Meet the LG G3

Say hello to the new flagship sporting a 2K display by LG

LG is taking steps in 2014 to be a more competitive Android player, and for the past several months we’ve seen the manufacturer preparing for a much earlier-in-the-year introduction for its latest Android heavyweight, the G3. 

HARDWARE

Striving to be ahead of its competition, the G3 features a 5.5-inch quad HD screen with 538 ppi. The phone runs a Snapdragon 801, and it turns out that confusion over its RAM configuration is with good reason: there will be two G3 variants, one with 2GB and one with 3GB. And while LG confirms microSD support, this time it mentions the sensible 128GB upper limit (based on available cards). As for internal storage, we’re again looking at two options, with either 16GB or 32GB.

The G3 gets a 13-megapixel main camera with optical stabilization, with a 2.1-megapixel front-facer. And just as the leaks (eventually) got to the bottom of, the primary camera is assisted by a laser auto-focus.
The handset measures 74.6 mm wide, 146.3 mm tall, and is just 8.9 mm thick. Its mass is 149 grams, and the phone packs a 3000mAh removable battery with a graphite cathode for extended life.

SOFTWARE

The software side of things we see the arrival of that flattened UI that’s been prominent in so many leaks, as well as learn about a few specific abilities. Those include things like LG’s Smart Keyboard that goes beyond learning your typing habits to offer handy customization, like an adjustable on-screen height. LG tackles the so-hot-right-now virtual assistant field with its Smart Notice service, which places an emphasis on using natural-sounding language as it delivers its reminders.

CAMERA

The phone’s camera also picks up some software tricks LG wanted to show off today. To complement that laser-assisted auto-focus (which can pull off focusing is a little as 276 milliseconds), the G3′s software will let you quickly grab shots, as tapping the screen will not just focus the camera, but simultaneously snap a pic, as well. OIS gets an upgrade from previous LG designs, now compensating for even rougher handling. Even the front-facer gets in on the fun, with a gesture-recognizing mode that allows you to set a short count-down timer by just forming a fist and releasing.

SPEAKERS

On the subject of audio performance, the powerful 1W speaker will be on the hardware front and the phone’s software performs dynamic microphone adjustments to keep recording levels within acceptable ranges even in noisy environments.

ACCESSORIES

On the accessory front, the QuickCircle covers is LG's take on the S View Cover, an a Tone Infinium Harman/Kardon Bluetooth headset . And with support for wireless charging, we’re also going to get an official G3 Qi charger. This will be made available by a replaceable back cover

Speaking about availability, LG says that its worldwide G3 rollout begins tomorrow, May 28, in South Korea. How quickly it will spread from there, and who will get the phone next, remains to be seen.


We have heard a few announcements from US carriers already: T-Mobile is opening pre-registration for the G3 now, with the phone itself arriving “later this summer.” T-Mobile’s G3, we can confirm, will be the 3GB model. AT&T has also expressed its intentions to carry the G3, but doesn’t offer anything more specific than that it will get the phone later this year. And while it’s no certainty, T-Mobile has a contest that’s giving away LG G3 “Beta models” through the end of June, so perhaps the phone’s formal availability will arrive in early July. And now the CDMA boys weigh in: Sprint gets the G3 “this summer,” and will have the US exclusive on the G3′s gold color option. Verizon also parrots this “summer” business while mentioning XLTE support. Still not a peep about pricing.

The Operating System

About the Operating System

The Operating system is a fundamental software of a computer, controlling all basic operations of the computer  The Operating System is the base on which the user installs and executes third-party applications (commonly called apps for short) usually adding extended functionality to the device.

Among the most popular computer operating systems are Microsoft's Windows and Windows Phone and Apple's Mac OS and iOS, Google's Android and Chrome OS and the various distributions of Linux kernal.

Among the most popular OS's for mobile devices are Apple's iOS and Google's Android and they are the only ones that still show growth. Down the ranks there are RIM's BlackBerry OS and Microsoft's Windows Phone. Symbian holds a distant place, when merely 5 years ago it was still the most widely used mobile OS.

