LG G6 Leaks: 3D Renders Video, Specs Hint No Modular Design Seen, No Removable Battery

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Dec 27, 2016

Apparently in a strategic move aimed at leveraging on its large follower-ship in order to boost its withering financial status, Xiaomi has announced the setting up of a bank in the Sichuan province of China. The smartphone giant’s subsidiary Sichuan Yinmi Technology Co., Ltd entered a partnership with some other enterprises based in the province to float a bank back in June and indeed got approval from the China Banking Regulatory Commission.

The Xiaomi Sichuan private bank will focus on serving individual consumers, small and medium-sized companies, as well as those engaged in the agricultural sector. One of the major investors is New Hope Group, China’s largest animal-feed producer and it holds a 30 percent stake in the company while Xiaomi controls a 29.5% stake via its subsidiary.

The business strategy seems to be tied around relying on New Hope’s sprawling agricultural presence and Xiaomi’s roughly 200 million users, which would enable the Xiaomi Sichuan private bank offer better financial services.

According to a recent Weibo post by Xiaomi’s CEO Lei Jun, the joint venture bank will also offer internet banking services. This could give Xiaomi an edge over its rival in the ever increasing race to offer online financial payment services by China’s mobile phone companies. Xiaomi recently launched the Xiaomi Wallet, an internet money-market fund service and is working on its Mi Pay, a payment platform with a wide range of services.The six-year old innovative start up is also said to be building an ecosystem where internet financial services will play a key role in connecting partners and sustaining users. Internet heavyweight – Alibaba also has its own payment platform – AliPay as well as Tencent with its own TenPay.

Already the bank has got its key officials in place and a board has been put in place with them having their inaugural meeting. This no doubt marks the beginning of a new direction of internet banking. Lei Jun also hints that the bank will be opening its doors to customers soon.

source via

Xiaomi Might Launch The Mi 6 Before The Galaxy S8 Says Analyst

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Dec 27, 2016

All the big names in the smartphone industry are already queuing up for Qualcomm’s new 10nm chip, the Snapdragon 835. However, it has been reported that production for the new chip is slow, leading a number of manufacturers to push the release dates of their devices forward. Earlier, reports saying Xiaomi had pushed the launch of the Mi 6 to April surfaced online but an analyst has disputed the statement.

Posting on Weibo earlier today, Kevin Wang Diary says that even though the available supply for the Snapdragon 835 is small, it wouldn’t result in the Xiaomi Mi 6 being pushed to a date that late, as Xiaomi has started receiving its own stock of the new chip.

After Kevin’s post on Weibo, a new report on the Xiaomi Mi 6′ launch surfaced, stating that the device will be launched on the 6th of February, 2017. Which is a week earlier than the previous date of Valentine’s. Day reported earlier.

If the Xiaomi Mi 6 does launch on the 6th of February, chances are that it will be the first Snapdragon 835 phone, coming in ahead of Samsung who is usually one of the first to announce its flagship device but is taking its time to perfect the Galaxy S8 and prevent a Note 7 re-occurrence.

Other manufacturers like LeEco might decide to steal the show and release their own flagship ahead of Xiaomi. If you remember they beat Xiaomi to announcing the first domestic phone with a Snapdragon 821 SoC i.e. the Le Pro 3 and they might do just that again. News also has it that LG is planning to release the LG G6 earlier than expected so that it gets a head start against competitors like Samsung and HTC.

Xiaomi has not confirmed the launch date of the Xiaomi Mi 6, so you might want to take this with a pinch of salt.

Source: Weibo, mydrivers.com

HMD Global To Announce At least 4 New Nokia Phones between Q2 and Q3 2017

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Dec 27, 2016

HMD Global is the new company with the license to release phones under the Nokia brand. The company already announced new phones this month, the Nokia 150 and Nokia 150 Dual feature phones. However, the first set of Nokia smartphones under the new company will be announced at The Mobile World Congress in February.

New reports coming in say the company is working with Taiwanese supply chain companies in order to release four new models slated to launch in Q2 and Q3 of next year.

According to the source,the four new models will have screen sizes falling between 5.0 and 5.7-inches and will sport WQHD or FHD resolutions. The source also says that display suppliers will include LG Display, Century Technology (CTC) and Innolux, while Foxconn subsidiary, FIH Mobile will serve as production partner.

