Top 6 smartphones in October

The last joyful month of autumn is almost over. Ahead of us is the heavy artillery of November and December, when

the darkness does not dissipate even at noon, and the skyspewing streams of rain with snow ... The saddest thing is that in November and December there will be practically no new interesting smartphones. It is believed that these months are not suitable for the launch of new devices, as it is too difficult to break through the information noise dedicated to the celebration of the New Year. October, by the way, is also not rich in new items, but we managed to collect something interesting.

Table of Contents

• iPad Pro M2
• Infinix Zero Ultra
• Google Pixel 7 Pro and Google Pixel 7
• Oppo Reno7
• TECNO Pova 4 Pro
• Infinix Smart 6 Plus
• Conclusion

iPad Pro M2

Segment: ultrapremium

Rating: best-seller

Price: from 120,000 rubles (there are no official prices in Russia yet)

Specifications:

• CPU: Apple M2, Apple GPU graphics (10 cores)
• operating system: iPadOS 16.1
• Memory: 8/16 GB RAM, storage 128 GB - 2 TB, no memory card slot
• Screen: 12.9 inches, Liquid Retina XDR mini-LED LCD, 2048 x 2732 dots, 4 x 3 aspect ratio, 120 Hz, HDR10, Dolby Vision, 1000 nits brightness
• Battery: Li-Po 10758 mAh, charging 18 W
• Main camera:
  • 12 MP, f/1.8, (wide), 1/3″, 1.22µm, dual pixel PDAF
  • 10 MP, f/2.4, 125˚ (ultrawide)
  • TOF 3D LiDAR scanner (depth)
  • Video recording 4K@24/25/30/60fps, 1080p@25/30/60/120/240fps; gyro-EIS
• Front camera: 12 MP, f/2.4, 122˚ (ultrawide)
• SIM card: Nano-SIM / eSIM
• Network and data transfer: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3, USB Type-C (Thunderbolt 4)
• Navigation (Mobile model only): GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, QZSS
• Sensors: Face ID, accelerometer, gyroscope, barometer
• Other: no 3.5 mm jack, no NFC, no memory card slot, stylus sold separately
• materials: glass and metal
• Dimensions: 280.6 x 214.9 x 6.4mm, weight 685g

I want to talk about the new iPad Pro only inin the context that Apple has once again achieved its goal! And we will talk about a new model on the M2 chipset. It makes no sense to talk about the basic iPad: an excellent device for gatherings on a faience throne.

A few years ago, Apple changed the positioning of the iPad from a tablet to a working tool, a full replacement for a laptop. Then many laughed at Apple, ironically over the limitations of iOS.

Miscellaneous

Affiliate material

Reality and prospects of the IT professions market

What professions are the most popular and highly paid?

Saturday coffee #224

Pour a cup of invigorating Saturday coffee andcheck out the news of the week. Xiaomi introduced new smartphones and a laptop, the Evolute electric car went on sale, Apple moves to USB-C, and Netflix will show Sonic ...

Haval H5 test. Chinese UAZ

Frame SUV Haval H5 is not new to ourmarket, earlier in Russia it was presented as the Great Wall Hover H5, later as the DW Hower H5. In 2020, after a two-year break, Great Wall, which owns the Haval brand, decided to reincarnate the model under a new brand and launch a local SUV assembly in Tula.

Review of e-book PocketBook 617

Budget reader from PocketBook in the classicstyle: no touch screen, closed OS, but very light and fits in a jeans pocket. One of the most affordable and compact devices in its class on the market.

But now, it seems, finally, Apple has everything.completely succeeded. For the price, that's right, because the iPad Pro 12.9 is even more expensive than any MacBook Air. The tablet starts at $1,099 for the 128GB model. However, a complete set, including at least 256 GB of memory, a stylus and a keyboard case, will cost an impressive $ 1,877. For comparison, the MacBook 13 M2 16/512 GB is priced at $1,700 on Apple's website.

This price difference is an indication thatThe 13-inch MacBook Pro is a mass market, and the iPad Pro 12.9 is already a professional tool. If you ask why professional devices and software are more expensive, then, firstly, they imply a higher level of quality. Secondly, they are bought to be used to make money. And if we talk about an average professional, then the price of iPad Pro 12.9 for him is about 1-2 working weeks, and then the device will already start to make a profit.

