Giveaway – Win An Oukitel U18 iPhone X Style Phone

Get 22% Discount On AmpCore Ⅱ BW-TC12 Charging Data Cable’s Selling Price On Banggood

-

Feb 1, 2018

You can now preorder BlitzWolf AmpCore II BW-TC12 3A USB Type-C Charging Data Cable and get a discount on its original selling price of $4.49 on Banggood. Let’s check out the details.

Ampcore II cables boast a built-in 56k Ohm resistor, which stops your device from becoming too hot. Moreover, its nickel-plated reversible connector heads and braided wire sheath are built using a superior quality material to survive years of regular use.

Aside from that, AmpCore II BW-TC12 3A Charging Data Cable supports 3.6-12V fast charging at up to 3A and it works with multiple charging technologies including Qualcomm QC2.0, QC3.0, and MTK Pump Express Plus.

It allows you to charge and transfer data simultaneously with any Type C compatible device including SONY, Samsung, LG, Nokia, BlackBerry, HUAWEI, Xiaomi, HTC, and Lenovo, just to name a few. But if that doesn’t impress you much, it even comes with an 18-month warranty.On top of that, Banggood is giving a considerable 22% discount to those who preorder it before the promo comes to an end. Thanks to the discount, you now need to shell out only $3.49 to preorder AmpCore II BW-TC12 3A Charging Data Cable on Banggood.

You can head straight to this link and take advantage of the promo before it comes to an end.

Xiaomi Redmi 5A Rose Gold Color Variant Launched In India For Rs. 4,999

By

Jeet

-

Feb 1, 2018

Xiaomi has today launched a new Rose Gold color variant of its entry-level Redmi 5A phone in the Indian market. It will go on sale today for the first time for a price of Rs. 4,999 and will be available through online retailer Flipkart as well as the company’s official online store.

The Xiaomi Redmi 5A was launched in India in December last year and was available in two colors — Dark Grey and Gold. The phone was first announced in China in October. In India, the phone comes with some India-specific customizations.

The phone features a 5-inch HD display with 720 x 1280 pixels screen resolution. Under the hood, the device is powered by Qualcomm‘s Snapdragon 425 chipset that features a 1.4 GHz quad-core processor. This is the same chipset that powers Redmi Y1 Lite, Redmi 4A, Motorola Moto E4, ASUS ZenFone 4 Max, among others.

The device comes in two models based on the memory configuration — 2GB RAM and 16GB of internal storage and 3GB RAM with 32GB of onboard storage. The Redmi 5A features a f/2.2 aperture 13-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera. The 5-element rear lens is equipped with features like LED flash, HDR, Panorama, PDAF and Beauty Filter.

While the China model features a hybrid dual-SIM slot, the Indian variant comes with a dedicated microSD card apart from dual-SIM slots. According to the company, considering the warm weather conditions in India, they have included dual pyrolytic graphite sheets inside the Redmi 5A that can reduce its temperature by at least 1-degree Celsius.

Running on MIUI 9, which is based on Android Nougat operating system, the phone is powered by a 3,000mAh battery, which according to the company offers 8 days of standby time, 21 hours of music playback and 7 hours of video playback.

The Redmi 5A, which was launched in India on December 7 as a successor of the Redmi 4A, is already a huge hit in the Indian market. Last month, Xiaomi’s Global VP and Managing Director, Manu Kumar Jain said that the company has sold over 1 million units of the Redmi 5A in India in less than a month.

Vivo X20 Plus UD is Now Available for Buying in China

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

-

Feb 1, 2018

On Jan. 24, Vivo had officially launched the Vivo X20 Plus In-Screen Fingerprint smartphone after demonstrating at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2018. It is the world’s first phone to feature an under-display fingerprint sensor. Starting from 10 AM, the smartphone will be available for buying in China through the official website of Vivo and Jingdong Mall.

The Vivo X20 Plus UD is priced at 3,598 Yuan in China. It is available with some attractive freebies such as Vivo P50 5,000mAh power bank worth 99 Yuan and Smart Bracelet worth 99 Yuan.

