LightBlog

samedi 31 décembre 2016

XDA-Developers Wishes You a Happy New Year!

2016 is finally coming to a close – in fact, it might already be over for you – and it was definitely an exciting year for smartphones, Android and our development community. We saw amazing new devices and gadgets, the massive Android Nougat update and useful modifications and apps come from our forums.

For us at the XDA Portal, this year was one of change, where we further strengthened the content model we embraced in 2015. We published more technical analyses, in-depth explanations of important topics and issues, we dug deeper and deeper with our reviews and our editorials managed to start a few neat conversations as well. The site has grown and our readerbase has expanded, with insightful comments and discussions developing under every major feature — we enjoy all of it, even the trolls, and it’s that interaction what ultimately makes writing lengthy articles and reviews so rewarding.

We’d like to thank everyone who reads our articles, follows our writers and helps us improve our content through feedback and discussion. Personally, I am grateful to engage in conversation with all of the frequent readers that follow my work and send messages to me on XDA or social media. XDA is, at its core, a community of developers and enthusiasts, so we want the Portal to represent that as well.

We wish you a very happy 2017, and hope that you start the year with the right foot to find success in your endeavors! Thank you for reading the XDA Portal and/or contributing to the community through our forums. If you want to contribute to the XDA Portal and write analysis, editorials and phone reviews, you can apply for a position by submitting this form.

Stay tuned for an even better year of all things XDA!

  • Mario Serrafero, XDA Portal Editor-in-Chief



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via IFTTT

XDA-Developers Wishes You a Happy New Year!

2016 is finally coming to a close – in fact, it might already be over for you – and it was definitely an exciting year for smartphones, Android and our development community. We saw amazing new devices and gadgets, the massive Android Nougat update and useful modifications and apps come from our forums.

For us at the XDA Portal, this year was one of change, where we further strengthened the content model we embraced in 2015. We published more technical analyses, in-depth explanations of important topics and issues, we dug deeper and deeper with our reviews and our editorials managed to start a few neat conversations as well. The site has grown and our readerbase has expanded, with insightful comments and discussions developing under every major feature — we enjoy all of it, even the trolls, and it's that interaction what ultimately makes writing lengthy articles and reviews so rewarding.

We'd like to thank everyone who reads our articles, follows our writers and helps us improve our content through feedback and discussion. Personally, I am grateful to engage in conversation with all of the frequent readers that follow my work and send messages to me on XDA or social media. XDA is, at its core, a community of developers and enthusiasts, so we want the Portal to represent that as well.

We wish you a very happy 2017, and hope that you start the year with the right foot to find success in your endeavors! Thank you for reading the XDA Portal and/or contributing to the community through our forums. If you want to contribute to the XDA Portal and write analysis, editorials and phone reviews, you can apply for a position by submitting this form.

Stay tuned for an even better year of all things XDA!

  • Mario Serrafero, XDA Portal Editor-in-Chief



from xda-developers http://ift.tt/2iR62Re
via IFTTT

2016 in Review: What was the Biggest Disappointment this year?

As we enter the final days of the year, it’s time to get your opinion on all the events, news, releases and controversies that we witnessed so far in 2016.

We witnessed plenty of OEMs try out something new this year. Some succeeded, but others failed. In some cases, marketing departments of some companies went into overdrive and puffed up mediocrity in an attempt to attract customers towards otherwise bland products. People were holding their breath too often, only to find out that it was not really worth it.

So, our question to you is,

What was the biggest disappointment of 2016? Which mobile OEM, product, or service were you initially excited for, only to be disappointed in the end? Did you purchase/try the product and come to the conclusion, or were your expectations dashed based on something else? What should have been improved in the product or service, to make it worthy of your money and time?

Let us know in the comments below!



from xda-developers http://ift.tt/2hAAqys
via IFTTT

2016 in Review: What was the Biggest Disappointment this year?

As we enter the final days of the year, it's time to get your opinion on all the events, news, releases and controversies that we witnessed so far in 2016.

We witnessed plenty of OEMs try out something new this year. Some succeeded, but others failed. In some cases, marketing departments of some companies went into overdrive and puffed up mediocrity in an attempt to attract customers towards otherwise bland products. People were holding their breath too often, only to find out that it was not really worth it.

So, our question to you is,

What was the biggest disappointment of 2016? Which mobile OEM, product, or service were you initially excited for, only to be disappointed in the end? Did you purchase/try the product and come to the conclusion, or were your expectations dashed based on something else? What should have been improved in the product or service, to make it worthy of your money and time?

Let us know in the comments below!



from xda-developers http://ift.tt/2hAAqys
via IFTTT

Editorial: Bezels in 2016, and the Trends that Will Shape Smartphone Designs in 2017

This past year has been quite experimental in the realm of smartphone design: smartphone OEMs attempted to push the envelope and find new ways to differentiate their products and push the industry forward. Many tried, plenty failed, but some were able to steal the spotlight.

One of those success stories is the Xiaomi Mi MIX. Xiaomi confesses that the Mi MIX is a “Concept Phone”, as it was an experimental release that aimed to push smartphone design boundaries, and test whether consumers would come to accept something rather unconventional, a specific design others had attempted before with little fanfare and success. The first Mi MIX flash sale only had a limited quantity (estimated at 10,000) that sold out in just 10 seconds, so the “concept phone” certainly had some appeal to it.

Its popularity originates mainly from its “bezel-less” design. Xiaomi’s Mi MIX claims a screen-to-body ratio of 91.3% officially, albeit GSMArena found the number to be a bit of a stretch as the actual number from their measurements came in at a lesser, but still very impressive, 83.6%. The phone only has a thin chin and minimal bezels on the other three sides, an approach that was preceded by phones like the Aquos Crystal and others from Sharp.

Xiaomi Mi MIX

Incidentally, the display panel on the Xiaomi Mi MIX is supplied by Sharp. Sharp’s own lineup of bezel-less devices, by comparison, was not as well received. The bezel-less Sharp family started off with the Aquos Crystal in August 2014 with a screen-to-body ratio of 78.5% and a 5” display. The company then released the Aquos Crystal 2 in May 2015 with a screen-to-body ratio of 77.2% and a 5.2” display, while the Aquos Xx was released at the same time with a screen-to-body ratio of 77.7% but with a larger 5.7” display. The Sharp Aquos Xx2 was released in October 2015, but the display was trimmed to 5.3”. Perhaps Sharp was displeased with the sales numbers of the so-called bezel-less smartphones in their lineup, as the company later released the Sharp Aquos Xx3 which completely shied away from this design language.

Sharp Aquos Crystal Sharp Aquos Crystal 2 Sharp Aquos Xx Sharp Aquos Xx2 Sharp Aquos Xx3

Despite Sharp seeing little success and eventually discontinuing the key distinguishing feature of their lineup, other OEMs have taken lessons from Sharp’s foray into bezel-less design. The earpiece-less Aquos Crystal used a technology similar to bone conduction for sound transmission — the entire phone is vibrated by a direct wave receiver to produce and transmit sound. The Xiaomi Mi MIX employs a similar technology, as it makes use of a piezoelectric ceramic lever that hits the metallic frame of the device to transmit sound via vibrations. The Mi MIX also employed a few other technologies to achieve its grand vision, like using an ultrasonic proximity sensor instead of an infrared sensor, and reducing the front camera size by half and placing it at the bottom bezel.

All three of these features combined grant Xiaomi the freedom to free the Mi MIX from the massive chin that was a staple feature of the previously-mentioned Sharp devices. Granted, the Xiaomi Mi MIX still has a thin chin and minimal bezels on the other sides, but the device is as bezel-less as a smartphone could feasibly be in the year 2016.

A few other OEMs are approaching thin bezel designs too. The Lenovo ZUK Edge comes with a 5.5” 1080p display with a 78.3% screen-to-body ratio. Though, there is no curved screen at play here (despite the name), so the figure seems a lot more impressive.

screen-to-body-ratio1

Samsung’s ill-fated Galaxy Note 7 was also an improvement when it comes to the screen-to-body ratio. Compared to its predecessor, the Note 5 with a 5.7” display clocking in at at 75.9% screen-to-body ratio, the Note 7 reduced the bezel size thanks to the dual curved display. For reference, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge with its 5.5” display came up to 76.1% in its bezel ratio, while the non-curved Galaxy S7 managed a 72.1%. Had the Note 7 not suffered an explosive fate, it would have been an impressive display benchmark for other flagships to compare to.

