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Cherry Mobile Magnum S, Specs, Price And Features
Cherry Mobile Philippines has officially announced the Magnum S, a 5-inch dual-SIM Android smartphone that packs an 18 megapixel camera, octa-core CPU, and Android 4.4 KitKat for Php9,999.
Cherry Mobile Magnum S full Specs / Features
- 1.7GHz Octa Core MediaTek MT6592 Processor
- Android 4.4.2 Kitkat OS
- 5.0-Inch HD IPS Display (720 x 1280 Pixels, 294 PPI)
- Corning Gorilla Glass 3 Scratch Resistant Layer
- Mali 450MP GPU
- 18.0 Megapixel Autofocus Main Camera with Dual LED Flash
- 8.0 Megapixel Autofocus Front Camera with LED Flash
- 1GB of RAM
- 16GB of Internal Storage
- Dual SIM/Dual Standby
- 3G HSPA+, 2G EDGE and GPRS Networks
- Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wireless Display via Miracast
- MHL
- Bluetooth
- GPS
- FM Radio
- USB OTG
- 3.5mm Audio Jack
- Accelerometer
- Gyro
- Proximity Sensor
- Ambient Light Sensor
- 7.1mm @ 132 grams
- 2,300mAh Non-removable Battery
₱9,999
Do you think you’ll buy the Cherry Mobile Magnum S vs Xiaomi mi3?
Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Nokia Lumia 630 review
Nokia Lumia 630 review
For someone using Microsoft Mango for the last few years, 8.1 is definitely an upgrade. But there is nothing out of this world about the Lumia 630 dual sim that would have us bouncing off the walls. The best way to describe this phone would be by stretching the word meh into 500 more.
Camera
For those whose day begins and ends with a selfie, they will have to turn the phone turtle and use their imaginary photo grid instead. By doing away with the front camera, it seems like Nokia frowns on those caught up in the whirligig of duckface selfies. They have thus, in all probability, chose to deny millions of their right to master that perfect pout.
The remnants of this, probably, cost cutting measure is a no-frills 5MP camera that records at 720p quality.
Display and software
The Lumia 630 comes with a 4.5 IPS LCD screen supporting a resolution of 854 X 480 pixels. The screen is guarded by a coat of Gorilla Glass 3, but it heavily reflects smudges. Probably another coat would have saved us from the trouble of rubbing the screen like an Aladdin’s lamp.
The Windows 8.1 live tiles look, as always, fabulous and there is a new addition called the notification bar to the action centre. Another addition is the Word Flow feature that allows you to swipe rather than type a message.
Design
What are the chances of Lumia 630 knocking this out of the park? Zero. Zilch. Nada. Yes, the phone looks like any other Lumia.
The rear plastic flap is easy to remove; easier than peeling a banana. The speakers are at the bottom right and are covered by a pinhole on the flap. The phone’s power button lies right below the volume control. And Nokia ditched the capacitive buttons of the previous models for on-screen buttons.
Storage and Performance
The phone is equipped with an 8GB internal storage, and it can be extended up to 128GB.
It is powered by a 1.2 Ghz Snapdragon 400 Quad Core. We did not experience any hiccups with the Lumia 630. Things ran smoothly despite the 512MB RAM and that is where Windows has been able to score over Android. However, for some inexplicable reason, the Lumia was not detecting the closest WiFi router in our building despite picking up the ones far away. The phone does not drain the battery quickly and it is good for a day of basic use.
Verdict
The 630 is a good addition to the Lumia stable despite the minor tweaks and improvements. It has its faults and the price bracket does not give it much room to appease the most demanding of customers. People nowadays want all features a designer could cram into a smartphone regardless of whether they use it or not. The 630 may have trimmed a lot
Cellphones a Bacterial and Environmental Sensors?
Cellphones actually reflect the personal microbial world of their owners and may be used as bacterial and environmental sensors, scientists say.Researchers from the University of Oregon focused on the personal microbiome - the collection of microorganisms on items regularly worn or carried by a person.
Researchers sequenced microbes from the dominant-hand index fingers and thumbs of 17 subjects and from the touchscreens of their smartphones.
