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Google Appoints Morgan Stanley's Ruth Porat as CFO

Google Inc hired Morgan Stanley Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat as its own finance chief, a sign Google is aiming to rein in costs as it invests in new businesses such as self-driving cars and internet-connected eyeglasses.

Porat has helped execute a sweeping cost-cutting strategy across several business lines at Morgan Stanley. The bank cut its expenses, excluding compensation, to 29 percent of its revenue last year, down from 34 percent in 2012.

Google's costs have jumped as the company embarked on an increasing number of ambitious projects. Last year, the company's revenue grew 19 percent, while total expenses rose 23.4 percent, a trend that alarmed some analysts.

"You want someone to come in there and push back against the free spenders," said Colin Gillis, an equity research analyst at BGC Partners, a brokerage, adding that investors hope Porat will be that person.

Google's shares rose as much as 2.5 percent on Tuesday after Porat's appointment was announced by both companies. She will start her new job on May 26.

Porat is the latest among a string of Wall Street executives to leave an industry that is increasingly regulated to move into the more free-wheeling technology sector, where fortunes can be built fast but businesses can also become irrelevant overnight.

Total compensation to Google's departing CFO was twice as much as Porat's for the three years through 2013 - $62.2 million vs $29.6 million, according to public filings by the companies. Google has not disclosed how much it expects to pay Porat.

She joined Morgan Stanley in 1987, and led Morgan Stanley's investment banking business for tech companies during the Internet boom, working with Amazon.com Inc and eBay Inc , among others.

(Also See: Wipro Appoints TCS Veteran Abid Ali Neemuchwala as COO)

Some analysts took her appointment as a sign Google acquisitions could pick up.

Porat ran the investment banking business for financial companies including banks, and during the financial crisis she became Morgan Stanley's point person with regulators and other government officials in Washington.

Porat, 57, was considered a potential candidate to become chief executive whenever current CEO James Gorman steps down.

But several high-level Morgan Stanley sources who have spoken to Reuters about succession planning over the past two years said she was not seen as a top contender. Instead, they pointed to two other executives - Gregory Fleming, 52, who runs wealth management and asset management, and Colm Kelleher, 57, who runs investment banking and trading - as more likely contenders.

Some observers saw gender bias at play, given her qualifications and Wall Street's history as a male-dominated industry. At an event last year, Porat criticized the lack of female leadership in corporate America as "an embarrassment."

"If a woman 'leans in,' but is leaning against a door that is nailed shut, no amount of leaning will bust down the door," she said. "So I think we must hold our organizations accountable where they control the doors by demanding clarity and transparency around succession planning."

(Also See: Tinder Appoints Chief Executive to Replace Sean Rad)

Critics have also accused Silicon Valley's culture of being hostile to women. Ellen Pao, a former partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, is suing her firm for discrimination. The trial heads into final arguments on Tuesday.

Wall street is less fun
Porat joins an array of bankers, analysts, and other executives that have left Wall Street as strict post-crisis regulations have made the business safer and stodgier. Some of these executives have headed into the technology sector, including Anthony Noto, once an investment banker at Goldman Sachs Group Inc, who last year became CFO at Twitter Inc. In 2010, Mary Meeker, a widely followed tech analyst at Morgan Stanley, left the bank to join Kleiner Perkins.

Porat has ties to Silicon Valley, having spent much of her childhood in California and attended Stanford University, where she serves on the board of trustees.

She has spent time building her connections with Washington. During the financial crisis, she led the Morgan Stanley teams advising the U.S. Treasury on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and the New York Federal Reserve Bank on American International Group Inc .

Those ties to Washington could have translated into a government post - she was widely reported to have been a candidate to be the Treasury deputy secretary, but said she was not interested.

Porat will replace Patrick Pichette at Google, who said on March 10 that he planned to retire.

At Morgan Stanley, Jonathan Pruzan, co-head of the bank's global financial institutions group in investment banking, will become CFO. Pruzan, 46, joined Morgan Stanley in 1994.

"He understands the current regulatory environment, having shepherded clients through the Fed's stress test ..." Gorman said in a memo to staff.

