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Buy Vkworld S8 Smartphone For Just $159.99 On Banggood

The Vkworld S8 smartphone propelled straight to popularity among smartphone users after hitting the store shelves in October, last year. It is an ideal phone for tech buffs who want to buy a power-packed mobile device without spending a fortune.

The S8 normally sells for $229.99 on Banggood. But much to the delight of cost-conscious smartphone lovers, the site is currently offering a considerable discount on the device’s original asking price.

You can now buy the well-received Vkworld S8 smartphone by shelling out just $159.99 on Banggood. This is a noteworthy 30% reduction in the handset’s quoted price.

Despite carrying a slashed price tag, the S8 boasts an array of awe-inspiring specs and features. Here’s a brief glimpse of what the Vkworld-branded smartphone has to offer.

The S8 packs a powerful MediaTek MT6750T, 64-bit processor along with an equally robust ARM Mali-T860 MP2, 650MHz, 2-Cores GPU, under the hood. It offers 4GB of RAM and 64GB of expandable internal memory (up to 128GB using SIM 2 slot).

On the photography front, the S8 sports a 16-megapixels + 5-megapixels dual camera setup at the back and a 13-megapixel front shooter for selfies. It features a big 5.99 inches IPS, FHD+ display with a screen resolution of 2160 x 1080 pixels.

Moreover, the phone runs on Android 7.0 Nougat operating system and it is backed by a 5,500 mAh Lithium-ion Polymer battery. This massive battery is non-removable.

In order to check out the full specification and take advantage of the promo, which is slated to end on March 31, simply click here. The discount will be valid for the remaining 69 pieces of the blue and black color versions of the smartphone.

Apple’s Low-Cost iPad For Students To Start Shipping On April 2

Apple has officially announced a new model of iPad aimed at schools. Unlike most of the other tablets by Apple, this is a low-cost device. It will be launched in the U.S. with a price tag of just $329, that is hundreds of dollars lower than most of the other iPads. Further, schools will have the chance to order this tablet for just $299 a unit. Even though it is an entry-level tablet compared to other Apple devices actually in commerce, it supports the Apple Pencil for handwriting and drawing.

ipad

It also supports Logitech Crayon, a new third-party pen which is not pressure-sensitive like the Apple Pencil, but it will be sold with a more affordable price tag. The Apple Pencil will continue to have a price of $99, but it will cost $10 less for schools. The new Apple iPad for students comes with a suite of apps dedicated to school: Pages, Numbers, Keynote and more. All of these apps support the input from the Apple Pencil.

The shipping date of the tablet has been confirmed just one day after the official announcement. Apple Store will start shipping the tablet in the U.S. starting from April 2, as well as AT&T. BestBuy is actually giving a $25 gift card to the ones who choose to buy the new iPad. On the Apple Store, the tablet is also available bundled with a Logitech Slim Folio Case with keyboard and an Apple Pencil for a total price of $500.

ipad

The specs sheet of the new iOS tablet includes a 9.7-inch Retina display with a resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels. The display has an anti-reflective coating, the TrueTone technology which adapts colors to the surroundings, ProMotion which enables the 120 Hz response rate and wide-gamut color. Under the hood, there is a quad-core Apple A10 Fusion chipset which can run at a max frequency of 2.3 GHz. In case you do not know, it is the same SoC as the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, that is great for a $329 tablet. The main camera of the new Apple iPad has a resolution of 8 MP and it can record videos in 1080p. There is also a 5 MP front snapper. The new Apple iPad will start shipping from April 2 in the following variants:

  • Wi-Fi 32 GB ($329)
  • Wi-Fi + cellular 32 GB ($459)
  • Wi-Fi 128 GB ($429)
  • Wi-Fi + cellular 128 GB ($559)

(Via)

OnePlus 6 Appears in First Official Image

OPPO and Vivo that belong to BBK Electronics have recently launched OPPO R15, R15 Dream Mirror, OPPO F7, Vivo X21 and Vivo V9 smartphones with notched display design. Hence, the rumor mill has been speculating that the OnePlus brand that belongs to BBK Electronics will be also arriving with a notched display. An image of the OnePlus 6 that has been released by none other than Carl Pei, the co-founder of OnePlus confirms that it will be arriving with a notched screen.

The Sharp Aquos S2 and the Essential Phone were the first smartphones to arrive with notched display. Compared to these phones, the iPhone X that had 10th anniversary smartphone from Apple features a larger notch that houses the complex TrueDepth Camera system for Face ID.

According to Pei, the presence of a notch on the OnePlus 6 will provide its users with more screen space. Compared to all the predecessor OnePlus phones, the OnePlus 6 will be offering the highest screen-to-body ratio of 90 percent. Also, it won’t be resembling the OPPO R15 series as some rumors have been claiming.

OnePlus 6

Pei claims that the notch on the OP6 will be packed with a selfie camera, an earpiece, notification LED, proximity and ambient sensors. The notch will be smaller than iPhone X since it won’t be housing structured light like the Face ID. He has revealed that the OnePlus 6’s notch measures 19.616 x 7.687mm.

