The Samsung Galaxy Star 2 smartphone which was officially launched in India earlier this month has been listed on the company’s eStore with a price of Rs 4580. No release date has been provided for the phone as yet, but its arrival online suggests that its availability might not be far off.
The Samsung Galaxy Star 2 was unveiled along with the Star Advance and Ace NXT smartphones. The latter two devices have already been put up for grabs at Rs 7299 and Rs 6925, respectively. The handset in question was originally tagged at Rs 5100 and the reduced price is most likely due to the intense competition in the sub-Rs 10000 range.
The handset is as basic as it gets for Android and it comes with version 4.4 KitKat out of the box, accompanied by the TouchWiz Essence UX. The phone looks no different than the other two aforementioned handsets, but is smaller as the display size is just 3.5 inches with HVGA resolution.
A 1GHz processor does the heavy lifting with 512MB of RAM and there’s 4GB of internal storage. You also get a microSD card slot that support up to 32GB. For connectivity, the phone features Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS and dual SIM slots with 2G compatibility.
Here’s a roundup of the Samsung Galaxy Star 2 specifications:
- Android 4.4 KitKat
- 3.5-inch 320 x 480 pixel display
- 512MB RAM, 4GB storage, 32GB expandable
- 1GHz single core processor
- Dual SIM support
- 2MP rear camera
- 1300mAh battery
Looks like Xiaomi is training all its attention on the upcoming Redmi 1S as reports around the web suggest that the company will stop selling the Mi 3 indefinitely.
A report on tech blog TechPP quotes the company’s India head Manu Jain as saying, “Over next few weeks, we will focus on Redmi 1S, and Mi 3 wont be available. We will take the final call after few weeks, once we have more visibility / data points.”
This could be seen as a surprising turn of events in the light of the weekly flash sales none of which lasted beyond 40 minutes, while a majority of them ended in mere seconds. So what does Xiaomi hope to do by not selling the Mi 3? There could very well be an increased focus on the Redmi devices as well as preparations for the Mi 4 launch, which will launch sometime after Diwali in India. The Redmi 1S goes on sale next week and is looking dead-on to be a sleeper hit, with its unprecedented price to specs ratio. The Redmi Note is to follow soon after, while the company also has plans for the MiPad and Mi Band fitness accessory.
But does it make sense to withdraw the Mi 3 altogether? It’s a gamble for sure, considering that while earlier there would be two Xiaomi handsets, now there’s just one. For those who find the Redmi 1S slightly underpowered, the Mi 3 will no longer be available.
This could also be a calculated move on Xiaomi’s part to bring production of the Mi 3 up to speed to the demand in India. For all we know the Mi 3 might be back in a couple of weeks on Flipkart with a sizeable number of units on sale. Another reason could be that the Mi 3 would have cannibalised the Redmi 1S to a certain extent, though given the price chasm between the two, this seems unlikely. What we do know is that come Tuesday there will no longer be a rush on Flipkart for the Mi 3. However, in all likelihood, the Redmi 1S will draw a lot more people to the site.
Canon has been unveiling advanced point and shoot cameras under its PowerShot G series lineup that boast a larger sensor than its regular point-and-shoot counterparts. We have seen the PowerShot G15 and the PowerShot G1X in the past. This time around we got the Powershot G1X Mark II. Considering the regular point and shoot sales are being cannibalised by smartphone cameras, it makes sense for camera giants to come up with advanced point and shoot cameras, some of which like the Canon Powershot G1X Mark II, are priced higher than entry-level DSLRs. The G1X Mark II is the long-awaited update to the original PowerShot G1X which was launched in 2012.
Build and Design
Canon PowerShot G1X Mark II has a sturdy magnesium alloy body
Visually speaking, the G1X Mark II is a departure from the original G1X, which influenced the PowerShot G15/G16′s design too. For starters, the optical viewfinder is done away with, which was one differentiating aspect of the PowerShot G1X. The G1X Mark II is relatively more compact vis-a-vis the G1X. It has an AF LED at around the same spot as the G1X, but lacks the provision for an optical viewfinder. Another major difference is the palm grip – while the G1X had one with a control dial in the top region, the G1X Mark II the palm grip is relatively less chunky and you do not have any control dial. The palm grip has a textured rubber finish which is replicated on the dedicated thumb rest on the rear side, ensuring good grip. We would have liked to see a heftier grip.
