Huawei today announced the availability of the P40 Pro+, P40 Pro and P40, the company’s new flagship smartphones, in the UK. The new P40 series could well be the phone to grab if photos and videos are your priority. 

As you would expect, the Huawei P40 range features not only cutting-edge designs but, ground-breaking camera innovations. Firstly, the sizeable 1/1.28-inch sensor has a binned pixel size measuring 2.44?m. This, according to Huawei, boosts light intake in a big way for enhanced low-light performance. Additionally, the phone’s new periscope design makes it possible to sport a 10x true optical zoom. 

Naturally, the Huawei P40 Series sports 5G by way of a Kirin 990 5G chip that also supports Wi-Fi 6 Plus. All of that tech is topped off with a Quad-curve Overflow Display that delivers outstanding fluidity and responsiveness, says the manufacturer. 

Huawei P40 Photography

We once again find Leica embedded in the latest Huawei smartphone and here is the advanced Ultra Vision Leica camera system, available in triple-camera, quad-camera and penta-camera configurations. This means that the Huawei P40 will undoubtedly deliver outstanding photographic results with ultra-wide-angle, wide-angle and telephoto lenses. The P40 Pro adds an evolution of the Leica Quad Camera with a more powerful Ultra Wide Cine Camera and ToF Camera alongside 50x SuperSensing Zoom. While, the P40 Pro+ adds a SuperZoom Array, which supports 10x true optical zoom and 100x maximum digital zoom.

The Ultra Vision Sensor housed in the P40 is Huawei’s largest CMOS sensor to date. Measuring 1/1.28 inches diagonally, it supports pixel binning to achieve a pixel size of 2.44?m and Full Pixel Octa PD AutoFocus for high-speed focus at any time of day. Meanwhile, the HUAWEI XD Fusion Engine integrates and processes data from multiple cameras to generate a comprehensive improvement in picture quality. 

The optically stabilised Ultra Vision Wide Camera and SuperZoom Array work in tandem with AI to realise Triple OIS+AIS for vastly improved photo and video stabilisation. 

Huawei continues to offer faithfully reproduced skin tones and textures thanks to a new Multi-spectrum Colour Temperature Sensor and AI AWB algorithm that boosts colour accuracy by 45%, apparently. Of course, real-time portrait optimisations, as well as Bokeh reproduction, are available. However, the Huawei P40 Series also introduces HUAWEI Golden Snap, which includes AI Best Moment, a new smart photography feature that chooses the best frames from a Moving Picture. AI Remove Passerby and AI Remove Reflection can do away with unwanted subjects and glare from the frame.

Huawei P40 Video Camera 

The 40MP Ultra Wide Cine Camera in the P40 Pro and P40 Pro+ has a focal length that is equivalent to 18mm and a 1/1.54-inch sensor supporting the 3:2 aspect ratio. SedecimPixel Fusion Technology is built in to support 16-in-1 pixel binning, producing superpixels that measure 4.48?m to boost light sensitivity up to ISO51200 and enable 7680fps Ultra Slow-Motion video capture.

You also get Bokeh effects for videos. Similar to the results of a wide aperture lens, this feature adds progressive Bokeh to help highlight the main subject of the footage. The telephoto camera can capture high-quality zoom footage as well as 4K time-lapse videos. Directional Audio Zoom, available on HUAWEI P40 Pro and HUAWEI P40 Pro+, allows users to zoom in on an audio source and amplify its sound at the same time.

Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei Consumer BG, told GadgetyNews:

The HUAWEI P Series has always been about innovative aesthetics and making premium imaging hardware accessible, representing the very best of industrial design and technology. With an outstanding sensor, camera systems that we co-engineered with Leica, powerful chipset and HUAWEI XD Fusion Engine, the HUAWEI P40 Series exemplifies our focus and offers an all-day Super Definition experience to help consumers realise their creative vision.

Sporting super-narrow bezels and streamlined round corners the P40 ensures an ergonomic in-hand experience and a near borderless look. Moreover, an enhanced in-screen fingerprint reader offers 30% faster biometric authentication. 