He added that the company has manually tested 1,000 apps from Google Play store to check how the notch appears on different apps. OnePlus is shifting the position of the clock towards the left side of the display to provide more space for status icons. The device will be disguising the notch while playing a video on the phone to deliver notch-free viewing experience. Also, the handset will be also supporting gesture-based inputs.

An image of the OnePlus 6 that was recently leaked by Evan Blass had revealed that the handset would be arriving with a 3.5mm audio jack, USB-C port and an external speaker grille. The back panel of the phone would be featuring a vertically stacked dual camera setup and a fingerprint reader.

OnePlus 6 Woodgrain Back Leak

Read More: OnePlus Teases Cryptocurrency, Could Be An Early April Fool’s Joke

The recently spotted Geekbench listing of the smartphone had revealed that the OnePlus 6 would be arriving with Snapdragon 845 chipset and 6 GB of RAM. This could be the base model with 64 GB of storage. The higher variant may feature 8 GB of RAM. A recent leak had revealed that the highest configuration model of OP6 may feature 256 GB of storage. It may house a 3,450mAh battery. As far as the launch is concerned, Pei had earlier revealed that it would be unveiled in late Q2.

(source)

Get 16% Off On OnePlus 5T Smartphone On Banggood; Preorder OnePlus 5T Star Wars Edition For Only $589.99 [Coupon Code]

The OnePlus 5T smartphone was launched in November, last year. Despite bearing a relatively steep price tag, the long-awaited phone was very well-received by smartphone lovers.

On the downside, the OnePlus 5T failed to sweep cost-conscious buyers off their feet. If you’ve restlessly been waiting to get your hands on the 5T smartphone without emptying your pockets, we have good news for you.Banggood is currently offering a considerable discount on the OnePlus 5T smartphone’s original asking price. The phone normally sells for $579.99 on the site; however, you can now get a 16% discount and bring your grand total down to just $489.99.

Although the discount will be valid until April 2, there were only 31 pieces remaining at the time of writing. You can visit this link to take advantage of the promo before it comes to an end.

Alternatively, you can preorder OnePlus 5T Star Wars version and save a considerable amount of money. While you’d ideally shell out $699.99 to get your hands on the Star Wars version of the 5T smartphone on Banggood, the site is allowing buyers to preorder the phone for just $664.99.


But if that not a good enough reason for you to buy it, you can use coupon code ‘5TSWPUSH’ at the time of checking out and save an additional $75. In other words, you can bring your grand total down to just $589.99 simply by applying the aforesaid coupon code.

It’s worth noting that the phone is likely to retain its original selling price once the promo comes to an end. You can head straight to this link in order to take advantage of the promo and use the coupon code before it expires.

Huawei Enjoy 8, 8 Plus & 8E Launching on March 29, Official Poster Out

Huawei continues to strive undeterred despite the disappointing result it suffered in its bid to make an inroad into the U.S market. Instead, the Chinese giant is still on coasting on with full steam, dishing out smartphones week in week out, from budget models to flagships.  From the look of things, Huawei isn’t stopping anytime soon. A launch poster has been revealed showing that the Huawei Enjoy 8 series models would be unveiled on March 29 at 14:00 UTC+8.Huawei Enjoy 8

Huawei Enjoy series is known for competitively priced models with capable hardware. The last we saw from the series was the Enjoy 7S which was launched in December 2017. Before then, there was the Enjoy 7 which was launched around the middle of last year.

Read More: Alleged Huawei Enjoy 8 And Two Other Phones Revealed By TENAA

The expected Huawei Enjoy 8 series is comprised of the Enjoy 8, Enjoy 8 Plus and Enjoy 8E. Going by the poster, the trio will all be unveiled at the launch event which is just a matter of hours away. The models have at various times made appearances at TENAA for certification. All the models are expected to feature a 5.7-inch display with an HD+ resolution of 720 x 1440 pixels and an 18:9 aspect ratio. All the models are also expected to feature an Octa-core SoC clocked at 1.4GHz under their hood. Their differences may likely lie in the storage and RAM sizes available and perhaps camera configuration.

(source)Huawei Enjoy 8

Xiaomi Mi Smart Rearview Mirror With Sony IMX291 Cam, AI Support Launched

Xiaomi has launched a cool smart gadget under its ecological chain companies. The product is the Mi Smart RearView Mirror similar to the 70 Minutes Smart RearView mirror which was announced last year. This model carries Xiaomi’s branding and apart from that, it comes with some improvement in its feature and a more compact size. Despite the improvements, Xiaomi still retained the 999 yuan ($158) price tag the first-gen model was launched with.Xiaomi Mi Smart RearView Mirror

Design wise, the Mi Smart RearView Mirror is compact, packing a 6.86-inch touchscreen display with a resolution of 1280×480 pixels. This is smaller than the 8.88-inch display the first edition features. It still comes in black color only. There is also an improvement in the cooling system. An aerospace aluminium material is processed into the unique thermal wings to greatly increase the cooling efficiency.

In terms of the camera, the Mi RearView mirror packs a Sony IMX291 image sensor that is capable of capturing anything even in low light condition. This sensor uses 6 sets of full-glass spherical lenses with each of them having 9 layers of coating. It comes with a large aperture of f/1.8 and 150 ° large wide angle.

