Sony Confirms MWC 2018 Press Event for February 26; May Debut Sony Xperia XZ Pro

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Jan 17, 2018

Sony had recently launched Xperia XA2 and Xperia XA2 Ultra mid-range smartphones and the low-end Xperia L2 smartphone at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2018 tech trade show. Since the company did not unveil flagship smartphones at CES 2018, the rumor mill has been claiming that the Japanese tech giant will be holding an unveil event at the upcoming Mobile World Congress (MWC) in the next month to announce high-end and flagship smartphones. Sony has now made it official that it will be holding a press event on Feb. 26. However, it did not confirm on the devices that will be unveiled at MWC 2018.

Rumors are rife that Sony may announce at least two new Xperia smartphones and one of them could be the Xperia XZ Pro that will be arriving as a successor for the Xperia XZ Premium. The other one could be the Xperia XZ2. It is speculated that the Xperia XZ Pro may carry a bezel-less design like the current flagship phones from other brands.

The Sony Xperia XZ Pro is pegged to arrive with a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner and a dual camera setup featuring a 13-megapixel sensor and a 12-megapixxel sensor. It is expected to arrive with a 5.7-inch OLED display that will be producing 4K resolution. However, there is no confirmation on whether it will be sporting an aspect ratio of 18:9. It is rumored to house a 13-megapixel selfie camera.

The Snapdragon 845 chipset is speculated to power the Xperia XZ Pro along with 6 GB of RAM. It is may feature a native storage of 128 GB and come loaded with Android 8.0 Oreo OS. A 3,420mAh battery is expected to power the Xperia XZ Pro. The premium flagship phone is rumored to debut with a price tag of 6,000 Yuan (~$930). It is speculated that even though the Sony Xperia XZ Pro will be announced at MWC 2018, it won’t available for buying immediately. It is likely to hit the shelves later in June.

Meizu M6S vs Redmi 5 Plus: Who Would You Pick?

By

Michele Ingelido

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Jan 17, 2018

With the newly-announced Meizu M6s, another one of the mainstream Chinese smartphone manufacturers has finally joined the bezel-less club. The company has decided to release a phone which has a great quality-price ratio, but at the same time offers innovation and good mid-range performance. That is why we think it is time to compare it with one of the most wanted Chinese midranges: Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus. First of all, let’s see their specs: Meizu M6S vs Redmi 5 Plus.

Meizu M6S vs Redmi 5 Plus

	Meizu M6s	Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
DIMENSIONS AND WEIGHT	N/D	158.5 x 75.5 x 8.1 mm, 180 grams
DISPLAY	5.7 inches, 720 x 1440p (HD+), 282 ppi, 18:9 ratio, IPS LCD	5.99 inches, 1080 x 2160p (Full HD+), 403 ppi, 18:9 ratio, IPS LCD
PROCESSOR	Samsung Exynos 7872, hexa-core 2 GHz	Qualcomm Snapdragon 625, octa-core 2.0 GHz
MEMORY	3 GB RAM, 32 GB – 3 GB RAM, 64 GB – micro SD slot	3 GB RAM, 32 GB – 4 GB RAM, 64 GB, micro SD slot
SOFTWARE	Android 7.0 Nougat, Flyme UI 6.2	Android 7.1.2 Nougat, MIUI 9
CONNECTIVITY	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS
CAMERA	16 MP f/2.0 8 MP front camera	12 MP f/2.2 5 MP front camera
BATTERY	3000 mAh 18W fast charging	4000 mAh Fast charging 5V / 2A
ADDITIONAL FEATURES	Hybrid Dual SIM slot	Hybrid Dual SIM slot

Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus offers a slightly bigger display which is also more detailed due to the higher resolution. Aesthetically, we define the Meizu M6s more refined and comfortable to use, due to its smaller dimensions and the side-mounted fingerprint reader. Further, the pressure sensor together with the Super mBack technology enables very comfortable gestures to navigate into the UI. According to Geekbench, Meizu M6s has a much better SoC than the Snapdragon 625 found on the Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus: the hexa-core Samsung Exynos 7872 scored better points. But we will have to test it personally to see how it behaves in every scenario.

We did not find the 13 MP camera on the Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus so exciting, so there’s a good chance that the 16 MP sensor of the M6s developed by Samsung will do a better job at shooting photos. On the other hand, Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus will probably have a much longer battery life thanks to its 4000 mAh lithium unit and the power-efficient Snapdragon 625 SoC. The software sides are both very good, MIUI and Flyme are two of the best UIs in the smartphones market, even though both the versions found on these two phones are still based on Android Nougat. But in general, MIUI has been the more popular one among the two. The prices are almost equivalent, Meizu M6s has just been launched in China with a price tag of about $186/€152 and Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus can actually be found at the same price, more or less.

Display and battery are the two areas where Redmi 5 Plus does well. However, the Meizu M6S has an edge with the innovative halo button (Super mBack) and a side mounted fingerprint sensor, that could be more convenient to use on a daily basis. Even Exynos 7872 can be called as one of the highlights of the phone.

