SONY BRINGS OUT ITS LATEST RANGE OF XPERIA Zs: Z5

Z5 Compact, Z5, Z5 Premium

A few months ago there were rumours that Sony was going to get rid of their mobile division, similar to what they did to their laptop division, but fortunately it was finally denied by the President of Sony Mobile. What made the rumour believable was the fact that most smartphones makers are not making profit with each phone sale, even to a point of having losses per sale (post on the topic will come). Only Apple and Samsung are known to make profits of their smartphones (Samsung margin being only around $33 per phone).



Moving forward, Sony's smartphones are known to be one of those well-crafted premium device. It's a matter of time that they hit the market with an excellent phone. So at the recent IFA, Sony unveiled the much improved Xperia Z5. Along side the release of it is the Z5 compact and Z5 Premium which would be covered in different posts.

I bet you are wondering. The last Xperia Z was Z3, isn't the next one suppose to be Z4? Well, the Z4 did come out around earlier this year but it was only released in Japan, and it was quite a minor upgrade that Sony didn't export it out. The few rare countries that managed to get it, instead got the Z3+. Different name but same phone. Shows how minor of an upgrade Sony deemed it.


Before I start, here's a glimpse of the specifications on the Xperia Z5:

• 5.2-inch Full HD (1920x1080) 428 ppi
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 with Adreno 430 GPU 64-bit Octa-core processor
• 32GB of storage with 3GB RAM 
• microSD slot with up to 200GB of expansion
• 23MP Sony Exmor RS f/2.0 rear camera with 5MP rear camera
• Android Lollipop 5.1
• 2900 mAh non-removable battery with STAMINA mode
• Waterproof and dust tight (IP68)
• LTE Cat 6
• PS4 Remote Play
• Single NanoSim

Sporting glasses and sharp rectangular edges, there is no denying that the Xperias are among the best built smartphone in the world. As most know, glass is like a fingerprint magnet and what Sony did to counter this is by instead fitting in a frosted glass. Wrapped with metal that is smoother compared to previous Xperias gives the Z5 a slicker look. 

On the side of it, you'll see a new larger power button that now accommodates a fingerprint scanner. It's a nifty solution since most of manufacturers would  include a front home button just to have the fingerprint scanner or placing it at the back (something that personally for me feels weird). Next to the power button is a dedicated camera key that gives taking landscape pictures a natural feel. 

Dimension wise it's similar in size to the Z3 measuring 146mm x 72mm x 7.3mm. The screen on is a 5.2-inch Full HD 1080p screen, that takes a screen-to-phone ratio of 70.91%, with Sony's own Triluminos Display for mobile (found in their Bravia TVs). According to Sony, this allows their devices to display a wider palette of true-to-life colour. Apart from that Sony also included their X-Reality for mobile that should reduce noises, improve texture, outline, and pixel reproduction. To give the display a larger viewing angle, the Xperia Z5's display has the all-condition display with Dynamic Contrast Enhancer. 

Only Full HD when others are going 2K? In my opinion it's a smart move by Sony because resolutions higher than FHD on a small 5.2-inch doesn't quite make sense to me (plus you won't see much of a difference). Yes it's a nice feature to have but imagine the toll it would take on the battery.  Going FHD has allowed the Z5 to have up to 2 days' of battery life. You read it right, up to 2 days.  Sony fitted a 2900mAh battery in the latest Xperia Z and we've all known that the Xperia Z series has been known for its long durable battery life so it's not quite surprising (STAMINA Mode) . Standard nowadays is the Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0 capability which Sony stated to give a full day's usage from 45minutes of charging.

Although the Snapdragon 810 has received criticism for being a heat generator, its latest version should be a different story. This is the version that Sony is using in the Z5s. An octa-core 64-bit processor and 3GB of RAM to play around with, the Z5 should provide a smooth, lag-free xperience for the user. What powers the graphics is the integrated Adreno 430 that should handle the latest demanding games with ease. 

Moving on to the most important part of a smartphone now is the camera. More specifically the rear camera. The Sony Xperia Z5 receives an  major upgraded camera compared to its previous iterations, this time the new shooter is a 23MP f/2.0 Sony Exmor RS for mobile with G lens that is wide-angled (24mm) and allows more light to be captured. 

