Galaxy Note 4 spotted on Samsung Mobile site

The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is just days away from being officially announced at the IFA trade show in Berlin, and the leaks keep piling up. The latest is in the form of a UAProf found on Samsung's mobile site, which confirms a large number of the devices' specifications.

Besides the SM-N920T model number, there's confirmation of a QHD display at 1440 x 2560px resolution. Also possibly listed is the presence of a 64-bit processor.

These latest bits of information can be added to what else we've heard regarding the device, including the 5.7-inch display, S-Pen, and USB 3.0 port alongside the fingerprint sensor and heart rate monitor introduced with the Galaxy S5. The device will also be one of the first to run Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon 805 variant, which is hinted at making an appearance on the SM-N910S model of the Note 4.

We'll be covering the Note 4 launch live from Berlin on September 3, so be sure to check back with us then for all the juicy details, as well as full IFA 2014 coverage all of next week.

Meanwhile, check out the latest glimpse of the Galaxy Note 4 poster for IFA.

Source 1 | Via (Dutch) | Source 2 (Persian)

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Motorola Moto G 4G review: Going fast

GSMArena team, 31 August 2014.

Introduction

The Motorola Moto G was so close to perfection - beautiful design, reasonable speed and performance, excellent display, capable camera and the pure Android experience at a bargain price. And we mean the kind of price that makes any quirk or omission easily forgiven. Like limited storage or a poor camera. By throwing in LTE and a card slot, the Moto G 4G makes sure there's a lot less to forgive.

If we were to name a smartphone to get an upgrade and handpick the specs, the Moto G would've been on the shortlist. And pretty high there, too. Glad it made sense to Motorola as well.

Motorola Moto G 4G official pictures

To be fair, the Moto G was fine the way it was. Screen quality well above the pay grade, a good enough chipset, reasonable battery backup, no heavy skin. Bottom line, one of the best packages for the money just got better, with the right touches at the right places.

Key features

• LTE connectivity


• 4.5" IPS 720p capacitive touchscreen of 329ppi, Gorilla Glass 3


• Android 4.4.4 KitKat on a fast track update program


• 1.2GHz quad-core Cortex-A7 CPU; 1GB of RAM; Adreno 305 GPU; Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset


• 5MP camera, LED flash, 720p video capture, 1.3MP front-facing camera


• 8/16 GB of built-in memory, expandable via the newly added microSD card slot


• • Active noise cancellation with a dedicated microphone


• 2,070mAh battery


• Optional battery covers

Main disadvantages

• Non-user-replaceable battery


• Camera could've used an upgrade too


• No FullHD video recording

One thing that could've seen some extra work as well is the camera. The original Moto G's still image quality was middling at best, and the lack of 1080p video recording isn't as easy to get away with as it was last year. That said, the Moto G 4G had to stay within budget, there's no argument there.

We'll try and see whether 4G network support will take its toll on the battery life. There're a handful of smartphones, including fairly recent releases, that count on a Snapdragon 400 to power both a 720p screen and an LTE radio, so we're not expecting any unpleasant surprises.

Motorola Moto G 4G live pictures

We guess we can safely cut the introductions short. After all, it's highly unlikely that you may've missed the original Moto G. Either way, we'll be covering its 4G-enabled successor in depth. Our hardware tour begins right after the break.

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Lenovo IFA event invite teases an Android L-running Vibe X2

We already knew Lenovo had an IFA event planned for Sept. 4, but the event invite is rather interesting on its own.

The invite shows in a straightforward way that the Lenovo Vibe X2 will be the centerpiece of the event. The lolipop is also a certain clue that the new device will be running Android L.

The last tiny piece of interest on Lenovo's invite is a friendly jab to Apple for their recent invite, which claimed the company wished it could say more about their event, which will surely be all about the iPhone 6.

The Lenovo Vibe X2 has not made the headlines that often as the likes of the Note 4 or the iPhone in question, but a recent leak surely suggests it's a proper flagship-grade device. It will have a 2.2 GHz octa-core CPU, a 5-inch 1080p touchscreen, 2GB of RAM, 32GB of built-in storage, a 13 MP rear camera with LED flash, and a 5 MP front snapper for selfies.

Anyway, the IFA 2014 starts next week, and we're sure to be hit by a torrent of new devices. Stay tuned, we'll be on the ground in Berlin, covering it all live as it unfolds.

Source

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ZTE sends invite for September 16 event in New York

To say that the first two weeks of next month will be incredibly busy in the mobile world would be a huge understatement. Next week, (almost) every Android device maker under the sun will unveil something new right before the IFA trade show in Berlin gets underway. Then, on September 9 Apple is set to finally reveal the bigger iPhone everyone's been talking about for ages.

