Goodbye Google Allo: How to download your chat history and media from Google’s instant messaging app?

Aman Singh
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Goodbye Google Allo: How to download your chat history and media from Google’s instant messaging app?
Instant messaging app Google Allo is shutting down today. The company has announced that Google Allo, which was launched back in 2016 alongside Google Duo will be shutting down today as the service never gained enough attention and user base. There weren’t many people who used the chatting app from Google except the ones who used it as an option to save and download all their chat history and media uploaded on the app. Google has also published a small tutorial through which people could download their chat history and data from the app before it is officially shut down.

Steps to download data and chat history from Google Allo:

  • To download the media and chat history from your Google Allo account, you need to have the latest version of Google Allo installed on your device (Android or iPhone).
  • After opening the app, head to the Menu option and then click on Settings.
  • Once in the Settings menu, click on the ‘Chat’ option. Once clicked, you will see two options – ‘Export messages from chats’ and ‘Export stored media from chats’. It should be noted that the ‘export messages’ will only include the text messages; and the media exchanged will not be included when this option is clicked. To get the media and photos the user needs to click the ‘Export stored media from chats’.
  • Once clicked on any of the two options, you will be asked if you want to save the file on your device, and then it will be downloaded.
The media on Google Allo is saved in CSV file format which includes the chat details. The details include the Conversation name, ID of the user, the sender of the message, type of message, and content of the message. The downloaded file is saved in a ZIP file (compressed). Google also mentioned on its support page that along with deleting the Google Allo app the company will be deleting all the user’s messages and media. Google won’t store any messages or user data from the app, even the incognito messages will be deleted. But it should be kept in mind that the chat’s backups saved on Google Drive or iCloud accounts will not be readable after the deletion of the app and the users would have to delete the backups manually. Google support page writes “We’re saying goodbye to Allo on March 12, 2019.” Besides Google Allo, Inbox by Gmail and Google’s URL shortner named Goo.gl will also be discontinued by the end of the month.
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2019 Lok Sabha elections: How to enroll for your Voter ID card online

Gadget Bridge Bureau
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2019 Lok Sabha elections: How to enroll for your Voter ID card online
2019 will see the 17th Lok Sabha elections in India. And the dates of the Lok Sabha and some state Assembly elections have finally been announced by the Election Commission of India. Sunil Arora, Chief Elections Commissioner of India has announced that the elections for the 17th Lok Sabha will be held in seven-phased and will begin on April 11 and go on till May 19. The counting will be held later on May 23. It has further also been said that nearly 90 crore voters are eligible to vote this time for 543 Lok Sabha constituencies in India. Voting is a right that every Indian citizen above who is above the age of 18 years has (the person should be 18 years in age on January 1 of the year of revision of electoral roll). But then, you must have your Voter ID card for it. If you don’t have your voter’s ID card, you check our step-by-step guide to know how you can apply for it online. But first, check out the list of requirements here. To be an eligible voter in India, you need to be:
  • An Indian citizen.
  • Be 18 years old on the qualifying date – 1st of January of the year of revision of electoral roll.
  • Be a resident of the part/polling area of the constituency where you want to be enrolled.
  • Other than this, you must not be previously disqualified to be enrolled as an elector.
If you fulfil all these criteria, you can go here on National Voter’s Service Portal to see if you are registered to vote. If your name does not appear in the list, you need to register to vote. Here are the forms you should know about in case you have to register yourself as a voter or get information about yourself changed:
  • If you are a general voter, a first-time voter or a voter who has shifted his constituency, you would have to fill the Form 6.
  • If you are an NRI voter, you would have to fill the Form 6A.
  • In case you want to request for Deletion or Objection in electoral roll fill Form 7.
  • And in case you want to get any information changed like name, photo, age, address, gender, etc, you can fill Form 8 to do it.
  • In case of shifting from one place of residence to another place of residence within the same constituency, fill Form 8A.
If you are a first-time voter and want to get your Voter ID online, follow these steps:
  • Go to Election Commission of India’s official website.
  • Click on National Voters Services Portal.
  • Select the option of ‘Apply online for registration of new voter’.
  • Enter the required details and upload the documents you are asked for. (The required documents include a passport sized photograph, an identity proof, and address proof.)
  • Press on ‘Submit’.
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Apple’s 2019 iPad to come with a 3.5mm headphone jack and Touch ID: Report

Aman Singh
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0
Apple’s 2019 iPad to come with a 3.5mm headphone jack and Touch ID: Report
Apple will be taking the stage later this year to announce the seventh-generation of its entry-level iPad model. The new iPad is expected to hold the same design aspects as its predecessors. The newest generation of iPad will have the Touch ID and a 3.5mm headphone jack which, we should mention, was absent from the last year’s iPad Pro. In 2018, the Cupertino-based company had introduced a 9.7-inch iPad with Apple Pencil support and without much physical changes over its predecessors. This year too, the company is expected to continue with the same design elements. Outer elements aside, the upcoming entry-level iPad model is expected to hold new internals while keeping the same look and most importantly, it will be focused towards the education sector. This also means that the new 2019 iPad won’t be having some of the features we saw on the earlier top-end iPad Pro models. According to a report from Macotakara, Apple will most probably retain the same enclosure for the iPad as last year’s iPad. The report further mentions that the company hasn’t finalised the screen size of the upcoming iPad and it could also bring a 10-inch iPad instead of the 9.7-inch model. Also, when launching the new entry-level iPad, the company could also launch a new iPad mini model.
But there is still no official news from Apple if it will be keeping the Lightning port or will switch to USB Type-C for the upcoming iPad Pro 2019 models. But it is almost certain that the newer models of the iPad will be powered by a new processor. Early reports about the iPad indicates that the upcoming iPad Mini 5 come with looks that are similar to its predecessor and could be also launched in the first half of the 2019. Apple’s release of its iOS 12.2 beta earlier also hinted that the new iPad and iPad mini models would not have the company’s Face ID. A previous report mentions that Apple might be holding a launch event in March, where it would be unveiling its new Airpods 2 alongside the much-awaited video streaming platform. Also, the company is expected to launch its news subscription service on March 25. For the latest gadget and tech news, and gadget reviews, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. For newest tech & gadget videos subscribe to our YouTube Channel.

A 15-year old Jalandhar boy steals Rs 50,000 from his father’s account to buy PUBG skins

Aman Singh
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A 15-year old Jalandhar boy steals Rs 50,000 from his father’s account to buy PUBG skins
PUBG Mobile has garnered tremendous popularity for both good and bad reasons. There are PUBG fans who are completely hooked to the game and there are those who are addicted to the extent that their personal lives are effected. And it seems like negative news about PUBG Mobile in India is not going to stop.  Last week, the wildly-popular online multiplayer battle-royale was banned in Rajkot, prior to which it saw a ban in Gujarat’s primary schools. And now a new report has been surfaced which suggests that a 15-year old boy from Jalandhar, Punjab stole Rs 50,000 from his father’s account to buy PUBG skins and other gaming accessories. According to the report, the teenager stole the money to buy a gaming pad for his smartphone and skins on PUBG Mobile. The father of the boy works as a bike mechanic and he did not realize the missing money from his account as there was no OTP messages or not transaction messages received by him. When he found out the missing money, he filed a police complaint.
The police further investigated the matter, the transaction details came into light when the cyber cell launched an investigation into the matter. It was then found out that the money was transferred to a Paytm account from his bank account and the transferred money was used to buy the PUBG skins and other gaming items. Later, the police found out that the man’s 15-year old son had taken the money making him the culprit. The boy had transferred the money to his friend’s Paytm account during the night. The boy even went on to delete the OTP message from his father’s phone to remove the suspicion. When it was found out that the boy was the culprit, his father dropped the charges. It should be noted that, PUBG skins are the clothing and extra equipment’s you can get by paying some amount of money to the game through Google Play Store or App Store. The skins don’t do anything other than change the appearance of the virtual character in the PUBG Mobile game. With the growth of our reliance on digital devices and internet for basic necessities, it has become extremely important to stay on the safer side of the internet. You can protect your banking, Paytm and other money-related apps with password and PIN codes so that no one other than you can get access of it. These passwords are particularly a must-have if your children access your smartphone on a regular basis.
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BSNL introduces new prepaid recharge plan of Rs 599 in select cities

