Vivo Z1i with 6.26-inch FHD+ 19:9 display, Snapdragon 636, dual rear cameras, Android 8.1 surfaces

Vivo announced Z1 in China last month, now the Z1i, a cheaper version has surfaced. It will feature similar specifications as the Z1, including a 6.26-inch FHD+ 19:9 2.5D curved glass display with a notch, 90% screen-to-body ratio and norrow bezels, 4GB of RAM, Android 8.1 (Oreo) with Funtouch OS 4.0 on top and features a 13-megapixel rear camera along with a secondary 2-megapixel camera, but this will be powered by Snapdragon 636 instead of Snapdragon 660, come with 128GB of storage, 16-megapixel front camera, and a slightly smaller 3180mAh battery. Vivo Z1i rumored specifications 6.26-inch (2280 x 1080 pixels) Full HD+ 19:9 IPS display 1.8GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 636 14nm Mobile Platform with Adreno 509 GPU 4GB RAM, 128GB internal memory, expandable memory up to 256GB with microSD Hybrid Dual SIM (nano + nano / microSD) Funtouch OS 4.0 based on Android 8.1 (Oreo) 13MP rear camera with LED flash, secondary 2MP camera 16MP front-facing camera Fingerprint sensor Dimensions: 154.81 x 75.03 x 7.89mm ; Weight: 149.3g 4G VoLTE, WiFi 802.11 ac (2.4GHz / 5GHz), Bluetooth 5, GPS  3180mAh battery The Vivo Z1i is rumored to be priced at 1998 yuan (US$ 302 / Rs. 20,650 approx.) and might go official in July. Via

Weekly Roundup: Xiaomi Redmi 6 Pro, Mi Pad 4, Vivo V9 6GB, Acer Nitro 5 (2018) Gaming Laptop and more

This week Xiaomi introduced the most expected Redmi 6 Pro and Mi Pad 4 tablets, and also introduced Mi 6X Hatsune Miku Special Edition, Vivo introduced V9 6GB edition, Acer launched the Nitro 5 (2018) Gaming Laptop, and lots more from this week in our weekly roundup. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfddk8iYqeQ&t=0s Xiaomi announced the Redmi 6 Pro the company’s latest mid-range smartphone in the Redmi series. It packs a 5.84-inch FHD+ 19:9 aspect ratio display with a notch, is powered by Snapdragon 625 with up to 4GB of RAM, runs Android 8.1 (Oreo) with MIUI on top, a 12-megapixel rear camera with flash along with a secondary 5-megapixel camera for AI portraits and AI scene detection. There is also a 5-megapixel front camera with AI portrait and AI Face unlock. It comes in Rose Gold, Gold, Blue, Black and Red colors, is priced at 999 yuan (US$ 156 / Rs. 10,520 approx.)and for the 3GB with 32GB storage version, 1199 yuan (US$ 184 / Rs. 12,510 approx.) and for the 4GB RAM with 32GB storage version and the 64GB version of it costs 1299 yuan (US$ 199 / Rs. 13,555 approx.). Xiaomi announced the Mi Pad 4. It has an 8-inch Full HD screen with 16:10 aspect ratio, and the company says that it ...

Huawei’s new GPU Turbo technology roll out timeline revealed

Huawei earlier this month has unveiled GPU Turbo technology, which according to the company would increase device performance by 60% while reducing power use by 30%. The company would enable this tech on a Huawei phone via a software update and it promised that it will roll out to several of their smartphones.  Now the company has revealed a detailed schedule for the rollout, sharing which devices, as well as regions, will get the update and when. The GPU Turbo technology is already present on the Honor 9i, and the beta testing for Huawei Mate 10 series and Honor 10 is underway. It is also looking for Huawei P20 and P20 Pro users to start beta testing the tech.  Here's the schedule for Huawei and Honor phones. Phone Region Availability Huawei P20 and P20 Pro Europe, Russia, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Africa August 2018 Huawei Mate 10, Mate Pro, Mate RS Europe, Russia, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Africa August 2018 Huawei P20 Lite Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Africa September 2018 Huawei P Smart All Markets September 2018 Huawei Nova 2i, Mate 10 Lite All Markets September 2018 Huawei Y9 2018 All Markets September 2018 Huawei Mate 9 All Markets November 2018 Huawei Mate 9 Pro All Markets November 2018 Huawei P10 Plus All Markets November 2018 Huawei P10 All Markets November 2018 Phone Region Availability Honor 10 Europe, Russia, Asia Pacific, India, Middle East August 2018 Honor 9 Lite Europe, Russia, Asia Pacific, India, Middle East September 2018 Honor V10 Europe, Russia, Asia Pacific, India, Middle East September 2018 Honor 7X All ...

Microsoft foldable Surface tablet ‘Andromeda’ surfaces in leaked documents

Microsoft has been working on a new mysterious Surface device; codenamed Andromeda for at least two years. Though the device appeared in patents, reports, and in operating system references multiple times and will include a dual-display design, it never saw the day in the light. According to a Microsoft internal document, the device is said to be a pocketable Surface device. @zacbowden @h0x0d @windowscentral #Surface Andromeda Render according to the latest patents pic.twitter.com/CmbvlfETtU — David Breyer (@D_Breyer) December 18, 2017 Microsoft describes the Andromeda project as something that it has been quietly incubating internally, and that will create a “new and disruptive” device category to influence the overall Surface roadmap. It will also blur the lines between a PC and mobile. The company details "It’s a new pocketable Surface device form factor that brings together innovative new hardware and software experiences to create a truly personal and versatile computing experience.” The Andromeda is still under development and it is said to come with a wraparound display that bridges the gap of the hinge when it’s fully opened. The company is also experimenting with stylus input for Andromeda. The prototype device includes styluses and notepad-like apps to capture notes. It will come with ARM processors, but it’s not clear if the ...

Apple is rebuilding Maps from ground up by using first-party data gathered by iPhones

 Apple is said to be working on re-building its Maps from the ground up, and the company is said to be using first-party data gathered by iPhones with a privacy-first methodology and its own fleet of cars packed with sensors and cameras. This new product from Apple will be introduced in San Francisco and the Bay Area with the next iOS 12 beta and will cover Northern California by fall. With every version of the iOS update, Maps gets updated with improvements, more responsive to changes, rich visuals. It's been four years since Apple began to develop its new data-gathering systems and this will eventually help Apple cut down the reliability on third-party data to provide the basis for its maps. Though the redesign will roll out in the San Francisco and the Bay Area with the next iOS 12 beta, the rest of the US will receive the new maps “section by section” “over the next year.” Post the transition to the new design; Apple will avoid using all third-party mapping data, which is the same data it has been using for the vast majority of Apple Maps since the launch in 2012. Apple will be relying on sensor-packed vans that it’s been driving around the US ...

