NEXUS 5X: A WORTHY SUCCESSOR?

NEXUS 5X: A WORTHY SUCCESSOR?

REVIEW-

The NEXUS 5X has been collaboratively made by LG and Google. The Nexus 5 was one of the best-selling device which is being bought by many people even today. When the Nexus 5 was released it was selling like “HOT-CAKES”. Will the 5X be able to do the same? Or will it be a plan gone wrong for the tech giant? Read further to find out.

DISPLAY:

The 5X has sports a 5.2 inch display with a resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels generating a 424 ppi. The display size makes the device comfortable to hold when compared to the latest gigantic 5.5 inch display devices. It is protected from scratches by the Corning Gorilla Glass 3 along with an oleophobic coating in an attempt to prevent the device from becoming a fingerprint magnet.

PROCESSOR:

                                    

It is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor. It has a 1.44 gHz Cortex A-53 Quad core processor and a 1.82 gHz Cortex A-57 dual core processor. It has an adreno 418 GPU coupled with 2 GB of RAM. 

The reason Google chose to with the older 808 than the 810 might be because of the over-heating issues of the 810. Many flagship devices have made a done the same thing. This is a really good decision by the software giant.

CAMERA:

The device features a 12.3 mega pixel primary snapper and a 5 mega pixel secondary one. It is a definite upgrade from the previous 8 mega pixel and 1.3 mega pixel one. But still it way behind its competitors offering a way better camera at a similar or a much cheaper price point.

STORAGE:

The device comes with two options, a 16 GB one and a 32 GB one. Unfortunately it doesn’t have support for micro SD card which is a real disappointment, especially when its competitors have storages up to 128 GB.

BATTERY:

It has a 2700 mAh battery. I don’t expect it to last full day especially because of the huge screen size which is going to eat up a lot of battery. It is an upgrade from the previous version but the screen size has also increased so the battery issue will continue and bring a wave of disappointment among the customers.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

It’s a device made by Google which means that you will be the first to get a software update even months after your device has become out-dated.

It sports a fingerprint scanner at the back and it’s a really good feature to have especially when Google is integrating support for a fingerprint scanner in Android 6.0.

PRICE and AVAILABILITY:

The availability will not be a problem. It will be widely available. It will be officially launched in India in a week or two.

As for the price it will be available for approximately Rs. 33,000 for the 16 GB model. It’s predecessor the Nexus 5 was available for Rs. 28,999

FINAL VERDICT:

I don’t think the Nexus 5X is a worthy successor especially when the launch of a new Motorola flagship is just around the corner which will offer better specs at a cheaper price.

Let me know what you feel about this device and the review in the comments. Do vote about whether you feel the Nexus 5X will be a worthy successor or not.

MOTO X PLAY: IS IT COMPETITIVE ENOUGH?

MOTO X PLAY REVIEW:

The MOTO X PLAY is a new introduction by MOTOROLA to give a flagship device-like features at a comparatively low price point. But does it have the strength, the resilience to survive against so many competitive devices at this price point? Read further to find out.

DISPLAY:

The MOTO X PLAY sports a 5.5 inch Full HD display. It has a resolution  of 1080 x 1920 pixels generating a 403 ppi. It has a CORNING GORILLA GLASS 3 to protect the display. It indeed is a steal at this price.

PROCESSOR:

The processor used in this device is Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 paired with 2 GB of RAM. It doesn’t disappoint in ‘the number of cores’ section either because it has an octa-core processor. It consists of a quad core 1.7 GHz cortex A-53 and another quad core 1.0 GHz cortex A- 53 processor. It has an Adreno 405 GPU. Most people who buy phones on the basis of a device’s processor will be more than happy with this beast.

CAMERA:

It has a 21 mega-pixel camera at the back and a 5 mega-pixel selfie camera! Other camera features include geo-tagging, face detection, panaroma, HDR, dual-LED flash and autofocus among others. MOTOROLA has promised that the latest MOTO devices will be capable of capturing excellent pics even in low light.        

MEMORY:

MOTO X PLAY comes in two variants, a 16 GB model and 32 GB one. It can also be expanded using a micro SD card up to 128 GB. So it doesn’t really make a difference and I will advice you to go for the 16 GB model.

BATTERY:

It has a mega, huge, long-lasting battery of 3630 mAh. It means you will never run out of charge throughout the day.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

It’s a MOTOROLA device so there will be no bloat-ware or useless in-built applications which you cannot delete. There are 4-5 very useful applications by MOTOROLA. By using MOTO HELP you can easily chat with a MOTROLA employee who can answer your queries and help you if you are experiencing any problems. One of the best is the MOTO VOICE which is your personal assistant. You can even set your own personal commands to personalize it. It even supports faster charging using MOTOROLA'S TURBO charger.

CONCLUSION:

It is priced at Rs.18,499 for the 16 GB model and at Rs.19,999 for the 32 GB model. A bang for the buck? Yes. YOU get more than what you pay for. I think you should definitely go for the MOTO X PLAY without having any second thoughts.

