idea? Was it worth the [spoils of war] and the blood that was expended there?" Sikorski asked an audience consisting chiefly of foreign policy experts, urging them to "think about the consequences before we plunge in".
Sikorski said US President Barack Obama had "done the right thing" in referring the matter of military action against the Assad regime to Congress, but had strong words for the United Nations Security Council, accusing it of failing its obligation to act as "the voice of all humanity".
"The Security Council is simply not doing what it is supposed to be doing, which is not to be a place where selfish nations look after their interests... I can't think of a better case where the voice of humanity should be heard other than to protest against the use of these (chemical) weapons," Sikorski said.
China and Syrian ally Russia have repeatedly used their veto power on the UN Security Council to block both military action and international criminal proceedings against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
European Union nations Saturday called for a "strong" response in the Syria crisis but stopped short of endorsing possible military action by the United States over the alleged use of chemical weapons by Damascus.
The EU also urged the Security Council "to fulfil its responsibilities", a reference to Russia and China's refusal to sanction Assad.
A staunch US ally in both the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, Poland has ruled out taking part in any military intervention in Syria.
Sweden has said it would only support military action if it were backed by a UN mandate.
US Secretary of State John Kerry on Saturday made clear that Washington had not decided to postpone a decision on military action until the release of the UN report on who was behind the deadly August chemical weapons attack on a Damascus suburb.
Copyright (2013) AFP. All rights reserved.
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Er zijn zo'n 100.000 mensen afgekomen op een vredeswake op het Sint-Pietersplein in Rome. Met de vijf uur durende bijeenkomst werd een dag van vasten afgesloten, waarmee paus Franciscus een signaal tegen de oorlog in Syrië wilde afgeven.
Franciscus ging de aanwezigen voor in gebed en sprak kort. Hij waarschuwde voor een vicieuze cirkel van geweld. "Vanavond vraag ik God dat alle christenen, onze broeders en zusters van andere religies en mensen van goede wil hardop verkondigen: geweld en oorlog leiden nooit naar vrede."
Terwijl president Obama het Amerikaanse Congres en de internationale gemeenschap probeert te overtuigen dat militair ingrijpen in Syrië nodig is nu er chemische wapens zijn ingezet, is de paus juist een van de felste tegenstanders daarvan. "Oorlog en geweld leiden alleen maar naar de dood", zei Franciscus vanavond.
Op de bijeenkomst waren ook mensen afgekomen met spandoeken tegen de oorlog, maar die werden van het plein weggehouden, om het religieuze karakter van de bijeenkomst te behouden.
Ook op andere plekken in de wereld werd gebeden voor vrede. Zo waren er bijeenkomsten in Jeruzalem, Bagdad en Damascus. Franciscus had in zijn oproep afgelopen zondag expliciet ook niet-katholieken opgeroepen mee te doen aan de dag van vasten.
Thursday's revelation that US and British intelligence agencies are able to decode most Internet traffic was a transforming moment for many, akin to getting definitive proof of intelligent extraterrestrial life. It fundamentally changed the assumptions that many of us have about the tools hundreds of millions of people rely on to shield their most private information from prying eyes. And it challenged the trust placed in the people who build and provide those tools.
But the reporting from the New York Times, ProPublica, and The Guardian was short on technical details about exactly how cryptographic technologies such as virtual private networks and the secure sockets layer (SSL) and transport layer security (TLS) protocols are bypassed. As stated recently by Edward Snowden, the former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor who leaked highly classified documents leading to the reports, "Encryption works. Properly implemented strong crypto systems are one of the few things you can rely on." How is it, then, that agents from the NSA and its British counterpart known as the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) are reportedly able to bypass the crypto protections provided by Internet companies including Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and Yahoo?
