OnePlus Watch: Everything you need to know before the launch

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Jan 27, 2021

OnePlus was once known for providing faster updates. But unfortunately, that is not the case anymore. With an increase in its product offerings, the brand began to grow slower in delivering updates. As a result, its devices are now mostly out of date, in terms of security patches. Also, the company is yet to deliver the stable Android 11 update for its 2019 flagships. But ahead of it, the firm has updated the OxygenOS 11’s OnePlus launcher to run on older devices.

OxygenOS 11 is the latest version of OnePlus’ mobile operating system based on Android 11. It brings a redesigned UI, which happens to be similar to Samsung’s One UI. Also, the stock launcher gets a visual overhaul.

This new launcher is only available for OnePlus smartphones running OxygenOS 11, such as OnePlus 8, OnePlus 8 Pro, and OnePlus 8T. But not anymore as the brand has rolled out a new updated build on the Play Store with version number 5.x.

The new update adds support for OnePlus phones running OxygneOS 10 (Android 10). But for some reason, it is not supported the brand’s budget handsets – OnePlus N10 5G and OnePlus N100. However, a company spokesperson has confirmed Android Police that the launcher will be made available for these two devices later this week.

That means only users of the following OnePlus smartphones can install the latest OnePlus launcher from the Google Play Store.

Lastly, as far as new features are concerned, the updated OnePlus launcher brings redesigned OnePus Shelf, Google Discover integration, new quick search gesture, and more.

Microsoft Surface Duo to release by February 2nd week in Europe, pricing appears on French retailer site

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Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Jan 27, 2021

After re-introducing the Surface Duo dual-screen smartphone in August 2020, Microsoft began with its sales in the U.S. It was reported at that time that the company plans to sell the Surface Duo in markets like Europe, Canada, and Japan in Q1 2021 window. Fresh information reveals that the Surface Duo will be hitting the European markets as early as the second week of February.

According to Android Community, the Microsoft Surface Duo will arrive in the U.K. through telecom operators such as BT and EE in the second or third week of February. Other regions in Europe are also expected to receive the device around the same time.

In Germany, the Snapdragon 855 SoC powered Microsoft Surface Duo could be available by Feb. 13. Also, it is said that the company may sell a business bundle of the device in the European markets. It may include a custom Android interface and a pair of wired earphones. It is likely to land in Canada by the end of February. The report has no information on the pricing of the Surface Duo for Europe and Canada.

In related news, the Surface Duo subreddit (via. MS Power User) spotted a listing of the Microsoft Surface Duo at French retailer Darty.com. The listing was no longer available at the time of writing this post.

In the U.S., the Surface Duo ships with 6 GB of RAM. However, the European audience will the device in 6 GB as well as 8 GB RAM edition. It was listed in three variants such as:

6 GB RAM + 128 GB storage – 1,549.99 euros (~$1,875)
8 GB RAM + 256 GB storage – 1,649.99 euros (~$1,996)

The Surface Duo was listed in Glacier color and a bumper case in Graphite color priced at 44,99 euros was also found on the retailer site.

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Apple iPhone 12 mini scores 122 points on DXOMARK Camera test

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Jan 27, 2021

Apple announced the iPhone 12 mini back in October 2020. The device has a Dual-Camera setup unlike the ‘Pro’ variants of the series. Today, DXOMARK, popular for its camera reviews, has posted its Camera test results.

iphone 12 mini dxomark — Credits: DXOMARK

According to the DXOMARK report, iPhone 12 mini gets an overall score of 122. With this, it sits outside the top-10 of the website’s rankings. However, it levels with its sibling, the iPhone 12. To compare, the iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max are inside the top-10 with 128 points and 130 points respectively. Currently, the crown is held by HUAWEI Mate40 Pro+ with 139 points.

As mentioned above, the iPhone 12 mini scores similar to the iPhone 12 with 132, 41, and 112 points in Photo, Zoom, and Video categories. Even in performance, the report says that the mini is almost identical to the iPhone 12 with good & accurate results, right exposures in most conditions.

