ASUS ZenFone Max Pro (M1) goes on open sale in India from August 2

ASUS just launched the Zenfone Max Pro M1 smartphone in India back in April, and the phone went on sale from May 3rd in 3GB RAM with 32GB storage version and the 4GB RAM with 64GB storage versions starting at  Rs. 10,999. The 6GB RAM with 64GB storage version with 16MP primary rear and 16MP front camera went on sale in the country from July 26th Rs. 14,999. Today the company has confirmed that all the variants of the ZenFone Max Pro (M1) will be available through open sale starting August 2nd, exclusively on Flipkart. We already brought you the review of the 3GB RAM version of the smartphone, and will bring you the review of 6GB RAM version with improved cameras this week. Confirming the news, Dinesh Sharma, Director Mobile Product, ASUS India said: ASUS’, first-ever ‘Made for India’ smartphone, ZenFone Max Pro (M1), has gained massive popularity and received enormous support. In just 3 months from the launch, ZenFone Max Pro (M1), is branded as the strongest player under the price category, and we are overwhelmed with the response. To cater to the incredible demand, we have worked diligently to ramp up the supplies of ZenFone Max Pro (M1) [3/32 and 4/64 variants] so that fans can ...

iOS 12 beta hints at rumoured iPhone X Plus with iPad-like landscape app design

Apple is rumored to launch the large 6.5-inch iPhone X Plus later this year with a screen resolution of 1242 x 2688 pixels. Now according to a Brazilian Apple news site iHelpBR, there were pieces of evidence found in the latest iOS 12 beta update that more or less confirms the resolution and suggests the iPhone X Plus will support iPad-like landscape mode. Despite the presence of a large 5.8-inch display on the iPhone X, it does not support the iPad-like landscape mode throughout the operating system, but rather only supports limited app interfaces in landscape mode. Testing the iOS simulator and XCode with iOS 12 at a resolution of 1242 x 2688 pixels, it is discovered that the stock applications such as Calendar, Contacts, and Messages are already being optimized for a broader landscape layout. For instance, take the Calendar app which displays dates on one side, while events on the other side.  Contacts let you view a single contact card on one side and your full list of contacts on the other. Apple seems to be finally addressing the most asked implementation of the landscape with this year’s 6.5-inch iPhone X Plus. Source | Via

LG opens AI Research Lab in Toronto, Canada

LG Electronics has opened a new AI Research Lab in Canada soon after the opening of LG Silicon Valley AI Lab in Santa Clara, California. This will further enhance LG’s global research capabilities, which include AI labs in South Korea, India and Russia, said LG.  The company is entering into a new five-year, multi-million-dollar research partnership with the University of Toronto, which is recognised worldwide for its AI and machine learning expertise, particularly in the area of deep learning. With this the company will build on its Open Platform-Open Partnership-Open Connectivity strategy to expand the AI ecosystem. The new lab will capitalize on the expertise of researchers at the University of Toronto who will now have the opportunity to work collaboratively with LG’s growing U.S. and Canadian AI R&D teams.  Complementing this work, LG intends to collaborate with and invest in North American start-ups. Commenting on the launch, LG Electronics President and Chief Technology Officer Dr. I.P. Park, said: AI will ultimately touch everybody’s lives, transforming the way we live, work and play. Early implementations of AI in connected devices today are setting the stage for tomorrow’s smart cities, smart homes, smart businesses and smart devices, all with capabilities that no one has even ...

Huawei Mate 20 Pro with 6.3-inch AMOLED display, Kirin 980 7nm SoC, in-display fingerprint sensor said to launch later this year