In addition, the device comes pre-installed with Advanced driver assistance systems, or ADAS which supports FCW (Forward Collision Warning), PVS (Preceding Vehicle Starting), and LDW (Lane Departure Warning). It will save the video before and after the collision. We can even watch the videos in the rearview mirror as well via a mobile APP in real time. The gadget also comes with an emergency wake-up system.Xiaomi Mi Smart RearView Mirror

The Mi Smart RearView Mirror also supports front and rear double recording and reversing camera functions, which can clearly and comprehensively observe the road conditions behind the car and give the driving process more safety protection. The rearview mirror is also integrated with the new Small Love AI speaker and so supports voice command. Besides simple operations such as increasing or decreasing the volume or capturing videos and photos, you can give ‘smart’ commands such as ‘I would like to go to the nearest airport’ or ‘play the latest song of Maroon 5’. By the way, this mirror has a huge amount of media resources including radio stations and music.  The smart rearview mirror can also connect to the Mi Home app such that users can control their connected home appliances directly from your car.

Read Also: A List of Our Favorite Xiaomi Smart Products

 

 

The Mi RearView Mirror will go on sale on April 3 via Jingdong, Mi Home, Suning, Lynx, Xiaomi Mall etc. simultaneously.

OnePlus Teases Cryptocurrency, Could Be An Early April Fool’s Joke

Cryptocurrency is the new fad this year and we are seeing big corporations jump on the train. The latest is Chinese smartphone manufacturer, OnePlus.

Earlier today, OnePlus released a 30-second video in which they mentioned they want to “reimagine” the currency. A few seconds into the video, there is a text that says “Blockchain Meets Never Settle”.

At the end, we also see a spinning gold coin with a OnePlus logo on one side and the face of OnePlus co-founder, Carl Pei, on the other. There is also a parody of the United States motto “E pluribus unum” but written as “E PLURIBUS PEI-UM”. These hints point towards cryptocurrency.

OnePlus Cryptocurrency

So the big question is if OnePlus is truly launching its own  cryptocurrency? Probably not. Some responses to the video say this is probably a teaser for OnePlus’ April Fool’s joke and they may be correct. However, even if this is a joke, we may get to see OnePlus cryptocoins (1coin sounds better) in flesh.

 

READ MORE: Huawei Planning To Build Blockchain Phone, Xiaomi Developing Cryptopets

Google Blocks Its Services On Uncertified Devices

Google’s Android OS is available on billions of devices all over the world. Those devices are made by a plethora of manufacturers and some of these devices aren’t certified by Google. The tech giant wants that to change and has taken a big decision to fix that.

Last week, Android Police discovered that Google was locking users out of Google apps on devices that are not certified. Affected users are said receive a “Device not certified by Google” error message.

Google Error Message

An official statement by Google (below) confirms the development:

“Certified Android devices offer users consistent experiences when using apps from Google and the Play Store, as well as various security benefits through Google Play Protect. We acknowledge that some manufacturers are building and selling devices that have not been certified by Google. Please see the website for more details.”

The website says certified devices go through hundreds of tests to ensure they “adhere to Android security and permissions model and have software builds with the recent security updates”.

Google adds that certified devices are required to ship without pre-installed malware and also include Google Play Protect which provides automatic virus scanning and Find My Device. New certified devices will also include the Play Protect logo.

Google Play Protect

For those with devices that are not Google certified, Google recommends you get in touch with the manufacturer or retailer for a fully tested and certified device.

However, there is actually a way for you to still use Google apps even after you have been blocked. Google provides an option for devices running custom ROMs but it requires your Google Services Framework ID. Google can’t actually tell if your device is truly running a custom ROM or not. So, if you get the error message, there is a link to a site where you can get exempted from the block.

The site requires you to sign in with your Google account details and then asks for your GSF ID. Getting the GSF ID is tricky but there are apps that you can use to extract the info. APKMirror has an app called DeviceID which can help you get the info, however, you must have Google Play Services installed to get the ID. Google will only allows 100 devices per user and it is reported that a factory reset may change your ID. So, anytime you do a factory rest, it counts against the 100 devices available.

READ MORE: Google Rebrands Android Wear As Wear OS

Huawei P20 Pro Hands on Review – A Very Impressive Smartphone with 3 Cameras!

Huawei just launched the new P20 series flagships and I’m mostly interested in the P20 Pro, which alongside the P20, are successors to the P10 series that was launched last year in Barcelona. Learn more in our Huawei P20 Pro hands-on review.

VIDEO

[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FYzUAWBp9c[/embedyt]

In fact, this is a completely new phone with all new design, new powerful cameras, improved AI neural processing unit and much more.

I’m not going to talk about the notch design in Android phones and P20’s similarities to the iPhone X. I will leave that for you, so make sure to use that comment section.

In case you don’t like the notch, you can always hide it. Thanks, Huawei, for giving us options. I will keep the notch as I got used to this design element very quickly.

First of all, let’s get the specs out of the way. Both P20 and the Pro will ship with the AI-powered Kirin 970 chipset but the Pro model will have more storage (6GB of RAM and 128GB ROM). Sadly, there is no microSD slot for storage expansion but both phones have dual SIM card slots.

