We may have to redefine the meaning of concept seeing as concept phones are now getting officially launched. The latest concept device that will become available for public purchase is none other than the Vivo APEX.
No one had heard of the Vivo APEX until yesterday. The Chinese manufacturer first released a teaser video on Facebook and Weibo before showcasing it at MWC. Now report says the Vivo APEX will launch next week Monday,5th of March.
Vivo has gotten a lot of international coverage this year. First it unveiled the Vivo X20 Plus UD world’s first smartphone with an in-display fingerprint scanner at CES. Now it plans to launch the APEX, a phone with nearly over 90% screen-to-body ratio and an in-display fingerprint scanner with a larger surface area.
Vivo made history when it announced Vivo X20 Plus Under Display version as the first smartphone to have the much talked about under display fingerprint sensor. The technology is yet to get featured on any other smartphone so, the X20 Plus UD version is still the only smartphone to have such innovative technology. The model had recently gone under the screwdrivers of popular Youtuber JerryRigsEverything who tore down the device to reveal its internals. Not satisfied with just exploring the internals, the tech geek has now executed a durability test on the device, testing the under display fingerprint sensor in the process. Check out the video to see the complete test and find out if the fingerprint sensor survives.
JerryRigEverything carried out the scratch test using his traditional Mohs’ hardness test. The screen’s glass handles the scratches well, with light scratches at level 6 and deeper ones at level 7. Quite satisfactorily, the fingerprint reader survived the trauma! This may not sound interesting to some after all this isn’t the first fingerprint reader to undergo the scratch, burn and bend test. But as explained by the tester Zach Jerry on the video, the Vivo X20 Plus UD version features an optical reader rather than the more common capacitive one.
Apart from the scratch test, the X20 Plus UD also scaled through the bend test with flying colours. The device also performs well in the burn test. On the whole, the test proved the flagship device is surprisingly sturdy despite its large and thin build. As a reminder, the Vivo X20 Plus UD version features a 6.43-inch display with an 18:9 aspect ratio. The device comes with a thickness of just 7.5mm.
On Feb. 14, Xiaomi had launched the Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro smartphones in India. Earlier in this week, Xiaomi’s product marketing director Zang Zhiyuan had confirmed that China would be soon receiving Redmi Note 5. A fresh Weibo post from him confirms that the Note 5 will be released in China in the next month.
Xiaomi had launched the Redmi 5 and Redmi 5 Plus smartphones with full screen design in China last year. The Redmi 5 Plus was launched in India with Redmi Note 5 moniker. Zihyuan’s Weibo post from last Friday hinted that the Redmi Note 5 arriving in China has stellar camera capabilities. The post had also included an image of Redmi Note 5 that carried a tagline “India’s camera beast.”
This suggests that the company may launch the recently unveiled Note 5 Pro as Redmi Note 5 in China. As of this writing, there is no information available on the exact launch date and pricing of Redmi Note 5 for China.
The Redmi Note 5 Pro is packed with a 5.99-inch IPS LCD display that offers FHD+ resolution of 2160 x 1080 pixels. The Snapdragon 636 chipset is present under the hood of the phone. It has 64 GB of storage and it comes in 4 GB and 6 GB RAM options. It has a LED flash enabled selfie camera of 20-megapixel. It is equipped with 12-megapixel + 5-megapixel dual rear cameras. It receives power from 4,000mAh battery. The 4 GB and 6 GB RAM variants of the phone are respectively priced at Rs. 13,999 (~$215) and Rs. 16,999 (~$260).
Nubia is present at MWC 2018 and the company has used the big event to announce its first gaming smartphone concept. The announcement doesn’t come as a surprise, as the company had already teased its upcoming phone a few days before MWC.
After the decent success of the Razer Phone, smartphone companies seem to be eager to tap into the growing mobile gaming market. Despite the high-end hardware packed inside the top flagships of recent years, it’s still not optimised for a smooth gaming experience. When it comes to gaming, enthusiasts are often left wanting for more out of their smartphones and this is where companies like Razer and even Nubia are hoping to deliver.
