Samsung may have ganged up along with other phone makers to ridicule iPhone 6 Plus’ bending incidents but now it has its own issue. Some of the users of Samsung’s latest flagship are complaining about a gap in the frame.
The metal frame was one of the most flaunted design features from the company. It marked the company’s departure from excessive plastic use on their smartphones. The phone went on sale in Korea and is being sold at a premier price of 957,000 Korean Won (about Rs.55,000).
According to the images posted by the iTToday in South Korea, the gap is big enough to fit in a business card. It’s not yet sure if it’s a bigger issue or a problem with select devices.
Samsung though has firmly rejected the claims. An official spokesperson from the company said the issue does not impact the functionality or quality of the Galaxy Note 4. They told TrustedReviews that “We assure our customers that all Galaxy Note 4 units meet our strict manufacturing and quality control standards.”
Though Samsung says it’s not a big issue, we’d love to see other companies take on the gap gate. It’s about time someone gave Samsung a taste of their own medicine. It will at least make for good entertainment.
OnePlus had taken the smartphone market by storm with their flagship killer, the One, which sure sounds like a Matrix reference. The phones unique features and high-end specs at a convenient low price have won hearts globally. The biggest hitch with this excellent phone is its lack of availability. In a Reddit AMA(Ask Me Anything), OnePlus’s Carl Pei and David S answered many important queries about the future of the company.
The company said that they misjudged the demand for their phones. According to them, they underestimated the demand for their phone and now they are “scrambling to catch up.” The team they established wasn’t big enough to handle the gargantuan demand, and so they are hiring like crazy. They are hopeful that the situation will normalize in a few months.
OnePlus said they underestimated the demand and are now scrambling to catch up.
The disappointing bit of the AMA was the revelation that the invite system is not going anywhere at least in this year. It was previously reported that the company will be doing away with the invite system for a pre-order system. Carl Pie said, “We understand that our current method may be slowing our growth down, but we’d rather grow slower and in a healthy way than take too much risks and go out of business. Risk management is extra important in our scenario where we don’t have hardware margins.”
The most prominent announcement was about the successor to the mighty OnePlus One. The new phone, OnePlus Two will be launched by the second or third quarter of 2015. It is a good enough time span considering the future-proof OnePlus One will continue its formidable stand in the market for the considerable future. OnePlus Two will also come with Android L pre-installed. This phone too will begin sale with an invite system but will gradually be rolled out through pre-orders.
They also said they are considering the requests for reducing screen size for their next device.
The company said they were considering the screen size issue as that is one request they have been getting bombarded with. The 5.5 inch screen is just too big for everyone. The company has made it clear they will not be bringing it down to iPhone 6’s size of 4.7. We think a 5.0 or 5.2 inch is a great size that everyone can get used to. They said they would continue using the IPS screens instead of OLED’s as they cost more, and their benefits are not really worth the extra bucks.
OnePlus also said that they are testing products in various other categories, but are not sure of what they’ll release into the market. They said “The Nexus tablets are pretty good. We don’t think we can make anything significantly better in the near future.”
Overall this was a great discussion. We appreciate the honesty of the folks at OnePlus, who didn’t leave their potential customers in the dark. Now we just hope that the next OnePlus device is as epic as its current sibling.
Microsoft launched its new Window OS operating system at a small event yesterday in California. What came as surprise was the name that the company decided to give it. It is not Windows One, not Windows 9, but Windows 10, which combines the reborn Start Menu with Windows 8’s colorful live tiles and adjusts its behavior depending on how you’re using your device. Microsoft wants us to think of the latest version as a fundamental change to how Windows works, and the company skipped a version number to show it.
Return of the Start Menu
Originally codenamed Windows Threshold, the new operating system essentially drops the tiled “Metro” user interface that Microsoft had attempted to implement across its entire device line, from desktop PCs to Surface tablets and Windows Phone devices. Replacing it is a combination of the so-called live tiles, squeezed comfortably in the new Start Menu. It is a more retro Windows experience that will, according to the company, suite both touch and keyboard-and-mouse users.
Windows 10 is such a substantial leap, according to Microsoft, that the company decided it would be best to skip Windows 9, the widely expected name for the next version.