The study found smartphones closely resembled the microbiome sampled from their owner's finger, with 82 percent of the most common bacteria on participants' fingers also found on their phones.
Although men and women were both statistically similar to their own phones, the relationship was stronger for women than for men.
The most commonly found bacteria were from three genera that are ubiquitous on and in humans: Streptococcus, which is commonly found in the mouth, and Staphylococcus and Corynebacterium, both common skin residents.
The analyses focused on categorising whole microbial communities rather than identifying pathogens.
The findings emerged from sequences representing more than 7,000 different types of bacteria found in the 51 samples taken from fingers and phones.
"This project was a proof-of-concept to see if our favourite and most closely held possessions microbially resemble us," said lead author James F Meadow, a postdoctoral researcher in the Biology and the Built Environment Center at the University of Oregon.
"We are ultimately interested in the possibility of using personal effects as a non-invasive way to monitor our health and our contact with the surrounding environment," he said.
Future uses could include real-time sequencing technology to screen the smartphones of health-care workers and hospital visitors, rather than the people themselves, for possible exposure to pathogens that could be carried into or out of a medical facility.
Also, phones are ubiquitous and come into direct contact with so much of a person's environment that they might also be valuable for analysing exposure to "biological threats or unusual sources of environmental microbes that don't necessarily end up integrated into our human microbiome," researchers said.
The findings also present opportunities for future scientific use, as phones could be used for easy and non-invasive sampling in large-scale microbial studies, they said.
Top 6 Best Android Phones That Everyone Wants June 2014
Android phones that everyone would want to own this year. They come in a variety of sizes, shapes and specifications. Companies like Samsung, Sony, LG and Motorola are constantly creating new phones almost every year. Some of the phone makers released new phones this year at different technology functions across the country. Below are some of the best Android phones of 2014:Sony Xperia Z2
The design of Sony Xperia z2 Phone is not that impressive but still gives out that premium quality look anyone can expect from a high-end phone. It has front-facing speakers and a clear screen that has good color reproduction. Though the phone is well rounded in terms of its specifications, it still feels a little bulky and does not have some of the specifications that one would expect to be included in a high-end phone.
Samsung Galaxy S5
The Samsung Galaxy S5 is one of the best smartphones this year. It has a big 5.1 inch display, a high performing 16 megapixel camera and a fast and efficient Snapdragon processor. The phone also has a finger scanner and water and dust proof chassis. However, some tech enthusiasts feel that the heart rate monitor is unnecessary and the finger print scanner is difficult to use. They also claim that the plastic body of the phone makes it feel like a toy.
HTC One M8
Many people who have tried it say that the phone is solidly built and offers value for money. The HTC One M8 is actually not that different from its previous model. However, it looks great, has a microSD card and a fairly good camera. The phone has a sleek metal design and quality speakers that are louder than those on some low-end laptops. It has two cameras at the back and can shoot photos with and without the flash. Technology lovers who have tried the camera say that the images they took with it are clear and sharp.
LG G2
The LG G2 Android phone has an impressive design and a powerful processor, which is basically what everyone wants in a phone. It is the first U.S. device to have a Qualcomm superfast Snapdragon 800 processor. Apart from this, it has a decent camera that has the optical image stabilization feature. Images taken using the camera are clear and crisp. However, there are those who feel that LG messed up by placing the power button on the back of the phone. The phone’s speakers are also not as good as those of the HTC equivalent. People who have tried them out claim the speakers sound toneless and are not clear.
Samsung Galaxy S4
Though not as good as the Samsung Galaxy S5, this phone still has a lot to offer. For instance, it has Adroid 4.4 KitKat and has become more affordable since the Galaxy S5 debuted. It also has a powerful processor and a decent camera. However, its build quality is closer to that of a low-end phone.
Motorola Moto G
Moto G has a 4.5-inch, a 720p display and a powerful quad-core processor. It has the Android 4.3 Jelly Bean but will soon be upgraded to 4.4 KitKat. However, it does not have a microSD slot, removable battery and NFC.
Generally, all these phones have their strengths and weaknesses. So it is the buyers who have to decide whether they will pick the Android phones everyone wants or one that they find satisfactory to them.
