Category: News

Asus Zenfone 3 FAQ Tips Tricks Cons
Asus has finally launched much anticipated Zenfone 3 range of smartphones in India during Zenvolution press event last week. Zenfone 3, Zenfone 3 Deluxe, Zenfone Ultra and Zenfone 3 Laser are the newly launched smartphones. The event also witnessed the launch of Zenbook 3 and Asus Transformer 3 Pro notebooks. In this post, let’s have a quick look into the Asus Zenfone 3 FAQ Tips and Tricks with cons.

Asus Zenfone 3 FAQ Tips and Tricks with cons

What are the different variants of of Zenfone 3 are available in India?

At the time of writing this, there are two variants of Asus Zenfone 3 are available in India. The one with 5.2 inch screen and the other one is having 5.5 inch screen. Zenfone 3(ZE520KL) with 5.2 inch screen model has 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage. This variant comes with 2650 mAh battery. Zenfone 3(ZE552KL) with 5.5 inch screen model has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. This variant comes with 3000mAh battery. Rest of the specifications such as Octa core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 Soc with Adreno 506 GPU, 16MP primary camera and 8MP front facing camera, fingerprint scanner and connectivity features are identical.

What are the different colour variants available?

These smartphones will be available in Shimmer Gold, Sapphire Black, Moonlight White colour variants.

What is Zenfone 3 price in India?

Asus Zenfone 3 price in India is given below.
- Zenfone 3(ZE520KL) with 5.2 inch display screen price in India is Rs.21,999.
- Zenfone 3(ZE520KL) with 5.5 inch display screen price in India is Rs.27,999.
Both the variants can be purchased from Amazon.in as well as from Flipkart.

What is the size of the sim cards Zenfone 3 accepts? Does it has dedicated microSD card slot? What is the maximum capacity of the microSD card it supports?

Newly launched Asus Zenfone 3 comes with hybrid sim card slot. It accepts 1 micro SIM card and 1 nano SIM card. There is no dedicated microSD card slot. Instead of 2nd sim card, you can use microSD card. It supports upto 2TB of microSD card.

How is the Zenfone 3 camera performance? What are the camera specification?

Zenfone 3 comes equipped with 16MP primary camera with Sony IMX298 sensor, six-element Largan lens with a large f/2.0 aperture, and subject-tracking TriTech auto-focus. It has Sapphire-glass lens protection. The camera on Zenfone 3 has both optical and electronic image stabilization for blur-free shots and video along with a color-correction sensor for true-color photography. It also supports true 4K UHD video recording. The exclusive TriTech auto-focus technology combines three focusing technologies — laser, phase detection and continuous contrast-detection autofocus. We will not be able to tell on the real life camera performance as of now as we have spent very time with the device. We will cover it in the detailed review.

Below is the sample video recorded using Zenfone 3 ZE520KL variant in full HD.

What are the connectivity options of Zenfone 3? Does it supports VoLTE?

The connectivity options of the device includes 4G with support for Reliance Jio VoLTE, Bluetooth 4.2, Type-C USB 2.0, WIFI 802.11ac Up to Cat 7 LTE, 5G/2.4G MiMO Wi-Fi. As per the press release, it does supports Reliance Jio VoLTE.

What are the box content of Zenfone 3?

In the box we get USB Cable Type C, ZenEar, Adaptor, User Manual & Warranty Card.

Does the display screen has Corning Gorilla Glass protection? What is the screen to body ratio?

Yes. It does comes with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection. The screen to body ratio on these device is around 76%.

What are Zenfone 3 Cons?

This is the not the review. The detailed cons of the device will be known only after we perform the complete review. As of now, we felt these are the cons of Zenfone 3.
- No backlit navigation keys.
- Hybrid sim card slot.
- Lot of bloatware out of the box.
How to take screenshot on Zenfone 3?

There are several methods through which you can capture screenshot on Zenfone 3. Most of them are identical to Zenfone 2. You can refer to my previous post on how to take screenshot on Zenfone.

Is it possible to use Zenfone 3 as modem?

You can share mobile internet from Zenfone 3 to PC through WiFi hotspot, USB tethering and Bluetooth tethering.

How is the fingerprint scanner in Zenfone 3?

Zenfone 3 comes with fingerprint scanner which is placed in the rear side of the device. We felt it was fast and accurate. It supports upto 5 finger registration. It also has 360 degree recognition.
August 22, 2016
Huawei P9 with dual lens Leica camera wins European consumer smartphone 2016-17 at EISA

Huawei Consumer Business Group (BG) is honored to announce that the Huawei P9 has been named ‘European Consumer Smartphone 2016-17’ by the European Image and Sound Association (EISA). Furthering its commitment to pursuing the best quality and design without compromise, this is the fourth consecutive year that Huawei has been recognized in this category.

Designed to reinvent smartphone photography, the Huawei P9 is the first smartphone co-engineered with the global iconic brand, Leica Camera AG. The P9’s dual-lens camera takes smartphone photography to the next level, allowing people to capture both vivid colors and striking black and white images of unmatched clarity, richness and authenticity.

