Microsoft Officially Kills Nokia Android Project

image from phonearena.com

This may sound like old news but Stephen Elop, chief of Microsoft devices, announced that the Nokia X Android project is over. Future Nokia X designs and products will be shifted to Windows Phone devices and that the shift will take effect immediately.  Fortunately, support and sales for existing Nokia X products will remain.

Here's an excerpt from Elop's email.

In addition to the portfolio already planned, we plan to deliver additional lower-cost Lumia devices by shifting select future Nokia X designs and products to Windows Phone devices. We expect to make this shift immediately while continuing to sell and support existing Nokia X products

RIP Nokia X-series

I actually considered buying Nokia XL and thank heavens that did not push through.  It's just so sad that Nokia (now Microsoft Mobile) seems to be clueless as to the direction they want to take their product.  If this was a plan they though of in the future, they shouldn't have pushed through with the project in the first place.

The Nokia brand still has a strong business reputation and it's amazing how hell-bent Microsoft is in totally destroying any positive remnants of the brand.  They have already devalued the Nokia brand to a point where no consumer would ever look at it the same way again.

Here's hoping Microsoft would find it in there hands to just let Nokia rest in peace.

Cherry Mobile Flare 3 - You Get What You Didn't Pay For

Image courtesy of yahoo.ph

Local smartphone giant Cherry Mobile launched the third incarnation of their popular Flare series and this time they may just have a winner in their hands. The Cherry Mobile Flare 3, dubbed as the "phablet ng bayan" could be deserving of its monicker. People (myself included) who were terribly disappointed by the first Flare smartphone may find themselves wary of the Flare 3 but given its impressive price of just php3999 (for its high-end specs), it's difficult not to get tempted. The question is, should you?

Here my initial review of the device. Bookmark this page as I will update this entry with more observations as I get to spend time with the unit.

What's Outside

Image courtesy of yahoo.ph

Like the previous Flares, Flare 3 is primarily plastic sporting a 5 inch qHD IPS OGS scratch-resistant screen. OGS (One Glass Solution) is a technology that eliminates the thickness of the phone's touchscreen display. This is done by removing a layer of glass and replacing it with a thinner insulating material. This may sound technical but OGS simply makes the display thinner removing unnecessary weight and thickness. The OGS and the IPS technology transform the Flare 3s touchscreen into a beautiful work of art- texts and images look sharper, viewing angle is better, etc.

The Flare 3 is available in 5 colors; red, blue, white, and silver in high-gloss, sports car finish, and black in matte finish. The colors are limited to the back cover because the device will always have a black front display. Compared to Flare 1, the build feels better, not cheap but it's in no way premium. It feels very light and almost toy-like so depending on whether you like your phones paper-light or rock-heavy, that could be a pro or a con. It's worth mentioning that the phablet's rounded edges has a positive effect on how you hold and handle the device.

image from onetechavenue

You’ll find the power button and the volume rocker on the right side of the device, with the 3.5mm jack resting on the top, while the USB port is located at the bottom. The Flare 3 has 8 megapixel BSI rear camera and a 3 megapixel front camera. As mentioned, the phablet's display is nice and bright, the colors are vivid and the viewing angle is exceptional.

Under the Hood

The Cherry Mobile Flare 3 is powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek MTK 6582 processor and Mali-400MP GPU. Now, I'm a bit bias with Mediatek's processors but benchmark tests suggest that the phablet has a capable hardware combo. It carries 8GB of storage space and 1GB of RAM. I subjected the phablet into a series of rapid app launches and extensive browsing and there was no noticeable lag. I would have wanted to try playing some high-requirement games but I'm not a huge mobile gamer so that would have to wait.

