This award bears testimony to the connection Dialog, as a brand, has made with the people of our country, over the years, in an attempt to speak to the hearts and minds of Sri Lankans from all walks of life – an attempt that has evidently proved successful, judging by the number of awards and nominations received last night. In addition to the Telecom Brand award, Dialog was awarded Youth Brand of the Year, and were also nominated for Brand of the Year (Grand Prix Award) and Service Brand of the Year.

What sets the SLIM-Nielson People’s Awards apart from the rest is that its panel of judges consists of ordinary citizens of the country – everyday folk you meet at the grocery store, the shopping mall and on the streets: a cross section of the population, representing all communities and income levels currently found in Sri Lanka. Organised by the Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing (SLIM), the national body of marketers of Sri Lanka, in association with Nielsen, one of the largest marketing research companies in the world, and the leading market research agency in Sri Lanka, the People’s Awards paint an accurate picture of what works in this country, in terms of marketing, popularity and image-building. To be recognised by such a body is surely something to be proud of.

Here is how it works. The awards requires people – members of the public – to name their favourite brands, personalities, advertisements, films, teledramas etc., etc.. No person or company can apply for the awards; instead, the winners chosen at the end are those nominated by the consumers themselves. This year, for the second year running, the survey covered Sri Lankans from the North and East of the country, providing a truly national perspective. Beginning in September, last year, the organisers interviewed a total of 2,700 individuals of all age groups, from all over the country. Nielson field officers, specially trained to conduct such thorough, all-encompassing surveys, used a structured questionnaire they used on the exhausting face-to-face interviews. This lasted for a period five months, ensuring that all areas of importance were adequately covered. What transpired last night was a culmination of this process.

The recognition that we received, and the outpouring of best wishes that followed have made our resolve to give our very best to our loyal customers that much stronger. Because, at the end of the day, what really matters is satisfaction in the knowledge that we have done our job right.

Here’s hoping for a fantastic and fruitful 2012.

This season, the all new, Android Honeycomb powered Hauwei Media Pad, which we introduced to you just a few days ago, will be made available at the unbelievably amazing price of Rs. 49,990. And it comes with a Rs.290/- 1GB data package, free-of-charge for three whole months.

For every BlackBerry 9780 or 9800 you purchase, we’re throwing in a BlackBerry 8520 absolutely free. If you’d rather settle for an 8520 this Christmas season, however, you can buy yourself one for just Rs. 20,242.50. That’s a 25% discount from the standard price! The all-too-awesome BlackBerry 9300 also comes with a 25% discount, at Rs. 30,367.50. Now that’s one great deal.

A Vodafone 345 will go for as low as Rs. for Rs.2,990, and what’s more, you even get reload worth a Rs. 1000 with the phone. A Vodafone 858 can be purchased at at Rs.10,990.

Then, for every new DialogTV connection, we’re giving you another DTV connection. Just like that. Plus, for every new connection, you can enjoy all our channels for no additional fee for one month, no matter what package you choose.

Mobile Broadband users can purchase a Huawei E153/E 173/E 1550 dongle for just Rs. 1,990/- by redeeming 100 Star Points.

So, check ‘em out, and let us know what you think.

For more info, please have a look here.

Then, came the Huawei MediaPad – a super-high-end tab for the price of a mid-range. It’s the world’s first tablet powered by Android 3.2 (Honeycomb) and boasts an array of features found only in the most advanced of tablets.

With a 1.2 GHz dual core processor for maximum processing power, a 7-inch, capacitive touchscreen at 1280×800 pixels (217ppi) for a smooth, crystal-clear display and stunning 1080p video-playback, and a 5 mega-pixel primary camera and a 1.3 mega-pixel secondary camera for true visual brilliance, the Huawei MediaPad is in a league of its own, giving you the performance of a lifetime.

Now, Dialog has taken steps to introduce this beautiful piece of technology to you, at an amazingly affordable price, with a few extra goodies thrown in, come the last week of November.

More details will be made available soon. Do keep your eyes peeled. You will NOT be disappointed.

How it works

Barcode technology is fairly straightforward and it doesn’t require a PhD in engineering to understand it. If you have a handheld device with internet connectivity, a built-in camera and an app for scanning barcodes, you are good to go.

Does this look familiar to you?

That’s a QR code – short for Quick Response code – a type of two-dimensional barcode that first came into being in Japan (where many things first come into being, almost on a daily basis). But QR is just one type of barcode. If you look at the back of a book or a newly purchased toy or gadget, you’ll see this, a far better known type of barcode:

What does a barcode do? It shows you stored information about something, or, as in this case, performs a predetermined action such as direct you to a URL, dial a number, send a text, etc., etc. Simply put, you scan the code with your handheld device, and the device takes care of the rest.

