We’ve waved CES 2016 goodbye, and done our recap, but be sure to check our event overview in case you’ve missed something. If you’re feeling prepared though, we can ask you right away – which brand do you think did best at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show?

Was it Huawei, who introduced the Mate 8 to the world, but ironically not to the US? Americans will need get by with a golden Nexus 6P in the upper segment, an Honor 5X in the mid-range and a MediaPad M2 10-inch quad-speaker tablet. Oh, let’s not forget the two new versions of the Huawei Watch for the ladies.

Samsung was low on smartphones, but did bring a Windows 10 tablet in the shape of the Galaxy TabPro S, a couple of different-sized Notebook 9’s and a Chromebook 3. Gear S2 got a couple of precious-metal paint jobs and a promise for iOS support, so it’s something.

Lenovo brought an updated lineup of ThinkPad X1’s. There was the 1.2-kilo Carbon ultrabook, the Yoga with a swiveling display, that can be an AMOLED in some versions, and then there was the X1 Tablet, which is sort of like a Microsoft Surface Pro rival. The Vibe S1 Lite smartphone also got announced in Las Vegas, but we’re not sure the Indian launch of the K4 Note should count.

Alcatel did its usual expo routine and announced a whole bunch of Pixi-branded devices, but also the Fierce XL, now running Windows 10. ZTE, on the other hand, unwrapped only two new entry-level smartphones, but more importantly announced the global expansion of its Nubia subbrand.

LG went out and introduced the affordable K-series smartphones, with two models to kick off. BLU had a similar presence, announcing the Vivo 5 and Vivo XL – oddly both with 5.5-inch screens.

So even if there wasn’t much in the way of new smartphones, it wasn’t an entirely uneventful CES. What do you think, who made the most interesting or important announcements this year in Las…

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Huawei threw a curve ball at CES in Las Vegas, when it announced the Mate 8 for the world and then said it won’t be available in the US. It did hand out units to us lucky media folks and we patiently waited to get to the hotel to unbox ours, instead of ripping it open right then and there on the venue floor.

So, the Huawei Mate 8 comes in a sleek black box with the name of the device imprinted on top. Pop the lid off and you’re looking at the smartphone, all 6 inches of it. A Huawei Design logo makes you double check whether it’s not a collaboration with Porsche Design. It isn’t.

Huawei Mate 8 unboxing

The phone features a similar all-metal build as its predecessor, with a satin finish on the back. We’re sort of polarized on the camera module design, and the circular fingerprint reader, and by that we mean we’re not particular fans of either. The Mate7 had a much more restrained camera bump, and it worked very well with the rectangular fingerprint sensor.

Satin-finished back • Camera and fingerprint sensor • Controls • Speaker and microUSB port

What we do like are the minimal bezels on the front, which was a staple of the Mate7 and we’re glad that it hasn’t changed. If anything Huawei has managed to shave off another 0.4mm off the width, making the Mate 8 just 80.6mm wide. The “just” bit take into account that it’s a 6-inch beast of a phablet, of course.

The display glass has gentle 2.5D-curved edges, the norm for premium devices of late. It also has a pre-applied screen protector, which you should remove before going out in public.

Phablet with a great screen-to-body ratio • Screen protector spoils the look

Inside the box you’ll find a nice pair of earphones, a USB cable and a charger. That last piece is responsible for filling up the giant 4,000mAh battery in two and a half hours, as it can push out 18W of power to the Mate 8 (9V/2A). Making for a pretty rich bundle, there’s also a frosted plastic bumper cover to keep the phone’s rear protected.

Earphones • USB cable • Fast charger • Bumper cover

That’s all for now, we’ll be proceeding with the usual review routine, so stay tuned if the Huawei Mate 8 is on your shortlist for a future…

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6 inches is the new 5.7 inches, it would appear. The Samsung Galaxy A9 (2016) got a solid 70% of approval in our weekly poll and is ready to usher in a future Note with the same diagonal, we reckon.

