Xiaomi 'Ferrari' With Octa-Core Snapdragon 615 SoC Spotted in Benchmarks

Xiaomi has so far launched three new smartphones this year, including the new Redmi 2, Mi Note, and the Mi Note Pro. These smartphones haven't really reached many markets; but the company seems to have more planned for this year - with what appears to be a new mid-range smartphone leaked in benchmark results.

Tech Gadgetsz.com (via PhoneArena) spotted two new benchmark listings of a new device called the Xiaomi Ferrari, which is likely to be a codename of an upcoming mid-range smartphone. According to the GFXBench results, the Xiaomi Ferrari will purportedly feature a 64-bit octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 processor clocked at 1.66GHz coupled with 2GB of RAM and Adreno 405 GPU. The handset is seen sporting a 4.9-inch full-HD (1080x1920 pixels) display while running Android 5.0.2 Lollipop; though considering that Xiaomi handsets run MIUI on top of Android, we can expect the Ferrari smartphone to also run a new version of MIUI.

There is a 12-megapixel rear camera capable of recording full-HD videos while a 4.8-megapixel front camera is also on board. The GFXBench further tip that the handset comes with 16GB of built-in storage out of which only 12GB will be user accessible.

The Geekbench Browser benchmark listing of the Xiaomi Ferrari on the other hand shows a single-core score of 692 and a multi-core score of 2481. The benchmark listing also shows upload date back from January tipping that Xiaomi has been testing the device for a while.

Considering that the popular Xiaomi Redmi 1S got a successor in the form of the Redmi 2, it is probable the Xiaomi Ferrari is the successor of the Redmi Note. Further cementing the speculation is the relatively large 4.9-inch display; though we will have to still wait for the Xiaomi's confirmation.

Blackberry prices slashed

BlackBerry has slashed prices of the BlackBerry Z3 and BlackBerry Z30 touchscreen smartphones in India.

According to information received by NDTV Gadgets, BlackBerry Z3 will now be available at Rs. 13,990, a price cut of Rs. 2,000. The BlackBerry Z3 (Review | Pictures) was launched in June last year at Rs. 15,990 and this is the first time that the handset has received a price cut in India.

The Z3 features a 5-inch qHD (540x960 pixels) display offering an aspect ratio of 16:9. It is powered by a dual-core 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 (MSM8230) processor with 1.5GB RAM.

BlackBerry Z3 sports a 5-megapixel autofocus rear camera and also houses a 1.1-megapixel fixed-focus front-facing camera. The smartphone includes 8GB of inbuilt storage, which can be expanded up to 32GB via microSD card. It packs a 2500mAh battery, which is rated to deliver up to 15.5 hours talk time and up to 384 hours of standby time. Connectivity options include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 3G, GPS, NFC and Micro-USB.

The BlackBerry Z30, on the other hand, will retail at Rs. 24,990 down from the previous best price of Rs. 29,990 - a drop of Rs. 5,000.Prior to this, BlackBerry's phablet Z30 (Review | Pictures) received price slash in June last year when the company offered a discount of Rs. 5,000 on the handset.

BlackBerry launched the Z30 for the Indian market at Rs. 39,990 in 2013.

BlackBerry Z30 comes with a 5-inch Super AMOLED display featuring 720x1280 pixels resolution, translating to a pixel density of 294ppi. It is powered by a 1.7GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor with Adreno 320. The BlackBerry Z30 sports an 8-megapixel rear camera and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera.