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EEK! There's a monster coming straight for us... and its called the Optimus G Pro

Engadget: LG Optimus G Pro coming to AT&T on May 10th
Not only does it have a removable battery and SD card slot (same as the Galaxy S4)... but it also has:
- IPS LCD display for better sunlight visibility than AMOLED
- 32 gb of internal memory standard for the lowest model
- A programmable "q button" that allows you to map any function you want to have happen when you press it
And of course all the basics of a high end superphone nowadays
- 5.5 inch 1080p display
- 3140 mAh battery
- Snapdragon 600
- 13 mp camera
- IR Blaster
- 2gb RAM
- LTE
Here's a video I found from ATT :
#%&! ... I'm not sure which one to order now

ap3604 said:
Engadget: LG Optimus G Pro coming to AT&T on May 10th
Not only does it have a removable battery and SD card slot (same as the Galaxy S4)... but it also has:
- IPS LCD display for better sunlight visibility than AMOLED
- 32 gb of internal memory standard for the lowest model
- 5.5 inch 1080p display
- 3140 mAh battery
- 13 mp camera
#%&! ... I'm not sure which one to order now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Techradar did a feature on it and found it to be a bit of a tacky version of the note.
Concerning IPS, I much prefer amoled now that it's avialable with more accurate colours. Before, IPS had the advantage but now the colour accuracy on the galaxies (e.g.movie mode) is good enough. Combine that with the beautifully inky blacks, and I never want another IPS display again. (except the one on my macbook

Except the rip off design and the lack of Spen on that big screen, anything on Optimus G Pro is great.
______________
Edit: Oh, I forgot about the horrible update from LG

Personally, I won't go anywhere near LG devices unless it's Nexus to be honest. And it's a competitor to Note II (or rather Note III) than S4.

tuxonhtc said:
And it's a competitor to Note II (or rather Note III) than S4.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I personally don't care what someone says its a competitor for.
With those specs it's simply a competitor for best phone of early 2013, which is what I care about.

ap3604 said:
I personally don't care what someone says its a competitor for.
With those specs it's simply a competitor for best phone of early 2013, which is what I care about.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Jesus Christ it's a 5.5'' phone, hence it's a competitor for the "phablet" (hate the term, but whatever) category rather than ordinary smartphone. Hence my comment.

tuxonhtc said:
Jesus Christ it's a 5.5'' phone, hence it's a competitor for the "phablet" (hate the term, but whatever) category rather than ordinary smartphone. Hence my comment.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Jesus Christ all flagship phone screens are starting to be at least 5+ inches anyways, hence every smartphone is turning into a "phablet" (I hate the term too). So no, it simply is competing with all the other giants of 2013... including the Galaxy S 4.

ap3604 said:
Jesus Christ all flagship phone screens are starting to be at least 5+ inches anyways, hence every smartphone is turning into a "phablet" (I hate the term too). So no, it simply is competing with all the other giants of 2013... including the Galaxy S 4.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not really. they have 5.5'' screen and the flagships are </=5 inch. Big difference. The target audiences are different. Anywho, whatever.

LG is mostly known to be great regarding its swift updating policy

gee2012 said:
LG is mostly known to be great regarding its swift updating policy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see what you did there...
As for the android version, it comes with 4.1.2 and while I'm sure both Samsung and LG are going to make it a point to try and update handsets to the latest android versions... I really don't care as that's the whole reason I come on xda anyways (so I don't have to rely on the manufacturer for updates)

i'll be sticking with the s4.
thinner, lighter, still an enourmous battery. dont need all that size in the screen.. although the LCD would be an upgrade if u ask me. AMOLED is nice, but i prefer the brightness for sun viewing.

Don't get neurotic about having the absolute "best" phone, ferchrissakes. Guess what? That bling new piece of latest and greatest shiny you just plunked down your cash for? It's always going to be second best in a few months. Use your device and enjoy it, and maybe learn to not give a rat's ass if it isn't the absolute newest on your block.

burhanistan said:
Don't get neurotic about having the absolute "best" phone, ferchrissakes. Guess what? That bling new piece of latest and greatest shiny you just plunked down your cash for? It's always going to be second best in a few months. Use your device and enjoy it, and maybe learn to not give a rat's ass if it isn't the absolute newest on your block.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed.
I'd actually go one further and say the tell-tale sign that you're 'with' the right device is that you're NOT that desperate to upgrade as soon as something new comes out. During my iphone-phase I was always excited when the new model came out - I know now it was partly due to the marketing and partly because I was never completely happy with them.
Even when better phones than the gs3 were coming out I was happy sticking with it until an upgrade that REALLY appealed to me came along (s4).

fade2green514 said:
... although the LCD would be an upgrade if u ask me. AMOLED is nice, but i prefer the brightness for sun viewing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a preference for LCD over AMOLED as well (although both can be great). The outdoor visibility is a big deal for me so I'm not sure which one to get
Also the 32 gb of internal memory on the standard lowest $199 w/ 2-yr contract model isn't too shabby
burhanistan said:
Don't get neurotic about having the absolute "best" phone, ferchrissakes. Guess what? That bling new piece of latest and greatest shiny you just plunked down your cash for? It's always going to be second best in a few months. Use your device and enjoy it, and maybe learn to not give a rat's ass if it isn't the absolute newest on your block.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have an upgrade coming up so of course I'm going to chose the best phone for me at the time.
1) Removable battery
2) Outdoor screen visibility
Those are the top 2 features I'm looking for in my next phone and I'm not sure which phone to go with yet (LG Optimus Pro or Galaxy S4).

tuxonhtc said:
Not really. they have 5.5'' screen and the flagships are </=5 inch. Big difference. The target audiences are different. Anywho, whatever.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. It's so cool that Samsung was able to push the max screen size to 5" in basically the same package as the SIII. But the jump to a 5.5" screen is a big overall package jump. To me, that's just no longer a phone, but falls firmly in the phablet market.
Not putting down the phone, or what features are important to individual buyers. But it's not in the same place in the market as an S3/S4, HTC One is, IMO.

