In August this year, Realme launched the GT Master Edition smartphone in the Indian market. Initially, at the launch, the device was available in Voyager Grey, Luna White, and Cosmos Black. Now, an exclusive report from 91mobiles reveals that there will soon be a new colour in the palette.
According to the report, the Realme GT Master Edition will get the Daybreak Blue colour variant. The Daybreak Blue seems to be a fancy gradient color with a mix of blue and daylight. It is worth noting that this colour is already available in other regions like Malaysia where it was available from its launch.
In terms of the launch date, the report suggests that the Realme GT Master Edition Daybreak Blue will be available in India by the end of November or early December. The color will be launched in two configurations – 6GB RAM + 128GB storage variant and an 8GB RAM + 128GB storage variant.
The Realme GT Master Edition comes with a 6.43-inch display featuring a 120Hz refresh rate. The AMOLED screen has FHD+ resolution and holds a 32MP selfie sensor at the top of the screen. At the rear, it has a 64MP main, an 8MP ultra-wide, and a 2MP macro sensor.
Under the hood, the Master Edition is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G SoC and has a 4,300mAh battery. It has support for 65W fast charging as well. The 5G phone boots on Android 11 out of the box and has Realme UI on top of it.
Earlier this month, Vivo unveiled the Y76s smartphone in the Chinese market with impressive specs like 50MP cameras and 44W fast charging support. Today, the company has revealed that another device with a similar moniker will debut soon. The smartphone will be called the Vivo Y76 5G and it has just got teased.
Vivo Malaysia on its Facebook page has teased the upcoming Vivo Y76 5G smartphone. The device will debut on November 23 in the Malaysian market. It will be available for purchase from Lazada and Shopee.
As of now, there’s very little detail that we have learned since the device has not passed any major certifications. However, it is worth noting that it does look similar to the recently launched Vivo Y76s. Not just that, the teaser also reveals a similar camera setup. The smartphone will come with a 50MP main sensor, just like the Y76s, but, will have two more lenses – a 2MP portrait, and a 2MP macro lens.
For those who are unaware, the Y76s has only two sensors, a 50MP main and a 2MP macro. That said, the Y76 5G will bring an extra lens for the fancy portrait images.
Apart from this, the device passed the NCC, IMDA, SIRIM, and NBTC certifications which revealed its design and minor specs. The smartphone will come with NFC support and have fast charging technology similar to the Y76s.
The Y76s is fueled by the MediaTek Dimensity 810 SoC and has a 4,100mAh battery. Rumours have it that the Y76 5G will have the same internals as the Y76s, majorly because the Y76s is limited to China, and Vivo may cover its global presence with the upcoming Y76 5G.
Apple Beats has launched a new special edition earbud. The new Beats Flex earbuds special edition is the culmination of a partnership between Japanese musician/ designer Hiroshi Fujiwara and fashion retailer SSENSE. The limited-edition Beats Flex earbuds come with a minimalist, tonal black design and are not different hardware-wise from the original Beats Flex earbuds.
The new Beats Flex earbuds special edition is adorned with Fujiwara’s fragment design logo which is a twin-lighting icon on the earbuds. This is the first such partnership between Beats and Fujiwara’s company. Beats says its collaboration with Fujiwara comes as the musician and designer named the Beats Flex as his favorite product in the Beats portfolio.
The original Beats Flex earbuds had caught the fancy of Fujiwara who said he likes the lightweight neckband for listening to music. Fujiwara also says that the new black-on-black design of the Beats Flex earbuds special edition is extremely sophisticated and refined. He also said that the new Beats Flex special edition will have an instant appeal in the market.
The Apple company Beats has had some previous engagements with Fujiwara and he has always added his touch of innovation and design excellence. On the other hand, apart from Apple, retailer SSENSE will be the sole retailer of the Beats Flex earbuds special edition, and the product is priced at $69.99.
Global tech powerhouse Samsung is redistributing its production capacity across its seven manufacturing sites. The moves are part of plans by the company to ensure that no facility exceeds more than 30% of the overall production numbers. The move by Samsung will see its two manufacturing plants in Vietnam scale down its current production of about 182 million units to 163 million units annually.
