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Top Smartphones Of 2017 Under Rs. 40000

We are continuing our countdown of listing out the best phones launched in 2017. We have covered two price segments of under Rs. 10000 and Rs. 20000 already. Let’s take a look at the top phones launched in 2017 under Rs. 40000.

Moto X4

Starting off with the most inexpensive phone on the list, the Moto X4 has a lot of features that its closest competitors don’t, like an IP68 rating and a dual-camera setup together. At a starting price of Rs. 20999, the Moto X4 is a great device for people who want a great camera and a water resistance.

The Moto X4 has a 5.2 inch 1920 x 1080 px IPS LCD display with Corning Gorilla Glass on top for protection.

The Moto X4 has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 630, 2.2 GHz octa-core processor and Adreno 508 GPU, along with 3GB RAM and 32GB onboard storage which can be expanded up to 2TB via microSD card. The phone has an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance.

The smartphone runs stock Android 8.0 Oreo and is powered by a 3,000 mAh battery with TurboCharge capabilities.

The 4 in Moto X4 signifies that the new smartphone will be able to share the sound with up to 4 devices, thanks to the presence of Bluetooth 5.0.

The Moto X4 has a dual-camera setup at the back. The main camera is a 12MP sensor with an f/2.0 aperture, and the 8MP secondary camera with an f/2.2 aperture is equipped with a wide-angle lens. The dual-cameras allow users to have depth effect shots, bokeh effect shots, ultra-wide angle shots, and selective focus shots. On the front of the device is a 16MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture and an LED flash. The cameras record 4K videos at 30 FPS.

Honor 8 Pro

Competitively priced, great performance, big battery, and a dual-camera setup, the Honor 8 Pro was launched as a competitor of the OnePlus 5. The Honor 8 Pro has 5.7 inch 2560 x 1440 px display which is ideal for media consumption via VR.

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The Honor 8 Pro has 128 GB of storage along with 6GB of RAM. The Honor 8 Pro runs on the Kirin 960 chipset which is an octa-core chip – four high-performance Cortex A73 cores clocked at 2.4GHz and four low-power Cortex A53 cores clocked at 1.8Ghz.

The phone also has a large 4000 mAh battery and fast charge capabilities, with long battery modes built into Honor’s user interface. The camera setup consists of two cameras, 12+12 MP shooters, where one is a monochrome camera while the other is RGB. The front camera is an 8 MP shooter with an f/2.0 aperture.

Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)

Priced similarly to the Moto X4, the Galaxy A7 (2017) has an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance as well.

It has a 5.7-inch Super AMOLED display and a 1920 x 1080 px resolution.

Under the hood, the device has an Exynos 7880, Mali-T830MP3 GPU, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of onboard storage which can be expanded up to 128GB via a microSD card. The fingerprint sensor is housed inside the physical button which sits below the display.

The device runs Android 6 Marshmallow and is powered by a decent 3000 mAh battery which is charged via a USB C port.

The Galaxy A7 (2017) has a 16MP camera on both the front as well as the rear. These cameras have an f/1.9 aperture which has been teamed up with Light+ technology.

OnePlus 5

OnePlus 5 might have become the forgotten sibling but, at the time of its launch, the device had a lot going for it. A sturdy built, nice display and flagship specifications at almost half the price, the OnePlus 5 was the go-to phone for a lot of consumers. However, five months after its launch, the company launched the OnePlus 5T with a modern design and the same price. The company subsequently announced that it will stop the manufacturing of the OnePlus 5 although, software support will continue until the launch of Android P.

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The OnePlus 5 has a 5.5-inch 1920 x 1080 px AMOLED display with a 1920 x 1080 px resolution.

Under the hood, it has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, Adreno 540 GPU, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, 64GB or 128GB of onboard storage which cannot be expanded. The fingerprint sensor is placed below the display which also acts as a home button.

The smartphone is powered by a 3300 mAh battery with OnePlus’ own Dash Charge technology.

The OnePlus 5 has a 16 MP wide camera with an f/1.7 aperture along with a 20 MP telephoto camera with an f/2.6 aperture. On the front is a 16MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture.

OnePlus 5T

The OnePlus 5T is the better-looking of the two phones by OnePlus. It was launched in November and has reduced bezels around a tall 18:9 display. The OnePlus 5T also has a new Face Unlock feature which will soon be rolled out to the OnePlus 5 as well. The OnePlus 5T has the same specifications as the OnePlus 5 and is also priced exactly the same.

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The other big difference between the two is in the camera department. Unlike the OnePlus 5, the OnePlus 5T no longer has a secondary telephoto lens at the back. Instead, OnePlus has decided to focus on the device’s low-light photography capabilities. The cameras do not have OIS and OnePlus has decided to go for EIS on the dual camera setup at the back. The device has a 16MP camera with an f/1.7 aperture coupled with a 20MP sensor with the same f/1.7 aperture and field of view, ie no optical zoom. On the front is a 16MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture.

Nokia 8

The Nokia 8 was a significant smartphone for HMD Global. It was the first ever Nokia branded flagship running Android OS. At the time of its launch, everyone expected it to be priced over Rs. 40000 but, the device launched in India at a price of Rs. 36999.

The Nokia 8 sports a 5.3 inch 2560 x 1440 px display and 2.5D Corning Gorilla Glass 5 for protection.

Under the hood is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset and a 2.45GHz octa-core processor, the Adreno 540 GPU, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage which is expandable via microSD card. The fingerprint sensor is housed inside the home button below the screen.

