China, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia rank top three in smartphone addiction, research shows

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Feb 11, 2022

A new study has revealed the countries with the worst smartphone addiction problems, and China, Malaysia, and Saudi Arabia have ranked top three.

Researchers at McGill University in Canada studied smartphone usage among nearly 34,000 people in 24 countries around the world between 2014 and 2020, and published their findings in the journal Computers in Human Behavior (via Daily Mail).

Surprisingly, US ranked 18, while Germany and France were the lowest in the list.

The Smartphone Addiction Scale is widely used to measure smartphone addiction. It includes aspects related to impact on daily life, uncontrolled use of mobile phones, and withdrawal from smartphone addiction.

The subjects were between 15 and 35 years old, with an average age of 28.8 years, and the majority of the subjects were women (60%).

Researchers also calculated each country’s problematic smartphone use, ranging from 10 to 60. China ranked highest, with a score of 36 out of 60.

The possible reasons behind different scores in different countries were speculated to be social norms and cultural expectations related to motivation to stay connected via smartphones. Countries like Germany and France are “individualistic and culturally loose,” making them less likely to promote such norms.

All in all, it was found that problematic smartphone use is growing globally and can result in “psychological consequences.”

“We conducted a meta-analysis of problematic smartphone use, focusing on young adults,” the research team said in the paper, “Problematic smartphone use increased across the world between 2014 and 2020, and we expect this trend to continue.”

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Here’s the AnTuTu list for the most cost effective phones in Jan 2022

By

Sean

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Feb 11, 2022

Earlier this week, we had reported on AnTuTu’s list for the best performing Android smartphones in the flagship and mid range category in January 2022. Now, we have another AnTuTu list, which showcases the most cost effective phones in multiple price segments in the same month.

In the first segment, AnTuTu listed the most cost effective phones under the 1,999 Yuan (roughly 315 US Dollars) price range. Here, the Realme Q3s topped the list with a cost effective score of 448.9 points. The Redmi Note 10 Pro arrived second in this segment with a cost effective score of 433.5, while the Redmi K40 Game Enhanced Edition came in third with a score of 409. AnTuTu ranked these phones based on the processor they offered, along with their pricing, display, and many other factors as well. The Q3s topped the list thanks to its 144Hz variable refresh rate display, paired with Snapdragon 778 SoC, and more.

Moving forward, the Realme GT topped the list for the segment between 2,000 Yuan and 2,999 Yuan (roughly 470 US Dollars) with a cost effective score of 354.1 points. It managed to achieve this score thanks to its flagship level Snapdragon 888 SoC, UFS 3.1 storage, and 8GB of LPDDR5 memory as well. The Realme GT Neo2T followed close behind with a score of 335.5, while the Lenovo Legion Phone 2 Pro came in third with a 327.1 cost effective score.

Talking about the 3,000 Yuan and 3,999 Yuan (roughly 630 US Dollars) price segment, the Xiaomi 12 took the lead with a cost effective score of 255.8 points. Its features the flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC paired with a premium 6.28 inch AMOLED display and 67W fast charging, which made it a compelling offering despite not being the most expensive model in this segment. The iQOO 9 came second with a 248.9 cost effective score, and Redmi K40 Pro came third with 239.3 points.

Beyond this segment, we see smartphones that are priced around 4,000 Yuan to 4,999 Yuan (roughly 786 US Dollars). Realme managed to take the lead again with its GT2 Pro that received a cost effective rating of 235.7. It was one of the more affordable models in the segment and offered 2nd gen LTPO OLED display with 2K+ resolution. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 powers the device, which also houses two 50 megapixel sensors on the rear. The Xiaomi 12 Pro took the runner up spot with a 207.5 score, and the iQOO 9 Pro was third with 199.3 points.

Lastly, we enter the ultra premium segment of smartphones. These device are priced over 5,000 Yuan and are the most expensive models in the market. The Vivo X70 Pro+ lead this category with a 150.5 cost effective point, with its Samsung E5 AMOLED display that offers 120Hz variable refresh rate. It also sports other top notch specs as well. Honor Magic3 Pro came in a close second with 145.9 points while the Xiaomi 11 Ultra sat at the third spot with 137.8 points.

