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Xiaomi Mi 5 Could Arrive in Two Versions

It’s not uncommon at all for OEMs to release more than one options for flagship devices. Samsung, Apple, and Sony, among others, have been doing that for a while now, and if latest rumors are to be believed, Xiaomi is planning to do the same with its upcoming Mi 5 flagship smartphone.

A mobile industry insider let it slip that Xiaomi could have two variants for the Mi 5 up its sleeve. While one will sport a 2.5D curved glass for the front and back with a metal fame, the other will be a more premium version with an all-metal body. Furthermore, the former is said to have a 1080p resolution, while the latter (pricier) variant will sport a QHD resolution display.

However, the size of both the variants will remain the same. If this new rumor is true, Xiaomi is likely to offer the glass version with 3 GB RAM and 32 GB internal storage, and the full-metal handset with 4 GB and 64 GB storage. Meanwhile, yesterday’s leak also confirms a black color variant for the device.

Just a refresher, the Mi 5 is slated to feature a 5.2-inch display with Quad HD resolution. The handset is confirmed to feature Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 chipset. Other rumored specs include 3GB or 4GB RAM, with a minimum of 32GB internal storage. The camera on the device is expected to be a 16-megapixel at the back, and an equally impressive 13-megapixel snapper at the front.

This power hungry device is set to pack a battery of 3600 mAh with support for Quick Charge 3.0 technology. At the software end, the handset will run MIUI 7 based on Android 6.0 Marshmallow. Xiaomi is set to launch the Mi 5 on January 21.

January 12, 2016
Samsung Galaxy S7 Specs Listed on AnTuTu

The launch of Samsung’s upcoming flagship Galaxy S7 devices is a month or two away. As is always the case when it comes to big launches such as this, leaks and rumors are always in plenty. Today, we have one that possibly confirms what we have come to know about the S7, at least specification wise. AnTuTu posted on Weibo the specs of the 5.1-inch Galaxy S7 device.

It is already confirmed that the flagship device will sport Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 820 chipset, and AnTuTu confirms the same. Other specs listed include 4 GB of RAM, 64 GB internal storage, Adreno 530 GPU. The device will run of Android 6.0 Marshmallow ( no surprises there).

There have been a lot of rumors and speculation around the camera of the S7. The newest rumors suggested that Samsung will in fact downgrade to 12 MP camera and focus more on improving low-light imaging and wider dynamic range. To do this, Samsung is making taking help of the new BRITECELL setup. AnTuTu confirms that the device will sport a 12 MP rear sensor and a 5 MP front. Looks like Samsung is sticking to quality rather than quantity here.

While the specs are pretty much out and about now, there’s still some surprises to expect on the design front. It is also unknown how Samsung plans on distributing the Snapdragon 820 and Exynos chipsets among the 5.1-inch, 5.5-inch, and 6-inch variants.

January 11, 2016
Pictures of a Nokia Handset Prototype Appear Online

Nokia seems to be everyone’s favourite under-dog these days. So obviously, when pictures of a potential Nokia prototype appear online, we cannot help but talk about them.

Images of an unknown handset has appeared online which seems to be Nokia-branded. It appears to be a prototype handset, and a closer look at the images does not reveal any doctoring. It sports a camera on the back with an LED flash along with suggestions of an antenna design on the body of the phone.

Additionally, the images do not show a smartphone, but a feature phone. It is complete with a keypad and a non-touch display. This could be either an old prototype which couldn’t be launched before Microsoft took over Nokia, and then got shoved under the carpet, or it could be a future device.

Even though Nokia is not allowed to use its brand on feature phones until 2024, as part of the deal with Microsoft, who knows what this device holds for the future? Watch this space for more scoop on Nokia and its upcoming plans.

January 11, 2016
Xiaomi Mi5 Round-Up: Everything We Know So Far

Xiaomi launched the Redmi 3 in China on Monday morning, but the company isn’t done yet. Next up is the launch of the much awaited Mi 5 this month. This is what we know about the device so far:

3D Touch3D Touch is the new cool thing in town and everyone wants to have a piece of it. Reports emerging from China tell us that Xiaomi too is interested in having this technology for its future flagship devices. This could be one of the reasons the expected Mi 5 announcement has been delayed. January will see the first set of phones to arrive with the new processors including the Mi5 and (perhaps) Galaxy S7.

