Technology world

Oppo 5G Smartphone Powered by Snapdragon 855 SoC Announced at MWC 2019 Oppo on Saturday claimed to be the first to unveil a 5G smartphone at MWC 2019. At its event in Barcelona, the company briefly showed its 5G smartphone, but did not detail much about it, from its availability to its specifications – beyond revealing it would be powered by the Snapdragon 855 SoC. The Chinese company also announced the Oppo 5G Landing Project, saying it was partnering with telcos like Optus, Singtel, Swisscom, and Telstra for the launch and rollout of 5G products and services. At its event, Oppo Vice President Anyi Jiang held up what he called Oppo's first 5G smartphone, and claimed that many obstacles had been overcome to achieve the feat – including the design of the antenna and RF modules. Cristiano Amon, President of Qualcomm, was also called on stage, and revealed that the first Oppo 5G smartphone would be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 SoC and the Snapdragon X50 modem.  Qualco

Foldable iPhone Designs With Android smartphone makers going all in with the idea of foldable smartphones, it appears that Apple doesn't want to be left behind. A patent application filed by the Cupertino-based iPhone maker suggests that the company might be experimenting with multiple designs for a foldable iPhone. The sketches in the patent application indicate that both inward and outward folding designs might be under consideration by Apple for a possible foldable iPhone. There is also a mention of a double folding smartphone design that will create a triple stacked form factor. Apple's patent application, that was published on the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) website recently, is titled “Flexible Display Devices” and serves as a not-so-subtle indication that a foldable iPhone is certainly on Apple's radar. While some of the designs in Apple's patent application point towards a practical device, they are merely concept ideas at this point

Xiaomi Smart Shoe India Launch Teased, May Be Mi Sneakers 2 Xiaomi is all set to expand its verticals in India and launch its much-awaited smart shoes, an official teaser revealed on Monday. The company launched the first-generation Mi Smart Sneakers under its Mijia brand in China back in 2017. However, Xiaomi brought the successor to its original smart shoes just last year that arrived as the Mijia Sneakers 2 last year. It is highly expected that the Chinese giant could bring last year's model to India in the coming days. Hinting at the development, Xiaomi posted a teaser image through the Mi India Twitter account on Monday. The image outlines a shoe and features a tagline that reads, "Ready to put your best foot forward." The company is also using a hashtag #BFF that comes as an abbreviation of the "best foot forward" phrase to suggest the upcoming launch. Having said that, Xiaomi hasn't confirmed the price and launch schedule of its smart sh

Oppo Find Z Trademark Application Tips Name of Company's Next Flagship Oppo is planning to launch a new flagship smartphone in the Find series and has already filed a trademark for its name in the European Union.  The company has submitted a trademark application before the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) for the name ‘Find Z' that might well be the name of the company's next flagship smartphone. Moreover, the aforementioned smartphone has reportedly been spotted on Geekbench with Qualcomm's top-of-the-line Snapdragon 855 SoC powering it, further cementing the Find Z's status as a flagship smartphone. As per the EUIPO's database, Oppo's trademark application for the ‘Find Z' name was filed on February 2, 2019. While the trademark application does not reveal anything about the smartphone itself, it strongly suggests that Oppo's upcoming offering will be marketed as the Find Z, at least in the European nations. Moreover,

Redmi Flagship Smartphone With Snapdragon 855 SoC in the Works, CEO Confirms Redmi started off as a series of affordable smartphones from Xiaomi but has now turned into an independent entity. The first smartphone in the new Redmi by Xiaomi brand, the Redmi Note 7, managed to gather a lot of attention primarily because of what it had to offer for the price. The main USP of this smartphone was the 48-megapixel Samsung GM1 sensor which is a part of the dual camera setup. The company has also teased the Redmi Note 7 Pro as well as another upcoming Redmi flagship device, while details are emerging slowly, launch timelines are a bit more uncertain. While Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun had commented on his Weibo channel about the flagship smartphone sporting a Snapdragon 855 SoC. A new post on Weibo by Redmi chief Lu Weibing confirms that the upcoming Redmi flagship will indeed sport the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor. Lu Weibing who recently joined Xiaomi posted a photo of the Redmi

PS5 Could Ship With Backwards Compatibility Support, Sony Patent Hints The PS5, PlayStation 5, or whatever Sony plans to call its successor to the PS4, will be backwards compatible with older PlayStation games if a patent filing from the company is to be believed. What this means is, the PS5 could possibly work with PS4, PS3, PS2, and PS1 games. It's an interesting move from Sony if it gets implemented as it could spell the end of remasters or re-releases that this generation of consoles is notorious for. It possibly hints that Sony is confident of the first-party games and exclusives we'll see on the PS5 too. According to a post from Japanese blog Hokanko-Alt (translated from Reddit via ResetEra), PS4 architect Mark Cerny is the author of the patent and it is a "a system to be applied in a future machine, PS5, and that allows the CPU of the new console to be able to 'interpret' the central unit of the previous machines." "The aim is to make

