Microsoft Surface Pro 8 with LTE Advanced will be released in 2022

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Sep 28, 2021

A bumper Microsoft event held on 22 September saw the unveiling of five Surface products, namely the Surface Pro 8, Duo 2, Laptop Studio, Go 3, and Pro X. And now, the Redmond-based company has given an official release date for the Microsoft Surface Pro 8 with LTE Advanced – it will be made available sometime in 2022.

The LTE variant comes with both removable SIM and eSIM support (via: MSPoweruser). The 4G is handled by the Qualcomm Snapdragon X20 LTE Modem, which supports an array of bands.

Microsoft has described the device as the most ‘the most significant leap forward since the Pro 3’. And from a design perspective, that does hold true. The display has seen the most significant upgrade with its size being increased from 12.3-inches to 13-inches. It has also gained 120Hz refresh rate support paired with a new resolution of 2880×1920, although the aspect ratio remains at 3:2.

However, the reduction in the size of the bezels means that the device has a size that is more or less the same as its predecessor, despite the increase in screen size.

Under the hood, the Surface Pro 8 is powered by Intel’s latest Tiger Lake processors – 11th Gen Intel Core i5 or 11th Gen Intel Core i7. An AMD variant was rumored as well, but that clearly hasn’t materialized yet.

The camera setup comprises a 5MP front-facing camera with support for 1080p full HD video recording and a 10MP rear-facing autofocus camera with 1080p HD and 4K video. The audio is handled by 2W stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos.

Microsoft is yet to provide precise battery numbers, but the Pro 8 will last up to 16 hours on a single charge, up from the Pro 7’s 10 hours. You can also charge from 0 to 80 percent in just over an hour.

The Microsoft Surface Pro 8 Wi-Fi model starts at $1099 and we expect the LTE Advanced model to be slightly pricier than that.

RELATED:

iQOO Z5 5G smartphone now available for $349 via Giztop

By

Simranpal Singh

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Sep 28, 2021

Vivo’s subbrand, iQOO recently unveiled the iQOO Z5 mid-range smartphone in some markets across the globe. The smartphone is now retailing from Giztop at the price of $349. It is available in two colour options of Mystic Space and Arctic Dawn. However, the buyers can choose between 8GB RAM + 128GB , 8GB RAM + 256GB or 12GB RAM + 256GB storage options.

Must See: iQOO Z5 5G smartphone goes on sale in China; price starts at 1,799 yuan ($279)

It is the easiest way to get the iQOO Z5 in the countries where it is not yet available. The triple-rear camera clad smartphone is now up for grabs for $349 via Giztop.

iQOO Z5 Specifications

iQOO Z5 smartphone features a 6.67-inch Full HD+ display while having a 120Hz refresh rate and 240 Hz touch sampling rate. The display supports HDR10 and P3 colour gamut. It is powered with Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G SOC coupled with an octa-core processor and Adreno 642L GPU. The smartphone is available in 8/12GB RAM and 128/256GB internal storage variants.

iQOO Z5 5G smartphone hosts a triple-rear camera sensor featuring a 64MP f/1.79 primary lens with OIS, an 8MP f/2.2 ultrawide sensor with 120-degree FOV and a 2MP f/2.4 macro sensor to capture the miniature world. There’s a 16MP sensor on the front for selfies and video calling.

The smartphone comes with a 5000 mAH battery while having 44W fast charging support. A 3.5mm audio jack is present along with other connectivity options like WiFi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, and USB Type-C.

You can get it at a great price of $349 via Giztop in both the colour options.

Related: iQOO Z5 5G smartphone goes on sale in China; price starts at 1,799 yuan ($279)

Apple iPhone 13 Pro scores 137 points on DxOMark, enters top 5 rankings

By

Sean

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Sep 28, 2021

The iPhone 13 series was just recently unveiled by Apple. Now, the iPhone 13 Pro has just passed through DxOMark camera test and has scored 137 points, having it enter the top 5 rankings for the best smartphone camera.

In the DxOMark camera test, the newly launched iPhone 13 Pro managed to achieve a notable score of 137 points. Its camera scored 144 points, while its zoom and video scores reached 76 and 119 points respectively. This had the device enter the top 5 rankings, arriving fourth in DxOMark’s top smartphone camera list. Looking at the tests, the handset received praise for its color tones and white balances, along with fast, accurate and repeatable autofocus.

Furthermore, the device handled target exposure well and managed to retain great detail in indoor and outdoor conditions. However, the tests also found that the iPhone 13 Pro suffered from limited dynamic range in high contrast scenes, along with other issues like lens flare and ghosting in low light videos. Most of the minor issues were found in the video tests, which included loss of sharpness and lack of textures in videos.

Despite these flaws, the iPhone 13 Pro achieved a notable score thanks to several improvements in various areas over its predecessor. DxOMark noted that the Cupertino based giant managed to squeeze out the most of its imaging hardware, which is reportedly custom sensors from Sony. With its score, the device managed to beat the Huawei Mate 40, but still lost to the Mate 40 Pro+. As of right now, the Huawei P50 Pro still tops the chart while the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra arrives second.

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OnePlus Buds Z2 key features leaked, could offer 38-hour battery life

By

Sudarshan Ravichandran

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Sep 28, 2021

Earlier this month, the renders of the upcoming OnePlus Buds Z2 revealed the design of the product. A few days later, a tipster has now shared the key features of these truly wireless earphones. Let’s take a look at what this new audio accessory from OnePlus has to offer.

OnePlus Buds Z2 Render Leak 03 — OnePlus Buds Z2 | Source: @OnLeaks x 91Mobiles

According to reliable tipster Max Jambor, the forthcoming OnePlus Buds Z2 will arrive with Bluetooth 5.2 connectivity. Despite being a budget model, these buds will offer ANC (Active Noise Cancellation).

Further, the earbuds are said to be IP55-certified for dust and water resistance. Interestingly, they will also have support for Dolby Atmos.

As far as endurance is concerned, the OnePlus Buds Z2 are tipped to provide a whopping 38-hour battery life with the charging case. Whereas, the buds themselves are said to last for 7 hours. That’s not all, just 10 minutes of charging could be enough for 5 hours of playback.

Although Max does not mention it, the above-mentioned numbers should be for without ANC. However, he does say that the product will be available in two color options – Black, White.

As per the renders leak, the OnePus Buds Z2 will be almost identical to the original OnePlus Buds Z in terms of design. The earphones are expected to go official alongside the OnePlus 9 RT in October.

Samsung Galaxy F42 5G Roundup: Specs, Price, Colors & More – What to Expect!

By

Zohaib Ahmed

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Sep 28, 2021

Samsung is gearing up to launch a new device in its Galaxy F series on September 29 in India. The Samsung Galaxy F42 5G was recently spotted on Google Play Console, which had revealed some key specs about it. The phone is essentially a rebranded version of the Galaxy Wide5 that had arrived in South Korea earlier this month. It may even be called Galaxy Buddy in some regions.

Design & Display

The Samsung Galaxy F42 5G sports a plastic frame and back but looks fairly premium from the rear thanks to a minimal design. The thing that stands out from the rear end is obviously its camera module, which looks kind of unique. It comes fitted with three camera sensors.

Upfront, there is a 6.6” LCD display with 1080p+ resolution and a V-shaped notch. It has a refresh rate of 90Hz and is surrounded by regular-sized bezels, although the one on the bottom is a tad large by today’s standards.

Cameras on the Samsung Galaxy F42 5G

The F42 5G comes with a triple camera array at the back. The primary sensor sports a resolution of 64 MP. The ultra-wide camera has a range of 115° and is capable of shooting images at a max resolution of 5 MP. There’s also a 2 MP depth sensor too. The selfie camera has a resolution of 8 MP and is capable of recording at 1080p@30fps.

Specifications

The Samsung Galaxy F42 5G is powered by the Mediatek Dimensity 700 5G processor, paired with the Mali-G57 MC2 GPU for graphical needs. The chipset has a 2.77 Gbps 5G modem (sub-6) with support for 12 bands, plus Wi-Fi 5 and Bluetooth 5.1 support.

The phone packs a large 5,000 mAh battery that can be filled up at 15W. The charging speed is unconfirmed at the moment though. It comes with a USB Type-C 2.0 port, a headphone jack, and an SD card slot.

Software

The device is expected to boot into Android 11 out of the box, which can be disappointing for some considering that Android 12 stable is just around the corner. The OS will be layered with One UI 3.1 atop.

Storage & Color Variants

Known variants for the device include 8 GB and 6 GB RAM variants coupled with 128 GB of storage. The colors offered will be three – Black, White, and Blue.

Pricing & Availability

The phone will be going on sale via Flipkart and Samsung’s own website on September 29. Some unnamed offline retailers have said that the Galaxy F42 with 6GB of RAM and 128GB storage will be priced at Rs 20,999, while the 8GB RAM version will retail for INR 22,999. However, the actual pricing may be lower than that.

RELATED:

China accounts for half of all Electric Vehicle sold in August: Report

By

Sean

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Sep 28, 2021

During the month of August, electric vehicle sales reached 506,000 units. A new report shared the figure and found that our of the half a million figure, more than 50 percent of all sales for electric vehicles were in China.

According to TheElec, the report arrives from EV Volumes who added that the overall figure is likely higher than 510,000 units when including the nations who’s data was unavailable. This also marked total sales doubling over the same month from a year ago. Notably, out of this total figure, 260,000 units or more than half of the EV sales in August were made in China. In Germany, around 52,000 units of EVs were sold, while the US market saw around 44,000 units being sold.

Similarly, France accounted for 17,000 units and Norway saw 14,000 EV units sold. In South Korea, electric vehicle sales reached 9,600 units, which marked a sizeable 172 percent growth year on year. EV Volumes further added that the launch of the Tesla Model Y and Hyundai Ioniq 5 boosted sales in August, while electric trucks from Hyundai and Kia were also quite popular.

In terms of total units sold, the Tesla Model 3 was the most popular electric car, which sold around 282,000 units across the globe during this month. The Wuling Hongguang Mini EV was the second most popular EV that sold 245,000 units, followed by Tesla Model Y with 180,000 units sold. The model 3 was popular in Europe, while the Wuling Hongguang Mini EV was popular in China. EV Volumes projects total sales of electric vehicles to hit 6.41 million unit this year.

RELATED:

iQOO may become independent brand in 2022, Vivo’s first T-series phones expected in November

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Sep 28, 2021

iQOO launched its first smartphone named iQOO with Snapdragon 855 back in March 2019. The Vivo sub-brand mainly focuses on releasing performance-driven smartphones across different price points. Fresh information shared by a Chinese tipster reveals that iQOO will become an independent brand in the first half of 2022.

The tipster claimed that the iQOO will be no longer attached to its parent brand Vivo in H1 2021. Hence, iQOO will be directly affiliated with China-based BBK Electronics like Vivo and OPPO. She added that in the coming year, the relationship between iQOO and Vivo will be similar to Realme and OPPO, which exist as separate brands.

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Vivo phones available in China come preinstalled with OriginOS UI-based Android OS, whereas the iQOO phones are shipped with a modified version of the OriginOS UI for iQOO. Probably, the iQOO UI coming on iQOO phones next year will offer a different experience than the OriginOS UI available Vivo phones in China.

The tipster revealed through other Weibo posts that the iQOO is gearing to launch the iQOO Z5x and a Neo branded phone with Snapdragon 888 SoC in October in China. She also shared some information on Vivo’s upcoming smartphones.

Vivo’s T-series phones to launch in November

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According to the tipster, Vivo’s first T-series phones priced around 2,000 Yuan (~$309) to 2,500 Yuan (~$387) will be launching in early November. The T-lineup will be a continuation of Vivo’s Z-series. In addition, November will also see the arrival of the next-generation S-series phones. The leaker also mentioned that Vivo will not be launching the NEX branded flagship as many internal plans of the company have been overturned.

RELATED:

India in talks with Taiwan for Chip Plant, could raise tensions with China

By

Sean

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Sep 28, 2021

India is in talks with Taiwan over a deal regarding chip production. The new discussions would have both countries enter into a semiconductor manufacturing agreement, bringing a new chip plant to India.

According to a Bloomberg report, the talks are related to chip plant and new trade deal between both nations. However, this move might spark new frictions with China. As per sources close to the matter, the officials from New Delhi and Taipei have met in recent weeks to discuss a possible agreement that would bring a chip plant to India. This chip manufacturing site would have an estimated worth of 7.5 billion US Dollars and would supply the nation with various components related to 5G to even electric cars.

As of right now, India is also surveying potential locations that can provide this site with sufficient water, land, and manpower. Furthermore, the country also seeks to provide financial support of 50 percent of the capital expenditure from 2023. This would also includes other benefits like tax breaks and other incentives as well. Notably, the officials from Taipei also wanted fast progress on a bilateral investment agreement that would include lowered tariffs for various products that are used to make semiconductors.

Unfortunately, the Office of Trade Negotiations in Taiwan declined to comment on the matter while India’s trade ministry has yet to provide a comment regarding this matter. The report added that Taiwan has long sought a trade deal with India, however, official in New Delhi have been reluctant due to rise of new frictions with China caused by this move. For those unaware, China considers the island nation as its territory.

RELATED:

Redmi 9A Sport, Redmi 9i Sport launched in India

By

Sudarshan Ravichandran

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Sep 28, 2021

After debuting the Redmi 9 Activ in India last week, Xiaomi has now launched two more budget Redmi smartphones. These devices are called Redmi 9A Sport and Redmi 9i Sport. They are exactly the same phones as the original Redmi 9A and Redmi 9i. The only difference is colors.

Redmi 9A Sport Featured A — Redmi 9A Sport

The newly unveiled Redmi 9A Sport and Redmi 9i Sport do not bring anything new, except for slightly tweaked colors. In fact, the base hues remain the same and the only differences are shades as well as names.

In simpler words, the Redmi 9A Sport and Redmi 9i Sport still come in black, green, and blue colors. But these hues are now called Carbon Black, Coral Green, and Metallic Blue instead of Midnight Black, Nature Green, and Sea Blue. This is purely because the shades of these colors are slightly different.

Further, the phones still arrive in identical memory configurations, unlike the Redmi 9 Activ. They even cost the same. They retail for the following price tags.

Redmi 9A Sport Price

2GB + 32GB – ₹6,999
3GB + 32GB – ₹7,999

Redmi 9i Sport Price

4GB + 64GB – ₹8,799
4GB + 128GB – ₹9,299

Redmi 9i Sport Featured A — Redmi 9i Sport

These two Xiaomi handsets are already up for sale on Mi.com. We are not sure if they will be sold via other channels in the future.

Samsung Mobile Head visited US twice to secure more chips: Report

By

Sean

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Sep 28, 2021

The Samsung Mobile division’s President and Head TH Roh has apparently made two visits to the US within this year. The executive made the trips to secure more chipsets/mobile application processors that is required for smartphone production.

According to TheElec, Roh met with major component makers in the US to secure a more chips and asked major partners to supply the South Korean tech giant. However, the official was reportedly denied, as per sources close to the matter. The first trip was made back in March while the last one was in July. The source further added that the President of Samsung Mobile division visited a global application processor maker in July and asked for more chips, but was refused outright.

The component maker had told the President that they wished to increase overall supply as well, but couldn’t increase the supply to Samsung along as of right now. Notably, Roh was also accompanied by the Vice President who remained in the US and returned to South Korea after staying for about three months. A company spokesperson stated that their trip was not without any results and they did result in the brand being able to secure some volume.

Although, the failure to secure more chips is indicative of the ongoing global shortage of semiconductors that has affected various industries across the globe. This includes the consumer electronics and even the automobile industry. At the moment, smartphone production has been negatively affected due to supply constraints in the third quarter of this year, which is also expected to continue in the fourth quarter as well.

RELATED:

Realme GT Neo2’s 100,000 units sold in first sale

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Sep 28, 2021

Last week, Realme announce the Realme GT Neo2 with Snapdragon 870 chip in China. As scheduled, it was made available for purchase for the first time in the home market on Sept. 27. Today, the company took to its Weibo handle to reveal that many customers in China purchase the smartphone in its first sale.

The GT Neo2 went on sale for the first time through Realme China’s online store, JD.com, Huantai Mall, Tmall, and Suning at 10:00 AM (local time) on Sept. 27. The poster released by the brand today reveals that its 100,000 units were sold in the first sale. Such is the popularity of this device.

The Realme GT Neo2 is available in three models such as 8 GB RAM + 128 GB storage, 8 GB RAM + 256 GB storage, and 12 GB RAM + 256 GB storage in China. They are priced at 2,499 Yuan (~$387), 2,699 Yuan (~$418), and 2,999 Yuan (~$464), respectively. It comes in three colors such as Shadow Black, Black Mint, and Blue.

Realme GT Neo2 specifications

The Realme GT Neo2 has a 6.62-inch AMOLED FHD+ 120Hz display. It is powered by Snapdragon 870 chipset, up to 12 GB of LPDDDR5 RAM, and a 5,000mAh battery that supports 65W fast charging. The handset comes with up to 256 GB of UFS 3.1 storage.

The handset possesses a 16-megapixel camera for selfies. It has rear camera setup has a 64-megapixel primary camera, an 8-megapixel ultrawide lens, and a 2-megapixel macro camera.

The Neo2 will be launching in India in October.

RELATED:

Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max sports custom Sony sensors for its rear cameras: Report

By

Sean

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Sep 28, 2021

While Apple refrains from revealing finer technical details regarding its iPhones, interesting aspect regarding the parts used in its smartphones are usually revealed soon after they are launched. Now, a new report of its newly launched iPhone 13 Pro Max has revealed notable information regarding its cameras.

According to a Weibo blogger (a Chinese microblogging website), the Cupertino based giant uses a custom Sony image sensor for its triple camera setup on the rear. All three of the rear cameras are from the Sony IMX7 series, although, its ToF and front facing camera are the same as the iPhone 12 Pro Max. The primary 12 megapixel camera is an IMX703 sensor with 26mm focal length, F/1.5 aperture and 1.9 μm pixel size, which is larger than its predecessor.

Notably, there is now a sensor shift OIS and a 7P (seven element) lens in the front now. Its ultra wide angle lens is a Sony IMX772 sensor with a 12 megapixel resolution, a 13mm focal length and an F/1.8 aperture of its 6P lens. A major upgrade over last year’s ultra wide angle lens is the inclusion of autofocus on this image sensor. Lastly, the telephoto lens is an IMX713 sensor with 77mm focal length for 3x optical zoom. Furthermore, the 6P lens with OIS has a slower F/2.8 aperture.

RELATED:

Samsung Galaxy F42 5G price in India leaked ahead of launch

By

Sudarshan Ravichandran

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Sep 28, 2021

Samsung is all set to launch the Galaxy F42 5G in India tomorrow (September 29). Ahead of that, the smartphone’s price in the country has leaked. Let’s take a look at how much it will cost in the region.

Samsung-Galaxy-Wide5 — Samsung Galaxy Wide5

According to the retail sources of 91Mobiles, the upcoming Galaxy F42 5G will be available in 6GB + 128G and 8GB + 128GB storage configurations. These variants will retail at the following price tags across offline stores.

Galaxy F42 5G Offline Price Leak

6GB + 128GB – ₹20,999
8GB + 128GB – ₹22,999

Since phones are usually costlier offline, the Galaxy F42 5G could be cheaper than the above-listed price tags online. That being said, as we are only a few hours from the launch, we don’t have to wait much longer to know the exact price of the handset.

The forthcoming Samsung Galaxy F42 5G for India is expected to be a rebranded Galaxy Wide5. Hence, it is said to come with features like a 6.6-inch FHD+ LCD panel with a 90Hz refresh rate, a MediaTek Dimensity 700 chipset, 64MP (wide) + 5MP (ultra-wide) + 2MP (depth) triple rear camera setup, 8MP front-facing camera, a side-mounted fingerprint sensor, One UI Core 3.x based on Android 11, 5,000mAh battery, and 15W fast charging.

Sony tops smartphone image sensor shipments in H1 2021, Samsung follows

By

Zohaib Ahmed

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Sep 28, 2021

The global smartphone image sensor market bagged a total revenue of $7 billion in the first half of 2021, as per the Strategy Analytics Handset Component Technologies service report titled “Smartphone Image Sensor Market Share Q2 2021: Sony Captures 41 Percent Share”.

The report (via: Business Wire) reveals that the image sensor market managed to record revenue growth of more than 10 percent year-over-year in the first half of 2021.

Smartphone_Image_Sensor_Market_1st_Half_2021 — Source: Strategy Analytics, Inc.

But it was Sony Semiconductor that managed to rank #1 and took the spot in the smartphone image sensor shipments in H1 2021 with an impressive revenue share of 42 percent. This was followed by Samsung System LSI and OmniVision Technologies.

According to the analysis, the top three vendors accounted for about 80% of revenue in the global smartphone image sensor market in H1 2021.

Jeffrey Mathews, Senior Analyst at Strategy Analytics says, “The image sensor vendors witnessed an accelerated momentum from smartphone OEMs, who actively adopted high-resolution CIS and low-pixel CIS products for multicamera applications, to secure inventory and cater to pent-up demand. Sony, Samsung, and OmniVision supplied key high-resolution CIS products to leading smartphone OEMs in H1 2021.”

Sony-IMX661-CMOS-Image-Sensor — Sony IMX661 CMOS image sensor

Further, the introduction of new high-resolution and large format CIS products from the major vendors are expected to boost the revenue opportunities in the market, as per Stephen Entwistle, Vice President of the Strategic Technologies Practice at Strategy Analytics.

However, he added that the supply fluctuations of various high-pixel and low-pixel CIS products continue to challenge the shipments growth prospects of the smartphone image sensor market in 2021 and beyond.

A previous report revealed that Sony led the CMOS Image Sensor market share in 2020, but Samsung is narrowing the gap. The latter recently launched a 200MP ISOCELL HP1 sensor – a reflection of the company’s design policy of pushing the boundaries of existing technologies. The OEM also recently revealed plans to launch a 576MP camera sensor in four years. Sony has been busy as well though and recently unveiled its CMOS IMX661 image sensor with a 127.68MP pixel count.

RELATED:

WhatsApp Pay could soon start offering cashback rewards in India

By

Jeet

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Sep 28, 2021

WhatsApp is one of the world’s largest instant messaging platforms but the Facebook-owned platform doesn’t have a good monetization model, despite having billions of monthly active users globally.

However, the company has been bringing several new features that have the potential to become a revenue stream for the application. One of them is WhatsApp Pay which was officially launched in India last year after being stuck for a couple of years because of regulatory issues with the Indian government.

Despite WhatsApp being the most used mobile application in India, the payment service built into the app didn’t take off. Now, to encourage more people to use its payment service, the company is reportedly considering offering cashback rewards.

As per the report, the company could be offering a one-time cashback reward of ₹10 (~$0.14) which will be crediting into the account with 48 hours. Also, it could be available only to those who are transacting through WhatsApp Pay for the first time.

The reward suggested for using the payment service is quite low when compared to what other players in the Indian market offered during their initial launch. But there’s a possibility that the reward amount could get increased.

In India, the WhatsApp Pay feature is based on the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) standard — the same system that is used by other payment apps such as Walmart’s PhonePe, Google’s Google Pay, and PayTM, among others.

Do note that the feature is currently under work so whenever the company decides to release it for the users, it could get changed to something else. It’s just speculation from our side, but we expect the feature to get released in the coming weeks or months.

RELATED:

Upcoming OPPO PFVM10 has Dimensity 700, reveals Geekbench

By

Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Sep 28, 2021

The mysterious OPPO phone with the PFVM10 model number was approved by the TENAA authority of China earlier this month. The listing revealed the entire specifications and images of the device, but its final marketing name remains a mystery. The PFVM10 smartphone has now emerged in the database of the Geekbench benchmarking site (via). The listing suggests that the company could be internally testing the performance of the device before its official announcement.

OPPO PFVM10 Geekbench listing

The Geekbench listing reveals that the OPPO PFVM10 will be powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 700 SoC. The chipset is mentioned with its MT6833 model number on the benchmarking site.

The handset is equipped with 6 GB of RAM, and it boots to Android 11 OS. It scored 559 and 1720 points in the single-core and multi-core tests of Geekbench.

OPPO PFVM10 specifications

The TENAA listing of the OPPO PFVM10 has revealed that it has a 6.52-inch teardrop notch display that offers an HD+ resolution of 720 x 1600 pixels. The handset houses a 4,980mAh rated battery, which may come with support for at least 18W fast charging.

The PFVM10 will come with 4 GB / 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage. It will come preloaded with Android 11 OS and ColorOS UI. It has a front camera of 8-megapixel and a 13-megapixel dual-camera system. The handset will also offer a side-facing fingerprint reader and a microSD card slot.

RELATED:

iPhone 13 Pro teardown by iFixit reveals details about Face ID changes & more

By

Zohaib Ahmed

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Sep 28, 2021

A teardown by iFixit has revealed that the size reduction of the notch across the entire Apple iPhone 13 lineup has been made possible thanks to a new Face ID array that combines the flood illuminator and dot protector into a single module. This is accompanied by the transfer of the earpiece speaker from the notch to the top bezel.

The folks at iFixit had shared these details following a live stream of the in-depth iPhone 13 Pro teardown process on Friday. They also gave the phone a repairability rating of just 5/10, which is down from the 6/10 for the iPhone 12 Pro last year.

iFixit teardown iPhone 13 Pro front camera — Image: iFixit

Further, iFixit explained that the dot projector in the front-facing camera has “moved from the edge to the center of the module this year.” The flood illuminator has been integrated into this new module, thus moved from its previous position in the display. iFixit also confirmed that a display replacement would break Face ID.

“Face ID works even when we disconnected the front sensor assembly. However, any display replacement knocks out Face ID. We tried transferring the sensors from the old display and porting over the Face ID hardware, but no dice. It looks like the display is serial-locked to the phone.”

iphone-13-pro-camera-teardown — Image: iFixit

Apple might also be using a new touch-integrated OLED panel this year in the iPhone 13 Pro, the teardown revealed. The tech basically combines the OLED and touch layers of a display, which reduces cost, thickness, and the materials required.

One particularly annoying change you might have to put up with if you ever decide to take matters into your own hands and attempt an iPhone repair yourself is that the top speaker’s standoff screws are trapped under the logic board. This means that you’ll have to remove the board to swap the speaker. This change has been due to the moving of the earpiece speaker to the top bezel.

All in all, these changes are exactly what has led to the drop in the repairability rating. This, combined with the following red marks against the iPhone 13’s repairability:

No easy way to replace the rear glass. Broken glasses are still a common occurrence despite the improvements in durability over the years.
Software component pairing that needlessly complicates the repair process and reduces the credibility of third-party repairs.

If interested in the complete iFixit iPhone 13 Pro teardown, just head over to this link.

RELATED:

Samsung Galaxy M52 5G launched in India with Snapdragon 778G, 120Hz AMOLED display, and more

By

Sudarshan Ravichandran

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Sep 28, 2021

Last week, Samsung quietly unveiled the Galaxy M52 5G in Poland. Today, as scheduled, the company has launched the smartphone in India. The successor of Galaxy M51 brings big upgrades and it is almost on par with the expensive Galaxy A52s 5G with certain shortcomings.

Samsung Galaxy M52 5G Price and Availability in India

The Samsung Galaxy M52 5G in Icy Blue and Blazing Black color options will retail for the following price tags in India.

6GB + 128GB – ₹29,999 ($405)
8GB + 128GB – ₹31,999 ($432)

For a limited time, during the Amazon Great Indian Festival sale, the device will be sold at discounted price tags of ₹26,999 ($364) and ₹28,999 ($391).

The Galaxy M52 5G will be available via Amazon India, Samsung.com, leading online portals, and select retail stores from October 3.

Samsung Galaxy M52 5G Specifications and Features

The Galaxy M52 5G features a plastic build like any other Galaxy M series phone. The rear panel has pinstripes just like on the Galaxy F62, which is also known as Galaxy M62 in some markets.

The handset flaunts a 6.7-inch sAMOLED+ Infinity-O display with a resolution of 1080 x 2400 pixels (FHD+), 16 million colors, a 120Hz refresh rate, and a centered punch-hole. The screen is protected by a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass 5.

The device is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G chipset paired with 6GB/8GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. If needed, the storage can be expanded via a MicroSD card.

Further, the phone sports a triple camera setup on the back consisting of a 64MP primary sensor, a 12MP ultra-wide unit, and a 5MP macro snapper. Whereas, on the front, it has a 32MP shooter for selfies and video calls.

On the connectivity front, the handset supports dual-SIM, 5G (11 bands), dual-band WiFi, Bluetooth 5.0, GNSS, NFC, and a USB Type-C port. Unfortunately, despite being a budget smartphone, it lacks a 3.5mm headphone jack. However, it does come with a side-mounted fingerprint sensor.

As far as software is concerned, it runs One UI Core 3.1 based on Android 11 with Knox security. It draws power from a 5,000mAh, which can be charged at a maximum rate of 25W, however, Samsung only bundles a 15W charger in the box.

Last but not least, the Galaxy M52 5G measures 7.4mm in thickness, weighs 173, and features all the essential sensors like an accelerometer, ambient light sensor, gyroscope, compass, and proximity sensor.

Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro X 14 goes on sale in China for 7,499 yuan ($1,162)

By

Jeet

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Sep 28, 2021

Xiaomi’s new laptop — Mi Notebook Pro X 14 is now officially available for purchase in the company’s home market of China. It is priced at 7,999 yuan and but is currently on sale at a discounted price of 7,499 yuan, approximately $1,162.

The laptop is said to be using mobile phone-grade manufacturing technology and is made up of 6-series aviation-grade aluminum alloy and the product uses CNC integrated carving technology. It weighs around 1.6 kilograms and measures 16.5mm thick.

As for the specifications, the device features a 14-inch display with a 2.5K (2560 x 1600 pixels) screen resolution that supports a 120Hz refresh rate and offers a 16:10 aspect ratio, 221ppi pixel density, and 100% sRGB color gamut.

Under the hood, it is powered by the 11th generation Intel Core i7-11370H processor, coupled with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 graphics processor. The laptop comes packed with up to 16GB LPDDR4x 4266MHz high-frequency dual-channel RAM and 512GB PCIe high-speed storage. There’s a Thunderbolt 4 port, two USB-C ports, and a 3.5mm audio jack.

The laptop also comes with a fingerprint sensor integrated into the power button for added security measures. In the software department, the device comes pre-installed with the Windows 10 operating system and is likely to soon get updated to the latest Windows 11.

It also supports the MIUI+ feature that bridges the gap between a Xiaomi smartphone and a Windows PC. The device also supports Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth in terms of connectivity options and comes with a 130W power adapter.

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Huami Amazfit GTR 3 and GTS 3 series wearable devices launching on October 12

By

Jeet

-

Sep 28, 2021

Huami has today confirmed that it will be hosting Amazfit 2021 Global Annual New Product Launch Conference on 12th October where the company will be launching the Amazfit GTR 3 and Amazfit GTS 3 series wearable devices.

As the name itself indicates, the devices will be launched as the successor of the Amazfit GTR 2 series and GTS 2 series smartwatches that were launched last year.

While the company has not revealed what the upcoming wearable products pack in terms of features and specifications, some details are already known because of leaks. The GTR 3 was recently spotted on Brazilian regulator Anatel’s database with model number A2035, showcasing the same circular body as its predecessor and two buttons on the right side.

Like many other smartwatches, this one too will come with support for heart rate monitoring and blood oxygen sensor. It remains to be seen if the company upgrades the heart rate sensor to include blood pressure measurement.

It is also being claimed that the Amazfit GTR 3 is water-resistant up to 5ATM and is powered by a 440mAh battery, which should be enough to make the device run for about two weeks on a single charge.

To know more about these upcoming smart wearable products from Amazfit, including features, specifications, pricing, and availability, we will have to wait for the official launch event which is scheduled to take place in a couple of weeks.

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