Earlier this month, OnePlus became the first Android OEM other than Google to roll out Android 11 stable update to its devices – Oneplus 8 and OnePlus 8 Pro in the form of OxygenOS 11. The company was part of Android 11 Beta program and began to seed OxygenOS Open Beta in early September for the OnePlus 8 series. Now, Oneplus is rolling out the 3rd build in this channel.
OnePlus is known for delivering updates in three channels namely Stable, Open Beta, and Closed Beta. Other than these three, the company also releases Developer Beta builds to select devices when Google unveils the latest version of Android.
The OnePlus 8 series has been part of all the four channels. Ever since the company halted the Android 11 Developer Beta program for OnePlus 8 and Oneplus 8 Pro, these two smartphones have been receiving OxygenOS 11 Open Beta builds.
That said, OnePlus is currently seeding OxygenOS 11 Open Beta 3 to OnePlus 8/8 Pro worldwide with the following changelog.
System
Optimized the UI smoothness of Call
Optimized background process management mechanism to improve sandy-by performance
Fixed the issue that text was blocked in some games
Optimized the issue that input text was blocked in some games
Improved system stability and fixed general issues
Updated Android Security Patch to 2020.10
Ambient Display
Optimized the animation effect with Canvas, making the unlock experience smoother
Fixed the low probability issue that system settings interface stopped running when Zen Mode turned on
The above-mentioned changelog clearly says that OxygenOS 11 Open Beta 3 for the OnePlus 8 series comes with a number of fixes, improvements, optimizations as well as Always-on support for the Canvas feature.
Hence, if you are running the previous build (OxygenOS 11 Open Beta 2), then make sure to download and install the latest version as soon as possible.
Realme has officially taken the wraps off the Realme C15 Qualcomm edition in India. The new version is an upgraded version of the C15 which was first launched in March this year. The model was only launched in India in August this year.
The major difference between the two versions is that this model is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 460 processor as against a MediaTek Helio G35 chip on the earlier model. Other than that, the C15 Qualcomm Edition is the same as the MediaTek edition, specs-wise. We can’t say the same thing about the processor, though. We expect the Qualcomm chipset top offer a better processing power.
As a reminder, the Realme C15 features a 6.5-inch HD+ display with a waterdrop notch. The screen produces HD+ resolution and a 20:9 aspect ratio. The Helio G35 chipset fuels the phone with LPDRR4x RAM. Apart from internal storage, the phone comes with a microSD card slot for more storage.
The C15 packs an 8-megapixel front camera for selfies and its rear has a Quad camera setup made up of a 13-megapixel + 8-megapixel (ultrawide) + 2-megapixel (B&W) + 2-megapixel (retro) combo. Keeping the lights on is a 6,000mAh battery which supports 18W fast charging through microUSB. It has a rear-facing fingerprint reader.
As for the price, the Realme C15 Qualcomm edition comes in Power Blue and Power Silver colours and is priced at Rs. 9,999 (~$134) for the 3GB RAM with 32GB storage version and the 4GB RAM with 64GB storage version costs Rs. 10,999 (~$148). The price is similar to that of the MediaTek version. However, Realme will sell the model at a reduced price of Rs. 9499 (~$128) for the 3GB+32GB variant and Rs. 10499 (~$141) 4GB+64GB variant, starting from 29th October onwards as an introductory festive offer. The sale will commence tomorrow (October 29) from 12 PM via realme.com, Flipkart and offline stores.
Xiaomi launched the flagship Xiaomi Redmi K30S Ultra on 27th October. The smartphone comes with a powerful processor, high screen refresh rate, enhanced battery capacity, and 5G connectivity. K30S Ultra comes in a budgeted price range, and Giztop has already put it up for sale, and one can pre-order it for just $459.
Processor and OS Specifications
Redmi K30S Ultra has a 6.67-inch punch-hole LCD screen with an FHD+ resolution of 1080 x 2400p and a refresh rate of 144Hz. It is powered by Snapdragon 865 Octa-core processor that includes one Kryo 585 Prime CPU working at 2.84GHz. Couple that with Adreno 650 GPU and 8GB LPDDR5 RAM, and this smartphone is capable of delivering a powerful performance while running and switching through applications at the same time. With over 128GB/256GB space, one can easily store all their music, photos, apps, and other documents.