Before we get into the pros and cons, let’s look at the camera specs of the iPhone 12 mini. The device has two camera sensors one of which has OIS:

12MP f/1.6 26mm Primary lens with 1.4µm pixel size; Has OIS, and PDAF
12MP f/1.36 14mm Ultra-wide lens
Dual-LED Flashlight
Features: 4K video at 60fps, 1080p video at 240fps, Dolby Vision HDR up to 30fps.

For Pros, the iPhone 12 mini gets the exposure right in Photo & Video, has Faster Autofocus, good video stabilization, and processes the Dolby Vision HDR videos faster.

However, the Cons include Shortened highlights due to limited Dynamic range(Photo), a Bluish White Balance cast in Photo & Video, artifacts like flare, ringing, and noise in low light/indoor scenes.

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After POCO C3, POCO M2 budget smartphone clocks over a million sales in India

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Jan 27, 2021

Recently, POCO announced that it sold more than 1 million units of the entry-level POCO C3 smartphone in India. Now is the turn for another budget smartphone, POCO M2.

POCO India has revealed that the POCO M2 has sold over a million units in India. Through a tweet, the company posted the achievement and said its orders have already crossed 1 million on Flipkart. For the unware, the company’s devices are sold online exclusively via the e-commerce giant.

This comes ten days after the POCO’s anniversary of becoming an independent brand. To recall, Xiaomi’s Manu Kumar Jain had announced the split on January 17, 2020. It is surprising to see POCO managing to attract the audience towards it online amidst heavy competition.

POCO M2 was unveiled back in September 2020. The smartphone, with MediaTek Helio G80 chipset, launched at a starting price of ₹10,999($150). However, the device received its first price cut early this month. Accordingly, it currently starts at ₹9,999 for the 6GB RAM, 64GB storage variant.

As Country Director Anuj Kumar pointed out, POCO has evolved to become a brand that can cater to customers at multiple price points. The company has been rebranding few phones lately and POCO M2 is no exception to this. It is a rebadged version of the Redmi 9 smartphone that is also selling in India.

As a result of this diversification, POCO has garnered good sales, and becoming the third-largest smartphone brand within a year is just icing on the cake. Also, it’s worth noting that the company had sold over a million smartphones in total during the Flipkart Big Billion Days sales back in October.

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Xiaomi Mi 11 Pro render, case image reveal horizontal camera housing with 120x zoom support

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Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Jan 27, 2021

Xiaomi is expected to announce the Xiaomi Mi 11 Pro as the more advanced version of the Xiaomi Mi 11 flagship after the Sprint Festival of China (Feb. 12) . It is unclear whether the smartphone will be debuting later in February or March. A render of the alleged Mi 11 Pro has surfaced on Weibo to reveal its rear design.

The render reveals that the Xiaomi Mi 11 Pro has a horizontal camera module. It includes four cameras and an LED flash. The squarish lens in the setup seems to be a periscope telephoto lens. The text under the periscope lens mentions that the device carries support for 120x digital zoom. It is likely that the device could be equipped with a 108-megapixel primary shooter. The Mi 11 Pro is expected to arrive with the most powerful camera module in Xiaomi’s history.

Another image of a protective case (via Mydrivers) designed for the smartphone has appeared on an e-commerce site in China. While the case image does not exactly match with the above-shown render, it does show a horizontal camera housing with a quad-camera system.

As far as the front design of the Xiaomi Mi 11 Pro, it is expected to feature the same 6.81-inch AMOLED panel that is available on the Xiaomi Mi 11. The screen of the Mi 11 Pro will offer a Quad HD+ resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate support, and a 480Hz touch sampling rate. The Snapdragon 888 will be fueling the Xiaomi Mi 11 Pro. Speculations suggest that it may carry support for 120W fast charging and 80W wireless charging.

Readers are recommended to digest the leaked render with a grain of salt as it appears more like a fan-made image.

