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OPPO Reno Budget Smartphone Spotted On TENAA

On March 29, 2019, images and specifications of the OPPO Reno Lite leaked on TENAA, which revealed the Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 SoC and 6GB RAM of the device. As per reports, the Chinese Regulatory Authority has certified the PCAM10 and PCAT10 versions of a device which looks like a specced-down variant of the anticipated OPPO Reno smartphone.

Features And Specifications

As per the aforementioned PCAT10 and PCAM10 listings on the TENAA website, the Reno Series will have a variant which will focus on the budget smartphone market. The images on the website clearly depict a waterdrop notch up front on the device, which will house the front camera. PCAT10 and PCAM10 are listed as two separate devices, whereas in reality, the listings indicate towards a single budget smartphone, which is allegedly the OPPO Reno Lite.

In terms of the rear camera, the device is sporting a dual camera setup with an LED Flash placed below the camera module. Additionally, there is a fingerprint scanner on the back which is also placed below the dual camera setup. The setup comprises of a 16MP + 2MP dual-camera setup at the rear and a 16MP selfie shooter housed within the aforementioned waterdrop-style notch.

The listed variant sports a 6.5-inch TFT LCD display with a 2340 x 1080 px Full HD+ resolution. Both variants run on the Helio P70 chipset, consisting of an octa-core processor clocked at 2.1 GHz and the Mali-G72 MP3 GPU. The SoC is paired with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage for the top variant of the device. The smartphone packs a 3,910 mAh battery, with no apparent information regarding any fast charging support. The device weighs at 190 grams and is 8.3 mm thick.

Expected Availability

Also Read: The Best April Fools Pranks By Technology Companies In 2019

The RENO budget smartphone is expected to be unveiled by OPPO on April 10, 2019, in China. The company is expected to release the smartphone globally, but the device may be first retailed in the Chinese market. As of now, no information regarding the price has been revealed yet.

April 1, 2019
The Best April Fools Pranks By Technology Companies In 2019

On April 1 every year, many technology companies try to prank their users and fans by showcasing some quirky and impossible seeming products. This year too, they tried their best to do that again. Here are the best gags implemented by various technology companies to get you in the April Fools spirit.

Google

The master of trolling, Google has many funny gags in store. The first one was implemented inside Google Maps. In the hamburger menu on the left-hand side, there is a new Snake game which lets users play it and take a trip down memory lane. This gag is in line with the Pac-Man and Waldo ones the company used in the year 2017 and 2018 respectively.

A unique and weirdly funny gag that Google used was the introduction of Google Tulip. With this, it showcased a service that allowed users to interact with their plants using Google Assistant. With a perfectly tailored video to support it, the Google Tulip already looks like a market-ready product and a useful gadget in its own might.

A new feature in the Files Go application has also been shown off. With the screen cleaner feature, users can finally be able to clean their filthy smartphone screen; this is achieved with the help of the ‘Smudge Detector API’ the company has put in place. What’s more, the app will also make your device smell like pineapple for some reason. With a convincingly made video and explanation, it wouldn’t be hard to hear if someone actually believes it.

OnePlus

A little over the top, but the gag by Chinese smartphone maker OnePlus was a step in the right direction. The company announced on April 1 that it will launch an electric car with some unprecedented features. The upcoming electric vehicle by OnePlus will have gesture controls and will also use the smartphone as a steering wheel. Perhaps if the company kept it down a notch it might have been a little believable; but alas, everyone saw through the gag. Despite the obvious, it was a great attempt at a gag by OnePlus and managed to keep many hooked.

Samsung

What if our mobile processor would also be able to power our PCs and laptops? Sounds like a distant dream right. This is what Samsung promised with the Extender, which would allow installing a mobile processor, like the company’s own Exynos 9820 and place it inside a desktop CPU socket. While the idea is pretty neat and may actually prove to be useful if implemented, a link to the product video redirects one to Rick Aster’s “Never Gonna Give You Up”; the song has become an iconic sign signalling when one is being pranked.

NVIDIA

Move away Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa’s of the world, because NVIDIA’s RON is here. Promising of a holographic virtual assistant, NVIDIA showed off the RON assistant in a video and through its dedicated web page. It has a few nifty features up its sleeves, like feedback in gaming, rage converter and TrollDestroyer. Although an obvious gag, if RON launches in real life, it can emerge as a PC gamer’s pipe dream.