“Windows 10 will run on the broadest amount of devices. A tailored experience for each device,” Myerson said at a press event here Tuesday. “There will be one way to write a universal application, one store, one way for apps to be discovered purchased and updated across all of these devices.” “We believe that, together with the feedback you provide us, we can build a product that all of our customers will love,” Myerson added. “It will be our most open collaborative OS projects ever.”
The New Continuum Mode
Microsoft is also working on a tweaked UI that isn’t in Windows 10, yet. For two-in-on devices, a “Continuum” mode will adjust the UI depending on whether or not the mouse and keyboard is present. When a keyboard is disconnected, the Windows 8-style Start Menu appears and a back button is available so that users can easily back out to a prior command. Menus grow larger. But when a mouse and keyboard is connected, the desktop mode reappears, Windows apps return to desktop windows, and the Start page disappears.
That means your software will know when you’re using the OneDrive cloud service or Microsoft Word on a Surface device or a Lenovo laptop and adjust accordingly in a way that will unlock that productivity that Microsoft feels has been eluding its family of devices with Windows 8.
Windows 10 will work across devices.
The goal with Windows 10, the company stressed, is to find UI approaches that use the same mouse and keyboard experience evolving from Windows 7 so the touch users get something natural. During the event, Microsoft also offered insight into what went wrong with Windows 8. The goal of that OS was based on the effect that two-in-one’s can have for the productivity of Windows to help people get things done. Two-in-one devices can shape-shift from laptop to tablet, and Microsoft hopes that Windows can dominate that dual form factor in a way that their competitor Apple cannot, with its separate iPad and laptop lines.
Windows Mobile 10
For the Windows smartphones, the Windows Mobile OS will share the UI and the name. The company also said that the it will not have a desktop. However, it did not elaborate on what the next version Microsoft’s mobile OS may look like.
How Much will it Cost?
The company didn’t talk about the business model for the new OS either. The earlier reports suggested that the new Windows 10 may come for free as Apple does with its OS X upgrades or for nominal fee of $20. However, nothing is official yet.
When it Will be Available?
Microsoft expects to release the OS sometime in 2015, after the company’s Build Developer Conference in April. Microsoft also announced its Windows Insider Program, a developer’s program to allow enterprise people to evaluate it early, and will be available starting Thursday. Members of the program will have access to the ‘tech preview build.’
The next big Windows is finally here. Microsoft did what it does best; arbitrarily name its products. First there were Windows 3.1x, then there was Windows 95 followed by the 98 and then the ME. After these came the modern Windows, namely the XP, Vista, 7 and the 8. Now Microsoft has brought out Windows 10, and it seems it wants to challenge Apple with this one.
This release will bring back some of the traditional characteristics of Windows that were lost in the Windows 8 transition. Microsoft has said that users from any previous Windows OS can easily switch to Windows 10. The bit that will excite a lot of users is the glorious revival of the Start Menu, which was a characteristic feature of Windows until the 8. It will also be one operating system percolating through desktops to tablets to smartphones.
Windows 10 will work across devices.
The new operating system was unveiled at San Francisco for Business customers. Microsoft will be releasing a technical preview version for selected users. It will be unveiling consumer features early next year. Windows 10 is expected to reach the market by mid-2015. Considering Microsoft nails its flagship operating system in every alternate release, we have a lot of hopes with this one.
Samsung today released the Galaxy Grand Prime in India. The phone is being touted by Samsung as a Groupfie friendly phone which means that it will let you take wider selfies with more folks in the picture.
The phone comes with a 5 MP qHD (960×540) PLS TFT display. The phone has a width of 8.6mm, which brings it in the slim line-up of phones. It is powered by 1.2 GHz Quad Core processor. The RAM on the device stands at 1 GB and has 8 GB internal storage that is expandable up to 64 GB. The device is powered by a 2600 mAh.
The star of the phone is the 5 MP front camera. The camera has a wide 85-degree view for taking wide selfies or groupies. The back camera on the device is an 8 MP shooter.
