It was with the release of the Apple iPhone X in 2017, that the rumours about the next Apple iPhone began. While Apple reported record profit earnings, the company dipped to the third position as a smartphone seller behind Samsung and Huawei, with 20.9 & 15.8% respective market shares. It is an undeniable fact that overall smartphone sales have taken a hit and are relatively low in the last two years. This is also one of the reasons why HTC recently decided to quit the Indian market. However, as Apple’s September iPhone event approaches, more leaks emerge for next generation devices from the company.
The leaked images showcase both the front and rear panels of these iPhones in black and white colour variants. The three alleged screen sizes are, 5.8-inch for the iPhone XI, 6.1-inch for the iPhone 9, and 6.5-inch for the iPhone XI Plus. It has become apparent from these images that the iPhone with 6.1-inch display also has a single camera, so, it’s safe to assume that this is the alleged more affordable 2018 iPhone 9.
All three devices appear to have a notch, so it is safe to assume that even the cheaper iPhone 9 along with the 5.8-inch and 6.5-inch iPhones will have Face-ID. In the image it appears that the left most device will be iPhone XI and the right most will be the iPhone XI plus, both of which have a vertical dual camera. The middle one will have a single camera, may be dubbed the iPhone 9 and will be the most affordable of the 2018 iPhones. This naming system will also eliminate any confusion as Apple may continue to sell the iPhone X, hence in 2018 Apple iPhone 9, iPhone X and iPhone XI may be sold.
According to previous leaks, emerging markets like India and China could receive dual-SIM 2018 iPhone variants. These markets are also the key sales places for Apple and a dual-SIM iPhone could help improve the smartphone’s sales. Apple projected that it will bag even more profits in the fourth quarter of this. Since the company has been at the forefront of bringing feature-rich smartphones, albeit, at a hefty price, we look forward to see how the 2018 iPhone lineup performs. While there’s still a month before the new iPhones launch, you can go back to our Apple iPhone X vs Samsung Galaxy S8 Feat. Galaxy Note 8 video.
Apple may have had a major role to play in introducing the world to touchscreen interactive displays, in the form of the iPad. The Apple iPad later became the best selling tablets with 300,000 units sold on the first day of release on April 2010. However, the Apple iPad has since faced a fairly tough competition from companies like Samsung and devices from Microsoft like the Surface Pad. At the unpacked event, scheduled on the 9th of August in New York, Samsung will be unveiling the much anticipatedGalaxy Note 9 and the Samsung Galaxy Tab S4. A YouTube video released yesterday by the company gives us a complete walk-through of the device.
The most noticeable feature of the Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 is its sleek and slim design. While it does share some aesthetic hints from the Tab S3, the significantly thin bezel on Tab S4’s display is just enough to set it apart. The S-Pen, appears to be different from the one Samsung plans to use for the Note 9 and looks thicker than the tablet itself. The other feature is its quad speaker-setup tuned by AKG. Acquired by Samsung, AKG is an Austrian acoustics manufacturing company. The tablet also supports Dolby Atmos surround sound for what Samsung calls “an immersive entertainment experience.”
The video also showed the new S-Pen in action, which is a Samsung proprietary stylus. The S-Pen made its debut with the first Galaxy Note smartphone in 2011. The video also takes us through a number of Samsung Galaxy Tab S4’s features. One such feature is the DeX mode, which allows the users to use their tablets in a desktop mode. The added accessory, which users may probably need to buy additionally is the Book Keyboard which works like Smart Keyboard found with the iPads. The other talked-about feature in the video, Daily Board, provides daily information and favourite photos with the device locked.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S with its slim bezels also has a massive 7,300 mAh battery. The device will be unveiled at the Unpacked event on 9th August along with the Galaxy Note 9 so stay tuned for our full coverage of the event. Meanwhile, you can take a look at the video that Samsung has released.
We continue our giveaways with the new upcoming Samsung Galaxy On8 Smartphone. The device will be shipped out to winners before official launch on the 6th of August. Stand a chance to win a device even before others can buy it.
When the Shenzhen based company, OnePlus first entered the smartphone industry, it took the world by surprise. The company launched its “flagship-killer”, the OnePlus One in India on 2nd December 2014. It was the first smartphone under the Rs. 30,000 price bracket which offered flagship-like features. The smartphone had two versions of Android 4.4.2 KitKat, a CyanogenMod 13 variant and an OxygenOS 2.1.4 variant. Currently, OnePlus is among the top smartphone brands in India. The recently launched OnePlus 6 sold close to Rs. 10 Crore worth of smartphones in the first ten minutes of the sale. Now with the rumours of a OnePlus 6T possibly launching soon, here is a list of top ten feature we’d like to see in the smartphone.