Razer

Being an introvert isn’t easy, and gaming peripheral company Razer surely understands it better than most of us. It has announced its new service called Razer Ping; it will let users point their camera at anything and it will send a notification to everyone in their vicinity, saving them the pain of communicating. While not as brilliant of an idea as the rest of them on the list, a company well known as Razer doing something like this is highly appreciated.

T-Mobile

https://youtu.be/veGkOhffvy8

One of the largest mobile carriers in the US, T-Mobile has a great idea for many people concerned with the noisy environment around them. With Phone BoothE, the company has introduced a new way to talk. And taking a jab at AT&T’s highly controversial 5Ge networks, T-Mobile has also put an ‘E’ at the end of the name. Furthermore, the CEO of the company, John Legere himself announced the service in the video. One of the more believable gags out of the list, one cannot deny the creativity and the humour of it.

Duolingo

Missed your French lesson for today, well now you can have the Duolingo mascot, the cute green bird Duo follows you so a class is never missed again. The Duolingo Push feature will feature the bird in three modes, Encouraging, Disappointed and Passive Aggressive. With all the memes made around the application recently, the advertisement is a funny and innovative gag for the April Fools.

April 1, 2019
Sennheiser Launches Momentum True Wireless Earphones In India

Truly wireless earbuds are slowly taking over the audio market, with the tech deriving its fair share of attention from wireless headphones and earphones. Even though brands like Samsung and Nokia have launched their own versions of Truly Wireless Earphones, the Apple Airpods remain the most popular earphones in the market. In a cutthroat race to take the throne as the best truly wireless earbuds, Sennheiser has dropped its own contender in the race in the form of Momentum earphones, which are now available in India.

Price And Features

The first thing to notice regarding the Momentum earphones is the pricing, which is significantly higher than its competitors. The truly wireless earbuds are priced at INR 24,990, making them the most expensive of their kind in India. However, the company believes that the exceptional features of the Momentum earbuds make up for the exceptionally high price of the same.

The earphones feature Sennheiser’s proprietary audiophile driver technology, which ensures superior stereo sound, the company says. A highlighting characteristic of the Momentum earbuds is the support for Qualcomm’s apt-X Low Latency, which is known to eliminate any lag while playing music from smartphones. ensuring real-time audio output. Furthermore, the earphones feature 2-mic noise cancellation beamforming technology and Transparent Hearing, so that users can hear sounds around them clearly without taking off the earphones, the company states.

In terms of build quality, the earphones are housed in a black body with a polished metallic ring in the middle. Sennheiser claims that the earphones can be used both as audio instruments and fashion accessories. The earphones are IPX4 resistant to protect them from accidental water splashes. The earbuds ship with 4 different ergonomic ear tips, and similar to AirPods, the earphones have a touch interface. It can be used to control the music, answer phone calls and access the voice assistant.

Competition

Also Read: Oppo Patents A Smartphone With Sliding Rear And Dual Selfie Cameras

The earphones themselves weigh at 13.2 grams, with the combined weight of the earbuds and the case clocking at 69.8 grams. The earphones have a battery life of 4 hours of continuous usage, whereas the charging case holds 8 hours worth of more charging power. As mentioned before, the truly wireless Momentum earbuds will retail at a premium price but may face tough competition from brands like Apple and Samsung. Moreover, Beats is launching its own True Wireless earphones, the Powerbeats3 Wireless very soon, and they may be priced lower than the Sennheiser Momentum, which may be a warning bell for the German Audio Company.

April 1, 2019
Top Upcoming Smartphones In The Month Of April 2019

In order to maintain steady sales and keep the demand high, smartphone manufacturers tend to release a variety of handsets periodically. The month of April has just begun and several OEMs are expected to update or launch new products in their lineup. Here is a list of top smartphones that are anticipated to launch this month:

Realme 3 Pro

Realme 3

The Realme 3 Pro will be the successor to the Realme 2 Pro which was launched last year. At the launch of the Realme 3, a senior employee declared that the Realme 3 Pro will launch in the month of April. The features of the smartphone are currently unavailable but it is expected to have worthy specifications as it will compete against the sensational Redmi Note 7 Pro. Therefore, it is expected to be priced between the Rs 13,000 and Rs 15000 price bracket for the base variant.

Nokia 6.2 aka X71

The Nokia 6.2 or the X71 has leaked several times which reveal that it will feature a punch hole display. According to the leaks, the smartphone will have triple rear cameras and rear mounted fingerprint sensor. The Geekbench listing of the smartphone exhibits that it features the Snapdragon 660 SoC along with 6 GB of RAM. Other features including the screen size, battery capacity and screen resolution of the Nokia 6.2 will be publicised once the company officially announces the smartphone. The handset will reportedly launch on the 2nd of April. Hence, we will not have to wait for as long as its launch date is imminent.