Microsoft Has Just Launched Nokia X2 Its First Android Smartphone
Yes, you read that right: Microsoft has just made a new Android-based handset.
It’s also still using the Nokia name at this point, despite previously saying it didn’t plan to trade on that name for long. (Evidently Microsoft’s marketing minions are still working on cooking up that “go forward” smartphone brand.)
The Nokia X2 is not the first Android device Microsoft owns, being as Redmond took over Nokia’s mobile making division in April – a move which brought the original Nokia X device under its wing. But some doubted whether Microsoft approved of Nokia’s Android experiment — and speculated that the line would be quickly culled by Redmond.
Nokia forked Android back in February to create a new smartphone platform, which it called the Nokia X Software Platform to slot in between — pricing-wise — its Series 40 based low cost Asha devices and its Windows Phone powered Lumia smartphones.
At the time Nokia described the fork as a Lumia “feeder” — with then CEO Stephen Elop saying Nokia X devices would be a Trojan horse within Google’s ecosystem by introducing first time smartphone owners to Microsoft’s services rather than Mountain View’s.
Evidently Microsoft approves of this strategy after all — since it’s now building on that experiment with a follow up device. Or at least it’s willing to give the fork a chance.
The Nokia X2 is priced at €99 before taxes and subsidies (a little up on the original Nokia X’s €89 price-tag), and has a slightly larger screen (4.3 inches vs 4 inches), along with a beefier processor (1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor vs 1GHz dual-core in the original device).
Otherwise it’s much the same fare, with the handset coming in a range of eye-popping colours and featuring Nokia’s blend of UI experiences — with a Windows Phone-esque tiles-based homescreen, combined with Nokia’s Fast Lane notifications screen, plus plentiful Microsoft (and Nokia) services preloaded, including Skype, Outlook, OneDrive, Mix Radio, Here Maps; and — of course — access to Android apps.
The X2 also supports dual-SIM — a popular feature in emerging markets where Microsoft will be hoping the Nokia X platform can better compete with other Android rivals than Windows Phone has been able to, thanks to those plentiful Android apps — and by reaching a lower price tag than entry level Lumias can.
The Nokia X2 extends the original trio of devices on the platform which were the Nokia X, X+ and XL.
Below is a Microsoft demo video of the X2:
Wondering what Nokia has been up to since handing off its mobile-making division to Microsoft? It’s also been dabbling with Android — releasing an alternative homescreen for Google’s software platform called Z Launcher just last week.
In mobile, (almost) all roads now lead to Mountain View. So finding ways to build atop Android is the order of the day for mobile players of all stripes.
Cherry Mobile Razor
Android 4.2 Jelly Bean
4.5 Inch IPS Display @ 540 x 960 Pixel Resolution
Dragontrail Glass for Scratch Protection
5 Point Multi-touch Support
8 MP Main Camera with LED Flash
2 MP Front Camera
1 GB RAM
4 GB Internal Memory
Expandable up to 32 GB via microSD
Single Sim (Micro)
WiFi and WiFi Hotspot
4G(H )?, 3G (HSDPA), EDGE, GPRS, GSM
Bluetooth, GPS, FM Radio
1700 mAh Li-ion Battery (Non-removable)
Cherry Mobile Omega HD 2.0
1.2GHz quad-core processor, MediaTek MT658 chipset allows seamless multi-tasking on your phone. It has better and faster performance especially in running heavy and multiple applications at once.
5" qHD Scratch Resistant Screen Enjoy watching videos, playing games and using applications on your Android phone on a 5-inch display.
Android 4.2 Jelly Bean is Android's lasted operating system. With better performance and a cleaner look, Jelly Bean feels faster, smoother, and more fluid.
Dual SIM/Dual Standby. Break inter-network barriers and do multiple transactions over two networks with this convenient dual SIM and dual standby phone.
