Digital Indian Gov

Apple iPhone X's 'notch display' seems to have become the hot favourite of Android smartphone companies. Though introduced by Essential Phone in March 2017, the notch (a cutout in the display) became widely popular after it came on Apple's tenth-anniversary iPhone. In fact, research company Counterpoint has forecasted that approximately 300 million smartphones sporting the notch will be launched in the year 2018. Of these 300 million smartphones, 55% will be Android phones and the remaining 45% will be from Apple. Here are 6 Android smartphones currently available in India that are iPhone X 'look-alikes' as well as the ones that are set to launch in the country in the coming days.
1. OnePlus 6 (starting Rs Rs 34,999) : The latest smartphone to sport the 'much-famed' notch is OnePlus 6 (review). The device offers a 6.28-inch full-HD+ (1080x2280 pixels) Full Optic AMOLED display with a 19:9 aspect ratio. OnePlus 6 runs on Qualcomm's latest flagship processor Snapdragon 845 and Adreno 630 GPU. For imaging duties, the OnePlus 6 offers a 16MP primary camera with Sony IMX519 sensor with a 1.22-micron pixel size and f/1.7 aperture. The secondary camera is 20MP with Sony IM376K sensor. On the front, there's a a 16-megapixel with a Sony IMX371 sensor and f/2.0 aperture. OnePlus 6 comes in two variants based on RAM and internal storage capacity, 6GB RAM/64GB storage and 8GB RAM/128GB storage priced at Rs 34,999 and Rs 39,999 respectively.
2. Oppo F7 (starting Rs Rs 21,990) : Oppo's flagship smartphone too comes with an iPhone X-like display. It features a 6.23-inch full-HD+ display with 1080x2280 pixel resolution and 19:9 aspect ratio. Oppo F7 (review) has an iPhone X-like notch on the top. Powered by an 64-bit octa-core MediaTek Helio P60 processor, it comes in two storage options -- 4GB of RAM with 64GB ROM and 6GB of RAM and 128GB ROM. Oppo F7 boasts of the AI Beauty 2.0-powered 25-megapixel front-facing camera and a 16-megapixel camera with LED flash. The Oppo F7 is priced at Rs 21,990, for the 4GB RAM variant and Rs 26,990, for the 6GB RAM variant.
3. Huawei P20 Pro (Rs 64,999) : World's first smartphone with a triple rear camera, Huawei P20 Pro (review) too has notch like iPhone X on its 6.1-inch full HD+ OLED display. Backed by a 4000mAh battery, the device is powered by an octa-core Kirin 970 processor and offers 6GB RAM and 128GB inbuilt storage. The triple rear camera setup includes a 20MP monochrome sensor with f/1.6 aperture, 40MP RGB camera with f/1.8 aperture and an 8MP telephoto camera with f/2.4 aperture. The Huawei P20 Pro is priced at Rs 64,999.
4. Vivo V9 (Rs 23,990) : Vivo's flagship smartphone Vivo V9 (review) too has iPhone X-like 'notch display'. Priced at Rs 22,990 ,it has a 6.3-inch IPS LCD ‘FullView’ display with 2280 x 1080 pixels resolution and 19:9 aspect ratio. In other specs, Vivo V9 is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 626 processor paired with 4GB of RAM and 64GB internal storage. It features a 24MP selfie camera along with f/2.0 aperture and a dual rear camera setup of 16MP (f/2.0 aperture) and a 5MP (f/2.2 aperture).
5. Honor 10 (Rs 32,999) : Huawei's sub-brand Honor 10 features a 5.84-inch full HD+ display with a 19:9 aspect ratio and the notch. It is powered by the latest octa-core company's own Kirin 970 processor paired with 6GB of RAM and offers 128 GB of internal storage. It runs Android 8.1 Oreo-based EMUI 8.1 interface and is powered by a 3400mAh battery with support for Fast Charging.
6. Huawei P20 Lite (Rs 19,999) : The other Huawei smartphone with the notch is the P20 Lite. As the name suggests, it is the toned down version of the P20 Pro. The device has a 5.8-inch TFT LCD full HD+ display. It is powered by an octa-core Kirin 659 processor and has 4GB of RAM along with 64GB inbuilt storage. Backed by a 3,000mAh battery, it offers a dual rear camera setup that includes a 16MP and a 2MP sensors at f/2.2 aperture. On the front, there is a 16MP sensor with f/2.0 aperture.
7. Soon to be launched: Asus Zenfone 5Z : The flagship smartphone from Asus was first launched at the Mobile World Congress 2018, and is soon expected to launch in India. The iPhone X-like notch marks a major design change for the Zenfone series smartphone. In terms of specs, the handset has a 6.2-inch full HD+ IPS display with 19:9 aspect ratio. It is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor, coupled with 8GB RAM and 256GB inbuilt storage.
8. Soon to be launched: Asus Zenfone 5 : Launched along with the Zenfone 5Z at MWC 2018, Asus Zenfone 5 has the same notch and a vertically-placed dual rear camera setup. The handset runs on Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor, clubbed with 4GB RAM or 6GB RAM and 64GB in-built storage. Other specifications of the ZenFone 5 match those of the ZenFone 5Z, with the primary differences seen in the processor, RAM, and storage sections.
9. Likely to be launched soon: Nokia X6 : Nokia's first smartphone to sport the notch, Nokia X6, is also expected to launch in India soon. It is not as premium as the Nokia 8 Sirocco based on the specifications and price and can be placed in the mid-range segment. It offers a 5.8-inch FHD+ display of 2280x1080 pixels resolution and an aspect ratio of 19:9. Powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor, the smartphone comes in two storage options -- 4GB/6GB RAM and 32GB/64GB storage. On the camera front, the Nokia X6 has a dual rear camera setup that includes a 16MP autofocus sensor with f/2.0 aperture and a 5MP monochrome sensor with f/2.2 aperture. At the front there is a 16MP camera with f/2.0 aperture.
10. Likely to be launched soon: LG G7 ThinQ, G7+ ThinQ : Both the latest handsets from South Korean tech giant also feature the iPhone X-like notch. With most of the specs same, the LG G7 ThinQ, G7+ ThinQ smartphones differ in terms of RAM and internal storage. The G7 ThinQ has 4GB RAM with 64GB inbuilt storage, the LG G7+ ThinQ has 6GB RAM with 128GB inbuilt storage. Rest stays common. Both handsets feature a a 6.1-inch QHD+ FullVision display with 19.5:9 aspect ratio and are powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor. They have dual rear camera setup of two 16MP sensors. At the front, there is an 8MP camera. Both smartphones are backed by a 3000mAh battery that also supports Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 tech. There is no confirmation about the India launch of both LG handsets, but they are expected to hit the market soon.