Now, we’re not saying it’s a Galaxy Note6 beta, no. It has plenty of merits of its own, and you seem to have picked up on those. Premium build, large battery, and a fully-equipped camera coupled with a powerful chipset and 3GB is certainly a compelling package.

Then again, 30% weren’t convinced that all of the above is worth what Samsung is asking for the A9. And there were also those that aren’t big fans of phablets in general, to whom 6 inches is a monstrosity. We know, we have a few such individuals around the office too.

But in the end, the majority has spoken. So, Samsung, if you’re reading this, you’ve gotten the vote of confidence on the size, now deliver that 6-inch Galaxy Note6. And perhaps bring back the space before the number, what was up with that…

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The first week of the year saw plenty of announces coming from CES 2016 in Las Vegas, while a few manufacturers chose to have their own events outside the US.

Huawei, Asus, LG, Samsung, ZTE, Alcatel and BLU announced new products. Huawei added the MediaPad M2 tablet to its lineup in addition to detailing the availability of the Honor 5X, Mate 8 and GX8. The maker also unveiled two smartwatches – the Watch Elegant and Jewel, both exclusive for ladies.

LG revealed a whole new K series of smartphones. The LG K10 and K7 are the first two members, but pricing and availability details are still unknown.

Of course, Samsung also had a few announcements of its own. The company revealed the Windows 10-running Galaxy TabPro S pricing will start at €999. The Gear S2 Classic will have Platinum and 18K Rose Gold options for those fancy dinner parties, while the 13.3″ and 15″ Notebook 9 Series will launch in “select markets” early 2016.

Finally, the week didn’t go without a few iPhone and Galaxy S7 leaks and rumors.

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CES 2016 overview

OnePlus X Ceramic limited edition to be available in India starting tomorrow
The good news is that the device will be available invite-free tomorrow, although only at select locations and for a limited time.

Leaked Samsung Galaxy S7 edge+ specs confirm new camera, Snapdragon 820 SoC option
The photo, allegedly of the upcoming S7 edge+ also details some other device specs, like memory and display.

Microsoft CEO says company’s smartphone market share is ‘unsustainable’
However, he argues that their aim is to create a world where a device is of lesser importance compared to the services it can access.

Asus ZenFone Max with 5.5-inch display and 5,000mAh battery now up for pre-order
The device was unveiled back in August last year at Asus’ ZenFestival in India’s capital city of New Delhi.

Asus Zenfone Zoom to hit India on Jan 22, US next month
The media event in India will take place in the city of Agra, which is home to one of the Seven Wonders of the World – the Taj Mahal.

Galaxy S7, S7 edge to be waterproof and have microSD, bigger batteries
A new rumor about Samsung’s upcoming flagships sheds even more light on their specs.

Android 6.0 Marshmallow rolling out to Moto G (3rd gen) in India
The roll out in India comes just a week after the update started hitting the device in the United States and Canada.

Report from iPhone 7 supply chain says no 3.5mm audio jack
Apple would push Bluetooth and Lightning headphones instead.

iPhone 6c live dummy photos, 3D renders suggest a familiar design
The latest 3D renders of the allegedly upcoming iPhone 6c give a glimpse of how the 4″ smartphone could look like.

Huawei P9 rumored to come with whopping 6GB RAM
The rumor also suggests the device will be made official this week at CES.

Snapdragon 820-powered LeTV Le Max Pro to cost around $535
This was revealed by a leaked screenshot/teaser obtained by a Chinese website.

Alleged OnePlus 2 Mini gets approved by TENAA
It’s like a OnePlus X, but better.

Asus ZenFone Max with 5.5-inch display and 5,000mAh battery now up for pre-order
The device was unveiled back in August last year at Asus’ ZenFestival in India’s capital city of New Delhi.

LG announces K series…

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Hey there, my name is Ricky, US editor for GSMArena. I’ve just attended CES for the first time in my life and I wanted to sit and write about what I saw there while my mind was still fresh with all the electronic goodies and gadgets that I have seen over the past 4 days.