We hope Apple “borrows” features of Android and Windows for iOS 8
Apple's first major keynote of the year is just over a week away, and it's all but certain to give us our first official look at the next versions of OS X and iOS. We've already outlined some changes we'd like to see in Apple's desktop operating system, but the new version of iOS is going to affect far more people.All of the major mobile operating systems borrow heavily from each other these days, so we looked at our Android and Windows phones to find features that we hope will "inspire" Apple's software designers. We'd honestly be surprised to see Apple implement all of these—the company takes a very careful approach to new features, and it tends not to add new features for the sake of adding new features. In any case, this is a list of the things we miss most when we jump back to iOS after spending time with Android or Windows Phone 8.1, and we think Apple would be able to find a way to implement them without making iOS needlessly confusing or complex for users.
Customizable quick settings (Windows Phone 8.1)
Control Center is one of our favorite additions to iOS 7. It gives you instant access to a handful of hardware and playback settings, and even if it didn't change at all in iOS 8 it would still do most of what you'd need it to do.
There's always room for improvement. Take Windows Phone 8.1's new "Quick Actions" feature, which puts a row of quick settings across the top of the screen when you pull down the Notification Center shade. Windows Phone actually fits fewer shortcuts than iOS does—four, instead of the 13 or so things you'll find on Apple's version—but those four shortcuts are fully customizable by the user. iOS' defaults are going to be perfectly fine for most people, but being able to tweak those settings to incorporate the ones you use the most often will make it even more useful.
Intents (Android)
One of iOS' longstanding limitations is that third-party applications can only interact with one another in limited ways. Certain services that have been blessed by Apple (Facebook, Twitter) can do a little more now that they're integrated into the operating system. Most applications still live in their own little sandboxes.
Android's "intents" system seems like an elegant way to solve this problem without introducing too much extra insecurity or complexity. In case you're not familiar: in Android, third-party applications can tell the OS that they're capable of certain things—uploading an image, for example, or opening a webpage. When you tap the "share" button on an image or click a link, the operating system can then present you with a full list of all first- and third-party applications that are capable of doing what you want.
iOS currently offers a very limited version of this for certain files via the "Open In" menu—I can take a document from Dropbox and open it in Office Mobile or Pages. But I can't then send that file back to Dropbox. It either needs to live in Microsoft's or Apple's cloud until I can get back to a computer with more robust file management capabilities.
Rumors indicate that something not unlike Intents is coming to iOS 8, and we'd be glad to see it. It's a logical extension of the existing Share menu that would make iPhones and iPads more flexible.
A more useful Home screen (Android and Windows Phone 8.1)
iOS 7 was a big design overhaul, but one thing hasn't changed at all: the Home screen is still a static grid of icons. It's a hub you use to jump from app to app, but aside from those little red notification badges it doesn't really do much by itself. This is in contrast to both Android and Windows Phone, which use widgets and Live Tiles (respectively) to offer up snippets of information at a glance. Apple's line has always been that putting any kind of widget or Live Tile equivalent on iOS would be too much of a drain on the battery, and while we think this argument is a little facile, the company hasn't budged on the issue in seven years.
That doesn't mean we're going to stop asking, though. Microsoft's Live Tile model could be adopted without drastically disrupting iOS' icons-on-a-grid design approach. We even know that icons can be designed to be more dynamic—Apple's Calendar and Clock icons always show the current date and time, respectively. Let third parties get in on the fun.
iOS 7 did introduce the "Today" view in the notification center, which offers some information at-a-glance—the weather, some data on how long it would take you to get home from where you are, the day's appointments and reminders, and information about your stocks if you have them. Like so many other things about iOS, the Today view is made less useful than it could be by its inability to incorporate information from apps other than Apple's.
Gesture typing (Android and Windows Phone 8.1)
It may have started life as a niche feature, but Swype-style gesture typing has invaded the default keyboards for both Android and Windows phones. On Android it's been a part of Google's stock keyboard since version 4.2 and it's a default feature in most OEM handsets, and Microsoft introduces the feature to its stock Windows Phone keyboard in the 8.1 update. It takes some getting used to, but gesture typing is quite a bit faster than the traditional two-thumbed tapping that iOS has always used and continues to use.
iOS' keyboard in general is an area where Apple is lagging behind Google and Microsoft (though the company would probably argue that it's opting to keep things simple, not lagging behind), and the list of inadequacies is getting pretty long. It lacks good predictive typing, gesture typing, and even an unambiguous Shift key. Apple may have contributed a lot to the modern software keyboard, but it's starting to feel a little behind the times.
