Smartphones

Samsung is announcing today that it has begun mass production of 12 GB and 16 GB LPDDR5X modules in the industry's thinnest package. Samsung's shrunken memory packages measure approximately 0.65 mm in thickness, making them 0.06 mm (~9%) thinner than standard LPDDR5X packages. The company expects the new DRAM devices to be used to make for thinner smartphones, or improve their performance by enabling better airflow inside. According to the company's press release, Samsung achieved this ultra-thin design by employing new packaging methods, such as optimized printed circuit boards (PCBs) and epoxy molding compound (EMC). Additionally, an optimized back-lapping process was used to further reduce the height of the packages. The newly developed DRAM packages are not only thinner by 9% compared to previous models...

UK Survey & Prize Draw: Smartphone Usage and 5G Expectations

We’ve had a few requests as of late for giveaways that are open to readers other than US residents, so today we’re doing just that. Our benevolent corporate overlords...

12 by Ryan Smith on 9/27/2019

Xiaomi Mi Mix Alpha: A Truly All-Around 'Surround' Display Smartphone

Many flagship smartphones these days use slightly curved AMOLED displays that create impression of a bezel-less device with a large screen that falls over the edges. There are also...

18 by Anton Shilov on 9/26/2019

The Black Shark 2 Review: A Gaming Phone's Existential Crisis

Over the last 1-2 years we’ve seen a new type of smartphone category start carving itself a niche in the market: the gaming smartphone. Last year, the original Black...

67 by Andrei Frumusanu on 9/25/2019

Samsung’s Galaxy Fold Hits the US on September 27th

Samsung will start sales of the latest iteration of its highly-anticipated Galaxy Fold smartphone in the US this week. Two colors are set to be available, Cosmos Black and...

14 by Anton Shilov on 9/24/2019

Huawei CEO Richard Yu Q&A: “Politicians are Playing Games”

As the world’s second largest smartphone manufacturer, the growth of Huawei over the last decade has been immense. Last year the company overtook Apple with smartphone unit sales, despite...

184 by Dr. Ian Cutress on 9/23/2019

A Day with the Huawei Mate 30 Pro: Kirin 990 and 7680 FPS Slow Motion Tests

Last week Huawei launched its latest flagship smartphone, the Mate 30 Pro, featuring its latest Kirin 990 chipset. At the heart of the new hardware is a waterfall wrap-around...

47 by Dr. Ian Cutress on 9/23/2019

Huawei Launches Mate 30 & Mate 30 Pro 4G and 5G Variants: First Step Away From Google

Today at Huawei’s global launch event in Munich, the company has detailed its new Mate 30 and Mate 30 Pro flagship devices. The two new phones continue Huawei’s focus...

101 by Andrei Frumusanu on 9/19/2019

The Huawei Mate 30 Launch Event Live Blog (Starts at 8am ET/12:00 UTC)

The busy fall period for smartphone launches continues. Today in Munich, Germany, Huawei is holding their launch event for their Mate 30 family of smartphones, the latest generation of...

15 by Dr. Ian Cutress on 9/19/2019

The OPPO Reno 10x Zoom Review: Bezeless Zoom

The Oppo Reno 10x Zoom is another Snapdragon 855-based phone that was released earlier in the year, and while we did a quick hands-on test of the device back...

41 by Andrei Frumusanu on 9/18/2019

The Xiaomi Mi9 Review: Flagship Performance At a Mid-Range Price

We’re edging towards to latter half of 2019 and the next and last upcoming wave of device releases, however among the many device releases of the year one device...

96 by Andrei Frumusanu on 9/13/2019

Apple Announces New iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, & iPhone 11 Pro Max

Apple’s new iPhone Special Event just finished up at the Steve Jobs theatre in Cupertino – and as expected we saw the launch of a new generation of iPhones...

224 by Andrei Frumusanu on 9/10/2019

The Apple 2019 iPhone Event Live Blog (10am PT)

The fall season is approaching yet again, and it’s time again for another round of iPhone updates, representing Apple’s newest 2019 mobile hardware. The event should be starting at...

46 by Andrei Frumusanu on 9/10/2019

Nokia 7.2 Launched: 6.3-Inch PureDisplay, 48MP Camera, Snapdragon 660

HMD Global has announced its new ‘performance mainstream’ smartphone, the Nokia 7.2. It is aimed at the mass market, yet features premium capabilities, like a large HDR10-capable display with...

49 by Anton Shilov on 9/9/2019

New Uses for Smartphone AI: A Short Commentary on Recording History and Privacy

This opinion piece is reactionary to recent announcements. Having just attended the Huawei keynote here at the IFA trade show, there were a couple of new features enabled through AI...

25 by Dr. Ian Cutress on 9/6/2019

Huawei Announces Kirin 990 and Kirin 990 5G: Dual SoC Approach, Integrated 5G Modem

For the last 3 years, Huawei has announced its next generation SoC at the IFA technology show here in Berlin. In every occasion, the company promotes its hardware, using...

153 by Dr. Ian Cutress on 9/6/2019

TCL Waterfall Tech Demo: Screen Edges Done Right

Modern edge display technology is a compromise between screen real estate, comfort, and aesthetics. Personally, I’ve never owned a Note, or a device with an excessive edge with edge-related...

31 by Dr. Ian Cutress on 9/5/2019

The TCL One Piece Tech Demo: The Smartphone with No Holes and No Buttons

One of the things I love about TCL is its willingness to show off internal conceptual designs to the press. It’s something we see in the car industry all...

18 by Dr. Ian Cutress on 9/5/2019

The TCL Plex Smartphone Hands-On: Dedicated Low-Light Camera for Video

As one of the world’s largest TV manufacturers, with its hands in a lot of other things, TCL is a fairly common name among certain regions of the world...

20 by Dr. Ian Cutress on 9/5/2019

The Snapdragon 855 Phone Roundup: Searching for the Best Implementations

Over the last few years we’ve seen a lot of changes in the mobile market when it comes to the internal hardware of devices. At the heart of every...

50 by Andrei Frumusanu on 9/5/2019

Samsung Unveils Galaxy Fold Availability, Sort Of

Samsung late on Wednesday disclosed availability of its Galaxy Fold smartphone. The smartphone was originally set to be launched earlier this year, but had been delayed in April because...

21 by Anton Shilov on 9/5/2019

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