Continuing its work with the feedback from Indian consumers, Asus has become aggressive with the price and specifications with Zenfone Max Pro M2 that feels bigger with thinner bezels, a notch and a chin at the bottom.

First Impressions

Design & Display

The 15.9 cm (6.26) FHD+ Full View display of this smartphone is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 6. Its rear panel is 3D glass-like with a wave design giving it a premium feel. The compact Notch panel makes the most of the space by accommodating an LED Proximity Sensor, an Ambient Light Sensor, a surprise Soft LED Flash, an Earpiece, a Notification LED and a front camera.

Asus is offering Zenfone Max Pro M2 with a shiny exterior with distinguishing colors of blue and Titanium that is easy to hold thanks to its curved sides. A laminated back and glossy finish quickly picks up smudges during daily use.

I had to stretch a bit to access the power and volume buttons located on the right side. , Adding an extra bit to the convenience, Max Pro M2 can accommodate 2 SIM cards and a microSD card. Each of the SIM slots support 4G VoLTE for fast connectivity.

Security

Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 offers Facial Recognition and a Fingerprint Sensor for unlocking the phone. Both these options turn on the phone is seconds which is very convenient.

Camera

The Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 houses two cameras in the back, a 12-megapixel primary lens and a 5-megapixel depth-sensor. The aperture of the primary lens is f/1.8 providing a pixel size of 1.25 microns. The Depth, set through the 5-megapixel secondary lens allows enough light for great daylight shoots. However, it suffers under low light as photos are grainy with enough noise levels. Quick settings provide a dedicated night mode but with no improvement to the overall quality of the images or videos.

A manual intervention is required to adjust the quality and not meant for Insta Shutterbugs like me. I prefer the automatic settings to adjust depth blur. The selfie flashlight is a welcome addition for capturing some great photos. Camera is perhaps the achilles heel for the Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2.

Performance

Powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 system-on-chip (SoC) and Android Oreo 8.1 out of the box, the mobile phone is free from bloatware. With the Android Pie update expected any day, the phone’s performance will receive an additional boost.I love the UI, smooth with no lag or slowdowns. I could open multiple apps in the background without a need to close any one of them thanks to its RAM optimisation at software levels. All of my day-to-day activities like browsing the internet, video binge watching, Social media updates, messaging and calling were seamless. The phone is kind to Google Maps, gaming apps, video editing tools, video recording and playback. 5,000 mAh battery lasted for two days and Charging time is two hours.

Dhempe’s recommendation 

Priced between 9,999 to 13,999 Asus Zenphone Max M2 is powerful and competitive. The 5-magnet NXP speaker and Corning Gorilla Glass 6 protection makes the mobile experience seamless and secure.

Recently I read in the news that India’s longest Rail and Road bridge is coming up in Assam. This is the Bogibeel Bridge which is going to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 25, 2018 as a Christmas and New Year gift to the entire North East. But what is the real story of the making of the Bogibeel bridge? Read on to know more!

By Vikramjit Kakati – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link

Bridging River Brahmaputra has always been a daunting task. The river has been traditionally considered extremely difficult for bridging due to various reasons including it’s ferocious and unpredictable behaviour, high currents and turbulent waters, widespread erosion of the banks, very short working period and high seismicity and remoteness of the area. On top of that, the construction is only possible 4 months in a year due to the heavy monsoon and melting of glaciers in summer.

With the width ranging from 1.2 km to 18 km, Brahmaputra river has been bridged 4 times in past. Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) holds the distinction of being the only company which has built two of these bridges and has now built the 5th bridge too at Bogibeel, near Dibrugarh.

HCC has always been at the forefront of building bridges in Assam as they built the Saraighat bridge way back in 1962 near Guwahati. This bridge was opened to traffic in April 1962 by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

HCC was pivotal in also constructing the Kolia Bhomora Setu at Tezpur which is a pre-stressed concrete road bridge that connects Sonitpuron on the north bank with Nagaon district on the south bank. The length of this bridge is 3015 m, and its construction went on from 1981 to 1987. This was very important bridge in the history of Assam.