Another aspect that Sony improved on its camera is its autofocus speed which is now ultra-fast, focusing on the object in only 0.03 seconds. Sony achieved this through its Hybrid Autofocus that combines contrast-detection for accuracy and phase-detection for speed. Other than that the camera has a 5x Clear image zoom and 8x digital zoom. 

It is able to capture photos with an ISO of up to 12800. Sony also promises better low-light photos  with their new Exmor RS CMOS censors. Recording 4K videos would be easier with the inclusion of Sony's trademark SteadyShot on this device. 

The front camera meanwhile is a 5MP Sony Exmor R for mobile wide wide-angle lens (25mm) capable of shooting FHD videos and also has the SteadyShot technology for better selfies.

Audiophiles rejoice! The Z5 is said to be equipped with Hi-Res Audio with digital noise cancelling. Making your music library sound much clearer and closer to the original recording. To what extent is the difference remains to be tested. 

Continuing its siblings, the Z5 is also waterproof with a rating of IP68. So spills or dunks should not hurt the device but Sony cautioned users to now take the phone deeper than 1.5m of fresh water and for no longer than 30 minutes. Sony states that usage in chlorinated pool is allowed as long as you remember to wash your phone with fresh water afterwards. Beware as voiding any of these terms would invalidate your warranty. 

I would say as a conclusion the Xperia Z5 is a great phone! It's well built, certainly looks and feels premium, has an excellent camera, great display, a fast processor, long battery life compared to today's standards and is waterproof. 4 colours that are available for it are White, Graphite Black, Gold and Green. What more can you ask from a flagship phone. I do hope that the public realise this and give Sony another try. We need more competitors in the smartphone market to go against the likes of Samsung and Apple. 

Here's a quick video on the Z5

Source: Sony, XperiaBlog, AndroidAuthority

TAKE 5 FOR NOTE 5, By Samsung of course.

As you all know, the latest iteration of the Galaxy Note has come. It's the Galaxy Note 5 and it brings with it a new design language that Samsung started early on this year. What makes the Note series different is the inclusion of the S-Pen (a feature mocked by Apple) and what makes it popular is it's screen size that kind of defined the Phablet market by being the first of its category.

An overview of the key specifications of the phone:

• 5.7-inch Quad HD Super AMOLED Display 
• Exynos 7420, 8-core processor
• 16MP rear camera, 5MP wide-angle front camera
• LTE Cat. 6 and 802.11ac Wi-Fi
• 3000 mAh non-removable battery
• 32/64 GB with 4GB of LPDD4 RAM

Design
The New Note 5 now is built with metal and glass, something that Samsung fans have long urged Samsung to do. With the new built material, came a few restrictions such as a non-removable back Nonetheless, that has allowed Samsung to build curved edges back that makes the otherwise big phone more ergonomic and the Note 5 certainly has that premium look that could easily rival the iPhone. Needless to say, from the back it looks sleek and expensive.

The screen size is retained at 5.7-inch and is still  a 2K (QUAD HD) 2560x1440 pixel Super AMOLED display with 518 ppi, mumbo jumbos aside it's really sharp! Using the latest Gorilla Glass 4 , the  screen is also touted to be one of the best ever in a smartphone tested by DisplayMate (Note 5 has best smartphone display) What somehow is surprising is the fact that the Note 5 (153.2 x 76.1 x 7.6mm) is smaller in overall dimensions as compared to the Note 4 (153.5 x 78.6 x 8.5 mm)while being lighter as well (5 grams lighter at 171g).

Hot on the heels of the Note 5 was the rumour that the new S-Pen would include an auto-eject mechanism that simply in my opinion would not work (you had to press a button on the screen which obviously requires the phone to be turned on). Fortunately Samsung thought of a better idea, they equipped the S-Pen with the 'click pen' like spring-assisted auto-eject mechanism. Now you have to go through two steps to remove the S-Pen, click and pull, instead of the previous one-step removal, only pull. A new beneficial feature is a reminder message that would pop out on the screen when the S-Pen is far from the phone.

