Recover Files from Formatted External Hard Drive

This is a tutorial to recover formatted external hard drive with unformat software iCare Data Recovery to recover deleted data from reformatted external hdd. In this article you may find the following parts:
1. External Hard Drive Formatted
2. Tutorial to recover files from formatted external hard drive
3. Tips for formatted external hdd

External Hard Drive Formatted

It is understandable how worried PC users will become when they accidently formatted external hard drive. It often happens PC users may format external hard drive by accident, format the external hard drive when the drive was receiving an error message reading "The drive is not formatted. Do you want to format it now? ".
PC experts know that for the first time we start using a hard drive, it was already formatted, usually low level formatting. Any later formatting may be performed intentionally or unintentionally by you own. The bad thing happens when you formatted the wrong drive or by accident, and there were lots of valued files, photos stored there. To recover files from a formatted drive, here we performed a tutorial with professional unformat tool iCare Data Recovery Pro.

Tutorial to recover files from formatted external hard drive

Step1. Download iCare Data Recovery. Install and run the program. And you will see a screen with many options of recovery. Go to Format Recovery.

Step2. Select the partition which was formatted and then click "Recover" to search. Here I formatted H partition and then rebooted the computer for unformat test. And a box showing scanning devices will turn up.

Step3. When scanning device finished, there would be a partition which is formatted, be free to click "Show Files" which would list your lost files from your formatted hard drive. After clicking "show files", there will be a list of lost files, you can check whether it is your lost files. Here I found my formatted lost files in this test.

Free download iCare Data Recovery to recover your files from formatted external drive now!

About iCare Data Recovery

iCare Data Recovery is dedicated to various kinds of data recovery. It is easy to use, no jargon inside. Only a few clicks, you can get your data back from a formatted external drive. Besides unformat, it still can do undelete, recover drives reading RAW, recover files lost due to partition lost, virus infection, SHIFT+DELETE data loss etc.

Supported Types of External hard drive different brand and different capacity

iCare Data Recovery supports unformat files from external hard drive larger than 500GB. All types of external hard drive brands like Toshiba, Iomega Prestige, Western Digital, Maxtor hard disk, Seagate, etc.

Other Storage Media That iCare Data Recovery Supported

iCare Data Recovery also helps recover videos photos off formatted memory card, USB flash drive, pen drive, hard disk and so on and recover deleted files from SD card after formatting

Hands on with Anonabox Pro: mobile privacy, with quirks

When I last wrote about tools for keeping your data secure while traveling several years ago, the laptop was still the computer of choice for road warriors. So a secure USB key and browser combination was plenty to help protect against insecure Wi-Fi and prying hackers. But now that nearly everyone is dependent on their mobile devices when they travel, the problem of staying secure on the road has become more complex — especially if you connect your mobile device to public Wi-Fi hot spots. Startup Anonabox has been trying to address this issue and, after a rocky start with its first offering, has introduced a new product line, headed by the Anonabox Pro. I’ve been using one for several weeks now, and have found plenty to like, along with more than a few rough edges.

Anonabox Pro: Secure Wi-Fi-enabled travel router

The Anonabox Pro is at its core a portable Wi-Fi router — not too different from many other inexpensive versions you can pick up from a variety of online sites, based on OpenWRT & LuCI. On top of the base hardware and open-source system software, Anonabox has added a built-in Tor router, a client for OpenVPN, and for commercial VPN Hide My Ass (HMA!). The combination promises to allow you to create your own, secure, Wi-Fi hotspot, and then route all your devices through it. That way, not just your laptop, but your smartphone and tablet (or any other Wi-Fi-enabled devices you use) can have the benefit of secure communications.
Ideally, the above might also simplify your life, since those devices would have a predictable Wi-Fi network to connect with, rather than needing new credentials each time you use them. And for Wi-Fi hotspots that limit the number of devices you can use, the Anonabox shows up as a single device. In practice, though, as we’ll see further on, there are a number of issues that get in the way of this panacea. Like many routers, it can also serve as a bridge or range extender, but its primary use is definitely as a secure router.
The device itself is tiny, featuring two Ethernet ports for configuration and wired connectivity (one for uplink and one for client connectivity and configuration), a micro USB port over which it gets power, a USB port for adding devices such as a thumb drive, and a reset button. There is a status LED as well. For wireless connectivity, the Pro supports 802.11 b/g/n at 2.4GHz. The internals have also been beefed up compared with the original, as there is now a 650MHz CPU, 128MB of RAM, and 64MB of Flash memory.

Configuring your Anonabox Pro and using Tor

Anonabox received a lot of negative feedback on its original version, in part because it was neither configurable nor upgradeable. The Pro addresses both those issues, with a configuration UI and a firmware update capability (although there aren’t any updates available yet, so I haven’t tested that functionality).
The configuration UI is similar to the one on competitor Invizbox. The Anonabox Pro is still based on the open source OpenWRT codebase, although documentation on how to take advantage of OpenWRT functionality on the unit is very sparse. You connect to it via SSH to access functionality beyond what is exposed in the UI — although the UI does include a package installation interface, and an interface for managing startup processes.
While the Anonabox has a deceptively friendly looking user interface for its common configuration tasks, with lots of point-and-click screens, the process of configuring it is susceptible to user error. You need to follow each step of the setup guide exactly, or may find yourself having to reset the unit and start over. My favorite (well, really, least-favorite) is that you need to uncheck the “Replace current wireless network” box (that is checked by default) when connecting the unit to an available wireless network. If you don’t, the box becomes non-responsive until you connect over a hard-wire cable or reset it.
Performance when running in a non-private mode was good, although surprisingly spikey. Tested using our 130Mbps cable connection, Speedtest would normally report about 50-60Mbps, but sometimes would jump to 120Mbps (averaging about 60Mbps). Configuring Tor is a piece of cake, but, as you’d expect, performance over Tor was only a fraction of what you’d get otherwise — in my testing typically 1-2Mbps.

