Weekly Wrap-Up #31 : LG G6, Vivo V5S, Smartron, Google Pixel, Galaxy Note 7R & More….

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The latest PhoneRadar weekly wrap up is here with all the latest happenings around the smartphones. While there are many smartphone launches happened in the last few of weeks, we have seen very few in the last seven days. The South Korean company, LG has brought its latest flagship device to the Indian market. Talking about the upcoming devices, we will be seeing few more major launches in the next few days in India and China. Also, check out the list of upcoming smartphones to know about the new smartphone launches that are scheduled for the next few weeks.

• Unlike the earlier launched flagship devices, LG has brought it latest flagship device very soon to the Indian market. Last week, the company launched the LG G6 in India for Rs. 51,990. However, there are few interesting deals on Amazon India that bring the final price to around Rs. 45,000. It sports a 5.7-inch FullVision Display with Quad HD+ resolution and an unusual aspect ratio of 18:9. Under the hood is the last-gen Snapdragon 821 SoC coupled with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage. There is a dual camera setup on the rear featuring dual 13MP sensors. It comes with a non-removable battery, and the device is now water and dust resistant. While the U.S variant includes the wireless charging option, the Indian variant features the 32-bit Quad DAC for Hi-Fi audio output.
• The Indian smartphone brand Smartron has signed the 3G and 4G patents deal with the chip maker Qualcomm. With this deal, Smartron has a royalty-bearing patent license to develop, manufacture and sell WCDMA, CDMA2000, and 4G/LTE complete devices. Last year, the company launched the t.phone smartphone and the t.book 2-in-1 tablet. In the next few days, the company is all set to unveil its latest product srt.phone. Apart from the smartphones, the company is more focused on the IoT products and has been developing the tronX platform. Qualcomm has been fighting in court with smartphone brands like Meizu in China and Apple in the U.S. However, it had also successfully made agreements with OPPO, Vivo and few other brands in the last few months.

• Samsung has pulled off the Galaxy Note 7 devices from the market after the battery explosion fiasco. But due to the proper recycling process, the company is bringing the back the devices to the market as the refurbished units with a smaller battery. The latest reports hints about the Galaxy Note 7R (a.k.a Refurbished Galaxy Note 7) going on sale in June in South Korea via three carriers. It will come with the model number SM-935 and might cost $250 lesser the official launch price of original Galaxy Note 7. If you are excited to see the cheaper and refurbished Galaxy Note 7 in India, back in February, the company has officially denied the launch of the refurbished device. Though we can’t confirm the availability of the device in India, we don’t think refurbished units will be made available in the most of the Western market due to their strict laws.
• In 2015, Lenovo launched the new ZUK brand to compete with the online exclusive brands like OnePlus and Xiaomi. While the company already sells the smartphone through Lenovo and Moto brands, the new ZUK hasn’t seen the popularity to generate the sales. Last year, the company also made the ZUK devices available in the India but with the Lenovo branding. Now, the latest reports from China hints at the closing down of the ZUK brand in the next few weeks. While everyone expected to see the upcoming flagship device ZUK Z3 that is also rumored to feature bezel-less display. Even the Lenovo is said to kill the Lenovo brand in the smartphone world. The company seems to focus on the Moto brand which has a decent recognizing the most parts of the world. As there is no official confirmation, take these details with a pinch of salt.

• Vivo had launched the Vivo V5S smartphone in India as an upgraded variant to the Vivo V5. The device is priced at Rs. 18,990 and comes with similar specification as on the Vivo V5 which is now retailing at Rs. 15,000. It will be available in Crown Gold and Matte Black color options. The Vivo V5S sports a 5.5-inch HD display and is powered by MediaTek MT6750 SoC. There is 4GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage with a MicroSD card slot. The USP of the device is its 20MP selfie camera with a Moonlight flash and f/2.0 aperture. There is also a 13MP primary camera on the rear with PDAF and LED flash. With the dedicated AK4376 audio chip, the Vivo V5S will surely give better audio output than other devices. It is backed by a 3,000mAh non-removable battery and supports dual SIM dual standby. Connectivity options include 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, 3.5mm Audio jack, and MicroUSB 2.0 port.
• Xiaomi has officially entered the Russian smartphone market by launching the Mi MIX, Mi Note 2, and Redmi 4X smartphones. While China and India are the two most important markets for the company, it has been selling its devices in Africa and Southeast Asian countries. The Xiaomi smartphones are also sold in the middle east countries. In Russia, the company has partnered with the local distributor RDC to sell its smartphones via RDC’s online and offline stores. The Xiaomi Mi MIX comes with 6GB of RAM and 256GB of storage is priced at RUB 39,990 (approx $700 / Rs. 45,000). It also comes with the 18K golden rings around the fingerprint and rear camera module. The Mi Note 2 with 6GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage comes with a price tag of RUB 34,990 (approx $615 / Rs. 39,500). Talking about the entry-level Redmi 4X, it comes with a price tag of RUB 12,990 (approx $230 / Rs. 14,700).

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