iPhone 6

The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are smartphones designed and marketed by Apple Inc. The devices are part of the iPhone series and were announced on September 9, 2014, and released on September 19, 2014. The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus jointly serve as successors to the iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s.

The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus include a number of changes over their predecessor, including models with larger 4.7 and 5.5 inches (120 and 140 mm) displays, a faster processor, upgraded cameras, improved LTE and Wi-Fi connectivity and support for anear field communications-based mobile payments offering.

Pre-orders of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus exceeded four million within its first 24 hours of availability—an Apple record. More than ten million iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus devices were sold in the first three days, another Apple record.

Hardware

The design of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are influenced by that of the iPad Air with a glass front that is curved around the edges of the display, and an aluminum rear that contains two plastic strips for the antenna. Both models come in gold, silver, and "space gray" finishes. The iPhone 6 has a thickness of 6.9 millimetres (0.27 in), while the iPhone 6 Plus is 7.1 mm (0.28 in) in thickness; both are thinner than the iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s, with the iPhone 6 being Apple's thinnest phone to date. The most significant changes to the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are its displays; both branded as "Retina HD Display" and "ion-strengthened", the iPhone 6 display is 4.7 inches in size with a 16:9 resolution of 1334x750 (326 ppi, minus one row of pixels), while the iPhone 6 Plus includes a 5.5-inch 1920x1080 (1080p) display (401 PPI). The displays use a multiple-domain LCD panel, dubbed "dual-domain pixels"; the RGB pixels themselves are skewed in pattern, so that every pixel is seen from a different angle. This technique helps improve the viewing angles of the display.

To accommodate the larger physical size of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, the power button was moved to the side of the phone instead of the top to improve its accessibility. The iPhone 6 features a 6.91 Wh (1810 mAh) battery, while the iPhone 6 Plus features a 11.1 Wh (2915 mAh) battery. Unlike the previous model, the rear-facing camera is not flush with the rear of the device, and has a slight "bulge" around the lens. It has a dual-core 1.4 GHz "Typhoon" processor (ARM v8-based) and Imagination's PowerVR GX6450 quad-core graphics processor.

Both models include an Apple A8 system-on-chip, and an M8 motion co-processor—an update of the M7 chip from the iPhone 5s. The main difference between the M8 and the original M7 coprocessor is that the M8 also includes a barometer to measure altitude changes. Phil Schiller touted that the A8 chip would provide, in comparison to the 5s, a 25% increase in CPU performance, a 50% increase in graphics performance, and less heat output. Early hands-on reports suggested that the A8's GPU performance might indeed break away from previous generations doubling of performance at each yearly release, scoring 21204.26 in Base mark X compared to 20253.80, 10973.36 and 5034.75 on respectively the 5s, 5 and 4s.

The expanded LTE connectivity on the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus is improved to LTE Advanced, with support for over 20 LTE bands (7 more than the iPhone 5s), for up to 150 Mbit/s download speed, and VoLTE support. Wi-Fi performance has been improved with support for 802.11ac specifications, providing speeds up to 433.0581 Mbit/s—which is up to 3 times faster than802.11n, along with Wi-Fi Calling support where available. The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus add support for near-field communications (NFC), which is used exclusively for Apple Pay—a new mobile payments system which will allow users to store their credit cards in Passbook for use with online payments and retail purchases over NFC. NFC support is restricted to Apple Pay only, and cannot be used for any other purposes (such as sharing content with other iPhone users).

