President Joe Biden had revoked a number of executive orders from former…
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Pocketnow Daily: TikTok & WeChat Ban is Official! Here’s What You Should Know… (video)
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10, Apple Watch Series 6 and more devices on sale today
Deals. Let’s start today off with previous generation Galaxies. The Galaxy Note 10 is currently available for $710 for the 256GB variant in both Aura Black and Aura Glow, you do have to pay an extra 20 bucks for the Aura Pink variant and disclaimer, these only work on GSM Networks as it’s sadly an Exynos variant. For those who want a US phone, the Galaxy S10 is available for $733 for the entry level variant. We’re about to talk Sony so, the vanilla Xperia 1 is currently $252 off, leaving it at $698 shipped. Finally, the LG G8 ThinQ is currently priced at $400 for the entry level variant. We also have more deals on other Samsung phones, Moto phones and more.
OnePlus Nord N10 5G with a 90Hz display, 64MP camera coming soon for under $400: Report
OnePlus Buds Z to be company’s budget TWS earphones: Rumor
OnePlus 8T launch date is October 14: Report
Let’s continue talking about OnePlus but about a more familiar device this time. We’ve been getting a lot of leaks for the OnePlus 8T, first we got some specs for it and then we got some CAD renders, revealing the design changes. Well, according to a new report from MySmartPrice and a very reliable tipster, we’ll be getting this device on October 14th. The 8T will reportedly feature a 6.55in FHD+ flat display running at 120Hz. It’ll be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865, not the Plus, 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. We’ll also be getting a new quad camera stove-module that consists of a 48MP main sensor, a 16MP wide angle shooter and again, my personal favorites, a whopping 5MP macro lens, and a 2MP portrait camera. It’ll also pack a 4800 mAh battery and it’ll run on the latest Oxygen OS 11, meaning Android 11.Infographic reveals everything about the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G
We’ve been covering a lot of leaks of the Galaxy S20 FE, and I mean a lot. Now, Evan Blass just shared us the full infographic for the device which gives us, well everything. These new leaks serve as confirmation for the ones we’ve had before, including the 6.5in AMOLED display running at 120Hz, an Exynos 990 for the LTE variant, and the Snapdragon 865 for the 5G model. It also packs a 4500 mAh battery and an IP rating. We have a triple camera setup and the back which includes two 12MP shooters and an 8MP telephoto. It has a pretty similar design to the Galaxy S20 but with a flat display and the camera module kinda looks like the one on the regular Note 20. Apparently it’s getting it’s own Unpacked Event on September 23rd and it is rumored to start at €700.Apple could have new magnetic wireless charger in the works
We know that Apple failed with AirPower after they announced it a crazy three years ago and we know that rumors for it have sparked up again. However, it looks like Apple might be working on a totally different form factor. 9to5Mac has posted a new video that claims to be of a “magnetic wireless charger prototype”. Honestly, it kinda looks like one of the AirTags but, we’re expecting those to be way smaller so that’s pretty much ruled out. It’s a flat white disc with somewhat of a connector at the back. The circular shape of course resembles the Qi connector on the back of iPhones and with that connector it kinda looks like it might be part of a larger accessory. Now, remember that we have had leaks of ring magnets on the back of the iPhone 12 to help it stay in place when you’re wirelessly charging it and this might be related. We don’t know if this is a new form of AirPower or what, but it definitely looks interesting.Story of the day:
USA bans TikTok, WeChat from Play Store and App Store
And finally for the most controversial news today, let’s talk Ban Section and everything you should know. Let’s rewind a little bit so you’re aware of everything that’s been going on today. Some time ago, the President of the US gave an executive order to ByteDance, to sell their US operations of TikTok to an American Company, or they would be banned. There were several reports that Microsoft or Oracle would buy them, saying that it was practically a done deal but, TikTok didn’t want to sell. In the mean time they chose to sue the government and China also change their regulations, so they were only able to sell if they had permission from the Chinese government. Also, remember that WeChat was also getting banned and, earlier on we covered how that might affect Apple. Well, in a new press release, and we’re going to try to stay as far away from the political jargon as we can the US Department of commerce said “Today’s announced prohibitions, when combined, protect users in the U.S. by eliminating access to these applications and significantly reducing their functionality. So as of September 20 for WeChat and as of November 12 for Tiktok, they will be prohibited basically hosting services or provisioning content for their US application. The Department of Commerce said that they are doing this because of security due to the risk these apps possess. This basically means that they will ban you from downloading the app from both, the App Store and the PlayStore in the United States. We’re not exactly sure if you’ll still be able to fully use the app in the US but, if you’re in another country you’ll be able to get it. Subscribe: http://bit.ly/pocketnowsub http://pocketnow.com Follow us: http://flipboard.com/@Pocketnow http://facebook.com/pocketnow http://twitter.com/pocketnowThe post Pocketnow Daily: TikTok & WeChat Ban is Official! Here’s What You Should Know… (video) appeared first on Pocketnow.