HCC in joint venture with DSD Brouckenbau GmbH, Germany and VNR Infrastructures Ltd received order from Northeast Frontier Railway to construct the superstructure of Bogibeel Rail-cum-road Bridge in November 2011.

It was not an easy task to build the Bogibeel bridge. HCC aced it by doing a lot of things very innovatively. HCC team came-up with a solution of pulling the steel trusses with a set of jacks and winches on the pillars. This eliminated the need to enter the river, which was often turbulent during monsoons. Besides, it also ensured safer working conditions, precluded the mobilisation of giant setup on either side of the river having a width of 4.8 km and accelerated the pace of the project.

RVR Kishore, project director of the Hindustan Construction Company Ltd., recently mentioned that the location of the Bogibeel Bridge falls in Seismic Zone-V. In Indian history, Zone V has been most vulnerable to earthquakes with magnitudes in excess of 7.0. In order to offer good stability to the heavy spans (1700 MT), they are provided with seismic restrainers. This ensures that the Bogibeel bridge can withstand earthquake up to magnitude of 7 on the Richter scale and beyond. This is really good planning by HCC team!

Normally in a steel bridge construction, bolts & rivets are used, which needs periodic replacement due to shear failure over traffic loads. Construction of trusses using welding makes the connection between the components a permanent one, thereby eliminating the above failures. Welded bridge not only reduced the maintenance cost but also adds to the longevity of the superstructure. It is estimated that Bogibeel Bridge is durable and serviceable for next 120 years!

Railways have traditionally used steel rocker-roller bearings for bridges with larger spans. For the Bogibeel Bridge, the initial plan was to use Pot-PTFE bearing with metallic pins and guide bearings. However, it was found out that the size of bearing required for taking the anticipated load cannot be accommodated in the pier cap, hence Spherical Bearings have been used.

The superstructure of Bogibeel Bridge has been constructed using a special grade copper-bearing steel plates in order to reduce corrosion. The average annual relative humidity in Bogibeel is 90% which goes up to 96% to 97%. To further reduce corrosion due to the excessive humidity, a complex Corrosion Protection System specific to different components of the bridge has been implemented during the construction of the bridge.

Overall, Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) has created history by creating a modern marvel of engineering – India’s longest Rail and Road bridge – Bogibeel Bridge in Assam!

Imaginarium is a made in India concept for kids and families, where they are invited to discover, explore and expand their imagination through a host of live on-stage experiences, conducted by India’s premiere and only real-life Kids Influencer – Rob (of Mad Stuff with Rob/ POGO fame).

As India’s First Interactive Show for Kids and Families, Imaginarium – It’s a Wonderful World blended Rob’s real-life experiences with his unique, magical and larger-than-life artistic interpretations, to create a concept that mesmerized and engaged audiences of all ages.

Conceptualized and curated by Sony Music and Rob, and produced by BookMyShow, the limited shows of ‘Imaginarium – It’s a Wonderful Worldwill’ are in being performed in Bengaluru from 14th to 16th December, before moving to other cities.

Spanning across 90 minutes and bound together with attractive elements like humour, magic, foot-stomping music and spectacular visuals, kid’s icon Rob and his two delightful sidekicks, The Helping Hands, engaged with the audience and created science and art experiments as well as fascinating illusions.

This action-packed roller coaster of creativity empowered the audiences like us to participate in the show and not just witness it, a first in the Live Art show space.

Captivating audiences with concepts that will broaden their imagination and also allow them to learn and master DIY concepts, stays with them forever. Manifested through a series of incredible live art performances, Rob’s magical creations used daily mundane household items to create wonderful perspective art, and teach the audience simple yet innovative ways to make party treats.

