Weekly Roundup: Lenovo Z5, Asus ROG Gaming Phone, Honor Play, Xiaomi Redmi Y2, BlackBerry KEY2 and more


Lenovo this week introduced the Z5 smartphone along with the K5 Note and A5, Asus’s ROG division introduced the ROG gaming phone, Honor introduced the Honor Play and Honor 9i 2018 edition, Xiaomi launched the Redmi Y1 smartphone, Motorola launched the Moto G6 and the Moto G6 Play smartphones, and lots more in our weekly roundup.

Lenovo announced the Z5, the company’s latest mid-range smartphone in the ‘Z series’ in China, as it had promised. It packs a 6.2-inch Full HD+ display with 19:9 aspect ratio and a notch and 90% screen-to-body ratio, even though the company teased it as a bezel-less smartphone. It is powered by Snapdragon 636 with 6GB of RAM, runs Android 8.1 (Oreo) with ZUI 3.9 on top.

It features a 16-megapixel rear camera along with an 8-megapixel secondary rear camera with AI support. It has an 8-megapixel camera on the front with AI beautification and face unlock. It comes with a glass back with 2.5D curved Corning Gorilla Glass protection, anti-fingerprint coating and 6 Series aluminum metal frame and a fingerprint sensor on the back. It packs a 3300mAh battery with support for 15W fast charging.

It Lenovo Z5 comes in Aurora Blue, Black and Indigo Blue colors, starts at 1299 yuan (US$ 202 / Rs. 13,625 approx.) and will be available from June 12th in China.

Lenovo also introduced budget K5 Note and A5 smartphones. Both these have 6-inch and 5.45-inch HD+ displays with 18:9 aspect ratio, respectively. These run Android 8.1 (Oreo) with ZUI on top, feature a fingerprint sensor on the back, 8-megapixel front camera and dedicated dual SIM and microSD slots. The K5 Note competes with the Xiaomi Redmi 5.

The K5 Note is powered by Snapdragon 450 with up to 4GB RAM and has a 16-megapixel + 2-megapixel dual rear cameras, while the A5 is powered by MediaTek MT6739 SoC with 3GB RAM and comes with a single 13-megapixel rear camera.  The K5 Note has a metal back, and the A5 just has a metal-like finish. These pack a 3760mAh and 4000mAh battery, respectively.

The Lenovo K5 Note comes in Black, Gold and Blue colors, is priced at 799 yuan (US$ 124 / Rs. 8,390 approx.) for the 3GB RAM with 32GB storage version and the 4GB RAM with 64GB storage version costs 999 yuan (US$ 156 / Rs. 10,490 approx.). The Lenovo A5 comes in Black, Gold and Rose Gold colors and starts at 599 yuan (US$ 93 / Rs. 6,290 approx.) for the 16GB storage version.

Asus’s ROG introduced the ROG Phone, the company’s first gaming smartphone. It has a 6-inch Full HD+ AMOLED  HDR 90Hz, 1ms response time AMOLED display with DCIP3 gamut with Gaming HDR and Mobile HDR supported by dedicate hardware display chip, is powered by Snapdragon 845 SoC that is clocked up to 2.96GHz with 8GB RAM. It has new GameCool system that improves thermals with a copper heat spreader and 3D vapor chamber that efficiently transfer heat away from the SoC and into the body, says the company. It has several accessories.

It comes in Black color with the AeroActive Cooler, while other accessories will be sold separately, and it will also be available as a special bundle will pack all of them into a suitcase with the high-end version of the phone. It will be available sometimes in Q3 2018. No word on the pricing yet.

Asus at the Computex 2018 also announced the ZenBook Pro 15 and ZenBook Pro 14 laptops with ScreenPad input device, VivoBook S15, VivoBook S14, VivoBook S13, and VivoBook Flip 14. The Project Precog- first convertible, a dual-screen notebook with fully enhanced AI features, Zen AiO 27 desktop, Lyra Voice, three-in-one 802.11ac mesh Wi-Fi router, RT-AX88U dual-band route, and more.

It also introduced VivoWatch BP (HC-A04), the company’s latest smartwatch with built-in ECG and PPG sensors. It also provides real-time blood pressure measurements in 15 seconds. It features ASUS HealthAI technology to help users keep track of their blood pressure and health stats – such as heart rate, sleep quality, activity data, and de-stress index –- while also providing suggestions for a better lifestyle. It can also track heart rate, sleep quality and fitness/activity.

It comes in Black, Gray, Green, Blue, Maroon colors, is priced $169 (Rs. 11,350 approx.) and will be available first in Asia starting from Taiwan by end of July, with Europe following in August.

Xiaomi launched the Redmi Y2, the company’s latest selfie-focused smartphone in India. It is the version of the Redmi S2 which was introduced in China last month. It packs a 5.99-inch HD+ display with 18:9 aspect ratio, is powered by Snapdragon 625 with up to 3GB RAM, runs Android 8.1 (Oreo) with MIUI 9 on top, has a 12-megapixel rear camera with LED flash along with a secondary 5-megapixel camera to capture depth information for AI portrait shots.