In the hand, the P20 Pro feels very premium and expensive and it all starts with a large OLED full-view display, that I found to be really sharp and bright. The P20 will have a slightly smaller 5.8” LCD panel with the same resolution.

The P20 is said to be the world’s first to use gradient color and it looks beautiful, especially the color that I have. If you add a shiny metal trim and quality metal buttons, you are looking at a truly premium device.

I was also impressed by the fact that Huawei managed to cram in a huge battery into such a thin profile of the P20. The P20 has a 3400mAh power bank and the P20 Pro has a 4000mAh unit.

Other things you need to know about the design: there is no headset jack, the P20 Pro is IP67-certified for water and dust resistance whereas the P20 has a lower IP53 certification. Finally, the P20 has hi-fi wireless audio system that assures great sound quality via the Bluetooth.

The P20 phones are all about the new powerful cameras. The P20 Pro is more interesting since it has 3 cameras that have combined 68MP. Well, there is a 4th selfie camera with impressive 24MP.

The first is a powerful 40MP RGB camera that is accompanied by the 8MP telephoto lens. The third is the monochrome sensor that also has plenty of megapixels to play with (20MP). Huawei also added a laser receiver to achieve fast auto-focusing speeds and a flash with the color temperature sensor that is used for white balance adjustment.

Here is more information about the cameras: the P20 Pro uses a 223% larger sensor than the competition, it has 5x hybrid zoom, 4 in 1 hybrid focus system, 4D predictive focus, it can achieve ISO levels up to 51200 and it can record 960fps slow-motion at 720p. Finally, the AI-powered Kirin processor makes the best out of this powerful hardware configuration. In other words, AI helps apply the best camera settings to take a nice-looking picture automatically in any light. Well, all of that sound really impressive on paper.

During my brief time with the device, I took quite a few pictures in low-light and first impressions about the image quality are pretty good thanks to no small part to AIS or AI image stabilization. In fact, Huawei claims that their image stabilization is so powerful, so you won’t need a tripod even in extremely low light situations. We’ll see if that’s true in the full review. I was also impressed with the 5x hybrid zoom as the image remained sharp and clear zoomed in. You can zoom in a lot as the object shown in the video was really far away.  The camera app is really fast and responsive, and you can switch between different camera modes easily.  There is also a pro and other modes that I will test in detail very soon.

USER INTERFACE

The EMUI 8.1 is based on Android 8.1, which is said to be a more capable platform for the AI.

As usual, there are plenty of features and customization options Huawei phones have been famous for. My first impressions – the phone is really fast and smooth thanks to a powerful chipset and neural processing unit that helps allocate resources to the specific task. Obviously, it will be interesting to see how the phone performs after installing plenty of apps. I also found the fingerprint scanner to be really fast but I was most impressed with the face unlock feature.

I used it in low light but it still unlocked the phone very fast but keep in mind that you still need to press the power button first in order to use the face unlock feature.  The Huawei P20 will cost about 650 EUR and the P20 will cost about 900 EUR in Europe. 

My first impressions of the P20 Pro are very positive as the phone looks and feels premium, the display is really nice, I’m okay with the notch design, the cameras produce good-looking images even in low-light and the phone is really fast despite many features and customization options in the UI. If you want to learn more about the Huawei P20 Pro, make sure to stay tuned for the full review which is coming out soon.

P20 Pro in pictures:

 

Xiaomi AI Mini Speaker Hands On: A Compact Little Smart Gadget For Your Home

Smart speaker is the future of technology. The Simpsons predicted the arrival of such a device in people’s houses a long time ago. These special speakers can do several smart things: from setting alarms to playing music and interacting with smart home products. As one of the most important hi-tech giants in China, Xiaomi has announced two smart speakers, one of which has been unveiled yesterday: the Xiaomi Mi AI Mini Speaker.

xiaomi mi ai speakers (7)

In this article, you can see the first hands-on photos which are showing the gadget in all its splendor. The speaker comes with a shape which is reminiscent of the Mijia Rice Cooker, and the photos are showing it in its White hue. The dimensions of Xiaomi Mi AI Mini Speaker are 90 x 90 x 50 mm (it is a lot smaller than the Rice Cooker) and its weight is 210g.

xiaomi mi ai speakers (5)

On the top of the device, there are volume controls, a “Play and Stop” key and a microphone key. Around the controls, there are four microphones, while in the middle there is a LED which will indicate the status of the gadget. You can learn everything about Xiaomi Mi AI Mini Speaker through our article about its official announcement.

 

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Xiaomi Mi Gaming Laptop Hands On: High-End Mobile Gaming Doesn’t Have To Be Overly Expensive!

