Best Water Resistant Phones You can Buy in Nepal

GadgetByte

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July 8, 2017

Best Water Resistant Phones You can Buy in Nepal

Gone are those days where your expensive smartphones get damaged by water. The new era of smartphones is made to withstand the usual calamities like drops, water, and dust. With Holi nearing in if you are thinking of capturing all those colorful moments without getting your phone damaged then consider looking at this list of best smartphones which are not only waterproof but also powerful.

What is IP68 Rating?

An IP (Ingress Protection) is an international standard that shows how much access protection your smartphone can provide. This rating has two digits, the first one indicates the protection against solid dust particles and the second digit indicates the level of protection against fresh water. Here’s a chart below which shows what these ratings actually mean:

Most of the waterproof phones have 6 rating on dust chart by default.

In water test, it is not that the phone passes through all the tests to get to level 8. But the smartphones are tested only for the specific level. For example, if we want to rate our smartphone as IP68, then it has to go only through “Immersion beyond 1m” test and nothing else.

Galaxy S8/S8 Plus:

Samsung Galaxy S8 is undoubtedly the most beautiful phone right now. With a high price tag and a lot of innovation going under the skin, the phone cannot certainly miss out its signature feature — the water resistance. Even with a compact form factor and infinity display, the Galaxy S8 has managed to incorporate IP68 water and dust resistance. Not to mention, the phone has a new 18.5:9 aspect ratio display, it’s a bit elongated panel and a lot of content don’t fit properly but it’s what all phones will have in the future. The display also happens to be one of the best displays in a smartphone right now. The phone also comes with one of the best smartphone cameras right now and has the edge over other flagship phones when it comes to low-light photography.

Read review of Galaxy S8 Here

S8 has taken a minimal approach for its UI and it’s not cluttered like the last gen Samsung phones. It is one of the handiest and most premium phones you can buy in Nepal right now. The price of Galaxy S8 and the S8 Plus is Rs. 88,900 and Rs.98,900 respectively.

Galaxy S7/S7 Edge:

Whenever someone asks for a waterproof phone, Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge is the first thing that comes to my mind. These phones are IP68 water and dust resistant and can be submerged up to 1.5 meters in water for 30mins. These phones have one of the best AMOLED display in a smartphone and not to mention that insane f/1.7 Camera which still is hard to beat for many flagship Android phones. The phone also comes with fast and wireless charging.

Read review of S7 Here

If you are looking for a complete Android phone minus the stock Android experience, it doesn’t get any better than this. Not only S7/Edge are solid water resistant phones, but one of the best phones that you can buy in Nepal. The S7 Edge is priced at Rs. 68,900 and the S7 is priced at Rs. 57,900.

iPhone 7/7Plus:

Expensive phone + No waterproof = No good! iPhones for the longest time has been one of the most expensive phones for general consumers. Despite the high price, it lacked the prominent feature of water resistance, which many of its Android counterparts have been adopting for years. iPhone 7/7Plus has one of the fastest mobile processor, the A10 which simply flies through everything you throw at it.

Read more about iPhone 7

The 7 Plus also has an insane dual camera setup with a telephoto lens which allows you to zoom in without losing the quality. Not only that, the dual camera of the 7Plus is one of the finest cameras in a smartphone. Finally, the iPhone 7/7Plus is IP67 water and dust resistance making them better than ever. The iPhone 7 pricing starts from Rs. 92,000 and 7 Plus from Rs. 1,13,000.

Sony Xperia XZ:

As far as water resistance on Android phone is concerned, Sony was among the first or the only ones to implement this feature starting with the Xperia Z back in 2013. At that time, it was a bragged feature that made them distinct but today it is an utmost necessity.

Xperia XZ is one of the most premium Android phones you can buy in Nepal. The phone comes with 5.2-inch full HD display, SD 820, 23MP Camera, fast charging, USB C and more. Not only the phone is IP68 Water and Dust Resistant but the Sony’s solid industrial design makes it aesthetically beautiful. The Xperia XZ is priced at Rs. 75,000 in Nepal.

