Hike, a messaging application made in India, has launched a new Microapp to celebrate friendship day and Rakhi with blue packets. Hike Messenger launched Bae Buddy Bro where Buddies are friends who are always there for you, Bros are friends who’re almost family and Bae is the one who you love Before Anyone Else, which is a fun social experience. Using the new Microapp you can tag your friends as Bae or Buddy or Bro and they will do the same for you. The buzz here is to see what your friends think of you and if it’s a match. The experience will last only until 13 August 2017.
On the launch of this quirky social experience, the Hike spokesperson said, “Hike is a very special place for the youth. Deeply embedded in the Indian culture, it brings festivals and traditions in a fun way to the youth. With Bae Buddy Bro you can celebrate your relationships in a unique manner through our special filters, stickers and Blue Packets”.
Here is how to get started on Hike’s Bae Buddy Bro and send Blue Packets:
Open Hike and go to the Me Tab
Under Services, go to Bae Buddy Bro
Select your profile picture and your gender
You can now view your contacts - your friends as well as your friends’ friends
Tap on the Bae, Buddy or Bro icons to express how you feel
As you tap and choose, so will your friends. See how many think of you as a Bro, Buddy or Bae.
If you both choose the same category, it’s a match
Select your match and send them the specially designed Blue Packets
But there’s a catch - you can only unlock the names if it is a match. These names will be revealed on the day of the celebration - Buddies on Friendship Day (August 6), Bros on Rakshabandhan (August 7) and Bae's on August 8.
And if it is a match, you can send Blue Packets, beautifully designed envelopes with money, to your matches. To get you started, Hike is giving away free Blue Packets with surprise amounts that can be sent to your matches.
The new Blue Packets for these special days are - Happy Friendship Day, Happy Rakhi, You are an Awesome Sister and I love you.
The Japanese giant Sharp has been working on a full-screen smartphone which will be named the Sharp Aquos S2. The company is now set to launch the smartphone at an event in Beijing on August 8. It is the 29th full-screen smartphone from the company and the first full-screen smartphone that it introduces to Chinese smartphone market. The phone will be available on sale in China starting August 14.
A press note from Sharp says "The latest SHARP AQUOS S2 applies FFD (Free Form Display) technology to dig small holes precisely in the screen for front camera and receiver to offer great user experience of the selfie and excellent audio quality together with a screen-to-body ratio as high as 84.95%. The high screen-to-body ratio makes the 5.5-inch display screen feel like a 5-inch screen body when gripping at hand. The excellent visual effect and comfortable grip will provide an unprecedented user experience for customers."
“The core of full screen design is to break through the technology limit, achieve the double sense of holding and visual comfort, and provide the ultimate experience for users.” said Dr Luo Zhongsheng, CEO of SHARP/InFocus Mobile.
Few reports and rumours suggest that the smartphone will be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 630 or 660 paired with 4 GB or 6 GB of RAM. It is also being said the phone will feature a dual 12-megapixel camera at the rear and an 8-megapixel front-facing camera.
The Sharp Aquos S2 will be an interesting smartphone as it is coming from a company who was the first-ever to introduce a full-screen phone, EDGEST-302SH, which has a screen-to-body ratio of 80.5% and ultra slim bezels from three sides. Since 2013, the company has released 28 full-screen phones and the Aquos S2 will be the 29th.
Kult, a new smartphone manufacturer, has today launched its first smartphone in India calling it the Kult Beyond. The company has made their new smartphone an Amazon exclusive and priced it at Rs. 6,999. The highlight of the phone is the 13-MP camera and the fingerprint scanner.
Commenting on the launch, Mr Hardip Singh, Executive Director, Optiemus Infracom said, “Today’s hyper-connected millennial demands high-performance smartphone with great camera quality. We kept that in mind while building Kult Beyond. This beautifully designed smartphone comes loaded with class-leading features and functionalities at a very attractive price, which is an added advantage.”
“At Kult, our endeavor is to offer made-in-India and best in class smartphones at very compelling price points. We are confident that Kult Brand will connect with today’s youth and meet their demands and requirements at large. We expect to see a huge demand for Kult Beyond and are bullish on its success.” he further added.
The Kult Beyond is powered by a 1.25GHz quad-core 64-bit chipset coupled with 3GB of RAM. The smartphone features a 5.2-inch HD IPS display and comes with a 32GB of onboard storage which is expandable up to 32GB via a microSD card. The device runs on Android 7.0 Nougat and is backed by a 3,000mAh non-removable battery.