The qHD display is a disappointment considering many phones in this price range offer 720p or full HD display. There could have been more power under the hood too. Samsung had a good plan in hand for a group friendly phone for the festive season where people actually want to take lots of photos, but they cheapened out on the display and processor which can turn against them. Considering the unfavorable opinions received in the market by Samsung it should have made a better effort with this phone.
Chinese smartphone manufacturer, Gionee, known for making the slimmest smartphone has brought a new phone to India. The device is called CTRL V4S and is released for the ongoing festive season.
CTRL V4s is a dual-SIM device. It has a 4.5 inch IPS LCD display with a resolution of 480×854. It is powered by quad-core 1.3 GHz, a minor improvement over its predecessor, the V4 that came with 1.2 GHz under the hood. The device comes with 1 GB RAM and 8 GB internal storage which can be expanded to 32 GB.
The main camera on the device is an 8 MP shooter. On the front sits a 2 MP selfie shooter. The battery on the device is 1800 mAh piece which might provide a decent power backup. The phone runs Android KitKat 4.4. out of the box.
The phone is 7.8 MM thin.
A feature that will be loved by most users is the HotKnot. Using this, users can exchange files instantly between two phones by holding the screens together. It can be an alternative to Bluetooth transfers that requires a bit of operating knowledge and patience to finish the transfer.
The device is priced at Rs. 9,999, which might be slightly steep for the specifications. A 720p display would have been appreciated at this price and would have been in favor of Gionee. This still sounds like a good enough design and the HotKnot feature can come in handy. We now have to see how the market responds to this device.
Apple’s latest generation of phone is here, the iPhone 6 is the next big change after Apple’s iPhone 5 was launched two years ago. However a lot has happened in the smartphone market space since then.
Android has taken major lead thanks to diversification and availability, and smartphones have become much cheaper. A few companies like Xiaomi and OnePlus have emerged to show that cheap phones don’t have to be bad quality or bad spec’d, and that they too can create major hype.
So amidst all of this smartphone tension, where does today’s iPhone 6 stand and is is worth your major moolah. Let’s find out!
Overview
Just like every iPhone release, this one was riddled with issues as well. Apple managed to sell 10 million iPhone 6 and 6 Plus devices overnight since it went on sale and a lot of people had major issues in getting to the online Apple store. Then there is this crazy #bendgate phenomenon, and just like Apple’s #AntennaGate this one has the whole world talking about bending iPhones. People are confused and some assume that a bending iPhone is a feature of the new iPhone, just like the G Flex.
[pullquote_left]iPhone 6 is Unaffected by the Bendgate Issue[/pullquote_left]
Apple has received just a few complaints over bending iPhone 6 plus’ and the whole story seems like a media frenzy, also it does not affect the iPhone 6 at all. All bendgate theories aside, Apple has managed to improve on what was already an excellent handset. People wanted a bigger iPhone and Apple delivered two sizes. People asked for better battery and the Cupertino giant may have a winner on that as well, but hardware is not the only factor. Apple has tied in iOS 8 brilliantly and the end user experience may just be what you have been looking for.
Build Quality and Design
Apple has chosen to go with a treated Aluminum just like every year, however this year it’s thinner and strengthened at the hip using stainless steel and titanium inserts. The iPhone however, is presumed to be easily dented or nicked at the round edges just like the case of the first generation. The front glass is rounded to the edges giving the phone a massively premium outlook and a great in-hand feel. Expect almost all manufacturers to follow this in the upcoming handsets.
Looks wise the iPhone 6 is much more good looking in person than in images and video. It feels excellent in the hand and thanks to the new rounded edges, the phone will stay in your hand much longer. Everyone who has seen it, has appreciated its looks. The Golden color especially has been improved over the past generation gold.
Camera Module is Protruded
The camera module sits above the whole body of the phone, which makes it prone to scratches, however the super hard sapphire lens, makes it really difficult to do so. The Apple official case tucks the camera module in just a tad bit to add a layer of protection and not bulk. The leather case is really appreciable and well made, much more so than last generation cases.
Hardware
Procession on the new iPhone 6 happens on the new Apple A8 Chipset and it is the first chipset to include 2 Billion transistors. Which is really impressive if you factor in the size of the A8 die i.e 89mm2. The increase in the performance is based on a 1.4 Ghz CPU and a hexa core GPU. The front has a larger 4.7 inch display which is an Apple iPhone first along with a larger resolution of 1334 x 750 px, retaining Apple’s retina requirements.