While HMD Global has not confirmed which phones will be launching at MWC, guesses are that one of the two devices will be the Nokia D1C which is rumored to be available in two versions with different display sizes, camera sensors, and memory. The version with the lower specs is said to be called the Nokia E1.

Another device that is expected to surface at the event is the dual-camera sporting Nokia C1. While the Nokia C1 is just basically renders, the Nokia Z2 Plus seems to be a more realistic choice seeing as it already made an appearance on GeekBench.

Motorola Droid Turbo 3 Renders & A Few Specs Leaked

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Dec 27, 2016

The Motorola Droid Turbo 2 was released in 2015 as a high-end Android beast available exclusively on US carrier- Verizon’s network. The device wasn’t gifted a successor this year but it seems Motorola is set to unveil a Droid Turbo 3 flagship some time soon, perhaps in 2017.

Renders of what is said to be the Motorola Droid Turbo 3 were leaked on Weibo recently accompanied by a couple of specs. Honestly, the renders look more like those of a concept device than a real smartphone, considering the sleek, well designed smartphone they reveal.

The device adopts an entirely different design from the 2015 Droid Turbo 2 and packs a rear camera with Hasselblad cresting by the side, an indication that the Droid Turbo 3’s camera will be manufactured by the Swedish camera manufacturer. In reality though, this is likely the same a concept design of the Turbo 3 by Motorola concept designer Tooooajk.

The leak also went ahead to reveal the Motorola Droid Turbo 3 will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chip, even when the device will likely launch at a time flagships would have started getting the latest Snapdragon 835 chipsets. Other leaked specs include a 4GB RAM, 16MP rear camera manufactured by Hasselblad, and a front fingerprint sensor.

Image of Sony Xperia XZ (2017) Front Panel Leaked

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Dec 27, 2016

Sony’s next phone is called the Sony Xperia XZ (2017) and a real photo of the front panel has been leaked online. The photo shows the phone will come with a curved display and might have dual speakers judging from the cut-outs at the top and bottom of the panel.

The Xperia XZ is expected to feature a Snapdragon 835 processor and be the first Xperia flagship that breaks the 3GB RAM curse that has plagued Sony phones for years.

Sony has a conference scheduled for the 4th of January at CES 2017 but chances are that the Xperia XZ won’t surface at the event.

The Xperia XZ should come with Sony’ signature feature which is water and dust resistance. We also expect that next year’s model will have a fingerprint scanner on all models as the gripe with this year’s model is the lack of a fingerprint scanner in the US version.

Official Pictures of Gionee M2017

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Dec 27, 2016

The Gionee M2017 was released last night. The phone which is aimed at the business class due to its luxury build, focus on security, and high price tag features a number of features that are found only in high-end phones and some that shouldn’t be found on a phone with a price tag this high.

Gionee has gone for a design that clearly stands out. The M2017 will surely turn heads but not as a result of it being attractive. The Gionee M2017 is not an attractive phone. But because its design brings a breath of fresh air into a market that is filled with so many clones and design rip-offs.

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The Gionee M2017 is made of a mixture of aluminium and leather (crocodile/calfskin). Standing tall at 155.2mm and sporting a 5.7” 2K AMOLED display, the phone could be smaller if Gionee settled for on-screen keys, a rear fingerprint scanner and ditched the huge black bezel at the top that does nothing but bear the manufacturer’s name.

The rear of the phone is not so interesting as well. The antenna lines at the top and bottom stand out against the aluminium frames and the shield-like design that houses the dual-cameras and LED flash doesn’t seem to serve any aesthetic purpose.

The top of the phone is bare of any ports but the lower part is where the surprise is. A USB Type-C port flanked by cut-outs for the speaker(s) and the primary microphone. That’s all. No audio jack!

The Gionee M2017 has its SIM tray on the left while the volume rocker and power button are positioned on the left. It is also pretty heavy, weighing over 200g; and thick at 10.78mm, thanks to its 7000mAh built-in battery.

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It doesn’t score big on design but specification-wise, it can be classified as a powerful mid-ranger. The Snapdragon 653 processor won’t offer the performance of the Snapdragon 821 but it should handle any task thrown at it. There is 6GB of RAM and either 128GB/256GB of storage depending on your choice and how deep your pocket is. The dual cameras on the rear have optical zoom and the fingerprint scanner uses an infrared system to scan for changes in blood flow allowing it to confirm that the fingerprint is live.

