OnePlus X Is Official With Snapdragon 801 & Metal + Glass Body

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Oct 29, 2015

After a few weeks of speculations, rumors and leaks, the OnePlus X is finally official. We had received a number of information about the device well before launch and today almost everything got confirmed. So, its everything that we expected it to be. Apart from the specs, most of which we knew in advance, one surprise was in the design department. It looks like the company has put in a lot of effort in the exterior of the phone, as it will come in two premium versions, one the OnePlus X Onyx and the second version which be a limited edition, will be made out of ceramic (yes, you heard it right! CERAMIC!).

The OnePlus Onyx will be made out of glass, with a metal frame. This should give it a premium look, although we have seen a number of manufacturers use the same design on their flagships. However, the second version, i.e. the limited edition Ceramic version is going to be interesting as it comes with a real ceramic body which is scratch resistant and has a hardness of 8.5H on the Mohs scale. We don’t have much information about the Ceramic version, but we expect to hear more from the company in the coming hours. The overall body is quite slim, measuring just 6.9mm and weighs only about 138 grams.

Coming to the specifications, like we said, the OnePlus X will feature the year old Snapdragon 801 chipset. If we didn’t know about this chip earlier, this would have been a big surprise, but now we have kind of accepted it as a cooler alternative to the Snapdragon 810. They could have gone with the Snapdragon 808, but end of the day went with the 801 probably to keep the price as low as possible. Not that we are complaining since 801 was the flagship chip till last year. It still has enough punch to perform well with the given 3GB RAM on board.

As for the storage, you get 16GB internal with an option to expand via MicroSD. But like many recent phones, this SD card slot is a hybrid SIM card slot combo, so at one time, you can have just two Nano SIMs or one SIM with a MicroSD. As for the display, OnePlus has gone with the Active Matrix OLED display. Its a 5-inch panel with 1080p resolution translating into pixel density of 441 ppi.

As for the camera, the OnePlus X comes with a decent Samsuing ISOCELL 13MP rear camera with an 8MP front facing shooter. The rear camera comes with PDAF with 0.2s focus times. Videos can be shot at 1080p resolution (no 4K shooting) but interestingly you do get 720p Slo-Mo video shooting on the device. As for the battery, you get a decent 2,525 mAh capacity on board, which should be enough for a day’s usage. The software is the same old OxygenOS based on Android 5.1.

The pricing is also exactly the same as we predicted. The phone will start at $249 USD for the Onyx version, while in Europe this goes up to 269 EUR. It will go on sale from Nov 5 in Europe and Nov 19 in US. As for the Cermic Edition, only 10,000 of these limited edition models will be made and there will be a specific invite system for the same. In Europe, this edition will cost you 369 EUR.

So, this the new OnePlus X, the first 5-inch phone from the company. There’s still no Wireless Charging, Quick Charge, NFC or even OIS. But its still offers a lot for the given $249 price tag. So, what do you think about the device? Will you consider buying the limited edition Ceramic editions?

Meanwhile, the phone is already up for pre-order on giztop, so do check it out.

Pre-order OnePlus X!

Bluboo XTouch vs OnePlus 2: Pick Your Winner

By

Joel Joseph

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Oct 28, 2015

Bluboo just recently unveiled its Bluboo Xtouch flagship which comes with great features for a pretty cheap price tag. Now the company has compared this new handset with the OnePlus 2 aka flagship killer showing off some of the advantages of the device over the latter. In fact, the company says that even if you buy two Bluboo Xtouch smartphones, it won’t cost you as much as a OnePlus 2, since the XTouch usually retails for just about $150.

Since we don’t have the device in our hands yet, we can’t really judge the looks or the real life performance of the device. However, on paper, the Xtouch does look like a tough competition to the OnePlus 2. We have highlighted some of the features of both the devices in the specs comparison down below. You can check that out for more information.

As you can see below, the only major difference between the two handsets is its processor. The OnePlus 2 comes with a much powerful Snapdragon 810 chipset as compared to the decent performing mid-range MT6753. However, the 810 is does known to overheat a little, which gives it a bit of a disadvantage. So, if you are happy with a decent performing chip, then XTouch is not at all bad. There will be 3GB RAM on both the devices, with a fingerprint sensor as well. Considering the smaller display size (5-inches), the Xtouch has a better pixel density than the OP2.

However, in the camera department, we expect the OP2 to be better with its OV13860 sensor. Still, the Sony IMX214 is known to be quite good, so you can expect pretty good shots with the device.

Anyways, check out the comparison below and let us know what you think. While the Xtouch may not be as powerful as the OP2, rest of the hardware features are at par with OP2 which makes it worth considering. But its still early to comment on the real life performance of the device. We will have to wait till we get our hands on the device before making any final conclusions.

Bluboo XTouch vs OnePlus 2

Which one would you pick?

Buy Bluboo Xtouch

Letv Le 1s Preview – The New Best Cheap Smartphone? (VIDEO)

By

Linus

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Oct 28, 2015

I wanted to share my thoughts about the just released Letv Le 1s, which is just an amazing smartphone for incredibly low price as it costs just $172 in China. I’m just amazed how much you get for such a low price. Naturally, the phone will cost a bit higher via the third-party resellers.

Letv Le 1s Preview VIDEO: ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW

It all start with a premium all-metal unibody symmetrical design and the Le 1s is just 7.5mm thick.