Cherry Mobile Flare 3 has Kitkat version 4.4 out of the box so that's a good thing. What's doubtful is its 1980 mAh battery. My first Flare lasted only me around 4 hours of combined gaming and browsing so I'm hoping this one would last longer. Now, that most of us are very dependent on our smartphones, it would be a shame if the Cherry Mobile Flare 3 delivers the same battery power as the previous Flares.  One other thing I need to mention is that my Flare 1 would get hot really fast and I will update this entry should the same issue be present on this new Flare.

image from matt's cradle

Personal Thoughts

Overall, the Flare 3 is gearing up to be a capable device but only further usage will tell if that would be the case in the future. I'm not really a fan of its plastic built and most definitely not thrilled with the paint job (I have the Blue one). Of course, with its price, it's hard to nitpick because as it is, the specs are impressive. Buying the Flare 3 made me feel like I needed to pay more (not that I would) and huge props to Cherry Mobile for bringing the phone to the Philippines and hopefully, it continues to perform well.

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Samsung Galaxy S5: Why it impresses and disappoints

Reblogged from www.yugatech.com

Now that Samsung’s flagship phone is out, all the hype is dying down. Some may look at it in marvel and some will just stay put and wait for another company’s flagship phone. Either way, I think I’ve already classified myself as someone in between; I believe that in most ways, the Galaxy S5 underwhelms the hard-core users but manages to spark some attention in me.



Let’s start with the disappointments; the Samsung Galaxy S5 didn’t feature a new display as a lot were expecting and Snapdragon 805 & Exynos was nowhere to be found (perhaps, Samsung has learned that the non-LTE Exynos isn’t a huge seller anyway). Not that the display is bad and not that the 801 is slow, but surely it didn’t live up to the hype of most people.

Then there’s Samsung playing with 2GB RAM instead of 3GB, which I don’t really get. Samsung has already incorporated 3GB RAM into their Note line and there have been reports already that they’re moving into 4GB capacities so that’s one downgrade you’ll see if you’re coming from the Note 3. My final disappointment is one that I probably share with a lot of people — Samsung’s use of plastic. They’ve already done it with the Galaxy J so I don’t see why not. They can still incorporate metal without losing the identity of the phone anyway, but more on that later.



Now let’s begin with the things that I found quite interesting. Everything else has been incremental and that’s fine. Samsung, as a business, has a winning formula in its hands so to simply improve on it is a good business decision. Battery life is surely going to increase because of the higher capacity, the software tweaks and hardware optimization. There’s also the inclusion of the Download Booster which is nice to have and then the 16-megapixel shooter that is capable of 4K video recording and faster time-to-focus. While it’s not using the ISOCELL we were expecting, we can’t really judge as we haven’t tested the sensor yet.
A few elements we could have missed are Samsung’s inclusion of the heart rate monitor, which shows that they are truly serious on pushing fitness as a main feature of their Galaxy line, and their addition of IP67 water & dust resistance and the fingerprint scanner, which eliminates a huge edge that the competition has over Samsung (hint: Sony).

Finally, while the overall design has been disappointing for me, I can still cope up to why Samsung has not left their design ethos. The shape, the pattern and the elements found in the Galaxy S such as the physical home button is brand identity, something we’ve already tackled in the past. Sammy could have seen that many people praised the Galaxy Note 3 for its faux leather back and wished to shift away from glossy plastic but didn’t want to take the full risk of changing things – so they stuck with a finish that’s somewhat similar to the 1st gen Nexus 7‘s. While it has been disappointing for me as a geek, it’s something I totally understand in another perspective.

Anyway, it’s the age of increments and small upgrades nowadays, isn’t it? I doubt any successor to a flagship phone will be mind-blowing anytime soon. After all, the supply depends on demand. If you don’t want to see more of it, don’t buy it. Regardless of the Galaxy S5′s impressive feats and disappointments to us, we’re sure that it’s going to ship millions anyway — because aside from hardware and software, it’s experience and marketing that sells.

Samsung Galaxy S5: Full Speed Ahead

The long wait is finally over.  Samsung officially unveils the successor to last year's Galaxy S4, the Samsung Galaxy S5!

