Category: Tech

The Current’s tech news keeps you upto date with news of new gadgets, tech updates, information about tech startups and technology reviews.

  • Motorway police introduces anti-sleep device for drivers

    In a bid to curb traffic accidents, the National Highways and Motorway Police has introduced an alarm-like device to keep drivers from falling asleep at the steering wheel, and claims that it will significantly reduce the rate of accidents on the motorway.

    The device is designed to be worn on their ears and has sensors that set off an alarm if and when a driver’s head tilts forward due to drowsiness. The alarm is a loud beep that sounds off near the ears of the driver. As reported by a motorway policeman who demonstrated the use of the device in a video, it actually costs Rs. 750 but will be made available for public use at Rs. 300 with the help of an unnamed donor.

    The policeman also informed the media that the department will introduce the device in coordination with the traders associations and local administrations. He added that roadside stalls will be placed in each area to sell the device to the public. The motorway police department affirmed that most of the accidents on the motorway are caused by drivers who fall asleep while driving, because of which hundreds of citizens lose their lives on a regular basis. It added that the new devices can be worn by both drivers and passengers to prevent such catastrophes.

  • Naya Pakistan: PM appoints former Silicon Valley, IBM executive as special tech zones chief

    Naya Pakistan: PM appoints former Silicon Valley, IBM executive as special tech zones chief

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has appointed Amer Ahmed Hashmi as chairperson for the Special Technology Zones Authority (STZA).

    According to the ordinance passed on Dec 2 for the establishment of Special Technology Zones Authority, the new authority will focus on the growth of scientific and technological ecosystem in the country, primarily by fostering the development of technology zones and high-tech industrial parks, thereby contributing to the acceleration of the evolution of the national system of innovation.

    Headquartered in Islamabad, the federal body will help promote the global competitiveness of the domestic technology sector, as well as provide institutional and legislative support to attract foreign direct investments in the high-tech sector.

    Amer Ahmed Hashmi

    The prime minister would serve as the president of the Board of Governors of the STZ Authority.

    As a global strategist, IT executive, and entrepreneur, Amer Hashmi possesses diverse global experience in organisational leadership with companies like IBM and MCI Systemhouse. He was the founding CEO of Si3 – Pakistan’s pioneering technology outsourcing firm that helped stimulate IT systems integration in public and private organizations in Pakistan. His work has been featured in Forbes Asia, Businessweek & Financial Times UK.

    Hashmi spent the last 10 years building a knowledge ecosystem in his capacity as advisor and chief strategy officer at National University of Sciences & Technology (NUST).

    He was also the chairman of executive committee of NUST Science & Technology Park and founding president of the Global Think Tank Network (GTTN).

    Hashmi is a graduate of York University, Toronto, and has been trained in several technical and specialised programmes, including executive leadership on ‘Innovation for Economic Development’ from Harvard’s Kennedy School of government.

  • Rise in mobile phones import by 63%: PTA

    The country has witnessed a 63% increase in the import of mobile devices via legal channels for the year 2018-19, according to Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).

    Since the implementation of the Device Identification Registration and Blocking System (DIRBS), around 17.2 million devices were imported in 2018 while 28.02 million were imported in 2019.

    This year Pakistan has imported around 32.83 million devices so far, as per PTA’s press release.

    PTA implemented DIRBS System in December 2018, with the aim to curtail counterfeit mobile phone usage, discourage mobile phone theft and protect consumer interest. Through DIRBS, PTA has identified and blocked 24.3 Million fake replica mobile devices and 657,645 IMEIs that were duplicated.

    The implementation of DIRBS has also been the catalyst for local mobile devices manufacturing, leading to the establishment of 29 local assembly facilities. Since 2019, over 20 million devices have produced in these facilities.

    Moreover, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has collected a total of Rs90 billion in customs duties on formal imports during January 2010-November 2020. This is Rs68 billion more custom duties as compared to custom duties collected in 2018. i.e. Rs22 billion.

    DIRBS has enabled FBR to collect Rs9bn revenue under the individual category from January 2019 to Dec 3, 2020. The PTA said it was an untapped area and no revenue was being collected in this category before the implementation of DIRBS.

