Apple iPhone 6 vs Huawei Honor 6 Plus Camera Review

The Huawei Honor 6 Plus made the headlines a few days back with its variable aperture dual rear camera setup. We have already added a few samples from the phone in our previous article and today, we have some more camera samples which are compared with Apple iPhone 6 camera samples. 

Variable aperture is made possible with the help of the advanced algorithms inside the Honor 6 Plus. Using the feed from both the 8MP rear cameras, the phone lets the user control aperture ranges from f/0.96 to f/16. In the camera menu, there is a slider which changes these aperture levels, even after the image has been captured. The two 8MP symmetrical cameras at the back along with the powerful 3IE algorithm make this all possible. The primary 8MP camera in the setup features auto-focus with f/2.0 aperture and the secondary 8MP has a fixed focus with f/2.4. 

The primary camera focuses on nearby objects and the secondary fixed-focus camera captures a flat image. With a combination of the two sensors, the Honor 6 Plus offers features such as variable aperture, depth of field and faster HDR. This also helps in better low light performance, which you'll clearly see in the pictures given below.

Huawei Honor 6 Plus

Apple iPhone 6

Huawei Honor 6 Plus

Apple iPhone 6

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Lenovo A850 Snap Review

Lenovo has strengthening its position on smartphone market and the A850 model is not an exception. Providing middle quality of 5.5 inch IPS LCD screen resolution with 200 ppi, the device is advanced in capacity.

Battery of 2250mAh allow to have up to 28 hours of talks in 2G while the quad-core Cortex-A7 processor is responsible for convenient performance. Additionally, the smartphone is equipped with dual SIM option that make it more even more attractive for people wondering to divide private and work life.

The Lenovo A850: A Smartphone To Reckon With

Lenovo, a long time Asian tech market favorite has done it again. The stylish and functional Lenovo A850 smartphone features an incredible 5.5-inch widescreen display for seamless surfing, video viewing or gaming.

Lenovo, consistent in offering superior performance - just like fellow Chinese brand ASUS, has complemented its latest phablet with an able 1.3GHz CPU, plenty of memory with 4GB of internal storage (including expandable memory to ensure additional data can be stored for photos, videos and gaming downloads so that you never miss a moment), and as a bonus, Lenovo has provided you with the industry favorite, Android 4.2 JellyBean. Even with major competition from other leading smartphone brands, the A850 has managed to stand out from the crowd with a savvy savings price. Packed with performance and sleek design, we adore the all new A850 for its powerful specifications, coupled with its economical price.

Specification and Features

• Processor: Mediatek MT6582M
• RAM Memory: 1GB
• Storage: 4GB
• Rear Camera: 5 mega-pixels
• Front Camera: VGA
• Operating System: Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean)

Bringing your multimedia to life, Lenovo has endowed their latest flagship with a huge 5.5-inch display. Complete with IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen, with a vibrant screen resolution of 540x940 (200PPI). This wide angle 5.5-inch smartphone allows for a better performance whilst viewing videos, images, web browsing and even gaming. If you're looking for more options when it comes to gaming on your phone check out our great range of Sony Smartphones. Running on your favorite operating system, Android OS JellyBean, it is agile, which guarantees optimal performance. The A850's 1.3GHz quad-core Cortex-A7 processor ensures lightning fast speeds for intense multi-tasking, and a smoother experience for your graphics, which is beefed up by the impressive Mali-400MP2 graphics processing unit. The overall result is clear-cut, sharp and fast images throughout your multimedia endeavors. Including 4GB of internal memory and 1 GB of RAM with additional expandable memory of up to 32GB via microSD card, the A850 phablet is pure perfection.

New Improvements

Weighing in at a comfortable 184 grams, the A850 has impressed us all with a robust battery life, which lasts up to 28 hours of talk time on 2G and 14 hours of talk time on 3G, powered by the Li-Po 2250 mAh replacable battery. It's BlueTooth compatible, and outfitted with the ever popular Dual-SIM, which allows you to mix two worlds into one! Other A850 specs include being the CA satellite controlled GPS will help you find your way around town whether driving or on foot. This feature works in offline mode or when connected to the net. So never fear losing your way again! The primary camera is an autofocus 5 megapixel with 2592x1944 pixels and LED flash, with top notch features like geo-tagging and touch focus. It also comes equipped with a front 0.3 megapixel camera, perfect for video chatting. Take great high resolution HD pictures and videos that will help you remember your most treasured moments.

Worth buying

A true work-of-art, this amazing low/budget phone is top quality and out performs its price class. Lenovo phones along with LG Smartphones truly outshine their class. For those looking for power, speed and versatility, this sleek and sophisticated phablet is the answer. It comes with either 2G or 3G connectivity, depending on network availability. For those looking for an even cheaper option, but less powerful, Lenovo Mobile offers a great range of other smartphones including the Lenovo K900.

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D-LINK DSL-520B Review

This modem supports high download speeds, Quality of Service (QoS), and extensive firewall protection, providing all the essentials that a home or small office would need to establish a secure and high speed remote link to the internet.

AFFORDABLE HIGH-SPEED CONNECTION FOR HOME & SMALL OFFICE

The DSL-520B ADSL2+ modem router is an affordable high-performance ADSL device for home and the small office. With integrated ADSL2/2+ supporting up to 24Mbps download speed, firewall protection, Quality of Service (QoS) and 1-port switch, this router provides all the essentials that a home or small office needs to establish a secure and high-speed remote link to the outside world.