Huawei is prepping to launch its Mate 20, Huawei Mate 20 Lite, and Huawei Mate 20 Pro smartphones later this year.  The high-end Mate 20 Pro flagship will pack triple rear cameras like the P20 series along with an in-display fingerprint sensor,  wireless charging, and Porsche Design Huawei Mate RS model.  Thanks to @FunkyHuawei who have obtained the firmware files of Mate 20 Pro, we now have first-hand details about the upcoming flagship. As one would expect, the Mate 20 Pro will be the first phone to be powered by the HiSilicon Kirin 980 SoC with a maximum of 2.8GHz clock speeds. Kirin 980 brings a new 7nm FinFET technology with improvements in both performance and power efficiency. The chipset is rumored to have 20% better performance and to be 40% more power efficient than the current-generation chipsets. Huawei is expected to introduce the HiSilicon Kirin 980 on August 31st during Huawei’s IFA Keynote. The Huawei Mate 20 is expected to pack a 4,200mAh battery compared to the rumored 4000mAh battery on the Galaxy Note 9. It is expected to sport a  6.3-inch AMOLED display and since the phone is expected to pack wireless charger, it will be featuring a glass back.  It is rumored to pack 6GB RAM ...

Huawei surpasses Apple to become second biggest smartphone vendor worldwide with 54.2 million shipments in Q2 2018: IDC

According to the research data from the International Data Corporation (IDC), smartphone vendors shipped a total of 342.0 million units in the Q2 2018, resulting in a 1.8% decline when compared to the 348.2 million units shipped in the second quarter of 2017. With this drop, it is the third consecutive quarter of year-over-year decline for the global smartphone market.   For the first time, Huawei moved to second place surpassing Apple and this is also the first time since Q2 2010 where Apple has not been the number one or two smartphone company in terms of market share. Huawei has shipped a total of 54.2 million units with a record high market share of 15.8%. Samsung maintained its lead in the first place with 71.5 million shipments. However, its Q2 2018 earnings suggest that its mobile division revenues will face challenges moving forward. Apple has been pushed to third place as the company was only able to ship 41.3 million units, with a market share of 12.1% compared to 11.8% from the same time last year. Following Apple is Xioami with a phenomenal 31.9 million shipments and a 9.3% market share. OPPO is closing in on Xiaomi with 29.4 million shipments and an 8.6% market share. Ryan Reith, program vice president with ...

Apple reports $11.5 billion profit on $53.3 billion revenue in FY Q3 2018, 41.3 million iPhones sold

Apple has reported quarterly revenue of $53.3 billion, up 17 % over last year with a net profit of $11.5 billion, up 32.1% YoY or earnings per share of $2.34, an increase of 40% over last year in their earnings for the financial year Q3 2018 that ended June 30, 2018. During earnings call Tim Cook said that the growth was  due to strong performance of iPhone, services and wearables. Apple CEO Time Cook, during earnings call said that iPhone had a very strong quarter, and revenue from iPhone was up 20% year-over-year and the active installed base grew by double-digits, driven by switchers, first time smartphone buyers and existing customer. iPhone X was the most popular iPhone in the quarter once again, with a customer satisfaction score of 98% according to 451 Research. Services sector generated all-time record revenue of $9.5 billion fueled in part by double-digit growth in the overall active installed base Apple Music grew by over 50% on a year-over-year basis Siri requests have already exceeded 100 billion so far this fiscal year Apple Pay continues to expand with well over 1 billion transactions last quarter, triple the amount from just a year ago Apple Pay is now ...

ARCore v1.4 brings support for first Chromebook, Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL

Google is rolling out an update to its ARCore and this time it brings support for Chrome OS with the recently released Acer Chromebook Tab 10. Also joining the list are the codenames associated with the Pixel 3, and Pixel 3 XL; blueline and crosshatch. The supported devices list is compiled from the device profiles included within the ARCore APK and these profiles are usually associated with device codename, and this is why some of the names are still unknown. However, the presence of the profiles doesn't automatically mean device support is fully operational. The list of supported devices include Acer Chromebook Tab 10, GooglePixel 3 [blueline], Pixel 3 XL [crosshatch], Huawei nova 3, an unknown? [HWSNE], Motorola Moto X4, Nokia 8, RED Hydrogen One, SamsungGalaxy A6, also rumored are Galaxy Tab S4 [gts4llte, gts4llteatt, gts4lltechn, gts4lltekx, gts4lltespr, gts4lltetmo, gts4llteusc, gts4lltevzw, gts4lwifi, gts4lwifichn], Sony Xperia X Compact, Xperia X Performance, XZ2, Vivo NEX A NEX S, Vivo 1805, Xiaomi Mi 8 SE, Pocophone F1. You can install the ARCore app from the Play Store but it might take few days time for the update to hit the Play Store. Alternatively, you can you can download the APK if you would like to side-load it. Source

