Smartphone News and Reviews, Latest Cellphones, Accessories, New Launches, Specifications, Details with Image and Video from Apple, Samsung, Lenovo, Moto, HTC, Xiaomi, Oneplus, Meizu, Sony, Lava, Micromax Yu Mobile and More.
Realme 3 is the latest smartphone from Oppo’s subsidiary Realme. The device features a modern aurora gradient design on the back and a waterdrop notch on the front. It is the successor to the Realme 2, which was launched last year. The smartphone has a dual rear camera setup and runs on the latest ColorOS 6.0 on top of Android 9 Pie.
Click Here to buy the Realme 3
[loop included_tags=”55724,41062″ loading=”paged” layout=”f” postsperpage=”4″]
The Galaxy A10 is the most affordable smartphone in the Galaxy A series lineup launched by Samsung. It features a 6.2 inch HD+ Infinity-V display. Sporting a glossy back panel, the device has a 13 MP (f/1.9) rear camera with an LED flash, along with a 5 MP (f/2.0) front camera. The smartphone runs on Android 9 (Pie) out of the box, with Samsung One UI on top. The device is kitted with 2GB of RAM and 32 GB internal memory. It is powered by a 3,400 mAh battery. The Samsung Galaxy A10 is priced at Rs. 8,490, and is available in three colour options, Black, Blue and Red.
[loop included_tags=”58040,28176″ loading=”paged” layout=”f” postsperpage=”4″]
Cameras on smartphones have evolved so much so that the need for bulky camera equipment including DSLRs and digital cameras have reduced greatly. Apple’s iPhone has been one smartphone that is renowned for its camera quality ever since its launch. Nokia, another leader in smartphone technology has also manufactured devices in the past that had remarkable camera capabilities. One such device is the Nokia 808 PureView from the year 2012 that featured a 41 MP rear camera sensor. Meanwhile, Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC launched the world’s first dual camera smartphone, the EVO 3D. This device kicked off the whole trend of multiple camera sensors on a smartphone. Having multiple cameras on a smartphone can surely provide its camera capabilities with a boost. However, Google with its Pixel lineup of smartphones have time and again proved that it is not necessary to have more than one camera sensors to capture excellent images.
Nokia, now owned by HMD global has unveiled its latest flagship smartphone, the Nokia 9 PureView. The smartphone was launched during the MWC 2019 which was held in Barcelona late last month. The newly launched smartphone is packed with high-end specifications, though its key highlighting feature is certainly the rear mounted Penta camera setup. Long before the launch of the Nokia 9 PureView, there have been boatloads of enigmas surrounding the camera setup it packs. In this article, we will spread some light on the strange-sounding man-made technological marvel to demystify all its element and aspects.
The Penta camera setup of the Nokia 9 PureView is located on the 2.5d curved rear glass panel. Its alignment mirrors that of a hexagonally shaped constellation. Out of the five sensors, two are RGB sensors that capture the image and video data in colour format. While the remaining three are Monochrome sensors which capture Black and White image and video data. Each of the camera sensors has a resolution of 12 Mega Pixel and use a 28 mm lens. The camera sensors have a pixel size of 1.25µm (ultra micron) which allows in capturing 1.25x the amount of light resulting in better lit pictures.
Uniquely, the Nokia 9 PureView also has a ToF (Time-of-Flight) imaging sensor which enables it in capturing the depth of field (DOF) in an image. As the name suggests, DOF is the distance between the farthest and nearest object in the frame. This additional information captured by the sensor is infused with the pictures captured with the five sensors resulting in an image that looks multi-dimensional. This image focuses mainly on the subject while de-emphasizing the other background elements. Supplementary, the focus of images captured on the Nokia 9 PureView can be readjusted after clicking the picture if need be.
The Nokia 9 PureView, unlike most other smartphones, can also capture images in RAW and DNG format. This feature could be the sole reason to distinguish the newly launched device from its competition. RAW images, also referred to as ‘digital negatives’ are essentially unprocessed data that the sensor captures. RAW files preserve the most amount of information about an image and generally contain more colours and dynamic range than other formats. The prominent advantages of capturing images in the RAW file format are as follows:
DNG images are similar to RAW files except for the fact it is proprietary format developed by Adobe. Therefore, the software developed by Adobe including Lightroom can be used to manipulate DNG images. Additionally, DNG images can be previewed on most devices without the need for special software, unlike RAW format images. Noteworthy, the Nokia 9 can also edit both DNG and RAW format images.
