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The Most Epic Flagship Phone of the Year – Xiaomi Mi Note

Xiaomi released its latest flagship handset this month to the global market and was received with a huge fanfare. Mi Note boasts of impressive specs – packing more RAM, a bigger battery, and more powerful camera. While everybody was expecting Xiaomi to launch the Mi 5 as well as the phablet Note 2, it came as a shock when the Chinese smartphone maker launched the Xiaomi Mi Note at an event. The Xiaomi Mi Note‘s refined steel and glass design is as good as it can get. With its trim design, powerful hardware and camera, the Mi Note is a premium high-end phone that sets the benchmark for the company’s upcoming flagships, all while selling at a much more affordable price than competing phablets. The Mi Note is Xiaomi’s most expensive phone to date and is the company’s first step out of the low-to-mid-range price market.

The 5.7-inch Mi Note is designed to be slimmer than the iPhone 6 Plus and with a larger display, while boldly borrowing its name from Samsung’s Galaxy Note series. Its full, high-definition display has a resolution of 1,920 x 1,080 pixels, which equates to a pixel density of about 390 ppi (pixels per inch) and 1400:1 contrast ratio. Xiaomi has used ‘Dynamic Contrast Pixel Adjustment Technology’ which automatically improves contrast in darker areas to make pictures in the phone appear better. The phone weighs 162 grams and is actually a hair’s breadth thinner at a thickness of 6.95mm.

Inside is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor, 3GB RAM, 16/32GB storage and a 3,000 mAh battery. Xiaomi crams a 13MP Camera with optical image stabilization and two-tone flash on the rear while the front camera is a 4MP unit with a larger sensor than usual.

With both a curved glass front and rear, the Mi Note opts for rounded edges that resemble Apple’s iPhone 6 Plus on the front, but the rear curved glass (Xiaomi calls this 3D glass) is more like the bend of Samsung’s Note Edge without it being a display, of course.

Apart from the devices themselves, Xiaomi also launched some new accessories including an over the ear headphone and the Mi Box Mini media player.

Feel Light with Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact

Sony’s latest slate, the Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact is a nice smart device if you have a penchant for owning light-weighing gadgets. Now, when you hear the name, do not make judgments on its size based on the moniker. Beware that Sony refers to the 8-inch tablet as compact to merely classify it from its two erstwhile 10.1-inch devices. The company has so far lived up to the consumers’ expectations of the quality of its premium product and gladly continues to do so. The two smartphones that make up the remaining Z3 family have taken people by surprise and satisfied. Sony’s latest tablet is next in that legacy of good quality devices. With elegant looks and powerful features, the Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact has many feathers in its hat to keep you interested.

To start with, the body has a thin and light design with an amazingly beautiful display. With such aesthetic presentation, it does not lag behind in performance. The device is quick with its functions and has a long battery life. Although it’s expensive when compared to flagship tablets available in the market that have similar sizes, the strong and useful features justify the pricing. For those looking to utilize the camera of their tablet devices, the Tablet Compact may not be a delightful experience.

Sony has previously experimented with many off-beat designs, but now it tends to take a clear no-nonsense approach. The Tablet Compact has an intentional, square profile, rounding slightly only on the corners and sides. While some might feel that the device looks boring because of it, there are others who regard it as stylishly simple.

All said and done, Sony’s Z3 Tablet Compact is a well-designed and well-constructed device. It is thin and light to rest in your hands and has a noteworthy display. Its brisk performance and long battery life make it quite a promising device to buy. Although the price of the piece makes one hesitate to make the purchase because there are other lighter tablets which do not cost that much, the Tablet Compact is certainly a good choice and an owner’s delight.

The Next Big Thing! Samsung Galaxy S6 Coming Soon

“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” ~ A C Clarke

As we can see a rapid decline in the share of non-smartphones, the demand for smartphones is growing rapidly. With the pace of Smartphone evolution moving so fast, there is always something new waiting in the wings. 2015 – Time to get excited about this year’s new smartphones! According to recent reports, Samsung is planning to facelift its new smartphone dubbed, ‘Galaxy S6’. This upcoming smartphone will come in two models: one with a metal body and one with a curved edge, much like the Samsung’s Grand Note. In addition, Samsung will reportedly introduce a new smartwatch with a round screen. This watch will likely be powered by Samsung’s Tizen platform rather than Google’s Android platform. Both handheld devices and the smartwatch are expected to be unveiled at the upcoming MWC (Mobile World Congress) in the month of March, though pricing details remain unclear.

