Gionee Elife E8 launched in India at Rs 34,999

Gionee Elife E8, the phone which can capture pictures in whopping 120 megapixel, was

launched in India today at whopping Rs 34,999. It will be available from Snapdeal from October 12.
The highlight of Elife E8 is its 24 megapixel camera which, according to Gionee, can capture

photographs in humongous 120 megapixel. Gionee further claimed that the Elife E8 has a

'lossless' zoom that maintain image quality even if the user keeps the zoom at 3X. Besides,

it offers image stabilisation, 4K video recording, and auto focus ability in as little as 0.2

seconds. The smartphone also boasts an 8 megapixel front camera.
The Gionee Elife E8 has a 6 inch Super AMOLED display with 2560x1440 pixels resolution

(WQHD). It is powered by the MediaTek MTK6795 chipset that has a 2 GHz octa core

processor and 3 GB RAM. This processor runs the Android 5.1 Lollipop operating system on

top of which lies Gionee's Amigo 3.1 interface. Besides, the Gionee Elife E8 offers dual SIM,

4G, 3500 mAh battery and a fingerprint sensor as well.

Apple Touts Environmental Upgrade in iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus Associated Press

Apple has given its latest iPhones an environmental upgrade to go along with a 

better camera and a few new features.

The iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus have reduced their carbon emissions by 

14 to 16 percent from last year's models, according to Apple measurements

 that quantify how much pollution is caused during the production, 

distribution, consumer usage and recycling of the devices.

Most of the improvements reflected changes made in the purchasing 

and manufacturing of the aluminum used in the iphone enclosures.

 Lisa Jackson, Apple's top environmental executive, told The Associated

 Press on Wednesday that carbon emissions tied to the production of

 those iPhone enclosures have been cut in half from last year.

Although those gains won't be highlighted in any of Apple's ads leading

 up to the September 25 release of the last iPhones, the company is hoping 

its faithful customers will appreciate the progress.

"We feel it's really important to tell folks what we did," Jackson said. "We

 shouldn't keep these kinds of ideas in a box because we believe other folks 

should be doing exactly the same thing."

Other major technology companies also have been trying to reduce the 

pollution caused by their digital services and products, usually by investing 

heavily in hydroelectricity and renewable energy such as solar and wind power

, to run the millions of computers that store and process data for their users.

By some estimates, technology products and services account for as

 much of the world's carbon emissions as the airline industry.

Besides Apple Inc., both google Inc. and Facebook Inc. have also been 

praised by environmental groups for reducing their reliance on power plants

 that burn coal and natural gas.

Apple boasts that all its data centers, offices and stores in the U.S. are now 

powered by renewable energy. On a worldwide basis, about 13 percent of 

Apple's operations still draw on power generated from fossil figures. The 

Cupertino, California, company has pledged to eliminate all fossil fuels from

 its energy mix.

Apple is also pressuring the hundreds of suppliers of that make and

 assemble parts for its gadgets to become more environmentally 

friendly. As part of that resolve, Apple put a higher priority 

on equipping its latest iPhones with aluminum produced with hydroelectric 

power.

"It's a first step, but it's the kind of work you have to do to turn the

 corner," Jackson said. "At the end of the day, if environment is one of 

our values, then also want it to show up in our products."

Oppo R7 Plus and Oppo R7 Lite: First Impressions

Oppo, one of the better-known players in the smartphone market, on Thursday took the wraps off its huge R7 Plus and the low-powered R7 Lite in India. The R7 Lite is a new addition to the R7 smartphone series, as the company has only showcased the R7 Plus and the R7 before now, in its home turf china The R7 Lite is a slightly toned-down version of the R7, at least on paper. While the R7 Plus is priced at Rs. 29,990, the R7 Lite costs Rs. 17,990.

Both the R7 Plus and R7 Lite smartphones are impressively lightweight and slim, but that also makes them slightly uncomfortable to hold. While the opportunity r7 at first feels too sleek and fragile, the R7 Plus is bigger and wider, which is likely to make one-handed use difficult for users with average-sized hands. Out of the two, we slightly prefer the feel of the new variant - R7 Lite - because it is easier to hold and use with one hand. Unfortunately, other than the full metal unibody treatment given to both the R7 handsets, oppo has not managed to create the desired premium feel.

