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Dash Charging Is Better Than Wireless Charging – OnePlus

The upcoming OnePlus 5T appears to be the 2017 flagship phone that OnePlus 5 should have been. A tall display with thin bezels, dual-cameras, great hardware and rumoured competitive pricing. One thing that would be missing from the OnePlus 5T is wireless charging. OnePlus believes that its ‘Dash Charging’ is better than wireless charging hence, it decided to forego including wireless charging.

Learn how you can be there live when we introduce the #OnePlus5T. https://t.co/JkqCyKkekX pic.twitter.com/iXq0DoU6gA

— OnePlus (@oneplus) November 6, 2017

Pete Lau, co-founder of OnePlus shared two reasons why the company decided to not include a popular feature in the OnePlus 5T:

Reason 1: Wired quick charging solutions like ours clearly outshine wireless on quantitative measures. Just plug your device in, and Dash Charge produces 20 watts of power, reliably giving a day’s power in half an hour.

Reason 2: Dash Charge gives you enough power for the day with just one charging session. All you need is the Dash Charge cable and adaptor to consistently power your device at superior rate. It doesn’t matter whether you’re gaming or streaming video. Dash Charge stays cool and power efficient.

Wireless charging has been around for a long time now but, it became a mainstream topic of discussion after Apple included it in its latest 2017 iPhones. It is true that wireless charging doesn’t produce enough electrical juice to “fast charge” your smartphone and doesn’t even compare to OnePlus’ dash charge technology.

However, OnePlus has not dismissed the idea of wireless charging in their phones. Pete Lau says the company will “consider adopting the wireless charging technology when the time is right.”

November 9, 2017
Top Tech Under Rs 1000

It is that time of the month again where we look at the some of the best tech products that won’t break the bank. From rugged bluetooth speakers to a backpack, this list has it all. Let’s look at the top tech products under Rs 1000 for the month of November:

Portronics LiteHouse Magnetic LED Lamp

This lighting solution has a neat trick up its sleeve. Apart from being a convenient magnetic LED lamp, it also has a 4400 mAh power bank. The lamp charges over a micro USB port and has a host of customisable features. You can turn on the SOS mode for a blinking light or even change the colour of the light depending on your preferences.

Logitech Silent Mouse

If you are one of those people who hate using the trackpad on their laptop but, also can’t stand the clicking noise of a mouse then this ideal for you. The Logitech Silent Mouse does what is advertised, it is an ergonomic mouse which doesn’t make any noise. It has a 1000 dpi sensor for accuracy and the size is perfect to carry it around with you.

Max Pi Speaker

There aren’t many bluetooth speakers in this range, let alone rugged ones. The Max Pi Speaker ticks almost all the boxes and provide a great price to performance ratio. It is a bluetooth speaker which is water resistant and even has NFC. As far as sound quality is concerned, it is equivalent to AmazonBasics bluetooth speaker which is almost double the price of the Max Pi Speaker.

Novex Backpack

This gadget backpack looks good, and is ideal for people who like to carry their tech around with them. It has ample space to fit in a 15-inch laptop and little compartments can be used store your other necessities. Thanks to such compartments, the bag remains organised and every little product is visible for easy access.

Logitech Multidevice Keyboard

This keyboard can connect up to three different devices simultaneously and even comes with a stand for your phone or tablet. It has a full keyboard layout and tactile keys for a pleasant typing experience.

Pennibel Powerbank

If you are on the lookout for a sturdy powerbank that won’t break the bank, then the Pennibel powerbank is ideal for you. It has a 10000 mAh capacity and supports QuickCharge both ways. It will charge up your device quickly as well as charge itself quickly provided the ideal power.

QuantumZero USB 3.0 Hub

This USB 3.0 hub is perfect for people who have a lot of gadgets to charge. With USB 3.0, it supports fast charging which is great for a price of less than Rs 900.

Tizum Earphones

If you want a pair of earphones which have a good built quality, good sound and don’t like every other boring black or white earphones, then look no further. The Tizum Earphones haver a braided cable, inline microphone and a rose gold colour. The 3.5mm headphone jack is gold plated to produce better sound quality.

iVoltaa QC 3.0 Car Charger

This car charger supports QuickCharge 3.0 which means no more slow charging of your phone in emergencies. The car charger looks good and can charge two phones simultaneously.

