It is known that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is an Apple Mac user but what we don’t seem to know is that the country’s leader isn’t the only fan of the U.S. tech company in the alienated country. A new product by a North Korean tech company – Ryonghung has revealed what could be a strong sentiment for Apple products. The Ryonghung iPad is a tablet PC except that it is bearing Apple’s trademarked name.
If it were in another country, we believe Apple would have been preparing to send its army of lawyers after the company’s ass so they’ll slug it out in the court. But it is North Korea, stuff like that doesn’t matter. Besides, this is not the first time such infringement would be happening. Some years back, a desktop PC that bears all the similarity in design to Apple’s iMac was spotted in a trade fair in Pyongyang.
In case you are wondering what lies inside the Ryonghung iPad, just know that it is nowhere near Apple’s iPad models. It looks like a low-end Android tablet and in fact, packs a Quad-core 1.2GHz CPU, 1GB of RAM, 8GB storage and an HDMI cable. It also comes with a keyboard and internet connectivity. We’re not sure of what software the tablet run but it sure runs something, anything. Does it matter because you’re definitely not going to be seeing this budget “iPad” anywhere outside North Korea?
MIUI 9, the upcoming proprietary Android UI from Xiaomi is now speculated to be available from July. The new leak has not revealed the names of the Mi devices that will be receiving the MIUI 9 update. The MIUI 9 is not expected to bring visual changes but it is expected to bring some new features.
Xiaomi was speculated to make the split-screen mode available on MIUI 8. However, it is now expected to come with MIUI 9 on Android Nougat devices. The other feature that is expected to arrive with MIUI 9 update is picture-in-picture functionality. An email containing information on arrival of these features on MIUI 9 was sent by Xiaomi to its developer was leaked at the start of this month.
In the previous week, it was reported that Xiaomi has axed the SMS scheduling feature from MIUI 9 citing low number of SMS users. The company has allegedly claimed that by removing this feature, it can use its processing power for other functionalities.
A report that appeared at the end of the previous year revealed that Xiaomi would allow its users to delete system apps such as Calendar or Calculator in MIUI 9. The screen recorder feature was first seen in the MIUI 8 Developer Edition. This function is also expected to arrive with MIUI 9.
It goes without saying that the MIUI 9 will also arrive with some optimizations for better user experience. Also, Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun had also confirmed recently that MIUI 9 will be more stable, powerful and smoother.
Xiaomi has followed a trend of launching the new versions of MIUI in August. Going by the new information, the MIUI 9 may get announced in July and it may roll out to users starting from August. Xiaomi is expected to confirm on the Mi Devices that will be receiving it in July or August. However, a recent leak has revealed that MIUI 9 would arriving on devices like Mi 6, Mi 5c, Mi MIX, Mi Note 2, Redmi Note 4X, Redmi Note 4, Mi 4C, Mi 4S, Mi 5, Mi 5s, Mi 5s Plus, and also Mi Pad 3 tablet. The split-screen functionality is speculated to be first available only on Mi devices running on Nougat, but later it will be also brought to Mi devices with Android 6.0 Marshmallow OS.
During the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2017, ASUS had unveiled the ZenPad 3S 10 tablet. The 10-inch slate now has a new sibling as the Taiwanese company has introduced its smaller edition called ZenPad 3S 8.0 at the recent Computex 2017 event. The company has also launch two new variants of ZenPad 10 in a subdued manner. ASUS has not introduced any smartphone at the trade show.
The ZenPad 3S 8.0 (model number Z582KL) comes with a 7.9-inch screen that produces resolution of 1,536 x 2,048 pixels. The larger model is powered by Snapdragon 650 chipset. However, the smaller model is fueled by Snapdragon 652 SoC. The ZenPad 3S 8.0 has a 4 GB RAM model that will be coming in two storage sizes of 32 GB or 64 GB. A cheaper edition of the tablet will be also available with 3 GB RAM and the same storage options.