K30S Ultra runs on an MIUI 12 base on Android 10 OS to offer the latest layout and functions. It supports Game Turbo 2.0 and provides a fresh and fast platform to help users stay productive and connected when they are on-the-go.
Camera
Redmi K30S Ultra features a triple rear camera setup where the 64MP Sony IMX682 is the primary camera with f/1.89 aperture, a 13MP ultrawide lens with a 123-degree field-of-view, and a 5MP macro shooter to help click decent quality photos. With 8K video shooting and super slo-mo function, one can create innovative HD videos. Additionally, it also boasts a pop-up front 20MP camera that supports 120 fps slo-mo videos and time-lapse that shooting allows even more versatility.
Long-Lasting Battery
Equipped with a 5000mAh battery, this Mi smartphone can efficiently run throughout the day on a single charge. This device is enhanced with MI-FC technology that supports 33W fast charging and powers up the device within an hour.
Additional Functions and Connectivity
This Mi smartphone supports 5G LTE speed that is expected to be up to 10 times faster than the 4G network carrier, so naturally, one can enjoy uninterrupted online browsing, streaming, and downloading. 5G network has up to 2.3GBp/s downloading and 1.2GBp/s uploading capacity to make life convenient for users.
Xiaomi Redmi K30S Ultra features 2 SIM card slots where one can be set as primary for 5G/4G+/4G/3G/2G calling and data connection. However, it can support dual 4G dual VoLTE.
Redmi K30S Ultra comes in black and silver color variants to offer multiple options. Moreover, it is also compatible with Asian, European, and Australian bands to cater to a larger audience. This device ideal for people looking to upgrade their current smartphones. All the interested readers can now pre-order Xiaomi Redmi K30S Ultra on Giztop for just $459.
Streaming has become a popular way to consume content in recent years. Therefore, the market is filled with a variety of streaming devices from a number of brands. Some of them are even unknown like Dynalink, which is currently selling a 4K Android TV streaming box via Walmart for only $50 ($49.95).
The Dynalink Android TV Box is a streaming dongle (as per 9to5Google) though it is listed as a box on Walmart. In fact, it is actually a rebranded Google ADT-3 with the same model number (STI6130) and manufacturer (Askey, a subsidiary of ASUS).
However, unlike Google’s developer device, it is certified for Netflix and also supports all other popular streaming services like Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, HBO Max, YouTube, Hulu, and more. The voice-control (Google Assistant) remote control even has dedicated keys for Netflix, YouTube, and Google Play Store.
Further, since the Dynalink Android TV Box is a rebadged Google ADT-3, it features exact same internals. Hence, it is powered by Amlogic S905Y2 chipset with 4 x Cortex A-53 cores and Mali-G31 MP2 GPU. The amount of RAM (DDR3) and internal storage is 2GB and 8GB respectively.
Other features of Dynalink Android TV Box include dual-band WiFi, Bluetooth 4.2, HDMI 2.1, MicroUSB for power input, Chromecast Built-in, and support for 4K HDR streaming as well as Dolby Audio.
Last but not least, it is one of the few streaming devices in the market to run Android TV 10 operating system like the new Motorola smart TVs and Google Chromecast with Google TV.
UPDATE: The Huawei Freebuds Pro is discounted to just $139 for a limited period. Check out the deal here.
A couple of weeks ago, Huawei released its latest wireless earbuds product, the Freebuds Pro. Initially, we didn’t pay much attention to it, but as the earbuds grew in popularity we decided to buy one from the Huawei store to see what new upgrades it had.
Looking at the Freebuds Pro box, there’s nothing surprising in it. What we got is the charging case with the earbuds, the charging cable, the user manual, and two more sizes of tips for replacement. The earbuds we have here is a wireless charging version. In addition, Huawei also provides another option without wireless charging support, for a slightly lower price tag. So if you are indifferent about wireless charging, you can opt for the cheaper version which doesn’t have any other difference.
Huawei has updated the design of the Freebuds Pro. The earbuds look more like the Apple AirPods Pro. And each bud also has excellent weight control, which brings it very close to the wearing experience of the AirPods Pro. But I’m not really happy with the build quality since it has one notable absence — no official water resistance. There’s no IP rating listed for the buds. But we faced no issues using them in the rain or even during a sweaty exercise.
Even while wearing it for an entire day, I did not feel any discomfort unlike some other in-ear buds that I’ve used before. These earbuds fit really well on people with smaller ear canals while those who had slightly larger ears said that they found the Freebuds Pro a bit loose. This is quite opposite of the experience on the AirPods Pro which doesn’t fit well on smaller ears.