Sony Xperia M5 Dual:

Like mentioned earlier, Sony was the first to adopt the water resistance on their phone and it doesn’t stop just with their flagship phones. Priced at Rs. 33,200, the Xperia M5 Dual is a mid-range phone from Sony to have water resistance with an IP68 rating.

The phone comes with 5inch Full HD display with 441ppi, it is powered by Helio X10 SoC coupled with 3GB of RAM. Optics wise it comes with 21.5MP Rear Camera and 13MP Front Facing Camera. The M5 Dual is backed up by a Non-removable Li-Ion 2600 mAh battery. On the downside, the phone is two years old and runs on Android 5.1 Lollipop.

Blackview BV6000s:

And finally, if you want a phone that can not only withstand water but all the forces of Mother Nature then Blackview BV6000s is the phone you’ve been searching for. The phones back case is made up of dual molding frame and the sides are made up of metal. It also has highly padded rubbers on the edges of the phones which protects the phone from extreme drops. This phone is made for the extreme environment thus the Dual Satellite Positioning system, Atmosphere Pressure Sensor and IP68 water and dust resistance.

Priced at Rs. 20,000, it features a 4.7-inch HD display with Gorilla Glass 3 protection, a quad-core processor, and 2GB RAM runs the show with power provided by a 4500mAh battery.

Read more about Blackview Phones

Apple takes a next step on biometric authentication; 3D face scanning on its testing phase

GadgetByte

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July 7, 2017

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Apple takes a next step on biometric authentication; 3D face scanning on its testing phase

Samsung presented a new form of biometric authentication in their latest release, the Galaxy S8. The phone has an iris scanner that let users to log-in to their phones. This new technology allows authenticated payments by scanning the user’s eyes. Although, Apple’s arch rivals did receive a huge criticism from their users. They were able to deceive their phone sensors by using a photocopy print of their eyes. Now, Apple Inc. alongside LG Innotek targets to launch their iPhone 8 with a new improved security system. The prototype uses a 3-D sensor and enables users to unlock their phone and launch secured apps. It also allows verified payments by scanning a person’s face. The company is also aiming to include multiple systems in the device such as iris scanners.

The 3D sensor focuses on speed and accuracy. It unlocks the iPhone by scanning its users face within a few hundredth of a second. These sensors include 3D depth perception i.e. the sensor’s visual ability to analyze geometric orientation of the object. The new hallmark in the phone allows the sensor to take more data points. The object recognized by the 3D sensor will make the device more secure than an iris or fingerprint scanners. Apple introduced their Touch ID fingerprint scanner in 2013, with the iPhone 5s but now, they intend to replace the fingerprint scanner with their new 3D sensor.

Apart from the new facial recognition system, Apple is also testing on a new prototype chip. This new embedded chip is designed for artificial intelligence and known as Apple Neural Engine. This new feature can handle tasks such as image/speech recognition and typing suggestions which require human intelligence. The company will also focus on its new OLED screen to display the contents at higher frame rates. The screen will provide better color adjustments and a better battery performance. Apple has also targeted to launch a new screen technology that prioritizes to remove the home button. The new front display will bring additional gestures such as swiping across the screen to initiate operations.

Although, the company has not yet confirmed that the 3D sensor will support the new OLED display version or it includes AI features. The display and the AI features are still in their testing phase. Manufacturers have said that these specs may or may not appear in the new iPhone8. Further, Apple promises to bring augmented reality into action that can shroud images, videos, and games in the real world. This new innovation in AI can make the real and computer-generated environment indistinguishable by enhancing our sense of touch, hear and sight.

Coolpad Cool 1 has a new Cool Deal thats too good to pass

GadgetByte

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July 6, 2017

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Coolpad Cool 1 has a new Cool Deal thats too good to pass

If you’ve been waiting for a midrange phone below Rs. 30,000, then you should absolutely check out this new offer from Coolpad on its Cool 1 Dual phone that includes a free JBL earphone worth Rs. 1800.