The audience also learnt art forms used in places like Japan and Turkey, bringing characters to life using the ink splat technique, and creating much more along with Rob throughout the show, with their DIY kits which were provided at the venue.

A perfect outing for kids between the ages 4-14, and their families, Rob’s ‘Imaginarium – It’s a Wonderful World’ is happening in Bangalore’s Good Shepherd Auditorium from December 14-16, 2018. Book your tickets on BookMyShow here.

Recently I was invited to cover the 4th season of Krishnapatnam Port Golden Eagles Golf Championship’s Bangalore leg at the Prestige Golfshire Course, Bengaluru. The IT hub is the first of the four venues slated for this year’s series. This has been my 3rd year of association with Krishnapatnam Port Golden Eagles Golf Championship since I covered it in 2016 in Bangalore and in Pune.

Legendary cricketers, Mr. Kapil Dev and Brian Lara were the key highlights of the game as they enjoyed a tee off jointly on the lush green course. The tournament witnessed participation from avid golfers across India. It was a great opportunity for us to meet them too and discuss about how they feel Golf is more prominent in their lives now that they have retired from active cricket.

We also got to interact with 12 time Women’s Golf Champion Ms. Sharmila Nicollet along with other international golfers Ashlyn Ramsey and Nick Taylor. They were all present on the occasion to back the tournament and interact with the other participating players. Popular actor Madhavan was also a part of the tournament and teed off with Mr.C. Sasidhar, MD Krishnapatnam Port Company Limited

Mr. Brian Lara on the occasion said, “I am very delighted to associate with Krishnapatnam Port Golden Eagles Golf Championship. Golf is a very rejuvenating game and a great stress buster besides I have been playing it since a while now. It’s a great platform as it enables me to indulge while promote a sport that I truly love besides cricket. The competitiveness and spirit of the players at the championship was truly inspiring. Such tournaments should keep happening as it encourages more young golfers to be a part of this sport which is still picking up in India.”

Mr. Kapil Dev on the occasion said, “Golf is emerging in a big way in India and it’s indeed the right time that we endorse and support young, talented golfers to pursue their passion for golfing. It takes huge money, time and effort to promote a sport in our country and I really admire Krishnapatnam Port for their unwavering passion for the game that has enabled this tournament to gain such farfetched popularity in such a short period of time.

Commenting on the occasion Mr. C Sasidhar – MD Krishnapatnam Port Company Limited said “Golf is a beautiful game to indulge and relax even while pursuing your passion for perfection. The appreciation we have been receiving all through these seasons of the tournament has been indeed overwhelming. We have always believed in doing things with a desired differentiation and our golf championship is one among those. Krishnapatnam Port is also extremely proud to be developing the country’s first ocean linked golf course and look forward to more and more players coming forward to making this emerging sport a grand success in our country.”

The consequent games of the four city event will be staged across Boulder hills – Hyderabad on 10th November 2018, Oxford Golf Resort & Country Club – Pune on 17th November 2018 and DLF Golf and Country club – Delhi on 23rd November ‘18.

About Krishnapatnam Port Golden Eagles Golf Championship

The Krishnapatnam Port Golden Eagles Golf Championship TM is part of the port’s ‘Golfing for Greater Good Initiative’. The exclusive tournament seeks to raise awareness and support for various causes of education, healthcare, wellness, employment among others through the CSR arm of the company through various golf-related activities. The current tournament will be raising financial support for a retired Sea- men’s Trust. The tournament houses the top industry golfers from across sectors inclusive of partners, customers and business associates of the port.

Krishnapatnam Port is a firm believer in investing in society, and also has several massive projects under its CSR arm – The CVR Foundation – covers healthcare, education, livelihood generation, training and community building programmes.