Expected Specifications

Display – Super AMOLED Capacitive touch screen

Memory – microSD, Extended up to 128 GB, 4 GB RAM

Camera – 20MP, 4992×3744 pixels, phase detection autofocus, LED flash

Want more?

A Samsung executive has said, “The Company hopes introducing curved screens could help it sell more expensive smartphones in the future, making all Galaxy S devices possible showcases for the technology. The company is working hard to bring a promising flagship phone, ‘Samsung S6’, to market. It is developing and designing the device from scratch, so you shouldn’t be surprise if you find a totally new face on the S6. The device likely will have a 5.5 inch screen with 4GB of RAM. According to reports, the S6 would have a flash on the secondary camera, so now you will have a perfect selfie phone.”

For more information, http://www.businessinsider.in/Heres-One-Way-Samsungs-Galaxy-S6-May-Be-Much-Different-Than-The-Galaxy-S5/articleshow/45874945.cms

Motorola Moto G: Making Mobile Experience Better

Motorola has kicked off its global smartphone revival with its surprise package Moto G handset that has been so attractively priced. The phone is a mid-range handset with great features and a delightfully low-end price tag.

When a low-priced handset appears with such good features, the first that takes hold of buyers’ minds is skepticism as they wonder whether the phone will do well or not in practice. But Moto G is different. On paper, it looks like an amazing handset for the price, but it also lives up to the invoice in reality. It’s turning the budget end phone market on it’s top because the Moto G contains features available in other handsets that are priced at double its cost.

So what is it about the Moto G? Well, it exceeds its competitors in several major areas, from the big 4.5-inch display to the 1.2GHz quad-core processor as well as the Android 4.4 KitKat update, all packed into a case that is similar to the Nexus 4. Given the price tag, one could not have asked for more in that phone.

The latest model is the Moto G with a 4G variant, and it also comes with a microSD slot. Although it might not have the power or precision of its smartphone competitors, the Moto G still hails from a great brand name and is positioned among good smart phones in the market.

So all in all, Motorola is a great gadget to own with nice features and a nice price too. Its camera is one area which has gone through compromise, but that can be taken with a grain of salt. Motorola may not have had the return we would have predicted –because there’s no flagship phone stuffed full of the latest technology and specs but what the now Google-owned company has done is even better. The Moto G is a top notch, low cost smartphone and we wholeheartedly recommend this as the best budget smart phone offered so far.

People Hit Likes for Nokia Lumia 930

The Lumia 930 launched already running Windows Phone 8.1; however, the Lumia 930 is probably the last phone that you will come across having capacitive navigation keys and a physical camera button alongside the standard power and volume rocker provisions. The Nokia Lumia 930 is undeniably one of the best pieces of the external hardware. It has a nice, big 5-inch display and a 1080p AMOLED ClearBlack panel with a fine layer of a sheet of Gorilla Glass 3, which allows for a great sunlight readability. The display is clear and provides for nice viewing angles and color saturation.

The Nokia Lumia 930 is a handset that has the most desirable specifications when compared to its peers form other brands. However, its raw specifications cannot camouflage the shortfalls it has on the outer. Buyers feel that the makers could have taken care of the looks and kept their approach toward 930 a bit more design-focused.

The overall user experience that people have reported while working with this device is nice and there doesn’t appear anything with a negative feedback. As it is a Lumia phone, the 930 automatically reaps the benefits of Nokia’s Cyan update on top of Windows Phone 8.1 that encompasses enhanced Camera, Creative Studio and Storyteller apps.

The device has proven its mettle with its top specifications as well as a strong performance. With its excellent display, fantastic 20MP Zeiss camera, and a promising battery life, this Windows Phone is designed to run smoothly on super-cheap hardware configurations, so with a 2.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 and 2GB of RAM for functioning, the 930 has been doing great.

As far as the public view goes and the user feedback is concerned, the Lumia 930 is arguably one of the best Windows Phones in the market. It is also an improvement over the US version, the Lumia Icon; not to miss the broader LTE band support and a free wireless charger in the box that deserve a mention.

The iPhone 5s- Replicated or Revised?

As with the older models released by Apple, the ‘S’ version has swept its loyal customers by feet yet again with its iPhone 5s phone. Although the model simply replicates its ancestors in the look and feel, it certainly has a number of improvements to boast of on the inside.