As far as the cameras are concerned, the smartphone sports a 13-megapixel camera at the rear with auto focus and dual-tone LED flash. Up front, the phone includes a 13-megapixel selfie camera a dual LED flash. The camera also comes with other features like Beautification and Vistodo with which the users can print images of T-Shirts and mugs.
Commenting on the partnership, Mr Noor Patel, Director Category Management, Amazon India, said “In line with our vision of constantly expanding the selection and enhancing choices for customers, we are happy to partner with Kult to launch the power packed Kult Beyond. We are confident that this new product addition will be well received by our technology savvy customers across the country. Smartphones are one of the fastest growing product lines and have repeatedly been one of the top selling categories on Amazon.in.”
Price and Availability
The Kult Beyond is currently priced at Rs. 6,999 and will be available exclusively on Amazon India starting August 18.
Coolpad on Friday launched the Coolpad Note 5 Lite C. This is the first device offered by the company which will be available exclusively in the offline market. The highlight of the smartphone is that it comes with Android 7.1 Nougat.
“Keeping the strategy of bringing high specs smartphones at an affordable price, we have yet again launched a product that our fans expect. After being ranked as one of the best sellers in the online space, it gives us immense pleasure to announce that with Note 5 Lite C to expand in the offline smartphone market. There is a lot more that will come from Coolpad for our India fans, as we plan to launch one major online flagship on 20th August and four more offline exclusive products by the end of 2018. Coolpad has become a major brand in India with full coverage from online to offline channels.” said Syed Tajuddin, CEO, Coolpad India.
Specifications
Coolpad Note 5 Lite C is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 210 quad-core chipset clocked at 1.1GHz. The smartphone sports a 5-inch HD display with a resolution of 720x1280pixels and a pixel density of 294ppi. The phone comes with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of onboard storage which is further expandable up to 64GB using a microSD card. The Note 5 Lite C runs on Android 7.1 Nougat out-of-the-box.
On the camera front, the phone comes with an 8-megapixel rear camera with an aperture of f/2.4 and LED flash. The smartphone also has a 5-megapixel front-facing camera with f/2.4 aperture.
All of this is backed by a 2,500mAh battery for which the company claims that it can deliver up to 240 hours of standby time.
Price and Availability
The Coolpad Note 5 Lite C is currently priced at Rs. 7,777 and will be available starting August 5 exclusively across 3000 multi-brand stores in eight states- Delhi NCR, Haryana, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra. The smartphone will be available in two colour variants- Grey and Gold.
Recently, InFocus launched the InFocus Turbo 5 in India thus relaunching the brand in the country. This new device from the company will be a new offering in the sub Rs.10,000 price bracket. Infocus in partnership with Amazon India will be providing two variants of the Turbo 5 in the country. The 2GB RAM and 16GB Internal Storage variant will cost Rs. 6,999, and the 3GB RAM and 32GB Internal Storage variant is priced at Rs. 7,999. The USP of the InFocus Turbo 5 is its 5,000mAh non-removable battery. This new device will be competing against the already well selling Xiaomi Redmi 4 amongst many others. We had the 3GB RAM and 32GB Internal Storage variant for our review, and here is how it faired.
InFocus Turbo 5 Design
The first thing that you would notice on the InFocus 5 is the narrow side bezels. When the phone is turned off it seems that there aren't any bezels on the side. We feel that this makes the phone feel much more premium and is less distracting while watching any content. However, we felt that the bezels on the top and bottom are extremely thick. The phone features a 5.2-inch display, even after which we felt that the phone is quite manageable. You can use the phone easily with a single hand. The phone measures at 8.95mm and weighs 164 grams which is slightly more than the competition. However, we do feel that the 5,000mAh battery makes up for it a bit. The power and the volume rockers are located on the right side. The 3.5mm audio jack is located at the top. And you can find the micro USB charging jack at the bottom.
On the bottom bezel, you can spot the capacitive navigation buttons. We did feel that InFocus could have used on-screen buttons instead and saved on space. InFocus released two colours in India, Mocha Gold which was the one we had for review and Pure Gold.
The screen is protected by 2.5D curved gorilla glass protection, it also comes with rounded edges which help in improving the grip. The antenna run across the top and bottom. The back is made out of plastic made to feel like metal. You can also spot the InFocus logo on the back along with the fingerprint sensor above it.