While still 8 megapixels in size, the iPhone 6's rear-facing camera includes a new sensor which, like the camera in the iPhone 5s, has 1.5 micron pixels, an f/2.2 aperture lens, and the ability to shoot 1080p video at either 30 or 60 frames per second. The camera also includes phase detection autofocus. It can also record slow-motion video at either 120 or 240 frames per second. The iPhone 6 Plus camera is nearly identical, but also includes optical image stabilization. The front-facing camera was also updated with a new sensor and f/2.2 aperture, along with support for burst and HDR modes.
Software

When first released, the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus shipped pre-loaded with iOS 8, while the iPhone 5s shipped pre-loaded with iOS 7. Apps are able to take advantage of the increased screen size in the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus to display more information on-screen; for example, the Mail app uses a dual-pane layout similar to its iPad version when the device is in landscape mode on the iPhone 6 Plus. As it uses an identical aspect ratio, apps designed for the iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, and 5s can be upscaled for use on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. To improve the usability of the devices' larger screens, an additional "Reachability" gesture was added; double-tapping the Home button will slide the top half of the screen's contents down to the bottom half of the screen. This function allows users to reach buttons located near the top of the screen, such as a "Back" button in the top-left corner.

Reception

Philips Fidelio X1

CARACTÉRISTIQUES

• Type de casqueOuvert
• Haut parleurDynamique
• Longueur cordon3 m
• Poids430 g

PRÉSENTATION

Après le succès des casques nomades M1 et L1, difficile pour Philips de ne pas s'attaquer à la catégorie reine, mais ô combien plus disputée : les casques sédentaires/hi-fi. Le constructeur a donc décidé de mettre les pieds dans le plat, et pas qu'à moitié : le X1 vient se positionner en concurrent direct des grandes références du secteur d'AKG, Audio Technica, Beyerdynamic ou encore Sennheiser. Rien que ça !

ERGONOMIE 

luxueux et confortable

Il est bien rare de trouver des casques à la fois propres, classes, fabriqués avec des matériaux nobles sans qu'ils ne soient survendus pour leur côté "produits de luxe". Ici point de tout cela : le X1 a beau être conçu principalement avec du cuir et de l'alu, Philips n'exagère pas et livre un objet sobre, discret, avec un design passe-partout. Malgré une reprise de certains codes rétros, le design reste moderne et ne donne pas l'impression d'un produit tout droit sorti des années 50.

Côté confort, difficile de trouver un vrai reproche à faire au Fidelio. Le casque est léger, et si Philips n'a pas réinventé la roue avec l'arceau suspendu connu depuis fort longtemps chez AKG, le principe est remis au goût du jour et amélioré : là où AKG utilise une "simple" bande de cuir au contact avec le crâne, Philips préfère une mousse légère recouverte de mesh. C'est plus doux au toucher et plus aéré. Le serrage de l'arceau est conséquent, mais entre cette suspension et les oreillettes très largement rembourrées, aucune gêne particulière ne se fait ressentir et la tenue est meilleure que chez AKG quand on bouge la tête. Seul le velours des oreillettes mériterait une qualité un poil supérieur pour tenir dans le temps. Il risque d'ailleurs de démanger légèrement quelques crânes. Rien de bien méchant...

Côté finition, rien à redire non plus : les coutures sont très bien ajustées, les articulations semblent robustes (notamment grâce à l'emploi massif de métal) et le cordon recouvert d'une gaine tressée est de très grande qualité, à un détail près (voir l'encadré).

AUDIO 

une pointe de peps dans les basses

Proposer un casque de luxe, c'est bien, mais on est forcément attendu au tournant et la performance audio devra être de haut niveau.

Philips est même doublement attendu au tournant : ce casque est lancé à un prix élevé sur un secteur où les concurrents historiques n'ont plus rien à prouver. Avec ses deux modèles précédents, le constructeur européen a toutefois déjà prouvé qu'il est tout à fait capable de faire d'excellents casques.

Pas le droit à l'erreur donc pour le X1, et ça tombe bien, il n'en fait aucune. La réponse en fréquence du casque est vraiment bonne. Philips a fait le choix d'ajouter quelques décibels dans les basses profondes, bien plus bas dans le spectre que ce qu'on peut entendre sur la plupart des casques dit basseux. Résultat à l'oreille : une sensation deloudness "à l'ancienne" qui permet de profiter d'un rendu assez naturel à bas niveau sonore. Ce sont nos oreilles qui apprécient. Ça sonne du coup plus costaud dans le grave que le haut de gamme AKG, mais moins sombre et massif que chez Sennheiser.

