Meizu’s Flyme 6 Stable Version Released, Features Camera Search Tool

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Mar 6, 2017

Xiaomi had hinted of plans to establish several offline retail shops in China in order to shift from the online sales only model which has been hugely successful but inadequate to help keep the company at the top. As a result, Xiaomi has for consecutive years lost out to minions like OPPO and Vivo in the ranking of the top Chinese brands in terms of sales.

To stem that tide, Xiaomi did set a goal of 1000 offline physical stores in China by 2020. The company kick-started the project by establishing a total of 51 stores across China last year and this year, it has hinted at plans to set up an additional 250. CEO, Lei Jun at a news conference held in Beijing on Monday reiterated this long-term plan and also disclosed this year’s business plan in that regard.

Lei Jun seems to have been caught up with the concept of “New Retail” made popular by Alibaba founder and Chairman, Jack Ma who predicted that the era of e-commerce would end in 10 or 20 years to give way to New Retail that combines online and offline sales and logistics services. Lei Jun thinks Xiaomi has found a feasible and highly efficient format for New Retail by establishing its own bricks-and-mortar stores rather than buying off small business chains like Alibaba did recently, spending over 2 billion yuan buying about one-third of popular supermarket chain Sanjiang shopping, based in Ningbo, Zhejiang province.

Lei Jun also believes the prices of the products sold offline could still be kept down despite rising rent and labor costs by measures such as optimizing the manufacturing process and analyzing customers’ needs with big data. The era of offline retail shopping saw a hit at the introduction of e-commerce which made shopping an easy venture that can be contracted right from home. But it is turning out, a return to offline shopping is gathering momentum and it won’t be surprising to see that turn into a frenzy among the major players in the e-commerce sector. There was a time offline sales was king, later on, online sales model became the beautiful bride and now a blend of both looks inevitable. In the end, it is all a circus, with sales the ultimate goal. Unfortunately, Mr Lei Jun did not say if the company’s expansion plans involve setting up more physical stores outside of China, something a lot of Xiaomi fans yearn for.

(via)

Xiaomi Launches Scishare Coffee Machine Priced at 399 Yuan ($58)

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Mar 6, 2017

Xiaomi has launched a new product on its crowdfunding platform and it is a Coffee Machine just as we predicted. As you might have known by now, the product isn’t directly manufactured by Xiaomi but it provides the platform and creates an avenue to generate interest and funding for the manufacturing company.

In this case, the coffee maker carries the Scishare branding and is a product of the Ningbo Heart Technology Co. Ltd. The product consists of the main pressure pump with a maximum pressure rating of 19 Bars. The pressure pump is said to have been imported from Italy and has a power rating of 1200W. The machine also comes with some concentration adjustment and is compatible with multi-brand capsules. These all ensure that the coffee is well extracted.

In terms of size, the Coffee machine measures 34 x 10 x 26 cm and for controls, there is a power button sitting alongside a button for extraction. On the whole, the machine is easy to clean and easy to operate. There are also LED lights for direction as well as a flow control lever.

The machine is also designed to express the coffee beans based on the different concentration preference of individuals. There are also 8 difference cup sizes ranging from 15-85ml. The Coffee machine is available for funding on the crowdfunding platform and each participant will get 50 imported coffee capsules. The first batch of the product is expected to ship on April 18. You can head on to Xiaomi’s Mi home in case you are interested in finding out more about the product or grabbing one for yourself. It cost just 399 Yuan ($58).

Samsung Teaser Hints Dual Camera Tech, Might End Up On the Upcoming Galaxy Models

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Mar 6, 2017

Earlier rumors were hinting that Samsung would introduce rear-facing dual cameras on the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ smartphones. However, large number of leaks that have surfaced in the recent weeks clearly show that these flagship phones would not be featuring a dual camera setup on their rear panels. However, an official promo of Exynos 8995 chipset suggests that Samsung’s upcoming smartphone may feature a dual camera setup.

On the official Twitter account of Samsung Exynos, a promo of Exynos 8895 can be seen that says that the chipset is equipped with Dual ISP (Image Signal Processor). It hints that a future smartphone from the South Korean company running on Exynos 8895 chipset would feature twin cameras. The specs sheet of Exynos 8895 states that it can support up to 28-mgapixel + 16-megapixel dual cameras.

