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Apple Filed a Patent for Waterproof iPhones Last Year

Earlier this week, Apple publicly revealed filing for a patent for waterproof devices. The paperwork was completed in June 2014 and is centered around making iPhones waterproof using rubber or “self-healing elastomer” that gains or loses its shape to protect the device from moisture and dust.

Ports like that of chargers or headphones on the phone would be protected with a rubber covering that would be removed when an external device or chord is to be inserted. Once the external device is removed, the rubber device would go back to covering the port.

Depending on the kind of elastomer, it can provide protection against dust, debris, water, and gas. Hello, pretty pictures in all kinds of environmental conditions.

Companies like Samsung and Sony have employed waterproof tech in their devices in the past. Having said that, this patent does not mean whether we can expect the iPhone 7 to be entirely water-resistant.

At the same time, it should be kept in mind that iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are modeled on similar principles of water-resistance and are definitely more resilient than previous Apple devices. Let’s see if the iPhone 7 actually turns out to be the hardiest of all the iPhones so far.

December 12, 2015
Google’s Now on Tap Makes it Easier to Take Screenshots with Android

Android users running on Marshmallow will no longer need to awkwardly take screenshots. A new update to Now on Tap gives you an easy option to take screenshots minus the lingering in your Gallery. Yes, the new update will let you take temporary screenshots, share it with whomsoever you want, and will get rid of the image after you’re done.

You will now see a share button at the bottom left corner of Now On Tap’s pop up menu. Generally, screenshots are for instant sharing of say a game score you want to brag about or some interesting meme you found on the internet and just had to send it to your friends, after which you really won’t be needing that ever again.

Furthermore, there needs to be a better way to take screenshots without having to press down on the Volume Down and Power Button together. And let’s admit it, getting the timing right isn’t always easy.

Now on Tap takes care of both these issues. When you tap the share button, it takes a temporary screenshot that you can share through Twitter, post it to Facebook, or send it as a text. Once you’ve shared the image, the screengrab disappears rather than fill up your precious internal storage. However, if you do choose to keep it around for a while longer, you can by simply sharing it Google Photos or Gallery.

It’s a neat little update that helps declutter your phone of screenshots as well as provides an elegant way to take them as well. The update will rollout everywhere over the next few days.

December 12, 2015
Tesla Makes iPhone Covers Out of Leftover Seat Leather

Leftovers and iPhone covers -yes, those words in the same sentence -in a very unusual turn of events, Tesla has made covers for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus using leftover leather from car-seats. Looks like the world can’t get enough of iPhone covers. After OnePlus, Tesla follows suit with its cases for iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.

Tesla’s Model S is a very popular car, leading the company to increase its production to 50,000 cars per year. Larger production inevitably means larger amounts of waste. However, the car manufacturer found a way to not only put this waste to good use, but also make money out of it.

The company has made iPhone cases out of leftover leather meant for its car-seats. The covers are priced at $45 and for an added $5, Tesla will add some credit card slots to it as well. The cover will protect its contents from RFID readers, claims the company.

The iPhone case will sport Tesla’s logo and has now found itself located on the list of strange items the company has sold in the past. A golf towel, leather driving gloves that also work with touchscreens and a crown jewel made from leftover leather are some of its other unusual items.

December 12, 2015
GoPro’s First Ever Drone to be Called ‘Karma’

GoPro has revealed that its camera equipped drone, all set to arrive in early 2016, would be called ‘Karma’. It was first teased in October using camera footage recorded at 2.5K resolution, as could be made out by YouTube viewing option of 1440p. The same footage was used in the latest tease. GoPro claims that the video was not stabilised in post-production, thereby suggesting a decent camera capability of the drone.

If sources like Forbes are to be believed, GoPro ventured out to make its own drone once a partnership for the same with DJI fell apart. Karma is rumoured to be priced somewhere between $500-$1000. Signing up for the news could help you win a GoPro Karma in the company’s official giveaway.

December 12, 2015

HTC Desire 828 Launched in India at a Price of Rs. 19,990

Last month HTC unveiled the Desire 828 smartphone along with the One A9. The Desire 828 will now come to India on the 14th of December. This model comes with a 5.5 inch display with 1080 x 1920 pixels resolution and is powered by the Mediatek MT6753. It is run on the Android OS, v5.1 (Lollipop) and has a dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by) connectivity.

