Qualcomm has two processors that will power the flagship phones of this year. There is the Snapdragon 888 which we have seen in premium phones such as the Galaxy S21 series and Xiaomi Mi 11. The second is the Snapdragon 870 which will power more affordable flagships or the phones that fall under the ”flagship killer” category.
Both chipsets pack a punch but we know the Snapdragon 888 is the more powerful chipset. It not only has a better CPU and GPU but it is more efficient thanks to its smaller node size, 5nm against the Snapdragon 870’s 7nm. However, reviews have revealed that the Snapdragon 888 has heating issues.
The Snapdragon 870, on the other hand, takes the already great Snapdragon 865 Plus to another level with its higher clock speed. We haven’t seen reviews yet as the first commercially available phone to be powered by the chipset is yet to launch.
For this week’s poll, we want to know which of these processors you want in your next smartphone. Will you choose a phone powered by the Snapdragon 888 5G or will you choose a phone powered by the Snapdragon 870 5G?
UPDATE: Huawei has debunked rumors that it is negotiating the sales of its premium series. In a statement released to the Chinese media, the company hinted that it has no plans to sell its mobile phone business and that it will continue building high-end phones.
The original story is retained below;
Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies Co Ltd is reported to be in talks with investors to sell its high-end smartphone brands P and Mate, according to insider sources. If the move scales through all the hurdles and is consummated by both sides, then we could see Huawei ultimately exiting the high-end segment of the business.
Huawei is a powerhouse in the manufacturing of telecommunications equipment, in fact, the world’s biggest manufacturer of Telecom equipment. The talks between the company and a consortium of investment firms have been going on for months, and a decision could be reached anytime soon, according to the sources.
The move to sell off the brands was kick-started last September and may have progressed very well, although no valuation figures are available at this time. In a one-year period between Q3 2019 and Q3 2020, Shipments of Mate and P Series models grossed $39.7 billion.
It has to be pointed out however that Huawei hasn’t made a final decision to sell yet, and a no-deal scenario is still possible as the company seeks ways to mitigate US sanctions that negatively impacted the fortunes of the company. It is still trying to manufacture its own high-end Kirin chips which power its smartphones.
The potential sale of this arm of the company may suggest that there is little hope for a loosening of the sanctions and restrictions from the new Biden administration, as no drastic shift is expected.
A similar sale was done by Huawei last year when it’s honor brand was sold to a consortium of 30 dealers, for a reported 100 billion yuan ($15.5 billion).
The Honor sale was aimed at keeping the brand afloat in the face of sanctions. Huawei may have a similar objective in pursuing the sale of the mobile brands. The US insists that Huawei is a national security threat, which Huawei has repeatedly denied.
Earlier this month, certain specs of a Motorola smartphone codenamed ‘Ibiza’ leaked. The parameters of this device suggested it to be a budget 5G handset. Now, a couple of weeks later, this phone has been also certified by WiFi Alliance.
Mockup Image by TechnikNews
The upcoming Motorola Ibiza smartphone is expected to come with model number XT2137. Ahead of its launch, this phone has been now spotted on WiFi Alliance. According to the listing, it will launch with Android 11, which we already know. In other words, the WiFi certification does not reveal anything new, except for the fact that it may launch soon.
According to the leak from early January, the Motorola Ibiza aka Motorola XT2137 will be powered by Qualcomm SM4350 chipset codenamed ‘Holi’. This silicon is nothing but the Snapdragon 480 SoC that went official around two days after this leak.
Further, this chip will be paired with 4GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. As for the display, this upcoming Motorola device is said to flaunt a 90Hz HD+ (720 x 1600 pixels) LCD panel with a waterdrop notch housing a 13MP Samsung ISOCELL S5K3L6 camera sensor for selfies and video calls.
Talking about rear cameras, the handset is reported to feature a triple camera setup consisting of a 48MP Samsung ISOCELL S5KGM1ST primary sensor, a 5MP Samsung ISOCELL S5K5E9 sensor with a macro lens, and a 2MP OmniVision OV02B1B sensor for depth sensing.
Last but not least, this Motorola budget smartphone will be backed by a 5,000mAh battery and will go official in Q1 2021 itself.