Sennheiser HD 180

One of the most popular pair of headphones in the market, the Sennheiser HD 180 sound amazing for its proce point. It produces good bass and the wire is long enough for you to sit away from the sound source.

November 9, 2017
Images of Mi Mix 2s Emerge With An iPhone X Style Notch

If these early images of the alleged Xiaomi Mi Mix 2s are anything to go by, then it looks like the iPhone X ‘notch’ is here to stay. The leaked images of the upcoming Mi Mix 2s show a very iPhone X-like top notch which appears to house the front camera and sensors.

If this does happen, and the Mi Mix 2s is launched with a notch so similar to the iPhone X, this phone will definitely grab the headlines. For design purposes, a notch will help the front camera move to a more natural position than in the bottom bezels, found on the Mi Mix and Mi Mix 2. Further, the notch can also help decrease the size of the bottom bezel which is not visible in the images.

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2

The notch on the Mi Mix 2s however, looks a bit forced, rather than natural as compared to the one found on the iPhone X. Looking at the inages, it is visible that the “horns” around the cutout are wider, leaving more room for icons in the status bar compared to the iPhone.

The Xiaomi Mi Mix 2s if launched, will not be the first Android device with a notch. The Essential Ph-1, which was released in August has a cyborg-like cutout for the front facing camera. Android apps, as found on the Essential Ph-1 do not deal well with a notch and developers need to actively update their apps to make use of the full 18:9 aspect ratio and also deal with a notch on the screen.

Essential Ph-1

The Xiaomi Mi Mix, launched in 2016 was the phone that prompted big smartphone makers to produce bezel-less devices. With the Mi Mix 2, Xiaomi entered a global market with its marquee device and with the Mi Mix 2s, it looks like the Chinese smartphone maker wants to take Apple head-on with another ‘top-notch’ device.

November 9, 2017
Great Deals On The GearBest 11.11 Sale

Here are the top tech deals on GearBest right now:

Xiaomi Smart LED Lamp

The strain caused to your eyes while working in a setting where the lighting is either too bright or too dim is something we’ve all experienced. In this era of smart lighting, Xiaomi has come up with a smart lamp in collaboration with Philips and it’s an instant winner. Take good care of your eyes and don’t let this lamp go out of stock!

Buy it here

Xiaomi Sling Bag

For $13, this bag from Xiaomi is a steal! If you are a light traveler and like to carry minimal things to work or college, then the Xiaomi Sling Bag with its water-resistant material is ideal for you. Don’t let this bag go out of stock because it is one of the best deals on right now!

Buy it here

Xiaomi Portable Mouse

This little mouse is your perfect travel companion. If you hate using your laptop’s trackpad and carrying a chunky wired mouse is even more annoying, then Xiaomi Portable Mouse is tailor-made for you. It requires 2 AAA batteries to run and compatibility won’t be an issue.

Buy it here

Xiaomi Action Camera

The Xiaomi Action Camera is compact, easy to carry and does the job you’d expect it to do. The camera records 4K videos at 30fps and has a 6-axis electronic image stabilisation. This action camera from Xiaomi connects to your smartphone via WiFi or Bluetooth and can be controlled through the companion app. The camera takes in a maximum of 64GB microSD card. The camera is powered by a 1450 mAh battery which Xiaomi claims will last up to 4 hours on standby and has a 2.4 inch touchscreen display for in-camera navigation.

Buy it here

Yeelight Bedside Smart Lamp

This bedside lamp connects to your phone via WiFi and Bluetooth for a fast access through the Mi Home app. You can choose different colours and intensity of the light depending on your preference. If you have a Mi Band, the lamp links with your Mi Band via the native app and automatically switches off when you fall asleep.

Buy it here

ILIFE Smart Robot

If you live away from your family and never get the time to clean your house, then the ILIFE Smart Robot cleaner is just the piece of tech you need! A full suite of Intelligent Sensors beneath the robot allow ILIFE robot cleaner to work its way around furniture and avoid stairs or other dangerous drop-offs.

