Huawei has paid a lot of attention on the Honor 8 and it has attracted a lot of attention due to its beautiful dual glass body and dual camera since its launch around 4 days back. The phone looks premium for a mid-range device and this is the reason that more than 5 Million people have already registered for its first sale.
Honor 8 will go on sale for the first time on 19th July and registrations for the flash sale are open till 18th July. This clearly shows that this phone is attracting a lot of attention among the buyers. It is, however, not known that how many devices will be available for sale.
For the one’s who are are not aware, the Honor 8 comes with Huawei’s own Kirin 950 octa-core processor clocked at 2.3GHz with Mali-T880 MP 4 GPU. It comes with two 12MP cameras with Sony IMX286 sensors at the back, one RGB sensor and a black and white sensor. Additional features on the camera are Laser Autofocus and Contrast Focus apart from great depth of field. On the front, the Honor 8 features an 8MP sensor, which has large 1.4um pixels.
It comes in three variants — 3GB RAM + 32GB is priced at CNY 1999 or $299 USD, 4GB RAM + 32GB priced at CNY 2299 or $343 and 4GB RAM + 64GB is priced at CNY 2499 or USD 374. There is a 3000mAh battery (9V2A fast charging) to power the device. The screen size of 5.2-inches with 1080p resolution and the phone comes with a fingerprint sensor located at the back. Honor 8 comes in 3 color options namely Pearl White, Sunrise Gold, Midnight Black, Sakura Pink and Sapphire Blue.
What do you think of Honor 8 ? Do let us know in the comment section below.
Meizu will officially announce the MX6 flagship next week, on July 19. The company has been teasing the upcoming handset, but we have got to know much more about the phone via recent leaks. Now, the latest information leaked online reveals the pricing of the Meizu MX6 and it’s much higher than its predecessor, the MX5.
The leaked document reveals that the Meizu MX6 will be priced at 2299 Yuan ($344) with a Smart Cover. It looks like the company is planning to sell this cover alongside the phone during launch. As for this pricing, it much higher than its predecessor, which retails for 1799 Yuan ($270). But this news is not a surprise considering, Meizu’s co-founder had already said that due to similar processes used in the MX6 as the Pro 6, the pricing was going to touch the 2000 Yuan mark this year.
The smart cover will be something interesting as it reportedly comes with different colored LED lights to inform you of the notifications. We also have seen a couple of renders of this smart cover, and you can read all about it from here.
An increase in price may not be good news for Meizu fans, but the co-founder had previously revealed that the Mx6 flagship is the best MX device till date. So, we can expect pretty top-notch specs and a solid design on the upcoming handset. From the information leaked earlier, we know that the phone should come with the Helio X20, 4GB RAM, 12MP rear camera, 5MP front shooter and 3000mAh+ battery.
News emanating from China indicates that Xiaomi will release its expected Xiaomi Notebook laptop on July 27. We had earlier reported of a Xiaomi news conference coming up on July 27 where the company is expected to release a series of phones, including the dual-camera clad Redmi Note 4, Mi Note 2 and other mobile gadgets.
According to fresh reports, Xiaomi will officially launch its Notebook laptop during the news conference. The Xiaomi Notebook is expected to cram an Intel Atom processor and will boot Windows 10 operating system. One unique feature of the Xiaomi Notebook is its ultra-slim built, as well as long battery life.
Earlier rumors had indicated that the Xiaomi Notebook laptop is expected to come in three display variants, 12.5-inches, 13.3-inches and a 15.6-inch model. The small display variants are expected to hit the market first. The slim device also packs a webcam just like on the MacBook.
Xiaomi’s CEO Lei Jun had taken to Weibo to share the company’s lofty plans for the second half of the year to launch a series of devices in H2 2016 and now, the list of devices popping up into the market on July 27 keeps swelling. Could we see more devices coming out? That we don’t know, what we know is the Xiaomi Notebook may have just joined the list of devices launching July 27.
Chinese top drone company, DJI has launched their latest Point To Zoom (PTZ) camera that provides up to 7x zoom power. Dubbed Zenmuse Z3 (Zen Z3 for short), it is the renowned company’s first camera with zoom capability.
DJI’s Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) or drones have been very useful for aerial photography and videography but one snag about it before now, was that if a close-up shot of an object is needed, the drone controller has to fly the drone very close to the object in order to get a satisfactory shot. That could be dangerous as a mistake in operation could lead to a crash. But now, all that is set to change with the launch of the Zenmuse Z3, the company’s first Point to Zoom (PTZ) camera which can deliver up to a whopping 7x zoom.