Brand	D-Link
Model	DSL-520B
Spec
Type	DSL Modem
Interface	RJ-11 ADSL port RJ-45 10/100BASE-TX Ethernet port with auto MDI//MDIX
Standards	ITU-T G.992.5 Annex A/M
Max Transmission Rate	24Mbps Downstream, 2Mbps Upstream
Features	Surf the Internet, check e-mail, and chat online Easy setup – no technical experience required Connect your computer with Ethernet

FIREWALL PROTECTION & QoS

Security features prevents unauthorized access to the home and office network from Internet intruders. The router provides firewall security using Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI) and Denial of Service (DoS) attack protection. SPI inspects the contents of all incoming packet headers before deciding what packets are allowed to pass through. Router access control is provided with packet filtering based on port and source/destination MAC/IP addresses. For Quality of Service (QoS), the router supports multiple priority queues to enable a group of home or office users to experience the benefit of smooth network connection of inbound and outbound data without concern of traffic congestion. This QoS support allows users to enjoy high ADSL transmission for applications such as VoIP, streaming multimedia and on-line games over the Internet.

WHAT THIS PRODUCT DOES

This ADSL modem router connects to the Internet using an integrated high-speed ADSL2+ interface. Multiple computers at home or the office can share the high-speed Internet connection. The router provides firewall protection and QoS for secure and smooth on-line games, voice communication and download of photos, files, music and video over the Internet.

GET HIGH-SPEED ADSL SPEED

Ready ADSL connection with up to 24Mbps downstream and 2Mbps upstream. Watch TV, listen to live music and broadcast on the Internet, play games and experience clear Internet phone calls. Now, smooth streaming multimedia and VoIP voice are possible at home and in the office through a simple connection to this router.

Amazon Most Helpful Customer Reviews

By big_joe_mcbob on January 1, 2013
Verified Purchase

I was having slow DSL performance and wanted to replace a Verizon provided DSL modem with something that could show me at least my DSL line was running well. My criteria was to find a DSL modem that supported the later standards (ADSL2+ Annex M, etc), at least have some sort of recent support (datasheets or firmware dated within past 2 or 3 years) and have full statistics. As another reviewer mentioned, there's not a lot to choose from overall.

This modem fit the bill for me, it has detailed WAN, ATM, ADSL statistics that at least showed me my local loop was clean. It supports OAM and BERT tests.

There doesn't seem (as of this review anyway) any firmware updates from DLink, so whatever is loaded is basically what you get. It seems likely this is because there is some country specific firmware.

The manual shows settings for Internet Time (NTP) which is missing in my firmware and can't set the time, This is a little annoying when looking at the logfile and trying to understand when an event happened.

My DSL performance issues didn't change with this modem and it turns out it was a Verizon issue, which they have now fixed. I see many reviews for various DSL or cable modems which claim to have solved performance, but I would caution problems can always be somewhere else. The statistics from this modem, plus some detailed speed tests I ran, made me confident the problem was not on my side of the wire.

By TechT on March 3, 2011
Verified Purchase

Let's be honest, there isn't much diversity in the market for dsl modems. After trying 2Wire's that have poor network functions, Motorola's that don't stay connected, and Netgear's that fail after 6 months I decided to give this D-Link a try. It came with an install cd which I of course chunked and used the web interface so I can not tell you about the install cd. The web interface has a, "quick setup" menu which avoids a lot of technical network terminology but still had a ton of options in other areas including DHCP and NAT functions so you don't necessarily have to have a separate router to use it with multiple computers. It was very easy to bridge with my existing router (which was the only way I could figure out to get the modem to stop blocking ports and let the other router handle it) and did not have the connection issues Motorola's seem to have with a bridged router handling the login info for your internet service. If you need help configuring it D-Link provides a 800 number inside the box. Overall this modem seems to be well-made, holds a connection well, and performs better than many out-dated models still on the market.

By Michael P Levy on May 24, 2013
Verified Purchase

I bought this DSL modem to replace a Westell 327W DSL modem/wireless G router that I got when I signed up for my Verizon home DSL six years ago. We live in a rural area and are toward the end of the recommended distance from the switching station for a DSL line. The Westell was very unreliable and would drop out the connection to the internet regularly and often needed to be re-booted to reconnect. It was especially bad when the weather was less than a perfect sunny day. This unit, the 520B is rock solid. I have had it for about a month so far, during which time we have had severe rain and thunderstorms - including lightning strikes - and it has not even skipped a beat. The unit was easy to install with the included software and it automatically self-updates via the signals sent from your ISP so it is a true "set it and forget it" kind of device (as it should be), but access to manually configure the unit is great also should you ever need it. The VPN pass through feature is faster and more reliable than the Westell was - much needed for me as when I telework I have to connect into the company network via a VPN connection.

I have a Linksys EA 4500 wireless router connected to the modem and the two work flawlessly together as well. The EA 4500 is the hub of a fairly complex wired/wireless home network with multiple wired nodes, two router/wireless access points, an eight port switch and one wireless signal repeater/range extender. At maximum usage, there are four computers, two wireless printers, two Android phones and two Android tablets on the network running through the network and utilizing the modem at once and I never sense any traffic hitches or slow down issues. I am very pleased with this product in both price and performance.

By T. Fisher on September 10, 2013
Verified Purchase

I JUST got this modem to connect, and I have a little advice for people calling tech support:

If you're like me, you didn't write down your DSL password because you NEVER need to know it. Big mistake. After this, you'll write it down somewhere.

Now, the people at Verizon are not going to be used to supporting a different modem than the one they issue. Also, when they look up information on this modem they're going to be looking at outdated information. So you'll be doing the heavy lifting.

To get the modem to work, use the CD that came with the modem to initiate automatic network configuration. Next, get your DSL username and password from your ISP... this is the hard part.

