Top 10 smartphones of 2013

New Delhi: It has been another phenomenal year for the smartphones. Even if are so fond of your handset, there's bound to be a newer, specs-rich device on the shelves. No surprisingly, smartphone sales exceeded feature phone sales for the first time in the April-to-June period, according to research firm Gartner. The highest smartphone growth rates came from Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe, the firm said. Here's our best picks from the bunch: 10. Sony Xperia Z1 The Sony Xperia Z1 is an amazing phone-tablet hybrid that comes with great rectangular design and some nifty features. Like its predecessor, the Xperia Z1 is made of two glass slabs held together by a metal frame. The glass and aluminum meld into each other to create a design that is sleek and stunning. The Z1 is a slick handset that has warm-feeling edges that fits the hand nicely, despite the 5-inch display. Weighing in at 170 grams, the handset is on the heavier side. Not enough to dissuade you from carrying it though. The smartphone is dust- and waterproof offering an excellent built quality. The Xperia Z1 has an impressive 5-inch TFT screen with a resolution of 1080x1776 and a density of 480dpi. The panel uses a Sony IPS TFT LCD with the company's BRAVIA engine for better quality graphics; great viewing angles, along with great color reproduction. The 1080p display of the Z1 is impressive. It offers great color reproduction and crisp images. The icons are sharp and the web text readable.The device is powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 800, a 2.2 GHz quadcore processor and Adreno 300 GPU, making it a good choice for mobile gaming. The Xperia Z1 comes with Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean pre-installed as its OS, complete with a few handy and unobtrusive Sony apps and features. The Xperia Z1 has a decently large 1/2.3 inch camera sensor with a resolution of 20.7MP resolution along with 27mm wide-angle autofocus lens, BIONZ image processor and a single LED flash. The camera also performs great on the outdoors, managing bright days, gloomy contrasts, sunsets, movement and more with ease. However, indoor shots without the flash show some noise. The good part of about Z1 is that is is powerful enough that it won't be outdated even after few years. It's sleek and big enough to turn heads.9. Nokia Lumia 1020 Nokia's latest PureView-packing smartphone looks similar to the previous Lumia 920, but it's slimmer and offers a much-improved PureView experience. It uses a unibody polycarbonate chassis, which gives it much desired durability. On the face of the device, there's a 4.5-inch 1280 x 720 touchscreen display, which is dominated by a 4.5-inch AMOLED display featuring Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection and Nokia's ClearBack and PureMotion HD+ technology. The display looks sharp and offers vivid colours. The USP of the phone is its 41-megapixel PureView camera sensor which offers Optical Image Stabilization (OIS), backside-illuminated image sensor, 6 lens optics along with a Xenon Flash. Nokia has also added some camera software including the Nokia Pro Camera app and Smart Camera Mode. The device is powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor with 2GB of RAM and runs Windows Phone 8.The 1020 benefits from a 2,000mAh battery, which should serve most power users quite well. 8. LG Optimus G Pro The LG Optimus G Pro comes with a 5.5-inch display with a fairly minimal bezel on the top and bottom. Above the display is the earpiece, the camera and the sensors, along with the LG logo. Below is the physical home button, the back key and the menu key. The IPS-LCD display of the smartphone offers a resolution of 1080 by 1920 pixels, resulting into an excellent pixel density and impressive level of image detail. Under the hood, the LG Optimus G Pro comes with a powerful quad-core Snapdragon 600 SoC running at 1.7GHz alongside 2GB of RAM for seamless multitasking. The main camera offers 13MP of resolution while the 2MP front-facing camera can take 1080p videos. Further specs include a massive 3140mAh battery, 32GB of internal storage, and a microSD card slot. In terms of memory, the Optimus G Pro has 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage space with microSD card slot for expansion. Connectivity options include HSPA+, Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.0, A-GPS, NFC and Infrared. The Optimus G Pro runs on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean with LG's custom UI on top. 7. Samsung Galaxy S4 Active As the name suggests the S4 Active is a rugged version of the regular S4, aimed at those who want a phone that can stand dust or water. It is IP67 certified which means it'll survive being dipped into fresh water for up to 30 minutes at a depth of 1 metre. The front of the S4 Active has the same design as the Galaxy S4, with a polycarbonate body wrapped with a metal rim round its circumference providing a rigid and relatively premium look and feel. The S4 Active differs with S4 in terms