Other smartphones from Xiaomi are also in the race for the thinnest bezels, even after you discount the Mi MIX concept phone. The Xiaomi Mi Note 2 and the Mi 5 are also rather screen efficient, with a screen-to-body ratio of 74.2% and 73.1% respectively. The Mi Note 2 also adopts the curved screen approach, while the Mi 5 achieves its impressive minimal bezel design using a traditional flat display.

Xiaomi Mi Note 2

Even Huawei seem to be continuing an impressive streak. The Huawei Mate 9 comes with a bezel ratio of 77.5% for its 5.9” screen, compared to the Mate 8 with its 78% ratio on a 6” display. The Huawei P9 improves on the Huawei P8 with its 72.9% ratio versus the 71.4% on the predecessor.

With all of these devices, what we can remain assured of is that a few OEMs will continue to try and cram as big of a display as they reasonably can place into comfortably-sized bodies. Experimental phones aside, none of the other mentioned phones have had complaints for being too sparse on bezels. Some of these OEMs will also take it even further in 2017.

On the other hand, there are OEMs who completely disregarded these apparent trends. Some manufacturers even abandoned what their own flagships of the past have put forth as a benchmark.

A clear example is LG, who seemingly have completely moved away from what the LG G3 once stood for in the G-series lineup. The G3 was a champion of minimal bezels with its 75.3% bezel ratio, but the LG G4 and LG G5 got progressively worse in that regard with ratios of 72.5% and 70.1% respectively. Even on the V series which comprised of a large display and a secondary screen, the V20 bore an unimpressive 72.4% screen-to-body ratio, which is in contrast to the various other OEMs who manage to get better ratios on larger phones. Larger displays allow for bigger bodies to house the various components, thus reducing the dependence on the forehead and chin for housing hardware elements.

Finally, we can consider the Google Pixel and the Google Pixel XL. Since these phones have been made on Google’s specifications and are the first of the new Google Pixel smartphone lineup, there are no “true” predecessors to compare them to. With screen-to-body ratios of 69% and 71.2% on the Pixel and Pixel XL respectively, the numbers are comparatively unimpressive, and the physical appearance suffers as a result. This was one of the particularly common criticisms aimed at the device soon after its announcement and release.

So where does all of this leave us for the coming year?

There’s one thing that we can say with confidence: OEMs will continue pushing design boundaries and reducing bezels. Concept products such as the Mi MIX garnered a lot of media attention, so we can look forward to seeing other OEMs approach more minimal bezel designs. ZUK’s Edge barely squeezed its way into 2016 in the last few days – perhaps other Chinese OEMs will try similar approaches in 2017.

The trend won’t be limited to China either. Samsung’s Galaxy S8 is also a phone to look forward in this regard. Their alleged decision to ditch the physical home button will play well in helping the company reduce the bottom chin too, as it seeks to replace more of the frame with screen to make up for the screen real estate loss that a navigation bar would bring. Assuming Samsung continues implementing curved displays (which they will in all likelihood), the S8’s lack of bezels will likely impress, especially if the rumors regarding the removal of Samsung’s traditional home button happen to be true.

LG is also seemingly dumping its modular approach with the G6, so there are expectations that the G6 might be closer to the G3 than say the V10 in terms of bezels. As more leaks and renders for the device arrive, we’re starting a see a clearer picture on LG’s design standing.

Expected renders of upcoming LG G6

Expected renders of upcoming LG G6

Even a device like the Pixel gives us hope. Google has set a low baseline with their first release, so we can expect to see improvements made with the next Pixel successor. Whether the ratio will be impressive or not is something that we will have to decide when the device is released, but it’s likely they’ll manage to make their next Pixel even sleeker.


Why don’t more OEMs go for more screen and less body?

There are valid reasons why OEMs hold back on bezel-less designs. Bezels are necessary to provide structural support and integrity to the device. They also provide shock absorption (as much as a bezel can), mitigating the damage a direct drop would do to a glass display. More bezel also means more room for components, and in case of smartphones, every millimeter matters. They also provide area to aid in gripping our phones, a task that is becoming ever more arduous in times of glass and metal back phones. Adding on top and bottom bezels also helps in positioning the display in more favorable position relative to your hand and fingers, while the side bezels help in reducing palm and other accidental touches (like when you hold your phone in landscape for clicking pictures).

Hardware advantages aside, Android as an OS is also biased towards right-handed users. Think fast scrollbars, Floating-Action-Buttons, even your navigation bar in landscape mode — all usually come out on the right edge of the display. This caters to the majority of the population who hold and use phones with their right hand. Thin bezels would mean that the software would need to adapt for better palm and accidental touch rejection. It’s on the OEM to work on software to reject erroneous taps and swipes should they go for an implementation as specific as Samsung’s curved displays.

A proposition that comes up often is adopting AMOLED displays and then displaying black borders via software to mimic a bezel. This would give the user flexibility to choose their preferred bezel thickness for appropriate one-handed use, and still make a large display available for media consumption. While the idea seems practical, we have to go back on the hardware need for bezels to realize that we still need some of it.

For better or worse, OEMs will continue to try packing as much screen as possible into increasingly smaller bodies for sleeker devices. While outliers will continue to exist, 2017 gives thin bezel lovers plenty to look forward to.

Credits: GSMArena for Screen-to-body ratios, MySmartPrice for LG G6 renders.



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via IFTTT

Editorial: Bezels in 2016, and the Trends that Will Shape Smartphone Designs in 2017

This past year has been quite experimental in the realm of smartphone design: smartphone OEMs attempted to push the envelope and find new ways to differentiate their products and push the industry forward. Many tried, plenty failed, but some were able to steal the spotlight.

One of those success stories is the Xiaomi Mi MIX. Xiaomi confesses that the Mi MIX is a "Concept Phone", as it was an experimental release that aimed to push smartphone design boundaries, and test whether consumers would come to accept something rather unconventional, a specific design others had attempted before with little fanfare and success. The first Mi MIX flash sale only had a limited quantity (estimated at 10,000) that sold out in just 10 seconds, so the "concept phone" certainly had some appeal to it.

Its popularity originates mainly from its "bezel-less" design. Xiaomi's Mi MIX claims a screen-to-body ratio of 91.3% officially, albeit GSMArena found the number to be a bit of a stretch as the actual number from their measurements came in at a lesser, but still very impressive, 83.6%. The phone only has a thin chin and minimal bezels on the other three sides, an approach that was preceded by phones like the Aquos Crystal and others from Sharp.

Xiaomi Mi MIX

Incidentally, the display panel on the Xiaomi Mi MIX is supplied by Sharp. Sharp's own lineup of bezel-less devices, by comparison, was not as well received. The bezel-less Sharp family started off with the Aquos Crystal in August 2014 with a screen-to-body ratio of 78.5% and a 5" display. The company then released the Aquos Crystal 2 in May 2015 with a screen-to-body ratio of 77.2% and a 5.2" display, while the Aquos Xx was released at the same time with a screen-to-body ratio of 77.7% but with a larger 5.7" display. The Sharp Aquos Xx2 was released in October 2015, but the display was trimmed to 5.3". Perhaps Sharp was displeased with the sales numbers of the so-called bezel-less smartphones in their lineup, as the company later released the Sharp Aquos Xx3 which completely shied away from this design language.

Sharp Aquos Crystal Sharp Aquos Crystal 2 Sharp Aquos Xx Sharp Aquos Xx2 Sharp Aquos Xx3

Despite Sharp seeing little success and eventually discontinuing the key distinguishing feature of their lineup, other OEMs have taken lessons from Sharp's foray into bezel-less design. The earpiece-less Aquos Crystal used a technology similar to bone conduction for sound transmission — the entire phone is vibrated by a direct wave receiver to produce and transmit sound. The Xiaomi Mi MIX employs a similar technology, as it makes use of a piezoelectric ceramic lever that hits the metallic frame of the device to transmit sound via vibrations. The Mi MIX also employed a few other technologies to achieve its grand vision, like using an ultrasonic proximity sensor instead of an infrared sensor, and reducing the front camera size by half and placing it at the bottom bezel.

