Gionee Ctrl V5 Phone Released with 4.7-inch Display, Android 4.2, Quad Core CPU: Top 10 Rivals

The Indian domestic smartphone market is one of the bigeest and the fastest growing in the world with a host of manufacturers now trying out their hands in the market.
We already have a number of big name players present in the market such as Apple, Samsung, Nokia and Sony who have, over the course of time, become crowd favorites, aside all the other domestic vendors such as Micromax and Karbonn.
However, if we still keep aside all the foreign as well as domestic companies, it's quite interesting to see the inflow of Chinese vendors in the market. And one such company is Gionee with its newest CTRL V5 smartphone.
The new CTRL V5 from Gionee, currently available online at Rs. 12,999, comes with a 4.7-inch capacitive touch screen display offering a qHD resolution of 960 ×540 pixels.

The smartphone is powered by a 1.3 GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6582 processor and Mali 400 GPU coupled with 1GB of RAM. It runs on Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) OS.
The device also features a decent 8MP Auto Focus rear camera with LED flash and 2MP front-facing shooter as well. While native storage capacity include 8GB which can be further expandable up to 32GB via micro SD card.
The Gionee CTRL V5 measures 8.07 mm thick and weighs 103.5 and draws its energy from a 1800 mAh battery.
But what if you have some other device in mind, and don't really want the new Gionee device, but in the same price tag, which are the devices that you should consider? Here are the top 10 smartphone rivals for the device.

Bharti Airtel Ltd, which is one of India's top-notch mobile phone carriers, recently reported an increase in its quarterly profit. Apparently, the company was not only in line with expectations but it did much better than that.
Bharti Airtel's newest surge was helped by pushing call prices higher with reduced competition in the world's second-biggest mobile phone market.
The New Delhi-based Bharti Airtel said on Tuesday that the company had repoted impressive net profit which surged 89 percent to 9.62 billion rupees ($158.9 million) for its fiscal fourth quarter to end-March.

Previous to this, India's biggest mobile-phone company posted a net profit of Rs. 962 crore in January-March as against a Rs 509 crore earning in the same period last year.

Morever, after reporting declining quarterly profit for four years straight, Bharti Airtel posted a profit rise for the December quarter, again helped by higher call prices and also a surge in mobile data sales.
"Consolidated mobile data revenues at Rs 1,900 crore grew by 93.4% year-on-year, accounting for more than one-third of the growth," the company said in a statement.
According to a Reuters report on the same, "Bharti and its two closest rivals, Vodafone Group Plc's local unit and Idea Cellular Ltd, have become stronger in the past year and now account for about 70 percent of the sector's overall revenue."

The newest results were unveiled after the close of the Mumbai market. Interestingly, Bharti Airtel's shares had fallen 0.8 percent on Tuesday, which is also in line with the benchmark index.

LG G Pro 2 India Launch Expected Soon: Could Be Priced at Rs 49,900

South Korean giant LG has recently been charged up with the kind of initial response to the G Pro 2.
Although the company hasn't offered any sales numbers to prove how well the device is doing around the globe, LG still went on to say that due to the launch of the G Pro 2 it saw its operating profit margins rise quarter-by-quarter.
For LG, the Indian handset market is even more important, as Samsung- its nearest rival, continues to rule the market share. Henceforth, LG should be looking to reach the sophisticated Indian buyers who have been a loyal fan of LG products.
In case you missed out, LG is expected to launch the G Pro 2 into Indian market sometime in May. Yes, it seems LG is finally gearing up to launch the successor to the G Pro at a price point of Rs. 49,900.

LG didn't reveal the exact price of the G Pro 2, but in the meantime Mumbai-based retailer Mahesh Telecom has confirmed the retail price of the device. As of now, LG is neither taking pre-orders nor invited Indian media to witness the launch of the G Pro 2.
LG G Pro 2 will face stiff competition from the current market leaders--Samsung Galaxy S5, and the newly launched HTC One (M8).

Back in March, LG Electronics had started selling the 5.9-inch handset in some of the Asian countries. The G Pro 2 is now available in number of countries, notably, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Philippine, Vietnam, and Indonesia. The South Korean giant began selling the premium phone in South Korea in February.

LG G Pro 2- Highlighted Specifications
LG G Pro 2, a legitimate successor to the G Pro, incorporates a massive 5.9-inch Full HD display, 2.3GHz quad-core processor powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 SoC, 3GB RAM, a 13MP rear-facing camera with OIS+ feature and a 3200mAh battery fitted inside. The device runs Android 4.4 Kitkat, and there is the Knock Code feature given for waking up and unlocking the phone. The device is expected to support 4G LTE connectivity.

MacBook Air Revamp With Improved Haswell Processor Released At Rs 65,900

After loads of rumors, leaks and speculations, Apple has finally made the newly re-done MacBook Air public with an imporved processor that will up the speed of the device compared to its predecessors.
As reported, Apple's revamped Macbook Air with a faster processor and lower price tag has finally been made available in India. The newly done Air, starting at Rs. 65,900, will now feature a powerful processors, fast flash storage, 802.11ac Wi-Fi and up to 12 hours of battery life.
"With Macbook Air starting at Rs 65,900, there's no reason to settle for anything less than a Mac," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing.
"Macs have never been more popular, and today we've boosted the performance and lowered the price of MacBook Air so even more people can experience the perfect everyday notebook."

The new and improved MacBook Airs are probably the cheapest portable Macs Apple has ever sold in its entire history. Moreover, with the release of the new machines, Apple also has hopes that it will offer some sort of competition to the sale of Windows-based laptops.
As far as the fine details are concerned, there are two new versions of the Air that have currently been available for the public. There's now a 13-inch MacBook Air with up to 12 hours of battery life and an 11-inch MacBook Air with up to 9 hours of battery life.
The 11-inch MacBook Air comes with a 1.4 GHz processor with Turbo Boost speeds up to 2.7 GHz, 4GB of memory and is available with the option of either 128GB of flash storage or 256GB of flash storage.


