Motorola Moto E: People's Phone

Just after super success of Moto G, Motorola is back with another super cheap yet super specification based phone Moto E. 

In India price 6999 rupee ($130), Motorola is shouting loudly to buyers that they will get lot more things by paying this amount of price. But still personally I am disappointed with Motorola's strategy by only putting it on just one online eCommerce site. They used same strategy with Moto G and Moto X by putting it only available on their partnered eCommerce site and succeeded in that but this time I am not very much impressed with their move. If you want to make Moto E a real 'people's phone' then you have to make it available offline with mobile phone retailers. 

Now let's find out that if Moto E live's up to our expectations or not?

Design and Looks:

Motorola used similar kind of strategy with Moto E which they used with it's elder brothers Moto G and Moto X.  By design point of view, it is a bit fatter than Moto G and a little heavier. But still considering it's compact size, it will fit in your hands very gently.

The backpanel is made of plastic but still considering its quality, it will feel like a premium quality. Another plus point is you can get total nine color of interchangeable back panels available. 

Colorful Back Covers

Features:

The phone have a heart of Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 dual core processor which is clocked at 1.2 GHz. Another impressive specification is you will get 1 GB RAM and Adreno 305 GPU, which will make smooth multi tasking and lag free use. In our use, we will be able of Most Wanted and Asphalt 8 kind of heavy games very fluently. This is kind of very good specification at this price range.

You will get 4 GB of internal storage which can be expanded up to 32 GB using micro SD card. Another big thumbs up with storage department is, you are able to transfer app data to memory card. So, it means that you can get upto 32 GB internal storage! 

The phone is available with dual SIM facility which supports 3G networks. 

Camera:

 This is the only feature which avoids this phone to becoming All-In-One package like phone in this segment. The phone features a 5 MP fixed focused camera which performs below average and according to me it's woeful camera. The camera does not even have LED flash.

Display:

Moto E have a 4.3 inch qHD display having resolution of 960x540 because on screen button consumes some amount of display. One plus point, you will get Gorilla Glass 3 protection for display and it is kind of rare for a phone in this price range. 

The display is really excellent in colors reproductions but it is average in sunlight visibility and harsh viewing angles. But still this is the best display in it's price range.

Plus Points: 

• Extremely cheap
• Works of latest Android Kitkat
• Excellent and sturdy body design

Minus Points:

• Bad camera
• Display is not at best
• Only availability on eCommerce site, no offline availabity

Samsung Galaxy S5 vs Sony Xperia Z2 vs HTC One M8

Biggest Android phone makers globally has now revealed their flagship weapons. Samsung and Sony launched their phones  Galaxy S5 and Xperia Z2 respectively in last month's mobile world congress in Barcelona. Every one has eyes on HTC because they were excited about their new HTC One that how it will compete the other giants. Now after launch of HTC One M8, we can easily compare these beasts face to face. So lets start competition of the year between Samsung Galaxy S5 vs Sony Xperia Z2 vs HTC One M8.

Power

All these three phones are equally powered by latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor. Which is clocked at 2.3 Ghz. 

If you look for RAM then Xperia Z2 is one step ahead with 3 GB RAM where Samsung Galaxy S5 and HTC One M8 only have 2 GB of RAM. 

So, in power department Xperia Z2 is ahead of the other twos.

Camera

Samsung have put a 16 MP rear camera which is capable to shoot 4K videos.

Sony has integrated their award winning Exmor RS sensor of digital camera technology in this phone same like Xperia Z1, but they have improved it's camera clarity and low light photography functionality.

On other hands, HTC One M8 is having 4 Ultra pixel sensor with dual flash, this HTC trademark technology really gives very good images specially in low light conditions.

Display

If we compare display of them then HTC One M8 is having 5 inch display where Samsung Galaxy S5 and Xperia Z2 is having 5.1 inch and 5.2 inch display respectively. But both of them have used different technology like S5 is having Super AMOLED display where Z2 is having IPS display panel.

Software

All these threes are having latest Android KitKat 4.4 OS. Samsung have flavored this OS with their own and newly tweaked TouchWiz interface. Xperia Z2 is also having their proprietary customized KitKat 4.4 OS. And HTC One M8 is also having this OS with Sense UI. Thus all of them having ultimate Android experience.