Speaking at the launch, Paul Pan DJI’s senior product manager, had this to say,
“Before the introduction of Zen Z3, UAVs are only approaching the subject in order to obtain an enlarged image. Today, users can use the zoom function to capture clearly from a distance, sharp images. This is to enhance the efficiency of the UAV in equipment inspection, search and rescue and other security areas. “
The Zenmuse Z3 is reputed to support 3.5 optical zoom and 2X digital zoom which combine to give the 7x zoom. The Zen Z3 also sports a 12MP Sony 1 camera with 2.3 Yingcun sensor, having a focal length of 22-77mm and corresponding aperture coefficient of F2.8 – F5.2 . The Zen Z3 camera supports 4K video recording, and is suitable for shooting still images as well as video recording.
In addition, Zenmuse Z3 camera can be mounted on a host of drones ranging from “Enlightenment” Inspire 1 aircraft, Jingwei M100 developer platform, to Jingwei M600 flying platform, all manufactured by DJI.It also supports DJI’s airborne Lightbridge and Lightbridge 2 and image transmission system, which enables a user to view real-time images transmitted from the drone on their mobile device as long as it’s within a 5 km radius from the drone.
We had reported that Huawei teased the release of the Huawei Maimang 5 flagship earlier in July. Now, the company has officially taken the wraps off the new device, giving fans yet another mid-range smartphone to choose from. However, unlike most other Huawei smartphones that have been announced this year, the Maimang 5 comes with a Snapdragon 625 processor. So, it will be one of the few mid-range options from Huawei not featuring its home grown Kirin chipset.
Going with the current trend, the Maimang 5 features a metal body with diamond cut edges and 2.5D glass up front. It’s pretty thin as well, measuring just 7.3mm in thickness and weighing 167 grams. The display is of 5.5-inches with 1080p FHD resolution. You also get a 3D fingerprint sensor located at the back of the device. The overall hardware of the new generation Maimang 5 is a big leap over the last generation model.
Under the hood, the new generation Maimang 5 comes with the Snapdragon 625 chipset clocked at 2GHz with 3GB + 32GB and 4GB + 64GB ROM versions. The phone also comes with a powerful camera at the back. It gets a 16MP Sony IMX298 sensor, the same one that’s found inside the OPPO R9 Plus with three axis OIS, dual tone flash, 6P lens, PDAF and Hybrid AF. And guess what, the rear camera can capture 4K videos at 30fps! Up front, you get an 8MP front facing shooter with f/2.0 aperture and beauty 2.0.
Up front, you get an 8MP front facing shooter with f/2.0 aperture and beauty 2.0.
The battery inside is also pretty large, measuring 3340mAh in capacity, which along with the 14nm Snapdragon 625 chip ensures battery life of about 15 hours of HD video playback, 18 hours of continuous 4G internet access and 82 hours of continuous music playback (claimed by the company).
The Maimang 5 will run on the latest Android 6.0 Marshmallow with EMUI 4.1 on top. Other features of the phone include 4G+, dual SIM dual standby, and USB Type-C port.
The phone will go on sale at JD.com, Huawei mall, Lynx store and Suning for 2399 Yuan ~ $360 (3GB RAM version) and 2599 Yuan ~$389 (4GB RAM version).
While some folks might say Windows mobile isn’t doing very well, it seems some manufacturers still have faith in the OS. One such manufacturer is PC and mobile manufacturing giant, Lenovo.
Lenovo, in a joint partnership with Japanese carrier, SoftBank, has announced the SoftBank 503LV which will hit the Japanese market by late October.
The SoftBank sports mid-range specs such as a 5” HD screen, 3GB of RAM, a snapdragon 617 processor and 32GB of built-in storage. The phone is equipped with an 8MP rear camera, a 5MP front facing camera for selfies, and is powered by a 2250mAh battery.
The phone weighs 144g and has a 7.6mm thickness. There is no word on pricing yet, but we’ll update this article once we get our hands on that.
Is there a chance we might see this phone outside of Japan, probably under a different Lenovo name? Maybe, maybe not.
Lenovo has unveiled a special Wooden edition of the Vibe K4 Note in India. The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note Wooden Edition is only different in outlook from the Vibe K4 Note that was launched in India in January this year running on Android 5.1 Lollipop operating system, which was later upgraded to Android 6.0 Marshmallow.