[yop_poll id=”10″]

Meizu M6S vs Redmi 5 Plus: PRO and CONS

Meizu M6s

PRO

Potentially better SoC
Affordable price
Potentially better camera
More compact

CONS

HD display

Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus

PRO

Wide and hi-res display
Big battery
Affordable price
Good hardware

CONS

Unimpressive camera

OnePlus’ Website Reportedly Hacked, Credit Card Payments Now Disabled

By

Jed John Ikoba

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Jan 17, 2018

OnePlus‘ CEO Peter Lau recently revealed that the company raked in more than 1.4 billion in revenue in 2017, double of what it earned in 2016. This is a monumental feat by the Chinese tech giant but it seems not everyone was happy about that. Seems some clever dudes are making attempt to get their share of that huge revenue by fleecing customers at OnePlus’ official website- Oneplus.net.

Several users have reported that their credit card details have been leaked and the unknown culprit has been on the loose, trying to spend tons of their money on coupons, random betting sites, and other such quick-to-cash-out places. Most of the affected complainants report that the incidence started after they shopped at OnePlus.net. In some cases, they claimed that the compromised cards have only been used at OnePlus’ online store. The good news is that the fraudsters have been prevented from succeeding by security built-in on modern credit card systems to stop such. That notwithstanding, it is important users who have shopped on OnePlus’ website with their credit cards keep an eye on their transaction history for any unusual credit card transaction until it is tackled. Better still, avoid using your credit card but instead check out using PayPal.

OnePlus has responded to the complaints, indicating that the website does not store users’ credit card details but indicated that they are investigating the report. The company did not say if there was indeed a breach or not but those with complaints are directed to forward such to [email protected]. As a precautionary measure, OnePlus has now disabled credit card payments on OnePlus.net. For now, customers will only be able to make payment using their PayPal account until the investigation is concluded or an alternative payment platform is added.

(source)

Xiaomi Redmi 5 Global Launch In February, To Have Band 20 Support

By

Habeeb Onawole

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Jan 17, 2018

Xiaomi fans all over the world are definitely eager for the Chinese manufacturer to release its new phones – the Redmi 5 and Redmi 5 Plus globally. New reports say that date may not be far off, at least for the Redmi 5.

Leaker @Rquandt revealed in a tweet that the Redmi 5 will launch globally in the second half of February. He also adds that the phone will have support for LTE Band 20. The Chinese model supports FDD LTE bands 1, 3, 5, 7, and 8.

Xiaomi Redmi 5 going global in the second half of February. Including LTE Band 20 making it work in full on certain Euro operators,

— Roland Quandt (@rquandt) January 17, 2018

There is no mention of the countries it will be available in but more details should surface soon.

The Redmi 5 is Xiaomi’s cheapest phone with an 18:9 display. The screen is 5.7” with a 1440 x 720 resolution and 450 nits of brightness.

Under the hood is a Snapdragon 450 mobile platform, 2GB/3GB of RAM, and 16GB/32GB of storage. There is also a 3300mAh battery for juice.

Continue

Oppo A83 With 5.7-Inch Display And 13MP Camera Launched In India

By

Jeet

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Jan 17, 2018

As we reported earlier, Oppo has today launched a new mid-range smartphone in the Indian market — Oppo A83. The phone was originally launched in China last month. Priced at Rs. 13,999 (approximately $219), the device will go on sale in India from 20th January.

The phone will be available through Amazon India and Flipkart as well as through offline stores. The device will be available in two colour options — Black and Gold.

According to the company, the Oppo A83 has been designed in line with its UFO Curve Design Philosophy. The phone comes with a full-screen display with thin bezels and comes preloaded with the company’s AI Beauty Recognition technology to enhance selfies and group shots.

The Oppo A83 sports a 5.7-inch HD+ LCD display with screen resolution of 1440 x 720 pixels and 18:9 aspect ratio. The phone is powered by a MediaTek MT6763T processor, clocked at 2.5GHz. It is coupled with 4GB RAM and 32GB of internal storage.

There is also a microSD card slot, enabling users to further expand its storage capacity up to 256GB. It comes with a 13-megapixel camera sensor on the back with an LED flash and an 8-megapixel front camera sensor. The rear camera sensor supports Ultra-HD mode that can create an image of 50-megapixel resolution.

The front-facing camera sensor also supports face unlocking. Through its proprietary technology, the camera is touted to capture more than 200 facial points to refine features and compose the face contour with precision.

Connectivity options on the device include Dual SIM, 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth v4.2, GPS/ A-GPS, Micro-USB, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The phone is fuelled by a 3,180mAh battery.