Xiaomi 'Ferrari' With Octa-Core Snapdragon 615 SoC Spotted in Benchmarks

Xiaomi has so far launched three new smartphones this year, including the new Redmi 2, Mi Note, and the Mi Note Pro. These smartphones haven't really reached many markets; but the company seems to have more planned for this year - with what appears to be a new mid-range smartphone leaked in benchmark results.

Tech Gadgetsz.com (via PhoneArena) spotted two new benchmark listings of a new device called the Xiaomi Ferrari, which is likely to be a codename of an upcoming mid-range smartphone. According to the GFXBench results, the Xiaomi Ferrari will purportedly feature a 64-bit octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 processor clocked at 1.66GHz coupled with 2GB of RAM and Adreno 405 GPU. The handset is seen sporting a 4.9-inch full-HD (1080x1920 pixels) display while running Android 5.0.2 Lollipop; though considering that Xiaomi handsets run MIUI on top of Android, we can expect the Ferrari smartphone to also run a new version of MIUI.

There is a 12-megapixel rear camera capable of recording full-HD videos while a 4.8-megapixel front camera is also on board. The GFXBench further tip that the handset comes with 16GB of built-in storage out of which only 12GB will be user accessible.

The Geekbench Browser benchmark listing of the Xiaomi Ferrari on the other hand shows a single-core score of 692 and a multi-core score of 2481. The benchmark listing also shows upload date back from January tipping that Xiaomi has been testing the device for a while.

Considering that the popular Xiaomi Redmi 1S got a successor in the form of the Redmi 2, it is probable the Xiaomi Ferrari is the successor of the Redmi Note. Further cementing the speculation is the relatively large 4.9-inch display; though we will have to still wait for the Xiaomi's confirmation.

Clash of Clans Maker Supercell Sees Revenue Hit EUR 1.5 Billion

The maker of hit game Clash of Clans said Tuesday its revenues shot up to EUR 1.55 billion ($1.6 billion) in 2014, a 130 percent bound over the prior year.

Finnish mobile game studio Supercell, in announcing its results from last year, reported making EUR 515 million in operating profit as defined by earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation.

The revenue figures make Supercell 10 times larger than its rival and fellow Finnish game maker Rovio, which is behind Angry Birds.

"We're very thankful to the millions of players around the world who play our games," Supercell CEO Ilkka Paananen said in a statement.

Born as a start up in 2010, Supercell was bought in 2013 by Japanese telecom group SoftBank and game studio GungHo which paid EUR 1.1 billion for 51 percent of the company.

At the time Supercell only had two games: Clash of Clans, a strategy game where players build a village while battling competitors, and farm management game Hay Day. The company rolled out a third strategy game Boom Beach in March 2014.

Android 5.0 Lollipop Gets New 'On-Body Detection' Smart Lock

Apart from 'Trusted devices' and 'Trusted places' for smart locking/ unlocking your Android phone, Google has rolled out a new 'On-body detection' mode to the Smart Lock menu. With the option, users can keep their devices unlocked depending upon the proximity to their body.

The feature was first spotted by Android Police on Friday, and is also working for us on a Google Nexus 4 smartphone running Android 5.0.1 Lollipop alongside Google Play Services v7.0.97.

The 'On-body detection' feature essentially keeps the device unlocked (once unlocked) till the time user is holding it or is near the body (pocket or handbag). This is helpful when you leave the device somewhere and as soon as it goes out of your body's proximity it gets locked, even before the sleep and lock time.

Unfortunately the new On-body detection smart lock feature cannot differentiate between different bodies, so when you hand an unlocked smartphone with the feature enabled to someone it will stay unlocked. Also, if users have Trusted devices or Trusted places features enabled alongside, the device may stay unlocked even after it is out of proximity.

(Also see: Google Releases Android Auto App; Updates YouTube, Maps, and Other Apps) 

"This feature uses you device's accelerometer to detect whether your device is still being carried on the body. If your device detects that it's no longer being held, your device won't stay unlocked [..] If you unlock your device and hand it to someone else, your device also stays unlocked as long as the other person continues to hold or carry it," reads the On-body detection feature's brief note.