The Vivo X20 Plus UD comes with a 6.43-inch AMOLED display that supports FHD+ resolution and 18:9 aspect ratio. The in-screen fingerprint sensor supplied by Synaptics is present between the top glass and OLED panel. It can be not only used for unlocking the phone but also for authenticating payments on WeChat and AliPay. Vivo recommends the users X20 Plus UD to make use of the thin screen protector provided with the device to safeguard the display and its fingerprint sensor. Using a thicker screen protector may hamper the performance of the fingerprint reader. The handset is also equipped with face recognition feature.

The Snapdragon 660 chipset along with 4 GB of RAM powers the X20 Plus In-Screen Fingerprint version. It has a native storage of 128 GB and also features a microSD card slot. The 3,905mAh battery of the phone carries support for fast charging. For photography, it is equipped with OIS-enabled dual camera setup that includes a 12-megapixel sensor and a 5-megapixel sensor. It has a selfie camera of 12-megapixel. The handset comes in a single color of black with gold aesthetics.

(source 1, 2)

You Can Now Buy Chuwi Hi9 Tablet PC For Only $169.99 On GearBest [Coupon Code]

By

Buy Chuwi Hi9 Tablet PC For Just $169.99 On GearBest

-

Feb 1, 2018

Avid gamers, rejoice. If you’ve restlessly been waiting to get your hands on a powerful gaming tablet PC without shelling out a lot of money, we have good news for you.

You can now save a considerable amount of money when you buy Chuwi Hi9 gaming tablet on GearBest. Let’s delve straight into the details.

The power-packed tablet PC is currently up for grabs for $205.33 on GearBest, but you can save $35.34 by using coupon code ‘CHUWIHi9’ at the time of checking out. This brings your subtotal down to just $169.99.

In terms of specs, the Hi9 tablet PC sports an 8.4-inch 10-point touch display that breathes life into a regular photo or video. Moreover, it runs on Android 7.0 Nougat operating system that guarantees an awe-inspiring user experience.

Under the hood, the Hi9 tablet PC packs a powerful MTK8173 quad-core 1.9GHz processor, coupled with 4GB of LPDDR3 RAM and 64GB eMMC ROM. On the photography front, the high-end gaming tablet sports a 5.0MP camera at the back and a 2.0MP front shooter for a face-to-face chat.

You can head straight to this link in order to take advantage of the coupon code before it expires.

Buy XiaoMi 3 USB Charging Ports Mini Power Strip For Just $9.70 On LightInTheBox

By

Get 49% Off On XiaoMi 3 USB Charging Ports Mini Power Strip’s Original Selling Price On LightInTheBox

-

Feb 1, 2018

As part of its Lightning sale, international online retail company, LightInTheBox is currently offering 49% discount on the original $18.89 selling price of XiaoMi 3 USB Charging Ports Mini Power Strip. This reduces its asking price to just $9.70.

The ultra-thin power strip gives your wall a clean and tidy appearance. The internal structure material is built from top quality tin phosphor bronze. The device boasts superior elasticity, coupled with robust electrical conductivity and strong wear-resistance.

This compact and highly portable XiaoMi Power Strip also offers 3 USB2.0 charging ports, which you can use to charge your phones, tablets, e-books and a slew of other common devices such as digital cameras at the same time. Moreover, it offers electric leakage protection up to 20uA threshold for added safety.

You can buy XiaoMi 3 USB Charging Ports Mini Power Strip at a discounted price on LightInTheBox only for a limited period of time so head straight to this link before the promo comes to an end. It’s also worth noting that just 276 pieces were left at the time of writing.

Galaxy Note 9 Unlikely to Feature 7nm Chip

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

-

Feb 1, 2018

Recent reports have revealed that Apple’s upcoming A12 chipset will be built by TSMC with 7nm manufacturing process. The Apple A12 chipset will be reportedly used to power the 2018 iPhones. It was previously speculated Samsung too will power the Galaxy Note 9 with 7nm chipset. However, fresh information suggests that the Note 9 may feature 10nm or 8nm chipset instead of 7nm chipset.

The Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ that are going to launch in the next month will be powered by Snapdragon 845 and Exynos 9810 chipsets that are built with Samsung’s second-generation 10nm LPP manufacturing process. The South Korean company is mass producing the 10nm LPP chipsets at the newly built S3 unit in the home country. It has claimed that the 7nm FinFET process technology with Extreme Ultra Violet (EUV) will be also produced at the same plant. However, the company has not provided any timeframe on the production of 7nm chips.