Let’s look at its charging case. The case has a bigger size than the AirPods Pro. Under noise cancelling mode,each fully-charged bud could continuously play music for over 4 hours and the charging case can support an additional 15-hours of usage. When you turn off the noise cancelling, each bud could be used for around 7 hours. But on calls, you get a shorter battery life of around 3.5hours. Well, the case’s charging is not really fast – whether it was wired or wireless charging, both took over an hour.
Now let’s take a look at how the noise cancelling works on the Freebuds Pro. To be honest, the noise cancelling was really impressive when we used it for the first time. The effect of noise reduction seems really similar to what we have on the AirPods Pro. We will talk about it in detail later. In addition, Huawei developed a dynamic noise cancellation technology to adapt to different use case scenarios, which can automatically detect surrounding noises and adjust the level of noise reduction. And if you’re using android devices, you can manually switch the noise-cancelling level in the Huawei AI Life app. This app has some other features that help the earbuds work better, but you only can have the app on Android devices.
Now let’s look at the frequency response curve of Huawei FreeBuds Pro:
From the frequency response curve, we found a problem. It seems that there is leakage in the low frequency of the earbuds, which causes the low frequencies to decay a bit.
To be honest, this result was a little bit beyond my expectation. If you only look at around 125Hz, FreeBuds Pro’s noise reduction capability is still very strong, and its performance is pretty good. It can almost reach a level of about 40dB, which should be in line with the official maximum noise reduction value.
But the problem is that if the frequency continues to decrease, the noise reduction effect will be a bit reduced. Here, by the way, I want to talk directly about the actual wearing experience. Compared to the experience of wearing the Apple AirPods Pro, the in-ear design of the Freebuds Pro is a little loose for my ears, and there is always a feeling of instability. What I used were the default tips, but I think the instability is also caused by the shape of the earbuds.
However, we still found that the noise reduction effect of general low frequency to be slightly better than the AirPods Pro.
Huawei Freebuds Pro ANC earbuds vs Airpods pro
But the Freebuds Pro’s noise reduction performance at high frequency is a bit weaker than what it can do over low frequencies. Especially the noise-cancelling performance over the frequency bands around 1kHz and above, is not as strong as what we got from the AirPods Pro, but the difference is minimal.
So overall, we reached a consensus that the AirPods Pro still maintained the leading position, at least based on our hearing experience, but we believe that it no longer dominates this segment. And this is after considering that the experience and performance of noise cancelling is also affected by the devices that the earbuds are paired with.
If you used it for iOS devices, no doubt that the AirPods Pro is the best choice, but if you’re using Huawei devices or even other android devices, we would rather recommend the Freebuds Pro as our first choice. No doubt that Huawei now is doing a better job over software assistance. You can also have more adjustment in the app, and its not just limited to what we have on iOS for AirPods Pro – like tip fit test and ear detection, but also some useful features like Find my earphones and high-quality recording mode. By the way, another drawback here for AirPods Pro is the absence of google assistant support.
And then we tried its awareness mode, which is similar to the transparent mode on AirPods Pro. Most of the time, it worked well but sometimes it sounds a bit weird as it didn’t maintain a stable detection and simulation of surrounding sounds. And in the awareness mode, we can also turn on the feature of enhanced voices. It did improve sound delivery of human voices, but at the same time other high frequencies also got enhanced remarkably, which turned out to be a different kind of noisy enhancement.
Although we did love the excellent noise canceling, we still have to say that the Freebuds Pro’s pressure balance for ears is not as good as the experience on the AirPods Pro. The AirPods Pro used to have the same problem at the beginning, but eventually, they compromised between noise canceling effect and the balance of ear pressure with a software update. And yesterday we also got a software update for the Freebuds Pro and things got better but the pressure balance was still not perfect.
Now let’s move on to the most important part — sound quality. After several product upgrades, we can finally say that Huawei has done an excellent job in tuning the new earbuds. In our experience, it’s the best sound quality that we’ve had on TWS earbuds. Compared to the AirPods pro, the Freebuds Pro emphasizes the low end a bit more, but such emphasis doesn’t go too far or too heavy. And it doesn’t mean that the high ends get downplayed, we still could clearly hear dynamic high-frequency instruments and vocals. And the call-quality is also not bad, especially when we turn on the high-quality recording option. It can handle most scenarios well.
