VMware file a lawsuit against the former executive and Nutanix CEO Rajiv Ramaswami

Technology

Aliasgar Ayaz

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December 30, 2020

VMware file a lawsuit against the former executive and Nutanix CEO Rajiv Ramaswami

Cloud infrastructure company, VMware Inc., said that that it had initiated legal proceedings against one of its former top executives, Rajiv Ramaswami, stating that he violated his contractual obligations while being courted to be the CEO of rival Nutanix Inc., adding another chapter to a bitter rivalry between the two California-based software makers.

VMware has accused its former chief operating officer of products and cloud services, Ramaswami, meeting with rival Nutanix executives and board members while being on board VMware’s strategic discussions. Dell Technologies Inc.’s majority-owned VMWare said the executive’s actions and knowledge of its plans have caused “irreparable injury.”

“For at least two months before resigning from the company, at the same time he was working with senior leadership to shape VMware’s key strategic vision and direction, Mr. Ramaswami also was secretly meeting with at least the CEO, CFO, and apparently the entire Board of Directors of Nutanix Inc to become Nutanix’s Chief Executive Officer,” VMware said in a statement, according to The Economic Times.

In response, Nutanix, which wasn’t named as a defendant, said VMware’s action was ‘misguided’ and in ‘response to losing a deeply valued and respected member.

VMware may seek to recoup its compensation to Ramaswami during the time period and wants to “meaningfully engage” with the executive and his new employer to make sure that they do not use any confidential VMware information to make competitive decisions, Brooks Beard, a VMware vice president, and deputy general counsel said in an interview.

Nutanix, in a blog post on Monday, said the company and its new CEO had made no questionable moves.

“Nutanix and Mr. Ramaswami assured VMware that Mr. Ramaswami agreed with his obligation not to take or misuse confidential information, and VMware does not contend otherwise,” Nutanix said Tuesday when it amended the post, according to Bloomberg. “However, VMware requested that Mr. Ramaswami agree to limit the ordinary performance of his job duties in a manner that would equate to an illegal non-compete covenant, and it requested that Nutanix agree not to hire candidates from VMware in a manner that Nutanix believes would be contrary to the federal antitrust laws.”

VMware and Nutanix’s rivalry erupted in a public fracas in 2019 after San Jose, California-based Nutanix launched a campaign called “Decide” that Palo Alto-based VMware found “vitriolic.” Former Nutanix CEO Dheeraj Pandey, whose place is currently being held by Ramaswami, wrote a blog post titled, “Stop being a bully, VMware,” in which he compared his battle against the company to the struggle with India’s movement for independence from the British Empire, for civil rights in the U.S., and the American Revolution.

Top 5 Electric Cars of 2020 in India

Raunak Saha

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December 30, 2020

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The year 2020 has been the sickest year ever that has changed the entire landscape of the world. However, among all the bad things that have happened in the year, one good thing happened in the form of Electric cars; in India, half a dozen electric cars have launched in 2020.

Although this figure could have increased if COVID wouldn’t have happened, for sure in the years to come, India will emerge as the biggest market as the smart generation’s next choice is Electric Cars. So, apart from the reputed manufacturers, we have seen a lot of new faces and in 2021, we will see almost triple the number of Electric Cars launched in India this year.

TATA Motors has been making some great budget Electric Cars for Indian consumers while companies like MG and Hyundai have made premium cars more economical. Next year will be a crucial one as Tesla will also join the party, but as we goodbye 2020, here are the Top 5 Electric Cars launched in India this year:

5. Tata Tigor EV

Price: Rs. 9.58 – 9.90 Lakh

This is a revamped Electric version of the original Tata Tigor and so is quite affordable and costs under Rs. 10 lakhs. The Tigor EV is a 5 seater sedan and has a length of 3992mm, a width of 1677mm, and a wheelbase of 2450mm.