Awarding the Huawei P9 European Consumer Smartphone 2016-17, the EISA judges announced, “Sometimes the value of getting the important stuff right cannot be understated, and that’s precisely what the Huawei P9 does. Sporting a 5.2-inch IPS-NEO LCD with Full HD resolution, octa-core HiSilicon Kirin 955 SoC and Android OS 6.0 with Emotion UI 4.1, the P9 is available in an impressive choice of finishes produced from a wide variety of materials. But that’s not all, Huawei makes history by being the first manufacturer to introduce Leica’s photography know how to mobile devices. The dual-lens camera captures more light and provides better clarity for both photos and videos. While the 3,000 mAh battery has enough power for capturing every precious moment between charging, the classy finish of those diamond-cut edges with rounded corners on the unibody design combined with 2.5D glass makes the P9 both practical and beautiful in equal measure.”

Glory Zhang, Chief Marketing Officer, Huawei Consumer BG commented, “We are honored to receive this award from EISA for the fourth year running. This accolade is testament to Huawei’s commitment to creating new mobile innovations that offer new experiences to users. The exquisite design of the P9, praised by the EISA judges, is the result of exhaustive development and attention to detail from the world’s top industrial designers, and their tireless efforts have culminated in a visually stunning design.”

Global shipments of the P9 and P9 Plus exceeded 4.5 million as of July, with strong sales recorded across many European countries including France, Finland and Britain. The Huawei P9 is scheduled to be launched in India on the 17th of August.

About Huawei Consumer BG
Huawei’s products and services are available in more than 170 countries, and are used by a third of the world’s population, ranking third in the world in mobile phone shipments in 2015. Sixteen R&D centers have been set up in the United States, Germany, Sweden, Russia, India, and China. Huawei Consumer BG is one of Huawei’s three business units and covers smartphones, PC and tablets, Wearables and cloud services, etc. Huawei’s global network is built on 20 years of expertise in the telecom industry and is dedicated to delivering the latest technological advances to consumers around the world.

August 15, 2016
Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Launched-Price Specification Features
Samsung has today officially unveiled the much awaited Galaxy Note 7, the latest flagship from the Note series. The biggest highlight of this smartphone is its iris scanner. This is the first smartphone from Samsung to have such feature. Apart from this, Samsung Galaxy Note 7 has borrowed most of the good features of its predecessor Note 5 and Galaxy S7 Edge with bit of improvements.

Samsung Galaxy Note 7 will be available starting August 19 on selected markets. The device will be available in Blue Coral, Gold Platinum, Silver Titanium and Black Onyx colour variants. Like Galaxy S7 Edge, Galaxy Note 7 also has water proofing feature.

Galaxy Note 7 sports 5.7 inch QHD (1440×2560 pixels) dual-edge Super Amoled display with impressive pixel density of 518 ppi. It is powered by 14nm octa-core processor, with four cores clocked at 2.3GHz, and four cores clocked at 1.6GHz. The device has 4GB of LPDDR4 RAM and 64GB of internal storage. It also supports microSD card upto 256GB.

Samsung Galaxy Note 7 comes equipped with 3,500mAh battery with fast charging support on wired as well as wireless. According to company, Wireless Charging is compatible with WPC and PMA3. The connectivity features of the device includes Bluetooth, 4.2, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4/5GHz), GPS/ A-GPS, Glonass, NFC, 3G, and USB Type-C. The smartphone also supports LTE and is compatible with LTE Cat.12, LTE Cat.10, and LTE Cat.9. The LTE compatibility may differ by markets and mobile operators.

Galaxy Note 7 features ‘Dual Pixel’ 12-megapixel OIS (optical image stabilisation) with f/1.7 aperture and dual-LED flash and 5-megapixel front camera which also has f1.7 aperture.

Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Accessories

Samsung has unveiled few accessories to the new Galaxy Note 7 smartphone. This includes new S View Standing Cover, a light and portable cover that can be used to prop the device at a 60-degree angle for easy viewing of content, as well as an IP68 water resistant Backpack for on-the-go charging.

Samsung Galaxy Note 7 India availability and Pricing: As of now, there is no official communication on the pricing and availability of this smartphone in India. Also there might be a different variant for Indian consumers.

Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Specification
- 5.7 inch QHD (1440×2560 pixels) dual-edge Super Amoled display.
- 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage.
- Support for microSD card upto 256GB.
- IP68 certified Water and dust resistant.
- ‘Dual Pixel’ 12-megapixel OIS primary camera and 5MP front facing camera.
- 3500 mAh battery with fast charging.
- USB-C type port.
Source: Samsung press release
August 2, 2016
Samsung Galaxy J2 (2016) with Smartglow Notification Launched
Samsung has launched a new Galaxy J smartphone Galaxy J2 (2016) along with Galaxy J Max tablet in India. It will be available starting July 10, via both online and offline retailers. This smartphone comes in three different colours namely Black, Gold, and Silver colours. Samsung Galaxy J2 (2016) price in India is Rs.9,750. As a promotional offer, Samsung is offering 6 months of free double data offer to Airtel prepaid customers worth Rs. 4,500.

