On September 3, Samsung surprised the tech world and all the Samsung fans by launching two Samsung Galaxy Note models. The Galaxy Note 4 was announced as the successor for the Galaxy Note 3 that was released in 2013. The other Note model that was announced during the launch event was the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge.
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The Galaxy Note Edge and The Galaxy Note 4

The Galaxy Note Edge is the high-end version of Galaxy Note 4. It is the first ever smartphone to come out with a curved display screen. The right edge of the display is curved in such a way that without touching the handset and by just looking from the side users can see all the notifications. Samsung has not disclosed when the Note Edge will be released.

 

Galaxy Note 4 Pre-orders and Price

On the other side, the Galaxy Note 4 release date in US is set to October 17. AT&T and T-Mobile are the two carriers that have announced that they will be starting Galaxy Note 4 pre-orders. AT&T is offering the Galaxy Note 4 with an off-contract price tag of $825.99.

On contract of two years, the Galaxy Note 4 can be purchased for $299.99. Also, users can opt to pay $34.42 every month for 18 months or pay $41.30 every month for 12 months. The AT&T Galaxy Note 3 stars from Sept 18 and it will continue until October 16 and the shipping will start on the Galaxy Note 4 release date of October 17.

 

T-Mobile will start the Galaxy Note 4 pre-orders on Sept 24 at 9am PDT. From October 17, the Galaxy Note 4 can be avail through a zero down payment plant of 24 months which requires the buyer to make a payment of $31.24 every month.

Sprint and Verizon has not released any information as to when they will start the Galaxy Note 4 pre-orders. However, speculations are rife that both the carriers are going to make an announcement on Note 4 very soon. Both AT&T and T-Mobile are offering trade-in deals. Most probably, Galaxy Note 3 owners may want to replace the older phablet with the upcoming phablet.

Galaxy Note 3 is Still a Competitive Phablet

On the specs front, the Galaxy Note 3 is still a competitive phone. The Galaxy Note 3 which was released in the last quarter of 2013 can still give good competition to the rival handsets. The Samsung Galaxy S5, Sony Xperia Z3, HTC One M8, OnePlus One and XIaomi Mi4 that were all announced in 2014 are packed with rich features. Still, the Galaxy Note 3 seems to offer better features than these handsets.

The Galaxy Note 4 has arrived to replace the Note 3. Do you own a Galaxy Note 3? With the arrival of the Note 4, two doors of opportunities have opened for Samsung fans. If you already have a Galaxy Note 3, you might as well want to upgrade to the Galaxy Note 4 by opting for trade-in programs from different US carriers. Do you feel like upgrading to the Note 4?

The other opportunity is that with the arrival of Note 4, the Note 3 is surely going to be available at lower price tag. Samsung would want to finish the Galaxy Note 3 stocks by reducing its price. When the whole world is gung-ho about the Note 4, will you consider buying the Note 3 since it is coming for cheap?

Galaxy Note 3 Price and Deals

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On Amazon, the unlocked Galaxy Note 3 N900 model can be available at a price of $517.98 along with free shipping. On BestBuy, the Galaxy Note 3 unlocked version can be purchased for $649.99 along with free shipping.

With AT&T, the Galaxy Note 3 is available on a two-year contract for $99.99. You can also avail the phablet through the zero down payment plans. The first plan requires the buyer to pay $27.71 every month for 24 months. The second plan involves making a monthly payment of $33.25 for 20 months. Without contract, the AT&T Galaxy Note 3 can be purchased for $664.99.

 

Through Verizon, the Galaxy Note 3 can be purchased as low as $99.99 on a two-year contract. Without contract, Verizon Wireless is selling the phablet for $599.99.

The Galaxy Note 3 is available for Sprint customers on a two-year contract deal for $99.99. The off-contract Galaxy Note 3 price through Sprint is $599.99

T-Mobile too is selling the Galaxy Note 3 at a reduced price. The zero down payment plan allows the user to pay $27.50 for two years. The off-contract price of Galaxy Note 3 on T-Mobile’s network is available at a price tag of $616.

Galaxy Note 3 vs Galaxy Note 4 – Sameness and Difference at a Glance

Points of Sameness

Display

The display size of Note 3 and Note is 5.7-inch and both come with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 coating.

RAM

The Note 3 features 3GB RAM which is also present with the Note 4.

Storage Options

The Note 3 comes in storage option like 16GB, 32GB and 64GB

Connectivity Options

On the connectivity front, both support 3G, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, NFC, aGPS and GLONASS.

Sensors

Sensors like accelerometer, gyro, proximity, magnetometer and barometer are present on both the phablets.

 

Points of Difference

Design

Design-wise, the Note 4 comes with real metal frame on its edges instead of the fake metal frame on Note 3. Also, the faux leather at the rear has been designed to give the handset a premium appeal.

Display

Even though the display size both the phablets are same, the major difference is the screen resolution of the two devices. The Note 3 supports full HD screen with 386ppi whereas the Note 4 supports a higher quad HD resolution with 515ppi.

Processor and Graphics

Note 4’s Snapdragon 805 processor which comes with Adreno 420 graphics and quad-core Krait 450 processor producing 2.7GHz speed is much faster and advanced than the Snapdragon 800 of the Note 3 which brings Adreno 330 graphics and a quad-core Krait 400 processor producing a processing speed of 2.3GHz.

Internal Storage

The Note 3 is available in single storage option of 32GB only. The external storage supports up to 128GB microSD whereas the Note 3 only supports 64GB.

S-Pen Stylus

Both the phablets feature S-Pen but the Note 4’s S-Pen has been dubbed as a professional stylus which is far more intuitive than the one provided with Note 3.