The Optimus G Pro is competition for the Note series, not the S series.

ap3604 said:
I have an upgrade coming up so of course I'm going to chose the best phone for me at the time.
1) Removable battery
2) Outdoor screen visibility
Those are the top 2 features I'm looking for in my next phone and I'm not sure which phone to go with yet (LG Optimus Pro or Galaxy S4).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What makes you think that Optimus G Pro has better outdoor visibility? S4 has great outdoor visibility from what I gather. And even Note II scores better than G Pro when it comes to outdoor visibility. Although Note II isn't bad when it comes to outdoor visibility, S4 kicks Note II up the butt and is just marginally worse than the One. Brightness is not the only thing that's a decisive factor in outdoor visibility.
Here's the outdoor visibility chart:
http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s4-review-914p3.php

ap3604 said:
Jesus Christ all flagship phone screens are starting to be at least 5+ inches anyways, hence every smartphone is turning into a "phablet" (I hate the term too). So no, it simply is competing with all the other giants of 2013... including the Galaxy S 4.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
competing by the specs yes
by the sales heck no
by the updates ultimate no

fade2green514 said:
i'll be sticking with the s4.
thinner, lighter, still an enourmous battery. dont need all that size in the screen.. although the LCD would be an upgrade if u ask me. AMOLED is nice, but i prefer the brightness for sun viewing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Again, brightness is ONE of the factors that helps in outdoor visibility. AMOLEDs have higher contrast ratios, so despite much lower brightness, it can still have good sunlight visibility. Not HTC One good obviously, but still good.
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tuxonhtc said:
Again, brightness is ONE of the factors that helps in outdoor visibility. AMOLEDs have higher contrast ratios, so despite much lower brightness, it can still have good sunlight visibility. Not HTC One good obviously, but still good.
[/IMG]
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well this is good news, i'll have to take a look at it when i get it. DAMN SUN! lol
oh and +1 thanks!

