Tag: Notch

Samsung Files Patents For New Notch Designs

Samsung held a developers conference last month where they showcased a variety of display notch designs. The designs included an Infinity-O, Infinity-U, and Infinity-V display notch designs. On December 10, Samsung launched the Galaxy A8s smartphone which has an Infinity-O display. The smartphone has a lateral cutout in the display for the front-facing selfie camera. Samsung has also filed patents for six other notch designs. The new patents seem to be a combination of the Infinity-O and the Infinity-U display notch designs.

New Notch Designs

Samsung filed the patents for six new notch designs to the KIPO (Korean Intellectual Property Office) which were granted on 10 December 2018. According to the patents, the height of the notch varies as per different models. Out of the six designs, the notch in four patents is placed below the bezel. While two patents reveal notches that are partly integrated into the bezel. The patent number 3 in this list has a “U” shaped cutout above the top bezel. Although its purpose is unclear as of now, it might be used to attach an accessor or this could be the earpiece of the phone. Certainly, these patents are of less importance to the end customer, it provides vital insight into the design language what future smartphones will look like.

Also Read: MediaTek launches Helio P90 SoC With APU 2.0

The first Samsung smartphones with the Infinity-U and the Infinity-V display will launch in 2019. In the future, the notch can evolve into something like the ones on these patents. According to the source manufacturing smartphones with these types of notch designs are comparatively cheaper. Therefore, these notch designs are likely to be seen on midrange and budget smartphones. Samsung is not only gearing up to adopt the notch but they are also planning to bring them to the mass market.

December 14, 2018
Samsung Succumbs To The Notch

Remember Samsung’s advertisement mocking Apple when the iPhone X came out? Well, it seems that Samsung has finally given in to the notch and has decided to go with the general flow of the industry. Albeit, the notches are not as big as the iPhones’ but they are notches nonetheless. Samsung was one of the very few companies that did not have notches on their phones but now it seems the company has changed it’s stance as they revealed three different notch designs at a developer conference recently.

Notch Specifications

The fact that Samsung is looking into notch designs was in the rumour mill since a long time and the event confirms that truth. In the conference, they showed three different types of notches – the V-notch, the O- notch and the U- notch. The V- notch is in the shape of a V. It is located in the middle of the screen on top. The U- notch aptly looks like a U and is located on the middle top. It is similar to what we have seen in the Essential phone and a few other phones. The most interesting of the three is the O- notch that is in the shape of a circle. This notch is on the top left side of the screen. It looks like a hole, a cutout inside the screen.

Also Read: Samsung Mocks The iPhone X Notch And Other iPhone Things In New Advertisement

Screengrab of Samsung’s advertisement mocking Apple’s notch

It is still unclear as to how Samsung is going to utilise this notch if the consumer is going to accept the weird position of the camera or not. We really like this position as it provides an unobstructed view when it comes to watching videos or consuming other content. The New Infinity panel is the most interesting thing showed by the company. It is a notch-less, bezel less design that everyone was waiting for! If rumours are to be believed it might even have an under display camera and will be seen on the upcoming Galaxy S10!

November 8, 2018
OPPO Find X Will Have A Record Breaking 93.8% Screen-To-Body Ratio

Smartphone marketing, as we have come to realise, can often be misleading. The Lenovo Z5 is the latest example of that. We expected a truly bezel-less device and instead got a notched smartphone with a mediocre design. The next smartphone to create waves of interest is the OPPO Find X. The new flagship smartphone from the Chinese smartphone maker is set to launch on June 19th in Paris.

The screen area ratio of OPPO Find X is 93.8% pic.twitter.com/PMnppvACRu

— ICE UNIVERSE (@UniverseIce) June 16, 2018

Like the Lenovo Z5, the company has been teasing the design and features of the OPPO Find X on social media. In its latest post, the company claims that the smartphone will have a whopping 93.8% screen-to-body ratio. The current record holder is the newly Vivo NEX with a 91.2% screen-to-body ratio. OPPO will attain this ratio with a notch while the Vivo NEX, as we all know, doesn’t have a notch. With this screen-to-body ratio, OPPO’s record might not be broken for a while since the industry is still limited in the way an AMOLED display connects to a motherboard. So far, only the iPhone X has managed to not have a chin by curving the display inwards. It’ll be interesting to see OPPO executes its design for the Find X.

