After a long wait, LG finally launched its flagship G4 in India for Rs. 51,000. It packs a 5.5-inch (2560 x 1440 pixels) Quad-HD Quantum display, is powered by a 1.8GHz hexa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor and runs on Android 5.1 (Lollipop) with LG UX 4.0. It has a 16-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, Laser AF for fast focus, Manual mode with RAW image capture, OIS 2.0 and an 8-megapixel front-facing camera. It has dual-SIM support and 4G LTE connectivity with support for LTE bands for India.
This week, Samsung launched two new tablets in India – Galaxy Tab A and Galaxy Tab E. The Galaxy Tab A has an 8-inch display with a resolution of 1024×768 pixels, is powered by 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 410 processor and runs on Android 5.0 (Lollipop). The Samsung Galaxy Tab E has a 9.6-inch (1280 x 800 pixels) display, is powered by 1.2GHz quad-core processor and runs on Android 4.4 (KitKat).
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Both tablets feature 5-megapixel rear camera and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. Both have voice calling capabilities as well. The Samsung Galaxy Tab A has 4G LTE support, while the Galaxy Tab E comes with 3G connectivity.
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The Samsung Galaxy Tab A comes in Smokey Titanium and White colors and is priced at Rs. 20,500. The Samsung Galaxy Tab E comes in Metallic Black and Perl White colors and is priced at Rs. 16,900. It will be available exclusively on Flipkart. Read our hands on of Galaxy Tab A and Galaxy Tab E here.
Micromax this week launched two devices in India. Company’s slimmest smartphone in the Canvas series dubbed Canvas Sliver 5 and a kids-focused tablet Canvas Tabby P469.
Micromax Canvas Sliver 5 has a 4.8-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) AMOLED display with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection, is powered by a 1.2 GHz Quad-core Snapdragon 410 processor and runs on Android 5.0 (Lollipop). It has an 8-megapixel rear camera with Sony IMX219 sensor, Blue Glass Filter, LED flash and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera. Micromax says that it is the slimmest smartphone ever at 5.1mm thickness end-to-end without any bumps.
httpv://youtu.be/5CQaEws_rHM
The single-SIM Canvas Sliver 5 supports 4G LTE (FDD-1800/2600/800 MHz & TDD-2300MHz), comes with non-expandable 16GB of internal storage and packs a 2000mAh battery. The Micromax Canvas Sliver 5 comes in Black and White is priced at Rs. 17,999. It will be available through online and retail stores across India by end of June. Read our hands on impressions here.
Micromax Canvas Tabby P469, the company’s latest tablet comes with dual use mode for both parents and kids.
The kids-use mode is powered by EddyPaddy, developed by kids-content company Educren, and is a kid-safe zone with over a 100 originally designed, pre-loaded applications and access to over 500 curated videos under Education, Creativity and Entertainment. It comes with a specially designed operating system for kids between the age of 2 and 8 years. You can create a profile for your child and get age-specific content. You can also set a time limit on specific days so your child doesn’t get hooked to it.
The Micromax Canvas Tabby comes in White color and is priced at Rs. 6,499. It will be available from June 22nd exclusively on Flipkart for a period of 3 weeks and will release across all online and retail channels later.
Infocus also launched two smartphones this week – the Infocus M350 and Infocus M530 priced at Rs. 7,999 and Rs. 10,999 respectively.
Infocus M350 features a 5-inch HD display, is powered by a 1.5 GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6732 processor and runs on Android 4.4 (KitKat) with InLife UI. It has an 8-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and a 8-megapixel front-facing camera. The smartphone is 10.6mm thick, with thinnest part of the edge at 3.5mm.
On the other hand, Infocus M530 features a 5.5-inch HD display, is powered by an octa-core MediaTek MT6595 processor and runs on Android 4.4 (Kitkat) with Inlife UI. It has a 13-megapixel rear camera with dual-tone LED flash, Sony Exmor RS sensor, OIS and a 13-megapixel front-facing camera that also has a Sony Exmor RS sensor.
iBall launched a PC stick dubbed the iBall Splendo in partnership with Microsoft India, similar to the Intel Compute Stick.
This tiny dongle runs full Windows 8.1 and can transform your TV or monitor with a HDMI port to a full-fledged PC. It is powered by a quad-core Intel Atom processor with Intel HD graphics, has 2 GB RAM, 32GB in-built memory and also has a microSD expansion slot.
It has a HDMI port to connect to a TV or a monitor, USB port to connect accessories, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 and multi-channel digital audio support. The iBall Splendo is priced at Rs. 8,999 and is backed by a one-year warranty. It will be available early July, across IT and TV retail channels.
iBall also launched a smartphone in the Cobalt series dubbed the iBall mSLR Cobalt4 at Rs. 8,499.
It has a 5-inch qHD (960 × 540 pixels) display, is powered by a 1.4 GHz octa-core processor and runs on Android 4.4 (KitKat). It has an 8-megapixel rear camera with dual LED flash and a 3.2-megapixel front-facing camera with soft LED flash. It comes with dual SIM support with dual standby and has 3G connectivity.