Chinese smartphone maker Vivo has unveiled yet another smartphone - Vivo Z1 - and it comes with a display notch. The company has been launching several products in its home country as well as India. The Vivo Z1 is the mobile maker's first handset in its Z-series. The latest smartphone is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 SoC that powers several other handsets from the manufacturer. To recall, Vivo is set to launch the Vivo X21 UD handset with Snapdragon 660 processor in India on May 29. Other key features of the Vivo Z1 include a 6.26-inch display with 19:9 aspect ratio, 4GB of RAM, dual rear camera setup, and a 12-megapixel selfie camera with smart beauty features. It also comes with facial recognition technology and a fingerprint sensor.
Vivo Z1 price The Vivo Z1 price has been set at CNY 1,798 (roughly Rs. 19,200) in China. The Vivo Z1 will come in Porcelain Glaze Black, Hyun Screen Red, and Sapphire Blue colour variants. The smartphone is currently available for pre-orders via JD.com and it will officially go on sale starting June 4. As of now, there is no information available on whether Vivo will launch the Vivo Z1 in India.
Vivo Z1 specifications The dual-SIM (Nano) Vivo Z1 runs FunTouch OS on top of Android 8.1 Oreo. It sports a 6.26-inch (1080x2280 pixels) full-HD+ display with 19:9 aspect ratio. The smartphone is powered by an octa-core Snapdragon 660 processor clocked up to 2.2GHz, paired with an Adreno 512 GPU. It comes in only one 4GB RAM variant. In terms of optics, the Vivo Z1 features a dual camera setup with a 13-megapixel primary sensor, a 2-megapixel secondary sensor, and LED flash. It has a 12-megapixel camera at the front. The smartphone is equipped with 64GB inbuilt storage, expandable via microSD card (up to 256GB) in a hybrid dual-SIM format. Connectivity options in the Vivo Z1 include 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth, and GPS. Sensors onboard are an accelerometer, ambient light sensor, digital compass, gyroscope, and proximity sensor. The smartphone is fuelled by a 3260mAh battery. In terms of dimensions, the Vivo Z1 measures 154.81x75.03x7.89mm, and weighs 149.3 grams.

After launching it in China in March, Vivo is now introducing its X21 smartphone in international markets. The smartphone is set to go on sale in Singapore via partnered retailers this month. The price of the Vivo X21 in Singapore is SGD 799 (roughly Rs. 39,900). The Vivo X21 is set to go on sale at M1, StarHub and other retailer partners from May 5, reports The Straits Times. The big highlight of the Vivo X21 is its under display fingerprint scanner, which means users simply need to touch a circular on-screen fingerprint prompt to unlock their smartphone. Facial recognition is also available on the Vivo X21. In China, the Vivo X21 was priced at CNY 2,898 (roughly Rs. 29,900) for the regular 64GB variant and CNY 3,198 (roughly Rs. 33,000) for the regular 128GB variant at launch. On the other hand, the special under display fingerprint sensor-equipped 128GB variant was priced at CNY 3,598 (roughly Rs. 37,100).
Vivo X21 specifications The dual-SIM Vivo X21 runs FunTouch OS 4.0 on top of Android 8.1 Oreo out-of-the-box. It sports a 6.28-inch full-HD+ (1080x2280 pixels) Super AMOLED display with a 19:9 aspect ratio. The phone is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 SoC, coupled with an Adreno 512 GPU, 6GB of RAM and 64GB/ 128GB inbuilt storage options. In terms of camera specifications, the X21 bears a vertical rear dual camera setup with a 12-megapixel primary sensor (f/1.8 aperture) and a 5-megapixel secondary sensor (f/2.4 aperture) with LED flash. On the front is an iPhone X-like notch that houses the 12-megapixel front camera which has features such as a f/2.0 aperture, IR fill light, 3D mapping, and Face Wake facial recognition. There is a 3200mAh battery, with fast charging support, under the hood. Connectivity options on the Vivo X21 include 4G LTE, dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth 5.0, USB 2.0 with OTG support, and GPS. Sensors on the phone include regular fingerprint sensor/ under display fingerprint sensor, gravity sensor, proximity sensor, ambient light sensor, and gyroscope. Dimensions of the phone are 154.5x74.8x7.4mm and weight is 156.2 grams.

Vivo Y53i has seemingly been launched in India, without any fanfare. The new smartphone comes as a new variant of the Vivo Y53 that debuted in the country last year. The company has used a "Made in India" branding with the latest launch to persuade buyers and notably set the price of the Vivo Y53i at Rs. 7,990 (MRP Rs. 8,990) - Rs. 2,000 lower than the price of the Vivo Y53.
Vivo is yet to reveal official details about the Vivo Y53i. Meanwhile, Mumbai-based retailer Mahesh Telecom has posted a couple of images of the Vivo Y53i on Twitter. The images confirm the price and specifications of the smartphone. The retailer also confirms that the handset is now available in the country. As per the details available through the tweeted images, the Vivo Y53i is one of the models by the Chinese company that is being manufactured in India.
Vivo Y53i specifications The dual-SIM Vivo Y53i runs FunTouch OS 3.0 based on Android 6.0 Marshmallow and features a 5-inch (540x960 pixels) qHD IPS display. Under the hood, there is a 1.4GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 SoC, coupled with Adreno 308 GPU and 2GB of RAM. The smartphone has an 8-megapixel rear camera with an LED flash and a 5-megapixel front camera sensor. For storing content, the Vivo Y53i has 16GB of onboard storage that is expandable via microSD card (up to 256GB). The smartphone has 4G VoLTE, and considering the identical hardware of the Vivo Y53, it will also have Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth v4.2, GPS/ A-GPS, and a Micro-USB port.
The smartphone is also expected come with a 2500mAh battery. The Vivo Y53i price in India pits it against the Xiaomi Redmi 5 that was launched in the country in March. Contrary to the inferior specifications of the Vivo Y53i, the dual-SIM (Nano) Redmi 5 has a 5.7-inch HD+ (720x1440 pixels) display with an 18:9 aspect ratio, Snapdragon 450 SoC, up to 4GB of RAM, 12-megapixel rear camera sensor, 5-megapixel front camera sensor, and a 3300mAh battery.