All three of these features combined grant Xiaomi the freedom to free the Mi MIX from the massive chin that was a staple feature of the previously-mentioned Sharp devices. Granted, the Xiaomi Mi MIX still has a thin chin and minimal bezels on the other sides, but the device is as bezel-less as a smartphone could feasibly be in the year 2016.

A few other OEMs are approaching thin bezel designs too. The Lenovo ZUK Edge comes with a 5.5" 1080p display with a 78.3% screen-to-body ratio. Though, there is no curved screen at play here (despite the name), so the figure seems a lot more impressive.

screen-to-body-ratio1

Samsung's ill-fated Galaxy Note 7 was also an improvement when it comes to the screen-to-body ratio. Compared to its predecessor, the Note 5 with a 5.7" display clocking in at at 75.9% screen-to-body ratio, the Note 7 reduced the bezel size thanks to the dual curved display. For reference, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge with its 5.5" display came up to 76.1% in its bezel ratio, while the non-curved Galaxy S7 managed a 72.1%. Had the Note 7 not suffered an explosive fate, it would have been an impressive display benchmark for other flagships to compare to.

Other smartphones from Xiaomi are also in the race for the thinnest bezels, even after you discount the Mi MIX concept phone. The Xiaomi Mi Note 2 and the Mi 5 are also rather screen efficient, with a screen-to-body ratio of 74.2% and 73.1% respectively. The Mi Note 2 also adopts the curved screen approach, while the Mi 5 achieves its impressive minimal bezel design using a traditional flat display.

Xiaomi Mi Note 2

Even Huawei seem to be continuing an impressive streak. The Huawei Mate 9 comes with a bezel ratio of 77.5% for its 5.9" screen, compared to the Mate 8 with its 78% ratio on a 6" display. The Huawei P9 improves on the Huawei P8 with its 72.9% ratio versus the 71.4% on the predecessor.

With all of these devices, what we can remain assured of is that a few OEMs will continue to try and cram as big of a display as they reasonably can place into comfortably-sized bodies. Experimental phones aside, none of the other mentioned phones have had complaints for being too sparse on bezels. Some of these OEMs will also take it even further in 2017.

On the other hand, there are OEMs who completely disregarded these apparent trends. Some manufacturers even abandoned what their own flagships of the past have put forth as a benchmark.

A clear example is LG, who seemingly have completely moved away from what the LG G3 once stood for in the G-series lineup. The G3 was a champion of minimal bezels with its 75.3% bezel ratio, but the LG G4 and LG G5 got progressively worse in that regard with ratios of 72.5% and 70.1% respectively. Even on the V series which comprised of a large display and a secondary screen, the V20 bore an unimpressive 72.4% screen-to-body ratio, which is in contrast to the various other OEMs who manage to get better ratios on larger phones. Larger displays allow for bigger bodies to house the various components, thus reducing the dependence on the forehead and chin for housing hardware elements.

Finally, we can consider the Google Pixel and the Google Pixel XL. Since these phones have been made on Google's specifications and are the first of the new Google Pixel smartphone lineup, there are no "true" predecessors to compare them to. With screen-to-body ratios of 69% and 71.2% on the Pixel and Pixel XL respectively, the numbers are comparatively unimpressive, and the physical appearance suffers as a result. This was one of the particularly common criticisms aimed at the device soon after its announcement and release.

So where does all of this leave us for the coming year?

There's one thing that we can say with confidence: OEMs will continue pushing design boundaries and reducing bezels. Concept products such as the Mi MIX garnered a lot of media attention, so we can look forward to seeing other OEMs approach more minimal bezel designs. ZUK's Edge barely squeezed its way into 2016 in the last few days – perhaps other Chinese OEMs will try similar approaches in 2017.

The trend won't be limited to China either. Samsung's Galaxy S8 is also a phone to look forward in this regard. Their alleged decision to ditch the physical home button will play well in helping the company reduce the bottom chin too, as it seeks to replace more of the frame with screen to make up for the screen real estate loss that a navigation bar would bring. Assuming Samsung continues implementing curved displays (which they will in all likelihood), the S8's lack of bezels will likely impress, especially if the rumors regarding the removal of Samsung's traditional home button happen to be true.

LG is also seemingly dumping its modular approach with the G6, so there are expectations that the G6 might be closer to the G3 than say the V10 in terms of bezels. As more leaks and renders for the device arrive, we're starting a see a clearer picture on LG's design standing.

Expected renders of upcoming LG G6

Expected renders of upcoming LG G6

Even a device like the Pixel gives us hope. Google has set a low baseline with their first release, so we can expect to see improvements made with the next Pixel successor. Whether the ratio will be impressive or not is something that we will have to decide when the device is released, but it's likely they'll manage to make their next Pixel even sleeker.


Why don't more OEMs go for more screen and less body?

There are valid reasons why OEMs hold back on bezel-less designs. Bezels are necessary to provide structural support and integrity to the device. They also provide shock absorption (as much as a bezel can), mitigating the damage a direct drop would do to a glass display. More bezel also means more room for components, and in case of smartphones, every millimeter matters. They also provide area to aid in gripping our phones, a task that is becoming ever more arduous in times of glass and metal back phones. Adding on top and bottom bezels also helps in positioning the display in more favorable position relative to your hand and fingers, while the side bezels help in reducing palm and other accidental touches (like when you hold your phone in landscape for clicking pictures).

Hardware advantages aside, Android as an OS is also biased towards right-handed users. Think fast scrollbars, Floating-Action-Buttons, even your navigation bar in landscape mode — all usually come out on the right edge of the display. This caters to the majority of the population who hold and use phones with their right hand. Thin bezels would mean that the software would need to adapt for better palm and accidental touch rejection. It's on the OEM to work on software to reject erroneous taps and swipes should they go for an implementation as specific as Samsung's curved displays.

A proposition that comes up often is adopting AMOLED displays and then displaying black borders via software to mimic a bezel. This would give the user flexibility to choose their preferred bezel thickness for appropriate one-handed use, and still make a large display available for media consumption. While the idea seems practical, we have to go back on the hardware need for bezels to realize that we still need some of it.

For better or worse, OEMs will continue to try packing as much screen as possible into increasingly smaller bodies for sleeker devices. While outliers will continue to exist, 2017 gives thin bezel lovers plenty to look forward to.

Credits: GSMArena for Screen-to-body ratios, MySmartPrice for LG G6 renders.



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via IFTTT

Galaxy S7 Vs. Clone

Smartphone clones have always been around and always will be. For this video, Harris compare a Galaxy S7 to a clone of the same device. Let’s see how it holds up.

Packaging

Unless you know what to look for, one could easily be fooled into thinking the packaging of the clone is legitimate. The Galaxy logo looks identical to the real product. The only places where the packaging differs is on the back where the information is listen, and on the bottom where the IMEI and S/N would be shown.

clonepackage1 clonepackage2

Build Quality

This is where the differences become immediately obvious. The cheap plastic on the clone device is an instant giveaway that this is not a premium smartphone. The display has a very grey color compared to the S7. The camera module sticks out slightly higher than the real S7 does. When it comes to the buttons, ports and speakers, everything looks the same across both devices. Lastly, there is no fingerprint scanner or water resistance to be found on the clone device.

build1 build2

Software

The software on the clone runs very slow due to the weak processor. The clone does look and feel just like the touchwiz setup you’d find on an official Galaxy phone. The clone wasn’t able to complete any benchmarks, so you can imagine that it’s probably not going to run very in general.

soft1 soft2

Check out the video to see this clone device in action.



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via IFTTT

Galaxy S7 Vs. Clone

Smartphone clones have always been around and always will be. For this video, Harris compare a Galaxy S7 to a clone of the same device. Let's see how it holds up.