Powering the device is a 3,090mAh battery with QuickCharge 3.0 support via USB Type-C port. The Nokia 8 runs on stock Android 7.1.1 OS and the company has promised monthly security updates and yearly Android updates.

The Nokia 8 boasts a Zeiss powered dual camera setup at the rear – a primary 13MP RGB (colour) sensor with optical image stabilisation paired with a 13MP secondary monochrome (black and white) sensor and an f/2.0 aperture. The dual-camera setup is capable of recording videos in 4K at 30 FPS and has a portrait mode for bokeh effect. On the front is a 13MP camera which can also record 4K videos at 30FPS.

Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro

Another Samsung device with an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance, the Galaxy C9 Pro is priced under Rs. 30000 which makes it a very good phone for users who prefer Samsung’s build and design.

The Galaxy C9 Pro has a 6-inch Super AMOLED display with a 1920 x 1080 px resolution.

Under the hood, it has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 653 chipset, 6GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage which can be expanded via microSD card. The fingerprint sensor is again housed inside the physical home button which sits below the display.

The Galaxy C9 Pro has a massive 4000 mAh battery which charges via a USB C port.

The Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro has a 16MP camera on both the front as well as the rear. These cameras have an f/1.9 aperture and record 1080P videos at 30fps.

Honor View10

The latest entrant in the affordable flagship segment, the Honor View10 is expected to be priced under Rs. 40000 and pose competition to the likes of the OnePlus 5T and Nokia8. The only smartphone in this category that concentrates on Artificial Intelligence, this phone has everything an affordable flagship should have, and the bells and whistles of the Kirin 970 are a bonus.

The Honor View10 has a 5.99-inch IPS LCD display with a 2160 x 1080 px resolution which translates to an 18:9 aspect ratio. The Honor View10 has minimal side bezels and thin top and bottom bezels.

Under the hood, the device has the Kirin 970 chipset with a Neural Processing Unit, 6GB of RAM, and 128GB onboard storage. The onboard storage can be expanded up to 256GB via microSD card. There is a 3.5mm headphone jack at the bottom of the device along with a USB Type C port. The front of the device also has a home button which houses the fingerprint sensor.

The Honor View10 also has facial recognition which is becoming more prominent since the launch of the iPhone X. The facial recognition works similar to the Face ID on the iPhone X, the accuracy of which, will be extensively tested in the coming weeks.

Because of its facial recognition technology, the Honor View10 also has iPhone X-like animojis, which Honor claims are much more accurate than iPhone X since it tracks the user’s tongue as well.

Powering the device is a 3750 mAh battery and supports 5V / 4.5A fast charging.

The Honor View10 has a dual camera setup at the back and has a single camera at the front. The back of the devices houses a 16MP RGB sensor and a 20MP Monochrome sensor with both having an f/1.8 aperture. The primary camera setup records 4K videos at 30fps. At the front of the phone is a 13MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture.

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2

The Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 is the second iteration of Xiaomi’s ‘Mix’ lineup. The original Mi Mix created quite a stir when it was launched back in 2016 thanks to its bezel-less design. It was the first phone at that time to sport such a design and ever since then, every smartphone maker has followed suit and made thinner bezels for their phones.

The Xiaomi Mi Mix 2 has a 5.99 inch 2160 x 1080 px LCD display with an 18:9 aspect ratio. The Mi Mix 2 has a 12% reduced bottom bezel and a screen-to-body ratio of 80.8%. The device features a cantilever piezoelectric ceramic acoustic speaker and ultrasonic proximity sensor.

Under the hood, the flagship smartphone has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, Adreno 540 GPU, 6GB RAM and storage options of 64GB, 128GB or 256GB. The onboard storage will not be expandable due to the absence of a microSD card slot. The fingerprint sensor is placed at the back of the device just below the camera.

The device is powered by a 3,400 mAh battery which is considerably smaller than the previous generation Mix’s 4,400 mAh battery.

The Mi Mix has a 12MP Sony IMX386 sensor with 1.25-micron pixels, an f/2.0 aperture 4-axis optical image stabilisation, 5-piece lens, and facial recognition. On the front is a 5MP which features facial recognition as well.

Buy it here

LG G6

The LG G6 followed the pattern of every great LG Android smartphone to fly under the radar. At the time of its launch, the LG G6 was already behind the Galaxy S8 and the S8+ because it had the Snapdragon 821 chipset while the Samsung devices were powered by the Snapdragon 835. Even though the chipset is old. there is no denying that the LG G6 has one of the best cameras in this segment along with an edge-to-edge design and features like wireless charging.

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The LG G6 has a 5.7-inch IPS LCD display with a 2880 x 1440 px resolution.

Under the hood, the device is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 chipset, the Adreno 530 GPU, 4GB of RAM and 128GB of onboard storage which can be expanded via microSD card. The fingerprint sensor is placed at the back of the phone which doubles up as a home button.

Powering the device is a 3300 mAh battery which charges via a USB C port.

To the back, the LG G6 has a dual-camera setup. One of them is a 13MP normal lens with an f/1.8 aperture while the 13MP wide-angle lens has an f/.2.4 aperture.

Essential Ph-1

The Essential Ph-One was launched to a lot of fanfare as the company’s founder of Andy Rubin, popularly known as the father of Android. The company promised that it would have all the essential elements of a smartphone, especially a great camera. The phone had a small notch at the top of the display for the camera and a small chin with nearly no bezels on the rest of the three sides of the display.

Post the launch of the phone, it was heavily panned by critics for its poor camera. The lack of the headphone jack didn’t do it any good either. However, ever since it launc, the company has pushed out a lot of updates and at a price of US $499, the Essential Ph-1 is a great device.