Samsung’s move is part of the company’s long-term aim of risk redistribution. The expansion of Samsung’s India production facility will see it producing 108 million smartphones by 2026, although the expansion trajectory could see the Indian plant becoming Samsung’s largest by 2024.
Samsung has manufacturing facilities in India, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Brazil, outside its home market of Korea. The capacities of the production facilities will probably remain unchanged this year, while the changes will start to be noticed from 2022. The focus seems to be on the huge customer base offered by the Indian market. The scaling up of Samsung’s operations in India will help it to shore up its numbers in the subcontinent. The production redistribution will see India accounting for 25% of the total production in 2026, while Vietnam will have 20%, Indonesia, 14%, and Brazil, 6%.
Samsung continues to firm up its operations and has factored some degree of uncertainty into its production, as there is room for an additional 20% of units produced as a reserve in the situation of a surge in demand beyond the projected numbers.
Recently, scams have been running rampant on e-commerce websites in India, be it the incident of a person receiving a bar soap instead of an iPhone or an old DVD drive in place of a CPU.
Another such scam has come to light via 91mobiles in which a customer who purchased a phone from Amazon received a notification from Flipkart that the device would be blocked due to non-payment. Let’s take a deeper look at the story to understand what happened.
A customer bought a Samsung S20+ via Amazon for ₹57,449 in Nov '20 (I've seen the invoice). Seller Divine India of Mumbai appears to have recycled a phone bought from Flipkart under its part-payment 'Smart Upgrade Plan'. Flipkart is now going to block the handset! https://t.co/tVYnk1MWFN
According to Twitter user @JBhattacharji, she purchased the SamsungGalaxy S20+ from Amazon India. The smartphone was sold by seller Divine India on Amazon for Rs 57,449 ($775) in November 2020. Twelve months after the purchase, the customer is getting a prompt from Flipkart (another major e-commerce website in India) asking her to pay the remaining amount or upgrade the smartphone. The prompt warns the user that Flipkart will block the smartphone if the customer fails to pay the remaining amount.
After contacting Flipkart and Amazon, the customer was informed that the smartphone was initially bought from Flipkart under the Smart Upgrade Plan, which the seller later sold on Amazon. According to the customer, Flipkart has denied providing any support, while Amazon has made no comments on the issue so far.
Under the Smart Upgrade plan, Flipkart gives customers an option to pay the 70% of the smartphone’s value and pay the remaining 30% after 12 months of purchase if they intend to keep the smartphone. But, if you want to upgrade to a new smartphone, you need to return the smartphone and get a new one from Flipkart valued at more than the 30% amount of old smartphone. For example, let’s say a customer buys a smartphone for $1000. They only need to pay 70% of the price, i.e. $700. Then after 12 months, you get a choice to either return the smartphone and upgrade to some other model whose value is more than $300 (your remaining balance on the previous purchase) or you can pay the remaining $300 to Flipkart and keep your device.
The seller, Divine India, appears to have bought the phone off of Flipkart at 70% value and resold it on amazon for full value pocketing the difference. The customer who purchased this phone is getting a prompt from Flipkart that says she needs to pay the remaining Rs 15000 ($202) or upgrade to a phone that is worth more than Rs 15000 ($202) before November 21st under their Smart Upgrade plan or her device will be locked. In a later tweet, the customer said that Amazon had contacted her, clarifying that it was a scam and are looking into the matter.
With the significant improvements of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 over its predecessors, the Korean tech giant is looking to make it’s upcoming Galaxy Z Fold4 even more appealing to premium consumers.
A Naver tipster, lanzuk, has revealed some of Samsungs plans for the upcoming Galaxy Z Fold4. In his blog post, the tipster revealed that Samsung is gearing up to launch their next-gen Fold4 around Q3 of 2022 with an improved Under display camera (UDC) on both the internal and external screens. The overall primary camera setup is also getting an upgrade to bring the Galaxy Z Fold4 on par with the camera quality offered by the current flagship in the market.