The feature is also reported to be working for non-Nexus devices running versions higher than Android 5.0 apart from the latest Google Play services version 7.0.97.

To remind you, Google during the MWC 2015 trade show introduced the Google Play Services 7.0 with new APIs for developers. Notably, the search giant launched its Google Play Services 6.5 last year in November.

(Also see: How to Activate WhatsApp Voice Calling)

Top Rated Windows Games For Tablets Or Anything Else Running Windows 8 For That Matter

Top Rated Windows Games for tablets (or anything else running Windows 8 for that matter)

Windows Central Roundup: Top Windows 8 Games

We are taking a slight change of pace for this week”s roundup. Instead of focusing on apps for Windows Phone, we are going to take a look at a few of the top rated Windows games.

An HP Stream 8 tablet was left under the tree with my name on it this past Christmas. While my Windows Phone is my primary device for gaming these days, I”m finding the 8″ Windows tablet can hold its own rather well. I think in many respects a tablet is more amenable to gaming than a laptop or desktop, especially when touch screen controls are in play.

I”ve plucked four gaming titles from the Windows Store (plus a few honorable mentions) that I have found to be nice gaming options when you need the elbowroom a tablet offers. Many of these gaming options are available for your Windows Phone and I”ll add the download links with those titles for the Windows Phone Store and make not if the version is available for low-memory Windows Phones.

Fairway Solitaire

While a game of solitaire may not be everyone”s cup of tea, it can be an enjoyable way to pass the time. Fairway Solitaire takes the gaming concept of solitaire and adds a unique twist to game play. The result is a card game that should appeal to most (maybe even to those who hate cards games).

At the core, Fairway Solitaire isn”t very different from your traditional game of solitaire. You are presented with a collection playing cards that are either face up or face down. You have to remove the cards from the playing field in sequence (regardless of suit). You start the card in your draw deck at the bottom of the screen and pull from the other cards. So if you have an 8 showing in your draw deck, your next card will be a 7 or a 9. The goal is to hit long drives by playing as many cards in a row as you can and ultimately remove all the cards from the playing field.

Scores are based on the number of cards you leave in play once your draw deck is depleted with each hole or level of play having a set score that is considered par. You will want to score par or better.

The game has sand traps to overcome, water hazards to conquer and sometimes your cards are knee deep in the rough. To help you out, you will discover golf clubs during game play (or buy them as your earn golf bucks) that serve was wildcards. The seven iron would become a 7 card that might help keep your string of cards going or get your score under par.

Fairway Solitaire includes three courses of play that combine for 350 golfing holes (or levels of play). The game also includes 37 trophies to earn, four mini-games and a pesky gopher that is prone to steal your golf bag.

The free version of the game has enough game play to either get you hooked or have you run for the hills. The paid version is running $1.99 and gives you access to the full collection of courses. The same can be said of the Windows Phone versions of Fairway Solitaire but the game is not a universal app.

Download Fairway Solitaire for Windows 8 (Free)Download Fairway Solitaire for Windows Phone (Free)

Sonic Dash

If you are looking for a fast paced, endless runner styled game you may want to give Sonic Dash a try. For those who may not know, Sonic is a world famous Hedgehog that dates back to the Sega Genesis gaming console days. Sonic has come a long way since those days and Sonic Dash is a popular, entertaining installment to the gaming series.

Controls are gesture based, as is the case with most endless runner games and there are plenty of power-ups to collect during game play or buy through the game”s store.

As you make your way through the endless course, you have rings to collect, enemies to bash and bosses to battle. There are also red stars to collect and earn that will unlock additional characters to play such as Knuckles, Tails and Shadow.

Another nice feature of Sonic Dash is that your endless runner course is broken up into segments. This not only gives you a slight breather but also an opportunity to earn bonus points by mimicking screen gestures as Sonic jumps from one stage to the next.

All in all, Sonic Dash is a fun game to pass the time with whether you are playing from your Windows Phone or the larger screen of a Windows 8 device. Both versions are free but there is no means of synchronizing your gaming progress between the two.

