Less than an year ago, we were introduced to iPhone 5s and now rumors are gathering about its replacement, which should, if previous versions are taken in consideration, be called the iPhone 6.
Will it be bigger, or stay the same size? Will it have standout features? Will it be joined by an iPhone 6C, or the iWatch? Everyone is anxious to know what Apple is planning to do with the new Flagship phone. Sadly we need to wait till September for an official word.
A new report from China details an astonishing new launch date for another iPhone variant from Apple. The report is accompanied with alleged pricing details, as well as the name of the anticipated larger 5.5-inch iPhone 6 variant: The iPhone Air. The company first used the “Air” appellation to tag its smaller MacBook model, and has later used it for the full-size iPad’s. Both times the end result was a sleek and sexy looker with good performance.
When the next-gen iPhone lineup does launch sometime this fall, many expect the handset to feature a complete redesign with a relocated sleep/wake button, slimmed-down profile and advanced innards like an “A8” processor. It is also believed that Apple plans to differentiate the denoted 5.5-inch version from its smaller variant by adding on features like optical image stabilization and higher storage capacities.
The report are pointing out to a September 25th release of the new iPhones. However, it is unlikely if the Apple’s history of Friday releases of previous iPhones are taken into consideration.
Apple has ‘Air’ variants for its Mac as well as iPad’s. Only the iPhones weren’t touched by Apple’s “Air”. This would be a momentous year if they do decide to launch an ‘iPhone Air’. It will be great to see Apple bring its slim on as its the pioneer of slim technology. We have already heard the rumour that Apple is planning to go for flatter headphones jack with the lightening port. Apple has no problems throwing out technology that they find redundant and soon the world follows. So it would be fun to see how the next avatar of this legendary device turns out in reality.
The new HTC Desire 516 Dual Sim secretly went online in eBay for Rs 13,302. Now, the Taiwanese vendor has officially launched the phone in the country for Rs 14,200. Well, availability of this device will certainly spice up the already crowded segment.
The HTC Desire 516 is equipped with Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean skinned with HTC Sense UI v5.1 and is a Dual Sim Smartphone that will give though competition to the Moto G. The handset that is already available in China, runs on Snapdragon 200 SoC with quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A7 processor and a Adreno 302 GPU with 1 GB of RAM.
Desire 516 sports a 5-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and backside-illuminated sensor (BSI), while it also houses a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. The HTC Desire 516 packs a 1950mAh battery that is rated to deliver up to 9 hours of talk time with no word on standby time.
The smartphone will be available in Black and White colour variants only. It comes with dimensions 140x72x9.7mm and weighs 160 grams. The Desire 516 is currently on sale at eBay and was first spotted by Maktech blog.
The company had also launched Desire 816 in May through Flipkart in India at Rs. 24,450. Well, the new device has a direct competition with Moto G. Moto G is priced at INR 12,499, and is equipped with 4.5 inches HD Display, 1.2 GHz Snapdragon 400 quad-core processor. 1 GB RAM, 8 GB or 16 GB Internal Storage, 5MP rear and 1.3MP front camera and runs on Android 4.4.2 KitKat.
Key Features of HTC Desire 516 –
5-inch Capacitive Touchscreen Display (540 x 960 pixels)
As anticipated, the BlackBerry Z3 launched in India today. The large-screen smartphone has been priced at Rs.15,990. The smartphone will be available to pre-order from Flipkart, The Mobile Store, and BlackBerry stores from Wednesday, and it will officially go on sale from 2nd July .
Sunil Lalvani, MD, BlackBerry India at the BlackBerry Z3 launch in New Delhi
Blackberry is trying hard to get back into the business, but all of their strategies seems to be in vain. This phone might be the perfect example.
Specification-wise the Z3 runs on BlackBerry 10 OS (version 10.2.1) and features a 5-inch qHD (540×960 pixels) display offering an aspect ratio of 16:9. It is powered by a dual-core 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 (MSM8230) processor with 1.5GB of RAM. The device is powered by 2500mAh battery. This doesn’t excite us since you could find n-number of phones which have capabilities to deliver a better performance, in the same or lower price segment.
The smartphone includes 8GB of inbuilt storage, which can be expanded up to 32GB via microSD card. For a lower price you could invest in a Moto G which has an internal memory of 16GB.
The camera specs also fail to attract as the device is equipped with a 5-megapixel autofocus rear camera and a 1.1-megapixel fixed-focus front-facing camera which can be found in a plethora of Smartphones in this segment.