Unlike the Razer Phone, Nubia’s Gaming smartphone is still a concept. But the company’s GM, Ni Fei has confirmed that the phone will be launching in China sometime in the coming months. So, it shouldn’t be long until you see the phone hit the Chinese market
Nubia has always been known for its beautifully designed smartphones and this year, the company is tapping into its strongest department to attract customers. We still don’t know what the phone is going to be called, but we know what it looks like in concept. The phone seems to be inspired right out of a super car design. Unlike traditional smartphones which feature a flat or slightly curved back, this Nubia gaming concept phone has several cuts like a super car. The cameras and the other sensors are vertically arranged along the center line. Further, there are orange highlights along the top and bottom lines, further mimicking the design of a super car.
The top and bottom sides of the phone also feature a different coloured highlight, making it stand out. The front seems to be like a traditional premium smartphone, but we can’t say anything about its screen to body ratio as the render is completely black up front.
Nubia MWC Teaser
The Nubia gaming smartphone concept is said to feature some very high-end stuff like carbon nano-material for its body and air cooled design to keep the temperature low even during heavy game play. The company seems to be using an innovative cooling technology for this phone, but exact details are not available at the moment. We expect a lot of other high-end features on the phone, but at this moment, hardware details are scarce. Considering its placement as a premium gaming phone, expect nothing less than SD845 and 8GB RAM on the device. There could be gaming centric features as well like 120Hz screen refresh rate among other things but for that, we’ll have to wait for more details.
Instead of launching a flagship smartphone, the V30S ThinQ smartphone was recently unveiled by LG at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2018. Enabled with new AI capabilities, the V30S ThinQ has arrived as upgraded edition of the LG V30S flagship phone from last year. A top executive of the LG Mobile has revealed that the company is all set to unveil its flagship phone in the first half of this year.
Hwang Jeong-hwan who has been leading LG’s mobile division since November 2017 said to the media at MWC 2018 that when it comes to releasing its new model, it won’t be chasing the rivaling brands.
The mobile business of LG has been encountering losses and poor sales since couple of years. The newly appointed CEO and President of LG Mobile is wants to create a “structure that allows sustainable profits” by driving the mobile business in a new direction.
Previous reports had suggested that the company is thinking about launching its upcoming flagship with a new name instead of G7. Hwang said, “Changing the name of our premium phone represents an overhaul of our brand. We have maintained our G, V naming strategy and changing that requires us to have confidence in presenting that to our customers, and for us to have planned it in advance. Some say that we need to change our brand now, but we won’t act prematurely.”
Hwang said that rather than claiming that its phones are innovative, the company will be focusing on regaining the trust of its customers by making low-end to premium phones that they can use without inconvenience. He added that LG will be focusing on the basics of quality. Also, the company won’t be increasing the prices of its smartphones by adding unnecessary features that consumers won’t use.
Well-known tipster Evan Blass had revealed earlier in this month that the upcoming LG flagship is codenamed as Judy. Citing a person familiar with LG’s plans for Judy phone revealed that the handset will be coming with MLCD+ display that will offer 800-nit brightness, Snapdragon 845 chipset, 4 GB of RAM, 64 GB of storage, dual 16-megapixel sensors with f/1.6 aperture lenses, stereo speakers, wireless charging and IP68 certified chassis with military standard durability. Blass added that LG may announce it in June this year.
Fitness freaks, rejoice. You can now get your hands on a myriad of smart bracelets and accessories without burning a hole in your pocket. Let’s check out the details.
First off, GearBest is offering a massive 36% discount on the original asking price of the Lenovo Cardio Plus HX03W smart band as part of its latest Flash Sale. The highly useful device is currently up for grabs for as low as $9.99.
You can buy the smart bracelet by shelling out only $9.99 every day at 9:00UTC until March 5. This additional discount is valid only for 10 units daily.
