Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 Amps Performance, Cameras And AI For Flagship 5G Phones

Qualcomm yesterday announced its new Snapdragon 865 and Snapdragon 765/765G Mobile Platforms, but the company was rather mum on specific details other than to say that both were 5G-enabled. Today, we're getting a full picture on what to expect when the first devices with these chips land next year, along with a clearer picture on the 5G modem situation with the respective platforms. Kicking things off is the Snapdragon 865, which is the flagship SoC replacement for the Snapdragon 855/855+. The Snapdragon 865 is paired with a separate Snapdragon X55 5G modem; which is an interesting development....

ASUS ROG Phone II Review: A Mobile Gaming And Battery Life Beast

by Paul Lilly - Tue, Nov 12, 2019

The concept of a purpose-built gaming phone is still somewhat in its infancy, though we are starting to see generational upgrades, such as the ASUS ROG Phone II. As the name implies, this is the second generation of ASUS' gaming handset. Like the original ROG Phone released last year, the ROG Phone II combines bleeding edge hardware with gaming-centric software optimizations. ASUS sprinkles in some nifty features (like Air Triggers) and then surrounds it all with optional accessories to amp up the experience. What ASUS has essentially created is not just a gaming phone, but a smartphone gaming...

Google Pixel 4 XL Review: Streaks Of Brilliance, Pure Android

by Dave Altavilla - Thu, Nov 07, 2019

Without question, Google's Pixel 4 XL has been the most leaked smartphone of 2019 prior to its official launch. Heck, even Google teased the device and a key feature or two along the way, so it goes without saying, the hype was big for this fourth generation Pixel. Google tries to set the bar for Android ecosystem partners with respect to industrial design and new enabling technologies with its Pixel phones. And in fact, the new Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL bring with them a couple of firsts for made by Google devices, specifically a 90Hz display and wireless charging. The premise is that hopefully these...

Pixel 4 XL Vs Galaxy Note 10 Pics: HDR, Portrait, Night Sight Shoot-Out

by Dave Altavilla, Brandon Hill - Tue, Oct 22, 2019

Google recently launched its Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL, which are its two newest flagship Android smartphones. The Pixel 4 family brings a number of new features to the table including 90Hz displays, Face Unlock, and radar-driven motion/gesture sensing tech, but one of the most talked about features of any Google Pixel phone to date is its namesake, the camera. Or in the case of the Pixel 4, its cameras, plural. While our full review of the Pixel 4 XL will be forthcoming shortly, we thought that we'd give you a brief preview of what this new high-end smartphone has to offer with its new cameras. For...

OnePlus 7T Review: Fast, Premium And A Fantastic Android Value

by Marco Chiappetta - Wed, Oct 09, 2019

Over that last few years, OnePlus has earned a reputation for offering well-appointed, high-performance mobile devices that compete with other contemporary flagships, but with highly aggressive pricing. When we looked at the OnePlus 7 Pro back in June, or the OnePlus 6T before that, we declared both handsets leaders, in terms of value and performance. With the upcoming OnePlus 7T, which is due to start shipping in just a few days, OnePlus is trying to capture that status again. Looking at the OnePlus 7T’s list of features and hardware specifications, it appears to be a premium Android phone...

ASUS ROG Phone II Benchmark Preview: The Fastest Android Phone Ever

by Paul Lilly - Wed, Sep 11, 2019

ASUS recently sent us its brand-spanking-new ROG Phone II and we are in the process of evaluating the handset for a full review. We hope to have that posted within the next few weeks. In the meantime, we have some preliminary benchmarks and initial analysis to share, starting with the observation that this is the fastest Android phone we have ever tested. More on that in a moment. Before we get into the initial performance data, let's take a moment to talk about the gaming phone category, the ROG Phone II Ultimate Edition, and the specs. Gaming phones are still a somewhat new and niche category,...

Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus Review: Power Of The Pen And Much More

by Dave Altavilla - Fri, Aug 30, 2019

Samsung's Galaxy Note series of large format Android smartphones has never been about compromise. The pen-wielding, hybrid devices have always been bigger, more powerful and more capable, with larger batteries and as many bells, whistles and features as Samsung could cram in. As such, Galaxy Note users generally hail from a power user demographic, oftentimes with enterprise and business use cases that require an expanded tool set. And so for this passionate following, it probably comes as no surprise that Samsung has once again upped the Note's game with the latest iteration, the Galaxy Note 10...

