OnePlus recently admitted that the USB Type-C cable for the OnePlus 2 does not conform to the USB Type-C 1.1 spec, and has agreed to give refunds. This admission comes after a Google engineer, Benson Leung, tested the OnePlus 2’s USB Type-C cable and concluded that it “may cause damage to your charger, hub or PC USB port” if used on a fast-charging device.
However, there’s a condition to the refund. Since the cable won’t cause any damage to the device itself, those who own the handset will not receive the refund or replacement cable. Instead, OnePlus will only refund those who purchased the cable separately. The company is of the opinion that the cable works fine for its intended purpose, that is to charge the OnePlus 2. However, someone who is unaware of the issue may just grab the cable and use it to charge some other handset or a laptop like Google’s Chromebook Pixel.
“If you’ve purchased these products to use with devices other than the OnePlus 2, we are going to offer an opportunity to apply for a refund on those products purchased through the OnePlus website. Please note that cables that were included in the box with your OnePlus 2 are not eligible for a refund, since they are safe to use with the OnePlus 2.”
The device could draw more power than the charger itself is able to support, since it has the wrong resistor for the USB Type-C 1.1 specification (10 k-ohms instead of 56 k-ohms). A good USB charger will cut off power without any damage, but a bad one could fry, or worse, catch on fire. Ideally, recalling all the faulty cables and replacing them would be the right thing to do, but those planning to keep them should “mark it with a tag so you don’t forget it’s special,” according to Leung.
Microsoft’s Windows is a huge part of history, and as it completes 30 years of success at transforming graphical interface, let us take a short look at their journey from Windows 1 to Windows 10.
Those of you who own a Panasonic Lumix GX7, G8, or FZ300 camera can expect a firmware update with a new mode called “Post Focus”. This new mode can capture up to 49 points of focus in a single burst and it works with any lens that offers auto-focus capabilities. The photographer can also review the sequence of pictures taken in the camera, and pick the ones they want to use. Apart from this, the Post Focus mode will also allow you to record 4K videos.
The photographer can choose a focus point by tapping and swiping the touchscreen; one can also toggle through different focus points and employ assist modes. Each Lumix camera compatible with the mode has a higher megapixel count, however, the only drawback is that Post Focus mode is limited in terms of output resolution.
With this new addition, Panasonic allows you to create a picture in focus through focus stacking, combining the light-gathering and fast-shutter benefits of a wide aperture with the deep depth of field of a narrow aperture. However, parts of the process might have to be done manually. Photographers will be able to pick their point of focus using the camera’s touchscreen allowing this mode to be added to cameras with larger sensors. Overall it seems like an efficient new mode for Panasonic cameras.
Tech Tat, a tattoo prototype made using electro-conductive paint, can help you keep track of your pulse rate and heart beat. Made by an Accenture team interestingly called Chaotic Moon, this kind of tattoos are also capable of carrying information like credit card and ID details.
https://youtu.be/9iFuTaqD4fM
The enthusiastic team of the little piece of technology accepts that not only does it take care of important business like serving as a fitness tracker and a portable carrier of your private details, it’s also visually pleasing. However it’s not been confirmed yet if and when Tech Tat will be available commercially.
“We can’t conjecture about when people could get their hands on one. Typically, we will explore the best partners that would help us get Tech Tat to the consumer,” says Chaotic Moon’s CEO, Ben Lamm
This isn’t the first time body art has met technology. Motorola’s Moto X had a fling with using temporary body tattoos to unlock the smartphone last year. Having said that, it’s still hard not to look forward to seeing Tech Tat in action. Let’s see where this tech-tattoo fusion leads us next.
Apple has confirmed rumours about acquiring Faceshift – a Zurich-based visual effects firm that played a key role in making Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The firm specializes in real time, markerless motion capture which helps to capture realistic and emotional facial expressions in video games and film.
However, as reports suggest, Faceshift is not the only technology startup that Apple has recently acquired. Their list consists of augmented reality firm Mataio, facial recognition firm Polar Rose and 3D scanning house PrimeSense.
However, Apple has not given anybody a specific reason as to these acquirements and have only stated that –
“Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans.”
Oh well, whatever it is, let us just hope Star Wars and Apple fans will have something in store for them.
90s kids, this one is for you. Our childhood was different and will always be better than the childhood of kids these days, two of the main reasons being – Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon. These channels were a treat for us all – from Swat Cats, to SpongeBob SquarePants, to Scooby Doo, to Dexter’s Laboratory, to Courage the Cowardly Dog to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to a million more. Do you know what was even cooler? We had conspiracy theories attached to our favourite cartoons. Chota Bheem, you’ve got nothing on us.