The Fold 4 may also get a new hinge which might reduce weight. The new hinge will also bring improved water resistance and a dust-resistant certification that was previously absent from the Galaxy Z Fold lineup.
The tipster also hinted that the display size and battery size (4400mAh) would remain the same as the previous generation. The Galaxy Z Fold4 is also rumored to have a lower starting price which Samsung will try to achieve by bringing down per unit cost with mass production. Samsung has previously announced to triple the production and sales of the Galaxy Z fold lineup in 2022. If these rumored improvements are true, the Galaxy Fold series could see a significant increase in popularity and customer base.
The global chip shortage remains a very critical issue in a wide array of manufacturing fields as companies grapple with meeting their production targets amidst the continuing chip shortage. General Motors have had some of its key components like heated seats and heated steering wheels dropped as a temporary measure.
General Motors had confirmed a few days back that it will not be offering heated and ventilated seats or heated steering wheels on some Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick, and GMC vehicles due to lack of supplies of the relevant chips to automate these components. The temporary measures will affect vehicles on the 2022 lineup, as the company seeks ways to overcome the semiconductor shortage and prevent production from stalling.
On the surface, it seems these changes are just minor adjustments that should not significantly affect the comfort of passengers in these vehicles. However, heated seats are among the very popular features and options that attract the attention of new buyers. General Motors insist that the changes are temporary pending when the company’s chip supplies improve substantially. Although GM was silent on how long the new approach will last, industry watchers had projected that the global chip shortage could extend deep into 2022, across all segments of the tech ecosystem.
The changes are not across all trims; hence some vehicles will still adorn these features. The changes will also reflect in the price of the models, as they will be priced lower than the models sporting these features. Shoppers will see the changes on the vehicle’s label and a credit on the price for the missing feature. General Motors says it has had significant improvements in its chip supplies and its plants across the US are working, some overtime to clear the production backlog. A few other features which were excluded previously like the side blind zone alert and Super Cruise have now been restored.
Earlier this week, key specs of the upcoming Realme GT 2 Pro were revealed in an unconfirmed leak. The device was said to house a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 SoC and a 108 or 50mp camera. And now, a new leak has revealed some changes.
According to a post made by WHYLAB, a reliable tipster on Weibo (a Chinese microblogging site), the Realme GT 2 pro, model number RMX3301, will be launched in early 2022. Contrary to previous reports, the device is said to house a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen1, aka the Snapdragon 898. The smartphone will be equipped with LPDDR5 memory (RAM) and UFS 3.1 flash memory. The screen will reportedly be a 6.51-inch FHD+ AMOLED with a punch-hole display and an in-screen fingerprint scanner. It is expected to offer a high refresh rate and 404ppi pixel density. And the phone is also said to support the latest 125w fast charging feature.
For photography, it may feature a 50-megapixel + 8-megapixel + 5-megapixel triple camera unit and a 32-megapixel front camera. It will also support autofocus, OIS, and EIS. It appears that the 4-in-1 pixel binning technology will allow it to capture 50-megapixel shots.
The device is expected to be powered by a 5000mAh battery and the RAM and storage capacity are expected to be 8 and 128 GB respectively. The GT 2 Pro is likely to come preinstalled with Realme UI 3.0 based Android 12.
With Realme’s earlier announcement to enter the ultra-premium smartphone segment, it will be interesting to see how the company will position the release of its flagship killer against the upcoming major flagship releases like the Samsung Galaxy S22.
The next generation of OPPO flagships smartphones hav been rumored to support the super-fast 125W charging technology unveiled earlier by the brand. However, more leaks have surfaced, suggesting that might not be the case.
Earlier today, the famous tipster, Digital Chat Station, posted on Weibo (a Chinese microblogging site) that the upcoming Find lineup by OPPO might feature 80W fast charging in contrast to its earlier predictions of the 125W feature.
It is too early to tell if the 80W fast charging feature will be available in all the upcoming OPPO Find series phones. Although, if we are to go by the current market trends, the feature will most likely be reserved for the flagship Find X4 Pro variant.
