Google Nexus 6P priced at Rs 39,999, Nexus 5X at Rs 31,900 in India; available from mid-Oct

Google is countering the release of Apple's latest iPhones with two smartphones, Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X, running on a new version of Android software "Marshmallow" designed to steer and document even more of its users' lives. While Nexus 6P is priced at Rs 39,999 in India for the 32GB variant, Nexus 5X will start at Rs 31,900. Both the smartphones will be available in India from mid-October.

While Nexus 6P is a flagship smartphone made by Huawei, Google is rekindling its partnership with LG by reviving the most popular Nexus smartphone, Nexus 5.

Google's Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X are the first smartphones that will be sold with an Android upgrade called "Marshmallow." It features changes that will give Android's personal assistant, Google Now, expanded powers to explore the information that people call up in the mobile applications.

Google uses its Nexus line of phones to showcase how the company would like Android to be set up. Most phone makers, though, still take advantage of the freedom that Google gives them to alter Android.

Prices for the Nexus 6P start at $499 and at $379 for the 5X.

(With Agency inputs)

First Published on September 29, 2015 11:00 pm© The Indian Express Online Media Pvt Ltd

Source: Google Nexus 6P priced at Rs 39,999, Nexus 5X at Rs 31,900 in India; available from mid-Oct

Samsung Galaxy J7 Comes Out as the Lite Version of the Galaxy A7 Offering Semi-Premium Features!

The Samsung Galaxy J7 was launched along with the Galaxy J5 in June this year and the Korean tech giant made clear its intention that it wants to get a good grasp of the midrange smartphone market the way it did recently with the high-end smartphone segment with the Galaxy S6, the Galaxy S6 Edge, and just recently, the Galaxy S6 Edge Plus.

As a midrange smartphone, one of the most striking attributes of the Galaxy J7 is its affordability. Realty Today actually describes the smartphone as the lighter version of the Galaxy A7, while offering semi-premium features but confined to the mid-range.

The GSM Arena even reported that the Galaxy J7 is easy to remember for its J7 nomenclature because the J stands for its affordable price while the 7 stands for its 5.5-inch Super AMOLED screen.

The Galaxy J7 is also a cheaper version of the Galaxy E7, but it retained some of the high-end or topnotch specifications of those other more expensive handsets from Samsung.

A stunning smartphone

Despite the usual criticisms from some critics, the Galaxy J7 is a stunning handset that is powered by a 64-bit octa-core processor. It is one of the latest smartphones of today that puts more focus on the screen size rather than the resolution. It has a 720-pixel screen resolution.

The Galaxy J7 comes in two models – one is powered by the Snapdragon 615 processor, and the other by an Exynos 7580 chipset. Both came out of the box with Android 5.1 Lollipop on it.

It features a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 5-megapixel front-facing snapper with an LED flash and a wide f/1.9 aperture. It also has a generous 3,000 mAH battery, but it lacks the fingerprint sensor that most Samsung devices have these days, as well as the Samsung Pay app.

A bold attempt

Samsung has launched the Galaxy J7 and the Galaxy J5 in June as a bold attempt of the Korean tech giant to regain its market share in the mid-range smartphone market that it once held firmly well.

Just like its grasp on the high-end smartphone market not too long ago, Samsung eventually lost it with its own doing when it released the Samsung Galaxy S5 in March last year with hardly any major improvement from its high-end flagship smartphone of 2013, the Samsung Galaxy S4.

As a result, the Apple iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus swallowed the Samsung Galaxy S5 in whole not to mention a significant portion of the Korean tech giant's high-end smartphone consumers.

But Samsung bounced back this year with the launching of the Galaxy S6 and the Galaxy S6 Edge to redeem itself and eventually recover lost ground, and more importantly, its market share in the high-end smartphone market.

The Korean tech giant did great in making that huge turnaround with the Galaxy S6 and the Galaxy S6 Edge. Three months later, Samsung wanted to do the same in the mid-range smartphone market, thus launching the Galaxy J7 and the Galaxy J5.

While Samsung has promised a complete makeover of its entire smartphone lineup this year, the Galaxy J7 and the Galaxy J5 actually came with the same bland designs of the previous Samsung mid-range handsets.

Compared for example with the Huawei P8lite, the Galaxy S7 actually struggles to even deserve a second look.

The Chinese smartphone maker has obviously come out with a beautiful-looking smartphones for the mid-range, which many critics believe as the hands down title contender for the best designed mid-range smartphone of 2015.

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Source: Samsung Galaxy J7 Comes Out as the Lite Version of the Galaxy A7 Offering Semi-Premium Features!

YU countdown for the next smartphone begins, company to launch 'world's most powerful' device

YU countdown for the next smartphone begins: Set to launch 'world's most powerful' deviceTwitter / YU

After a lot of excitement for a high-end YU smartphone earlier this month, Micromax is finally going to drop the curtains off its all-new Yutopia smartphone. According to BGR India, the online subsidiary of Micromax will unveil the "world's most powerful smartphone" in India as early as next month.

The Yutopia is expected to be the same handset that was leaked in earlier benchmark results under the codename YU 5050. The leaked results surfaced online before the Yunique smartphone launch, which made everyone believe the handset would be launched alongside the ultra-affordable handset. Sadly, there was no mention about YU 5050 during the event but it appears the handset is finally ready to make its grand debut.

According to BGR, the Yutopia will be the official name for the upcoming flagship smartphone, which is internally referred to as "Project Achilles." YU founder Rahul Sharma also hinted at the next big release in India in a brief tweet last week.

While the specifications of the rumoured Yutopia remain unclear, the leaked benchmark results suggested the handset to run on Qualcomm's Snapdragon 810 chipset, 3GB or 4GB RAM and 32GB memory. In addition, the listing also revealed that the YU 5050 will feature a 5.2-inch display with either a Full HD or Quad HD display. The camera is expected to be a major highlight with 21-megapixel primary shooter and 8MP front snapper.

This is a major step for YU in the smartphone space, which has confined itself to sub-Rs 10,000 devices. YU's Yureka, Yureka Plus, Yuphoria and the new Yunique smartphones have been well-received by Indian consumers. With Yutopia, the company is aiming to take a share of the budget flagship category, where handsets such as the OnePlus 2, the Xiaomi Mi4i and others have strong foothold.

The pricing of the Yutopia smartphone remains a mystery at the moment but rumours hint at two different variants with 3GB RAM, Full HD display and 4GB RAM, 2K display.

Article Published: September 28, 2015 14:04 IST

Source: YU countdown for the next smartphone begins, company to launch 'world's most powerful' device

BlackBerry unveils Android phone in new reboot

Washington - BlackBerry announced plans Friday to sell an Android-powered smartphone, in the latest reboot effort from the faded star of the sector.

The Canadian firm said its would begin selling "Priv," describe as "a flagship handheld device that will run on the Android operating system with BlackBerry security," expected to be available later this year.

"Priv combines the best of BlackBerry security and productivity with the expansive mobile application ecosystem available on the Android platform," said John Chen, executive chairman and chief executive.

Do you still use BlackBerry? Tell us why by clicking here.

BlackBerry said however it "remains committed to the BlackBerry 10 operating system, which enables industry-leading security and productivity benefits."

The company said it "will continue to develop and enhance the BlackBerry 10 operating system and is confirming plans to release platform updates focused on security and privacy enhancements," in March 2016.

The BB 10 operating system was unveiled in 2013 as part of an effort to regain market share lost as consumers around the world shifted to devices running on Google Android and Apple's iOS.

But the operating system share has fallen further, and now represents less than one percent of smartphone users.

BlackBerry, one of the early pioneers of smartphones, has been struggling for years. It has made several efforts to find new customer niches, with low-cost devices, tablets and by shifting its emphasis to software and services.

In releasing its quarterly results, BlackBerry said it swung to a profit of $51m for the three months to August 29, compared with a loss of $207m in the same period a year ago.

But the profit came from a one-time credit from an adjustment in the value of some of its debts.

Revenues for the period slumped 46% from a year ago to $490m.

"I am confident in our strategy and continued progress, highlighted by our fourth consecutive quarter of year-over-year double digit growth in software licensing revenue and sixth consecutive quarter of positive free cash flow," Chen said.

"At the same time, we are focused on making faster progress to achieve profitability in our handset business."

BlackBerry said it sold 800 000 smartphones at an average price of $240. That represents a tiny fraction of a global smartphone market of some 300 million per quarter.

The company said 15% of its revenue came from software and services, 41 percent for hardware, and 43 percent for service access fees.

Source: BlackBerry unveils Android phone in new reboot

Asus ZenFone 2 Budget Version ZenFone Go Debuts in India

If there is one smartphone in the market that has so many variants, it is no other than the Asus ZenFone 2.

The Asus ZenFone 2 has bred so many models since it was officially released by the Taiwanese tech company in January this year. It has become one of the most cost-affordable smartphones that can rival other flagship devices of big name companies.

The smartphone has created a lot of buzz in the global smartphone industry when it was released because it has a 4GB of RAM, which means it is powerful and fast enough to process data and whatever smartphone app that is thrown its way. It offers great value for money for those on the lookout for a budget handset.