It also comes with a storage of 16GB that is expandable up to 2 TB along with 2GB of RAM. On the camera front, the Desire 828 features a 13 MP rear camera and HTC UltraPixel front. The Desire 828 is the first model in the Desire lineup to feature Optical Image Stabilisation in its main camera. The device is packed with a Li-Ion 2800 mAh battery and supports a micro USB v2.0.

“We are proud to unveil the first HTC Desire phone to feature Optical Image Stabilisation in its main camera and HTC UltraSelfie™ for a remarkable imaging experience and unparalleled selfies. With the HTC Desire 828 Dual SIM, we deliver an exquisite and personalised experience to our customers,” said Mr Faisal Siddiqui, President HTC South Asia.

The HTC Desire 828 Dual SIM comes in Dark Gray and Pearl White colours. And will be available exclusively on Flipkart for the consumers to buy from December 14, 2015 (12am) onwards at a price of Rs. 19,990.

Here is a spec table of the HTC Desire 828:

Specifications	Desire 828
Display	5.5 inches
Resolution	1080 x 1920 pixels
Chipset	Mediatek MT6753
CPU	Octa-core 1.5 GHz Cortex-A53
GPU	Mali-T720MP3
RAM	2GB
Storage	16GB expandable up to 200GB
Rear Camera	13 MP
Front Camera	HTC UltraPixel
Battery	Li-Ion 2800 mAh battery
Operating System	Android OS, v5.1 (Lollipop)
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot, GPS, Bluetooth
SIM	Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by)
USB	microUSB v2.0
Price	Rs. 19,990

December 11, 2015

Samsung Patents Phone With Interchangeable Camera Options

Samsung seems to be on a roll with 18.4 inch tablets to phones that unfold into a tablet. Now reports have emerged about a new Samsung patent. This patent shows different camera options for a phone-like device that include a regular camera, one with a bump and another that seems equipped with optical zoom and an exchangeable lens.

The phone is also drawn in a number of different shapes, suggesting how each phone’s size and shape will be determined by the camera paired with it.

There is another device-design as well which shows something thin like a phone with a thick camera module and a camera-like grip on one end. A shutter-key which is equipped with another button also prefigures on the design.

It is unsure what the future of these devices will be, however it gives us a fair idea of what is keeping Samsung busy these days.

Source

December 11, 2015
Samsung Galaxy S7 Design Leaked in New Video

A new short video leaked online by popular leakster @onleaks and uSwitch shows off what could be the design for the upcoming Galaxy S7 flagship devices.

The video shows a very S6-like design for the S7 only with more rounded sides that works well with the 2.5D glass on the front and back. The render also shows just one card slot for the SIM, which means that it is likely that the S7 will not support MicroSD card.

You also see a protruding camera lens on the back similar to its predecessor. The camera is also rumoured to house a 20 MP ‘BRITECELL’ camera sensor technology.

The S7 Plus shown in the video measures 163.32 x 82.01 x 7.82mm. The 6-inch device pushes the front-facing camera to the top right end. One must take the rendered video with a pinch of salt. The actual device may look a little different but @onleaks has so far had a near 100% accuracy when it comes to leaked renders.

That being said, renders have a way of showing some added thickness and bulge in certain areas (as was the case with the Nexus 6P camera bar, which didn’t protrude as much as the renders suggested). You can expect the finished product to look slimmer and cleaner.

The Galaxy S7 devices are rumoured for a 21 February unveiling. We’ll have more details about the flagship devices as we get closer to the date.

Source

December 11, 2015
Apple Rumoured to be Working on a Customised GPU

After working on its own own processors since the iPhone 5 (Apple A6 chip) and 64-bit CPU, Apple is now rumoured to be working on a customised GPU. The company is exploring in-house solutions for coprocessors and sensors.

In order to get rid of its dependency on PowerVR graphic units, Apple has been working on a proprietary GPU for a while now.

The company’s Korean counterpart, Samsung, is also developing similar tech. Samsung is expected to reveal its first in-house processors and Exynos 8 chipset in the Galaxy S7 early next year.

Even if everything goes smoothly, we cannot expect to see Apple’s new custom-GPU in iPhone 7 in 2016. It’ll probably be a few years before Apple is ready to take this leap. Let’s see how these plans pan out for the company.

