Author: Rachel Issac

Report: New Moto X Play Might Arrive in India On September 14th

Motorola has made it clear that its new Moto X Play smartphone is headed to India soon. Motorola tweeted two pictures of the new Moto X smartphone with captions highlighting the battery and camera features.

One tweet said, “Tired of those hazy memories? Get hitched with a perfect partner with a 21MP rear camera. #XOMotoX,” while the other had this caption, “No more getting dumped by your phone. Your perfect partner is coming with 30 hours of battery backup. #XOMotoX” The 30 hours battery is a feature of the Moto X Play.

The Moto X Play is the cheaper and smaller screen version of the Moto X Style. It comes with a 5.5-inch Full HD screen at 403 ppi with Gorilla Glass 3, Snapdragon 615 Octa-core CPU clocked at 1.7 GHz with Adreno 405 at 550 MHz GPU. It also has a Natural Language Processor, Contextual Computing Processor like the Moto X Style.

Tired of those hazy memories? Get hitched with a perfect partner with a 21MP rear camera. #XOMotoX pic.twitter.com/EacxxybKL2

— Motorola India (@MotorolaIndia) September 7, 2015

The Moto X Play has 2GB RAM and 16 or 32GB storage space options (upto 128GB microSD card supported).

The battery in the Moto X Play is at 3630 mAh, which Motorola says give up to to 30 hours usage. This version of the Moto X is water-resistant as well. The rear camera is 21 megapixel with a f /2.0 aperture and the front camera is 5 megapixel.

Motorola launched two versions of the Moto X phone: Moto X Style which has a bigger 5.7-inch QHD screen and Moto X Play. Since this week all attention is on Apple and YU, Motorola may consider a launch date slated for next week.

September 8, 2015
Yu’s Upcoming Smartphone ‘Yutopia’ Expected to Come With 4GB RAM

We’ve already reported that Yu Televentures is back with another announcement of a new phone that will be launched on the 8th of September. Now, we also know what it’s going to be called – the Yutopia.

Now, considering the fact that it is part of the YU series, the smartphone should be more or less within the mid-range. Yu had pleasantly surprised its users with the Yu Yureka Plus that was priced at Rs.9,999 with all the right specs.

If reports are to be believed, Yutopia will be competing with the OnePlus 2. This means it will come with higher specs and thereby a higher price. But, do not fret, since it shall still be within the mid-range phones.

Further leaks also suggest that the Yutopia will come with a 5.2 inch FHD display, which will be powered by a 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 Octa-core MSM8994 SoC. As far as storage capacity is concerned this smartphone is expected to come with 4GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage. Apart from all this leaks also suggest that the Yutopia might also come with a 21MP rear camera and an 8MP front camera with a price tag of $315, which is approximately Rs.21,054. This price tag is perhaps not so ‘mid-range’ as we might have expected it to be, however, we must note that these are mere leaks and speculations.

Yu has already started sending out invites for its ‘the next wonder’ – Yutopia, that is set to launch on the 8th of September (just one day before the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus). So, watch this space for more details and updates about the new Yutopia. Let’s hope it’s as ideal as its name suggests.

September 7, 2015
New iPad Pro Might Come With a Keyboard and Force Touch

Apple had launched its first generation 9.7 inch iPad in April 2010, followed by the iPad mini with a 7.9 inch display in October 2012. Now, according to reports, Apple is planning to launch the new iPad Pro with a 12.9 inch display this year, at their upcoming event on the 9th of September 2015.

Further sources have suggested that the iPad Pro could have a 2732 x 2048 pixel resolution and might have design aspects similar to the iPad Air. 9to5mac says that the iPad Pro will “literally look like a big iPad.” Other design features say that it will also have an aluminum shell, a FaceTime and iSight camera.

This device is also expected to come with the Force Touch technology, that Apple is planning to introduce in the next set of iPhones – iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. This is what 9to5mac says about the new iPad Pro:

“The stylus will open up the door to enhanced drawing and design apps on the new iPad, and the integration with the Force Touch screen will allow the stylus and the iPad Pro to work differently based on the levels of pressure applied by the stylus to the iPad’s display.”

Apple is apparently designing the iPad Pro to be compatible with a Bluetooth keyboard and is also allegedly working on a revamped keyboard accessory for the iPad Pro. However, there is no further information on this front, and we’ll just have to wait for the 9th of September to see what Apple Inc. has to offer us this time.

