Samsung Galaxy S9+ Unboxing and First Impressions

Samsung launched the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+, the company’s latest flagship smartphones in India earlier this week. Here we have the unboxing of the Galaxy S9+, the bigger phone in the series with dual rear cameras. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYi1V_sB9cU Box Contents Samsung Galaxy S9+ smartphone 64GB version in Coral Blue color Samsung charger with Adaptive Fast Charging (9V-1.67A/5V-2A) USB Type-C cable USB Type-C OTG connector In-ear earphones tuned by AKG SIM ejector tool Quick start guide and warranty information The Galaxy S9+ has a 6.2-inch Quad HD+ (2960 × 1440 pixels) 529ppi Super AMOLED Infinity end-to-end, bezel-less screen that extends to the phone’s sides, similar to the S8+. Samsung says that the display is 15% brighter than the S8+ under sunlight. It also has a Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection. It has an 8MP auto focus front-facing camera with f/1.7 aperture and 80-degree wide-angle lens, same as the predecessor. There is also an Iris scanner on the front. The version we have is powered by Exynos 9 Series 9810 processor with Mali G72MP18 GPU, even though some markets like the U.S. gets the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 version. It has 6GB of RAM and 64GB or 256GB of internal storage. We have the 64GB version. It runs on Android 8.0 (Oreo) with ...

Sony Xperia XZ2 and Xperia XZ2 Compact pre-orders begin in Europe, price revealed

Sony at the MWC 2018 event has announced the Xperia XZ2 and XZ2 Compact and today the pre-orders of the same have begun in Europe across Amazon revealing the prices. The Xperia XZ2 is the first series from Sony to have the 18:9 full-screen display. According to the Amazon listing, the release date of the flagship is set to April 5th, 2018. The listing has both single and Dual SIM and the pre-orders have also begun in European in markets like France, Germany, Italy, Spain. On the other hand, Clove is currently finalizing a launch deal with Sony for some free accessories to early orders. According to the Amazon listing, the Sony Xperia XZ2 comes in Liquid Black, Liquid Silver, and Deep Green. While the Dual SIM variant will be available only in Liquid Black only and is priced at £699 ($966 or Rs. 62,910 approx.) in the UK. On the other hand, the XZ2 Compact Black, White Silver, Moss Green and Coral Pink is priced at £529 ($730 or Rs. 47,610 approx.). However, Clove has listed the XZ2 Compact in Moss Green or Coral Pink colors at a higher price of £599 ($830 or Rs.53,910). Pricing for the XZ2 and  XZ2 Compact are different in Europe (France, Germany, Italy, Spain); the Xperia XZ2 is priced at €799 ($982 or Rs.64,020 approx.), while the Xperia XZ2 Compact is priced ...

Fitbit’s upcoming ‘mass-appeal’ smartwatch said to be named Versa

Last week we had seen the images of the Fitbit's upcoming smartwatch. The company at the latest earnings call said that this future watch would have "mass appeal." Today we have the name and it will be called 'Versa' courtesy of leakster Evan Blass. [HTML1] It is highly anticipated to be the successor of the Fitbit Blaze and will run on OS software that first appeared in the Ionic. With Iconic not performing on the level of company's expectations, the company is in a dire need of a successful smartwatch. For the same reason, Fitbit wants the Versa to be something that will appeal to a larger, more general smartwatch audience. It is mainly focusing on the female market, according to the report. The main reason for Ionic failure is because of its largely unattractive design and only comes in one size. However, it will pack more or less the similar size as the first Blaze watch, and smaller than the Ionic. furthermore, it will have 50m water resistance and have a SpO2 sensor for sleep apnea monitoring. Having said that, it won't have GPS and comes in four colors black, silver, rose gold, and charcoal and a variety of straps. As for the pricing, the Fitbit Versa is expected to be priced lower ...

Uber India ropes in Virat Kohli as brand ambassador

Uber just announced that it has signed Captain of the Indian Cricket team  Virat Kohli as its first brand ambassador in India. It said that this is the company's first of its kind initiative across the Asia Pacific region. Last year Gionee India signed him as its brand ambassador. "This partnership will see Uber and Virat Kohli join hands to underscore the company’s commitment to serve billions in the country, in the years to come. This will lay the foundation for a host of brand-led interventions in 2018," added the company. As a brand ambassador, he will also be actively involved in a series of innovative marketing and customer experience initiatives that will be rolled out by Uber India. Uber said that it is in a very strong position in India, gaining share of heart and mind as the most preferred ride-hailing app in India. In 2018, it will continue to focus on technology innovations that will make hailing a ride an even more seamless experience. [HTML1] Commenting on the  association, Amit Jain, President, Uber India & SA, said: We are extremely delighted to sign on Virat Kohli to bat as brand ambassador for Uber India. His commitment to India on and off the field is commendable - ...

Lenovo S5 with dual rear cameras, metal body teased, will take on Xiaomi Redmi Note 5

Earlier this week Lenovo announced that it will introduce the next 'S series' smartphone on March 20th, which is expected to be Lenovo S5. Today  Xiaomi's CEO Lei Jun announced on weibo that the powerful Redmi Note 5 (that was launched asRedmi Note 5 Pro in India) with Snapdragon 636 and 6GB RAM will launch in China on March 16th. Quoting this, the company’s CEO Chang Cheng posted that wait till March 20th. He also shared an image of the phone that shows the phone in Red color with dual rear cameras, fingerprint sensor and a metal body with antenna lines on the top and bottom parts of the back. He recently shared an image of front part of the phone that shows 18:9 2.5D curved glass screen. This coincides with the Lenovo K520 that was certified by TENAA recently with a 5.65-inch FHD+ screen, Snapdragon 625, up to 4GB RAM, Android 8.0 (Oreo) and a 3000mAh battery. But this is no way powerful compared to the Redmi Note 5 Pro. Lenovo K520 rumored specifications 5.65-inch (2160 × 1080 pixels) Full HD+ 18:9 2.5D curved glass display 2GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 625 14nm processor with Adreno 506 GPU 3GB RAM with 32GB storage, 4GB RAM with 64GB storage, ...

