This post was Last updated on : 06/26/2018

India has witnessed some of the greatest emperors who showed great courage and administrative skills. Ashoka was one of them. There are many books about him describing his life and struggle. He was instrumental in strengthening the Mauryan civilisation in India. He ruled the entire Indian subcontinent from the period c.268 to 232 BCE. Some of the best books about Great king Ashoka are following.

Ashoka and the Decline of the Mauryas

This book is written by Ms. RomilaThapar. She is a professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi. This book throws light on how Ashoka was able to integrate the social change in the Mauryan empire to fulfill his political ambitions. It also talks about his connection with the Buddhist religion. The book is useful for people who want to know more about the connection of Ashoka with Buddhism. The author has explained well about the internal movements in the Mauryan dynasty which led to Ashoka embracing Buddhism. It can be rated as 4 out of 5.

More details / Buy from – Amazon, Flipkart

Prince of Patliputra

This book is a work of young budding author – Shreyas Bhave. Though an engineer by profession, Shreyas’s love for History inspired him to write this book. The author has tried to present History in an interesting manner through this book. It is more of an historical fiction and is the first part of the Ashoka trilogy. This book is useful for people who are more into fictional reading but are interested in History. This book talks about different characters during the Mauryan dynasty. It can be rated 3.5 out of 5.

More details / Buy from – Amazon, Flipkart

Ashoka the Great

WytzeKeuning was a primary school teacher in Netherlands. He wrote three – volume biographies on Ashoka which got published during the 1940’s. This book is also a historical fiction written in three volumes. Though a fiction work, Keuning represents the Mauryan period with great authenticity. The book is interesting for those who want to see how the western world depicts Indian History. The author has been successful in capturing the imagination of casual readers as well as those who want to get deep down into History. It do not disappoints any set of readers. It can be rated as 4 out of 5.

More details / Buy from – Amazon, Flipkart

Ashoka, the Search for India’s Lost Emperor

This book is written by Charles Allen. His work focuses more on Indian History. This book talks about how archeologists, epigraphists and Historians were able to put together different pieces and layers of events which happened during the rule ofAshoka. It is a must read for people who want study facts related to Ashoka’s life. The book is full of historical facts and figures so would be liked more by archeologist and History lovers. It can be given a rating of 3.5 out of 5.

More details / Buy from – Amazon, Flipkart

Ashoka the Great and Compassionate King

Subhadra Sen Gupta is a popular Indian author who wrote lot of books for children. She has written more than 30 books on different topics like mystery, ghost stories, History etc., mainly targeting children. This book is very much informative and interesting. The language used in the book is very simple which even a layman can understand. It can be rated as 4 out 5.

More details / Buy from – Amazon, Flipkart

This post was Last updated on : 06/01/2018

Washing machines have been used for over a century. They eliminate manual labor and simplify the process of washing fabrics.

washing machine buyers guide

How does a washing machine work?

The washing machine has two steel tubs. The inner tub holds the clothes and has an agitator in the middle of it. The sides are perforated with holes so that when the tub spins the water can exit.

After the tub is load. with clothes it gets fill. with water and then stirs the clothes around due to the presence of an agitator. There’s an electrically operated pump that removes water from the drum when the wash is over.

Wash Cycles

A washing machine operates in a sequence of cycles – soaking, washing with detergent, rinsing and drying. These cycles can be customised to suit a range of fabrics such as woollen, denim, linen and cotton. Each customised sequence adjusts the duration and strength of the cycle to suit a particular fabric.

• Soak

The drum is filled with water while the detergent is mixed with the water through a special compartment. Then the water gets heated and the fabric is soaked.

•  Wash/Soap

The agitator moves around the fabric with its continuous movement. The varying movements scrub the fabric removing stains and dirt with the help of detergents.

• Rinse

This time the agitator works with clean water to remove all the detergent from the fabric. It spins at a very high speed to remove excess water.

• Spin dry

Finally the drum spins at a very high speed causing the remaining water to leave the fabric. Post this the fabric is almost dry and requires minimal additional drying time.

Commonly used terms related to washing machines

Load – The weight of the clothes that the washing machine can handle out during a wash-cycle.

Tumble – The path of the movement of the fabric inside the washing machine during a wash cycle.

Spin dry – High speed rotation of the drums to remove most of the water from the clothes.

Types of Washing Machines

Washing machines come in 3 primary types for your home.

1.Top Load (Semi Automatic)

A semi-automatic machine has two separate compartments — one for washing and the other for rinsing/drying. It requires manual transfer from one to another compartment.
Top level washing machines are the most economical washing machine available. They consumes least amount of power and water compared to other types. 3 wash programs available in this type of machines also are easy to understand and use.