It comes in Elegant Gold, Rose Gold and Dark Grey colors, is priced at Rs. 9,999 for the 3GB RAM with 32GB storage version and the 4GB RAM with 64GB storage version costs Rs. 12,999. It will be available exclusively from Amazon.in and Mi.com as well as Mi Home Stores starting from June 12th.

Motorola launched the Moto G6, successor of last year’s Moto G5  in India at an event in Delhi, as it had promised. The smartphone was introduced back in April, packs a 5.7-inch Full HD+ 2.5D curved glass screen with 18:9 aspect ratio, is powered by Snapdragon 450 with up to 4GB of RAM, runs Android 8.0 (Oreo), comes with a 12-megapixel rear cameras with f/1.8 aperture along with a secondary 5-megapixel secondary camera for portrait shots. It comes with an 16-megapixel front camera with LED flash and 4MP adaptive low light mode.

It comes in Indigo Black color in India, is priced at Rs. 13,999 for the 3GB RAM with 32GB storage version and it also comes in 4GB RAM with 64GB storage version that costs Rs. 15,999. It is available exclusively on Amazon Indiaas well as Moto Hub stores offline. Check out the unboxing and first impressions of the smartphone.

Motorola along with the Moto G6 also launched the Moto G6 Play, a budget smartphone in the Moto G series in India as it had promised. The successor of 2016’s Moto G4 Play packs a 5.7-inch HD+ Max Vision display, is powered by a Snapdragon 430 with up to 3GB RAM, runs Android 8.0 (Oreo), has a 13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and an 8-megapixel front-facing camera that also comes with LED flash. It comes in Indigo Black and Fine Gold colors, is priced at Rs. 11,999 and is available exclusively from Flipkart online as well as Moto Hub stores offline.

HTC launched Desire 12 and Desire 12+ smartphones in the Desire series in India. These  have 5.5-inch and 6-inch HD+ full-screen displays, and the similarity ends there. The Desire 12 is powered by a MediaTek MT6739 SoC with up to 3GB RAM, runs Android Nougat, has a 13-megapixel rear camera and a 5-megapixel front camera. 

The HTC Desire 12 and Desire 12+ come in Cool Black and Warm Silver colors in Indi, are priced at Rs. 15800 and Rs. 19790, respectively, will be are available for pre-order through HTC eStore  and will be available through online and offline from June 11th.

Motorola announced the Moto Z3 Play, the company’s latest mid-range smartphone in the Moto Z series with support for Moto Mods, as expected. It has a 6-inch Full HD+ Super AMOLED display, is powered by Snapdragon 636 SoC with 4GB of RAM, has 12-megapixel rear camera along with a secondary 5-megapixel camera for depth-sensing AI photo features, including Cinemagraphs and support for Google Lens.

It has Corning Gorilla Glass protection on the front and back and lightweight, aircraft-grade 6000 series aluminum frame. It has a side-mounted fingerprint sensor for the first time. It has gesture-based One Button Nav bar at the bottom, even though it doesn’t have a fingerprint sensor below the screen.

The phone supports Moto Display, Moto Actions and packs a 3000mAh battery with support for Turbo charging.  It will be bundled with a battery moto mod for $499 (Rs. 33,335 approx.) and will be available this summer in the U.S. at Sprint and U.S. Cellular as well as unlocked

Samsung introduced 2018 editions of Galaxy J3 and Galaxy J7 smartphones in the U.S. The phones come with 5-inch and 5.5-inch HD displays, respectively. The J3 comes with an 8-megapixel rear camera with f/1.9 aperture and a 5-megapixel front camera. 

The new Galaxy J7 will feature a 13-megapixel rear camera with f/1.7 aperture and the front camera also has a 13-megapixel sensor with f/1.9 aperture. The Galaxy J3 (2018) and Galaxy J7 (2018) will be available in the U.S. starting early June.

Huawei’s Honor Brand announced Honor Play, the company’s latest top-end smartphone in the Honor series in China, as it had promised. The smartphone has a 6.3-inch Full HD+  19:5:9 display with a notch and a 89% screen-to-body ratio, is powered by Kirin 970 10nm processor with up to 6GB of RAM, NPU as well as GPU Turbo  graphics processing acceleration.

It comes in Black, Blue, Violet and soon in Red color, is priced at 1999 yuan (US$ 312 / Rs. 20,960 approx.) for the 4GB RAM version and the 6GB RAM version costs 2399 yuan (US$ 375 / Rs. 25,140 approx.). It is now available for order and goes on sale in China from June 11th.

Huawei’s Honor brand along with the Honor Play, also introduced the new Honor 9i smartphone in China. It has a 5.84-inch FHD+ 19:9 display with a notch, is powered by Kirin 659 SoC with 4GB RAM and runs Android 8.0 (Oreo) with EMUI 8.0, similar to the Huawei P20 Lite or Nova 3e, but this has a 13-megapixel rear camera along with a 2-megapixel secondary camera for portrait shots and a 16-megapixel camera on the front.

comes in Black, Blue, Green and Purple colors, is priced at 1399 yuan (US$ 218 / Rs. 14,640 approx.) for the 64GB version and the 128GB version costs 1699 yuan (US$ 265 / Rs. 17,780 approx.).

Honor also introduced Clear Headphones, which is the world’s first headphones to feature sensors for real-time heart-rate detection. It also trains you to relax by analysing your stress level by heart rate variability (HRV) algorithm and provides feedback. It it is certified for Hi-Res audio playback. The Honor Clear Headphones will be available only in White color, and is priced at 129 yuan (US$ 20 / Rs. 1350 approx.) in China.

BlackBerry announced KEY2 at an event in New York City.  It has a 4.5-inch (1620 x 1080 pixels) display with 3:2 aspect ratio and has a 4-row QWERTY physical backlit keyboard with keys that respond to touch gestures, support for flick typing, up to 52 customizable shortcuts and the fingerprint sensor is built into the spacebar as the predecessor, but the keys are 20% bigger with same footprint, has a matte finish and new dedicated key called ‘Speed key’ that lets you launch apps by pressing the key and the letter assigned to the app.

It comes in Black and Silver colors and starts at $649 (Rs. 43,520 approx.) in the U.S. €649 (US$ 763 / Rs. 51,200 approx.) in Europe, £579 (US$ 777 / Rs. 52,122 approx.) in UK and $829 (US$ 640 / Rs. 42,920 approx.) in Canada. It will begin shipping globally beginning this month.

LG introduced Q Stylus smartphone lineup that includes Q Stylus+, Q Stylus and Q Stylus α as successor to last year’s  Stylus 3. It has a 6.2-inch FHD+ FullVision Display, is powered by a 1.5GHz Octa-core / 1.8 GHz Octa-core SoC, depending on the model and runs Android 8.0 (Oreo). The top-end Q Stylus+ comes with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage, as well as a 16-megapixel rear camera, while the Q Stylus and budget Q Stylus α comes with 3GB RAM and 32GB storage.

All the models have military grade durability with MIL-STD 810G, but only the Q Stylus+ and Q Stylus are IP68-certified for water and dust resistance.  It will roll out  on a limited basis starting this month in North America and Asia followed by other key regions in Q3 2018.

Shar introduced AQUOS S3 smartphone back in March. This week the company introduced High Edition version of the smartphone in Taiwan. It is powered by Snapdragon 660 with 6GB of RAM, 128GB storage and also adds wireless charging. It comes in Black color, is priced at NT$ 13,990 (US$ 570 / Rs. 31,571 approx.) and will go on sale from June 11th in Taiwan.

TUF Gaming introduced the M5 mouse, K5 keyboard, H5 headset, GT501 chassis and the FX10CP desktop. These products are developed by the company’s internal teams, plus an array of components produced by TUF Gaming Alliance partners. It also introduced new products in the ROG series.

Amazon introduced Fire TV Cube, a bigger Fire TV streaming device that plugs into an HDTV that lets you watch movies, TV shows, use apps and play games. It is powered by a quad-core processor, has 802.11ac dual-band WiFi as well as Ethernet port. It also comes bundled with a voice remote that lets you search Amazon Video content using just your voice.

In addition to 4K Ultra HD support with HDR 10 and Dolby Audio, it also comes with eight microphones to hear you even from across the room. It supports wide range of devices through the cloud, infrared (IR), and HDMI-CEC, with more being added all the time. It is priced at $119.99 (Rs. 8,065 approx.), available for pre-order in the US and ships beginning on June 21. As an introductory offer, Prime members can pre-order Fire TV Cube on June 7 and 8 for a special price of $89.99 (Rs. 6,050 approx.). No details about the India launch yet.

Ather Energy launched India’s first smart electric scooter in two models – 340 and 450. The company has also started pre-bookings for the scooters in Bengaluru on Ather’s website and experience centre, AtherSpace at Indiranagar.

The Ather 450 is designed for city riding conditions, it comes with a top speed of 80 km/hr, a range of 75 km and one of the quickest accelerations of 3.9 seconds from 0-40 km/hr in the scooter category. The 340 has top speed of 70 km/hr, a range of 60 km and acceleration of 5.1 seconds from 0-40 km/hr. It can fast charge to 80% at a rate of 1 km/minute.  The Ather 450 is priced at Rs. 1,24,750 on road and the Ather 340 is priced at Rs. 1,09,750 on road.

Intel announced the Core i7-8700K limited edition processor with upto 5.0 GHz single-core turbo frequency. It is the new hyper-frequency version of the company’s Coffee Lake processor in the Core i7-8086K. Intel says that the Core i7-8700K limited edition processor will only be made in limited 50,000 units. It is priced at $425 (Rs. 28,550 approx.).


Author: Srivatsan Sridhar

Srivatsan Sridhar is a Mobile Technology Enthusiast who is passionate about Mobile phones and Mobile apps. He uses the phones he reviews as his main phone. You can follow him on Twitter and Instagram