There is quick charge support for the large battery and you can also use the Gionee M2017 to charge your other phones. Gionee has also put a dedicated security chip in the phone to protect your data from hackers.

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Xiaomi Mi 6 Specs & Release Details Leaked

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Dec 27, 2016

We have been getting quite a number of leak centered on the Xiaomi Mi 6 very often of late. The Mi 6 is Xiaomi’s expected next generation flagship and it has got a huge task fitting in as a worthy replacement for the highly successful Mi 5 series smartphones which comprise the sleek Mi 5, innovative Mi 5S with its Underglass ultrasonic fingerprint sensor and the dual camera packing Mi 5S Plus.

Yesterday, a leaked poster had teased what is thought to be the Mi 6 launch date, pointing at a launch on Valentine’s day (February 14, 2017). Yesterday also, a tipster said to be familiar with the Taiwanese mobile phone industry had revealed that Samsung foundry is experiencing some hitch volume-producing the 10nm chip for Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 835 processor. The tipster also revealed that the delay would likely affect the release of the Samsung Galaxy S8 billed for release in February at MWC 2017.

Also embedded inside the post are some leaked specs of the Xiaomi Mi 6 which includes design details like the Mi 6 having an ultra-narrow frame and four antenna. The Mi 6 is also detailed to feature dual lenses which are upgraded specs as well as Mi Charge which should be a specialized charging feature perhaps delivering fast charging. Don’t forget the Mi 6 had earlier been tipped as the first domestic brand in China that would use Qualcomm’s super powerful Snapdragon 835 chip. There were also earlier rumor of the Mi 6 coming in more than one version with each version having a different processor.

The Mi 6 was hitherto tipped as scheduled for release in February but according to the leakster, the flagship’s launch will now be sometime in April. It remains to be seen if these details are indeed correct as there’s still no word from Xiaomi about the rumored and much acclaimed Mi 6.

Xiaomi Asking Customers With Burned Redmi Phones To Sign Confidentiality Agreements?

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Dec 26, 2016

Exploding smartphones seem to cut across all brands. Not too long ago, it was the turn of Samsung and now a Xiaomi Redmi device is reported to have recently gone up in flames in China. If you think the exploding Xiaomi Redmi phone was a big enough surprise, wait until you hear what happened next. It was reported that Xiaomi tried to use a confidentiality (non-disclosure) agreement as condition for compensation, in order to make the victim keep mute about the incident.

According to the report, the Xiaomi smartphone was bought on March 1 this year by a mother as a gift for her daughter. On December 21, while the phone was being charged, it suddenly started to feel hot and despite that it was removed from the charging point it still got burn’t. The victim claimed to have been using the original phone charger and data cable to charge the Xiaomi smartphone as at the time of the incident and the phone wasn’t used for purposes it wasn’t made for. On contacting Xiaomi’s customer service, the case was investigated and after negotiations, the company offered her a full refund and an additional 600 yuan as compensation.

However, the offer was tied to a confidentiality agreement which the lady was required to sign. The clauses in the agreement require that she would not reveal the incident in the media, or any other communication or social platform. The lady also alleged that refusal to sign the agreement would have meant she wouldn’t get the compensation, so it was signed. Lawyers have said such clause were invalid and so she isn’t obliged to keep mute. Perhaps that’s why we are getting to hear about it.

You may be wondering why Xiaomi is trying to hide such a serious safety incident that users of the brand deserve to know about? Well, we haven’t got the answer to that as we are at a loss as well over here.

(source)

Helio X30 Will Have Amazing Energy Efficiency & Will Launch in Q2 2017

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Dec 26, 2016

MediaTek announced its next generation flagship processor – Helio X30, in September this year and it was unveiled as the world’s first mobile phone processor using TSMC 10nm process. The Helio X30 was also heralded as the first to have a tri-cluster hybrid architectural design.

The Helio X30 was also revealed to come with specification that includs two 2.8GHz Cortex-A73 cores, four 2.3GHz Cortex-A53 cores, four 2.0GHz Cortex-A35 as well as incorporating a quad-core PowerVR 7XTP GPU. The chip also supports four groups of 16-bit LPDDR4X-1866 memory of up to 8GB, UFS 2.1 storage, 28MP camera, Cat. 10 LTE baseband capable of 450Mbps download speed and more.