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note Wooden Edition comes with a cool wooden back constructed from Formica-like wood veneer but has been strengthened with layer of flexible polycarbonate. The wooden back design gives the device a natural looks that syncs with the environment.
In other specifications, the Vibe K4 Note is closely similar with the Lenovo Vibe K4 Note Wooden edition. The specs sheet include, a 5.5-inch IPS display with 1080p display with extra glass protection provided by Corning Gorilla Glass 3 and an Octa-core MediaTek MT6753 processor with ARM Mali T720 GPU.
The sleek device boots Android 5.1 Lollipop with Vibe UI but the OS is now upgradable to Android 6.0 Marshmallow. Lenovo started rolling out updates for the OS since June 2015. Other specifications include;13MP rear facing camera with dual-tone LED flash, a 5MP front-facing shooter, 3GB RAM, 16GB ROM expandable up to 128GB, dual-SIM support, 4G connectivity and a host of others.
With these array of specs and features, it is no surprise Lenovo claims to have sold over 750,000 units of the Vibe K4 Note in India alone. The Lenovo Vibe K4 Wooden Edition is available exclusively from Amazon India (Amazon.in) at a price of Rs. 11,499 ($172) which is a little higher than the original Vibe K4 Note with a price tag of Rs. 10,999 ($164.40) on the same site.
Over the past few months, a large chunk of the news about the upcoming iPhones have focused on the external features. It’s time we took a peek into the innards of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 plus.
The new iPhones will be launching with a new chip dubbed the Apple A10. The next generation processor which is built on the 16nm node as the Apple A9 is expected to offer better performance and have better power management.
The A10 which will be manufactured by TSMC, is still a dual-core processor like its siblings. It has shown up on Geekbench and the scores are pretty impressive.
The A10 has a single-core score of 3000. That is almost 500 points higher than that of the A9 which as a score of 2519. The new chip isn’t the most powerful processor in Apple’s arsenal right now, that prize belongs to the A9X which has a single-core score of 3010 and is found in the iPad Pro 9.7 and iPad Pro 12.9.
Rumours say the Apple A10 will have its silicon chips and semi-conductor compounds fused together to make it more compact which will result in a thinner phone or allow for a larger battery.
The Meizu MX6 will be officially launched in 5 days (July 19) and according to a leak, it will be accompanied by a smart case with LED breathing notification light running around the edges.
The case which will be paired to the phone, has a LED light for various notifications such as calls, messages, and mails etc. We expect that there will be an in-phone menu (an app is not necessary) where you can toggle settings and customise the notification lights.
The smart case is said to be made of leather and will support sleep/wake function. There is no info about how the smart case will be powered as the MX6 doesn’t have a smart connector like the iPhone 7 Plus which can supply power to accessories. Our guess is that, it will have a built-in battery that can be easily replaced.
We love this new reinvention of the case. The last time we saw something this cool was with HTC’s Dot View Case which has been replaced with the Ice Case for the HTC 10.
Meizu also teased what appears to be a music case for the MX6. This case has a transparent window which shows a miniature version of the music player. It also features a vertical bar housing a button styled like Meizu’s “M” logo and a play/pause button. Just below the horizontal bar is a circular button as well for previous/next. We presume the ”M” button is to open the music app without unlocking the phone.
To end this, Meizu says it will allow other companies copy its home button but not the way it operates. Last year Meizu was sued by ZTE for copying their halo home button design.
Imoo Learning phone, the education-oriented smartphone from the stables of BBK Electronics has continued to make waves weeks after going official. The device is not yet available for purchase but reservation for the device has hit a whooping 2998 Yuan ( $450) price tag on JD.com for the China Unicom 4G LTE model.
The educational smartphone was expected to start at 2000 Yuan ($300) but rushing for the device has seen the price sky-rocket to a staggering 2998 yuan ($450). That is a huge 1000 yuan ($150) above the recently released Honor 8 which starts at 1998 Yuan ($300). So, the phone which resembles Apple’s iPhone in appearance, is surprising priced like the high-end iPhone.
For this price, you get a sleek smartphone with 5.5-inch 1080p AMOLED display, equipped with a MediaTek MT6755 2GHz octa-core processor , 3GB RAM, 32GB of unexpandable storage onboard, a 13MP rear camera unit as well as a 5MP front -facing camera and 2930mAh battery.