Xiaomi Mi A1 Android 8.1 Oreo stable update finally starts rolling out [Download link]

Xiaomi launched Mi A1 back in September last year under Android One programme in collaboration with Google with an aim to keep the Android version updated for next couple of years. At the event, Xiaomi and Google promised regular security patch updates every month along with Android Oreo in 2017 itself for Mi A1. The company started closed Beta Oreo 8.0 testing in mid December and rolled out Oreo 8.0 update to public on 31st December. Xiaomi managed to keep the promise made during launch event but company suspended Oreo 8.0 update due to stability issues within two weeks. Couple of weeks back we reported that the company has started rolling out Android 8.1 closed beta update. Yesterday the company has finally started rolling out stable update for the Mi A1 users. The Xiaomi Mi A1 Android 8.1 OTA update is 1.15GB in size, has the build number OPM1.171019.019.V9.6.3.0.ODHMIFE and also includes Android security update for June 2018, but it doesn't have Treble support. As reported by the users, the update SMS bug that wipes entire SMS history being wiped after updating, after you swipe away the messages app. It is recommended to backup SMS to the cloud using third-party apps like Microsoft SMS Organizer before updating. If you can't wait, you ...

OnePlus to launch first 5G phone in 2019, commits to carrier relationships

OnePlus CEO and founder Pete Lau at the Mobile World Congress Shanghai this week, confirmed that company is working with US carriers and that it aims to launch a 5G smartphone next year. This new 5G smartphone could be OnePlus 7/7T. Furthermore, the company's relationship with Qualcomm is allowing OnePlus to become one of the first 5G mobile phone makers. This launch will sync with the first year of 5G being available in the US. OnePlus currently launches two phones a year; the regular version in May/June and a T-variant at the end of the year around November. Carrier support would be a huge step forward for OnePlus in the U.S. as it will give users more time to spend before buying. The company has recently started selling phones through European carriers. However, Lau didn't confirm which carrier they will be partnering with, or if the support will come to more than one carrier. OnePlus 6 currently works well on AT&T's and T-Mobile's networks, but with Qualcomm chipsets, it's conceivable that it could bring a phone that works with any US carrier. As for the bloatware, Lau said "burdenless is the core of the company's phones and it means that OnePlus prioritizes speed and a bloatware-free experience." Source

Vivo V9 6GB with 6.3-inch FHD+ 19:9 display, Snapdragon 660, 6GB RAM, dual rear cameras announced

Vivo has introduced V9 6GB, a new version of the V9 smartphone.It has the same 6.3-inch FHD+ 19:9 2.5D curved glass display with a notch, 90% screen-to-body ratio and 1.75mm slim bezels and runs Android 8.1 (Oreo) with Funtouch OS 4.0, but this is powered by Snapdragon 660 AIE with 6GB of RAM. However the cameras have been downgraded. This packs a 13-megapixel rear camera along with a 2-megapixel secondary camera and a 12-megapixel front-facing camera. Vivo V9 6GB specifications 6.3-inch (2280 x 1080 pixels) Full HD+ 19:9 IPS display Octa Core Snapdragon 660 14nm Mobile Platform (Quad 2.2GHz Kryo 260 + Quad 1.8GHz Kryo 260 CPUs) with Adreno 512 GPU 6GB RAM, 64GB internal memory, expandable memory up to 256GB with microSD Dual SIM (nano + nano + microSD) Funtouch OS 4.0 based on Android 8.1 (Oreo) 13MP rear camera with LED flash, f/2.2 aperture, secondary 2MP camera 12MP front-facing camera with f/2.0 aperture Fingerprint sensor Dimensions: 154.81 x 75.03 x 7.89mm ; Weight: 150g 4G VoLTE, WiFi 802.11 ac (2.4GHz/5GHz), Bluetooth 4.2, GPS, USB OTG 3260mAh battery Vivo V9 6GB comes in Black and Red colors, is priced at 4,299,000  Indonesian Rupiah (US$ 301 / Rs. 20,625 approx.), available for pre-order till July 5th, ...

Qualcomm introduces QCC3026 Bluetooth Audio SoC with Qualcomm TrueWireless Stereo for entry-level and mid-tier wireless headsets

Qualcomm today introduced Low Power Bluetooth SoC QCC3026, a flash-programmable with enhanced Qualcomm TrueWireless Stereo protocols . Qualcomm also said that it reduces power consumption by up to 50% compared to previous generation entry-level flash devices. Highlights of Qualcomm Low Power Bluetooth SoC QCC3026 Low power design and ultra-small form factor Up to 32MHz 32-bit processor application subsystem 1x Qualcomm Kalimba DSP Qualcomm Broadcast Audio technology, Qualcomm TrueWireless Stereo technology, Qualcomm TrueWireless Stereo Plus technology, Qualcomm aptX audio technology, Qualcomm cVc audio technology Voice Assistant Services with support for voice services available via button-press activation, relaying the audio stream and voice control capabilities to a handset to process and execute commands. Bluetooth 5.0 and 2 Mbps Bluetooth Low Energy support, Dual-mode Bluetooth Suppressed background noise and echo feedback with Qualcomm cVc™ Noise Cancellation Technology for a quieter and more seamless user experience. Reference designs based on the QCC3026 SoC are expected to be available in the second half of 2018. The OPPO O-Free that was introduced today is the first Bluetooth headset to use the SoC. Anthony Murray, senior vice president and general manager, voice & music, Qualcomm Technologies International, Ltd, said: Consumers are eager for earbuds they can use all day, when they are at home, in ...

Comio X1 Note Review

A few weeks back, Comio launched its mid-range smartphone dubbed as X1 Note in the Indian market at price tag of Rs. 9,999. This smartphone comes in Royal Blue and Sunrise Gold colors and is now available across online platforms as well as through retail stores across the country. At a price of Rs. 9,999, is Comio X1 Note a worthy contender? Let's check it out. Display, Design, and Hardware The Comio X1 Note sports a 6-inch (2160 x 1080 pixels) Full HD+ 2.5D Curved Glass display. The display is bright, vibrant and the color reproduction is good to an extent. The viewing angles are good and the sunlight legibility is average as well. Talking about the design, the Comio X1 joins the club of premium design smartphones. This device comes with a plasticky mirror finish on the back making it lightweight and has a curvy edge around the corner. It measures 8.05mm in thickness and weighs around 218 grams. [gallery link="file" columns="2" size="large" ids="257106,257102"] Talking about the placement, this smartphone has an 8MP front-facing camera, earpiece, LED flash and a bunch of sensors above the display. With this device, the company has opted for on-screen navigation instead of capacitive buttons. [gallery link="file" size="medium" columns="2" ids="257096,257099,257097,257098"] Moving right, ...

WhatsApp ‘Send Messages’ feature lets group admins restrict other members from sending messages

WhatsApp today is rolling out a new feature to its app, like with many recent updates to groups, this also bring a new feature to the group. If you are a group admin, you can now disable the chat features from the group settings. This means that except for the group admins, members cannot send messages within the group. All other participants, when the group settings are set to “Only Admins," won’t be able to send any messages in the group. This applies text to messages, images, videos, voice messages, etc. If you’re a group administrator, you can configure this setting from the Group Info menu. Once you have changed the permission to all participants, group members will be notified with a particular message right above the message box. The same chat box will be hidden from members if the group admin enables the option. However, despite the roll out to Android, iOS, and Windows, the feature is available only to iOS as of this moment, but other platforms should be getting it pretty soon. Once the feature is available to you, it can be accessed from WhatsApp Web as well. You need to update your WhatsApp version to the 2.18.201 beta for Android and 2.18.70 for iOS. Via

Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids Edition and ‘Show Mode’ hands-free Alexa experience, Show Mode Charging Dock for Fire Tablets announced

Amazon today is introducing the All-New Fire HD 10 Kids Edition; it is Amazon’s Largest and Fastest Kids Tablet Fire HD 10 Kids Edition. It packs 10.1-inch 1080p Full HD screen, 32 GB of storage, and up to 10 hours of battery life, plus a year of Amazon FreeTime Unlimited. The tablet comes with Quad-Core processor, 32GB of storage with up to 256 GB of expandable storage via a microSD card slot. The company is also bundling it with Includes a year of Amazon FreeTime Unlimited, which offers more than 15,000 books, videos, educational apps, and games that have been curated for age-appropriateness. After the first year, Amazon FreeTime Unlimited starts at $2.99 per month for Prime members and $4.99 per month for customers non-Prime members. As a layer of protection, the company is offering Fire Kids Edition tablets with a kid-proof case available in blue, pink, or yellow, and a two-year worry-free guarantee. Not just that, Amazon today announced Show Mode; a new, immersive hands-free Alexa software experience for Fire HD 8 and Fire HD 10 tablets. It lets you ask Alexa to see trending news, weather, camera feeds, and more. The company is also announcing new Show Mode Charging; it is a docking station for current generation ...