Vivo NEX

Even the notch on the OPPO Find X is expected to be different from what we’ve seen on any device so far. A recent teaser shows that the notch will be much more curved than devices like the iPhone X or Mi 8. This should result, at least on paper, in a much less asymmetrical design compared to other notched smartphones. However, this is just an educated guess from the teaser and the end result could be completely different, as we have seen on the Z5.

The OPPO Find X is expected to feature a 6.4 inch AMOLED display with a 2280 x 1080 px resolution.

https://twitter.com/bang_gogo_/status/1007504825930506240

The device could run on the Snapdragon 845 coupled with up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of onboard storage. The storage will be expandable via a microSD card. The fingerprint sensor will be placed on the back of the device which also houses a 16MP dual-camera setup. The notch will house a 25MP sensor for selfies.

The launch of the Find X is just a day away and the specifications, coupled with the ambitious design surely makes this the most anticipated OPPO device yet.

June 18, 2018
Google Pixel 3 XL With A Notch Leaked In Live Images

Google will launch its next generation of Pixel devices in October this year. In this year’s first Android P developer’s preview, Google introduced the support for different types of notches. This gave rise to speculations that the upcoming Google Pixel devices would also have a notch, just like many other Android devices in 2018. New images of a Pixel 3 XL prototype seemingly confirm those speculations as the smartphone is sporting a notch in the images.

Two images, one of the front and one of the back of the Pixel 3 XL have been leaked online. The front of the smartphone looks eerily similar to other Android smartphones like the OnePlus 6 and Huawei P20 Pro. The notch isn’t wide like the iPhone X or Mi 8. However, if you look closely, the notch does house two sensors, flanked on either side of the earpiece. Could Google launch the Pixel 3XL with a dual front-facing camera setup? Or is it working on a 3D facial recognition system like Xiaomi and Apple? We will have either wait till the launch or a more concrete leak to find answers to that.

The back of the Google Pixel 3 XL looks similar to its predecessor. It has the same dual-shade design with classic “glass window.” There were rumours that Google will finally introduce wireless charging to Pixel 3 devices. With that in mind, it is possible that the Pixel 3 XL will have a glass back with two different finishes, to maintain the “glass window” look.

Must Read: Google Sued For £3.2 Billion For Secretly Tracking Browsing Data For 4.4 Million iPhone Users

It also appears that Google will maintain its stance on the number of cameras you need on a phone. The Pixel 3 XL will retain the single camera setup on the back. The Pixel 2 devices had the best camera on a smartphone in 2017 and the company would want to repeat that this year as well. Google will rely on its machine learning and AI to produce portrait mode shots.

The leaked images could well be of an early prototype of the Pixel 3 XL. However, it seems more and more likely that the Pixel 3 devices will sport a notch come October.

June 8, 2018
Lenovo Z5 Running On Snapdragon 636, With An iPhone X Like Notch Launched

Lenovo started teasing its revolutionary “all-screen” Lenovo Z5 a few weeks ago. The teaser images posted by Lenovo’s Vice President Chang Cheng painted a very rosy image of what the Lenovo Z5 might look like. However, the launch of the Lenovo Z5 revealed that the new smartphone doesn’t look all too different from many Android smartphones of 2018.

The Chinese smartphone maker claims that the Lenovo Z5 has thinner bezels compared to the Mi 8 and the iPhone X. The notch, as well, is smaller on the Z5 compared to the two smartphones. This is true but, it is also worth noting that both the Mi 8 and iPhone X have 3D facial recognition system. This means that the notch on these smartphones solves a purpose, while the notch on the Z5 only houses the necessary sensors and the front camera. The company claims that the Z5 has a 90% screen-to-body which is impressive.

The Lenovo Z5 is priced at CNY 1399 (Rs 14700 approx.) for 64GB storage variant and CNY 1799 (Rs 18,900 approx.) for the 128GB storage model. It goes on sale in China on 12th June at 10 am.

The Lenovo Z5 has a 6.2 inch IPS LCD display with a 2246 x 1080 px resolution. This translates into an 18.7:9 aspect ratio which is mainly because of the notch. The display has the DCI-P3 colour gamut and has a brightness of up to 700 nits.