2.Top Load (Fully Automatic)

All washing machines need to be kept near a water inlet. Direct permanent connections are installed between the inlet and the machine. The washing machine controls the inlet, turning it on as and when required.
These are most economical fully automatic washing machines.10 to 15 programmable wash sequences for multiple types of fabrics. Auto-backup memory allows a continuous wash sequence even after a power cut.

3.Front Load (Fully Automatic)

These are the most advanced category of washing machines. Front loading washing machines offer a range of features and are easy to load through the transparent door in the front.
Consumes less electricity and water when compared to top-loading machines. Over 100 wash combinations for various types of fabrics are available. And features thermostat to control temperature of water.

This post was Last updated on : 06/01/2018

Refrigerators have kept perishables cool for over 100 years. What started off as a simple ‘ice-box^.has now evolved to a smart, efficient and feature-rich product that is available in various sizes and models.

Refrigerators buyers guide

Keep the following questions in mind while choosing a refrigerator; answering these questions will help you pick a model most suited for you.

• How much space is available at home/office?
• How often would you use the refrigerator?
• How often would you use the freezer?
• How many people would the refrigerator serve?
• How much would you be willing to spend on a refrigerator?
• What are the add-on features that you would to have in your refrigerator?

Things to consider while buying Fridge.

While exploring refrigerator some of the common terms you need to know are:

Capacity

The amount of space (volume) available inside the refrigerator.

Shelves

Usually adjustable in height, these wire or glass shelves help you store products.

Freezer

The portion of the refrigerator that stores items at a temperature below zero.

Energy Rating

Rated between 1 and 5 Stars, it displays the efficiency of the product. More the number of stars, greater the efficiency.

Temperature

Most refrigerators operate between 5 Celsius. Freezers are usually kept at  -18 Celsius.

Doors

Refrigerator doors can vary in number doors provide seperate access to compartments, trays and other storage.

Refrigerator Size & Volume
While storage space inside a refrigerator is the key differentiator when selecting a particular model, also consider the physical space it would occupy. Make sure you have enough space near a plug-point to ensure the refrigerator does not protrude into any pathways. To be sure pick a size which is a couple of inches smaller than the available space. To ensure safety make sure the refrigerator is placed away from microwaves, gas stoves, gas cylinders and other electric equipment.

Refrigerator Models

Small (50 – 200 Litres)

Single Door Compact (80 —100 Litres)
Single Door (150 — 220 Litres)

Medium (250 – 350 Litres)

Double Door – top freezer (220 — 250 Litres)
Double Door – bottom freezer (220 — 250 Litres)

Large (350 – 660 Litres)

Double Door – side by side (220 — 250 Litres)
French Door (220 — 250 Litres)

Extra Large (660 – 800 Litres)

Multi-Door (600 — 800 Litres)

Accessories that you need with a new Refrigerator

Accessories help you protect your refrigerator from external damage, and also enable it ease of use. Accessories mention. below are not included in the price of a refrigerator and must be bought separately.

Voltage Stabiliser

Refrigerators require an un-interrupted source of electricity and are plugged into a socket all the time. The fluctuations in the voltage can damage the electrical parts of a refrigerator. A stabilizer ensures that a constant voltage reaches your refrigerator protecting it from damage.

Refrigerator stand

Often with low or no ground clearance, a refrigerator accumulates dust and dirt under it. A slightly elevated stand allows easy cleaning and easy movement of refrigerator.

Air-tight Refrigerator Boxes
These air-tight boxes allow you to keep fruits and vegetables fresh and prevent them from frost-bites. The boxes also trap odour from food items kept inside, not allowing it to spread onto other items.
The rectangular shape and geometric fit optimises the use of space within the refrigerator providing maximum storage capacity.

Ice Trays
Refrigerators with freezers include a minimum of 2 ice trays. In some models the ice trays and dispensers are built into the freezer.Users with larger requirements of ice, can purchase additional ice trays.. trays come in various sizes and shapes giving you a range to choose from depending on form or function.

Air-tight Storage Bottles
Most refrigerators have in-built bottle holders or a section for storing bottles – usually the inside of the door.
Bottles can be used to store water or other liquids in an air-tight manner, preventing the absorption of other odours.

More technical details to consider while buying Refrigerator

BEE – Label explained

Energy Ratings
Bureau of Energy Efficiency introduced the ‘Standards and Labelling Program’ in May 2006. Under this program manufacturers are required to indicate on a label the electricity consumption of the appliance under certain conditions. Appliances are ranked with stars, more the number of stars greater the efficiency of the appliance.