Aman Singh
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BSNL introduces new prepaid recharge plan of Rs 599 in select cities
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has launched its new prepaid recharge plan of Rs 599 which gives customers unlimited voice calling benefits for 180 days (6 months). The new recharge plan is not a Pan-India plan as it is initially available in select circles only. But it should be noted that the recharge offers only voice calling, and there is no unlimited high-speed data benefit on the recharge of the new plan. The new recharge plan also comes with validity extension benefits which means that the plan will help you extend the validity of your current account by 180 days. The new recharge plan is available for telecom network subscribers only, with the exception of Mumbai and New Delhi. As the state-owned telecom operator recently had discounted five of its data-only recharge plans in select cities. The recharge plans include Rs 549, Rs 561, Rs 2,798, Rs 3,998, and Rs 4,498. Also, the new prepaid recharge plan of Rs 599 in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana circles gives the users unlimited local, STD and roaming calls on any network except the Mumbai and New Delhi circles for 180 days. The plan was first spotted by Telecom Talk and currently the plan is only available for users of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
It should be noted that, BSNL had discounted five of its long-validity, data-only prepaid recharge plans in select circles last month. The discounted plans include plans of Rs 549 which offered 2GB data benefits for 60 days while the Rs 561 data plan offered data benefits of 1GB with 80 days validity. Other than that, the state-owned company also discounted its Rs 2,798, Rs 3,998, and Rs 4,498 data plans with 365 days validity. Also, in February, BSNL introduced and revised many post-paid plan to increase the data limit, the company also changed and revised its FTTH plan. Last month, it also added a new plan of Rs 2,499 for their broadband users which offered 40GB data limit. Similarly, other post-paid plans were also introduced with Rs 525 and Rs 725. With Rs 525 post-paid plan, BSNL is offering 40GB of data benefit during the rental period, which was 15GB earlier. While on the post-paid recharge of Rs 725, users will get 50GB of data benefit during the rental period. For the latest gadget and tech news, and gadget reviews, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. For newest tech & gadget videos subscribe to our YouTube Channel.

Huawei Watch GT with 14-days battery life launched in India: Price and specifications

Avani Bagga
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Huawei Watch GT with 14-days battery life launched in India: Price and specifications
Chinese consumer electronics maker Huawei unveiled its smartwatch – Huawei Watch GT – along with its flagship Mate 20 Pro. Although the smartphone has been launched in India some weeks back, the company took wraps off its Huawei Watch GT smartwatch in India today. The device is touted to have a massive battery life that lasts 14 days, comes with water-resistance of up to 50 metres and also has a real-time heart rate monitoring feature. Here’s a look at the price and specifications of the Huawei Watch GT smartwatch:

Huawei Watch GT price and availability

The Huawei Watch GT has been launched in two variants in India – Sports Edition and Classic Edition. While the Huawei Watch GT’s Sports Edition is priced at Rs 15,990, the Classic Edition of the smartwatch costs Rs 16,990. Both the variants will go on sale exclusively on Amazon India’s website starting March 19.

Huawei Watch GT specifications

Huawei Watch GT runs the company’s own Light OS platform and is powered by Cortex-M4 processor. Among the key highlights of Huawei Watch GT is its battery life. The smartwatch’s battery is touted to last for 30 days with GPS and heart rate tracking off. If the user chooses to turn on the heart rate monitor, Huawei Watch GT’s battery will last for a fortnight. Even if the usage is very heavy and the user chooses to switch on the GPS, the heart rate tracking and keeps the screen in ‘Always On’ mode, Huawei Watch GT’s battery will still last for 22 hours, the company claims. The smartwatch features a 1.39-inch AMOLED display and sports a dual crown. Huawei Watch GT is made of 316L stainless steel clubbed with ceramic bezels. The smartwatch comes with 5ATM water resistance, which means that it can work perfectly in up to 50 metres of water. So, you can easily take it for a swim with yourself. Huawei Watch GT has 12MB of RAM and 128MB of internal ROM. It is compatible with devices that run Android 4.4 or higher and iOS 9.0 or more. The smartwatch also has an optical heart rate sensor that uses 6LEDs and is backed by the company’s TruSeen 3.0 technology. Huawei has claimed that TruSeen 3.0 technology makes the device learn over time about the usage pattern to give users a more personalised experience. Huawei Watch GT comes with built-in GPS and can be used to track users’ daily activities while being connected to Health Assistant app. The device can also be used to track sleep and steps.
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Honor 8X will receive the EMUI 9.0 update based on Android 9.0 Pie starting March 18

Aman Singh
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0
Honor 8X will receive the EMUI 9.0 update based on Android 9.0 Pie starting March 18
Chinese smartphone brand Honor had promised that it will roll out the latest EMUI 9.0 update for its Honor 8X handset. The company has kept its promise and has announced that it will begin rolling out the update for Honor 8X users starting March 18. To recall, the smartphone was launched back in October 2018 and it came with Android 8.0 Oreo out-of-the-box with EMUI 8.2.0.  But now, the Honor 8X will be receiving the latest EMUI 9.0 based on Android 9.0 Pie. The update will roll out to the devices in a phased manner, and since it is a staged rollout it would take some time for the update to reach to all of the Honor 8X devices. The new update brings new features and a newer UI design that we have seen earlier in Android 9.0 Pie. One among the new features is Digital Balance, which helps the users track their smartphone habits. The Digital Balance sets an app usage timer to help and monitor the time the user is spending on the smartphone and also on the apps. It shows what app has the highest usage time and which app has the lowest and hence, the feature lets users curb their smartphone usage. The feature is already present on the Honor’s flagship smartphone, the Honor View 20, and users reported that the feature was extremely useful.
Along with features, the new update should also update the security patch of the Honor 8X with the latest patch. The details of the security patch are currently not known. The company also mentioned that the update will also support the AR scanning combined with image recognition technology which helps users identify an item and purchase it. In short, the feature is called the ‘reverse image search’ which lets the user identify an image and search about the details about the image online. The search uses an image for the search rather than words and sentences. Honor announced about Honor 8X getting the Android Pie update alongside the Honor Days Sale currently going live on Amazon India. During the sale five of Honor smartphones are being offered for a discounted price namely – Honor 8X, Honor 8C, Honor Play, Honor 7C and Honor View 20. During the five days’ sale (March 11 – March 15), the Honor 8X is getting Rs 4,000 discount on its original prices on both its variants. During the sale, the 4GB RAM/64GB storage is selling for Rs 13,999 while the 6GB RAM/64GB storage is selling for Rs 15,999.
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Oppo A5s specifications, render leaked: Here’s what has been revealed