Symbian held its top position for years but its market share has been slowly fading away ever since touch-operated smartphones became the norm and Symbian failed to deliver an intuitive touch UI. Almost ten years ago, Microsoft's Windows Mobile was a strong player too, offering the first touchscreen smartphone experience with the PocketPCs powered by their OS.

Today mobile devices with a proper OS are called smartphones and users have a wide choice of applications, such as games, productivity apps, communication or social media apps, digital maps, etc.

Standardized operating system platforms make it possible to provide a consistent user interface (and experience) across devices from different hardware manufacturers. Yet, Android smartphone manufacturers like to customize the user experience so each offers a slightly modified version of the stock Android UI.

While the major players these days are clear, over the years we've seen the emergence of numerous mobile OS projects including but not limited to LG's webOS, Tizen, BlackBerry's Playbook OS and more recently, the Jolla's Sailfish OS and Mozilla's Firefox OS.

Choosing the right operating system

Choosing the right OS is very important. It will decide the way you use your smartphone.

 1. Now, if you're the one who will walk into the store, buy a smartphone and use what's provided out of the box, Apple's iOS will suit you. iOS gained popularity for its simple and elegant user interface. The home screen (as simple as it can get) is a grid of horizontally scrollable app icons with a dock in the bottom to pin your frequently used apps. Also, if you own a Mac or you use iTunes, iOS will be perfect for you.

2. But, on the other hand, if you're the person who wants to personalize your phone to the fullest, have access to the widest range of applications or maybe you want a mobile device for development purposes, Google's Android will suit you. It offers customization that is second to none! It offers you with the widest range of devices with the most powerful hardware you can think of. It also gives importance to the user's choice. Don't like the way your homescreen looks? No problem! Just download a replacement from the Google Play Store. And it's not only about the home screen! It's about almost everything in the system software! Also, if you are a heavy Gmail user, your business uses Google Apps, you're into YouTube(ing) or you prefer Google Play Music/Movies/Newsstand/Keep, go for Android..... you won't regret it.

3. If you are more of the Microsoft guy, with your work email on Microsoft Exchange or you want stellar productivity of Microsoft Office on the go or if you simply love Microsoft's Modern User Interface, go for Microsoft Windows Phone. It's the most elegant & fluid operating system. Sporting a homescreen of vertically scrollable Live Tiles which are simply boxy icons which dynamically update on the go to provide you with live information. 

This is the second installation in the Inside your smartphone series. The first part about the Processor is right here.

The CPU / Processor in your smartphone.

A CPU (Central Processing Unit) - otherwise known as a processor - is an electronic circuit that executes computer programs. Both the miniaturization and standardization of CPUs have increased their presence far beyond the limited application of dedicated computing machines. Modern microprocessors appear in everything from automobiles to mobile phones.

The clock rate is one of the main characteristics of the CPU when performance is concerned. Clock rate is the fundamental rate in cycles per second (hertz, kilohertz, megahertz or gigahertz) for the frequency of the clock in any synchronous circuit. A single clock cycle (typically shorter than a nanosecond in modern non-embedded microprocessors) toggles between a logical zero and a logical one state.

With any particular CPU, replacing the crystal with another crystal that oscillates with twice the frequency will generally make the CPU run with twice the performance. It will also make the CPU produce roughly twice the amount of waste heat.

Engineers are working hard to push the boundaries of the current architectures and are constantly searching for new ways to design CPUs that tick a little quicker or use slightly less energy per clock. This produces new cooler CPUs that can run at higher clock rates. Scientists also continue to search for new designs that allow CPUs to run at the same or at a lower clock rate as older CPUs, but which get more instructions completed per clock cycle.

The clock rate of a processor is only useful for providing comparisons between computer chips in the same processor family and generation.

Now, clock rates can be very misleading since the amount of work different computer chips can do in one cycle varies. Clock rates should not be used when comparing different computers or different processor families. Rather, some kind of software benchmarks should be used.
Smartphones are equipped with more advanced embedded chipsets that can do many different tasks depending on their programming.

