The Huawei Honor 7 already went through our review routine and you can learn all there is to know about the smartphone right here. Naturally we ran our battery tests to checkup its performance and we weren’t disappointed.

The Honor 7 relies on a 5.2″ 1080p IPS display and runs on a custom Kirin 935 chipset with a powerful octa-core Cortex-A53 processor, Mali-T628 quad-core GPU and 3GB of RAM. The phone is powered by a 3,100mAh battery. The non-removable unit has the same capacity as what the Honor 6 got – a little extra juice than the P8.

The Honor 7 did well on our 3G talk test lasting a notch above 14 and a half hours. While this is indeed a respectable result, it’s less than Honor 6’s 17 hours score.

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Talk time

Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro
33:20h

Huawei Ascend Mate2 4G
33:19h

Motorola DROID Turbo
30:09h

Microsoft Lumia 640 XL LTE Dual SIM
29:46h

Microsoft Lumia 640 XL LTE
29:46h

Microsoft Lumia 640 XL Dual SIM
29:46h

Microsoft Lumia 640 XL
29:46h

HTC One (M8) for Windows
28:34h

Nokia Lumia 1520
28:34h

Samsung Galaxy Note 4
28:31h

Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet LTE
28:25h

Samsung Galaxy S5
27:37h

Sony Xperia Z1
26:53h

Samsung Galaxy S6 active
26:29h

Samsung P6800 Galaxy Tab 7.7
25:45h

LG G3
25:38h

LG G Pro 2
25:37h

LG G Flex
25:19h

Sony Xperia T2 Ultra
25:16h

LG G2
25:15h

Samsung Galaxy A7 Duos
25:12h

BlackBerry Passport
25:12h

Huawei Ascend Mate
25:12h

Motorola Nexus 6
25:03h

Alcatel Hero
25:02h

Oppo N1
25:01h

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo
24:52h

Sony Xperia Z Ultra
24:23h

Apple iPhone 6 Plus
23:49h

LG AKA
23:20h

Sony Xperia Z3
23:13h

Microsoft Lumia 640 Dual SIM
23:09h

Microsoft Lumia 640 LTE
23:09h

Microsoft Lumia 640 LTE Dual SIM
23:09h

Oppo R7
22:58h

Samsung P6200 Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus
22:42h

Motorola Moto E (2nd gen)
22:36h

Sony Xperia Z2
22:13h

Sony Xperia C3 Dual
22:11h

Meizu MX4 Pro
22:09h

Yota YotaPhone 2
22:09h

Samsung ATIV SE
22:05h

Xiaomi Redmi Note
21:41h

Samsung Galaxy Note Edge
21:39h

Xiaomi Mi 4i
21:02h

LG Optimus G Pro E985
20:45h

HTC One M9
20:44h

Sony Xperia Z1 Compact
20:42h

Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX
20:24h

Motorola RAZR i XT890
20:07h

Huawei Ascend Mate7
20:06h

Samsung Galaxy A3
20:04h

Samsung Galaxy E7
20:04h

Samsung Galaxy A3 Duos
20:04h

Oppo Find 7
20:03h

Samsung Galaxy S5 Active
20:01h

BlackBerry Q10
20:00h

OnePlus One
19:56h

Samsung Galaxy Grand 2
19:55h

Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 I9200
19:54h

Sony Xperia SP
19:49h

Samsung Galaxy S6
19:48h

Samsung Galaxy S6 edge
19:48h

Sony Xperia T3
19:48h

HTC Butterfly 2
19:23h

HTC Butterfly S
19:14h

HTC Desire Eye
19:11h

Oppo R819
19:03h

Asus PadFone X
18:45h

Xiaomi Mi 4
18:15h

Samsung Galaxy Note 3
18:12h

LG G2 mini
18:11h

Oppo Find 7a
18:11h

Samsung I9505 Galaxy S4
18:03h

Samsung Galaxy A5 Duos
18:02h

Samsung Galaxy A5
18:02h

LG G Flex2
17:51h

Sony Xperia ZR
17:48h

HTC One (E8)
17:47h

…

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A few weeks ago we looked at the history of iOS, now let’s remember the OS that are no longer with us. Some of them powered smartphones before someone even coined the term, but they proved evolutionary dead ends.