1. Bezel & Notch-less Display
Oppo and Vivo are leading the industry with their first no-notch and almost all-screen display smartphones. Both the Oppo Find X and Vivo NEX managed to sport a notch-less display and achieve a screen-to-body ratio of over 85%. This is something that even the iPhone X could not achieve. The display of both the formerly mentioned smartphones makes for a good movie watching experience. Hence, a notch-less display is among the top 10 feature we would like to see in the OnePlus 6T.
Vivo NEX Notch-less Display
2. Pop-up Camera Alternative
According to the recent rumours, OnePlus 6T might feature a pop-up front-facing camera. While the Pop-up camera is the best way to achieve a notch-less display, we would still like OnePlus to come up with a better alternative. For instance, the Mi Mix 2 featured a bottom-chin mounted sensor. Although, this lead to the smartphone featuring a bigger chin, it still is an area the company could explore.
3. Stereo Speakers
While the OnePlus 6 has a considerably good speaker, it still tends to sound tinny at high volumes. Whereas smartphones like the iPhone X, Pixel 2XL or the Galaxy S9 Plus have a great stereo speaker setup. The issue with having a single speaker like the OnePlus 6 is its placement. When the phone is held in the landscape mode, the user’s palm tends to cover the speaker leading to a muffled sound output. A stereo speaker on the other hand, uses two separate speakers so you get relatively better output even with one speaker covered.
Pixel 2 XL
4. In-display Fingerprint Sensor
Despite having a pop-up camera, the Vivo NEX also features an in-display fingerprint sensor. While many claim that a face-unlock is safer than fingerprint sensor, the latter comes in handy to easily access the phone. Among the top 10 features an in-display fingerprint sensor is also something we would like to see on the OnePlus 6T.
Vivo NEX In-Display Fingerprint Sensor
5. 3D Face-Unlock
The face unlock on the OnePlus 6 is considered to be one of the fastest. However, it is nowhere close to being as secure as the Apple Face-ID. In fact, there have been cases where users were able to access a OnePlus 6 just with a photograph of the smartphone’s actual owner. Hence, a 3D face-unlock is among the top 10 features we want to see in the OnePlus 6. A 3D face-unlock would not only be more secure but also work well in low light conditions. A 3D face unlock works by using a combination of hardware and software. It uses both cameras and a few other sensors such as infrared to get a 3D scan of the subject’s face. The face unlock mechanism on the OnePlus 6 is a 2D recognition system, which is considerably less secure.
Face-unlock
6. Corning Gorilla Glass 6
Corning recently announced their new Gorilla Glass 6. The new glass panel is not only more durable than the Gorilla Glass 5 but also has customizability options. Which means, manufacturers can choose to give any type of texture to the glass panel that they would like. If OnePlus 6T features a Gorilla Glass 6 panel for both the front and the back, then we could expect some other colour and texture variants of the smartphone. Hence, this is among the top 10 features we look forward to seeing in the OnePlus 6T.
Wooden Finish On Gorilla Glass 6
7. IP Rating For Waterproof Or At Least Water-resistance
When the OnePlus 6 launched, everyone expected that the smartphone will have a IP (Ingress Protection) certification since rumours said that it will be water-resistant. Although the rumours about it being water-resistant were true, OnePlus did not mention if there was any IP certification for the smartphone. Despite not having an IP rating the smartphone is water-resistant under rainy conditions or if it takes a plunge in puddles. However, an IP rating, which is an international standard of measuring how effectively a smartphone is sealed and protected against external elements like dust and water. While IP68 would be appreciated for the OnePlus 6t, we would also be happy with IP67.
8. Keep The Jack
OnePlus is among the few companies which have not yet ditched the headphone jack from their smartphones. Even their latest flagship, the OnePlus 6 has a headphone jack. But since OnePlus launched the bullets wireless , there exists a slight possibility that the may remove the headphone jack. While Bluetooth earphones are relatively more portable than wired headphones, the level of details a good-quality wired headphone can provide is far superior than a wireless headphone. Also, most people own earphones with a 3.5 mm plug and would not want to buy a new earphone especially if they own a premium pair of earphones/headphones. Hence, a headphone jack is among the top 10 features we would like to continue to see in the OnePlus 6T.
OnePlus 6 Headphone Jack
9. Improved Camera Setup
Even though OnePlus 6 has a considerably good camera setup, it still lacks the finesse seen in the cameras of Pixel 2, Galaxy S9 and even the iPhone X. What is worth noting is that the latter devices are significantly more expensive than the OnePlus 6. However, we still think that OnePlus could do slightly better job in the camera department, along with motor improvements in the camera app and software. The company recently release the Google Camera replacement for the OnePlus 6, which could be a step in the right direction for improved camera capabilities.