Packaging

Unless you know what to look for, one could easily be fooled into thinking the packaging of the clone is legitimate. The Galaxy logo looks identical to the real product. The only places where the packaging differs is on the back where the information is listen, and on the bottom where the IMEI and S/N would be shown.

clonepackage1 clonepackage2

Build Quality

This is where the differences become immediately obvious. The cheap plastic on the clone device is an instant giveaway that this is not a premium smartphone. The display has a very grey color compared to the S7. The camera module sticks out slightly higher than the real S7 does. When it comes to the buttons, ports and speakers, everything looks the same across both devices. Lastly, there is no fingerprint scanner or water resistance to be found on the clone device.

build1 build2

Software

The software on the clone runs very slow due to the weak processor. The clone does look and feel just like the touchwiz setup you'd find on an official Galaxy phone. The clone wasn't able to complete any benchmarks, so you can imagine that it's probably not going to run very in general.

soft1 soft2

Check out the video to see this clone device in action.



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via IFTTT

Win an UMi Z: The First Phone with Helio X27

We're excited to be giving away the UMi Z (contest is open to all countries!), the company's latest premium phone that happens to be one of the first (if not the first) phone on the market with the MediaTek Helio X27 decacore flagship CPU. This new chipset features a tri-cluster configuration to better manage performance and efficiency. You can read more about it here.

The UMi Z is an all-metal phone that comes in at $279.99. Here's a look at the specs:

  • Helio X27 at 2.6GHz, 4GB RAM
  • Samsung 13MP + 13MP Front and Rear Camera with dual focus
  • 3780mAh battery with USB Type-C
  • Full metal unibody
  • Pure Android 7.0

Use the below contest widget to enter to win a Z.

Win an UMi Z!



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Win an UMi Z: The First Phone with Helio X27

We’re excited to be giving away the UMi Z (contest is open to all countries!), the company’s latest premium phone that happens to be one of the first (if not the first) phone on the market with the MediaTek Helio X27 decacore flagship CPU. This new chipset features a tri-cluster configuration to better manage performance and efficiency. You can read more about it here.

The UMi Z is an all-metal phone that comes in at $279.99. Here’s a look at the specs:

  • Helio X27 at 2.6GHz, 4GB RAM
  • Samsung 13MP + 13MP Front and Rear Camera with dual focus
  • 3780mAh battery with USB Type-C
  • Full metal unibody
  • Pure Android 7.0

Use the below contest widget to enter to win a Z.

Win an UMi Z!



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Stable Nougat for OnePlus 3 and Nougat Open Beta 1 for OnePlus 3T Are Here

OnePlus promised we'd see Android Nougat hit the OnePlus 3 before the end of the year, and that the OnePlus 3T would see an Android Nougat beta when the OnePlus 3 received its stable release. With just a few hours left on the clock and barely two days after the last beta release, OnePlus delivered.

Carl Pei took to twitter to announce that they'd be releasing the Open Beta 1 for the OnePlus 3T, which is already live on their forums, and the Android N stable OTA for the OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 3T, surprisingly. Carl Pei also claimed that many members of their R&D are not taking time off to celebrate New Year.

If you are interested in the OxygenOS Open Beta 1 for the OnePlus 3T, you should visit this thread on the official OnePlus forums. If you want to jump right in, here is a direct link to the ROM — you need to sideload this through ADB. The list of changes are what you'd expect:

  • Upgraded to Android 7.0 Nougat
    • New Notifications Design
    • New Settings Menu Design
    • Multi-Window View
    • Notification Direct Reply
    • Custom DPI Support
  • Added Status Bar Icon Options
  • Added Quick Launch For 3rd Party Applications
  • Improved Shelf Customization

Keep in mind that flashing the Open Beta will allow you to receive Open Beta OTA updates, but you will need to manually flash the stable release should you decide to change. If you are wanting to check out the stable releases for both the OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 3T, you will have to wait for the OTA to hit your device. It's an incremental rollout, but it's likely that the OTA will be captured by someone in our forums, so stay tuned!

We must commend OnePlus for staying true to their promise once again; by waiting until the very last day, hype levels went through the roof among OnePlus users, but negativity was also abound as many thought it'd be odd for them to release both the stable OnePlus 3 Nougat update and the beta on the same day. Luckily, OnePlus 3 and 3T owners get to wrap up 2016 with a neat new update, or at the very least, knowledge that it'll hit their devices very shortly.

What do you think about Android Nougat for the OnePlus 3 and 3T? Let us know your thoughts below!



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Stable Nougat for OnePlus 3 and Nougat Open Beta 1 for OnePlus 3T Are Here

OnePlus promised we’d see Android Nougat hit the OnePlus 3 before the end of the year, and that the OnePlus 3T would see an Android Nougat beta when the OnePlus 3 received its stable release. With just a few hours left on the clock and barely two days after the last beta release, OnePlus delivered.

Carl Pei took to twitter to announce that they’d be releasing the Open Beta 1 for the OnePlus 3T, which is already live on their forums, and the Android N stable OTA for the OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 3T, surprisingly. Carl Pei also claimed that many members of their R&D are not taking time off to celebrate New Year.

If you are interested in the OxygenOS Open Beta 1 for the OnePlus 3T, you should visit this thread on the official OnePlus forums. If you want to jump right in, here is a direct link to the ROM — you need to sideload this through ADB. The list of changes are what you’d expect:

  • Upgraded to Android 7.0 Nougat
    • New Notifications Design
    • New Settings Menu Design
    • Multi-Window View
    • Notification Direct Reply
    • Custom DPI Support
  • Added Status Bar Icon Options
  • Added Quick Launch For 3rd Party Applications
  • Improved Shelf Customization

Keep in mind that flashing the Open Beta will allow you to receive Open Beta OTA updates, but you will need to manually flash the stable release should you decide to change. If you are wanting to check out the stable releases for both the OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 3T, you will have to wait for the OTA to hit your device. It’s an incremental rollout, but it’s likely that the OTA will be captured by someone in our forums, so stay tuned!

We must commend OnePlus for staying true to their promise once again; by waiting until the very last day, hype levels went through the roof among OnePlus users, but negativity was also abound as many thought it’d be odd for them to release both the stable OnePlus 3 Nougat update and the beta on the same day. Luckily, OnePlus 3 and 3T owners get to wrap up 2016 with a neat new update, or at the very least, knowledge that it’ll hit their devices very shortly.

What do you think about Android Nougat for the OnePlus 3 and 3T? Let us know your thoughts below!



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vendredi 30 décembre 2016

2016 in Review: What was the Best New Feature Introduced in Android this year?

As we enter the final days of the year, it's time to get your opinion on all the events, news, releases and controversies that we witnessed so far in 2016.

Google's latest big thing for the world of Android was Nougat-y flavored. Android 7.0 Nougat incorporated many new quality of life enhancements for the end user, ranging from multi-window support to notification panel redesigns. On a system level, Nougat also introduced support for the Vulkan Graphics API as well as to seamless system updates based on Chrome OS.

So, our question to you is,

What was the best new feature introduced in Android 7.0 Nougat? What about features introduced in OEM specific user interfaces? How has this feature influenced your daily smartphone use?

Let us know in the comments below!



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2016 in Review: What was the Best New Feature Introduced in Android this year?

As we enter the final days of the year, it’s time to get your opinion on all the events, news, releases and controversies that we witnessed so far in 2016.

Google’s latest big thing for the world of Android was Nougat-y flavored. Android 7.0 Nougat incorporated many new quality of life enhancements for the end user, ranging from multi-window support to notification panel redesigns. On a system level, Nougat also introduced support for the Vulkan Graphics API as well as to seamless system updates based on Chrome OS.

So, our question to you is,

What was the best new feature introduced in Android 7.0 Nougat? What about features introduced in OEM specific user interfaces? How has this feature influenced your daily smartphone use?

Let us know in the comments below!



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Android 7.0/EMUI 5 is Available For The Huawei Nova Without Unlocking the Bootloader

Using EMUI's download mode you can update your European Huawei Nova to EMUI 5/Android 7.0 Nougat without the need to unlock your bootloader. Senior Member Jozinek has gathered the files and created a quick guide explaining the update process over in the thread.