The famous Chinese smartphone company, Doogee announced a new smartphone – Doogee S88 Plus. The smartphone is a younger sibling to the S88 Pro which was launched late last year featuring fully-packed specifications. Whereas, the newly launched Doogee S99 Plus features a better chipset – Helio P70 instead of the P60 SoC. The S88 Plus comes in three colour options of Army Green, Fire Orange, Mineral Black for $199 via Aliexpress.
The introductory price is limited till January 31st, and after that, it will start retailing for $349. Doogee is even offering 6 units of the new smartphone for free if you enter and win the ongoing giveaway. The results will be announced via live YouTube stream on February 1.
Doogee S88 Plus houses a powerful ARM Cortex-A73/A53 octa-core CPU complex with an impressive Arm Mali-G72 GPU. Moreover, it is 13% faster, and 10-30% AI processing efficient than the predecessor.
The new smartphone carries a beautiful 6.3-inch display featuring a full HD+ resolution. It is available in 128GB storage and 8 GB RAM variant. A 10000 mAh battery is present to offer large battery backup. The primary highlights of the smartphone are as follows:
Quality Display and LED light
Doogee S88 Plus brings multi-coloured LED light which shows different colours for calls, messages, music, and other notifications. There’s a 6.3-inch Full HD display featuring a waterdrop notch and Corning Gorilla Glass. The device features a 1080 x 2340 pixels resolution and features a pixel density of 410 PPI. Moreover, it has a new gesture navigation system making the smartphone more productive. The user can access different apps, menu and Google Assistant using gestures.
Rugged Capabilities
The smartphone is IP68/IP69K rating confirming the waterproof and drop-proof design. The device can withstand impact from up to 1.5 metres and can remain underwater with up to 2 metres of depth. It even did well in brick pressure and sand immersion tests.
Doogee S88 Plus is designed with two-colour injection moulding technique to make the device stronger using hard and soft rubber material.
Moreover, the device features well-aligned software to provide easy access to professional tools including a compass, sound meter, height measurement, magnifier, and other essential apps.
Power Triple Camera
The camera has become an essential part of any smartphone. Doogee S88 Plus features an impressive tripe-rear camera module featuring a 48MP Samsung AI Triple camera, an 8MP macro lens and an 8MP ultra-wide-angle lens.
The Samsung S5KGM1 sensor chip ensures quality photography. It brings high-resolution stills and 4K video even in a low-light environment. Moreover, the ultrawide lens captures expanded photos with better quality.
On the front, there’s a 16-megapixel selfie camera with 80-degree wide-angle to capture all the details and even aids in identifying the age. Thanks to the inbuilt AI algorithms which enhances the overall photo by analyzing the several aspects.
Massive Battery
Doogee S88 Plus smartphone provides a large 10000 mAh battery which is ideal for the travellers an outdoor enthusiasts. The battery can provide a backup of up to 10-15 days which roughly translates to 470 hours while using it normally. It let you remain connected with near and dear ones whilst on the move. Its reverse charging feature let the user charge other devices.
Security
The availability of face recognition, side-fingerprint sensor and NFC makes the device secured. The users can easily safeguard their data using fingerprint or face recognition. Presence of NFC enables users to safely use Google Pay and other related apps while making payments.
Extensive Network support
The device support major network bands including 4G FDD 1/3/7/8/20 bands, 3G WCDMA 1/2/4/5/8, 2G GSM 2/3/5/8, and LTE baseband of B1/3/7/8/20/EDGE/GPRS. Moreover, it houses support for 2.4G 802.11b/g/n and 5G 802.11n, and Bluetooth 4.2.
Pricing and Availability
Doogee S88 Plus is now retailing on AliExpress for $199.99 between January 25-31. It is available in three colours including Army Green, Fire Orange and Mineral Black. Surprisingly, the first 200 buyers will get a free phone case. The interested users can participate in the giveaway.
It’s been 10 days since the Galaxy S21 series launched. Among the three devices, the vanilla Galaxy S21 and S21 Ultra have already been torn down to reveal the inside. Now is the turn for the Galaxy S21+ 5G Teardown.