Camera

The camera provided with the Note 4 is 16MP with OIS, LED flash and 2160p video recording. The 3.7MP has been built for taking selfie photos. The 13MP on Note 3 camera lacks OIS. The 2MP camera is good enough for video-calling.

Sensors

The Note 4 is packed with extra sensors like UV, SpO2, heart rate monitor and hall which is not available with Note 3. Also, it houses a fingerprint sensor which was not offered with Note 3.

Connectivity Options

The Note 4 comes with Cat.6 LTE modem which delivers a download speed of 300Mbps. On the Note, there is Cat 4. LTE modem which can perform downloads at 150Mbps.

The Galaxy Note 4 has v4.1 Bluetooth and microUSB v2.0 (MHL 3) whereas the Note 3 has v4.0 Bluetooth and microUSB v3.0 (MHL 2).

Battery

Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is packed with a slightly bigger of 3220mAh battery than the 3200mAh battery provided with Note 3. The Galaxy Note 4’s battery comes with faster charging technology which enables to fully charge the battery in 99 minutes. Also, the ultra power saving mode feature in the Note 4 is superior to Note 3’s power saving mode.

iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus were announced on September 9 and it has already started making huge benefits to Apple. 4M million units are already sold as per the recent report released by Apple. The best smartphone from Apple till date has been sold out in less than 24 hours of going online for pre-order on September 12.
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iPhone 5 has received over a 2 million orders within 24 hours of launching and now Apple iPhone 6 have broken the iPhone 5 first day maximum sales record by selling more than double units. It is said that many buyers of the iPhone 6 who placed the order on September 12 may have to wait till this month end to get their hands on the new iPhone 6. This is because Apple has sold more than their stock permitted. Although Apple already stated in a press release that a few lucky customers may receive their handset this Friday.

Even some of those who are camping in front of Apple stores to get their hands on the first day may have to face disappointment as it is expected that the Apple stores may also go out of stock.

Online retailer websites like eBay is witnessing huge demand for the new iPhone 6. There are reports of iPhone 6 bids reaching beyond $2000 with an asking price of $6000. However we also noticed some sellers on Amazon selling it for a little over price of $800. These are generally unlocked iPhone’s on no contract. But the buyers need to shell out all at once. However to those who can’t wait till next month to get their hands on new 4.7 inch iPhone 6 and the giant iPhone 6 Plus, buying from the listed sellers may not be a good idea.
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As usual, it is likely that various merchants will put up Galaxy Note 4 for pre-ordering some weeks before the phone is actually released for sale. Although there are few conditions that will make you want to pre-order this device, I am of the opinion that it is usually better to wait for few weeks after it has been released before buying it. Some of the reasons why pre-ordering Samsung Galaxy Note 4 may not be the best for you are as follows:

 

1. The Cost

• If you were someone that monitors the price of products like phones and tablets very well, you would have noticed that most of the time the highest price for a newly released product is paid by those people who find solace in pre-ordering. Usually after a phone is released for sale, the price begins to dwindle. This is because there is always a relationship between supply and demand, if manufacturers see that a product is not doing well in market, they may try to reduce the price in order to attract more customers. For example when Blackberry Z10 first came out it was sold for more than $400 but now it is sold for less than $200. One of my friends in Cyprus told me that he got his Samsung Galaxy S5 for $1035 when it was released but the price was reduced to $800 three days after he got his phone. In fact, I have seen Amazon Inc. on different occasions reducing the price of their tablets by as much as $50 in order to attract customers. If you are seriously considering preordering a Samsung Galaxy Note 4, then ask yourself the following questions:

 

i. Do I really need to buy this phone through preordering?

 

ii. Am I buying this phone because I need it or because of advert, peer or social pressure?

 

iii. Can I still get this phone at better price at latter part of the year?

 

If you answer these questions correctly, you may see reasons why it is better to wait before you buy the phone.

 

2. The Difference in Review Experience and Real Life Experience

• I am not sure whether you know that many people have realized that the review they read about when a product has not been released is usually slightly different from what they see or experience after it has been released. The fact is that manufacturer’s review may be slightly exaggerated, and it is very likely that such information will not be 100% true. That is why it is better to wait for what other users have to say about a product before buying it. Of course, user reviews of Samsung Galaxy Note 4 can only be available after it is released for sale. It is advisable to wait for users to review Note 4 so that you will be in better position to decide whether it worth your money or not. In addition, you may not be aware of some important information when users’ review of a product s not yet available. For example, a regional lockout system was introduced in some of the American and European models of Galaxy Note 3. Unfortunately, you may not be aware of this unless you read users’ reviews which is only available after a phone is released.

Summary

• In this age of highly polished advertisements, many new devices are depicted as having fantastic features that it becomes almost irresistible not to pre-order them. As a frugal shopper and a money conscious individual, you must be able to immune yourself to advertisement fever. Your focus should be how to get a quality device at a lower price. It appears that one way to save money on Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is not to pre-order it. The few/much dollars you are going to save may be used for something else.

iPhone 6 Release Date

The Apple iPhone 6 launch date is set to September 9. iPhone 6’s major rival, the Galaxy Note 4 has been released. The Samsung Galaxy Alpha release date is set to September 12. Now, its Apple’s turn to roll out the new iPhone 6 models of 2014.

The iPhone 6 will be launched amidst the issue of a hacker gaining unauthorized access to iCloud accounts and leaking nude photos of celebrities online. The iPhone 6 launch event will take place at the Flint Center for Performing Arts which are located at Cupertino, California.

