Sony Xperia XZ2, Xperia XZ2 Compact Prices Appear

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Feb 27, 2018

AnTuTu has released a list of its top 10 highest performing smartphones for January 2018. The list is based on models which scored the highest points on AnTuTu benchmark. This is the first list that would be released by the benchmarking tool since the upgrade of its software version from V6.3.6 to v7.0.1. Of course, the list only contains Android smartphones. The iOS-powered Apple models with the A11 chip scores higher than its Android counterparts before the SD 845-powered Galaxy S9 was released.

Top of the list is the Kirin 970-powered Huawei Mate 10 Pro with a total score of 214580 points. The second spot is also occupied by the Mate 10 scoring a total of 212841 points. In a surprising twist, the Honor V10 which was announced with a Kirin 970 chip occupied the third spot with a score of 212557. OnePlus 5 is the first Snapdragon 835 smartphone on the list, sitting at number 4 spot with 211292 points. The OP5 is followed by the OnePlus 5T which scored 210134 points when it was benchmarked on AnTuTu. ZTE’s Nubia Z17 occupy the number 6 spot with 208922 points while the Xiaomi Mi 6 made the number 7 spot with 206571.

Another Xiaomi model, this time the Mi Mix 2 scored 205206 points to occupy the 8th place on the charts. Samsung joined the list at the 9th and 10th place with the Galaxy Note 8 and Galaxy S8+ respectively. But we expect this list to change significantly when the top 10 for February would be released since new Snapdragon 845-powered models would have gotten included by then.

The ASUS Zenfone 5Z Is The New Flagship Killer But The Zenfone 5 Is Awesome Too

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Feb 27, 2018

The Zenfone 5 Lite is an exciting device but the Zenfone 5 and Zenfone 5z are the real stars of ASUS’ announcement.

The Zenfone 5 and Zenfone 5Z are nearly identical devices that differ only in processor and storage configuration. So we’ll only mention the Zenfone 5 except in cases where the Zenfone 5Z has a different specification.

Zenfone 5 Design

The Zenfone 5 has a double-sided glass design. Both are 2.5D curved Coring Gorilla Glass with a metal frame in between them. Like the leaks revealed, the Zenfone 5 has a notch in the display and ASUS isn’t ashamed to say they copied it from Apple, though they justify their action by saying their own notch is smaller.

Zenfone 5 And Zenfone 5Z Specs

The Zenfone (and 5Z) has a 6.2” FHD+ Super IPS display with a 19:9 aspect ratio, 95.4% color gamut and support for DCI-P3. Thanks to the bezel-less display, the Zenfone 5 boasts a 90% screen-to-body ratio giving it the form factor of a 5.5” phone.

Powering the Zenfone 5 is a Snapdragon 636 processor paired with 4GB or 6GB of ROM. Storage is 64GB on both variants but unlike the Zenfone 5 Lite, it doesn’t have a dedicated MicroSD card slot. So you either put a second nano SIM or add up to an additional 2TB of storage.

The Zenfone 5Z on the other hand is powered by the Snapdragon 845, the current Qualcomm champion. ASUS says there is an AI engine and a feature called AI boost which is just marketing for processor and software optimizations. It also comes with 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage or 8GB of RAM and 128GB/256GB of storage.

There are stereo speakers and each has a NXP smart amplifier. There is also NFC, Bluetooth 5.0, FM radio, an audio jack, and support for Hi-Res audio and DTS. A new ZenUI based on Android Oreo also comes pre-installed.

The camera and notch are not the only things ASUS has copied from Apple’s iPhone X. The ASUS Zenfone 5 and Zenfone 5Z also have their own version of Animoji called ZeniMoji.

Battery capacity on the Zenfone 5 is 3300mAh with BoostMaster (fast charging). ASUS said it has added a new feature called AI Charging which helps double the lifespan of the battery.

According to ASUS, leaving your smartphone plugged in overnight when it is full degrades the battery. With AI Charging, you can still leave your phone plugged in. The phone studies your sleep pattern, so when you plug in before going to bed, it charges the battery up to 80% and leaves it there. Just before you wake up, it then resumes charging so you can wake up to a full battery.