While the opportunity R7 plus (seen above) measures 158 x 82 x 7.75mm, the R7 Lite measures 143 x 71 x 6.3mm. Skimming over the design, these smartphones have their earpieces, sensors and a front-facing camera at the top of the front panel, and the loudspeaker towards the bottom of the back panel. The power and volume buttons are on left and right respectively on the R7 Lite, but for some reason the R7 Plus has exactly the opposite arrangement. Due to the different display sizes, the low-powered R7 Lite has capacitive touch buttons, while the larger R7 Plus has on-screen buttons. The rear camera is placed top-middle of the rear panel, just above the fingerprint sensor, on the R7 Plus, unlike the R7 Lite which has its rear camera in one corner.

Sony Xperia Z5, Xperia Z5 Compact, and Xperia Z5 Premium Price Detailed

Sony at its pre-IFA 2015 trade show event on Wednesday launchedits new flagship smartphones, the Xperia Z5, Xperia Z5 Compactand the world's first 4K resolution display smartphone, the Xperia Z5 Premium. While the prices did not accompany the launch announcement, the Japanese tech firm has not taken too long to reveal them - at least for Europe. As known before, two of the smartphones would begin shipping in October, while the Xperia Z5 Premium will ship.

The Sony Xperia Z5, Xperia Z5 Compact, and Xperia Z5 Premium have now been listed on the company's own UK, Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands, and Spain portals, with pricing and a 'coming soon' tag. Amazon UK, Germany and Clove UK online retailers have also listed the smartphones. The Xperia Z5 and Xperia Z5 Premium are expected to hit the Indian market before Diwali in November, while Xperia Z5 Compact is unlikely to come to Indian shores in the first phase of rollouts. Though India pricing will not match directly converted Europe price tags, they will give us an indication of just how expensive they will be on arrival. It is worth mentioning that all the listings of the three Xperia Z5 variants are for the SIM-free (carrier unlocked) 32GB inbuilt storage models.

Sony's Eshop portals list the Xperia Z5 at GBP 599 (roughly Rs. 60,600) in the UK, and EUR 699 (roughly Rs. 51,700) in Germany,France, Italy, Netherlands and Spain. The smaller Xperia Z5 Compact is priced at GBP 549 (roughly Rs. 55,500) in the UK, EUR 549 (roughly Rs. 40,600) in Germany, EUR 599 (roughly Rs. 44,300) in France, Italy, Netherlands and Spain. As for the 4K resolution Xperia Z5 Premium, the device is priced at GBP 699 in the UK, EUR 700 (roughly Rs. 51,800) in Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands and Spain.

Amazon UK currently lists the Sony Xperia Z5 and Xperia Z5 Compact at GBP 549 and GBP 449 (roughly Rs. 45,400) respectively. The e-commerce company's Germany website is seenlisting the three devices at same prices like the ones seen on the official Sony website. Clove UK in its blog post has stated the Xperia Z5, Xperia Z5 Compact and Xperia Z5 Premium would cost GBP 525 (roughly Rs. 53,000), GBP 439 (roughly Rs. 44,400), and GBP 629 (roughly Rs. 63,600) respectively. Users can pre-order the smartphones from the website. A Finnish e-commerce firm has also listed the Xperia Z5 at EUR 599.

HTC Announces Smartphone Launch for Sunday, Rumoured Aero A9 Expecte

Last month we saw an image showing the rumoured HTC Aero A9 (aka HTC One A9 or HTC Hero) smartphone compared side-by-side with an Apple iPhone 6. Now, HTC has announced a smartphone launch for Sunday, and the Taiwanese firm is expected to launch the rumoured Aero A9 smartphone.

The teaser image posted by HTC on its Weibo account shows the outline of the smartphone, followed by text in Chinese tipping a 'superior, handsome' top-end smartphone.

If the previously leaked image showing the HTC Aero A9 smartphone is any indication, the device would be sharing most of its design profile with the iPhone 6 smartphone. The images uploaded by @Onleaks (Steve Hemmerstoffer) last month showed the front and rear panel of the alleged HTC Aero A9 smartphone.

