It seems to be the week of outages. First several Google services like Gmail and Google Drive faced an outage, followed by Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. And now, Apple also joined the other two technology giants, and surprisingly, all of this happened in the same week.
The Cupertino-based technology giant reported about issues in all of its iCloud services, which resulted in an outage that lasted more than four hours. While the outage started at 11 AM ET (8:30 PM IST, Thursday), it went on till 3.28 PM ET (12:58 AM IST, Friday).
However, we should add that Apple did not give any details about the kind of issues that resulted in the outage. The company just said that “some users are affected” adding that “users may be unable to access this service.” Although no details about the issues was provided, Apple’s support page did say that the problem was widespread. The services which were affected during the outage include iCloud sign in, Backup, Calendar, Contacts, Mail, Keychain, iCloud Drive file storage, iWork, Photos, Notes, Reminders, Find My iPhone among others.
Now, Apple has updated its support page and it shows that all of the company’s services are available and are working fine.
Prior to this, this week Facebook and Instagram faced an outage that was the biggest ever for the two platforms. The two services were affected globally and users could not access them. WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger could also not be accessed in some parts of the world.
Some users also took to social media to say that when they attempted to sign in to apps like Tinder and Spotify using their Facebook account, they couldn’t do that successfully. When they tried, an error popped up on the users’ screens saying that the feature isn’t available right now. This goes to show the extent to which the outage affected people. But then, we should also add that people who had already signed into Spotify were not logged out because of the outage.
In another outage that happened this week, a number of Google Services including Gmail and Google Drive were affected. Google’s outage was spread across globally too.
While Google’ outage also lasts for more than three hours, Facebook and Instagram’s outage surpassed that. Facebook acknowledged the outage on its Twitter page at 11:19 pm IST on Wednesday, and then posted a follow-up tweet at 12:33 am IST on Thursday. The two services became fully functional only on Thursday during the day, making it the longest among the three outages.
The search giant, Google has taken another step towards creating and providing a safe platform for the users by banning misleading and inappropriate ads. On Thursday, the California-based technology company announced that it banned around 2.3 billion misleading ads which violated its advertising policies in 2018. Along with that, Google also introduced 31 new policies.
In its 2018 ‘Bad Ads Report’ Google said that six million ads were banned every day.
Speaking about the step, Scott Spencer, Director of Sustainable Ads of Google, said in a statement, “At Google, we take our responsibility to help create a healthy and sustainable advertising ecosystem that works for everyone, seriously. Our ads are meant to connect users with relevant businesses, products and services; but bad ads ruin the experience. We, at Google, have been working towards protecting the users, advertisers and publishers by investing significant technological resources.”
Furthermore, around 7,34,000 publishers and app developers were terminated from Google ad network and the ads were removed completely from around 1.5 million apps. Through its ‘Bad Ads Report’, the company shares key actions and other data to keep the Google ecosystem safe through its policies across platforms.
“This will continue to remain our top priority as bad ads pose a threat to users, Google’s partners, and the sustainability of the open web itself,” Spencer added.
After banning the ads, Google also identified and terminated around 1 million bad advertiser accounts who posted such ads. It should be noted that the company had banned half the amount of bad advertiser accounts in the year 2017. So, the double growth of such accounts shows the serious challenge that is being faced by the technology giant. Moreover, the company has taken granular actions by taking the ads off from around 28 million webpages which violated the publisher policies.
Google Pixel smartphones are known for their top-of-the-line specifications and great camera performance. Google has released 3 iterations of the Pixel line-up with Pixel 3 and Pixel 3XL being the latest of the lot. But now, Google is rumoured to add two-mid range smartphones in its Pixel line-up.
The two devices of Pixel mid-range line-up are codenamed ‘sargo’ and ‘bonito’ and are speculated to be called Google Pixel 3 lite and Pixel 3 XL Lite. But recent developments confirm that the mid-range smartphone from Google will be called Google Pixel 3a and Google Pixel 3a XL.
According to a report from XDA developers, both the upcoming mid-range smartphones will look more like the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL. On the design department, they would follow the old designs. Renders of the smartphones show that both the smartphones will hold the 3.5mm headphone jack which has not been present in any handset by Google since Pixel 2.
Also, the Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL will reportedly have a poly-carbonate back instead of the soft glass back panel we saw in Pixel 3. There are other changes in the design department of the Google Pixel 3a and Google Pixel 3a XL like the presence of stereo speakers onboard, but they won’t hold the speakers on the bottom bezel but the bottom edge of the device. They will also lack the notch which was a much-criticised part of the Google Pixel 3 series.
Being mid-range smartphones, the Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL will most probably be priced lower than the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL which are the flagship devices of the company. Also, their specifications and camera quality will be lower than the flagship devices but it will definitely won’t disappoint holding the Pixel name.
Image Credit: 91Mobiles
Google Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL rumored specifications
Google Pixel 3a will reportedly sport a 5.56-inch IPS display with 2220 x 1080-pixels resolution. It is speculated to be powered by the Snapdragon 670 SoC coupled with 4GB of RAM. The onboard storage, the smartphone is expected to come with 32GB with no microSD card slot.
The device might house 2,915mAh battery and come with a 12MP camera with dual flash. The front facing camera will most probably be an 8MP camera. There might also be the presence of a 3.5mm headphone jack along with USB Type-C with Android 9.0 Pie as the OS.
On the other hand, the Google Pixel 3a XL will have similar specifications as the Pixel 3a with change of only the screen size and the processor. The Pixel 3a XL will reportedly sport a 6-inch Full HD+ display and be powered by the Snapdragon 710 SoC.
Although, these are rumoured specifications so they should be taken with a pinch of salt. There is no official release date of these devices but they might start selling in the markets in the coming months of 2019.
Elon Musk’ electric carmaker Tesla has finally taken wraps off its new compact SUV, Model Y. The long-range version of Tesla Model Y is priced at $47,000 (approximately Rs 32,53,528) and will be able to travel 300 miles on a single charge. The car would also have a performance version which, according to Tesla, will be able to go up from 0 to 60mph in 3.5 seconds.
Tesla Model Y is the fifth car that has been made by Elon Musk and with the newly launched vehicle, the company will attempt to mass-market an electric car for the second time. Musk summed up the capabilities of Tesla Model Y by saying, “It has the functionality of an SUV, but it rides like a sports car.”
The Tesla Model Y version that will have a range of 300 miles will be made available in the fall of 2020. Musk also added that the company will also be launching a model that will come with an all-wheel drive dual motor and is priced at $51,000 (approximately Rs 35,30,424) and a performance version that costs $60,000 (approximately Rs 41,53,440). These two models will be made available in fall 2020 too. A more affordable version of the electric car will sell for $39,000 (approximately Rs 26,99,736), however, it won’t be available till 2021.
Tesla Model Y has more room than the previously launched Model 3 and can accommodate seven people at a time.
We should point out that Tesla Model Y has been launched at a time which is very crucial for the company. When Model 3 sedan’s full-year production started, it managed to grab the title of the best-selling electric car in the world in 2018. However, this was just in North America and Musk pointed out that making that many Model 3 cars nearly killed Tesla. Furthermore, it is being speculated that the demand for the car in the United States may have been exhausted, which explains why Tesla has shifted its focus towards Europe and China. But then, the early sales of the Model 3 have been rather slow there.
As an attempt to reach more customers, Tesla recently also announced a ‘standard range’ Model 3 that is priced at $35,000 (approximately Rs 24,22,840). However, the release of the electric car was very close to Tesla’s decision to close most of its stores and switch to online sales. The two announcements being back-to-back resulted in the ‘standard range’ Model 3 getting a lack-lustre response.
While the decision to go mostly online did help Tesla to lower the cost of other cars, the company got a lot of backlash for it from customers and employees. So the electric car maker put a halt in the store closings, and that led to a surge in pricing again.
It is worth noticing that Tesla Model Y has a lot in common with Model 3, which means that at least theoretically, the company did not have to use too many of its resources on it. Since SUV sales are increasing a lot in the United States, Model Y gets a good opportunity for Tesla. But then, since space is already dominated by German automakers, Tesla will need to execute their plan well if the company wants to make the most of this opportunity.
If there is one lesson that PUBG Mobile has taught us, it is that with great popularity, criticism and hatred follow. The multiplayer battle royale game has seen a tremendous surge in its popularity since it made its way to smartphones. However, it has faced a lot of criticism for being very addictive too. So much so, that it has started facing ban in certain parts of India.
Gujarat is one of the states that have taken strict action against the game because it is too addictive and violent. However, some college students did not take this ban too seriously and they got arrested by the police for playing PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds on mobile. So even if people are not, the authorities are taking the ban on the game very seriously. The students were released later on bail.
According to the Police, the students were so engrossed in playing PUBG Mobile, that they did not even look up and notice them coming for the arrest.
We should mention that in the rest of the country, PUBG Mobile is still legal and Gujarat imposed a ban on the game after consistent complaints from parents and educators. Persistent complains about the game being too violent and addictive to the extent that it distracted students from studying led the government to take this decision.
We should also add here that although the game is currently legal in other parts of India, educators have voiced their concern about the game being a distraction.
A student body in Jammu and Kashmir has also sought a ban on the game as according to them, it contributed to their poor performance in examinations. A boy from Maharashtra is also seeking a pan India ban on PUBG Mobile.
Last month, PUBG Mobile’s parent company addressed the issue by saying, “we also believe that it is extremely important for us to be a responsible member of the gaming ecosystem. To this end, we constantly work and shall continue to work with … parents, educators, and government bodies, and listen to their feedback on what we can do.”
However, PUBG Mobile has not said anything about the arrest of ten students in Gujarat yet.
It is worth noticing that PUBG Mobile’s rival Fortnite has not as yet faced any legal restrictions. A number of reasons may have contributed to that. Firstly, Fortnite does not have a realistic feel like PUBG, instead, it is based in a fantasy world. Furthermore, the game has to be downloaded from Epic Games’ website.
Microsoft Xbox is one of the most popular videogame consoles out there and each year the console receives many awesome and cool AAA titles. Last year, we saw the release of some really good games for the console. And this year, we are looking forward to the release of some of the most anticipated games of the year. Here’s a list of some of the best upcoming games for Xbox:
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Cyberpunk 2077
From the creators of one of the best games created – Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, comes another game named Cyberpunk 2077. After being delayed multiple times for years, the game is finally set to release around June 2019 (expected). Last year in November 2018, CD Projekt had released a 48-minute-long walkthrough gameplay of the game which looked pretty neat. But it was mentioned multiple times that the game was still in development and subjects and graphics might change on the time of actual release. Cyberpunk 2077 is set in a futuristic city called Night City and will be an open-world Role-Playing Game (RPG). In short, the game is like GTA with change in setting of the game, the company. On a different note, it is possible that the game developers might be looking forward to releasing or teasing (again) the game at the E3 scheduled to be held at June 11 and if this happens, the game’s release date might shift again.