Moto G7 Plus Specifications Tipped by TENAA Certification Listing As the Moto G7 series' launch gets nearer, the leaks are getting more an more detailed. We've already covered a number of leaks on the Moto G7 Plus, including press images, hands-on photos, key specifications and even pricing information. Now a new TENAA leak fills in the gaps that we had in the Moto G7 Plus' device specifications. The TENAA listing depicts the Moto G7 Plus as XT1965-6, where '6' reportedly stands for the Chinese variant of the phone. The leak sheds new light on the Moto G7 Plus battery capacity and rear camera specifications. According to the new TENAA listing The Moto XT1965-6 will sport an octa-core SoC that includes a 1.8GHz quad-core CPU and a 1.6GHz quad-core CPU. It will come in two variants - one with 4GB of RAM and 64GB storage, and the other with 6GB of RAM and 128GB storage. Both will have support for expandable storage via microSD card slots. The listing al

Google Play Deletes 29 Malicious Beauty Camera Apps That Stole Users' Information: Trend Micro Google has deleted 29 malicious "beauty camera" apps that were sharing pornographic content and forwarding users, particularly in India, to phishing websites to steal their information. Some of these Android apps have been downloaded millions of times and a large number of the download counts originated from Asia - particularly in India, said a report from US-based cyber security firm Trend Micro. The apps have now been removed by Google from the Play Store, Trend Micro said.  "A user downloading one of these apps will not immediately suspect that there is anything amiss, until they decide to delete the app," said Trend Micro. Such an app will push several full-screen ads when users unlock their devices, including malicious ads (such as fraudulent content and pornography) that will pop up via the user's browser. "During our analysis, we fou

Mi 9 Allegedly Spotted in the Hands of a Xiaomi Executive; Triple Rear Camera, In-Display Fingerprint Sensor Spotted Xiaomi Mi 9, the next flagship phone by the Chinese giant, is likely to debut later this month. However, just days of its official debut, the Mi 9 has allegedly been spotted in the hands of a Xiaomi executive. The image, which was originally posted on Weibo and recently shared on SlashLeaks, gives a glimpse at the upcoming Xiaomi phone. It suggests the presence of a triple rear camera setup on the Mi 9, The traditional fingerprint that was flaunted on the Mi 8 last year is also seemingly missing on the new model. This hints at an in-display fingerprint sensor on the next Xiaomi flagship. Product Manager at Xiaomi Wang Teng Thomas had allegedly posted an image through his Weibo account showing the Mi 9. While the original post made by Thomas wasn't available at the time of filing this story, a tipster has managed to share the image on SlashLeaks. The image

Foxconn Says It Will Build Wisconsin Factory, Cites 'Conversation' With Trump Two days after Foxconn said it no longer planned to build a sprawling new factory in Wisconsin, the Taiwanese technology giant appears to have reversed course, citing a "personal conversation" with President Donald Trump. The surprise announcement followed heavy backlash in Wisconsin, which in 2017 agreed to pay the prominent electronics maker and supplier to Apple at least $3 billion (roughly Rs. 21,300 crores) in state tax incentives. At the time,  Foxconn  pledged to deliver up to 13,000 blue-collar jobs and a $10 billion display-making plant in the state's southeastern corner - a move Trump has repeatedly touted. "After productive discussions between the White House and the company, and after a personal conversation between President Donald Trump and Chairman Terry Gou, Foxconn is moving forward with our planned construction of a Gen 6 fab facility, which will be a

PUBG Mobile Update 0.11.0 Bonus Challenge to Convert BC to UC: Report The PUBG Mobile 0.11.0 won't just add zombies mode, according to a recent report, Tencent's battle royale sensation for Android and iOS is getting what's called as the Bonus Challenge. This allows PUBG Mobile players to convert Battle Coins (BC) to Unknown Cash (UC) and grant them access to new cosmetic gear like weapon skins and outfits. It's similar to the PUBG Mobile Crew Challenge that made its way to the game earlier. With Bonus Challenge, registration is for solo players alone. Entering requires either Bonus Challenge Vouchers or Unknown Cash and there are three tiers— Novice, Adept, and Expert. Each kill grants points which can be used to get UC packs or cosmetic items. As per serial PUBG Mobile leaker Mr. Ghost Gaming, each kill in the Novice Bonus Challenge in PUBG Mobile nets players 15 points, while Adept players get 30 points, and Experts get 45 points. Each point equals one ba