In addition, the Helio X30 is said to have a higher energy efficiency, greatly improved than its predecessors. Although we had seen a supposed benchmark score of the X30 that was disappointing, the flagship chip is reputed to be as powerful as the Snapdragon 820 or SD 821.

According to Taiwan’s Economic Daily, the X30 is scheduled for production in the first quarter of next year and would have power management IC from a subsidiary of Richtek. It is also reported that the first smartphone models packing the Helio X30 chip would hit the market in the second quarter of 2017. This is likely going to be either a Meizu, OPPO or Vivo smartphone, according to previous rumors.

Kirin 970 10nm Production Said To Be On Time Despite Some Initial Problems

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Dec 26, 2016

Latest report from Taiwan has emerged to allay fears of a delay in the production of 10nm chip on which Huawei’s Kirin 970 will be built. The report also hints that the Kirin 970 should enter volume production in the first quarter of next year as scheduled.

We had gotten wind earlier on that TSMC is having problems ramping up production of the 10nm chip a situation that could affect Smartphones scheduled to use the new process. Samsung was also reported to have been experiencing similar ramp-up problems with its 10nm process, prompting Qualcomm to revise its roadmap and scale back the new node technology so that only the Snapdragon 835 series would be made with the new chip. Even at that, early birds like the Samsung S8 and Xiaomi Mi 6 billed for release in February are rumored as doubtful for February launch.

Kirin 970 will be built on TSMC’s 10nm process and is detailed to pack an octa-core CPU comprised of four ARM Cortex-A73 cores, and four ARM Cortex-A53 cores. The next gen flagship chipset is also revealed to have a maximum clock frequency of between 2.8GHz – 3.0GHz. In addition, the Kirin 970 will be equipped with Cat. 12 LTE baseband and would come as Huawei’s first chip to use the 10nm process.

TSMC is the world’s largest contract chipmaker that services a very broad range of customers including Apple. The company is also producing the Apple A11 chip that would be inside the iPhone 8 and that also, it says, is right on schedule with volume production expected to begin in the second quarter of 2017.

With the Kirin 970 entering production in the first quarter of 2017, is there a possibility that it could be inside the Huawei P10 expected in Q1 next year? We don’t know about that right now.

source

Nokia Android Phone Leaks: Nokia D1 / E1 Sketches Surface, Reveals Design

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Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Dec 26, 2016

Fresh reports suggest that Nokia may announce Nokia D1 and E1 smartphones at the upcoming Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2017. The leaked sketches of the smartphones have now surfaced.

The rumor mill has revealed a lot about Nokia D1C midrange smartphone that is speculated to get unleashed at MWC 2017. However, there are new rumors starting that another Nokia smartphone dubbed as Nokia E1 will also get unveiled at the event.

The leaked sketches of Nokia D1 and Nokia E1 are said to have surfaced from a well-known source that has a good track record of revealing leaked information of prototype leaks from Nokia and Microsoft in the past.

The rumored Nokia D1C (aka D1) would be arriving in two variants. Fresh speculations suggest that the Nokia E1 may be lower-end version of the Nokia D1C midrange smartphone. A distinct ‘NOKIA’ logo can be clearly seen on the top right of the leaked sketches both the phones.

The Nokia D1 seems to have rounded edges whereas E1 has squared edges. The placement of selfie camera and proximity sensor suggest that is offers a better symmetrical design. It appears that it does not feature a physical Home button.

The Nokia E1 seems to sport a design that is similar to Lumia 830/925. It sports a physical Home button that may house a fingerprint scanner. It also appears that upper and lower edges are equipped with dual antennas.

Nokia D1C Specifications, Price

The Nokia D1C is pegged to be available in two versions that will feature different display sizes, RAM and camera configurations. The smaller model is expected to house a 5-inch full HD display, 2 GB of RAM, and 13-megapixel rear shooter.

The larger Nokia D1C is expected to house a 5.5-inch display, 3 GB of RAM and 16-megapixel rear snapper. Both the models are expected to be powered 1.4 GHz Snapdragon 430 processor.

Other common features include Android 7.0 Nougat and 8-megapixel fixed focus selfie camera. The Nokia D1C with 2 GB of RAM is expected to cost 999 Yuan ($144) and the 3 GB RAM model is likely to cost 1,299 Yuan ($187).

The rumored specs of Nokia E1 smartphone is unavailable. However, as mentioned above it is likely that the lower-end Nokia D1C variant may launch as Nokia E1.