Take great pictures. #Exynos8895 with #DualISP for #DualCamera. pic.twitter.com/hPcyueGOZs

— Samsung Exynos (@SamsungExynos) March 6, 2017

The Exynos 8895 is the same chipset that will be introduced on Galaxy S8 and S8+. It is built with 10nm FinFET manufacturing processor and it features four cores of Exynos M2 running at 2.5 GHz and another four cores of Cortex A53 working at 1.7 GHz. Rumors have it that for the U.S. and China, Samsung will be powering the Galaxy S8 models with Snapdragon 835 chipset. Other regions are speculated to receive the Exynos 8895 chipset variant.

Even though the Exynos 8895 chipset is now confirmed to support dual camera feature, there seems to be lesser chance to see the Galaxy S8 models sport the new camera feature. As mentioned above, none of the recent leaks have revealed dual camera feature for Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+. Some sources claim that the Seoul-based company may release a third version of Galaxy S8 with dual camera feature in the near future.

It is likely that the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 that is speculated to launch later this year may come with a dual camera feature. The Galaxy Note 8 will be a flagship phone and it is expected to be driven by Exynos 8895 chipset. Moreover, the company would want to provide a unique feature of dual camera on Note 8 to set it apart from the Galaxy S8 models.

Also, the company may be trying to build hype around the upcoming phablet by confirming the dual camera feature through an official tweet. This may be possible as the company to win the hearts of its potential customers after the infamous Galaxy Note 7 debacle. If the Exynos 8895 chipset will power the Galaxy Note 8, the specs sheet of the SoC suggest that it may feature a 4K display, 6 GB of RAM, UFS 2.1 storage and of course a safer battery.

ProTruly Diamond: World’s VR Smartphone with 360-Degree Camera Launched at MWC 2017

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Mar 6, 2017

These days smartphone manufacturers are putting lot of efforts in providing unique features on their devices. ProTruly, one of the lesser known brands from China, was present at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2017 to showcase a smartphone that boasts a strip of diamonds and a 360-degree rear camera.

Darling features a pair of enormous13-megapixel cameras with wide-angle fisheye lenses on the front and rear sides that enables users to shooter 360-degree images and videos. This unique feature makes it the first smartphone to arrive with an inbuilt 360-degree camera. It is also called the world’s first VR smartphone.

It lets users to preview the recorded videos in weird looking globes as it can be seen in the video. The 360-degree can be directly shared on sites such as YouTube, Facebook and other sites that support such type of videos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVT9H6OCt9o

ProTruly’s Darling comes in two editions. The standard version is priced around $600 whereas the high-end version carriers a pricing of $1,300, China Daily reported. The standard edition has a fingerprint scanner embedded on the physical Home button on the front side whereas the higher-end has a rear-facing fingerprint scanner.

The camera housing of the standard variant is plastic whereas the higher-end variant appears like a luxury device that has a champagne gold metallic chassis that weighs 3.08 grams and it is flanked with a strip of four diamonds on the rear side fixed on a full-grain leather from Italy at its front.

As far as specifications are concerned, Darling has a 5.5-inch full HD AMOLED display and is powered by MediaTek’s Helio X20 chipset that features a 2.5 GHz deca-core processor. The SoC is coupled with 4 GB of RAM. The native storage provided on it is 64 GB. It comes loaded with Android 6.0 Marshmallow OS.

Above the two fisheye lenses, the Darling smartphone has a 13-megapixel camera at the rear and a selfie snapper of 8-megapixel at the front. The VR camera mode in the camera app can be accessed to shoot videos and phots in 360-degree. It also features some a thermal sensor human body temperature without touching.

It also features a USB Type-C port. It has 3,560 mAh battery to keep the lights on. The phone will be exclusively available in China and will go on sale by the end of November. There is no information on its availability outside of China.

Powerful AI Products in the Pipeline for Xiaomi, Reveals CEO Lei Jun

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Mar 6, 2017

Xiaomi’s CEO, Lei Jun has announced that AI will play a major role in Xiaomi products this year. The info was revealed at a media conference earlier today.