The short answer is almost certainly by compromising the software or hardware that implements the encryption or by attacking or influencing the people who hold the shared secrets that form one of the linchpins of any secure cryptographic system. The NYT alludes to these techniques as a combination of "supercomputers, technical trickery, court orders, and behind-the-scenes persuasion." The paper went on to refer to technologies that had been equipped with backdoors or had been deliberately weakened. Snowden put it slightly differently when he said: "Unfortunately, endpoint security is so terrifically weak that NSA can frequently find ways around" encryption. Exploiting the implementations or the people behind these systems can take many forms. What follows are some of the more plausible scenarios.
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President Barack Obama will embark on a furious push to sell his plan for military intervention in Syria beginning on Monday, when he will give interviews to six news networks.
Obama will sit down in taped interviews with Fox News' Chris Wallace, PBS' Gwen Ifill, CNN's Wolf Blitzer, ABC's Diane Sawyer, NBC's Brian Williams, and CBS' Scott Pelley.
It's Wallace's first interview with Obama since February 2009. According to Fox, the White House hand-selected the anchors. The other anchors have interviewed Obama more frequently throughout his time in the White House and on the campaign trail last year.
It's part of an extensive, ongoing push from the White House to sell Obama's plan for limited, targeted airstrikes in Syria in response to President Bashar al-Assad's alleged use of chemical weapons against his own people on Aug. 21. And it's looking increasingly unlikely that Congress will authorize military action.
On Sunday, Chief of Staff Denis McDonough will appear on all five Sunday morning shows to talk about the administration's plan. And Obama will deliver a televised address to the nation in primetime on Tuesday night.
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G-20 communique focuses on trade and economies, ignores Syria MarketWatch (blog) For more details on the summit and its participants and issues, visit MarketWatch's continuing-coverage stream. — Tim Rostan. « Previous 5 quick links on the Syria conflict · Next » Take part in our poll — is the Septaper off? Share: Tweet. More. Digg; Yahoo! and more » |
Here's some viral advertising gone wrong.
An ad company in Waco, Texas that makes decals for trucks thought it would be a good move to make one that depicts a woman tied up in the back of a pickup trick. It was intended to be just an experiment to market the company's decal-making capabilities.
In the video below the founder said it was something he had to just "put out there, to see who notices it." Not surprisingly, the depiction of a woman bound in the back of a truck up has generated quite firestorm. The founder of told the local TV station that the backlash has been quite a shock. (via The Raw Story)
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National Geographic |
NASA robotic explorer runs into trouble after launch USA TODAY SHARE 188 CONNECT 108 TWEET 3 COMMENTEMAILMORE. NASA's newest robotic explorer rocketed into space late Friday in an unprecedented moonshot from Virginia that dazzled sky watchers along the East Coast. But the LADEE spacecraft quickly ... Thousands jam NASA Ames to watch moon launch on huge screenSan Jose Mercury News NASA launches robotic explorer to moon from Va.Deseret News NASA Moonshot Visible From Long IslandPatch.com CBS News -Headlines & Global News -PC Magazine all 502 news articles » |
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The Majority Of Americans Say Internet Privacy Is Very Important (Pew)
In the wake of the NSA scandal, Internet privacy has become a hot button issue. Today, Pew released a report on just how significant it is. One noteworthy stat: 54% of Americans want to keep their location private when accessing the Internet. This could become a hurdle for mobile marketers who rely more and more heavily on location data collected from smartphones. Read more >
A Low-Cost iPhone Could Mean A Deal Between Apple And China Mobile (Bloomberg)
China Mobile and Apple have been trying to reach an agreement for years, but the high cost of the iPhone and China Mobile's unwillingness to provide a subsidy for the phone meant that a deal never got off the ground. A rumored low-cost iPhone, Apple's slip in market share, and China Mobile's 63% share of China's 1 billion wireless customers are all reasons why a deal might be imminent. Read more >
Huawei Says It's Not Planning To Buy BlackBerry or HTC (Telegraph)
Amid rumors that Huawei may be considering an acquisition of BlackBerry or HTC, a member of the company's executive board has come forward to say that the company has no such plans. Read more >
Hearsay Social Raises $30 Million (New York Times)
Hearsay Social, which helps banks navigate regulatory jungle of social media, has raised $30 million. Specifically, Hearsay offers software that includes libraries of approved content. The company plans to expand overseas this year. Read >
PayPal Releases New Mobile Wallet App (Engadget)
PayPal is meeting increased competition in the mobile payment space head on. It's new apps for Android and iOS allow users to pay with PayPal and credit cards and it even has a "bill me later" option that allows users to pay with an app-specific line of credit. Read More >
If You Are Streaming Music It Is Probably On Your Smartphone (Jumptap)
According to a new study released by Jumptap And ComScore, the primary access device for streaming music is the smartphone. Respondents said that they used smartphones for 77% of the time that they spent streaming music online. Read >
Here is the infographic from Jumptap >
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In case you need a reason to get excited for winter, or to buy a monkey.