The P40 series is available in three glossy glass finishes – Ice White, Deep Sea Blue and Black – and two innovative refractive matte glass finishes – Blush Gold and Silver Frost. Also, the HUAWEI P40 Pro+ features an exquisite nano-tech ceramic back panel that is kilned and polished to ensure it stands the test of time with incredible durability and timeless style. This unique design comes in two iconic colours: Ceramic White and Ceramic Black. 

Price and availability

The HUAWEI P40 Pro (8GB RAM, 256GB Storage, RRP £899) will launch in the UK in Black and Silver Frost. The devices are available from The Carphone Warehouse, Virgin Mobile and selected retailers, and with Three as well as direct from Huawei. 

The HUAWEI P40 (8GB RAM, 128GB Storage, RRP £699) will launch in the UK in Silver Frost (Carphone Warehouse only), and Black (Virgin Mobile and selected retailers). 

Both devices go on sale on April 7th. 

Both the P40 and P40 Pro are also available to purchase directly from the new UK Huawei Store: 

• P40 Pro: https://consumer.huawei.com/uk/phones/p40-pro/buy/
• P40: https://consumer.huawei.com/uk/phones/p40/buy/

HUAWEI P40 Pro+ pricing and availability will be announced soon.

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Huawei unveiled their Mate 20 Series yesterday at a huge event held in London’s ExCeL Centre. The Mate 20 is undoubtedly one of the most highly anticipated smartphone series of the year.

The new Mate series embodies the pinnacle of innovation. Designed with the industry’s most sophisticated process technology, the latest Huawei flagship devices set a new bar by which all 2018 smartphones will be measured.

Huawei Mate 20 summary

The Huawei Mate 20 Series is powered by the company’s highest performing system on chip (SoC) to date—the Kirin 980. Manufactured with the advanced 7nm process incorporating the powerful Cortex-A76-based CPU and Mali-G76 GPU, the SoC offers improved performance and unprecedented smooth user experience.

Check out our hands-on first impressions review

The new 40W SuperCharge, 15W Wireless Quick Charge and large batteries work in concert to provide the best battery life.

However, it’s the Matrix Camera System that features a Leica Ultra Wide Angle Lens that most people will be interested in. The new camera system enables you to not only see wider but also closer thanks to its new macro distance capability. The Matrix Camera System adopts what will most likely become an iconic Four-Point Design, giving the device a unique visual identity that is recognisable even at a distance.

Huawei Mate 20 details

Design

All the news devices carry a FullView display with a high screen-to-body ratio. Compactly engineered, every device in the series can be comfortably used with a single hand.

The Mate 20 Pro’s chassis is curved on all eight sides and feels great to handle.

Available in 6.53-inch, and 6.39-inch flavours, the Huawei Mate 20 Series is available in three devices: Huawei Mate 20, Huawei Mate 20 Pro and Porsche Design Huawei Mate 20 RS.

The flagship series comes in a new Emerald Green colourway, which is as brilliant as its namesake gemstone.

Read our full Mate 20 Pro review

Also, the Hyper Optical Pattern on the glass back uses a complex hairline pattern to produce an iridescent effect that is not only highly durable but also makes the device easy to grip and fingerprint resistant. Huawei says that the devices retain a clean look even when they have been used extensively. However, I’ve still noticed fingerprint smudges but not as much as other phones.

The Mate 20 X is huge! Sporting a 7.2-inch display Huawei are gunning for the Samsung Note.

As well as a gaming pad for those moments of downtime, the Mate 20 X works with the M-Pen stylus which boasts 4096  levels of pressure.

Camera

Building on the foundation of the brand’s P20 Series’ camera system, Huawei augmented the Mate 20 with a powerful addition, namely a16mm Leica Ultra Wide Angle Lens.

The wider perspective creates a sense of spaciousness and a three-dimensional effect to the images. The new camera system also supports macro distance, producing crisp images of objects that are placed as close as 2.5cm from the lens.

The Mate 20 Pro is equipped with a 40MP main camera, a 20MP ultra-wide-angle camera, and an 8MP telephoto camera. Together, the trio of lenses supports a wide range of focal lengths (equivalent to the performance of a 16-270mm zoom lens), enabling it to mimic the results from professional cameras.

The Mate 20 Series also features an AI Portrait Colour video mode. Using AI, the new phones can isolate human subjects and desaturate the colours around them to dramatically highlight the person. In short, keeping the main subject in colour with their surroundings in monochrome. AI Spotlight Reel identifies clips with a shared theme and auto-generates a montage, made entirely of highlights.