Traditionally, Apple has a habit of releasing new iPhone ten days after launching it. Hence, the expected iPhone 6 release date is September 19. In the US, the four major carriers, AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile will be the first ones to offer the iPhone 6.

The details on the on-contract pricing have not been disclosed yet. The iPhone Air premium phablet with sapphire display may come out with an expensive price tag. Both the handsets will be available in three color variants like grey, silver and gold

Expected Top 10 iPhone 6 Features

Here the top 10 features that we can expect from the iPhone 6:

Two New iPhone 6 Models

Rumors are rife that Apple will be rolling out two iPhone 6 models. The 4.7inch iPhone 6 would come as a replacement for the existing iPhone 5S and the 5.5inch iPhone 6 will be a new phablet model that allows Apple to compete with Android smartphones that come with 5inch and above display screen. The 5.5inch iPhone 6 is referred to as iPhone 6L and iPhone Air by various tech sites

Sapphire Crystal Display

In the previous month, rumors of iPhone 6 will adorn a sapphire display instead of the usual glass display screen.

Sapphire displays don’t come for cheap, but they are highly durable to scratch and cannot be broken easily. Rumors claim that the sapphire crystal display is more suitable for an iPhone that comes with higher specifications. This indicates that the iPhone Air phablet may feature the sapphire crystal display.

 

Rumors coming from some other sources claim that since Apple is facing production issues, the company won’t provide sapphire crystal displays on iPhone 6 but it may be offered on future products.

Sharper Display

iPhone models are yet to support full HD resolution. The iPhone 5S came with a display resolution of 640 x 1136 pixels. Android smartphones are offering full HD and quad HD displays to the audience, but this does not seem to bother Apple as the 4.7inch iPhone 6 is expected to feature a sharper resolution of 1704 x 960 pixels or 828 x 1472 pixels.
If the iPhone Air phablet wants to compete with the likes of LG G3, Galaxy Note 4, Sony Xperia Z3 and HTC One M8, it should come out with full HD or quad HD resolution display screen.

A8 Processor

The A8 processor is a successor chip for A7. Most of the Android smartphones have switched to quad-core processors. The new A8 processor is a 64-bit dual-core chip which can produce a processing speed of 2GHz. The A7 processor can deliver a performance of 1.3GHz.

Moreover, the iPhone 6 is also rumored to feature a Phosphorous co-processor. The iPhone 6 will feature couple of sensors like air pressure and barometer and the job of this co-processor would be able to accumulate data from this processor to the main A8 processor and then the information will be displayed on the screen to the user.

iOS 8

The all new iOS 8 will come preloaded with the iPhone 6. In appearance, the iOS 8 hardly differs from the iOS 7. However, software developers at Apple have done a great job in adding numerous features and enhancements to the new operating system.

The new iOS 8 will allow seamlessly use the iOS 8 running iPhone 6 and other iDevices with Mac OS X Yosemite. This will allow users to receive calls and read text messages through Mac. The Handoff feature will allow users to start a task one device and continue it on other device. There are other host of other features like HealthKit and HomeKit to name a few.

Storage

The iPhone 6 is heavily speculated to come out with a new internal storage option of 128GB. It is also in the news that the iPhone 6 won’t feature a 32GB variant.

Some other rumor reveals that the 4.7inch edition will feature the same old storage options like 16GB, 32GB and 64GB and the 128GB option will be exclusively available on the premium iPhone Air model.

Camera

The iPhone 6 is rumored to feature an improved camera over the 8MP camera that came on iPhone 5S. It will be sporting a new lens from Sony. However, it is not sure whether it will house a 13MP or 16MP camera. One of the major features to come equipped with is Optical Image Stabilization (OIS). The inbuilt sensors would be able to capture bright and high quality images.

 

Touch ID

It is highly speculated that the iPhone 6 will feature an improved Touch ID fingerprint sensor. Rumors claim that the sensor will perform more accurately and will be able to read fingerprint impressions quite quickly.

NFC

The Near Field Communication (NFC) is a feature which allows two NFC enabled devices to establish wireless communication between each other when they are touched together or brought very close to each other. It can be used to share contents, play games, making payments at groceries and so on.

Many Android smartphones come with NFC feature but none of the existing iPhones feature NFC. The forthcoming iPhone 6 is expected to feature NFC.

Battery

As far as battery life is concerned, the iPhone 6 is expected to feature a powerful battery to support the sharper display screen and the new A8 processor.

 

Through leaks it has been known that the 4.7inch iPhone 6 will be featuring an 1810mAh battery. The iPhone Air will house a larger battery of 2915mAh battery. Comparatively, the iPhone 5S came with a smaller battery of 1560mAh. Like the one inside iPhone 5s, the iPhone 6’s battery is going to be super thin in size

The iPhone 6 Plus is the all new phablet that was announced alongside the new iPhone 6. This is the first time ever that Apple is offering an iPhone which comes with a 5.5-inch display screen. It is the largest ever iPhone ever introduced by the Cupertino. Last year’s iPhone 5S and the iPhone 5C came with a 4-inch screen.
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The new iPhone 6 comes with a 4.7inch screen and the larger iPhone 6 Plus allows the Apple brand to penetrate into phablet category. The Galaxy Note 3 is the third iteration in the Note category from the South Korean tech giant. The Galaxy Note 4 is the successor model for last year’s Galaxy Note 3. It is yet to arrive in the market for purchase and the Galaxy Note 4 price has not been revealed by Samsung.

The specs of the Galaxy Note 3 are so good that it can even compete with the smartphones that came out this year. Most of the popular handsets of this year such as the HTC One M8, LG G3 and the Sony Xperia Z3 were created to compete with the Galaxy Note 3. Still, the Note 3 managed to survive the competition.