It was speculated that after building 10nm chipsets, the 8nm LLP chipsets would be built alongside the 7nm EUV or before it. However, Samsung has recently confirmed through a recent press release that it will be ramping up the production of second-generation 10nm chipsets for this year’s flagship phones. Hence, it is unlikely that the company will be mass producing 7nm chipset this year.

According to Samsung, it will be providing its clients with 8nm and 11nm processes and it will be starting a risk production of 7nm node. The 2018 iPhones are expected to be powered by 7nm chipsets manufactured by TSMC. Hence, in terms of chipsets, the next-generation iPhones may defeat the Galaxy Note 9, unless the latter features an 8nm chip. Its production is expected begin in the second half of this year. Hence, it is likely that Samsung may use second-generation 10nmm chipsets to power the Galaxy Note 9

(source 1 ,2|via)

Buy Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus 4G Smartphone For Only $209.99 On LightInTheBox

By

Get 36% Off On The Original Selling Price Of Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus Smartphone On LightInTheBox

-

Feb 1, 2018

Xiaomi took the wraps off its hotly-anticipated Redmi 5 Plus smartphone in December 2017. As expected, the phone garnered huge popularity among smartphone enthusiasts.

You too can now get your hands on the very well-received Redmi 5 Plus 5 4G smartphone without spending a fortune. The dual-SIM smartphone is currently up for grabs for only $209.99 on LightInTheBox. The phone’s original asking price is $325.48.

In other words, LightInTheBox is offering a massive 36% discount on the Redmi 5 Plus’ original selling price. The discount is available for the black color version of the handset.

In terms of specs, the Redmi 5 Plus smartphone offers 3GB of RAM and 32GB of onboard memory and packs a powerful Qualcomm MSM8953 Snapdragon 625 processor, under the hood. Moreover, it sports a massive 5.99-inch display with a screen resolution of 2160 X 1080 pixels.

In order to check the full specification of Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus 4G smartphone and take advantage of the promo, head straight to this link.

GeekBuying Is Offering Massive Discounts On Selected Xiaomi-Branded Items

By

Geekbuying Is Giving Massive Discount On Selected Mi-Branded Items

-

Feb 1, 2018

Beijing-based electronics and software company, Xiaomi is renowned for manufacturing consumer electronics such as laptops, smartphones, mobile apps, and smartwatches. GeekBuying is now offering considerable discounts on a slew of selected Mi-branded smartwatches and home essentials items for a limited period of time.

First off, the site is offering a considerable 53% off on Xiaomi Mijia Induction Cooker, which carries a price tag of $254.64. You can now get your hands on the electric cooker for only +$119.99. This promo is slated to end in just 4 days.

Likewise, GeekBuying is offering 38% discount on the original $274.99 selling price of Xiaomi HUAMI AMAZFIT Stratos Smart Sports Watch 2. You can now buy this smartwatch by shelling out just $169.99 on GeekBuying.

The site is also selling Original Xiaomi Yuemi Pro MK02 Wired Gaming Mechanical Keyboard for just $159.99. This is a considerable 20% reduction in the keyboard’s original selling price of $199.99. This promo ends in just 4 days.

Flash Deals

This section comprises four items including Xiaomi Philips Smart E27 Bulb, SARMOCARE M100 Electric Toothbrush, Xiaomi Wireless Mouse, and Xiaomi Amazfit Cor Smart Bracelet. As part of its latest promo, GeekBuying is giving big discounts on the above-mentioned items for a limited period of time.

For instance, Xiaomi Philips Smart LED Ball Lamp WiFi Remote Control E27 Bulb, which sells for $27.15 is currently up for grabs for only $8.99 on GeekBuying. This is a massive 67% discount on its original asking price.

Mi Smart Life

This category features items such as Xiaomi Miaomiaoce Digital Thermometer, Xiaomi Miaomiaoce Digital Thermometer Hygrometer E-ink Ink Screen Display, Xiaomi Smate SH-A161 Hair Dryer 1600W Double Negative Ions 2 Speed Temperature with Nozzle Collaps and a myriad of other smart gadgets that come in handy in day to day life.

In this section, you can preorder Xiaomi Mijia Digital Female Basic Thermometer for just $26.99. It’s worth noting that the device bears a price tag of $46.92 without the discount offered by GeekBuying.