Ed, Edd and Eddy:
Remember Ed Edd and Eddy? Funny cartoon with three idiots? Apparently everything wasn’t so sunny in the Peach Creek Estates. The theory states that everyone in the neighborhood actually died in a different time period and was sent to roam the cul-de-sac of Peach Creek Estates (the land they once lived in their former life). Just to think that every character has a dark past might shatter your childhood. But let’s delve into it anyway.
Rolf:
The first person to ever live or die in the land that would be later known as the cul-de-sac, was a boy named Rolf. Rolf was a son of a Shepherd who died in 1903; he was trampled to death by his bull who had broken out of its cage. According to the theory, he took along his farm animals even after his death and continued to take care of them on a daily basis.
Johny:
Now, right after Rolf’s death, a boy named Johnny and his family moved into the same farm Rolf and his family lived in. Way to go, Johnny and his family -everyone wants to live in a place where people have recently died, right? Anyway, Johnny had created this plank to compensate for the lack of friends and abundance of free time he had. Plank would go on to stay with him, even after he died of tuberculosis in the year 1922.
Eddy:
Moving on to one of the main characters – Eddy. Eddy was originally from New York, however he moved to ‘the neighborhood’ in 1932. During this time, the Great Depression was going on, and Edd became a schemer in order to get away from his real life. He died in 1939, by drowning in a river, while trying to run away from a group of children he had tricked.
Ed:
Ed and his sister Sarah were born in the late 40s; this was during the time when cul-de-sac (the neighborhood) was starting to take shape in the post war era. However, they had a difficult childhood while growing up during World War II. Sarah and Ed had different ways of coping with the fact that their mother was never home – Sarah became controlling in order to assert her position, and Ed became an introvert who delved into his parallel world filled with comics and movies. They both died in a car accident, while they were driving to their grandparents’ house.
Edd:
Edd, the third main character of the cartoon, is said to have been brought up by two extremely controlling parents. This influenced his life deeply, and he went on to follow their footsteps intellectually but remained shy and timid. He died in 1986, when a gas leak occurred while Edd was experimenting and caused an explosion which blew him and his house altogether.
We could go on about all the characters but that would be quite nonsensical for you to read. Therefore, here is a short YouTube video explaining the entire mystery to you. Hint: Nazz has a very dark past and the Kanker sisters are supposed to be the devil’s daughters –
Rugrats:
This lovely cartoon that shows us the perspective of babies definitely kept us hooked for a while. But, obviously there is a morbid conspiracy theory behind it and it mainly revolves around Angelica – the oldest kid who enjoys terrorizing her cousin Tommy and his friends. The popular theory that is based on the cartoon, tells us that everything in Rugrats is actually based on Angelica’s imagination who was suffering from schizophrenia.
According to this theory, Tommy is a stillborn and his father, Stu never really gets over that. Coincidentally, Stu is constantly making toys in the show; which could be explained as a coping mechanism to deal with the loss of his son. As if that wasn’t enough, Phil and Lil (the baby twins) were created because the Devilles (their parents on the show) had an abortion, and since Angelica did not know the gender of the baby, her imagination conjured both a girl and a boy. Additionally, Chuckie and his mother are actually dead. Funnily enough, Chuckie’s father, Chaz is always portrayed as neurotic on the show.
After all of this, you’re probably wondering whether any of it was even real, well apparently there was one real element – Suzie. Suzie is Angelica’s friend who played along with her friend’s made up baby friends, because she did not want to hurt her. This explains why Suzie is the only person, apart from Angelica, who is able to talk to the babies.
Once again to explain things better to you we have a video, that you should watch. P.S. The theory extends even to the Rugrats side series – All Grown Up.
Yes, we did live in a different time, where cartoons made us curious about words that we might not have understood then.
Microsoft has made the Nokia 230 official. Like its predecessor, last year’s Nokia 130, this phone follows a simple interface minus the song and dance of modern day smartphones and is priced at an affordable $55 (Rs. 3600). The phone also has a dual-SIM model -Nokia 230 Dual SIM
Like the LG Ray X190, the phone concentrates on letting you click pretty selfies with its 2 MP front camera, same as the main camera. Both cameras also have LED flash.
https://youtu.be/GrZs6hJ-1b4
Rest of the specs include a 2.8-inch display with 240 x 320 pixel resolution, and 16 MB of RAM. But don’t let this make you think any less of the Nokia 230 which is capable of supporting Bing Search, Facebook, Twitter, Opera Mini, MSN weather.