The multi-device support is another major feature of the FreeBuds Pro. No doubt it’s a great idea, having the buds connect to two devices at the same time, regardless of the devices’ brand or system. However, things can be a bit confusing at times. Manually connecting to different devices beyond android devices sometimes didn’t work well. For example, I found it’s difficult to connect a Windows PC as a second device after getting successfully paired.
The Freebuds Pro also has a great Bluetooth connection. Especially on Huawei devices, it turned out to be a delightful and simple experience. The connection is stable with no delays. As we play games and videos on Android devices, the audio latency is really hard to perceive.
With a cheaper price than the AirPods Pro, we believe that the Freebuds Pro is a better choice for Android users. And if you were a Huawei user, it can be the perfect companion for your phone. Regardless of the devices you use, it’s still the most impressive alternative to the AirPods Pro.
Chinese tech giant Lenovo has unveiled its first self-developed industrial robot dubbed Morningstar industrial robot. The product was unveiled today at its 2020 innovation and technology conference. The Morningstar industrial robot deploys edge computing power and intelligence and enables workers to accurately carry out remote painting works using the robot.
Lenovo Group’s senior vice president and CTO Rui Yong explained that the robot will scan and perceive the entire workshop space, and the data will be built and rendered in real-time on the virtual machine on the edge side. The data will then be navigated and positioned through containerized slam technology and moved to the designated spray booth. The robot also comes with a binocular stereo camera which collects the workpieces and sends the surrounding conditions of the operating platform to the edge server in real-time. The edge server then pushes the 3D video stream to the AR glasses in real-time.
The robot is controlled by AR glasses and handle to spray paint synchronously, which is equivalent to visiting the scene. In this way, after a natural teaching operation, the painting ability of the parts is saved on the edge side. The robot will subsequently be capable of self-spraying parts of the same specification. Furthermore, the robot can automatically detect the spraying quality based on computer vision.
The tech giant did not reveal further details bothering on if this would be commercialized and when.
Samsung is expected to launch more budget smartphones in the Galaxy A and Galaxy M series before the end of the year. One of them is the Galaxy A02s.
This phone will be powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 chipset consisting of Adreno 506 GPU. It will come with 3GB RAM and will run Android 10 (One UI Core) out of the box.
The Geekbennch listing of Galaxy A02s revealed it to bear the model number SM-A025G. However, the device’s FCC and NBTC certifications suggest it to come with model numbers SM-A025M/DS and SM-A025M respectively. Anyway, they are still different than the model number of the standard Galaxy A02 (SM-A025F).
Further, apart from model numbers, these certifications also reveal the handset to feature a 5,000mAh battery with model number HQ-50S, however, they don’t say anything about support for fast charging.
But they do confirm this phone to be available in single SIM and dual SIM variants with single-band (2.4GHz) WiFi and a rectangular camera housing.
Having said that, the launch date of Samsung Galaxy A02s is a mystery but it is expected to go official sometime later in November.
Popular drone maker DJI has been in the news lately as a result of plans to launch a new mini-drone that would be called Mavic Mini 2. The unannounced product was recently listed by popular US electronics retailer Adorama and the product page shows it will be the Mavic Mini 2 moniker. However, that may not be the case, as the mini drone has appeared in real skin, thanks to an unboxing video posted by a Youtuber.
The YouTube video shows the retail box and the drone as well as the accessories inside the retail box. What is most spectacular is that the device will be called DJI Mini 2 as against Mavic Mini 2. We can guess what prompted this change in the naming sequence but it may be to distinguish this from the more expensive Mavic series.
The DJI Mini 2 is said to weigh just 249g makes it not to require registration in many countries where drones weighing up to 250g are required to be registered. The drone is also shown to come with the capacity to shoot 4k videos but there is no ActiveTrak feature.
The YouTube video also shows that the drone is capable of flying up to a range of 10km and can stay up in the air for up to 31 minutes.
DJI is yet to officially announce the Mini 2 (Mavic Mini 2 if you like) but with the frequency of leaks, we should expect the launch to happen any moment from now.
Samsung is reported to launch the Galaxy S21 series earlier than in previous years. The three smartphones in the series are expected to debut in January. Ahead of it, these devices have begun to receive certifications from multiple bureaus. Also, the South Korean tech giant filed a trademark called ‘Samsung Blade’ recently, which it could use for the Galaxy S21 series. Now, the company’s another newly filed trademark called ‘Galaxy Space’ has emerged.