December 11, 2015
Facebook Would Soon Allow You to Post Comments Even When Offline

Facebook has announced that they are currently testing an update for its News Feed on Android devices for those with slow internet connection. They plan to enhance their efficiency even on slow connections by taking previously downloaded and unread items and pushing them to the top of all the posts.

The cached items will still be displayed by relevance and will replace the spinning icon that appears at the top of the page when you are waiting for the new posts to load. This will help you view stories that you might have missed, while new posts load in the background.

Furthermore, this update will extend to your interactions with friends on Facebook. Users will now be allowed to post comments on posts even when offline. Obviously, there’s a catch here, your comment will be posted as soon as a connection is detected next. But, you’ll be able to like and share posts without a connection.

Facebook is expected to test and roll out this update soon. It also mentions that users in developed markets will be able to benefit from this especially when they’re stuck in a place with bad connectivity.

Facebook has decided on bringing this update especially to Android devices as stats show that Facebook’s growing user base is emerging in markets within Asia, where the online connectivity in most places is rather slow. Facebook had also previously launched Facebook Lite which is basically a lightweight Android version of the Facebook app to eight countries – Bangladesh, Nepal, Nigeria, South Africa, Sudan, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Zimbabwe.

Recently, Facebook seems to be responsibly realising the impact it has made around the world and playing an important part in communication and information access. So, if this successfully works out all we can do is reap the benefits of it.

Source

December 10, 2015
Over 70% Android Users Run an OS Which is More Than 2 Years Old

Google revealed earlier this week that 71.6% of Android users are still using the pre-Lollipop version of the OS. The divisions are as follows: 36.6% of devices are still running Android 4.4 KitKat, while a 26.9% of users are still running various versions of Jelly Bean. While the latter was released in 2012 and hasn’t seen an update since October 2013, the former first arrived two years ago.

As for iOS users, a huge 70% of them are running iOS 9 which came out only in September this year. Additionally, iOS 8 is being used to run about 92% Apple devices, an OS released not more than 16 months ago.

Though Android 6.0 Marshmallow has enough things to like about it, many users will have to wait another couple of months before they are able to run it on their devices. The contrast between iOS and Android updates offers an interesting picture. Perhaps the inertia and stagnation which sets in once the users become accustomed to running a specific OS makes them shy away from updates. Other than the availability of the OS what else do you think could keep users away from updating their Android devices?

Source: BGR

December 10, 2015
OnePlus 3 Specs Revealed In New Render

While OnePlus is re-strategizing its marketing program, the rumour mills are already churning out leaks about an upcoming OnePlus 3. A new render of the alleged phone reveals key design changes, and that the company might be looking to bring about in its next smartphone.

The images show a brushed metal back instead of the usual sandstone panels that OnePlus has used even for its iPhone 6s/6s Plus cover. However, it’s not like the company hasn’t already abandoned the use of a sandstone type panel, as we have seen that the OnePlus X arrived with a glass and ceramic body.

Since, one can’t see a fingerprint scanner in the render, reports speculate other means of unlocking such as an iris scanner to be incorporated in the upcoming handset. The new OnePlus might also feature a front speaker. The render shows that the handset could possibly come in two different colours.

This render’s source also reveals a little about the hardware and display citing that the handset could arrive with the Snapdragon 820 chipset and a 1080p display resolution. As of now, the company itself has not revealed anything about its upcoming device, so the render along with all the information should not be taken at face value.

December 10, 2015
Twitter Changes Its Timeline Randomly, Angers Users

Twitter is experimenting with a new feature that will make tweets appear randomly, as compared to in a chronological order. This change was noticed when some users started tweeting amidst confusion. Meanwhile, a Twitter spokesperson said:

“We’re continuing to explore ways to surface the best content for people using Twitter.”

However, this is not the first time that Twitter is experimenting with such a feature, and this time they’re not being too subtle about it. This new feature is unlike the “while you were away” feature, that still allowed you to preserve the original order of tweets. The latest change will put them in any random order. Some reports have compared this action to Facebook’s timeline where posts are shown in accordance with how popular they are instead of when they were put up.