The Nokia 9 PureView with the combination of five cameras collects up to times more light in comparison to a single smartphone camera colour sensor. The smartphone captures images concurrently from all five sensors which with the help of software and AI algorithms are processed to produce the best output. Notably, the fusion process takes upto 30 seconds and occasionally, even longer. Nokia has partnered with a company called Light that in the year 2019 launched the L16 camera with 16 lenses. Nokia claims that the hardware and software of the Nokia 9 PureView work in perfect harmony to produce the greatest output achievable.
Also Read: What Is Wi-Fi 6; Understanding Different Wi-Fi Standards
Samsung launched the Galaxy S10 series of smartphones at the Galaxy Unpacked event on February 20. The devices that were launched in the lineup include the Galaxy S10e, Galaxy S10, Galaxy S10+ and the Galaxy S10 5G. All the devices were marked by a striking similarity, their displays. While the display sizes are different, all the smartphones have a Dynamic AMOLED display with support for HDR10+ content. DisplayMate, a noted display calibration and testing company has ranked the Samsung Galaxy S10 excellent for its display.
DisplayMate is a well-known display benchmarking company that tests, evaluates and compares all types of displays, like monitors, projectors, mobile displays etc. It also offers professional display calibration software for consumers. The company has been in the limelight for the last few years when it started testing and ranking mobile displays. It is often considered as an industry standard in display testing.
In the Galaxy S10, Samsung has used an Infinity-O, 6.1-inch Dynamic AMOLED display with a resolution of 3040 x 1440 px. It has an aspect ratio of 19:9 and a pixel density of 550 ppi. The display on the Samsung Galaxy S10 is considered better than the one on its elder siblings, the Galaxy S10+ and the Galaxy S10 5G; due to its higher pixel density. One highlighting feature of the display is its illumination levels which can reach 1200 nits of brightness.
Also read: Samsung Galaxy A60 With 32MP Front Camera, 4500mAh Battery Leaked
DisplayMate in their testing rated the display on the device as Excellent and gave it an A+ rating. This is in part due to its colour accuracy which the company claims is ‘indistinguishable from perfect’. According to DisplayMate, the display also has a very high image contrast accuracy and minimal colour and white shifting. Notably, Samsung has been time and again appreciated for making praiseworthy displays for smartphones and is a big name in the monitor and the TV business. The company also supplies AMOLED displays for major smartphone OEMs including Xiaomi and OnePlus.
After the success of its previous releases, Huawei is all set to launch a new variant of the Nova 4 smartphone in China. Named the Nova 4e, the smartphone will feature a water drop notch instead of the punch hole present on the Nova 4. This indicates that the device is a more affordable variant of the Huawei Nova 4, with slightly lower specifications and limited features.
The Chinese smartphone manufacturer posted a video clip which clearly states that the upcoming Nova 4e will have a 32MP selfie shooter. The specifications of the device are not clear yet, but the device is expected to have a similar sized screen to the Huawei Nova 4, which has a 6.4 inch LCD display with a resolution of 2310 x 1080 px and a pixel density of 398 ppi. The Nova 4e may run on the company’s own 10 nm Kirin 970 chipset, which is also found in the Huawei P20 Pro. The SoC comprises of an Octa-core Cortex CPU and the Mali-G72 MP12 GPU.
The Huawei Nova 4e is expected to feature a triple rear camera setup similar to the one found in the Nova 4, which consists of a 20 MP (f/1.8) primary sensor combined with a 16 MP (f/2.2) wide angle sensor and a 2 MP (f/2.4) depth sensor. The camera will support standard features like LED flash, HDR and panorama mode, and will supposedly be able to capture 4K videos at 30 fps. As mentioned before, the device will sport a 32 MP front camera for clicking selfies. In regard to memory, the device may launch with 8 GB of RAM and 128 GB of internal storage. Just like the Nova 4, the Huawei Nova 4e may have a rear mounted fingerprint sensor and a USB Type-C port.
Also Read: Realme 3 With 3D Gradient Unibody Launched
The Huawei Nova 4e is expected to be powered by a 3,750 mAh battery with fast charging support, like its elder sibling, the Nova 4. It is likely to run on Android 9.0 based EMUI out of the box. As of now, there is no official news of the Nova 4e launching in India as even the Nova 4 hasn’t made its way to the Indian markets yet. An official statement from the company is much awaited for the same.
Samsung announced the latest entrant in the Galaxy A series, the Galaxy A10, Galaxy A30 and Galaxy A50 on February 28 in India. There were reports about a possible Galaxy A40 and Galaxy A90 in the works for some time too. Fresh leaks have surfaced revealing possibly another device in the ever-expanding range of devices. The leak claims the device is the upcoming Galaxy A60 and unveils key specifications of the smartphone.