The good bit about the phone is that Amazon has provided back-support to the company with its Appstore. Available on the new device, users can use it to download more than 200,000 apps. But then again the question arises, why wouldn’t a consumer just opt for an Android phone instead? Furthermore, loyalist have always enjoyed the BlackBerry Messenger and that too is now available on other devices.
Needless to say, the Canadian phone-maker failed to deliver a good gadget; its specifications fall short for the price it asks.
And it’s here! Micromax just announced its brand new Smartphone series at an event in New Delhi. The two new budget smartphones – Canvas Win W092 and Canvas Win W121 are powered by Microsoft’s new Windows Phone 8.1.
Specs of the Canvas Win W121 include:
12.7 cm (5″) HD IPS Screen
1.2 GHz Quad Core Processor
Qualcomm Snapdragon Processor
1GB RAM and 8GB ROM
8MP AF Rear Camera with LED Flash
2MP FF Front Camera
Leather Finish Back Panel
2000mAh li-polymer Battery
32GB External Storage Capacity
Specs of the Canvas Win W092 include:
Windows Phone 8.1 OS
Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 processor with 1.2 GHz Quad Core CPU
4-inch IPS display
1500 mAh battery
5MP rear camera with flash; 0.3MP front camera
Dual-SIM
1GB RAM; 8GB ROM
The Canvas Win W121 and Canvas Win W092 are priced at Rs. 9,500/- and Rs. 6,500/- respectively, will be available starting early July 2014.
HTC E8 One has been launched in China and its pricing is almost half as much as its aluminum counterpart M8. The much talked about plastic body is said to be solid and looks good too.
E8 fashions an impressive ergonomic Dual Curve Design, that makes the device fit in your hands easily. It has a 13MP main camera and 5MP front facing wide-angle camera. The Built-in Touch Up software balances skin tones while retaining your genuine look. The company will also provide a dual SIM version of the phone but only in selected areas, as mentioned on their website.
The new ‘Vogue Edition’ HTC M8 One is said to be similar to M8 in most of the specs. Though it is pointed out that its 13 MP camera is slower and the TV remote feature is missing. The price of the E8 is easily a steal given the near-identical features as the M8 i.e. Motion Launch, HTC BoomSound, Snapdragon 801, 5-inch 1080p screen, MicroSD expansion.
E8 is available in four colors: Polar White, Electric Crimson, Maldives Blue, and Misty Gray. The new device is said to be a little bit taller and thicker than the M8. The price set for the phone is CN¥2, 799 which rounds up to INR 27,000 approximately. We’re still uncertain about when it would be launched in India.
Well the wait is over, Microsoft has officially confirmed that Xbox One will be available in India on 23rd Sept 2014 starting at INR 39,990. They will also launch Xbox One with Kinect at INR 45,990. Both bundles will include the Xbox One console with a 500GB hard drive, Xbox One Wireless Controller, and a free 14-day trial of Xbox Live Gold for new members.
Microsoft had announced a rough September timeline for India launch (along with 25 other countries) back in March. Conspicuously, Sony launched the PS4 in India (at the same Rs. 39,990 price) in January making Microsoft lag behind by 9 months.
The owners of Xbox One with Kinect will be able to experience a number of games and entertainment experiences special to Xbox such as gesture controls, biometric sign-in, controller paring, Skype video calls, direct personalization, instant scanning of QR codes, and improved features only available with Kinect in games such “Kinect Sports Rivals,” “Dead Rising 3,” and “Project Spark.”
Both the Microsoft Xbox One and Sony PlayStation 4 use an incorporated CPU-GPU design by AMD, including an 8-core low power x86-64 AMD “Jaguar” CPU. The Xbox One’s CPU cores runs at 1.75GHz, compared to the Sony PlayStation 4’s 1.6GHz. Although, it doesn’t make any tangible difference.
Xbox One is packed with features like the Game DVR/Upload which lets you capture and record your greatest game moments and through ‘Upload Studio’ you can easily edit and share clips with your friends and community. It also offers many apps such as Skype which is specially designed for Xbox One, Internet Explorer, OneDrive, Twitch, Machinima and IGN integrated flawlessly with your games and TV experience.
Back in 2013 when it was launched in USA, Microsoft sold approximately 2 million units of Xbox One gaming consoles in its first 18 days on sale. It is too early to say that Microsoft will match its success in India, but it surely will give a tough competition to Sony’s PS 4.