Buy it here

Other products

Xiaomi Smart Wireless Switch – Buy it here

Mechanical keyboard + mouse – Buy it here

Xiaomi Wireless Sport Earbuds – Buy it here

Xiaomi Mi TV Box – Buy it here

Mini Keyboard – Buy it here

Meizu Bluetooth Earphones –Buy it here

November 8, 2017

Xiaomi Redmi Y1 Vs Moto G5 Vs Micromax Infinity Vs Lenovo K8 Plus – Battle Of The Budget Phones

Smartphones in today’s day and age have become accessible to everyone because of their cheap price tag without compromising a lot on features. A few years ago what was only available on a premium smartphone has now made its way into the ‘budget category’. As Xiaomi launched the Redmi Y1 at a starting price of Rs 8999, it entered that segment of the market which is already overflowing with different phones from different companies. Let’s stack up four of the best offerings, Redmi Y1, Moto G5, Lenovo K8 Plus and Micromax Infinity from this price range and see which one comes out on top:

Xiaomi Redmi Y1

The Xiaomi Redmi Y1 was launched in India as a part of a new lineup that focuses on selfies. The Redmi Y1 has a 5.5 inch IPS LCD display with a 1280 x 720 px resolution. In a lot of ways, it is an updated variant of the Redmi 4, which is also priced at Rs 8999 with the same chipset and RAM/storage configuration.
Where the Xiaomi Redmi Y1 supposedly excels is the camera department and specifically, the front camera. On the front of the phone is a 16MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture. Xiaomi claims that the software processing and beautify mode will result “in your best selfie ever.” The rear-mounted 13MP camera with PDAF and LED flash.

Moto G5

Lenovo-owned Motorola launched the Moto G5 along with the Moto G5 Plus in India in February 2017. Even though in August, Moto G5s and Moto G5s Plus were launched as an incremental upgrade, the Moto G5 at a price of Rs 10500 is a great option. With stock Android OS, and a more than capable Snapdragon 425 chipset, the Moto G5 fits the bill for a lot of consumers.

For the Moto G5 as well, the camera has been the highlight. The Moto G5 has a 13MP f/2.0 camera with phase detect autofocus with a 5 MP front camera.

Micromax Infinity

A phone made for people who prefer design over everything else, the Micromax Infinity offers a display with an 18:9 aspect ratio. The Micromax Infinity has a 5.7 inch IPS LCD display with a 1440 x 720 px display. Similar to the Moto G5, the Micromax Infinity also has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 chipset, 3GB RAM and 32GB onboard storage which can be expanded via microSD card.

It has a 16MP front camera and a 13MP rear camera with auto scene detection, bokeh effect, super pixel and panorama.

Lenovo K8 Plus

The Lenovo K8 Plus is the only phone in this list that has a dual-camera setup at the back. It has a 5.2 inch IPS LCD display with a 1920 x 1080 px resolution. The Lenovo K8 Plus runs stock Android 7.1 Nougat and Lenovo has promised an update to Android 8.0 Oreo by early 2018.

The Lenovo K8 Plus sports a vertically placed dual-camera setup at the back. It has a primary 13MP Pure cell sensor mated with a 5MP Samsung BSI sensor dual camera with an f/2.0 aperture and dual LED flash. The smartphone is capable of depth effect shots, bokeh effect shots, and dual ISP images. On the front is an 8MP wide angle lens with an f/2.0 and an LED flash.

Specifications	Xiaomi Redmi Y1	Moto G5	Micromax Infinity	Lenovo K8 Plus
Price	Starting at Rs 8999	Rs 10500	Rs 9999	Rs 10999 (Click here to buy)
Display	5.5 inch IPS LCD	5.5 inch IPS LCD	5.7 inch IPS LCD	5.2 inch IPS LCD
Resolution	1280 x 720 px	1920 x 1080 px	1440 x 720 px	1920 x 1080 px
Chipset	Qualcomm Snapdragon 435	Qualcomm Snapdragon 425	Qualcomm Snapdragon 425	MediaTek Helio P25
RAM	3GB/4GB	3GB	3GB	3GB
Storage	32GB/64GB (expandable via microSD card)	16GB (expandable via microSD card)	32GB (expandable via microSD card)	32GB (expandable via microSD card)
Battery	3080 mAh	2800 mAh	2900 mAh	4000 mAh
Rear Camera	13MP with PDAF	13MP with an f/2.0 aperture	13MP with bokeh effect, super pixel mode	13MP Pure cell sensor + a 5MP Samsung BSI sensor
Front Camera	16MP with an f/2.0 aperture Pro Beauty mode	5MP with an f/2.2 aperture	16MP	8MP wide-angle with an f/2.0 aperture
Other features	Fingerprint sensor	Fingerprint sensor	Fingerprint sensor	Fingerprint sensor Remappable ‘Music Key’

November 8, 2017

Xiaomi Redmi Y1 Review

Xiaomi introduced a new lineup of smartphones in India which will focus on the ever-growing craze of selfies. The Redmi Y1 is the first smartphone launched in the lineup along with the Redmi Y1 Lite. Priced competitively, is the Redmi Y1 the new budget king?

