Lenovo K3 Note

China based computer maker Lenovo smartphone the K3 Note is competing in the mid-range market with Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G, Moto G 2nd generation, Micromax Yu Yureka, and Microsoft Lumia 540. Can it stand its ground?

Display:

Lenovo K3 Note boast a 5.5-inch full HD (1920x1080p) IPS screen with a pixel density of 403 ppi. Compared to its peers (Lenovo A7000, Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G and Yu Yureka) which has the same screen size is equipped with only 267 ppi pixel density. While Moto G 2nd Gen and Microsoft Lumia 540 which have 5-inch screen size have 294 ppi pixel density. Lenovo K3 Note having pixel density of 403 ppi is clearly the leader of the group in this criteria.

Processor:

Lenovo K3 Note has 64-bit class 1.7GHz Mediatek [MT6752] Octa-core (ARM Cortex-A53) CPU, same with Lenovo A7000. Moto G 2nd Gen is equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor, Yu Yureka, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 615, Redmi Note 4G, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400, and Lumia 540, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 200. K3 Note, Lenovo A7000 and Yu Yureka have 64-bit chips but processor seen in the first two is a little better when tested in benchmark.

Operating System:

Lenovo K3 Note runs on Android 5.0.2 Lollipop (with Vibe v2.5 UI). Yu Yureka runs on Android 4.4.4 KitKat (upgradable to Android 5.0.2 Lollipop), Lenovo K3 Note runs on Android 5.0.2 Lollipop (with Vibe v2.5 UI), Redmi Note 4G has Android 4.2 Jelly Bean (upgradable to Android 4.4.2 KitKat), Lenovo A7000 has Android 5.0 Lollipop, Lumia 540 has Microsoft Windows Phone 8.1 with Lumia Denim, and Moto G 2nd Gen has Android 4.4.4 KitKat (upgradable to Android 5.0 Lollipop).

Memory:

Lenovo K3 Note has 2GB of RAM with 16GB internal storage that is expandable up to 32GB the same with Yu Yureka.
Redmi Note 4G has also 2 GB RAM, 8 GB internal memory expandable up to 64 GB with microSD.
Lenovo A7000 has 2 GB RAM, 8 GB internal storage with microSD up to 32 GB.
Moto G 2nd Gen has 1 GB RAM, 8 GB internal memory expandable up to 32 GB via microSD card.
Lumia 540 comes with 1 GB RAM with 8 GB internal memory expandable up to 128 GB.

Camera:

Lenovo K3 Note, Yu Yureka, and Redmi Note 4G are all equipped with 13 Megapixel main camera and 5 MP front camera, while Lenovo A7000 and Lumia 540 are equipped with 8 MP main camera and 5 MP front camera, and Moto G 2nd Gen has an 8 MP main camera and 2 MP front camera.

Battery:

Redmi Note 4G lead the group with 3100 mAh. 2nd is Lenovo K3 Note with 3000 mAh, Lenovo A7000 (2900 mAh), Yu Yureka (2500 mAh), Lumia 540 (2200 mAh), and Moto G 2nd Gen (2070 mAh).

Xiaomi RedMi 2 sold 35 million units in first half of 2015

Xiaomi, China based smartphone manufacturer is increasing their share in the smartphone market as they sold over 35 million smartphones in the first half of 2015. In the first half of 2014 they sold 26 million units, they have increased their sale by 9 million or 30%.

The company also expects to sell between 80-100 million units this year compared to 61 million units in 2014.

Key Features Specifications:

OS: Android 4.4 Kitkat
Processor: 64-bit 1.2 Ghz Quad core
RAM: 1GB
Storage: 8GB Flash up to 32GB expandable MicroSD
Screen: 4.7 inches
Camera: 8 megapixel rear camera with flash and 2 megapixel front camera
Dual-SIM capability
WiFi, tethering and hotspot, Bluetooth 4.0, FM Radio, and GPS capabilities
Battery capacity: 2200mAh

Redmi 2 don't have buttons on the front side of the phone. The front facing camera is located at the upper left corner of the smartphone. The buttons (power and volume) can be found a the right side of the unit. The back cover is matte-finish.

At the back side of the phone you can find the 8.0 megapixel camera with LED flash, and speakers are placed at the top.

Redmi 2 weights only 133 grams, with 4.7” display. It is thinner than its predecessor with 9.4 millimeters width.

Its screen is made of DragonTrail Glass that is scratch-resistant. A USB cord is included in its retail box.