Symbian: 2000-2012

Many will remember Symbian as their first smartphone experience. The OS launched on mobile in 2000 with the Ericsson R380 and the Nokia 9210 Communicator. It saw many versions – Series 60, 80, 90, also UIQ. Most didn’t live long, Series 60 coming out as the sole survivor.

It turned into Symbian^1, Symbian Anna and finally Belle. The last few Symbian-running Nokias got updated to Belle (by that time Nokia was the only maker still using the OS) and the Nokia 808 PureView proved to be the last Symbian phone ever.

Windows Mobile: 2000-2010

Like Symbian, Windows Mobile hit the mobile scene in 2000. Back then it was PocketPC 200 and powered PDAs and phones, the term “smartphone” hadn’t caught on yet. It transformed into Windows Mobile and HTC and others helped transform its UI into something better than a desktop UI running on a stylus-centered touchscreen.

Microsoft saw the end coming and launched Windows Mobile 6.5 as a stopgap measure while Windows Phone 7 was being finished. The last WM6-powered phone seems to be the Sony Ericsson Aspen launched in 2010.

Windows Phone 7: 2011-2013

In 2010 Microsoft was finally ready with its next-generation mobile OS, dubbed Windows Phone 7 (no more “Mobile”). Unfortunately, while the software was done the hardware wasn’t. Nokia would eventually kick things off with the Lumia 800 in 2011.

After several updates, this branch of Windows reached version 7.8 and that was the end of the line for it. Much like Windows Mobile 6, WP7 phones could not be updated to version 8. The last phone with Windows Phone 7.x to launch was the Lumia 925 in June 2013, another PureView finishing off an OS.

Danger OS: 2002-2010

In 2002 Sharp and Danger introduced the Hiptop – a smartphone with a QWERTY keyboard sold by T-Mobile as the Sidekick. With solid messaging features it became fairly popular for a while, surprisingly lasting until 2010 when hardware keyboards were old news.

KIN OS: 2010-2011

Microsoft bought Danger and continued its partnership with Sharp to produce the Kin. It switched the carrier to Verizon but kept the hardware QWERTY. The Kin were a sort of limited smartphone – not quite on par with iOS, Android and even Windows Phone 7.

The touchscreen-only Kin TWOm was discontinued in 2011 as it became clear the Kins weren’t gaining traction and Microsoft’s new darling, WP7, was ready to go. One thing has to be said though – KIN OS inherited the UI style of Zune, which was the groundwork on which Metro UI was based.

Also, by that time Danger founder by the name of Andy Rubin had moved on to another company that produced a little OS known as Android.

Palm OS: 1996-2008

Most of those are mere newcomers to the smartphone game. Palm OS has been going since 96 and like Windows Mobile it began life as a PDA OS, eventually growing phone functionality.

Palm phones were quite well known for their hardware QWERTY keyboards and that lasted until 2008 with the release of the Palm Centro.

Web OS: 2009-2010

Palm wasn’t ready to give up on keyboards, but it gave up on Palm OS. It created Web OS – one of the most influential touch OSes, that barely managed to survive a year in the smartphone market. Launched with Palm Pre and put out to pasture with the Pre 2.

It’s still ticking as a TV OS in some LG models and its UI legacy continues in Android and iOS.

BlackBerry OS: 1999-2013

BlackBerry started off with a pager in 1999, moving on to phones like many of the other OSes on this list. There was collaboration between Palm and BlackBerry for a while, but the BlackBerry OS like Palm OS was aging quickly in the eyes of iPhone users.

