Everything we know about Google's upcoming smartphone, the Pixel 2

Android Police

Google just launched its back-to-school promotion for the original Pixel smartphones, and you can get a pretty decent discount on the original price of Google's first two Pixel phones.

While that's a great deal, you might want to hold off — we could be expecting the Pixel's successor within the next few months. If you want the latest and greatest at all times, you may want to wait a little while, especially if Google's Pixel discounts aren't as steep as you hoped.

Overall, it looks like we can expect some decent improvements in the Pixel 2 over the original Pixel, including in its camera and design. We're also expecting Google to fill some gaps in features, like water resistance, in the Pixel 2.

There's also perhaps some bad news, at least for some. It's looking more and more like the Pixel 2 smartphones won't come with a headphone jack.

Check out everything we know about Google's new Pixel 2 smartphones:

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Source: Everything we know about Google's upcoming smartphone, the Pixel 2

Nokia Flagship Smartphone Set for Aug. 16 Release

Images of Nokia's new flagship phone have been released on social media this week, making many die-hard fans hot under the collar by rumors the new phone will take on top-end Samsung Galaxy S8.The Nokia 8 is the phone most avid Nokia fans will be most excited about, as the phone is likely to come with a SnapDragon 835 system chip, Carl Zeiss-powered dual camera system and a large 5.7-inch touchscreen. In other words, top-end features.The official release of the new phone is expected to be showcased on August 16 in London where press will get a chance to see the latest work by HMD Global Oy, a spinoff firm created by ex-Nokia executives.HMD Global Oy, branded as simply HMD, is a Finnish company affiliated with Nokia. Early rumors suggest the new phone, when it goes on sale, will feature a price tag of €749 for the SIM-free version for a 64 GB model, with the firm also tipped to release a more expensive 128 GB model.However, a reliable source in Romania told Mobilissimo phone bl og that the phone will sell for a much more affordable €517 in Europe.The phone is also believed to be stocked with Android's latest software version 8.0, being one of the first phone companies to release the new system.No company has yet officially signed up for distribution of the HMD-Nokia phones in Iran. However, Nokia is now active in Tehran with its infrastructure projects.One firm claiming to be a representative of HMD in Iran, with  website Hmdglobal.ir,  is claiming to represent the phone brand. However, multiple calls to the website's registrant have not come up with answers to discover if they are the official distributor.Other Nokia branded smartphones are available in Iran through grey imports, including the Nokia 3310, Nokia 6 and older Windows phones.

Source: Nokia Flagship Smartphone Set for Aug. 16 Release

The 20 best smartphones in the world

Hollis Johnson/Business Insider

This list contains a variety of premium and mid-range smartphones you should seriously consider if you need to make a smartphone purchase right now.

That said, several big tech companies — including Apple, Google, and Samsung — will be releasing new smartphones in the coming months.

Since five of these top phones are about to become last year's models, we've listed their successors, their likely release dates, and their price tags, at the very bottom of the list in case you'd prefer to wait for any of those phones.

Here's our list of the best smartphones you can buy right now.

Note: Prices may vary depending on the retailer.

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Source: The 20 best smartphones in the world

Smartphone sales slip in second quarter

Global smartphone sales saw a modest decline in the second quarter of 2017, as market leaders Samsung and Apple consolidated their positions, a survey showed.

The IDC survey showed South Korean giant Samsung maintaining the top spot by delivering some 79.8 million handsets for a 23.3 per cent market share.

Apple held onto the number two spot with a 12 per cent share after delivering 41 million iPhones.

Samsung and Apple both slightly increased their market share compared with a year earlier, increasing sales 1.4 per cent and 1.5 per cent, respectively, IDC said.

Huawei was the third largest vendor, with an 11.3 per cent market share. The Chinese electronics giant closed the gap with Apple with 19.6 per cent unit sales growth, adding two percentage points to market share from a year earlier, according to the survey.

Chinese manufacturers Oppo and Xiaomi rounded out the top five with a market share of 8.1 and 6.2 per cent, respectively.

IDC said that overall sales were lower than a year earlier, the top five smartphone vendors showed positive growth while declines were seen for other manufacturers.

"It's no secret that the smartphone market is a very challenging segment for companies to maintain or grow share, especially as already low average selling prices declined by another 4.3 per cent in 2016," said IDC analyst Ryan Reith. "The smaller, more localised vendors will continue to struggle, especially as the leading volume drivers build out their portfolio into new markets and price segments."

The survey comes ahead of the anticipated release of new handsets from Apple and Samsung as well as other makers for the holiday season. Apple managed to boost iPhone sales from the same period a year ago despite intense speculation about the 10th anniversary edition of the popular device.

But Apple has lost ground in the Chinese market, with revenues down 10 per cent from a year earlier in its "Greater China" segment.

 

Tablets fare better

Meanwhile, Apple, Huawei and Amazon boosted tablet sales over the past quarter, despite the ongoing slump in the overall market for the devices, surveys showed.

Overall tablet sales dropped 3.4 per cent from the same period last year to 37.9 million, according to a survey by research firm IDC. Apple's nearly 15 per cent boost in iPad sales from a year ago gave it a 30 per cent share of the global market, IDC said.

