After a slew of celebrities, looks like its now time for the smartphone brigade to join in. There is no denying the fact that ALS Ice Bucket Challenge has taken over our social media feeds. If there is anyone still wondering why everyone is dousing themselves in iced bucket water, it’s to spread awareness about the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) disease.
The challenge is simple. If you’re nominated, you need to drench yourself in ice cold water and nominate three others to do the same within 24 hours. If you decide against taking it up, you have the option of donating $100 to the ALS Association. Since it started on 29th July, the organisation has already raised a whopping $53 million. A viral social media trend with a cause; we definitely need more of those.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 took the challenge. In the video, after completing the task, Samsung’s voice assistant nominated iPhone 5S, HTC One(M8) and Nokia Lumia 930 and gave them 24 hours to finish the challenge. A clear jab at their inability to withstand water.
By taking on the Ice Bucket Challenge, Samsung managed to do two things – spread awareness and raise funds for the Motor Neurone Disease Association and more obviously, it showed off its water-proof abilities.
The Nokia icon was the envy of the global audience, well no more! The new Lumia 930 is essentially the global version of the Nokia Icon and it features a 5-inch full HD display and a 20-megapixel PureView camera with a Zeiss lens. The phone also ships with a Creative Studio app that’ll let you add Instagram-style filters to your snapshots. A 1.2 MP wide-angle camera adorns the front
The Front of the Lumia 930 has a 5-inch, 1080p Full HD display (1920×1080; 441ppi), with Gorilla Glass 3, Super Sensitive Touch and a near 180-degree viewing angle. The handset features Integrated Dolby Surround Sound. Hardware wise a 2.2 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor, 32GB of internal storage (7GB free OneDrive cloud storage) and 2GB of RAM finish it up with a 2420 mAh battery.
The handsets will ship with Windows Phone 8.1 out of the box and contain apps like Nokia Camera, Nokia Storyteller, Nokia Creative Studio and Nokia Refocus. A new new Living Images feature will even turn statics pictures in movie styles.
With Windows Phone 8.1 the handset will finally get a notification center and the all new “Cortana” Microsoft’s answer to Siri and Google Now. The Nokia Lumia 930 is roughly priced at US $ 599 and is expected to hit Europe first and then Asian countries starting June.
The much-talked about Microsoft’s ‘Lumia Denim’ update for Windows 8.1 operating system has begun to roll out to Lumia devices, globally.
According to the company, they are starting the wider roll out of Lumia Denim, a Windows Phone 8.1 Update 1 upgrade that packs a lot of improvements to both imaging and Cortana voice commands and new features like live folders on your start screen and an enhanced glance screen.
The Denim update has already debut in US through Verizon with 822 and 928 back in December, but the broader deployment suggests that other Lumias are due relatively soon. If you own new handsets like the Lumia 830, 930 or 1520 , you’ll get faster shooting, Rich Capture (high dynamic range, dynamic exposure and dynamic flash) and better image quality.
Apart from the 830, these phones can also handle 4K video and hands-free Cortana commands. Everyone gets features like Start screen folders, a better web browser and Cortana refinements that include support for in-car speech. Denim is the fourth update to Windows Phone 8.1-equipped Lumia phones, after Lumia Amber, Black and Cyan.
It’s arriving in waves by country and device, and a wider roll out will commence within the month, according to the company. There is still uncertainity as to whether Indian Lumias will be included in latest wave of update or not.
Microsoft is giving its consumers a chance to try out Lumia smartphones for free on a trial basis. After ending the Nokia brand, the Redmond based giant is attempting to increase the popularity of its devices by giving customers a free two-week trial of its Lumia range.
To avail this trial, all you need to do is to fill in your name along with some other details on a web form and mention why you want to try out the device. The devices that are a part of this initiative include Lumia 630, Lumia 735, Lumia 930, Lumia 830, Lumia 1520 and Nokia X (a non-Lumia device and instead runs a forked version of Android.)
The ‘Terms and Conditions’ further states that the devices will be given out on a trial period of two weeks with an age requirement being 16 years or more. To sign up for this trial offer, head over to the Lumia conversations blog and fill in the details provided by the company.
Microsoft seems to be gearing up to get in the celebration mood. The company has launched three new Lumia phones – the 730, 830 and 930, in India. The double-SIM Lumia 730 has been priced at Rs. 15,299, while the Lumia 830 and 930 are estimated to have a tag of Rs. 28,799 and Rs. 38,649, respectively.