The new Le Superphone comes in gold and silver colour options and they both look stunning.

As far as the processing power, the Le 1s is powered by the octa-core Mediatek Helio X10 chip, which is clocked at 2.2Ghz and this chip has already proven to be quite a powerhouse. To make sure that the performance is buttery smooth there is 3GB of RAM on board and 32GB of storage for the base model.

Other key features include a high-end fingerprint scanner, 13MP camera on the back, which has a PDAF system, which helps achieving blazing fast auto-focus speeds of just 0.09s.

The Le 1s has a 5.5” 1080p panel which is said to be brighter than its predecessor. The display uses a floating glass technology and it has the bezel less design.

The phone also has the reversible USB Type-C port, which is slowly becoming a new standard but more importantly, Letv implemented a super fast charging speeds, which are said to give you 3 hours of talk time with just 5 minutes of charge the embedded 3000mAh battery.

All in all, the new Letv Le 1s shapes up to an amazing phone for the price and honestly, I can’t wait to make a full review of it.

It is just incredible what the Chinese companies are making at the moment and the Letv Le 1s is one of the best examples out there.

I hope to get the Le 1s for a review as quickly as possible but in the meantime you may want to check out the reviews of the previous generation Letv smartphones down below.

Please use the comment section below the video to tell me what you think.

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Buy Letv smartphones from Giztop

CEO reaffirms Mate 8 will launch with Kirin 950 by the end of 2015

By

Joel Joseph

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Oct 28, 2015

We have been patiently waiting for the Huawei Mate 8 flagship for the past few months. But instead of Mate 8, we got a Mate S flagship last month. At that time, we thought there won’t be any more releases in the Mate family, but Yu Chengdong surprised us recently by saying that the company will release the Mate 8 before the end of this year.

Now, the CEO has confirmed once again that Mate 8 will release by the end of this year. He revealed that the phone will have a very good display and a powerful camera. Along with this the phone will be powered by the upcoming Kirin 950 processor. He added that the Mate 8 release has been delayed because they wanted to use this chip.
According to the recent leaks, the Kirin 950 will be powered by quad-core Cortex A53 and quad-core Cortex A72. The chip will be clocked at 2.4GHz with Mali-T880 GPU on board. A recent benchmark showed that the chip performed even better than Exynos 7420.
So it would really be interesting to see Mate 8 with Kirin 950 on board. Since we are just a few weeks away from the year end, we can expect a launch pretty soon.

OUKITEL U7 Pro to feature a Mini Projector

By

Joel Joseph

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Oct 28, 2015

We have seen smartphones with a projector on board in the past, like the Galaxy Beam 2 from Samsung. Now, OUKITEL is going to try out its luck with this nifty feature by incorporating a projector on its upcoming OUKITEL U7 Pro smartphone. Looks like the word ‘Pro’ stands for Projector.

The projector will be reportedly be incorporated on the top, so it should be pretty straight forward using the feature. It is said that it is capable of projecting in 1280 x 720 resolution on any flat surface with a brightness of 50 Lumens. So, from the specs on paper, you should be able to use this device to show presentations in events like meetings. However, we will have to wait and see whether the projector is good for these functions when we get the device in real life.

We still have no idea about the specs of the OUKITEL U7 Pro handset. So, we will have to wait for a few more weeks to get to know more about the device.

Vivo Will Be The Title Sponsor for IPL 2016

By

Joel Joseph

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Oct 28, 2015

Unlike other Chinese manufacturers who have been pretty busy this year announcing new phones, Vivo has been relatively quite. However, the company has just announced that it has bagged the title sponsorship for the popular Indian Premiere League (IPL) which is watched by millions of viewers worldwide. The rights to the title will be held by the company for two years i.e. IPL 2016 and 2017.

IPL is one of the most famous cricket leagues in the world and it is estimated that around 192 million viewers all around the globe watch this league which takes place in the month of April and May. Before Vivo, Pepsi was the title sponsor for the event.

Mr. Alex Feng, CEO of vivo Mobile India said, “vivo is an emerging brand in India, dedicated to offering quality products and services to music lovers, sports enthusiasts and fashion pursuers. We always believe in supporting new talents and have associated ourselves only with premium events globally. This investment reiterates how important Indian market is for us and we are confident that vivo will get returns from our investment in IPL, and that this association will further advance our ‘Love India, Love vivo’ initiative.”

Since IPL has a wide reach in India and even abroad, association with this event could help the company spread its name across the country easily. Vivo has been carrying out a number of marketing campaigns to get the attention of the Indian users. For example, they have started an initivative called “Love India Love Vivo”. Further, the company has been advertising its products like the Vivo X5 Pro in popular areas like the Mumbai Metro.

We will have to wait and see whether this association helps the company improve its brand image and value in India in the coming years.

ZUK All Set For European & South East Asian Markets After Middle East Launch

By

Joel Joseph

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Oct 27, 2015

On 26 October, ZUK launched its flagship Z1 in the Middle East at the Dubai Event. The company has entered in a partnership with Comtel for selling its devices in the region. Comtel is a leading distributor of smartphones in Middle East as well as Africe, so this partnership will give some exposure to the Z1 in the region.

Since its launch back in August in China, the Lenovo backed yet independent ZUK brand has received positive comments for its first smartphone. It comes with a large 4000mAh battery, unusual in flagships at this price, making it set apart from the crowd. Even the solid aluminum body of the device makes it look pretty premium.

