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Huawei P30, P30 Pro Pricing Leaked Ahead Of The Official Unveiling
The world’s second largest smartphone maker Huawei will unveil its next generation of camera oriented flagship smartphones, the P30 and P30 Pro at an event in Paris on March 26. They will succeed the Huawei P20 and P20 Pro which were released last year. Key specifications and features of the devices have either been confirmed by the company or have been leaked from several sources. Even official renders revealing how they would look like have been out for a while now. However, despite all of the information, there were no details about what these smartphones would cost. A known tipster Roland Quant on the microblogging website Twitter has revealed the prices of both the Huawei P30 and the P30 Pro.

Pricing

According to the tipster, the Huawei P30 and the P30 Pro will be one of the most expensive smartphones the company has ever made. The P30 with 6GB RAM and 128GB internal storage will cost €749 (Rs. 58,107). The P30 Pro will start at €999 (Rs. 77,502) for the version with 8GB RAM and 128GB onboard storage. The version with 8GB RAM and 256GB internal storage will cost €1099 (Rs. 85,260). Unfortunately, no information is known about the price of the Huawei P30 Pro with 8GB RAM and 512GB internal storage; but early estimates suggest it will be priced at €1199 (Rs. 93,018).

Huawei P30

As the name suggests, the Huawei P30 will be the less feature rich variant of the high-end P30 Pro. It will feature a similar design to the Huawei P20 launched last year. Reports claim that the device will have a 6.1 inch OLED display with a resolution of 2340 x 1080 px. The smartphone will have an in-display fingerprint scanner with support for face unlock technology.

The Huawei P30 is expected to run on the 7nm Kirin 980 SoC. The chipset has an Octa-core CPU and a Mali G76 GPU. In terms of optics, the smartphone has a triple rear camera setup consisting of a 40MP sensor with an f/1.8 aperture; and a 16MP ultra-wide sensor with an f/2.2 aperture; and a third 8MP telephoto sensor with an f/2.4 aperture. For selfies, there will be 32MP camera housed in the notch up front. The P30 will have 6GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage.

According to reports, the Huawei P30 will be powered by a 3650mAh battery with a 22.5W fast charging support via the bottom mounted USB Type-C port. The smartphone will also support NanoMemory cards, a new memory standard the company introduced last year.

Huawei P30 Pro

According to the leaked renders, the Huawei P30 Pro has a similar design to the aforementioned P30. Most of the former’s characteristics are also comparable to the latter. The smartphone will have a larger 6.47 inch OLED display with a resolution of 2340 x 1080 px. Unlike the regular P30, the display edges will be tapered to the side, similar to the ones seen in the Mate 20 Pro. Like the regular variant, it also will have an in-display fingerprint with face unlock technology.

While the chipset of the Huawei P30 Pro will be the same as the P30, the highlight of the smartphone will be its optics, especially the quad rear camera setup. It will be comprised of a 40MP sensor, combined with a 20MP ultra-wide sensor and a third camera with 10x lossless zoom. The third camera sensor will use a periscope style system to provide the handset with its zooming capabilities. A similar camera technology was shown by Oppo at the MWC 2019. The fourth camera will use a Time of Flight (ToF) sensor which will be engaged for clicking images with 3D and depth functionalities. The smartphone will be available in the following storage variants.
- 8GB RAM and 128GB ROM
- 8GB RAM and 256GB ROM
- 8GB RAM and 512GB ROM
Also read: Apple Launches iPad Air 10.5 & 5th Gen iPad Mini

According to reports, the Huawei P30 Pro will be powered by a 4200mAh battery with 44W fast charging support via the bottom mounted USB Type-C port. The smartphone will also support NanoMemory cards, a memory standard introduced by Huawei last year.
March 19, 2019
Xiaomi Launches The Black Shark 2 Gaming Smartphone With Snapdragon 855 SoC
Xiaomi launched the Black Shark gaming smartphone in the month of April last year which was followed up by the slightly specced up Black Shark Helo. After teasing its successor for a long time, the Black Shark 2 has been officially announced. The newly launched device has proper gaming pedigree with up to date features from the year 2019.

Black Shark 2 Design and Specifications

The Black Shark 2 like its predecessors has an unconventional design with a distinctive design on the rear and a large screen display on the front. The smartphone measures 163.61 x 75.01 x 8.77 mm and weighs in at a hefty 205 grams. It sports a 6.39 inch AMOLED display which is surrounded by thin bezels on all sides. The smartphone’s display has a resolution of 2340 x 1080 px and a pixel density of 403 ppi. The display panel can reach brightness levels of upto 430 nits and has an aspect ratio of 19.5:9.

Noteworthy, the AMOLED display also supports pressure sensitive controls which means the amount of pressure applied to the screen while playing games would affect the on-screen controls. For securely and swiftly unlocking the device it also features an on display fingerprint sensor. Talking further about the design of the Black Shark 2, its right side houses the power button and a shark slider which when toggled turns on gaming mode for optimised performance while the left side houses the volume rockers. The bottom of the device houses the USB Type-C port that can be used for charging and data transfer. To keep the temperature of the device under check while running heavy gaming it also has a vapour cooling chamber.

