Asus Zenfone 4 Now Up for Sale at Rs. 5,999 via Flipkart: 10 Smartphone Rivals Facing the Heat

Asus is one of those companies striving hard to make a name for itself in the Indian handset market. And while the market is anyway an open one, the number of companies already present in the mix is a serious threat for whoever wants to enter it. However, keeping the hopes up, Asus recently unveiled the brand new Zenfone 4. As of now, the handset has been made available for the Indian market. Users can pre-order the smartphone from online retail site Flipkart at a price of Rs. 5,999. However, the Asus Zenfone 4 (A450CG) would ship in the first week of September, which is next week. Recommended: Top 10 Smartphones with Full Metal Body To Buy in India Going through the specs of the handset once more, Asus Zenfone 4 features a 4.5-inch (854 x 480 pixels) capacitive multi touch display with Corning gorilla glass 3 protection. It is powered by a 1.2 GHz dual-core Intel Atom Z2520 processor with PowerVR SGX544 GPU coupled with 1GB RAM. The handset runs on Android 4.4 (KitKat) with company's Zen UI slapped over it. In the imaging aspect, buyers will get to see 8MP rear camera with LED flash and a 0.3MP (VGA) front-facing snapper. Recommended: 15 Best Smartphones That Cost Less than Rs 15,000 Talking about the internal storage capacity, users will get an 8GB internal memory, which would be expandable memory up to 64GB via microSD. Connectivity options include 3G HSPA+, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS and a Dual SIM with dual standby (micro SIMs). It is powered by a 1750 mAh battery. The latest smartphone from Asus might be the cheapest smartphone with Android KitKat OS and 8MP rear camera. But then again, this isn't the only handset in the market that sports such specs. Hence we take a look at its top 10 rivals in the Indian market.

Sony Xperia C3 takes selfies to an all new level

Sony Xperia C3 is the latest in the lineup of phones that tout their ability to take great selfies.  In fact, Sony takes it a step ahead by packing the C3 with what it calls a ‘PROselfie cam’.

The Xperia C3 has a 5 MP wide-angle front camera that gives an 80 degree field of view. The front camera has a unique soft flash and all you need to click a selfie is double tap the back cover or use the Smile Shutter.
In the front camera’s Superior Auto mode, pictures are automatically adjusted for suitable lighting
conditions.

The phone also comes with selfie camera apps that add AR effects like in the Z2 and features like portrait retouch.
The C3 also features a 8MP main with Exmor RSTM for mobile image sensor. The video gets a lot of help from Sony’s SteadyShot technology.

The phone has a 5.5” HD display, and is powered by a Snapdragon Quad-core 1.2 Ghz processor and with 1GB RAM and 8GB Flash memory. The phone is just 7.6 mm thich and weighs a mere 150g.

The Xperia C3 will be available from September 1 for Rs 23,990.

Bring On the 5.5-inch iPhone

After three months with gigantic smartphones, it's hard to go back.

This isn’t a new trend, or one that’s unique to extra large phones. Studies have shown that most teens and young adults rely largely on their phones for Internet use, and industry sales figures show that tablet sales are stalling while smartphones keep climbing. Meanwhile, as the speed and display technology of smartphones has improved, displacing the tablet has gotten easier. (In an especially prescient piece from 2010, Brian Lam had already ditched his less-than-year-old iPad for the iPhone 4 and its crisp Retina display.)In the course of reviewing Windows Phone 8.1(on a Nokia Lumia 1520), the OnePlus One and the LG G3, almost all of my smartphone use since mid-May has been on screens measuring 5.5 inches or larger.

The experience has been transformative enough that I’m not looking forward to reactivating my personal handsets, an original HTC One (4.7 inches) and an iPhone 5 (4 inches). Painful as it is to say — mostly because of the grating nomenclature — I’ve become addicted to phablets.

Basically, I’m living the trend in which my smartphone replaces much of what I used to do on a tablet. When I want to glance at my e-mail, scroll through Twitter or look at some funny GIFs on Reddit, it takes less time to pull out my phone than it does to look for my iPad or wake up my Surface Pro 3. And unlike those larger devices, I can use my phone with one hand and stash it back in my pocket to carry around the house.

Oversized phones have amplified this phenomenon, or at least made it more sensible to me. The main reason is obvious: The bigger screen feels like less of a compromise for reading, watching videos and playing games. But just as importantly, nearly every phablet I’ve used has a humongous battery inside, allowing me breeze through a day of heavy use with plenty of juice in the tank. Always having an Internet connection at no extra charge — even if Wi-Fi is unavailable — helps as well.