Samsung Electronics filed the ‘Galaxy Space’ trademark with the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office) on October 22. But it got approved and published on October 26.
This new Samsung trademark categorized as Class 9 is applicable to the following things.
Virtual reality headsets
LED displays
Routers
Digital door locks
Battery chargers for portable phones
Tablet PCs
Portable computers
Video projectors
Smartwatches
Smartphones
Audio speakers
According to LetsGoDigital, Samsung could use this trademark for a virtual reality headset. That’s because a VR going by this name running 32-bit Windows 10 Home operating system with 8GB RAM visited Geekbech in July 2019.
Further, there’s also a chance that the company could use it for monitors as it already sells monitors with ‘Samsung Space’ branding. Whatever it is, we will know about it in the coming days if Samsung really intends to use it.
Realme is reportedly going to launch the Realme C15s in the next two or three days. It was previously being referred to as the Realme C15 Qualcomm edition. It is speculated that the RMX2195 that was recently approved by different certification platforms could be the Realme C15s phone. The alleged Realme C15s has emerged on Geekbench today with some of its key details.
The RMX2195’s Geekbench 5 listing (via NashvilleChatterClass) shows that it’s powered by a Qualcomm processor that has a 1.80GHz base frequency. The SoC is mentioned with “bengal” codename, which is associated with the Snapdragon 460 SoC. Even tipster Mukul Sharma had claimed earlier today that the Realme C15s has SD460. Hence, it seems that RMX2195 is the Realme C15s phone.
The Geekbench listing further states specs like 4 GB of RAM and Android 10 OS. It has scored 253 in the single-core test and 1230 in the multi-core test of Geekbench.
The RMX2195 phone was approved by China’s CQC authority recently. It revealed that the phone supports 18W fast charging for its battery that has a rated capacity of 5,860mAh. The typical capacity of RMX2195’s battery seems to be 6,000mAh.
Tipster Sharma shared the above shown leaked image of the retail package of the Realme C15s earlier today. The image shows that the phone has a 6,000mAh battery. This also indicates that the RMX2195 model number could belong to the Realme C15s phone.
Apart from the new SoC, the Realme C15s is expected to borrow all its specs from the Realme C15. It is likely to arrive in 3 GB RAM + 32 GB storage and 4 GB RAM + 64 GB storage versions. It is expected to arrive in Power Blue and Power Silver colors.
The same variants of the Realme C15 are priced at Rs 9,499 (~$128) and Rs 10,499 (~$142), respectively. It is speculated that the two variants of the Realme C15s could be priced at Rs 9,999 (~$135) and Rs 10,999 (~$149). Realme is yet to tease the arrival of the Realme C15s phone in India.
BT has just signed a new deal with Ericsson, which will have the former use the latter’s 5G radio antennas, base stations, and other equipment to upgrade its mobile network.
The move from the company will have it replace Huawei and not be solely reliant on Nokia for its other radio access network (Ran) equipment. This also arrives after the government imposed a ban on Chinese companies from the country’s 5G infrastructure, as per a BBCreport. For those unaware, UK telecom operators are required to replace any core equipment from Huawei, or in other words, any Chinese component used in the most sensitive parts of its network.
This includes the route data and voice calls take through multiple devices across computer servers. All such 5G equipment from Huawei will also be phased out within the country by 2027. The Chinese tech giant has stated that this ban would could the UK government thousands of jobs and billions of pounds in economic benefit and would even delay the roll out 5G networking.
Thus, the latest announcement from BT was still within expectations as carriers generally employ two Ran equipment makers, which lets them maintain service if a problem is developed in other provider’s systems. This also lets the telecom operators save on efficiency from not having to install and maintain a wide range of products as well.
The JSC-AN00 / JSC-TN00 and HJC-AN00 / HJC-TN00 Huawei phones were certified by China’s TENAA telecom authority. Both phones are believed to the Nova 8 series smartphones. At present, the listings showing the full specs of both phones have not appeared at TENAA yet. The JSC-AN00 has today emerged on Geekbench benchmarking platform. The listing suggests that it could be the Huawei Nova 8 SE phone.