Teaser Sketch Didn’t Reveal A Notch

Under the hood, the Lenovo Z5 runs on the Snapdragon 636 chipset. This chipset made its global debut with the Redmi Note 5 Pro and has since been used in devices like the Zenfone Max Pro as well. Coupled with the Snapdragon 636 will be 6GB of RAM and either 64GB or 128GB of onboard storage. The fingerprint sensor is placed on the back of the smartphone and not under the display. This is another feature which was anticipated in the device.

Powering the smartphone is a 3300 mAh battery which will charge via a USB-C port and 18W fast charging support. The 45 days standby time is a software feature, just like we anticipated. Out of the box, the device will run Android 8.1 Oreo with ZenUI 3.9 on top. Lenovo did adopt stock Android last year for devices like the K8 Note but, has stuck to its custom skin for the Z5.

The back of the smartphone houses a vertically-placed dual-camera setup which is uncannily similar to the iPhone X and many other Android devices. Back when the iPhone X was launched, it was mocked for “lack of imagination” as the company barely changed the orientation of the dual-camera. However, here we are with almost every Android device now launching with a vertically-placed dual camera setup. It has a 16MP primary sensor with an f/2.0 aperture and an 8MP secondary sensor. To the front is an 8MP camera with f/2.0 aperture.

The Lenovo Z5 is, without a doubt, far from the promised land. It has features that every other Android device in 2018 possesses and the design as well, is no different from the likes of OnePlus 6 and Mi 8. There are no details about the smartphone launching in India yet, but, we do expect Lenovo to launch the Z5 in other markets as well.

June 5, 2018
Motorola One Power Leaked In Live Images

A couple of days ago, we came across a render of an upcoming Moto device, the Motorola One Power. The smartphone is touted to be Motorola’s entry into the world of notched smartphones. According to the render, the Motorola One Power will have an iPhone X-style wide notch. A new live image has now appeared online which could be the final design of the Motorola One Power. The image is in line with the previously leaked render.

According to the leaked image, the Motorola One Power will have a wide iPhone X style notch. So far, we have seen Android smartphone makers go for a very thin notch, like the OnePlus 6 and Huawei P20 Pro. The recently launched Mi 8 has a wider notch but, that is mainly because it has 3D facial recognition. It is highly unlikely that the Motorola One Power will feature any sort of 3D Face Unlock feature. This notch could just be a design decision more than anything else.

The reason the iPhone X was not slated too much for its notch was that Apple managed to get rid of the chin. Android OEMs have embraced the notch but, not found a way to get rid of the chin. The Motorola One Power is no different here. The chin on the Motorola One Power is very prominent and sort of resembles the Pixel 2 XL albeit, a missing speaker.

Must Read: Apple iPhone SE 2 Won’t Launch At WWDC 2018

As many would have guessed it by now, the name of the smartphone suggests that it’ll be an Android One device. The Motorola One Power could be the first Android One smartphone with a notch. This should not be an issue in terms of app compatibility since Google has provided support for the notch in the developer’s preview of Android P.

There is also a high probability of this being a repackaged Moto X5. Long before the launch of the Moto G6 series, a series of leaks revealed the design of the upcoming Moto X5 with a similar notch. There is a possibility that Motorola will rebrand the Moto X5 as the Motorola One Power to market it as an Android One smartphone.

It is possible the Motorola One Power will be unveiled after the Moto Z3 Play will launch in early-June. We will keep you updated with all there is to know about the new Motorola smartphone.

June 1, 2018
Google Pixel 3 Notch Revealed In Leaked Image Of A Screen Protector

Google launched the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL in October 2017. The Pixel 2 XL was the modern-looking sibling of the two while the smaller Pixel 2 retained a 16:9 aspect ratio. With the Pixel 3 lineup, there have been rumours that Google will embrace the notch. These rumours gained weightage recently when Google introduced support for notch with Android P developer’s preview. According to a leaked image of the Pixel 3 XL screen protector, Google is indeed planning to go the notch route.

A sketchy-looking leaked image of the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL screen protectors has surfaced online. The image reveals that both the smartphones will have front-facing stereo speakers, something we saw on the Pixel 2 devices as well. However, the more interesting bit is that the Pixel 3 XL will sport a notch similar to the OnePlus 6 and Huawei P20 Pro.