Do you think it will be a competitive device at this price point? Vote below.

NOTE 5: Will it save the sinking SAMSUNG ship?

SAMSUNG GALAXY NOTE 5 REVIEW :

Sorry for this late article, as I could not write one due to exams. Nevertheless in this article I’m going to write the review of Samsung’s latest lethal device, the “GALAXY NOTE 5”. While some of us might have found the NOTE series devices too large to carry, the others have been impressed by the quality and the exclusive features it possesses. But does it have the potential, the power to save SAMSUNG’S ever sinking ship in the mobile world? Will it be able to battle against its potential rivals? Read the article to find out.

DISPLAY:

It sports a super AMOLED screen with a screen size of 5.7 inches with a screen-to-body ratio of ~75.9%. It has a resolution of 1440 x 2560 pixels generating a density of ~518 ppi. It is protected by the latest Corning Gorilla Glass 4. The colour reproduction is good as one would expect from SAMSUNG.

PROCESSOR:

It runs on the latest Android 5.1.1 Lollipop. It is powered by the EXYNOS 7420. It has two Quad core CPU’s, one clocked at 1.5 GHz supported by Cortex A-53 and the other clocked at 2.1 GHz accompanied by a Cortex A-57. The GPU sported by this device is a Mali-T760MP8. One might question SAMSUNG’S approach of not using Qualcomm processors which are super fast and reliable and also the use of Mali GPU’s instead of Adreno GPU’s. Well, if u don’t believe that Qualcomm and Adreno are faster than EXYNOS and Mali, I’ve attached a link which takes you to a YOUTUBE video which shows a speed test of SAMSUNG GALAXY S5 and MOTO E. My brain couldn’t believe what my eyes saw, the winner was MOTO E which has a negligible cost compared  to the S5! Nevertheless, moving on, the NOTE 5 has 4GB of RAM, which is well more than enough to ensure that the device doesn’t lag.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6A35DcClk8

The above link will take you to the video i was talking about.

CAMERA:

This is SAMSUNG’S area of strength. This is the area where it gets the least competition from due to its excellent shooter. It sports a 16 mega-pixel primary camera. Well, I personally would have been impressed if they used a 21 mega-pixel shooter. It’s camera features like OPI, autofocus, LED flash, Dual Shot, Simultaneous HD video and image recording, geo-tagging, touch to focus, face detection HDR and panorama don’t fail to impress. It also has a 5 mega pixel front camera.

BATTERY:

It has a non-removable Li-Po 3000 mAh battery backup. True that due to its large screen size and special NOTE features, I think that the device will run out of juice eventually during the day causing a lot of problems for its customers.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

It has a fast charging feature. SAMSUNG says that wired charging will charge the device from 0% to 100% in roughly 90 minutes and it will take wireless charging 120 minutes to do the job. It features NFC and MST technology. Customers that pre-book the device will get a free wireless charger and free one-time screen replacement. The main attraction of the NOTE 5, the S PEN has a one-click mechanism to eject it from the device.

CONCLUSION:

I would personally disagree calling this device value for money with its hefty price tag of 53,900 for the 32GB variant and 59,900 for the 64 GB one. The device isn’t available for pre-orders yet. I also feel that it wouldn’t help the cause but would rather add to the cause of the sinking SAMSUNG ship because other devices with same or even better features are available at a very low price point compared to this NOTE.

Vote to let everyone know your opinion on whether it will help SAMSUNG’S falling profits or not. Also comment to tell me if you liked this article or not, if you liked it please +1 it.

ONEPLUS TWO: A True Flagship Killer Or Just Another Phone?

ONEPLUS TWO REVIEW -

In this article I'm going to help you'll get a wider view on identifying whether the OnePlus Two, as described the company, a "FLAGSHIP KILLER" or just another smartphone in the market. The OnePlus one was an instant hit as soon as it was launched because of its killer specs at a very low and reasonable price. Let's see how good a successor the OnePlus two is to the OnePlus one.

DISPLAY: 

I'll first begin with the display of this device. The earlier model had a major touchscreen issue which took a lot of time to be fixed, but this time the touch response is fluid. The display is bumped up to 5.5 inches. It has an LCD display panel with a screen to body ratio of approximately 73%. The screen resolution on this device is 1080 x 1920 which generates a ppi (pixels per inch) of 401. However it is not as appealing for a flagship phone when compared to other high end devices. It is protected with the latest Corning Gorilla Glass 4.

PROCESSOR:

It sports the latest from Qualcomm, the Snapdragon 810. It may be a concern because of the heating issues of the 810 chip. It has an enormous 4GB of RAM which is capable of handling day-to-day tasks, playing high resolution games and multi-tasking with ease, without any lag. Its clock speed is 1.8 gHz. It looks like OnePlus brought the clock speed of the device down to prevent over heating. Whether there is an issue of over heating or not will be known to us in the days to come. Apart  from all this it  has an Octa core CPU which is accompanied by Adreno 430 GPU.

MEMORY:

It comes with 64 GB in-built memory. however, there is no micro SD card slot available to expand the storage.