10. Wireless Charging
While Oneplus has stayed away from this feature due to their dash charging, a wireless charging feature may not be difficult to add. The feature will be well received by customers and OnePlus fans.
Bonus : Sand Stone Variant
The OnePlus One launched with a sandstone finish for the rear panel. It was the first that any company had ever thought of launching phone with such a textured rear-panel. The company later discontinued the sandstone panel after the OnePlus 2 but offered it as back panel covers. We would like to see the sandstone rear panel make a comeback with the OnePlus 6T even if they do it for a limited run.
OnePlus 2 Sandstone Black
OnePlus 6T will likely launch in December this year. However, in an interview, Carl Pei, co-founder of OnePlus said, the company might not release a OnePlus 6T unless there is something new to offer. This is good news for people who bought the OnePlus 6 and would like to enjoy their smartphones for a while before the company replaces it with the T variant. However, OnePlus has been releasing T variants of its smartphone since the OnePlus 3 so it is highly-likely that the company will release a OnePlus 6T as well. The only question is, how soon and how many of these features will the smartphone have. Have a feature you would like to see in the next OnePlus device. Let us know in the comments.
Started in the backyard toolshed of Steve Jobs’ parents’ house, Apple is now one of the top brands in the world. Apple started the smartphone trend with the first iPhone. However, it was the iPhone 3GS which raked up the most sales in 2009. On 31st July 2018, Apple released a report for its Q3 revenue, revealing that the company has earned record profits. The company was able to achieve 17% more revenue than last year. Apple sold 41.3 million iPhones, 11.553 million iPads, and 3.72 million Macs. The total profits earned by the company stands at a whopping US$11.5 billion.
iPhone X
The majority of profits earned by the company is through the sales of iPhones, iPads, and Macs accounting for US$53.3 billion worth of the company’s revenue, while its services like Apple Music, accounted for US$9.548 billion. With that said, iPhones led the overall sales of US$29.906 billion out of the total US$53.3 billion. Apple predicts that it may collect revenue between $60 billion and $62 billion in the Q4 of 2018. For reference, the revenue earned from the company’s services alone is 37% more than the last year’s US$7.266 billion.
Since Apple’s event is hardly a month away, the company may be launching dual-SIM iPhones. Dual SIM phones are popular in developing and growing markets like India and China. These markets have also become the key sales places for Apple. The launch of dual-SIM iPhones will not only cater to the public demand but also help improve the smartphone’s sales. According to the recent leaks, the company might also be planning to release two iPhones this year with a 6.5-inch “alleged” iPhone X Plus and a 6.1-inch iPhone 9, with the latter in all likelihood being the cheaper smartphone of the two. Furthermore, the company is planning to bring an update for the HomePod, which is a wirelessspeaker with inbuilt Siri, Apple’s virtual assistant.
HomePod
HomePod works in a similar way as the Amazon Echo or the Google Homespeakers, it can be used as a conventional wireless speaker but it also has all the capabilities of Siri built-in. With the new update of iOS 12 beta, users will now be able to make and receive calls with the HomePod as the default audio output source. Earlier in iOS 11.4, users had to manually change the source during a call to set the HomePod as the audio output in. The iOS 12 update will also bring improvements to Siri’s general knowledge base and the ability to set multiple timers. With this update, the HomePod will also be closely integrated with the Macs running on Mojave.
Apple has undoubtedly had a great impact in shaping the future of smartphones with its iPhone lineup. Apple has been at the forefront of bringing feature-rich smartphones, albeit at a hefty price. Thus, it will be interesting to see how Apple actually performs in the Q4 despite its sale projections.
It was in the year 2013 that Huawei announced its sub-brand, Honor. The first smartphone which Huawei launched under this sub-brand was the Honor 3C in April 2014, in Malaysia. Honor entered the European market with its 2014 flagship, the Honor 6. According to reports, Honor sold 20 million smartphones in the first six months of 2015. Today, Honor is one of the top-selling brands globally, including the Indian market. The company has launched the Honor Note 10 in China, which is the second smartphone in the company’s Note series. Prior to the Note 10, Honor launched the Note 8 and skipped on releasing a Note 9. Much Samsung’s Galaxy Note, the Honor Note series is a phablet offering of the company. The only difference is, Honor does not offer any stylus like the S-Pen for the Galaxy Note series. The smartphone could launch globally before Honor’s IFA event on 30th August.