However, it is imperative for you to bear in mind that the promo is slated to wrap up soon. Moreover, there were only 87 pieces left at the time of writing.
You can save a considerable amount of money on smart bands and multiple other items in this category. For instance, the Lenovo HW01 Plus MIO PAI smart band which carries a price tag of $34.52 is now available for only $26.99 on GearBest.
The site is also giving 25% discount on the $48.04 selling price of Huawei Band 3 smart band, bringing it down to only $35.99. This promo ends in 6 days and there were only 109 pieces left.
Alternatively, you can go for the Alfawise S2 smartwatch, which is currently available for a discounted price of $24.59 on GearBest. This is a considerable 22% decrease in the device’s real asking price of $31.68.
Moreover, there’s a 30% discount on Xiaomi Wireless Bluetooth 4.1 Music Sports Earbuds as well. You can now buy the item for only $23.99. The Flash Sale will end in 8 days and there were 326 pieces left.
You can head straight to this link in order to check all the products and take advantage of the promo before it comes to an end.
Rumors are rife that the Mi 7 could be the first phone from Xiaomi to come with wireless charging feature. New information coming from China states that the Mi 7 will support 7.5W wireless charging that is also available on Apple iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X smartphones.
Last year in September, Xiaomi had become a part of the Wireless Power Consortium. This gave birth to rumors that claimed that the Mi 7 could be the first smartphone from the company to be enable with wireless charging technology. Around two months ago, it was reported that Mi 7 enabled with wireless charging will enter production phase from this month. And at the beginning of this year, Xiaomi’s foundry gave out an official message on its official WeChat account that the Mi 7 will be coming with wireless charging feature.
The smartphone is expected to feature wireless charging module from Integrated Device Technology (IDT) that is based in the U.S. The 7.5W wireless charging speed is half the speed of the newest Qi 1.2 standards.
Recent leaks have revealed that Xiaomi is working on bringing in-screen fingerprint scanner on the Mi 7. It may sport an iPhone X-like notch design. It is rumored feature an OLED screen by Samsung. It is also expected to house vertically stacked dual rear cameras like the iPhone X. It is likely to arrive with glass chassis like the Mi 6 to facilitate wireless charging.
The Snapdragon 845 chipset is rumored to power its 8 GB and 6 GB RAM options. It is likely that Xiaomi may launch the Mi 7 in June to prevent it from disturbing the sales of the Mi MIX 2S that is launching on March 27.
Nokia went official with the Nokia 7 Plus on Sunday and it comes out as the company’s first 18:9 model. Apart from the full-view display, the device also comes with a re-designed rear camera. It is a dual camera affair on the Nokia 7 Plus comprising two 12MP cameras, one wide and another 2x telephoto, which is a much better setup than the 13MP color and 13MP black and white cameras of the Nokia 8.
As a reminder, the Nokia 7 Plus features a 6-inch IPS Full HD+ display with a resolution of 2160 x 1080 pixels. The display comes with a 500-nits brightness rating and Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection. The device also comes with a 6000 series aluminium unibody and is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor paired with 4GB of RAM and there is 64GB of internal storage. China also gets a 6GB RAM + 64GB version and both storages are expandable up to 256GB. The device also runs Android 8.0 Oreo which Nokia says will be upgraded to Android 8.1 soon.
In addition, the Nokia 7 Plus packs a 12-megapixel wide-angle primary camera with a f/1.75 aperture and 1.4-micron pixels, as well as a 13-megapixel camera with a f/2.6 aperture, 1um pixels, and 2x optical zoom. The two rear cameras are arranged vertically in the middle and the device also sports a dual-tone LED flash with Zeiss optics. A 16-megapixel fixed focus sensor with a f/2.0 aperture, 1um pixels, and Zeiss optics takes care of selfies. Here are samples captured by the rear dual cameras and they are pretty impressive.
