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Samsung ATIV Windows Phone Review

<ul><li>Samsung's latest F-series smartphone, the Galaxy F23 5G has been launched in India.</li><li>Featuring Android 11 and a 5,000mAh battery, the Galaxy F23 5G is aimed at the budget segment.</li><li>Usually, Samsung has aimed the Galaxy F series at those who want budget and mid-range phones with a specific focus on cameras.</li><li>Read on to find out if you should consider the Galaxy F23 5G for your next smartphone upgrade.</li></ul>Samsung recently launched the F23 5G. With no big announcements and visibly reduced influencer promotions, this phone did go under the radar for many. However, I got my hands on a review unit and have been spending some quality time with it. After my thorough testing and usage, I can say that this smartphone is an outcast in its own clan, but it’s not outdated. I explain this paradox to you in my full review.<br />            <div type="image" title="Samsung Galaxy F23 5G" msid="91106479" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Samsung Galaxy F23 5G&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div><strong><br />Price &amp; Availability</strong> <br /><br /><keyword id="13273671" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="samsung-galaxy-f23" source="Orion">Samsung Galaxy F23</keyword> 5G starts for a price of ₹17,499 for the 4GB RAM and 128GB storage variant. With an additional ₹1000, you can upgrade to 6GB of RAM, providing you an option at ₹18,499. <br /><br />The smartphone is available for you to buy from Samsung’s own D2C website, Flipkart, and chroma retail stores. <br /><strong><br />Unboxing - We don’t get a charger!</strong><br /><br />I was surprised when I had the F23 5G’s box in my hand. It was compact and I knew what it meant. Surprisingly, the F23 does not get a charger inside the box just like its premium siblings in the S series. The unboxing experience is underwhelming since we only get some basic paperwork, a Type-C charging cable, and of course the phone.<br />              <div type="image" title="You get an earphone jack on the Galaxy F23 5G" msid="91106506" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;You get an earphone jack on the F23 5G&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> <br /><br />While I do appreciate the motive behind these reductions, Samsung needs to understand that a consumer buying a product at this price point expects these accessories inside the box. <br /><br />Thanks to it’s massive R&amp;D unit, the brand should be the first one to understand that this might move consumer preference toward other brands as they might not want to spend more for a charger. <br /><br />            <div type="image" title="Galaxy F23 5G has a plastic back" msid="91106562" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Galaxy F23 5G has a plastic back&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div><br /><strong><br />Design &amp; Build Quality - Back to Basics</strong><br /><br />Samsung has opted the tried and tested formula when it comes to F23 5G’s design. A minimalistic upgrade from the F22 in terms of looks, the only striking difference is the new camera array on the back. Now we see a triple camera set-up on the phone compared to the quad-camera set-up on the F22. <br /><br />Aesthetically, the aqua blue colorway with me is appealing to the eyes, even though it looks more like a lighter shade of minty green. If you like your phones with a bolder color then you can go for the forest green color option. <br /><br />The build quality and material used are also familiar to F22, with the phone sporting a plastic body and back. Fortunately, the quality of the plastic is stellar and it doesn’t seem compromised by any means. The plastic body also helps in reducing weight since the smartphone is anyway carrying a massive 5000 mAh battery. All though it weighs 198 grams, a perfect blend of semi-flat edges and even weight distribution makes it easy to hold.<br />            <div type="image" title="Galaxy F23 5G is chunky but easy to hold" msid="91106570" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Galaxy F23 5G is chunky but easy to hold&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> <br /><br />Other design aspects are what you expect from a Samsung Galaxy. On the right side, we get to see volume rockers and a power lock &amp; unlock button. The power button also incorporates the fingerprint sensor, which is not as snappy as you’d expect it to be in 2022. It does unlock the phone, but only after placing your finger at a correct angle. A light tap on the sensor does not do the job, and I had to consciously press the power button for the phone to recognize my fingerprint. This was a turn-off for me since its counterparts like the Redmi note 11 Pro+ and the Realme 9 5G can unlock with just a tap. <br /><br />At the bottom, we get to see a 3.5mm headphone jack which is a bonus these days. It also works really well and delivers crisp audio. Right next to it is a USB Type-C charging port along with a speaker grill.<br />            <div type="image" title="Galaxy F23 5G has a side-mounted finger print sensor" msid="91106589" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Galaxy F23 5G has a side-mounted finger print sensor&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div><br />The SIM card slot situation is also favorable with 2 dedicated slots for nano SIM and a slot for a micro SD card. <br /><strong><br />Display - Best in the segment</strong><br /><br />Before we touch upon the quality of the display, it’s important to point out that upfront the F23 looks outdated. With a teardrop design combined with considerably thick bezels and a chin, I felt as if I am using a smartphone from 2018. <br /><br />Samsung’s recycled design choice takes away from what the brand has achieved in terms of the specs on this panel. The 6.6-inch display is an LCD screen, and it looks great. The screen produces rich colors that ensure you enjoy watching your content. It is also well lit and you can look at it under direct sunlight as well, given you set it to maximum brightness. The screen is also protected with Corning Gorilla Glass 5, ensuring an aid against scratches.<br />            <div type="image" title="Galaxy F23 5G comes with 90 Hz refresh rate" msid="91106653" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Galaxy F23 5G comes with 90 Hz refresh rate&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> <br /><br /><br />What made the F23’s display stand out for me was the smooth execution of the adaptive refresh rate feature. The phone can switch and adapt between 60 and 120 Hz depending on the app you are using. So far, the experience is smooth and I enjoyed the easy switch between a web page and a game. <br /><br />The display’s quality and higher refresh rate definitely make it stand out in the mid-range segment.<br /><br />Issues like not having a punch-hole display and an always-on feature might not affect the general consumer, but I feel Samsung undermined its own product with this decision. <br /><br />When I had just started enjoying the display Samsung’s cutbacks came back to haunt me, the convict this time was the speaker. Samsung Galaxy F23 features a single speaker set-up which by itself is a fairly loud unit, however, even after a week of usage I still miss a stereo set-up. <br /><br />If you are someone who watches content on their phone, without earplugs then this is a point to note.<br /><br /><strong>Samsung Galaxy F23 5G UI - Same old, same old<br /></strong>By now, I have accepted Samsung’s move of providing a more robust OS experience, which seems familiar across all its devices. While it does add a sense of reliability, it also makes the usage boring.<br /><br />Just like other Samsung devices, the F23 5G also runs on Samsung’s own One UI skin paired with Android 11. With familiar animation and app icon designs, you won’t really feel a difference if you are coming from a Samsung phone. Familiarity also means the convenience of generic Samsung features like lift to wake, navigation gesture switch, and one-handed mode. <br /><br />You can also use Samsung’s good old widgets to improve your workflow like calenders, reminders and even emails. Aesthetically, I could change themes, but I would suggest sticking with the classic Samsung One UI skin, it's subtle and less cartoonish than other options. <br /><br />Booting up the device there is some bloatware onboard which was surprising. Apps like Byjus, Josh, Mx Takatak, Moj and even Sharechat are pre-installed. This is a first for me in a Samsung device. Thankfully this package can be uninstalled.<br /><br />Before closing this section I have to talk about the security of the device. Both in terms of hardware and data privacy. Samsung provides you with both fingerprint sensor and face unlock feature on the F23. Unfortunately, both of them are sloppy in their job. While I have explained about the fingerprint sensor earlier, the face unlock is even more unreliable. It takes two steps to set up one with your glasses and another without them. Yet, I have not been able to unlock the phone seamlessly even once. Maybe this will improve with future updates but as of now the situation is abysmal. <br /><br />From the data privacy perspective, a highlight of the device is the availability of Knox security which protects your data against unfortunate intrusions. While data safety as a concern is still picking up in our country, it is commendable on Samsung’s part to provide this feature at this price point.<br /><strong><br />Performance</strong> <br /><br />Samsung Galaxy F23 5G is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 750G 5G chipset, which is decent for this price range given we see it on the Nord CE and Mi 10i. While I can’t test the 5G prowess of the smartphone yet, Samsung says it comes with 12 5G bands which do make the phone future proof. <br /><br />Performance-wise, the F23 5G performs decently well across multiple strata. Be it calling, or web surfing the phone does not lag and provides peak output without breaking a sweat.<br /><br />Memory management is a bit sloppy though, with the phone occasionally missing out on booting up basic apps like chrome from the point where I left them. The variant with me comes with 6GB of RAM and yet I faced this issue. If you are planning to buy the F23 then I strongly recommend ditching the 4GB RAM variant. As for storage, the 128 GB internal capacity will be enough for most of the users, but in case you still want more, you can always use an SD card. <br /><br />Things get complicated for performance-hungry tasks like gaming. I had an hour-long session of BGMI on F23. It runs the game smoothly on HD settings but after the games were done, I could feel considerable heating. So in case you are buying it for serious gaming, then here’s a heads up.<br /><br />With a 5000 mAh cell, the F23 should last well over a day for a generic user. This involves mostly calling messaging and casual social media browsing.<br /><br />For a heavy user like me, mileage does get affected but not so much. After a long day of testing, the phone would stand at a solid 10%.<br /><br />Since we don’t get a charger in the box, finding the right brick is important. The F23 supports 25W fast charging, so the usual Samsung wall adapter worked for me. I used the 20W Samsung brick and the phone charged from 10-100% in about 1 hour 20 minutes. <br /><br />Now even if you don’t charge to a complete 100, the F23 won’t give up on you, thanks to the chipset’s efficiency and the big battery.<br /><strong><br />F23 5G Camera</strong><br /><br />The Galaxy F23 5G has a triple camera set-up at the back featuring a 50MP primary sensor, an 8MP ultra-wide sensor and a 2MP macro sensor.<br />            <div type="image" title="Galaxy F23 5G&amp;#39;s wide-angle sensor" msid="91106681" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Galaxy F23 5G&amp;#39;s wide-angle sensor&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> <br />The primary sensor performs fairly well in bright outdoor environments with crisp images and commendable color reproduction. The image quality is clean and does not look burnt out.<br />            <div type="image" title="Galaxy F23 5G macro sensor performs well" msid="91106695" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Galaxy F23 5G macro sensor performs well in natural lighting conditions&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> <br />The portrait shots are just about okay, providing you with acceptable edge detection in favorable lighting conditions. <br /><br />The ultra-wide sensor performs its job well and creates more room for you to click pictures. With 10X digital zoom, you can also close up on your subject however you will be compromising on details.<br />            <div type="image" title="Main camera set-up works well in natural lighting" msid="91106705" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Main camera set-up works well in natural lighting&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div><br />The macro sensor when used can deliver surprising results, which are worthy of your social media feed. <br /><br />There are other photo options like night mode which do bring upon a change however the results are grainy, lacking details.<br />          <div type="image" title="Night mode on Galaxy F23 5G is not impressive" msid="91106768" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Night mode on Galaxy F23 5G is not impressive&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div><br />Video performance is decent for casual shooting, but if you are a content creator then this is not the device for you. While the camera can shoot 4K at 30 fps, the results are not desirable. The videos look saturated and the final product is not worthy of your social media feed.<br /><br />The front camera is an 8MP shooter and gives you an option to go wide as well. The image results are decent, and generally quite nice. The portrait selfies have satisfactory edge detection and the output is worth the clicks.<br />          <div type="image" title="Selfies from Galaxy F23 5G are satisfactory" msid="91106778" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Selfies from Galaxy F23 5G are satisfactory&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> <br /><br /><strong>Verdict<br /></strong><br />Samsung Galaxy F23 5G is an everyday phone for the folks who don’t like experimenting with their devices. It brings in every possible feature Samsung can deliver at this price point and chooses to ignore the one’s that a consumer of this price bracket won’t really care about. <br /><br />As my hypothesis said, the phone is an outcast when compared to its counterparts, but it’s not outdated. <br /><br />In a way, this is not a device for the young, but it is a perfect smartphone for people looking for an option for their elderly. <br /><br />With Samsung’s trusted brand image, a solid UI and future proof 5G chipset, and a massive battery life, this makes it to be a great gifting option. <br /><br />See also - <br /><br /><h1 style="line-height:1.44;background-color:#ffffff;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;padding:0pt 0pt 8pt 0pt;"><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/nokia-launches-new-g21-smartphone-with-nearly-3-day-battery-life-and-50mp-camera-along-with-other-features/articleshow/91098016.cms">Nokia G21 smartphone with nearly 3-day battery life and 50MP camera launched today</a></h1><h1 style="line-height:1.44;background-color:#ffffff;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;padding:0pt 0pt 8pt 0pt;"><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/news/ola-pure-ev-and-okinawa-recall-nearly-6700-electric-scooters-after-nitin-gadkaris-warning-and-continued-fire-accidents/articleshow/91067732.cms">Ola, Pure EV and Okinawa recall nearly 6,700 electric scooters after Nitin Gadkari’s warning and continued fire accidents</a></h1><h1 style="line-height:1.44;border-bottom:solid #eeeeee 0.75pt;background-color:#ffffff;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:8pt;background-clip:padding-box;padding:0pt 0pt 11.25pt 0pt;"><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/telecom/news/5g-in-india-who-what-when-why-and-how-much/articleshow/91004188.cms">5G in India – who, what, when, why and how much?</a></h1>

