U.S. Judge dismisses lawsuit against Google over facial recognition software

A U.S Judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed against Google by consumers who claimed the search engine’s photo sharing and storage service violated their privacy on Saturday. The U.S. judge has cited a lack of “concrete injuries.” The U.S. District Judge Edmond Chang in Chicago granted a Google motion for summary judgment, saying the court lacked “subject matter jurisdiction because plaintiffs have not suffered concrete injuries.” The suit was filed in March 2016, alleges Alphabet Inc’s Google for violating Illinois state law by collecting and storing biometric data from people’s photographs using facial recognition software without their permission through its Google Photos service. The plaintiffs had sought more than $5 million for the “hundreds of thousands” of state residents affected, according to court documents. Plaintiffs had asked the court for $5,000 for each intentional violation of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act, or $1,000 for every negligent violation. Google, in return, had argued in court documents that the plaintiffs were not entitled to money or injunctive relief because they had suffered no harm. Source

Sony Xperia L3 with 5.7-inch 18:9 display, 3GB RAM passes through the FCC

Sony is busy working on the Xperia L3, successor of the Xperia L2, which is rumored to debut at the CES 2019 in the next few days. With the possible launch inching closer, the device has passed through the FCC carrying FCC ID PY7-50241M. The design sketches show that the device will carry 18:9 aspect ratio and will feature a side-mounted fingerprint sensor. Reports suggest that the phone will come with a 5.7-inch 18:9 aspect ratio display, 3.5mm headphone jack, a USB Type-C port, and dual rear camera setup. Build-wise, the handset is expected to offer a plastic or polycarbonate body with a glossy finish. The device is said to be powered by the Snapdragon 660 Octa-Core SoC, 3GB RAM, 13 MP + 5 MP Dual Primary Cameras. On the front, it might pack an 8MP sensor along with earpiece, a notification light, and other sensors. It will pack a 3400mAh battery with a USB Type-C port. For now, nothing is confirmed, so, stay tuned for more details to surface on the internet or for the company to officially announce the phone. Source

Fitbit Charge 3 fitness tracker with swimproof design, up to 7 days battery life launched in India starting at Rs. 13990

Fitbit has launched  Charge 3, the company’s next-generation fitness  tracker in India, after it was introduced back in August  It has PurePulse heart rate technology, offers automatic exercise recognition, sleep tracking, swimproof design with a touchscreen display, 15+ goal-based exercise modes, and promises up to 7 days battery life. It has premium, lightweight materials, including an aerospace grade aluminum case and Corning Gorilla Glass 3 OLED display that is about 40% larger and brighter than its predecessor. It comes with inductive button, which includes new patent-pending technology that provides a streamlined, swimproof design, increased space in the device to add more sensors plus a larger battery with up to 7 days of use. It has SpO2 sensor – a first for a Fitbit tracker – allows for the potential to estimate changes in blood oxygen levels and help track new health indicators, like sleep apnea. The Fitbit Charge 3 comes in black with a blue gray with rose gold aluminum case, is priced at Rs. 13,999 in India and is available across Reliance Digital, Croma, Helios and other major retailers offline. There is also a Special Edition at Rs. 15999. Classic Band costs Rs. 2,990, Woven Band costs Rs. 3,490 and the Leather Band costs Rs. 4,490.

Google reassures 2 years of guaranteed updates for Android One devices commitment

Google's Android One program debuted with an aim to offer low-end Android phone with commendable hardware and provide timely updates. However, things changed as the company let up the hardware requirements due to smartphone OEMs were not making enough from them. To some extent, Android Go was able to fill the void with its slimmed down version of Android.  The Android One program was still focusing on timely updates and Google's Android website explicitly mentions the phones would receive 2 full years of guaranteed updates. However, a few days ago, Reddit user anshumanpati6 noticed the removal of '2 years of updates' mention from the website. This is something huge as guaranteed updates was a big selling point for a lot of people. This made the headlines all-over within no time and according to India Today publication who claims to have received a response from Google, denies any changes are being made to the promise of updates. In any case, we’ll need to wait and see if Google officially responds to this issue or if they end up adding the part about the promised updates back to the Android One landing page. In the response, Google said: We confirm that our promise to provide 2 years of updates on Android One devices still ...

LG G8 said to debut at MWC 2019 separately from the new 5G phone

5G is on the verge of becoming a big thing in 2019 as several manufacturers including Samsung, Huawei, OnePlus, Xiaomi are already working towards it. According to earlier rumors, Samsung and LG are going to debut their 5G smartphones at Mobile World Congress in February. However, a new report claims otherwise.  The upcoming LG’s 5G smartphone was initially believed to be the next iteration of the G series; the LG G8. But that might not be the case. According to the Korean electronic newspaper etnews, LG’s 5G smartphone will be a part of a completely different series. It will be introduced at the MWC in February, but will not carry LG G8 branding. The LG G8 will most likely launch later in March of 2019 and will only have 4G/LTE capabilities. Though not official, the new 5G variant will carry a new branding, according to the company's senior executive. This classification of phones gives LG a chance to focus on both the 4G and 5G markets. As the 5G variant might come with a huge price tag which might not carter every market, so keeping a 4G flagship ready is equally important. The company will also introduce the LG Q9 which is its mid-range phone that ...