At the Dubai Conference, ZUK CMO Mr. Jin Chen addressed the attendees revealing details about the Comtel partnership.

Commenting on the launch, Mr. Jin Chen, Chief Marketing Officer, ZUK Mobile, said, “It is indeed a proud moment for us to introduce ZUK Mobile in the region in partnership with Comtel. We believe partnering with a key distributor as Comtel will give our brand the platform and the momentum to penetrate into high growth and far reaching markets in the MEA region. Our strategy is to offer a limited but powerful portfolio of models – each device will be a master-piece at a price which will wow our customers and channel.”

The phone does have the goods to do well in the Middle East. First of all, its cheap costing less than $300. Secondly, it comes with pretty great specs like 3GB RAM, Snapdragon 801, 64GB ROM, WorldMode LTE ie FDD-LTE and TDD-LTE and dual SIM dual standby. So, the brand could be well received in the region. But its still too early to comment.

The company has also revealed that after launching in the Middle East, it is eyeing the European as well as South East Asian markets. Unfortunately, the company is yet to reveal a launch date in these regions.

Buy Lenovo ZUK Z1 64GB At $279.99

Meanwhile, you can check out some of the pictures of the Dubai Launch from down below.

The Beautiful Honor 5X With All Metal Body Official For $157

By

Joel Joseph

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Oct 27, 2015

After weeks of speculation and leaks, the beautiful Honor 5X with an all metal body has been finally unveiled. The phone will join the likes of other recently announced metal phones like Meizu Metal in the budget mid-range segment.

The Honor 5X comes with a 5.5-inch FHD display with Snapdragon 616 clocked at 1.7GHz and Adreno 405 GPU. There will be 16GB of storage with 2GB / 3GB RAM versions. You also have a MicroSD card slot to further expand the storage on board.

At the back, there will be a 13MP camera with 5MP front facing shooter. The battery is quite decent too, 3000mAh with fast charge 3.0 that promises up to 50% charging in 30 minutes. There’s a fingerprint sensor on board as well, at the back which is quite fast as it can recognize a fingerprint in just 0.4s. As for connectivity, there’s dual SIM card slots, both of which support 4G LTE networks.

Like most of Huawei’s Honor smartphones, the Honor 5X is quite competitive too as it starts at just $157 for the 2GB variant and around $220 for the 3GB variant.

The phone is definitely a looker with its shiny all metal body. It comes in gold, grey and silver shades. You can check out the images of the device from down below.

Ulefone Paris New Deals Come for USD149.99, with Accessories

By

Frank Tu

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Oct 27, 2015

About one week after the Ulefone Paris presales, Ulefone starts a new round of deals for promotion where the 5-inch device with flip cover and tempered glass protector will be priced at USD149.99, while the non-gift package will be for USD139.99.

The deal will last until November 15 when the price will leap back to USD169.99. Taking the cross-border shipping into consideration, the ending time is pretty much close to the Christmas. Presently, the Paris flip cover, which enables an S-view window, and tempered glass are priced at USD7.5 and USD8.5, respectively, therefore the USD149.99 package seems nicer than the USD139.99 one to buyers who need the accessories.

Powered by the Android 5.1 OS, Ulefone Paris packs MTK6753 8-core 64-bit chipset, 5-inch HD display, 13MP/5MP cameras, 2GB RAM, 16GB storage, and 2250mAh battery. Earlier the model achieved presales of 100,000 units thanks to its 2.5D-glass-plus-metal-frame design and the slogan “extreme ballance” which indicates better user experiences.

Buy Ulefone Paris from gearbest.com Buy Ulefone Paris from geekbuying.com

Video:

Letv Announces Le 1s and Some More Interesting Products!

By

Linus

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Oct 27, 2015

Letv Le 1s Preview Video: All you need to know:

Today Chinese Internet services giant Letv held an event in China where they released some great new products.

It comes with no surprise as the company introduced a successor to the Letv Le 1 – Le 1s.

The phone comes with a 5.5″ 1080P panel the same as the last-gen model.

As you may see from the design, we have a major change in terms of the materials used. The Le 1s is an all-metal phone that definitely adds a lot to the premium look and feel of it.

On the front we have a 5MP snapper, the same backlit capacitive keys on the bottom.

On the back we have a 13MP shooter, single LED flash and a fingerprint scanner, which is said to be super fast (it takes just 0.15 seconds to recognise your fingerprint).

On the right there is a volume rocker and the power button, which are also made of metal.

On the left there is a dual SIM card slot.

On the bottom part of the Letv Le 1s we have a speaker, mic and the USB type-C port.

The main specs of the Letv Le 1s include a MediaTek Helio X10 (MT6795T), which is clocked at 2.2GHz, 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage as a base model. The 3000mAh battery will keep the lights on.

Letv made a statement that the 13MP camera on the back of Le 1s is faster than the one found on the iPhone 6s as the embedded PDAF system is able to reach the capture speeds of 0.09 seconds.

Finally, the Letv Le 1s will cost just 1099 Yuan ($172) in China, which sounds like a great deal. Naturally, the reseller prices will be a bit higher for international buyers.

Besides the Le 1s, the company also announced other products, which include a smart TV, whcih carries a model the uMax120 model name. It is a 4K TV with the 3D technology and it is said to be the world’s largest 4K TV (although the screen size is not specified).Some notable features include 800nits of brightness output, 4000:1 contrast ratio, 120GHz refresh ratio.