Using a VPN with the Anonabox Pro

For those willing to invest a few dollars a month, a VPN provides a higher-performance alternative for keeping your IP address, and some other information, private. The Anonabox Pro comes with a free 30-day trial of “Hide My Ass!”, one of the better-known VPN vendors. In my testing, HMA was much slower than native access (about 8-10Mbps download — although coupled with a surprisingly quick 9Mbps upload), but much faster than using Tor (although each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages as far as how well they protect your privacy and provide security). By comparison, a direct-tunnel connection over a Hamachi VPN from the same network to a dedicated server ran at 70-90Mbps consistently.
One cautionary note is that some friends have reported their mail getting flagged as spam when they sent it while using a subscription VPN, so that’s something to watch out for if you use one.
Anonabox has said it will be adding more VPN clients, which would certainly be a welcome upgrade, as many users already have a VPN subscription and won’t want to change. In the meantime, some VPN providers have instructions for how to use OpenVPN to access their service. However, OpenVPN configuration on the unit is neither well-documented or simple, so it will still take some effort to use a VPN provider other than HMA!.

Issues with using Anonabox Pro as a travel router

My vision of using an Anonabox Pro as my ultimate travel solution ran into a couple snags in practice. The biggest problem I ran into is that if you power off the Anonabox Pro without disconnecting it from the Wi-Fi network it is using, it will refuse to provide Wi-Fi when powered on — until hard reset, or reconfigured using an Ethernet cable. The product’s developers say this is a necessary limitation, but in practice it is really painful. For example, if you suddenly hear your flight called, and close your laptop, pack up and head off, you’ll need to dig out an Ethernet cable before you can use the router again. Worse, if you are using a laptop without an Ethernet port, you’ll need to carry a USB-to-Ethernet adapter and an Ethernet cable. Or reset the device and start over completely on configuration.
Also, because the Anonabox Pro doesn’t have its own battery backup, if you power the router from your laptop, and don’t have an “always-on” USB port, then whenever your laptop falls asleep, the router will turn off. At minimum this means a delay while it reboots, but if you are using Tor, it can take an additional couple minutes to connect to the network. So, as a practical matter, heavy users may want to travel with an external battery pack to use with their Anonabox. Unfortunately that defeats much of the advantage of its small size.

Anonabox Pro as a secure communication device

Obviously, use as a travel router for road warriors isn’t the only use case for a privacy-focused connectivity devices. For those who are worried about censorship, access limitations, or concerned for their own security, encrypting traffic as it comes out of their computer or smartphone makes perfect sense. The good news here is that Anonabox has done quite well in various tests, and appears to keep traffic flowing through it corralled onto the VPN (if in use) or through Tor (when it is enabled for web browsing). For phone users in particular, having Tor or a VPN running on the Anonabox reduces the performance overhead, and battery drain on your mobile device. It also keeps you from having to track down VPN or Tor software for all of your devices.
The Anonabox Pro shows a lot of promise but, at this point, investing in one involves believing that the company will continue to improve the UI, extend support to additional VPN providers, and make more OpenWRT functionality accessible without needing to resort to shell commands. Unlike the original version, which was a Kickstarter project, the Anonabox Pro is available from a variety of online retailers for about $120.

Adobe brings Raw photo workflow to Android with Lightroom 2.0

One of the remaining speed bumps in the way of broader adoption of smartphones as the camera of choice among photo enthusiasts has been a lack of end-to-end support for shooting in Raw. Basic support for capturing Raw (DNG format) images has been rolling out in Android — for some phones running Android 5.0 or later — but processing and storing them has remained awkward. Google’s Snapseed added support for developing Raw images last year, but many have been waiting for a solution that would integrate with their Adobe-centric workflow.
Today, Adobe updated its Lightroom for Android application to version 2.0, and it now includes full support for Raw images through its in-app Camera — assuming your phone can shoot Raw to begin with. It further ups the ante with the ability to preview various presets in real time while you are shooting.
You can see how much difference Raw post-processing can make in the featured split image for this article (above). The left side is a portion of the JPEG as shot with a Nexus 5, and the right side is the Raw version of the same image post-processed using Adobe’s Lightroom. Pros and others who are serious about image quality have long relied on shooting Raw to give them the best possible post-processing possibilities. Now Adobe has full support for them doing it with their smartphones. Just make sure and double-check whether you can capture DNG images with your phone before getting too excited, as Adobe’s support only works on models which already have that capability.

The addition of Dehaze will be especially popular with travel and nature photographers

Adobe’s in-app Camera feature is pretty cool

Lightroom 2.0 for Android features a well-designed in-app camera, making it trivial to capture images and have them available for editing and uploading. In addition to the usual set of camera controls, the in-app camera features five “shoot-through” presets that you can preview on your phone’s screen while you are composing and shooting. These special presets are non-destructive, in keeping with Lightroom’s editing mantra, so you can change or remove there effects later. You can further process your DNGs using Lightroom (or Snapseed) on your mobile device, but Lightroom also now syncs the DNG file to your desktop Lightroom, so it will automatically be available for you to work on from your main computer.