Xiaomi has just announced its first notebook gaming laptop. A monster which will be able to run every game thanks to its powerful Nvidia GTX 1060/1050 Ti GPU (depending on the configuration), and it will be sold at a very interesting price. We just got our hands on the first live photos of the new notebook thanks to which we can see its design in detail. Given that it is a gaming notebook, Xiaomi Mi Gaming Laptop is not as attractive as the other Mi Notebooks in terms of design. But it is very far from being the ugliest gaming laptop.

mi gaming laptop hands on (1)

Unlike many other gaming laptops, its look is sober and suitable even for an office. Xiaomi Mi Gaming Laptop has a thickness of 20.9 mm and a weight of 2.7 Kg. On the right side, the machine sports a single USB port and an SD card reader, while on the left side there are two USB ports, an audio jack, and a microphone jack. This laptop sports two stereo speakers, they have a power of 3W and they support Dolby Atmos and Hi-Res audio technologies. On the rear side, under the monitor, there is an Ethernet port, an additional USB port, an HDMI port, a USB-C port and the AC port.

mi gaming laptop hands on (6)

The keyboard boasts an RGB illumination and 5 programmable keys on its left side. Xiaomi Mi Gaming Laptop has a very wide touchpad which will allow playing a lot of games comfortably. The monitor comes with well-optimized bezels, a size of 15.6 inches, an anti-glare coating and a Full HD resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels. For all the info about its specs, you can head to the official launch article. The laptop will be available to purchase in China starting from 5999 Yuan which roughly translates into $956. Click here to visit the official product page.

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Apple’s New 9.7-inch iPad Fueled by A10 Fusion SoC Supports Apple Pencil

Apple has introduced a new 9.7-inch iPad as a successor for last year’s model. The new tablet that is priced at $329 is powered by Apple A10 Fusion chipset and it carries support for Apple Pencil.

New 9.7-inch iPad Specifications and Features

The 9.7-inch iPad supports super-high resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels. Since it is an entry-level tablet, it does not offer features like True Tone display, wide-gamut color, ProMotion (120 Hz response rate) and so on that are found on high-end iPad Pro tablets. However, the screen offers enough real estate for browsing the web, watching movies, playing games and reading.

The 9.7-inch iPad that was released last year was powered by Apple A9 chipset. However, the successor model is driven by Apple A10 Fusion that features a quad-core processor that clocks at 2.2 GHz. It is the very same chipset that fuels the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus smartphones. The new chipset supports better graphics and users can also run AR apps on it. The SoC is coupled with 2 GB of RAM.

New 9.7-inch iPad

The new tablet from Apple features an 8-megapixel rear-mounted camera with f/2.4 aperture. There is no flash for it, but it is capable at recording full HD videos. The front panel of the device is fitted with a 1.2-megapixel FaceTime HD camera. The front camera can be used as Retina Flash to light up the display while shooting from the front.

The iPad Pro models come in 64 GB, 256 GB and 512 GB storage models, but the iPad models come in 32 GB and 128 GB storage variants. Each of the storage model is available in Wi-Fi only and Wi-Fi + LTE models.

New 9.7-inch iPad

As mentioned above, it is the first iPad model to support Apple Pencil. The new iPad official supports Logitech Crayon pen that carries a pricing of $49. Its pressure sensitivity is nowhere close to Apple Pencil, but it offers the same kinds of features. One should be aware of the fact that the Logitech Crayon will be only available in schools.

Logitech Crayon

For schools, it includes the latest version of iWork productivity apps. It features tools designed for schools. It also brings along 200 GB of free iCloud storage compared to 5 GB storage for regular customers.

The new iPad measures 240 x 169.5 x 7.5mm and it weighs 470grams. Its body is made out of metal. Its other features include GPS, compass, gyroscope and accelerometer.

New 9.7-inch iPad

Read More: Apple iPhone SE 2 Might Launch As An India-Exclusive Says New Rumor

9.7-inch iPad Price and Release Date

The Wi-Fi only 9.7-inch iPad with 32 GB of storage is priced at $329. Its Wi-Fi + LTE model is priced at $459. The Wi-Fi only 128 GB 9.7-inch iPad costs $4429 and its Wi-Fi + LTE variant has a price tag of $559. Each of these models are available with $30 discount for schools. Also, the Apple Pencil that usually sells for $99 will be available at a reduced price of $89 for students.

The new 9.7-inch iPad is available for pre-orders starting from today. A week later it will be coming to markets like Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UAE, the UK and the US.

India, Russia, Thailand and Turkey and some others belong to the second batch of markets that will be receiving the new 9.7-inch iPad in the next month. At the beginning of May, it will be available in South Korea and rest of the world.

 

Huawei’s FreeBuds is An Airpod Knock-off With Bigger Battery But Isn’t Costlier

Okay, Huawei took the lid off the much-anticipated Huawei P20/ P20 Pro and along with them came the Huawei FreedBuds among other accessories. The FreeBuds is a pair of wireless earbuds that looks very much like Apple’s AirPods but in this case, they come in White and Black colours.

Huawei FreeBuds vs Apple AirPods
Huawei FreeBuds

The Huawei FreeBuds comes with an in-ear design which Huawei says offer better noise isolation than Apple’s AirPods. They also offer 10 hours of playback when fully charged and this is twice the 5 hours play time offered by the AirPods on a single charge. The FreeBuds also comes with a carry case that offers extra charges. The device was announced along with the Huawei Active Noise Canceling Earphones and a new DAC Headphone Amplifier which uses an “audiophile-grade” digital-to-analog converter to get the best audio out of your smartphone.