After that, make SURE the DSL and Internet lights are on. If they are you're DONE with the modem. You hear me? DONE. They'll wind you round and round in circles and you'll just keep rebooting it.

Try to connect to the Internet. If you can't, the problem is in your NETWORK settings. Go to your network card properties and click configure. When the Window pops up with all of the networking protocols, click on IP Version 4. Make sure at this time that it says "Obtain IP address automatically" and "Obtain DNS Server Address Automatically".

Click okay and close the dialog boxes.

Right click on your network adapter and click status. This will force the network card to refresh it's status and everything should work properly.

Congratulations, you figured it out.

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Apple iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, debuted September 19

At a Glance

Apple recently introduced the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus. Both devices launched on September 19 in the first wave of countries. The first reviews describe the units as "thin and sexy", "bigger and better", with impressive battery life.

Specs

• 4.7-inch iPhone 6 features a 1334 x 750 display
• 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus features a 1920 x 1080 display
• 16 GB, 64 GB, and 128 GB
• $199, $299, and $399 / $299, $399, and $499

Apple has launched two new iPhones, the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus. Along with larger screens and a completely new iPad-style design with an ultra thin body and rounded corners, the two new phones offer faster processors, better cameras, and Apple's new Apple Pay payment system.

Apple's new iPhones are available in Gold, Silver, and Space Gray, and are available in 16, 64, and 128 GB capacities. The iPhone 6 pricing starts at $199 on contract, while the iPhone 6 Plus pricing starts at $299.

While both models include the same 64-bit A8 chip and the same general design, there are several differences between the two phones. The iPhone 6 measures in at 6.9mm, while the iPhone 6 Plus is slightly thicker at 7.1mm. Apple's iPhone 6 Plus also has three major differentiating factors: optical image stabilization for the camera, and a longer battery life, and an iPad-style landscape mode that displays more content on the screen.

Though the iPhone 6 Plus has optical image stabilization, both phones got some major camera improvements in form of sensor upgrades, improved tone mapping, better noise reduction, and new "Focus Pixel" technology, which improves the phone's ability to select autofocus points. For videos, there's a new 240fps slo-mo option, along with support for shooting in 1080p at 60fps. The front-facing camera was also upgraded, with an f/2.2 aperture that lets in more light and new burst mode capabilities.

Both phones have an impressive new "Retina HD Display," with the iPhone 6 featuring a resolution of 1334 x 750 (326 ppi) and the iPhone 6 Plus featuring a resolution of 1920 x 1080 (401 ppi).

Design wise, the phones more closely resemble the iPad and the iPod touch than the iPhone 5s. Both models have soft, rounded corners and a curved glass screen that melds smoothly into the thin metal body of the device. The volume buttons on the left side of the device are now pill-shaped, and the power button is located on the right side of the device for easier one-handed use.

How to Buy

The iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus launched on September 19 in the U.S., U.K., Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Puerto Rico, and Singapore, following pre-orders that began on Friday, September 12. On Friday, September 26, Apple expanded iPhone 6 and 6 Plus availability to more than 20 additional countries, including New Zealand, Italy, Denmark, and Taiwan, and on October 17, the two devices became available in China, India and Monaco. Later in the month of October, Apple expanded availability to 33 additional countries.

Apple is selling the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus both online and in its retail stores. Though supplies were initially constrained, stock of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus appears to be improving in the United States and other countries around the world. In the U.S., new orders of both devices ship in just 1 business day for 16 and 64GB models and 3 to 5 business days for 128GB models.

In store supply of both devices is also improving, with retail stores receiving shipments on a near-daily basis. The iStockNow tracking tool can be used to see which models of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are currently in stock at a variety of stores, including Apple's retail stores.>

According to an Apple representative, response to the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus was "incredible," setting a new record for pre-orders, and sales topped 10 million during the phone's launch weekend. While it remains uncertain whether consumers preferred the smaller iPhone 6 or the larger iPhone 6 Plus, early analysis suggests buyers favored the iPhone 6 3:1 over the iPhone 6 Plus.

Apple's iPhone 6 is available in 16, 64, and 128 GB capacities, priced at $199, $299, and $399, respectively, with a two-year contract. The iPhone 6 Plus is available in 16, 64, and 128 GB capacities and will be priced $100 higher at $299, $399, and $499, respectively. Both the iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus are available in Space Gray, Gold, and Silver.

Issues

"Bendgate"

Shortly after the iPhone 6 Plus was released on September 19, reports of the device bending when placed in a pocket began to surface. One user, for example, reported slight bending after the iPhone was in a pocket for approximately 18 hours, and after that, several other reports trickled in.

Inspired by the reports of bending, a YouTuber created a video depicting him bending the iPhone 6 Plus with his hands, causing significant damage to the device. The video went viral, and began people worrying about bending the iPhone 6 Plus in their pockets.

It is important to note when watching the video above that the amount of pressure placed on the device is unlikely to be replicated in daily usage. While images have depicted slight bending, there has been no extreme warpage in the casing due to carrying the device in a pocket.

Affected users have reported that Apple has replaced devices that have bent. As shown in another video, the iPhone 6 Plus is less vulnerable to bending when placed in a rigid case, and users can also avoid bending the iPhone by removing it from a pocket before sitting down.

A followup bending video featuring the iPhone 6 demonstrated that the smaller-screened device is much harder to bend and therefore likely less vulnerable to bending when placed inside of a pocket.

In response to all of the media attention that the iPhone 6 Plus bending issues garnered, Apple released a statement to several different sites saying that with normal use, bending in the iPhone is "extremely rare." The company said that only nine customers had complained about a bent iPhone 6 Plus.