The performance of the CPU that's at the core of the chipset is vital for the daily user experience and the general computing performance of the smartphone. People tend to use the clock rate of the main CPU to compare the performance of competing end products. But as we already pointed out, the clock rate of a processor is only useful for providing performance comparisons between computer chips in the same processor family and generation. For all other purposes, it's best to use software benchmarks for determining comparative performance.

Now, the mobile market is being dominated by mobile processors by Quallcomm, Nvidia, Texas Instruments, MediaTek, Samsung, Apple etc.

All of these have their own strengths and weaknesses. Quallcomm's Krait Processor Cores are the most powerful on the market but they fall short to the Nvidia Tegra K1, which sports graphics as powerful as the PS3 & Xbox 360! MediaTek will be found on Chinese smartphones because of their low cost. Samsung and Apple use their chips on their own devices.  

The Apple A7 (iPhone 5 / iPad mini with retina display / iPad Air)

The TI OMAP 4470 (Google Galaxy Nexus / Google Glass / Kindle Fire HD)

A Quallcomm Snapdragon (Galaxy S5 / HTC One M8 / LG G2 Pro)

The Nvidia Tegra K1, with console graphics!

The Samsung Exynos 5 (S5, Note 3, S4)

Inside your smartphone (Introduction)

We live in an era where our gadgets are an integral part of our daily life. Metal versus plastic versus glass, mega-pixels, screen size, battery capacity, CPU cores, RAM, storage capacity, and more all get thrown around in advertisements and other places while trying to convince us their product is better than their competitor. Yes, we do agree that all those all important, but what do all the numbers really mean? and more importantly what do they translate into for the average Joe? 

So while checking out a smartphone to buy, you might encounter a table called it's specifications (like shown below).

Now, every week we will show you and teach you what every part of the smartphone does and what you should consider while buying a smartphone. Hang on tight to TheEverythingNow for this new article series coming soon!

Part 1: The Processor

Part 2: The Operating System

HTC announces the HTC One Mini 2

HTC just took the wraps off the One mini 2 a few days ago. The HTC One mini 2 features a 4.5" 720p display (326 ppi pixel density). The phone is now slightly larger than its predecessor at 137 x 65 x 10.6mm, but thanks to the altered curved design it feels just as nice in the hand. The phone weighs 137 grams and sports BoomSound dual front stereo speakers.

Powering this smartphone is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 comprising of  a 1.2GHz quad-core Cortex A7 CPU, 1GB of RAM and an Adreno 305 GPU. The storage is 16GB, this time expanded by an additional 128GB thanks to the microSD card slot. Surprisingly, the HTC One mini 2 marks a departure from HTC’s UltraPixel camera tech and comes with a more conventional 13MP camera with a BSI sensor and an f/2.2 lens. It is also capable of recording 1080p video. The 5MP camera at the front, it is capable of recording 1080p video.

The One mini 2 offers LTE connectivity as well as GPS and GLONASS, NFC, Bluetooth 4.0 (atpX enabled), dual-band Wi-Fi 802.1n and microUSB 2.0. HTC says the smartphone can last for 16 hours of 3G talk time on its 2,100 mAh battery.

There’s no information on pricing at this point, but the phone will launch in EMEA and North Asia in June in Gunmetal Gray, Glacial Silver and Amber Gold color options.

Meet the budget friendly Moto E smartphone

 Motorola’s latest budget phone the Moto E went official a few days ago. The budget phone is built around a 4.3” qHD display protected by Gorilla Glass 3. It's qHD resolution results in a pixel density of 256 ppi. Motorola says it has built the phone to last and as a result it is resistant to water splashes, like the Moto X and Moto G


Driving the Moto E is a Snapdragon 200 with a 1.2GHz dual-core Cortex A7 processor, with 1GB of RAM and 4GB of internal memory, of which just 2.21GB is available. Thankfully, it is expandable with up to 32GB microSD card. Launching with Android 4.4.2 KitKat, the company promises timely updates to future versions of Android, which is nice to hear for a phone of this budget. 