A more capable Siri (Android and Windows Phone 8.1)
Here's another area where Apple sparked interest in a feature but then fell behind its competitors. Using Siri today is basically the same as using Siri in iOS 5 three years ago. Press the Home button, talk to your phone, and your phone will do what you want.
Both Google Now and Microsoft's Cortana outdo Siri by trying to give you information before you ask for it. You can tell Cortana all kinds of things about yourself that helps hone its recommendations. Google Now looks at your e-mails and seamlessly delivers information about flights, packages, movies, and directions. Siri isn't bad when I know what I want, but I'd like a personal assistant that can tell me what I want before I even have to ask.
New Windows Phone 8.1 Handsets Preview
As noted in Microsoft Announces 9 New Windows Phone Hardware Partners, New OS Features back in February, Foxconn, Gionee, Lava (Xolo), Lenovo, LG, Longcheer, JSR, Karbonn and ZTE signed on to sell new Windows Phone handsets when Microsoft lowered licensing costs significantly. (Like to $0.)
At that time, I wrote that Lenovo and LG were arguably the two big names in the list from the perspective of the US and Western Europe. But oddly enough, the handsets Microsoft talked up at Computex—see Microsoft Touts New PCs, Windows Phones at Computex for an overview—are from some of the other, less well-known companies on that list.
We still don't have a ton of information about the new devices, but what we do know is promising, and it appears that each of these is unsubsidized. Here are the phones Microsoft showed off this week.
BLU 4-inch and 5-inch (Unnamed)
Markets: United States and Latin America
Timing: "Soon"
This was the vaguest of the announcements. According to Microsoft, BLU will launch two Windows Phone 8.1 handsets this year, one with a 4-inch screen and one with a 5-inch screen. The devices will be sold in a variety of vibrant colors, and the 5-inch version in particular looks very similar to the original HTC One, in my opinion.
4-inch:
5-inch:
Prestigio MultiPhone 8500 DUO and Prestigio MultiPhone 8400 DUO
Markets: Europe
Timing: July/August
Prestigio announced its first two Windows Phone 8.1 handsets at the show, the Prestigio MultiPhones 8400 DUO and 8500 DUO. Both devices feature quad core processors, 8 MP cameras, IPS displays, and dual SIMs.
The entry-level 8400 DUO has a 4-inch display running at 480 x 800, a 1.2 GHz processor, a .3 MP front-facing camera and will cost only $115 USD when it appears in August.
The mid-level 8500 DUO has a 5-inch display running at 720p (720 x 1280), a 1.2 GHz processor, 1 GB of RAM, and a 2 MP front-facing camera. It will ship in July and will cost $235 USD.
Yezz Billy 4.7 Windows Phone
Markets: Europe, Latin America, United States
Timing: August
The Yezz Billy 4.7 is named after Bill Gates—the firm's "Andy" phone is named after Android project lead Andy Rubin—and features a 4.7-inch IPS display, a 1.2 GHz processor, an 8 MP rear camera, and dual SIM capability. It will cost $250 and be available for purchase through Amazon.com, and will have interchangeable color covers in red, white, and blue.
A second, lower-end Yezz Windows Phone handset, the Billy 4.0, will ship later and feature a 4-inch OGS screen, an 8 MP rear camera, and a quad core processor. It will cost $140.
Note: There are obviously omissions in the specs. This is the information Microsoft and the partners have provided so far.
How LG's supercharged G3 stack up against Top Android phones?
DISPLAY
LG wins. Let's call a spade a spade. The G3's Quad HD display blows away its mainstream competition; both Samsung and HTC opted to stick with the tried and true 1080p display for their phones this year. But LG is apparently determined to push forward. That's a bold move, since it's not exactly clear what benefits the G3's 2560 x 1440 resolution will bring — or whether consumers will truly be able to discern any difference in the first place. There's also the question of battery life. Can the G3 put forth the same impressive longevity as its predecessor while pushing so many pixels?