Finally, the price of this “Super TV” will be…. 500.000 Yuan, which roughly translates to $78.000.

Last but not least, Letv announced the fast development of the LeUI’s ecosystem into car industry. The announcers were not very specific but they were pretty confident that the LeUI will be highly integrated in some high-end cars and one of them may be made by a respectable manufacturer Aston Martin.

We can’t get our hands on with the Letv Le 1s and, if possible, other products. In the mean time, please check out our reviews of the Letv Le 1, Le 1 Pro, Letv Le 1 vs Le 1 Pro comparison and Letv LeMe headphones.

Buy Letv smartphones from Giztop.com

Asus Announces 3 New Zenfones in China

By

Linus

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Oct 27, 2015

A bit earlier this year, Asus draw quite a lot of attention by announcing the world’s first 4GB smartphone – the Asus Zenfone 2 and (you can read our full review here). This time around, the company has three new products in the ZenFestival in China.

Specifically, three new members of ZenFone family include ZenFone Selfie (dual 13MP front and rear cameras 13 million) ZenFone Max (5000mAh large battery, supports the reverse charge feature) and ZenFone2 Laser Series (6-inch display, 0.03 seconds focus speed with the help of laser auto-focus).

ZenFone Selfie has a 1080P 5.5″ display, which is covered with the Corning Gorilla Glass 4. Under the hood, it has a Snapdragon 615 processor, 3GB of RAM (LPDDR3), 32GB or 64GB of expandable storage and 3000mAh removable battery. ZenUI, which is built on top of Android 5.0 Lollipop is running the show.

Other highlight features include 13MP front and back cameras with dual tone dual LED flash, f/2.0 aperture, 0.03 focus speed due to laser-assisted auto-focus system and 88 degrees wide angle lens.

The Zenfone Selfie will cost 1699 Yuan for a standard edition and 1799 Yuan for the Crystal Diamond Edition (3G RAM, 16G ROM).

Another device is the ZenFone Max, which has a 5.5-inch IPS screen, Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 chip, 2G of RAM, 16GB of storage, 5MP front facing camera, 13MP camera on the back (with laser auto-focus). Its most prominent feature is a large 5000mAh battery, which supports a fast charge feature (it may charge the battery up to 60% in 39 minutes). This huge battery is said to give 37 days of standby and three days of normal usage.

The Zenfone Max will cost just 1299 Yuan in China.

Finally, the last device is the Zenfone 2 Laser. It has a 6″ IPS screen, which is covered by the Gorilla Glass 4. It has a Snapdragon 615 chip, 3000mAh battery. Naturally, laser refers to the 13MP camera, which has the laser-assisted auto-focus system.

The Zenfone 2 will cost 1699 Yuan in China.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note – Which is the Best Budget Smartphone of 2015?

By

Linus

-

Oct 27, 2015

Chinese smartphone market is full of devices that can easily challenge more known for Western users manufacturers in terms of price/performance ratio. Today we are comparing two great budget smartphones – Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 and the Meizu M2 Note.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note: VIDEO

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note: DESIGN

When it comes to the design, both phones are not the smallest out there due to 5.5” displays.

On the front both devices sport 5MP selfie cameras, earpiece, sensor light and the notification LED but only the one on the Redmi Note 2 can be customised.

The Meizu phone only has one physical key, which acts either as a back or home button. The Redmi Note 2 has a more conventional implementation with 3 nicely backlit capacitive keys.

Both phones are made of plastic but Redmi Note 2 has a matt and soft to the touch finish whereas M2 Note has a glossy one, which is more prone to fingerprints and smudges.

As far as optics, both devices have 13MP shooters but the Meizu has a dual tone dual LED flash.

The Xiaomi phone has a removable back cover, where you can find a user replaceable battery, two micro SIM card slots and the microSD card slot.

The Meizu M2 Note has SIM card tray, which can either take two nano SIM cards or a combo of nano SIM and the microSD card.

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 chose the right side for the power switch and a volume rocker whereas M2 Note has the same buttons on the left.

On the bottom both phones have a charging port and the mic but Meizu phone also has a speaker grill, which Xiaomi implemented on the back side of the Redmi Note 2.

On the top, we see the headset jacks but only the Redmi Note 2 has the IR blaster.

Overall, both phones are well made but Meizu M2 Note is a clear winner, because the backplate of the Redmi Note 2 is making some crackling noises when pressed and the buttons feel kind of cheap.

The Meizu M2 Note is much more comfortable to hold in the hands due to a slightly smaller footprint and a more rounded corners, the build quality is excellent and the phone doesn’t feel cheao by any means.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note: DISPLAY

Both phones have 5.5” 1080p panels, which are one of the best in class. They are sharp, bright, vivid and crispy to look at. The Redmi Note 2 has a bit more punchy colours, which are not always accurate and a slight yellow tint.

Still, both panels are great for the class and it is hard to call a winner here.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note: UI

When it comes to the UI, both phones are similar in terms of the high level of custumisation of Android 5.0 Lollipop.

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 runs on MIUI 6 as there is still no official MIUI 7 version for this phone. If you are familiar with the MIUI, it has tons of features, settings, customisation options and it is just so much different than the stock Android.

You can select from thousands of themes available online. Also, you can change wallpapers, fonts, transitions, animations and so on.

