• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

T3 India

  • Home
  • SmartPhones
  • Software
  • Wearables
  • Gaming
  • Technology
  • Music
  • VR
  • SUBSCRIBE

userblog

ODE TO A LEGEND

February 7, 2022 by userblog

LATA MANGESHKAR (1929-2022)

What can we add to the millions of words said in praise of India’s foremost female singer, Lata Mangeshkar? Suffice it is to say that she had a sweet , golden voice that was unparalleled and was the result of complete dedication to the profession of singing.

The Mangeshkar family came from a modest background and Lata was the eldest of the siblings.

She initially modelled herself on Noor Jehan but soon developed her own style and reigned as the number one female singer for Hindi films for decades. Her initial rise to fame was courtesy of composers Shankar Jaikishan for whom she was the default singer. ‘ Barsaat’ (1949), for which she sang almost all the songs, shot her into the limelight and after that she did not look back.

Even though she had little formal education, Lata was both street smart and sharp. She ensured that the pinnacle she had reached remained hers alone by boycotting composers and producers who encouraged new singers. Her spats with Sardar Mallick, S D Burman and Shankar Jaikishan are well known. But for her spat with Rafi and Shankar Jaikishan, she would have sung many more hits that went to other singers like Suman Kalyanpur and Sharda.These traits, however, only showed that she was human after all.

India and Indians will continue to enjoy the haunting, sweetvoice of Lata Mangeshkar for decades to come. RIP Lata Mangeshkar!

T3 lists below Lata’s TOP 30 songs.

1 Jiya bekarar hai – BARSAAT (1949) Shankar Jaikishan
2 Ye zindagi usiki hai – ANARKALI (1953) C Ramchandra
3 Rajaki aayegi baaraat- AAH (1953) Shankar Jaikishan
4 Aaja re pardesi – MADHUMATI (1958) Salil Chowdhary
5 Pyar kiya to darna kya – MUGHAL E AZAM (1960) Naushad
6 Ajeeb dastan hai yeh – DIL APNA AUR PREET PARAI (1960) Shankar Jaikishan
7 Aap ki nazaron se – ANPADH (1962) Madan Mohan
8 Kahin deep jale kahin dil – BEES SAAL BAAD (1962) Hemant Kumar
9 Tera mera pyaar amar – ASLI NAQLI (1962) Shankar Jaikishan
10 Jo waada kiya who – TAJ MAHAL (1963) Roshan
11 Dil bekarar sa hai – ISHAARA (1964) Kalyanji Anandji
12 Lag ja gale se – WHO KAUN THI (1964) Madan Mohan
13 Aaja aayee bahar – RAJKUMAR (1965) Shankar Jaikishan
14 Yeh sama – JAB JAB PHOOL KHILE (1965) Kalyanji Anandji
15 Aji roothkar – ARZOO (1965) Shankar Jaikishan
16 Lo aa gayi unki yaad – (1966) Ravi
17 Aa jaane ja – INTEQAM (1969) Laxmikant Pyarelal
18 Bindiya chamkegi – DO RAASTE (1969) Laxmikant Pyarelal
19 Inhi logon ne – PAKEEZAH (1972) Ghulam Mohammed
20 Teri bindiya re – ABHIMAAN (1973) S D Burman
21 Satyam shivam sundaram – SATYAM SHIVAM SUNDARAM (1978) Laxmikant Pyarelal
22 Rimjhim gire saawan – MANZIL (1979) R D Burman
23 Yeh kahaan aa gaye hum- SILSILA (1981) Shiv Hari
24 Tujhse naaraaz – MASOOM (1983) R D Burman
25 Ae dil e nadaan- RAZIA SULTAN (1983) Khayyam
26 Pyar ka dilko dikhake sapna – ANUBHAV (1986) Rajesh Roshan
27 Wada na tod – DIL TUJHKO DIYA (1987) Rajesh Roshan
28 Arre re arre ye kya hua – DIL TO PAAGAL HAI (1997) Uttam Singh
29 Humko hamise churalo – MOHABBATEIN (2000) Jatin Lalit
30 Kaise piyase – BEWAFA (2005) Nadeem Shravan

Filed Under: Music

The rise and rise of the ‘Cinewhoops’