The rear of the Black Shark 2 has a unique design with green coloured lines that run along the sides. The rear panel also harbours the company logo and dual camera setup. The dual camera setup consists of a 48 MP sensor, 12 MP sensor and an LED Flash which can also capture 2160p videos at 30 fps. It also has a 20 MP front-facing selfie camera which is placed in the bezel above the display. The front camera can also capture 1080p videos at 30 fps.

Under the hood, the Black Shark 2 features the Snapdragon 855 SoC which consists of an Octa-Core CPU along Adreno 640 GPU. The smartphone is powered by a 4,000 mAh battery which supports fast charging upto 27 W. Connectivity options on the device include 802.11 ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0, Dual 4G VoLTE and GPS.

Black Shark 2 Price, Colours and Storage Options

Also Read: Apple Launches iPad Air 10.5 & 5th Gen iPad Mini

The Black Shark 2 is available in two colour options which include Frozen Silver and Shadow Black. The price for different variants of the smartphone are as follows:
- 6 GB + 128 GB – ¥3199 (Rs 32,600)
- 8 GB + 128 GB – ¥3499 (Rs 35,700)
- 12 GB + 256 GB – ¥4199 (Rs 42,800)
Even though the company has not shared any details about its launch in India, it is likely to be launched soon in the country.
March 19, 2019

Apple Launches iPad Air 10.5 & 5th Gen iPad Mini

Apple has silently launched the iPad Air and the iPad Mini 5th Gen tablets. The company has sent out a press release that details about the newly launched tablet duo.

Features

Both the iPad Air and iPad Mini have an aluminium clad design with curved edges which are similar to previous iPad models. The bottom side of both the tablets is occupied by the lightning port which is flanked by dual stereo speakers while the top side houses the power button and the 3.5 mm audio jack. The right side of the devices house the volume rockers and the SIM card slot on the LTE variants. The front of the tablets has thin left and right bezels while the top and bottom bezels are quite prominent. The bezel above the display on both devices house the selfie camera while the bottom below the display houses the home button which also doubles as the TouchID fingerprint sensor.

The iPad Mini sports a 7.9 inch display while the elder iPad Air sports a 10.5 inch display. The display panel on the former has a pixel density of 326 ppi whereas the display panel on the latter has a pixel density of 264 ppi. The display on both the devices have a brightness level of 500 nits and are covered with an oleophobic coating which minimises the appearance of fingerprint marks and smudges on them.

Both the tablets run on the Apple A12 Bionic chipset which was introduced with the current iPhone models including the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and the iPhone XR. The chipset is manufactured using 7 nm architecture which helps in boosting the battery backup of the device. The chipset also consists of a neural engine and an M12 coprocessor. The neural engine helps in boosting AI operations on the tablet while the coprocessor collects data from the sensors including the accelerometer, compass and gyroscope which are further sent to the CPU for additional calculation.

The iPad Air and the iPad Mini also share the common camera sensors on both the front and the back. The front camera on both tablets has an f/2.2 aperture equipped 7 MP sensor while the rear camera sensor is an f/2.4 aperture equipped 8 MP sensor. The tablet duo can also capture 1080 HD videos from both the front and rear facing camera. Noteworthy, the rear cameras can also capture slo-mo videos at 120 fps and time-lapse video. Additional camera features on the devices include Live Photos, HDR for photos, burst mode and auto image stabilisation.

The iPad Mini is powered by a 19.1 watt hour battery while the elder iPad Air is powered by a 30.2 watt hour battery. Apple claims a battery backup upwards of 10 hours on both the tablets. The tablets run on the latest iOS 12 and have a host of sensors which include three axis gyroscope, accelerometer, barometer and ambient light sensor. Exceptionally, the new devices also support the Apple pencil (sold separately). Therefore, taking notes and drawing masterpieces is now possible on the smaller iPad models other than the iPad Pro. The iPad Air 10.5 inch also supports the folio-style Bluetooth keyboard which is again sold separately.

Price, Colour, Storage Options and Connectivity Variants

Also Read: Dell Launches The Alienware Area 51m Gaming Laptop In India

Both the iPad Mini 5th generation and the iPad Air 10.5 are available in three colour options which include Gold, Silver and Space Gray. The price for different variants of the newly launched tablets are as follows:

iPad Air 10.5	iPad Mini 5th Generation
64 GB Wi-Fi – $ 499 (Rs 44,900)	64 GB Wi-Fi – $ 399 (Rs 34,900)
64 GB Wi-Fi +Cellular – $ 629 (Rs 55,900)	64 GB Wi-Fi +Cellular – $ 529 (Rs 45,900)
256 GB Wi-Fi – $ 649 (Rs 58,900)	256 GB Wi-Fi – $ 549 (Rs 48,900)
256 GB Wi-Fi +Cellular – $ 779 (Rs 69,900)	256 GB Wi-Fi +Cellular – $ 679 (Rs 59,900)

Apple Pencil (1st generation) is available for purchase separately for INR 8500. The Smart Keyboard for the 10.5-inch iPad Air is available for purchase separately for INR 13900 with layouts for over 30 languages, including simplified Chinese, French, German, Japanese and Spanish.

