ASUS ROG Gaming Smartphone Dazzles In These Hands On Pictures

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Jun 6, 2018

ASUS announced and showcased its latest ROG gaming smartphone yesterday in Taiwan. As a model manufactured specifically for gaming, the phone presents with a top-level configuration and amazing design. The device is also bundled with several peripheral gadgets. The ROG phone and its accessories are here to meet with us, thanks to Chinese tech blog PCPOP.

The ROG Phone comes with a 6-inch AMOLED FHD+ screen with a refresh rate of 90Hz and a 1ms response time. The screen has a 108% DCI-P3 wide color gamut, a 10,000 : 1 contrast ratio, and supports HDR. What better processor to power the device other than the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor? Even at that, the processor is overclocked at 2.96GHz. It also has 8GB of RAM and 128GB or 512GB of storage.

The device has the ROG logo on the back which lights up while the display is on. Apart from the logo, the back design adopts a rather scientific approach, giving the device a truly gaming gadget outlook. There is a dual camera setup at the back arranged in a horizontal manner. On the camera end, the device comes with the same configuration as the Zenfone 5. There is an 8MP camera at the front and a 12MP+8MP dual camera combo. The ASUS ROG Phone has a 4,000mAh battery with support for ASUS HyperCharge fast charging technology. In order to reduce the amount of heat being dissipated by the smartphone, ASUS moved the charging chip from the phone to the power adapter.

Another visible design innovation on the sleek phone is the three USB-C ports it packs. Two of the ports are on the side and one at the bottom. All three ports are for charging the phone and this design was adopted so that users can charge the device with ease while gaming. The side ports also function as connectors for some of the peripheral accessories.

The ROG phone also comes with two linear vibration motors. We have seen some mobile phones that have provided realistic tactile feedback through linear motors. This time, the ROG Phone returns realistic sensations through a linear vibration motor. The realistic vibration feedback should give us an unparalleled gaming experience.

Another important aspect worth giving some thought is the peripherals and docking stations the phone comes with. They include the AeroActive Cooler which is a clip-on cooling fan that comes bundled with the phone. There is an app for turning on/off the fan and modifying speed. Another key peripheral device is the Gamevice Gamepad with a pair of shoulder buttons on each side. The TwinView Pedestal has a second 6-inch screen which lets users play a game on one screen and perform other tasks like chatting on the other. The add-on also comes with a built-in 6000mAh battery.

The ROG phone also has a Mobile Desktop Dock that lets you use the device as a desktop PC. There are several ports for connecting a monitor, keyboard, mouse and other peripherals. The dock also allows you use the phone as a second display for your regular PC. Finally, the ROG phone will have a WiGig Dock, a 60GHz 802.11ad dock that works with the Gamevice gamepad and lets you stream to a TV.

There is still no word on its pricing and availability but we don’t expect it to come with a cheap price. Also, most of the peripherals and docks will likely be sold separately.

(source)

Snapdragon 429 and Snapdragon 439 SoCs Coming, For Android Go Devices

By

Habeeb Onawole

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Jun 6, 2018

The Snapdragon 425 has been the go-to chipset for manufacturers when making entry-level phones. Even though it has been two years since it was announced along with the Snapdragon 625 and Snapdragon 435, it is still showing up in devices. However, both the 425 and 435 will be getting upgrades soon in form of the Snapdragon 429 and Snapdragon 439 processors.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 429 — Qualcomm will soon announce Snapdragon 429 and Snapdragon 439 SoCs

According to Roland Quandt, Qualcomm will announce the Snapdragon 429 and Snapdragon 439 mobile platforms. He adds in the tweet that info is unavailable on the SD429 but the SD439 will be a variant of the SD625.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 429 and 439 incoming. Aimed at Android GO devices, but not exclusive to these. No idea what the 429 is, yet, but the 439 is a variant of the MSM8953 aka Snapdragon 625 = octacore ARM Cortex-A53, 14nm. No clue about speeds/other specs.

— Roland Quandt (@rquandt) June 6, 2018

Now, we are not so excited about the SD439 since the Snapdragon 450 is practically an underclocked Snapdragon 625. So it seems Qualcomm is again recycling its old chipset. However, we’ll wait for an official announcement to see what differs between the three chipsets.

Continue

Xiaomi Redmi Y2 Pricing, Storage and Color Variants Leaked Ahead of Launch

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Jun 6, 2018

Xiaomi will be announcing a new selfie-centric Redmi smartphone on June 7. Rumors have it that the Chinese manufacturer will be debuting the Redmi Y2 tomorrow. It seems that the selfie-focused Redmi S2 phone that was launched in the previous month in China will be rebranded as Redmi Y2 for India. Today, a well-known Indian tipster Ishan Agarwal has revealed the storage + RAM variants, color options and pricing of the Redmi Y2.

According to a recent tweet from the tipster, the Redmi Y2 will be available in models like 32 GB storage + 3 GB RAM and 64 GB storage + 4 GB RAM in India. It will be available in color choices like Dark Grey, Gold and Rose Gold. The pricing of the Redmi Y2 variants have been also leaked. The 32 GB and 64 GB models are speculated to be respectively priced at Rs. 9,999 (~$149) and Rs. 11,999 (~$179).

Currently, Xiaomi is selling the 32 GB storage + 3 GB RAM and 64 GB storage + 4 GB RAM editions of the Redmi Note 5 is selling with respective pricing of Rs. 9,999 and Rs. 11,999. The leaked pricing and storage variants of Redmi Y2 are exactly same as Redmi Note 5. Hence, it is advisable to digest the pricing leak of Redmi Y2 with a pinch of salt and wait for tomorrow’s unveiling for official confirmation.