AT&T Power Drum wireless charging accessory for Apple Watch, iPhone passes through the FCC

Apple's AirPower has no trace of launching anytime soon, but third-party vendors consistently launching their own AirPower like charging pads for Apple products. New to join the list is the AT&T's multipurpose Power Drum that has surfaced on the FCC.  Apart from just the FCC, the device is also confirmed with the Qi Wireless Power Consortium. This wireless charging accessory from AT&T can simultaneously charge Apple Watch and iPhone, up to 7.5W. It packs a 3000mAh battery for portable charging. The listing reads that it is compatible with Apple Watch 2, 3, and 1st generation. It comes with a built-in magnetic charging module for Apple Watch and the nightstand mode allows Apple Watch to be used in alarm mode while charging. It has LED indicators and has an output of upto 10W on selected wireless charging devices and 5W on Apple Watch. The AT&T Drums has the price of $99.99 and no details regarding its launch is known at the moment. Source

Huawei Y7 Pro 2019 with 6.26-inch Dewdrop notch display, AI dual rear cameras, 16MP front camera, 4000mAh battery announced

Huawei has officially introduced the Y7 Pro 2019, a new smartphone in the 'Y Series' after it surfaced  recently as Y7 2019. It packs a 6.26-inch HD+ display with Waterdrop notch Screen, Octa-Core Snapdragon 450 SoC, 13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash with support for AI scene detection, secondary 2MP camera for portait shots, and a 16-megapixel front camera. It doesn't have a fingerprint sensor, but comes with Face Unlock. It has a gradiant finish, dedicated dual SIM and microSD slots, Dual 4G VoLTE support and a 4000mAh battery. Huawei Y7 Pro 2019 specifications 6.26-inch (1520 × 720 pixels) Full HD+ 19:5:9 2.5D curved glass display 1.8GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 450 14nm Mobile Platform with Adreno 506 GPU 3GB RAM, 32GB storage, expandable memory with up to 512GB microSD Android 8.1 (Oreo) with EMUI 8.2 Dual SIM (nano + nano + microSD) 13MP rear camera with LED flash, f/1.8 aperture, 2MP secondary camera, f/2.4 aperture 16MP front-facing camera Dimensions: 158.92×76.91×8.1mm; Weight: 168g Dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS + GLONASS 4000mAh (Typical) / 3900mAh (Minimum) battery The Huawei Y7 Pro 2019 comes in Aurora Blue and Black colors, is priced at 39,90,000 Vietnamese dongs (US$ 171 / Rs. 11,990 approx.) and is already on sale. Source

Nokia 9 penta-camera smartphone with in-display fingerprint sensor surfaces in first press render

After several leaks, we now have the first press render of the Nokia 9 flagship smartphone from HMD Global, thanks to @evleaks. This shows a familiar penta camera arragement arranged in 1-1-3 formation with ZEISS optics, rotating zoom-Camera tech on the back on the smartphone codenamed 'Beholder'. It also reveals an in-display fingerprint sensor on the phone, which is the first for Nokia, as well as 18:9 aspect ratio display, glass back with Android One branding and a metal frame. Nokia 9 PureView "Beholder." HNY pic.twitter.com/x4Kh3anP46 — Evan Blass (@evleaks) December 31, 2018 The phone is rumored to come with a 5.9-inch Quad HD 3D glass OLED display, powered by Snapdragon 845 with up to 8GB of RAM, 128GB storage, expandable memory with microSD, Android 9.0 (Pie), IP68 ratings for water-resistance, Nokia OZO Audio and 4150mAh batery with wireless charging. HMD Global recently confirmed that the Nokia 9 has been delayed since quality of the camera has not yet reached the necessary level due to complex camera unit and production challenges by Foxconn. Hope we have expect the Nokia 9 at the MWC 2019 in February. Source

Get Android 9.0 Pie on Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 with crDroid ROM

Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 was amongst the best selling devices launched last year in India, despite launching in 2017 it was launched with Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) and was updated to Android 7.0 (Nougat) in August 2017. Redmi Note 4 is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 mobile platform, the same processor that powers Mi A1 which recently received Android 9.0 (Pie) update along with Dual 4G VoLTE support. Xiaomi has already announced the list of smartphones eligible for Android Oreo/Pie update, and as expected Xiaomi’s best-seller from 2017 is not included in the list and now we can assume that Redmi Note 4 will not receive any Android update. In case you wish to enjoy the latest version of Android on your Redmi Note 4, you can use custom ROM on your device. Earlier we brought Android 9.0 based Arrow OS impressions to our readers and this time we tried Android Pie 9.0 based crDroid ROM on our unit and here are our impressions, Performance and Benchmarks [gallery size="large" columns="2" link="file" ids="271194,271193"] Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 is a decent performer, but we obtained AnTuTu score of 74816 on crDroid ROM which is significantly less as compared to 81212 on Arrow OS. We experienced a decent and reliable day to day performance, we also tried PUBG ...

Huawei Y7 2019 with 6.26-inch Dewdrop notch display, AI dual rear cameras, 4000mAh battery surfaces

Huawei is gearing up to introduce Y7 2019 soon, as the images and specifications have surfaced. It is the global version of the  Enjoy 9  with a 6.26-inch HD+ display with Waterdrop notch Screen, Octa-Core Snapdragon 450 SoC,  13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash with support for AI scene detection, secondary 2MP camera for portait shots, but this will feature a 16-megapixel front camera. Huawei Y7 2019 rumored specifications 6.26-inch (1520 × 720 pixels) Full HD+ 19:5:9 2.5D curved glass display 1.8GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 450 14nm Mobile Platform with Adreno 506 GPU 3GB RAM, 32GB storage, expandable memory with microSD Android 8.1 (Oreo) with EMUI 8.2 Dual SIM (nano + nano + microSD) 13MP rear camera with LED flash, f/1.8 aperture, 2MP secondary camera, f/2.4 aperture 16MP front-facing camera Dimensions: 158.92×76.91×8.1mm; Weight: 168g 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS + GLONASS 4000mAh (Typical) / 3900mAh (Minimum) battery It should come in Midnight Black, Aurora Blue, Coral red and Aurora violet colors and is expected go official around MWC 2018 in February. Source