OnePlus One 64GB Sandstone Black Global version - Review

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OnePlus One – Review
The OnePlus One is without a doubt one of the most anticipated mobile devices of 2014, thanks in part to it’s awesome hype campaign. Despite over promising and under delivering in regards to availability the device is still very sought after. When you look at the fact that OnePlus are a startup company (yes, with some help from Oppo), it really is amazing the amount of attention they garnered.
So after much waiting I finally have a OnePlus One in my possession. Will it live up to it’s hype or fall flat on it’s face? Let’s have a look at the device and see what it can do.
Unboxing
I received my invite and was informed I had 24 hours to use it or it would be gone. Needless to say, I used it as soon as I got home. Ordering from the site was easy but to my dismay the only shipping option was DHL. Sure DHL are fast, but I always get rather large additional charges from them. With no other choice I put the order through knowing that it would arrive with money owing to the carrier.
Just as expected the device arrived within several days as it shipped out of California and arrived in Canada. Also as expected there was money owing. $61 to be exact. Keep in mind that this is on top of the almost $30 I paid for DHL shipping. So realistically my $349 flagship killer had jumped to almost $449. Still a good deal? Keep reading to find out.
The parcel was in a simple thin bubble wrap envelope. Luckily the actual box and packaging on OnePlus’ part is solid so the device arrived in mint condition. When I opened the box I noticed that they had not cheaped out on the appearance and the presentation gives you the feeling of a quality company and device. The wall charger came boxed separately to ensure you recieve the proper one for your region. In side was the device, a micro USB cable, instructions and a SIM tool. Also included was a wall charger but like I mention that had it’s own box.
So far so good.
You can check out the unboxing video here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xg9H5daxRpc
Specs
5.5″ 1920 x1080 display with 401 ppi and Gorilla Glass 3
Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 clocked at 2.5 Ghz
3GB of RAM
64GB storage
3100 mAh battery
5 MP front and 13 MP rear camera
LTE
Android 4.4.2 via Cyanogenmod 11S
Check out the full video review here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbExjYSpKIY
Physical features
The OnePlus One measures 152.9 x 75.9 x 8.9 mm and weights 162g. Despite the 8.9mm thickness the nice contour on the back of the device make it very comfortable and feel much thinner than it actually is. It’s also worth noting that the back is textured and gives it a nice slightly granular feel.
On the bottom of the phone is the micro USB port and speakers.
On the left is the volume rocker and SIM slot (It’s a micro SIM).
The right hand side has the power button.
The top has the 3.5mm headphone jack.
The front facing camera is on the top left of the device.
The rear camera and dual LED flash is located on the top center.
Impressed so far? I am, let’s turn it on.
Display
The OnePlus One carries the typical 2014 Chinese flagship display size of 5.5 inches. The display is 1080p with a 401 ppi and is very crisp. I can’t really complain about anything in regards to the screen. It’s bright, clear, crisp, responsive and solid. Many early customers were complaining about yellowing on the display, I can say my device did not have any of those issues. Either it was just a small number of devices or they fixed it. +1 for the One.
Software
The OnePlus One being sold outside of China is running Cyanogenmod 11s which is based on Android 4.4.2 KitKat and was designed specifically for the device. It retains enough of a stock feel that users won’t feel completely lost but does have customization available. Themes, font, icons etc are all interchangeable, some for free, some for a cost. Everything runs buttery smooth with no real lags, no freezing, and thus no need to change out the launcher unless you simply want to. All apps I tried were compatible and it is important to note that Google apps including the Play Store were already loaded on the phone.
The only thing I didn’t like was the base layout and method of customizing the pulldown menu for quick access to things like wi-fi, bluetooth,gps, etc. It didn’t have all the standard icons available and was overly complicated to adjust.
The boot time was an average 28 seconds.
Wi-Fi
I have recently moved so the layout of my testing grounds has also changed. Where I use to have a main floor, an upstairs, and a basement, I now have just a main floor and basement but they larger. I mention this just in case you are comparing these results to ones from my previous reviews as they will differ.
The OnePlus One has 5 Ghz and 2.4 Ghz Wi-Fi so I tested both.
5 Ghz
Router (basement) = 82.61 mbps
Main floor =38.55 mbps (I got to the halfway point of this level and the signal went from around 40mbps to no signal within a couple of feet. This was at one level up and 24 feet from the router.
2.4 Ghz
Router = 47.84 mbps
Main floor = 16.31 mbps at the furthest point of this level, which is one level up and about 48 feet from the router.
Even at the furthest point of the house the OnePlus One had fast enough 2.4 Ghz Wi-Fi for any streaming and or browsing I needed.
Good Wi-Fi results.
Call Quality
The OnePlus One did a very good job with the calls I made. Volume was good on both ends as was the clarity. If you are a talker, you shouldn’t have any issues with what the OnePlus One sounds like.
Speakers
The speakers are located on the bottom of the device as opposed to the back which many companies seem to favor. In general the bottom location is much better because the speaker doesn’t get muffled if you put the phone down on a surface. The only time it ends up being a hindrance is if you play a lot of video games. Then it can easily be muffled by your hand when holding the phone sideways. So it really does depend on how you use your phone.
Location aside, the sound that comes from the OnePlus One is very nice. It’s loud, and capable of impressive sounds in all scenario’s, whether it’s video games, hard rock, dance, dialogue in movies or special effects in movies, it sounds great. It was definitely more than what I was expecting.
Video Playback
I tested the phone using the stock video player as well as VLC. Video playback was fantastic regardless of format. In addition to the SD video’s, and online media, I tested it with some HD movies in various formats and all played equally well. If you like to watch media on your phone, the smooth playback, beautiful screen, and clear speaker quality will certainly impress.
Web Browsing
Stable ROM, 2.5 Ghz Snapdragon 801, and 3 GB of RAM… you can see were this is going. Web browsing, even with multiple windows open is a breeze for this handset. As would be expected, browsing is awesome on the phone. All actions respond quickly, pages load within a short period of time, and the overall feel is snappy.
Cameras
The OnePlus One has a 5MP front camera and a 13MP Sony IMX 214 that promises to give us some pretty good photography for a phone. The 6 lens optics and f/2.0 aperture make it a standout in todays market.
The front facing camera is crisp and perfect for video calls and those that love the selphie. The rear Sony camera doesn’t disappoint and delivers far above average shots. Regardless of environment the camera was consistent and delivered good pictures. The dual LED flash works well and buyers shouldn’t have any fear of low lighting situations. Are there phones that do photography better than the OnePlus One. Certainly. But the One can hold its own with the upper part of the market.
GPS
The GPS on the device is fantastic. The first lock was done outdoors in airplane mode and took less than 5 seconds. Locks after that where almost instant. I tested the handset with Navfree that doesn’t use data and with Google Maps and Waze that use data to assist. In both scenarios the GPS was flawless and quick to adapt. One of the better GPS’ I have used recently.
Benchmarks
With a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 and 3 GB of RAM I think it’s safe to say that most people would expect the phone to score well. The question is “How well?”
Let’s take a look at the results.
Antutu
38,823
That’s enough to take out the best of the best.
Nenamark 2
61.4 fps
CPU Prime
7259
Vellamo
Vellamo has changed recently, and have added a multicore test into the mix.
Metal
1719
Multicore
1864
Chrome Browser
2772
As you can see the OnePlus One holds it’s own and slightly edges out the best phones on the market in the overall picture.
Battery
The battery was my only area of real concern. I know that a 3100 mAh battery was included, but would it play nicely with the ROM and actually last. I put the OnePlus One on auto brightness and used VLC to test the phone on a video loop. The phone lasted a staggering 10.5 hours!
The lower end of the battery actually runs down very smoothly and slower than the top part. I was left with 3% on the phone and am certain it could have lasted another 15 minutes of playback.
Very nice results.
Gaming
I’ve used Qualcomm 800 processors in the past and know they do very well with gaming thanks to the Adreno 330 GPU. The Snapdragon 801 is no exception and the handset played everything very well. Crisp, smooth gameplay with max resolution settings. Add in the beautiful screen and great speakers and you have a winning combo. The only thing I want to mention is the location of the speakers. While great for music and media, having them located on the bottom of the device does make it much easier to muffle them with your hand while playing games that require the screen to be held sideways. Can you work around it? Sure. It’s just your hand location is the last thing on your mind while you are being horded by a half dozen zombies and you are fighting for your life….or something like that.
Final thoughts
Pro’s
Comfortable, stylish design
Nice screen
GPS works well
Cameras are very good
Cyanogenmod 11s is stable and customizable with Google Play Store already installed
Plays media and games with ease
Powerhouse device that doesn’t drain the battery
4G
Con’s
Hard to get an invite
Shipping is expensive due to additional fee’s
Non -removable battery
No expansion slot so make sure you get the model that truly has the storage you need
Wow….this device really delivers. Even with the extra shipping costs the phone is still almost half the price of it’s rivals. Considering this is the first phone from a startup company, I’m really interested in seeing what they release next. With all the hype I was waiting for the phone to fall flat on it’s face and really under perform. That did not happen at all.
Are there better devices on the market right now? I believe so, but they aren’t much better. You just need to decide if they are worth double to cost.

