India to buck the global smartphone sales trend: Gartner

Smartphone shipments are expected to increase globally by seven per cent in 2016, and Gartner indicates that an extension of phone lifetimes could be one reason for the slow from previously double-digit growth. Worldwide it's expected that smartphone growth will hit 7 percent, or sales of 1.5 billion units. Sales of smartphones in India are on pace to reach 29 per cent in 2016 and will continue to exhibit double-digit growth in the next two years. In addition, sales in China and North America are set to be flat in 2016, posting a growth of just 0.7 percent and 0.4 percent respectively.

Gartner has also predicted 150 million consumers will delay upgrading to smartphones in the emerging Asia Pacific markets through to 2019, until the functionality and price points becomes more desirable. "Vendors were not able to reduce the price of a "good enough to use" smartphone lower than Dollars 50", Gartner Research Director Annette Zimmermann said.

These are the kinds of markets Apple will be hoping to target with its 'affordable' iPhone SE, as it offers a slightly less premium device to users in developing markets.

"As carriers' deals become more complex, users are likely to hold onto phones, especially as the technology updates become incremental rather than exponential", explains Zimmermann.

Given this scenario, "Countries such as India will help generate new mobile phone user growth".

However, the pace of increase in such new markets is expected to slow in the coming years. The phone market as a whole could reach 1.9 billion units at the end of the year.

"2016 had a weak start to the year but it may finish off with a more positive slide at the end of the year", said Atwal. Traditional PCs are on pace to decline 6.7% in 2016.

IDC's report said overall worldwide PC shipments from 2016 to 2020, including both portable PCs and desktop PCs, will decline 0.5 percent in mature markets.

However, the report predicts that it is the past year of decline for PCs and the market will return to growth in 2017 owing to the emergence of new form factors with attractive features powered by integration of Windows 10 with Intel's Skylake architecture. This is a direct effect of, among other factors, the higher quality of smartphones that have been released more recently, which allows users to enjoy them for a longer period of time before they feel the need for an upgrade.

Demand for ultramobiles (basic and utility tablets) will continue to weaken, with a decline of 3.4 per cent in 2016, Gartner said.

Obama: Give Supreme Court pick 'respect he has earned'Unfortunately, leading Republicans have vowed to block Garland - regardless of his qualifications - out of spite. I just think that is a process that can unite us, rather than a process that right now continues to divide us.

Source: India to buck the global smartphone sales trend: Gartner

Global smartphone market growth to be lowest ever in 2016-Gartner

<HEADLINE>GLOBAL SMARTPHONE MARKET GROWTH TO BE LOWEST EVER IN

2016-GARTNER@

March 31 (Reuters) - Global smartphone sales are expected to grow in single digits in percentage terms for the first time ever and PC shipments are forecast to decline in 2016, according to research firm Gartner Inc.

Gartner said on Thursday it expected smartphone sales to grow only 7 percent to 1.5 billion units in 2016 from 2015, stunted by flat sales in the crucial China and North America markets.

"The double-digit growth era for the global smartphone market has come to an end," Ranjit Atwal, research director, was quoted as saying in Gartner's latest Devices Forecast findings. (http://gtnr.it/1ZNyyDl)

The Stamford, Connecticut-headquartered firm said it expects worldwide shipments for PC's to decrease 1.5 percent from 2015, before returning to growth in 2017.

(Reporting by Alan John Koshy in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)

Source: Global smartphone market growth to be lowest ever in 2016-Gartner

China's Xi arrives in Prague en route to the US

President Xi Jinping's historic visit to the Czech Republic is expected to "renew and energize" bilateral ties, with more than 20 agreements expected to be signed.

During the talks, the two presidents discussed issues concerning bilateral ties, China-EU relations as well as cooperation between China and the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) countries, reaching broad consensus.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has ended his visit to the Czech Republic and is now headed to United States to attend a nuclear security summit in Washington.

Zeman, a 71-year-old pro-Russian leftwinger, was the only European head of state to attend a military parade in Beijing commemorating Japan's surrender at the end of World War II.

The two sides took their relationship a step further on Tuesday, inking a strategic partnership.

An unknown suspect defaced dozens of Chinese flags on a main airport road with black paint on Saturday, and human rights activists planned demonstrations.

On a previous 2014 trip, Zeman said he had come to China to "learn how to increase economic growth and how to stabilise society" rather than "teach market economy or human rights " .

Tension was also high on the political scene in the wake of an interview that President Miloš Zeman gave to China's CCTV news on the eve of the high-profile visit in which he claimed that the former right-wing government was to blame for the poor state of Czech-Chinese relations.

The Czech Republic is committed to becoming a gateway for China to the European Union and a hub of transportation, logistics and finance, he said.

China's President Xi Jinping and his Czech counterpart Milos Zeman signed an agreement on a strategic partnership on Tuesday, meant to step up business ties and investments.

"As the Czech Republic is part of the European Union, the EU can not be something that would exert pressure on us from the outside".

But his recent remarks on the visit drew an angry reaction from opposition figures, with former finance minister Miroslav Kalousek, an MP for the rightwing TOP 09 party, denouncing them as "repulsive " .

Xi said the two countries had a responsibility to renew their long-standing friendship. He told CTK it was his government that made a U-turn to a more pragmatic policy in relation to China.

Babis, a billionaire who owns the giant Agrofert chemical, food-processing and media holding, said Zeman's statements meant to him that "the Czech Republic finally started understanding foreign policy as a means to meet economic interests, which was not usual before". In addition, the two countries have agreed to establish a renminbi clearing center in the Czech Republic.

South Africa's lion called 'Sylvester' escapes from reserve againMr Varty said he would build a 1,000-hectare sanctuary especially for him and introduce female lions to Sylvester's territory. The lion ranged widely in the arid, sparsely populated area in his last escape, covering about 185 miles (300 kilometers).

Source: China's Xi arrives in Prague en route to the US

Samsung to launch a new Galaxy smartphone on March 31

Both devices are now listed on the South Korean company's China website.

Samsung has refreshed its Galaxy J-series by launching two new Android smartphones, the Galaxy J7 (2016) and Galaxy J5 (2016) in China.

For shutterbugs, the smartphone comes equipped with a 13-megapixel rear camera of aperture f/1.9 with LED flash and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera of aperture f/1.9 with LED flash. If the phone aimed at bikers is the Galaxy J3 (2016), we are talking about a device featuring a 5-inch AMOLED display, with a 720 x 1280 HD resolution. What's more, there's an octa-core 1.6GHz Exynos processor, 3GB RAM and 16GB of internal storage, which can be expanded by MicroSD up to 128GB extra.

The other part of the story includes a much less powerful smartphone, the Galaxy J5.

Both the Galaxy J5 and J7 also come with NFC and Bluetooth, rounding up all the features a user may want in a smartphone.

The fact that Bollywood actor Shahid Kapoor is promoting the handset is a clear indication that the company maybe releasing a special version of the J3, or any other e phone from the Galaxy J line up. The phone also packs in 3300mAH battery. A 5MP camera is on back with a selfie snappin' 2MP camera on front of the device. Although a few millimeters shorter and narrower than the J7, it is still thicker at 8.1mm and comes in the same three color options.

Samsung's Galaxy J7 was one of the best-selling models in February, while sales of the Galaxy Note 5 still remained strong, said the sources.

Meanwhile, the new Samsung Galaxy J5 comes powered by a quad-core processor clocked at 1.2 GHz and it is backed by 2 GB of RAM. It has a 5.5-inch full HD display Super AMOLED display screen and measures 151.7 x 76 x 7.8mm. The phone measures 145.8×72.3×8.1mm and weighs 159 grams.

Kasich campaigning in Wisconsin as candidates convergeThat's supposed to prevent someone who doesn't have majority support from becoming the automatic nominee. For instance, Ted Cruz traveled to Altoona , while John Kasich visited West Salem .

Source: Samsung to launch a new Galaxy smartphone on March 31

Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016), Galaxy J7 (2016) smartphones unveiled in China

After debuting the Galaxy J5 and Galaxy J7 in mid-2015, Samsung has updated both models for 2016.