You can now buy the original Bitmain Antminer D3 Dashcoin Miner for $2699 on Banggood. With a processing time of 24 hours, the item is expected to ship within 8-16 business days.
While you earn a whopping 2699 Banggood points for buying the Antminer D3 Dashcoin Miner on Banggood, it’s worth noting that there were only 5 units left at the time of writing. Here’s a brief glimpse of what the device has to offer in terms of specification.
The Bitmain Antminer D3 Dashcoin Miner offers a hash rate of up to 17,500 GH/s (+/- 5%) with a power consumption of 1200W with 93% efficiency, 77°F ambient temp. The Beijing-based bitcoin miner and designer of ASIC chips, Bitmain encourages users to employ the APW3++ PSU with the Antminer D3. It’s worth noting that you can power only one Antminer D3 with one APW3++ PSU.It is also imperative for you to bear in mind that power consumption figures are likely to vary depending on your PSU’s efficiency, the accuracy of the power meter and the ambient operating temperature. You can click here to check out the full specification and buy Bitmain Antminer D3 Dashcoin Miner.
Goodix Technology, a well-known company in the world of biometric and human interface technologies has confirmed the acquiring of CommSolid at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2018 tech expo that is currently going on in Barcelona, Spain. Also, the company has also showcased its second-generation optical under-display fingerprint technology.
CommSolid is known for providing ultra-low baseband solutions. Now that it has been acquired, Goodix can be used for accelerating the development of differentiating chipsets that are aimed towards the loT market. The team of CommSolid has good experience in low power wireless solutions. By making use of them, Goodix will be providing its worldwide clients and developers with very low power solutions for the cellular IoT market.
Goodix has dubbed its second-generation optical in-screen fingerprint solution for mobile devices as Innovative Biometric Solutions for Display. The company had showcased the first-generation product at MWC 2017 last year. The second-generation in-screen fingerprint sensor comes with improved performance. The company aims to begin its mass production in this year. The company has also showcased the technology at its booth at MWC 2018.
Deemed as the world’s largest assemblage for the mobile industry, 2018 Mobile World Congress (MWC) kicked off on Monday, February 26 in Barcelona, Spain. Popular handset manufacturers will be unveiling some of their hotly-anticipated smartphones during the event.
Lining with this, GearBest has come up with a brand new promo, dubbed Mobile Phone Carnival. Let’s check out the details.
Ultimate Coupons
This section of the promo offers coupon codes for various brands such as Ulefone, Vernee, Oukitel, and Blackview just to name a few. These coupon codes can be used to get discounts on the original selling price of smartphones manufactured by the brands noted in this category.
It’s worth heeding that the coupon codes are valid only for a specific number of pieces. For instance, the coupon code ‘Oukitel1GB’ can be used to get discount for just 200 pieces.
Apart from that, the site is offering considerable discounts on the actual selling price of two other smartphones. There’s a 10% discount on Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus 4G phablet, and 14% discount on Leagoo Z7 4G smartphone. Moreover, you can even preorder Vernee M6 4G phablet by shelling out just $149.99.
Cutting Edge Mobile Gear
This segment features a slew of well-received smartphones at a discounted price. You can get a 15% discount on the global version of Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 4G phablet for a limited period of time. There were only 166 pieces left bearing a lowered price tag of $479.99.
Likewise, GearBest is offering an 11% off on TenFifteen F1 Sports smartwatch phone, bringing its real selling price down to just $69.99. The promo is slated to come to an end in 5 days and there were only 75 pieces left at the time of writing.
As part of GearBest’s latest Flash Sale, the Nubia M2 Lite 4G phablet is currently up for grabs for just $139.99. There were only 257 pieces left at the time of writing.
Best Sellers
In this category, you can buy Leagoo KIICAA MIX 4G phablet at a discounted price of $120.99 before the promo ends. This is a significant 14% reduction in the device’s original asking price.
