On to poll number 2, where we gave you a chance to pick between Xiaomi's long overdue replacement to the Mi 4 and Sony's Xperia X, the pioneer in the company's new X-series. The Mi 5 left no chance to the Xperia X and took a decisive victory, collecting 61% of upvotes.Admittedly, there was a catch here - the Xperia X Performance is still months away, while the Mi 5 you can already order. Whatever the case though, the Mi 5 is a pretty strong contender all on its own, with a Snapdragon 820, 4 gigs of RAM and 128GB of storage in its top-specced Pro version. That same variant comes in ceramic attire too - a stunner to look at. So come to think about it, the Xperia X Performance might have had a tough time against it as...


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Top 10 trending phones of week 9
With all the clamor surrounding this year's MWC over the past two weeks, we couldn't find time to update you on the latest developments in phone interest trends on a weekly basis. Well, we're back at it, and there's plenty to talk about.The Samsung Galaxy A7 (2016) joins its little brother A5 (2016), which entered the chart earlier, and the two occupy 10th and 8th spots respectively. In between them we have the Sony Xperia X Performance, the Japanese company's new flagship. The Galaxy J5 is far from its regular comfort zone on the podium, this week in 7th. In 6th we find the Lenovo Vibe K4 Note, the bronze holder in the last edition of the chart.Samsung's sexier S7, the S7 edge, enters the chart in 5th spot, with the LG G5 slightly ahead. Long-time champion Galaxy J7 has lost the crown, again, but still manages to hold on to the third. Xiaomi's brand new flagship Mi 5 storms straight into second, not surprising for a device arriving a long year and half after the one it replaces, with top-end specs too.It is, however, the vanilla Galaxy S7 that snatches the gold. Promising brand new camera, generous battery capacity, premium build, waterproofing, and storage expansion - pretty much all of the important boxes have been checked. Samsung's Galaxy S6 stood on top for weeks on end last year, and we're seeing no reason for the S7 not to..news-item .n-left { float: left; width: 25%; text-align: center;}.news-item .n-right { float: left; width: 75%;}.news-item a { padding-bottom: 0; padding-left: 0; }#review-body .news-item .n-right h2,.reviews-item .n-right h2 { clear: both; padding: 0 0 3px 0px; font: 400 19px Google-Oswald, Arial; margin-top: -4px;}.n-right p { margin-top: 25px; line-height: 155%;}.news-item { padding-top: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; border-top: 1px solid #ccc;}.news-item p { margin-left: 0; }.n-right h2 .phone-name { display: inline-block; width: 325px; overflow: hidden; vertical-align: text-bottom;}.n-right h2 a { text-decoration: none; color: #000;}.flat-button{ text-align:center; text-decoration: none !important; font: 400 22px Google-Oswald,Arial !important; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; font-size: 150%; padding: 20px 60px !important; display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; -webkit-border-radius: 5px; -moz-border-radius: 5px; border-radius: 5px; margin: 10px 0; -webkit-transition: all 0.2s ease-in-out; -ms-transition: all 0.2s ease-in-out; -moz-transition: all 0.2s ease-in-out; -o-transition: all 0.2s ease-in-out; transition: all 0.2s ease-in-out; color: #fff !important;}.flat-button-1 { background: #0CADA7;}.flat-button-1:hover { background: #0A948F; color: #666666 !important;}.flat-button-2 { background: #FF7E47;}.flat-button-2:hover { background: #EE7440; color: #666666 !important;}.n-right .rank-info { display: inline-block; font-family: "Google-Oswald",i€‹Arial,i€‹sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 100;}.n-right .rank-info .current-rank { font-size: 23px;}.circle { background: none repeat scroll 0 0 #8fb28f; border-radius: 50%; height: 23px; width: 23px; display: inline-block; margin: 0px 10px -1px 10px;}.arrow { width: 0; height: 0; border-style: solid; display: inline-block; margin: 0px 10px -1px 10px;}.arrow-up { border-width: 0 15px 25px 15px; border-color: transparent transparent #0cada7 transparent;}.arrow-down { border-width: 25px 15px 0 15px; border-color: #ff7e47 transparent transparent transparent;} Samsung Galaxy S7 RANK: 1NEW IN specs review Xiaomi Mi 5 RANK: 2NEW IN specs review Samsung Galaxy J7 RANK: 3WAS: 1 specs review LG G5 RANK: 4NEW IN specs review Samsung Galaxy S7 edge RANK: 5NEW IN specs review Lenovo Vibe K4 Note RANK: 6WAS: 3 specs gallery Samsung Galaxy J5 RANK: 7WAS: 2 specs...