It comes with Automatic transmission and some standout features of the car include a Harman Kardon sound system, Anti Lock Braking System, Automatic Climate Control, and Electric drivetrain. This is a great car as it has decent torque of 105Nm@2500rpm along with max torque of 10.23bhp@4500rpm.

Being a budget Electric car it has a max range of 213km only and a max speed of 80km/h. There are a lot of basic safety features included with the car and the inclusion of the Apple CarPlay makes the car more feature-rich.

Also as a TATA car, the advantage it enjoys is that the company is leading the line in making a wide number of charging stations throughout the country.

4. Tata Nexon EV

Price: Rs 13.99 lakh – Rs 15.99 lakh

TATA Motors is indeed making some great budget Electric cars out there in India and the electric version of the Tata Nexon has been one of the most praised budget electric cars out there. This is also a 5-seater car that uses Tata’s Ziptron EV powertrain technology that features a 30.2kWh lithium-ion battery with a claimed range of 312km.

The electric SUV is priced between Rs 13.99 lakh and Rs 15.99 lakh (ex-showroom). It is sold in three variants: XM, XZ+ and XZ+ Lux. The battery gets an 8-year standard warranty and an IP67 waterproof battery pack. The electric motor has a performance rating of 129PS and 245Nm.

The battery can be charged from 0-80 percent in 60 minutes at charge stations and a home wall box charger could end up taking 8 hours to charge it from 20 to 80 percent. This is one of the most feature-rich SUV featuring a semi-digital instrument cluster with a 7-inch TFT display, auto AC, auto headlamps, a sunroof, a 7.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system, and connected car technology.

The engine has got torque of 105Nm@2500rpm along with max torque of 10.23bhp@4500rpm. With a wide range of features and a bold look, this is a great Electric SUV for family and the price at which it comes in provides a lot more value to Indian customers.

3. MG ZS EV

Price: Rs 20.88 lakh – Rs 23.58 lakh

The MG ZS EV is another good offering at its price ranging from Rs 20.88 lakh and Rs 23.58 lakh, it is available in two variants: Excite and Exclusive. The ZS EV’s 143PS and 353Nm electric motor is powered by a 44.5kWh lithium-ion battery which is claimed to provide a range of 340km on a single charge in real-world conditions.

When it comes to charging, MG provides you a lot of options, it offers a 7.4kW charger which easily can be installed at your home or office and charge your batteries from 0 to 100 percent in 6-8 hours. Also with the portable charger, which can be plugged into a 15A power socket, can charge the car in 16-18 hours.

While there are some MG’s 50kW DC fast chargers at some of its dealerships, which fast charge the batteries from 0 to 80% in less than 50 minutes. It has also got a wide range of features, including an 8-inch infotainment system with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.

The Electric car has a panoramic sunroof, an inbuilt air purifier, and connected tech like the popular MG Hector. It features 60:40 split rear seats, power-adjustable ORVMs, cruise control, auto AC, and projector headlamps. For safety, you have six airbags, three-point seatbelts for all five passengers, ABS with EBD, and Brake Assist.

Overall, at its price, this is a value for money, well build, a feature-rich electric car that has been praised by many and is now available in more cities.

2. Hyundai Kona Electric

Price: Rs 23.75 lakh to Rs 23.94 lakh

It’s another 5 seater Electric SUV by Hyundai fueled with a 39.2kWh battery which offers an exceptional range of 452 km. The car offers a horsepower of 134.1 Bhp with dimensions: length of 4180, a width of 1800, and a wheelbase of 2600.

Also, Hyundai’s Kona Electric is the only car to have broken the Guinness World Record for the highest altitude achieved in an electric vehicle. The car is capable of doing 0-100kmph in 9.7 seconds and maxes out at 154kmph.

The Kona Electric comes with 50kW fast charging support which enables it to fully charge up from 0 to 80% in under 60 minutes. However, it takes 6 hours and 10 mins with a 7.2kWh charger to get charged fully.

