Apple Watch Series 4 unveiled with a revamped design and built-in EKG scanner
Apple has unveiled its Apple Watch Series 4 at an event at Steve Jobs Theatre today. The smartwatch series has got its first ever design overhaul ever since it was first showcased by Apple over three years ago.
The smartwatch’s display is bigger than the previous versions as Apple Watch Series 4 sports thinner bezels. Described as an ‘intelligent guardian for your health,’ the Apple Watch Series 4 comes with an ECG functionality that has US FDA’s ‘De Novo’ classification.
That’s not all, Apple’s new smartwatch has a number of other features that — to put it in Apple’s words — make it the ultimate health and fitness watch.
Apple Watch Series 4 specifications
To begin with, Apple Watch Series 4 display is 30% larger than Apple Watch Series 3’s and comes in two casing options — 40mm and 44mm. Apple Watch Series 4 comes with a nearly edge-to-edge design and has a renewed placement of its microphone to reduce echo. The new smartwatch by Apple comes with three new watch faces based on fire, water, and vapour effects.
Apple Watch Series 4 runs the new Apple S4 SoC that comes with a 64-bit dual-core processor and a new GPU — promising a two times faster performance than Series 3. The new smartwatch by Apple comes with next-gen accelerometer and has a gyroscope with up to 32 g-forces and up to 2x dynamic range. The Apple Watch Series 4 is powered by latest watchOS 5 and has the UI which has been optimised for the smartwatch’s larger display.
There are changes in the Digital Crown of the watch too. Apple Watch Series 4’s Digital Crown comes with haptic feedback. This helps navigating various apps a lot easier.
The microphone of the Apple Watch Series 4 has been moved away from its speaker — and this, according to Apple, will reduce the amount of echo.
Apple Watch Series 4 can detect falls and once it does so, it immediately alerts concerned emergency services and SOS contacts. It will also notify users about low heart rate and atrial fibrillation. But the most revolutionary change that it has is the fact that it lets users carry out an electrocardiogram. This feature makes Apple Watch Series 4 the first ECG product offered over the counter directly to consumers. Users can save the ECG results in Health app of the iPhone and can further share them in the form of a PDF.
Price and availability
The non-cellular variant of Apple Watch Series 4 (GPS only) is priced at $399, whereas the GPS and cellular version is priced at $499. Apple Watch Series 4 will go on pre-orders starting September 14 and will first go on pre-orders in 26 markets starting September 21. Speaking of watchOS 5, it will be available starting September 17. Note that Apple Watch Series 3 has also received a price cut and is now available at $279.
Apart from Silver and Space Grey, Apple Watch Series 4 will also be available in Gold stainless finish.
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Apple iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR launched: India price, specifications and more
The wait is over for Apple fans! The technology giant has finally taken the wraps off its this year’s flagship smartphones. And as rumour suggested, the company has unveiled three new iPhones, namely – Apple iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR.
Although the design of the three newly launched iPhones is similar to the iPhone X, what sets them apart is the different features that they are packed with. It is also worth noticing that with its new line up, Apple has finally let go of its design that became so popular with iPhone 6 and continued to be a rage among smartphones till iPhone X was launched last year.
Apple iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max specifications
The first major highlight in the specifications if iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max that we want to talk about is the fact that the handsets are Dual SIM Dual Standby. Both the smartphones will support eSIM cards even from providers like Airtel and Reliance Jio.
Powered by Apple A12 Bionic processor, iPhone XS and the iPhone XS Max sport OLED HDR Super Retina displays that are claimed by the company to be more saturated and battery efficient. While iPhone XS comes with 5.8-inch display, iPhone XS Max sports a 6.5-inch screen. With A12 Bionic processor onboard, the devices promise a better augmented reality experience and are said to launch apps 30% faster than 2017 iPhones.
For imaging duties, both iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max come with a dual rear camera setup – comprising of a 12MP wide-angle lens with f/1.8 aperture and a 12MP telephoto lens with f/2.4 aperture. For selfies and video calls, iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max sport a 7MP TrueDepth camera with f/2.2 aperture. The front facing snapper of the iPhones promises more depth in portrait images. In fact, with iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, you can adjust the blur level of the background of the images even after they have been clicked.
Both the iPhones are available in three storage options — 64GB, 128GB, and 512GB and run the iOS 12 software. The iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max come with IP68 water-resistance rating and come with Face ID unlock feature.
Speaking of battery life, iPhone XS is said to last 30 minutes longer and iPhone XS Max is claimed to last one and a half hours longer than iPhone X.
iPhone XR specifications
While most of the specifications of iPhone XR mobile are the same as that of iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, there are some key things that are different. Firstly unlike iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max which sport OLED screens, iPhone XR comes with a 6.1-inch LCD screen with 1,792×828-pixel resolution. It has an aluminium body and a glass back panel and comes with a single 12MP wide angle rear camera with Optical Image Stabilization.
It comes in three storage options — 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB. The smartphone comes with IP67 water resistance instead of IP68 like iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max and its battery life is said to be 1.5 hours more than that of iPhone 8 Plus.
Much like iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR is powered by A12 Bionic processor and runs iOS 12 software. The device can be bought in six colours including blue, coral, yellow, white, black, and Project Red.
Price
The iPhone XS comes with a price tag of $999 for the base variant, $1,149 for 256GB version and $1,349 for the highest 512GB model. In India, the price of iPhone XS begins at Rs 99,900. Speaking of iPhone XS Max, the base variant is priced at $1,099, the 256GB version bears a price tag of $1,249 and the 512GB storage model costs $1,449. iPhone XS Max’s 64GB storage model is priced at Rs 1,09,900.
Apple iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max will go on pre-orders on September 14, and will ship starting September 21. In India, they will be available starting September 28.
Speaking of iPhone XR, the 64GB variant is priced at $749, the 128GB storage model at $799 and the 256GB version at $899. In India, the price of iPhone XR begins at Rs 76,900. The pre-orders for iPhone XR will begin on October 19 and it will start shipping from October 26 in over 50 countries including India.
Price update:
Apple iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max will be available in 64GB, 256GB and 512GB capacity models in space grey, silver and a new gold finish starting at Rs 99,900 and Rs 109,900 MRP, respectively, through Apple Authorised Resellers.
Apple-designed accessories including leather and silicone cases in a range of colours will be available starting at Rs 3500, while the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max Leather Folio will be available for Rs 9,900.
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WhatsApp is now available on JioPhone: How to download
It was at its 41st Annual General Meeting that Reliance Industries announced that its JioPhone and JioPhone 2 will soon be getting support for apps like WhatsApp and YouTube. And obviously, the announcement did create a lot of stir. Though it was initially planned that JioPhone will be getting support for WhatsApp starting August 15, it has finally started rolling out today via JioStore. The app will be available to all JioPhone users by September 20.
JioPhone and JioPhone 2 users can now download WhatsApp for KaiOS by visiting the JioStore on the smartphone. Much like its Android and iOS versions, WhatsApp for KaiOS also has end-to-end encryption.
Using WhatsApp for KaiOS, users can hold one-to one conversations, make groups, and even record and send voice messages. However, unlike the Android and iOS versions, users cannot make payments via WhatsApp for KaiOS. The ability to make voice and video calls is also currently not present.
Here’s what you need to do if you have a JioPhone and wish to download WhatsApp for KaiOS on your device:
- Go to JioStore from the menu and look for WhatsAppin the list.
- Press install. Note that the app will only get installed on your device if your phone runs on the latest software update.
- Verify your mobile number on the app to get started.
US President Donald Trump tells Apple to manufacture products in US
US President Donald Trump has sent across a tweet to Apple indicating that it will be beneficial for the company to move its manufacturing plant to America. The tweet suggested that by doing this, the Cupertino based technology giant can avoid tariffs in the on-going trade dispute between United States and China. This comes right after reports of the price of Apple products going up surfaced.
The Trump administration in United States this summer started imposing a series of tariffs on goods that are made in China. However, till now, consumer electronics were not one among these items. This is set to change however, as there is a fair possibility that the latest proposed round of tariffs will include products from technology companies like FitBit, Apple and Sonos.
Last week, Apple had said in a statement that these tariffs would result in a 25% tax on its products that are shipped to the United States including Apple Watch, Apple Pencil, AirPods, HomePod, Mac Mini, etc. The company further said that this would mean an increase in the price of these products — as the cost will be passed to the customers.
It was right after this that the world woke up to US President Donald Trump’s tweet urging Apple to build new manufacturing plants in America. He further said that this could mean no tax and relocating would bring with itself other tax incentives.
It is notable that Apple assembles a number of its products in China. US President Donald Trump has been quoted saying earlier that Apple CEO Tim Cook has committed to building “three big plants, beautiful plants” in the United States. The company itself has also said that it will be investing hundreds of billions in domestic manufacturing will be hiring more workers for the same.
Moving manufacturing to United States may help Apple skip the tariffs, but the company’s products are not very likely to get any cheaper. The reason for this is that workforce in China is cheaper and plants producing individual components are situated closely to each other. So moving its manufacturing plant to US would only prove to be more costly for Apple.
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Moto G6 Plus launched in India: Price, specifications and more
The affordable segment of Indian smartphone market already has a number of key players competing. But that certainly did not stop Lenovo from launching its Moto G6 Plus in the said segment. The smartphone joins its siblings Moto G6 and Moto G6 Play, which were rolled out a few weeks back in June.
But there are certain factors that set it apart. It sports a bigger display, packs more RAM and is powered by a more powerful processor. It is notable that while the global variant of Moto G6 Plus comes with 4GB RAM, the one launched in India is backed by 6GB of RAM.
Moto G6 Plus Specifications
Speaking of the specifications of the device, Moto G6 Plus mobile features a 5.93-inch full HD+ display with an aspect ratio of 18:9. The Android 8.0 Oreo based smartphone is powered by 2.2GHz octa-core Snapdragon 630 processor clubbed with 6GB RAM and Adreno 508 GPU. The company has said that the smartphone will be receiving an update for Android Pie soon. The Moto G6 Plus smartphone has 64GB onboard storage and can hold a microSD card of up to 128GB.
For imaging duties, Moto G6 Plus comes with a dual rear camera setup with a 12MP primary sensor and a 5MP secondary sensor. While the primary sensor of the device comes with f/1.7 aperture, the secondary sensor has an f/2.2 aperture. On the front panel, there is an 8MP camera for selfies and video calls. The smartphone houses a 3,200mAh battery which comes with support of Motorola’s TurboPower adaptor – which is claimed to give a usage time of up to 7 hours with just 15 minutes of charging time.
Connectivity options of the smartphone include 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0, USB Type-C, NFC and 3.5mm audio jack. It has a standard set of sensors.
Moto G6 Plus Price
Moto G6 Plus mobile is available only storage variant in India, and will be priced at Rs 22,499. The smartphone will be available to buy on Amazon.in, Moto Hubs, and the company’s offline retail partners.
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Google Pixel 3 to launch on October 9: What to expect?
Google has announced the date for its upcoming hardware event: October 9. The technology giant is expected to launch its flagship devices Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL at the event. The invites that have been sent out indicate that the event is in New York on October 9 at 8:30pm IST.
Although the invite doesn’t say what Google will be launching on October 9, the GIF released by the company only says “I <3 NY”. So it’s obvious that the 3 in the invite indicates Pixel 3 and NY means that the event will be held in New York.
Speaking about the smartphones, Google Pixel 3 mobile will feature a 5.5-inch display and will be powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor. The smartphone will house a 2,915mAh battery.
But it will be the bigger sibling – Google Pixel 3 XL – that will come with a host of changes. To begin with, the smartphone is expected to come with a glass back panel and will sport wireless charging capabilities. It will reportedly feature a 6.7-inch QHD+ display and much like Pixel 3, will be powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor. Google Pixel 3 XL is expected to sport dual rear front cameras and will reportedly pack a 3,430mAh battery.
Both the smartphones will run on Android 9.0 Pie. Besides the smartphones, here are other ‘Made by Google’ devices that are expected to be showcased by the company on its October 9 event:
- Google Pixelbook 2: Although there is no surety that we’ll get to see the Google Pixelbook 2 at the October 9 event, it is definitely expected. And it is actually the perfect time for Google to release a refreshed version of the Pixelbook this year. The new Pixelbook 2 is said to come with a fingerprint sensor, a 4k display with thinner bezels and improved internals.