Verdict

Deciding best phone amongst these three phone is quite difficult, because it is based on you that which phone suits your user experience. But if you are struggling to control your patience then the benefit of the HTC One M8 is that you can buy it immediately, wherees S5 and Z2 will be available in some weeks.So, you have to wait.

You can also refer our full in depth review for Samsung Galaxy S5 here.

Samsung Galaxy S5 : Exclusive Review with detailed features

Samsung officially unveiled their new flagship phone is last week’s Mobile World Congress which was held in Barcelona, Spain. Every gadget and smartphone lover in the world was enthusiastic about this new phone. Without losing time I am directly jumping to the review portion of this post, because no one wants to wait for a review of most awaited phone like Samsung Galaxy S5.

Processor and RAM:

Samsung has packed it with latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor which is clocked at blistering 2.5 GHz. Everyone was expecting that Galaxy S5 will come with 64 bit architecture based processor, but it did not become reality. Apple’s iPhone 5S is having this type of 64 bit processors which are said to be future of mobile phone processors. Another drawback of Galaxy S5 is only 2 GB RAM. I am personally using a 2 GB RAM phone and it is more than enough, but for a flagship like Galaxy S5 we always expect mammoth specifications (Samsung’s own Galaxy Note 3 is having 3 GB of RAM). Especially when Samsung’s own TouchWiz Android OS preloads RAM with their own customized apps, which consumes lot of RAM space and gives us least amount of RAM space to use. 

Battery Life:

Samsung Galaxy S5 packs a 2800 mAh battery that company claims can run up to 10-11 hours for heavy usage like LTE or video playback.  They also included one new battery optimizer feature called Ultra Power Saving mode which can offer 24 hours of standby time when the battery is about just 10%. Another cool feature is you can use your phone in black and white colors, thus it will not consume battery for color reproduction works and give you more usage time. 

Storage:

You will get two variants of 16 GB or 32 GB on board storage capacity models of Samsung Galaxy S5. It can be expanded up to 128 GB using micro SD card. Apart from that you will also get free cloud storage provided by Samsung.

Camera:

Samsung Galaxy S5 packs with a superior 16 MP rear camera which is having variety of new features.

•         This camera is capable to shoot 4K video recording
•          It can autofocus in up to 0.3 seconds
•          Real time HDR
•          ‘Live’ image preview
•          Selective focus for capturing near, far and pan images

 So these new functionalities will surely put Samsung Galaxy S5 camera in competition  with iPhone 5S, Xperia Z2 cameras.

Fingerprint Scanner:

Same like iPhone 5S, Galaxy S5 having finger print scanner on home button. Unlike, iPhone 5S, you have to swipe down your finger to unlock your phone. Apart from that Samsung have included PayPal payment functionality, which can be done by using fingerprint scanner. So, this will surely improve Samsung Galaxy S5’s security issues.

Water Resistance:

Copying Sony Xperia phones, Samsung have made Galaxy S5 water and dust resistant. Read twice my last sentence, the phone is water resistant. So, you cannot use phone directly into water. So, this is limitation of this phone which is not there in Sony Xperia Z, Z1, Z2.

S-Health Heart Rate Monitor:

One of the stand out element of Samsung Galaxy S5 is its heart rate monitor. Samsung concentrated heavily on health related features for this phone and they included this innovative feature. The sensor is located on camera and you can measure heart rate by putting finger on that. Samsung’s own wearable range Galaxy Gear 2, Galaxy Gear 2 Neo will be capable to integrate with all these health related apps. 

Final Verdict:

Samsung Galaxy S5 is undoubtedly packed with all optimum specifications and it will be sold like hot cake because of grand success behind its predecessors Galaxy S series.  But still all geeks are not very much impressed with Samsung Galaxy S5 because they thinks that Samsung copied many things and did not included any special feature. So still, Sony, HTC, Nokia would be hoping to dent in Samsung’s market share.

Unlocking Sony Xperia C

These days spotting a Smartphone is just as easy as it is to find potatoes in the street. Traditional mobile devices have been overtaken by Smartphones and it is almost impossible to imagine life without them. They’ve made everything fast and easy! You can now send emails and text messages, share photos and videos, check temperature and sports updates, and do everything else on the move – with your high-tech Smartphone.