ZTE, however, wants to be different. Unlike perpetual competitor Huawei, this Chinese smartphone maker is going to wait until all the other announcements are over and the excitement around them dies down somewhat. Then, and only then, will it hold an event of its own.

This will take place in New York City on September 16, and ZTE has posted a Vine video as the invite. You can view that in its seven-second entirety at the Source link below. The image above is an excerpt.

It's still unclear what exactly ZTE will unveil at this gathering, but it promises to be "the next hot thing". It's interesting to note that the Vine was posted by the company's arm in the US. So presumably whatever the device will be, it's going to be sold on the US market. That's not something that happens often with ZTE wares, though recently we've seen the Nubia 5S Mini being offered there sans contract via Amazon. Maybe that will be the case for the new handset too.

Source | Via

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Huawei Ascend Mate 7 gets photographed out and about

The Huawei Ascend Mate 7 is clearly going to be introduced next week, on September 4 to be precise. It's on that day that Huawei will hold a pre-IFA press conference, and given all the teasers it's been releasing lately, it's pretty clear what we should expect.

In the meantime, the much leaked Ascend Mate 7 has once again decided to star in a photo shoot somewhere in the wild.

The pictures aren't the highest quality, but they are enough to give us yet another confirmation about the phone's design, as well as the fact that it will come with a fingerprint scanner on its back.

This has actually been more or less acknowledged by Huawei itself through a recent teaser. The Ascend Mate 7 is expected to feature a 6-inch 1080p touchscreen, a 13 MP rear camera with LED flash, and a 5 MP front snapper.

It's due to be powered by a HiSilicon Kirin 920 chipset, which will come with a CPU having four 1.8 GHz Cortex-A15 cores and four Cortex-A7 battery-friendly cores. Speaking of which, the new phablet could come with a 4,000 mAh cell.

The Ascend Mate 7 has also been rumored to pack 2GB of RAM and 16GB of built-in storage. Huawei officials have even apparently said that the Ascend Mate 7 is going to be "by far" the best big-screen phone around, and that it's built like it's worth more than CNY 5,000 ($813). Don't panic, however, for Huawei certainly won't price it that high. The company is, after all, known for decently priced offerings with good specs, and we can't remember ever seeing a Huawei device in such a price range.

Source (in Chinese) | Via

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Week 35 in review: iPhone 6, Note 4, Nexus X, smartwatches

The Week In Review is our series meant to recap all the major announcements of the week, which you might have missed. Week 35 was mainly about the Apple and Samsung, again, and their upcoming top dogs.

Two companies unveiled smartwatches this week, while HTC put out its first 64-bit phone and LG revealed an affordable phablet with a stylus.

Now we have a better idea of just how that will stack up to the 4-inch iPhone 5 thanks to a handful of live shots out of China. The rounded sides and thinner design are among the other changes noticed, but the larger screen diagonal will firmly move into a more modern era of smartphones...

The Apple iPhone 6 rumors are starting to pour in frantically as the launch event nears. The latest one clings to the September 9 announcement date instead of the September 19 one and complements the statement with a list of the specs and a ton of pictures of the phone itself and the retail box...

The official Samsung Galaxy Note 4 wallpaper made the rounds online. The colorful image confirms the QHD (2560 x 1440 pixels) resolution of the upcoming phablet's display. The original size of the image is 2560 x 2560 pixels. Samsung Galaxy Note 4 will debut at a global Unpacked event next week, on September 3...

The previous iPhone 6 box we saw proved to be fake but here's something that may be more plausible. What you see here is a small card that allegedly will come inside the new iPhone boxes – it serves as a sort of manual for the iPhone. The card shows a diagram of all buttons on the Apple iPhone 6, including the Power button...

The yet to be revealed Nexus X smartphone made yet another appearance in AnTuTu. Made by Motorola, the device is expected to debut at some point this fall with proper flagship specs on board. The leaked AnTuTu screenshots confirm the device’s previously leaked specs...

Codenamed Phosphorus the M8 co-processor is said to be able to collect more information than the M7 in the Apple A7 chip currently does - that is more than the accelerometer, gyrscope and GPS. Phosphorus is said to be able to gather information from various wearables and built-in sensors regarding heart rate...

64-bit smartphones are already a reality with the iPhone 5s while several manufacturers are competing to be the first to bring a 64-bit Android to market. HTC might claim that title with the mid-range Desire 820. The short text accompanying the second teaser image claims this is the "world's first octa-core 64-bit phone"...