ZTE Reveals The Axon M Will Launch in China On Jan. 20 & Would Hit Europe Soon

By

Jed John Ikoba

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Jan 17, 2018

Chinese smartphone maker ZTE first unveiled the Axon M with a foldable display back in November in the U.S. The device was launched in collaboration with U.S carrier AT&T. ZTE is yet to bring its first foldable smartphone home to its Chinese fans and was expected to do that yesterday (January 16). However, it turns out that yesterday was just another promotional event where the company announced that the device would be available in China on January 20.

The foldable smartphone is already up for pre-order online via MyZTE.com and JD.com. Interested individuals in China can also get the device offline via China Telecom stores. In addition, the Axon M will also be launched later the present quarter in Europe and would be available via Vodafone and TIM and other “leading carriers”. Unfortunately, we are yet to get the price it would be sold for. The ZTE Axon M sells for $725 in the U.S when buying outrightly. Customers also have the option of accessing the device through installment payments via AT&T Next scheme which enables them to pay $24.17 each month for a period of 30 months.

The Axon M comes with an innovative foldable design which accorded ZTE a CES 2018 Innovation Award. The foldable device packs a pair of 5.2-inch screens with full HD resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. It has a single 20MP camera at the rear with image stabilization, PDAF, and 4K video recording. The device is powered by a Snapdragon 821 chipset paired with 4 GB of RAM and there is 64GB of internal storage onboard. The handset is preinstalled with Android 7.1.2 Nougat OS and keeping the lights on is a generous 3,180mAh battery.

Check Out These Cool Meizu M6S Hands on Photos

By

Jed John Ikoba

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Jan 17, 2018

Meizu has finally taken the wraps off the much-anticipated Meizu M6S mid-range smartphone and it doesn’t disappoint. The device features a stylish design which is combined with exquisite craftsmanship to create a model having a side-mounted fingerprint sensor. Here some hands-on photos of the device which we picked up from Weibo and it offers better views of the premium, cheap mid-ranger.

The full-screen design made it impossible for the traditional mBack button to be mounted at the front. Instead of using a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor design, Meizu chose to experiment with a side sensor which many manufacturers have been shying away from. The fingerprint sensor is touted as being able to unlock the device in just 0.2 seconds. The device packs on-screen navigation keys and the round home button at the middle still functions as the mBack button.

At the rear, the device doesn’t look very spectacular, as it adopts a design similar to what Meizu has done in the past. The M6S features a metal body with the U-shaped antenna band acting as borders at the top and bottom edges. At a time dual cameras rule the airwave, Meizu chose to stick to a single rear camera which is located at the center. There is a round-shaped LED flash just under the rear camera. And remarkably, the hands on photos show the presence of the mBlu ogo just underneath the LED flash at the back. Meizu’s official renders of the device released during its launch have the Meizu logo printed on the back. So, its either something changed at the last minute or we’ll see the mBlu branding on the Chinese models while the international models would bear the Meizu branding.

As a reminder, the Meizu M6S features a 5.7-inch 18:9 in-cell display with 1440 x 720p HD+ resolution. The screen boasts of 450 nits brightness, wide viewing angles and 1000:1 contrast ratio. The M6S happens to be the first device to feature Samsung’s Exynos 7872 processor built on 14nm process with two Cortex A73 performance cores and four Cortex A53 efficient cores as well as full Netcom. The processor is backed by 3GB of RAM while the device will be available in 32GB and 64GB of storage options. It equally packs a 3000mAh with 18W fast charging that charges up to 52% in just 30 minutes. Providing the interface is the Flyme 6.2 OS with the company’s OneMind AI engine.

As for the prices, the Meizu M6S which available in Gold, Gray, Black, and Blue is priced at 999 Yuan ($155) for 3GB + 32GB model and 1199 Yuan ($186) for the 3GB + 64GB model. The smartphone will be available on JD.com, Meizu Mall, Lynx, and Suning on January 19 at 10:00AM for buyers in China. It will also be available for offline purchase on Meizu store and other retailers from January 20. There is no word yet on when the device will be available outside China. Check out more photos of the sleek device from below.

(source)

Alcatel 3C Launched In Italy: 6” HD+ Display, 3000mAh Battery & €130 Price

By

Habeeb Onawole

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Jan 17, 2018

TCL has begun rolling out the new Alcatel smartphones for 2018. On Monday, the Alcatel 3C was announced in Italy as the first of the Alcatel 3 series scheduled to launch this year.

According to Alcatel at CES 2018, all their new smartphones will come with 18:9 displays. The Alcatel 3C is the first and sports a 6” screen with a 1440 x 720 resolution. Even with the large display, the phone feels like a 5.5” phone, thanks to the reduced bezels.

While its easy to be excited about the display, the rest of the specs are entry level at best. The Alcatel 3C has 1GB of RAM and 16GB of expandable storage. It is also powered by a MediaTek MT8321 processor, a 32-bit quad-core chip clocked at 1.3GHz. With these specs, the phone would have been better launched as an Android Go device.

For optics, you get an 8MP rear cameras with flash and a 5MP fixed focus selfie camera. There is also a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner, Bluetooth 4.2, dual SIM support and Wi-Fi b/g/n. Powering the phone is a 3000mAh battery.