The 13-inch MacBook Air, on the other hand, comes with a 1.4 GHz processor with Turbo Boost speeds up to 2.7 GHz, 4GB of memory and is available similarly in either 128GB of flash storage or 256GB of flash storage.
The 11-inch Macbook Air offers 128GB and 256GB of flash storage options, starting at Rs 65,900 and Rs 79,900 respectively. The 13-inch MacBook Air with 128GB and 256GB flash storage options are available for a starting price of Rs 72,900 and Rs 86,900 respectively.
The upgraded device also lets users choose from Intel Core i5 and Core i7 processors.

Guide Dots Android and iOS App Introduced for the Visually Impaired

So exactly how hard it is to cross the road when something on the road makes you partially blind? Ask a man who is visually impaired and has to deal with that every day of his life. However, it seems like help is on the way in the form of an iOS or Android app.
According to reports, a brand new app known as Guide Dots, developed for the visually impaired, will now help them locate places, identify people and even determine hazards in their way.

But that's not all as the Guide Dots app will also come integrated with the TalkBack feature where the person will get answers about his desired locations with the app saying out loud the names of attractions, restaurants, restrooms and shops nearby.
"We let people know what's around them more than a cane can, broadening their horizon more than a six foot circle around them," said Deborah Vandeven, global chief creative officer at VML, based in Kansas City, Missouri, which created the app.

One dowloaded and installed, the app will allow users to tap the Nearby button to hear a voiceover of places that are around them. Users can also tag walkway obstructions, restrooms, and places on interest, and even share the feedback of the whole experience with other users of the app.
"This will help move you those last couple feet that for a visually impaired person could be the size of the Grand Canyon, so beacons are definitely a good use case for that," Vandeven added.

As of now, there are 285 million visually impaired people worldwide, and out of them 39 million are blind, according to the World Health Organization.

Intex Aqua N4 Smartphone Gets Listed on Official Company Website

While large screens have somewhat become the norm these days, it's great to see domestic vendors rolling fast quad-core processor-powered smartphones into Indian market.
In the present smartphone market, three things are growing at fast pace that includes the phone's processor, camera and the display screen.
Keeping in mind the taste and preferences of Indian phone buyers, Intex will soon reveal the Aqua N4 in the country.
The low-end phone has been spotted on Intex's official website. Unfortunately, Intex hasn't launched the device in India. So, it would be rather tough to comment about the phone's pricing and actual release date.
Since the Intex Aqua N4 has already been listed online, we can expect the device to official in the next few days at a price point of Rs. 7000.

Intex Aqua N4- Highlighted Specifications

Intex Aqua N4 is yet another low-end device targeted at mass users. The phone comes with a 4-inch WVGA display with a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels. It is powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core processor coupled with 512MB of RAM and 4GB of internal memory, which can be further expanded up to 32GB via a microSD card slot.
On the imaging front, the handset features a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera with a single LED Flash. Also add a VGA quality front-facing shooter given on the front side.
Other connectivity options include: Dual SIM, Wi-Fi, 3G, FM Radio, Bluetooth, Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, A-GPS and a 1400mAh battery.
The device will be available in White, Black and Green color.

Intex Aqua N4- Competition
The competition among smartphone makers just got a little hotter since the coming of Nokia X into India. The Intex Aqua N4 will face tough competition from the current hot shots that includes the HTC Desire 210, Nokia X, Nokia 520 and others.

HTC One M8 Listed Online: Now Available At Rs 48,120

The troubled Taiwan-based HTC is pinning all its hopes on the M8 version of the HTC One. And if the new high-end handset becomes a hit, chances are that HTC could once again establish itself as the true smartphone maker.
The much-awaited HTC One (M8) will be competing neck-to-neck with Samsung's Galaxy S5: another contender for the title of this year's best Android phone.
While the HTC One (M8) is already being available globally, the device will hit Indian shores on May 7 at Rs. 49,990.
However, a week ahead of the May 7 release, the HTC One (M8) has been made available via online retail stores.
For instance, the phone can be grabbed at a discounted price of Rs. 48,120 through Flipkart. So, if you are planning to buy the HTC One (M8) ahead of the original availability, this may be the right time to claim your unit in advance.

HTC One (M8) - Highlighted Specifications
HTC One (M8) is the latest flagship phone that might not come for cheap. The handset features a 5-inch Full HD display having a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. It is powered by a 2.5GHz quad-core processor Snapdragon 801 SoC coupled with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal memory, which can be further expanded up to 128GB via a microSD card slot. The device runs Android 4.4 Kitkat with HTC's native Sense 6.0 running on top of it.
On the imaging front, the HTC One (M8) has a 4-megapixel UltraPixel primary rear camera with dual LED Flash, BSI Sensor,F/2.0 aperture and 28 mm lens. In fact, there are two rear cameras installed in the handset this time. The secondary rear camera helps to capture depth information of the subject. At the front there is a 5 MP front-facing shooter capable of taking great selfies and making video calls. The rear camera is capable of shooting Full HD (1080p) video with HDR mode as well.

HTC One (M8) comes with 4G LTE support and other connectivity options remain standard with the inclusion of 3G HSPA+, WiFi 802.11 a/ac/b/g/n (2.4 and 5 GHz), Bluetooth 4.0 with aptX codec, NFC and GPS with GLONASS. The device measures which measures 9.35 mm thick and weighs 160 grams. The makers have added a 2600mAh battery fitted inside.