Samsung Unpacks Three New Galaxy Note 10 Flagships And We Go Hands-On

by Brittany Goetting - Wed, Aug 07, 2019

Samsung Unpacked 2019 is here and the company has just unveiled the Galaxy Note 10, Galaxy Note 10+ and Galaxy Note 10+ 5G. The devices are intended to aid productivity, inspire creativity, and deliver on performance. All three devices were created in conjunction with both everyday consumers and those who use their devices on the job. All three devices will incorporate the popular Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor in the United States, shooting down rumors that we had heard to the contrary. Devices available for sale outside of the United States will feature Samsung's new 7nm Exynos 9825 SoC. The...

Samsung Galaxy S10e Review: Every Bit A Flagship For Less

by Paul Lilly - Thu, Jun 20, 2019

Generally speaking, pricing on flagship smartphones has continued to climb, because all of those fancy bells and whistles found on the top-end models do not come cheap. Not everyone has or is willing to spend a grand or more on a top-shelf handset, though, and some of the cheaper alternatives make too many sacrifices to hit a lower price point. That is not the case with Samsung's Galaxy S10e. The Samsung Galaxy S10e is the least expensive model in the Galaxy S10 family, the others consisting of the regular Galaxy S10, the larger Galaxy S10+, and the decked out Galaxy S10 5G. Make no mistake, however,...

OnePlus 7 Pro Review: Killer Display, Great Performance And Value

by Dave Altavilla - Wed, Jun 12, 2019

The OnePlus 7 Pro is one of the most highly anticipated Android phones to hit the market this year for a number of reasons. At first blush, it was about a few stand-out specs. The phone's 6.7-inch display supports a speedy 90Hz refresh rate and a super-tight 3120x1440 QHD+ resolution in punchy, HDR10+ certified OLED technology. The new OnePlus phone is also powered by the fastest Qualcomm chip on the market currently, the Snapdragon 855, but it's also backed up but up to 12GB of RAM as well as up to 256GB of snappy new UFS 3.0 based Flash storage. Oh, and the aforementioned display is not marred...

Google Pixel 3a XL Review: Full-Featured, Affordable Pure Android

by Dave Altavilla - Fri, May 24, 2019

When's the last time you saw a full-featured smartphone launch for well under $500? There have been a few to hit the market in this price range recently, usually with significant caveats, but in general the trend is towards more expensive flagship devices that are commanding upwards of $1000 quite often. Google's new Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL, however, buck this trend with HD OLED displays, big batteries, and the same great camera configuration that made Google's higher-end Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL the Android phones to beat, when it comes to smartphone photography. The new Pixel 3a is a 5.6-inch...

OnePlus 7 Pro: A Beastly SD855 Flagship With Triple Cams, 90Hz Display, Huge Battery And A Great Price Tag

by Brandon Hill - Tue, May 14, 2019

OnePlus today officially revealed its latest flagship smartphone, which is powered by the hottest mobile SoC on the planet right now: the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855. The OnePlus 7 Pro is a powerhouse flagship that has enough muscle and features to take on the best that its Android competitors have to offer, while offering a price that is hard to beat. This beast of a smartphone pairs the Snapdragon 855 with up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB of ultra-fast UFS 3.0 internal storage. Up front, you have a nearly bezel-free display design thanks to the fact that the OnePlus 7 Pro uses a motorized pop-up 16MP...

LG G8 ThinQ Review: An Affordable, Capable Flagship Smartphone

by Chris Goetting - Thu, Apr 25, 2019

If you are looking for a bit more intelligence in your "smart" phone, the LG G8 ThinQ may have a few additional tricks up its sleeve. LG is aiming to create a more intuitive and automated experience by embracing artificial intelligence processing care of Qualcomm's Snapdragon 855 SoC and their own in-house algorithms. The LG G8 ThinQ is more than just clever silicon and software, of course, and it boasts a premium build quality and expanded camera features to match. Beyond its Snapdragon 855 mobile platform, the G8 ThinQ runs with 6GB of LPDDR4x RAM and 128GB of UFS 2.1 flash storage. If you...

Samsung Galaxy S10+ Review: 10th Generation Android Greatness

by Dave Altavilla - Fri, Mar 08, 2019

Samsung leads the pack in global smartphone market share, with over 21 percent command, versus second place Apple that sits at a little over 15 percent, and Huawei at about 14.8. Samsung and Apple both lost ground to Huawei last year, but if early indications for the first quarter of 2019 are on point, Samsung could come roaring back, due in part to the positive reception of the company's 10th generation Galaxy S series device, the Galaxy S10. Samsung's Galaxy S10 family is currently a trio of Android handsets, soon to expand to a quartet, with the introduction of a 5G-targeted variant sometime...