  • ‘Wapistani’: A new programme for Pakistanis wishing to return to the country

    ‘Wapistani’: A new programme for Pakistanis wishing to return to the country

    The Indus Valley Capital has announced the launch of a dedicated programme for returning Pakistani, known as Wapistani, at 021Disrupt 2020, an online conference by Nest I/O.

    This announcement was made by Aatif Awan, the Founder & Managing Partner at the Indus Valley Capital.

    Indus Valley Capital is an early stage venture capital fund investing in Pakistani startups. This fund has a well-established network that is deployed to help early stage startups build products that can be scaled to hundreds of millions.

    Awan explained that the Wapistani programme aims to make the move to Pakistan easier for Pakistanis who are returning to the country.

    Indus Valley Capital plans to bring back 200 Wapistanis within the next 2 years through this programme.

    Wapistani will help returning Pakistani in three main areas:

    1- Career: This program will help returning Pakistanis in making the right career decisions through personalized intros and connections with top startups looking for senior or specialized talent.

    2- Concierge: There will be dedicated resources to help returning Pakistanis with important life choices related to housing, children’s schooling and medical care.

    3- Community: This programme will build a network of Wapistanis, who are moving back to the country at the same time.

    Indus Valley Capital is targeting people in tech, who plan on moving back in the next 6 months.

  • Pakistan becomes founding member of Digital Cooperation Organization

    Pakistan has joined the Digital Cooperation Organization (DCO) as a founding member.

    The organisation has been established under an initiative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that has also invited other countries to join as founding members, including Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait and the UAE.

    The organisation was launched at a virtual event on Thursday, hosted by Saudi Arabia Minister of Communication and Information Technology Abdullah Al-Swaha. Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi participated with a video statement.

    The foreign minister noted that the creation of DCO would cater to the growing need for international cooperation and collaboration in the digital domain at a time when the digital economy is estimated to be worth over $11 trillion and set to expand further in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The organisation will offer a platform to promote the global digital agenda in the scientific, health, educational, commercial, social, agricultural, investment and security spheres.

  • Ministry of Science and Tech to introduce a video games certification programme

    Ministry of Science and Tech to introduce a video games certification programme

    Federal Minister of Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry, announced a special programme of animation and video games certification to encourage young people to be part of the multi-billion dollar gaming industry.

    The minister said that they are looking to make people a part of the $900 million programming industry. He said that this new programme is especially targeted at those uninterested in studying and looking into video game development instead. According to him, the certification program should prove to be a “game-changer” for many. The tweet does not reveal any details, but since the Minister talks about Smartphone games, we can expect the program to lean more towards phone apps and games.

    The new initiative will be providing animation and video games certification programmes to young people in order to boost the local gaming industry.

  • Honda reveals 11th Gen Civic prototype

    Honda reveals 11th Gen Civic prototype

    Honda has finally revealed its new Civic 2022 in prototype form, featuring many design changes on the exterior and interior of the car.

    Along with a change in design, the Japanese carmaker also made multiple tech additions to the new model with a range of safety features in the eleventh generation of the car.

    A prototype of cars is usually the early samples designed to test a concept or process. The company said the model showcased recently is a prototype; most of the highlights will make their way into the actual car set for a launch next year.

    Civic will be available in four models

    The company has confirmed that the new Civic will be available in four models — a hatchback, executive sedan, performance-oriented Si model, and high-performance R model once it hits the production line.

    Although the company hasn’t revealed the new Civic’s interiors but noted that the car would get a modern dashboard layout compared to the current model. The car will feature a nine-inch touchscreen infotainment system and a fully digital instrument panel, and the safety suite will include multiple airbags and several driver-assistive technologies.

    All versions will have turbocharged 4-cylinder engines. The sportier versions shall get a manual gearbox option as well.

    There are no reports of the car being introduced in Pakistan anytime soon, but as is custom with Honda Atlas, the Civic is usually introduced here a year or so after it is launched in the international market. Whether or not that will be the case for the 11th gen Civic, is yet to be seen.

  • Massive growth: 50,000 closed power looms now operational

    Massive growth: 50,000 closed power looms now operational

    Faisalabad is witnessing an upward trend in the textile sector because 50,000 closed power looms have been turned operational.