Gadget Bridge Bureau
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Oppo A5s specifications, render leaked: Here’s what has been revealed
Chinese smartphone brand Oppo’s budget range is all set to get a new member – Oppo A5s. According to a recent report, the company is planning to launch the Oppo A5s, which is basically the successor of Oppo A3s smartphone and a slightly revamped version of the Oppo A5. A render of the upcoming smartphone has surfaced online and it has given us an insight into some of the main specifications of Oppo A5s. The render, that was first published by technology website MySmartPrice, shows an updated version of the Oppo A5 smartphone, that was launched in India in August last year. Along with the render, the report also talks about some specifications of the upcoming smartphone. The device can be seen to sport a waterdrop-shaped notch on the top of its display, and that also means that it has a greater screen-to-body ratio. A fingerprint sensor can also be seen on the back panel of the smartphone.
Coming to the specifications of the smartphone, Oppo A5s is reportedly 8.2mm thick and is said to weigh around 170 grams. According to the report, the smartphone will be available in Red, Black, Gold, and Green colour variants. However, as of now, we don’t know which among these would make it to India. Oppo A5s will reportedly be powered by MediaTek Helio P35 octa-core SoC that will be clubbed with 2GB/3GB/4GB of RAM. The device is expected to come with either 32GB or 64GB internal storage and will have support for a microSD card. According to the report, Oppo A5s will feature a 6.2-inch HD+ display, and as of now, we don’t know if it will be protected by the likes of Gorilla Glass for scratch protection. At the back, Oppo A5s will reportedly sport a dual rear camera setup that will comprise of a 13MP primary sensor with an f/2.2 aperture and a 2MP depth-sensor with an f/2.4 aperture. For selfies and video calls, there will be an 8MP front-facing snapper with an f/2.0 aperture. Oppo A5s will house a 4,230mah battery and will run Android Oreo skinned with ColorOS 5.2. Currently, there is no word on the launch date of the device, so we will have to wait a little more before we get an update.
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Apple confirms March 25 event: Here’s what to expect

Avani Bagga
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Apple confirms March 25 event: Here’s what to expect
It’s official. Apple is holding a special event on March 25 and has sent out media invitations for the same. The invitation that has been sent by Apple says, “It’s show time.” It further mentions that the special event will be held at Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino on March 25 and will begin at 10 am. We should mention that the event was speculated last month when a report in BuzzFeed News claimed that Apple is planning to launch its own news subscription service. Another rumour that has been circulating online says that the Cupertino-based technology giant is planning to unveil a Netflix-like streaming service. It is worth noticing that in the last few months, the company has made a number of content deals and these include the ones that involve the creation of shows. In fact, some of the shows like Carpool Karaoke are already available via Apple Music. However, some are not available yet and these are the ones for which Apple has made deals with celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, M Night Shyamalan and Steven Spielberg.
By foraying into the streaming business, Apple will be competing with Netflix, Amazon‘s Prime Video service, Disney’s upcoming Disney+ service, the DC Universe service among others. We should add that Apple’s plans for launching a news service are very likely, as they are completely in-line with the company’s acquisition of news subscription aggregator Texture. So, we wouldn’t be wrong to expect the service to launch on March 25. Some reports about Apple’s upcoming news service claims that publishers are not very happy with what the technology giant is offering them in the deal. Apple reportedly plans to claim half of the proceeds of the subscription fee that will cost users $10 per month. Only the other half will be given to publishers, and that too will be based on how many people read their stories. So, the launch of Apple’s news service on March 25 is completely based on whether or not the company has settled this disagreement with publishers. We personally think that the launch of both the services is possible, but we are definitely not expecting the event to be focussed on hardware.
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Oppo’s sub-brand Reno to launch its first smartphone in China on April 10

Aman Singh
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Oppo’s sub-brand Reno to launch its first smartphone in China on April 10

It’s no longer new for Chinese smartphone brands to come up with their own sub-brands. Huawei, Vivo and Xiaomi already have their sub-brands. Oppo also launched its Realme sub-brand, but that later became a separate company. And now, Oppo has unveiled its new sub-brand in China named Reno. And soon, the company will release a smartphone on April 10 under the newly-launched Reno sub-brand. Other than the launch date of the smartphone and its name, little information about the device is available.

Oppo has also shared the logo of its upcoming brand, and considering that Reno’s symbol has a fun and youth-centric vibe, we expect the smartphones launched under the sub-brand to be aimed at millennials. If this is true then the smartphones launched with Reno’s branding will be priced aggressively and come with powerful features.

Brian Shen, Oppo’s Vice President shared Reno’s logo on Chinese social networking platform Weibo. The logo is colourful and packs an abstract design. Oppo has confirmed that Reno’s debut smartphone will launch on April 10 in China. Also, Shen shared on Weibo that Oppo will introduce a new product line in April that will be appealing to the global audience. In the photo he shared, it is hinted that the upcoming Reno smartphone will have dual-rear cameras at the back.

As we mentioned earlier, the company had already launched its sub-brand in India named Realme, which is now an independent company. When launched, Realme brought out smartphones with aggressive pricing and had features which other smartphone companies offered at a price higher than Realme’s. Realme 1 is a good example of a smartphone in the budget range launched to take on higher-priced rivals. Even though Realme has become an independent brand now, the smartphones it offers follow the same principles. In July 2018, Realme decided to go independent and it separated itself from the Chinese smartphone maker Oppo. Sky Li became the head of Realme who was the former senior executive and head of Oppo India.

And with the launch of Reno in China, the company could be looking for another sub-brand strategy.

Oppo is reportedly working on its next flagship smartphone which will be powered by the Snapdragon 855 SoC and have 10x optical zoom. The company has already showcased its 10x optical zoom at MWC 2019. The smartphone was also spotted on AnTuTU listing and it was rumoured that the smartphone will be called the Oppo Find Z. The upcoming smartphone might have a 4,065mAh battery.

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Realme 3 to go on sale for the first time on Flipkart, Realme’s online shop starting at 12 noon today

Avani Bagga
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Realme 3 to go on sale for the first time on Flipkart, Realme’s online shop starting at 12 noon today
Chinese smartphone brand Realme recently launched its Realme 3 smartphone in India. Realme 3 is the successor of Realme 2 smartphone and it comes with features like waterdrop-shaped display notch and a dual camera setup on its back panel. The latest smartphone by Realme competes with Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 7 handset, that was also launched in the country recently. If you have made your choice between the two and decided to buy the Realme 3 smartphone, you will be happy to know that the device is all set to go on sale for the first time in India today. Here’s a look at the price, availability and specifications of the newly-launched Realme 3 smartphone:

Realme 3 price and availability

While the 3GB RAM/32GB storage version of the Realme 3 smartphone is priced at Rs 8,999, the 4GB RAM/64GB internal storage model costs Rs 10,999. The smartphone can be bought starting today via Flipkart and Realme’s online store. The sale will begin on March 12. As a part of launch offers, Realme has partnered with Reliance Jio to offer data benefits of worth Rs 5,300.

Realme 3 specifications

The Realme 3 smartphone features a 6.2-inch Dewdrop HD+ display that is protected by Gorilla Glass 3 and has an aspect ratio of 19:9. The newly launched device has a 3D gradient unibody design and can be bought in Dynamic Black, Radiant Blue, and Classic Black colours. Powered by 12nm Mediatek AI Master Helio P70 processor, the Realme 3 smartphone is available in either 3GB or 4GB RAM variants. While the former is paired with 32GB of onboard storage, the latter is coupled with 64GB of internal storage. Both the variants of the Realme 3 smartphone can hold a microSD card of up to 256GB. realme 3 For imaging duties, Realme 3 features a dual rear camera setup with a 13MP sensor and a 2MP sensor. Realme 3’s sensors have support for Nightscape and ChromeBoost modes. On the front, there is a 13MP selfie camera that has support for facial unlock. The newly-launched handset houses a 4,230mAh battery that has AI enhancements and comes with screen battery optimization. Realme 3 runs Android 9.0 Pie skinned with ColorOS 6.0 and is splash and dust resistant.
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Nokia 6.2 to launch this spring, will cost similar to predecessor: Report

