A blast from the past, it is still amazing to think that mobile juggernaut Nokia is now longer really with us in a hardware capacity… until now. While Nokia helped to put the Windows platform on the map in recent years, the company is still best known for being the feature phone king, the best-selling mobile phone maker in the world during the 2000-2010 decade. The Finnish brand is now back with a new feature phone, the Nokia 230.

Sort of. That burst of nostalgia quickly ebbs when you learn that this is Microsoft’s handset and not Nokia’s. Of course, Redmond purchased Nokia’s Lumia brand and with it came licensing of the Nokia name until 2016, so Microsoft has slapped the Nokia name on the 230, probably because it knows that Nokia is a hugely respected name in the feature phone market.

Don’t underestimate Microsoft in this market either, thanks to feature phone sales the company is the third largest mobile manufacturer in the world. In terms of feature phones the Nokia 230 gets just about every single thing right and it is even a good looking old thing too. We are sure those limited by economy will love this, while we can also see mobile enthusiasts and hipsters casting covetous glances to the 230 as a second device.

The specs are large unimportant on a handset like this, but some of the most important include the Series 30+ platform, 16MB of RAM, a 2.8-inch screen with 240 x 320 resolution, and a 2MP lens on the back and a 2MP lens on the front, both of which comes with LED flash. It also sports Bluetooth 3.0 and GSM connectivity. The handset ships with Bing Search, Opera Mini Browser, and MSN Weather all on board.

As we mentioned, the Nokia 230 looks great in that old school kind of way and will be on sale across Asia from December at the price of $55. Any takers?

SOURCE: MobileBurn

Xiaomi has been delaying its Mi 5 flagship for what seems like an eternity. It has certainly been an eternity in smartphone flagship terms as the Mi 4 launched way back in the summer of 2014. To put that into perspective, most rival brands have release two new flagships since then, leaving Xiaomi’s Mi 4 looking just a bit dated.

We know why the Chinese giant has been holding off, it has been waiting for Qualcomm to launch the Snapdragon 820 processor, and in the meantime Xiaomi has treated us to high end offerings such as the just announced Redmi Note 3. However, now that Qualcomm has raised the curtain on the Snapdragon 820, Xiaomi can get underway in releasing the Mi 5, with the launch likely to take place during the first week of December.

The company’s CEO Lei Jun has recently said that the Mi 5 "is worth the waiting", and that the phone is "very very good". He didn’t mention any specific specs though and did not confirm when the smartphone will be launched.

Samsung is at work readying sequels for its entire Galaxy A series. The Galaxy A3 and Galaxy A5 have passed through the FCC in the United States, while the Galaxy A8 and a new Galaxy A9 have both been the subject of leaks recently. Today, the Galaxy A7 has passed through Chinese regulatory body TENAA, which means it is nearing its launch.

The Galaxy A7 (SM-7100) comes with a 5.5-inch Super AMOLED Full HD 1080p screen, a 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 processor clocked at 1.5GHz, a generous 3GB of RAM, 16GB of native storage, and in a break from Samsung’s current trend there will also be a micro SD card slot to expand the storage memory.

A 2600mAh battery will keep the lights on, while a 13 megapixel camera sits on the back with a 5MP selfie lens rocking the front panel.

While Samsung has not officially announced the Galaxy it is expected that all the new A series devices will be launching in December, with the A7 mooted to be arriving on the 1st of next month.

LG likes to launch smartphone, much like its compatriot Samsung, and now the South Korean giant has rolled out the LG Ray, a modest entry level device that will be making its way Latin America and Commonwealth of Independent States countries.

There is nothing really special here, although LG is clearly pushing this as a design oriented smartphone as the company says it is both slim and metallic. It is a head scratcher for sure as the Ray is neither slim (9.8mm) nor metal (its plastic), but it does at least look like a metal smartphone.

In terms of specs, there is a 5.5-inch 720p screen, an unnamed octa-core processor, 1GB of RAM, LTE connectivity, 16GB of native storage, a micro SD card support, a 3,000mAh battery, 13 megapixel rear camera, and an 8 megapixel front facing lens.

With no launch date or price we will have to wait to see if this is worthy of a second glance.