Here is an example image that was split toned using Lightroom for Android 2.0

Dehaze and split toning also added to Lightroom for Android

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In addition to support for Raw files, Adobe has continued to port some of its most popular image processing features from its desktop into Lightroom for Android. Version 2.0 adds support for Adobe’s popular Dehazing filter, and for Split Toning. You can now also specify specific points when you apply a Tone Curve, as well as set curves separately for each color channel. For those who want ultimate control, Adobe has also added targeted adjustments, so you can control which portions of your image are affected by the adjustments you add in Lightroom.
Adobe has also upgraded Lightroom’s sharing capabilities, and is working to build a community feel with the #lightroom hashtag. The new version of Lightroom also integrates directly with Adobe’s clever Clip mobile video editor, so you can very quickly and easily create professional-looking photo stories from your images. Lightroom 2.0 for Android is free, and available now for download from the Google Play store.

Can optogenetics restore sight to blind people?

Optogenetics is the new hotness in neuroscience research: It affords the ability to control neurons by shining light on them. We’ve successfully used it in vivo to record neural activity patterns with millisecond-scale precision, and to create a “wireless router for the brain.” The 2014 Nobel Prize in Medicine went to a team of researchers using optogenetics to map the function of new types of brain cells.Now a team of researchers supported by RetroSense Therapeutics, a startup from Ann Arbor, is diving straight into the therapeutic uses of this emerging technology by trying to cure one type of blindness. They’re using a clever application of optogenetics to take on retinitis pigmentosa: an incurable genetic disease that causes inexorable blindness as it destroys rods and cones in the eye.



The team’s strategy is simple, as much as anything is simple in bleeding-edge medical research. At a clinic in Texas, scientists will inject a non-pathogenic virus into neurons into the eyes of a group of subjects. They’re hoping the virus will infect nerve cells called ganglion cells, which transmit signals from the retina to the brain. The virus is altered to contain a genetic vector for channelrhodopsin, a light-sensing protein from algae which responds to light of a single wavelength. The idea is that making the ganglion cells express channelrhodopsin will make them sensitive to light, giving back some vision to those afflicted by the progressive disease.
Usually you have to implant fiber-optic wires in the brain to do anything optogenetic, because you need light to turn on optogenetically enhanced nerves, but light doesn’t penetrate well through the skull. (This is not an accident.) But because the eye is naturally exposed to light, it’s the perfect venue for a trial like this one, which seeks to switch the photoreceptive burden from the compromised rods and cones to ganglion cells deeper in the retina.
Since there’s image processing at every cellular layer in the eye, and the ganglion cells are deeper than the rods and therefore receive fewer photons, it isn’t clear exactly what visual granularity can be achieved here. If the experiment succeeds, the researchers expect that the experimental cohort will get monochromatic vision at very low resolution. RetroSense CEO Sean Ainsworth told the MIT Tech Review he hopes the treatment will allow patients to “see tables and chairs” or even read large letters. In experiments at the Institut de la Vision in Paris, blind mice treated with optogenetics will move their heads to follow an image and will move to avoid bright light if kept in a dark box.
Grainy, low-resolution monochromatic vision might not sound like much compared with what humans normally perceive, but these efforts are important steps on the road to long-term vision restoration. Rough shapes and grayscale projection are a far better alternative to total blindness

2016 SMARTPHONES THAT WILL BLOW YOUR MIND THIS YEAR...

BlackBerry. Apple. Moto. Samsung -- a sneak peak at 2016's potentially most exciting releases

The first quarter of every new year is always a busy period for phones -- and the main reason for this is MWC 2016. But it's not just about MWC that we have to consider; Apple is rumoured to be releasing a new 4in iPhone in April as well. And after that we have all the other BIG updates from HTC, Sony, Apple and Google. And unlike 2015, this year's phone space promises to be VERY exciting.
According to the latest leaked material the upcoming HTC One M10 will NOT launch at MWC 2016. HTC is apparently very keen on avoiding doing anything at the same time as Samsung — probably a wise move. Instead, HTC will apparently launch its HTC One M10 at a separate event in late-Q1 2016, so around March or April time.
Still, there’s a bunch of other brands out there now ready to take its place like OnePlus, Xiaomi, Huawei and its awesome side-project, Honor, to name but a few. Plus, if Qualcomm has managed to fix the Snapdragon 820, which we’re 90% sure it has, things in the Android space should run a little more smoothly in 2016/17 as well.

Samsung Galaxy Note 6 

The Samsung Galaxy Note 6 is apparently returning to the UK in 2016. Reports suggest Samsung, miffed by the weak sales of its EDGE+ handset, has opted to reinstate the Galaxy Note 6 as its mid-year flagship release, picking up the slack once the Galaxy S7 has died down in and around Q2.