CameraWe have heard several rumours about the camera of the Mi5. The latest one suggests that the phone will sport a 16 MP rear camera with dual LED flash. The front camera will be marked at 8 MP.

ChipsetXiaomi’s Mi5 will be among the first devices to sport the newest chipset, Snapdragon 820. Earlier, single-core score of the Snapdragon 820 was placed at 2162, which was quite underwhelming give that the latest A9 chipset from Apple has a score close to 2500. However, a new score of 2300 points was revealed by a popular leakster. Though it is still not on par with Apple, it is still a better score and keeps hopes alive for better performing devices next year.

Battery, Storage and Other DetailsThis power hungry device is set to pack a battery of 3,030 mAh with support for Quick Charge 3.0 technology. A fingerprint sensor can also be expected as many new devices are now coming out with it. Other features expected to be part of Mi5 include 4GB RAM and 16/64GB of Internal storage. Other rumored specs include 3 GB or 4 GB RAM, with a minimum of 32 GB internal storage. At the software end, the handset will run MIUI 7 based on Android 6.0 Marshmallow.

Design and Display:Earlier today, Weibo posted some images of the Mi5 in its black variant which has since been removed.The images concur with past renders of the device. The 5.2-inch QHD (1440×2560) AMOLED display of the device is also expected sports a slimming frame and a wide display, and a thick lower bezel.

Price and LaunchThe expected price of the Mi5 is around 1,999 Yuan (Rs. 20,500 approx.) Xiaomi is set to launch the Mi 5 on January 21st.

January 11, 2016
Samsung ‘Smart Suit’ to Dress You Up For the Future

Smartphones, smart-watches, smart cities with smart people living in futuristic smart homes doing smart things all the time! Well, the future sure promises to look like the setting of a Sci-Fi movie. And, for better, or for worse, Samsung is here to do its bit for this revolution by promising to dress up the future, you and us, with smart-clothes.

Samsung unveiled its Smart Suit concept, a range of smart wearables at CES, 2016. The technology behind the Smart Suit, however, isn’t that impressive. It’s basically your every-day clothes with an NFC tag sewn into them.

SMART Button

This range of smart clothes includes a button that can be used to put your phone into “do not disturb” mode and can share contact details, getting rid of the need for business cards to be exchanged -all this by just swiping your smartphone over this smart-button on your suit.

Welt- The SmartBelt

The Button is joined by the Welt. This smartbelt will not only hold up your pants, but also track the size of your waistline, steps you’ve walked, among other things. We say that’s pretty impressive for a belt.

Body Compass 2.0

The smart suit concept also brings to us Body Compass 2.0, which has two pieces of apparel to it, a tank top, and a pair of trousers. No prizes for guessing, both come sewn with a metal nub that houses a processor, and a small battery to power the sensors in the clothes.

These sensors that send data back to this hub are incorporated in the material itself, and help the athletic wear measure body fat, heart rate, and stance of the user. On the flip side, usage of sophisticated tech in these clothes also makes them non-machine washable.

This range of smart wearables interact with a Samsung app, and provides real-time analysis of your workout, going as far as advising you to correct your posture and even pesters you if you take too long a rest. Phew! Too much pressure.

January 11, 2016

Lenovo Launches A7000 Turbo in India with 4G Support

After launching the K4 Note in India just last week, Lenovo launched its second new handset of the year, the A7000 Turbo. The smartphone is similar to the popular K3 Note in terms of specs and features.

The 5.5-inch A7000 Turbocomes with a full-HD (1080×1920 pixels) IPS display and a pixel density of 401ppi. Under the hood, the device is powered by a 64-bit 1.7GHz octa-core MediaTek MT6752 processor, coupled with 2GB of RAM.

On the camera front, the device sports a 13MP rear camera with dual-LED flash and a 5MP front sensor. It also comes with an internal storage of 16 GB, expandable up to 32 GB. The device comes with the usual connectivity options as well as 4G LTE. A battery capacity of 2,900mAh gives the handset plenty of juice through the day. Lenovo promises up to 16 hours of talk time on 3G and 11 days standby.