Zenfone 5 Cameras

The Zenfone 5 has a 12MP Sony IMX363 sensor with a F/1.8 aperture and an 83° FOV. It is paired with a 120° wide-angle camera that allows for up to an extra 200% area into your photos.

The camera also comes with AI scene detection that can identify up to 16 different scenes and objects such as lakes, animals, sunsets, plants (flowers) and humans. There is also HDR and portrait mode.

Up front is an 8MP F/2.0 camera with Night HDR and portrait support, selfie panorama, and GIF animation.

Zenfone 5 Lite Focuses On Photography, Launches With Quad Cameras

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Feb 27, 2018

ASUS is having its launch event tonight at MWC and the first device that has been unveiled is the Zenfone 5 Lite.

The Zenfone 5 Lite is a phone made for photography enthusiasts. Its selling point is its quad cameras – two on both sides but it also packs other interesting features.

The Zenfone 5 Lite has a 6.0” FHD+ display with an 18:9 aspect ratio. It comes in two variants – one is powered by a Snapdragon 630 processor and the other is powered by a Snapdragon 430.

On the front is a 20MP Sony camera and is paired with a 120° wide-angle sensor. The second camera comes in handy for wide angle selfies or wefies as ASUS calls it and also for portrait photos. The rear camera is a 16MP sensor and also gets a 120° wide-angle secondary sensor.

The Zenfone 5 Lite has NFC, a triple card slot that lets you use two SIM cards and a MicroSD card at the same time. There is also a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner and also Face Unlock. Under the hood is a 3000mAh battery.

The ASUS Zenfone 5 Lite comes in Rouge Red, Moonlight White, and Midnight Black. A price tag has not been unveiled yet.

Is This Our First Look At The OnePlus 6 (or 7)?

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Feb 27, 2018

While other manufacturers are announcing new flagships at MWC 2018, OnePlus won’t be doing so. The Chinese manufacturer won’t launch a new phone till the second half of the year but that isn’t to say work has not begun yet. It appears work has actually gone very far as images said to be of the OnePlus 6 or OnePlus 7 have surfaced online.

We are not really sure about the name yet but at least we can tell its a OnePlus from the logo at the back.

From the images we can see that this is a strikingly different design from previous OnePlus devices. Gone is the metal back and in its place is highly reflective glass. Some say this may mean the phone will support wireless charging but that may not be so.

OnePlus CEO Pete Lau, said last year that it sees no need for wireless charging. Not only because Dash Charge, their proprietary charging technology is much faster than any wireless charger, but because the technology is not ripe enough for adoption. Though he did say the company may introduce it in future. Anyways, we’d prefer an IP68/IP67 rating over wireless charging.

Apart from the glass back, the OnePlus 6 rocks a dual camera setup that is slightly raised but positioned in the middle of the device. There is a LED flash below it and an elliptical fingerprint scanner right after.

The front of the device is equally exciting. The OnePlus 6 is seen here with a notch at the top of the display and the lower bezel is slightly smaller than that of the OnePlus 5T. The notch is home to a very small earpiece and a camera. We are not surprised though. Everyone in China seems to have caught the notch-display bug.

Thankfully, the person who shared the pictures also gives us a few specs as the “About Phone” section is what is on the screen.

The phone’s name is stated as P7819 and the model number is NS P7819. The former can be edited if you are familiar with OnePlus phones. This is a prototype so the original model number should be something like this – ONEPLUS A6x10 or ONEPLUS A7x10 depending on if they are calling it OnePlus 6 or OnePlus 7.

The phone is running OxygenOS 5.1.0 MEA_3 based on Android 8.1.0 Oreo with December’s security patch. There is 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage which means this is the base model.

Is this the OnePlus 6 or OnePlus 7? Yes and No. One thing we learnt last year with the OnePlus 5 is that many designs are considered before the final product is released. There were several leaks of the OnePlus 5 and to be fair, they were all “genuine leaks”, but only one of them turned out to be the OnePlus 5.

Samsung’s Upcoming Galaxy S-Series Smartphone Could Have New Naming Scheme

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Jeet

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Feb 27, 2018

Earlier this week, Samsung announced its latest Galaxy S-series phones — Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Now, the company seems to have decided to ditch this numeric naming scheme for the upcoming S-series phones.