VIVO PD1305 - News & Updates

I think I might be in love: http://www.phonearena.com/news/VIVO...ay-3500-mAh-battery-and-an-OIS-camera_id62550
If you are looking for cutting edge specifications, look no further than Chinese hardware manufacturers. They pump out premium devices better than any other region. Most recently leaked PD1305 from VIVO is lining up to be an absolute beast. Here is a rundown of the leaked specs sheet I gathered from different sources:
6-inch IPS display with 2560×1440 resolution and 490ppi
5.68mm (0.22") thin
162g (5.71 ounces) weight
Snapdragon 805 processor with 3GB of RAM
32GB of internal storage with a microSD card slot that goes up to 128GB
13MP rear camera with optical image stabilization (OIS) and dual-LED flash, 8MP front camera with 88-degree wide view lens
Dedicated ES9018 and OPA2604 audio chips
Heart rate monitor and a fingerprint trace the source function
3500mAh battery
Android 4.4.4 KitKat covered by Vivo’s Funtouch 2.0 software
Lets use this thread for posting any new info you may find about this device.
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What are the chances it gets an AOSP rom?

bengadget said:
What are the chances it gets an AOSP rom?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let's not put the carriage before the horse, lol. It's not even released yet - this is just a leaked specs sheet. Final device might be different and we don't even know what markets VIVO will release it to, and you're talking about specific firmware

I've just been reading up on this device too.
What I can't understand is why Google (or any other manufacturer for that matter) DON'T release a phone with the same (or higher) specs. Google is a giant, so is Samsung. They sell more phones and have more reach than Vivo, so why can't there latest devices match Vivo?
In my opinion this new phone should have been the Nexus 6 - well, the Nexus 6 should have had those specs. Super thin. Bigger battery. Much bigger front camera with flash and much wider rear camera (with higher MP). FP scanner. Dedicated audio chipsets. This should've been the Nexus 6, so why wasn't it? Google could have kept the exact same price but actually given us premium specs, not the sub-par specs on the Nexus 6 (yes I said it, the N6 specs are not premium if phones like this Vivo exist/are about to enter the market).
I would buy this Vivo in a heartbeat if I can confirm these things:
- Does it have buttons on the screen? I hate that - I love how Nexus phones have zero buttons on the face of the device.
- Can I install Vanilla android and make this phone function as a vanilla phone - aka Nexus?
- Is the screen used on this phone actually any good. Sure, QHD sounds great but the quality of the screen needs to be comparable to the Note 4/iPhone 6+ to make me consider it.
- Are the cameras of top quality? On paper they READ fantastic, but how do they really perform?
If these four questions get solid answers then this phone would be perfect for me and I'm sure that if this phone was released with vanilla android running, it would knock the Nexus and Galaxy phones out of the park. Not to mention that it is about $300 AUD cheaper than the Nexus 6. A no brainer. Great specs and value.

Specs are great the only thing the article doesnt mention is LTE support in north America?
Without that its a paper weight despite the fact that everything else is amazing.
This is the big issue with alot of chinese phones...lack of LTE support although that does appear to be changing.
sent from Canada my Note 4, 3, 2 or One X+

force70 said:
Specs are great the only thing the article doesnt mention is LTE support in north America?
Without that its a paper weight despite the fact that everything else is amazing.
This is the big issue with alot of chinese phones...lack of LTE support although that does appear to be changing.
sent from Canada my Note 4, 3, 2 or One X+
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It should have LTE support as I've read a few things which claim that it will. As long as it supports 700MHZ '4GX' (Telstra) then that would be fantastic.
Also hope the device doesnt look like the picture in the first post.

force70 said:
Specs are great the only thing the article doesnt mention is LTE support in north America?
Without that its a paper weight despite the fact that everything else is amazing.
This is the big issue with alot of chinese phones...lack of LTE support although that does appear to be changing.
sent from Canada my Note 4, 3, 2 or One X+
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your question is purely a software issue. This device has Qualcomm's Snapdragon 805 in it and Qualcomm's chips started supporting worldwide LTE since Snapdragon 801 - all 41 LTE bands. What bands are enabled in the firmware to use is purely a software question, and there is plenty of devs and dev teams like Cyanogen, who can enable additional LTE bands and write their own drivers, since KitKat sources are available.