Download Sonic Dash for Windows 8 (Free)Download Sonic Dash for Windows Phone (Free)

Asphalt 8: Airborne

As far as personal choices are concerned, Asphalt 8: Airborne may be my favorite Windows 8 game to play from a tablet. The graphics are outstanding and when you steer with your device sensors, the gaming experience will have you leaning into every turn and raising up in your seat as you send your car airborne.

The racing game is constantly being updated to offer new cars and courses to master. To date, Asphalt 8 has 47 high performance cars to race, 9 different racing venues with 180 events in the Career Mode. You also have an Infected Mode and Drift Gate modes to keep the game interesting.

Asphalt 8 has quality sound effects, plenty of airborne stunts and did I mention outstanding graphics? Add ghost challenges and simultaneous multiplayer action for up to eight opponents and Asphalt 8: Airborne may be the only racing game you will ever need.

The Windows Phone version of Asphalt 8 is addictive but it takes a backseat to the Windows 8 version when played on a tablet (especially when you play with headphones on). Asphalt 8 is a universal app that has the option to save your gaming data to the cloud. This will allow you to bounce back and forth between your Windows Phone and Windows 8 device without missing a beat.

The game pulls down a 5 Star rating in both the Windows Phone Store and Windows Store with over 136,000 reviews. Asphalt 8: Airborne is an impressive game and we will gladly concur with the 5 Star ratings.

Download Asphalt 8: Airborne for Windows 8 (Free)Download Asphalt 8: Airborne for Windows Phone (Free)

Halo: Spartan Assault

While most have enjoyed the Halo series of games over on Xbox, the Windows Phone platform has enjoyed its own installment of the Sci-Fi series with Halo: Spartan Assault. The game has since transitioned to a Windows 8 version and an Xbox version.

It is an entertaining, challenging game for your Windows Phone and, as we see with many of the universal games, the Windows 8 version offers you more elbow room to play and pulls out a little more detail in the graphics.

Game play departs slightly from the traditional Halo gaming titles in that instead of playing the game as a first person shooter, you play the game overlooking the action in arcade style. You still have to battle the Covenant forces, scavenge for weapons and ammo as you play the game and take control of the many Halo vehicles.

Virtual joysticks are positioned in the bottom corners of the screen to control your Spartan”s movement and weapons fire. You also have grenade buttons conveniently placed next to the joysticks for easy deployment. On a tablet, the control spacing feels comfortable and everything is within thumbs reach to help with game play efficiency.

Halo: Spartan Assault includes 30 missions and your progress is carried over should you switch between your Windows Phone and Windows 8 devices. Experience points earned will unlock emblems to enhance your Spartan career in Halo 4.

Graphics are impressive, game play challenging, as well as addictive, and if you are a Halo fan or just like combat oriented games, Halo: Spartan Assault deserves a hard look. The full game lacks a trial version but there is a Lite version available in both Stores that is free and will give you a feel for game play.

Download Halo: Spartan Assault for Windows 8 ($4.99)Download Halo: Spartan Assault for Windows Phone ($4.99)Download Halo: Spartan Assault Lite for Windows 8 (Free)Download Halo: SA Lite for Windows Phone (Free)

Honorable Mentions

Call of Duty: Heroes

Call of Duty is successful first person shooter gaming series that throws you in the middle of a wide range of combat situations. While Call of Duty normally places you behind the sights of a weapon, Call of Duty: Heroes places you in command of an army of soldiers in a 3D combat strategy game.

You take command of a small base and build it up into a major military installation. At your disposal is a host of Call of Duty heroes along with over thirty defensive and offensive structures. The game isn”t all about defending your base with plenty of missions where you launch attacks against enemy positions.

There isn”t a Windows Phone version of Heroes so if you need to fill your Call of Duty itch while away from your Xbox, Call of Duty: Heroes may do the trick.

Download Call of Duty: Heroes for Windows 8 (Free)

Dragon Mania Legends

I recently reviewed the Windows Phone version of this city builder game and found it to be an entertaining title. Playing Dragon Mania Legends on a tablet brings out the finer details of the graphics and with the ability to synchronize your gaming progress, you won”t miss a step by switching between the two devices.

