ZTE launches the 5.2 inch Axon 7 mini for €299 (officially)

ZTE launches the 5.2 inch Axon 7 mini for €299 (officially)

The ZTE Axon 7 mini is a phone that looks a lot like the Axon 7, but which is a tad smaller and a tad less powerful. Fortunately it’s also a tad cheaper.

A few days after the Axon 7 mini started showing up at European retail sites, ZTE is officially launching the phone. As expected, it features a 5.2 inch full HD display and a €299 price tag.

The Axon 7 mini should be available in Russia, Germany, Spain, Poland, Japan, Australia, India, and Saudi Arabia in September.

Continue reading ZTE launches the 5.2 inch Axon 7 mini for €299 (officially) at Liliputing.

ZTE launches the 5.2 inch Axon 7 mini for €299 (officially)

The ZTE Axon 7 mini is a phone that looks a lot like the Axon 7, but which is a tad smaller and a tad less powerful. Fortunately it’s also a tad cheaper.

A few days after the Axon 7 mini started showing up at European retail sites, ZTE is officially launching the phone. As expected, it features a 5.2 inch full HD display and a €299 price tag.

The Axon 7 mini should be available in Russia, Germany, Spain, Poland, Japan, Australia, India, and Saudi Arabia in September.

Continue reading ZTE launches the 5.2 inch Axon 7 mini for €299 (officially) at Liliputing.

WoW: Legion, Battlefield 1 beta suffer launch-day outages

Blizzard confirms DDoS attack; hacker collective claims it DDoSed EA.

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Two of the gaming world's biggest properties battled major outages on Wednesday, as Blizzard's World of Warcraft was slammed by a distributed denial of service attack, while EA's Battlefield 1 suffered a suspected DDoS thrashing.

Players hoping to take part in the online-only beta of EA's forthcoming World War I shooter Battlefield 1 were left frustrated for most of the day after the servers went down, preventing people from logging in. Blizzard, meanwhile, experienced difficulties of its own, confirming that it was being targeted by a sustained DDoS attack seemingly timed to coincide with the release of Legion, the World of Warcraft expansion.

It is unclear, however, whether the two attacks are linked.

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Sony introduces a $3,200 gold-plated Walkman

Sony introduces a $3,200 gold-plated Walkman

Sony is updating its line of products for audiophiles with the new MDR-Z1R headphones, TA-ZH1 ES headphone amp, and NW-WM1Z Walkman.

Let’s focus on that last one for a minute… because it’s a fine example of, well, something.

Sony’s new Walkman is a portable media player with support for high-resolution audio playback, more than 30 hours of battery life, and 256GB of storage space for music. But a big part of the reason Sony thinks people will spend $3,200 on the NW-WM1Z is its design: the Walkman’s body is coated in gold.

Continue reading Sony introduces a $3,200 gold-plated Walkman at Liliputing.

Sony introduces a $3,200 gold-plated Walkman

Sony is updating its line of products for audiophiles with the new MDR-Z1R headphones, TA-ZH1 ES headphone amp, and NW-WM1Z Walkman.

Let’s focus on that last one for a minute… because it’s a fine example of, well, something.

Sony’s new Walkman is a portable media player with support for high-resolution audio playback, more than 30 hours of battery life, and 256GB of storage space for music. But a big part of the reason Sony thinks people will spend $3,200 on the NW-WM1Z is its design: the Walkman’s body is coated in gold.

Continue reading Sony introduces a $3,200 gold-plated Walkman at Liliputing.

Libratone: In-Ohr-Hörer mit Lightning-Anschluss unterdrücken Lärm

Beim iPhone 7 will Apple gerüchteweise den traditionellen Kopfhöreranschluss durch die Lightning-Schnittstelle ersetzen. Erste Zubehöranbieter kündigen passende Kopfhörer an, wobei der Libratone Q Adapt Citymix ins Auge fällt: Er ist mit einer aktiven Geräuschunterdrückung ausgerüstet. (Kopfhörer, Sound-Hardware)

Beim iPhone 7 will Apple gerüchteweise den traditionellen Kopfhöreranschluss durch die Lightning-Schnittstelle ersetzen. Erste Zubehöranbieter kündigen passende Kopfhörer an, wobei der Libratone Q Adapt Citymix ins Auge fällt: Er ist mit einer aktiven Geräuschunterdrückung ausgerüstet. (Kopfhörer, Sound-Hardware)

Champions of Anteria im Kurztest: Witzige Helden statt wuselige Siedler

Es sollte das nächste Spiel in der Siedler-Reihe werden – doch nun ist Champions of Anteria ein etwas wirrer Mix aus Aufbau-, Echtzeit- und Rundenstrategie für PC-Einzelspieler. Immerhin: Das Programm von Blue Byte zeigt Humor und nimmt sich selbst nicht allzu ernst. (Blue Byte, Steam)

Es sollte das nächste Spiel in der Siedler-Reihe werden - doch nun ist Champions of Anteria ein etwas wirrer Mix aus Aufbau-, Echtzeit- und Rundenstrategie für PC-Einzelspieler. Immerhin: Das Programm von Blue Byte zeigt Humor und nimmt sich selbst nicht allzu ernst. (Blue Byte, Steam)

Hoster: Hetzner bietet kostenlosen DDOS-Schutz

Das Hostingunternehmen Hetzner bietet seinen Kunden einen weitgehend automatisierten Schutz von DDOS-Angriffen für verschiedene Szenarien an. Der Service ist kostenlos. (DoS, Server)

Das Hostingunternehmen Hetzner bietet seinen Kunden einen weitgehend automatisierten Schutz von DDOS-Angriffen für verschiedene Szenarien an. Der Service ist kostenlos. (DoS, Server)

Sony Xperia Ear hands-free wireless earbud coming in November

Sony Xperia Ear hands-free wireless earbud coming in November

Sony’s Xperia Ear is a Bluetooth earbud that lets you control your smartphone without touching it.