The Nokia Lumia 730, also being called the company’s first selfie smartphone, features a 4.7-inch 1280 x 720 pixel Super Sensitive Touch HD OLED display. Microsoft says the 5 megapixel wide-edge front camera on the Lumia 730 double SIM will help buyers click and share better quality selfies. This phone has been updated remembering the Skype application as they let users switch from voice to Skype feature calls with one single tap. It comes powered by a 1.2 Ghz Snapdragon quad-center processor. The Lumia 730 has a 6.7 megapixel back camera, 2220mAh battery, 8GB of interior stockpiling and 15 GB of free OneDrive stockpiling. It can back a microSD card of up to 128GB.
The Lumia 830 is the most slender and lightest Lumia yet. Microsoft calls the metal-encircled Nokia Lumia 830 “the reasonable lead” of the Nokia Lumia range. It has a 10 megapixel back camera alongside a 1 megapixel front camera and is fuelled by a 1.2GHz Snapdragon quad-core processor. The affordable smartphone has a 5-inch screen with 1280×720 pixels resolution protected with Corning Gorilla 3.0 glass.
The battery in the Lumia 830 is 2200 mAh and storage option includes 16GB of internal memory and an extra 15GB space accessible on Microsoft’s OneDrive. It can also back microSD cards of up to 128gb. The Lumia 830 will accompany the Lumia Denim update that presents gimmicks, for example, Live Folders, Apps Corner and an refurbished Glance screen.
The Lumia 930 has a 5-inch 1920 x 1080 pixel display. Powered by a 2.2 Ghz quad-center Snapdragon chipset with 2GB of RAM and 32GB inside capacity, the phone is extremely stylish and stands out from the other phones in the entire range. The Lumia 930 smartphone also offers a 20MP primary camera with Pureview tech and a 1.2MP secondary camera with ZEISS optics and updated Rich Recording. The Nokia Lumia 930 is stimulated with a Li-Ion 2420mAh battery.
Microsoft, today at IFA Berlin 2014, has launched a new affordable smartphone, the Lumia 830. The company has added a PureView camera feature in the new affordable handset which has typically been associated with Nokia’s premium phones.
The device looks very similar to the Lumia 930, it comes with an aluminum frame and a polycarbonate back. While it uses the PureView name, rumour has it that the rear camera’s 10MP resolution isn’t quite as good as the 930 or 1020.
Further, the company has added a lot of extra software enhancements to improve the experience. The Lumia 830 is essentially a thinner, less bulky, and lighter version of the Lumia 930 on the outside. However, inside there are a ton of differences between the two.
The Lumia 830 is powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 400, 1GB of RAM, and 16GB of storage. The 830 is also a 5-inch handset, but Microsoft has opted for a 1280×720 resolution instead of the beautiful 1080p display on the Lumia 930.
As for the hardware specifications, the Lumia 830 comes with with a 5-inch 720p display, Gorilla Glass 3, slightly curved (2.25D) glass, a 2,200mAh battery and a 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 400. The device will ship with the Lumia Denim update, which is Microsoft Device’s specially-packaged version of Windows Phone 8.1.1 (Update 1).
That new ‘affordable flagship’ comes with a new version of Lumia Camera, which comes with faster shot-to-shot and pocket-to-picture times and several other enhancements to the imaging experience. Lumia Denim also includes 4K-quality video recording and general improvements to low light images.
Lumia Denim also includes 4K-quality video recording and general improvements to low light images. Microsoft’s Lumia 830 will be available globally this month. It is priced at 330 euros, which when converted is approximately Rs. 27,000.
Sony will be launching a couple of new devices at MWC 2018. The Xperia XZ2 is expected to be the first Sony smartphone with an 18:9 aspect ratio. ALong with the Galaxy S9 devices and Mi Mix 2S, it will also run on the Snapdragon 845 chipset. However, it’s smaller sibling, the Xperia XZ2 Compact is expected to maintain the 16:9 aspect ratio. Recently, a prototype of the Xperia XZ2 Compact showed up online with an interesting design.
Someone named Grisha left a comment on an Xperia Blog with the image of the upcoming device. In the image, the Xperia XZ2 Compact is placed next to the Xperia X5 Compact. Although the image is taken from a side angle, it reveals that even the Xperia XZ2 Compact will have a new design, despite the 16:9 aspect ratio.
The Sony Xperia Z5 Compact featured a 4.6-inch IPS LCD display. Under the hood, the smartphone was powered by Snapdragon 810 SoC with 2GB RAM and 32GB storage.