Vivo has unveiled its latest smartphone - Vivo V9 Youth - in India. It is a variant of the Vivo V9, which was launched in the country earlier this year, following its unveiling in Thailand and Philippines. Similar to its pricier version, the new Vivo V9 Youth comes with a 6.3-inch FullView display with a notch that is reminiscent of the iPhone X. The key highlight of the smartphone is a 16-megapixel selfie camera with AI integration and dual cameras at the back. It is also equipped with facial recognition technology. When it comes to design, the Vivo V9 Youth looks almost the same as the Vivo V9.
The Vivo V9 Youth runs Android 8.1 Oreo-based software has been priced in India at Rs. 18,990. It comes in only one variant - 4GB RAM and 32GB inbuilt storage - and will be sold via both online and offline channels. The smartphone is available via offline stores from Friday and will also be available online on the Vivo E-store, Flipkart, Amazon India, and Paytm Mall from April 24, 2018. Commenting on the launch, Kenny Zeng, CMO, Vivo India said, "With the launch of the Vivo V9 Youth, we are bringing the best features of our flagship V9 in a new avatar for our young and modern consumers.
Packed with a host of cutting-edge features, the Vivo V9 Youth is the perfect smartphone for consumers who want a holistic and powerful smartphone experience at a competitive price." The Vivo V9 Youth comes with a 'Game Mode' feature that claims to prevent distractions such as messages, calls, and alerts during gaming. It has a new Picture-in-Picture for games. Users need to sliding down with three fingers to split the screen into two halves. Also present in the smartphone, is a gaming keyboard that lets users chat while gaming.
Vivo V9 Youth specifications The Vivo V9 Youth runs Funtouch OS 4.0 based on Android 8.1 Oreo. It sports a 6.3-inch FullView display with 19:9 aspect ratio. It is powered by the octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 SoC coupled with 4GB of RAM. In terms of optics, the Vivo V9 Youth sports a dual rear camera setup with a 16-megapixel primary sensor and a 2-megapixel secondary sensor. At the front, there is a single 16-megapixel selfie camera. Onboard the Vivo V9 Youth is 32GB of inbuilt storage, expandable via microSD card (up to 256GB). It is powered by a 3260mAh battery.

The war for the best selfie camera smartphone in India seems to be on as two of the biggest Chinese smartphone brands -- Oppo and Vivo -- have launched their flagships in the space of seven days. The Oppo F7 and Vivo V9 boast of Artificial Intelligence-based selfie camera. Here is how the two smartphones compare against each other on all aspects.
Display The Oppo F7 comes with a 6.23-inch full-HD+ display with 1080x2280 pixel resolution and 19:9 aspect ratio. The Vivo V9 has a 6.3-inch IPS LCD ‘FullView’ display with 2280 x 1080 pixels resolution and 19:9 aspect ratio. Both devices sport an iPhone X-like notch.
Processor The Oppo F7 is powered by an 64-bit octa-core MediaTek Helio P60 processor. On the other hand, the Vivo V9 has a is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 626 processor.
Operating system The Oppo F7 runs on Color OS 5.0 based on Android 8.1. The Vivo V9 runs Android 8.1 Oreo operating system skinned with FunTouch OS.
RAM and storage The Oppo F7 comes in two storage options -- 4GB of RAM with 64GB ROM and 6GB of RAM and 128GB ROM. The Vivo V9 has only one variant of 4GB of RAM and 64GB internal storage.
Camera The key highlight of both the smartphones is its front camera. The Oppo F7 has a AI Beauty 2.0-powered 25-megapixel front-facing camera with Sony 576 Sensor HDR. The Artificial Intelligence feature help the camera capture images with better colour reproduction and also remembers the editing habits of the user and does that automatically for them for their subsequent pictures. The Vivo V9 has a 24MP selfie camera with features like portrait mode, AI enhancement, AR Stickers and others. It also has a ‘Shot Refocus’ feature using which people can refocus the subject after taking the image. On the back, the Oppo F7 has a single 16MP camera module, the Vivo V9 has a dual rear camera setup of 16MP and 5MP.
Battery The Oppo F7 is powered by a 3400mAh battery, which claims to offer 15 hours of battery backup on a single charge. The Vivo V9 has a 3260mAh battery.
Price The Oppo F7 comes at a starting price of Rs 21,990, for the 4GB RAM variant and Rs 26,990, for the 6GB RAM variant. The Vivo V9 has been priced at Rs 22,990.