iPad Mini 5th Gen Specifications

Display: 7.9-inch Retina LED, 2048 × 1536 pixels, 326 ppi
Operating System: iOS 12
Processor: Apple A12 Bionic
RAM: 2 GB
Storage: 64 GB/256 GB
Rear Cameras: 8 MP, f/2.4
Selfie Camera: 7 MP, f/2.2
Security: TouchID, Screen Lock
Connectivity: 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 ac, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS, Lightning Connector
Battery: 19.1 Wh
Dimensions: 203.2 × 134.8 × 6.1 mm
Weight: 300 G (Wi-FI), 308 G (WiFi + LTE)

March 18, 2019

Dell Launches The Alienware Area 51m Gaming Laptop In India
Dell’s premier gaming brand, Alienware has brought it’s latest gaming laptop to India. Named the Area 51m, the laptop is speculated to be the most powerful gaming laptop in the world. Also, the company claims that it is one of the world’s first “highly customizable” gaming laptop. Users can swap out various modules of the laptop as per their dynamic requirements.

Alienware Area 51m Features And Specifications

The Alienware Area 51m has a modern design, which is referred to by the company as a “Legend” design. The RGB enabled laptop supports customizable lighting, which means that users can adjust the colour scheme of the keyboard, mousepad, the power button, the logo and the rear air vents separately. Using AlienFX lighting, users can design custom profiles and assign them to hotkeys for convenient switching.

The laptop has the upgraded version of the signature Alienware TactX keyboard, which features N-Key rollover and programmable macro keys. Users can choose to include Tobii Eyetracking technology and NVIDIA G-Sync with the 17.3 inch Full HD Anti Glare IPS display. They can also choose between a 60Hz or 144Hz refresh rate on the aforementioned display.

Dell states that Alienware Area 51m uses the company’s proprietary cooling technology called Cryo-Tech v2.0, which sports a dual-intake design, high voltage driving fans and load-balancing heat pipes to optimize component cooling. The laptop also has a honeycomb thermal pattern which helps in increasing airflow, the company claims. Moreover, the laptop is made out of magnesium alloy to increase rigidity.

The Area 51m can be customized to run on the 8th or 9th generation Intel Core processors. Users have an option of choosing from the i7-8700 CPU, the i7-9700k or the i9-9900K chip. Various GPU options for the laptop include NVIDIA’s RTX 2060, the RTX 2070 and the RTX 2080, all of which can be overclocked as per the user’s requirements. The laptop has 8GB, 16GB, 32GB and 64GB RAM options. In terms of storage, users can select from the following options:
- 1TB (+8GB SSHD) Hybrid Drive
- 256GB PCIe SSD + 1TB Hybrid HDD
- 512GB RAID 0 (2x 256GB PCIe M.2 SSDs) + 1TB (+8GB SSHD) Hybrid Drive
Users can upgrade their drives while customizing the laptop online to include even more memory options. The company claims that the level of customization present in the Area 51m is unlike any other gaming laptop in the market.

A 90Wh battery powers the machine. The Area 51m features a 2.5 Gbps Ethernet port, which, the company claims, provides 2.5 times the speed of the conventional Ethernet connection. Moreover, the user can couple the laptop with the Alienware Graphics Amplifier to play games at enhanced framerates and resolution.

The Area 51m has the following ports
- (1x) Power/DC-in Jack
- (1x) RJ-45 Realtek 2.5Gbps Ethernet Port
- (2x) Type-A SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Port
- (1x) Type-A SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Port with PowerShare technology
- (1x) Thunderbolt™ 3 Port (USB Type-C™ with support for SuperSpeedUSB 10Gbps, 40Gbps Thunderbolt, and DisplayPort)
- (1x) Alienware Graphics Amplifier Port
- (1x) HDMI 2.0 Output
- (1x) Mini-Display Port 1.4 (certified) Output
- (1x) Headphone / MIC (retaskable)
- (1x) Global Headset Jack
- (1x) Wedge-shaped lock slot
Price And Availability

Also Read: What Does 7nm, 10nm Mean In Mobile CPUs?

The Alienware 51m starts at Rs. 2,53,890 and can be customized/purchased via the Dell Official website. The laptop is available in two attractive colour options, Lunar Light and the Dark Side of the Moon.
March 18, 2019
Samsung To Launch Three New Galaxy-A Series Smartphones On April 10th
Samsung has tried to redefine its strategy for the budget and mid-range smartphone market by launching the newly announced Galaxy M and Galaxy A lineup of devices in markets like India. The handsets offer a competitive mix of specifications at a lucrative price. A fresh teaser shared on the company’s official Twitter account suggests that it may launch new smartphones soon. The GIF file shared in the tweet has the text “A Galaxy Event” which hints at devices in the Galaxy-A lineup. The three silhouettes also suggest that the event may see the launch of three devices. These smartphones could be the Galaxy A40, Galaxy A60 and the Galaxy A90.