USA bans TikTok, WeChat from Play Store and App Store
The US Commerce Department has announced that it is planning to ban people in the US from downloading Chinese-owned video-sharing app TikTok and messaging app WeChat starting September 20. The former was given a deadline to sell its US operations to a US company. There were reports that Oracle is all set to acquire TikTok’s US operations.
However, reports later said that ByteDance will not sell TikTok’s US operations to Microsoft or Oracle. To recall, Chinese government recently changed its rules on tech exports, which bans the commercialization of specific technology categories to foreign countries. Hence, ByteDance cannot sell its US operations without the permission of the Chinese government.
In a press release on the matter, the US Department of Commerce noted: “The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has demonstrated the means and motives to use these apps to threaten the national security, foreign policy, and the economy of the U.S. Today’s announced prohibitions, when combined, protect users in the U.S. by eliminating access to these applications and significantly reducing their functionality.”
As of September 20, 2020, for WeChat and as of November 12, 2020, for TikTok, the following transactions are prohibited:
- Any provision of internet hosting services enabling the functioning or optimization of the mobile application in the US;
- Any provision of content delivery network services enabling the functioning or optimization of the mobile application in the US;
- Any provision directly contracted or arranged internet transit or peering services enabling the function or optimization of the mobile application within the US;
- Any utilization of the mobile application’s constituent code, functions, or services in the functioning of software or services developed and/or accessible within the US.
Commerce Department officials said they were taking the extraordinary step because of the risks the apps’ data collection poses. China and the companies have denied US user data is collected for spying.
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Pocketnow Daily: Fortnite EXPOSES Apple and Google’s Monopoly… (video)
Apple’s MacBook Air, iPad Pro and more devices on sale today
Deals. Best Buy is currently running a major 3-Day Anniversary sale on Apple products. You can find up to $300 off on MacBook Pros, up to $150 on MacBook Airs and even some deals on the iPhone SE. Moving on, B&H also has the 2018 12.9in iPad Pro for $350 off, leaving the 64GB, Wi-Fi + Cellular variant for $800 shipped. We also have deals on Sony earbuds, Razer Gaming keyboards and more in the links in the description. Buy Sony WF-SP800N Truly Wireless Sports headphones Buy Razer BlackWidow Elite gaming keyboardMicrosoft Surface Duo gets 3 years of Android updates, and a new demo video
For those of you guys interested in buying the Microsoft Surface Duo and you’re not so sure yet. Well the company officially announced it 2 days ago and now, they shared a full 35 minute demo video of Panos Panay showing you what the product can do. According to them, their aim with this product is not to “reinvent the phone” but is a vision of better mobile productivity for the Surface fans and people who love Office, Teams and Outlook. Microsoft also announced that they will be committing to 3 years of software updates for the Duo, as they should for the $1400 price tag. Thing is, I mean I love Excel on anything but Android.. But other than that I know of no human being that can claim that they love productivity apps. We’ll see.The Samsung Galaxy S21 won’t include ToF sensors
And, we know that Samsung ditched their whole ToF approach with the Galaxy Note 20 as, well, we all know what happened with the S20 Ultra. According to a new report from the Elec, the ToF sensor won’t be making it to the Galaxy S21 either but, Samsung isn’t giving up in the technology. According to this report, the reason why the S20’s ToF wasn’t doing so hot is because it wasn’t as powerful as direct ToF which is what other companies like Apple are using from companies like Sony. Apparently Samsung is now working on their own ToF solution and now, the “technological advancements” will depend on them and not third party companies. We’ll see if they are able to develop something for the Note 21.Facebook is now sued over allegedly gathering biometric data on Instagram