Despite its numerous ZenFone 2 variants, Asus still launched another variant in India on September 23 which is basically intended for the entry-level segment.

The smartphone is the ZenFone Go which is powered by a MediaTek 6580 SoC with a quad-core CPU clocking at 1.3GHz. It features a 5-inch 720-pixel screen display, 2GB of RAM, and an 8GB of internal storage with an option for expansion through a microSD card slot.

It also features an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera with f/2.0 lens, and a 2-megapixel front camera with dual-SIM, 3G connectivity, and a 2,070 mAH battery. It also has a 100GB of Google Drive cloud storage, valid for two years, details Android Central.

The ZenFone Go also comes with the latest Zen UI and the Android 5.1 Lollipop. Its only drawback when compared to other entry-level smartphones out in the market today is its lack of LTE.

The ZenFone 2 variant for selfies

Another smartphone variant of the Asus ZenFone 2 is the ZenFone Selfie, which is one in a series of feature specific phones that the Taiwanese smartphone released in the wake of its current flagship handset, cites Ausdroid.

The ZenFone Selfie comes with a price tag that is higher than the ZenFone 2. The smartphone packs some genuinely great hardware including a great battery life, clean UI, solid camera, 32GB internal storage with an option for expansion through a microSD card support, and great hardware.

In terms of downsides, the ZenFone Selfie has the occasional lag and touch screen weirdness, pre-installation of unremovable software, and its camera is slow to load.

The ZenFone Selfie features a 5.5-inch FHD with 1920 x 1080 screen resolution. The phone is a combination of glass and plastic and it also has a micro USB port in the bottom of the handset.

The Asus ZenFone Selfie features a 13-megapixel rear-facing and front camera, which is actually the highlight of the device. It has an f/20 aperture, 28-mm focal length, and a dual-color Real Tone flash. The rear-facing camera also sports a laser autofocus module.

The smartphone is powered by a 64-bit octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 processor divided into a 1.7GHz quad-core and 1GH quad-core, with Adreno 405 GPU and 3GB of RAM.

Another variant of the ZenFone 2

Asus also took the recent IFA 2015 event in Berlin, Germany as yet another opportunity to launch its latest two major offerings – the ZenWatch 2 and the Asus ZenFone 2 Deluxe.

Considering how prolific Asus is as a smartphone maker, it was no longer surprising to see the company show off its other smartphone offerings in addition to the Asus ZenFone 2 Deluxe, which actually came with the same hardware as its base model, the Asus ZenFone 2, but with different exterior design.

The Asus ZenFone 2 Deluxe is being described by critics as the stylish version of the Asus ZenFone 2 ideal for those who want their handset to stand out and a better-looking variant of the base model.

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Source: Asus ZenFone 2 Budget Version ZenFone Go Debuts in India

BlackBerry confirms it will launch a new Android Smartphone called ‘Priv’

BlackBerry has finally confirmed its intentions to launch an Android smartphone, after months of speculation and leaks.

In its second quarter financial results, BlackBerry said it "plans to launch a flagship handheld device that will run on the Android operating system with BlackBerry security."

Originally rumored to be called the BlackBerry Venice, sporting a BlackBerry-esque sliding keyboard (H/T evleaks), the Canadian company stated in its Q2 report that it is "focused on making faster progress to achieve profitability in our handset business," before confirming the launch of "Priv," a name that was first rumored earlier this week.

The name "Priv," of course, is a nod-and-a-wink to BlackBerry's reputation as a privacy-focused company. "I am confirming our plans to launch Priv, an Android device named after BlackBerry's heritage and core mission of protecting our customers' privacy," said BlackBerry CEO John Chen. "Priv combines the best of BlackBerry security and productivity with the expansive mobile application ecosystem available on the Android platform."As the initial leaks suggested, the new BlackBerry Android phone will be a so-called "slider," meaning it will be touchscreen with a slide-out keyboard.

Source: BlackBerry confirms it will launch a new Android Smartphone called 'Priv'

Google will release TWO Nexus smartphones next week - and this is what they'll look like

ANDROIDPOLICE • IG

This is one of the clearest photos of the Nexus 6P, according to AndroidPolice

Google is believed to be readying two new smartphones to launch on September 29th.

The US technology firm's Nexus range are a series of flagship smartphones made through a partnership between technology manufacturers and Google.

Motorola made the last entry in the series, the Nexus 6. But Google is believed to be launching two new smartphones next week, a refresh to the 2013 Nexus 5 and an updated Nexus 6.

LG, who has previously worked on entries to the Nexus range, is reportedly working on the Nexus 5X. Meanwhile, Chinese manufacturer Huawei will take the reigns on the Nexus 6P.

Both smartphones will ship with Android 6.0 Marshmallow, the latest version of the open-source mobile operating system – annoucned at Google I/O this year.

TWITTER • ONLEAKS

A leaked render of the Nexus 5, LG is believed to be working on

Also coming to both Google handsets are a fingerprint scanner and a USB Type-C port – innovations which both made an appearance on the OnePlus Two.

In terms of design, the Nexus 5X is thought to be the smaller of the two smartphones with a 5.2inch Full HD display.

Meanwhile, the Huawei-built Nexus 6P will sport a 5.7-inch Quad HD display – that's a little smaller than the six-inch display on last year's Nexus 6.

A Qualcomm SnapDragon 820 processor is likely to power both flagship handsets, as well as a rumoured 3GB of RAM.

The latest rumours suggest the Nexus 5X, also dubbed the Nexus 2015, will ship with a 2700mAh battery capacity, while the larger footprint of the Nexus 6P, or Nexus 2015, allows for a bigger 3500mAh capacity.

TWITTER • ONLEAKS

A leaked render of the Huawei-built Nexus 6P, which features a 5.7inch display and all-metal build

In terms of internal storage, Google has not favoured expandable storage via microSD in previous generations of Nexus smartphone. Unfortunately – that's not likely to change.

However there are rumours that both models of Nexus will come with up to 128GB of storage, similar to Apple's new iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, which should help those who like to fill their phone with music, photos and video.

Faster charging through USB Type-C and Android Pay contactless transactions secured by the fingerprint scanner mean both the Nexus 6P and the Nexus 5X are sure to stand toe-to-toe with other 2015 flagships.

GETTY

Google is believed to be readying two new smartphones to launch on September 29th

As with previous Nexus handsets, both come with a pure Google Android experience – which is nice.

The Nexus 6P has a larger, phablet display and is rumoured to have a premium all-metal case design. 

Meanwhile, the Nexus 5X is expected to have a smaller, chunkier plastic design – making it easily manageable in one hand, lighter but without the same premium heft.

Whatever Google decides to unveil, Express.co.uk will be at the event with all the news on September 29th.

Related articles
Source: Google will release TWO Nexus smartphones next week - and this is what they'll look like

Google 'will release TWO Nexus smartphones next week' and this is what they'll look like

GETTY

Google is believed to be readying two new smartphones to launch on September 29th

Google is believed to be readying two new smartphones to launch on September 29th.

The US technology firm's Nexus range are a series of flagship smartphones made through a partnership between technology manufacturers and Google.

Motorola made the last entry in the series, the Nexus 6. But Google is believed to be launching two new smartphones next week, a refresh to the 2013 Nexus 5 and an updated Nexus 6.

LG, who has previously worked on entries to the Nexus range, is reportedly working on the Nexus 5X. Meanwhile, Chinese manufacturer Huawei will take the reigns on the Nexus 6P.

Both smartphones will ship with Android 6.0 Marshmallow, the latest version of the open-source mobile operating system – annoucned at Google I/O this year.

TWITTER • ONLEAKS

A leaked render of the Nexus 5, LG is believed to be working on

Also coming to both Google handsets are a fingerprint scanner and a USB Type-C port – innovations which both made an appearance on the OnePlus Two.

In terms of design, the Nexus 5X is thought to be the smaller of the two smartphones with a 5.2inch Full HD display.

Meanwhile, the Huawei-built Nexus 6P will sport a 5.7-inch Quad HD display – that's a little smaller than the six-inch display on last year's Nexus 6.

A Qualcomm SnapDragon 820 processor is likely to power both flagship handsets, as well as a rumoured 3GB of RAM.

The latest rumours suggest the Nexus 5X, also dubbed the Nexus 2015, will ship with a 2700mAh battery capacity, while the larger footprint of the Nexus 6P, or Nexus 2015, allows for a bigger 3500mAh capacity.

TWITTER • ONLEAKS

A leaked render of the Huawei-built Nexus 6P, which features a 5.7inch display and all-metal build

In terms of internal storage, Google has not favoured expandable storage via microSD in previous generations of Nexus smartphone. Unfortunately – that's not likely to change.

However there are rumours that both models of Nexus will come with up to 128GB of storage, similar to Apple's new iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, which should help those who like to fill their phone with music, photos and video.

Faster charging through USB Type-C and Android Pay contactless transactions secured by the fingerprint scanner mean both the Nexus 6P and the Nexus 5X are sure to stand toe-to-toe with other 2015 flagships.