Also, the Imoo Learning phone is stuffed with various software and features that aid learning for school – age kids, most of whom own one device or another which usually has no educationally beneficial software pre-installed. But the Imoo Learning phone which runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow-based Study OS, has integrated synchronization for 325,000 teaching textbook selected across China, 170,000 synchronized educational papers, 16 million sync solved problems, test questions that cut across primary to high school to University level.
There is also a function on the phone which can be turned on to help solve arithmetic problems by scanning the problem with the phone’s camera and also to translate words by scanning as well. The Imoo Learning phone also allows parents to set daily learning, play duration for their kids among other amazing things.
A few days back, we had spotted a Honor phablet with a massive 6.6-inch display. While we expected the phone to debut alongside the Honor 8 flagship, that clearly didn’t happen. Now, the latest information from China reveals that the Honor V8 Max will be announced in August this year, precisely on August 1.
Along with a possible release date, the Honor V8 Max prices were also leaked today. It is said that the phablet with 3GB RAM + 32GB ROM will start at 1999 Yuan ($300) while the 4GB RAM + 64GB ROM will retail at 2299 Yuan ($345). There could be other announcements alongside this phablet at the event, but we are not sure of the details.
Thanks to the previous TENAA listing of the Honor V8 Max, we know most of the specifications of the device. The phone will come with a massive 6.6-inch 2K display with Kirin 950 chipset inside clocked at 2.3GHz. There are at least two versions expected, 3GB + 32GB and 4GB + 64GB. There will be a fingerprint sensor as well. At the back, the phablet comes with a 13MP camera while up front, there will be an 8MP shooter. The battery is also quite large, with a capacity of 4400mAh. Finally, the phone runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow.
Considering these specs, the Honor V8 Max is looking to directly compete with the Xiaomi Mi Max phablet that has been doing well in China. Even this model comes with an all metal design, similar to the design of the V8. But there is just one single camera instead of the dual camera setup on the V8 flagship. It is quite slim as well, measuring just 7.18mm in thickness.
So, what do you think about the upcoming Honor V8 Max? Which one would you go for, the V8 Max or the Mi Max?
A lot has already been shared online about the Galaxy Note 7, right from the processor, memory, display and the fact that the Note 7 will feature an Iris scanner. However, we were really unaware about how will this new Iris scanner technology work? Thanks to the latest leaks, we know how exactly it will unlock the device.
The leaked images of a working prototype show that the Galaxy Note 7 will use infra-red scanning method for the iris scanner to unlock the device. The biggest advantage of this technology is that it can unlock the device even at night or other extremely low light situations. Leaks also suggested that Samsung’s iris recognition technology can emulate the conventional fingerprint unlock in terms of speed.
What we already know about the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 which is launching on August 2nd is that it will feature a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor, 5.7 inches/ 6-inch 2K super AMOLED double curved screen and 6GB RAM with 64 GB internal storage.
On the imaging front, the Galaxy Note 7 is expected to feature a 5MP front camera, and a 12MP rear camera. It should be dustproof and waterproof with IP68 level certification as well.
A big question is that, would you buy such a powerful device if it will be priced around (rumored) CNY 6300/USD 950 ? To be honest, a lot of Samsung fans will surely do.
Good news folks! If you had been concerned about MIUI sticking with the old Lollipop and KitKat versions of Android OS, you will be happy to hear that the upcoming versions of the MIUI OS will be based on the latest version of Android, namely Android N.
The company confirmed that they have received the source code of Android N OS and will be soon working on the new MIUI adaptation based on Android N. This is definitely great news for fans as MIUI has often focused on improving the new features in their ROM, instead of upgrading it to the new Android version. As a result, phones like the Redmi Note which got the MIUI 7 update were still stuck on the two-year-old Android 4.4 KitKat version. But this news means that Xiaomi is finally speeding up the process of development of Android N based MIUI ROM. Of course, we have to remember that even after getting the source code, releasing a stable version of ROM can take a lot of time.
This news comes at a time when MIUI 9 will soon start development. Yesterday, the company confirmed the start of the MIUI 9 development, and it’s currently in the process of taking suggestions from users to improve the new version. So, it is possible that when the first beta for MIUI 9 is released after a few months, it’s based on Android N.
Meanwhile, we are waiting for the MIUI 8 Stable ROM to roll out to Xiaomi devices. The company has confirmed that the official release of the stable ROM should be before August 16.