Alcatel is asking for €129.99 for the 3C and it will be available in Metallic Black, Metallic Blue, and Metallic Gold. Alcatel will also offer a €30 promo card to those who purchase the phone starting July 31, 2018.

Continue

Here’s How The Meizu Super mBack Halo Button Works (Video)

By

Joel Joseph

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Jan 17, 2018

Back when the rumors and leaks revealed that the Meizu M6S was not going to feature the company’s popular mBack home button, many were disappointed. The reaction wasn’t surprising because mBack was often considered one of the best ways to navigate the phone and losing such an important feature was never going to go well with the company’s fans. However, little did we know that Meizu had a big surprise for us. Well, they did tease us that they had a surprise, but we weren’t expecting a next generation version of the mBack, which the company is calling the Super mBack. Some even call it the Halo button.

meizu m6s featured — Credits: Ard Boudeling, Meizu

Regardless of its name, the button incorporates all of the features of the mBack button with the help of a small halo circle on the screen. It looks easy to use and in the first demo that we saw, the usage felt pretty simple and natural.

By implementing a pressure sensor below the display, we are able to offer all mBack features in our new Halo button. pic.twitter.com/rGp8OxydAv

— Ard Boudeling (@ArdCB) January 17, 2018

For making this work, Meizu has added a pressure sensor chip below the display along with a linear vibration motor. The tech seems to be from NextInput, a company focused on force sensing solution for touch displays. Considering there’s a vibration motor below the display, the gestures should give good feedback as well, making them feel more natural.

Meizu’s Head of Global Marketing, Ard Boudeling was kind enough to give us all a demo of the Super mBack halo button on twitter.

Here’s a quick demo. pic.twitter.com/RQmdz7rXrT

— Ard Boudeling (@ArdCB) January 17, 2018

And these are gestures.

Our new Halo button implements all mBack features, and more.

– Touch to go back.
– Press to go home.
– Long-press to sleep.
– Swipe left/right to switch apps.
– Swipe up to multitask.

And one last gesture… Can anyone guess?

— Ard Boudeling (@ArdCB) January 17, 2018

Finally, if you don’t like the new Super mBack Halo button, you can always switch back to the default Android navigation buttons.

Once again, it looks like Meizu has done a fine job in making navigation on its smartphones super easy.

What do you think?

[yop_poll id=”9″]

Meizu Live and Meizu Flow Bass Earphones Announced

By

Habeeb Onawole

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Jan 17, 2018

Meizu had its launch event today and the Chinese manufacturer announced two new earphones – the Meizu Live and Meizu Flow Bass.

Meizu Live

The Meizu Live is a mix of transparent polycarbonate and metal parts constructed using metal powder metallurgy. Inside the earphones are four precisely engineered moving iron units which have low frequency armatures and medium and high frequency armatures.

[envira-gallery id=”167709″]

The Meizu Live uses an MMCX connector and comes with replaceable tuning nozzles that allow you to change the frequency as you deem fit. It also comes with 7 pairs of earbuds of different sizes and an IPX7 rated carrying case.

The Meizu Live will come in silver and will sell for ¥1299 (~$202) when it goes on sale on January 19.

Meizu Flow Bass

Meizu also announced the Meizu Flow Bass, an upgraded version of the Meizu Flow announced alongside the Pro7 and Pro7 Plus last year. It keeps the three-unit design but now comes with a bass+ system. It has a near identical design as the original flow save for the color which is now Aurora Gray.

Continue

Meizu M6S Official With Exynos 7872, 18:9 Full Screen Display & Super mBack Gestures

By

Joel Joseph

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Jan 17, 2018

Meizu M6S is the company’s first smartphone of the year and it has all the goodies that you would expect in an entry level handset of 2018. You have a 18:9 display, a good mid-range chipset, fingerprint ID and a decent battery, making it a well balanced smartphone. Here’s everything that you need to know about the Meizu M6S.

DESIGN:

The Meizu M6S (mBlu S6) comes with an 18:9 display on a full metal body. The phone features the same U shaped nano injection antenna design that we have seen on flagship grade smartphones. What’s interesting is that unlike the leaks and renders that revealed mBlu branding at the back, the Meizu M6S will continue to use Meizu’s branding. Like previous smartphones from the company, this one too features a Meizu logo at the back.

Rest of the design is pretty simple, with a simple long full screen front, and a simple all metal back. There will be four color options: Gold, Gray, Black, and Blue.

There are a lot of fun cases as well that Meizu will sell alongside the phone to give it a funky look for the young generation.

SPECS:

The Meizu M6S features a 5.7-inch 18:9 in-cell display with 1440 x 720p HD+ resolution. The screen boasts of 450 nits brightness, wide viewing angles and 1000:1 contrast ratio.