A few days, Vivo India has preponed the launch of Vivo V9 smartphone from March 27th to March 23rd. However, it is now officially launched in a couple of Southeast Asian markets. While the new Vivo V9 is now officially unveiled in Thailand, the company is going to launch it later today in the Philippines. The device sports a metal frame with curved glass on the rear.
On the design front, it looks similar to the iPhone X with vertically aligned dual rear cameras and display notch. The device is mentioned to be available only in Black Ceramic and Gold color options. However, there is also a Blue color variant shown in the promotional images. Talking about the display, the Vivo V9 comes with the same display as seen on the recently launched Vivo X21 smartphone. It sports a 6.3-inch edge-to-edge display with Full HD+ (2280 x 1080 pixels) resolution and 19:9 aspect ratio.
The FullView display on this device comes with 90% screen-to-body ratio, and the side bezels measure just 1.75mm thin. Under the hood, it comes powered by the 14nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 626 octa-core processor coupled with Adreno 506 GPU. The device offers 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage that can be expandable up to 256GB using a MicroSD card. In the camera department, the V9 comes with a 24MP selfie camera on the front with f/2.0 aperture and supports facial recognition.
The camera app also includes a few new features including AI Face Beauty mode and AR stickers. On the rear is the 16MP + 5MP dual camera setup with the same f/2.0 aperture. With the new AI Bokeh mode, the device can capture better portrait photos. It runs on the latest Android 8.1 Oreo-based Funtouch OS 4.0 out of the box. For the first time, Vivo is offering the latest Android OS out of the box.
Even the upcoming OPPO F7 also runs on the latest Android 8.1 Oreo. While the power button and volume rocker are placed on the right edge, the hybrid SIM card slot is on the left edge. With all these specifications, the Vivo V9 is backed by a 3,260mAh non-removable battery. Connectivity options includes 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi (only 2.5G), Bluetooth 4.2, GPS, FM Radio, USB OTG, FM Radio, 3.5mm audio jack, and a MicroUSB 2.0 port. The Vivo V9 measures 154.81 × 75.03 × 7.89 mm and weighs 150 grams.

Last week, I penned a quick opinion piece about how embarrassing it is that in 2018, Android vendors are still willing to copy Apple’s iPhone designs so blatantly. It was titled “Good lord, Android phone makers, please just stop,” and it was a plea to Android phone makers to, you know, please just stop.
It’s fine to take cues from rivals on occasion, but to shamelessly clone each new design borders on pathetic. Many of these companies have huge R&D budgets, so why aren’t they researching and developing? That opinion piece triggered Android fanboys, and I got a ton of teary-eyed emails soon after it ran.
Some of them complained that Apple is the copycat, and it always has been. Fair enough, Apple copies plenty of things from rivals. Other emails whined that Essential released a phone with a notch before Apple, which is also true. Of course, even if we play make-believe and pretend that Apple hadn’t finalized the iPhone X’s design long before Essential’s PH-1 was announced, one need only look at a single picture to see two important things.
Not only is Apple’s design is nothing like Essential’s, but it’s beyond apparent that Android phone makers are copying Apple, not the Essential phone. While we’re on the subject of companies that copy Apple’s designs, two pieces of news on Thursday morning prompted me to revisit this tiresome topic. First, news comes from reliable leaker Evan Blass that the LG G7 is indeed a real phone that will be released this year. Blass had reported earlier that the G7 would never see the light of day, but it appears as though that isn’t the case.
The LG G7, as you’ll recall, is a pitiful iPhone clone. It has almost the same design as the iPhone X, but it’s not exactly the same. LG surely wanted it to be exactly the same, but it couldn’t pull off the brilliant internal design that allows Apple to extend the display almost all the way to the bottom of the phone. This, of course, is half the reason the notch exists on the iPhone X — it allows the bezel surrounding the phone’s screen to be uniform on the sides, the bottom, and in the top corners.
This isn’t the case on the LG G7. The phone still has a big “chin” on the bottom, so the notch at the top of the screen isn’t at all about maintaining a consistent bezel width. Nope, it’s about copying Apple, plain and simple. Next up, we have the newly announced Vivo V9.
We’ll never see it in the United States, thankfully, but it’s still worth mentioning because it’s so damn hilarious. So, the Vivo V9 is a pretty standard upper mid-range Android phone in terms of specs (and in terms of design, since almost every notable Android phone is an iPhone clone this year).
It features a Snapdragon 626 processor, 4GB of RAM, 64GB of storage, a 6.3-inch display, and Android 8.1 Oreo. It also has a notch just like the iPhone X, and it’s once again pointless just like the notch on the LG G7, since the phone still has a “chin” at the bottom.
For good measure, he V9 also blatantly copied the iPhone X’s vertically oriented dual-lens rear camera. Sure, why not? But here’s the kicker. Vivo wasn’t content merely copying the iPhone X’s design… Do these companies have no shame? Do they have any pride at all? I’m sure I’ll get plenty more emails once this post is published, but man oh man this is getting more tiresome by the day. I’ve been covering consumer tech for 15 years, and I’ve never seen anything like this.
Rival companies have followed Apple’s lead in the smartphone market ever since the iPhone was first introduced in 2007. But the extent to which Apple is now being copied, and the brazenness with which dozens of Android phone makers are cloning Apple’s iPhone, is completely unprecedented. The best part? We’ll get to watch all of these notched displays start to vanish — coincidentally, of course — as soon as Apple ditches the current iPhone X design, which could happen as soon as next year.