 

The iPhone 6 Plus phablet has to face competition from not just newest Galaxy Note 4 phablet but even from the Galaxy Note 3. Let us compare the iPhone 6 Plus along with the Galaxy Note 3 to see whether the Note 3 is of any competition to the largest iPhone ever built.

Design

The iPhone 6 Plus funts an anodized metal body along with toughened glass. It has a very premium appearance. It is quite slim as it thinness is only 7.9mm and since it sports a metallic body. It weighs 172g. It is available in premium color options like gray, silver and gold.

The Galaxy Note 3 has a sort of boring appeal. It has faux leather at the rear and on the sides there is fake metal band. It used to appear premium but the newer smartphones like the HTC One M8 and Sony Xperia Z2 have come out with sleeker and sophisticated appeal. Its thickness is 8.3mm.

Even though there is no metal on the body, it weighs slightly less than the iPhone 6 Plus. The Galaxy Note 3 weighs 168g. The Note 3 phablet is available in colors like white, black, and pink.

Display

The iPhone 6 Plus comes with a 5.5-inch LED-backlit IPS LCD screen. It supports a display resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels along with a pixel density of 401ppi.

 

The Galaxy Note 3 has a larger Super AMOLED display screen of 5.7inch. It also supports full HD display resolution like iPhone 6 Plus and offers a pixel density of 386ppi.

Processor, RAM and Internal Storage

Apple is offering a newer 64-bit A8 processor that delivers a clocking speed of 1.4GHz. The dual-core processor is well supported by PowerVR GX6650 which sports high-end gaming. The phablet comes with a 2GB RAM.
When it comes to internal storage, the iPhone 6 Plus is available in three options like 16GB, 64GB and 128GB. There is no external storage support on the iPhone 6 Plus.

The Galaxy Note 3 is powered up with a quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor which is becoming obsolete now but is strong enough to give competition to the iPhone 6 Plus with a processing speed of 2.3GHz. It is coupled with Adreno 330 graphics and has 3GB RAM onboard.

 

The Note 3 is available with beefier CPU version. It features an Exynos 5 octa 5420 processor in which four Cortex A7 cores run at 1.3GHz whereas the four Cortex A15 cores run at 1.9GHz.

The Galaxy Note 3 is available in storage variants like 16GB, 32GB and 64GB. The Note 3 allows its users to expand the memory of the device by adding up to 64GB of microSD on its external storage slot.

Camera and Software

The Apple iPhone 6 Plus sports an 8MP camera which comes with features like OIS, dual-LED flash, autofocus and full HD video recording at 60fps. There is a 1.2MP front-facing camera which can shoot HD videos and has been primarily built to shoot selfie photos.

 

The Galaxy Note 3 features a whooping 13MP camera sensor o on the rear. It lacks OIS but comes with autofocus, LED flash, simultaneous video and photo shooting feature and it can shoot up to 2160p videos at 30fps. The frontal 2MP camera is also capable of shooting full HD videos at 30fps.

Apple is using the iPhone 6 Plus to launch the new iOS 8. It is packed with plenty of new features. The Galaxy Note 3 came out with Android v4.3 Jelly Bean. The most recent OS update available for the Note 3 is the Android v4.4.2 KitKat. The OS is overlaid with TouchWIZ UI.

Unique Features

The iPhone 6 Plus along with the iPhone 6 are the very first iPhone model to feature NFC. It also comes with a fingerprint scanner which lies under the Home button. It is the first time that Apple is offering Wi-Fi 802.11ac connectivity with the iPhone 6 Plus.

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The most unique and powerful selling feature of the Galaxy Note 3 is the S-Pen stylus. It comes with dedicated apps for making notes. Through Samsung Knox, the Galaxy Note 3 can be used to access apps securely. Lastly, the Multi window feature allows you to toggle between apps and you do not have to close any windows for it.

Features like NFC and Wi-Fi 802.11ac are also present on the Note 3. However, there is no fingerprint recognition feature on the Note 3.

Battery

The Apple iPhone 6 Plus is packed with an 1810mAh battery. The non-removable battery is capable of churning a standby time of 250hrs on 3G and it can offer a talk time of 14 hours on 3G.

The Galaxy Note 3 features a larger battery of 3200mAh battery. It is removal battery which can deliver a 3G standby time of around 21 hours and a 3G talk time of around 420 hours.

The Moto X was unveiled on Sept 4. The handset was rumored to come out with names like Moto X+1 or Moto X2. However, the handset came out with the very same name i.e. the Moto X. It is now being referred to as the new Moto X or the 2014 Moto X.

The new Moto X will come to replace the original Moto X that came out in August 2013. The original Moto X was rolled out into the market by highlighting facts like the device was fully assembled in the US and has plenty of customization features.

 

Moto X Pre-orders

The Moto X pre-orders is slated to begin on Sept 16. The unlocked 2014 Moto X can be yours for $500. This edition as well as the unbranded version of Moto X will be sold as the Pure Edition. The ‘Pure’ word is being used to differentiate this model from the models that will be sold by the carriers. The Pure Edition will not have any bloatware. However, the ones that will come from different carriers of the US will come with numerous bloatware onboard.

The only carrier that is going to start selling the new Moto X is AT&T which will also start receiving pre-orders from Sept 16. AT&T will be selling the handset at an on-contract price of $100.