It has a 5.71 inch IPS LCD display with a 2560 x 1312 px resolution.

Under the hood, it has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, 6GB of RAM, and 128GB of onboard storage which cannot be expanded.

Powering the device is a 3040 mAh battery which charges via a USB C port.

It has a dual 13MP camera at the back with an f/1.9 aperture. One of them has an RGB sensor while the other one has a monochrome sensor. It records 4K videos at 30fps and with the latest software update, clicks portrait photos as well. On the front of the phone is an 8MP camera with an f/2.2 aperture.

BONUS: HTC U Ultra

At the time of its launch, the HTC U Ultra was priced at Rs. 59900. At that price, the device was aksing a lot from its potential customers but, the price of the phone has now dropped to under Rs. 30000 and if you are a fan of HTC’s hardware, then thid device is a decent option.

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The HTC U Ultra has a 5.7 inch 2560 x 1440 px Super LCD5 display.

Under the hood, the device has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 chipset, Adreno 530 GPU, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage which can be expanded via a microSD card. The fingerprint sensor is placed on the front of the device.

Powering the U Ultra is a 3000 mAh battery.

It has a 12 MP UltraPixel rear camera that facilitates fast focus and less blurred shots at night. The front camera has a 16 MP UltraPixel Sensor.

December 30, 2017
OnePlus Could Be Launching A Sandstone Variant Of The OnePlus 5T

OnePlus might be bringing back a fan-favourite in the coming weeks. On its official YouTube channel, OnePlus released a video of average London citizens explaining what they’re feeling about the product inside a mystery box. The video proceeds with people giving their own versions of what could be inside the box and a few people point out that it felt like the sandstone OnePlus One from back in the day.

OnePlus Two

The OnePlus One was a groundbreaking smartphone in more than one ways. It became famous for providing flagship specifications at less than half the price of an average flagship. But, another standout feature of the phone was the choice of easily replaceable back panels of the phone. The one that became the most prominent was the Sandstone finish panel. OnePlus continued the trend with the OnePlus Two but, with the OnePlus X and then the OnePlus 3, the company moved on to more conventional finishes for their phones with brushed aluminium built.

The OnePlus 5 and OnePlus 5T again saw a shift in design and finish of the phone. However, in December of 2017, the Chinese smartphone maker launched the OnePlus 5T Star Wars limited edition variant with a back panel that had a similar finish to the original OnePlus One Sandstone finish. Although not entirely sandstone, the slightly textured back was definitely reminiscent of the old OnePlus devices.

The OnePlus 5 and OnePlus 5T have already been launched in limited edition variants in 2017. It could be possible that OnePlus is looking to attract a few forgotten consumers with an offering which is as close to the OnePlus One (barring the price) as it could get. The OnePlus 5T has a great modern design with thin bezels and a tall display, and with the addition of that signature Sandstone finish, the OnePlus 5T could be a great phone for a lot of people who prefer the feel of the OnePlus One but, also want the latest specifications on a budget.

https://youtu.be/r6NgimX95Rw

December 30, 2017
Xiaomi Introduces Full Display Gestures In The New Beta Build Of MIUI 9

Xiaomi appears to be preparing its users for the future with the new beta build of MIUI 9. Ever since the iPhone X removed the home button, it has become increasingly inevitable that smartphones in the coming years will solely rely on gestures of navigation with the OS.

With the latest beta update, Xiaomi has added ‘full display gestures’ that appear to be inspired by the iPhone X a lot. For example, in order to reach the home screen, the user has to swipe up from the bottom of the screen while swiping from the bottom to the top and pausing for a second brings up your recent apps. Other gestures include swiping from the left or right of the screen to the middle to take the user to the previous page. Over the years, Xiaomi has taken “inspiration” for Apple for its platform. From the MIUI layout to “MiDrop,” the not-so-subtle hints have always been there. Being one of the first Android smartphone makers to shift to all display gestures similar to the iPhone X will only strengthen the previous argument.

Over the years, Android’s take on navigation within the OS has been different from that of iOS. While Android phones have had three navigation buttons, iOS has had a physical home button which solved multiple purposes like multitasking, invoking Siri and other gestures like swiping from the left or right of the screen to the middle to take the user to the previous page. So, when Apple introduced these gestures in the iPhone X, the transition was a lot smoother thanks to the presence of gestures in the past iPhones.

Android, on the other hand, has used the three buttons, the home, back and multitasking button for every little navigation within the OS. These have either been software buttons or physical buttons, with nowadays OEMs offering the choice of both the navigation systems. When Android does shift to only gestures, the transition for users might not be as natural and organic as it was for iOS users.

A few Xiaomi Mi 7 renders were leaked with conflicting reports. Some suggested that the device will have an in-display fingerprint sensor while the other report claimed that Xiaomi is working on an iPhone X-like Face ID system. One thing in common, however, was the all-screen design of the phone. Xiaomi phones have had on-display as well as physical and touch capacitive navigation buttons. Introducing navigation via gestures a few months before the launch of the Mi 7 might hint at an all display design of the Mi 7 and the company’s foray into gesture-based navigation with Android.

Xiaomi Mi 7 Renders

For now, users with the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2, Mi Mix, Redmi 5, and Redmi 5 Plus can preview these gestures on their devices.

December 30, 2017
Top Smartphones Under Rs. 20000

As curtains draw in 2017, it is time to look back at the top smartphones launched in 2017 under Rs. 20000. We already checked out the best phones launched in the Rs 10000 price segment. So, does your favourite phone make the cut? Let’s find out.