Samsung India is running a promotional ad contest for the Samsung Galaxy J3 (2016), which the company plans to officially announce on March 31. It's unclear whether or not Samsung will make these smartphones available in other countries, but considering the Galaxy J3 (2106) is already selling in the United States, there's a high chance they will be rolled out globally. We are expecting the forthcoming device to be called the Galaxy J5 (2016) following the same naming scheme that the company has adopted for the recent Galaxy A series phones. Both will soon go live for purchase through the country's leading online and offline retailers.

Coming to the smaller Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016), it sports a 5.2-inch HD Super AMOLED display and comes powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core processor with 2GB of RAM. The phone has 16 GB of internal storage which is expandable upto 128 GB through microSD card.

Camera features include 5MP rear camera with autofocus and LED flash and the front camera is 2MP. The smartphone weighs in at 170 grams and packs in a 3300mAh battery. It comes with a 5.5-inch Full HD Super AMOLED display with a pixel density of 402 ppi which will look absolutely stunning given Samsung's history in screen qualities. Just like its little brother, it has dual SIM dual standby support, 4G LTE capabilities, VoLTE, WiFi, NFC, GPS, Bluetooth, and microUSB 2.0. It is worth mentioning that the handset has three separate slots for the two SIM cards and an external storage card.

In the camera department, you get a 13-megapixel rear camera of aperture f/1.9 and LED flash, and a 5-megapixel selfie camera of aperture f/1.9 with LED flash. A 2600mAh battery keeps the lights on, and Android 5.1 is pre-installed.

Judge to consider tossing Janice Dickinson's Cosby suitJanice Dickinson has confirmed that she's been diagnosed with breast cancer . "When I got the news, this was very, very hard ". An urgent biopsy was done, and on March 12, Dickinson received the diagnosis that it was breast cancer.

Source: Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016), Galaxy J7 (2016) smartphones unveiled in China

Samsung Pay follows Apple Pay into China

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Samsung has officially launched Samsung Pay in China. The South Korean company has partnered with state-backed China UnionPay for the launch — the association that controls all card payments in the country, and that worked with Apple to launch Apple Pay there last month. As the world's largest smartphone market, China presents a huge opportunity for these electronic wallet systems, with its mobile payment market estimated to be worth $2.5 trillion in 2015. But both Samsung Pay and Apple Pay have to compete with local incumbents, though, including Alibaba's payment system Alipay, a rival service from Tencent's WeChat messaging service, and another from smartphone maker Huawei.

Samsung says that its mobile wallet system will work with nine Chinese banks to begin with and four devices — the Galaxy S7, Galaxy S7 Edge, Galaxy S6 Edge+, and Galaxy Note 5. The company says it plans to add support for more banks and more "mid-range" handsets in the future. Samsung claims that Samsung Pay will work "virtually anywhere" in China where users pay by card — and in more places than Apple Pay, according to BBC News. And although Samsung Pay has to compete with Google's own Android Pay solution in most of the world, that won't be a problem in China, where the search company is almost completely locked out.

SourceSamsung

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Source: Samsung Pay follows Apple Pay into China

Samsung Pay China goes live

Samsung Pay China is live after being launched by the South Korean smartphone giant this week.   

Samsung Electronics said Tuesday the introduction of the Samsung Pay China mobile payment service will speed its efforts to expand the scope of its flagship mobile payment platform globally.

The South Korean tech company said Chinese users of high-end Galaxy smartphones can now use Samsung Pay in cooperation with China-based bank card giant UnionPay.

The mobile platform supports magnetic secure transmission technology that works on traditional credit card machines. Like rivals Apple Pay and Android Pay, it also supports near field communication technology that requires a separate transaction device.

Users of UnionPay debit and credit cards can now use Samsung Pay-equipped smartphones to make purchases, including the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge just released earlier this month.

Samsung Pay joined forces with nine major Chinese banks, while six more partners will be added in the near future, Samsung added.

Samsung said it will also make efforts to roll out more devices that support its mobile payment platform.

Samsung Pay, first released in South Korea and the US last year, currently boasts around 5 million users. Samsung said last month it is also preparing to launch in Australia, Brazil, Spain and a handful of other countries.

Original reporting by Yonhap.

Source: Samsung Pay China goes live

Coolpad's Smartphone Operating Revenue Sinks 41% As Chinese 3G Declines

Chinese smartphone maker Coolpad Group released its annual performance for 2015, stating that its operating revenue was HKD14.668 billion, a year-on-year drop of 41.09%; but its net profit attributable to shareholders was HKD2.311 billion, a year-on-year increase of 353.25%.

Coolpad said that the major reasons for the decrease of its combined revenue in 2015 was because its business structuring, severe competition, and the growth slowdown of the Chinese smartphone market combined for ill effects.

According to the report, by December 31, 2015, Coolpad's 3G smartphone sales were HKD1.596 billion, a decrease of 86.9% compared with the HKD12.179 billion in 2014. Coolpad said the major reason for the revenue decrease was because the company stopped making new models of 3G smartphones in 2015 and focused on the development of 4G smartphones.

In 2015, Coolpad's 4G smartphone sales were HKD12.791 billion, an increase of 3.7% compared with the HKD12.332 billion in 2014. The revenue contribution ratio of 4G smartphones increased from 49.5% in 2014 to 87.2%.

In 2015, Coolpad's income from mobile application services was HKD236 million, a year-on-year decrease of 32.4%; its financial service revenue was HKD27.1 million, a year-on-year increase of 577.5%; and its revenue from the sales of other products was HKD18.4 million, a year-on-year decrease of 50.1%.

Source: Coolpad's Smartphone Operating Revenue Sinks 41% As Chinese 3G Declines

Top 10 upcoming Rumored Big Screen Smartphones

Back in 2011, when Samsung came up with its top of the line big display smartphone, the Galaxy Note, who knew that it would become a trend in future. Now, most of the smartphones feature 5-inch or bigger displays. Smartphones with big screens are a hit among users -- after all, the bigger display is good for watching videos, photos, and other content, and is a pure visual delight. Moreover, you get more space to type in long messages or emails, which help you even in handling important content with ease.

SEE ALSO: Get Corning Gorilla Glass 4 Protection! 10 Smartphones with Unbreakable Display!

The smartphone market is loaded with bigger display phones as most of the phone now have big screens.From big brands like Samsung and HTC, to the Chinese smartphone makers like Xiaomi, Huawei and Meizu, there are variety of smartphones from various brands and across price range. If you plan to buy a big display smartphone, you can go for a specs-heavy smartphone that flaunts a big screen, still are comfortable to be used single handedly.

SEE ALSO: Buyers Guide: Top 10 Premium Smartphones To Buy In March

Today we bring to you a list of 10 upcoming big screen smartphones that can become your perfect companion this year. We have shortlisted top 10 smartphones that are rumored to flaunt big screen and be loaded with high end specifications to cater to your interest and need. Have a look, before you make a purchase now:

Stay tuned to GizBot for more updates!

Rumored Key Features

Expected that the iPhone 7 might have a screen size bigger than that of the iPhone 6 Plus 

Speculations of having a quad-core A8 processor

A 14 megapixel camera is also speculated

iPhone 7's memory could be 256GB or even higher

a quad-core A8 processor or even higher is expected

4G equipped providing better connectivity

A new battery technology is expected to be in the works to provided extended hours of usage More

Rumored Key Features

a 5.2-inch display with 1280 x 720 pixel resolution that is same as its predecessor

It is powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 410 processor with Adreno 306 GPU

Running Android 5.1.1

2GB RAM and 16GB internal storage

1.5GB RAM

8GB internal storage

a 13-megapixel rear

5-megapixel front camera

battery of the phone and it could be the same 2600mAh More

Rumored Key Features

A full HD display which is mostly 5.5″ in size

It will most likely be a SuperAMOLED display

will be powered by a Snapdragon 650 processor

3GB of RAM

The rear camera is a 13 Megapixel Samsung S5K3L2XXl sensor

5 Megapixel Samsung S5K5E3YX sensor with a 1.1µm pixels and a 23mm f2.2 lens

a fingerprint sensor this time around

will be powered by a 4300 mAH battery and come with a microSD card slot More

Rumored Key Features

5.2-inch (1440 x 2560 pixels) Quad HD AMOLED display

Quad-Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 64-bit processor with Adreno 530 GPU

4GB RAM, 32GB internal storage, expandable memory with microSD

Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) with HTC Sense 8 UI

12.3MP camera with dual-tone LED flash, Sony IMX377 sensor, Laser AF, OIS, PDAF, 4K video recording

