TECHNEWS

Xiaomi officially announced that it is launching the Xiaomi Play smartphone in China.  Now confirmed to be the Xiaomi Mi Play, its launch is set for December 24, and teasers have also started coming in. The new teasers posted by Xiaomi reveal the smartphone's design from the front and back, and it is seen sporting a waterdrop-shaped notch up front, and a dual camera setup at the back of the device. In fact, the design appears to match one of the TENAA listings from earlier this month, presumed to be the Xiaomi Redmi 7 Pro.    The Xiaomi Mi Play teasers suggest a Snapdragon processor, and good sound quality. Judging by the name, the Xiaomi Mi Play could be a gaming smartphone by the Beijing-headquartered company. Teasers also suggest that the smartphone is expected to come with media-centric features, good audio, and more. The company has started taking reservations of interest for the phone, and all details are expected to be made official next week on D...

The Chinese tech giant Huawei has decided to launch its new flagship Huawei Mate 20 Pro in India, and the news has been confirmed by the Huawei Consumer Business Group, Vice President, Jim Xu. Xu has briefed media persons about the plans of the brand to increase its presence in the Indian market. Xu said the Mate 20 Pro will soon be released for sale in the Indian market, and with the device will come new Huawei tablets and computers as well. Like the Huawei P20 Pro, the Huawei Mate 20 Pro will also sell here as an Amazon exclusive product, as the brand will continue its partnership with Amazon for online sales, as per media reports. Huawei Contemplating Exclusive Retail Stores In India According to Xu, India is now a Tier-I country for Huawei, which means that the brand will be making new investments here in not just the smartphone segment but other tech sectors as well. 'We are making strategic investments in the PC business. In the smartph...

After plenty of teasing, nubia has finally launched its latest flagship device in China. The all-new nubia X is here, and the device comes with an interesting approach for achieving the bezel-less display. The nubia X has no bezels, but it doesn't have a notch nor a sliding mechanism. Instead, the device comes with dual touchscreen displays on either side of the device. The nubia X sports two touchscreen displays, one on the front and the other one on the rear. What's more is that it can be unlocked in just 0.1 seconds with the two fingerprint scanners that are placed on either side of the smartphone. The nubia X's AI dual-screen switching feature is pretty well optimized it well. It can seamlessly show the display contents of the front screen on the secondary display when the device is flipped. Speaking about the secondary display, it comes with extra features such as eye protection mode. After plenty of teasing, nubia has finally l...

Apple announced the addition of FaceTime group calling to iOS at WWDC 2018 earlier this summer. The feature allows users to talk in a group of 32 people at once. It's a nice addition for small business teams who use the feature on the go. After much anticipation, Apple is releasing iOS 12.1 with the Facetime Group Calling feature it promised. FaceTime group calling lets users converse via Apple's video chat in groups of up to 32 people. Aside from this basic function, however, there are some excellent additions to the chat service. First, FaceTime Group Calling detects active speakers and brings them to the forefront of the discussion. Anytime a new speaker speaks, he or she is added to the 'Active' list. Speakers images are enlarged or shrunk based on their participation in the conversation, length of talk time, volume, and motion, Apple says. Other features of FaceTime Group Calling are below. Ringless Notification Have yo...

Samsung is expected to launch its next flagship Galaxy S10 with the latest trending in-display fingerprint scanner. The upcoming device by Samsung has already been started leaking over the web with numerous rumors surrounding the specs and features which the smartphone will offer. Now, a new report has surfaced over the web hinting at the expected specifications of the upcoming flagship Samsung smartphone. As per a report from AllAbooutSamsung, a German website, the upcoming premium category Samsung Galaxy S10 will sport a full-screen display which will incorporate the in-display fingerprint scanner along with it. The report further suggests that the Samsung Galaxy S10 will be compatible with the 5G network as well. This will make it among the first few smartphones to be 5G enabled. It is being further reported that the Galaxy S10 series might be available in up to five different variants. While the Galaxy S10 might pack a 5.8-inch display, the ...

Blockchain technology startup Ripple Labs Inc confirmed to Reuters on Friday that it hired Amir Sarhangi, who had been leading Google’s rollout of a new wireless messaging system, as vice president of products. San Francisco-based Ripple, which is among the most well known startups trying to capitalise on the technology that underpins cryptocurrencies, said it was excited to have Sarhangi leading its effort to develop a global payments network known as RippleNet. Alphabet Inc’s Google did not respond to a request to comment on whether it had filled Sarhangi’s role as head of RCS, or rich communications services. Sarhangi joined Google through its acquisition in 2015 of Jibe Mobile, a startup he founded and led that developed technology for wireless carriers to adopt RCS. The standard is seen as a successor to SMS texting as it better handles sending multimedia and commercial messages, such as receipts and airline boarding passes, over cell networks.  Google views th...

Robots will make robots at a new ABB factory in China, which the Swiss engineering group said on Saturday it plans to build for $150 million in Shanghai as it defends its place as the country’s largest maker of industrial robots. The factory, located near ABB’s China robotics campus, is due to be operating by the end of 2020 and will produce robots for China as well as for export elsewhere in Asia. China is ABB’s No. 2 market after the United States. “Shanghai has become a vital centre for advanced technology leadership – for ABB and the world,” ABB Chief Executive Ulrich Spiesshofer said in a statement announcing the project.  With the expansion, ABB is banking on Chinese robots sales defying concerns over trade tensions with the United States that some fear could dent demand for electronics, auto parts and other items that require automated manufacturing and robots.  China is expanding its robot workforce, as wages for human workers there rise and the country ...

The Infinix Hot S3x smartphone will be available exclusively on Flipkart with the "Big Diwali Sale" starting from November 1 until November 5. It will be available in three colours - Ice Blue, Sandstone Black and Trade winds Gray. Infinix has today launched Hot S3X with notch display at Rs 9,999. The Infinix Hot S3x smartphone will be available exclusively on Flipkart with the "Big Diwali Sale" starting from November 1 until November 5. It will be available in three colours - Ice Blue, Sandstone Black and Trade winds Gray. Infinix Hot S3x features 6.2-inch screen and 19:9 Notch display with an HD+ resolution of 1500 x 720 pixels, 500 Nits brightness and 86% screen to body ratio. The phone is powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 chipset clocked at 1.5GHz with Adreno 505 GPU. It comes with 3GB of RAM and 32GB inbuilt storage, which is expandable up to 128GB with a microSD card. For the camera department, the Infinix Hot S3x is equipped with a ...

US-based chipmaker Qualcomm Technologies on Tuesday  unveiled   here the Snapdragon 675 system-on-chip (SoC) to boost gaming and camera experience in mobile devices. The latest addition to the mid-range Snapdragon 600 series, released at the Qualcomm 4G/5G Summit, supports a triple camera configuration in the front or back. It supports features such as telephoto, wide angle, and super-wide image capture, as well as enhanced portrait mode (Bokeh), “3D face unlock” and high-quality selfies, the company said. Snapdragon 675 provides new architectures and performance improvements over the previous generation Snapdragon 670 in Artificial Intelligence (AI) capabilities as well. With a multi-core AI Engine, Snapdragon 675 is engineered to deliver up to 50% overall improvements in AI applications, Qualcomm said. “Packed with advanced gaming abilities, remarkable camera performance and a multi-core AI Engine, Snapdragon 675-based smartphones will bring new experiences to co...

When smartphone OEMs started introducing thin bezel displays (18:9 aspect ratios) last year, Apple came up with the notch design on the iPhone X that led to a chain of reaction and a range of similar phones, some of it still being released. Apple's adoption of a cut-out in the display was a solution to a problem that all smartphone makers face today. If we make a bezel-less screen, where do we put all the front sensors including the camera? The notch was never the final answer, it was a transition, a necessary phase before the industry figures out a place to accommodate all the sensors. Fast forward to the present day, and .Samsung has made some advancements in the quest for the all-screen holy grail. The Korean giant announced it's first ODM device in China namely the Galaxy A6s, and the quad-camera Galaxy A9s yesterday, October 24. The Galaxy A6s is an improved Galaxy A6+ with a Snapdragon 660 SoC while the Galaxy A9s is just a localized version of the Galaxy A9 (...

Four Indian manufacturers on Monday announced to launch new products like portable headsets, smart speakers and set-top boxes with the Amazon Alexa built-in. The hardware manufacturers are iBall, Sirena Technologies, boAt and MyBox who have integrated Alexa into their products with the Alexa Voice Service (AVS) which enables developers to integrate Alexa directly into their products, bringing the convenience of voice control to any connected device. All four devices will be available beginning next month, enabling customers to ask questions, play music, control smart home devices and more, the AVS said in a statement. “Breathe-M” from iBall is a wireless Bluetooth over-ear headset with built-in Mic for just Rs 2,225 while “Vood” by Sirena Technologies is touted as one of the world’s smallest portable smart speakers for Rs 2,699. “boAt Stone 700A” is a shock and water proof smart speaker for Rs 7,999 and “MyBox” Alexa Kit for the set-top box (STB), paired with a voice remot...

With Artificial Intelligence (AI) pushing the frontiers of communication technology, Samsung Electronics is planning to develop a multi-device platform -- a variety of AI-enabled devices that communicate seamlessly with each other -- to make experiences more personal and relevant. The South Korean tech giant presented its future vision for AI while announcing this week a new AI centre in Montreal, Canada. “By leveraging the power of AI in Samsung’s products and services, we must focus on creating new values, never seen nor experienced before,” said Seunghwan Cho, Executive Vice President of Samsung Research. By providing multiple touchpoints where a user can interact with AI, Samsung said its multi-modal interaction platform (voice, vision, screen, touch) will make experiences more relevant and personal in the future. “One key element that will move AI to being more widely adopted is multi-device systems -- i.e., a variety of AI-enabled devices that communicate seamless...

Oppo has launched its latest R15x smartphone in China. The Oppo R15x comes with an in-display fingerprint sensor, a waterdrop-style notch, a vertical dual rear camera setup. The Oppo R15x specifications include Snapdragon 660 SoC, 25 MP selfie camera, and a 16MP, along with 2MP rear camera combination. Oppo R15x specifications The Oppo R15x come with a 6.4-inch display with 91 percent screen-to-body ratio while protecting the screen is the Corning Gorilla Glass 5. The screen is also equipped with an in-display fingerprint sensor. There is no mention of the processor being used in the phone, but reports suggest that the phone could be powered by the octa-core Snapdragon 660 processor, paired with 6GB RAM and 128GB onboard storage. For optics, the Oppo R15x uses a vertically stacked dual rear lens camera that features a 16 Megapixel main sensor along with a 2 Megapixel secondary depth sensor that is backed with AI capabilities. Towards the front is the 25 Megapixel selfie...

Xiaomi will launch the third-generation of its bezel-less smartphone on October 25. Xiaomi Mi MIX 3 will be officially launched at an event in Beijing, China. Xiaomi Mi MIX 3 like its predecessors will feature an edge-to-edge display with almost no bezels around it. Donovan Sung, global spokesperson for Xiaomi, has been sharing updates on the upcoming Mi MIX 3. The new Mi MIX 3 will feature a sliding form factor for the selfie camera. Oppo Find X and Vivo Nex introduced a new trend with their pop-out selfie cameras. Xiaomi’s previous Mi MIX phones house the selfie camera on the bottom bezel of the phone. A teaser video of the Mi MIX 3 shows the smartphone’s selfie camera which one can slide up to open. The smartphone is expected to sport a 24-megapixel front camera.  Sung has also revealed that the Mi MIX 3 will pack a massive 10GB RAM. The highest RAM capacity on a smartphone is currently 8GB. Mi MIX 3 would be the first phone with 10GB RAM. Oppo is also pl...

Adding to the growing hype around the upcoming  OnePlus 6T  smartphone, the company has now leaked a ' Limited Edition ' version called the OnePlus 6T Ultimate. There is no official word as to whether this 'Ultimate' version while have any special hardware feature or not. Having said that the Ultimate limited edition will most likely offer OnePlus accessories along with the top end variant of the phone.  The OnePlus 6T will not come with a 3.5mm headphone jack and having a dongle or a USB Type-C headphone would be a good thing. The company is also launching backpacks among other things along with the OnePlus 6T.  Meanwhile, OnePlus has started to sell invites of the OnePlus 6T launch in New Delhi at a price of Rs 999. The OnePlus 6T launch event will be held at KDJW Stadium, inside Indira Gandhi Sports Complex in New Delhi and is expected to start at 8:30 pm October 30. The launch invites will be available via Oneplus.in website from 10:0...

NEW DELHI:  Smartphone  sales are set to break records for the festive season this year, shrugging off the effects of a plunging  rupee , say analysts, with some even pegging online to outpace brick-and-mortar stores for the first time ever in the October-December quarter, on the back of aggressive launches and a slew of offers. Smartphone sales are expected to rise 24% in October over last year’s festive month, which is likely propel growth in the three-month period ending December, which typically contributes about a third to annual sales of companies, say analysts.  “Online is growing faster than the offline channel for  smartphones  in October. The online channel is set to grow 30% year-on-year, while offline will grow 20%. Further, there is a 10% jump in overall handset launches over last year,” Anshika Jain, a Counterpoint research analyst, told ET. The expected growth will dispel fears of some that the weakening rupee may force smartphone...