[section label=”Unboxing Video “]

Watch Our Unboxing

[section label=”Full Review “]

Watch Our Full Review

November 8, 2017
Israeli Company Sues Apple For Dual-Camera Patent Infringement

Israeli company Corephotonics has filed a lawsuit against Apple for patent infringement. It looks like Apple can’t catch a break, as this case has emerged right after it won a US $120 million case against Samsung. Corephotonics, a maker of dual lens camera technology, claims that the cameras featured in the iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 8 Plus infringe on four of its patents.

Corephotonics was founded in 2012 by Dr. David Medlovic, a Tel Aviv University professor and former chief scientist in the Israeli government.

iPhone 7 Plus

Corephotonics claims in the lawsuit that it reached out to Apple “as one of its first acts as a company” to establish a strategic partnership. The exchanges with Apple continued for a some time but never resulted in a license agreement for Corephotonics’ dual lens technology. In the lawsuit, the company claims:

Apple’s lead negotiator expressed contempt for Corephotonics’ patents, telling Dr. Mendlovic and others that even if Apple infringed, it would take years and millions of dollars in litigation before Apple might have to pay something.

According to the lawsuit filed, Apple infinged four patents that Corephotonics filed between 2012 and 2015. Of the four, two patents were on mini telephoto lens assembly, one patent on dual aperture zoom digital cameras, and one on high resolution thin multi-aperture imaging systems, which is essentially an umbrella term that covers what dual lens cameras are.

The company claims that its dual aperture camera technology has two fixed-focal length lenses, including a wide angle and a telephoto lens, which is what Apple uses in its iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 8 Plus.

In a bizarre turn of events, the Israeli company has roped in the consumers as well in this lawsuit. Corephotonics says since Apple is selling the phones with “knowledge of or wilful blindness” of the patents it’s allegedly infringing, the lawsuit claims that consumers who buy the iPhone 7 Plus and the iPhone 8 Plus are infringing on the Corephotonics’ telephoto lens assembly patent as well.

The lawsuit demands monetary compensation for the lawyers that Corephotonics has had to hire along with additional damages. It is also demanding that Apple stop using dual-aperture cameras immediately.

November 8, 2017
52% iOS Devices Now Run iOS 11 While Only 0.2% Devices Run Android 8.0 Oreo

The latest version of Apple’s operating system for iPhones and iPads, iOS 11, has now been adopted by 52% users. The information was updated on Apple’s App Store support page for developers. The iOS 11 was released for all users on the 19th of September and has had its fair share of hiccups so far.

The adoption rate of iOS 11 at 52% is less than what it was for previous versions. Last year, Tim Cook, at the “Hello Again” Mac event on October 27th, 2016 announced that iOS 10 had reached 60% of devices, while iOS 9 had been adopted by 67% of devices by November 16th, 2015. This adoption rate is significantly higher than Google new OS version, Android 8.0 Oreo. Google’s developer portal estimates that about 0.2% of devices are running Android 8.0 Oreo as of 2nd of October.

iOS 11’s slow rate of popularity or acceptance can be due to the issues found in the new OS. There have been several bugs that have hampered the growth of iOS 11 and a lot of people have refrained from updating their devices to iOS 11. Users have complained that ever since they updated to iOS 11, they have had issues battery draining, UI jitteriness, and random force restart.

In a new bug reported, some users can’t type the letter “I.” Reddit user TheCravin documented the bug and said that Apple’s predictive keyboard feature suggests a random character like “A,” “#,” or “!” followed by the unicode symbol, and then automatically replaces the “I” unless the user takes corrective action.