Coming to the features, the car offers 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system, voice command recognition, wireless charger, dual-zone climate control, front ventilated and heated seats, 10-way power driver seat, 8-speaker KRELL audio system, heads-up display, electric sunroof, and cruise control.

It comes with features like 6 airbags, ABS with EBD, blind-spot detection, and autonomous emergency braking for safety. Overall it’s a very complete and powerful Electric SUV that is available in India also gives a premium feel in its price range.

1. Mercedes-Benz EQC

Price: Rs 99.30 lakh

If you are looking for the absolute best then there’s no better than the premium Mercedes-Benz EQC that not only offers best-in-class features and specs but also offers the best mileage on a single charge. It is available in a single variant called 400 4MATIC.

This car also has a 5-seater layout and comes with a large 80kWh battery pack that powers two electric motors, one on each axle. This provides a total output of these motors at 408PS and 760Nm. According to the NEDC (New European Driving Cycle), the EQC can be driven more than 450km when fully charged even though it packs in more horsepower.

When it comes to charging, the car comes with a 7.4kWh home charger that can charge the electric SUV from 10 to 100% in 10 hours. While if you want, you can charge it with a 15A socket but taking about 21 hours, whereas a 50kW DC fast charger takes just 1.5 hours to charge the EQC from 10 to 100%.

Being a Mercedes car, the EQX has some of the best feature like a head-up display, two 12.3-inch screens with the latest MBUX infotainment system, touchpads on the steering wheel, smartphone-based connected car tech, a 13-speaker Burmester sound system, three-zone climate control, and 64 levels of ambient lighting.

Let us know in the comments down below which car you want to buy or wish to buy in 2021. Do let us know your thoughts on Electric Cars in India…😉

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Storytel licenses Pratilipi’s most popular stories for adaptation as audiobooks

Rahul Roy

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December 30, 2020

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Storytel licenses Pratilipi’s most popular stories for adaptation as audiobooks

● Cinderella, the inaugural audiobook, is now available on Storytel
● Four more audiobooks to be released January 2021 onwards
● Pratilipi is India’s largest free-access digital publishing and storytelling platform

29 December 2020: The audiobook app, Storytel, and India’s largest storytelling platform, Pratilipi, have entered into a literary partnership to adapt Pratilipi’s top-performing repertoire of stories into audiobooks that will be hosted on Storytel. The first audiobook titled ‘Cinderella’ is now available on the app, with more stories set to release through January 2021. This is the first partnership for both platforms and the selection has been made keeping in mind the reader responses to these stories on Pratilipi.

The stories will speak to a mass audience from across India and will attract fans of varied genres, ranging from romance to horror. The curation of stories to be converted to audiobooks — an increasingly popular mode of literary content consumption — showcases fictional narratives that address the underlying issues of the state of women in the world. Each story will be over five hours long, with narratives that are set up to draw in the listener to create a strong connection with the story.

Listeners can look forward to Pratilipi’s top stories including two horror, fantasy-fiction stories by Varsha Srivastava, Behroopiya and Cinderella and Neera’s romantic drama Ehsaas Ektarfa – all stories that have been consumed over 200,000 times collectively on Pratilipi from all across India. Reader favourites like Hamdard Saathi by Varman Garhwal and Three Legends and One Angel by Manoj Kumar Pandey will also be amongst the first suite of audio releases in this partnership.

Commenting on the partnership, Yogesh Dashrath, Country manager-Storytel India says, “Fiction has been a preferred genre for Hindi listeners followed by Romance & Biographies. At Storytel, we are always looking for exciting new content and with Pratilipi coming on board, we will soon add some fresh take on stories on our app.”

Shubham Sharma, Head of IP Development at Pratilipi, says, “Innovative new-media companies understand the potential of leveraging technology for content creation. With StoryTel we share this vision of the future of entertainment. At Pratilipi, we believe that technology and data can help us discover new stories; stories that deserve to be told. With this partnership, we’re excited to bring some of our best performing stories to audiobook enthusiasts.”