spartanm99 said:
IWhat I can't understand is why Google (or any other manufacturer for that matter) DON'T release a phone with the same (or higher) specs. Google is a giant, so is Samsung. They sell more phones and have more reach than Vivo, so why can't there latest devices match Vivo?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's all part of the plan. Giants like Samsung already have the technology for stuff like the GS6, Note 5, etc. They're not "working on it", it's all ready to go. Component manufacturers like Qualcomm have their next (and next) gen stuff ready too. They're just sitting on it. Apple is the worst with this. I'm not saying this to start a flame war, I'm just talking facts.
Why just sit on it?
To leave you hungry for the next thing. Take Apple for example. When the iPhone 4S came out, Verizon and AT&T were rolling out LTE. What did the iPhone 4S have? HSPA 14.4Mb/s. Faster than the 7.2Mb/s that the iPhone 4 had, sure, but it wasn't LTE. It wasn't until the iPhone 5 came out that they had LTE. Why? So they can say that the iPhone 5 is faster than the 4 and 4S. Why did they sit on LTE? To sell more iPhones. Another example is the iPad Mini. The first Mini had a low res screen with a pitiful 162ppi. Half a year after the iPad 3 came out with a "retina" display. It wasn't until a year later the Mini 2 had a display that was decent. Why sit on the tech? To make people who like their iPad Mini to want to buy an iPad Mini 2.
Giants like Samsung and Apple can continue this strategy because it works for them, and it works for them because they have an established customer base, and an established potential customer base. Often I've heard people say that they're sick of their current phone, and they want to get the new Galaxy S whatever, or that they never switched from Samsung. And Apple fans are pretty dang loyal. Other companies have to pull out all the stops in order to compete. Samsung and Apple don't have to, because people are going to buy their phones anyway.

Planterz said:
It's all part of the plan. Giants like Samsung already have the technology for stuff like the GS6, Note 5, etc. They're not "working on it", it's all ready to go. Component manufacturers like Qualcomm have their next (and next) gen stuff ready too. They're just sitting on it. Apple is the worst with this. I'm not saying this to start a flame war, I'm just talking facts.
Why just sit on it?
To leave you hungry for the next thing. Take Apple for example. When the iPhone 4S came out, Verizon and AT&T were rolling out LTE. What did the iPhone 4S have? HSPA 14.4Mb/s. Faster than the 7.2Mb/s that the iPhone 4 had, sure, but it wasn't LTE. It wasn't until the iPhone 5 came out that they had LTE. Why? So they can say that the iPhone 5 is faster than the 4 and 4S. Why did they sit on LTE? To sell more iPhones. Another example is the iPad Mini. The first Mini had a low res screen with a pitiful 162ppi. Half a year after the iPad 3 came out with a "retina" display. It wasn't until a year later the Mini 2 had a display that was decent. Why sit on the tech? To make people who like their iPad Mini to want to buy an iPad Mini 2.
Giants like Samsung and Apple can continue this strategy because it works for them, and it works for them because they have an established customer base, and an established potential customer base. Often I've heard people say that they're sick of their current phone, and they want to get the new Galaxy S whatever, or that they never switched from Samsung. And Apple fans are pretty dang loyal. Other companies have to pull out all the stops in order to compete. Samsung and Apple don't have to, because people are going to buy their phones anyway.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for this answer; I feel like I already knew it but was in a bit of denial about it. These Chinese phones have amazing specs. If they release it as I said above without capacitive buttons on the front of the device, I will buy it and do everything I can to install vanilla Android to turn it into a 'nexus' phone.
I guess my little voice wont change much in the grand scheme of things but it is terrible that we have to pay (in my case) $960+ for a Nexus 6 with worse specifications than this Chinese phone which will cost me (delivered) about $450 to $510. Anyone that calls Apple/Samsung/Nexus etc phones 'top-of-the-line' must be kidding themselves; anyone that says they are good value is joking in my opinion.
For the record the Galaxy S6 will probably still have a worse front facing camera, speakers and be thicker than this upcoming Vivo smartphone. Sad, but probably true. Such is the Western world in which we live.

Some actual pictures of the phone leaked today

That looks awesome, if it's real and I can get one in the UK somehow, I will deffinitely get one over the Note 4!
The rendered one looks impossible to make a phone that slim (and is different to the one in the other photo). Found some more actual pictures of what may or may not be the Xplay 5S on GSMArena but can't post because I am a new user.

Your pictures dont show front facing buttons and look super thin.
The real world leaked pictures look much thicker (still thin, though) with front facing buttons.
I will get this if it doesn't have front facing buttons and all the specs line up.
You can see the pictures I'm talking about here: http://www.phonearena.com/news/Vivos-future-powerhouse--the-Xplay-5S--poses-for-the-camera_id62679
According to this site and some others, the phone will use the Snapdragon 810 processor.
http://www.trustedreviews.com/news/vivo-xplay-5-could-be-first-snapdragon-810-powered-device
I need to see this phone before I believe it but as I said above - no front facing buttons & all the specs line up, I will get it and find a way for someone to install stock android on it.

Read on another blog the phone will have sapphire screen and will have better build quality than Oppo phones
http://chinandroidphone.com/vivo-xplay-next-premiere-fuite/

Question S21+ vs Note 10+

Torn between S21+ and Note 10+. Watched Youtube videos and found nearly all the videos and the follow-up comments were one-sided: Note 10+ is better than S21+. Considering Note 10+ was 1.5 years older than S21+, it's hard to believe that note 10+ is really better than S21+. S21+ is now on sale plus the trade-in program with the T-mobile promotion. Which one is worth buying note 10+ or S21+? Thank you for the help!