Moto G5 Plus/Moto G5s Plus

The Moto G5 Plus was launched in early 2017 and received great reviews for its camera performance. Even today, the Moto G5 Plus’ camera is considered one of the best in its price category. The Moto G5s Plus was the updated variant of the Moto G5 Plus with the same hardware and a dual-camera setup.

The device has a 5.2 inch IPS LCD display with a 1920 x 1080 px resolution.

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Under the hood, the bith the devices have the Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor with a 2.0 GHz octa-core processor, Adreno 506 GPU, 3GB of RAM and 32GB of onboard storage which is expandable via microSD card. The fingerprint sensor is housed inside the home button which sits below the display.

Powering the device is a 3000 mAh battery which charges via a micro USB port.

Just like every other Moto Android phone, the smartphone runs stock Android 7.1 Nougat.

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Xiaomi Mi A1

At the time of its launch, the Xiaomi Mi A1 turned quite a few heads for its stock Android OS and a dual camera setup at the price point.

The smartphone has a 5.5 inch 1920 x 1080 px LTPS display with Corning Gorilla Glass on top for protection along with an aluminium unibody build.

The Xiaomi Mi A1 has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 chipset, 8x ARM Cortex A53 2.0GHz 64-bit processor, 4GB RAM and 64GB of onboard storage which is expandable via microSD card. Handling the graphics under the hood is the Adreno 505 GPU. The pyrolytic graphite sheet will help in heat management as well, Xiaomi claims. The Xiaomi Mi A1 has an IR blaster to control appliances in your home or office.

The fingerprint sensor sits at the back of the device below the camera. Xiaomi has also included a dedicated headphone amplifier for better music listening experience.

Powering the device is a 3080 mAh battery and 2A charging through the Type C port.

Even though the phone has stock Android 7.1.2 Nougat, Xiaomi has retained a few apps, such as the Mi camera app since the Google Camera app doesn’t support dual-camera functions right now.

The smartphone features dual sensors at the back, a 12MP telephoto lens with an f/2.2 aperture (26mm) and 12MP wide-angle lens with an f/2.6 aperture (50mm) setup with 1.25-micron pixel size. The telephoto lens allows the user to take bokeh effect shots with blurred background and a 2X optical lossless zoom. For landscape shots, Xiaomi has introduced a wide angle lens while on the front is a 5MP camera.

Huawei Honor 7X

The Honor 7X has a lot to offer especially when its price is considered. The device is available at Rs. 12999 and has a dual camera setup along with a nearly bezel-less design. Without a doubt, the Honor 7X is the best-looking smartphone in this price category.

The Honor 7X has a 5.9 inch LTPS IPS LCD display with a 2160 x 1080 px display which translates into an 18:9 aspect ratio.

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Under the hood, the Honor 7X has the HiSilicon Kirin 659 chipset, Mali-T830 MP2 GPU, 4GB of RAM and 64GB onboard storage. The onboard storage is expandable up to 256GB via microSD card.

The device is powered by a 3340 mAh battery which charges via a micro USB slot. Since the device has thin bezels, the fingerprint sensor is placed at the back of the below the dual-camera setup.

The Honor 7X runs Android 7.0 Nougat with EMUI 6.0 on top which gives a user more options for customising their phones.

The smartphone has a dual camera setup at the back. One of the cameras is equipped with a 16MP sensor while the other one is a 2MP depth sensor. The camera setup at the back has PDAF and records 1080P videos at 30fps. On the front is an 8MP camera which also records 1080P videos.

Xiaomi Mi Max 2

The Xiaomi Mi Max 2 has a 6.4 inch 1920 x 1080 px display with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 on top for added protection.

Under the hood, the phablet has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 625, Cortex-A53 octa-core processor, 4GB of RAM and 32GB/64GB onboard storage options.

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The smartphone is powered by a massive 5300 mAh with QuickCharge 3.0 and runs Android 6.0 Marshmallow with Xiaomi’s custom skin MIUI 8 on top. The phablet has a one-hand usage mode as well. The fingerprint sensor is placed at the back of the device and sits just below the cameras. The Mi Max 2 switches to dual-audio speakers when in landscape mode.

On the optics front, the Mi Max 2 has a 12-megapixel camera with an f/2.2 aperture, equipped with the Sony IMX386 sensor with PDAF and dual-LED flash. On the front, the phablet has a 5MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture.

Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)

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The Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) is the only phone in the list which has an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance. So, if you want a rugged phone but, can’t spend more Rs. 20000 then the Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) should be the ideal phone for you.

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It has a 5.2-inch Super AMOLED display with a 1920 x 1080 px resolution.

Under the hood, the Galaxy A5 (2017) is powered by the Exynos 7880 chipset, 3GB of RAM and 32GB of onboard storage which can be expanded via a microSD card.

Powering the device is a 3000 mAh battery while the fingerprint sensor is housed inside the home button.

The device has a 16MP primary camera with an f/1.9 aperture that records 1080P videos at 30fps. To the front of the Galaxy A5 (2017) is another 16MP camera with an f/1.9 aperture.

December 30, 2017
Top Smartphones Of 2017 Under Rs. 10000

Every passing year, the quality of budget smartphones increases and 2017 was no different. The smartphones under the Rs. 10000 price bracket have become better with little compromises in quality. As 2017 draws to an end, let’s take a look at the top phones launched under the Rs. 10000 category:

Xiaomi Redmi Note 4

Hands down, one of the most famous smartphones to be launched in 2017, the Redmi Note 4 set the standard for budget phones in India. To Xiaomi’s own admission, the Redmi Note 4 is its most successful phone in India and it still offers a lot in terms of performance in this price category.

