Galaxy S7 and S7 edge prices confirmed, to hit the shelves on March 11

Samsung is going to unveil the Galaxy S7 series in just a day in Barcelona, but the leaks have been giving us tiny bits of information over the past few months. We pretty much know almost everything there is to know about the new flagships, but we finally get conformation of the pricing.

We had reports the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge will go on pre-order on February 22, while the actual launch will happen on March 11 in many markets.

We even heard the phones will retail at €699 for the S7 and €799 for the S7 edge, plus there is a chance the first to pre-order those to receive a free Gear VR headset.

Now we can confirm all of those rumors. Leaked promotional materials plus tips that we personally received from employees at phone retailers across Europe reveal the exact prices of the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge – €699 and €799. We also know for sure that all who pre-order the devices not only will get them three days sooner and will get a free GearVR.

Indeed, many official retailers will be throwing a free Gear VR headset for the first batch of pre-orders. The confirmed markets so far are Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands.

The S7 flagships will go on pre-order this Monday – February 22 – and they both will ship on March 8. The actual in-store availability will begin three days later on March 11.

We already had lots of confirmation on the specs of the devices, thanks to various tips and leaked materials. The Galaxy S7 will come with a 5.1″ Super AMOLED Quad HD display and will run on either Snapdragon 820 or the new Exynos chip, both version featuring 4GB of RAM.

The main camera utilizes a new 12.1MP sensor, and the microSD slot is expected to make a return. Also returning will be the IP68 dust and water resistance.

The S7 and S7 edge are going official tomorrow, so we’ll know everything in a few hours. Stay tuned!

A big thank you to Max, Ciprian, and our other anonymous…

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LG K10 now available in Europe for €249

The LG K10 smartphone – which was announced at this year’s Consumer Electronics show and went on sale around a week later – is now available for purchase in Europe, with Greece becoming one of the first European countries where the device is now up for sale.

When the K10 was unveiled, LG said that aside from a 5.3-inch 720p touchscreen, 2,300mAh battery, and Android 5.1 Lollipop, all other specs of the handset will vary based on the country you buy it from.

The model available in Greece is 4G-capable, powered by a Snapdragon 410, and comes with 1.5GB RAM and 16GB internal memory. In terms of camera, it has 13MP rear unit and a 5MP front shooter.

Source (Greek) | Via…

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Next ZUK phone launching in March

Lenovo-backed ZUK has announced that its next smartphone will be launched in March. There is, however, currently no official information on the device, although some reports say it could be a Pro variant of the ZUK Z1 – a phone, which was launched back in August last year by a subsidary of Lenovo.

It is also being speculated that ZUK might release a successor to the Z1, or an altogether different mid-range phone to compete with devices like the OnePlus X. In case you don’t already know, there have been rumors about the ZUK Z2 launching this year. The device is said to be powered by SD820 SoC and feature a rotating camera (alleged render shown above).

Whatever be the case, like the Z1, the new handset is also expected to make its sales debut in Hong-Kong/China before being available on international…

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Mysterious HTC A16 renders surface online

Sadly, by all accounts, HTC won’t be unveiling the One M10 flagship at MWC 2016, but the Taiwanese manufacturer might still show up at the venue and bring some announcements. A fresh leak, courtesy of Evan Blass, showcases an unknown device, allegedly dubbed the HTC A16.

Tomorrow’s news, yesterday: HTC A16 http://pic.twitter.com/oCvO4abh5w— Evan Blass (@evleaks) February 20, 2016

Sadly, not much else is known about the device, but simply going by the model number, we can assume that it won’t be a flagship offer, but rather more of a Desire-style one. This goes for design aspects as well – a plastic body, beefy main camera and BoomSound speakers. The latter seem to have undergone some modifications, at least on a cosmetic level, as the grill is now more compact. A16 could also be a working title and the device could easily end up in the Desire family.

The only other thing worth noting from the renders, is the pair of odd holes, within a circular module on the back of the phone. These could be for a case or accessory, perhaps even some sort of charging, we can’t say for…

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will.i.am comes up with yet another smartwatch, the Dial

It seems the failure of his first smartwatch (more of a smartbangle, really) hasn’t dampened the enthusiasm of musician will.i.am, as he has come up with yet another one, called the Dial.