It has been recently confirmed that the handset will be exclusively available for buying through Amazon India. As far as the other specs of the phone are concerned, it may feature a 5.99-inch FHD+ display, Snapdragon 625 SoC, 3,080mAh battery and 12-megapixel + 5-megapixel dual camera setup. Its major USP will be AI equipped 16-megapixel front-facing camera that comes with features like soft-light LED and HDR.

In related news, the recently released MIUI 10 teaser by Manu Kumar Jain who is Xiaomi’s Global VP and Managing Director for India suggests that the company may confirm the global rollout of MIUI 10 Global ROM at tomorrow’s press event.

(source)

Xiaomi Mi A2 Visits Geekbench, May Launch Soon

By

Habeeb Onawole

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Jun 6, 2018

Is the Mi A2 launching soon? Probably, seeing as the device has made an appearance on Geekbench. There is nothing new about the specs but the benchmark listing further confirms the device’ existence.

The Mi A2 is expected to be an Android One version of the Mi 6X released a few months ago. So everything should be the same in terms of hardware with the only difference being stock Android instead of MIUI.

The Xiaomi Mi A2 was benchmarked on May 31 and was first spotted by Smartprix. The device is powered by the Snapdragon 660 mobile platform and has 4GB of RAM. Its benchmark scores are 1630 points and 4657 points for the single-core and multi-core tests respectively. It is also shown to have Android 8.1 Oreo installed.

We won’t be surprised if the Mi A2 gets announced this month. It has been two months since the Mi 6X was announced which is the same duration between the launch of the Mi 5X and the Mi A1.

Continue

BlackBerry KEY² Complete Spec Sheet & Price Leaked

By

Habeeb Onawole

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Jun 6, 2018

Just a few days ago, we posted official renders of the upcoming BlackBerry KEY². Today, they have been followed by a complete leak of the specification sheet as well as pricing for various markets from yet the same source – Evan Blass (@evleaks).

BlackBerry KEY² Specs

The BlackBerry KEY² will have a 4.5-inch screen with a 1620 x 1080 resolution. It appears the screen just looks bigger, it is actually the same size as the first-gen model. The display is LCD and it is covered with Gorilla Glass 3.

Under the textured back of the KEY² is a Snapdragon 660 processor. It is paired with 6GB of RAM and 64GB or 128GB of built-in storage. The phone will also come with support for storage expansion (256GB max).

One of the big changes in the BlackBerry KEY² is the addition of an extra sensor on the rear of the phone. Now you have a 12MP f/1.8 1.28um sensor paired with another 12MP f/2.6 1.0um sensor. Up in front is an 8MP fixed focus camera for selfies.

The phone has a 3500mAh battery. There is a USB-C 3.0 port, NFC, a 3.5mm audio jack, and Bluetooth 5.0. It will come pre-loaded with tons of Blackberry Apps as well as default Android apps. It will run Android 8.1 Oreo out of the box.

The BlackBerry KEY² will have four variants – BBF100-1 for EU, Africa, AU, and Japan; BBF100-2 for NA and LATM; BBF100-4 model for China; and BBF100-6 model which has dual SIM slots for ME, APAC, India, and Indonesia.

Continue

GearBest Kicks Off The Global First Launch For HOMTOM S99, Only $119.99 Using This Coupon

By

Vinay Patel

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Jun 6, 2018

HOMTOM made its long-awaited S99 4G phablet available to the public last month. Much to the delight of the Shenzhen based handset manufacturer, the device became an instant hit among tech buffs that have been waiting for a phablet that delivers an essential big-screen experience without emptying their pocket.

The HOMTOM S99 would normally set you back $149 on GearBest. But if you’re on a tight budget and aren’t willing to spend that kind of money on a phablet, we got good news for you.

The Chinese online store that sells all sorts of cool tech and the hottest gear is currently offering a noteworthy 19% off on the phablet’s original asking price. As a result, the HOMTOM S99 can now be yours at a lowered price of just $129.99.

But if that doesn’t impress you much, we’ll show how you can save a considerable amount of money apart from getting the discount offered by GearBest. All you have to do to get an additional deduction is use coupon code ‘HOMTOPS99’ at the time of checking out.

You can bring your grand total down to just $119.99 simply by applying the discount code. In other words, you can save an extra $10 without breaking much of a sweat, thanks to the above-mentioned coupon code.

At $119.99, the HOMTOM S99 is quite a bargain, given that it sports a big 5.5 inches IPS HD+ display with a screen resolution of 1440 x 720 pixels. Moreover, the device sports an eye-catching plastic and aluminum alloy body design.

The S99 packs a powerful MediaTek MTK6750, 64-bit processor along with an ARM Mali-T860 MP2, 650 MHz, 4-cores GPU, under the hood. It offers 4GB of LPDDR3 RAM and 64GB of onboard storage that can further be expanded up to 256GB.

The HOMTOM S99 phablet features a 21MP + 2MP dual camera setup with dual-LED and AF on the back. Apart from that, it houses a 13MP front shooter for selfies and face-to-face video chatting.

Furthermore, the HOMTOM branded phablet runs Android 8.0 Oreo operating system and draws its juices from a 6200mAh big capacity battery that delivers an unparalleled gaming experience. The device also houses a slew of useful sensors including G-sensor control, distance sensor, light sensor, and fingerprint recognition.