Furthermore, the Mate 20 is able to 3D your favourite soft toy, for example and bring it to life. We saw this in action at the keynote. However, I have yet to find the capability on the device so I am assuming it will be added later.

More Mate 20 tech

The Huawei Mate 20 Series is shipped with the highly customised Android P-based EMUI 9 operating system.

The Mate 20 Pro is the world’s first smartphone to support the 4.5G LTE Cat. 21 standard. The upshot of that is that you get download speeds of up to 1.4Gbps. Additionally, you get the world’s fastest Wi-Fi connection speeds which translates to 2GB footage just needing 10 seconds to download.

The top-end flagship also supports dual-band (L1+L5) GPS positioning technology. The AI GPS Satellite Selection technology enhances the positioning accuracy across a wide range of scenarios.

Also, keeping the lights on for the Mate 20 Pro is a high-density 4200mAh battery that supports 40W Huawei SuperCharge. Running low but in a rush? Well, your Mate 20 Pro can have a 70% charge in 30 minutes. The safety of the charging technology is certified by TÜV Rheinland.

Moreover, the phone also supports 15W Huawei Wireless Quick Charge, the industry’s fastest wireless charging solution. Why not share the love? Enable Wireless Reverse Charge and the Mate 20 works as a power bank for selected electronic devices supporting wireless charging.

Further features

Both the Mate 20 Pro and Porsche Design Huawei Mate 20 RS both support 3D Face Unlock. The solution quickly and securely authenticates users within 0.6s at a false acceptance rate of below 1/1,000,000. Furthermore, it’s also the reason for the larger notch on these devices compared to the Mate 20.

Using the 3D Depth Sensing Camera System located at the front, the two devices can accurately read the facial features of a subject and recognise even small details. Moreover, besides user authentication, this suite of sensors also enables the portrait beautification effects to be realised more naturally and effectively.

Finally, Share 3.0 delivers an improvement in device interconnection, allowing users to transfer files between smartphones and PC. This Huawei-proprietary solution enables device interconnectivity. All you need to do is tap to establish a connection between a smartphone and a PC for easy and fast file sharing.

Price and Availability

The new Huawei Mate 20 Series, as well as Huawei Watch GT, Huawei Band 3 Pro will go on sale in the UK soon.

The Mate 20 Pro (6GB + 128GB configuration) is up for pre-order for £899 SIM-free.

The Mate 20 (4GB + 128GB configuration) will have an MSRP of EUR799, and the Mate 20 (6GB + 128GB configuration) will have an MSRP of EUR849 from 16th October 2018.

The PORSCHE DESIGN HUAWEI Mate 20 RS (8GB + 256GB configuration) will have an MSRP of EUR1695, and the PORSCHE DESIGN HUAWEI Mate 20 RS (8GB + 512GB configuration) will have an MSRP of EUR2095 from 16th November 2018.

Pricing varies between retailers. For more information, please visit: https://www.consumer.huawei.com

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If you love headphones then you have probably heard about CanJam. If not, it is the world’s premier headphone audio show with events in New York City, Singapore, Los Angeles, London, Denver and Shanghai. London gets its huge head-fi fix in a couple of weeks!

CanJam, the UK’s only dedicated headphone audio event, returns to London on July 21st and 22nd.

CanJam London, UK

This is the place to go for music lovers and headphone users of all ages. This exclusive audio technology event is ideally positioned in central London at the Park Plaza Hotel, Westminster Bridge. CanJam London 2018 is set to showcase the latest headphone tech and trends. You can expect over 100 of the world’s leading manufacturers spread across 20,000 sq. ft. of exhibition space.

Easy to find. Easy to demo

Firstly, it might be a big space but it will be easy-to-navigate. This means you can get more valuable hands- (and ears) on time.  Furthermore, there’ll be no stuffy hotel rooms. Instead, there are a number of listening demo stations. The whole idea is for you to be able to easily audition the best and most innovative headphones at all price ranges.

Moreover, you will get to experience the latest from market-leaders AKG, Astell+Kern, Audeze, Beyerdynamic, Chord Electronics, FiiO, Focal, Hifiman, Meze Audio, MrSpeakers, RHA, Schiit Audio, STAX Japan, V-Moda, Westone and many more.

Hot stuff

The headphone audio industry is one of the hottest trends in consumer electronics today. On its current trajectory the head-fi market is expected to grow by 60% to reach USD $18 billion by 2023.

Price and availability

Weekend passes are just £20; day passes £15 direct from the CanJam website. Also, the Park Plaza Hotel, Westminster Bridge is within walking distance from London Waterloo rail and Waterloo/Westminster Underground stations. This makes it ideal should you want to go exploring of an evening.

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Focal has added some Spring/Summer season fashion magic to its Listen Wireless headphone range, called Listen Wireless Chic. 

The colourful Wireless Chic models are the newest editions to a growing range of Focal headphones. This addsthree new colour finishes to the Focal Listen range – Olive, Purple and Blue.

Naturally, the French know a little bit about style, and Focal know a lot about audio. All together, the Listen Wireless Chic should be seen on all fashion-conscious music lovers this season.

Focal Listen Wireless Chic

Listen Wireless Chic is equipped with Bluetooth 4.1 wireless technology and are compatible with Bluetooth aptX. As well as going wireless you can also hook up using a traditional audio cable. Furthermore, the wired connection enables you to plug in to a DAC. In doing so, the headphones will then deliver all the power and scale worthy of a high-end hi-fi product.

The Focal Listen is already known for their comfort. Additionally, the ultra-flexible headband makes them light, reduces pressure on the head and increases durability. The memory foam ear cushions, made from fabric and leatherette, provide excellent isolation, a key feature of Listen Wireless Chic.

Chic on the go

The headphones fold which also makes them easy to use on the go and carry around. Also, the scratch-resistant non-conductive metallisation finish is durable for a long-lasting perfect finish.

The Listen Wireless Chic offer twenty hours of listening time after a charging time of less than three hours. The automatic standby feature means they can be left on for up to 240 hours between charges.

During Bluetooth use, the Listen Wireless Chic has a reception range of up to 15 metres, giving you complete freedom of movement around the source.

Chic control

They are equipped with a dual omnidirectional microphone system which utilises Clear Voice Capture software for improved voice clarity whilst talking, even in noisy environments. They also include NFC technology for easy connectivity to smartphones equipped with an NFC module.

The controls are located on the ear-pieces, making the Listen Wireless Chic even more ergonomic. They have been strategically positioned to enable users to control the functions effortlessly, quickly and easily and are grouped into three areas: the on/off and Bluetooth buttons in one area, music and call controls in another and a volume control. The controls are simple and intuitive and are controlled by short or long presses.

Additional features

Voice notifications and different LED colours indicate the status of the headphones, the battery level and pairing, etc.

Up to eight different devices can be stored in the memory of Listen Wireless Chic and two devices can be connected simultaneously. This means users can listen to music from a tablet and answer a call from a smartphone at the same time.

Listen Wireless Chic is supplied with a USB cable and an audio cable for wired use, or for when Bluetooth connectivity isn’t possible. A soft carry case allows users to transport the headphones around in complete safety.

Carry your music anywhere, in style and total freedom!

Price and availability

Available now – UK SRP £220.00

The Listen Wireless Chic headphones are available now exclusively on the Focal e-shop until May 1st: https://www.focal.com/headphones/uk/.

From May 1st, they will be available on general distribution via Focal retailers across the UK.

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I have been playing with the Detu Twin which is a neat 360-degree camera. However, there is now the Detu F4 Plus that offers 8K VR panoramic videos.

The 8K 360 camera is the latest in Detu’s immersive camera lineup that includes the hemispherical Detu Sphere 800 and Sphere S, the aforementioned Detu Twin, and the 6K-capable Detu F4.

The new F4 Plus has four 200-degree lenses and four 12MP Sony IMX117 CMOS sensors. This is all capable to capture a full monoscopic 360-degree video at a maximum resolution of 8K at 30fps.

It can also live stream 360 video via Ethernet as well as being controlled remotely via its companion app.

Detu F4 Plus

The new Detu camera stitches the images from each lens together into a seamless 360° view using the DetuStitch software.

The optical flow algorithm is suitable for dynamic stitching of images in case of image motion. Fast stitching means that 4K video generated and stitched by the NVIDIA GTX 970 high performance graphics card can reach an impressive 20fps (frames per second).