Overall, the MIUI is full of features and settings but I cannot say that it flies through everything once you install lots of apps and use the phone on a daily basis. Yes, it is fluid most of the times but there is occasional stutter from time to time. You can live with that but I believe the phone needs to get a software update to improve the overall user experience.

The Meizu M2 Note runs on the FlyMe OS, which is another interesting take on Android. It is a highly customised ROM and it is pretty hard to tell that it is Android. It has a lot of inspiration from iOS but I guess that’s ok.

As usual to the Chinese smartphones, there is no app drawer, so all the apps sit on the home screens.

There are tons of different apps and customisation options like themes and wallpapers. In addition, all the apps are running smoothly and have a nice flat design.

The smartphone has tons of gesture controls and they work like a charm. These features are one of the best implementations I’ve seen on any smartphone (including high-end flagships)

Overall, I really enjoy the Flyme OS and how fast and fluid it is almost all the time. In addition, I love the design and overall look and feel of it. Finally, constant software updates make you feel that Meizu cares about its devices after releasing them even after a long time.

To sum up, I would recommend the Flyme OS as it feels a bit more polished despite having less features than the MIUI 6. However, we have to wait for the official MIUI 7 build for the Redmi Note 2.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note: HARDWARE and PERFORMANCE

Meizu M2 Note has an octa-core 64-bit MediaTek MT6753 with the clock speeds of 1.3GHz, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of expandable storage.

Graphically intensive tasks like 3D gaming work fine but there are some skipped frames and naturally graphics don’t look that stunning like on the flagship devices. Still, there are no major hiccups or lags and you can still enjoy gaming.

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 is quite a powerhouse for the price. It has a Mediatek 6795 Helio X10 chip, which has 8 cores and the clock speeds of up to 2GHz. The chip is supplemented with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of expandable storage. If you opt in for a more expensive Prime model, you will get a slightly more powerful chip (2.2 GHz) and 32GB of storage.

This combo of specs proves to be a real deal when it comes to 3D gaming as Asphalt 8 and Real Racing 3 ran almost perfectly. The graphics are not on par with flagships but still look very good. I didn’t experience stutter or lag that it is worth complaining. Overall, I am very happy with the performance.

A downside is that the phone gets a bit warm pretty quickly but not hot that it becomes uncomfortable to hold it in the hand.

All in all, The Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 is a clear winner when it comes to the sheer power and highly demanding tasks like gaming.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note: MULTIMEDIA

When it comes to the multimedia consumption, both devices are brilliant for watching full HD content due their vibrant 5.5” screens and smooth playback.

As far as the loudspeaker quality, the Redmi Note 2 produces a higher quality sound with more depth in it. The speaker on the Meizu M2 Note is not a bad one but it is simply not as good as the on the Xiaomi phone.

When it comes to the sound via earphones, both devices are comparable and it is hard to distinguish a winner.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note: CAMERA

The Redmi Note 2 comes with the MIUI camera app, which is nicely designed, it has some a few shooting modes and settings to play with.

The shutter speed is very fast and this is thanks to the phase-detection auto-focus system.

The camera app on the Meizu M2 Note is a bit iOS inspired as you have to swipe to choose from different a shooting modes like auto, manual, beauty, panorama, slow-mo, scan and so on. In addition, there are some settings to play with.

The shutter speed is fast and overall using this camera app is just a blast.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note: IMAGE QUALITY

Xiaomi phone’s pictures will always come first and if the images are compared side by side, the Redmi Note 2’s photos will always be on the left side.

When it comes to the daylight image quality, both devices are pretty good and some of the shots look very similar.

However, more often than not, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 2’s images have a better dynamic range, contrast, have more details and look a bit sharper overall. However, the colours usually look a bit oversaturated.

Meizu M2 Note is not a bad camera device and its images tend to have more natural looking colours but sometimes they may look washed out. Also, sometimes the daylight images can look even better than the ones taken by Xiaomi phone, but it is a hit or miss. However, M2 Note usually has softer focus on the corners when it comes to the indoor images.

When it comes to the night shots, the Redmi Note 2 has an edge here. The images have more details and less noise, better focus and better handling of the direct illumination of the sensor.

On the other hand, some shots may look pretty similar and Meizu M2 Note can illuminate the scene a bit better.

When it comes to the selfie cameras, Redmi Note 2 takes better looking images but the ones taken with the M2 Note will also do the job for the social media.

All in all, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 is a better all-around camera smartphone.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note: VIDEO QUALITY

When it comes to the 1080p video, the Xiaomi phone has a tad more details but most importantly, it has the continuos auto-focus whereas the M2 Note lacks this feature.

All in all, I have to say that while Meizu M2 Note can take some good looking images, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 is a better all-around camera smartphone.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note: CONNECTIVITY

As for connectivity, both phones support 4G LTE on both SIM card slots. I have no complaints about the call quality on either phone, GPS is working fine, but the Wifi range seems to better on the Redmi Note 2.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note: BATTERY LIFE

When it comes to the battery, the Xiaomi phone has a removable 3060mAh unit whereas the M2 Note has a 3100mAh battery, whcih is sealed in.

When it comes to the real-life usage, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 could achieve just around 2 or maximum 3 hours of screen-on time with the auto-brightness when the usage did not involve any highly demanding tasks. We definitively want to see a software upgrade to improve that and hopefully the upcoming MIUI 7 will address this issue.