The iPhone 5s has an A7 chip that offers fast performance and 64-bit support. Its Touch ID works as well as it is advertised on the television. The global LTE support has also added another feather to the handset’s hat as a performance accelerating mechanism. With eight megapixels, the camera in this model is great and generates high quality pictures for the users.

Although one finds it easy to dismiss this handset as iterative, the 5s is the first smartphone with full 64-bit support and a capacitive fingerprint sensor, and it also ships with a fresh, revamped version of iOS. This might not matter to folks who were satisfied with the status quo, but does make a difference to Apple as well as to the company’s legacy. More so, if the company wants to avert an increasingly fierce group of competitors, it has to continually provide something fresh and unique, which is also in line with the set standards of iPhone handsets. Whether investing in a “forward-thinking” phone today is worth it or not is for time to tell.

The iPhone 5s is an evolution of the iPhone 5, and is certainly not a necessary commodity to own. However, it definitely brings in new technologies that will soon set a standard on all of Apple’s devices. For those who cannot hold their curiosity levels, be assured that buying an iPhone will never let you down. But our observation is that while most consumers will be glad to keep using the 5c model, the 5s is better-suited for gamers and power users.

HTC One – The Number One of its Time

The HTC One is not only about the name the owners have thoughtfully kept, but more about its literal meaning. The handset tops people’s expectation list in ways that are legion. It’s a branding strategy for the company, and the great news is that the model has come to justify this strategy well. If you render a look at the One series, you will notice how the features are perfectly embedded, keeping the phone’s name in mind.

The next model after the previous year’s One X has now been launched and is simply called the One. Taking HTC’s design and imaging achievements to the next level, this new handset brings in a new UltraPixel camera sensor, among various other high-end specifications. The gorgeous design of the phone is breathtakingly spectacular which gives it a suave and subtle look. The camera also does very well in low light and the powerful quad-core Snapdragon 600 chip is something to talk about as far as the phone’s performance is concerned. With a stunning 4.7-inch, 1080p display, the device showcases the best image quality and appeal of the media files. With smart features like the Zoe Share and Highlight Reel, there’s more to this new gadget of HTC than meets the eye.

The One is an Android 4.4.2 device with Sense 5, the next generation user interface. The most dramatic change in the UI is the feature called BlinkFeed, which descends as the default home page on the phone’s screen. Not only is this feature attractive, it also keeps the busier people connected to the world at all times by relaying news and social media updates of all kinds via Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn etc.

We can say that HTC has come a long way from its previous flagship phones to provide something more polished and useful. The phone’s superb design, its camera, aspects of Sense 5, such as BlinkFeed and the One’s two-button layout, have enhanced the user experience multifold. Its beautiful design, great display and great performance make it among the finest phones available.

To know more, click http://engt.co/13ePTgi.

The New Inside-Out: YotaPhone 2

The dashing sequel to the YotaPhone has finally been launched, and this time, with changes for the better. The new and improved YotaPhone 2 has a fresh design and its high-end specs and bigger, higher-resolution displays are welcome upgrades. Regarded as the most interesting smartphone that has ever lined the mobile market, this is a handset with an E Ink display that is not just there as a novelty but has several, legitimate uses. The backside of the phone is no longer an oddity; it’s an asset.

The Dual-screened phone is an engineering marvel with its thoroughly useful E Ink screen. The gorgeous primary AMOLED display makes a rich visual experience. The phone has top-tier performance with cool points aplenty. At 144 x 69.5 x 8.9mm, and 145g (5.1 ounces), the YotaPhone 2 is slightly taller than average mobile sets having a 5 inch display. Even with that large of a screen, one thing that will continuously keep you occupied is figuring out how they packed two displays, a 2,500mAh battery and everything else in a phone with such a sleek body.

At 4.7 inches, the secondary E Ink display is bigger on the new YotaPhone and also sports a higher resolution of 960 x 540 and is capable of producing 16 different levels of gray. The most important upgrade to the E Ink display on the YotaPhone 2 is that it’s now entirely multitouch-enabled, so you can poke at it like you would any other touchscreen.

Both of the cameras on the YotaPhone 2 are different from those found on its predecessor, but only one’s changed for the better. That would be the front-facing shooter, which is now 2.1 megapixels, compared to the original’s 1MP sensor. The main camera module is now eight megapixels, down from 13MP on the first YotaPhone.