I? definitely should not have to learn anything to solve this bug. https://t.co/aKSwiA7idx pic.twitter.com/uhO7p4u8PZ

— Joanna Stern (@JoannaStern) November 6, 2017

November 8, 2017
Tweet Limit Extended To 280 Characters For Everyone

After testing the 280-character limit with a few users, Twitter is officially rolling out the new character limit to all its users. The only exceptions will be for Twitter users in the Japanese, Korean, and Chinese languages, who can convey as much as double the amount of information in their tweets compared to characters in English and other languages.

This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is madness ! This is me

— Bharat Nagpal (@TheBharatNagpal) November 8, 2017

In a blog post announcing the new official character limit, Aliza Rosen, Product Manager said:

During the first few days of the test many people Tweeted the full 280 limit because it was new and novel, but soon after behaviour normalised. We saw when people needed to use more than 140 characters, they Tweeted more easily and more often.

But importantly, people Tweeted below 140 most of the time and the brevity of Twitter remained.

The 280-character limit is still rolling out in phases and if your tweets are still limited to 140 characters, then fret not.

Back in 2016, Twitter chief Jack Dorsey was asked about the 140-character limit and its future, and he replied with a firm “It’s staying.” When Twitter had announced the test phase of the 280-character limit, Aliza Rosen, Product Manager in a blog post wrote:

We want every person around the world to easily express themselves on Twitter, so we’re doing something new: we’re going to try out a longer limit, 280 characters, in languages impacted by cramming (which is all except Japanese, Chinese, and Korean).

In the same post, she continued, “Also, in all markets, when people don’t have to cram their thoughts into 140 characters and actually have some to spare, we see more people Tweeting – which is awesome!” This made it evident that Twitter was willing to reach out to more people by giving the iconic 140-character limit, something that was quintessential to Twitter’s growthfar and has been a part of the company’s identity since the very beginning.

November 8, 2017
Google Assistant Can Now Recognise Songs

Google has rolled out an update to the Google Assistant which enables the AI assistant to recognise songs. One of the more popular features introduced in the Pixel 2 phones is ‘Now Playing‘, wherein the Pixel2 can recognise songs playing and pull up links to buy or stream them. The catch here is that while Pixel 2 doesn’t use the internet to search for songs, the Google Assistant needs the internet to recognise the song and pull up results.

This feature will come in handy more than you think. If you are always reaching into your pocket and struggling to open Shazam just in time for it to catch the song and show a result, this feature can be priceless.

If you enter a cafe and want to know what song is playing, simply open up Google Assistant and ask ‘what song is this’. Depending on how fast your internet connection is, Assistant will pull up a card for you with the name of the song, the artist, lyrics, and YouTube, Google Play Music, and Spotify (not available in India) streaming links. If Google Assistant has voice set as the preferred input method and you’re in a loud environment, you will see a new “What’s this song?” chip as the first suggestion in the carousel.

November 7, 2017
DXOmark Says Google Pixel 2 Has A Better Camera Than The iPhone X

The Google Pixel 2 was launched after the iPhone X but, thanks to it being available before the iPhone X the phone was put through its paces all over the internet. DXOmark is a portal that rates the camera of a smartphone on different parameters and the Google Pixel 2 came out to be the highest rated smartphone ever. The recently launched iPhone X was tested by DXOmark and was given an overall rating of 97, which is onepoint less than the Pixel 2.

In its summary, DXOmark said:

With a Photo score of 101, the Apple iPhone X achieves the best results so far for still images, edging out the Huawei Mate 10 Pro and the Samsung Galaxy Note 8, the previous joint leaders in the Photo ranking, by one point.

Its overall score of 97 puts the iPhone X into joint second place with the Huawei Mate 10 in the current DxOMark Mobile overall rankings, just behind the Google Pixel 2 with 98 points.

It is interesting to note here that despite clicking the best still images, the iPhone X falls short of the overall score of the Pixel 2 because of its video recording capabilities. The iPhone X is the only smartphone that records 3840 x 2160 px videos at 60fps.

For video, the X doesn’t quite rise to the same high-water mark, achieving a video sub-score of 89 points.

Photos are an extremely subjective aspect of smartphones, just like sound hence, scores by DXOmark can mean everything or absolutely nothing to a consumer. Still, having the second best smartphone camera in the world is no mean feat.