Huawei FreeBuds vs Apple AirPods
Huawei FreeBuds vs Apple AirPods

Read More: Air By Crazybaby Looks Better Than Apple’s Airpods, Comes With A Charging Capsule

Huawei’s FreeBuds comes with a price tag of €159 (~$196) which is slightly higher than the $160 price tag which the AirPods clutched when it was launched in 2016. But then, getting twice the battery power is worth the extra bucks.Huawei FreeBuds

Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Camera Samples: Great For Bokeh Selfies, But Low Light Photos Needs Work

After announcing Redmi Note 5 and Note 5 Pro models in India a month ago, Xiaomi released the Pro (that was initially launched in India) variant in China under the Redmi Note 5 branding. It’s a bit confusing and that’s not only because the company is using the same name for different models in different regions, but also because their specs vary, but only slightly. To keep things short, the Note 5 in China is more powerful in the rear camera department, and today, we check out a few of the Redmi Note 5 samples to see if it does well in the photography department.

Before we move on to the rear camera, let’s check out some front camera samples.

 

Up front, the Chinese Redmi Note 5 comes with a 13MP setup instead of a 20MP setup as found on the Pro variant in India. Lower resolution doesn’t necessary mean lower performance, and the front camera on the Redmi Note 5 does pretty well, especially if are fond of background blur. Note that there is just a single camera up front with LED flash and Xiaomi uses software to get the depth information for bokeh photos. To be honest, the software does pretty well to detect your face and blur out the background effectively. So, if you are into this kind of selfies, you won’t be disappointed. Overall, the quality of the front camera is pretty good in the budget segment.

Coming to the rear camera setup, there’s a dual 12 MP (f/1.9, 1.4 μm) + 5 MP (f/2.0, 1.12 μm) setup with dual-pixel phase detection autofocus. It’s better than the f/2.2, 1.25 μm setup found on the Indian model, and should ideally capture better photos too. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the Indian Redmi Note 5 Pro model with us to compare, but overall, the Chinese model does pretty well, especially in day light photography.

Saturation levels are good in the samples. The phone is quick to focus and you’d be happy with the amount of details captured in each image. In some pictures, you can clearly see that the colors pop out really well. For example, in the image of the salad, the veggies look fresh and colourful. Maybe a tad bit more colourful than in reality, but I’m sure users who are into food photography would love the result.

xiaomi redmi note 5 cam sample (8)

This was about daytime photography, but when the lights go down, so does the image quality. Noise kicks in and images are dull, and to be honest, there’s nothing spectacular about the Redmi Note 5’s night time photography. You’d manage to take a few decent shots by adjusting your angle and light, but still it won’t be extraordinary. In its defence, the phone isn’t meant to click photos like a $500 flagship, but we could use a slightly better result in low light conditions.

As for the background blur from the rear camera, it works pretty well. AI has helped Xiaomi improve its edge detection algorithms and on most occasions, you’ll get a good bokeh shot from its rear dual camera setup.

Check out the samples below to see how the Chinese Redmi Note 5 performs in the camera department.

 

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Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20: Chinese Flagships At Its Best!

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S and the Huawei P20 line-up, the best Chinese smartphones of 2018 yet, have been launched on exactly the same day. Both Mi Mix 2S and P20 are two flagship devices which will be available to purchase at moderate prices. So, they will be among the best phones of 2018 if we consider the quality-price ratio. Given that they are actually the best “affordable” flagships of this year, a comparison between Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20 is mandatory to discover which one has the best value for money. So here we go!

xiaomi mi mix 2s vs huawei p20

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S Huawei P20
DIMENSIONS AND WEIGHT 150.9 x 74.9 x 8.1 mm, 191 grams 149.1 x 70.8 x 7.7 mm, 165 grams
DISPLAY 5.99 inches, 1080 x 2160p (Full HD+), 403 ppi, 18:9 ratio, IPS LCD 5.8 inches, 1080 x 2244p (Full HD+), 403 ppi, 18.5:9 ratio, LTPS IPS LCD
PROCESSOR Qualcomm Snapdragon 845, octa-core 2.8 GHz HiSilicon Kirin 970, octa-core 2.4 GHz
MEMORY 6 GB RAM, 64 GB – 6 GB RAM, 128 GB – 8 GB RAM, 256 GB 4 GB RAM, 128 GB – micro SD slot
SOFTWARE Android 8.0 Oreo, MIUI 9.5 Android 8.1 Oreo, EMUI 8.1
CONNECTIVITY Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS
CAMERA Dual 12 + 12 MP f/1.8 + f/2.4
5 MP f/2.0 front camera
Dual 12 + 20 MP f/1.8 + f/1.6
24 MP f/2.0 front camera
BATTERY 3400 mAh
20W Fast charging (Quick Charge 3.0)
3400 mAh
Fast Charging
ADDITIONAL FEATURES Qi wireless charging Hybrid Dual SIM slot

While Huawei has decided to take inspiration from Apple iPhone X by releasing a P20 with a notch, Xiaomi has decided to stick to the old form factor by making a tri-bezel-less phone with the front camera and the main sensors placed on the lower part of the front panel. Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S has a back cover made of ceramic, while Huawei P20 has a glass back. Even though the P20 has a notch, Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S has a higher screen-to-body ratio. But on the other hand, the P20 has a fingerprint reader placed on the front side which will comfortable for many users.