of camera and display technology. The S4 active has only 8MP as compared to 13MP on the S4, and the 5-inch screen is a TFT affair instead of Super AMOLED, but it still boasts a full HD resolution and looks smashing. On the inside you still get the powerful 1.9GHz quad-core processor which adorns the flagship, plus the same 2GB of RAM and Android 4.2 OS. Overall, a wide variety of quick settings, great lockscreen and some good native apps such as the music player make it a good smartphone.6. Nexus 5 The Nexus 5 is a good phone for those who want a perfect blend between value and performance. The new Nexus 5 features a beautiful 5-inch 1080p screen along with the new KitKat 4.4 Android operating system. The Nexus 5 is ultra-thin and is light weight which makes it easy to handle and pocket friendly. At a first glance, the Nexus 5 appears to be just one slab of glass and plastic with virtually no bezel. The rounded corners along with slim profile give the Nexus 5 a futuristic and minimal sort of look. The phone comes in both black and white. The Nexus 5's 4.95-inch screen delivers a 1920 x 1080 display, which provides a nice 445 pixel per inch display. On the camera front, the device comes with a 8MP snapper which packs a 1/3.2″ image sensor and optical image stabilization to deliver accurate and clear shots. Overall, the phone offers a solid 8MP camera that provides decent performance in both low-light and bright settings.The latest operating system from Google gives a new look and polish to the Android Operating System. The icons are a bigger and the font is thinner. New voice actions through Google Now give you instant access to a variety of tasks. And if you are already an Android user, you won't find any difficulties in terms of navigation. On Kitkat, Google is by default available on the swipe on the left of the home screen. All your SMS messages will be integrated into one place which is Google Hangouts now. 5. Samsung Galaxy S4The Samsung Galaxy S4 is one of the best Android smartphones in town. Instead of rounded edges, the Galaxy S4 uses flat surfaces and straight lines to give a more serious look to it. The curves at the top and bottom edges are less tapered this time, so the corners are a touch squarer, which makes the smartphone look more appealing. The S4 is slim phone that measures 136.6x69.8x7.9mm and weighs only 130g. The phone is available in Black Mist and White Frost color finish. While the front has the 5-inch touch screen and the home button, the USB and charging ports and the primary microphone are located at the bottom of the phone. The device features a 5 inch full HD super AMOLED screen offering 1080x1920 pixels, with 441pixels per inch of display. The S4 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 quad-core processor clocked at 1.9GHz with 2GB of RAM and an Adreno 320 graphics processing unit (GPU). Samsung Galaxy S4 comes with a 13 megapixel rear view camera and a 2 megapixel front end camera. The phone delivers great shots in both day light and dim light. Some good camera features include dual shot, image stabilization, geo tagging, face and smile detection, drama shot & Eraser. Though, the S4 lacks the gorgeous styling of the HTC One, but the combination of power and innovation put it ahead of many. This clearly shows why it is so popular.4. Apple iPhone 5SIn short, the iPhone 5S has everything that a smartphone user wants: an amazingly fast processor, excellent build quality, a great operating system, and a good app ecosystem. With great attention to detail, the iPhone 5S is master of the largest mobile ecosystem around. In terms of design, the phone's precision cut aluminium rear sits absolutely flush with glass panels that sit at the top and bottom. Its neat bevelled edges are perfectly formed and the 7.3mm thick phone feels incredibly comfortable in the hand. The front of the device is "dominated" by a 4-inch touchscreen, which is a LED-backlit IPS LCD panel, with a resolution of 640x1136 pixels, offering a pixel density of 326 PPI. The iPhone 5s houses Apple's A7 processor, which is twice as powerful as its predecessor (A6). The phone also has a motion co-processor called M7. This chip can collate data from the compass, gyroscope, accelerometer, and other sensors. M7 helps iPhone 5s check movement, speed and direction without draining battery life. ng sensor just to the left. The iPhone 5s now comes with a new Touch ID sensor, embedded in the home button, which allows for faster and more secure logins. The Touch ID sensor communicates directly with the stored fingerprint on the A7 chip, and not even the rest of the phone can see it. Moreover, you can use Touch ID to replace your iTunes password. This is an excellent way of not having to pop in your special word over and over again.The combination of the new processor, M7 motion process and a slightly larger battery all mean that the iPhone 5S has better battery life than its predecessor. Running at half brightness with Wi-Fi turned off, our iPhone 5S can last 14h 31m on video playback test. 3. Motorola Moto G