InFocus Turbo 5 Specifications
The InFocus Turbo 5 features a 5.3-inch 720P display with 2.5D curved glass protection. It is powered by the MediaTek MT6737 quad core processor clocked at 1.3GHz accompanied by Mali T720 MP1 graphics. Two variants are available for the phone, 2GB RAM/16GB Internal Storage, and 3GB RAM/32GB Internal Storage. All of this is backed up by a 5,000mAh non-removable battery which the company says will last for almost 2 days on a single charge. The Turbo 5 also features reverse charging which allows users to charge other devices from the smartphone itself.
As for the camera, It features a 13-megapixel rear camera with an LED flash, and a 5-megapixel front facing camera for selfies. Both the cameras feature a f/2.2 aperture. The Turbo 5 on the connectivity end, features 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth, GPS, FM, and more. It runs on Google's Android 7.0 Nougat operating system.
InFocus Turbo 5 Performance
While testing out the InFocus Turbo 5 we found that it was able to handle daily usage fairly with ease. We had gotten the 3GB RAM variant for our review purposes, which we found performed better than the 2GB variant we tested out in the launch event which took place in New Delhi. We do recommend you if you are considering this device to go with the 3GB RAM variant by paying the extra Rs.1,000. However, you need to keep in mind that we were only able to play around with the 2GB RAM variant for a bit and we cannot comment on how it would perform in daily usage.
While gaming, We tested out the Turbo 5 with Injustice 2, Asphalt 8, Dead Effect 2 just to name a few. We did feel that the phone while playing heavy games did lag. It was struggling to mostly keep-up with the graphics in the graphic intensive games. But we did expect this from the start as it features a MediaTek chipset. However, while playing games like Candy Crush, Angry Birds and lighter games the phone faired great.
Our unit came with 32GB of internal storage which translated to 24.3GB of space available for the user. This was enough for us but some people will need to put in a microSD card to expand the storage, which in exchange would take away the dual SIM card capability. The hybrid slot in the device supports two nano SIM cards. The InFocus Turbo 5 in our benchmark tests faired okay. We got a score of 29232 in our Antutu Benchmark test, it scored 562 on single-core and 1054 on multi-core test in Geekbench, and 198 frames in GFXBench.
As for the display, we felt that the display panel used in the smartphone is a good one as we did not face any problems while using the device in direct sunlight or indoors. The colours were vibrant and the text was sharp. However, with a pixel density of 320ppi, we felt that the device could have done better.
InFocus Turbo Camera
The images that were taken from the device's 13-megapixel rear camera in daytime and outdoors were decent. However, when seen carefully a lack of sharpness could be seen. It was also noticeable that the areas which weren't well light were having a lot of noise. In low light the images didn't fair good, serious noise and lack of texture could be seen in the image samples.
The camera might be the Turbo 5's biggest weakness as while reviewing the device we and the camera both were struggling hard to get good images. Even the autofocus in low light situations didn't function properly and there were times we just got fed up and stopped trying to take the photo.
The Turbo 5 features a 5-megapixel front camera for selfies, which is combined with a screen flash to help users take selfies in the dark. The photos taken from the front camera are though are decent but don't expect them to compete with the likes of flagship devices.
InFocus Turbo 5 Battery
The InFocus Turbo 5 comes featuring a 5,000mAh non-removable battery which is also the USP of the device. Keep this in your mind that we have tested a lot of smartphones featuring big batteries, so we know what to expect out of the device. This was able to keep up with our expectations and was able to deliver on what the company had promised. During our day-to-day activities, the phone managed to get us through 2 to 3 days on a single charge and normal usage. On heavy usage, while we were playing games, editing, and basically using the phone for other tasks it was able to stretch itself and give us a day worth of usage.
While running the PCMark battery test we were able to get the phone to give us a score of 16 hours 36 minutes which is great. During our review, we also tried the phones ability to reverse charge on the OnePlus 3 and the Apple iPhone 5S. We found it as a neat trick which could help you in tricky situations. While charging the smartphone it went from 0 to 100 percent in less than two hours which is surprising as the phone doesn't officially support reverse charging.
While using the InFocus Turbo 5 as our daily driver we didn't feel that the phone was dragging us down in any way, and believe us when we say that the phone is a literal powerhouse when it comes to battery life. The phone can get you around for a solid 2 days on medium usage on a single charge. Otherwise, the phone is much similar to its competitors in the same price bracket and the fact that it comes with the latest Android 7.0 Nougat might be what makes it stand out of the pack.
