Author: Chris Eilers

I know many of you out here are big Sony fans. Or at least, many of you here are impressed by the latest Sony smartphones flagships. Attractive and awesome as they may seem, many Sony smartphones failed to sell well because of their high price. (Don’t you forget how much the 4K display from Xperia Z5 Premium costs?)

According to Sony Mobiles, the past couple of years have been very tough on them, talking about their mobile business. The company’s shares in the global market kept dropping, and so did their number of handsets shipped worldwide.

Sony smartphones alert – profits endangered

With such business condition, Kazuo Hirai, Sony’s Chief Executive has announced that, the company may start to look for “alternative options” if their profit doesn’t improve in 2016.

Here is what he said in exact quoting:

“We will continue with the business as long as we are on track with the scenario of breaking even next year onwards … Otherwise, we haven’t eliminated the consideration of alternative options.” – Sony Chief Executive Kazuo Hirai

It seems that Sony has been struggling quite considerably before deciding to publish this intention to the internet. Although we can’t deny their efforts in trying to excel in the mobile industry, the bitter fact is that their Xperia brand is fading considerably.

So far, Sony Mobiles division has claimed a 60 billion yen (Which is around $480 million) loss this year. This is way too much, much higher than the expected loss of 39 billion yen the company predicted back in April 2015 –> Yes, now you know how serious the situation is!

Sony smartphones decline – possible reasons?

Using a Sony smartphone myself (an Xperia M4 Aqua), and despite my love for it so far, I personally can spotted several reasons why Sony is not doing so great any more compare to other competitors. Firstly, the company focuses on quality. But quality itself is not enough nowadays. You need fancy design, affordable price and innovations. Many people complain recent Xperia smartphones look mostly, if not exactly the same. And Sony Xperia smartphones keep coming with average battery capacity and rather over-average pricing.

Sony smartphones come to an end – what are the options?

My concern for now is that, if what Hirai trying to imply is true, then what are those “other options” they are targeting? Will they be focusing more on the music accessory business? Will they turn back to the tough PC market? Will it be camera or anything we will never think of..

It has been set and decided. 2016 will be the decisive year Sony takes for itself. Will they make any breaking innovation to save the situation? Especially when the Giant Nokia is getting ready to come back the same year. One thing I can say for sure is that, the competition will be even tougher on Sony. So, Sony fans, keep on supporting your favorite brand. Because who knows, Sony smartphones may totally disappear one day.

Sony smartphones 2016: Go bigger or go home?

Have you ever wondered what famous phones of the past would look like if they had had the technology we are having today? What would signature devices like Nokia 3310 and Ericsson T28s had not been just basic phones, but smartphones instead? We never know until we actually see them, don’t you agree with me?

What if the past wasn’t the past?

Also, as usual, don’t forget to share with us your feelings and memories 🙂 Enjoy the gallery of Nokia 3310 and Ericsson T28s “smartphones” below!

Officially launched yesterday, October 6, 2015, Lumia 950XL is the latest Microsoft smartphone in the high-end category. There are so many reasons why people get excited about the device. But you will get into details when you read through our post. For now, there is one thing that can wrap up what this Microsoft smartphone has to offer. According to Microsoft, the Lumia 950XL and its sibling Lumia 950 are probably “The most productive phones you’ve ever picked up”

Running on Windows 10, Lumia 950XL specs features some of the latest trends in our market today. With 5.7” display, Lumia 950XL is a high-end phablet with 3GB RAM, 20MP Pureview camera with triple LED flash and 3340 mAH battery.

To give you a fuller view on how the Lumia 950XL in comparison with other current flagships in our market today, here is a table of detailed Lumia 950XL specs put next to: LG V10, Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and iPhone 6S Plus.

So in the list, I have for you all Phablet-size devices (5.5 inch display and bigger). And there is 2 Android smartphones, 1 Windows phone and 1 iOS phone so you hve a broader sense of them all. What do you think about the Lumia 950XL when put among other flagships? Will it manage to convince people into buying?

With their current Exynos 7420 chip set, Samsung is doing quite good on their flagship smartphones Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge. However, the Korean company does not get satisfied with that. They are working hard on and hinting a next generation Exynos 8890. With the codenam M1 Mongoose, the new chipset is said to power Samsung’s upcoming smartphone – Galaxy S7. Samsung Galaxy S7 launch day is rumored to be in February 2016.

Exynos 8890 chip set – the most powerful ?

As usual, months before a flagship from a well known smartphone manufacturer gets release, leaking and rumors will start to flow over. This time, a source on Weibo just revealed some Benchmark scores of this Exnos 8890.

Samsung Galaxy S7 release date

Samsung Galaxy S7 price and specs we know so far

“Polyera is a flexible electronics company” founded in 2005. They aim at producing next-generation flexible electronics and hope to bring consumers the greatest experience. That can explain the birth of their latest product – the wearable Wove Band. And we can say that Polyera has somehow wowed people when using Digital Fabric technology for the band.