The chin appears to be prominent as well which might not go down well with consumers. The iPhone X showed us that having a notch means you can reduce the size of the the other three bezels considerably. Having a notch and a chin aesthetically as well, does not look that great. However, at least the chin will solve a purpose here as it will house a speaker. Google Pixel 2 lineup had great sounding speakers and we expect Google to build up on that.

The Pixel 3 will also get an upgrade to an 18:9 aspect ratio. The smartphone won’t sport a notch but, it will have a relatively thick forehead which will house a front-facing speaker. The chin appears to be of the same size as the Pixel 3 XL. Apart from the size, the main differences between the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL will be in the display type and battery size.

Pixel 2 XL

The Google Pixel 2 lineup, despite their great camera performance, was marred by a plethora of hardware issues. With the Pixel 3 lineup, Google would want to rectify that and launch two impressive flagship smartphones.

May 29, 2018
Xiaomi Mi 7 Will Have iPhone X Like 3D Facial Recognition Technology

The Xiaomi Mi 7 has been in the news ever since the company decided to not launch it at MWC 2018. Xiaomi instead launched the Mi MIX 2s and it appears that the Mi 7 won’t launch very soon. Numerous reports have claimed that the Xiaomi Mi 7 will have Face ID-like 3D facial recognition hence, also sport a notch very similar to the iPhone X. A new image posted on Weibo gives a glimpse of what technology Xiaomi will use to attain the accuracy that Face ID has.

The image was uploaded by a prominent Chinese tipster who claims that this is an official image revealing all the sensors that will be housed inside the Mi 7 notch. Coincidently, the image looks very similar to Apple’s promotional images of the notch. The module is designed by Xiaomi itself and will include an Infrared (IR) sensor, a dot projector, front-facing camera, earpiece, ambient light sensor, and a proximity sensor. For context, the iPhone X notch houses an Infrared camera, flood illuminator, a dot projector, and a front-facing camera along with necessary sensors.

Must Read: Lenovo’s Next Flagship Smartphone Will Be Tailor-Made For Notch Haters

If Xiaomi pulls it off and these reports have any weight of truth, the Mi 7 could be a very interesting Android smartphone. The Mi 7 could be what the Mi MIX was for Android devices in 2016 with its nearly bezel-less design. Companies like Samsung, Huawei, Google will also look to implement a similar technology sooner rather than later if the Mi 7 is launched with 3D facial recognition technology.

Another interesting thing to note in the Weibo post is that the smartphone has the Mi 8 moniker. This is speculated because 2018 is Xiaomi’s 8th anniversary and there are rumours that the Mi 7 will be launched as Mi 8 to celebrate the anniversary. This would again be similar to what Apple did with the iPhone X, skipping the iPhone 9 moniker to celebrate ten years of iPhones.

The launch of the Mi 7 could happen soon, and the smartphone will go on sale later in the year. How Xiaomi goes about the whole launch and sale situation is yet to be seen.

May 16, 2018
Lenovo Z5 Will Have iPhone X Like Thin Bezels Without The Notch

A couple of days ago, Lenovo’s Vice President Chang Cheng shared a teaser image of the company’s upcoming flagship device on his Weibo page. The image revealed the top-left side of the smartphone which hinted at the fact that the device won’t have a notch. The bezels were also extremely thin. To continue hyping up the phone, the Lenovo VP has posted a sketch of the smartphone, the Lenovo Z5.

If this one image is anything to go by, the Lenovo Z5 might be one of the most exciting smartphones to launch this year. The sketch reveals that the Z5 won’t have a notch, and the bezels will be evenly spread out on all sides. The sketch, which could exaggerate the design a bit, shows iPhone X-like thin bezels on all sides of the smartphone.

Many questions arise after looking at the sketch. The front camera, earpiece and the necessary sensors appear to be missing here. There are rumours that the smartphone will have a flip-up front camera, something we saw at MWC 2018. The fingerprint sensor could have easily been placed at the back but, rumours claim the smartphone will have an in-display fingerprint sensor. However, considering how expensive that tech still is, we expect a rear-mounted fingerprint reader on the Lenovo Z5.

The sketch also shows the USB C port located at the bottom while the headphone jack is missing. It is possible that the company could place it on the top but, considering the industry-wide trend, we could see headphone jack-less Lenovo Z5. Apart from that, the image doesn’t really tell us anything else about the device.