It offered a 23 MP main camera and a 5.1 MP front-facing camera with a dedicated shutter button. In fact, it was the most powerful compact smartphone in the market at the time of launch. As a result, the smartphone was highly appreciated for its one hand usability.
Alleged features of Xperia XZ2 Compact:
The Xperia XZ2 comes with a radically redesigned body. Most of the Sony flagship smartphones offered a blocky slab design, while the XZ2 Compact will offer a curved design. Interestingly, the company might also ditch the 3.5mm headphone jack. Although these are still rumours, the XZ2 and XZ2 Compact might follow the industry trend of getting rid of the headphone jack.
The leaked design of the XZ2 Compact resembles the “Plate + Human” concept from 2015.
As per the renders, the smartphone has a metallic frame with a soft material like the finish on the back with a pillow effect. The design is reminiscent of the Nokia Lumia 930 with a metallic frame and a soft shell.
Similar to the Sony Xperia XA2 series, the XZ2 Compact is speculated to house a rear-facing fingerprint scanner. However, this is still a prototype, which means the final design might vary. As quoted by the commenter, the final product will be different from what we see in the image.
The smartphone train keeps on moving forward as time passes by. With almost half of the year gone by, we’ve seen many new devices like Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge and HTC One M9. But the year is far from ending, and many companies have given out hints of their new unnamed devices. Let us check them out below
Apple iPhone 6s
The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus were released in September, and in the months leading up to that, the gossip mill went mental. Be ready for more of the same with the iPhone 6S, which will launch in September 2015 running iOS 9. As always, we’re presuming a faster processor and some upgraded specs, but little change to the design. According to rumours, the new devices will have a faster A9 processor, 2GB of RAM, a 12-megapixel camera, an additional microphone to enhance voice quality, and a new interior mechanical design to address some bending issues users experienced with the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
OnePlus Two
OnePlus One was one of the most successful Chinese electronic startup stories of 2014. This handset captured an enormous chunk of the mid-segment smartphone market. OnePlus announced a new device on June, which is expected to be the next OnePlus handset. According to OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei, the OnePlus 2 will surprise us, and is likely to focus on flagship-rivalling design rather than specs. The OnePlus 2 launches on 27 July, and will be the first product ever to do so in virtual reality. We already know it will feature OxygenOS, an upgraded Snapdragon 810 processor, USB Type-C and a fingerprint scanner; also expect 4GB of RAM, a 3300mAh battery and a 5.5in 2K screen.
Samsung Galaxy Note 5
Everyone always brags on about Samsung’s Galaxy S lineup, but it’s the Note series that really impresses. The Note 4 was unveiled at a Samsung Unpacked event prior to September’s IFA trade show (3 September 2014), and right now sits at the top of our fastest smartphone and best phablet charts. Traditionally Samsung’s Note launches are held at IFA in September, but rumours suggest we might see the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 as early as July to give it a headstart on the new iPhones.
Mi5 and Mi5 Plus
Reports from Gizmochina claim two more devices will be joining Xiaomi’s line-up later in June 2015. These devices are larger copies of the Mi 4, expected to be named Mi 5 and Mi 5 Plus. The claimed specs of the devices were leaked on the Chinese social media site, Weibo. The Mi 5 is touted to have a 5.2-inch display with a resolution of 1440×2560 pixels. It is believed to be powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 chipset with either 3GB or 4GB RAM and will be juiced by a 3,000mAh battery. Its camera specification includes a 16MP primary camera.The device will also be infused with fingerprint technology. Its larger cousin, named as Mi 5 Plus, will feature a 6-inch screen with 4GB RAM, 32GB internal memory and a 16MP primary camera. While nothing has been mentioned about the price, some rumors claim that Mi5 is slated to be priced around Rs. 23,900. Should the rumor turn out to be true, Mi5 will become one of the strongest performing phones in the market. We hope Xiaomi announces Mi5 as early as possible.
LG G5
Rumours say that LG is now working on the successor of the G4, and will be bringing iris recognition system into play. Reports from Korean publications state that LG has teamed up with local biometrics specialist Irience to implement this feature in its next smartphone. Reports also indicate that the phone will be released in the last quarter of 2015. For now, this is the only information we have found out.
Samsung Galaxy S6 Mini and Galaxy S6 Plus
Samsung Galaxy S6 Mini
It seems like Samsung is on the move to expand its range of Galaxy lineups. The Korean company is reportedly working on a smaller version and a larger version of the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge, namely, Galaxy S6 Mini and Galaxy S6 Plus respectively. Both the rumours emerged this week.