Samsung released two more Galaxy Note 4 teaser videos. The phablet is set to debut in less than two weeks, on September 3. The new videos feature the same “Ready to note?” theme like the previous two, but focus on long-time Samsung Galaxy Note users. The latter talk about their life with Samsung’s phablet...

LG took the wraps off the decidedly premium G Watch R. The Android Wear device will be showcased at the company’s booth during the upcoming IFA convention in Berlin. The main feature of the LG G Watch is its display. As the R letter in the name kindly suggests, the screen is a 1.3" fully circular Plastic OLED display...

Samsung officially announced the Gear S smartwatch with 3G connectivity on board. The Tizen-based wearable device will begin rolling out in markets around the globe starting in October. Samsung Gear S features a 2” curved Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 480 x 360 pixels...

The yet to be revealed Sony Xperia Z3 got fully disassembled before its official announcement. Sony’s next flagship is going to debut at the manufacturer’s IFA press conference next week, on September 3. The upcoming flagship will pack a 3,100mAh battery – down from 3,200mAh in the Sony Xperia Z2...

LG officially took the wraps off the affordable G3 Stylus ahead of IFA. The previously leaked, 3G-only smartphone will be showcased at the company’s booth in Berlin next week. Despite sporting similar name and design as the company’s flagship, the G3 Stylus is far removed from the D855 in terms of specs...

HTC announced the Desire 510 smartphone. The newcomer combines mid-range specs and LTE connectivity. HTC Desire 510 features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 chipset with 1.2GHz quad-core Cortex-A53 CPU and Adreno 306 GPU. That's the first 64-bit Snapdragon chipset to make it to an actual device...

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HTC One (E8) now available at Sprint for $99.99

A couple of weeks ago a leaked video told us that the HTC One (E8) would be headed to Sprint in the US, and today the carrier has announced that the smartphone is available for order.

So you can already go ahead to Sprint's website and purchase the One (E8) in either Polar White or Misty Gray.

The price you'll need to pay for this handset varies based on what method you choose. If you want to go the traditional two-year contract route, it will set you back $99.99.

If you want to use Sprint's Easy Pay installment plan, you shell out nothing upfront, then followed by 23 monthly payments of $20.84 and a final 24th payment of $20.67.

The HTC One (E8) comes with a 5-inch 1080p Super LCD3 touchscreen, a 13 MP rear camera with LED flash, as well as a 5 MP front snapper for selfies.

It's powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 chipset with a 2.3 GHz quad-core CPU, aided by 2GB of RAM. Internal storage is 16GB, expandable via microSD cards. LTE support is obviously in tow, and a 2,600 mAh battery keeps things juiced up. The One (E8) runs Android 4.4 KitKat.

Interestingly, the official press renders show that Sprint hasn't added its logo anywhere on the device.

Source

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Lenovo Vibe X2 stars in hands-on photo shoot

Just yesterday the Lenovo Vibe X2 was spotted getting certified for sale in China by TENAA, the relevant authority for this purpose. That event yielded a few pictures of the device, but they were rather blurry and low quality.

Today a new set of images showing the Lenovo Vibe X2 has been uncovered in China, and these ones are of the hands-on type, showing the smartphone in all its glory.

Lenovo Vibe X2

The design of the Vibe X2 is much more clear in this set of pictures, as are the three mysterious metal contacts on the phone's back. They could be used for connecting an accessory or two.

As you have undoubtedly noticed from the images showing its sides, this handset comes with a pretty unique design feature. It looks like it's made up from three separate sheets of metal, each of a different color, which have been stacked on top of one another to form the X2's body. It's unclear if you'll be able to feel three individual bits when you touch the device, but it's an interesting effect nevertheless.

The Lenovo Vibe X2 will come in two versions, one with an octa-core CPU and the other with a 2.2 GHz dual-core part. Both will get a 5-inch 1080p touchscreen, 2GB of RAM, 32GB of built-in storage, a 13 MP rear camera with LED flash, and a 5 MP front snapper for selfies.

The new smartphone should be out in the third week of September.

Source (in Chinese) | Via

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Nokia Lumia 735 with LTE gets pictured in black and white

Next week Microsoft has a pre-IFA event scheduled in Berlin, during which it's widely been expected to unveil two new smartphones - the Lumia 830 and the Lumia 730. However, it turns out that a third device may join them - the Lumia 735.

This is basically going to be the LTE-capable version of the oft-leaked Lumia 730, which itself will apparently only come in a 3G dual-SIM iteration.