You can still get a new N975U for $800 running on Q. I have two now, the other is a N975U1 running on Pie. In spite of being almost 2.5 years old my original one looks and runs like new. One battery replacement was the only repair. The display is still perfect. Current load will be 2 years old in June, still fast and stable.
SOT is 7-13%@hr, 7%@hr for Brave browser more for streaming vids.
The deal breaker against the S21+ are:
•No SD card* slot, I use a .5tb V30 Sandisk extreme soon the be upgraded to 1tb.
•The S21 and all variable rate displays have slightly poorer color rendering and numerous display issues of all sorts. The N10+ display has an excellent track record and it's gorgeous with square corners. Perfect for vids.
•The N10+ comes loaded with Q, no forced encryption and scoped storage isn't fully active, older apps run fine on it like WPS Office.
•The N10+ has a native spen for bt remote shutter release and the very useful Smart Capture tool.
•The N10+ is 7mm thick so even when well protected in a Zizo Bolt case it's not very thick and easy to hold and use.
•5G not needed as my cheap unlimited data plan is 4G. 4G uses less battery which is important to me.
•Cams are pretty damn good on the N10+, laser focus be nice but not high on the list. The better color rendering of the N19+ display outweigh the slightly better cams of newer models.
•Build quality of the N10+ is excellent, battle tested. All buttons, the spen still work like new.
Beyond all that the N10+ is a fun, snappy phone to use even after over 2 years. With 12gb of ram you just don't run out, nominal usage is 4.9-5.2gb on Pie.
The new one was $800, I didn't blink at the price as I know what I was getting. Both will likely never be upgraded to 11 or 12, security isn't an issue for Pie and up. Both can be upgraded to 12 if you wish but likely not 13.
The other phone I considered was the N20U but the 10+ won out. I'm having an excellent user experience with the beast, so I got a backup
*I use the SD card as a data drive, all critical data goes there including full backups (within the limits of a stock Android). I can do a full reload with no internet connection or PC, anywhere.
Moreover I carry my entire CD/HDCD collection in my pocket as wav files. A fast dual drive 1+tb PC in your pocket is magnificent.

Thank you Blackhawk! How is the camera on note 10+ compared with S21+? On eBay, I saw "brand new" note 10+ for less than $500.

pzz123 said:
Thank you Blackhawk! How is the camera on note 10+ compared with S21+? On eBay, I saw "brand new" note 10+ for less than $500.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're welcome.
Well I never shot with the S21+ so for all I know it's AF gets lock ons instantly. The 10+'s shutter release could be faster but nothing to compare to except pro cams I shoot with
Still pics, vids are good, action shots not... unless you use burst mode which is easy to do by simply holding the release.
Using the spen as a remote shutter release is great though. Below is one from 10 feet out... not even trying to make it nice.
Be very careful with vendors. Best to talk with them first on the phone. Many are misrepresenting what they are selling. The Snapdragon variant you want is the N975U, it interfaces with AT&T just by putting in the sim card. Assuming you're using AT&T; get the correct variant for your provider. Make sure it has 12gb of ram. Used ones will likely be reflashed to Android 11. You want to keep display brightness at 50% or lower; did the previous owner? AMOLED displays have a finite lifespan; the brightest stars burn out first.
Factory sealed, two day free delivery. I like this seller, not super cheap but top shelf phones, zero issues and he answers his phone. I did a lot of searching...
Personally I think the S21+ is a dog.
In my opinion the Note20U be your next best choice but I dismissed it in part because of potential reliability issues with the display, the display color rendering is less than the 10, and they are shipped with Android 11. The 5G modem will likely eat battery and it's form factor sucks. You may feel differently and as of today it is the last Note. Faster memory/cpu/spen, excellent cam (and hump) and variable refresh rate display. Be very careful if you buy one, a lot of scamming going on with this model worse than what I saw with the N10... it's bad.
Make sure it has 12gb of ram and is the unlocked factory model.
Got a headache yet?

Awesome! Thanks. I am now seriously thinking about getting a note 10+ instead of s21+. Appreciate your help!

pzz123 said:
Awesome! Thanks. I am now seriously thinking about getting a note 10+ instead of s21+. Appreciate your help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a tough call between the N10+ and N20U*. On paper the N20U seems to have the edge.
In real life though... results may vary
Note 10+ display review.
Note 20U display review.
*S21+, for me the call is an easy no go

General Xiaomi 13 Unboxing & First Impression & Specs

I just received my Xiaomi 13 (12/256) and immediately proceed to unboxing, first impression and specs review.
One caveat, if you want to get hold of UFS4.0 it seems you need to order the 256GB version (at least), as the 128 GB version only has UFS 3.1... how much difference will this play in the real world we still need to check & see.
Here also some random tests that I did.
GeekBench
========
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
Here the full GeekBench Xiaomi 13 test details
3dMark
========
Charging using 67W wired
=================
Charging using 67W wired Ampere
=================

And here is the 3dMark Wildlife Extreme stress test ... the Xiaomi 12 with 8gen1 was not able to complete the test... due to overheating.
This here is a whole other story.

Here you can see how the Xiaomi 13 takes 10 AnTuTu tests one after another... and to not be boring I trowed in the Galaxy S22 Ultra.