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China’s IT Supply chain Companies to operate during Lunar New Year Holidays to catch up demand

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Jan 27, 2021

Amidst fears of another outbreak of the COVID-19 during Lunar New Year, China’s IT supply chain companies are going to work round the clock according to reports. The move is to ensure the companies complete the outstanding orders whilst also curbing another possible spread of the virus.

According to the report by Digitimes, the percentage of workers present on the production lines will be at an all-time high. Last year, by this time, the Coronavirus had broken into many countries and China was the epicenter. As a result, giants like Apple had to halt production as their suppliers Foxconn shut their factories.

Coming back, the production, especially in Taiwan-based firms, will see attendance as high as 90% of Taiwanese Managers. Citing industry sources, the report says that most of them will not return to Taiwan for reunions during Holidays. For the unware, Lunar New Year, also called Spring Festival, is a festival celebrated in China and other Asian countries.

It begins with the first new moon of the Lunar calendar and ends on the first full moon of the calendar after 15 days. This year, the New Year is falling on February 12, 2021. As said above, the migrant workers might spread the virus if they move across places during this time.

To ensure safety, and catch up with the demand, companies including the ones in the IT supply chain are keen to keep the work going and not commit the same mistake as last year. In fact, the mistake was so bad in 2020 that giants like Apple, Microsoft, and even Sharp had to move the production out of China.

However, the shortage of components is said to be high during the holidays nonetheless. To tackle the inventory dip to their best, some companies are planning to pay the workers up to 3x times the normal.

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Samsung Galaxy M02 to launch on February 2 with sub-Rs 7,000 (~$96) pricing

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Anvinraj Valiyathara

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Jan 27, 2021

Last year, Samsung launched Galaxy M01s and Galaxy M01 smartphones in India. These handsets were made official as the cheapest M-series phones from the brand. Earlier this month, Samsung unveiled the Galaxy M02s phone with a price tag of Rs 9,999 (~$137). A product page of the upcoming Galaxy M02 entry-level smartphone has appeared on Amazon India. The listing has revealed the key features and launch date of the Galaxy M02.

The listing has revealed that the Galaxy M02 is equipped with a 6.5-inch display with an Infinity-V notch. It offers an HD+ resolution. The images of the phone show it is equipped with a thick-sized chin.

The Amazon listing has also revealed that the Galaxy M02 has a 5,000mAh battery. It confirms that the device will be arriving with a sub-Rs 7,000 (~$96) price tag. Hence, it is likely to land in India as the cheapest smartphone from Samsung. A report by IANS revealed the device will be equipped with a dual-camera system.

Past reports have revealed that the Galaxy M02 could be sporting a 13-megapixel + 2-megapixel dual-camera system. The device could be powered by Snapdragon 450 and 3 GB of RAM. It is also rumored to house internal storage of 64 GB.

The Galaxy M01 phone that launched last year was a slightly modified version of the Galaxy A01. Hence, the Galaxy M02 is expected to borrow many of its specs from the Galaxy A02 phone that went official earlier today. It debuted with specs like a 6.5-inch HD+ display, a MediaTek MT6739W chipset, 3 GB of RAM, 64 GB of storage, a 5-megapixel selfie camera, a 13-megaixel + 2-megapixel dual-camera system, and a 5,000mAh battery.

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Samsung Galaxy A72 4G clears FCC certification ahead of launch

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Jan 27, 2021

Samsung is expected to launch the Galaxy A72, the successor to one of its 2020 bestsellers, the Galaxy A71 very soon. Just like its predecessor, it is reported to come in both 4G and 5G variants. Ahead of their official announcement, the 4G model has been now certified by FCC.

The listing of the Galaxy A72 4G does not reveal anything new about this smartphone. Instead, it confirms the device (SM-A725M) to come with LTE, dual-band WiFi, NFC, and 25W fast charging, which were already leaked via different certifications.