Watch the video below, courtesy of cheezburger.com:
SEE ALSO: 25 Things That Make You Happier
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For the first time in its history, New York Fashion Week will feature a plus-size clothing line on its runways.
This is a big deal considering the recent controversy over certain brands — like Abercrombie & Fitch — saying they refuse to carry large sizes.
But designers and brands are starting to realize the potential in selling plus-size clothing, and now the "Plus Size Revolution" is hitting Fashion Week as well.
Cabiria, a plus-size clothing line that sells sizes 12 through 24, funded its spring/summer 2013 collection through a Kickstarter campaign that raised more than $13,000. Cabiria is one of six designers the Fashion Law Institute chose to be part of its showcase.
The designer, Eden Miller, told Fashionista that she's "really hoping that [Cabiria] is seen just as the other offerings at Fashion Week."
Fashion Week kicked off on Thursday in New York.
Here's a look at Miller's line:
Cabiria SS13 Lookbook from Cabiria on Vimeo.
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NASA is nearly everywhere on social media — Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, Google+, YouTube, and even Foursquare. But it wasn't until today that NASA, as an agency, officially joined on Instagram. If you use the photo sharing service and are a fan of space, science, or generally beautiful images, NASA will end up being a must-follow. So far the agency has uploaded four historic images of the moon in a nod to the scheduled launch of the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE), which is set to take place tonight.
Successful leaders understand how important it is to have loyal employees. The bond of loyalty will hold your business together during tough times. It's why employees stick it out even if they have other options. It's what makes people feel that they are a part of something great.
How do you develop this strong bond of loyalty?
"Be sympathetic and open to the people you work with," says Deepak Chopra, founder of the Chopra Foundation, a nonprofit organization focused on physical and mental healing practices, in a post on LinkedIn. "Support projects that are good for everyone, even if you don't gain immediate material rewards."
Chopra says that you should know the difference between your rivals and competitors. The people you work with are not your rivals, and if you think of them in this way, the competition will be bad for the entire team. You should attempt to share your success with others and help mentor them. It is also a good idea to be as transparent as possible when it comes to the decision-making process to make others feel like they have a say in the organization.
"Loyalty runs deep when a person feels cared for and understood. Be alert to these needs. Make an effort to include everyone," Chopra says. "When ideas and suggestions are being discussed, make it clear that every suggestion is welcome. If someone's pet idea is rejected, take time to go to them afterwards and listen respectfully to what lies behind the ideas."
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Apple may have just found itself a major new customer. After years of negotiations, the iPhone may finally be making its way to China Mobile, the largest telecom in China and home to over 700 million subscribers, reports both The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg. That's a massive audience, apparently reaching seven times the size of Verizon in the US. Bloomberg says that a deal is close to being made, and that Apple is already preparing to ship iPhones over to the carrier. The Journal has heard the same shipment details, however it suggests that China Mobile may be getting the low-cost iPhone that Apple is rumored to introduce next week.
One of the biggest arguments against further U.S. support of the Syrian opposition is that "the rebels are terrorists aligned with al Qaeda."
