badge Tech Siddhi










Thursday 23 March 2017

OPPO launches first phone with Dual Selfie Camera for Rs 30,990/- in India

It was in 2014 when we witnessed a plethora of devices focused on Selfies, it was then we reviewed devices with greater than 5 MP front camera. Just a day before Gionee launched A1 which is again a selfie oriented smartphone, Vivo have also launched another couple of months back which means smartphone companies see a lot of potential in this segment and their decision is also backed by the research done on the topic.
In last two years the industry has moved at a high pace and we have seen many innovations in specs as well as the technology overall including the camera in a smartphone. Recently every other brand launched one or more than one smartphone sporting Dual cameras at rear, OPPO having positioned itself as a Camera focused brand in past 3 years, we were expecting a flagship from OPPO carrying dual camera setup. OPPO did as expected but inspite of being late in the Dual Camera race the brand turned up as a leader as it launched first phone OPPO F3 Plus with Dual Selfie Camera on the front.

OPPO F3 Plus Launch
Deepika Padukone, Mr. Sky Li and Dabbu Ratnani on launch of OPPO F3 Plus
The Cameras:

The Dual Selfie cameras of OPPO F3 Plus are for specific scenarios which are- "One for Selfie and another one for Group Selfie". The camera software automatically recognizes if there are more than 3 people posing for the Selfie and changes its mode to group selfie to work with a larger view area. The 120 degree wide angle, 6P front camera gives 105% larger field of view, than a regular camera. The other front camera with 16 MP resolution, 1/3.1-inch sensor and a large f/2.0 aperture will inherit the advancement seen in previous Selfie Expert phones by Oppo like high dynamic range, vivid depth and minimized noise.

While the rear camera offers high-quality photography performance with fast focusing speed, noise reduction and advanced low-light performance. The 16-megapixel rear camera is powered by a brand-new 1/2.8-inch IMX398 sensor. This sensor is jointly developed by OPPO and Sony, which features Dual PDAF – dual phase detection autofocus technology. This new technology doubles the sensor’s pixel array area where the photodiodes are embedded, necessary for phase detection autofocus. This makes for 40 percent faster focusing speeds even in low light. Paired with the large f/1.7 aperture, the resulting images are clear and breathtaking.

Other Specifications:


The OPPO F3 Plus comes with a 4000 mAh strong battery with proprietary VOOC Flash charge technology which is claimed to provide 2 hours of Talktime in just 5 minutes of recharge. The 6-inch FHD Screen, 2.5D Corning Gorilla Glass 5 screen features a pre-applied protective screen coating. The F3 Plus is powered by an octa-core processor – the Qualcomm MSM8976 Pro, 4GB RAM, 64 GB ROM backed by the ColorOS 3.0 with Avast scanner.


Price and Availability:

The F3 Plus will be available in Gold and Black. Priced at Rs 30,990, the Gold variant of the F3 Plus will be available from 1st April 2017 both online and offline. It will be available in OPPO stores across India and online stores on Flipkart, Amazon and Snapdeal. The pre-order starts from today till 31st March 2017. OPPO is also giving a special gift pack for all pre – orders purchases made both online and offline. There is also a Black color variant for the F3 Plus which will be available later.

All you need to know about 'Super Selfie, Super Battery' Gionee A1

Gionee India launched its new Smartphone A1 with 16 MP Front Camera sporting a dedicated selfie flash on the front for selfies. The phone is promoted with the tag line of 'Super Selfie, Super Battery'. As the tag line suggests the phone does have sport a high end selfie camera with the flash support and is powered by 4010 mAh strong high density battery, which company claims can be charged to Full within just 2 hours using its powerful 18W charger.

Gionee A1 Launch
Gionee A1 Launch

The Gionee A1 presser was rather a different one, starting from invite and registration like in immigration counter (story for another day), most surprising part was the company didn't disclosed the price of the device. Mr. Vohra , Country CEO and MD India on being asked about the price of the phone just commented that its priceless, well we were left speechless with this comment as why would a brand not unveil the pricing on the launch day. However, from reliable sources the price of Gionee A1 is said to be Rs 22000/- in India. The pre-orders will start from 31st of March and if you pre-order it then you will also be getting a two -year warranty and a JBL headphone or a Swiss Military Bluetooth speaker.