December 7, 2020 by userblog

Breaking the barriers of aerial cinematography with tiny drones

A tiny drone flies through a neighbourhood in Los Angeles, zips through precarious gaps of an archway, over houses, in between palm trees, through a small gymnastic ring to eventually reveal a glorious sunset over a California beach – all in one fluid aerial shot. This award-winning video ‘Muscle Up’ was shot by American drone pilot and video effects specialist Robert McIntosh back in 2017, not a fancy stabilised drone, but a tiny ‘whoop drone’ mounted with a zip-tied de-cased GoPro Hero 4 and a LiPo battery. The best part? It weighed just 120g and Robert built this drone himself. 

This marked the beginning of the trend of the Cinewhoops, allowing drone pilots and cinematographers to capture stunning visuals that are otherwise impossible with the likes of a stabilised drone like the DJI Mavic Mini or Spark.

In the last eighteen months globally, Cinewhoops have been gaining immense popularity among drone enthusiasts. These tiny drones, especially those weighing less than 250g, are stretching the creative possibilities of aerial videography, content creation, and professional aerial cinematography. 

We caught up with some of the biggest names in the international FPV circuit and budding professional Indian FPV cinematographers who emphasised how Cinewhoop use is growing exponentially and punching way above its weight.

So, what’s a Cinewhoop and why it’s taking off?

A Cinewhoop traditionally is a type of a First Person View (FPV) drone used for capturing stable cinematic video footage in locations otherwise difficult to shoot and nimble enough to manoeuvre closer to the subject at slow and high speeds. They are much smaller, around 2-3 inches in size, and come equipped with propeller ducts, an HD or a 4K camera, and can be custom built by a user. Some can weigh up to 500g depending on the type of camera mounted atop. It gets its name from ‘whoop’ aka ‘Tiny whoop’ drones.

The concept of a Cinewhoop was pioneered and made popular by Robert McIntosh, whose video ‘Muscle up’ won him awards at GoPro and the New York City drone film festival back in 2017.

Cinewhoop vs Stabilised drone

Stabilised drones from established manufacturers like DJI, Autel or Parrot are built to be autonomous, which means these drones can hover in the same place without requiring any command from the radio controller. They come with several sensors and have capabilities such as GPS, high-resolution gimbal cameras and you can connect your mobile device to view the live feed from the camera. In a larger perspective, they have their own use case to shoot pictures and videos but the shooting flexibility is very limited with standard types of shots. Moreover, it is not advisable to fly these drones indoors. In the event of a crash, repairing these drones is expensive and they’re not designed to be repaired by the user. 

Cinewhoops, on the other hand, offer creative freedom from an aerial perspective that stabilised drones cannot. You have an FPV view through your drone’s camera via FPV goggles giving you the feeling of sitting inside the cockpit of the drone. Unlike stabilised drones, with Cinewhoops you can fly freely in the air, dive, roll, flip or even rip down mountains, buildings and tracks, pass-through windows, fly under tables, and through the tightest of gaps. The agility of the Cinewhoop and fluidity of the movement is unmatched. They are made to fly indoors and outdoors and are perfectly safe to fly at home and around people.

Andrea Zega

Andrea Zega aka Rimzler, a 23-year-old Italian Cinewhoop enthusiast and a notable aerial cinematographer tinkering with drones since 2013 says that Cinewhoops are perfect to create fluid shots. He along with his friend Bruno Sisti part of the Insta360 team has worked on the first custom sub-250g drone capable of shooting full 360 unobstructed video footage. “Cinewhoops just like the bigger FPV brothers have a very distinct way of flying, creating a smooth rollercoaster-like point of view, they are perfect for creating long takes and movements are fluid, compared to commercial drones (DJI) that move in a more linear kind of way, another advantage of Micro Cinewhoops is that they are super agile and safe, you can fly indoors and hit all the gaps, something that is impossible with standard solutions,” he says. 

Rimzlers Instagram handle (@rimzler) brims with footage shooting in narrow and precarious places such as churches, shops, towns, gyms, factories, offices, and around people.

Benoit Finck aka Fincky, one of the biggest names in aerial cinematography, has shot for brands like Oakley, Adidas, covered the Drift Masters European Championship and has even shot music videos. Having toured the world capturing breathtaking and immersive aerial experiences on his Cinewhoop, Fincky is betting big on the Cinewhoop trend, which he says is here to stay. 