Samsung Galaxy F23 5G review

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Hollis Johnson/Business Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div>The headphone jack is gone.</p><p>Get over it.</p><p>In the weeks leading up to the iPhone 7's debut, no issue seemed more important in the tech world than Apple's decision to kill the headphone jack. It's been called "user-hostile and stupid" <a href="http://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2016/6/21/11991302/iphone-no-headphone-jack-user-hostile-stupid">by detractors</a> and praised as a brilliant, forward-thinking move <a href="http://daringfireball.net/2016/06/headphone_jacks_are_the_new_floppy_drives/a">by Apple fans</a>. And now that the iPhone 7 is finally here, you're probably left scratching your head, wondering why Apple killed something that nearly everyone used every day with all their gadgets.</p><p>You can't really judge t<span>he controversial move until you live with it for a few days.</span> </p><p>I've been using the new iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus since Apple unveiled it last week. I survived. In fact, I think the missing headphone jack is such a minor nuisance that I barely noticed. (I've also been testing the new wireless AirPods, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-airpods-review-2016-9">which you can read about here</a>.)</p><p>Headphone jacks aside, there's very little else that'll shock you about the iPhone 7. In fact, that might be deliberate. It looks almost exactly like the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6 before it, more like an iPhone 6ss than a brand-new generation of iPhone. Almost all of the new improvements are great - from the camera to the new home button - but they're also largely invisible.</p><p>The iPhone 7 goes on sale September 16 starting at $649. The Plus model starts at $769.</p><h2>Goodbye, headphone jack</h2><p>Here's the biggest problem with the iPhone 7's missing headphone jack. It's not necessarily that you can't use regular headphones with it (you can, thanks to an included dongle), it's that standard headphone jacks are everywhere you look. Because Apple gave you a pair of EarPods for free with every iPhone, they quickly became some of the most popular headphones in the world.</p><p>The iPhone 7 comes with new EarPods that are almost exactly the same except they plug into the Lightning port, which is only found on Apple devices. That essentially forces you to carry around a pair of regular headphones if you want to be sure you can plug into anything you want.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Hollis Johnson/Business Insider</span></p><p class="caption">Apple includes Lightning EarPods with the iPhone 7.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>A recent example: When I was flying back to New York last week, I wanted to watch a movie on Delta's in-flight entertainment system. But I had shiny new pair of the Lightning EarPods, and Delta's system requires the standard jack. That means I had to pull out a second pair of regular EarPods that I had with me from my iPhone 6. Bluetooth was out of the question.</p><p>I think that's going to be the biggest problem as people adjust to the death of the headphone jack. Listening to music through Lightning or Bluetooth headphones is a breeze on the iPhone 7, but Apple has ignored the fact that the rest of the world is using the original standard.</p><p>It's also going to take time. I'm usually scared to make predictions, but my bet is that there will be an adjustment period for a year or two, and then everyone will settle into using Lightning or wireless headphones. And before long, most major smartphones will end up following Apple's lead and ditch the headphone jack too.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Hollis Johnson/Business Insider</span></p><p class="caption">The headphone jack adapter.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>As for me, I listen to most of my music on my iPhone anyway, so the transition wasn't a big deal at all. The Lightning EarPods work just fine, and the new AirPods are an intriguing bet by Apple to push us towards wireless. Plus, there are plenty of excellent wireless Bluetooth headsets to choose from, including some new models coming from Beats later this year, that will work with the iPhone 7. I never found myself yearning for a pair of regular headphones. Everything you need is right in the box, including that handy dongle that makes it possible to listen to your old headphones if you have a pair you're in love with.</p><p>Whether or not killing the headphone jack was a necessary move is still up for debate. (And boy are we going to hear people endlessly arguing about it over the coming weeks.) But it happened, and honestly, it's not that bad. You'll be fine.</p><h2>An old design</h2><p>My only major criticism with the iPhone 7 is how little the design has changed. It's nearly identical to the iPhone 6s from last year and the iPhone 6 before that. While the iPhone 7 looks great on its own, it's disappointing to see Apple's designs leapfrogged by Samsung's gorgeous Galaxy S7 and Galaxy Note 7. (<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-note-7-smartphone-battery-explosion-2016-9">When it doesn't explode</a>, of course.)</p><p>Apple used to pride itself on pushing design standards forward, with the rest of the industry attempting to copy or catch up. Apple's rivals have perfected their designs, but its response was to release the same look for the third year in a row.</p><p>I know it might sound superficial to focus on design so much, but it's something users take seriously, especially on a device they carry around and use all the time. It's hard get excited about something new when it looks very similar to what you've seen before.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Hollis Johnson/Business Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Still, there are some slight changes. Those unsightly antenna lines on the back have been moved to the edge so they're not very noticeable. The camera bump is also significantly larger to accommodate a new camera sensor that takes better photos in low light. And there are two great new colors: Jet Black and matte black.</p><p>The Jet Black is the most striking color, and I bet it's the one most people will choose to show off the fact they have the iPhone 7. It's so shiny that you can literally see your reflection in it, and it feels slick in the hand.</p><p>It's also a fingerprint magnet. Simply holding this thing for a few seconds covers it in smudges, and Apple has warned that scratches may show up easily. So if you go with the Jet Black option, get a case. Jet Black is also only available in the higher storage tiers, 128 GB or 256 GB, which cost $100 and $200 more than the base models, respectively.</p><p>I like the matte black look a lot better though. It's made from anodized aluminum and has a futuristic look to it, like something Batman would use. If you're having trouble choosing between Jet Black and matte black, trust me - go with matte.</p><h2>Camera</h2><p>From a hardware perspective, the camera is the most noticeable improvement. Both the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus have larger sensors that pull in more light for better photos. They can also more accurately represent the colors in photos, which shows up nicely on the phone's improved screen.</p><p>But the dual camera system on the iPhone 7 Plus is the real star. Each camera takes a photo at the same time and stitches them together. That allows you to shoot portraits with the professional-looking "bokeh" effect, which blurs background objects (though this will require a software update coming later this year).</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Hollis Johnson/Business Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>For now, the real benefit of the secondary telephoto lens is zooming. For the first time, the iPhone has optical zoom, which means you can zoom without the reduction in quality that occurs with a digital zoom. The telephoto lens also allowed Apple to push the iPhone 7 Plus' digital zoom up to 10x.</p><p>It really only makes a difference when you see it in action, so here's a photo of my cat Larry taken at normal, 1x zoom:</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Steve Kovach/Business Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>And here he is at 2x optical zoom:</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Steve Kovach/Business Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Not bad, right?</p><p>It's easily one of the best cameras available on a phone, and the dual-camera system is a clever way to squeeze more out of the normal physical limitations most smartphone cameras have. It won't replace your DSLR, but it's pretty darn close.</p><h2>What else?</h2><p>There are a handful of other notable features in the iPhone 7, starting with one you'll use more than any other: the new home button.</p><p>While the home button looks the same, it's no longer a mechanical switch that you physically press in. Instead, it's a pressure-sensitive sensor that vibrates slightly to give you the impression that you're pushing it. The change helps with the iPhone 7's water resistance and durability - it's impossible to wear out a button that doesn't move, after all - but it did take me about a day to get used to after using a traditional home button all these years. You can also adjust the vibration level of the button so it feels comfortable.</p><p>Water resistance is another huge, overdue feature in the iPhone 7. For the first time, the iPhone is rated under the IP67 standard, meaning it can survive under a few meters of water for up to 30 minutes. That doesn't mean you should swim or bathe with the iPhone 7, but you don't have to worry if you drop it in water or spill something on it. Just dry it off and you're good to go.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Hollis Johnson/Business Insider</span></p><p class="caption">The iPhone 7 will survive underwater, but don't go swimming with it.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>The built-in speakers have been improved too. There's now an extra one embedded in the receiver at the top of the phone so you can listen in stereo. It's noticeably louder and clearer.</p><p>Battery life also got a boost, although it's not as much as I was hoping for. Apple says you can get up to two hours more out of the iPhone 7 and one extra hour with the iPhone 7 Plus compared to last year's models. I definitely noticed the improvement, but if you're like me and use your phone all day, then you'll likely still find yourself hunting for a charger a lot.</p><p>Another good move: The 16 GB storage option is finally gone. For years, that wasn't enough storage for most people, and it seems like Apple finally realized that. The iPhone 7 now starts with 32 GB of storage and goes up to a whopping 128 GB or 256 GB, more than you'll ever need. I think 32 GB is enough for the average user, but a lot of you will want to get the 128 GB model. Only get the 256 GB model if you like keeping <em>lots</em> of video stored on your phone.</p><p>Finally, there's a new zippy processor inside the iPhone 7 called the A10. While I didn't notice a major improvement in day-to-day activities like checking Instagram, sending emails, or scrolling through Twitter, it is designed to work well with heavier apps like rich games.</p><p>If a lot of these seem like minor, iterative updates, that's because they are. The iPhone 7 isn't a radical change, but if you add everything up, it does amount to a pretty nice update.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Skye Gould/Business Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><h2>Why the iPhone wins</h2><p>As I've <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/why-the-iphone-always-wins-2016-1">written several times before</a>, the iPhone's thinning lead in the smartphone world is no longer because of great hardware and design; it's because of the strength of iOS. After all these years, iOS continues to offer the most consistent updates and new features. Plus, it has the strongest developer community, with the best apps and new updates launching on iPhone before they come to Android. (<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/super-mario-run-super-mario-is-coming-to-the-iphone-2016-9">"Super Mario Run," anyone</a>?)</p><p>iOS 10, which comes with the iPhone 7 and launches on other iPhones this week, is the biggest update to the iPhone software I've seen in years. Notifications are better, widgets have richer information, and iMessage has been revamped from top to bottom to become its own mini social network. Even if you don't upgrade to the iPhone 7, it'll make your old iPhone feel fresh and new again.</p><p>None of the competitors have that advantage, and unless Android cleans itself up, the iPhone will always remain on top.</p><p>As for the iPhone 7, it's the best phone you can buy. I don't recommend upgrading if you have an iPhone 6s, but there are enough improvements here to make it a worthwhile upgrade for just about everyone else.</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-iphone-7-details-rumors-video-2016-9">Apple is announcing a new iPhone on September 7 - here's what you're getting</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="ZjczdvNTE6M8YpjM9yzWgmuqSm6ylN2o" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