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Poll results: Galaxy S7 edge defeats the LG G5 in the battle of Korean flagships
One of the most action-packed editions of MWC of recent years saw the introduction of two (okay, technically three) of the most important smartphones of the year - the LG G5 and the Samsung Galaxy S7/S7 edge. We figured the S7 edge is the more attractive part of Samsung's pair (meanwhile so did consumers, apparently), and chose that one to pit against the G5.And the S7 edge did splendidly, beating the G5 3:2. In other words, Samsung's dual-edge glass-and-metal top model gathered 58% of the upvotes, while the modular G5 had to settle for 42%.Fandom aside, the two devices have a bunch of conceptual differences, which can sway users either way. AMOLED vs. LCD, removable battery vs. a larger sealed one, big pixels and near-instant focus vs. dual cameras with extra wide coverage - choices must be made and it's just that the S7 edge has ticked the right boxes for the majority of our...


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Week 9 in review: 6GB of RAM in a smartphone, iPhone 5se unboxed
The mobile world is slowly getting settled back to normal after MWC and our news section over the past week reflects that. With the Samsung Galaxy S7 and LG G5 out of the way the 4-inch iPhone 5se has returned to the top of our hot topics, now unboxed for the camera.Various Xiaomi-related events happened during the week, and you were pretty interested in reading about those. Most notably, the Redmi Note 3 was launched on the Indian market, but also the Mi 5 reportedly gathered 14 million registrations for its first sale. In a world's first, the Vivo Xplay 5 Elite broke the 4-gig RAM barrier, and will be offered with 6GB of operating memory, putting some budget laptops to shame. HTC's next flagship was supposedly going to be called M10, then it wasn't, a teaser was released, and a camera sample leaked. The Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro was spotted on AnTuTu, revealing specs, and the Huawei P9 also showed up on a couple of occasions.Android N screenshots revealed some of the upcoming changes in Google's next OS version, while the current Marshmallow, coupled with TouchWiz, uses 8 gigs of your 32GB Galaxy S7 storage - made a much bigger deal in the comments, than it actually is.Aaand we're back to the Galaxy S7/S7 edge, which broke pre-order records, started shipping earlier than promised, got torn down, and went through some torture tests. Oh, and also feature QuickCharge 2.0, unlike the LG G5 which gets Qualcomm's 3.0 version of the charging tech.To read the details on these and more, follow the links below..news-item .n-left { float: left; width: 28%; text-align: center;}.news-item .n-right { float: left; width: 70%;}.news-item a { padding-bottom: 0; padding-left: 0; }.news-item .n-right h2,.reviews-item .n-right h2 { clear: both; padding: 0 0 3px 0px !important; font: 400 19px Google-Oswald, Arial; margin-top: -4px;}.n-right p { line-height: 155%;}.news-item { padding-top: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; border-top: 1px solid #ccc;}.news-item p { margin-left: 0; }.n-right h2 a { text-decoration: none; color: #000;} Apple iPhone 5se unboxed in front of a camera The iPhone 5se is rumored to be announced later this month and go on sale shortly after. Xiaomi launches Redmi Note 3 in India Comes with a brand new Snapdragon 650 processor and a massive 4050mAh battery. vivo Xplay 5 Elite goes official with 6GB RAM, Vivo Xplay 5 announced too All metal Vivo Xplay 5 and Vivo Xplay 5 Elite go official, both feature dual-curved displays. Xiaomi Mi 5 scores over 14 million registrations for its first sale The sale begins tomorrow - 10AM China time. Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 edge pre-orders break records The Galaxy S7 edge is better liked with 64% of customers opting for one. LG G5 supports QuickCharge 3.0, Galaxy S7 is only 2.0, what's that about? Qualcomm's website states that Samsung's flagship is stuck on the older-gen charging tech. HTC One M10 name confirmed, camera sample shown EXIF data of the lone image reads HTC_M10h, 9MP in 16:9 ratio suggests a 12MP 4:3 sensor. Lucky customer gets Galaxy S7 edge early, screenshots galore An early Galaxy S7 edge owner posts screen shots of the largely-anticipated Samsung Galaxy S7 edge's UI and software features. Android and TouchWiz take 8GB of your Samsung Galaxy S7 storage At least, 8GB of Galaxy S7's storage are occupied by the OS and the launcher. Watch Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 India launch event here Company's first Redmi phone with metal body and fingerprint sensor. Early mockups speculate Android N UI changes New mockups describe early Android N screenshots which bring along new UI elements, animations, transitions and redesigned notifications and toggles. HTC outs first teaser video for the One M10 In it, the Taiwanese company boasts that it's hard at work finding ways to make smartphones even better. Samsung Galaxy A9...