Motorola One Vision

The Motorola One Vision has also leaked on several instances which suggest it might be the first non Samsung smartphone to be kitted with an Exynos SoC. The past leaks of the handset suggest, like the Nokia X71, it will also have a punch hole selfie camera. The rear of the smartphone has a glass panel that tapers towards the sides. The back panel of the smartphone harbours a dual rear camera and an indented fingerprint sensor. The Motorola One Vision is expected to feature the Exynos 9610 chipset and a 3,500 mAh battery.

Mi 9x

The Mi 9x is a specced down variant of Mi 9 which was launched in the month of March. According to past leaks, it will feature a 6.4 inch AMOLED display which will have a small waterdrop notch up top. Under the hood, it will feature the Snapdragon 675 SoC which is manufactured 11nm manufacturing process. The handset will be powered by a 3300 mAh battery which supports 18w fast charging. It runs on the latest Android 9.0 Pie which is skinned with the latest MIUI 10. The base 6 GB + 64 GB variant fo the smartphone is estimated to be priced at Yuan 1,699 (Rs 17,500) and will launch before the month ends.

Samsung Galaxy A90

Also Read: Huawei Mate 30 May Have A 5G Variant At Launch

Yet another smartphone, which is highly anticipated accrediting to its worthy features. Leaks from the past suggest that the handset will feature a pop up selfie camera which will be its key highlighting feature. The smartphone is reported to feature 8 GB of RAM and 128 GB of inbuilt storage. In terms of chipset, it is expected to feature the Snapdragon 710 SoC which is manufactured using 10 nm fabrication process. Assumedly, the smartphone will launch on the 10th of April at a price of Rs 29,999.

April 1, 2019
Huawei Mate 30 May Have A 5G Variant At Launch

With new flagship smartphones preparing to enter the market in the near future, the pressure to sport top-of-the-line features is at an all-time-high for brands. Companies like Samsung have already announced a 5G variant for the S10 and Galaxy Fold, whereas Huawei is releasing a 5G version for its Mate X foldable device. As per latest reports, Huawei will also launch a 5G variant for the upcoming Mate 30 smartphone, which will probably release in the second half of the year 2019.

Availability

Huawei CEO revealed that the company will ensure 5G connectivity for the entire lineup of the Mate 30 series. He also stated the reason for the non-availability of 5G connectivity on the P30 series, which is the state of the network. As per his statement, the 5G network is still under development, so the company is equipping its future smartphones with 5G in order to ensure that their launch coincides with the rollout of 5G network in major markets in 2019.

In another statement from Huawei’s CEO, 5G technology will be consumer-worthy this Fall and will be incorporated in the next series of smartphones, indicating that the Mate 30 series may hit the market near the months of September, October or November. Noteworthy, the Mate 20 was unveiled in November 2018, so the release of the Mate 30 lineup in 2019 may be lined up with its predecessor’s launch date.

Expected Specifications

Also Read: Nubia Alpha To Go On Sale In China Starting April 8

Even though the specifications of the Huawei Mate 30 are not revealed yet, reports say that it may incorporate Huawei’s upcoming 7nm Kirin 985 chipset, which would be the next flagship SoC from the Chinese manufacturer. As per reports, the chipset is built on TSMC’s 7+nm manufacturing process with EUV lithography. Due to EUV, the Kirin 985 is expected to offer higher clock speeds and improved power efficiency. In addition, the upcoming device may feature a 12GB RAM variant and a quad rear camera setup to keep with the flagship norms in 2019.

April 1, 2019
Nubia Alpha To Go On Sale In China Starting April 8

Chinese smartphone maker Nubia launched its Alpha wearable at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) Barcelona in the month of February. It is the world’s first foldable smart wearable and was first shown off at the IFA last year. The company has freshly announced that the Nubia Alpha will go on sale in China starting the 8th of April.

Nubia Alpha

To recall, the Nubia Alpha has a 4 inch flexible OLED display which is produced in collaboration with Visionox; a known maker of OLED displays. The screen has a resolution of 960 x 192 px and a pixel density of 245 ppi. According to the company, the display has been tested for durability and should be good for at least 1,00,000 bends. The device is made out of stainless steel and has two buttons on the right side and the sensors housed up front. Unlike most smartwatches, it has a camera built-in. There is a 5MP f/2.2 sensor for taking selfies and making video calls from the device.