Benoit Finck

“I use a Cinewhoop when I have to fly pretty fast around people on foot, skateboarding, or even biking, or when I need to go through extremely small gaps. The Cinewhoop trend is definitely here to stay as it brings a really different perspective to the table. You can fly them in places you can’t fly bigger drones, the experience is unique. For sub-250g Cinewhoops to record 1080p or 4K footage, you’d require a very small camera like the Insta360 Go, or a de-cased GoPro. The brands I have worked with have been initially sceptical and prefer cinema-grade cameras, but are immediately convinced once they see the footage I’ve shot with the Cinewhoop,” he says.

One major reason why Cinewhoops have become so popular is that they are smaller, extremely agile and a majority of them weigh below 250g offering you the flexibility to record HD to UHD seamless video footage. Until last year, users didn’t have too many custom drone options to record cinematic or 4K footage while staying under the threshold of 250g. 

Since May 2019, many famous custom drone companies like Eachine, BetaFPV, iFlight, Flywoo are offering RTF Cinewhoops (Ready-to-Fly) where the entire kit to get you started which includes the drone, FPV gear, a radio controller and LiPo battery, and BNF Cinewhoops (Bind-N-Fly) where only the drone is on offer and you can use a receiver of your choice and bind it to your existing radio controller.

Kim Tang

In fact, Kim Tang, a professional drone builder (sub-250g) and cinematographer based in Hong Kong has been building and selling BNF/RTF sub-250g Cinewhoops with de-cased GoPros Hero 6, 7 & 8 since June 2020. Kim has sold over 160 units of Cinewhoops priced between $550-$750 with buyers mostly in the USA and is confident that the nature of this trend will only increase. “Who knows, in 2021 we may see de-cased Blackmagic (industry-grade video cameras) designs on whoops.” quips Kim jokingly.

Worth the weight

Since the weight of the Cinewhoops ideally is categorised under the Nano class of drones (under 250 grams), In India, they are exempted from registering the drone with the aviation regulator DGCA, and you wouldn’t require an Unmanned Aerial Operator Permit (UAOP) to fly it either. However, you will require necessary local permissions and inform the authorities if you fly over public property or sensitive locations.

India and the case of Cinewhoops

The trend has feverishly latched on, albeit late amongst hobbyists and professional cinematographers in India. Commercially, a few brands and OTT platforms have ventured hesitantly to explore the opportunity, but are yet to fully understand the full potential of utilising FPV to drive their marketing and advertising collateral as against global counterparts. The reason behind this is the idea of Cinewhoops and FPV is still fairly new and raw to production and advertising firms to inculcate over the existing aerial solutions. Also, there is not enough of a skilled pool of FPV pilots in India just yet. 

Piyush Parmar, an Aerial Cinematographer & FPV Pilot at Orbiter Films says that the popularity of Cinewhoops has been growing in India with more and more people getting into the hobby of FPV. He credits the surge in interest to the video reels of JohnnyFPV, NurkFPV, and others on YouTube that have made the prospect of FPV cinematic flying exhilarating and fun.

Piyush Parmar

“I can safely say I’ve been the first to introduce the usage of FPV drones in the Indian Film Industry. I’ve used Cinewhoops to shoot professional ads for brands such as Skechers, along with a few Bollywood projects in the pipeline. 

Mihir Bhatt, a DOP and aerial cinematographer in the Indian film industry, recently incorporated FPV in a real estate shoot and for a web series for ALTBalaji using a Cinewhoop he built in early 2020. 

Mihir Bhatt

“The FPV market is lucrative and is clearly pegged to grow but maintenance and reparability of these whoops can be daunting for a lot of new FPV fliers. What makes it more interesting is that you can start from the widest frame and go into the smallest of gaps in the same shot. That is something the current commercial drones available in the market cannot do,” Mihir says.

Delayed take off

Despite looking like a promising market, the cost, maintenance and repairability of these whoops can be daunting for a lot of new FPV fliers. A common underlying challenge for FPV fliers in India is the availability and sourcing of parts/hardware at retail cost. 