There’s a 5% discount on the selling price of Bluboo S1 4G phablet, which is slated to carry a discounted price tag of $169.99. The price cut is valid for black and white color versions of the 4G phablet for a short span of time
Alternatively, you can go for the global version of the Nubia Z17 Mini 4G smartphone, which is available in this section for a reduced price of $199.99. This promo is scheduled to end soon.
Top Brands
This category is brimming with handsets manufactured by leading smartphone makers such as Bluboo, Mi, and AGM. On top of that, these smartphones are available for a heavily discounted price.
You can buy the Xiaomi Redmi 4A 4G smartphone for just $89.99 for a limited period of time. GearBest is offering 25% discount on the selling price of Redmi 4A, but there were only 82 pieces left at the time of writing.
You can also get a 17% off on the sale price of the black color version of Xiaomi Mi 5X 4G phablet. In other words, you need to shell out just $238.99 to get your hands on the well-received phablet.
There’s a 27% off on the golden color variant of the Mi 5X and 17% discount on the rose gold color version of the 4G phablet. As a result, you can buy the gold-tinted Mi 5X for just $200.46, and the rose gold version for only $210.54.
Mobile Accessories
GearBest is also offering discounts on a slew of mobile accessories as part of its Mobile Phone Carnival promo. You can buy LED Prompt Magnetic Micro USB 8 Pin Type-C data sync cable for only $5.70, thanks to a massive 42% discount on the item’s original asking price.
Buyers are eligible to receive a 6% discount on the original Xiaomi Mobile Power Bank 2. However, there were only 57 pieces left bearing the discounted price tag of $18.99. You can click here to check out rest of the products and take advantage of the promo before it wraps up.
Samsung announced its latest flagship smartphones — Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. The South Korean giant has already revealed its pricing for the US, UK and Europe market and has also started taking pre-orders.
Along with those markets, the company has also started taking pre-orders for the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ in India through Samsung Shop. However, the company has not yet revealed the pricing information for the Indian market.
Samsung is expected to launch these flagship devices in the Indian market in the first week of March. Earlier, India-based online retailer Flipkart teased the launch of Galaxy S9 and S9+ in the India market and the company has said that it will soon reveal pre-order details.
If you want to book your Galaxy S9 or Galaxy S9+ through Samsung Shop, head over to the online store (link) and select your device. When you click Pre-Order Now button, you’ll be asked to fill up a form with your name, email id, phone number, and the color option for the device.
To successfully pre-order the device, you’ll have to pay Rs. 2,000 (approx. $xx) as the advance payment and you’ll get a discount coupon of the same value. On the launch day, you’ll be notified of the phone’s pricing and you can make the final payment.
The Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ respectively feature 5.8-inch and 6.2-inch Super AMOLED display that supports QHD+ resolution of 2960 x 1440 pixels. Both phones are fueled by Snapdragon 845 processor in North America and China while the rest of the world will be receiving Exynos 9810 chipset models.
The Galaxy S9’s rear camera and the primary sensor in the dual camera setup of S9+ feature 12-megapixel lens with a variable aperture of f/1.5 to f/2.4. The second camera of the dual camera system of S9+ is a 12-megapixel telephoto lens that comes with f/2.4 aperture, OIS, and dual-pixel autofocus. On the front side, the Galaxy S9 duo features 8-megapixel camera with f/.17 aperture and autofocus.
The Galaxy S9 features 4GB of RAM and 3,000mAh battery whereas the larger S9+ includes 6GB of RAM and 3,500mAh battery. Both models come with support for Qualcomm‘s Quick Charge 2.0 fast charging technology as well as wireless charging.
Lenovo has unveiled the Yoga 730 and Yoga 530 2-in-1 laptop-tablet hybrid devices at the ongoing Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2018 tech exhibition in Barcelona, China. The Yoga 730 comes in 13-inch and 15-inch models whereas the Yoga 530 is a 14-inch device. The Yoga 530 will be arriving as Flex 15 in the U.S.