The phone has no internal storage but supports a MicroSD card of up to 32 GB. Furthermore, Nokia 230 has Bluetooth 3.0, GSM support and dual-band 900MHz/1800MHz only as wireless connectivity options. It also has an FM Radio receiver (ain’t that cute?) with a 3.5 mm headphone jack.
With a sand-blasted aluminium back cover, the phone measures a 124.6 x 53.4 x 10.9 mm and comes equipped with a battery marked at 1,200 mAh.
If you ever feel like getting away from the world of blingy smartphones, Nokia 230 in all its simplicity is the way to go. It will be made available starting December.
Making another addition to the category of mid-range phones is LG’s Ray X190 with a 5.5 inch IPS display. The phone measures a 9.3 mm in thickness and is quite similar in terms of design to a previous LG device, the G4.
The highlight of the phone is the front camera marked at 8 MP. The main camera is of 13 MP with 1080p resolution. Rest of the specs are a little disappointing, making the phone pretty much selfie-oriented. The screen has only a 720p resolution (267ppi); the phone has no LTE and only supports 3G. LG Ray is a dual-SIM phone but the battery is capable of only 10 hours of talk time.
The operating system is Android 5.1 Lollipop and imitates the flagship G-series with features like Knock Code and Gesture Shot. The device packs only a 1 GB of RAM and MediaTek MT6592M chipset with an octa-core processor.
Currently LG Ray X190 is priced at RUB 15,000 in Russia, which is about $232 or Rs. 15,000. The price is likely to be higher when the device arrives in India. However not sure if the phone is meant for you if you are willing to do anything other than clicking selfies with it.
Huawei is just a few hours away from unveiling the Mate 8 but it looks like the company is already busy working on a brand new device, according to a GFXBench listing. The benchmark listing reveals a new handset, codenamed Huawei ABC-UL00, which is believed to be a new Honor device, the Honor 5X Plus.
According to the listing, this mysterious device sports a 5.2-inch (1080×1920) touchscreen display with a 5 finger gesture support, powered by a 2.2GHz octal-core processor with Kirin 935 SoC and ARM Mali-T624 GPU. The device will apparently feature 3GB of RAM and 64GB internal storage.
On the camera front, this device will sport a 13MP primary snapper and 8MP front. The device will come with standard connectivity features that include Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, also GPS and NFC.
The presumed Huawei Honor 5X could be the answer to the recently announced Xiaomi Redmi Note 3. However, we’ll only be able to confirm that once official details are out. Till then, follow this space for more on Huawei’s upcoming launch.
A new OS is on its way to the OnePlus X, and no, it won’t be a new Android update. Instead, OnePlus X owners will be receiving a new Oxygen OS update that promises to bring several enhancements to the MicroSD card support.
The latest Oxygen OS 2.1.3 will bring UX improvements, along with exFAT SD card support, and the ability to move apps to and from the card. It also fixes a bug that caused the handset to reboot whenever you removed the SD card.
OnePlus X
OnePlus has also stated that there are some unnamed security patches as well as “general bug fixes and optimisations”. The new Oxygen OS update rollout starts from today, though only 10% of OnePlus X users out there will receive the update as of now. This is to test if the update works well. The update will rollout to a wider audience in a few days.
A while ago, we had mentioned that Nokia will be back and that a new Nokia device is in the works. This new device, allegedly called the C1, will be the first device to bear the Nokia logo since the Finnish company was sold to Microsoft a few years ago.
The new device will come out in 2016, and there have been a number of leaked renders that claim the design of the C1, though each source has leaked different designs. Today, a new render has surfaced from a first time leakster, which one may question the authenticity of. However, the image shows a very minimalist and sleek design, which actually looks pretty good, if it is confirmed as legit.
The C1 is also depicted running both Android and well as Windows 10 OS. What the final outcome will be is anyone’s guess at the moment. We’ll have a clearer picture once we get word from a Nokia official. Till then, let us know what you think about the above design in the comments below.
New reports suggest that Amazon might be the owner of a secretive air cargo service that launched earlier this year. Air Transport Services Group (ATSG) had begun shipping consumer goods out of a decommissioned air base in Ohio. The entire operation is being referred to as operation “Aerosmith”; however, the reported mystery company has not been revealed yet.
This airfield is Wilmington Air Park and is a non-passenger airport that has been air-shipping cargo for various clients for some time now. It was previously used by DHL operations from 2003 to 2008, but has since remained empty.