Earlier reports from Digital Chat Station have claimed the OPPO Find X4 Pro will come with a 6.7-inch display with a resolution of 3216 x 1440. It’ll feature a 120Hz refresh rate, much like the Find X3 and Find X3 Pro. In addition to this, Digital Chat Station has also tipped that one phone from the Find X4 line will come with a 50MP Sony IMX766 primary camera, a 13MP telephoto camera capable of up to 2x optical zoom, and a 3MP microscopic camera.
We also expect the upcoming OPPO flagship to feature the upcoming QualcommSnapdragon 898 chipset, which we’re hoping to see revealed before the end of 2021. The Oppo Find X4 series of smartphones is expected to launch in early 2022, alongside the Samsung Galaxy S22 and Xiaomi 12 launches.
Kia’s latest electric vehicle the EV9 concept car is a big car with a range close to 500 km. The Kia EV9 SUV is built on Hyundai’s Electric-Global Modular Platform (E-GMP), which is being primed as the platform of choice for an extensive lineup of electric vehicles by the carmaker.
The E-GMP is a scalable electric architecture that underpins a list of upcoming EVs like the Ioniq 5, Kia EV6, and Genesis GV60. The EV9 reflects a big leap from the EV6 and it seems primed to win over Telluride and Cadillac Escalade customers with its aggressive dimensions and expansive interiors.
The EV9 is 194 inches long, 81 inches wide, 70 inches in height, and has a wheelbase diameter of 122 inches. It is indeed as huge an SUV as you can get. It also eclipses the size of previous Kia models and there is a strong chance that it could proceed into production subsequently.
The EV9 SUV concept car made its debut at the LA Auto Show 2021 and combines a beautiful angular design with a great and expansive body.
The Kia EV9 will have an 800-volt architecture that allows it to accept DC fast charging at speeds up to 350 kilowatts. Kia says the EV9’s battery can charge from 10–80 percent within 30 minutes.
The interior of the Kia EV9 is serenaded by a massive 27-inch central touchscreen. The steering wheel is a pop-up steering pad, but it’s unclear what concept is behind the shape.
Although there are no definitive details on when production could commence for the EV9, it could be within the next year or two. The company has stated its plans to release several EVs by 2027.
Hyundai revealed a new concept EV at the 2021 Los Angeles Auto Show named ‘Seven’, and it’s a great demo of how the automobile maker’s scalable EV platform can be stretched to accommodate large SUVs. The SUV is built on E-GMP (Electric-Global Modular Platform), which is also being used in the upcoming Ioniq 5, Kia EV6, and Genesis GV60 EVs.
The Hyundai Seven is one of the largest-ever concept vehicles from the company with a wheelbase that stretches 10.5 feet (via The Verge). For comparison, the Cadillac Escalade’s wheelbase stands at 9.6 feet. The vehicle’s battery is capable of being filled up from 10 percent to 80 percent in just 20 minutes using a 350kW charger. A range of over 300 miles (483km) is also being targeted.
Features such as coach-style doors, adjustable seating, and retractable controls are also being offered, giving us a look into Hyundai’s offerings from the future. All in all, the interior is not unlike a little living room with furniture that can be moved around. Other car companies like BMW, Volvo, and Audi, have already projected similar ideas with car interiors transformed into “third places” in which one can work, eat, socialize, and even sleep.
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Hyundai has also put a lot of emphasis on hygiene with the Seven to help people keep their cars sanitized in a post-pandemic world. Accordingly, the interior uses plenty of renewable and recycled materials like bamboo, along with copper and hygienically treated fabric. There even are UVC lights that sterilize everything once everyone leaves the vehicle.
The Hyundai Seven is obviously just a concept and will not be going into production anytime soon. However, considering the company does have a good record converting concepts into reality, seeing the Seven on the road in the coming years isn’t too far-fetched. For reference, Hyundai’s 45 concept had eventually become the Ioniq 5.