The Battery is bigger on the iPhone 6 with a 1810 mAh unit in tow, non-replaceable as usual, you also get the same 8 Mp and 1.2 Mp camera combo. However improved lenses and sensor promise better imagery and we agree. There is also an NFC module on the inside, but it is only for payments and not for information bumps. Apple Pay is not available in India, in fact it won’t be for a while so it really may not be relevant. However if you are in the US, this may simplify payments for you significantly, especially if all you carried was a credit/debit card.
Performance
Performance is easily noticeable out of the box; the iPhone 6 is snappier, opens apps faster and renders objects quicker. The graphics information is about as accurate as mentioned and games that will take full advantage of the GPU will truly shine in the coming days with extra detail and nag-less gameplay.
Multitasking has taken a major bump up, thanks to iOS 8 which is much lighter and handles multitasking better, but the hardware also plays an important role and improves it, resulting in a flawless experience overall.
Gaming, Display and Multimedia
The iPhone 6 is by far the best gaming experience on a smartphone, the visual elements truly shine out in gameplay, and since all games are designed around Apple’s hardware on the iPhones, they run at best possible settings resulting in the best possible output, and therefore the best possible gaming experience.
[pullquote_right]The Display shines on the new iPhone 6[/pullquote_right]
Display is Vivid
The new bigger 4.7 inch display truly leverages the OS experience, you still get to use the phone with one hand, and once you have used “reachability”, the first question you will ask is “why hasn’t anyone else done it before?”. It makes sense and it works really well. Apple should have stuffed in a larger resolution display on the iPhone 6, but the current resolution is very good. There is zero pixelation on screen, text looks excellent, viewing angles are really wide and outdoor visibility is top notch, basically the same as you would expect from an iPhone, but better.
The speakerphone is definitely louder and more defined, however it’s no “boomsound” speaker setup and it’s no where near as great as a stereo setup. Why Apple choses to use a single speaker after 7 years of inception is beyond us, when they could have easily done a stereo setup with this iPhone. Audio output from the 3.5mm headphone jack is still the best from any phone ever and bundled with a good set of headphones makes for the best on the go sound experience.
Camera
240fps at 720p is going to be the best fun you have had with a Camera, be sure to get at least the 64 GB variant if you intend to use this. The best usage is outdoors so that you don’t get random tube light flicker. The one major let down this year was the lack of 4K video, and now that the storage was bumped up to 128GB it would have simply made sense, as the sensor and chipset is very capable and with the iPhone 6 Plus OIS would have meant excellent video.
There is a major improvement in the new autofocus capabilities of the new iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. The iPhone 6 misses the OIS from the 6 Plus which is a major pity, because there is no real reason Apple should have left it out.
The new autofocus is laser fast, and the new lens setup is better for macro. The iPhone usually has great background defocus and close up capture capability as it is, the new iPhone 6 camera improves that by a handful. You also see sharper pictures, highly improved HDR and color correction, and perfectly saturated colors. Thanks to the excellent image processing you get ideally one of the best pocket cameras today. It is also the most used camera in the world and that is just going to become bigger.
Samples:
HDR
Focus Test
HDR Outdoor 2
Close Up Focus
Low Light
Phone and Battery life
Network performance is a definite improvement on the iPhone 6, the signal strength has improved tremendously and audio quality in phone calls is definitely up there in the Top 3. The lack of a 3G toggle in the settings panel in iOS 8 troubles users indoors, because you are now unable to switch to a stronger 2G signal. The iPhone 6 however does that by itself now more than ever, which works great for us.
Battery life has seen a major jump since the iPhone 5s, which had appalling battery life. Newer chipsets, a slightly larger battery and iOS 8 tweaks are all to thank for a bump in battery which will go an easy 18 hours, meaning a full day without the need of a recharge. Apple’s extreme battery life chart is a bit off from actual usage delivering upto 7 hours on 3G talk in normal usage.
iOS 8
Apple ties in the operating system beautifully, and especially thanks to iOS 8 and hand-off, get ready to get a multi device experience like no other. While your phone rings, you can set it up so that every device on the same iCloud account rings too, whether an iPod touch or an iPad and even another iPhone will ring and you can answer the call on either. Best case example, you put your phone on charge and are working on the iPad, you can now receive a phone call on that. The same will apply to MacBooks and iMacs on Yosemite, which will receive calls and texts allowing you to not switch screens when you don’t need to.