Under the hood, the Nubia Alpha has been kitted with a 28nm Snapdragon Wear 2100 SoC. The chipset has a Quad-core CPU and Adreno 304 GPU. Notably, the processor was released in 2016 and since has been succeeded by the new Snapdragon Wear 3100. The device features 1GB of RAM and 8GB of onboard storage. It also has an IP67 rating for protection against water and dust.

The Nubia Alpha is powered by a 500mAh battery, which the company claims can last up to two days depending on its usage. It has features like fitness tracking, mobile payments, and voice calls either through its built-in speaker or a connected Bluetooth headset. The smartwatch also has gesture controls. These will allow the user to scroll the content on the display in all four directions by waving a finger over the front-facing camera.

Pricing & Availability

Also read: Oppo Patents A Smartphone With Sliding Rear And Dual Selfie Cameras

While the company hasn’t specified what price the Nubia Alpha will be available for in China. But the price mentioned at the event that the smart wearable will be sold for €450 (around Rs 36,400). The Black coloured eSIM model will be available for €550 (around Rs 44,400), while the Gold clad version will retail for €650 (around Rs 52,500). While these are the European prices, they are expected to be similar in China.

April 1, 2019
OnePlus Announces Electric Car With Warp Charge Technology

It’s April 1, and tech companies across the globe are on their heels trying to pull off pranks on their fans and customers. This isn’t something new, rather, tech giants like Google have been celebrating events like these since forever. In 2015, Google introduced a version of the popular arcade game, Pac-Man in Google Maps to celebrate April Fool’s day. Interestingly, the Chinese technology company, OnePlus announced its plan to release its Warp Car, which will be the company’s first electric supercar, or the first supercar, or the first car of sorts. Even more so, this announcement was put out on April 1, giving a clear indication of what the company is up to.

OnePlus Warp Car Features

Coming soon. pic.twitter.com/0Kn0ozIjYh
— OnePlus (@oneplus) March 29, 2019

The company claims that its “Warp Car” is printed using SLS 3D and ABS 3D printing so that people who “buy” it in the future can customize the design at their homes. Seemingly, OnePlus is applying the modular design implementation to vehicles. However, it’s easy to see through this gimmick. The company states that the owners of the “Warp Car” can replace any worn out parts in the vehicle, and replace them with brand new parts. It all sounds a bit…. shady.

Furthermore, another very hilarious feature stated by OnePlus includes the integration of the OnePlus smartphone with the “Warp Car”, where the company claims that the car owners (this might sound a bit ridiculous) can replace the steering wheel with their OnePlus smartphones. Keeping the outrageousness of the features down a notch would have worked out better for the company. Something on the lines of the upcoming notch-less OnePlus 7.

Moreover, the company states that the owners can easily drive the car using gesture controls on the smartphone-cum-steering-wheel. Apparently, swiping left and right on the OnePlus device will enable the car to turn to the respective directions, and swiping up and down will lead to the forward and reverse movement of the car respectively. In another hilarious statement, OnePlus promises the users that in the first OTA (over the air) update, users will get an airplane mode, which won’t necessarily help the car to fly (although OnePlus could have pulled it off too), but will disable all notifications so that a person doesn’t accidentally swipe the wrong way and crashes the car.

pic.twitter.com/v73eovkY9S
— Tripurari Pandey (@thetripurari) March 29, 2019

In a string of other absurd claims, OnePlus says that customers can use their smartphone’s torch to light up the external headlights as well as the internal lamps. To charge the vehicle, users can plug in 20 – that’s right, 20 OnePlus Warp Chargers to charge the car in one day. Just when you think the company could not go more over the top, it stoops down real low as it states that its customers should be at least 5’6″ tall, and they shouldn’t be taller than 5’8″ in order to accommodate them in the vehicle. Well, that’s a pretty solid niche.

Tech Companies And April Fool’s Day

Also Read: Google Adds Snake Game To The Maps App In Light Of April Fool’s Day

Users took to Twitter to participate in the meme galore that OnePlus had sparked. A user boosted the exposure on the warp car’s image the company had posted and found out that OnePlus had a message for its fans on the rear number plate, stating “Yes, we do cars now”. Even though it is clear that all of this was an obviously ridiculous concept, we could imagine the amount of fun the company has had with this. As long as a prank doesn’t hurt anybody, it’s a good prank, and a lot of tech companies are following this roadmap this April Fool’s day.

April 1, 2019
ISRO Successfully Launches The PSLV-C45 Rocket With 28 Third-Party Satellites

The Indian Space Research Organization or ISRO has successfully launched India’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket on Monday morning. The freshly launched rocket carries the EMISAT, which is an electronics intelligence satellite for the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). It also had 28 third-party satellites onboard.