Lenovo Yoga 730, Yoga 530 Specs and Features
The Lenovo Yoga 730 variants and Yoga 530 are all powered by the Intel Core i7 (8th Gen) processor. The 15-inch model comes with option Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 discrete graphics. All the three notebooks are equipped with full-sized keyboards.
The 13-inch Yoga 730 offers a battery performance of around 11.5 hours whereas its larger sibling can last for up to 11 hours. With Rapid Charge technology, the new Yoga tablets can gain 2 hours of battery life by charging them for only 15 minutes. For robust security, these devices are enabled with fingerprint reader.
The Yoga 730 variants are blessed with Ultra HD IPS LCD touchscreen whereas the Yoga 530 is fitted with a Full HD IPS LCD touchscreen. Lenovo is providing an optional stylus called Lenovo Active Pen 2 that offers up to 4096 levels of pressure. It can be used for writing, drawing and annotating.
One of the interesting features of the Yoga 730 and Yoga 530 laptops is that they come preloaded with Alexa voice assistant from Amazon. It means that the two Yoga 2-in-1 devices feature two voice assistants namely, Cortana and Alexa. The 15-inch and 3-inch Yoga 730 respectively weigh 1.89 kg and 1.12 kg. The 14-inch Yoga 530 weighs 1.6 kg.
Lenovo Yoga 730, Yoga 530 Pricing and Availability
The 13-inch Yoga 730 coupled with Active Pen 2 has a starting price of 999 euros (~$1,231). The 15-inch variant with Lenovo’s stylus carries a pricing of 1,099 euros (~$1,355). Both the devices will be available in the Europe for buying in April. The Yoga 530 that costs 549 euros (~$676) will be releasing in the Europe in June.
The Chinese manufacturer also displayed the Lenovo 100e, 300e and 500e Chromebooks at MWC 2018. These Chromebooks that are designed for use in schools were also showcased at Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2018 in the previous month. Lenovo has just now started the sales of the new Chromebooks.
The Xperia XZ2 and XZ2 Compact were unveiled by Sony at the Mobile World Congress 2018. Both smartphones are the Japanese tech company’s first foray into the terrain of the trendy 18:9 aspect ratio. The models also fall among the first models that would pack Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 845 chipset. Here are some hands-on photos of the Xperia XZ2 and Xperia XZ2 Compact.
The Sony Xperia XZ2 utilises a glass body both on the display segment and at the rear. The device also comes with the Corning Gorilla Glass 5 which should provide some level of protection. The XZ2 Compact, on the other hand, features a polycarbonate body which isn’t flashy but still is attractive.
The Xperia XZ2 is clearly the bigger model, coming in with a 5.7-inch display while the XZ2 Compact presents with a 5.0-inch display. Both models come with the FHD+ screen resolution but the compact has a higher PPI due to its smaller size. At the rear, both smartphones pack a fingerprint sensor located just underneath the rear camera. It is interesting to observe the location of the XZ2’s rear fingerprint sensor which is pushed down to the middle of the fuselage in a bid to make it easily accessible.
Another design tweak is the location of the hybrid SIM tray on the Xperia XZ2. The tray is located at the upper edge of the device, unlike the XZ2 Compact where it is located on the side.That aside, they both have NFC, Bluetooth 5.0, WiFi, and USB 3.1 Type-C ports. There is no audio jack on either phone but they come with front-facing stereo speakers. Sony has promised to ship both phones with a Y-shaped USB-C adapter that allows you charge and use a 3.5mm connector at the same time.
Furthermore, the XZ2 packs a 3180mAh battery with support for wireless charging while the XZ2 Compact comes with a 2870mAh battery without wireless charging support. Both smartphones come with single cameras with the XZ2 having the high configuration. The Xperia XZ2 will be available in Liquid Black, Liquid Silver, Deep Green, and Ash Pink while the XZ2 Compact will come in Black, Coral Pink, and Moss Green. Check out more photos of the device after the cut.