September 7, 2015
Here’s An App That Will Never Let You Walk Alone

Today we’re going to talk about an app called Companion that is basically a virtual security app for you. So, now when you just have to get something to eat, and the only store open is that shady corner store; you’ll have a companion, virtually.

“Companion is a peer-to-peer safety app that improves public safety and provides peace of mind to anyone on the move!”

Now the best thing about this app is that, the person you pick to be your ‘companion’ doesn’t need to be an app user! So now all you have to do is, enter your destination and select anyone in your contacts to be your ‘Companion’. The ‘companion’ can now track your progress and will be automatically notified when you arrive at your destination safely.

This app can also detect when you start running or in case you fall, or even if your headphones have been pulled out of the jack. There is a fifteen seconds time period within which, if you don’t respond, the app will notify your ‘companion’ immediately. Apart from this you can also contact the local police department to report an emergency.

Furthermore, for University students, the app comes with the ability to report areas around the campus which you can record as a safe zone, and similarly you can even record an “I feel nervous” zone. The Companion app is said to contact your school or university’s officials upon detecting suspicious activity.

This app can be downloaded on both iOS and Android devices. Check it out here:

Source: [tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://companionapp.io/”]Companion[/tw-button]

September 7, 2015

India Pricing of the Samsung Note 5 Revealed

The Samsung Galaxy Note 5 was released on the 13th of August in New York and caused quite a commotion with its S-Pen and other features. Touted as one of Samsung’s high-end phones which could give the iPhone some competition, the price of this phablet has been announced in India at Rs.53,900 .

Let’s have a look at the features of this phablet to help you decide whether you need this or not. Firstly, the display comes with a super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen with 16M colours, 5.7 inches screen with a 1440 x 2560 pixels resolution, and all this is protected by the Corning Gorilla Glass 4.

The Note 5 runs on the Android OS, v5.1.1 (Lollipop) with an Exynos 7420 chipset, a Quad-core 1.5 GHz Cortex-A53 & Quad-core 2.1 GHz Cortex-A57 CPU and a Mali-T760MP8 GPU. As far as storage capacity is concerned, this handset comes in two variants – 32 and 64 GB along with 4GB of RAM. However, it does not have an expandable microSD card slot.

On the camera front the primary camera comes with a 16MP, 5312 X 2988 pixels resolution, optical image stabilization, autofocus and LED flash feature. Other features of the camera include – Dual Shot, Simultaneous HD video and image recording, geo-tagging, touch focus, face/smile detection, panorama, and HDR. The secondary camera comes with a 5MP lens.

The device weighs 171g and the dimensions measure 153.2 x 76.1 x 7.6 mm. It needs to be supported by a Nano-SIM for connectivity and comes with a fingerprint sensor and the famous S-Pen stylus.

The Galaxy Note 5 has some very interesting features that allows you to perform various tasks such as signing documents with the S-Pen on your PDF directly, instead of having to print it out. The phablet also comes with some eye-catching accessories and colours such as the silver titanium, gold platinum, black sapphire and white pearl. It is powered by a WPC and PMA battery that is non-removable Li-Po 3,000mAh, fast charging and wireless charging compatible.

Other connectivity options include – SMS(threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Mail, IM, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot, Bluetooth version 4.2, GPS, NFC and a microUSB v2.0.

Here are the specs:

Features	Samsung Galaxy Note 5
Display	5.7 inches
Resolution	1440 x 2560 pixels
Processor	Octa core (2.1GHz Quad + 1.5GHz Quad), 64 bit, 14 nm process
OS	Android OS, v5.1.1 (Lollipop)
RAM	4GB
Storage	32GB and 64 GB
Primary Camera	16 MP, 5312 x 2988 pixels, optical image stabilization, autofocus, LED flash
Front Camera	5MP
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot, the Bluetooth v4.2, with GPS and NFC
Battery	Non-removable Li-Po 3,000mAh, fast charging, wireless charging compatible with WPC and PMA
Price	Rs.53,900/Rs. 59,990

September 7, 2015

Report: iPhone Users Will Be Able to Use Samsung’s Gear S2

The Samsung Gear S2 was announced on the 31st of August, and has since been receiving relatively good feedback, as compared to Samsung’s previous smartwatches. It came with a 1.2” circular Super AMOLED display with 360 x 360 pixels, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset, a 250mAh battery, a rotating bezel, a stainless steel body with IP68 rating for water and dust resistance and most importantly was compatible with all Android devices with Android 4.4 and up with more than 1.56GB of RAM.

