MyPhone Rio Fun: Super Affordable 5-in Dual Core Smartphone

MyPhone officially announced yesterday the launch of the smartphone in their Rio line - it's the new MyPhone Rio Fun.  This is a new dual core unit priced at 2,999 pesos only.  Sounds fun right?  Let us now check this game changing unit that will be launched by MyPhone probably next week.

Here are the quick specifications of MyPhone Rio Fun:

• 1.3GHz dual-core MTK6572 processor
• Mali-400 MP
• 512MB RAM
• 5-inch TFT touchscreen display, 480 x 854 resolution
• 512 MB of storage, expandable via microSD up to 32GB
• 3.2-megapixel rear camera
• VGA front camera
• Dual-SIM, dual-stand by
• 2G only
• Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS
• 1800mAh battery
• Android 4.2
• Suggested Retail Price:  Php 2,999

First Impressions:

This MyPhone Rio Fun is like the other devices from the Rio family that comes in variety of colors.  Aside from that, this has the biggest screen of all the 3,000-peso mark smartphones, making it a bang for buck.

Unlike the first Rio devices, this MyPhone Rio Fun doesn't have a plastic shell, but it has a traditional plastic cover instead.  The back has a matte finish just like the past Rio product.  Though you can obviously observe the TFT is quiet lower compared to the former Rio, it is basically understandable based on the price point of this unit.

In terms of the fluidity of the navigation, we are happy to announce that it is fluid enough to bare the daily task.  This Rio Fun is as smooth as the second version of Rio that was recently released, not as laggy as the first one.  Though it has limited memory storage, rated at 512 MB, MyPhone already fixed the issue of SD storage problems.  Customers now, using MyPhone Rio Fun, can store applications directly on the microSD flawlessly.  Problem resolved from the first batches of MyPhone Rio.

AnTuTu Benchmark and Final Verdict:

As far as benchmarking is concerned, this smartphone is performing well enough for a dual core processor.  With the 11226 benchmark result, this is not bad if we are talking about the price point of this unit.  Another minor issue that would make customers think also would be the 2G only capability of this Rio Fun, but then again, it is only 2,999 pesos.  Not bad right?  Definitely, I would recommend this for those who are under the budget, yet they want a decent looking smartphone.  Very good for the students as well, especially nowadays that classes will begin next week, just in time for the release of this good smartphone.

picture credits: unbox.ph

THL Mobile 32% SALE

Novo7Tech, the distributor of THL mobile phones here in the Philippines, and are known to release monstrous phones due to their high RAM and ROM or memory capacity, hitting 2GB and 32GB (plus expandable to 64GB) respectively, recently announced that they are going on sale on all of their mobile products.  Slashing 32% from the original price.  Yes you heard it right!!!  Nice deal huh?!  The said sale will run starting today, May 15 until Sunday, May 18, 2014.  All Novo7Tech branches are covered in the said sale.

So what are you waiting for?!  Grab those "monster phones" on the loose!

Cherry Mobile Flare 2.0 at Php 3,999: Quad-core ng Bayan Unboxing

Cherry Mobile recently launched Cherry Mobile Flare 2.0 to the public at SM North The Block last Saturday, September 21, 2013.  Cherry Mobile dubbed this unit as "Quad-core ng Bayan," as it aims to replace its predecessor, the "Dual-core ng Bayan" Flare success last year.  One might think, based on the specifications of Flare 2.0, that it is most likely the same, except for the fact that it is using a quad-core processor now and in stock Android JellyBean 4.1.  Before we run on some aspects, let us check the specifications of this unit.

Cherry Mobile Flare 2.0 Specifications:

• 1.2 GHz Qualcomm 8225Q Quad-core Processor
• Adreno 203 GPU
• 512 MB RAM
• 4GB Internal Storage, expandable via microSD Card
• Dual SIM in Dual Standby
• 5.0 - megapixel rear-facing camera with Dual LED flash and autofocus
• VGA front-facing camera
• 4.0-inch capacitive touchscreen
• 3G, WiFi, GPS, Bluetooth, WiFi Hotspot
• Android Jelly Bean 4.1
• Rated 1,500 mAh Battery
• Suggested Retail Price:  Php3,999

Cherry Mobile Flare 2.0 Official Box

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Set to Launch on September 25th

Samsung officially announced yesterday at the IFA Conference in Berlin the latest entry to the phablet family, the Samsung Galaxy Note 3.  This will be launched on September 25th.  It flaunts its 5.7-inch Super AMOLED Display and its signature S Pen stylus

The new Note 3 will be replace with a stunning rear casing opting for faux-leather finish complete with stitching.  The resolution display is 1920 x 1080 and accompanied by a 2.3GHz quad-core processor, 3GB of RAM, a 13-megapixel camera, 32 or 64 GB of storage with microSD card support, and an enormous 3,200 mAh battery.