“Samsung has no plans to launch a Galaxy S7 Edge+ handset and will instead reinstate the Galaxy Note 6 as the brand's chief phablet in the UK,” notes Tech Radar. “That’s according to a source high up at one of the UK's major networks who cited a ‘backlash from loyal Note fans’ as one of the chief reasons for the reverse decision.”
To date not much is known about the handset, though Samsung has been filing some odd patents of late. The handset itself will likely feature QHD or higher display, Snapdragon 820/Exynos 8890 CPU and Android N, depending on when it is released. A lot of UK punters will be very excited about the prospect of getting their hands on this phablet after Samsung’s 2015 performance.
Word on the street suggests Samsung is planning something pretty EPIC for its Galaxy Note 6. According to leaked information, the Galaxy Note 6 could well be the first smartphone to rock 6GB of RAM, a frankly insane amount of memory for a phone. What could all this memory be required for? It can’t JUST be for performance.
Samsung recently filed a patent for an “upcoming” Note device that would see the phablet dock with a laptop-style device. Presumably the Galaxy Note would power the dummy laptop and all of its desktop-still applications. Could this be the reason why Samsung has included 6GB of RAM, or is it just a marketing gimmick? With Samsung you just never know….

OnePlus 3 

OnePlus made A LOT of friends with the OnePlus One and then set about making a few enemies with its tricky, follow-up flagship, the OnePlus 2. The main reason people we’re a little peeved with OnePlus’ 2015 effort was because it lacked NFC, as well as a QHD panel and a fingerprint scanner.

OnePlus said people didn’t use NFC on the OnePlus One so it was nixed on the follow-up device. Well, as it turns out some people clearly did because A LOT of OnePlus 2 users were very angry when they found out their shiny new handset couldn’t do NFC, so expect to see the return of near field communication in 2016. 

Another area where OnePlus could up the ante with the OnePlus 3 is its display. The company has favoured 1080p panels since day one, but 2016 could see the company finally embrace QHD. Other notable features likely to make the cut are a larger battery, a fingerprint scanner, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 and some BIG improvements to imaging.

Google's 2016 Nexus Phones 

Google will release two Nexus handsets in 2016 just as it did in 2015. But it will not be LG or Huawei making this year’s devices. Nope. According to reports from China, Google is keen on getting HTC back on Nexus-building duties. HTC will build two handsets for Google, the sources claim, one with a 5in display and one with a 5.5in display.

If you’re memory is half decent you will recollect that HTC built the first ever Google Nexus phone — the Google Nexus One — WAY back in 2010. The company also built the first mass-market Android handset as well for T-Mobile in the form of the T-Mobile G1. What HTC will bring to the Nexus fold in 2016 remains to be seen. Will it be based on the company’s next flagship, the HTC One M10?
Who knows. But as always: Google’s Nexus handsets are always worth the wait.

LG G5

LG used to be rubbish. REALLY rubbish. But then it built the Nexus 4 and everything sort of changed. The company regained its stride and began making some of the best phones in the business like the LG G3 and LG G4, which were easily two of our favourite releases in 2014 and 2015, respectively.

In 2015 LG returns with the LG G5, a handset that is EASILY one of the most exciting releases we've seen in recent times. The device itself is gorgeous, looking completely different to last year's G4. Plus, the damn thing is an modular phone, meaning you can attach accessories to it.
The LG G5 is easily one of the most exciting phones for 2016. Why? Simple: LG has been slowly building up an awesome reputation for producing, arguably, some of the best Android phones on the planet. Case in point: the LG G3 and LG G4, as well as the Nexus 4 and Nexus 5, of course.
The company has also been pretty bullish about its plans for 2016, proclaiming it is “READY To TAKE Samsung On!” with its LG G5. I’ve argued why I think the LG G5 is a more interesting prospect than the Galaxy S7, and you can read that piece here: THIS is Why The LG G5 Is Better Than The Galaxy S7.

Nokia’s Android Phone 
Microsoft acquired Nokia’s phone business a few years ago and quickly set about doing what it does best — ruining it. But now the dust has settled on that little deal and Microsoft has stopped using the Nokia brand, the Finnish company can now start producing handsets again — and, importantly, handsets that aren’t crippled with Windows Phone software.

Nokia — that is, the NEW Nokia — is apparently looking to bring an Android-powered phone to market in 2016. This is all very rumour-tastic at present but if Nokia were to return in 2016, and with an Android handset no less, it would certainly be very interesting indeed.

iPhone 7 

Apple’s iPhone is the biggest and most well known phone on the planet so for this reason alone it is sort of exciting to see what the company will do with its multi-million-selling handset in 2016. Even more so when you consider this year’s model is a solid number release, which means a BIG design overhaul.

Moto X 2016 

Motorola, now owned by Lenovo, has been on something of a roll for the past few years. This streak of awesomeness started when Moto was acquired by Google and the two companies produced the excellent Moto X handset, a stripped down phone designed to do all the core stuff and not much else.

Moto used stock Android and has continued to do so, even though it is no longer owned by Google. The next big release for Lenovo, potentially, is the Moto X 2016 and it could drop at any moment between now and Q2. Interestingly, Lenovo has confirmed all of its 2016 phones will feature 5+inch displays and fingerprint scanners.
Beyond this the company is talking about a bunch of other stuff — adopting custom UXs for future phones — that frankly terrifies us. But, HEY, three years of excellent releases is a pretty good run for the mobile space’s biggest and most well known hot potato.

BlackBerry’s Second Android Phone 

I love BlackBerry. I adored the Passport when that came out and I even used a BB10 handset for a good 8 months back in the day. I wasn’t hugely impressed by the BlackBerry PRIV, but I could see the handset’s potential — BlackBerry and Android could work together well, it just needed a bit of finessing.