Galaxy S21+ Black
Just like the other versions, the Samsung Galaxy S21+(SM-G996U) 5G’s teardown video also comes from PBKreviews YouTube channel. The video begins by talking about the SIM trays. He says that the Single-SIM variants of the S21+ have the ability to read both SIMs but one of them is disabled and has a plastic SIM tray.
So if you need to access the second one, first you will need a metal dual-SIM tray as shown below. Next is a new firmware that re-enables the second SIM reader to detect the network. Moving on, opening the back Glass Panel, we see the inside is similar to other models. Since this is a sub-6GHz 5G Exynos 2100 Version, it lacks mmWave antennas.
Speaking of the rear panel, it seems the camera layout cover is detachable from the panel itself. It is reportedly fixed to the rest of the rear using an adhesive. After unscrewing the 19 Philips Heads, you see the NFC and Wireless charging coils. Beneath them are ribbon connectors for Speakers, Bottom circuitry, NFC, etc.
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Galaxy S21+ Inside- Rear
Dual SIM vs Single SIM Tray
NFC, Wireless Charging coils
Removing all of them, we get to the speaker unit(separate) and Camera layout attached to the mainboard. As you can see below, the first one is a 12MP ultra-wide, next two are OIS-enabled 12MP wide-angle and 64MP Telephoto. Interestingly, apart from the secondary mic and LED flash, a third mic is sorted to the motherboard.
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Camera Layout, Main Board
Exynos 2100 chipset
The sound for this travels through the LED diffusers through a pathway inside to get to the mic through a separate hole. As for the processor, the Exynos 2100 is covered inside a Thermal Paste+Graphite Pad combo sitting below a 3D Graphene layer.
Penultimately, after removing the cables on the way and bottom circuitry(Charging port, Speaker, Display Flex connection), we see the EB-BG996ABY 4,800mAh battery.
Just like the S21, S21 Ultra, or any other Samsung, this doesn’t have pull tabs. Hence, you need heat to remove the battery to see the display. Another interesting point here is the flex cable for side volume keys are etched between the display and mid-frame. Hence, you need to pry open the display to repair it if you get it damaged.
Earlier today, OPPO announced the OPPO A55 5G as the first phone with Dimensity 700 chip onboard. MediaTek announced the Dimensity 700 chipset in November 2020 for powering affordable 5G-ready phones. Other smartphone OEMs are also expected to announce D700 powered phones in the coming months. A Chinese tipster has claimed that Realme is working a new phone powered by the D700 chip. It is likely to arrive as the most affordable 5G phone from the brand.
The tipster revealed that the Realme’s upcoming Dimensity 700 powered handset has an LCD screen with a teardrop notch. Its rear shell has a square-shaped camera module. It is expected to offer a long-lasting battery life as it is likely to be fueled by a 5,000mAh battery.
The tipster claimed that the 5G-ready phone would carry a meager price tag. Currently, the Realme V3 priced at 1,099 Yuan (~$170) and Realme Q2i priced at 999 Yuan (~$154) are the cheapest 5G-enabled phones from Realme. Unfortunately, the tipster did not reveal the moniker of Realme’s upcoming Dimensity 700 powered handset. Probably, it could end up as a new Q-series smartphone.
Realme Q2i specifications
The Realme Q2i has a 6.5-inch HD+ resolution supporting IPS LCD screen. The Dimensity 720 chipset with 4 GB of RAM powers the device. It has an inbuilt storage of 128 GB and it lacks support for external storage. It comes preloaded with Realme UI based Android 10 OS.
Realme Q2i
The Q2i carries support for 18W charging for its 5,000mAh battery. It has a front camera of 8-megapixel and a 13-megapixel (main) + 2-megapixel (macro) + 2-megapixel (depth) triple camera system. Lastly, it also features a fingerprint scanner.
The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has certified an OPPO device that has a model number OB19B1. This model number belongs to the OPPO Band which went official in China in mid-2020. This BIS certification is a good hint that the device could be arriving soon in India.
Last week, the OPPO Band was spotted at the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) and now it has been spotted at India’s BIS body. It appears that the Chinese brand could be working on bringing the OPPO Band to wider markets in the coming weeks.