The Redmi Note 4 has a 5.5 inch 1920 x 1080 px IPS LCD display.

Under the hood, the device has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 chipset, Adreno 506 GPU, 3GB of RAM and 32GB of onboard storage which can be expanded up to 128GB via microSD card.

Powering the device is a massive 4100 mAh battery which charges via a microSD card. The fingerprint sensor, in typical Redmi fashion, sits at the back of the phone just below the camera sensor.

The Redmi Note 4 has a 13MP rear-facing camera and a 5MP front-facing camera.

Moto E4 Plus

The Moto E4 plus has a 5.5 inch 1280 x 720px IPS LCD display along with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 and an oleophobic coating.

The Motorola Moto E4 Plus is powered by 1.4GHz quad-core MediaTek MTK6737M processor and has 3GB of RAM with 32GB of internal storage along with microSD card expansion.

The phone also runs Android 7.1.1 out of the box and should be updated to the next generation Android by the company, as the UI is mostly stock with some Moto features including the Moto display, some gestures and One-Key Navigation. The front also has a fingerprint sensor along with notification led light.

The Moto E4 Plus is powered by a massive 5000 mAh battery.

For optics, the front has a 5 MP camera with a front flash while the main camera is a 13 MP, f/2.0 with 720p video capture at 30fps.

Lenovo K8 Plus

The Lenovo K8 Plus has a 5.2 inch 1920 x 1080 px IPS LCD display with three touch capacitive navigation buttons below. The device an oleophobic coating to resist fingerprint smudges and a Corning Gorilla Glass 3 for protection.

Under the hood, the smartphone has the MediaTek Helio P25 chipset, a 2.6 GHz octa-core processor, Mali T880 GPU, 3GB RAM with 32GB onboard storage which is expandable up to 128GB via microSD card. Similar to the K8 Note, the K8 Plus has a dedicated microSD card slot along with two nano-SIM card slots.

Powering the device is a 4,000 mAh battery and it runs stock Android 7.1.1 Nougat after Lenovo decided to drop the Vibe Pure UI and go the stock OS route. The device has an all-metal unibody design and the fingerprint sensor sits at the back.

The Lenovo K8 Plus sports a vertically placed dual-camera setup, much like the recently launched Lenovo K8 Note. It has a primary 13MP Pure cell sensor mated with a 5MP Samsung BSI sensor dual camera with an f/2.0 aperture and dual LED flash. The smartphone is capable of depth effect shots, bokeh effect shots, and dual ISP images. On the front is an 8MP wide-angle lens with an f/2.0 and an LED flash. Both the front and back camera record 1920 x 1080 px videos at 30 FPS.

Moto G5

Arguably the best camera phone in the price segment, the Moto G5 was launched back in March of 2017 and still holds up well in this price segment.

It has a 5.5 inch 1920 x 1080 px IPS LCD display with Corning Gorilla Glass on top.

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Lenovo-owned Motorola launched the Moto G5 along with the Moto G5 Plus in India in February 2017. Even though in August, Moto G5s and Moto G5s Plus were launched as an incremental upgrade, the Moto G5 at this price is a great option. With stock Android OS and a more than capable Snapdragon 430 chipset, the Moto G5 fits the bill for a lot of consumers. It has 3GB of RAM and 16GB of onboard storage which can be expanded via microSD card.

It is powered by a 2800 mAh which charges via a micro USB slot.

The Moto G5 has a 13MP f/2.0 camera with phase detect autofocus with a 5 MP front camera. The rear camera records 1080P videos at 30fps while the front camera also records 1080P videos.

Xioami Redmi 5A

[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vR8LhjLDcHs[/embedyt]

The Redmi 5A has a 5 inch LCD display with a 1280 x 720 px resolution.

The Redmi 5A is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 chipset, quad-core CPU clocked at 1.4GHz, along with 2GB/3GB of RAM, 16GB/32GB of onboard storage which can be expanded up to 128GB via microSD card.

The dual-SIM Redmi 5A is powered by a 3000 mAh battery.

The device runs Android 7.1 Nougat out of the box with Xiaomi’s custom MIUI 9 skin on top.

The Redmi 5A has a 13MP rear camera with an f/2.2 aperture, burst mode, panorama mode, HDR mode, and more. To the front is a 5MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture. The smartphone records 1920 x 1080 px videos.

December 29, 2017
Xiaomi Yeelight Voice Assistant Is Its Answer To The Amazon Echo Dot

The smart speaker segment is becoming increasingly crowded nowadays. While the products started as a pricey investment into smart home tech, the likes of Amazon Echo Dot or the Google Home Mini can be bought for US $49 or less. However, one company is stepping into the segment which is known for making cost-effective smart home products but, mainly keeps them in its native market of China. Xiaomi, the famous Chinese smartphone maker has introduced the Yeelight Voice Assistant, a smart speaker which will reportedly cost about US $30.

The new smart speaker will be powered by Microsoft’s own voice assistant Cortana, which could be mainly due to the partnership between Xiaomi and Microsoft to use some of Microsoft’s services in Xiaomi’s products. However, it is believed that the smart speaker will be powered by both Cortana and Amazon Alexa, which will definitely make the smart speaker a much more compatible smart speaker.

Apart from it being a smart speaker, the Yeelight Voice Assistant looks strikingly similar to the Echo Dot. With a similar colour combination of white with a blue light, the speaker grill on top and the size and shape of the speaker, anyone will be forgiven for mistaking it as the Echo Dot in the first glance.

The Yeelight Voice Assistant is a 2-watt speaker with six microphones to make it easier for it to pick up the user’s voice. The smart speaker also has a long-range voice activation capability wherein it can be activated from up to 5 meters of distance. Xiaomi claims that this possible thanks to an advanced voice wake-up algorithm.