With all the above specifications and more, it seemed to have become a seemingly strong competitor to the Apple Watch. As mentioned above, it is compatible with all Android phones with Android 4.4 and up with more than 1.56GB of RAM. So, this category would easily cover, Asus, HTC, Huawei, Kyocera, Lenovo, LG, Motorola, Xiaomi etc. But, here’s the crazy new thing – Samsung is doing for its new smartwatch – it’s extending it’s compatibility to the iPhone. So, now iPhone users who are envying Samsung’s Gear S2 can actually use it now. Well, here’s to Samsung finally catching up.

Source: [tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tech/news/a666783/move-over-android-wear-samsung-has-confirmed-its-looking-at-gear-s2-iphone-support.html#~pnzH1mBFJgBe6L”]Digital Spy[/tw-button]

September 7, 2015
iPhone 7 Expected to be as Thin as the iPod Touch at 6.5mm

Apple is just three days away from announcing its upcoming iPhone 6s and 6s Plus and there are already rumours and reports about what the iPhone 7 is going to look like. Of course one is just assuming that the next flagship after the 6s Plus will be called the iPhone 7.

Now apparently, a KGI report says that the next iPhone, which is now being referred to as, the iPhone 7 could be as thin as the iPod touch, with a body between 6 and 6.5 mm. The exterior design of the iPhone doesn’t change very often, and that will be the case even with the iPhone 6s and 6s plus.

The iPhone 6 is 6.9 mm and the iPhone 6 Plus is 7.1 mm, so this iPhone 7 will be comparatively much slimmer. This could possibly be the size zero version of all iPhones till date. The new report also tells us that the next-gen iPhone will have the Force Touch technology, as is expected from the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus.

KGI also suggests that Apple will not be moving to glass screen technology anytime soon, and will continue to stick to the in-cell panels. The in-cell panel, while limiting the maximum screen resolution, allows Apple to create slimmer products. Thereby, adding weightage to the iPhone 7 rumours.

Anyway, the iPhone 7 is perhaps a long way away, but for now, you can focus on the upcoming iPhone 6s and 6s Plus release on the 9th of September. Watch this space for more information.

Source: [tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://9to5mac.com/2015/09/06/iphone-7-super-thin-ipod-touch-6-mm/”]9to5mac[/tw-button]

September 7, 2015
iPhone 6s and 6s Plus Might Come With the Same Old Storage Options

We’re all waiting for Apple to release its upcoming iPhone 6s and 6s plus on the 9th of September at its event. There have been a bunch of rumours floating around, about the two devices and the latest one is that a memo that was being passed around at KGI Securities has been leaked, and suggests that the new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus will be arriving with the same storage options as the current generation – 16GB, 64GB and 128GB.

Furthermore, the iPhone camera, which is already pretty cool, is going to be upgraded to wait-for-it 12 megapixels. This means that the new iPhone will be able to capture 4k videos and will thus catch up with perhaps, the latest Sony Xperia Z5 Premium.

Apart from this, the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are expected to come with Force Touch technology and an A9 chipset. However, the RAM will reportedly be the same. With September 11th 2015 having been claimed as the pre-order date, we can just wait and watch what Apple has this time.

Source:[tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://www.macrumors.com/2015/09/03/kgi-iphone-6s-storage-16gb-64gb-128gb/”] MacRumours[/tw-button]

September 5, 2015
Sony Plans To Assemble and Manufacture Smartphones In India Soon

New reports from Sony Corp tell us that the company is in talks with Foxconn to assemble its Xperia smartphones in India and even manufacture them. They’re looking to produce some “sub-Rs 10,000” models that are going to be designed specifically for the local market in India.

Sony isn’t the only company that is looking towards India. Even Chinese companies are looking towards the Indian market which is currently the fourth largest market for smartphones and is set to become the second largest by 2017. Lenovo had announced that it would start locally manufacturing smartphones in Chennai, while Xiaomi had also announced its first manufacturing unit in Sri City in Andhra Pradesh.

