News
Vivo brings in high-end Xplay 6, midrange X9 and X9 Plus
Vivo has really stepped up its game this week. After releasing the V5 in India a couple of days ago, the Chinese manufacturer went back to its home country to launch its new flagship Xplay 6, along with two additions to the X series.
This has to be the company’s answer to pressure forged by rivals Xiaomi and Huawei after they came out with some of the most impressive hardware we’ve seen this year. Vivo can rest easy with its second-place ranking in China, but there’s no telling when the tides could shift to another brand’s favor — just ask former top-ranker Xiaomi.
[irp posts=”7758″ name=”Vivo V5 with 20MP front camera launched in India”]
The Xplay 6, in particular, is no joke. Although it imitates a lot of the established ideas from fellow Chinese flagships, the price competes with Google’s Pixel phones at a bewildering CNY 4,498; that’s $655, seriously!
What makes this smartphone so special? Looking down the feature list, there’s nothing out of this world if you’re updated on the latest mobile tech.
Standing out the most is the curved 5.46-inch Quad HD AMOLED display, which is something you’d find on the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge. But the Xplay 6’s advantage over its Korean counterpart is the use of 6GB of memory and a larger 4080mAh battery with built-in fast charging.
There’s also the inclusion of smartphone technology’s latest trending feature: a dual-camera setup. With a pair of 12- and 5-megapixel rear cameras, the former does the photo taking with the help of optical image stabilization, while the latter provides depth information to produce sharper subjects with blurred-out backgrounds.
Curiously, Vivo decided to go with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor instead of the newer 821. Reminds us of what HTC had done earlier with the Bolt. The Android version is also stuck at 6.0 Marshmallow, and not the much maturer 7.0 Nougat.
Even if you consider the full-metal body, fingerprint scanner in front, and super-cool rose gold color, the Xplay 6 is a tough sell. You can purchase it beginning December 12, if you really must.
And then we have the X9 and X9 Plus, which fit between the lower-end V5 and premium Xplay 6. The 5.5-inch X9 retails at CNY 2,798 ($407) for the 64GB storage variant, and the 128GB storage option goes for CNY 2,998 ($436); both are already available for pre-order. No details have been revealed for the 5.88-inch X9 Plus.
The X9 and X9 Plus have one thing in common, and that’s the dual-front-facing cameras. One is 20 megapixels in resolution, and the other has an 8-megapixel image sensor for depth info, just like the rear camera setup of the Xplay 6. Both have a plain 16-megapixel shooter at the back.
Other than that, you can already spell out what else they offer. The smaller X9 has a midrange Snapdragon 625 processor, 4GB of memory, and 3050mAh battery. As for the larger X9 Plus, it has a faster Snapdragon 653 chipset, 6GB of memory, and 4000mAh capacity for its battery.
If all these sound too expensive for you, you can always look down the pricing ladder towards the Vivo Y55. It got our thumbs up in both its full review and our best budget phones list, plus it costs only $165.
[irp posts=”7340″ name=”Vivo Y55 unboxing and review”]
Sources: Fone Arena, (2)
Lifestyle
Nike’s Alphafly 4 is built for the part of the marathon ~that actually hurts~
Made to protect your stride when fatigue sets in.
Every marathoner knows the exact moment the race truly begins.
It’s not at the starting line amidst the early morning excitement, but around the 32-kilometer mark, when your legs begin to feel heavy and your form starts to fall apart.
Nike designed its latest marathon racer specifically for that critical window. The Alphafly 4 shifts the focus away from chasing sheer top-end speed, targeting instead the physical breakdown that happens late in a long run.
By studying how fatigue alters a runner’s mechanics over time, Nike rebuilt its flagship distance shoe to help athletes maintain their stride when energy starts to dip.
Holding the line when fatigue sets in
On the road, the shoe operates as a complete, unified system designed to protect your stride.
A redesigned Atomknit upper wraps the foot with breathable support, using targeted midfoot cables and an integrated heel unit to keep your fit secure without adding unnecessary weight or friction over long distances.
Underfoot, the new ZoomX LT foam layer works alongside Nike’s contoured carbon-fiber Flyplate. The lighter foam returns maximum energy with every footfall, while the plate smooths out your rolling motion.
Together with dual forefoot Air Zoom units and a durable Fast Shot outsole, the setup keeps your cadence consistent and your legs feeling fresh well into the back half of the race.
As Emily Farina from the Nike Sport Research Lab notes, their goal was to help runners stay confident, balanced, and capable from the start line all the way to the finish.
Built on the miles that came before
That focus on real-world endurance stems directly from athlete testing.
Nike developed the shoe using feedback from its Project Dreamweaver initiative and extensive trials with women distance runners, prioritizing stability and comfort alongside high performance.
The lineage carries significant weight. The Alphafly family has grounded some of distance running’s greatest moments, from historic sub-two-hour efforts to major course records.
With the Alphafly 4, that legacy translates directly into everyday marathon training, helping athletes hold their target pace just a little bit longer. Marathoners won’t have to wait long to feel the difference on race day.
The Nike Alphafly 4 drops in an early, limited release on September 17 at nike.com, followed by a wider global release on October 29 online and at select retail stores.
Entertainment
SEGA, Netflix announce Crazy Taxi film adaptation
1st in planned slate of film adaptations, including Sonic and STRANGER THAN HEAVEN
SEGA and Netflix have announced a new Crazy Taxi film adaptation. This will usher in a new collaboration era with the parties also developing adaptations for Sonic and STRANGER THAN HEAVEN.
Such a slate of future adaptations reflects the range of SEGA’s library as it draws on Netflix’s experience bringing beloved game worlds to new audiences.
The first project features Crazy Taxi, which will be written by Dan Gregor and Doug Mand. The beloved writing duo was behind the 2025 reboot of The Naked Gun.
Also on board to help helm the production are the same visionaries behind the Sonic franchise: Neal H. Moritz, Toby Ascher, and Toru Nakahara.
Crazy Taxi has been an arcade hit since 1999, putting players behind the wheel of a fearless cabbie racing the clock through chaotic city streets.
There’s flying off ramps, dodging traffic, and chasing tips with punk-rock energy that has become the series’ signature.
The latest title in the franchise, Crazy Taxi: World Tour, is set for a 2027 release. You can watch its trailer below:
Finance
HONOR, Fidesmo partner for contactless payments across Europe, Middle East
Enabling contactless payments on the HONOR Watch 6
HONOR and Fidesmo have partnered to launch contactless payments across Europe and the Middle East on the HONOR Watch 6.
Powered by Fidesmo Pay, the integration enables users to connect an existing Mastercard or Visa card to their watch and complete contactless transactions directly from the wearable device.
This brings Fidesmo’s network of over 900 banks and financial institutions to HONOR’s customers. Users can connect an existing card to the HONOR Watch 6 instantly through the HONOR Health App, which installs a unique token directly onto the watch.
Acting as a secure reference to the payment method, this token allows customers to pay without storing their actual payment details on the device. Once installed, users can tap the watch at any
contactless terminal to pay, just as they would with a card or phone.
HONOR joins a group of device partners that already includes Swatch, Polar, and Mondaine as Fidesmo continues to build momentum across categories.
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