The Dial, thankfully, looks more like a traditional smartwatch (if there even is such a thing). It still is a wide black band but it fits more like a watch, and has a large square display on the front. The Dial is self sufficient, which means it has its own 4G SIM and can work on its own without being paired to a smartwatch. You can take calls, messages, play music, and it even has basic fitness tracking features, such as a step-counter. There is also a voice assistant called AneedA. Also, there is a camera up front, presumably for video calls or selfies.

The watch runs on a Qualcomm processor, possibly the Snapdragon 410 that everybody else is using, but the software is not your more common Android Wear but something proprietary.

The Dial will be available exclusively through Three UK in April with a two-year contract, with prices being said to be around £20 per month. Doesn’t exactly sound like a recipe for…

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Reuters: Xiaomi to use home-grown SoCs in some of its upcoming smartphones

Less than a year after there were rumors that Xiaomi is developing its own mobile chipsets, Reuters is reporting that some of the company’s upcoming smartphones will be powered by home-grown SoCs.

Specifically, the report says that the chipsets are aimed at the Chinese company’s mid- to low-priced handsets (Redmi Note series), adding that the first of these devices will be launched in the second half of this year. A team of 200-300 people is currently working on the project.

Xiaomi currently relies on Qualcomm and Mediatek for mobile chipsets. The report says the move will hit Mediatek hard as it supplies most of the company’s mid- to low-priced smartphone chips – the number was around 20 million last year.

If the report turns out to be true, Xiaomi will become the fourth smartphone vendor after Apple, Samsung, and Huawei to enter the mobile chipset…

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LG G5 pre-registrations are now open

Just a day before it goes official, LG’s upcoming G5 flagship is now up for pre-registrations in the United States. Those signing-up will be among the first to know when the handset is available for purchase.

“The G5’s fast processing speed will make this phone ideal for the ultimate multi-tasker,” the pre-registration page says. “The G5 offers quick and easy access to all of your favorite apps and programs for when you need them most”

The device has already been the subject of endless rumors and leaks. Specs-wise, while Snapdragon 820 chipset has already been confirmed, rumors says it will feature a 5.6-inch QHD touchscreen, 4GB of RAM, as well as Android 6.0 Marshmallow. The phone is also said to come with dual-camera setup on the back, with a fingerprint sensor below…

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BlackBerry Priv receives price cut in Canada

BlackBerry’s Android-powered Priv smartphone has received a price cut in Canada, where carrier Bell is currently selling the device for CAD 299.99 on a regular two-year contract.

Other local carriers like Rogers and Telus are currently selling the handset at higher rates. What’s worth mentioning here is that Sasktel is also offering the Priv for CAD 299.99 as part of a limited time offer but the listing reveals that the device is currently out of stock online.

For those interested in purchasing an unlocked unit instead, BlackBerry has the device listed on its website for CAD 899.

Source 1…

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Oppo said to be unveiling next-gen VOOC tech at MWC 2016

We already told you that Oppo is expected to unveil a couple of big things at MWC, with one of them being a “groundbreaking power solution.” While Oppo hasn’t provided any more details as yet, it’s now being said that the company is planning to unveil the next-gen VOOC tech.

As you might already know, VOOC is a fast charging technology developed by Oppo that is claimed to be capable of charging the phone’s battery from zero to 75% in only 30 minutes. While the current VOOC technology works as a wired charging solution, the new report says Oppo could announce wireless VOOC flash charging at MWC.

This means that you’ll be able to take advantage of the technology by just placing your Oppo handset on a wireless charging board. Needless to say, this hasn’t been officially confirmed by the Chinese company, so take it with a pinch of salt. Oppo’s MWC press event is on February…

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Samsung Pay set for March launch in China

Back in December last year, Samsung said that its mobile payments service Samsung Pay will launch in China “as soon as early 2016”. Now, the South Korean company has announced that the launch will happen in the month of March, although no specific date was mentioned.

The China launch will be followed by rollout in Australia, Brazil, Singapore, Spain and, the UK later this year. The company has also added Canada to the launch roadmap. For those who missed, recently-leaked promotion material revealed that the service will also be available in Russia soon.

Samsung also revealed that around five million registered Samsung Pay users processed over 500 million dollars in the first six months. The mobile payments service is currently available in the company’s home country as well as the United…

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