Powering the smart speaker is a Cortex A53 quad-core processor with 256MB of RAM and an equal amount of internal storage space. This storage is likely for caching personal preferences or other specific user details.

The smart speaker, as of now, is only listed on the company’s crowdsourcing platform for a price of US $30 or roughly Rs. 1800.

December 29, 2017
Samsung Galaxy Note8 Users Are Reporting The Same Battery Issue

When the Samsung Galaxy Note7 was recalled due to serious battery issues, many thought that the ‘Note’ lineup would be scrapped due to the amount of bad press it had attracted. However, in August of 2017, the South Korean tech giant launched the Galaxy Note8. The device had everything, from a great camera to the excellent S Pen integration. It seemed like the days of ‘BatteryGate’ have been left behind by the company.

However, over the past few days, Samsung’s help forum has various posts about user’s Galaxy Note8 not charging. The issue seems to occur after the phone battery is fully drained to 0% and shuts down. When users try to charge the phone again, it doesn’t charge at all.

One of the posts read:

I’ve tried 3 different power cables and cords but nothing. I charged overnight and still nothing. Completely dead. Phone still looks brand new because I bought a rugged case for it. I’ve treated it like a newborn baby so it must be defective.

It appears that Samsung is aware of the issue. Samsung employees active of the help forum are offering repairs and replacement devices for customers with phones that aren’t charging. So far, the issue is not being reported in enough devices for it to be a huge issue. But, considering what happened with the Galaxy Note 7, it won’t be surprising if Samsung moves ahead with caution when it comes to even the tiniest of battery-related issues.

December 29, 2017
Samsung Launches The Biggest Curved Monitor In India

Samsung has launched the world’s biggest curved monitor in India. The monitor is available at Rs. 150,000 on Samsung Shop and will soon be made available at all leading retail outlets.

The ultra-wide monitor has a 49-inch QLED display with a 3840 X 1080 px resolution and a 32:9 aspect ratio.

The monitor has a 144Hz refresh rate and the brightness of the monitor goes up to 600-nits. The monitor has minimal bezels around the display and a 178-degree viewing angle.

The ‘Easy Setting Box S/W’ application on the desktop lets user partition the screen into displays of various sizes and functional configurations for smarter multitasking.

For people who spend long hours in front of the screen, the monitor uses Eye Saver Mode and Flicker Free Technology which enhances eye comfort. Eye Saver Mode obstructs Blue light wavelengths that stimulate the retina more than what any other colour does, thereby reducing eye-fatigue.

You can click here to buy the new Samsung 49-inch curved monitor.

December 29, 2017
Apple Apologises To Consumers, Cuts Down Charges Of Replacing Out-Of-Warranty Batteries

A week ago, the news of Apple accepting to deliberately slowing down iPhone batteries broke out. What was in the beginning, just a few conspiracy theories, soon became reality and iPhone users demanded answers from the company. In the aftermath of Apple accepting the allegations, it was sued for forcing people into buying iPhones.

In a post on its website, Apple has apologised to its consumers and said that a number of changes will be made to regain the trust of its consumers. The post goes on to announce that the company is slashing the price of replacing an out-of-warranty battery as well.

We know that some of you feel Apple has let you down. We apologize. There’s been a lot of misunderstanding about this issue, so we would like to clarify and let you know about some changes we’re making.

Apple conceded that it would cut the price of an out-of-warranty battery replacement from US $79 (Rs. 5000 approx.) to US$29 (Rs. 1850 approx.) for an iPhone 6 or later, starting next month. Along with that, iOS would be updated with features to let users see whether their battery is in poor health and is affecting the phone’s performance.

First and foremost, we have never — and would never — do anything to intentionally shorten the life of any Apple product, or degrade the user experience to drive customer upgrades.

For years, iPhone users claimed to notice a discernible system slowdown with some iOS updates. However, the issue came in the spotlight thanks to a widely circulated Reddit thread.

Following that, Geekbench founder John Poole did some performance testing on various iPhones running different versions of iOS. Poole found that Apple does, in fact, limit performance on older iPhone models with lower-capacity batteries in the interest of battery life and preventing unexpected shutdowns.

Apple continues to insist that it’s never artificially slowed down phones, just that it’s aggressively managing phone performance to maximize the lifespan of iPhone batteries. In another article that Apple published, it explains:

This feature’s only intent is to prevent unexpected shutdowns so that the iPhone can still be used. This power management works by looking at a combination of the device temperature, battery state of charge, and the battery’s impedance.

Only if these variables require it, iOS will dynamically manage the maximum performance of some system components, such as the CPU and GPU in order to prevent unexpected shutdowns.

The silver lining here is that the consumers have a clear picture and the decision of changing batteries on their old iPhones will now be cheaper than what it was before.

December 29, 2017
Conflicting Xiaomi Mi 7 Reports Hint Towards One Important Aspect

Xiaomi will soon launch its new flagship phone in 2018 and multiple reports are claiming that the new flagship will have a radical new design. Whether these renders will be a reality in the coming months is yet to be seen.

A report claims that the Xiaomi Mi 7 will drop the famed fingerprint sensor and replace it with Face ID-like facial recognition technology. Unlike a few other Android phones that have launched since the inception of the iPhone X, the Mi 7, apparently, will not have a backup fingerprint sensor for payments and accounts security. This means that the phone will have very thin bezels and a small notch at the top which will house the front-facing camera and the other sensors necessary for a Face ID-like biometric system.