Just like Nokia licensed its brand name to HMD Global, Blackberry also did the same but not to one but three licensees. TCL may be the most popular of the three since it releases its own BlackBerry phones globally but there are two others. There is BB Merah Putih for Indonesia and Optiemus Infracom in India.
Of the three licensees, only Optiemus Infracom hasn’t released its own BlackBerry phone yet. According to a new leak by Evan Blass (@evleaks) that will be changing soon.
BlackBerry 'Ghost': a bezel-less, premium Android handset from licensee Optiemus; coming soon to India. pic.twitter.com/KTAvKbDl5v
The leaker shared a render of a bezel-less phone called the BlackBerry Ghost. The premium Android phone from Optiemus is said to be “coming soon to India”.
The image doesn’t reveal much about the BlackBerry Ghost. The phone is completely covered in glass in front and has a metal frame. There is a selfie camera on the left of the top bezel and the earpiece sits in the middle.
We can also make out a SIM tray and an antenna line on the left side of the phone. There is no front-mounted fingerprint scanner which means it is most likely on the rear but might also be on the side.
Motorola doesn’t seem to be launching any new device at MWC this year. There have been no adverts or invites sent out, so the guess is that its new line-up will be unveiled at a private event(s). While we wait for Motorola to announce a date, a new leak of the Moto E5 Plus has surfaced online.
The leak is an official render of the 5th generation Moto E posted on Twitter by Evan Blass (@evleaks)and it shows the lower mid-range phone rocking a premium design.
The Moto E5 Plus now sports an 18:9 display. The top bezel has been shaved off to accommodate the taller display but the lower bezel is more or less the same as that of the E4 Plus.
There is a notification LED, a sensor and front camera on the left side of the top bezel and a LED flash on the right. The earpiece sits in the middle. There is also a 3.5mm audio jack at the top and a USB port at the bottom.
It appears Motorola has ditched the metal design of the Moto E4 Plus and settled for a glass back or polished metal judging from the reflective nature of the rear.
The back panel is not the only big change on the rear. The Moto E5 Plus also appears to have dual rear cameras but upon zooming in, we realized the left hole doesn’t house a lens. Weird, right? Probably an incomplete render. We’ll keep our fingers crossed on this one.
Xiaomi has confirmed that the Snapdragon 845 chipset powered Mi MIX 2S flagship phone will be unleashed on March 27. Since the beginning of this year, the rumor mill has been revealing plenty of information on the specs and features of the Mi MIX 2S. Moreover, plenty of key details of the smartphone had appeared through its firmware files recently. Today, a screengrab of the “About Screen” page of the Mi MIX 2S showing its key specifications have surfaced.
The below image shows that the Xiaomi Mi MIX 2S is fueled by Snapdragon 845 chipset. It features a 6.01-inch display that supports FHD+ resolution of 2160 x 1080 pixels. It indicates that the screen will deliver an aspect ratio of 18:9.
The SoC is supported by 8 GB of RAM. It has a native storage of 256 GB. There is a possibility that there could be lower RAM and storage variants of Mi MIX 2S. The Xiaomi phone is fitted with a 16-megapixel camera. It is fueled by a 4,400mAh battery. However, firmware files of Mi MIX 2S have revealed that it includes a 3,400mAh battery and Sony IMX363 as primary camera sensor.
The information that has appeared in the new screengrab is nothing new as these details have surfaced in previous reports. The new leak corroborates with the recent leaks of Mi MIX 2S.
HMD Global has just showcased Nokia 8 Sirocco at MWC 2018, a new variant of the Nokia 8. Usually, variants are not so different from their original versions, but this is definitely not the case. The Sirocco version of the flagship is a huge improvement over its predecessor and it is way different from the standard edition. So, in this Nokia 8 vs Nokia 8 Sirocco comparison, we will see the main differences and improvements between these two smartphones, and you will discover whether or not it is worth spending some money to buy this new and powerful variant.