The biggest drawback with larger phones is that they’re harder to use with one hand, but improvements in hardware and software make this less of a problem than it used to be. The LG G3’s narrow bezels make it easier to reach across the device with your thumb. It also uses on-screen buttons for Home, Back and Recent apps, so your fingers don’t have to travel off the screen. When you’re watching a video or playing a game, these buttons fade out of view until you swipe them onto the screen again. Windows Phone has its own clever trick: Because most apps have all their menu buttons on the bottom of the screen, you rarely have to reach all the way to the top, out of thumb range.

The other issue is that these phones tend to leave a larger impression in your pocket, but I think that’s more of a psychological problem than a practical one. A lot of people have asked me how I could possibly carry an oversized phone like the Lumia 1520, but I’ve yet to wear a pair of jeans in which my phone won’t fit. Most of the time, I don’t even think about it.

All of these factors have in turn primed me for the rumored 5.5-inch iPhone, even with a 4.7-inch iPhone widely expected to launch in September. I don’t know whether it’s going to happen — there’s still a lot of conflicting information on the timing and the specifics — but I’m willing to wait it out.

Now that my iPad is in neglect, an iPhone seems like my most practical point of entry into Apple’s ecosystem and all the interesting features in iOS 8. I want that experience to be as tablet-like as possible.

Panasonic launches Eluga A smartphone at Rs 9,490

Panasonic India has launched Eluga A, the second smartphone in its Eluga range, at Rs 9,490. The phone will be available for purchase starting August 15 in black and white colour variants. 


Based on Qualcomm reference design, Eluga A sports a 5-inch IPS FWGA (480x854p) display. The phone is powered by a 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 quad-core processor and 1GB RAM, and comes with 4GB internal storage. The phone comes with a microSD card slot that supports cards up to 32GB capacity. 

The phone runs Android 4.3 Jelly Bean with Panasonic's Fit Home UI that facilitates single-hand usage,. 

Panasonic Eluga A sports an 8MP autofocus rear camera and a 1.3MP front facing camera. It comes with a 2000 mAh battery. 

The Eluga A offers features like Qualcomm Audio+ audio enhancement technology, Voice+ voice enhancement technology, Qualcomm's BatteryGuru for efficient power management, and Quick Charge for up to 40% faster charging, as per the company. 

Eluga A also features support for major Indian languages allowing users to browse the web, chat and navigate the phone menu in their local language. 

The dual-sim phone supports 3G, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, A-GPS and FM radio.

HTC One with Windows Phone OS leaks

There have been plenty of rumors about the Windows Phone OS variant of the popular HTC One M8 smartphone. But nothing solid appeared until today when the press render of the HTC One M8 running Windows Phone 8 OS surfaced on the internet. Not many changes practically in terms of design except for that in the home screen capacitive buttons. The Android version comes with keys suitable for Android OS while the one with Windows comes with Windows home button, back and search keys.

Nothing is announced officially and we expect no changes in terms of the hardware. It is likely to come with Dual Rear cameras to get the depth details in the images. The official announcement may come on 19th this month followed by its launch on Verizon on 21st.

The original HTC One M8 comes with Android KitKat and Dual rear facing cameras on board. The dual camera setup allows real time lytro like photography on a smartphone. One can change the focus even after clicking the photos. Something that we have already seen in Nokia refocus apps, but that uses some software gimmick to change the focus while in the HTC One M8 it is totally a hardware magic. Other specs of the device include Snapdragon 801 processor, 2GB RAM, 16/32GB built-in storage and up to 128GB memory expansion.

We are relying completely on official announcement to know the exact specs of the device with Windows Phone OS. Keep watching this space for more updates.

Xolo launches Xolo Play 8X-1200 smartphone for a price of 20K

Xolo recently announced the HIVE UI for its smartphones, and the first one to wear this UI is the Xolo 8X-1000 smartphone. The company has now launched another device, Xolo Play 8X-1200 with the same UI and latest specs on board for a price of Rs 19,999. Xolo has been one of the few companies in India to offer premium looking smartphones for a budget price but now given the scenario in India, the prices of budget phones should further go down to lure the buyers in the country.