For connectivity, you’re covered with 3G, Wi-Fi 802.11n, Bluetooth, GPS and FM Radio. There’s a dual SIM variant of the phone (GSM + GSM). Camera maxes out at 5MP which is only capable of WVGA video, while under the back cover resides a 1,980mAh battery. Motorola says it’s capable of lasting through a whole day of constant usage. The smartphone measures 124.8 x 64.8 x 12.3mm and weighs 140g.

Motorola's latest smartphone launch has been in India, UK, Brazil, Mexico, Spain, Canada. Its estimated retail price is £89 or roughly €110.

In India the company has partnered with online store Flipkart, where the phone is now selling for INR 6999.
Only for today, the retailer is also offering Moto E covers with 50% off and free eBooks to go with the phone. Motorola Moto E is available in Black, Turquoise and Lemon color options. Motorola is also including 3 color covers to let you personalize your phone.

The iPhone 6's camera rumoured to have a 'Super Resolution' mode

 Ever since the launch of the iPhone 4, Apple has done a really great job in providing us with one of the best smartphone cameras in the industry. We’ve seen the company innovate with software solutions like HDR, and even some hardware solutions that provide us with decent low-light photos, without optical image stabilization. We’ve heard some interesting rumors of what to expect for the iPhone 6 camera, but some new patents today are even more revealing.

Apple has just filed a new patent for a new “super-resolution” mode that should be available to you, just like HDR currently is on any iPhone. It works in a similar way to how the Oppo Find 7 can take 50 megapixel shots, but this patent actually requires an optical image stabilization mechanism for this to work. It would take various photos from different offset angles, and then feed them to the image processor. The result is a much bigger photo, which would obviously seem much sharper on a smaller display.

Obviously when we see rumors of an iPhone 6 being as thin as Apple plans it to be, it’s hard to see this patent being launched in this year’s model. Still, it would be great if Apple figured this out just as well as it has figured out HDR or Panorama photos.

TechNow: The Nokia XL is now available in Asia

While the Nokia X is easily the Android most associated with Nokia’s recent experimentation with the platform, its sibling devices, the Nokia X+ and XL, are the more heavyweight options. The X+ boosts available RAM and throws in a microSD card, while XL does all that while also upgrading to a five-inch screen, increasing main camera resolution to 5MP, and adding a front-facer, which the other two lack altogether. The Nokia X has already hit the scene, but now Nokia is easing its way into availability for the rest, and today we learn about the start of sales for the Nokia XL.

Sales of the XL are now open in Asia-Pacific and India, Middle East, and Africa regions. Like the other X family members, the XL supports dual-SIM operation and is available in a good half-dozen color options.

While the XL is still a very low-priced model, it doesn’t come in quite as affordably as the X itself (all those upgrades ain’t free), and while the price will vary based on market, look for it to be in the $130-150 range. For a five-inch smartphone (even if it is one with just a WVGA resolution), that’s not half bad.

The Nokia XL may come with Nokia’s own forked version of Android, but with a little effort, the same techniques that help turn the Nokia X into a more traditional-looking Android handset should be applicable to the XL, just in case you choose to go that route.

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TechNow: Apple to acquire Beats for $3.2 billion

Apple got into music at an early age with iTunes, but lately the trend has been shifting toward streaming music services. What can do about that? Perhaps buying Beats Electronics may be just the thing. According to a new report from The Financial Times, Apple is in talk with Beats Electronics to allegedly purchase it for $3.2 billion, making the possible deal quite high profile.

According to people reportedly familiar with the negotiations, news on it could break at some point next week, though talks are not final.

Apple will apparently grab both Beats’s audio hardware business, and relatively new streaming-music service, with the top dogs from the audio company reporting straight to Apple’s Chief Executive Officer, Tim Cook.

The likely reason for Apple’s interest in spending this cool sum is to regain interest in their music platform, as it tries to upgrade marketing and products to keep customers. Also, a streaming-music service would likely turn into a powerful asset for Apple’s iTunes, which has yet to announce any products with that kind of pricing structure.

If this turns out to be correct, this will be Apple’s largest acquisition ever. Some may argue that the audio company may not be worth the price, as it is not valued anywhere near Apple’s $3.2 billion offer, but Apple may see great opportunity in the purchase. Needless to say, we are interested in how Apple acquiring Beats will play out.