Related articles

As with previous Nexus handsets, both come with a pure Google Android experience – which is nice.

The Nexus 6P has a larger, phablet display and is rumoured to have a premium all-metal case design. 

Meanwhile, the Nexus 5X is expected to have a smaller, chunkier plastic design – making it easily manageable in one hand, lighter but without the same premium heft.

Whatever Google decides to unveil, Express.co.uk will be at the event with all the news on September 29th.

Source: Google 'will release TWO Nexus smartphones next week' and this is what they'll look like

Samsung Holds 21% Of The Global Smartphone Market (Q2 2015)

As you probably already know, Samsung is the number one smartphone manufacturer in the world at the moment. This Korea-based tech giant is going back and forth with Apple, but according to the latest available info, Samsung is currently on top once again. The company has released quite a few devices this year, and most notable amongst them are their Galaxy S6 flagship smartphones, and Note 5 and S6 Edge Plus flagship phablets. Samsung ships a ton of phones a year all over the world, and according to the info from Counterpoint Technology Market Research firm, one in five smartphones shipped on a global scale during Q2 2015 was manufactured by Samsung.

This is not the only interesting piece of info this independent market research firm shared though. If you take a look at the image down below, you'll notice that Samsung holds 21% of the global of the global smartphone market, which is not exactly surprising though. If we take a look at a specific region though, like North America for example, Samsung isn't doing all that well compared to Apple. The Cupertino giant holds 34% of the market, but Samsung is better in Asia (14%) and Europe (32%).

Now, it is also worth mentioning that Huawei is doing really well. We already knew this considering the company is constantly increasing their profit, and they're toe-to-toe with Xiaomi in China. Huawei has became world's third largest smartphone manufacturer, which is saying a lot considering the jumped over LG, Microsoft and similar companies. According to Counterpoint, Asus is also doing really well, which suggests an interesting year is ahead of us. Huawei has released a ton of interesting products this year, but other OEMs are also trying to keep up. This list of smartphone OEMs is constantly changing, aside from the first two places, Samsung and Apple are still unreachable it seems.

If you'd like to take a look at more infographics and get more data regarding this, you can always visit Counterpoint Technology Market Research firms' official website. It will be interesting to see what happens next year, Huawei and Asus are doing really well at the moment, it will be interesting to see if LG can change things around.

Source: Samsung Holds 21% Of The Global Smartphone Market (Q2 2015)

UK firm seeks partners for one dollar smartphone project in Vietnam

A UK firm is searching for Vietnamese partners to market a smartphone that costs only one U.S. dollar, but it would be a long way to go for such an idea to be turned into reality.

SocialEco, which has distributed its flagship One Dollar Smartphone in a few markets, is eying Vietnam as the next destination, a company leader said at a meeting with the Authority of Radio Frequency Management (ARFM) late last month.

The super cheap handset will come with a SocialEco-developed ecosystem, called Social Economy Ecosystem, SocialEco CEO Cosmora was quoted as saying on the ARFM website on September 4.

The $1 smartphone is intended to allow low-income earners to access the Internet and features and services offered by the Social Economy Ecosystem, according to Cosmora.

As the smartphone is distributed almost free of charge, the manufacturer will cover all costs by selling ads.

The SocialEco handset will thus have some pre-installed apps, whereas their wallpapers will automatically change to display ads by partners, Cosmora elaborated.

In response, ARFM deputy head Le Van Tuan briefed the SocialEco executive on the telecom infrastructure and mobile market in Vietnam, speaking well of the $1 smartphone project.

"The project is suitable for Vietnam as a developing country, and such projects as the one dollar smartphone are always welcome," Tuan said.

The official noted that the ads and other services that come along with the smartphone must be "aimed at the interest of customers."

The ARFM said it will help SocialEco seek partners to actually launch the $1 smartphone project in Vietnam in the future.

SocialEco is reportedly selling its $1 smartphone in India and Bangladesh, and is seeking partners to reach out to other countries besides Vietnam.

It is too early to talk about the feasibility of the project until the UK firm officially announces it has found a partner.

The London-based SocialEco is a new social enterprise created to meet the increasing need for mobile technology services and devices around the world, while simultaneously providing effective solutions that address the socio-economic challenges faced by billions of people globally, according to its website.

The company's ecosystem includes integrated services and Android devices that create "a social economy conceived to financially empower community stakeholders as well as company shareholders."

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!

Source: UK firm seeks partners for one dollar smartphone project in Vietnam

Elephone P9000 Vs Galaxy Note 5: Can A Price/Performance Phablet Overtake Samsung’s Flagship Smartphone?

Previously, we came across Elephone P9000 on Geek Buying that was retailing for $329.99. The specifications are beyond impressive and will definitely give Galaxy Note 5 a run for its money. Let us take a look at the hardware specification and feature differences between them to see which smartphone will be the better purchase.

Screen Size And Resolution

Both Elephone P9000 and Galaxy Note 5 are placed in the phablet category section since they possess a screen size that is 5.5 inches and above. However, Galaxy Note 5 is slightly larger than Elephone P9000, standing in at 5.7 inches. The difference might not be a lot in metric terms, but all that changes when users will attempt to grip both smartphones.

Now for the resolution; Elephone has done well to incorporate a 1080p resolution while Samsung always wants to raise the bar with excessive display and resolution quality. That being said, Galaxy Note 5 has a 1440p resolution resonating from its 5.7 inch display, which is not the greatest idea from the company's innovative journal since more pixels will mean more work will have to be done by the CPU, resulting in battery life draining much faster than before.  

The display type of both smartphones have been listed below.

  Elephone P9000 Samsung Galaxy Note 5 Resolution 1920 by 1080 pixels 2560 by 1440 pixels Display type IPS OGS Super AMOLED Chipset Type

The hardware component that is regarded as the heart of performance is the chipset, and both Elephone P9000 and Galaxy Note 5 are regarded as mobile powerhouses thanks to what is present underneath their hoods. Starting with the Chinese handset, P9000 has a Helio X20 incorporated in it while Galaxy Note 5 is running Samsung's own developed Exynos 7420. With recent benchmarking metrics already been released, Helio X20 is easily able to zip past Exynos 7420 because of its 10-core processor.

While Samsung's own SoC is no slouch in performance since a Snapdragon 810 or Helio X10 is no match for it, the company might want to start working on its successor, as Helio X20 is going to be succeeded by Helio X30 in the near future. Moreover, Chinese smartphone OEMs will be looking forward to Helio X20 running in their products because of two primary reasons. The chipset, which can also be referred to as MT6797 is faster than Exynos 7420, and is fabricated on the 20nm process, making it much cheaper than its rival, which is made on the 14nm FinFET process. Despite the fact that the latter manufacturing process is more efficient, it also much more expensive process, and Exynos 7420 is unable to beat Helio X20 in benchmarking tests either.

  Helio X20 (or MT6797) Exynos 7420 Manufacturing process 20nm 14nm FinFET Processor Deca-core CPU Octa-core CPU Cores breakdown 4 x Cortex-A72 at 2.4GHz

4 x Cortex-A53 at 2.0GHz

4 x Cortex-A53 at 1.4GHz

4 x Cortex-A57 at 2.1GHz

4 x Cortex-A53 at 1.5GHz

Amount Of RAM

Both Elephone P9000 and Galaxy Note 5 are categorized under the flagship category, which means that anything less than 4GB of RAM would be considered a sin. Even though a higher amount of RAM will definitely consume battery life, it also gives rise to extensive multitasking options and engaging in intensive gaming applications that consume an exorbitant amount of memory.

Internal And External Storage Options

This is one category where Elephone P9000 has a huge advantage over Galaxy Note 5. While there were speculations surrounding the expandable storage capabilities of Samsung's flagship phablet, the South Korean tech giant crushed the hearts of millions of future consumers by telling them that its mobile powerhouse will currently only be available to purchase in the 32 and 64GB internal capacity variants. This might have been the mistake that could potentially cost Samsung millions, and it is a primary feature that consumers look for they are prepped to shell out a ton of money on a smartphone.

Elephone P9000 might just have 32GB of on-board storage, but the company has made amends by a huge stretch by incorporating a slot for removable storage that has a capacity limit of 128GB. Most company's executives, like Hugo Barra of Xiaomi justify that the premium quality of flagship smartphones will deteriorate should they start assimilating a removable card slot in their devices. Majority of critics will easily dismiss this tactic, saying that it is an excuse that companies use to reduce manufacturing costs, which is true to an extent.

However, there are several smartphone owners that complain about the MicroSD cards developing issues in the near future, which causes an abounding amount of storage to become corrupted. It is no new fact that on-board storage will always be faster than removable storage, but consumers should also be wary that if they end up purchasing MicroSD cards with an extremely cheap price tag, chances are very high that it will start to display erratic behavior sometime in the future.