The announcement came from the hands of one of the three new spokespersons employed by Xiaomi recently. Actor Liu Hao Ran, posted on Weibo about a Xiaomi press conference which would be held on July 27 at the Beijing National Convention Center.
Earlier statements from the tech startup had stipulated that the Xiaomi Mi 5s and the flagship Mi Note 2 with Helio X20 processor, 4GB RAM + 128GB ROM, all metal body, fingerprint scanner and dual main camera, would be released in the second half of this year with new innovative features like pressure touch and dual main cameras.
However, considering that this announcement comes via the spokesperson of the company’s Redmi lineup, we will see a new Redmi device at the end of this month. We have seen a few renders as well as benchmarks of Redmi devices in the past few days including Xiaomi Altun, suspected to be the Xiaomi Redmi Note 4. So, we could be meeting this new device at the event on July 27. The flagship Redmi Note 4 is expected to pop sporting a dual camera at the rear, among a host of stunning features.
Xiaomi had shared their lofty plans for the second half of the year with us, part of which is the launching of a flurry of different smartphones in one event, according to Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun on Weibo. Could we be seeing such scenario on July 27? Mark this date, we’ll keep you posted as always.
Encryption chips in smartphones are not new, Apple had always embedded encryption chip in its iPhone brands which make it difficult to access the phone’s data in situations of theft or loss of the device. Apple has its own hardware security measure called the Secure Enclave, which is a separate CPU within the A7 chips that runs some cryptographic operations and handles the biometric data for iPhones.
Apart from the Apple approach, most smartphones nowadays pack one or more forms of encryption security but mainly through software. Those that are hardware-related, like Apple’s Touch ID fingerprint scanner, still don’t protect the data once you get past the lock screen.
Gionee says the M6 which is billed to be launched July 26, uses an encryption chip to better secure a user’s personal data on the device. Even though the company is yet to release the detailed specs of the smartphone, but the idea behind hardware encryption like what it is touted to feature, is that it is within the device and reduces the route of potential attack the smartphone could face.
The Gionee M6 began as a rumor on Chinese social network website Weibo, when image renderings of the device were leaked to the site. However, Gionee’s vice president Yu Lei confirmed the rumors shortly after.
“As far as we know, the hardware encryption operation is completed in the security encryption chip, so it is equivalent to a black box, and the process won’t be hijacked. Whereas software encryption takes place at the operating system, so it has more risks to be peaked or hijacked,” according to a press release announcing the device.
The public battle between Apple and the FBI in the US over decryption of smartphones owned by suspected terrorists’, the debate about mobile phone security has gathered huge momentum presently.
The focus seems to have shifted though, to the need for more efficient forms of protection against cyber theft and other security threat posed by our everyday use of smartphones both online and offline. So much so, that despite existing security features on both Apple iOS and Google’s Android OS, the duo recently adopted further steps in ensuring a water tight protection on devices running either operating system.
Google recently integrated Samsung Knox, new update system, and use of ARM’s TrustZone to increase the security capabilities of Android phones.
Apart from Apple and Google, a host of ultra-secure Android devices have hit the market recently, including the Boeing Black, the Turing Phone, the Solarin smartphone, and Silent Circle’s Blackphone. But most of these are software based encryption which is not as strong as the hardware based encryption which Gionee is saying the M6 sports.
Gionee claims the M6 would be the “safest smartphone ever” — a bold statement to say the least. For all we know, it could be a marketing strategy, a media hype or something. The device is billed to be launched on July 26, and we have to wait until then, before the encryption feature can be subjected to close scrutiny to see if its what Gionee touts it to be.
However, if the encryption feature is able to live up to its billing, it could set the stage for a tsunami of better secured Android phones.
Another Xiaomi phone has been spotted on Benchmark website Geekbench, not too long after the Xiaomi Capricorn was sighted benchmarked on Geekbench. The device was listed by the code name Xiaomi Altun on the benchmark site. While it is difficult to tell the particular device this one is, it is speculated that the Xiaomi Altun could be the new Redmi model, probably Redmi Note 4.
According to the listing, the Xiaomi phone is powered by an octa-core CPU and packs a 2GB RAM under its hood. The device runs Android 6.0 Marshmallow but the chipset isn’t disclosed. All the time the phone’s results were logged, the field that normally lists the chipset in use was consistently left blank.