Over the past weeks we have seen LG’s latest marvel, get leaked front, side and centre. This time around the Korean manufacturers latest flagship the LG G3’s press images have leaked along with the full list of specifications.
The new marvel will feature a 5.5 inch QuadHD display with a resolution of 2560 x 1440px. The first flagship to have such a resolute, the new G3 will also feature wireless charging for its 3000 mAh battery and a Snapdragon 801 chipset with 2.46 GHz on the clock. Just like last years G2, the LG G3 will also feature Optical image stabilization.
The images of the LG G3 show that the company will launch the phone in 3 colors, White, Grey and a new Copper Gold to match up to the other manufacturers. Interesting elements include the fact that the handset will support upto 2TB microSD cards. Another good news for prospective buyers is the fact that the phone will feature Globally unlocked LTE at launch even in India.
Yesterday a couple of videos teased the LG G3:
With the event scheduled for tomorrow, it seems that LG may not have any surprises left to share. Unless they pull “an Apple” on stage and use the words “One More Thing”. Either way, an anxious lot of people wait for the final launch.
HTC today at an event held in New York has launched the new HTC One aka the M8, keeping the name the same, the company has made major improvements to design hardware and software.
Design
The HTC One (m8) features a new wrap around design that vs the previous generation wrap all the way around to the front, giving the new M8 a completely new look and a brilliant new feel. HTC claims that the body of the new HTC One is 90% metal vs the 70% metal seen on the HTC One last year.
HTC has maintained the BoomSound design and claims a better sound from the device, which at first go on the M8 sounds much deeper and louder than the original One. The redesigned speaker chambers provide unto 25% more audio output and the new multi-band amplifier ensures better sound.
Hardware and Specs
The HTC One M8 features the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 chipset with a 2.5 GHz Quad Core Cpu for Asian market and a 2.3GHz Quad Core Cpu for the US market. The Front of the HTC One M8 features a 5inch 1920 x 1080p display which to some will seem like a loss considering many now offer a 2k display, the front is also covered with Gorilla Glass 3. On the inside is 2 GB of RAM and 16/32 GB storage options. You get 50 GB of Google Drive and 128 GB Expandability via microSD.
The Duo camera design features an Ultrapixel camera along with a depth capture camera which is detailed below. The main camera has a BSI sensor, a pixel size of 2.0 um, a sensor size of 1/3”, and an aperture of ƒ/2.0 with a 28mm lens. The Front camera has a 5MP BSI sensor, an aperture of ƒ/2.0 wide angle lens with HDR capability and 1080p Full HD video recording.
The HTC One M8 supports the following 4G/LTE bands :
EMEA: 800/900/1800/2600 MHz
Asia: 700/900/1800/2100/2600 MHz
AT&T: 700/850/AWS/1800/1900/2600 MHz
Sprint: FDD 800/1900 MHz , TDD 2600 MHz
Verizon: 700/AWS/1800/2600 MHz
Tmus: 700/AWS MHz
The battery on the M8 is a 2600 mAh LiPo battery and a new power saving mode promises an additional 30 hours with just 10% battery remaining.
OS and UI
This is what makes the HTC One M8 really special. A lot of focus has been spent in making this device feel like its running a custom OS. The HTC One M8 comes with Android 4.4.2 out of the box, but whats interesting is that the new HTC Sense 6 really makes the device look and feel different.
The HTC Sense 6 is sort of a mix of the previous gen Blinkfeed and a Windows Phone approach to tiles. With larger more rectangular updates in a vertical grid.
HTC has also made many interesting changes to the usability of the OS, from launching apps to tapping to unlock the device (not new) . The new Image Match tool lets you search by image and create an album featuring similar content. The new timeline view allows you to View your photos in Timeline view according to when they were taken.
New Apps from HTC including the new HTC Sense TV have been redesigned to allow more functionality and added features like showing you the social feed of the show you are watching.
The HTC One M8 has also not left out on the Fitness aspect of things thanks to the new pre loaded Fitbit app that uses the hardware within the phone to monitor your fitness. When you go for a run drop the phone and use the fitbit band and then later sync with your phone to get a comprehensive result at the end of the day.
