This week Xolo introduced its first BLACK smartphone with dual rear cameras at an event in Delhi, Intel launched its Compute Stick, a compact PC in India, Micromax launched new budget Bolt series smartphones, LG announced the G4 Beat, Asus showcased Pegasus 2 Plus, the successor of Pegasus. Check out all the launches in India and announcements worldwide from this week.
First up, the Xolo BLACK that was launched for Rs. 12999 packs a 5.5-inch 1080p display with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection, 2nd-gen Octa-Core Snapdragon 615 SoC, Android 5.0 (Lollipop) with HIVE Atlas UI on top, 13-megapixel rear camera along with a secondary 2-megapixel depth-sensing camera, 5-megapixel front-facing camera with LED flash for better selfies.
It has 2GB LPDDR3 RAM, 16GB internal memory, Hybrid Dual (micro + nano) SIM that lets you use the second slot as microSD slot when required, 4G LTE support and a 3200mAh battery. Check out the Xolo BLACK hands-on and photo gallery here.
Intel finally launched the Compute Stick in India for Rs. 9,999. This HDMI dongle will 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 runs Windows 8.1. It has a HDMI port to connect to a TV or a monitor, USB port to connect accessories, WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0 and multi-channel digital audio support via HDMI. Check out our Intel Compute Stick unboxing and demo.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byTxyvhII7Y
Samsung introduced Galaxy Tab 3V with 3G and voice calling in India for Rs. 10600. This is yet to go on sale and packs a 7-inch (1024×600) TFT display, 1.3 GHz quad-core processor, Android 4.4 (KitKat), 5-megapixel rear camera without flash, 1GB RAM, 8 GB internal memory with expansion slot and a 3,600 mAh battery.
Panasonic launched the Eluga Z in the Eluga series with a metal frame and 6.85mm thickness in Champagne Gold, Ivory White & Midnight Blue colors and a price of Rs. 13,490. It packs a 5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) OnCell HD AMOLED display, 1.4 GHz True Octa-Core processor, Android 4.4 (KitKat), 13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, 5-megapixel front-facing camera, 2GB RAM, 16GB internal memory with expansion slot, dual SIM support, 3G connectivity and a 2050mAh battery.
Huawei launched Y336, Y541, Y625 and G620S smartphones in the country priced at Rs. 5,499, Rs. 6,499, Rs. 8,499 and Rs. 9,499, respectively. All these smartphones run on Android 4.4 (KitKat) with Emotion UI on top and have dual SIM support. The Huawei Y336 has a 4-inch WVGA screen, 1.2 GHz quad-core Spreadtrum 7731 processor, 5MP rear camera with dual LED Flash, 2MP front-facing camera, 512MB RAM, 4GB internal memory with expansion slot and a 1730mAh battery.
The Huawei Y541 has a 4.5-inch WVGA screen, is powered by the same 1.2 GHz quad-core Spreadtrum 7731 processor, has a 8MP rear camera with dual LED Flash, 2MP front-facing camera, 1GB RAM, 8GB internal memory with expansion slot and a 1730mAh battery. The Huawei Y625 packs a 5-inch WVGA screen, 1.2 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 200, 8MP rear camera with LED Flash, 2MP front-facing camera, 1GB RAM, 4GB internal memory with expansion slot and a 2000mAh battery.
Finally, the Huawei G620S has a 5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) HD IPS display, 1.2 GHz Quad-Core 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 SoC, 8MP rear camera with LED Flash, 2MP front-facing camera, 1GB RAM, 8GB internal memory with expansion slot, leather back, 4G LTE support and a 2000mAh battery.
Elephone entered India by launching the Elephone G7 on Snapdeal in black, white and gold colors for Rs. 8,888. It packs a 5.5-inch HD display, Octa-Core MediaTek MT6592M processor, Android 4.4 (KitKat), 13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and a 8-megapixel front-facing camera, 5.5mm thick. metal frame, 1GB RAM, 8GB internal memory with expansion slot, dual SIM support, 3G connectivity and a 2650mAh battery.