Samsung Galaxy C5 Pro Specifications Surface Through TENAA; Release Date Imminent

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Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Dec 26, 2016

The Samsung Galaxy C5 Pro release date is drawing near. The handset has been by certified by TENAA certification body from China. It seems that the smartphone will be made official on the rumored launch date of Jan. 21.

Samsung Galaxy C5 Pro Specs

The Samsung Galaxy C5 was announced in May this year and the South Korean is soon going to announce C5 Pro as an upgraded edition of the original C5. According to TENAA listing, the C5 Pro carries a model number of SM-C5010. The specifications of C5 Pro have also surfaced through TENAA listing.

The Galaxy C5 Pro is expected to feature a full HD resolution supporting 5.2-inch display like its predecessor. The C5 features a Snapdragon 617 chipset under its hood. On the other side, the newer C5 Pro will be equipped with a Snapdragon 626 SoC that has an octa-core processor and Adreno 504 graphics.

The chipset of Galaxy C5 Pro is rumored to be supported by 4 GB of RAM. It is expected to come with a native storage of 64 GB. Its rear is speculated to be flanked with 16-megapixel camera.

The device is expected to run on Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow. A 3,000 mAh battery is rumored to power the device.

As far as design is concerned, the smartphone is speculated to arrive with a slim profile of 6.5 mm thickness. It is rumored to measure 145.7 x 71.4 mm. Leaked photos suggest that there are no antenna bands on the device, but they have been replaced by antenna slots at the rear side on the top and bottom.

Galaxy C5 Pro, C7 Pro to Launch on Jan. 21?

The Samsung Galaxy C7 Pro is also slated to get unveiled on Jan. 21 alongside Galaxy C5 Pro. Its arrival also seems imminent as it has received TENAA and FCC (for the U.S.) certifications.

It is expected to feature a 5.7-inch full HD display, a Snapdragon 626 chipset supported by 4 GB of RAM. Other specs include 64 GB native storage, 16-megapixel rear camera, 16-megapixel selfie camera, Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow OS and 3,300 mAh battery. It will be arriving to succeed Galaxy C7 that was also unveiled in May 2016.

(Source)

MGCOOL Explorer 2 Has Smaller Size and Higher Quality

By

Shine Wong

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Dec 26, 2016

After some huge leaks, MGCOOL has finally taken the wraps off its new Explorer 2 and announced that the Explorer 2 will support 4K H.265/HEVC recording.

With the smaller size and higher quality, H.265/HEVC codec has become more and more popular codec used by more camcorder brands, like GoPro Hero 5.

What is H.265 codec?

H.265, whose full name is High Efficiency Video Coding, is a new video coding standard that specifies how to decode video, which is the successor to Advanced Video Coding (AVC), also known as H.264.

It is developed by the Joint Collaborative Team on Video Coding (JCT-VC), and the first version of the standard was completed, approved, and published in 2013. The second version was completed and approved in 2014 and published in early 2015, and includes format range extensions, scalable coding extensions (SHVC), and multi-view extensions (MV-HEVC).

Advantages of H.265 Codec

As data-intensive as HD is, 4K is even worse.HEVC’s main advantage over H.264/AVC is that it offers roughly double the compression ratio for the similar quality, though compression efficiency results vary depending on the type of content and the encoder settings, at typical consumer video distribution bit rates. This means that a video file encoded with HEVC can occupy half the storage space of its H.264 equivalent with no noticeable change in quality.

Moreover, when compressed to the same file size or bit rate as H.264, H.265 delivers significantly better visual quality. Sounds pretty good, isn’t it?

Now we know well that how is H.265 superior to H.264. Without doubt, Explorer 2 will offer its users with better experience by reducing file size with original quality being remained.

Gionee M2017 Official: Dual-Curved AMOLED Display, 6GB RAM and 7000mAh Battery

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Dec 26, 2016

The holiday spirit is still in the air but we doubt the staff at Gionee had time to celebrate at all as the company just announced its new phone, the Gionee M2017.

While the name might have hinted at it being launched next year, Gionee decided to take off the wraps on this new device just a few days before the end of 2016. The Gionee M2017 has been in the news for a while and has generated much buzz for its unique design. Now that the phone is official, lets take a look at its specs.