In addition to releasing a statement, Apple also invited several reporters to visit its the facility where the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are subjected to several different tests to ensure strength and durability. As described in reports, the iPhones go through five different tests, including pressure point cycling, three-point bend tests, torsion testing, sit tests, and real-life testing scenarios where Apple employees use the devices.

According to Apple's head engineer Dan Riccio, the iPhone 6 was "the most tested product" Apple's ever created. The company reportedly conducted 15,000 tests on the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus. Apple's head of marketing Phil Schiller said that bending was extremely rare, and that the company had "designed the product to be incredibly reliable throughout all your real world use."

Consumer reports went on to test the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus after reports of bending, and found that the two devices are not quite as bendable as the media has suggested. In a three-point flexural test, the iPhone 6 Plus withstood 90 pounds of force before bending, while the iPhone 6 withstood 70 pounds of force, which is more force than the two devices are likely to be subjected to during daily use.

According to Consumer Reports, though the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are not indestructible, they "should stand up to typical use."

Crashing Issues

Some 128GB iPhone 6 and 6 Plus units have reportedly been having crashing and boot loop issues, which could potentially be a hardware issue related to the NAND flash in the devices.

Reviews

Initial impressions on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are gathered below to highlight the general release reactions to the two new devices.

Apple's two new devices are essentially identical in design aside from the difference in screen size and the battery life/optical image stabilization in the iPhone 6 Plus. One notable improvement in both devices is the longer battery life afforded by the larger batteries. The iPhone 6 Plus is said to last up to 2 days, while the iPhone 6 may last a day and a half.

Brad Molen, Engadget:

Both iPhones are thinner than their predecessor. Whereas the 5s was 7.6mm thick, the 6 comes in at 6.9mm, with the 6 Plus measuring a hair thicker at 7.1mm. I don't always subscribe to the "thinner is better" mantra, but it's a benefit in this case because larger iPhones wouldn't feel as comfortable if they had the same shape as the 5s. If I had to choose based on in-hand feel alone, I'd pick the 6 over the Plus. I can still wrap my fingers around the 6 just as easily as I could with the 5s (and its curved sides don't cut as sharply as the edges on the 5s), but the large-screened 6 Plus is... well, it's manageable.

David Pierce/Nilay Patel (iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus), The Verge:

Huge phones get to have huge batteries, and the iPhone 6 Plus is a huge phone with a huge battery: I consistently got about two days of battery life from the 6 Plus in regular daily use -- slightly more than the day and half we got from the iPhone 6, and basically the same as the Note 3.

Walt Mossberg/Lauren Goode (iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus), Re/code:

In my tests, I found the iPhone 6's Wi-Fi speeds -- both downstream and upstream -- were roughly double those of the 5s, and about 25 percent faster than those of the Samsung Galaxy S5. But I saw little difference in LTE speeds, either on Verizon or AT&T.

Jim Dalrymple, The Loop:

The 6 Plus was awkward for me to use at first--it was kind of like using a smaller version of the iPad mini, but it was a phone. I had a hard time wrapping my head around the idea of using it on an ongoing basis, but the larger screen eventually won me over.

In More Detail

Design

Measuring in at 4.7 and 5.5-inches, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus dwarf previous iPhone models, but at the same time, the two phones are Apple's thinnest yet, measuring in at 6.9 and 7.1mm, respectively. For comparison's sake, the iPhone 5s was 7.6mm thick.

According to Apple, the thinner profile was made possible by the company's "thinnest display yet," which is made of slightly curved glass designed to flow seamlessly into the body of the device to highlight the "Retina HD" screen of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

Both devices include prominent antenna bands on the back enclosure, along with a protruding rear lens. The volume buttons are pill-shaped, much like the buttons on the iPad Air, and the power button has been relocated to the right side of the device.

The iPhone 6 measures in at 5.44 inches long and 2.64 inches wide, and weighs 4.55 ounces. The iPhone 6 measures in at 6.22 inches long and 3.06 wide, weighing 6.07 ounces. In comparison, the iPhone 5s is 4.87 inches long, 2.31 inches wide, and it weighs 3.95 ounces.

Retina HD Display

iPhone 6 rumors largely suggested Apple would use a sapphire display cover in the device, but that turned out to be false. Instead, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus use "ion-strengthened" glass with an improved polarizer (for better outdoor viewing), a photo aligned IPS liquid crystal display, and a fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating.

The iPhone 6 has a 4.7-inch display with a "2x" resolution of 1334 x 740 (326 ppi) while the iPhone 6 Plus has a 5.5-inch "3x" resolution of 1920 x 1080 (401 ppi). Both phones are said to offer higher contrast, better brightness, and improved white balance.

According to a test conducted by DisplayMate, the iPhone 6 Plus display is the "best smartphone LCD ever tested." The iPhone 6 display also received high marks.

Apple has implemented several "Reachability" features to improve the viewing experience on its larger devices, including Display Zoom and landscape view (iPhone 6 Plus only). Display Zoom lets users zoom in to get a closer view at their apps, while standard zoom displays more content on the screen.

Landscape view on the iPhone 6 Plus is designed to make the most of the 5.5-inch screen and to help users be more productive. When in landscape mode, the device will display apps like Mail, Calendar, and Stocks in a wider view similar to the way they're displayed on the iPad.

The iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus take advantage of dual domain pixels, which improves viewing angles. AnandTech has given an in-depth overview of dual domain pixels, explaining that the technology alludes to the fact that the electrodes in the pixels are not all aligned. Instead, the pixels are "skewed when viewed from the perspective of the lines defined by the rectangular edges of the display," allowing them to compensate for uneven lighting.