Eventually the classic OS was killed off in favor of BlackBerry 10 in 2013. Despite the similarity in the name it was a completely new operating system, based on QNX which the company had acquired earlier. BB10 is still on the market though it’s once dominant position is just a distant dream.

Maemo, MeeGo, Bada: 2008-2012

It’s a slaughterhouse over here. Maemo was Nokia’s backup OS, Linux-based and powerful it powered the company’s proto-phablet, the…

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Motorola seems to have struck gold with the Moto X Style, judging by the opinion of the vast majority of you, our readers. Gathering a huge 87% of upvotes, the smartphone may have broken the record for positive feedback, we’re not entirely sure.

Record-breaking or not, the numbers paint a bright future for the Moto X Style, provided, of course, that fan love translates into actual sales. With the $399 price tag, which gets you proper high-end hardware, we don’t see why it shouldn’t.

The company’s all-time top-seller, the Moto G, now in its third generation, appears set to continue generating sales numbers that will make competitors jealous. Sure, the 68% approval rate is not as exciting as the one of the Moto X Style, but the Moto G was always meant to speak to a wider audience, and thus make it to a lot more pockets.

The Moto X Play, the truly unexpected little X brother, which Motorola kept a secret until the very last moment, has managed to appeal to the majority of you as well. Splitting the gap between the flagship Moto X Style and the affordable Moto G, the Play is hot enough to two thirds of you – a reasonable compromise between price and features is always appreciated, and an inclination towards battery endurance certainly helps its case.

The second-gen “flagship killer” comes last on this list, but just because the Motos had it outnumbered. With a 2-to-1 positive score, the OnePlus 2 is also shaping up to be a success, though there’s always the matter of availability and questionable marketing practices, which may hurt its sales…

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With yet another exciting week behind us, it’s time once again for a quick recap of the highlights from the news section. In the wake of IFA and Samsung’s “Unpacked” event, the industry is still busy with rumors and speculations about upcoming devices, but a few new phone announcements did manage to creep through as well.

It come as no surprise that the Galaxy Note 5 is still on everybody’s mind. It should be unveiled alongside the Galaxy S6 edge+ on August 13 and we have been seeing a lot more of both handsets. Most-recently their full specs sheets popped up online and so did a set of detailed hands-on photos for the next Note. However, nothing is really certain yet and we just have to wait patiently for the event to finally find out the whole story.

Sony has also been quite active recently. It announced two new devices – the Xperia C5 Ultra and the Xperia M5. And the best is yet to come with the promise of a proper flagship device in the face of the Xperia Z5. The eagerly-anticipated Sony handset also appeared in a few alleged shots, along with a Compact version.

Asus made the headlines as well, thanks to a total of three new devices. The Zenfone 2 Deluxe brings new styling to the current Asus lineup and the Zenfone 2 Laser comes boasting improved camera performance. The third new device is the Zenfone Max, which comes with a whopping 5,000 mAh battery pack.

In other news, Samsung quietly released the S4 mini and made an Exynos-powered Galaxy A8 available in India. The Microsoft Lumia 950 (XL) was also spotted in the wild and we got a first glimpse of what to expect from two next-get mobile chipsets – the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 and the MediaTek Helio X30.

If you think you might have missed something from the week, here is a list of the hottest topics in the tech world.

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Samsung Galaxy Note 5 now portrayed in detailed hands-on pictures
The latest leak about the upcoming high-end phablet lets us take a peek at it from all possible angles.

Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 edge plus full specs sheets revealed
Full sets of specs popped up on a Chinese website today for both upcoming devices.

Live image allegedly shows the Xperia Z5 and Z5 Compact
The two upcoming smartphones flank an iPhone 6 and showcase their fingerprint scanners.

Sony announces the Xperia C5 Ultra and the Xperia M5
The Xperia C5 Ultra is a giant selfie camera phone while the M5 is a ‘super mid-range’ phone.

Asus announces Zenfone Max with 5,000 mAh battery
The Zenfone Max it comes with an ample 5,000 mAh battery that should give it extra long power autonomy.