Gionee M2017 Specifications

The Gionee M2017 sports a 5.7-inch dual-curved AMOLED 2K display, a snapdragon 653 processor clocked at 1.95GHz, 6GB of RAM and 128GB/256GB of storage. There is a dual-camera setup on the back consisting of a 12MP and 13MP sensor with optical zoom. The cameras have a focus speed of 0.03 seconds and also have quick focus under dim light.

The primary camera in front is an 8MP sensor and there is a fingerprint scanner up in front.

The rumors are true. The Gionee M2017 does come with a 7000mAh battery. Gionee says the 7000mAh (700Wh/L battery density) battery is actually two 3500mAh batteries that are connected in parallel in order to reduce the charging temperature and increase safety. The Gionee M2017 supports 24W fast charging with up to 12 charging protection measures and can in turn be used to charge other devices.

There is a dedicated security chip in the Gionee M2017 that protects user data using hardware encryption. Data stored on the chip can’t be accessed via brute-force or reverse-decryption as the files will self destruct when the chip is accessed via any of the above means. The chip also encrypts calls, messages, and payment verification.

Gionee doesn’t stop there. The fingerprint scanner can’t be bypassed as it uses an infrared system to detect changes in blood flow so as to determine if the fingerprint is ”live”.

The Gionee M2017 launches with Amigo 3.5 which is based on Android Marshmallow.

Gionee M2017 Design

The M2017 is a luxury phone, there is no doubt about it. The back is covered in hand trimmed calfskin leather sourced from the United States. The frame that runs around the body is made of aluminium and is symmetrical on both sides.

Gionee M2017 Price

The Gionee M2017 starts at ¥6,999 (~$1007) for the 6GB+128GB version and ¥16,999 (~$2446) for the 6GB+256GB version that sports an alligator skin instead of calfskin leather. It will go on sale on the 6th of January via online and offline sales channels.

Gionee is offering owners an exclusive after sales service. If you break your screen within the first year, it will be replaced for free. Owners can also enjoy an extended warranty period of 2 years after registration and will not need to pay for logistics if they send in their faulty device.

Huawei Kirin 970 Details Leak: 10nm TSMC Process, Cat. 12 LTE, Octa-core CPU

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Dec 26, 2016

The Huawei Mate 9 heralded the birth of the Hisilicon Kirin 960 chipset which has been revealed on benchmark to have a superior fire power. While the Kirin 960 is yet to be fully utilized in Huawei’s smartphones, the company is already rumored to be working on its next flagship chip which would be called Kirin 970.

Recently, a Weibo user reputed to be familiar with the Taiwanese mobile phone industry revealed some details about the Kirin 970. The Kirin 970 will be built on a TSMC manufacturing process and so it is not surprising that details of the Kirin 970 are emanating from Taiwan, TSMC’s base. Accordingly, the Kirin 970 is detailed to pack an octa-core CPU comprised of four ARM Cortex-A73 cores, and four ARM Cortex-A53 cores. The next gen flagship chipset is also revealed to have a maximum clock frequency of between 2.8GHz – 3.0GHz. In addition, the Kirin 970 will be equipped with Cat. 12 LTE baseband and would come as Huawei’s first chip to use the 10nm process.

The Kirin 970 is rumored to be unveiled in the first quarter of next year in order to achieve mass production. The Huawei P10 is also expected in Q1 2017 but will not pack the Kirin 970 chip instead would use the current Kirin 960 as the Mate 9. Rather, in accordance with Huawei’s custom, the Huawei’s Mate 10 would be the first to pack the Kirin 970 and that would likely be in the second half of 2017.

Meizu Box Gets a Price Increase: Attributed to Rise in Cost of Materials

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Dec 26, 2016

Last month Meizu entered into the android TV Box market with its Meizu Box which has a unique triangular design that makes it stand out from the plethora of android TV boxes already in the market. The Meizu Box runs a special version of Flyme OS called Flyme for TV which is based on Android Marshmallow. When it launched, it was priced at ¥299 (~$43) but the news now is that it will get bumped up to ¥399 (~$57).

The announcement was made on Meizu’s official Weibo page where Meizu attributed the increase in price of the device to an increase in the cost of materials. The price change has already been effected on the official store.

Meizu’s TV Box has 1GB of RAM, 8GB of built-in storage, a quad-core cortex-A53 processor clocked at 2GHz and a Mali 450 GPU. There is dual band WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, and it has an HDMI port, a USB port, and an Ethernet port. The Meizu Box which comes with a remote that has voice controls, supports 4K video playback and Dolby Digital.