With this technology that we’re introducing, apart from the usual phone-dialing and web browsing, you can also connect to our promotions, offers, discounts, location maps and much, much more.

How to get the code reader

If your phone comes with a built-in scanner, then great; you can use that. If not, you can download a scanner for free at i-nigma. Just type in www.i-nigma.mobi on your phone’s browser and hit enter.

Pricing

All 2D mobile barcodes are absolutely free to scan. When you scan a 2D mobile barcode, it will request you to make a call, send an SMS, or link you to an external site (like dialog.lk, Yahoo, Google or Facebook) or display some text. But, of course, standard GPRS rates, call and SMS charges apply. Other than that, however, it’s virtually free of charge.

As part of this new launch, we have started a competition that seeks to reward you for your scanning. From today onwards, all our press and online advertisements will carry a QR code. You will even find it randomly plastered on our official website and Facebook page. Scan it when you see it, and you stand a chance to win yourself Star Points everyday, and – wait for it – a brand new BlackBerry 8520 at the end of the competition.

So, what are you waiting for?

Scan away, people!

That’s right. Now, you have access to limitless apps designed specifically for your BlackBerry smartphone.

Create your App World account today!

Please not that this at beta stage. You might encounter a few bugs and a bit of lag here and there. The commercial version will be made available soon.

The all new HTC EVO 3D is one such phenomenal innovation. It’s beyond state-of-the-art and quite unlike anything you’ve ever seen before.

What’s so special about it, you ask?

One word: 3D!

This awesome gadget from the geniuses over at HTC allows you to shoot not just 3D movies, but 3D still photographs as well, via not one – but two – cameras. It doesn’t get any better than that.

Ah, but it does! You don’t need those cumbersome 3D glasses to view these videos or pictures! How cool is that? True-to-life images with incredible depth and detail. It’s almost as if you’re looking through a window.

The 4.3-inch qHD screen offers ultra vivid images, the brightest colours and smooth video playback with unimaginable quality.

Plus, the HTC EVO 3D comes with a great tool for you to show off your 3D photos and videos: HTC Sense, a neat app that allows you to stream your 3D magic straight to Facebook, Twitter or YouTube, making sharing both easy and fun. It even lets you stream your videos to a TV set!

Some of the features of this device:

• Android OS vs. 2.3 (Gingerbread)
• 1.2 GHz dual core processor
• 4.3 inch 3D LCD capacitive touchscreen
• Dual 5 MP autofocus camera with dual LED flash
• HSDPA up to 14.4 Mbps

It’s absolute awesomeness, packed into a mobile phone.

Now, Dialog is giving you the opportunity to play with this new toy, with two very convenient payment plans: Rs. 7,990/- x 12 months or Rs. 4,090/- x 24 months. We even include a FREE 1GB data package for 12 whole months!

The unit is now available for pre-reservation at ibuy.lk till October 28. Make it yours today!

Click here for more info, or visit any Dialog Customer Care Center.
Here is a full list of specifications.

Thus, more and more people are increasingly dependent on the popular VoIP service for their long-duration and long-distance calls, as Skype-to-Skype calls are absolutely free of charge and Skype-to-phone calls cost next to nothing. Given this trend, it is only natural for a mobile service provider to give its customer the opportunity to contact their friends and loved ones on Skype via their mobile phones at a very low cost.

With this in mind, Dialog launched a Dialog-to-Skype service in March this year, allowing users to voice-call their Skype contacts for as low as Rs. 2* per minute. Needless to say, this was a roaring success, with tons of positive buzz and feedback flowing in.

And now, for the first time in Sri Lanka, Dialog is proud to introduce Skype VIDEO Call – taking your telecommunication experience a step further! With your 3G-enabled handheld device, you can now video-call your Skype contacts all over the world by entering a simple code and hitting the dial button, no matter where you are in the country. And guess what the cost is? Just Rs. 2* per minute. Yep, that’s right; the same amazingly-low price, double the service and triple the awesomeness.

Why bother, you ask?

Here are just a few examples of just how useful video calling can be:

• If you’re a busy businessman kind of guy, imagine the cost you can save on fuel by holding your board meetings and conferences via video, live, in real-time?
• Your friends and loved ones who might be thousands of miles away might feel a lot closer to you if you can seem them while you exchange pleasantries, birthday greetings, gossip, etc., etc. with them.
• If you need to show your kid/mom/dad the latest recipe you accidentally discovered during your misadventures in the kitchen, Skype is the way to go.
• Is your aunt struggling with a broken PC? With video-calling, you can give her a practical demonstration on how to fix it. Really, there’s no better way to show and tell!

Here’s the how, what, when and where:

Just Type SkypeUser ID of the person you wish to video-call and send to 678. You will receive an SMS with a number to dial in order to reach your Skype friend. Now, select the Video Calling option on your mobile when dialing. Aaaand… that’s it!