Sony’s smartphone strategy puzzles us. The company treats the U.S. market like an afterthought and then is worried because sales remain low against rivals. Sure, the uninterested U.S. market is hardly welcoming Sony with open arms, but still the company is not in the race to win it. Take the very good Xperia Z3+, a smartphone flagship that launched in June but is now only making its way to the United States.

Sony has catered for the discrepancy in launch time by slashing the price to $499.99, which is around $20 more than the Moto X Pure Edition with a wood or leather back. That means the Xperia Z3+ is entering a rather busy price point that is not short of enticing options. We are thinking of the likes of the OnePlus 2, Motorola Moto X Pure Edition, and several impressive Chinese smartphones. We could also throw the likes of the HTC One A9 into the mix and some of last year’s flagships like the LG G3 and HTC One M8. Of course, the Xperia Z3+ is last year’s flagship in a way, although it is an update of Sony’s 2014 driver.

You will get a well spec’d and ultra-smart looking device that oozes premium, although you will only be able to use it on AT&T and T-Mobile and not Sprint nor Verizon.

Of course, the Xperia Z3 was a very good smartphone, delivering plenty of quality with only a few caveats. Design is possibly one of the low points here, but we say that cautiously and it really does come down to taste. There is no doubt that the Xperia Z3+ (like its predecessor) oozes premium with its two glass panels sandwiching a metal frame and sides. It is a striking smartphone and we know plenty who think the Xperia Z3 is a design triumph, so those people will be happy to see the Xperia Z3+ arrive with no aesthetic changes. While we would be stupid to outright deride the design here, we do think that Sony's flagship range could do with a slight refresh as the move from Xperia Z to Z3+ or indeed Xperia Z4 has been minimal in terms of looks. It is worth noting that this device is thinner than the Xperia Z3, 6.9mm compared to 7.3mm.

As for specs, it's a mix of been there, done that and brand new. The Xperia Z3+ retains the 5.2-inch 1080p screen found on the Z3, it is the exact same panel meaning no Quad HD market pushing display. That is hardly a major gripe considering we still get plenty of joy from a good 1080p screen, which this is. Under the hood things are improved, with Qualcomm's troublesome Snapdragon 810 making its way to the Xperia Z3+ with 3GB of RAM, a 20.7 megapixel rear camera, and an improved 5 megapixel front facing lens also along for the ride.

Sony has also improved the waterproofing, with an IP68 rating meaning this can be submerged in water up to 3 meters (9 feet) deep. Considering the Xperia Z3 is being updated to Android 5.0 Lollipop, we imagine that the Xperia Z3+ will get Lollipop out of the box.

The Z3 had an amazing battery, with Sony squeezing every last drop out of the 3100 mAh juicer to ensure market leading battery performance (we mean market leading too). To make the Xperia Z3+ thinner, the Japanese company decided to reduce the pack to 2900 mAh, but apparently improvements in other areas will mean the Z3+ is equally impressive in terms of battery life. Sony says it will last for two days, obviously we will have to wait to get the device in hand to prove that, but the company has been spot on in this department before.

Amazon doesn’t really need Black Friday to run a deal, the online retail giant is always having offers, especially for mobile apps (really, every Android users should get Amazon’s Store for this reason alone). However, when Black Friday does come around Amazon goes suitably deal crazy, and 2015 will be no different judging by these announced offers.

Discounts are not just limited to electronics, but if you are after a good deal on something from the mobile industry or electronics as a whole, here’s what Amazon is offering:

20 percent off on various Samsung Galaxy tablets
$34.99 Fire 7-inch tablet (from $50)
A mobile printer for less than $100
$25 off Amazon Fire TV (from $100)
$15 off Amazon Fire TV Stick (from $40) and Amazon Fire TV Stick with Voice Remote
50 percent off Sony Extra Bass Bluetooth Headphones
50 percent off on Sennheiser HD 598 Special Edition Over-Ear Headphones in Black (Amazon-exclusive)
$99.99 Kindle Paperwhite (from $119)
$30 off Kindle and Kindle for Kids Bundle
Fire Kids Edition for $84.99 (from $100)
Samsung 32-inch 1080p LED TV for $177.99
LG 49-inch 1080p LED TV for less than $370
Samsung 75-inch 1080p Smart LED TV for less than $2,000
A 60-inch 4K LED TV for $799.99
TCL 55-inch Roku Smart LED TV for $348
TCL 32-inch Roku Smart LED TV, $125
Hisense 55-inch 4K Smart LED TV, $448 (app-only deal)
A 50-inch 1080p LED TV, $149.99 (app-only deal)
Acer Home Theater Projector, $299.99
Vizio 38-inch 2.1 home theater sound bar for $79.99 (from $180)
$49 off Sonos 2-Room Streaming Music Starter Set (from $398)
40 percent off on a Polk Audio Omni S2 wireless speaker
25 percent off Denon Heos 1 wireless speakers
$100 off an Intel Dell 2-in-1 Laptop
Asus 15-inch laptop, $129
40 percent off select Acer desktops, monitors, Chromebooks and tablets
$99 Jawbone Up3 (from $150)
70 percent on select SanDisk memory cards and USB flash drives

SOURCE: Amazon
VIA: MobileBurn

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 2 Pro is imminent, we know that much by the numerous benchmarks and leaks over the last weeks, while a TENAA certification last week sealed the deal for a November launch. That launch date is going to be November 24th and before the big unveiling, Xiaomi co-founder Bin Lin has teased the device once more.

Using his Weibo social media page, the executive showed a handset that by now is very familiar. The round camera module, flash, and round fingerprint scanner setup on the back matches pervious leaks of the Redmi Note 2 Pro.

The Redmi Note 2 Pro will come with a 5.5-inch screen with 1080p Full HD resolution and an octa core 64-bit MediaTek MT6795 Helio X10 processor clocked at 2.0GHz. There will also be 2GB of RAM, 16GB of expandable native storage, a 13 megapixel primary shooter, a 5 megapixel front facing lens, and even a fingerprint scanner. Rounding out the spec-list will be a 3060mAh juicer that should keep the lights on a long time, and Android Lollipop on board.

That is a respectable package overall, and as we are used to with Xiaomi, the Redmi Note 2 Pro will not bust the bank and will cost the same as $172. However, as always with the Chinese company, this will not be coming to western markets, so it's off to your local smartphone importer if you are interested in this.

Motorola has just revealed some new special edition smartphones that have been made in collaboration with New York based designer Jonathan Adler. The new Moto X Pure Collection offers consumers the recently launched Moto X Pure Edition with some new designs that will never be available through Motorola’s own Moto Maker pre-purchase customization suite.

That makes these handsets unique, although we hardly see the design merit personally, but then that’s why we run a mobile oriented website and not a fashion one we guess. At the very least these will appeal to those wanting something that is individual, even alongside the already very customizable Moto X Pure Edition.

The bonus here is that the price of the Moto X Pure Collection smartphones remains unchanged against a regular Pure Edition that has a leather or wood rear plate. That cost is $479.99 and in terms of specs there is a lot of smartphone here for the money. When the Pure Edition launched, we got our hands on it in its international Moto X Style form and here’s what we thought:

In the past the Moto X has been a rather bland looking smartphone, even with Moto Maker in tow making everything all colorful and personalized. The Moto X Style looks nice as a standalone handset, coming in standard colors it still carries an aesthetic appeal and shows that plastic devices can still be sexy (in fairness LG has also shown that this year). While LG jazzed the G4 up with a leather rear plate, Motorola has opted for a rubberized soft silicon to give the Style a unique twist. And don't worry, Moto Maker is still a pre-purchase option, so you can still have wood rear plates, funky colors, and just about anything else you want.

Elsewhere, Motorola has not followed the likes of Samsung and Sony by making its handset waterproof, although with a rating of IP52, the Moto X Style will take a few splashes with no problem at all. There are also two stereo speakers nestled away inside, offering a solid audio experience for music and video playback.

Last year, the second generation Moto X was a mere incremental update over the original model and did not exactly inspire with barnstorming specs. The Moto X Style is different however and features the latest and greatest smartphone hardware. The handset ships with a massive 5.7-inch screen that now has Quad HD (1440 x 2560) resolution, while a 76% screen to body ratio means the new X is svelte enough but is not pushing the thinnest and most compact large screen devices out there.