There is a 13-megapixel camera sitting on its rear side and the front panel features a selfie shooter of 5-megapixel. It is running on Android 7.1 Nougat. The thickness of the slate is 6.9mm and the device features an aluminum unibody. ASUS has not revealed any information on the pricing and availability of the ZenPad 3S 8.0.
The two new variations of the ZenPad 10 are Z301MFL and Z301ML. Both the 10-inch tablets have identical appearance and feature almost the specifications. The Z301MFL is a higher-end tablet with 10.1-inch screen that supports a resolution of 1,920 x 1,200 pixels. It is driven by MediaTek MT8735A SoC that features a 1.4GHz quad-core processor and Mali-T720MP2 graphics.
The ZenPad 10 Z301MFL will be available in model RAM and storage options such as 2 GB RAM + 16 GB storage, 3 GB RAM + 32 GB storage or 3 GB RAM + 64 GB storage. Other specs include microSD card, Android 7.0 Nougat, 3.5mm audio jack, USB Type-C port, 3G and 4G data connectivity, dual speakers at front, 5-megapixel rear camera and 2-megapixel selfie snapper.
It measures 251.77 x 172.17 x 8.95mm and weighs 490 grams. It is expected to come with some accessories such as Bluetooth keyboard dock. It will be available in color choices like Royal blue, Pearl white and Quartz gray.
The ZenPad 10 Z301ML has a 10-inch display that offers a lower resolution of 1,280 x 800 pixels. A slower 1.3 GHz quad-core CPU from MediaTek MT8753W chipset powers this slate. All the other specs of this tablet as well as its measurement, weight and color variants are same as Z301MFL model. Like the above tablets, ASUS did not reveal any details on its pricing and availability of ZenPad 10 Z301ML.
The countdown to the June 1 Nubia flagship conference has now turned from days to hours and soon the conference would come with its packages. But for now, we’ll still continue swimming in leaks and rumors until Nubia unmasks everything.
A new leak has emerged on china’s Weibo which suggests the Nubia Z17 will come with 8GB RAM! This latest rumor might sound exciting to some, while there are those that might have the opinion that 8GB of RAM on a smartphone is more of an overkill. Well, whichever side of the divide you are, it does not matter as this is just a rumor that cannot be confirmed by us.
However, this adds up to the features the Z17 is said to feature. Some, like a Snapdragon 835 chip and Q.C 4.0 have been confirmed. The phone has also been confirmed to come with an IP67 waterproof body and is also coming with a dual camera setup at the rear. The design is also another interesting aspect, as the Z17 is projected to come with a curved, bezel-less display.
Yi technology has now become popular when it comes to powerful budget action cameras and not quite long, the company started to venture into the high-end segment with the launch of the Yi M1 Mirrorless camera. The company also ventured into drones recently with the unveiling of the Yi Erida drone which was unveiled at CES 2017. Yi is now set to launch a new camera which is likely the Yi 360 VR camera.
The upcoming product will be launched on June 1 and from all indications, it is a panoramic camera. A similar product which we believe is the same with this one is listed on Yi technology website for pre-order so, from there we can get an idea that the camera is the Yi 360 VR camera.
The Yi 360 VR camera comes with dual lenses that are adjacent to each other with each having a 220-degree wide angle FOV. The cameras each have a 12MP SonyIMX377 sensor and f/2.0 aperture. The Yi Panoramic camera is Google Street View ready and has WiFi connectivity. There is also a 1400mAH battery and a microphone which means you can Livestream videos with the camera. It also comes with a USB Type-C port, microSD slot as well as Bluetooth 4.2.
The product will be officially announced on June 1 while booking will start on June 11. The camera comes in white and black colors and it carries a price tag of 2499 Yuan (~$364). Meanwhile, the Yi technology’s website puts it up on pre-order for $399 for those in the U.S.
Blackview has made quite a few budget phones over the year and the A9 Pro is one of their latest models. It has decent specs for the price of just about $90. Is it any good? Learn more in the full Blackview A9 Pro review.
Blackview A9 Pro ships with all the usual stuff and some extras include a screen protector, a pair of earphones and a soft TPU case.