Sony Mobile losses widen in FY Q1 2018, 2 million smartphones shipped

Sony Corporation has reported its revenues for the first quarter of the financial year 2018 that ended June 30, 2018. Sales increased by 5% to 1,953.6 billion yen compared to the same quarter last year due to strong growth in its Gaming and Networking division. Operating profit increased 24% to 195 billion yen year-on-year due to improvements of operating results in the G&NS segment, especially increase in PS4 software sales including sales through the network. Its Mobile communications division reported sales of 132.5 billion yen, down 26.8% from 181.2 billion yen. It reported 10.8 billion yen loss, compared to 3.6 billion yen profit a year ago. This is mainly due to decrease in unit sales of smartphones mainly in Europe and Japan. The company shipped just 2 million smartphones, compared to 3.4 million a year earlier. It has also reduced full year smartphone shipment target to 9 million from 10 million units. As a result, it has reduced its sales forecast to 610 billion yen and operating loss forecast to 30 billion yen in FY 2018 due to decrease in smartphone unit sales mainly in Europe and  negative impact of foreign exchange rates "Since there is a risk that the competitive environment will become even more severe, we have ...

Motorola One Android One smartphone with 6.2-inch FHD+ 19:9 display, dual-rear cameras, Android 8.1 gets certified

After the One Power, the Motorola One Android One smartphone with the model number XT1943 has been certified by TENAA in China. This reveals a glass back, 6.18-inch FHD+ 19:9 aspect ratio screen with a notch, 1.8GHz / 1.6GHz Octa-Core SoC, up to 6GB RAM, 16MP + 5MP dual rear cameras and a  12MP front camera. [caption id="attachment_259708" align="aligncenter" width="575"] Image AH[/caption] Motorola One  (XT1943) rumored specifications 6.18-inch (2246 × 1080 pixels) Full HD+ display with 19:9 aspect ratio 1.6GHz / 1.8GHz Octa-Core processor 6GB / 4GB / 3GB RAM with 32GB / 64GB / 128GB internal storage, expandable memory up to 128GB with microSD Hybrid Dual SIM (nano + nano / microSD) Android 8.1 (Oreo) 16MP rear camera with LED flash, 5MP secondary rear camera 12MP front-facing camera Fingerprint sensor Dimensions:  155.8×75.9×8.9mm; Weight: 170g 4G VoLTE, WiFi 802.11 ac (2.4GHz + 5GHz), Bluetooth 5, GPS + GLONASS 2820mAh battery with fast charging The Motorola One is expected to come in Black, Gold and Silver colors. Both the Motorola One and Motorola One Power are expected to be announced at an event in Chicago on August 2nd along with the Moto Z3 and Z3 Force. Source

iBall Aasaan4 with 2.31-inch display, Talking keypad launched for senior citizens

iBall today has launched the Aasaan 4, the latest addition to the Aasaan series. The Aasaan series phones are targeted at senior citizens. The company says that the Aasaan4 focuses on the holistic needs of seniors with a bigger screen. The phone comes with unique features like ‘Braille & Talking keypad’ for the visually impaired as well as mobile tracker which alerts one of the predefined family members once the new SIM card is inserted. It sports a 2.31-inches display with large dialling keys. Users who are not conversant with Braille can activate the talking keypad feature that speaks out the digit pressed in English. The Aasaan4 rocks an SOS feature which will come in handy when users want to get help during emergencies. Once the SOS button is set off, it will alert the people nearby and also sends SMS to 5 predefined numbers. It comes with Medicine reminder and Hearing Aid feature allows conversations with better clarity. It packs a 1800mAh battery, Dual SIM, support for up to 32GB storage through microSD. It also comes with built-in FM Radio,  chambered speaker and also supports 10 Indian Regional System languages and also multi-Indian Regional languages with 'Read and Write' support for SMS. The iBall Aasaan4 is ...