Unlike traditional models, Smartphones do not just offer voice calling features – they also provide great interactive add-ons like video calling and Internet browsing. In short, a Smartphone is like a mini-computer that gives you access to all apps that you earlier used only on laptops and computers. You can work on MS Powerpoint presentations, send emails, capture high-resolution photos, perform Google search, update your Twitter account and much more.

Just like there are hoards of Smartphone models available in the market, so are their makers. Some of the popular Smartphone manufacturers include Sony, Apple, Samsung, Nokia, Micromax, Blackberry, HTC etc.

With several model launches under its ambit, Sony has been able to grab a decent market share. The company recently launched Sony Xperia C – a model that has managed to receive favorable reviews due to its competitive pricing, appealing design and reliable battery life. While there have been mixed reviews in terms of performance, display and camera quality, Xperia C is still the love of many. And if it’s yours too and you own one – get it unlocked now!

‘When you purchased the Xperia C, it was unlocked for use with a specific connection. But you would sure want to change your service provider at some point. To be able to do so, you need to get it unlocked with the help of a unique 16-digit unlock code that is easily available from a third party onlin agency.’

Why is it important to unlock the Sony Xperia C?

Well, there are a number of reasons to free up your phone by getting it unlocked. Read below to know why:

·         If you’re travelling abroad and your phone is locked, you’ll have to pay hefty roaming charges as you wouldn’t be able to change the connection to the one used in that country. So get your phone unlocked in order to use any SIM worldwide and thus save your huge roaming charges.

·         An unlocked phone has a higher resale value.

·         You get the freedom to choose a network connection of your choice – thus enabling you to control your bills, monthly spend and more.

In case you are clutched with any apprehensions about unlocking, it will be great to know that unlocking is 100% legal. And in instances where your phone is not unlocked successfully, there is 100% money back guarantee. Unlocking your Xperia C is:

1.    Quick and simple
2.      Onetime process

How to unlock your Sony Xperia C?

Unlocking a phone is highly preferable not just because it frees you to use any network, but also because it is a hassle-free process.  All you need to know is your phone IMEI number, which is easily obtainable by dialing *#06# from your keypad. Get the unlock code for your phone from smartphoneunlockers.com. Other than this you need to mention your current network connection and email ID in your purchase order. Once you confirm the order and make payment successfully, you receive the unlock code on your email ID instantly.

What next?

Once the 16-digit unlock code is there on your email ID – change the SIM on your device to the non-accepted one. When your phone asks for the unlock code – you just need to enter the code received on your email and your device will be ready to use!

Important!

It is important to take care of a few things before placing your order online. You need to check before hand for the number of attempts that are left to enter the unlock code. Other than this:

·         Recheck the IMEI carefully before submitting the order

·         In the order, mention the current network provider and not the one that you want to use

     Happy unlocking!

Problems with Windows Phone OS

Microsoft is said to be emperor in Desktop Operating Systems market. They are like synonym to PC and also for laptops. Almost all these computers are installed with Microsoft’s Windows OS. But today, the whole picture is changed. Mobile phone market has overshadowed computers market and everyone measures technology with mobile phone markets.  Currently, Apple’s much anticipated iOS and Google’s Android has conquered mobile phone OS market. And it was in October 2012 when Microsoft also entered in this market with their Windows Mobile OS and tried to make some good numbers in this market. After almost one and half year, still Microsoft is significantly lagging behind iOS and Android.

In this article I am going to discuss about what are the major problems and issues in Microsoft’s Windows Phone OS. I am writing this article by experiencing these by using Nokia Lumia phones, which are exclusively using Windows OS. First of all, let me clear that the hardware used by Nokia is great. According to me, they are still best hardware manufacturers. No problem with Nokia’s hardware. But the problem is inside of the phone, the much important part Operating System. Now let me come to the point and start to describe these issues.

1. No app transfer to micro SD card

Normally all Android phones comes with 4GB or 8GB of internal storage and even Windows phones also comes with these capacity. In Android phones, you can transfer your apps data to SD card and install more number of apps in your phone, in Windows phone it is a limiting factor. You cannot transfer apps into SD card.

Another issue is the apps designed for Windows phone consumes more space than Android games. For example, popular game Subway Surfer comes with a size of around 40MB on Android platform and same game comes with size of around 80MB on Windows platform. It clearly means that you will not be able to install more apps and games on your phone. 