While we can still not tell you anything about the display quality, we can predict that Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S will have better performances thanks to its Snapdragon 845 SoC paired with 6 GB of RAM. There are still no camera samples, but the rear camera setup (we got a dual camera in both cases) is slightly better on the P20, according to DxOMark.

 

 

While Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S has obtained a score of 97 points (101 photos – 88 videos) thanks to its fast and accurate autofocus and its color quality, Huawei P20 is at the second place of DxOMark’s ranking with 102 points.Further, Huawei P20 has a 24 MP front camera, while its opponent sports a classic 5 MP f/2.0 snapper. Both the handsets have a battery with a capacity of 3400 mAh, but only Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S supports the Qi wireless charging technology which can be enabled with a dedicated charging dock.

Huawei P20 will be available to purchase in Europe with a price of €649/$805, while Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S will launch in China with a price of €428/$530. It is hard to choose one of these two devices. If price is your primary deciding factor, the Mix 2S is the definite choice here.

To conclude, Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S looks more promising in terms of performances and battery, while Huawei P20 should have a better camera department and maybe even a better display and more powerful speakers. Both devices are wonderful choices, but we would prefer Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S.

 

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Huawei P20: PRO and CONS

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S

PRO

  • Bigger display
  • Potentially better performance
  • Wireless charging
  • Great price

CONS

  • No micro SD

 

Huawei P20

PRO

  • Amazing camera department
  • Great performances
  • Decent pricing
  • More compact design

CONS

  • Nothing special to say

 

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Alibaba/Ford Car Vending Machine Gives Free Test Drives To People With Good Credit Scores

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba last year signed a partnership with Ford which would see both companies work together on new technological opportunities. Alibaba is well renowned for the innovativeness that has driven it to the top as China’s number one e-commerce giant. Both companies have now unveiled a cat-themed car vending machine in Guangzhou, China. The vending machine lets customers easily test-drive Ford vehicles they’re looking to buy.

Alibaba

Alibaba and Ford signed a deal to form a partnership last year that would see both companies working together on new technological opportunities. Now, the companies have opened a cat-themed car vending machine in Guangzhou, China, that lets customers easily test-drive Ford vehicles they’re looking to buy.Alibaba Ford car vending machine

Read More: Alibaba Acquires $2.9 Billion Stake In China’s Offline Retail Giant, Sun Art

The “Super Test-Drive Center” is without any staff manning it and is fully digitalised. It works with Alibaba’s Tmall app. From the app, users select the car model they are interested in, put down a deposit electronically, schedule a pickup time, and snap a selfie so the vending machine can recognize them when they pick up the car for a test drive. Customers having a very respectable credit score of 700 and above get to test drive the car of their choice free. Not just for a day, but for three days! Those with lower credit rating will have to pay a fee to be able to test drive the cars. The credit rating is based on Alibaba’s affiliate, Ant Financial’s credit ranking known as Zima or Sesame Credit.

(source)

Entry-Level Coolpad 1801-T0 Seen On TENAA

Coolpad has been under the radar for a while following the woes of its former largest stakeholder, LeEco. The smartphone company was also in the news recently over patent issues with Xiaomi but it appears it is back to making phones as a new device has been spotted on TENAA.

The Coolpad 1801-T0 has a 5” 720 x 1080 display. It is powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core processor with 1GB or 2GB of RAM. Depending on the RAM variant, you either get 8GB or 16GB of internal storage. However, a MicroSD slot will let you add an additional 32GB.

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The phone has dual rear cameras – a 5MP and 2MP combo, and another 5MP front facing camera. It runs Android 7.0 Nougat and packs an 1800mAh battery.

The Coolpad 1801-T0 doesn’t score points for design. It is just the regular candy-bar design we are used to. It has thick bezels with the lower one housing capacitive buttons.

READ MORE: Coolpad Smartphones In India To Receive Amazon Alexa Voice Service Support

Xiaomi Mi 7 Plus Likely to Arrive with Under-Display Fingerprint Scanner

Yesterday, Xiaomi had launched the Mi MIX 2S smartphone through a launch event in Shanghai. However, Twitter user @FunkyHuawei had revealed vital information of the smartphone well ahead of its launch through its leaked firmware files to XDA Developers. Today, the same source has found key information on a mysterious upcoming Xiaomi flagship phone through its firmware files. According to the publication, the leaked firmware files may belong to the Xiaomi Mi 7 Plus.

The firmware files of the Xiaomi Mi 7 that had surfaced in the recent past had revealed that it would be arriving with a notched display like the iPhone X. It is rumored to be codenamed as Dipper. The publication claims that @FunkyHuawei has come across two firmware files that respectively belong to devices that are labelled as dipper and dipperold.

After scouring through firmware files of the two phones, it was revealed that only the dipperold features an in-screen fingerprint scanner from suppliers Synaptics and Goodix. The presence of “old” in dipperold label suggests that it could be the scrapped Mi 7 prototype. An XDA member has shared the following mock-up image of the mysterious Xiaomi phone that features a notch and an in-screen fingerprint scanner.