DESIGN and DISPLAY
As far as design goes, I love that the phone is compact since it has only 5” 720p display, which may not be the sharpest out there but it is not bad for a cheap phone.
We have a quality metal trim that goes all around the device, tactile metal buttons and in general, the phone is well-built.
We have a notification LED light, which sits next to the 2MP selfie shooter.
The fingerprint scanner may not be the fastest out there but it gets the job done and it unlocks the phone straight from the standby mode. Also, the sensor has a touch panel. If you tap it, it takes you back, if you tap and hold it, you will go home. You can also switch to traditional on-screen navigation keys.
One of the key selling points of this phone is the dual-camera setup that consists of one 8MP shooter and another 0.3MP sensor.
The loudspeaker quality does not really impress like on most of the budget phones.
HARDWARE and PERFORMANCE
The phone sports okay specs for the price. The device ships with a quad-core MTK6737 chip (1.3GHz), 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage.
The gaming performance is pretty good if you play the 3D games like Asphalt 8 on medium graphics. Still, you may see a few skipped frames but nothing major. The phone gets warm pretty quickly but it does not overheat.
USER INTERFACE
The Blackview A9 Pro comes with the Android 7.0 out of the box with the proprietary skin on top of it. The skin removes the app tray and redesigns the icons whether you like it or not. The are quite a few gesture and motion controls that work quite well but some of them are quite slow to respond. You can also use a one-hand operation mode that works quite well, use a floating dock and so on. Most importantly, the user interface performance has been smooth and fluid, no complaints here.
BENCHMARKS
IMAGE QUALITY
The Blackview A9 Pro can take decent daylight images considering this is a cheap phone. Sure, the level of detail could be higher, the dynamic range adjustment could be more accurate but in general, you can take some decent-looking daylight images.
The dual-camera setup allows you to take some good-looking pictures with bokeh effect. Sure, this is not the flagship-grade quality but the results are quite impressive for such a cheap device.
The low-light camera performance does not impress like on most of the cheap phones.
Selfie pictures will definitely do the trick for social media needs but there could slightly more detail.
The 1080p video quality is above average. Selfie video quality is again, kind of mediocre but it is possible to use the camera for video chats or other stuff.
When it comes to connectivity, the call quality is above average, the Wifi works fine and GPS is usable for navigation although it is not the most accurate out there.
BATTERY LIFE
The 3000mAh battery performs quite well. I was able to get almost 5 hours of screen-on time, which is a good result considering the fact that I used the phone quite intensively.
CONCLUSIONS
The Blackview A9 Pro is yet another cheap phone from China that aims to deliver a lot of value for the price and it succeeds in quite a few ways.
The phone is plain-looking but it is well-built and it uses a quality metal frame, the display is great for everyday use, the user interface performance is decent and the battery life is good.
Obviously, you should consider some caveats like a poor low-light camera performance, mediocre loudspeaker and the MTK6737 chip is not designed for hardcore gamers.
At the end of the day, the Blackview A9 Pro is still a decent offering for the price but as always, make sure to consider a few shortcomings like on any other budget phone.
Xiaomi first released the Mi Note 2 along with the Mi Mix last year, both sporting revolutionary designs that were alien to Xiaomi’s design language. While the Mi Mix would go on to take the main spotlight, the Mi Mix still commanded some admiration for its curved edge design and well-packed line-up. As usual, the device will have a successor and that success believed to be named Mi Note 3 was earlier rumored to launch in the second quarter of the year. That isn’t likely now but there are talks of a Q3 launch for the flagship device.
A new render of the Xiaomi Mi Note 3 have leaked online showing the device will sport a dual camera setup to the rear. It is unlikely that Xiaomi would completely overhaul the design of the Note 3 so it isn’t surprising that the design of the render looks very much like that of the Mi Note 2 except for the dual cameras at the rear. The dual cameras look very much like that of the Mi 6, aligned in a horizontal plane. The render is likely not real so, just take a look and move on.