First impressions?  It's powerful and it's feature packed but will Samsung's newest prove to be their greatest too?  We'll find that out soon but for the meantime, here are 10 things you need to know about the Samsung Galaxy S5.

1. It's waterproof

Not an entirely new feature since Sony's Xperia flagships already had a couple of waterproof smartphones in their arsenal. It is good to know that the Galaxy S5 is IP67-rated to withstand both water and dust.

2. It'll scan your fingers

Another not-so-new feature, Apple had this covered with their flagship iPhone 5s.  The Galaxy S5's Home button comes with a built-in fingerprint scanner where swiping your digit down unlocks the device, as well as protect sensitive files.

As an added benefit, you'll also be able to authorise all online PayPal transactions with the swish of a finger, perfect for that annoying and repetitive logging in. The Samsung Galaxy S5 definitely gives more power to your fingers.

3. It has a heart-rate detector

The Samsung Galaxy S5 has a heart-rate detector on its rear. Simply place your fingertip over it and it'll display your heart rate and save it in its newly updated S Health app.

4. Imaging - Reimagined

The Galaxy S5 has a 16MP camera with an ultra-fast 0.3 second autofocus. It also has a live HDR mode for both photos and videos, in addition to being able to record 4K video.

The S5 also supports post-shot refocusing with a feature called Selective Focus, much like Nokia's Refocus feature and what it does is to let you blur the background or focus on close objects after you've taken the shot.

5. It's more powerful

The Galaxy S5 is the first phone to arrive with Qualcomm's super-beefy quad-core Snapdragon 805 processor. It's got 2GB of RAM as opposed to the expected 3GB, but it should be enough to run Android 4.4 KitKat with little to no hiccups.

Samsung also bumped the display for easy viewing, the screen now measures 5.1 inches and that's enough to let you watch your favorite movie or play your favorite game with ease. There's no QHD resolution though, as 1080p makes a return.

6. Battery will last longer

The S5's larger 2800mAh battery should hopefully should be enough to last you through the day, of course depending on usage, you may still have to bring around a charger or your trusty powerbank.

7. It's a fitness beast

Samsung's updated S Health app incorporates the new heart-rate readings into an already comprehensive fitness app which measures your steps and tracks what you've eaten with a vast food database and barcode reader. It also plays nice with the new Galaxy Gear 2, Gear 2 Neo and Gear Fit.

8. It downloads files fast, as in really fast

Download Booster uses some technological witchcraft to simultaneously utilise both 4G and Wi-Fi and therefore download large files faster than ever.

9. It has an Ultra Power Saving mode

If you're low on battery you can initiate Ultra Power Saving mode, which provides an alternative power-sipping home screen with black and white icons, disables apps but keeps messaging and phonecall features alive.

10. It has space – and lots of it

You can bolster the S5's in-built 32/64GB of storage with a 128GB microSD card if you like, making it the most capacious smartphone on the planet.

So are you ready to throw away last year's model in favor of Samsung's newcomer? Your guess is as good as mine.

Nokia X: Generating New Interest

With Nokia officially announcing its first ever family of Android smartphones - the Nokia X family consisting of the Nokia X, Nokia X+ and Nokia XL, it looks like the embattled phone manufacturer is back in fighting form, if based on the level of interest their newest candy-colored smartphones generated during its unveiling at the Mobile World Congress 2014.

Before you ge excited though, Nokia's new family is not a Google-certified project and thus the X phones won't run Google Play Services such as the Play Store, Gmail and Chrome. This is by no means something to be dismissed as Nokia and Microsoft have worked hard though to integrate their core services and apps.



The integration means all  X-phones will have the excellent Nokia HERE Maps, as well as the Microsoft OneCloud (former SkyDrive) and Skype. Eager users will be free to sideload any Android app they want and can download new apps easily from the dedicated Nokia store and Yandex Store, which is quite popular in Russia.

