Amazon Great Indian Festival sale: Deals on Samsung Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy S9, Galaxy A8+ and more
Just after Samsung announced a slew of offers for Flipkart Big Billion Days sale, the technology giant is now giving deals and discounts to its fans on Amazon too. Amazon India’s festive season sale — Great Indian Festival — is scheduled to begin tomorrow and it will continue till October 15. And Samsung has announced some discount offers for customers who are planning to shop from the sale.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 — which is company’s flagship phablet from last year — will be getting a price cut of Rs 30,700 for five days and will be available at Rs 43,990 during the Great Indian Festival. The device can be purchased at No Cost EMI options along with free screen replacement and assured buyback.
To recall, Samsung Galaxy Note 8 features a 6.3-inch QHD+ Super AMOLED Infinity display and is powered by Samsung Exynos 8895 processor clubbed with 6GB RAM. Like other phablets in the Note Series, Galaxy Note 8 comes with an S Pen. It has 12MP+12MP dual rear cameras along with an 8MP front facing snapper. It has 64GB of inbuilt storage and can hold a microSD card of up to 256GB. The smartphone houses a 3300mAh battery and has support for wireless charging.
Customers can also buy the Samsung Galaxy A8+ at a reduced price during Amazon India’s festive season sale. During the Great Indian Festival, the smartphone will be available at Rs 23,990, which is Rs 17,910 less than its launch price.
Among the most attractive deals available is the discount on Samsung’s current flagship smartphone — Galaxy S9. The 64GB variant of Samsung Galaxy S9 will be available at a discount of Rs 19,600 during the sale. While it was launched at Rs 57,900, it can be bought for Rs 38,300 during the five days of Great Indian Festival.
Samsung Galaxy S9 smartphone comes with a 5.8-inch touchscreen display and is powered by a 1.7GHz octa-core processor clubbed with 4GB RAM. The smartphone packs 64GB of internal storage and can hold a microSD card of up to 400GB, too. Samsung Galaxy S9 packs a Super Speed Dual Pixel 12MP autofocus camera with OIS and has an 8MP front shooter for selfies. The device houses a 3,000mAh battery.
Discount offers are available on Samsung’s On series too. The 4GB RAM/64GB internal storage variant of Samsung Galaxy On7 Prime will receive a price cut of Rs 4,000 and will bear a price tag of Rs 10,990. Galaxy On7 Pro and Galaxy On5 Pro smartphones will also be available at a reduced price. While the former can be picked up for Rs 6,790 after a discount of Rs 2,700, the latter’s will cost Rs 2,000 less and customers can buy it at Rs 5,990.
Furthermore, buyers will get an instant discount of 10% if they pay for their purchase via SBI debit and credit cards.
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Facebook launches Portal to make video calls easy
Social networking giant Facebook has launched a smart speaker that it says has been designed to make video calls easy. The device is known as Portal and its price starts at $199. The high-end version of Portal is priced at $349. The signature feature of Portal is its wide-angle camera that automatically keeps users in focus even if they move around in the room.
The newly launched device is available on Facebook.com, Amazon and Best Buy and it will begin shipping in US early next month. However, the high price and the limited functionality of the device may make it difficult for Portal to compete with devices from Amazon and Google. Facebook‘s involvement in the data breach of its 87 million users wouldn’t help either.
Smart speakers from Amazon and Google have been widely appreciated in the industry and both are available for less than $100. Users can use their voice command to make the devices from Amazon and Google search the web for them, play music, read out news and do so much more.
With Portal, Facebook may be eyeing to stop users from using other chat and video calling apps on other speakers. It may also be looking for a new and completely controlled environment to sell ads — which is its main way of making money.
Around 400 million people call each other via Facebook Messenger each year. In spite of being so popular, the service is absent from Amazon and Google’s smart speakers.
The social networking giant expects to woo the users with the presence of its widely used service and Portal’s touchscreen.
Additionally, Portal’s camera uses artificial intelligence to recognize body shapes. This can be a huge selling point for the device considering that users will be able to stay in the frame without having to adjust the device.
Speaking on the launch, Rafa Camargo, Facebook’s vice president who is monitoring Portal said, “Our goal is to make you feel present in the same space as the person at the other end.”
Portal’s microphones and camera shuts off with a tap of a button and users can lock it using a passcode, the company has said. It further clarified that voice and video calls that will be made on the device will be encrypted and their contents will not be stored. Users can call anybody they wish to, provided both are using FB Messenger.
The device from Facebook comes with Amazon’s digital assistant Alexa, too. It handles the search queries that are made by the user while Amazon collects audio files of requests that are made.
While the base variant of Portal comes with a 10-inch display, the high-end version sports a 15.6-inch screen. Both will showcase photos and notifications from Facebook and videos from Food Network. Other than this, there are very few other apps present on it.
Other features will be available to users while they are making calls, which includes listening to music on Spotify. Like many devices from Amazon, Portal runs the open source version of Android.
Prior to this, Facebook had forayed into hardware with Oculus virtual reality headset and a phone that it developed with HTC.
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Google Plus to shut down after breach of 5 lakh users’ data
Google has announced that its shutting down the consumer version of its social networking website Google Plus — a competitor to Facebook that the technology giant launched in 2011. This update came right after the announcement that a bug in Google Plus may have exposed the data of up to 5,00,000 users to external developers. The bug was reportedly present in Google Plus’ systems for more than two years.
The technology giant said in blog that first discovered and patched the leak in March this year. The company goes on to say that at that point in time, it had no evidence of breach of any data or that any developer was in knowledge of the bug.
After the announcement, shares of Google‘s parent company, Alphabet Inc, were down 1.5% at $1150.75.
According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, Google had chosen not to reveal the bug with its API (Application Program Interfaces) because it feared scrutiny by regulatory authorities.
Google has said that analysed the issue and looked for the kind of data involved, if there was any evidence of misuse, whether users who had to be informed could be identified accurately, and if any actions could be taken by the developers.
The company further said that, “None of these thresholds were met in this instance. We found no evidence that any developer was aware of this bug, or abusing the API, and we found no evidence that any Profile data was misused.”
Going by the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, if users’ personal data is compromised, a supervisory authority needs to get informed about the breach by the company within 72 hours. The only exception to this is a case where the breach was not likely to result in a risk to users’ rights and freedom.
Speaking on the matter, Geoffrey Parker, an engineering professor at Ivy League college Dartmouth said, “It seems like the downside risk of having a story that says they intentionally hid information about a major breach from users is bigger than the upside of avoiding scrutiny. I wonder if there wasn’t more depth to the internal debate.”
The technology giant said that the software bug in its social networking website gave external developers a potential access to private data of the users between a major revamp of the platform in 2015 and March 2018 — when the issue was finally discovered.
However, only static data including name, email address, occupation, gender and age was affected.
The report in The Wall Street Journal states that a memo was prepared by Google’s legal and policy staff which was shared with the senior executives of the company. It stated that disclosing the data breach would lead to “immediate regulatory interest” — much like Facebook did after user information from the platform got leaked to Cambridge Analytica.
According to The Wall Street Journal, after the internal committee had decided on their course of action, Google Chief Operating Officer was told not to inform the users about the data breach.
Google also faced criticism for not sending a top executive to a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on September 5 which was held to discuss what measures can be taken to stop foreign influence in US Elections. The hearing was attended by Facebook‘s Chief Operating Officer and Twitter’s Chief Executive. But Google’s top lawyer was rejected as a witness by the committee and an empty chair was left for the company during the hearing.
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Google updates its Developer Policy to restrict apps that can request Call log and SMS permissions
Ever installed an app from Google Play Store that has asked for multiple permissions? And have you felt that the apps that you have installed may not require as much information as they ask for? We all have been there and felt this at some point in time. And Google seems to have taken a note of this too.
The technology giant is updating the Google Play Developer Policy to protect user information. Apps are only supposed to ask for information that helps in making them function. But that doesn’t always happen. A number of apps request for far more information than required and this often includes user’s call log and SMS application.
It is worth noticing that the dialer and SMS application in your smartphone often carries a lot of sensitive information like your phone number, your call history and also the personal information of people you have contacted. When we allow apps to access our call logs and SMS app, we basically allow them to access all this information as well.
The new change in Google Play Developer Policy will let only default phone and SMS apps to access this information.
This is being done to restrict access to one or two apps at a given time. So even a widely used app like Facebook Messenger — which currently can access users’ SMS conversations — would not be able to do it anymore. Unless, of course, the user sets it as the default app on their phone.
So even if you have given permissions to a number of apps without investing much thought into it, the only app you actually use will be able to access your information.
Developers have been given 90 days from day of policy update to issue updates to their respective apps. Post that, the updated Developer Policy will get enforced on its own.
Google has also posted an article on its Help Center for developers in order to help them find alternatives to these permissions.
This move by Google is a welcome one, as most users give permissions to apps that they install nonchalantly. However, this may cause some inconvenience to users. For instance, till now, various apps used SMS permissions to read OTPs that the user received via text message. But, with the new policy coming in, the users will have to put in this information themselves. It’s not too much pain, but it’s always difficult to let go of an easy way to do things when you are used to it.
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Google Pixel 3 XL is being sold in Hong Kong ahead of official launch
The world is waiting for the launch of Google Pixel 3 smartphones which is scheduled for Tuesday, October 9. But according to reports, in Hong Kong a retailer has been selling Google Pixel 3 XL already for a few days.
A few days ago, a review of Google Pixel 3 from Hong Kong had surfaced online. In fact, a few months back, reviews and hands-on videos of the upcoming smartphone also went up online when it was reported from Eastern Europe that some units of Google Pixel 3 XL were stolen. The report also said that in order to buy one Pixel 3 XL unit, one had to pay $2,000 on the black market. And that’s exactly the same amount one has to pay to buy a unit in Hong Kong right now.
According to a report in Engadget, which had borrowed a unit from the website that had reviewed the smartphone, a mobile retailer in Hong Kong has been selling the Google Pixel 3 XL HK$15,880. When converted, that becomes $2,030 — which is almost double of what the Google Pixel XL 3 will cost if reports about the device are correct.
An image shared by Engadget shows the Pixel XL 3 retail box. The image has a pair of Pixel USB-C earphones, USB-C to 3.5mm and USB-C to USB-A, a USB-C cable to charge the smartphone and a couple of dongles.
As of now, there is no clarity on why a store in Hong Kong started selling the smartphone a few days prior to its launch. But Google seems unable to control the stores that are supposed to sell its devices this year.
A report surfaced online a few days back that claimed that Best Buy sold a third-generation Chromecast unit — which, like Google Pixel 3 XL, has not officially been launched yet.
A number of reports about Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL have surfaced online. The devices are expected to feature larger screens and according to leaks, Pixel 3 XL will sport a notch on its display. Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL will also reportedly have wireless charging and sport dual selfie cameras. Other than this, Google is expected to give some clever software features to its smartphones.
Image courtesy: Engadget
An image shared by Engadget shows the Pixel XL 3 retail box. The image has a pair of Pixel USB-C earphones, USB-C to 3.5mm and USB-C to USB-A, a USB-C cable to charge the smartphone and a couple of dongles.
As of now, there is no clarity on why a store in Hong Kong started selling the smartphone a few days prior to its launch. But Google seems unable to control the stores that are supposed to sell its devices this year.
A report surfaced online a few days back that claimed that Best Buy sold a third-generation Chromecast unit — which, like Google Pixel 3 XL, has not officially been launched yet.
A number of reports about Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL have surfaced online. The devices are expected to feature larger screens and according to leaks, Pixel 3 XL will sport a notch on its display. Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL will also reportedly have wireless charging and sport dual selfie cameras. Other than this, Google is expected to give some clever software features to its smartphones.
Image courtesy: Engadget
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Flipkart Big Billion Days sale: Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro to be available at Rs 12,999
If you are planning to buy a smartphone, now is a very good time for you. With festive season sales beginning on Amazon and Flipkart, there are a number of smartphones that can be bought at reduced prices for a few days. And the latest smartphone to join the discount bandwagon is Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro.
Prior to this, Xiaomi also announced a discount of Rs 7,000 on its bezel-less smartphone Mi Mix 2 during Flipkart’s Big Billion Days sale. Smartphones from other companies which will be available on a discount are Samsung Galaxy S8, Infinix Note 5, Nokia 5.1 and 6.1, and more.
Speaking of Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro, the smartphone is receiving a price cut of Rs 2,000 during the Flipkart Big Billion Days sale. Launched at Rs 14,999, Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro will be available for Rs 12,999 during the sale. Other than this, buyers will be able to avail an additional discount of 10% if they pay for their purchase via HDFC Bank credit cards and debit cards.
Xiaomi’s budget smartphone is considered to be one among the best smartphones in the segment. The reduced price only makes it a more attractive buy for interested customers.
To recall, Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro features a 5.99-inch FHD+ display that has an aspect ratio of 18:9. Powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor paired with 4GB RAM, the smartphone has 64GB of onboard storage. For more storage, users can install a microSD card off up to 128GB.
For imaging duties, the smartphone comes with a dual rear camera setup that has a 12MP primary sensor and a 5MP secondary sensor. There is also a 20MP front facing snapper for selfies and video calls.
When it was launched, Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro mobile came with Android Oreo skinned with MIUI 9. But now, it has been updated to MIUI 10.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro comes with the Face Unlock as well as a fingerprint sensor and houses a 4,000mAh battery. Connectivity options of the smartphone include dual SIM card slots, 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
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BlackBerry KEY2 LE launched in India: Price, specs and more
Optiemus Infracom, the manufacturer and distributer of BlackBerry smartphones, has announced that the newly BlackBerry launched KEY2 LE smartphone will be available exclusively on Amazon India’s website starting October 12.
The smartphone was launched globally by TCL back in August during the IFA 2018. BlackBerry KEY2 LE smartphone comes with the company’s signature QWERTY keyboard and is said to be made for ‘physical keyboard enthusiasts’.
Other than this, the BlackBerry KEY2 LE comes with Snapdragon 636 processor and 4GB RAM, sports dual rear cameras and runs Android 8.1 Oreo. Here’s a look at the price, availability and detailed specifications of the smartphone:
Specifications
The BlackBerry KEY2 LE features a 4.5-inch full-HD+ IPS LCD display that has an aspect ratio of 3:2 and a pixel density of 434ppi. Powered by a 1.8GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor clubbed with 4GB RAM, the smartphone packs 64GB of internal storage and can hold a microSD card of up to 256GB. The dual SIM smartphone runs Android 8.1 Oreo and houses a 3,000mAh battery that comes with 18W Quick Charge 3.0 support.
For imaging duties, the BlackBerry KEY2 LE sports a dual rear camera setup with 13MP primary sensor with f/2.2 aperture and a 5MP secondary sensor with f/2.4 aperture. On the front panel, there is an 8MP fixed focus camera that comes with LCD selfie flash and full-HD recording.
The smartphone includes 4G LTE, dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, GPS/ A-GPS, GLONASS, FM radio, and USB Type-C with OTG for connectivity.
Price and availability
BlackBerry KEY2 LE is priced at Rs 29,990 in India and will exclusively be available at Amazon India’s website starting October 12. While the smartphone was initially launched in Atomic, Champagne and Slate colour options, now, it is also being shipped in a Space Blue variant.
Speaking on the launch of the smartphone, Optiemus Infracom’s Executive Director, Hardip Singh said, “Security and privacy are becoming priorities in our data-dependent world and at Optiemus, we are committed to offering our customers a trustworthy mobile experience. We are delighted to launch the BlackBerry KEY2 LE, further strengthening our portfolio of the most secure smartphones in the country.”
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Moto G7 leaked render, video show waterdrop display notch, dual rear cameras
Last week, tipster Evan Blass tweeted that Lenovo-owned Motorola is planning to launch a bigger smartphone lineup in its Moto G series next year. While we saw the company launching three smartphones this year, namely Moto G6, Moto G6 Play and Moto G6 Plus, next year’s Moto G7 lineup will come with four smartphones. Right after this news came out, an image of Moto G7 has surfaced online through CAD-based renders and a video.
The renders and the video that have been leaked by OnLeaks in collaboration with MySmartPrice, show a display that sports a waterdrop style notch on the top. There is also a dual rear camera setup and a bump on the back panel that has enough space for an LED flash module.
The back panel also seems to have the Motorola logo that is likely to house a fingerprint sensor. The fingerprint scanner looks similar to the one we saw on Motorola One Power.
As seen in the leaked images, the design of the Moto G7 seems very different from company’s this year’s flagship — Moto G6. The presence of the waterdrop style notch on the display will offer a higher screen-to-body ratio than the one we saw in Moto G6. Motorola branding can also be seen on the chin at the bottom of the display.
The back panel of the device has a glossy finish and sports dual rear cameras that reportedly come with 16MP and 5MP sensors. There is also an LED flash module at the back of the smartphone. The leaked renders also show a 3.5mm headphone jack, a USB Type C port and a speaker grill.
According to recent reports, Moto G7 will sport a 6.4-inch full-HD+ display and will be powered by an octa-core Snapdragon 660 processor clubbed with 4GB RAM and 64GB on internal storage. For imaging duties, the smartphone is said to offer a 12MP selfie camera and it will house a 3,500mAh battery.
However, it is worth mentioning that the renders have only revealed the design of Moto G7 and we can expect to see a change in other three smartphones that are being launched with it. Moto G7 is reportedly scheduled to launch next year along with Moto G7 Plus, Moto G7 Play and Moto G7 Power.
Image courtesy: OnLeaks, MySmartPrice
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OnePlus 6T goes on pre-orders via Amazon India
We still are a few days away from the launch of OnePlus 6T, but if you are a fan, you’ll be happy to know that the device has already gone on pre-orders on Amazon India. First spotted by MySmartPrice and Android Pure, the smartphone is available for pre-booking till October 30.
Buyers also get additional benefits like free Type C earphones and Rs 500 Amazon Pay balance.
OnePlus India had tweeted yesterday that the company has an ‘exciting announcement’ to make regarding their next flagship device. Following this, a Twitter user replied with a screenshot of the page of Amazon India’s app that shows the phone listed for pre-orders.
OnePlus India had tweeted yesterday that the company has an ‘exciting announcement’ to make regarding their next flagship device. Following this, a Twitter user replied with a screenshot of the page of Amazon India’s app that shows the phone listed for pre-orders.
Reports have also suggested that OnePlus 6T on Amazon India’s All Deals segment under its Today’s Deals section. On booking the smartphone via Amazon India’s website, users will get a cashback worth Rs 500 in the form of Amazon Pay balance. Other than this, there are reports that claim that buyers will get the Type C earphones by the company. OnePlus’s upcoming flagship device, OnePlus 6T, is scheduled to launch globally on October 17. The ‘Notify Me’ page for OnePlus 6T has been live on Amazon India since last month. The smartphone is expected to sport a 6.4-inch AMOLED display with an aspect ratio of 19:9 protected by Corning Gorilla Glass. The display of the smartphone will come with a waterdrop style notch and an in-display fingerprint sensor — much like the Vivo Nex and Vivo V11 Pro. Powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor, OnePlus 6T will run Android 9.0 Pie. The smartphone reportedly houses a 3,700mAh battery. Reports also suggest that the smartphone will come without a 3.5mm headphone jack. The upcoming flagship by OnePlus is said to come with a dual rear camera setup, but as of now there are no details available about the sensors that are used. There has been no word on the sensor of the front facing snapper too, but we do know that it will support the Face Unlock feature. The company has confirmed that OnePlus 6T is not going to be water/dust resistant as it would not receive any IP certification. Update: The company has officially announced the pre-orders of OnePlus 6T smartphone. Pre-bookings of the smartphone begin on October 9 at 12 noon on Amazon.in, Croma outlets and OnePlus offline stores. OnePlus 6T is set to launch in India on October 30 and will go on open sale starting November 2. Customers who pre-book the smartphone will get a pair OnePlus’ new Type C Bullet earphones that cost Rs 1,490 and they would also receive Rs 500 as Amazon Pay balance once they complete their purchase of OnePlus 6T. Customers can also buy an Amazon.in e-Gift Card worth Rs 1,000 that they can redeem to buy the OnePlus 6T during its open sale. Image Courtesy: MySmartPrice For the latest gadget and tech news, and gadget reviews, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.Check back in 24 hours for an exciting announcement. #OnePlus6T pic.twitter.com/mIeveZ0n6H
— OnePlus (@oneplus) October 7, 2018
Flipkart Big Billion Days sale: Deals available on Nokia 5.1 Plus, Nokia 6.1 Plus
Last week saw the launch of Nokia 7.1 by HMD Global in London. Prior to that, the company had rolled out its Nokia 5.1 Plus and Nokia 6.1 Plus smartphones in India. Both the smartphones have a glass back panel, come with a notch on their displays and are a part of Google’s Android One Program. This basically means that both the smartphones will get timely Android updates and security patches for two years since the date of their launch.
While the Nokia 5.1 Plus is priced ta Rs 10,999, the Nokia 6.1 Plus costs Rs 15,999. If you have been planning to buy either of the two smartphones, now is definitely a good time. With the upcoming Big Billion Days sale on Flipkart, both the smartphones will be getting a price cut of up to Rs 1,000.
Flipkart’s Big Billion Days sale is scheduled to begin on October 10 and will go on till October 14. During this time, a number of smartphones will be available at discounted prices including Samsung Galaxy S8, Infinix Smart 2, Xiaomi Mi Mix 2, Asus Zenfone 5Z and more. And now, Nokia devices have joined the bandwagon too.
The Nokia 5.1 Plus — which is priced at Rs 10,999 — will be available at a discount of Rs 500. This means that you can buy the device for Rs 10,499. Speaking of Nokia 6.1 Plus, it is available at a discounted price of Rs 14,999 — Rs 1000 less from its launch price.
Other than this, HDFC bank credit and debit card users will be able to avail an instant discount of 10% and buyers can also get a mobile protection plan starting at Rs 99.
To recall, Nokia 5.1 Plus sports a 5.8-inch HD+ display that has an aspect ratio of 19:9. Powered by MediaTek Helio P60 processor, the smartphone comes with 3GB RAM and has 32GB of internal storage. Nokia 5.1 Plus comes with a dual rear camera setup with 13MP and 5MP sensors coupled with an 8MP front facing snapper for selfies and video calls. The smartphone houses a 3,060mAh battery.
Coming to Nokia 6.1 Plus, it features a 5.8-inch full HD+ display with an aspect ratio of 19:9. It is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 636 processor and comes with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage. Much like Nokia 5.1 Plus, the smartphone houses a 3,060mAh battery and for imaging duties it comes with 16MP+5MP dual rear cameras. For selfies, there is a 16MP front facing snapper.
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