We still don’t know much about the specs the Mi Note 3 would pack it is expected to feature an OLED display and may pack the Snapdragon 835 processor with 6GB of RAM and 128GB storage. The device is said to sport a 5.7-inch display size and others. The Mi Note 3 may likely be unveiled along with the Mi Mix 2 just the same way the Note 2 was launched with the Mi Mix last year.
Android co-founder Andy Rubin has officially taken the wraps off the Essential Phone which has been in development by his company for a while now. The Essential Phone obviously fits into the high-end market but it is left to be seen if the phone will be able to break through the ranks of Samsung and Apple who both have a stronghold on the high-end market.
The Essential Phone is the first smartphone from Andy Rubin’s company, Essential and we had brought you news last week that it would be unveiled on May 30. Rightly, the phone was unveiled today alongside a new operating system called Ambient and a gadget that looks like Amazon Echo.
Design & Specifications
Design wise, the Essential Phone comes with an innovative design which gives it the potential to be able to compete with the likes of Apple and Samsung in the U.S. and elsewhere. The phone comes with an impressive edge-to-edge design with ultra-thin bezels at the edges. The design looks very minimalistic even lacking any logo but is beautiful. The phone sports a 5.6-inch display and has a high screen-to-body ratio with just the space meant for the selfie camera at the top. This screen isn’t made from glass but is made from a combination of Titanium and ceramic which the company claims make it stronger than those offered by Samsung and Apple.There is no physical button at the front but there is enough space to house a virtual button under the display.
The smartphone also looks beautiful when viewed from the back. The device has a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor and comes with a dual camera setup at the rear. The device will come with a 360-degree camera that can be clipped on the device to enable a whole different kind of phone-based photography.
The beauty of the Essential Phone extends even to the specification as it packs Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 835 flagship chip. The device also comes with a 4GB RAM and 128GB of native storage. The rear camera is a 13MP sensor while the second one is a monochrome sensor which is said to boost low-light shots. For selfies, the Essential Phone features an 8MP selfie sensor and is capable of recording 4K video. You won’t find a 3.5mm audio jack on the Essential phone as it features a Type-C port. The device will also ship with an adapter cable for the 3.5mm audio jack.
The Essential Phone comes with a high price tag of $699 and will be available in Pure White, Black Moon, Stellar Grey and Ocean Depth colors. There is no word yet on its availability but the phone is expected to become available in the U.S. first.
Since the revival of the Nokia brand under HMD Global Oy, the yearnings of the numerous fans the brand has across the world is for the launch of a true Nokia flagship. That Nokia flagship has of late been tipped to be the Nokia 9. The Nokia device has been the subject of numerous leaks and the leaks still keep coming out.
A new Geekbench listing said to be the Nokia 9 has appeared on Geekbench’s database. The device is listed as “Unknown Heart” but is believed to be the Nokia flagship expected to be released in the third quarter of this year. The most spectacular listing is an 8GB RAM which the device is attributed to have. The device is listed with an octa-core Qualcomm chip clocked at 1.90GHz.
You may wonder the link this GeekBench’s listing has with the Nokia 9. Well, a leaked Nokia 9 photo had earlier appeared online showing some details. The device was revealed to be running CPU-Z software and the system information was on display. The displayed information gave the model name as “Heart (Unknown)” and indication this could be the expected Nokia flagship.
Before now, the Nokia 9 has severally been tipped to come with a Snapdragon 835 chip and would have a dual camera setup. The device is also expected with a 2K display and 4GB of RAM but with this 8GB RAM version, the flagship may just be one of the first devices to feature 8GB of RAM. Now, that is likely not possible but in this industry, you never say never.
This is not the foldable display flip phone Samsung is working on but the Samsung SM-G9298 is an interesting device too. It is a flip phone with two screens. One 4.2” display when the phone is shut and another 4.2” screen when you flip it open. It has been spotted on TENAA and we get to see its full specification details.
The Samsung SM-G9298 improves on the flip phones of old by featuring two 4.2-inch FHD AMOLED displays on both sides along with the traditional alphanumeric keypad.