Galaxy A90

The Galaxy A90 is expected to be the most premium device in the current A series of smartphones. While most details of it aren’t known yet, it is expected to feature a similar design to its siblings. The device was previously leaked to have a mechanical pop-up camera or a rotating mechanical camera to achieve a high screen to body ratio. If the latest smartphones are anything to go by, the Galaxy A90 will have a Super AMOLED display and will run on the OneUI on top of Android 9 Pie. The company may use an entirely new type of Infinity Display on the handset. Like the last year’s Galaxy A9, it is also expected to have a quad-rear camera setup, details of which are unknown at the moment. The Galaxy A90 will most likely have an in-display fingerprint sensor. The device may run on the 10nm Snapdragon 710 SoC. The chipset has an Octa-core CPU and Adreno 616 GPU. For memory and storage, the smartphone may feature up to 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage.

Galaxy A60

As the name suggests, the Samsung Galaxy A60 will be the elder sibling to the Galaxy A50; and is expected to carry major design and features from the device, albeit with a few upgrades. The leak suggests the smartphone will have the same ‘3D Glasstic’ gradient back. It will have a 6.7 inch Super AMOLED display with an Infinity-U notch on the top and a resolution of 2340 x 1080 px. Like the Galaxy A50, there will be an in-display fingerprint scanner with support for face unlock technology.

The Galaxy A60 might run on the 11nm Snapdragon 675 SoC. The chipset sports an Octa-core CPU and Adreno 612 GPU. In terms of optics, the smartphone is expected to feature a triple rear camera setup comprising of a 32MP sensor; combined with an 8MP ultra-wide angle sensor and a 5MP depth sensor. For selfies, the smartphone will have a 32MP camera housed in the notch on top of the display. The device will be powered by a 4500mAh battery and is likely to support fast charging via the USB Type-C port. For memory and storage, the Galaxy A60 will be available in the following variants:
- 6GB RAM and 128GB ROM
- 8GB RAM and 128GB ROM
Galaxy A40

Samsung Galaxy A40 will be an affordable offering from the company which will sit between the newly announced Galaxy A30 and Galaxy A50. Reports suggest that the smartphone will have a similar design to its siblings, complete with a polycarbonate body and a ‘glasstic’ back. The display will sport an Infinity-U, 6.2 inch Super AMOLED panel with a resolution of 2340 x 1080 px.

Under the hood, the Galaxy A40 is expected to run on the Exynos 7885 SoC which is manufactured using 14nm fabrication process. The chipset has an Octa-core CPU and a Mali G71 GPU. In terms of optics, the smartphone will feature a dual rear camera setup. In terms of memory and storage, the device will be available with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage.

Pricing & Availability

Also read: What Does 7nm, 10nm Mean In Mobile CPUs?

Samsung has announced that the new smartphones will be launched on April 10. Unfortunately, pricing of the devices isn’t known yet but reports suggest that the Galaxy A90 is expected to start around Rs. 29,999; the Galaxy A60 will be priced at Rs. 25,999 for the base variant; and the Galaxy A40 may cost Rs. 17,999. The smartphones will soon be available for sale after the official unveiling.
March 18, 2019
What Does 7nm, 10nm Mean In Mobile CPUs?

Apple showed off the A12 Bionic mobile processors last year with the launch of the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and the iPhone XR. It was the first smartphone chipset to be built on a 7nm fabrication process. Soon after, chipset manufacturers including Qualcomm, Huawei released their 7nm mobile System on Chip (SoC) named Snapdragon 855 and Kirin 980 respectively. But what does ‘nm’ mean in CPUs and does reducing the size of the processor really change anything?

Understanding The Composition Of CPUs

Every CPU whether it is of a mobile device or a personal computer is comprised up of billions of tiny transistors, which is a semiconductor used to amplify or switch electronic signals and electrical power. The transistors essentially act as electrical gates which switch on and off to facilitate calculations. This obviously requires power to function. So theoretically, if a transistor is made smaller, it will use a lesser amount of power. This is because of the transistor’s ability to store electric charge decreases.

CPUs are manufactured using photolithography, which is a process where an image of the CPU and its components is etched drawn onto a piece of silicon, which is created from sand. The method of how this is achieved is referred to as the process node. The measure of how small the transistors can be made is counted in ‘nm’ which is the short form of nanometer and is a minuscule size. Notably, the first transistor that was ever created in 1971 measured 10µm which means 10 micrometres. It is also a small size in its own merit but is nowhere near the size we have achieved using the technology available today.

Does A Smaller Size Of CPU Matter?

So, if a manufacturer claims that the newest CPU it has employed is smaller in size and will thus improve performance and efficiency, is it a correct thing to say? Well, technically yes as the power efficiency is improved by a smaller size of the chipset as explained above. Performance is also an aspect which is affected but not necessarily in a big way. While the faster a transistor toggles itself on and off, the better performance a device will have. But the difference can change with every manufacturer. Apple, Huawei and Qualcomm all have achieved 7nm fabrication process for their processors, but the performance differs a significant margin with each device.

A way that manufacturers tackle performance difference is by providing better cooling technology with their CPU. Heating in a CPU can cause its performance to throttle, which means it will adjust the clock speed of the CPU based on the amount of heat it is currently generating. So more heating would cause the clock speed to decrease, ultimately affecting the performance of the device.

What’s Next For Mobile CPUs

The biggest change with the reduction in the size of processors will be seen on mobile devices. With major manufacturers already making the switch to 7nm technology for manufacturing the mobile processors, the next obvious step will be to go even further. A few weeks ago, reports claimed that Apple may introduce 5nm SoCs in iPhones starting the year 2021. This would implicate even better battery life and a significant performance boost. More chipset manufacturers like Qualcomm, Samsung and Huawei will also most probably make the switch by the same year.