Engineered to enable users to livestream with ease, the camera can connect to a computer via an Ethernet cable. Additionally, it can be done wirelessly streaming over 2.4G and 5G dual frequency Wi-Fi.

This enables you to livestream to YouTube, Facebook and other 360° enabled platforms.

You can see still samples on the Detu website.

Design

The F4 Plus has a copper and aluminium frame, which helps to dissipate heat, a common issue when live streaming in high resolution.

This, along with its air duct and cooling system significantly enhances the battery life and equipment stabilisation.

The 4800mAh lithium-ion high capacity removable battery supports up to 120 minutes of continuous shooting.

Furthermore, through a charging base, it can charge two batteries simultaneously. This will prove highly useful to professional photographers and VR content creators on set for sustained periods of time.

The camera has a Micro SD card storage capacity of 128 gigabytes. Personally, I would love to see a higher capacity compatibility.

Designed to capture beautiful images as well as sounds, the camera also supports audio with two built-in microphones.

Designed to work with dedicated iOS and Android apps, users can easily control the camera, as well as edit and share images on social media. It also provides a real-time preview of panoramic images. DetuStich stitches the images together, DetuLive livestreams and DetuPlay showcases images and videos for VR.

Price and availability

The F4 Plus has an RRP of $2599 and will be available on Amazon.

Get to know when it’s available by joining their mailing list.

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More news from our French-friends at Focal. They have now announced that their lovely-looking Kanta loudspeakers are now available in the UK.

These compact beauties are dedicated to performance.

For the first time, the company has developed a loudspeaker combining its Flax sandwich cone speaker driver system with its legendary Beryllium tweeter. That not only sounds great, but it also makes me feel a little bit hungry.

The newly designed cabinet offers a softer approach to design. However, as is the case with all Focal designs, every detail is dedicated to acoustic performance. This includes the density and rigidity of the materials used for the front panel and housing, through to the smooth edges on the baffle and the dual port design.

Beryllium and Flax

This duo might sound like partners in a sci-fi cop show but Focal has put them to much better use.

High-frequencies are reproduced by a new pure Beryllium tweeter. This has been designed and developed especially for Kanta.

The IAL 3 tweeter combines the principles of the IAL (Infinite Acoustic Loading) and the IHL (Infinite Horn Loading) tweeters developed for the Focal flagship Utopia range. So, it should prove to be pretty good then.

Designed to improve the absorption of sound waves and reduce the resonance frequency of the tweeter, the IAL 3 delivers an effortless performance. Furthermore, it blends perfectly with the mid-range drivers making it acoustically invisible.

The Focal Flax cone has already proved its worth in several of the company’s leading designs. They are constructed by sandwiching flax fibre between two thin layers of glass fibre.

The resulting cones deliver high internal damping, high velocity of sound and high flexural rigidity.

This unique driver cone design is characterised by its natural sound, with low colouration. You can also expect richness of reproduction in the midrange register and tighter bass when used for low frequency duties.

The 1 x 6.5-inch (16.5cm) midrange driver is equipped with a technology that has become a must for Focal: TMD suspension (Tuned Mass Damping).

Each of the Kanta’s speaker drivers are also equipped with NIC motors (Neutral Inductance Circuit). These stabilise the magnetic field to provide perfect definition, whilst delivering better controlled bass via the 2 x 6.5-inch (16.5cm) bass drivers.

This unique combination of Flax and Beryllium delivers music with an incredibly natural yet musical performance.

Cabinet design

When it comes to innovation, constraints call for technology.

To meet the criteria of a compact design, Focal engineers reduced the volume of the bass cabinet, yet retained high-quality performance levels.

This called for a new material to be utilised for the baffle. This had to retain the high-levels of rigidity, yet remain favourable to acoustic conditions.

Through research, Focal engineers discovered and developed a mono-bloc high-density polymer (HDP). This material is capable of a significantly higher performance compared to MDF. The new ploymer is 70% denser, 15% more rigid, and has 25% increased damping.

Finally, to avoid any diffraction of the sound, the mono-bloc baffle has smoothed edges. This aspect allows the sound waves to effortlessly flow across the surface.

It is then attached to the rear housing of the cabinet, which is internally braced and constructed from moulded multi-ply wood to provide even greater rigidity.