When the year began, Lei Jun listed three major goals he hopes to achieve: one of which is to accelerate the implementation of a national strategy on artificial intelligence. During the conference today, he said the future of technology companies is in artificial intelligence and now that significant breakthroughs have been made, Xiaomi will release in the near future key products based on artificial intelligence.

He also revealed that the company already set up a laboratory to explore and develop AI products. In addition to that he foresees AI playing a major role in every day life in the next 3 to 5 years just like internet connectivity does now.

Nokia 3, 5 & Nokia 6 Up For Preorder in Europe

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Mar 6, 2017

Expectations were high pre-MWC 2017 that Nokia would release a couple of flagship smartphones at MWC 2017 including a Snapdragon 835-powered Nokia 8. Instead, Nokia released the trio of Nokia 3, 5 and Nokia 6 and also resurrected the Nokia 3310 with a new look.

The Nokia 3, 5, 6 and Nokia 3310 are now up for pre-orders in parts of Europe. They were all initially billed to go on sale in the second quarter of the year which commences next month. Already, pre-orders for the Nokia3, Nokia 5 and 3310 are ongoing on the website of Dutch online retail outfit Belsimpel in the Netherlands. The listing doesn’t state when the phones will be available for purchase as it is only listed as “Available soon”. Also, UK’s retailers Clove and Carphone Warehouse have both put up all the Nokia new range of smartphones and feature phone for pre-order on their website. These listings only allow enrollees to get notified when the phones become available.

Although the smartphones all fall short of expectations in the hardware aspect, the mere fact that they are Nokia smartphones brings the possibility of a replication of the huge sales recorded in China. We’ll enter the second quarter of the year next month and do hope we’ll get to see the smartphones go global soon.

(via)

Amitabh Bachchan is OnePlus India First Brand Amabassador

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Mar 6, 2017

OnePlus co-founder, Carl Pei just announced the company’s first brand ambassador, and it’s none other than Bollywood Legend, Amitabh Bachchan. Amitabh Bachchan is not just a Bollywood star but a global star and seems to be a great choice for the company.

The announcement was made about an hour ago by Carl Pei via his twitter account but was already tweeted by the superstar himself in the early hours of today. Mr Bachchan will be the face of OnePlus India, so chances are that you may be seeing his face appear in OnePlus ads henceforth.

Samsung Galaxy S8 Secretly Revealed at MWC 2017; New Leaked Photos Emerge

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Mar 6, 2017

Fresh information coming from South Korea suggests that the Galaxy S8 was secretly showcased to select few during the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2017 that was held between Feb. 26 to March 2. However, the official launch date of the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ is March 29. With the official launch drawing closer, the rumor mill has been revealing lot of information on Samsung’s upcoming flagship. A fresh batch of photos allegedly coming from a case making company have surfaced.

A Korean publication has revealed that Samsung had built a temporary makeshift demonstration room to showcase a prototype of the Galaxy S8 to the local media outlets at the Hotel Porta Fira. The venue is located very close to the venue where MWC 2017 was held.

Only those who had received special invitation were able to see the Galaxy S8 before its upcoming official launch. There was only a temporary wall to prevent others from viewing the flagship. Samsung partners who received could get the glimpse of the Galaxy S8 stated that it was “very impressive.” However, they did not reveal any details on the specification and features of the S8.

Also, no leaked photos have surfaced from the secret event. However, a case maker has reportedly reveal fresh and good quality images of the flagship phone. From the images it cannot be confirmed whether the handset shown is Galaxy S8 or Galaxy S8+. However, some of the images carry “For Galaxy S8” text at the top whereas one image that shows the rear side of the phone carries “For Galaxy S8+” text.

The images suggest that the front is mainly occupied by the dual-edge curved screen with narrow bezels at the top and bottom. The display shows the presence of an on-screen Home button.

The image that seems to show the rear side of Galaxy S8 Plus features the LED flash, main camera and fingerprint reader. Speculations have it that it could also function as a physical Home button. The other images show all the four sides of the Galaxy S8. Both phones are expected to be available for pre-orders from April 10 and their shipments are likely to begin on April 21.