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Samsung Galaxy S8 & Xiaomi Mi 6 Could Be Delayed Over Chip Supply Shortage

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Dec 26, 2016

If you are anticipating the launch of Samsung‘s next generation Galaxy S8 flagship in February next year, you might just need to lower your expectations a little as there are speculations in some quarters that the Galaxy S8 may not drop at MWC, 2017. This delay is also likely to affect Xiaomi’s expected Mi 6 flagship which was the subject of a recent rumor which gave it a February 14 launch date.

The delays may be connected to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chip both flagships are rumored to come with. According to reports emanating from Taiwan, Samsung’s current production capacity cannot meet the quantity of processor needed. As would be recalled, the Snapdragon 835 is manufactured on Samsung’s 10nm node process, so Samsung Foundry is the supplier of the chip. Consequently, since Samsung’s own device is expected to use the SD 835 chip, it would also be affected by the low production output.

The implication of this is that the Galaxy S8’s launch may be shifted from February to sometime around April next year. Analyst Kevin Wang had before now expressed worry over the expected Galaxy S8 release date. In the same vein, the Xiaomi Mi 6 may as well see a shift in its launch from Q1 to Q2 2017.

Also Meizu’s next flagship – Meizu MX7 which is expected to use a MediaTek Helio X30 processor is said to see a shift in its launch date by a couple of months. The Helio X30 chip was announced in September as the first MediaTek chip to be built on a 10nm TSMC process. The Meizu MX7 may even be shifted upwards by 4 to 5 months because TSMC is also working on the Apple A11 chip using the same 10nm manufacturing process.

(source)

Xiaomi Unveils Portable Mi Car Air Purifier, Sales Start on Dec. 27 at ¥449 ($64)

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Dec 26, 2016

Xiaomi has officially unveiled its latest smart gadget via its Mijia brand and it is the Mi Car air purifier that the company teased last week as launching soon. Xiaomi seems to have been buoyed by an image which made the rounds on Weibo last week of a man using the Mi home air purifier on an high-speed train while on transit. It is also possible the company had been working on the portable car air purifier before the viral picture emerge.

Xiaomi didn’t need to unveil the smart gadget in a special ceremony but just like other of its Mijia products, it was announced via the Mijia weibo page. The Mi Car air purifier uses the same rectangular shape as other Xiaomi Air Purifiers but there is also a leader strap on the body of the car air purifier with which it is attached firmly inside the car to the head rest.

The Mi Car air purifier also comes with less noise while it is working and has a smaller Clean Air Delivery Rate (CADR) value of 60m³/h when compared to the Mi Air Purifier Pro with a CADR value of 500m³/h. When it is taken into consideration that this is just for use inside a car with a smaller area, then the CADR value is just adequate to provide clean and fresh air inside the car. It is even touted to filter out impurities and make the air inside the car clean in just 3 minutes.

Although the latest and Xiaomi’s first car air purifier does not come with an OLED display like the Mi Air Purifier Pro, it comes as a smart gadget in that you can check the air quality and other relevant information via the Mi App on smartphones.

Xiaomi has pegged a very generous price tag of 449 yuan (around $64) on the Mi car air purifier and it would officially go on its first sale on December 27 at 10.00am on Mi home, Lynx, Mi store.

Meizu M5S Gets 3C Certification, Sports 4GB RAM and an Octa-Core SoC

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Dec 26, 2016

Meizu has a new phone in the works and it should hit the market soon since it has gotten its 3C certification and also been cleared at TENAA. The phone which is listed as having two separate models M612Q and M612M which have the same specifications is presumed to be the Meizu M5S.

The Meizu M5S doesn’t look much different from the recently released Meizu M5 Note. It has the same antenna line design at the back and has its camera, LED flash, and Meizu logo in the same position. The only difference is up front where the proximity sensor and front facing camera are positioned differently.

Specification details of the Meizu M5S reveals that it has a 5.2-inch 720p display, a 1.3GHz octa-core processor, a 13MP rear camera, a 5MP selfie camera, and a 2930mAh battery. The phone will also be available in multiple RAM (2/3/4GB) and ROM (16/32/64GB) variants when it launches.

The M5S runs Android Marshmallow and even with its small battery comes in at 8.4mm thick. Meizu is expected to release the phone in silver, gray, gold, and rose gold color options. There is no news about the date of release yet but early January seems to be the best bet.