Sony Xperia XZ4, Expected MWC 2019, Said to Feature 52-Megapixel Sensor in a Triple Camera Setup Sony Xperia XZ4 is expected to be the next flagship smartphone from the Japanese electronics giant, with an anticipated MWC 2019 unveiling. We have seen a steady flow of leaks about the upcoming smartphone, which will be the fourth flagship in the Xperia XZ series. Rumoured to be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 SoC, previous Sony Xperia XZ4 leaks have also tipped a tall 6.5-inch display with a 21:9 aspect ratio. The earliest render also pointed to a triple camera setup at the back, which is a first on a Sony smartphone. Sony Xperia XZ4 camera Fresh leaks corroborate the rumour that the Xperia XZ4 will have a triple camera setup at the back. This setup is now said to consist of a 52-megapixel primary sensor with an f/1.6 aperture, a 16-megapixel telephoto lens with an f/2.6 aperture and a 0.3-megapixel ToF sensor with an f/1.4 aperture. If this turns out to be true, it wil

Energizer to Launch 26 Phones at MWC 2019, Foldable Phones, Pop-Up Camera, 18,000mAh Battery Teased Energizer Mobile is all set to make a big splash at MWC 2019 later this month by launching a total of 26 smartphones and feature phones. Avenir Telecom, the licensing partner of Energizer Mobile, will unveil the new phones under four lineups catering to a different segment of users. The upcoming Energizer Mobile offerings include smartphones with dual pop-up selfie cameras, a foldable smartphone and one with a mammoth 18,000mAh battery. The latter is claimed to be the largest capacity battery available in a commercially available smartphone.  Energizer Mobile has tweeted that the 26 new phones will be showcased at the company's booth between February 25 and February 28 at MWC 2019 in Barcelona. Energizer Mobile has revealed to GSMArena that the upcoming smartphones will come with features such as dual selfie cameras in a pop-up module, ‘professional scanning', foldabl

Xiaomi Black Shark 2 Gaming Smartphone Confirmed by Xiaomi Product Director in Social Media Post Xiaomi's second-generation Black Shark gaming smartphone is nearly ready to launch, according to a post on Chinese social media site Weibo made by Xiaomi Product Director Wang Teng Thomas. According to a Google Translation of the original Chinese post, Thomas says he has seen the upcoming device and describes it as “full of personality, very cool” and “too fast”. Thomas goes on to describe his excitement when he launched the original Black Shark model nine months ago, indicating that the company is keen to keep the product line active. The post quotes another post by Xiaomi founder Lei Jun asking fans for feedback and suggestions for future Black Shark models. In early January, a device codenamed ‘Black Shark Skywalker' appeared in the Geekbench online database, featuring the unreleased Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor and 8GB of RAM. It is likely that this was a device

BSNL Launches Rs. 2,499 Monthly Broadband Plan to Offer 40GB Data per Day at 100Mbps Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has launched a new broadband plan to offer as much as 40GB daily data at 100Mbps speeds for a monthly charge of Rs. 2,499. The new BSNL broadband plan, called "40GB Plan", is currently live in select telecom circles where the state-owned operator is offering its fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) services. There is also a cashback for customers opting the latest plan for an annual basis. Further, the Rs. 2,499 BSNL broadband plan brings unlimited voice calling benefits and a free email ID access with 1GB of mailbox space . As per the listing on BSNL Chennai's website, the Rs. 2,499 broadband plan with 40GB data per day at 100Mbps speeds is available to all users. Post the 40GB quota, customers will be shifted to 2Mbps speeds. The plan also includes unlimited voice calling to any network in India as well as a free email ID with 1GB mailbox space. The

BSNL Offers One Month Free Wings Service to New Customers, Launches App in Google Play Store State-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) announced the soft launch of its Wings Internet Telephony service last year. The company has now commercially launched the service in India and has released its app in Google Play. As part of its introductory offer, BSNL is offering the Wings service free of cost for one month. Thereafter, BSNL notes that the service will be available at an initial onetime annual fee of Rs.1,099 plus GST. This service will use a mobile numbering scheme, provided using IP based access network of IMS NGN Core switches, to allow subscribers to make and receive calls over the Internet via their laptop or mobile phone. To subscribe for BSNL Wings, the consumers will have to head online and book it by filling customer information like identity proof, address proof and photograph, and selecting their 'Wings' choice No. (10 digit no). The customer will