“While education remains the biggest challenge in India with respect to the growth of the market for Cinewhoops, availability and pricing of spare parts to build and repair is also a pain point that can deter new users in this hobby,” Piyush says. 

From a commercial standpoint, Mihir says that the Cinewhoop market will evolve when there is awareness about the strengths and limitations of the equipment. “People who want to pursue this hobby commercially need to be patient and hone their skill set,” he adds.

Currently, there are only a handful of vendors and P2P sellers in India that are selling FPV/drone related supplies. But they do not provide adequate after-sale service, which can be a deal-breaker for many. Ordering the same products from international websites may attract heavy customs duty, sometimes even resulting in confiscation. It is more like a hit and miss with a wait time of 15-50 days dampening your progress of building a drone along with your enthusiasm till you receive the parts.

Kim Tang too sees India as a huge market and has even sold a few units to customers in the country. However, he says that owing to the cost of the Cinewhoops, and high customs duties levied in India, Indian buyers are not confident of ordering FPV equipment from overseas.

On the bright side, the situation could get better in the near future as the government formalises norms and the law around operating drones in the country. 

Cost and Where to Buy

A Cinewhoop built on an analogue system will cost you approximately ₹11,000-₹15,000, while a Cinewhoop on a digital system like DJI will put you back by about ₹25,000-₹30,000.

In addition, with a complete FPV kit, for people getting into the hobby, the analogue will cost approximately ₹30,000-₹40,000 and for a digital FPV system like DJI would be ₹70,000 and upwards.

Currently in India, you can buy Cinewhoops or parts to build one on websites like rcmumbai.com, tujorc.com, and quadkopters.com.


This article was originally published in the December edition of T3 India. Subscribe here.

Filed Under: Drones Tagged With: Cinewhoops, Drones

ViewSonic Offers Schools and Universities Free Distance Learning Tools During Coronavirus Outbreak

March 18, 2020 by userblog

ViewSonic, a leading global provider of visual solutions, is offering myViewBoard for free to K12, colleges and universities for the coronavirus outbreak time. With the spread of coronavirus, many schools and universities are not only preparing for extended school shutdowns, but educators are also urgently exploring the possibilities of distance learning.

“Due to the Covid 19 pandemic colleges and schools have been shut down so as a stakeholder in the education sector, ViewSonic wanted to support the educational sector like schools, colleges, students, parents, especially those without access to distance learning,’’ said Eric Wei, Senior Sales Director Asia Pacific, ViewSonic. While the government has already given notice to shut down all educational institutes due to Covid19 ceasing all in-person class which will give preference to distance learning education in India”.

myViewBoard enables teachers to conduct distance learning through an open and agnostic platform, facilitating students and their learning outcomes wherever they happen to be. It is easy to use and allows real-time collaboration through video audio conferencing, huddles and digital whiteboarding, supporting a variety of pedagogies with an emphasis on virtual classroom. Through its inclusive features, myViewBoard helps create a virtual learning environment that is engaging, interactive, and effective.

myViewBoard for distance learning at: https://myviewboard.com/distance-learning.

Filed Under: Hardware

ViewSonic introduces advanced lamp-free projectors in India

March 11, 2020 by userblog

ViewSonic announced the introduction of its latest lamp-free projectors at a trade show in Mumbai. Equipped with the 2nd generation LED technology, the projectors are designed for longevity with improved picture and audio playback.

The ViewSonic X100-4K lamp-free projector is easy-to-install and supports Amazon and Google Voice control compatibility. The projector is packed with +60% vertical and +/- 25% horizontal wide lens shift that enables the projector to be easily mounted on the ceiling or a dedicated home theater. Images are vivid and clear with the 2,900 lumens of brightness, Rec. 709 compatibility, and 4K Ultra HD 3840 x 2160 resolution support. Moreover, the integrated Harman Kardon speakers and projection size up to 300-inch help the projector deliver a premium 4K viewing experience.

In addition to X100-4K, ViewSonic also unveiled the M2 portable LED smart projector. It’s ideal for personal use because of its portability and convenient to carry.

ViewSonic also launched the LS860WU, a laser projector equipped with the 2nd generation laser phosphor technology to provide a brighter and consistent image projection. This latest projector provides 20% more brightness than its predecessor.