But the notion that the Syrian opposition is dominated by al Qaeda is a myth.
Liz O'Bagy, an Institute of The Study of War researcher who made trips to various parts of Syria in the last year, wrote in The Wall Street Journal that "the war in Syria is not being waged entirely, or even predominantly, by dangerous Islamists and al Qaeda die-hards."
O'Bagy's post has been criticized for being biased toward "moderate" rebels — which O'Bagy defines as those who have respected women's and minority rights while calling for a civilian government — but Syrian defectors and jihadist experts agree that the "al Qaeda takeover" fear is exaggerated.
“They have a presence, and they’ve captured some territory. But [al Qaeda fighters are] in the minority," Major Issam Rayyes, a former Syrian Army communications officer who defected in June 2012 and now serves the Free Syrian Army (FSA), told The Weekly Standard. "Congress is making a mistake in thinking the opposition is al Qaeda.”
"Rebel units are distributed across a broad ideological spectrum, with secular units at one pole and Salafi jihadists at the other, and most falling between the two," according to a new report by experts Jeffrey White, Andrew J. Tabler, and Aaron Y. Zelin of The Washington Institute. "A major differentiation among Islamic units is between those that are Islamic with a national or Syrian agenda and those with a global jihadist mission."
Zelin estimates that there are 5,000 to 10,000 fighters comprise Nusra, which wants to establish an Islamic Caliphate in the country's north.
Zelin, who tracks jihadist groups extensively, estimates that 50,000-10,000 foreign jihadists have arrived in Syria and that about 1,000 have been killed in the fighting.
O'Bagy estimates that supporters of Jabhat al-Nusra and ISIS — the two main al Qaeda-linked groups — probably involve about 5,000 to 7,000 fighters while the number of rebels participating in offensive operations is about 80-100,000 rebels.
So a subset of Syrian rebels are certainly linked to al Qaeda, but true terrorists only make up about 10% to 20% of the opposition.
Two stories, one from an FSA fighter and one from an ISIS fighter, shed light on why the Syrian rebel picture is so complex.
Maher is "a member of Liwa al-Islam, the strongest rebel brigade in Damascus province, which counts both the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and the jihadist Jabhat al-Nusra as allies."
A former university student, Maher joined Liwa al-Islam after he beat a security officer unconscious for beating up a woman and the security forces subsequently raided the office he shared with other Damascus activists.
The goals of Liwa al-Islam are the same [as those of the FSA]: to remove the current government and create an alternative that would be formed by the people who have been working for it most effectively on the ground. Most of these people identify as Muslims.
... the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria does not exist on the ground as it does in the media. They are concentrated in the north, where you often have foreign fighters entering from outside Syria. In Damascus and its suburbs where I am, they are practically nonexistent.
Farhan al-Juma is "a fighter with the al Qaeda-backed group the Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS)" because he because he thinks that they are the most effective fighting force for the time being.
“As a battalion, we support ISIS, but we haven’t pledged allegiance. Once Syria is free we are able to walk away,” al-Juma told Syria Deeply. “It is up to each fighter whether they will be loyal to ISIS or not.”
As I leave, he shakes my hand. I am a woman. “Would I do this,” he asks, “if I was al-Qaida?”
So Maher is an Islamic FSA fighter with a Syrian agenda who respects women's rights. And Farhan is an Islamic ISIS fighter with a Syrian agenda who respects women's rights.
Both may be considered "extremist," but neither is al Qaeda and both actually fit O'Bagy's definition of a "moderate."
All in all, while al Qaeda-linked rebels are nation-building in northern Syria, an increasing number of Western-backed Syrian rebels are fighting to unseat Assad in the capital.
SEE ALSO: Actually, The US Has A Strategy In Syria — And It's Starting To Work
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The U.S. military's revolutionary new anti-ship missile flew its first successful test flight today, according to a release from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
What the U.S. currently lacks is a ship-killing missile with both the ability to be launched from far away and the technological capacity to elude enemy ship defenses.