The magnesium alloy front portion of the G1X Mark II is neatly complemented by the metallic rings around lens element. The lens barrel has two rings around it. The ring closer to the camera body rotates with a distinct clicking sound, whereas the lens towards the edge is more smooth in its operation.
The Canon G1X Mark II has a clean top with most of the dials and buttons on the right hand side. It lacks an optical viewfinder that was seen on the Canon G1X
Top edge of the G1X Mark II is not that dense considering it is an advanced point and shoot camera. Starting from the left hand side, you have a pop-up flash unit, the accessory port, a playback button, power switch, shutter button surrounded by the zoom lever and finally the mode dial.
On the rear side you have buttons within easy reach of the thumb. The movie record button and the function button are located around the corner in a slightly tricky position for the thumb. Also the placement of the Wi-fi button, just above the thumb rest, leads to accidental presses which can be annoying. The rest of the button arrangement is pretty much the standard one that you see in most cameras. A central directional pad surrounded by a rotatory dial, which is surrounded by four buttons (two on top and two below). The buttons protrude just the right amount, thereby giving a good feedback.
On the rear side you have a 3-inch 1040k-dot touch sensitive LCD screen which can tilt and flip. The directional pad is surrounded by a button to switch to Manual Focus mode and focus point adjustment buttons on top and display and menu buttons below
The 3-inch LCD screen can flip up by 180 degrees and tilt in the front by 45 degrees. This is a departure from the fully articulating LCD screen we had seen with the G1X. A flip and tilt screen as seen on the G1X Mark II helps in shave off some thickness. Although the camera is not really pocketable in the traditional sense of the word.
Features One of the most impressive features of the Canon PowerShot G1X Mark II is its sensor size. Just like the original G1X, the G1X Mark II comes with a 1.5-inch sensor which is just 20 percent smaller than the APS-C sensor which is seen in Canon DSLRs. The G1X Mark II comes with a 12.8MP CMOS sensor paired with the DIGIC 6 image processor, which is an improvement over the G1X which has the DIGIC 5 processor. The other improvement that is evident is the maximum aperture range going a stop lower to f/2.0 at the widest end and f/3.9 at the telephoto end. The focal length has also gone a notch higher with 24-120mm equivalent giving a 5x optical zoom.
Canon PowerShot G1X Mark II comes with a 24-120mm equivalent lens with maximum aperture range of f/2.0-f/3.9
Minimum focussing distance has also been brought down from 20cm to 5cm in the macro mode. The 3-inch tilting LCD screen is touch sensitive and has a 1040k-dot resolution. You can add in an optional electronic viewfinder if you are really missing one, but that costs upwards of Rs 10,000.
The mode dial is placed at the right hand edge
One of the main additions to the G1X Mark II over the G1X is the support for Wi-fi and NFC. These two features have become de rigueur on advanced point and shoots now. There is a dedicated button to transfer images wirelessly, placed just above the thumb grip. You will need the Canon CameraWindow smartphone app to be able to wirelessly transfer images or shoot remotely. Transferring images is quick thanks to the dedicated button. The user interface for remote shooting is very basic and you can only adjust the zoom, set the timer and turn the flash on or off, in all modes.
Canon Camera Window app lets you transfer images wirelessly as well as shoot remotely
The dials around the lens barrel can be customised to the functions based on your preference. Enter the Function Assignment sub-menu under the cameras Menu option. Here you will get a layout of the three customisable dials (two around the lens barrel and one on the rear side). You can assign functions to each dial under the Program, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority as well as Manual modes. Apart from this, you can also set the function on the dedicated function button just under the movie record button.
The remote shooting interface is pretty basic
User interface on the G1X Mark II is quite user-friendly. Anyone who has used Canon cameras in the recent past will feel right at home. If not, the learning curve isn’t that steep. We would have liked to see the Menu screen segregated into more tabs, something like that seen on the Sony Alpha series cameras or even Canon’s own DSLRs, where you just have to shift tabs instead of scrolling all the way down. Thankfully, Canon has provided the My Menu tab where you can place your most used menu items. The quick menu function can be customised too according to your preference by adjusting the FUNC Menu Layout option under Menu. You can only remove functions’ viewability and cannot add a new function to this layout.
Performance Studio ISO Performance Our studio ISO test comprises a setup which has a healthy mix of colours, textures, materials, fine text and so on. We affixed the G1X Mark II on a tripod and kept it in the Aperture priority mode at f/6.3. We proceeded to take images across the ISO range. To ensure minimal camera shake we had a 2-second timer enabled to click the pictures.