Gadget Bridge Bureau
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Nokia 6.2 to launch this spring, will cost similar to predecessor: Report
HMD Global launched a number of smartphones at the recently concluded Mobile World Congress 2019 that was held in Barcelona, Spain. However, a device that was expected to launch but didn’t is Nokia 6.2 smartphone. However, some reports have surfaced online which claim that Nokia 6.2 smartphone will now be getting launched in springtime this year. Considering that Spring usually extends from March to June, we should expect the Nokia 6.2 smartphone to be launched very soon. However, since there is no formal confirmation, the launch timeline is speculative and we suggest you take it with a grain of salt. This news comes from a tipster on Twitter by the name of ‘Nokia anew’ and he also claims that the device will be priced close to the cost of Nokia 6.1 smartphone. As we mentioned earlier, he also said that HMD Global will be launching its Nokia 6.2 will be unveiled by the company in the forthcoming spring season. To recall, Nokia 6.1 smartphone was launched in India last year and its price started at Rs 16,999. As of now, the device is being sold at a discounted price of Rs 11,999 for the base variant that has 3GB RAM and 32GB storage, and the high-end model that comes with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage will cost Rs 13,999. As of now, not much is known about the specifications of the Nokia 6.2 smartphone. According to reports, the Nokia 6.2 smartphone will come with a punch-hole display design, house a dual rear camera setup and be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 632 processor clubbed with 4GB or 6GB of RAM. Speaking of Nokia 6.1 smartphone, it features a 5.5-inch full-HD (1080×1920 pixels) IPS display and is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 630 SoC. Although Nokia 6.1 mobile phone was launched with Android Oreo, it has been upgraded to Android Pie. Nokia 6.1 smartphone sports a 16MP camera with Zeiss optics and a dual-tone LED flash. For selfies and video calls, there is an 8MP front-facing snapper. The smartphone comes with 32GB and 64GB internal storage and houses a 3,000mAh battery.
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OnePlus 7 to launch along with true wireless earbuds, confirms CEO Pete Lau

Avani Bagga
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OnePlus 7 to launch along with true wireless earbuds, confirms CEO Pete Lau
Chinese smartphone brand OnePlus is expected to launch its OnePlus 7 smartphone soon. Reports and rumours about the upcoming device have been circulating online for a couple of months now and because of them, we know that OnePlus 7 is expected to come with a pop-up selfie camera and will be powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor. Recently, OnePlus CEO Pete Lau confirmed that OnePlus 7 will not come with support for wireless charging. And today, he has confirmed another feature about the device. According to Lau, OnePlus 7 would not come with a 3.5mm headphone jack as the company wants to elaborate its wireless audio capabilities with the upcoming flagship smartphone. He further added that the company wishes to polish its wireless headset experience, which basically means that we may get to see true wireless earbuds from OnePlus this year. However, we must add that till the time the company makes a formal announcement about the launch, this is just a speculation.
Lau took to Chinese social networking platform Weibo to confirm these plans and said that the removal of 3.5mm headphone jack from the flagship smartphones is a conscious decision. However, OnePlus CEO also believes that the wireless headset product line can be improved a lot before it is launched for the company’s fans. According to Lau, although the current product is “very good, it can be even more extreme.” It will be safe to assume that this basically means that the company is planning to launch a rival of Apple AirPods and the Samsung Galaxy Buds. As we mentioned earlier, a few days back, OnePlus CEO had also disclosed that the upcoming smartphone will not come with wireless charging. Instead, OnePlus 7 will come with the company’s own Warp Charging technology that was seen on OnePlus 6T McLaren Edition smartphone. Lau also had a good reason for this. He said that till the time wireless charging will be able to charge devices without causing them to heat up, it would not be seen in smartphones by OnePlus. Taking pride in the company’s Warp charging, he said, “OnePlus charging is one of the best. Wireless charging is far inferior.”
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Saregama launches Carvaan Mini Legends – Telugu: Price and specifications

Gadget Bridge Bureau
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Saregama launches Carvaan Mini Legends – Telugu: Price and specifications
Bluetooth speakers have always been loved by music lovers. While using headphones and earphones to listen to your favourite music can be fun, it is a much better experience when you can listen to it aloud at a high volume. Another factor that makes them better is the fact that they are very compact and easy to carry. So, you can also take them with you when you are going on a vacation. While there are a number of options available as far as Bluetooth speakers go, there aren’t many regional options that are there. However, Saregama has launched a new Bluetooth speaker for its Telugu audience. Dubbed Carvaan Mini Legends – Telugu, the newly launched Bluetooth speaker comes with a curated collection of 351 popular songs from a number of regional artists like Akkineni Nageswara Rao, NT Rama Rao, SP Balasubrahmanyam and Ghantasala. We should mention that even the original Carvaan Mini Legends Bluetooth speaker gets comes with regional retro and classical music and the company claims that it is used by millions of people.
Coming to the features of the new speaker, it comes with Bluetooth, USB and AUX and an entire collection of pre-loaded songs. Users can also tune into AM/FM using the device. The portable speaker comes with a four-hour battery back-up and the company is offering a warranty of six months on the device. Speaking on the launch of the newly launched speaker, Vikram Mehra, Managing Director, Saregama India said, “We are excited to launch yet another variant specific for the regional audience – Carvaan Mini Legends – Telugu. With handpicked collection of music, we are sure that the new variant too will win hearts of people.” If you are someone who speaks Telugu, or is just interested in Telugu music, Saregama’s Carvaan Mini Legends Telugu is a good way to listen to pre-loaded music of your choice and at the same time, you can listen to other music that you like by connecting the speaker to your smartphone via Bluetooth or AUX. You can also take it with yourself at a getaway where you intend to enjoy Telugu songs with others who have the same taste as you in music. The newly launched Carvaan Mini Legends – Telugu is priced at Rs 2,490 on the company’s website and at retail stores.
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Vivo S1 to sport a triple rear camera setup: Here are more leaked details

Aman Singh
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0
Vivo S1 to sport a triple rear camera setup: Here are more leaked details
Just days after Vivo V15 Pro was launched in India, details of the company’s S1 smartphone have surfaced online. The leaked smartphone – Vivo S1 – is reported to be the cheaper version of the company’s X27 handset, which is set to launch on March 19. Some of the details of the Vivo S1 includes a full-HD+ display with an octa-core processor. The leaked phone too will have a triple-rear camera setup with pop-up selfie camera like we saw on the Vivo V15 Pro. The upcoming Vivo S1 is said to carry a price tag of CNY 2,000 (approximately Rs 20,800). The news surfaced on Chinese social networking platform Weibo where the specifications and price of the phone was mentioned. Along with the specs, the image of the smartphone was also leaked showing its front and back sides. The images of Vivo S1 resembles the Vivo V15 Pro in terms of design. Talking about the specifications of the device, the Vivo S1 is reported to sport a 6.53-inch Full HD+ (1080 x 2340 pixels) IPS display with an aspect ratio of 19.5:9. It is said to have 6GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. The unannounced smartphone will be powered by octa-core MediaTek Helio P70 SoC.
As mentioned above, the Vivo S1 will reportedly come with a triple-rear camera setup with a 12MP primary sensor coupled with an 8MP secondary sensor and a 5MP sensor. The front-facing sensor is expected to be housed in the pop-up camera of 24.8MP sensor. Till now, Vivo didn’t launch any smartphones in S-series but if the leaked news is true then the upcoming Vivo S1 will be the first phone of the series. The Vivo S1 will most likely be released in China and then it might make its way to the Indian markets. Last week Vivo V15 was launched in Thailand and it carried a price-tag of THB 10,999 (approximately Rs 24,200) for the 6GB RAM and 128GB storage variant. There is no official news from the company about the Vivo S1. The company is going to release the Vivo X27 in the Chinese market on March 19. The Vivo X27 also comes with the triple rear camera setup and a pop-up selfie camera. So, we might see the unveiling of Vivo S1 at the same event. For the latest gadget and tech news, and gadget reviews, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. For newest tech & gadget videos subscribe to our YouTube Channel.