Battery Life

The iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus both offer improved battery life, but due to the larger size of iPhone 6 Plus, it is able to accommodate a larger battery. The iPhone 6 has an 1,810 mAh battery, while the iPhone 6 Plus has a battery capacity of 2,915 mAh.

Because it has a bigger battery, the iPhone 6 Plus has a longer battery life than the smaller iPhone 6. 3G talk time for the iPhone 6 Plus is at 24 hours, compared to just 14 hours in the iPhone 6, for example, while HD video playback is at 14 hours for the iPhone 6 Plus and 11 hours for the iPhone 6.

Reviews of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus have suggested that the iPhone 6 can last up to a day and a half on average, while the iPhone 6 Plus can last up to two days on a single charge. A battery life test conducted by AnandTech showed the iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus beat out many competing Android devices, lasting longer than the Samsung Galaxy S5 and the HTC One M8. The iPhone 6 Plus had the second longest battery life of any device tested, coming in behind the Huawei Ascend Mate 2.

Despite shipping with a 1A/5W battery, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are capable of drawing up to 2.1A/12W of power, which means that iPhone users can likely obtain a faster charging time using an iPad adapter. According to early testing, charging with a 12W iPad adapter charges the iPhone 6 Plus in approximately two hours.

A8 Chip and M8 Motion Coprocessor

Both the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus have a new 64-bit A8 processor built on an advanced 20-nanometer process by TSMC. Not only is the chip smaller than the A7 in the iPhone 5s, it's also able to deliver 25 percent faster CPU performance while being 50 percent more energy efficient.

The A8 takes full advantage of Metal, Apple's gaming technology that lets developers create console-style games on the iPhone. According to Apple, Metal is designed to let the GPU and CPU work together to provide detailed graphics and complex visual effects, which means gaming on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus is going to be better than ever.

Alongside the A8, there's also a new M8 motion coprocessor, which is the successor to the M7 motion coprocessor introduced in the iPhone 5s. The M8 measures data from the accelerometer, compass, and gyroscope, along with a barometer, which is new to the iPhone 6.

With the addition of the barometer, the M8 motion coprocessor can measure elevation in addition to steps taken and distance traveled.

AnandTech has published an analysis of the A8 processor that points towards significant GPU enhancements and an enhanced Cyclone CPU at 1.4Ghz.

The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus have topped CPU benchmarking tests (compared to competing Android devices and the iPhone 5s), but the iPhone 6 Plus lags slightly in graphics performance due to the device's larger screen.

Camera Improvements

The iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus continue to sport an 8-megapixel f/2.2 rear camera, but the addition of several new features will result in vastly improved picture quality. Continuing to offer improved camera capabilities has always been a priority for Apple, with the company even opting to include a protruding lens design to avoid making image quality sacrifices for the sake of the thin design of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.

The first major new feature, "Focus Pixels," are designed to speed up autofocusing by providing the sensor with more information about an image, while improved auto image stabilization will compensate for slight amounts of motion blur and hand shakiness. Focus Pixels will vastly speed up autofocusing times and improve autofocusing in low light situations, as demonstrated in a review of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus cameras.

Both phones also have improved face detection capabilities and more control over exposure, and the Panorama feature now supports high-resolution panoramic photos of up to 43 megapixels.

Video options have been improved in the two devices, and it's now possible to capture 1080p HD video at 60fps. There's also a new 240fps slo-mo mode, and time-lapse video, which was introduced with iOS 8.

The iPhone 6 Plus has one slight advantage when it comes to the camera, however, as it takes advantage of the M8 motion coprocessor to offer optical image stabilization. Optical image stabilization better compensates for hand shake and slight movements in low light than standard auto image stabilization techniques. As a result, it's likely the iPhone 6 Plus will be able to deliver higher quality low-light photos than the iPhone 6.

Along with rear camera improvements, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus have improved front-facing FaceTime HD cameras with a new sensor and an f/2.2 aperture. With these improvements, Apple says the front-facing camera can capture 81 percent more light, resulting in much better low-light photos. There's also a new burst mode for the front-facing camera, which will let users take burst mode selfies for the first time.

In the DxOMark tests from reputable camera testers DxO Labs, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus both scored an 82, overtaking the Samsung Galaxy S5 and the Sony Xperia Z2 as the best smartphone cameras in both the photo and video categories.

According to the testing, both the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus performed similarly, with the site noting that both had "very good, generally reliable auto-exposure" in a range of lighting conditions and fast, accurate autofocus.

The optical image stabilization in the iPhone 6 Plus, which is the differentiating factor between the two devices, resulted in better noise performance and less ghosting on HDR images, but it did create a video stabilization artifact that ultimately led to a better score for the iPhone 6 in the video category.

Connectivity Improvements

Apple's iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus both offer faster LTE with support for LTE Advanced networks, reaching speeds of up to 150 Mbps, and they offer 20 LTE bands for better connectivity when traveling. A real world speed test has shown some impressive speed gains between the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 5s when LTE Advanced is available.

The devices also include support for Voice over LTE (VoLTE) which allows users to make higher-quality phone calls over LTE. VoLTE will also allow users on CDMA networks like Verizon to use voice and data simultaneously for the first time. VoLTE requires support from both Apple and carriers, and several carriers have pledged to roll out support for the service.

In addition to cellular improvements, the iPhone 6 and the 6 Plus are the first of Apple's iOS devices to offer support for 802.11ac Wi-Fi. 802.11ac Wi-Fi is able to offer connection speeds that are up to 3 times faster than existing 802.11n networks. The speed improvements possible going from the iPhone 5s to the iPhone 6 Plus can be seen in the video below.