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TechNow: It's official! People do less talking and more internet on their phones!

It’s no secret that data usage in smartphones has been increasing exponentially over the years. There have been predictions for a long time now that people would eventually be using their smartphones less for talking and more for messaging, web browsing, gaming, and other functions.

Well it seems that the decline of mobile voice usage on cell phones has finally occurred, according to Akamai’s State of the Internet Q4 2013 report.

In the report, Akamai measured traffic on 2G, 3G, and 4G bandwidths. The study shows that data traffic grew 15% between Q3 and Q4 of 2013; a staggering number considering that it happened only in a matter of three months.

“The number of mobile data subscriptions is increasing rapidly, and driving growth in data traffic along with a continuous increase in the average data volume per subscription.”

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TechNow: The HTC One Prime / Max leaks, a QHD display in tow!

The first rumor of the upcoming HTC One (M8) Prime has hit the web. Fortunately, unlike last year's HTC One Max, this year's model will upgrade the specifications of the phone rather than making it a blown up version of the flagship.  

More specifically, the screen size is going to be 5.5" and the QHD resolution means the pixel density will be the cool 534 ppi. Under the hood of the phone is reportedly going to be a beastly Snapdragon 805 APQ8084 SoC with a quad-core Krait CPU, 3GB of RAM and 16GB of storage.
According to the specs source, who is claimed to be reliable in the past by the Japanese blog that cites it, the One (M8) Prime would feature Qualcomm’s latest MDM9x35 multimode modem. In addition to its 300Mbps downlink, it is capable of superior carrier aggregation - 40 MHz for FDD Category 6 and LTE TDD.
Additionally, the rumor suggests that HTC would continue to use its dual-camera setup found on the One (M8) in the Prime, too. The main snapper will be allegedly have an 18MP sensor and there will be an 5MP camera on top of it for depth and better out-of-focus shots.
The phone is speculated to become official in September. Currently, the specifications are based on a prototype unit that HTC is testing out. We're yet to see what the Prime would actually look like.

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TechNow: Sony announces the non-waterproof version of the Xperia Z2, the Xperia ZL2

The Sony Xperia ZL2 is now official in Japan. This is the second generation of the phone and just like the first one, it's a version of the current flagship with much slimmer bezels and smaller footprint.
The phone carries the 5" 1080p display from the original ZL complete with the Sony Mobile BRAVIA Engine 2 and X-Reality engine.

Under the hood, there's a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 MSM8974AB chipset with a 2.3GHz quad-core processor and 3GB of RAM. Internal storage is 32GB and a microSD card slot completes it with support of up to 128GB additional storage. The ZL2 runs Android 4.4 KitKat with Sony's Xperia UI on top.

Surprisingly, the Sony Xperia ZL2 is a bit larger than its predecessor. Measuring 137 x 72 x 10.8mm (compared to 131.6 x 69.3 x 9.8 mm of the Xperia ZL). The smartphone is also 16 g heavier, tipping the scales at 167 g.
At the back of the Xperia ZL2 we find the same 20.7MP shooter as in the Xperia Z2. It's capable of recording 4K video (3,840 x 2,160) and still of up to 5,248 x 3,936 pixel resolution. The battery is a 3000mAh Li-Ion non-user-removable unit.

The connectivity front is chock-full with options such as the latest Wi-Fi 802.11 ac, Bluetooth 4.0 and NFC.
Check out the promo video Sony has put up for the Xperia ZL2 below.

The Xperia ZL2 is available in the standard black and white colors as well as a turquoise one, if you want to stand up from the crowd. The phone will soon launch in Japan, and we presume a worldwide premiere isn't too far away.

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TechNow: Apple discontinues the iPhone 4 in India (again)

Times of India brought news that Apple is resurrecting the iPhone 4 earlier this year and now it brings news of its demise. One of the three leading Apple partners in the country said that the older model helped Apple doubled the user base.