As far as other specs are concerned, the upcoming Galaxy A72 4G is said to flaunt a 6.7-inch FHD+ AMOLED display with a centered punch-hole and an in-screen fingerprint sensor. Under the hood, it will be featuring a Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G SoC paired with up to 8GB RAM and will run the Android 11 (One UI 3.x) operating system.

Talking about cameras, it is reported to house a quad-camera setup on the back. This setup will include a different 64MP primary sensor than its predecessor, a 12MP ultra-wide unit, a 5MP macro shooter, and a 5MP depth sensor. However, it’s front camera is still a mystery.

Thanks to the 3D CAD renders, we also know that it will come with a USB Type-C port, 3.5mm headphone jack, and the same design as the Galaxy A71 with some tweaks.

Last but not least, according to a recent leak, the Samsung Galaxy A72 4G will be available in three colors in Europe, namely Denim Blue, Icy White, and Graphite Black. And it will retail for €449 (6GB + 128GB) and €509 (8GB + 256GB) respectively.

Carl Pei’s new startup is called Nothing, yes Nothing!

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Habeeb Onawole

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Jan 27, 2021

Carl Pei has unveiled the details behind his new startup which is called “Nothing”! Yes, you read that right. All that anticipation, all for Nothing!

Nothing is a London-based consumer technology company which means its products will be available for purchase by the average consumer and not that it will be providing services to other companies.

Nothing’s mission is to remove barriers between people and technology to create a seamless digital future – Carl Pei

The 31-year old founder said in a press release that the company’s mission is to remove barriers between people and technology. He also holds the belief that “the best technology is beautiful, yet natural and intuitive to use. When sufficiently advanced, it should fade into the background and feel like nothing.”

We rethought everything and came up with #Nothing. pic.twitter.com/VSz905Kgug

— Nothing (@nothing) January 27, 2021

If you are wondering what category of products Nothing plans to build, unfortunately, we have nothing on that. Though they will be smart devices and the first set of products will be from simpler categories. The vision is to expand into multiple categories that form an ecosystem, as the team scales up in capabilities and skills.

In an interview with The Verge, the OnePlus co-founder said they plan to make most of their money from hardware sales when asked if they plan to launch a music service. He also didn’t give an answer when asked if headphones are one of the products Nothing will announce. However, he did say that their products will use custom made components that will distinguish them from the competition.

Carl Pei also informed The Verge that the new company is totally independent and not owned by any parent company. It has its own R&D department and it won’t just be relabelling another company’s products.

The first smart products from Nothing are scheduled to arrive before the second half of the year and we are eager to see what the company has planned for us.

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Redmi Note 10 gets TUV Rheinland and Indonesia Telecom certifications

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Jan 27, 2021

Xiaomi is expected to launch the Redmi Note 10 series of Smartphones soon. So far leaks point to a mix of 4G and 5G models. Ahead of a February launch, the device has now got TUV Rheinland and Indonesia Telecom Certifications.

A device with model number M2101K7AG appears on Indonesia’s SDPPI, and TUV Rheinland Certifications. The former has the device listed under ‘Xiaomi‘ while the latter shows it under ‘Redmi‘. Anyway, this model number’s name is already revealed as Redmi Note 10 4G by the FCC listing and SDPPI confirms it again.

Similarly, the device has also obtained certifications in India(IMEI approval) suggesting that it is heading to more Asian markets. Additionally, a ‘Pro‘ variant of the Redmi Note 10 (M2101K6G) has also bagged several certifications including FCC.

1 of 2

As for Specs, nothing significant is known about the Redmi Note 10 yet. The FCC listing of the Note 10 shows it will run MIUI 12, support a 4G LTE network, and dual-band Wi-Fi(2.4GHz, 5GHz). Additionally, it will come in Gray, White, and Green colors as per a previous leak.

The Pro variant is likely to come with 6/8GB RAM, 64/128GB storage and hence we can expect the same for the vanilla model. If the leak regarding the addition of 108MP HM1 camera sensor on the Note 10 Pro is true, the non-Pro could feature a lower 64MP main lens.