This partnership comes at the time when online consumption of both audio and written content has increased significantly and through this tie-up, Pratilipi and Storytel aim to bring engaging, high quality literary content in Indian languages to a vast and enthusiastic audience.

Top 5 Best Players in Europe of 2020

Arsh Das

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December 30, 2020

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In less than 48 hours, the abomination of a year that is 2020 will be behind us, and we will turn a new page on our calendars for good measure. With that said, let’s have a look at the 5 best players of in this season across Europe’s top 5 leagues, starting with:

5. Ciro Immobile

The winner of the European Golden Boot, Immobile had an unbelievable 2020 that saw him equal Gonzalo Higuain’s record of the most goals scored in a single Serie A season. Immobile was also the main reason behind Lazio’s return to the Champions League, netting 34 & assisting 6 as he led the frontline.

4. Kevin De Bruyne

With 11 goals & 21 assists to his name across all competitions in 2020, Kevin De Bruyne also managed to win the PFA Player of the Year award at the end of the 19/20 season to signify his brilliance in the Premier League. With Manchester City, De Bruyne managed to progress to the quarter-finals of the Champions League but lost to Lyon.

3. Cristiano Ronaldo

Winning the Scudetto for a second straight year with Juventus, Cristiano Ronaldo managed to score 41 & rack up 6 assists in 2020. The Portuguese just seems to get better with every passing year, since the numbers show no signs of slowing down for the Juventus star.

2. Lionel Messi

With 26 goals & 23 assists in the calendar year, Lionel Messi managed to have another outstanding individual season although Barcelona had to endure one of their worst campaigns in history, completely void of silverware and a decent ending.

1. Robert Lewandowski

The Polish striker managed to finish the year as the winner of The Best Men’s Player in FIFA’s The Best awards, and would’ve surely won the Ballon d’Or this season. Lewandowski managed to finish as top scorer in every competition he took part in, and also managed to win each and every one of them.

Upcoming Motorola phone renders revealed with a curved display and punch-hole design

Anurag Dutta

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December 30, 2020

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Upcoming Motorola phone renders revealed with a curved display and punch-hole design

A number of Motorola smartphones are about to get launched in the upcoming months, such as a Motorola flagship smartphone, named Motorola Nio is expected to get launched in Q1 2021, an SD 865 powered smartphone is likely to arrive as a G-series of smartphones, and so on. Recently, a couple of images have got leaked von Weibo (via), showing the design of the upcoming flagship phone from Motorola. Apart from these, Lenovo is expected to launch a flagship smartphone in the upcoming months, powered by the latest Snapdragon 888 chipset.

Now, let’s breakdown those images and try to dig into the specifications of the upcoming Lenovo device. In terms of the front design, this phone looks to have a hole-punch quad-curved (all four sides curved) display. As it is a quad-curved display, this phone is likely to have a remarkably high screen-to-body ratio, giving it a feeling of a premium flagship level smartphone. This phone is expected to have an in-display fingerprint scanner.

Now coming to the rear side schematic of the device, we can see that this phone is featuring a rectangular vertically placed triple or quad rear camera setup accompanied by an LED flash. As per its design, it looks that this phone could be the successor of the Motorola Edge+ flagship smartphones that was launched earlier this year. As of now, it is not confirmed whether it will be the same flagship device to be powered by the Snapdragon 888 chipset. This phone is expected to get launched in Q1 2021.

Sony to offer more next-gen consoles by March 2021

Technology

Nivedita Bangari

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December 30, 2020

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Sony to offer more next-gen consoles by March 2021

Sony’s PlayStation 5 is the hottest gadget of the year 2020 and is the dream device of every gamer. But there is one issue which every one of us is facing with the new console. It is a fact that the new device is facing a shortage of supplies from its manufacturer. But it seems like Sony is trying it’s hard to address the issue and will most probably solve it pretty soon.