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Android 7.0/EMUI 5 is Available For The Huawei Nova Without Unlocking the Bootloader

Using EMUI’s download mode you can update your European Huawei Nova to EMUI 5/Android 7.0 Nougat without the need to unlock your bootloader. Senior Member Jozinek has gathered the files and created a quick guide explaining the update process over in the thread.



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Wileyfox to Issue Update to Migrate Away from CyanogenOS

Wileyfox is not a well-known global brand, but for its humble beginnings, it has its own loyal customers in the European Union and U.K. The company is known for its affordable smartphones ship with decent specifications and, most notably, close to stock Android software in the form of Cyanogen OS.

But, as we all know by now, Cyanogen Inc. now plans to refocus their efforts onto the Cyanogen OS Modular program. This means that devices that ran on Cyanogen OS, such as those from Wileyfox, are unlikely to see further software support from the company. Users of devices which ran Cyanogen OS were anxious that this meant their devices would no longer receive any updates, but Wileyfox has reassured its customers that they will not be forgotten.

In a post on their official Facebook page, Wileyfox has informed its customers that the company plans to provide an OTA update to migrate away from Cyanogen OS on to a "purer Android experience." Wileyfox was expecting these recent developments, and the company is confident that the transition will be smoothly executed via an upcoming OTA for the entire Wileyfox product range.

We have been ruthlessly testing this and planning a distribution for this update, with a rollout to be released beginning today with immediate effect. Once this transition is implemented and users accept this upcoming update, our first order of business is to focus on delivering Android Nougat 7.0 across the portfolio beginning as early as February, and the entire portfolio by end of Q1 2017.

The migration update has already begun seeding, so users are recommended to download and install the transition update immediately upon receiving the update. Wileyfox is assuming full and direct control on all upgrades across all of its devices, and not just current flagships. They still maintain that they are committed to a bloatware-free OS and continuous security and Android updates for their entire user base. We hope they remain true to their word.


Do you own a Wileyfox device? How has your experience been, for both software and hardware? Let us know in the comments below!



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Wileyfox to Issue Update to Migrate Away from CyanogenOS

Wileyfox is not a well-known global brand, but for its humble beginnings, it has its own loyal customers in the European Union and U.K. The company is known for its affordable smartphones ship with decent specifications and, most notably, close to stock Android software in the form of Cyanogen OS.

But, as we all know by now, Cyanogen Inc. now plans to refocus their efforts onto the Cyanogen OS Modular program. This means that devices that ran on Cyanogen OS, such as those from Wileyfox, are unlikely to see further software support from the company. Users of devices which ran Cyanogen OS were anxious that this meant their devices would no longer receive any updates, but Wileyfox has reassured its customers that they will not be forgotten.

In a post on their official Facebook page, Wileyfox has informed its customers that the company plans to provide an OTA update to migrate away from Cyanogen OS on to a “purer Android experience.” Wileyfox was expecting these recent developments, and the company is confident that the transition will be smoothly executed via an upcoming OTA for the entire Wileyfox product range.

We have been ruthlessly testing this and planning a distribution for this update, with a rollout to be released beginning today with immediate effect. Once this transition is implemented and users accept this upcoming update, our first order of business is to focus on delivering Android Nougat 7.0 across the portfolio beginning as early as February, and the entire portfolio by end of Q1 2017.

The migration update has already begun seeding, so users are recommended to download and install the transition update immediately upon receiving the update. Wileyfox is assuming full and direct control on all upgrades across all of its devices, and not just current flagships. They still maintain that they are committed to a bloatware-free OS and continuous security and Android updates for their entire user base. We hope they remain true to their word.


Do you own a Wileyfox device? How has your experience been, for both software and hardware? Let us know in the comments below!



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XDA Forums Dedicated to LineageOS Now Live!

Ever since Cyanogen Inc. announced that they will be discontinuing all Cyanogen OS related services, many users wondered what would happen to CyanogenMod. Unfortunately, the worst scenario played out this past weekend, and CyanogenMod was declared officially dead.

We've covered all of this in a separate article on how the death of CyanogenMod might affect development, so we recommend you check that out. While it is heartbreaking to see CyanogenMod meet such a fate, the beauty of open source means that it will not completely die — it will simply change form. This is where LineageOS comes in.

LineageOS in its current form is the re-branding of CyanogenMod. While developers and maintainers work to smoothly migrate all of their resources, custom ROM users have been looking for a place to discuss the new distribution. We at XDA-Developers would like to expand our forums to such users and developers alike.

The core objective on which XDA-Developers was launched in 2003 was to provide a common area for developers around the world to come together to modify, tweak, and generally improve the usability of their chosen devices. While the XDA forums were initially created with PDAs in mind, the advent of Windows Mobile OS and later Android made the website accessible to more users who were looking to get the most out of their devices.

cyanogenmod-boot-animationThus, CyanogenMod was born. The Android distribution traces its first steps on similar objectives — to modify, tweak, and improve the usability of Android devices. CyanogenMod started off rather humbly in the HTC Dream (G1) forum under the care of Steve 'Cyanogen' Kondik. With version after version and release after release, the ROM exploded in popularity and later expanded onto other, newer devices with more developers contributing to the project. The rest, as they say, is history.

The need of the hour is cooperation and collaboration, as the custom ROM community tries to revive perhaps the biggest contributor of development of any device to its former glory. In such times, we extend our forums as a place for developers and users alike to come together and work for the combined, greater good.

>>> Join the LineageOS forum!



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XDA Forums Dedicated to LineageOS Now Live!

Ever since Cyanogen Inc. announced that they will be discontinuing all Cyanogen OS related services, many users wondered what would happen to CyanogenMod. Unfortunately, the worst scenario played out this past weekend, and CyanogenMod was declared officially dead.

We’ve covered all of this in a separate article on how the death of CyanogenMod might affect development, so we recommend you check that out. While it is heartbreaking to see CyanogenMod meet such a fate, the beauty of open source means that it will not completely die — it will simply change form. This is where LineageOS comes in.

LineageOS in its current form is the re-branding of CyanogenMod. While developers and maintainers work to smoothly migrate all of their resources, custom ROM users have been looking for a place to discuss the new distribution. We at XDA-Developers would like to expand our forums to such users and developers alike.

The core objective on which XDA-Developers was launched in 2003 was to provide a common area for developers around the world to come together to modify, tweak, and generally improve the usability of their chosen devices. While the XDA forums were initially created with PDAs in mind, the advent of Windows Mobile OS and later Android made the website accessible to more users who were looking to get the most out of their devices.

cyanogenmod-boot-animationThus, CyanogenMod was born. The Android distribution traces its first steps on similar objectives — to modify, tweak, and improve the usability of Android devices. CyanogenMod started off rather humbly in the HTC Dream (G1) forum under the care of Steve ‘Cyanogen’ Kondik. With version after version and release after release, the ROM exploded in popularity and later expanded onto other, newer devices with more developers contributing to the project. The rest, as they say, is history.

The need of the hour is cooperation and collaboration, as the custom ROM community tries to revive perhaps the biggest contributor of development of any device to its former glory. In such times, we extend our forums as a place for developers and users alike to come together and work for the combined, greater good.

>>> Join the LineageOS forum!



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An Unofficial Build of TWRP is Available for the ZenWatch 3

Yesterday, XDA Recognized Developer Maxr1998 published his own build of TWRP for the ASUS ZenWatch 3. This build was made possible thanks to joeykrim and T10NAZ, as Maxr1998 used their guide for the ZenWatch 2 to compile the kernel and recovery.



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An Unofficial Build of TWRP is Available for the ZenWatch 3

Yesterday, XDA Recognized Developer Maxr1998 published his own build of TWRP for the ASUS ZenWatch 3. This build was made possible thanks to joeykrim and T10NAZ, as Maxr1998 used their guide for the ZenWatch 2 to compile the kernel and recovery.



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Report Says Flexible AMOLED Shipments Could Triple in 2017

We've been watching the trend of preferred smartphone displays shift from LCD to AMOLED over the last year or two. Samsung is the company who showed their dedication to the technology even when it was more expensive than an LCD panel. Some people have been put off due to burn in issues when the technology wasn't mature, but this issue has improved lately and most don't have problems with it anymore. This isn't to say that burn ins aren't still happening because they are, but we're just seeing less reports about it with typical smartphone use. The biggest change in AMOLED panel adoption rates though, happened when prices were dropped so they could compete with LCD panels. No matter how much better a piece of technology is, most companies will not look into using it if the price is too high.