- Second generation Pixel buds: Another device from Google that is expected on October 9 is the second generation Google Pixel Buds. The Pixel Buds that were previously rolled out by the company have definitely gone up a few notches in terms of performance after they got a few updates, but with a refreshed version, Google can add a number of new features like Google Translate functionality and the ability to go fully wireless.
- Google Smart Display: Announced recently at I/O 2018, Google Smart Display is the technology giant’s answer to the Amazon Echo Show. Till now, we have only seen Smart Displays that have been made by third party manufacturers like the Lenovo Smart Display. Although there is no official word about it, but the company can launch the first Google-made Smart Display that will also be powered by Google Assistant.
Vivo V11 Pro with in-display fingerprint sensor launched in India: Price, specs and more
In-display fingerprint sensors seem to be Vivo’s newest love. We have so far seen the feature in Vivo X21 and the company’s recently launched flagship Vivo Nex. And now, the company has launched a new smartphone with in-display fingerprint sensor – Vivo V11 Pro.
Besides this, the newly launched smartphone by Vivo also comes with a ‘waterdrop’ display notch. Keeping up with the government’s Make in India initiative, the company announced that Vivo V11 Pro is being made in its Greater Noida factory.
It is notable that the smartphone were launched in Thailand just yesterday and after being rolled out in India, it will foray into other markets too.
Specifications
The dual SIM Vivo V11 Pro runs Android 8.1 Oreo skinned with Funtouch OS 4.5 and features a 6.41-inch full-HD+ Super AMOLED display with an aspect ratio of 19.5:9. The Vivo V11 smartphone sports a Halo FullView display that has a waterdrop-style notch on top and has a screen to body ratio of 91.27%.
Powered by a 2.2GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor coupled with 6GB RAM, the smartphone has 64GB internal storage and has a microSD card slot. The smartphone’s storage can be expanded up to 256GB by adding a microSD card, however, it is notable that Vivo V11 has a hybrid dual-SIM slot.
For imaging duties, Vivo V11 Pro mobile comes with a dual rear camera setup with 12MP and 5MP sensors and a 25MP front facing camera for selfies and video calls. Note that the front facing camera of the smartphone supports Face Unlock and AI enabled features and the dual rear cameras come with AI scene recognition. The camera apps of the smartphone also come with FunMojis — that enable users to have a personalised animated avatar that they can share with their friends.
And as we mentioned earlier, it comes with an in-display fingerprint sensor rather than a fingerprint sensor built on its hardware.
Vivo V11 Pro houses a 3,400mAh battery that comes with ‘dual-engine’ fast charging support. Connectivity options of the smartphone include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0 and a micro-USB port.
Speaking of the smartphone’s dimensions, Vivo V11 Pro measures 157.9x75x7.9mm and weighs 156 grams.
Price and availability
Vivo V11 Pro comes in two colour variants — Dazzling Gold and Starry Night. The smartphone has been priced at Rs 25,990 and will be exclusively available on Amazon India’s website. The pre-orders for the smartphone begin today and it will first go on sale on September 12. As a part of the launch offers, the company is offering Rs 2,000 cashback from HDFC bank and Rs 4,500 cashback from Jio. Customers can also avail one-time screen replacement for free.
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Olympics chief Thomas Bach turns down violent esports
In July this year, the International Olympic Committee had announced that it would be a part of an Esports Forum. This was supposed to involve panel discussions, interviews and roundtable conferences with an aim of bringing Esports to Olympics one day. The said forum led to the formation of Esports Liaison Group, which got together the IOC and the Global Association of International Sports Federations.
While that sounded like a positive move, the president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, has voiced his opinion against including violent e-sports in Olympic Games unless some changes are made. On the occasion of Asian Games 2018, Associate Press quoted Bach saying, “We cannot have in the Olympic program a game which is promoting violence or discrimination. “So-called killer games. They, from our point of view, are contradictory to the Olympic values and cannot therefore be accepted.”
While sports like boxing, wrestling, judo, hockey are a part of Olympics, Bach — who is a former Olympic fencing champion himself — is of the opinion that combat sports are different. Although he did accept that all combat sports stem from actual fighting, he did defend his opinion by saying that, “sport is the civilized expression about this. If you have egames where it’s about killing somebody, this cannot be brought into line with our Olympic values.”