Speaking more specifically, Digital Fabric tech replaces the brittle silicon material usually used for making thin film transistors (TFTs) with a flexible material able to help create a much more durable flexible display of OLED or e-ink type. Cool!

As for the Wove Band specs, it is an e-ink device featuring a multi-touch 1040 x 200 display and wrapping around your wrist. The larger end segments are where the battery, processor, and the charging port storage stay. Wove Band runs on Wove OS based on Android 5.1 Lollipop. For more details about the Wove Band specs, you can check out the following table:

When you tap the screen, it will display weather forecasts, news headlines, and emails. However, for now we only can see a demo mode including a map navigation app, a recipe app, and an app for media playback with a basic user interface. Though, it’s already made us feel interested and look forward to the Wove Band launch as well as consumer release in 2016.

Hopefully, this device can help the company achieve their goal, which is that “devices are no longer hard, heavy, and cold, but soft, ambient, and organic.”

Now, it is time for you to enjoy some Wove Band hands-on pictures 🙂 . 

(Source: androidauthority)

Recently, we have been informed of the ranking list of the best brands in the world – the Interbrand 2015. Check it out!

Accordingly, Apple is still the one that leads the game and Google is still the runner-up, which is not really surprising to be honest. Talking about smartphone itself, Apple impressed by selling 13 millions iPhone 6S and 6S Plus in just the opening weekend.

Basing on the list, we also know that the brand value of Apple increases 43% (or more than 170 billion dollars) this year. Though Google cannot be ranked first, they are also able to increase 12% (more than 120 billion dollars).

In terms of growth, the 2015 Interbrand Best Global Brands Report records that the brand value of Facebook is able to become the one that has developed fastest with 54% increase, reaching more than 22  billion dollars. On the other hand, Microsoft with some positive changes gets 11% increase and more than 67 billion dollars, ranking at the fourth place.

Besides, we have IBM coming in fifth, Samsung seventh, GE at eighth and Amazon at tenth. Looking at the entire top 100, we see that Volkswagen loses their position, compared to last year. They had to deal with many problems, so falling from the 31st to the 35th can be understandable.

According to Jez Frampton, Interbrand’s Global Chief Executive Officer, “The Best Global Brands report examines what it takes for brands to succeed in today’s hyper-fragmented world. As people demand immediate, personalized and tailored experiences, business and brands need to move at the speed of life. Many of the brands in this year’s Top 100 are so intuitively aligned with people’s priorities, that they are able to seamlessly integrate into their everyday lives.”

In general, most technology giants are listed in the top 10 of Interbrand 2015. Some familiar and famous ones like Apple, Google, IBM, Microsoft, Samsung, GE and Amazon have succeeded in standing still in the list. Bravo!

Smartphone cameras are becoming more and more awesome recently. And we can’t deny the fact that many people nowadays choose a smartphone based merely on its camera. I won’t say that people don’t need DSLR anymore, but with improved features, smartphone cameras are gradually dominating the market. So what do those smartphone cameras have that can beat the expensive and premium DSLR?

1. Simplicity

Although DSLRs still produce the best resolution on pictures, they require certain techniques and are actually quite complicated to operate. A smartphone camera, however, is fast, easy to use and can work with very simple touch and press.

2. Better and better sensor

Smartphone cameras have improved a lot for the past years. Recently, the best we have so far in our market is 23MP from Sony Xperia Z5, which is more than an average digital camera. Not to mention the selfie sensors that make snapping much more fun and enjoyable than ever.

3. Various photography apps and filters

Good camera sensors is one thing. Great photography apps and filters is even more important. With smartphone camera, you can shoot, edit, add tons of effects and have a unique picture designed by and for you.

Also, many cool apps allow users to have different experience: panorama, fish-eyes, face make up, slo-mo video and so on.

4. Direct connect to social media

Do you have a Facebook account? Do you use Instagram to share your amazing pics? If yes, you must know how important a smartphone camera can be. Here is how we do: snap a series of pics, choose your favorite, retouch, add effects and then, SHARE with your friends on Facebook, Instagram or many other social media channels you join! Life is so fun and comfortable, isn’t it?

OnLeaks, a well know Twitter account has just shared 2 leaking images of the upcoming Lumia smartphone: 950XL. According to that, we got to know, the handset is about to sport a 3340 mAH battery. And no, 3340 mAH is not the main thing we want to mention here. If the information in this leak is right, Lumia 950XL battery will be a removable one.

In a time when most of the recent smartphone flagships go with non-removable power, a traditional removable battery is pretty much appreciated. Personally speaking, I find removable battery much more convenient and favorable than its counterpart. And if I make a prediction, I would say removable battery will make the Lumia 950XL more attractive to interested users.

