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Moto G Play (2023) review: A former budget king struggles to remain relevant
The new Moto G Play is here to battle it out in the budget Android category, but there may have been too many compromises to stand a chance.
Admittedly it has been quite a while since I have spent a significant amount of time with a budget smartphone, and the last time I used a Motorola device was the Moto Z Play from 2016. Going into my review of the new Moto G Play (2023), I knew I'd have to temper my expectations for how the device would perform as my daily driver after using high-end flagships like the Pixel 7 Pro and Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4. So, how did the budget-minded Moto G Play (2023) fare? About as expected.
Nokia 3.1 Plus Android One smartphone launches in India
The Nokia 3.1 Plus has launched in India, and will be available for purchase from October 19th. It is also part of the Android One program.
HMD Global has been pretty active as of late, first unveiling the Nokia 7.1 in London last week as part of the Android One program. Now they've launched the Nokia 3.1 Plus in India, also a part of the Android One program.
Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite launches in China with Qualcomm Snapdragon 660
The Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite has launched in China, and it features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 and up to 6GB of RAM. It also has up to 128GB of storage.
Xiaomi has announced the Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite in Chengdu, China, which aims to be a slightly more budget-oriented version of the Xiaomi Mi 8. It features the Qualcomm Snapdragon 660, a 1080p 19:9 LCD display, 4GB/6GB of RAM, and a dual camera setup on the back. Three new colors have been introduced - Aurora Blue, Sunset Gold, and Midnight Black.
[Update: Launched] Vivo Y83 Pro reportedly launching in India with 6.22" notched display
The Vivo Y83 Pro is reportedly going to be launching in India soon with a 6.2-inch notched display. Check it out here and what to expect!
The Vivo Y83 Pro will soon be launching in India with a 6.22-inch notched display, according to a report from 91Mobiles. It will be released as a successor to the Vivo Y81 that launched in the region earlier this year. We don't know a lot about its exact specifications such as the SoC, but we do know that it will likely be a MediaTek SoC of some kind.
Alcatel 5V launches with 6.2-inch notched display, 4000mAh battery, and Android 8.1 Oreo
The Alcatel 5V has launched in the US with a 6.2-inch notched display, 4,000mAh battery and Android 8.1 Oreo. Check it out here.
Alcatel has been working on releasing a number of devices this year. We saw the Alcatel 3 and Alcatel 5 smartphones announced back in February. Following that, we then saw the Alcatel 3V, which is effectively an upgraded version of that particular smartphone. Now, we're getting to see the Alcatel 5V, a smartphone with a 6.2-inch notched display, 4,000 mAh battery, and Android 8.1 Oreo.
Android Go - How does Google's lightweight ecosystem compare to the original?
Android Go is Google's lightweight version of Android and features a number of specially made applications too. We've compared them to their full versions.
Android Go is Google's lightweight mobile platform that aims to run on lower system specifications than usual. It's aimed at developing and lower-income areas, where devices with poor processors and small amounts of RAM will be most prevalent. It exists basically to make sure that those in developing nations can still avail of applications and products in the smartphone world. As such, lower specifications requires some applications to be reworked in order to work within smaller RAM constraints. YouTube Go, Maps Go, Gmail Go, and Google Go are all examples of these applications, and third-parties offer them too. But that's not all, as a number of modifications are made to keep system requirements even lower. RAM compression, reduced system memory usage, and better memory management ensures the device will be as quick as can be.
Blackview A20 Review - One of the First Android Go Phones
The Blackview A20 is one of the first Android Go phones to hit the market, and we've reviewed one supplied to us, courtesy of Blackview.
For those unfamiliar, Android Go is Google's stripped down version of Android designed to run on lower-end hardware. It's optimized to ideally run on about 1GB of RAM, but it can go lower or higher. It was developed for the next generation of entry-level devices so that those in developing nations can still purchase affordable smartphones that do everything a user may need. The Blackview A20 is an Android Go-based smartphone. We'll be focusing largely on the software experience, as that's where all of the changes under the hood reside.
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 429 and Snapdragon 439 may be coming for Android Go devices
Qualcomm is preparing to launch the Snapdragon 429 and Snapdragon 439. These chips are aimed at low-end hardware such as Android Go phones.
There are some folks who don't need the power of the Snapdragon 845 or even a mid-range chipset like the Snapdragon 636. Sure, it can be nice to have but this increases the overall cost of the device and this can be the sole reason why someone delays getting a new smartphone (or even their first smartphone). Google is attempting to solve this with a modified version of Android 8.1 Oreo that they're calling Android Go and a new rumor suggests that Qualcomm will soon launch two chipsets (the Qualcomm Snapdragon 429 and Qualcomm Snapdragon 439) designed with this version of Android in mind.