PLEASE don't do this, @twitter. Literally everyone hates that Facebook does it. STOP TURNING INTO FACEBOOK. https://t.co/xyBzjMkHGU

— Nicole Eclectic ? (@Nic_Leigh) December 8, 2015

https://twitter.com/AngerMonkey/status/674268509883531264

CEO Jack Dorsey had earlier mentioned that the company would “continue to question our reverse chronological timeline”; so keeping in tune with that, this move should have been expected. Like most things, people will get used to this too.

December 10, 2015

Moto G Turbo Launched in India

The Moto G (Gen 3) Turbo goes on sale in the country and is exclusively available on Flipkart for order, at a price of Rs. 14,999. The phone comes in two variants, namely, Black with Deep Sea Blue back and White with Slate.

There are some interesting offers that customers can avail of, through December 13th. These include 100% cashback for 100 lucky customers, along with an offer that allows the exchange of your old smartphone for up to Rs. 6000. Additionally, some buyers will also get a chance to double their Airtel data for free.

On the specs front, the Moto G Turbo comes with a different chipset, Qualcomm MSM8939 Snapdragon 615, with Adreno 405 and a quick charge capability that Motorola calls a turbo charge. Everything else remains identical to the 16GB storage variant of the Moto G 3rd Gen which comes with 2GB RAM.

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Find the complete specs of the phone below.

Specifications	Moto G (Gen 3) Turbo Edition
Display	5 inches, Corning Gorilla Glass 3
Resolution	HD, 1280×720 pixels
Chipset	Qualcomm MSM8916 Snapdragon 615
Processor	Quad-core 1.7 GHz Cortex-A53 & quad-core 1.0 GHz Cortex-A53
GPU	Adreno 405
RAM	2GB
Storage	16GB
Expandable Upto	32 GB
Rear Camera	13MP
Front Camera	5MP
Video	1080p HD video, 30 fps
Battery	2470 mAh with Turbo charge
Operating System	Android 5.1.1 Lollipop
Connectivity	Bluetooth v4.0, A2DP, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, GPS, AGPS, GLONASS GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100 LTE band 1(2100), 3(1800), 7(2600), 20(800)
Price	Rs. 14,499 (16 GB)

December 10, 2015

Apple Watch Gets Improved Language Base and Bug Fixes With New Update

Apple has recently issued a version 2.1 software update for the Apple Watch. This update mainly incorporates improved language support and bug fixes. The system now includes several European languages, East Asian languages and Arabic.

Apart from a larger language base in the software, the update also supports a right-to-left UI mode, which is an obvious feature considering the fact that Arabic is read from right to left. Adding to this, Siri has also been upgraded to understand Arabic that is spoke in Saudi Arabia and UAE; while a dictation-only support is added for a number of other languages.

Apple seems to have incorporated the Arabic language rather efficiently into its system as they even added the Islamic and Hebrew calendars in the update.

For more information about this software update, please click here.

December 10, 2015
Cortana Comes to iOS and Android, With Especial Features for Cyanogen

Microsoft revealed in an official announcement that Cortana is now available on select iOS, Android and Cyanogen OS powered devices. It is available in the US and China for iPhones running iOS 8 and above and Android 4.1.2 and above. For OnePlus One powered by Cyanogen OS in the US, it will be made available later this month with the 12.1.1 over-the-air update.

“…as a result of our close partnership with Cyanogen, we created a more integrated experience to enable Cortana’s voice activation ‘Hey Cortana’ on Cyanogen devices so you can call on her while on any screen or when you’re immersed in an app,” says Microsoft.

The Android and the iOS version of Cortana look pretty much the same as the Windows version that came out earlier this year in July. However, there will be some differences in the capabilities of the assistant across various operating systems owing to API availability of the respective platforms.

It would be interesting to see if Cortana on an iOS device makes its mark. Features like “Hey Cortana” hands-free capability and SMS replies from the PC for missed calls would be missing on iPhones, putting the voice-enabled personal assistant at a disadvantage over Siri. In a recent survey where Cortana, Siri and Google Now were put to test, Siri had emerged as the winner in accuracy. Let’s see if Cortana’s presence on Android and iOS devices can change that. It’s available in the App Store and the Google Play Store in the US as of now.

December 10, 2015

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Specifications

Desire 828

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Specifications

Moto G (Gen 3) Turbo Edition