Global smartphone shipments with embedded hardware security grows by 39% YoY in 2019: Report

In recent times, we have seen a push towards smartphone manufacturers taking the security of their devices more seriously. According to a report, about one-third of global smartphones sold in 2019 had some level of embedded hardware security chips in them, with Apple continuing to be in the lead. Evident from their marketing, the company that leads the market share of secure devices is Apple with a nearly 42% share in 2019. Since the iPhone 5s, Apple has been embedding a Secure Enclave (eSE) in their phones, ensuring data stays protected during a malware attack. They have lost some of this share, coming down from 60% in 2018, but that understandable as more devices show up with security chips in them. Huawei saw its market share of phones with embedded hardware security chips from 21% in 2018 to 34% in 2019. They use integrated secure element (inSE) on its SoCs, which include their HiSilicon Kirin 960, 970, 980, 990 and 710. Other major manufacturers like Xiaomi, OnePlus, OPPO, Samsung and Google use Qualcomm's Secure Processing Unit (SPU) in their devices. Samsung also implements their Physically Unclonable function (PUF), that serves as a unique identifier in the Exynos 9820 and 9825 SoCs. Commenting on ...

Xiaomi India teases new audio product launch on February 17, could be portable speaker

Xiaomi's Redmi brand recently launched the Redmi 8A Dual, 10000 and 20000mAh power banks in India. At the start of the year, the company said that it will bring more Mi branded products to India. On similar lines, Xiaomi has officially teased a new audio product launch in India on February 17th, 2020. The teaser posted by Xiaomi India reads “Time to go big on sound. 🔊 While you take a guess, do think about where will you #CarryYourSound. Unveiling on 17th February”. While it is not clear what the actual product is, going by the hashtag #CarryYourSound, we can expect the company to expand its speaker lineup with a new portable speaker or it could launch true wireless earbuds (finally?). Time to go big on sound. 🔊 While you take a guess, do think about where will you #CarryYourSound. Unveiling on 17th February. pic.twitter.com/8sqZ9TK1lI — Mi India #108MP IS COMING! (@XiaomiIndia) February 13, 2020 Furthermore, a close look at the image in the teaser reveals a diaphragm of a speaker. So, it indeed could be a portable speaker. We should know more information once the company unveils the product officially on February 17.

Essential is shutting down, Essential phone PH-1 won’t get any future updates

Back in 2017, Android creator Andy Rubin launched the Essential brand and the Essential Phone PH-1 was the company's first smartphone. After almost 3 years, the company is shutting down and it confirmed that the PH-1 smartphone won't be receiving future updates. Post-2017, there was no new launch from the brand and late last year, the company introduced 'Project GEM' which was a new mobile experience that the hardware, software and cloud teams built and tested over the past few years. However, it didn't go well for the company, and they did not have a “clear path” to deliver the project to users, resulting in the shut down of the company. The Essential Phone PH-1 received the latest Android security update last week and it is the last update from the Essential team. However, the PH-1 will continue to work, but won't receive any future updates nor customer support. The company will be hosting resources on its Github page letting developers build custom ROMs for the Essential Phone PH-1. Essential even teased a unique “GEM” phone with radically different form factor back in October last year. Furthermore, Essential also owns Newton Mail and it is also shutting down on April 30th, 2020, and current ...

iQOO 3 5G smartphone with Snapdragon 865 launching in India this February on Flipkart

Last month Vivo's iQOO (stands for ‘I Quest On and On’) sub-brand confirmed that it will launch its first product for the Indian market in February powered by Snapdragon 865 Mobile Platform and with 5G support. Last week it also launched iqoo.com/in/ website. Today the company has confirmed that it is the iQOO 3 and will be launched in India on Flipkart. It is the same phone which will be introduced in China on February 25th. The company has also posted the first teaser video. Hardcore doesn't show out there. But, deep down it belongs to everyone. #iQuestOnAndOn Coming Soon pic.twitter.com/xY3gMC2OcS — iQOO (@IqooInd) February 13, 2020 The phone will come with up to 12GB LPDDR5 RAM and will be the first phone to come with UFS 3.1 storage. TENAA listing already revealed the specifications of the phone. Vivo iQOO 3 (V1955A) rumored specifications 6.44-inch (2400 × 1080 pixels) Full HD+ 20:9 Super AMOLED 2.5D curved glass display 2.84GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 865 7nm Mobile Platform with Adreno 650 GPU 6GB/8GB/12GB LPDDR5 RAM with 128GB / 256GB (UFS 3.1) storage Android 10 with Funtouch OS 10 Dual SIM (nano + nano) 64MP primary camera with Sony IMX686 sensor, LED flash, 13MP ultra wide sensor, 13MP telephoto / ...