In 2009, DARPA began work on developing such a missile, and today the Long Range Anti-Ship Missile conducted its first successful test.
The missile was dropped from a B-1B Lancer, escorted by an F-18 Strike Eagle. It also has the ability to be launched from a Naval vessel or deployed from the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
Its full range and weapons payload are presently classified.
READ MORE: The US Missile No Ship Will See Coming Until It's Too Late
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If you're hoping for a brand new Apple TV to make its debut at the iPhone launch event next week, you're reportedly in for a letdown. Despite rumors that Apple would unveil a new set-top streaming device, both All Things D and 9to5Mac reported today that Apple TV is sticking with its current hardware set up. But while the hardware side of things is staying the same, both publications also say that Apple has some significant software updated in store for its diminutive gadget.
Het leger in Nigeria zegt zo'n 50 strijders van Boko Haram te hebben gedood bij aanvallen op kampen van de terreurbeweging. De afgelopen week viel Boko Haram twee dorpen in het noorden van het land aan waarbij zeker twintig mensen om het leven kwamen.
Militairen volgden de strijders na de aanvallen naar een basis in het noorden, volgens een woordvoerder van het leger. Met behulp van luchtsteun werden de kampen vervolgens aangevallen.
Boko Haram wil een islamitische staat vestigen in Nigeria. Bij aanvallen van de terreurbeweging zijn sinds 2010 bijna 1800 doden gevallen. De beweging heeft nog geen commentaar gegeven na de aanvallen op haar kampen of de aanvallen op de dorpen eerder deze week.
On Friday, Google told The Washington Post that it was accelerating implementation of end-to-end encryption between its data centers worldwide.
The search giant did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Ars.
“Google has data centers around the world and when you have an e-mail stored, it’s stored at [something like] six data centers around the world,” Chris Soghoian, a privacy expert at the American Civil Liberties Union, told Ars. “Every single bit of data is now going to be encrypted, so now if the government is listening to that fiber, they won’t get that data.”
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Google is stepping up efforts to encrypt information flowing between its own data centers as a response to surveillance programs waged by the NSA and other intelligence agencies around the world. "It's an arms race," Eric Grosse, Google's vice president for security engineering, tells The Washington Post. "We see these government agencies as among the most skilled players in this game." The disclosure of the security effort, which has been going on for about a year, comes amid reports that the NSA can get around most common encryption methods.
Famed director and White House wrecker Roland Emmerich plans to reboot his cult classic sci-fi film Stargate as a new trilogy, reports DigitalSpy. Emmerich, who co-wrote and directed the original Stargate in 1994, went on to direct blockbuster hits like Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow, 2012, and most recently, White House Down. Emmerich says he has already spoken to MGM to acquire the rights to the film, and will soon begin his search for a writer. Stars Kurt Russell and James Spader will not likely return for the films, he said.
Aside from Stargate, Emmerich also has plans for two sequels to Independence Day, titled ID Forever Part I and Part II. The first of the two films is slated for a 2015 release, according to IMDB.
Virgin Galactic is nearing in on commercial spaceflight with the completion of its latest test of SpaceShuttleTwo. The reusable ship, which will eventually be used to ferry around passengers, took its second rocket-powered flight this morning over Mojave, California. Virgin founder Richard Branson says that the craft flew higher and faster than it ever has before — up to 69,000 feet in the air. This run was also apparently a crucial measure of the shuttle's unique "feathering" reentry system, which it tested today for the first time.
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A Russian warship carrying "special cargo" will be dispatched toward Syria, a navy source said on Friday, as the Kremlin beefs up its presence in the region ahead of possible US strikes against the Damascus regime.
The large landing ship Nikolai Filchenkov will on Friday leave the Ukrainian port city of Sevastopol for the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiisk, from where it will head to Syria's coast, the Interfax news agency quoted a source from the Saint Petersburg-based central naval command as saying.
