Tag Archives: Android 5.1 Lollipop

Nextbook Ares and Flexx 2-in-1 Tablets to Launch at CES 2016

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The Nextbook Ares 11A 2-in-1 Android tablet will debut at CES 2016 (PRNewsFoto/E FUN)

It doesn’t matter if you prefer Android Lollipop or Windows 10, as long as 2-in-1 tablets are your thing, E FUN has you covered with two of its upcoming products from the Nextbook line, Ares and Flexx, both scheduled to launch at CES 2016.

CES 2016 will surely be a launching ramp for a lot of revolutionary gadgets, but that doesn’t mean that the tradeshow is a forbidden area for more common devices, such as 2-in-1 tablets. Acting as a buffer between regular tablets and notebooks, these products seem to be the best of two worlds. While E FUN’s Nextbook detachables don’t have dual-boot abilities, there is still

The first in line is the Ares 11A, an Android 5.1 2-in-1 tablet that, as its name suggests, packs a 11-inch display with a 1366×768 resolution. Under the hood, the device sports a quad-core Intel Atom x5-Z8300 CPU, 2GB of RAM, 64 of on-board storage and an microSD port that allows you to further expand the storage by up to 64GB. In terms of connectivity, the Ares 11A features miniHDMI, microUSB, 2 USB ports in the keyboard dock, Bluetooth 4.0 and Wi-Fi b/g/n. When it comes to taking photos and doing video calls, the Ares can handle both with its 2.0 MP front and rear cameras.

“We are excited to expand our Nextbook Ares tablet line in 2016 with upgraded features,” stated Jason Liszewski, managing director and VP of sales for E FUN. “The new Ares 11A was built with consumers in mind to be the right combination of features and price.”

Liszewski is definitely right about that sweet spot, as the Ares 11A will launch in Q2 2016 for $219.99, a price that will be hard to match by other manufacturers.

The Windows version of the 2-in-1 will be available in three versions named Flexx 9A, Flexx 10A and Flexx 11A. All of them run Windows 10 and are powered by the same Intel Atom CPU as the Ares. Besides that, they also feature 2GB of RAM, but only come with 32GB of internal storage that can be furthermore expanded by up to 64GB using a microSD card.

“Coming off a strong holiday season where we exceeded our sales targets, we are extremely excited to introduce new detachables powered by Windows 10, at affordable prices in 2016. Working with great technology partners, these new Nextbooks are sure to be popular as consumer interest in tablets powered by Windows 10 continues to grow,” added Liszewski.

Besides the OS and the amount of internal memory, Flexx and Ares differ in the size and resolution of their screens. Flexx 9A was built with an 8.9″ capacitative multi-touch IPS display that has a resolution of 1280×800, while the 10A packs a 10.1″ IPS panel with the same resolution. Only the 11A matches Ares’ resolution, but at 11.6-inch, it has a slightly larger diagonal.

These three 2-in-1 tablets will be equally affordable, as E FUN has announced that the 9A would cost $149.99, the 10A $199.99, and the Flexx 11A $249. As with the Ares 11A, we’ll have to wait till Q2 of 2016 to get our hands on these devices.

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Pepsi Enters the Android Smartphone Business

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Pepsi P1

It’s not everyday that you hear about a soda company that wants to also become a smartphone manufacturer, but that’s exactly what PepsiCo intends to do in China.

The rumors about PepsiCo China making a smartphone started last week, when a page called ‘Pepsi phone,’ having the tags IT, Internet, Electronic Products and Mobile Phone Manufacturers, appeared on the Chinese social media website Weibo. In the meantime, the guys at MobiPicker stumbled upon a leaked image of the device that will allegedly be called Pepsi P1.

I suppose that all that the soda company wants to do with the Pepsi P1 Android smartphone is to add even more diversity to an industry that already is as heterogeneous as possible. Given the leaked specs of the device, it’s rather obvious that Pepsi won’t force names such as Samsung or Apple to shut their doors and go out of business.

According to the above leaked image, the device will run Android 5.1 Lollipop, while being powered by a 1.7Ghz CPU (which might be the MediaTek 6752, which lacks World Mode 4G, and hence doesn’t work on all LTE networks in the U.S.). In terms of memory, Pepsi P1 sports 2GB of RAM and 16GB of ROM. Given the other specs, I doubt that there will be multiple versions in terms of storage, but there might be a microSD slot for further expansion.

The P1 will have phablet dimensions, considering the 5.5-inch display. The screen has a 1080p resolution and a 401ppi pixel density, which is quite decent. Not at last, the device will feature a 13MP camera on the back and a 5MP snapper in the front. There is no info regarding the sensors used for the cameras, so it’s impossible to tell right now whether the resolution is interpolated or not.

If the above image of the device is real, Pepsi P1 should have capacitative buttons in the front (which really is the norm for Android smartphones), and a fingerprint sensor on the back, between the main camera and the company’s logo.

While it is mentioned in the leaked image that Pepsi P1 will come with a 3,000mAh battery, there is no word on whether the battery is removable or not. Other details spotted in the image include the launch date (October 20), and the price, which is the equivalent of $205. Needless to say, if the resellers will choose to pick up this phone, they will do so at a much higher price. On the other hand, the 2GB RAM/16GB version of Xiaomi Mi 4c has the same launch price in China, and sports much better specs.

That being said, I cannot help but wonder who represents Pepsi’s demographic for this device. Have we become so shallow that we need a soda company’s logo on our smartphones, too?

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via Mashable

Mlais M7 Plus Seeks to Set Things Straight

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Mlais M7 Plus 02

The original M7 turned out to be a letdown due to some major issues that affected the device’s main functionality, so Mlais decided to right some wrongs by launching the M7 Plus.

To learn more about the drawbacks of the original model, please check out the Mlais M7 hands-on review I wrote last week. To jump right into it, there aren’t any noticeable changes in terms of design between the M7 and the M7 Plus, so most of the differences come from under the hood. First and foremost, the M7 Plus is based on a newer (yet inferior) chipset, the 64-bit MT6753. Even though this one operates at a lower frequency than the MT6752 (1.5Ghz, compared to 1.7Ghz), and has an inferior GPU (Mali T720, as opposed to MT6752’s T760), it is considered better by the manufacturer.

There is some truth behind that statement, as the CorePilot technology of the MT6753 offers better battery performance. Secondly, this SoC has support for an additional band, which means that it can be used in 4G networks in the US.

The second major change is the OneTouch fingerprint scanner, which unlike M7’s, is capable of waking up the phone. That’s definitely a neat feature, even though double tapping the screen to wake up the device wasn’t that difficult of a task.

Furthermore, the M7 Plus packs a 13MP Sony IMX214 sensor, which is capable to record videos at 4K, among other things. Hopefully, Mlais will take advantage of that feature.

The battery was one of the most disappointing aspects of the M7, so it’s great to see that Mlais will equip the M7 Plus with a 2800mAh battery. Combined with the HD screen and the power-efficient MT6753, the increase in battery life should be noticeable.

In terms of software, the M7 Plus will run Android 5.1 Lollipop. It surely seems easier to launch a new phone that sports an up-to-date OS than updating older device. Some users are doubting that Mlais is ever going to update the M52 or the M7 to Android 5.1.

Not at last, the M7 Plus will feature a notification LED, something that was particularly useful in the M52. All of these functional features will come at a price that has yet to be announced. One thing is certain, though: Mlais M7 Plus will cost less than $189.99, which was the previous model’s MSRP.

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