A bit about Lumia 950XL battery capacity. The Lumia 950XL battery has 3400 mAH. To make it easier for you to compare, the previous Lumia smartphone, 930, is doing quite well with 2420 mAH. In terms of some other recent flagships, the Galaxy Note 5 battery is 3000 mAH (and lasts up to 9 hours 11 minutes),  and LG G4 battery is 3000 mAH. So the Lumia 950XL battery can be considered above average.

Lumia 950XL release date and pricing

The Lumia 950XL release date is said to be today, October 6, 2015. Let’s wait until we hear any other official announcement from Microsoft. We expect to have finalized specs of the device soon. For now, some of the Lumia 950XL specs we spotted have made us very interested and curious: 5.7 inch, 2K display, Snapdragon 810 processor, USB Type C and 20MP Pureview camera. There is no hint yet about the Lumia 950XL RAM, but we bet it would be at least 3GB. Of course, the smartphone will run on Windows 10 Continuum.

Though Microsoft have not hinted anything about the Lumia 950XL price yet. But based on the Lumia 930 (which is being sold at PHP 20K), we would guess the Lumia 950XL price in Philippines won’t be less than PHP 25K.

ZTE has just claimed that Huawei “copied” their Athena (aka Grand S) design for Huawei Nexus 6P launched some days ago. Is it possible?

Recently, a post by the ZTE’s marketing head Lu Qian Hao on Weibo has stirred up the mobile market. It says that Huawei Nexus 6P might have copied one of their designs. At the moment, Nexus 6P is the latest flagship coming with strong specs and a beautiful look. But if Huawei really did it, obviously they would have to face a big trouble.

Looking at the comparison photos, we we can easily notice that the rears are quite similar, especially the interesting cameras on the back surfaces with the black bars across them, very standing out and creating a nice contrast.

However, though ZTE has spotted the situation, they seems not very angry. Moreover, they even make it sound a bit funny when talking about how Huawei “paid tribute” to them.

The mentioned device is ZTE Athena (aka ZTE Grand S), released in January, 2013, while Huawei Nexus 6P was introduced this month, October, 2015. Apart from the design, they have 2 different packages of features as below:

Right now, we are wondering if ZTE wants to take Huawei to court or not, and how Huawei will respond to ZTE. What do you guys think? Will things get worse in the next weeks?

Keep in touch! We will update it soon!

If you notice, removable battery is a thing recently-launched smartphones seem to lack. Similar to whether microSD card slots are necessary or not, non-removable or removable battery is also a controversial matter. But as more and more high-end flagships these days come with non-removable, removable battery becomes rare and missed by many users.

In this post, I want to give you my personal opinion on why the manufacturers should keep those batteries removable, for users’ sake.

1. Most effective way to reset your device

If you used to have, or are using a device with removable battery, whether it is a smartphone or tablet, I bet you have encountered this more than once. When your device freezes and you can not press any where to make it work, what will you do? The fastest and most effective way is to take out the battery, then put in again, then reset.

Well, to be very honest, this way is not absolutely healthy for your device, since you suddenly cut the power. However, this trick is widely used thanks to its constant effect.

2.  Lower cost of replacing/ repairing

Battery is one of the most frequently-used parts of a smartphone. Therefore, it is the most likely to need replacement. A removable battery is much easier to be taken out to fix or even change into a new one. This will save a lot more money than buying a new phone, and make it much more convenient than having to use a power bank to support.

3. Versatile

When you travel for long days and don’t have much access to charge, an extra battery is just quick and perfect for your situation. This is again smaller and more portable than a power bank.

4. Water damage

A lot of smartphones now are waterproof, especially those from Sony Xperia series. But for those who are not water-resistant, it is advisable to always remove the battery first thing if your device get wet. This way you will minimize the chances of your phone being ruined forever. And I think it is obvious that only smartphones with non-removable battery are capable of this act.

Above are my personal point of view. If you know any other advantages of keeping those smartphone batteries removable, don’t hesitate to share with us, either in the comment section below or on our Facebook fanpage. I really hope smartphone producers notice these and give us more removable battery options for upcoming devices.

Also, it is good to know that there are still available in our market those smartphones with removable batteries. Here are some of the best of them.

Snapdragon 808 by Qualcomm is among the most favorite smartphone chip sets nowadays. It’s got a 64 bit six-core CPU (with two ARM Cortex A57 cores and four ARM Cortex A53 cores) that can power high-end devices. It is both powerful enough to be chosen for many flagships and “cool” enough to prevent overheating problem. In short, Snapdragon 808 is that one chipset that will satisfy both smartphone producers and smartphone users, no matter how strict they can be.

