iPhone 6 Sapphire begins shipping to China

It's not exactly a secret that the iPhone 6's display is going to be coated in Sapphire for extra anti-scratch resistance. Well now UBS Research's first quarter preview on GT Advanced Technologies, which is the company that's been contracted by Apple to create all of the sapphire coatings for the iPhone 6, shows that they've begun shipping Sapphire coated screens to China.

Here's what their research had to show:

“Checks find GT’s Arizona factory likely stared producing sapphire last month. Our own checks found that for the first time GT shipped some small quantities of sapphire made in its Arizona fab to one of Apple’s partners in China who is in charge of making sapphire covers. Our checks find the amount of ingots it sold into China last month was only about 2,200kg which would be in line with our estimate of about 100 sapphire furnaces turned on and running (our checks find 100 furnaces were targeted for installation in 4Q13). We believe GT is still on schedule in Arizona, where we estimate GT was to install another 400-500 sapphire furnaces in 1Q14 and 900-1,000 in 2Q14. GT confirmed last week that it received a 3rd prepayment from Apple recently (we estimate the 4th and last prepayment will be made in May) which also gives us confidence that its Arizona sapphire factory for Apple is tracking on schedule.”

Analyst Matt Margolis believes that “approximately 100,000 to 115,000 sapphire screens could be produced from 2,200 kg of sapphire ingots”. GT will be selling each sapphire screen for $8.50-$10 a unit. This makes GT's prices significantly cheaper 25% to be exact) than Apple's previous sapphire supplier.

Overall, GT is estimated to score anywhere from $600m-$800m, with about 80% of their sales coming from Apple alone.

GT Advanced has enough equipment to produce 100 million iPhone displays a year, if they should desire to make that many. Seeing as the next generation iPhone is going to have a purportedly 5” screen, it might be a big enough change that'll make the iPhone fly off the shelves in a frenzy like never before.

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Nokia XL Dual SIM review: Start to Finnish

GSMArena team, 02 May 2014.

Introduction

The Nokia XL goes where Asha never dared, 5" screen territory. Windows Phone itself only recently got there, but the Nokia X family is really an extension of touchscreen Asha "smartphones" rather than a failsafe in case Windows Phone get messed up.

Nokia XL official images

We say Asha "smartphones" because that's what Nokia chooses to call them even if no one else would. Even the Finns eventually had to acknowledge the limitations of platform - QVGA resolution kept screens tiny and the app ecosystem never had much promise.

The Nokia X software is based on the Android Open Source Project, just the OS without any of the Google stuff. The more advanced software has opened doors to bigger, higher resolution screens and modern, up-to-date apps, plus more powerful hardware.

The ease of customization also let the company create a unique, Nokia experience with a blend of Nokia and Microsoft services filling in for the missing Google goodies that we are accustomed to seeing on Android.

Here's the summary of what the Nokia XL has to offer:

Key features

• Quad-band GSM, GPRS, EDGE


• Dual-band 3G with HSPA


• Optional dual-SIM support, dual standby


• Nokia X software platform 1.0.1, based on the Android Open Source Project (4.1 Jelly Bean)


• 5" IPS LCD WVGA capacitive touchscreen, ~187 ppi


• 1.2GHz dual-core Cortex-A5 processor, Adreno 203 GPU, Qualcomm MSM8225 Snapdragon S4 Play chipset


• 768MB RAM


• Proximity sensor, accelerometer, display auto-rotation


• 4GB internal storage (1.2GB available to the user)


• Nokia HERE maps with free lifetime voice-guided navigation and offline maps support


• Data-efficient Nokia Xpress browser


• Nokia MixRadio


• Nokia Glance screen, double-tap-to-unlock


• 5MP camera, FWVGA video recording @30fps; 2MP front-facing camera


• microSD card support (up to 32 GB)


• Wi-Fi b/g/n connectivity


• FM radio


• Bluetooth v3.0


• Standard microUSB port, charging


• 2,000mAh Li-Ion battery

Main disadvantages

• Large and heavy for a 5" device


• Low screen resolution


• No Google services (Play, Gmail, Maps, Calendar, Drive), you can't even sync contacts


• Budget-grade hardware may result in system bottlenecks


• Poor video capture


• No smart dialing


• No document reader

The specs aren't meant to impress but, as an Asha alternative, the Nokia XL prioritizes price over features. Indeed, the XL and its siblings are cheaper than the revered Moto G (barring temporary discounts and promotions).

We shouldn't discount the value of Nokia's premium services - HERE maps with free offline navigation, MixRadio, Glance Screen and double-tap to wake (trademark features that go way back). A familiar brand name also counts for a lot, considering the Android low end is getting populated with small brands with only the Lumia 520 / 525 to fight back.