The games which are launched on Sony’s next-gen consoles are not something outstanding, but the implementation of DualSense functionality in the games make the PlayStation 5 feel like a proper next-gen system. The software and UI are both amazing and its combination of Sony’s new Tempest AudioTecha along with titles that take advantage of its powerful SSD makes the console stand out among the rest.

According to reports, Sony shipped 3.4 million PlayStation 5 units in the first four weeks of availability and will also ship between 16.8 and 18 million units in 2021. The company states that it has received a clear supply channel and also that more units will be reserved for Asian territory from January.

Digitimes reports Sony shipped 3.4 mn PS5 in its first 4 weeks, highest ever for a PS.

They also say 2021 will see 16.8-18mn PS5 shipped after a supply stream ramp-up, with more units reserved for Asia from January.

Paywall: https://t.co/VzhPAAUMsW

(Yes, I am subscribed)
— Dr. Serkan Toto / Kantan Games Inc. (@serkantoto) December 29, 2020

The PlayStation 5 console is now available in the regular edition, complete with Bluray drive, and the Digital Edition:

The PS5 console unleashes new gaming possibilities that you never anticipated
Experience lightning-fast loading with an ultra-high-speed SSD, deeper immersion with support for haptic feedback, adaptive triggers, and 3D Audio, and an all-new generation of incredible PlayStation games
Lightning Speed – Harness the power of a custom CPU, GPU, and SSD with Integrated I/O that rewrite the rules of what a PlayStation console can do
Stunning Games – marvel at incredible graphics and experience new PS5 features
Breathtaking Immersion – discover a deeper gaming experience with support for haptic feedback, adaptive triggers, and 3D Audio technology

Originally the Japanese tech giant had planned to ship between 5 and 6 million units by March 2021, but the increased demand made Sony change its plans. Hope it manages to supply the consoles as per the promise and not crush our hopes.

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Volkswagen develops the prototype of its EV charging bot

Technology

Nivedita Bangari

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December 30, 2020

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Volkswagen develops the prototype of its EV charging bot

Electric vehicles are becoming the sought out technology of future transport. Volkswagen is a name that has created a place for itself in the global automobile market. It’s no news that the company is not only in making cars but also actively working on innovations in the field of AI and Machine Learning.

Recently the company announced that it made a prototype of the electric vehicle charging robot concept. It first showed off in proof-of-concept form in late 2019. Though it is a prototype, Volkswagen is optimistic enough to work the same as it’s supposed to.

When an electric vehicle is parked in a parking garage, the driver or the car itself can request to have the battery topped up. The robot detaches from its docking station, hooks up to one of a dozen or so mobile batteries, which it then drags to your car. It will then plug the battery into your car return to its station, waiting for other charging requests.

Once the car finishes charging or come to unlock your car, the robot collects the battery and brings it back to the charging racks; of course, it will stop letting other cars and pedestrians pass by along the way.

In electric vehicles, we often speak about the future advancements that tech companies will bring to the table. But the fact that the companies are still lacking in a fast charging and automated solution for electric cars is still a daunting factor.

Having a simple R2-D2 version robot to make cars’ auto charging sounds interesting but will not solve the problem. If Volkswagen manages to make their new invention from a science project to a Jarvis level invention, we may significantly advance the EV market.

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A new IP of Respawn Entertainment is in the works

Gaming

Koustav Deb

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December 30, 2020

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A new IP of Respawn Entertainment is in the works

The previous generation Respawn Entertainment has continuously grown up the ranks to take the place of Electronic Art’s crown jewels with the hit titles like Apex Legends, Titanfall 2, and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. So, now in the new generation, what the studio is doing? The developments of Apex Legends will be continued at Respawn’s new Vancouver-based splinter studio. According to the rumor, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order 2 is under development.

It is said that Respawn is planning to create a small team to develop a “brand new IP”. The remaining ad is not completely revealing, although the technologies will be developed by the successful applicant, which will enable “adventuring forever.” This may suggesting another live service game. The interesting thing to see that the team will be very small, although the Apex team was also small initially.

