Google denies Hangouts shutdown, will upgrade users to Hangouts Chat and Hangouts Meet

After reports of Google shutting down Hangouts to consumers in 2020, Google’s Scott Johnston who runs Hangouts and other related products has denied the reports, however, said that users of consumer Hangouts users will be “upgraded” to Hangouts Chat and Hangouts Meet which are enterprise-focused products.  2/ So while that will result in the eventual shut down of Hangouts classic (as we now call it), it doesn't imply we are ending support for the use case supported by the product: messaging and meetings. — Scott Johnston (@happyinwater) December 1, 2018 This indirectly for the first time confirms that Hangouts Classic will be shutting down “eventually.” Meaning, all the existing Hangouts classic users will be upgraded to Hangouts Chat and Hangouts Meet which are enterprise related products that fill a different need, and the legacy Hangouts which is now available for consumers will be shut down eventually. Google says that it is “fully committed to supporting classic Hangouts users” until a ‘successful’ migration to the new services. No timeline for the transition was provided yet. In a statement, Google said: In March 2017, we announced plans to evolve classic Hangouts to focus on two experiences that help bring teams together: Hangouts Chat and Hangouts Meet. Both Chat and Meet are available today for ...

San Diego federal court sets Apple and Qualcomm trial for April 15th as settlements are unlikely

With settlement between Apple and Qualcomm looking unlikely at this point, the trial for Qualcomm long legal war has been set to begin April 15 in San Diego federal court. U.S. District Judge Gonzalo Curiel scheduled the trial at a hearing Friday. Though Qualcomm had sought to begin the trial in February, Curiel said the April date was needed to accommodate the court’s schedule. He also noted that the complexity of the litigation and the prominence to the Qualcomm and Apple require more time. Earlier this week, Qualcomm Chief Executive Steve Mollenkopf said that the San Diego cellular technology firm was “on the doorstep of finding a resolution” to the dispute with Apple. However, Apple attorney William Isaacson told Curiel on Friday that a settlement wasn’t in the cards. Since early 2017, Qualcomm and Apple have been waging a wide-ranging legal war over royalties that Qualcomm charges for use of its patented cellular technology. As for Apple, it no longer pays royalties to Qualcomm and has also ditched using Qualcomm chips from the latest iPhone models. Qualcomm has sought to ban iPhone imports in the U.S., Germany, and China. It also has accused Apple of stealing trade secrets and supplying them to rival Intel. According ...

Uber said to be in talks to acquire Bird or Lime scooter-sharing startups

According to latest report, Uber is said to be in talks with Bird on a possible “multibillion-dollar” acquisition and, as a fallback, Uber has also been talking to smaller competitor Lime as well. Uber already owns a minority stake in Lime. Partnership with Lime earlier this year brought electric scooters to Uber’s app. Both the sides are said to be focusing on getting the deal done as Uber is trying to lock up the market before it gets flooded. The report suggests that Uber is looking to secure a deal with either Bird or Lime before the end of the year, which suggests negotiations are already at an advanced stage. Bird CEO Travis VanderZanden, without denying the on-going speculation said that  “Bird is not for sale,” which may or may not be a negotiating tactic. There's also a possibility that no agreement is reached between any of the three parties, but what looks sure is that we will be heading to 2019 with Uber in a commendable position at the top in the scooter-sharing market. Source

Microsoft Surface roadmap reveals refreshed Surface Pro, disc-less Xbox, foldable Andromeda and more for 2019