Mais surtout, cet apport savamment dosé de basses, et bien positionné dans le spectre, est (très !) propre. Bien des produits plus neutres en apparence proposent une bande de fréquences graves plus molle avec une sensation de trainage et de rendu par moment étouffant. Ce genre de problème n'a pas lieu avec le X1. Les ondes carrées confirment une réactivité excellente, sans problème de mollesse, de retard ou encore de son métallique. Qui plus est, grâce à sa faible impédance, il est facile à contrôler par de nombreuses sources et s’accommodera sans problème d'un chipset audio intégré même si ce n'est sans doute pas le meilleur des contextes pour profiter d'un tel produit.

Beats.By Dr Dre

Beats.By Dr Dre

It's easy to confuse the Beats Studio (2013) headphones with the company's Studio Wireless over-the-ear headphones. That's because the two headphones look nearly identical, the big difference being the latter model includes not only active noise-cancelling but Bluetooth technology, which allows for wireless streaming from any Bluetooth-enabled device. Oh, and at $379.95 (AU$479), the Studio Wireless costs $80 more.

Both these headphones are based on a new "re-imagined" design of the original, uber-popular Studio, which didn't impress audiophiles and had other faults. These new models are lighter and built more sturdily. They also boast softer earcups and seem very comfortable (I know people who run in them), offering a snug fit and a fairly tight seal without feeling too tight.

I tested Studio Wireless for several weeks and came away really liking it. Soundwise, it measures up to many of the top Bluetooth headphones, and it's a big upgrade over the older on-ear Wireless in every way. The big question, of course, is it worth $379.95?

The answer really depends on whether you're OK with paying a premium for the Beats brand. But more on that in a minute.

The Studio Wireless comes in six colors -- white, blue, red, titanium, and black (matte or glossy) -- and is better constructed than the original Beats Studio . For what it's worth, I like the look of the the matte black and blue models best (I started with a glossy black review sample, which I later swapped for a matte black sample).

While these are premium headphones, they are made mostly of plastic, but their finishes help them seem a little more swanky than the original Studios. The glossy models do attract fingerprints, which is why the headphones come with a small cloth for buffing them (the buff cloth is now becoming a common accessory for this type of high-end plastic headphone).

Like the standard Studio (2013), this model has no "visible" screws, which is good, because those tiny little screws on the headband of the original had a habit of unscrewing themselves and falling out. However, when you break the headphones down -- they fold up (though not flat) to fit in a nice carrying case -- you'll notice Torx screws

 on the joints on each side of the headband. That joint does have some metal in it and snaps nicely into place when you unfold the headphones.

Beyond that carrying case, you get a few other extras, including both a straight cord for wired listening and one that integrates an Apple-friendly remote and microphone for cell-phone calls. (The remote features may not work with non-Apple devices, but the microphone will.)

Unfortunately, the cords come in red for all models, so there's a little bit of color clash when, say, you get the blue model and end up with a red cord. For $379.95, you should probably get cords that match the color of the headphones. Still, these are wireless headphones, and the vast majority of people will stow away those extra cords (except maybe the USB cable) and never use them, so color won't matter too much. However, it is worth noting that the headphone' internal battery has to have some charge for the headphones to work, wireless or wired.

On the inside, there's a new, "improved" DSP (digital signal processor) and software that Beats has, for marketing purposes, dubbed the Beats Acoustic Engine. These are active noise-canceling headphones, and they come equipped with two modes of "adaptive" noise cancellation. According to Beats, one mode is for music listening and offers "balanced" adaptive noise cancellation between your music and your environment, and the other mode offers stronger noise cancellation for when you're disconnected and just want to shut out the world (you can't play your music in this mode).