A conflicting report has claimed that the Chinese smartphone maker will embrace the next phase of fingerprint technology, wherein the sensor will be placed underneath the display. The report claims that the phone will have extremely minimal bezels, much thinner than what we have seen on any device so far. This report conflicts from the previous one but, hints at the same bezel-less design.

Xiaomi shook the smartphone industry in 2016 with the launch of the Xiaomi Mi Mix with minimal bezels around the display. Since then every smartphone maker has followed suit and thin bezels have now become a norm. It will be interesting to see if Xiaomi takes the bold decision and drops fingerprint sensor in favour of facial recognition, something that has picked up speed since Apple adopted it for the iPhone X.

December 28, 2017
Mid-Range Variant Of The HTC U11+ To Be Launched In January

Ever since the co-operative agreement between Google and HTC, it has been rumoured that HTC will slowly shift its prime focus to its other businesses like virtual reality. However, that doesn’t mean that HTC smartphones will be completely phased out. The company recently launched the HTC U11+ and HTC U11 Life. A new report claims that a mid-range variant of the HTC U11+ will be launched in January of 2018, possibly at CES.

HTC U11 +

A few weeks ago, the specifications of an HTC phone codenamed Ocean Harmony were revealed. According to the specs listed, the device will have a 5.99-inch display with an 18:9 aspect ratio and a possible 2160 x 1080 px resolution.

Leaked Specs

Under the hood, the device will have the Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 chipset, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage which will be expandable via microSD card.

The specifications hinted towards a toned down variant of the HTC U11+ and the new report appears to corroborate with the previous leak.

The report further claims that the next HTC device to launch in 2018 will be the HTC U12. Although no timeline is mentioned for the U12, it could be powered by the Snapdragon 845 chipset and have a tall display with an 18:9 aspect ratio. Similar to the HTC U11+, the HTC U12 could also skip the 3.5mm headphone jack.

December 28, 2017
Regular Variant Of The Moto X4 Starts Receiving Android 8.0 Oreo Update

Lenovo-owned Motorola is catching up with the Android 8.0 Oreo hype train real quick. After releasing the Android 8.0 Oreo update for the Android One variant of the Moto X4, it appears that the regular variant has also started receiving the new Android 8.0 Oreo update.

Recieved oreo update on moto x4 @igyaan pic.twitter.com/l8fnv0CDJO

— QuickTech Mohit (@quicktechmohit) December 28, 2017

A user tweeted the images of the update and screenshots post the update with a new layout and confirming that the device indeed is the Moto X4. The update has a build number of OPW27.2 and along with the new version of Android, also brings the December security patch. This means that Android Oreo features like Picture-In-Picture, Notification Dots and better back-end functioning will now be present in the Moto X4. An update to Android 8.0 Oreo also means that the device will now support all Bluetooth 5.0 features.

The Moto X4 was launched in India at a starting price of Rs. 20999 and is one of the few phones in this price range that offers an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance.

The Moto X4 has a 5.2 inch 1920 x 1080 px LTPS IPS LCD display with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 on top for protection.

The Moto X4 has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 630 chipset, 2.2 GHz octa-core processor and Adreno 508 GPU, along with 3GB or 4GB of RAM and 32GB or 64GB of onboard storage which can be expanded up to 2TB via microSD card. The fingerprint sensor is housed inside the home button which also doubles up as a single navigation button.

The Moto X4 is powered by a 3000 mAh battery with TurboCharge capabilities.

The Moto X4 has a dual-camera setup at the back. The main camera is a 12MP sensor with an f/2.0 aperture, and the 8MP secondary camera with an f/2.2 aperture is equipped with a wide-angle lens. The dual-cameras allow users to have depth effect shots, bokeh effect shots, ultra-wide angle shots, and selective focus shots. On the front of the device is a 16MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture and an LED flash. The cameras record 4K videos at 30 FPS.

December 28, 2017
Another Case Render Confirms The Design Of Samsung Galaxy S9+

The Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ will more or less be an incremental upgrade over their predecessors but, Samsung might introduce a couple of new features in the bigger of the two phones. The presence of a dual-camera setup in the Galaxy S9+ has been rumoured for a long time and a new case render yet again reveals a similar design language and a dual-camera setup for the Galaxy S9+.

The case reveals the same fingerprint sensor and LED flash placement for the Galaxy S9+ as the other case renders. The image reveals the front of the device as well which reveals slightly smaller bezels than the Galaxy S8 which is similar to the other renders of the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+.

According to a recent benchmark leak, the Galaxy S9 and the Galaxy S9+ will have the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset. According to leak, the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ will run Android 8.0 Oreo which is a positive, considering the company announced the Galaxy A8 and A8+ with Android 7.1.1 Nougat even though the devices will be launched in January.

Galaxy S9+ Renders

Another report has revealed that the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ will have a much better and accurate iris scanner that can compete with Apple’s Face ID. The fingerprint sensor will also have a new position which will much more ergonomic and easier to reach than the Galaxy S8.

The Galaxy S9 could be launched at a price similar to the Galaxy S8+ and the Galaxy S9+ could break the thousand dollar barrier and be priced similarly to the iPhone X.

December 28, 2017
OnePlus 5T Will Soon Receive Android 8.0 Oreo Open Beta Version

The OnePlus 5T was launched back in November and many were disappointed to see that the newly launched device was still running Android Nougat despite Android 8.0 Oreo launching in August. OnePlus had its reasons and promised that it would launch the beta program on its latest flagship in the coming weeks.