Cool 1 is the best phone below Rs. 30,000 if you are looking for an excellent camera as it offers dual (13MP+13MP) camera. It also sports a powerful Snapdragon 652 Octacore processor with 4GB of RAM. It flaunts a 5.5″ 1080p IPS screen and has 32GB storage. marshmallow.

Full Specs of Cool 1 Dual

5.5-inch full HD display with Gorilla Glass 3 Protection
Android 6.0 Marshmallow with EUI 5.6
32GB ROM (not expandable)
4GB RAM
13 MP Dual Rear-facing Camera with f/2.0 aperture, dual tone LED flash, 6P Lens, 4K Video Recording
8 MP Front Facing Camera with f/2.2 aperture
Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 64-bit SoC
Octa-core processor (4×1.2 GHz Cortex-A53 & 4×1.8 GHz Cortex-A72)
Adreno 510 GPU
Fingerprint Sensor (rear mounted, 360 degrees, unlocks in 0.5secs)
Dual SIM with 4G VOLTE
USB Type-C connectivity with fast charging (Quick Charge 2.0)
Non-removable 4060 mAh battery
Color Option: Gold
MRP: Rs. 30,996 (available for Rs. 30,000 after discount)

Watch our full review here:

jbl earphone — JBL earphone captured from Coolpad Cool1

What is Piezoelectricity and its possible application for smartphones in the future

Tech Guides

GadgetByte

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July 6, 2017

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A few days ago, Vivo smartphones teaming up with Qualcomm unveiled their on-screen fingerprint sensor that brings ultrasonic fingerprint scanning to mobile devices, also known as biometric authentication. The technology use Piezoelectricity that changes mechanical pressure or sound vibration to exchange ultrasonic signals which travel through its OLED screen and create a 3D map of your fingerprint under the screen. So, what exactly is Piezoelectricity (pronounced as pee-ay-jo) and what does it hold for future applications in mobile computing? Let’s take a brief look:

What is piezoelectricity?

Quartz crystals (Silicon dioxide, found in sand and most types of rock) are the most common minerals on Earth that produce electricity when pressure is applied to it. Under any stress or sound vibration, these quartz crystals develop an electric potential (voltage) across its sides. The voltage can drive current in an electric circuit. Conversely, when the crystals are subjected to an electric field they stretch or squeeze themselves by vibrating back and forth.

What causes piezoelectricity?

A Crystal is a scientific name for any solid whose atoms or molecules are arranged in a periodic or repeating structure (a 3D structure). This structure repeats endlessly on the same building block, also called a unit cell. In most non-piezoelectric crystalline materials, the atoms are arranged symmetrically around a center point unlike other crystals, which do not possess symmetric structure. These crystals are electrically neutral, which means the positive charges cancel out the negative charge. But if you squeeze or stretch these materials, the atoms get disarranged which produces a small amount of energy that needs to be released for the material to obtain its original shape (similar to compressing a spring). This small amount of electrical energy can be stored or drive an electric circuit. Also, when electricity is applied to such crystals, they tend to stretch or squeeze depending on the amount of voltage applied. More materials are piezoelectric then you might think, such as DNA, bone, and silk.

Applications of Piezoelectricity

Nearly all applications that require the measurement of dynamic pressure change uses piezoelectric materials because of its better contribution in the results than any other conventional sensors. Since piezoelectric sensors have a high-frequency response and a better signal conversion, they provide fast and accurate control over a long period of time. These sensors can be used in every small electronic gadget ranging from computer chips, microphones, record players and even quartz watches that keeps your time running precisely. Piezoelectric speakers support every application that efficiently produces sound from small electronic devices such as earbuds, musical greeting cards, sound producing toys etc. Voice recognition software also employ piezoelectric crystals that convert the sound vibration of your voice into electrical signals and vice-versa.