One of the most talked-about feature of Apple’s tenth anniversary edition smartphone, iPhone X, is the notch on its screen. It has been both loved and hated by iPhone users. Now this notch seems to have become one of the most-popular design trends among many of the flagship Android smartphones set to launch in the coming months. So much so that Google too has embraced it in the next version of its Android OS, Android P. So, here’s a look at 10 ‘iPhone X-lookalikes’ set to launch.
1. OnePlus 6 According to a report by Android Central, the upcoming OnePlus smartphone -- expected to be called OnePlus 6 -- is also going to feature the iPhone X-like notch with a 19:9 aspect ratio display. The report also revealed that the handset is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor. As per the image leaked by ithome, the OnePlus 6 also has a vertically placed dual-rear camera setup and a glass backed design, a first for any OnePlus device.
2. Oppo F7 The Chinese smartphone maker is all set to lunch its next flagship smartphone with an iPhone X-like notch. The company has shared an image of the upcoming handset that clearly sports Apple's flagship iPhone's notch on the top. As part of the rumoured specs, the handset is likely to sport a 6.2-inch full HD+ display with 19:9 aspect ratio. Other key highlights of the device include a 25MP front camera with Artificial Intelligence like real-time HDR, AR stickers feature as well as beauty mode for selfies.
3. Huawei P20 Huawei's upcoming flagship smartphone P20, scheduled to launch on March 27, has been the subject to several leaks for a while now. The most recent of them showed the handset in its full glory. As per an image posted by famous tipster Evan Blass, the handset has a very small centrally placed notch. Also there is a vertically placed protruding dual rear camera setup, like we saw on iPhone X.
4. LG G7 South Korean tech giant LG too is expected to launch its upcoming handset with a notch just like the iPhone X. The render images leaked by TechnoBuffalo give a good look at what the handset may look like. These concept images show that LG is planning to place the notification bar to the left and right so there is more screen space. Even at the MWC 2018, LG showcased its upcoming flagship handset to few invitees. This was leaked by Israeli publication Ynet in a form of a video that also showed the LG G7 (Neo) with the notch.
5. Vivo V9 Vivo too is all geared up to launch its first handset with a notch. The company has teased an image from its Malaysia handle clearly showing the notch. Also images shared by Anzhou.cn on Weibo show the notch on the smartphone.
6. Huawei P20 Lite Along with the P20, Huawei is also expected to launch a toned-down version likely to be called the P20 Lite. An image posted by Evan Blass shows the handset from all angles, revealing that it has a notch similar to the P20 and a rear mounted fingerprint sensor.
7. Oppo R15 F7 is not the only smartphone that Oppo is planning to launch with the notch. The company is also planning to launch the R15. As per several leaks and render images, the successor to the R11 also has an iPhone X-like notch. According to a report by GSMArena, the handset is expected to sport a 6.28-inch display with 19:9 aspect ratio with 1080x2280p display.
8. Huawei P20 Pro The last and expected to be the most-powerful handset of the P20 series from Huawei, the P20 Pro is also said to feature the notch design. This can be seen in an image posted by Evan Blass, that also shows the back panel of the image showing that the handset has a triple rear camera setup.
9. Asus Zenfone 5Z Although already launched at the Mobile World Congress 2018, the Asus Zenfone 5Z comes with the iPhone X-like notch, marking a major design change for the Zenfone series smartphone. In terms of specs, the handset has a 6.2-inch full HD+ IPS display with 19:9 aspect ratio. It is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor, coupled with 8GB RAM and 256GB inbuilt storage.
10. Asus Zenfone 5 Launched along with the Zenfone 5Z at MWC 2018, Asus Zenfone 5 has the iPhone X-like notch and a vertically placed dual rear camera setup. The handset runs on Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor, clubbed with 4GB RAM or 6GB RAM and 64GB inbuilt storage.

Vivo V9's India launch has been rescheduled to March 23. The smartphone was previously expected to launch in the country on March 27, however, Vivo on Wednesday sent out a revised invite to the media that confirms the new schedule. This aligns with the global launch of the Vivo V9 that is planned in Thailand for March 22, just a day ahead of the advanced India launch.
The smartphone is already teased with a vertically-placed dual rear camera setup and a near-bezel-less display panel with a notch - both matching the design language of the iPhone X. The revised invite circulated by Vivo doesn't reveal any further details about the Vivo V9. It does give a glimpse of the vertical dual rear camera setup, as before.
The handset also recently got listed on an e-commerce website in Indonesia that revealed its price of IDR 4,999,000 (approximately Rs. 23,700). The online listing additionally mentioned some specifications, including a 6-inch full-HD+ (1080x2160 pixels) AMOLED display, Snapdragon 660 SoC, 4GB RAM, 64GB onboard storage, and the dual rear camera with 12-megapixel and 8-megapixel image sensors. Further, the handset is rumoured to run Android 8.0 Oreo-based FunTouch OS 4.0. For capturing selfies, the Vivo V9 is claimed to have a 24-megapixel wide-angle camera sensor on the front.
It is also said to have features such as facial unlock, fingerprint sensor, and fast charging support. As per retail box of the Vivo V9, which has lately been spotted on Twitter, the smartphone will come with FIFA World Cup 2018 branding. Also, the box appears quite similar to iPhone packaging.

At the recently concluded MWC 2018, Vivo grabbed everyone’s attention by announcing the Vivo APEX FullView concept smartphone. It sports a completely bezel-less display on the front that offers 91% screen-to-body ratio. While the Vivo APEX is said to enter production the second half of 2018, the company is now getting ready to launch the Vivo V9 and Vivo X21 smartphones.
Vivo V9 Smartphone Leaked with iPhone X-like Notch From the past couple of years, Vivo is launching the Vivo X-series devices as the Vivo V-series devices in the other Asian markets. Now, the rumored Vivo X21 smartphone might come to the other markets as Vivo V9. The leaked billboard image revealed the Vivo V9 to sport an all-screen display on the front with the ugly looking notch. The device might come with under display fingerprint sensor and face unlock. It is also mentioned to feature a new 24MP selfie camera on the front.
While there is no other information mentioned about the camera, we expect the company to introduce the AI integration or Animoji-like animated emojis. The earlier launched Vivo V7 and V7+ smartphones also featured a 24MP front-facing camera. It came with a 1/2.78-inch sensor and offered f/2.0 aperture and a soft LED flash. As of now, there is no other information available about this device. However, we can expect more leaks to follow soon in the coming days.
Vivo V9 Key Details Revealed, Pre-orders Begin from March 29th Vivo has sent us an invite for the launch of a new smartphone on March 27th in India. The company will be unveiling the Vivo V9 smartphone on that day. However, the Vivo V9 is first going to launch in Thailand on March 22nd. In this month, Vivo will also launch the Vivo X21 smartphone in China on March 19th. Talking about the Vivo V9, the FullView display on the front sports an iPhone X-like notch. Along with the notch, the device also comes with a thin bottom bezel. The smartphone comes with dual cameras on the rear and a 24MP selfie camera on the front. While the Vivo X21 is expected to feature under display fingerprint sensor, the Vivo V9 will be coming with a rear-facing fingerprint sensor. As of now, there is no other information available about this device. The pre-orders for the Vivo V9 will begin from March 29th and is expected to go on sale starting April 6th.