Quite curiously, the Xiaomi branded phone was discovered to have been tested a good 25 times on Geekbench since the month of May. The log of the device’s performance revealed a fairly consistent results sheet except for the last test. The last test performed resulting in the lowest tallies in the various categories scored by the phone. The device had a single-core score of 798 and a multi-core score of 2664. The highest single-core score, 980, was produced on a test conducted May 8th. The peak multi-core score of 4076 was the result of a Geekbech test dated June 30th.
Ulefone may not be the first name you think of when it comes to smartphones but they have one interesting device, which is called the Future. Learn more in our full review.
The phone comes in a pretty nice box and the contents include all the usual items you would expect to come with any phone. Some extras include a fast charger, USB C to micro USB adapter and a high-quality TPU case.
Ulefone Future Review: SPECS
Display
5.5″ 1080p (Full-HD)
Processor
Mediatek Helio P10, 64-bit, octa-core (up to 2GHz)
32GB (expandable via microSD card slot up to 256GB)
Ulefone Future Review: DESIGN and DISPLAY
The phone stands out from the crowd of affordable devices due to its bezel-less display. I have to tell you that it indeed looks great. However, the view on the very edges of the display is a little distorted to make that bezel-less look but I’m okay with that.
The 5.5” 1080p LCD panel itself is great. It is sharp and crisp, and color reproduction is good.
We have a 5MP selfie shooter along with the non-customisable multi-colour LED flash on the top and on-screen navigation buttons instead of capacitive ones.
Also, the phone sports a premium all-metal design with nano-injected antenna lines and great build quality. The buttons are nice and tactile and the phone feels very nice in the hand. We don’t see a side fingerprint scanner very often on budget phones but it is actually very convenient to reach. The scanner is not the fastest I’ve tested but it gets the job done.
As far as camera, we have a 16MP Samsung shooter coupled with a dual LED flash.
The loudspeaker is on the bottom and it sounds tinny as on most of budget phones.
You can put either 2 SIMs or 1 SIM and the microSD card in this hybrid slot. I love the supplied SIM ejector pin. You can just insert it in the headset jack and leave it there.
Ulefone Future Review: HARDWARE and PERFORMANCE
Ulefone Future has some pretty good specs. The phone ships with an octa-core Mediatek Helio P10 chip with the clock speeds of 2GHz, 4GB of RAM and 32GB of expandable storage. These are pretty good specs for the price of the phone to say the least.
The gaming performance is good if you play games on medium graphics. If you set graphics to maximum, you should expect quite a bit of stutter and some skipped frames.
Ulefone Future Review: BENCHMARKS
Ulefone Future Review: USER INTERFACE
We have a pretty standard Android 6.0 user interface. We don’t have any fancy features or customization options but most importantly, the device is fast and you should not expect any hiccups on the daily basis.
Ulefone Future Review: CAMERA
The daylight image quality is pretty good yet not always consistent. You can get some nice and detailed shots but camera may struggle with dynamic range in some situations.
The low-light camera performance is not so great but this is what you usually get with the phones in this price range, anyway.
The selfie camera is not very impressive but it will be enough for social media.
The 1080p video quality is pretty good for a budget phone. See a video review for a video sample.
I didn’t have any connectivity issues with the phone as the signal reception was good and the call quality was decent. Also, the Wifi worked fine. GPS may take a little longer to get the position but it is pretty accurate.
Ulefone Future Review: BATTERY LIFE
The 3000mAh battery can be fully charged 1 hour and 30 mins thanks to the included fast charger.
The battery life is pretty good. I could get over 4 hours of screen-on time on a mixed use.
Ulefone Future Review: CONCLUSIONS
Ulefone Future is one of those devices that wants to stand out from the crowd and the company succeeded in quite a few ways.
The bezel-less display design indeed looks great, the phone sports some great specifications, all-metal construction is premium and the phone looks and feels more expensive than it costs.
Also, we have a decent camera for daylight images, a fingerprint sensor and a fast charge support.
On the other hand, it would have been nice to see a more powerful processor for 3D gaming and a little bit faster fingerprint scanner.
At the price of $240 Ulefone Future may not be the only device you have to look for in this price range but if you want a phone with unique looks, decent specs and good day-to-day performance, it may be worth checking out.
Huawei recently announced the brand new Huawei Honor 8 flagship in China. The new Honor 8 is a good looking device coming with a beautiful double glass body and dual cameras at the back. The phone is powerful enough to take on flagships in the market right now, like the Xiaomi Mi5 and the ZUK Z2 and hence, it quite an attractive option to customers.