According to a report, during a Q&A session at the Mobile World Congress with Samsung Mobile’s head DJ Koh, when asked about the change of name for the next Galaxy S-series model, he said that the series might get a name change. However, he added that the “Galaxy” branding will remain.

While there is no confirmation yet about the name change, it seems very much possible given that the company’s officials are talking about it. It also shows that the company is indeed thinking about changing the naming scheme.

It remains to be seen what the company chooses to go with for the naming scheme of the Galaxy S9 successor. However, there are reports suggesting that the company is gearing up to announce Galaxy X, which could be the South Korean giant’s first smartphone with a foldable display.

The company’s current flagship smartphones are Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+, which were announced a couple of days ago. The Galaxy S9 and S9+ 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 camera while the secondary 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, both devices feature an 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.

(Source)

Sony Xperia Ear Duo Wireless Earphones Announced For $280, Goes On Sale In May

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Jeet

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Feb 27, 2018

At the Mobile World Congress, Sony announced its new earphones — Sony Xperia Ear Duo, which is an upgraded version of the Xperia Ear. While it was originally showcased at last year’s Mobile World Congress as a prototype, this time the company has revealed its pricing and availability information.

Sony has said that the Xperia Ear Duo will go on sale in May this year for a price tag of $280. The wireless earbuds are already available for pre-order through online retailer Amazon.

Just like the Apple‘s AirPods, this new earphones — Sony Xperia Ear Duo supports multiple gesture controls that let users control music playback with just taps. Additionally, it also recognizes head movement and support head nods and shakes for accepting or declining incoming calls.

Unlike Sony’s other earphones, which focuses on noise cancellation, these earbuds are aimed at delivering a “dual listening” experience that combines your music with environmental sounds happening around you.

Describing the listening experience on these earphones, the company says that its team has developed Spatial Acoustic Conductor that allows the sound generated behind the ear by the unit ́s driver to be transmitted directly into the ear.

It also provides audio notifications pertaining to your calendar, news headlines, and a few other topics as the earphones come integrated with voice assistants — Google Assistant and Siri. The assistant is automatically selected based on whether they are paired with an Android device or an iOS device. With just a single tap, it brings up each voice assistant for traditional commands like starting music or reading texts.

Coming to the battery life, Sony says that the earphones last for about four hours on single charge, and comes with a carrying case that adds an additional three charges. It will be available in two color options — Black and Gold and will go on sale from May 2018.

For More MWC 2018 News, Click Here

Huawei P20 Piano Black With An All-Glass Design Leaks via Weibo Video

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Feb 27, 2018

Huawei P20 is already confirmed as coming on March 27 and ahead of that date we expect the Chinese company to intensify its media campaign in form of teasers and leaks and we really aren’t getting disappointed. Recently, the live images of the Huawei P20 made its way online. Now, the hands-on video from where the leaked images were grabbed have appeared on Weibo.

The leaked video reveals the phone’s design and showcase both sides, front as well as back. It appears that the phone comes with metal frame and glass body. The video also reveals that the phone will be featuring a full-screen display with 18:9 aspect ratio. The display takes up the majority area on the front panel. While the phone is rumoured to be sporting an iPhone X-like notch, we can’t see that in the video. Also, there’s no company or model branding on the front side but at the back, Huawei is written at the lower aspect.

On the back panel, the phone packs three camera sensors and an LED flash. From the top-left corner, two camera sensors are lined horizontally, followed by an LED flash and another camera sensor. The camera lenses come from Leica as the Leica branding is present in the top-right corner. As for the camera specs, an earlier leak shows that the camera will be a 12MP + 16MP + 16MP setup with OIS and f/1.8 aperture. At the front, the device packs a single 8MP camera sensor with f/2.0 aperture.

The device also comes with an all-glass design which is curved on all sides just like the Mate 10 Pro. Perhaps, this fuels speculations that the device may be the HP20 Pro whose specs recently leaked. We can’t be so sure about that, though, but we’ll find out all the juicy details about the P20 series on March 27.

(source, via)

The Huawei Y5 Lite (2018)/Y3 (2018) May Be Huawei’s First Android Go Phone

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Feb 27, 2018

If you are going to purchase an entry-level smartphone this year and onward, your best bet will be an Android Go phone. From the way things are going, consumers will be spoilt for choice as to which Android Go device to purchase. News has it that the upcoming Huawei Y5 Lite (2018) will also launch under the program.