Sample image for the Studio ISO test setup
The ISO performance is excellent from ISO 100 to ISO 1600. There are no noise issues which jump out at you. At ISO 1600, you do notice sharper objects becoming more soft, but you can definitely use the image. Around ISO 3200, you will start to see the noise-reducing algorithms kicking in, characterised by waxy looking threads and elements on the circuit board. There is a noticeable degradation in image quality, if seen at 100 per cent crop, but in case of emergency, you can still use this image. From ISO 6400 onwards, the noise reduction becomes quite aggressive making the finer areas look patchy. ISO 12800 is useless for all practical purposes. Considering Canon have gone with a 12.8MP sensor, we were not impressed with the high ISO performance, as we have seen cameras such as theSony RX 100 II give better high ISO performance despite having a smaller sensor and larger pixel count.
Note: Images below have been resized. To see the full sized images, please click on them. Additionally, visit our Canon PowerShot G1X Mark II album on Flickr to see more high resolution images.
ISO 100
ISO 200
ISO 400
ISO 800
ISO 1600
ISO 3200
ISO 6400
ISO 12800
Focus The touch focus on the G1X Mark II works like a charm and we had no issues focussing in daylight. The focus locked on quickly. Manual focussing using the ring around the lens will seem uncomfortable initially but you will get used to it. We would have liked to see a zoomed-in view of the area we are trying to manually focus, instead of the distance bar on the side. Post sunset while shooting outdoors, focussing was a pain as the camera would keep hunting and show up the yellow warning symbol telling us that focus hasn’t locked.
Note: Images below have been resized. To see the full sized images, please click on them. Additionally, visit our Canon PowerShot G1X Mark II album on Flickr to see more high resolution images.
Panning worked well in the burst mode, maintaining the AF on the rider – ISO 2000, f/3.2, 1/20th sec
Image Quality Images coming out of the camera appear quite good with natural colours. But we noticed that over ISO 800 there was some loss of sharpness in the images, despite shooting in the Superfine JPEG mode, thanks to noise reduction algorithms. Shooting in RAW takes care of this issue to an extent. These images are still usable, but we would have liked them a lot more if they were a tad bit sharper. Colours are vivid out of the camera.
Note: Images below have been resized. To see the full sized images, please click on them. Additionally, visit our Canon PowerShot G1X Mark II album on Flickr to see more high resolution images.
ISO 1000, f/3.9, 1/640th sec
ISO 400, f/3.9, 1/200th sec
ISO 1000, f/13, 1/1250th sec
There are two types of creative filter modes, one just applies random filters to an image and saves the original image with the filter-applied images. The second filters mode is one over which you have control. We particularly liked the HDR and miniature effect filters. Shooting in low light situations also gives good usable images. But at higher ISOs we noticed that when you want to extract detail from shadow areas, you tend to get more chroma noise than detail.
ISO 1000, f/6.3, 1/640th sec
ISO 800, f/3.9, 1/250th sec
One of the five random filters applied to an image – ISO 250, f/3.5, 1/80th sec
ISo 3200, f/2.5, 1/25th sec
Apart from filters, you also have the dynamic range correction and shadow correction options which help with tricky lighting situations. Thanks to the large sensor and the large aperture at both the wide and telephoto ends, you get pleasing bokehs in images. Also the minimum focussing distance brought down to 5cm, really helps you get closer while shooting macros. On the whole, the image quality is impressive, some of the flaws notwithstanding.
With the Miniature filter applied – ISO 800, f/2, 1/40th sec
Battery life The Canon PowerShot G1X Mark II comes with NB-12L Li-ion battery pack which is rated at around 240 shots. We could manage to shoot around 220 still images along with a few videos. These aren’t really great numbers and if you are going on a trip where you will not have easy access to a charging point, you would most likely need to carry an extra battery.
Video Quality
Video quality was pretty much in line with what we have seen with other advanced point and shoot cameras. Great for shooting casual videos with family and friends, nothing more. the touch focus is your best friend as it is quick as will be seen in the video below. Continuous AF isn’t as fast but not terribly slow either. All this changes when shooting in low light situations, mind you. The output is decent, but panning the camera leads to a lot of rolling shutter. This is specially evident while shooting outdoors on crowded roads with vehicles.