All this had begun out of the Indian Prime Minister’s ‘Make in India’ campaign, that has attracted many smartphone companies to assemble and manufacture products in India. Let’s wait and hope for the best.

September 5, 2015
Rumour: LG Releasing a Phone With a Secondary ‘Ticker’ Display

New rumours about LG suggest that it is going to launch a phone called the V10 with a “ticker” display above the main screen. A ticker display is basically one in which information is scrolled across the top or bottom of a screen. This kind of display setting has previously been used on Samsung’s Continuum Galaxy S Verizon variant.

This has been leaked by Evan Blass and reveals that this new phone, that is, the V10 will have a 5.7-inch 2,560 x 1,440 screen, Snapdragon 808 CPU, 3GB memory, 16 megapixel rear/5 megapixel front cameras, expandable memory and a back fingerprint scanner.

The phone also is said to have a removable-looking plastic back and a metal frame. Further rumours also suggest that it could come with a dual SIM. There is no further information, and nothing has been officially confirmed.

We’re not sure what LG will put on the ticker — perhaps some kind of launcher like Samsung uses on the curved sides of the Galaxy Note Edge. While the phone has a removable-looking plastic back, the frame itself appears to be metal, according to the Tenaa photos (which have since been pulled). Provided all this info is correct, we should see the handset imminently, given that it’s cleared the regulatory hurdle. With the dual-sim setup shown in the Tenaa listing, there’s no guarantee it’ll come to North America or Europe.

September 5, 2015
Xiaomi’s First Teaser of the Mi 5 Hints at a Fingerprint Scanner

Since the past year, we’ve heard several rumours about the upcoming Mi 5. However, there has been no official confirmation about the existence of the smartphone – before today. The latest rumours about Xiaomi suggests that the chipset for the upcoming flagship, Xiaomi Mi 5, could be either a new generation of Snapdragon 810 or 820 or the MediaTek Helio X20 with ten-core tri-cluster processor.

This information has been procured from AnTuTu’s result database. Therefore, up till now we know that the Mi 5 could also come with a 5.3″ Quad HD display, 4 gigs of RAM, a 16MP OIS camera and a USC Type C port.

However, the so-called teaser image also shows that there might be a possibility of the new handset having a fingerprint scanner. None of these reports have been confirmed so far. Stay tuned for more updates.

September 4, 2015
LG Nexus 5X to Arrive on 29th Of September, Priced at $400

According to the most recent reports, LG is planning to release a new Nexus smartphone, which is expected to be more expensive than the Nexus 5.

The reports about this new handset suggest that the new Nexus will be made available in the Google Store from 29th September 2015. The speculated name for this product is expected to be Nexus 5X Moniker and might be priced at $400.

However, these reports have not been confirmed by Nexus officially. So we only have to wait and watch.

September 4, 2015
Hands on | Moto 360 2015

The Moto 360 2015 version was just unveiled at the IFA Berlin event and we have hands-on visuals for it. But before that let us take some time to describe what you are about to see.

Motorola has not just revealed one watch, its an entire ‘collection’ inspired by all the latest fall trends. This time we have a couple of options when it comes to the straps, as compared to the first Moto 360’s boring black band. This time the Moto 360 comes in two models, three sizes and up to 300 different ways to customize your Moto 360.

The Moto 360 2015 comes in two versions – a women’s version, and a sport version with an on-board GPS and outdoor readable display. The device is still round in shape with the men’s version coming in two variant sizes – 46mm and 42mm. While the women’s version, is obviously thinner and also comes in two variants – 42mm and 16mm strap mounts.

Another convenience available in the new Moto 360, that wasn’t available in the first edition, is the fact that now the smartwear comes with standard lugs that are fused to the outside of the watches making it easier to swap bands. The Motorola bands also have release pins even in the metal link bracelets.

There are different colours available for it too; the men’s version is said to come in silver, gold, and black, while the women’s version will have silver, gold, or a new rose gold color option.

In respect to the battery power and processor, Motorola has upgraded its device with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor. They have also further improved the battery life and say that the 46mm watch will last up to two days between charges, while the 42 mm watch will be able to last about a day and a half. You can charge your watch on the wireless dock which you’ll get along with the watch.