The Meizu M2 Note performs significantly better. I could get over 6 hours of screen-on time under exactly the same usage, which is one of the best in class.

Given the current software versions, the Meizu M2 Note just blows Redmi Note 2 out of the water in the battery department.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note: CONCLUSIONS

So, there you have, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 vs Meizu M2 Note.

Both phones are really good offerings and they are definitely one of the best budget phones of the year.

They both sport great displays, good build quality, good cameras and have no major issues.

On one hand, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 has more sheer power, a better all-around camera, a removable battery, a better loudspeaker and the IR blaster. On the other hand, the Xiaomi phone does not sport excellent build quality as the Meizu M2 Note, it has a lot worse battery performance and the UI is not as fast as.

In the end, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 is a slightly better and more future-proof choice but it still needs software optimisations to call it a much better phone. Still, you would not make a mistake buying the M2 Note depending on what you mostly use your phone for.

Buy Xiaomi Redmi Note 2

Buy Meizu M2 Note

Homtom HT6 Unboxing: A 6250mAh Battery-monster Android Phone

By

Shine Wong

-

Oct 26, 2015

Here is the Homtom official unboxing video:

The Powerful Battery and OTG Protocol Capability:

The Homtom HT6 has an outstanding battery life. It carries a powerful 6250mAh battery which can last for up to 7 days based on average use, or 3 days of heavy use, with up to 72 hours of talking time. Even when the battery is at only 5%, the HT6 can standby for another 65 hours. It is the perfect choice for business trips, long-term travel, outdoor adventures, and anytime you need extended phone use. Moreover, the HT6 supports the latest OTG output functionsfor data transfer as well as charging other mobile devices. Using the OTG protocol, 2 way data transmission can be achieved between different devices.

The Artful Design:

The Homtom HT6 has an ultra-slim, ergonomically designed body, is only 9.9mm thick and the smooth rounded edges are comfortable in the hand. The narrow frame around the screen creates perfect proportions.

The Screen:

The Homtom HT6 has a 5.5” HD display with 1280*720 IPS resolution. The vivid colors and sharp brightness delivers a stunning visual experience. The HT6 uses a high contrast ratio for brighter colors and better definition. Also, the HT6 uses a newly upgraded sun screen, so that even while in direct sunlight, the screen is still visible. Moreover, the HT6 uses the latest generation Corning Glass Screen. The stunning screen feels smooth and precise and is scratch proof, super durable and wear resistant.

The Smart Features:

The Homtom HT6 has smart wake up gestures. They are easy to use for direct access to applications without unlocking your phone. And a fast screenshot at any moment is easy, simply put 3 fingers on the screen and draw down, a screenshot will instantly be captured. Also using the included HotKnot wireless transfer technology, you can transfer pictures, movies, music, and media wirelessly between two HotKnot capable phones, by simply placingthe 2 screens in proximity to each other. No Wi-Fi required. Average speed of transfer is up to 54Mbps.

Buy Homtom HT6 $139.99 at gearbest: http://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_239102.html

More information: www.homtom.cc

https://www.facebook.com/homtomchina

All Metal Redmi Note 2 Pro leaked with Fingerprint ID

By

Joel Joseph

-

Oct 26, 2015

For the past few months, Xiaomi has been busy announcing new smartphones both in domestic as well as international markets. The latest model from the company is none other than the Xiaomi Mi 4c, which is the domestic variant of the Xiaomi Mi 4i that was announced in India a few months back. But it looks like, there’s still a couple of handsets on the way this year, as a new leaked image gives us the first glimpse of what could be the Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 Pro model.

This will be a slightly upgraded variant of the existing Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 model. The company will reportedly include an all metal design as well as a fingerprint sensor on the device to make it a bit more premium than the regular version. It is said that there will be a version without fingerprint ID as well, which will probably be cheaper.

The specs are expected to be the same as the Redmi Note 2. So, the phone will come with MT6795 Helio X10 chip with 2GB RAM, 16GB of storage, 5.5-inch FHD display, 13MP rear camera, 5MP front facing shooter and MIUI 7 based on Android 5.1.

Since the specs are going to be the same, you can expect the pricing of the device only be a bit higher, somewhere around 999 Yuan ($157). This model will actually makes sense now given that Meizu has already unveiled its all metal (crystal metal) smartphone called as the Meizu Metal, costing just 1099 Yuan ($173).

Well, we still don’t know the launch date of the device. But it may not be far off since the company is expected to release the Mi 5 flagship before the end of the year.

Best Cheap Premium Bluetooth Headphones? Letv Leme EB20 Review

By

Linus

-

Oct 26, 2015

Today we are looking at affordable (~$30) yet premium Bluetooth headphones – Letv Leme EB20. Find out if they are worth your attention in a full review.

Thanks to Pandawill for sending Letv Leme EB20 Bluetooth headphones for a review.

Letv Leme EB20 Headphones Review: VIDEO

Letv Leme EB20 Headphones Review: UNBOXING

What you are getting in the box is the micro USB charging cable and some documentation.

Letv Leme EB20 Headphones Review: DESIGN

When it comes to the design of the headphones, they look surprisingly premium for the price. It combines a soft to the touch plastic on the outside and the protein leather on the inside.

The headphones are very elastic and the speaker part can be easily adjusted.