And this is why I am immensely excited about what the company has in store for us in 2016/17. Current word on the street suggests two Android handsets scheduled for 2016

LG G5... ONE OF 2016 GRAND PHONES

The LG G5 is the first modular phone from the South Korean company, and it has all-metal design, meaning the news leaks we heard prior to MWC 2016 were mostly true.
That's good news for anyone looking to upgrade their smartphone. Even though the LG G4 got a lot right, its design kept it from properly challenging the more ornate Samsung Galaxy S6.
The LG G5 is an entirely different phone for 2016. Its a 5.3-inch Android phone with a quad HD display and metal body. It feels smooth in the hand with no seams.
It's still a bit plain compared to the glass-and-metal Samsung Galaxy S7. That's okay, because its internals and modular expansion idea are anything but ordinary.
There's no LG G5 price yet, and the release date is still a bit vague, which just goes to tell us that there's more to discover about this phone. Here's everything we know.

Cut to the chase

• What is it? LG's flagship smartphone for 2016
• When's it out? It has launched at MWC 2016, expected in April
• What will it cost? A lot – it's a flagship after all

LG G5 release date

You won't have to wait very long for the LG G5 release date. The company's flagship Android phone is arriving two months earlier than its typical annual refresh cycle.

Its MWC 2016 launch event already told us this much with the not-so-subtle "LG G5 Day" before it even launched. But hold up a bit, it's coming out in South Korea before it arrives in the US, UK and Australia.
LG said that the handset has a "likely April" release date in North America and Europe, so you have to get through all of March with your old phone and resist that Samsung Galaxy S6 release date on March 11.

It's still sooner than we expected. Last year, the Samsung Galaxy S6 and HTC One M9 were announced at MWC and got a two-month head start on April's LG G4.
LG isn't allowing the Samsung Galaxy S7 and HTC One M10 to do the same all over again. In fact, this is the first of two LG flagship phones this year, the company has confirmed, so it's going to be a big year.

LG G5 design

We're finally seeing a truly premium LG flagship, which is a nice change from the plastic the company usually uses, and the less said about that leather-backed LG G4 the better.

It measures 149.4 x 73.9 x 7.7mm, and while this phone won't be curved like its predecessor, it is smaller and easier to hold thanks to its 5.3-inch display. Reaching all corners of the screen is now possible.
LG is keeping the microSD card slot and removable battery, even with the metal unibody look, and it does this with an innovative new design. It hasn't forgotten its power user roots.
The LG G5 battery tray acts a lot like a SIM card tray does in some flagship phones. It's just a really large slot in which the phone chin comes off. The MicroSD and SIM card trays are one piece that come out in tandem.

LG G5 display

You're never going to have to turn on the LG G5 display to check the time because it features an always-on display that shows dimly lit critical information, even when it's off.

Touting it as the screen that never sleeps, it shows the time, date and up to four notifications icons. It reminds us of the much-loved Moto Display on the Moto X Style.
The 5.3-inch LG G5 is smaller than last year's phone, so if you're upgrading, you won't have to stretch your grip quite as much. Almost every corner of the screen is in reach.
It's still a beautiful quad HD display that uses an IPS LCD, not an AMOLED. LG says this eliminate the chance of burn-in from the always-on display.
KnockOn is unchanged just like the screen resolution. The functionality in which you can double tap the display to wake the device.

LG G5 camera and battery

There's more than one LG G5 camera on the back of the phone, and that's exciting news if you ever had to back up in order to properly snap a wide photo.

LG G5 camera

It includes both normal angle and wide angle lenses, reaching as far as 135 degrees, wider than the human eye.
Yes, the wider camera is just 8 megapixels (MP), but the 16MP is meant for high quality photos at a camera angle.
The front-facing camera is also 8MP but has a normal angle. The groundbreaking idea behind the LG V10 and its wide selfie camera didn't make this cut here.
The battery dropped two hundreds mAh. It's a 2,800mAh capacity, instead of the LG G4's 3,000mAh size. That makes sense because the screen size and shrunk and the always-on display is supposed to stop you from checking your phone 150 times a day.

LG G5 Quick Cover

As you can see, there are going to several third-party LG5 cases to protect your new phone, but the South Korean company is also touting its own first-party LG G5 Quick Cover case.

This form-fitting metallic case not only gives us a better idea of what the phone will look like, it features a window to see the always-on display notifications and touch controls it answer incoming calls.
Its see-through mesh lets you answer (or dismiss) calls without ever having to flip open the top part of the case. LG made sure the metallic finish matches the more luxurious, metal-based LG G5.

LG G5 OS and power

The LG G5 contains a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor and 4GB of RAM, which is the same specs configuration we're expecting to see in other flagship phones like the Samsung Galaxy S7.

It'll only come in one internal storage size, 32GB, but don't worry, you can upgrade that with a microSD card slot, up to a supposed 2TB of storage - whenever such a capacity comes out, of course.
LG G5 runs Android Marshmallow although, as expected, it's heavily heavily skinned by LG. The operating system tweak has gotten a splash of paint.

LG G5 'magic slot'

Although LG doesn't call it the "Magic Slot", its phone does indeed contain a way to add accessories such as a camera upgrade, new audio technology and extra battery power. It seems to take inspiration from Google's Project Ara with a modular design at the bottom of the phone.

To pull off Hi-Fi audio, LG partnered with B&O Play for "an enhanced high-quality audio experience" on the LG G5. Their direct-to-analog audio converter module plugs into the bottom modular slot and allows for 32-bit Hi-Fi DAC upsampling technology for crystal clear tunes.
The LG G5 takes cues from the Nexus 5X design, as it has a fingerprint scanner on the back, along with a new USB-C port on the bottom, moving it away from the standard micro USB data and charging port.