To power the Bluetooth and noise-cancellation circuitry, there's an integrated rechargeable lithium battery that you juice up via a Micro-USB connection (a cable is included -- again red). Battery life is rated at 12 hours of wireless listening and 20 hours of wired listening. A five-light LED "battery fuel gauge" under the power button on the right earcup indicates how much charge is left, and if you have an iOS device, a tiny battery gauge appears on your device next to the Bluetooth icon in the top right of your screen (as it does with all Bluetooth audio devices).

Sony Xperia Z5

The Sony Xperia Z5 is an Android smartphone produced by Sony. Part of the Sony Xperia Z series, the device, at that point known by the project code name "Sumire", was unveiled along with the Xperia Z5 Compact and Xperia Z5 Premium during a press conference at IFA 2015 on September 2, 2015. The device was launched globally in October and will launch in the United States as an unlocked device in February 2016. It is the successor to the Sony Xperia Z3+.

Similar to its predecessor, the device is water and dust proof with an IP rating of 65 and 68. It is Sony's first device to feature a fingerprint sensor. The device comes with 23 Megapixel camera with 0.03 seconds Hybrid Autofocus that utilizes phase detectionautofocus, similarly found in the Xperia M5.

In February 2016 it was confirmed by Sony Mobile's senior product marketing manager Jun Makino that the Sony Xperia Z5 will be the final smartphone in the Sony Xperia Z series, with all future releases being released as part of the Sony Xperia X series.However this rumor was dismissed as Sony's Head of Marketing, Don Mesa has clarified that the X Series will not replace the Z Series.

Hardware

Unlike its predecessors, the Xperia Z5's body design consists of an aluminum frame with a frosted glass backing to reduce fingerprints appearing on the back of the phone. The device carries an IP rating of IP65 and IP68, making it dust and water resistant. The device features a 5.15 inches (13.1 cm) (marketed as 5.2-in) 1080p display with a density of 424 ppi, featuring Sony's "Triluminos" technology.^[7] The device also features a 64-bit 2.0 GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 system-on-chip with 3 GB of RAM. The device also has 32 GB internal storage with microSD card expansion up to 200 GB.^[8] The device also includes a non-removable 2900 mAh battery.

The rear-facing camera of the Xperia Z5 is 23 megapixels with sensor size of 1/2.3 inch and an aperture of f/2.0, featuring a newerSony Exmor RS image sensor, instead of the 20.7 megapixels image sensor which was used in all of its predecessors, starting from the Xperia Z1. Similarly found in the Xperia M5, the devices also features hybrid autofocus that utilizes phase detection autofocusthat can focus the object within 0.03 seconds.

Xperia Z5 also features a redesigned power button located on the right side of the device with a fingerprint recognition system which can be used to unlock the phone.

Software

The Xperia Z5 is preinstalled with Android 5.1 "Lollipop" with Sony's custom interface and software. Pre-loaded applications on the Z5 provide access to Google’s various services, including Google Play, which can be used to download and purchase apps, music, movies, and e-books.

The Xperia Z5 is now ready to be upgraded to Android 6.0 "Marshmallow".

                                         Htc One M9

Samsung Galaxy S7

Hardware

The Galaxy S7's hardware design is largely identical to that of the S6; it retains its metal and glass chassis, but with refinements such as a squarer home button, and a thinner protrusion for the camera. Both models will be available in black and gold colors; a white and silver version will be available depending on the market.The S7 and S7 Edge are IP68-certified for dust and water resistance; unlike the Galaxy S5, the S7's ports are sealed and therefore it does not have protective flaps. Moisture in the charging port prevents the phone from charging.^[

Galaxy S7 devices are equipped with a Samsung Exynos 8890 system-on-chip and 4 GB of RAM. In the United States and China, the S7 uses the quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820, as unlike Exynos, it supports the CDMA2000 networks which are still extensively used by some U.S. and China carriers.The heat from the processor is transferred with a 0.4mm thick water-to-steamheat pipe cooling system. The S7 includes either 32 or 64 GB of internal storage (in most markets only the 32 GB model will be available). The micro SD card slot was restored, enabling expansion of storage capacity. As well as accepting a multitude of micro SD cards, to top it off ,with the unveiling of the Sandisk 200 GB micro SDXC the Samsung Galaxy S7 has a significant data storage capaility