PSLV-QL Rocket

The PSLV-C45 rocket was launched by the ISRO from its launch base in Sriharikota. It is the first time that India has put satellites in three different orbits. The EMISAT satellite, which is developed by the DRDO, is intended for the measurement of electromagnetic spectrums. It was released into an orbit 749 km above the surface at 17 minutes after the launch. The other 28 third party satellites had a different country of origin. While 24 of them were from the US, two belonged to Lituania and one each from Spain and Switzerland. All of them had a combined curb weight of 220 kg.

The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) is the third generation launch vehicle of India. It is the first launch vehicle of the country to be equipped with liquid stages. After its first successful launch in October 1994, PSLV emerged as the reliable and versatile workhorse launch vehicle of India with 39 consecutively successful missions by the June of 2017. During the period from the year 1994 to the year 2017, the vehicle has launched 48 Indian satellites and 209 satellites for customers from abroad. It is recognised for launching two spacecraft named Chandrayaan-1 in 2008 and Mangalyaan in 2013 – that later travelled to Moon and Mars respectively.

Also read: Xiaomi Mi A3, Here’s All You Need To Know

With this launch, the ISRO will now be able to manoeuvre satellites placed in different orbits. It can also conduct various experiments which are expected to assist in future launches. The organization inaugurated a new viewing gallery a few days ago. This would help space aficionados watch future launches with a proper view. The gallery hosted around 1200 spectators at the launch on Monday.

April 1, 2019
Oppo Patents A Smartphone With Sliding Rear And Dual Selfie Cameras

Chinese smartphone maker, Oppo has developed a bunch of innovative smartphones in the past including the Oppo Find X and the Oppo N1. The preceding experiences insinuate that the company is not hesitant of developing unique and unconventional smartphones. A freshly granted patent exhibits that the company is working on yet another original smartphone that has a sliding mechanism which conceals dual front cameras. Although companies including Xiaomi and Lenovo have previously launched handsets with a similar feature, Oppo’s smartphone is distinct and refreshing.

Patent Disclosures

The patent for the aforementioned smartphone with a sliding camera mechanism was granted to Oppo by EUIPO ( European Union Intellectual Property Office) on the 1st of April 2019. In contrast to the comparable Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 and the Lenovo Z5s, the Oppo smartphone has a disparate slider. Instead of the whole sliding rear on the formers, only the top part of the Oppo smartphone slides up. Furthermore, the slider not yet confirmed seems to be operated via electronic motors. The sliding mechanism of handset conceals a couple of selfie cameras. Accrediting to the thin bezels and the hidden selfie cameras, the smartphone from the patent has a high screen to body ratio which provides it with a chic look.

The rear of the smartphone harbours a dual camera module with an LED flash. The right side of the smartphone is occupied by the power switch and the SIM card tray while the left side is occupied by the volume rockers. Distinctly, the handset does not have a rear mounted fingerprint sensor accordingly it is expected to sport and on-display one.

Launch Date

Also Read: Xiaomi Mi A3, Here’s All You Need To Know

Although Oppo has not made any comments about the launch or development of such a smartphone, the patent is detailed enough and the company can lift the curtains from it any time.

April 1, 2019
Xiaomi Mi A3, Here’s All You Need To Know

The Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi is looking towards launching their new smartphone in India in the year 2019. The company launched its latest flagship device, the Mi 9 in the month of February, which received rave reviews. Xiaomi is also expected to unveil another smartphone in the near future, which is speculated to be a toned down variant of the Mi 9. Rumoured to be the Mi 9X, the smartphone will release as the Mi A3 in India, which will be the successor to the Mi A2 launched in 2018. The device will have comparable specifications to the Redmi Note 7 Pro, but will probably have Android One as the operating system on the device.

Mi A3 Specifications

The rumoured Mi A3 is expected to sport a 6.4 inch AMOLED display with a waterdrop notch. The display panel of the upcoming smartphone will have a Full HD resolution and a 19.5:9 aspect ratio. The unreleased smartphone is also reported to have an in display fingerprint scanner, in order to meet the market norms.

The Mi A3 is expected to run on the 11 nm Snapdragon 675 SoC, which is one of the latest chipsets in the market. It comprises of an Octa-Core CPU and the Adreno 612 GPU. Also, it may feature 6GB RAM and 64 GB of storage. The smartphone will supposedly sport a 32 MP front camera which will be housed inside the notch on top of the display. In terms of the rear camera, the device is speculated to have a triple camera setup which consists of a 48 MP Sony IMX586 sensor, an 8 MP depth sensor and 13 MP super wide angle sensor.