5MP Ultrapixel front-facing camera, Samsung S5K4E6 sensor, 1080p video recording

4G LTE, WiFi 802.11 ac/a/b/g/n (2.4 and 5GHz), Bluetooth 4.2 and GPS with GLONASS More

Rumored Key Features

4.6 inches Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen With Corning Gorilla Glass 4 back panel

Android OS, v6.0 (Marshmallow)

Qualcomm MSM8996 Snapdragon 820

Exynos 8890 Octa Chipset

Dual-core 2.15 GHz Kryo & dual-core 1.6 GHz Kryo

Quad-core 2.3 GHz Mongoose + quad-core 1.6 GHz Cortex-A53 CPU

Adreno 530

Mali-T880 MP12 GPU

12 MP, f/1.7, 26mm, phase detection autofocus, OIS, LED flash

5 MP Front Camera More

Rumored Key Features

5.7 inches IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen with Corning Gorilla Glass 4

Android OS, v5.1 (Lollipop)

Qualcomm MSM8996 Snapdragon 820 Chipset

Dual-core 2.15 GHz Kryo & dual-core 1.6 GHz Kryo

64 GB of Internal Memory

4 GB of RAM

13 MP, autofocus, dual-LED (dual tone) flash

4 MP of Front Camera More

Key Features

5.7 inches Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreenAndroid OS, v5.1 (Lollipop)Quad-core Cortex-A53 & Quad-core Cortex-A57 CPU32 GB of Internal memory3 GB of RAM16 MP of Rear Camera5 MP front cameraNon-removable Li-Ion 3050 mAh battery

Rumored Key Features

5.2 inches IPS-NEO LCD capacitive touchscreen

Android OS, v6.0 (Marshmallow)

Quad-core 2.3 GHz Cortex-A72 & quad-core 1.8 GHz Cortex-A53

32/64 GB of Internal memory

3/4 GB of RAM

Dual 12 MP, laser autofocus, OIS, dual-LED (dual tone) flash

5 MP of RAM

Non-removable Li-Ion 3000 mAh battery

Rumored Key Features

5.7 inches Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen

Android OS, v6.0 (Marshmallow)

2.5 GHz dual-core Cortex-A72 & 2 GHz quad-core Cortex-A53 & 1.4 GHz quad-core Cortex-A53 CPU

Mediatek Helio X25 Chipset

21 MP, f/2.0, phase detection & laser autofocus, OIS, dual-LED (dual tone) flash Camera

Non-removable Li-Ion battery

Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro (2016)

Rumored Key Features

6.0 inches Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen

Corning Gorilla Glass 4 back panel

Android OS, v6.0.1 (Marshmallow)

Qualcomm MSM8976 Snapdragon 652 Chipset

Quad-core 1.8 GHz Cortex-A72 & quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A53 CPU

32 GB Internal memory

4 GB of RAM

16 MP, f/1.9, autofocus, OIS, LED flash Camera

8 MP, f/1.9, 1080p of Front Camera

Non-removable Li-Ion battery

Rumored Key Features

5.0 inches IPS LCD capacitive touchscree

Microsoft Windows 10

Qualcomm MSM8916 Snapdragon 410 Chipset

16GB of Internal memory

1 GB of RAM

10 MP, Carl Zeiss optics, OIS, autofocus, LED flash

2 MP of Front Camera

Removable Li-Ion battery

Stay tuned to GizBot for more updates!

Source: Top 10 upcoming Rumored Big Screen Smartphones

Upcoming Android Smartphones 2016: Samsung Galaxy Note 6, Huawei P9, One Plus 3, Moto X 2016 And More

A slew of smartphones are expected to be launched this year. The Samsung Galaxy Note 6, OnePlus 3 and Moto X 2016 are some of the flagships that smartphone enthusiasts can look forward to in 2016.(Photo : Venture Beat)

We are in the third month of 2016 and so far a number of smartphone makers have launched their mobile phones. However, there are still many Android-powered handsets that will be unveiled this year.

Here are some of the handsets that will be launched in 2016.

Samsung Galaxy Note 6

Samsung has already launched its first flagships of 2016 and the company's next flagship, the Galaxy Note 6, is expected to be launched in August or September this year.

The phablet may sport a 5.8-inch slim RGB AMOLED display with a QHD resolution of 2,560 x 1,440 pixels. Just like the Galaxy S7 and the Galaxy S7 edge, the upcoming Galaxy Note 6 may be available in two variants: one with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor and the other with an Exynos 8 chipset.

While 4 GB of RAM is expected to be the norm for flagship smartphones in 2016, the Galaxy Note 6 is believed to come with 6 GB of RAM.

Samsung is said to be working on improving the camera of the Galaxy Note 6. Rumors claim that the phablet may have a 12-megapixel primary camera with Super Optical Image Stabilization System, which will allow users to take quality images in low-light conditions.

A previous report suggests that Samsung has applied for a patent for the S Pen, which can double as a stand for smartphones in the Galaxy Note series. It will be interesting to see if the Galaxy Note 6 gets the S Pen, which will also act as a stand.

Huawei P9

Huawei is scheduled to launch its next flagship, the Huawei P9, on April 6. The P9 will be the fifth smartphone in Huawei's P-series. The mobile device is speculated to come in four variants. As previously reported by Tech Times, there may be a standard 5.2-inch model, a budget- friendly variant dubbed P9 Lite, a beefed-up feature-rich version and a version with a bigger screen, which could be known as the P9 Max or P9 Plus.

If rumors are to be believed then the Huawei flagship will have a HiSilicon Kirin 950 octa-core processor for and Mali-T880 GPU. The standard version of the phone is said to have 3 GB of RAM, a display resolution of 1,080p and a 3,900 mAh battery. The premium version of the P9 may have 4 GB of RAM.

A leaked image of the Huawei P9 hints at a USB Type-C port for fast charging and data transfer. Rumors also reveal that the handset may be available in 32 GB, 64 GB and 128 GB internal storage options.

The smartphone is also said to boast two 12-megapixel sensors, which will bring better focus.

OnePlus 3

OnePlus is a Chinese smartphone maker founded in 2013. The company's OnePlus One, which was unveiled in April 2014, was highly popular in the market as the device included high-end features but had a competitive price tag. The company launched the successor of the OnePlus One, the OnePlus 2, in July 2015 and now the company is said to working on a flagship for 2016 dubbed OnePlus 3.

The upcoming OnePlus 3 is rumored to tout a 5.5-inch Full HD screen, Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, 4 GB of RAM, 32 GB of internal memory, a 16-megapixel primary and an 8-megapixel selfie camera.

The Android 6.0 Marshmallow-powered handset is expected to be launched toward the end of Q2 2016.

Moto X 2016

Lenovo completed the acquisition of Motorola Mobility in October 2014. In 2015, the company released a number of smartphones that cluttered the handset lineup and confused many customers. However, the company has confirmed that in 2016 it will launch only 15 phones.

The Lenovo Vibe phones will fill the entry- to mid-level market, while the Moto-branded mobile devices will only include top-end features.

Rumors on the Moto X 2016 are quite thin but speculations are rife that the device will have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, a big camera sensor and a fingerprint scanner. Being a high-end phone, customers should also expect 4 GB of RAM, a higher battery capacity and Android 6.0 Marshmallow as the operating system.

An image of the Moto X 2016 has been leaked by Chinese website Wapvnet, which suggests that the phone will have a full-metal unibody design.

The Moto X 2016 is estimated to be launched in mid-2016.

BlackBerry's Next Android Phone

BlackBerry launched its first Android smartphone, the BlackBerry Priv, in September 2015. The Canadian company's decision to launch an Android phone was well welcomed in the smartphone space.

BlackBerry has not revealed its plans to launch another Android-based phone; however, given the success of the BlackBerry Priv, it is highly likely that BlackBerry enthusiasts will possibly see another Android-powered BlackBerry handset this year.

The next Android-based BlackBerry smartphone may launch and release toward the end of this year.

© 2016 Tech Times, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.