While the K4 Note is priced at Rs. 11,999, the A7000 Turbo (with specs similar to the K3 Note) is available at a price of Rs. 10,999 and is offered in matte black. The device runs on Android 5.0 Lollipop with Vibe UI 2.0 and will start shipping from today.

Specs	Lenovo A7000 Turbo
Display	5.5-inch Full HD IPS display
Resolution	1080×1920 pixels, 401 ppi
Processor	1.7 GHz 8-core Cortex-A53 (MediaTek MT6752 64-bit)
RAM	2 GB
Storage	16 GB
Rear Camera	13 MP f/2.0, dual-LED flash
Front Camera	5 MP f/2.2
Expandability	32 GB
Battery	2,900mAh battery
Connectivity	4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi hotspot, GPS/ A-GPS, Bluetooth 3.0, and Micro-USB.
OS	Android 5.0 Lollipop with Vibe UI 2.0
Price	Rs. 10,999

January 11, 2016

Xiaomi Launches Redmi 3 With a Massive 4,100 mAh Battery

In an official teaser released earlier, Xiaomi had mentioned 12th January as the official date for the global release of Xiaomi Redmi 3. As for China, the phone was launched there on Monday morning.

The specs of the phone include a 5 inch display with 1280 X 720 resolution, as had been revealed by the teaser earlier. It’s powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 616 processor, along with four cores marked at 1.2 GHz, and another four cores at 1.5 GHz.

Redmi 3 further has 16 GB of in-built storage expandable up to 128 GB via microSD card. The highlight of the device is its massive 4,100 mAh non-removable battery. It runs on MIUI 7 with no news about the Android version of the phone.

Redmi 3 has a 13 MP main camera with LED flash and 1080p full-HD video recording, and a 5 MP front camera also capable of full-HD recording. The phone is a dual SIM device capable of supporting one Micro-SIM and one Nano-SIM along with a microSD card; with an all-metal body, Redmi has a plaid design on the back and is priced at CNY 699 (about Rs. 7,000).

Specs	Xiaomi Redmi 3
Display	5-inch IPS LCD
Resolution	1280 X 720 (294 ppi)
Processor	octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 616
GPU	Adreno 405
Storage	16 GB
Rear Camera	13 MP, f/2.2, LED flash
Front Camera	5 MP, f/2.2
Expandability	128 GB
Battery	Non-removable 4,100 mAh
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, hotspot, Bluetooth v4.0, GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, microUSB v2.0
OS	MIUI 7
Price	CNY 699 (about Rs. 7,000), Price in India unannounced

January 11, 2016

Apple Music Reaches 10 Million Users in 6 Months, Spotify took 6 years

It’s only been six months since Apple started operations at Apple Music, and in that short span of time, this promising service has outdone market expectations, and already managed to reach half the number of paid subscribers that the market leader, Spotify has. Noteworthy is the fact, that it took Spotify, its main rival, 6 long years to reach this milestone of 10 million subscribers.

What makes this feat even more impressive, is the fact that Apple’s streaming service which because of it’s bug ridden, and clustered interface met with a lot of criticism at its launch. It was only after iOS 9 came in that many of these issues were cleared.

This growth of Apple’s premium music streaming service, which launched in more than 100 countries, not only raises the competition in the music streaming service space, but more importantly raises hopes for the future of the music Industry itself, which has been fighting a losing battle against Piracy for the last decade or so.

Deciphering this music industry analyst, Mark Mulligan had this to say,“It’s good news that Apple is making streaming work but it is also going to accelerate the decline of downloads.” Apple is rapidly gaining on Spotify and at its current growth rate has “the potential to be the leading music subscription service sometime in 2017.”

Streaming is slowly becoming the preferred form of consumption of music, and is growing rapidly as people give up on downloads. In the US, demand for streaming increased more than 50 per cent, with 164bn songs streamed in total.

Apple despite all of this has a long way to go before it comes close to overtaking Spotify. Spotify last reported its number of subscribers in June, and it is expected to have grown substantially since then. Back then it had 20 million paid members, and in total it reported 75 million users.