Recent reports have confirmed that Amazon has been looking for effective ways to serve its customers by creating drone superhighway and opening physical stores. Therefore, it only makes sense that owning their private air cargo operation would only allow the company to ship their products without any hassle of a middleman.
More details about this tells us that the company behind “Aerosmith” has contracted four Boeing 767s, that fly from Wilmington to four other airports which are at close proximity to Amazon distribution centers. However, representatives at the airports have only mentioned that the cargo was coming in as “general consumer goods.”
Companies such as FedEx, UPS and DHL have already confirmed that they are not the ‘mystery company’. Amazon has also reportedly been working on an overnight parcel delivery service.
This isn’t really a crime so we wouldn’t know why anybody would be hiding it. Anyway, Amazon has not confirmed anything yet. Let’s just hope there is some sort of an announcement soon enough, because this seems like a silly secret to keep.
HTC India launched the One A9 today. The phone famously criticised for its iPhone-like design will soon be available across the country.
The HTC One A9 sports a 5-inch full HD (1080p) display with Corning Gorilla Glass 4 protection. Under the hood, the phone is powered by Snapdragon 617 64-bit octa-core SoC paired with 3GB of RAM, 32 GB built-in storage, and a microSD card slot.
On the camera front, the One A9 features a 13-megapixel primary camera with OIS and a 4-Ultrapixel front camera. Other features include a 2,150 mAh battery with support for Quick Charge 2.0. Connectivity options include 4G support, Wi-Fi 802.11n, Bluetooth and GPS.
The first thing that comes to ones mind when holding the One A9 is that the device looks and feels exactly like the iPhone 6. The phone is light and the fingerprint sensor is highly sensitive. There is no denying the fact that HTC has explicitly ripped off the iPhone, and perhaps that’s not such a bad thing. For the one thing Apple does succeed in is create beautifully crafted devices, and HTC wants to bank on some of that magic to attract customers, albeit unabashedly.
The HTC One A9 is a good device, and yes, we’re including the design aspect as well. But it doesn’t come quite close to a flagship killer. You can’t hate on the looks here, the metal unibody frame is a winner no matter which brand sports it. The curved edges and curved glass screen gives the device a premium look. The team behind the design of the One A9 have stated that great amount of time and attention has gone into its design, which does feel true. The power button on the side is thoughtfully textured so that its easily distinguishable from the volume control.
Moving from design to functionality, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 processor won’t beat the flagship phones with faster 808 or 810 chips or even compare to the latter when it comes to 3D gaming, but it’s powerful enough for normal smartphone usage.
The 3GB RAM variant handles tons of apps well and the overall feel is quite smooth. The device comes with Android Marshmallow pre-loaded, which makes it one of the first phones outside the Nexus devices to do so. With the Marshmallow OS you get features like Now on Tap and Doze, among other things. The device also allows for storage expandability up to 2TB even though the capacity isn’t something easy to find in your local store.
Moving over to the camera department, the HTC One A9 along with the Desire 828 have been launched with the tag line ‘the ultra selfie phones’. Indeed, the camera of the One A9 is quite good and manages to take decent images in low light as well.
Although today’s event saw the launch of the One A9, the company is yet to announce the Indian pricing or availability of said device. Approximate pricing of the device is touted to be about Rs. 26,499. Follow this space for more on the launch of the HTC One A9.
Along with the stylish HTC One A9, the company has also launched another smartphone called the Desire 828. 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 comes with a storage of 16GB that is expandable up to 2 TB along with a 2GB RAM. On the camera front it comes with a 13 MP rear camera and a 4 UltraPixel front camera. It is packed with a Li-Ion 2800 mAh battery and supports a micro USB v2.0.
Here is the spec table:
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
4 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
HTC has revealed two smartphones at their launch event in Delhi – the HTC One A9 and the Desire 828. The HTC One A9 will run on the Android Marshmallow 6.0 and is expected to be priced around Rs.26,499. The specific India price of these phones has not been announced, and neither has the availability date. However, we do know that it will come in three colour variants – Opal Silver, Acid Gold, Deep Garnett
The HTC One A9 is powered by the Qualcomm MSM8952 Snapdragon 617 and is run on the Android Marshmallow. It comes with a 5 inch screen display with 1080 x 1920 pixels resolution. It has two storage variants – 16GB internal storage with 2GB of RAM space and 32GB of internal storage with 3GB of RAM space, both of which are expandable up to 200GB via a microSD card. On the camera front it comes with a 13MP primary camera and a 4MP front camera; and also comes packed with a non-removable Li-Ion 2,150 mAh battery.