The Honor Note 10 is a premium flagship from the company known for mainly offering mid-range smartphones. The Note 10 has a 6.95-inch Super AMOLED panel with 2220 x 1080 px resolution and 18.5:9 aspect ratio, protected with Corning Gorilla Glass. The smartphone features a 3.5 mm headphone jack with support for Dolby Atmos. The handset also offer stereo speakers which many other smartphones like the OnePlus 6 lack. Honor claims that the sound output through both the speakers and earphones used with the device will provide an immersive gaming experience for users.
The Honor Note 10 uses a custom Huawei layer called the EMUI which is based on Android 8.1 (Oreo) OS. The smartphone runs on the Kirin 970 SoC which is also found on other flagship smartphones from Huawei like the P20 Pro. The Kirin 970 is an octa-core chipset with four cores running at 2.4 GHz and the other four at 1.8 GHz. The chipset uses the Mali-G72 MP12 GPU for its graphics performance. The Note 10 is one of the devices receiving the GPU Turbo update. This feature will help the smartphone squeeze out better graphics and battery performance. Also, the company has debuted its CPU Turbo technology with the Note 10 and a dedicated physical button to trigger CPU turbo mode. Furthermore, the smartphone features a heat dissipation pipe for CPU liquid-cooling system.
Honor Note 10 Heat Dissipation Pipe
Honor Note 10 sports a triple camera setup. The two rear-facing sensor includes a 16 MP sensor with f/1.8 aperture and a 24 MP B/W sensor with f/1.8 aperture. A single front-facing camera of the smartphone is a 13 MP sensor. However, Honor will incorporate a lot of AI capabilities in both the front as well as the rear camera sensors. The smartphone will be available in two storage and RAM variants in China; a 64/128GB storage option and 6/8GB RAM option. However, the 8GB RAM option will only be available with the 128GB storage variant.
Pricing And Availability
Honor Magic Book & Honor Play
The price of the Honor Note 10 in China starts at CNY2,799 (Rs. 28,114.44 approx) for 6GB RAM and 64GB storage. The 6GB RAM and 128GB storage variant will cost CNY 3,199 (Rs. 32,135.22 approx) and the 8GB RAM variant will cost CNY 3,599 (Rs. 36,153.38 approx). The current trend of mid-range smartphones goes out to show that you do not have to own a flagship in order to enjoy a similar experience. The company also launched two other devices, the Honor Play smartphone and the Honor Magic Book laptop. The Honor Play will cost CNY 2,399 (Rs. 24,100.77 approx). While the Magic Book starts at CNY 4,599 (Rs. 46,199.20 approx) with the touchscreen variant at CNY 5,699 (Rs. 57,249.23 approx). The laptop will go on sale from 1st August.
Smartphone manufacturers are making sure that users still get an uncompromising experience without having to spend a lot of money. Hence, it will be interesting to see how the Honor Note 10, as well as the Honor Play, will perform.
The guys over at Turing Space Industries (TSI) must have their offices next to some real interesting plantations. The company that once had big plans to launch futuristic phones, never seems to give up. TSI originally became popular for their Turing phone which was a crowd funded failure. A lot of people initially bought into the idea of an impressive phone, but the company failed to deliver. And hence, people cancelled their purchases leaving TSI with a massive failure.
A few years ago, the company claimed to be working on more revolutionary devices, A Turing Monolith Chaconne and a Turing Cadenza , both phones that would never see the light of day. And how would they claiming to be built on technology that doesn’t exist.
The Turing Hubble Phone takes this dream to an all new level. The company claims that the Turing Hubble Phone will launch in 2020 with a dual Snapdragon 855 chipset, a chipset not yet announced. The company also claims that the phone will have a Snapdragon X50 5G modem, yet another mythical hardware unicorn. TSI also claims the phone will be sold to those still dinking radiator water in 2020 for a mediocre price of $2,749 (starting).
Turing claims that the Hubble Phone will have three operating systems as well, because why wouldn’t it. The first will be Android P, apparently still the latest in 2020, and Turing Keplerian OS which will be in the top part of the phone ( aka the Top Deck ) the lower part or Main deck will get a combination of the two OSs in the top deck but also Sailfish 3 OS.
The company also claims that the phone will have a 5 x 12 MP CMOS sensor camera setup , 2 on the front of the “Top Deck”, 1 on the rear of the top deck and 2 on the rear of the bottom deck aka the main deck. Both decks will also have dual SIM card slots each, hence the phone will handle 4 SIM cards simultaneously. Sure to be a success in India, but that 1.8 Lakh price may dissuade buyers.
The Turing Hubble Phone will also have Emotional Machine Intelligence and Lip reading capabilities along with “Emotional detection”. The body of the Hubble phone, a name it probably gets for its telescope like design, will be made from Titanium Aluminide,a lightweight metal alloy resistant to oxidation and heat. The phone will be IP68 dust/water proof (up to 1.5m for 30 mins).