The YotaPhone 2 is a blunt upgrade over its previous version, with bigger, better displays wrapped in a much sleeker package. Most importantly, the secondary E Ink screen is actually useful this time around. Although it is very expensive and won’t suit everyone’s budget, YotaPhone 2 has clearly shown that a dual screen form factor is workable, and in many cases desirable. Yota has definitely brought something new for consumers in the smartphone world.

To read more, click http://engt.co/1wsvj8Y.

The Next after Moto X: Motorola Droid Turbo

The Motorala Droid Turbo is a sturdy smartphone with more ample dimensions that have a set purpose. The solid chassis makes the handset feel reassuring to hold with that prominent curve helping the Turbo rest comfortably on your palm. More importantly, the protective outer shell has been made with a purpose to keep the precious inner composition intact. Even though the outer shell is not very impressive looking, the hardware inside it is robust. Turbo’s hardware holds together a speedy quad-core 2.7GHz Snapdragon 805 processor chip, 3GB of RAM and a tremendous 3,900mAh battery. The front is somehow even less visually interesting but when the 5.2-inch Quad HD screen comes alive, the handset’s front becomes quite appealing in appearance. Other than that, the front of the phone sports a wide speaker grille nicely placed above the 2-megapixel front-facing camera, and the capacitive touch buttons beneath the screen.

The biggest addition here is Motorola’s Droid Zap feature which is a cool tool that lets you fling photos and videos to people nearby or onto a Chromecast. Droid owners can also set up specific regions called Zap Zones to speed up the sharing. Once activated, in a way, you’re broadcasting every photo you take to a pre-selected group of people.

In regard to the phone’s camera, Motorola seems to have learned from one of its biggest failings in the case of the Moto X’s lackluster 13-megapixel camera. They have worked on it now and the Turbo packs a 21-megapixel rear camera with a wide f/2.0 lens, which is indeed a great combination. The full-resolution photos look crisp and vivid although low-light performance is not all that great.

With a solid body and rich hardware, Turbo seems to be a promising smart phone. Its long battery life, attractive Quad HD screen, powerful performance and a much improved version of the camera (as compared to Moto X) this device packs specifications of a well-built and well-composed smartphone.

While it lacks the style and charm of the 2014 Moto X, the Droid Turbo is a small power packed machine that happens to outperform its relative in nearly every important aspect. However, many of you may not be able to lay your hands on it because it’s a Verizon exclusive phone.

Samsung Galaxy Note Edge: The Phone with Curves

Samsung’s second experimentally screened phone is out and has got people talking. Yes, the phone with a properly curved screen has its targeted audience in for a surprise. If you look at the basic shape and concept, the curved-screen uniquely comes out as a fresh innovation. But the phone draws so many features from the Galaxy Note 4 that one wonders if the curved screen is the only new addition or is there more to anticipate from the new, unconventional handset.

The Galaxy Note Edge is an attention grabbing piece with its subjective and divisive curves. The screen looks great, with the punchy contrast and sharpness that has been a Samsung flagship pillar for years.

Going head to head with the Note 4, the Note Edge boasts of the same high-resolution (2,560 × 1,600) screen as well as a 2.7GHz processor. A similar 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage (and a 64GB option), with a microSD slot for expansion also confirms how close one is to the other. The phone’s battery, however, stays a little behind the Note 4. A slightly smaller 3,000mAh pack powers this special edition Note, as compared to 3,220mAh offered in the Note 4.

Although slightly more expensive as compared to the Galaxy Note 4, the phone is beautiful with its high-resolution curved display. Most of the features and looks are pretty similar to Galaxy Note 4. It has nearly all the same design touches and material finishes as the Note 4. The phone provides a long battery life and definitely has an excellent camera.

Samsung certainly stood for no compromises while designing the imaging capabilities of the Note Edge. The new model boasts a 16-megapixel camera, with Samsung’s “smart OIS” that is intended to increase the light (and detail) in low light areas. The front-facing camera is also a top-end sensor compared to the competition, 3.7 megapixels with an f/1.9 lens.

Overall, Samsung has provided the Galaxy Edge user with some of the best components beneath that unique display: 3GB of RAM to ensure multitask windowing runs smoothly, and a quad-core Snapdragon 805 processor to back it up.