Battery Capacities

In addition to disappointing consumers by failing to provide a removable card slot, Samsung also left consumers bewildered when it stated that the 3,000mAh battery is going to be non-removable. This will obviously present a great ordeal for consumers who have to replace their battery overtime when it starts to lose its overall charge capacity. Elephone P9000 on the other hand, has a slightly larger battery (3,100mAh) than Galaxy Note 5 and best of all, it is removable.

Camera Sensor Details

A large percentage of consumers will also purchase a smartphone for photography purposes. While obtaining DSLR level images from a smartphone are impossible at this current, users will at least be able to experience the next best thing in image quality. Elephone P9000 has a 20.7/8MP camera sensor combination while Galaxy Note 5 has a 16/5MP combo. While there are no details as to which company is responsible for providing Elephone with its camera sensors, it is possible that the primary one is a Sony Exmor IMX230; the same one present on Meizu MX5.

Images being taking from Elephone P9000 might have a higher resolution, but Galaxy Note 5 has a better overall sensor. According to some sources, several units of Samsung's flagship comprise up of both Sony IMX240 and Samsung's own ISOCELL, which obviously perform much better than an IMX230. However, does that really justify the huge price tag difference between the two smartphones?

Wireless Connectivity

Sadly, due to Elephone P9000's affordability, the company was forced to make some sacrifices and they obviously came from the wireless connectivity category. Galaxy Note 5 has an 802.11ac Wi-Fi adapter while Elephone P9000 has a dual-band 802.11n adapter. Additionally, Samsung's flagship offering also has a Cat 9 LTE modem, as opposed to its rival's Cat 4 LTE modem, all also supports wireless charging.

However, despite all of these impressive components, Galaxy Note 5 currently does not have a dual-SIM variant, while Elephone P9000 will ship out with sufficient space for users to insert both of their SIM cards effortlessly.  All of these differences have been summarized in the table below.

Wireless connectivity Elephone P9000 Samsung Galaxy Note 5 Wi-Fi adapter 802.11n (dual-band) 802.11ac LTE modem type LTE Cat 4 (150Mbps download and 50Mbps upload) LTE Cat 9 (450Mbps download and 50Mbps upload) Dual-SIM capable Yes No All Differences Between Elephone P9000 And Galaxy Note 5 Including Pricing     

Since both devices feature a lot of hardware differences between them, consumers will still be confused when they intend on making their purchase. For their convenience, a complete table listing all the different hardware details has been listed below, and to bring you one step closer to making your purchase less painful, we have also added the pricing differences between Elephone P9000 and Galaxy Note 5 right at the end.

Hardware specification differences Elephone P9000 Galaxy Note 5 Processor 2 x Cortex-A72 at 2.5GHz + 4 x Cortex-A53 at 2.0GHz + 4 x Cortex-A53 at 1.4GHz 4 x Cortex-A57 at 2.1GHz + 4 x Cortex-A53 at 1.5GHz Battery 3,100mAh 3,000mAh RAM 4GB 4GB Screen size and display type 5.5 inch IPS OGS 5.7 inch Super AMOLED Internal storage 32GB Available in the 32 and 64GB models Removable card slot Yes (up to 128GB) No Wireless connectivity chips 802.11n Wi-Fi adapter (dual-band) and Cat 4 LTE modem 802.11ac Wi-Fi adapter and Cat 9 LTE modem Camera sensor details 20.7MP rear and 8MP front 16MP rear and 5MP front Resolution 1920 by 1080 pixels 2560 by 1440 pixels Chipset Helio X20 Exynos 7420 External storage Up to 128GB None Dual-SIM capable? Yes No Operating system Will be running Android Marshmallow 6.0 Android Lollipop 5.1.1 Price $329.99 (Lowest price listed on Geekbuying.com) $716.53 (Lowest price listed on Amazon.com for 32GB unlocked variant) Final Verdict

Both Elephone P9000 and Galaxy Note 5 are engineering marvels but in this comparison, there can be only one winner. For us, Elephone P9000 is the obvious choice because of its amazing price/performance ratio. For $329.99 (listed at Geek Buying at this current time), you're getting a device that is not only powerful than its rival, but has also been incorporated with some key features such as support for a MicroSD slot, removable battery, and space for inserting two SIM cards. Additionally, the company also felt that incorporating a display with a higher resolution was not only expensive, but pointless as well, to the point that there will not be sufficient battery remaining for users.

Sure, there were a ton of trade-offs that Elephone was forced to make because its price. Starting off, there is not an 802.11ac Wi-Fi adapter, which being a flagship smartphone, should have been there. Also, there is only a Cat 4 LTE modem, when a bare minimum should have been a Cat 6 LTE modem. Regardless, these are the components that we will eventually forget since they do not conflict with the primary hardware.

In the end, we have decided to choose Elephone P9000 over Samsung's expensive Galaxy Note 5. Which smartphone do you feel is the better purchase? Let us know your thoughts right away.

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Source: Elephone P9000 Vs Galaxy Note 5: Can A Price/Performance Phablet Overtake Samsung's Flagship Smartphone?

Google promising “new treats” on September 29

We'd already heard rumors that Google's big new Nexus reveal would take place in San Francisco on September 29, and now the tech giant has made it official: Members of the press have just received invites to "a morning conversation about some new treats from Google." An LG-made Nexus 5, a Nexus 6 from Huawei and maybe even new Chromecasts are on the cards.

If you want to set your alarm clocks, everything starts 9am Pacific Time and the event is going to be streamed live on YouTube if you don't happen to have an invite. We should also hear about the official roll-out of Android 6.0 Marshmallow, though it's not clear when exactly it will begin appearing on phones — last year there was a gap of a few weeks between the announcement and the release.

Related: How to install the Android M (Marshmallow) Developer Preview on your Nexus device

Over the last couple of days we've also heard a couple of fresh rumors about what Google's flagship smartphones for 2015 are going to be called: Get ready for the Nexus 5X and the Nexus 6P. Quite what the "X" and the "P" stand for isn't clear, but it would help differentiate the handsets from the older models, and make life easier for consumers and search engines alike.

If you want more information about what's coming on September 29, check out our comprehensive guide to all the rumors and speculation we've heard so far. We're expecting the Nexus 5X to be the cheaper and smaller option of the two handsets, while the Nexus 6P should have a more premium feel and finish. Both phones are almost certain to come with the first edition of Android 6.0 Marshmallow on board.

Are you looking forward to what Google has in store at the end of the month? Or is the company's battle against the iPhone a futile one? Let us know your thoughts and expectations in the comments.

Source: Google promising "new treats" on September 29

HTC One A9 Release Date: 5-Inch Android M Smartphone Price Set at $800?

HTC hasn't been overprotective of its upcoming flagship smartphone. Details on the HTC One A9 were given away several times in the last few weeks. Unfortunately for fans, leaks of the device have, more often than not, ran in contradiction with one another. The latest of which came just recently.

To recall, Evan Blass, better by his online alias @evleaks, posted on Twitter a couple of days ago the specs sheet of the One A9. The listing suggested the device was to be a mid-level offering.

The 37-year-old tech blogger has built a steady reputation as a gadget leaker. Yet, his latest tweet did not match HTC CEO Cher Wang's earlier promise in a Taipei Times article dated June 2015. Wang talked of a high-end flagship coming this October.

To sight an example of the discrepancies, Blass tweeted that the device will sport Qualcomm's Snapdragon 617 processor but a previous database listing from GeekBench showed the device being powered by the MT6797 SoC, MediaTek's deca-core Helio X20 processor. Furthermore, the test revealed 4GB of RAM not the 2GB Blass stated.

For what it's worth, Blass' Twitter account mentioned the One A9 to have a five-inch 1080 x 1920 toucscreen display, 2,150 mAh battery and 16GB of hard drive.

It is said to have a 13-megapixel rear camera and four-megapixel front-facing unit. The device will reportedly have a fingerprint scanning feature and will be encased in a metal body.

The inconsistent data thus far has tantamounted to no data at all. Naturally, the device has benefited from mystery that surrounds it.

Whatever the device might end up being and if recent listings from a retailer in Netherlands is any indication, the One A9 won't come cheap.

A Dutch ecommerce website, Centralpoint.nl, stated that it's already taking pre-orders for the device. The website has even listed it at €706.64 including value added tax. If current exchange rates stay the same, HTC's next flagship offering will hover around $800 in the U.S.

One might easily scoff at the One A9's steep asking price but GSM Arena said retailers have a knack for posting pre-order listings without knowing the actual price of the product.

Numerous retailers do this to garner standing and notoriety for being one of the "first" to have the device available for pre-order. In the case of the Dutch ecommerce website, this may or may not hold true.

Fans will just have to wait later this month. The One A9 is expected to be officially showcased during HTC's media event on Sept. 29.

TagsHTC, HTC One A9

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Source: HTC One A9 Release Date: 5-Inch Android M Smartphone Price Set at $800?

LG Class Handset Will Be Korea-Only; Real Life Images Leak

LG has already released their flagship for this year, the LG G4. This smartphone has been announced back in April and is already available all over the world. This Korea-based company is rumored to release a new flagship (LG G4 Pro?) on October 1st, and the company will also hold an event on September 21st. The company has released a teaser for that event recently, including the back side of the phone. It is said that this phone will be called 'LG Class', and that it will sport mid-range specifications, as revealed by GFXBench recently.