WhatsApp crosses 2 billion users worldwide

WhatsApp which was acquired by Facebook in 2014 crossed 1 billion users worldwide in July 2017 and undoubtedly, it is popular among many users worldwide. After crossing a 1.5 billion user milestone in 2018, WhatsApp has now announced that it has hit the next milestone. Facebook's WhatsApp has crossed 2 billion users globally and the rate at which the messaging app has grown is incredible. In a dedicated blog post, the company has detailed the features of WhatsApp and tells us how it has connected users worldwide. It also details how users can make use of the platform to reach their loved ones no matter where they are, how businesses can grow by connecting with their customers, and more. The blog post also emphasizes on WhatsApp's end-to-end encryption and adds that the company won't compromise on security and it works with top security experts to employ industry-leading technology. In related news, WhatsApp recently got approval from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and this means, WhatsApp Pay could officially roll out for all users in India soon. WhatsApp in a blog post said: We are excited to share that, as of today, WhatsApp supports more than two billion users around the world. Source

OPPO India appoints Elvis Zhou as president

OPPO today announced that it has appointed Elvis Zhou as the President of its India Operations who will be spearheading OPPO’s business strategy in India. He will report to Charles Wong, Vice President, Global Sales at OPPO. He has spent over 11 years with OPPO in various roles starting as the regional manager of OPPO East Guangdong wherein he was responsible for sales in the region. He played a critical role in the global expansion of OPPO to the Indian market in 2013 and has been associated with OPPO India for over 6 years now. He also served as the general manager of OPPO Mumbai. Welcoming Mr. Zhou on board, Charles Wong, Vice President of Global Sales, OPPO said: Elvis has been an integral part of the OPPO India. His experience in the smartphone industry makes him the ideal person to lead our ambitious India growth strategy as we expand our operations. We extend a warm welcome and congratulate him on his new role. Commenting on his new role, Elvis Zhou, President of OPPO India said: OPPO has emerged out to be a leading smartphone player in the Indian market under Mr. Wong’s guidance. I am extremely excited to take on this new role at ...

OPPO Reno3 Pro with 44MP dual punch-hole front camera teased ahead of India launch

OPPO has started teasing the Reno3 Pro smartphone on its website, Flipkart and Amazon.in ahead of India launch in the next few weeks. This is completely different from Reno3 Pro 5G smartphone which was introduced in China back in December. "OPPO Reno3 Pro with its #DualPunchHole Camera is coming soon to let you witness the world, Clear in Every Shot," says the company. It has also posted a new short ad starring actor Vidyut Jammwal. It also has #TwoIsBetterThanOne. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Lqd8w_fm6o In the first teaser image it says: Introducing Dual Punch Hole Camera in OPPO Reno3 Pro. It helps create dream-like images with Dual Lens Bokeh. The Dual Front Camera provides a Binocular Bokeh Effect by sharpening the edges and producing background gradient. The OPPO Reno3 Pro sports 44MP punch-hole front camera, making it the first phone in the world to sport the same, and the secondary camera is a  2MP depth sensor for portrait. In comparison, the Reno3 Pro 5G sports a single punch-hole front camera to the left. We should know more details including the launch date of the phone in the coming days.

GSMA cancels MWC Barcelona 2020 due to coronavirus concerns

Novel coronavirus outbreak has impacted a lot of people in China, and several companies already announced that are cancelling their major launch events at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2020 due to global concern regarding the coronavirus outbreak. Now the GSMA has announced that it has cancelled MWC Barcelona 2020 which was originally scheduled from February 24th to 27th. In a statement it said that it was not possible for the GSMA to hold the event due to global concern regarding the coronavirus outbreak, travel concern and other circumstances. This is the first time GSMA is canceling the yearly event since the first edition of Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in 2006. It added that the Host City Parties respect and understand this decision and said that the GSMA and the Host City Parties will continue to be working in unison and supporting each other for MWC Barcelona 2021 and future editions. Since the MWC even has been cancelled, all the companies that originally planned to introduce their new devices are expected to announce separate event sometime next month. Source

Xiaomi launches Mi Protective Glass for the Redmi Note 8 for Rs. 399

After launching tempered glass screen protector for the Redmi Note 8 Pro back in December, the company has launched Mi Protective Glass for the Redmi Note 8 smartphone. Xiaomi says that the Mi Protective Glass is made in association with Corning. Comprising of multiple layers that include an oleophobic coating, Xiaomi claims a 5X protection improvement over local soda lime tempered glass, says the company. It offers high visibility for full clarity and color and is rated with 9H hardness. Since the sensor placement and display size on older Redmi Note 7 series is same as Redmi Note 8, it should work on those phones too. Hope we can expect similar tempered glass for more Redmi phones in the future. The Mi Protective Glass for the Redmi Note 8 is available for purchase online on Mi.com for a price of Rs. 399. In the other news, Xiaomi has increased the price of Redmi Note 8 4GB + 64GB version by Rs. 500.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 (4GB + 64GB) gets Rs. 500 price hike in India

Xiaomi's Redmi unveiled the Redmi Note 8 series in the country back in October, the Pro variant has been the talk of the town since the launch but vanilla Redmi Note 8 priced at 9,999 (for the base variant with 64 GB storage) was also an incredible value for money. To recall, Redmi Note 8 packs a  6.39-inch Full HD+ LCD screen with 90% screen-to-body ratio, and is powered by Snapdragon 665 11nm Mobile Platform with up to 6GB RAM. The smartphone packs 5 cameras in total, including a quad-camera array at the back and a 13-megapixel camera on the front. Now, the company has increased price of the base variant by INR 500 making it INR 10,499 for 4GB RAM with 64GB storage. The company has not made a formal announcement for the same but the new price is already live on mi.com as well as amazon.in. Also, Redmi Note 8 64GB storage variant is now available only on prepaid orders. We are not sure what are the factors resulting in the price hike but we can hope Xiaomi to make an official announcement for the same. The price for the 6GB RAM with 128GB storage variant remains unaffected and can still ...