While shooting at the local zoo, we noticed that in many areas in the video, sharp objects appeared to have a lot of jagged edges, a lot of aliasing. While panning slowly, it looked unpleasant when viewed on the monitor. Even moire is prominent while shooting. We couldn’t hear any noise from the camera’s zoom motor or with continuous AF on outdoors. If you are in a quiet room, you will hear the AF motor noise. We noticed at that while zooming in, the video quality started degrading. Videos shot in low light were comparatively soft in appearance. But the problem of aliasing persisted. Also, you do not have any manual control while shooting videos.
Verdict and Price in India
Canon PowerShot G1X Mark II has improved a lot from the older G1X, both in terms of speed as well as usability. Image quality and ISO performance are quite good, but looking at the competition it should have been even better. Addition of Wi-fi and NFC is another plus. Touch focussing is fast and responsive, and we did not face any focus locking issues during daytime. Fast aperture at the wide and telephoto end, gives you pleasing bokehs. For someone looking at a workhorse compact camera, the Canon PowerShot G1X Mark II is a good choice.
But (there’s always a but) the pricing is a big let down. At an MRP of Rs 58,995 and a market price of around Rs 55,000, the Canon Powershot G1X Mark II is in a soup. At this price point, it is not just competing with advanced point and shoots, but also DSLRs and mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras. Sony RX100 II is a year old, but still quite a capable camera. The image quality and ISO performance on the RX100 II, despite having a 20.2MP 1-inch sensor, is comparable and at times better than the 12.8MP 1.5-inch sensor on the G1X Mark II. And at an MRP of Rs 29,000, the RX100 II is retailing for nearly half of what Canon is asking for the G1X Mark II. Of course on the RX 100 II, you will have to compromise on the optical zoom range and fast aperture as compared to the G1X Mark II. We are currently putting the Sony RX 100 III through its paces and expect a review soon. The RX100 III has a faster lens than the RX100 II and comes with a dedicated EVF.
On the mirrorless camera front, Sony Alpha a6000 at Rs 52,000 offers excellent value proposition. You can also check out the Panasonic Lumix GX7 which comes for around Rs 56,990 which is another good camera. Both these also come with a dedicated electronic viewfinder, with the GX7 having a tilting EVF. Both these cameras offer a better proposition than the Canon Powershot G1X Mark II at Rs 58,995 and are a joy for street and documentary photographers. Sony Alpha a6000 with its 10fps burst rate also proves to be a winner when it comes to shooting sports or fast moving action. Now you may argue that mirrorless cameras aren’t as compact as the G1X Mark II. But note that the G1X Mark II is not exactly pocketable. If image quality, overall experience and value proposition is what you are after – we would rather you go for similarly priced mirrorless cameras than the G1X Mark II. Plus, you always have the option of putting on a new lens in the future with mirrorless cameras.
The Rs 58,000 price point also brings up a lot of DSLRs to mind. But let us not get there. So just like we had seen with the Canon EOS 100D, a good product has been made undesirable due to the strange pricing. Recommending the G1X Mark II at its current pricing, even to a Canon user, is difficult. We can talk about an ideal pricing, but it’s ultimately up to Canon to decide that. Even the Canon G1X was launched at Rs 52,000 and this was two years ago, when competition was less and the mirrorless segment was yet to mature both in terms of performance and pricing. Coming out with a good advanced point and shoot in 2014 with a Rs 59,000 price point is really pushing the envelope, and not in a good way.
Note: Images below have been resized. To see the full sized images, please click on them. Additionally, visit our Canon PowerShot G1X Mark II album on Flickr to see more high resolution images.
Xiaomi, often referred as the “Apple of China”, plans to launch its flagship Mi 4 phone by the year’s end in India and also plans to set up its Mi Home experience zone in Bangalore within four to six months, the company’s India head said.
“The next few things that we will be launching are Mi 4, our flagship product; Mi pad, which is a tablet and Mi Band, a health band. Mi 4 will come to India towards the end of the year, post-Diwali in all likelihood,” Manu Kumar Jain, Xiaomi’s India head of operations, told IANS in an interview.
The company’s second product, Redmi 1S, was launched Tuesday, with registrations continuing till Sep 2. Redmi 1S will retail in India at Rs. 5,999. The company has entered into exclusive partnership with e-commerce site Flipkart to sell all its products. “Redmi Note, which is the elder brother of Redmi 1S, with a 5.5 inch panel, will hit the market around three-four weeks from now,” said Jain, the co-founder of e-commerce portal Jabong and who earlier worked with McKinsey & Company.