Continuing the tradition, OPPOMART has now listed the Huawei Honor 8 flagship up for sale on its website. The retailer does charge its regular premium price for the device, which is up for pre-order at $349 internationally. However, considering OPPOMART is one of the best ways to get hold of a new Chinese handset, many people are ready to shell out this price.
Given that the Honor 8 flagship will go on sale in China soon, we can expect the retailer to start shipping the first batch of orders for the device in the next 7-10 days. So, if you are itching to get hold of the new Honor 8, do check out OPPOMART’s listing.
To recap, the Honor 8 comes with the powerful yet efficient Kirin 950 chipset inside with 3GB RAM/ 4GB RAM options and a 5.2-inch with 1080p resolution. The highlight of the phone are the dual cameras located at the back. These are 12MP CMOS sensors, one taking the color details and the second one taking in the black and white details. The phone is capable of recording 1080p videos as well as slo-mo 720p videos @ 120 fps. Up front, you get an 8MP shooter.
The Honor 8 is a great looking phone and the new blue color especially looks attractive on the device.
In case you are wondering, both 3GB RAM and 4GB RAM models are available on OPPOMART. However, the 3GB RAM version has only white and gold color options while the 4GB RAM model has white, gold as well as this blue color option. You can pre-order your preferred memory and color variants on the retailer right now. Check out more details from below.
We will extend our “How To” guides to Lenovo and ZUK smartphones today. As you may already know ,the ZUK brand belongs to Lenovo. ZUK Z1 came last year with an affordable price and elegant design, including finger print sensor and 64GB storage option powered with Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 and sold many even Lenovo was surprised with the sale numbers. This year, 2 models came from ZUK brand, ZUK Z2 Pro and ZUK Z2, both having powerfull Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 cipsets inside, both with minimum 4GB of RAM’s ( ZUK Z2 Pro has a 6GB Ram variant too) and plus many more new feutures, you can read full details here :
Today we will learn how to flash roms with Qfil, Qualcomm’s own flasher software and this will also will be our “Unbrick Guide” for Lenovo/ZUK Qualcomm-based phones.
So our “How To” guides are unique as they are alternative ROM flashing guides (without the need of flashing recovery’s, without the need of rooting, and works even with locked bootloaders) + Unbrick guides in just one single method.
I will use a Lenovo Vibeshot as an example today, came as bricked from a reader, stuck on Lenovo Logo, no recovery menu, no system menu ( volume “-” + power ). My screenshots will be based on this model, so don’t let my ROM files or configurations confuse you. I’m sharing ZUK Z1’s Qfil ROM link in the article, please ask for other model’s QPST/Qfil rom files in the comments if needed.
The method that we will use today is Qualcomm’s own method to flash ROMs to supported models, and it’s not forbidden from the maker, if it’s not hidden. I mean you can’t use this method on every Qualcomm based phone like LG, Samsung or HTC. Those makers never will allow their customers to rescue their bricked phones by themselves, they have their service centers worldwide and work so hard to leave Qualcomm’s own structure, in order to create their own ROM structure. So, users have to go to their manufacturer service centers if they brick their phones.
This is why I like Chinese brands much more, most of them are unbrickable in this way, because, again, most of them use Qualcomm’s structure and we can find that kind of “Qfil” ROMs online. In time we will learn how to unbrick them all.
Most Lenovo Qualcomm models have the same ROM structure and this guide can be applied to all. There may be some exceptions, of course, like some old models running Snapdragon 800’s or some models that are being sold only to network service providers around the world like Vodafone, and not to customers directly. Remember ? Service center policy ?
Before we start, let’s take a look at the downloads :
All drivers I’m sharing here are signed drivers, so no need to disable Windows driver enforcement like we did in our first guide for Xiaomi.
Before we begin, let me remind you, this method will wipe your phone completely and bring it to “out of box” factory mode. So backing up your important data is a must! If your phone is already bricked and can’t power on or is stuck at logo, there is not much to do for your data.
STEP 1:
First, we need to install adb on our computers, and for that, we will use a program called “adb setup“, thanks to Snoop05 from XDA-Developers, this will enable adb and fastboot commands to work on our systems. It will also install necessary adb drivers. There are many ways to do that but what is more important about Snoop05’s solution is that we can use adb and fastboot commands system-wide, this means our old “command prompt” will turn to accept this commands, and no need to work in the “adb” folder like we used to before. Then install Lenovo and ZUK phone Windows USB drivers + Qualcomm Diag port drivers on your system.