The dual-Sim 4G LTE phone comes with a 16 MP front camera equipped with a flash light to lighten up the selfies, whereas on the rear you have  a 13 MP camera. The A1 runs on an Octa-Core 64 bit process that gives better performance and less power consumption. Powered by a 4GB RAM, The A1 enables smooth multitasking and easy operation, while 64GB internal storage (Expandable up to 256GB) provide ample storage space. The Gionee A1 is based on the latest Android 7.0 and comes with the improved Amigo OS for a holistic and satisfying smartphone experience.

The A1 is equipped with the fastest fingerprint sensor as claimed  by the company unlocking the phone in just 0.2 seconds, for top-notch safety. For the humid Indian conditions, the sensor unlocks the device even with moist fingers. The finger print sensor also activates ‘Edgebar’ allowing users a hub for quicker access to their favorite apps. A1 boasts of a full metal body made out of A6000 aircraft grade material that is used in making premium cars and aircrafts.

4G and VOLTE enabled smartphone also offers a host of amazing features such as Split Screen, Maxx Audio, Virus detection amongst other key features.

Monday 20 March 2017

[Infographic]: Selfie Usage pattern amongst the Indian consumers

In past few years the word selfie has transformed from a jargon for taking one's own photo in early 2005 to becoming one of the "Top 10 buzzwords" of year 2012. In 2013 selfie went on to become the "word of the year" by the Oxford English dictionary. At the time of writing of this post #Selfie had more than 293 million search results. All these facts and data indicates how popular Selfie is in today's  world for social media users. It's no surprise that smartphone companies have focused themselves on front camera more than ever. OPPO is one such company with a proven track record of producing one of the finest quality selfie focused /camera centric smartphones in market. In its continued effort to listen voice of customers and understand the usage pattern amongst Indian consumers, OPPO recently conducted a survey with the leading market research company Nielsen, on The Selfie Usage Patterns amongst the Indian consumers, to deep dive into the unique patterns, characteristics, challenges and their definition of a ‘perfect selfie’ .

An infographic is compiled based upon the research done by Nielsen for OPPO India. All findings are based on Online Research in Delhi, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Pune, Bangalore, Chennai, Cochin and Kolkata in February 2017 among 1001 consumers who purchased a smart phone after Year 2014 and took selfie at least once a week.



Infographic


Below are some of the interesting facts extracted from above infographic.

  •  At an overall level, out of 10 pictures taken with mobiles, 6 are selfies.
  •  Out of 10 selfies taken, 6 are group selfies with two or more people
  • 89% of consumers are more willing to take selfies when with family and friends!
  • 96% of consumers take more than one selfie every time to get a perfect one

  • 66% claim that the biggest issue they face while taking a selfie is the difficulty in fitting all people in one frame! This directly correlates to the fact that a wider angle camera is going to be the future of perfect group selfies – a feature that most Indian consumers are demanding in their smartphone cameras.
  • Western Digital Allies with ‘Phillauri’ as their digital storage partner

    Phillauri (Saved on WD) poster
    Phillauri (Saved on WD) poster
    Western Digital, a leading digital storage provider, has announced its association with film production houses Fox Star Studios and Clean Slate Films Private Limited - Anushka Sharma and her brother Karnesh Sharma's production house, one of long awaited movies ‘Phillauri’. WD has provided the film production house with its world-class storage products for studio editing, post-production, and storing top notch special effects. As part of the association the company has provided the production house with key storage products. These products have been used by Fox Star Studios & Clean Slate Films for studio editing, post-production, and storing world-class special effects.

    Media companies are investing heavily in migrating from the traditional to digital value chain to achieve efficiency in processes and save costs. With digitization, managing assets and control over content, from the script to screen processes, is enhanced. Digitization also enables collaboration between geographically spread entities, distribute content through multiple media gateways and open new avenues for monetization of content. 

    Western Digital Corporation is one of the largest computer hard disk drive and solid state drives manufacturer, which enables creative professionals to store, collect, access, and use a vast and growing body of digital information. Our entertainment industry is growing at a high speed and editing requires high performance storage devices and we at WDC are trusted leaders.” said Khalid Wani, Managing Director for India Sales, Western Digital Corporation.

    Movies are shot on high end camera’s but the challenge is where to store these without compromising the quality of the footage. There is a continued need for storage high end workflows. Western Digital Corporation is a storage which is reliable with a huge capacity of terabytes. This association showcases the vital role storage products plays for production houses.” said Karnesh Sharma, Producer, Clean Slate Films.
    As part of the association, Western Digital also offered an exciting chance to meet the star cast of the movie ‘Phillauri’ in an exclusive Meet & Greet event on 22nd of March in New Delhi. Additionally, the purchase of WD products under this promotion at www.flipkart.com and www.amazon.in also  allowed the first thousand purchasers to receive a free gift. The promotional offer lasted until March 20th, 2017.