Reachability Demo
iOS 8 also takes good advantage of the bigger displays, widening side panels in landscape and allowing you to use a zoomed in view for larger icons and text. iOS 8 also uses Apple Pay which may become the future of payments (when it’s available globally anyway). Simple things like reachability and the new improved keyboard only add to the experience of the bigger screens. Typing is definitely faster, and as mentioned before, the OS is quicker and lighter on its feet, therefore improves the usage experience tremendously.
Conclusion
[pullquote_left]The Best Your Money Can Buy![/pullquote_left]There is no major innovation from Apple this year, and most have constantly asked me for one. Once Apple Pay comes to India and the rest of the world, there is a high chance that iPhone 7 will be out by then / or iPhone 6s or whatever they call it. The iPhone 5s in terms of performance, usability and camera/optics was essentially one of the best phones of last year. The two issues, poor battery life and a small display irked many users and Apple has addressed those two beautifully in this release. What else has improved? The design and the overall appeal of the phone, the rounded edges on the display feel wonderfully natural and invite you to slide your finger on the new phone. Big improvements on the performance front and the Touch ID sensitivity also really improve the experience.
iPhone 6 with the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5
Should you buy this if you own an iPhone 5s?
If you want a bigger screen, a bigger storage capacity or even better battery management and can afford buying a new phone, don’t think twice.
What is different between the Nexus 4 and the new iPhone 6?
The question is flawed somehow, because of the sheer distinction in the kind of products. A 2011 Honda Accord and a 2014 BMW 5 Series Sedan are identical, they both have a 2 Liter engine, 4 wheels, 5 passenger capacity, Air-conditioning and even similar interior equipment. If you go into more detail they even have identical length and width, and if you add Rs. 5 lac (US$ 7000) worth performance parts to your purchase of the Accord you can make it run faster than many sports cars. So why is the BMW more expensive and more appreciated than the Accord? If you answer that question the same is applicable to the above question.
If you can afford it, the iPhone 6 is fortunately or unfortunately the best smartphone experience today, and once you get to use it and understand how it simplifies your life, you truly appreciate its experience. The experience which is again fortunately or unfortunately enjoyed best with more Apple products in your daily use scenario. Even as a standalone phone, only a minor user-share have disliked the iPhone experience, and those who left iPhones a few years back, would be delighted to now bounce back onto the bandwagon.
Hewlett-Packard promised fall would be the season of new, affordable Windows laptops. Keeping their word, the company announced the HP Stream 14-inch Notebook. The Stream series is HP’s version of the low cost Windows laptop, meant to compete head to head with Chromebooks on price, but still offer the powerful operating system.
This Intel Celeron-powered Stream will have an 11.6-inch HD non-touch display and 32GB of eMMC flash memory for storage. The company also unveiled a 13.3-inch touch-optional SKU that goes for $230, and 7 and 8-inch Stream tablets priced at $100 and $150, respectively.
The 11.6- and 13.3-inch notebooks are both fan-less designs with HD displays. The 11.6-inch Stream and the 14-inch model announced earlier this month have non-touch displays. Touch is optional on the 13.3-inch model, but HP did not reveal how much that feature would add to its cost.
The 13.3 inch model also is available with optional 4G connectivity, and as a value add, HP is including 200 MB of free data every month for the life of the device. As another value add, HP is offering one year of free Office 365 personal, which includes 1 TB of online storage and 60 Skype minutes per month.
Battery life is listed from HP at 8:15 for the 11.6 inch model, and 7:45 for the 13.3 inch model. The HP Stream laptops are available in several colors, and will be priced at $199.99 for the 11.6 inch model and $229.99 as the starting price for the 13.3 inch model.
Internet giant Google confirmed it be will shutting down Orkut. Ten years ago, Orkut helped start conversations and forge connections. Well, it started what we call social networking today.