OPPO O-Free Wireless Bluetooth Headset with translation, voice assistant announced

At the Find X launch event in China, OPPO also introduced O-Free Wireless Bluetooth Headset. It has a compact, ultra-light weight design and is comfortable to use. It has a built-in smart chip that synchronizes the left and right ear sounds with the phone without delay. It has ultra-low power consumption and lets you easily adjust volume, playback, and changing songs with simple operation. The headset promises 4 hours of continous playback with a single charge and the charging case will offer additional  12 hours of power. In addition to answering the phone calls, it also supports translation (probably like the Google Pixel Buds), wake-up voice assistant, and more. The OPPO O-Free wireless Bluetooth headset is priced at 699 yuan (US$ 105 / Rs. 7,230 approx.), and will go on sale in August in China. Global roll out of the headset should start around the same time. Source

OPPO Find X and Find X Lamborghini Edition launched in China, price and availability revealed

OPPO introduced its flagship Find X  and Lamborghini Limited Edition with an unique slider camera design at its global event in Paris last week. Today, as promised, the company has launched the phones in China, and also revealed the availability details, which is a month earlier before it starts rolling out in Europe. As usual, it is cheaper compared to the Europe pricing. There is also a 128GB storage version for the Chinese market which comes with standard VOOC flash charge, while the 256GB storage version comes with SuperVOOC charging to charge the phone fully in 35 minutes, similar to the  Lamborghini Edition. The OPPO Find X comes in Bordeaux Red and Glacier Blue colors, is priced at 4999 Yuan (US$ 754 / Rs. 51,715 approx.) for the 128GB storage version and the 256GB storage version costs 5999 yuan  (US$ 905 / Rs. 62,060 approx.) and will go on sale in China from July 13. The Lamborghini Edition with carbon fiber back costs 9999 yuan (US$  1510 / 1,03,440 approx.) and will be available in August. OPPO Find X and Find X Lamborghini Edition specifications 6.42-inch (2340 x 1080 pixels) Full HD+ AMOLED 19:5:9 aspect ratio Panoramic Arc display with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection 2.5GHz Octa-Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 ...

Niantic is opening up its Real World AR platform for developers to create games like Pokémon Go

Niantic Studios today previewed Niantic Real World Platform that it is working on. In fact, this is the first time the company is giving an update of this nature publicly. It also announced  that it has acquired computer vision and machine learning company Matrix Mill, and have established its first London office. Niantic Real World Platform according to the company will act as an operating system that bridges the digital and the physical worlds. This is built towards the contextual computer vision, where AR objects understand and interact with real-world objects in unique ways stopping in front of them, running past them, or jump into them. For this, the company is using a codename; Niantic Occlusion and is using, of course, Pokémon. https://youtu.be/7ZrmPTPgY3I As you can see from the demonstration, Pikachu is weaving through and around different objects in the real world, dodging feet and hiding behind planters. It uses machine learning to map and track objects in 3D space enabling much more realistic AR interactions than that are currently possible. Multiplayer gameplay requires the components of Niantic’s Real World Platform to work in concert across multiple users. https://youtu.be/dO1NpT2SSX4 To address the issues based on unified, cross-platform solution that enables a shared AR experience with a single code base, it has developed proprietary, ...

SD Express and SD Ultra Capacity will offer up to 985MBps transfer rate and up to 128TB cards

The SD Association at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) Shanghai announced SD Express and new SD Ultra Capacity (SDUC) cards. The SD Express adds PCI Express and NVMe interfaces to the legacy SD interface. The PCIe 3.0 interface delivers 985 MBps maximum data transfer rate and the NVMe v1.3  protocol enables advanced memory access mechanism. Thre new SD Ultra Capacity (SDUC) will offer cards up to 128 TB, up from 2TB with SDXC. There are part of new SD 7.0 specification. SD Express delivers speeds necessary to move large amounts of data generated by data-intense wireless communication. SD Express will be initially offered on SDUC, SDXC and SDHC memory cards. SD Express uses the PCIe 3.0 specification and NVMe v1.3 protocols defined by PCI-SIG and NVM Express, respectively, on the second row of pins used by UHS-II cards today. These cards also provide system developers new options offered by PCIe and NVMe capabilities, such as Bus Mastering, Multi Queue (without locking mechanism) and Host Memory Buffer. Any speed cards can be used in UHS-I, UHS-II, UHS-III and SD Express host devices. Faster performance levels will only be attained when matching the card to the host device. Cards using SD Express may consume up to maximum of 1.80 Watts from the host, representing the ...

Twitter introduces Ad Transparency Center for users to identify political campaigns

Twitter last year had announced its intentions to offer transparency for all ads running on Twitter, with a specific emphasis on political advertising. Today the company is introducing the Ads Transparency Center, which allows anyone across the globe to view ads that have been served on Twitter.  Much like the Search Experience on Twitter, you can view ads from any advertiser by simply searching for a specific handle and see the creative for all ad campaigns that have run within the last 7 days from that handle. However, if any ad is reported or taken down from the Twitter, it will be moved to the Ads Transparency Center within approximately 24 hours. If the account was suspended, Tweets will not be shown in the ATC. As for the US the political advertisers that fall under the new Political Campaigning Policy, you will be able to see further details, including billing information, ad spend, and impression data per Tweet. Additionally, Twitter will also present you with demographic targeting data for the ads being served. The company is making it clear that who is advertising the US federal political campaign content on Twitter by including a visual badge and disclaimer information on promoted content from certified ...

LG Display said to supply 2 to 4 million OLED Panels for 6.5-inch Apple iPhone X Plus

Back in July 207, there were reports that Apple is on the verge of investing around $2.7 billion in LG to get OLED panels for future iPhones. However, we now hear that the Korean firm is almost ready to become Apple's second supplier for OLED screens. This will also allow Apple to reduce its dependence on Samsung who is currently the sole manufacturer of the panels in iPhone X models.  This falls in line with the previous rumor that suggested LG will be the supplier for this year's 6.5-inch "iPhone X Plus". Today's report claim that LG Display will initially supply between 2 million and 4 million units, as it continues to work on ramping up capacity. While the count of panels in small compared to the Apple iPhone sales,  Apple would gain leverage in price negotiations with Samsung. Back in April, a report from The Wall Street Journal stated that the mass production challenges caused LG to fall behind the schedule it had agreed with Apple and this made the company rethink on whether LG Display would be in a position to complement Samsung as a second source of OLED displays for the upcoming iPhones. Then again analysts at investment firm Susquehanna estimated that LG would be ...