It is powered by a quad-core processor clocked at 2.15GHz which is definitely the Snapdragon 820 processor. Previous reports had hinted at it featuring the Snapdragon 821 but it appears Samsung still has SD820 chips it needs to clear out.
News has it that Motorola will unveil its new Moto Z2 family line in June. The line includes the Moto Z2 Play, the Z2 Force and the Moto Z2 itself. Images of the Moto Z2 have surfaced online. Although it is wrapped in a case, the images reveal an important info about the phone.
The Moto Z Force and Moto Z were the first Motorola phones to ditch the audio jack. However, recent reports say the 3.55mm port will make a comeback on the Z2 Force. While there was no mention of the Moto Z2 getting the same treatment, these new images confirm the fate of the audio jack. It will not return in the Moto Z2!!!
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The images show the phone from three different angles, two of which cover the top and bottom where the audio jack should be. None of these shots show an audio jack.
The Moto Z2 in the images is gold. It has its SIM tray at the top and there is an antenna line positioned in the middle. The bottom is bare save for the USB Type-C port. We can’t see the rear since its covered with a case up front, there is a selfie flash with a new design and at the bottom is the new pill-shaped fingerprint scanner.
As Nubia’s June 1 flagship conference draw closer, the company continues to tease more and more features of the Z17 as well as the bezel-less device which would likely be launched on that day. The Nubia Z17 has been shown to have a waterproof body and its water resistance feature has been demonstrated in a leaked video. The Z17 is also coming with Qualcomm’s latest chip as well as a dual camera setup. Nubia’s latest teaser focuses on the picture quality of the Z17’s camera.
According to the poster released a few days back, the Nubia Z17 will have good dual cameras which will support 2X zoom shot with the same clarity as without zoom. The dual camera will also have a good night shooting function. The teaser contains an image which projects this powerful feature of the Z17’s camera but which we are not sure is shot be the camera.
The teaser still points at a bezel-less design for the Nubia Z17 and that put us in a confused state if Nubia will be unveiling two smartphones on that day or just the Z17. A leaked image had emerged showing the upper half of a Nubia smartphone with a nearly bezel-less design. The phone is said to be a Nubia bezel-less phone with a screen to body ratio that is likely higher than the Galaxy S8 and even the Xiaomi Mix and not the Z17 but we really can’t be so sure about that. June 1 promises to be an interesting day for tech fans.
The Chinese leakster, mmddj_china was the first one to claim that the Galaxy C10 would be the first Samsung smartphone to come with dual rear cameras. However, he has been consistently hinting that the Galaxy J7 (2017) also features a dual rear camera. Samsung seems to be working on different editions of Galaxy J7 (2017) for varied markets. None of the renders that have appeared so far have revealed dual rear camera module on Galaxy J7 (2017). Today, the leakster has finally revealed that the plastic casing of the Chinese variant of the Galaxy J7 (2017) and he has claimed once again that the Chinese Galaxy J7 (2017) would be the first dual rear camera Samsung smartphone that may arrive before Galaxy C10.
The leaked shots of the protective case reveal that the SM-7310 Galaxy J7 (2017) would be coming with a vertically aligned dual rear cameras. The model number of the Chinese Galaxy J7 (2017) is J7310 and the regular Galaxy J7 (2017) has a model number of SM-J730 which does not feature a dual rear camera system. However, both the smartphones seem to be sporting the same-shaped rear camera housing. There is no information available on the specifications of the Chinese edition of Galaxy J7 (2017), but it may come with specs that are available on J730 model.
Roland Quandt, a known tipster had revealed the press renders of the regular Galaxy J7 (2017) few days ago. He has revealed all the color variants of the phone. The press renders reveal that the phone features a metallic chassis and has an unconventional U-shaped design for the upper and lower antenna bands on the back panel. The Galaxy J7 (2017) Chinese edition also seems to sport the same design.