Even though Orkut is still very popular in India and Brazil, it lost to rivals like Facebook and Twitter. In a blog post, Google commented, “Over the past decade, YouTube, Blogger and Google+ have taken off, with communities springing up in every corner of the world. Because the growth of these communities has outpaced Orkut’s growth, we’ve decided to bid Orkut farewell (or, tchau). We’ll be focusing our energy and resources on making these other social platforms as amazing as possible for everyone who uses them.”
“We will shut down Orkut on September 30, 2014. Until then, there will be no impact on current Orkut users, to give the community time to manage the transition. People can export their profile data, community posts and photos using Google Takeout (available until September 2016). Starting today, it will not be possible to create a new Orkut account.”
Orkut was launched in 2004, the same year when Facebook was founded. Facebook is now the world`s largest social network with 1.28 billion users. Google, of course, switched its attention to Google+ in 2011, leaving Orkut to largely fend for itself, and in June decided to pull the plug on September 30.
Here’s a highlight reel infographic to remember it by, created by One Productions:
The Blackberry Passport, which was launched just a few days back in the international market, has now been launched in India. The device has a one of kind square display and flaunts top of the line specs.
The smartphone will be available for pre-order from today at BlackBerry exclusive stores and Amazon.in. The folks who book the Passport between today and October 10 will get a gift voucher worth Rs 5,000 on Amazon as well as 5,000 frequent flyer miles on Jet Airways.
The 4.5 inch square display is the USP of the device
The most prominent feature of the device is the 4.5 inch square display. It has a display resolution of 1440x1440p and a pixel density of 453 ppi. It features a 10 point multi-touch and is protected with Corning Gorilla Glass 3.
The device also comes with three-row QWERTY keyboard that gives users more typing accuracy and is also touch-enabled. It’s responsive to touch so the user can scroll web pages, flick to type or slide along the keys to move the cursor.
It is powered by a 2.26 GHz Snapdragon 800, quad-core processor and has 3 GB RAM, equivalent of the Note 4. The internal memory stands at 32 GB and is expandable up to 128 GB. The device also has NFC for mobile payment and file transfer.
The Passport runs on BlackBerry’s new BlackBerry 10.3 operating system and also features a Siri-like voice assistant. The device is priced at Rs. 49,990 and is competitive and justified for the features it offers. The phone might easily find customers in the corporate or government sectors or even from folks looking for a different mobile experience.
The Moto 360 was the single most awaited wearable this year. On its launch, the device found a lot of customers willing to get their hands on it. But one of the major issues with the much sought after device was its battery backup. Some users even claimed that the device didn’t even work for an entire day. An iFixit teardown also found that the battery was less than what was claimed by Motorola. Motorola released an update recently to address the issue, and it seems to be working.
The Moto 360 comes with 1.56 inch LCD display along with 4GB of internal storage and 512 MB of RAM. Its power source is a 320 mAh battery and has been the cause of worry for the device owners.
Several owners of the Moto 360 on Reddit have claimed that the battery performance has dramatically increased following the new update. Some have even claimed that the dreaded ambient light which drained most of the juice is also performing well.
The usual complaint was that the battery wouldn’t last a day, but users are now reporting that the issue has also been solved to an extent. But it is still a software based tweak and can be affected by future updates. But as of now it is a necessary update that will give a full day’s worth of functionality of the device.
The Moto 360 will be arriving on Flipkart around the first week of October, and this seems like a good news for potential customers. The folks who were reconsidering their Moto 360 purchase can now stop. But the update is still software based. Motorola needs to find a way to extend the battery life further, otherwise it will add to the menace of chargeable devices one needs to take care of at the end of a work day.
As promised we’re starting our next giveaway today. So here’s your chance to win a pair of these sleek earphones by Xiaomi. Simply enter the sweepstakes below.
Follow the instructions carefully and read the terms and conditions on the form as well as given here. This Giveaway is open only for residents of India.
Microsoft is all set to launch its new upgrade of the Windows operating system, the Windows 9. The company has already sent out invites for tomorrow’s event. They promise to reveal “What’s next for Windows and the enterprise.” It is certain that it will be the Windows 9, and most likely it will be the release of a early developer version known as the ‘Technical Preview’.