I am currently sitting at the Las Vegas International Airport about 3 hours early to my flight back to New York. I wanted to use this time to give you a look behind the scenes of what goes on at an event like CES, outside of the device announcements, which we report on anyway.

The madness of the CES press day

By now you are probably aware that CES opens its doors to the press earlier than it does for the general public. It’s what is called the Pre-CES day – the most important day for us tech journalists because it is then when most major brand names hold press events to announce new products and pull the sheets off of the latest and greatest tech. This is where the bulk of our coverage comes from. It’s a never ending sequence of press events – a rollercoaster ride of sorts.

As this was my first time attending CES I had no idea what to expect at all. And as fate would have it, I was all on my own as I was the only editor from our website to attend the show this year.

I am still quite new to the GSMArena team, which I have nothing but wonderful things to say about. They’ve been nothing but helpful and their dedication to bringing the newest of the news to you all is contagious.

Believe it or not, getting these photos you see on the website to a remote team is not an easy task, especially when there are hundreds of other people trying to do the same thing in the same room. Wi-Fi becomes useless in a room with probably thousands of other Wi-Fi devices all trying to transmit signals within a narrow radio spectrum. With Wi-Fi off the list, I had to resort to physically tethering my Nexus 6P’s T-Mobile connection to my laptop.

You might be able to predict where this goes. My laptop does NOT have a USB Type-C port, but I did have the Type-A to Type-C cable that Huawei generously included with the Nexus 6P. This cable’s length is anything but generous, being barely more than 6 inches long. And on top of that, at some events (I am looking at you Samsung) I had to operate the whole lot standing upright in a crowd of people with nowhere to sit or put down my stuff while reaching above my head with my camera to capture photos of the keynote. Ah, I was beginning to discover “the joys” of tech journalism.

Events took place one after another and, thankfully, my schedule worked out to where I had just enough time to travel to the next venue. I swear I must have arrived to almost every event within 20 seconds of it actually starting. It was intense.

CES Floor – trending products and technologies

You gotta understand the convention center where CES is held is huge. Gargantuan even. I’ve heard that MWC and IFA are even larger than CES, and I can only imagine their scale after what I’ve seen here.

The more high-profile booths (Samsung, Intel, Huawei, and LG) were packed with people at ALL TIMES, making it difficult to even walk around without bumping into someone, let alone doing my job.

A common theme that I saw among TV sets was HDR picture and 8K TVs. More and more TV makers are using OLED technology, which offers deep luscious blacks and gives the best contrast possible making for an awe-inducing visual experience.

The IoT (internet of things), was another leitmotif at CES this year, especially with Samsung and LG’s new appliances that can talk to your smartphone and other smart devices. Samsung and LG showed off new refrigerators that had large displays embedded in the doors to serve as a central hub for notes, lists, apps, and interconnectivity with other smart “things” around the house.

Hoverboards were prohibited on the actual floor, except where exhibitors dedicated testing areas for these two-wheeled beasts of their own. Though, these were not as apparent as drones were seen all over. There were so many drones being shown off on the floor that you can clearly see this whole trend is only going to get bigger and bigger.

In terms of phones, I would have to say that, personally, I saw Huawei really embracing the US market with the announcement of the Huawei Mate 8 (hands-on here), a phone that tries to…

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Smart everything is the way to go, and it was only a matter of time until the Identilock showed up. It’s a smart gun lock that will only let you pull your pistol’s trigger, if it recognizes your fingerprint. Or you have the mechanical key, but that’s just for backup.

The Identilock attaches to your choice of firearm thanks to interchangeable adapters (two come bundled, you select which ones upon ordering) and covers the trigger guard and trigger itself, making the gun inoperable. Touch the fingerprint reader and if it checks out, the smart lock falls out of the way and you can go ahead and blast away at those beer cans.

The battery inside is good for 6 months of operation, gets recharged via microUSB and in case it dies, you can unlock the thing with a mechanical key. The Identilock is available now for pre-order, priced at $319.

Targeted at responsible home gun owners, the Identilock should be a much quicker solution than the usual steel safe, tucked in the closet. That’s not to say you should go put your 9mm on the coffee table for your toddler to fiddle with, but you’re a responsible gun owner, you know that.