For the most recent updates you can also visit us at www.facebook.com/KPCL09 and Twitter at www.twitter.com/KPCL9

My 5 year old son Reyansh was asking me to take him to a nice amusement park as he wanted to enjoy the rides. But I couldn’t go much far from Bangalore due to work commitments. So we zeroed in on the best amusement park in Bangalore, Wonderla Bangalore! Also did you know that they also offer accommodation in terms of Wonderla resort which is really good for a relaxing time after enjoying the rides all day long!

Fitted with tiled flooring, modern air-conditioned rooms feature a flat-screen TV with cable channels, tea/coffee making facilities, and a wardrobe. The private bathroom comes with hot/cold shower facilities. Just check out how beautifully it is maintained and immaculately clean too! Decors are very fashionable! We had come here 6 years back when we were pregnant with Reyansh, and still the resort is maintained very well!

Wonderla mascot Chikku welcomes us at the resort with this wonderful installation where it looks like he is flying a plane through the resort! For every occasion, big or small, they have a banquet hall ready. Their banquet halls, each named after a magnificent tree are spacious, equipped with modern amenities and are perfect for the event that you have in mind.

Wonderla Resort also features a heated outdoor swimming pool, 2 dining options and complimentary Wi-Fi access. On-site parking is free. It is great to wind up in the pool after enjoying the rides whole day. Or you can have an early morning swim the next day before check-out too as check-out is after 11am!

Woods restaurant serves Indian delights, alongside Chinese and Continental cuisines for breakast, lunch and dinner. The lounge ‘Red Ice’ offers beverages and snacks, including alcoholic drinks and mocktails. In-room dining is also possible!

You can take a package for the Wonderla resort rooms which also offers Wonderla park entry. Best part about that is you will be taken in Wonderla car from resort to amusement park and also can come back for lunch at the resort. You will be given multiple entry bands. Reyansh loved the ride in Wonderla branded car to and fro!

Coming to the amusement park itself, there are 60+ exhilarating rides which you can go on. The safety levels are world class and they are impeccably maintained! Inside what appears to be a gigantic termite mound with a witch’s mouth for entry, are two popular rides – the Termite Train and the Termite Coaster. The Termite Train winds along a crazy track with sharp curves, steep climbs and dizzying drops. If that sounds tame to you, try the Coaster. It will take you screaming, up and down hair-raising loops at break-neck speeds.

There are a lot of kiddie rides for children under 7-8 years too! One of them is Mini Venice ride. Mini Venice can accommodate 24 kids. The ride recreates the feeling of gondola ride through the canals of Venice.

One of the best rides which is also new is the Recoil ride – India’s First Reverse Looping Rollercoaster. This high tech roller coaster is imported from the Netherlands, and has two track ramps that go up to 40 meters. The train climbs one ramp and accelerates to 80 kmph in 1 second, before encountering a ‘cobra roll’ and a ‘loop’ in the tracks, climbing the second ramp, again to a 40 m height, and then doing it all over all again, only this time, it is Backwards! You can actually sign up for Recoil Challenge on Wonderla website, you not only get priority access to the ride (which saves up to 1 hour of your time) plus you get a free GoPro video of your ride! Don’t miss this!

Wonder Splash ride is an absolute must for every guest visiting Wonderla. A bogie that resembles a raft made of logs is hauled up a hill using a conveyor and taken through a tunnel. On emerging from the tunnel, it hurtles down a steep incline at a dizzying speed and splashes into a shallow pool, sending a glorious spray of water your way and drenching you in the process. This fun ride is suitable for all riders in all the age groups.

If you are tired of all the outdoor fun, you can head indoors for some wonderful 3D shows! Cinemagic 3D is an absolute family thriller that brings you the essence of virtual reality cinema. Experience HD-3D video, multi-channel surround sound, high power blowers and hydraulics-assisted seats that move in perfect synchronization with the visual content.

Experience the Adventures of Chikku, a state-of-the-art ride that combines a 3D film with physical and environmental effects, in an air-conditioned theatre with 180 seats. Visitors will experience movement under their feet, splashes of water, gusts of wind and movie magic like never before. The 3D goggles will introduce the spectators to a new, larger-than-life world.