We did feel that the phone could have been a lot more than just a big battery smartphone. The primary camera was our biggest gripe during the review. But if you are in the market looking for a secondary device that will not let you down, then this is it.
OnePlus has been reportedly working on another colour variant of the OnePlus 5. The smartphone has already got a lot of hype due to its great performance and specifications for an affordable price. The phone was initially launched in two colour variants namely the Slate Gray (6GB/64GB) and Midnight Black (8GB/128GB).
The company had initially registered three colour variants with TENNA. Now they have teased on its social media channels that they have been working on another colour variant of the OnePlus 5 which could possibly be a Gold colour. The smartphone is getting a refreshed colour few weeks after the launch, something we have seen with the 3 and 3T. There have been rumours that the new colour variant colour could be called the Mint Gold. Colour could be a lot similar to what we have seen in the OnePlus 3 and 3T.
However, these are only rumours and actual colour variant could even be something else. Also, we currently do not have any word on the pricing of the new colour variant. Meanwhile, looking at the history of the company, the price could possibly be the same.
As for the specifications, the OnePlus 5 is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset coupled with Adreno 540 GPU. The smartphone comes in two variants, one with 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage and the other with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of onboard storage. The device features a 5.5-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 1080x1920 pixels and a pixel density of 401ppi. At the rear, the phone sports a dual camera setup of 16MP + 20MP. Up front, the phone comes with a 16-megapixel front facing camera. All of this is backed by a 3,300mAh battery. OnePlus 5 is currently priced at Rs. 32,999 for the 6GB/64GB variant and Rs. 37,999 for the 8GB/128GB variant.
GALAX the gaming accessory manufacturer has introduced the Galax HOF Black Edition mechanical keyboard designed for professional gamers in India. It makes use of Cherry MX mechanical key-switch, powerful lighting effect, full media control, durability and practicality design. The Cherry MX mechanical key-switch comes with a durability of 50 million keystrokes. It is built with an anodized (Black colour) / baking paint (White colour) aluminium plate.
The HOF gaming keyboard comes with fully programmable Marco keys Each key is programmable with its own key function or macro. Gamers can set up any key to trigger a macro.Powerful Per-Key Backlighting HOF Black Edition keyboard provides cold white lighting, through specially adjusted to optimize lighting and technology to achieve high brightness lighting performance to provide players with top visual enjoyment.GALAX HOF Black Edition Gaming Keyboard supports up to 112 lighting effects with software and supports up to 88 lighting effects without software.
HOF Black Edition not only provides full media control buttons but also provides die-cast volume and lighting roller. It is 100% anti-ghosting with N-key rollover. When multiple keys are pressed, HOF Black Edition keyboard can enter all signals accurately no matter how fast you play. Gamers can execute multiple actions at the same time. It has a USB 2.0 hub + Audio-out and Mic-in Jack. The convenient USB 2.0 hub allows connecting any USB devices quickly.
HOF Black Edition has magnetic detachable soft-touch wrist rest for prolonged use. Because of the Xtreme Tuner Plus System, the user can complete control over macros, per-key programming, backlight settings, lighting patterns for full personalization.
This gaming keyboard will be available through Flipkart and Amazon India at a price of Rs.7,000.
Apple is ready to unveil its next iPhone soon, and it is currently being said that the iPhone 8 will come with AR support. AR or Augmented Reality is a technology that superimposes a computer-generated image on a user's view of the real world. AR is something which we have seen lately on the devices like Lenovo Phab 2 Pro and the Asus Zenfone AR.
We can soon expect to see the new technology on the Apple's next iPhone, which means the developers have to soon start working on apps that work with AR and roll them out for the Apple' App Store.
The company's CEO said "This is one of those huge things that we'll look back at and marvel on the start of it,"
"This is the most important platform that Apple has created since the app store in 2008," said Jan Dawson of Jackdaw Research.
Source: the INQUIRER
Apple might be introducing the AR technology with the next launch of next iPhone and the final release of its next operating system, the iOS 11. Even if the company introduces the technology in September, it will take time for app developers to work on such apps that can use the technology. Few reports claim that the AR apps will only run on iPhone 6S and later models. The 2017 iPad and the iPad Pro will also have support for these applications.