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Source: Smartphone sales slip in second quarter

LG Announces New Flagship Smartphone with OLED FullVision Display & HDR10 Support

Posted Thu Aug 3, 2017 at 09:00 PM PDT by Steven Cohen

The new premium handset will use an OLED screen with high dynamic range and wide color support.

LG has announced plans to release the first ever smartphone with a plastic OLED FullVision display. The currently unnamed OLED flagship handset is set to mark the extension of LG's OLED leadership in the premium TV market to the mobile space. 

"Expertise in OLED has long been a core competency of LG, and the technology has always been seen as a potential value-add for smartphones," said Juno Cho, president of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company. "With competition in the global smartphone space fiercer now than ever, we felt that this was the right time to reintroduce OLED displays in our mobile products."

Though full specs have not been announced yet, the smartphone will feature a 6-inch FullVision OLED screen with a QHD+ resolution of 1440 x 2880, 4.15 million pixels, and HDR10 support for high dynamic range video playback. Meanwhile, the upper and lower bezels of the device have been reduced by 20 and 50 percent compared to LG's V20 smartphone model, and the LG logo has been moved to the back of the phone to further maximize viewable screen space. In addition, the display will support a wide color gamut with 148 percent of the sRGB color space for digital images and 109 percent of the DCI-P3 color space for digital cinema.

Likewise, the OLED tech offers an operational response time that is tens of times faster than an LCD, making it ideal for VR applications. Finally, the smartphone will also incorporate Corning Gorilla Glass 5 with shatter-resistant technology for screen protection, and advanced encapsulation and pixel-scanning technology to greatly reduce the chance of burn-in associated with OLED technology.

More details on LG's upcoming P-OLED FullVision flagship smartphone will be revealed at a later date.

Source: LG

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Source: LG Announces New Flagship Smartphone with OLED FullVision Display & HDR10 Support

RED’s $1,200 holographic phone features snap-on camera accessories

Marques Brownlee of MKBHD channel got handed three prototypes, starting with the fit-and-finish casing that shows off how the Hydrogen One will appear. At first glance, it's a lot like the render, with a stylish black metal setup, ridges on the sides for finger grips and a dedicated shutter button. The walkthrough showed off off a 5.5-inch display (slightly smaller than the anticipated 5.7 inches) with dual speakers beneath it; On the back, a camera bump sat on top with a stippled grid of contact pins at the bottom, which will hold snap-on additions a la Moto Mods.

Unfortunately, we don't get to see the phone's vaunted holographic display: RED wasn't ready to show it off, so all we have is Brownlee's expression to go off of when he tinkered with it in the second prototype. (If you're not looking forward to 3D, it can always be turned off, he said.) Lastly, the third model included a much heftier-looking lens and sensor bolted on the back. RED believes this prosumer setup will be the future of mobile footage, and with gear like that, it's hard not to believe them.

But the Hydrogen One still has to prove that it can function as a smartphone, too -- which we might find out when the first fully-functional prototypes roll out in 30-45 days.

Source: RED's $1,200 holographic phone features snap-on camera accessories

Report: More Chinese OEMs To Release 18:9 Phones In 2017

More smartphones with screens featuring a tall aspect ratio of 18:9 (2:1) will be released by the end of the year in China, industry sources close to the Taiwanese component suppliers said on Monday. A number of display panel manufacturers like Innolux and AUO are reportedly ramping up production of such modules in an effort to meet the demand for taller screens that's been steadily increasing in recent months. The leaked image below is thought to depict the overall design of some plates featured on those Chinese phones, though the source of the report didn't elaborate on the sketch.

While none of the five largest original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the Far Eastern country have yet announced new 18:9 devices that will be released this year, one industry insider claims that Huawei, OPPO, Vivo, Xiaomi, and Gionee have all already ordered bezel-less display modules from local suppliers. It's understood that not all of those modules are equipped with 18:9 screens, but a number of them certainly are, the source said. All of the newly ordered components will be used for smartphones that are set to compete in the entry level and lower mid-range segment of the handset market, the insider believes, adding that none of them will retail for more than 1,599 yuan, which amounts to a little over $237 by today's exchange rates. Chinese consumer electronics manufacturers are reportedly optimistic about the appeal of such devices and have already ordered large quantities of bezel-free display modules, expecting significant demand for their new products later this ye ar. Xiaomi itself is apparently set to launch three full-screen smartphones in the second half of 2017, with one of them being the highly anticipated Mi MIX 2. The other two handsets may be aimed at different price segments, insiders speculate.

Tall mobile image formats weren't pioneered by LG Electronics but the South Korean company played a significant role in popularizing them earlier this year after it announced the LG G6 with a Full Vision display panel featuring an 18:9 aspect ratio. This design language already started trickling down to LG's more affordable devices, having recently appeared on the newly announced LG Q series of mid-rangers. LG's rival Samsung gave an even larger contribution to bringing this design practice into the mainstream spotlight with the extremely popular Galaxy S8 lineup and its 18.5:9 Infinity Display that's also expected to be featured on the upcoming Galaxy Note 8.

Source: Report: More Chinese OEMs To Release 18:9 Phones In 2017