Finally, the iPhone 6 supports calls over Wi-Fi, which can result in higher-quality calls, especially in situations where a cellular connection is low. Calling over Wi-Fi is another feature that requires carrier support, but again, some carriers, like T-Mobile, have already pledged support.

Memory

iPhone 6 and 6 Plus teardowns have revealed that both devices continue to offer the same 1GB of RAM found in the iPhone 5s.

Other Features

Like the iPhone 5s, the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus continue to offer Touch ID, Apple's fingerprint-based security system. With iOS 8, which ships on the iPhone 6/6 Plus, Touch ID will become even more powerful, thanks to third-party Touch ID integration.

Touch ID is also an integral part of Apple's new Apple Pay mobile payments initiative, as is the Near Field Communication (NFC) antenna built into every iPhone 6. Apple Pay is designed to allow users to pay for purchases at thousands of retail stores with just a fingerprint.

Operating System

The iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus ship with iOS 8, Apple's newest mobile operating system. iOS 8's main goal is to improve integration between Apple devices, both mobile and desktop, through the use of "Continuity."

This article "Apple iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, debuted September 19" is originally posted at macrumors.com and was posted by guest blogger.

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Alcatel One Touch Inspire 2 Snap Review

I was able to get a hands on with the Alcatel One Touch Inspire 2, an affordable Android smartphone from Alcatel. Just a little trivia, Alcatel is a mobile phone brand co-owned by TCL Communication (makers of TCL LCD TVs) and Alcatel-Lucent of France. The OT Inspire 2 looks a lot like the OT Soleil even on the specs. One difference is the Inspire 2 has single core 1GHz processor while the OT Soleil has a dual core 1GHz processor.

Alcatel One Touch Inspire 2 specifications:

• 1GHz Single Core MediaTek MT6575 processor
• 512MB RAM
• 4GB internal memory expandable via MicroSD up to 32GB
• 4 inch WVGA LCD display (480 x 800 pixels)
• 5 megapixel rear facing camera
• VGA front facing camera
• 3G, WiFi, WiFi hotspot, Bluetooth
• GPS, A-GPS
• 1,400 mAh battery
• Android 4.1 Jellybean
• P4,990 SRP
• Free on Smart Postpaid All-In Plan 500

Likes:

• Design – This is one nice looking device. It has a premium and solid feel when holding it.
• Affordable – Its below P5,000 mark
• Android 4.1 Jellybean – Its surprising to know that this device only has a single core processor. Good thing because the device is running Android Jellybean, lags are minimal.

Dislikes

• Limited RAM- it only has 512 RAM. You cannot play games even those medium sized ones like Candy Crush.
• Single Core processor – There are even more limitations with because of its single core processor. Many apps in Google Play Store works best with at least a dual core processor. Facebook, Twitter, or any social networking and chat apps will work fine here.
• Small screen – a 4-inch screen is already small in today’s standards.
• Camera – The rear facing camera lacks flash and autofocus which is already a standard for a smartphone at this price point. Pictures taken from the 5 megapixel camera looks good on decent lighting but it could be better if it only has autofocus and flash.

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Alcatel One Touch Magic : Specs Price and Snap Review

After Chinese New Year spending my time at Pulau Penang, went back  home to KL on Sunday noon and arrived at 11pm after several stop at R&R eating, drinking and resting due to heavy jam. On Monday just visited my favorite IT Supermarket the LowYat Plaza and here's what I have snap on. The Alcatel One Touch Magic is on sale for only RM330 with freebies!

The One Touch Magic is equipped with a 4-inch touchscreen display with 480x800 resolution, 512MB of RAM, 4GB of internal storage, 3.2MP camera, 1300mAh battery and runs on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) OS. More details after the jump.

The Alcatel One Touch Magic also uses a low-power dual-core SOC 3G/HSPA+ for entry-level smartphones called MediaTek MT6572 which integrates WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, FM Radio and GPS. The One Touch Magic comes in black, silver and cherry red colors.

Alcatel One Touch Magic Specifications

• Dual SIM / Dual Standby
• 4-inch WVGA (480x800) capacitive display, 233ppi
• 1.3GHz dual-core Mediatek MT6572 processor
• ARM Mali-400MP GPU (to be confirmed)
• Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean)
• 512MB of RAM
• 4GB of internal storage
• microSD support up to 32GB
• 3.2MP fixed-focus camera (No LED flash)
• VGA (0.3MP) front-facing camera
• WiFi 802.11 b/g/n / WiFi Hotspot
• FM Radio with 3.5mm audio jack
• microUSB 2.0 / Bluetooth 4.0
• GPS with A-GPS support
• 3G/HSPA+ 21Mbps
• Li-Ion 1,300mAh battery
• Color: Black, Cherry Red and Silver

Availability/ Release Date: Out now!

Note: If you own this phone, please share some of your experiences and opinions about this phone, so that others may be aware of it. Thanks!

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Alcatel One Touch Idol X Snap Review

The Alcatel One Touch Idol X+ is one of the big surprises so far at CES. Looking at the spec sheet it's a powerful smartphone keeping up with the flagships of 2013, but with a low cost that should see it go up against the Motorola Moto G in terms of price.

Alcatel One Touch Idol X Price at LowYat Plaza, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

It's coming to the UK in February, and Pocket-lint was treated to a behind closed doors briefing ahead of the official announcement at CES in Las Vegas to see what all the fuss is about.