When OPPO announced the OPPO Band in June 2020 in China, it also announced its other variants such as OPPO Band Fashion and OPPO Band EVA Limited Edition. These fitness trackers have almost identical specs. The OPPO Band comes with a sporty strap, whereas the Fashion Edition has a fashionable strap along with NFC connectivity support. The OPPO Band EVA is a limited edition variant with a Neon Genesis Evangelion anime-themed strap.
OPPO Band specifications
The OPPO Band has a 1.1-inch AMOLED touchscreen with 100 percent DCI-P3 color gamut support. It comes with 2.5D curved glass protection. It comes with support for downloadable watch faces. It has a 100mAh battery that promises up to 14 days of battery life. It is fitted with a pogo pin connector for charging.
OPPO Band
For health tracking, the OPPO Band comes with support for heart rate tracking, SPO2 monitoring, and sleep tracking. It comes with support for up to 12 kinds of sports activities. The smart band is fueled by Apollo 3 chipset and it comes with 5ATM water-resistance.
In China, the three editions of OPPO Band were priced at 199 Yuan (~$31; ~Rs 2,240) , 249 Yuan (~$38; ~Rs 2,800)), and 299 Yuan (~$46; ~Rs 3,360) . There is no word on its pricing for India.
Non-invasive Blood Glucose Monitoring is a technology that hasn’t quite matured yet. However, a report by ETNews says that Apple and Samsung might finally be able to implement “Blood sugar monitoring” on their next smartwatches.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 Titanium
The report says that both Samsung and Apple will introduce the non-conventional method of Blood Sugar monitoring on their Galaxy Watch 4/Watch Active 3 and Watch 7* respectively. That is, the glucometer inside the smartwatches will apparently be based on an optical sensor.
This is not the first time we are hearing about this. A couple of weeks ago, we saw a company called Quantum Operation showing off a “Spectrometer-based” prototype that works on the interaction of light with the wrist. We already know that companies like Apple have been actively working on it for more than a year now.
And to affirm this, the report says that both of them have secured their patents and are now working on increasing the reliability. Apple’s patent dates back to 2018 whereas Samsung collaborated with MIT to post results of Raman’s Spectroscopy on journal “Science Advances”.
For the unware, it is how a Light interacts with chemical bonds of a material. When you irradiate laser light onto a substance, it scatters. These differing wavelengths can be used to monitor the Blood Glucose accurately than before. If the report is true, Diabetic patients can finally be free of having to constantly prick their fingers with needles.
Samsung and Apple are the right companies to popularise this as others despite advancing aren’t really progressing beyond prototypes. That said, both the companies will reportedly introduce this as early as this year. Out of this, Samsung is planning three new watches in H2 2021 and one/two might get this feature.
With Smartwatches pressing the saddle in 2021, I think this is the right time to introduce a game-changing feature on wearables.
The OPPO Reno2 F is a mid-range smartphone launched in the second half of 2019. The handset debuted with ColorOS 6.1 based on Android Pie. It was later updated to Android 10-based ColorOS 7. Now, the company has started recruiting beta testers for ColorOS 11 (Android 11) update in India.
OPPO announced ColorOS 11 in mid-September after Android 11 stable was released for the Google Pixels. Since then, the firm has been rolling out beta and stable builds to its smartphones worldwide.
Earlier this month, the Chinese handset maker shared the ColorOS 11 update rollout plan for the month of January 2021. According to it, the OPPO Reno2 F is supposed to get the beta build on January 26 in India. Hence, the brand has been recruiting beta esters for this phone since Saturday (January 23).
That said, to enroll in the program, your device should be on software build number C.17. If it is, then simply navigate to Settings > Software Update > Gear icon > Apply for Beta Version > Update Beta Version and follow the on-screen instructions. If you get selected, the company will be seeding the ColorOS 11 beta build via OTA within a week.
Having said that, we are not sure when the stable update will be released. But it should be rolled out by next month at the earliest. Also, OPPO is yet to reveal the availability of this update in other regions.
With various companies gearing up to launch their own offerings of laptops, tablets, monitors, and TVs with the new Mini LED backlighting, suppliers have been pushing production capacities to meet the surge in demand. However, this has also led to the rise in the price of conventional LED chips as well.