The Nokia X+ and XL share the same chipset - a 1GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 with 768MB of RAM. The Nokia X is the only one with just 512MB of RAM.

Nokia X: At a Glance

The Nokia X features a 4" IPS LCD display of WVGA (480 x 800 pixels) resolution. Colors are okay, brightness and contrast are reasonable, but nothing to really get excited about
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Under the hood, the entire Nokia X range shares the same 1GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 chipset, with only the X somewhat limited at 512MB of RAM. Internal storage is just 4GB, but is expandable up to 32GB.


Nokia X live photos

At the back of the Nokia X there's a 3MP fixed focus camera, but no front-facer. The phone weighs 129 grams and packs a 1500mAh battery. It's good for 10.5 hours of 3G talk time and a maximum standby time of 17 days. It is also capable of up to 26 hours of music playback, while video playback time is quoted at 8.4 hours.


Nokia X live photos

The build quality of the X is superb. The plastic feels nice as with most recent Nokia smartphones and isn't a ferocious fingerprint magnet. It's quite sturdy too.

You will be happy to learn that Nokia's version of the Android OS runs well on the X, lower RAM notwithstanding.

The Nokia X+: Big Brother

The Nokia X+ is technically the big brother of Nokia X, if only for the bump in RAM allocation - 512MB to 768MB.  This increase is pretty significant though because it actually makes a difference in terms of actual experience.

Switching between apps is a bit faster as is navigating around the operating system. You'll also be able to play a bit more demanding games too, which will otherwise be unplayable on the lower RAM on the X


The build quality and feel of the X+ is identical to the X and both have the same color options.


The bump in RAM increases the price of the X+ also adds a bit to the price of the Nokia X so you'll have to decide if reaching deeper into your pockets for the X+ is worth it.





The Nokia XL: Larger and Better than its Siblings

The Nokia XL features a 5" IPS LCD display of WVGA resolution and before you let out that loud sigh,   it's not all that bad. As an entry level smartphone, you shouldn't expect much from the phone, just enough to satisfy your craving for a capable Nokia shell running Android underneath.




The Android experience on the Nokia XL is reasonably smooth. The phone runs a version of Jelly Bean as far as we could tell, but the exact version is not specified. The 1GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 chipset does a good job of running and switching between two screens and multiple apps.

Nokia has also included a bunch of its Lumia apps on the XL including its Store, Camera, Mix Radio and HERE Maps. Microsoft's presence is also felt with the addition of Skype and OneCloud apps. Speaking of which, XL users will get 10GB of free OneCloud storage as well as 1 month free of Skype Premium. Speaking of goodies, Nokia also includes a 4GB microSD card in the XL's package.

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The Nokia XL is made of plastic with an exclusive paint job that the X and X+ don't get - bright orange. The finish feels very nice to the touch, similar to the Nokia Asha 501 and Lumia 1320.

At the back of the phone, there's a 5MP camera with LED flash. As you can see from the photos, there's a large physical key below the display, which acts like a Home/back button. The user interface is overly simple too, with two main screens - the app list screen and fastlane.

The list of apps is reminiscent of the WP8 home screen with resizable app tiles. The larger the tile, the more information it displays. For example expanding the People's tile will display your favorite contacts, while the Gallery will show the latest photos you've snapped.


The XL measures 141.4 mm x 77.7 mm x 10.9mm with a weight of 190g. The back covers are replaceable.

The Nokia X line is sure to give OEMs running Android a run for their money.  The colorful shell, snappy performance, and the host of Nokia freebies will surely attract a lot of users raring to join the Android bandwagon, after all, Nokia is known for manufacturing high-quality phones, high-end or otherwise.

It would be interesting to note how Nokia can benefit from finally joining the Android platform but as it is, they've actually managed to capture a lot of attention, and that's just with three phones.  From what we see, Nokia is going to change the way people look at Android and we can't wait to see how it goes for them.