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Samsung Galaxy S22 lineup features configurable virtual RAM support

By

Jeet

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Feb 11, 2022

Samsung has finally launched the much-awaited Galaxy S22 series flagship smartphone that comes running the company’s own One UI 4.1 out-of-the-box based on the Android 12 operating system with a focus on improving user experience.

In line with that, the South Korean tech giant has a new feature to enhance the user experience on these newly launched smartphones by allowing users to configure the amount of virtual memory on the devices.

The company has introduced a feature called RAM Plus for the Galaxy lineup of devices that enables users to increase the amount of RAM to improve the phone’s performance. The amount of virtual RAM can be selected out of four options — 2GB, 4GB, 6GB, and 8GB.

The feature basically allocates some of the phone’s storage phone as virtual RAM. This is similar to Windows allocating a portion of disk storage to use as virtual RAM for a scenario where the physical RAM is insufficient.

Although the feature isn’t new, the Galaxy phones were limited to using only 4GB of storage as virtual RAM but with the One UI 4.1, the company is now allowing the users to choose up to 8GB in case that much memory is needed.

It’s noteworthy that the 4GB storage is selected by default to be used as virtual RAM and while users can change the configuration, there’s no option for disabling this feature on the Samsung Galaxy devices.

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OnePlus Nord CE 2 ‘Bahamas Blue’ variant appears on official website

By

Sudarshan Ravichandran

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Feb 11, 2022

OPnePlus has confirmed to launch the OnePlus Nord CE 2 in India on February 17. Though the smartphone is yet to go official, we know almost everything about it, thanks to numerous leaks in the past few days. Now, the brand itself has disclosed the design of the handset accidentally.

OnePlus Nord CE 2 Bahamas Blue — OnePlus Nord CE 2 in Bahamas Blue

OnePlus has mistakenly revealed the complete rear design of the upcoming OnePlus Nord CE 2 on its website. The color variant shown in the picture above will be officially called ‘Bahamas Blue’.

Since the renders of the phone had already leaked weeks ago, the image shows nothing new. In a nutshell, the device will look like multiple other mid-range and budget smartphones from the Oujia group, which consists of OPPO, OnePlus, and realme.

The OnePlus Nord CE 2 is tipped to arrive in two memory configurations in India. The base 6GB + 128GB and the higher 8GB + 128GB variants are said to cost ₹23,999 and ₹24,999 respectively.

The handset is expected to come with a 6.43-inch FHD+ 90Hz AMOLED display, MediaTek Dimensity 900 SoC, LPDDR4x RAM, UFS 2.2 storage, 64MP (wide) + 8MP (ultra-wide) + 2MP (macro) triple camera setup, 16MP selfie camera, in-screen fingerprint sensor, MicroSD card slot, 3.5mm headphone jack, OxygenOS 11.3 based on Android 11, 4,500mAh battery, and 65W fast charging.

Redmi K50 Gaming Edition display specs detailed, achieves 15 quality records

By

Zohaib Ahmed

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Feb 11, 2022

Redmi K50 Gaming Edition is almost here now and ahead of the release, Redmi has been busy teasing the device’s specifications and features. The latest from today reveal almost the entirety of its display specs, with Redmi GM Lu Weibing also saying the device has collected DisplayMate A+ certificate and achieved 15 quality records at once.

First things first, the Redmi K50 Gaming Edition has a 120Hz display with a 480Hz touch sampling rate. The unit also supports 1920Hz PWM high-frequency dimming to reduce the stress on the eyes during longer gaming sessions. Redmi says that compared to the conventional 480Hz, the dimming frequency on the K50 Gaming is 3 times higher, which helps preserve color accuracy in low light.

Redmi has also listed all the achievements of the K50 Gaming’s display and we have given them below:

Highest contrast
Minimum screen reflectivity
Minimum viewing angle brightness change
Largest screen native color gamut
Optimum white color accuracy
Best absolute color accuracy
Highest OLED smartphone full-screen brightness

The 480Hz touch is further enhanced by Super Resolution Touch, which is claimed to increase the “touch screen partition from 2400 x 1080 to an incredible 24000 x 10800.” This allows much more granular movements, particularly in shooting games.

Redmi also claims that the Redmi K50 Gaming Edition’s display employs a “Primary Color Screen” that allows “professional color accuracy.”

Last but not least, all of that fancy display tech is protected by Gorilla Glass Victus, which comes with significantly improved drop and scratch resistance.