Samsung Galaxy J2 2016 USP is its SmartGlow notification and Turbo Speed Technology (TST) . SmartGlow feature allows user to assign colour codes to any contact, app or phone usage alert. The new SmartGlow feature can be enabled from the Quick panel and it can be utilised for three usage scenarios: for Priority alerts, Usage alerts and Selfie Assist.

Selfie Assist feature in Galaxy J2 2016, will allow users to take framed selfies via rear camera. The LED notification ring lights up completely when it detects a properly aligned face and takes the selfie automatically.

To use set Priority alerts after enabling the SmartGlow, users need to drag and drop the contact or app onto the “+” in the ring. Users have the option to select and save the SmartGlow colour for any particular contact or app. Once enabled, whenever there is any alert from that contact or app, LED will glow in the corresponding colour. Users can add upto 4 alerts. For Usage Alerts, Smart Glow will inform users on battery, data, or storage related information.

As mentioned earlier another unique key feature of Galaxy J2 2016 is Turbo Speed Technology (TST). According to company, it enhances the performance of the smartphone and load apps up to 40 percent faster than devices with double the RAM. The new Turbo Speed Technology is also said to shut down idle processes running in the background to free the RAM.

Other than this, there is a new UI as well. The new UI on Galaxy J2 2016 has features like Smart Notifier which enables users to prioritise notifications into simple categories, and the new redesigned app tray featuring vertical scroll navigation. There is also S-Bike and UDS (Ultra Data Saving) features which are unique to Galaxy J series lineup.

Samsung Galaxy J2 (2016) Specification
- 5 inch 720p HD Super AMOLED display screen.
- 1.5 GHz quad-core processor with 1.5GB of RAM.
- 8GB of internal storage and support for external storage upto 32GB via microSD card.
- 8MP primary camera with LED flash and 5MP front facing camera.
- Android 6.0 Marshmallow.
- 2600 mAh battery.
Source: GSM Arena and Gadget 360.
July 8, 2016
GameXS Launches PlayX- Gaming Tournaments to bring eSports to home
GameXS, one of the leading game stores in India, launched a gaming tournaments app called PlayX. With this app, gamers can compete in daily/ weekly online tournaments as well as head-to- head challenges in games like FIFA, CS: GO, DOTA 2, Clash Royale and many more from their own consoles/ devices. PlayX brings eSports to home of gaming enthusiasts.

According to company, as of now it has around 1000 subscribers. Around 300 players are playing the games online. Daily app page is getting close to 500 visitors.

To get people to use the app, GameXS conducted an offline FIFA 16 tournament at SMAAASH, Cyberhub, Gurgaon. It was attended by over 100 pro FIFA players from all over India. On this occasion total prizes worth INR 1 lac were awarded. To promote PlayX app Game XS is planning to organize gaming tournaments regularly in all major cities in the coming months.

eSports is the fastest growing segment of gaming globally. It has been recently added to RIO olympics as eGames International Gaming Tournament. In Olympic years, both summer and winter, the eGames will take place in the host cities. The future tournaments planned are Pyeongchang in 2018 and Tokyo in 2020.

GameXS feels that there is huge potential for eSports in India. As per estimates, there are 130 million casual gamers and 7 million hardcore gamers are there in India. But there is void of platform for them to showcase their talent. PlayX aim to provide a platform for the hardcore gamers((and if needed organizer) to power the eSports in India. Kabeer Jain, Founder of GameXS said, “The path to pro gaming leagues in India is through amateur leagues. The Indian gamer needs to play more competitive games without substantial investment into equipment and travel before he is ready to compete at a global stage. By competing online in free tournaments/ head-to- head challenges, gamers can hone their skills and be better prepared for the bigger tournaments. We expect about 100s of gamers participating in our weekly online gaming tournaments to begin with.”

Sanjay K Goyal, Founder & CEO, ACL Mobile and an Angel investor in GameX said “Gaming is an enticing segment, as it encompasses not just the best of technical creativity and innovation, but also observes deep-rooted commitment and loyalty from users. With the launch of PlayX, GameXS intends to streamline and organize the segment, whilst bringing in top-notch games from global leaders. I am affirmative that GameXS users will appreciate the launch of PlayX and actively engage in the online tournaments.”

PlayX will host daily tournaments for all sorts of games where players can join and take part in.It does not restrict the users to Major games like Dota 2, FIFA or CS: GO, but also provide equally fun and challenging games for the mobile Platforms like Clash Royale and Pool.

PlayX also looks to organize and help others organize offline gaming tournaments for players to gather up and grow familiar with the community.

PlayX app features
- Setup matches and challenge right on your mobile device.
- Get instant alerts when tournaments or head to head matches are updated.
- Invite & Earn – Invite your friends and get credits to compete in tournaments.
- Chat – Quickly agree on the terms for your match and timing for your head-to-head matches.
- Easy evidence upload – take a picture to prove your victory, right from the app.
June 29, 2016