The phone will be the first to feature Samsung’s Exynos 7872 processor built on 14nm process with two Cortex A73 performance cores and four Cortex A53 efficient cores. Note that the chip supports all the three carries in China (full Netcom). There will be 3GB of RAM and 32GB / 64GB of storage options. The battery will be of 3000mAh with 18W fast charging that charges up to 52% in just 30 minutes.

As for the camera, the Meizu M6S will feature a Samsung 16MP CMOS sensor at the back with f/2.0 aperture, 112μm pixel area, PDAF, 5P lens, and a special HDR that’s developed by ArcSoft for the M6S. On the front, the phone features an 8MP sensor with f/2.0 aperture, ArcSoft algorithms, Intelligent facial brightness enhancement, and an adaptive beauty mode.

The phone has a side mounted fingerprint sensor, that the company says will feel natural in day to day operations. It’s pretty quick and unlocks in just 0.2 seconds.

As for the software, the Meizu M6S will come with Flyme 6.2 version with the company’s OneMind AI engine. No mention of the Android version yet. There’s a special game mode as well, which the company claims increases frame rate stability by 20% during gameplay.

What’s the most interesting part of the Meizu M6S is the Super mBack feature. Since the company had to remove the mBack button, the Super mBack is here to take care of navigation. The phone features a dedicated pressure sensor chip and linear vibration motor (in the circle), allowing you to control your phone with simple gestures. So, a simple tap on the circle will take you back, press it and you’ll be taken to the home screen, swipe it and it opens up multi-tasking window. There are several other gestures as well, making navigation super easy. If it works as well as it sounds, then it will be one of the highlights of the M6S.

PRICE:

The Meizu M6S is priced at 999 Yuan ($155) for 3GB + 32GB model and 1199 Yuan ($186) for the 3GB + 64GB model. The cases retail at 49 Yuan ($7.5) each, but when you buy it with the M6S, you get it for just 39 Yuan ($6).

AVAILABILITY:

The phone goes on sale via JD.com, Meizu Mall, Lynx, and Suning on January 19 at 10:00AM. Offline sale on Meizu store and other retailers kicks off from January 20.

Bookings start from 4.30PM today!

Honor 9 Lite With Four Cameras Launched In India, Price Starts At Rs. 10,999

By

Jeet

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Jan 17, 2018

After announcing the Honor 9 Lite smartphone in China last month, the company has now launched the device in India. The Honor 9 Lite, which is the stripped-down variant of the Honor 9, will be exclusively available through online retailer Flipkart, for a starting price of Rs. 10,999, which roughly converts to $172.

The phone, which measures 151 x 71.9 x 7.6mm and weighs 149 grams, features 2.5D curved glass panels on the front as well as the rear side. It sports a 5.65-inch IPS LCD Full-HD+ display with a screen resolution of 2160 x 1080 pixels and 18:9 aspect ratio.

Under the hood, it is powered by a Huawei‘s own Kirin 659 chipset that has four cores clocked at 2.36GHz, and four cores clocked at 1.7GHz. It is the same chipset that powers Huawei’s Enjoy 7s, Mate 10 Lite, Maimang 6 and Nova 2i, as well as Honor 9i and Honor 7X.

The Honor 9 Lite will be available in two variants — 3GB RAM with 32GB internal storage and 4GB RAM with 64GB internal storage. There is also a microSD card slot, enabling users to further expand the phone’s storage capacity.

One of the highlights of the device is that it comes with four cameras. There are dual cameras sitting on the front panel as well as the back panel. On the front, there’s a 13-megapixel primary sensor and a 2-megapixel secondary sensor with f/2.0 aperture and an updated Beautification mode.

The rear panel also houses same camera configuration — 13MP primary lens and a 2MP secondary lens, along with features like phase detection autofocus, HDR, digital zoom, panorama 3D Beauty, bokeh effect photography, Smile Capture, Voice Camera, Watermark, Burst Shot and Slow-Motion video shooting.

Just below the camera module, there’s a fingerprint sensor for added security. On the software front, the phone is running EMUI 8.0, which is based on Android 8.0 Oreo operating system. With an over-the-air update, the company will be adding Honor Ride Mode as well as one-touch payment integration through Paytm.

Connectivity options on the device include Dual SIM, 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth v4.2, USB Type-C port, 3.5mm audio jack and GPS, but it lacks NFC. The phone is powered by a 3,000mAh battery that is equipped with an intelligent power saving feature and promises to last full day on a single charge.

In India, the phone will be available in three colour options, which include Sapphire Blue, Glacier Grey, Midnight Black. The device will go on sale from 21st January. While the 3GB RAM model is priced at Rs. 10,999 (approximately $172) while the 4GB RAM model costs Rs. 14,999 (approximately $235).

Motorola Moto Z3, Moto Z3 Play Renders Leaked to Reveal Design, Key Details

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Jan 17, 2018

Earlier today, Droid-life had revealed the leaked renders and key specifications of the Moto G6, Moto G6 Plus and Moto G6 Play smartphones that are speculated to debut as early as next month. The publication has also revealed the renders and some features of the upcoming Motorola Moto Z3 and Moto Z3 Play smartphones.