Let’s talk about what Facebook has done with Instagram… yeah that sounds about right. For starters, the company is being sued in the state of California for “collecting, storing and profiting” off biometric data of more than 100M users, specifically for facial recognition technology. The lawsuit claims that Instagram uses a “face-tagging” tool which uses facial recognition to create “face templates” which are stored in Facebook’s database without the user’s consent. They even use your tagged pictures so, you didn’t even have to post it yourself for this to happen. According to Bloomberg, they’re facing up to $5K per violation, meaning do the math when you multiply that times 100M. On another note, TechCrunch is reporting that there’s a “bug” in their system which would retain deleted photos and messages on their servers for over a year. Now, the bug has been conveniently patched but, apparently there was no evidence of abuse, if that even means something.Apple without WeChat could mean disaster for the iPhone in China
Earlier this week we covered some predictions from Ming Chi Kuo over how the US ban on WeChat could affect Apple on a major scale. Well, according to a Bloomberg report, things could pan out the way Kuo predicted. Apparently there was a massive survey conducted on Chinese iPhone users and 95% of them said that they would replace their iPhone if WeChat was banned from the App Store. This translates to around 1.2M users from the survey alone. Most of them made comments over how this ban “would force them into switching their phones as WeChat is very important to them” with someone even saying that the ban would turn the iPhone into simple “electronic trash” as WeChat is one of their most essential apps. The details of the ban still aren’t clear yet as, it could just be a thing in the States but if it’s completely banned from the App Store, it looks like Apple will be suffering. It also looks like Apple, Disney, Ford and other companies have warned the White House about what this ban would mean so, let’s see how it plays out.Story of the day:
Epic Games claims Google forced OnePlus, LG to scrap Fortnite deals
Epic Games mocks Apple’s 1984 Macintosh ad after Fortnite’s removal from App
Store Fortnite removed from Google Play Store after getting kicked off the App Store
Now, let’s talk about Fortnite… yeah you heard that right. Yesterday, the game was removed from both, the App Store and Google Play, as the company added a direct payment option in the game that would save customers 20% on their in-app purchases, preventing Apple from taking their 30% cut from each purchase. You guys know the Amazon Kindle story where it was banned years ago until Amazon removed the in-app purchase model and forcing you to use a browser to make purchases. As for Google, apparently Epic was working on a deal with both OnePlus and LG, to offer the Fortnite launcher pre-installed in their phones and Google reportedly forced them to back out of the deal as well as the direct payment option in the app. Epic Games is reportedly filing a lawsuit against both of them for anti-competitive restrictions on their stores. Android Users at least have the advantage of being able to side load the APK and Samsung Devices still have it available on the Galaxy Store, but iOS users are screwed. Epic even put out a short video mocking Apple’s famous 30-year old “1984” ad and ending theirs with “Epic Games has defied the App Store Monopoly, Apple is Blocking Fortnite to billions of devices. Join the fact to stop 2020 from becoming 1984″ as a reference to George Orwell’s novel. Other companies like Spotify which have had issues with the App Store and Apple in the past have come out in support of Fortnite. We’ll keep you posted. Subscribe: http://bit.ly/pocketnowsub http://pocketnow.com Follow us: http://flipboard.com/@Pocketnow http://facebook.com/pocketnow http://twitter.com/pocketnow http://google.com/+pocketnowThe post Pocketnow Daily: Fortnite EXPOSES Apple and Google’s Monopoly… (video) appeared first on Pocketnow.
Apple without WeChat could mean disaster for the iPhone in China
Donald Trump could make Apple lose tons of cash, as he recently banned US companies from Transactions with WeChat owner Tencent. According to Ming-Chi Kuo, Trump’s actions would force Apple to remove WeChat from the Apple Store after September 20, which would also translate to a decline in iPhone shipments that could go up to 30 percent. However, a new report from Bloomberg suggests that things could get worse for Apple.