A BREAKTHROUGH DISPLAY, BUT WILL YOUR EYES BE ABLE TO APPRECIATE IT?
But you can't really go wrong with Samsung or HTC in this case. The Galaxy S5's Super AMOLED panel allows it to go into a unique, grayscale ultra power-saving mode that you won't get from the G3's LCD. And we didn't have any complaints about the HTC One M8's display when we reviewed it. But based on pure specs, LG wins this contest handily.
CAMERA
Last year, the G2 delivered an unexpected knockout with its fantastic 13-megapixel camera. It outperformed nearly every other Android smartphone on the market, though some would argue Sony was right up there with it. Still, that success has put pressure on LG to deliver a worthy follow-up for 2014. The G3 once again features a 13-megapixel sensor. This time the story is all about focus. LG has built in a laser autofocus system – the first time we've seen this sort of thing in a flagship smartphone. It measures the distance between the subject and the camera using a laser beam, and LG insists this helps the G3 snap shots in "a fraction" of the time required by other phones. The front-facing camera has also received upgrades in the form of a wider aperture and gesture detection.
This could potentially be another area for LG to shine. The One M8's Duo camera system is lacking to say the least, and it wouldn't be difficult for the G3 to outclass it. Samsung's Galaxy S5 is another story. It delivers sharp and accurate photos while lending users more post-processing freedom thanks to its 16-megapixel sensor. Focus aside, if LG's camera merely matches what we saw from the G2 last year, this won't be an easy selling point against Samsung. And if a camera is the most important thing to you in an Android smartphone, you've probably already imported a Sony Xperia Z2.
BUILD QUALITY
HTC takes this one, and it's not close. Though it's a bit tall for our taste, the One M8's aluminum construction is unmatched in the Android world. This year it feels better crafted and even more cohesive than the original One; it's the most solid-feeling smartphone on the market today. LG has gone down the unfortunate path of building a device that looks like metal but isn't actually metal. It's a curious decision, particularly when the company could have easily gone a different route with brighter colors or some other hardware change. Doing so could have helped the G3 stand out from the competition and catch eyes on store shelves. LG's latest smartphone still has the buttons-on-the-back party trick going for it, but it's likely to blend in when tossed into a sea of other smartphones at Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile.
SOFTWARE
Samsung and HTC have both (finally) learned how to customize Android in a way that doesn't ruin or bog down the overall user experience. Their respective TouchWiz and Sense "skins" have grown leaner and faster than ever before in 2014, and each gives users more flexibility to turn off or hide whatever they don't like.
We can only hope that LG learned a similar lesson. Last year, the G2 shipped with what we described as "the heaviest and most overwrought software" we'd ever seen. LG blatantly tried to follow Samsung — a terrible idea at the time — by overloading the device with gimmicks and needless features. It's hard to gauge what we're in for with the G3 at this point. At worst, the new Smart Notice personal assistant may prove annoying: LG says it will bother remind you about missed calls, apps you're not using, and any large files that are eating up storage space. But at the same time, it's promising a simplified user experience, so we'll need to wait before we can make a call on this one.
PROCESSOR AND MEMORY
This category is basically a wash, but that's great news for you, the smartphone buyer. All leading Android phones now use the latest and greatest Snapdragon processors from Qualcomm. They're all perfectly capable of running any app or any game that you throw at them. Many apps and games at the same time, even. A powerful processor is obviously important, but it's no longer a distinguishing factor between flagship Android devices. They're all capable and then some. LG does beat out Samsung and HTC in the RAM category; the G3 contains 3GB while rivals offer 2GB. Sony's Xperia Z2 also features 3GB of memory. But RAM hasn't yet proven to be a bottleneck, at least for a vast majority of users.
All the cards are on the table. Now the choice comes to personal preference — and how many millions these companies are willing to sink into marketing. LG, HTC, and Sony each have their own loyal and passionate base of users, but the goal is to catch mainstream momentum and give Samsung a legitimate fight. That's the same quest these companies have pursued for years, though, and the clock is already ticking. By and large, consumers are choosing to stick with the reigning champion. LG is hoping its overpowered phone can lead to an upset.
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