The JSC-AN00’s Geekbench appearance (via NashvilleChatterClass) reveals that it is powered by MediaTek MT6853V (Dimensity 720) chipset that has a base frequency of 2GHz. The SoC is coupled with 8 GB of RAM and it is loaded with Android 10 OS. The handset scored 2837 and 7093 in Geekbench’s single-core and multi-core tests, respectively.
A recent leak had revealed that the upcoming Huawei Nova 8 SE will debut in China in Dimensity 720 and Dimensity 800U CPU variants. Among other specs, the leak mentioned that the phone supports 66W fast charging. Recently, the JSC-AN00 phone was spotted at the 3C certification platform with a 66W charger. Hence, it appears that the base model of the Nova 8 SE that has Dimensity 720 chipset has emerged on Geekbench today.
The Nova 8 SE has an OLED display of 6.53 inches, and it supports a Full HD+ resolution. A fingerprint sensor could be embedded under the display of the phone. The waterdrop notch is the home for its 16-megapixel selfie camera. The backside of the phone has a square-shaped camera module that has a primary camera of 64-megapixel, a secondary lens of 8-megapixel, and a pair of 2-megapixel lenses. It has a 3,800mAh battery.
Xiaomi, the Chinese smartphone manufacturer, has recently invested in Dongyi Risheng, one of China’s leading home decoration companies. The consumer electronics maker has become one of the major shareholders in the company, which is a move to boost its own smart home business.
According to a KrAsiareport, Xiaomi has invested 139 million Yuan (roughly 20.7 million US Dollars) into the Dongyi Risheng. This will have the former buy 21 million shares from Dongyi Tianzheng Investment Co, at a price of 6.62 US Dollars per share. At the moment, Dongyi Tianzheng Investment holds 256.4 million shares before the completion of the deal.
According to Dongyi Risheng’s official filing, “The company will leverage on Xiaomi’s wide presence in the Internet of things (IoT) sector, as well as its own accumulation in the home decoration sector and its own digitization capabilities, to explore how AI and IoT technologies can integrate with home appliances to provide a smart living for consumers.” In other words, the home decorations maker is also gaining from the transfer of shares and will branch out to IoT products as well.
The move from Xiaomi will also allow it to grow its own smart home products business. The two companies have been cooperating since July 2020, and after the signing of the strategic partnership, Dongyi will bring the smartphone maker and its partners’ products into its current sales channel. Meaning, this would help the Xiaomi IoT product penetration rate as well.
The Amazon Fire series has just received an interesting new update. The new software release will have the affordable Android tablet be functional as a smart home hub for users, allowing them to control other smart home devices.
Amazon Fire 7
Earlier this week, the company started the roll out of the new update to a handful of Fire tablets. This update brings a Smart Home button to Device Dashboard, as per a PhoneArenareport. At the moment, only a small number of Fire tablets have received the update, but that is only due to the staggered release from the company. The update will be available in four models, which include Amazon Fire 7 (2019), Amazon Fire HD 8 (2018), Amazon Fire HD 8 (2020), or Amazon Fire HD 10 (2019).
After the new update, Fire tablet users will notice a new Smart Home button on the left corner of the navigation bar. This button will be accessible to users through any screen, meaning, users are just a tap away from controlling any compatible Alexa enabled smart home device from their tablets. In other words, users would be able to control any smart speaker, lights, cameras, thermostats, switches, and more.
Amazon Fire HD10 (2019)
While this isn’t a particularly large update, it does add a major utility and functionality to the existing Android tablets from Amazon. It would also things a bit more convenient for to Alexa enabled smart home devices’ owners. The update should soon reach out to a broader userbase, so keep on the lookout for the new software.
Recently, Counterpoint Research released a report on trust rankings for smartphone brands. The research firm’s trust rankings are based on certain four pillars. Like last year, HMD Global’s Nokia-branded Android smartphones rank first in all these four categories. Thus, Nokia has become the most-trusted brand for the second year in a row.
Counterpoint Research is one of the most popular research firms known for tracking tech industry trends. The company’s latest report on smartphone brand trust rankings reveals Nokia to be leading in all the analyzed four factors.
These four pillars are:
Timely Software Updates
Timely Security Updates
Build Quality
Enterprise/Business Recommended Smartphones
As per the report, from Q3 2019 to Q2 2020, Nokia-branded Android smartphones were the only handsets to receive monthly security patches (100%), followed closely by OnePlus with 90%. Similarly, Nokia and OnePlus were the only brands to update their eligible devices to Android 10 in the same period, followed by Samsung and realme at 89% and 73% respectively.