The Mi A3 may be powered by a 3300 mAh battery with fast charging support. As mentioned before, the smartphone is expected to run on Android One, guaranteeing software updates for the next two years. As far as the looks go, the Mi A3 may sport a 2.5D holographic glass panel, which will enhance the look of the smartphone.

Mi A3 Expected Availability And Price

Also Read: The Pixel 4 Concept Renders We Want Google To Breathe Life Into

The Mi A3 is estimated to be priced under INR 18,000 since no official statement from the company is available yet. The device may or may not be launched in other variants. Reports suggest that the Mi A3 will hit the markets in the first half of the year 2019. Consequently, the customers won’t have to wait very long for the release of the device.

April 1, 2019
Nokia X71 Leaked On Geekbench, Specifications Confirmed

A few days ago, reports of the upcoming smartphone from HMD Global owned Nokia brand was prevalent. Reportedly called the Nokia X71, it was speculated to be released in the global markets as the Nokia 8.2. Fresh reports claim that the device will in fact be released as the Nokia 6.2 and the Geekbench benchmark scores of the handset have also been leaked. The smartphone will launch on the 2nd of April in Taiwan.

Nokia X71

The Nokia X71 will be a smartphone from the company was leaked in images a while ago. The looks of the device are reminiscent of the Nokia 6.1 Plus launched last year, complete with a glass sandwich design. The leaks suggest that it may feature a 6.4-inch Full HD+ display. There will be a punch hole on the top left of the handset to accommodate the selfie camera. This is the first time a Nokia smartphone will feature the popular design trend. For biometrics and security, the device will have a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor.

The leaked Geekbench listing reveals that the Nokia X71 will run on the 14nm Snapdragon 660 SoC. The chipset has an Octa-core CPU and Adreno 512 GPU. Benchmarks of the smartphone reveal a score of 1455 points for Single-core and 5075 for Multi-core performance. The score falls in line to the scores obtained by the processor, also seen in devices like the Redmi Note 7 and the Zenfone Max Pro M2.

It is expected that the smartphone will have a triple rear camera setup. It has been leaked that the 48MP Sony IMX586 sensor will make an appearance on the device, along with a 5MP ultra wide sensor and a 2MP depth sensor. For selfies, it is expected that a 16MP camera will be housed in the punch-hole on the top left of the display. For memory, the Nokia X71/Nokia 6.2 will feature 6GB of RAM.

Also read: The Pixel 4 Concept Renders We Want Google To Breathe Life Into

Latest leaks allege that the Nokia X71/6.2 will be powered by 3500mAh battery. The smartphone will run on the latest Android 9 Pie with Android One certification. This implies that the device will receive software updates for at least 2 years. As mentioned above, the Nokia X71 will launch on April 2 in Taiwan. Seeing as the company has been competitive with the pricing of its smartphones lately, it is expected to be priced under Rs. 20,000.

April 1, 2019
Google Adds Snake Game To The Maps App In Light Of April Fool’s Day

Google loves playing around with special events and festivals all across the world. The company is known for switching up the doodles to something fun and springy, which imparts a colourful look to the popular search engine. For April Fools, Google has introduced a modified version of everyone’s favourite game, which is “Snake”, and integrated it into the Maps app across both Android and iOS platforms.

The History of “Snake”

First introduced in 1997 on the Nokia 6110, the Snake game became an instant hit because of how simple and captivating it was at the same time. Needless to say, the game was continually modified into different forms as time progressed, but the basics remained the same. Users play as a snake, which has to keep eating “bits” or “food” to increase the score. Players would lose if they make contact with the walls or themselves while moving around the sandbox.

How To Play The Game?

To experience the snake game on the Maps app, just open the sidebar in the application and select the “Play Snake” option. Note that the game doesn’t include a “classic” snake, instead, players will play as a means of transport if that makes sense. There are a total of six cities in the game, which are Cairo, São Paulo, London, Sydney, San Francisco, and Tokyo. Furthermore, there is also the option of a “world” map that users can check out. The vehicle depends on the city the players choose. For instance, if users choose to play in the London map, they will get to play as a double-decker bus, and if users select Tokyo, they spawn as a Bullet train.

Also Read: Apple Arcade: Which Are The Top Games So Far?

