Gboard for Android uses AI to suggest GIFs, emoji, and stickers during conversation

Google has announced that starting today, Gboard will use AI to suggest GIFs, emoji, and stickers to you related to your conversation. This makes it easier and faster to share and communicate your feelings while having a conversation. The app will have a “GIF” icon that will appear in the top left corner of Gboard. Tap it, and you’ll see a selection of GIFs, emoji and stickers that Gboard thinks you might want to share. If you’re typing “Awesome!” Gboard will suggest this sticker. To make sure these suggestions are private to you and take place as fast as possible, this feature is processed entirely on your device. This feature is initially available globally for Gboard for Android in English only. Over time, it will be expanded to Gboard suggestions to more languages, and more types of content to help you do and say more right from your conversation. Source

Intel XMM 8160 5G modem with 6Gbps speed, sub 6GHz 5G NR support announced

Intel has finally announced the XMM 8160 5G modem that is aimed at providing 5G connectivity to phones, PCs and broadband access gateways. The XMM 8160 5G will support peak speeds up to 6 gigabits per second, making it three to six times faster than the latest LTE modems. The company confirmed that it will be available in the second half of 2019. The Intel XMM 8160 is a multimode modem, meaning it will support the new standard for 5G New Radio (NR), including standalone (SA) and non-standalone (NSA) modes, as well as 4G, 3G and 2G legacy radios in a single chipset. With single-chip multimode baseband capability, the Intel XMM 8160 5G modem will enable device manufacturers to design smaller and more power-efficient devices. Since it is advancing directly to a multimode solution, Intel will offer very clear improvements in power, size, and scalability. Intel’s integrated multimode solution supports simultaneous connectivity (EN-DC) for LTE and 5G – critical as 5G mobile network devices must be backward compatible to 4G if 5G is not available at any moment or at any location. The modem offers support for new millimeter wave (mmWave) spectrum as well as sub 6GHz 5G NR support and download speeds up ...

OnePlus 6T Thunder Purple color variant announced in India, available from November 16

After introducing  the OnePlus 6T Thunder Purple color variant in China earlier this month, OnePlus today announced that it will be coming to India starting November 16, 2018. The special edition comes with a gradient back that fades from black to purple under the frosted glass-backed OnePlus 6T, with the evocative ‘S’ curve racing across the back and highlighting the depth of colour.  OnePlus said that it has paid meticulous attention to detail to craft the perfect look, with a focus on how light reacts to the glass’ haze, roughness, gloss, transparency and reflective qualities. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEELWTJNem4 Other specifications are similar, including a 6.41-inch Optic AMOLED display with 86% screen-to-body ratio, Snapdragon 845 Mobile Platform with up to 8GB of RAM, dual rear camera setup with a 16-megapixel rear camera and 20-megapixel secondary camera, 16-megapixel Sony IMX 371 sensor on the front, Nightscape mode that can recognize night scenes to deliver brighter, more vivid images with more clarity and less noise, in-display fingerprint sensor and a 3700mAh battery. Pete Lau, Founder and CEO, OnePlus, said: The OnePlus 6T Thunder Purple is a stunning combination of power and beauty – the black-to-purple fade is like a thunderstorm on a summer night. We experimented extensively to test how light interacts ...

Samsung Foldable phone said to launch in March 2019

Samsung Electronics which showcased the first foldable smartphone last week is said to be planning on launching it in the market in March 2019 alongside the Galaxy S10 5G variant, according to sources. Samsung is rumored to launch the Galaxy S10 series in February at the MWC 2019 event, and this will be followed by the foldable Galaxy X/F and another edition of Galaxy S10 with 5G in March. This outlook came after Samsung Electronics President Koh Dong-jin, who heads the mobile business, said last week that the company would release a foldable smartphone within the first half of 2019. Koh said that he is expecting the shipment volume of the foldable smartphone will be at least 1 million. Furthermore, the company is also rumored to introduce the upcoming foldable smartphone at the Mobile World Congress in February, ahead of the official launch in the following month. The much-awaited foldable smartphone, however, is not expected to support the 5G network. While the price of the Galaxy foldable phone, sources point at a $1,770 price which is quite steep for limited units. Samsung foldable phone to sport 7.3-inch inner and 4.6-inch outer display. Source

Xiaomi sold over 8.5 million devices worth US$ 1 Billion in one month during festive sales

Xiaomi India  just announced that it sold over 8.5 million devices, including over 6 million smartphones, over 400k Mi TVs and over 2.1 million cosystem products & accessories during Mi Diwali sale in a month - from October 9th to 8th November across mi.com Amazon.in, Flipkart, Mi Home stores and offline stores in India. Xiaomi also said that it remained number one across most of the categories on Amazon and Flipkart and was best-seller in Smartphones, TVs, Wearables, Powerbanks, Home Security, Air Purifier and more categories. Redmi Note 5 Pro was the best-selling smartphone on Flipkart during the festive period. Redmi 6A was the best selling smartphone on Amazon during the festive 30 day period #1 bestseller in smartphone category Mi LED TVs: #1 bestseller in the TV category Mi Band 3: #1 bestseller in the Wearable category Mi Power Bank: #1 bestseller in the powerbanks category All 10 best-selling smartphones on Amazon.in were Xiaomi phones Mi Air Purifier 2S was also in high demand, witnessing sales that were 4.5 times of that done last year across platforms. Raghu Reddy, Head of Categories and Online sales, Xiaomi India said: Festive season sales in India have always been a defining moment in Xiaomi India’s journey. Last ...

