tech2touch

Author: Aniruddh

Asus Zenfone Android 6.0 Marshmallow Update coming soon
Asus Zenfone 2 smartphones became very popular because of its value for money offering and user friendly ZenUI. Zenfone Zoom with 3x optical zoom proved technical capability of Asus team. However, sadly, this phone didn’t release with latest Android version Marshmallow. Now, Asus has finally revealed the list of smartphone which are going to get Android 6.0 Marshmallow.

Which are the Asus Zenfone Variants going to get Android 6.0 Marshmallow?

Asus has announced the roll out of Android 6.0 Marshmallow update for the users in India for the following Zenfone Variant. For these variants, updates will start rolling out from this month.
- ZenFone 2 (ZE550ML, ZE551ML)
- ZenFone 2 Deluxe (ZE551ML)
- ZenFone 2 Laser ( ZE500KL, ZE550KL, ZE601KL)
- ZenFone Selfie (ZD551KL)
- ZenFone Max (ZC550KL)
- ZenFone Zoom (ZX551ML)
The new Android 6.0 update will replace three ZenUI apps-ASUS Messenger, ASUS Mail and ASUS Calendar with Google Messenger, Calendar, and Gmail apps as the default apps in Android 6.0 version of ZenUI. Do note that, it will happen if and only if you do factory reset after the update. If you do the factory reset after update and if you want to have ASUS Messenger, ASUS Mail and ASUS Calendar, then you need to download it from Play store.

The older Zenfones which are not mentioned here also will get Android 6.0 starting from April. However, Asus has not revealed on which are they.

Google Android 6.0 is largely provides improved performance rather than changes in the design language. The Now on Tap, Doze, ability to use microSD card as internal storage are some key features of this new Android version.

Android 6.0 introduced with Nexus 5X and Nexus 6p. Then we saw Motorola devices to get the update. Recently Samsung Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 Edge, Sony Xperia Z5 as well started getting Android 6.0 update. So far, Android Marshmallow adoption rate is 1%. It is a welcome move from Asus to provide latest and greatest Android experience to Zenfone users.
March 1, 2016
How to type Indian regional languages in Asus Zenfone Max
Typing Indian languages such as Kannada, Hindi, telugu, tamil, Bengali, Malayalam etc in Zenfone Max is very easy. Now, there is no requirement of any external app. Here is the step by step guide on how to type Indian languages in Zenfone Max.

How to type Indian regional languages in Asus Zenfone Max

As mentioned before, for typing indian languages such as Kannada, Hindi, telugu, tamil, Bengali etc, first you need to enable the respective languages in the settings.
- Go to ‘Settings’->’Language & input’
- Tap on to ‘ZenUI Keyboard’
- In this page, you have list of input languages already available in the device.
- Find and select the input language by check marking.
Adding Input languages

If the input language which you are looking for is not available in the list, then you need to add that language. For that,
- Tap on to Plus symbol(+) in the top of the screen.
- You will find many more languages.
- Select the language which you want to download.
- Once downloaded, you can select it in previous page as mentioned before.
How to shift between languages while typing in Zenfone Max

Whenever, you want to type language in messages, whatsapp messages etc, tap on to ‘En…” button. It will change the languages.

Video on how to type Indian Languages in Zenfone Max

I have made video on demonstrating how to type Indian languages in Asus Zenfone Max.
March 1, 2016
Asus GL552JX Laptop Review – Pros and Cons
Asus GL552JX is the recently launched gaming laptop from Asus’s Republic of Gamers(ROG) series. With this, Asus has tried to provide good performing gaming laptop within the price of 1lakh. The price of Asus GL552JX in India is Rs. 81990. However, you can get it for Rs.79,990 in online portals like Flipkart, Amazon etc.

Asus GL552JX comes with eye catching design and good build quality. The black and red combination which we have seen on other ROG series laptop continues here as well. The chassis is made from good quality plastic and it feels solid. The rubberized coating over the lid along with a metallic strip in the middle with an illuminated Republic of Gamers logo looks very nice.

Asus GL552JX has 15.6 inch full HD IPS display screen with matte-black finish that eliminates glare for stunning visuals without distraction. The viewing angles are great and colors look vivid. As it has matte screen, it has very minimalist reflections which makes this laptop comfortable to use in different lighting condition.

Asus GL552JX comes with visually striking keyboard. It has black and red theme here as well. You can change the intensity of the backlight or completely switch off. The keys are well placed and there is a dedicated numeric pad as well. The keys decent travel makes them comfortable for typing and gaming. Overall the keyboard experience in this laptop is excellent.

Asus GL552JX has decently large track pad. The button response is good and you will get all the usual gestures of Windows 10. Coming to ports, GL552JX offers three USB ports out of which two are USB 3.0, one HDMI output, Gigabit LAN, VGA, headphones and microphone ports, and a Kensington lock. There is also a DVD writer and an SD card slot.

Asus GL552JX is powered by 2GHz quad-core Intel Core i7-4750HQ with a Turbo frequency of 3.2GHz and HyperThreading. It has 8GB of 8GB DDR3 RAM running at 1600MHz. There is dedicated NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M with 4GB DDR3 VRAM graphic card. For storage, out of the box, we get 1TB 2.5-inch hard disk running at 7200rpm from HGST. There is also a M.2 (2280) SSD slot with SATA3 interface if you would like add additional SSD.

Asus GL552JX ships wth 64 bit Windows 10 Home with some other useful pre installed softwares. Asus bundles some of its own software such as AudioWizard for tweaking the sound profiles for gaming, movies, etc. GameFirst III which also ships with its gaming motherboards, prioritises game data traffic to reduce lag during online gameplay. You also get a one month trial of Microsoft Office 365, 25GB of Dropbox space for six months, and a year’s subscription to McAfee LiveSafe.