According to GSMArena, the smaller version, Galaxy S6 Mini, or ‘SM-G9198′, the device will be an iPhone 6 competitor. It will have a 4.6-inch HD display and run on Snapdragon 808 chip with 2GB of RAM. It will be equipped with a 15MP primary camera and a 4.7MP front camera.
Galaxy S6 Plus
Meanwhile, Italy’s HDBlog revealed that the company is working on a bigger version, possibly a phablet, on the Galaxy S6 line. For now, the device has been codenamed as ‘Project Zero 2?. Interestingly, the S6 and S6 Edge were codenamed ‘Project Zero’. According to the rumours, the device will just be like the Galaxy S6, only bigger and with a more powerful battery.
Microsoft Lumia 940XL
Microsoft had launched the Lumia 930 almost a year ago, and now, the company is back with its newest smartphone, the Microsoft Lumia 940XL. According to NokiaPowerUser, the device is a larger version of the Lumia 940. The device is expected to have a bigger 5.7-inch display with a slim design and a metal frame. The processor will feature a Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor paired with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage, a microSD card slot for expandable storage, a 5MP front-facing camera, a 20MP main PureView camera for photos and videos, and will feature native pen support as well.Further, it will also support USB C-Type and an Iris Scanner too. The specs sound very exciting, but the company has not officially confirmed the existence of such a device.
Motorola Moto X (third-gen)
Motorola may launch the third generation of its flagship Moto X smartphones in the coming few months. According to STJS Gadgets, the third-generation Moto X is leaked by a Motorola insider, who claims to have a hold of details about the next Moto X. The upcoming smartphone on the Moto X series will sport a 5.2-inch QHD AMOLED display, used on the Droid Turbo. Under the hood will be a Snapdragon 808 chipset bundled with a massive 4GB RAM. The device will come pre-installed with Android 5.1.1 Lollipop.The front camera will be 5MP while the back will house a 16MP snapper with Clear Pixel Technology. The battery powering the device will also be mammoth at 3280mAh. The device will come in two storage variants – 32GB and 64GB.
Bonus
Nexus 5 2015
New reports have emerged that after months of speculation about with whom will Google team up with for its next Nexus device, it seems that LG could be the one to build the next, temporarily named, Nexus 5 2015. According to Android Pit, rather than basing the Nexus 5 2015 on the LG G4, LG will be creating the new handset from the scratch. The device would sport a 5.2-inch screen display, six-core Snapdragon 808 processor by Qualcomm, and 2,700 mAh battery pack, according to the rumours. It may also come in 64 GB and 128 GB variants and have a 16-megapixel rear camera and a five-megapixel wide-angle camera in front.
However, for now, neither Google nor LG has confirmed the news. Also, Google’s next mobile OS, Android M is set for an August release date. Hence, details regarding how many Nexus devices are going to be released and who would be building them will be out really soon.
Keep on checking iGyaan for more updates regarding these future devices!
The smartphone train keeps on moving forward as time passes by. With almost half of this year gone by, we’ve seen many new devices like Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge and HTC One M9. But the year is far from ending, and many companies have given out hints of their new unnamed devices. Let us check them out below:
Samsung Galaxy S7
Samsung raised the standards of the Samsung smartphones in March when they launched the Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge. Now, fans of the devices have already started to speculate about the next Galaxy phone that is touted to be released by the end of 2015. If these rumours are to be believed, Samsung will feature a massive 30MP primary camera and a 10MP front camera with the device. The device is also rumoured to have a 5.5-inch Super AMOLED display with 8K resolution. The device may also include an 8GB RAM, according to the rumours. The processor might be a 64-bit Exynos processor. Following the Galaxy S6 line, we might see Samsung to releasing a Galaxy S7 Edge too. Some other features include Retina Scanning, Advanced Touch ID and Fast Charge technology.
Huawei Honor 7
After Huawei launched the Honor 6 a year ago; the Honor series has been due for quite some time. A new teaser by Huawei indicates a launch of a new product on 8th June, which we think is most likely the Honor 7. The teaser showed a nicely drawn banner with the date and a quote that read ’Imagination is Everything’. According to TENAA, there will be two variants of the 5-inch full HD Honor 7 and will be powered by an in-house Kirin 935 chipset. One of the variants will have 3GB of RAM and 16GB of storage, and the other will have 4GB of RAM and 64GB of memory. Not many details were revealed about the device for now.