Focus Time

Naturally, the Kanta employs the company’s ‘Focus Time’ driver alignment technology. This positions the drivers so that all soundwaves arrive at the listener’s ears at the same time.

Additionally, Focal ‘Power Port’ technology is used. With this you get a port on the front and one on the rear of each speaker. The result is extended bass response and limiting any dynamic compression of the bass signals.

The Zamac base, which includes adjustable spikes, provides stability whilst still maintaining the slim cabinet profile.

Finally, a very elegant glass plate on the top of the loudspeaker, and magnetic, beret-type grilles round things off.

Selection of finishes

The finishes for Kanta N°2 allow for numerous combinations to ensure that they perfectly integrate into any interior.

The housing is available in a lacquered black High Gloss finish or with a Walnut veneer. The front panel is available in four different colours for each of the two finishes.

With the black High Gloss housing: 4 High Gloss finishes for the front panel: Carrara White, Gauloise Blue, Solar Yellow, Black Lacquer.

With the wood veneer housing: 4 matt finishes for the front panel: Ivory, Warm Taupe, Gauloise Blue, Dark Grey.

Price and availability

The Focal Kanta retails at £6,999 and is available from most reputable audio retailers in the UK.

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Focal, the French audio specialist, has certainly been busy. As well as the good-looking Clear headphones, they launched the Sib Evo Dolby Atmos 5.1.2 Speaker package.

For those looking for a simple and stylish way to upgrade their home cinema system, this high-quality Dolby Atmos set is sure to tick the boxes.

Promising additional clarity, detail, depth and sheer immersive quality, Dolby Atmos has been rapidly adopted by content providers.

You can experience Atmos soundtracks from a whole range of sources, some more surprising than others. For example, from the latest cinema and Blu-ray film releases to Premium League Football on Sky and BT Sport, selected Netflix streams and PC and Xbox gaming.

To enjoy Dolby Atmos in action, the choices have been pretty much all-or-nothing. On one side, you could opt for a one-box solution, which is unable to offer true surround sound. Alternatively, there’s the complex array of speakers or upgrades unsuited to modern living – especially in London!

Focal Sib Evo

The new Focal package offers a stylish, compact alternative, while still delivering high-quality surround sound. This makes it perfect for all but the very largest living rooms. All you have to do is add a Dolby Atmos receiver and source.

The starting point for Dolby Atmos surround sound is a 5.1.2 system. Fortunately, Focal has integrated this technology into the latest generation of its Award-winning Sib & Co speakers.

The Sib Evo Dolby Atmos 5.1.2 package is composed of two Sib Evo Dolby Atmos speakers, three Sib Evo Satellites (two for rears, one to be horizontally aligned as a centre speaker) and the Cub Evo Subwoofer.

The Sib Evo Dolby Atmos speakers are equipped with both front-firing speaker drivers as well as additional full-range speaker drivers integrated into the top. In this way they can reproduce both horizontal and vertical sound waves; the vertical waves angled to bounce off the ceiling towards the listener.

Easy set up

You will no doubt be glad to hear that Focal has made a point in making Sib Evo easy to install. So, you get speakers equipped with a connector system with push buttons to make the satellite easier to hook up to a Dolby Atmos receiver.

There are also double connectors instead of single connectors for the power supply.

For further ease of room integration, the satellite speakers can be easily wall mounted; matching floor stands are available as an optional extra.?

Price and availability

The Focal Sib Evo Dolby Atmos 5.1.2 Speaker package is available now, with a suggested retail price of £1,099.

It is exclusively available both online and in-store at Sevenoaks Sound and Vision until the end of the year.

A Sib Evo Dolby Atmos 2.0 version of the package – to add Atmos to existing set-ups – is also available, with an SRP of £449.

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Focal has unveiled their latest reference headphone, the Focal Clear.

I was unable to attend the launch, as I am currently on another continent, but these new reference cans from the French loudspeaker gurus look great.

Clear is Focal’s new circum-aural (over-ear) open-back headphone for audiophiles and represents a new evolution of Focal’s open-back, full-range speaker headphone family.

In 2016, Focal launched the Elear and Utopia headphones. I can attest to both being good at their job at their respective price point. These headphones feature a full-range, completely open-backed electrodynamics transducer.