As the name suggests, the Samsung Galaxy A60 will be the elder sibling to the Galaxy A50; and is expected to carry major design and features from the device, albeit with a few upgrades. The leak suggests the smartphone will have the same ‘3D Glasstic’ back which will provide it with a modern look. Its display will be a massive 6.7 inch Super AMOLED one with an Infinity-U notch on the top and a resolution of 2340 x 1080 px. Like the Galaxy A50, there will be an in-display fingerprint scanner with support for face unlock technology.
The leak insinuates that the Galaxy A60 may debut with an all-new SoC, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 6150; which has been reported to be manufactured using 11nm fabrication process. The chipset may sport an Octa-core CPU and an unannounced Adreno GPU. Interestingly, Qualcomm uses Samsung’s architecture process to make 11nm processors and manufactures SoCs like the Snapdragon 675. It is therefore expected that the company will produce the aforementioned chipset for Qualcomm and debut the Galaxy A60 with it.
In terms of optics, the leak reveals Galaxy A60 will feature a triple rear camera setup comprising of a 32MP sensor; combined with an 8MP ultra-wide angle sensor and a 5MP depth sensor. For selfies, the smartphone will have a 32MP camera housed in the notch on top of the display. The device will be powered by a 4500mAh battery and is likely to support fast charging via the USB Type-C port. For memory and storage, the Galaxy A60 will be available in the following variants:
Also read: Is Artificial Intelligence Digging Its Roots Deeper Into Our Reality?
The leaks also reveal when the Samsung Galaxy A60 will launch. The smartphone will be unveiled in the month of April. Unfortunately, no details about the pricing are known yet, but early estimates suggest that the device will be priced at Rs 25,999 for the base model and Rs 28,999 for the version with 8GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
Earlier this week, Xiaomi’s sub-brand, Redmi launched two new admirable smartphones, the Note 7 and Note 7 Pro in India. A listing on Chinese regulatory website, TENAA has revealed the specifications of the unreleased Redmi 7 which is supposed to launch soon. The smartphone will succeed the Redmi 6 which was launched last year. Going by the placing of its predecessor in companies portfolio, it will be a sub 10k smartphone will
According to the TENAA listing, the Redmi 7 measure 158.65×76.43×8.47 mm and weighs in at 180 grams. The smartphone sports a 6.26 inch display that has a resolution of 1520 x 720 px. The device has a total of three cameras out of which two are placed on the rear while the third one is placed on the front. The dual camera setup at the rear is comprised of a 12 MP main sensor and an additional 8 MP sensor. The front facing camera of the smartphone uses an 8 MP sensor which is presumed to be housed in a waterdrop notch on the front of the display.
The Redmi 7 is kitted with an Octa-Core CPU which is clocked at 1.8 GHz. Although the TENAA listing does not specify the precise chipset detail, going by the clock speed of the CPU, it is likely to be the Snapdragon 632 or Snapdragon 636. The smartphone is powered by a 3,900 mAh and runs on the latest Android 9.0 OS which will be skinned with MIUI. Connectivity options on the Redmi 7 include 802.11 ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 4G VoLTE, Infrared and USB port. As of now, it is unclear whether the device will have a Micro USB port or a USB Type-C port. It also has a variety of sensors which include Gravity sensor, light sensor, distance sensor and a fingerprint sensor.
According to the listing, the device will be available in three storage variants which are as follows:
Except for the internal storage, it also supports memory expansion via a microSD card. The listing states two different memory expansion capacities, 256 GB and 512 GB. Although previously unheard from Redmi, the base variant might support only 256 GB of memory expansion. The TENAA listing does not provide any insight about the design and layout of the smartphone and it will be publicised once the device is officially announced.
Also Read: Meizu’s New Smartphone Will Have A 48 MP Sony Sensor & Snapdragon 855
Going by both the specifications and price of its predecessor, the Redmi 7 is assumed to be a sub 8k smartphone in India. Its launch date is currently unavailable but the company is expected to soon announce it.
Meizu founder and former CEO confirmed that the company’s upcoming flagship smartphone will sport a 48 MP Sony Sensor. With a host of other features, the Chinese company will go head-on against similarly priced smartphones like the OnePlus 6T. The device may prove to be a worthy contender for its rivals in the same segment.