Even though Samsung has not officially launched the Galaxy J7 (2017), its YouTube video review in Russian language has already surfaced. There is no information on the launch date of Galaxy J7 (2017) Chinese version. It is likely to get introduced in the next month. The Galaxy J7 (2017) has a 5.5-inch full HD display, Exynos 7870 SoC, 3 GB of RAM, 16 GB inbuilt storage, microSD card support, 13-megapixel rear and front cameras, and 3,600-mAh battery
Recent reports about the Galaxy S8’s sales shows Samsung has gotten past its Galaxy Note 7 woes. Latest sales figure were shared by a Samsung official to Korean media, The Investor.
As at Sunday, May 28, Samsung says it has sold 1 million Galaxy S8 units in its home country since it went on sale on April 21. That’s about thirty-seven days, which is a huge improvement over the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S7. It took the S6 and the S7 seventy-five and seventy-four days respectively to hit the 1 million mark. That means the S8 is selling twice as fast as its predecessors.
Samsung isn’t usually open about its sales this early. However an industry source says it may be using it as a marketing strategy. It had started with pre-order sales, announcing that pre-orders had crossed half a million within two days. A little over a week later, it confirmed that pre-orders had reached the one million mark.
When its Bixby assistant became available on May 1, Samsung again revealed that the number of adopters on the first day was 160,000. It also stressed that shipments of the phone were over 10 million units when global sales was announced to have reached 5 million.
Samsung had made moves that indicated the company is working on refurbished models of the botched Galaxy Note 7 which was plagued by battery fire incidence last year. The units are said to be known as Galaxy Note 7R and have made a couple of appearance for certification. The Samsung Galaxy Note 7R model recently received Bluetooth certification and now, its real life image has appeared.
The images show the Galaxy Note 7R continues to use the same design as the Note 7 just as expected but it comes with a unique identification mark. The Samsung Galaxy Note 7R comes with a big letter R written on the back of the glass body which will obviously serve as an identification mark for anyone to easily know it is the refurbished model. We still don’t have a word from Samsung as to the launch date or the name the device would adopt. But Samsung is reported to be working on the models with the aim of selling them in the emerging market where price is the major driving force.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 7R would feature the same specifications as the initial model but will sport a safer battery. Also, we expect the Note 7R to come with a price cheaper than the original models. We still don’t have any word on its launch date but an earlier rumour tips the model as launching in June.
Google had confirmed earlier in this month during the Google I/O 2017 event that the ASUS ZenFone AR would be launching in summer this year. However, the exact timeframe of its arrival and the regions that will be receiving it were not confirmed. During an interview with Engadget, ASUS CEO Jerry Shen confirmed that the timeframe on when it will be arriving in the home country of Taiwan and the U.S.
The ASUS ZenFone AR was unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2017 in January this year. However, at the time of unveiling, ASUS did not confirm on its release. As mentioned above, its summer arrival was confirmed earlier in this month. Shen has confirmed that ZenFone AR will be going on sale in Taiwan in mid-June.
As far as the U.S. release is concerned, it is confirmed to be available for buying in July. Verizon will be the exclusive carrier of ZenFone AR in the U.S. Apart from ASUS, third-party retailers will be also selling the ZenFone AR in the stateside.
The ASUS ZenFone AR powered with Snapdragon 821 chipset is the first smartphone to come with 8 GB of RAM. However, the USP of the phone is that it is the first smartphone that is enabled Google Tango Augmented Reality and Google Daydream Virtual Reality. The Lenovo Phab Pro 2 from last year was the first Tango-enabled smartphone. It did not carry support for Daydream VR.
There are three cameras on the rear side of the ZenFone AR for motion tracking, depth measuring and room mapping. As humans can do, these sensors allow the ZenFone AR to 3D mapping. Earlier this year, GAP, a clothing chain retail firm demonstrated how this technology works. It showed its app could let a Tango enabled smartphone user to try their merchandise on a virtual mannequin with a body that matches with that of the user.