The iBall mSLR Cobalt4 comes bundled with lens mount with four lenses that include a zoom lens with 8x zoom, a fisheye lens with a 175-180 degree viewing angle, a macro lens with 10x magnification and minimum object distance of 10-15mm, and a wide-angle lens with a 130-degree viewing angle.
Xolo launched the Cube 5.0, the company’s latest smartphone with a 5-inch 720p OGS display with 85% NTSC color gamut that promises ultra-high color contrasts and vivid colors. The display also has Dragontrail Glass protection. The new Xolo Cube 5.0 is powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6582M SoC, coupled with 1GB of RAM and runs on Android 5.0 (Lollipop). It packs an 8-megapixel rear autofocus camera, and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera.
The 8GB of built-in storage is expandable via microSD card (up to 32GB). Connectivity options include 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, and GPS/ A-GPS. The handset is backed by a 2100mAh battery that is rated to deliver up to 24 hours of talk time on 2G and 11 hours of talk time on 3G.
Oppo launched the refreshed Neo 5 in India at Rs. 9,990. It smartphone was introduced last week in China. It has a 4.5-inch (854 x 480 pixels) FWVGA IPS display, is powered by a 1.3 GHz quad-core processor and Android 4.4 (KitKat) based on ColorOS 2.0.1. It has an 8-megapixel camera with BSI sensor, LED flash and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. It has a glass back and comes in Crystal White and Sapphire Blue colours.
Celkon launched the Millennia Q5K Power, a new smartphone in the Millennia series with a 5000mAh battery. Priced at Rs. 5,222, the Q5K Power features a 5-inch FWVGA screen, is powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core processor and runs on Android 4.4 (KitKat). It has a 5-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and a 3.2-megapixel front-facing camera. It comes with dual SIM support and 3G connectivity, similar to most other Celkon smartphones.
Wickedleak launched the Wammy Note 4, the company’s latest smartphone and the successor of last year’s Wammy Note 3. It has a 5.5-inch full HD display with 74% screen-to-body ratio, Corning Gorilla Glass 3 Protection, is powered by a 1.7 GHz octa-core MediaTek MT6752 64-bit processor and runs on Android 4.4 (KitKat). It has a 13-megapixel rear camera with dual LED flash and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera.
Lastly, Xiaomi launched its Mi LED accessory, a portable USB light in India. You can power the light by just plugging it into a USB of a laptop, a charger or even a power bank. This will be useful for those who have laptops with a keyboard that’s not backlit so they can work even in the dark.
The Xiaomi Mi LED Light is priced at Rs. 199, comes in White and Blue colors and is now available for purchase through official Mi India website.
Weekly Announcements
Samsung Galaxy J5 and Galaxy J7 smartphones went official in China this week. The Samsung Galaxy J7 is priced at CNY 1,798 (US$ 290 / Rs. 18468 approx.) and the Galaxy J5 is priced at CNY 1,398 (US$ 225 / Rs. 14360 approx.).
The Galaxy J5 has a 5-inch HD screen and is powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 410 SoC, while the Galaxy J7 comes with a 5.5-inch HD display and is powered by an Octa-Core Snapdragon 615 SoC. Both these smartphones run on Android 5.1 (Lollipop) with new UI, have a 13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera with LED flash for capturing better selfies even in the dark. Checkout the full details here.
Sony this week launched the Z4v on Verizon in the US, which is essentially a Z4/ Z3+ variant and also has a QHD screen that sets it apart from the former two models. The Xperia Z4 was first launched in Japan and then subsequently launched worldwide as the Z3+.
The Sony XPERIA Z4v builds on the base features of these two models but the primary difference is that it upgrades its 5.2-inch panel from 1080p resolution to a 1440p one.
Rest of the specifications remains the same. The phone is still powered by a Snapdragon 810 processor. It has 3GB of RAM, a 20.7-megapixel rear camera, and a 5-megapixel front facing camera. The battery is a 3000mAh battery instead of 2930mAh.
HP introduced its first commercial tablet with Windows 10 pre-installed dubbed the HP Pro Tablet 608 G1. It has an 8-inch (2048×1536 pixels) 4:3 display with Corning Gorilla Glass 4 protection, is powered by a quad-core Intel Atom x5-Z8500 processor with Intel HD graphics and is targeted at business users.
It has a 8-megapixel rear camera without flash and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. It has metal-reinforced chassis, comes with 2GB or 4GB of RAM, 32GB, 64GB, or 128GB of storage and a microSD card slot. In terms of connectivity, the tablet offers global 4G LTE support, Wi-Fi, WiDi, Miracast, Bluetooth 4.0 and NFC.
The HP Pro Tablet 608 G1 will be available in July starting at $479 for the base model. It will ship with Windows 8.1 Pro in July and will come with Windows 10 starting in August.
After a teaser earlier this week, the French photo software company named DxO Labs has introduced a pocket-sized 20.2-megapixel lens-style camera dubbed the DxO ONE for your iPhone to take images that can match the quality of a DSLR.
The DxO ONE camera can be plugged in to the Lightning port of your iPhone or iPad, and can swivel up to 60 degrees in each direction. It is compatible with iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5, iPad Air 2, iPad mini 3, iPad Air, iPad mini 2, iPad (4th gen), and iOS 8 or later. Checkout full details here.