Smartphone Rumours So Far

Another year means another round of smartphones that are coming out to dazzle us again with each coming out with the latest hardware and software that would raise the level of technology in smartphones to even higher levels.

As always before the launches of smartphones are rumours running wild! Some can be trusted, some that we have to take in with a pinch of salt. The most anticipated smartphones in the first quarter of 2015 would of course be the continuation of the popular Samsung Galaxy S Series ,not to forget the smartphone that brought HTC back into the competition, the successor to the HTC One M8, the HTC One M9 and Sony’s next flagship in-line the Sony Xperia Z4.

Without further ado, let’s start with HTC!

SAMSUNG GALAXY S6

So far the company that has been teasing much about its newest flagship phone would be none other than the King of Android.  They have been releasing several teasers on their social media depicting that the new Galaxy might feature things such as better improved camera, faster (and even wireless) charging, and a metal body/frame so far.

Codenamed internally as Project Zero, Samsung was said to redesign the S6 completely, for example scraping plastic in favour of metal. This is in part due to decreasing profits and market share probably caused by competition from up and coming manufacturers from China that are taking over the low and middle end of the market while also being threatened on the high-end of the market by Apple with their latest bigger sized smartphones. Not to forget, the S5 didn’t turn out to be the a sale-out that they planned.

Update: New leaks now show that the S6 won't be coming alone. It will be accompanied by an "Edge" version much like the Note 4 but this time featuring displays that bends slightly on both edges. And Samsung pretty much confirmed it with the pre-registration.

The rumoured specifications are:

·        16-megapixel camera (Sony IMX240 Sensor): Similar to the one found in the Note 4 and no complains about it. This camera has been proven to on par in terms of performance with the iPhone’s camera. Though they say software wise it’ll be better with new additions such as better HDR.  Staying with the same camera module might be a wise move.  Like they say, more megapixels   don’t always mean better pictures.

·        Exynos 7420 (Samsung’s first 64-bit processor): With rumours spreading about the overheating issues affecting the Snapdragon 810, it seems that Samsung has decided to go away with it and proceed with their in-house built processor. No complains though as test and benchmarks apparently shows that its performance is better than the 810.

·        5.1-inch Super AMOLED Display, possibly Quad HD Display (2K) similar to the Note 4.

·        Storage: 32 GB

Expected Release Date: MWC, 1^st of March 2015.
 Source: phonearena.com , nowhereelse.fr

HTC ONE M9 (HIMA)

Codenamed Hima, the successor to the One M8, the HTC One M9 is expected to be launched with these specifications.

·        20-megapixel camera with dual-tone and dual-LED flash (Toshiba T4KA7 sensor, 1/2.4-inch, pixel size of 1.12 µm: bearing complains from users on its ultrapixel camera, HTC is said to be replacing its much hyped camera technology with a more stable and assured camera. Though there are rumours that point to the front camera using a 4Mp ultrapixel camera.

·        Snapdragon 810 (Octa –core processor, 4 Cortex A57 cores at 2.0 Ghz and 4 Cortex A53 Cores at 1.5Ghz

·        5-inch Full HD screen (1080p) Super LCD3

·        3GB of RAM

·        Battery: 2840 mAh

·        Expected storage options of: 16, 32 and 64 GB. (history suggest that’ll be no 16GB)

Expected Release Date: 1st March 2015

Source: http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/new-product/mobile-phone/3531339/htc-one-m9-uk-release-date-price-specs-uk-one-life-1080p-software/ , @upleaks

SONY XPERIA Z4

Sales have not been quite what Sony expected but it’s certainly on the rise, however slow it is but take nothing away from the fact that the Xperia Z3 was a solid, beautiful and powerful device. One of the first smartphones that included a water and dust resistant feature. Other than that, the Xperia Z3 has an amazing battery life that is supposedly able to last for two days, a rarity nowadays. Maybe the marketing power of Samsung is just too strong. The design of the Xperia Z Series has not changed much since the first Xperia Z and the same is not expected with the Xperia Z4. The rumoured specifications are:

·        21 Megapixel (IMX230) sensor:

·        Snapdragon 810

·        5.5-inch Quad HD Display, it is also rumoured to be Full HD instead as to improve battery life. Other rumours points to the screen being a smaller 5.4 or even 5.2-inch display.

·        4GB of RAM

·        3420 mAh battery life.

Expected Release Date: At MWC, 2^nd March 2015.

Souce: knowyourmobile.com, techaradar.com, androidpit.com