The Hubble phone also has a total of 3 AMOLED capacitive touchscreen displays. A 5.44 inch along with a 5.41 inch on the top deck and a 11.81 inch one on the main deck which as you see will fold over all the electronics. The dual SD855 chipsets , each deck gets their own, with 8 x 2.96 GHz on the clock. the lower deck gets the SDX50 5G modem.
HubblePhone includes an Artificial Reality (AfR) messaging application which allows users to send 3D animated messages projected into the recipient’s immediate physical surroundings. Honestly it doesn’t get any more ridiculous at this point. At least the company is not claiming a ridiculous 64GB of RAM , and endless battery via a non available technology. Since they already claimed those with the Cadenza and the Chaconne. The Hubble phone will have a paltry 8 GB of RAM in each deck with 256GB for each deck too. The battery will be a seemingly doable 2800 mAh in the upper deck and 3300 mAh in the main deck.
TSI does claim that the camera on the Hubble phone will be impressive with a 15x optical zoom. And, the phone will have a game mode allowing you to play PUBG endlessly while you are on a space train to mars.
A prototype is also shown off, which appears to be the phone, or a dual glass slab model with a led ring light. The hinges are claimed to be made of liquid metal, Apparently TSI doesn’t know that this is a material that Apple exclusively plans to utilise thanks to the over 40 Patents granted to Apple for exclusive usage in several scenarios.
The Huawei sub-brand, Honor sold 20 million smartphones in the first six months of 2015, two years after the brand was announced. Continuing the trend, Honor is currently one of the top-selling brands globally, including the Indian market. At an event in Beijing today, the company announced three devices, the Honor Note 10, Honor Play and the Honor Magic Book. While the Note 10 could make a global debut on 30th August, the Honor Play will make its way to India via an exclusive Amazon sale on 6th August.
While the Honor Note 10 is a productivity-oriented flagship smartphone, the Honor Play is marketed as a gaming-oriented mid-range handset. The Honor Play sports a 6.3-inch IPS LCD panel with 2340 x 1080 px resolution and 19.5:9 aspect ratio. Unlike the Note 10, this smartphone has a notch-display. The device features a 3.5 mm headphone jack with support for Histen Audio. This audio technology allows users to enjoy an immersive 3D output with 7.1 surround sound experience.
Honor Play Headphone Jack
The Honor Play uses a custom Huawei layer called the EMUI 8.1 which is based on Android 8.1 (Oreo) OS. The smartphone runs on the Kirin 970 SoC which is also found on other flagship smartphones from Huawei like the P20 Pro. The Kirin 970 is an octa-core chipset with four cores running at 2.4 GHz and the other four at 1.8 GHz. The chipset uses the Mali-G72 MP12 GPU for its graphics performance. The smartphone will feature the GPU Turbo which will squeeze out better graphics and battery performance. A dedicated Neural Processing Unit (NPU) is also included in the smartphone for enhanced AI capabilities.
Honor Play CPU
Honor Play sports a triple camera setup. The two rear-facing sensor includes a 16 MP sensor withf/2.2 aperture and a 2 MP sensor with f/2.4 aperture. The NPU will have a major role to play in the shots taken with the smartphone’s rear camera sensors. A single front-facing camera of the smartphone is a 16 MP sensor with f/2.0 aperture. The smartphone will be available in two RAM variants in China; 4/6GB RAM option with 64GB storage. However, the storage for the smartphone can be further expanded using a microSD card of up to 256GB.
Honor Play Camera
Pricing And Availability
The price of the Honor Play in China starts at CNY 1,999 (Rs. 20,056.72 approx) for the 4GB RAM variant and goes up to CNY 2,399 (Rs. 24,070.07 approx) for the 6GB RAM variant. Smartphone manufacturers are making sure that users get an uncompromising experience without having to spend a lot of money. Thus, it will be interesting to see how the Honor Play, will perform. We will cover the story in-depth once the smartphone is available globally. So, stay tuned.
It is an undeniable fact that Apple iPhones have had a great impact in shaping the future of smartphones. Despite lacking GPS and video recording capabilities, the 2007 released iPhone did fairly well in the market. However, iPhones started gaining their popularity even more after the launch of the iPhone 3G with GPS. The Apple iPhone has evolved ever since, and now is among the top selling smartphones. All the iPhone models starting from 2013’s iPhone 5s had a fingerprint sensor. Apple used the physical home button of the iPhones as the fingerprint sensor until the iPhone 7 came along. With the iPhone 7, Apple introduced its “taptic” home button which uses haptic feedback instead of a physical button to produce a button like feedback. In 2017, however, the company entirely got rid of the home button and fingerprint sensor on one of the models the “iPhone X” and introduced the Face-ID unlock mechanism. Now new 2018 iPhone lineup is about to launch in September. The recent leaks for the smartphones are images of two display panels and the rear panels.