The rear panel looks similar to that of iPhone 6, featuring two antenna strips on top and bottom alongside the same bold curved handset edges. The camera position however, is different. "OK so this is what that crappy HTC's iPhone 6 render was all about...I can't believe this is real... #HTC #HTCAero #HTCA9," stated the post.

As per recent rumours, the HTC Aero A9 is supposed to pack a QHD resolution display with Corning Gorilla Glass 4 protection and 2.5D curved edges, a MediaTek Helio X20 ten-core tri-cluster processor with 4GB of RAM and Mali-T880 MP4 GPU.

Oppo R7 Lite and R7 Plus With Android 5.1 Lollipop Launched in India

Oppo on Wednesday launched the R7 Lite and and R7 Plus smartphones in India, priced at Rs. 17,990 and Rs. 29,990. The former will be available in Gold and Silver colour variants starting September 10, while the latter will be available in a Gold colour variant from September 25. Both smartphones support 4G LTE bands in India.

The dual-SIM Oppo R7 Plus features a fingerprint sensor placed on its rear panel, and runs Android 5.1 Lollipop-based ColorOS 2.1 developed by Oppo. It sports a 6-inch full-HD Amoled display, features 32GB of inbuilt storage, is backed by a 4100mAh non-removable battery, and offers Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac connectivity. Inbuilt storage can be expanded via microSD card (up to 128GB) using the hybrid Nano-SIM card slots. 
The Oppo R7 Plus is powered by a 64-bit octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 MSM8939 (quad-core 1.5GHz Cortex-A53 and quad-core 1GHz Cortex-A53) processor coupled with 3GB of RAM and an Adreno 305 GPU. It bears a 13-megapixel rear camera with f/2.2 aperture and ISOCELL image sensor technology, apart from an 8-megapixel front-facing camera with f/2.4 aperture. According to the firm, the handset using the Pure Image 2.0+ technology can create an Ultra-HD 50-megapixel resolution images. Oppo also claims the rear camera to launch in 0.7 seconds and take 0.1 seconds for auto-focusing.

The R7 Plus measures 158x82x7.75 mm and weighs 182 grams. It features VOOC flash charging technology, rated to deliver two hours of talk time in five minutes of charging, and charge the handset by 75 percent in 30 minutes.

Intex, Microsoft Partner to Offer Free Cloud Storage to Smartphone Users

Domestic handset-maker Intex on Wednesday said it was partnering with Redmond-based IT giant Microsoft to provide 50GB of cloud storage space for two years via Microsoft's OneDrive in smartphones sold in India.

"OneDrive will come pre-installed in Intex smartphones with a memory configuration of 16GB ROM and 2GB RAM, namely Aqua Speed HD, Aqua Power Plus, Cloud Power Plus and Aqua Star II(16GB) and all future models matching the said configuration," the company said.

"This will allow users to easily access and share their important documents, photos, and other files from their Intex smartphone or any of their other devices. Users will only need to sign in with theirMicrosoft account to access and share their files through the in-built OneDrive app," it added.

The addition of OneDrive will also allow users to access their files from any device - such as their PC or Mac or other tablets or smartphones via the OneDrive app.

"With online being the preferred medium, online storage space has also gathered a lot of traction. So, keeping consumer trends in mind, we have forged a first-of-its-kind association with Microsoft and introduced an in-built app 'OneDrive' that will give users free cloud storage space of 50GB," Sanjay Kalirona, business head of mobiles at Intex Technologies, said.

Along with OneDrive, the association will also offer Skype to Intex users. Currently, Intex is the second largest domestic smartphone vendor in the country with a market share of 11 percent.

   

Sony Xperia Z5 and Xperia Z5 Compact With 23-Megapixel Camera Launched

As expected, Sony on Wednesday lifted the wraps of its 2015 lineup of flagship smartphones at the sidelines of IFA in Berlin. Apart from the first smartphone to come with a 4K UHD display - the Sony Xperia Z5 Premium - the company has unveiled the Sony Xperia Z5and the Sony Xperia Z5 Compact.