You can follow this link if you’re interested in taking advantage of the discount. It is also worth noting that the coupon code is likely to expire soon.

Get 19% Off On HOMTOM S99 4G Phablet On GearBest

Huawei MateBook D 14-Inch Model Announced, Packs AMD Ryzen 5-2500U Processor

By

Jeet

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Jun 6, 2018

Huawei has already launched a trio of laptops — MateBook D, MateBook E, and MateBook X. Earlier this year, Huawei announced a new refreshed edition of MateBook D, which is dubbed as Huawei MateBook D (2018).

Now, the company has launched a new edition of Huawei MateBook D which comes with a 14-inch display and is powered by AMD’s Ryzen 5 2500 processor and Radeon Vega 8 grpahics. Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) is a 64-bit microprocessor from AMD, designed to act as a central processing unit (CPU) and graphics accelerator unit (GPU) on a single die.

The Huawei MateBook D features a metal unibody design with thin bezels surrounding the display. There’s a 14-inch Full HD display with screen resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. It comes with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of SSD storage.

It comes with a USB Type-C port for charging which can also be used to charge smartphones or tablets. Further, the laptop comes equipped with Dolby Quad speakers with split frequency setup, in an attempt to offer an immersive sound experience.

The laptop weighs around 1.45 kg and measures about 15.8mm in thickness, ensuring its easy to carry around. It comes with a 57.4Wh capacity battery which should be enough to last about 12 hours on single charge.

For comparison, the Huawei MateBook D 2018 launched earlier this year comes with a 15.6-inch Full HD display and is powered by Intel‘s 8th Generation processor, Nvidia MX150 GPU, and 8GB of RAM.

The base model with Core i5 processor comes offers two options — one with 256GB SSD storage while another with 128GB SSD + 1TB HDD. The higher-end model is powered by Intel Core i7-8550U CPU, along with 8GB RAM and 128GB SSD + 1TB HDD storage.

The previously launched 15.6-inch model with Core i5 8th-gen processor and 256GB SSD storage has a starting price of CNY 5,188 (approximately $791). However, the company has not yet announced the pricing of this new Huawei MateBook D with a 14-inch display and Ryzen 5-2500 APU. Initially, the device is not expected to be available in China and will first go to the international market.

Honor Announces The Honor Play: Its First Phone With GPU Turbo & 4D Gaming

By

Joel Joseph

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Jun 6, 2018

Honor had a busy day today announcing first its revolutionary GPU Turbo technology and then releasing its first ever smartphone featuring this tech, the Honor Play. Like the name suggests, the phone relies heavily on this technology to enhance the overall gaming experience of the smartphone user. The basic hardware on the Honor Play is standard flagship stuff, but the underlying technology that powers the device makes it a really good gaming device.

Before we move on to the basic specs details, let’s take a look at what makes the Honor Play special.

The new Honor flagship is basically a gaming centric smartphone. It’s the first Honor device to feature the revolutionary GPU Turbo technology that enhances GPU performance significantly by increasing graphics processing efficiency by up to 60%. This results in better gaming performance than flagships such as the Xiaomi Mi 8, iPhone X, and even the Mi Mix 2S. The company revealed that the phone manages to beat these flagships in terms of frame rate and jitters, thereby giving an enhanced gaming experience on the device.

Further, the phone boasts of 4D gaming experience, powered by the same GPU Turbo technology. 4D gaming is possible because the Honor Play can detect a number of gaming scenes including shots, explosions and quakes. You also get a 3D sound experience, so you’ll be able to clearly locate the angle of firing. The phone also reportedly features a special film on its screen to reduce reflection and improve gaming experience under light. It also features in-game network optimisation which promises seamless shift from Wi-Fi to mobile data in order to ensure uninterrupted gameplay.

Now coming to the standard stuff, the phone has a 6.3-inch FHD+ 2340 x 1080 display with a notch on top. Unlike other Honor flagships, this one features a metal back and U shaped antenna lines. The dual cameras are located on the left side while the fingerprint sensor lies around the centre at the back. There are three color options: Nebula Purple, Aurora Blue, and Midnight Black.

The Honor Play features the Kirin 970 chipset (Mali-G72 MP12) inside in two memory configurations (expandable up to 256GB): 4GB + 64GB and 6GB + 64GB. The rear dual camera setup is average, featuring a 16MP f/2.2 primary sensor paired with a 2MP f/2.4 secondary depth sensor with support for AI shooting and AR gestures. On the front, there’s a 16MP f/2.0 sensor for selfies.

The phone has a decent 3750mAh battery inside which should be good enough for a day’s worth of gaming. Other features include Bluetooth 4.2, Wi-Fi ac, and GPS. The phone is running on EMUI 8.2 based on Android 8.1 OS.

Honor Play is cheaper than the flagship Honor 10 model and starts at 1999 Yuan ($312) for the 4GB + 64GB variant. The 6GB + 64GB variant will cost 2399 Yuan ($375). There’s a special Honor Play Cool limited edition with a special back design that retails for 2499 Yuan ($390). The regular editions go on sale on June 11 in China, while the special limited Cool edition will go on sale in July. One more thing, you get a free TPU case inside the box.

Honor 9i with Notched Display, Kirin 659, 4 GB RAM Goes Official for 1,399 Yuan (~$218)

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Jun 6, 2018

Through an unveil event in Beijing, China, Huawei’s sub-brand Honor introduced multiple devices such as Honor 9i mid-range phone and Honor Play flagship smartphone that is powered by Kirin 970 and the all new GPU Turbo technology. Readers can visit dedicated articles on Honor Play and GPU Turbo to know more about them. As far as the Honor 9i is concerned, it is yet another notched display phone from the company that is packed with some impressive specs. Also, it comes with an affordable pricing.