Last year, Motorola had released two Moto Z series smartphones namely, Moto Z2 Force and Moto Z2 Play. These phones are expected to be replaced by Moto Z3 and Z3 Play, respectively, this year. As it can be seen in the below renders, both the Z3 smartphones feature super-slim bezels. The renders also indicate that these phones will becoming with some changes in their design.

The publication has claimed that a 6-inch display capable of delivering a Full HD+ resolution of 1080 x 2220 pixels and an aspect ratio of 18:9 will be available on the Moto Z3 as well as Moto Z3 Play. The display of the Z3 appears to be slightly curved towards the edges.

The publication has not revealed too many details on the specs of these phones. It claims that apart from Moto Z3 and Z3 Play, there will be a third Moto Z3 smartphone that will be arriving with the most advanced specs compared to the other models. It is likely to feature the Snapdragon 845 chipset and a higher resolution display.

The fingerprint scanner is not visible on the images of the Moto Z3 and Z3 Play. There is a possibility that the company may replace it with facial recognition or it could be embedded under the screen of these phones. Like the rumored Moto E5, the company may embed the fingerprint scanner under the Moto logo on the rear panel of these phones.

The Moto Z3 phones are also going to feature support for Moto Mods accessories like the predecessor phones. The handset shown in the second which could be the Moto Z3 or Z3 Play can be seen sporting a Motorola 5G Moto Mod that will bring 5G capabilities to the phone. It also seems to feature dual front-facing cameras. The publication has also predicted that the 2019 Motorola smartphone such as Moto G7, Moto E6 and Lenovo K9 are likely to feature an iPhone X-like notch.

Motorola’s Z2 series smartphones were unveiled to the world in summer of 2017. Hence, it is likely that the company may announce the three Moto Z3 phones in summer this year.

(source)

Xiaomi Will Attend MWC 2018, Mi 7 Launch Likely

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Jan 17, 2018

In December 2017, Qualcomm had unveiled the Snapdragon 845 mobile platform at the Snapdragon Tech Summit event. During the same event, Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun confirmed that the company’s next flagship – the Mi 7 would be fueled by the Snapdragon 845 chipset. Since Xiaomi is one of the exhibitors at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2018 event that will be held between Feb. 26 and March 1, it seems that the company may use the tech exhibition platform to announce the Xiaomi Mi 7 flagship smartphone.

The above snapshot from the official website of Mobile World Congress confirms that Xiaomi will be attending the event as one of the exhibitors. Lei Jun had previously confirmed that the Xiaomi Mi 7 would be unveiled during the Chinese spring season which indicates that it may get announced at the end of February or early March. Hence, Xiaomi fans are now speculating that the company may announce the Xiaomi Mi 7 at MWC 2018.

Samsung is expected to announce the Snapdragon 845 powered Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ smartphones at the MWC 2018. Even Sony is pegged to debut the Xperia XZ Pro smartphone powered by the Snapdragon 845 at the same tech trade event. By announcing Mi 7 at MWC 2018, Xiaomi could become the first Chinese manufacturer to debut a Snapdragon 845 powered phone.

Lei Jun has recently confirmed that since the company will be focusing on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in 2018, its upcoming smartphones will be equipped with AI. It is speculated that Mi 7’s dual camera setup will be optimized with AI to deliver stellar photography experience. Also, the Xiaomi Mi 7 will be the company’s first smartphone to come with wireless charging feature. The rumor mill has revealed that Xiaomi may announce a larger Mi 7 Plus smartphone alongside the Mi 7.

(source)

Tag Heuer Launches Connected Full Diamond – World’s Most Expensive Smartwatch

By

Jeet

-

Jan 17, 2018

Tag Heuer, a Swiss company known for designing and manufacturing luxury watches and fashion accessories, has announced its new smartwatch — the Tag Heuer Connected Full Diamond.

It is being touted as the world’s most expensive smartwatch, as it has been priced at 190,000 Swiss Francs, which roughly converts to $197,000. It is identical to the Tag Heuer Connected Modular 45 smartwatch that was launched by the company last year.

However, what makes it stand out is the design. The watch’s case and the bracelet are made out of 18K polished white gold, and a total of 23.35 carats of baguette diamonds — 78 on the bezel, 16 on the lugs, and 495 on the bracelet. Apart from this design, everything else is similar to a standard smartwatch.

The Tag Heuer Connected Full Diamond comes with an AMOLED screen and is powered by an Intel Atom Z34XX processor. that will all be completely obsolete in around two years. As of the software, it is running Android Wear 2.0.

The watch is water resistant up to 50 meters and boasts an NFC sensor, enabling contactless payment via Android Pay. As it runs Android Wear operating system, it is compatible with Android 4.3 and above phones and iOS 9 or later versions.