AT&T Hit with a $100 million fined for internet speed cap on 'unlimited' data plans

WASHINGTON — AT&T Mobility LLC has been fined with a record $100 million fine Wednesday for offering consumers "unlimited" data then improperly slowing their Internet speeds after they reached a certain bandwidth level. The company says it will fight the charges.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said Wednesday that the country's second-largest cellular carrier misled consumers into buying plans they believed would give them unlimited ability to send and receive data, including Web browsing, GPS navigation and streaming videos. But once the consumer hit a certain level, the data on unlimited plans would be slowed down significantly, at speeds lower than advertised, the FCC said.

It's not unusual for phone companies to slow, or "throttle," speeds on a network as a way to manage congestion.

But consumers are unlikely to receive any money from the fine, which will go instead to the U.S. Treasury, said the agency official.

HTC Revenue Forecast Cut as Smartphone Demand Weakens

HTC, a Taiwanese multinational manufacturer of smartphones and tablets slashes their revenue forecast pointing to weak demand in their high-end device and slow sales performance in China.

HTC has been praised by critics and tech gurus for their smartphones, but consumers still go for flashy brands like Apple and Samsung. Last Friday they slash their 2nd Quarter revenue forecast and warned that they may post a loss. They have posted gains in the last four quarters due to their strategy of selling more affordable mass-market devices, but due to other new players in that market they may have ran into huge problem. While the premium smartphones market is very difficult to break into due to the big players like Apple and Samsung that have huge marketing budgets.

HTC said that they expects revenue of US$1.06 billion to US$1.16 billion. They were expecting to earn US$1.06 billion to US$1.16 billion, now the company said that they would post a loss of 31 cents to 32 cents a share in the period. HTC said that this is due to slower demand turn-over for their high-end Android devices, as well as weaker sales in China.

Facebook Will Now Support GIFs

This going to be fun, Facebook to keep things exciting will now support GIF. The company confirmed it in the Facebook News Feed. They said that not everyone will see it immediately, they are still rolling it out. Well, it's nothing new on Facebook since they have supported it before but stop supporting GIFs when they realize that it will make the News Feed too cluttered.

So once it's up you can now post GIF links, not GIF uploads. Your GIF links need to have *.gif at the end.

Microsoft Office for Android Updated with new look and features

- Microsoft launches Office preview for Android phones
- Microsoft gives Office mobile apps for Android phones new features and new look

Microsoft has upgraded the Microsoft Office for Android phones with an updated look and new features. They launched the Android tablet version back in January, which has the same look with the iOS version. The Android phone version is like the version of the tablet app but trimmed down. The updated App will eventually replace the existing Office Mobile.

For the most part, the App looks like the Android tablet version. You can find the finger-friendly versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint that let the user create, open, and edit office documents. The App is free! It gives the user the ability to do basic and quick edits.

You can save your file in the cloud.

Samsung Galaxy S6 VS Apple iPhone 6

Samsung's Galaxy S6 (and the Galaxy S6 Edge) is a direct competitor to iPhone 6. Apple has revolutionized their screen size by using a bigger screen size while Samsung also change by moving away from plastic body and removable battery.

Let see how both smartphones fare with each other. Here's a quick comparison of Samsung Galaxy S6 and Apple iPhone 6:

	Samsung Galaxy S6	Apple iPhone 6
Dimensions	5.65 x 2.78 x 0.27 in	5.44 x 2.64 x 0.27 in
Weight	138 g	129 g
SIM	Nano-SIM	Nano-SIM
Display	5.1" Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen 1440 x 2560 pixels	4.7" LED-backlit IPS LCD, capacitive touchscreen 750 x 1334 pixels
OS	Android OS, v5.0.2 (Lollipop)	iOS 8, upgradable to iOS 8.3
CPU	Quad-core 1.5 GHz Cortex-A53 & Quad-core 2.1 GHz Cortex-A57	Dual-core 1.4 GHz Cyclone (ARM v8-based)
GPU	Mali-T760MP8	PowerVR GX6450 (quad-core graphics)
Storage	32/64/128 GB	16/64/128 GB
Micro SD Card slot	None	None
RAM	3 GB RAM	1 GB RAM
Main Camera	16 MP, 2988 x 5312 pixels	8 MP, 3264 x 2448 pixels
Secondary Camera	5 MP, 1440p@30fps	1.2 MP, 720p@30fps
Battery	Non-removable Li-Ion 2550 mAh battery	Non-removable Li-Po 1810 mAh battery (6.9 Wh)