Honor 9i Specifications and Features

The Honor 9i features a metal frame flanked with front and rear 2.5D glass panels. The 12 layers of nano-coating on the rear side of the phone makes it possible to deliver a dazzling mirror-like effect. It measures 149.2 x 71.8 x 7.7 mm and it weighs around 152 grams. The handset can be availed in colors like Magic Night Black, Charm Sea Blue, Jade Green and Dream Purple.

The Honor 9i includes a 5.84-inch IPS LCD display that produces FHD+ resolution of 2280 x 1080 pixels. Since it is mid-range phone, the Honor has included the Kirin 659 SoC inside it. It comes in storage variants like 64 GB and 128 GB and both of them feature 4 GB of RAM.

The frontside of the Honor 9i features a 16-megapixel photosensitive enhanced lens. With a pixel size of 2.0μm, the front-facing camera can capture better selfie shots in dim light conditions. Other features of the front camera include beauty mode and AR function. The selfie snapper can also double up as face unlock feature.

The 13-megapixel + 2-megapixel dual camera setup that is placed on the backside of the phone is equipped with features like dual-tone LED flash, PDAF, fast autofocus, scene detection and multi-frame image processing.

The Honor 9i is loaded with Android 8.1 Oreo that is modified with Huawei’s EMUI 8.0 custom ROM. The other features of the smartphone include dual SIM support, 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, GPS and 3.5mm audio jack. The handset receives power from 3,000mAh battery. The backside of the phone features a fingerprint scanner.

Honor 9i Pricing and Availability

The 64 GB and 128 GB editions of the Honor 9i are respectively priced at 1,399 Yuan (~$218) and 1,699 Yuan (~$265). The official sales of the phone will begin on June 7. At the time of writing this post, the official website had also listed the Honor 9i in a lower variant with 32 GB of storage and 4 GB of RAM. However, the listing is no longer available now. There is a possibility that the company may introduce this model after few months.

Lenovo’s 4TB of Lies: Lenovo Z5 Teasers Vs Reality

By

Jed John Ikoba

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Jun 6, 2018

Lenovo took the wraps off the much-hyped “bezel-less” Lenovo Z5 yesterday and it left us all disappointed. The Z5 was nowhere near the device Lenovo has been teasing all this while. Lenovo began teasing the Z5 in May and the company’s Vice-President Chang Cheng was the source of virtually all the teasers we saw. Calling the device a vaporware is even a compliment at this present time because indeed the Z5 was announced but with a design that looks nothing like the ones which feature in the numerous teasers. We’ll expatiate on this claim of ours.

AI powered lies.#LenovoZ5 #Z5 pic.twitter.com/lMuiHRChVC

— Beebom (@beebomco) June 5, 2018

The renders and teasers of the Z5 promised us a bezel-less design and a screen ratio of up to 95% but in the end, the Z5 came with a notch. Yes, another one with the damn notch (apologies to those who find the notch attractive). Well, we’d have had no problem if they had hinted a notch design will be featured on the device but no, Mr Cheng instead painted and literally shared a con picture of a near bezel-less device with no sign of a notch up there. What about the 95% screen-to-body ratio? That too was a fluke. The Z5 was announced as having only a 90% screen ratio and that itself is doubtful. A Twitter user shared a picture of the Z5 showcased during the launch which is an official render and the device in real life. The size of the bezels is not the same. The bezels keep getting bigger on all sides for real. Check them out below.

Another aspect where Lenovo exhibited this deceit was teasing that the Z5 will come with 4TB of storage. This was right after Smartisan released the R1 packing a 1TB storage variant. While it remains a question begging for answer what we needed 4TB of storage for on a smartphone, we cannot ignore the fact that the Z5 was launched with no mention of a 4TB storage. Instead, what Lenovo launched was a 4TB Particle Cloud Storage device which will sell for almost the same price as the smartphone.

How can we forget the screaming teaser of the Z5 coming with a battery that can offer up to 45 days of standby time? Mr Cheng even teased further that the battery can offer up to 30 minutes of talk time at 0%. So you’d know, the device packs a miserable 3300mAh battery. We wonder the technological prowess at play that can get the juice to spew for up to 45days even when the phone is just on standby.

So you see, we didn’t get the ultimate device that would mark the rebirth of the ZUK brand, all we got was a pack of lies, 4TB of lies! That is not to say the Z5 was all a miss. The device comes with a 6.2-inch display with FHD+ resolution of 1080p resolution, dual 16-megapixel cameras, and it’s got 6GB of RAM with either 64GB or 128GB of storage. Despite all these, the device comes in at just 1299 Yuan ($202) for the base variant and 1799 Yuan ($281 for the higher version. These are amazing price tags considering the design and specs but we are still disappointed for the bunch of lies peddled about the device before its launch. We demand an apology, Lenovo!

Here’s Where You Can Buy The Xiaomi Mi Band 3 Without Emptying Your Pocket!

By

Vinay Patel

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Jun 6, 2018

Sporting a 0.42-inch touch-sensitive OLED display, the Mi Band 3 swept tech buffs off their feet after hitting the store shelves last month. That’s hardly surprising given that Xiaomi’s newest fitness tracker boasts a broad range of jaw-dropping specs and features.