January 11, 2016
Apple Working on a ‘Move to Android’ App

Update: Apple has denied the development of any such app. “There is no truth to this rumor. We are entirely focused on switching users from Android to iPhone, and that is going great”, says Apples spokesperson, Trudy Muller

Say hello to tech world where things keep getting stranger. Earlier we had talked about an app which allows you to shift from an Android device to iOS. Developed by Apple, the app is available on the Google Play Store and lets users transfer their images, contacts and other important data to an iPhone from their Android device.

Now there are rumours of Apple working on an app that allows iOS users to shift to Android. Though there is no news on when the app will be up and about, speculations about it have already begun. We can perhaps expect to see the move-to-android app sometime this year.

Reports emerging from the UK have suggested that many users stick with iOS simply to avoid the trouble of transferring or losing their data to an Android device. The app is being developed to ease such migrations from one OS to another.

Earlier, following the launch of ‘Move to iOS’, there had been an adequate response from the Android community as they mocked it with their own ‘Stick With Android’ app. Let’s see what response is triggered by this latest development.

January 11, 2016
Xiaomi Mi 5 Leak Reveals Black Variant Design

We’re all eagerly awaiting the launch of Xiaomi’s Mi 5 flagship smartphone. It’s only normal for alleged images and specs to surface prior to a launch. Earlier today, Weibo posted some images of the Mi 5 in its black variant which has since been removed.

The images concur with past renders of the device. The 5.2-inch QHD device sports a slimming frame and a wide display. The handset also comes with a thick lower bezel.

The Mi 5 is slated to feature a 5.2-inch display with Quad HD resolution. The handset is confirmed to feature Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 chipset. Other rumored specs include 3GB or 4GB RAM, with a minimum of 32GB internal storage. The camera on the device is expected to be a 16-megapixel at the back, and an equally impressive 13-megapixel snapper at the front.

This power hungry device is set to pack a battery of 3600 mAh with support for Quick Charge 3.0 technology. At the software end, the handset will run MIUI 7 based on Android 6.0 Marshmallow. Xiaomi is set to launch the Mi 5 on January 21.

January 11, 2016
Polaroid Snap – A Digital Camera That Prints Photos on the Go

Polaroid is the company best known for its instant-film camera from the 70’s which revolutionised photography back in the day. An old school, no non-sense camera that made it easy for anyone to become a photographer, and in the true sense made photography a thing for the youth.

It’s been decades since the release of the photo spitting device, but Polaroid still thinks it can attract new, younger customers to the brand with this refreshed take of the old concept. And, to be honest, the marketing guys at Polaroid have got their thinking right.

The Polaroid Snap is a cute looking digital camera that throws out instant-film prints and it even has the iconic rainbow stripe. Since this is a digital camera, it comes with a couple of nifty features not present on its predecessors. A 3.5-inch touchscreen LCD on the back of the Snap lets users line up shots or even select photos to print at any time.

The Snap’s bluetooth capability allows other devices carrying photos to connect to it and lets them print from Polaroid’s printing barrel. The Snap has a 10-megapixel sensor, shoots 1080p Full HD video, and has a microSD card slot for expandable storage. No launch plans for India have been revealed, but considering its price $99 (Approx Rs, 6,500) if it indeed lands on our shores, this camera is sure going to have a lot of takers.

January 9, 2016
Samsung’s Profit Forecast Misses Expectations

South Korean tech giant, Samsung has announced expected operating profits for Q4 2015. The company foretold an operating profit of 6.1 trillion Korean won (around $5.08 billion), which is up 15% compared to the 5.3 trillion won figure the company reported in Q4 2014.Analysts had expected the figure to be closer to 6.6tn won, fueling growth concerns. This comes after Samsung products got hit by weak demand in China and currency woes. Operating profits also fell 7.5% from the previous quarter. Sales of the world’s biggest maker of memory chips, smartphones, and other consumer devices also missed forecasts at 53tn won for the period.

These figures, point towards what could be a tough year for not just Samsung, but the tech industry itself.

Samsung is facing strong competition from Apple at the premium end of the market, while cheaper Chinese rivals are eating into the mid to low level range for mobile devices. As such, this next year could well be crucial for Samsung if it wants to protect its supremacy in the market.