We reported last month that Motorola would be avoiding Qualcomm's troubled overheating Snapdragon 810 processor in favour of the lower clocked Snapdragon 808. It is still a 64-bit chip, but is clocked at 1.8GHz maximum so there are no overheating issues. Again, this is something LG did with the G4 and while there are definite issue in performance for power users, it is obviously a compromise Motorola was willing to make. We imagine the X Style will perform similarly to the G4 and deliver pretty excellent speed and efficiency, but may start to wobble if you really want to throw a lot at it, which is something 99% of users would never do.

3GB of RAM will help the processor deliver top line performance and Motorola's typically light approach to Android will surely also help reduce any lag. The Moto X Style will launch with Android 5.1.1 on board, a near stock experience that is all but guaranteed to be at the front of the line when Android M launches later in the year.

Other specs include 32GB of native storage (a 64GB version is also available), and finally a micro SD card slot has been added, allowing up to 128GB of additional storage space. A 21 megapixel camera sits on the rear as the primary shooter, and it comes with all the bells and whistles we would expect from a flagship, including F2.0, phase-detection autofocus, and dual-tone LED flash. Around the front there is a 5 megapixel snapper that is ideal for selfies with its LED flash.

A 3000mAh battery will be keeping the lights on and Motorola has included its Turbo Charging software that allows 10 hours of mixed use from just 15 minutes of charge time.

Sony has had plenty of success with its image sensors, which are market leading in their sector. The company could now be tempted to spread its component wings with a report today suggesting that the Xperia manufacturer is interested in making its own processors. Sony would be following in the footsteps as other mobile brands Apple, Samsung, Huawei, and LG.

Digitimes out of Taiwan (admittedly with a patchy track record) says that Sony is looking to follow a similar path to the main players in the industry.

Samsung and LG are unique amongst those as they design and build their own processors (Exynos and NUCLUN respectively). Apple (AX) and Huawei (Kirin) merely design their silicon and farm out the other producers, which in Apple’s case means great rival Samsung on occasion. Apple is the only one that uses its own chipsets exclusively and does not turn to other providers such as Qualcomm or MediaTek.

We would think that Sony is more interested in following the same route as Samsung and LG and will produce and design its own products. That will give the Japanese giant control over its processors but could also lead to another successful component division that provides for rival companies, much like the Exmor mobile imaging division.

Chinese brands usually tread the line between great value for money and just blatantly copying other companies, but the top manufacturers (Huawei, Xiaomi, ZTE, Lenovo, Meizu) typically infuse their own originality and have made an impact. However, copycats are still out there, so what is the UMi ROME, a copy of Samsung’s Galaxy Note 5, or a bargain smartphone that merely pays homage to Samsung’s phablet?

We’ll let you decide that, but what is clear is that by aping Samsung’s recent flagship output UMi has been able to deliver a device that looks cool and is also made of metal. Oh yes, this handset is also coming at a cost of just $89.99, although it will never come to the United States.

As for specs, the ROME comes with a 5.5-inch 720p AMOLED screen, a 64-bit, octa-core MediaTek MT6753 processor with ARM Mali T-720 GPU, and a healthy 3GB of RAM. UMi has also included 16GB of native storage (no confirmation of micro SD card support), a 13-megapixel Sony IMX164 sensor and a dual LED flash sitting on the back, and 2 megapixel front facing lens. With a 2500mAh battery we assume this will be a good performance in terms of battery life.

With Android 5.1 Lollipop running the show and some excellent specs, we expect this handset to be a good performer, especially with a solid chipset and generous amounts of RAM running with a 720p screen.

It is important to know that UMi has unveiled smartphones before and then simply never launched them, so if we never see the ROME out in the wild it would not be surprising. That said, the company says the device will be launching next month.

ASUS is finally making a mark on the smartphone market and to continue to do that consumers will want to feel taken care of. With that in mind, the Tiawanese company has today revealed its roadmap for Android 6.0 Marshmallow upgrade, with the Asus ZenFone 2, the Asus Zenfone 2 Deluxe / Special Edition, the ZenFone 2 Laser, the ZenFone Selfie and the Asus Padfone S all getting the bump.