Instagram now lets you add sound tracks to your Stories

Instagram today is introducing music in Stories. Now you can add a soundtrack to your story that you feel fits perfectly at any moment. The company says that Instagram Stories is now used by 400 million every day.   To add music to the Stories, when you tap to add a sticker to a photo or video in Stories, you’ll now see a music icon, from there tap on it to open a library of thousands of songs along with search and browse by mood, genre. You can tap the play button to hear a preview. It also gives you the option to fast-forward and rewind through the track to choose the exact part that fits your story. You can also choose a song before capturing a video, swipe up to the new “Music” option under the record button and then add the song to have it playing in the background. The company says that it is adding new songs to the music library every day. This feature is now available in select countries,  and it is only available for iOS. However, support for Android will be coming soon. Source

Motorola One Android One phone with notch display surfaces, could be announced alongside One Power and Z3 Force on August 2

Motorola is prepping to launch the Motorola One Power Android One phone with 19:9 notch display, dual-rear cameras and now yet another phone, that might be a brand new variant in the series have surfaced online revealing similar design footprints. Meet, Motorola One and this too is an Android One phone.  https://youtu.be/o4yl-nsjskM The renders of the Motorola One Android One phone reveals a 19:9 aspect ratio notch display and dual rear cameras at the back with glass back, unlike the Motorola One Power which has smooth matte finish going by the leaks. This means that Motorola is planning to unveil at least two phones which will collectively form the Motorola One line. Interestingly, Motorola One is a smaller phone when compared to the Motorola One Power in terms of display size. But it could easily be in terms of the thickness. The use of 'Power' word means that the phones could focus more heavily on battery life. However, with lesser-capacity battery, the standard Motorola One will arrive as a slimmer device. From the front, both the Motorola One and the Motorola One Power look strikingly similar. The Motorola logo might double as a fingerprint sensor, but the dual rear cameras on the Motorola One Power are flushed into the same module, but the ...

Xiaomi Mi 6X Hatsune Miku Special Edition smartphone announced

Xiaomi has announced Mi 6X Hatsune Miku Special Edition in China, over a year after it introduced the Redmi Note 4X Hatsune Miku Edition. It has the same specifications as the Mi 6X smartphone that was introduced recently, but comes in new green color and comes in a unique package that has a Limited edition Mi Power bank, soft protective case printed with Hatsune Miku image, metal nameplate and the the phone has an unique Hatsune Miku image engraved along with Hatsune Miku’s signature at the back. [embed]https://v.mifile.cn/b2c-mimall-media/d380928de0b9ddc8b46ceda396fc3e00.mp4[/embed] The phone also has exclusive Hatsune Miku themes matching the phone. Xiaomi  Xiaomi Mi 6X Hatsune Miku Special Edition specifications 5.99-inch (2160×1080 pixels) Full HD+ 2.5D curved glass display with  1500:1 Contrast Octa Core Snapdragon 660 14nm Mobile Platform (Quad 2.2GHz Kryo 260 + Quad 1.8GHz Kryo 260 CPUs) with Adreno 512 GPU 6GB LPDDR 4x RAM, 64GB (eMMC 5.1) storage Android 8.1 (Oreo) with MIUI Dual SIM 12MP rear camera with LED flash, f/1.75 aperture, Sony IMX486 sensor, 1.25μm pixel size, 20MP secondary camera with Sony IMX376 sensor with f/1.75 aperture, 4 in 1 – 2.0um pixels 20MP front-facing camera with Sony IMX376 sensor, 4 in 1 – 2.0um pixels soft LED flash USB Type-C audio Fingerprint sensor, Infrared sensor Dimensions: 158.7×75.4×7.3mm; Weight: 168g Dual 4G VoLTE, ...

OnePlus announces Software Maintenance Schedule for 3, 3T, 5, 5T and 6 – Software updates for 2 years, Security patches for 3 years from release

OnePlus has been consistent with the Android updates for the past few years. Even though it takes some time to deliver Android updates and security updates, it is better compared most other flagship smartphone manufacturers. Today the company has announced its software maintenance schedule for its smartphones starting from the OnePlus 3. The company has promised two years of Android updates (since release of the phone) that includes new features, Android version upgrades and security patch updates bi-monthly. It will offer Android security update for an additional year every 2 months. The company has also said that release dates of T variants would be considered, so OnePlus 3 and the OnePlus 5 will get additional 5 months of update. Phone Android version updates till Guaranteed Android security updates till OnePlus 3 / 3T November 2018 November 2019 OnePlus 5/ 5T November 2019 November 2020 OnePlus 6 May 2020 May 2021 Today it also confirmed that last Open Beta build for OnePlus 3/3T will be released later this week, and at the beginning of July after that it will provide a stable version of OnePlus 3/3T for beta testers to migrate back to the stable version of OxygenOS. As per the OnePlus Software Maintenance Schedule, OnePlus 3 and 3T will be getting regular OTA updates till November of 2018 ...

Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro Android 8.1 Oreo MIUI 9.5 update with gesture support, Dual 4G VoLTE starts rolling out [Update: Stable update download link]

Update June 26: Xiaomi has started rolling out MIUI 9.5.14.0.OEIMIFA Android 8.1 (Oreo) stable update for the  Redmi Note 5 Pro users, a day earlier than expected. If you can't wait, you can manually flash MIUI 9.5.14.0 Recovery ROM using updater method. Changelog includes Android N to Android O upgrade for India, Dual 4G optimization and MIUI 9.5 optimization. Update June 25: Xiaomi has finally announced that global stable MIUI 9.5 ROM based on Android 8.1 (Oreo) will roll out starting from June 29th, Friday for Redmi Note 5 Pro users in batches. We will update the ROM once it begins rolling out. Earlier: Xiaomi started rolling out MIUI 9.5 in March and as per the schedule Redmi Note 5 Pro was supposed to get the update in April. Towards end of April, company revised the schedule and said that it will roll out MIUI 9.5 update for Redmi Note 5 Pro in May with a surprise. MIUI 9.5 for Redmi Note 5 Pro was leaked last month and it was based on Android Oreo 8.1, so it was not difficult to guess what surprise Xiaomi kept for users. Earlier this week, users on Mi Community started reporting that they started receiving MIUI Global Stable 9.5.6.0 update ...

Telegram update brings replace media, vCards sharing, mark as unread, 2X voice messages, and more

Telegram is receiving a new update bringing the version number to 4.8.3 for iOS and 4.8.10 for Android, and this brings several nifty features and improvements. With the new Telegram update, you can now just replace photos or videos with the correct versions right away in case if you have sent a wrong image by accident. To replace the image, start editing the image and then tap the paperclip button to replace the attached media. You can also add captions to photos or videos. You can now switch to enable 2X playback for the audio clips you might have received. You can also mark the messages as read or unread; this offers a quick way to get less important messages out of the way and highlight the chats that require your attention. With this update, you can select what data you want to send when sharing a contact. You can now share contacts with multiple numbers. When you open a chat from Global Search and then go back, you will return to the search results and keep your position in the list. However, Android is getting three more features; you can now tap and hold on profile pictures in the chats list to preview chats. You can now use the “create link” option in the formatting menu to make text ...