On the left we have a set of controls, which include volume up/down, skip tracks buttons, play/pause / answer call button as the Letv headphones have the embedded mic for hands-free calling.

What’s most important – these headphones are very comfortable to wear and I didn’t want to take them off even after a few hours.

Letv Leme EB20 Headphones Review: SOUND QUALITY

The sound quality is just impressive. The headphones are loud, the sound that is coming out is balanced, has rich tones and depth in it. The level of bass is pretty good too. Overall, I am very pleased with the sound quality considering the price of the Letv Leme headphones. These definitely sound like a much more expensive headset.

Letv Leme EB20 Headphones Review: CONCLUSIONS

Letv Leme Bluetooth headphones are definitely worth checking out if you are looking for quality yet cheap product. They sports a nice design and have great build quality but most importantly, they produce a high quality sound.

As far as the battery life, I could get around 10 hours of music playback.

For $30 you are getting a great device that looks and sounds great, and honestly I think this is one of the best bangs for your buck in the Bluetooth headphones category.

Buy Letv Leme EB20 Bluetooth headphones from Pandawill

64GB Lenovo ZUK Z1 Flagship Available At Just $279.99 Today With 2 years Warranty

By

Joel Joseph

-

Oct 26, 2015

UPDATE: The deal still seems to be available (at $279.99), so do check out the page in case you are interested in buying the phone.

Lenovo backed ZUK Z1 first was launched in China and now is available internationally. The phone usually retails for around $300, but for a limited period today, Aliexpress is offering the smartphone for just $279.99. What’s more this is for the 64GB version of the smartphone making the deal all the more sweet. You also get 2 year warranty on the device.

We think this is a great deal for anyone looking for a powerful flagship under $300. The phone features the Snapdragon 801 chipset with 3GB of RAM and a large 64GB of storage. There’s a large 4100mAh battery as well, which makes sure that the phone will last for more than a day. As for the display, its a 5.5-inch panel with FHD 1080p resolution. At the back, there’s a 13MP shooter while up front, you have a 5MP camera. The phone supports 4G LTE networks with supported bands that include: FDD-LTE 1800/2100/2600MHz.

Overall a great device for just $279.99. Remember this is a limited period offer, so you better grab the deal as soon as possible. There’s only around 1000 units available at this discounted price tag, and within minutes of the deal, around 150 units have already been sold.

Buy Lenovo ZUK Z1 64GB At $279.99

OnePlus X Pricing Leaked Couple of Days Before Launch

By

Joel Joseph

-

Oct 25, 2015

We are all excited for the upcoming OnePlus X handset, a cheaper version of its elder brother, the OnePlus 2. The company will officially release the device on October 29, which is just a couple of days away. We have already heard a lot about the upcoming handset, thanks to the leaks and TENAA listing of the device, but now, it looks like the pricing of the OnePlus X has been leaked before launch.

According to the latest leaked image, the OnePlus X will be reportedly priced at 1699 Yuan which comes to around $268. While this is higher than the $249 figure that our sources revealed, its still close to the previous rumors. But if the price tag is really this high, then things could get confusing for the customers.

The OnePlus 2 is priced at $329 for the 16GB version which isn’t too far from the $268 rumored price tag. So, if the OnePlus X is less powerful than the OnePlus 2, then its possible that customers would prefer shelling out a bit more ( around $60) for the latter which is much more powerful. So, we will have to wait and see i the pricing is indeed $268 or whether its $249 as previously predicted.

As for the specs, the OnePlus X will feature an overclocked Snapdragon 801 chipset with 3GB RAM, 16GB ROM, 5-inch 1080p display with 2.5D glass and metal frame. At the back, you can expect a 13MP shooter, while up front, there should be a 5MP shooter. As for the software, you will see Oxygen OS running on Android 5.1.1. We expect to see a white colored version of the OnePlus X as well.

Well, the OnePlus X can turn out to be a great device for those looking for a compact phone (5-inch display). Lets see whether the pricing is as high as leaked today.

Leagoo Elite 1: A Flagship Features fingerprint ID function

By

Shine Wong

-

Oct 25, 2015

Security is becoming an important standard in the heating competition among smartphones. Fingerprint ID sensor is an emerging technology that only a select number manufacturers have added on their handsets. Elite 1, a flagship launched by LEAGOO recently, sports this advancing technology.

Elite 1, a high-end device featuring fingerprint ID function, is equipped with push-fingerprint identification module and Finger Flash™ technology. Press the home button, the stainless steel ring reacts before the scanner below the sapphire glass coverplate is awaken. Then a scanning resolution of 508PPI ensures the fingerprint gain access within 0.5s even by a damp finger.

In an era when smartphone plays a multiple role more than as a communicational tool, this technology which brings an easier unlock impacts a profound significance on the security and privacy of customers. The secret of fast but accurate fingerprint relies on module code encrypted by Tiny Encryption Algorithm (TEA) and the AES 128 algorithm stored on the flash chip. Thus multi protection and omnidirectional recognition is realized.

When it comes to other specs, you get a 5.0-inch JDI display made of corning gorilla glass. The screen ensures 1920 * 1080 full-HD resolution and 1000: 1 high contrast ratio. The 64bits true Octa core processor is built on eight 28nm Cortex-A53 architecture processing cores. 4G network, new Android 5.1 system and 3GB + 32GB eMMC large memory is supported.