According to a massive survey that took place in China, 95 percent of Chinese iPhone users would switch from Apple to any other smartphone brand if they should lose WeChat from their devices. In other words, this survey suggests that more than 1.2 million iPhone users would replace their Apple devices.
“iPhone loyalists across China are now reconsidering their attachment to the device after Donald Trump issued an executive order last week barring US companies from doing business with WeChat […]
“A survey on the twitter-like Weibo service asking consumers to choose between WeChat and their iPhones has drawn more than 1.2 million responses so far, with roughly 95% of participants saying they would rather give up their devices. ‘The ban will force a lot of Chinese users to switch from Apple to other brands because WeChat is really important for us,’ said Sky Ding, who works in fintech in Hong Kong and originally hails from Xi’an […]
“The ban threatens to turn iPhones into expensive ‘electronic trash,’ said Hong Kong resident Kenny Ou, who sees WeChat as one of the most essential software on his handset.
“WeChat isn’t just a messaging service: It’s basically a whole operating system […] The average Chinese person picks up their phone and immediately opens WeChat. Pretty much everything else they do happens within this single app.”
It’s not clear if this ban would only take effect in the United States or applies to business worldwide. If China gets affected, Chinese iPhone users won’t get new iPhone models, and they would eventually switch to Android devices, as WeChat is the most important app in China. It is more than just a chat app, as it is used for payments, e-Commerce, news reading, productivity, and more.
“Apple is one of more than a dozen US companies who this week warned the Trump administration about the implications of banning WeChat from their platforms. The warning was given during a conference call on Tuesday.
“Disney, Ford, Intel, Morgan Stanley, UPS, and Walmart were also among those to inform the White House that the consequences for US companies could be severe.”
Source 9to5Mac
Via Bloomberg
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Pocketnow Daily: iPhone Sales to FALL if WeChat is Banned? (video)
Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra, Apple’s 27-inch iMac and more devices, on sale today
Deals. Let’s start today with the Galaxy S20 Ultra, which is currently available for $171 off on Amazon, leaving it at $1228 shipped with the US warranty. The 2019 27in iMac is also up to $250 off, meaning you can find the 6-core Intel i5, 8GB of RAM and 1TB of storage variant for $1700 shipped. If you’re interested in the HomePod… for some reason… Best Buy also has it for $100 off, leaving it at $199. We also have more deals on Sennheiser headphones, Jabra Earbuds and more.Qualcomm reportedly seeks US government’s permission to sell chips to HUAWEI
Last week we talked about how the Mate 40 Series might be the last Huawei phone powered by a Kirin processor and, if you watch that video I speculated about them turning to Qualcomm for SoCs and well…. According to the Wall Street Journal, Qualcomm made a presentation for the US government, to remove restrictions and let them sell Snapdragon chips to Huawei. They’re pitching it by saying how this ban could drive “billions of dollars” to foreign chip makers like Samsung and MediaTek and lifting this ban could help Qualcomm stay competitive. Qualcomm’s goal right now is to sell to every smartphone maker and if a shift in the 5G market share changed, this could be big for them.We have new leaked renders of the upcoming Microsoft Surface Duo
I think it’s been 10 or 11 months since we’ve been waiting for the Surface Duo… Yeah. Well last week it went through certifications and it looked like we were getting closer to a launch date but, we still don’t have it. Now we have some new leaked renders from Evan Blass showing off the AT&T variant of this device. On these pictures we can see the phone both open and closed, showing off the interface. We also get to see the selfie camera and the pretty big bezels and, it looks like there’s still no main camera on the outside. There’s also that leaked video which surfaced months ago showing how you can interact with the phone without it being fully open. We’re still expecting this device to launch… sometime soon with the same dated specs.First public beta for watchOS7 is available for beta testers
You will soon find Google Maps in your Apple Watch