It becomes apparent from these images, the new 2018 iPhone lineup does not have any significant design changes. Also, the image of the rear panel of these iPhones reveals a single rear-mounted camera for the device with 6.1-inch LCD display. We can assume that this will be the cheaper 2018 iPhone. The 2017 iPhone X had a stainless steel frame so we expect the 2018 models to have a steel frame as well. However, the rumours also suggest that the iPhone with a 6.1-inch display will use an aluminium frame. An aluminium frame will help keep the cost of manufacturing the iPhone down, further providing evidence for a cheaper 2018 iPhone 9.
The images tweeted by the tipster Ben Geskin, suggest that the new 2018 iPhone with 6.1-inch display will have thicker bezels. As compared to the alleged iPhone X Plus which will have relatively slimmer bezels. Apple’s biggest competition during launch the Galaxy Note 9 is rumoured to have the “best” slow-motion recording camera @960fps. It will be interesting to see how the new iPhone cameras will perform against Samsung’s new offering.
OnePlus in a post on their forums has confirmed that the company will provide the Android P update to phones as old as the OnePlus 3 all the way upto the OnePlus 6. The company also says that the updates will be available in the coming months. With Google expected to officially roll out Android P during the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3XL launch, most manufacturers working towards the Android P update will follow soon after.
OnePlus has been focusing a lot on community conversation, and this shows that the company is ready to tackle the frustration of some of the owners of the older Oneplus devices in getting some of the key features. The company, earlier this year, enabled certain camera features to their previous models via a software update.
OnePlus has now rolled out several models of the OnePlus 6, including storage and Ram variations and limited edition models including the new colours. The company may launch a new phone later this year dubbed the “OnePlus 6T”. The next version is expected to launch with a all display front removing the notch from the device completely.
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[toggle title=”OnePlus’s Post”]Including our camera improvements and the latest Android security patch, the OxygenOS 5.0.4 update for OnePlus 3 and 3T was released worldwide last week. Since it was launched, we’ve been listening to questions asking about our next major update for the OnePlus 3 and 3T. After internal discussions and evaluation, we have decided to focus our development resources on the Android P project instead of upgrading the device to Android 8.1, so that we can offer more exciting features and improvements for our OnePlus 3 and 3T users. Over the past few months, we have been working closely with Google on the Android P Beta program. Thanks to everyone’s participation and continued feedback, the progress we have made together has been greatly accelerated. The Android P update will be available on the OnePlus 6, OnePlus 5/T and OnePlus 3/3T, in this order. We will keep you all updated in the coming months. [/toggle]
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The first Xiaomi smartphone to enter the Indian market was the Xiaomi Mi 3. The company launched the smartphone in July 2014. Since then, Xiaomi has produced smartphones in all the price segments. From budget-oriented devices to flagship smartphones. A TENAA listing suggests that the company might soon launch the Mi Note 4. We expect that the device will first be launched in China and then the company will organize a global launch if it does well in the Chinese market.
Mi Note 4
The TENAA listing of the Mi Note 4 suggests that smartphone would have both LTE and GSM capabilities. The specific model number which the TENAA listing certified is M1807E8A. Also, the images for the device reveal that the smartphone may feature a transparent rear-panel. This rear-panel is similar to the one on the Xiaomi Mi 8 – Explorer Edition. We speculate that the Mi Note 4 could sport a notch display with an aspect ratio of 18.5:9. According to rumours, the smartphone may also sport an OLED panel and a 3,100 mAh Li-Ion battery.
TENAA Listing
The trend with Xiaomi smartphones is that they run on a Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset. Regardless of whether the device belongs to the flagship or the budget segment. We think the trend of using a Snapdragon chipset will continue with the Mi Note 4 as well. The smartphone may either run on the Snapdragon 660 or the new Snapdragon 710 SoC. We can also see from the leaked TENAA images that the smartphone has a triple camera setup. Although not much is known about the specification of these sensors. We speculate that there will be three storage variants of the device. The smartphone may be available with 6/4GB RAM and 32/64/128GB storage.
TENAA Listing
The Mi lineup has always been competitively priced. So, the Mi Note 4 should also follow the same trend. The price we expect the smartphone to launch at is CNY 1,999 (Rs. 20,115.94 approx). We will keep an eye out for further development on this story so stay tuned.