The Motorola Moto G is a premium quality smartphone minus the premium price tag. Its 4.5-inch, 720p IPS LCD screen offers a respectable 720p resolution giving a screen density of 329 pixels per inch. The screen gives intense colors and sharp text and images. The back of Moto G is smooth and comfy and is easy to use one-handed. Although the Moto G doesn't quite have the aesthetic purity of the Nexus 5, it still looks more expensive than it is.It runs a 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor, a more mainstream part than some of the more generic Cortex-A7s you see in other low cost smartphones. The rear camera is a 5-megapixel affair, and there's also a 1.3-megapixel front-facer. It has a 5-megapixel sensor and an f/2.4 lens. Both of these are mid-range at best. The camera app is Motorola-made and the phone shares its camera interface with the Moto X. With an affordable price tag, the Motorola Moto G's image quality is decent, but it is a mediocre camera. The Moto G has 6 per cent less battery capacity than the Moto X. The device offers 1 GB of RAM, which in combination with the processor and the GPU, makes data processing better and faster. The connectivity features offered by Moto G are Wi-Fi, GSM, GPRS, 3G, A-GPS, GLONASS, Bluetooth version 4.0, and Micro USB. To enhance the audio experience, it is provided with a 3.5mm audio jack so that you can enjoy your music via your headphones as well. 2. LG G2 The G2 is LG's answer to the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S4, HTC One, Sony Xperia Z1, and Apple's iPhone 5s. The distinctive features of LG G2 are the positioning of its on/off button and the 'near zero bezel'. LG has managed to cram a 5.2-inch screen, which is 65mm wide into a chassis that's just 70.9mm wide. The bezel along the long edges are virtually non-existent, and is narrow at the top and bottom too. The G2 features a 5.2-inch True-HD IPS+ TFT LCD panel produced by LG with a resolution of 1920 x 1080, giving a pixel density of 424 pixels-per-inch. The panel delivers bright, vibrant and color-accurate, images that are not oversaturated. The phone comes with strangely-positioned rear buttons. Rather than having the power and volume buttons in their usual positions around the edge of the handset, LG has placed them below the camera on the back panel. The idea is to stretch as far as possible to either side of the device, delivering minimal bezel.Internally, the LG G2 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 MSM8974 SoC, which features a 2.3 GHz quad-core Krait 400 CPU, a 450 MHz Adreno 330 GPU, LPDDR3 memory controller, QDSP6V5A Hexagon digital signal processor (DSP) at 600 MHz, and a range of connectivity features including LTE and Wi-Fi 802.11ac. The G2 is also a suitable gaming device, thanks to its relatively spacious 5.2-inch display, portable body and powerful internals. The LG G2 comes loaded with Android 4.2.2 heavily customized through LG's UI. The phone comes with a 13-megapixel Sony Exmor RS IMX135 1/3.06” backside illuminated CMOS unit with 1.12 μm pixels, and it's paired with an f/2.4 lens with a 4.0 mm focal length (29mm at 35mm conversion). The entire module is optically stabilized through a system. Video recording capabilities include 1080p/60 video at 30 Mbps, 1080p/30 at 20 Mbps, and some interesting software implementations such as tracking zoom and audio zoom. There's also a 2.1 megapixel front-facing camera capable of 1080p/30 video. The LG has packed in a relatively large 11.4 Wh (3,000 mAh) battery into the handset. 1. Samsung Galaxy Note 3 With Note 3, Samsung, also called the King of Android, seem to be gaining more loyal consumers. The Note 3 is a great phablet for those who want both a phone and a tablet – offering users the capability do a huge number of multitasking. The whole phone is only 8.3mm thick and altogether it's very neat, clean and tidy. Samsung Galaxy Note 3 comes with a 5.7-inch full-HD Super AMOLED display, but weighing at 168g and 8.33m wide, is both lighter and slimmer than the Samsung Galaxy Note II. It is powered by 1.9GHz octa-core processor and a 3GB of RAM.The Galaxy Note 3 is available in 32GB and 64GB variants, with an additional 64GB expandable storage via microSD card. The camera on the Nore 3 is a 13-megapixel back-illuminated sensor with a single LED flash plus both 1080p and 4k video capture. It also has a 2-megapixel front camera. The smartphone is powered by 3,200mAh battery and runs Android 4.3 Jelly Bean. Connectivity options on the Note 3 include Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, GPS/ GLONASS, NFC, Bluetooth v4.0 (LE), IR, and MHL 2.0. It comes with various sensors like Gesture, Accelerometer, Geo-magnetic, Gyroscope, Proximity, Barometer, Temperature & Humidity, and Hall Sensor.

Top 10 smartphones of 2013

New Delhi: It has been another phenomenal year for the smartphones. Even if are so fond of your handset, there's bound to be a newer, specs-rich device on the shelves. No surprisingly, smartphone sales exceeded

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