HTC One M8 Duo Camera
The HTC One (M8) camera utilizes a dual lens and sensor configuration coupled with new processing hardware to mimic the stereoscopic vision capabilities of the human eye –two independent lenses allow it to detect and calculate the relative distance of subjects in the image. The imaging system then assigns properties to each individual pixel, which allows them to be re-purposed and reprocessed to maximize image quality.
HTC Claims that the camera can now accurately emulate the look of high-end lenses and dedicated professional camera systems. It enables “pro look” images with finite shallow depth-of-field control and captivating ‘bokeh’ and focus fall-off, which is particularly effective in portraits.
The HTC One M8 also bundles in effects into the camera library with the use of the enhanced camera hardware and the new UI traits of the new Sense 6.0 , the end resultant images can come out quite brilliantly, especially the seasons effect and the diminutional change effect, samples below.
Dimension Plus Effect
Selective Focus
Season Effect
Accessories
HTC is launching the HTC One M8 with a bunch of accessories as well, the most interesting perhaps is the dot view case. The cover has a fun dot matrix display that will give you updates on whats happening on your device like alarms, calendar notifications, messages, emails and missed calls. The funky colorful display will also show the weather information battery status and time.
The HTC One (M8) will be available globally today in Gunmetal Gray, Glacial Silver and will be rolled out in the South Asia region including India in the coming weeks Stay tuned for our hands on followup. Leave any questions below.
Samsung is all set to launch the Galaxy S5 in India on 27 March 2014. The global availability will still be 11th April, but the smartphone will be launched in India prior to that.
Including India, Samsung Galaxy S5 will launch in 150 countries all together. However, it is not clear if this launch will also include, the new range of wearable devices from the company.
The Galaxy S5 is IP67 Dust and water Resistant, which means; it can be used in rain, while swimming etc, but keeping in mind it is not water proof. The Galaxy S5 also features a hear rate sensor, located just below the back camera and aside to the flash light. It also offers a Finger Scanner, providing a secure, biometric screen locking feature and a seamless and safe mobile payment experience to the users.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 sports a 5.1 Full HD Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. The Galaxy S5 is powered by a 2.5 GHz Quad-Core CPU, Snapdragon 800 chipset and Adreno 330 GPU.
This new Galaxy is packed with a 2 GB of RAM and 16/32 GB of storage which is expandable to 128 GB via MicroSD card. The Galaxy S5 sports a 16 MP camera with an enhanced menu and user interface that allow take, edit and share photos. The Galaxy S5 offers the world’s fastest autofocus speed up to 0.3 seconds. The new Selective Focus feature allows users to focus on a specific area of an object while blurring out the background. Most importantly, the Galaxy S5 also is capable to shoot 4K videos.
The device is packed with a 2800 mAh battery which is removable if required. Talking about the battery, Samsung has introduced a Ultra Power Saving Mode which turns the display to black and white, and shuts down all unnecessary features to minimize the battery consumption. During the keynote, the company said if the S5 is at 10% battery level and if you switch on the Ultra Power Saving Mode, the device will further be active on standby for 24 hours. Connectivity options include WiFi: 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac HT80, MIMO(2×2), Bluetooth®: 4.0 BLE / ANT+, USB: USB 3.0, NFC and IR Remote.
Other features like S Health 3.0, the new Galaxy S5 offers more tools to help users stay fit and well. It provides a personal fitness tracker to help users monitor and manage their behavior, along with additional tools including a pedometer, diet and exercise records, and a new, built-in heart rate monitor. The new S Health app can sync with Samsung’s Gear line of wearables, including the Gear Fit fitness band, Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo, and it offers guided coaching and feedback while you work out.
The User Interface on the Galaxy S5 have also changed, with focus on icons, you will not see many tabs in this phone as all of it is mostly icons. Talking about the fingerprint scanner, it requires a vertical swipe over the home button to activate the scanner which might be difficult to do so holding the 5.1 inch/145 grams device with one hand. However, Samsung has reportedly tied up with PayPal to secure purchases using the fingerprint scanner which was first seen on iPhone 5s.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 will be available in new colors like charcoal Black, shimmery White, electric Blue and copper Gold. Samsung has not shared any price information, but it should out really soon. We will bring you the latest, so stay tuned!