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Samsung launches Notebook 9 series of Ultrabooks
Samsung has launched the new Notebook 9 series of ultraportable laptops. The series consists of four models, one of which has a rotating display.The base model has a 13.3-inch 1080p display with 6th gen Intel Core i5. It has a battery life of 10 hours and is priced at $999.The second model has a larger 15-inch 1080p display, Core i7, and 12 hours of battery life for $1199.The third model called Notebook 9 Spin has a 13.3-inch 3200x1800 rotating display that can be turned around and folded flat. It's powered by a Core i7 and has a battery life of 7.3 hours. It is priced at $1199.The last model is the Notebook 9 Pro, which has a 15.6-inch 3840x2160 display, Core i7, and 6.5 hours of battery life. It is priced at $1399.All models have 256GB flash storage, 8GB RAM, and run Windows 10.Source •...


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Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 edge to allegedly launch in India next week
According to a report by BGR India, Samsung could be launching the next generation flagship Galaxy S7 and S7 edge smartphones in India as early as next week.The exact date is unknown, the Economic Times believes it will be around March 8 and that the phone will go on sale in the third week of March with prices matching the iPhone 6s in India.ET also believes Samsung will be spending about $15 million worth on marketing the phone in India, an unprecedented amount for the company, to compete against the iPhone that has a massive reputation in the Indian market.You can check out our hands-on of the S7 and S7 edge here.Source 1 • Source...


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Telus delays Marshmallow updates for Galaxy Note5, S6 edge, S6 edge+
The carrier Telus has some problems with the Marshmallow updates for the Samsung Galaxy Note5, Galaxy S6 edge, and Galaxy S6 edge+. Previously the Note5 and S6 edge+ were supposed to get the Marshmallow firmware on March 9 while the S6 edge update was scheduled for March 16.As it turns out, Telus had some minor setbacks, and those updates will be postponed for a few days. The Note5 and Galaxy S6 edge+ updates will arrive on March 13 while the S6 edge firmware will be ready for distribution on March 30.The regular Galaxy S6 Marshmallow update for the Telus model is still coming on April 13, no changes...


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Google files patent for popup books with AR elements
The first time I've ever seen anything with Augmented Reality was when using the AR cards that came with the Nintendo 3DS. This blew my mind back in 2011: You set a card on a coffee table or a desk and looked through the handheld console's telescopic 3D screen to find some characters pop up right out of the card. Moving the handheld around the card shifts the view of the 3D character on the screen.Google filed a couple of patents with the United States Patent and Trademark Office which outlined a story telling experience enhanced with AR elements that could be interacted with.The first patent was filed for an "interactive book" using pressure and motion sensors that are built into the pages. Next, a small lens would project images onto the pages depending on what the user presses or does to the pages. There would also be speakers embedded in the device to add to the experience.The other patent was for a kind of tablet that is embedded into the book, then, every page in the book has a secondary ‘vertical page' of sorts which would display content that compliments the physical page.As always, patents don't usually mean something will become real products, not even experimental hardware may ever be a reality. Even at this point In time, I'm surprised that we haven't really seen a sort of children's book with AR or VR elements used to enhance it.Source |...


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Samsung to shut down Milk Music, reports say
I remember when I was working as a Samsung rep inside Best Buy last year, I was instructed to install Milk Music and Milk Video to every Samsung Phone that we handled. Many customers loved the idea of free radio stations with no ads for a year, and I am sure most of them didn't like the idea of continuing to pay for premium service after the year was up.Samsung seems to have given up on Milk Music and reports say Samsung is going to shut it down for good. The idea of having a music service that is exclusive to Galaxy phones was a great idea, however, the problem was that Samsung didn't leverage it as well as it should have, it didn't give customers a compelling music service that wasn't already a lot like Pandora.Even so, Samsung has left Milk Music out of its new lineup of TVs when there was no mention of being able to use the music service. Also, Samsung's Galaxy S7 and S7 edge announcement in MWC last month didn't make any mention of Milk Music either.Let's not forget that Samsung pulled the plug on Milk Video after just one year of launching the service in 2014. What did you all think of Samsung's Milk Music? Did you find it compelling at all? Did you ever use it on any occasion?Source |...


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HTC 10 reportedly won't have a version running Windows 10 Mobile
It looks like you're not likely to see a Windows logo on an HTC smartphone ever again. Or not anytime soon, anyway. Back in 2014, the One (M8) for Windows was basically the Windows Phone running version of the Android One (M8). Hence, some people may have hoped for HTC to pull the same stunt with this year's upcoming flagship device, which will be called 10. The hopes were there despite the fact that 2015's One M9 did not get a Windows variant.According to Evan Blass (of @evleaks fame), neither will the HTC 10. He firmly stated today that there won't be an iteration of the HTC 10 running Windows 10 Mobile.So it turns out that HTC has chosen to stick with Android alone for its smartphones, at least for the foreseeable future. On the other hand, if you're looking for a high-end Windows-powered handset, HP has surprisingly announced one at MWC - and obviously there's also Microsoft's very own Lumia 950 and 950 XL...