"The ship will make call in Novorossiisk, where it will take on board special cargo and set off for the designated area of its combat duty in the eastern Mediterranean," the source said.
The source did not specify the nature of the cargo.
Russia has kept a constant presence in the eastern Mediterranean during the Syrian crisis.
In recent days Russia has made steps to beef up its naval grouping in the region.
The Russian destroyer Smetlivy will soon join the group in the region as well as the destroyer Nastoichivy, Interfax has said.
The anti-submarine ship Admiral Panteleyev has already entered its zone of operation as the flagship of the current rotation of the Mediterranean grouping, a military source has told the news agency.
Already in place in the eastern Mediterranean are the frigate Neustrashimy, as well as the landing ships Alexander Shabalin, the Admiral Nevelsky and the Peresvet.
They are expected to be joined by the large landing ships Novocherkassk and Minsk and the missile cruiser Moskva. The reconnaissance ship Priazovye is also on its way to join the group.
The US already has a strong naval presence in the region and any US military action against Syria is widely expected to be launched from the sea.
Copyright (2013) AFP. All rights reserved.
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Op verzoek van de Belgische justitie is woensdag in Den Haag een inval gedaan bij een Nederlander die wordt verdacht van internetpiraterij.
Hij heeft volgens het OM in Dendermonde duizenden Belgische programma's op torrentsites gezet. Daardoor kon iedereen ze daar gratis afhalen en bekijken. De 28-jarige man zou Vlaamse series zoals 'Salamander', 'De Pappenheimers', 'Sterren op de Dansvloer' en 'Quiz Me Quick' hebben verspreid.
De Nederlander werd bij de huiszoeking aangehouden en na verhoor weer vrijgelaten. Hij zou een gedeeltelijke bekentenis hebben afgelegd, maar dat wordt niet bevestigd.
Een aantal Vlaamse zenders, waaronder de VRT, deed aangifte van diefstal. Ze ontdekten dat kort na een uitzending programma's op internet waren gezet. De Nederlander gaf op Twitter programma-informatie en daardoor kwam het OM in Dendermonde hem al snel op het spoor.
Voor internetpiraterij kan de man maximaal vijf jaar gevangenis krijgen en honderdduizenden euro's boete.
SINGAPORE/NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp's acquisition of Nokia's handset business gives the software behemoth control of its main Windows smartphone partner, but leaves a question mark over the bigger business it has bought: Nokia's cheap and basic phones that still dominate emerging markets like India.
Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer has said he sees such phones - of which Nokia shipped more than 50 million last quarter - as an entree to more expensive fare.
"We look at that as an excellent feeder system into the smartphone world and a way to touch people with our services even on much lower-end devices in many parts of the world," he said in a conference call to analysts on Tuesday.
But analysts warn that's easier said than done.
The problem, said Jayanth Kolla, partner at Convergence Catalyst, an India-based telecom research and advisory firm, is that Microsoft simply lacks Nokia's retail and supply chain experience in the Finnish company's most important markets.
"The devices business, especially the non-smartphones business in emerging markets, is a completely different dynamic," he said.
Kolla pointed to the need to manage tight supply chains, distribution, and building brands through word-of-mouth. "Microsoft doesn't have it in its DNA to run operations at this level," he said.
India is a case in point. Nokia has been there since the mid 1990s and the country accounted for 7 percent of its 2012 revenue while the United States generated just 6 percent, according to Thomson Reuters data. Its India roots run deep: it has a presence in 200,000 outlets, 70,000 of which sell only its devices. One of its biggest plants in the world is in the southern city of Chennai.
For sure, Nokia has slipped in India as elsewhere: After nearly two decades as the market leader it was unseated by Samsung Electronics Co Ltd in overall sales last quarter.
But it still sold more of its more basic feature phones.
As recently as last October, market research company Nielsen ranked it the top handset brand. The Economic Times ranked it the country's third most trusted brand.