January 9, 2016
BlackBerry Confirms Security Updates for BB 10, New Android Device for 2016

BlackBerry has seen a lot of ups and downs in the past couple of months. From being one of the most popular mobile brands at one time with its innovative BlackBerry Messenger to becoming a company struggling to keep itself on its feet -it has seen it all.

We recently heard rumours about how BlackBerry might be letting go of its operating system BB 10. However, these rumours have been proven false by a post on the official BlackBerry blog. John Chen, the company’s CEO revealed that the operating system is “far from” dead and that BlackBerry devices like Passport, Classic and other phones by the company running on BB 10 would receive updates for the operating system soon.

There will be security and privacy updates for BB 10 this year, along with an enhanced 10.3.4 version of the OS slated to arrive later this year with more security and privacy related features.

Additionally, BlackBerry which is all set to bring out more of its own Android devices in the future also confirmed that 2016 will see the launch of only one such device. Would you be willing to put your trust in BlackBerry’s Android devices?

Source

January 9, 2016
MSI Launches GT72S Gaming Laptop with Tobii Vison Tracking

The future of gaming is here, and it’s amazing! Case in point, the GT72S Tobii from the stables of MSI is as cool, as gaming laptops can be. Using Tobii eye tracking hardware, this laptop lets you control games with just your eyes. For all you non-believers out there, this tech is more than just a gimmick, and comes in handy while playing games and even while logging into Windows 10.

Three infrared sensors placed behind the laptop’s display, track the users eye movements and translate them into inputs. What this would mean in a First Person Shooter like Batllefield, or Counter Strike will be aiming at a target just by looking at them, or aiming at a location in strategy games. This laptop could also be a natural for Racing games such as Project Cars, and Dirt.

The setup of this alien tech is surprisingly simple. A small calibration test is all it takes to get the hardware acquainted with the users sight. Tobii also helps your laptop to do basics tasks such as recognize when you’re sitting in front of the computer and tie it to Window’s screen dimming and sleep times.

This Gaming Laptop also comes equipped with a 2.9GHz Intel Core i7-6820K processor, and unlike the GT72S Dragon only sports a Nvidia GTX 980M GPU. It will feature 8GBs of DDR5 VRAM. Other specs include 32GB of DDR4 RAM, plus a 256GB SSD with another 1TB HDD.

This piece of fancy tech can be yours for a meagre sum of $3600 ( Approx Rs 2,50,000) so yeah, better start saving up.

January 9, 2016
Motorola Explains its Next Step as a Brand

Yesterday, news around the world focused on Lenovo killing off the Motorola brand name from its phones. Lenovo’s decision to do this was to bring its phones under one name. It followed that any upcoming smartphone by the company will be branded under “Moto” and “Vibe”, removing Motorola’s name, but keeping the “M” logo.

A day after, Motorola released a statement in its blog to address the news. The company reassured that ‘Motorola Mobility’ will continue to exist and Lenovo will still use the name for its phone division. “As a wholly owned subsidiary, we remain the engineering, design and manufacturing engine for all of the Mobile Business Group’s smartphones and wearables,” Motorola said in its blog.

Motorola went on to assure that though the Motorola name will disappear, the brand will continue to live on with ‘Moto’. The company explained that the focus for the past few years has always been on ‘Moto’ and its batwing logo remains its most important symbol, both of which will continue to carry the Motorola image.

“Moto” is synonymous with Motorola, and it conveys the Motorola brand to consumers in a contemporary and engaging way. That wasn’t the only thing that evolved — the iconic batwing was static blue or red for many years, and we made it fun and colorful. That symbol, which has come to represent the “Moto” brand, continues to play a prominent role, and will remain on our products and in our marketing.

The company reaches the point most talked about yesterday in that the company will focus its marketing efforts on “Moto” and “Vibe”, but also conceded that the products will under Lenovo solely. “This latest move is all about where we focus our brand marketing efforts in the future. That will be on our two hero smartphone brands: Moto and Vibe, with the Lenovo corporate brand tying all of our consumer and commercial products together more holistically.”

January 9, 2016