![Magnum tablet – 4.3-inch screen, tethers to your phone for Rs 8,888 [Made in India]](https://static.digit.in/default/artImg75x64_4456.jpg "Magnum tablet – 4.3-inch screen, tethers to your phone for Rs 8,888 [Made in India]")
Lakshmi Access Communications Systems (LACS ), a Bangalore-based company, gave us a lowdown on their new device called the Magnum. It is what they are calling a WIS device, which works on Windows CE operating system and uses the GPRS network to communicate. So is this another tablet/smartphone with a new nomenclature? “We do not want to compete with the mobile phone segment as this is not a mobile phone replacement. At the same time it isn’t a tablet in the traditional sense of the word. It is a Wireless Infomedia Services touch media device (TMD) which aims to integrate all your digital data needs onto one platform. We are creating a single layer platform where the customer can use this device for some standalone functions. We will add more functions, and that’s how we are taking it ahead,” said Mr. Mr. Mahendra Kumar Jain, CEO LACS. The expected launch date is towards the end of April.
The Magnum has a 4.3-inch resistive touch screen and is available in as many as five colours. The phone has features such as in-built GPS navigation, music, video, browsing, and games among other things. It also allows users to sync their mobile phone via Bluetooth with the Magnum, allowing syncing of music and other media with the Magnum. You can also back up your phone contacts via this sync. It’s priced at Rs. 8,888 plus taxes.
The Magnum runs on a 500MHz processor and on old Windows CE 6.1 operating system. When asked why LACS decided to use such an old OS and not opt for newer solutions, Mr. Jain said, “Technologies sound good on paper. Android is a great operating system no doubt, but since it is free to use, there is no guarantee of support. I don’t want to be in a position where my customer has to suffer because of any backend issues. So at this point in time we decided to go ahead with Win CE which is a more stable system. Once assured that Android or any other OS is stable and I can provide the necessary support later on, we will go ahead and implement it in our devices.”
At present the Magnum works on GPRS and not Wi-Fi – it essentially tethers to your phone connection. “Wi-Fi is dependent on a location and we want the user to be able to use this device on the go. That can happen only on the GPRS networks as of now. With 3G, we hope to get content like TV shows on the device, so the user can watch TV while on the go,” he said.
Radio DJ : This application allows you to transmit content over an FM frequency. So you can broadcast music which is on the device itself or sync it with a mobile phone and transmit the phone’s music to a car stereo.
GPS Navigator : This is a satellite based voice navigation system available in nine Indian languages. (powered by SatGuide)