Energy Star Rating
The more stars, the more efficient your refrigerator is.

Annual Electricity Consumption
Under standard conditions. this is the amount of electricity your refrigerator would consume, if left running for a year. Electricity costs varies across the country. Multiply the Units by the electricity cost per unit to arrive at your annual expenditure.

This post was Last updated on : 11/27/2018

Following is “the ultimate newborn welcome checklist-List of all baby products“, everything you need to welcome & take care of baby in the best way!. Join our e-mail list to get latest offer updates from 5 different online stores in India as they become live.

Usually people go out in a rush for shopping on the arrival of newborn. Outcome of this unplanned shopping will be a pile of low quality products, that cannot be used for long.  And will lose of a lot of money. You can avoid this confusion and also save some money if prepared in advance. Following is the ultimate baby welcome list, arranged in order of necessity.

Things you need with you at the arrival of newborn in Hospital

Best clothes for babies in India

Including socks, mittens and hat

You would need 5-10 small clothes, 4 pair of socks, 2-3 pair of hats and 2 pair of mittens (small hand gloves for baby).

• Good clothes for newborns
• Best and cheap mittens for babies
• Good hats for kids

Wet wipes

Wet wipes are needed to clean gentle skin of new born. These are unwoven and antiseptic clothes that we can use to clean new born babies. You would need minimum 2 standard packets of baby wet wipes for first month itself. Read more about best wet wipes brands in India

Baby ointment

Baby ointment for rashes or any small injuries. Usually given from hospital.

Towels/blanket

One of the most important thing you will need to take care of newborn babies will be Towels / blankets. You will need minimum 3,4 or more, to use in different situations. Buy towels in different sizes and types in comfortable materials. You can buy towels online with many price discounts and offers.

Diaper’s

Diapers in different sizes extra small/new born, small, medium, extra small etc are will be needed, based on weight and age of baby.

• Reusable diapers

• Single use diapers

Hand hygiene

Make sure to use hand sanitizer or hand washes like Dettol before touching baby. This will help to get rid of germs. I t is a good practice to use  anti bacterial lotions like Dettol after “washing baby clothes”.

Which is the best hand hygiene for handling babies.

Baby soap and shampoo

Tear free natural shampoo or just use normal soap.  Read about best baby shampoos to online in India.

Baby oil – Which oil is good for babies

You can buy baby oil from top brands or go for locally available or prepare in home. There is no reason to go for branded products in Market, when made made pure oils like coconut oil or any other oil made in home is available.

Baby bath tub & changing table/sheet

To bath baby you would need a bath tub. You can use a

Best baby Powders in India

Any powder from top brands will do. But babies may not like a particular powder, just  because of smell or because of irritations. So apply small amount of powder for testing first. And choose from different brands.

Net/sleeping bags

If you are living in an area with mosquito it is highly recommended to buy sleeping bag, or full bed net. Baby sleeping bag will also help child not getting stuck inside big blanket

Best babies sleeping bags in India

Best babies sleeping nets in India

Thermometer

Is it a necessity to buy thermometer for baby? Yes it is. While taking vaccination or in a normal way newborn may get small fevers. If you know how to use thermometer, you can know what is happening, and take action accordingly. Learn to use an electronic, manual thermometer from Doctor.You can get one with very low price from local store or online like following few.

• Dr.Morepen gigiclassic MT101
• Dr.Trust DT-025

Things you need later on

Feeding Bottles

Feeding bottles can be used after 6 months. Checkout few best feeding bottles available online in India.

Night light

New born will get disturbed by small sounds and bright light in the night. At the same time, you cannot go completely dark by switching off lights. To create a calm atmosphere, good Night light or Coloured LED lights could be used at night. Dont go for Zero volt bulbs, because better options in terms of power consumption & light quality are available now.

Comb

After 1/2 months you can use a gentle comb to style, massage and remove any thick skin (dry patches) in baby’s scalp. You can buy a small plastic comb or even an ayurvedic comb specially designed for massaging.

Nail care

You should cut nails with a small newborn special nail cutter as they grow. If nail is grown, baby will scratch himself/herself on face & body and will make injuries to skin or eye. Get a small nail cutters from local store or have a look at baby nailcutters at amazon, flipkart, snapdeal.

Stroller/Slings

Stroller and slings. Front hanging and back hanging slings are available.

Sterilisation kit

Tired of manually sterilising feeding bottle and other things ? Have a look at these good sterilisers, which can be used for other purposes also.

Pacifiers

Babies will already start sucking and biting palms from 2 month itself. You can get pacifiers or just continue using mittens.