One year later, Focal has revealed Clear. These new open-back headphones feature an enhanced speaker driver in addition to an upgraded open back design when compared to Elear.

Clear design

Clear is equipped with a new generation full-range speaker driver, as well as a frameless copper voice coil.

The use of copper gives the voice coil an extremely strong magnetic field. The 55 Ohms of impedance means you can use Clear with portable high-resolution audio players.

Focal has developed the ‘M’-shaped inverted dome.

The ‘M’–shape aluminium/magnesium dome is equipped with a copper voice coil. This was first seen on the Elear and Utopia headphones. This construction offers an ideal combination of lightness, rigidity and also dampening

Furthermore, the new generation of perforated microfiber ear cushions add to Clear’s open design.

Comfort

Focal developed a headband in which the bend remains constant, regardless of the size of the head. This spreads the weight of the headphones evenly over the head, to prevent pressure on the head or ears.

Additionally, the solid Aluminium yoke with its asymmetrical attachment points has been designed to improve the distribution of pressure. This is all thanks to its lack of traditional vertical rotating mechanics, as they have been integrated into the headband.

Moreover, a new production line specifically for Clear in Saint-Etienne (France) develops the light-weight components that live inside Clear. Each pair of headphones features an identical frequency response curve of +/-0.5dB.

Cable options

The Clear comes bundled with three types of cables. The braided cotton sleeve and 24 AWG oxygen free copper cable offer low resistance, while the two 3.5mm mono jack sockets in the headphones themselves are lockable to secure the connection of the cables.

• A 4ft (1.2m) cable finished with a 3.5mm stereo jack plug

• A 10ft (3m) cable finished with a 6.35mm stereo jack plug

• A 10ft (3m) with a 4-point XLR connector

Finally, the other accessory supplied with Clear is its rigid carrying case.

Words

Ben Jensen, president of Focal North America, enthused:

With Clear, we solidify Focal’s position as key innovators in the manufacturing of high-end headphones. Building off the research used to develop high-end headphones Elear and Utopia, Clear is poised to be the reference open-back headphones under $2,000. Clear completely envelopes the user in musical purity, as one of the best headphones on the market.”

Focal Clear specs at a glance

Price and availability

You can get your own Clear right now for £1,399 /$1,499 USD / $1,899 CAD.

I am really interested in finding out how these compare to the now 3 years old, and slightly ‘cheaper’, Oppo PM-1. These have been my benchmark up until now.

The post Focal Clear reference headphones launched appeared first on GadgetyNews.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 is now official. This means no more guesswork. We have all the specifications on Samsung’s latest smartphone.

To say that this has been longawaited would be an understatement. All Note fans had to send their beloved handheld back to Samsung after them being recalled.

That means that mobile stylus-screen-prodding has been put on hold for longer than most will have been able to cope with.

Well, rejoice now screen-scribblers! Your new Note 8 has been revealed.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8

The Note 8 is equipped with a 6.3-inch Super AMOLED display with a Quad HD+ resolution of 2960 x 1440 pixels and it comes with 521 ppi.

The handset is powered by an octa core Snapdragon 835 processor in some countries and an Exynos 8995 in others.

You get 6GB of RAM and you can choose between 64GB, 128GB and 256GB of storage. App and snap space can be increased by way of a microSD card slot that supports up to 256GB cards.

There is also a 33000 mAh battery with wireless charging and Android 7.1.1. An Oreo update should happen soon.

Yes, and the device comes with a new Samsung S Pen.

S Pen

As with the phone, the S Pen is IP68 water and dust resistant, It has a 0.7mm nib and can detect 4,096 levels of pressure. I’m sure that’s good bragging rights in some circles.

The Note 8 sees the return of the Screen off memo feature. However, this time around you can take up to 100 pages of notes before being forced to save.

A step up from doodles on a flat picture, Live Animations bring movement to your doodles by converting your trace path into a GIF.

The translation feature is back too. Just hover over the text you want to translate.

Camera

The Note 8 is the debut of a new camera arrangement for Sammy as it joins the dual lens crew. We expect this to also find its way into the Galaxy S9 in 2018.

Samsung’s pair of sensors gives you a telephoto zoom option.

Telephoto

This means you get 2x optical zoom from that lens. So, no loss of quality when zoom in.

