Smartphones

41 Megapixels for Lumia 1020

  • PDF

The second generation of Nokia's 41MP PureView sensor technology makes in a non-Symbian smartphone with the Lumia 1020, a Windows Phone 8 handset promising to "reinvent zoom, enabling people to discover more detail than the eye can see."

Lumia 1020Readers with longer memories will remember PureView making its debut in the 808 PureView, a Symbian-powered oddity sporting an admittedly impressive camera and very little else. 

In the Lumia 1020 the sensor is paired with 6-lens Zeiss optics, manual shutter, xenon flash (for different light levels), second generation optical stabilisation and a Nokia Pro Camera app for flash, focus, ISO, white balance, shutter speed and exposure adjustment. Nokia also promises blur-free video (at up to 1920x1080) with Rich Recording for distortion-free stereo sound.  

Read more...

13MP Front-Facing Shooter in "Monkey King" Phone

  • PDF

THL W11Chinese Samsung/LG/HTC knockoff maker THL makes a smartphone actually worth taking note of-- the W11, an Android 4.2.2-powered WCDMA number featuring a pair of 13MP cameras, one on each side.

Dubbed "Monkey King" after the protagonist of classic Chinese epic Journey to the West, the phone features a 5-inch 1920x1080 IPS display, 1.5GHz quad-core MT6589 processor, 2GB RAM, 32GB built-in storage and 2100mAh battery.

As well as plenty of pixels the front-facing shooter does face beautification, perhaps making it ideal for customers wanting to invest more in are known as "selfie" shots.

The W11 launches on July 2013 in its home China, with no mention on whether it will make a journey to Western territories sometime in the future.

Go THL W11

HTC Reveals Butterfly S

  • PDF

HTC upgrades the 2012 Butterfly smartphone to HTC One standards with the Butterfly S-- a 5-inch flagship complete with 1920x1200 display, front-facing BoomSound Speakers and Sense 5 UI.

HTC Butterfly SIt runs Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean on a quad-core 1.9GHz Snapdragon 600 processor (faster than the one inside the HTC One), quad-band HSPA/WCDMA radio, 2GB RAM, 16GB built-in storage (expandable via microSD) and 3200mAh battery.

As one expects the OS is skinned with the familiar HTC Sense UI.

The rear-facing camera features the UltraPixel and Zoe technologies furst seen in the HTC One, while the front carries a 2.1MP wide-angle camera.

HTC says the Butterfly S will be available in "select Asia Pacific markets" from July 2013, but gives no word on availability in our side of the globe as yet.

Go HTC Butterfly S

The Slimmest Smartphone Yet?

  • PDF

Huawei claims the 6.18mm thick Ascend P6 is the slimmest smartphone available, grandly describing it as "a star among smartphones with industry-leading design, high-quality camera, and intuitive user interface."

Huawei Ascend P6The all-metal body weighs 120g (just 8g more than an iPhone 5) and carries a 4.7-inch 1280x720 LCD display, 1.5GHz quad-core CPU, 2GB RAM, 8GB storage (expandable to 32GB via microSD slot) and 2000mAh battery. 

The rear-facing camera features an 8MP sensor and a F/2.0BSI lens, while the rear-facing shooter is 5MP. 

Android 4.2.2  (with the Huawei Emotion UI) is the OS of choice. 

The Ascend P6 hits European markets from July 2013. 

Go Huawei Ascend P6

Nokia Giving Up on Symbian Smartphones?

  • PDF

Nokia will (finally?) bring to rest Symbian smartphone shipments by summer 2013 the Financial Times reports, killing off the homegrown mobile OS in favour of Windows Phone.

SymbiansIn a true "how the mighty fall" story, Symbian fell from smartphone leader grace to "burning platform," as described by no other than Nokia CEO Stephen Elop back in February 2011.

Current Symbian smartphone totals are all but negligible-- according to Kantar Worldpanel European Symbian mobile market share for the 3 months to April 2013 amounts to 1.8%, even if it also accounts to around 2% of the vast Chinese market.

Meanwhile Q1 2013 Symbian device sales reach 500000 units, far less than Lumia Windows Phone-based smartphone sales of around 5.6 million.

Read more...