 

As of now, Motorola has not revealed which other carriers in the US will be supporting the new Moto X. Motorola has started a special discount offer for individuals with .edu mail accounts. If you have such an account, you will be provided with a unique promo code that can be redeemed tomorrow to get the 2014 Moto X at a discounted price of $450.

If you do not wish to pre-order but rather wait till your favorite carrier offers the Moto X, you can still use the code to avail the $50 discount. Tomorrow, Motorola will also be selling the Moto Hint Wireless headset and the Motorola Turbo Charger.

Here are the top 10 Moto X features:

Design

The 2nd gen Moto X has a premium appeal thanks to the aluminum frame that surrounds the edges of the handset. The older Moto X came with a plastic body. The Moto X measures 9.97mm in thickness. Its dimensions measure 140.8 x 72.4mm and it weighs 144g. The Moto X sports a curvy rear. The chassis of the device is not resistant to water. However, the build of the handset can save it from getting damaged by water splashes.

 

Customization Options

One of the salient features of Moto X is that it comes with the Moto Maker customization feature. You can either purchase the Moto X with wood patterns or in genuine leather covering. Rumors have it that the company may roll out a carbon fiber version of Moto X exclusively for Verizon customers.The handset will be available in color options like natural, cognac, black and navy.

5.2-inch Full HD Display

 

The original Moto X came with a 4.7-inch screen that supported HD resolution. Motorola has upgraded the display on the new Moto X. It comes with a larger 5.2-inch AMOLED screen that supports full HD resolution which comes with a pixel count of 424ppi.

Front-Facing Speakers

One of the most striking features of the 2014 Moto X is the dual front-facing speakers. One speaker is placed above the display and the other one can be found below the display. The upper speaker also works as an earpiece. The Moto G also comes with stereo front-facing speakers. So, we feel that even the ones present on the new Moto X are stereo speakers.

Snapdragon 801 Chipset and 2GB RAM

The new Moto X is powered with a Snapdragon 801 chipset which brings a Krait 400 quad-core processor that runs at 2.5GHz. It also comes with Adreno 330 graphics and 2GB RAM. The upgraded processor puts the all new Moto X on par with the likes of Samsung Galaxy S5, HTC One M8, Sony Xperia Z3 and LG G3.

13MP Camera with 4K Video Recording

 

The rear of the Moto X is fitted with a 13MP Sony Exmor f/2.25 aperture lens. It comes with a unique ring flash. The Moto X which came out in 2013 featured a 10MP shooter. The new Moto X’s camera is equipped with full HD video recording. It comes with comes with cool camera features like Best Shot and Highlight Reel.

Dynamic Tuning for Accessing Network

With the new Moto X, Motorola ensures that the handset does well in offering the best cellular connectivity thanks to the dynamic tuning feature it comes housed with. The said feature automatically detects how the user is holding the handset and tries to deliver the best possible reception.

Moto Display

 

When the handset is in its standby mode and the display is off, it will show up to three alerts on the screen. The Moto X allows you to choose what kind of alerts the handset show you when the display is off. You can set alerts for new SMS, email and calls. When you tap on the alert, it will reveal more details of the alert but it will not wake up the entire display.

Moto Voice

Using this feature, without touching the Moto X you will be able to interact with the handset to launch well-known apps like Facebook and WhatsApp. Also, you can create custom voice phrases to communicate the voice assistant on the Moto X.

Battery

 

The original Moto X came with a 2200mAh battery. The newer Moto X is packed with a slightly bigger battery of 2300mAh capacity. According to Motorola, the 2014 Moto X can easily last for a day. The standby and talktime details of the battery have not been disclosed by the manufacturer. By using the Turbo Charger accessory, you can suddenly boost the battery of the Moto X. By only charging the Moto X for 15 minutes using the accessory, you can get up to 8 hours of battery backup.

• The main difference between Galaxy Note 4 and Galaxy Note Edge is the design. Galaxy Note 4 Edge uses a bendable OLED display. This bent side of the display takes care of the incoming notifications so that you have the main screen to yourself. This bent side of the display can work independently from the main screen. For example, if the main display is off, you can still check your notifications and news update by swiping the bent side of the display.

•  When you are using the video app, the bent strip becomes a sidebar containing all the controls so that the main screen if freed up. Furthermore, you can access weather info, clock, news update from the bent display. In addition, you can manage which apps are displayed in the bent display. To do this, swipe up on the bent strip using finger in order to reveal a setting icon and then click on this icon. However, please note that if you swipe down, you will access a toolbar button instead of the settings button.

•  Apart from the bent display, every other features appear essentially similar in Samsung Galaxy Edge and Samsung Galaxy Note 4 except for the battery power. The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 has 3,220 mAh while Samsung Galaxy Edge has 3,000mAh. In addition, Note Edge has a 5.6-inch display due to the bent part of the screen.

• Samsung made it known that Galaxy Note Edge SDK will be available to developers. I expect that one should be able to put this bent display to more uses when developers have access to the SDK.
• Furthermore, I will like to point out that it is easier for right handed people to use Galaxy Note Edge than the left handed people. If you are a left handed person you may have to flip your phone in such a way that the home button now appears at the top of the screen. This may not be convenient every time but it may not be a big deal.

• The price of Samsung Galaxy Note Edge is likely to be higher than that of Galaxy note 4.

 

 Should I Buy Galaxy Note Edge or Galaxy Note 4?

•  If you are very much concerned about design then you may go for Galaxy Note Edge. This is because Note Edge has a better design and look than Galaxy Note 4. I personally will prefer Galaxy Note Edge to Galaxy Note 4, but we still have to hope that the price difference between Note Edge and Note 4 will not be much. If the price difference is much then Galaxy Edge may not really worth it. We have to wait and see how their prices will look like.