The launch of the flagship device is still over a month away. The new sketch does increase the interest in the Z5, especially considering the slew of smartphones that sport a notch these days. The Lenovo Z5 could be a breath of fresh air the smartphone industry is in dire need of.

May 11, 2018
Lenovo’s Next Flagship Smartphone Will Be Tailor-Made For Notch Haters

The smartphone industry, every year, is dominated by a certain trend that is usually overdone by many OEMs. The launch of the iPhone 7 Plus propelled smartphone makers into launching dual-camera devices in late-2016. With the launch of the iPhone X, we are seeing an increasing number of smartphone vendors embracing the notch. However, Lenovo appears to be set on a less trodden path and go with a traditional design for its new flagship smartphone.

Lenovo’s Vice President Chang Cheng shared a teaser image of the company’s upcoming flagship device on his Weibo page. The company’s next flagship smartphone is expected to launch on June 14th. Accompanying the image was a poll, asking users to predict the screen-to-body ratio of the smartphone, with “95% or more” being the biggest option.

Must Read: OnePlus 6 Will Have Galaxy S9-Like Heart Rate Sensor

Huawei P20 Pro

The front of the smartphone is visible in the image but, only partially. However, enough of the smartphone is visible to incur that the new device won’t have a notch like the iPhone X or Huawei P20 Pro. It appears that Lenovo has taken the Samsung route with its new flagship smartphone. The astonishing part is the lack of bezels on the side and the top of the smartphone. The top bezel is almost invisible, much like the chin of the iPhone X.

Must Read: Apple iPhone To Launch Next Year With Triple Camera Setup

Bezels around the display, however, have a purpose and aren’t just there for OEMs to remove and show “progress.” The bezels house the earpiece, sensors and the front-facing camera. From the looks of it, Lenovo might have the gone the Xiaomi route with this by making the bottom bezel a bit thicker and house the front-facing camera in it. This could be the reason why the bottom bezel was not revealed in the teaser.

Mi MIX 2

The launch of the flagship device is still over a month away. The image does increase the interest in this smartphone especially considering the slew of smartphones that sport a notch these days.

May 9, 2018
Nokia X To Launch On May 16th With Display Notch

HMD Global has launched a few impressive smartphones in 2018. The Nokia 7 Plus and Nokia 8 Sirocco, in particular, have great design and look a lot like a modern-day smartphone. With its new smartphone, however, the company will jump aboard a new hype train. The Nokia X will be the company’s new budget offering with a notch. Two new promotional posters from HMD Global and Chinese retailer Suning reveal a few details about the upcoming smartphone.

The first poster, from HMD Global, reveals that the Nokia X will launch on May 16th at Sanlitun in Beijing. It also appears that the supply/air drops pictured on the HMD poster are a homage to games like Fortnite and PlayerUnknown Battlegrounds. This means that the upcoming device will have a few gaming features.

The poster from Suning reveals the Nokia X in all its glory. The images of the smartphone on the poster corroborate with previous leaks, revealing a notch on the display and a vertically placed dual-camera setup on the back. The notch has become incredibly common these days to a point that you can barely make out the differences between many phones. The Nokia X, for example, looks a lot like the Huawei P20 Lite from the front.

The Nokia X will sport a 5.8 inch IPS LCD display with a 2280 x 1080 px resolution. This translates into a 19:9 aspect ratio, the same as the P20 Lite.

The vertically placed dual-camera setup is in the usual Nokia position but, the “Carl Zeiss” branding is missing. This means that the Nokia X will cost somewhere between the Nokia 7 Plus and Nokia 6 2018. There are rumours that the device will have two variants, one running on the Snapdragon 636 with 6GB of RAM and the other with the MediaTek Helio P60 chipset coupled with 4GB of RAM.

The smartphone will also have a glass build, something that a lot of mid-range smartphones sport nowadays. The Moto X4 and P20 Lite being the latest examples. The launch of the Nokia X is scheduled for May 16th, the same day as the global launch of the OnePlus 6. Fair to say that the month of May is turning out to be an eventful one for the smartphone industry.