Smart Watches

While fitness and fashion brands are leaving no stones unturned in a bid to come out with more and more specialized watches, Xiaomi continues to manufacture and sell some of the best smartwatches that are currently up for grabs in the market. But these gadgets can sometimes carry a very steep price tag.

If you’ve been waiting to get your hands on a Xiaomi-branded smartwatch without burning a hole in your pocket, we have good news for you. GeekBuying is offering discounts on selected smartwatches including the Original Xiaomi Mi Band 2 Smart Bracelet, which is currently selling at a discounted price of $23.99 on the site.

Others

This segment of GeekBuying’s promo features scads of useful appliances such as Xiaomi Mi Air Purifier 2 Real-time AQI Smart Air Cleaner, Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum Cleaner Robot, and Xiaomi Philips Smart LED Ball Lamp E27 Bulb.

While GeekBuying is still offering discounts on various Mi-branded items, it is imperative for you to bear in mind that the promo will be wrapping up soon. Moreover, there were only a few pieces of some items left at the time of writing.

You can head straight to this link in order to take advantage of GeekBuying’s latest discounts before the promo comes to an end.

Huawei Confirmed As Launching The P11/P20 on March 27

By

-

Jan 31, 2018

There were speculations recently that Huawei may launch the P11 or P20 series at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2018 holding in Barcelona. Another line of thought soon emerged that since there is a possible clash of the launch event with that of the Galaxy S9 series, a new date might be chosen for its launch. It has now been confirmed by GSMArena that the flagship Huawei P11 which we still don’t know if it would be called P20, would not be unveiled at MWC 2018 but Huawei will hold a special event on March 27 where it would unveil the P11/P20. The details also include that the event would be held in Paris, France.

The next-generation Huawei P-series is expected to be made up of three different models a P11/P20, and a bigger-sized P11/P20 Plus as well as a P11/P20 Lite. There is also rumors of a P11/ P20 Pro which would feature a display notch similar to that of the iPhone X with the 18:9 aspect ratio, That has also been talks of the flagship models utilizing three dual cameras but that could just be the figment of someone’s imagination. It just concept images we have seen about that anyway.

The upcoming models are also expected to arrive with a full-screen design similar to what Huawei did on the Mate 10 Pro. The models will equally be fueled by a Kirin 970 chipset which has AI capabilities. However, the Lite version may feature a different specs lineup. Huawei had made trademark applications for both the P20 moniker and later on P11. So, we’ll have to wait till it is officially unveiled to know the real name. We expect more details to be outed, though, before the March 27 launch date.

Counterpoint’s 2017 Chinese Market Ranking Places Huawei At Top Spot, Xiaomi In Fourth

By

-

Jan 31, 2018

Research firm Counterpoint Research has released its statistical data for smartphone shipments in China for the entire quarters of 2017. The statistical data shows the global smartphone market shares for Q3 2017 as well as the mobile phone market shipment comprising both smartphones and feature phones.According to the report, last year was a not so positive one for the market in China as sales volume grew by 5% but there was a 1% drop in smartphone shipments compared to the previous year. Shipments took a dive with a 4% drop in market shares YoY in Q4 2017 but in Q3, shipments were up by 5% when compared to the same period last year. Counterpoint’s James Yan, a research director explained that the year 2017 was a tough one for the Chinese handset makers due to a reduction in smartphone shipments. This is said to be due to the huge shipments made in 2016 to balance the huge marketing expenditures in the second half of the year which led to the need to clean up the inventory accumulated in 2016 last year. The surge in full-screen models being launched in China was in a way a move to get many buyers to replace their smartphones with new models which would help the overall sales. But then this created a lot of inventory of older models which had to compete with the new full-screen models.

On the individual OEM scale, Huawei emerged as the number one Chinese smartphone brand. Huawei’s shipments increased by 8% in the fourth quarter of 2017 and in the entire year it grew by 19% YoY. Thus, the company is the number one manufacturer n China last year. Don’t forget also that Huawei still ranks among the top 3 global manufacturers. Huawei is closely followed by OPPO with an 18% growth and then Vivo is at number 3 with 17% compared to 2016’s 14% growth. China’s Apple, Xiaomi came in at the number 4 spot after resurging from a turbulent 2016. The company saw its market share grow by just 1% from 11% in 2016 to 12% last year. U.S giant Apple Corp. completes the top five with an 11% shipment. Apple’s market share remained stagnant at 11% which is a result of slumping sales last year. Also worthy of note is the huge drop in the gross shipments by other mobile phone vendors from 33% to 23%.