After several developer betas, Apple just seeded the first Public Beta of WatchOS 7 to consumers. The update can be installed pretty much like an iOS beta by downloading the profile and since this is the first release, it might bring some serious bugs. It brings new features like sleep tracking, complications, and more. Speaking of new features, Google just announced several of them for Apple products that are independent of the beta. For example, now you get a fully working Google Maps app for the Apple Watch that works pretty similar to the iPhone app, letting you get walking, biking, public transit and car directions from your wrist. Some destinations need the iPhone to be able to work properly but, it also supports step-by-step and it gives you an ETA. Moving on to CarPlay, there’s a new Dashboard integration for the media app now, the calendar and turn-by-turn directions as well but it is now presented in a split-screen view.Twitter purportedly expresses interest in acquiring TikTok US operations
TikTok is reportedly suing Trump administration over executive order threatening a ban
Let’s talk about Tik Tok because, it’s actually a pretty big deal right now. If you haven’t been following, the US President basically told them that they had 45 days to sell the US arm of Tik Tok to a US company or they would be banned in the States. Well, since them we’ve seen Microsoft interested in buying and now, it looks like Twitter wants in too. According to Reuters, Microsoft is still the front runner but, Twitter has apparently approached ByteDance to make the acquisition. The problem is that Twitter is worth around $30B which is almost the value of the Tik Tok assets being purchased here so, they would need to raise additional capital to make this deal happen. However, it looks like ByteDance doesn’t want to stay quiet, they will reportedly be filing a federal lawsuit in Southern California for the President’s “far-reaching action which is unconstitutional, based on pure speculation.” We’ll keep you posted to see what ends up happening here but, in the meantime Facebook already launched a copy cat with Instagram Reels because… it’s Facebook.Story of the day:
iPhone shipments could decline by up to 30% if Apple axes WeChat from App Store: Kuo
And finally, speaking of bans since it seems to be the major topic of discussion today, it looks like Apple will be affected by another ban too. There was recently an executive order, kind of like the one with Tik Tok, to end US transactions with WeChat and Tencent. And by the way, WeChat is like all our social media, chat and payment services baked in one, so for China it’s pretty much everything. Well, according to a new report from Ming Chi Kuo, Apple could suffer a lot from this as WeChat currently has 1.2B monthly users and banning it globally from the App Store would be catastrophic . He laid out different scenarios as to how this might affect iPhone sales, in the best case, shipments would be affected by 3%-6% but, in the worst-case scenario, iPhone shipments globally would decline by 25-30% and this also translates to other products like the Apple Watch, AirPods and even Macs. Kuo is even recommending that investors should reduce their stock holdings of companies in Apple’s Supply Chain due to the risks this WeChat ban. The order will apparently happen on September 20th so, let’s see what happens. Subscribe: http://bit.ly/pocketnowsub http://pocketnow.com Follow us: http://flipboard.com/@Pocketnow http://facebook.com/pocketnow http://twitter.com/pocketnow http://google.com/+pocketnowThe post Pocketnow Daily: iPhone Sales to FALL if WeChat is Banned? (video) appeared first on Pocketnow.
iPhone shipments could decline by up to 30% if Apple axes WeChat from App Store: Kuo
US President Donald Trump issued an executive order last week that prohibits any transactions related to WeChat by an American entity after September 20, effectively moving towards its potential removal from devices made by US brands. Now, noted analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has predicted that Apple’s global iPhone shipments could nosedive by 25–30% if the company removes WeChat from the App Store.
“Since WeChat is very critical to Chinese users, integrating communications, payments, e-Commerce, social software, news reading, and productivity functions, we believe that the move will tank iPhone shipments in the Chinese market. We estimate that global iPhone shipments will decline by 25–30%. Global shipments of other Apple hardware products, including AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and Mac, will decline by 15–25%,” Kuo mentioned in his report (via Macrumors).
WeChat has over a billion users and it is wildly popular in China where it is used for instant messaging and mobile payments among other services. And with China being one of the biggest markets for Apple, the sale of iPhones is expected to take a big hit in the country where the absence of WeChat from a smartphone will definitely be a red flag for many. However, Kuo notes that if WeChat is banned only in the US, the global iPhone shipment will ‘only’ take a 3-6% hit.
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