Daily news for mobile technology (Smartphone, Gadget, Tablet)
HTC’s press event at the MWC pulled the curtain on two new midrange smartphones named Desire 816 and Desire 610. The Desire 816 will be taking charge of the company’s updated midrange lineup, with the latter serving as the more compact alternative. Read more here:
One of the highest-caliber debuts at this year’s MWC, the Samsung Galaxy S5 was just unveiled at the Unpacked 5 event. The flagship opens a new chapter in Samsung’s design – the back is still leather-like, but with a brand new look. We’re looking at a longer feature list fifth year in a row – IP67 certification is a big one and so are the fingerprint sensor and heart rate monitor. The core features too were duly updated to put the Galaxy S5 ahead of its S4 predecessor – a 5.1″ Super AMOLED screen of 1080p resolution, Snapdragon 800 chipset with 2GB of RAM, 150Mbps LTE and a 16MP camera. The camera only records 1080p video, much to the disappointment of everyone who took rumors to heart. With the new chipset and camera sensor, we were kinda expecting 2160p too. Another thing that didn’t turn out as whispered was TouchWiz – it’s new and based on Android 4.4.2 KitKat, but not as flat as some Holo fans would have hoped. No switch to on-screen buttons either – the Galaxy S5 has three keys below the screen, this time an App Switcher button replacing the Menu key. The Galaxy S5 will be available in four colors initially – Black, White, Blue and Copper. The US is getting only the Black and White ones though. via gsmarena.com
Today Nokia introduces a brand new family of smartphones, the Nokia X family, a range of handsets that combines Nokia design, build quality and services with the ability to run Android apps.
The first three phones in the family – the Nokia X, X+ and XL – are priced between the existing Asha and Lumia lines, at €89, €99 and €109 respectively, to appeal to new smartphone users looking for popular apps and their first cloud services.The X family boasts Nokia’s exciting, high quality hardware design and a range of bright colours. The brand new, tile-based Home screen offers you a simple, elegant way to manage your apps and phone functions and also reintroduces a redesigned version of the enormously popular Fastlane notifications centre – a second Home screen if you like – from the latest Asha devices. Read more here:
24 February 2014, Mobile World Congress, Barcelona, Spain– ZTE,one of the top five global handset manufacturers, today presents the Grand Memo II LTE, an ultra slim and high performance LTE Smartphone. With its 6” IPS display that takes up 80% of the handset, users can view high quality images, HD videos and movies with a 178 degree viewing angle. The device utilises ZTE’s brand new innovative MiFavor 2.3 user interface (UI) with a range of new icons, offering an intelligent but easy-to-use handset experience. In addition, the Grand Memo II LTE combines stylish design with a practical 7.2mm ultra-slim frame.
Mr Zeng Xuezhong, CEO of ZTE Mobile Devices and Executive Vice President of ZTE Corporation commented: “The Grand Memo II LTE is designed to meet the increasing user demand for stylish design with an intuitive user experience. High performance technology must be met with a simplistic user interface which allows users to customize their experience based on personal preferences.”
Superior user experience
The new MiFavor 2.3 UI enriches the user experience, making the handset more natural for human use. By memorizing user habits, it offers users a simplified and tailored interface that can be customized to their needs using innovative intelligent split screens. Furthermore, the MiFavor UI brings elegant design features to the Google Android 4.4 KitKat operating system not seen on other devices including integration with functions such as notebook, calendar, weather forecast, alarm clock, Internet, and music.
With 4G as a standard feature, the Grand Memo II LTE can not only stream movies at top speed, but audio playback is also a pleasure with Smart PA and 3D Stereo Sound. And with ZTE’s focus on maximizing battery life, users will be able to enjoy all the entertainment they want as the 3200mAh battery, combined with ZTE’s unique battery-saving solutions that cut power consumption by 30%, allows for 16 hours of continuous HD video playback, 72 hours of music playback or several days of normal use.
With a Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 400 processor, the Grand Memo II provides the required performance enabling consumers to take advantage of LTE and high speed mobile internet, online 3D gaming and HD video streaming as well as easily accessing social media channels such as Facebook and Twitter on the go. Furthermore, high quality pictures can be taken quickly and easily shared with the handset’s 13MP rear camera and 5MP front camera which is optimised for video calling.