Hybrid Dual SIM slot, water resistant (IP67 certified)
Aesthetically, the two handsets are completely different. While the first has a full metal unibody design, the second is a glass sandwich — featuring a stainless steel frame between two curved glasses. It not only has a better look, but it is also water resistant (IP67 certified), while its predecessor is just splash proof. The Sirocco version has a borderless display with the P-OLED technology which is way better than the “just above-average” IPS panel of the original Nokia 8. Further, the narrow bezels make the phone smaller even though the display size remains almost the same. There are no significant changes in the hardware side as the Finnish giant has launched this new variant with Snapdragon 835 SoC, again. But it is worth mentioning that Nokia 8 Sirocco comes with Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box, while its predecessor had Nougat.
The dual camera should be much better given that it has a larger aperture (f/1.75), dual pixel PD autofocus and 2x optical zoom, besides its Carl Zeiss lens. On the other hand, the front camera has a much lower resolution (13 vs 5 MP). The battery is slightly bigger (3260 vs 3090 mAh): thanks to the higher capacity and with the OLED panel, it should last a bit more. Nokia 8 Sirocco will soon be launched in Europe with a price tag of €750, while Nokia 8 can be found at about €360 ($443) in its 4/64 GB configuration (note that Sirocco has 6 GB RAM and 128 GB ROM) thanks to online street prices. At the moment, the improvements made do not justify the much higher price, but when the price will drop to at least €550-600, Nokia 8 Sirocco will be a better choice.
Some great Huawei-related news came out from MWC 2018. The company is expected to launch the first phone with the 5G connectivity sometime by October to December 2019. At the most important trade show of the year related to mobile devices, the Chinese giant announced the first commercial 5G chipset. Its name is Balong 5G01 and it is the first with support to the 3GPP standard. It is faster than the latest modem by Qualcomm, the Snapdragon X24, which can reach a maximum download speed of 2 Gbps.
The new Balong 5G01 can arrive at 2.3 Gbps, which is the highest speed ever reached by a mobile chipset. It offers two different bands for 5G: Sub6GHz and mmWave, which have a low and a high frequency, respectively. The new chipset by Huawei can support two 5G modes: non-standalone, which relies on LTE, and standalone which is totally independent of LTE. The 5G networks will make networks evolve in the most revolutionary ways in the coming years: it will be a much more important technology than its predecessors. Indeed, it will not only be used for normal connections, but it will improve the IoT sector.
This is why Huawei is planning to launch many products related to object-based connections. Among these, there will be car boxes for self-driving cars and many devices in the smart home sector. Huawei has partnered with many carriers to bring 5G network, which should be ready by the end of 2018. In the fourth quarter of 2019, Huawei, one of the companies who has invested the most into 5G networks, should launch the first 5G-enabled phone. Usually, that time frame corresponds to the launch of new flagships from the Mate series.
Do you think Huawei Mate 12 will be the first smartphone with the support to 5G connectivity and its blazing speeds?
Sony went official with the Xperia XZ2 and XZ2 Compact today and before that even happened, the Xperia XZ1 had received a $205 slash in its price. The Sony Xperia XZ1 is presently on offer at Amazon and is now offered for $495. This is the biggest price cut the device is taking, having started at $699.99 when it was announced last year.
Sony Xperia XZ1. Photo Credit- The Verge
The Sony Xperia XZ1 first got unveiled at IFA 2017 sporting a 5.2-inch 1080p display, a Snapdragon 835, 4GB of RAM, 64GB of storage, a 19MP “Motion Eye” camera capable of 960fps slow-motion footage. The device also packs a 13MP selfie-shooter and a disappointing 2,700mAh battery. There is also an IP68 water-resistance and dual front-facing speakers as well. The Xperia XZ1 had the honour of being the first phone to ship with Android 8.0 Oreo.
The current price cut only affects the Black and Moonlit Blue colours which are on offer for just $495, to reiterate. The Venus Pink and Warm Silver options sell for around the $530-540 mark. The offer also comes with free shipping, something Amazon is known for.
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