Downsides Of A Smaller Mobile Processor

Also read: Worlds First Side Sliding Smartphone, The ZTE Axon S Surfaces Online

No matter how much faster or efficient a smaller transistor size makes a mobile CPU, there are downsides. The most prevalent is the manufacturing of smaller chips. 7nm is already a substantially small number and going even smaller than that is not an easy process. Another problem with smaller SoCs is called ‘leakage’. It is a measure of the electrical charge the transistor allows to pass when it is off. This would mean that the transistor that allows more current to pass when the CPU is idle would consume more power. This drains battery faster and would certainly not be an ideal choice to be installed in devices. Smaller transistors are tricky to manufacture, which increases the chances of leakage if anything goes wrong in the production.

March 18, 2019
Worlds First Side Sliding Smartphone, The ZTE Axon S Surfaces Online

ZTE is a less known smartphone brand which is based out of Shenzhen, China. However, it must be noted that the company has launched several innovative devices in the past including the ZTE Axon M. Another remarkable device from the OEM, the Axon S has leaked online which is perceived to be the worlds first side sliding smartphone. The smartphone has an exciting and futuristic design with several distinctive elements.

ZTE Axon S Design and Features

The front of the ZTE Axon S accommodates a large screen display which is surrounded by insignificant bezels on all sides. It also features an on display fingerprint sensor which is slowly becoming the industry standard. A close look at the notification bar reveals that the smartphone supports 5G capability. It is the second smartphone from the company after ZTE Axon 10 Pro to support this standard of telecommunication.

As above mentioned, the ZTE Axon S has a side sliding mechanism which distinguishes it from every smartphone currently available in the market. Noteworthy, the slider is not just a cosmetic element but it provides the device with several necessary features. Sliding the Axon S reveals two sections one of which is on the front and other is on the rear. The front section when in an unrestricted state reveals a dual selfie camera setup and volume rockers which seem to be operated via touch controls.

The sliding section on the rear of the ZTE Axon S accommodates triple rear cameras along with an elongated Xenon flash. Also, the rear of the slide carries the ZTE branding and some details about the cameras. The phone supports 5x optical zoom technology and at least one camera out of three uses a 48 MP sensor. The rear of the Axon S has a neat look which lacks any sensors or markings.

Also Read: Redmi 7 Launched In China With Snapdragon 632 SoC

Specifications including the chipset, display size and battery capacity of the ZTE Axon S will be revealed after the company officially lifts the curtain from it. We will have to wait patiently till the time company talks out loud about the visionary smartphone.

March 18, 2019
Redmi 7 With Snapdragon 632 SoC Launched In China
At an event held in China, Xiaomi’s subsidiary Redmi has launched its latest smartphone, the Redmi 7. It was announced alongside the Redmi Note 7 Pro which was launched in India last month. The newly launched Redmi 7 features a modern design, competitive specifications and a lucrative price.

Redmi 7 Design & Features

The Redmi 7 measures 158.65 × 76.43 × 8.47mm and weighs 180g. The smartphone has a 3D gradient design at the back and minimal bezels on the front and a waterdrop notch which the company calls ‘Dot Notch’. It has a 6.26-inch display with a resolution of 1520 x 720 px. The device runs on the latest MIUI 10 based on top of Android 9 Pie. There is a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor with support for face unlock technology.

Under the hood, the Redmi 7 is kitted with the Snapdragon 632 SoC which is manufactured using 14 nm fabrication process. The chipset is comprised of an octa-core CPU and Adreno 506 GPU. For optics, the smartphone features dual-rear cameras consisting of a 12MP sensor with an aperture of f/2.2; combined with a 2MP depth sensor for taking portrait mode photos. For selfies, there is an 8MP camera housed in the waterdrop notch on top of the display. As far as memory and storage are concerned, the Redmi 7 will arrive in the following variants:
- 2GB RAM and 16GB ROM
- 3GB RAM and 32GB ROM
- 4GB RAM and 64GB ROM
The Redmi 7 is powered by a 4000mAh battery with support for 10W fast charging. The smartphone also supports memory expansion up to 256GB via a microSD card. The device also has a P2i coating for protection against accidental liquid splashes.

Redmi 7 Price

Also read: 5 Helpful Tricks To Earn A Chicken Dinner In PUBG Mobile

The Redmi 7 will start at CNY 699 (Rs. 7,148) for the base variant with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of Internal Storage. The version with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of Internal Storage is priced at CNY 799 (Rs. 8,170). The top end variant with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage is priced at CNY 999 (Rs. 10,216).
March 18, 2019
Two-Thirds Of The Antivirus Apps On Android Are Fake, Claims Study
As more parts of the world get connected to the Internet, the risk of malicious programs downloaded online also increases. In a study conducted in the month of January 2019, AV-Comparatives, a reputed Austrian independent organization that tests and evaluates antivirus software; has found that about two-thirds of the antivirus applications found on the Google Play Store are fake.