If you thought Wonderla fun ended with regular rides, you can’t be more mistaken! Wonderla brings you the biggest variety of water rides. From watery coasters to fun pools to beach like wave pools to a rain disco. Only Reverse Osmosis treated water is used in the pools, which is solar heated during winters. What are you waiting for? Take a splash and just chill!

Jungle Lagoon is a Water play attraction measuring over 10,000 sqft, with special soft flooring, very shallow water levels and 5 uniquely themed water slides and a large water play tree-house and It can accommodate over 400 people comfortably.

Reyansh loved meeting the Wonderla Mascot Chikku! There’s no better place to experience something new together. Make sure you check out the most thrilling attractions, water rides and land rides. Keep a keen eye out for timings of various other fun programs across the park – be it the next wave at the Wave Pool, or the next dance at the Rain Disco, or the next show at the Adventures of Chikku. Your visit should be a non-stop fun ride!

Always wear apparel made of Nylon or 100% synthetic material (t-shirts, shorts, bermudas, three-fourths, or swim suits). Sarees, churidars/salwars, dupatta, formal pants, shirts, burkhas/ purdahs, school uniforms, denims (jeans and three-fourth jeans), cargos etc. are not permitted in the water rides. Almost all rides involve motion/moving parts. That’s why they request guests to refrain from wearing long or loose garments like Saree/Dupatta/Shawls/Scarves/ Hijab/Mafta/Habit etc. in any of the rides, as it could lead to potential harm to themselves or others.

Check out the fun video of all the fun we had in Wonderla Bangalore!

For my 5 year old son Reyansh, I’m always looking at apps which are not just entertaining but also educative. In this context, recently I was introduced to the Lingokids app which was supposed to make learning fun for children. I’m really glad I found this app as it has become very useful to educate my kid!

Lingokids is the best way to teach kids languages in a fun and natural way. Lingokids offers an adaptive language-learning platform to teach English to children from 2 to 8 years of age, designed with Oxford University Press content.

Lingokids is a complete language-learning course, with activities that adapt to your child’s learning style. Their curriculum includes exciting educational games and a recommended playlist of activities based on your child’s level in a 100% ad-free and safe environment.

It was great to hear that this English language-learning platform has reached over 5 million downloads worldwide with the most number of downloads from India with over 400,000 users followed by Brazil and Mexico since its launch in 2016. The percentage downloads from Maharashtra are at 22.9% being highest in India, 16.4% in Delhi followed by 10.5% in Karnataka.

The online Education market In India is expected to touch $1.96 billion by 2021 and witness a 8X growth in the next 5 years according to a recent report by Google, KPMG. The reason for demand of online education has been the growth in Internet penetration and easy accessibility to affordable and quality education online.

Lingokids offers complete English courses with lots of activities for every learning style for kids from 2 to 8 years and offers well-researched, superior educational content through ELT, a division of the esteemed Oxford University Press and a global leader in multimedia English language teaching.

50 percent of the ability to learn is developed in the first 8 years of life and Lingokids’ immersive program encourages early learning and development for children by constantly exposing children to various grammatical structures and more than 3,000 vocabulary words. The apps’ hits-and-errors algorithm adapts each lesson to the child’s learning speed and the curriculum follows a methodology guided by a prestigious Board of Educators from diverse backgrounds in the field of education with expertise in literacy instruction, vocabulary development, child psychology, ESL instruction, and educational technology.

Go ahead and try ‘Lingokids – English Learning for Kids’ app for your child aged between 2 to 8 years of age and you won’t be disappointed 🙂

Recently I was invited to the launch of the Renaissance Bengaluru Race Course Hotel which is a part of the Marriott International. It is the brand’s first hotel in South India and the fourth in line to join the Renaissance Hotels India portfolio, following the launch of Renaissance Ahmedabad earlier this year. Reinforcing the brand’s global commitment to design, the hotel features horse-inspired design motifs given its locale which is next to Bengaluru Race Course; setting the stage for guests to go “off-script” and experience unconventional travel.