Tim Merel, managing director of technology consulting firm Digi-Capital, believes Apple's entry into AR will give a boost up to $83 billion by 2021, up from $1.2 billion last year.
Taking all this into consideration, Apple's iOS users usually install the new software update as soon as it comes out. Now if the company makes the AR available to iPhone 6S and later models, they will possibly bring AR to about 300 million Apple devices that are already sold.
Amazon India to help Indians celebrate the Independence day is going to bring back the Amazon Great Indian Sale. In this sale, the shopping website will offer big deals on all the big brands. The sale will start on August 9 at midnight and will run for 3 days until August 12. Where as per Amazon thousands of blockbuster deals will be brought at never seen before prices. Amazon promises to provide great deals along with on-time delivery and easy returns. The customers will be able to view deals in various categories including Smartphones, Consumer Electronics, Fashion, Home & Kitchen, large appliances, Sports & fitness among others.
Amazon in their press release sent us a list of brands that will be coming in at discounted rates. These brands include Apple, OnePlus, Samsung, UCB, Puma, Adidas, Wrangler, Titan, Marks & Spencer, American Tourister, Vero Moda, BPL, Micromax, TCL, Lenovo, HP, IFB, Bosch, D’Décor, McAfee and Kaspersky among others. In addition, Amazon Prime members can look forward to exclusive Prime-only deals apart from 30 minutes Early Access to Top Deals.
Customers opting to go cashless can get exciting cashback. Customers topping up their Amazon Pay balance starting August 4 will get extra 15% cashback up to INR 300. Amazon.in is also offering ‘Amazon Pay balance only deals’ on Apparel, Storage and Home with instant 10%-15% cash back. When customers use their Amazon Pay balance they can enjoy fast and easy checkouts, quicker refunds coupled with a secured shopping experience on Amazon.in. SBI is offering customers, even more, savings during this event with an additional cashback of 15% on App and 10% on site when they pay with debit and credit card.
Customers shopping on the Amazon.in App during the Great Indian Sale are in for an added treat! Customers get to play “Guess Who”, solve puzzles and get a sneak peek of the products that will go on a deal during the actual sale event. The program will be live on 7th and 8th August exclusively on the app. There will be a new puzzle every hour from 10 AM to 10 PM on both the days. Customers who shop on the App will also be eligible for exciting travel offers from goomo.com like all-expense paid trips to Bali.
Customers wanting to surprise their loved ones with Gift Cards can also rejoice with a 5% cashback on all email gift cards. There will also be an up to 20% off on popular Gift Cards like BookMyShow, Cleartrip, Pantaloons and Joyalukkas.
BlackBerry has finally launched the most awaited KEYone in India which is manufactured by TCL Corporation. The phone was first unveiled at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona in 2017 and was launched in the US and Canada back in May at a price of $549 for the unlocked version. The highlight of the smartphone is the iconic physical keyboard.
Specifications
As far as the specifications are concerned, BlackBerry KEYone is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 chipset. The smartphone features physical keyboard up front and a 4.5-inch Full HD LCD IPS display with a resolution of 1620x1080 pixels with a pixel density of 434ppi. The KEYone comes with 3GB of RAM along with 32GB of inbuilt storage which is further expandable up to 2TB using a microSD card. All of this is backed by a 3,505mAh battery for which the company claims that it can give up to 26 hours of talk time. The device runs on Android 7.1 Nougat out-of-the-box. The software features include the BlackBerry apps like the BlackBerry Hub, DTEK and its own security features from the company.
Speaking about the keyboard, the KEYone comes with a smart keyboard which also responds to touch gestures, and has 52 shortcuts which can be customized. The fingerprint scanner is embedded inside the space bar of the physical keyboard.
Camera
In the camera department, the BlackBerry KEYone comes with a 12-megapixel primary camera with the Sony IMX378 sensor and 1.125um pixel size. The rear camera on the device supports Phase Detection Autofocus, dual-tone LED flash, 4x digital zoom and 4K video recording at 30 frames per second. Up front, the smartphone comes with an 8-megapixel selfie shooter with an aperture of f/2.2.
Pricing, Availability and Offers
The BlackBerry KEYone is now on sale as an Amazon exclusive smartphone and currently priced at Rs 39,990.
BlackBerry has also made the deal lucrative by announcing a partnership with American Express and Vodafone. American Express credit card users will get bonus points if they purchase the smartphone from Amazon and Vodafone users will get 75 GB of data with three months of validity.