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Acer Aspire 3 laptops launched at Rs.50000 ($664) in India: Intel 11th gen, Nvidia MX350 & more

By

Sudhanshu

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Feb 11, 2022

Taiwanese PC maker Acer has launched a new laptop in the Indian market dubbed the Acer Aspire 3. Following the subcontinent’s push for in-house manufacturing, the Aspire 3 is the company’s second laptop under the Make in-India scheme. So without further delay, let’s check out its specs and features.

Acer Aspire 3 Specifications

The Acer Aspire 3 comes with a 15.6-inch full-HD TFT LCD display offering a 16:9 aspect ratio. The laptop comes with relatively thin vertical bezzles and features a slightly decent-sized forehead and a thick chin which is quite typical in traditional laptops. The forehead also carries a 720 HD webcam for video calls.

The Acer Aspire 3 is powered by Intel’s 11th gen CPU and is offered in three different configurations. The base model is powered by an Intel i3 1155G7 and is paired with Intel UHD graphics. It is also offered with an Intel i5 CPU which can either be purchased with the integrated Intel Xe GPU option or with a discrete Nvidia GeForce MX350 GPU.

The base i3 model comes with 4GB DDR4 RAM and 256GB of storage whereas the i5 models get 8GB DDR4 RAM coupled with a 128GB SSD and 1TB HDD for storage. All three variants boot Windows 11 out of the box.

The laptops carry a 36.7Whr battery which Acer has claimed can last up to 9 hours on a single charge. The laptops also come with a 45W adapter for charging.

Connectivity options offered on the laptops include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5, a single HDMI port, dual USB 3.2 Type-A ports, one USB 2.0 port, an RJ45 Ethernet connector, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. They also have inbuilt dual speakers and microphones.

Acer Aspire 3 Price and Availability

The Intel 11th gen i3 variant of the Acer Aspire 3 carries a price tag of Rs. 50,000 ($664). The Core i5 model with the integrated Iris Xe graphics is offered at Rs. 53,990 ($716) and the top-spec i5 variant carrying the discrete Nvidia GeForce MX350 GPU has been priced at Rs. 58,990 ($783) for the Indian market. All three models of the Acer Aspire 3 lineup have been made available for purchase on the Indian e-commerce website Flipkart.

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Motorola Edge 30 Pro spotted on Bluetooth SIG prior to its launch

By

Sean

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Feb 11, 2022

Motorola is set to launch its new Moto Edge 30 Pro in India soon. But ahead of its launch on 24th February 2022, the smartphone has been spotted on the Bluetooth SIG certification website.

For those unaware, the Moto Edge 30 Pro is expected to be a rebadged version of the smartphone maker’s Edge X30, which was launched in China back in December 2021. And now, the Bluetooth SIG database (Via MySmartPrice) has revealed some information regarding the upcoming smartphone. Looking at the certification listing, the device carried the model number XT-2201-1 for the global market. This model number basically confirms that it is a rebadged Edge X30 as well, which has the model number XT-2201-2.

In other words, we can also expect similar specifications on global variant. So, the Edge 30 Pro would likely feature Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC under the hood paired with up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. It would also be powered by a large 5,000mAh battery pack that supports 68W fast charging as well. On the front, it sports a 6.7 inch POLED display that features FHD+ resolution and 144Hz refresh rate.

Motorola — Moto Edge 30 Pro leaked render

This screen also offers 700 nits of peak brightness and its panel is also HDR10+ certified as well. While the front houses a single 60 megapixel punch hole selfie camera, the rear features a triple camera setup. This includes a 50 megapixel primary camera with OIS support, paired with another 50 megapixel ultra wide angle lens and a 2 megapixel depth sensor as well.

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Red Magic announces new Turbo Cooling Fan for mobile gamers

By

Sean

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Feb 11, 2022

Red Magic has just announced a new product in China. It is a the new Turbo Cooling Fan, which is an accessory that will help keep smartphones cooler during intense tasks like mobile gaming.

As per official notes, the new Red Magic Turbo Cooling Fan is built with the Chinese smartphone maker’s turbo cooling technology. The back clip fan feature 29 blades that run at high speeds for cooling. This enables it to output powerful air cooling that helps in keeping the temperature of the device in check, lowering it by 4° Celsius. With the brand being known for its gaming smartphones, the new gaming accessory would be welcomed for its customers that play intense 3D games like PUBG Mobile often.