(Source 1 | Source 2)

Ceramic Body Production Capacity Should Increase Soon Following ¥8.7 Billion Investment

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Mar 6, 2017

The Xiaomi Mi 5 was the first phone to launch with a ceramic body. While it did look nice, Xiaomi couldn’t meet up with demand because of the difficulty in production and had to revert back to using metal and glass. We thought Xiaomi had ditched the material since we didn’t see it on the Xiaomi Mi 5S and Xiaomi Mi 5S Plus, but to our amazement, it resurfaced in the Xiaomi Mi MIX and not without the same production problems.

It seems we might finally see the end of the production issues plaguing the use of ceramic. According to a Weibo post by industry analyst, Pan Jiutang, he says that leading ceramic manufacturer Changying Precision has announced a joint investment of ¥8.7 billion in the expansion and development of the production process. The investment is said to be due to the popularity of the Mi 5 and Mi MIX which have helped promote the new material.

iPhone 8 Said to Sport a 5.8-inch OLED Screen

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Mar 6, 2017

Postulations that Apple‘s “next big thing”, the iPhone 8 would feature an OLED display is gathering more weight. Popular Japanese news agency Nikkie has joined its voice in forecasting that the iPhone 8 would come with a 5.8-inch OLED screen. Nikkie claims, in a fresh report, that the next generation Apple flagship would have the biggest display of the three models Apple is expected to release this year.

Apart from the iPhone 8, Apple is said to also have in the works a 4.7-inch iPhone 7s as well as an iPhone 7s Plus with a 5.5-inch display. While the iPhone 8 is said to used an OLED screen, both the iPhone 7s and 7s Plus are expected to feature displays made of LCD panels. Nikkie also postulates that the increased screen size on the iPhone 8 will have an effect on the final unit price of the flagship phone. Presently, the iPhone 7 is priced around $700 but that could go up to around $1000, if recent rumors are anything to go by.

It is worthy of note that Nikkie’s recent forecast seems to align with that of KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo that the iPhone 8 would feature a 5.8-inch display. Kuo also hinted that the iPhone 8 would feature a one in town front-facing camera which is capable of producing 3D selfies. The selfie camera would also provide face recognition to unlock the smartphone and also very the owner’s identity. The Apple analyst also said the face recognition is meant to replace the Touch ID which Apple featured on the iPhone 7 but latest rumors say the iPhone 8 would feature the in-display fingerprint sensor which was unveiled recently at MWC 2017 by Chinese company Goodix.

The iPhone 8 is a special anniversary edition to mark 10 years of the iPhone’s existence and would likely pack lots of innovative features and new technologies. We won’t be surprised to see more coming out as the days roll by.

Huawei Executive Says 4GB of RAM is Enough, 6GB/8GB RAM is a Waste

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Mar 6, 2017

Last year, Vivo released the Xplay 5 Elite as the first 6GB RAM smartphone in the world. Just before the year ran out, we saw other manufacturers including Samsung, Huawei, OnePlus, and Xiaomi release their own smartphones with 6GB RAM. Now the race is on for 8GB RAM smartphones. The big question is do we really need such a large RAM on our smartphones? A Huawei executive doesn’t think we do.

The Huawei executive took to his Weibo page (@HW Lao Shi) to express his opinion on phones with large RAMs. According to him, 4GB of RAM is enough for a phone to run smoothly. He says tests have shown that Huawei phones with 4GB of RAM (paired with the Kirin 960) perform better over time compared to the competition with 6GB of RAM. The key, is actually in the optimization of the operating system and he cites an example with how iOS doesn’t need a large RAM to run smoothly.

He goes on to say that the competition between manufacturers to release phones with the largest RAM can be likened to the nuclear arms race between USA and USSR during the Cold War.

Samsung Galaxy S7 Explodes in the early hours in China

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Mar 5, 2017

The days of exploding smartphones seem far from over and the latest victim is a student in North China Conservancy and Hydropower University whose Samsung Galaxy S7 exploded right on her bed today. This is coming just days after a Samsung Galaxy S7 was reported to have exploded in a car cup holder.