OPPO A71 (2018) Official: Snapdragon 450 Chip, 13MP Rear Cam, ColorOS 3.2 & More

By

-

Jan 31, 2018

Chinese smartphone maker OPPO has gone official with a new budget model which it dubbed OPPO A71 (2018). The smartphone is presently listed on OPPO’s Pakistan website with the full specs and features displayed but the price tag wasn’t listed.

Design wise, the OPPO A71 (2018) comes with the traditional 16:9 display design, packing a front home button just under this display. The device equally packs an all-metal rear cover with the U-shaped fused antenna band lying at the extreme top and bottom edges. The rear body is wrapped with a gold coating said to have been done using electroplating and nano-silver technology. There is also a black variant also coated using the same electroplating technique. The edges are well chamfered to create an easy grip. The device weighs just 137g and has a dimension of 148.1 x 73.8 x 7.6mm.

Specs wise, the OPPO A71 (2018) features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 processor which is a relatively new chipset Qualcomm announced at MWC Shanghai 2017. The processor is backed by 2GB of RAM while there is 16GB storage available on the model which can be expanded up to 256GB. The graphic is fired up by an Adreno 506 GPU. The A71 sports a 5.2-inch TFT capacitive touchscreen display with HD resolution of 1920 x 720pixels and 16 million colors. On the camera end, the OPPO budget smartphone packs a 13MP rear camera sensor with a f/2.2 aperture while at the front is a 5MP sensor having an aperture of f/2.4.

Proving the interface on the new OPPO A71 (2018) is ColorOS 3.2 based on Android 7.1 Nougat while a 3,000mAh battery keeps the lights on. The device also comes with OTG function and so can be used to fuel other devices. The A71 comes with GPS support as well as WiFi and Bluetooth 4.2. No word yet on the pricing or if this model will be available in any other market.

Mystery Meizu Smartphone Gets 3C Certification, Could Be Meizu 15

By

-

Jan 31, 2018

Since after Meizu launched the Meizu M6S, the next models which have kept the Chinese tech media buzzing are the Meizu 15 and 15 Plus. The tech giant is expected to launch both models to mark its 15 years anniversary. But not much is known about the models save for a couple of leaked renders that have appeared online. In what could be its first official appearance, a Meizu model believed to be the M15 has reported gotten 3C Certification. The model appeared with the model number M851Q.

The 3C Certificate, or China Compulsory Certification (CCC) and also called China CCC Certification, is a mandatory product certification system with the aim protecting consumer’s security through the supervision of products meant for the Chinese market. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) or TENAA already oversees the certification of mobile phones but 3C covers mainly the smartphone charges. So, it is basically the charger ratings that are uncovered whenever a new model is certified. In this case, the M851Q is shown to feature support for 5V/2A, 10V/2A charger rating. The charger has a power of 20W which isn’t very high. Thus, it is suspected that the Meizu 15 may have a standard edition and a flagship edition. Perhaps, only the Meizu 15 Plus will come with flagship specs just as the Pro 7 had mid-range and flagship versions.

The specifications of the Meizu 15 and 15 Plus not known but the leaked renders suggest the presence of a full-screen design. The device is also expected to feature dual camera sensors at the rear arranged in the vertical direction while under the camera setup, there will be a unique round LED flash. As for the processor that would power the models, we still don’t know if Meizu will utilize a Qualcomm Snapdragon flagship SoC or a Samsung Exynos chipset. Of course, since they are flagship models we may not find a MediaTek chip onboard because MediaTek has exited the flagship chipset market.

Live Photo Of Doogee V’s AMOLED Display Panel Surfaces

By

Habeeb Onawole

-

Jan 31, 2018

Early this month, we saw two leaked renders of an unannounced Doogee V smartphone. Although both smartphones had different rear designs, they both had a similar display – an 18:9 display with a notch like that of the iPhone X.

Doogee’s official Twitter account today shared a live photo of the AMOLED display. The picture shows one working prototype and another one turned off.