If you’ve restlessly been waiting to get your hands on the Mi Band 3 smart wristband without burning a hole in your pocket, you’ve come to the right place. Here’s a list of online shops where you can buy the coveted wristband at a considerably lowered price.

Xiaomi Mi Band 3 On Oppomart

The popular Chinese company is currently giving buyers who are on a tight budget, an opportunity to buy the Mi Band 3 smart wristband at a budget-friendly price of just $34.99. If you’re interested in saving a considerable amount of money on the well-received successor to the Mi Band 2, simply click here.

Buy Xiaomi Mi Band 3 on Oppomart

Xiaomi Mi Band 3 On Banggood

The original version of the Mi Band 3 is currently up for preorder on Banggood bearing a price tag of $36.99. The Chinese online store that guarantees the best bang for your buck is doling out 49 Banggood points as well.

You can save $4 on the coveted smart wristband’s original asking price simply by applying coupon code ‘mi3band’ at the time of checking out. This reduces your grand total to just $36.99. You can head straight to this link to use the coupon code before it expires.

Buy Xiaomi Mi Band 3 on Banggood

Xiaomi Mi Band 3 On AliExpress

You can buy the black color version of the original Xiaomi Mi Band 3 for $30.99 on AliExpress. The Zhejiang based online retail service will be shipping the smart wristband bracelet from China warehouse. Click here to buy it.

Alternatively, you can go for the 100% original version of the Xiaomi Mi Band 3, which the site is currently selling for $30.50. You can buy the black color version of the device by following this link.

Buy Xiaomi Mi Band 3 on AliExpress

Xiaomi Mi Band 3 On GearBest

The recently launched Xiaomi branded fitness tracker is also available on GearBest. Since May 31st, the black tinted Mi Band 3 has been available on the site carrying a presale price tag of $34.99.

About 1026 buyers had already taken advantage of the presale price at the time of writing. It is imperative for you to bear in mind that the presale price will only be valid until July 15th. You can visit this link to grab the deal.

Buy Xiaomi Mi Band 3 on Gearbest

Xiaomi Mi Band 3 On GeekBuying

The standard and the NFC versions of the original Xiaomi Mi Band 3 sells for $99.99 and $ 75.99, respectively on GeekBuying. The site is giving buyers a chance to take advantage of the promo wherein the original version of the device is available at a reduced presale price of just $34.99.
Likewise, GeekBuying is handing out a considerable 21% discount on the original asking price of the Xiaomi Mi Band 3 NFC version. As a result, you can now buy it at a slashed price of just $34.99. You can click here to take advantage of the discounts.

Buy Xiaomi Mi Band 3 on Geekbuying

Nubia Z17 Mini is one of the best phones you can buy under $164 (Limited time)

By

Linus

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Jun 6, 2018

Nubia is known for producing quality phones and the Z17 mini is a great example. It offers a premium design, great cameras and good specs for the price. At the moment, you can buy the phone for just $163.99 from Gearbest (flash sale ends soon).

First of all, it’s worth mentioning that you will get a global version of the phone, meaning you will get Google Services out of the box and no bloatware.

The Nubia Z17 has one of the best cameras for the price. It uses a dual-optics system that consists of two 13MP shooters. There is a powerful 16MP snapper on the front too.

I have always been a fan of all-metal phones and if you are too, the Nubia Z17 mini may be a great option for you in the world of fragile glass-made smartphones.

For just about $160, you get great specs that include a Snapdragon 652 chipset, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage (+microSD slot). In addition, the phone has a 5.2″ FHD display and it has a 2950mAh battery to keep the lights on.

We think that Nubia Z17 mini brings a ton of value to the table knowing the quality of phones the company makes.

At the moment, you can buy the phone for just $163.99 from Gearbest (flash sale ends soon).

Buy Nubia Z17 mini

Honor Announces GPU Turbo: A Turbocharger for Your Smartphone Graphics!

By

Joel Joseph

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Jun 6, 2018

We know Huawei has been spending billions of dollars in R&D and in the past couple of years, we’ve seen some incredible technologies come out from this department. Today, the company’s online brand, Honor, has just announced a revolutionary technology called GPU Turbo that’ll change the way we look at smartphone graphics.

As the world moves towards a more visual medium, smartphone UIs have become more intuitive, fluid, as well as lively. You have animations in almost every step of the interface, adding to a more natural user experience. And as phones are becoming more powerful, graphics intensive games have started to gain popularity. In these times, there’s often the conflict of how much graphics is good enough on smartphones. The conflict is not just about the right amount of GPU power but also about how efficient is the GPU and a balance has to be met for the best user experience. Honor claims that this balance is just about to be disturbed with its revolutionary GPU Turbo technology.

The GPU Turbo is special because it dramatically increases the Graphics Processing Efficiency on smartphones, thereby allowing smartphones to run heavier graphic intensive games without significantly affecting battery life. If you are looking for numbers, then this new tech from Huawei and Honor manages to increase graphics processing efficiency by 60% and reduces SoC power consumption by 30%. These are some significant numbers which when put in real life situations should give you a remarkable boost in graphics performance.

At today’s event, Huawei’s Richard Yu mentioned that with GPU Turbo, mid-range Honor smartphones’ single-thread performance can even beat multi-thread GPU performance of some flagship phones in the market today. This technology allows heavy smartphone games to run at higher fps than competitors. Further, it brings HDR picture quality and special effects in gaming making the overall experience rich and fluid.