According to a TrendForcereport (Via EETAsia), multiple firms in the LED supply chains had started manufacturing LED chips ahead of time, in the fourth quarter of last year. But despite this, the explosive growth in demand for Mini LED chips has led to crowding in their production capacities that have also affected other mainstream LED chips. Due to this, the global supply chain has been witnessing a shortage of LED chips, which has led to certain suppliers raising the quotes on chips supplied to their non core clients that bring relatively low gross margins.
These price hikes are generally around 5 to 10 percent. Furthermore, the report adds that the companies in the LED supply chain have also begun aggressively procuring components in other to mitigate these upcoming price hikes on raw materials and the shortage of components. This is primarily due to tight production capacities for manufacturers after the Chinese New Year. These shortages have already affected certain serial numbers or specifications.
TrendForce believes that the structural shortage that is affecting the LED industry is primarily due to the market’s underestimation of production capacity that was necessary for key parts of the supply chain. Thus, suppliers are currently enjoying an increased bargaining power in price negotiations of LED chips due to the rise in material costs and limited material supplies as well.
The upcoming Samsung Galaxy A52 5G has received approval from China’s TENAA and 3C, India’s BIS, Wi-Fi Alliance, and Bluetooth SIG authorities. These listings and other leaks have revealed some of the specs of the Galaxy A52 5G. Recent reports have also revealed the key specs of the Galaxy A72 5G. It is speculated that both phones will be also coming in 4G versions. Now, the pricing of the Galaxy A52 and A72 have appeared on Idealo (via. Galaxy Club), a retailer site in Germany.
Galaxy A52 renders by Onleaks
Samsung Galaxy A52 and Galaxy A72 pricing (Unconfirmed)
Except for Galaxy A72 5G, the retailer site has listed the pricing of the Galaxy A52 4G, Galaxy A52 5G, and Galaxy A72 5G phones. Here is the pricing of the upcoming A72 and A52 smartphones:
Samsung Galaxy A52 4G variants
6 GB RAM + 128 GB storage – 369 euros (~$448)
8 GB RAM + 256 GB storage – 429 euros (~$521)
Samsung Galaxy A52 5G variants
6 GB RAM + 128 GB storage – 459 euros (~$558)
8 GB RAM + 256 GB storage – 509 euros (~$619)
Samsung Galaxy A72 4G variants:
6 GB RAM + 128 GB storage – 449 euros (~$546)
8 GB RAM + 256 GB storage – 509 euros (~$619)
Galaxy A72 5G renders by OnLeaks
The above-mentioned phones are expected to arrive in European markets in colors like Denim Blue, Icy White, and Graphite Black. Readers are expected to digest the pricing information of the upcoming A-series phones with a grain of salt.
Samsung Galaxy A52 and Galaxy A72 specifications (Rumored)
The Galaxy A52 and A72 are expected to arrive with Snapdragon 720G chipset. Their 5G variants are likely to feature Snapdragon 750G. The Galaxy A72 may feature a 6.7-inch FHD+ AMOLED screen, whereas the A52 may house a 6.5-inch FHD+ AMOLED display. Both phones are rumored to come with a 64-megapixel (main) + 12-megapixel (wide-angle) + 5-megapixel (macro) + 5-megapixel (depth) quad-camera system.
In early December, news broke out that Xiaomi has canceled the MIUI 12 update for four devices, namely Redmi Y3, Redmi 7, Redmi 6, and Redmi 6A. But now, over a month later, one of these smartphones, the Redmi 7, has started receiving the MIUI 12 update.
Out of nowhere, Xiaomi has rolled out MIUI 12 update for the Redmi 7 though it was said to be canceled. As of now, the update is only live for the Chinese variant of the handset with build number V12.0.1.0.QFLCNXM.
The build is currently in the Stable Beta phase and hence, it is only available for select users in China. If the early adopters don’t come across any major bugs, this very same build will be seeded out as the final stable update for all the users in the country. Also, the update should be available for other regional variants of this phone shortly.