REVIEW: The iPhone 7

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><ul><li><strong>The iPhone X is the best smartphone you can buy.</strong></li><li><strong>New features like Face ID work well, but force you to learn new habits.</strong></li><li><strong><strong>The big new screen is the best feature, but apps need to update to adapt to the new form factor.<br /></strong></strong></li></ul><p>The other day, my colleague brought an original iPhone into Business Insider's video studio to shoot a comparison video with the new iPhone X.</p><p>It didn't hit me until then how much the iPhone has evolved over the last 10 years. The tiny screen. The fuzzy pixels. The camera that couldn't even shoot video. A measly eight gigabytes of memory. It didn't even seem like it came from the same company as the iPhone X.</p><p>The iPhone X feels like the perfect device to celebrate Apple's tenth anniversary of the iPhone, a representation of how far tech can go in a decade. I've had the iPhone X, which went on sale last Friday, for a week. It's the best smartphone I've ever used, and represents a new direction in how Apple views the iPhone.</p><p>And yeah, it costs $999.</p><h2>The perfect form factor</h2><p>Apple had fallen behind.</p><p>Over the last few years, competitors like Samsung have found ways to out-design Apple by cramming more screen onto the front of their phones, keeping the form factor slim and manageable while giving users plenty of display to work with. The iPhone started looking chunky and dated by comparison, especially as the most recent design entered its third year with 2016's iPhone 7.</p><p>That finally changes with the iPhone X, which is the first major new iPhone design in over three years. It has a slightly bigger screen (5.8-inches) than the one on the iPhone 8 Plus, but the phone's overall size is closer to the normal-sized iPhone 8. It's the perfect form factor. The X fits in my pocket much better than the plus-sized iPhones ever did, and I still get the benefit of the larger screen, which covers almost the entire front of the phone with the exception of that controversial notch that houses the front-facing camera and other sensors.</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>The screen got a huge upgrade too. Apple used an OLED panel for the first time on an iPhone, which produces better colors and managers power better than the LCD panels every other iPhone uses. It's the best display I've ever seen on an iPhone, and it's so crisp it looks like it was painted on the surface. The <a href="http://www.displaymate.com/iPhoneX_ShootOut_1a.htm#Conclusion">experts at DisplayMate</a> recently named it the best smartphone display available, beating Samsung for the first time I can remember.<p>Overall, the design is nearly perfect. Apple went back to an all-glass and metal design this year, and the X has a steel band around the edges, which makes it feel more robust and premium. My only complaint with the design is the ginormous camera bulge on the back. It looks out of place.</p><p>But the biggest change to the design is the lack of home button. Unlike many Android phones that use digital home buttons, the iPhone X has what I've been calling the home bar, a software indicator at the bottom of the screen that shows you where to swipe up from in order to get back to the home screen. It works great. I've been mashing a home button on an iPhone for 10 years now, and it only took me a few minutes to get used to swiping up to go back home. You don't have to worry about going home button-free.</p><p>The lack of home button comes with some quirks though. You now access the Control Center by swiping down from the right side of the notch. You get to notifications by swiping down from the left side. Siri is a long-press of the power button, and you take a screenshot by pressing volume-up and power at the same time. There are other tricks, and tips, so it'll probably take some time to learn them all.</p><h2>Face ID works, but takes some getting use to</h2><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>Face ID is probably the most controversial and misunderstood new feature on the iPhone X. So I'm going to break this down with as much detail as I can and hopefully answer all the questions you have.</p><p>First, let's go over how Face ID works.</p><p>There's a new front-facing camera system on the X that Apple calls the TrueDepth camera system. In addition to the standard camera lens, there are a bunch of other sensors embedded in the notch above the screen like an infrared camera and a flood illuminator. Those sensors are able to map the distinct features of your face by blasting thousands of invisible dots on it and translating the data into a mathematical representation.</p><p>That "face data" lives on a secure chip inside the phone, just like your fingerprint data is securely stored in other iPhones with the Touch ID fingerprint sensor. Whenever you want to unlock your phone, the TrueDepth camera compares your face to the data stored on the phone. If it matches, you're in. Face ID also works wherever Touch ID worked on older iPhones, like Apple Pay and logging into certain apps.</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>Setting up Face ID is much faster than Touch ID. You stare into the camera and move your head around in a circle as the TrueDepth camera scans you. Two scans and you're good to go. It also gets more accurate and smarter as you use Face ID over time thanks to machine learning done on the device, so it can keep up with you as you grow a beard, cut your hair, put on makeup, wear glasses, or make any other common changes to your face.<p>So, is it any good?</p><p>I had a high standard in mind for Face ID going into my testing. Since it was replacing Touch ID, Face ID would have to be just as good or better than using a fingerprint.</p><p>It passed my test. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't trick Face ID. It worked when I wore accessories like a hat, sunglasses, or scarf. It worked in bright sunlight, a pitch-black closet, and every lighting scenario in between.</p><p>Face ID even <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/can-iphone-x-tell-difference-between-twins-face-id-recognition-apple-2017-10">passed the identical twin test</a> when we had a set come into the Business Insider office last week. (But it <a href="http://mashable.com/2017/10/31/putting-iphone-x-face-id-to-twin-test/">failed when others tried it</a>. Identical twins out there: you might want to use a passcode instead of Face ID.) It was quick, reliable, and almost never failed. It's also fast. In most cases, the phone was unlocked by the time I swiped up to go the home screen.</p><p>The TrueDepth camera system also enables other cool stuff, like facial tracking for those Animojis and improved augmented-reality effects like Snapchat lenses. You can also use the selfie camera to take a portrait-style photo, which usually requires dual-lens cameras on iPhones.</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>Now for the caveats.<p>Face ID requires your "attention" to work. That means you need to be looking at the phone and holding it no more than about a foot from your face. It won't work at odd angles or if your phone is lying flat on the table. This is where things differ from Touch ID, which let you unlock your phone as long as it was in reach. I've seen a variety of opinions on this. Some people hate that they have to change their habits to adapt to Face ID. Others think it's brilliant.</p><p>I don't think it matters. Apple is going all-in with Face ID, and it'll eventually replace Touch ID on all models. Might as well start training yourself now. In a lot of ways, it's better than the old way, and the tradeoffs are worth it.</p><p>I also noticed Face ID was slower in some cases, especially in bright light. This is likely because bright light contains infrared light that could slow down the facial recognition process a bit. It's not painfully slow, but I definitely noticed the extra beat it took to unlock in some cases. That's the first thing I'd like to see improved in future versions of Face ID. It's proven to be reliable and accurate. Now it needs to get faster.</p><h2>The rest of it</h2><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>Now for all that other standard stuff.&#xa0;</p><p>The dual-lens cameras on the iPhone X are slightly improved over the iPhone 8 Plus cameras. Both lenses have optical image stabilization, which means low-light photos look better. I took a bunch of photos and video with the iPhone X, and liked what I saw. Still, it wasn't a huge improvement over the iPhone 8 Plus cameras I tested back in September.&#xa0;</p><p>Battery life seemed fine too. Apple says the iPhone X can last two hours longer than the 8, which seemed about right to me. But battery life on the 8 Plus is still the best. Plan on charging a bit in the middle of the day if you're a heavy user like me.</p><p>And it runs iOS 11, just like your older iPhones and iPads. Even though the iPhone X looks a lot different, it still feels very familiar.</p><h2>The app problem</h2><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>A new screen size and shape means apps on the iPhone need to be adjusted again. And so far, most haven't been updated yet. And many that did update for the X have a bunch of funky design quirks. It's my biggest issue with the iPhone X. It's not a deal breaker, but it might bother people who plan to buy the iPhone X in the first few weeks.<p>If an app hasn't been updated, they appear letterboxed, with thick borders on the top and bottom to mimic the screen size of the iPhone 8. It wastes a ton of that gorgeous new screen space. Other apps that have updated to the new screen sized just scooched the bottom navigation bars up a bit to make room for the home bar, so there's a lot of negative space floating at the bottom. It's even worse on the keyboard, which has a giant empty area at the bottom just begging to put to use.</p><p>Still, over the last week, and especially since the X's launch last Friday, more and more apps have updated for the new screen. And there are already some great examples of apps that look great on the new screen, like Amazon and Lyft. I have a feeling it's going to take a few months before the others catch up.</p><h2>The $1,000 question</h2><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>At $999 or $1,149 for the 256 GB model, the iPhone X is the most expensive iPhone ever made. You can buy a decent 4K TV for less than that.&#xa0;</p><p>So, should you be spending that much on a phone?</p><p>I think the X is worth it. The screen and overall form factor and design are enough to sell me. Plus it's your first chance to experience the device that'll set the tone for smartphones for several more years. If the cost is still too much to swallow, the iPhone 8 offers the same performance and operating system, just in an older design. And you can get the 7 or the SE for hundreds less. Don't buy something you can't afford.</p><p>But if you want the best smartphone, you should buy the iPhone X.</p><p class="tagline"></p><div id="categorypromo" style="border:1px solid silver; min-height:90px; padding:10px;vertical-align:top;"><a href="http://read.bi/top-4-apps"></a><strong>EXCLUSIVE FREE REPORT:</strong><br>The Top 4 Apps and Platforms Takes That Go Against The Grain Report by the BI Intelligence Research Team.<br><strong><a href="http://read.bi/top-4-apps">Get the Report Now »</a></strong></br></br></div><div><div style="position:relative;width:auto;padding:0 0 60%;height:0;top:0;left:0;bottom:0;right:0;margin:0;border:0 none" data-break-on="414" data-lg-id="experience-5a00ae3e8244c" data-lg-src="//view.ceros.com/business-insider/desktop-iphone-x-review-annotation" data-lg-padding="60%" data-sm-id="experience-5a00d382c43ec" data-sm-src="//view.ceros.com/business-insider/desktop-iphone-x-review-annotation-1" data-sm-padding="185%">    </div></div>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/how-runners-avoid-knee-pain-2016-11">A running coach explains the 2 most important activities runners should do to avoid knee pain</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