Vivo V9 is expected to launch in India at the event the company is hosting on March 27, but apart from the notch in the official teaser, not much was known about the handset. Now, live images of the Vivo V9 have been leaked online, giving us a better look at the smartphone, and detailing the design language being adopted by the Chinese brand.
Vivo V9 will be the latest smartphone in the company's V series, which saw the launch of the V7 selfie smartphone in November last year. According to images leaked by Malaysia-based website Amanz.my, Vivo V9 has a large screen with minimal bezels on the sides.
The notch on the top is shown in one of the photos, though it doesn't seem very apparent in most leaked images. Due to the thin bezels, the fingerprint sensor is placed on the back, while the dual rear camera alignment is vertical, with a LED flash below the camera housing.
Other features visible from the image include dual-SIM and microSD card support, 3.5mm audio jack, and microUSB port. The Power button and volume rocker are placed on the right edge. A couple of days ago, Vivo sent out invites for the V9 India launch event.
The smartphone has also been teased previously by Vivo Malaysia on social media, and has also been leaked on Twitter and Instagram by tipsters. While specifications of the upcoming smartphone are not yet known, the official teasers have highlighted the iPhone X-like notch on the handset, making it the first Vivo phone to sport this design choice.

Vivo on Thursday sent out teaser invites for the launch of a new dual camera smartphone in India on March 27. According to several leaks and renders online, this phone is expected to be the upcoming Vivo V9. This will be Vivo's first smartphone to sport an iPhone X-like notch on the front, giving it a near-bezel-less design.
The Vivo V9 smartphone has been teased by name on Vivo's Malaysia Twitter handle, while the company's Indonesia social media handles also feature a few teasers. All the teasers show a thin design and a notch on the front.
Snapshots posted on Twitter and Instagram of the Vivo V9, spotted shared by Anzhou.cn on Weibo show a hoarding and a live photo, with the back seen to sport a vertical dual camera setup, a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor, and Vivo branding on the back. Apart from these sightings, Vivo's Malaysia Twitter handle posted a couple teaser images on Wednesday and Thursday around the Vivo V9.
Even its Indonesian handle posted a teaser video as part of its #PerfectSelfie campaign. This video but reaffirms the suspicion of a notch on the handset. While other internal specifications are not yet known, we are expecting to get clarity on that and other details such as pricing and availability closer to or at the launch event scheduled for March 27 in India.
Earlier this week, Vivo unveiled its Vivo APEX smartphone that comes with a 91 percent screen-to-body ratio, elevating selfie camera, Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SoC, 5.99-inch OLED display, and a half-screen fingerprint scanning technology. Mass production of the smartphone is said to begin by the middle of 2018.

The concept phone which made headlines at the MWC 2018 for its futuristic design and stole the limelight for its 98 percent bezel-less screen, pop-up camera technology and a half-screen under-display fingerprint reader is no more a concept. The Vivo APEX future concept phone is finally getting unveiled, and the Chinese company is all set to enter the APEX into mass production.
Vivo has now officially launched the Apex smartphone in China while announcing that the APEX phone will enter into mass production by mid-2018. Vivo has not shared the full details of the smartphone, but the company did show it off to the Chinese media. The Vivo APEX managed to attract a lot of attention at the MWC 2018, and people were wondering whether the Apex phone would make it into production. Within a week of Mobile World Congress 2018, the company has announced that the Apex phone will indeed enter production by mid-2018.
Vivo APEX – Details & Specifications The device will be powered by the latest Qualcomm flagship processor, Snapdragon 845 with a 5.99-inch OLED display with COF technology. It’s a special display with a whopping 98 percent screen-to-body ratio and has both ambient and proximity sensors hidden below the display. The Vivo APEX is completely bezel-less with a border of 1.8mm on three sides and just 4.3mm at the bottom. The OLED panel on the Apex actually serves as an earpiece, as there is no regular earpiece on the smartphone. The Vivo APEX also features an under-display fingerprint reader.
Instead of designating a particular area as a scanner, Vivo has made the entire bottom-third of the display into a fingerprint scanner. The phone will use a new ‘Half-Screen Fingerprint Scanning Technology’ which will give users a larger area for scanning their fingers. Coming to the new pop-up selfie camera technology, users can fire up the camera app on the device and a selfie camera will pop-up from the top of the phone’s body. Vivo has claimed that the APEX phone can be ready to shoot in only 0.8 seconds.
The APEX phone’s camera comes with Super HDR support which has a limited dynamic range of up to 14 EV. The phone will use ultra-dynamic multi-frame preferences and natural tones to make photos appear livelier. The Vivo APEX also offers Hi-Fi audio technology which features a so-called System in Package (SIP) technology, three amplifiers and a capable DAC. The earpiece has been ditched in favour of using a piezoelectric design, where the entire screen will act as a speaker. The Vivo APEX will also leverage AI algorithm with smart optimization and multi-frame compositing. Vivo has not revealed any memory or storage details, nor has the Chinese company revealed the exact rear and front camera specifications.
Though, as per the reports, Vivo APEX smartphone will feature a pop-up 8MP front camera. The rear camera will have dual sensors, but the details are not out yet. Vivo is still silent on the pricing, but more information will surely make its way out in the coming few months. The smartphone is being expected to be available for purchase in China, in the second half of the year, and globally by the end of 2018.
The APEX Phone Controversy MWC 2018 was more about iPhone X clones and was very less about innovation. From LG to ASUS to multiple smartphone brands, all copied the iPhone X design language. The one phone which managed to grab some attention was the Vivo APEX. The front of the smartphone is all-screen and it features a Synaptics under-display fingerprint scanner and a pop-up selfie camera. But now, it appears that the innovation was not the original work of the company. Reportedly, the patent for a no-notch phone was originally filed by Android founder Andy Rubin’s smartphone company, Essential in 2017.
The files images reveal that Essential had shared a similar idea as that of the Vivo APEX phone. The Vivo APEX will go up against some heavy competition in 2018, which includes the likes of Samsung Galaxy S9 series and upcoming phones like OnePlus 6, Xiaomi Mi MIX 2S and others. While we know that the APEX smartphone will enter mass production in mid-2018, we are still awaiting more details!