Source: Upcoming Android Smartphones 2016: Samsung Galaxy Note 6, Huawei P9, One Plus 3, Moto X 2016 And More

Gionee S8 and W909 Smartphone to be Launched in China on March 29

Tech

Gionee S8 and W909 will be launched in China on 29 March. The prices of these devices will be revealed during the launch event.(Photo : YouTube)

Chinese smartphone manufacturer Gionee has confirmed that its upcoming devices - the Gionee S8 and Gionee W909 - will be available in China starting March 29. The Chinese company announced recently that it will be holding an event in China on the said date.

The Gionee S8 smartphone was unveiled last month during the Mobile World Congress 2016 event that was held in Barcelona, Spain.

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The device features a 5.5 inch Full HD 1920 × 1080 pixels with Super AMOLED 3D Touch Display and is protected with Corning Gorilla Glass 4 on the screen panel. it is powered by a 64 bit 1.9 GHz Octa core MediaTek Helio P10 MT6755 Processor paired with 4GB of RAM. In terms of graphics, the device comes with Mali T-860 GPU on board enough to handle 3D graphics for gaming.

Gionee S8 smartphone is equipped with a 16-megapixel rear camera with dual tone LED Flash and Phase Detection Autofocus (PDAF), while the front camera of the device comes with an 8-megapixel snapper. The handset comes with a built-in 64GB internal memory onboard, which can be further expanded up to 128GB via a microSD card.

On the other hand, the Gionee W909 smartphone features the Helio P10 (MT6755) processor paired with 4GB of RAM inside. The smartphone is expected to have two touchscreens display and a fingerprint scanner. It will also feature a T9 physical keyboard alongside the dual screens. On the camera side, the Gionee W909 is said to sport a 16-megapixel main camera and a 5-megapixel front camera. The handset will come with a built-in 32GB internal storage, which is expandable up to 32GB using a microSD card.

Gionee S8 and W909 will be launched in China on 29 March. The prices of these devices will be revealed during the launch event.

 

©2016 Chinatopix All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission

Source: Gionee S8 and W909 Smartphone to be Launched in China on March 29

Microsoft Lumia 650 up for pre-order in China for 1699 Yuan

Microsoft announced the Microsoft Lumia 650 last month. The company has launched the smartphone in China for 1699 Yuan(Rs. 17,500). The smartphone can now be pre-ordered in the country.

Microsoft Lumia 650 will be available in China from 31 March. We can expect the phone to be available in other countries soon. The smartphone might hit the Indian market soon.

Microsoft Lumia 650 sports a 5 inch HD(1280×720 pixels) OLED Display protected with Corning Gorilla Glass 3. It is powered by a 1.3 GHz Quad core Qualcomm Snapdragon 212 Processor with 1GB of RAM. For graphics, it comes with a Adreno 304 GPU.

Lumia 650 comes with a 8 Megapixel rear camera with LED flash. For selfies, It comes with a 5 Megapixel front camera. It has 16GB on-board storage which can be further expanded upto 200GB using MicroSD Card. Microsoft is also giving 30 GB of free OneDrive cloud storage.

Microsoft Lumia 650 price in China is 1699 Yuan. It comes in Black and White colors.

Source: Microsoft Lumia 650 up for pre-order in China for 1699 Yuan

Android-Powered Mi TV 3S launched by Xiaomi

Xiaomi Mi TV 3S is the first curved TV from the Chinese company

Xiaomi, which is the biggest smartphone seller in China had earlier this month launched its latest flagship smartphone Mi 5 for $305.

For now, the TVs will be only available in the USA market and in a few months will be made available in countries including the USA and India, where Xiaomi has a strong user base.

The Xiaomi Mi TV 3S Curve as the name suggests comes with a 65-inch curved 4K resolution display and is powered by an Mstar 6A928 TV processor coupled with 2GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage. The Chinese OEM has just introduced the new Mi TV 3S 43-inch and the Mi TV 3S Curve 65-inch.

Before this launch, Xiaomi unveiled the Mi TV 3 with 4K Display.

This variant also employs Dolby and DTS dual outputs. Such screens take advantage of our peripheral vision because they provide a wider field of view.

Xiaomi has also announced a 43-inch Mi TV in China. The FHD variant costs only CNY 1,799 which is about $278 in the US.

Apart from the new Mi TV 3S models, recently Xiaomi also had released the Mi TV 3 70-inch version having the 4K display that had been sold in the China market. The Xiaomi Mi TV 63-inch curved 4K TV has a price tag of $1380 while the 43-inch flat FHD TV has a price tag of $276. The TV also comes with the Mi TV bar which is already included in the price. The display is a Full HD one and is powered by an Mstar 6A908 processor.

The 65-inch Mi TV 3s is found out to be 5.9mm thin, which is actually thinner than the Mi Note whose dimension is 6.95mm. It runs on a 1.4GHz quadcore Mstar 6A928 processor with Mali 760 GPU, 2GB RAM and 8GB internal storage.

Watch CONCACAF 2018 World Cup soccer qualifier onlineYou never know what will happen in road qualifiers in CONCACAF and this is a game US fans won't want to miss. The omens look good for the USA , they are now undefeated in 21-games against Guatemala .

Source: Android-Powered Mi TV 3S launched by Xiaomi

Vivo V3 Max certified by TENAA in China, specs revealed

The Vivo V3 Max has been certified by TENAA, barely days after Vivo teased the smartphone's launch next month.

The TENAA listing reveals the smartphone will feature a 5.5-inch display with 1080p resolution and is going to be powered by a 1.5GHz octa-core chipset. The octa-core chipset will be paired with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of expandable internal storage.

As can be seen in the image above, the V3 Max will include a fingerprint sensor at the back, which is slowly becoming standard fare on most new mid to high-end Android smartphones. The smartphone will measure 153.90 x 77.10 x 7.58mm and weigh in a 168 grams.

While there's no word on when the smartphone could land in China, Vivo will be introducing the V3 Max along with the V3 in the Indian market on April 5th.

Via: Timesnews.co.uk

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Source: Vivo V3 Max certified by TENAA in China, specs revealed

Apple: The Value Of The iPhone SE In A Challenging Smartphone Space

Introduction

Competition in the global smartphone market, especially for emerging markets, has intensified in the last five years. As new technological innovations for smartphones plateaued, key smartphone vendors, Samsung (OTC:SSNLF) and Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), failed to create enough value proposition for current users to upgrade to new versions.

This lag in innovation allowed new and cheap smartphone vendors to catch up to Samsung's and Apple's products.

Because of being low-priced competitors with great technologies, new players such as Huawei and Xiaomi (Private:XI) have managed to gain substantial global market share at the risk of Samsung and Apple. If this trend is allowed to continue, Samsung and Apple could see their market shares plummet as consumers move to cheaper but advanced competitors.

But we believe Apple's recent announcement of the low-priced iPhone SE will help the company mitigate its market share deterioration by tapping into new markets as it expands its total addressable market ("TAM") and brings more people to its ecosystem.

The Huawei and Xiaomi effect - Apple's portion of global shipment volume declined between Q4 2012 and Q4 2014

Apple has been losing global market share because of low-priced competitors such as Xiaomi and Huawei. In the last three years, companies like Samsung, Apple and Lenovo (OTCPK:LNVGY) have seen their worldwide vendor market share decline by an average of 12%, 4% and 1%, respectively.

(Source: Authors financial analysis with data taken from the International Data Corporation)Click to enlargeOn the other hand, average market share growth rate for Huawei and Xiaomi between Q2 2012 and Q2 2015 is 30% and 87%, respectively.

This decline in the global smartphone market is a threat to Apple's long-term growth. Q4 is usually Apple's best quarter, but its portion of global smartphone shipment volume fell from 19.7% in Q4 2014 to 18.7% in Q4 2015 as shown below:

(Source: IDC Research Inc. - Q/Q Global Smartphone Market Shares)Click to enlarge

In the same time period, some of Apple's competitors such as Samsung, Huawei, Lenovo and Xiaomi saw their portion of global units shipped increase.

Samsung and Apple losing market share: Huawei and Xiaomi gaining it

The Huawei and Xiaomi threat is real and imminent. Samsung, Apple and Lenovo are losing popularity to new, cheap and advanced players.

The popularity of Xiaomi's products is growing. Xiaomi has already set a Guinness World Record for the most mobile phones sold in a 24-hour period. During its "Mi Fan Fest" promotion, Xiaomi sold 2.12 million smartphones, 770,000 smart appliances, 247,000 power strips, 208,000 fitness watches, 79,000 Wi-Fi units and 38,600 smart televisions all in one day. This shows how much interest there is for Xiaomi's products.