    Wednesday 15 March 2017

    5 Flagship Smartphones to Watch Out For in 2017

    Game of Phones has just begun! The year 2017 has witnessed numerous tech companies emerging with their flagship smartphones lately, initially at CES in January. In fact, the MWC 2017 was no different given that brands like Nokia, LG, Huawei, Sony, BlackBerry and more showed off their lineup of flagship smartphones for this year. Considering the vast competition and plethora of options available in the market, we decided to list five flagship smartphones to watch out for in 2017. Here wo go!

    Samsung Galaxy S8
    South Korean giant Samsung has geared up to launch this year's flagship Galaxy S8 soon. Meanwhile, Samsung also has some press event scheduled for March 15 in New York where it is likely to expand its flagship Galaxy 'S series' lineup. It has been quite sometime now since the company's most-awaited phone of 2017 is making headlines. The Galaxy S8, similar to its predecessor, is expected with wireless charging and IP68 rated water and dust resistance. Rumour has it that the device might be powered by Qualcomm's newly announced flagship Snapdragon 835 chip with 6GB RAM.


    Samsung
    Image for representation purpose only


    Apple iPhone 8

    Apple's iPhone unit is marking its 10th anniversary this year. You must have figured out by now that the year 2017 will undoubtedly be special for the Cupertino giant. India has been a growing market for Apple and we should expect the 10th anniversary iPhone to launch in India shortly after international announcement. Apple has already gained significant market share in India with the iPhone 5s being sold for sub Rs 20,000 in recent times and the price of iPhone 6 also seems to be headed in the same direction.

    Reports suggest that Apple will release the next iteration of iPhone in October this year. While it happens sooner or later, let us see what all features we can expect in this year's iPhone 8. First thing first, it is expected that it will sport an OLED, edge-to-edge display and glass body. The display itself might deal with a selfie camera as well as an integrated Touch ID fingerprint sensor. If true, it will not sport a home button this time, though.

    Apple
    Image for representation purpose only


    Xiaomi Mi6

    Last year, Xiaomi launched the Mi 5s and Mi 5s flagship devices only in China. This year, however, Xiaomi is likely to release its flagship smartphone globally. That is where Xiaomi Mi6 comes into play. The phone is rumoured to arrive in multiple options -- Xiaomi Mi6 Lite, Standard and Pro. The Xiaomi Mi6 is expected pack Android Nougat-based MIUI software in addition to a bigger 4000mAh battery. The phone will likely come with up to 6GB RAM, considering the stiff competition with brands like OnePlus as well as Samsung. Remember the Galaxy C9 Pro? That aside, it is said to be powered by Qualcomm's high-end Snapdragon 835 octa-core chip.

    MI
    Image for representation purpose only



    LG G6

    LG recently announced the LG G6 at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2017 in Barcelona. Design wise, the device is no longer modular unlike its predecessor, the LG G5. It flaunts a metal frame, sandwiched between two layers of Corning Gorilla Glass protection. Furthermore, it comes with pretty thin bezels, wireless charging (region-specific), fingerprint scanner and IP68 rated dust and water resistance. Specs wise, it has a 5.7-inch QHD display, Snapdragon 821 quad-core processor, 4GB RAM and Android 7.0 Nougat OS. It also packs a 3300mAh battery with support for Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0.

    LG G6
    LG G6


    Sony Xperia XZ Premium

    Sony recently held a press conference at MWC 2017 in Barcelona where it officially pulled the wraps off its flagship Xperia XZ Premium. It has a metal unibody design with the fingerprint scanner embedded on the home button. Interestingly, it is also the world's first smartphone to be powered by Qualcomm's flagship Snapdragon 835 processor. It has a 4K Triluminos display with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection layered on top. That aside, it houses a 19MP rear camera and a 13MP selfie camera. Running Android 7.0 Nougat OS, the Xperia XZ Premium is based on a 3230mAh battery with Qualcomm Quick Charge 4.0 technology. Xperia XZ Premium is also honored as 'Best New Smartphone' at the recently concluded Global Mobile Awards by GSMA.

    Sony
    Image for representation purpose only