May 8, 2018
LG Claims It Did Not Copy Apple iPhone X’s Notch

The Essential Ph-1 was technically the first smartphone to have a notch on the display. It was a tiny cutout on the top for the front-camera which made it look like a cyborg’s eye. However, the notch was made famous by the iPhone X which was launched in September 2017. Ever since the iPhone X was launched, we have seen more Android OEMs have embraced the notch with devices like the Huawei P20 Pro, Asus Zenfone 5Z. The latest to join the list is the LG G7 ThinQ.

Must Read: LG G7 ThinQ To launch In India On May 25th

LG, however, claims that it did not imitate the iPhone X. Hwang Jeong-hwan, chief of LG’s mobile division in an interview said:

We planned the notch design before Apple. The display design may look similar to that of other smartphones, but boasts differentiated features.

The LG G7 ThinQ is not the last smartphone to sport a notch, though. The OnePlus 6, scheduled for a May 16th launch will also have an iPhone X-like notch. Google has also recognised the growing popularity of the notch and decided to introduce a feature in the first developer’s preview of Android P. We expect Android P to have better support for this design and more apps will be acclimatised with various kinds of notches in the near future.

Must Read: OnePlus 6: Everything We Know So Far

The LG G7 ThinQ was launched on the 2nd of May and is expected to launch in India on the 25th of May for a price of Rs 54999. It has a has a 6.1 inch IPS LCD display with a 3120 x 1440 px resolution. The device has a 19.5:9 aspect ratio which will come in handy when the user decides to hide the notch.

Under the hood, the smartphone runs on the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset coupled with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage. The storage will be expandable via a microSD card. Powering the G7 ThinQ is a 3000 mAh battery with QuickCharge 4.0 and wireless charging. The G7 ThinQ+ will have 6GB of RAM and 128GB of onboard storage.

The power button now sits on the right side of the device in a more conventional position. Interestingly, there is a Google Assistant button placed below the volume rockers on the left side. The button is not remappable right now and can only be disabled if a user is not a fan of the Google Assistant.

Must Read: LG G7 ThinQ To launch In India On May 25th

May 5, 2018
Xiaomi Mi 7 Leak Reveals It Will Have An iPhone X Like Notch

Most of the flagship smartphones in 2018 will have a notch. We have already seen a few Android OEMs embracing the notch and upcoming smartphones like the OnePlus 6, LG G7 ThinQ will also sport it. Xiaomi was expected it to launch the Mi MIX 2s with a notch but, the company stuck to its original MIX design and avoided a lot of backlash. However, it looks like Xiaomi will give in to the industry trend with the launch of the Mi 7. New images of the Mi 7’s tempered glass reveal that it will have a notch as well.

The images do look real are taken from different angles. Unlike a lot of leaked images, these are high-res images giving us a clear view of what the display of the Mi 7 might look like. It is clearly visible that the glass has a cutout for a fairly large notch. It is worth noting that this notch is bigger than the ones found on the Huawei P20 Pro, Asus Zenfone 5Z or even the upcoming OnePlus 6. In fact, it resembles the iPhone X in terms of the size of the notch.

Must Read: 2018 Apple iPhone With LCD Display Won’t Have 3D Touch

The reason behind a bigger notch compared to other Android devices could be facial recognition. For weeks it has been rumoured that the Xiaomi Mi 7 will have an iPhone X like facial recognition system. This means that its Face Unlock feature won’t rely on just software and have the hardware for a much secure facial recognition system. Hence, there are quite a few cutouts in the notch as well. These cutouts could be for the depth-sensing cameras, similar to the iPhone X.

iPhone X Face ID

A previous report claimed that this technology won’t make its way to the market before the third quarter of 2018, which is when we can expect the Mi 7 to be launched. The report also mentions that Qualcomm, Himax Technologies and Truly Opto-Electronics have a joint venture for creating a 3D sensing module. However, this only works on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 platform. Since smartphone makers like Samsung and Huawei use their own chipset, they won’t be the first OEMs to introduce Face ID like technology on an Android smartphone.

Must Read: OnePlus 6: Everything We Know So Far

This means that a recent leaked official-looking poster of the Mi 7 is fake. The poster claims that the Mi 7 will be launched on the 23rd of May. The Xiaomi Mi 7 will certainly be an exciting Android smartphone with its 3D facial recognition technology. However, it does seem that the launch of the Mi 7 is still a few months away. So far, a launch in the third quarter of 2018 seems most likely.

