Saturday, September 19, 2020

Weekly poll results: the Poco X3 NFC strikes gold

Last week’s poll leaves little doubt – the Poco X3 NFC strikes a perfect balance between how much it costs and what it delivers. Two thirds of the votes went in its favor and the comment section was pretty positive as well. It starts off with the price – at €230 it slips under much of the available competition. “Available” is a key word as one commenter pointed out as the AliExpress store has stock in Europe. This means no import headaches while similarly value-for-money phones often come from China (and thus are subject to duties, long shipping times and customs trouble). Note that the...

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Huawei Watch GT2 Pro review

Introduction Huawei has become a staple of smartwatch with a rapidly growing roster of GT and Honor Magic watches that have great build quality, battery life and deliver great value for money. We loved the Huawei Watch GT2 for its responsive interface, great build quality and advanced set of features. The Huawei Watch GT2 Pro retains the internals, but is made with a much more premium selection of materials. Its borderless dial is made of sapphire crystal isntead of the traditional glass, the watch case is Titanium and the watch plate, which rests on your wrist is ceramic. Inside...

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Xiaomi's cheapest phone with 108MP camera closer to release

There was a rumor about two cheap Xiaomi smartphones equipped with 64MP and 108MP cameras in the works back in July but nothing else has leaked since then. Now, a renowned Weibo leakster has revealed the codenames of the two phones along with the model number of the one with the 108MP camera. It's believed that the code names are Gauguin and Gauguin Pro, with the latter being the one with the 108MP sensor, while the non-pro version will reportedly settle for a 64MP main camera. Since the Pro will be the cheapest handset with the said sensor, it's probably safe to assume that the duo...

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Samsung's Exynos 1000 might be faster than the Snapdragon 875

Yes, we know it's too early for this kind of news especially since we don't expect the first Exynos 1000-powered Samsung phones to arrive until February next year. But it's exciting to hear that Samsung might finally surpass its biggest competitor in 2021. The information comes from a Korean forum where various Geekbench scores were published. Reportedly two Samsung Galaxy S21 units were tested - one with Exynos 1000 and one with Snapdragon 875. In addition, there's a Xiaomi Mi 11 phone with Snapdragon 875 thrown into the mix as well. No screenshots have been shared so take this...

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OnePlus with official statement why the 5 and 5T's update has been delayed

Although the OnePlus 5 and 5T are three-year-old phones, the stream of software updates hasn't been cut yet. In fact, there's a relatively big update coming to both of these phones, but there's a hold up on OnePlus' side. The company explains why in a post in the community forum. The OxygenOS Product Lead has opened up about the delay saying that there's a big issue with the communication module. Moreover, OnePlus isn't able to solve this by itself, so it has to reach out to carriers, collaborate and squash the bug. The product team's highest priority right now is pushing the OnePlus 5...

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Samsung developing its own 3D ToF sensor called ISOCELL Vizion

A recently filed document in EUIPO (European Union Intellectual Property Office) by Samsung may reveal a feature of the upcoming Galaxy S21 family next year. The description of the so-called ISOCELL Vizion camera perfectly fits the one of a 3D ToF sensor. According to some, the Galaxy Note20 lineup missed on the 3D ToF sensor because Sony was already preoccupied with Apple's orders of the said sensor, so Samsung is likely taking matters into its own hands for the Galaxy S21 launch next year. Then again, there's a rumor going saying that the upcoming S-series won't be featuring 3D ToF...

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Realme Watch S specs revealed by FCC

The Realme Watch was announced in May, and earlier this month, the company said it will launch the Watch S Pro in Q4 2020 with a circular AMOLED screen. Now we learn there's a non-Pro version as well, sporting model designation RMA207, that has bagged FCC certification. The FCC listing includes a schematic of the Realme Watch S, which confirms the smartwatch will pack a 390 mAh battery and come with an IP68 rating. There are also heart rate and SpO2 sensors on the back joined by the charging connectors, but their arrangement is different from the one we've seen on the Pro model. However,...

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Samsung teases the Galaxy F series

Earlier this week we learned that Samsung is planning to launch a camera-focused Galaxy F series in India, and today, the Korean tech giant confirmed the existence of the new series by posting a teaser image on Twitter with the caption "The new #GalaxyF will definitely leave a mark on you. Stay tuned to go #FullOn." The new #GalaxyF will definitely leave a mark on you. Stay tuned to go #FullOn.#Samsung pic.twitter.com/5ahjw6mqTm— Samsung India (@SamsungIndia) September 19, 2020 Samsung didn't reveal any other details about the Galaxy F series, but rumors have it that the Galaxy F41...

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Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 3 full specs surface

Samsung announced the Galaxy Tab Active 2 rugged tablet back in October 2017, and the company will soon follow up with its successor - the Galaxy Tab Active 3. The tablet has already bagged Bluetooth SIG certification, and thanks to Safety Korea and Geekbench, we know a few of its specs already: an Exynos 9810 SoC, 4GB RAM, and a 5,050 mAh battery. A live image of the tablet also revealed it will come with three physical buttons on the front. Now the entire specs sheet of the Galaxy Tab Active 3 has leaked, that paints a clearer picture of the rugged tablet. Samsung Galaxy Tab...

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Friday, September 18, 2020

Renders of new Nest Home speaker leak ahead of launch event

Back in July, Google teased a new Nest Home smart speaker – one that’s meant to succeed the original air freshener Google Home speaker. The new smart speaker, along with a new Chromecast with Bluetooth remote is expected to be announced at a September 30 event. A set of official renders of the Nest Home has leaked thanks to @rquandt via Twitter and WinFuture.de. The renders show two Nest Home colors which might be called “chalk” and “charcoal”. With these renders, we’re given more angles of the speaker, along with a view of the power cord, which seems to have a new proprietary plug. The...

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Moto E7 Plus launches in India on September 23

Motorola unveiled the Moto E7 Plus exactly one week ago, in Brazil. Today, the company has unveiled that, aside from Europe, the E7 Plus is also headed to India. Specifically, the phone will launch in the subcontinent on September 23. You'll find it at Flipkart starting at 12 PM local time. Pricing hasn't been revealed yet, although this should be an affordable device, considering the specs on offer. Get ready for the #UltimateCamera experience. With all-new #motoe7plus you can take your smartphone photography to the next level, even in low light. Launching 23rd September, 12 pm on...

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Apple's new 8th generation iPad is already just $299

Apple's mobile devices are notoriously resistant to price cuts of any kind - not that they don't happen at all, but way less than for any competitors. With that in mind, for a new Apple tablet to have its official recommended retail price cut on launch day, that's quite unprecedented. And yet it's exactly what's happened to the new, 8th generation iPad - the entry-level model we're calling iPad 10.2 (2020) because it's a much more descriptive name. It was announced at Apple's special online event on September 15, which is also when pre-orders started. The tablet became available...

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Google's Android TV stick leaks again in official looking images

Google's event on September 30 won't all be just about the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G, as we're also expecting a new Nest smart speaker to make an appearance, as well as the long leaked Android TV streaming stick/dongle codenamed Sabrina. Think of this like an Android TV box, but in dongle form. Or a Chromecast dongle that runs Android TV. And comes with a remote control, and access to the full suite of Android TV apps, of course. Here are some newly outed official-looking images of it. Google's HDMI stick with remote By the way, according to the source of this leak, Google will...

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OnePlus 8T tipped to launch on October 14

OnePlus is expected to bring a “T” update to its OnePlus 8 smartphone with slightly updated design and specs. Now, tipster Ishan Agarwal is giving us a potential launch date for the OnePlus 8T - October 14. Past leaks have claim there won’t be a new Pro phone this Fall. The 8T is expected to come with a 6.55-inch AMOLED panel with an updated 120Hz refresh rate and punch hole cutout for its 32MP selfie cam. The phone is expected to ship with the Snapdragon 865 alongside 8/12GB RAM and 128/256GB storage. The camera setup should remain similar to the OnePlus 8 with an upgraded 5MP...

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Nokia 3.4 inches closer to launch following a FCC certification

We’ve been hearing rumors and seeing leaks about an upcoming smartphone called Nokia 3.4, and a device that looks suspiciously similar has popped up in the United States’ FCC certification database. The schematics confirm two variants of the upcoming phone, a circular camera setup on the back and what appears to be a single punch hole in the upper left corner on the front. Nokia 3.4 front and back schematics The two listings from HMD have the TA-1283 and TA-1285 model codes - one is for the single SIM Nokia 3.4, the other is for the dual SIM version. The certification points to...

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Samsung infographic showcases the Galaxy Watch evolution

Samsung released the Galaxy Watch3 last month and the wearable is the pinnacle of Korean company's smartwatch design. In a lovely infographic, the company explained how the Galaxy Watch3 evolved over the two-year-old Galaxy Watch - including a more compact size while bringing more features for a healthier lifestyle. Samsung's first Galaxy Watch had 46mm and 42mm versions, but the latest one comes in 45mm and 41mm flavors. However, at the same time, the screen either grew in size or remained the same (1.4” and 1.2” diagonal), meaning the bezel has got thinner. The actual body of the...

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Realme 7 Pro in for review

Realme had a big announcement in early September where we saw the arrival of the Realme 7 and Realme 7 Pro smartphones (with a third one, called Realme 7i, joining them this week. We had a quick hands-on with the Pro device after the launch, but now the phone is with us to go through the rigorous testing process. Once again we have a Mirror Blue variant. It has a neat matte finish where the gradient changes slightly under different lighting. The line is also perfectly aligned with the camera setup, which is a lovely fine detail that many other manufacturers are...

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Motorola Razr 5G hands-on review

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Alleged wireless charger for iPhone 12 series appears on video

Apple has been rumored to bring a magnetic wireless charger with its iPhone 12 series and now we have a video of the alleged charging mat or at least its prototype. Video claims to show Apple magnetic wireless charger prototype. More at @9to5mac pic.twitter.com/BDReuIIW4C— Jordan Kahn (@JordanKahn) September 17, 2020 The charger appears quite slim with a round shape and small convex opening at the top all dressed in white. The whole mat appears to have a metal casing while its bottom side features a 9 pin structure. Apple charging mat (left) and iPhone 12 back schematics...

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iOS 14 found to reset default apps after every reboot

Apple’s iOS 14 has only been official for two days now and the first somewhat major bug was discovered. One of the cooler features of the new build is that you can finally pick your own default browser and email app. However it turns out each reboot will wipe those preferences and restore the Apple apps as default. This means every time your phone battery dies or you perform a restart you’ll be once again directed to using Safari and the Apple Mail app until you go into settings to change to any alternative browser and email client. This issue will likely be patched as soon as...

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