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OxygenOS 2.2.1 update for the OnePlus 2 brings RAW support to the default camera app
A new software update has started rolling out today for the OnePlus 2. It's not going to change the underlying Android version unfortunately (so no Marshmallow for you), but it does come with some bug fixes and improvements.Chief among the latter is the added RAW support for the preinstalled OnePlus Camera app. RAW image capture has been supported in third-party apps ever since a previous update in September of last year, and now this is finally part of the built-in app as well.You'll also find that compatibility for Bluetooth devices and Ultra SIM has been improved, along with a GMS 3.0 upgrade. Roaming issues should have been mitigated, Romanian language support has been added, as well as some security patches. Finally, a fix has been deployed for an occasional image corruption issue in OnePlus Camera.As you might expect, the rollout will be incremental, so it may take a few days (or even weeks) for the update to reach your OnePlus 2 unit. But it is on its way, so all you can do is...


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Samsung Galaxy TabPro S now available for purchase
Samsung unveiled the Galaxy TabPro S tablet at CES in early January. It's a 12" premium slate running on Windows 10 with a 12" Super AMOLED QHD display, and 6th generation Intel Core M dual-core 2.26GHz processor coupled with 4GB of RAM. a 5MP AF rear camera and a 5MP front snapper.Now, Samsung has finally made the Galaxy TabPro S tablet available throughout Europe. You can get it in the Netherlands via the official Samsung online store. Amazon UK and Amazon DE, among other retailers, have the slate in stock. Too.You can choose between 128GB and 256GB SSD options; you can also opt for an LTE-enabled model. The OS is also configurable - you can either get Windows 10 Home or Windows 10 Pro.Finally, there is a full-sized keyboard cover bundled within the retail box, and it comes with a touchpad and a flexible hinge.Oddly, Samsung UK has the TabPro S on pre-order, and it will ship on March 16, but you can get it through Amazon UK right now.The prices are the same we confirmed a while ago - the Wi-Fi 128GB SSD with Wind 10 Home options costs €999, add €100 for Windows 10 Pro, and another €100 for LTE capabilities. Note that the 4G model ships only with Windows 10 Pro.So, if you liked the tablet and its keyboard, now you can place your order. Additionally, you can get the official Bluetooth Pen and the port hub with HDMI and more USBs.Source •...


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Huawei P9 looks different in new leaked renders, passes FCC, might not be outed on March 9
MWC has come and gone and Huawei hasn't yet unveiled its next flagship smartphone, the P9. When the Chinese company sent out invites for a March 9 event in Berlin a couple of days ago, we assumed this would be when the P9 would finally get official. But now it turns out that may not be the case.According to a report from China, Huawei will not be unveiling the P9 on March 9. Unnamed company officials have confirmed that the phone exists and is being worked on, but the project has apparently suffered some delays. These have to do with the need to improve some technical issues related to the much-leaked dual camera setup on the P9's back. Because of this, the release of the handset is reportedly delayed by a whole month.An exact date (either for the presentation or the start of sales) hasn't been mentioned, but we should all rest assured that the P9 will be out "in the coming months". The same source claims the P9 will not have 6GB of RAM, as previously rumored, nor a brand-new Kirin chipset - thus it's likely to use the same Kirin 950 found inside the Mate 8 phablet.Moving on, some new renders allegedly depicting the Huawei P9 have been leaked, as you can see. Though they confirm that dual camera setup once more, they are different than the last two batches - gone is the laser autofocus this time around, and the fingerprint sensor on the back is now round, and it was shown to be more squared in the past. Furthermore, the positions of the front-facing camera and proximity sensor are changed too.So now the actual design of the P9 has gotten quite unclear, with two differing perspectives both being claimed to be leaked renders of the real thing. Hopefully you've had a healthy serving of salt nearby for this one.An additional P9-related tidbit is that the FCC has certified a Huawei EVA-L09, and this could be one of the model numbers for the top of the line device. If so, then at least one of its four versions will feature a 2,900 mAh battery, as FCC docs have revealed. The cheapest hardware iteration for the P9 is said to cost CNY 1,888 ($289 or €264), while the most expensive one is bound to go for CNY 4,088 ($627 or €571).Source 1 (in Chinese) • Source 2 (in Chinese) • Source 3 | Via 1 • Via 2 • Via 3 (in...


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