Here are some of the best handset I have generated that run on Snapdragon 808. Of course I myself can not cover all of the devices out there. So if you think I miss any of your favorite, let me know either by commenting under this article or leave me a message on our PricePony fanpage. All contribution are highly appreciated!

1. Xiaomi Mi4c

This latest flagship from Xiaomi has been talked about quite frequently for coming with several innovations (compared to its price – PHP 10K) : USB Type C, 3GB RAM, 13MP camera and of course, Snapdragon 808 chip set.

Xiaomi Mi 4c full specs

2. Samsung Flip smartphone

Earlier, Samsung introduced a good old-school smartphone with flip body. And by “old-school”, we mean for the design only. This Samsung G9198 is actually very “smart”: featuring 2GB of RAM, beautiful 16MP camera by Samsung, 2020 mAH battery and Snapdragon 808 chip.

3. Nextbit Robin smartphone

Nextbit Robin, a totally new name in the mobile market, is planned to be released in 2016. The device already caught some attention with very decent specs and features. This is called “the first cloud smartphone”, because it is made to automatically save and back-up all your media files into a cloud account. With this function, you will never need to worry about losing your data once again.

Some Nextbit Robin specs are quite impressive also: 5.2-inch IPS, USB Type C, 3GB RAM, 4G LTE, 13MP. And obviously, a Snapdragon 808 chip built-in.

4. LG G4 camera beast

LG G4 is absolutely not a budget smartphone. However, we can easily find it in those lists that mention the most worthy device for its money. LG G4 may not be attractive in terms of design. However, it has a very impressive camera sensor and powerful processor – as a signature of LG smartphone product. Snapdragon 808 is chosen to  make sure the device won’t encounter any heating problem and make it more ideal for users.

LG G4 price in PH starts from PHP 20K

LG G4 specs

Tired of overheating problem? Consider these Snapdragon 808 – powered smartphones! Still powerful and no more heating up your devices!

I bet that long before knowing about the first iPhone or those glorious smartphones we have in the market nowadays, we have all had a Nokia handset for once at least. When asked which is the best-selling mobile device, many people can tell it is a Nokia. But not every one can tell exactly which unit. Here it is, the super star of our mobile industry – Nokia 1100 – best selling smartphone EVER around the world.

12 years ago, in late 2003, Nokia launched the 1100 – a basic phone that had no camera or touch screen. Instead, the Nokia 1100 – targeted for the fast-growing Chinese market initially, came with a torch light, a solid body that could break the floor when dropped, and a dust-proof case.

It has been reported that, in just 3 months, the famous iPhone 6 has sold 71.5 million units. Then how much more did the Nokia 1100 sell to keep the record? In about five years, 250 million units of Nokia 1100 were reported to ship all over the world. (And yes, back in the 2000s, 250 millions is not at all a “small” number). With this consumption, Nokia 1100 is not only the world’s best-selling phone, but also top the quantity of electronics devices worldwide in general! WOW

Nokia’s one billionth phone sold was a 1100 purchased in Nigeria in 2005!

So what does the Nokia 1100 have to make people so crazy about? Here are some quick facts about the legendary handset

1. Nokia 1100 price –> Amazingly Affordable

Although we can not retrieve the exact price of Nokia 1100 by launch date back in 2003, it was known to be very affordable, even for the living standards 12 years ago.

We found an Indian article published in August 2003, suggesting that the Nokia 1100 price back then was Rs 4000 (Which is $60 now and much cheaper then)

2. Nokia 1100 design –> Impressively Interesting

Nokia 1100 was only 86g in weight and featured anti-slip sides that offered a firmer grip and made it dust-resistant. They Nokia 1100 keys are also soft (faster to type) and dust-proof. And the cover is  interchangeable, way too cool!

3. Nokia 1100 battery –> FOREVER LASTING!

Nokia 1100 battery was 850 mAH. Wait, don’t judge yet ! It lasted up to 400 hours between charging times. Yes! That made the Nokia 1100 like a never-running-out-of-battery phone!

4. Nokia 1100 SNAKE GAME –>Part of your best memories

Yes!!! Be honest, you can never forget the legendary Snake game on this Nokia 1100, can you? Compared to nowadays’ magical Candy Crush or CoC, the Snake game is nothing to compare. But back then, it was the only mobile game that every one played. And it made 250 million people happy! That’s more than enough!

5. Nokia 1100 feature – best of its time!

With a size of a 2 match box, the Nokia 1100 had a built-in flashlight, a stopwatch, an alarm, a vibrating alert, 50 message capacity, 50 contact slots, 42 monophonic ringtones (36 pre-installed, 7 user-made). If you have lived through 2003, you will know what wonder was called that time.

Closing note

I bet you did, or at least, know some one who used to have one Nokia 1100 years ago (or it may even survived until now). Share this post to those who you grew up with and those who this Nokia 1100 reminds you of!