Our projector category has been widely appreciated in the past across all markets due to which, we are motivated to provide the best possible quality products. We are delighted to launch the lamp-free projectors to give our patrons an invincible projector experience. Continuing our legacy of providing the best of products to our audience, the new projectors are packed with the latest lamp-free and smart technologies giving users an incredible and truly immersive visual and audio experience.

Mr. Muneer Ahmad, Business Head, ViewSonic India
Model MRP Availability
X100-4K Rs. 3,85,000 June 2020
M2
LS860WU
Rs. 98,000
Rs. 3,50,000
March 2020
March 2020

Filed Under: Projectors

Optoma redefines home cinematic experience with the all-new P1

February 11, 2020 by userblog

Optoma redefines home cinematic experience with the all-new P1.
4K UHD ultra short throw laser projector with integrated soundbar

As the world’s leading brand in 4K UHD projection technology and a global manufacturer of large display product, Optoma is honourably announcing that the P1 has been officially launched in February in India today.

“An amazing way to avoid the bulk of a television is a “short throw” projector. They’re designed to be placed very close to the wall or screen, yet project a huge, perfectly proportioned home cinema picture. There are no cables to trip over and no heads in the way.” – London Evening Standard mentioned

Gordon Wu, Head of Optoma APAC speak: “We’re excited that the Optoma P1 has been finally issued in India. Looking forward, Optoma redefines home cinematic experience with the all-new P1; it absolutely would be an excellent choice.” From beginning of 2020, we have been winning many major awards from world, this time we are also looking for reverberation in India. Particularly the World’s Leading Gadget Magazine- T3 has given the Optoma P1 5 stars review “Gordon continued.

The Optoma P1, launching across the world, integrates 4K ultra high definition (UHD) resolution with an ultra-short throw distance, plus a laser light source – a culmination of today’s best technology advancements. The Optoma P1 features Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant voice control capabilities, IFTTT support for seamless smart home automation with smart IoT devices and an integrated premium NuForce soundbar with Dolby Digital and Dolby Digital Plus pass-through over optical and HDMI arc. Combined with an easy auto geometry correction system driven by the SmartFIT app and Firmware Over-the-Air (FOTA) technology for hassle-free software updates, this powerhouse marries cutting edge technology with high style to be easily integrated into any home cinema.

For maximum contrast and brightness, the Optoma P1 can be used with Optoma’s 100” ambient light rejecting ALR101 screen. The specialised screen surface is designed to actively reflect a projected image for high contrast and solid colour saturation while preventing ambient light from washing out the picture.

The Optoma P1 Smart 4K UHD laser projector is available for sale now at a street price of ₹4,99,900.

The Optoma P1 key features

  • True to life detail – 4K UHD resolution and HDR compatible
  • Laser cinema projection – bright 3500 ANSI lumens
  • Amazing colour – 87% DCI-P3
  • Ultimate flexibility – ultra short throw lens
  • Built-in sound bar – powerful NuForce audio with Dolby Digital 2.0
  • 3x HDMI v2.0
  • Voice control – Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant supported device*
  • Smart features – IFTTT integration
  • Video Streaming: via Optoma Marketplace with access to popular streaming services
  • Integrated 4K media player
  • SmartFIT app – hassle free set-up via smartphone
  • Fluid viewing – PureMotion frame interpolation
  • Remote Control: Bluetooth smart home remote with air mouse
  • Full 3D

Specification

Filed Under: Projectors

  • Go to page 1
  • Go to page 2
  • Go to page 3
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Go to page 10
  • Go to Next Page »

Primary Sidebar

LATEST ISSUE

More Stories

ASUS Introduce AMD Ryzen 7000 series laptops

POCO X5 5G Hits Market today

Xiaomi Introduce Redmi Smart Fire TV

NETGEAR Introduces Orbi RBK863

Sony Launches Alpha 7R V camera

Apple Introduces Music Classical App 

moto g73 5G to hit markets at a launch price of Rs.18,999

U&I Introduce ‘Tango’ and ‘Impact’ Series BT Speakers

T3 India on your smartphone & tablet!




Footer

Like Us On Facebook

T3 India

Advertisement




T3 India:- The Gadget Magazine Powered by NextGen Publishing Ltd