Xiaomi-Mi-7-In-Display-Fingerprint-Sensor-Mockup

The publication claims that there is another smartphone that is codenamed as ursa that is packed with similar features like the dipper phone. It’s a flagship phone that features notch enabled OLED display, Snapdragon 845 chipset, optical zoom and 4,000mAh battery. The ursa phone also features Synaptics and Goodix in-screen fingerprint scanner.

Read More: Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S vs Mi Mix 2: We Go Hands On With The Two Phones Side By Side

Xiaomi is known for using constellation names as codenames for its Mi series phones. Like dipper, ursa too is a constellation name. Hence, there is a possibility that the Xiaomi ursa with in-screen fingerprint scanner could be the Mi 7 Plus that is speculated to debut alongside Mi 7. However, there is no direct evidence to prove that ursa will launch as Mi 7 Plus.

The publication claims that apart from dipper and ursa, there are some other Xiaomi phones that have come across through firmware file leaks. However, information on these upcoming phones will be revealed by XDA later on.

(via)

OPPO A83 Pro With 4GB RAM & 64GB Storage Launched

OPPO has launched a new smartphone in India. The smartphone is dubbed OPPO A83 Pro and as the name implies, it is closely related to the OPPO A83 which was launched in January. The new version is, in fact, an upgrade of the A83 and it has a higher RAM size and more storage space. Apart from the difference in RAM and storage, both models are basically the same.OPPO A83 Pro

Specs wise, the OPPO A83 Pro sports a 5.7-inch HD+ LCD display with a resolution of 1440 x 720 pixels and 18:9 aspect ratio. The smartphone measures 150.50×73.10×7.70mm and weigh 143 grams.  The device is powered by a MediaTek MK6737T processor that has an octa-core CPU and clocked at up to 2.5GHz. The processor pairs with 4GB of RAM as against 3GB on the A83 while there is 64GB storage onboard (32GB storage on the A83). The storage is expandable up to 256GB.

The A83 Pro features a single 13MP rear camera sensor with an LED flash while at the front, there is an 8MP camera for selfies. The device is a dual-SIM phone and it runs Android 7.1 Nougat-based ColorOS 3.2. The smartphone has Wi-Fi, Bluetooth v4.2, GPS/ A-GPS, Micro-USB port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack on the connectivity front and comes with a facial recognition feature to unlock the screen using your face. Sensors on board include an accelerometer, ambient light sensor, and proximity sensor. Under the hood, the device packs a 3180mAh battery. OPPO-A83-Profile-Page

Read More: OPPO A83 is Official: Ditches Fingerprint Scanner for Face Unlock

As for the price, the OPPO A83 Pro comes with an Rs. 15,990 price tag in India, just Rs. 2,000 different from the Rs. 13,990 price of the A83. At this price, the device is well positioned to take on the likes of Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro, Vivo V7 and Samsung On7 Prime. It comes in Black and Rose Gold colours. There is no word yet as to when it would go on sale.

Vivo X21 UD Sales Begin in China with 3,598 Yuan (~$509) Pricing

On March 19, Vivo had launched the high-end Vivo X21 and X21 UD smartphones as successor models for X20 and X20 UD phones from last year. At the unveil event, the company had confirmed that the regular Vivo X21 will be available for buying soon after its launch while the X21 UD featuring an under-display fingerprint scanner will go on sale from March 28 in China Since the day has arrived, the Vivo X21 UD is now available for buying with a price tag of 3,598 Yuan (`$509) in the home market.

Vivo X21 JD

The regular Vivo X21 features a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner. It is available for buying in Aurora White, Drill Black and Ruby Red color options. Its 64 GB storage + 6 GB RAM and 128 GB storage + 6 GB RAM variants are respectively priced at 2,998 Yuan (~$477) and 3,198 Yuan (~$509).

On the other side, the Vivo X21 UD that is available for buying starting from today comes in colors like Drill Black and Ruby Red. It features 128 GB of storage and 6 GB of RAM.

The Vivo X21 and X21 UD are packed with identical specifications. The X21 features a 6.28-inch supports Full HD+ resolution of 2280 x 1080 pixels. Like the iPhone X, it delivers an aspect ratio of 19:9. The Snapdragon 660 chipset is present under the hood of the phone.

Vivo X21 Pricing

Read More: Vivo V9 vs Meizu E3 Specs Comparison: Which One Would You Pick?

The notch of the Vivo X21 houses a 12-megapixel selfie camera with f/2.0 aperture. With IR emitter inside the notch, the X21 also offers 3D mapping of the users’ face for unlocking it through facial recognition. The dual camera setup on the back panel of the phone features an f/1.8 aperture 12-megapixel sensor and an f/2.4 aperture 5-megapixel sensor. It includes a 3,200mAh battery. It runs on FunTouch OS 4.0, a customized version of Android 8.1 Oreo. The other features of the X21 include Jovi AI assistant, AK4376A Hi-Fi audio chip, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.0, microUSB and GPS.

(source|via)