The iPhone X review

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Antonio Villas-Boas/Tech Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div>Apple's "S" iPhones always seem boring at first. It's easy to get caught up with the fact that they look the same while all the real improvements are somewhat invisible.</p><p>This year feels different though.</p><p>By now, we're used to Apple's cycle of changing the design of the iPhone every other year, and there have been few complaints from the usual horde of tech pundits criticizing Apple for simply iterating on last year's iPhone.</p><p>I think that's because the new iPhone 6S has more significant new features than any other "S" phone. It's faster. Both cameras are a lot better. You can take adorable animated photos. And, most importantly, the screen is pressure sensitive, which opens up an entirely new layer of control for your apps.</p><p>It also comes in pink if that's your thing.</p><p>I've been using the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus for a week, and it's nearly impossible to find anything to complain about. The 6S starts at $649 and the 6S Plus starts at $749. It's been eight years since the first iPhone launched, and no one can beat it. Simply put, it's the best phone you can buy.</p><h2>3D Touch</h2><p>There are three killer features everyone needs to know about, so I'll tackle them one by one starting with 3D Touch, the new technology baked into the iPhone's screen that can detect how hard you press down.</p><p>3D Touch is in its early days and most developers haven't built it into their apps yet, so it's tough to evaluate. But based on what I've seen from Apple's preinstalled apps and others like Instagram, I think we're going to see a lot of neat things in the coming months.</p><p>On the home screen, doing a hard-press on an icon brings up a menu of common actions for that particular app. For example, the camera app gives you the option to shoot a selfie, record a video, or snap a normal photo. It's a neat trick that saves you a little time.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Antonio Villas-Boas/Tech Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div>But the biggest benefit of 3D Touch is within apps. Links and other content like photos let you preview them without taking you into another screen or app. For example, if someone sends you a web link in a text message, you can press hard on it to get a preview of the page without leaving the Messages app. Pressing a little harder will launch the full page in the Safari browser. (Apple calls this function "peek and pop.")</p><p>I found 3D Touch to be the most useful in Mail. I get hundreds of emails a day, which for someone as anal me is a real pain. Most of them are irrelevant and go straight to the trash, and I spend a stupid amount of time keeping my inbox neat and tidy. 3D Touch made it a lot easier. I could quickly peek at the contents of an email and swipe it away to the trash if I didn't need it. And on the rare occasion I got an email worth reading and responding to, I could press down a little harder to view the full email and then reply.</p><p>The only thing holding 3D Touch back is its lack of support by most third-party apps. And many that do support it now, like Twitter, only added limited options from the home screen icon. There's limited or no support inside the app.</p><p>Historically, when Apple adds a new hardware feature like this, it can take some time for developers to fully support it, so don't expect 3D Touch to be ubiquitous for at least another year. (There are still plenty of apps that don't support the larger screens on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, for example.)</p><h2>Camera</h2><p>Both cameras on the iPhone got nice boosts this year. The rear-facing camera now shoots at 12 megapixels, up from eight, and the front camera shoots at five megapixels, up from 1.2 megapixels.</p><p>I'm not a photography expert, so take my opinion with a grain of salt. The photos do look great, and I imagine the camera will be perfect for most people. But I don't see a drastic improvement over last year. That's not a bad thing at all.</p><p>Plus, my colleague Antonio Villas-Boas, who is way smarter than me when it comes to this stuff, tested the iPhone 6S camera against the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 camera this week and said the iPhone is the clear winner. It's the best camera you can get in a phone.</p><p>It's pretty clear when you see the photos side by side:</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Antonio Villas-Boas/Tech Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div>The camera also shoots video at a higher resolution called 4K. The feature is off by default, but it's nice to switch on if you want to take crisper video. I imagine normal HD video will be fine for most people though. Plus, 4K takes up almost 400MB per minute of video, which could be a problem if you don't have a lot of storage on your device. (More on that later.)</p><p>There is a noticeable improvement with the front-facing camera though. And as an added bonus, the screen doubles as a flash for the front camera, so all those selfies you take in dark bars will actually come out.</p><p>Like this:</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Steve Kovach/Tech Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><h2>Live Photos</h2><p>The camera also records little snippets of video before and after you take a still shot. When you press down on the photo, it animates with a GIF-like effect Apple calls Live Photos. You can also set your wallpaper as a Live Photo you take.</p><p>It's a cute and fun feature, but it's limited to Apple devices for now. I hope apps like Instagram, Twitter, and Google Photos start supporting Live Photos soon. (Facebook has already said support is coming.) It's also a trend we're starting to see more and more on other apps and devices. Facebook, for example, recently announced that you'll be able to <a href="http://www.techinsider.io/facebook-gifs-inspired-by-harry-potter-2015-9">turn your profile photo into a moving GIF soon</a>.</p><h2>Some other stuff</h2><p>Most of the other new features in the iPhone 6s are invisible. It now has more RAM and a zippy processor, so overall performance will be smoother.</p><p>Battery life is also the same. Even though the battery is technically smaller than the one in the iPhone 6, it lasts just as long, which is still a problem for heavy users. I was able to make it through a full day, but I would've liked to see Apple improve battery life instead of keeping it the same.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Antonio Villas-Boas/Tech Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Touch ID, the fingerprint sensor in the home button, is also new. It's a lot faster now. In fact, it's almost too fast.</p><p>Since Apple introduced Touch ID two years ago, I've become used to unlocking my phone by pressing the home button and leaving my finger there for another beat so Touch ID would take me to my home screen. The updated Touch ID sensor is so good though that I don't even need to wait another beat. It unlocks the phone almost as soon as the screen lights up. Ironically, there have been a few <a href="http://www.techinsider.io/touch-id-on-new-iphones-is-faster-than-you-can-read-2015-9">complaints that Touch ID is too good</a> because it doesn't give you enough time to read notifications that hit your lock screen. I don't think that's a big deal though.</p><h2>One big complaint</h2><p>The entry-level iPhones start with just 16GB of storage, which I don't think is enough for many (if not most) people. The storage tier structure of the iPhones (16GB, 64GB, and 128GB) essentially forces a lot of people to spend the extra $100 to get the 64GB model so they don't have to freak out about running out of space.</p><p>Here's Apple's argument: It says it has data proving most people with 16GB iPhones don't even come close to using all that storage. It says it now offers cheaper online storage services so you can keep your stuff in the cloud instead of locally on your device. It says future software updates won't require a ton of free space to install.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Antonio Villas-Boas/Tech Insider</span></p><p class="caption">Live Photos and 4K video take up more space.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Here's my argument: I believe that plenty of people have realized 16GB isn't enough, so they're spending more to get the higher-capacity models. Apple's cloud services aren't as reliable as others from companies like Google and Dropbox, and they essentially force you to pay Apple more money to get the most out of your device. Plus, two of the iPhone 6S's major features - Live Photos and 4K video - are designed to use up more storage.</p><p>My advice: Unless you plan to use your iPhone just to casually browse through apps and send text messages, prepare to suck it up and spend at least $100 more to get the storage you need.</p><h2>Should you get it?</h2><p>The iPhone 6s is the best phone you can buy.</p><p>So yes, if you're ready for a new phone, this should be your first choice. I don't think it's a big enough jump forward if you're already using an iPhone 6. You'll be fine for another year. But if you're using an iPhone 5s or something older, then you should definitely upgrade.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image"><a title_source="Skye Gould/Tech Insider" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/560c050cdd08954f5e8b45f2-960/iphone-6s-review.png"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span>Skye Gould/Tech Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p class="tagline"><div id="categorypromo" style="border:1px solid silver; min-height:114px; padding:10px;"><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/research-store?IR=T&amp;utm_source=House&amp;utm_term=CtgrPr-SmPh&amp;utm_campaign=CtgrPr#!/THE-MID-YEAR-SMARTPHONE-UPDATE-REPORT/p/54794091/category=11987291"></a><strong> Get THE MID-YEAR SMARTPHONE MARKET REPORT now!</strong> A comprehensive look at the global smartphone market from <strong>BI Intelligence</strong> by platform, vendor, country and more. Insights into the power struggles between the biggest platforms and the underdogs. <strong><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/research-store?IR=T&amp;utm_source=House&amp;utm_term=CtgrPr-SmPh&amp;utm_campaign=CtgrPr#!/THE-MID-YEAR-SMARTPHONE-UPDATE-REPORT/p/54794091/category=11987291">Get the Report Here »</a></strong></div></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/iphone-6s-3d-touch-demo-2015-9">3D touch will change how you use your iPhone</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="00MWhwdzrini6Y_6yOj_Hjan-A2UbdtR" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

REVIEW: No on can beat the iPhone

Reviewing LG's New Curved Phone

App Review: Ketchup For iPhone

<p><keyword id="10591" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Samsung">Samsung</keyword>'s Ativ Odyssey is another low-price phone on Verizon, but here's a key thing making it noteworthy – it's Samsung's first US phone to run Windows Phone 8.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-ativ-odyssey-photos-2013-1"><strong>Click here to go straight to the hands-on &gt;</strong></a></p>
<p>That said, there's nothing especially new or "cool" here. It makes phone calls. It browses the web. It runs apps. It doesn't try to be anything more than that. Maybe you're the type of person who prefers a more straightforward phone, but if you want something more cutting-edge, this isn't it.</p>
<h2>Hardware</h2>
<p>The Ativ Odyssey is pretty unremarkable with its physical appearance. It's another rectangular plastic phone. When compared to the look of other Windows Phone hardware, like the Nokia Lumia 920 and its playful colors, it leaves much to be desired.</p>
<p>The phone's 800x480 AMOLED screen isn't going to outmuscle a Retina display or your SG III's hi-def screen, but for the utilitarian who's not concerned with these details, it'll totally do the trick.</p>
<p>Battery life is <em>awesome. </em>Starting from a full charge and several hours of standby time, a one-hour phone call didn't even put a dent in the battery life display.</p>
<h2>Software</h2>
<p>It runs the flashy Windows Phone 8 operating system, which is a double-edged sword all its own. It's a hot-looking interface, elegant to the end. But my major complaint is that it needs way more apps before people will start to consider it a more practical alternative to Android and iPhone.</p>
<p>All the standard native apps you'd expect are here – email, Internet Explorer, a media player, Bing Maps, and the like. Again, there's nothing too mind-blowing here. If you're perfectly comfortable with your current phone, there's no reason to make the change. If you're tired of it and are willing to try something completely different, give it a try.</p>
<h2>Should you buy it?</h2>
<p>There's always going to be a population that would really like a nondescript smartphone that simply works the way it should.</p>
<p>It's a decent option if you want to give Windows Phone a try without breaking the bank. It costs <a href="http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/store/controller?&amp;item=phoneFirst&amp;action=viewPhoneDetail&amp;selectedPhoneId=6392">$49.99 with a contract from Verizon</a>. Still, Verizon carries the HTC Windows Phone 8x, which we think is the best Windows Phone available. It's definitely worth shelling out an extra $50 for.</p>
<p>But I'm leaning towards dissuading people in general from buying it.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-ativ-odyssey-photos-2013-1"><strong>Click here to check out the phone up close &gt;</strong></a></p>