Nokia XL in our office

While the Nokia Lumia 520 has dropped to stunning prices of €100, that's not without some subsidies from Nokia, Microsoft or both to boost WP market share. The Nokia XL and its two shorter siblings instead deliver hardware at its actual price, no catch.

It's a race to the bottom that in the long term will only get fiercer as cheap smartphones become "good enough". Is the Nokia XL "good enough" or perhaps even "better"? Flip to the next page and begin to find out.

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Sony Xperia Z2 for Verizon gets accidentally confirmed

Sony accidentally confirmed that Xperia Z2 will be make its way to Verizon Wireless in the United States. On its official Google+ page, the electronics giant accidentally posted and quickly removed a photo of the Android powerhouse with Verizon livery.

The accidentally (or not) leaked image surely caught us by surprise. It was less than a week ago when a word got out that Sony will only sell the Xperia Z2 unlocked, without carrier subsidies in the United States.

In any case, seeing a version of the Sony Xperia Z2 on its way across the Atlantic is nothing but good news. Currently, T-Mobile is the only carries in the US which offers a top-end Sony smartphone – the Xperia Z1s.

Via

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HTC One (M8) gets a $100 discount on Verizon

Those looking to get an HTC One (M8) on the Verizon network in the US will love to hear this. The carrier has slashed $100 off the price of the flagship, dropping it to $99.99. Naturally, you’ll need to sign a two-year contract for the price to apply. The off-contract price remains unchanged at $599.99.

The bad news is that those most eager upgraders that are on the Verizon Edge plan won’t feel the benefit of the promotion either. While the price is lower there the discount is a mere 23 cents per month – now $24.99.

If you are still unsure whether or not the HTC One (M8) is a worthy purchase you should definitely check out our review. We also have an HTC One (M8) vs Samsung Galaxy S5 shootout for those sitting on the fence.

To take advantage of the promotion follow the source link below.

Source | Via

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Alleged official image of Amazon's phone emerges

Purported official image of the upcoming Amazon smartphone made an appearance. The image is reportedly the work of graphic designers at Amazon and has been verified as the real deal.

At a quick glance, the yet to be annoucned Amazon phone looks like a mashup of design elements from Apple iPhone (particularly the iPhone 5c) and the Samsung Galaxy S family (per that button below the display). The image reveals all sides of the device, except for its top. Unsurprisingly, the handset looks decidedly understated, much like the Kindle Fire of tablets.

This is not the first time the Amazon smartphone leaks. A couple of weeks ago, we saw live images of the handset in prototype casing. The positioning of the buttons, the SIM slot, as well as the look of the earpiece from those photos fall right in line with today’s image.

The Amazon smartphone is tipped to feature a 4.7” 720p display, Qualcomm Snapdragon SoC with quad-core CPU, 2GB of RAM, and six camera modules for 3D UI effects. The OS will be a highly modified Android build as seen in the Kindle Fire tablets and will only utilize the Amazon app store.

Amazon is tipped to launch its first smartphone at some point in Q3. AT&T is expected to be an exclusive partner. It will offer the device with a special monthly Prime Data package.

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HTC One (M8) mini to be called HTC One mini 2

We already know that HTC is working on a mini variant of its flagship smartphone, the HTC One (M8). Today we learn that the upcoming smartphone and the successor of the HTC One mini will be called HTC One mini 2, according to the popular tipster @evleaks.

The HTC One mini 2 is rumored to sport a 4.5-inch 720p display, Snapdragon 400 chipset with quad-core Cortex A7 CPU clocked at 1.4 GHz, 1 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal memory, expandable via a microSD card. There's also a 13 megapixel rear camera, 5 megapixel front-facing shooter, Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.0 and Android 4.4.2 KitKat with Sense 6.0 UI on top.

The leakster had earlier revealed that Verizon will carry the upcoming One mini 2, but it remains to be seen if the carrier is going to exclusively offer the phone. And, outside the United States, we know that Swedish carrier Telia will be offering the smartphone after it accidentally listed the One mini 2 on its website.

If the rumors are to be trusted, the HTC One mini 2 will go on sale this month, but there is no official word at the moment.

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Samsung Galaxy S5 mini support page spotted on official site

The Samsung Galaxy S5 mini has been rumored for a long time and we’ve encountered its SM-G800 model number a few times. This time it’s right on Samsung’s official web site (the Finnish portal in particular).

Unfortunately, the web page appears to be just a placeholder at the moment with no additional info. The Galaxy S5 mini is rumored to come with a 4.5” 720p screen, Snapdragon 400 chipset and an 8MP camera.

The Galaxy S5 mini will be water-resistant with an IP67 rating, just like it's bigger sibling.

There’s also an SM-G750 in the works, currently known under the Galaxy S5 Neo moniker. This one seems to be a higher end model - a 5.1” 720p phone with a 2.3GHz CPU - despite the lower model number.

Source (in Finnish)

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