Both the S7 and S7 Edge feature a 1440p Super AMOLED display; the S7 has a 5.1-inch panel, while the S7 Edge (succeeding the S6 Edge+, as there is no longer a 5.1-inch curved-screen in the S7 lineup unlike the S6 Edge) now uses a larger 5.5-inch panel. As with the prior model, the S7 Edge's screen is curved along the side bezels of the device. Both models also have larger batteries in comparison to the S6, with 3000 mAh and 3600 mAh capacity respectively and support for wireless charging. They also feature a 12-megapixel rear-facing camera with a "Dual Pixel" image sensor and f/1.7 aperture lens.

Some carriers like T-Mobile provide the device with a locked bootloader, preventing rooting the device or installing third party system software.

Software

The Galaxy S7 ships with Android 6.0 "Marshmallow" and Samsung's proprietary TouchWizsoftware suite. The new TouchWiz also allows the user to disable the app drawer. A new "Always On" functionality displays a clock and notifications on-screen when the device is in standby; the display is turned off completely if the device's proximity sensor detects that it is in an enclosed space such as a pocket. Samsung claims this feature would only consume half a percentage of battery capacity per-hour. New widget panes can be displayed on the edge of the S7 Edge, in "Edge Single" and wider "Edge Single Plus" sizes. Android Marshmallow's "adopted storage" feature was disabled by Samsung and is not usable.

The Samsung Galaxy S7 received support for the Vulkan 1.0 low-level rendering API.

                                       Sony Xperia Z5

HTC M.9

HTC M.9

 Samsung Galaxy S7, Sony Xperia Z5

The HTC One M9 is a phone built on precision. It's a brand realising it made a pretty much perfect phone with the One M8 and doubling down on its greatest strength to try and win over more customers.

It's dropped the maligned 4MP Ultrapixel sensor, bumping it up to a huge 20.7MP option in a bid to attract those that feel safer buying a phone with higher numbers on the spec sheet.

And it's tied off the experience with a huge boost in the engine room and teamed up with Dolby to refine its already powerful BoomSound experience.

Even the battery capacity is improved, something HTC has struggled with in the past – now it's beating Samsung's Galaxy S6. So has the Taiwanese brand managed to do the almost impossible and create yet another perfect device?

It's certainly charging for it: the One M9 isn't cheap. In the UK it's got an RRP of £580 SIM free for the handset, with a good £10 per month extra on contract. US pricing has it at $649 without subsidy – which seems slightly out of kilter with the UK, but if you shop around you can get it for under £500.

This will go down further, but it seems this phone has had to have a price increase to facilitate the improved design and uprated innards. HTC has kept the microSD slot for extra storage, and boosted the internal spec to 32GB to ensure issues of low memory should be a thing of the past.

The internals are impressive: an octa-core Qualcomm 810 chipset, 3GB of RAM, 2840 mAh battery on top of a Super LCD3 screen. It's not got the cachet of Samsung's Super AMOLED display, but it's still colour rich and seems close to the glass, which is important for image quality. 

There are some things that haven't improved though: the screen is still "only" 5 inches, which could be too big or too small depending on your opinion on the subject. The resolution is "only" 1080p, but again, some are questioning whether the pin-sharp QHD resolution is needed, especially as it's harder on battery life.

The metallic chassis is back and is bolder than ever. It's a two tone design (well, the Silver/Gold and Gold/Pink versions have a contrasting band around the side, whereas the Gunmetal Grey and Gold on Gold versions don't) that uses a single piece of metal for the entire phone – it really feels better packaged.

However, the key question remains: is this package good enough to warrant the extra cash? Have the improvements added more to the mix or is HTC just treading water, adding nuance rather than innovation?