For the moments where you have no time to unlock the phone, wait for the S-Note app to open, you can now write on the screen even when it is turned off! Certainly makes the Note 5 a quicker note taking way. Other S-Pen features worth mentioning is the incorportation of the ability to edit PDFs files called "Write on PDF" and Scroll capture, which allows you to take a sort-if screenshot of the entire webpage and not just a portion of which you see on the screen.

Internals

Powering the device is Samsung's in-built processor, the Exynos 7420 (also found in the S6), an 8-core (ARM Cortex A-57 & ARM Cortex-A53) 2.1Ghz & 1.5Ghz processor.

The device can be found in 32GB and 64GB storage configurations. The RAM has been upgraded to 4GB and is using the faster LPDD4 type.

The slim design would certainly take a toll on something and that something happens to be the battery which is now reduced to 3000 mAh (from 3200 mAh in the Note 4). Interestingly PhoneArena tested the Note 5's battery to last even longer than the Note 4's (9hours 11mins vs 8hours and 43mins) and if that's not enough Samsung has included the Ultra Power Saving Mode in it as well. Samsung is also promoting the fact that to fully charge the Note 5 requires only 90 minutes when charging with a cable while requiring only 120 minutes when charging wireless (Fast Charge).

A phone would not be complete without an OS and the Note 5 gets the latest Android available to the public which is Android 5.1.1 Lollipop with their custom TouchWiz UI that continues to be trimmed down with only the essentials. I would personally bet that it would get the Android Marshmallow in the future, although I wouldn't dare bet on when. The phone certainly would not be sluggish (with the added RAM it scrolling through the interface would be a breeze),

Camera

Following the footstep of the S6, the Note 5 now has a 16-Megapixel Sony IMX240 shooter with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) while a 5MP wide-angle camera now caters you selfie needs. Both have an aperture of f/1.9.

Two modes available on the stock camera app is the auto mode and the manual "Pro" mode. Another similar feature from the S6 that can now be found on the Note 5 is the 'Quick Launch' that opens up the camera quickly by double-clicking the home button.

The camera can also shoot 4K videos, though the size of the video would certainly be huge.What's more, for Youtube broadcasters there is a YouTube Live Broadcasting mode which enables you to shoot and stream your video at the same time (well duh? that's what Live means) Helping you get great videos is the Video Digital Image Stabilisation (VDIS).

Connectivity
In terms of mobile connections, you can find that the Samsung Note 5 has LTE, HSPA, HSUPA, UMTS, EDGE, and GPRS. NFC is also available and latest wi-fi standard of 802.11ac with MIMO (2x2) support is included, GPS, Glonass and so is Bluetooth 4.2.

Features
Sad for tech-enthusiasts, the Note 5 does not have the latest USB Type C connector (unlike the OnePlus Two). Having it would have made the Note 5 a bit future proof as the new type C would be the next industry standard. But retaining the microUSB 2.0 port would make life easier (and cheaper) for consumers as they can re-use their old cables. Still, the New Note 5 supports rapid charging (soon to be a norm), built-in wireless charging, heart rate sensor, and a finger-print sensor similar to the one found in S6, where you have to only rest your fingers on it and not the one found in Note 4 that requires you to swipe down. The sensor is seemed improved as PhoneArena states that it senses faster than the S6's.

The keyboard cover that mimics Blackberry's, trying to revive something old.

All these positives features but no negative ones? Well here's the part that might be the deal breaker for an otherwise good offering.

The Note 5 gets rid of the removable battery (to re-emphasize), microSD slot that allows the option to increase storage and the IR blaster (for the times when you simply can't find the controller, or you're a really lazy ass).

No official announcements are made on when the Note 5 will arrive to Malaysia but don't expect to wait for a long time as Samsung is known to bring its latest devices to Malaysia quite early (usually within a month of its release as compared to a famous 'fruit' brand).

Oh and for the colours that are available: Gold Platinum, Black Sapphire, White Pearl and Silver Titanium.

Here's the official video introduction for the Samsung Galaxy Note 5



A video review by PhoneArena that shows the Note 5 in all its glory.