Can you guess the number that defines a SUPER RAM? pic.twitter.com/082o0D0OBD
— MEIZU India (@Meizu_India) March 3, 2019
Expected to be called the Meizu 16s, the smartphone has been teased multiple times in the past. The detailed specifications of the device are not out in the open yet, but the device is rumoured to run on the Snapdragon 855 chipset. If the 16s is launched before the ‘speculated’ OnePlus 7, it will be the first smartphone in India to feature the Snapdragon 855, as the Samsung S10 and the S10+ Indian models ship with the Exynos 9820 SoC. Also, the Meizu 16s will supposedly have 8 GB of RAM, and will run on Meizu’s custom Flyme OS based on Android 9 (Pie).
Riddling? No. Kidding? Not at all. The SUPER code will reveal soon. Stay tuned. #PowerOf16 pic.twitter.com/eYN8NDEqah
— MEIZU India (@Meizu_India) February 28, 2019
Meizu’s CEO stated that the smartphone will get a 48-megapixel Sony IMX586 sensor for the primary camera. The same sensor is also present in Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 7 Pro, which was launched on February 28. The camera will support OIS (Optical Image Stabilization), although it’s still not confirmed if the smartphone will have a dual camera setup or not. The Chinese smartphone manufacturer claims that the Miezu 16s can be charged to 50% battery in just 30 minutes.
Others just have a big screen. But this is SUPER. Expect a 16 times better experience, coming your way. #PowerOf16 pic.twitter.com/8pWLD8i8Lg
— MEIZU India (@Meizu_India) March 1, 2019
The company teased the device with an edge-to-edge display with very thin bezels. The handset itself is 8.2 mm thick, Meizu states. The 16s will not feature a notch, instead, the camera and the earpiece will be housed in the slim forehead of the device. The smartphone will also feature an in-display fingerprint scanner to help it go up against the OnePlus 6T.
You always have your Maths right when choosing your favourite? No? Then you’re just smart. Stay tuned to get SUPER. #PowerOf16 pic.twitter.com/IzPldK0uMp
— MEIZU India (@Meizu_India) February 28, 2019
Also Read: Realme 3 With 3D Gradient Unibody Launched
Meizu hasn’t confirmed a launch date for the device. The 16s is expected to be priced around Rs. 40,000, which may it give it an edge over similarly priced devices since it will be kitted with the latest hardware in the market at the time.
The highly anticipated Realme 3 has finally been launched. It is the successor to the Realme 2 which was launched last year. The newly launched smartphone is a significant upgrade over its predecessor and will compete with devices like the Redmi Note 7.
Click here to pre-book the Realme 3
The front of the Realme 3 accommodates a 6.2 inch Dewdrop notch display which is surrounded by thin bezels on all sides. Intriguingly, the handset is highly reminiscent of the OnePlus 6T. The rear unibody shell of the smartphone is made out of composite material that has a 3D gradient finish. 
The rear of the Realme 3 has a 3D gradient unibody which looks attractive. Moreover, the company claims it provides for an excellent graspability. The rear side of the device accommodates the dual rear camera, Realme branding and a Fingerprint sensor. The rear camera setup consists of an f/1.8 aperture equipped 13 MP sensor and a 2 MP sensor. Noteworthy, it is the first smartphone in its segment to have features like Nightscape and Chromaboost. The nightscape mode with the help of software captures well-lit pictures even in places which are dark or have poor lighting conditions. Whereas, the Chromaboost option boosts the colours of a picture which according to Realme are good enough to be shared on social media.
Like the OnePlus 6T, the left side of the Realme 3 is occupied by the volume rockers and SIM card+ microSD slot while the right side is occupied by the power button. The bottom of the smartphone makes room for the Micro USB port, loudspeaker grille, 3.5 mm audio jack and microphone pinhole. Under the hood, the smartphone packs the Helio P70 SoC which is also present on its sibling, the Realme U1. The chipset consists of a Mali G72 GPU and an Octa-Core CPU which is clocked at 2.1 GHz. It is powered by a large 4,230 mAh battery which can be charged with 10 watts of maximum power. The device runs on Color OS 6.0 which is built on top of the latest Android 9.0 Pie. Some notable features that the Color OS 6 brings to the table include gesture navigation and AI battery management.
Connectivity options on the Realme 3 include Dual 4G VoLTE, 802.11 ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS, 3.5 mm audio jack and Micro USB port for charging and data transfer. Remarkably, Realme allows the users to unlock the bootloader of the smartphone from the day of its launch.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9khBEFQgIPc
Also Read: OnePlus 7 Leaks Show Pop-Up Selfie Camera, Triple Rear Camera
Click here to pre-book the Realme 3
The Realme 3 Pro is available in three colour options which include Dynamic Black, Radiant Blue and Classic Black. It is available in two storage variants for which the price is as follows:
In addition to the inbuilt storage, it also accepts memory cards upto 256 GB via the dedicated microSD slot. The device will be available for purchase from Flipkart.com and offline Realme stores from the 12th of March.