The company launched its first product, Mi3 on July 22 “and we have sold around 95,000 units till now,” Jain said. The company opens flash sell once a week for the phone, which costs Rs. 13,999. Xiaomi has also set up 35 service centres across India, including two exclusive Mi service centres in Delhi and Bangalore, to ensure after-sale services for its customers. “We want to expand service centres to six. They will be in Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Gurgaon.”
Saying that Xiaomi does not believe in number targets, Jain said the focus was on the right inputs: “The best service centres, the best products and ensuring that products do not have issues. We ensure the software is great and customised for Indian customers and the pricing is right. If the inputs are right, output will follow, which is the number of phones that we are selling.”
As for the experience zone in India, Jain said: “We plan to have a Mi Home in Bangalore within four to six months.”
“Mi Homes are there in China. The experience zones have a huge area. We convert it into a Mi store. Products are displayed with a huge amount of accessories and this also acts as a service centre. A small lounge or cafeteria is attached where people can enjoy themselves,” Jain explained.
Talking about alternative channels of sales, Jain said: “We might start selling through our own website mi.com. We will continue to sell through Flipkart. No timeline has been set so far. Setting up e-commerce operations from scratch takes time in India. In many countries, like in Singapore, we sell through mi.com.”
The Indian site is so far used for marketing alone and no purchases can be made from there. As for target customers, Jain said: “Our target audience is the youth and the tech savvy. We believe that this population will grow, will be the dominant and people will buy online. Our products are comparable to any other Rs. 30,000 – 40,000 device available in the market.”
Xiaomi sold 26.1 million devices in China in the first half of 2014.
Expanding its Android tablet portfolio, India’s leading e-retailer Flipkart has launched five new Android tablets in the country. Launched under Flipkart’s in-house DigiFlip label, the new tablets are Digilip Pro XT911, Pro XT901, Pro XT811, Pro XT801 and Pro ET701. These tablets will join the Digiflip Pro XT712, which is already available in the market.
The larger XT911 and XT901 will retail for Rs 15,999 and Rs 13,999 respectively, while the XT811, XT801 and ET701 will be available for Rs 10,999, Rs 8,999 and Rs 5,999 respectively. The tablets can be purchased on Flipkart right now.
All five tablets are powered by Intel Atom processors. Firstly, there’s the DigiFlip Pro ET701, a 7-inch entry-level tablet with a 1024×600 pixel IPS display. It features the 1.2GHz Intel Atom Z2520 dual-core processor, also seen on the Zenfone series. There’s 1GB of RAM and the tablet runs the older Android 4.2 OS. It boasts 8GB of internal storage, a microSD card slot, and a rather limited 2800 mAh battery. We have seen phones with a larger battery unit, so we are not expecting a lot from this tablet in terms of battery like. There’s a 2MP rear camera, and a 0.3MP front shooter, while Wi-Fi is integrated. The tablet can connect to 3G networks thanks to the USB support.
The largest of the bunch, DigiFlip Pro XT911 features an 8.9-inch full HD display with a 1920×1200 pixel resolution, 2GHz Intel Atom Z2580 dual-core processor, 2GB of RAM and Android 4.2.2. The tablet comes with 16GB of on-board storage, coupled with a microSD card slot. There’s a 5MP rear camera and a 2MP shooter on the front, while the 6500 mAh battery sounds plentiful for most needs. The XT911 includes 3G and voice-calling support, while the Digiflip Pro XT901 is the Wi-Fi only variant.
The XT911 features a full HD display
The DigiFlip Pro XT811 sports a smaller 8-inch display with a resolution of 1280×800 pixels. It is also powered by the 2GHz Intel Atom Z2580 dual-core processor and runs Android 4.2. It packs 1GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, and also boasts a microSD card slot for further expansion. This one too features a 5MP camera on the back, and a 2MP unit on the front. The 4200 mAh battery sounds decent, but we will have to see how long the device lasts in daily use. 3G and Wi-Fi support are present on the XT811, which has a Wi-Fi only variant, the XT801.
The Wi-Fi only XT-801
Flipkart claims the new tablets will be getting the Android 4.4 KitKat software update, but did not specify when. All come with a free Digiflip book case, a 70 percent discount on 1-year subscription of any magazines from the India Today Group, an issue of Reader’s Digest India, discount of 35 percent on on shopping on Myntra’s App, 15 free best-selling eBooks worth over Rs 1,700 from Flipkart.