Nubia N3 with 6.01-inch Full HD+ display, dual rear cameras, 5000mAh battery announced

ZTE's Nubia brand has introduced three new Nubia N3 smartphone, successor of last year's Nubia N2 in China. It packs the same 5000mAh battery, but this has a larger 6.01-inch FHD+ full-screen display, is powered by Snapdragon 625 with 4GB of RAM. It has dual rear cameras, but the rear camera specifications are not available yet. It has a 16-megapixel front camera with AI Portrait 2.0 and several new features. It has a metal finish and a fingerprint sensor on the back. The 5000mAh battery promises 2 days of battery life and up to 23 days standby. Nubia N3 specifications  6.01-inch (2160 x 1080 pixels) Full HD+ 2.5D curved glass display 2GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 625 Mobile Platform with Adreno 506 GPU 4GB LPDDR3 RAM, 64GB storage, expandable memory with microSD Android 7.1 (Nougat) with nubia UI Hybrid Dual SIM (nano + nano/microSD) Dual rear cameras with LED flash 16MP front-facing camera Fingerprint sensor 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS + GLONASS 5000mAh battery The Nubia N3 comes in Obsidian Black, Space Gold and Nebula Red colors and will go on sale in China from March 24th. We should know the price of the phone closer to the launch. Source

Xiaomi surpasses Samsung in the largest smartphone market in India in Q4 2017: CMR

Xiaomi has surpassed Samsung in the largest smartphone market in India in the Q4 2017 to become the number one brand, according to a report from Cybermedia Research. Xiaomi outshined Samsung in Maharashtra which alone amounted to 13.7% of the sales during the last quarter of 2017. According to CMR, Xiaomi sold over 31.2% of the Smartphones during the period compared to Samsung which sold 15.3%. The Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 was the top selling phone and the company has opened two Mi Homes in the state in October and November 2017.  This helped the company in strengthening its presence and access in the state in the offline market.  In January 2018, it opened its third Mi Home in the state in Thane. Followed by Samsung and Xiaomi, Vivo, OPPO and Lenovo including Motorola were the other three players in the top 5 Smartphone vendors in Q4 2017 in Maharashtra. Together, all the top 5 companies sold over 84% of the Smartphones. However, with net subscriber addition during the Q4 being negative for Maharashtra; it registered decrease of 362,420 subscribers, the Smartphone sales were primarily replacement or upgrade. This decrease was mainly due to R-Com and Aircel subscriber reduction during 4Q 2017 in the state. Xiaomi sales were ...

Google now lets Musicians post updates directly in search results

Google has updated its search results that will put artists at center stage on Search. What this means is that the next time you make a music-related search, you will be able to hear the update directly from them in the search results. Google rolled out a similar feature that will answer your celebrity questions with selfie-style videos back in December. When you search for Steve Aoki, Sia, Son Little, Sofi Tukker, Shakira, and Kygo, you’ll find updates from them in the Search results, inside their Knowledge Panel. In the same panel, you can find images, videos, GIFs, and text posted directly by the artist you’re searching for. Through this, you can now stay assured that these updates are from a verified musician as the posts will be marked with a blue checkmark next to their name. Google says that this feature is live for all musicians who are on the Google search results worldwide. The company is also letting musicians with a Knowledge Panel get verified and start posting. Source

Samsung Galaxy Note8 Android Oreo update possibly to roll out from March 30, Galaxy S7 and S7 edge in April

Samsung rolled out the Android Oreo update for the Galaxy S8 and the S8+ recently and its just a matter of time before it goes live to Note8. The company didn't announce any launch date for the update, but now it looks like an official Samsung website has possibly revealed the Galaxy Note 8 Oreo release date and it will get the update starting from March 30th. Samsung used the Güncelmiyiz which is a legitimate website owned and operated by Samsung Turkey to provide the details about upcoming firmware updates for Galaxy devices. According to the listing, the Android 8.0 Oreo is the next major update for the Galaxy Note 8 and the update is currently in the testing phase right now and is planned to get the update from March 30. Apart from Note 8, the listing also reveals the Oreo update for Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge which also happens to be in the testing phase with a scheduled roll out from April 13th. On the other hand, the Galaxy A3, A5 and A7 (2017) all of them will receive the Oreo update on May 25. While the Samsung 9.7-inch Galaxy Tab S3 will get the update on May 4. Considering how legit the Güncelmiyiz, we believe that Samsung would ...

Twitter will eventually expand its verified service to everyone

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey in a periscope chat has mentioned that it is planning on expanding its verified service and will also allow any user to become verified. But he didn't mention the process for the same. The company stopped taking applications for verified tick back in fall after getting major backlash for verifying a few white supremacists. [HTML1] But with the new announcement, it looks like Twitter is planning on re-launching the program soon once it figures out a feasible solution. Twitter started accepting anyone to request verification and asked users to provide reasons why they want one back in 2016.However, the company declined the request unless they were established writers, creators, or influencers. Twitter says that the main problem is that it uses the verified status to mean identity, but with the way it started where it was given to large public figures, celebrities, etc., it came to have a lot of statuses associated with it. But the intentions behind the tick mark is something else and not meant that Twitter stands behind this person. The company is figuring out a way to verify users. Commenting on the same, Jack Dorsey said: The intention is to open verification to everyone,” Dorsey said from a conference room at ...