Leaked image shows the Xperia Z5 and Z5 Compact from new angle
This time around the focus is on letting us peek at the fingerprint scanner-carrying power button.

Asus Zenfone 2 Deluxe and Zenfone 2 Laser go official
The Zenfone 2 Deluxe goes up to 128GB storage, while the Zenfone 2 Laser brings camera parity for the 5″ model.

Gone in 64 seconds: 30,000 OnePlus 2 units sold out
This was the first batch, there’s a new one coming in 7 days.

Samsung Galaxy S4 mini plus quietly released
Samsung I9195I Galaxy S4 mini plus / VE with Snapdragon 410 chipset and LTE is on sale across Europe.

Microsoft Lumia 950 (XL) prototype gets photographed in the wild
It will be the next top of the line Lumia-branded Windows-running smartphone, launching later this year.

Samsung Galaxy A8 is now available in India with…

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Recently, Samsung and Google announced that they will be pushing out monthly security updates to their devices after the ‘Stagefright’ exploit was discovered. But it seems other OEMs will also be joining them soon, starting with LG.

LG spokesperson confirmed to Wired that the company will be providing security updates on a monthly basis, which carriers will then release to users immediately. A Google employee also confirmed this at the Black Hat 2015 security conference.

With security becoming a bigger concern every day, it is important that manufacturers push out important security updates to devices on a regular basis rather than waiting for major software updates to push them through, which could take months. With this, users will have one less thing to worry…

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Joaquim Vergès, creator of popular Falcon Pro Twitter app for Android, announced on Twitter that he has joined the Twitter for Android core UI team and will be working on the app.

Vergès said he was tired of all the limitations imposed on third party apps by Twitter and wanted to make a killer official app with full APU and modern UI. He also clarified that Falcon will stay with him, although he didn’t mention how often, if at all, he will be updating the app from now.

Falcon Pro 3 is one of the best Twitter app on Android right now, as was its predecessor. One of the limitations faced by the previous app was that it reached the Twitter API limit, causing the developer to pull the app from the store but he continued working on it and updating the app. The current app features attractive UI and all the features you expect from a modern day Twitter app, and is regularly updated.

Hopefully, he will bring some of his designer skills to the official Twitter app and make it behave like a modern day Twitter app should because it clearly doesn’t right…

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Android has become a truly versatile OS and it is always amazing to see all the creative things OEM’s and developers are building on top of the platform. But “Vanilla Android” – the way it was meant and designed by Google also has its merits and consequently a lot of fans. Motorola has built a reputation for delivering a pure Android experience – no needless fluff or heavy features included.

But, there are still a few small pieces of software that Motorola packages with its devices, like the Moto app. One of its key features is Motorola Assist – an automation engine that with little to no overhead makes your device aware of its surroundings and able to toggle settings accordingly. It is by no means as powerful as Tasker, but is invaluable for keeping your phone quiet at precisely the right time.

Now with the latest v3.0 update, the Moto app can leverage you location as well. This allows you to tweak notification settings automatically when at work or at home. The software generally picks those up by itself, but you can teach it other locations as well and have a custom profile for each one.

Motorola Assist already has time triggers, calendar events and even you driving status at its disposal and the addition of location to its arsenal truly makes your Motorola aware of its surroundings. The new Moto app is presumably designed to ship with the company’s latest trio of new smartphones – the Moto X Style, Moto X Play and Moto X Pure Edition. However, it is also available on the Play Store and should work with any recent Motorola handset.

If you happen to own one you should definitely check it out and be sure to report back with your findings.

Source |…

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A physical keyboard on a Samsung flagship, now that is something frankly nobody could have predicted. The photo was just recently posted on twitter, courtesy Evan Blass or @evleaks, which leads us to believe it might actually turn out to be genuine.