The Huawei Y5 Lite will follow the steps of the Alcatel 1X, Nokia 1, and ZTE Temp Go in providing a version of Android that runs on devices with 1GB RAM or less.

The Huawei Y5 Lite (2018) is most definitely the same device as the Huawei Y3 (2018) seen at the FCC yesterday. The Y3 (2017) is known as the Y5 Lite (2017) in Latin America, so it makes sense that Huawei will keep to the naming scheme this year too.

The phone is said to have an 854 x 480 display, 1GB of RAM and 8GB of storage. It also has a dedicated MicroSD card slot and is powered by a MediaTek MT6737m processor. The rest of the specs are still a secret, so also is the launch date and price.

Samsung Galaxy J6 (SM-J600F) Spotted on Geekbench With an Exynos 7870 Chip

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Feb 27, 2018

Samsung has got a new J-series model in the works, a recent Geekbench listing has revealed. The device is the Galaxy J6 and was spotted on Geekbench which somewhat suggest the device will be launched this year. This is coming just after the Galaxy J4 and J8 were spotted in benchmarks.

The Galaxy J6 is listed with the model number SM-J600F and it packs a 1.6GHz Octa-core Cortex A-53 CPU built on the 14nm process. This is the same configuration as the Exynos 7870 chipset which was used on the Galaxy J5 (2017). The device is also listed to come with 2GB of RAM and the model runs Android 8. Oreo from the go which is a good sign that the device may likely ship with Android Oreo. There is no disclosure of the screen size or resolution but since Exynos 7870 supports a maximum screen resolution of 1,920×1,200, the J6 is expected to have at most a 1080p panel.

We have no idea when the device will be launched but since Samsung has the intention of expanding its presence in the mid-range segment, we could see the J-series models sometime soon.

Qualcomm Unveils Snapdragon 700 Mobile Platform Series

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Feb 27, 2018

Qualcomm’s presence at MWC 2018 can’t be overemphasized. Not only are its chips powering a large percentage of the phones announced at the event, the chip manufacturer is also there to showcase new technologies. Today, it has announced the new Snapdragon 700 mobile platform series for mobile devices.

The Snapdragon 700 series sits in-between the Snapdragon 600 and Snapdragon 800 series but boasts features usually found in the 800 series.

The new series brings on-device AI thanks to Qualcomm’s new Artificial Intelligence Engine with 2x the current AI performance of the Snapdragon 660. There are also camera improvements, improvement in device performance, and a 30% increase in power efficiency.

All these improvements are driven by Qualcomm’s Spectra ISP, Kryo CPU, Hexagon Vector Processor, and Adreno Visual Processing subsystem.

Xiaomi VP Confirms Company’s Plans To Enter the US market, Hints At IPO

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Feb 27, 2018

Xiaomi has admitted that it has ambitions of making an entry into the lucrative United States market.This was made known by the company;’s Senior VP, Wang Xiang in an interview with CNBC. The senior VP disclosed that his company is presently gathering the “resources” it needs for a major push in the U.S.

Xiaomi already sees some sale from the U.S, having partnered with Amazon.com where some of its products are on offers such as the Mi A1, the company’s only Android One smartphone and the Android TV Box. However, a full entrance into the U.S market is not possible without a partnership with one of the four major U.S carriers. That is because most of the annual phone sales in the U.S are usually sold by the carriers. A previous rumour which emerged several weeks back had hinted that Xiaomi was in negotiation with Verizon and AT&T over such a deal several months back but its large-scale U.S. plans remain unrealized.

The chances that Xiaomi will make headway in this regard are pretty slim considering the difficult Huawei is facing in its bid to enter the market. Huawei’s effort is facing rejection by the U.S authorities who feared user data can get compromised by the Chinese government. Fellow Chinese firm ZTE is also facing the same issue with its products including its telecommunications equipment. But then, Xiaomi may just be lucky.

Apart from that the Chinese tech giant is also reportedly planning to launch its IPO get which could help its bid to enter the market. Wang Xiang may have confirmed such rumours when he hinted that the company is gathering resources. Xiaomi is said to be planning a $100 billion valuation which could make it the largest tech float of 2018. The recent report also claims the company may likely use Hong Kong as its IPO host and file to have its shares listed on the public market in the second half of the year.