The iPhone X has dual 12-megapixel rear cameras, and it’s equipped with dual optical image stabilisation. The sensors are both larger and faster, according to Apple, and the main camera is equipped with a wide angle lens and has an f/1.8 aperture while the secondary telephoto lens has an f/2.4 aperture. In between the two cameras is a quad-LED True Tone flash. Both the front and back cameras have the portrait mode. The rear cameras have the portrait lighting feature, just like the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus.

Would you prefer the Google Pixel 2 over the iPhoneX on the sole basis of their DXOmark scores? Let us know in the comments below.

November 7, 2017
The iPhone X Has The Most Colour Accurate Display Ever – DisplayMate

The highly anticipated Apple iPhone X is now available to the consumers and has received great early reviews. it may not have broken the Pixel 2’s record on DXOmark, but, its display appears to be doing great. According to a report by DisplayMate, the 5.8 inch OLED Super Retina display of the iPhone X is the “most colour accurate” display.

The report was presented by DisplayMate President, Dr. Raymond M. Soneira and claims that the iPhone X display has “close to textbook perfect calibration and performance” through a built-in automatic colour management system. The system switches to a relevant colour gamut on the basis of the image displayed within the Wide DCI-P3 Colour Space that has an ICC Profile. This process helps in rendering correct colours, neither over-saturated nor under-saturated, the report mentions.

You may also like – Apple Claims iPhone X May Suffer From Screen Burn-In Issues

The display of the iPhone X is reported to have the highest brightness for OLED smartphones at 634 nits. This is higher than the 560-nit brightness of the Samsung Galaxy Note8. Similarly, the iPhone X has a Super Dim Setting that can drop down the display brightness to as down as two nits. The image contrast of the iPhone X was found to be “slightly too high”.

However, the viewing-angle performance of its display is apparently better than any mobile display, monitor, TV or UHD TV that are available in the market right now. The OLED panel on the iPhone X displays 22% decrease in brightness, this is less than the 30% that traditional OLED panels display.

You may also like – iPhone X Phones Worth Rs 10.57 Lacs Seized At Mumbai Airport

DisplayMate also mentions the highly discussed ‘notch’ at the top of the display. The notch, which houses the TrueDepth cameras for FaceID and ‘portrait mode’ selfies has a negligible presence on the front, taking up to 2% of the total screen area.

November 7, 2017
Google Tries To Fix Pixel 2 XL Display With New Update

Ever since its launch, the Google Pixel 2 XL has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. The integration of software, hardware and AI by Google in the Pixel 2 smartphones has been overshadowed by the growing complaints against the Pixel 2 XL’s OLED display. In a new software update, apart from the December security patch, Google has introduced new settings in the display menu, in a bid to improve the user experience.

The software update also contains a security patch for the Wi-Fi “Krack” vulnerability.

The update also contains a fix for the faint clicking noise heard in some Pixel 2s as well as changes to the Pixel 2 XL’s display behaviour to mitigate against potential screen burn-in. About the new update, a Google community manager writes:

As we mentioned in our deeper dive, this update also brings planned UI changes which extend the life of the OLED display, including a fade out of the navigation buttons at the bottom of the screen and an update to maximum brightness. These features have been carefully designed so as not to detract from the user experience. Since all OLED displays experience some degree of decay over time, we’ll continue to make enhancements which maximise the life of your Pixel screen.

With the new update, there will be a new set of three different options on both models: boosted, natural, and saturated under the Display settings option. Here is how Google described how the “saturated” setting would look:

The saturated mode puts the display into an unmanaged configuration, similar to how the Pixel 1 operates. The colors will be more saturated and vibrant, but less accurate (similar to most other smartphones which display more vibrant colors): we give consumers the option to choose the colour saturation.

Google’s definition of the saturated setting proves that even though this update has rolled out, the company still doesn’t want its users to use this setting. Google’s intentions are to keep the Pixel 2 XL looking accurate rather than eye-pleasing and unnatural.

November 7, 2017
Samsung Has To Pay US $120 Million To Apple

Samsung and Apple may be nearing the end of their legal battle woes. The US Supreme Court refused to hear Samsung’s appeal of a ruling that awarded Apple $120 million for a case that started back in 2014.

Back in 2014, a San Jose, California federal court ruled that Samsung infringed several Apple patents that allowed for a lot of popular iPhone features, such as slide-to-unlock, autocorrect, and the ability for information like addresses and phone numbers to automatically turn into links. As a result of that ruling, Samsung was asked to pay US $119.6 million to Apple. That verdict was then overturned by the Federal Circuit but, it was then reinstated in October 2016 by that same court.