Source |…

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We understand the urge to have your flagship LG V10 gold-plated, and the gold bath adds an extra bit of flair to curved-body Samsung high-end models Galaxy S6 edge and Note5. But what about that Nokia 230 that you keep in your car’s glove box for backup, or use as a secondary phone for basic needs?

Now Vietnamese specialists in the field of luxury customization Karalux can have the 230 gold-plated in 24K yellow gold too, to match your smartphone attire. We’re only assuming that once you’re looking into gold-plating, you have a smartphone to boot, but even if the unassuming Nokia feature phone is your primary means of communication, at VND 1,500,000 ($67) the treatment is still a bargain.

That’s the price if you bring in your own Nokia 230, but for VND 2,800,000 ($125) the company will happily pull a ready gold-plated one off its store shelves. So in effect, the gold-plating costs more than the phone itself. But who’s to say that you can’t have some bling just because you refuse to be bothered with constant notifications and want a battery life longer than a day….

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Apple Campus 2 construction has seen some healthy progress over the past month and the Space Ring is now almost fully constructed. The monthly update comes courtesy of Duncan Sinfield and his DJI Inspire 1 drone.

The ring may be nearing completion in terms of structure, but only a small sector has actually gotten its glass panes installed, so there’s plenty left to be done.

December vs. January footage shows auditorium progress

There’s a lot of development on the 1000-seat underground auditorium, with massive roof beams now installed. And massive they need to be, as the roof will have to support a significant amount of soil, once it’s all complete. And trees too, there will be trees on top.

Source |…

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In a bit of a PR mess up, Motorola Mobility CEO Rick Osterloh announced the other day that parent company Lenovo will be phasing out the Motorola brand, and that created confusion as to its future. To set the record straight, Motorola has issued a statement on its official blog.

Motorola Mobility, as a company, continues to exist and keeps a central role in Lenovo’s smartphone business, and is in charge of all smartphone engineering, design and manufacturing within the corporation. However, products will feature the Moto brand, as opposed to Motorola, as it sounds more contemporary, while still being synonymous with the traditional brand, the statement says.

That said, product packages will still have Motorola printed here and there, it just won’t be the brand used prominently for marketing. The batwing logo will not be lost either, and will continue to be used extensively, in marketing material too.

The Vibe brand will coexist alongside Moto and Lenovo corporate branding will be found both on product packaging and promotional content, to remind consumers that the company is among a select few, which can offer a complete experience from smartphone through tablet to PC.

We’ll need some figuring out to do on our end – does the Motorola Moto G (3rd gen) become simply Moto G (3rd…

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It’s fair to say that quite a few people were infuriated by rumors that Apple might be abandoning the 3.5mm headphone jack for the iPhone 7 in favor of Lightning-connected accessories. There’s an ongoing petition to keep the connectivity option, signed by more than 215,000 people, and counting.

Now some new insider info reiterates the 3.5 jack’s future demise, adding that Apple and its subsidiary Beats Electronics are working on developing wireless earbuds to launch alongside the iPhone 7. And we’re talking wireless-wireless, with no cables at all, much like the Moto Hint, the Earin, and the Bragi Dash.

iPhone 6s retail package

What might very well be called the Airpods (Apple has the trademark registered) are reported to feature microphones too, for noise cancelling and summoning Siri. No ports will be found on them, instead they will ship with a carrying case with built-in battery – again, a similar design to already existing solutions.

Apple’s wireless earbuds are more than likely going to be sold separately. Competing models don’t come cheap, the Earin has a suggested retail price of £159 ($230), though being a Kickstarter-ed project, you could have picked up a pair for half that and you can’t actually order them now. Meanwhile, the Bragi Dash is $299/€299, and the Moto Hint is the cheapest at $130 MSRP.

Whatever the price, you wouldn’t expect Apple to bundle such a premium accessory with the iPhone 7. At least the source confirms that there are going to be Earpods with a Lightning connector inside the…

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