That being said, it seems like LG confirmed that the LG Class will be a Korea-only model. According to VentureBeat's article, this Korea-based company reached out to them, and confirmed the news. That makes sense considering LG has released the LG Class teaser on their official Korean Twitter handle, while the international one wasn't included on it. So, to sum things up, the LG Class will launch on September 21st in Korea, and the company is holdling another event on October 1st where they're expected to announce a high-end devices, either the LG G4 Pro or the rumored V10 smartphone.

That's not all though, the LG Class leaked on Weibo (Chinese social network) recently, revealing both its front and back side design. If you take a look at the two images in the gallery down below, you'll get to see two very clear shots of LG Class which reveal more or less everything as far as the design goes. The device will sport rear-facing physical buttons which is something we're used to seeing by LG. All of those buttons will protrude on the back, along with the camera sensor and the LED flash.

According to GFXBench listing, this phablet will feature a 5.7-inch 1080p (1920 x 1080) display along with 2GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage. The device will be pwoered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 615 64-bit octa-core processor along with an Adreno 405 GPU for graphics. The 13-megapixel camera will be located on the back of this phone along with a dual-LED, dual tone flash, and a 5-megapixel snapper will be available up front. The listing has also confirmed that the device will ship with Android 5.1.1 Lollipop out of the box, and you'll be able to find LG's custom UI on top of Google's OS. Keep in mind that it's possible LG H740 is not LG Class, in which case these specifications surely aren't accurate, Either way, stay tuned for additional info.

UPDATE: Two new images added in the gallery.

Source: LG Class Handset Will Be Korea-Only; Real Life Images Leak

Meizu MX4 Ubuntu Edition review: A flagship Linux smartphone

Pros

Sharp and vivid 5.36-inch display

Powerful octa-core processor

Magnesium alloy case frame

20.7-megapixel rear camera

Dual-band 802.11ac wi-fi

Stylish design

Light weight (147g)

Cons

Only one Micro-SIM slot

16GB of storage

No storage expansion slot

Non-replaceable battery

Ubuntu presently limits video to 1080p

No MHL support

Glossy white plastic on the back of the 'silver' model

No protective case

Ubuntu for Phones is not yet a 'prime-time' smartphone OS

The MX4 Ubuntu Edition from Chinese maker Meizu is the second Ubuntu smartphone to reach the market. Originally released for purchase only by linked request and invitation, the MX4 is now available for regular purchase direct from Meizu's website at €299 euros (around £220). Note though, that the MX4 Ubuntu Edition is currently only available within the EU.

Canonical announced plans to port its popular Ubuntu Linux distribution as Ubuntu for Phones in January 2013, and in April this year we reviewed the first Ubuntu phone -- the Aquaris E4.5 Ubuntu Edition from Spanish manufacturer BQ.

Like the BQ phone, the Meizu MX4 is very much a device for early adopters, since Ubuntu for Phones is still in the development phase. While the €169.90 Aquaris E4.5 is a mid-range phone, the Meizu MX4 delivers considerably more computing power for €299. It runs on a Meizu-customised octa-core MediaTek MT6595 SoC with four ARM Cortex-A17 and four ARM Cortex-A7 cores, with a PowerVR G6200 GPU to handle the graphics, all supported by 2GB of LPDDR3 RAM.

Also like the BQ phone, the Meizu MX4 is an existing model that has had Ubuntu ported to it. The 'parent' version of the MX4 runs the Flyme operating system, which is based on Android. Various reviewers have said that Flyme is rather buggy so, even in its current form, Ubuntu for Phones may deliver a better experience on this phone. With the Flyme version there's a choice of either 16B or 32GB of internal storage, but the Ubuntu version offers only 16GB. Unlike on the BQ Aquaris 4.5, there is no Micro-SD slot for optional storage expansion.

The Meizu MX4 Ubuntu Edition has a 5.36-inch (diagonal) display with a resolution of 1,920 by 1,152 pixels, giving a pixel density of 418ppi (the 5.5-inch iPhone 6s Plus, by contrast, offers 401ppi). The display panel, a joint development between Sharp and JDI, uses NEGA LC (negative dielectric anisotropy liquid crystal) technology, in a twisted nematic design that offers higher performance than the earlier positive TN panels. The MX4 measures 75.2mm wide by 144mm deep by 8.9mm thick.

The Meizu MX4 Ubuntu Edition smartphone in profile. Image: Meizu/Canonical

Design Top ZDNET Reviews

The Meizu MX4 is a good-looking smartphone that borrows some styling cues from the Samsung Galaxy S6. The aluminium/magnesium alloy frame has softly rounded corners and smoothly rolled edges blending into the shallow curves of the back, so even though it has the width required to accommodate the large display, it sits very comfortably in the hand. It's available in two finishes: matte silver or matte gold. Despite its apparent appearance on the Meizu website, the 'silver' finish device has a glossy white plastic back, which looks as though it will scratch very easily. This entire back cover must be removed to access the Micro-SIM slot -- a fiddly business since there's just one small pry slot and the back is held tenaciously in place by 14 snaps.

The Meizu MX4 Ubuntu Edition with the back cover removed. The battery is visible, but not removable, and the Micro-SIM slot can be seen at top left, just below the power button. Image: Terry Relph-Knight/ZDNet.

Early reviews of the Meizu MX4 Ubuntu Edition noted that, despite what seems to be a fairly high-capacity battery (3,100mAh), battery life was under a day and the phone became warm during use. Based on the battery use statistics for our review sample, battery life appears to be around 27 hours (for light use). After extended periods of use, the back of the phone did become noticeably warm. The BQ E.4.5 Ubuntu Edition also initially suffered from a short battery life, but this was fixed by an operating system update shortly after launch.

Screen capture of battery performance on the Meizu MX4 Ubuntu Edition. Image: Terry Relph-Knight/ZDNet.

A thin highlight of polished silver (or gold) around the frame sets off the sheet of Corning Gorilla Glass 3 which is bonded to the front to protect the display and form the OGS ('One-Glass Solution'). The bezel width on either side of the screen is only 2.6mm, resulting in a screen-to-front-panel ratio of 79 percent on the MX4, which apparently is near the limit for smartphones. An 11mm border above the display features a central slot for the earpiece/loudspeaker; to the right of the speaker is the ambient light sensor, and 16mm to the right of that is the front camera lens. The combined touch button and status light occupies centre of the 11mm border below the display.

On the back of the MX4, a 14mm disc of coated Gorilla Glass 3 protects the rear camera lens and its black surround. This design detail may be intended to make the lens, which is only about 2mm across, look bigger than it is. This 'lens' protrudes a little beyond the back of the phone, making it vulnerable to picking up dirt and scratches when the MX4 is laid on its back. Below the lens is a two-colour LED flash.

In use

Once charged, the phone can be booted by a brief pressure on the on/off button on the right-hand side of the top edge. On the initial boot nothing appears to happen for a few seconds, and then the power-up splash screen appears, followed by a sequence of one-time setup screens -- Language, Lock security (swipe, none, passcode or passphrase), Wi-Fi, Location and Improving experience. There is then a short on-screen tutorial about Ubuntu gestures which seems impossible to skip.

With an activated Micro-SIM and a network connection, system updates can immediately be downloaded and installed by choosing System Settings from the launcher and then selecting Updates. However, in order to receive app updates users are prompted to log in with their Ubuntu ID. If you don't yet have an Ubuntu ID, you'll need to create one.

In addition to the power and volume buttons and the on-screen touch controls, the MX4 has a touch-operated button in the centre of the lower display surround. This is delimited by a circle which can be illuminated by a white LED status indicator. With the phone unlocked, touching this button fires up whichever scope is selected as first in order.

Stills and video

The MX4's NEGA 418ppi display shows bold saturated colours with great clarity and definition. This benefits the operating system graphics, which look clean and colourful, but colour looks a little oversaturated on stills and video.

The MX4 has a Sony IMX 220 20.7-megapixel rear camera sensor that, in conjunction with the four-channel 1.5Gbps ISP (Image Signal Processor), apparently has the ability to shoot 4K video at 30fps. Under Ubuntu, however, video is limited to 1080p. There is a double colour temperature flash (5,500K and 2,200K) for warmer, more natural-looking, still portraits. The camera lens is a five-element f2.2 unit, 2.8mm in diameter with a 4.8mm focal length.

A Fine quality shot from the MX4's 20.7-megapixel rear camera. Image: Terry Relph-Knight/ZDNet.

As on the BQ phone, the Ubuntu camera app offers three image settings (Basic, Normal and Fine), although these affect compression rather than resolution, with the Fine setting resulting in the least image compression. There is also an HDR (High Dynamic Range) on/off setting. The app settings are common to both cameras; the front camera has a four-element f2.0 lens and a 2-megapixel Sony IMX 208 sensor.