Honor Days sale: Discounts on Honor 8X, Honor 8C, Honor Play, Honor 7C and Honor View 20

Aman Singh
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0
Honor Days sale: Discounts on Honor 8X, Honor 8C, Honor Play, Honor 7C and Honor View 20
Chinese smartphone brand Honor is bringing back the Honor Days sale by collaborating with Amazon India. The sale will run from March 11 to March 15, and during these five-days, the company will be offering discounts on five of its smartphones — Honor 8X, Honor 8C, Honor Play, Honor 7C and the latest flagship smartphone Honor View20. Also, Honor is rolling out Android Pie update with EMUI 9.0 for Honor 8X. The update will be rolled out in batches and it will go live from March 18. The update includes Android Pie along with performance improvements and the new EMUI 9.0. The update also brings AR scanning capability with image recognition for shopping. It is also bringing the reverse search of the device so that now the users can search for anything using a picture. Coming back to the Honor Days sale, here are the offers you should know about:

Honor Days sale: Offers and discounts

The company’s flagship smartphone, Honor View 20 with 6GB RAM/128GB storage is available for Rs 37,999 while the 8GB RAM/256GB storage variant is available for Rs 45,999. Their original prices were Rs 42,999 and Rs 50,999 respectively. The customers will also get Rs 4,000 discount off on exchange of any smartphone on both the variants. Other offers include a 9 months no cost EMI and a 5% instant discount on Axis bank credit and debit cards. The Honor 8X is getting discount of Rs 4,000 in both its variants. Honor 8X with 4GB RAM/64GB storage is available for Rs 13,999 and the 6GB RAM/64GB storage can be picked up for Rs 15,999 during the sale. Originally, the two storage variants of the device were sold for Rs 17,999 and Rs 19,999 respectively. Coming to Honor 8C, it is getting Rs 3,000 off on its original price of Rs 12,999. So, now the 4GB RAM/32GB storage variant of Honor 8C is selling for Rs 9,999. Similarly, the Honor Play is getting Rs 7,000 off on its original price of Rs 21,999. During the sale, Honor Play is available for Rs 14,999 for the 4GB RAM and 64GB storage variant. Lastly, the Honor 7C smartphone is getting Rs 5,000 off of its original price of Rs 12,999. Now, the smartphone is available for Rs 7,999 for the 3GB RAM and 32GB storage variant. All the smartphones mentioned above is additionally getting 5% instant discount on the use of Axis bank credit and debit card EMI from March 12 to March 15.
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12 countries from where you can buy Apple iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max cheaper than India

Gadget Bridge Bureau
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0
12 countries from where you can buy Apple iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max cheaper than India
India is one of the most expensive countries where one can buy the latest iPhones. The primary reason behind this is obviously the fact that exorbitant import duty is levied on the smartphones and gadgets that are not manufactured in the country. Apple has not started manufacturing high-end iPhones in India yet, its smartphones also have the import duty levied on them. Last week, IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad announced that iPhone manufacturer Wistron’s new plan for manufacturing in India has been approved by the government. This means that Apple will soon start manufacturing its high-end smartphones like iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR in India, and hence, will be able to sell them at a cheaper price. Till this happens, you can buy the latest iPhones from other countries if you don’t want to spend as much as their Indian price. Recently, we shared a list of countries where you can buy the iPhone XR cheaper than India. Today, we are here with a list of countries where you can buy iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max cheaper than India. Note that the 6GB, 256GB and 512GB storage models of iPhone XS are priced at Rs 99,900, Rs 1,14,900 and Rs 1,34,900 respectively while the same models of iPhone XS Max are priced at Rs 1,09,900, Rs 1,24,900 and Rs 1,44,900. Here, we have listed the price of only the base variant in other countries. Take a look:

The United States

iphone xs 12 iPhone XS: $999 – approximately Rs 69,795 iPhone XS Max: $1099 – approximately Rs 76,781

Japan

iphone xs 11 iPhone XS: ¥ 112,800 (excluding tax) – approximately Rs 70,882 iPhone XS Max: ¥ 124,800 (excluding tax) – approximately Rs 78,422

Canada

iphone xs 3 iPhone XS: $1379 – approximately Rs 71,775 iPhone XS Max: $1519 – approximately Rs 79,062

Hong Kong

iphone xs 6 iPhone XS: HK$8,599 – approximately Rs 76,525 iPhone XS Max: HK$9,499 – approximately Rs 84,534

UAE

iphone xs 9 iPhone XS: AED 4,229 – approximately Rs 80,430 iPhone XS Max: AED 4,649 – approximately Rs 88,418

Australia

iphone xs 4 iPhone XS: A$1,629 – approximately Rs 80,127 iPhone XS Max: A$1,799 – approximately Rs 88,489

Singapore

iphone xs 13 iPhone XS: S$1,649 – approximately Rs 84,756 iPhone XS Max: S$1,799 – approximately Rs 92,465

Thailand

iphone xs 2 iPhone XS: ฿ 39,900 – approximately Rs 87,442 iPhone XS Max: ฿ 43,900 – approximately Rs 96,208

Malaysia

iphone xs 14 iPhone XS: RM 4,999 – approximately Rs 85,393 iPhone XS Max: RM 5,399 – approximately Rs 92,226

New Zealand

iphone xs 7 iPhone XS: NZ$1,899 – approximately Rs 90,238 iPhone XS Max: NZ$2,099 – approximately Rs 99,742

United Kingdom

iphone XS iPhone XS: £999 – approximately Rs 90,793 iPhone XS Max: £1,099 – approximately Rs 99,881

China

iphone xs 8 iPhone XS: RMB 8699 – approximately Rs 90,406 iPhone XS Max: RMB 9599 – approximately Rs 99,759
For the latest gadget and tech news, and gadget reviews, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. For newest tech & gadget videos subscribe to our YouTube Channel. [td_smart_list_end]

Samsung Galaxy M30 Review: Samsung is back to dominate the entire market

Aman Singh
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Samsung Galaxy M30 Review: Samsung is back to dominate the entire market
In 2019, Samsung is focusing heavily on the budget to mid-range smartphone market. Last month it released two smartphones in the new M-series named Galaxy M10 and Galaxy M20. Following the same line-up, the South Korean tech company launched a new smartphone – Samsung Galaxy M30. The price of Galaxy M30 is similar to what most Xiaomi, Asus, Realme mid-rangers fall in. With other smartphones from the rest of the companies giving similar features in the same price, could Samsung Galaxy M30 prove itself? What makes the Samsung Galaxy M30 stand apart from all the other company’s smartphones, let’s find out in our review:

Design and Display

The front of the Galaxy M30 is dominated by its near bezel-less display. The display comes with a huge 6.4-inch Full HD+ (2,340 x 1,080 pixels) resolution Super AMOLED touchscreen. There is a waterdrop style notch at the top of it, which houses the front camera of the device. There is a little bit of bezel at the bottom of the device, but it is not a deal breaker since most of the front is taken up by the beautiful touchscreen. The display of Galaxy M30 is the same as the Galaxy S10+, but it is not as wide as the Samsung’s flagship. Unlike the other two smartphones in the Galaxy M-series, which held the IPS LCD display, the successor, Galaxy M30 sports a Super-AMOLED display which is vibrant and bright. Thanks to its big display, watching media and playing games on it feels wonderful. The sunlight visibility is decent as well. Although the back panel of the device feels like glass and shines like a glass, it’s actually polished plastic (polycarbonate). But even though it’s made from plastic it doesn’t feel cheap. The use of plastic has one advantage, it shaves off some weight from the smartphone. Also, there is a triple-rear camera setup with LED flash at the top left corner of the back. Although the device is tall, the fingerprint scanner on it is easy to reach.
The Galaxy M30 comes in two colour options, Gradation Blue and Gradation Black, we had the latter which gives the dual tone colour of black at the bottom to bluish-tint at the top. Being a tall device, the Galaxy M30 is quite easy to hold with its rounded edges, but at times we felt the device is not great for one-handed use. Samsung Galaxy M30 The bottom of the device has the speaker grille, a USB Type-C charging port and a 3.5mm headphone jack with the volume rockers and the power button placed on the right of the device. The left side of the device holds the dual-SIM card with a dedicated microSD card slot on the tray. Samsung Galaxy M30

Performance and Camera

The Samsung Galaxy M30 sports an octa-core Exynos 7904 SoC clocking at 1.8GHz and a Mali-G71 MP2 GPU for graphics processing. It comes in a 4GB RAM + 64GB storage and a 6GB RAM + 128GB storage variant, we reviewed the 4 gigs version of the M30. Even though it has just 4GB of RAM, it held its ground well when it comes to multi-tasking. The app transitions were smooth, the opening of apps was fast and overall performance was great. So, if you are planning to get the Galaxy M30, the 4GB version does give you good bang for the buck. It also supports microSD card up to 512GB so if you ever run out of storage just put in a memory card and you will be good to go.
Samsung Galaxy M30
Ultra-wide sample
Talking about the cameras of the Galaxy M30, it comes with triple-rear camera setup. The primary camera comprises of a 13MP sensor with f/1.9 aperture, it is paired with a 5MP sensor with f/2.2 aperture and live focus. The third camera of the setup is also a 5MP, but an ultra-wide sensor. The front camera has a 16MP sensor and it comes with many features. Being a triple camera setup there are only two modes to choose from – an ultra-wide shot and a regular shot. The pictures clicked from the cameras offer good details with great colour accuracy. The low-light photography with the Galaxy M30 is decent seeing the price point of the smartphone. Like many smartphones in this segment, low-light photography suffers from little noise. But that is overshadowed by the photos clicked in the light. Also, you might want to enable that rear flash in low light and at night to get more sharpness from the clicked shot. Samsung Galaxy M30 The biggest advantage of the smartphone is its battery which is of 5,000mAh. With heavy usage (which involves a lot of gaming), the phone is able to last a day but with normal usage, it lasts around 2 days. It also comes with 15W fast charger and the smartphone supports 3X fast charging. Even though the battery is of a 5,000mAh it charges from 0% to 100% in  2 hours. And with this battery, the company claims the Galaxy M30 offers 25 hours of videos along or 105 hours on a single charge. Samsung Galaxy M30 Being a mid-budget device, the Galaxy M30 offers decent gaming performance. PUBG and Asphalt 9 run smoothly on medium settings. Playing more than half hours of PUBG didn’t heat up the device which adds to its positive points. Even charging the device doesn’t heat it up much, so there is no heating issue on the device. For security, the Galaxy M30 comes with fingerprint scanner and face unlock. The fingerprint scanner on the device worked fast, but we had to do double tap when unlocking with moist fingers. The face scanner also works well enough to unlock with just a glimpse of your face. There are also the old ways of unlocking the device with pin, patterns and passwords. Samsung Galaxy M30 The Galaxy M30 comes with all the necessary sensors along with Virtual Light Sensing, which senses the light of the environment and adjusts the brightness of the device automatically. As for the networks, it supports 2G, 3G, 4G and 4G LTE. It also has USB Type-C, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac 2.4+5GHz along with Bluetooth v5.0. The Galaxy M30 comes with a bottom firing speaker which is loud and the sound clarity is decent too. Music and media playback sound is clear and loud. Being a bottom firing speaker, it at times gets covered by the hand, when watching media or playing games in landscape mode, but that is the problem of all the bottom-firing speakers.
Samsung Galaxy M30
gaming on M30
The Samsung Galaxy M30 comes with Dolby Atmos support, however it only works with a pair of headphones only. Luckily, Samsung does give a pair within the box unlike most of its competitors who cut corners in this department. Nevertheless, the single loudspeaker works well and gaming does come to life with it. As for the operating system, It runs on Android Oreo and doesn’t come with Samsung’s latest One UI. So, the Galaxy M30 comes with the old Samsung software and the old Android version. There was not much Bloatware besides Samsung’s apps, which we loved. As most in the category, like Xiaomi have a ton of bloatware and also show you unwanted adds when using the device.

Verdict

Samsung has mostly been absent in the past years from the mid-range budget segment, but now in 2019, it has made a comeback with the Galaxy M and A-series. Through Galaxy M30, Samsung is proving that it is serious and will bring to the market what its consumers want. At Rs 14,990 the 4GB version of the Galaxy M30 is a great device to go for if you want good premium looks, a great display and a very long battery life. Pros:
  • Excellent battery
  • Great display
  • Good Cameras
Cons
  • Old Android
  • Processor same as Galaxy M20
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LG G8 ThinQ set to go on pre-orders in South Korea

Aman Singh
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0
LG G8 ThinQ set to go on pre-orders in South Korea
South Korean electronics maker LG launched its G8 ThinQ smartphone at the Mobile World Congress 2019, that was held in Spain last month. And now, the company has announced that LG G8 smartphone would be going on pre-orders in South Korea starting March 15. However, the sale of the device will only begin on March 22. Here’s everything you should know about the price, availability and specifications of LG G8 ThinQ smartphone:

LG G8 ThinQ price and launch offers

In South Korea, the LG G8 ThinQ will sell for KRW 897,000 (approximately Rs 55,300). As mentioned above, the actual sale of the device will start from March 22, but the customers are free to pre-order between March 15 and March 20. Customers who purchase the LG G8 ThinQ will also get a one-time screen replacement for one-year and the smartphone will come with a free case.
Although LG G8 ThinQ will start selling from this month itself in South Korea, there is no news about the global price and availability of the device. To recall, the LG G8 ThinQ was announced alongside the LG G8S ThinQ at the MWC 2019, held in Barcelona, Spain last month.

LG G8 ThinQ specifications

LG G8 ThinQ sports a 6.1-inch Quad HD+ (1440 x 3120 pixels) OLED FullVision display that comes with an aspect ratio of 19.5:9. The device has a pixel density of 564ppi. LG G8 ThinQ is powered by Snapdragon 855 SoC coupled with 6GB RAM and runs Android 9.0 Pie. It has support for dual-SIM (Nano) cards. LG G8 ThinQ comes in two variants – one with a dual-rear camera setup and the other with a triple-rear camera setup. The South Korean variant of the LG G8 ThinQ comes with a triple-rear camera setup of a 12MP primary sensor with f/1.5 aperture,85-degree lens paired with a 16MP secondary sensor with 107-degree super wide-angle lens with f/1.9 aperture and a 12MP tertiary sensor with a 45-degree telephoto lens with f/2.4 aperture. At the front, there is an 8MP autofocus camera with f/1.7 aperture. There is also a ToF Z Camera on the device which is designed to enable Hand ID palm vein authentication. It means that the smartphone will unlock by holding the user’s palm at the front of the device. The device with the help of the ToF Z camera will read the user’s veins inside the palms and unlock the device. Alternatively, the smartphone also has a fingerprint sensor at the back. LG G8 ThinQ comes with 128GB onboard storage with microSD card support up to 2TB. For connectivity options, the LG G8 ThinQ includes the 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, GPS/ A-GPS, NFC, Bluetooth v5.0 along with a USB Type-C port (v3.1). The smartphone packs a 3,500mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0 technology support. Other features include an inbuilt 32-bit Hi-Fi Quad DAC that enables DTS:X 3D Surround Sound.
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Xiaomi Mi A2 price slashed by Rs 2,000, now available for Rs 11,999

Aman Singh
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0
Xiaomi Mi A2 price slashed by Rs 2,000, now available for Rs 11,999
Xiaomi Mi A2 has received a price cut of Rs 2,000 in India. While its earlier price was Rs 13,999, after the price cut, the smartphone is available for Rs 11,999. The news of the discount on Xiaomi Mi A2 smartphone was announced by the company’s Global Vice President, Manu Kumar Jain. This is the second time that the cost of the device has been reduced by the company.

Xiaomi Mi A2 price

After the price cut of Rs 2,000, Xiaomi Mi A2 will be selling for Rs 11,999 for the 4GB RAM/64GB storage variant. However, the 6GB RAM/128GB storage model of Xiaomi Mi A2 hasn’t been changed and it is selling for Rs 15,999. The new price of the smartphone is available on Amazon.in, Mi.com, Mi Home, Mi Store and Mi preferred partners.
In January 2019, Xiaomi Mi A2 had received price cuts for both its variants – the 4GB RAM/64GB storage model and the 6GB RAM/128GB storage version. But this time, the company has only reduced the price of the 4GB RAM variant of Xiaomi Mi A2. Xiaomi Mi A2 was launched in India in August 2018 and at that time it came with a price tag f Rs 16,999 for the 4GB RAM /64GB storage variant and Rs 19,999 for the 6GB RAM/128GB storage variant.

Xiaomi Mi A2 specifications

Xiaomi Mi A2 is powered by an octa-core Snapdragon 660 SoC coupled with 4GB or 6GB of RAM. The smartphone sports a 5.99-inch Full HD+ (1080 x 2160 pixels) display with an aspect ratio of 18:9. When launched, it ran Android 8.1 Oreo but in November it received Android 9.0 Pie update. Xiaomi Mi A2 sports a dual-rear camera setup with a 12MP Sony IMX486 primary sensor with an f/1.75 aperture along with a 20MP Sony IMX376 secondary sensor with 4-in-1 Super Pixel tech with f/1.75 aperture. At the front Xiaomi Mi A2 holds a 20MP sensor with LED flash. For storage, it comes with 64GB and 128GB of internal storage variants, both of which come with support for a microSD card. For connectivity, Xiaomi Mi A2 comes with 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth v5.0, GPS/ A-GPS, and a USB Type-C (v2.0) port. The device also comes with a fingerprint sensor at the back and packs a 3,000mAh battery with Quick Charge 4+ support. Some of its other sensors include an accelerometer, ambient light sensor, digital compass, gyroscope, and proximity sensor. For the latest gadget and tech news, and gadget reviews, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. For newest tech & gadget videos subscribe to our YouTube Channel.

Asus expands its ROG gaming laptop lineup in India: Price and specifications

Gadget Bridge Bureau
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Asus expands its ROG gaming laptop lineup in India: Price and specifications
Taiwanese electronics maker Asus has unveiled its latest range of gaming laptops along with a desktop in India. The new laptops that have been launched include Asus ROG Zephyrus S GX531, ROG Zephyrus S GX701, and ROG Strix SCAR II and the desktop that has been unveiled is GL12CX. The new gaming laptops by the company are touted to come with NVIDIA GeForce RTX engines, which is known to enhance the graphics performance in the devices. Asus has also said that ROG Zephyrus S GX531, ROG Zephyrus S GX701, and ROG Strix SCAR II laptops come with advanced cooling. Asus ROG Zephyrus S GX701GX is priced at Rs 3,49,990, and the ROG Zephyrus S GX531 costs Rs 2,39,990. Coming to ROG Strix SCAR II, it is available in three variants – GL504GW-ES007T, GL504GV-ES019T and GL504GV-ES034T – that are priced at Rs 2,09,990, Rs 1,64,990 and Rs 1,64,990 respectively. Asus ROG Strix SCAR and Hero will be available starting today. Speaking of Asus GL12 CX, it is available in three variants – GL12CX-IN002T, GL12CS-IN009T and G21CN-IN006T – that are priced at Rs 3,29,990, Rs 2,19,990 and Rs 2,13,990 respectively.

Asus ROG Zephyrus S GX531 specifications

Asus ROG Zephyrus S GX531 laptop sports a 15.6-inch display and packs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 Max. It is powered by the latest Intel Core i7-8750H CPU and its display comes with a 144Hz refresh rate and 3ms response time. The device also comes with a patented AAS cooling system, 12V anti-dust cooling fans, 5 heat pipes and 4 heat sinks.

Asus ROG Zephyrus S GX701GX specifications

Asus ROG Zephyrus S GX701GX laptop has a 17-inch display and is powered by 8th Gen Intel Core i7 processors coupled with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 GPU. It is touted to come with a 15-inch ultra slim chassis and the company claims that it has a great gaming experience with 144Hz 3ms response time display. The laptop comes with Pantone Validated colours with factory calibration and ProArt TruColor Technology. It also comes with a GPU Switch that easily transitions between better gaming and longer battery life. The device is said to come with a patented AAS cooling system, per-key RGB Lighting and Aura Sync.

Asus ROG Strix SCAR II specifications

Coming to Asus ROG Zephyrus S GX701GX, it comes with a 15.6-inch display and comes with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 graphics coupled with 8GB of VRAM. The company claims that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX “expands to horizons in true to life graphics with advanced Ray-Tracing Technology”. Powered by the latest 8th Generation Intel Core i7-8750H six-core CPU, that is supposed to provide 23% better performance than the predecessor. The gaming laptop comes with HyperCool Pro that keeps it cool when the device is being used extensively for gaming. Asus ROG Strix SCAR II comes with the best Wi-Fi connectivity and comes with the HyperStrike Pro Keyboard, prominent WASD keys and 1.8mm key travel distance. The Armoury Crate with Aura Sync has the ability to connect all supported RGB peripherals for a unified lighting effect.

Asus ROG Strix GL12 CX specifications

Asus ROG Strix GL12CX comes with Intel Coffee Lake processors up to i9-9900K which are overclocked to provide an enhanced gaming performance. It comes with up to RTX 2080 which is capable of delivering smooth performance for immersive 4K HDR gaming. Asus ROG Strix GL12CX has a hot-swap 2.5-inch SSD tray along with a customized Cooler Master MasterLiquid Pro 120 closed-loop liquid cooler. Commenting on the launch, Arnold Su, ROG & PC Head of ASUS India said, “ROG is more than just a gaming brand; it’s a commitment to enhancing your gaming and enthusiast experience through innovative engineering and thoughtful design. Staying true to our promise today we launch the new ROG line up powered by the new NVIDIA GeForce RTX lineup, including the GeForce RTX 2080 on the GL12CX desktop, and the GeForce RTX 2060, RTX 2070 powering the ROG GL504 laptop pairing real-time ray tracing and artificial intelligence with cutting edge gaming and VR performance. Each one offers innovative cooling to ensure that the products deliver unprecedented sustained gaming performance. We are confident with the new RTX line up the ROG segment has become an even more exciting segment to look forward.”
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YouTube Stories get support for AR filters

Aman Singh
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YouTube Stories get support for AR filters
Google has rolled out augmented reality (AR) effect tools to YouTube which can be now added to Stories on the platform. So, going forward, you will be able to add animated masks, glasses, hats and more such stickers and filters to your pictures before adding them to YouTube Stories. According to Google, ‘proper anchoring of virtual content to the real world is a difficult challenge’. The difficulty, according to the technology giant, lies in the precise tracking of dynamic surface geometries across the face, smiles, frowns and smirks. Speaking about the update, Artsiom Ablavatski and Ivan Grishchenko, Research Engineers, Google Artificial Intelligence (AI) wrote in a blog post, “To make all this possible, we employ machine learning (ML) to infer approximate 3D surface geometry to enable visual effects and ML Pipeline for Selfie AR.” Google also stated that it is working on improving the accuracy and robustness of the new AR support by refining the processes. It should be noted that Facebook and Instagram already come with AR filter support for their Stories, so it makes YouTube the last to receive the support for AR filters.
Google’s blog post further states, “That way we can grow our dataset to increasingly challenging cases, such as grimaces, oblique angle and occlusions. Dataset augmentation techniques also expanded the available ground truth data, developing model resilience to artefacts like camera imperfections or extreme lighting conditions.” Google is not only bringing the AR only to YouTube, as it is also adding an AR-backed feature to Google Maps, which will allow the user to see the real world through the camera. Last month, Google stated that it is testing the use of AR with Google Maps. The Maps using Google StreetView would use the cameras to see and add AR signs like, arrows, pointers and street names to the live image. In short, Google Maps will make it easier for the user to find their ways by identifying the right street and place and also by guiding the user in the right direction. The AR for Google Maps is still in its beta phase but it will roll out for the users in the coming months. While the AR filter on YouTube stories will be live in the coming days. “We are excited to share this new technology with creators, users and developers alike. In the future we plan to broaden this technology to more Google products,” Ablavatski and Grishchenko noted. For the latest gadget and tech news, and gadget reviews, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. For newest tech & gadget videos subscribe to our YouTube Channel.