That partner and two others reported that Apple will not be providing new supplies of the old model. The iPhone 4 will reportedly be discontinued in other regions where it was still available.
Apple's two budget models (the 4 and 4s rather than the 5c) helped the company reach record sales in India, China, Russia and Brazil. The iPhone 4 served as an "ugly duckling" to make the 4s look better. Apple launched a buyback program that offered INR 7,500 back, which reduced the price gap between the iPhone 4 and 4s to just INR 3,000.
That buyback program is now over as the iPhone 4s becomes the new budget offering.

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TechNow: LG announces an LG G3 variant, the Isai FL

LG unveiled the long-awaited LG G3, well, sort of. It's called the LG Isai FL and is everything the LG G3 was rumored to be, except exclusive to KDDI Japan. It's the successor of the G2-based Isai and packs a massive 5.5" QHD screen with super thin bezels.

The new design is water resistant, though the exact IP certification number wasn’t given. The whole device measures 145 x 76 x 10.5mm and weighs 160g. The back is an updated version of the G2 design with a volume rocker down the middle.


The LG Isai bumps the display resolution to QHD. That's 2,560 x 1,440 pixels (4 times HD), making for an stellar 538ppi pixel density. It also jumps to a Snapdragon 801 MSM8975AC chipset (quad Krait 400, Adreno 330), but leaves the RAM at the same 2GB.

The new processing power also enables 4K video recording (3,840 x 2,160 pixels) with the 13MP camera. We can't find a mention of optical stabilization in the Japanese press release.

The LG Isai FL will run Android 4.4.2 at launch but the UI seems different from the leaks, which we'll chalk off to carrier intervention. It does feature LG's new Knock Code. The phone has a microSD card slot for expanding the 32GB of built-in memory.


On the connectivity side, there's LTE-Advanced (150Mbps down, 50Mbps up) plus regional tech like WiMAX 2+, Seg and Fullseg. The common Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC and an IR blaster are present and accounted for. The battery has remained unchanged at 3,000mAh.
The LG Isai FL will be available in White, Blue and Pink.

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TechNow: Pantech Vega Iron2 announced

Pantech officially announced the Vega Iron2 smartphone in South Korea. The LTE-A sporting device will be available in its home market, South Korea later this month.It will be available in black or white color scheme. Its design features a metal frame which will be available in a number of different colors. 

Coming to specs, the Pantech Vega Iron2 will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 SoC consisting of a 2.3GHz quad-core CPU – contrary to the  previously rumored  Snapdragon 805. RAM and built-in memory are 3GB and 32GB respectively. The smartphone will run Android 4.4.2 KitKat.

The rest the device’s specs include 5.3” 1080p AMOLED display, 13MP camera with optical image stabilization which is also capable of capturing 4K video, and 2.1MP front-facing unit.

Physical measures of the Vega Iron2 are 144.2 x 73.5 x 7.9mm, while its weighs 152 grams, despite the beefy 3,220 mAh battery is packs inside.

International availability of the Pantech Vega Iron2 has not been announced. Considering the fact that its predecessor didn’t make it out of Korea, we reckon that it is not likely.

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TechNow: Apple and Samsung leading the mobile space, with 106% of combined industry profits

Apple is the most profitable smartphone manufacturer in the business right now, with 65% of industry share, which is followed by Samsung with a 41% share.

All the other contestants in the smartphone game either had a negative share or essentially broke even with their respective businesses.

Nokia was in the worst shape, accounting for -3% of industry profits. Others like HTC, Sony, and LG all broke even, while Motorola and Blackberry fared slightly worse a -1% a piece.

This means that over 100% of all smartphone industry profits are comprised of Apple and Samsung sales. Apple has seen an increase in industry profit shares from last year: the Cupertino-based tech giant jumped up from 57%. Samsung on the other hand, declined by 2%.

The data was collected by Canaccord Genuity, but doesn’t factor in Chinese manufacturers into the mix. But this is due to a lack of credible profit estimates for these other companies.

"Given the current competitive dynamics, we believe Apple and Samsung will maintain dominant value share during 2014," Canaccord Analyst Michael Walkley said. "With BlackBerry struggling and Microsoft purchasing dominant Windows Phone OEM Nokia, we believe Chinese OEMs with strong Android portfolios will likely emerge as stronger long-term competitors to Apple and Samsung."

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