Source: PhoneArena, Samsung.com, Forbes,

SAMSUNG AUGUST UNPACKED 2015 - NOTE 5, S6 EDGE +,

So around 3 days ago Samsung had their August 2015 Unpacked Event, and as expected they launched two devices that has been leaked several times ahead: the Galaxy Note 5 and the Galaxy S6 Edge Plus (like Samsung doesn't have enough big screen devices right). Apart from that they also teased something that I guess would be pitted against the Apple Watch.

Not surprising, the Note 5 now has a curved back and like the S6 is made out of metal and glass. From the back it is actually hard to distinguish between the S6/Edge or the Note 5 from a far as they have quite similar placement of the camera lenses, flashlight and heart rate sensor (apart from the names of the device written, obviously). During the event, Samsung also launched a keyboard-cover for the Note 5, sort of like bringing back the physical QWERTY keyboard made famous by the declining and dwindling Blackberry (why Samsung?) .

Meanwhile the second device, the Galaxy S6 Edge Plus, is just an enlarged S6 Edge with all other specifications remaining the same. But they have a new colour for this model, the Silve Titanium. Personally I don't know why this device is even made. Wouldn't it eat into the Note 5's market share? Why didn't Samsung just made an Edge version of the Note 5? or just made the Note 5 with curved edges in the first place?
Yes their shotgun approach to making devices is working but isn't it time they started to refine their target? They have been in the smartphone industry for quite a long time, surely they would believe in the products that they release.

To top it all of, Samsung made a surprise announcement (because the Note 5 was really a no-brainer's guess while the S6 Edge Plus has long been leaked) with a new smartwatch, the Galaxy Gear S2. To be honest, I could not keep track of the iterations of Samsung smartwatches. They had a lot, trust me. This one sports a round-design quite similar to the Moto 360 but with a slimmer profile. Quite nice. We'll just wait and see for the review and the hands-on before passing judgement on this one.

The icons sure looks familiar 

I'll be trying to post reviews for the two devices as soon as possible, thanks for reading!

Here's a video by engadget that summarises the entire event in 6 minutes.

Source: engadget.com, Samsung

S6's camera proves to be better than the iPhone 6's

One of the main factor in buying a smartphone nowadays is the camera. It has taken the task of photographing essential moments in our life up to a point of even eliminating the market for point-and-shoot cameras (Ehem not to forget taking glorious pictures of ourselves to gloat, but this is a topic for another post). No wonder this has sparked plenty of debates among smartphones enthusiast crying out that their phone has better camera than the others, Leading to the common questions such as "How many megapixels does this have? Is the image quality good? How about low-light pictures?" being asked in many smartphone shop lots. Well what better way to test it than a blind comparison. Phonearena did this by comparing the current top 2 smartphones in the world:
the SAMSUNG GALAXY S6 vs the iPhone 6.

We've all know that the new phone from Samsung is something amazing! The 16 MP with f/1.9 for better low light pictures and a fast load-up of 0.7 second, still it was questionable whether they could beat Apple to the crown of the best smartphone camera, something that the iPhone has hold onto for several years now.

So which comes on top? I think I might have given you the answer from the post topic (sorry spoiler), officially, based on the poll:

Final results:

1. Samsung Galaxy S6 – 27063 votes
2. iPhone 6 – 3033 votes

It's quite a big margin right? It does look like we have a new smartphone camera king now. This test is rigged! I don't believe it! Well for some of you tougher ones to convince (or for any Apple fanboys out there), I have inserted a few of the pictures for you to compare on your own. Pick whichever of the two you like and down below I'll write down which smartphone was used to capture it. Enjoy!

*Click on the image for a bigger view*

Photo A: iPhone 6

Photo B: Galaxy S6

Photo C: iPhone 6

Photo D: Galaxy S6

Photo E: Galaxy S6

Photo F: iPhone 6

Photo G: iPhone 6

Photo H: Galaxy S6

Photo A: iPhone 6

Photo B: Galaxy S6

Photo C: iPhone 6

Photo D: Galaxy S6

Photo A: iPhone 6

Photo B: Galaxy S6

Photo C: iPhone 6

Photo D: Galaxy S6

PS: Do visit the source for more image comparisons.