Looking at its design, it appears to have a spaceship rocket like body with the fan being housed in the middle. The teaser shared by the brand also hints at it featuring RGB LED lighting as well, which would add to its “gaming aesthetic.” You know how the saying goes, “more RGB = better gameplay experience.” Unfortunately, finer details like pricing is known as of right now, but the product is set to be released on 17th February 2022 in China. So for those interested, you can check it out as your next gaming accessory.

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OnwardMobility kills the 5G BlackBerry project after losing rights to BlackBerry’s name

By

Sean

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Feb 11, 2022

Just last month, it was confirmed that a new BlackBerry 5G phone with a keyboard would launch this year. This was set to be the first BlackBerry smartphone in years, but now, it seems like this device is cancelled after OnwardMobility lost rights to the BlackBerry’s name.

Back in August 2020, it was revealed that OnwardMobility is the latest licensee for the BB brand for smartphones. While the BlackBerry 5G phone suffered from delays, OnwardMobility insisted that the device is on its way. But according to an AndroidPolice report, the 5G BB project is apparently dead. The news arrives from Kevin Michaluk, founder of CrackBerry, and other sources have revealed that OnwardMobility is not planning on working on the project any longer.

Reportedly, the company has cancelled the project despite acquiring the license to use the American phone maker’s name. Furthermore, even BlackBerry is looking to distance itself from its past identity as a smartphone vendor as it sold the rest of its mobile patents earlier this month for 600 million US Dollars. While we have not seen any leaks related to OnwardMobility’s 5G BlackBerry phone, it was believed to feature a design similar to the previously launched BB Priv, which was an Android slider phone.

For those unaware, the new 5G BB phone was planned to release in mid 2021, but faced delays due to issues with the supply chain followed by BlackBerry CEO John Chen changing his decision of having another OEM try and revive the brand on another smartphone. So, with OnwardMobility losing the license to its name, we might not see another BlackBerry phone for a long time.

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realme’s first 150W charging phone in the works, will use 160W charger from OPPO

By

Zohaib Ahmed

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Feb 11, 2022

Some upcoming realme phones will support either 80W or 150W charging speeds, with the latter making use of the same 160W charging brick that will be used by OPPO, Digital Chat Station has revealed through a post on Weibo.

The highest-rated charging smartphones on the market right now peak out at 120W, capable of filling up 4,000 to 5,000mAh batteries in just 15 minutes or so. All brands currently capable of this are Chinese with some of them being Xiaomi, iQOO, and OPPO.

One of the known upcoming offerings with support for 120W+ charging is the REDMAGIC 7 Pro. It features 135W super flash charging and comes with a 165W gallium nitride charger. The 5,000mAh unit in the phone can be filled up to 100% in just 15 minutes.

In the Android camp, companies like realme, Xiaomi, and nubia have continued to smoke the competition. The iPhone 13 series only supports up to 29W charging while Samsung’s fastest charging phone tolerates no further than 45W.

Aforementioned fast charging freaks are also already working on 200W charging solutions. Xiaomi’s 200W charging speed demonstration for the Xiaomi Mi 11 Pro earlier showed that the solution could charge the phone’s entire 4,000mAh battery in under 8 minutes. Commercial release of the tech is still likely several months away though.

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iQOO 9 series India launch date is finally out

By

Sudarshan Ravichandran

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Feb 11, 2022

After teasing for days, iQOO has finally revealed the launch date for the iQOO 9 series in India. The latest premium smartphone lineup from the brand will make its way to the county two weeks from now. Let’s check out the exact launch date and the expected phones.

IQOO 9 PRO review featured 4 — iQOO 9 Pro (China)

The iQOO 9 series will launch in India on February 23. Like its predecessor, the new lineup will also be sold on Amazon in the region. The brand hasn’t disclosed the models coming to the country. However, the teasers suggest that there will be a BMW M Motorsport Limited Edition.

According to leaks, the iQOO 9 family for India will consist of three devices. Interestingly, only one of them will be somewhat similar to the phone sold in China with the same name.

Reports say that the iQOO 9 coming to India will be a rebranded iQOO 8 sold in China. This handset will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888+ chipset.