Conclusion

The experience of Ubuntu for Phones is a little different between the BQ Aquaris 4.5 and the Meizu MX4, each exhibiting different minor glitches. For example, the Meizu phone seems unable to automatically reacquire the default wi-fi connection after having moved out of range or having been turned off, which is not a problem with the BQ device.

The Meizu MX4 Ubuntu Edition offers a number of high-end hardware features at relatively low cost, but Ubuntu for Phones seems unable, yet, to take full advantage of the hardware. Compared to the BQ Aquaris E4.5, you might think that the Meizu MX4's extra processing power would make it noticeably more responsive. While some apps do load faster on the MX4, the difference between the two phones is not that great in this respect.

If you particularly want an Ubuntu-powered smartphone you might choose to buy the Meizu MX4 for its styling, high-resolution 5.36-inch display and 20.7-megapixel rear camera. However, you might also want to look at BQ's new €199.90 Aquaris E5 HD Ubuntu Edition, which has a 5-inch screen, a 13-megapixel rear camera and 16GB of storage (plus a Micro-SD card slot).

Source: Meizu MX4 Ubuntu Edition review: A flagship Linux smartphone

OnePlus teases mysterious new 'luxury' product

ONEPLUS

OnePlus is teasing the release of a brand-new product, following the release of the OnePlus 2

OnePlus has started to tease a new product across its social media pages.

The Chinese firm – which released its flagship killer smartphone, the OnePlus 2, earlier this summer – released a mysterious new poster on its Google+ page last week.

"A bit of welcome luxury," the poster teases, while the accompanying Google+ post mysteriously adds: "Something luxurious is coming to OnePlus. What could it be?"

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The poster appears to feature a dimly-lit leather-like material in the foreground – hinting at a possible OnePlus-branded case?

Or perhaps an interchangeable back for the OnePlus 2, a la LG G4?

Of course, there is also the possibility that this is the first teaser for the latest OnePlus smartphone – which is set to be unveiled later this year.

Not much is known about the smartphone but OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei confirmed a new handset would launch after the OnePlus 2 this year.

The teaser poster comes days after OnePlus released a statement apologising for "messing up" the launch of the OnePlus 2.

The smartphone, which was bought by millions of people across the globe in the hours following its launch, has been delayed in a number of countries following supply constraints.

OnePlus 2 retails for some £239 on the firm's website and sports a phablet-sized 5.5inch IPS 1080p display, up to 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage.

Co-founder Carl Pei wrote a frank apology to fans of the firm.

Related articles

"We messed up the launch of the OnePlus 2," Mr Pei wrote in a company blog post.

"To our fans, sorry. We were equally excited when we saw your excitement around the OnePlus 2," he wrote in the OnePlus forums.

"We know how it feels waiting and waiting for something you really want, while being given ETAs that go unfulfilled. 

"We appreciate the trust and support that you have given to a relatively small and unknown company like OnePlus. 

"We know that you are rooting for us, and want nothing more than to see us succeed. Therefore, it feels extra terrible to let you down this time around, again."

Source: OnePlus teases mysterious new 'luxury' product

Apple’s iPhone 6s, 6s Plus available for pre-order at over Rs 1 lakh in grey market: Reports

Apple announced its latest flagship smartphones – the iPhone 6s and the iPhone 6s Plus on 9 September. India wasn't on the initial list of countries to get the device. Neither have official launch dates for India been released.

However, it is estimated that Apple could launch the iPhone 6s and the iPhone 6s Plus by Diwali to cash in on the festive season in India. Seizing the opportunity, the grey market in India has begun taking pre-orders.

According to a report in the Economic Times, a mobile store owner at Mumbai's Heera Panna market said the price of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus will be around Rs 1 lakh. Although that seems like an astronomical sum for a smartphone, the grey market would be able to command such prices only for the short duration between the US rollout and the launch in India.

The report adds that the iPhone 6s would sell at an average selling price between Rs 70,000 and Rs 80,000. The iPhone 6s Plus would selling at an average price between Rs 80,000 and Rs 90,000. The Rose Gold edition of the device seems to come at an added premium of Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000.

If you believe that's a high sum, consider that the prices rise even higher in China's grey market. According to a report in the South China Morning Post, "The asking price for a 16 GB iPhone 6S (as the new model is expected to be called) is between 8,900 and 9,250 yuan (US$1,300-1,450) while prices for larger-screen 128 GB iPhone 6S Plus ran as high as 21,000 yuan (US$3,300)." $3300 works to approximately Rs 2,20,000!

TheNational reports that the latest iPhones would hit the UAE grey markets within 2 weeks. Quoting a retailer in Abu Dhabi, the report says, "People have been asking when we're going to sell the iPhone 6S for at least the past 10 days. I expect we will get it a day or two after it becomes available in the UK and the US."

The report adds that last year the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus sold for a premium of over Dh 1,000 (Rs 18,000) on the retail selling price.

While reports emerge that premium smartphones continue to witness a dip in sales, the sky rocketing prices commanded by these devices in the unregulated market suggests the high level of interest in them.

Tags: Apple iPhone, grey market, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s India launch, iPhone 6s plus, iPhone 6S price

Source: Apple's iPhone 6s, 6s Plus available for pre-order at over Rs 1 lakh in grey market: Reports

OnePlus One to sell on Snapdeal for Rs 21,998 in the 64GB Sandstone variant

OnePlus has added another e-commerce website for the sale of its first phone. The Chinese phone maker has made the '2014 Flagship Killer' OnePlus One available for sale on Snapdeal as well. The 64GB variant of the OnePlus One will be priced the same as on Amazon, at Rs 21,998.

According to OnePlus's India general manager Vikas Agarwal, the company is excited to partner with Snapdeal to further expand the reach as well as availability of the phone.

"Having sold over 250,000 units since launch, we are confident this move will help us deliver the most loved smartphone of the year to more customers across the country," said Agarwal.

The OnePlus One sports a large 5.5-inch LTPS ( Sharp's Low Temperature PolySilicon) IPS display with 1080×1920 pixel resolution. The device runs Android 5.0 Lollipop and you can either have the Cyanogen OS 12 or OnePlus' proprietary OxygenOS on it. The One is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor and features a 13MP camera along with a 3100 mAh battery. You can read the full review of the OnePlus One.

Recently, OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei apologised on the OnePlus forums for the delay in the roll out of OnePlus 2 and the scarcity of invites.

"To our fans, sorry. We were equally excited when we saw your excitement around the OnePlus 2. We know how it feels waiting and waiting for something you really want, while being given ETAs that go unfulfilled. We appreciate the trust and support that you have given to a relatively small and unknown company like OnePlus," he had mentioned in his forum post.

Tags: OnePlus One, OnePlus One 64GB, OnePlus One on Snapdeal, OnePlus One sale

Source: OnePlus One to sell on Snapdeal for Rs 21,998 in the 64GB Sandstone variant

iPhone 6s, 6s Plus available for pre-order at over Rs 1 lakh in grey market: Reports

Apple announced its latest flagship smartphones – the iPhone 6s and the iPhone 6s Plus on 9 September. India wasn't on the initial list of countries to get the device. Neither have official launch dates for India been released.

However, it is estimated that Apple could launch the iPhone 6s and the iPhone 6s Plus by Diwali to cash in on the festive season in India. Seizing the opportunity, the grey market in India has begun taking pre-orders.

According to a report in the Economic Times, a mobile store owner at Mumbai's Heera Panna market said the price of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus will be around Rs 1 lakh. Although that seems like an astronomical sum for a smartphone, the grey market would be able to command such prices only for the short duration between the US rollout and the launch in India.

The report adds that the iPhone 6s would sell at an average selling price between Rs 70,000 and Rs 80,000. The iPhone 6s Plus would selling at an average price between Rs 80,000 and Rs 90,000. The Rose Gold edition of the device seems to come at an added premium of Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000.

If you believe that's a high sum, consider that the prices rise even higher in China's grey market. According to a report in the South China Morning Post, "The asking price for a 16 GB iPhone 6S (as the new model is expected to be called) is between 8,900 and 9,250 yuan (US$1,300-1,450) while prices for larger-screen 128 GB iPhone 6S Plus ran as high as 21,000 yuan (US$3,300)." $3300 works to approximately Rs 2,20,000!

TheNational reports that the latest iPhones would hit the UAE grey markets within 2 weeks. Quoting a retailer in Abu Dhabi, the report says, "People have been asking when we're going to sell the iPhone 6S for at least the past 10 days. I expect we will get it a day or two after it becomes available in the UK and the US."

The report adds that last year the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus sold for a premium of over Dh 1,000 (Rs 18,000) on the retail selling price.

While reports emerge that premium smartphones continue to witness a dip in sales, the sky rocketing prices commanded by these devices in the unregulated market suggests the high level of interest in them.