Halo infinite
The sixth instalment in the Halo series will most probably release in November 2019. In this instalment, the players would take control of the main-protagonist of the game – Master Chief. The story of Halo Infinite won’t be a remake or remastered but it will be a sequel to the Halo 5 and will take the story further. At the end of Halo 5 we saw that Chief’s trusty AI, Cortana turn against humanity and him. Also, she will most probably be one of the biggest antagonists of the Halo Infinite. A teaser of the game was released back in E3 2018 where the 343 Industries teased us with a glimpse of Master Chief. The company behind Halo has revealed that they would show us more about the game at the upcoming E3 2019.
Doom Eternal
Bethesda, the company behind some of the greatest game series like The Elders Scroll and Fallout will be taking hold of the publishing of Doom Eternal while ID software is behind the development. Doom is already a cult-classic and we have already seen how crazy and fast-paced the game could be with the release of Doom in 2016. Doom Eternal will be the fifth instalment of the Doom series and it will bring the first-person action of the Doom series back once again. The company had released a gameplay video of the Doom Eternal in 2018 which further led to more talk about the game.
The Division 2
The second instalment in The Division series will be releasing today. The game has been produced by the company behind Watch Dogs 2, Ubisoft. And just like the first instalment of the game, the Division 2 will be a third-person shooter with choice-based action. Unlike the previous game which was set in New York, the Division 2 is set in Washington DC and the players would team up once again to battle it out with other factions and the main bosses of the game along with fighting with the infected. Also, The Dark Zone makes its return in the Division 2 where players would be fighting against players. There is also a multiplayer mode in the game.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
The makers of Bloodborne and Dark Souls have come up with another hack and slash game which will be released on March 22. Since it is from the creators of ‘one of the most difficult games’ Dark Souls series, the players could expect Sekiro to be really tough to win. The game is set in 16th Century Japan and you will play as a Shinobi. And since it is from the same creators, the game is going to be hard to beat, and the player may have to die many times. But the creators of the game have said that even death has a part to play in the game. So, it would be interesting to see what kind of game Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice will be and how does it hold up against Dark Souls.
Mortal Kombat 11
Mortal Kombat will be another classic which will be getting another instalment added to the series with Mortal Kombat 11. The game is developed by the same NetherRealm Studios and published by Warner Bros. It is set to release on April 23. Mortal Kombat 11 will somewhat be different than its predecessors as we would be fighting with two versions of the same character, as seen in the gameplay trailer released by the company. The game will also be bringing back Cassie Cage, Jacqui Briggs, and Erron Black to its wide roaster of characters. Mortal Kombat is known for its bloody and gory, over-the-top fighting action and the 11th instalment won’t be any different. The company had released its trailer previous month where we got to see Raiden going up against Scorpion in a bloody and gory fight. And we couldn’t wait to get out hands on the controller to get that sweet Fatality.
The Sinking City
The Sinking City is the upcoming action-adventure horror mystery game developed by Frogwares. It will be releasing on June 27. The game is set in the fictional Oakmont, Massacheusetes in the 1920s and the main point of the game is its Lovecraftian deities who have and will wreak havoc in the game. The game is set mainly underwater; thus, the name and you will be facing the Lovecraftian deities with nothing but guns and regular mortal weapons. The character you play will be a private investigator who will be caught between the web of conspiracies. The trailer of The Sinking City was mysterious and creepy and with the release of the game we would find out if it really is such mysterious as the trailer shows.
Google Maps is an extremely useful application. And the search giant makes sure to add more features to it time and again in order to make it even more useful for users. The latest such feature to be added to Google Maps is the ability to report accidents and speed traps. So, if you are using the app for navigation and encounter an accident somewhere which may lead to a traffic jam, you can mark it on the map so that others can avoid that route.
We should mention that this feature is inspired by Waze and was first spotted last year. However, the search giant has now brought the update for all its users globally. As of now, the new feature that helps users report accidents and speed traps is only available on Android. It is also being speculated that the feature will soon make its way to iOS too.
According to what users on Reddit report, the new Google Maps feature has now started rolling out to all Android smartphones across the globe. A new dedicated ‘Add a report’ function has been added to the app. Using this, you can report speed traps and accidents while you are getting directions from Google Maps.
The new feature works a lot like Waze’s does. If you are on your way to your destination and find an accident or a speed trap, you can select ‘Add a report’ option by pressing on the upward arrow from the bottom of the screen of your device. Alternatively, you can also press on the report button directly from the navigation on the Google Maps app. The report button on the app is placed right next to the audio and magnifying glass buttons.
On you tap on the ‘Add a report’ option, you can report about the accident or the speed trap that you have come across. We should add that Google Maps also shows the number of people who have reported about the accident or speed trap. With this, it is easier for users to decide if they wish to continue on the same route or take an alternate one.
We should add that the feature only becomes visible once you start using navigation on Google Maps. Also, the reporting feature on Waze that inspired this Google Maps feature offers far more options. Waze users can not only report about accidents and speed traps, but also about road closures and hazards.
Cupertino-based technology giant Apple has announced the dates for it World Wide Developers Conference 2019. Apple WWDC 2019 will commence on June 3 and will go on till June 7. At the conference, we expect to see the new version of iOS, mac OS, tvOS, watch OS among other announcements. Apple has assigned a tagline for the upcoming event that reads “Write code. Blow minds.”
The key highlight of the event will be iOS 13, which is expected to bring some radical changes to the core user interface of iPhones and iPads. According to reports, Apple has been working to give an overhaul to ‘Springboard’ UI, and it is expected to roll it out at WWDC this year. Other than this, iOS 13 will also include some other improvements over iOS 12.
One thing that we are hoping to see is multi-user support coming to iPad Pro. Although Apple hasn’t said that it will be getting the feature this time, we can hope to see it as it is a much-anticipated one. Besides this, other improvements for iPad Pro can also be expected considering the fact that the device has powerful hardware, but somehow also has some software limitations.
However, that’s still not the biggest change that we are looking forward to. This WWDC will see Apple bring iOS and macOS closer together. The company plans to do this by allowing iPad apps to the Mac. Although it has not been specified, we might get to see iPhone apps on Mac too. This initially started with macOS Mojave, however, that was only on a few Apple apps.
In the upcoming WWDC 2019, Apple is expected to open this up to more developers and it is being speculated that the company will also improve its so-called ‘Marzipan’ apps. As of now, these apps on Mac are considered to be overpowered and some say that they also feel a little foreign on the operating system.
We should mention that in February, a report by MacRumours correctly predicted the dates of Apple’s developer conference. Although not much is known about what all Apple can do in June at its event, we’ll be looking out for some clues on the Cupertino-based technology giant’s March 25 event.
The registrations for the event have begun and will end on March 20 at 5 pm PT. If you are a developer, it will cost you $1599 to attend if you manage to land a ticket. In addition to this, Apple is offering 350 scholarships to attend this year.
Do you own a Nokia 3.1 smartphone? If the answer is yes, you have a reason to be happy about. HMD Global has announced that it has started rolling out the Android Pie software update to the Nokia 3.1 smartphone. We should mention that just six months back in September 2018, the Nokia 3.1 started receiving the Android 8.1 Oreo update.
We would have been surprised to see such a quick Android Pie update had it been any other smartphone, but considering HMD Global’s record of keeping all its devices updated with the latest Android version, we can only say that we are impressed once again.
However, it is worth noticing that Android Pie for Nokia 3.1 is not being rolled out globally as of now and it is limited to a few regions.
It was tweeted by HMD Global’s Juho Sarvikas that the roll out of the Android Pie update for Nokia 3.1 has begun. But we should mention that it has not been specified whether the roll out of the update is phased or not. Another thing that has not been mentioned is whether the Android Pie update on Nokia 3.1 gets the latest Android security patch.
To celebrate @AndroidAuth recognizing us for the best pie delivery in the industry, it is our pleasure to cater you a very special serving 😋🍰! Your premium companion, Nokia 3.1 now offers the sweetest experience with Android 9, Pie! Nokia smartphones get better with time! pic.twitter.com/Wa9bIaJBxt
With Android Pie, Nokia 3.1 will get the following new features:
App Actions – Helps get things done faster by predicting the user’s next move and displaying the right action.
Slices – Identifies relevant information of favourite apps to make them more easily accessible when required.
Adaptive Battery – Uses deep learning to understand usage patterns and prioritise battery power on important apps.
Adaptive Brightness – Automatically adapts phone brightness by learning from user interactions with different settings.
New system navigation – Features a single home button that provides intelligent predictions and suggestions (user enabled).
Digital Wellbeing – Gives users a complete picture of their digital habits and disconnect when they want to.
To recall, Nokia 3.1 sports a 5.2-inch HD+ (720×1440 pixels) display that comes with an aspect ratio of 18:9 and is protected by a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass. Powered by an octa-core MediaTek MT6750N processor, the smartphone comes with 3GB of RAM and has 32GB of internal storage. It can also hold a microSD card of up to 128GB. Nokia 3.1 has a dual rear camera setup with 13MP and 8MP sensors and packs a 2,990mAh battery.
Last month, HMD Global also rolled out the Android Pie update to Nokia 3.1’s successor – Nokia 3.1 Plus. We should mention that all Nokia smartphones by HMD Global are a part of Google‘s Android One programme, which means that the company ensures that they get timely Android updates and security patches.
This week, Apple announced that it will be holding an event on March 25 and right after the company made the announcement, speculations about what the company has up its sleeve started circulating on the internet. Although a number of speculative media reports have surfaced online, most of them agree on two things that Apple may be launching on March 25: A video streaming service and a subscription-based news service.
And now, a new report in Bloomberg claims that the Cupertino-based technology giant is expected to reach deals with HBO, Showtime, and Starz in time, so its much-awaited and talked-about video service will be able to make a debut on March 25. The report also said that most of the shows and movies on Apple’s service at the time of launch will be from third-parties.
However, we should also add that the company has spent money on original programming and has also signed deals with a number of big names, however, in spite of this, Apple wouldn’t have a lot of exclusive content right at the inception of the service. But then, it does have some existing content of its own Carpool Karaoke: The Series.
It has also been reported that three premium networks are still in negotiations with Apple over user experience and marketing. However, a deal with a few of them is expected to be finalised by the end of this week.
Previous reports have indicated that both Netflix and Hulu don’t want to partner with Apple for its upcoming service. While Hulu has some of its content listed on Apple TV app, the company is not very interested in strengthening its relationship with Apple more than this. Netflix has a different story altogether. It is reported to be tired of Apple’s subscription terms to the extent that it doesn’t even allow customers to sign up directly from its iOS app.
From Bloomberg’s report, it seems like Apple is signing content partnerships with various content creators to make an all-in-one streaming service like Netflix. However, there are certain indications that suggest that the technology company will be selling its subscriptions to some partner video apps from the TV app. However, we would have to wait till March 25 to know what exactly Apple has up its sleeve. Another question that will remain unanswered till March 25 is that what Apple TV app will have to offer to non-subscribers once these services are made available.
Chinese smartphone maker Huawei has unveiled its Nova 4e smartphone in China today. The new smartphone will be a part of Huawei’s mid-range line-up of smartphones and it will come with double-curved glass body, rear-mounted fingerprint scanner and a triple-rear camera. Along with the Chinese market, the company also introduced the smartphone in the Malaysian market.
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Huawei Nova 4e price
Huawei Nova 4e is priced at CNY 1,999 (approximately Rs 21,000) for the 4GB RAM/ 128GB storage variant. On the other hand, the 6GB RAM/ 128GB storage variant of the Nova 4e costs CNY 2,299 (approximately Rs 24,000).
The smartphone will be available for pre-order today onwards in China but the official sale of the Nova 4e will start from March 21.
Furthermore, in Malaysia, Huawei will be selling the Nova 4e at an earlier date than the Chinese market. In Malaysia, the smartphone would be available for purchase from March 16 and it will carry a price tag of MYR 1,199 (approximately Rs 21,000) for the 6GB RAM and 128GB storage variant. The Nova 4e will come in three colour options — Garland Blue, Pearl White, and Magic Night Black.
Other than China and Malaysia, there is no information about the launch of Huawei Nova 4e in other markets.
Huawei Nova 4e specifications
Huawei Nova 4e sports a 6.15-inch Full HD+ (1080 x 2312 pixels) resolution IPS display with pixel density of 415ppi. The device is powered by an octa-core HiSilicon Kirin 710 SoC and it runs Android 9.0 skinned with EMUI 9.0.1. Huawei Nova 4e comes in two variants – one with 4GB RAM and the other with 6GB RAM. But both the variants come with the same 128GB storage capacity. It also supports a microSD card of up to 512GB and packs a 3,340mAh battery.
On the camera front, Huawei Nova 4e packs a triple-rear camera setup comprising of a 24MP wide-angle lens with f/1.8 aperture paired with an 8MP ultra-wide-angle lens and a 2MP depth sensor. On the front, there is a 32MP selfie camera with f/2.0 aperture.
For connectivity, the Huawei Nova 4e comes with Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth 4.2 and 4G VoLTE.
It should be noted that the launch of Huawei Nova 4e in the mid-range segment comes days before the launch of the company’s upcoming smartphones – P30 and the P30 Pro – which are scheduled to be launched on March 26 in Paris, France. Huawei P30 Pro will be a top-of-the-line smartphone from the company and it would go toe-to-toe with the Samsung Galaxy S10 series.
If you have been planning to buy a mid-range smartphone, we have some news for you. The recently launched Oppo F11 Pro will go on its first sale tonight at 12 pm. The device will be available on Flipkart, Amazon.in, Snapdeal, Paytm, and all Oppo stores. The smartphone packs powerful specifications and it is powered by the MediaTek Helio P70 SoC. Oppo F11 Pro comes in two colour options – Thunder black and Aurora Green.
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Oppo F11 Pro price and launch offers
The Oppo F11 Pro has been launched in only one variant in India – which comes with 6GB RAM and 64GB storage and costs Rs 24,990. The smartphone will be available on Flipkart, Amazon.in, Paytm, Snapdeal and Oppo stores.
If you pay for the purchase of Oppo F11 Pro using an HDFC Bank debit or credit cards, you will get a 5% cashback on EMI transaction. Other than this, customers will also get a full accidental damage protection for 180 days after the purchase of the smartphone. Along with that, customers can avail a discount of Rs 1,000 on flight tickets and Rs 175 off on bus tickets via ixigo. During the first sale of the Oppo F11 Pro, the customers would get 3 months free subscription worth Rs 3,400 and will also get up to 3.2TB of data and benefits up to Rs 4,900 on Reliance Jio. The customers would also get free mobile insurance for one year but it will only be applicable on finance cased from IDC first through IDFC. All the offers on Oppo F11 Pro is valid from March 15 to March 17.
Oppo F11 Pro specifications
Oppo F11 Pro sports a 6.5-inch full-HD+ Panoramic LCD display with 90.9% screen-to-body ratio. The device is powered by MediaTek Helio P70 SoC coupled with 6GB RAM and 64GB storage. Oppo F11 Pro sports a dual-rear camera setup that comprises of a 48MP primary sensor and a 5MP secondary sensor. The front camera is a pop-up selfie camera of a 16MP sensor with Face ID technology. The front-facing snapper comes with f/1.79 aperture, ball-bearing closed-loop VCM, 6P lens, and 1/2.25-inch image sensors to bring more light for low-light photography.
The Oppo F11 Pro runs Android 9.0 Pie skinned with Color OS 6.0. It packs 4,000mAh battery and has VOOC 3.0 charger for fast-charging.
Will Yang, CMO of OPPO South Asia said, “With the launch of the OPPO F11 Pro, we aim to enhance the power and style quotient of our Indian customers enabling them to explore and master the low light photography experience. Today, we are delighted to announce the exciting first sale of OPPO F11 pro and we are hopeful that the device too will receive the same love and appreciation that we have received for the rest of our devices so far.”
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German audio equipment manufacturer Blaupunkt has launched new range of soundbars in India named SBW-50 (120W) and SPW-01 (80W). The newly launched soundbars come with wired subwoofers and the company has promised that they will be able to deliver heavy bass with 3D cinematic sound. Blaupunkt has also stated that it will launch more audio equipment and products in the coming months in India. With the launch of SBW-50 (120W) and SPW-01 (80W) soundbars, the company hopes to increase its traction in the Indian audio equipment market. Here’s a look at the price and specifications of the newly launched soundbars by Blaupunkt:
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Blaupunkt SBW-50 (120W) and SPW-01(80W) price and availability
While Blaupunkt SBW-50 (120W) bears a price tag of Rs 12,990, the SPW-01 (80W) soundbar is priced at Rs 17,990.
Both the products are available online through e-commerce shopping platforms – Flipkart and Amazon India.
Blaupunkt SBW-50 (120W) and SPW-01 (80W) specifications
The Blaupunkt SBW-50 (120W) packs a 120W RMS and it comes with one 6.5-inch woofer with two 2.25-inch speakers. It can be used by plugging in an AUX cable, by Bluetooth, by USB cable and optical audio. Its woofer is a side firing type and it has LED display through which it is able to show the details about the activity. The Blaupunkt SBW-50 (120W) comes with 4 pre-sets, namely, equaliser mode, movie, news, sports and music and it is 80 x 6.7 x 6.7 cm in dimension.
Blaupunkt SBW-50 (120W)
Andrzej Cebrat, Managing Director of Blaupunkt said, “Blaupunkt SBW-100 Soundbar with its performance-tuned surround sound will surely become the first choice of Indian users in the home audio market. Blaupunkt with its century-old legacy of impeccable innovation and 20+ years of experience in Indian audio products segment aims to raise the bars in India market and meet consumer demands with home audio products. With Envent as our India partner for Audio products, we believe that our home audio products including our exclusive SBW-100 Soundbar will become perfect companions for Indian youth and music lovers, that too in a price range that fits every pocket.”
On the other hand, the Blaupunkt SPW-01(80W) packs an 80W RMS. Similar to the SBW-50 (120W) it comes with one 6.5-inch woofer along with two 2.25-inch speakers. The SBW-01 (80W) too supports an AUX cable, Bluetooth, USB cable and optical audio. It holds a side-firing woofer, but unlike the other soundbar it comes with DOLBY surround sound. The SPW-01 (80W) comes with digital signal processor and is 80 x 6.7 x 6.7 cm in dimensions.
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Chinese smartphone brand Honor took the wraps off its View 20 smartphone in India recently. The Honor View 20 smartphone is the first handset to come with a punch hole display in India. It also comes with a 48MP primary camera and is powered by 7nm octa-core HiSilicon Kirin 980 processor. We spent a few days with the newly launched the Honor View 20 handset and here is what we think of it:
In This Article
Design and Display
Like always, we’ll begin by talking about the design of the smartphone. Honor has made sure that its View 20 smartphone manages to make quite an impression with its appearance on the users. The Honor View 20 smartphone comes with a glossy back panel, but unlike most other devices in the same range, the company has added a V-shaped pattern here that reflects light when the handset is placed at certain angles. Honor View 20 was launched by the Chinese smartphone brand in three colour variants – Midnight Black, Phantom Blue and Sapphire Blue. The device that we got for review was dressed in Sapphire Blue and we should also add that if you wish to buy the Phantom Blue coloured option, it is only available in 8GB RAM/256GB storage version.
We found the design of the Honor View 20 to be very premium and the company has made efforts to make the smartphone look different from its rivals. One-handed usage is easy on the device as its curved sides make it comfortable to use. The rear panel of Honor View 20 smartphone is made of glass and its frame is made of metal. As we mentioned earlier, Honor View 20 smartphone has V-shaped patterns on its back panel that are visible only at certain angles. It adds a jazzy look to the design of the handset.
Besides this, the back panel of the smartphone houses the dual rear cameras. While one sensor is in one module alone, the other is coupled with the LED flash of the device. And they are placed horizontally rather than vertically. The fingerprint sensor and the Honor branding are also on the back of the handset. The power and the volume buttons of the Honor View 20 smartphone are placed on its right edge, while the SIM tray is on the left. On the top edge, you will see that the 3.5mm headphone jack, an IR emitter and an ambient light sensor are placed. At the bottom, the USB Type C port, the loudspeaker and the primary microphone of the handset are present.
The front panel of the Honor View 20 smartphone is dominated by a 6.4-inch full HD+ display that has a punch hole on the top left to house the selfie camera. We should mention that Honor View 20 is the first smartphone to launch in India to come with a display like this. Otherwise, we have seen devices with notches, sliders or pop-up cameras. Although we were apprehensive about the punch hole display hampering the video watching experience on Honor View 20, it surprisingly didn’t pose any issues during our time with the mobile. The primary reason for this is that the hole is located in the corner of the display so it didn’t hinder the experience too much. In fact, notches are more of a distraction than the hole.
We really liked the display of this smartphone. It showed bright colours that remained consistent at different viewing angles and projected sharp images. Never did the images or videos on Honor View 20‘s display lose clarity. Furthermore, there is an option of adjusting the colour temperature on the handset’s display, so you can make them warmer to keep your eyes protected. In addition to this, you can choose the option of ‘Smart Display’ so that the resolution of the smartphone can be reduced to HD+ (automatically) to save power.
To sum it up, we would say that the design and the display of Honor View 20 really impressed us. The look and feel were very refreshing and premium. The display kept us hooked to our handset as we couldn’t stop watching our favourite shows on it, too.
Performance and Cameras
Before we talk about the performance of the smartphone, let’s talk about its specifications. Honor View 20 handset runs Android Pie skinned with Magic UI 2.0 and is powered by Huawei’s 7nm octa-core HiSilicon Kirin 980 processor clubbed with 6GB/8GB RAM. The 6GB RAM model has 128GB of internal storage and the 8GB RAM has 256GB storage. Honor View 20 has a dual rear camera setup that comprises of a 48MP Sony IMX586 sensor with an f/1.8 aperture and a 3D ToF sensor. For selfies and video calls, there is a 25MP front-facing snapper. The device houses a 4,000mAh battery and it has support for 4G VoLTE, Bluetooth v5.0, Wi-Fi, GPS, and USB Type-C.
Coming to the software of the smartphone, it has a number of customisations. Although Android 9.0 Pie skinned with Magic UI is present, we should point out that it looks a lot like EMUI. The UI has been designed so that using the device with punch hole display remains a smooth experience. So, you will see that all the notifications on the display are placed on the right instead of the centre.
The Honor View 20 smartphone also comes with Digital Balance, that we earlier saw on Huawei Mate 20 Pro. The feature lets you manage how much time you spend on your smartphone. You can also opt for gesture navigation and a navigation dock instead of using the usual Android navigation buttons. We should add here that the navigation dock is actually a single floating button on the display of the smartphone that can be used to navigate.
The device had some pre-installed apps including Honor Club, Party Mode, HiCare, Camera360, Vigo Video, Facebook, Facebook Messenger, and Netflix. We should mention that some apps that are the company’s own cannot be uninstalled.
Speaking of the performance of the smartphone, we were really impressed by it. The combination of the Kirin 980 SoC and 6GB RAM managed to pull off some very heavy-duty tasks on the Honor View 20. We could easily launch and switch between a number of apps and even when we had 7-8 apps running in the background, we noticed no lag in the smartphone’s performance. We often used the Honor View 20 smartphone for multitasking like playing games and using it for navigation at the same time. Sometimes, we even watched shows on Netflix while using the device for getting directions to a certain place. Honor View 20 handled it all well.
Next thing to notice is that the smartphone does not come with an in-display fingerprint sensor. It has a physical fingerprint scanner and comes with face unlock, too. However, we personally didn’t find it to be an issue as we have a preference for physical fingerprint scanners over in-display fingerprint sensors since they don’t really match up to them in terms of accuracy. The face unlock of the smartphone worked perfectly in well-lit conditions, but in dimly lit areas, it at times failed to unlock the smartphone.
We ran a few benchmark tests on the smartphone. While it scored 3,237 and 8,693 in Single and Multi-core scores on Geekbench, in Antutu it scored 2,57,424.
Coming to gaming, even heavy games like PUBG Mobile or Asphalt 9: Legends ran well on the smartphone. If you are someone who loves to spend hours playing games on your smartphone, Honor View 20 wouldn’t disappoint you. And it was a sheer cakewalk to play games like Temple Run 2 and Alto’s Odessey on this mobile device.
However, we must add that at times, when we used the mobile phone for heavy games and navigation, it did heat up a bit, like most other handsets with a glass back panel.
Coming to the 4,000mAh battery of the smartphone, it takes about an hour to be charged completely. And with usage that involves Google Maps, gaming, watching YouTube videos, and using social media apps, the battery lasted more than a day.
Moving on to the cameras of the smartphone, Honor View 20 sports a 48MP primary shooter coupled with a TOF 3D camera. The camera app of Honor View 20 smartphone comes with a regular photo and video modes, AR Lens, Night, Pro, Portrait, Aperture, Panorama, Artist and HDR modes. The images taken by Honor View 20 turned out to be superb. Although the camera is set on 12MP by default, you can adjust the settings to click images that are 48MP in resolution. This is something that we also saw in Huawei Mate 20 Pro.
In well-lit conditions, the images were clear and sharp and had very accurate colours. When we enabled AI, there was a very visible difference as the contrast became higher and more details were added to the images.
In low-light, the images turned out to be good too. We even clicked some pictures in a room that had literally no light at all, and still, the shots turned out to be great. Enabling AI made the shots taken in dimly lit areas better too.
We clicked some Portrait shots and some shots with HDR mode on, and in both cases, we were happy with the results that we got. In the Portrait mode, there is an option of slimming the person down and making them look thinner by adding beauty modifications.
We simply loved the selfie camera of the device. To test how it works in conditions where there is literally no light, we clicked some pictures in a cinema hall. And our selfies turned out to be great, even without AI and beauty mode on. When we enabled them, the images became even better. In daylight, the shots taken were obviously better than the ones taken in dimly-lit areas.
As a whole, you can say it has one of the best cameras on it in this price range. If you are a photography lover, you would not be disappointed at all.
Verdict
At Rs 37,999, Honor View 20 smartphone is a great buy. The design is unconventional, the display is vibrant, the cameras are great and the device has an incredibly smooth performance. Some may not like the idea of having a display with a punch hole, since they may feel it’s a hindrance in watching videos, we did not encounter this issue during our time with our phone. There were instances when we felt that the handset warms up when we multitasked, but then that is an issue with all smartphones with glass back panels.
The software is extremely customised, so if that is not your cup of tea, you can go for OnePlus 6T for a cleaner UI at the same price from brands like Nokia. The facial recognition could have been better, but that is surely not a deal-breaker as the fingerprint sensor works just fine. None of these ‘issues’ is big enough, in our opinion. You would certainly not be disappointed if you buy the Honor View 20 smartphone. It is a solid performer and is great to look at too.
Pros
Microsoft has brought out a new change for the Windows 10 operating system which will automatically uninstall a failed Windows update and restore the user’s PC to the way it was back before. If after the update the Windows fails to boot up due to compatibility issues of the update with the PC’s hardware or software, or because of any issue the PC fails to start up then the Windows would revert back to the way it was before and uninstall the failed update.
But it will happen only if all other recovery options for the Windows do not work. The reverting back process would work on all Windows Updates including the hotfixes, major new Windows 10 release, service packs and driver updates. When the Windows has been reverted back to the older version the user will receive a notification after the PC starts up “We removed some recently installed updates to recover your device from a startup failure”.
The change was documented on the new page of Windows Support database and it was first spotted by Windows Latest. The documentation states that, the Windows Update will also prevent the failed update from being reinstalled automatically for 30 days. This would allow Microsoft and other parties to look for the problem and figure out a solution so that it doesn’t happen again.
But if users feel that an update is wrongly rolled back, they can manually install the update again. The new feature works not only for the automatic updates but for the manually applied updates as well. If Windows finds the update has failed, then it will retrieve the update and revert back to the previous version of Windows.
Also, Microsoft has announced the users of Windows 7 and Office 2010 will receive notifications on their apps/devices that they will not be receiving support or free security updates after January 14, 2020. As, the company has been urging the users to upgrade their Windows 7 to Windows 10 and Office 2010 to Office 365/ Office 2019.
But Microsoft has also said that it will grant a paid update extension for the Microsoft Windows 7 users till January 2023. The price of Windows 7 Pro update after the free period will be $50 (approximately Rs 3,476) for the 1st year, $100 (approximately Rs 6,953) for the second year and $200 (approximately Rs 13,907) for the third year.
After launching the Goggle Bolo app in India, the search giant has launched another useful application – Lookout. Google Lookout app was announced over 10 months ago at the company’s I/O 2018 developer conference. It is worth noticing that Lookout has been launched right before Google I/O 2019, however currently the app has been released in the US only and is limited to Google’s Pixel smartphones. But the technology giant has promised to make the Google Lookout app available on more devices, countries and platforms in the coming weeks.
Google Lookout app helps visually challenged people to identify information about their surroundings. The company said that it had been working on the Lookout app since it was announced last year. And with the launch of Google Lookout app, the company adds another app/service to its ever-increasing list of accessibility apps.
According to a Google’s blog post, the Lookout app uses Artificial Intelligence (AI), similar to Google Lens, and it lets users search and take action about the objects around them using the smartphone. The company has also promised that the app works in situations where the visually challenged people might need to most help.
Patrick Clary, Product Manager of Google Accessibility Engineering, wrote in the blog post, “We designed Lookout to work in situations where people might typically have to ask for help—like learning about a new space for the first time, reading text and documents, and completing daily routines such as cooking, cleaning and shopping.”
Google also stated that the new Lookout app can help the visually challenged people by identifying text, people, objects and other things. To use the Google Lookout app, the users can download it Play Store. Once they open the Google Lookout app, they need to keep their phones pointed forward and the app will do the rest on its own.
The app’s description on Play Store reads, “Lookout uses the camera and sensors on your device to recognize objects and text, and gives you spoken feedback, earcons, and other signals to inform you about what it sees.”
Currently, the Lookout app will work on the original Pixel along with Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 3 smartphones running Android 8.0 Oreo or higher.
Other than Google, Microsoft also offers something similar to Lookout. Microsoft’s app is called Soundscape and it is also aimed for the use of visually challenged people. But Soundscape is available only for the iOS compared to Lookout for Android. Microsoft has another app which performs similar function named Seeing AI, but it too is exclusively for the iOS platform only.
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If you have been waiting for the Android Q, then you would be happy to know that the developer beta of the latest Android version is now live and can be downloaded on all Pixel smartphones. However, before you get excited about having a first look at Android Q, we should tell you that it is a beta update that is meant primarily for developers and we all know that beta updates are rarely bug-free. So we recommend you not to install it on your main device.
Prior to their respective launches, developer beta versions of Android Oreo and Android Pie were released too. However, they became stable for day-to-day tasks only after a few months of availability.
If you are still willing to download the Android Q developer beta, we should tell you that the first thing that you need is a Pixel smartphone. The beta version is being made available on all Pixel mobile phones including Pixel 3, Pixel 3 XL, Pixel 2, Pixel 2 XL, Pixel and Pixel XL.
Here’s how you can install the Android Q developer beta update on your Pixel smartphone:
Back up your smartphone
If you are even thinking of downloading the Android Q developer beta, you must have all your data backed up first. For doing this, you need to go to ‘Settings’ of your device, click on ‘System’ and then press ‘Backup’. We should mention that the initial backup of data may take some time. However, if Android Q is not bug-free, you would be glad later to have all your data safe. Also, you would be able to download it again in case you have to reinstall Android Pie.
2. Enrol in the beta program
Technology giant Google lets Pixel smartphone users enrol in beta by logging in with their Google account and then picking the device on which they would like to install the beta. After this, click on ‘Enrol’. By doing this, you would get an over-the-air update, just like you do for stable Android versions.
3. Once you do this, you will get a notification on your enrolled smartphone about the system update. You may alternatively have to check for a system update for your smartphone to fetch the beta software. However, even if you don’t, you should be notified within a few hours of enrolling
4. You will get Android Q developer preview notification to install the software just as you would get any other regular system update.
Xiaomi’s gaming smartphone is getting a second iteration with the Black Shark 2. The Xiaomi Black Shark 2 gaming smartphone will be launched on March 18 in China. Before its official launch, the company has released posters and images of the upcoming Black Shark 2 smartphone.
According to the posters, Xiaomi Black Shark 2 will be powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 SoC coupled with 12GB of RAM. The device will be available with three storage variants. Online registration for the upcoming Xiaomi Black Shark 2 has gone live in China. Users can register for the upcoming Xiaomi gaming smartphone from Black Shark’s official store. According to a report by PlayfulDroid, the registrations for Black Shark 2 have also been opened on Mi.com and JD.com in China.
On Black Shark 2’s official registration page, it has been mentioned that the smartphone will come in ‘Frozen Silver’ colour option and will be available in three variants – 6GB RAM/128GB storage, 8GB RAM/256GB storage and 12GB RAM/256GB storage.
Recently, Xiaomi Black Shark 2 was spotted on Geekbench with 12GB RAM and its listing on AnTuTu also revealed similar specifications about the smartphone. The AnTuTu listing also revealed that the smartphone packs 12GB of RAM and comes with Snapdragon 855 SoC.
Earlier, the company confirmed that Xiaomi Black Shark 2 will come with Liquid Cool 3.0 technology for thermal heat management. But the company hasn’t mentioned the improvements and the upgrades it will hold over its predecessors.
The pricing listed on the official Black Shark store is CNY 9,999 (approximately Rs 1,03,653). Further details of the Black Shark 2 smartphone reveal that it will have a backlit logo similar to Asus ROG phone, and the gaming smartphone will also have illuminated strips on both its sides. Xiaomi’s President Lin Bin also shared a screenshot of the smartphone’s home screen. The teased picture of the Black Shark 2 reveals that it will have a curved design with sharp lines on the rear panel of the device which we have seen on the Black Shark 1.
Also, it should be noted that Black Shark is planning to enter the Indian market and it has also planned to set up its headquarters in Bengaluru, India. Earlier, the company sold its devices only in China and Europe but now seeing the popularity of mobile gaming in India the company is bringing the gaming smartphone brand to India. In the coming months, the company is expected to release Black Shark 1 and Black Shark Helo, both released in 2018 for the European and Chinese markets. And with the launch of Black Shark 2 we might get to see the second iteration of Black Shark in India as well.
When we think of online payments, one of the first apps that come to our mind is Paytm. That is the way it has been since the mobile payments app garnered popularity post demonetisation. However, Paytm’s popularity was not short-lived. The app continues to be a method of payment among masses even today.
Paytm Payments Bank, which initially started in 2017, has launched its new mobile banking app in an effort to make smartphone payments even simpler for users. According to Paytm, the payments that will be made by the new app will be quick and effortless and at the same time, users will have secured access to their bank account on the go.
With the newly launched mobile app, users will be able to check their account balance, raise a request for physical debits cards, access digital debit cards, and so much more. The mobile banking app will also provide customers with 24×7 help and support.
According to Paytm, with this app, it aims to bring millions of under-banked Indians to the economic mainstream.
Speaking about the app, Satish Kumar Gupta, MD & CEO Paytm Payments Bank said, “The new app has been introduced exclusively for its bank’s customers to provide a wide range of banking services in a phased manner.”
The CEO of Paytm Payment Bank, Satish Kumar Gupta also said, “The purpose of the new app is to segregate its operations from the existing app which caters to customers of several group entities. However, PPB customers will continue to serve its customers on its older app should its customers desire so. Both apps will co-exist.”
As of now, the newly launched mobile banking app’s Android version is available on Google Play store and is expected to come to Apple‘s App Store soon.
Like we mentioned earlier, Paytm Payments Bank Limited was launched in May 2017 and according to the Noida based company, it has enrolled over 43 Million saving bank customers and issued over 2 Million physical debit cards. The bank has also issued virtual debit cards to all its 43 million saving bank customers.
The customers of Paytm Payments Bank enjoy free banking services and earn an annual interest of 4% on their savings. Paytm Payments Bank lets its customers deposit up to Rs 1 lakh in their savings account and/or wallet. Any amount that exceeds the limit of Rs 1 lakh is automatically converted into a Fixed Deposit via auto sweep with PPB’s partner bank. This allows customers to earn up to 8% per annum interest on their Fixed Deposit amount. The customer can also instantly redeem the desired amount in their Fixed Deposit at any time free of charge.
To improve its Gboard keyboard platform,Google is adding an Artificial Intelligence (AI) offline dictation feature on its Gboard keyboard. This feature will currently be availed only by Google Pixel smartphone users. The new AI offline dictation would speak out the emails and texts to users even without an internet connection.
Johan Schalkwyk from Speech Team of Google, wrote in a blog post on Tuesday “We’re happy to announce the rollout of an end-to-end, all-neural, on-device speech recogniser to power speech input in Gboard which is always available, even when you are offline.”
Google also said that it has designed the feature to work on smartphones at the character level. The company also mentioned that it has developed a model that has been trained with RNN Transducer (RNN-T) technology which is compact enough to reside in a phone.
“This means no more network latency or spottiness — the new recogniser is always available, even when you are offline. The model works at the character level, so that as you speak, it outputs words character-by-character, just as if someone was typing out what you say in real-time, and exactly as you’d expect from a keyboard dictation system,” Schalkwyk added.
Currently, the on-device Gboard speech recogniser comes only in American English and it is limited to Google Pixel devices only. To increase the use-parameters of the speech recognition feature, the company said that it has hosted a new model in the device which would avoid the latency and inherent unreliability of communication networks.
“Our new all-neural, on-device Gboard speech recogniser is initially being launched to all Pixel phones in American English only. Given the trends in the industry, with the convergence of specialised hardware and algorithmic improvements, we are hopeful that the techniques presented here can soon be adopted in more languages and across broader domains of application. We are hopeful that the techniques presented here can soon be adopted in more languages and across broader domains of application,” Schalkwyk said.
It should be noted that Google has been launching new products and services more frequently now while discarding its old ones like its Allo app. Also, Google unveiled its Google Bolo app in India aimed at the rural children so that they could learn to read and speak. The company is also set to unveil a gaming console named Project Yeti and Project Stream along with a wide variety of games at the upcoming GDC 2019.
Technology giant Google has finally released the first preview of Android Q to its developers today. This is the first time that we are getting a first official look at the next Android version. We should mention that it is becoming an annual tradition for Google to give a look at its next major Android update in March, before releasing it in May.
But then, only developers would be getting this first look and a number of changes that will have an impact on the usage pattern are not present on this version yet. Google has said, though, that the update gets some interesting and anticipated changes like enhanced privacy controls and support for foldable phones.
All the Pixel smartphones – including Pixel and Pixel XL – will be getting the first beta of Android Q. The search giant has said that it has added support for Android Q beta on Pixel and Pixel XL because of popular demand. However, we will recommend you not to install it on your main device, as beta versions are usually not bug-free. But then, there will be those who will think that having a first look at the updates that Google is adding to Android Q is worth it, even though the technology giant is saving some for its Google I/O developer conference.
Among the major changes that Android Q will get to smartphones is an additional privacy setting that will give users control over location access. Using it, one can make sure that apps only get access to their location when they are in use, rather than pulling that information at all times. Google is also adding settings that will put limits on apps having access to photos, videos, audio as well as downloaded files on the handset.
Another big change that the next Android version will see is support for foldable phones. Android Q will be better at resuming and pausing apps that run in the background. It will also be able to resize apps better for split-screen modes. All these features would prove to be useful when Samsung Galaxy Fold and Huawei Mate X finally hit the shelves later this year.
Moving on, Android Q will also be getting a new Settings Panel API, using which developers would be able to give an instant, pop-up access to phone settings. This means that users will be able to access a number of settings easily without having to go to the smartphone’s Settings app again and again.
Another thing that has improved is the share sheet, which will let users pre-publish how various apps work with sharing. This means that the share UI will load instantly, and there will be no need of manually rebuilding all actions each time.
Google is also standardizing how depth map images will work with Android. The search giant is doing this with Dynamic Depth format that comprises of a JPEG image, depth metadata, and a depth map bundled together. So, going forward, it will be easier for third-party apps to offer specialized bokeh and blur options.
One thing that we still don’t know about Android Q is the dessert that it will be named after. We are still waiting for that to be announced. If you know any Q-named desserts that you want Android Q to be named after, let us know in the comments below!
Vivo’s upcoming smartphone, X27 will officially be launched on March 19 in China. But prior to the launch of Vivo X27, the company has posted photos and teasers of the smartphone confirming the handset’s camera, storage and battery. Also, a TENAA listing has surfaced online carrying a model number V1838A which is speculated to be a trimmed down variant of the Vivo X27.
The Chinese smartphone brand has posted teaser pictures on Weibo confirming the Vivo X27’s details and specifications. The images showed that the upcoming Vivo X27 will have 8GB RAM along with 256GB storage. It will also be powered by a 4,000mAh battery and is rumoured to have the 22.5W fast charging support through a USB Type-C port.
About the camera of the Vivo X27, the teased images reveal that the smartphone will pack a triple-rear camera setup with the primary camera holding a 48MP sensor along with a 13MP secondary sensor. The sensor is speculated to be Sony’s IMX586. The teased images also revealed camera features such as wide-angle mode and night view mode.
Although not official, Vivo X27 might come in multiple variants with Vivo X27 and Vivo X27 Pro and an unknown trimmed down variant of the device. As we mentioned earlier, the TENAA listing that mentioned the specifications of a lesser variant of the Vivo X27 sports a 6.3-inch Full HD+ (1080 x 2340 pixels) resolution AMOLED display. The listing mentions that the smartphone will be powered by a 2.0GHz octa-core Snapdragon 710 SoC coupled with 8GB RAM. The handset carries the model number V1838A. The trimmed down variant of Vivo X27 would pack a triple-rear camera setup comprising of a 48MP sensor, a 13MP sensor and a 5MP sensor, while the front camera would house a 16MP sensor.
There is another variant of the Vivo X27 which will be powered by Snapdragon 675 SoC and it will reportedly carry a price tag of CNY 3,298 (approximately Rs 34,200).
According to the images leaked by Slashleaks, the Vivo X27 will pack a 6.7-inch display with an aspect ratio of 20.5:9. It might be powered by Snapdragon 710 SoC and will come with a 32MP selfie camera. Vivo X27 will reportedly be priced at CNY 3,598 (approximately Rs 37,300).
Talking about the Vivo X27 Pro, according to the leaks the smartphone packs a triple-rear camera setup and a dual pop-up selfie camera. It is speculated to be powered by Snapdragon 719 SoC coupled with 8GB RAM and 256GB storage. It will reportedly carry a price tag of CNY 3,998 (approximately Rs 41,500). Although the Vivo X27 is set to launch on March 19, the Vivo X27 Pro is expected to launch on April 12.
Social media giant Facebook and its photo-sharing app Instagram just suffered one of the biggest global outages that the platforms have seen so far. Although now you can open the two platforms and some services on Facebook and Instagram have been restored, a few hours back, this was not the case. Scores of users across the globe reported that they faced issues when they tried to use Facebook, Messenger, Instagram and in some cases, even WhatsApp. In some cases, Oculus VR users also faced issues.
While for some people took it as a digital detox, some felt really helpless without all these forms of communication. The latter is particularly true for those who could not access WhatsApp. While the instant messenger worked fine in a number of countries in the world, it suffered an outage in India, Paraguay, Bangladesh, Argentina and more. According to DownDetector, the app suffered the most severe outage in Brazil.
Speaking of Messenger, we should add here that reports suggest that the mobile app worked fine, but the service did not work on the desktop version. Instagram’s outage was far worse. Some users could not load posts on the feed and the Instagram Stories did not load. Even the button to post new content and the Direct Messages option did not been working.
Facebook and Instagram took to Twitter to announce that they are aware of the issues in their services and are working to fix them.
The photo-sharing app wrote, “We’re aware of an issue impacting people’s access to Instagram right now. We know this is frustrating, and our team is hard at work to resolve this ASAP.”
We’re aware of an issue impacting people's access to Instagram right now. We know this is frustrating, and our team is hard at work to resolve this ASAP.
On the other hand, Facebook said, “We’re aware that some people are currently having trouble accessing the Facebook family of apps. We’re working to resolve the issue as soon as possible.”
We're focused on working to resolve the issue as soon as possible, but can confirm that the issue is not related to a DDoS attack.
According to DownDetector, the outages were spread across New England, Texas, Seattle, Washington, parts of Latin America, Peru, the UK, India, and the Philippines. However, media reports suggest that users in Canada, Las Vegas, and Turkey also faced the same problem.
That’s not all. There were users who took to social media to say that when they attempted to sign in to apps like Tinder and Spotify using Facebook, they couldn’t do that successfully. When they tried, an error popped up saying that the feature isn’t available right now. However, the ones who had already signed into Spotify were not logged out because of the outage.
Popular messaging app WhatsApp has reportedly been testing a new feature for its platform. The new feature would let the users search Google for images they sent or received on WhatsApp. According to the report, this new feature will be called ‘Search Image’. Additionally, WhatsApp beta for Android version 2.19.73 adds a new transgender flag emoji to its huge collection of emojis. The new emoji can be found in the flag emoji section.
According to a report by WABetaInfo, the messaging app is developing the Search Image option to let the user search an image he received or sent in the chat directly from Google. To search for the image, the user needs to select the image which he wants to search, then he can use Google to search more about the image. The image is then uploaded to the search engine which then searches for relevant and similar images and other details. The user will then be shown the results about the image.
The report also mentions that the new feature isn’t available yet but it would be coming to the Android platform in near future. There is also a possibility that WhatsApp would use the Google’s API (Application Programming Interface) to enable the image search function. The new feature would be a part of WhatsApp’s initiative towards banning and stopping the spread of fake news on its platform.
The Search Image feature of WhatsApp is different from the Advanced Search feature that the messaging app was testing on the iOS beta app. The Advanced Search lets the user search for multiple types of messages other than media. The types of messages include photos, GIFs, links, audio, video and documents.
Also, as mentioned above, the beta version 2.19.73 of WhatsApp is adding a transgender flag to its list of emojis. The flag comes after the LGBT flag which WhatsApp added to its platform earlier. The transgender flag could be found between the UN flag and the LGBT flag.
The beta version of WhatsApp could be downloaded from Google Play Store if the user is part of the beta testing programme.
If you have just started playing PUBG Mobile, you should know that just knowing about how to collect weapons and attack is not enough. There are some secret moves that you should know if you want to have an edge over others in the game. Here, we are going to tell you about ten settings of PUBG Mobile that you can alter in order to improve your chances of getting the Chicken Dinner. Check out the list of PUBG Mobile settings that you need to change here:
In This Article
Peek and Fire
Let’s face it: It’s far harder for a player to attack you when you are only peeking from behind an object than when you actually come out to shoot. This is because they have to aim at your head rather than aiming anywhere on your body. So, if you haven’t already, turn the option on by going to Settings > Basic and selecting Enable Peek & Fire.
Pick up loot automatically
Would you rather just focus on the game or repeatedly tap on the screen to pick your loot? We bet you would rather do the former. If you turn on Auto Pick-Up by going to Settings > Pick Up and then selecting ‘Enable Auto Pick-Up’, you will be able to collect guns and ammo by just walking over them.
Decide how much ammo you wish to pick up
Although most people believe that the more ammo they have, the better it is for them, we should mention that there is a limit to how much inventory can be carried when you are playing PUBG Mobile. So basically, there is a limit on the number of rounds you can carry it. But on the upside, you can adjust this too. There are different limits for different guns and we recommend selecting as many rounds as you can. Go to Settings > Pick Up and then set the limits for each weapon.
Customise angle of view
In PUBG Mobile, the default field of view is 90 degrees. However, some people say that increasing this gives you a better view of the map. If you want to try this, you can head to Settings > Basic and make the change in 1st Person Camera View.
Optimize graphics settings according to your smartphone
PUBG Mobile recommends certain graphics settings for every smartphone in order to get the best performance. However, there is no reason for you to stick to it as there are times when you find your device performing better at settings different from the ones that have been recommended. So, head to Settings > Graphics, and try out various settings till you find the one that works the best on your smartphone. We also suggest that you change the frame rate to maximum.
Add the ability to send more messages
Head to Settings > Quick Chat and then select Add New Messages. This will enable you to communicate more quickly with your teammates and will also prove to useful if you want to avoid voice chat.
Choose your style of visuals
To do this, you have to head to Settings > Graphics. Then, just select the visuals that you want to use in the game. You can pick from classic, colourful, realistic, or soft. We should mention that this changes the colour tone of the game. Choosing the one that works the best with your smartphone will help you identify enemies more easily.
Customise various controls in the game
To change the controls in PUBG Mobile, head to Settings > Controls > Customise. You will find this option on the bottom left in the Controls menu. Once you do this, you will be able to place all the buttons in the game wherever you think you’ll be able to access them easily.
Turn off the mic and speakers
If you are a beginner, this is a tip you must follow. Turning your mic and speaker off once you enter the game will help you focus on sharpening your skills. After a while, you would be able to chat as you are playing.
Pick crosshair colour of your choice
In most shooting games, crosshair enables you to aim your weapon. And in PUBG Mobile, you can choose its colour so that it is easier for you to spot. For doing this, go to Settings > Basic and select the crosshair colour of your choice.
Tesla Model Y has more room than the previously launched Model 3 and can accommodate seven people at a time.
We should point out that Tesla Model Y has been launched at a time which is very crucial for the company. When Model 3 sedan’s full-year production started, it managed to grab the title of the best-selling electric car in the world in 2018. However, this was just in North America and Musk pointed out that making that many Model 3 cars nearly killed Tesla. Furthermore, it is being speculated that the demand for the car in the United States may have been exhausted, which explains why Tesla has shifted its focus towards Europe and China. But then, the early sales of the Model 3 have been rather slow there.
As an attempt to reach more customers, Tesla recently also announced a ‘standard range’ Model 3 that is priced at $35,000 (approximately Rs 24,22,840). However, the release of the electric car was very close to Tesla’s decision to close most of its stores and switch to online sales. The two announcements being back-to-back resulted in the ‘standard range’ Model 3 getting a lack-lustre response.
While the decision to go mostly online did help Tesla to lower the cost of other cars, the company got a lot of backlash for it from customers and employees. So the electric car maker put a halt in the store closings, and that led to a surge in pricing again.
It is worth noticing that Tesla Model Y has a lot in common with Model 3, which means that at least theoretically, the company did not have to use too many of its resources on it. Since SUV sales are increasing a lot in the United States, Model Y gets a good opportunity for Tesla. But then, since space is already dominated by German automakers, Tesla will need to execute their plan well if the company wants to make the most of this opportunity.
Tesla Model Y has more room than the previously launched Model 3 and can accommodate seven people at a time.
We should point out that Tesla Model Y has been launched at a time which is very crucial for the company. When Model 3 sedan’s full-year production started, it managed to grab the title of the best-selling electric car in the world in 2018. However, this was just in North America and Musk pointed out that making that many Model 3 cars nearly killed Tesla. Furthermore, it is being speculated that the demand for the car in the United States may have been exhausted, which explains why Tesla has shifted its focus towards Europe and China. But then, the early sales of the Model 3 have been rather slow there.
As an attempt to reach more customers, Tesla recently also announced a ‘standard range’ Model 3 that is priced at $35,000 (approximately Rs 24,22,840). However, the release of the electric car was very close to Tesla’s decision to close most of its stores and switch to online sales. The two announcements being back-to-back resulted in the ‘standard range’ Model 3 getting a lack-lustre response.
While the decision to go mostly online did help Tesla to lower the cost of other cars, the company got a lot of backlash for it from customers and employees. So the electric car maker put a halt in the store closings, and that led to a surge in pricing again.
It is worth noticing that Tesla Model Y has a lot in common with Model 3, which means that at least theoretically, the company did not have to use too many of its resources on it. Since SUV sales are increasing a lot in the United States, Model Y gets a good opportunity for Tesla. But then, since space is already dominated by German automakers, Tesla will need to execute their plan well if the company wants to make the most of this opportunity.
From the creators of one of the best games created – Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, comes another game named Cyberpunk 2077. After being delayed multiple times for years, the game is finally set to release around June 2019 (expected). Last year in November 2018, CD Projekt had released a 48-minute-long walkthrough gameplay of the game which looked pretty neat. But it was mentioned multiple times that the game was still in development and subjects and graphics might change on the time of actual release. Cyberpunk 2077 is set in a futuristic city called Night City and will be an open-world Role-Playing Game (RPG). In short, the game is like GTA with change in setting of the game, the company. On a different note, it is possible that the game developers might be looking forward to releasing or teasing (again) the game at the E3 scheduled to be held at June 11 and if this happens, the game’s release date might shift again.
The sixth instalment in the Halo series will most probably release in November 2019. In this instalment, the players would take control of the main-protagonist of the game – Master Chief. The story of Halo Infinite won’t be a remake or remastered but it will be a sequel to the Halo 5 and will take the story further. At the end of Halo 5 we saw that Chief’s trusty AI, Cortana turn against humanity and him. Also, she will most probably be one of the biggest antagonists of the Halo Infinite. A teaser of the game was released back in E3 2018 where the 343 Industries teased us with a glimpse of Master Chief. The company behind Halo has revealed that they would show us more about the game at the upcoming E3 2019.
Bethesda, the company behind some of the greatest game series like The Elders Scroll and Fallout will be taking hold of the publishing of Doom Eternal while ID software is behind the development. Doom is already a cult-classic and we have already seen how crazy and fast-paced the game could be with the release of Doom in 2016. Doom Eternal will be the fifth instalment of the Doom series and it will bring the first-person action of the Doom series back once again. The company had released a gameplay video of the Doom Eternal in 2018 which further led to more talk about the game.
The makers of Bloodborne and Dark Souls have come up with another hack and slash game which will be released on March 22. Since it is from the creators of ‘one of the most difficult games’ Dark Souls series, the players could expect Sekiro to be really tough to win. The game is set in 16th Century Japan and you will play as a Shinobi. And since it is from the same creators, the game is going to be hard to beat, and the player may have to die many times. But the creators of the game have said that even death has a part to play in the game. So, it would be interesting to see what kind of game Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice will be and how does it hold up against Dark Souls.