For more information about Elite 1 which only costs $179.99, please click here: Leagoo Elite 1

Umi Fair Review

By

Linus

-

Oct 25, 2015

Thanks to Coolicool for sending Umi Fair for a review

Umi Fair Review: VIDEO

Umi Fair Review: UNBOXING

What we have in the packaging are the UBS cable and a power plug.

Umi Fair Review: DESIGN

When it comes to the design, we are looking at a fairly compact phone due to its 5” display.

Umi Fair is lightweight and sits comfortably in the hand due rounded corners and a soft somewhat baby skin finish on the back.

On the front we have a 2MP shooter, earpiece and a sensor light. This time around, Umi chose to implement on-screen navigation buttons.

The chassis is made of metal and on the right we have volume rocker along with the power key.

On the top there is a headset jack and on the bottom we have a charging port.

As far as optics go, there is a 13MP shooter along with a dual LED flash.

Right underneath the camera, there is a fingerprint scanner.

On the bottom we have a speaker grill.

The backplate can be removed and underneath it you can find a removable 2000mAh battery, 2 SIM card slots and a microSD card slot.

Umi Fair Review: DISPLAY

The Umi Fair comes with a 5” 720p panel, which is definitely not the sharpest we’ve seen but it’s pretty good for a budget phone. However, the sunlight visibility could be better.

Umi Fair Review: UI

When it comes to the UI, UMI Fair runs on Android 5.1 out of the box with a light Umi skin on top of it.

It is almost a stock Android build but, as usual, we have extra features like gesture controls built-in. However, they don’t seem to be working all the time or working slowly.

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The star of the show of this phone is supposed to be a fingerprint reader. However, it does not impress. Firstly, the setup is very slow and it takes forever to register your fingerprint. Also, the reader is super slow and inaccurate despite registering the same finger 3 times. Honestly, I ended up turning off the fingerprint scanner feature off.

In general, the UI is working smoothly but I’ve had quite a few error messages from Google Play store, a few app crashes but most importantly, downloading huge apps like Asphalt 8 can be a pain. It just takes forever to download them in comparison to higher-end phones.

Umi Fair Review: BENCHMARKS

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Umi Fair Review: HARDWARE and PERFORMANCE

The Umi Fair has a pretty standard configuration for budget phones: MTK6735 chip, 1GB of RAM and 8GB of expandable storage.

While the day-to-day performance is usually smooth and the 3D gaming is also possible but you will experience a constant stutter and lots of skipped frames.

Umi Fair Review: MULTIMEDIA

Consuming HD content is smooth. As far as the rear mounted speaker, it is a similar story like on other cheap phones. It is just mediocre.

Umi Fair Review: CAMERA

The 13MP camera does not impress. There is a low amount of detail, colours tend to look washed out and the dynamic range adjustment is just terrible.

Same can be said about the video quality.

Download full-res camera samples

Umi Fair Review: CONNECTIVITY

I would rate a call quality okay and same goes with other connectivity options. They work fine but the GPS is not the fastest to get a lock speed and not the most accurate one.

Umi Fair Review: BATTERY LIFE

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The battery life is decent but nothing really impressive. I could get over 3 hours of screen on-time on a daily basis and doing just some basic tasks.

Umi Fair Review: CONCLUSIONS

I would call Umi Fair just another budget phone from China. Well, it has a decent design and good build quality.

However, the main selling point, which is a fingerprint reader, does not work properly. It is very slow to setup and the real life usage is just a pain. It is not accurate and very slow, and it makes you want to turn this feature off.

In general, I was happy with the UI performance but those Google Play store errors and a few app crashes were annoying.

All in all, Umi Fair is not the worst phone we’ve seen in this price range but it is not the best either.

Here is a coupon code for Coolicool.com, save $5: forum-5

Buy Umi Fair from Coolicool

Check out the latest iPhone 6/6s deals by 1byone

By

Linus

-

Oct 24, 2015

Despite being pricey, Apple’s iPhone is probably the best known smartphone in the world. It is indeed a great device but do due its thin body, there is not enough room for a large battery cell. Thus, third-party manufacturers come up with solutions like power banks and 1byone seems to have a couple of deals on Amazon worth checking out.

Usually, the problem with ordinary power banks is that they are bulky and you always forget to take one with you.

The solution made by 1byone is a case-powerbank, which are basically two products in a one package. It has a built it 3100mAh battery, which is said to add 100%+ extra battery life to your iPhone 6/6s or 14 + hours talk time or 10+ hours web browsing time.

It also has a power key to turn on the power bank and the LED lights, which show the amount of juice left in the power bank.

Also, it comes in a variety of colour options “for the colourful”.

Originally, this power bank/case for the iPhone 6/6s costs $42.99 but at the moment the company is providing a discount and you can get it for just for $32.99, which is $10 less.

Deal summary:

Start Date: 10/20/2015 09:00 AM
End Date:10/26/2015 11:59 PM

Coupon Code MPIZRLB9

Original price: $42.99
Discounted price: $32.99
You Save: $10.00

Buy 1byone battery case for iPhone 6/6s

Another deal the 1byone company is having at the moment is the two-part case for the iPhone 6/6s.

It has a two-piece sliding design, which combines soft to the touch materials on the inside and hard and textured outer.

Since the iPhone 6 is indeed a beautifully designed phone, you do not want to add much bulk to it and this case adds only 3mm in thickness. Also, the buttons are made in a way to assure a great tactile response.