S6e+ keyboard cover — clever. http://pic.twitter.com/4eAJKPq9ph— Evan Blass (@evleaks) August 7, 2015

The odd accessory seems more like an April Fools’ Day joke, but it looks like the Korean tech giant believes there might be a market for it. The keyboard appears to be a cover for the bottom half of the Galaxy S6 edge+ or rather a clip-on. It is quite reminiscent of the physical keyboards on some older Samsung models, like the Galaxy Pro. It even has buttons for back, home and menu at the bottom.

The concept of clip on keyboards for touchscreen devices is definitely not new and was even around back in the monochrome screen days. However, resurrecting the idea seems slightly odd nowadays, especially on a device that shows off Samsung’s latest and greatest curved AMOLED screen technology on a phablet scale.

Still, Samsung has offered stranger things in the past and there might still be a market for the gadget. It fact, various sliding, folding and attachable keyboards have always been available from third parties, so there is at least some demand.

We will leave it up to you to decide whether or not the photo is legitimate and does come from a proper press release as is supposed. In the meantime all we can do is wait for Samsung’s grand Unpacked event”, which is set for August 13 and will be the venue at which the Galaxy Note 5 and the Galaxy S6 edge+ are officially unveiled. If the keyboard case is in fact a reality, it will most-definitely be there. And who knows, maybe Samsung made one for the Note as well.

Source |…

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If you are the Android-tinkering type then it is more than likely that you have heard of the recent Stagefright vulnerability found in Google’s OS. And if not, well it all boils down to a bug, related to some core Android messaging and multimedia capabilities that could potentially allow a hacker to high-jack your Android device by simply sending you a message.

The bug, discovered by Joshua Drake from the Zimperium security firm is pretty dangerous and could potentially affect any Android device starting from version 2.2 Froyo and up, which is almost any Android device currently out there. As you can imagine, this caused quite a stir in the community. Companies like Google and Samsung were quick to respond, promising a path, with the latter already applying the necessary fixes to AOSP, which was also vulnerable itself.

Motorola is also already working on a fix and has recently released a full list of devices that it will be rolling out the required patch to as soon as possible. If you own one of these be sure to check for an OTA in the coming days and definitely install it for some extra piece of mind. The eligible handsets are:

Moto X (1st generation and 2nd generation)

Moto X Pro

Motorola Droid Turbo / Moto Maxx

Moto G (1st generation, 2nd generation and 3rd generation)

Moto G LTE (1st generation and 2nd generation)

Moto E (1st generation and 2nd generation)

Moto E LTE (2nd generation)

Motorola Droid Ultra, Droid Mini, and Droid Maxx

As you might have noticed, the company’s recently announced trio of moto X devices – Moto X Style, Moto X Play and Moto X Pure Edition are not on the list. That is because they will come with the fix bundled, as will all other future phones, since the changes have already been committed to AOSP.

And for those of you aching for some more info on the Stagefright bug it is quite aptly named as it affects one of Android’s core components, responsible for handling certain multimedia formats, such as MP4. The vulnerability itself exploits some integer overflow vulnerabilities and can be leveraged by delivering the necessary code to the victim as a multimedia message. In most cases the said message gets downloaded by the OS without need for confirmation from the user, after which the attacker can execute code remotely.

As it turns out most any recent Android or Android-based OS is vulnerable to the bug, but luckily there are still no reports of actual attacks using Stagefright. However, if you are feeling concerned you should check if you are affected using this free app and look into disabling automatic background downloading of MMS messages, where possible of course.

Source |…

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For those of you who are waiting for the next iPhone, here is some good news: Apple will unveil the device in the second week of September, most likely on September 9, according to a latest report.

The report also notes that alongside the new iPhone, the Cupertino-based company will also announce the iPad Pro as well as the next-gen Apple TV, something which is in-line with what we’ve already heard earlier.

If recent reports are to be believed, the next iPhone will be called the iPhone 6S. It will feature a Force Touch display and the Series 7000 aluminum, which is up to 60% tougher than the current aluminum…

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