Upgradation of RAM or hard disc on GL552JX is very easy. By sliding off upgrade panel, you can add bigger hard drive, M.2 SSD or more memory. There is a one empty RAM channel which you can use to add additional upto 8GB of RAM. This laptop cooling system is very good. Even when using for long times, palm rest and bottom part of the laptop remained cool. Coming to performance, general performance is snappy. High end games in highest setting struggles a bit. However, in medium settings, it played most of the games without any issues.

Advantages of Disadvantages of Asus GL552JX

Pros of Asus GL552JX
- Stylish design and good build quality.
- Excellent display screen.
- Easy to upgrade option.
- Good snappy performance.
- Good keyboard.
Cons of Asus GL552JX
- Average Sound output through built in speakers.
- Touch pad could have been better.
- Mediocre Battery life.
February 29, 2016
Gionee S6 Cons And Pros Review
Gionee recently launched S6 smartphone in India with a price tag of Rs.19,999. Key features of the device are 5.5 inch HD AMOLED screen, full metal unibody design and support for VoLTE.

Gionee S6 has aesthetically pleasing design with the unibody aluminium build. With rounde edge it feels comfortable to hold. The gold variant of the smartphone looks more attractive. Talking about the downside, it very much matches the design and build quality as that of much cheaper phones such as LeEco Le 1s.

Gionee S6 sports 5.5 inch 720 HD AMOLED display with pixel density of around 267 ppi. It has good screen to body ratio of 73.6%. The screen has Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection. The screen is sharp and vibrant. The viewing angles are also great. Colours look little oversaturated and unfortunately, there is no option to tweak the colours for more natural look. For the price of around 20k, only 720p resolution for 5.5 inch display is a disappointment.

Gionee S6 is powered by 1.3GHz octa-core Cortex-A53 Mediatek MT6753 processor coupled with 3GB of RAM. It has 32GB of internal storage along with support for microSD card upto 128GB. It is a dual sim smartphone. It supports Dual-SIM 4G with VoLTE. However, if you want to use microSD card, then you cannot use 2nd sim as it has hybrid slim slot. Gionee S6 runs on Amigo 3.1 skin on top of Android 5.1 Lollipop. The performance of the device is good. Multi tasking and transition effects are lag free as there’s around 1.5GB of free RAM available all the time. However, at times for launching the apps, it took some time. Gaming performance is decent. It managed to play most of the games without any issues. The device gets bit warm during extending gaming or video playback. The call quality was excellant and signal reception was decent. Addition of VoLTE is a welcome move which makes the device more future proof.

Connectivitry features of Gionee S6 are 4G LTE on Band40 as well as VoLTE, Wi-Fi b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, USB OTG, FM radio and Wi-Fi Direct. The device houses non user removable 3150mAh battery. In regular days of usage, it lasted for more than a complete day. The device comes with 10W charger which manages to charge the battery pretty quickly. In 30 minutes it was able to charge 30 percent from zero.

Gionee S6 house 13MP primary camera with LED flash and 5MP front facing camera. The primary camera captures images with good details in daylight. Landscapes and macro are sharp and well detailed. The camera auto focus works nicely. It was able to focus the object quickly. The low light performance on the camera is disappointing considering the price segment it belongs to. The front facing camera able to take decent selfies.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Gionee S6

Pros of Gionee S6
- Full metal unibody design.
- VoLTE support.
- Good battery life.
- Decent performance.
- Good camera performance in well lit conditions.
Cons of Gionee S6
- Low resolution screen for 5.5 inch display.
- No fingerprint scanner or NFC.
- Average camera performance in low light condition.
- Colors looks bit oversaturated.
- Bit overpriced.
February 28, 2016
Xiaomi Mi 4S Features Price and Specification
Xiaomi has unveiled a new midrange android smartphone called Mi4S. The device will go on sale from 1st March. The price of Xiaomi Mi4S is CNY1699(Approximately Rs.18,000). It will be available in Black, Gold, Purple, and White colour variants.

Xiaomi Mi4S comes with front and rear glass panels with metal frame for premium look and feel. The device is powered by 2.5GHz hexa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 paired with Adreno 418 GPU and 3GB of RAM. It comes with 64GB of internal storage and support for microSD card upto 128GB. Mi4s is a dual sim phone and runs on MIUI 7 based on Android 6.0 Marshmallow.

Xiaomi Mi4S sports 5 inch full HD IPS display screen which offers approximately 441ppi pixel density. The connectivity features of the device are 4G LTE, 3G, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth, GPS, and packs USB Type-C. One of the most teased feature of this device is its fingerprint scanner. This is the first phone from Xiaomi to features fingerprint scanner. It also has Infrared sensor.

Xiaomi Mi4S houses 13-megapixel rear camera with dual-tone LED flash and PDAF. For selfie lovers, there is a 5 Mega pixel front facing camera. This handset has 3260mAh non-removable battery and supports Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 2.0 technology. It also supports VoLTE supports.

Advantages of Xiaomi Mi4S over Mi 4
- 64 bit Faster processor: (64 bit hexa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 vs 32 bit quad-core Snapdragon 801 processor in Mi4)
- Fingerprint scanner.
- Bigger battery with Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 2.0 technology. (3260mAh vs 3080 mAh).
- MicroSD card support.
- Android 6.0 based MIUI 7 out of the box.
At the time of writing this, there is no update on the release date of Mi4S in India. This device will be of the tough competitor for the other midrange smartphones in this price segment.
February 25, 2016