Huawei is rapidly grabbing market share from the big players: Samsung and Apple. In FY2015, Huawei became the fourth mobile phone vendor in history to ship over 100 million smartphones in one calendar year. In addition, Huawei's units shipped grew by 37% in FY2015. It has consistently expanded its presence with affordable handsets in emerging markets.

But one would wonder why should Apple investors care about low-cost smartphone competitors such as Huawei and Xiaomi since Apple's products are premium and not discount products?

Apple and its investors should care because of several reasons.

First, this is important for Apple because it cannot repeat the Samsung mistake of underestimating Huawei and Xiaomi in a market that accounts for ~24% of AAPL's total sales. By Q2 2012, Samsung was capturing ~32% of total global smartphone market share. Samsung tried to compete against Apple and neglected the small players. This mistake has cost Samsung more than 10% in market share in less than three years.

In Q1 2016, Greater China accounted for ~24% of Apple's total sales. Because of how important China is to Apple's projected future growth, the company needs to pay attention to Huawei and Xiaomi because they threaten its estimated growth prospects in the mainland. For instance, Xiaomi's hardware has created a lot of attention. The Mini Note was in such high demand that it sold out in under three minutes and that is after Xiaomi's VP revealed that the sale received over 220 million reservations. Xiaomi's phones offer the best features of a smartphone at half the price. Xiaomi is planning to grow by targeting iPhone users with rumors of a trade-in program for the iPhone 5s and iPhone 6 for Xiaomi's Mini Note and Mini Note Pro. Besides, Xiaomi is not an ordinary start-up. Three of top nine positions in Xiaomi are occupied by former Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) employees. It was the third largest seller of smartphones in the world by mid-2015 and it overtook Samsung and Apple t o become the largest smartphone seller in Asia.

Second, moving forward, Apple cannot continue growing at historical levels by hiking prices y/y because smartphone innovations have plateaued.

But the total number of consumers upgrading is growing smaller. For instance, there are, respectively, 12.8% and 23.7% of Apple customers still using the iPhone 5 and the iPhone 5s models.

(Source: Localytics)Click to enlarge

This decline in new iPhone adoption is likely because people do not see the reason to upgrade their phones. There is no real innovation to justify higher prices for newer models. This has made startups like Huawei and Xiaomi, with cheaper smartphones but as technologically advanced as Apple and Samsung, very common.

iPhone SE: Opportunity to expand TAM and grow ecosystem in emerging markets

The growing popularity of competitors such as Huawei and Xiaomi in Greater China, the lack of new innovations on smartphones and the declining adoption rate for new iPhones threaten Apple's long-term growth rate.

This is why we believe that Apple's announcement of the low-priced, 4-inch iPhone SE is a step ahead in the right direction.

The iPhone SE price tag allows Apple to expand its total addressable market ("TAM") in emerging markets without diluting its brand image. The starting price for an iPhone SE is $399. This price tag is still expensive in emerging markets, but it also broadens the number of people who want to own an iPhone but cannot afford the current prices.

We believe that this opens up new markets for Apple and has the ability to expand its TAM because of Xiaomi. Xiaomi is often referred to as the "Chinese Apple" because its products all look like Apple products.

Xiaomi Mi4 on the left and the iPhone 5s on the right.

(Source: The Verge)Click to enlarge

Xiaomi's Mi Router Mini closely resembles Apple's Magic Trackpad.

(Source: Cult of Android)Click to enlarge

Xiaomi's CEO Lei Jun has also borrowed the iconic "one more thing" slide from the late Steve Jobs.

(Source: Cult of Android)Click to enlarge

One of the major differences between Xiaomi and Apple is that XI sells iPhone-like gear for a third of AAPL's products. But Xiaomi's phones are as technologically advanced as any smartphone in existence. It manages to provide cheap smartphones because they price just above cost.

This implies that the market for Apple's products is there, but most people cannot afford the prices. Therefore, although the $399 for the iPhone SE is still relatively high, it is below Xiaomi's Mi5 prices, giving Apple a competitive edge with price-sensitive consumers who would prefer the original iPhone rather than the copycat.

This is why we believe that the iPhone SE has potential to aid Apple in expanding its ecosystem in emerging markets like China.

Conclusion

But Apple's low-pricing might have some problems moving forward. First, we expect Apple to experience deteriorating margins moving forward because the price reduction shifts its net income dependency from higher mark-up prices to turnover. But since this is a new initiative, it is possible that the turnover from the low iPhone SE prices might not be enough to compete for Apple's lower prices. Secondly, Apple still lags behind in its effort to penetrate and effectively compete in the low-cost market with the likes of Xiaomi and Huawei on phone size. The iPhone SE might set a foundation for AAPL to appeal to the low-cost market, but it will still lose market share from people who prefer a bigger but cheaper phone.

Nonetheless, we believe that the new opportunities that the iPhone SE low-pricing will bring to Apple in Q2 2016 and beyond will outweigh the aforementioned disadvantages. This is because a low price point has the potential to tap into new markets in Apple's strong markets such as America, Europe and China. Furthermore, even if we see lackluster sales growth in iPhones, if Apple manages to expand its ecosystem with the low price, it will be able to sell more of its products to newcomers. Consequently, the iPhone SE has the potential to help Apple grow its global market share as it expands its TAM.

Disclosure: I/we have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.

I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Source: Apple: The Value Of The iPhone SE In A Challenging Smartphone Space

Huawei teams up with China UnionPay to roll out NFC mobile payments

"But now the testing phase is over", the Chinese smartphone giant said.

Ltd. has announced it is joining forces with China UnionPay (CUP) to launch a new mobile payment service in China, called "Huawei Pay", by sometime next month.

Users of Huawei smartphones equipped with a fingerprint sensor as well as data transmission technology called near-field communication, or NFC, can download a Huawei Pay app to use the service, the Shenzhen-based company said. The new partnership comes after the recent launch of Apple Pay and Samsung Pay in mainland China.

UnionPay, which holds a monopoly on bank-card payments in the country, also works with Apple Pay, which launched in China last month.

Following a pilot, Huawei is rolling out its service across China, enabling customers to make contactless payments by tapping their handsets against POS readers while pressing the fingerprint reader.

Joswiak said Chinese users were able to add around 3 million payment cards to Apple Pay within three days after the initial launch of the service in February.

Furthermore, The Wall Street Journal revealed that the technology provides Huawei Pay users more secure payments because it requires the user's fingerprint to approve every transaction.

Major technology companies, both domestic and worldwide have entered into the fast-growing mobile payments market in China. In China, Huawei was the biggest smartphone vendor in the fourth quarter, with a 15.2% market share, followed closely by Apple's 14.6% and Chinese competitor Xiaomi Inc.'s 14.4%, according to IDC. Despite a slowdown in China's smartphone market, Huawei's growth in the sector shows its ability to strive in deteriorating conditions and compete in a highly competitive market.

China's smartphone market, once dominated by foreign suppliers such as Apple and Samsung, is becoming a more domestically oriented market, with the homegrown mobile makers rising swiftly to the top.

"If there are opportunities overseas, we may consider launching Huawei Pay world-wide", a Huawei spokesman said.

IPhone SE Has 2GB of RAM, Appears In AnTuTu BenchmarksIf you're an Apple fan, you'll probably hate this video but for everyone else, brace yourselves for a giggle or two. Apple iPhone SE's 2GB of RAM was confirmed by a benchmark listing as well as TechCrunch's Matthew Panzarino .

Source: Huawei teams up with China UnionPay to roll out NFC mobile payments

Huawei collaborates with China UnionPay for Huawei Pay

Huawei Technologies Co., the leading Chinese smartphone manufacturer, has partnered with China UnionPay in order to introduce its mobile payment service called Huawei Pay. As far as bank-card payments are concerned, UnionPay holds a dominant position in the country. The state-run bank-card processor, which also works with Apple Pay, will help Huawei to roll out NFC (Near Field Communication) mobile payments in China.

Currently, Huawei is China's biggest smartphone maker by shipments.

Last September, Huawei started testing its mobile payment service in China. Then, it could only be used in limited number of shops and restaurants.