For those unaware, Xiaomi canceled the MIUI 12 update for Redmi 7 and the other three devices citing performance issues. Having used this handset personally, I can tell for sure that despite featuring a Qualcomm Snapdragon 632 SoC, the Redmi 7 stutters a lot. Anyway, I am happy that Xiaomi is providing the MIUI 12 update as it brings redesigned UI and new useful features.
Having said that, the biggest question is will the other three smartphones (Redmi Y3, Redmi 6, Redmi 6A) also get the update? Unfortunately, we don’t have any idea but it would be nice for the users of these handsets.
Wall Street analysts are expecting Apple to reach sales crossing 100 billion US Dollars for the final quarter of 2020. This marks the holiday season along with the company’s launch of its latest iPhone 12 series lineup.
According to a BusinessInsiderreport, the current estimation for the Cupertino based giant’s final quarter sales is 102.76 billion US Dollars. This is for the quarter that ends on 31st December 2020, which is also the company’s fiscal first quarter, as per estimates from 27 analysts. At the moment, the highest estimate as per these analysts has the company reach 110.21 billion US Dollars in sale during the fourth quarter of last year.
As per Morgan Stanley analysts Katy L. Huberty and Erik W. Woodring’s research note, “We are buyers ahead of what we expect to be a record December quarter print.” If the mean estimation of the 102.76 billion US Dollars sales for Apple is true, it would mark a year on year rise of 16 percent over its final quarter sales from back in 2019. The company is scheduled to post the results of this quarter on Wednesday (27th January 2021) after the market closes.
Similar to Apple, even Amazon is expected to top the 100 billion US Dollars sales mark during this period. Although, its financial report for this quarter would only be seen by 2nd February 2021. Both Apple and Amazon would be a part of a small group of American firms that also includes Walmart, which also hit the 100 billion US Dollar milestone as well. Morningstar analysts also added that “CEO Tim Cook expects iPhone revenue to grow in the December quarter despite the new iPhone 12 being launched a couple of weeks later in the quarter, though he did not specify the magnitude of growth. Meanwhile, all other products and services are expected to grow in the double digits.”
Displays used in automobiles have seen a surge in shipments in 2020. Last year, the automobile industry saw an increase in demand for displays that grew by 22 percent year on year.
According to TheElecreport, new market research from Omdia has pointed out that up to 351 million units of automotive displays that were sized 9 inch or above were shipped during this period. Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the demand had shrunk in the first half but recovered in the second half of the year. This growth in display demand was primarily carried by the center stack display (CDS), which is generally the control hub in a vehicle.
Back in 2020, the CSD shipments rose by 47 percent alone in comparison to 2019. Furthermore, this category also accounted for around 40 percent of the automotive display market in 2019 but has since risen to over 50 percent in 2020. In the final quarter of last year, CSD alone accounted for 56.5 percent of all automotive displays. Similarly, ICD (instrument cluster display) was also responsible for the growth, which also saw a rise of 11 percent and accounted for about 30 percent of the automotive display demand.
Furthermore, the report also found that only over 10 percent of all displays were automotive screens and that the increase in CSD and ICD shipments were thanks to the rise in autonomous driving and other safety features. Notably, 12.3 inch panels were the most popular size in this category of displays. The market research also predicts that the automotive display market will further recover in the second half of 2021.
Xiaomi’s Mi MIX series is known for its bezel-less design. Unfortunately, the company has not released a new model in a very long time. However, it has patented a wide variety of devices with full-screen design in the past few months. Now, yet another new design emerges with a unique slider display implementation.
As usual, this Xiaomi patent was first spotted by LetsGoDigtial. As per the publication, Beijing Xiaomi Mobile Software filed this patent with the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Office) and the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office). It got approved and published on October 29, 2020.
According to the documentation, this design includes a slider display similar to the Mi MIX 3 5G. But unlike that phone, this handset’s display covers the front and runs along the bottom side up until half of its back.
Hence, the only places without a screen on this design are the top, sides, and the top portion of the rear panel. This design is somewhat similar to the Xiaomi AI Super Camera smartphone patent from last year but with a magnetic slider.
Since this design’s display continues from the front to the back from the bottom side, it uses a roller mechanism inside the slider to slide down the front panel to reveal the selfie camera, an ambient light sensor, a distance sensor, a dot projector, and the receiver. This slider can also be moved by voice command.