Actual view of the Bangalore Race Course from Renaissance Bengaluru Race Course Hotel

Speaking on the launch, Neeraj Govil, Area Vice President, South Asia, Marriott International said, “The hospitality sector is moving forward at a very fast pace and India is a strategic growth market for us right now. The rise of the middle class, increasing disposable incomes and double-digit growth in domestic tourism are very positive trends. Bengaluru as a market is witnessing phenomenal growth, its booming tech scene makes it one of the country’s most dynamic cities with exceptional economic growth and strong business activity. With the debut of the Renaissance Bengaluru Race Course Hotel, guests can experience a global, lifestyle hospitality brand that seeks to inspire, and encourages spontaneous discovery when travelling, be it for business or pleasure”.

Reception of Renaissance Bengaluru Race Course Hotel

With 276 modern and artfully designed rooms, the Renaissance Bengaluru Race Course Hotel offers an unsurpassed view of the Bangalore Turf Club. Establishing its proximity to this iconic Turf Club, the design elements at the hotel revolves around many horse-related aspects, in line with the brand’s design philosophy of “look and look again”. Life-sized horse heads, symbolic of locally incorporated features, greets guests at the entrance of the hotel. The famous Channapatna toys native to the state of Karnataka– handmade from wood and natural colors, are thoughtfully placed across various locations within the property, bringing alive elements of the local artisan community, while the hotel corridors are adorned with paintings of horses, lending an element of quiet grandeur.

Cinnamon Coffee Shop at Renaissance Bengaluru Race Course Hotel

The hotel houses four incredible culinary outlets – Lush, the casual all-day dining restaurant serving delectable cuisines from across the world. Cinnamon, the one-stop destination located at the lobby level for gourmet delicatessen items and sweet treats.

Bath Tub in Renaissance Bengaluru Race Course Hotel

R Bar is a stylish pub with a contemporary twist featuring live bands as a part of the brands signature program RLife Live. To add an essence of art to R Bar, a life-size wooden horse is suspended from the restaurant’s ceiling making for a very compelling image. The PoolBar offers a delightful break from city life, with a healthy mix of Chef’s special detox salads served along with poolside favorites such as frozen margaritas & cold infused fruits. Leisure facilities at the hotel include a full service spa and an outdoor swimming pool.

The hotel offers extensive facilities for social events and meetings. Spread over 12680 sq. ft. of indoor and outdoor space, the property features the brand’s signature R.E.N. Meetings Program with state-of-the-art audiovisual technology and high-speed Wi-Fi.

A team of dedicated event and wedding specialists are available to assist and help organize events both large and small. Adding an element of surprise, all meeting room tables have innovative Channapatna toys and wooden Blotters, traced with horse imprints, intended to spark that unexpected, fun and creative moment during meetings.

Evenings at Renaissance is where guests can connect, socialize, and experience the locale through nightly programming. Positioned with a sense of clever theatricality, Renaissance Hotels offers its guests an open invitation to experience something a little unexpected during their travels.

For the true social discoverer, the hotel’s Navigators will help experience the neighborhood’s soul by highlighting the hidden gems and handpicked local discoveries – the best in cuisine, music, arts and more.

“It is our pleasure to introduce the city of Bengaluru to its first Renaissance Hotel. We are proud to be a part of this incredible growth story and see the hotel serve as a platform for guests to explore and share all that is vibrant and exciting about the city. With a distinct and conscious effort to present local experiences in an unusual manner, the Renaissance Bengaluru Race Course Hotel will always have that unexpected surprise waiting for its guests.” said Firoz Jangaria, General Manager, Renaissance Bengaluru Race Course Hotel.

Actual external shot of the Renaissance Bengaluru Race Course Hotel