REVIEW: Samsung's New Windows Phone

<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><div class="image-container float_right" style="width:400px"><div class="image"></div><p class="source">Steve Kovach, Business Insider</p></div><keyword id="6354356" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="BlackBerry">BlackBerry</keyword> lost its way over the years. You can't argue against that.</span></p>
<p>Even after the launch of the iPhone, the company buried its head in the sand and refused to admit the future of smartphones was in gorgeous touchscreen hardware with friendly, innovative interfaces. </p>
<p>Consumers started ditching their BlackBerrys for the iPhone and Android phones. First-time smartphone buyers ignored the BlackBerry. The company's dominant smartphone market share dwindled. The stock tanked.</p>
<p>And now, six years after the iPhone was introduced to the world, it seems BlackBerry has finally learned its lesson caught up with the competition with its newest smartphone, the <keyword id="1542593" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="BLackBerry-Z10">BlackBerry Z10</keyword>.</p>
<p>I've been using the Z10 since BlackBerry's big launch event last week. I think it's a great phone with a clever new operating system. But BlackBerry has its work cut out for it in several key areas.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackberry-z10-photos-and-features-2013-2"><strong>Click here for photos of the BlackBerry Z10 &gt;</strong></a><br /></span></p>
<h2><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">What Is It?</span></h2>
<p>Unlike every BlackBerry before it, the Z10 does not have a physical keyboard. Instead, BlackBerry chose to go touchscreen-only, just like all the other phones that consumers have been choosing over regular BlackBerrys for the last few years. </p>
<p>The Z10 is slightly taller and thicker than the iPhone 5, with a 4.2-inch display and a removable rubbery back cover that lets you swap out the battery. It won't be available in the U.S. until mid-March and will cost $150-$200, depending on the carrier.</p>
<p>But the most important part of the Z10 is the new operating system called <keyword id="858672" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="BlackBerry-10">BlackBerry 10</keyword>. Despite BlackBerry's troubles, the company decided to build its own mobile OS for smartphones and tablets instead of using one like Google's Android or Microsoft's Windows Phone 8 that are readily available for manufacturers to use. </p>
<p>BB10 is really good.</p>
<h2>The New BlackBerry 10</h2>
<p>It took awhile, but BlackBerry finally came up with a mobile operating system that can match iOS on the iPhone and Android. </p>
<p>At first glance, BB10 looks a lot like iOS with its static grid of app icons. That's nothing special for a home screen, and it's nothing we haven't seen before from countless other iPhone wannabes. </p>
<p>But there's more to BB10 than just a bunch of boring apps on your screen. BlackBerry cleverly designed the OS so everything can be controlled with gestures. They're not the confusing, difficult-to-learn gestures like you see in Windows 8; BB10's controls feel completely natural.</p>
<p>Yes, there's a slight learning curve, but it won't take you very long to get the hang of BB10's gestures.</p>
<p>It's best to think of BB10 in layers. Swiping from left to right r<span>eveals the BlackBerry Hub, a notifications center that stores updates from your email inbox, Facebook, Twitter, texts, etc., beneath your home screen. You don't even have to look at the whole thing, just a half-swipe is enough to peek at your incoming notifications. The Hub also lets you respond to emails, texts, etc. without having to open a separate app.</span></p>
<p><span><div class="image-container" style="width:610px"><div class="image"></div><p class="source">Steve Kovach, Business Insider</p><p class="caption">The BlackBerry Hub in BB10.</p></div><br /></span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Swiping from the bottom up closes an app, replacing the need to tap a home button. Your app is then stored in a separate window ahead of the normal app grid so you can quickly open it up again. It's the best mobile multitasking experience I've used so far, and reminds me just how much work Apple still needs to do with iOS in that respect.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">In short, BB10's navigation is brilliant. It's a powerful, customizable operating system that doesn't feel as daunting and intimidating as Android can at times. It's the perfect balance of ease of use and versatility. </span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">It's just solid.</span></p>
<h2>Using The Z10</h2>
<p>BlackBerry has always prided itself on having the best smartphone keyboard, so the challenge was to bring that same experience to the Z10's touchscreen. It works. </p>
<p>The BB10 on-screen keyboard is the best I've ever used. The keys are easy to spot thanks to the white letters on a black background, which is reminiscent of the old-school BlackBerry keyboard style. But the best part is how good the keyboard is at predicting what you'll type next. As you type, word suggestions appear over letters on the keyboard. You can then "flick" the word into the text field instead of typing it out all the way. </p>
<p>Even better, the keyboard software analyzes the full sentence you're typing and predicts a handful of words you're likely to type next. It saves a ton of time, and it's much easier to use and more accurate than the autocorrect on iPhone and Android.<br />Testing the Z10 was also my first extended use of BlackBerry Messenger (BBM). The experience is largely the same as before, but BBM now has a feature that lets you video chat and share your screen with another BB10 user through the Web. BBM works a lot like your buddy list in Google Talk or AIM, letting you set a status and see when you're friends are online. It's much more robust and useful than the often glitchy iMessage on Apple devices.<br /> </p>

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<p>The Z10's camera is <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackberry-z10-camera-2013-1">just as bad as everyone says</a>. The software is pretty neat, letting you swap out your subject's face with one from a better shot, but the image sensor is horrible in low light settings. It's nowhere near as good as the camera on the iPhone 5 or Nokia Lumia 920.</p>
<p>The screen is measures in at 4.2 inches, slightly larger than the one on the iPhone 5, but with greater pixel density. Images and videos are incredibly sharp. My only complaint is that BlackBerry didn't consider making the display a bit larger like the gorgeous one on Samsung's Galaxy S III.</p>
<p>Finally, battery life was decent. You'll have no problem getting through a full day with moderate use. Luckily, the Z10's back cover snaps off you so can swap out a fully charged battery if you need to.</p>
<h2>The App Problem</h2>
<p>Ok, enough gushing. </p>
<p>As I wrote after spending a few days with the Z10, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackberry-10-app-selection-2013-2">BlackBerry's app selection is horrible</a>. The company boasts that there are more than 70,000 apps in its store, but that number doesn't matter. What matters is finding the apps you want. BB10 still can't deliver that. </p>
<p>Yes, more apps will surely arrive on BB10, but for now it's still missing a lot of big-name apps like Yelp, Evernote, Instagram, and several others. The apps that are in BlackBerry's app store are mostly just knockoffs and junk.</p>
<p><div class="image-container" style="width:610px"><div class="image"></div><p class="source">Steve Kovach, Business Insider</p><p class="caption">One of the knockoff apps for BB10.</p></div></p>
<p>It's also a concerning sign that big developers like Facebook and Dropbox didn't think BB10 was worth their time. BlackBerry ended up making those apps itself instead.</p>
<p>So that's the biggest problem with the Z10. If you care about apps and services, you're not going to get the best ones right away, assuming you get them at all. And when a developer makes the next hot app, such as <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/vine-app-for-iphone-walkthrough-2013-1">Vine</a> or <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/mailbox-launches-for-iphone-2013-2">Mailbox</a>, you won't be among the first to try it.</p>
<p>That should be a turn off for just about everyone.</p>
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>Now for a reality check.</p>
<p>The Z10 is a great phone. BlackBerry 10 is a great operating system. Unfortunately for BlackBerry, it kept us waiting too long for a viable alternative to iPhone and Android (U.S. users will have to wait at least another month), so it's tough to imagine anyone but brand loyalists getting on board. There's next to no incentive for anyone currently using an iPhone or Android phone to make the switch to BlackBerry, and it's not appealing for a first-time smartphone buyer to choose the Z10 due to its lack of high quality apps.</p>
<p>If you're already a BlackBerry user, you'll love the Z10. Everyone else will be taking a step backwards by missing out on the great app and content ecosystems found in iOS and Android.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blackberry-z10-photos-and-features-2013-2"><strong>Click here for photos of the BlackBerry Z10 &gt;</strong></a></p>