Update : The Device will Launch on the 27th of March : Read More Here
The Samsung Galaxy S5 will come to India early April for a price that may be cheaper than the launch price of the Samsung Galaxy S4. Sources close to iGyaan, who have been pretty accurate in the past have let us know that Samsung Plans to bring the S5 to India as early as April to match up with the US availability of the smartphone which is rumored to be April 11th.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 has 5.1 inch full HD Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels and is powered by a 2.5 GHz Quad-Core CPU, Snapdragon 800 chipset and Adreno 330 GPU. The Handset has 2 GB of RAM and 16/32 GB Storage along with a 2800 mAh battery. The main camera has been bumped up to 16 MP and features 4k video capture. Samsung has also added a new set of features to their S Health application allowing better use of the inbuilt heart rate monitor and the Galaxy Gear 2 watches.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 was launched at MWC 2014 in Barcelona and is going to be their new flagship of the Galaxy S series. The phone is expected in India for a price of around Rs. 45,000 but may actually be available for as low as Rs. 40,999.
The Nokia 220 Dual SIM phone was launched at the MWC 2014 along with the Nokia X series, and is now available in India at Rs. 2749.
The Nokia 220 features a 2.4 inch QVGA LCD display and sports a 2 MP camera. This feature phone supports expandable storage up to 32 GB via a microSD card, has Bluetooth and supports Micro USB charging. This dual-SIM phone allows users to take advantage of the pre-loaded Twitter and Facebook applications. Nokia proudly says that the new Nokia 220 has been built after seeing the success of the Nokia 110 budget phone.
The Nokia 220 Dual SIM is packed with an 1100 mAh battery, which should deliver up to 15 hours of talktime and up to 24 days of standby time. This device measures 116.4 x 50.3 x 13.2 mm, while weighing 83.4 grams. The Nokia 220 is available in five color variants; Black, Yellow, Red, White and Cyan.
It seems that Nokia has no plans to launch the single SIM variant in India, which was also launched at MWC alongside this Dual SIM variant.
Recently, LG teased the mini version to the LG G2 on its Facebook page, but no other information was available. However, the company has now unveiled the smartphone sharing all the details ahead of the official launch.
LG G2 Mini will feature a 4.7 inch qHD display with a resolution of 540 x 960 pixels, which is considerably low than what we have seen on the LG G2. The LG G2 Mini is powered by 1.2GHz quad-core processor and Snapdragon 400 or Nvidia Tegra 4i chipsets, depending on what variant you choose(LTE/3G). Furthermore, the G2 Mini will feature 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of internal storage which will be expandable via MicroSD card.
The LG G2 Mini is equipped with an 8 MP primary camera along with a 1.3 MP secondary camera. The device is packed with a 2440 mAh battery, which should last a complete day. However, with these specs the device seems to be targeted at the mid-range segment of the smartphone market.
The device will be available starting March in most of the markets and will be available in Black and White color options. LG G2 Mini justifies its name with not only the size it offers, but also the features it is packed with, a smaller screen with lower resolution when compared to the G2, a less powerful processor than the G2 and even more.
Meanwhile, LG is geared up for the Mobile World Congress 2014 in Barcelona as the company has alot to share:
After the launch of the Gionee Elife E7 and the Elife E7 mini, Gionee has today launched two new smartphones in the Indian market. The GPad G4 and the GPad M2, priced at 18,999 INR and 10,999 INR respectively.
The GPad G4 sports a 5.7″ HD LCD display with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels. The device is powered by a 1.5 Ghz Quad-Core cortex A7 Processor with PowerVR Series5XT GPU. The Gionee GPad G4 is packed with a 1 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal storage.
The Gionee GPad G4 is equipped with a 13 MP primary camera with AutoFocus and LED flash(Full HD video). The secondary camera on the device is a 5 MP shooter with Full HD images. This Dual SIM, Dual Standby device is powered by a 3200 mAh battery and as claimed by the company should give a 14 hours of talktime on 3G.
This new device comes with features like Smart Gesture, Face Unlock, OTA, Game Zone and runs on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. The GPad G4 will be available in Black and White Colors.
Apple today announced some new stuff including the New OS, Mac Pro and the iPads. The event was mainly expected to unveil the next generation iPad, Apple announced iPad Air which is a 9.7 inch device and weighs just 1 pound.
Pointing out that it was once mocked as something that would “never replace netbooks,” Apple CEO Tim Cook boasted that the company has sold 170 million iPads since the device’s launch. “Remember netbooks?” He said! According to Cook, there are 475,000 iPad apps, and they’re not those “stretched out” apps you may see on other platforms. However, iPads, according to Cook, are used up to four times as much as competing tablets, and are ranked first in customer satisfaction.