LG G5 rivals

The LG G5's biggest rival is likely to be the Samsung Galaxy S7. This phone will arrive at the same time as the G5, with an announcement a few hours after the LG's MWC press conference.
Not only does it have a huge name behind it, but rumors point to a sleek, premium design, a QHD screen, an improved camera and a whole lot of power, so LG could have its work cut out to compete.
The HTC One M10 will also probably be launching soon and while not much is yet known about that it's sure to have a stylish look and flagship specs.

LG G5 price

There's no word yet on what the LG G5 will cost, but it's a flagship phone, so it won't come cheap. If it's as packed full of tech and features as rumors suggest it could easily come in at over £500/$600/AU$1000.
However, the great thing about LG's phones is the cost will plummet quickly over the course of the year, so it could be well worth waiting.

features

1. An all-metal build

LG moved away from plastic towards a more premium design with the LG G4. It…didn't go well. The unusual choice of leather was certainly novel, but it felt cheap, looked odd and wasn't anywhere near as visually pleasing as the metal HTC One M9 or iPhone 6.
So hopefully the LG G5 will have a more conventional all-metal design. It's hard to go wrong with metal and it should make the phone even more premium and less divisive. Thankfully rumors suggest a metal G5 is on the way.

2. A fingerprint scanner

While many smartphones are now incorporating fingerprint scanners LG has so far resisted, and it's a shame as the prominent power button on the back of its devices is crying out for one.
Turning the button into a single touch biometric scanner seems like an obvious decision and it would give the LG G5 one more useful feature.
The company is rumored to be working on one, but some sources reckon it's even going a step further and working on an iris scanner. While we wouldn't say no to that a fingerprint scanner is probably a safer choice.

3. More innovative edges

We're bored of flat phones and if the LG G Flex 2 is anything to go by so is LG. But companies are yet to crack curves and we want to see LG try something new with the G4, so how about taking a note from the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge, but rather than having curved sides have the screen spill over the top and bottom edge.
That would give it an eye-catching look, but it wouldn't just be for show, the curves could also display extra notifications depending on which way the phone is held.

4. A 4K screen

The LG G4 already has a QHD screen and it's glorious, but even the LG G3 was offering QHD so it's time for LG to move things along and give the LG G5 a 4K display.
Assuming it stays at 5.5 inches a 4K (3840 x 2160) screen would have a pixel density of 801 pixels per inch, making it one of the sharpest displays around. Why? VR of course! Making this the perfect phone to strap to your head needs a really pin sharp display.
We only want this to happen if LG can avoid giving the battery life a hit in the process, but LG had a reputation for being ahead of the game on screen resolution and that's something it should try and hold onto.
Current rumors are that the screen will be growing to 5.6 inches but sticking at QHD, so we may not see LG fully embracing VR just yet.

5. Better battery life

The LG G2 had great battery life but in the last couple of years LG has struggled in this area. Perhaps it's the move to a QHD screen or perhaps it just needs to use bigger juice packs or a more efficient processor, but whatever the reason the LG G4 barely makes it through a day and that's just not good enough.
So we really want to see better battery life on the LG G5. Phones should be pushing at least two days of life as far as we're concerned, not struggling to manage one. We'd rather this than a high res screen, to be honest.

6. Slicker performance

Despite being a flagship phone the LG G4 isn't always that fast. We've mentioned that the camera can be slow to launch but flipping between running apps can take a second too and the interface sometimes occasionally even needs to rebuild itself after jumping between apps.
This could be down to the Snapdragon 808 processor powering the G4, but we'd think that coupled with 3GB of RAM it should be more than enough to deliver slick performance. So whether through a power injection or better optimised software we hope the LG G5 is a smooth operator.
Word is that we'll see a Snapdragon 820 chip in the G5, in which case slicker performance is likely.

7. A faster camera

The LG G4 has a hugely impressive camera, but it's not always the fastest to launch. Tapping the camera icon should see it boot up in just 0.6 seconds, but if using a double tap of the volume button to launch it when the phone is asleep it takes more like 2 seconds.
That's still not slow but it can be long enough to miss the perfect time to get a snap, so hopefully LG will speed the process up on the G5.

8. Knock Code improvements

Being able to double tap the screen to wake it up is great and generally works well, but with Knock Code LG went one further and allowed you to unlock the phone with a series of taps too.
Sadly this doesn't work quite so well or consistently and it's enough of a problem to render it less useful than more conventional unlock options like a PIN or pattern, so hopefully LG will tighten this up for the G5. Then again if it includes a fingerprint or iris scanner it could probably just ditch Knock Code altogether.

9. A more compact design

We don't necessarily want LG to put a smaller screen on the G5, especially if it's going to keep pushing the pixels to this extent, but there's no denying that it can be a little more unwieldy than a smaller phone, so one solution would be to trim down the bezels.
There's still quite a lot of empty space, especially above and below the display, so if that goes on the LG G5 then we could see a 5.5-inch phone that doesn't require hand gymnastics to use.

10. Less bloat

LG clearly puts a lot of work into its interface and the version found on the G4 is fairly clean and colourful. It even has a few genuinely useful features, such as Smart Notice, which is hugely improved since its debut in 2014.
But there are a number of less useful features, apps and widgets which we'd just as soon see the back of. From Q Slide to LG Health there are a lot of things here that feel like they're just ticking boxes or exist purely to help the phone stand out without really having been thought through.
There are more than enough apps on Google Play already, so hopefully LG will cut out a lot of the bloat for the G5 and let buyers decide for themselves what apps they want on the phone.