Considering the predecessors(Redmi Note 9) had quad-cameras, we can expect the same on the Note 10 series if not higher. Let’s wait for more details in the coming days as the launch is happening as soon as next month(February 2021).

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Apple sees its best quarter performance in India, doubles its iPhone sales in Q4 2020

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Jan 27, 2021

Apple apparently has seen one of its best quarterly performance in the fourth and final quarter of 2020 in India. The company has reportedly doubled its iPhone sales during this time and raised its local market share as well.

According to a TechCrunch report, market research has found that the company has doubled its iPhone sales in the region, achieving its best ever performance in a quarter. This had the Cupertino based giant hold a market share of 4 percent during this period, with annual sales growing by 60 percent with more than 3.2 million units sold. While the performance of the company is notable, it is still nowhere near some of the top brands in the region.

However, the company is making active efforts to grow into the world’s second largest smartphone market. At the moment, Apple witnessed strong sales thanks to its older iPhone models like the iPhone 11, iPhone XR, iPhone SE, and growing interest for its iPhone 12 series as well. Notably, the company has also started local production in the region to avoid heavy duties through its suppliers, like Wistron, which recently suffered from a riot outbreak.

Furthermore, other suppliers like Foxconn and Pegatron are also set to invest in Indian smartphone production as well, with both firms aiming to introduce more production facilities in the region. Both firms believe that local production site could one day act as major export hubs in the near future. So stay tuned for more updates.

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Motorola Edge S could launch in India in February

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Jan 27, 2021

Yesterday, Lenovo launched the Motorola Edge S in China as the first flagship killer smartphone of 2021. The handset is also the world’s first device powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 chipset. Within a day from its debut, rumors have begun to pop up regarding this phone’s Indian launch.

According to a tipster called Debayan Roy (@Gadgetsdata), Lenovo-owned Motorola could launch the brand-new Motorola Edge S in India in either mid or late February. That’s not all, the company may also announce a Moto G series smartphone in the same month.

This person is mostly known for sharing certifications and patents on Twitter. Therefore, we would highly recommend you to consider this piece of information with a pinch of salt.

With that being said, as per the latest leak of the Motorola Edge S before its launch, the company will be releasing a second variant codenamed ‘Tahoe’. This version is said to debut as Moto G100 powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 865, instead of the new Snapdragon 870 like in the Edge S, which bears the codename ‘Nio’.

Further, since Lenovo has been releasing the same phone with different brandings in various markets, we are not sure with what name the Motorola Edge S will launch in India. Also, although it starts at ¥1,999 ($309) in China, it may cost a bit more in India but still, it should be one of the affordable smartphones with a flagship chipset.

Joe Biden’s Commerce nominee vows to protect nation’s networks from Huawei and ZTE

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Jan 27, 2021

The US President’s, Joe Biden, nominee for the position of the head of the US Commerce Department vowed to protect the US telecommunications networks against Chinese companies like Huawei and ZTE, earlier this week.

According to a Reuters report, the nominee would protect the US networks from the Chinese firms and would commit to keeping companies like Huawei and ZTE on the economic trade blacklist. Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo said in testimony before the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee that “I would use the full toolkit at my disposal to the fullest extent possible to protect Americans and our network from Chinese interference or any kind of back-door influence.”

In particular, the government official named Huawei and ZTE, who are known telecommunications equipment providers, especially for 5G infrastructure. Back in December 2020, Congress even approved 1.9 billion US Dollars in funds for the replacement of ZTE and Huawei equipment from the US networks. This decision is in line with the previous President’s efforts against Chinese firms, which had dozens of Chinese companies being placed on the trade blacklist.

Raimondo also stated that she would “review the policy, consult with you, consult with industry, consult with our allies and make an assessment as to what’s best for American national and economic security,” when asked about keeping Huawei on the economic blacklist. Furthermore, she has vowed to take an “aggressive: stance against the trade practices of China saying that “China’s actions have been anticompetitive,” and that she would use all the tools at her disposal to “level the playing field.”