The specs are these: the Idol X+runs a 2GHz Octa Core processor which, Alcatel claims, offering an 18 per cent power saving over a quad-core chip. But it doesn't stop at eight cores, there's also an impressive 5-inch 1080p IPS 441ppi display that is rich in colours, as you can see from our hands-on photos, and comes with an impressive 170-degree viewing angle. In the hand the screen certainly shines and it's promising to see such a nice screen on such an affordable device.

On the camera front the Idol X+ comes with a 13.1-megapixel camera on the rear and a 2-megapixel snapper in the front for video calling. The camera is also capable of 1080p Full HD video, making it ideal for Skype chatting and, of course, selfie Vine videos.

The Alcatel OneTouch Idol X+ is powered by a 2500mAh battery which it manages to cram into a 7.9mm thin body. Even the speakers are at the top level with SACD 24bit/192KHz playback support and a quick listen in a Vegas hotel room (Daft Punk Get Lucky, it's all they had) sounded remarkably good, considering.

In an attempt to differentiate itself from the vanilla Android crowd, Alcatel has added its own customised skin to the stock Android experience. It's unabashedly a cross between Apple's iOS 7 and Microsoft's Windows Phone operating systems. The Apple OS references are found in the bright colour (the Music logo looks virtually identical) and the folder design and animation, while the Windows Phone influence comes from a vertically scrolling widget page that we've not seen anywhere else on Android. The widgets - which run edge to edge to take advantage of the edge to edge screen - let you display calendar information among other things.

There's also a rather tasty looking photo gallery viewer that runs within the home pages and lets you flick through your photos without going into a dedicated gallery app to view your latest photos either one at a time or in a panel of three.

It's not going to be enough to single-handedly make you pick this phone over any other, but it's all helps. Certainly for older iPhone users looking to move to Android and into one that will cuddle them on the way.

The Idol X+ is expected in the UK in the first quarter with a price that is aggressive enough that it makes people stop and wonder why they are paying top dollar for the latest flagship handsets.

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Huawei Ascend Y210 Review : What does $78 buy you?

I recently raved about the Nokia Lumia 520. It was the first $150 prepaid phone that I’ve tried that didn’t suck. Of course now that you can buy the 520 for $150, many entry-level Android phones are going to have to drop in price to stay competitive.

So now we have a pair of $78 Android phone: the Huawei Ascend Y210 for TELUS which is available exclusively at Walmart and the Huawei Ascend Y201 on Virgin Mobile. We’ll be looking at the Y210 today.

Before I start we need to have a reality check. The Y210 is a $78 phone. That pretty much makes it the cheapest Android phone you can buy. With a fancy phone, a review is usually about its fancy features and what you get. With the Y210 it’s more about what compromises have to be made to hit the $78 price point and whether they’re acceptable.

It’s also worth exploring whether the Y210 and it’s ultra-low price point are a worthwhile alternative to a feature phone.

Huawei Ascend Y210, Apple iPhone 5 (just to compare size)

Huawei Ascend Y210, Y201

Y201 and Y210

The plastic covered screen measures 3.5” with a resolution of 480x320. While the resolution isn’t very high it’s only 3.5” in size so it has a pixel density of PPI 162 which isn’t THAT bad. Still 480x320 isn’t very high so while it’s not that coarse, it does feel a bit cramped at times.

Now you’re obviously not going to get a TFT screen for $78. Still, the Y210’s STN display doesn’t look all that bad. Viewing angles are better than I was expecting. Colour is also pretty nice. There isn’t too much ghosting.

The plastic screen shows a lot of reflections and gets oily very easily.

I haven’t had a chance to use it under direct sunlight yet.

You won’t confuse it with the HTC One’s display but it’s actually not a bad display.

Camera:

There’s a 2 megapixel camera on the back which can record video at 640x480. There’s a long 2 second lag from when you press the shutter button to when it takes the picture.

Now, megapixels are a poor indicator of image quality. So does the Y210 sport a revolutionary new 2 megapixel sensor where each pixel looks perfectly? Unfortunately no. Even with lots of light pictures are slightly foggy looking and aren’t very clean. It reminds me of a camera phone from 6 years ago.

Video isn’t very good either. The sensor isn’t very sensitive so it has to use slow shutter speeds which results in video that is often choppy and blurry. The microphone doesn’t sound all that great either.

Body:

The plastic on the back is hard and unpainted - It reminds me of the dash on my car. Still, overall the Y210 doesn’t feel cheap. It doesn’t creak or shift much when you squeeze it.

One refreshing thing about the Huawei is that its small size makes it very easy to use with just one hand.

Software:

While the latest phones are rocking Android 4.1 and 4.2, the Y210 soldiers on with Android 2.3 (For phones it goes Android 2.3 -> 4.0 -> 4.1 -> 4.2). In the case of the Y210 it’s probably better that it ships with an older version of Android since a newer one would probably require more resources.

If you’re wondering what differences there are between 2.3 and 4.x phones, with regards to the Y210 the most important one is that you can’t kill programs from the task switcher. While I don’t normally have to worry about killing programs, this ability actually becomes more important with the Y210 due to it’s limited resources.

There are many other differences like the ability to disable programs, an improved UI, more lock screen options, etc but most probably won’t run well on the Y210’s anyways.

It uses a custom launcher. The most significant difference is that there are toggles for WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, mobile data and an orientation lock. Here’s a tip; if you have trouble running a program try disabling GPS. That will free up some memory.

The keyboard works alright but it has trouble keeping if if you go really fast on it.

There’s also a FM radio and QuickOffice.