Alcatel 1 Android Oreo (Go Edition) smartphone with 5-inch 18:9 display announced

Alcatel introduced range of smartphone as well as its first Android Oreo (Go edition) smartphone Alcatel 1X at the MWC, and the phone was also announced in India soon after. Now the company has announced the Alcatel 1, another budget Android Oreo (Go edition) smartphone at the ongoing MWC Shanghai. It packs a 5.34-inch 18:9 screen, is powered by a quad-core MediaTek SoC and the Android Oreo (Go edition) comes pre-installed with new Google’s Go apps offering better performance, less demand on storage, and efficient data use. It also provides an intuitive photo editing suite called Social Mode that lets users take, edit and share photos in a fast and fun way with tools including Photo Booth, Social Square, Instant Collage and One-Handed Mode. With Photo Booth, you can take photo booth-style keepsakes with their friends anywhere that are instantly sharable. Social Square keeps the camera viewfinder open while displaying photos the user just took below, so that they can stay in the photo-taking action. One-Handed Mode frees up a hand for users, letting them take quick snapshots with an interface that's customizable for their comfort. Alcatel 1 Android Oreo (Go edition) specifications 5-inch (480 x 960 pixels) FWVGA+ 18:9 display 1.28GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6739 64-bit processor with PowerVR Rogue GE8100 GPU ...

Acer Nitro 5 (2018) Gaming Laptop with 8th Gen Intel Core processor with NVIDIA GTX 1050 / 1050Ti or AMD Ryzen 5 with Radeon RX560 launched in India

Acer has launched new Nitro 5 Gaming Laptop, successor of last year's model in India. It was introduced at the CES 2018 earlier this year, packs a 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display and is powered by a 6-Core 8th Generation Intel Core i5, i7, i5+, i7+ processors with NVIDIA GTX 1050 or 1050Ti GPU or the AMD Ryzen 5 processor with Radeon RX560 GPU. It also packs Intel Optane memory offering fast read and write speeds, quick loading and restarting in mere seconds. Acer’s new Nitro Sense control software for Cooling management and System Monitoring allows the monitoring of the CPU/GPU. The Nitro 5’s new refreshed chassis design features a top cover with elegant laser texturing and the matte, crimson red hinge matches the design of the backlit keyboard. Acer Nitro 5 (2018) specifications 15.6-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Full HD LED Backlit IPS Display 8th Gen 6-Core Intel Core i5, i7, i5+, i7+ processor with NVIDIA GTX 1050 or 1050Ti GPU / AMD Ryzen 5 processor with Radeon RX560 GPU Up to 16GB DDR4 RAM, 1 TB HDD, 128 GB SSD (Optional) Windows 10 Home HD Webcam Built-in Dual Speakers, Dual Digital Microphone, Acer TrueHarmony Plus Technology, Optimized Dolby Audio Premium Sound Enhancement WiFi 802..11 ac (MU-MIMO), Bluetooth 4.0, 2 x USB 2.0, 1 ...

YouTube picture-in-picture will be available to all Android users

YouTube TV introduced a picture-in-picture mode with Android 8.0 Oreo back in November and has also extended to its Premium and Music services. The videos are minimised to a corner to let you keep watching while browsing around other apps. However, it now seems to be rolling out to non-paying YouTube users.  However, it's restricted to the US for now. Once the picture-in-picture is toggled on in both the YouTube app and system settings, users will have the ability minimize the videos to a corner. It doesn't seem to work with most music videos without a YouTube Premium subscription, according to the service's FAQ page. Since there is no time frame mentioned, it's unclear how long it will take to roll out to all Android users. With YouTube adding feature to its desktop platform, we could expect it's coming to non-Premium viewers across the service sometime in the near future. Source | Via

Samsung Galaxy A6 gets a price cut in India in just 1 month of launch

Samsung launched the Galaxy A6 smartphone in India last month starting at Rs. 21,990, along with the Galaxy A6+. Today the smartphone has received Rs. 2000 price cut in just a month of launch, and is available for Rs. 19,990. The company also introduced the 64GB version of the smartphone alongside for Rs. 22,990, now this variant of the phone will go on sale soon for Rs. 20,990, which is Rs. 2000 cheaper than the original price. Samsung Galaxy A6 specifications 5.6-inch (1480 x 720 pixels) HD+ Super AMOLED 18.5: 9 Infinity 2.5D curved glass display 1.6GHz Octa-Core Exynos 7870 14nm processor with Mali T830 GPU 4GB RAM with 32GB / 64GB internal storage, expandable memory up to 256GB with microSD Android 8.0 (Oreo) Dual SIM 16MP rear camera with LED flash, f/1.7 aperture,LED flash 16MP front-facing camera with f/1.9 aperture, LED flash Fingerprint sensor Samsung Pay Mini 3.5mm audio jack, Dolby Atmos Dimensions: 149.9 x 70.8 x 7.7 mm; Weight: 162g 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi a/b/g/n (2.4/5GHz), HT40, Bluetooth 4.2 LE, GPS 3000mAh battery The Samsung Galaxy A6 32GB storage version in Black, Blue and Golden colors is available for Rs. 19,990 on Amazon.in. The 64GB storage version is listed on Samsung online Shop, and is expected to go ...

Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro sales cross 5 million in India in 4 months of launch

Xiaomi today announced that its Redmi Note 5 series that includes the Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro have crossed 5 million sales in India, since it was launched back in February this year.  Xiaomi says that it's the fastest selling phone series in India to cross the 5 million mark in the given time across all platforms. It took 6 months for the Redmi Note 4 to cross 5 million units, and 10 million units within one year of launch. The company did not individual sales numbers for the smartphones. Even though it has been 4 months since the launch, the company still continues to sell the smartphone every week online, and the 6GB RAM version of the Redmi Note 5 Pro goes out of stock within minutes. We're proud to announce that we've sold 5 MILLION UNITS of Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro in just 4 months. Thank you for such an amazing response! RT this and help share the success. F-codes up for grabs. pic.twitter.com/FjJgVgXWRn — Redmi India (@RedmiIndia) June 28, 2018 In a statement, Xiaomi said: Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro, including all variants for both smartphones, have gained massive popularity and received huge love from ...

Amazon Prime Now delivers Fire TV Stick, Kindle and Echo within 2 hours in select cities in India

Amazon today announced the launch of Fire TV Stick, Kindle and Echo on Prime Now, an app-only ultrafast delivery service available to Prime members in Bengaluru, Mumbai, New Delhi and Hyderabad. Amazon will offer a limited time introductory discount of 15% on Amazon devices purchased on the Prime Now app. Amazon says that customers in these cities will now have access to the fastest and convenient delivery on the Fire TV Stick, the latest Kindle, Kindle Paperwhite (WiFi), Echo Dot and Echo. It also provides exclusive 2-hour ultra-fast delivery to Prime members anytime between 6 am to midnight. Prime Now currently has a selection of over 10,000 products; this includes selection across all categories like Consumer Electronics, Home & Kitchen, and Grocery fulfilled by Amazon. Download Amazon Prime Now – Android | iOS Jayshree Gururaj, Director – Amazon Devices said: Prime Now brings our fastest and most convenient delivery option for Amazon Devices. You can now get your Fire TV Stick delivered within hours to watch your favourite show or movie, or get your Kindle delivered before you board the flight tonight to your holiday. Siddharth Nambiar – Head of Prime Now, India said: We are excited to add Fire TV Stick, Kindle and the Echo range of devices to Prime Now selection of over ...