Apple will soon be launching its first retail store in India. The company’s first online store went live only last year but a retail store will now be opening in the country for the first time. Tim Cook had confirmed last year that the company was seeking approval from the government. Apple has also begun hiring employees for the offline retail stores, as spotted by 9to5Mac on LinkedIn.
A post on the same by Nidhi Sharma, a recruiter at Apple, reads:
“Today marks one of the major milestones in creating History for Apple Retail in India… 🥳🥳🥳. We are now LIVE 🇮🇳 and we are bringing our very 1st 2 stores to India in Mumbai & Delhi! 🎊🙌🏻🤩.”
The recruiter has also confirmed that the first two stores will be opening in Mumbai and Delhi. There have been openings for various roles subsequently including Store Leader, Operations Expert, Senior Manager, Manager, Market Leader, and others. The listings do not contain any joining date as of yet though, so there’s still no clue about when the stores will be opening.
Still, we can expect them to go live in early 2022 if not 2021.
It was previously reported that the first-ever Apple retail store in India will be opening on August 15, 2021, which did not happen. The delay can be owed to the pandemic or simply a hitch in the approval process.
Regardless, it is great to see that rumors and leaks about an Apple store in the country are finally being realized, which is great news for Apple fans. The Cupertino-based company has also been rumored to soon set up another retail store in Bengaluru.
Google has done an appreciable job with the amalgamation of Pixel 6 and machine learning. Each feature on the smartphone is enhanced and furnished with the help of AI. On top of that, the Google Tensor chipset further improvises some features and the performance of the overall smartphone. Among the exciting Pixel 6 features, Live Translate is another useful feature that is currently exclusive for the Pixel 6 series. However, a little workaround can help you get in a feature on your old Pixel smartphone. Let’s see how in the guide below
The Pixel 6 exclusive feature – Live Translate, is now easily available for old Pixels. Unlike what Google said at the Pixel 6 launch event, the Live Translate feature works flawlessly on Pixel 4a without Google Tensor. Magic Eraser was also acclaimed to be optimized by Google Tensor on Pixel 6, but it also worked on previous Pixel devices without any problem.
You can easily install the ASI – Android System Intelligence ported from Pixel 6 to grab the feature without any additional setting. As revealed by Twitter user @abhinav_937, the feature runs without any flaw on a non-rooted device. He tested it on the Pixel 4a by installing the latest Pixel 6 ASI apk.
What is Live Translate on Pixel 6?
Google Translation is already a productivity tool, having millions of daily users communicating across languages. It’s been widely used across the globe via different platforms including Twitter, YouTube, and other important services to ease communications. The search giant is actively working to improve its communication and translation services with the advent of new techniques and ways.
In such a step, Google introduced Live Translate with Pixel 6 series to translate the text across different third-party apps. Using the Google Tensor AI prowess, the app offers automatic translation of text messages on Google Messages, WhatsApp, and another conversation app in your native or default language. It works two-way, as Google Translate even translates your reply into the sender’s native language. Live Translate works in sync with Gboard while typing the reply and further enhances the functionality.
It is a full overhaul of Google Translate capabilities in a more integrated manner. Live Translate feature can even transcribe the audio in a video to your native language in real-time. The offline capability of Live Translate is an additional advantage that boosts its overall usability.
Steps to get Live Translate on Old Pixels
It is quite easy to enable the Live Translate feature on your old Pixel smartphone. Precisely follows the steps below:
Download the Pixel 6 latest ASI ( Android System Intelligence) from here.
Install the APK on the old Pixel device without any additional settings.
Now go to Settings > System > Live Translate will be available.
Download the preferred language, and see it working in your favorite messaging app. Note. It is working on messaging app only.
Enjoy!!
Currently, the feature is working, but we’re not sure about the future as Google may switch it off on old Pixels via the backend. If you found it working apart from the ASI version, then do let us know via the comments below.
Earlier today, OPPO launched the OPPO A55s in the Japanese market. The smartphone is tailored for the Japanese market, with specific features usually not found in budget OPPO smartphones sold globally, like IP68 rating.