2. Not having own file manager

This is probably one of the biggest drawback of Windows phone, you cannot get a native file manager app for your phone. You would be able to install third party file manager apps but still it is having limiting factor like you have one Read Only permissions of your SD card using your file manager. It’s kind of frustrating thing that you are not able to use all storage capacity of your micro SD card effectively.

3. Absense of LED notification light

Normally all Android phones comes with physical LED notification light which will blink whenever you will be having any missed call, Whatsapp message or a Facebook notification. On my Sony Xperia phone, whenever I have Whatsapp message it blinks with violet color, for Facebook notification it turns into blue and for a missed call it blinks with green. So it helps me a lot in everyday life of use. For a Windows phone, you will not be able for get this facility in any single model. This feature is more important if you are a busy and heavy user of Whatsapp and Facebook. 

Sony Xperia phone with notification light 

4. Notification bar problem

Biggest advantage of Windows phone is its Metro UI called Tile interface. It’s actually very innovative and easy to use this look. But it does not give you all notification in single screen. Like you have to scroll up and down to see notifications in their respective tiles. In Android phone, even latest iOS7 also have it's native notification bar in top of the phone and you will be able to see each and every notification very easily. 

Different notifications in their respective tile in Windows Metro UI

5. Not having integration with Google apps

If you are a heavy user of Gmail, Google Maps, Youtube and other native Google services then you will not have a good experience with Windows phone because Google does not provide their own apps for Windows mobile platform. You will be restricted to use Google services on Windows phone.

6. Instant toggle to specific shortcuts 

For Android and iOS phones, if you want to switch on/off Bluetooth or Wi-Fi then you can do it just in one click. You can get same other features like mobile data traffic, NFC, profile, auto-rotate shortcuts in upper notification bar. Thus you can toggle to specific setting very quickly. But this is not possible in Windows phone. You have to make at least 2-3 steps for starting that service. You can create these type of shortcuts in Windows phone, but again they will still require 2-3 steps.

shortcuts in notification bar in normal Android phone

7. USB OTG not supported

Windows phone does not support UTG OTG and it is kind of limiting factor when you want to use your other devices with your Windows phone. It means that you cannot connect USB flash drive, music player, digital camera or keyboard to your phone. 

8. Not support to third party web browsers

This is one of the biggest problems because without good internet browser you cannot use your phone effectively. Windows phone comes with default browser Internet Explorer and it also supports UC browsers and some less known ones. But still it misses some biggies like Firefox, Chrome and Opera Mini browser. So it is a huge drawback with Windows phone.

So, these are some issues or problems which I noticed in Windows phone OS. If you are agree with me or even don’t agree with me then also mention your precious comment below. Thank you and enjoy my other articles. 

Android vs iOS vs Windows Phone OS

Before 5 years, we were only aware about Windows XP and other flavors of OS, which are used in computer. But at present, the scenario is changed. Most of the electronics and technology companies are concentrating on mobile phone industry. This industry is facing extreme hard competition. And the key part in these all mobile is it's OS, operating system. 

This trend started  when Apple entered in mobile phone industry with iPhone and introduced their proprietary OS called as iOS. It was revolutionary. Then Google came into the game with Android OS. In quick span of time, Android become hit and conquered worldwide OS market by featuring in Samsung, Sony, HTC like mobile phones. So now at present scenario where each OS stands in competition? We will compare them. 

Right now, the latest versions are Android is 4.4 Kitkat, iOS and Windows Mobile 8. Let's compare them.

iOS7, Android Kitkat & Windows Phone screens

User Interface:

Apple introduced iOS7 recently and in this version they totally changed their overall look of the interface. It is now more 2 dimensional and clean. Apple says that they used concept of simplicity in new iOS7. Overall it is very user friendly and clean interface. 

We all know user interface of Android and the current version 4.4 Kitkat is also very similar to its predecessors. It has multiple home screen, inclusion of Google Now, feature rich built in apps, everything this Android 4.4 have. People call Android interface old but I must say that it is the easiest interface currently any mobile phone having. 

Now be ready for a surprise, because Windows Mobile 8 OS interface is best interface according to me. The inclusion of "LiveTiles" gets maximum point for this. It provides you maximum information in quick time. 