“We are thrilled to continue our collaboration with ZTE to introduce the new high performance Grand Memo II LTE,” said Raj Talluri, senior vice president of product management, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. “Powered by a Snapdragon 400 processor with integrated LTE connectivity, the Grand Memo II provides a high quality multimedia experience with seamless connectivity for users to be constantly connected on the go.”
Quality of materials
The ZTE Grand Memo II LTE has been designed with quality in mind. At just 7.2mm thin, the handset boasts a 6” IPS display made from Corning Gorilla® Glass 3 that covers 80% of the front. A textured back adds a luxury feel as well as making the product feel tactile in people’s hands.
The ZTE Grand Memo II LTE follows last year’s launch of the Grand Memo LTE. The device will first launch in April in China, followed by simultaneous launches in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific.
To get hands-on with the ZTE Grand Memo II LTE, please visit ZTE’s booth at Mobile World Congress 2014, located in Hall 3, Stand 3G30 & 3F30. More information is also available atwww.mobileworldcongress.com/zte-press-con
Key specifications of the Grand Memo II LTE:
Front: 5MP F2.2, FF
Lenovo officially announced the Yoga Tablet 10 HD+ Android 4.3 Jelly Bean slate. As its name suggests, the newcomer features a 10” wide-view display with a resolution of 1,920 x 1,200 pixels. Lenovo’s latest Android slate features the same design as the Yoga 10 which arrived in October last year. It features a kickstand with three different modes which include reading, gaming, and viewing images or video.The rest of the tablet’s specs include Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 SoC with 1.6GHz quad-core CPU and 2GB of RAM, 32GB of built-in memory, Dolby Audio speakers and microSD card slot.A duo of cameras which includes a main 8MP unit and front- facing 1.6MP snapper is in charge of capturing memories and making video calls. Connectivity options include HSPA+ (42Mbps) in addition to the usual set of features.The Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 HD+ is powered by a beefy 9,000mAh battery. The Chinese manufacturer promises up to 18 hours of battery life on a single charge.Lenovo will offer the slate with optional keyboard/cover. Considering the large battery on tap, the duo of accessories should help the Yoga Tablet 10 HD+ transform into a serious productivity tool.We managed to spend some quality time with the newly announced slate during MWC 2014 in Barcelona. At a quick glance, its display is certainly a massive improvement over what the predecessor of the Yoga Tablet 10 HD+ had to offer.The tablet and the optional feel solidly put together and ready to tackle the rigors of daily life. The stand’s implementation is quite neat and useful in all three modes. It really helps the slate stand out among its competitors.Despite not packing the latest and greatest SoC, the tablet felt zippy when used. Its hardware will do the trick for most casual users out there.The Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10HD+ will be available in April with a starting price tag of $349. More photos here:
Building on the success of the acclaimed Xperia Tablet Z, Sony introduced Xperia Z2 Tablet, representing the pinnacle of tablet innovation. Sharing many of the same exciting features as Xperia Z2, XperiaZ2 Tablet features the TRILUMINOS™ Display for mobile with Live Colour LED, and digital noise cancelling technology for no-compromise entertainment viewing and listening experiences. At launch it will be supported by a number of innovative accessories, including BSC10 Bluetooth® Speaker dock with Magnetic Charging Pad and the BRH10 Bluetooth® Remote with Handset Function, to boost the movie and gaming experience. Xperia Z2 Tablet will hit markets worldwide from March 2014.
The beacon of Sony’s pace of innovation, and latest addition to the premium Z series – Xperia Z2 is Sony’s best ever premium waterproof smartphone. It combines Sony’s camera and camcorder technologies, acclaimed TRILUMINOS™ Display for mobile with Live Colour LED, the world’s first digital noise cancelling technology in a smartphone2 and signature OmniBalance design. A new enhanced video mode captures and preserves memories in stunningly detailed 4K resolution, and SteadyShot™ image stabilisation ensures footage stays smooth and clear, even if you are walking. Unique to Sony, XperiaZ2 is underpinned by an out-of-the-box introductory content offer3 that includes six blockbuster movies from Sony Pictures, including Captain Phillips, through the Video Unlimited service as well as 30 days free trial of the Music Unlimited4 service and a range of PlayStation®Mobile games. Xperia Z2 will launch globally from March 2014.