OPPO A55s Specs and Features
The OPPO A55s features a 6.5-inch full HD+ LCD display with a 90Hz refresh rate and 180HZ touch sampling rate. The phone also features an IP68 rating, making it resistant to dust and submersion up to a maximum depth of 1.5m underwater for up to thirty minutes.
Under the hood, the OPPO A55s houses a QualcommSnapdragon 480 SoC, with 4GB RAM and 64GB onboard storage. The device is capable of memory expansion via a microSD card slot. The phone runs Android 11 out of the box with OPPO’s own ColorOS 11 custom skin and packs a 4000mAh battery with support for up to 18W fast charging.
OPPO A55s camera
In terms of camera, the OPPO A55s sports a dual-camera setup on the back, with a primary 13-megapixel camera with an f/2.2 aperture paired with a 2-megapixel depth sensor and a LED flash. There is an 8-megapixel camera on the front for video calls and selfies. The camera app offers various modes like Ultra Night Mode, Portrait Mode, AI Scene Enhancement, and AI beauty filters.
Other features
In terms of connectivity options, the OPPO A55s offers Bluetooth 5.0, dual-band Wi-Fi, 4G with VoLTE, and, of course, 5G. The device also has NFC with support for NTT DoCoMo Osaifu-Keitai and Sony FeliCa. The phone also provides an accelerometer, proximity sensor, compass, gyroscope, a USB-C port for charging and data transfer alongside a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Price and availability
OPPO A55s is priced at JPY 33,800 ($296). The phone will be going on sale in Japan starting November 26, but pre-orders for sale started earlier today. The phone is available in two color variants, namely Green and Black. The phone could launch in other markets in South Asia, but OPPO has not made any announcements regarding the device’s launch outside Japan yet.
Motorola has lifted the curtains on the next generation of their entire Moto G series. Five new models spanning almost every price point have been announced, namely Moto G200, Moto G71, Moto G51, Moto G41, and Moto G31.
The Moto G200 can be deemed a ‘flagship killer’ and comes with a top-of-the-line Snapdragon 888+ processor despite its low price. The remaining four models can be divided on the basis of their displays – two of the higher-end models offer OLED panels while the other two come with LCDs. All of them run near-stock Android 11 software with some Motorola tweaks and guaranteed 1 OS update.
Motorola Moto G200
The Moto G200 is the priciest of the bunch and as already mentioned, comes with the Snapdragon 888+ chip, which is an overkill for a €450 ($510) phone. Its display is a 6.8-inch LCD panel with a 144Hz refresh rate. The panel also features HDR10 certification and supports the DCI-P3 color space (via GSMArena).
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As for the camera setup, there’s a 108MP primary sensor with a 2.1 µm pixel size and support for 8K video capture. It is complemented by a 13MP ultra wide-angle camera with autofocus, which doubles as a macro camera, and a 2MP depth sensor. Upfront, there’s a 16MP selfie shooter.
The Moto G200 comes with 8GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 128/256 GB UFS 3.1 storage. All of it is powered by a 5,000 mAh battery with 33W fast charging support.
The phone is protected against the elements by an IP52 basic water resistance rating. Its frame and back are made of plastic.
Motorola Moto G71
Next in line is the Moto G71 which prioritizes efficiency over raw power, and as such is equipped with a Snapdragon 695 5G chipset – a new chip announced only weeks ago, built using a 6nm manufacturing process.
The phone comes with a 50MP primary camera at the rear along with an 8MP ultrawide and a 2MP macro camera. On the front, there’s a 16MP selfie camera.
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Coming to the RAM and storage, the Moto G71 will be sold in a 6GB+128GB config, although the RAM in India will be boosted, standing at 8 gigs.
The battery of the device is 5,000mAh with 30W fast charging support. The phone also features an IP52 water resistance rating.
The Moto G71 will be available in Europe for €300 (~$340) in a few weeks, and will launch in select markets like India, Latin America, and the Middle East soon after.
Motorola Moto G51
The Moto G51 also offers 5G connectivity thanks to the Snapdragon 480+ chip. Its display is a 6.8-inch 1080p+ panel with 120Hz support.