So as AMOLED panels are becoming more affordable, we're starting to see more companies use in them in their products. A new report says shipments of flexible AMOLED panels are expected to hit 150 million next year in 2017. In a market where smartphone shipments exceed 1.4 billion, 150 million doesn't sound like a lot. However, this will be an important milestone for the technology as this estimate is actually three times the number we saw shipped this year.

Samsung has dominated the flexible AMOLED panel shipments for years, but there are other companies like EverDisplay Optronics and Visionox who are able to manufacture a small number of these types of panels. This is actually an interesting point for the technology as we're seeing the demand for these panels outweigh the rate in which they can be produced.

So, do you prefer a smartphone that has an AMOLED panel, or do you still opt for devices that are using the matured LCD panels?

Source: DigiTimes



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Leaked Render Could Reveal an Unannounced Motorola Device for 2017

OnLeaks, in collaboration with Android Authority, has been able to show us what an upcoming Motorola smartphone could look like. As with most of OnLeaks' reveals, this render is based on factory CADs and have had its details filled in by the artist. This device was originally reported as being the 2017 Moto X, however a new tweet from the man behind OnLeaks suggests it could actually be a phone called the Moto C.

One of the biggest takeaways from these renders is the absence of the pogo pins. It's these pogo pins on the lower back of the recent Motorola phones that has enabled the company's Moto Mods modules. So while there are aspects of this phone that resemble the Moto Z (like the size and shape of the camera), this leak suggests that it will not support the company's modules in any way, shape, or form.

It's not guaranteed that Motorola will be using the company's Moto Mods for all of their products, it would make sense to have them on their premium phones. The Moto X has never been known for its top of the line specs, but it was considered an upper mid-range/lower high-end device. So this, along with the use of microUSB instead of USB Type-C adds even more credence that this is the Moto C that OnLeaks mentions in his tweet.

We don't see the sensors in all four corners of the phone like they used in the 2015 Moto X, and this could be yet another sign that it is not the 2017 Moto X.  Still, the phone looks rather solid; it has a slight curve to the back of the device that makes it seem like it would be comfortable in the hand. As with all rumors though, we should take this one with a grain of salt and wait to see what Motorola comes out with next year.

Source: Android Authority



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Report Says Flexible AMOLED Shipments Could Triple in 2017

We’ve been watching the trend of preferred smartphone displays shift from LCD to AMOLED over the last year or two. Samsung is the company who showed their dedication to the technology even when it was more expensive than an LCD panel. Some people have been put off due to burn in issues when the technology wasn’t mature, but this issue has improved lately and most don’t have problems with it anymore. This isn’t to say that burn ins aren’t still happening because they are, but we’re just seeing less reports about it with typical smartphone use. The biggest change in AMOLED panel adoption rates though, happened when prices were dropped so they could compete with LCD panels. No matter how much better a piece of technology is, most companies will not look into using it if the price is too high.

So as AMOLED panels are becoming more affordable, we’re starting to see more companies use in them in their products. A new report says shipments of flexible AMOLED panels are expected to hit 150 million next year in 2017. In a market where smartphone shipments exceed 1.4 billion, 150 million doesn’t sound like a lot. However, this will be an important milestone for the technology as this estimate is actually three times the number we saw shipped this year.

Samsung has dominated the flexible AMOLED panel shipments for years, but there are other companies like EverDisplay Optronics and Visionox who are able to manufacture a small number of these types of panels. This is actually an interesting point for the technology as we’re seeing the demand for these panels outweigh the rate in which they can be produced.

So, do you prefer a smartphone that has an AMOLED panel, or do you still opt for devices that are using the matured LCD panels?

Source: DigiTimes



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Leaked Render Could Reveal an Unannounced Motorola Device for 2017

OnLeaks, in collaboration with Android Authority, has been able to show us what an upcoming Motorola smartphone could look like. As with most of OnLeaks’ reveals, this render is based on factory CADs and have had its details filled in by the artist. This device was originally reported as being the 2017 Moto X, however a new tweet from the man behind OnLeaks suggests it could actually be a phone called the Moto C.

One of the biggest takeaways from these renders is the absence of the pogo pins. It’s these pogo pins on the lower back of the recent Motorola phones that has enabled the company’s Moto Mods modules. So while there are aspects of this phone that resemble the Moto Z (like the size and shape of the camera), this leak suggests that it will not support the company’s modules in any way, shape, or form.

It’s not guaranteed that Motorola will be using the company’s Moto Mods for all of their products, it would make sense to have them on their premium phones. The Moto X has never been known for its top of the line specs, but it was considered an upper mid-range/lower high-end device. So this, along with the use of microUSB instead of USB Type-C adds even more credence that this is the Moto C that OnLeaks mentions in his tweet.

We don’t see the sensors in all four corners of the phone like they used in the 2015 Moto X, and this could be yet another sign that it is not the 2017 Moto X.  Still, the phone looks rather solid; it has a slight curve to the back of the device that makes it seem like it would be comfortable in the hand. As with all rumors though, we should take this one with a grain of salt and wait to see what Motorola comes out with next year.

Source: Android Authority



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Report: Chinese OEMs are Expecting Lower Sales in Q1 2017

There have been a lot of eyes on some of the bigger smartphone OEMs from China due to their incredible growth over the last couple of years. Companies like Huawei, LeEco and Xiaomi have become common names around the Android enthusiast community, and for good reason. We’re seeing an expansion coming from these companies that can only be compared to the likes of Samsung in certain cases.

Incidentally, this type of growth is difficult to maintain because at some point you just reach a saturation point. Xiaomi broke company sales records in 2014, and had originally projected to hit 100 million in 2015 before they were forced to lower those estimates. We’ve talked about LeEco’s financtial issues over the last couple of months now, and while Huawei is currently doing good, they too cannot expect to continue growing at the rate they have been.

So it makes sense that we’re now seeing reports that Chinese OEMs like Huawei, Xiaomi and LeEco are reducing the number of component orders for the first quarter of next year. The report says Xiaomi wasn’t able to perform as well as it had hoped during the third and fourth quarter of this year. So they’re expecting this trend to continue into the first quarter of 2017 and this has resulted in them ordering fewer components as well.

With LeEco being less aggressive than before, it just makes sense that they will be more conservative with their component orders than normal. This isn’t to say that these three smartphone OEMs aren’t making a profit anymore. Instead, it just seems to indicate that they’re unable to continue growing at the rate they have been lately. What will be interesting is seeing if these companies can keep their current customers, and maintain their current sales numbers, rather than losing them to other competitors in the region.

Source: DigiTimes



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Report: Chinese OEMs are Expecting Lower Sales in Q1 2017

There have been a lot of eyes on some of the bigger smartphone OEMs from China due to their incredible growth over the last couple of years. Companies like Huawei, LeEco and Xiaomi have become common names around the Android enthusiast community, and for good reason. We're seeing an expansion coming from these companies that can only be compared to the likes of Samsung in certain cases.

Incidentally, this type of growth is difficult to maintain because at some point you just reach a saturation point. Xiaomi broke company sales records in 2014, and had originally projected to hit 100 million in 2015 before they were forced to lower those estimates. We've talked about LeEco's financtial issues over the last couple of months now, and while Huawei is currently doing good, they too cannot expect to continue growing at the rate they have been.

So it makes sense that we're now seeing reports that Chinese OEMs like Huawei, Xiaomi and LeEco are reducing the number of component orders for the first quarter of next year. The report says Xiaomi wasn't able to perform as well as it had hoped during the third and fourth quarter of this year. So they're expecting this trend to continue into the first quarter of 2017 and this has resulted in them ordering fewer components as well.

With LeEco being less aggressive than before, it just makes sense that they will be more conservative with their component orders than normal. This isn't to say that these three smartphone OEMs aren't making a profit anymore. Instead, it just seems to indicate that they're unable to continue growing at the rate they have been lately. What will be interesting is seeing if these companies can keep their current customers, and maintain their current sales numbers, rather than losing them to other competitors in the region.