Criteria Of Testing

The test on the antivirus apps was conducted on the Samsung Galaxy S9 and Nexus 5 smartphones to simulate real-world usage. The devices were claimed to be running on Android 8.0 Oreo and 6.0.1 Marshmallow respectively. The test was conducted using a process that included the following steps.
- Opening Chrome browser and downloading the malicious sample
- Opening the downloaded .apk file using a file explorer app
- Installing the malicious app
- Running the app
The test conducted on the different antivirus applications checked them for their efficacy in protecting against around 2,000 common Android malware threats discovered in the year 2018. If at any given point of time, the antivirus app notified about the presence of the malicious app, the test was then concluded and the sample was considered detected. The organization claims that an automated Android testing framework ran the tests on the apps.

Results Of The Study

The study was conducted on over 250 antivirus applications that are currently available on the Google Play Store. Out of all the tested applications, only 80 were able to accomplish what they advertise that too a limited extent. However, it is noteworthy that these applications were only able to detect 30 percent of all malware laden programs.

Around 170 apps were then found to be at risk, which essentially meant that they were either ineffective or unreliable. Some of the apps were identified to be risky because they used a third party engine; which means a base program that performs a core or essential function for other applications. The software engine in the apps was found to be poorly implemented.

Also read: How Do Fingerprint Scanners Work? Are They Truly Secure?

The company that owns Android OS, Google has been lately taking down the apps that it found malicious or worked in a different way than advertised. Going by the company’s streak, it will most probably take action and will ban most or all of the apps that were deemed fake in the study. It is also recommended that the users of antivirus apps check if the app they are using is identified as fake in the results.

See The Full Study And The List Of Apps Here
March 18, 2019
Xiaomi Poco F2 Running Android Q Spotted On Geekbench

Xiaomi launched the Poco F1 last year which due to its flagship features and aggressive pricing turned a lot of heads globally. The company has been long awaited to launch its successor with upgraded features. Pleasingly, the Poco F2 with up to date features has been spotted on the benchmarking website, Geekbench.

Xiaomi Poco F2

The Geekbench listing of an unreleased Xiaomi smartphone was uploaded on March 16 which clearly mentions its name, the Xiaomi Poco F2. The device registers a single core score of 1776 points and a multi core score of 6097 points. Shockingly, both the single core and multi core scores of the Poco F2 are significantly less in comparison to that of the Poco F1. For reference, the Poco F1 registered a single core score of 2451 points and a multi core score of 8998 points in our tests.

Intriguingly, the Poco F2 runs on the Android Q operating system which is the successor to Android Pie from the yesteryear. It runs the “msmnile” SoC which is the codename for Qualcomm’s latest flagship chipset, the Snapdragon 855. Surprisingly the device only has 4 GB of RAM. The considerably lower Geekbench score and only 4 GB of RAM hint that this could be a lite variant of the Poco F2. To further strengthen the claim about this being a lite variant, it must be noted that even the Poco F1 was offered with at least 6 GB of RAM. Therefore, the feasibility of this being an affordable lite variant is quite high. Other details including the battery capacity, camera resolution, screen size and price of the upcoming device will only be publicised once it is officially unveiled by the company.

Xiaomi Poco F2 Launch Date

Also Read: Apple Told To Pay Qualcomm Over $31 Million In Patent Infringement Case

It is hard to speculate a launch date of the Poco F2 or the Poco F2 Lite as Xiaomi has maintained silence about the launch of these devices till now. However, going by the company’s annual update cycle they are likely to be launched in the second half of 2019.

March 18, 2019
Huawei P30 And P30 Pro Official Renders Leaked
Chinese smartphone maker Huawei will launch the P30 and P30 Pro smartphones at an event in Paris on March 26. The devices will be the latest flagships of the company which will succeed the P20 and P20 Pro from last year. The company has confirmed quite a bit of detail of the handsets and there have been numerous leaks in the past few weeks. Fresh renders have leaked the Huawei P30 and the P30 Pro from all their sides.

Huawei P30

The Huawei P30 will be the specced down variant of the higher end P30 Pro. It will feature a similar design to the Huawei P20 launched last year. Reports claim that the device will have a 6.1 inch OLED display with a resolution of 2340 x 1080 px. The leaked renders show no physical fingerprint scanner which suggests the smartphone will have an in-display fingerprint scanner along with support for face unlock technology.

Reports claim that the Huawei P30 will run on the 7nm Kirin 980 SoC. The chipset has an Octa-core CPU and a Mali G76 GPU. In terms of optics, the smartphone has a triple rear camera setup consisting of a 40MP sensor with an f/1.8 aperture; and a 16MP ultra-wide sensor with an f/2.2 aperture; and a third 8MP telephoto sensor with an aperture of f/2.4. For selfies, there will be 32MP camera housed in the notch on top of the display. In terms of memory and storage, the P30 will have 6GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage.

According to reports, the Huawei P30 will be powered by a 3650mAh battery with a 22.5W fast charging support via the bottom mounted USB Type-C port. The smartphone will also support NanoMemory cards, a new memory standard the company introduced last year.