Further, the iQOO 9 Pro for India will be the same as the iQOO 9 Pro available in China. Though it will have the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC, it will arrive with certain tweaks like a downgraded display.

Finally, the iQOO 9 SE for India will be a rebadged iQOO Neo 5S from China. This device will be the cheapest of all three as it will house the older Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 chip.

Deal: Get $60 Discount on BMAX X14Pro Gaming Laptop on Amazon US (Coupon)

By

Daily Deals

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Feb 11, 2022

BMAX X14Pro Gaming Laptop which generally retails for $499 is now available at a discounted price of $439 only at Amazon US. The $60 discount is available as a page coupon on Amazon US. This is a limited-time deal.

WHERE TO BUY

BMAX X14Pro Gaming Laptop at $439 (after discount)@Amazon US

BMAX X14Pro is the first flagship laptop from BMAX. It features a 14.1” FHD IPS display with 1920x1080p resolution and an 81.2% screen-to-body ratio. The laptop comes with narrow bezels which enhances your visual experience and the AMD Radeon™ Vega 8 Graphics Card (8 Cores) ensures powerful and smooth gameplay. With the Vega 8 card, you can smoothly play back your 4K videos and run your games with ease.

The laptop is powered by an AMD Ryzen 5-3450U processor which is one of the best options for demanding games in this price segment. The processor comes with 4 cores and 8 threads which is more than enough for your office, education, and casual gaming needs. The laptop also comes with powerful and silent cooling fans with dual 8mm copper heat pipes that keep the CPU at a suitable temperature at all times.

BMAX X14Pro Gaming Laptop comes with 8GB RAM and 512GB internal storage, expandable up to 1TB. This means you will have more than enough storage space for your games, videos, favorite TV shows, and more. The laptop is fueled by a 57Wh large capacity battery that gives you up to 7 hours of battery life and comes with a full-size backlit keyboard and large trackpad.

Encased in a beautiful metal body the laptop is just 18.3mm thick and weighs 1.3kg (2.9lbs). This means you can easily carry the laptop on long journeys for both business and pleasure. Generally retailing for $499 you can now buy BMAX X14Pro Gaming Laptop at a discounted price of $439 only at Amazon US. Please note that the $60 discount coupon is only available for a limited period. So be sure to place your orders before the coupon expires.

For more information on such exciting deals and offers check out our deals hub.

Realme GT 2, C31, C35 launch timeline & color variants for India revealed

By

Sean

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Feb 11, 2022

While the Realme 9 series launch in India is just around the corner, it appears that the company already has plans to release a new budget series and flagship lineup of smartphones in the region soon after.

According to MySmartPrice, known tipster Mukul Sharma has revealed the supposed launch timeline for the high end GT 2 and two new entry level models in the C series, namely the C31 and C35. The tipster states that the Chinese smartphone maker’s GT 2 launch might be around the same time as the iQOO 9 series, and even possibly Moto’s launch as well. In other words, it would be around the end of this month.

Furthermore, the Realme GT 2 will reportedly be available in three color options, which includes a White, Green, and Black variant. On the other hand, the budget handsets C31 and C35 will apparently be announced sometime in early March 2022. The Realme C31 is said to launch in a Purple and Green color variant, while the C35 is believed to launch in Green and Black color versions.

For those unaware, the GT 2 is a flagship grade phone that will feature a 6.62 inch FHD_ AMOLED display and a 120Hz refresh rate. Under the hood, it sports a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 SoC with up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. It is powered by a large 5,000mAh battery pack that supports 65W fast charging support. On the rear, it features a 50 megapixel triple camera setup and a 16 megapixel sensor on the front. Keep in mind that this news is still unconfirmed at the moment, so take it with a pinch of salt and stay tuned for more updates.

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Samsung Galaxy A series could also be eligible for 5 years of updates

By

Zohaib Ahmed

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Feb 11, 2022

Samsung is undoubtedly killing it when it comes to software updates. The company had only last year announced 3 years of OS updates for its S and A series, but surprised everyone recently by extending it to 4 years for the latter. And as if that’s not enough, a new clue shows that the Galaxy A series could be entitled to the same as well — with 4 years of Android updates and 5 years of security updates.

While the official US press release, which most of the global media had referred to, had omitted the A series from the improved update policy, the Samsung Netherlands site suggests otherwise.