Earlier this month, Huawei formally announced the launch of mobile payment system and became the first Chinese handset vendor to challenge tech giants like Apple and Samsung.

This collaboration with UnionPay will help Huawei to activate its mobile payment service across China. According to The Wall Street Journal, the introduction of Huawei Pay will aggravate the already tough competition in the digital payment market of China.

Major technology companies, both domestic and international have entered into the fast-growing mobile payments market in China. The country's mobile payment market is dominated by Alipay, owned by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. Alipay enjoys 70 percent market share in the domain of mobile payments.

Huawei Pay promises to provide extra security to retain its position in the extremely competitive market. To make it more secure, every transaction needs a fingerprint authentication.  

All NFC-enabled Huawei smartphones with a fingerprint scanner can be used to make payments using Huawei Pay. The Huawei Mate S, released back in December, 2015 supports NFC technology.

In 2015, supported by the steady sales in the domestic market as well as in Western Europe, Huawei has shipped 108 million smartphones, up by 44 percent from 2014. 

Related: Huawei aims to surpass Samsung and Apple in 5 years

Source: Huawei collaborates with China UnionPay for Huawei Pay

Apple’s new 4-inch iPhone faces challenge measuring up in China and India

Apple Inc's new iPhone SE has first-rate features and a relatively low price tag, but its prospects in key markets like China and India may be limited by its diminutive size.

At the product launch in Cupertino, California on Monday, Apple vice-president of iPhone Product Marketing Greg Joswiak singled out China as a target market, saying four-inch displays like that on the iPhone SE were still popular with first-time smartphone buyers.

Chinese buyers tend to start off with a phone with a 4-inch screen, just like the iPhone SE, he argued. China, Apple's second-biggest market, and India, one of the fastest-growing major markets in the world, are both seen as key for Apple, which expects overall iPhone sales to contract.

The iPhone SE is seen as particularly important for India, where Anshul Gupta, research director at Gartner, expects the smartphones market to double to 200 million units in the next two years.

But in India and China, smartphones are often the main connection to the digital world, and a big screen is highly valued, analysts said.

"(In India) the majority of the low-end, $100 phones have a five-inch display. The key reason being smartphone users are becoming more mature are preferring bigger screen size as many of them don't own a tablet or laptop," said Neil Shah, research director at Counterpoint Technology Market Research based in Mumbai.

Only 10% of smartphones sold in India at the end of December had a four-inch screen, according to Counterpoint, and Apple accounted for only 2% of overall smartphone shipments in India last year.

And with nearly 70% of smartphones selling for less than $150 in India, the iPhone SE's roughly $400 price tag may still be out of reach for most buyers there.

In China, analysts warned the iPhone SE could mirror the disappointing outcome of Apple's iPhone 5C, which was launched as an affordable gadget three years ago. It was also less technologically advanced than the top phone at the time.

"The 5C was awful, no one wanted it. Everyone knew that if you bought it you had no money," said Shanghai-based Shaun Rein, founder of China Market Research Group.

"Just going cheap doesn't mean it'll do well," he said. Apple's second attempt to enter the mid-tier smartphone market, crowded with Android devices by rivals like Samsung Electronics and Huawei, is seen as an improvement on the 5C strategy.

The iPhone SE is up to date with the latest processor, fingerprint scanner and Apple Pay, and at $399 it costs nearly 40 percent less than the iPhone 6S's $649 opening price.

Reuters

Tags: Apple, Apple Pay, Gartner, Greg Joswiak, iPhone, iPhone SE

Source: Apple's new 4-inch iPhone faces challenge measuring up in China and India

Huawei Boosts Mobile-Payment Service in China

Chinese handset maker Huawei Technologies Co. is beefing up its mobile-payment service in China, creating yet another local competitor to Apple Inc.'s Apple Pay in the world's largest smartphone market.

Huawei, China's biggest smartphone maker by shipments, has teamed up with state-run bank-card processor China UnionPay Co. to offer the service called Huawei Pay.

When Huawei first launched the payment service in September on...

Source: Huawei Boosts Mobile-Payment Service in China

China vendors to ship 200-300 million fingerprint-recognition-enabled smartphones in 2016

China vendors to ship 200-300 million fingerprint-recognition-enabled smartphones in 2016

Siu Han, Taipei; Adam Hwang, DIGITIMES [Monday 21 March 2016]

China-based smartphone vendors have been mostly inclined to adopt fingerprint recognition for their mid-range and high-end models and consequently they will ship an estimated 200-300 smartphones featuring fingerprint-recognizing functions in 2016, according to Taiwan-based supply chain makers.

The drastically increased adoption of fingerprint recognition by China-based smartphone vendors is partly because China-based mobile payment service providers are poised for competition with Apple Pay which entered the China market on February 18, 2016 through cooperation with 19 local banks, the sources explained.

In 2015, only several China-based smartphone vendors, including Huawei Technologies, LeTV, Meizu and ZTE, adopted fingerprint recognition for a few models to test the market response, with total shipments estimated at 80 million units, the sources said.

In addition to Sweden-based Fingerprint Cards' dominating the China market of fingerprint-recognizing sensors, many Taiwan-based IC design houses, in view of the large demand in China, began shipments of such sensors to China-based smartphone vendors in the first quarter of 2016 and plan to increase shipments in the second half of the year, the sources indicated. Due to a large increase in supply, prices for fingerprint-recognizing sensors may fall 25% in the second half of 2016.

China-based touch module makers Shenzhen O-film Tech and Truly Opto-electronics have stepped into production of fingerprint-recognizing modules, the sources noted. In particular, Truly Opto-electronics ships 1.5-2.0 million fingerprint-recognizing modules a month currently, consisting of 1.3 million glass-cover modules and 200,000-700,000 film-coated units, and expects to increase monthly shipments to 3.5 million units in the second quarter and further to 5.0-7.0 million units in the second half of 2016, the sources indicated.

Quotes for a film-coated fingerprint-recognizing module and a glass-cover model stand at US$3.5-4.0 and US$5.0 respectively at present, the sources said. Due to largely increased supply, quotes for an entry-level fingerprint-recognizing module are expected to drop to slightly over US$3.0, the sources indicated.

Source: China vendors to ship 200-300 million fingerprint-recognition-enabled smartphones in 2016

China Mobile's Data Business Surpasses Voice For First Time

Are more Chinese netizens using chat apps and VoIP than speaking on their mobile phones? The latest financial results from China Mobile appear to show traditional phone calls are not keeping pace with modernity.

Chinese telecom operator China Mobile published its annual performance for 2015, stating that the company achieved operating revenue of CNY668.3 billion in 2015, a year-on-year increase of 2.6%; and its profit attributable to shareholders was CNY108.5 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 0.6%.

China Mobile's communications service revenue was CNY584.1 billion, a decrease of 1.3% year-on-year. At the same time, the company's data business income exceeded voice service income for the first time, accounting for 52% of the total communications service revenue.

During the year, the company's mobile data traffic increased by 143.7% year-on-year; the data usage per user of its mobile Internet users increased by 118.5% year-on-year; and its mobile Internet revenue increased by 30.5% year-on-year to CNY200.9 billion. Mobile apps are a main driver for this surge.

While publishing its annual performance, China Mobile also released its operating statistics for February 2016. The report showed that China Mobile added 24.8 million new 4G users in February, reaching a total of 360.4 million; and it realized a net increase of 2.7 million mobile users, reaching a total of 831.3 million.

However, with the large increase of 4G users, the number of its 3G users continued to decrease. During February, the company lost 5.863 million 3G users to a total of 157.132 million.

In addition, China Mobile published its broadband user group stats for the first time. In January and February 2016, China Mobile achieved net increases of 1.496 million and 1.406 million cable broadband users, respectively; and the total number of its cable broadband users reached 57.931 million.

Source: China Mobile's Data Business Surpasses Voice For First Time

U.S. to offer China’s ZTE 'temporary relief' on export curbs: official

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Source: U.S. to offer China's ZTE 'temporary relief' on export curbs: official

The Future of India’s Smartphone Price War: LeEco and Coolpad let us in on their trade secrets

It's a riot in India's burgeoning smartphone market. Chinese smartphone brands have turned it on its head forever. A recent IDC study revealed the top 5 Indian cities make up approximately 60% of the online smartphone sales. Samsung came at the top in leading 30 Indian cities. More 'value for money' brands like Micromax, Lenovo and Motorola followed.