Okay, we understand if those rocking the original ZenFone’s are a little disappointed to miss out, but by time ASUS’ upgrade program gets underway those handsets will be two years old. In other words, aged enough for the company to discontinue support.

As for the handsets mentioned to be getting Marshmallow, it is no surprise to see the successful ZenFone 2 range dominate the roster. We would also say that the soon to be launched ZenFone Zoom will also get an upgrade, but we will have to wait for ASUS’ confirmation after the handset is officially made available.

Nvidia has raised the curtain on its new Shield Tablet K1 today, a follow up to the original K1 gaming oriented slate that arrive last year with bags of power. This time out Nvidia has trimmed some fat to achieve a very appealing cost of just $199, and for that you are really getting a lot of tablet and excellent gaming performance.

Compared to last year, the new slate is $100 cheaper than the original K1 although there are not huge changes here, so this sequel is really Nvidia cutting the price and adding some extras. The company has only launched a 16GB Wi-Fi model so far, but don’t be surprised to see a LTE version with more native storage arrive down the line.

Under the hood once again is Nvidia’s own Tegra K1 chipset, which is actually the same processor as last year, but don’t be put off by age as this is a blazing piece of silicon. The Tegra K1 is a 2.2GHz quad-core Cortex-A15 CPU and a 192-core GeForce Kepler GPU that delivers huge benchmark scores, especially for gaming, which is what the Shield’s focus is on.

Other specs include 1920 by 1200 pixels 8-inch IPS screen, and it is hard not to argue for this as one of the best pound for pound tablets on the market, and almost a must if you are gaming oriented. The $199.99 price means some compromises have been made, such as the ShieldDirect Stylus 2 pen is now a $19.99 optional extra, while the device also ships without a charger.

Speaking of optional extras, there is a magnetic keyboard cover that costs $39.99, while the Nvidia gamepad will cost $59.99. We would say the gamepad is a solid investment as it really enhances the gaming experience offered by the Shield Tablet K1.

HTC has quite the offer on in the United States at the moment, but you will need to be quick as the deal ends at the close of the day. The Taiwanese company is offering a free (read completely free) Desire 626 smartphone with every purchase of the flagship One M9.

The One M9 is an excellent handset in most aspects, although it is not without its issues and has not been a sales success for HTC as previous iterations. It also does not come cheap at $649 off contract and unlocked from HTC, but still it is a handset that is worth a look if you want something from the flagship end of the market. It is an even sweeter prospect with a free Desire 626.

The 626 is hardly an amazing handset, but it is a competent budget device that would usually cost you $179.99 unlocked, so you would be getting a solid package here. As we mentioned, the deal only runs today, so you should get your skates on if you are interested, while the option is only open if you buy the One M9 from HTC directly.

BlackBerry is now a car carrying member of the Android family and the Priv is selling well enough early in its life that the company is even casting an eye to the future. That future will be the company going back to a tired and tested form factor that served it so well before the uniqueness of the Priv (sliding screen unveiling a keyboard) and the Passport (massive square).

The BlackBerry Vienna is a device in development that will be a QWERTY keyboard carrying handset that offers a svelte body next to the passport, and more conventional screen and deck design next to the Priv. It is unlikely to match either of those handsets in flagship quality, but will no doubt be aimed at those who email and note take a lot.

General specs are unknown at the moment, but the Vienna could be a welcome sight on Android and dare we say it, more welcome than the Passport. Rumors have been long that BlackBerry will update the Passport to run Android, but we would much prefer something new like the Vienna.

Black Friday is imminent, which means retailers around the country will be offering huge deals on everything, including consumer electronics and smartphones. Wal-Mart, the largest retailer in the United States, will be among those slashing prices on numerous products in the mobile sector. A leaked copy of the company’s Black Friday circular leaflet has leaked online.

The Black Friday sale at Wal-Mart will start at 6pm on Thanksgiving. One of the deals on offer is Apple’s iPad Air 2, available for $399, which is a $100 discount on the slate. All Samsung smartphones come with a $150 discount directly and a further $100 off from the Black Friday gift card, meaning $250 off on every Samsung handset.
The iPhone is in the Wal-Mart Black Friday mix too with $200 in total savings, $100 from the discount and a further $100 from the card. For both Samsung and Apple, the deal is available with handsets running Verizon and AT&T, the two largest carriers in the U.S.