Samsung Galaxy Note 3

This carry the Android 4.3 Jelly Bean along with Samsung's TouchWiz UI. The existing features like Multi Window have been improved, which now lets you pull up two instances of the same app at the same time. Information can then be transferred from one window to the next. Samsung also introduced My Magazine, which the company made in collaboration with Flipboard.  The improved S Pen brings with it a number of new software features, including Air Command, which pulls up a radial menu for quick access to built-in stylus-friendly apps like Actions Memos, S Note, Scrapbook, and S Finder. Air Command can be accessed from anywhere in the operating system by simply hovering the S Pen just above the screen and pressing the button on the stylus.

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 will be available in jet black, classic white, and blush pink, and will launch in more than 140 countries on September 25th and worldwide availability is scheduled for October.

Credits:  IGN 

Google KILLED Key Lime Pie in Replacement of KitKat

Hours ago in New Delhi, India, Google announced that the next Android mobile O.S. (operating system) version 4.4 will be named KitKat, after the famous chocolate of Nestle.

"We now have over 1 billion Android activations and hope this guy in front of the building keeps that momentum going," Pichai tweeted as well as posted an image of a giant Android mascotbuilt like KitKat chocolate.

KitKat Android

This was leaked from the LG-build Nexus 5 handset, which most likely, will carry the first Android system.  The Head of the Android Division of Google also reiterated that, “Android is the operating system that powers over 1 billion smartphones and tablets. Since these devices make our lives so sweet, each Android version is named after a dessert: Cupcake, Donut, Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread, Honeycomb, Ice Cream Sandwich, and Jelly Bean. As everybody finds it difficult to stay away from chocolate we decided to name the next version of Android after one of our favorite chocolate treats, Kitkat®!”

The Story Behind

A Google spokesperson said that, 'KitKat has been a favorite chocolate among the engineering team for some time, so for the K release, we asked Nestle if they’d be willing to lend the iconic bar to its name. We also worked with them to create a limited edition Android KitKat bar coming soon to a supermarket aisle near you,' 

John Lagerling, director of Android global partnerships, also explained about the naming convention of Android KitKat:  ‘We realised that very few people actually know the taste of a key lime pie. One of the snacks that we keep in our kitchen for late-night coding are KitKats. And someone said: 'Hey, why don't we call the release KitKat?’ 

‘We didn't even know which company controlled the name, and we thought that [the choice] would be difficult. But then we thought well why not, and we decided to reach out to the Nestle folks.’ 


Nestle apparently okayed the use of its brand name within 24-hours of receiving Google’s enquiry about using it. 

Nestle is fine with the said agreement since it will also boost up their sales in return.  It was an honor for them to be part of a prestigious company like Google.

Photo Credits:  The Times of India

Cherry Mobile Razor: Cheapest Quad-Core on a Dragontrail Glass?!

YES! YES! YES! You heard that one right!  This piece of gadget was released a while ago, July 19 and the event was called or dubbed as the #RazorRush.  This was released on their concept store at SM North EDSA, the same with the other handsets on-sale like, Cherry Mobile Burst, Titan TV, Spark, Blaze and the like.  But before you rush to your seats later, you may want to know something about this phone, first of - the BATTERY IS NON-REMOVABLE and is rated at 1,750mAh only for a quad-core.  Another thing, if you are into big screens already, this one is not for you since it is only 4.5'in in display.

But what's good about this, you can brag that you have a DRAGONTRAIL SCREEN already, meaning it is scratch resistant, the cheapest in the market so far.  And another good point is the RAM capacity which boast 1Gb already, as compared to their past handsets like Cherry Mobile Thunder 2.0, which has 512Mb RAM only.

Physically thin at 7.7mm only.  Pretty good huh?!  Though we haven't tested the interface yet, we are bound to know in the next few days.  For those who purchased already, feel free to share here.  And we will be updating this phone from time to time for some updates.

Cherry Mobile Razor Specifications:

• 1.2 GHz quad-core processor 
• PowerVR SGX544 GPU
• 1 GB RAM
• 4 GB internal storage, expandable via microSD Card
• 4.5-inch qHD IPS display (540 x 960, 245ppi)
• 8.0-megapixel rear-facing camera with autofocus
• 2.0-megapixel front-facing camera
• Bluetooth, WiFi, WiFi Hotspot, GPS/aGPS, 3G, HSPA+
• Android 4.2 Jelly Bean
• 1750 mAh non-removeable battery
• Suggested Retail Price: Php 6,499

UPDATE:  

• It's using a MEDIATEK processor

Cherry Mobile Omega HD: Beyond Expectations - Out on April!

Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0 and Cherry Mobile Omega HD

Cherry Mobile Omega HD was one of the anticipated phone last Monday as it was press released that the phone would be due to release on Monday.  It is set to be released on April with no specific dates yet.  Omega HD was far off the specs of the first released Cherry Mobile Omega months ago.  And a lot of people now are excited to get hold of this device.  Cherry Mobile Omega HD is priced at Php 7,999 only.  With all of the new and exciting features of this device, like the bragged Dragon Trail Glass, which according to some, more advance with the Gorilla Glass of the other brands in the market, and with the high specifications on the way, we can say so far that this is a powerful phone to own.  Not to spoil the moment guys but this is NOT a quad-core phone as expected.  Omega HD is only running on a Dual-core chip.  So here are the specifics of the said phone below.


Cherry Mobile Omega HD specifications:

• Android 4.1.1 Jellybean
• 1GHz Dual-core MediaTEK CPU
• 1GB RAM
• 4GB Internal Storage 
• Expandable up to 32GB via microSD
• 5-inch IPS Capacitive Touchscreen - 1280×720 resolution (HD)
• Scratch-resistant Dragon Trail Glass Technology
• 12.0-Megapixels rear-facing camera with BSI and LED Flash
• Can record video 720p at 30 fps
• 2.0-Megapixels front-facing camera with BSI
• Wi-Fi b/g/n
• WiFi Hotspot
• GPS
• 3G
• Bluetooth 4.0
• Battery Capacity:  2,100 mAh battery
• Comes in Black or White
• Suggested Retail Price:  Php 7,999

Physical Appearance and Screen Quality:  Higher Notch than the First One

Cherry Mobile Omega HD Back View

Cherry Mobile Omega HD has a 5-inch screen which makes it more of a phablet feel than your typical mobile phone - very good for multimedia viewing like YouTube and the like.  Omega HD has a glossy finish which is very common to phones nowadays especially to Samsung units.  It has a very solid feel but despite of that, it has a lighter weight as compared to the first Cherry Mobile Omega that was released months ago.  Aside from the physical development of this device, the scree quality was also upgraded from the first generation Omega, making this an HD capable display at 1280x780 pixels.  The screens background black was really an improvement as well.  It is more defined in this device.

CM Omega HD Quality Background

Tougher Smartphone:  Dragon Trail Glass Technology

Most of the people from the event was quite amazed because Cherry Mobile came-up with the testing area for this feature.  So it is like "Scratch the Omega HD all-you-want!".  It mainly promotes screen durability from the normal wear and tear once you place it on your pockets with coins, keys and other metal stuffs that you normally go with your phone.  There are some people who are claiming that this is a better than the Gorilla Glass Technology by other phones.  Well as for the actual show, we can see that this is really tough enough!

Swiss Knife?! Why would you do that to your phone?! =)

Ballpens and Coins:  The usual sniper in one's pocket together with the phone

Camera and Video Functions:  Pretty Amazing for Low Light Situations

Cherry Mobile Omega HD camera was really a plus factor on this product.  Having a 12.0-Megapixel Rear Camera with BSI and LED Flash rolled into one was really THE THING!  This goes out to the camera porn in you.  For those who are not familiar with BSI or the Back Illuminated Sensor, this improves the quality of the picture or video in terms of low light conditions.  Well the pioneer of this kind of feature was Sony wayback 2009.  Then HTC Evo 4G came and this one also became a selling point of Apple iPhone 4.

Video recording was also amazing for a phone with this price since it can give you 30 frames per second all throughout at 720p quality.

Benchmarks:  Needs to be Improved

So far, Omega HD gave us a very promising benchmark, though it can still be improved further before the release this coming April.  They are still having some adjustments on this part so let us not give violent reactions so far.  The AnTuTu Benchmark 3.2.1 gave us only 4497 which is quite low as compare to Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0's 10790.

AnTuTu Benchmark

While on the other hand, the Quadrant Standard gave us 2720, which is lower than HTC One X and Asus Transformer Prime.

Quadrant Standard

Let us just cross our fingers for this one this coming April.

Gameplay:  Smooth so far

Cherry Mobile Omega HD so far has a good interface especially for the never ending Temple Run 2.  No lags were encountered but overall we cannot still give a full impression on this one not until we have the actual marketed phone on our hands.  So watch out for that!

Overall Verdict:  Promising One and Worth a Try

Cherry Mobile Omega HD has the makings of a perfect phone.  Except for some who are expecting that this would be a quad-core one.  With all of the features stated and the interface so far, we can say that it is worth your money.  We just have to watch out for review first before buying since the benchmarks so far is quite an average, but of course, we cannot still judge from here on.  I know for a fact that they will still make changes and further improvements on this phone before they release it in the market on April 2013.