The Dutch version of the press release says that the new update policy will also apply to “select devices in the upcoming A series.” If not some weird typo, this would be a total game-changer as almost every other OEM provides no more than merely 2 Android updates for their mid-range devices.

It remains to be seen if the upcoming Galaxy A53 and Galaxy A73 will be eligible for 5 years of updates as well. The duo isn’t the most premium from the A series and may not make the cut considering Samsung has limited the extended software support to select devices from the lineup only.

However, the A5x series has always been one of the most popular devices from Samsung, so we wouldn’t be surprised if the upgraded update policy actually ends up applicable to it as well. Still, we should be getting more clarity on the matter in the coming days, so stay tuned.

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Alleged specs of HONOR Magic4 series leak in detail

By

Sudarshan Ravichandran

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Feb 11, 2022

HONOR has scheduled a product launch at MWC (Mobile World Congress) 2022. It will take place on February 28. The company is yet to officially reveal the devices that will be announced at this conference. However, rumors say that the firm will debut the HONOR Magic4 series. Ahead of that, alleged spec sheets of this upcoming lineup of premium smartphones have emerged.

Honor-Magic-3-and-Magic-3-Pro — Honor Magic 3 and HONOR Magic 3 Pro

Tipster @RODENT950 has shared three images on Twitter containing the primary specifications of the forthcoming HONOR Magic4, HONOR Magic4 Pro, and HONOR Magic4 Pro+. Though the specs listed in the pictures appear to be true, he asks the public to consider them with a pinch of salt.

According to the images, all three phones will have a metal frame design. However, the Pro+ will feature a ceramic back instead of glass as well as leather finishes on vanilla and Pro.

They will boot Magic UI 6.0 based on Android 12 and get their energy from a 4,800mAh battery. The vanilla and Pro will be limited to 66W wired fast charging, while the Pro+ will max at 100W. Additionally, the two Pro models will also have support for 50W fast wireless charging.

The trio will arrive with LPDDR5 RAM, UFS 3.1 storage, and NFC 2.0 as standard. The vanilla variant will have a single x-axis linear vibration motor, whereas the other two versions will have two of these motors. Similarly, the Pro and vanilla have regular dual stereo speakers, while the Pro+ will flaunt symmetrical dual stereo speakers

Though all of them will have an in-screen fingerprint sensor, the Pro+ will use an ultrasonic solution rather than optical like the cheaper models.

HONOR Magic 3 Pro Plus White — HONOR Magic3 Pro+

Talking about chipsets, the HONOR Magic4 will come equipped with a MediaTek Dimensity 9000 SoC and a hexagonal graphene sheet to control thermals. On the other hand, the HONOR Magic4 Pro and the HONOR Magic4 Pro+ will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen1 chip paired with a hexagonal graphene sheet as well as an ultra-thin VC liquid cooling system.

All of them will flaunt OLED displays from BOE with a diamond-like pixel arrangement but they will differ in size and features. Anyway, they do have certain aspects in common like 120Hz refresh rate, 10-bit color depth, 1.07 billion colors, HDR10+ certification, and DCI-P3 color gamut support.

The vanilla model will sport a 6.55-inch panel with a resolution of 2400 x 1080 pixels, a 300Hz touch sampling rate, micro curves on two sides, and a single centered punch hole. Whereas, the screens on Pro and Pro+ versions will have a 360Hz touch sampling rate, micro curves on four sides, and dual centered punch holes. The display on the Pro will measure 6.67 inches with a resolution of 2772 x 1344 pixels as opposed to a 6.78-inch panel with a resolution of 3200 x 1440 pixels on the Pro+.

Talking about cameras, the trio will arrive with a 50MP main sensor and a 50MP ultra-wide unit with support for macro. The vanilla variant will have a 16MP telephoto snapper with up to 10x digital zoom support and a 16MP selfie shooter.

In contrast, the Pro models sport an OIS-equipped 50MP telescope camera with 100x digital zoom support, a 50MP monochrome camera, 8×8 dToF laser focusing system, and a dual 13MP + 3D depth-sensing selfie camera.

As far as protection is concerned, the Pro+ will be IP68-certified for dust and water resistance as opposed to an IP53 rating on the Pro. The vanilla variant will lack any sort of IP rating.