REVIEW: The New BlackBerry Phone

<ul><li>The Nothing Phone (2a) is the latest mid-range smartphone from Nothing in India.</li><li>The device has been priced starting at ₹23,999 and is available in three variants.</li><li>Here’s my review of the Nothing Phone (2a) that will help you decide whether to buy the device or not. </li></ul> Carl Pei-led <keyword id="22591291" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nothing-Technologies" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Nothing Technologies" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Nothing Technologies">Nothing Technologies</keyword> recently launched the<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/nothing-phone-2a-smartphone-debuts-in-india-priced-starting-at-23999/articleshow/108240037.cms"> Phone (2a)</a>, the company’s third smartphone and its most affordable offering to date. The device features the company’s signature transparent design while toning down the Glyph interface.<br /><br />The Nothing Phone (2a) is placed below the Nothing Phone (2) and is aimed at users looking for a more affordable option but wanting a similar design and UI. The device’s highlights include its design, clean UI and battery life.<br /><br />I have been using the Nothing Phone (2a) for a few days now, and here is my detailed review of the latest mid-range smartphone from the smartphone maker.<br /><br /><h2>Nothing Phone (2a) price and availability</h2>The Nothing Phone (2a) has been launched in three variants. The base variant, with 8GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage has been priced at ₹23,999. The mid variant with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage has been priced at ₹25,999 and the top-end variant with 12GB RAM and 256GB of internal storage has been priced at ₹27,999.<br /><br />The Nothing Phone (2a) is available in four colour options – Black, Blue, Special Edition and White.<br /><br /><strong>In the box</strong><br /><br /><ul><li>Nothing Phone (2a)</li><li>USB Type-C to Type-C cable</li><li>SIM ejector tool</li><li>Documentation</li></ul><h2>Nothing Phone (2a) specifications</h2><br /><table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;" class="redcator-table-advance"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#000000;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Particulars<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#000000;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Specifications<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Display<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">6.7-inch Full HD+ OLED<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Refresh rate<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">120Hz<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Protection<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Gorilla Glass 5<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Chipset<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Pro<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Variants<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">8GB + 128GB, 8GB + 256GB, 12GB + 256GB<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Rear camera<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">50MP + 50MP<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Selfie camera<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">32MP<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Battery<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">5,000mAh<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Charging<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">45W<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Wireless charging<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">NA<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Fingerprint sensor<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">In-display fingerprint sensor<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Weight<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">190 grams<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Water resistance<br /><br /></td><td style="border-right:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.5008695000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:0pt 5pt 0pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">IP54<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody><tbody></tbody><tbody></tbody><tbody></tbody></table><br /><h2>Pros and cons</h2><strong>Pros</strong><br /><br /><ul><li>Design</li><li>Performance</li></ul><strong>Cons</strong><br /><br /><ul><li>No charger in the box</li><li>Average low-light photography</li></ul><h2>Design and display</h2>Starting with the design, Nothing has made several changes to the design of the device when compared to its predecessors, while retaining its transparent design language.<br /><br />The device comes in four colour options – Black, Blue, Special Edition and White. I received the Black colour variant of the device, which is also my preferred variant.<br /><br /><div type="image" title="Rear" msid="112111179" hostid="261" sizebytes="74046" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Nothing Phone (2a) rear design&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div><br />The Nothing Phone (2a) comes with a redesigned camera module, with the cameras placed horizontally and the LED flash placed above the camera module.<br /><br />The smartphone comes with a transparent plastic back, showcasing some of the interiors of the device. While you may want to use the device without a case to flaunt the design, it is a dust and fingerprint magnet and you may be forced to slap on a case.<br /><br />The company has reduced the number of lights on the Glyph interface to just three for the Nothing Phone (2a) but they look good and add a unique touch to the device. The Glyph interface lights up for notifications, calls and even to show the battery level while being charged.<br /><br /><div type="image" title="Right" msid="112111191" hostid="261" sizebytes="74214" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Power button&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div><br />The smartphone features a matte black plastic frame with the power button placed on the right side.<br /><br /><div type="image" title="Left" msid="112111200" hostid="261" sizebytes="66714" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Volume rockers on the left&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div><br />You get two individual volume rockers on the left side.<br /><br /><div type="image" title="Top" msid="112111212" hostid="261" sizebytes="55984" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Microphone at the top&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div><br />At the top, you get a microphone.<br /><br /><div type="image" title="Bottom" msid="112111219" hostid="261" sizebytes="49696" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Ports at the bottom&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div><br />At the bottom, the device features a SIM tray, a microphone, a USB Type-C port and a speaker grille.<br /><br />Coming to the display, the smartphone features a 6.7-inch Full HD+ OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and up to 1300 nits peak brightness.<br /><br /><div type="image" title="Display" msid="112111228" hostid="261" sizebytes="79354" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Nothing Phone (2a) display&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div><br />The display is quite bright and easy to read outdoors, offering good sunlight visibility. The colours are accurate and you will not face any issues, whether you are gaming, watching movies or just browsing social media.<br /><br />It is equipped with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 to offer protection to the display.<br /><br /><h2>Software and performance</h2>The Nothing Phone (2a) runs on Android 14 out of the box with the company’s Nothing OS 2.5 on top. The device will get three years of Android updates and four years of security updates, which is fine for a mid-range smartphone.<br /><br />If you have used a Nothing phone before, the software remains the same. You get a near-stock Android experience, along with improvements and added customisation options.<br /><br />Nothing is popular for its quirky widgets and that is also the case with the Phone (2a). You get a good collection of widgets with the device and it does not come with any bloatware so you don’t have to worry about having to uninstall a ton of apps.<br /><br />In terms of performance, the Nothing Phone (2a) is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Pro chipset coupled with up to 12GB LPDDR4X of RAM and 256GB of UFS 2.2 internal storage.<br /><br />The Dimensity 7200 Pro offers good performance and battery efficiency. The chipset, which is coupled with ample RAM and storage can handle multitasking efficiently, without any stuttering.<br /><br />I played popular titles such as Asphalt 9 and Call of Duty: Mobile on the device and did not notice any stuttering. If you are a casual gamer, you can get the device without any worries. If you plan on using the device for extended gaming sessions, it does heat a little but is manageable.<br /><br />The Nothing Phone (2a) is powered by a 5,000mAh battery with 45W fast charging support. The device is power efficient and easily offers over a day’s of battery life, with regular usage, streaming and light gaming.<br /><br /><h2>Camera</h2>Coming to the camera department, the Nothing Phone (2a) features a dual camera setup at the back consisting of a 50MP primary camera with OIS and a secondary 50MP ultra-wide-angle camera.<br /><br /><div type="image" title="Rear camera" msid="112111250" hostid="261" sizebytes="33010" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Nothing Phone (2a) rear camera&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div><br />The device can capture good photos in daylight conditions, with good colour reproduction and proper saturation. The device can capture a good amount of detail.<br /><br />In low light conditions, the images captured are decent but there is some noise. The colours are good and there is minimal noise.<br /><br />The device can capture good portraits in daylight conditions, with proper edge detection and subject focus.<br /><br />While there is no telephoto camera offered with the phone, you can capture decent shots using the 2x zoom option.<br /><br />On the front, the device features a 32MP selfie camera. The selfie camera works well and is great for capturing selfies and video calls.<br /><br /><h2>Verdict</h2>The Nothing Phone (2a) is a well-designed smartphone that stands apart in the crowd while offering decent features. The device comes with a clean UI, good software support and offers decent performance.<br /><br />The device does have its share of issues such as a back that attracts fingerprints and lack of a charger in the box.<br /><br />Overall, the Nothing Phone (2a) is a good option worth considering in the under ₹30,000 segment.<br /><br /><em>Disclaimer: The content on this website is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as a purchasing guide or recommendation. We advise readers to do additional research, including hands-on usage of the device at a retail outlet, before making a decision.</em><br /><br /><strong>SEE ALSO:<br /><br /><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/hp-omen-transcend-14-review/articleshow/108980896.cms">HP Omen Transcend 14 review – a feature-packed, lightweight gaming laptop with excellent display</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/vivo-v30-pro-review/articleshow/108944431.cms">Vivo V30 Pro review: premium cameras in the mid-range segment</a><br /><br /></strong><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/oneplus-12-review/articleshow/108723955.cms"><strong>OnePlus 12 review: A feature-packed device with promising battery back-up</strong></a><br />

Nothing Phone (2a) review – mid-range smartphone with an eye-catching design

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right click-to-enlarge"><div class="image"><a title_source="Business Insider " title_caption="Amazon's Fire Phone" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/53cec5916bb3f7ba1c78a835-960/dsc_1485.jpg"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span>Business Insider </span></p><p class="caption">Amazon's Fire Phone</p></div><p></p></div>Last month, Amazon unveiled its first smartphone - the Fire Phone.</p>
<p>The company introduced a handful of unique features designed to help the device stand out from the competition, including a 3-D visual effect called Dynamic Perspective and a personal assistant called FireFly that can easily provide information about the world around you.</p>
<p>But reviewers agree, however, the Fire Phone falls short on the core properties that really matter beyond the gimmicks - namely, battery life, design, and app selection.</p>
<p>In <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-fire-phone-review-2014-7" target="_blank">our own review</a>, Business Insider's Jillian D'Onfro was impressed with how well Dynamic Perspective and Firefly worked, but ultimately concluded the Fire Phone is mostly suited for Amazon fanatics.</p>
<p>Those who care about getting new apps as they come out, or those accustomed to Google or Apple's ecosystems, may have a hard time making the switch to Amazon's first phone. </p>
<p>Not one review suggested the Fire Phone as a worthwhile alternative to the Galaxy S5 or iPhone 5s, even though it sells for the same price of $199 on a two-year contract. The phone, however, is an AT&amp;T exclusive. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/24/technology/personaltech/review-amazons-fire-phone.html?_r=0" target="_blank">New York Times' Farhad Manjoo</a> praised the Fire Phone's ease of use, but knocked it for its design and gimmicky features. Here are a few snippets from his review:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Also, this phone is no looker. An indistinct slab of glass and plastic, the Fire Phone looks more like a minimalist prototype than a finished product.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span>As with Firefly, I expect that Dynamic Perspective might become more useful as developers add support. But right now, like a splashy new coat of purple paint, Dynamic Perspective feels like a difference merely for the sake of being different.</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span><span>While technically impressive, the system rarely makes for a substantive improvement in how you'll use your phone.</span></span></p>
<p><span>The Wall Street Journal's Geoffrey Fowler concluded the phone's bells and whistles weren't enough to overlook the fact that it "stumbles" on some of the basics. This is what Fowler said <a href="http://online.wsj.com/articles/amazon-fire-phone-review-full-of-gimmicks-lacking-basics-1406077565" target="_blank">in his review</a>:</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Amazon has taken worthwhile steps to simplify using the Android operating system, but on the smartphone fundamentals, the Fire stumbles.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">In the past five days, I couldn't once get the Fire's battery to last to day's end-a telephonic cardinal sin.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Don't expect to get all the apps you love: Though it runs on a version of Google's Android operating system, Google apps like Maps, Drive and YouTube are locked out. And the Fire can't transfer most app purchases from previous phones.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">The controls that track your head, which Amazon calls "dynamic perspective," never become as natural and predictable as just touching the screen with your fingers.</p>
<p><a href="http://recode.net/2014/07/22/can-the-amazon-fire-smartphone-take-on-iphone-and-samsung/">Re/code's Walt Mossberg</a> criticized the Fire Phone for its premium price tag, mentioning how Amazon needs to "do better" to keep up with Apple and Samsung.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span>But I consider the Amazon Fire phone no more than an interesting first step. In my tests, I found its big new features less useful than I expected, and sometimes outright frustrating. And, arriving seven years after the debut of the first modern smartphone, Amazon's new entry lacks some key functions both Apple and Samsung include.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Like most Fire Phone reviews, <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2014/07/22/amazon-fire-phone-review/">Engadget's Brad Molen</a> pointed out a few of the obvious perks that come with Amazon's smartphone: a free one-year membership to Amazon Prime and the company's helpful Mayday feature, which gives you unlimited access to tech support with the push of a button. But ultimately, the cons outweighed the pros in Engadget's review. Here's what Molen had to say:</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Amazon's debut phone isn't bad, per se, but there's little incentive for anyone to switch carriers or platforms to buy it. Its unique features don't provide enough utility, and come at the expense of both battery life and performance.</p>
<p>Amazon will start shipping the Fire Phone on Friday.</p><p class="tagline">Disclosure: Jeff Bezos is an investor in Business Insider through his personal investment company Bezos Expeditions.</p>