Respawn boss Vince Zampella had confirmed in early 2020, “There’s nothing currently in development. But it’s always there. You see the little bits of stuff coming back through the lore in Apex Legends. At some point, I would personally like to see some kind of resurrection there. We’ll see if I can make that happen.”

It is so much disappointing that Titanfall is being left out in the cold. But Respawn is not like that, they have shown their talent to be more than a one-franchise studio. So, let’s see the new IP of Respawn is going to take what kind of form and what type of game they are going to make.

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Samsung might be able to cross the sales of 300 million smartphone units

Samsung

Nivedita Bangari

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December 30, 2020

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Samsung might be able to cross the sales of 300 million smartphone units

Due to the pandemic, our dependency on electronic gadgets has increased tremendously; with teaching being taken to online platforms, the increase in smartphones’ sales has increased more compared to previous years.

As such, according to the latest reports, Samsung Electronics might finally be able to cross the threshold of 300 million phones after a long wait of nine years. The South Korea-based tech giant is ambitious and dead-set in making the target complete, however, analysts also suggest that the company will only be able to register 270 million shipments by the end of this year.

Despite all this, Samsung is quite optimistic about the sales of its smartphones in 2021. According to reports, Samsung has set a target of 307 million units to be sold next year. Out of these 307, around 287 million will be smartphones, and only 50 million out of these will belong to the flagship category includes foldable screens.

We already know that Samsung will be launching its Galaxy S21 in the First Quarter of 2021, with the smartphone coming out with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888 chipset. But the new chipset will not be included in all variants of the device. For Samsung’s Indian and European markets, the South Korean tech giant will sport the new Exynos 2100 chipset.

On the last piece of information, Samsung will be following Apple’s route, and it will not sell its charging brick along with its smartphone. It’s for the conservation of the environment, yeah, like we believe that.

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iQOO 7 official launch confirmed on January 11

astroani

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December 30, 2020

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iQOO 7 official launch confirmed on January 11

Last time iQOO confirmed the existence of iQOO 7 smartphone by sharing the official poster of the iQOO 7 BMW edition. Now the company has finally shared the official launch poster of the iQOO 7 and the launch is scheduled for January 11 at 7:30 PM (local time) in China.

Now coming to the iQOO 7 poster, it reveals the rear design of the smartphone where we can see the red-black-blue iconic stripe of the BMW edition along with triple rear camera setup. From the image of the smartphone in the poster, if looked closely we can see one primary sensor, one wide-angle camera, and one depth-sensing lens. It looks like that for the three cameras, but we are not sure what are the exact camera specifications of this phone as of now. For this, we have to wait for the launch.

The iQOO 7 is expected to run on Android 11 OS and will be powered by the Snapdragon 888 SoC. This device is likely to have an AMOLED flat display and faster charging of 120W. The 3C certification website has recently revealed that there is a higher possibility of 120W charging support for iQOO 7. The company claims that this 120W faster charging can charge a typical 4,000mAH battery in less than 15 minutes, sounds really fast, isn’t it? However, iQOO 7 is expected to be fueled up by a comparatively higher capacity battery, such as 4,200mAH or 4,300mAH. So, it will be interesting to see how iQOO can manage this battery with its fastest charging technology.

As per some of the leaked reports, the upcoming iQOO 7 will feature a triple rear camera setup that includes a 48MP 1/1.2-inch primary sensor with OIS support. It is quite shocking to see the downgrade as iQOO 7’s predecessors iQOO 5 or 5 Pro features a 50MP Samsung GN1 sensor. For selfies, this phone is likely to have a 16MP selfie snapper at the front.

Modal title

5. Tata Tigor EV

4. Tata Nexon EV

3. MG ZS EV

2. Hyundai Kona Electric

1. Mercedes-Benz EQC

5. Ciro Immobile

4. Kevin De Bruyne

3. Cristiano Ronaldo

2. Lionel Messi

1. Robert Lewandowski

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