Interestingly, the report says that Nokia smartphones go through rigorous durability tests than the industry average. Lastly, 53% of Nokia-branded phones are Android Enterprise Recommended, followed by LenovoMotorola with 44%.
According to the report, the smartphone replacement cycle has reached 30 months, however, only Nokia and OnePlus devices are receiving regular security updates. On the other hand, Samsung’s efforts are dwarfed by its huge portfolio but the company still manages to deliver updates to eligible devices, albeit at a slower rate than HMD Global.
Having said that, the gap between Nokia and other brands in terms of regular software updates has narrowed than last year. In other words, HMD Global is slowly losing its only stronghold.
Earlier today (28th October 2020), Huawei officially announced a new smart product for vehicles. In a video teaser, the company unveiled a smart screen that will be housed within automobiles.
At the moment, not a lot of details regarding the product are known, although, it has been officially confirmed to be launched on 30th October 2020. The smart screen is “Powered by HUAWEI HiCar,” which is a part of the company’s initiative to enter the automobile peripherals market. As per the video, the in vehicle smart screen will sport a front facing camera that appears to be housed in a pop up mechanism.
We can also observe that the front will primarily be covered by the device’s display, which is flat, while the rear houses all the necessary components alongside the speaker grills. A short clip of the bottom also revealed that the company will offer a stand with the smart screen to properly secure it in the car. Furthermore, the new smart screen will be powered by HarmonyOS 2.0 (or HongMengOS in China) and will likely be capable of taking calls, listening to music, or even watching videos and movies.
Unfortunately, finer details are still unknown like the size of the display, but it is likely to be the size of a tablet and would also act as a control panel. Huawei is set to branch out towards the automobile industry and the new product might be the first of many for the company. So stay tuned for the launch event that is just around the corner and more updates as well.
The Huawei Mate 40 series was just recently announced and is set for a launch date of 30th October 2020 in China. Just prior to the launch, the company has already opened reservations for a few models within the flagship lineup, with the Mate 40 RS Porsche Design already receiving over 210,000 reservations.
As of today (28th October 2020), the number of reservations for the Huawei Mate 40 RS Porsche Design has crossed the 210,000 marks on JD.com, a popular e-retailer in China. The device in question is the ultra high end flagship from the Chinese tech giant and, as the name suggests, carries the signature branding of the luxury supercar maker, Porsche.
The Mate 40 RS Porsche Design features a unique aesthetic that resembles the aerodynamic design of the popular sports car brand. Its rear panel is built from nano-microcrystalline ceramic body that is made to offer a better grip thanks to its texture. Apart from the external design, the device is similar to the flagship Mate 40 and features the 5nm Kirin 9000 processor and a penta camera setup on the rear as well.
The handset was launched for 2,295 EUR (roughly 18,150 Yuan or 2,700 US Dollars). In other words, it is quite expensive, which makes it even more impressive than it has already managed to garner the large number of reservations. Notably, the pre orders for the Mate 40 series was also previously listed on JD.com and were sold out in just 28 seconds flat.
The launch of the next gen gaming console from Sony is just around the around and the company is already seeing “very considerable” demand for the new PlayStation 5 through its pre orders, as per its gaming chief.
According to a Reutersreport, Sony has already pre sold a large number of PS5 in just 12 hours. This figure is apparently equal to the entire 12 week sale of its predecessor, the PlayStation 4, as stated by Jim Ryan, CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment. He further added that “The demand as expressed by the level of pre-order has been very, very considerable.”
At the moment, the company has already sold over 100 million PS4 units across the globe and is seeking to convince its userbase to upgrade to the newer generation of hardware to play popular new titles like “Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales.” The new console also enables enhanced next gen graphics, with improvements on sound, and feedback as well through its new controller.
The PS5 launch arrives amid the Coronavirus pandemic that has boosted the gaming industry as a whole but has also disrupted retail networks, game development, and manufacturing supply chains worldwide. According to Ryan, “It may well be that not everybody who wants to buy a PS5 on launch day will be able to find one,” and that the company is “working as hard as we ever can” to ensure supply that lasts the year end shopping season.
Qualcomm is expected to announce the Snapdragon 875 mobile platform as its next flagship chipset on Dec. 1. The SoC will be replacing the Snapdragon 865 SoC that fueled most of the flagship phones running on Android OS this year. A Chinese tipster has claimed that sooner or later a custom-made flagship chipset possibly dubbed as Snapdragon 870 could be seen powering an OPPO smartphone.