Microsoft watcher Brad Sams latest revelations suggest that 2019 is going to be a busy year for Microsoft as it lays out a potential roadmap of hardware releases for the company over the next couple of years. It includes refreshes and some new versions of products like Surface Pro, Xbox, and also an update to the mysterious “Andromeda." While Microsoft's push towards smartphone business was never fruitful, the Surface division is a different story altogether and it was quite as successful as it could rival Apple in the high-end market. Microsoft’s most recent quarter, Surface revenue jumped 14% over the previous year, to $1.18 billion. A possible roadmap includes the newest version of the Surface Pro tablet, with a USB-C port, smaller bezels, rounded corners, and several new color options. This could come in the fourth quarter of 2019. Up next is a Surface Laptop that could be powered by an AMD processor rather than usual Intel processor and this could also launch towards the end of 2019. Sometime in Spring of 2019, Microsoft said to hold an event to unveil an “ambient computing” device that can sense and respond to user presence. The product is designed to help deal with some common frustrations of using a smartphone, ...

Apple Music beta update for Android brings tablet support, new bottom navigation bar and more

Apple Music for Android is getting a new beta update which brings a new bottom navigation bar, instead of the hamburger menu for navigation. The update also finally brings support for tablets and the app adapts to bigger screens.  The update brings performance related improvements for images and audio playback and various bug fixes. Despite being an Apple product, Apple Music for Android is quickly gaining new features, it started partial Google Assistant integration and previously made it work with Android Auto. This new update brings the version number to 2.7.o. You can either sign up for beta testing on Play Store or download the APK and side-load it. Apple Music beta update Changelog: Tablet Support: Enjoy Apple Music with an experience designed for a wider range of Android devices. Performance improvements for images and audio playback. Various bug fixes. Source

Apple AirPods 2 with wireless charging case said to be announced in Q1 2019; All new model in 2020: Kuo

Apple AirPods second-gen was initially expected to be announced at the new iPhones event back in September, however, it didn't go through. Later it was anticipated that the company would make them official at the October 30th special event, but nothing. In a new brief research note, noted analyst Ming-Cho Kuo predicts that the new AirPods with wireless charging case will debut in Q1 2019. Kuo highlights that "all-new design model" will be following in Q1 2020 and these new refreshed models are expected to drive strong sales growth for AirPods. Kuo notes that fewer than 5% of iPhone users currently own AirPods, and with over 1 billion iPhone users worldwide, there are "great potential growth opportunities" for the accessory. To remind you, Kuo, a year back predicted that Apple would launch upgraded AirPods in the second half of 2018, but Apple's difficulties in bringing its AirPower charging mat to market have undoubtedly impacted its AirPods plans as well. Ahead of the October 30th, Kuo predicted that he was uncertain about the timing for an AirPods update, suggesting that there is a delay and AirPods could come late in Q4 or Q1 of 2019. In the latest research note, Kuo said: We attribute AirPods' dramatic growth ...

Supercell to release Brawl Stars for Android and iOS globally on December 12

Update: Supercell has confirmed that Brawl Stars will be released globally on December 12th. Brawl Stars Will Release Globally on December 12th! If you have not pre-registered yet go to https://t.co/CNiU5xJW3U! pic.twitter.com/63lxp2Rv1V — Brawl Stars (@BrawlStars) December 1, 2018 Earlier: Supercell, creators of popular Clash of Clans and Clash Royale games announced Brawl Stars, a new 3v3 multiplayer shooter game back in June last year, and it soft launched the game in select countries back in June this year. Today the company has announced that the game will launch globally in December on both Android and iOS. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=geBtyZP2qIM In this game you unlock a variety of rough and tumble characters with different play styles and punishing SUPER abilities. There are five different game modes – Showdown, Gem Grab, Bounty and Heist. You also need to collect power points and get Gold to upgrade and unlock your Brawlers. Brawl Stars – Android pre-registration  Team up for real-time 3v3 battles against players from across the world A fast-paced multiplayer battle royale mode made for mobile Unlock and collect new, powerful Brawlers - each with a signature attack and SUPER ability New events and game modes daily Battle solo or co-op Climb to the top of the leaderboards in global and local ...