Alibaba’s singles day global shopping festival 2018 generated $30.8 billion in 24 hours

Alibaba Group has announced that it generated RMB 213.5 billion that is equivalent to $30.8 billion of gross merchandise volume on November 11th on the occasion of the singles day. This is an increase of 27% compared to 2017. That's a wrap on 11.11 2018! GMV: RMB 213.5 billion, or USD 30.8 billion. pic.twitter.com/isGa7diREM — Alibaba Group (@AlibabaGroup) November 11, 2018 The total GMV settled through Alipay is around RMB 213.5 billion (US$30.8 billion), an increase of 27% compared to 2017. Cainiao Network processed more than 1 billion delivery orders where more than 180,000 brands participated during the sale. Over 40% of consumers who made purchases are international. 237 brands exceeded RMB100 million in GMV, including leading international brands Apple, Dyson, Kindle, Estée Lauder, L’Oréal, Nestlé, Gap, Nike, and Adidas. Top selling countries to China include Japan, the United States, South Korea, Australia, and Germany. Lazada participated in 11.11 as part of the Alibaba ecosystem, bringing the festival to consumers in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. The 11.11 shopping festival began in 2009 with participation from just 27 merchants. Daniel Zhang, CEO of Alibaba Group said: Today we witnessed the strength and rise of China’s consumption economy and consumers’ continued pursuit to upgrade their everyday lifestyles. Participation from ...

Microsoft acquires Obsidian Entertainment and inXile Entertainment gaming studios

Microsoft has announced that it has agreed to acquire two new game development studios; Obsidian Entertainment and inXile Entertainment. Obsidian Entertainment was founded in 2003 by industry veterans from Black Isle Studios, led by Feargus Urquhart. As for inXile Entertainment, it is a team of industry veterans with decades of PC and RPG expertise. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Suvxb0OfhpQ The Obsidian Entertainment studio quickly made a name for itself with the Xbox exclusive Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords. Over the last fifteen years, they have delivered genre-defining RPGs to players on both console and PC through titles including Fallout: New Vegas, South Park: The Stick of Truth, and Pillars of Eternity. Microsoft clarified that both the studios will continue to operate autonomously. As part of Microsoft Studios, Obsidian and inXile will have the support and freedom to fully realize their creative ambitions on both existing franchises and new RPG projects. Together, the two new studios bolster Microsoft Studios to now include 13 distinct and diverse game development teams. Source

Apple’s 2019 iPhones said to come with new combination of antenna technology: Kuo

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is out with yet another investors note that mostly covers antenna technology for the 2019 iPhones. The company is said to move away from the Liquid Crystal Polymer antenna technology, and shift towards a new combination of Modified PI tech. The reason behind this move can be several, for one the company is said to have “lower bargaining power” against LCP material suppliers. However, it’s also more difficult to introduce additional LCP suppliers due to the “complicated production process.” Kuo, further said that LCP is more “brittle” than alternatives and thus has issues with yield rate and improving that yield rate could potentially lower the antenna’s performance. As for the performance of Modified PI antenna, Kuo says that performance “can be as good as LCP thanks to the improved fluoride formula.” The 2019 iPhones will adopt four MPI antennae and two LCP antennae. According to Kuo, the number of suppliers for MPI antennae for the 2019 iPhones will be five. This gives Apple improved bargaining power, with the suppliers having to compete on price. The LCP antennae tech used in the 2019 iPhones will be supplied “exclusively by the Japanese supplier thanks to its better vertical integration.” Kuo says that both LCP and MPI ...

Samsung One UI coming to Galaxy S8, Galaxy S9 and Galaxy Note8

Samsung introduced the One UI last week along with Infinity Flex for foldable smartphones. The new skin is aimed at making the navigation much easier and designed around how we use our phones in the day-to-day. One UI will replace the current Experience UI which was originally known as TouchWiz.  The message is accurate, from a senior Samsung official — Ice universe (@UniverseIce) November 9, 2018 As expected, Samsung's One UI comes to the newest flagships including the Galaxy S9, S9 Plus, Galaxy Note 9. However, in the new update, the One UI will also come to last year's Samsung Galaxy S8, S8 Plus, and Note 8 as well.  Samsung is currently accepting sign-ups for the beta of One UI, through the Samsung Members application which can be downloaded from Galaxy Apps or the Google Play Store. After downloading, log in, go to Notices and select “One UI Beta Program Registration” to submit an application. The One UI to S9, S9 Plus, and Note 9 will be available sometime later this month. Samsung confirmed that One UI will roll out in its stable version early next year, most likely along with the release of Android 9 Pie for the devices. Though we don't know when the One UI would ...

Xbox to get support for Keyboard and Mouse starting November 14th

Microsoft back in September announced that it would soon bring support for mouse and keyboard to Xbox One and it looks like it's here. The company mentioned that it would launch on November 14th. Epic Games' Fortnite will be the first title to offer the support along with Warframe.  Furthermore, Bomber Crew, Deep Rock Galactic, Strange Brigade, Vermintide 2, War Thunder and X-Morph Defense will get the support in November, and Children of Morta, DayZ, Minion Master, Moonlighter, Vigor, Warface, and Wargroove adding support in the future. All the developers will have the tools they need to create tailored mouse and keyboard experiences for their games. Microsoft also announced the general availability of the Xbox Game Pass app on iOS and Android. It is also making games like PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) available to all members beginning on November 12. The company also shared additional details about the Designed for Xbox devices, which include an Xbox keyboard and dynamic lighting. Razer will be the exclusive partner, and the company intends to introduce them at the CES 2019 event. The mouse and mechanical keyboard combo will also be wireless. The company announced that the Xbox Adaptive Controller will launch in 17 new markets in 2019, including Mexico. New countries to offer the ...