The Lumia 730 and Lumia 735 are allegedly pictured next to each other in the images you see above and below this paragraph. They seem to have starred in a photo shoot over in China.

That said, both handsets look like they have a 4G connection at the moment of the shots, so we may in fact be staring at two of the Lumia 735's color versions, the most conservative ones actually: white and black. Undoubtedly, we're bound to see many more daring hues for this model, like for its non-LTE capable sibling.

Previously rumored specs for the Lumia 730 talked about it coming with a 4.7-inch 720p touchscreen, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of storage, and a 5 MP front-facing camera that will probably be the main selling point of the device. So yes, look for Microsoft to try and exploit the selfie craze as best it can.

The Lumia 730 has been said to be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset with a 1.2 GHz quad-core CPU. It should sport a polycarbonate unibody construction, and on-screen software buttons. Keeping things running will be a 2,000 mAh battery.

All of these specs are probably going to be found on the Lumia 735 as well, with the only difference between the phones being the types of connectivity they each support, and the price of course. The 3G model could cost around $240.

Source (in Chinese) | Via

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GSMArena smartphone shopping guide: August 2014

GSMArena team, 29 August 2014.

Introduction

It's been a few months since our previous Smartphone buyer's guide and the mobile market has shifted significantly since then. It's a buyer's market as they say, cheap phones have become better and flagships have become cheaper.

There aren't many new devices on the list - "new" both as in new to the guide and as in new to the market. Q3 is traditionally low on new launches so that's no surprise. But some old devices have dropped significantly in price, making them a killer deal.

Even flagships have tumbled down in price since their Q1 introductions. For the first time the buyer's guide will not have a €500+ chapter as there's almost nothing there. Here are shortcuts to the five price segments we've covered if you've already set your budget.

• Under €100


• €100-€200


• €200-€300


• €300-€400


• €400-€500

We don't recommend feature phones any more, smartphones have found such great utility in our daily lives that it's detrimental to not have one. And it's not like you can save money by going feature phone, the Under €100 category will point you to some very affordable but capable devices.

The €100-€200 category is where smartphones become good enough, most people will perhaps get a phone on this list. There's LTE, 1080p video, big screens and multiple SIMs so it's not difficult to find something to suit your needs.

Shrewd shoppers know that at launch phones carry a premium that sheds off with time. About a year later is about the ideal compromise between a low price and a device that's not too old in terms of tech. In the €200-€300 you can find a number of premium minis and phablets from 2013.

€300-€400 gets you a flagship from late last year or even a 2014 model as you get closer to the upper range of the price segment.

The €400-€500 segment houses the flagships that are yet to slip under €400 but it may not take them long. Still if money is no object and you went the best of the best you have to splurge some extra cash or wait a while longer.

Note that IFA is days away and we'll be seeing plenty of new devices pouring in and probably launching within the month. Mostly flagships as lower-profile devices get launched without much fanfare but you might want to hold off on hitting the Buy button for a week or two just to be sure.

You can read this buyer's guide page by page or jump straight to a price segment. If you do that, make sure to check the one below and above it - you might find a cheaper option that works just as well for you or a lot more functionality for not much more cash.

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Samsung Galaxy Note 4 stars in very short hands-on video

The rumor mill sees Samsung's Galaxy Note 4 teaser videos and raises a short hands-on video. The video comes from Vietnam and features the phablet in a dummy box that conceals its design.

To the right of the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is an S Pen stylus in a black/gold color scheme. The stylus has a button, same as before.

The device itself is the N910H, which should be based on Exynos 5433. Samsung's new chipset beat Qualcomm's Snapdragon 805 in leaked AnTuTu benchmarks. There's going to be a Snapdragon 805 version too.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 will be announced at IFA on September 3. It's expected to have a 5.7" Super AMOLED screen with QHD resolution (1,440 x 2,560 pixels, 515ppi), 16MP OIS camera and strange, unique sensors like a retinal scanner and a UV light sensor.

Source (in Dutch)

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Mysterious Motorola phone passes through FCC, could be the X+1

An unidentified Motorola device passed through the FCC yesterday. Not much is known about the device, except its dimensions, which measure around 140mm for the height and 72.6mm for the width.

Considering the dimensions of the device and the timing of the FCC inspection, it would be fair to assume this is the soon to be announced Moto X+1, which has been heavily leaked recently.

Motorola is holding an event on September 3, where it is expected to announce the successor to the Moto X, along with the pricing information for the Moto 360.

Source • Via

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