Vivo NEX 2 with dual displays, triple rear cameras, in-display fingerprint sensor teased, to be announced this December

Vivo introduced its NEX smartphone back in June, now after rumors, the company has started teasing the sucessor in three new videos in China. These teasers confirm dual displays for the smartphone, triple rear cameras, and a ring light around the camera. Dual displays will be similar to the Nubia X without a notch since it doesn’t have a front camera. The earpiece is present on the edge, as seen in the images. Since there is a display on the back, you can use rear cameras to take selfies. It will feature an in-display fingerprint sensor. Check out the teaser videos below. [embed]https://1253128055.vod2.myqcloud.com/db0c6f87vodtransgzp1253128055/bc6e4b395285890783294498162/v.f40.mp4[/embed] [embed]https://1253128055.vod2.myqcloud.com/db0c6f87vodtransgzp1253128055/c0d0c6535285890783294659121/v.f40.mp4[/embed] The phone is expected to be powered by Snapdragon 845 SoC with up to 8GB of RAM, similar to the predecessor. The Vivo NEX 2 will go official sometime later this month. Even though it is rumored to be announced on December 11th, we should know the exact date in the coming days. We should also know the complete specifications of the phone once it gets certified. Source 1, 2

ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M2 with 6-inch FHD+ display, Snapdragon 660, 5000mAh battery launching in India on December 11

ASUS has finally confirmed that it will launch the Zenfone Max Pro M2 smartphone in India on December 11th, same date as Indonesia. It will be exclusively launched on Flipkart. The company confirmed notch display with Corning Gorilla Glass 6 protection, Snapdragon SoC, Sony sensor for the rear camera and a large battery promising over two days of battery life. We had already seen images of the smartphone  that revealed a glass back and rear-mounted fingerprint sensor. Rumored specifications include a 6-inch FHD+ screen, Snapdragon 660 SoC with up to 6GB of RAM, 12-megapixel rear camera with  Sony IMX486 sensor, secondary 5-megapixel camera and a 5000mAh battery. ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M2 rumored specifications 6.26-inch (2280 × 1080 pixels) Full HD+ 19:9 display with Corning Gorilla Glass 6 protection Octa Core Snapdragon 660 14nm Mobile Platform (Quad 2.2GHz Kryo 260 + Quad 1.8GHz Kryo 260 CPUs) with Adreno 512 GPU 4GB RAM with 64GB storage, 6GB RAM with 128GB storage, expandable memory with microSD Android 8.1 (Oreo) Dual SIM 12MP rear camera with LED flash, Sony IMX486 sensor, f/1.8 aperture, 1.25μm pixel size, PDAF, EIS, secondary 5MP camera 13MP front camera with f/2.0 aperture, LED flash Fingerprint sensor 3.5mm audio jack, NXP Smart Amp Dual 4G ...

Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 with Snapdragon 660, 6-inch FHD+ display and Asus Zenfone Max M2 surface in press renders

It is already known that Asus is working on a sequel to the Zenfone Max M1; the Max M2 (ZB631KL) and Zenfone Max Pro M2 (ZB633KL). These new phones are expected to pack huge batteries like the predecessor but the most important thing is the brand new design as well as upgraded hardware. The ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M2 is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 SoC clocked at 2.2GHz Octa-Core processor, while the regular model will have the same Snapdragon 636 SoC clocked at 1.8GHz Octa-Core processor. Both the variants will post a 6-inch Full HD+ 19:5:9 notch display. The notch is slightly wider on the Max M2 than on the Max Pro M2. The ZenFone Max M2 comes in two variants; 4GB RAM and 32GB storage and another with the same 4GB RAM and 64GB storage. The Max Pro M2 comes with 4GB RAM and storage options include 64/128GB with support for the microSD card slot. The Pro variant will also have a 6GB RAM variant just like the Pro M1. The ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M2 expected to pack a 12-megapixel Sony IMX486 sensor on the back, coupled with a 5MP secondary shooter. The regular Max M2 will have a 13MP sensor but no further information ...