A fresh leak on Chinese social networking site Weibo shows off the image and key specifications of Honor’s next smartphone. This will allegedly be called the Honor 20 and will feature flagship level specifications. The device is expected to be unveiled in China sometime later this month.
The next smartphone from Chinese OEM Honor will be called the Honor 20. The leaked specifications show top tier hardware and internals. The leak reveals that it will have a 6.1 inch OLED display with minimal bezels around it. There will be a waterdrop notch on the top of the display which will give the device a modern look. The back of the smartphone will feature Honor’s ‘Aurora gradient’. The Honor 20 will have the sixth generation of in-display fingerprint scanning technology which is likely to make it considerably faster. It will also feature face unlock via the front camera.
Under the hood, the Honor 20 will reportedly be kitted with the Kirin 980 SoC which is manufactured using 7nm fabrication process. The chipset consists of an octa-core CPU and Mali G76 GPU. In terms of optics, the leaked image affirms the smartphone will feature a triple rear camera setup comprised of a 48MP main sensor; combined with a 20MP ultra-wide angle sensor and an 8MP telephoto sensor with 3x optical zoom. The front will sport a 32MP camera housed in the notch on top of the display.
The Honor 20 will be powered by a 3650mAh battery with 22.5W fast charging support via the bottom mounted USB Type-C port. The smartphone will feature Honor’s CPU/GPU turbo technology for increased performance, efficiency and will retain the headphone jack. In terms of memory and storage, the device will be available in three variants:
Also read: Apple AirPods 2 To Feature Fast Wireless Charging; Launch Imminent
The leaks have also revealed the pricing of the Honor 20. The base model with 6GB of RAM and 128GB if internal storage will be priced at CNY 2999 (around Rs 31,700). The version with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of onboard storage will cost CNY 3399 (around Rs 36,000). The top end variant with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage will be priced at CNY 3799 (around Rs 40,200). The smartphone will be launched in China later this month.
Treading on the success path of the OnePlus 6 and 6T, the Chinese smartphone manufacturer is expected to launch the OnePlus 7 in the second quarter of 2019. The device will supposedly launch beside a 5G OnePlus smartphone, the likes of which were unveiled at the MWC 2019. Fresh leaks suggest that the OnePlus 7 will sport a pop-up selfie camera, similar to the one present in Vivo Nex (which was released last year).
As per the leaks, the OnePlus 7 features a bezel-less 6.5 inch display, which can be an Optic AMOLED panel similar to the one in OnePlus 6T. The screen tapers towards the edges, with no visible notch or ‘punch hole’. As mentioned before, a motorized selfie camera pops up from an enclosure on top of the smartphone. The specifications of the selfie shooter, however, are not available as of now.
The leaked renders also show a triple rear camera setup. The three sensors are aligned vertically, with the LED flash placed just below the cameras. The predecessor of the OnePlus 7 had a dual camera module, which was housed in a 16 MP+20 MP configuration. It is possible that the third camera sensor being introduced in the OnePlus 7 is a ToF (Time of flight) sensor, which is seen on smartphones from both Oppo and Vivo.
The left edge of the smartphone has the volume rockers, whereas the right side accommodates the power button and the alert slider. No rear fingerprint sensor was spotted in the leaks, so this may hint towards the fact that the OnePlus 7 may support a similar in display fingerprint scanner to the OnePlus 6T. Furthermore, no 3.5 mm headphone jack is spotted in the images, but there is nothing surprising about that since the previous iteration lacked the same. A standard USB Type C port is present on the device, right next to the speaker and the microphone.
Also Read: Realme 3, Realme 3 Pro Will Launch On March 4, All We Know
The OnePlus 7 was previously leaked on March 1, which led to the reveal of the smartphone’s front panel. The next ‘flagship killer’ is expected to have top-of-the-line specifications. Since the 5G prototype at the MWC 2019 featured the Snapdragon 855, the same chipset is presumed to be seen in the OnePlus 7. A launch date for the device is still pending, but as mentioned before, OnePlus has a six-month refresh cycle for releasing new smartphones. Hence, the device may be slated to launch in Q2 of this year.
To accommodate large screen displays on smartphones, OEMs have begun to minimise the bezels surrounding it. However, choosing this type of design leads to the predicament of where to place the front facing selfie camera. Smartphone manufacturers have tried several means to get around this issue. Some of which include a pop up selfie camera like on the newly launched Vivo V15 Pro or the sliding screen on the Mi Mix 3. Huawei, a leader in smartphone technology also seems to be developing a similar device with an edge-to-edge display that excludes a notch. A freshly granted patent to the company demonstrates a smartphone with sliding screen that conceals the front facing cameras.