Xolo launched Era, a budget 3G smartphone exclusively on Snapdeal for Rs. 4444. It packs a 5-inch FWVGA display, 1.2GHz quad-core Spreadtrum SC7731 processor, Android 4.4 (KitKat), 8-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, 2-megapixel front-facing camera, 1GB RAM, 8GB internal storage with expansion slot and a 2100mAh battery.
Micromax launched two new budget 3G smartphones – Bolt D303 and Bolt S301 in the Bolt series for Rs. 3499 and Rs. 2899, respectively. The Bolt D303 has a 4-inch WVGA screen, 1.3GHz dual-core processor, Android 4.4 (KitKat), 3.2-megapixel fixed-focus rear camera with LED flash, VGA front-facing camera, 512MB RAM, 4GB internal memory with expansion slot, 1300mAh battery and Firstouch’s Swipe keyboard with translate and transliterate with a swipe in 10 languages. The Bolt S301 packs a 3.5-inch FWVGA screen, 1GHz single-core processor, Android 4.4 (KitKat) that is upgradable to Android 5.0 (Lollipop), 1.3-megapixel rear camera without flash, VGA front-facing camera, Smart Dual-SIM, 512MB RAM, 4GB internal memory with expansion slot and a 1300mAh battery.
Karbonn launched Aura for Rs. 4990. It packs a 5-inch IPS display, 1.2 GHz quad-core processor, Android 4.4 (KitKat), 5-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, 2-megapixel front-facing camera, 512MB RAM, 8GB of internal storage with expansion slot and a 2000mAh battery.
Zen Mobile launched Sonic 1, a budget smartphone at Rs. 5999 on eBay with a 5-inch WVGA display, 1.3 GHz quad-core processor, Android 5.0 (Lollipop), 5MP auto focus camera with LED Flash, 2 MP front-facing camera, 2GB RAM, 16GB internal storage with expansion slot and a 2000mAh battery.
LG announced the G4 Beat, successor of last year’s G3 Beat. It packs a 5.2-inch 1080p display, octa-core Snapdragon 615 processor, Android 5.1.1 (Lollipop), 13-megapixel or a 8-megapixel rear camera (depending on the region) with LED flash and Laser AF, 5-megapixel front-facing camera, 1.5GB RAM, 8GB internal storage, 4G support and a 2,300mAh (removable) battery. It comes in Metallic Silver, Ceramic White and Shiny Gold colors and will roll out starting from this month.
Asus unveiled Pegasus 2 Plus in China. It packs a 5.5-inch 1080p display, 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 octa-core SoC, Android 5.1.1 Lollipop with latest Zen UI, 13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, 8-megapixel front facing camera, 3GB RAM, dual SIM support and a 3030mAh battery.
Vivo announced Vivo V1 and Vivo V1 Max smartphone in India that will be priced at Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 20,000 when it hits stores later this month. The Vivo V1 packs a a 5-inch HD display, 64 bit quad-core Snapdragon 410 processor, Android 5.0 Lollipop with FunTouch UI, 2GB of RAM, 16 GB internal storage with expansion slot, 4G LTE connectivity, dual SIM support, 13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, 5-megapixel front-facing camera and a 2300mAh battery. It did not reveal details about the V1 Max.
Oppo announced the Mirror 5s with a 5-inch HD display, 1.2 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 410 64-bit processor, Android 5.1 (Lollipop) with Color OS 2.1. 8-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, 5-megapixel front-facing camera, 2GB RAM, 16GB internal storage with expansion slot, dual SIM support, 4G connectivity, 2420mAh battery, glass back, metal frame and 7.65mm thickness.
ZTE announced the nubia My Prague in Europe that has a metal frame and thickness of 5.5mm. It packs a 5.2-inch 1080p OGS Super AMOLED display, Octa-Core Snapdragon 615 SoC, Android 5.0 (Lollipop) with nubia UI 3.0, 13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, 8-megapixel front-facing camera with 78-degree wide-angle lens, 2GB / 3GB RAM, 16GB / 32GB internal storage, expandable memory card slot, 4G LTE and a 2200mAh battery.
It comes in White with Silver with 2GB RAM and 16GB of internal storage for 349 Euros (US$ 390 / Rs. 24,770 approx.) and the White with Gold variant with 3GB RAM and 32GB of internal storage costs 429 Euros (US$ 480 / Rs. 30,450 approx.).