The company managed to achieve this by restructuring the traditional graphics framework at the lower level system. The technology relies on hardware-software integrated GPU acceleration. It will benefit mobile games that require high level of graphics processing efficiency. Honor adds that GPU Turbo can support AR and VR in the future and it can be applied in the sectors including virtual teaching, online shopping and telemedicine.

To put very simply, it looks like Huawei has found a way to tweak how the GPU handles graphics processing to enhance its efficiency to a significant extent. Think of this tech as a smartphone turbocharger. What’s really exciting is that the existing hardware will also get the benefit of the GPU Turbo. Considering how a lot of Honor and Huawei smartphones feature the same chipset, it’s likely that a number of Honor phones will get this new technology.

GPU Turbo will first make it to the Honor Play smartphone that was announced today. Other Honor devices including Honor 10, Honor View 10, Honor 9 Lite and Honor 7X are confirmed to get this technological upgrade soon. So, this ground breaking tech is not just limited to the company’s flagship phones!

Huawei has made a habit of delivering breakthrough technology in smartphones, so I’m excited to see how GPU Turbo boosts smartphone performance in real life.

LG Q Stylus Series Smartphones Announced, Features 6.2-Inch 18:9 Display And Up To 4GB RAM

By

Jeet

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Jun 6, 2018

Expanding its lineup of smartphones launched in 2018, LG has today announced its new mid-range smartphone series which consists of LG Q Stylus, LG Q Stylus Plus, and LG Q Stylus Alpha which comes packed with some premium features.

Depending on the market, the smartphone will be available in one or more configurations. The company has also revealed that the Q Stylus series will roll out on a limited basis starting this month in the US and Asia, followed by other key regions in the third quarter of the year.

All three smartphones feature a 6.2-inch Full-HD+ FullVision display with screen resolution of 1080 x 2160 pixels with an 18:9 aspect ratio and 389ppi pixel density. Under the hood, there are two octa-core processor options depending on the region, clocked either at 1.5GHz or 1.8GHz. However, the company has not specified the chipset.

The LG Q Stylus and Q Stylus Alpha will pack 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage while the Q Stylus Plus will come with 4GB RAM and 64GB of onboard storage. Further, there’s a microSD card slot, allowing users to further expand the phone’s storage capacity up to 2TB.

Coming to the camera department, the LG Stylus and Q Stylus Plus boast a 16-megapixel rear camera sensor with a PDAF lens, while the Q Stylus Alpha sports a 13-megapixel sensor on the back. On the front, all three models have a super wide angle lens-equipped 5-megapixel camera sensor for taking selfies and video calling.

As of the connectivity options, all the devices support 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth v4.2, GPS/ A-GPS, NFC, and USB Type-C (version 2.0). Running on Android 8.1 Oreo operating system out of the box, the smartphones are fuelled by a 3,300mAh battery.

The smartphones come with a stylus that the company claims, adds “more convenience and functionality beyond the typical keyboard experience.” According to the company, the Q Stylus can recognize and record handwritten notes, even when the display is off.

All three smartphones come with a fingerprint sensor on the back for added security. Further, the Stylus and Stylus Plus models also come with IP68 water resistance certification.

The LG Q Stylus will be available in Moroccan Blue and Aurora Black, while the Q Stylus Plus will come in just one color — Aurora Black. On the other hand, the LG Q Stylus Plus will be offered in Lavender Violet color. Currently, LG has not revealed the pricing information and has said that the pricing and exact availability details will be announced locally.

Buy ZTE Nubia Z17 Lite Smartphone For Only $169.99 On Banggood [Coupon Code]

By

Vinay Patel

-

Jun 6, 2018

The ZTE Nubia Z17 Lite was launched in September last year and as expected; the phone garnered skyrocketing popularity among smartphone lovers. That was hardly surprising given that the Nubia Z17 Lite boasts an array of awe-inspiring specs and features.

The Nubia Z17 Lite is currently up for preorder on Banggood bearing a price tag of $239.99. But much to the delight of cost-conscious buyers who aren’t willing to break the bank, the site is offering a 17% off on the phone’s original asking price for a limited period of time.

The above-mentioned discount is valid for the black gold and blue color versions which you can now pre-order at a lowered price of just $199.99. Smartphone enthusiasts who are on a tight budget can also apply discount coupon ‘BGNZ17L’ at the time of checking out to bring the grand total further down to just $169.99.Apart from getting the discount, you end up saving an extra $30 simply by applying the aforesaid coupon code. At this heavily discounted price, the ZTE Nubia Z17 Lite is an irresistible smartphone, given that it sports a big 5.5 inches FHD IPS display with a screen resolution of 1080×1920 pixels.

The phone is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 653 MSM8976 Pro processor and uses a Qualcomm Adreno 510, 621.33 MHz GPU, under the hood. The Nubia Z17 Lite offers 6GB of RAM along with 64GB of non-expandable onboard storage.

On the photography front, the Nubia Z17 Lite smartphone houses a 13MP + 13MP (IMX258 RGB sensor + IMX258 MONO sensor) dual-camera setup with a 5-element lens, PDAF, Sapphire Glass lens, and ƒ/2.2 aperture. Up front, there’s a 16MP camera with 5-element lens, ƒ/2.0 aperture, and 80° wide angle for selfies.

The phone runs Nubia UI 5.0 based Android 7.1 Nougat operating system and is backed by a built-in 3200mAh, Lithium-ion polymer battery. On top of that, it is crammed with all sorts of useful sensors including gravity sensor, light sensor, distance sensor, electronic compass, and gyroscope.