(Also see:  Sony Xperia Z5 vs. Sony Xperia Z5 Compact vs. Sony Xperia Z5 Premium)

The two smartphones sport near identical specifications, with the only difference being the size of the screen. While the Xperia Z5 comes with a 5.2-inch display, the Xperia Z5 Compact sports a 4.6-inch screen. Xperia Z5 and Xperia Z5 Compact are powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 SoC, featuring a 64-bit octa-core processor and 4G LTE capabilities.

(Also see:  Sony Xperia Z5 full specifications)

Perhaps the highlight of the new flagship smartphones from Sony is the improved camera. The Sony Xperia Z5 and Sony Xperia Z5 Compact come with a brand new 1/2.3 Exmor RS for mobile 23-megapixel sensor and F/2.0 G lens. Sony claims to have designed the camera inside its new flagships using the same technology that's seen in its Alpha range of interchangeable lens cameras.

The rear camera also boasts of the "fastest autofocus in a smartphone" - at 0.037 seconds - and comes with improvements in SteadyShot, Sony's image stabilisation techniques that make sure the video isn't 'jerky' even if the phone moves while shooting, as well as enhanced low-light performance.

(Also see:  Sony Xperia Z5 Compact full specifications)

The other big addition to the smartphones is a fingerprint scanner, which is embedded on the power button on the right hand side. In our limited testing with the Sony Xperia Z5 and the Sony Xperia Z5 Premium, the fingerprint scanner performed reliably and without any speed or performance issues. It will also support the FIDO standard; authentication via fingerprint for online payment services - with Sony sharing news on first partners at a later date.

(Also see:  Sony Xperia Z5 vs. LG G4 vs. Samsung Galaxy S6 vs. iPhone 6 Plus)

"Smartphones are part of people's lives," said Hiroki Totoki, President and CEO at Sony Mobile Communications. "Since users already create, share and enjoy most of their content on the go - we've set out to bring Sony's latest innovations in camera, design and display to ensure the Xperia Z5 series is the best possible lifestyle and entertainment platform," he added.

(Also see:  Sony Xperia Z5 Compact vs. LG G4 vs. Samsung Galaxy S6 vs. iPhone 6)

The Sony Xperia Z5 comes with a metal frame and frosted glass back, and will be available in White, Graphite Black, Gold, and Green colour options. The Sony Xperia Z5 Compact will be available in Yellow and Coral colour options, in addition to White and Graphite Black. Both phones comes with waterproof protection.

Sony Xperia Z5 and Xperia Z5 Compact will launch globally from October 2015, and Xperia Z5 Premium will hit the markets in November 2015. The Sony Xperia Z5 and Sony Xperia Z5 Premium will be available in both single SIM and dual SIM variants, with India expected to get the dual SIM models of the phones. Pricing of all three smartphones is currently not known.

Disclosure: Sony sponsored the correspondent's flights and hotel for the launch event in Berlin.

Lenovo Vibe S1, Vibe P1, and Vibe P1m Smartphones Launched at IFA 2015

Lenovo at the ongoing IFA 2015 in Berlin has already revealed new ThinkPad, IdeaPad, IdeaCentre, and Yoga Tab 3 devices. The Chinese company also took the wraps off its new Vibe smartphones - the Vibe S1, Vibe P1, and Vibe P1m. Additionally, Lenovo announced the new Phab-series smartphones - the Phab and recently unveiled Phab Plus.

To start off, the Lenovo Vibe S1 will be available from November at a starting price of $299 (approximately Rs. 19,800) excluding tax or shipping charges. The Lenovo P1 will be available starting early October at $279 (approximately Rs. 18,500) and Lenovo Vibe P1m(see above) will go on sale in mid-September at $159 (approximately Rs. 10,500). The company has announced that the new Vibe-series handset will be launching only in countries where Lenovo smartphones are sold. The company however points out that Vibe S1 will not be made available in North America.

The Lenovo Phab Plus and Phab (see below) smartphones will be available in select countries starting September at $299 (approximately Rs. Rs. 19,800) and at $179 (approximately Rs. 12,000) respectively. Lenovo late last month had announced the Phab Plus smartphone in China.