At the recently concluded MWC 2018, Vivo grabbed everyone’s attention by announcing the Vivo APEX FullView concept smartphone. It sports a completely bezel-less display on the front that offers almost 98% screen-to-body ratio. Vivo also scheduled an event in China on March 5th and it is rumored to announce the availability details of the Vivo APEX smartphone.
A few other leaks also revealed the company to launch the Vivo X21 smartphones as the successors to Vivo X20 devices. From the past couple of years, Vivo is launching the Vivo X-series devices as the Vivo V-series devices in the other Asian markets.
Now, the rumored Vivo X21 smartphone might come to the other markets as Vivo V9. The leaked billboard image revealed the Vivo V9 to sport an all-screen display on the front with the ugly looking notch. The device might come with under display fingerprint sensor and face unlock. It is also mentioned to feature a new 24MP selfie camera on the front. While there is no other information mentioned about the camera, we expect the company to introduce the AI integration or Animoji-like animated emojis.
The earlier launched Vivo V7 and V7+ smartphones also featured a 24MP front-facing camera. It came with a 1/2.78-inch sensor and offered f/2.0 aperture and a soft LED flash. As of now, there is no other information available about this device. However, we can expect more leaks to follow soon in the coming days.

As expected, we have seen several new smartphone launches at the Mobile World Congress 2018 in Barcelona, Spain. However, only a few of them will be hitting the markets in the month of March. We are also expecting a few new devices to launch in the next few weeks. Below is the list of top smartphones that are going on sale for the first time or making their debut in new markets.
• Samsung Galaxy S9 & Galaxy S9+ Mor than anything else, the new Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ smartphones bring a major upgrade to the cameras. While the Galaxy S9 comes with a 12MP single rear camera, the Galaxy S9+ offers 12MP dual rear cameras. The company now moved the fingerprint sensor to the bottom of the camera sensor. Both the Galaxy S9 devices will be offering the dual aperture mode where the user can physically choose f/1.5 or f/2.4 aperture. Both these devices are rumored to be launch on March 6th in India. The base variants of the Galaxy S9 & Galaxy S9+ will come with an MRP of Rs. 65,900 & Rs. 72,900 respectively. Unlike the U.S variants, the Indian variants of the Galaxy S9 will be powered by the in-house Exynos 9810 octa-core processor.
• Xiaomi Mi MIX 2S & BlackShark Xiaomi is long rumored to unveil the Mi MIX 2S smartphone at the 2018 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Just before the MWC began, the company confirmed the Mi MIX 2S to launch on March 27th in China. It is already confirmed to come powered by the latest Snapdragon 845 octa-core processor and might even offer dual rear cameras. Last year’s Mi MIX 2 came with the Snapdragon 835 processor and a single rear camera. A few leaks also hint the company might also unveil the Black Shark gaming smartphone on the same stage. As of now, there is no confirmation whether the Black Shark smartphone will have Xioami (Mi) branding or not. However, the Antutu listing revealed it to pack Snapdragon 845 processor and 8GB of RAM.
• Huawei P20 & P20 Pro Huawei has already confirmed to launch the Huawei P20 smartphones on March 27th in Paris, France. As seen with the newly launched smartphones at the MWC 2018, the upcoming Huawei smartphones will also embrace the iPhone X-like notch. The company will be naming the high-end variant as Pro instead of Plus. These new smartphones will sport a triple-lens camera on the rear featuring an RGB sensor, a Monochrome sensor, & a Telephoto sensor. Both the front and cameras on these devices will be developed in partnership with Leica. Under the hood, the devices will be powered by the Kirin 970 AI chipset.
• Micromax Bharat Go & Lava Z50 At the MWC 2018, Google showcased both the upcoming Android Go smartphones. The list includes the Micromax Bharat Go & Lava Z50. Both the devices will run on the latest Android 8.1 Oreo Go Edition out of the box. The devices come with a polycarbonate body and sports a 4.5-inch display with FWVGA resolution. Talking about the internals, the smartphones include a MediaTek quad-core processor, 1GB RAM, & 8GB of expandable storage. Even with the basic specifications, the Android Go smartphones should offer seam-less experience compared to entry-level smartphones with the regular version of Android OS. Airtel will be offering additional cashback on these two smartphones through the “Mera Pehla 4G Smartphone” initiative.
• Asus Zenfone 5 Lite At the MWC 2018, Asus unveiled the Zenfone 5, Zenfone 5Z, and Zenfone 5 Lite smartphones. Expect the Zenfone 5 Lite, the other two smartphones are almost similar in terms of specifications and design. The company only mentioned the Zenfone 5 Lite will be going on sale in the month of March. It comes in two different variants powered by Snapdragon 630 & Snapdragon 430 processors. It sports a 6″ Full HD+ display with 18:9 aspect ratio and is covered by a 2.5D curved glass. It packs a total of four camera sensor, 16MP dual cameras on the rear & 20MP dual cameras on the front.
• LG V30S ThinQ As rumors suggested, LG unveiled the LG V30S ThinQ smartphones as an upgrade to last year’s LG V30 smartphones. The new devices will be running on Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box and brings new AI features onboard. While the LG V30S ThinQ comes with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage, the LG V30S+ ThinQ includes 6GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. In the camera app, the new smartphones will be including QLENS and AI CAM options. As of now, LG has only confirmed to launch these two new smartphones in South Korea in March. However, the company is yet to reveal the pricing of the LG V30S ThinQ smartphones.
• Vivo APEX Vivo surprised everyone at the MWC by announcing the Vivo APEX concept smartphone. It comes with very minimal bezels on all the four sides and offers highest screen-to-body ratio ever seen on a smartphone. Even though the device was showcased at the MWC 2018, the company has scheduled an event in China on March 5th. Just like the original Mi MIX concept smartphone, Vivo is also rumored to launch the APEX concept smartphone in limited numbers. It will be mostly sold exclusively for the Chinese consumers. The pricing and exact availability dates will be known in the next few days.