Tags: Apple iPhone, grey market, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s India launch, iPhone 6s plus, iPhone 6S price

Source: iPhone 6s, 6s Plus available for pre-order at over Rs 1 lakh in grey market: Reports

Alleged Galaxy S7 Pops Up On AnTuTu, Snapdragon 820 In Tow

Samsung has essentially released two flagship smartphones, and two flagship phablets this year. The company has unveiled their Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge smartphone back in March, and Note 5 and S6 Edge+ phablets followed last month. That being said, we've already seen quite a few Galaxy S7 rumors, one of which even claimed that the device(s) might launch before the end of the year, which is highly unlikely. It is also rumored that Samsung is planning to manufacture the Galaxy S7 in two sizes, one is said to sport a 5.2-inch, and the other one a 5.8-inch display. That being said, the alleged Galaxy S7 leaked yesterday on Geekbench under the codename 'lucky', well, that device surfaced again, this time on AnTuTu, but it sports different specs.

According to the AnTuTu listing, this device won't be powered by the Exynos 8890 which was listed on Geekbench, but Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 SoC. The two listings agree as far as RAM and Android version go, but AnTuTu provides far more info as far as specs are concerned. According to this listing, the device will sport a 5.7-inch QHD (2560 x 1440) display along with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. The 16-megapixel camera will be available on its back, and a 5-megapixel snapper will be located up front. Adreno 530 is also listed here, a GPU which ships with the Snapdragon 820, so that's a given. Andriod 5.1.1 Lollipop will come pre-installed on this device, and Samsung's TouchWiz UI will be installed on top of Google's OS, of course.

Interesting enough, this device sports a 5.7-inch display, which doesn't exactly goes hand-in-hand with the latest rumor that the S7 will sport a 5.8-inch display. On the other hand, it is possible that this 'lucky' device isn't Galaxy S7 at all, and that we're looking at a completely different device, but that's highly unlikely. These specifications are top of the line, no matter which way you look at it, so it's going to be interesting to see if they were right in the end. It seems a bit early for such listings to start appearing on benchmarks considering that Samsung isn't expected to unveil the Galaxy S7 until March next year, but… who knows what will happen in the end. Either way, stay tuned for more info.

Source: Alleged Galaxy S7 Pops Up On AnTuTu, Snapdragon 820 In Tow

BLU Products partners with MediaTek on BLU Pure XL flagship smartphone

BLU Products said it has launched the BLU Pure XL, the first US smartphone to include MediaTek´s premium Helio X10 chipset, a 64-bit True Octa-coreâ„¢ LTE smartphone SoC designed for both extreme performance and power efficiency.

The BLU Pure XL will highlight a 6.0-inch Quad HD Super AMOLED display paired with an industry leading 24 Megapixel Camera. It will go on sale exclusively on Amazon.com on September 29 at a price of USD349.00, unlocked, with 4G LTE support nationwide on T-Mobile and AT&T Networks.

The BLU Pure XL is powered by the 64-bit MediaTek Helio X10 2.0GHz Octa-core processor and offers a seamless user experience, with the power to run multiple apps at once, quickly browse the web, or enjoy smooth rendering of graphics for just about any game all while maximizing power efficiency. Benchmarks on the BLU Pure XL with MediaTek Helio X10 result in AnTuTu scores in the range of 49,000, which is among the top performing smartphones in the world today.

The BLU Pure XL boasts a 24 megapixel main camera featuring advanced, second-generation Optical Image Stabilization, F/2.0 aperture, 1/2.3 inch sensor with Sapphire + 6P lens, real-time HDR, True Dual Tone LED Flash, and Phase Detection Autofocus (PDAF) with Fast Focus between 0.08-0.2 seconds. A dedicated camera button provides lightning fast access to the ideal shot. Additional features include:

BLU Products, founded in 2009, designs and manufacturers affordable, attractive and innovative mobile devices to suit a wide variety of consumer needs. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, BLU is pioneering the advancement of the prepaid and no-contract revolution by providing a vast portfolio of advanced unlocked mobile phones to thousands of dealer agents, MVNO´s, and large retailers throughout the United States and Latin America.

Since 1997, MediaTek has been a pioneering fabless semiconductor company and a market leader in cutting-edge systems-on-chip (SoC) for mobile devices, wireless networking, HDTV, DVD and Blu-ray.

Source: BLU Products partners with MediaTek on BLU Pure XL flagship smartphone

ZTE Uses Hillcrest's Freespace Motion and Sensor Hub Software for Enhanced Sensor Processing in Smartphones

Specifically, Hillcrest's motion and sensor hub software provides high performance sensor processing that dramatically lowers power consumption and enables new user experiences across ZTE's smartphones. Coupled with Hillcrest's Freespace motion software, ZTE's phones now provide more advanced, value-added features, such as always-on context awareness, gesture recognition and activity tracking, while delivering industry-leading sensor fusion, heading and motion tracking functions that are required to power all of the standard and third-party applications that rely on the Android® Lollipop sensor API.

"We are very proud to have been selected by ZTE to deliver a differentiated sensor-enabled user experience for its flagship smartphone lines," said Chad Lucien, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Hillcrest Labs. "With our latest integration with ZTE, Hillcrest's technology is now used by some of the largest China-based handset manufacturers. This is a real testament to the product innovation being delivered by market leaders like ZTE."

"At ZTE, we are committed to delivering the best performance and capabilities across our smartphone lines, and sensors are critical to differentiate our functionality," said Adam Zeng, CEO of ZTE Mobile Devices at ZTE Corporation. "As such, we are working with leaders like Hillcrest Labs to incorporate high performance sensors that provide ultimate power efficiency and always-on features."

Sensor hubs are a separate class of processors, uniquely enabled by specialized software and algorithms, that are designed to offload sensor management from the main processor for mobile phones and other devices. Hillcrest's Freespace sensor hub software reduces the power requirements to add always-on sensing capabilities in ZTE's smartphone lines. In addition, Hillcrest's proprietary motion detection algorithms are able to accurately detect user movements and device context to ensure an intuitive user experience. For instance, Hillcrest's Freespace motion software allows gestures to be used as shortcuts to common user interactions, and enables sensor processing to automatically adjust the user experience based on context (i.e. phone movement, positioning, etc.). One example of how ZTE has used Hillcrest's software is to enable a user to simply lift the device to their ear to answer a phone call, without having to activate the touch screen or unlock the device.

For more information about ZTE, visit: www.ZTEdevices.com. Additional information about Hillcrest's broad portfolio of motion control products is available at: www.HillcrestLabs.com. Follow Hillcrest on Facebook at www.facebook.com/HillcrestLabs or Twitter at @HillcrestLabs.

About ZTE Mobile Devices:ZTE Mobile Devices is a division of ZTE Corporation, a global telecommunications equipment, networks and mobile devices company headquartered in Shenzhen, China. ZTE is a publicly traded company listed on the Hong Kong and Shenzhen stock exchanges. ZTE is one of the global leaders in the mobile handset manufacturing industry in the world, offering a complete range of mobile devices, including mobile phones, tablets, mobile broadband modems and hotspots and family desktop integration terminals.

ZTE has strategic partnerships with 47 of the world's top 50 carriers. Additionally, ZTE ranked No.1 in PCT patent applications in WIPO table in 2011 and 2012.

About Hillcrest Labs:Hillcrest Labs is the leading global supplier of software and hardware for motion-enabled products. Our Freespace® technology transforms human movement into high quality, application-ready motion information. With a decade of development and many unique patented features, products come to life with Freespace motion. Companies that have licensed or use Hillcrest's motion technology include: ALCATEL ONETOUCH, Atmel, Coolpad, Eastman Kodak, Hisense, Intel, Lenovo, LG Electronics, Logitech, Oppo, Roku, Skyworth, SMK Electronics, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., TCL Multimedia, Universal Electronics (UEI), ZTE, and more.

Hillcrest has received numerous awards and recognitions including the prestigious CES Innovations Honoree Award multiple times, IMS Research's TV Innovation Awards, EE Times' ACE Award, PC World's 100 Best Products and Greatest Tech Designs, Popular Mechanics' Editors' Choice, ECN's Reader's Choice Tech, and many others. Additional information about Hillcrest's broad portfolio of motion control products is available at: www.HillcrestLabs.com. Follow Hillcrest on Facebook at www.facebook.com/HillcrestLabs or Twitter at @HillcrestLabs.

Source: http://www.hillcrestlabs.com/

Source: ZTE Uses Hillcrest's Freespace Motion and Sensor Hub Software for Enhanced Sensor Processing in Smartphones

Hands On: Sony Xperia Z5 Premium

We knew someone would put a 4K display in a smartphone eventually, but it was still a bit of a surprise when Sony unveiled the new Z5 Premium at IFA. Ever since Apple coined the retina name for its displays there has been some debate about just how sharp a screen really needs to be.

What is the limit of the human eye? Is it pointless to push pixel density beyond a certain point? It's hard to say for sure, because the clarity of a picture also has a lot to do with the distance you view it from, and with smartphones we all like to get up close and personal.

To put this in some perspective, the majority of flagship smartphones right now have a 1,920 x 1,080 pixel display. The LG G4 went up to 2,560 x 1,440. The Sony Xperia Z5 Premium has a resolution of 3,840 x 2,160, which gives it an absurd pixel per inch (PPI) of 806. The iPhone 6 display is just 326 PPI.