 

 Should I Upgrade My Note 3 to Note 4?

•  There is no straightforward answer to this question. If after reading this guide, you are sure that Note 4 has major improvements then you may consider upgrading to Note 4.

 

 When is Samsung Galaxy Note 4 going to be available?

•  There are strong indications that Samsung Galaxy Note 4 will be available starting from October.

 

 Which of the US Network carriers will sell Samsung Galaxy Note 4?

•  I was able to gather from a reliable source that AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, Sprint and US Cellular will carry Samsung Galaxy Note 4 when it becomes available.

 

 Samsung Galaxy Note will be sold at what price?

•  As usual, the price of Samsung Galaxy Note 4 will vary across different regions of the world. However, I believe that the price of Samsung Galaxy Note 4 should be comparable to Galaxy Note 3 price when it was released last year. As at the time of writing this report, you can pre-order the unlocked version of Galaxy Note 4 for $899.00 on Amazon.

 Definition of Terms Used in This Guide

1.      AMOLED (Active-Matrix Organic Light-Emitting Diode): is a display technology used in mobile devices.

 

2.      Super AMOLED: This is a type of AMOLED display with an integrated capacitive touchscreen. Many AMOLED touchscreens usually have touch sensitive layer on top, thereby making it bulkier and more reflective in bright sunlight. However, in Super AMOLED touchscreen, both the AMOLED screen and touch sensitive layer are integrated in one place, and this result to the formation of a screen that is thinner, lighter, more touch sensitive, and less reflective in bright sunlight. In addition, Super AMOLED touchscreen consumes lesser power.

 

3.      Panorama: This feature allows you to capture picture with elongated field of view.

 

4.      Optical Image Stabilization: This is a technique used to cancel out or reduce blurring associated with motion of a camera during exposure.

 

5.      Qualcomm Snapdragon: This is a mobile “system on a chip” made by Qualcomm Incorporated. Qualcomm markets Snapdragon for use in smartphones, and tablets. Snapdragon805 is one of the latest “system on chip” to be released by Qualcomm Inc.

 

6.      System on a chip: This is an integrated circuit (IC) that integrates all components of an electronic system into a single chip.

 

7.      Exynos: This is a System-on-Chip (SoC) developed by Samsung Electronics. Exynos is an ARM-based SoC

 

• Note: Samsung usually uses two different processors—its own Exynos chip and Qaulcomm’s Sapdraggon, in its flagship phones. Usually, some regions will get the Qualcomm version while others get the Samsung version.

This September a slew of smartphones are going to be announced. One of the most anticipated smartphones among them is the Apple iPhone 6. The iPhone 6 will arrive to replace the iPhone 5S and the iPhone 5C handsets that came out in 2013.

Apple iPhone 6 Launch Date

Throughout the year, Apple hardly spoke anything about the iPhone 6 features and specifications. Apple tried to keep the iPhone 6 features secret but the rumor mill has revealed a lot about the device.

Recently, Apple released an invitation to the media stating that it will be announcing the next generation iPhone 6 on September 9. The invitation only includes the date of the event as ‘9.9.2014’ and the tagline that reads ‘Wish we could say more’. The invitation does not reveal the names of any product. It will be held at the campus of the De Anza College located at Cupertino at 10am Pacific Time.

 

From the tagline of the invitation, we can clearly understand that Apple intends to introduce the new iPhone 6 along with the iOS 8, the details of which have been revealed to the world through numerous leaks. Apple fans are anticipating the unveiling of two iPhone 6 models running on the new iOS 8 which include a 4.7inch iPhone 6 and 5.5inch iPhone 6 phablet and the Apple iWatch. The 5.5inch iPhone 6 is also being referred to as iPhone 6L and iPhone Air.

Last year, Apple had unveiled two iPhone 5 variants, namely the iPhone 5S and the iPhone 5C. Since the time the former CEO of Apple, Steve Jobs acquainted the first iPhone in 2007 to the world, the Cupertino based company has been successfully launching new iPhones every year.

On September 3, Samsung will be launching the Galaxy Note 4 phablet and after few days the new iPhone 6 will come out to compete with the Galaxy Note 4. Though the rumored iPhone 6 specifications are no way close to the Galaxy Note 4 specifications, it is still a very popular smartphone. The 5.5inch iPhone 6 can be a serious threat to the Galaxy Note 4.

The popularity of the iPhone 6 is such that Apple has already asked manufacturing companies to make 30% to 40% more iPhones until the end of 2014. Samsung has already unveiled the 4.7inch Galaxy Alpha smartphone which is said to be a rival product for the 4.7inch iPhone 6. The Samsung Galaxy Alpha sales will begin on September 12.

Rumors are also hinting that the iWatch smartwatch would also be unleashed on September 9. Again, there is no confirmation from Apple on it. Apple is also expected to launch a sequel edition for iPhone 5C.

Apple iPhone 6 Release Date

Apple has only revealed the iPhone 6 launch date but is again mum on the iPhone 6 release date. The details on the release date should be disclosed at the launch event.

As we mentioned above, the Cupertino company will be releasing two editions of iPhone 6. Among the two, the 4.7inch is expected to come out first in the market. The 5.5inch iPhone 6 will be priced high and the high-end specs totting phablet will take some time to arrive in the market.

Tech analysts are citing that Apple is facing production issues because of which the larger iPhone 6 is not expected to arrive with the 4.7inch edition. Samsung is the major rival for iPhone devices. The 4.7inch iPhone 6 already has a competitor handset waiting to give fierce competition. We are talking about the Samsung Galaxy Alpha which sports a metal body and 4.7inch display screen like the rumored 4.7inch iPhone 6.

