Understanding the dual camera systems on smartphones

Dual camera systems on smartphones have been around for several years now. Some of the earliest examples include the weird 3D camera on the HTC EVO 3D. Then it was HTC again who introduced it in a different form on the One m8. Then LG decided to drop in with its cool wide-angle lens with the G5 and the same year, Apple decided to take in the other direction by adding a telephoto lens on the iPhone 7 Plus. Meanwhile, Huawei had other ideas, with its Leica branded monochrome camera on the P9. But just how many types of dual camera systems are out there and how do they differ from each other?...

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Counterclockwise: Nokia 3310 and and its family tree

In honor of the 3G-enabled Nokia 3310, we wanted to trace the history of one of the best-known phone models. What made it so popular and is it still relevant today? Our story begins with the Nokia 3110, the first phone to feature the Navi-Key, a smart button below the screen whose function changes in each menu (the label on the screen tells you its current function). This became the primary way to navigate Nokia's feature phone interface, surviving well into the touchscreen era (when the physical button was replaced by the touchscreen itself). Nokia 3110 Two years later came out...

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Week 39 in review: Google Pixel 2 specs leak, Nokia 3310 now has 3G

When official announcements are scarce, leaksters arise. Such was the situation in Week 39 - the Google Pixel 2, the Samsung Galaxy A-series 2018 and the Huawei Mate 10 series popped up before their respective announcements. The Essential PH-1 was supposed to be a breakthrough device, but apparently, the company sold only 5,000 devices since its launch. Apple launched the iOS 11 and bugs started appearing. Cupertino issued a v11.0.1 update which supposedly fixes various issues. On Thursday HMD Global finally brought us the Nokia 3310 with 3G support, meaning it will finally arrive in...

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Weekly poll: Sony Xperia XZ1, hot or not?

Sony has updated its flagships piecemeal - the XZ added 2160p video capture that the X Performance was missing, the XZs improved the camera yet again and now the Xperia XZ1 upgrades the chipset to 2017 standards. Did Sony cover everything you wished for with this latest iteration of X phone? The obvious thing that it's missing is a bezel-less design that is standard for late 2017. A dual camera may be another, but by the sound of it the new Pixels will stick to one cam per side so dual cameras are not yet mandatory. Still, we haven't forgotten that Sony has been the one pushing things...

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Top 10 trending phones of week 39

The iPhone X reign is done, make way for the new king. The Samsung Galaxy Note8 is the new leader of our chart after the past seven days. The iPhone X also lost the popularity contest with the iPhone 8 and fell down to third. This week the Galaxy J7 Pro was again one step away from the podium, sitting at fourth. Two Xiaomi devices follow - the promising Xiaomi Mi A1 with stock Android and the best-seller Xiaomi Redmi Note 4. The Samsung Galaxy S8 is now at seventh place, right ahead of the vivo V7+. The iPhone 8 Plus returns to the chart after a week of absence, while the Nokia 6 holds...

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Weekly poll results: rounded corners are a hot new trend

There's a growing trend in smartphone design that slices and dices the screen in shapes that stray further and further from the traditional rectangle. Rounded corners are a relatively tiny change and an old one at that (the Palm Pre had rounded corners). But then companies like LG, Essential and then Apple started cutting off larger portions. LG did it to fit a "secondary screen" on the same line as the selfie camera, Essential just jammed the selfie camera in the top row of the screen and Apple was even more aggressive. And our readers want none of that - only a quarter of voters are...

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