Xiaomi’s wild entry in the market with its flagship Mi3 smartphone for a price of Rs 14,000 will be making other manufacturers break their heads to bring down the prices of their phones. Right now the price of the Xolo Play 8X-1200 is little higher than the current trend and people would rather wait and buy the Xiaomi Mi3 smartphone.

The Xolo Play 8X-1200 comes with a 2GHz MediaTek Octa-Core processor paired with 2GB RAM and 32GB internal storage. It has the latest Android 4.4 KitKat OS covered with Hive UI. There is Dual SIM support along with Dual Standby. A 2,300mAH battery powers this device. There is 3G, 2G, WiFi and Bluetooth in the connectivity spectrum on this smartphone. On photography front the Xolo Play 8X-1200 houses a 13-MP rear and 5-MP front facing camera. Let us know if you like this smartphone from Xolo.

Oppo to launch the N1 mini smartphone on 11th August

Oppo unveiled the N1 Mini smartphone for India recently. The device is likely to hit the shelves in India on August 11th. The N1 Mini will come with a rotating swivel camera just like the taller N1 smartphone. The company has released an update saying that readers should block the date and day for an important announcement from Oppo Mobile India.

Oppo launched the N1, Find 7 and Find 7a recently in India. All these devices are flagship variants and have features unique to them. The original Oppo N1 smartphone has a massive 5.9-inch display and a rotating camera that can be used a front and as a rear camera.

The Mini variant would not dump the rotating camera but it certainly gets some slashed specs and size. The Oppo N1 mini has a 5-inch 720p display and the 13-MP rotating camera sits on top. The processor on this device comes with 1.6GHz of clock speed with 4 active cores and is paired with 1GB RAM. Oppo also praises this smartphone for having an Ultra HD mode than can generate 24-MegPixel photos with the same 13-MP camera.

We will be checking out this device with great excitement as we also expect it to have the rear touch panel like the bigger Oppo N1. Let’s see how the final product comes out. Stay tuned!

Motorola Moto X+1 to have Snapdragon 801 processor

Motorola is on the verge of launching its next generation Moto X smartphone. The device is dubbed as Moto X+1 smartphone. It is the successor of the Moto X smartphone launched a year ago. The Moto X launched last year was a very good device with average specs but brilliant user experience. Looking at the current trend, which mostly goes by high specs, the company has decided to beef up the Moto X series with the latest X+1 smartphone.

The Moto X+1 looks a beast on paper with its top notch specs; it has a Snapdragon 801 processor, 2GB RAM, 32/64GB storage and 5.2-inch full HD display. Other details of the device are scarce right now and we expect the final details to leak out soon.

The Moto X originally came with a Dual-Core processor and 2GB RAM without memory expansion option. The Moto X+1 will be placed above Moto X and will be the flagship of Motorola for this year. The device will again not have a micro SD card slot but OTG is certainly on its list. The specs come in light courtesy of Geekbench, a popular benchmarking website which almost every major manufacturer uses to check out the benchmarks of its products.

Are you interested in Motorola’s flagship this year? Let us know your first impressions of the specs of the Moto X+1 smartphone.

Nokia Lumia 530 up for preorder in India

Nokia announced the Lumia 530 smartphone recently but the company did not announce the price. It just gave a hint that the price of the device will be under Rs 8000 category but Indian online retailer Snapdeal has already put this device for preorder on their site. Snapdeal while skipping mention of the price, has said that the device will start selling in the 3rd week of August.

The Nokia Lumia 530 is the successor model of the popular Lumia 520 and Lumia 525 smartphones. In terms of specs it is not a true successor of the Lumia 525 smartphone, the specs are lower end and Nokia has cut down heavily on internal storage department.

Lumia 530 would come with the latest Windows Phone 8.1 OS and will have 4GB ROM on board. Like Lumia 520 this one too will have 512MB of RAM, the rear camera will have the same 5-MP resolution but the focus will be fixed. There is no front facing camera on this device and it will have a 1,430mAH battery for power supply. Connectivity options are to include Dual SIM slots, 3G, Wifi and Bluetooth.

What do you think has Nokia done with the Lumia 530? Has it failed to bring a true successor or is it just a smart move to provide cheap smartphone? Let us know your reactions.

LG L60 could be coming soon, gets listed on official site

LG may be prepping the launch of the LG L60 smartphone. The device was recently spotted on its official site in Russia. It is likely to be a budget smartphone with a 4.3-inch WVGA display and would come with the latest Android 4.4 KitKat Operating System on board. Like other budget smartphones in the market this one too comes with entry level specs and features.