Overall all of the three OS have very good interface. In iOS & Windows OS, you only get limited customization. But for Android you can apply maximum tweaks.  

Apps:

iOS top this list with more then 6,50,000 applications. They also offer apps for iPads. 

Android Play Store have 6,00,000 apps and those apps can also be used on android tablets. 

Windows phone currently offers significantly low apps around 1,00,000 apps on their Windows Store. And still, they don't offer any app for tablets.

Camera:

iOS7 came with significant changes in camera app with more photo effects, live picture filter., etc. It is a sophisticated camera app provided in iOS7.

Android camera app has maximum flavors. Because Samsung has their different camera app, HTC offers their own customized app and same for others like Sony,Huawei, LG. They all gave a different look to camera app and included many innovative features. Like 360 Panorama, smile shutter, Burst mode.,etc.

Windows OS is relatively new and so their camera app is cleaner and easy with minimum on screen setting. But you can take more natural photographs and  even use a separate camera app by putting in default mode. 

Android Kitkat & iOS7 notification bar

Control Panel:

This is very key part of any OS. Because control panel or if you call it notification bar is feature which will get your most of attention when you are using it. 

Android have large experience in terms of notification panel. You can access it by swapping down the upper screen of OS. It gives customizations for WiFi, Bluetooth, Profile,. etc.  Even all new notifications and events displays on this bar very well. 

iOS started their affair with the notification bar in this new iOS7. It also offers same functionalities like Android panel. 

Windows Phone do not support any notification center or control panel like Android or iOS. Because their LiveTiles always blinks new notifications separately. But still you may miss this key feature in Windows phone. 

Multi Tasking:

In this feature also iOS was not there before introduction of iOS7. But now you can easily switch between apps to achieve multi tasking. This feature is borrowed from Android by iOS because it is very similar to Android. 

Android provides this feature from Android 4.0 ICS. You can access this by long pressing Home screen button. You will get a quick window of running apps and can switch among them. 

Windows Phone also offers the same kind of multi tasking by long pressing Back button.

Conclusion:

Overall, if you look at previous given key points then clearly understand that all of the OS have their own charm and key features. Like on iOS, you can get user friendly environment and cleaner look. Android offers maximum offers and customizations. Wheres, Windows Phone gives a clean and refreshing look by LiveTiles. And each of them has their own drawbacks. 

Android have the highest number of users, but most of them are using old versions like 2.2 & 2.3. Windows is relatively new and having very less users. iOS7 looks one step ahead if you look at overall scenario. Because it offers everything which you want and more importantly, they have maximum users who are running on their latest iOS7. So, its on you and your personal choice that which OS based phone you have to buy. And please give your precious suggestions to me in the comment box below. I am always trying to improve my article for your suggestions. 

Micromax Canvas Turbo at INR 19,990

Indian Mobile giant is back with another Canvas series phone. This is their first full-HD display mobile phone.

This is their flagship device and will be available in the market now onwards. New Micromax Canvas turbo comes with a 5 inch full-HD IPS display. It is powered by a Mediatek 1.5 GHz Quad Core processor and 2 GB of RAM. This phone comes with a 13 Mega pixel auto focus camera and 5 Mega pixel front facing camera. According to the company, the camera has various features like panorama, object eraser,. etc.  There is a 2000 mAh battery in new Canvas Turbo, which seems to be some what less for a phone powered by a quad core processor.

Micromax Canvas Turbo

The phone comes with the stock version of Android 4.2 Jelly Bean which is loaded with some pre-installed apps like Hike, BBM, M! live, M! Security, M! Live. Same like other Micromax devices this phone also comes with dual SIM support with one regular SIM and another micro SIM. One important point, from which I am disappointed that there is 16 GB of internal memory, but not having expandable memory. This is the biggest drawback of this phone. 

If you are non Indian and do not know about Micromax then you must know that this latest phone Canvas Turbo is branded by Hugh Jackman, who is the worldwide superstar with movies like X Men. So, probably you can understand that at which level Micromax is doing their job. 

Micromax is selling this phone at INR 19,990($325)is their highest price point after Canvas 4 at INR 14,990. So, I am not sure that buyers will go for this price point because they can get Sony Xperia C, Samsung Galaxy Quattro & Google Nexus 4 at same point with much better hardware and customer support.