And in general, probably, Apple can install oniPad at any price since it has no Android-based competitors. None of the manufacturers can offer the same level of quality of hardware, software and performance. The fact that developers consider the iPad Pro a promising platform is evidenced by the fact that a few days ago Blackmagic announced DaVinci Resolve (this is one of the most popular video editing software). And on Android, even Adobe Photoshop is still not available. Well, with Thunderbolt 4 it's easy to connect an external monitor to your iPad.

Infinix Zero Ultra

Segment: affordable premium

Rating: decree of intent

Price: 49 990 rubles

Specifications:

• CPU: MediaTek Dimensity 920 (6 nm), 8 cores (2×2.5 GHz Cortex-A78 & 6×2.0 GHz Cortex-A55), Mali-G68 MC4 graphics
• operating system: Android 12, XOS 12 shell
• Memory: 8 GB RAM / 256 GB storage, separate microSD slot
• Screen: 6.8 inches, AMOLED, resolution 2400 x 1080 pixels, dot density 387 ppi, refresh rate 120 Hz, brightness 900 nits
• Battery: Li-Po 4500 mAh, fast charging 180 W, up to 100% in 12 minutes
• Main camera:
  • 200 MP, f/2.0, (wide), 1/1.22″, 0.64µm, Dual Pixel PDAF, OIS
  • 13 MP, f/2.4, (ultrawide), AF
  • 2 MP
  • 4K@30fps video recording
• Front camera: 32 MP, (wide)
• SIM card: 2 Nano SIM
• Network and data transfer: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE, 5G, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.1, NFC, USB Type-C 2.0
• Navigation: A-GPS
• Sensors: fingerprint scanner (under the screen), accelerometer, gyroscope, compass, proximity, lighting
• Other: FM radio available, no 3.5mm jack
• materials: glass, aluminum frame
• Dimensions: 165.5 x 74.5 x 8.8mm, weight 213g

Wow, this seems to be Infinix's first uber flagship.It can be seen that the company tried its best: a design with a curved Always-On OLED screen in front and a frosted glass on the back, a 200 MP camera, 180 W charging, a fingerprint scanner under the screen.

I know that in the comments, by tradition, there will bedissatisfied. How dare they release a smartphone for such a price?! Who will buy it?! Well, and so on. First, I want to remind you that Infinix is ​​not the first and not the last. People's memory is short, but if you look at the comments under the first flagships from Xiaomi or realme, then there are exactly the same protests. And now, probably, no one will say that the same Xiaomi failed to enter the flagship segment. Smartphones from the company are good and interesting. Realme, in principle, is also doing well in this regard. Although, of course, the company messed up with the price tag in Russia for its last flagship GT2 Pro.

But back to Infinix.I will release a review of the smartphone, I think, at the end of next week. There's no reason to rush. I put a SIM card into it, I want to use Zero Ultra as my main smartphone. The first, by the way, that I would like to note is the sense of proportion that Infinix definitely has. I must say right away that there are no ads in the Infinix shell, but on inexpensive devices, the user is initially disturbed by notifications (for example, from the application store, offering to install some fashionable game, etc.), then in Zero ULTRA - silence. Like, you paid a lot of money for a smartphone, we don’t dare to bother anymore.

Obviously, the sales of the smartphone willminimal. People are simply not morally ready to pay about 50 thousand rubles for a new brand. It took Huawei and Xiaomi about 5-7 years of painstaking work for their flagships to be taken seriously. The big question is: will Infinix have the guts to go down that path? Time will tell. In any case, as they say, the road will be mastered by the walking one.

Google Pixel 7 Pro and Google Pixel 7

Segment: premium not available in Russia

Rating: player

Price: $899 for Pixel 7 Pro and $599 for Pixel 7, from 58,000 rubles for Avito for Pixel 7, from 70,000 rubles for Avito for Pixel 7 Pro

Specifications:

	Google Pixel 7	Google Pixel 7 Pro
CPU:	Google Tensor G2 (4 nm), Octa-core (2×2.85 GHz Cortex-X1 & 2×2.35 GHz Cortex-A76 & 4×1.80 GHz Cortex-A55), Mali-G710 MC10 graphics
Operating system:	Android 13
Memory:	8 GB / 128/256 GB, no memory card slot	8 GB / 128/256 GB, no memory card slot
Screen:	6.3 inches, AMOLED, 1080 x 2400 pixels, 416 ppi, 90 Hz, 1000 nits, HDR10+, Corning Gorilla Glass Victus, Always-On display	6.7 inches, LTPO AMOLED, 1440 x 3120 pixels, 512 ppi, 120 Hz, 1000 nits, HDR10+, Corning Gorilla Glass Victus, Always-On display
Battery:	Li-Ion 4355 mAh, 30 W charging, 20 W wireless charging, reverse wireless charging	Li-Ion 5000 mAh, 30 W charging, 23 W wireless charging, reverse wireless charging
Main camera:	50 MP, f/1.9, 25mm (wide-angle), 1/1.31", 1.2µm, full-frame PDAF, laser AF, OIS 12 MP, f/2.2, 114˚ (ultra wide), 1/2.9", 1.25µm Video recording: 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240fps; gyro-EIS, optical stabilization, 10-bit HDR	50 MP, f/1.9, 25mm(wide-angle), 1/1.31", 1.2µm, full-frame PDAF, laser AF, OIS 48 MP, f/3.5, 120mm (telephoto), 1/2.55", 0.7µm, full frame PDAF, OIS, 5x optical zoom 12 MP, f/2.2, 114˚ (ultra wide), 1/2.9", 1.25µm Video recording: 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240fps; gyro-EIS, OIS, 10-bit HDR
Front camera:	10.8 MP, f/2.2, 21mm (ultra wide), 1/3.1", 1.22µm
SIM card:	Nano SIM + eSIM
Network and data transfer:	GSM, 3G, 4G, 5G, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC, USB Type-C 3.2
Navigation	A-GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, QZSS, BDS
Sensors:	Fingerprint scanner (optical, under the screen), accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity, compass, barometer
Other:	No 3.5 mm jack, IP68, no radio, NFC, older UWB model
Dimensions:	155.6 x 73.2 x 8.7 mm, weight 197 g	162.9 x 76.6 x 8.9 mm, weight 212 g
Price:	$599	$899

We have published a separate article dedicated toPixel 7 presentations. By the way, Google Pixel is another example of long-term painstaking work. Only the 6th generation of smartphones began to be more or less sold, and before that, Google produced smartphones for geeks for many years.

Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro have every chance of becoming successful smartphones. By success in the context of Google, I mean sales of approximately 1.5-2 million smartphones per quarter.

Pixel outperforms Samsung and Apple two eachreasons. First, it's a nice price. While Samsung and Galaxy prices are firmly established above the $1,000 mark, Google is offering a savings option.

Secondly, snickering users (these are those who can afford flagships) have a certain kind of fatigue from the long-term dominance of Apple and Samsung.

Third, Google offers the longestsupport, promising to release exclusive new Pixel features every few months. The idea is to give the user the feeling of a forever new smartphone.

Fourthly, Pixel comes with unlimited Google Photos and a proprietary camera with algorithms that allow you to return clarity to blurry pictures.

However, the smartphone is not without flaws.Perhaps the main problem of Google is its cooperation with Samsung. The Pixel uses Samsung's slightly customized Exynos 2100 chipset, dubbed the Google Tensor G2. And, like any Exynos, Tensor G2 heats up, loses performance under load, eats battery. Samsung is a long-time partner of Google, but if the company wants to be successful, then you need to board Samsung, agreeing with either Qualcomm or even MediaTek.

Google Tensor G2 vs G1

Internal changes Google Pixel 7 compared to its predecessor. Breakthrough or optimization?

Another minus is the quality of shooting on the front camera. In principle, it is at a good level, but it certainly cannot compete in picture quality with iPhone or Samsung. And it's even amazing.

Should I buy Google Pixel for Russia?Don't know. Those reviews in Russian that I have seen so far indicate that the reviewers have not adapted to the new realities. They talk about the screen, camera, design, but there is no answer to the banal question whether VoLTE or VoWiFi works (answer: it doesn’t work).

Google event: new Google Pixel 7 Pro and Pixel 7 smartphones, Pixel Watch and unusual tablet

Interesting presentation from Google. It's likely that you'll want the new Pixel 7 Pro!