At the CES 2018, Vivo showcased the world’s first smartphone with an under-display fingerprint sensor. Now, the company unveiled the smartphone with highest ever screen-to-body ratio at the MWC 2018. The new Vivo APEX FullView concept smartphone will not go on sale, but it gives us a glimpse of the future smartphones. Firstly, the Vivo APEX comes with a whopping 98% screen-to-body ratio.
As seen on the Vivo X20 Plus UD smartphones launched in China, the Vivo APEX also sports an under display fingerprint sensor. However, the APEX smartphone comes with a much bigger area to scan.
Since there is no place for earpiece on the top, the Screen SoundCasting technology will turn the whole display into an earpiece. Even the proximity sensor and ambient light sensor are hidden under the display. We have seen similar technology on the original Xiaomi Mi MIX smartphone introduced in 2016. Talking about the display, Vivo is using an OLED panel on the APEX smartphone. The bezel on the top and sides measure just 1.8mm thin, and the bottom bezel measures 4.3mm thin.
According to the company, if the bottom bezel is also trimmed down to 1.8mm, this smartphone will be offering more than 98% screen-to-body ratio, the highest we have ever seen on a smartphone. Coming to the front camera, the Vivo APEX smartphone sports an 8MP selfie camera. It is hidden inside the body and pops out when the camera is opened.
For the music lovers, the Vivo APEX also sports a new System in Package (SIP) technology which integrates the DAC and the three operational amplifiers. Since its a concept device, the Vivo APEX will not be available for consumers. However, the company will be fine tune these new innovations to make them available with their future smartphones. Let us know, would you be interested in using a Vivo smartphone if it offers above mentioned features.

Smartphone manufacturer Vivo officially announced that it will be launching a full-screen concept phone named APEX. The official video and poster show the render of the Vivo APEX. The image shows the phone comes without any bezels on top and bottom and as well on sides. Thus it is actually the only full-screen handset in the world. The slogan of the poster too teases, “Unlock the Future”. The slogan simply means Vivo will be launching the truly border-less screen and will be using the in-display fingerprint scanner. Earlier this year, the Chinese company introduced the Vivo X20 Plus UD, the world’s first in-display fingerprint identification.
The Chinese phone maker may even bring far advanced fingerprint sensor in this phone. A mysterious Vivo phone leaked earlier in spy photos showed an app icon named “Half Screen”. Reports indicate this could mean Vivo has gone a step further with fingerprint identification tech which instead of using a specific are for scanning purposes, would allow half of the display to be used for the purpose. However, this is not the only leak of the concept phone.
A few weeks earlier a Vivo phone with an extremely high screen to body ratio was earlier spotted on Chinese microblogging site Weibo. The alleged device had nothing but screen on the front with extremely thin bezels all around. There’s no top bezel or bottom bezel to house the sensors such as an earpiece, front camera, fingerprint scanner etc.
Also, the device was alleged to bring about 95 percent screen to body ratio. Similar to APEX concept phone, the alleged device had rounded corners, and the phone is clearly seen running Vivo’s Funtouch OS on top of Android. The device is also seen as sporting the elongated 18:9 aspect ratio screen. Interestingly, reports then questioned the missing selfie shooter. However, others indicated that the handset could ship with a flip-up camera, which will be utilised as both the phone primary camera and selfie shooter.
Still, there’s no concrete confirmation whether both are one and same phone. Also there information pertaining to the features and specifications of the upcoming smartphone at this time. Stay tuned for more updates which possibly will come at MWC 2018.

Vivo launched the Vivo V7 Plus as its first 18:9 smartphone in India in September last year. A couple of months later, it even came out with a smaller variant called Vivo V7. Both the devices came with HD+ FullView display, Snapdragon 450 SoC, and 24MP selfie camera.
While their predecessors have driven huge sales with the celebrity marketing and aggressive offline push, the company is currently facing neck-to-neck competition from the other Chinese brands in the offline market. Recently, Vivo also announced price cuts on older variants and launched a few new limited edition variants of both the devices. The recent reports suggest that the company has slashed the profit margins for its offline retailers by over 40%. With this decision, the company is also said to have lost more than 10,000 retailers in very short time and we expect these numbers only to increase in the coming future.
The major retailers including Sangeetha Mobile, Big C, Lot Mobiles, and Poorvika have been shifted their focusing from selling the OPPO and Vivo smartphones. While the company says it is committed to the India market, let’s see how its consumers receive their upcoming smartphones. According to our exclusive offline source, Vivo is discontinuing both the Vivo V7 and V7 Plus smartphones in the Indian market.
Instead, the company will be coming with two new models featuring the same FullView 18:9 display. As of now, there is not much information available about these two new devices. While Honor already launched the Honor 7X and Honor 9 Lite with aggressive pricing, Xiaomi is rumored to unveil the Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro tomorrow in India. We don’t expect the upcoming Vivo smartphones to be on par with Honor or Xiaomi smartphones, at least they have to come with reasonable pricing in order to strengthen its market presence.

Chinese smartphone maker, Vivo will release Android 8.0 Oreo-based FunTouch OS update to seven smartphones very soon. Vivo confirmed that Vivo X20, X20 Plus, X9s, X9s Plus, Xplay6, X9 and X9 Plus smartphones would receive the Oreo update in the near future. However, the company did not mention any timeframe for the release though. Going by Vivo’s track record, don’t expect the update to come out anytime soon.
But when it happens, the Vivo X20 will receive the update first ahead of the other mentioned phones, and that too in beta. Yes, Vivo confirmed that the X20 would receive the Oreo beta update first. Vivo confirmed this news on its Chinese forums page, however, it did not mention anything about the Oreo update for Indian audience. Most probably, Vivo will release the update to the recently launched Vivo V7, V7+, V5, V5s and the Vivo V5 Plus smartphones in India.
For the unaware, these were the same smartphones released in the Chinese market with different monikers. Vivo is well known for not providing software updates to its smartphones, and honestly, most of the Vivo smartphone users stopped asking for the updates as well, which explains the entire story.
But thankfully, the company has officially confirmed the smartphones list slated to receive Oreo update. We’re expecting Vivo India to come up with the list of smartphones receiving the Oreo update in the country. Vivo’s Android skin is known as FunTouch OS, and most of the devices released in 2017 arrived with Android 7.0 Nougat.
But sadly, Vivo did not include the smartphones released in 2016 in the Oreo update list. So don’t expect the brand to release the update for Vivo smartphones launched back in 2016. Other major brands such as the Nokia, Motorola, Samsung, OnePlus, etc have already updated at least one of their smartphones with the latest version. Also, Vivo is under pressure in the Indian market, thanks to some entry-level selfie phones such as Xiaomi Redmi Y1 and Infinix Hot S3.