Android Q Beta to include more smartphones than Android P Beta Program: Report

Gadget Bridge Bureau
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Android Q Beta to include more smartphones than Android P Beta Program: Report
We will get the first look at Android Q at Google I/O 2019 that is scheduled to begin on May 7 and go on till May 9. However, we have been reading reports and rumours about the upcoming android version for a few months now. A number of features of Android Q have been spoken about. While some are claimed to be much-awaited ones like System-wide Dark Mode, others are said to enhance security. Once the timeline for Android Pie Developer Preview is out, it will last for a few months before being taken over by Android Q Beta program, which will most likely happen at the Google I/O 2019. We should mention here that with Android P Beta Program, search giant Google started running early previews of the next version of its operating system on smartphones that are not a part of its Nexus or Pixel range. Seven new smartphones received the Android P Beta as a result of the collaboration between Google with these OEMs. The seven new devices that got the update were Essential PH-1, Nokia 7 Plus, OnePlus 6, Oppo R15 Pro, Sony Xperia XZ2, Vivo X21 and the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S. However, we should add that not all of these were available in India.
Coming back to Android Q, Google is planning to collaborate with even more OEMs this time. So, more number of smartphones will be a part of the roster that will be getting the Android Q Beta. This information has been revealed by Android Developer Illiyan Malchev in the Android Developers Backstage podcast. According to reports that have spoken about the podcast, Malchev was asked, “I noticed that when we announced the Android Pie preview at last year’s I/O, there were several devices that were announced at that time, which I thought was new to have that many different devices coming out. I assumed that was in part due to Treble, making it easier for those devices to be….” And to this, he replied saying, “Yeah, in fact it was fully due to Treble. We had, I believe, eight OEMs including Pixels, so seven OEMs other than Pixel. And I think it was for the first time we had all of these companies line up to do developer previews and betas for Android Pie well ahead of the AOSP publication date. For reference, we tend to release the new version of Android some time in August. So at Google I/O [2018], when we did the first beta, we had all these companies lined up and that was really that amazing. The number is bigger for the upcoming Android release, which I am very happy about. I cannot share the exact numbers yet. But the trend is positive and strong, and I am very happy about this.” However, we should point out that the exact number of OEMs that will be a part of the Android Q Beta Program has not been revealed yet. Neither do we know which mobile phones would be getting it. However, we are excited to see what the search giant has planned for its next Android version.
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Samsung Galaxy A40 receives US FCC certification, to be launched soon: Report

Aman Singh
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Samsung Galaxy A40 receives US FCC certification, to be launched soon: Report
Last month saw the launch of Samsung Galaxy A50, Galaxy A30 and Galaxy A10 in India. At the launch event, the South Korean technology giant promised that it will release a Galaxy A-series smartphone every month till June 2019. Keeping its promise, Samsung is working on the next smartphone in the Galaxy A-series –  Galaxy A40. And now, a report suggests that Samsung Galaxy A40 has already received the US FCC certification, so it will most likely be the smartphone to be released next in the Galaxy A-series line-up. Recently, Samsung Galaxy A40 was spotted on the company’s official UK website. The smartphone was also spotted on Geekbench listings in the past, and with the FCC certificate granted to it, Samsung Galaxy A40 might launch sooner than expected. The Galaxy A40 from Samsung holds the model number ‘SMA405FN’ on the official FCC database. According to the listing, Samsung Galaxy A40 will sport a 5.7-inch display and come with support for dual-band WI-FI 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac along with Bluetooth 5.0 LE. The processor, camera, RAM and other hardware details of the smartphone is not revealed by the listing which was first spotted by MySmartPrice.
Earlier, Samsung’s UK website created a dedicated product page for Samsung Galaxy A40 which further confirms the news. The support page of the upcoming Galaxy A40 smartphone also went live on Samsung’s official Germany website recently. According to a recent news online, Samsung Galaxy A40 will be priced at EUR 249 (approximately Rs 20,000) and it will be launched in India along with other European countries. Other than the display and connectivity, no other specifications have been confirmed by the company. But it is rumoured that Samsung Galaxy A40 will be powered by the company’s Exynos 7885 SoC and will be coupled with 4GB of RAM. Along with that, the smartphone is rumoured to have a ToF 3D sensor along with an in-display fingerprint scanner. The upcoming Galaxy A40 will fall between the Galaxy A30 and the Galaxy A50. Currently, Samsung Galaxy A50 is the top end variant in the A-series smartphone and it comes with a 6.4-inch Full HD+ Super AMOLED display. Samsung Galaxy A50 is powered by an Exynos 9610 SoC and comes in 4GB and 6GB RAM variants. It rocks a triple-rear camera setup comprising of 25MP, 8MP and 5MP sensors while the front of the Galaxy A50 holds a 25MP selfie camera. The device houses a 4,000mAh battery and a USB Type-C port. Samsung Galaxy A50 price starts at Rs 19,990. For the latest gadget and tech news, and gadget reviews, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. For newest tech & gadget videos subscribe to our YouTube Channel.

WhatsApp has imposed a ban on some users: Are you one of them?

Avani Bagga
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WhatsApp has imposed a ban on some users: Are you one of them?
There is no argument about the fact that Facebook-owned WhatsApp is the most popular instant messaging app in the world. While WhatsApp was initially launched as an instant messenger, the app has now been stuffed with a number of useful features. Users can make voice and video calls, send and receive money, and do so much more via WhatsApp now. Everyone knows that WhatsApp can be downloaded via Google’s Play Store and Apple‘s App Store, and one can have absolutely no trouble in locating the official version of the app on either of the two platforms. In spite of this, some users have installed the modded versions of the app that have been developed by third-parties. The primary reason why people download these apps are that they have some useful features that are not a part of the official app. GB WhatsApp and WhatsApp Plus are good examples of such apps.
We should mention that although these apps have ‘WhatsApp’ in their names, they are not actually made by the company. A number of users download such apps to get access to additional features. What most people don’t know is that these apps pose security risks are they make their personal details, chats and contacts more vulnerable to being hacked. However, WhatsApp will be banning such users from its platform. The banned users will get the message, “Your phone number is banned from using WhatsApp. Contact support for help.” If you receive this message, you will have to uninstall the third-party app you are using and then download the official WhatsApp Messenger. However, currently, there is no word on whether doing this will restore the chat history of users. We should also mention that there are apps available that have to be downloaded in addition to WhatsApp to get some features. For instance, there are several apps on the Google Play Store that enable users to save other people’s WhatsApp Status images. However, the app itself doesn’t allow this. We recommend you to avoid these apps too. On an unrelated note, WhatsApp has been trying a number of new features on its app. The app will soon be getting a Dark Mode and an Advanced Search feature. With Advanced Search, users will be able to look for various media that have been sent on chat. As of now, one only has the ability to search for text messages.
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