Oppo Reno7

Segment: middle

Rating: challenger

Price: 27 000 rubles

Specifications:

• CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 4G (6 nm), Adreno 610 graphics
• operating system: Android 12 with ColorOS 12.1 shell
• Memory: 8 GB LPDDR4X / 128/256 GB UFS2.2, separate microSD slot
• Screen: 6.43 inches, LTPS AMOLED, 2400 x 1080 pixels, 409 ppi, measured brightness 636 nits, 90 Hz refresh rate, HDR10, Always-On, Corning Gorilla Glass 5
• Battery: Li-Po 4500 mAh, fast charge 33 W, reverse charge
• Main camera:
  • 64 MP, f/1.7, 26mm (wide-angle), 1/2.0″, 0.7µm, PDAF
  • 2 MP, f/3.3, (microscope)
  • 2 MP, f/2.4, (depth)
  • Video recording 1080p@30fps, gyro-EIS
• Front camera: 32 MP, f/2.4, 24mm (wide), 1/2.74″, 0.8µm
• SIM card: 2 Nano SIM
• Network and data transfer: GSM 900/1800/1900, 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 5.1, NFC, USB Type-C 2.0, USB OTG
• Navigation: A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO, QZSS
• Sensors: fingerprint scanner (under the screen), accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity, compass
• Other: with 3.5mm jack, no radio, IPX4 protection, RGB light ring around the camera is used for notifications and for lighting when the microscope camera is working
• materials: Corning Gorilla Glass 5, eco-leather back panel, plastic frame
• Dimensions: 159.9 x 73.2 x 7.5mm, weight 175g

The most pleasant smartphone with a leather textured back panel. My opinion is that this is a model for those who like POCO M5, but want a better screen and cameras.

The design of the smartphone is clearly a success. It turned out to be an extremely stylish device with a retro look.

Operators

Vladimir Nimin

Operator news: new Tele2 tariff

It seems that the new tariff from Tele2 looks like a great reason to throw a gamepad into your backpack so that you always have it at hand.

Overview of the Samsung OneUI 5.0 interface - all the changes and new features

Dozens of new features in OneUI 5, we consider each of them separately and evaluate the new system as a whole. Great upgrade to Android 13.

5 hours instead of Apple Watch

Apple Watch is the most popular watch in the world. And, probably, if you have an iPhone, then you don’t need to buy something else.

Google Pixel 6a review: a reliable smartphone!

Affordable smartphone from Google: nice design, great battery life, good cameras and a clean OS…

For me, the camera-microscope became the main wow-feature of the device. It only has a resolution of 2 MP, but it works wonders, allowing you to see the pixels in the screen or the weave of the fabric on the duvet cover.

The smartphone has a good bright AMOLED screen and at the same timegood battery life. The smartphone calmly keeps the day even under high load (I also used it as a navigator, and the long video zoom was for 2 hours, and I took a lot of pictures, etc.).

Perhaps the only thing I expected more from the cameras. It seems that the wings of the smartphone were artificially clipped so that it does not spoil the sales of more expensive models of the brand.

Oppo Reno7: great smartphone, but not without flaws

Stylish orange smartphone with a good screen and unusual features.

TECNO Pova 4 Pro

Segment: average-

Rating: challenger

Price: 22 990 rubles

Specifications:

• CPU: MediaTek MT8781 Helio G99 (6 nm), 8 cores (2×2.2 GHz Cortex-A76 & 6×2.0 GHz Cortex-A55), Mali-G52 MC2 graphics
• operating system: Android 12, HiOS 12 shell
• Memory: 8 GB LPDDR4X (+ 5 GB) / 256 GB UFS 2.2 storage, separate microSD slot up to 2 TB
• Screen: 6.7 inches, AMOLED, resolution 2460 x 1080 pixels, dot density 403 ppi, refresh rate 90 Hz, protective glass Gorilla Glass 3
• Battery: 6000mAh, 45W adapter, 50% in 24 minutes, 10W reverse charge
• Main camera: 50MP, (Wide), PDAF, 2K 30fps video recording
• Front camera: 8 MP
• SIM card: 2 Nano SIM
• Network and data transfer: GSM 900/1800/1900, 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 5.1, NFC, USB Type-C
• Navigation: GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS, NavIC
• Sensors: fingerprint scanner (side), accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity, compass, illumination
• Other: separate microSD slot, NFC, there is a 3.5 mm jack, FM radio, case included
• materials: Gorilla Glass 3 and plastic
• Dimensions: 164.79×77×9.19mm, 213.5g

Quite a lot of new smartphones this month fromInfinix and TECNO (and in this issue I only list the key ones, in fact there are more models). Both brands are actively working on the Russian market, pushing out Samsung, pushing Xiaomi and realme.