Currently, there are 100 Tango apps available for ZenFone AR. Shen has confirmed that there would over 1,000 Tango apps available for ZenFone AR users. Other specs of ZenFone AR include QHD 5.7-inch AMOLED screen, 64 GB / 128 GB storage options. It is packed with a 3,300mAh battery.
The pricing of ZenFone AR is still under the wraps, but Shen has said that it won’t be costing more than the Galaxy S8. It indicates that the Tango AR and Daydream VR enabled smartphone would be priced less than $799.
Lenovo is hoping to reclaim back its lost position in the smartphone industry. time was when Lenovo was the third-largest smartphone manufacturer globally but the acquisition of Motorola Mobility from Google in 2014 turned out to be a liability instead of an asset for the company. Lenovo recently admitted that they underestimated the amount of effort needed to turn around the fortunes of Motorola, once a vibrant company, when they bought over its assets and liabilities from Google for a staggering $2.9 billion.
Thankfully, the company still ranks as one of the world’s largest PC maker and that arm has been a profitable one for the company. However, the fortunes of its smartphone business continue to worsen as the company spent more on marketing expenses for new products and of purchasing key components at a higher rate. Apart from that, the competition in the smartphone industry has continued to get stiffer especially in Lenovo’s home country China where fierce competition from the likes of OPPO, Vivo, Xiaomi, Gionee and others caused it to fall to the eight spot in global ranking in 2016. Presently, the company does not even occupy the top 10 spots.
The company recently announced that it would be reorganising its China business in a bid to shift the focus to the more lucrative high-end models under the Moto brand. The move would see the brand kill the ZUK brand while still providing support for present models. The company would then focus on just the Lenovo and Moto brands with the Moto brand focused on high-end models. Lenovo’s Chairman Yang Yuanqing threw more light on the move at a recent press conference in Hong Kong.
According to the chairman, the company will be prioritizing mature markets where brands and innovative products are needed while they will continue to provide emerging markets with efficient products. He further hinted that there are now two teams catering for two kinds of markets with different product lines.
The Moto products helped project Lenovo to the second-largest vendor position in Brazil after Samsung. Shipments rose by 56% in Brazil in the first quarter of the year toppling the result it recorded in India in the same period. In China, shipments have declined up to 80% year on year and even on quarter-on-quarter basis, it has dropped up to 55%. The strategy now is to focus on the mature market with the innovative, high-end Moto brand while the Lenovo models would focus on the low-end market. With this strategy, the company believes it has less competition to deal with in the high-end market having just Samsung, Huawei, Apple and others to contend with. The company also disclosed that it will have three more telecom partners in the US this year just as its performance in Western Europe improves as well.
Apple is expected to introduce new iPhones in September. With only few months remaining, the rumor mill is consistently revealing leaked images and photos of dummy units of the next-generation iPhones. The year 2017 marks the tenth anniversary of iPhones. Hence, Apple is expected to launch a premium iPhone with edge-to-edge OLED display this year. The rumor mill is referring it with different names such as iPhone 8 and iPhone X. During the weekend, the Computer Aided Design (CAD) schematics of the alleged iPhone 8 were revealed on Twitter by designer and tipster, Benjamin Geskin.
The CAD images reveals the design of the much-awaited iPhone 8/X. However, it is still too early to confirm that it is the final design of the iPhone 8. In the past month, an analyst had revealed that the production of this year’s iPhones may get delayed because the Cupertino company is unable to embed the Touch ID sensor under the display of the iPhone 8. In order to resolve the issue, Apple may announce the iPhone 8 with Touch ID sensor placed under the display, but delay its production.
The second option for Apple would be to place the fingerprint scanner on the rear side of the iPhone 8. Samsung faced a similar issue in the placement of fingerprint scanner on Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ smartphones. Since it could not manage to place at the front in time, it ended up placing the fingerprint reader in an un-friendly position right next to the camera at the backside of the Galaxy S8 and S8+.
The third option that Apple may consider is to axe the Touch ID senor entirely and provide user with other biometric identification features like iris scanner or 3D facial recognition. However, these alternative biometric recognition methods are not very secure and may cause issues with Apple Pay transactions.