After the OnePlus 5 started receiving the stable build of Android 8.0 Oreo and OxygenOS, there is now news that the OnePlus 5T will soon receive its first-ever Android 8.0 Oreo open beta version. The tweet from OnePlus Germany seemingly confirmed that the open beta of Android 8 Oreo for OnePlus 5T is one the fore.

https://twitter.com/OnePlus_DE/status/945987804210667520

OnePlus co-founder also announced that the OnePlus 5 will soon be getting the Face Unlock feature which was exclusive to the OnePlus 5T so far. The Chinese smartphone maker has been pushing software upgrades regularly and this new development means that the company’s latest flagship will soon be running a stable build of Android 8.0 Oreo.

https://twitter.com/getpeid/status/944915403398098944

The OnePlus 5T has a 6-inch Full Optic AMOLED display with a 2160 x 1080 px resolution and an 80.5% screen to body ratio. This is a huge detour from the short history of OnePlus devices which have so far had a 5.5-inch display.

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Under the hood, the OnePlus 5T has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, a 2.4GHz octa-core processor, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, 64GB or 128GB of onboard storage which cannot be expanded. Powering the device is a 3300 mAh battery which supports OnePlus’ DashCharge technology.

Due to thin bezels, there is no place for a home button and the fingerprint sensor has now been shifted to the back of the phone and is placed right above OnePlus logo. The OnePlus 5T also features facial recognition for unlocking the device. The alert slider retains its place at the top left side of the phone which can be used to switch between different modes of notification alerts.

The OnePlus 5T runs stock Android 7.1.1 Nougat with customisability options thanks to the Oxygen OS on top. OnePlus has promised an update to Android 8.0 Oreo by early 2018. The Android 8.0 Oreo beta update will be pushed out to OnePlus 5T in late December 2017.

One big change in the OnePlus 5T is in the camera department. Unlike the OnePlus 5, the OnePlus 5T no longer has a secondary telephoto lens at the back. Instead, OnePlus has decided to focus on the device’s low-light photography capabilities. The cameras do not have OIS and OnePlus has decided to go for EIS on the dual camera setup at the back. The device has a 16MP camera with an f/1.7 aperture coupled with a 20MP sensor with the same f/1.7 aperture and field of view, ie no optical zoom. On the front is a 16MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture.

December 28, 2017
Apple iPhone SE 2 – What To Expect?

Update 27/11 – Reports claim that the iPhone SE 2 will have a glass back and support wireless charging. Read the full story here.

Apple launched the iPhone SE back in March of 2016 after it had moved on from the conventional “small-screen” design on its iPhones. The iPhone SE was a relatively cheaper offering for people who still preferred the look and feel of the iPhone 5s but, also wanted upgraded hardware. It had the same chipset as the previously launched iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus in the body of an iPhone 5s.

The iPhone SE, at the time of its launch, was priced at Rs. 39000 in India which was much less than the introductory price of the older gen iPhones in India. In a price-sensitive market like India, the availability of an iOS device that did not compromise on hardware and also offered a compact flagship design helped Apple penetrate further into the Indian market. The Indian market had a certain section of society that thrived to buy a new iPhone while the rest of the population resorted to Android devices thanks to its wider availability and cheaper price tag.

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The iPhone SE allowed people to enter the Apple ecosystem. Not just in terms of sale, the iPhone SE was groundbreaking for Apple because it was the first (and so far the only) iPhone that was manufactured in India. This helped Apple keep the price of the iPhone SE much lower than its predecessors. Apple began manufacturing the iPhone SE in India in May of 2017 and since then the price of the iPhone SE has significantly lowered. Currently, the iPhone SE retails for Rs. 18499 for the 32GB storage variant.

The iPhone SE lineup was not refreshed in 2017 and instead, Apple launched three new iPhones later in the year in September. The iPhone X being the most significant of the three. Ever since the launch event in September, there have been rumours that the ‘SE’ lineup will see a new iteration in March of 2018 with a complete design overhaul.

Design

While the iPhone SE was reminiscent of the past, the iPhone SE 2 will represent the present and what the future holds for the compact lineup of iPhones. There has been concept renders of the iPhone SE 2 which imagine an iPhone X-like design in the shape of the iPhone SE. A few months ago, an image from Weibo revealed a glass back panel of the iPhone SE 2.

This would make sense for Apple as the new iPhones launched in 2017 have a glass back panel to enable wireless charging. With a glass sandwich design for the iPhone SE 2, it will fit seamlessly into the iPhone lineup.

USP of the iPhone SE lineup is its compact look and feel without compromising on hardware. Apple could go with a nearly bezel-less design for the iPhone SE 2 and incorporate Face ID since the company has already hinted at phasing out Touch ID in favour of its facial recognition technology. You can watch the entire concept video here.

Specifications

The iPhone SE was powered by the Apple A9 chipset, just like the iPhone 6s. Similarly, the iPhone Se 2 could be powered by the A11 chipset. Other iPhone features like wireless charging could also make its way to the iPhone SE 2. While the concept video of the iPhone SE 2 shows off a dual-camera setup at the back, Apple might retain the single-camera setup especially if the device will be incorporating Face ID.

Price

In a market like India, the price is an integral factor. It can break or make a device. Unlike all other iPhones, the iPhone SE is manufactured in India in Apple’s Bengaluru plant. The iPhone SE 2will also be manufactured in India which means that unlike the iPhone 8 or iPhone X, the price of the iPhone SE 2 in India will not be inflated and might launch in the sub-35K price bracket.

The smartphone market doesn’t have many compact flagship phones and the iPhone SE 2 might fit the bill perfectly.

Would you be interested in an iPhone X-like iPhone SE 2? Let us know in the comments!

December 27, 2017