The incident occurred in the female dormitory of the university while the students were still sleeping. According to the source who happens to be a roommate of the victim, the Galaxy S7 in question was bought in September last year, less than half a year ago. It wasn’t stated, though, if the phone was charging when the incident happened. The explosion which seems to have emanated from the battery left the beddings in flame and charred.

Already, Samsung’s customer service department in China has been informed and the incident is under investigation to ascertain the circumstance surrounding the blast and the likely cause. But it is apt that we are reminded to always keep our smartphones far from our sleeping area, perhaps on a nightstand, whenever we are going to bed. You can check out more images of the charred Galaxy S7 from down below.

Xiaomi Tease March 7 Launch of Next Smart Home Product, Coffee Machine?

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Mar 5, 2017

Xiaomi smart home Weibo official page has published a series of posters meant to publicize its next launch event as well as the expected product. Xiaomi is renowned not just as a smartphone maker but as a brand whose tentacles spread into other smart home categories. The fact is that most of the non-smartphone products are manufactured by subsidiary brands with Xiaomi providing the platform and financing coming in through crowdfunding.

In this case, what we can gather from the posters and the accompanying teasers is that the 67th Smart home product is likely a Coffee making machine and would be unveiled on March 7. Launching a Coffee maker at this point is no doubt a smart move, considering the rapid growth rate of consumption of coffee drink. According to an analytical report, coffee saw retail volume sales of 3% to reach 65,000 tons in 2016. This was mainly due to a rising consumer interest in the coffee culture in China in 2016, leading to a rise in coffee consumption.

The Xiaomi Coffee machine would, thus, come in handy in helping owners brew quality coffees right in their homes. Small coffee shops and cafés in retail may also find the Coffee machine useful in meeting up with spiraling demands, especially among young consumers.

The Smart home product would be launched on March 7 at 10.00am.

Budget Google Phone is Indeed Coming Without Pixel Branding?

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Mar 5, 2017

A leakster had revealed in January that Google is allegedly testing on few prototypes of cheaper “Pixel 2B” smartphone that would release alongside or sometime after Pixel 2’s release. However, Google’s Senior Vice President for Hardware, Rick Osterloh had confirmed in the previous week that Google will not be releasing a budget-friendly Pixel smartphone. The original leakster is now back with newer information that reveals that the search engine is indeed working on a budget phone, but it won’t be releasing with Google Pixel branding.

In a recent interview Osterloh said that Pixel 2 would continue to “stay premium” and he added that there will no cheaper variant of Pixel smartphone. The search engine would let other manufacturers to release lower priced smartphones.

The tipster that spilled beans on the alleged “Pixel 2B” claimed that the same team that is working on Pixel 2 is also building a budget smartphone that will be targeted towards developing markets. He has speculated that it may be an Android One smartphone.

Related: Google Pixel 2 Renders Leaked

As he had said in January, he maintains that the mysterious budget phone is built alongside Pixel 2. It will be sold outside the U.S. If Google is really working on a budget phone with lower hardware specs, it seems that Osterloh was being careful with his words.

As far as Google’s upcoming smartphones with alleged Pixel 2 and Pixel XL 2 monikers are concerned, both phones are slated to release in October this year. These smartphones are expected to arrive with IP68 certified chassis.

Previous rumors have stated that the search engine giant is testing Pixel 2 with custom chipset and SoCs from other brands. However, speculations are rife that it would be running on Snapdragon 835. The Pixel 2 is also pegged to come with an improved camera that may support advanced dim light photography. Compared to the original Pixel smartphone that came with a pricing of $649, its successor is rumored to be $50 costlier.

Confidential Samsung Galaxy S8 Video Surfaces As Launch Date Draws Near

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Mar 5, 2017

The rumor mill has revealed several leaked photos of Samsung Galaxy S8 in the past few months. Now, a new video clip showcases the alleged Galaxy S8. The device in the video appears to the upcoming Samsung flagship smartphone that have been spotted in the leaked photos.

The video clip by Slashleaks lasts only for 5 seconds, but it does reveal the front and rear sides of the alleged S8. It appears quite sleek with the back featuring the LED flash, camera and fingerprint reader. There is no physical Home button on the front.

