More alleged details on HTC M8 Ace make the rounds online

More alleged details on the previously leaked HTC M8 Ace made the rounds online. According to a report in Engadget, the yet to be announced smartphone will offer Samsung Galaxy S5-matching specs for significantly less money.

The HTC M8 Ace will reportedly feature plastic unibody design, similar to the one seen in HTC Desire 610. The specs are tipped to include a 5” 1080p display and Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 SoC with 2.5GHz quad-core CPU.

Most importantly, the launch price of the smartphone is said to be CN¥3,000 (around $480).This means that the M8 Ace will significantly undercut the Samsung Galaxy S5 when available.

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Rumored Galaxy S5 Prime spotted in India

There have been some murmurs that Samsung, in an effort to grab some of HTC's premium phone market share (and undoubtedly the upcoming iPhone 6's), release a high-end version of their Galaxy S5 phone, called the S5 Prime. The upgraded version of the Korean manufacturer's latest flagship is supposed to have an aluminum encasing, 2K screen, and 3GB RAM.

Now Samsung has been mum on their plans with the Samsung Galaxy S5 prime, and haven't even acknowledged that they're working on the device, but it seems to be a pretty poorly kept secret with a series of leaks hinting at the phone's development.

The latest development is an Indian shipping manifest that shows a device with a code number SM-G906S, which is supposed to be a regional version of the Galaxy S5 Prime.

The G906S has also shown up on GFXBench, with the following specs detailed:

•5.2-inch 2560×1440 display

•2.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 quad-core processor •with Adreno 420 GPU

•3GB of RAM

•32GB of storage

•16 MP rear/ 2MP front-facing camera

•Android 4.4.2 KitKat

We have to yet to see if these rumors are going to turn out true, and in the meantime, we'll just be forced to play the waiting game. Let's say that these leaks are credible and Samsung is indeed planning on releasing a premium version of the S5, would you be willing to pay a premium price for a premium S5?

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Alcatel Idol X+ review: Common touch

GSMArena team, 28 April 2014.

Introduction

Alcatel has been slowly, but steadily making a name for itself for selling affordable, well-made phones throughout the entire price range. This year's Idol X+ is their flagship and it's an affordable yet robust product. With an octa-core processor of Mediatek's MT6592 variety, the X+ is able to throttle as many processor cores as it needs, to balance performance and battery efficiency.

The Idol X+ sports the same 5-inch fullHD display of its predecessor, the Idol X, and puts on an extra 500mAh of battery capacity - and dual-SIM support - while adding just 1mm to its thickness. The LCD panel is so close to the surface it's as if there's no glass between your fingers and the interface. It also features a minimal amount of side bezels, both facts lending to the premium feel.

Alcatel Idol X+ official images

But not all of the changes are for the better. To make room for the extra SIM slot, the Idol X+ has lost the microSD card support of its predecessor, and it runs the same aging Android 4.2.1 Jelly Bean build.

Here's a quick breakdown of the key features and disadvantages of Alcatel's new flagship.

Key features

• Dual-SIM support


• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support; Dual-band 3G with HSPA for both SIM cards


• 5" 16M-color 1080p IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen


• Android OS v4.2.1 Jelly Bean


• Octa-core 2.0 GHz Cortex-A7 CPU, 2 GB RAM, Mali-450MP4 GPU, MediaTek MT6592 chipset with eight full-featured cores and individual throttling


• 13 MP autofocus camera with LED flash, geotagging


• 1080p video recording @ 30fps with continuous autofocus and stereo sound


• 2 MP front-facing camera, 1080p video recording


• 16GB/32GB internal storage


• microUSB port


• Bluetooth v4.0


• Wi-Fi a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct


• GPS with A-GPS


• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack


• Stereo FM radio with RDS


• Accelerometer and proximity sensor


• Active noise cancellation with a dedicated mic


• 2,500mAh Li-Ion battery


• Comes bundled with high-quality JBL headphones


• Optional fitness BoomBand

Main disadvantages

• Non-replaceable battery


• No microSD card slot


• No LTE


• Android version not quite up-to-date


• Below average loudspeaker performance


• Back cover doesn't feel premium and gets easily smudged and scratched

Until now Alcatel's strategy for keeping costs down revolved around low internal memory, which was compensated for by the microSD card. With no card slot and only 16GB storage on board of our review unit, things are obviously a bit different this time around, and we're curious how the 32GB version will be priced and whether it will be as competitive as the other products in the company's portfolio. That said, the Idol X+ is a package that will certainly ring a bell if you didn't miss our review of the Alcatel Hero phablet.