One of the first smartphones to feature slow-motion video recording @960fps was the Sony Xperia XZ. Following Sony, smartphone manufacturers like Samsung and Huawei also introduced 960fps slow-mo recording. Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is about a month away from release. The company might announce the smartphone at the Unpacked event, scheduled for August 9th. According to the latest rumours, the Note 9 may not only feature 960fps slow-mo video capturing but it will also record twice as long videos as the Galaxy S9. The Galaxy Note series is Samsung’s phablet (phone-cum-tablet) smartphone offering. With the Note series, Samsung has kept productivity as a priority. However, with the Note 9, Samsung could be opting for a gaming oriented marketing strategy.
Before its launch, Samsung has already teased few features of the Galaxy Note 9 through videos posted on YouTube. These features include a larger storage space and battery. So we assume that Samsung could be launching the Note 9 in 128GB, 256GB, and possibly 512GB variants. The smartphone may also have a 4,000 mAh battery. Which should be enough for the smartphone to easily last a day. The Galaxy Note 8 was able to record slow-motion videos at 240fps at 720p resolution. Whereas the Note 9 may record 960fps videos at the same or possibly higher resolution. If that is the case, then Note 9 could be one of the best slow motion recording smartphones available.
Flipkart has also teased the Galaxy Note 9 on its website. This could mean that the Note 9 may likely be a Flipkart exclusive device in India. We have already seen renders for the Galaxy Note 9 which suggest that the smartphone will have a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor. The Note 9’s 960fps video recording capabilities sound exciting on paper. However, we would need to test out the capabilities of the smartphone’s camera to see how it actually performs.
Arguably, the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is one of the most anticipated smartphones by Samsung in 2018. Scheduled for 9th August 2018, Samsung could unveil the Galaxy Note 9 at the Unpacked event. There are other rumours which suggest there could also be a Galaxy Tab S4 unveiling at the event. So, before the smartphone and possibly the tablet unveils at the event, we have decided to round up everything we know about the Galaxy Note 9 so far.
Samsung unveiled the first phablet smartphone in October 2011, people were sceptical about a device with such a large screen. Later, in December 2011, that the Galaxy Note had sold 1 million units in two months. Clearly, the smartphone was a great success for the company. Samsung went on to release 8 versions of the Galaxy Note lineup. In 2016, Samsung launched the Note 7 which the company had to eventually recall due to issues with the battery. This led to severe damage to Samsung’s reputation and sales. In the year of 2017 however, despite several rumours of Samsung not continuing with the Note series, Samsung launched the Galaxy Note 8 which went on to become one of the most popular smartphones from the company. Samsung soon caught up in the race with a 20.5% market share in the first quarter of 2018. Now, the company is ready to unveil the 9th edition of the Note lineup; the Galaxy Note 9.
Galaxy Note 7
[section label=”Specification”]
Specifications
Rendered images of the Galaxy Note 9 revealed that it will feature a rear-facing fingerprint sensor. Also, through these renders, we got a rough idea about the smartphone’s design. This smartphone could share a lot in common with its predecessor, Galaxy Note 8. There is only one noticeable difference between the Note 8 and the “alleged” Samsung Galaxy Note 9. The fingerprint sensor on the Note 8 is alongside the cameras, whereas, the Galaxy Note 9 features the fingerprint sensor below its camera setup.
Galaxy Note 9 Render
The display on the Galaxy Note 9 could be a 6.3-inch Super AMOLED panel with 2960 x 1440 px resolution. While there is no notch on the display, Samsung’s “Infinity Display” could make for an 18.5:9 aspect ratio. Since the Corning Gorilla Glass 6 is already unveiled, we expect Samsung to use it for its front and rear panels. As Corning allows design-customizability, we expect there to be a special edition smartphone featuring such a panel.
Galaxy Note 9
Samsung debuted the company’s first smartphone with a dual rear-facing camera with the Galaxy Note 8. The smartphone featured a triple-camera setup. The primary camera had a 12 MP sensor with f/1.7 aperture and a 12 MP sensor with f/2.4 aperture. This time around as well, the Galaxy Note 9 could have a 12MP wide-angle sensor along with a 12MP telephoto lens.
Galaxy Note 8 Camera
Under the hood, the smartphone could run on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset for the US and South Korean markets. For the rest of the markets, the smartphone might run on the Exynos 9810 chipset which is a Samsung SoC. There may be three variants of the smartphone with 6GB of RAM along with either 64GB/128GB/256GB storage which will be expandable via microSD card. Samsung has also released a teaser video suggesting that the smartphone could sport a massive storage, further confirming the rumours. The most exciting news yet, is that the smartphone may feature a vapour chamber heat pipe. This is a cooling system, which was also featured in the Asus ROG Gaming Phone.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16i8TH6lxmo
Samsung recently posted a video on YouTube which hinted at a possibly large battery for the Galaxy Note 9. So, we expect that the smartphone will have a 4,000 mAh battery with QuickCharge 4.0 support. Out of the box, the device could run on Android 8.1 Oreo with Samsung’s Experience 9.0 UI on top.