In a land of frequent power cuts and rugged roads, the sturdiness and longer battery life of Nokia's phones have won it a loyal fan base - some of whom have stayed loyal when trading up.
Take Sunil Sachdeva, a Delhi-based executive, who has stuck with Nokia since his first phone. He has just bought his fifth: an upgrade to the Nokia Lumia smartphone running Microsoft's mobile operating system.
"Technology-wise they are still the best," he said of Nokia.
But Microsoft can't take such loyalty for granted. Challenging it and Samsung are local players such as Karbonn and Micromax, which are churning out smartphones running Google Inc's Android operating system for as little as $50.
Such players are also denting Nokia's efforts to build its Asha brand, touchscreen devices perched somewhere between a feature phone and a smartphone.
Nokia shipped 4.3 million Asha phones globally in the second quarter of this year, down from 5.0 million the previous quarter.
"The sales performance of the Asha line has been quite poor," said Sameer Singh, Hyderabad-based analyst at BitChemy Ventures, an investor in local startups. "With increasing competition from the low-end smartphone vendors, I'm unsure how long that business will last."
That leaves the cheap seats. Singh estimates that the Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa accounted for two-thirds of Nokia's feature phone volumes in the last quarter, at an average selling price of between 25 to 30 euros ($32.99 to $39.59).
"I don't see how Microsoft can really leverage this volume," he said. "The market is extremely price sensitive and margins are racing into negative territory."
The quandary for Microsoft is that while the basic phone market may be declining, it may simply be too big to ignore.
"If you look at markets like India and Indonesia, more than 70 percent of the volume comes from the feature phone business," Anshul Gupta, principal research analyst at Gartner said. "It's still a significant part of the overall market."
That means that if Microsoft wants to herd this market up the value chain to its Windows phones, it needs to keep the Nokia and Asha brands afloat - while also narrowing the price gap between its smartphones and the feature phones and cheap smartphones.
Microsoft has hinted that lowering prices of smartphones would be a priority. The Windows Phone series includes the top-end Lumia 1020, which comes with a 41-megapixel camera, while it also sells simpler models such as the Lumia 610 and 620 aimed at first-time smartphone buyers.
"The lower price phone is a strategic initiative for the next Windows Phone release," Terry Myerson, vice president of operating systems said on the same conference call, while declining to provide details.
An option for Microsoft, analysts said, would be to shoe-horn services like Bing search, Outlook webmail and Skype, the Internet telephony and messaging application, into the lower-end phones as a way to drive traffic to those services and make the devices more appealing.
"So you can bundle services with these low-end products and that way you can reach a wider audience," said Finland-based Nordea Markets analyst Sami Sarkamies.
But in the meantime Microsoft needs to brace for assault on all fronts as emerging market rivals see an opportunity to eat further into Nokia's market share. In India, said Convergent Catalyst's Kolla, cheap local Android brands have been held back by Nokia's strong promotion of its mid-tier Asha brand.
"Now, I expect them to pounce," he said. ($1 = 0.7577 euros)
(Reporting By Jeremy Wagstaff in Singapore, Devidutta Tripathy in New Delhi, Bill Rigby in Seattle, Ritsuko Ando in Helsinki; Editing by Emily Kaiser)
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At IFA in Berlin this week there has been a host of new Windows 8 laptops and PCs. Some small enough for your pocket, ones that recline into your lap, and the usual hybrids that twist and turn from laptop to tablet. While Acer, Lenovo, and Samsung have experimented with their own unique flipping laptops, Sony has now entered the game. The new VAIO multi-flip PC is the latest attempt to merge tablet, laptop, and desktop computing into a single device.
Looking at the multi-flip PC it looks like a normal Windows 8 laptop. It has an aluminum casing, a Haswell processor, and the 13-inch model features a 1920 x 1080 display. On the 15-inch that jumps to 2880 x 1620, but both feature a full backlit keyboard with a trackpad. Unlike...