The wide-angle lens isn’t wide-angle like the LG G6, instead, it’s a conventional camera, like the camera of the S8.

You’ll notice that there’s a difference in the maximum aperture of the cameras, with f/2.4 and f/1.7 ratings respectively.

Again, the f/1.7 aperture of the wide-angle camera is the same as the S8, suggesting that it’s probably the same unit.

Optical image stabilisation (OIS)

Both rear cameras are equipped with optical image stabilisation. Samsung claims that it betters existing dual camera systems. The iPhone 7 Plus only has OIS on the wide-angle lens, for example.

In truth, the telephoto lens needs OIS the most as (a) it’s a slower lens with that f/2.4 aperture and (b) handshake at longer focal lengths has an increased effect on the image.

This adds up to the addition of OIS on the telephoto lens will be more stable and sharper on those long zooms.

Activating the zoom is as easy as tapping the “2x” button in the viewfinder window.

Having an actual zoom lens avoids losing quality as a digital zoom does.

Two lenses – two photos

You can even take photos with both lenses at the same time.

This means that if you have a scene setup you then have the choice of how it looks, with a photo coming from each camera. Samsung has dubbed this Dual Capture.

Live Focus

The Note 8 also offers a feature called “live focus” as a shooting mode.

For this to work, you need to have distance between the camera, the subject and the background so that the depths of field can be detected. The dual cameras basically triangulate and then get to ‘see’ in 3D.

What live focus does is let you move a slider to change the level of blurring, a bit like manually changing the aperture on a proper lens.

Not only can this be done live, but it can be changed after the fact, so you can edit the photo once you’ve taken it, adding or removing the blur, as long as you’ve shot in the “live focus” mode.

Other stuff

The handset comes with NFC, WiFi, Bluetooth and 4G LTE, it features an iris scanner, facial recognition and a fingerprint scanner.

Preorder now

Samsung will start taking pre-orders on their new Galaxy Note 8 from Today. The device will retail at £896.

Vodafone are offering the Samsung Galaxy Note8 for  pre-order at £44 per month (£300 upfront cost), which includes 500 minutes, unlimited texts and 500MB of data.

O2 have it on their O2 Refresh tariffs, and on O2’s Yearly Upgrade Programme for selected tariffs. Head over to their site for pricing and deals.

Carphone Warehouse have a great deal with O2. They are offering Samsung Galaxy Note 8 on O2, 5GB Data, £49pm, £59.99 upfront. PLUS – Claim a free Samsung Dex docking station worth £139.99!

Barring any flammability disasters, or poor battery life, the Note 8 is likely to be a superb phone.

Samsung will offer their new Note 8 in four colors, Midnight Black, Orchid Gray, Maple Gold and Deepsea Blue.

The post Samsung Galaxy Note 8 launched – all the details appeared first on GadgetyNews.

London’s biggest headphone event of the year is coming! Headroom at Indulgence is back, so save the date.

headroom@Indulgence is the place to discover the season’s hottest headphones, coolest portables and the latest audio tech.

Indulgence had a great debut last year, this year is all set to be bigger and better.

Furthermore, if the headroom show earlier this year is anything to go by, you are in for a head-fi treat!

headroom@Indulgence

The UK’s biggest headphone experience returns to the capital this autumn.

headroom@Indulgence will yet again be showcasing the latest trends in portable audio technology plus the widest range of demonstrable headphones in the UK.

The world’s leading portable audio tech companies will be gathering for the show. You can expect Sony, Pioneer, Astell & Kern, Focal and Chord Electronics, to name but a few.

headroom@Indulgence will reveal 2017’s best new audio tech in time for the festive season.

With the UK’s biggest selection of demonstrable headphones on offer, the three-day experience is a must-attend event for international music-lovers and headphone fans.

From beginners to audiophiles, commuters to gamers, headroom@Indulgence is uniquely positioned to demonstrate that there’s more to music with great headphones.

Date and tickets

Put Friday September 29th to Sunday October 1st in your diary. The venue is London’s Novotel London West, Hammersmith.

Tickets cost just £15 and provide full access to the Indulgence Show and its wider exhibits. Head on over to the website for tickets and more information.

The post Fans of personal audio should head(room) to Indulgence 2017 appeared first on GadgetyNews.