Users can move the vehicle around by swiping in the desired direction on the 8-bit map, and pick up passengers that keep appearing on the screen. The game also includes some special “landmarks” such as the Burj Khalifa or the Golden Gate Bridge which grants extra points to the user. Users can play and make their own high score which can then be shared via different social media applications. Previously, Google added the legendary Pac-Man game to Maps in the year 2015 for the same event. The company has even set up a website for the game, which can be checked out by clicking here.

April 1, 2019
PUBG Mobile Adds Rocket Launcher, New Zombie Mode In Latest Update

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds or PUBG Mobile, in the one year it has been available, has quickly grown to become one of the most popular smartphone games of all times. Tencent, the team behind the game, has added a host of new features in the latest beta update. The latest update carries the version 0.12.0 and adds features like new weapons, event and an all-new spectate functionality.

What’s New?

The latest update of PUBG Mobile is available to download for selected users under the beta program. The biggest noticeable change is the addition of a new Zombie Mode. Available under the event section, the description of it says, ‘Collect supplies during the day and fend off zombies at night. Survive until the rescue arrives to win!’. The text suggests gameplay wherein players would need to exterminate or ward off the zombies for a selected time period until rescue arrives. Notably, this will be different from the existing Zombie mode wherein players need to eradicate the Zombies and also fight off other players to be the last one standing.

The update to PUBG Mobile also adds new weapons. The first weapon added is a Rocket Launcher and was highly anticipated by the players. Another weapon is an explosive crossbow, which would blow up when hitting the target. These two weapons are expected to be exclusive to the new Zombie Mode and will not be available in the normal game. A friendly spectate is also being added to the game. This would let a players friend spectate them while playing. It will also display the player’s information and the number of people watching. The crosshair colour, which is used to aim in the game, can now be changed.

Also read: Apple Arcade: Which Are The Top Games So Far?

A male voice for the quick chat feature is also being added to PUBG Mobile. This would exist separately with the voice currently available and will be given as an option. For the login screen, a new cosmetic change will be available. An eagle, termed as a companion, will be added to the character’s shoulder which would feature emotes. While not a big change, it will add an ornamental update to the existing game. Unfortunately, it is not known when the above features will be available in the stable update of the mobile game, but their addition to the beta mode insinuates that it may be added in the following weeks.

April 1, 2019
Apple Arcade: Which Are The Top Games So Far?

The first quarter of 2019 was a substantial period for gaming, and there are still 9 months to go for any further launches and innovations. At GDC 2019, Google released Stadia, a (supposedly) amazing cloud gaming service, yet no release date or pricing for the same was unveiled at the event. Gamers were just getting over the “hardware-independent gaming” hype, when Apple announced its own subscription-based gaming service, known as the Apple Arcade at the Apple Show Time event on March 26, 2019. Additionally, the company also launched the Apple News+, Apple TV+ and the Apple Card.

https://youtu.be/67umVefSXnY

Apple Arcade is different from Google Stadia in a lot of aspects. For starters, where players need an active high-speed internet connection to play games using Stadia, games can simply be downloaded on the device with Apple Arcade and can be played without internet. Furthermore, it’s not clear whether Stadia will employ a subscription model or a pay-per-game model, but it’s clear as daylight that Apple will allow you to play multiple games on its Arcade store with just a simple “game pass”, which is similar to the payment model that Xbox users adhere to.

A lot of big game developers and publishers are already a part of Apple’s (game) plan. Sega, Konami, Annapurna and Platinum Games are just some of the companies that are backing Apple up on this. To gamers’ pleasant surprise, Hironobu Sakaguchi, the video designer who had a key role in the making of the acclaimed “Final Fantasy” series is also releasing a game called “Fantasian” on Apple’s new platform. The company also promises that new games will keep making their way into Arcade’s library, making sure that the subscribers are never devoid of fresh content.

https://youtu.be/95FuVib8mcY

Given below are some games that have been confirmed for Apple’s platform. However, note that users won’t be able to play any of these games on Arcade until Apple brings the service to the market. As per the company’s statement, Apple Arcade will go live later during Fall 2019.

Hot Lava

Hot Lava is an adaptation of the childhood game “The floor is lava”, where children have to keep jumping from one furniture piece to another, pretending that the floor is lava. Except in this game, the floor is literally lava. The game’s trailer depicts it as quite a fun game to play, with fluid parkour moves being used by the character to escape the onslaught of the lava. The game is designed by Klei Entertainment, and by the looks of it, a lot of gamers will have an amazing time with this game.

Click here to sign up for the game beta.