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Apple to launch 2nd Gen AirPods Pro in first half of 2021: Report

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Jan 27, 2021

Apple might be launching a new iteration of its popular hearables soon. A new report has suggested that the second generation of the AirPods Pro could launch as early as the first half of this year.

According to a DigiTimes report (Via PhoneArena), the Cupertino based giant is planning on launching the new generation of its popular earbuds soon, as per sources close to the company’s flash memory supplier Winbond. Reportedly, Apple is planning on launching the new AirPods Pro version in the first half of the year, with Winbond already running at full capacity on its production lines. Earlier this month, a previous report had suggested that Apple might be launching its high end earbuds in April 2021.

Furthermore, the company is also rumored to launch the AirPods Pro in two different size variants, while another rumor pointed at a Lite variant of the AirPods Pro as well. Similarly, other reports also claimed that the second generation of the AirPods Pro will feature a shorter stem and may even resemble the Samsung Galaxy Buds or the Google Pixel Buds in terms of design.

Unfortunately, that is all the information we have to go on at the moment and we will have to wait for an official announcement from Apple to know for sure. With the supposed launch date nearing, we can expect to see more leaks and rumors surface soon. So stay tuned as we will be providing more updates when additional information is available.

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POCO M3 India launch date is February 2

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Jan 27, 2021

The POCO M3 is the brand’s latest smartphone. This device initially debuted in Europe in late November. In the past few days, the handset has been making its way to multiple markets. Now, finally, the company has revealed the launch date for India.

India is Xiaomi’s largest market outside its home country China. The POCO brand was born in India and therefore, this region got some exclusive smartphones like the POCO X2, POCO M2, POCO M2 Pro, and POCO C3.

However, the last two globally available handsets, namely POCO X3 NFC and POCO M3 made their debut first in Europe. Anyway, the former was soon unveiled in India in the same month. However, the POCO M3 will be launched in India only on February 2, which happens to be more than two months after it went official.

Nevertheless, the POCO M3 is at least coming to India, unlike the POCO F2 Pro. That said, as far as the price is concerned, we can expect the company to sell it for the same price as the POCO M2, i.e. ₹10,999 for the base variant.

The highlights of POCO M3 include a unique bold design with a leather-like finish, yellow color, Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 SoC, UFS 2.1/UFS 2.2 storage, stereo speakers, a 48MP primary camera, an FHD+ display, and a 6,000mAh battery. In other words, this device can be described as a better Redmi Note 9 4G, which is known as Redmi 9 Power and Redmi 9T in global markets.

China smartphone makers spark new hardware specs competition

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Jan 27, 2021

China based smartphone makers have sparked another round of hardware specification competition. The news arrives as the companies are raising efforts in expanding their presence in the global market.

According to DigiTimes report, Xiaomi is currently focusing on developing new smartphones equipped with multiple lenses to improve the photographic performance of its offerings, as per a source. At the moment, about 70 percent of new smartphones from the Chinese tech giant feature up to four camera lenses, with the company aiming at ramping up the shipment ratio of its mid to high end models as well.

The source also added that other brands are also aiming at adopting a similar strategy of offering multiple camera lenses on their smartphone offerings in the mid to entry level segments. Similarly, Oppo has also recently announced that it would be building a new research and development center in Xian, China. This site will develop new technologies and new smartphone series as well. At the moment, the company has its research and development centers in Shenzhen, Dongguan, Xian, and Chengdu in China, and even one in India.

Furthermore, Oppo has also shipped about 120 million smartphones across the globe last year and seeks to raise its shipments this year. For those unaware, the company is also the world’s fifth largest global smartphone maker in the rankings of 2020, in terms of shipments, behind other giants like Samsung Electronics, Apple, Huawei, and Xiaomi.

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Samsung Galaxy A02 goes official with MediaTek MT6739W SoC and Android 10

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