OnePlus Two
OnePlus One was one of the most successful Chinese electronic startup stories of 2014. This handset captured an enormous chunk of the mid-segment smartphone market. OnePlus announced a new device on June, which is expected to be the next OnePlus handset. As per the details leaked by the company CEO Liu Zuohu, OnePlus Two will run on Snapdragon 810 chipset along with 4GB RAM. A 5.5-inch 2K display will enhance the viewing experience of the user. There is a high possibility of OnePlus Two running on Cyanogen OS, as the differences between Cyanogen and the Chinese smartphone firm have been sorted out. In the major disclosure yesterday, OnePlus’ Zuohu spilled the beans on the release time of OnePlus Two. The much-awaited device will make a debut in the third quarter of this year. India will be one of the first countries to see the launch of the next probable flagship killer.
Mi5 and Mi5 Plus
Reports from Gizmochina claim two more devices will be joining Xiaomi’s line-up later in June 2015. These devices are larger copies of the Mi 4, expected to be named Mi 5 and Mi 5 Plus. The claimed specs of the devices were leaked on the Chinese social media site, Weibo. The Mi 5 is touted to have a 5.2-inch display with a resolution of 1440×2560 pixels. It is believed to be powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 chipset with either 3GB or 4GB RAM and will be juiced by a 3,000mAh battery. Its camera specification includes a 16MP primary camera.The device will also be infused with fingerprint technology. Its larger cousin, named as Mi 5 Plus, will feature a 6-inch screen with 4GB RAM, 32GB internal memory and a 16MP primary camera. No details were revealed about its processor, display, etc. Xiaomi has yet to announce the date of release, but reports mention that the two handsets will be out in June.
LG G5
Rumours say that LG is now working on the successor of the G4, and will be bringing iris recognition system into play. Reports from Korean publications state that LG has teamed up with local biometrics specialist Irience to implement this feature in its next smartphone. Reports also indicate that the phone will be released in the last quarter of 2015. For now, this is the only information we have found out.
Samsung Galaxy Note 5
After a year of the release of Samsung Galaxy Note 4, rumours of its successor have started to flow in. Considering their launch pattern, the Galaxy Note 4 successor may launch sometime in September this year. The Note 5 will come with a model number SM-N920F. It is likely to feature 5.4-inch or 5.5-inch Super AMOLED display with curves on both the edges. Let us remind you that the Note 4 was the first smartphone with which the curved edge display was included. Other rumours speak of a 5.9-inch screen with 4K resolution. The company has been preparing to venture into the 4K technology and the forthcoming Galaxy Note 5 may be the first to embed it. Other buzz suggests of a 16MP rear camera, 8MP secondary shooter, 4GB RAM and 16GB internal storage.
Apple iPhone 6S
Hardly a few months after releasing the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, rumours of the new iPhone models are already trickling in. According to Macrumors, Apple will be releasing two iPhones under the ‘S’ naming category, namely the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus. Apple will be concentrating more on internal performances rather than external looks. At most, Apple may add Pink colour iPhones to its lineup. According to rumours, the new devices will have a faster A9 processor, 2GB of RAM, a 12-megapixel camera, an additional microphone to enhance voice quality, and a new internal mechanical design to address some bending issues users experienced with the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
Samsung Galaxy S6 Mini and Galaxy S6 Plus
It seems like Samsung is on the move to expand its range of Galaxy line-ups. The Korean company is reportedly working on a smaller version and a larger version of the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge, namely, Galaxy S6 Mini and Galaxy S6 Plus respectively. Both the rumours emerged this week.
According to GSMArena, the smaller version, Galaxy S6 Mini, or ‘SM-G9198’, the device will be an iPhone 6 competitor. It will have a 4.6-inch HD display and run on Snapdragon 808 chip with 2GB of RAM. It will be equipped with a 15MP primary camera and a 4.7MP front camera.
Meanwhile, Italy’s HDBlog revealed that the company is working on a bigger version, possibly a phablet, on the Galaxy S6 line. For now, the device has been codenamed as ‘Project Zero 2’. Interestingly, the S6 and S6 Edge were codenamed ‘Project Zero’. According to the rumours, the device will just be like the Galaxy S6, only bigger and with a more powerful battery.