Mortal Kombat will be another classic which will be getting another instalment added to the series with Mortal Kombat 11. The game is developed by the same NetherRealm Studios and published by Warner Bros. It is set to release on April 23. Mortal Kombat 11 will somewhat be different than its predecessors as we would be fighting with two versions of the same character, as seen in the gameplay trailer released by the company. The game will also be bringing back Cassie Cage, Jacqui Briggs, and Erron Black to its wide roaster of characters. Mortal Kombat is known for its bloody and gory, over-the-top fighting action and the 11th instalment won’t be any different. The company had released its trailer previous month where we got to see Raiden going up against Scorpion in a bloody and gory fight. And we couldn’t wait to get out hands on the controller to get that sweet Fatality.
The Sinking City is the upcoming action-adventure horror mystery game developed by Frogwares. It will be releasing on June 27. The game is set in the fictional Oakmont, Massacheusetes in the 1920s and the main point of the game is its Lovecraftian deities who have and will wreak havoc in the game. The game is set mainly underwater; thus, the name and you will be facing the Lovecraftian deities with nothing but guns and regular mortal weapons. The character you play will be a private investigator who will be caught between the web of conspiracies. The trailer of The Sinking City was mysterious and creepy and with the release of the game we would find out if it really is such mysterious as the trailer shows.
From the creators of one of the best games created – Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, comes another game named Cyberpunk 2077. After being delayed multiple times for years, the game is finally set to release around June 2019 (expected). Last year in November 2018, CD Projekt had released a 48-minute-long walkthrough gameplay of the game which looked pretty neat. But it was mentioned multiple times that the game was still in development and subjects and graphics might change on the time of actual release. Cyberpunk 2077 is set in a futuristic city called Night City and will be an open-world Role-Playing Game (RPG). In short, the game is like GTA with change in setting of the game, the company. On a different note, it is possible that the game developers might be looking forward to releasing or teasing (again) the game at the E3 scheduled to be held at June 11 and if this happens, the game’s release date might shift again.
The sixth instalment in the Halo series will most probably release in November 2019. In this instalment, the players would take control of the main-protagonist of the game – Master Chief. The story of Halo Infinite won’t be a remake or remastered but it will be a sequel to the Halo 5 and will take the story further. At the end of Halo 5 we saw that Chief’s trusty AI, Cortana turn against humanity and him. Also, she will most probably be one of the biggest antagonists of the Halo Infinite. A teaser of the game was released back in E3 2018 where the 343 Industries teased us with a glimpse of Master Chief. The company behind Halo has revealed that they would show us more about the game at the upcoming E3 2019.
Bethesda, the company behind some of the greatest game series like The Elders Scroll and Fallout will be taking hold of the publishing of Doom Eternal while ID software is behind the development. Doom is already a cult-classic and we have already seen how crazy and fast-paced the game could be with the release of Doom in 2016. Doom Eternal will be the fifth instalment of the Doom series and it will bring the first-person action of the Doom series back once again. The company had released a gameplay video of the Doom Eternal in 2018 which further led to more talk about the game.
The second instalment in The Division series will be releasing today. The game has been produced by the company behind Watch Dogs 2, Ubisoft. And just like the first instalment of the game, the Division 2 will be a third-person shooter with choice-based action. Unlike the previous game which was set in New York, the Division 2 is set in Washington DC and the players would team up once again to battle it out with other factions and the main bosses of the game along with fighting with the infected. Also, The Dark Zone makes its return in the Division 2 where players would be fighting against players. There is also a multiplayer mode in the game.
The makers of Bloodborne and Dark Souls have come up with another hack and slash game which will be released on March 22. Since it is from the creators of ‘one of the most difficult games’ Dark Souls series, the players could expect Sekiro to be really tough to win. The game is set in 16th Century Japan and you will play as a Shinobi. And since it is from the same creators, the game is going to be hard to beat, and the player may have to die many times. But the creators of the game have said that even death has a part to play in the game. So, it would be interesting to see what kind of game Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice will be and how does it hold up against Dark Souls.
Mortal Kombat will be another classic which will be getting another instalment added to the series with Mortal Kombat 11. The game is developed by the same NetherRealm Studios and published by Warner Bros. It is set to release on April 23. Mortal Kombat 11 will somewhat be different than its predecessors as we would be fighting with two versions of the same character, as seen in the gameplay trailer released by the company. The game will also be bringing back Cassie Cage, Jacqui Briggs, and Erron Black to its wide roaster of characters. Mortal Kombat is known for its bloody and gory, over-the-top fighting action and the 11th instalment won’t be any different. The company had released its trailer previous month where we got to see Raiden going up against Scorpion in a bloody and gory fight. And we couldn’t wait to get out hands on the controller to get that sweet Fatality.
The Sinking City is the upcoming action-adventure horror mystery game developed by Frogwares. It will be releasing on June 27. The game is set in the fictional Oakmont, Massacheusetes in the 1920s and the main point of the game is its Lovecraftian deities who have and will wreak havoc in the game. The game is set mainly underwater; thus, the name and you will be facing the Lovecraftian deities with nothing but guns and regular mortal weapons. The character you play will be a private investigator who will be caught between the web of conspiracies. The trailer of The Sinking City was mysterious and creepy and with the release of the game we would find out if it really is such mysterious as the trailer shows.
We found the design of the Honor View 20 to be very premium and the company has made efforts to make the smartphone look different from its rivals. One-handed usage is easy on the device as its curved sides make it comfortable to use. The rear panel of Honor View 20 smartphone is made of glass and its frame is made of metal. As we mentioned earlier, Honor View 20 smartphone has V-shaped patterns on its back panel that are visible only at certain angles. It adds a jazzy look to the design of the handset.
Besides this, the back panel of the smartphone houses the dual rear cameras. While one sensor is in one module alone, the other is coupled with the LED flash of the device. And they are placed horizontally rather than vertically. The fingerprint sensor and the Honor branding are also on the back of the handset. The power and the volume buttons of the Honor View 20 smartphone are placed on its right edge, while the SIM tray is on the left. On the top edge, you will see that the 3.5mm headphone jack, an IR emitter and an ambient light sensor are placed. At the bottom, the USB Type C port, the loudspeaker and the primary microphone of the handset are present.
The front panel of the Honor View 20 smartphone is dominated by a 6.4-inch full HD+ display that has a punch hole on the top left to house the selfie camera. We should mention that Honor View 20 is the first smartphone to launch in India to come with a display like this. Otherwise, we have seen devices with notches, sliders or pop-up cameras. Although we were apprehensive about the punch hole display hampering the video watching experience on Honor View 20, it surprisingly didn’t pose any issues during our time with the mobile. The primary reason for this is that the hole is located in the corner of the display so it didn’t hinder the experience too much. In fact, notches are more of a distraction than the hole.
We really liked the display of this smartphone. It showed bright colours that remained consistent at different viewing angles and projected sharp images. Never did the images or videos on Honor View 20‘s display lose clarity. Furthermore, there is an option of adjusting the colour temperature on the handset’s display, so you can make them warmer to keep your eyes protected. In addition to this, you can choose the option of ‘Smart Display’ so that the resolution of the smartphone can be reduced to HD+ (automatically) to save power.
To sum it up, we would say that the design and the display of Honor View 20 really impressed us. The look and feel were very refreshing and premium. The display kept us hooked to our handset as we couldn’t stop watching our favourite shows on it, too.
Next thing to notice is that the smartphone does not come with an in-display fingerprint sensor. It has a physical fingerprint scanner and comes with face unlock, too. However, we personally didn’t find it to be an issue as we have a preference for physical fingerprint scanners over in-display fingerprint sensors since they don’t really match up to them in terms of accuracy. The face unlock of the smartphone worked perfectly in well-lit conditions, but in dimly lit areas, it at times failed to unlock the smartphone.
We ran a few benchmark tests on the smartphone. While it scored 3,237 and 8,693 in Single and Multi-core scores on Geekbench, in Antutu it scored 2,57,424.
Coming to gaming, even heavy games like PUBG Mobile or Asphalt 9: Legends ran well on the smartphone. If you are someone who loves to spend hours playing games on your smartphone, Honor View 20 wouldn’t disappoint you. And it was a sheer cakewalk to play games like Temple Run 2 and Alto’s Odessey on this mobile device.
However, we must add that at times, when we used the mobile phone for heavy games and navigation, it did heat up a bit, like most other handsets with a glass back panel.
Coming to the 4,000mAh battery of the smartphone, it takes about an hour to be charged completely. And with usage that involves Google Maps, gaming, watching YouTube videos, and using social media apps, the battery lasted more than a day.
Moving on to the cameras of the smartphone, Honor View 20 sports a 48MP primary shooter coupled with a TOF 3D camera. The camera app of Honor View 20 smartphone comes with a regular photo and video modes, AR Lens, Night, Pro, Portrait, Aperture, Panorama, Artist and HDR modes. The images taken by Honor View 20 turned out to be superb. Although the camera is set on 12MP by default, you can adjust the settings to click images that are 48MP in resolution. This is something that we also saw in Huawei Mate 20 Pro.
We clicked some Portrait shots and some shots with HDR mode on, and in both cases, we were happy with the results that we got. In the Portrait mode, there is an option of slimming the person down and making them look thinner by adding beauty modifications.
We simply loved the selfie camera of the device. To test how it works in conditions where there is literally no light, we clicked some pictures in a cinema hall. And our selfies turned out to be great, even without AI and beauty mode on. When we enabled them, the images became even better. In daylight, the shots taken were obviously better than the ones taken in dimly-lit areas.
We found the design of the Honor View 20 to be very premium and the company has made efforts to make the smartphone look different from its rivals. One-handed usage is easy on the device as its curved sides make it comfortable to use. The rear panel of Honor View 20 smartphone is made of glass and its frame is made of metal. As we mentioned earlier, Honor View 20 smartphone has V-shaped patterns on its back panel that are visible only at certain angles. It adds a jazzy look to the design of the handset.
Besides this, the back panel of the smartphone houses the dual rear cameras. While one sensor is in one module alone, the other is coupled with the LED flash of the device. And they are placed horizontally rather than vertically. The fingerprint sensor and the Honor branding are also on the back of the handset. The power and the volume buttons of the Honor View 20 smartphone are placed on its right edge, while the SIM tray is on the left. On the top edge, you will see that the 3.5mm headphone jack, an IR emitter and an ambient light sensor are placed. At the bottom, the USB Type C port, the loudspeaker and the primary microphone of the handset are present.
The front panel of the Honor View 20 smartphone is dominated by a 6.4-inch full HD+ display that has a punch hole on the top left to house the selfie camera. We should mention that Honor View 20 is the first smartphone to launch in India to come with a display like this. Otherwise, we have seen devices with notches, sliders or pop-up cameras. Although we were apprehensive about the punch hole display hampering the video watching experience on Honor View 20, it surprisingly didn’t pose any issues during our time with the mobile. The primary reason for this is that the hole is located in the corner of the display so it didn’t hinder the experience too much. In fact, notches are more of a distraction than the hole.
