IFA is now nearing a close, but there’s still a lot to take in from the event. Whilst the main highlights of IFA may be focused on the new Sony Xperia Z3 and Galaxy Note lineups, there were many other smartphone devices that got a mention. In this article, I’ve taken a look at the new phablets of IFA 2014, besides from the obvious Galaxy Note 4 and Note Edge.
HTC Desire 820
The HTC Desire 820 is one of the new phablets of IFA that is getting the most attention, and there are a couple of reasons for it. Firstly, anything new from HTC often gets the same kind of treatment as a new Sony or Samsung device, but most importantly, the Desire 820 is HTC’s very first 64-bit smartphone.
The jump to 64-bit is something that many analysts have talked about; the conclusion is that it’s certainly going to happen, and devices like the 820 show that it’s really not going to be that long before all smartphones are using 64-bit architecture.
The Desire 820 comes with a 5.5 inch display, a Snapdragon 615 with 4 Cortex A53 cores at 1.5GHz, and 4 Cortex A53 cores at 1Ghz, along with a Adreno 405 GPU. The Desire 820 has just 2GB of RAM, but that’s been proven to be more than enough for any Android device, and it also comes with a 2,600mAh battery.
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Huawei are always keen to release new phablets, and one of the biggest higlights of IFA was the Huewei Ascend Mate 7 – this device has a 6 inch display with an ultra thin bezel and an aluminium body. The 6 inch display is HD, so that gives owners a nice 367 PPI.
Inside the Huawei Acend Mate 7, a Hisilicon Kirin 925 chipset can be found, which is loaded with a 1.8GHz A15 four core and A7 four core big.LITTLE set up. The Ascend Mate 7 also comes with 3GB of RAM and a beastly 4,100mAh battery.
Panasonic Toughpad
Panasonic has just released a set of brand new ultra rugged 5 inch phablets called the FZ-E1 and the Fz-X1. The E1 supports Windows 8.1, whilst the X1 runs on Android. Both devices have MIL-STD-810G and IP68 certification, which means the new phablets from Panasonic can withstand depths of up to 1.5 meters and drops of 3 meters onto hard concrete. The Toughpads can also withstand extreme temperatures from -20 degrees Celsius up to 60 degrees Celsius. Basically, if you own a Toughpad, you’re not gonna break it.
The Toughpads are extremely bulky, but their protective functions make up for that, and both new phablets come with a giant 6,200mAh battery too. The X1 Android Toughpad comes packed with a 1.7GHz quad core Qualcomm processor, whilst the Windows 8.1 E1 comes with the 2.3GHz MSM8974AB quad core SoC. Both Toughpads also include 2GB of RAM.