Finally, the HONOR Magic4 series will be available in the following color options.

HONOR Magic4

Weight: 198g
Glass: Black, Silver, White
Leather: Blue, Red

HONOR Magic4 Pro

Weight: 204g
Glass: Black, White
Leather: Blue, Red

HONOR Magci4 Pro+

Weight: 218g
Ceramic: Black, White

XPENG expands presence in Europe, with sales and service partners in Netherlands and Sweden

By

Sean

-

Feb 11, 2022

Earlier this week, XPENG announced that it has signed strategic partnership deals in the Netherlands and Sweden. Through this deal, the company will now be able to open its self operated experience stores in Europe.

In other words, the Chinese EV maker is expanding its presence in the European region, and has collaborated with Emil Frey Nederland NV for the market in the Netherlands. Emil Frey has been brought in to develop XPENG’s sales and service network and will also manage its branded stores throughout the country. Through this partnership, XPENG is seeking to widen its footprint in the region and also marks the first agency retail collaboration for the Chinese company in Europe.

Emil Frey is one of Europe’s largest automobile retail organizations. So, XPENG’s retail stores will benefit from this partnership with customers getting consistent pricing, online and offline, along with access to Emil Frey’s established services and distribution network as well. The XPENG retail experience store will be located in the Westfield Mall of the Netherlands near The Hague and will open sometime in March 2022. On the other hand, the brand has entered into an agreement with Bilia for the Swedish market.

Bilia is the largest automobile dealer and distributor in Sweden. This means that XPENG customers will also benefit from Bilia’s well established network, which consists of 58 dealers and 66 service centers in Sweden. He Xiaopeng, Chairman and CEO of XPENG stated that “Our global journey starts from Europe, propelled by our commitment to increase smart EV penetration. We strongly support the EV development strategy in Europe and are forging partnerships with top tier local players to accelerate energy conservation, emission reduction and electrification in Europe.”

RELATED:

vivo’s first tablet to come with a metallic unibody design

By

Zohaib Ahmed

-

Feb 11, 2022

With the tablet market booming due to pandemic-induced growth, more and more companies that primarily sell smartphones are looking to snatch a slice of the pie. One of them is vivo, which is reportedly set to make its debut into the space this year with the vivo Pad.

Digital Chat Station had earlier revealed that the tablet will sport a 120Hz 11-inch display with a 2560 x 1600 resolution, among other things. The same tipster has now provided additional information, saying that the display will also support HDR10+ and Dolby Vision, making it likely that the vivo Pad will be a premium offering. Its use of the high-end Snapdragon 870 chip testifies to that.

The vivo Pad will be giving a miss to fingerprint recognition, though, which is a bit odd. It could be possible that it will support facial unlocking instead, but that’s just a guess at this point.

The rear camera setup of the tablet will be comprised of dual 13MP cameras and the design of the entire thing is “like a full metal body.” A unibody design is thus likely. Two speakers at the top and bottom will handle the audio and the tablet will also come with matching keyboard and stylus pen accessories.

Digital Chat Station says that the pricing of the vivo Pad isn’t too high and the device aims to set up a multi-device ecosystem.

Do keep in mind here that the “vivo Pad” name is only a supposed moniker and the final unit may be called something else.

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Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 concept renders are here with S22 Ultra-inspired designs

By

Zohaib Ahmed

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Feb 11, 2022

With new entrants like Huawei and OPPO, the competition in the foldable smartphones game sure is warming up. Samsung is the king of the hill no more, thanks to offerings like the OPPO Find N that sport more modern designs and also solve the crease problem to a degree. But the Korean company is reportedly already working on a sequel to last year’s Galaxy Z Fold3 — and fans are going big on expectations.

A couple of prominent smartphone concept creators just dropped their own takes on what the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 could look like, although both their renders look to be heavily inspired by the Galaxy S22 Ultra. The S22 Ultra is Samsung’s latest ‘superphone’ and comes with absolute top-of-the-line specs. It would therefore make sense for the Fold4 to inherit a similar design since it also is an ultra-premium flagship offering.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 concept render — Galaxy Z Fold4 by Ben Geskin

Ben Geskin’s Z Fold4 concept render retains the same form-factor as the device’s predecessor, with a narrow external display paired with a rectangular inner screen. The camera module has been changed completely though. The Galaxy Z Fold3 featured a single camera island housing three cameras and a flash, but the Z Fold4 render shows a camera system that looks almost identical to the S22 Ultra.