Times Internet confirms acquisition of MX Player for $146 million

After a lot of rumors, Times Internet has confirmed that it bought majority stakes in South Korea's MX Player. At $146 million, this acquisition falls in line with January rumor which stated deal will be in the range of $200 Mn. Times Internet is aiming to build a digital-first video streaming platform atop MX Player. Times Internet will leverage on MX Players 350 million install base in India, along with more than 175 million monthly active users (MAUs) and 65 Mn daily active users (DAUs). This is second bet for Times Internet in the OTT segment who previously back in September 2016 has introduced its very own OTT app Box TV.  However, the reasons for the service shutdown is because of the High customer acquisition cost and lack of control over the cost of content. As for MX Player, it will still continue to work as an independent entity with teams across India and China. TIL aims to build a content experiences that are designed especially and exclusively for Indian millennials. MX Player will soon allow users to stream the entire content on an OTT platform. The company is investing in premium, original, digital-first content, with the main focus on high-quality Hindi and regional production. In its first year in India, the platform is expected to launch more ...

Snapchat said to be launching its own gaming platform later this year

Snapchat is an effort to sustain in the competitive market is planning on building out a bona fide hub for gaming inside of Snapchat, according to a new report from The Information. The platform is said to be launching later this year and the company is said to be already signing on game publishers to participate.  The news doesn't come as a surprise since Snapchat has opened up its Snap Kit; Lens Studio software SDK for developers to widen its specialized AR filters. Snapchat has bought a web-based 3D game engine PlayCanvas last year, which would serve as a good backbone for more robust developer tools. It is also unclear if the new gaming platform would include AR games, it wouldn't be a surprise even if does, considering the attention it has been giving to AR segment in the recent times. Snapchat launched “Snappables,” AR-based Selfie game back in April that integrates easily into Snapchat’s Lens selection UI. It looks like Snapchat is striving to be the app that’s home to several of these experiences and this will give Snapchat an advantage over Facebook and Instagram, though Messenger does have a plethora of games. Since nothing is official yet, we advise you don't get too excited about the Snapchat gaming platform. Source

Google Calendar gets new ‘Out of Office mode’ and ability to restrict your working hours

Google as a part of the Well-being initiative today is introducing a new out of office option and customizable working hours to Google Calendar. When you are about to create an event on the web, simply select the “Out of office” Calendar entry. The Out of office object will have a different look on the Calendar grid, signaling to others that you’re unavailable.  Google Calendar will automatically decline meetings that occur during this period. You can customize both the decline message as well as the visibility of the title of your out of office object. In future, it will also detect based on the title entered, when you’re creating an out of office object and change the type automatically. However, you can still manually change this if you’d like to opt for a different entry type. You can also restrict your working hours and protect your personal time. When someone tries to schedule meetings with you outside of these hours will be informed that you are not available at that time. You can now customize your work hours for each day separately. These new features are rolling out and should reach everyone within the next two weeks. Source

Google Duplex demo shows how Assistant will identify itself while making reservations

Google at the I/O 2018 has demoed the Google Duplex; this tech is where Assistant dupes itself as a human, call a business and get you a reservation. To make it sound like more human has added in human ticks like "umm." However, concerns were raised regarding how ethical this feature is. Back in May, Google clarified in a statement that the experimental system would have “disclosure built-in.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qCanuYrR0g Google today posted a new demo video of Duplex, and this time Assistant identified itself. In the new video, Assistant identifies itself by saying "Hi. I'm the Google Assistant calling." right after the call gets connected. You can initiate a Duplex call yourself; meaning that you can ask Assistant to make a reservation on a specific day, Assistant gathers more info, and then a different "version" of Assistant places the call. As for the demo, it is quite neat and impressive, but it still needs to be seen how it'll work in real life. As you can see, the automated call will be recorded probably to improve the quality of the call. Google will begin testing Duplex with select users and businesses later this year.

Google invests $22 million in KaiOS that powers JioPhone and Nokia 8110 4G

US-based Kai Technologies, mobile operating system provider for feature phone like the popular JioPhone and Nokia 8110 4G, today announced that it has received $22 million Series A investment from Google. In addition to the investment, Google and KaiOS have also agreed to work together to make the Google Assistant, Google Maps, YouTube, and Google Search available to all KaiOS users. The company said that these Google apps have been developed specifically for the KaiOS platform, which is entirely web-based, using open standards such as HTML5, JavaScript, and CSS. Some of these apps are already available for JioPhone, and the most popular feature phone in India also got Facebook app a few months back. There are also rumors of WhatsApp working on a version for the KaiOS. KaiOS is baked on Firefox OS which is an open-source project started in 2011 and the operating system debuted in the USA in 2017. The operating system’s Store is based on HTML5 so most of the games, apps, messaging, streaming apps, and social media are already available. It also has support for 4G/LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS, and is compatible with chipsets from major manufacturers. KaiOS works closely with manufacturers like TCL, HMD Global, and Micromax and has partnerships ...

Twitter details new steps to fight spam and malicious automation issues

Twitter today has shared four new steps that it is taking to address spam and malicious automation issues; reducing the visibility of suspicious accounts in Tweet and account metric, improving the signup process, auditing existing accounts for signs of automated signup, expansion of our malicious behavior detection systems. Twitter says that a common form of spammy and automated behavior is following accounts in coordinated, bulk ways. Since the company couldn't act upon it right at the moment all the time, that is why it is now updating account metrics in near-real time. For example, the number of followers an account has, number of likes or Retweets a Tweet receives. The company will now remove such accounts from follower figures and engagement counts until it passes a challenge, like confirming a phone number. It will also display a warning on read-only accounts and prevent new accounts from following them. If the account passes the challenge, the account will be restored. With an aim to make it harder to register spam accounts, Twitter is going to require new accounts to confirm either an email address or phone number when they sign up on Twitter. However, this will be rolling out later this year. Twitter is ...

Instagram Lite for Android released, roll out begins starting from Mexico

After Facebook Lite  in 2015 and Facebook Messenger Lite last year, Facebook-owned Instagram has rolled out Instagram Lite for entry-level Android smartphones with less storage, like Android Oreo Go Edition devices. The app is just 573kb compared to the 32 MB standard Instagram app for Android. The app has all the features that are available on the mobile web app, including Stories, Explore tab and more. The company is planning to add messages and share videos soon. Instagram said that the company is testing the Instagram Lite in Mexico from this week, but the company doesn't say whether ads would be included. It will expand to more countries later this year. Download Instagram Lite for Android (APK) (Free) Highlights of Instagram Lite for Android Post photos you want to keep on your profile grid and edit them with filters. Share multiple photos to your story. Bring them to life with text. They disappear after 24 hours and won't appear on your profile grid or in feed. Watch stories from the people you follow in a bar at the top of your feed. Discover stories, photos and videos you might like and follow new accounts on the Explore tab. Coming soon, you will be able to message friends and share videos ...