Source: DigiTimes



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jeudi 29 décembre 2016

2016 in Review: What was the Worst OEM Decision of 2016?

As we enter the final days of the year, it's time to get your opinion on all the events, news, releases and controversies that we witnessed so far in 2016.

In the name of change and "courage", we were treated by OEMs with what will likely go down in history as a failed experiment or as a pivotal point in smartphone evolution, depending on how the future shapes up. As has been a recurrent theme this year, Android OEMs took some rather controversial steps in an effort to distinguish themselves from the competition.

So, our question to you is,

What was the worst OEM decision of 2016? How does this decision affect you and your smartphone usage? How did the decision affect the OEM and its short term sales and reputation? Did other OEMs follow suit and adopt the decision, or are they playing it safer?

Let us know in the comments below!

Feature Image Credit: /u/RainieDay



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2016 in Review: What was the Worst OEM Decision of 2016?

As we enter the final days of the year, it’s time to get your opinion on all the events, news, releases and controversies that we witnessed so far in 2016.

In the name of change and “courage”, we were treated by OEMs with what will likely go down in history as a failed experiment or as a pivotal point in smartphone evolution, depending on how the future shapes up. As has been a recurrent theme this year, Android OEMs took some rather controversial steps in an effort to distinguish themselves from the competition.

So, our question to you is,

What was the worst OEM decision of 2016? How does this decision affect you and your smartphone usage? How did the decision affect the OEM and its short term sales and reputation? Did other OEMs follow suit and adopt the decision, or are they playing it safer?

Let us know in the comments below!

Feature Image Credit: /u/RainieDay



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XDA Subforums Now Live for Honor 6X!

The Honor 6X comes in with a 5.5″ FHD and the Kirin 655 SoC, offering great value at affordable prices. Now, XDA subforums for the Honor 6X are live, giving users a common area for talking about the device and development!



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XDA Subforums Now Live for Honor 6X!

The Honor 6X comes in with a 5.5″ FHD and the Kirin 655 SoC, offering great value at affordable prices. Now, XDA subforums for the Honor 6X are live, giving users a common area for talking about the device and development!



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Android N-ify Development Ceased by MrWasdennnoch and Main Contributors

Developer MrWasdennnoch and the two main contributors paphonb and Maxr1998 have announced that they will no longer be developing the popular Xposed module Android N-ify.

MrWasdennnoch reminded users that updates have been sparse over the last few weeks with his last commit being over a month ago, and he gave several reasons as to why he was ending development including that he has lost interest in the module since developing the notification design and animations. He has also recently flashed a Nougat ROM, meaning he has no need for the module anymore, coupled with the fact that his role in development is “boring and repetitive”.

“I basically have to decompile every SystemUI, find the issue and try to fix it or work around it. Fixing such an issue can take up multiple days because you have to install the new version, reboot, test it and report back. Different time zones can slow it down even more. And with every new feature, there comes a flood of new bugs and incompatibilities which want to be resolved. People posting duplicates or insufficient information (or just completely stop responding) don’t help either. Then, as I just mentioned, there’s the “problem” with Xposed that you have to reboot the phone every time you test a change, and if I’m not sure how something works or how to fix it it takes up multiple hours in which I basically just wait for my device to boot up” – MrWasdennnoch

There is good news however: he will not be shutting down the build server meaning that if anybody else wishes to make changes to the module everybody will be able to get them. Moving on from N-ify, the module is not his only app/module and with his newfound free time, he can spend more energy developing other projects.

Go to the thread



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Android N-ify Development Ceased by MrWasdennnoch and Main Contributors

Developer MrWasdennnoch and the two main contributors paphonb and Maxr1998 have announced that they will no longer be developing the popular Xposed module Android N-ify.

MrWasdennnoch reminded users that updates have been sparse over the last few weeks with his last commit being over a month ago, and he gave several reasons as to why he was ending development including that he has lost interest in the module since developing the notification design and animations. He has also recently flashed a Nougat ROM, meaning he has no need for the module anymore, coupled with the fact that his role in development is "boring and repetitive".

"I basically have to decompile every SystemUI, find the issue and try to fix it or work around it. Fixing such an issue can take up multiple days because you have to install the new version, reboot, test it and report back. Different time zones can slow it down even more. And with every new feature, there comes a flood of new bugs and incompatibilities which want to be resolved. People posting duplicates or insufficient information (or just completely stop responding) don't help either. Then, as I just mentioned, there's the "problem" with Xposed that you have to reboot the phone every time you test a change, and if I'm not sure how something works or how to fix it it takes up multiple hours in which I basically just wait for my device to boot up" – MrWasdennnoch

There is good news however: he will not be shutting down the build server meaning that if anybody else wishes to make changes to the module everybody will be able to get them. Moving on from N-ify, the module is not his only app/module and with his newfound free time, he can spend more energy developing other projects.

Go to the thread



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Nougat’s Open Beta 10 for the OnePlus 3 is Available

OnePlus has been plowing through these open betas for its Nougat update on the OnePlus 3 lately. We saw the 8th open beta released toward the end of November, and now we’re already up to number 10. This could very well be the last open beta update we see for the OnePlus 3 before the official Nougat OTA begins to roll out. Remember, OnePlus told us that they had plans to release Nougat for the OnePlus 3 before the end of the year.

Since we’re two days away, this 10th open beta will either be very short, or they will decide to delay the official rollout. We are betting on the latter happening, but it really is anyone’s guess at this time. The 10th open beta for the OnePlus 3 can be downloaded and installed right now though, and the majority of the changes coming with this update seems to be optimizations. This is actually a good sign as it shows they are winding down the development of the update and are making the software as stable as possible.

So as far as optimizations goes, we’re told this update improves both system performance as well as battery consumption. So if you felt the device was sluggish, or used more battery life than it should have in the last update, then this one could solve those issues for you. The 10th open beta update also optimizes WiFi performance, and the fingerprint unlocking speed as well. Lastly, we’re told they have optimized the quality of the Expanded Screenshot feature as well.

Some people were experiencing a bug when reverting back to the default theme after a reboot, and this issue has been fixed in the latest update. There was also a bug with the lock screen clock in portrait mode, and that has been fixed too. The last thing in the change log says they have added a Data Saver feature to the core OS for those who have expensive data plans. OnePlus asks that you use this form to provide feedback on the UI/UX of the update, and you can discuss the update right here in our own OnePlus 3 forum.

Source: OnePlus



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Nougat’s Open Beta 10 for the OnePlus 3 is Available

OnePlus has been plowing through these open betas for its Nougat update on the OnePlus 3 lately. We saw the 8th open beta released toward the end of November, and now we're already up to number 10. This could very well be the last open beta update we see for the OnePlus 3 before the official Nougat OTA begins to roll out. Remember, OnePlus told us that they had plans to release Nougat for the OnePlus 3 before the end of the year.

Since we're two days away, this 10th open beta will either be very short, or they will decide to delay the official rollout. We are betting on the latter happening, but it really is anyone's guess at this time. The 10th open beta for the OnePlus 3 can be downloaded and installed right now though, and the majority of the changes coming with this update seems to be optimizations. This is actually a good sign as it shows they are winding down the development of the update and are making the software as stable as possible.

So as far as optimizations goes, we're told this update improves both system performance as well as battery consumption. So if you felt the device was sluggish, or used more battery life than it should have in the last update, then this one could solve those issues for you. The 10th open beta update also optimizes WiFi performance, and the fingerprint unlocking speed as well. Lastly, we're told they have optimized the quality of the Expanded Screenshot feature as well.

Some people were experiencing a bug when reverting back to the default theme after a reboot, and this issue has been fixed in the latest update. There was also a bug with the lock screen clock in portrait mode, and that has been fixed too. The last thing in the change log says they have added a Data Saver feature to the core OS for those who have expensive data plans. OnePlus asks that you use this form to provide feedback on the UI/UX of the update, and you can discuss the update right here in our own OnePlus 3 forum.

Source: OnePlus



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mercredi 28 décembre 2016

2016 in Review: Which OEM Improved the Most in 2016?