We really liked the display of this smartphone. It showed bright colours that remained consistent at different viewing angles and projected sharp images. Never did the images or videos on Honor View 20‘s display lose clarity. Furthermore, there is an option of adjusting the colour temperature on the handset’s display, so you can make them warmer to keep your eyes protected. In addition to this, you can choose the option of ‘Smart Display’ so that the resolution of the smartphone can be reduced to HD+ (automatically) to save power.
To sum it up, we would say that the design and the display of Honor View 20 really impressed us. The look and feel were very refreshing and premium. The display kept us hooked to our handset as we couldn’t stop watching our favourite shows on it, too.
Coming to the software of the smartphone, it has a number of customisations. Although Android 9.0 Pie skinned with Magic UI is present, we should point out that it looks a lot like EMUI. The UI has been designed so that using the device with punch hole display remains a smooth experience. So, you will see that all the notifications on the display are placed on the right instead of the centre.
The Honor View 20 smartphone also comes with Digital Balance, that we earlier saw on Huawei Mate 20 Pro. The feature lets you manage how much time you spend on your smartphone. You can also opt for gesture navigation and a navigation dock instead of using the usual Android navigation buttons. We should add here that the navigation dock is actually a single floating button on the display of the smartphone that can be used to navigate.
The device had some pre-installed apps including Honor Club, Party Mode, HiCare, Camera360, Vigo Video, Facebook, Facebook Messenger, and Netflix. We should mention that some apps that are the company’s own cannot be uninstalled.
Speaking of the performance of the smartphone, we were really impressed by it. The combination of the Kirin 980 SoC and 6GB RAM managed to pull off some very heavy-duty tasks on the Honor View 20. We could easily launch and switch between a number of apps and even when we had 7-8 apps running in the background, we noticed no lag in the smartphone’s performance. We often used the Honor View 20 smartphone for multitasking like playing games and using it for navigation at the same time. Sometimes, we even watched shows on Netflix while using the device for getting directions to a certain place. Honor View 20 handled it all well.
Next thing to notice is that the smartphone does not come with an in-display fingerprint sensor. It has a physical fingerprint scanner and comes with face unlock, too. However, we personally didn’t find it to be an issue as we have a preference for physical fingerprint scanners over in-display fingerprint sensors since they don’t really match up to them in terms of accuracy. The face unlock of the smartphone worked perfectly in well-lit conditions, but in dimly lit areas, it at times failed to unlock the smartphone.
We ran a few benchmark tests on the smartphone. While it scored 3,237 and 8,693 in Single and Multi-core scores on Geekbench, in Antutu it scored 2,57,424.
Coming to gaming, even heavy games like PUBG Mobile or Asphalt 9: Legends ran well on the smartphone. If you are someone who loves to spend hours playing games on your smartphone, Honor View 20 wouldn’t disappoint you. And it was a sheer cakewalk to play games like Temple Run 2 and Alto’s Odessey on this mobile device.
However, we must add that at times, when we used the mobile phone for heavy games and navigation, it did heat up a bit, like most other handsets with a glass back panel.
Coming to the 4,000mAh battery of the smartphone, it takes about an hour to be charged completely. And with usage that involves Google Maps, gaming, watching YouTube videos, and using social media apps, the battery lasted more than a day.
Moving on to the cameras of the smartphone, Honor View 20 sports a 48MP primary shooter coupled with a TOF 3D camera. The camera app of Honor View 20 smartphone comes with a regular photo and video modes, AR Lens, Night, Pro, Portrait, Aperture, Panorama, Artist and HDR modes. The images taken by Honor View 20 turned out to be superb. Although the camera is set on 12MP by default, you can adjust the settings to click images that are 48MP in resolution. This is something that we also saw in Huawei Mate 20 Pro.
In well-lit conditions, the images were clear and sharp and had very accurate colours. When we enabled AI, there was a very visible difference as the contrast became higher and more details were added to the images.
In low-light, the images turned out to be good too. We even clicked some pictures in a room that had literally no light at all, and still, the shots turned out to be great. Enabling AI made the shots taken in dimly lit areas better too.
We clicked some Portrait shots and some shots with HDR mode on, and in both cases, we were happy with the results that we got. In the Portrait mode, there is an option of slimming the person down and making them look thinner by adding beauty modifications.
We simply loved the selfie camera of the device. To test how it works in conditions where there is literally no light, we clicked some pictures in a cinema hall. And our selfies turned out to be great, even without AI and beauty mode on. When we enabled them, the images became even better. In daylight, the shots taken were obviously better than the ones taken in dimly-lit areas.
As a whole, you can say it has one of the best cameras on it in this price range. If you are a photography lover, you would not be disappointed at all.
The app’s description on Play Store reads, “Lookout uses the camera and sensors on your device to recognize objects and text, and gives you spoken feedback, earcons, and other signals to inform you about what it sees.”
Currently, the Lookout app will work on the original Pixel along with Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 3 smartphones running Android 8.0 Oreo or higher.
Other than Google, Microsoft also offers something similar to Lookout. Microsoft’s app is called Soundscape and it is also aimed for the use of visually challenged people. But Soundscape is available only for the iOS compared to Lookout for Android. Microsoft has another app which performs similar function named Seeing AI, but it too is exclusively for the iOS platform only.
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Also, it should be noted that Black Shark is planning to enter the Indian market and it has also planned to set up its headquarters in Bengaluru, India. Earlier, the company sold its devices only in China and Europe but now seeing the popularity of mobile gaming in India the company is bringing the gaming smartphone brand to India. In the coming months, the company is expected to release Black Shark 1 and Black Shark Helo, both released in 2018 for the European and Chinese markets. And with the launch of Black Shark 2 we might get to see the second iteration of Black Shark in India as well.
Also, it should be noted that Black Shark is planning to enter the Indian market and it has also planned to set up its headquarters in Bengaluru, India. Earlier, the company sold its devices only in China and Europe but now seeing the popularity of mobile gaming in India the company is bringing the gaming smartphone brand to India. In the coming months, the company is expected to release Black Shark 1 and Black Shark Helo, both released in 2018 for the European and Chinese markets. And with the launch of Black Shark 2 we might get to see the second iteration of Black Shark in India as well.
That’s not all. There were users who took to social media to say that when they attempted to sign in to apps like Tinder and Spotify using Facebook, they couldn’t do that successfully. When they tried, an error popped up saying that the feature isn’t available right now. However, the ones who had already signed into Spotify were not logged out because of the outage.
That’s not all. There were users who took to social media to say that when they attempted to sign in to apps like Tinder and Spotify using Facebook, they couldn’t do that successfully. When they tried, an error popped up saying that the feature isn’t available right now. However, the ones who had already signed into Spotify were not logged out because of the outage.
Let’s face it: It’s far harder for a player to attack you when you are only peeking from behind an object than when you actually come out to shoot. This is because they have to aim at your head rather than aiming anywhere on your body. So, if you haven’t already, turn the option on by going to Settings > Basic and selecting Enable Peek & Fire.
Would you rather just focus on the game or repeatedly tap on the screen to pick your loot? We bet you would rather do the former. If you turn on Auto Pick-Up by going to Settings > Pick Up and then selecting ‘Enable Auto Pick-Up’, you will be able to collect guns and ammo by just walking over them.
Although most people believe that the more ammo they have, the better it is for them, we should mention that there is a limit to how much inventory can be carried when you are playing PUBG Mobile. So basically, there is a limit on the number of rounds you can carry it. But on the upside, you can adjust this too. There are different limits for different guns and we recommend selecting as many rounds as you can. Go to Settings > Pick Up and then set the limits for each weapon.
In PUBG Mobile, the default field of view is 90 degrees. However, some people say that increasing this gives you a better view of the map. If you want to try this, you can head to Settings > Basic and make the change in 1st Person Camera View.
PUBG Mobile recommends certain graphics settings for every smartphone in order to get the best performance. However, there is no reason for you to stick to it as there are times when you find your device performing better at settings different from the ones that have been recommended. So, head to Settings > Graphics, and try out various settings till you find the one that works the best on your smartphone. We also suggest that you change the frame rate to maximum.
To change the controls in PUBG Mobile, head to Settings > Controls > Customise. You will find this option on the bottom left in the Controls menu. Once you do this, you will be able to place all the buttons in the game wherever you think you’ll be able to access them easily.
In most shooting games, crosshair enables you to aim your weapon. And in PUBG Mobile, you can choose its colour so that it is easier for you to spot. For doing this, go to Settings > Basic and select the crosshair colour of your choice.
Let’s face it: It’s far harder for a player to attack you when you are only peeking from behind an object than when you actually come out to shoot. This is because they have to aim at your head rather than aiming anywhere on your body. So, if you haven’t already, turn the option on by going to Settings > Basic and selecting Enable Peek & Fire.
Would you rather just focus on the game or repeatedly tap on the screen to pick your loot? We bet you would rather do the former. If you turn on Auto Pick-Up by going to Settings > Pick Up and then selecting ‘Enable Auto Pick-Up’, you will be able to collect guns and ammo by just walking over them.
Although most people believe that the more ammo they have, the better it is for them, we should mention that there is a limit to how much inventory can be carried when you are playing PUBG Mobile. So basically, there is a limit on the number of rounds you can carry it. But on the upside, you can adjust this too. There are different limits for different guns and we recommend selecting as many rounds as you can. Go to Settings > Pick Up and then set the limits for each weapon.
In PUBG Mobile, the default field of view is 90 degrees. However, some people say that increasing this gives you a better view of the map. If you want to try this, you can head to Settings > Basic and make the change in 1st Person Camera View.
PUBG Mobile recommends certain graphics settings for every smartphone in order to get the best performance. However, there is no reason for you to stick to it as there are times when you find your device performing better at settings different from the ones that have been recommended. So, head to Settings > Graphics, and try out various settings till you find the one that works the best on your smartphone. We also suggest that you change the frame rate to maximum.
Head to Settings > Quick Chat and then select Add New Messages. This will enable you to communicate more quickly with your teammates and will also prove to useful if you want to avoid voice chat.
To do this, you have to head to Settings > Graphics. Then, just select the visuals that you want to use in the game. You can pick from classic, colourful, realistic, or soft. We should mention that this changes the colour tone of the game. Choosing the one that works the best with your smartphone will help you identify enemies more easily.
To change the controls in PUBG Mobile, head to Settings > Controls > Customise. You will find this option on the bottom left in the Controls menu. Once you do this, you will be able to place all the buttons in the game wherever you think you’ll be able to access them easily.
If you are a beginner, this is a tip you must follow. Turning your mic and speaker off once you enter the game will help you focus on sharpening your skills. After a while, you would be able to chat as you are playing.
In most shooting games, crosshair enables you to aim your weapon. And in PUBG Mobile, you can choose its colour so that it is easier for you to spot. For doing this, go to Settings > Basic and select the crosshair colour of your choice.