The rear camera module is comprised of a 50MP primary, an 8MP ultra-wide, and a 2MP macro lens. On the front, there’s a 13MP snapper.
The phone features multiple RAM+storage variants, with the base having a 4GB+64GB config and the top model having an 8GB+128GB config. The battery has a 5,000mAh capacity, although its charging speed is much lower than the aforementioned models, standing at just 10W.
The Moto G51 will launch in Europe first with a price tag of €230 (~$260), thereafter launching in India, Latin America, the Middle East, and Asia.
Motorola Moto G41
The Moto G41 is powered by a MediaTek Helio G85 4G chip and has a 6.4” OLED display with 1080p+ resolution and 60Hz refresh rate.
Its triple camera array at the back has a 48MP primary (with OIS) + 8MP ultrawide + 2MP macro. The selfie camera resolution is 13MP.
The base variant of the Moto G41 comes with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage while the top one comes with a 6GB+128GB config. Its battery capacity is 5,000mAh and supports 30W fast charging.
The phone will be priced €250 (~$283) when it goes live in Europe and will be launched soon after in Latin America and the Middle East.
Motorola Moto G31
The Motorola Moto G31 is the most affordable among the bunch, priced at €200, and will be launched in India, Latin America, the Middle East, and Asia.
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It is powered by the Helio G85 chip and has a FHD+ 6.4” OLED display with a 60Hz refresh rate. The device has an IPX2 rating. Its camera setup on the rear is 48MP+8MP+2MP. The battery is 5,000mAh with 10W charging.
Earlier today (18th November 2021), Huawei launched a special variant of its Mate X2 foldable smartphone. Within just a few seconds, the new Mate X2 Collector’s Edition was sold out, despite the device being an ultra high end device.
The new special edition of the Mate X2 was priced at 18,999 Yuan (roughly 2,976 US Dollars). For those unaware, this variant of the Mate X2 upgrades the original’s 8GB of RAM to 12GB, which is paired with 512GB of internal storage. Under the hood, the ultra premium handset sports the HiSilicon Kirin 9000 processor, which supports 5G networking. Apart from the minor changes, the device is basically the same in other aspects to the original version.
Since Huawei was cut off from its primary chip supplier TSMC, the Kirin 9000 5G SoC are based on the remaining inventory of its in house chipset. In other words, its supply is very limited, which, in turn, would’ve raised its value as a “Collector’s” item. And with the brand’s high popularity in its home market, it arrives as no surprise that it was sold out in mere seconds. Interestingly, some users even took to online channels to resell this model owing to the surprising demand. These online listings have started accepting bids (Via ITHome), with the highest bid even crossing a whopping 21,000 Yuan (roughly 3,200 US Dollars).
The OPPO Reno6 5G is the most affordable model in the original Reno6 series. Almost six months after its initial announcement, the smartphone undergoes the DXOMARK battery review. The device beats the iPhone 13 Pro Max to take over the crown.
OPPO Reno6 5G
The mid-range OPPO Reno6 5G currently leads the DXOMARK Battery rankings with 96 points. It is followed by the iPhone 13 Pro Max in second place with 89 points.
According to the review, the Reno6 5G has the best autonomy score in its segment. It gains 10+ hours of autonomy with a just 5-minute charge when under 50% capacity. This is possible because of 65W SuperVOOC 2.0 fast charging protocol.
On the other hand, the iPhone 13 Pro Max takes 2 hours and 11 minutes to charge fully as opposed to only 35 minutes on the Reno6 5G. But the latest iPhone has an even better autonomy performance than the OPPO handset. It scores 84 points compared to 73 points.
Even in efficiency, the iPhone scores 95 points, which happens to be only a few points lower than Reno6’s 101 points. Additionally, the OPPO smartphone performs averagely in mobility and it also has a below-average autonomy performance in calls.
Whereas, the only major con of the Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max is slow charging. The OPPO Reno6 5G has an overall better score due to its lead in charging speed. But that does not mean it lags behind in other categories though the scores are lower than that of the iPhone.
Even in our OPPO Reno6 5G review, I mentioned that the phone’s endurance is the best thing about it. At the end of the day, a much cheaper Android smartphone has beaten the most expensive iPhone in an overall battery performance review by DXOMARK.
The Google Pixel 4a was never really built to be the most ideal hiking buddy. As such, it lacks water resistance and sports an all-plastic design, with both the frame and its back panel made of the same. But plastic was still never as brittle as glass, so when reports of some Pixel 4a cracking on their own from the corner began flowing in, it was quite surprising, to say the least.
Complaints from Reddit and the official Google Pixel forums all seem to say the same thing – that the Pixel 4a developed a crack on the top right or left corner without being dropped at all. Many have observed that the crack developed for them overnight. Some complainants have even stated that the crack appeared just a week or so following purchase, which is highly abnormal.
Upon scouring through various reports, we did observe one thing though – almost all of the complaints are from this year. And the Pixel 4a was launched back in August 2020. This could mean that some bad batches with this vulnerability were produced this year and have made their way to users, unchecked by quality control. But of course, this is just an assumption and it’s impossible to know for sure without official clarification.
Another observation was that the newer Pixel 4a 5G is unscathed by the corner cracking issue, making it clear that it’s a Pixel 4a-exclusive thing.
As for the cracks themselves, they’re quite tiny but are still visible enough, especially on the Barely Blue color variant. But a crack, no matter how tiny, is a compromise on the structural integrity of the phone and can thus even grow with time.
Device owners seem to be aware of this and have taken their Pixel 4a to service centers, only for them to be told that physical damage isn’t covered. Worse, many have resultantly gotten their warranties canceled.
Unfortunately, there is still no official word from Google on the matter. We would hence advise the affected to take their grievance to Twitter to try and pull Google’s attention to it.
Tesla has just revealed that it currently has no plans to bring Starlink services to Mainland China. This means that the company’s electric vehicle charging stations and other services will still be based on networking provided by Chinese telecommunication operators.
The news was shared by a spokesperson from Tesla China, who stated that the company’s production and operation in Mainland China will strictly comply with Chinese laws and regulations. Furthermore, all Model 3 and Model Y EV models produced and sold in the region will also be manufactured as per Chinese standards, with approval by relevant government authorities. But, the spokerperson added that, “Starlink and its related supporting equipment will not be installed.”
For those unaware, Starlink is a separate satellite based company from Elon Musk. The company aims to launch small satellites to build a low Earth orbiting network to provide low latency broadband internet services all across the globe. Before it reaches a global scale, the company is testing its services in different nations.
Model 3
One of these countries include India, where it aims on launching its services that will target rural regions. Notably, the services also aims on eliminating the reliance on ground stations through these laser equipped satellites. As of right now, the company has over 1,500 of these satellites orbiting the Earth and aims to raise this number even further.
Samsung launched the Galaxy A32 in India in March. The smartphone debuted in a single 6GB + 128GB storage configuration. Eight months later, the device now gets a new memory variant in the country.
Samsung Galaxy A32
The Galaxy A32 now comes in a new 8GB RAM variant in India. Just like the 6GB RAM model, this one also has 128GB internal storage. The two versions of the handset currently retail at the following price tags.
Samsung Galaxy A32 India Price
6GB + 128GB – ₹21,999
8GB + 128GB – ₹24,499
The Samsung Galaxy A32 pales in comparison against the handsets in its price segment. It features a 6.4-inch FHD+ 90Hz Super AMOLED display, MediaTek Helio G80 chipset, 64MP (wide) + 8MP (ultra-wide) + 5MP (macro) + 5MP (depth) quad-camera setup, 20MP selfie camera, 5,000mAh battery, 15W fast charging, and One UI 3.x based on Android 11.
Unlike the Galaxy A52, which is only slightly costlier, the Galaxy A32 does not offer water resistance and it is also not eligible for three Android updates. It also lacks OIS and houses a less powerful processor.
The cheaper Galaxy M32 is a much better option than the Galaxy A32. However, the former’s primary sales channel is online, while the latter has a wider availability across both offline as well as online channels.
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