Other than a compact display and Android KitKat the LG L60 also has a 5-MP rear facing camera with LED flash and a front facing VGA resolution camera for photography and video calling respectively. The specs of this smartphone are similar to the LG L65 launched recently. This device will carry the legacy of L series of smartphone ahead with its Dual SIM feature on board.

It is powered by a 1.3GHz Dual-Core processor paired with 512MB of RAM and 4GB ROM. It allows memory expansion by up to 32GB using micro SD cards and has 3G on board for faster internet connections on the go. We speculate the device to come in India with a price tag not exceeding Rs 9,000. If so then this device will compete with other budget smartphones that come with MedaiTek processor on board.

Are you up for this device from LG? Or you were expecting a little more like the LG G3 smartphone? Let us know what you feel about this one.

Celkon Millennium Ultra Q500 coming soon with a budget price

Celkon, the Indian budget smartphone manufacturer, is planning to launch the Millennium Ultra Q500 smartphone this month. Celkon had earlier launched multiple budget friendly smartphones in India targeting all age categories. Now with Millennium Ultra Q500 the company is targeting KitKat lovers.

The latest Millennium Q500 from Celkon comes with Android KitKat OS on board and has a 5-inch HD display with a resolution of 1280x720 pixels. The display is based on One-Glass-Solution and has a Quad-Core processor (likely to be MediaTek SoC), there is 2GB RAM on board to handle multitasking efficiently and it has 16GB built-in storage.

The device will have a micro SD card slot for memory expansion and it will be priced around Rs 9,000 in India. Preorder for this device begins exclusively on Flipkart starting 14 August. Sales will begin on 24th August. This device will take the budget smartphone market with a storm. Recently Wickedleak launched a smartphone with similar specs but Octa-Core processor and priced it at Rs 8,490. The price war in India is likely to benefit customers. What do you think about this price war in India? Will it bring down the prices of popular brands too? Give us your thoughts on this.

Motorola Moto G2 specs leak ahead of official announcement

Motorola launched the Moto G smartphone and created a buzz globally. The device sold for a very attractive price and came down with every possible feature that was possible for that price and size. Moto G broke multiple records of sale in India and we already know that the company is working on Moto G2 smartphone. Although there is nothing hardcore known about the device but like its predecessor the G2 smartphone is likely to continue the legacy of low price and high end features.

The Motorola Moto G was launched in March in India. It was sold with an exclusive Flipkart partnership. Flipkart sold more than 1 lakh Moto G in India in a few months, so much so that every time new stock came in, the company would soon go out of stock. The phone continues to sell in India successfully and with a recent price cut of Rs 2,000 Moto G became even more attractive.

Now that companies are offering much better specs and features than Moto G for a price equal to it we expect Motorola to launch the G2 soon in India. A new leak about the Moto G2 has appeared on the internet which suggests that it will have a 720P display with 5-inch measurement. Other specs like 1.2Ghz Quad-Core Snapdragon 400, 1GB RAM, 8-MP rear and 2-MP front facing cameras have also been revealed.

Are you guys up for Motorola Moto G2 smartphone? Let us know what you think about this smartphone.

Motorola Moto G2 could be coming soon

Motorola has already manufactured the successor of the Moto G smartphone. Moto G proved out to be the all-time best seller Android phone, with this device the company also started a price war in India which in deed helped bring down prices of most smartphones. Now the company is prepping for the launch of the Moto G2 smartphone, which will follow the footsteps of its predecessor by maintaining a low price tag.

We also expect Motorola to launch the Moto X+1 smartphone sometime in the coming months at Berlin. Moto X+1 will shift its focus from user experience to spec war and is likely to come with high end specs like Snapdragon 801, 5-inch 1080p display and 2GB RAM. About Moto G2 smartphone, we think it is likely to come with a 5-inch 720P display, Snapdragon 400 processor and 1GB RAM.

Moto G2 is also said to come with upgraded set of cameras; the rear camera will have a resolution of 8-MP while the front facing camera will have 2-MP resolution. And don’t forget the regular software updates for the device from Google. Xiaomi has already created a price war in the market to which Motorola responded with a Rs 2,000 price cut in Moto G. Do you think Motorola will keep the price of this device above 15K? Let us know what you feel about the Moto G2 smartphone.