You can follow this link in order to check out the full specification, take advantage of the discount and grab the coupon code before it expires.

Get 17% Off On ZTE Nubia Z17 Lite Smartphone On Banggood

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Nokia 7 Plus Durability Test Reveals Strength of its Chassis

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

-

Jun 6, 2018

HMD Global had introduced the Nokia 7 Plus Android One smartphone at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2018 tech expo in February this year. It is a higher edition of the Nokia 7 smartphone that was launched in China last year. The handset that sports a full screen design features a 6000-series aluminum frame and a rear is made out of smooth plastic with ceramic feel. JerryRigEverything has carried out scratch, burn and bend tests on the Nokia 7 Plus to check its durability.

The 5.99-inch FHD+ IPS LCD display of the phone is shielded by the older Gorilla Glass 3 layer. The screen of the smartphone developed faint scratches on level 6 of Mohs scale of hardness and prominent marks were noticed at level 7. The Gorilla Glass 3 has turned out to be as strong as the newer Gorilla Glass 5. The 16-megapixel front-facing camera is protected as it placed under Gorilla Glass 3. There is no metal grill protection for the earpiece.

Scratching harder on the copper-colored metallic frame revealed the original silver coloring of the frame. This suggests that the metallic frame may lose its copper coloring if it develops a scratch through fall. The buttons and SIM tray of the phone are made out of the metal. The dual rear cameras are placed under the strong glass. The LED flash is covered with plastic.

The fingerprint scanner that is placed under the dual camera setup can be scratched through items like keys. However, it seems to function normally even after getting scratched. The rear panel of the Nokia 7 Plus has 6 layers of ceramic feel paint. The rear shell easily developed scratches when it was treated with a razor blade which is level 5 on Mohs scale of hardness.

When flame was applied to a certain area on the IPS LCD display of the phone for 10 seconds, the affected portion stopped working for some time and it took few more seconds to recover completely. The build of the phone is strong that it does not seem to flex a bit from the front or rear in the bend test.

Preorder Xiaomi Mi band 3 Smart Wristband For Only $45.99 On Banggood; Discount Coupon Inside!

By

Vinay Patel

-

Jun 6, 2018

After floating around the rumor mill for quite a long time, the Xiaomi Mi Band 3 was finally made available to the public last month. As expected, the long-awaited Mi Band 2 predecessor propelled straight to popularity among tech buffs after hitting the store shelves.

Looks like Xiaomi fans that have restlessly been waiting to get their hands on the Mi Band 3 smart wristband without breaking the bank are in for a treat. While the device is currently up for preorder on Banggood bearing a price tag of $49.99, we’ll show how you can save $4 at the time of checking out.
All you have to do is apply coupon code ‘mi3band’ while checking out in order to bring your grand total down to just $45.99. At this slashed price, the Mi Band 3 is quite a bargain, given that it sports a bigger 0.78 inch OLED touchscreen that fits the width of the wrist perfectly. Moreover, it boasts a screen resolution of 128 x 80 pixels.

Unlike a slew of other feature-laden smartwatches, the Mi Band 3 comes with the 5ATM water resistant rating. The device is capable of enduring pressures equal to a depth of 50 meters, allowing it to hold out against rain, splash, showering, surface, swimming and even accidental submersion.

Apart from that, the Mi Band 3 boasts an array of other awe-inspiring features including a heart rate monitor, notification display, ability to answer or reject phone calls, pedometer, sleep monitoring, sedentary reminder, long standby time and lots more.

You can head straight to this link in order to check out the full specification and use the coupon code. It’s worth noting that the aforesaid discount coupon is likely to expire soon.

Save $4 On The Xiaomi Mi band 3 Smart Wristband On Banggood

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ZTE Signs Preliminary Agreement With Commerce Department To Lift U.S. Ban: Report

By

Jeet

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Jun 6, 2018

China-based ZTE has reportedly signed an agreement in principle that would lift a U.S. Commerce Department ban on the company which barred it from buying from U.S. suppliers. The move will allow the company to get back into the business. However, a Commerce Department spokesman said that “no definitive agreement has been signed by both parties.”

The preliminary deal includes a $1 billion fine against ZTE along with $400 million in escrow to cover any future violations, said sources aware of the development. Further, the sources added that the Commerce Department plans to amend its 2017 settlement agreement and count the $361 million ZTE paid as a part of that. This will allow the United States to claim a total penalty of as much as $1.7 billion.

As part of the deal, ZTE has also reportedly promised to replace its board and executive team in 30 days. It would also allow unfettered site visits to verify that U.S. components are being used as claimed by the company and post calculations of U.S. parts in its products on a public website.

Under this new agreement, ZTE will retain compliance contractor in addition to the three-year court-appointed monitor imposed by the plea agreement. The sources said that ZTE has also agreed to allow U.S. representatives to make site visits without coordinating with Chinese government officials, as required by a non-public agreement between the countries.

Last month, ZTE Corp had submitted an application to the U.S. Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) seeking for the suspension of a business ban. While it was not clear what the company included in the application, the company had provided additional material at the BIS’s request.

Over the weekend, ZTE signed the agreement in principle drawn up by the United States, but the amended settlement agreement has not yet been signed. Earlier this year, in April, the company announced that it has ceased its major business operations as the seven-year ban was imposed on the company.

The ban was imposed on ZTE after the company failed to comply with an agreement with the Commerce Department in 2017 when it pleaded guilty in federal court in Texas to conspiring to evade U.S. embargoes by illegally shipping U.S. goods and technology to Iran.