The patent granted to Huawei exhibits a modern looking smartphone with thin bezels around the display. The key highlighting feature of the handset clearly is its sliding display which conceals a couple of front facing selfie cameras. The device has minimal bezels on all sides except for the bottom chin which is comparatively thicker. The earpiece to receive phone calls is built into the top bezel above the display of the device. The power button and volume rockers are placed on the right side of the handset while the SIM card slot is on the left. 
The rear of the handset has a well-recognised design with vertically aligned dual cameras and an LED flash. The device has a bottom mounted USB Type C port which is flanked by two grilles on either side. Unfortunately, any specifications of the smartphone are currently unavailable but are soon expected to follow. 
Also Read: Samsung Galaxy M30 Review
The launch date of a Huawei smartphone with this design cannot be correctly predicted. However, the patents strongly suggest that such a device is under development.
Most modern flagship smartphone in today’s day and age are kitted with a plethora of features. In many ways, these devices couldn’t be more different than each other. But there is a feature that is slowly catching up to speed in most modern smartphones and is often one of the most sought out. Ever since Samsung advertised its Galaxy S5 as being water resistant, the past few years have seen more OEMs providing the feature in their offerings. This feature, a smartphone being water resistant, is also often referred to as being waterproof, which couldn’t be more misleading.
To certify a modern smartphone as water resistant, it is given an Ingress Protection (IP) rating. This rating is essentially measured by how protected the device is in letting natural elements such as dust and water inside it. Most modern smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S10, iPhone XS and the LG V40 ThinQ have an Ingress Protection rating of 68. This implies that the devices are water and dust resistant.
However, to comprehend IP ratings, there is a need to understand how they are determined. The rating is composed of two digits out of which, each one implies different levels of protection from the aforementioned elements. An explanation of what each digit means is highlighted in the table below.
The first digit of the IP rating signifies:
| Level | Certified to be protected against: |
| X | No data available to specify a protection rating |
| 0 | Not protected |
| 1 | Any large surface of the body (>50mm) |
| 2 | Fingers or similar objects (>12.5mm) |
| 3 | Tools, thick wires, etc. (>2.5mm) |
| 4 | Most wires, screws, etc. (>1mm) |
| 5 | Dust Protected |
| 6 | Dust Tight |
The second digit of the IP rating means:
| Level | Certified to be Protected against: |
| 0 | Not protected |
| 1 | Dripping water |
| 2 | Dripping water when tilted up to 15° |
| 3 | Spraying water |
| 4 | Splashing water |
| 5 | Water jets |
| 6 | Powerful water jets |
| 7 | Immersion up to 1 metre |
| 8 | Immersion beyond 1 metre |
So, to define the IP rating of a device, both the digits of the said rating need to be taken into consideration. For example, an IP68 rating would imply complete protection against dust and submersion underwater beyond 1 metre. Such a device will be safeguarded from all possible entry points like the charging port, the microphone, the SIM card tray and the headphone jack, to keep the dust and water out of it. Noteworthy, OEMs don’t provide a warranty on damaged devices as susceptible electronic components on individual units can behave differently. Also, lab tested results are performed under a precisely controlled environment which is usually different from the real world scenarios.
It must be clear that water resistance and waterproofing an electronic device implies two completely different things. These terms suggest a similar protection method but are completely different in their approach. Waterproofing an electronic device, a smartphone, for example, means water and dust usually, will not get inside the device in any shape, form or manner. This is generally achieved by sealing all the entry ports shut with the help of rubber seals and flaps. Waterproofing a device is essentially a guarantee that liquid will not seep inside the device and if it does, the OEM has to repair or replace it.
The guarantee may be the reason most manufacturers don’t market their devices as waterproof, even if they are well protected against it. There is no rating on how waterproof an electronic device can be like it is the case with measuring resistance. Making a smartphone waterproof would just require a tight seal to not let allow a drop of liquid inside it. There are some smartphones, particularly from CAT, the brand known for its heavy machinery which is marketed as waterproof. But in order to make them so, the design takes the back seat and they often end up being more expensive.
Also read: Whatsapp To Introduce Dark Mode, Advanced Search In Updates Soon
So yes, it is possible to make a smartphone truly waterproof, but it takes a toll on design and often, the price. Therefore, the future of a sleek and modern looking smartphone which is completely impervious to liquids and dust seems a little too far fetched and distant at the moment.