The Snapdragon 870 is not an official name, but it appears that the SoC will be less powerful than the upcoming SD875 chip. According to the tipster, the SD870 that can clock around 3.2GHz will be more powerful than the SD865 theoretically.
As mentioned above, it will be a custom-made chip that will fuel a forthcoming flagship. There is no word on when Qualcomm or OPPO will be revealing more details on the chip. Also, the name of the OPPO phone that will feature the SD870 chip is under wraps.
Meanwhile, an OPPO phone that has a model number of PERM00 is waiting to go official in China. The handset had recently appeared at TENAA with full specifications. It has a 6.5-inch FHD+ display and it measures 162.2 x 75.1 x 9.1mm. With a battery of 4,900mAh capacity, it weighs 194 grams. The phone is expected to land in China in colors like green, gray, and blue.
The OPPO PERM00 is likely to arrive in 6 GB and 8 GB RAM options and storage options like 64 GB, 128 GB, and 256 GB in China. It has a side-mounted fingerprint sensor. For selfies, it has a 16-megapixel camera and its rear has a 48-megapixel + 8-megapixel + 2-megapixel +2-megapixel quad-camera system.
The LG Wing 5G was made official in September for the global markets. The dual display phone is one of the most ambitious products from the brand since its main screen can be rotated clockwise in 90 degrees over its second screen. Today, the South Korean company announced the LG Wing 5G and LG VELVET 5G in India.
LG Wing 5G and LG VELVET price and availability
The LG Wing 5G has arrived in India with a price tag of Rs 69,990 (~$948). The phone comes in two colors such as Illusion Sky and Aurora Grey. The dual-screen phone will be up for purchase from Nov. 9.
The LG VELVET has landed in India with a price tag of Rs 36,990 ($504). With the Dual Screen accessory, the device carries a price tag of Rs 49,990 (~$677). Its sale will begin on Oct. 30 in India in colors like Aurora Silver and New Black.
LG Wing 5G sand LG VELVET specifications and features
In its T-form factor, the LG Wing 5G offers a new level of multi-tasking where the main screen can display an app and its other features can be accessed on the second screen. For instance, users can watch a movie on the main display and adjust its playback settings on the second display. Also, it can be used as a gimbal motion camera since it comes with features like Gimbal Mode and dual-screen recording.
LG Wing 5G
Coming to the specs, the LG Wing 5G has a 6.8-inch P-OLED display that offers a Full HD+ resolution and a 20.5:9 aspect ratio The device is fitted with a 3.9-inch G-OLED secondary display that offers an FHD+ resolution and a 1:1.15 aspect ratio. The main screen is integrated with a fingerprint sensor.
The device is fitted with a pop-up camera of 32-megapixel for capturing selfie shots. The rear side of the LG Wing 5G features a triple camera system that comprises of an OIS assisted 64-megapixel main camera, a 13-megapixel ultrawide lens with a 117-degree field-of-view, and a 12-megapixel gimbal camera with a 120-degree FOV.
The Snapdragon 765G upper mid-range chip fuels the LG Wing 5G with 8 GB of LPDDR4x RAM. The phone offers 128 GB of native storage and it has a shared SIM slot for using a microSD card. It is fueled by a 4,000mAh battery that comes with 25W fast charging support and 10W wireless charging. It comes with other features like dual SIM support, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth 5.1, GPS, NFC, and USB-C. The phone runs on Android 10 OS. Lastly, the device comes with an IP54 rated and MIL-STD-810G rated chassis.
LG VELVET specifications and features
The LG VELVET that has arrived in India is its 4G version that features the Snapdragon 845 chipset. It has a 6.8-inch P-OLED FHD+ display with a 20.5:9 aspect ratio and an in-screen fingerprint reader. It has 6 GB of RAM, 128 GB of storage, and a microSD card slot for additional storage.
LG VELVET
The LG VELVET has a front-facing camera of 16-megapixel. The rear side of the phone has a triple camera setup that includes a 48-megapixel main camera, an 8-megapixel ultrawide lens with 120-degree FOV, and a 5-megapixel depth sensor. The phone houses a 4,300mAh battery that supports 18W fast charging through USB-C. It comes with other features such as Wi-Fi 802.11ac, VoLTE Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, and a 3.5mm audio jack.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