This post was Last updated on : 11/20/2018

Following is the ultimate list of the best microwave ovens in Indian market in 2017 (will be updated frequently), along with detailed review of each. Following list is arranged based on price range.

Also read

Top 10 Best IFB Microwave ovens available online in India 2017

Top 10 Best IFB Microwave ovens available online in India 2017

Microwave oven Buyers guide

Be it defrosting frozen food, popping corns, steaming ldlis or grilling meat, Microwave ovens can be used to heat food or cook complete meals in minutes. With simplified settings and intuitive features anyone can use a Microwave easily, even if they haven’t mastered stovetop cooking.

How a Microwave oven works

A Microwave oven uses ‘micro’ or radio waves to heat food. It does not use fire in any form but uses electromagnetic waves to heat food particles. It does this by agitating water and fat molecules present in the food.

This energy gets convert. into heat that cooks the food. And that too uniformly. Another important benefit of electromagnetic waves is that it is not absorbed by many kinds of plastic, glass or ceramics.

Hence it is safe to heat or cook food only in vessels made from these materials.

Choosing the right kind of Microwave oven

Before purchasing a Microwave oven consider the following:

What is your primary use for the oven

Microwave ovens come in 3 different types — Solo. Grill & Convection. Think of the main reason why you want to purchase a Microwave oven – and the type of the most cooked cuisine.

• Solo Microwave oven

This is the basic kind of Microwave oven. It comes with a ‘Microwave only’ mode. It provides uniform heating for defrosting, reheating or cooking food. However, you cannot grill or bake in a solo Microwave oven.

• Grill Microwave oven

A Grill Microwave oven is a Solo Microwave oven equipped with heating coils and can be used to grill, toast or roast food. The grill function comes as a mode or setting and requires use of a grilling plate or a metal rack, which ensures that the food is close to the grill. This type of Microwave oven is ideal for making kebabs, tikkas and parathas.

• Convection Microwave Oven

A Convection Microwave oven uses a combination of the two technologies – microwave and convection. It can be used to bake anything from cookies and cakes to lasagnas and pizzas. Unlike a regular or a Solo Microwave oven a Convection Microwave oven lets the food cook through to be real crisp. It does this by using a fan and a heating element to circulate hot air uniformly in the Microwave oven. Ana result the food takes time to cook and comes out ‘browner’ than would be possible in a Solo Microwave oven.

Think about the cuisines you would cook and choose the appropriate model from the table alongside.

The capacity of a Microwave oven is measured in liters (L), which is the volume of space available inside. While deciding the size it is important to consider the space available for installing the Microwave oven.

Features to look for in a Microwave oven

Microwaves are available with an array of features. The more the features, the more the price. Some of the useful features to look out for while comparing models are:

Metal body finish

Plastic, which is economical, is replac. with a shiny or matt finish metal body.

Apart from improving the aesthetics this is more durable, long lasting and easier to clean.

Automatic sensors

M automatic sensor measures the humidity of food to determine if the food is cooksd properly or not When the food is cook., the Microwave oven gets turn. off automatically.

This prevents the food from overcooking or burning. You will ne. to enter the food type and quantity for the sensor to deliver accurate resul..

Auto defrost

Auto defrost makes the task of defrosting a breeze. All you need to do is enter the type of food and its weight and the microwave selects the best program for you.

It will defrost all types of food like Chicken or Paneer, without cooking it.

Shortcut keys

Many microwaves come with auto settings for common recipes likc Oatmeal. Pasta, Pizza, Idli, Popcorn, Chicken Tikka, etc.

Removable racks

You can insert these racks and cook more than one food at a time. This can help you saves time and energy, especially if you cook in small portions.

Child Safety Lock

An electronic feature that prevents children from operating the microwave by putting a number lock. Consider investing in this only if you have children at home or will have young kids at some point.

Safety precautions while using a Microwave oven

• Don’t use the Microwave for deep-frying, canning, or heating baby bottles.

These applications don’t allow adequate temperature control for safe results.

• Do NOT use metal utensils inside Microwaves.

Use only Microwave safe utensils.

• Only use Microwave safe glass utensils for foods that get particularly hot.

Hot food melts some plastics, such as butter tubs, causing migration of plastic into the food.

Tips on Microwave oven usage

• Leave a portion of the bowl/cooking utensil uncovered.

This allows the steam to escape.

• While cooking a larger amount pause and stir the contents a few
  times.

This ensures that the food is heated evenly and there are no ‘cold

• After removing an item from a Microwave oven leave it to stand for 2-3 minutes.

This will allow the heat to continue to spread