In a nutshell, Dragon Mania Legends is a time management, city builder where you breed dragons, build your kingdom and fight Vikings and their dragons. The game is a nice mix of time management tasks and battle sequences. Graphics are great and the game can be rather addictive. Connect with Facebook and your Windows Phone and Windows 8 game play can synchronize.

Download Dragon Mania Legends for Windows 8 (Free)Download Dragon Mania Legends for Windows Phone (Free)

Hungry Shark Evolution

Hungry Shark is just a fun game to play. The Windows Phone version offers you mobility and the Windows 8 version pulls out the detail in all the fish, fishermen, swimmers and other objects your shark will consume.

The game is rather simple. You play the role of a shark and swim the ocean eating everything in sight. As you eat, your shark will grow but if you fail to satisfy its endless appetite, you will find the shark go belly-up and the game end.

Download Hungry Shark Evolution for Windows 8 (Free)Download Hungry Shark Evolution for Window s Phone (Free)

While these titles are amongst the top rated Windows games, they aren”t the only game in town. The Windows Store is packed full of quality, entertaining gaming titles.

If we have overlooked your favorite Windows game to play on a tablet (or any other Windows device for that matter) there is nothing sinister at work. Just add your recommendation below in the comments. Also, if you have tried any of these Windows titles or others, remember to rate the games in the Windows Store. It is the best way to offer feedback to the developer.

Honor 6 Plus and Honor 4X Smartphones Launched in India

Huawei's Honor brand, as expected, on Tuesday expanded its smartphone portfolio in India with the launch of the Honor 6 Plus and Honor 4X smartphones.

Both the smartphones will be available exclusively via Flipkart. The Honor 6 Plus has been priced at Rs. 26,499 and will be available from April, while the Honor 4X has been priced at Rs. 10,499, and will be made available via its first flash sale on Monday - registrations kick off from Tuesday.

The firm added that both phones will come with a free screen replacement offer that's valid for the first month. Both smartphones will also come with 'app gifts' from Hungama, Yatra and other services. 

Huawei's Honor 6 Plus was initially unveiled in December last year in China. It runs Emotion UI 3.0 based on Android 4.4 KitKat. It features a 5.5-inch full-HD IPS display.

The most notable feature of the Honor 6 Plus is its HTC One (M8)-like dual 8-megapixel rear camera sensors, which the company calls "symmetrical dual camera technology".

The Honor 6 Plus camera sensors are said to capture 13-megapixel resolution images with twice the amount of light as compared to a single sensor, take 0.1 seconds to autofocus, and use SLR-grade ISP technology. There is a 5-megapixel front-facing camera also onboard.

The Honor 6 Plus is powered by an octa-core Kirin 925 processor with Mali T628 GPU and 3GB of RAM. The Huawei's own Kirin 925 processor also offers Cat. 6 LTE connectivity at 300Mbps. It features 32GB of inbuilt storage via microSD card (up to 128GB). A 3600mAh battery backs the smartphone.

Huawei's Honor 4X, on the other hand, is a budget smartphone featuring a 64-bit 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 MSM8916 processor.

It comes with a 5.5-inch IPS HD (720x1280 pixels) display and runs Emotion UI 3.0 based on Android 4.4 KitKat. It features 2GB of RAM and an Adreno 306 GPU. The smartphone packs 8GB of inbuilt storage, which can be further expanded via a microSD card (up to 32GB).

The Honor 4X was launched last year initially in China. The handset sports a Sony-made 13-megapixel rear camera with f/2.0 aperture, and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera. Backed by a 3000mAh battery, the company claims that the Honor 4X can deliver up to 72 hours of battery life with regular usage. The smartphone will be available in Red, Blue and Golden colour variants and is 7.9mm thick.

The connectivity options on the handset include 4G LTE, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS/ A-GPS, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and USB 2.0.

Huawei's Honor brand is also promising monthly OTA updates for the two smartphones for six months, followed by quarterly OTA updates.