The color reproduction of the working prototype doesn’t look bad but we won’t pass a final judgement until we get to see the final device. Doogee has done well to keep the bezels on the sides and at the bottom minimal. At the top is a notch that is home to the sensor, earpiece, and front facing camera.

There is no info as to who the supplier for the AMOLED display is. While Samsung may be the first guess, they most likely are not seeing as their production of AMOLED displays will be geared towards their own phones and other bigger clients like Apple and OnePlus. So our best guess is this is from a local Chinese manufacturer like BOE or Japan’s JDI.

Continue

You Could Decide What To Call The Next MIUI Version: MIUI X or MIUI 10? Voting Begins!

By

-

Jan 31, 2018

Xiaomi‘s co-founder and Senior VP Hong Feng who is also head of the MIUI team recently announced the commencement of the next generation of its MIUI custom ROM. The senior VP made this known during the company’s 2017 summary meeting. Since then, no further details have been disclosed by the company in that regard. However, Xiaomi has kickstarted an opinion poll where it hopes to get the opinions of her fans on what to call the upcoming MIUI version.

The option poll is hosted on the MIUI Weibo page and the contention is between MIUI 10 and MIUI X. Surprisingly, during the recent conference where the next MIUI version was announced, it was clearly displayed on the projector screen as MIUI 10. But it seems Xiaomi has other ideas and the reason given for the poll is that the tenth edition of MIUI will be a special one hence the drive to get fans decide the name it woul be called. There were rumors earlier on as carried in one of our previous report that the MIUI 10 may likely be called MIUI X.

Voting is ongoing presently and would be opened for the next six days. As at the time of filing this report, over 5,000 persons have voted, including yours sincerely. Clearly, MIUI 10 is preferred by over 4,000 respondents, representing 78.7% of the total votes cast so far. So, what do you think? MIUI 10 or MIUI X? You too can make your opinion count be heading over to Weibo if you have a registered Weibo account.

Xiaomi Redmi 5 Gets 100 Yuan ($16) Price Cut In China On Feb 1st!

By

Jeet

-

Jan 31, 2018

Xiaomi Redmi 5, the first smartphone from Xiaomi to come with a full-screen display will be receiving a 100 Yuan (approximately $16) price cut in China on 1st February. The offer is applicable only for one day and will begin at 10:00 AM. It seems that the offer is only applicable on the Redmi 5 and not the Redmi 5 Plus variant.

With this discount, the 2GB RAM + 16GB internal storage model will be available for 699 Yuan, which roughly converts to $111. Apparently, the discount is only for the 2GB RAM variant and pricing for other variants remains same.

The 3GB RAM + 32GB storage model will cost 899 Yuan (approximately $143) while the 4GB RAM + 32GB variant, which was recently launched, will be available for 1099 Yuan (approximately $175).

The Xiaomi Redmi 5 comes with a 5.7-inch HD+ display with 720 x 1440 pixels screen resolution and an aspect ratio of 18:9. Under the hood, the device is powered by Qualcomm‘s Snapdragon 450 octa-core processor, clocked at 1.8GHz, along with Adreno 506 GPU.

It features a f/2.2 aperture 12-megapixel rear camera sensor with 1.25 µm pixel size that is equipped with a Soft-LED flash. It also comes equipped with some other features like PDAF, dark light enhancement technology, facial recognition, HDR, Panorama, and Burst mode. On the front, there’s a 5-megapixel selfie snapper that is coupled with features like Smart Beauty 5.0, facial recognition, and full HD video recording at 30 fps.

Because of the full-screen design, there are no capacitive touch buttons and instead, the users will have to rely on the on-screen buttons for navigation. Also, the fingerprint scanner has been placed on the phone’s back panel.

The device is running on Android Nougat operating system based company’s own MIUI 9. Connectivity options on the device include hybrid dual SIM slot with support for microSD card, microUSB, full netcom support, 4G, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, 4.2 Bluetooth, 3.5mm audio jack and GPS. The Redmi 5 is powered by a 3,300mAh battery.

The Xiaomi Redmi 5 sports the familiar three-stage design found on other Redmi phones. It comes with a full metallic body and is available in four color options — Gold, Rose Gold, Blue, and Black.