Facebook starts testing ‘Keyword Snooze’ in News Feed to fight spoilers, triggers

Being a movie/TV buff myself I often find it annoying when someone out of excitement or curiosity posts something on social media before I watch it. To prevent this from happening, Facebook is beginning a brand new News Feed control called Keyword Snooze. This feature is present in the upper right-hand menu in the News Feed and gives users the option to temporarily hide posts by keywords, which are pulled directly from text in that post. If you choose to “snooze” a keyword, you won’t see posts in your News Feed containing that exact word or phrase from any person, Page or Group for 30 days. This is literally the feature which many of us have been waiting. This new Keyword Snooze feature joins the list of features like See First, Hide, Unfollow, and Snooze. This should help you tailor your News Feed experience, and you can access Facebook without worrying about spoilers. Source

Apple, Samsung finally settle their biggest U.S. patent dispute

In what can be seen as a relief, Apple and Samsung on Wednesday have finally settled a seven-year patent dispute over the allegations that Samsung violated its patents by copying the design of the iPhone. Back in May, the U.S. jury awarded Apple $539 million. Samsung previously paid Apple $399 million to compensate for the patent infringement. However, Samsung would need to make an additional payment to Apple of nearly $140 million if the verdict was upheld. The string of lawsuits started in 2011 after the company threatened to act on rivals that used the Android operating system. However, it is unclear on how much Samsung should now pay Apple under Wednesday’s settlement. Both Samsung and Apple declined to comment on the developments. Apple in a statement said: Apple “cares deeply about design and this case has always been about more than money.” Regardless of the expenses involved during the lawsuit, Apple and Samsung still remain the title contenders of the world’s largest smartphone maker. Apple gained a major public relations victory with an initial $1 billion verdict in 2012, however, Samsung also obtained rulings in its favor and also dodged the risk of going out of business in the USA. Source

Nubia smartphone with dual displays, side-mounted fingerprint sensor, dual rear cameras surface in renders

Nubia NX606J smartphone, which is expected to be flagship Z18 was certified by TENAA in China back in April with 5.99-inch FHD+ 18:9 display, Snapdragon 845 SoC , up to 8GB RAM, dual rear cameras, rear-mounted fingerprint sensor and a 3350mAh battery, but the phone is yet to go official. Now a new Nubia smartphone has surfaced on State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO) in China. This shows a smartphone with minimal bezels along with a secondary display on the back, side-mounted fingerprint sensor on both the left and right sides, dual rear cameras with separate dual-tone LED flash, glass body, 3.5mm audio jack and a loudspeaker grill on the bottom. The front-facing camera and sensors are nowhere to be seen. Since the homescreen on the phone displays August 24th, it could be the launch date of the smartphone. We should know more details about the smartphone in coming weeks. Source | Via

LG X2 with 5-inch HD display, fingerprint sensor announced

LG has introduced X2, the company's latest budget smartphone in Korea. It has a 5-inch HD screen, is powered by a quad-core Snapdragon SoC with 2GB of RAM, runs Android 7.1 (Nougat), has an 8-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, 'Auto Shot', which recognizes faces automatically when you take a self-portrait, 'Quick Share', which allows you to share pictures instantly via SNS or messages, and a 5-megapixel front camera. LG X2 specifications 5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) HD) IPS display 1.3GHz Quad-Core Snapdragon Mobile Platform 2GB RAM, 16GB internal storage, expandable memory with microSD Android 7.1.2 (Nougat) 8MP rear camera with LED Flash 5MP front-facing camera Fingerprint sensor 3.5mm audio jack, FM Radio Dimensions: 144.8 x 71.9 x 8.2mm;Weight: 152g 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS 2500mAh battery The LG X2 comes in Aurora Black color, is priced at 198,000 Korean Won (US$ 176 / Rs. 12,170 approx.) and will be available across four Korean operators from today. Source

Vivo showcases TOF 3D Sensing Technology for gesture tracking in mixed reality games, 3D modelling and more

Vivo at the MWC Shanghai 2018 showcased its Time of Flight (TOF) 3D Sensing Technology.  This detects the time it takes emitted pulse light to return to the sensor to accurately map objects at up to three meters in front of it. "It enables new opportunities in facial, gesture and motion recognition, 3D photography and AR, expanding the capabilities of the next generation of smart devices," said Vivo. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRiOK6zgsug Highlights of Vivo Time of Flight (TOF) 3D Sensing Technology Features industry-leading performance in depth of information captured with its 300,000 sensor points, which is 10 times the number of existing Structured Light Technology. Enables 3D mapping at up to three meters from the phone while having a smaller baseline than Structured Light. Simpler and smaller in structure and allows for more flexibility when embedded in a smartphone. Through precise and accurate tracking of gestures and movements of the user’s entire body, TOF 3D Sensing Technology creates entirely new ways to interact with and experience the world. Using AI to beautify a photo according to the entire person is a whole step above current photography applications. Merging this technology with AR capabilities allows them to try on clothes virtually with enhanced 3D virtual fitting. ...

Vivo NEX with 6.59-inch FHD+ display, pop-up front camera launching in India on July 19

Vivo introduced its NEX series smartphones - NEX S and NEX A in China last month. Today the company has sent out invites for the launch of the smartphone in India on July 19th. The main highlight of the smartphone is its 6.59-inch Full HD+ Super AMOLED screen with ultra narrow bezels, Screen SoundCasting Technology, and 8-megapixel pop-up front camera that automatically rises and hides when you open and close the camera app. Vivo NEX A / NEX S (Ultimate) specifications 6.59-inch (2316×1080 pixels) Full HD+ Super AMOLED 19.3:9 aspect ratio display, DCI-P3 color gamut 2.8GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 845 64-bit 10nm Mobile Platform with Adreno 630 GPU (NEX S) / Octa-Core Snapdragon 710 10nm Mobile Platform (Dual 2.2GHz Kryo 360 + Hexa 1.7GHz Kryo 360 CPUs) with Adreno 616 GPU (NEX A) 8GB with 256GB / 128GB storage (NEX S), 6GB RAM with 128GB internal storage (NEX A) Dual SIM Funtouch OS 4.0 based on Android 8.1 (Oreo) 12MP Dual PD rear camera with dual-tone LED flash, Sony IMX363 sensor, 4-axis OIS, f/1.8 aperture, secondary 5MP camera with f/2.4 aperture 8MP front-facing camera, f/2.0 aperture In-display fingerprint sensor (NEX S) / rear-mounted fingerprint sensor (NEX A) Dimensions: 162×77×7.98m; Weight: 199g 3.5mm audio jack, CS43199 + SSM6322 Amplifier (NEX S) ...

Honor 10 Giveaway

Hello readers! Thanks for your amazing response for all our giveaways. Yes, after a long time, we are back with another giveaway just for you. This time we are teaming up with Honor India to giveaway the latest Honor 10 smartphone with FullView Display, Aurora Glass Design and AI features, powered by an independent NPU. To enter the giveaway you need to follow @HiHonorIndia on Twitter and also need to tweet the answer to a simple question about the Honor 10 using #Honor10 and tagging @HiHonorIndia and @FoneArena. Pretty easy, isn’t it? You can also increase your chances of winning by tweeting about the giveaway with #Honor10 using the link below. Check out the widget to enter the giveaway. Honor 10 Giveaway Important terms:  Giveaway is open only to residents of India. No employees of FoneArena, Honor India or their family members and people connected in setting up this giveaway is permitted to enter the giveaway. Winners will be announced within 15 working days after giveaway gets over. Gifts will be dispatched within 90 working days after the winning notice. Winner will have to respond within 24 hours to claim their prize. If the winner does not respond within the period, a new winner will be chosen. Asking for exchange, invoice of the gift, getting into arguments ...