Samsung announced the newest devices of the Galaxy A series, the Galaxy A10, Galaxy A30 and the Galaxy A50 at an event on February 28. Fresh reports and leaks surfaced which claimed the existence of a new variant in the lineup. This device was purported to be the Galaxy A40 because of an official support page which went live on Samsung’s German website a few days ago. Unfortunately, many details about the device were unknown at the time including the price. Latest reports claim that the launch of the smartphone is imminent in Europe.
As the name suggests, the Samsung Galaxy A40 will be a mid-range smartphone from the company which will sit between the Galaxy A30 and the Galaxy A50. It is expected that these devices being a member of the same lineup, will share most of their design traits. Like the Galaxy A30, the Galaxy A40 is expected to feature a glossy polycarbonate back which will be called a ‘Glasstic’ design. The display of the device is expected to be an Infinity-U, 6.4 inches Super AMOLED panel with a resolution of 2340 x 1080 px. Noteworthy, this will be the same display as the ones found in its siblings.
Under the hood, the Galaxy A40 is expected to run on the Exynos 7904 which is manufactured using 14nm fabrication process. The chipset has an Octa-core CPU and a Mali G71 GPU. For memory and storage, the smartphone will feature 4GB of RAM and 64GB of Internal Storage. The smartphone is expected to sport better optics on the rear than the Galaxy M30. The front camera is expected to be a 16MP f/2.0 sensor housed in the notch on top of the display.
Also read: Samsung Galaxy M30 Review
Like the Galaxy A30 and Galaxy A50, the Galaxy A40 is also expected to be powered by a 4000mAh battery with 15W fast charging, support Bluetooth 5.0, and run on the latest OneUI on top of Android 9 Pie. The smartphone will reportedly cost €249 in Europe and may arrive in India in the coming weeks at an expected price of Rs 17,999.
Samsung has had a rough couple of years. Post the recall of the Galaxy Note 7, Samsung laid low and didn’t advertise their devices much. A strategy which may have been well thought of. However, it had drastic implications on the brand’s sales. Samsung continued to sell its flagship phones like the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus and even the Galaxy Note 8 was well received. What took a hit was the sale of budget devices, which is where the Galaxy M30 fits in.
The fragmentation within Samsung’s own lineup of products also didn’t help the company push numbers. Between the Galaxy J series, the On series and many others they experimented with, Samsung was losing ground fast to their Chinese counterparts.
The Galaxy M series is Samsung trying to understand the market. A complex economy driven by specs and not durability or after sale service. A market that is more prone to price cuts and discounts than any other. And a consumer who frequently changes his/her phone simply because a new model is available.
Has Samsung finally cracked the market with the M series and namely the Galaxy M30? Let’s find out in this Review.
It is not difficult to see that Samsung has taken many of its design cues for the Galaxy M30 from the existing smartphone market in 2018. The tear drop notch display, the gradient back and a bezel less front. The cameras at the back also sit flush with the phone and so does the fingerprint sensor, which is usually depressed on some devices. the phone feels premium and has a robust frame. The device does not bend, wiggle or rattle from anywhere.
The build is plastic which means it scratches easily and the back despite its nice metal finish may start to lose lustre soon. There is also no ingress protection, whether water or dust, although expecting that in this price bracket may be too much in early 2019. We expect that to start happening towards the end of the year.
The phone is 8.5mm thin despite the large battery and thick plastic build. It fits quite comfortably in the hand and does not feel heavy.
Samsung really has cracked the market here. The Samsung Galaxy M30 features a Super AMOLED display with a 2280 x 1080 px resolution and a 394 ppi density. The display is not only punchy and colourful, it is bright and easy to view indoors and out. The viewing angles are excellent and Samsung has managed to accurately set the colour profile. Although for those with specific requirements the display colour can be optimised.
It also has the always on feature which as the name suggests keeps the screen on at all times to display clock even when the device is locked. Noteworthy, this feature only draws less power from the battery. Therefore, the users can keep this feature turned on without stressing that it would affect the battery performance.
The display covers over 90% of the front of the phone although a considerable chin dawns the bottom of the front. The camera cutout is minimal and if you enable Face Unlock, a small light runs across the camera notch while you try to unlock the phone, looks fancy.
The Samsung Galaxy M30 features three cameras at the back; a 13 MP primary camera and two 5 MP sensors, one which measures depth. While the other is an UltraWide sensor. While the ultra wide sensor is great for the occasional landscape shot or group photo. The primary camera is great for everyday usage. You get accurate color and good low light performance ( which you do not with the ultra wide sensor), and some of the Live Focus features will be used throughly by owners of the phone.