Place the Xperia Ear in your… ear, and you can hear audio from your phone, or use voice controls to make calls, interact with Google Voice Search, Sony’s Xperia software, or other voice activated software.

Sony first introduced the Xperia Ear as a concept device in February, but now the company says it’ll be available for purchase in November.

Continue reading Sony Xperia Ear hands-free wireless earbud coming in November at Liliputing.

Sony Xperia Ear hands-free wireless earbud coming in November

Sony’s Xperia Ear is a Bluetooth earbud that lets you control your smartphone without touching it.

Place the Xperia Ear in your… ear, and you can hear audio from your phone, or use voice controls to make calls, interact with Google Voice Search, Sony’s Xperia software, or other voice activated software.

Sony first introduced the Xperia Ear as a concept device in February, but now the company says it’ll be available for purchase in November.

Continue reading Sony Xperia Ear hands-free wireless earbud coming in November at Liliputing.

Kabelmodems: Nutzer bleiben trotz Routerfreiheit ihren Geräten treu

Wer nach dem Ende des Routerzwangs einen Ansturm auf freie Endgeräte erwartet hat, hat sich geirrt. Nur wenige Nutzer schließen ein eigenes Modem an. Zudem funktioniert das nicht immer reibungslos. (Router, DSL)

Wer nach dem Ende des Routerzwangs einen Ansturm auf freie Endgeräte erwartet hat, hat sich geirrt. Nur wenige Nutzer schließen ein eigenes Modem an. Zudem funktioniert das nicht immer reibungslos. (Router, DSL)

Sony introduces Xperia X Compact, Xperia XZ smartphones

Sony introduces Xperia X Compact, Xperia XZ smartphones

There are two new members of Sony’s Xperia X line of smartphones. The new Xperia XZ is a 5.2 inch phone that could be the company’s new flagship, thanks to slightly beefier specs than you get from the Sony Xperia X Performance.

Meanwhile, the Sony Xperia X Compact is a 4.6 inch phone for folks lamenting the fact that it’s hard to find a good smartphone smaller than 5 inches.Sony has released “compact” editions of its last few smartphones, usually with specs that are similar to those for its high-end flagship phones.

Continue reading Sony introduces Xperia X Compact, Xperia XZ smartphones at Liliputing.

Sony introduces Xperia X Compact, Xperia XZ smartphones

There are two new members of Sony’s Xperia X line of smartphones. The new Xperia XZ is a 5.2 inch phone that could be the company’s new flagship, thanks to slightly beefier specs than you get from the Sony Xperia X Performance.

Meanwhile, the Sony Xperia X Compact is a 4.6 inch phone for folks lamenting the fact that it’s hard to find a good smartphone smaller than 5 inches.Sony has released “compact” editions of its last few smartphones, usually with specs that are similar to those for its high-end flagship phones.

Continue reading Sony introduces Xperia X Compact, Xperia XZ smartphones at Liliputing.

Sony’s Xperia XZ and X Compact smartphones bank on photo tricks

Meet the newest flagship and mini handset from Sony.

Enlarge / Sony Xperia XZ. (credit: Sony)

On the heels of releasing the Xperia X Performance smartphone a few months ago, Sony is back with another couple of handsets. At IFA 2016, Sony announced the Xperia XZ, which is being called the true flagship of its new X series of smartphones. The company also announced a new smaller handset, the Xperia X compact. Combining preferred aspects of both the X and the Z smartphone lines, the XZ flagship banks on power and an advanced camera to woo customers. The Compact, on the other hand, hopes to speak to those who still prefer a tinier (and likely less expensive) device.

Let's take a look at the Xperia XZ first: at a glance, it's nearly identical to the Xperia X Performance, but it has a few small differences. The edges have what Sony calls a "loop surface:" the top and bottom edges resemble long, flat ovals, while the rounded sides bulge out just slightly. The water-resistant handset is made of a specially treated metal with an aluminum base, giving it a satin-like finish. Sony likes color, so the XZ will be available in a new "forest blue" as well as black and platinum.

Sony's big focus with the XZ (and the X Compact as well) is a refined camera. The company spent a lot of time updating the main camera, adding more sensors and updating existing features. While Sony's smartphone shooters already have image stabilization, the XZ's 23-megapixel camera has X and Y shift shake to create a five-axis image stabilization. A new RGB sensor helps accurately white balance photos so colors come out more true to life, leaving behind any overly warm or cool hues. Sony even improved its hybrid autofocus by giving the XZ a laser autofocus, which uses laser technology to glean how far away a photo's subject is in order to properly focus and reduce blur.

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