PUBG developer drops lawsuit against Fortnite

Back in May, PUBG developer sued Epic Games' Fortnite over copyright infringement in Korea. This marks the end of a legal battle between two of the world’s hottest games. PUBG has sent a letter of withdrawal to Epic Games Inc.’s attorneys on Monday, and the case has since been closed, according to the website of the local court system. Though PUBG and its law firm confirmed the action but wouldn’t say the reason behind the move, nor whether a settlement had been reached.  Both the games are part-owned by social media and gaming giant Tencent Holdings Ltd. PUBG claimed that Epic’s Fortnite mimicked many of the characteristics of its game back in January. PUBG separately sued China’s Netease Inc. for allegedly basing two games; Rules of Survival and Knives Out. PUBG is a survivor shooter game that became very popular within a short time. As of April, 40 million copies of the game have been sold on Steam and over 4 million console copies. Epic Games is currently preparing to foray into the Korean market in partnership with Neowiz Games as they have signed an agreement in January to release Fortnite this year. Source

Nokia A1 Plus with OLED display, Snapdragon 845, in-display fingerprint sensor said to launch later this year

HMD Global is planning on launching a new high-end flagship Nokia smartphone. According to reports, the phone is said to be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845. Surprisingly, the device also features an in-display fingerprint sensor, which will make it the first Nokia phone with this feature. Furthermore, HMD Global is said to be working with its hardware supplier and manufacturing partner FIH Mobile (Foxconn) on a new flagship smartphone. The device is referred to internally as A1 Plus. The phone will be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 with eight-cores clocked at 2.8GHz. Since in-display fingerprint sensor requires OLED display, it will feature an LG Display. As for the camera, the company is said to have begun the work back in February 2018 for it. Though it was initially aimed at mid-2018 launch, due to the hurdles during the development, the device now appears to be coming only in the second half of the year. It will also become the smartphone with first in-display to launch in the European market. Since there are many rumors about the Nokia 9 launch since March, this might very well be it. If things fall in place, HMD might announce the new "Nokia 9" at the IFA 2018. Source

Fujifilm Instax SQUARE SQ6 with automatic exposure control, different flash color filters launched in India for Rs. 9999

Fujifilm India today has announced the launch of new ‘instax SQUARE SQ6’camera in the company's Instax series of instant camera lineup. It comes with Automatic exposure adjustment feature and this gets activated when the shutter button is pressed. The camera is capable of detecting the ambient brightness and adjusts to provide the optimum shutter speed and flash light intensity. The camera comes with a selfie mode that automatically adjusts brightness and focal length to the ideal level for capturing best selfie images. The self-shot mirror attached to the side of the lens allows users to check the shooting range. It comes with three modes; the Double Exposure Mode allows two photos to be overlapped on a single film when the shutter button is pressed twice, the Macro Mode can take short-range photos up to a minimum of 30cm, and the “Landscape Mode” can be used to take long-range landscape photos. It also includes three flash color filters; orange/purple/green that once placed over the flash will change the color of the overall photo. It comes with retractable lens, 2 components, 2 elements, f = 65.75 mm, 1:12.6. The camera features programmed electronic shutter release with 1.6 sec - 1/400 sec. It has an automatic interlocking range (ISO 800)of LV 5 - LV 15.5, Exposure compensation with ...

Xiaomi Mi Band 3 sales cross 1 million in just 17 days

Xiaomi introduced the Mi Band 3 along with the Mi 8  in China last month, and the fitness tracker when on sale on June 5th. Now the company's  CEO Lei Jun has announced that the company has sold 1 million units of the Mi Band 3 in just 17 days. The Mi Band 3 is one of the most expected accessories from Xiaomi, since it has been 2 years since the Mi Band 2 was introduced. The Mi Band 3 comes with a large 0.78-inch OLED display, compared to 0.42-inch in the Mi Band 2, so that it can display more characters including WhatsApp, Facebook or SMS messages, Weather info, caller ID and more. It also 5ATM water proof so that you can take it for swimming under 50 meters. It shows real-time data for running, cycling, walking, and other activities. It still has a button on the front, that lets you can view the caller name on the band, and reject the call with a long press of the button. It has a 110mAh battery that promises about 20 days of standby. Xiaomi is yet to reveal details about the global roll out, which could happen later this year. Source

Is Xiaomi messing up with Notification Panel again?

MIUI Notification panel was amongst the things that users hated back in MIUI 8 days because it didn’t have basic stock android features like bundled notifications and had painful two finger swipe down gesture to expand notifications. Xiaomi addressed the complaint and announced New Notification Shade with MIUI 9 and started rolling out the feature to MIUI Global Beta ROM users in November 2017 but MIUI Global Stable ROM users had to wait till March 2018 as company enabled New Notification Shade with MIUI 9.5 update. Redmi Note 5 Pro users are yet to receive this feature as MIUI 9.5 update for Redmi Note 5 Pro is expected to be rolled out this week. [gallery link="file" size="large" ids="254568,254569,254557"] Now, it seems like MIUI 9 Notification Shade didn’t go well as company removed a feature and it also got a makeover with MIUI 10. We already brought you first impression of MIUI 10 (China ROM) on Redmi Note 5 Pro, later we also tried leaked MIUI 10 Global Beta 8.6.14 on Redmi Note 5 Pro and noticed the inability to expand notifications via swipe down that was introduced in MIUI 9 Notification Shade. In MIUI 10, notifications can be expanded with a long press ...

Spice F311 Android Oreo Go edition smartphone with 5.45-inch 18:9 display, fingerprint sensor launched for Rs. 5599

Spice Devices, has launched F311, the company's first  Android Oreo (Go edition) smartphone.. It has a 5.45-inch FWVGA+ 18:9 aspect ratio display, fingerprint sensor, social share key, is powered by a quad-core MediaTek SoC and the Android Oreo (Go edition) comes pre-installed with new Google’s Go apps offering better performance, less demand on storage, and efficient data use. It has a fingerprint sensor, dual-SIM support, along with a dedicated social share key on the left side, for faster social sharing, and packs a 2400mAh battery. Spice F311 specifications 5.34-inch (480 x 960 pixels) FWVGA+ 18:9 display 1.1GHz Quad-core MediaTek MT6737M with 400MHz Mali-T720 GPU 1GB RAM, 16GB internal storage, expandable memory up to 32GB with microSD Android 8.1 (Oreo Go Edition) Dual SIM 5MP auto focus rear camera with LED flash,  1.4 μm pixel size, f/2.0 aperture 5MP front camera with LED flash Fingerprint sensor, Share Key Dimensions: 153 x 73.55x 8.25mm 4G VoLTE, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS, USB OTG 2400mAh battery The Spice F311 comes in Rose Gold, Black and Phantom Red colors and is priced at Rs. 5599. Commenting on the launch, Pankaj Madaan, Deputy General Manager, Marketing, Spice Devices, said: Reiterating our promise to pace up the smartphone adoption, we have joined hands with MediaTek and Google for Android ...