The phone camera UI is familiar and easy to use, and the camera produces good results consistently. Images are sharp, in focus have good color and contrast. The HDR works great and there are some manual controls for ISO and shutter.
The video is restricted to 1080p, but again the video result is good and colour is accurate. You can also stretch the video to the display format of 2280x1080px for widescreen video.
The front camera also produces good results with quick and accurate focus and sharp images. A 16 MP f/2 shooter at the front means you can get good results in low light. Software based live focus is available on the front camera as well.
The Galaxy M30 runs on the Exynos 7904 it is a 14 nm chip with an Octa core CPU and a Mali-G71 MP2 GPU. The way the cores are laid out allow for better battery management, with two 1.8 GHz performance cores and 6 1.6 GHz daily cores. And while it is easy to fault Samsung for not using Snapdragon chips, Exynos chipsets work well and have consistently delivered long lasting performance on Samsung devices, also because much like Apple, Samsung optimises the hardware well with the software.
That being said, some of the performance scores leave a lot to be desired from the Galaxy M30 especially in comparison to the Snapdragon devices.
The phone does manage to run most games well and even PUBG works on high graphics even though medium is recommended, with good performance from the device. The phone also has a game booster which allows users to disable notifications and calls while allowing focus and allocating hardware resources to the game. Thereby improving the overall gaming experience ever so slightly.
The Galaxy M30 is also available in both 4 GB and 6 GB variants, and if you are serial gamer and have the extra money the 6GB version will allow for more simultaneous apps and a smoother overall gaming experience.
Daily usage from the phone is impressive, and while multitasking is good the phone does seem to lack a certain fluidity, which could be more and Android Oreo thing. Since the phone ships with the older version of Android out of the box.
Another thing that has kept Samsung users unhappy has been their slow Android updates and less refined UI. While Samsung has had consistently one of the best UI skins for Android, it has been fragmented and difficult to operate through. The new One UI solves that with smoother animations and a minimalistic design. But, the Galaxy M30 does not have that yet. Samsung plans to update the whole M series to Android 9 and with that the One UI, when and how is presently unknown.
The UI is pretty refined on the Galaxy M30 and Samsung has included navigation gestures, with the ability to disable those annoying bottom tabs. The gestures work great but certain things are missing from the phone. There is no Samsung Pay or even Pay mini yet. The Always on display is missing despite a Super AMOLED screen and the dark mode seen on the newer A series phones is also missed on the M30.
However, all these are simple software related issues and can easily be resolved with a software update.
The phone does support HD streaming and has the Wildvine L1 certification. The display and speakers are great for consuming content and the phone also has Dolby Atmos for enhanced audio via headphones.
The Samsung Galaxy M30 takes two SIM cards in dedicated slots along with a third slot for microSD expansion ( 512 GB worth). Both SIMs support VOLTe and also LTE data connectivity. Call quality and network strength is good and audio both from the speaker and microphone is impressive. The phone also has good noise cancellation for the microphone and manages to cancel out most of the background noise during calls.
With a massive 5000 mAh battery the Galaxy M30 offers multiple day battery life. With a conservative approach you can see your phone run into day three. With heavy usage we found the phone to have upwards of 20% battery at the end of the day, this is with several hours of gaming and video consumption.
Talk Time : 8 Hours
Music Playback : 36+ hours
Video : 10+ Hours
Gaming Online : 4 Hours
( Battery life tests are done in controlled conditions, and may vary from scenario to scenario)
The fingerprint sensor is fast on the Galaxy M30, and easy to setup. Samsung offers the ability to lock down certain folders and apps, along with certain other features. The phone also offers a less secure face unlock which helps quickly unlock the phone using the camera.
The Samsung Galaxy M30 also offers a 15 Watt charger inside the box. The phone has a USB C port which makes it somewhat future ready.
The Samsung Galaxy M30 also has a very low SAR value of 0.409W/KG Head.
The Samsung Galaxy M30 is a fantastic flagship to the Galaxy M series. It is priced well and offers some really good features including a Super AMOLED display and a 5000 mAh battery. And while the Redmi Note 7 Pro’s recent launch in India will make it difficult for users to decide, ( A comparison of the two will be out shortly), Samsung also made decisions difficult with the launch of the Galaxy A30. Samsung does offer best in class service and support which will help a buyers end decision if they plan to use the phone for a long time. Plus the added Samsung brand name may help aid the decision. Either way the Samsung Galaxy M30 is a compelling device, and if you are considering buying it, the decision of buying it will be a good one.
Unboxing Video :
Review Video : (Coming Up)