While the numbers suggest the chaos is limited to the metros and tier I cities, tier II and III cities are expected to play a major role in the near future. At a time when the smartphone market is growing 18% YoY and constitutes 40% of the 250 million units shipped to India, the dusty road is where the market lies.

Business Insider sat down with the India Heads of two big bad boys in this war - Coolpad and LeEco to understand where this battle's headed, and if there will ever be peace.

What's Changed - EverythingThe Chinese influx started way bac k in 2015. They saw an opportunity in the affordable smartphone market. Cut to 2016, that's gone for good. Now, they're up against home-grown brands like Micromax and Lava. Basically what Micromax did to Nokia years ago? Marketing brands like Xiaomi have locked horns with the likes of Lenovo and Motorola. The former doesn't even have a brand ambassador in India!

Newer Chinese brands like Oppo and LeEco are kicking serious ass too. They're bringing in the money power of their rich Chinese dads, but considering ROI on investment, it's very difficult to sustain their current models due to stiff competition.

Remember, back in the days e-commerce players were offering subsidies to host online sales. After 2016, only the manufacturer will have advantage as the Flipkarts, Snapdeals and Amazons of India will not offer too much in discounts, and this will reduce cost-efficiency in business models.

There are two options now - go offline with huge marketing investment, or sta y online with a cost-effective model.

"There will be challenges in manufacturing and marketing", Syed Tajuddin, Coolpad India Head accepts.

By the end of 2016, most marketing brands will find it difficult to sustain. They'll burn most of their liquidity. That's where direct manufacturers come into the picture with long term goals. They will have extreme control on their supply-chains.

Online Vs. Offline GameAs the numbers suggest, Indian metros and Tier I cities already have mass online penetration. Till now, most Chinese brands weren't even interested to look beyond, but are now being forced to because of the tax complications state governments have set up. Entering the offline market also means being cowed down by heavy investment for retailers and distributors.

"Offline will remain and prosper. The only thing that might happen is that the offline sales in Metros might slip a bit into online", Syed agrees.

Offline brands like Samsung, Lenovo and Micro max that still have a huge portion of the offline market, need to check inflation. You ask why?

Because brands like Oppo have brought some of their Chinese distributors to India. These brands will give a tough time standing up to Indian brands, and it's only a matter of time before Samsung feels some heat in its collar too.

Rather than investing and promoting on the marketing front, brands like Micromax have to focus on improving their product's value proposition. If you've noticed, Micromax hasn't spent a fortune on advertising since the Sliver 5.

Believe it or not, LeEco and Oppo are going into Tier II and Tier III cities, and holding small marketing campaigns there. Earlier the distributor drove sales, now it's the brand. Indian brands are not able to cope up here.

"Just an online strategy will only help reach a certain consumer-base. We're planning t have our own stores and offline distribution very soon. Half of our business in Feb came from the non-metr os and non-Tier I cities", Atul tells me.

To reduce, or not to reduce - Price, that's the question!In a day and age where the average life of a smartphone is down to less than a year in India, is there any chance of the price war cooling down anytime soon?

"Around 30% customers, basically the young crowd will continue to focus on hardware vs. price. The high-end market will have an eye for aesthetics, and would prefer to have a look and feel", Syed says.

"You have to be present offline to ensure you get the bigger consumer-base. We'll launch into offline in the next 3-4 months", Atul Jain, India Head, LeEco says.

If the hardware craze is limited to tier I and metros, does it matter if a phone is priced at Rs. 10k, Rs. 9,999 or Rs. 9,990?

"It doesn't matter. Price is just one component. The consumer decision is based on at least 6 factors like design, availability, battery and price. Consumers could be sensitive to pricing, and as manufacturers we've to take that into account", Atul says.

Do Flash Sales Work?

Both Coolpad and LeEco agree flash sales can be used as a tool to drive initial volume. Brands with constraint in delivery in the first phase chose that model. By the time they catch up in terms of numbers, they open it for all. That was typically in a month or two.

However, Indians are now wary of waiting. They have options. Micromax's Yu brand previously did flash sales for over 3-4 months. Now their flash sales don't last that long.

Basically, two quarters on, there will be lesser flash sales.

Increasing Market ShareSo how do you increase market share in a market overcrowded with fiery competition that's baying for your blood?

For one, the era of marketing is over. You have to significantly control costs. Supply chain will become the foremost focus, R&D comes second. Ones you have R&D, you can experiment, and the supply chain will help reduce cost.

"We're setting up a global R&D centre in Bangalore that'll work on software and screen technologies", LeEco India Head says.

In case you don't live under a rock you must have noticed there are two segments for every 'new' smartphone brand, a regular model, with exceptional value proposition, and a flagship segment with high-end specs.

"We're coming up with a flagship soon. However, we're very skeptical about marketing. Marketing gimmicks never work", Syed says.

Offline PricesPrice and specs have been the biggest weapons for newer brands launching in India. The notion is that when you set up an offline distribution network, prices go up. That's what happened with Samsung, and other brands too. However, if the prices are higher offline, it's not fair to the consumer.

"The distribution cost is what gets added when a product goes offline. That's built into the overall costing", Atul winks.

Differentiation:So how do you create differentiation? It continues to be quality at afford able price. Atul let me in on a secret. They're actually at a loss on a per device basis.

"We're an ecosystem company unlike Samsung, Apple or Oppo, and can sell the Le 1S at Rs. 10,999 even when the industry pegs the cost of production at Rs. 16k. We can ensure that pricing because of our large volume in China and India, and don't believe in making profits from hardware", Atul says.

LeEco is perfectly fine with the loss.

"For us phones are just screen, we have a 650 CDN networks of which 10 are in India. Nobody has that. It helps deliver content", Atul says.

The plan is LeEco will churn content to earn that money back. Atul say that way the company can also monetize second hand phones. To conclude, they think they'll win because they make it, and don't just market it.

"That's the difference between us and marketing brands. We've been manufacturing in China for the last 24 years", Syed boasts.

Image credit: Indiatimes

Source: The Future of India's Smartphone Price War: LeEco and Coolpad let us in on their trade secrets

iPhone 7 Release Date, Price, Specs And Everything Else You Need To Know

With Samsung having released the Galaxy S7 in recent weeks, attention will now switch to the next generation iPhone 7, as consumer electronics market followers wonder what Apple will deliver with the next iteration of the iconic smartphone. The iPhone has been the market-leader for several generations now, and this is extremely unlikely to change when the iPhone 7 is released.

iPhone 7 new image leaked

With speculation mounting regarding what Apple will include in the next generation iPhone 7, an image has already emerged from China which reportedly gives an interesting impression of how the upcoming smartphone will look. This first possible photograph of the iPhone 7 is actually of the phablet-sized iPhone 7 Plus, and it has emerged on the Chinese website Bastille Post.

The most notable alteration in the visage of this particular version of the iPhone 7 is the inclusion of the dual-lens camera that has been strongly linked with the smartphone in recent weeks. Indeed, it has been suggested that Apple will release three versions of the iPhone 7 in order to accommodate this new dual-camera setup, with the larger iPhone 7 Plus being accompanied by an iPhone Pro as well.

Some analysts have rejected this suggestion, but it seems that Apple is indeed planning to release at least one dual-lens unit. The images from China depict a pill-shaped enclosure which differs from some of the other online renderings that have appeared previously. Some other iPhone 7 images have suggested that the next generation smartphone will feature two separate circular camera openings.

The render also suggests that the new camera unit will be accompanied by a microphone and LED flash, as has been seen in previous iPhone releases. And antenna bands have been repositioned along the top and bottom edges of the smartphone as has been widely reported. There also appears to be space at the bottom of the iPhone 7 for a Smart Connector; a new interface introduced with the recent iPad Pro tablet that enables the transmission of both data and power simultaneously.

OLED display

Another major suggestion for the iPhone 7 is that Apple could update the screen in the device by utilizing OLED technology. This offers power saving advantages over the existing LCD displays that Apple has used in the past. Apple is reportedly already in negotiations with Samsung and LG regarding this technology, but the opinion of the most prominent Apple analysts is that it will be delayed until 2017.