Skype away, people, and experience Skype like never before from your Dialog Mobile!

(You’d better save this number, though, if you intend to contact them in future)!

*Taxes and IDD levies applicable.
This service is not available while roaming
3G handset compatibility required

Good? Bad? Nonexistent?

Whichever it is, now you have a way to always find your way. Without fail. Every time.

Say hello to Dialog SatNav: the revolutionary mobile navigation software that’ll always show you the way, no matter where you are on our paradise isle. It is the ONLY localised navigation app that operates in all three languages!

And it comes with over 100,000 POIs or Points of Interest. What this means is that (thousands of) the places you’re most likely to visit in and around Sri Lanka are just a tap away. The location of your favourite department store, hangout spot, cinema, archaeological site or even library will never again be a mystery that begs divine intervention. There was never a greater way to tell your friends where to find you. And don’t forget that this also means you’ll be able to discover hordes of new places that you didn’t know even existed. The joy of discovery on the palm of your hand!

Here are some of the key features of Dialog SatNav:

• Fast map scaling and scrolling
• Map auto switching
• Possibility to choose map orientation – on a direction of movement, on a direction of a route or on a direction to the north
• Full-screen mode
• Apart from 2D map viewing mode, there also is the pseudo 3D mode, which supports three-dimensional image of road overpasses and significant objects of architecture
• Pop-up help
• Supports traffic jam information upload

Let’s say you had the address of someplace you wished to visit, but couldn’t, for the life of you, find it on any map or directory. Here’s how SatNav would come to your rescue in such a situation:

Just go to the main menu, select Find by Address, enter the details, and watch the magic happen, right in front of your eyes!

All these are among the really cool things you can do with the GPS enabled SatNav when you’re cruising down the busy streets of Colombo and other towns of SL. But we’ve barely scratched the surface here. The service can be a lifesaver when you’re on a hike in the more rural parts of the island or scratching your head in the middle of a thick jungle. Gone are the days when you had to brave your way to the top of a very tall tree just to get an idea of where on Earth you were!

You think that’s awesome? You ain’t seen nothin’ yet. There are tons more you can do with Dialog SatNav. Try it out today!

The demo version of SATNAV can be downloaded FREE from the Dialog W@P site for Windows Mobile, Android (up to v2.3) and Symbian Smartphones.

Mobile URL – www.dialogwap.com/navigator

Activation

How to activate the Full Map

http://www.dialogwap.com/navigator/activate.xhtml

Please follow the below steps to activate the full map.

To request a license please SMS SatNavi to 678.
Start the SATNAV application (Navitel) and select ‘online activation’.
Please enter the license key (sent via SMS) in to the text box of the application.
Press OK to proceed.

How to obtain a SATNAV License

Type, SATNAVI and send to 678

Once the license key is received via SMS, open the software and go to the activation page to enter the license key.

User Manual

In Car Devices :
3 Series (3.5 inch screen) (PDF)
4 Series (4.3 inch screen) (PDF)
5 Series (5 inch screen) (PDF)

Supported Mobile Devices

HTC Wildfire, HTC Desire, HTC Desire HD, HTC HD2, Alcatel OT-980, Nokia N82 (Non Touch), Nokia 5800, Nokia X6, Samsung Omnia II, Sony Ericsson X10

Pricing

Mobile

The license fee is Rs. 4900.00

In Car Devices

3 Series (3.5 inch screen) – Rs. 26,990.00
4 Series (4.3 inch screen) – Rs. 32,990.00
5 Series (5 inch screen) – Rs. 38,990.00

* Prices are inclusive of tax.

Share your most frightening experiences with us. Post your most creative childhood fears HERE in exactly 250 characters and win 2 tickets for Noir 2011.

Want to catch the rugby Tri Nations between New Zealand, Australia and South Africa live and exclusively on your Dialog TV?

Then, tune in to Setanta Sports (Channel 41) which begins test transmission on Dialog TV TODAY! Setanta Sports, a leading international broadcaster operating sports channels in countries around the world including Ireland, Canada, Australia and Asia, is now available for all rugby and football enthusiasts from all over the country.

This year, the action begins with the Wallabies hosting the Springboks Sidney on July 23 – on home turf. The tournament will be concluded on August 27, with just two weeks to go to the 2011 Rugby World Cup in Kiwiland. Talk about a serious warmup!

This will also be the last ‘Tri’ Nations tournament as Argentina makes its entry to the series next year, officially making it the Four Nations from 2012 onwards.

Who will get the cup? Find out, as it happens, on Setanta Sports brought to you by Dialog TV!

There’s more. Plenty of rugby internationals and pre-world-cup matches will be telecast on Setanta for the really hardcore fans among you. So, don’t miss out – and stay tuned!