Samsung partners with NextRadio to unlock FM Radio chip on its smartphones

TagStation today announced that Samsung has extended its support to NextRadio to unlock FM chips in upcoming phones launched USA and Canada. The company pointed out that FM Radio is still essential in some parts of the world especially when cellular coverage is congested or unavailable. Smartphones launching these days come with a hardware that is capable of receiving free FM radio signals, and Samsung is the new OEM to take steps in bringing phones with unlocked FM chips. This will allow users to connect directly with the NextRadio app, listen to their favorite local stations, and use less battery and less data than streaming radio apps. Samsung joins the list which also includes recently joined LG, Motorola, and Alcatel. Though the company claims that upcoming Samsung phones will launch with unlocked FM chips, reports suggest there are already plenty of phones on the market with unlocked chips, including the Galaxy S7, S8, Note 8 and more . Commenting on the same Paul Brenner, President of NextRadio powered by TagStation said: Samsung should be lauded for taking this important step. They are providing their customers a more engaging, immersive radio experience and, as importantly, a means to connect with life-saving information in emergencies. Source

Xiaomi Quick Charge 3.0 Charger launched in India for Rs. 449

Xiaomi already sells standard 5V-2A charger in India. Today is has launched new  Qualcomm certified Quick Charge 3.0 charger in the country. This is compatible with Xiaomi own Mi MIX 2 and Mi Max 2 smartphones as well as Qualcomm's latest two-way fast charging power banks that are Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 certified. It has power output of 5V-3A/9V-2A/12V-1.5A and can withstand voltage surges up to 380V, similar to chargers that come bundled with its latest Mi A1, Redmi Y1, Redmi 5A and other smartphones. It also has automatic temperature control that keeps the charger below 30-degrees while in use to prevent over heating, says Xiaomi. The Xiaomi Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 Charger comes only in Black color, is priced at Rs. 449 and is available for purchase at mi.com. This is just Rs. 100 more than its standard 5V-2A charge. It doesn't come with a USB cable in the box. Via

Smartron tphone P with 5.2-inch display, Snapdragon 435, 3GB RAM, 5000mAh battery launched for Rs. 7999

Smartron has launched tphone P, the company's latest smartphone in the tphone series with 5000mAh battery that promises up to 2 days battery life on a single chrage. It packs a 5.2-inch 2.5D curved glass display, is powered by Snapdragon 435 with 3GB RAM, runs Android 7.1.1 (Nougat) with support for tcloud, tcare and tstore as well as tronX’s assistive and predictive AI. It has a 13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, 5-megapixel front camera, comes with a metal back, has a fingerprint sensor on the back and also comes with option to charge other devices using OTG since it has a huge battery. Smartron tphone P specifications 5.2-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) HD 2.5D curved glass display 1.4GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 435 processor with Adreno 505 GPU 3GB RAM, 32GB internal memory, expandable memory up to 128GB with microSD Android 7.1.1 (Nougat) Hybrid Dual SIM (nano + nano/microSD) 13MP rear camera with f/2.2 aperture, 1.12um pixel, PDAF LED Flash 5MP front-facing camera with f/2.2 aperture, 1.12um pixel Fingerprint sensor Dimensions: 148.3x72.2x8.9mm; Weight: 160g 4G VoLTE, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.1, GPS 5000mAh battery The Smartron tphone P comes in Black color, is priced at Rs. 7,999 and will be available exclusively from Flipkart starting from January 17, 2018. Commenting on ...

WhatsApp Security flaw could allow anyone enter group chats despite end-to-end encryption

German researchers have found a flaw that let's infiltrate any WhatsApp’s group chats despite end-to-end encryption. Wired reports that the flaws in WhatsApp’s security were discovered at the Real World Crypto security conference in Switzerland. Furthermore, anyone with control on app’s servers could insert new people into private group chats without needing admin permission. Once the new person enters the group, every person's phone in that group chat will automatically share secret keys with that person, giving them full access to all future messages, but not past ones. The new member addition will look like it has been done with admin's consent. Furthermore, "The confidentiality of the group is broken as soon as the uninvited member can obtain all the new messages and read them," said one of the researchers to The Wired. On the flip side, WhatsApp owned Facebook looks to have in settled mood given the fact that it isn't easy to gain access to the WhatsApp servers, which can only be controlled by staff, governments who legally demand access, and high-level hackers. The company's Chief Security Officer Alex Stamos responded to the report on Twitter, saying, "Read the Wired article today about WhatsApp scary headline! But there is no [sic] a secret way into WhatsApp ...