The most recent innovation that uses piezoelectricity is in the sports industry, like tennis. In order to provide more comfort and power while attempting a shot, players requested racquet manufacturers to reduce the shock vibrations through the player’s arm. Piezoelectric fibers were embedded around the racquet throat and a computer chip embedded in the handle such that, when the ball is hit the fibers bent and produce charge which is transmitted to the silicon chip through a circuit. These charges are amplified and sent back to the fibers out of phase in an attempt to reduce the vibration by canceling out the initial vibration produced when the ball was hit.

Wearable technologies that include fitness and activity wristband, monitors that observe distance, respiration, heart rate and even sleep patterns use piezoelectric sensors. The mechanical stress and vibrations of your body organs are converted into electrical signals and are transmitted via Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or any other wireless signals into your smartphone apps. Wireless blood pressure cuffs that measure patient’s blood pressure through a phone app is also based on piezoelectric energy harvesting technique. Smart watches that can manage texts, calls, and emails, smart clothing devices that monitor body movement and other vital signs, smart eyeglasses that can record photos, videos and connect to the Internet, all these wearable devices will use piezoelectricity in the imminent future.

Also, researchers at China developed a new transparent material that is attached to a smartphone touch screen. This transparent material on the device generates electricity whenever the user taps onto in. The mechanical energy from these motions could be then converted to electrical energy. Scientists at Lanzhou University have invented a transparent silicon rubber known as PDMS. PDMS consist of thin wires (about 140times thinner than a human hair). This material is then laid on top of the smartphone screen. When the wires are bent (when touched on the screen), they generate electricity. The voltage generated can be stored in the phone’s batteries. Further, researchers at the UK have initiated a new startup company which uses a special type of energy- harvesting rubber forged out of piezoelectric material. The rubber is placed under the sole of your shoe and generates electrical energy from the force of your body weight to the ground. These rubbers can charge your electronic devices while walking down the street. So what’s next for piezoelectricity in the upcoming future?

Nokia and Xiaomi Sign Patent Deal

GadgetByte

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July 6, 2017

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Nokia and Xiaomi have announced that they have signed a multi-year patent agreement. This will benefit both the companies although Xiaomi stands to benefit more from this deal. Xiaomi has also acquired patents from Nokia as a part of the transaction.

The financial details were not revealed by any of the two companies, although a spokesperson told CNBC that this deal will help Xiaomi’s global expansion.

Xiaomi is one of the world’s leading smartphone manufacturers and we are delighted to have reached an agreement with them

CEO of Nokia.

This deal will basically enable both companies to allow each other to comply with an industry standard with each other’s products. Nokia will be providing the necessary infrastructure to deliver high capacity low power requirements. This is necessary for companies that need to process and deliver lots of data.

Xiaomi is committed to building sustainable, long-term partnerships with global technology leaders. Our collaboration with Nokia will enable us to tap on its leadership in building large, high-performance networks and formidable strength in software and services, as we seek to create even more remarkable products and services that deliver the best user experience to our (product brand) Mi fans worldwide

CEO of Xiaomi

They have agreed to “explore opportunities for further cooperation” in various areas such as AI, VR, AR, and IOT, according to the press release. On top of these, they will also be working together on optical transport solutions for data center interconnect, IP Routing based on Nokia’s newly announced FP4 network processor, and a data center fabric solution

The once largest smartphone manufacturer Nokia still has many of the industry standards that are still used by the mobile industry till this day. It still makes money by licensing from the patients that it has built over the years. The partnership will also enable Nokia to feature Xiaomi’s Surge S1 SoC.

Xiaomi is one of the world’s leading smartphone manufacturers and we are delighted to have reached an agreement with them. In addition to welcoming such a prominent global technology company to our family of patent licensees, we look forward to working together on a wide range of strategic projects

CEO of Nokia

Xiaomi has stated that it’s no. of connected device has crossed the 60 million mark and 8 million daily active connected devices on its MiEcosystem platform. And with this business deal, Xiaomi’s potential is only going to increase more. They already have applied for about 16,000 patients till now out of which 4000 have been approved. Of these 4000 patients, 1,887 patients are based on overseas.