New Live Photos of Gionee W919 Clamshell Phone

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Feb 27, 2018

It has been over three months since the Gionee W919 was seen on TENAA. When it passed through the certification site, we presumed it was going to launch soon as a rival to Samsung’s W2018 clamshell flagship but it didn’t. There is still no announcement with respect to when it will launch but new live photos have been seen online.

[envira-gallery id=”176035″]

The Gionee W919 is a flagship flip phone based on its design and specs. Gionee has settled for a mix of glass, metal and leather with gold accents on the inside and out.

The pictures show the phone flipped open and closed, giving us a look at the two displays. Like the flip phones of old, the Gionee W919 has an alphanumeric keypad.

The Gionee W919 packs dual 4.2” HD displays, 6GB of RAM and 128GB of expandable storage. It is powered by a 2.5GHz octa-core processor that draws power from a 3000mAh battery. It also has a 16MP rear camera with a fingerprint scanner below it and a 5MP front facing camera.

Samsung Galaxy S9, S9+ Pricing for India Leaked

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Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Feb 27, 2018

Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 + were officially launched on Sunday at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2018. The South Korean company has already started with the pre-bookings of both phones in India. A leaked document has surfaced to reveal the pricing of the S9 and S9+ models that will be arriving in the country.

The Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ were introduced in storage choices like 64 GB, 128 GB and 256 GB. However, fresh information reveals that Samsung will be only selling the 64 GB and 256 GB editions of the Galaxy S9 and S9+ in India. The country will be receiving the Exynos 9810 chipset variants of both phones.

Leaked information states that the 64 GB and 128 GB Galaxy S9 models will carry respective MRP pricing of Rs. 62,500 and Rs. 71,000. On the other hand, the 64 GB and 256 GB variants of the Galaxy S9+ will have respective MRP price tag of Rs. 70,000 and Rs. 79,000. There is a possibility that the Galaxy S9 duo may arrive with lower pricing at launch.

The Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ will be available for buying through Samsung’s online shop. Since Flipkart has added a dedicated page for Galaxy S9 and S9+, it appears that the retailer will be exclusively selling the new Galaxies. Customers who are interested in buying the Galaxy S9 or S9+ can visit Samsung’s site and make an upfront payment of Rs. 2,000.

Samsung’s Foldable Phone Could be Delayed As Company Shifts Focus

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Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Feb 27, 2018

On Sunday, Samsung had unveiled the highly anticipated Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ flagship phones at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2018. During an interview at MWC 2018, DJ Koh who is the leading mobile business at Samsung said that the firm will concentrate on launching meaningful products, instead of being industry first in everything. Hence, it is speculated that the company may not hurry in launching the world’s first foldable smartphone. Recent reports have claimed that it may be launch in 2019. However, it is now speculated that its launch could be delayed further.

Koh said that the company had developed phones earlier than Chinese smartphone firms. However, it had been obsessed at launching devices with industry first technology, rather than whether the innovation will be meaningful for the end user. Koh added that launching industry first technology is not important today. Hence, the company will focus more on launching something that will be meaningful and valuable to the consumers.

During the launch event of Galaxy Note 8, the company had claimed that it would be launching a foldable smartphone in 2018. However, he confirmed that instead of foldable phone, the company would be debuting AI-based smart speaker in the second of the year.

Talking on the company’s plans for hardware innovation like foldable phone, Koh said that it would be launching such phones when it is fully ready. While speaking on the arrival of its Al speaker, Koh again stated that it will be launched when it is ready to deliver topnotch quality as it will be entering smart speaker market as a new brand.

According to Koh, the smart speaker will not only be a standalone music device, but a hub of IoT (Internet of Things) services that may possibly allow users to control it by talking to a TV or a fridge.

As far as the launch of the Galaxy S10 is concerned, Koh revealed that company may stop the existing numeric naming scheme for its next-generation Galaxy flagship phone arriving at the beginning months of 2019.

(source 1, 2)

For More MWC 2018 Coverage Click Here!

Vivo APEX Concept Phone Launching March 5

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Feb 27, 2018

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.