Source: PhoneArena

E3: MICROSOFT/XBOX ONE NEW CONTROLLER

Microsoft has announced a new version of their Xbox One controller which is the Xbox One Controller Elite. A redesigned of the previous controller, it features more customizations in a sleeker design.

There are also swappable components such as changeable D-Pad ( a new satellite dish shaped and the standard 4 directions), thumbsticks (with different lengths) and pedals (that could be attached at the back of the controller, serving like an F1 pedal).

Along with it is an app that would allow the user to the minimum and maximum trigger values, thumbsticks sensitivity, and button assignments. You can also save this profile and as many different profiles as you want.

The new controller can have up to two profiles which you can change at the switch if a button, making transition from racing to fps games easier.

The controller will be available this October at a hefty price of $150 (Around rm540).

Other news from Microsoft are:

• There is a Game Preview feature
• Gears of War is coming but it's going to take some time (late 2016)
• Halo 5's multiplayer and co-op was previewed (etr Oct 15)

Source: gamespot.com, skynews

Top 5 Tech Myths by Austin Evans

Hye guys, these past few days I've been watching youtube videos and stumbled upon in my opinion a very good video made by Austin Evans, a known tech youtuber, detailing the top 5 tech myths. It so informative on things that most non-tech people tend to believe which in turns are myths. I've inserted the video below and do watch it! If you like it, then like it on youtube as well. And if you're looking for a good tech channel you should definitely follow his!
Bye!

PS: Extra information for the first tech myth, it's acceptable only if you are using original/certified cables and charging heads.

Introducing iOS 9

A few hours ago at WWDC15, Apple officially announced details on its upcoming iOS version. The update, contains more internal updates with the same aesthetics as the two previous iOS versions is said to be built from the ground up with the focus on stability and enhanced performance. Among the updates is a much faster and accurate Siri (by 40%), a more 'Proactive Assitant' ready to take more commands such as looking a photo or video. 

Spotlight now offers recent contacts, apps, or places in a new dedicated page that you can access by swiping left to right from the homepage. Apple Pay now supports even more brands (though this information should cater more to the US citizens). Apple Pay now adds more support in the UK as well.

Other than just storing your credit cards, Apple Pay now incorporates retail card store and reward cards. Just by opening Apple Pay and tapping the scanner will allow Apple Pay to automatically display the appropriate card. Since passbook now caters to a variety of cards, tickets and etc it has been renamed to Wallet.

Notes is also receiving a much needed overhaul. Taking cues from popular note-taking apps such as Evernote, Notes now allows a To-Do list to be created inside it, inserting a picture and even sketches using your finger. Contents from other Apps, Safari for example, can now be added directly to Notes. 

The dreaded Apple Map also received upgrades that includes A new Transit View with directions for public transport (not sure if any Malaysian cities are included), the ability to find nearby restaurants, bars, shops and activities.

Okay, okay Apple is upgrading most of its built-in apps but aren't there anything new? Well, I'm glad you asked. Apple introduced a new app called "News" and well you guess it, brings you the latest news. It acts like 'magazine' styled news reader that puts all your favourite topics in one single location and as usual, the data on what you read is kept private from any third parties.

Multitasking's look has been redesigned with new added features. 'Slide Over' lets you open a second app without leaving the first one.  'Split View' allow two apps to be opened at once, a feature that Samsung has long implemented in their TouchWiz. Another feature similar to what is found in Samsung devices is 'Picture in Picture' which allows the user to size down a video so you can keep watching it while doing something else (replying email for example).

• Health now not only track your workouts only, but the amount of water you drink as well.
• Homekit supports new accessories.
•  CarPlay is smarter and connects wireless.

Adding icing to the cake is better battery life and security. iOS 9 is said to add an extra hour to the iPhone 6's life with average use. If that's not enough, iOS now has a 'Low Power Mode' which is said to be able to add an extra 3 hours of battery life!  Apple ID now has two-factor authentication.

iOS 9 now takes less space to install so you could have more space for your selfies.

Developer beta is available today while the public beta would be opened in July. iOS 9 will be officially available this fall (around September). 

Source: Apple.com