No headphone jack

However, it is expected that another widely reported aspect of the iPhone 7 will indeed come to fruition. Leaks from close to the Apple supply chain have suggested that the next generation smartphone will not feature the customary headphone jack, and now leaked case photos have confirmed this impression. Apple is instead expected to rely on wireless technology for the iPhone 7 when it is released, as Apple looks to make more of its Beats acquisition in 2016.

Three versions

An interesting debate regarding the iPhone 7 is whether or not Apple will produce three versions of the smartphone. It has been widely reported over the last few weeks that Apple is considering an iPhone Pro variant, which will essentially be a souped up version of the iPhone 7 Plus phablet. Indeed, the most famous Apple follower in the world, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, is predicting precisely this, and it will be an intriguing departure from previous Apple policy if indeed three separate iPhone units are released later this year.

Camera bump

Another major design aspect of the iPhone 7 is that the unsightly camera bump that was criticized in the last generation of the smartphone will be eliminated completely. This protrusion did not sit comfortably with the sleek visage of the Apple handset, and designers will ensure that this is not repeated with the iPhone 7.

Improved 3D Touch

3D Touch was undoubtedly the standout feature of last year's iPhone 6s, and reports have suggested that Apple is working on improving this pressure-sensitive technology for the iPhone 7. Pressing down hard on the iPhone 7 unit will bring up additional options compared to last year's iPhone 6s, and further improvements will also be made regarding the sensitivity of the system.

At present, it is only possible for 3D Touch to detect additional pressure from a singular finger, but innovations will enable the system to detect pressure and the number of fingers that users are utilizing when the iPhone 7 is released. Different context-sensitive information can be provided depending on the number of fingers being used, and this technology could potentially make the iPhone even easier, quicker and more convenient to use than last year's impressive iteration.

Intel chips

The have been rumors abound that Apple will consider utilizing Intel as a chip manufacturer in the iPhone 7, which would be a major blow to Samsung. However, it is debatable whether Apple will have time to fully implement this aim in the relatively short timeframe that remains until the iPhone 7 is released.

Specs

Apple is expected to improve the screen resolution in the iPhone 7, which could mean a full HD smartphone and a quad HD phablet. Additionally, a larger battery is predicted, owing to the criticism that the corporation has received regarding battery life. New A10 and M10 processors and chipsets will be included, while Apple is also expected to double the RAM memory and maximum storage capacity from the iPhone 6s. Finally, the iPhone 7 has been linked with some outstanding camera technology, and could benefit from a DSLR snapper or a dual-lens cell.

Release date

There is no reason at the time of writing to suppose that Apple will significantly diverge from the release schedule for the iPhone 6s. However, it has been suggested in some quarters that the ongoing difficulties that the corporation is experiencing with the highly publicized FBI court case could lead to Apple delaying its handset. This is certainly something that the consumer electronics giant would prefer to avoid, but it could be that legal ramifications from the case are problematical for Apple, not to mention the rest of the smartphone manufacturing industry.

Source: iPhone 7 Release Date, Price, Specs And Everything Else You Need To Know

Meizu's upcoming Pro 6 premium smartphone will have 6GB RAM

Noah Barnes | March 18, 2016, 20:36

Meizu's upcoming Pro 6 premium smartphone will have 6GB RAM

Meizu's flagship device previous year - Pro 5 - boasts 3 and 4 gigabytes of RAM with 32 and 64 gigabytes of memory respectively. According to the rumours coming from the Chinese website, MyDrivers claim that the Chinese smartphone makers are preparing a smartphone that packs in 6GB of RAM alongside a 3D-Touch pressure-sensitive display.

Officially, Meizu is keeping mum about the impressive specs of its handset, but leaks continue to surface.

After Chinese smartphone maker Vivo had recently launched its flagship XPlay 5 with 6GB RAM and 128GB storage, its competitor Meizu has jumped in with its flagship Pro 6 handset featuring the same. While the first model is expected to come with 6GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage, the second option is supposed to ship with 4GB RAM alongside 64GB of default storage space.

It has also mentioned that before the launch of the Meizu Pro 6, it will be announcing another smartphone.

Both devices will apparently come with a Full HD display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, as yet there are no details on the exact size of the display. The processing power will depend on an Exynos 8890 SoC. The device will benefit from nifty features, such as fast-charging capabilities and Hi-Fi 3.0 sound.

If these rumored specifications would be correct, it would be the first time that Meizu would be using the processor that was made by Samsung.

The Pro 6 comes with 1080p display and an octa core Exynos 7420. The Pro 5 also relied on a Mali-T760 MP8 graphics processing unit.

The only difference between the Meizu Pro 5 smartphone and the Pro 5 Ubuntu Edition is that the latter runs Ubuntu OS (previously known as Ubuntu Touch OS) and not Android 5.1 Lollipop. Meizo has yet not confirmed or released any information about its upcoming Pro 6 flagship smart phone. Hence, the inclusion of Samsung processor in Pro 6 doesn't come as a surprise to tech enthusiasts.

A report from China states that the Meizu Pro 6 is going to be released in August of 2016.

No way back for Van Gaal after flawed game planHe said: "I have contacts with my Dortmund friends, they all would like to play against us - but in Basle (in the final)". Manchester United's Daley Blind reveals his team's mentality throughout the match with Liverpool in the Europa League .

Source: Meizu's upcoming Pro 6 premium smartphone will have 6GB RAM

Oppo R9, R9 Plus with 16-megapixel front-facing camera launched in China: Specifications and features

By Ritesh Bendre on Mar 18, 2016 at 5:30 PM Email @GadgetFreak4U comments Tags: Oppo Oppo R9 Oppo R9 Plus News

Oppo has finally taken the wraps off its R9 and R9 Plus smartphones. One of the highlights of both smartphones is the front-facing 16-megapixel camera they come equipped with and sport a premium metal unibody design, which seems to have taken cues from the Apple iPhone 6s. The Oppo R9 and Oppo R9 Plus smartphones are differentiated based on their screen size, battery capacity and processor.

Oppo R9 specifications and features: The Oppo R9 flaunts a 5.5-inch full HD (1080p) AMOLED display. It is powered by MediaTek's Helio P10 octa-core chipset, with four Cortex-A53 cores clocked at 2GHz and remaining four clocked at 1GHz. Paired with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage, a hybrid microSD card slot is also present with support for up to 128GB.

In the camera department, the smartphone sports a 13-megapixel rear camera with five element lens setup and f/2.2 aperture. Up front, there's a slightly higher resolution 16-megapixel camera with slightly larger f/2.0 aperture. The Oppo R9 is equipped with a 2,850mAh battery with VOOC Flash Charge feature. However, it's not the Super VOOC charging that Oppo demonstrated at MWC 2016.

On the connectivity front, it has dual SIM card slots, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11n and Bluetooth 4.0. While most manufacturers are now shipping smartphones with Android 6.0 Marshmallow, the R9 runs on Android 5.1.1 Lollipop with Oppo's custom UI running atop.

Oppo R9 Plus specifications and features: The Oppo R9 Plus comes with a slightly larger 6-inch full HD (1080p) AMOLED display. Under the hood is Qualcomm's Snapdragon 652 octa-core chipset where four Cortex-A72 cores at clocked at 1.8GHz and the remaining four Cortex-A53 cores are clocked at 1.2GHz. Paired with 4GB of RAM, the smartphone will be offered in 64GB and 128GB internal storage options. For those who want more storage, a hybrid microSD card slot is also present.

In the camera department, the Oppo R9 Plus is equipped with 16-megapixel sensor, both on the front and at the back. Oppo has used Sony's IMX298 sensor with 6-element lens setup and f/2.0 aperture. Thanks to Qualcomm's chipset, the R9 Plus also supports 4K video recording. Armed with 4,120mAh battery, support for VOOC Flash Charge is also present.

On the connectivity front, the smartphone supports dual-SIM card slots, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11ac and Bluetooth 4.1. Similar to the Oppo R9, the R9 Plus also runs on Android 5.1.1 Lollipop with Oppo's custom UI running atop.

In China, the R9 is priced at CNY 2,799 (approximately Rs 29,300) and shipping starts on March 24, whereas the R9 Plus is priced at CNY 3,299 (approximately Rs 34,680) and shipping starts on April 12. However, there are no details about the global availability of both handsets.

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Source: Oppo R9, R9 Plus with 16-megapixel front-facing camera launched in China: Specifications and features