Both companies stand to benefit from this patent agreement in their respective ways.

ICT Award 2017 being organized – Online Nomination Started

GadgetByte

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July 6, 2017

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ICT Award 2017 being organized – Online Nomination Started

The world has seen progressive developments in the ICT (Information and Communication Technology) area and such advancements happen in our country at a languid pace. Despite myriads of setbacks and limited resources on the country, there are people, who have dedicated themselves to bring a positive change in national ICT Sector. So intending to address such contributions, I C Tech Media is set to organize the ICT Award 2017. The award ceremony is scheduled on August 18, 2017 (2^nd of Bhadra, 2074) with the deadline on 15^th July (Ashar 31) for Nomination Registration. The award will honor five different personnel, who have shown their heroics in the ICT area.

This will be the second time I C Media Tech to organize the award ceremony. On the anniversary of Living with ICT Magazine, a year back, I C Media Tech began this tradition of honoring ICT heroes. Last year’s winners were Sato Deal, Cool Techno Lab, NepFlight, and Yellow Nepal. At the event, Computer Scientist Muni Bahadur Shakya was honored by ICT Pioneer Award.

Award Categories for ICT Award 2017

BEST START-UP COMPANY ICT AWARD 2017

This award will be awarded to the ICT based company with a recent start-up but with a clairvoyant business model to ensure growth and success of the organization in the long run. The companies with start-up history no longer than three years will be considered eligible for the nomination.

BEST INNOVATIVE PRODUCT ICT AWARD 2017

The ICT based company, which came up with an innovative product along with the potential to make an impact on the lives of mass population and likely to gain success in the business will be favorite for this award. The product with a market history longer than a year will be considered ineligible.

ICT PIONEER AWARD 2017

This award will be awarded to one individual who nurtured ICT when it was still a sapling on our country. The man behind the curtain, who made commendable contributions to the growth, promotion, and development since the dawn of ICT era will be the favorite.

BEST NEPALI DIASPORA ICT AWARD 2017

An individual dwelling outside Nepal but with a Nepali origin, who has made a remarkable imprint in the international arena and has helped identify the country as internationally competent in the global stage will be eligible for this award.

ICT SCHOLAR AWARD 2017

This award will be honored to the creative scholar for their innovation on IT sector during their education up to graduation. Only full-time and the regular student will be eligible for this award.

If you or your company is eligible for the award, then you can apply for the nomination here. Forms can also be filled through the official mobile app of Living With ICT.

Leaked: Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 with 5.5-inch display, 16MP Camera

Xiaomi

GadgetByte

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July 5, 2017

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Leaked: Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 with 5.5-inch display, 16MP Camera

We all know about Xiaomi’s Redmi Note series. They have always been the best bang for the buck phone, providing great specs for the prices it offers. And now, their new iteration of the Redmi Note series – the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 has been leaked.

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 maintains its tradition by offering the same 5.5″ 1080P IPS display. It seems there will be two versions of the device this time as well. One with the Snapdragon 630 SoC and the other running on the Snapdragon 660 SoC. The 660 is obviously a better SoC with its more powerful Kryo cores and better GPU. Although, both SoCs are very power efficient — all thanks to the 14nm process.

According to the leaks, the front camera houses a 13MP sensor. The back camera is also a single lens 16MP Sony IMX 234 sensor with f/2.0 aperture and 0.3s focus lock (PDAF). So, if leaks are true, we will have to wait for another generation to get the dual rear camera setup.

The phone houses a smaller 3,790mAh battery compared to 4100mAh battery on Note 3 and 4, this could be done maybe to make the device thinner (7.5mm). It also comes with the USB C port and Quick charge 3.0. The phone is available with up to 4GB RAM and 64GB storage.