CORSAIR Wireless Gaming Keyboard, Gaming Mouse, Qi Wireless Charging Mouse Pad and more announced at CES 2018

CORSAIR has announced range of wireless gaming peripherals at the CES 2018 in Las Vegas. This includes K63 Wireless Mechanical Keyboard, K63 Wireless Gaming Lapboard, DARK CORE RGB Wireless Gaming Mouse, and MM1000 Qi Wireless Charging Mouse Pad that are powered by CORSAIR UNPLUG and PLAY wireless technology. The new CORSAIR K63 Wireless mechanical gaming keyboard has CHERRY MX Red mechanical keyswitches and lets you connect to your PC using ultra-fast 1ms 2.4GHz gaming-optimized wireless, low latency Bluetooth wireless, or a wired USB connection. It offers Per-key, customizable blue LED backlighting, controlled using CORSAIR Utility Engine (CUE) software along with per-key macros and programmable keys. It offers up to 75 hours of rechargeable battery life. The CORSAIR K63 Wireless keyboard features strong 128-bit AES encryption, protecting your keystrokes from wireless eavesdropping. It has clean and minimalist desktop, and combines with the K63 Wireless Gaming Lapboard for the best wireless solution. It has lightweight surround and memory foam cushion that comfortably and securely holds the keyboard in place, while a full-size replaceable mouse pad provides ample room and pixel-precise tracking. The new CORSAIR DARK CORE RGB wireless gaming mouse offers the same flexible three-mode connectivity - ultra-fast 1ms 2.4GHz, low-latency Bluetooth wireless or wired USB connection. ...

Facebook said to be testing new ‘Today In’ local news and events section in the app

Facebook wants to make it easier for us to stay updated with local news and events dubbed 'Today In'. Testing of the feature is running in just six cities for now: New Orleans, La.; Little Rock, Ark.; Billings, Mont.; Peoria, Ill.; Olympia, Wash.; and Binghamton, N.Y. Users from the mentioned places will be able to explore the new section to see local information, like stories from local publishers or emergency updates from local authorities. The company is using machine-learning software to surface content in the new section. According to the Facebook's spokesperson, former NBC news anchor Campbell Brown will approve and overlook the local news publishers who appear in the new section. Furthermore, the company says that it is all part of Facebook’s Journalism Project initiative which Facebook launched shortly after last year’s U.S. presidential election. The company has already launched few other news-related features last year including breaking news label and a label identifying stories disputed by outside fact-checkers. Though the news section will bring in more traffic for publishers, it doesn't bring any revenue at least during the time of launch. Even the getting traffic is questionable since it is dependent on how often Facebook users use the feature. Facebook will eventually roll this out to more cities. ...

GoPro to exit drone industry, but will continue supporting it

GoPro has announced that it will exit drone industry as it plans to sell its remaining inventory of Karma drones, but will continue supporting it. The move comes from the constant downfall of the company in the past few years. The company back in March has laid off 270 employees in response to weak sales. Once the company sells its Karma drones, there will 300 layoffs including some executives and it announced its decision to exit drone market in its Q4 results. The company expects revenue to be approximately $340 million for the fourth quarter of 2017. The revenue also includes a negative impact of approximately $80 million for price protection on HERO6 Black, HERO5 Black and HERO5 Session cameras, as well as the Karma drone. The company ended its fourth quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $247 million, up $50 million over the third quarter of 2017. However, the company claims that the sales of HERO6 Black camera performed as expected during the fourth quarter and it lowered the price of HERO6 Black from $499 to $399. Furthermore, the company is also looking for options to sell its company if there are options. The exit of Karma segment indicates that it has been a costly experiment for the company. Nick Woodman; GoPro CEO and Founder said that ...