In the 45mm smartwatch, the connected module is interchangeable with an Haute Horlogerie mechanical module, Chronograph Calibre 5 or COSC-certified Chronograph Tourbillon. Tag Heuer has said that it’ll be offering the trade-in program, enabling users to swap in a mechanical movement for the electronic one once it becomes outdated.

Along with Connected Full Diamond, the company has also launched Connected Modular 41. It is powered by an Intel platform and runs on Google’s Android Wear. There’s an AMOLED display with 390 x 390 pixels screen resolution at 326ppi pixel density. It packs 1GB RAM and 8GB internal memory and features GPS and NFC for Google Pay support.

MIUI 9 Update Will Be Available for These 40 Xiaomi Devices

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

-

Jan 17, 2018

Yesterday, through the official Weibo account of MIUI, Xiaomi had announced that it will delivering “good news” today at 10 AM (local time). Today, the Chinese manufacturer has confirmed on Weibo that 40 Xiaomi devices are eligible to receive the MIUI 9 update.

In July 2017, Xiaomi had announced the MIUI 9 update, an Android ROM based on Android Nougat. It began the rollout of the MIUI 9 global ROM early in November. The company has now officially confirmed that it will be bringing the MIUI 9 update to 40 devices.

The list includes the following devices:

Xiaomi Mi MIX 2, Mi MIX
Xiaomi Mi Note 3, Mi Note 2, Mi Note
Xiaomi Mi 6, Mi 5X, Mi 5, Mi 5c, Mi 5s, Mi 5s Plus, Mi 4s, Mi 4c, Mi 4, Mi 3, Mi 2, Mi 2S
Xiaomi Mi Max 2, Mi Max
Xiaomi Redmi 5, Redmi 5 Plus, Redmi 5A, Redmi 4X, Redmi 3S, Redmi 3X, Redmi 4A, Redmi 4 (High Edition), Redmi 2, Redmi 2A, Redmi 1S
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4X, Redmi Note 5A, Redmi Note 2, Redmi Note 3, Redmi Note 4, Redmi Pro, Redmi Note
Xiaomi Mi Pad 3, Mi Pad 2, Mi Pad

Xiaomi is currently testing MIUI 9 update for Redmi 4 Standard Edition and Redmi 3. These handsets are also expected to get the MIUI 9 upgrade.

As it can bee seen in the above list, the Mi 2 is a device that was released in 2012 whereas the Mi 3, Mi 2S and 2A smartphones are from 2013. This shows that engineers at Xiaomi have put a lot of effort to make sure that the latest MIUI 9 update is available for most of its devices. One should be aware of the fact the MIUI 9 is the last major MIUI update for some of the oldest smartphones list above.

(source)

Moto G6, G6 Plus, G6 Play Renders, Key Specs Revealed; Moto G6 Lineup May Get Unveiled at MWC 2018

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

-

Jan 17, 2018

Last year, Motorola had released the Moto G5 and G5 Plus smartphones in February followed by their improved versions called Moto G5S and Moto G5S Plus in August. In October last year, well-known tipster Evan Blass had claimed that Motorola will be releasing Moto G6 Play alongside the Moto G6 and G6 Plus smartphones in 2018. Today, Droid-Life has revealed the renders of the Moto G6 lineup along with their key specs.

Moto G6 Plus

Moto G6 Plus is speculated to arrive with a 5.93-inch display. The publication claims that the display will be supporting Full HD+ resolution which means that it may offer an aspect ratio of 18:9. The Snapdragon 630 chipset that drives the Moto X4 Android One smartphone will be present under the hood of the Moto G6 Plus.

The Moto G6 Plus is expected to arrive in RAM variants like 3 GB, 4 GB and 6 GB and it is likely to available in storage choices like 32 GB and 64 GB. It may include a rear-facing dual camera setup that will include a 12-megapixel sensor and a 5-megapixel sensor. For snapping selfies, it will be equipped with a 16-megapixel shooter. A 3,200mAh battery will be fueling the Moto G6 Plus and it will be featuring a front-mounted fingerprint scanner. The G6 Plus is likely to cost $330.

Moto G6

The Moto G6 is rumored to house a smaller FHD+ resolution supporting display of 5.7 inches. Like G6 Plus, it is slated to produce an aspect ratio of 18:9. The Snapdragon 450 chipset that powers few smartphones like Vivo V7+ and Xiaomi Redmi 5 will be present under the hood of the Moto G6.

The Moto G6 is expected to arrive in models like 32 GB storage + 3 GB of RAM and 64 GB of storage + 4 GB of RAM. It may house the same dual camera setup and selfie snapper that will be available on the G6 Plus. The G6 is rumored to include a front-facing fingerprint scanner and a 3,000mAh battery. It may arrive in the market with a price tag of $240.

Moto G6 Play

The Moto G6 Play is speculated to arrive with a 5.7-inch display that will be supporting HD resolution of 720p. There is no confirmation on whether it will be supporting 18:9 aspect ratio like the other G6 series phones. It is rumored to feature a huge battery of 4,000mAh capacity. Unlike the G6 and G6 Plus smartphones, the fingerprint scanner will be placed on the rear panel of the G6 Play as it does not feature a home button. As of this writing, there is no offer information available on the specs of the Moto G6 Play.