Models available include the Apple iPhone 5s, Apple iPhone 6, Apple iPhone 6 Plus, Apple iPhone 6s, Apple iPhone 6s Plus, Samsung Galaxy S3, Samsung Galaxy S4, Samsung Galaxy S5 and the Samsung Galaxy S6.

Pop quiz. What is the fastest processor on the market? It’s the Samsung Exynos 7 7420 chipset that is found in the top five best benchmarked smartphones in 2015. However, the 7420 now has a major rival with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 and the Huawei Kirin 950, two chips that will likely be quicker than the Exynos 7.

A day after Qualcomm unveiled the Snapdragon 820 Samsung has hit straight back by unveiling the Exynos 8 8890. This is a new octa-core processor with 64-bit capabilities and is built on a 14nm FinFET manufacturing process. Samsung promises that the Exynos 8890 will deliver 30% better performance compared to this year’s 7420, while it will manage to be 10% more power efficient.

Xiaomi has been stalling on releasing its Mi 5 smartphone flagship and the current Mi 4 is now nearly a year and a half old, which is an eternity in the smartphone industry. The Chinese giant has been waiting for Qualcomm to release the Snapdragon 820 processor and as that happened yesterday Xiaomi can now move ahead with the launch of the Mi 5.

The device has now passed through the GeekBench benchmarking software under the codename “Gemini” and as you can guess, the Mi 5 sports the Snapdragon 820. While all the specs of the handset are not listed, the results show that the handset comes with 3GB of RAM and ships with Android 6.0 Marshmallow out of the box.

Still no word on when the Mi 5 will launch, but we think it could be before the end of this month, even though most sources claim it will be early December.

When a flagship starts to get surpassed by newer, more spec’d models, companies will look for ways to revamp the handset. This may be advanced like a spec overhaul or simple like a new color, and LG has opted for the latter with the LG G4 White Gold Edition.

This handset has been unveiled in South Korea and adds a new colorway for the G4 comprising a white front and rear panel framed by gold strips on the side. It is worth noting that these strips are plastic despite their gold hue. LG says that this handset is marketed towards “women and young customers” but we have yet to figure out precisely why.

In terms of innards, the G4 White Gold Edition brings nothing new to the party for LG’s 2015 flagship, which remains a potent handset nonetheless. We imagine this will eventually get a global rollout once it does the rounds in LG’s homeland.

For many, the Priv is the last throw of the hardware dice for BlackBerry; if it is not a success it is thought that the company will pull out of the hardware market. The Canadian giant has denied that repeatedly, but nevertheless the Android backed Priv seems to be a handset that will define whether BlackBerry has a future in hardware. With that in mind we imagine CEO John Chen and co will be delighted that the handset has already sold out on Amazon.

The U.S. online retail giant put the Priv on sale for $699.99 early yesterday and by the end of the day the flagship had sold out. Of course other retailers are also selling the Priv, while the sliding device is also available exclusively on AT&T, but still selling out on Amazon is good news.

The obvious question is how many handsets were available on Amazon in the first place? No specific figures have been offered by BlackBerry of the retailer, but any number is excellent for the company. It is important to remember that the company has been selling virtually no smartphones, so any kind of buzz is something to be happy about. Whether the device will become a bona fide success in terms of rival handsets is unclear, but BlackBerry probably has the biggest hit it has had in years on its hands.

SOURCE: MobileBurn

LG is one of those tech giants (like Samsung and Sony) that can make plenty of money from hardware in the smartphone market without releasing any smartphones. For Samsung is its processors, and for Sony it is image sensors, while LG’s go to component is screens. The TV giant knows a thing or two about panels and has apparently piqued the interest of Xiaomi, which is likely to opt for LG displays on its future handsets.

The Chinese company is reportedly ready to ditch LCD screens in favor of OLED panels, and LG is the company that Xiaomi is in negotiations with to supply the components. LG enjoys a solid market share of the panel market, but even so, this is a major coup for the company as Xiaomi is a rising brand that sells millions of smartphones each year.