CAMERA:

It has a 13 mega-pixel primary camera and a 5 mega-pixel rear camera.

4128 x 3096 pixels, optical image stabilization, laser autofocus, dual-LED flash, Geo-tagging, touch focus, face detection, panorama and HDR mode are some other notable features of this camera. BATTERY; It has a Non-removable Li-Po 3300 mAh battery.  OTHER NOTABLE PROS AND CONS: PROS- - It has a fingerprint scanner. - It has a USB Type - C reversible connector which provides faster battery charging. - It has an option of changeable backs. CONS- - No NFC especially when Android Pay is around the corner. - That silly rule again that you have to have an invite to buy the phone. CONCLUSION: In my opinion this phone is definitely a flagship killer with its aggressive pricing of just ₹24999. Looking at all the flagship devices released yet, I think only the MOTO X STYLE will be able to challenge this beast.

THE BATTLE FOR SUPREMACY

MOTO X STYLE, LG G4, HTC ONE M9, SAMSUNG GALAXY S6 and the XPERIA Z3+

As the title suggests I am going to compare the best Android phones of 2015. If you want me to compare some other phones please let me know in the comments section. I'll start by showing you guys a short comparison table which I made and then rank them the phones in each category.

	MOTO X STYLE	LG G4	HTC ONE M9	S6	XPERIA Z3+
DISPLAY	5.7 inches	5.5 inches	5.0 inches	5.1 inches	5.2 inches
	520 ppi	538 ppi	441 ppi	577 ppi	424 ppi
	-	IPS LCD	Super LCD	Super AMOLED	IPS LCD
	gorilla glass 3	gorilla glass 3	gorilla glass 4	gorilla glass 4	Scratch resistant
PROCESSOR	snapdragon 808	snapdragon 808	snapdragon 810	Exynos 7420	snapdragon 810
	hexa-core cpu	octa-core cpu	octa-core	octa-core	octa-core
	adreno 418	adreno 418	adreno 430	Mali	adreno 430
RAM	3 GB	3 GB	3 GB	3 GB	3 Gb
MEMORY	SD card supported	SD card supported	SD card supported	Not supported	SD card supported
CAMERA	21 mp primary	16 mp primary	20 mp primary	16 mp primary	20.7 mp primary
	5 mp rear	8 mp rear	4 mp rear	5 mp rear	5.1 mp rear
BATTERY	3000 mAh	3000 mAh	2840 mAh	2550 mAh	2930 mAh
PRICE	₹32999	₹40200	₹40195	₹40800	₹47521
	(estimated)

DISPLAY:

MOTO X STYLE, LG G4 and the S6 all have similar screen clarity. However, the display on the S6 has an edge over the other two due to its comparatively smaller display resulting in a better ppi. The bravia display of SONY makes it better than the M9, which is why it is placed higher in the rankings.

RANKING: S6 FIRST

                     MOTO X STYLE, LG G4  (TIE) SECOND

                     XPERIA Z3+ THIRD

                     M9 FOURTH

PROCESSOR:

MOTOROLA and LG made a smarter and better decision by going for the 808 instead of the 810. The 810 has a lot of heating issues and there is still no permanent solution for this problem. This is the reason why the Z3+ and M9 have a lot of heating issues. The EXYNOS on the other hand doesn't really stand out, it might have good benchmarks but when the device is used in day-to-day life, lags can be observed. 

RANKING: MOTO X STYLE, LG G4 (TIE) FIRST

                     XPERIA Z3+, M9 (TIE) SECOND

                     S6 THIRD

RAM:

Each device sports the same RAM so there's nothing much to describe here. Some might argue that all the phones except MOTO has a custom UI which eats more RAM. But 3 GB RAM is enough and doesn't really make a difference.

RANKING: ALL TIED

MEMORY:

All phones except the S6 have an expandable memory so the ranking is pretty clear here.

RANKING: MOTO X STYLE, LG G4, M9, XPERIA Z3+ (TIE) FIRST

                     

                      S6 SECOND

CAMERA:

Megapixels don't really speak the truth about camera quality. It requires an all rounded camera altogether. The sensors and the photo corrector tools all need to work together to provide a decent picture. So the ranking doesn't really depend on Megapixels. The  MOTO X STYLE has an additional feature which is a flash for the selfie camera.

RANKING: MOTO X STYLE, S6, LG G4, XPERIA Z3+ (TIE) FIRST

                     

                     M9 SECOND

 

BATTERY:

We all know that as the screen size increases its battery consumption also increases. Especially the high resolution screens. So surely there will not be much of a difference unless the phones have a bug.

RANKING: ALL TIED

CONCLUSION:

The MOTO X STYLE, LG G4 and the S6 are really close so I think the value-for-money factor might seal the deal here. There is no real competition for the MOTO X STYLE here because of it being a bang for the buck. You actually get much more than what you pay for. It is an absolute steal especially with lightning fast software upgrades and vanilla android. It is a flagship phone which is 10k - 17k cheaper.

Please let me know your views and doubts in the comments section.