Team Sonic Racing

Although Team Sonic was first launched at E3 2018, it is making its way to the list of the very first games that Apple Arcade users will be able to play. One of the most lovable characters in the SEGA universe, Sonic will take on his opponents with the help of his friends. But no more “knuckle” violence, instead, players will be able to choose from a list of 15 playable characters to race on a track with a plethora of vehicle options. With a colourful environment and fast-paced gameplay, Team Sonic has already proven its worth on consoles, and will now charm its way out of Apple gamers.

Check out more about the game on its official website.

The Pathless

Indie games have been a key part in driving interests of gamers away from genres like Battle Royale and Competitive FPS games. Such a beautiful indie title is The Pathless, which, similarly to Team Sonic, was first revealed three months back for PS4 and PC (Epic games). However, the game has now also been confirmed to arrive on Apple Arcade. The game depicts the mysterious adventure of an archer who befriends an eagle and travels through a vast forest. Noteworthy, the game isn’t officially out yet, so players may have to wait to play it till the game actually releases in 2019.

Check out the game’s website here.

Sayonara Wild Hearts

Sayonara Wild Hearts looks like a game derived straight out of a music video. The game is tough to describe, but as per the developer, the game is an “euphoric music video dream about being awesome, riding motorcycles, skateboarding, dance battling, shooting lasers, wielding swords, and breaking hearts at 200 mph.”. The game was originally scheduled for Nintendo Switch, but it seems that now the game is coming to Apple Arcade as well. The developer also claims to have almost zero loading times.

LEGO Brawls

Also Read: PUBG Mobile: How Can Players Check Their First Year Game Stats?

With already a lot of fun-to-play games on different platforms, the LEGO Brawls gameplay trailer showcases a game that is built on a foundation unlike other LEGO games out there. As of now, the game is still under development, but the key point of the trailer is to exhibit how fun the game is. With huge robots, cute LEGO characters and LEGO weapons, the game puts a pretty good impression out there. Also, the game may also feature a battle royale mode for its fans.

March 29, 2019
The Pixel 4 Concept Renders We Want Google To Breathe Life Into

Late last year Google launched its latest Android smartphones, the Pixel 3 and the Pixel 3 XL. Both the smartphones were highly honoured for their stock Android experience and camera prowess but not so much for their looks. A leak in the past claimed that the expected Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL will feature a punch hole display like the freshly launched Galaxy S10 lineup. A Twitter user, @PhoneDesigner has created a bunch of Pixel 4 concept renders which look astonishing. Even though the artist has no association with Google, the following renders are highly impressive and we want the company to take note from them.

Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL

As previously mentioned the HD concept renders of the Pixel 4 and 4 XL exhibit an impressive smartphone duo. Both smartphones have a high screen to body ratio display which is surrounded with minimal bezels on all sides. The Pixel 4 XL has dual front-facing punch hole cameras while the Pixel 4 has a single front-facing punch hole camera. The right side of both the Pixel 4 smartphones from the concept render is occupied by the volume rocker and the mint coloured power button which the owners of current Pixel handsets have always fancied.

The rear side concept renders of the Pixel 4 and the Pixel 4 XL is reminiscent of the current Pixel lineup. However, it does not exhibit a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor, which states an on display fingerprint sensor. The plausibility of this type of biometric unlocking mechanism on the upcoming smartphones is quite high, given most Android flagships from 2019 have this feature. Noteworthy, the Pixel 4 XL concept render reveals dual rear cameras. Pixel smartphones are recognised for their camera performance and a Pixel handset with dual rear cameras would only add up to its saga.

The Palm Sized Pixel 4 Mini We Desire

In addition to the Pixel 4 and 4 XL render, the Twitter user also shared some concept renders of a dainty palm-sized Pixel smartphone. Even though Google has never discussed that a Pixel smartphone this small is in the works, the company can surely take it into consideration. As the newly launched, Galaxy S10e that has a compact form factor is turning a lot of heads globally.

The palm-sized Pixel 4 has a similar layout as the standard Pixel 4 which means it has a single camera on both the front and the back except for a much smaller footprint. Admirably, the second colour option of the mini Pixel 4 in Red and Black colour simply looks breathtaking. Furthermore, the UI in this colour variant matches the exterior colours which again seems fantastic.

Also Read: Vivo Apex 2019: Hands-On With The Port Less, Button-Less Phone With A Full Display Fingerprint Sensor

The possibility of such a small Pixel smartphone is considerably bleak. However, if Google does plan to launch a similar device this could turn out to be the latest norm of future smartphones.

What are your thoughts on these Pixel 4 renders? Do let us know in the comments below!

March 29, 2019