Xolo Black
On Wednesday, Xolo announced that they are working on a new handset named Xolo Black. This device will come with a dual camera set up that will be able to capture images and their dimensions in an instant, thus creating 3D images. The phone will come along with HIVE 1.5 or above, along with Android Lollipop, and its price is expected to come in the sub-Rs 15,000 segment. Not many details were revealed about the phone and it is said to launch in the month of June.
Microsoft Lumia 940XL
Microsoft had launched the Lumia 930 almost a year ago, and now, the company is back with its newest smartphone, the Microsoft Lumia 940XL. According to NokiaPowerUser, the device is a larger version of the Lumia 940. The device is expected to have a bigger 5.7-inch display with a slim design and a metal frame. The processor will feature a Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor paired with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage, a microSD card slot for expandable storage, a 5MP front-facing camera, a 20MP main PureView camera for photos and videos, and will feature native pen support as well.Further, it will also support USB C-Type and an Iris Scanner too. The specs sound very exciting, but the company has not officially confirmed the existence of such a device.
Motorola Moto X (third-gen)
Motorola may launch the third generation of its flagship Moto X smartphones in the coming few months. According to STJS Gadgets, the third-generation Moto X is leaked by a Motorola insider, who claims to have a hold of details about the next Moto X. The upcoming smartphone on the Moto X series will sport a 5.2-inch QHD AMOLED display, used on the Droid Turbo. Under the hood will be a Snapdragon 808 chipset bundled with a massive 4GB RAM. The device will come pre-installed with Android 5.1.1 Lollipop.The front camera will be 5MP while the back will house a 16MP snapper with Clear Pixel Technology. The battery powering the device will also be mammoth at 3280mAh. The device will come in two storage variants – 32GB and 64GB.
Keep on checking iGyaan for more updates regarding these future devices!
A minute of silence as Microsoft pulls the plug on Windows Phone 8.1, for those of you who have been paying attention, the inevitable has happened. Effective today, Microsoft is ceasing support for Windows Phone 8.1. Though phones running the platform will not be bricked, but the company will not be pushing any future updates for Windows Phone 8.1. The Windows Phone operating system was Microsoft’s biggest efforts in countering Android and iOS. However, as 99.6% of the smartphones run Android or iOS Microsoft failed to capture the market with Windows Phone and it never truly got off the ground.
While a few good phones were launched in the early days by HTC and then by Microsoft in partnership with Nokia aka the Lumia handsets, but they failed to gain popularity unlike their competitors. Though Microsoft continues to support Windows 10 Mobile, it’s unclear how long and to what extent that support will be available.
Rumor has it that Microsoft has branched out its Windows Mobile development into a “feature2” division that will only maintain Windows 10 Mobile until 2018, while any support for Windows Phone 8.1 has been officially terminated. Over the past year , it has becoming quite clear that company is shifting back it’s focus from smartphones to PCs. Microsoft’s new mobile strategy now seems to involve creating apps and integrating iOS and Android with Windows.
Sony is going to release a new 5-inch flagship device at IFA this year, a sequel to the Xperia Z and now a leak from the Taiwanese site ePrice says the device has a 20.7-megapixel ExmorRS sensor that’s the same size as the one in the Galaxy Camera and other point-and-shoots.
Originally, rumours spread that the Honami’s image sensor was going to have an impressive 1/1.6-inch sensor. However, this leak indicates that the Honami may only have a 1/2.3-inch sensor. But to compensate for that, the Sony Honami will have a f/2.0 with 5mm focal length and utilize the BIONZ processing engine, which effectively allows the camera to take photos with a resolution of up to 5248 x 3936 pixels.
This will help the Sony Honami to take on the recently-announced Nokia Lumia 1020 and the Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom. The 1020 comes with an impressive 41MP camera that aims to revolutionize smartphone cameras, and while we still have yet to try the phone’s camera out for ourselves, Sony will mostly likely have to out something big in order to overthrow the 1020.
As previous rumours have indicated the Sony Honami will reportedly be capable of capturing video at 4K resolution, or 4000×2000 pixels. This insanely high video resolution is going to work synergistically with Sony’s big 4K TV push at the end of the year, but until then will mainly be little more than a sideshow act.
The battery is reportedly built into the device, suggesting it won’t be user replaceable, with a large capacity of 3,000 mAh battery. In addition to the reported camera specifications, there’s also said to be a 5-inch full HD display, as well as a 2.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor, as well as 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal memory. In addition, there’s said to be a microSD expansion slot, with the maximum supported capacity not being specified.
So much has happened in the year of 2011. We take a look back at some of the major launches and events that moved news in 2011, of course we do it month wise:
