You’ve seen Galaxy M30 and its sleek design. Now, get ready for the next generation– the successor of a powerful budget, phone Samsung Galaxy M31. This phone is popular because of two of its main highlights– the huge battery and the camera setup. With the One UI 2.0 operating system based on Android 10, the smartphone looks like a device costing more than Rs 25,000, when the actual price tag is between Rs 16,000 and 18,000.  

There are two variants of Samsung Galaxy M31 available. The 6GB RAM/64GB storage model has been tagged at Rs 16,499 (Rs 14,999 at Amazon). Its advanced version with 6GB RAM/128GB storage can be bought for Rs 17,499 (Rs 15,999 on Amazon). Other phones available in the same price range include Redmi Note 8 Pro, Realme XT, and POCO X2. Despite the new version released in the market, Samsung is not discontinuing the Galaxy M30 model.

The phone comes with a 6.4-inch FullHD+ AMOLED display, making it king among the competitors mentioned above. The display has been reviewed to be color-rich, vigorous, and sharp. The credit for the visual also goes to One UI 2.0’s build. For protection against physical trauma, Samsung Galaxy M31 has been fitted with Gorilla Glass 3.  

There are two major advantages to buying Samsung Galaxy M31. The smartphone comes with a 6,000 mAh battery that can make the device last for over two days on a single charge. playing games and videos at 50% brightness and full volume will give you 19 hours of playback. The second yet most important pro for Samsung Galaxy M31 is the quad-camera setup. This includes a 64-megapixel primary sensor, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide sensor, and a 5-megapixel macro sensor with a 5-megapixel depth camera. Images caught in both low light and day light have great dynamic range.

If you’re planning to buy this phone, do let us know what you think about this new product. Have fun!  

Done with foldable smartphones and a broken phone screen? TCL may soon release an ‘extendable’ device.  

The trend of foldable phones is picking up. After Samsung Galaxy Fold and Huawei Mate X; Motorola, Xiaomi, and Oppo are in the queue to release their own takes on this emerging technology. The foldable designs are attracting buyers by promising them an extra-wide screen with the ability to fit in a pocket. Surprisingly, it’s only been a few months since the release of Samsung Galaxy Fold, yet there’s another space-saving model that has been introduced to consumers. 

This time, instead of folding, the phone can be slided out like a sofa-cum-bed. The credit for this design goes to TCL, a company popular for its televisions. This suggestion has been made by CNET, through leaked images. 

This device is way different from Motorola Razr or Samsung Galaxy Fold. Here, the second display slides out from underneath the first. CNET sources say that TCL had been planning to showcase the phone at Mobile World Congress, which was cancelled due to the rising cases of coronavirus. 

The representational images paint a good picture of what the device may look like. It has given birth to a thousand questions too. The foremost question is, where does the inner edge of the extendable screen go when the phone is unexpanded?

Conversely, if the inner part folds behind the first screen then it’s going to have to bend quite sharply so it can fit inside the spacing provided. Additionally, the primary screen will have to remain hollow when the device is expanded as it has to fit the space when in compact mode. 

People have been warned that the phone is not anywhere near release. TCL is infamous for its presentation at the MWC last year, where it presented a foldable prototype so fragile, that even its staff was warned not to touch it.   

Let’s hope TCL delivers what it is teasing. The market could do a lot better when it comes to innovation. 

We thought Year 2020 would be the year of new mobile tech teases, but sadly it’s bringing in old and new deadly diseases. Following coronavirus, swine flu has also reappeared. In Meerut, about 81 patients have been tested positive for swine flu, including 20 Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) personnel. 

It has become necessary to wear a face mask and disposable gloves when moving in  public if you’re living in Delhi or Telangana. Yet, you’re more likely to get infected from infection-ridden objects you often hold near yourself. 

A mobile can pick up a host of bacteria and viruses from your hand since its being held often. In fact, the University of Arizona discovered that cellphones carry 10 times more diseases-causing microorganisms than a toilet seat. It’s mainly because mobile phones are not properly shielded against dirt and harmful elements. To help you do that, here are 5 tips you should follow.    

• Keep your hands clean. Wear disposable gloves when you are out in the crowd. When you get home, use a sanitizer and disinfectant.
• Using rubbing alcohol or a disinfectant to clean your phone is not advisable since it can damage the mobile’s screen. There’s a coating on the screen that beads up water on your phone's screen and prevents fingerprint smudges.  Instead, you should use lightly lathered water. 
• Along with the lightly-lathered water, use a lightly-damped microfiber cloth. It will make sure that water droplets do not enter the crevices of the phone and damage internal circuitry.  
• UV light lamps are easily available online now. You can use them to completely disinfect your smartphone. 
• Sometimes, the phone case can carry more infectious elements than the smartphone itself. If you own one, make sure to clean the case before sanitizing the smartphone.  

Let’s ensure we keep our family and friends safe. Stay vigilant, stay healthy!  

 

There’s a cure for broken mobile screens, but not for the most communicable and scary disease going around the world. Coronavirus has infected more than 93,200 people as of now. The number seems to be only increasing, especially in India. The only solution for now is to quarantine possible cases and wait for them to recover through drug administration.  

Surprisingly it is working, but it’s leaving people immensely bored. To make their wait bearable, millions of people stuck at home turning to mobile games. It’s been estimated that mobile game downloads have increased rapidly by 39% in the month of February. 

Most of these download requests came from China, according to Sensor Tower, an app analytics firm. February’s first three weeks registered an 80% jump in weekly game downloads. Globally, mobile game downloads have touched the 4 billion milestone, in comparison to 2.9 billion in 2019.     

In China, Apple’s App Store registered a record boost of 62% increase in downloads. Mind-teasing strategy games like ‘Brain Out’ and ‘Honor of Kings’ have been downloaded the most in China according to App Annie, another mobile app analytics firm. 

These new gamers are investing their hard-earned money in the games’ micro-transactions, especially in ‘Game for Peace’, PUBG’s Chinese version. ‘Lineage 2’ peaked in the graph for user spending in South Korea. 

Game publishers Blizzard and Activision will benefit the most because of this recent trend. On the other front, mobile phone companies like Samsung, Apple, and Nokia are suffering a slump in smartphone sales. The correlation between quarantine and mobile games has been backed by Stephens analyst Jeff Cohen, who wrote notes to clients explaining, "Gaming has been one of the main beneficiaries in terms of increased time spent due to quarantine."

Coronavirus’ spread started from the central Chinese city of Wuhan. Currently, it has killed more than 3,203 people globally. To protect against it, the Indian government has advised citizens to use a 3-layered face mask and disposable gloves when they go out.

GoEasyRepair has always supported the ‘Make in India’ initiative. We’re extremely delighted to see that the Indian government is taking substantial steps to boost domestic mobile manufacturing apart from smartphone components. 

A production-linked incentive package (PLI) has been planned by the government that costs over Rs 42,000 crore. This package will be offered to homegrown mobile/smartphone production businesses. With this offer, smartphone companies will get a benefit of 4-6% on incremental sales for the next 5 years. 

The biggest beneficiaries of this package will be the global companies who want to establish production plants in India. This includes juggernauts like Samsung and Apple. Homemade brands including Lava, Karbonn, Micromax, and Intex will get the biggest advantage, since India is often the last choice for a global smartphone company’s production plant.  

This scheme will be put into effect by the IT ministry which has consulted the finance ministry and Niti Aayog on the matter. The IT ministry is aiming to make India into a manufacturing hub for electronic components. Indian manufacturing industries are being revolutionized so that the country can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with manufacturing powerhouses like China and Vietnam.

A source from the IT industry revealed more on the matter, “The electronics hardware manufacturing sector faces the lack of a level-playing field vis-à-vis competing nations and suffers from a disability of 8.5% to 11% on account of lack of adequate infrastructure, domestic supply chain and logistics, high cost of finance, and inadequate availability of power.” 

In addition to the above, the government wants to put an end to the ever-increasing electronics imports bill. The scheme will hopefully instigate a production increase of mobile phones and their parts worth Rs 8.2 lakh crore. In turn, exports amounting to Rs 5.8 lakh crore will be generated. Furthermore, 2 lakh new jobs will be created that’ll contribute Rs 4,782 crore to direct tax revenue. 

Make in India’s support to desi mobile brands will go a long way in doing away with our dependency on other countries for mobile parts. We hope it also brings in more jobs and capital into the country.      

After the cancellation of Mobile World Congress and a sudden dip in global mobile exports, this news was bound to come. China will reportedly have to brace a mobile sales plunge in 2020’s first quarter. The sales likely to fall at 40%, as compared to previous year’s report was totally unexpected. The culprit, is none other than Coronavirus, which Huawei has remained unfazed from. 

The projection has been predicted by International Data Corporation (IDC) China. According to IDC analyst Will Wong, Chinese buyers have ordered 33 million fewer phones in the first 3 months of 2020. He explained, "We were only expecting a 5% drop" in the first quarter of 2020. Even with a potential March recovery it will still be difficult to reach last year's levels for the first quarter.” 

Since the number of coronavirus cases have rapidly increased last month, Chinese businesses have spiraled downwards. Travel restrictions are impeding business deals and exports/imports. In a press release, IDC analyst Sangeetika Srivastava stated, "Component shortages, factory shutdowns, quarantine mandates, logistics, and travel restrictions will create hindrances for smartphone vendors to produce handsets and roll out new devices."  

The sales are expected to normalize later in 2020 when 5G smartphones become common in the market. It will provide outbreak subsides. Apple has already alerted its investors about the limitation imposed on the number of devices it can create and sell in China. According to Apple’s investor update, the company is unable to catch the revenue target projected last month for the first quarter.

Huawei is most likely to be affected despite its popularity as China’s top selling smartphone brand with over 38% of the market share. Huawei declined to comment on the matter, and said that the company does not plan its operations around market performance speculations.   

While you’re getting a mobile screen repair for your slightly fragile phone, here’s a review for Doogee S68 Pro. It’s the cheapest rugged smartphone available in the market, and can be booked on Amazon. The handset costs around Rs 26,000 and is shipped internationally.    

Rugged smartphones are known for their durability. They can survive sudden trauma and accidental damage. The phone can brace extreme weather, be it sub-zero winter of the Himalayas or the boiling temperature of the Thar Desert. In fact, with an IP68/IP69K/MIL-STD-810G rating, it can withstand fungal incursions, humidity, water immersion, rust, dust, explosions, transport shocks, and gunfire vibration.  With this kind of protection, Doogee S68 Pro can withstand serious abuse.

Doogee S68 Pro is perfect for hikers, soldiers, sailors, climbers, and mercenaries. Normal users do not opt for rugged phones because these phones are not too strong in terms of RAM and storage. Yet, Doogee S68 Pro offers 6GB RAM and 128GB onboard storage. The external storage is expandable up to 1TB through an appropriate micro SD card. This smartphone is powered by a smooth and a speedy Mediatek Helio P70 CPU. 

A 5.9-inch full HD+ display with 1080x2280 pixel resolution will ensure that you’re enjoying Netflix when being deployed in the field. Additionally, the phone will last long, thanks to the massive 6800mAh battery. It can act as a power bank due to its two-way wireless charging. 

The most surprising feature of Doogee S68 Pro is the quad-camera setup that adds up to 53 MP resolution (including a Sony IMX230 21MP camera). The phone runs on Android Pie (9.0) OS and can support up to 4 global navigation satellite systems. It has Bluetooth 5.0 and 802.11ac connections as well. 

Doogee S68 Pro is a perfect specimen of what an all-rounder smartphone looks like. It balances physical endurance, digital features, and visual beauty perfectly, that too with an affordable price tag. 

GoEasyRepair phone screen repair experts are keeping a keen eye on the mobile. And we have special attention for HTC, and the brand that we get very few to repair. HTC is releasing Wildfire R70 soon, which features an amazing triple-camera setup. 

This smartphone will be available in two vibrant colors -- Aurora Blue and Night Black. Both these colors give a chromatic touch to the phone, making it look like a royal Ulysses butterfly. HTC Wildfire R70 is currently listed on the official Indian HT website. The phone is expected to be on sale from March 4 2020, pegged at around Rs 11,999. 

HTC Wildfire R70 is the spiritual successor of HTC Wildfire X, which was launched last year. This new phone is attracting an increasing number of customers due its lavish features. Wildfire R70 comes with a 6.53-inch HD+ display that presents images in a pixel resolution of 720X1560 in a 19.5:9 aspect ratio. An octa-core MediaTek Helio P23 has been fitted as processor to power the smartphone, coupled with 2GB RAM. 

The smartphone provides 32GB onboard storage and an expandable memory that can be increased till 2TB through a MicroSD card. Moreover, the phone has hybrid-dual SIM functionality. HTC Wildfire R70 runs Android Pie (9.0) as the phone OS. 

Now, about the triple rear camera system. The main camera can click images with a capacity of 16MP. The primary sensor has an aperture of f/1.7 with LED flash. Macro images can be captured through a 2MP secondary camera that has an aperture of f/2.4. The tertiary depth sensor also has the same aperture as the secondary one, with a resolution of 8MP. 

HTC Wildfire R70 is a great budget smartphone. But, if you want to buy an HTC device with 5G capabilities, you’ll have to wait till later this year, as confirmed by HTC CEO Yves Maitre. 

 

If you’re planning to buy a smartphone we suggest you wait for these brand-new models that will be launched in March.  

iQoo 3 

This is one of the few phones launching in early 2020 to support 5G connectivity. In India, IQOO3 will be available for booking from March 4. The sharpest feature of IQOO3 is its Snapdragon 865 processor, which powers a quad camera setup on the phone’s back. 

Samsung Galaxy S20 series 

Samsung Galaxy S20 was presented at the Galaxy Unpacked event on February 11. Following the successful showcase, the company announced the smartphone’s release in India, starting from Rs 66,999. Galaxy S20, Galaxy S20+, and Galaxy S20 Ultra can be pre-booked from the Samsung website from March 6.   

Oppo Reno 3 and Reno 3 Pro 

Oppo Reno series is expected to be released on March 2. Both of the smartphones are expected to cost around Rs 30,000 and lower. Oppo Reno 3 Pro will come with a 44MP front camera, making front shots and selfies highly detailed. Like IQOO3, Oppo Reno 3 will also have a quad camera setup that can snap 64 MP pictures. 

Realme 6 series

Realme 6 and Realme 6 Pro will be announced on March 5. Both have quad cameras on the back, which is a defining feature for these phones. The phones will also have a 30W fast charge support along with 90Hz refresh rate for Full HD display.  

Infinix S5 Pro

Infinix S5 Pro will be a budget device, costing around Rs 10,000. For a mobile so cheap, the feature of a pop-up selfie camera seems lavish. Additionally, Infinix S5 Pro will have a triple camera setup. The smartphone will be launched on March 6, 2020.  

If you’re still not satisfied, check out our blogs for more smartphone reviews. 

Replacement requests for Random Access Memory (RAM) in smartphones are fairly common at GoEasyRepair. Users want their phone to be faster, unbeknownst to the fact that RAMs in smartphones cannot be moved/replaced easily. 

Smartphones are about to overtake PCs when it comes to RAM memory. On February 25, Samsung made a big announcement about their mass production of 16GB LPDDR5 DRAM. These new chips reserved for upcoming Samsung smartphones are fast, with reports of the data transfer being 1.3 times faster than LPDDR4X RAMs.  

Moreover, this new RAM can save approximately 20% more energy in comparison to an 8GB LPDDR4X chip. The pitched features of this RAM may be far-fetched, but rest assured, the 16 GB capacity will ensure that none of the heavy-duty games and apps run into hardware bottlenecks.      

Samsung initiated the mass production of the world’s first 12GB LPDDR5 batch in mid 2019. Hence, it only took less than 6 months for Samsung to upgrade from 12 to 16GB. The market is filled with 12GB models, including Samsung Galaxy S20, Xiaomi Black Shark 2, and OnePlus 7 Pro. 16 GB smartphones will start a revolution, given that computers lag behind in RAM innovation. 

Debates still brew on whether smartphones really need the surplus of RAM. The ASUS Zenphone, in the past, has been flagged for performance issues despite having 6 GB RAM. Moreover,  Apple's iPhones feature a modest RAM capacity of 4GB, yet it can give a Samsung (with 6 GB RAM) a run for its money.  

A lot of people feel that these are just number games. Naive and inexperienced smartphone users will easily fall for higher numbers and book the smartphones early when they see the 16 GB tag on an attractive banner. We advise consumers to be aware of such tactics.