As we enter the final days of the year, it's time to get your opinion on all the events, news, releases and controversies that we witnessed so far in 2016.

The year saw some heavy performances, and some duds, from all OEMs – big or small. We're looking for the OEM that deserves the most praise for trying their best this year and bouncing back from whatever lows it had in the past. Improvement in the year 2016, and not actual performance, is what we ask your opinion about.

So, our question to you is,

Which OEM improved the most in 2016? Which OEM had a disappointing 2015 but came back with a bang in 2016? What contributed to their leap forward? What do you think they should do to maintain momentum in 2017?

Let us know in the comments below!



from xda-developers http://ift.tt/2ifIQNE
via IFTTT

2016 in Review: Which OEM Improved the Most in 2016?

As we enter the final days of the year, it’s time to get your opinion on all the events, news, releases and controversies that we witnessed so far in 2016.

The year saw some heavy performances, and some duds, from all OEMs – big or small. We’re looking for the OEM that deserves the most praise for trying their best this year and bouncing back from whatever lows it had in the past. Improvement in the year 2016, and not actual performance, is what we ask your opinion about.

So, our question to you is,

Which OEM improved the most in 2016? Which OEM had a disappointing 2015 but came back with a bang in 2016? What contributed to their leap forward? What do you think they should do to maintain momentum in 2017?

Let us know in the comments below!



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via IFTTT

The VisionTek BTi65 Speaker: Impressive Sound at an Impressive Price

A few months ago VisionTek Products shared word that they were coming out with a new Bluetooth speaker. The BTi65 was IP65 waterproof rated, could remain connected up to 30 feet and play for 10 hours. Over several months I have tested this, thinking I may have missed a problem with it.

But what originally turned to suspicion that I was missing something seems to be a gem in the market. So what was it about the VisionTek BTi65 that impressed me so much?

20161110_140935

First Impressions

Out of the box the speaker is pretty straight forward. The package contained a USB to Micro-USB charge cable, 3.5 mm cable (to plug in directly versus Bluetooth) and then of course, the speaker itself. The initial charge took about 3 hours which was within their listed 3-4 hours for a full charge. After that it was turn the power on, then press and hold to begin pairing.

I tested this with my Samsung Galaxy Note7 and then with its replacement, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge. In both cases the pairing was pain-free, as was the ability to answer the phone and end a call. The play/pause button thankfully acts as a way to pick up and end a call on the phone. This was tremendously helpful during the multiple trips to different offices that I made during the fall. Turning the volume up and down was self-explanatory as was turning it off or unpairing. A side rubber panel protects the 3.5 mm and USB power connections to avoid dirt and water getting in when not occupied with a cable in those ports.

Sound & Water Testing

Sound quality was impressive, though I found without any tuning/equalizer tools that it was easy to have distorted audio at higher volumes. With an equalizer it’s easy enough to correct this issue when it popped up, but it was rare when it did anyway. The speaker can clearly serve up the sound at a great volume, which can be seen in a linked demonstration below. The IP65 rating does not suggest it can withstand being submerged under water for prolonged periods of time. A test drop into a sink and quick removal didn’t affect the speaker. Nor did extended spraying or splashing of water.

Distance Testing

What perhaps surprised me the most about this speaker was the range. For a device that is listed to only remain connected for up to 30 feet this device far exceeded its listing – and my expectations. During an office network setup there was sufficient time to test this. I placed my phone in the telephone room with a constant music source and started walking. When it held the connection at not just 30 feet but well over 100 feet away I went back to the phone in disbelief. Then I grabbed my Nexus 6P and started recording to prove it.

It’s likely that with additional barriers this distance would be shortened. But even then it seems VisionTek was clearly conservative on paper with this estimate. Based on what I saw it should easily be able to handle well over 30 feet with the right signal and environment.

Battery Life

The other place that it seems they were perhaps too conservative was with the battery life. VisionTek boasts a solid 10 hour play time but didn’t mention anything about a standby time. It’s a shame too — there were periods where I would keep this in my laptop bag for weeks in between uses and I could easily pull it out and put it right back to use without another charge.  For someone that would use this casually this has the right battery life to serve that need – as would someone else that can charge it from time to time during the day.

Conclusion

The VisionTek BTi65 is one of those speakers that I think may be a diamond in the rough. With the right settings and use this speaker could easily play with some of the mid-to-high range speakers in this segment, but with it listed at $39.99 on VisionTek’s website it comes at a much lower price point than many that it would compete against. The IP65 rating, while not waterproof, means it can certainly hold its own in outdoors and in wet venues so long as it is not submerged. And the distance means that you could easily extend the party far to 30 feet and beyond from the sound source. It certainly raised the bar of expectations for a Bluetooth speaker for me — and should, at the least, merit consideration if you’re looking for a speaker like this.



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via IFTTT

The VisionTek BTi65 Speaker: Impressive Sound at an Impressive Price

A few months ago VisionTek Products shared word that they were coming out with a new Bluetooth speaker. The BTi65 was IP65 waterproof rated, could remain connected up to 30 feet and play for 10 hours. Over several months I have tested this, thinking I may have missed a problem with it.

But what originally turned to suspicion that I was missing something seems to be a gem in the market. So what was it about the VisionTek BTi65 that impressed me so much?

20161110_140935

First Impressions

Out of the box the speaker is pretty straight forward. The package contained a USB to Micro-USB charge cable, 3.5 mm cable (to plug in directly versus Bluetooth) and then of course, the speaker itself. The initial charge took about 3 hours which was within their listed 3-4 hours for a full charge. After that it was turn the power on, then press and hold to begin pairing.

I tested this with my Samsung Galaxy Note7 and then with its replacement, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge. In both cases the pairing was pain-free, as was the ability to answer the phone and end a call. The play/pause button thankfully acts as a way to pick up and end a call on the phone. This was tremendously helpful during the multiple trips to different offices that I made during the fall. Turning the volume up and down was self-explanatory as was turning it off or unpairing. A side rubber panel protects the 3.5 mm and USB power connections to avoid dirt and water getting in when not occupied with a cable in those ports.

Sound & Water Testing

Sound quality was impressive, though I found without any tuning/equalizer tools that it was easy to have distorted audio at higher volumes. With an equalizer it's easy enough to correct this issue when it popped up, but it was rare when it did anyway. The speaker can clearly serve up the sound at a great volume, which can be seen in a linked demonstration below. The IP65 rating does not suggest it can withstand being submerged under water for prolonged periods of time. A test drop into a sink and quick removal didn't affect the speaker. Nor did extended spraying or splashing of water.

Distance Testing

What perhaps surprised me the most about this speaker was the range. For a device that is listed to only remain connected for up to 30 feet this device far exceeded its listing – and my expectations. During an office network setup there was sufficient time to test this. I placed my phone in the telephone room with a constant music source and started walking. When it held the connection at not just 30 feet but well over 100 feet away I went back to the phone in disbelief. Then I grabbed my Nexus 6P and started recording to prove it.

It's likely that with additional barriers this distance would be shortened. But even then it seems VisionTek was clearly conservative on paper with this estimate. Based on what I saw it should easily be able to handle well over 30 feet with the right signal and environment.

Battery Life

The other place that it seems they were perhaps too conservative was with the battery life. VisionTek boasts a solid 10 hour play time but didn't mention anything about a standby time. It's a shame too — there were periods where I would keep this in my laptop bag for weeks in between uses and I could easily pull it out and put it right back to use without another charge.  For someone that would use this casually this has the right battery life to serve that need – as would someone else that can charge it from time to time during the day.

Conclusion

The VisionTek BTi65 is one of those speakers that I think may be a diamond in the rough. With the right settings and use this speaker could easily play with some of the mid-to-high range speakers in this segment, but with it listed at $39.99 on VisionTek's website it comes at a much lower price point than many that it would compete against. The IP65 rating, while not waterproof, means it can certainly hold its own in outdoors and in wet venues so long as it is not submerged. And the distance means that you could easily extend the party far to 30 feet and beyond from the sound source. It certainly raised the bar of expectations for a Bluetooth speaker for me — and should, at the least, merit consideration if you're looking for a speaker like this.



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