Related: Sony Xperia Z5 Hands On

Specs aside, what does it actually look like? It is eye-catchingly perfect, but it's not immediately obvious that this is a 4K display. It's only up close that you get an idea of just how sharp this screen is. You can put it as close as you like to your eyeballs and you will not be able to detect a hint of pixelation. Look at it side by side with a 1080p display, however, and the difference is stark: the colors are lush, the detail is impressive, and you get a greater sense of depth.

You can put it as close as you like to your eyeballs and you will not be able to detect a hint of pixel.Premium from top to bottom.

Sony's industrial design language is a well established fusion of metal and glass. In the flagship Xperia Z line it has gradually softened. The angular edges were rounded off, the glass back became matte, and the bezels have shrunk. The annoying flap for the charging port has also gone, without losing the waterproof IP65/68 rating.

The Premium is the real flagship for Sony and that may be why it is distinguished from the regular Xperia Z5 and Z5 Compact by the mirrored back. You can get the Z5 Premium in black, chrome, or gold and you'll find that mirror effect back on each one. It's an expensive look, and it's classy, but there's an obvious problem — smudgy fingerprints are inevitable. If you want your Z5 Premium to keep that alluring look, you're going to want to carry a microfiber cloth around with you.

In terms of size, that display is 5.5-inches, but it doesn't feel much bigger than previous Xperia Z releases because more of the face is screen, and the bezels have gotten smaller. It's also pretty light at 180g, and it's comfortable to hold and slide into the pocket.

Fingerprint sensor and snappy shooter

Beyond the 4K screen, there are two features Sony highlighted in the reveal: the fingerprint sensor, which is also the power button on the right edge of the phone, and the 23-megapixel camera, which is supposed to be the fastest camera in a smartphone, capable of focussing and snapping in a fraction of a second.

Simon Hill/Digital Trends

The fingerprint sensor is absolutely great. It's a very quick way of unlocking your phone, and it's something you can do easily, one-handed, which isn't always the case with Touch ID or Samsung's Home button.

The camera is a little harder to test on the show floor, but it's certainly fast, responsive, and seems to take high quality photos. Although the large sensor is rated at 23-megapixels it scales down to 8-megapixels. This means you can zoom in on photos without losing all the detail.

Related: Sony Xperia Z5 Compact Hands On

Hot stuff

Heat and battery life are obvious areas of concern for the Z5 Premium. A 4K display is going to require serious processing power and juice to keep it running. The phone packs a 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor under the hood with 3GB of RAM.

Perhaps a couple of days between charges, even with the 4K display, isn't an impossible dream.

There were issues with overheating in the early versions of the 810, and it's something Sony has struggled with in previous Xperia Z phones, especially when it comes to 4K recording. I found the Z5 Premium wasn't running especially hot when I used it. Recording video definitely turned up the temperature, but it never reached uncomfortable levels.

Sony has put a hefty 3,430mAh battery in the Z5 Premium. When I dipped into the power management page and took a look at battery usage, I could see that the demo model had been running all day yesterday and for a couple of hours this morning without being charged and it had 21 percent left in the tank. Perhaps a couple of days between charges, even with the 4K display, isn't an impossible dream.

Paying a premium

The Xperia Z5 Premium is the most expensive smartphone Sony has ever offered. It's being listed at £629 in the UK, which is $955 right now. It will no doubt be reduced in price over the next few months. But whichever way you slice it, that's a lot of money for a phone.

Is it worth paying a premium like that for Sony's 4K smartphone? If it sounds too expensive then you should probably avoid picking one up, because this is the kind of seductive smartphone that you'll be reluctant to put down again.

Highs

Gorgeous 4K display

Fingerprint sensor

Fast camera

Beautiful design

Lows

Expensive

Possible poor battery life or lag (though we haven't experienced it)

Source: Hands On: Sony Xperia Z5 Premium

Sony Xperia Z5 Premium hands-on

Sony recently unveiled its latest flagship Android smartphones, the Xperia Z5, Xperia Z5 Compact, and the Z5 Premium.

Test versions of the devices are in South Africa, and Sony Mobile let media get some hands-on time with the devices.

Of particular interest was the Sony Xperia Z5 Premium and its ridiculous 2,160×3,840 ultra high definition (UHD) screen, as well as the 23MP cameras on the back of all three Xperia Z5 models.

Sony didn't want us to take photos with the devices just yet, stating that the firmware was not final and therefore the camera performance could not be accurately rated.

However, we were able to test the phone's software, hold it, and set our eyes upon the screen in all its 4K glory.

The Sony Xperia Z5 Premium may be a large device, weighing in at 180g and measuring 154.4×76.0×7.8 mm, but it still fits in the hand comfortably and it's rounded edges are easy to grip.

The back of the Sony Xperia Z5 is basically a mirror.

I'm not sure how I feel about the reflective surface on its back, but regardless of what you think of the aesthetics, it remains functional.

It may pick up fingerprints easily, but the Z5 Premium's reflective back does not make it feel as though the phone wants to slip out of your hand.

On the software front, the Z5 Premium performed well. The interface was responsive, apps launched quickly, and switching between apps was fast.

The display was clear, even in sunlight, colours were bright, and images crisp. This is standard for a high-end phone, though, and unfortunately it wasn't possible to really put the screen through its paces in the brief time we had with it.

It certainly gave a great first impression, and it is going to be interesting to see how it stacks up in side-by-side comparisons when review samples are available.

The Sony Xperia Z5 range is set to launch in South Africa during the fourth quarter of 2015.

Sony Xperia Z5 Compact

Sony Xperia Z5 Premium

Sony showed off large prints of photos taken with the 23MP camera on Xperia Z5 phones.

Key specifications of the three devices are summarised in a table below.

Specifications Sony Xperia Z5 Sony Xperia Z5 Premium Sony Xperia Z5 Compact Dimensions 146× 72 × 7.3 mm 154.4 × 76.0 × 7.8 mm 127 × 65 × 8.9 mm Weight 154g 180g 138g Operating system Android 5.1 Lollipop Android 5.1 Lollipop Android 5.1 Lollipop Display 5.2" FHD 1080p Triluminos (1080×1920) 5.5″ 4K Triluminos (2160×3840) 4.6″ HD 720p (720×1280) Rear camera 23MP 23MP 23MP Front camera 5MP 5MP 5MP Storage, internal 32GB 32GB 32GB Storage, expandable microSD microSD microSD RAM 3GB 3GB 2GB Processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 (MSM8994) Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 (MSM8994) Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 (MSM8994) Graphics Adreno 430 Adreno 430 Adreno 430 Battery 2,900mAh 3,430mAh 2,700mAh Cellular data LTE / HSPA LTE / HSPA LTE / HSPA SIM type Single/Dual SIM Single SIM Single/Dual SIM IP Rating IP65 + IP68 IP65 + IP68 IP65 + IP68 More smartphone news

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Source: Sony Xperia Z5 Premium hands-on

Skylake Goes Mobile: Intel Is Testing Its Core M Processors For Smartphones

Intel is testing Skylake processors for smartphones. The new Intel processor promises improved battery and enhanced performance.(Photo : Maurizio Pesce | Flickr)

Intel is testing the sixth-generation Skylake Core M processors for smartphones.

Intel launched the latest Skylake processors at its press conference at IFA 2015. The new processor will be used to power computers as well as USB sticks and mobile devices such as smartphones.

The Skylake processors have a new microarchitecture that promises the enhanced performance of systems and improved battery life. The new chips are also optimized so that they can handle 4K videos efficiently.

"6th Gen Intel Core processors deliver some of the most significant advancements in computing that we've ever seen," said Kirk Skaugen, Intel senior VP and Client Computing Group general manager. "New 6th Gen Intel Core-based systems are more responsive than ever with enhanced performance, battery life and security."

Intel currently does not make chips for the smartphone industry, which has been growing at a very fast pace in the past decade. The chip maker is paying more attention to smartphone processors, and the company may unveil its first range of mobile chips in 2016.

According to an International Data Corporation (IDC) report, handset vendors shipped 337.2 million smartphones globally in the second quarter of 2015, which is up by 11.6 percent in comparison to the same quarter of 2014 when 302.1 million units were shipped. The IDC report highlights that the total smartphone shipments of the second quarter of 2015 is also the second highest quarterly total on record.

"The overall growth of the smartphone market was not only driven by the success of premium flagship devices from Samsung, Apple, and others, but more importantly by the abundance of affordable handsets that continue to drive shipments in many key markets," said Anthony Scarsella, research manager with IDC's Mobile Phone team.

Qualcomm is currently the largest producer of smartphone chips in the world and, Bloomberg reports, the company had more than 80 percent of the market share for 4G phone chips. Intel will have to work hard to get some part of the market share with the introduction of its Skylake processors for smartphones.

It may seem a daunting task for Intel to convince smartphone manufacturers to use its Skylake chips for smartphones in their handsets. However, given Intel's reputation in the chip market, many smartphone makers may try Intel chips in their handsets.

Photo: Maurizio Pesce | Flickr

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Source: Skylake Goes Mobile: Intel Is Testing Its Core M Processors For Smartphones