The new Moto 360 will be available for pre-order from the Motorola’s website starting today and will begin shipping in a couple of weeks. The Moto Sport, however will be available later in the year. The prices for these products will range between $299.99 to $429.99 (Rs. 19,000-Rs. 28,000 approx.). The pictures below should help you decide, whether you want this new smart wear or not.

September 3, 2015
Samsung SleepSense Can Automatically Turn Off Your TV When You Fall Asleep

IFA Berlin is seeing a number of tech devices being released each day, with more and more enthusiasm. Today, as the anticipation build up for Samsung, they merely revealed a device called the SleepSense.

It is something they have come up with, from the concept of a sleep tracking device. So, instead of wearing or carrying the device, you can just slip it under your mattress. Moreover, it’s just a flat disk.

Once placed under your mattress, it will monitor your heart rate, breathing and movement during sleep with “97 percent” accuracy. This information will be transferred to a smartphone app, which gives you an “individual sleep score” based on several factors, such as – total sleep time, number of times you woke up and the percentage of REM sleep.

Apparently, if you’re a light sleeper, or you can’t sleep because you think you see ghosts in the dark etc. you can actually get advice from a Harvard sleep expert on how to sleep better by changing your nutrition, exercise and other things. Yes, this is what was left – for a device to tell us how to sleep. Welcome to the future, readers.

Now, here is the slightly more interesting thing about this device – it actually encourages laziness! Isn’t that why technology exists? To make our lives easier. Well, here’s how – SleepSense is also connected to Samsung’s SmartThings IoT home automation system. So, when you fall asleep while watching your favourite guilty reality TV show, the device will detect that you’re asleep and will automatically turn off lights or the TV and lower the air conditioning.

This way Samsung is helping us be eco-friendly and save energy. This device will launch in Korea later this year, however, there is no information about the price or whether it will launch in the US and Europe.

September 3, 2015
Huawei Brings Out Mate S; Introduces Force Touch Ahead of Apple

All this while, we have been talking about Apple’s upcoming iPhone 6s which is expected to feature the Force Touch technology. But guess who just beat Apple to it? The Chinese company – Huawei. It has released it’s new Mate S with the Force Touch technology.

Well, let’s give Huawei some credit of its own too, because apart from the force touch, this phone also has many other quirky features that are perhaps exclusive to this model. For example, it has a “hard pressing” base for the screen which helps to bring up app shortcuts and multi-tasked apps, it can also zoom on portions of photos, and very interestingly can also use the screen as a set of weighing scales.

Now as if that wasn’t enough, Huawei has a new technology whereby the Mate S’ touch screen is not only ‘finger-friendly’ but also ‘knuckle-friendly’. This phone features the first ever, Knuckle Sense 2.0, which allows you to use your knuckles on the display for different actions such as – cropping photos or launching apps. All this can be done with a knuckle-scribbled letter shortcut.

What’s more? This smartphone also has a new-generation digit decipherer. So, just a vertical slide across the fingerprint sensor and you will be able to see your notifications, and if you horizontally slide across the fingerprint sensor, you can scroll through images. And there’s still more! This feature can also act as a selfie trigger.

Tired? Too bad. We still have to talk about the display and design of the Mate S. The Mate S comes with a 5.5 inch display and 401ppi sharpness, it also comes with a full metal “dual diamond cut” unibody build. The screen has a 2.5D curve and the thickest point of this phone is just 2.65mm. Huawei has also reportedly compared the Mate S’s compact nature to the iPhone 6’s. By stating that, although the display size is the same, the Huawei model will have a smaller overall footprint.

On the camera front, it has a 13MP camera sensor with an optical image stabilization on the rear and also comes with an “anti-scratch” sapphire glass on the lens. The battery guarantees a days worth of power with 2 hours of talk time after just 10 minutes of charging, which is apparently five times faster than the iPhone 6.

The phone comes with a dual SIM support, and in four colour variants of pink, champagne, grey and gold. There are also two storage variations of the Huawei Mate S – the grey and champagne handsets with 3GB of RAM and 32GB storage will be priced at 649 Euros which is approximately Rs. 48,277, while the gold and pink versions are the premium editions, with 3GB RAM and 64GB storage and will be priced at 699 Euros which is approximately Rs. 51,998. The phone will go on sale in the United Kingdom in September while pre-orders will begin on the 15th of September onwards.

Will Apple win this race? Stay tuned to our website to find out more.

September 3, 2015