Performance:

SunSpider:

SunSpider is a benchmark that runs in the browser and tests javascript performance. Since I don’t review a lot of entry-level phones, I didn’t have any direct competitors (like the LG Optimus L3 and HTC Desire C) to compare with the Y210. Instead, I grabbed some older Android handsets I had sitting around to see how the Y210 compares with them. One thing to consider is that the Y210 has a 480x320 display whereas the other phone’ are 800x480. I do have an old Samsung Galaxy (the original non ‘S’ one) which has a 480x320 display but it has a much older processor and version of Android which would have an effect on benchmark results.

Lower scores are better.

Huawei Y210: 3800
Samsung Galaxy S: 5780.7
Google Nexus One: 5796.7

While all phones have 1Ghz processors and are running Android 2.3, the Y210’s higher scores mean its processor is more efficient in this instance.

Peacekeeper:

Peacekeeper is another benchmark that runs inside a browser. It test HTML5 performance.

Huawei Y210: 195
Samsung Galaxy S: 160
Google Nexus One: 151

At its heart, the Y210 has a Qualcomm MSM7225A processor clocked at 1Ghz. It’s a Cortex A-5 processor.

Most of the time, the processor actually provides adequate performance. The problem is that the Y210 only comes with 256MB RAM and 512MB storage.

When you turn the Y210 on, it only has 80MB of free RAM left. That’s not so bad right? It’s not so bad until you consider turning on location based services uses up around 10MB, opening up the settings to check how much free RAM you have eats up another 10MB. If you stick Facebook Messenger on that actually eats up 20MB of RAM.

If you browse a large webpage and press the home key you’ll actually get to see the launcher re-launch itself. While the Y210 still functions with so little RAM it does so - barely. It can definitely use more.

Many people who get the Y210 will probably give the built-in navigation a try. Before you can use voice-guided navigation first you have to install text to voice. When I tried to install it, Google Play closed (probably due to lack of RAM). After a second try it went on.

When I was actually using navigation it would also close. Ditto for when I’m surfing a large webpage.

In order to run Vellamo, I basically had to remove Facebook Messenger and disable my Gmail.

Another problem is that out of the 512MB of built-in storage only 160MB is left over for programs and storage. While Huawei does supply a 4GB MicroSD with the Y210, some programs can’t be installed onto the MicroSD, so the built-in storage can also fill up quickly. In fact, I don’t even advise updating the built-in programs because many of them (like Google Play, Maps, etc) can’t be moved to SD.

If you get the Y210, the best thing to do would be to install as few extra programs as possible. Also, make sure all your programs are installed to the SD card.

settings -> Applications -> Manage Applications -> choose the program -> Move to SD.

Many lighter apps like Facebook Messenger will run fine as long as you have enough space for them.

If you’re wondering how it does with games, it’s best to stick with only the most basic games. I managed to install Angry Birds, but it doesn’t run very well. Sometimes it will close - probably due to lack of RAM.

When viewing larger webpages the Y210 tends to bog down - sometimes it feels unresponsive. Again, I suspect this is due to lack of RAM.

The key to the Y210 is to not install too many extra programs on it. If you want to try lots of different apps you should probably look for something with more RAM and storage.

As a Media Player:

Huawei includes a 4GB microSD card with the Y210, while most of it’s competitors omit this but give you more built-in storage. I’ll be honest, while the 4GB card is nice, more built-in storage is more useful given how little space there is for programs.

I downloaded BS player and found that while it was able to playback 480p DiVX files just fine, 720p mkv’s were very choppy and not really watchable.

The headphone out is pretty adequate. It sounds fine and should be loud enough for most people.

The built-in speaker doesn’t sound that great. While it’s not that loud it’s louder than I was expecting.

As a Phone:

RF performance is average. The earpiece and speaker phone are both loud enough.

Sound quality is also adequate.

Despite the meager specs the Y210 sports a surprisingly large 1750mAh battery. As such, battery life is very good. It’s one case where a using a Smartphone doesn’t mean sacrificing battery life.

Conclusion:

In the end, the Huawei Ascend Y210 doesn’t really contain any surprises but then again, I wasn’t expecting any. Of course if you can swing it, I’d advise you get something with more RAM, storage and a higher resolution screen. When it comes to buying stuff and you’re debating price vs functionality there’s usually a curve. Usually there’s a sweet spot in the middle where you get most of the functionality you want for a reasonable price. I’ll be honest, the Y210 sits low on the curve; while you don’t pay much you don’t get a lot either.

That said, at $80 the Y210 is obviously aimed at an entry level buyer. Someone who’s curious about smartphones but doesn’t want to spend $700 or sign a contract. Someone who’s not a power user and most importantly, someone who’s mostly going to stick with the built-in apps and not going to install many apps.

The Y210 will do an adequate job - barely. Otherwise I suggest you keep saving and wait for a more powerful phone to go on sale. While researching competitors I noticed that the Samsung Galaxy Discovery on Bell is on sale for $99.99 at Futureshop. It actually has a slightly slower processor but it comes with 512MB RAM and 4GB of built-in storage which should make it much more usable.

Is it better than most other Android Phones? No? Is it better than a feature (dumb) phone? Probably.

If Huawei decides to quickly come out with a successor for 10 dollars more I recommend they include 384MB of RAM (512MB would be even better), ditch the included microSD and include 2GB (4GB would be better) of built-in storage. If they’d do that I’d probably be pretty excited about it because then it would be much more capable.

Now the Y210 is only $78 bucks. Since it’s only 78 bucks there’s really no point listing the camera as a con. For $78, the only thing I expect from the camera is that it’s present. So in that sense, I don’t have that many pros or cons for the Y210.

Pros:

• Cheap
• Reasonably well built
• large battery
• adequate as a phone

Cons:

• Needs more RAM
• Needs more built-in storage

This article was written by guest blogger via howardforums, you can also post yours contact me!

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