SAMSUNG GALAXY S7 AND S7 EDGE... A MUST BUY PHONE!!!

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After months of speculation, Samsung has unveiled the two latest flagship phones in its long line of Galaxy handsets.
Much has been rumoured and leaked about the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Samsung Galaxy S7 edge devices in the build up to the Korean company’s Mobile World Congress 2016 press conference, but they are now official and fully revealed.
Contrary to early belief, there’s no Samsung Galaxy S7 edge+ yet – with a possible launch for that device touted for much later in the year – but with the extra-sized 5.5-inch screen on the S7 edge, perhaps it’s not even needed.
Anyhow, let’s turn our attention onto the two handsets Samsung has officially announced. Here’s everything you need to know about the SGS7 and SGS7 edge.

Samsung Galaxy S7 and SGS7 edge design

Although the two new handsets share a couple of design cues and are clearly in the same family, this year’s models are differently sized. The Samsung Galaxy S7, like the SGS6, is a 5.1-inch phone, while the Galaxy S7 edge has had a jump to 5.5-inches.
The latter also seems to feature the biggest differences in overall design on a year-to-year basis. Samsung has got rid of the sharper edge and flat back of the Galaxy S6 edge, replacing it with a curved rear that wraps around to meet the edges of the curved screen.
The end result is a more rounded phone that feels smoother and more comfortable in the hand.
Like last year’s version, the standard Galaxy S7 also has a rounded back – from the rear both the S7 and edge look similar, if different sizes – but the front face is naturally flat.
Both phones feel nice in the hand but the SGS7 edge is perhaps the more premium of the two in aesthetic terms.
The camera module also sticks out less on this year’s phones, with a protrusion of just 0.46mm to make them also flush. They are both also water and dust proof this time, adhering to the IP68 standard that means they can each survive for up to 30 minutes submerged in water as deep as 1.5 metres.
In dimensions and weight terms, the Galaxy S7 is 142.4 x 69.6 x 7.9mm and weighs 152g. The Galaxy S7 edge is 150.9 x 72.6 x 7.7mm and weighs 157g.

Samsung Galaxy S7 and SGS7 edge display

As previously mentioned, the Samsung Galaxy S7 has a 5.1-inch display, while the Galaxy S7 edge has a 5.5-inch screen. They are both Super AMOLED – like just about every Samsung phone for many a year – and have the same resolution as previous models: 2560 x 1440 (Quad HD).
Like the previous Galaxy S6 edge, the latest edge phone has a wrap-around display that curves on either side.

Samsung Galaxy S7 and SGS7 edge hardware and specs

The processor found in each device is identical. Samsung claims that it runs 30 per cent faster than the Exynos CPU used last year, while the GPU runs a mighty 64 per cent faster.
To achieve that, Samsung has switched back to a Qualcomm processor this year – at least in some territories, such as the UK and US. It has adopted a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 octa-core SoC.
There will be two variants of each phone, with two different processors depending on the market (we think it will boil down to whether it is LTE capable or not).
In the UK and US, we strongly expect that we'll get the better, higher powered processor - the octa-core (2.3GHz quad, 1.6GHz quad), 64 bit, 14nm Snapdragon.
Previous reports claimed that as well as that processor, the phones each come with Adreno 530 graphics and 4GB of RAM. And while the former is still to be officially confirmed, the latter has been.
One interesting addition to both phones is a tiny heatsink with water cooling that will keep the GPU temperature down during particularly graphics intensive operations - such as gaming.

Samsung Galaxy S7 and SGS7 storage

There are models with 32GB and 64GB storage options. Samsung has also reintroduced the ability to increase storage by using a microSD card of up to 200GB in size.
It has done so without changing the overall design too, as the SIM slot also doubles as a microSD card slot this time around. The SIM card tray now has two housings – one for a nano SIM, one for a microSD card.

Samsung Galaxy S7 and SGS7 edge battery

The batteries in each of the phones are slightly different, mainly as they each have to power differently-sized displays.
The Samsung Galaxy S7 has a 3,000mAh battery, while the Galaxy S7 edge has a 3,600mAh battery.
Samsung told us that the latter is capable of playing HD video for 13 hours straight.
One of the new features that Samsung has introduced this year, an always-on display where notifications, time, date or personalised screen are permanently shown on screen even when the phone is off, does not impact the battery much. It uses just 1 per cent of the battery power per hour.
Both batteries have fast charging with wired and wireless options.

Samsung Galaxy S7 and SGS7 edge camera

The camera is one area that has been improved on significantly for this year’s models.
Although the amount of megapixels to be found on the sensor has actually dipped – to 12-megapixels – each pixel is larger this year (1.4um) so is capable to reading more light in any given situation. An aperture of f1.7 has also been achieved.
This is especially important for low light photography, with Samsung claiming that performance in darker locations is far better than ever before. The adoption of dual pixel technology, which is usually found on DSLRs and other dedicated camera sensors, also means that the autofocus on each of the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge is much quicker than on previous phones – even in almost no light.
The new low light abilities work for both stills and video.
There's optical image stabilisation on the rear camera too.
The front-facing camera on both devices uses a conventional 5-megapixel sensor, but also with an f1.7 aperture.