The iPhone 6 is one of the most desired smartphones. Even though Samsung smartphones like Galaxy S5 and Galaxy Note 3 have gained good popularity, Apple enjoys loyal customer base in the US. Speculations are rife that Apple has ordered its manufacturing units to build around 80 million units to meet the high demand.

The iPhone 6 release date is probably rumored to happen from Sept 16 to Sept 19. By looking at the previous release patterns, one can easily gauge that the Cupertino company has been in the habit of releasing the iPhone models on second Friday after the product launch date.

iPhone 6 Price

The Apple iPhone 6 will not come for cheap. Apple has been always launching its iPhone models with expensive price tags. Still, iPhone models are highly popular in the US and all over the world.

It was in the news that China Telecom would be selling unlocked version of iPhone 6. China Telecom had itself revealed about it through a post on social networking site called Weibo but later on it was deleted.

Rumors have it that the iPhone Air would be priced $100 higher than the iPhone 5S’s price. The reason behind it is that it is not a regular smartphone but a phablet device sporting a larger screen and advanced features compared to the 4.7inch iPhone 6.

The 4.7inch iPhone 6 is rumored to come with an off-contract price tag of $800 for a 32GB edition. The same variant will arrive in the US through all the leading carriers with an affordable on-contract price tag.

iPhone 6 Specifications and Features

Design and Display

The iPhone 6 will be slimmer than all the earlier editions. The iPhone 6 is expected to appear similar to iPad Air and iPad Mini 2 tablets. The power button has been moved from the top to the edge of the device. The corners of the device are rumored to be rounded. The handset is expected to be available in colors like gold, silver and grey.

 

The 4.7inch iPhone 6 is speculated to be housed with Retina and IGZO display technology enabled display screen. It will support full HD resolution. Other rumors reveal the very same edition will feature 1704 x 960 pixels resolution with a pixel density of 416ppi. Other rumor reveals that the handset may sport 828 x 1472 pixels resolution or 1242 x 2208 pixels resolution.

The iPhone Air phablet is expected to come with quad HD resolution of 1440 x 2560 pixels which is available on the LG G3 and the forthcoming Samsung Galaxy Note 3. So, if the iPhone 6 wants to give serious competition to Android powered quadHD smartphones, it has to come out with support for quadHD resolution.

The display screen of 4.7inch iPhone 6 and 5.5inch iPhone Air will be protected by Sapphire glass which is scratch resistant and unbreakable. It is the very same glass that Apple has been using to protect the Touch ID sensor and camera lens. Sapphire glasses don’t come for cheap. Hence, the new iPhone 6 models are going to sport expensive price tag.

Internal Storage Options and Software

As far as internal storage options are concerned; the larger 5.5inch iPhone 6 is expected to come housed with a new storage option of 128GB. It will also come with other storage options like 16GB, 32GB and 64GB.

Other rumors reveal that the iPhone Air won’t feature a 32GB variant. The 4.7inch iPhone 6 will come with internal storage options like 16GB, 32GB and 64GB.

 

The all new iOS 8 is expected to run on both the new models of iPhone 6. The iOS 8 will come with improvements to various features like Siri, Spotlight, iCloud, Photos, and Touch ID. The new Health app will show up collected data from various health apps and health tracking devices.

Processor and RAM

The Apple iPhone 6 models are heavily speculated to come with an A8 processor. The new processor will help in extending the battery life of the device. It has been designed for playing high-end games on the forthcoming iPhone models.

 

Other rumors reveal that Apple will continue to offer a 64-bit dual-core processor working at a speed of 2GHz. There is no confirmation on the number of RAM on the new iPhone models. Rumors have it that the 4.7inch iPhone 6 will come with 1GB RAM which is also available on last year’s iPhone 5S and iPhone 5. The 64-bit processor would certainly produce better performance if it is coupled with up to 4GB RAM.

The 5.5inch iPhone Air is expected to be more powerful in terms of performance compared to the 4.7inch iPhone 6. The main processor of iPhone 6 will be coupled by a co-processor named Phosphorous.

Phosphorous is a dedicated processor that will mainly collect data from various sensors present on the iPhone 6 such as the barometer and air pressure sensors. The collected information will be transferred to the main processor of the iPhone 6 and relevant information will be shown to the user.

Camera

The iPhone 6 is heavily speculated to come with the best camera sensor ever. At the beginning of the year, Apple had purchased Sony camera sensors. The iPhone 6 is expected to feature a 13MP Sony sensor rear camera.

 

Rumors coming from China Post, reveal that the iPhone 6 will feature an 8MP camera with f/2.0 aperture which will be able to snap stunning photos.

Connectivity and Battery

Both the iPhone 6 handsets will support high speed internet connectivity through LTE Advanced. It will be able to deliver download speeds of up to 300Mbps.

One feature that is heavily rumored to be available on iPhone 6 is NFC connectivity. Android smartphones have been offering NFC connectivity since quite some time. However, Apple would be offering the feature for the first time on the forthcoming iPhone 6 models.

Rumors reveal that the 4.7inch iPhone 6 will be running on an 1800mAh battery. The iPhone Air is expected to be powered up by a 2500mAh battery.

The price reduction was the only thing which Mircosoft required to do in order to make its smartphone market successful. Previously, the smartphone companies merely have to pack their devices with gimmicky features for the purpose attracting young generation.