4-Year Old Xiaomi Redmi Note And Redmi 1s Updated to MIUI 9

By

Michele Ingelido

-

Jan 31, 2018

For most of the important smartphones, the software support by companies ends in about two years, but it is not so with Xiaomi phones. The Chinese giant is providing a very long software support for its phones, even though the stable version of Android 8.0 Oreo is yet to make its debut on the recent flagships of the company. But in the meantime, the first Xiaomi Redmi Note from 2014 and the Redmi 1s have been updated to MIUI 9.

Both these devices were released about 4 years ago, but they have been updated to the latest version of the Mi user interface in 2018. The version of MIUI arrived on Xiaomi Redmi Note and Xiaomi Redmi 1s is the 9.2.2.0, but even though it is the latest version of the user interface, it is still based on Android 4.4 KitKat and not on Android Nougat like the other recent phones updated. Further, the security patch remains very old: it is the one from October 2016. Anyways, this update is still a great thing and it brings the important features of the new MIUI 9 on these two old phones.

Among these features, there is the split screen mode which allows you to open two apps in the same screen, the Search for Apps feature, the Dual Apps which allows having two accounts on a single app in the same device, the customizable Quick Cards and much more. Xiaomi Redmi 1s was released with MIUI 6.0 out of the box. It is actually a low-end device with a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 SoC running at a max frequency of 1.6 GHz. The SoC is paired with just 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of internal storage. Xiaomi Redmi Note has an octa-core MediaTek MT6592 processor with a max frequency of 1.7 GHz and it was released in two configurations with 1 and 2 GB of RAM.

(Source, Via)

Honor 9 Lite Lands In Italy and Russia

By

Habeeb Onawole

-

Jan 31, 2018

After launching in China and India, the Honor 9 Lite is headed to Europe next. Although Europe already has a mid-range Honor phone in form of the Honor 7X, the Honor 9 Lite will appeal to those who want a smaller 18:9 smartphone.

Honor 9 Lite Russia — Honor 9 Lite as seen on official Russian Huawei site

Italy and Russia are the first two countries that get the Honor 9 Lite. The variant available there and expected to be available in other European countries is the 3GB RAM + 32GB ROM version. However, it is much more expensive than the price in China.

The 3GB Honor 9 Lite is sold for ¥1199 (~$190/~€153) in China but it is priced at a whopping €229 (~¥1790/~$285) in Italy. There is no price info for Russia.

The Honor 9 Lite has a 5.65” FHD+ display and is powered by the same Kirin 659 processor as other Huawei/Honor mid-range phones released in the last couple of months.

Its selling point is its dual front (13MP + 2MP) and dual rear (13MP + 2MP) rear cameras. It has a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner, a microSD card slot (SIM slot 2), and packs a 3000mAh battery. It also runs EMUI 8.0 based on Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box.

Continue

Coolpad CEO Claims Xiaomi Violated Over 200 of Its Patents & Lawsuit Is To Create Awareness

By

-

Jan 31, 2018

The Chinese media was agog recently with news that Coolpad had sued Xiaomi before a Beijing court for patent infringement. Xiaomi had come out after that to deny the allegation and stated that it is yet to receive the court papers. The latest gist coming out of that story comes from Coolpad’s CEO Jiang Chao who revealed that Xiaomi’s infringement of its patents spans more than 200 patents. The CEO, however, stated that they decided to sue Xiaomi for just six out of the 200.

Jiang Chao hinted that the purpose of selecting just 6 out of the 200 patents that Xiaomi and others infringed pon was to enhance China’s awareness and protection of intellectual property rights. He particularly noted that Coolpad does not intend to take advantage of Xiaomi’s rising status. Jiang also revealed that Coolpad has more than 10,000 patents authorized only for use by Qualcomm, and are not licensed for use by third parties. He noted that hundreds of patents related to dual standby are not even available to Qualcomm.

Xiaomi in its earlier response disclosed that it holds several patent agreements with Microsoft, Nokia, and other patent holders. In addition to that, the company hinted that it is also increasing its Research & Development effort with investments in that regard. Xiaomi recently opened a new R&D center in Shenzhen, Mainland China. But if Coolpad claims to have the patent in China covering dual standby, then Xiaomi must have dabbled into its dragnet even if the patent it used was from Nokia or Microsoft since Coolpad is a Chinese holder of the same patent.