The black colored variant Galaxy S8 that can be seen in the video seems to be a under production unit as it carries a label with texts like CONFIDENTIAL (Unauthorized use prohibited), No photo allowed, Not For Sale, and Do not leak info. The rear also contains logos for Samsung and Galaxy S8.

The Galaxy S8 is expected to come with a huge dual-edge curved display of 5.8 inches. However, the device shown in the video is not turned on. Hence, nothing much can be understood about the display from the short 5-seconds video except. Rumors have it that the recently trademarked “Infinity Display” moniker by Samsung will be the name given to display that will come on Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus (aka Galaxy S8+). The larger sibling is expected to feature 6.2-inch dual-edge curved screen.

The Galaxy S8 with model number of SM-G950U was recently spotted on Geekbench benchmarking platform running on Android 7.1 Nougat, 1.9 GHz Snapdragon 835 and 4 GB of RAM. It is expected to feature 3,000 mAh battery. Its single-core and multi-core are 1916 and 6011.

The S8+ was also spotted on Geekbench running on same software, chipset and RAM. It is pegged to come with 3,500 mAh battery. It scored 1929 on single-core test and 6084 on multi-core test.

The Seoul-based company confirmed at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2017 that it would be launching Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ on March 29. It expected to release in market by April 21. New information has revealed that the Galaxy S8 pre-orders will start from April 10.

Fitbit Remains Wearables Market Leader as Xiaomi Records Impressive Growth

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Mar 5, 2017

Despite the fact that the demand for wearables have been consistently dropping, International Data Corporation’s (IDC) survey for the last quarter of 2016 has revealed Fitbit is leading the market share of the wearables industry. Xiaomi is on the second spot followed by Apple on the third.

In Q4 2015, Fitbit had a market share of 29 percent as it shipped 8.4 million unit. However, in Q4 2016, its market share decreased to 19.2 percent as it shipped fewer devices (6.5 million). Fitbit has been mainly concentrating on selling its devices in the U.S., a market that has huge number of wearables from well-known and lesser known brands.

Xiaomi shipped 2.6 million wearables and had a market share of 9.1 percent in Q4 2015. However, in Q4 2016, it increased its shipments to 5.2 million and gained a market share of 15.2 percent. It has only increased its shipments, but also has been selling its wearables at attractive low prices. Even though the market share of Xiaomi is increasing at a faster pace, its wearables are mainly famous in China as it has not done much to popularize its wearables in international markets.

Apple that holds the third sport as it had shipped 4.1 million units in Q4 2015 and it held a market share of 14.2 percent. By Q4 2016, it decreased its slightly increased its shipment to 4.6 million. However, its market share dropped to 13.6 percent. The Q4 2016 has been Apple’s best quarter ever when it comes to market share in wearables market as it released a low-priced version of Apple Watch 2 with GPS.

Garmin came fourth with a shipment of 2.1 million wearables and a market share of 6.2 percent in Q4 2016. In the same quarter in 2015, it shipped 2.2 million units and had reached a higher market share of 7.6 percent. Samsung is on the fifth position in the wearables market. In Q4 2016, it shipped 1.9 million wearables whereas in Q4 2015, it shipped 1.4 million units. As far its market share is concerned, it had a market share of 4.7 percent in Q4 2015, but it increased to 5.6 percent in Q4 2016.

The wearables market is transforming as the basic devices that came with lesser features like tracking footsteps are now coming with multiple health and fitness tracking features such as heart rate monitor, sleep tracking and so on. The first-generation smartwatches came with basic fitness tracking capabilities. However, newer models are not only aimed towards providing health and fitness features, but also function as standalone devices as they support LTE connectivity.

At present, the competition is not very fierce among companies in the wearables market even though vendors are releasing products with numerous features. The Q4 2016 results suggest that Xiaomi is fast gaining the market share and it may dethrone Fitbit to gain the number one spot. Fitbit that acquired Pebble for $23 million is expected to release a health-centric smartwatch later this year to retain its numero uno spot. Withings brand of health-centric smart devices has been rebranded as Nokia devices. The Finnish company too is expected to take on wearables market leaders in this year.