Honor 9 Lite with full-screen display, dual front and rear cameras to launch in India this month exclusively on Flipkart

Earlier this week Huawei’s Honor brand announced that it will launch a new smartphone with dual front and rear cameras in India this month. Now Honor and Flipkart have confirmed that it is indeed the Honor 9 Lite and the phone will be launched exclusively on Flipkart. It has a 5.65-inch full HD+ full-screen display with 18:9 aspect ratio and comes with a 13-megapixel front and rear cameras along with a secondary 2-megapixel rear camera to capture depth information.  It is powered by Kirin 659 SoC, similar most other mid-range Huawei and Honor phones, but this runs on Android 8.0 (Oreo) with EMIUI 8.0 out-of-the-box. It has a metal frame, glass back, has a fingerprint sensor on the back that can unlock the phone in 0.25 seconds and packs a 3000mAh battery. Honor 9 Lite specifications 5.65-inch (2160 x 1080 pixels) Full HD+ 18:9 2.5D curved glass display Octa-Core Kirin 659 processor (4 xA53 at 2.36GHz + 4 x A53 at 1.7GHz) with MaliT830-MP2 GPU 3GB RAM with 32GB storage, 4GB RAM with 32GB / 64GB storage, expandable memory up to 256GB with microSD Android 8.0 (Oreo) with EMUI 8.0 Hybrid Dual SIM (nano+nano/microSD) 13MP rear camera with f/2.0 aperture, LED flash, secondary 2MP camera, PDAF 13MP front-facing ...

Sony MP-CD1 ultra-portable mobile projector with 120-inch projection announced

Sony at the CES 2018 announced the MP-CD1 ultra-portable Mobile Projector. The projector which can easily fit in your palm can project up to up to 120 inches in size from a short distance of 3.5m and weighs just 281 grams and measures 83.0 mm x 16.0 mm x 150.0 mm.  The Sony MP-CD1 ultra-portable Mobile Projector's vibrant display uses Texas Instruments’ DLP IntelliBright technology which employs advanced image processing algorithms to boost brightness without compromising on battery consumption. The unique design allows it to minimize heat while still maintaining high brightness. It can project up to up to 120 inches in size at a resolution of 854 x 480 It comes with 105 ANSI lumens and 5,000mAh built-in battery that offers up to two hours of projection time. The projector's auto keystone correction provides full-screen display without distortion even when projected from an angle or onto an uneven surface. It connects HDMI connection, and the company is claiming five-second bootup time. It connects via a standard USB-C port and rated at 5V 3A. The Sony MP-CD1 will be available in the spring of 2018 and is priced at $399.99 (Rs.25,505 approx.).

OnePlus 5T Lava Red Special Edition smartphone launched in India

OnePlus introduced the Lava Red edition of the OnePlus 5T smartphone in China back in November. Today it has launched the new color variant of the smartphone in India. This has black bezel on the front and comes with bright red finish on the back and the sides of the phone. It recently launched the 5T Star Wars edition in India and introduced the 5T Sandstone White Limited Edition for global markets last week. Regarding the new Lava Red edition, OnePlus said: Inspired by the dynamic nature of lava with colors that change under different types of light, the radiant Lava Red color shade is achieved through accurate combination of temperature, consistency and baking time with less than 0.01% variation. Additionally, it uses two anodic oxidation processes, using double blasting and an AF coating to ensure the texture and feel. A completely redesigned wallpaper unique to this edition further enhances the user experience. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTT41SbtfZw Other than the color, other specifications are similar, including a 6.01-inch Full HD+ Optic AMOLED Display with an 18:9 aspect ratio, 16-megapixel primary rear camera and a 20-megapixel secondary camera with f/1.7 aperture, 16-megapixel front-facing camera, Android 7.1.1 (Nougat) with Oxygen OS, Snapdragon 835 Mobile Platform, and a 3300mAh battery with Dash Charge. The OnePlus 5T Lava Red version with 8GB RAM and 128GB storage is ...