In 2017, the Moto G5 and G5 Plus smartphones were showcased at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2017 event in February. Hence, it is speculated that the Lenovo-owned Motorola may announce the Moto G6, G6 Plus and G6 Play smartphones at MWC 2018 in the next month.

(source)

BlitzWolf BW-FWC3 5W Wireless Charger Will Soon Be Available For Just $9.99 On Banggood

By

Vinay Patel

-

Jan 17, 2018

The compact, lightweight and highly portable BW-FWC3 5W wireless charger from BlitzWolf works with all Qi wireless charging devices. You’ll be able to preorder the BW-FWC3 5W wireless charger on Banggood starting Wednesday, January 17.

You can get your hands on the first 200 units of BW-FWC3 5W wireless charger on Banggood by shelling out just $9.99. For the next 1300 units, the price will be $11.99, and $13.99 for the remaining 1500 pieces. The normal price listed on Banggood is $15.99. In order words, the price is considerably lower for earlier orders.

BlitzWolf BW-FWC3 wireless charger is compatible with any other regular smartphone equipped with a Qi receiver. For instance, it can wirelessly charge a myriad of Samsung-branded smartphones including the Galaxy S8, S8+ S7, S7 Edge, Edge S6, S6, Note 5, Note 5 Edge, Note 8, Note 7, and Note 7 Edge.

The 5W wireless charger also works with Apple iPhone8, 8 Plus, X, LG G2/G3/G Pro, Google Nexus4/Nexus5/Nexus6/Nexus7, Nokia Lumia 1520/930/928/920/830/735, and 950/950XL, HTC 8 X (US version), Droid DNA, and Thunderbolt.

It is also compatible with Motorola Moto Maxx, Droid Turbo 2/Turbo/Mini, Moto 360 smartwatch, Sony Xperia Z4v/Z3V, BlackBerry Z30, and Classic smartphones. You can click here and ensure you don’t miss this opportunity by setting alert notification on Banggood’s about the upcoming offer.

Buy BlitzWolf BW-FWC3 5W Wireless Charger For Just $9.99 On Banggood

Xiaomi Redmi 4A Smartphone Is Up For Grabs For Only $77.67 On LightInTheBox

By

Vinay Patel

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Jan 17, 2018

When Xiaomi launched the Redmi 4A smartphone back in November 2016, it instantly propelled to popularity among smartphone enthusiasts.

The phone sports a 5-inch touchscreen display with a resolution of 720 X 1280 pixels at 296 PPI (pixels per inch). Although the Redmi 4A is crammed with a myriad of other awe-inspiring specs and features, you don’t need to spend a fortune to buy it.

You can now get your hands on Android 6.0 powered handset by shelling out just $75.98 on LightInTheBox. The Beijing-based online retail giant is currently offering a massive 62% discount on the handset’s original selling price of $201.71.

You can either go for blushing pink or gold color version of the Redmi 4A 4G smartphone. If you are willing to spend an additional $1.69, you can buy gray color option of the phone. In other words, you end up paying $77.67 for the gray-tinted iteration of the device.

It’s worth noting that only 49 pieces were remaining for Lightning sale at the time of writing. You can head straight to this link in order to take advantage of the promo before it comes to an end.

Buy Xiaomi Redmi 4A Smartphone For Just $77.67 On LightInTheBox

Huawei P20 Pro Likely to Arrive with Extra Long 19:9 Aspect Ratio Display

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

-

Jan 17, 2018

Most of the high-end and midrange smartphones that have launched in the recent past feature 18:9 aspect ratio supporting display. However, some of the Samsung phones such as Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8+, Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy A8 (2018) and Galaxy A8+ (2018) carry support for 18.5:9 smartphone. Very few smartphones such as Xiaomi Mi MIX and ZTE Nubia Z17S support 17:9 aspect ratio. The rumored Huawei phone is expected to arrive with a weird aspect ratio of 18.7:9. Fresh information suggests that Huawei has another upcoming smartphone that has a strange aspect ratio of 19:9.

The alleged device has been put through HTML5Test. It reveals that the device has a model number of Huawei ANE-LX1 and it is loaded with Android 8.0 Oreo. The device supports a resolution of 360 x 760 which may not be the real resolution. It appears that the screen of the device may support a resolution of 1,080 x 2,280 pixels. Hence, it delivers an aspect ratio of 19:9.

It could be one of the forthcoming Huawei P20 series smartphone. However, it is difficult to guess what this device may end up being called. Huawei is reportedly ordering display panels from Synaptics as it has been manufacturing extra long Full HD+ display that offers 19:9 aspect ratio. Since it has an advanced aspect ratio than the alleged Huawei P20, it is speculated that the Huawei ANE-LX1 could be the P20 Pro.

(via 1, 2)