STEP 2:
On Lenovo phones to enable USB debugging, click “USB debugging (ADB)” under “USB computer connection” from the pop-up window when you plug the USB cable.On ZUK Z1, if Cyanogen Rom is installed, go to settings> about phone, and click “Build number” couple of times till you see “you are a developer“ message. Then back to settings>Developer opitons>USB debugging, click it and allow. Your system will install necessary”adb” drivers. Now open command prompt and type :
“adb devices“
Look at your phone for the “Allow USB debugging?“ message, select “Always allow from this computer“ and click OK. If you forget to allow from phone, the command will return “unauthorized“, if OK you will see your phone as “device“ .
STEP 3:
Install QPST build 430 on your PCs. After setup finishes go to “C:\Program Files (x86)\Qualcomm\QPST\bin” folder and locate QFIL.exe, create a shortcut on your desktop, or continue to work from bin folder, as you like.
STEP 4:
After you downloaded your ROM and unzipped it, run “QFIL.exe”. Select “Flat Build” option under “Select Build Type”, then click “Browse” under “Select Programmer” and locate the mbn file that is starting with “prog_emmc_firehose”. In my example its “prog_emmc_firehose_8936.mbn”, 8936 is the code number for Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 chipset, for ZUK Z1 it will be “prog_emmc_firehose_8974.mbn”, 8974 is the code for Snapdragon 801 series.
Then, under “Download” click “Load XML” tab at the right end of the window, the pop-up window will locate the rawprogram0.xml that we need. After you select it and click “Open” another pop-up window will come automatically and show you “patch0.xml” to select .
After necessary files are selected, the Qfil configuration should look like this :
STEP 5:
Now it’s time to open our so called Qualcomm HS-USB Qdloader 9008 service port to work with. If your phone is in working condition, we will use an adb command from command prompt :
“adb reboot edl”
If your phone is bricked / can’t boot up / stuck at logo / restarting itself continuously, then we will use the key combination to open our Qualcomm HS-USB Qdloader 9008 service port. That key combination depends on the ROM that you had on your phone before it’s bricked.
If you were on Lollipop : Phone must be completely off. Pressing “Volume Up” key plug the USB cable in WITHOUT PRESSING POWER BUTTON ! Port will open.
If you were on Marshmallow : Phone must be completely off. Plug the USB cable in and immediately press Power On button. Port will open.
STEP 6:
Qfil will recognize HS-USB Qdloader 9008 port and “Download” tab/option will be ready to click. Click it immediately if you opened the port with key combination because after 5 seconds phone will restart, if you click “Download” in time, the Qfil will hold the port and start flashing our ROM. If you opened the port with adb command, no need to hurry, port will stay open as long as you press power button long enough to reset.
Look at the “Status” window. If you see “Switch To FireHose and Wait for 3 seconds..” lines then everything seems fine, Qfil will start to flash our Qualcomm Lenovo/ZUK’s. If you see “Download Fail” line at the end, please press power button long enough to reset the phone/port and try again.
Remember : Phone/port must be resetted after every attempt with Qfil.
After Qfil finishes flashing, in our example it took 2 Min. and 58 Sec., the phone will be reset from the program itself. You can close Qfil after you see “Waiting for reset done…” ignoring any pop-up. Your phone is rescued/unbricked and will boot with your new ROM. Congratulations !
Congratulations !
Please request Qfil Rom links of your Lenovo variant in the comments below. For new ZUK Z2 series, there are still no Qfil ROMs online. So if you bought one of those models, be careful for now and before flashing any rom, READ carefully!
As we can see from pictures Note 7 will have “more” rounded corners then before. In addition, Note7 will enhance the function of the stylus through software improvements, the most important feature of Note series starting from the first model. According to previous reports, Note 7’s Bluetooth connectivity will enhance the performance of LE, so that the distance precision of the stylus will be improved. Also, Air Command function will be upgraded.
Galaxy Note 7 may come in 2 variants depending on the market regions. One with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 and another with home made Exynos chipset and 4GB/6GB RAM options won’t be a surprise either, as that configuration has become fashion lately. Plus expect a Dual Pixel camera as the Galaxy S7 Edge.
As for the additional “sensor” holes on top of the phone, we can’t be sure but rumors are that Galaxy Note 7 will have an iris/eye scanner for more security. But we can’t be sure about that until the official launch. Maybe dual camera setup in the front too?
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