May 1, 2018

LG G7 ThinQ With An iPhone X Like Notch Leaked In Live Images

LG was expected to launch the LG G7 at Mobile World Congress 2018. However, days before the event, LG CEO conceded that the company will rework on its next flagship device. It was also revealed that the LG G7 was showcased behind closed doors at MWC 2018 when an Israeli publication leaked its images. Now, live images of the LG G7 have been leaked and they reveal a couple of important aspects. The LG G7 will be launched as the LG G7 ThinQ and also sport an iPhone X-like notch.

The company launched the LG V30S ThinQ at MWC 2018, a standard LG V30+ with the new software-based AI features. Similarly, the LG G7 ThinQ is also expected to have a wide array of software-based AI capabilities, which explains the ThinQ moniker.

There has been an industry-wide discussion about Android smartphone makers adopting the notch. OnePlus has already conceded that the OnePlus 6 will have a notch and the conversation is bound to be fueled once the LG G7 ThinQ is launched. Unfortunately, the leaked images do not reveal the bottom part of the smartphone, which means we can’t say for certain whether the G7 ThinQ will also have a chin. However, recent renders have imagined the device to sport a chin, just like the OnePlus 6 will.

LG G7 ThinQ Specs

The LG G7 ThinQ with model number LG-G710TM is expected to have a 6.2 inch QHD+ 2880 x 1440 px M+ LCD display with 19:9 aspect ratio. Under the hood, the device will run on Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 Octa-core chipset with 4/6GB RAM. The smartphone will have 64GB or 128GB internal storage with a dedicated micro SD card slot. The smartphone is also likely to have an IP68 certification for water and dust resistance. A CAD-based 3D render has also confirmed that the smartphone will retain the 3.5mm headphone jack.

The smartphone will have a dual primary camera setup with a 16MP RGB sensor and a 16MP wide angle sensor with an f/1.5 aperture. However, after the Galaxy S9 was launched with a variable feature, we could see the LG G7 ThinQ sporting something similar. So far, we do not know much about the front-facing camera. It is, however, expected to have the Face Unlock feature which has slowly become a norm for all smartphones.

Model	LG-G710TM LG G7 ThinQ
Display	6.2 inch 2880 x 1440 px 19:9 Aspect Ratio M+ LCD
Processor	Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 Octa-core
RAM	4GB 6GB
Storage	64GB 128GB
Camera	16MP RGB Sensor 16MP Wide-Angle Sensor f/1.5 Aperture

April 6, 2018

OnePlus 6 Will Have An Option To Hide The Notch

“To notch or not” appears to be the most asked question in the smartphone industry. OnePlus 6, the next big smartphone to launch has been in the news for its iPhone X like notch. Recently, many Android smartphone makers have come under the firing line for blatantly copying the iPhone X design. Companies like Asus, Huawei have already launched devices with the infamous notch and OnePlus is next in line. The company received a huge backlash on social media recently for promoting and justifying the presence of a notch.

However, it looks like the social media outcry has made the company rethink a few things. While removing the notch altogether is not feasible at all, the company will introduce a nifty software trickery. Just like the Huawei P20 P20 lineup, the OnePlus 6 will have the option to hide the notch. What this will basically do is black out the top of the display, essentially leaving users with a OnePlus 5T-like design. Although a feeble feature, it might be appreciated by users who can’t stand the notch. Smartphone users appear to have very strong opinions about this whole notch business.

Carl Pei recently tweeted “learn to love the notch” after The Verge reported the OnePlus 6 will have a notch. After a collective disdain from OnePlus fans, he deleted the tweet. However, he did clarify OnePlus’ stance on the presence of the notch and why a thin chin is necessary. Carl Pei explained that the only reason the iPhone X doesn’t have a chin is that it has a curved display. At the bottom of each display is a ribbon for connecting it to the device’s logic board, which means a thin chin becomes necessary. Apple decided to curb that with a flexible OLED, which, even though is a great solution, it is also an expensive one.

The software tweak is a welcome step by OnePlus, proving that the company is not rigid in its decisions.

April 4, 2018

Tag: Notch

New Notch Designs

Notch Specifications

LG G7 ThinQ Specs