The Nokia Lumia 635 is an extremely cheap phone which comes at a price of $99 and runs on Windows Phone 8.1.  It is also famous as the 4G version of Nokia Lumia 630

Hardware and Design:

The Lumia 635 comes in two colors black and white. The front of the Lumia 635 is bezel and all screens. The most strange thing about this device is that there is not a single physical button on this device. Lately, Windows Phone 8.1 has presented an option through which device manufacturers can drop hardware buttons.

People generally consider it a black box because it is quite difficult for an ordinary smartphone purchasers to even recognize it as a Windows Phone.

There are two buttons on the right hand side of the Lumia 635 one of them is a power button and the other is a volume button. The option of micro USB cable is present at the bottom side of the smartphone, whereas the standard headphone jack is on the top. The sides and back of the phone are wrapped in polycarbonate plastic which is detachable. Rear camera and a speaker  are also located at the back of the smartphone.

Although the round edges and polycarbonate plastic do not look elegant since it is made up of plastic. But still Lumia 634 does not give that much awful feeling when you hold it in your hands. The device feels solid and powerful just like the other products of Nokia. The company gave it a very accurate size of 5.10 x 2.625 x .36 inches.

 

Display:

Inside this smartphone there is a Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 1.2 GHz quad-core processor and an 1830 mAh battery. The two of these things are quite strong and important. Since it is an inexpensive smartphone the company packed it with a low processor.  At first sight this Qualcomm Snapdragon processor will work speedy and  so does Windows Phone 8.1 running on it.

Nevertheless, the Lumia 635 has a dark side as well, which is that the device merely comes with 512 MB of RAM and 8GB of storage. Windows Phone 8.1 permit users to store all of their media and apps on microSD card. 512MB of RAM is the minimum storage a Windows Phone can put on their handsets.

The display of Lumia 635 is 4.5-inch IPS LCD display, which has a resolution of 854 x 380 pixels.  It is much lesser than what other smartphones are offering these days. It offers  a decent  color temperature and fine angels. However, the people who want to purchase this cell phone in order to run a high definition video then this device will certainly disappoint them.

Microsoft has removed the ambient light sensor which is shipped inside smartphones. The reason behind this removal are the significance of manually toggle screen brightness from the Action center. In reality it is a bit annoying for users to switch lighting manually according to the situations.

It is a fact that manufactures have to make some compromises if they want to offer an inexpensive device to the customers. In case of Nokia Lumia 520 the company sacrificed on 4G LTE connectivity. In other words, if you want to connect to a mobile internet network through this device, then certainly it would not be as fast as the other devices.

Fortunately, Nokia Lumia comes in both T-Mobile and AT&T’s 4G LTE network, therefore songs and web pages would not take much time to download.

 

Camera and Extra:

Since it is an inexpensive smartphone therefore, it lacks some basic functionality.

The camera:

Presently, the camera is one of the most important features of the modern smartphone. The Camera is the first thing a buyer examines at the time of purchase

The camera offered by Lumia 635 is not that noteworthy because it does not provide an extraordinary result. It includes a grainy texture to
the images which is obviously not a good sign.

Nokia usually give a camera button along with most of the Windows Phone but this time the company breaks the trend. This time Microsoft gives an option of Action Center notification instead of a typical camera button. No doubt, it will allow user to rapidly access the camera, but a person will surely think twice before taking a picture if he has to press three buttons just for a picture.

Windows Phone 8.1 permits companies to swap the default camera app with one of their own making. Microsoft does a similar thing with Lumia 635; it selects to take the user directly to the camera.

The worst thing is that the company did not include a flash with its camera. In simple words, you would not be able to take pictures from this phone if your surroundings do not have a perfect lightning. It is completely on the luck of the user, sometimes the camera succeeds in giving amazing images and sometimes it does not.

Sensor Core:

On one hand, this smartphone is unable to present some basic things and on the other it is a bit impressive in other features. The Lumia 625 is the first phone of this company which possesses a sensor core. Although Nokia gave a long clarification for the addition of this new thing, but for users it is only software. This software lets the phone to track the miles or step user runs along with it.

The software certainly gives an accurate result. The best thing is that this software is not even heavy on for the battery of your phone like any other health tracking and Bluetooth options. User can get the accurate data out with the help of the option of synchronization built in the Health and Fitness apps.

The option of Sensor core may sound like a gimmick, but it will compel you to think about your health. However, this is not the main reason a person should buy this phone but it surely provides the device an extra feature.

Software:

The Lumia 635 functions on Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8.1 mobile operating system. This version includes the Cortana personal assistant and plenty of customization options. Moreover, Nokia developed its own mapping technology, photo editing tools and some other new options for this phone exclusively.

Most of the apps which Nokia offers are a bit gimmicky, but some of them are definitely noteworthy such as Nokia Play to. Generally, these options are still not available in Windows Phone of other companies.

Unquestionably, Nokia has relatively the easiest camera apps for a smartphone, but it takes a lot of time to load the images. This device is merely limited to 512MB which means soon the users would be unable to install even some basic apps that are usually available on other Windows Phone. Microsoft recently worked with developers to optimize several titles for a 512 MB device.  Regular platform and puzzle games will definitely work, whereas the other graphic intensive choices would not work on this smart phone.

The other main problem with Nokia Lumia 635 is that it does not allow user to hide on screen buttons like other Windows 8.1 Phones.  For instance, if you are watching a show the large, bright icons will remain present on the screen which will be a bit irritating.

Despite of all these problems Nokia provided a long lasting battery on this smart phone. The company rates Nokia Lumia 635 at a standby time of around 17 hours while the music playback time is nearly 40 hours.

Conclusion:

In the end, we can say that Nokia Lumia 635 is the best smartphone for the people who are not that much demanding.