And this is the Xiaomi 13 Speaker & Sound Quality test (again compared with the S22U)

<Moderator Note>: YouTube links removed.
@velqn
You have been told before Rule 5, specifically about self-promotion:
5. Create a thread topic or post a message only once, this includes external links & streaming media.
As a large forum, we don't need unnecessary clutter. You're free to edit your message as you like, so if you do not receive an answer, revisit your message and see if you can describe your problem better. Not everyone is online at the same time so it might take a while before you receive an answer.
You can bump your unanswered question once every 24 hours
Duplicate threads and posts will be removed
Always post in an existing thread if a topic already exists, before creating a new thread.
Use our search function to find the best forum for your device.
Links to an external source are only allowed if relevant to the topic in hand. A description must be included, no copy & pasting from the original source.
Self-promotion is forbidden, this includes blogs, social media and video channels etc. Random links will be removed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've removed the links to your YouTube videos. If you persist in self-promotion, you will receive an official warning.
Thank you,
@roirraW "edor" ehT

Guys,
I have been using the Xiaomi 13 now for almost 2 weeks quality time as my mainly driver. Here my feedback in case any questions just hit me and I will try to reply. It`s a rather expensive device so... no questions should be left unanswered if you decide to go with it
Where did I buy it
============
I bought it off trading shenzhen and it was delivered out of China for ~ 12 days. The price was 823 EUR for the 12/256 version
Which version
=========
I do believe that the 12//256 is a must if not... then strongly recommend. Why? The 8/128 version seems to have UFS 3.1 and UFS 4.0 is just better. How? UFS 4.0 can achieve read speeds of up to 4200MB/s and sequential write speeds of up to 2800MB/s. In contrast, UFS 3.1 has read and write speeds of up to 2100MB/s and 1200MB/s, respectively. And also 12/256 is a bit more future proof for the next 1-3 years at least
Form Factor
========
With the size 6.36" it`s rather one of the few small Android phones and I love it. It fits in most of my pockets and I am using usually the S22 Ultra, so coming to a smaller screen didn’t felt too bad but it felt way more convenient.
Display
=====
I am a fan of curved screens and this is completely flat which is a bit problematic with gesture use and the included case. But the Samsung E6 AMOLED is really good, very bright (up to 1900 nit peak) and totally usable under direct sunlight. I have compared this to my S22 Ultra and it was not falling behind (S22U has lower peak nit as per specs) but it doesn’t feel like this when comparing.
Battery
=====
4500 mAh isnt too much sometimes with Android phones but here the results are outstanding I believe due to the Snapdragon 8 GEN 2 performance and efficiency. I get constantly over 6 hrs of SOT with mixed (mobile/wifi) use.
Snapdragon 8 gen 2
==============
That`s a beast, able to run at 45 C for a longer period of time w/o sacrificing performance. I was able to run 10 times AnTuTu with only losing 4% from the original score in one of the rounds. I was able to play Genshin Impact for 3 hours and 10 minutes running from 80% to 0%.
It’s a powerhouse and maybe the best chip to upgrade to if you are looking to stay with the phone for a longer period.
Speakers
======
This year the Harman Kardon tuning is gone, but the speakers are loud, EQ works well, sound is balanced and compared to my S22Ultra I like the Xiaomi sound better, it sound fuller and has more bass
Charging
=====
Xiaomi advertised 43 mins from 0 to 100% and ... it`s almost like that, I got it from 0 to 100% for 45 minutes so the claim is total valid
IP68
===
It has official rating but the only thing that worries me that I did not notice any rubber isolating on the sim tray slot
Camera
======
The back camera is outstanding, color consistency between ultra-wide, main/wide and tele is OK, Xiaomi finally improved the audio quality (bitrate) in video recording. You can shoot Dolby Vision video 4K 60 FPS for 6 minutes, the only downside is the front camera HDR processing which is still not ideal and ... the FHD 30 FPS only mode for front camera video which is a bummer.
The only big downside I was able to find is that on 4K you cannot auto switch between the camera lenses when shooting video, you can only do that on the FHD.
The 3.2x Optical Zoom is OK and up to 10x it`s bearable but it`s worse than S22 Ultra zoom capabilities.
Chinees MIUI
=========
The ones I got comes with Google Basic Services, so you just switch a toggle and you have playstore you have google, so it`s good. It does though come with a lot of Chinese app that some might want to remove. It does also have native call recording.
Well that`s about this summed up, let me know if you have any questions or share your experience with the device.

Nice flat screen gorgeous phone
It just arrived today. I'm enjoying it a lot.
Tried to unlock it right away, but for some reason, Mi Flash tool told me to wait for a week , which is fine.
I'm eager to unlock, root, then globalize it via magisk modules.
The camera is really great, check the attachment for reference.

ignore

Is there a way to order this thing from china since the europe prices are absolute nuts, 999€ gets me an s23 and enough money to buy the rest of the accessories