Expected Price of Redmi Note 5:

Xiaomi Redmi Note 5	CNY	USD (est)	EUR (est)
3GB RAM / 32GB storage	1,200	$175	€155
4GB RAM / 32GB storage	1,400	$205	€180
4GB RAM / 64GB storage	1,500	$220	€195

So, What do you think of this phone? Will it succeed as its predecessor? Given the specs and price, is it a good buy? Let you thoughts in the comment section down below.

Samsung Galaxy J5 Pro 2017 with 3GB RAM, Android Nougat Launched

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GadgetByte

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July 5, 2017

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Samsung Galaxy J5 Pro 2017 with 3GB RAM, Android Nougat Launched

Samsung just launched a new budget-friendly phone – The Galaxy J5 Pro 2017. This phone is a slightly improved version of the Galaxy J5 2017.

The phone runs on the same Exynos 7870 SoC and Mali-T830MP2 GPU along with the 5.2-inch HD screen. There is a 13MP f/1.7 sensor on the back and a 13MP f/1.9 lens on the front. The battery remains at the same capacity at 3000mAh. The device’s home button doubles as a fingerprint sensor and the OS is Android Nougat.

Where the Pro version shines is in the memory department. There is 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage which is a bump from the normal J5 (2017).

The device is already available in Thailand for about $295 (30k Nepali). Although the availability of the device internationally is unsure yet very likely. Would you buy the new J5 Pro (2017) if it was available in Nepal?

Which Xiaomi devices will get the Android Nougat update?

GadgetByte

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July 4, 2017

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Which Xiaomi devices will get the Android Nougat update?

Xiaomi has released a list of smartphones that are eligible for the Nougat update. The list contains 14 Xiaomi devices, among which three devices already run on Nougat.

List of devices to get the Nougat update

Xiaomi has always been slow at updating their devices to the newer Android version. They do however update their phones to their own latest MIUI versions. If you don’t see your device in the list above, you don’t need to be disappointed much. Xiaomi delivers most of the latest features through their MIUI update anyway.

The list comes from the MIUI team in China, so this is very official. From the list, the Xiaomi Mi 6, Mi Max 2, Xiaomi Redmi 4/4x and the Mi 5c will be getting the Android 7.1.1 version. The rest will get the Android 7.0 Nougat.

If you plan to buy a Xiaomi device, the phones on this list should be your priority. Do note that all the future devices that Xiaomi releases are expected to come with Nougat out of the box until Android 8.0 is released.

Also Read: Xiaomi Phones in Nepa with Price

Rumors of Galaxy S8 mini hints at a smaller version of S8

GadgetByte

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July 4, 2017

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Rumors of Galaxy S8 mini hints at a smaller version of S8

The Galaxy S5 mini was the last phone from Samsung to feature a mini flagship. But now, after three years rumors of a Galaxy S8 mini are surfacing. This is going to be interesting seeing we will get the same infinity display in an even smaller package.

If you remember the mini flagships from before, they never had the best specs as their bigger counterparts. The S3, S4, and S5 mini were just not as capable in the specs department, and they didn’t exactly get the same software update treatment either. But this S8 mini is rumored to have better specs. Not on par with the normal S8 but still better than these minis traditionally had.

According to the rumors, the new device will feature a 5.3″ infinity display on a body as small as the iPhone 7. This is thanks to the edge to edge display on these new Galaxy flagships. Inside could be a Snapdragon 821 SoC with 4GB of RAM and 32GB ROM. This keeps its specs on par with last year’s flagships and some of this year’s flagships as well (LG G6). This will adopt the same 18.5:9 wide screen ratio along with the iris scanner and Samsung’s own Bixby assistant.

Although the screen technology and resolution aren’t mentioned in the rumors as well as the battery and the cameras. But going by their recent lineups of smartphones, this one will most probably work with the SuperAMOLED display.

These rumors come from the Asian website ITHOME. The prices and the availability of the phone are still unclear, although South Korea will be the first to get this phone. If a phone like this exists, it will have to compete with smaller phones like the Sony Xperia XZ compact.

What do you think of this rumors? And what price do you think is acceptable for a phone like this? Comment below to let us known.