Coming back to the CAD images, the circle that is seen in the rear side of the alleged iPhone 8’s CAD images may suggest that it has a rear-facing fingerprint sensor. However, Geskin has confirmed that the circle actually represents the position where Apple will place its logo. The front is mainly occupied by the screen and it gives us a hint that the Touch ID sensor may come embedded under the screen. Speculations have it that the alleged iPhone 8 would be coming with a 5.8-inch OLED screen.
The rear side features vertically stacked dual camera setup placed at the top-left corner. Here are some other images published on SlashLeaks that gives us more idea on the iPhone 8’s design. These images show dummy unit of iPhone 8 placed in a protective case.
The above images confirm vertical rear cameras and no rear-facing fingerprint reader as shown in the iPhone 8 CAD images. The Power button appears elongated compared to predecessor models
After several months of leaks on OnePlus 5 from various tipsters, OnePlus has begun teasing on its features which indicates that its launch date is arriving soon. The company knows very well on how to build the hype before launching its flagship phone. It has already revealed that its next flagship will be called “OnePlus 5” and it will launch this summer. It has also confirmed that it will be driven by Snapdragon 835 chipset. The Chinese manufacturer has also confirmed that it will come with front-mounted fingerprint scanner and it will be available in four color variants. Now, the company has shared a camera sample of OnePlus 5 on its official Twitter handle.
As it can be seen in the above tweet, the left side of the image that is marked as no. 1 appears dull. Its right side that is marked as no.2 has a realistic appeal with impressive color reproduction and contains a lot of details even though the image was snapped in evening with less natural light. The tweet carries the text “Can you tell which photo was taken with the OnePlus 5?” Certainly, it appears that the no. 2 part of the image was shot with OnePlus 5.
The image is not available in high-resolution, but it is quite clear that the company wants to indicate that the OnePlus 5 has a marvelous rear camera that can shoot great photos in dim lighting conditions. Rumors are rife that OnePlus 5 would be coming with a dual rear camera. In the previous month, some leaked camera samples that were allegedly snapped using OnePlus 5 had surfaced. The amount of depth in those images suggested that they were shot using the dual rear cameras.
Another report shows that OnePlus would be featuring a single camera featuring a Sony IMX398 sensor with pixel size of 1.12 micron. Other features include f/1.7 aperture and Dual Pixel Autofocus. However, there is no confirmation on whether OnePlus 5 has a dual rear camera system or a single camera lens.
What is confirmed is that OnePlus 5 would be coming with a stellar rear camera. An official tweet from OnePlus confirms that it will be collaborating with DxO Labs (best known for DxOMark benchmarking platform for photography) to deliver impressive camera experience. According to DxO Labs, HTC U11’s 12-megapixel camera is the best smartphone camera as it recorded a benchmark score of 90. The next best camera phone is the Google Pixel with a score of 89. Will OnePlus 5’s rear camera be able to outscore HTC U11 and Google Pixel on DxOMark? Do share your thoughts by posting your comments.
Earlier this year, ASUS announced the Zenfone 3 Zoom. Unlike the previous Zenfone Zoom which sports a single camera with optical zoom, the new phone sports dual rear cameras. While ASUS’ first dual camera phone is priced at over $500 for the 128GB version, ASUS seems to be working on a less expensive model. The ASUS X00KD was spotted on TENAA and it also sports dual rear cameras.
The ASUS X00KD has a 5-inch 720p display, 2GB/3GB RAM and 16GB/32GB ROM. ASUS has included a quad-core CPU clocked at 1.25GHz (probably a MT6737M SoC). There is a 4020mAh battery under the hood and the phone runs Android 7.0.
The dual rear cameras are arranged just like that of the Zenfone 3 Zoom. One is a 13MP sensor and the other is an 8MP camera. There is also a 5MP camera in front for selfies. The ASUS X00KD also has a microSD card slot that accepts up to 2TB cards. There is a physical home button but there is no mention of a fingerprint scanner embedded underneath it.
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