A List of Our Favorite Xiaomi Smart Products

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Mar 5, 2017

Xiaomi releases at least one product every week via their Mijia crowdfunded platform. It is important to mention that a number of these products are released by other companies that have a partnership with Xiaomi. Sometimes it is hard keeping track of all these products and we tend to miss out on some. This post contains our favorite ones released over the past couple of months and some we didn’t cover but still think are pretty cool.

Populele

The Populele is Xiaomi’s take on the musical instrument called a Ukelulele. The Populele is not just a musical instrument but a smart one at that. It has a companion app that teaches a novice how to play the Populele and become good at it in just five minutes. The Populele itself has in-laid LEDs that light up when a key on the app is pushed. The Populele costs just ¥399 (~$58) and will ship at the end of March.

Smart Rear-view Mirror

Most modern cars now come with a parking assistance system that is a combination of a camera that captures what is behind you and a display that shows what the camera sees. The live-feed can either be displayed on a monitor embedded in the dashboard or in the rear view mirror. This product belongs to the second category. However, it does more than just help you to park. There is forward collision warning, lane departure warning, and preceding vehicle starting. The Xiaomi smart rear view mirror is available for ¥999 (~$145).

Xiaomi Selfie Stick/Tripod

This is one of my favorite Xiaomi products. This is a selfie stick and tripod in one device. It’s not the first of its kind as Huawei launched something similar earlier this year.

Selfie sticks are not as popular as they were a few years ago but we will all agree that quite a large number of people are now into video content creation. You do not need an expensive camera rig to begin making your own videos as a phone with a good camera will do the job, but you can improve the quality of your videos if you own a tripod and not have to deal with stabilization issues. I like to think of this as a tripod that doubles as a selfie stick and not the other way round. For just about $13, you can have this 2-in-1 product.

Turok Steinhardt Sunglasses

Xiaomi is not new to glasses as this is their second one in a span of two months. They announced the Roidmi Glasses with anti-UV protection back in January and now they have followed it up with the Turok Steinhardt Sunglasses that also filters out ultraviolet rays. The difference is in the looks. While the Roidmi has a formal appearance, the Turok Steinhardt is for casual or semi-formal occasions. So it doesn’t hurt to own a pair of both.

LeEco Says It is Not Leaving India, Quells Rumor

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Mar 5, 2017

A few days ago, it ws reported that LeEco India had laid off a large percentage of its staff. The lay off was interpreted as a sign that the company would soon be leaving one of the major smartphone markets in Asia. The company has however issued a statement saying otherwise.

Although the Chinese manufacturer didn’t dispute the layoff, but it says it has no plans to leave as “India is one of the most strategic markets for LeEco”. It even added that it is preparing for the launch of its next generation TV in the country.

A company representative also revealed to Reuters that there are 80 employees at the moment, down from about 350 at the end of last year.

LeEco’s woes started when the content of a memo written by CEO, Jia Yueting was made public. The memo warned of an impending cash crunch caused by a rapid expansion at an “unprecedented rate”.

A former employee who also spoke to Reuters said he had resigned after six months because the letter left him discouraged. The unnamed ex-employee said “I joined the company in mid 2016, and there were a lot of promised projects in the pipeline. The projects were all stalled and that got me worried”.

If LeEco isn’t going anywhere, it is still evident that it has scaled back on its operations massively. The small team on ground is probably just for the sake of product releases like its smart TVs, bluetooth speakers, and headphones.

(Source, via)

Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 May Have Curved AMOLED Display Taking up to 93% Front Area

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Mar 5, 2017

Xiaomi has already announced that it will be releasing a follow up version to its popular concept phone from last year, the Xiaomi Mi MIX. The new device is currently called the Mi MIX 2 and will see French designer, Philippe Starck return as lead industrial designer.

Today, we have gotten info on some new features the phone may come with. According to the source, Xiaomi is expected to switch up the screen to a curved AMOLED display that covers up to 93% of the front of the device. The original Mi MIX has a 6.4-inch LCD screen that covers just 91.3% of the front part. If the new screen will cover a larger area, that means the bezel will be thinner.

The source also says the Mi MIX 2 will still retain the ceramic body design and and bone conduction audio technology. We also get a clarification on the fingerprint scanner which will now be in front. Previous report had said it will be embedded underneath the display itself but according to the source, the scanner will be positioned just below the display.