Design

Let's get this out the way at the start – the design is, by far, the most amazing part of the HTC One M9. HTC is calling it "jewellery-grade," with each one hand-finished by craftsmen, and it certainly shows.

The one-piece fascia is complemented beautifully by the two tone metallic rim (on my review unit, the silver and gold variant). The grey and gold versions will look less impressive, given they've lost the two-tone appeal, but that doesn't mean they won't be as nice to hold.

Actually, I'm pretty sure they'll be nicer than this model. There's something about the design right now that I really don't like, the rear edge proving to be quite sharp in the hand. It's not going to draw blood, but when I used the gunmetal grey preview device in Barcelona it definitely felt closer to the One M8 in style, with more of a comfortable curve.

The reason for this hasn't been confirmed by HTC, but I get the feeling it's something to do with the colouring process.

The other thing that's changed here – and not for the better – is the power button transferring to the right-hand side of the phone.

This is a more natural place for it to live, making it easier to turn the screen on and off. However, HTC has inexplicably made it the same size and shape as the volume buttons above, so feeling for it without explicitly looking means I often hit the volume key instead.

The microSD slot is right above the trio of buttons too, and as it's slightly indented can cause confusion when trying to change volume in the pocket. It's hard to tell which is which, even with the phone in your hand – the extra ridges on the power button don't help enough.

While the decisions HTC has made to improve the One M9's design don't seem to have hit the mark, there's no doubt this is a finely crafted phone, and is probably the best on the market in that respect.

The two-tone finish is superb, the weight and balance is even better than before, and the precision I spoke of earlier is the overriding feeling.

The sharp edges of the BoomSound speakers are well-defined, and while it's heavy at 157g, especially compared to the iPhone 6 or Galaxy S6, Apple's is the only device that can come close to beating the attractive packaging here – and I prefer the weight and balance HTC has created.

I'd definitely chuck it in a case though. After two days I'd already dented the bottom through it falling a foot onto the floor, and those nicks are really noticeable on the premium casing.

Screen

One thing HTC gets lambasted for is the extra space around the screen, with people saying the HTC logo doesn't need to be on there, surrounded by a black bar that many think is there for show.

It isn't. It's packing screen components that have to go somewhere as HTC has extended the length of the One M9 through the need for decent audio chambers to pump out BoomSound – and I'd rather have the powerful speakers than an identikit smartphone.

The M9 is actually a little smaller than before, despite having the same 5-inch screen as last year. In fact, it's an identical screen to last year's model with a 1080p SuperLCD display covered in Gorilla Glass.

There are undoubtedly performance improvements, but like last year, HTC is being cagey about them. What is apparent is the screen's colours are rich enough, the gap between glass and display is low and the response under the finger is noticeably sharper.

That said, in our testing the screen is too dark under auto conditions, the colours often appear washed out compared to the rest of the flagship phones and it doesn't pack the same 'wallop' as the iPhone 6 or LG G4, for instance. It's not terrible at all, but it begs the question why HTC hasn't updated this.

The screen's 441PPI is perfectly sharp and doesn't really offer a lot less than the QHD screens that are starting to flood the market. Well, more not so much "flood" as "gradually drip," but they are coming.

The only functional reason I can see to stick a super-sharp display into a screen below six inches in size is to allow for virtual reality headsets, which magnify the screen and can cause pixelation. However, HTC isn't using the phone as the base of its VR Vive headset, so there's not really any need here.

The 5-inch screen is a fraction smaller than the competition on the market right now, with many other brands choosing to go 5.1-inch and above – but again, 5 inches seems like a fine choice here. There's a fair amount of bezel on the One M9 compared to phones like the LG G4 and the Galaxy S6, and that's more pronounced due to the extra metallic lip that's running around the edge of the phone.

But we don't need edge to edge displays unless that's what the phone is about – and HTC's model is geared towards feeling more ergonomic in the hand, so it seems to suit the device