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Price And Availability
The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 could start at a price of US $1,228 (Rs. 84652.18 approx) for the 128GB variant. This is quite close to the price of the iPhone X, which was launched in 2017. As previously mentioned, there could be three storage variants of the device and price may vary accordingly. However, leaks suggest that the 64GB and 256GB variants will not be sold in the European market. The 512GB variant of the smartphone may have a price tag of $1,465 (Rs.1,01,004.43 approx).
[section label=”New Features”]
New Features
Samsung also plans to launch the Galaxy Note 9 bundled with month-long exclusive rights for Fortnite on Android. So this means that smartphone could be marketed as a gaming oriented device. This also means that the smartphone could support Samsung Gear VR, which is the company’s virtual reality headset to offer VR-gaming with the smartphone. We will be closely covering the further leaks of the smartphone, so stay tuned. Meanwhile, you can go back to our first look and unboxing of the Galaxy Note 8.
Most smartphone manufacturers have already embraced the notch-display. Some have even taken it a step further and introduced an almost all-screen display. However, brands like Motorola and Sony are still releasing smartphones with a notch and relatively big bezels. A recent TENAA listing of an Android One Motorola has surfaced. The listing suggests there may be a Moto smartphone with notch-display after all. The company may call this smartphone the Motorola One Power. Many companies have released an Android One smartphone including the recent Xiaomi Mi A2. The earliest leaks of the Motorola One Power were a series of hands-on images of the smartphone showcasing the device from each angle.
The Moto X4 is the company’s only Android One device on sale presently. The certification posted on TENAA suggests a second Android One smartphone by the company. The listing also reveals the smartphone’s specification including a 6.18-inch TFT display with a resolution of 2246×1080 px. Since the smartphone will have a notch we predict that it may have an aspect ratio of 18.5:9.
Motorola One Power
There is no mention of the exact chipset for the Motorola One Power. The clock speed of this chipset is 1.8 GHz. The smartphone will be launched in three RAM variants and two storage variants. Options include 3GB, 4GB and 6GB RAM with either 32GB or 64GB storage. We think that the smartphone may run on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 chipset. This is a mid-range SoC which fits the smartphone’s price-point.
The primary camera will have an 8MP sensor along with another 8MP depth sensor. The listing also suggests the smartphone will be powered by a massive 4,850 mAh Li-Ion battery. This battery will be charged using a USB Type-C port.
While there is no release date for the Motorola One Power, we think it may launch soon. The smartphone may cost $400 (Rs. 27,474.00 approx). We will keep an eye out for further development in this story so stay tuned.
While Apple was late to arrive in the wearables industry, the company is now the top brands in the segment. The Apple Watch Series 3 launched at the September 12 event, last year. Since then, the company also released an LTE variant of the smartwatch which can replace your iPhone if you manage to forget it at home or somewhere else. The sales figures for the company’s smartwatch show that the second quarter of 2018 was the best period for the company. The company managed to ship close to 3.5 million smartwatches in this quarter. To put this in perspective, this is 30% more shipment than the company’s performance last year.
Competitors like Fitbit and Garmin, have been in the wearable industry long before Apple. The company still managed to put up a strong Q2 performance this year. With that said, the formerly mentioned companies have also performed well. In fact, both Fitbit and Garmin are dominating the smartwatch market share. So, despite shipping 3.5 million products, the company suffered a decline in its market share. Which dipped from 43% to 34% in Q1 of 2018. Also worth noting is that the numbers show Apple Watch Series 3 is the more popular watch from the company. As compared to its previous gen smartwatches.
Apple Watch Series 3
Apple has a way of bringing the same features as the competition but in a more refined manner. For instance, the Watch Series 3 has a new and advanced heart rate sensor. This heart rate sensor will notify an increased heart rate of the user, while he or she is not active. The smartwatch also provides cellular functionality allowing you to place calls or use iMessage for texting without having their smartphone connected. The Watch Series 4 also allows users to stream 40 million songs from the iTunes and the Music App. The display of the watch acts as an antenna for the electronic SIM card.
With rumours of an Apple Watch Series 4 now picking up the pace, it will be interesting to see what the company does differently with this iteration of its wearables. We have previously covered the Apple Watch Series 3 in-depth.