    As per the details, experts have forecasted that another 30,000 looms will be installed as the textile industry witnesses massive economic growth following the high demand for export times.

    The recently-announced incentive of electricity supply for the industrial sector at subsidised prices by the government has also played a vital role in this development.

    On Thursday, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan shared a television news report on Twitter regarding the revival of the textile industry.

    The report highlighted the rise in economic activity in Faisalabad and the shortage of 0.2 million labourers that are required to meet the high demand of orders in the sector.

    The textile sector had been adversely affected by the power crisis and neglect of the previous governments. However, due to the incumbent government’s effective smart lockdown policies during the coronavirus pandemic, numerous countries have diverted their orders to Pakistan’s textile sector.

    According to the news report, the textile industry in Faisalabad has 1.3 million workers with 1 million native workers. In its recent report titled “Opening Early helped Pakistan Boost Exports during the Pandemic”, Bloomberg also underlined a major surge in Pakistan’s textile exports.”

    Bloomberg’s report also quoted Shahid Sattar, the Secretary-General of the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association, as saying, “Pakistan has seen orders shifting from multiple nations including China, India, and Bangladesh”.

    He added, “Garment manufacturers are operating near-maximum capacity and many can’t take any orders for the next six months”.

    The report also mentioned that the outbound textile shipments of Pakistan grew at a faster pace than those of Bangladesh and India, and accounted for half of the total export. Islamabad saw total shipments grow 7 per cent in September, compared with New Delhi’s 6 per cent and Dhaka’s 3.5 per cent, the report stated.

  • Sony PlayStation 5 is now available for sale

    Sony PlayStation 5 is now available for sale

    Seven years after a successful run of PlayStation (PS) 4 – the only console with over 112 million units sold worldwide – the new PS5 is now officially available in markets for sale.

    The news comes days after Microsoft released its next-generation console, the Xbox Series X.

    PlayStation 5 comes in two different models, one with disc compatibility which will cost $499, while the the other is a digital version that will let users buy games online and will cost $399. The digital version is slimmer in comparison to the disc compatible version.

    In the wake of the ongoing pandemic, the PS5 will not be available for in-store sales and can only be purchased through online stores in western countries.

    Sony is expecting a boost in sales soon as holiday season is right around the corner and also because the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly increased the demand for home entertainment. The Japanese conglomerate expects to sell 7.6 million PS5 units by March next year.

    Analysts predict that Sony will sell 17.9 million consoles by the end of 2021 and will hit the 67 million mark by 2024.

    Those in the UK wanting to get the console will have a slightly longer and frustrating wait as it launches on November 19 in UK markets.

    “In a completely ideal world, we would like to launch everywhere in the world on the same day,” said Jim Ryan, the PlayStation boss. “We just needed an extra few days to get everything in order to be able to have a proper, professional, seamless PlayStation-style launch.”

  • How to prank your friends into thinking you have a PS5

    How to prank your friends into thinking you have a PS5

    Ahead of Play Station 5’s (PS5) launch, a hilarious new Instagram filter has gone live that lets you trick your friends into thinking you already have the PS5.

    The filter was created by AR On Everything as a ‘bit of fun’.

    They explained: “I hope everyone is having a good time with my AR filter for PS5 box.

    “I have created this filter for fun purpose only, any misuse (sale, fake give away etc) of this may attract legal consequences for which ‘AR On Everything’ will not be responsible.

    “I humbly request everyone to use this ethically and responsibly. Thank you and enjoy flaunting your virtual PS5,” the added.

    To try the filter yourself, open Instagram and go to the Story option, by tapping the camera icon in the top left corner.

    Swipe through the filter carousel at the bottom of the screen, until you reach the Search option at the end.

    https://get-latest.convrse.media/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mirror.co.uk%2Ftech%2Finstagram-filter-lets-you-trick-22967164&cre=center&cip=14&view=web Tap on this and it will open the Effect Gallery. Tap the magnifying glass in the top right corner, and search PS5 Box.

    Tap on the PS5 Box filter, then tap ‘Try It’. Now you’ll be able to virtually place the PS5 box in your house and trick your friends into thinking you have the new console!

    The official release date is November 12, with fans in the US, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand South Korea able to get their hands on the console on that date.