velqn said:
Guys,
I have been using the Xiaomi 13 now for almost 2 weeks quality time as my mainly driver. Here my feedback in case any questions just hit me and I will try to reply. It`s a rather expensive device so... no questions should be left unanswered if you decide to go with it
Where did I buy it
============
I bought it off trading shenzhen and it was delivered out of China for ~ 12 days. The price was 823 EUR for the 12/256 version
Which version
=========
I do believe that the 12//256 is a must if not... then strongly recommend. Why? The 8/128 version seems to have UFS 3.1 and UFS 4.0 is just better. How? UFS 4.0 can achieve read speeds of up to 4200MB/s and sequential write speeds of up to 2800MB/s. In contrast, UFS 3.1 has read and write speeds of up to 2100MB/s and 1200MB/s, respectively. And also 12/256 is a bit more future proof for the next 1-3 years at least
Form Factor
========
With the size 6.36" it`s rather one of the few small Android phones and I love it. It fits in most of my pockets and I am using usually the S22 Ultra, so coming to a smaller screen didn’t felt too bad but it felt way more convenient.
Display
=====
I am a fan of curved screens and this is completely flat which is a bit problematic with gesture use and the included case. But the Samsung E6 AMOLED is really good, very bright (up to 1900 nit peak) and totally usable under direct sunlight. I have compared this to my S22 Ultra and it was not falling behind (S22U has lower peak nit as per specs) but it doesn’t feel like this when comparing.
Battery
=====
4500 mAh isnt too much sometimes with Android phones but here the results are outstanding I believe due to the Snapdragon 8 GEN 2 performance and efficiency. I get constantly over 6 hrs of SOT with mixed (mobile/wifi) use.
Snapdragon 8 gen 2
==============
That`s a beast, able to run at 45 C for a longer period of time w/o sacrificing performance. I was able to run 10 times AnTuTu with only losing 4% from the original score in one of the rounds. I was able to play Genshin Impact for 3 hours and 10 minutes running from 80% to 0%.
It’s a powerhouse and maybe the best chip to upgrade to if you are looking to stay with the phone for a longer period.
Speakers
======
This year the Harman Kardon tuning is gone, but the speakers are loud, EQ works well, sound is balanced and compared to my S22Ultra I like the Xiaomi sound better, it sound fuller and has more bass
Charging
=====
Xiaomi advertised 43 mins from 0 to 100% and ... it`s almost like that, I got it from 0 to 100% for 45 minutes so the claim is total valid
IP68
===
It has official rating but the only thing that worries me that I did not notice any rubber isolating on the sim tray slot
Camera
======
The back camera is outstanding, color consistency between ultra-wide, main/wide and tele is OK, Xiaomi finally improved the audio quality (bitrate) in video recording. You can shoot Dolby Vision video 4K 60 FPS for 6 minutes, the only downside is the front camera HDR processing which is still not ideal and ... the FHD 30 FPS only mode for front camera video which is a bummer.
The only big downside I was able to find is that on 4K you cannot auto switch between the camera lenses when shooting video, you can only do that on the FHD.
The 3.2x Optical Zoom is OK and up to 10x it`s bearable but it`s worse than S22 Ultra zoom capabilities.
Chinees MIUI
=========
The ones I got comes with Google Basic Services, so you just switch a toggle and you have playstore you have google, so it`s good. It does though come with a lot of Chinese app that some might want to remove. It does also have native call recording.
Well that`s about this summed up, let me know if you have any questions or share your experience with the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nice review! Thank you! Just curious about the network support in your area and carrier. I'm thinking of buying the Chinese Mi 13 but I'm not sure how good it can be used with T-Mobile.

HTC Desire 310 said:
Is there a way to order this thing from china since the europe prices are absolute nuts, 999€ gets me an s23 and enough money to buy the rest of the accessories
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bought one from JD.com, 4299 RMB (584.68€) for the 8gb, 256gb variant. Best deal I'll ever get, even gives me a hairdryer lmao.

Congratulations with your new devices, how is the proximity sensor doing? Does the screen turns black when bringing to your ear?

moviefirst said:
Congratulations with your new devices, how is the proximity sensor doing? Does the screen turns black when bringing to your ear?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't find anything wrong. Works just fine.

Like every time I buy Xiaomi with CN Rom it hurts... Experience is just so bad. So many lags and bugs. Luckily there is EU and other roms. I just need to wait 5 days.
I got red device 512GB few days ago and experience is mixed. Yeah it's a smaller phone finally (coming from MI11) but cameras are disappointing for now. Especially wide camera. I did had good experience with gcam on MI11 for ultra wide. So just waiting for that. Also the red color is not so red as advertised! Does anyone know does it have a pre applied back glass protector? Cuz it looks like it does and it would make sense because the color and feel to touch are just not so good! Battery life could be better. 5G on some networks is switching off and leaves you without network.. condom case as always is disgusting to touch and slippery.
(Ordered new thin mat black)
Nova Launcher beta finally works with gestures BUT you can't choose it as default launcher so it reverts to default one all the time so I uninstalled it...
Yeah , every time I give a chance to CN Rom and every time is just such a bad experience.
Oh yeah , some google services don't work like assistant, basically anything to do with microphone permission, good luck finding it in setting. If you do please let me know.
Duolingo app voice exercise, don't work , yeah, because microphone permissions... Goes through Google.
Google and China are not good friends. Bad Google bad !
And there is more trust me

Asnamus said:
Like every time I buy Xiaomi with CN Rom it hurts... Experience is just so bad. So many lags and bugs. Luckily there is EU and other roms. I just need to wait 5 days.
I got red device 512GB few days ago and experience is mixed. Yeah it's a smaller phone finally (coming from MI11) but cameras are disappointing for now. Especially wide camera. I did had good experience with gcam on MI11 for ultra wide. So just waiting for that. Also the red color is not so red as advertised! Does anyone know does it have a pre applied back glass protector? Cuz it looks like it does and it would make sense because the color and feel to touch are just not so good! Battery life could be better. 5G on some networks is switching off and leaves you without network.. condom case as always is disgusting to touch and slippery.
(Ordered new thin mat black)
Nova Launcher beta finally works with gestures BUT you can't choose it as default launcher so it reverts to default one all the time so I uninstalled it...
Yeah , every time I give a chance to CN Rom and every time is just such a bad experience.
Oh yeah , some google services don't work like assistant, basically anything to do with microphone permission, good luck finding it in setting. If you do please let me know.
Duolingo app voice exercise, don't work , yeah, because microphone permissions... Goes through Google.
Google and China are not good friends. Bad Google bad !
And there is more trust me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thx for replying, so it's not a virtual proximity sensor? And when you switch to eu Rom , please write your experience. Good luck!