                 

The Android 5.0 Lollipop-based Lenovo Vibe S1 features a 5-inch full-HD (1080x1920) display. The highlight of the smartphone are its dual front cameras. It sports 8-megapixel and 2-megapixel front-facing cameras. The company explains, "The 8-megapixel primary front camera takes the sharpest photos and a 2-megapixel secondary front camera analyses depth of field information."

The handset also sports several built-in photo editing tools such as Blur, which allows refocusing anywhere on the selfie (up to 3 focal plains), and Cut Out, allows users to cut out people from a selfie and then superimpose them on another image. There Lenovo Vibe S1 also sports a 13-megapixel rear camera. It sports a 7.8mm thin profile and weighs 132 grams. Under the hood, the smartphone is powered by a 64-bit quad-core MediaTek processor coupled with 3GB of RAM. The smartphone offers 32GB of built-in storage and supports expandable storage via microSD (up to 128GB). Running Android 5.0 Lollipop, the smartphone supports 4G LTE connectivity, features a 2500mAh battery, and will be available in Pearl White and Midnight Blue colours.

Lenovo's new Android 5.1 Lollipop-based Vibe P1 and P1m smartphones feature massive batteries. The Vibe P1 packs a huge 5000mAh battery while the P1m includes a 4000mAh battery, the highlight for both the handsets. Notably, Vibe P1 handset, ahead of its IFA launch, was listed by an online retailer. For specifications, it features a 5.5-inch full-HD (1080x1920 pixels) IPS display with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 for protection; Snapdragon 615 octa-core processor clocked at 1.5GHz; Adreno 405 GPU; 3GB of RAM; 16GB storage; expandable storage support via microSD card; NFC; USB OTG; 13-megapixel rear camera; 5-megapixel front camera; dual-SIM with dual 4G LTE support, as well as 24-watt charging capability that's claimed to the smartphone a bit faster. The Vibe P1 (see below) will be available in Platinum, Graphite Grey and Gold colours.

icrosoft Lumia 950, 950 XL Flagship Smartphones Press Renders Leaked

Microsoft's rumoured premium Lumia handsets, the Lumia 950 (codenamed Talkman) and Lumia 950 XL (codenamed Cityman), have been leaked in press renders. The leak comes courtesy one of the most reliable online tipsters Evan Blass, aka @evleaks, who posted press renders of both the Talkman and Cityman (see above) smartphones.

Neowin's Brad Sams was the first to post a live image of the alleged Microsoft Lumia 950 XL (codenamed Cityman) on Twitter. Blass followed the tweet with press renders of both the Cityman and Talkman high-end smartphones. He said, "I see your Cityman, and raise you a Talkman."

The first leaked live image shows the alleged Lumia 950 XL in a Blue colour variant being charged and shows the home screen of the smartphone. Some of the apps visible on the home screen include Xbox, Office suite, Flipboard, Twitter, and Skype among others.

         e leaked press render also shows the Lumia 950 XL smartphone's Blue colour model. The handset is seen featuring a Windows logo on the rear panel alongside the primary camera and dual-LED flash. The right side of the handset is seen featuring physical buttons for power, volume rocker, and camera. The front panel holds the display and the Microsoft logo branding above the screen.

The Microsoft Lumia 950 (codenamed Talkman), on the other hand, was spotted in a Black colour variant. Much like the Cityman, the Talkman smartphone features the Windows logo at the rear and Microsoft Logo branding above the display. The side panel holds the power, volume, and camera button. The rear camera on the Lumia 950 looks to be surrounded by a chrome ring with the dual LED flash. Both the Lumia 950 and 950 XL smartphones can be spotted with onscreen home, back, and search buttons.

Some of the purported specifications of the Microsoft Lumia 950 (see below) tipped include a 5.2-inch QHD Oled display; a 64-bit hexa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 SoC; 3GB RAM, a 20-megapixel PureView rear camera; a 5-megapixel wide-angle front-facing camera; 32GB of inbuilt storage expandable via microSD card; USB Type-C; Qi wireless charging support, and a 3000mAh removable battery.