Earlier rumors have pointed out that the new update may come at a price. However, it was also said that it will be cheap, not more than $20. A report from Indonesian online publication Detik said earlier this week that President of Microsoft Indonesia Andreas Diantoro has confirmed this particular Windows 9 feature.
According to Diantoro, the Windows 9 upgrade will be available free of charge to all existing Windows 8 users once it’s released. It is said that users will be able to easily install the Windows 9 update after downloading it from Microsoft website, which is how Apple’s OS X updates have been rolled out on Macs for a few years now. To make it more easy, some of the recent Windows 9 leaks did say that Microsoft already has a tool in place that will allow users to easily get software updates.
It’s not clear whether other Windows users who are on older versions of the OS will get any other special offers. Even the actual price of Windows 9 has not yet been revealed. It is also said that Windows 7 users may have to pay a bit more than the others.
The company is expected to roll out the “Windows Technical Preview” at the event or soon after, so that developers and enterprise customers can test the number of changes the company has made. The recent rumors and leaks have suggested the addition of a new Start Menu, a virtual desktop feature, and a Notification Center.
Microsoft is also expected to fine-tune its desktop user interface to improve and flatten the traditional icons along with some changes in the taskbar for Cortana integration and the virtual desktop. Other changes are expected to come on a regular basis. The Windows Technical Preview will be available until the operating system is complete and ready for release next year.
Samsung today launched the Galaxy Alpha in India. The design of the Alpha incorporates a metal frame that encases the phone. This design feature was carried on to the Samsung Galaxy Note 4. The phone comes with almost the same features as the Galaxy S5. So we test the specs of both devices to check out which one would be the better device to buy.
So overall the only major difference between the Galaxy S5 and the Alpha is the LTE capabilities of the Alpha. The Galaxy S5 starts at Rs. 35,489 on Flipkart and comes cheaper than the Alpha. If you are looking for good value for your money, we suggest you get the S5 itself considering the severe shortage of 4G connectivity in India.
Also the S5 gives you upto 128 GB of expandable storage whereas the Alpha lacks the feature. So if you were looking for a premier device, the S5 is still a valid purchase. The Galaxy Alpha sure gets style points, but that’s never good enough.
This was a bad week for Apple. The technology giant had to face massive social media bashing for news that their new iPhone 6 Plus has the tendency to bend in tight pockets. Apple’s biggest competitors like Samsung, LG and HTC got together with some brutal take downs of Apple’s latest flagship in an event dubbed “bendgate”. Adding to the woes was the faulty iOS 8.0.1 update which caused issues in the new iPhone and had to be withdrawn. But it seems like these dark clouds have a silver lining.
Consumer Reports (CR), an American magazine known for its scientific testing methods and unbiased reporting has put the iPhone 6 Plus to test. The magazine has an extensive testing facility where they test the products.
The magazine had previously tested the Apple iPhone 4 which also garnered negative reception because of its antennae issue. For the iPhone 6 test, CR brought the phone and its competitors for a comparative test. The results seems to be working in favor of Apple.
Through its torture testing CR found that iPhone 6 Plus was actually stronger than what was purported. Apple’s biggest phone yet took 90 pounds of pressure to bend while its smaller sibling, the iPhone 6 and HTC One (M8) gave up at 70 pounds.
Deformation
Case separation
HTC One (M8)
70 pounds
90 pounds
Apple iPhone 6
70 pounds
100 pounds
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
90 pounds
110 pounds
LG G3
130 pounds
130 pounds
Apple iPhone 5
130 pounds
150 pounds
Samsung Galaxy Note 3
150 pounds
150 pounds
The tests also found the toughest phone in the market and it turns out to be Samsung’s Note 3 which faced 150 pounds of pressure before giving up. CR also said that Apple uses the same techniques to test their phones but their machines only go up to 55 ponds.
Overall, the testing seems pretty genuine based on their testing process. This is a good news for Apple at the end of a terrible week. Though it is also good news for LG G3 which seems to be much stronger than the metallic bodied HTC One (M8.) Now it is up for the market to decide how it is going to approach the new iPhones.