Senior Commerce Department officials have said that ZTE had agreed to dismiss four senior employees and discipline 35 others either by reducing their bonuses or reprimanding them. However, the company admitted that while it had fired the four senior employees, it had made false statements about the others.

(Source)

Check Out GearBest Summer DIY Video Contest; Get A Chance To Win $1000 Coupon Code And Lots More!

By

Vinay Patel

-

Jun 6, 2018

The Summer DIY Video Contest kicked off on GearBest on Monday, June 4th. In order to participate in the contest, all you have to do is upload your DIY video to YouTube and get as many likes as you can.

The three videos with the most likes will be named winners. The 1st price is $1000 discount coupon, the 2nd price is a Geeetech A30 3D printer, and the 3rd price is Geeetech E180 mini 3D printer.

50% Off Deals

GearBest is giving 50% off on 4 pieces of double side screw extractor, and 295mm flexible shaft screwdriver bit. There were only 89 pieces of the double side screw extractor left, and 195 pieces of the flexible shaft screwdriver bit left for the Flash Sale price at the time of writing.

Flash Sale

This category is brimming with all sorts of tools that come in handy in day to day life. More importantly, the items featured in this section are currently up for grabs at a considerably lowered price.

For example, the Raspberry Pi 3 Model B + Bluetooth 4.2 Development Board would normally set you back $71.55 on GearBest, but the site is currently allowing buyers to get their hands on it at a slashed price of only $49.99.
This is a noteworthy 30% off on the tool’s original asking price. Note that the aforesaid Flash Sale price will only be valid for the remaining 83 clover green-tinted pieces.

Hand Tools

This category is further divided into Screwdriver, Other Tools, Wrenches, and Lock Picks subcategories in a bid to simplify the search process. Each section comprises a broad range of tools that you can buy at the discounted price.

Among a slew of other tools, you can find the Xiaomi Wiha 24 in 1 precision screwdriver kit, which normally sells for $39.79 in the Screwdriver category. GearBest is offering a noteworthy 52% off on the tool’s original asking price.

As a result, the Xiaomi Wiha screwdriver kit can now be yours if you’re willing to shell out just $18.99 on GearBest. On the downside, the Flash Sale price will only be valid for the remaining 32 pieces and the promo is slated to end in just 7 days.

Measurement & Analysis

The tools featured in this section have further been split into multiple categories including Laser Rangefinder, Microscopes & Endoscope, Testors & Detectors, and Multimeters. The items included in the above-mentioned categories come bearing slashed price.

Likewise, GearBest is offering big discounts on select tools featured in its next category dubbed, Arduino & SCM Supplies. In the section, the Chinese online store is doling out a considerable 11% off on the Raspberry Pi Zero W with Case.
The tool usually sells for $25.72 but thanks to the discount, you can now purchase it by shelling out only $22.99. Regrettably, there were only 97 pieces left for the Flash Sale price.

Apart from that, there are other categories including Power Tools, Recommendations, and 3D Printing that are brimming with all sorts of other valuable tools that you can buy without emptying your pocket. You can check out rest of the products and take advantage of the promo before it comes to an end simply by following this link.

It is also imperative for you to bear in mind that the GearBest Summer DIY Video Contest will come to an end on August 20. The site will announce the contest winners on Aug 21, 2018.

Grab The Opportunity To Win A $1000 Discount Coupon On GearBest

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Vivo NEX Specs Leak Reveal Massive 6.59-inch Screen, Pop-Up Camera, 6 GB RAM and More

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

-

Jun 6, 2018

Rumors have it that the Vivo NEX smartphone that is launching on June 12 may arrive in three models such as Vivo NEX, NEX S and NEX A. It is speculated that the Vivo NEX S is lower variant that features the Snapdragon 710. The highest configuration edition of the phone is expected to be fueled by Snapdragon 845 chipset. A Chinese tipster has shared some images of the promotional materials of the Vivo NEX phone to reveal its key features.

When Vivo had unleashed the APEX concept phone earlier this year, it was revealed that the smartphone is equipped with a 5.99-inch OLED display. However, recent reports have revealed that the company has decided to launch the same phone as Vivo NEX commercially. Since the Vivo APEX has a 5.99-inch OLED screen, the Vivo NEX phone was also speculated to come with the same-sized display. However, the photos of the advertising material that have surfaced today has revealed that the Vivo NEX has a massive screen of 6.59 inches.

Like the Vivo APEX, the Vivo NEX phone is blessed with a pop-up selfie camera. The other features of the smartphone include 6 GB of RAM, 128 GB of storage and 4,000mAh battery.

Even though it is not mentioned in the above image, the Vivo NEX is likely to be fueled by the Snapdragon 845 chipset. There is no information available on whether there will be a higher variant of the Vivo NEX phone featuring SD845, 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of inbuilt storage.

The other image that has surfaced in this leak reveals the design of the phone. It shows that the smartphone’s front is mainly occupied by the display. It is likely to offer a screen-to-body ratio of around 91 percent. Also, it is expected to feature half-screen fingerprint scanner. Apart from the pop-up selfie snapper, the image also showcases its vertical dual camera setup.

Vivo has already confirmed that it will be debuting the Vivo NEX smartphone on June 12. Rumors have it that the smartphone could be priced expensively. The Snapdragon 710 chipset edition of the phone may cost nearly $800 whereas the Snapdragon 845 SoC variant may be priced around $1,000.

(source)