After that ruling, Samsung appealed the decision to the US Supreme Court. In the appeal, Samsung stated that the Federal Circuit, which specifically deals with patents, made the decision without listening or reading the whole story. The company also implied that the patent court is biased toward patent holders. In a statement, Samsung express its disappointment on the ruling:

Our argument was supported by many who believed that the Court should hear the case to reinstate fair standards that promote innovation and prevent abuse of the patent system. One of Apple’s patents at issue in this case has been invalidated by courts around the world, and yet today’s decision allows Apple to unjustly profit from this patent, stunts innovation and places competition in the courtroom rather than the marketplace.

The good news for Samsung is that this does not change an earlier decision to dismiss a $399 million verdict against the company. In December 2016, the US Supreme Court sided with Samsung in a case against Apple over patent infringement. The case began in 2012 when Apple sued Samsung, claiming Samsung had violated its design and other patents for its iPhone on many of Samsung’s Galaxy smartphones. After years of back-and-forth and re-appeals, Samsung took the case to the US Supreme Court in 2016 where it ruled 8-0 that Samsung does not have to pay $399 million to Apple, overturning an earlier appeals court ruling in this case.

Samsung and Apple have been rivals ever since the Android platform rose to prominence and Samsung became one of the biggest smartphone makers in the world. Apart from the legal battles, both the companies are known to mock each other on social media and their respective ad campaigns. Recently, Samsung released an ad where it mocked the iPhone X and urged people to ‘upgrade to Galaxy’.

November 7, 2017
OnePlus 5T To Be Launched On 16th November

OnePlus has announced that the new OnePlus 5T will be launched on the 16th of November at an event in New York. Carl Pei, co-founder of OnePlus confirmed that the OnePlus 5T will be available in India from the 21st of November via a flash sale. After weeks of speculation and doubts around the existence of the OnePlus 5T, the much anticipated smartphone will be made official. In a blog post, Carl Pei said:

For those eagerly considering the OnePlus 5T, let me share a key piece of info to help you decide. Sales for the OnePlus 5T in North America and Europe start on November 21. The OnePlus 5T will be available in China on December 1. Early birds in India will be able to get their device through a flash sale on November 21, while official sales start on November 28.

Get ready for #ANewView. Meet the #OnePlus5T on November 16. https://t.co/AuAAsRIg2i pic.twitter.com/RHsZuCT7Oe

— OnePlus (@oneplus) November 6, 2017

The other co-founder of OnePlus, Pete Lau took to Weibo, the Chinese microblogging website to hint at what the OnePlus 5T might be priced at. It is worth noting that he did not announce the official price but, gave information about what the pricing strategy will be as compared to that of the OnePlus 5. Pete Lau mentions that the OnePlus 5T may be slightly expensive than the OnePlus 5, and could cost under CNY 4,000 (Rs 39000). He confirms that the OnePlus 5T may cost less than Rs 40,000 for the 6GB RAM variant. Similar to the OnePlus 5, the OnePlus 5T is expected to be launched in two variants, one with 6GB/64GB onboard storage, and the other with 8GB RAM/128GB onboard storage.

As per a recent leak through a benchmarks website, the OnePlus 5T will have a 6-inch 2160 x 1080 px display with an 18:9 aspect ratio.

The listing reveals that the smartphone will have the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, an octa-core processor clocked at 2.4GHz and Adreno 540 GPU, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, and 64GB or 128GB of onboard storage. These specifications are the same as the OnePlus 5 and is expected to be this way as the Snapdragon 835 is the best chip available right now. The OnePlus 3T was an incremental upgrade over the OnePlus 3 because there was a faster chip available ion the market.

OnePlus 5T Leaked Image

The next piece of information is interesting. According to the listing, the OnePlus 5T is expected to have a 20MP front-facing camera as opposed to a 16MP camera found on the OnePlus 5. The back cameras are expected to be the same 16MP + 20MP (telephoto lens) as the OnePlus 5 with improved portrait mode capabilities.

With the official launch just a few days away, there are possibilities of more leaks surfacing online and it won’t be a surprise if we all know what the phone will look like before it is officially launched.

November 7, 2017