In other words, this new Xiaomi patent is a combination of slider, rollable, and full-screen smartphone. That said, we don’t think the Chinese smartphone maker will ever release such a device for the commercial market but it may showcase it as a concept like the Mi MIX Alpha.
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Lastly, the renders included in this article are created by an industrial designer called Sarang Sheth, in collaboration with LetsGoDigtial. Also, it is worth noting that the rear camera setup from the Mi 10T Pro is just for reference.
At the beginning of December, Qualcomm announced the Snapdragon 888 mobile platform. After the launch, Realme revealed that it will be unleashing a flagship phone featuring the SD888 chip in the first quarter of 2021. Reports have claimed that the handset is codenamed Race and its model number is RMX2202. Earlier today, Xu Qi who is Realme China’s President hinted through Weibo that the Realme Race may launch in the coming month.
Xu Qi mentioned in the Weibo post that the Race smartphone will be made official after the Spring Festival (Feb. 12) of China. Hence, it is likely that the Realme Race may hit the Chinese markets in the latter half of February.
While leaked information that appeared in the last month revealed details of the Realme Race smartphone, but a leak from last week also revealed the existence of the Race Pro handset. Like the Race model, its Pro sibling could be powered by the Snapdragon 888 mobile platform.
Leaked shot of Realme Race phone
The Realme Race Pro is expected to arrive with an OLED panel of 6.8 inches. The screen is likely to offer a Quad HD+ resolution of 1440 x 3200 pixels, a 20:9 aspect ratio, and a 160Hz refresh rate. The device could be fitted with a 64-megapixel + 13-megapixel + 13-megapixel triple camera system.
The SD8888 chip could be equipped with 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM. It could be coming in three storage versions like 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB. It may house a 5,000mAh battery with 125W rapid charging technology. It may come loaded with the Realme UI 2.0 based Android 11 OS.
In related news, China is also expected to receive Realme X9 and Realme X9 Pro smartphones in Q1 this year. Rumors have it that the Realme X9 Pro could be arriving as one of the first phones featuring the Dimensity 1200 chipset.
Ren Zhengfei, the Huawei Founder and CEO, has called for the company to decentralize its operations and focus more on generating and maintaining profits to survive the impacts of the US sanctions.
According to an SCMPreport, the senior Huawei executive also called for the company to simplify its product lines, and maintain pay levels for the next three to five years to survive the US trade restrictions. The CEO and founder made the announcement in a published speech that was made public earlier this month. Ren had made the speech back in June 2020. For those unaware, the US sanctions have severely impacted the operations of the Chinese tech giant and had even led it to sell off its budget smartphone manufacturing unit, Honor.
Now, the company is doubling its efforts to expand its business in other areas, after its smartphone operations having been nearly crippled. At the moment, Huawei is working on growing its presence in areas like cloud computing/services and even smart cars. Ren stated that “There’s a big mismatch between our ability and strategy. It’s our weak link, and we are forced to start from the beginning like elementary school students.” He even referred to the Chinese proverb of “the cleverest housewife cannot cook a meal without rice”, adding that the company has neither “a clever wife” nor has its “own rice”.
Zhengfei Ren, Huawei founder and CEO
The official also added that “Please don’t be upset because of the temporary US pressure, or give up on our globalization strategy. There’s no future without embracing globalization [in development and research].” Ren believes that Huawei must operate as normal and must also find ways to motivate people. He said that “hundreds of Huawei cadres” had even offered to go through a demotion, to showcase the dedication of the team.
Earlier this month, the OnePlus Nord received its first Open Beta update. That build was also the first-ever OxygenOS 11 (Android 11) public build for the handset. Now, just within a month, the company has released OxygenOS Open Beta 2 for this device with a host of fixes and optimizations.
The second public beta update for the OnePlus Nord does not bring any new features. Instead, it focuses on optimizing and fixing the issues faced by the users in the previous build.
First and foremost, the new build optimizes UI display of Calculator, position and animation of some icons in the lock screen, and WhatsApp background management to receive messages on time.