However, he did not clarify what all esports he is talking about when he talks about the ‘killer games’ category. Nevertheless, it is notable that most multiplayer competitive games come with violence that is highly stylized and is often inflicted by one mythical creature to another.
Even though we may not get to see the likes of Overwatch, League of Legends, and Dota 2 at Olympics because that IOC may find them too violent, we can fully expect games like Hearthstone or Rocket League.
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This is when the OnePlus 6T will be launched
OnePlus 6 has been doing wonderfully well in India, which is why it became the leading smartphone being sold in the premium segment. The company has gone ahead and put out teasers of its next smartphone launch, which will be on January 15, 2019. The smartphone in all likelihood will be the ‘T’ version of its flagship series. It is also a known fact that the next version of the smartphone will be 5G ready, since OnePlus’s CEO Pete Lau had already announced it at Mobile World Congress 2018.
We were contemplating that the upgrade to the OnePlus 6 will launch towards the mid-end of 2018 but with this teaser from the company on the Chinese Social networking site Weibo has hinted that the next version will come in 2019 not before that. Some reports also suggest that the company might ditch the ‘T’ version this time and move on to OnePlus 7 variant all together. However, we don’t think so, a ‘T’ version is needed and the next upgrade should be OnePlus 6T.
Then there is the case of some reports that are strongly suggesting that that this teaser is for OnePlus 7 only and 6T still will be launched in 2018. This was sparked when an OnePlus forum moderator did confirm that an official OnePlus 6T version is in the making and will be launched soon. Price indications point to a $550 price tag, which will be around Rs 38,500 in the Indian market.
However, nothing is concrete at the moment and there still might be changes. But one thing is for certain, that this whole debate of would they won’t they has brought the company again into limelight. We will be closely watching this and will bring you the latest updates, so stay tuned.
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Apple September 12 iPhone launch event: What all to expect
Apple fans have a reason to rejoice! The Cupertino based technology giant has finally sent out invites for its annual event during which it launches iPhones. The 2018 version of iPhones will be unveiled to the world on September 12 in the event that will be held at Steve Jobs theatre. The company has given out no word on what it plans to launch, and all analysts have got down to decoding that what the Tim Cook led besides the iPhones could be launched by Apple on September 12.
We have made a list of everything that you can expect at Apple’s September 12 event:
- Three iPhones: What tops the list is obviously the three new iPhones that Apple is all set to launch. If reports are to be believed, then Apple will be launching a 5.8-inch iPhone, a 6.5-inch ‘Plus’ model, and a 6.1-inch iPhone. All three are expected to come with wireless charging and come with 18-watt power adapter. The smartphones will be powered by the all new A12 Bionic processor and are expected to sport improved cameras. While the 5.8-inch and 6.5-inch versions may come with OLED screens, the 6.1-inch variant is expected to feature an LCD screen. It has also been reported that the OLED models will come with 512GB storage option.
- New Apple Watch: Since it showcased the first ever Apple Watch in 2014, Apple has launched a new version in its annual September event – with 2015 being the only exceptional year. And this time, we fully to see the Apple Watch Series 4 at the event. The new Apple Watch is expected to be available in two sizes and both will come with a new S4 system-on-chip. The Apple Watch Series 4 will come with thinner bezels and hence – a bigger display. The new Apple Watch is also expected to come with improved health sensors and will be available in both LTE and Wi-Fi models.
- Redesigned iPad Pros: We fully expected to see the revamped version of iPad Pro in WWDC 2018, but Apple chose not to launch it in spring. Now, it is only natural to see them at the September 12 event. The revamped iPads are expected to come in two sizes — 11 inches and 12.9 inches –and sport smaller bezels. They would also not have a Touch ID and will feature the Face ID instead.
- Second generation Airpods: The second generation AirPods by Apple may be dubbed AirPods 2 and if rumours in various reports are true, they come with Siri-integration and are water resistant. A longer battery life, better noise cancellation and an enhanced sound quality are expected from the AirPods 2. Although they are expected to be unveiled at this year’s event, some reports also point towards the possibility of them being launched in 2019.