Samsung Galaxy S7 and SGS7 edge software

The latest user experience, which is layered on top of Android 6.0 Marshmallow, is about as bare bones as Samsung has presented in quite some time.
There are some of Samsung’s own apps and services still available though, with the most prominent being the new Game Launcher.
Gamers get their own hub that not only gives them a place from which to launch Android titles, but they can change options such as whether they would like to be disturbed by a phone call during a gaming session.
There are also new overlaid options available from within games too, including the ability to record gameplay footage while using the front-facing camera to in-lay picture-in-picture commentary of the player.
Samsung Galaxy S7 edge users also get several new sidebar options that can be scrolled through to access apps, contacts, tasks or news feeds more quickly and easily.
Samsung Pay - the company' contactless payment system that has proved successful in the states - will be coming to both handsets in the UK later this year. They each also use Samsung Knox, the company's high level of security.

Samsung Galaxy S7 and SGS7 edge release date and where to get them

Pre-orders open for business on 21 February with a general release date of 11 March. Those that pre-order from Carphone Warehouse, Vodafone or EE  by 7 March will get it a day later, on 8 March. That's three days earlier than some others.
Direct prices from Samsung start at £569 for the Samsung Galaxy S7, while the S7 edge will set you back from £639.

Carphone Warehouse

CPW is offering the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Samsung Galaxy S7 edge for an upfront cost of £79.99 and £129.99 respectively. Contracts are available across the major networks from just £36 per month for new and upgrading customers.
As promised by Samsung, the first customers to pre-order either device will get a free Samsung Gear VR headset.

Vodafone

Vodafone is offering the Samsung Galaxy S7 edge and Samsung Galaxy S7 for pre-order on its website at www.vodafone.co.uk. It too is offering a Samsung Gear VR to customers who pre-order either device on a Vodafone Red or Red Value Bundle.
Customers can pre-order the Samsung Galaxy S7 edge and Samsung Galaxy S7 on a Vodafone Red 10GB Bundle for £50 per month or £44 per month respectively. Both have an upfront cost of £29 and include unlimited texts, unlimited minutes and 10GB of data.
Alternatively, customers can pre-order either device on a Vodafone Red Value 15GB Bundle at £55 per month for the Samsung Galaxy S7 edge or £49 per month for the Samsung Galaxy S7. Again, both have a £29 upfront cost and include unlimited texts, unlimited minutes and 15GB of data, as well as a choice of free access to Netflix for 12 months or Sky Sports Mobile TV, Spotify Premium or a NOW TV Entertainment Pass for 24 months.

EE

EE told Pocket-lint that either the Samsung Galaxy S7 and or S7 edge will feature WiFi Calling with 4G Calling when purchased directly from the provider. This will be enabled shortly after launch. That implies if you don't get it from EE itself, it won't be able to support it (although we are checking). Customers who buy the new phones from EE will also receive three-months free unlimited Google Play Music access.
As for price plans, the 32GB Galaxy S7 on EE is £49.99 up-front on a £44.49 a month, 24 month 4GEE Extra plan. That comes with unlimited minutes, unlimited texts and 4GB of mobile data a month.
The 32GB Galaxy S7 edge is available for £29.99 up-front on a £49.99 a month, 24 month plan, with unlimited minutes, unlimited texts and 4GB of mobile data a month.
Existing EE customers looking to upgrade to the same plans will receive 10GB of mobile data per month for the same price.

O2

O2 is stocking the two new handsets as part of its O2 now tariff. That means customers can upgrade after 12 months for no extra cost. It's also offering a free pair of Jabra Sport Pulse headphones worth £150 for every order received before 27 April.
There are a number of price plans to choose from, with the Galaxy S7 edge available for as little as £9.99 up-front. That's when taking out a plan for £51 a month, which includes unlimited minutes, texts and 3GB of 4G data.
A Samsung Galaxy S7 can also be bought for £29.99 up-front with a £46 a month plan, with unlimited minutes, texts and 3GB of data.
You can find out more on O2's dedicated webpage at O2.co.uk.

Three

Three is offering the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 edge for up-front costs from £29 and £49 respectively. Those are on prices plans from £41 and £47 a month.
All-you-can-eat 4G data packages are available for both phones, with the Galaxy S7 getting unlimited data, minutes and texts for £56 a month with the phone at £29.
The Galaxy S7 edge's all-you-can-eat package will cost £62 a month with an up-front cost of £49 for the phone.
The Three deals include the company's Feel at Home service where you can use your minutes, texts and data in 18 countries around the world at no extra charge, including the US, France, Italy, Spain and Australia.

Virgin Media

Virgin Media told Pocket-lint that it will carry both phones and what's more, they are both available on plans with no up-front costs.
Virgin Media plans are 3G only at present, but if you are looking for a cheaper option than many others, you can get either the gold or black Samsung Galaxy S7 from £34 a month, which includes 250 minutes, 250MB of data and unlimited texts.
The same plan but with a black Samsung Galaxy S7 edge costs £38 a month.
Other plans, with more data or talktime are also available.

Tesco Mobile

Like Virgin Media, Tesco Mobile has deals where you can get either phone on a 24-month contract with no up-front cost.
The Samsung Galaxy S7 is available from £37.50 a month, with 2,000 minutes, 5,000 texts and 2GB of data. The Galaxy S7 edge is available from £41 a month on the same plan.
Tesco's plans go all the way up to £57 or £60.50 respectively, for 5,000 minutes, 5,000 texts and 20GB of data.
You can pre-register your interest in the phones at tescomobile.com.