As far as fixes are concerned, the update fixes the battery icon display issue while changing the phone’s orientation, a problem with Dirac audio tuner, and unable to set alarms. Further, the build also fixes Messenger Bubbles, come camera app issues, and unable to set SIM 2 as the default bug.
OnePlus Nord Nord OxygenOS Open Beta 2 Official Changelog
System
Optimized the UI display of Calculator
Optimized the position and animation of some icons in the lock screen
Optimized the background management of Whatsapp to receive more timely messages
Fixed the issue that the battery icon is not displayed after the device is rotated from landscape to portrait
Fixed the small probability issue where the Dirac Audio Tuner may fail to adjust the sound effect
Fixed the small probability issue that alarm clocks can not be set
Message
Fixed the issue that Messenger Bubbles can not pop up
Camera
Fixed the issue with Histogram and horizontal reference line being turned off by default
Fixed the flashing issue with the icon of Depth effect while shooting with portrait mode
Network
Fixed the issue that SIM 2 can not be set as the default card
The OxygenOS Open Beta 2 update for the OnePlus Nord is currently being rolled out via OTA for the users who are already running the initial build. Also, other interested users can install it by downloading the appropriate file from the OnePlus Community.
But they are advised to back up their data before proceeding though it won’t wipe anything. However, the device will be factory reset when they revert back to the stable channel.
Earlier this month, a foldable Xiaomi smartphone was spotted running the MIUI 12. Since then, there are rumors that the company will be launching a new foldable device later this year. Now, a new report has suggested that other Chinese OEMs are also on schedule with their own foldable handsets that will launch this year as well.
According to a known leakster @数码闲聊站, Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo are gearing up for the launch of a new foldable smartphone later this year. The tipster revealed the information through a post on Weibo, a Chinese microblogging website, which states that all three Chinese tech giants will officially launch their new foldable handsets sometime in 2021. As mentioned above, a Xiaomi smartphone with a bendable screen was spotted inside a subway in China and seemed similar to Xiaomi’s VP showcased a few years back but this one has a bigger display.
This device is likely a prototype and uses a hinge mechanism similar to the Galaxy Z Fold. The device is also shown as running MIUI 12 OS. While we know the design the Xiaomi prototype sports, it is currently unknown what design the Oppo or Vivo offerings feature. Although, it is rumored that Oppo’s foldable smartphone would also sport a similar hinge mechanism as the Xiaomi prototype.
Furthermore, the Weibo tipster also talks about Samsung and its overseas shipments of foldable displays. The South Korean company has apparently raised its shipments of foldable display, so there will also be a big wave of adoption of the firm’s seasoned flexible screen technology. So we can expect devices with a similar hinge mechanism from different Chinese OEMs. Unfortunately, this is still an unconfirmed report, so take it with a pinch of salt for now and stay tuned for more updates.
Last month, OnePlus had announced the OnePlus Buds Z Steven Harrington Edition TWS earphones, which went on sale on 24th December 2020. Now, the earphones have been launched in the Indian market.
The highlight of the OnePlus Buds Z Steven Harrington Edition is that it comes in a two-tone color — Purple and Mint and a matching charging case. It also features Steen Harrington’s signature styled graffiti along with unique caricatures and designs.
Apart from the design, everything else remains the same as the OnePlus Buds Z true wireless earphones launched in October last year along with the OnePlus 8T smartphone and the OnePlus Bullets Wireless Z Bass Edition.
It comes with 11mm dynamic drivers with Bass Boost technology and also features Dolby Atmos sound. There’s Bluetooth 5.0 for connectivity and the device comes with features like environmental noise reduction for voice pickup, Quick Pair, and Quick Switch.
They are also IP55-certified, making them sweat and water-resistant. As for the battery life, the earphones are claimed to deliver up to 20 hours of playback time on a single charge and the company says that a 10-minute quick charge offers three hours of usage.
The OnePlus Buds Z Steven Harrington Edition comes at a price of ₹3,699 (~$51) in India and will be up for sale on 26th January, i.e. tomorrow, for the OnePlus Red Cable Club members. It will be available for purchase through the open sale from 27th January via the OnePlus Online Store, Amazon, Flipkart, and OnePlus offline stores.
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