1 of 3

Apple Lab’s concept render looks very similar but goes for three rear shooters instead of four on the one from Ben. It also depicts three color options — black, white, and lavender.

Do keep in mind that Samsung is yet to provide any clues as to what the next iteration of its flagship foldable offering will look like, so the above renders are purely imagination-based. It is hence advisable to take them with a pinch of salt.

According to previous reports, the Galaxy Z Fold4 is expected to go live around Q3 2022. Not much is known about the device at the moment but tipsters have revealed that it will bring camera improvements, among other things.

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Honor Magic 4 officially teased, beats Galaxy S22 Ultra on Geekbench

By

Sean

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Feb 11, 2022

Honor is preparing to announce the Magic 4 series soon. But prior to its release, the company has shared an official teaser, while the device was also spotted on a Geekbench listing.

With the MWC 2022 (Mobile World Congress) event being a few weeks away, various smartphone brands like Honor will release their latest devices. Here, the Chinese smartphone maker is set to unveil its latest flagship Magic series. The brand’s CEO, George Zhao had shared a new teaser of the upcoming devices on Facebook. This teaser confirms that the new device will arrive with Qualcomm’s latest and greatest Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC.

Looking at the teaser, the company talks about its Honor Global Launch Event in MWC Barcelona 2022 with “The Power of Magic.” Unfortunately, this teaser did not revel any finer details regarding this matter. Although, the Magic 4 was recently spotted on a Geekbench listing by known tipster @RODENT950. In the known benchmarking platform, the upcoming Magic 4 seemingly beat Samsung’s new top end flagship, the Galaxy S22 Ultra, which carried the model number SM-S908U.

Upcoming Honor Magic series flagship beats S22 Ultra in Geebench 5 tests.#EXCLUSIVE
#ThePowerOfMagic is worth the wait. pic.twitter.com/5QDzpuaAGH

— Teme (特米)😷 (@RODENT950) February 10, 2022

The Honor Magic device scored 3,901 points in the multi core tests, while the Galaxy S22 Ultra achieved 3,303 points. On the other hand, it also managed to get a slight lead with 1245 points in single core test over the latter’s 1215 points. However, this is just an early benchmark and both device are running on the same chipset. Furthermore, synthetic benchmarks aren’t always a good indicator of performance in real life, so stick around for more updates.

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Redmi K50, K50 Pro, K50 Pro+ 3C certification reveals charging capabilities

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Feb 11, 2022

Redmi K50 Gaming Edition is scheduled to launch on Feb. 16 in China. The Chinese manufacturer is yet to confirm whether it will be launching other K50 models through the upcoming unveiling event. Fresh information reveals that the Redmi K50, Redmi K50 Pro, and Redmi K50 Pro+ have received approval from China’s 3C certification site. Hence, it appears that it may not take too long for the other K50 models to go official in China.

Reports have revealed that model numbers 22021211RC, 22041211AC, and 22011211C belong to Redmi K50, Redmi K50 Pro, and Redmi K50 Pro+, respectively. The 3C certification of the K50 and K50 Pro have revealed that it may carry support for 67W fast charging. On the other side, the K50 Pro+ may arrive with support for 120W rapid charging.

The 21121210C model number belongs to the Redmi K50 Gaming Edition. It was previously spotted at 3C with a 120W charger. With 3C certification in tow, the K50 series is likely to soon surface in the database of the TENAA certification site will all the major specs.

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 is confirmed to power the Redmi K50 Gaming Edition. It is speculated that the K50 will feature the Dimensity 8000, the K50 will have the Snapdragon 870 onboard, and the K50 Pro+ will be fueled by the Dimensity 9000.

The K50 Gaming Edition is expected to arrive with a 6.67-inch OLED FHD+ 120Hz display, a 16-megapixel front camera, and a 64-megapixel (main + 13-megapixel (ultrawide) + 2-megapixel triple camera unit. The SD8G1 powered phone will ship with a 4,700mAh battery that supports 120W fast charging. The other features that are expected to be available on the device include a side-facing fingerprint scanner, NFC, JBL dual speakers, x-axis linear motor, and pop-up mechanical trigger gaming buttons.

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