Alcatel Idol X+ in our office

But pricing is something we'll get to in due time. For now, let's get things under way with our in-depth hardware examination.

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BlackBerry Z3 goes on pre-order, specs finally detailed

The BlackBerry Z3 which was officially announced at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this past February alongside the Q20 is now available for pre-order in Indonesia through local carriers Indosat and XL. The device will be launched (and probably shipped as well) on May 13 in Jakarta.

Aside from the standard Z3 there will also be a Jakarta Edition, which will have the name of the Indonesian capital engraved on its back panel. The special version will be available for a limited time to commemorate the launch of the first BB smartphone built for the Indonesian market.

Just as previously promised, the device will cost under $200 - BlackBerry expects a price of IDR 2,199,000 (amounting to around €137 and $190). We also got a recap of the specs of the smartphone - there wasn't much info about those when the Z30 was announced.

The BlackBerry Z3 has a 5" qHD (540 x 960) display, 8 GB of expandable on-board storage, 1.5 GB of RAM to accompany the dual-core 1.2 GHz Snapdragon 200 processor. The cameras are a 5 MP unit on the back along with a 1.1 MP 720p unit on the front.

There are no physical QWERTY keyboards here, this is a full touch device. The BlackBerry Z3 will carry BlackBerry OS version 10.2.1 and be powered by a 2,500 mAh battery.

Sadly word on availability outside the Indonesian market wasn't given.

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Xiaomi Mi3 gets a price cut, 16GB now costs $270

The Xiaomi Mi3 was launched back in September and it has always been known for offering plenty of bang for your buck. To maintain that reputation today the company has announced new prices, which considerably cheaper than before.

Xiaomi has slashed the price of the 16GB Mi3 from $327 to $270, while the 64GB model retails for $320 shortly after the company announced that it intends to bring the Mi3 outside of China. By the end of 2014, you should be able to buy the phone in India, Brazil, and Russia as well as Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, the Philippines, Thailand, Turkey, and Vietnam.

The device is available with two different chipsets - you can either get a Tegra 4 with four Cortex-A15 cores or a Snapdragon 800 with four Krait 400 cores at 2.2 GHz each. Currently, the Tegra 4 model is available on China Mobile, while the Snapdragon 800 is sold on China Unicom.

The device is very slender at 144mm×72mm×8.1mm and weighs only 145 g. it has a 5" 1080p IPS dislay, Android 4.2.1 skinned with MIUI v5 and covers imaging needs with 13 MP and 2 MP cameras.

The price cut may be Xiaomi's direct answer to the aggressive pricing of the OnePlus One, which was announced last week. The phone retails for $299 or $349 for the 16GB or 64GB model, respectively.

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Lenovo S860 goes on pre-order, ships next week

The Lenovo S860 popped up on this year's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona with a 5.3" IPS display of 720p resolution and 1.3GHz quad-core processor, riding on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.

The focus in the S860 is extra-long battery life as the smartphone packs a 4,000 mAh juice pack. It's expected to sport a stand by of either 28 or 40 days (on 2G and 3G connectivity, respectively).

Lenovo S860

There's also dual-SIM support but there's no LTE in tow. The device comes in Titanium gray and costs INR21,500 (€255/$355). Lenovo sells the S860 straight off its TheDotStore website in India - you can find it by following the Source link at the bottom of the page.

The specs package you get with the Lenovo S860 is very good for the price but the lack of Android KitKat at launch is rather disappointing. Hopefully Lenovo will make the effort to update the device soon. At the same price range you could go for a Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 or XOLO Q3000 - both fairly popular devices in India.

For more information on the handset - here's our Lenovo S860 hands-on.

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Samsung claims only a few Galaxy S5 cameras are defective

The Samsung Galaxy S5 has been having issues with its camera – namely, it stops working after a cryptic warning. Samsung has issued a statement saying the issue affects only a very limited number of devices.

The company declined to specify an exact number, but apparently the problem wasn’t confined to the US and Verizon, but affected a few other countries as well.

According to the statement, the problem was caused by "complications" in the ROM, specifically in the parts responsible for the camera. Samsung has taken steps to prevent this problem reoccurring in newly built devices.

Samsung is expecting lower profits for the first quarter of this year than the same period in the year before. That would be a second quarter of lower profits in a row (Q4 2013 saw a 6% dip in operating profits compared to 2012).

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