So just hang there and I will give you some more when April comes!

Photo Credits:  Cherry Mobile

Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0: Quad-Core Phone on the Budget

Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0

Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0 has been launched today.  Despite of the anticipated Cherry Mobile Omega HD release today.  It was said to us that the Omega HD failed to arrive in the Philippines today.  So as a consolation, I am now presenting the Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0!!!  Quad-core phone that cost you below 10,000 pesos.  This Flame 2.0 has projected promising specifications so far and I will be posting the first hand information on this unit.  This Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0 is priced at 6,999 pesos.  This will be available this coming April so watch out for that!  This is an ultimate phone for those who want to enjoy a quad-core in a much lower price.  Right on the budget.  We all know that the cheapest quad-core in the market would cost you roughly 18,000 pesos, but before you set you expectations high, let take a sneak peak of this unit first.

Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0 Specifications:

• Android 4.1 Jellybean
• 1.2 GHz Quad-core Snapdragon Processor
• 4.5-inch qHD Capacitive Touch Panel
• Expandable microSD up to 32GB
• Dual Sim/Dual Standby Feature
• ROM: 4GB
• RAM: 1GB
• GSM/GPRS/EDGE
• wi-fi b/g/n capable
• Bluetooth 4.0
• 5.0-Megapixel with Flash (VGA Front)
• 3G capable
• 5 point multitouch panel
• GPS capable
• Battery Capacity:  1,600 mAh
• Suggested Retail Price:  Php 6,999

Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0 Specs

Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0 Suggested Retail Price

Striking Feature:  Picture-in-Picture Function

This is one of the unique feature function of this quad-core phone.  Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0 has this Picture-in-Picture Function, wherein you can take pictures simultaneously using both the front and rear camera.  Nice huh?!  This is a good function for camera whores out there.  

Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0 Picture-in-Picture Mode

The picture quality is definitely good.  What is more interesting is the new imaging feature.  Will this new imaging feature makes this gadget a hit to the consumers?  Let us see in the next few days and weeks.

New Imaging Function of Flame 2.0

I will be posting a more detailed review of this Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0 in the next few days - benchmarks, gaming experience and possible lags will be posted within the week.  Hope to follow and visit me here anytime!


Update: 

AnTuTu Benchmark

Here is the AnTuTu Benchmark of the Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0.  It exceeded HTC One X in way.  See for yourself on the picture below.

Cherry Mobile Flame 2.0 AnTuTu Benchmark

It exceeded my expectations also as per performance but as per the battery capacity, this could be the downfall.  You might want to invest on powerbanks or bring your charger with you most of the time.  Let us see if the people will have the same feedback with this phone once it becomes available in the market.

Cherry Mobile Flare: Ultimate phone but.. ALWAYS Out-of-Stock!?!

Cherry Mobile Flare

Cherry Mobile Flare has been a crowd favorite eversince its first major release last November 2012.  It is said to be a hit even for the masses since it is a Big-Bang-for-the-Buck.  Despite of its raging issues with its battery capacity.  It is still loved by many.  I am not only a blogger but I am also a gadget lover, so in search for this precious find, I tried looking for stocks of this best buy unit.  I tried looking for this phone from the far North of Metro Manila all the way down to the Southern part, and I just found out that of the almost 20 kiosk or concept stores of Cherry Mobile, only 3 of them has a stock.  But here is the worst part of the story, it was OVERPRICED!!!  Come to think of it, if you are a simple student or an average employee who just saved up 4,000 pesos for several weeks or months, and there you are stuck in the middle of nowhere and having heard the sales person telling you that the price of Cherry Mobile Flare is already 4,699 pesos, some stores would give you 4,499 pesos.  I also saw a mobile shop in a mall that priced this unit for 5,299 pesos.  WHAT IS THAT?! I thought that the price is 3,999 pesos...  There goes the supply and demand thing!  I knew that this would happen.  Since it was a big hit, definitely the businessmen behind this would barely increase their prices.  It is okay to increase given that you get some additional stuffs like back covers, jelly case, or microSD maybe, but for the majority of them, it was just a BASIC package.

CM Flare:  Out-of-Stock OR Faced-out?!

Lets face it!  Cherry Mobile Flare was the Goddess of Dual-core Android phones despite of its minor flaws.  But majority of the consumers now are having a big question mark on their faces.  Is Cherry Mobile Flare still available or faced-out already?!  Up to this very moment, Cherry Mobile is not releasing any formal announcement about it but some who are desperate enough to have one would just plunge to the overpriced phone retail.  

Flare is really a good buy, but how would we get one if we can't buy one?!  I still hope that they would still release or continue this unit despite the "battery" issue.  Kudos Cherry Mobile for a job well done and for bringing this powerful phones to the masses.

Photo Credits:  Cherry Mobile Phils.