The Reviews Are In: Amazon's Fire Phone Is No iPhone Or Galaxy S5 Killer

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Every month I publish a list on Business Insider ranking the </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/best-smartphones-2014-9">best smartphones in the world</a><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">. I test a lot of phones in all shapes and sizes. Over my four years at this job I estimate I've used at least 100. By now, I have a really good sense of what works for most people.</span></p>
<p>Every month I feel like I have no choice but to put the iPhone at the top of the list. The confluence of design, app selection, and impeccable attention to detail made me look past all that.</p>
<p>My only problem with the iPhone 5S? The iPhone's 4-inch screen was tiny compared to every other major competing smartphone. Every time I tested a device from Samsung or HTC or Motorola, I'd go back to my puny 5S wishing it was bigger. My dream phone was a super-huge iPhone that could put the beauty and simplicity of iOS and its ecosystem on a giant display.</p>
<p>This month, Apple made my dream phone. Two of them, in fact: The iPhone 6, which has a 4.7-inch screen, and the iPhone 6 Plus, which has a 5.5-inch screen. I've been switching between both models over the last week. You can buy them now starting at $199 for the iPhone 6 and $299 for the iPhone 6 Plus (on contract).</p>
<p>They're big. They're beautiful. They're nearly perfect. When I make my list for October, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus will have the two top spots.</p>
<h2>The iPhone 6</h2>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Let's start with the iPhone 6, which I think is the device most people will (and should) choose. Most of what I'll say, save for size and a few other things, will apply to the 6 Plus too.</span></p>
<p>The glass on top of the iPhone 6 feels like it curves nearly seamlessly into the aluminum body, like a round gemstone. It almost deceives you into thinking you're holding something smaller than it actually is. In a way, the new curved design is a throwback to the original iPhone, which was also wrapped in curved aluminum. I like it a lot better that the rigid rectangular shape Apple had been using since the iPhone 4.</p>
<p>It's the Goldilocks phone - not too big, and not too small. Many big-screen phones are thick and chunky, but at 6.9 millimeters, the iPhone 6 is one of the thinnest I've used. It fits perfectly in my palm, and even with the larger display, I have no problem using it with one hand. I doubt you'll have to worry about one-handed use, even if you have tiny mitts. Just in case, Apple has a new "Reachability" feature in the operating system that pulls the top portion of the screen down to your thumb when you double tap the home button.</p>
<p>A lot of people have been calling the iPhone 6 "slippery" and warning that you should put a case on it. I hate cases. Apple spends a lot of time designing beautiful gadgets, and the last thing I want to do is add extra bulk and plastic to it. I never felt like the iPhone 6 was going to slip out of my hand and crash into a million pieces on the floor. Apple gave me a silicone case to test on the phone, but I never used it and everything was fine. If you're a worrywart, then sure, use a case. But I prefer my phones naked.</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">My only beef with the design is the camera, which pokes out from the back. Apple is obsessed with thinness, but that obsession resulted in a slight camera bulge from the frame. The device can rock a bit if you place it flat on its back. I doubt most people will notice or care, but it bothers a snoot like me. </span></p>
<p>But holy moly is that camera good, and the bulge is a fine trade off. It's an 8 MP camera, which on paper sounds less powerful than cameras from competing smartphones. Keep in mind though, 8 MP only refers to the resolution of the image, not the overall quality. Unless you plan on printing out a bunch of poster-sized photos, you won't care. I took hundreds of photos with the 6/6 Plus over the last week, and the results were incredible. It works particularly well in low light. Here's a shot I took a dusk:</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">There are other cool camera tricks too, like a stabilization feature that keeps your videos still, even if you're moving around while shooting. It can also focus automatically a lot faster, so you don't have to do that double-tap on the screen before you snap a photo. The camera can even auto-focus on objects in real time as you shoot a video.</span></p>
<p>Battery life is a little better. I was able to get through a full day of normal use. But if you're a heavy user, you may still need to charge up a bit before you head home from work. I almost wish Apple had made the phone a little thicker so it had a bigger battery and a camera flush with the back case. (This complaint doesn't apply to the 6 Plus, however.)</p>
<p>As always, the biggest benefit of the iPhone is its software and ecosystem. All these years later, iPhones still get the best apps first. I'm not talking about the size of Apple's App Store versus what Google has for Android. I'm talking about the quality of apps. Whenever a new app or game comes out, it's usually on iPhone first. And when apps do make it to Android, the design and user experience is often worse. Android may be the most popular mobile operating system on the planet, but it's still treated as an afterthought by most developers. That means a lot to me, and it's one of the key reasons why I've stuck with a tiny screen iPhone for so long.</p>
<p>The iPhone 6 also comes with the new operating system, iOS 8, which is available on many other iPhone and iPad models. There aren't too many major changes with iOS 8, so I won't spend a lot of time on it. You can take a <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/ios-8-screenshot-tour-2014-9?op=1">full tour of everything that's new right here</a>. My favorite part about the new OS is the active notification system. If you get a new text message, you can answer it without exiting the app you're already using. Developers can use the feature too, and a few, like Twitter, already have. You can also install third-party keyboards and use them instead of Apple's default keyboard. That's a feature Android users have been enjoying for years, and there are already some solid options in the App Store such as Swype and SwiftKey.</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Finally, there's Apple Pay, which will let you load your credit or debit card information onto your iPhone 6 and pay for stuff just by tapping it against a special pad using a technology called Near Field Communication (NFC) to transfer your financial data. </span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Apple Pay won't launch until October, so no one has been able to test it yet. But Apple tells me it should work at any credit card terminal that has one of those "tap to pay" readers on the top. Several retailers like CVS, McDonald's, and Macy's have already said they'll support Apple Pay at launch.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Bottom line: The iPhone 6 is a huge upgrade, and a must buy if you're using an iPhone 5 or earlier. Even if you have an iPhone 5S, you may want to make the move to the 6 if you can wrangle out of your contract. And if you've been using an Android phone all this time because you like bigger screens, you won't be sorry making the switch to Apple's superior ecosystem.</span></p>
<h2>The iPhone 6 Plus</h2>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">When Samsung launched its first super-huge phone, the Galaxy Note, in 2012 I thought the company was insane. </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-note-review-2012-2">I called the phone</a><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">, which actually had a smaller screen than the 6 Plus does today, "too big ...like, practical-joke big."</span></p>
<p>The joke was on me though.</p>
<p>It took until the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/galaxy-note-3-review-2013-9">Galaxy Note 3 launched about a year ago</a> to come to my senses and realize I was being a doofus by dismissing those so-called phablets. I practically live on my phone - emailing and tweeting and reading the news for hours a day, and a big screen simply lets me get a lot more done. Plus, phablets last a lot longer because the bigger body also means you also get a bigger battery.</p>
<p>That all holds true with the 6 Plus. And after I return my review unit to Apple, it's going to be the phone I buy. It has all the benefits of the big screen with the added bonus of an impeccable design and access to Apple's superior ecosystem. You can't get that with any other device in this class. The Plus is a productivity machine, the best of the iPad and the iPhone rolled into one hero device. It's the perfect gadget for power users, and I can't imagine using anything else.</p>
<p>Yes, the 6 Plus is huge. I'd say I have above average-sized hands, but I still need both of them to operate this thing efficiently. Even with Apple's Reachability mode, I still feel like I'm stretching.</p>
<p>But the Plus feels razor-thin just like the regular iPhone 6 (it's technically 0.2 mm thicker, but there's no way you'd ever be able to tell), and it slides easily into my jeans pocket without sticking out. It does kind of jab into my hip when I sit down, so I usually keep it on my desk if I know I'm going to be sitting for a long time. Overall, I don't think the Plus is too big for me, and what little annoying quirks I did have with it were overshadowed by the benefits of the massive screen. It's a giant slab of silicon and glass and metal, but it works. Perfectly.</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">The big screen came with a drawback though. Because the 6 Plus has a sharper resolution than the iPhone 5S and the 6, some third-party apps appear fuzzy or blurry. When using apps like Gmail or Snapchat, it feels like I'm looking at a distorted, blown-up image, not something designed for a larger, crisper display. Apple told me it has new tools that developers can use to better adapt their apps for the larger display, so I expect to see this problem go away for most major apps soon.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Battery life knocked my socks off, which is something I've never been able to say about an iPhone until now. I used to have to charge my iPhone 5S <em>at least</em> once a day, even on days of lighter usage. It got to the point where I'd leave it plugged in all day at work just to spare myself the agony of asking a bartender to borrow a charger if I went out at night.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">I'll give you the perfect example: </span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Last weekend, I woke up at 7 a.m. and took a trip to Alcatraz with my dad. I took over 100 photos and a few videos. Then we took a two-hour roundtrip car ride to Tomales Bay and I used Google Maps navigation to get us there. After that, we toured around San Francisco a bit (I checked Twitter and email a lot during this time) and had dinner. By the time I got home around 8 p.m., my battery was around 30%, which would've been unfathomable if I had used my iPhone 5S that much without charging. On most days, my battery is at 50% after a full day of work.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Bottom line: The Plus is thinner, prettier, and better in just about every single way than any other phablet I've used. If you're an iPhone power user, I'd suggest looking past the drawbacks of a giant device and consider getting the Plus over the 6.</span></p>
<h2>Does It Bend?</h2>
<p>Yes. Or, maybe not. I don't know. I thought I noticed a bend in the 6 Plus on Thursday. I even used a level, and the reading was slightly off. The Plus wasn't quite flush with the table when I placed it face down, but it was barely noticeable. The only reason I even looked for a bend was because of all the "Bendgate" hooplah this week.</p>
<p>Here's my take: If the 6 Plus really does bend, it's not noticeable enough to be a problem. The real test will come several months from now. Does additional stress on the phone over time cause it to bend even more? I hope not. For now, don't sweat it. And don't let the hype sway you from buying the Plus.</p>
<p>Apple for its part <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-on-bending-iphone-6-2014-9">says</a>, "<span>Our iPhones are designed, engineered and manufactured to be both beautiful and sturdy... <span>With normal use a bend in iPhone is extremely rare and through our first six days of sale, a total of nine customers have contacted Apple with a bent iPhone 6 Plus."</span></span></p>
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>By the end of the week, I found myself using the iPhone 6 Plus more than the iPhone 6. If the two were sitting on the desk next to each other, I naturally gravitated toward the bigger screen. </p>
<p>Still, I'd recommend that most people buy the iPhone 6. It strikes the perfect balance of getting a bigger screen while remaining manageable enough for one-handed use. I doubt most will want to sacrifice ease of use for some extra screen real estate and few hours of battery life. If you're still unsure, go to the store and try them out. I bet you choose the 6 over the 6 Plus.</p>
<p>It's not the just best phone. It's a dream phone.</p>

REVIEW: The iPhone 6 Is A Dream

<p><div class="image-container float_right click-to-enlarge" style="width:400px"><div class="image"><a title_source="Kevin Smith/Business Insider" title_caption="Cygnett's Carbon Fiber Urban Shield and an iPhone 5 bumper." class="zoomin" href="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/510188816bb3f7f956000004-960/jay%20and%20kevin.jpg"><span class="click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a></div><p class="source">Kevin Smith/Business Insider</p><p class="caption">Cygnett's Carbon Fiber Urban Shield and an <keyword id="6354606" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="iPhone">iPhone</keyword> 5 bumper.</p></div>In an ideal world, an iPhone wouldn't need a case.</p>
<p>The thin metal design of the iPhone 5 is fantastic, making it a better phone than its rivals. When an iPhone is put in a case it becomes a thicker, plastic phone.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, we don't live in an ideal world. In this world, the iPhone is easily broken, especially if you're clumsy.</p>
<p>Rather than worrying about dropping a phone and breaking it, the easiest solution is to just slap a case on it.</p>
<p>But which case is best?</p>
<p>We've been doing extensive testing of iPhone 5 cases for the past month. We each have our own favorite case for our own reasons, which are at the bottom of the post. Before we get to that, we should give an overview on the market for cases. </p>
<p>Basically, cases come down to four styles.</p>
<h2><strong><table class="image-container" width="200"><tr><td><div class="image"></div><p class="source">Kevin Smith/Business Insider</p></td></tr></table><br /></strong></h2>
<h2><strong>The Snap-On Case</strong></h2>
<p>This case snaps on to your phone, only adding a little bit of extra bulk to the phone. It also generally offers unfettered access to the buttons of the iPhone. However, there's a slight annoyance with the snap cases. The thick plastic makes it hard to press the iPhone's buttons. If you want to hit the power button, you're almost blocked by the hard plastic on the top of the case. You have to angle your finger to press the button.</p>
<h2><table class="image-container" width="200"><tr><td><div class="image"></div><p class="source">Kevin Smith/Business Insider</p></td></tr></table></h2>
<h2>The Slide-On Case</h2>
<p>You slide your phone into this case and it envelops the entire thing. It's very protective, and it's probably the most popular type of iPhone case. The downside to this case is that it makes the phone bulky.</p>
<h2><table class="image-container" width="200"><tr><td><div class="image"></div><p class="source">Kevin Smith/Business Insider</p></td></tr></table></h2>
<h2>The Mega-Protective Case</h2>
<p>This would be the Otter-Box, which takes an iPhone and makes it three times as thick as it is naked. It also adds a plastic screen protector by default. If you love your iPhone so much you want it to die, then this is the case for you. You're killing the iPhone by burying it in this case, but you're going to keep it in pristine condition.</p>
<h2><table class="image-container" width="200"><tr><td><div class="image"></div><p class="source">Kevin Smith/Business Insider</p></td></tr></table></h2>
<h2>The Bumper</h2>
<p>This is the exact opposite of a mega-protective case. It's just a thin piece of plastic and rubber wrapped around the edge of the phone. Surprisingly, it can protect your phone if you drop it. The upside to the bumper is that you still get to hold your phone and feel its metal back. It also keeps the phone's profile relatively thin.</p>
<h2>Which Case Is The Best For Me?</h2>
<p>You have to ask yourself what you're looking for. Do you want to keep the phone thin? Do you want to have the phone protected at all costs? Are you looking for a funky design? Are you looking for a good feeling when you're holding the phone?</p>
<h2>Which Is The Best In Our Opinion?</h2>
<p><strong>Jay:</strong> I recently dropped my iPhone riding my bike. After that, I decided it was time to start using a case. I've run through a bunch of options and I like the bumper the best. I know it's very thin on protection, but it's the lightest, most comfortable to use.</p>
<p><strong>Kevin: </strong>I rarely drop my phone, but because it's always in my pocket I don't want the screen or back getting scratched. I use a anti-glare screen protector and the Cygnett Carbon Fiber Urban Shield. This is the best solution for me in terms of style and protection.</p>
<p>While the Urban Shield is my primary, I don't always use the same case. When it's raining or I'm worried about my phone going into the elements I use the LifeProof. It offers the most protection (from water, dust, snow, and shock) while adding the least bulk.</p>
<p><strong>See Also: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/best-iphone-5-cases-2013-1">The Best iPhone 5 Cases We Could Get Our Hands On &gt;</a></strong></p>