Huawei P30 Pro

According to the leaked renders, the Huawei P30 Pro has a similar design to the aforementioned P30. Most of the former’s characteristics are also comparable to the latter. The smartphone will have a larger 6.47 inch OLED display with a resolution of 2340 x 1080 px. Unlike the regular P30, the display edges will be tapered to the side. Like the regular variant, it also has an in-display fingerprint with face unlock technology.

While the processor of the Huawei P30 Pro will be the same as the P30, the highlight of the smartphone will be its optics, especially the quad rear camera setup. It will be comprised of a 40MP sensor, combined with a 20MP ultra-wide sensor and a third camera with 10x lossless zoom. The third camera sensor will use a periscope style system to give the handset its zooming capabilities. The fourth camera uses a Time of Flight (ToF) sensor which is employed for clicking images with 3D and depth functionalities. The smartphone will be available in the following storage variants.
- 8GB RAM and 128GB ROM
- 8GB RAM and 256GB ROM
- 8GB RAM and 512GB ROM
According to reports, the Huawei P30 Pro will be powered by a 4200mAh battery with a whopping 44W fast charging support via the bottom mounted USB Type-C port. The smartphone will also support NanoMemory cards. The handset will be available in four colours, namely Black, Ice White, Twilight, and the recently leaked Sunrise Red.

Availability & Price

Also read: Samsung Galaxy A2 Core Android Go Smartphone Leaked

The Huawei P30 and the P30 Pro will be launched at an event in Paris on March 26. It will be available for sale in Europe and China soon after the unveiling. Unfortunately, pricing of the devices is not confirmed yet. But, the P30 is expected to be priced at EUR 599 (INR 46,862) and the P30 Pro starting at EUR 799 (INR 62,509).
March 16, 2019
Snapchat May Soon Launch A Gaming Platform Like Facebook

Snapchat may be familiar to a lot of users as an application that can be used to send “disappearing” messages. Initially intended only for the aforementioned purpose, the app has gone through a lot of updates since then. Some of them are the “discover” tab, where users can see interesting and engaging content, and the snap map, which geotags all the user’s friends on the world map, allowing them to keep track of their vacations, travels and a lot more. Reports say that the company is now planning to announce a gaming platform for its developers in April, 2019.

About The Project

Initially codenamed “Project Cognac“, the mobile gaming platform will be integrated into the application itself and will showcase a number of games designed by developers who are specifically working on Snapchat-based add-ons. This project will be unveiled at the company’s first ever summit in Los Angeles, which is being held especially for Content and Developer partners of the company. On April 4, new video content will also be announced for the platform.

In 2018, Snapchat acquired an Australian Gaming Studio called Pretty great for almost US$ 8.6 million. Reports say that one of the employees of the studio was a part of the hit mobile games “Jetpack Joyride” and “Fruit Ninja”. It was also reported that Snapchat has invested a confidential amount of money in the studio for venturing into the gaming initiative.

Collaboration With Tencent

In 2017, Tencent acquired 10 percent of Snapchat’s public market shares. The Chinese tech giant has published some hugely popular games like League of Legends and PUBG Mobile, aiming towards the idea that Snapchat may have collaborated with Tencent for the launch of their gaming platform. Snapchat has already been exhibiting interest in AR (Augmented Reality) games since early 2018.

Also Read: Huawei P30 Pro Leaked In Sunrise Red Colour, Full Details Revealed

Since the Gaming boom is on the rise, Snapchat could make a substantial amount of progress with its new gaming initiative. The platform may also act as a source of revenue for the company via advertisements. As per reports, Snapchat’s revenue has been on an upward rollercoaster since the past months. Project Cognac may just be a sweet addition to the wide host of features that Snapchat already provides.

March 16, 2019
Samsung Galaxy A2 Core Android Go Smartphone Leaked

Samsung has employed a shift in its strategy over the past few months. In an attempt to compete with the ever improving hold of Chinese smartphone OEMs in developing markers; it has launched devices offering competitive specifications at lucrative prices. The recent examples of this change are the newly launched Galaxy M and Galaxy A lineup of smartphones. In a gambit to capture the budget market, the company is planning to launch an Android Go certified device. This handset, alleged to be called the Galaxy A2 Core, has leaked in images on Twitter by a famous tipster.

Galaxy A2 Core: Design

The Galaxy A2 Core will be the next smartphone from the company to be certified under the Android Go program. This allows devices with less than or equal to 1GB of RAM to function better because of a lightweight software. The leaked image reveals the looks of the device in its entirety. The front of the handset has the display surrounded by significant bezels and the Samsung branding on the bottom. There is an earpiece on top, accompanied by the front-facing camera on the left and the proximity sensor on the right. The right side of the device houses the volume rockers and underneath them is the power button to lock/unlock the device. The left is expected to have the SIM card tray and the bottom of the device has the 3.5mm headphone jack.

The back of the Samsung Galaxy A2 Core has a single rear camera setup with an LED flash. The main loudspeaker is present below the camera module and in the centre, there is the company’s branding. There is no physical fingerprint scanner in sight, so the smartphone may rely on face unlock technology; along with traditional unlocking methods like numerical pins, patterns and passwords.

Galaxy A2 Core: Specifications

While the leak doesn’t mention any specifications of the device, a recent listing on CPU benchmarking website Geekbench revealed key specifications of the Galaxy A2 Core. According to the listing, the model number of the aforementioned smartphone will be SM-A260F which falls in line to previous reports of the device. The device runs Android 8.1 Oreo Go edition out of the box and may feature Samsung’s Experience UI on top.