About POVA 4, perhaps, I can say that this is the firstsmartphone of this line, which I really liked. I remember well how in 2018 (or 2019) POVA was a hefty remnant with a big battery, but sad ... yes, everything else was sad. And now it's really good. Playing PUBG, watching videos, using it as a navigator is great. The smartphone is full of RAM, and the Helio G99 chipset is also wonderful (in the next couple of years this chipset will be the main one in the smartphone market up to 20 thousand rubles), a 6000 mAh battery with a 45 W adapter, and the system is also nimble.

Even to the camera as a whole there are no questions. There are smartphones that shoot better for the money. But TECNO Pova 4 Pro gives the quality of day and night shooting that satisfies. See photos from the review.

If the price were another 19,990 rubles or something like that, I would say that this is a bestseller. And so just a good smartphone, surrounded by numerous competitors that are no worse.

Tecno Pova 4 Pro: there is no such thing as too much performance

Powerful Helio G99 chipset, excellent 90Hz AMOLED screen and 6000mAh battery supporting 45W fast charging.

Infinix Smart 6 Plus

Segment: economy

Rating: One of many

Price: 8 700 rubles

Specifications:

• CPU: MediaTek Helio G25 (12 nm), 8 cores (4×2.0 GHz Cortex-A53 & 4×1.5 GHz Cortex-A53), PowerVR GE8320 graphics
• operating system: Android 12 Go, XOS 10.6 shell
• Memory: 2 GB (+2 GB virtual memory) / 64 GB eMMC 5.1, separate microSD slot
• Screen: 6.82 inches, IPS LCD, 1640 x 720 resolution, 500 nits, Panda Glass
• Battery: 5000 mAh, charging 10 W
• Main camera: 8 MP, autofocus
• Front camera: 5 MP
• SIM card: 2 Nano SIM
• Network and data transfer: GSM 900/1800/1900, 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 5.0
• Navigation: A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo
• Sensors: fingerprint scanner (rear), accelerometer, lighting, proximity
• Other: there is FM radio, there is a 3.5 mm jack, there is no NFC
• materials: front glass, case - plastic
• Dimensions: 172.6 x 77.7 x 8.7mm, weight 202g

I am very glad that I was able to test the modernsmartphone from the "most affordable" category. Quite an interesting device on the Android 12 Go platform. The smartphone even has a zest that distinguishes it from the cohort of smartphones “up to 10 thousand rubles”. This is a screen with excellent viewing angles, with brightness exceeding 500 nits.

Along the way, it was nice to assess what leveloptimization has reached Android. In the AnTuTu test, Smart 6 Plus knocks out less than 100 thousand points. However, the system still allows you to play almost any game from Google Play. Yes, the textures will be low resolution, but it's comfortable to play.

Unfortunately, the quality of the cameras still leaves much to be desired. Only photographs in good daylight are relatively good.

I recommend that you familiarize yourself with the text of the review, at least as part of an educational program, in order to know what a smartphone for 8 thousand rubles can do.

Review of Infinix Smart 6 Plus: cheap, but not so angry

It turned out good material about what a smartphone is for 8 thousand rubles. Sometimes you will be pleasantly surprised!

Conclusion

October turned out to be the month of Chinese smartphones.And there is no need to return the nosya - this is our new reality. Xiaomi, POCO, realme, TECNO, OPPO, vivo, Infinix should be thanked, bowing from the waist, because they not only supply smartphones, but also set more or less normal prices.

The venerable Samsung and Apple have set sail.And, of course, the devices are sold on the gray market, but let's take the same iPhone 14. An expensive smartphone that does not have banking applications, payment does not work, there is no VoLTE and VoWiFi, you cannot even use a smartphone as an access point. So far, there is no such problem with Samsung, but the S22 series was intended for Russia. Let's see what will happen in the Galaxy S23. Now, if you take the same Galaxy A53, then you can’t add the Mir card to Samsung Pay out of the box. Why? Because Kazakh and other smartphones from other regions are brought to Russia. Accordingly, it is necessary to change the region to SER. So far, there is a way, but the further into the forest, the higher the likelihood that Samsung may simply refuse to release Russian firmware.

In short, get used to loving the Chinese. Soon you will have no alternative, even if you really want to!

The main smartphones of September: 8 new smartphones

From iPhone to POCO and from Sony to Infinix and realme. Many new models for every taste.

5 new smartphones of September

In Berlin, at IFA 2022, a bunch of new smartphones were presented. Let's see!

7 main smartphones of August

August is the month of flexible screen smartphones. All manufacturers showed how they see the future of the industry.

</ p>