REVIEW: The Best iPhone 5 Case

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Hollis Johnson/Business Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div>Apple's decision to remove the headphone jack in the iPhone 7 has already caused a lot of anger among customers before they even get their hands on the device.</p><p>Apple clearly saw this controversy coming, so it invented a solution for those who still want to use their regular old headphones with their new iPhone 7: a dongle that plugs into the iPhone's Lightning port and acts as an adapter for traditional headphones that plug into the standard 3.5 mm jack. </p><p>The dongle comes included with every iPhone 7. </p><p>I'm not a big audio nerd, so I always use the EarPods that come included with my iPhone as my primary set of headphones. They may not sound the best, but they're free and work good enough for me. So I personally didn't have a huge problem with Apple's decision to remove the headphone jack since the iPhone 7 also comes with a pair of EarPods that plug into the Lightning port.</p><p>But I realize there are plenty of people out there that have a pair of traditional, non-Apple headphones they love, so they may be curious if the dongle is a good solution.</p><p>For the most part, it works fine. Just plug the dongle into the Lightning port and then plug your regular headphones into the dongle.</p><p>Like this:</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Hollis Johnson/Business Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>I borrowed a colleague's pair of high-end headphones as I tested the dongle. I didn't notice a change in audio quality, and everything worked smoothly. It really wasn't much of a bother to have the extra adapter, and you won't notice any interruption to the audio. Just plug it in and play your music. You won't be disappointed.</p><p>There are only two potential problems with the dongle:</p><p>First of all, it looks a bit awkward having that extra wire dangling from your iPhone. It's not <em>ugly</em>, but it seems unnecessary to have an extra wire constantly dangling from your iPhone. Eventually, this likely won't be a problem as more manufacturers build Lightning headphones or people gravitate towards wireless options. But for now, the dongle is an strange-looking fix.</p><p>Second, I have a feeling a lot of people are going to lose their dongle. It may fit snugly in the iPhone's Lightning port, but it is very tiny, just three inches long. It'll also cost you $9 to replace it at the Apple Store.</p><p>But including the dongle with every iPhone 7 was a smart move. Apple may believe traditional headphone jacks will go extinct one day, but that's clearly not the reality right now. The bottom line: You'll still be able to listen to your music any way you want to with the iPhone 7. You can't ask for more than that.</p>  <p class="tagline"><div id="categorypromo" style="border:1px solid silver; min-height:90px; padding:10px;vertical-align:top;"><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/25-big-tech-predictions-for-2016?IR=T&amp;utm_source=businessinsider&amp;utm_medium=ctgr&amp;utm_term=ctgr_leadgen_2016-predictions&amp;utm_content=iphone_ctgr_leadgen_2016-predictions&amp;utm_campaign=iphone_ctgr_leadgen_2016-predictions"></a><strong> EXCLUSIVE FREE REPORT:</strong><br />25 Big Tech Predictions by BI Intelligence. <strong><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/25-big-tech-predictions-for-2016?IR=T&amp;utm_source=businessinsider&amp;utm_medium=ctgr&amp;utm_term=ctgr_leadgen_2016-predictions&amp;utm_content=iphone_ctgr_leadgen_2016-predictions&amp;utm_campaign=iphone_ctgr_leadgen_2016-predictions">Get the Report Now »</a></strong></div></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-iphone-7-comparison-samsung-galaxy-s7-2016-9">The iPhone 7 or Samsung Galaxy S7: Which one should you buy?</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="9qMzR2NTE6mdFqTU2CbfniBxs8ZjT9FF" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

REVIEW: The iPhone 7 headphone dongle

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Business Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>After testing the Essential Phone for the last week, I can confirm my initial impression: It's a superb device.</p><p>In fact, I could easily see myself buying a Phone for my next smartphone.</p><p>The Phone is the first product from Essential, a startup founded and led by Andy Rubin, the "Father of Android." Its price, design, operating system, and camera all make it first rate. </p><p>But that doesn't mean it's perfect. As might be expected for the first gadget from a brand-new company, the Phone has a few kinks that need to be ironed out. Among its big shortcomings: It lacks a headphone jack. </p><p>Check out my thoughts about the Essential Phone:</p>

REVIEW: The Essential Phone is a superb smartphone

<p>LG just released its first device in the phablet category. (That is, a phone that's so big it's blurs the distinction between phone and tablet.) It's called the LG Optimus G Pro.</p>
<p>There's not a lot of competition, but the Optimus G Pro is the best phone you can buy in the size. You can read the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/lg-optimus-g-pro-review-2013-5">full written review here</a>, and watch a quick <keyword id="21654" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="video">video</keyword> review below.<br /> </p>
<div style="display:none;" id="kalturavideoplaceholder">kalturavideoplaceholder</div>

VIDEO REVIEW: LG's New Giant Android Phone

<p>Apple made its new operating system for iPads and iPhones available for download yesterday.</p>
<p>It's called <keyword id="1507548" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="iOS-7">iOS 7</keyword>. It's got a new look. The icons are more abstract, and the colors are all brighter.</p>
<p>The best part is that it's now much easier to turn off wi-fi and adjust the screen's brightness. You don't have to hunt and peck your way through the settings app.</p>
<p>One person who downloaded the new OS is <keyword id="15580" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Miley-Cyrus">Miley Cyrus</keyword>, the pop star. Here is her review:</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p>I hate the <keyword id="6354606" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="iPhone">iPhone</keyword> update.</p>
- Miley Ray Cyrus (@MileyCyrus) <a href="https://twitter.com/MileyCyrus/statuses/380918883697172481">September 20, 2013</a></blockquote>

<p>This is how it makes her feel?</p>
<p><div class="image-container display-table"><div><div class="image"><p class="source"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=My2FRPA3Gf8">YouTube screenshot</a></p></div></div></div></p>

Miley Cyrus Reviewed The New iPhone Update

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>I've never given a Windows Phone a good review.</p>
<p>Even though it's been nearly four years since Microsoft introduced its operating system to compete with iPhone and Android, the software's features have still lagged behind. And the hardware, most of it made by Nokia, has been chunky and unattractive compared to the competition.</p>
<p>But with one big exception, Windows Phones have finally caught up. It all starts with HTC's new phone, the HTC One M8 For Windows. (What a mouthful!)</p>
<p>Clunky name aside, the One is the best phone running Windows you can buy. It's only available on Verizon for now (<a href="http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/device/smartphone/htc-one-for-windows">$100 with a two-year contract</a>), but AT&amp;T will have it soon too.</p>
<h2>What Is It?</h2>
<p>Hardware-wise, this is the same flagship phone HTC launched earlier this year. That device ran Android, and is still the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/htc-one-m8-review-2014-3">best Android phone you can buy</a>. In fact, it's one of the best phones, period. The only difference this time is that the new One is running the latest version of Windows Phone, 8.1.</p>
<p>The phone is gorgeous. While most of Nokia's phones are thick, plasticky, and unappealing, the HTC One is made from mostly metal. Its only rival design-wise is the iPhone. It also has a sharp, 5-inch HD screen and dual rear cameras that let you take photos and readjust the focus later.</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Windows Phone 8.1 has a lot of improvements too. It now has a drop-down notification center, similar to what you see on Android and iPhone. It also has Cortana, Microsoft's answer to digital assistants like Siri and Google Now.</span></p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></p>
<h2>What Can It Do?</h2>
<p>With the latest 8.1 update, Windows Phone has finally caught up to iPhone and Android. (If you have an older Windows Phone, you'll be getting the update soon if you haven't already.) Between Cortana, the notification menu, and the ability to group apps into folders, there's almost nothing Windows Phones can't do that other smartphones can. It took Microsoft a long time, but it eventually caught up.</p>
<p>My favorite new feature is Cortana, which is smarter and more capable than Siri. When you launch Cortana, it gives you a snapshot of your calendar along with some headlines and other stuff you might be interested in reading. Cortana handles search a lot better too, giving you the one answer you're looking for instead of a list of search results like Siri often does. For example, you can ask Cortana how tall San Francisco's Coit Tower is and get the right answer. And you can even follow up with something like, "Where is it?" to get directions. Siri simply isn't smart enough to do that. (Google Now, the digital assistant for Android devices, is though.)</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p>Most Windows Phones work the same way, but the One does have a few special tricks. The most important one is the dual camera system that lets you snap a photo and readjust the focus later. You can create some nifty photos with that feature, but the overall image quality isn't as good as photos taken with the iPhone 5S, Samsung Galaxy S5, or Nokia's flagship Windows Phones.</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></p>
<p>Another benefit to Windows Phone 8.1 is battery life. Even though the One running Windows has the same battery as the Android version, I was able to get much more usage out of it. In fact, it lasted well over a day, which is a dream considering I usually have to charge my iPhone about twice a day.</p>
<h2>What's The Downside?</h2>
<p>There's one thing that hasn't changed with Windows Phone: App selection.</p>
<p>Yes, you can get apps like Facebook, Twitter, and Spotify on Windows Phone, but there's a wide range of other apps that aren't available. No Gmail. No Google Maps. No YouTube. No Snapchat. The list goes on and on.</p>
<p>Even though there are many popular apps in the Windows Phone app store, many still lack the features their Android and iPhone counterparts do. Plus, the latest and greatest apps and games rarely launch on Windows Phone first. </p>
<p>That's probably going to be a dealbreaker for most people. Apps are the portal to online content on smartphones, and if you're using an OS like Windows Phone that doesn't carry the apps you need, you're going to miss a lot.</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></p>
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>If you don't mind missing out on the best apps, or you just like using Microsoft's services like Bing, Outlook, and Office exclusively, then the HTC One is the first Windows Phone you should consider buying. But I suspect that's a minuscule slice of the smartphone market. </p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">While the HTC One running Windows is a fantastic phone, most people shouldn't buy it. </span></p>

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