The Samsung Galaxy A2 Core runs on the 14nm Exynos 7870 SoC. The chipset has an Octa-core CPU and Mali-T830 MP1 GPU. The CPU has a base frequency of 1.59GHz which gives it a single-core score of 716 and multi-core score of 2446 on Geekbench. Galaxy A2 Core will have 1GB of RAM and 16GB of onboard storage.

Pricing & Availability

Also read: Google Pixel 4 XL Renders Reveal A Smartphone With Punch Hole Selfie Camera

The leaked images and Geekbench listing suggests the launch of Galaxy A2 Core is imminent. Unfortunately, no details about the pricing of the device are known as of now; but given Samsung’s aggressive stance on pricing lately, it may be launched at a price of Rs. 5,999.

March 16, 2019
More Sources Claim That 2019 iPhones Will Have Triple Cameras

Days after the launch of the latest iPhone XS & XS Max, reports started surfacing that their successors will have a considerably different design and features. Notable leakster, OnLeaks has previously shared renders of the 2019 iPhone models that reveal a smartphone with triple rear cameras. The revelations were intriguing as Apple has desisted itself from following market trends and an unusual number of cameras on a smartphone is currently at its peak.

The renders revealed that the triple camera setup of the upcoming iPhone is housed in a square-shaped module which also accommodates an LED flash. A few days after the arrival of the render, Bloomberg also published a detailed report that supports the claim of an iPhone with triple cameras. As of now, Apple has maintained a silence on the aforementioned leaks and claims. A piece of freshly shared news from a trustworthy Japanese blog, Macotakara reassures that the possibility of a 2019 iPhone with triple rear cameras is quite high.

Macotakara states that Chinese suppliers have confirmed that an iPhone with triple cameras is in the works. It is noteworthy that such suppliers are an integral part of the production of iPhone models and information shared by them has a high tendency to turn into reality.

What Could The Third Camera Be Used For?

Also Read:Whatsapp Co-Founder Urges Students To Stop Using Facebook

The alleged third camera on the upcoming iPhones is likely to be a TOF (Time Of Flight) sensor. This sensor allows in capturing depth information around the subject in the frame of the camera which produces lifelike three-dimensional pictures and videos.

Sony, one of the world’s largest supplier of camera sensors for smartphones, previously declared that it will bump up the production of its 3D TOF sensors which is due to the anticipated boom in demand of these sensors. Executives from Sony explicitly stated that Apple is in talks with them for the supply of a 3D sensor. The collection of all the leaks and reports suggest that the 2019 iPhone will indeed have triple rear cameras.

However, we will have to wait patiently as the next iPhones are due to be released in the month of September this year.

March 16, 2019
Google Pixel 4 XL Renders Reveal A Smartphone With Punch Hole Selfie Camera

In order to accommodate a large size screen on a mobile device, OEMs have begun to minimise the bezels surrounding the display. Although static bezels that don’t serve a purpose can be shrunken, the need to house the front-facing facing selfie camera persists. Consequently, companies including Samsung and Huawei have launched smartphones (1,2)with a punch hole in the display. This feature has allowed manufacturers to significantly boost the screen to body ratio of these smartphones. Google, the developer of Android who also markets a lineup of smartphones under the Pixel brand is reportedly working on a smartphone with dual punch hole selfie cameras. According to the source, the aforementioned smartphone is the Pixel 4 XL which will succeed the Pixel 3 XL from the last year.

Is It The Pixel 4XL Or Not?

The Google Pixel 3 XL was launched along with the Pixel 3 in the month of November last year. Even though both devices are from the same generation, they have significantly disparate front fascia. The Pixel 3 XL has a symmetrical design with prominent bezels on top and bottom of the display while the elder Pixel 3 XL has a wide notch above the display. The wide notch on the top of the Pixel 3 XL was not well received due to its asymmetrical design and highly obstructive nature. Therefore, Google might rethink the design language of its future flagship smartphone and the leaked image of the Pixel 4 XL has a high probability of turning into a reality.

Features Of The Leaked Pixel 4 XL

If the alleged images of the Pixel 4 XL are to be considered accurate, it will be a significantly upgraded device in comparison to its predecessor. As mentioned before, the alleged Pixel 4 XL has dual punch hole selfie cameras which are reminiscent of the newly launched Galaxy S10+. Also, the render does not exhibit a rear mounted fingerprint sensor, therefore, the upcoming device might have an on display fingerprint sensor.

Google Pixel 3 XL

Surprisingly, the renders reveal that the Pixel 4 XL also has dual rear cameras. As of now, Google has only marketed Pixel smartphones with a single rear camera which are highly appreciated for their camera prowess. Consequently, the camera capabilities of a Pixel smartphone with dual rear sensors is expected to be groundbreaking.

Also Read: Xiaomi POCO F1 Lite Spotted On Geekbench With 4GB Of RAM

Google has not made any comments about the accuracy of the leak. Hence, we will have to wait patiently till the company spreads some light on the existence and launch date of the Pixel 4 XL.

March 15, 2019